USA > Pennsylvania > Washington County > History of Washington County : from its first settlement to the present time, first under Virginia as Yohogania, Ohio, or Augusta County until 1781, and subsequently under Pennsylvania > Part 17
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The speaker said he would confine himself to a brief statement of facts, rather than attempt any formal or lengthy address. A town was laid out on the site of our present substantial and beautiful borough, in October of the year 1781, by David Hoge, and named Bassettown. Three years later it was sold to the two sons of its founder, and they gave it its present name in honor of the one who had just led a brave people to independence. In 1810 the little village obtained a borough charter. Favored by its fortu- nate location on the line of what was then the great national thoroughfare from East to West, its citizens enjoyed the privilege of greeting all the dis- tinguished statesmen of the West, on their journeys to and from the national capital. Almost on the very spot where we are gathered to-day her glad people extended a joyful greeting and cordial welcome, in succession, to Presidents Monroe, Jackson, John Quincy Adams, Harrison, Polk, and Taylor.
For twenty years past the railroads have whirled statesmen and traffic over other routes, leaving our town to a lagging inland growth; but the evidences of both public and private improvement, during the last year, seem laden with better hopes. The work on the public edifice with which the people had determined by their votes to ornament the public square, having progressed to the point of laying the corner stone, the borough authorities had wisely determined to deposit beneath that stone a box, con- taining contributed memorials of the present and the past, so that coming generations might learn our history to the present time, when these memo- rials shall come to light. With equal wisdom had they embraced the opportunity afforded by the presence of General Grant amongst us to have that collection of testimony to the future deposited by the hands of a no
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less distinguished personage than the President of the United States him- self. The speaker said there was a peculiar fitness in this feature of the ceremonies, in view of the fact that this was the first town named, after the first great struggle for independence, in honor of the illustrious hero who became the first President of the United States, and first Commander-in- Chief of her army and navy. What a happy thought was it, then, that secured on this pleasant occasion the presence and aid of the distinguished hero of the nation's last great struggle-the present, living successor of the good Washington, both as President and Commander-in-Chief.
The speaker, in conclusion, turned to President Grant, and addressed him as follows : " And now, most honored sir, the craftsmen having reported the foundation ready for the corner stone, and that stone being exactly squared and now ready to be placed in its proper position, by virtue of the authority of the Burgesses and Council of the borough of Washington, this box of memorials is delivered into your hands, to be deposited beneath it."
At the conclusion of Mr. Patterson's speech, the President silently took the box from the hands of Dr. Creigh and deposited it within the corner stone, after which the band struck up a lively tune, and the Committee of Reception escorted the President to the court room, where, after some introductory remarks by Messrs. Ewing and Hopkins, the citizens generally came forward and "shook hands." After remaining in the court room about an hour, the President retired to the residence of Mr. Wm. Smith.
List of articles which the box contained. and which was deposited in the corner stone (northeast corner) of the town hall, collected by Dr. Alfred Creigh :-
Borough Affairs .- Charter, by-laws, and ordinances of the borough of Washington ; roll of present officers elected April, 1869; roll of officers from 1810 to the present time, prepared by Alfred Creigh ; blank borough bonds, upon which funds were raised for the erection of the town hall ; carpenter work awarded to J. Noble Porter, with the names of all the car- penters ; mason and brickwork awarded to Andrew Brady, with the roll of his workmen ; the manufacture of the brick awarded to Andrew Ford-the pressed brick to Samuel Hutson-the oak timber to W. B. Cundall, and the tinwork to Jesse Jordan ; register of voters in the borough (also the names of all females owning property), with their respective occupations and residence ; letter of John D. Boyle, Chief Burgess, to his successor when the box shall be opened ; autograph of General U. S. Grant-letter from the Burgesses and Councilmen, and his reply, and notices of his arri- val and reception ; autographs of the President and Associate Judges of Washington County, together with those of the Prothonotary, Register, Recorder, Clerk of the Courts, Commissioners and their Clerk, with the impressions of the respective seals of each office, as well as the autographs of the Borough and County Treasurers, High Sheriff, and District Attor- ney ; list of pastors, church officers, and trustees of the churches of the borough ; list of the school directors of the Union school, with the name of the superintendent, as well as of the teachers and scholars, with their ages, including the colored school ; officers of the First National Bank of Wash- ington, with the seal; history of Washington cemetery ; catalogue of Washington Female Seminary, 1868-69; catalogue of Washington and Jefferson College, 1868-69 ; proceedings of semi-centennial celebration of Washington college in 1856 ; premium list of Washington County Agricul- tural Society, 1869 ; Directory of First Presbyterian church, with the his- tory of the Sabbath school from its organization ; forms used in the bank- ing houses of W. Smith & Son and Samuel Hazlett ; officers of the Wash- ington Gas Company ; specimen of men's and boys' wear in 1869, of woollen
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goods, presented by A. B. Caldwell & Co., and W. Smith & Son; specimen of ladies' dress goods, and three styles of bonnets as worn in 1869, and presented by A. B. Caldwell & Co .; engravings representing gentlemen's, boys' and girls' fashion of clothing and ladies' style of bonnets for 1869, by S. Shaler and Mrs. G. Lonkert ; specimen of domestic goods (for ladies) manufactured in Washington County ; specimen of every variety of paper collars, by Geo. Metzner & Co. ; specimens of Saxony wool, raised in Wash- ington County, and presented by Maj. Jacob Morgan, I. Y. Hamilton, and Col. S. Beatty ; style of carriage, buggies, and velocipede, by S. B. Hayes & Co .; style of mowers and reapers, with descriptive pamphlets, by J. T. Kirk ; specimen of sewing machines, with descriptive pamphlets, by J. T. Kirk ; a bottle of pure Monongahela rye whiskey, by J. C. Ruple; Insurance agencies in Washington, by David and J. Aiken ; specimen of cotton raised in Washington, by Miss Ellen Griffith; by-laws of Washington Lodge, 164, with its officers since 1819-of Washington Chapter, 150-of Council No. 1 of Royal and Select Masters-of Jacques DeMolay Commandary No. 3 of K. T. ; by-laws of Lodge 81 of I. O. O. F. ; by-laws of Harmony Lodge 575 of Good Templars, with a list of officers and members ; Jacob Gold- smith's advertisement ; specimen of cigars manufactured by W. L. Ruple ; autographs and history of Samuel Cunningham and George Freeby ; set of artificial teeth manufactured by Dr. S. Fulton.
Coins, Ancient and Modern .- This class consists of a great variety pre- sented by Miss Clara McCracken, R. M'Ilvaine Drury, A. C. Morrow, John Harter, David Aiken, W. H. Drury, John A. Templeton, J. R. Kelley, Jesse Jordan, and John Wilson; American coin ranging from 1776 to the present time.
Currency .- Bank of Washington and Franklin Bank of Washington, by D. S. Wilson, Esq. ; twelve and a half cent note issued by Frederick Mary- land in 1840, by J. A Templeton ; postal currency prior to April, 1868, by D. S. Wilson ; postal currency since April, 1868, by W. C. Wiley ; Con- federate money from $5 to $500, by J. A. Templeton ; Continental money, by Dr. W. S. Mitchell ; Continental money, by S. M. Hall.
General matters .- Specimen of the registry system of the Post Office Department, by W. C. Wiley ; seal of the State of Pennsylvania and of the Secretary of State, by D. S. Wilson ; blanks, &c., used in the U. S. Revenue office, by John E. Bell ; pamphlet containing acts on stamp duties, by J. B. Ruple ; National Tax law, by M. L. A. McCracken ; History of Washington County, title page and contents, by Alfred Creigh; An In- viting Call to the Children of Israel, by F. Hood; Pittsburg Business Directory of 1867, by John D. Boyle ; almanacs, religious and medical, by Messrs. C. M. Reed, F. Hood, S. M. and J. A. Templeton; Vicksburg paper at its surrender, by J. B. Ruple ; stamps placed on cigar boxes, by J. C. Ruple ; engraved plate of names, &c., by J. and S. Post ; History of Knighthood in two volumes, by Alfred Creigh.
Curiosities .- A piece of cloth from the pall of Henry Clay, deceased, by D. S. Wilson, Esq. ; a portion of the hair of Gen. Anthony Wayne, who died in 1796, by D. S. Wilson, Esq .; a piece from the weeping willow which hangs over the grave of Napoleon at St. Helena; a shell from the Bay of Biscay ; a piece of the great tree in California, a Japanese writing desk, and some postal rebel stamps, by J. R. Kelley, Esq. ; two pair of revolutionary shoe-buckles, by W. T. Creigh.
Newspapers .- Western Telegraph, edited by Colerick & Co., of 1797 Washington Examiner of 1829, by John Grayson; Our Country of 1840, by T. J. Morgan ; the Tiny Buffer of 1840, by W. Duane Morgan ; Wash- ington Examiner of 1843, by T. W. Grayson; and the Loco Foco of 1844,
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by R. W. Jones, presented by Messrs. Swan & Ecker ; the American Union of 1856, by J. B. Musser ; Washington Examiner of 1860, by A. H. Ecker and J. R. Donehoo; Washington Review of 1866, by Wm. Swan; and Washington Tribune of 1865, presented by W. T. Creigh; Washington Review and Examiner of September 14, 1869, and Washington Reporter of September 14, 1869 ; The Revolution, by Mrs. Cady, and Harper's Bazar, by Geo. Metzner.
WASHINGTON AND JEFFERSON COLLEGE.
On the 24th of September, 1787, the legislature of Pennsylvania passed an act incorporating and endowing Washington Academy. The trustees were Rev. John McMillan, Rev. Joseph Smith, Rev. Thaddeus Dodd, Rev. John Clark, Rev. Mr. Henderson, Rev. John Corby, Judge Allison, and J. McDowell, Col. Marshall, and Thomas Scott. On the 15th of December following, Thomas Scott and Col. Marshall, two of the trustees, addressed a letter to Benjamin Frank- lin, as President of the Supreme Executive Council, respectfully so- liciting the warrant for 500 acres of the donation lands which were appropriated by the legislature, and also requesting him to direct the surveyor-general to lay off these lands, which were located in what is now known as Beaver County, and were sold to James Alli- son about 1835.
In 1789 the Academy went into operation with twenty students under Rev. Thaddeus Dodd, who was its first principal, in the upper rooms of the court-house. He continued to teach until the winter of 1790, when he returned to his congregation in Amwell township, where he had previously opened a classical school in 1782, the first institution west of the Allegheny Mountains in the great valley of the Mississippi. James Hughes, John Brice, Daniel Lindley, Robert Marshall, and Francis Dunlaney were his first scholars; the school house was near his dwelling. It continued in operation three and a half years. His successor in 1790 was Mr. David Johnston, who, upon the destruction of the court-house, accepted the situation in the Canonsburg Academy, as its first principal, in July, 1791. June 14, 1796, Mr. James Dobbins, of York, was elected and served un- til 1804, when Benjamin Mills became the principal, who officiated as such until Washington Academy was incorporated into a college.
In 1790, Benjamin Franklin, Esq., presented to the Board of Trus- tees fifty pounds, to be applied to the purchasing of a library, which was the foundation of the college library.
On November 19, 1792, William Hoge, Esq., for the love he bears to useful learning, and for the promotion of the useful arts, sci- ences, and literature, presented to the trustees of Washington Acad- emy four lots of ground, being 240 feet square, in the eastern extremity of said town, bounded on the east by the outside line of the town (now College Street), on the south by Belle Street, on the west by lot No. 104, and on the north by Cherry Alley, fronting on Belle Street 240 feet, and running back to Cherry Alley 240 feet,
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being lots numbered on the plan of the town, 105, 106, 107, and 108. These lots are the southeast corner of the present college campus, which, however, now embraces two entire squares, bounded by Beau Street on the north, Belle Street on the south, College Street on the east, and Second Street on the west, containing fourteen lots from No. 102 to 115 both inclusive. I shall enumerate these lots and from whom purchased or derived by gift, in their order.
No. 102 was the gift of David S. Wilson, Collin M. Reed, Joseph Mc- Knight, Joseph Henderson, Esqs., and Dr. Thomas McKennan.
103 and 104 were purchased by the trustees, May 9, 1833, from John Sheaffer, Esq.
105, 106, 107, and 108 was the gift of William Hoge, November 19, 1792, being the original academy grounds.
109 was purchased from David Shields, August 4, 1835.
¥ 110 was purchased from Daniel Moore, October 23, 1837.
111 was purchased from Henry Langly, executor of Samuel Marshall, deceased, July 1, 1835.
112 was purchased from George Mitchell, March 27, 1837.
113 was purchased from Rev. David Elliott, June 27, 1836.
" 114 was purchased from John Wilson (carpenter), January 10, 1838.
115 was purchased from the School Directors, March 8, 1837.
To these lots were added Cherry Alley, which separated the two squares. The college campus has a front of 500 feet by 420 in depth, or about five acres.
April 8, 1793, the trustees were authorized by the legislature to locate all or any part of the granted lands westward of the Alle- gheny and Ohio rivers.
In 1793 the trustees erected buildings on the four original lots (105, 106, 107, 108), thirty by thirty-five feet, two stories high, for the use of the Academy. This is the centre part of the southern block of buildings. The hall in this building was originally used by the Presbyterians as a place of worship.
February 16, 1796, the trustees made application to the legisla- ture, praying for a donation to ereet additional buildings. On the 2d of May, 1797, the legislature generously donated three thousand dollars to complete the buildings, on the condition that ten indigent students should be educated for a period not exceeding two years each.
WASHINGTON COLLEGE.
On March 21, 1806, Washington College was incorporated and all the property belonging to the Academy was vested in the trustees of the college and their successors Depending on its own resources, the college, under judicious management, prospered, and so grati- fied were the friends of literature throughout the State, that the legislature, in 1820, granted a donation of five thousand dollars, payable in annual payments of one thousand dollars each.
This was followed in 1831 by another donation of five hundred
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dollars annually, for five years, to qualify young men for the higher duties of life, and especially qualify such as should become teachers.
WASHINGTON COLLEGE AS A SYNODICAL COLLEGE.
On November 9, 1852, by an agreement between the Board of Trustees and the Synod of Wheeling, Washington College became a SYNODICAL College, by which the trustees and professors were first nominated by the synod and were required to be confirmed by the trustees. The synod was also required to keep the college in operation by means of a permanent endowment fund, but the pro- perty was to remain in the hands of the trustees as heretofore, under the charter.
It will be proper at this time to give the plan of this endowment fund. It was placed under the control and management of a board of seven members, the corporate style being " The Board of Trus- tees of the College Endowment Fund of the Synod of Wheeling." It was chartered by the State of Ohio. Its treasury was established at Steubenville, and the proceeds were to be paid to the trustees of the college.
The plan of endowment was as follows :-
.
1. Twenty-five dollars paid shall entitle the subscriber to two years' tuition in any department of the college.
2. Fifty dollars paid shall entitle the subscriber to the tuition of one sto- dent during the entire course in the college proper. or to four years' tuition of one student in such departments of the institution as he may prefer.
3. One hundred dollars paid shall entitle the subscriber to a family scholarship, embracing the tuition of all his sons during the entire course in the college proper, or to four years' tuition of each of his sons, in such department of the institution as he may prefer; and for every additional one hundred dollars paid he shall have the privilege of designating the sons of any additional family he may choose.
4. Two hundred dollars paid by an individual, association, or congrega- tion, shall entitle said individual, association, or congregation, to a perpetual scholarship, transferable, as other property, to which the subscriber or sub- scribers may appoint any individual whom they may select.
5. Five hundred dollars paid shall entitle the subscriber or subscribers to a perpetual scholarship transferable as other property.
The subscription upon this endowment was not to be considered as bind- ing until sixty thousand dollars shall be subscribed, when certificates should be issued by the trustees of the college endowment fund.
In pursuing this history we shall next take up the action of the Board of Trustees of Washington College, held September 6, 1864, who passed the following preamble and resolutions :-
WHEREAS, The Synod of Wheeling, with which Washington Col- lege is connected, and several other synods of the Presbyterian church, in October last, made a formal and earnest proposition to the trustees of Jefferson and Washington colleges for the union of these two institutions upon some equitable basis, accompanying the
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said proposal with an offer, pledged by a responsible person, of $50,000 towards the endowment of the united college, and further proposed that the question of the location of the college proper, rendered difficult by local interests and feelings, be left to the deci- sion of a disinterested and impartial board of arbitrators to be chosen jointly.
AND WHEREAS, The public mind seems now more than ever not only to approve but to demand such an union for the sake of the claims of education in this region of country :
Therefore this Board deem it due to themselves and to all con- cerned, without the slightest design to reflect upon any other party, to make known the fact that at a meeting held shortly subsequent to the reception of the proposition of the synod, they, by a unanimous vote, accepted the proposition with its conditions, agreeing to abide by any decision of the question thus fairly made. Also to declare that after a conference of a committee appointed by this Board with a like committee of the Board of Jefferson College on the subject of the proposed union, which was fruitless of success, owing to the declared unwillingness of the Jefferson Board to submit the question of location to the judgment of any persons outside of their own body, or in any way to imperil the interests of Canonsburg in regard to this question, or even to negotiate at all, except on the admitted condition that the college proper shall be located at that place. We are still, as we have from the first been, willing to adopt the pro- posal of disinterested arbitrament as originally made, and to join in asking such legislative sanction of a settlement so made, as the nature of the case may require ; and farther, to set it forth as the deliberate judgment of this Board in harmony with the public voice, that the interests of education, as well as of the State and church, would be promoted by a proper union of these two colleges.
1. Resolved, That in order that the attitude of the Board in regard to the question at issue may not be misunderstood, the Sec- retary be'directed to report the foregoing statement to the Synod of Wheeling, and also to publish the same in the Presbyterian Banner.
2. Resolved, That the Board approve the action of the faculty and local trustees in proposing to the faculty and local trustees of Jefferson College to unite in an effort to obtain a portion of the State agricultural fund on condition of a union of the colleges as calcu- lated to facilitate the desirable end in the manner proposed by the synods.
WASHINGTON AND JEFFERSON COLLEGES CONSOLIDATED.
It may justly be remarked that from the year 1807 the records of the trustees of Jefferson and Washington colleges (situated but seven miles apart, the former at Canonsburg and the latter at Wash- ington), looked forward to a united college. It is unnecessary in a work of this character to go into the details of the consolidation ;
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suffice it to say, that to accomplish the consolidation of these two rival institutions, the Rev. Dr. C. C. Beatty, of Steubenville, in 1864, proposed to give fifty thousand dollars if a union were effected. The trustees and alumni of both institutions, after preliminary meetings, were fully convinced of its necessity, and labored incessantly to bring about the desired union, and to enable the reader to judge impar- tially and decide for himself upon the merits of the initiative pro- ceedings, we give the following preliminary proceedings, which eventuated in their consolidation.
On September 7th, 1864, the Alumni Association of Washington College held its annual meeting. The records of that body are given in these words: "The Rev. Francis J. Collier, of Canonsburg, ap- peared as one of a committee appointed by the Alumni Association of Jefferson College, and presented the following series of resolutions adopted by that body touching a union of Washington and Jefferson colleges."
1. Resolved, That the good of the community, the cause of education, and the welfare of the country, and the best interests of the kingdom of Christ imperatively demand the union of Washington and Jefferson colleges.
2. Resolved, That it is with profound gratification that we learn that a plan has been agreed upon by the officers of the colleges depending for its consummation upon the appropriation by the legislature of the State, of a liberal portion of the funds for agricultural colleges and their nse.
3. Resolved, That in view of the fact stated, we hereby respectfully and earnestly petition the legislature of the State to take early and liberal action in this behalf. So far as we can understand the case, justice does seem to demand that no small part of the funds in the hands of the legisla- ture for distribution ought to be appropriated for the benefit of this part of the State.
4. Resolved, That a committee of three be appointed to present these resolutions to the Alumni Association of Washington College, and in con- nection with a committee from that association, to the Board of Trustees of the colleges and to the legislature.
The committees appointed in pursuance of this 4th resolution were, Rev. George P. Hay, of Baltimore, Rev. F. J. Collier, of Canons- burg, and R. B. Patterson, Esq., of Greensburg, on behalf of the Jefferson Alumni.
The Rev. James I. Brownson, W. S. Moore, and Hon. Robert R. Reed, of Washington, on behalf of the Washington Alumni.
The following is the action of the Washington Alumni Associa- tion :-
WHEREAS, at a meeting of the Alumni of Jefferson College, on the 3d of August last, it was resolved, " that the good of the community, the cause of education, the welfare of the country, and the best interests of the king- dom of Christ imperatively demand the union of Washington and Jefferson colleges"-AND WHEREAS, it is understood that committees of the Boards of Trustees of the two colleges have lately been appointed to confer on the subject of union, but after trial have failed thus far to agree upon a plan of union-AND WHEREAS, a wish has been expressed at this meeting in behalf of
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the Alumni of Jefferson College, by one of their number acting as a mem- ber of a committee appointed for that purpose, for our co-operation in efforts to bring about the desired consummation-therefore
Resolved, That inasmuch as a suggestion has been made through the papers, of a convention of the Alumni of both colleges to assemble at an early day in the city of Pittsburg, for the consideration of the whole sub- ject of the union, this association heartily approve such suggestion.
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