.-i'' * 
 
 . . ^ <v 
 
 
 
 ^^ 
 
 
 
 
 ■a? •^ 
 
 -."^ .<^' 
 
 
 .0 
 
 
 
 ,-^ ^j^i^^C- ^ 
 
 t? '^ 
 
 
 >\ -.^^^ ^'^ "^^v^^ ^^ •-!«?/ y^ 
 
 
 .^^ 
 
 
 
 o « o 
 
 
 
 .^/V,*o '^<^ ^-^y 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 S 
 
 
 i:^ \,.^'' ::^%i/^'^ v/ /.^:v ^-^ 
 
 
 .0 
 
 ,*^ 
 
 
 
 
 .^^^ 
 
 
 
 
 <:^ 
 
 ^^-^^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
^\\<^ — »^ 
 
 A 
 
 HI8T0EY 
 
 OF. 
 
 SUMMIT COUNTY, 
 
 "WITH -A-IsT CCTTLIITE SICETCH 0:F; 
 
 OHIO. 
 
 i^ 
 
 EDITED BY WILLIAM HENRY PERRIN 
 
 'i 
 
 II_iILjXJSTK.A.TEID. 
 
 7/> ^<^J 
 
 CHICAGO : 
 
 BASKIN & BATTEY, HISTORICAL PUBLISHERS, 
 
 1 86 Dearborn Street. 
 
 ^ 
 
 <s r- 
 
 :rv* 
 
Call No. 
 
 Author 
 
 Title 
 
 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS - BINDING RECORD 
 
 F497.S9P4 r^„.. 10-21-76 
 
 Date 
 
 PERRIN 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY, OHIO 
 
 No. of vols. 
 
 24-24 (rev 4/72) 
 

 PREFACE 
 
 ;;75i 
 
 i^'M'yVUE history of Summit County, after '. onths of arduous toil, is now completed. 
 
 ,vv 
 
 (/^p.„ Every important field of research has been minutely scanned by those engaged 
 '^^''^^^ in its preparation; no subject of universal public value has been omitted, save 
 where protracted effort failed to secure trustworthy results. The necessarily limited natiu'e 
 of the work, the impossibility of ingrafting upon its pages, the vast fund of the county's 
 historic information, and the proper omission of many valueless details and events, have 
 compelled the publishers to be brief on all subjects presented. Fully aware of om- inabil- 
 ity to furnish a perfect history from meager public documents, inaccm-ate private corre- 
 spondence and numberless conflicting traditions, we make no pretension of having prepared 
 a work devoid of blemish. Through the courtesy and the generous assistance met with 
 everywhere, we have been enabled to rescue fi'om oblivion the greater portion of important 
 events that have transpired in Summit County in past years. We feel assured that all 
 thoughtful people ir^ the county, at present and in future, will recognize and appreciate the 
 importance of the undertaking, and the gi^eat public benefit that has been accomplished. 
 
 It will be observed that a dry statement of fact has been avoided; and that the rich 
 romance of border incident has been woven in with statistical details, thus foiming an 
 attractive and graphic narrative, and lending beauty to the mechanical execution of the 
 volume, and additional value to it as a work for perusal. We claim superior excellence in 
 our manner of collecting material; in the division of the subject matter into distinct and 
 appropriate chapters; in giving a separate chapter to every town, township and important 
 subject, and in the systematic arrangement of the individual chapters. ^Tiile we acknowl- 
 edge the existence of unavoidable errors, we claim to have prepared a work fully up to the 
 standard of our promises, and as accui-ate and comprehensive as could be expected under 
 
 the circumstances. 
 
 THE PUBLISHEKS. 
 
 May, 1881. 
 
 :v 
 
J^'. 
 
 y_ 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PART I. 
 HISTOKY OF THE STATE OF OHIO. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. — Introductory — Topography— Geology — Primitive 
 
 Races — Antiquities — Indian Tribes 11 
 
 CHAPTER II.— Explorations in the West 19 
 
 CHAPTER III.— English Explorations— Traders— French and 
 
 Indian War in theWest — English Possession 37 
 
 CHAPTER IV. — Pontlac's Conspiracy — Its Failure — Bouquet's 
 
 Expedition— Occupation by the English 48 
 
 CHAPTER V. — American Exploration — Dunmore's War — Cam- 
 paign of George Rogers Clarke — Land Troubles — Spain in 
 the Revolution — Murder of the Moravian Indians 52 
 
 CHAPTER VI. — American Occupation — Indian Claims — Early 
 Land Companies — Compact of 1787 — Organization of the 
 Territory — Early American Settlements in the Ohio Val- 
 ley — First Territorial OflScers — Organization of Counties... 60 
 
 CHAPTER VII.— Indian War of 1795— Harmar's Campaign— 
 St. Clair's Campaign — Wayne's Campaign — Close of the 
 War 73 
 
 CHAPTER VIII.— Jay's Treaty— The Question of State Rights 
 and National Supremacy — Extension of Ohio Settlements 
 — Land Claims — Spanish Boundary Question 79 
 
 CHAPTER IX. — First Territorial Representatives in Congress 
 — Division of the Territory — Formation of States — Mari- 
 etta Settlement — Other Settlements — Settlements in the 
 Western Reserve — Settlement of the Central Valleys — 
 Further Settlements in the Reserve and Elsewhere 85 
 
 CHAPTER X.— Formation of the State Government— Ohio a 
 State — The State Capitals — Legislation — The " Sweeping" 
 Resolutions 121 
 
 CHAPTER XI.— The War of 1812— Growth of the State— Canal, 
 Railroads and other Improvements — Development of State 
 Resources 127 
 
 CHAPTER XII.— Mexican War— Continued Growth of the State 
 
 —War of the Rebellion— Ohio's Part in the Conflict 132 
 
 CHAPTER XIII.— Ohio in the Centennial— Address of Edward 
 
 D. Mansfield, L.L D., Philadelphia, August 9, 1876 138 
 
 CHAPTER XIV.— Education— Eariy School Laws— Notes— In- 
 stitutions and Educational Journals — School System — 
 School Funds — Colleges and Universities 148 
 
 CHAPTER XV.— Agriculture— Area of the State— Early Agri- 
 culture in the West — Markets — Live Stock — Nurseries, 
 Fruits, etc. — Cereals, Root and Cucurbitaceous Crops — 
 Agricultural Implements — Agricultural Societies — Pomo- 
 
 logical and Horticultural Societies 151 
 
 CHAPTER XVL— Climatology— Outline— Variation in Ohio- 
 Estimate in Degrees — Amount of Variability 163 
 
 CHAPTER XVII.— Public Lands— Early Contest on Bight of 
 Soil and Jurisdiction — The Western Reserve — Origin and 
 Organization— Social and Material Growth 165 
 
 PART II. 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER I.— Introductory— Physical Features— Geological 
 Structure— The Different Shales — Coal Measures — Agri- 
 culture and Agricultural Societies — Statistics, etc 181 
 
 CHAPTER II— Prehistoric Races— Traces and Relics of the 
 Mound Builders — The Indian Tribes — Their Occupa- 
 tion of Summit County — Sketches of Them — The Bor- 
 der Wars 207 
 
 CHAPTER III.— Settlement and Organization of the County- 
 Its Civil Divisions — The Early Judiciary — County Build- 
 ings — Their Cost and Character — Officials, etc 226 
 
 CHAPTER IV.— War Record— Our Struggle for Independence 
 —1812— The Mexican War— Our Late Civil War- 
 Sketches of Regiments — Aid Societies — Monuments, etc.. 249 
 
 CHAPTER v.— Religious— The Gospel on the Frontier— A 
 Tax for its Support — Educational — School Statistics — The 
 County Press — Railroads, Canals, etc 271 
 
 CHAPTER VI.— The Professions— Early Lawyers— Summit 
 County Bar— The Lawyers of the Present — Medical — ^ 
 Pioneer Doctors — Early Practice — The Modern Physi-- Se 
 cians 301 
 
 CHAPTER VII.— Portage Township— Descriptive and Topo- 
 graphical — Coming of the Pioneers — Their Primitive 
 Life — Development of Resources — Schools, Churches, etc. 321 
 
 CHAPTER VIII.— City of Akron— Original Plat— Ita Growth 
 as a Village — An Incorporated City — Municipal Govern- 
 ment — Statistics — Secret and Other Societies .330 
 
 CHAPTER IX.— City of Akron— Its Manufactuiing Interests 
 — Their Growth and Development — The Buckeye Reaper 
 — Potteries — Mills — Other Establishments 344 
 
 CHAPTER X.— City of Akron— Religious History— Early 
 Christianity and Pioneer Preachers — Advancement of 
 the Gospel — Churches of the Present Day — Sabbath 
 Schools, etc 366 
 
 CHAPTER XL— City of Akron— Formation of the Public 
 Schools — Akron School Law — Present Educational Facili- 
 ties—Sketch of Buchtel College 381 
 
 CHAPTER XII.— Town of Middlebury— Its Settlement— Early 
 Glory and Importance — Water Power— Growth of Manu- 
 facturing Industries— Present Business 399 
 
 CHAPTER XIII.— Hudson Township— Its Early History- 
 Topograpy — The Settlement by the Whites — Pioneer In- 
 cidents — Growth and Development of Industries 409 
 
 CHAPTERXIV.— Hudson Township— Early Society— Organiza- 
 tion— Tlie Village of Hudson Laid Out — Its Business and 
 Growth — Religious and Educational 426 
 
 CHAPTER XV.— Hudson Village — Educational Institutions- 
 Location of College — Questions of Difference — OflBcers and 
 Faculty — Libiary, Preparatory School, etc 446 
 
 y\: 
 
 ■^ 
 
^1 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI.— Cuyahoga Falls— Settlement by Whites- 
 Early History — Grottoes, Caverns and Kavines — Organiza- 
 tion as a Township — Its Officers, etc., etc 466 
 
 CHAPTER XVII.— Cuyahoga Falls— Growth and Prosperity- 
 Manufacturing Interests — Incorporation — Schools and 
 Teachers — Religious — Sketches of the Churches 478 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII.— Northampton Township— Descriptive- 
 Early History and Settlement — Development of Re- 
 sources — Early Schools — Statistics — Religious — Dififerent 
 Churches 497 
 
 CH.APTER XIX.— Stow Township— Description and Topog- 
 raphy — The Whites — Improvement and Development — 
 Villages — Religious — Educational, etc 511 
 
 CHAPTER XX.— Coventry Township — Topographical — Boun- 
 daries — Lakes — The Palefaces — Their Life in the Wilder- 
 ness — Industries — Schools and Churches 521 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. — Boston Township — Its Ownership— General 
 Description — Occupancy of the Whites — Unlawful Opera- 
 tions — Towns — Educational, etc 532 
 
 CHAPTER XXII.— Springfield Township— General Description 
 — Wealth and Resources — Coal Mines — The Palefaces — 
 Pioneer Industries — Schools and Teachers — Religious 545 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII.— Tallmadge Township— Physical Features 
 —Early History — The Whites — Pioneer Vicissitudes — 
 Growth and Prosperity — Schools, Churches, etc 552 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV.— Northfield Township— Its Physical Geo- 
 graphy — Settlement by the Whites— Growth and Im- 
 provement — Statistical — Religious — Villages 567 
 
 CHAPTER XXV.— Norton Township— Descriptive and Topo- 
 graphical — White' Settlement — Pioneer Industries — Ad- 
 vancement in Civilization — Schools and Teachers — 
 Churches — The Villages, etc 578 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI.— Green Township— Physical Features- 
 Original Boundaries — Pioneer Occupancy — The Germans 
 — Growth and Development — Villages — Churches and 
 Schools .593 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII.— Richfield Township— General Description 
 — Coming of the AVhites — Growth and Prosperity — Pion- 
 neer Industries — Schools and Teachers — Christianity, 
 etc 608 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII.— Bath Township— Boundaries and Topog- 
 raphy — White Settlement — Wealth and Prosperity — 
 Pioneer Achievements — Churches and Preachers — 
 Schools, etc 617 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX.— Franklin Township— Topographicdl— 
 Early History — Coming of the Pioneers — Early Improve- 
 ments and Industries — A'illages — Scliools, Churches, etc... 627 
 
 CHAPTER XXX.— Copley Township- Descriptive and Topo- 
 graphical — The White Settlement — Early Industries — 
 Their Growth and Development— Educational and Re- 
 ligious 639 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI.— Twinsburg Township— Description and 
 Early Features — The Coming of the Whites — Pioneer 
 Improvements — Anecdotes — Educational and Religious.... 649 
 
 PART III. 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. pj^^^ 
 
 Akron, City of. 661 
 
 Bath Township 1014 
 
 Boston Township 891 
 
 Copley Township 1026 
 
 Coventry Township 876 
 
 Cuyahoga Falls Township 841 
 
 Franklin Township '. 1026 
 
 Green Township 08u 
 
 Hudson Township K23 
 
 Northampton Township 853 
 
 Northfield Township. : 933 
 
 Norton Township 963 
 
 Portage Township - , 806 
 
 Richfield Township 997 
 
 Springfield Township 908 
 
 Stow Township 863 
 
 Tallmadge Township 920 
 
 Twinsburg Township 1039 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 POKTR.4ITS. 
 
 PAOK. 
 
 Ailing, Ethan (Biography on page 1039) 648 
 
 Buchtel, John 440 
 
 I'osworth, Delos (Biography on page 1029) 616 
 
 Burgess, Joseph (Biography on page 965) 632 
 
 Brewster, Alexander (Biography on page 682) 504 
 
 Brown, C. W. (Biography on page 679) 488 
 
 Crotzer, William F. (Biography on page 910) £R8 
 
 Cotter, A. L. (Biography on page 687) 520 
 
 Conger, A. L. (Biography on page 695) 424 
 
 Crouse, G. W. (Biography on page 694) 472 
 
 Emmitt, William (Biography on page 699) 544 
 
 Hill, John (Biography on page 909) 584 
 
 Hine, Daniel (Biography on page 024) 600 
 
 Lane, S. A. (Biography on page 728) 228 
 
 Miller, George (Biography on page 815) 32i> 
 
 Miller, Lewis (Biography on page 739) 5:^6 
 
 Quigley, Martin (Biography on page 760) 408 
 
 Sumner, I. (Biography on page 767) 260 
 
 Sumner, J. A. (Biography on page 767) 456 
 
 Sumner, Charles (Biography on page 769) 292 
 
 Stone, N. B. (Biography on page 766) 376 
 
 Schumacher, Ferd. (Biography on page 771) 344 
 
 Taplin, J. B. (Biography on page 784) 392 
 
 Voris, A. C. (Biography on page 786' 360 
 
 Wright, Amos (Biograjihy on page 932) 552 
 
 VIEAVS. 
 Summit County Court House 180 
 
liL 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 BY A.. A.. GR-A-IiAJVt 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY —TOPOGRAPHY -GEOLOGY —PRIMITIVE -RACES —ANTIQUITIES —INDIAN 
 
 TRIBES. 
 
 THE present State of Ohio, comprisins; an 
 extent of country 210 miles north and south, 
 220 miles east and west, in length and breadth — 
 25,576,969 acres— is a part of the Old Northwest 
 Territory. This Territoiy embraced all of the 
 present States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, 
 Wisconsin and so much of Minnesota as lies east 
 of the Mississippi River. It became a corporate 
 existence soon after the formation of the Virginia 
 Colony, and when that colony took on the dignity 
 of State government it became a county thereof, 
 whose exact outline was unknown. The county 
 embraced in its limits more territoiy than is com- 
 prised in all the New England and Middle States, 
 and was the largest county ever known in the 
 United States. It is watered by the finest system 
 of rivers on the globe ; while its inland seas are 
 without a parallel. Its entire southern boundary 
 is traversed by the beautiful Ohio, its western by 
 the majestic Mississippi, and its northern and a 
 part of its eastern are bounded by the fresh-water 
 lakes, whose clear waters preserve an even temper- 
 ature over its entire surface. Into these reservoirs 
 of commerce flow innumerable streams of limpid 
 water, which come from glen and dale, from 
 mountain and valley, from forest and prairie — all 
 avenues of health, commerce and prosperity. 
 Ohio is in the best part of this territory — south 
 of its river are tropical heats ; north of Lake Erie 
 are polar snows and a polar climate. 
 
 The territory comprised in Ohio has always re- 
 mained the same. Ohio's history differs somewhat 
 from other States, in that it was never under Ter- 
 ritorial government. When it was created, it was 
 made a State, and did not pass through the stage 
 incident to the most of other States, i. e., exist a.s 
 a Territory before being advanced to the powers of 
 
 a State. Such was not the case with the other 
 States of the West ; all were Territories, with Terri- 
 torial forms of government, ere they became States. 
 
 Ohio's boundaries are, on the north, Lake Eria, 
 and Michigan ; on the west, Indiana ; on the south, 
 the Ohio River, separating it from Kentucky; 
 and, on the east, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. 
 It is situated between 38° 25' and 42° north 
 latitude ; and 80° 30' and 84° 50' west longitude 
 from Greenwich, or 3° 30' and 7° 50' west from 
 Washington. Its greatest length, from north 
 to south, is 210 miles; the extreme width, from 
 east to west, 220 miles. Were this an exact out- 
 line, the area of the State would be 46,200 square 
 miles, or 29,568,000 acres ; as the outlines of the 
 State are, however, rather irregular, the area is 
 estimated at 39,964 square miles, or 25,576,960 
 acres. In the last census — 1870 — the total num- 
 ber of acres in Ohio is given as 21,712,420, of 
 which 14,469,132 acres are improved, and 6,883,- 
 575 acres are woodland. By the last statistical 
 report of the State Auditor, 20,965,371 f acres are 
 reported as taxable lands. This omits many acres 
 untaxable for various reasons, which would make the 
 estimate, 25,576,960, nearly correct. 
 
 The face of the country, in Ohio, taken as a 
 whole, presents the appearance of an extensive 
 monotonous plain. It is moderately undulating 
 but not mouufainous, and is excavated in places by 
 the streams coursing over its surface, whose waters 
 have forced a way for themselves through cliffs of 
 sandstone rock, lca^^ng abutments of this material 
 in bold outline. There are no mountain ranges, 
 geological uplifts or peaks. A low ridge enters the 
 State, near the northeast corner, and crosses it in a 
 southwesterly direction, emerging near the inter- 
 section of the 40th decree of north latitude with 
 
the western boundary of the State. This " divide " 
 separates the lake and Ohio River v?aters, and main- 
 tains an elevation of a little more than thirteen 
 hundred feet above the level of the ocean. The 
 highest part is in Logan County, where the eleva- 
 tion is 1,550 feet. 
 
 North of this ridge the surface is generally level, 
 with a gentle inclination toward the lake, the ine- 
 qualities of the surface being caused by the streams 
 which empty into the lake. The central part of 
 Ohio is almost, in general, a level plain, about one 
 thousand feet above the level of the sea, slightly 
 inclining southward. The Southern part of the 
 State is rather hilly, the valleys growing deeper as 
 they incline toward the great valley of the Ohio, 
 which is several hundred feet below the general 
 level of the State. In the southern counties, the 
 surfice is generally diversified by the inequalities 
 produced by the excavating power of the Ohio 
 River and its tributaries, exercised through long 
 periods of time. There are a few prairies, or plains, 
 in the central and northwestern parts of the State, 
 but over its greater portion originally existed im- 
 mense growths of timber. 
 
 The " divide," or water-shed, referred to, between 
 the waters of Lake Erie and the Ohio River, is 
 less elevated in Ohio than in New York and Penn- 
 sylvania, though the difference is small. To a per- 
 son passing over the State in a balloon, its surface 
 presents an unvarymg plain, while, to one sailing 
 down the Ohio River, it appears mountainous. 
 On this river are bluffs ranging from two hundred 
 and fifty to six hundred feet in height. As one 
 ascends the tributaries of the river, these bluffs 
 diminish in height until they become gentle undu- 
 lations, while toward the sources of the streams, 
 in the central part of the State, the banks often 
 become low and marshy. 
 
 The principal rivers are the Ohio, Muskingum, 
 Scioto and Miami, on the southern slope, emptying 
 into the Ohio ; on the northern, the Maumee, 
 Sandusky, Huron and Cuyahoga, emptying into 
 Lake Erie, and, all but the first named, entirely in 
 Ohio. 
 
 The Ohio, the chief river of the State, and from 
 which it derives its name, with its tributaries, drains 
 a country whose area is over two hundred thousand 
 sfpiare miles in extent, and extending from the 
 water-shed to Alabama. The river was first dis- 
 covered by La Salle in 1669, and was by him nav- 
 igated as far as the Falls, at Louisville, Ky. It is 
 formed by the junction of the Alleghany and 
 Monongahela rivers, in Pennsylvania, whose waters 
 
 unite at Pittsburgh. The entire length of the 
 river, from its source to its mouth, is 950 miles, 
 though by a straight line from Pittsburgh to Cairo, 
 it is only 615 miles. Its current is very gentle, 
 hardly three miles per hour, the descent being only 
 five inches per mile. At high stages, the rate of 
 the current increases, and at low stages decreases. 
 Sometimes it is barely two miles per hour. The 
 average range between high and low water mark is 
 fifty feet, although several times the river has risen 
 more than sixty feet above low water mark. At 
 the lowest stage of the river, it is fordable many 
 places between Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. The 
 river abounds in islands, some of which are exceed- 
 ingly fertile, and noted in the history of the West. 
 Others, known as " tow-heads," are simply deposits 
 of sand. 
 
 The Scioto is one of the largest inland streams 
 in the State, and is one of the most beautiful riv- 
 ers. It rises in Hardin County, flows southeast- 
 erly to Columbus, where it receives its largest 
 affluent, the Olentangy or Whetstone, after which 
 its direction is southerly until it enters the Ohio at 
 Portsmouth. It flows through one of the rich- 
 est valleys in the State, and has for its compan- 
 ion the Ohio and Erie Canal, for a distance of 
 ninety miles. Its tributaries are, besides the Whet- 
 stone, the Darby, Walnut and Paint Creeks. 
 
 The Muskingum River is formed by the junc- 
 tion of the Tuscarawas and Waldhoning Rivers, 
 which rise in the northern part of the State and 
 unite at Coshocton. From the junction, the river 
 flows in a southeastern course about one hundred 
 miles, through a rich and populous valley, to the 
 Ohio, at Marietta, the oldest settlement in the 
 State. At its outlet, the Muskingum is over two 
 hundred yards wide. By improvements, it has 
 been made navigable ninety-five miles above Mari- 
 etta, as far as Dresden, where a side cut, three 
 miles long, unites its waters with those of the Ohio 
 Canal. All along this stream exist, in abundant 
 profusion, the remains of an ancient civiliza- 
 tion, whose history is lost in the twilight of antiq- 
 uity. Extensive mounds, earthworks and various 
 fortifications, are everywhere to be found, inclosing 
 a mute history as silent as the race that dwelt here 
 and left these traces of their evistence. The same 
 may be said of all the other valleys in Ohio. 
 
 The Miami River — the scenes of many exploits 
 in pioneer days — rises in Hardin County, near the 
 headwaters of the Scioto, and runs southwesterly, 
 to the Ohio, passing Troy, Dayton and Hamilton. 
 It is a beautiful and ra])id stream, flowing through 
 
 :?■ 
 
>^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 13 
 
 a highly productive and populous valley, in which 
 limestone and hard timb'jr are abundant. Its total 
 length is about one hunared and fifty miles. 
 
 The Maumee is the largest river in the northern 
 part of Ohio. It rises in Indiana and flows north- 
 easterly, into Lake Ene. About eighty miles of 
 its course are in Ohio. It is navigable as far as 
 Perrysburg, eighteen miles from its mouth. The 
 other rivers north of the divide are all small, 
 rapid-running streams, affording a large amount of 
 good water-power, much utilized by mills and man- 
 ufactories. 
 
 A remarkable feature of the topography of 
 Ohio is its almost total absence of natural lakes or 
 ponds. A few very small ones are found near the 
 water-shed, but all too small to be of any practical 
 value save as watering-places for stock. 
 
 Lake Erie, which forms nearly all the northern 
 boundary of the State, is next to the last or lowest 
 of America's " inland seas." It is 290 miles long, 
 and 57 miles wide at its greatest part. There are 
 no islands, except in the shallow water at the W'est 
 end, and very few bays. The greatest depth of 
 the lake is off Long Point, where the water is 312 
 feet deep. The shores are principally drift-clay or 
 hard-pan, upon which the waves are continually 
 encroaching. At Cleveland, from the first sur- 
 vey, in 1796, to 1842, the encroachment was 218 
 feet along the entire city front. The entire coast 
 is low, seldom rising above fifty feet at the water's 
 edge. 
 
 Lake Erie, like the others, has a variable sur- 
 face, rising and falling with the seasons, like great 
 rivers, called the " annual fluctuation," and a gen- 
 eral one, embracing a series of years, due to mete- 
 orological causes, known as the " secular fluctua- 
 tion." Its lowest known level was in February, 
 1819, rising more or less each year, until June, 
 1838, in the extreme, to six feet eight inches. 
 
 Lake Erie has several excellent harbors in Ohio, 
 among which are Cleveland, Toledo, Sandusky, 
 Port Clinton and Ashtabula. Valuable improve- 
 ments have been made in some of these, at the 
 expense of the General Grovernment. In 1818, 
 the first steamboat was launched on the lake. 
 Owing to the Falls of Niagara, it could go no 
 farther east than the outlet of Niagara Eiver. 
 Since then, however, the opening of the Welland 
 Canal, in Canada, allows vessels drawing not more 
 than ten feet of water to pass from one lake to 
 the other, gi-eatly facilitating navigation. 
 
 As early as 1836, Dr. S.>. Hiidreth, Dr. John 
 Locke, Prof. J. H. Riddle and Mr. I. A. Lapham, 
 
 were appointed a committee by the Legislature of 
 Ohio to report the " best method of obtaining a 
 complete geological survey of the State, and an 
 estimate of the probable cost of the same." In the 
 preparation of their report, Dr. Hiidreth examined 
 the coal-measures in the southeastern part of the 
 State, Prof Riddle and Mr. Lapham made exam- 
 inations in the western and northern counties, 
 while Dr. Locke devoted his attention to chemical 
 analyses. These investigations resulted in the 
 presentation of much valuable infonuation con- 
 cerning the mineral resources of the State and in 
 a plan for a geological survey. In accordance 
 with the recommendation of this Committee, the 
 Legislature, in 1837, passed a bill appropriating 
 $12,000 for the prosecution of the work during 
 the next year. The Geological Corps appointed 
 consisted of W. W. Mather, State Geologist, with 
 Dr. Hiidreth, Dr. Locke, Prof J. P. Kirtland, J. 
 W. Foster, Charles Whittlesey and Charles Briggs, 
 Jr., Assistants. The results of the first year's 
 work appeared in 1838, in an octavo volume of 134 
 pages, with contributions fi-om Mather, Hiidreth, 
 Briggs, Kirtland and Whittlesey. In 1838, the 
 Legislature ordered the continuance of the work, 
 and, at the close of the year, a second report, of 
 286 pages, octavo, was issued, containing contribu- 
 tions from all the members of the survey. 
 
 Succeeding Legislatures failed to provide for a 
 continuance of the work, and, save that done by 
 private means, nothing was accomplished till 
 1869, when the Legislature again took up the 
 work. In the interim, individual enterprise had 
 done much. In 1841, Prof. James Hall passed 
 through the State, and, by his indentification of 
 several of the formations with those of New York, 
 for the first time fixed their geological age. The 
 next year, he issued the first map of the geology 
 of the State, in common with the geological maps 
 of all the region between the Alleghanies and the 
 Mississippi. Similar maps were published by Sir 
 Charles Lyell, in 1845 ; Prof Edward Hitchcock, 
 in 1853, and by J. Mareon, in 1856. The first 
 individual map of the geology of Ohio was a very 
 small one, published by Col. Whittlesey, in 1848, 
 in Howe's History. In 1856, he published a 
 larger map, and, in 1865, another was issued by 
 Prof Nelson Sayler. In 1867, Dr. J. S. Newberry 
 published a geological map and sketch of Ohio in 
 the Atlas of the State issued by H. S. Stebbins. 
 LTp to this time, the geological knowledge was very 
 general in its character, and, consequently, errone- 
 ous in many of its details. Other States had been 
 
 
VL 
 
 14 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 accurately surveyed, yet Ohio remained a kind of 
 terra incognita, of •which the geology was less 
 known than any part of the surrounding area. 
 
 In 18G9, the Legislature appropriated, for a new 
 survey, $13,900 for its support during one year, 
 and appointed Dr. Newberry Chief Geologist ; E. 
 B. Andrews, Edward Orton and J. H. Klippart 
 were appointed Assistants, and T. G. Wormley, 
 Chemist. The result of the first year's work 
 was a volume of 164 pages, octavo, published in 
 1870. 
 
 This report, accompanied by maps and charts, 
 for the first time accurately defined the geological 
 formations as to age and area. Evidence was given 
 which set at rest questions of nearly thirty years' 
 standing, and established the fiict that Ohio in- 
 cludes nearly double the number of formations be- 
 fore supposed to exist. Since that date, the sur- 
 veys have been regularly made. Each county is 
 being surveyed by itself, and its formation ac- 
 curately determined. Elsewhere in these pages, 
 these results are given, and to them the reader is 
 refeiTed for the specific geology of the county. 
 Only general results can be noted here. 
 
 On the general geological map of the State, are 
 two sections of the State, taken at each northern 
 and southern extremity. These show, with the 
 map, the general outline of the geological features 
 of Ohio, and are all that can be given here. Both 
 sections show the general arrangements of the 
 formation, and prove that they lie in sheets resting 
 one upon another, but not horizontally, a.s a great 
 arch traverses the State from Cincinnati to the 
 lake shore, between Toledo and Sandusky. Along 
 this line, which extends southward to Nashville, 
 Tenn., all the rocks are raised in a ridge or fold, 
 once a low mountain chain. In the lapse of 
 ages, it has, however, been extensively worn 
 away, and now, along a large part of its course, 
 the strata which once arched over it are re- 
 moved from its summit, and are found resting in 
 regular order on either side, dipping away from its 
 axis. Where the ridge was highest, the erosion 
 has been greatest, that being the reason why the 
 oldest rocks are exposed in the region about Cin- 
 cinnati. By following the line of this great arch 
 from Cincinnati northward, it will be seen that the 
 Helderberg limestone (No. 4), midway of the State, 
 is still unbroken, and stretches from side to side ; 
 while the Oriskany, the Corniferous, the Hamilton 
 and the Huron formations, though generally re- 
 moved from the crown of the arch, still remain 
 over a limited area near Bellefontaine, where they 
 
 form an island, which proves the former continuity 
 of the strata which compose it. 
 
 On the east side of the great anticlinal axis, the 
 rocks dip down into a basin, which, for several 
 hundred miles north and south, occupies the inter- 
 val between the Nashville and Cincinnati ridge and 
 the first fold of the Alleghany Mountains. In 
 this basin, all the strata form trough-like layers, 
 their edges outcropping eastward on the flanks 
 of the Alleghanies, and westward along the anti- 
 clinal axis. As they dip from this margin east- 
 ward toward the center of the trough, near its 
 middle, on the eastern border of the State, the 
 older rocks are deeply buried, and the surface is 
 here underlaid by the highest and most recent of 
 our rock formations, the coal measures. In the 
 northwestern corner of the State, the strata dip 
 northwest from the anticlinal and pass under the 
 Michigan coal basin, precisely as the same forma- 
 tions east of the anticlinal dip beneath the Alle- 
 ghany coal-field, of which Ohio's coal area forms a 
 part. 
 
 The rocks underlying the State all belong to 
 three of the great groups which geologists liave 
 termed " systems," namely, the Silurian, Devonian 
 and Carboniferous. Each of these are again sub- 
 divided, for convenience, and numbered. Thus 
 the Silurian system includes the Cincinnati group, 
 the Medina and Clinton groups, the Niagara 
 group, and the Salina and Water-Line groups. 
 The Devonian system includes the Oriskany sand- 
 stone, the Carboniferous limestone, the Hamilton 
 group, the Huron shale and the Erie shales. The 
 Carboniferous system includes the Waverly group, 
 the Carboniferous Conglomerate, the Coal Meas- 
 ures and the Drift. This last includes the surface, 
 and has been divided into six parts, numbering 
 from the lowest, viz.: A glacialed surface, the Gla- 
 cial Drift, the Erie Clays, the Forest Bed, the Ice- 
 berg Drift and the Terraces or Beaches, which 
 mark intervals of stability in the gradual recession 
 of the water surface to its present level. 
 
 " The history we may learn fi-om these forma- 
 tions," says the geologist, " is something as fol- 
 lows: 
 
 " First. Subsequent to the Tertiary was a period 
 of continual elevation, during which the topog- 
 raphy of the country was much the same as now, 
 the draining streams following the lines they now 
 do, but cutting down their beds until they flowed 
 sometimes two hundred feet lower than they do at 
 present. In the latter part of this period of ele- 
 vation, glaciers, descending from the Canadian 
 
 '^ (5" 
 \ 
 
'.^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 15 
 
 islands, excavated and occupied the valleys of the 
 great lakes, and covered the lowlands down nearly 
 to the Ohio. 
 
 '^Second. By a depression of the land and ele- 
 vation of temperature, the glaciers retreated north- 
 ward, leaving, in the interior of the continent, a 
 great basin of fresh water, in which the Erie clays 
 were deposited. 
 
 " Third. This water was drained away until a 
 broad land surface was exposed within the drift 
 area. Upon this surface grew forests, largely of 
 red and white cedar, inhabited by the elephant, 
 mastodon, giant beaver and other large, now ex- 
 tinct, animals. 
 
 "Fourth. The submergence of this ancient land 
 and the spreading over it, by iceberg agency, of 
 gravel, sand and bowlders, distributed just as ice- 
 bergs now spread their loads broadcast over the 
 sea bottom on the banks of Newfoundland. 
 
 "Fifth. The gradual draining-off of the waters, 
 leaving the land now as we find it, smoothly cov- 
 ered with all the layers of the drift, and well pre- 
 pared for human occupation." 
 
 " In six days, the Lord made the heavens and 
 the earth, and rested the seventh day," records the 
 Scriptures, and, when all was done, He looked 
 upon the work of His own hands and pronounced 
 it "good." Surely none but a divine, omnipotent 
 hand could have done all this, and none can study 
 the "work of His hands" and not marvel at its 
 completeness. 
 
 The ancient dwellers of the Mississippi Valley 
 will always be a subject of great interest to the 
 antiquarian. Who they were, and whence they 
 came, are still unanswered questions, and may 
 remain so for ages. All over this valley, and, 
 in fact, in all parts of the New World, evidences 
 of an ancient civilization exist, whose remains are 
 now a wonder to all. The aboriginal races could 
 throw no light on these questions. They had 
 always seen the remains, and knew not whence 
 they came. Explorations aid but little in the solu- 
 tion of the problem, and only conjecture can be 
 entertained. The remains found in Ohio equal 
 any in the Valley. Indeed, some of them are vast 
 in extent, and consist of forts, fortifications, moats, 
 ditches, elevations and mounds, embracing many 
 acres in extent. 
 
 "It is not yet determined," says Col. Charles 
 Whittlesey, "whether we have discovered the first 
 or the original people who occupied the soil of 
 Ohio. Modern investigations are bringing to light 
 evidences of earlier races. Since the presence of 
 
 man has been established in Europe as a cotempor- 
 ary of the fossil elephant, mastodon, rhinoceros 
 and the horse, of the later drift or glacial period, 
 we may reasonably anticipate the presence of man 
 in America in that era. Such proofs are already 
 known, but they are not of that conclusive charac- 
 ter which amounts to a demonstration. It is, how- 
 ever, known that an ancient people inhabited Ohio 
 in advance of the red men who were found here, 
 three centuries since, by the Spanish and French 
 explorers. 
 
 " Five and six hundred years before the an-ival 
 of Columbus," says Col. Charles Whittlesey, "the 
 Northmen sailed from Norway, Iceland and Green- 
 land along the Atlantic coast as far as Long Island. 
 They found Indian tribes, in what is now New En- 
 gland, closely resembling those who lived upon the 
 coast and the St. Lawrence when the French and 
 English came to possess these regions. 
 
 " These red Indians had no traditions of a prior 
 people ; but over a large part of the lake country 
 and the valley of the Mississippi, earth-works, 
 mounds, pyramids, ditches and forts were discov- 
 ered — the work of a more ancient race, and a peo- 
 ple far in advance of the Indian. If they were 
 not civilized, they were not barbarians. They 
 wei'e not mere hunters, but had fixed habitations, 
 cultivated the soil and were possessed of consider- 
 able mechanical skill. We know them as the 
 Mound Builders ^ because they erected over the 
 mortal remains of their principal men and women 
 memorial mounds of earth or unhewn stone — of 
 which hundreds remain to our own day, so large 
 and high that they give rise to an impression of 
 the numbers and energy of their builders, such as 
 we receive from the pyramids of Egypt." 
 
 Might they not have been of the same race and 
 the same civiUzation ? Many competent authori- 
 ties conjecture they are the work of the lost tribes 
 of Israel ; but the best they or any one can do is 
 only conjecture. 
 
 " In the burial-mounds," continues Col. Whit- 
 tlesey, " there are always portions of one or more 
 human skeletons, generally partly consumed by 
 fire, with ornaments of stone, bone, shells, mica 
 and copper. The largest mound in Ohio is near 
 Miamisburg, Montgomery County. It is the 
 second largest in the West, being nearly seventy 
 feet high, originally, and about eight hundred feet 
 in circumference. This would give a superficial 
 area of nearly four acres. In 1864, the citizens 
 of Miamisburg sunk a shaft from the summit to 
 the natural surface, without finding the bones 
 
 :^ 
 
IG 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 or ashes of the great man for whom it was 
 intended. The exploration has considerably 
 lowered the mound, it being now about sixty feet 
 in height. 
 
 " Fort Ancient, on the Little Miami, is a good 
 specimen of the military defenses of the Mound- 
 Builders. It is well located on a long, high, nar- 
 row, precipitous ridge. The parapets are now 
 from ten to eighteen feet high, and its perimeter 
 is sufficient to hold twenty thousand fighting men. 
 Another prominent example of their works exists 
 near Newark, Licking County. This collection 
 presents a great variety of figures, circles, rectan- 
 gles, octagons and parallel banks, or highways, 
 covering more than a thousand acres. The county 
 fiiir-ground is permanently located within an 
 ancient circle, a quarter of a mile in diameter, 
 with an embankment and interior ditch. Its high- 
 est place was over twenty feet from the top of the 
 moat to the bottom of the ditch." 
 
 One of the most curious-sliaped works in this 
 county is known as the "Alligator," from its sup- 
 posed resemblance to that creature. When meas- 
 ured, several years ago, while in a good state of 
 preservation, its dimensions were two hundred 
 and ten feet in length, average width over sixty 
 feet, and height, at the highest point, seven feet. 
 It appears to be mainly composed of clay, and is 
 overgrown with grass. 
 
 Speaking of the writing of these people, Col. 
 Whittlesey says : " There is no evidence that they 
 had alphabetical characters, picture-writing or 
 hieroglyphics, though they must have had some 
 mode of recording events. Neither is there any proof 
 that they used domestic animals for tilling the soil, 
 or for the purpose of erecting the imposing earth- 
 Avorks they have left. A very coarse cloth of 
 hemp, flax or nettles has been found on their 
 burial-hearths and around skeletons not consumed 
 by fire. 
 
 " The most extensive earthworks occupy many 
 of the sites of modern towns, and are always in 
 the vicinity of excellent lajid. Those about the 
 lakes are generally irregular earth forts, while 
 those about the rivers in the southern part of the 
 State are generally altars, pyramids, circles, cones 
 and rectangles of earth, among which fortresses or 
 strongholds are exceptions. 
 
 '•' Those on the north may not have been cotem- 
 porary or have been built by the same people. 
 They are far less prominent or extensive, which 
 indicates a people less in numbers as well as indus- 
 try, and whose principal occupation was war among 
 
 themselves or against their neighbors. This style 
 of works extends eastward along the south shore 
 of Lake Ontario, through New York. In Ohio, 
 there is a space along the water-shed, between the 
 lake and the Ohio, where there are few, if any, 
 ancient earthworks. It appears to have been a 
 vacant or neutral ground between different nations. 
 
 "The Indians of the. North, dres.sed in skins, 
 cultivated the soil very sparingly, and manufactured 
 no woven cloth. ()n Lake Sujierior, there are 
 ancient copper mines wrought by the Mound- 
 Builders over fifteen hundred years ago." Copper 
 tools are occasionally found tempered sufficiently 
 hard to cut the hardest rucks. No knowledge of 
 such tempering exists now. The Indians can give 
 no more knowledge of the ancient mines than they 
 can of the mounds on the river bottoms. 
 
 " The Indians did not occupy the ancient earth- 
 works, nor did they construct such. They were 
 found as they are now — a hunter race, wholly 
 averse to labor. Their abodes were in rock shel- 
 ters, in caves, or in temporary sheds of bark and 
 boughs, or skins, easily moved from place to place. 
 Like most savage races, their habits are unchange- 
 able ; at least, the example of white men, and 
 their efforts during three centuries, have made 
 little, if any, impression." 
 
 A\nien white men came to the territory now em- 
 braced in the State of Ohio, they found dwelling 
 here the Iroquois, Delawares, Shawanees, Miamis, 
 Wyandots and Ottawas. Each nation was com- 
 posed of several tribes or clans, and each was 
 often at war with the others. The first mentioned 
 of these occupied that part of the State whose 
 northern boundary was Lake Erie, as far west as 
 the mouth of the Cuyahoga Eiver, where the city 
 of Cleveland now is ; thence the boundary turned 
 southward in an irregular line, until it touched the 
 Ohio River, up which stream it continued to the 
 Pennsylvania State line, and thence northward to 
 the lake. This nation were the implacable foes of 
 the French, owing to the flict that Champlain, in 
 1G09, made war against them. They occupied a 
 large part of New York and Pennsylvania, and 
 were the most insatiate conquerors among the 
 aborigines. When the French first came to the 
 lakes, these monsters of the wilderness were engaged 
 in a war against their neighbors, a war that ended 
 in their conquering them, p )ssessing their terri- 
 tory, and absorbing the remnants of the tribes into 
 their own nation. At the date of Champlain's 
 visit, the southern shore of Lake Erie was occupied 
 by the Eries, or, as the orthography of the word is 
 
'A 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 17 
 
 sometimes given, Erigos, or Errienous.* About 
 forty years afterward, the Iroquois ( Five Nations) 
 fell upon them with such fury and in such force 
 that the nation was annihilated. Those who 
 escaped the slaughter were absorbed among their 
 C(in((uerors, but allowed to live on their own lands, 
 paying a sort of tribute to the Iroquois. This was 
 the policy of that nation in all its conquests. A 
 few years after the conquest of the Eries, the 
 Iroquois again took to the war-path, and swept 
 through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, even attacking 
 the Mississippi tribes. But for the intervention 
 and aid of the French, these tribes would have 
 shared the fate of the Hurons and Eries. Until 
 the year 1700, the Iroquois held the south shore 
 of Lake Erie so finnly that the French dared not 
 trade or travel along that side of the lake. Their 
 missionaries and traders penetrated this part of 
 Ohio as early as 1650, but generally suffered 
 death for their zeal. 
 
 Having completed the conquest of the Hurons 
 or Wyandots, about Lake Huron, and murdered 
 the Jesuit missionaries by modes of torture which 
 only they could devise, they permitted the residue 
 of the Hurons to settle around the west end of 
 Lake Erie. Here, with the Ottawas, they resided 
 when the whites came to the State. Their country 
 was bounded on the south by a line running 
 through the central part of Wayne, Ashland, 
 Richland, Crawford and Wyandot Counties. At 
 the western boundary of this county, the line di- 
 verged northwesterly, leaving the State near the 
 northwest corner of Fulton County. Their north- 
 ern boundary was the lake ; the eastern, the Iro- 
 quois. 
 
 The Delawares, or " Lenni Lenapes," whom the 
 Iroquois had subjugated on the Susquehanna, were 
 assigned by their conquerors hunting-grounds on 
 the Muskingum. Their eastern boundary was the 
 country of the Iroquois (before defined), and their 
 northern, that of the Hurons. On the west, they 
 
 ♦ Father Loui8 Hennepin, in his work published in 1684, thus 
 alludes to the Erii-s: ■'These good fathers," referring to the 
 priests, " were great friends of the Hurons, who told them that the 
 Iroquois went to war beyond Viririnia, or New Sweden, near a lake 
 which they called ^ Eriqe,^ or 'Erie,' which signifies 'the cat,' or 
 ' nalion of the cat,' and because these savages brought captives from 
 this nation in returning to their cantons along this lake, the 
 Hurons named it, in their language, ' Erige,' or ' Erike,' 'the lake of 
 th" cat.' and which our Canadians, in softening the word, have 
 called ' Lake Erie.' " . 
 
 Charlevoix, writing in 1721, says: "The name it bears is that 
 of an Indian nation of the Huron (Wyandot) language, which was 
 formerly seated on it^ banks, and who have been entirely destroyed 
 by the Iroquois. Erie, in that language, signifies 'cat,' and, in 
 some acounts, this nation is called the ' cat nation.' This name, 
 probably, comes from the large numbers of that animal found in 
 this region." 
 
 extended as far as a line drawn from the central 
 part of Richland County, in a semi-circular direc- 
 tion, south to the mouth of Leading Creek. Their 
 southern boundary was the Ohio River. 
 
 West of the Delawares, dwelt the Shawanees, a 
 troublesome people as neighbors, whether to whites 
 or Indians. Their country was bounded on the 
 north by the Hurons, on the east, by the Dela- 
 wares ; on the south, by the Ohio River. On the 
 west, their boundary was determined by a line 
 drawn southwesterly, and again southeasterly — 
 semi-circular — from a point on the southern 
 boundary of the Hurons, near the southwest corner 
 of Wyandot County, till it intersected the Ohio 
 River. 
 
 All the remainder of the State — all its western 
 part from the Ohio River to the Michigan line — 
 was occupied by the Miamis, Mineamis, Twigtwees, 
 or Tawixtawes, a powerful nation, whom the Iro- 
 quois were never fully able to subdue. 
 
 These nations occupied the State, partly by per- 
 mit of the Five Nations, and partly by inheritance, 
 and, though composed of many tribes, were about 
 all the savages to be found in this part of the 
 Northwest. 
 
 No sooner had the Americans obtained control 
 of this country, than they began, by treaty and 
 purchase, to acquire the lands of the natives. 
 They could not stem the tide of emigration ; peo- 
 ple, then as now, would go West, and hence the 
 necessity of peacefully and rightfully acquiring the 
 land. " The true basis of title to Indian territory 
 is the right of civilized men to the soil for pur- 
 poses of cultivation." The same maxim may be 
 applied to all uncivilized nations. When acquired 
 by such a right, either by treaty, purchase or con- 
 quest, the right to hold the same rests with the 
 power and development of the nation thus possess- 
 ing the land. 
 
 The English derived title to the territory 
 between the Alleghanies and the Mississippi partly 
 by the claim that, in discovering the Atlantic coast, 
 they had possession of the land from "ocean to 
 ocean," and partly by the treaty of Paris, in Feb- 
 ruary, 1763. Long before this treaty took place, 
 however, she had granted, to individuals and colo- 
 nies, extensive tracts of land in that part of Amer- 
 ica, based on the right of di.scovcry. The French 
 had done better, and had acquired title to the land 
 by discovering the land itself and by consent of 
 the Indians dwelling thereon. The right to pos- 
 sess this country led to the French and Indian 
 war, ending in the supremacy of the English. 
 
18 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 The Five Nations claimed the territory in ques- 
 tion by right of conquest, and, though professing 
 friendship to the EngUsh, watched them with jeal- 
 ous eyes. In 1684, and again in 1726, that con- 
 federacy made cessions of lands to the English, 
 and these treaties and cessions of lands were re- 
 garded as sufficient title by the English, and were 
 insisted on in all subsequent treaties with the 
 Western Nations. The following statements were 
 collected by Col. Charles Whittlesey, which 
 show the principal treaties made with the red men 
 wherein land in Ohio was ceded by them to the 
 whites : 
 
 In September, 1726, the Iroquois, or Six Na- 
 tions, at Albany, ceded all their claims west of 
 Lake Erie and sixty miles in width along the 
 south shore of Lakes Erie and Ontario, from the 
 Cuyahoga to the Oswego River. 
 
 In 1744, this same nation made a treaty at 
 Lancaster, Penn., and ceded to the English all 
 their lands "that may be within the colony of 
 Virginia." 
 
 In 1752, this nation and other Western tribes 
 made a treaty at Logstown, Penn., wherein they 
 confirmed the Lancaster treaty and consented to 
 the settlements south of the Ohio River. 
 
 February 13, 1763, a treaty was made at Paris, 
 France, between the French and English, when 
 Canada and the eastern half of the Mississippi 
 Valley were ceded to the English. 
 
 In 1783, all the territory south of the Lakes, 
 and east of the Mississippi, was ceded by England 
 to America — the latter country then obtaining its 
 independence — by which means the country was 
 gained by America. 
 
 October 24, 1784, the Six Nations made a 
 treaty, at Fort Stanwix, N. Y., with the Ameri- 
 cans, and ceded to them all the country claimed 
 by the tribe, west of Pennsylvania. 
 
 In 1785, the Chippewas, Delawares, Ottawas, 
 and Wyandots ceded to the United States, at 
 Fort Mcintosh, at the mouth of the Big Beaver, 
 all their claims east and south of the " Cayahaga," 
 the Portage Path, and the Tuscarawas, to Fort 
 Laurens (Bolivar), thence to Loramie's Fort (in 
 Shelby County) ; thence along the Portage Path to 
 the St. Mary's River and down it to the "Omee," 
 or Maumee, and along the lake shore to the 
 " Cayahaga." 
 
 January 3, 1786, the Shawanees, at Fort Fin- 
 ney, near the mouth of the Great Miami (not 
 owning the land on the Scioto occupied by them), 
 were allotted a tract at the heads of the two 
 
 Miamis and the Wabash, west of the Chippewas, 
 Delawares and Wyandots. 
 
 February 9, 1789, the Iroquois made a treaty 
 at Fort Harmar, wherein they confirmed the Fort 
 Stanwix treaty. At the same time, the Chippewas, 
 Ottawas, Delawares, and Wyandots — to which the 
 Sauks and Pottawatomies assented — confirmed the 
 treaty made at Fort Mcintosh. 
 
 Period of war now existed till 1795. 
 
 August 3, 1795, Gen. Anthony Wayne, on 
 behalf of the United States, made a treaty with 
 twelve tribes, confirming the boundaries estab- 
 lished by the Fort Harmar and Fort Mcintosh 
 treaties, and extended the boundary to Fort Re- 
 covery and the mouth of the Kentucky River. 
 
 In June, 1796, the Senecas, represented by 
 Brant, ceded to the Connecticut Land Company 
 their rights east of the Cuyahoga. 
 
 In 1805, at Fort Industry, on the Maumee, the 
 Wyandots, Delawares, Ottawas, Chippewas, Shawa- 
 nees, Menses, and Pottawatomies relinquished all 
 their lands west of the Cuyahoga, as far west as 
 the western line of the Reserve, and south of the 
 line from Fort Laurens to Loramie's Fort. 
 
 July 4, 1807, the Ottawas, Chippewas, Wyan- 
 dots, and Pottawatomies, at Detroit, ceded all that 
 part of Ohio north of the Maumee River, with 
 part of Michigan. 
 
 November 25, 1808, the same tribes with the 
 Shawanees, at Brownstown, Mich., granted the 
 Government a tract of land two miles wide, from 
 the west line of the Reserve to the rapids of the 
 Maumee, for the purpose of a road through the 
 Black Swamp. 
 
 September 18, 1815, at Springwells, near De- 
 troit, the Chippewas, Ottawas, Pottawatomies, Wy- 
 andots, Delawares, Senecas and Miamis, having 
 been engaged in the war of 1812 on the British 
 side, were confined in the grants made at Fort 
 Mcintosh and Greenville in 1785 and 1795. 
 
 September 29, 1817, at the rapids of the 
 Maumee, the Wyandots ceded their lands west of 
 the line of 1805, as far as Loramie's and the St. 
 Mary's River and north of the Maumee. The 
 Pottawatomies, Chippewas, and Ottawas ceded the 
 territory west of the Detroit line of 1807, and 
 north of the Maumee. 
 
 October 6, 1818, the Miamis, at St. Mary's, 
 m'ade a treaty in which they surrendered the re- 
 maining Indian territory in Ohio, north of the 
 Greenville treaty line and west of St. Mary's River. 
 
 The numerous treaties of peace with the West- 
 ern Indians for the delivery of prisoners were — 
 
[iL 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 19 
 
 one by Gen. Forbes, at Fort Du Quesne (Pitts- 
 burgh), in 1758 ; one by Col. Bradstreet, at Erie, 
 in August, 1764 ; one by Col. Boquet, at the 
 mouth of the Walhouding, in November, 1764; 
 in May, 1765, at Johnson's, on the Mohawk, and 
 at Philadelphia, the same year; in 1774, by Lord 
 Dunmore, at Camp Charlotte, Pickaway County. 
 By the treaty at the Maumee Bapids, in 1817, 
 reservations were conveyed by the United States 
 to all the tribes, with a view to induce them to 
 cultivate the soil and cease to be hunters. These 
 were, from time to time, as the impracticability of 
 the plan became manifest, purchased by the Gov- 
 ernment, the last of these being the Wyandot 
 Beserve, of twelve miles square, around Upper 
 Sandusky, in 1842, closing out all claims and com- 
 posing all the Indian difficulties in Ohio. The 
 open war had ceased in 1815, with the treaty of 
 Ghent. 
 
 " It is estimated that, from the Freijch war of 
 1754 to the battle of the Maumee Ilapids, in 
 1794, a period of forty years, there had been at 
 least 5,000 people killed or captured west of the 
 
 Alleghany Mountains. Eleven organized military 
 expeditions had been carried on against the West- 
 ern Indians prior to the war of 1812, seven regu- 
 lar engagements fought and about twelve hundred 
 men killed. Mure whites were slain in battle than 
 there were Indian braves killed in military expedi- 
 tions, and by private raids and murders ; yet, in 
 1811, all the Ohio tribes combined could not mus- 
 ter 2,000 warriors." 
 
 Attempts to determine the number of persons 
 comprising the Indian tribes in Ohio, and their 
 location, have resulted in nothing better than 
 estimates. It is supposed that, at the commence- 
 ment of the Bevolution, there were about six 
 thousand Indians in the present confines of the 
 State, but their villages were little more than 
 movable camps. Savage men, like savage beasts, 
 are engaged in continual migrations. Now, none 
 are left. The white man occupies the home of 
 the red man. Now 
 
 "The verdant hills 
 Are covered o'er with growing grain, 
 And white men till the soil, 
 Where once the red man used to reign." 
 
 CHAPTER II, 
 
 EARLY EXPLORATIONS IN THE WEST. 
 
 WHEN war, when ambition, when avarice 
 fail, religion pushes onward and succeeds. 
 In the discovery of the New World, wherever 
 man's aggrandizement was the paramount aim, 
 failure was sure to follow. When this gave way, 
 the followers of the Cross, whether Catholic or 
 Protestant, came on the field, and the result before 
 attempted soon appeared, though in a different way 
 and through different means than those supposed. 
 The first permanent efforts of the white race to 
 penetrate the Western wilds of the New World 
 preceded any permanent English settlement north 
 of the Potomac. Years before the Pilgrims 
 anchored their bark on the cheerless shores of Cape 
 Cod, "the Boman Catholic Church had been plann- 
 ed by missionaries from France in the Eastern 
 moiety of Maine; and LeCaron, an ambitious 
 Franciscan, the companion of Champlain,had passed 
 into the hunting-grounds of the Wyandots, and, 
 bound by the vows of his life, had, on foot or pad- 
 dling a bark canoe, gone onward, taking alms of the 
 savages until he reached the rivers of Lake 
 
 Huron." This was in 1615 or 1616, and only 
 eight years afler Champlain had sailed up the wa- 
 ters of the St. Lawrence, and on the foot of a bold 
 cliff laid the foundation of the present City of 
 Quebec. From this place, founded to hold the 
 country, and to perpetuate the religion of his King, 
 went forth those emissaries of the Cross, whose zeal 
 has been the admiration of the world. The French 
 Colony in Canada was suppressed soon after its es- 
 tablishment, and for five years, until 1622, its im- 
 munities were enjoyed by the colonists. A grant 
 of New France, as the country was then known, was 
 made by Louis XIII to Biehelieu, Champlain, 
 Bazilly and others, who, immediately after the res- 
 toration of Quebec by its English conquerors, entered 
 upon the control and government of their province. 
 Its limits embraced the whole ba.sin of the St. 
 Lawrence and of such other rivers in New France 
 as flowed directly into the sea. AVhile away to 
 the south on the Gulf coast, was also included a 
 country rich in foliage and claimed in virtue of 
 the unsuccessful efibrts of Coligny. 
 
20 
 
 HISTOEY OF OHIO. 
 
 Religious zeal as much as commercial prosperity 
 had influenced France to obtain and retain the de- 
 pendency of Canada. The commercial monopoly 
 of a privileged company could not foster a 
 colony ; the climate was too vigorous for agricult- 
 ure, and, at first there was little else except relig- 
 ious enthusiasm to give vitality to the province. 
 Champlain had been touched by the simplicity of 
 the Order of St. Francis, and had selected its priests 
 to aid him in his work. But another order, more 
 in favor at the Court, was interested, and succeed- 
 ed in excluding the mendicant order from the New 
 World, established themselves in the new domain 
 and, by thus enlarging the borders of the French 
 King, it became entrusted to the Jesuits. 
 
 This "Society of Jesus," founded by Loyola 
 when Calvin's Institutes first saw the light, saw an 
 unequaled opportunity in the conversion of the 
 heathen in the Western wilds; and, as its mem- 
 bers, pledged to obtain power only by influence of 
 mind over mind, sought the honors of opening the 
 way, there was no lack of men ready for the work. 
 Through them, the motive power in opening the 
 wilds of the Northwest was relio-ion. " Reliiiious 
 enthusiasm," says Bancroft, "colonized New Eng- 
 land, and religious enthusiasm founded Montreal, 
 made a concjuest of the wilderness about the upper 
 lakes, and explored the Mississippi." . 
 
 Thi'ough these priests — ^ increased in a few years 
 to fifteen — a way was made across the West from 
 Quebec, above the regions of the lakes, below 
 which they dared not go for the relentless Mohawks. 
 To the northwest of Toronto, near the Lake Iro- 
 quois, a bay of Lake Huron, in September, 1634, 
 they raised the first humble house of the Society of 
 Jesus among the Hurons. Through them they 
 learned of the great lakes beyond, and resolved 
 one day to explore them and carry the Gospel of 
 peace to the heathen on their shores. Before this 
 could be done, many of them were called upon to 
 give up their lives at the martyr's stake and re- 
 ceive a martyr's crown. But one by one they 
 went on in their good work. If one fell by hun- 
 ger, cold, cruelty, or a terrible death, others stood 
 ready, and carrying their lives in their hands, 
 established other missions about the eastern shores 
 of Lake Huron and its adjacent waters. The 
 Five Nations were for many years hostile toward 
 the French and murdered them and their red 
 allies whenever opportunity presented. For a 
 quarter of century, they retarded the advance of 
 the missionaries, and then only after wearied with 
 a long struggle, in which they began to see their 
 
 power declining, did they relinquish their warlike 
 propensities, and allow the Jesuits entrance to their 
 country. While this was going on, the traders 
 and Jesuits had penetrated farther and farther 
 westward, until, when peace was declared, they 
 had seen the southwestern shores of Lake Superior 
 and the northern shores of Lake Michigan, called 
 by them Lake Illinois.* In August, 1654, two 
 young adventurers penetrated the wilds bordering 
 on these western lakes in company with a band of 
 Ottawas. Returning, they tell of the wonderful 
 country they have seen, of its vast forests, its 
 abundance of game, its mines of copper, and ex- 
 cite in their comrades a desire to see and explore 
 such a country. They tell of a vast expanse of 
 land before them, of the powerful Indian tribes 
 dwelling there, and of their anxiety to become an- 
 nexed to the Frenchman, of whom they have 
 heard. The request is at once granted. Two 
 missionaries, Gabriel Dreuillettes and Leonard 
 Gareau, w«re selected as envoys, but on their way 
 the fleet, propelled by tawny rowers, is met by a 
 wandering band of Mohawks and by them is dis- 
 persed. Not daunted, others stood ready to go. 
 The lot fell to Rene Mesnard. He is charged to 
 visit the wilderness, select a suitable place for a 
 dwelling, and found a mission. With only a short 
 warning he is ready, "trusting," he says, "in the 
 Providence which feeds the little birds of the 
 desert and clothes the wild flowers of the forest." 
 In October, 1660, he reached a bay, which he 
 called St. Theresa, on the south shore of Lak > 
 Superior. After a residence of eight months, he 
 yielded to the invitation of the Hurons who had 
 taken refuge on the Island of St. IMichael, and 
 bidding adieu to his neophytes and the French, he 
 departed. While on the way to the Bay of Che- 
 goi-me-gon, probably at a portage, he became 
 separated from his companion and was never after- 
 ward heard of Long after, his cassock and his 
 breviary were kept as amulets among the Sioux. 
 Difficulties now arose in the management of the 
 colony, and for awhile it was on the verge of dis- 
 solution. The King sent a regiment under com- 
 mand of the aged Tracy, as a safeguard against 
 the Iroquois, now proving themselves enemies to 
 
 * Mr. C. W. Bntterfield, author of Cran- ford's Campaign, and 
 good authority, says: "John Nicholet, a Frenchman, lelt Quebec 
 and Three Rivers in the summer of 1034, and visitel the Hurons on 
 Georgian Bay, the Cliippewas «t the Sault Ste. Marie, and the Win- 
 nebagoes in Wisronsin, returning to Quebec in the summer of U35. 
 This was the first white man to see any part of the Northwest 
 Territory. In 1641, two Jesuit priests were at the Sault Ste. Marie 
 for a brief time. Tlien two Frencli traders reached Lalie Superior, 
 and after them came that tide of emigration ou which the French 
 based their claim to the country." 
 
-4* 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 21 
 
 the French. Accompanying him were Courcelles, 
 as Governor, and M. Talon, who subsequently fig- 
 ures in Northwestern history. By 1(31)5, affairs 
 were settled and new attemjits to found a mission 
 iimong the lake tribes were projected. 
 
 " With better hopes — undismayed by the sad 
 fate of their predecessors" in August, Claude 
 Allouez embarked on a mission by way of Ottawa 
 to the Far West. Early in September he reached 
 the rapids "through which rush the waters of the 
 lakes to Huron. Sailing by lofty sculptured rocks 
 and over waters of crystal purity, he reached the 
 Chippewa village just as the young warriors were 
 bent on organizing a war expedition against the 
 Sioux. Commanding peace in the name of his 
 King, he called a council and offered the commerce 
 and protection of his nation. He was obeyed, and 
 soon a chapel arose on the shore of the bay, to 
 which admiring crowds from the south and west 
 gathered to listen to the story of the Cross. 
 
 The scattered Hurons and Ottawas north of 
 Lake Superior ; the Pottawatomies from Lake Mich- 
 igan; the Sacs and Foxes from the Far West; the 
 Illinois from the prairies, all came to hear him, and 
 all besought him to go with them. To the last 
 nation Allouez desired to go. They told him of a 
 " great river that flowed to the .sea, "and of "their 
 vast prairies, where herds of buffalo, deer and 
 other animals grazed on the tall grass." "Their 
 country," said the missionary, "is the best field 
 for the Grospel. Had I had leisure, I would have 
 gone to their dwellings to see with my own eyes 
 all the good that was told me of them." 
 
 He remained two years, teaching the natives, 
 studying their language and habits, and then 
 returned to Quebec. Such was the account that 
 he gave, that in two days he was joined by 
 Louis Nicholas and was on his way back to his 
 mission. 
 
 Peace being now established, more missionaries 
 came from France. Among them were Claude 
 Dablon and Jacques Marquette, both of whom 
 went on to the mission among the Chippewas at the 
 Sault. They reached there in 1668 and found 
 Allouez busy. The mission was now a reality and 
 given the name of St. Mary. It is often written 
 " Sault Ste. Marie," afler the French method, and 
 is the oldest settlement by white men in the bounds 
 of the Northwest Territory. It has been founded 
 over two hundred years. Here on the inhospitable 
 northern shores, hundreds of miles away from 
 friends, did this triumvirate employ themselves in 
 extending; their religion and the influence of their 
 
 King. Traversing the shores of the great lakes 
 near them, they pass down the western bank of 
 Lake Michigan as far as Green Bay, along the 
 southern shore of Lake Superior to its western ex- 
 tremity, everywhere preaching the story of Jesus. 
 " Though suffering be their lot and martyrdom 
 their crown," they went on, only conscious that 
 they were laboring for their Master and would, in 
 the end, win the crown. 
 
 The great river away to the West of which they 
 heard so much was yet unknown to them. To ex- 
 plore it, to visit the tribes on its banks and preach 
 to them the Gospel and secure their trade, became 
 the aim of Marquette, who originated the idea of 
 its discovery. While engaged at the mission at the 
 Sault, he resolved to attempt it in the autumn of 
 1669. Delay, however, intervened — for Allouez 
 had exchanged the mission at Che-goi-me-gon for 
 one at Green Bay, whither Marquette was sent. 
 AV^hile here he employed a young Illinois Indian 
 to teach him the language of that nation, and there- 
 by prepare himself for the enterprise. 
 
 Continued commerce with the Western Indians 
 gave protection and confirmed their attachment. 
 Talon, the intendant of the colony of New France, 
 to further spread its power and to learn more of the 
 country and its inhabitants, convened a congress 
 of the Indians at the Falls of St. Mary, to which 
 he sent St. Lusson on his behalf Nicholas Perrot 
 sent invitations in every direction for more than a 
 hundred leagues round about, and fourteen nations, 
 among them Sacs, Foxes and Miamis, agreed to be 
 present by their embassadors. 
 
 The congress met on the fourth day of June, 
 1671. St. Lusson, through Allouez, his interpre- 
 ter, announced to the assembled natives that they, 
 and through them their nations, were placed under 
 the protection of the French King, and to him 
 were their furs and peltries to be traded. A cross 
 of cedar was raised, and amidst the groves of ma- 
 ple and of pine, of elm and hemlock that are so 
 strangely intermingled on the banks of the St. 
 Mary, the whole company of the French, bowing 
 before the emblem of man's redemption, chanted to 
 its glory a hymn of the seventh century : 
 
 "The banners of heaven's King advance; 
 The mysteries of the Cross shines forth."* 
 
 A cedar column was planted by the cross and 
 marked with the lilies of the Bourbons. Tlie 
 power of France, thus uplifted in the West of 
 which Ohio is now a part, was, however, not destined 
 
 ■ Bancroft. 
 
>-" 
 
 22 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 to endure, and the ambition of its monurchs was 
 to have only a partial fulfillment. 
 
 The same year that the congress was held, Mar- 
 quette had founded a mission among the Hurons 
 at Point St. Ignace, on the continent north of the 
 peninsula of Michigan. Although the climate 
 was severe, and vegetation scarce, yet fish abounded, 
 and at this establishment, long maintained as a 
 key to further explorations, prayer and praise were 
 heard daily for many years. Here, also, Marquette 
 gained a footing among the founders of Michigan. 
 While he was doing this, Allouez and Dablon were 
 exploring countries south and west, going as far as 
 the Mascoutins and Kickapoos on the Milwaukee, 
 and the Miamis at' the head of Lake Michigan. 
 Allduez continued even as far as the Sacs and Foxes 
 on the river which bears their name. 
 
 The discovery of the Mississippi, heightened by 
 these explorations, was now at hand. The enter- 
 prise, projected by Marquette, was received with 
 fiivor by M. Talon, who desired thus to perpetuate 
 his rule in New France, now drawing to a close. 
 He was joined by Joliet, of Quebec, an emissary 
 of his King, commissioned by royal magnate to 
 take possession of the country in the name of the 
 French. Of him but little else is known. This 
 one excursion, however, gives him immortality, 
 and as long as time shall last his name and that of 
 Marquette will endure. When Marquette made 
 known his intention to the Pottawatomies, they 
 were filled with wonder, and endeavored to dis- 
 suade him from his purpose. "Those distant na- 
 tions," said they, " never spare the strangers; the 
 Great River abounds in monsters, ready to swal- 
 low both men and canoes; there are great cataracts 
 and rapids, over which you will be dashed to 
 pii-ees; the excessive heats will cause your death." 
 " I shall gladly lay down my life for the salvation 
 of souls," replied the good man; and the docile 
 nation joined him. 
 
 On the 9th day of June, 1673, they reached 
 the village on Fox River, where were Kickapoos, 
 Mascoutins and Miamis dwelling together on an 
 expanse of lovely prairie, dotted here and thereby 
 groves of magnificent trees, and where was a 
 cross gai-landed by wild flowers, and bows and ar- 
 rows, and skins and belts, oiferings to the Great 
 Manitou. Allouez had been here in one of his 
 wanderings, and, as was his wont, had left this 
 emblem of his faith. 
 
 Assembling the natives, Marquette said, " My 
 companion is an envoy of France to discover new 
 countries ; and I am an embassador from God to 
 
 enlighten them with the Gospel." Offering pres- 
 ents, he begged two guides for the morrow. The 
 Indians answered courteously, and gave in 
 return a mat to serve as a couch during the long 
 voyage. 
 
 Early in the morning of the next day, the 10th 
 of June, with all nature in her brightest robes, 
 these two men, with five Frenchmen and two Al- 
 gonquin guides, set out on their journey. Lifting 
 two canoes to their shoulders, they quickly cross 
 the narrow portage dividing the Fox from the 
 Wisconsin River, and prepare to embark on its 
 clear waters. "Uttering a special prayer to the 
 Immaculate Virgin, they leave the stream, that, 
 flowing onward, could have borne their greetings 
 to the castle of Quebec. 'The guides returned,' 
 says the gentle Marquette, 'leaving us alone in 
 this unknown land, in the hand of Providence.' 
 France and Christianity stood alone in the valley 
 of the Mississippi. Embarking on the broad 
 Wiscon.sin, the discoverers, as they sailed west, 
 went solitarily down the stream between alternate 
 prairies and hillsides, beholding neither man nor 
 the wonted beasts of the forests; no sound broke 
 the silence but the ripple of the canoe and the 
 lowing of the buffalo. In seven days, ' they en- 
 tered happily the Great River, with a joy that 
 could not be expressed;' and the two birchbark 
 canoes, raising their happy sails under new skies 
 and to unknown breezes, floated down the calm 
 magnificence of the ocean stream, over the broad, 
 clear sand-bars, the resort of innumerable water- 
 fowl-^— gliding past islets that swelled from the 
 bosom of the stream, with their tufts of massive 
 thickets, and between the wild plains of Illinois 
 and Iowa, all garlanded with majestic forests, or 
 checkered by island groves and the open vastness 
 of the prairie."* 
 
 Continuing on down the mighty stream, they 
 saw no signs of human life until the 25th of 
 June, when they discovered a small foot-path on the 
 west bank of the river, leading away into the 
 prairie. Leaving their companions in the canoes, 
 Marquette and Joliet followed the path, resolved 
 to brave a meeting alone with the savages. After 
 a walk of six miles they came in sight of a village 
 on the banks of a river, while not fiir away they 
 discovered two others. The river was the " I\Iou- 
 in-gou-e-na," or Moingona, now corrupted into 
 Des Moines. These two men, the first of their 
 race who ever trod the soil west of the Great 
 
liL 
 
 HISTORY or OHIO. 
 
 23 
 
 River, commended themselves to God, and, uttering 
 a loud cry, advanced to the nearest village. 
 The Indians hear, and thinking their visitors 
 celestial beings, four old men advance with rever- 
 ential mien, and oifer the pipe of peace. " We 
 are Illinois," said they, and they offered the calu- 
 met. They had heard of the Frenchmen, and 
 welcomed them to their wigwams, followed by the 
 devouring gaze of an astonished crowd. At a 
 great council held soon after, Marquette published 
 to them the true God, their Author. He also 
 spoke of his nation and of his King, who had 
 chastised the Five Nations and commanded peace. 
 He questioned them concerning the Great River 
 and its tributaries, and the tribes dwelling on its 
 banks. A magnificent feast was spread before 
 them, and the conference continued several days. 
 At the close of the sixth day, the chieftains of the 
 tribes, with numerous trains of waiTiors, attended 
 the visitors to their canoes, and selecting a peace- 
 pipe, gayly caparisoned, they hung the sacred 
 calumet, emblem of peace to all and a safeguard 
 :iin;ing the nations, about the good Father's neck, 
 and bid the strangers good speed. "I did not 
 fear death," writes Marquette; "I should have 
 esteemed it the greatest happiness to have died 
 for the glory of God." On their journey, they 
 passed the perpendicular rocks, whose sculptured 
 sides showed them the monsters they should meet. 
 Farther down, they pass the turgid flood of the 
 Missouri, known to them by its Algonquin name, 
 Pekitanoni. Resolving in his heart to one day 
 explore its flood, Marquette rejoiced in the, new 
 world it evidently could open to him. A little 
 farther down, they pass the bluffs where now is a 
 mighty emporium, then silent as when created. In 
 a little less than forty leagues, they pass the clear 
 waters of the beautiful Ohio, then, and long after- 
 ward, known as the Wabash. Its banks were in- 
 habited by numerous villages of the peaceful 
 Shawanees, who then quailed under the incursions 
 of the dreadful Iroquois. As they go on down the 
 mighty stream, the canes become thicker, the insects 
 more fierce, the heat more intolerable. The prairies 
 and their cool breezes vanish, and forests of white- 
 wood, admirable for their vastness and height, crowd 
 close upon the pebbly shore. It is observed that the 
 Chickasaws have guns, and have learned how to 
 use them. Near the latitude of 33 degrees, they 
 encounter a great village, whose inhabitants pre- 
 sent an inhospitable and warlike front. The pipe 
 of peace is held aloft, and instantly the savage foe 
 drops his arms and extends a friendly greeting. 
 
 Remaining here till the next day, they are escorted 
 for eight or ten leagues to the village of Akansea. 
 They are now at the limit of their voyage. The 
 Indians speak a dialect unknown to them. The 
 natives show furs and axes of steel, the latter prov- 
 ing they have traded with Europeans. The two 
 travelers now learn that the Father of Wa- 
 ters went neither to the Western sea nor to the 
 Florida coast, but straight south, and conclude not 
 to encounter the burning heats of a tropical clime, 
 but return and find the outlet again. They 
 had done enough now, and must report their dis- 
 covery. 
 
 On the 17th day of July, 1673, one hundred 
 and thirty-two years after the disastrous journey 
 of De Soto, which led to no permanent results, 
 jNIarquette and Joliet left the village of Akansea 
 on their way back. At the 38th degree, they en- 
 counter the waters of the Illinois which they had 
 before noticed, and which the natives told them 
 afforded a much shorter route to the lakes. Pad- 
 dling up its limpid waters, they see a country un- 
 surpassed in beauty. Broad prairies, beautiful up- 
 lands, luxuriant groves, all mingled in excellent 
 harmony as they ascend the river. Near the head 
 of the river, they pause at a great village of the 
 Illinois, and across the river behold a rocky prom- 
 ontory .standing boldly out against the landscape. 
 The Indians entreat the gentle missionary to re- 
 main among them, and teach them the way of life. 
 He cannot do this, but promises to return when he 
 can and instruct them. The town was on a plain 
 near the present village of Utica, in La Salle 
 County, 111., and the rock was Starved Rock, 
 afterward noted in the annals of the Northwest. 
 One of the chiefs and some young men conduct 
 the party to the Chicago River, where the present 
 mighty city is, from where, continuing their iour- 
 ney along the western shores of the lake, they 
 reach Green Bay early in September. 
 
 The great valley of the West was now open. 
 The "Messippi" rolled its mighty flood to a south- 
 ern sea, and must be sully explored. INIarquette's 
 health had keenly suffered by the voyage and he 
 concluded to remain here and rest. Joliet hasten- 
 ed on to Quebec to report his discoveries. During 
 the journey, each had preserved a description of 
 the route they had passed over, as well as the 
 country and its inhabitants. While on the way 
 to Quebec, at the foot of the rapids near Montreal, 
 by some means one of Joliet's canoes became cap- 
 sized, and by it he lost his box of papers and two 
 of his men. A greater calamity could have 
 
24 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 liarcUy happened him. lu a letter to Gov, 
 Froutenac, Joliet says : 
 
 " I had escaped every peril from the Indians ; I 
 had passed forty-two rapids, and was on the point 
 of disembarking, full of joy at the success of so 
 Ling and difficult an enterprise, when my canoe 
 capsized after all the danger seemed over. I lost 
 my two men and box of papers within sight of the 
 French settlements, which I had left almost two 
 years before. Nothing remains now to me but 
 my life, and the ardent desire to employ it in any 
 service you may please to direct." 
 
 When Joliet made known his discoveries, a 
 Te Dcum was chanted in the Cathedral at Quebec, 
 and all Canada was filled with joy. The news 
 crossed the ocean, and the French saw in the vista 
 of coming years a vast dependency arise in the val- 
 ley, partially explored, which was to extend her 
 domain and enrich her treasury. Fearing En- 
 gland might profit by the discovery and claim the 
 country, she attempted as far as possible to prevent 
 the news from becoming general. Joliet was re- 
 warded by the gift of the Island of Anticosti, in 
 the St. Lawrence, while Marquette, conscious of 
 his service to his Master, was content with the 
 salvation of souls. 
 
 jSIarquette, left at Green Bay, suffered long with 
 his malady, and was not permitted, until the au- 
 tumn of the following year (1674), to return and 
 teach the Illinois Indians. With this purpose in 
 view, he left Green Bay on the 25th of October 
 with two Frenchmen and a number of Illinois and 
 Pottawatomie Indians for the villages on the 
 Chicago and Illinois Rivers. Entering Lake 
 Michigan, they encountered adverse winds and 
 waves and were more than a month on the way. 
 Going some distance up the Chicago River, they 
 found Marquette too weak to proceed farther, his 
 malady having assumed a violent form, and land- 
 ing, they erected two hut.s and prepared to pass 
 the winter. The good missionary taught the na- 
 tives here daily, in spite of his afflictions, while 
 his companions supplied him and themselves with 
 food by fishing and hunting. Thus the winter 
 wore away, and Marquette, renewing his vows, pre- 
 pared to go on to the village at the foot of the 
 rocky citadel, where he had been two years before. 
 On the 13th of March, 1675, they left their huts 
 and, rowing on up the Chicago to the portage be- 
 tween that and the Desplaines, embarked on their 
 way. Amid the incessant rains of spring, they 
 were rapidly borne down that stream to the Illi- 
 nois, on whose rushing flood they floated to the 
 
 object of their destination. At the great town the 
 missionary was received as a heavenly messenger, 
 and as he preached to them of heaven and hell, 
 of angels and demons, of good and bad deeds, 
 they regarded him as divine and besought him to 
 remain among them. The town then contained an 
 immense concourse of natives, drawn hither by the 
 reports they heard, and assembling them before him 
 on the plain near their village, where now are pros- 
 perous farms, he held before their astonished gaze 
 four large pictures of the Holy Virgin, and daily 
 harangued them on the duties of Christianity and 
 the necessity of conforming their conduct to the 
 words they heard. His strength was fast declining 
 and warned him he could not long remain. Find- 
 ing he must go, the Indians furnished him an 
 escort as far as the lake, on whose turbulent waters 
 he embarked with his two faithful attendants. 
 They turned their canoes for the Mackinaw Mis- 
 sion, which the afllicted missionary hoped to reach 
 before death came. As they coasted along the 
 eastern shores of the lake, the vernal hue of May 
 began to cover the hillsides with robes of green, 
 now dimmed to the eye of the departing Father, who 
 became too weak to view them. By the 19th of 
 the month, he could go no farther, and requested 
 his men to land and build him a hut in which he 
 might pass away. That done, he gave, with great 
 composure, directions concerning his burial, and 
 thanked God that he was permitted to die in the 
 wilderness in the midst of his work, an unshaken 
 believer in the faith he had so earnestly preached. 
 As twilight came on, he told his weary attendants 
 to rest, promising that when death should come he 
 would call them. At an early hour, on the morn- 
 ing of the 20th of May, 1675, they heard a feeble 
 voice, and hastening to his side found that the gen- 
 tle spirit of the good missionary had gone to heav- 
 en. His hand grasped the crucifix, and his lips 
 bore as their last sound the name of the Virgin. 
 They dug a grave near the banks of the stream 
 and buried him as he had requested. There in a 
 lonely wilderness the peaceful soul of Marquette 
 had at last found a rest, and his weary labors closed. 
 His companions went on to the mission, where 
 the news of his death caused great sorrow, for he 
 was one beloved by all. 
 
 Three years after his burial, the Ottawas, hunting 
 in the vicinity of his grave, determined to carry 
 his bones to the mission at their home, in accor- 
 dance with an ancient custom of their tribe. Hav- 
 ing opened the grave, at whose head a cross had 
 been planted, they carefully removed the bones and 
 
 "77 
 
 :v 
 
'^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 25 
 
 cleaning them, a funeral proces.si(in of thirty canoes 
 bore them to the Mackiuaw Mission, singing the 
 songs he had taught them. At the shores of the 
 mission the bones were received by the priests, and, 
 with great ceremony, buried under the floor of the 
 rude chapel. 
 
 While Marquette and Joliet were exploring the 
 head-waters of the "Great River," another man, 
 fearless in purpose, pious in heart, and loyal to 
 his country, was living in Canada and watching 
 the operations of his fellow countrymen with 
 keen eyes. When the French first saw the in- 
 hospitable shores of the St. Lawrence, in 1535, 
 under the lead of Jacques Cartier, and had opened 
 a new country to their crown, men were not 
 lacking to further extend the discovery. In 1608, 
 Champlain came, and at the foot of a cliff" on that 
 river founded Quebec. Seven years after, he 
 brought four RecoUet monks ; and through them 
 and the Jesuits the discoveries already narrated 
 occurred. Champlain died in 1G35, one hundred 
 years after Cartier's first visit, but not until he 
 had explored the northern lakes as fiir as Lake 
 Huron, on whose rocky shores he, as the progenitor 
 of a mighty race to follow, set his feet. He, with 
 others, held to the idea that somewhere across the 
 country, a river highway extended to the Western 
 ocean. The reports from the missions whose 
 history has been given aided this belief; and not 
 until Marquette and Joliet returned was the delu- 
 sion in any way dispelled. Before this was done, 
 however, the man to whom reference has been 
 made, Robert Cavalier, better known as La Salle, 
 had endeavored to solve the mystery, and, while 
 living on his grant of land eight miles above 
 Montreal, had indeed eff'ected important discoveries. 
 
 La Salle, the next actor in the field of explor- 
 ation after Champlain, was born in 1643. His 
 father's family was among the old and wealthy 
 burghers of Rouen, France, and its members 
 were frequently entrusted with important govern- 
 mental positions. He early exhibited such traits 
 of character as to mark him among his associates. 
 Coming from a wealthy family, he enjoyed all the 
 advantages of his day, and received, for the times, 
 an excellent education. He was a Catholic, 
 though liis subsequent life does not prove him 
 to have been a religious enthusiast. From some 
 cause, he joined the Order of Loyola, but the cir- 
 cumscribed sphere of action set for him in the 
 order illy concurred with his independent dis- 
 position, and led to his separaticm from it. This 
 was eff'ected, however, in a good spirit, as they 
 
 considered him fit for a different field of action 
 than any presented by the order. Having a 
 brother in Canada, a member of the order of St. 
 Sulpice, he determined to join him. By his 
 connection with the Jesuits he had lost his share 
 of his lather's estate, but, by some means, on his 
 death, which occurred about this time, he was 
 given a small share; and with this, in 1666, 
 he arrived in Montreal. All Canada was alive 
 with the news of the explorations; and La 
 Salle's mind, actively grasping the ideas he 
 afterward carried out, began to mature plans for 
 their perfection. At Montreal he found a semi- 
 nary of priests of the St. Sulpice Order who were 
 encouraging settlers by grants of land on easy 
 terms, hoping to establish a barrier of settlements 
 between themselves and the Indians, made ene- 
 mies to the French by Champlain's actions when 
 founding Quebec. The Superior of the seminary, 
 learning of La Salle's arrival, gratuitously off"ered 
 him a grant of land on the St. Lawrence, eight 
 miles above Montreal. The grant, though danger- 
 ously near the hostile Indians, was accepted, and 
 La Salle soon enjoyed an excellent trade in furs. 
 While employed in developing his claim, he learned 
 of the great unknown route, and burned with a 
 desire to solve its existence. He applied himself 
 closely to the study of Indian dialects, and in 
 three years is said to have made great progress 
 in their language. While, on his farm his 
 thoughts often turned to the unknown land away 
 to the west, and, like all men of his day, he 
 desired to explore the route to the Western sea, 
 and thence obtain an ea.sy trade with China and 
 Japan. The " Great River, which flowed to the 
 sea," must, thought they, find an outlet in the 
 Gulf of California. While musing on these 
 things, Marquette and Joliet were preparing to 
 descend the Wisconsin; and LaSalle himself 
 learned from a wandering band of Senecas that a 
 river, called the Ohio, arose in their country and 
 flowed to the sea, but at such a di.stance that it 
 would require eight months to reach its mouth. 
 This must be the Great River, or a part of it : 
 for all geographers of the day considered the 
 Mississippi and its tributary as one stream. Plac- 
 ing great confidence on this hy])othesis. La Salic 
 repaired to Quebec to obtain the sanction 
 of Gov. Courcelles. His plausible statements 
 soon won him the Governor and M. Talon, and 
 letters patent were issued granting the exploration. 
 No pecuniary aid was offered, and La Salle, hav- 
 ing expended all his means in improving his 
 
26 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 estate, was obliged to sell it to procure the 
 necessary outfit. The Superior of the seminary 
 being favorably disposed toward him, purchased 
 the greater part of his improvement, and realiz- 
 ing 2,800 livres, he purchased four canoes and the 
 necessary supplies for the expedition. The semi- 
 nary was, at the same time, preparing for a similar 
 exploration. The priests of this order, emulating 
 the Jesuits, had established missions on the north- 
 ern shore of Lake Ontario. Hearing of populous 
 tribes still further west, they resolved to attempt 
 their conversion, and deputized two of their number 
 for the purpose. On going to Quebec to procure 
 the necessary supplies, they were advised of La 
 Salle's expedition down the Ohio, and resolved to 
 unite themselves with it. La Salle did not alto- 
 gether fiivor their attempt, as he believed the 
 Jesuits already had the field, and would not care 
 to have any aid from a rival order. His dispo- 
 sition also would not well brook the part they 
 assumed, of asking him to be a co-laborer rather 
 than a leader. However, the expeditions, merged 
 into one body, left the mission on the St. Law- 
 rence on the 6th of July, 16G9, in seven canoes. 
 The party numbered twenty-four persons, who 
 were accompanied by two canoes filled with 
 Indians who had visited La Salle, and who now 
 acted as guides. Their guides led them up the 
 St. Lawrence, over the expanse of Lake Ontario, 
 to their village on the banks of the Genesee, 
 where they expected to find guides to lead them 
 on to the Ohio. As La Salle only partially under- 
 stood their language, he was compelled to confer 
 with them by means of a Jesuit stationed at the 
 village. The Indians refused to furnish him the 
 expected aid, and even burned before his eyes a 
 prisoner, the only one who could give him any 
 knowledge he desired. He surmised the Jesuits 
 were at the bottom of the matter, fearful lest the 
 disciples of St. Sulpice should gain a foothold in 
 the west. He lingered here a month, with the 
 hope of accomplishing his object, when, by chance, 
 there came by an Iroquois Indian, who assured 
 them that at his colony, near the head of the lake, 
 they could find guides ; and off"ered to conduct 
 them thither. Coming along the southern shore 
 of the lake, they passed, at its western extremity, 
 the mouth of the Niagara River, where they heard 
 for the first time the thunder of the mighty cata- 
 ract between the two lakes. At the village of the 
 Iroquois they met a friendly reception, and were 
 informed by a Shawanese prisoner that they could 
 reach the Ohio in six weeks' time, and that he 
 
 would guide them there. While preparing to 
 commence the journey, they heard of the missions 
 to the northwest, and the priests resolved to go 
 there and convert the natives, and find the river 
 by that route. It appears that Louis Joliet met 
 them here, on his return from visiting the copper 
 mines of Lake Superior, under command of M. 
 Talon. He gave the priests a map of the country, 
 and informed them that the Indians of those 
 regions were in great need of spiritual advisers. 
 This strengthened their intention, though warned 
 by La Salle, that the Jesuits were undoubtedly 
 there. The authority for Joliet's visit to them 
 here is not clearly given, and may not be true, 
 but the same letter which gives the account of 
 the discovery of the Ohio at this time by La Salle, 
 states it as a fact, and it is hence inserted. The 
 missionaries and La Salle separated, the former to 
 find, as he had predicted, the followers of Loyola 
 already in the field, and not wanting their aid. 
 Hence they return from a fruitless tour. 
 
 La Salle, now left to himself and just recovering 
 from a violent fever, went on his journey. From 
 the paper from which these statements are taken, 
 it appears he went on to Onondaga, where he pro- 
 cured guides to a tributary of the Ohio, down 
 which he proceeded to the principal stream, on 
 whose bosom he continued his way till he came to 
 the falls at the present city of Louisville, Ky. It 
 has been asserted that he went on down to its 
 mouth, but that is not well authenticated and is 
 hardly true. The statement that he went as far as 
 the falls is, doubtless, correct. He states, in a letter 
 to Count Frontenac in 1677, that he discovered 
 the Ohio, and that he descended it to the falls. 
 Moreover, Joliet, in a measure his rival, for he was 
 now preparing to go to the northern lakes and 
 from them search the river, made two maps repre- 
 senting the lakes and the Mississippi, on both of 
 which he states that La Salle had discovered the 
 Ohio. Of its course beyond the falls, La Salle 
 does not seem to have learned anything definite, 
 hence his discovery did not in any way settle the 
 great question, and elicited but little comment. 
 Still, it stimulated La Salle to more efi"ort, and 
 while musing on his plans, Joliet and Marquette 
 push on from Grrecn Bay, and discover the river 
 and ascertain the general course of its outlet. On 
 Joliet's return in 1673, he seems to drop from 
 further notice. Other and more venturesome souls 
 were ready to finish the work begun by himself 
 and the zealous JMarquette, who, left among the 
 for-away nations, laid down his life. The spirit of 
 
^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 29 
 
 La Salle was equal to the enterprise, and as lie now 
 had returned from one voyage of discovery, he 
 stood ready to solve the mystery, and gain the 
 country for his King. Before this could be ac- 
 complished, however, he saw other things must be 
 done, and made pi'eparations on a scale, for the 
 time, truly marvelous. 
 
 Count Frontenac, the new Governor, had no 
 sooner established himself in power than he gave a 
 searching glance over the new realm to see if any 
 undeveloped resources lay yet unnoticed, and what 
 country yet remained open. He learned from the 
 exploits of La Salle on the Ohio, and from Joliet, 
 now returned from the West, of that immense 
 country, and resolving in his mind on some plan 
 whereby it could be formally taken, entered 
 heartily into the plans of La Salle, who, anxious to 
 solve the mystery concerning the outlet of the 
 Great River, gave him the outline of a plan, saga- 
 cious in its conception and grand in its compre- 
 hension. La Salle had also informed him of the 
 endeavors of the English on the Atlantic coast to 
 divert the trade with the Indians, and partly to 
 counteract this, were the plans of La Salle adopted. 
 They were, briefly, to build a chain of forts from 
 Canada, or New France, along the lakes to the 
 Mississippi, and on down that river, thereby hold- 
 ing the country by power as well as by discovery. 
 A fort was to be built on the Ohio as soon as the 
 means could be obtained, and thereby hold that 
 country by the same policy. Thus to La Salle 
 alone may be ascribed the bold plan of gaining the 
 whole West, a plan only thwarted by the force of 
 arms. Through the aid of Frontenac, he was 
 given a proprietary and the rank of nobility, and 
 on his proprietary was erected a fort, which he, in 
 honor of his Governor, called Fort Frontenac. It 
 stood on the site of the present city of Kingston, 
 Canada. Through it he obtained the trade of the 
 Five Nations, and his fortune was so far assured. 
 He next repaired to France, to perfect his arrange- 
 ments, secure his title and obtain means. 
 
 On his return he built the fort alluded to, and 
 prepared to go on in the prosecution of his plan. 
 A civil discord arose, however, which for three 
 years prevailed, and seriously threatened his 
 projects. As soon as he could extricate himself, 
 he again repaired to France, receiving additional 
 encouragement in money, grants, and the exclusive 
 privilege of a trade in buffalo skins, then consid- 
 ered a source of great Avealth. On his return, he 
 was accompanied by Henry Tonti, son of an illus- 
 trious Italian nobleman, who had fled from his 
 
 own country during one of its political revolutions. 
 Coming to France, he made himself famous as the 
 founder of Tontine Life Insurance. Henry Tonti 
 possessed an indomitable will, and though he had 
 suffered the loss of one of his hands by the ex- 
 plosion of a grenade in one of the Sicilian wars, 
 his courage was undtniuied, and his ardor un- 
 dimmed. La Salle also brought recruits, mechanics, 
 sailors, cordage and sails tor rigging a ship, and 
 merchandise for traffic with the natives. At 
 Montreal, he secured the services of M. LaMotte, a 
 person of much energy and integrity of character. 
 He also secured several missionaries before he 
 reached Fort Frontenac. Among them were 
 Louis Hennepin, Gabriel Ribourde and Zenabe 
 Membre. All these were Flemings, all Recollets. 
 Hennepin, of all of them, proved the best assist- 
 ant. They arrived at the fort early in the autumn 
 of 1678, and preparations were at once made to 
 erect a vessel in which to navigate the lakes, and 
 a fort at the mouth of the Niagara River. The 
 Senecas were rather adverse to the latter proposals 
 when La Motte and Hennepin came, but by 
 the eloquence of the latter, they were pacified 
 and rendered friendly. After a number of vexa- 
 tious delays, the vessel, the Griffin, the first on the 
 lakes, was built, and on the 7th of August, a year 
 after La Salle came here, it was launched, passed 
 over the waters of the northern lakes, and, after a 
 tempestuous voyage, landed at Green Bay. It was 
 soon after stored with furs and sent back, while 
 La Salle and his men awaited its return. It was 
 never afterward heard of. La Salle, becoming 
 impatient, erected a fort, pushed on with a 
 part of his men, leaving part at the fort, 
 and passed over the St. Joseph and Kankakee 
 Rivers, and thence to the IlHnois, down whose 
 flood they proceeded to Peoria Lake, where 
 he was obliged to halt, and return to Canada 
 for more men and supplies. He left Tonti 
 and several men to complete a fort, called 
 Fort " Crevecoeur " — broken-hearted. The Indians 
 drove the French away, the men mutinied, and 
 Tonti was obliged to flee. When La Salle returned, 
 he found no one there, and going down as far as 
 the mouth of the Illinois, he retraced his steps, to 
 find some trace of his garrison. Tonti was found 
 safe among the Pottawatomies at Green Bay, and 
 Hennepin and his two followers, sent to explore 
 the head-waters of the IMississippi, were again 
 home, after a captivity among the Sioux. 
 
 La Salle renewed his force of men, and the third 
 time set out for the outlet of the Great River. 
 
 -\ 
 
30 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 He left Canada early in December, 1G81, and by 
 February Ci, 1682, reached the majestic flood of 
 the mighty stream. On the 24th, they ascended 
 the Chickasaw Bluffs, and, while waiting to find 
 a sailor who had strayed away, erected Fort Prud- 
 homme. They passed several Indian villages fur- 
 ther down the river, in some of which they met 
 with no little opposition. Proceeding onward, ere- 
 long they encountered the tide of the sea, and 
 April 0, they emerged on the broad bosom of the 
 Gulf, "to.ssing its restless billows, limitless, voice- 
 less and lonely as when born of chaos, without a 
 sign of life." 
 
 Coasting about a short time on the shores of 
 the Gulf, the party returned until a sufficiently 
 dry place was reached to effect a landing. Here 
 another cross was raised, also a column, on which 
 was inscribed these words : 
 
 " Louis le Grand, Roi de France et de Navarre, 
 Regne; Le Neuvieme, Avril, 1682." * 
 
 " The whole party," says a " proces verbal," in 
 the archives of France, " chanted the Te Deuni, 
 the Exaudiat and the Domiiiesalvum fac Regem^ 
 and then after a salute of fire-arras and cries of 
 Vive le Hoi, La Salle, standing near the column, 
 said in a loud voice in French : 
 
 "In the name of the most high, mighty, invin- 
 cible and victorious Prince, Louis the Great, by 
 the grace of God, King of France and of Navarre, 
 Fourteenth of that name, this ninth day of April, 
 one thousand six hundred and eighty two, I, in 
 virtue of the commission of His Majesty, which I 
 hold in my hand, and which may be seen by all 
 whom it may concern, have taken, and do now 
 take, in the name of His Majesty and of his suc- 
 cessors to the crown, possession of this country of 
 Louisiana, the seas, harbor, ports, bays, adjacent 
 straights, and all the nations, people, provinces, cities, 
 towns, villages, mines, minerals, fisheiies, streams 
 and rivers, comprised in the extent of said Louisiana, 
 from the north of the great river St. Louis, other- 
 wise called the Ohio, Alighin, Sipore or Chukago- 
 na, and this with the consent of the Chavunons, 
 Chickachaws, and other people dwelling therein, 
 with whom we have made alliance; as also along 
 the river Colbert or Mississippi, and rivers which 
 discharge themselves therein from its source beyond 
 the Kious or Nadouessious, and this with their 
 consent, and with the consent of the Illinois, Mes- 
 igameas, Natchez, Koroas, which are the most con- 
 siderable nations dwelling therein, with whom also 
 
 * Lmiis the Groat, King of France and of Navarre, reigning the 
 ninth day of April, 10b2. 
 
 we have made alliance, either by ourselves or others 
 in our behalf, as far as its mouth at the sea or 
 Gulf of Mexico, about the twenty-seventh degree 
 of its elevation of the North Pole, and also to the 
 mouth of the River of Palms; upon the assurance 
 which we have received from all these nations that 
 we are the first Europeans who have descended or 
 ascended the river Colbert, hereby protesting 
 against all those who may in future undertake to 
 invade any or all of these countries, peoples or 
 lands, to the prejudice of the right of His Majesty, 
 acquired by the consent of the nations herein 
 named." 
 
 The whole assembly responded with shouts and 
 the salutes of fire-arms. The Sieur de La Salle 
 caused to be planted at the foot of the column a 
 plate of lead, on one side of which was inscribed 
 the arms of France and the following Latin inscrip- 
 tion: 
 
 Robertvs Cavellier, cvm Domino de Tonly, Legato, 
 R. P. Zenobi Membro, RecoUecto, et, Viginti Gallis 
 Primos Hoc Flvmen inde ab ilineorvm Pago, enavigavil, 
 ejvsqve ostivm fecit Pervivvm, nono Aprilis cio ioc 
 LXXXIL 
 
 The whole proceedings were acknowledged be- 
 fi)re La ]\Ietaire, a notary, and the conquest was 
 considered complete. 
 
 Thus was the foundation of France laid in the 
 new republic, and thus did she lay claim to the 
 Northwest, which now includes Ohio, and the 
 county, whose history this book perpetuates. 
 
 La Salle and his party returned to Canada soon 
 after, and again that country, and France itself, 
 rang with anthems of exultation. He went on to 
 France, where he received the highest honors. 
 He was given a fleet, and sailors as well as colon- 
 ists to return to the New World by way of a south- 
 ern voyage, expecting to find the mouth of the 
 Mississippi by an ocean course. Sailing past the 
 outlets, he was wrecked on the coast of Texas, and 
 in his vain endeavors to find the river or return to 
 Canada, he became lost on the plains of Arkansas, 
 where he, in 1087, was basely murdered by one of 
 his followers. " You are down now, Grand BashaAV," 
 exclaimed his slayer, and despoiling his remains, they 
 left them to be devoured by wild beasts. To such 
 an ignominious end came this daring, bold adven- 
 turer. Alone in the wilderness, he was left, with 
 no monument but the vast realm he had discov- 
 ered, on whose bosom he was left without cover- 
 ing and without protection. 
 
 " For force of will and vast conception ; for va- 
 rious knowledge, and quick adaptation of his genius 
 
•-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 31 
 
 to untried circumstances; for a sublime magnani- 
 mity, that resigned itself to the will of Heaven, 
 and yet triumphed over affliction by energy of 
 purpose and unfaltering hope — he had no superior 
 among his countrymen. He had won the affec- 
 tions of the governor of Canada, the esteem of 
 Colbert, the confidence of Seignelay, the favor of 
 Louis XIV. After the beginning of the coloniza- 
 tion of Upper Canada, he perfected the discovery 
 of the Mississippi from the Falls of St. Anthony 
 to its mouth ; and he will be remembered through 
 all time as the father of colonization in the great 
 central valley of the West."* 
 
 Avarice, passion and jealousy were not calmed by 
 the blood of La Salle. All of his conspirators per- 
 ished by ignoble deaths, while only seven of the six- 
 teen succeeded in continuing the journey until 
 they reached Canada, and thence found their way 
 to France. 
 
 Tonti, who had been left at Fort St. Louis, on 
 " Starved Rock" on the Illinois, went down in 
 search of his beloved commander. Failing to find 
 him, he returned and remained here until 1700, 
 thousands of miles away from friends. Then he 
 went down the Mississippi to join D'Iberville, who 
 had made the discovery of the mouth of the Mis- 
 sissippi by an ocean voyage. Two years later, he 
 went on a mission to the Chickasaws, but of his 
 subsequent history nothing is known. 
 
 The West was now in possession of the French. 
 La Salle's plans were yet feasible. The period of 
 exploration was now over. The great river and 
 its outlet was known, and it only remained for that 
 nation to enter in and occupy what to many a 
 Frenchman was the "Promised Land." Only 
 eighteen years had elapsed since Marquette and 
 Joliet had descended the river and shown the 
 course of its outlet. A spirit, less bold than La 
 Salle's would never in so short a time have pene- 
 trated for more than a thousand miles an unknown 
 wilderness, and solved the mystery of the world. 
 
 When Joutel and his companions reached France 
 in 1688, all Europe was on the eve of war. Other 
 nations than the French wanted part of the New 
 World, and when they saw that nation greedily 
 and rapidly accumulating territory there, they en- 
 deavored to stay its progress. The league of Augs- 
 burg was formed in 1 687 by the princes of the Em- 
 pire to restrain the ambition of Louis XIV, and 
 in 1688, he began hostilities by the capture of 
 Philipsburg. The next year, England, under the 
 
 lead of William III, joined the alliance, and Louis 
 found himself compelled, with only the aid of the 
 Turks, to contend against the united forces of the 
 Empires of England, Spain, Holland, Denmark, 
 Sweden and Norway. Yet the tide of battle wa- 
 vered. In 1689, the French were defeated at 
 Walcourt, and the Turks at Widin; but in 1690, 
 the French were victorious at Charleroy, and the 
 Turks at Belgrade. The next year, and also the 
 next, victory inclined to the French, but in 1693, 
 Louvois and Luxemberg were dead and Namur 
 surrendered to the allies. The war extended to the 
 New World, where it was maintained with more 
 than equal success by the French, though the En- 
 glish population exceeded it more than twenty to one. 
 In 1688, the French were estimated at about 
 twelve thousand souls in North America, while the 
 English were more than two hundred thousand. 
 At first the war was prosecuted vigorously. In 
 1689, De. Ste. Helene and D'Iberville, two of the 
 sons of Charles le Morne, crossed the wilderness 
 and reduced the English forts on Hudson's Bay. 
 But in August of the same year, the Iroquois, the 
 hereditary foes of the French, captured and burned 
 Montreal. Frontenac, who had gone on an ex- 
 pedition against New York by sea, was recalled. 
 Fort Frontenac was abandoned, and no French 
 posts left in the West between Trois Rivieres and 
 Mackinaw, and were it not for the Jesuits the en- 
 tire West would now have been abandoned. To 
 recover their influence, the French planned three 
 expeditions. One resulted in the destruction of 
 Schenectady, another, Salmon Falls, and the third, 
 Casco Bay. On the other hand. Nova Scotia was 
 reduced by the colonies, and an expedition against 
 Montreal went as far as to Lake Champlain, where 
 it failed, owing to the dissensions of the leaders. 
 Another expedition, consisting of twenty-four ves- 
 sels, arrived before Quebec, which also failed 
 through the incompetency of Sir William Phipps. 
 During the succeeding years, various border con- 
 flicts occurred, in all of which border scenes of 
 savage cruelty and savage ferocity were enacted. 
 The peace of Ryswick, in 1697, closed the war. 
 France retained Hudson's Bay, and all the places 
 of which she was in possession in 1688; but the 
 boundaries of the English and French claims in 
 the New World were still unsettled. 
 
 The conclusion of the conflict left the French 
 at liberty to pursue their scheme of colonization 
 in the Mississippi Valley. In 1698, D'Iberville 
 was sent to the lower province, which, erelong, 
 was made a separate independency, called Louisiana. 
 
 
33 
 
 IIISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 Forts were erected on Mobile Bay, and the division 
 of the territory between the French and the 
 Spaniards was settled. Trouble existed between 
 the French and the Chickasaws, ending in the 
 cruel deaths of many of the leaders, in the 
 fruitless endeavors of the Canadian and Louisi- 
 anian forces combining against the Chickasaws. 
 For many years the conflict raged, with unequal 
 successes, until the Indian power gave way before 
 superior military tactics. In the end, New Orleans 
 was founded, in 1718, and the French power 
 secured. 
 
 Before this was consummated, however, France 
 became entangled in another war against the 
 allied powers, ending in her defeat and the loss 
 of Nova Scotia, Hudson's Bay and Newfound- 
 land. The peace of Utrecht closed the war 
 in 1713. 
 
 The French, weary with prolonged strife, 
 adopted the plan, more peaceful in its nature, of 
 giving out to distinguished men the monopoly of 
 certain districts in the fur trade, the most pros- 
 perous of any avocation then. Crozat and 
 Cadillac — the latter the founder of Detroit, in 
 1701 — were the chief ones concerned in this. 
 The founding of the villages of Kaskaskia, Ca- 
 hokia, Vincennes, and others in the Mississippi 
 and Wabash Valleys, led to the rapid develop- 
 ment, according to the French custom of all 
 these parts of the West, while along all the chief 
 water-courses, other trading posts and forts were 
 established, rapidly fulfilling the hopes of La 
 Salle, broached so many years before. 
 
 The French had, at the beginning of the 
 eighteenth century, four principal routes to their 
 western towns, two of which passed over the soil 
 of Ohio. The first of these was the one followed 
 by Marquette and Joliet, by way of the Lakes to 
 Green Bay, in Wisconsin ; thence across a portage 
 to the Wisconsin River, down which they floated 
 to the Mississippi. On their return they came 
 up the Illinois River, to the site of Chicago, 
 whence Joliet returned to Quebec by the Lakes. 
 La Salle's route was first by the Lakes to the St. 
 Joseph's River, which he followed to the portage 
 to the Kankakee, and thence downward to the 
 Mississippi. On his second and third attempt, 
 he crossed the lower peninsula of Michigan to 
 the Kankakee, and again traversed its waters to 
 the Illinois. The third route was established 
 about 1716. It followed the southern shores of 
 Lake Erie to the mouth of the Maumee River; 
 following this stream, the voyagers went on to the 
 
 junction between it and the St. Mary's, which 
 they followed to the " Oubache " — Waba.sh — and 
 then to the French villages in Vigo and Knox 
 Counties, in Indiana. Vincennes was the oldest 
 and most important one here. It had been 
 founded in 1702 by a French trader, and was, at 
 the date of the establishment of the third route, 
 in a prosperous condition. For many years, the 
 traders crossed the plains of Southern Illinois to 
 the French towns on the bottoms opposite St. 
 Louis. They were afraid to go on down the 
 "Waba" to the Ohio, as the Indians had fright- 
 ened them with accounts of the great monsters 
 below. Finally, some adventurous spirit went 
 down the river, found it emptied into the Ohio, 
 and solved the problem of the true outlet of the 
 Ohio, heretofore supposed to be a tributary of the 
 Wabash. 
 
 The fourth route was from the southern shore 
 of Lake Erie, at Presqueville, over a portage of 
 fifteen miles to the head of French Creek, at 
 Waterford, Penn.; thence down that stream to the 
 Ohio, and on to the Mississippi. Along all these 
 routes, ports and posts were carefully maintained. 
 Many were on the soil of Ohio, and were the first 
 attempts of the white race to possess its domain. 
 Many of the ruins of these posts are yet found on 
 the southern shore of Lake Erie, and at the 
 outlets of streams flowing into the lake and the Ohio 
 River. The principal forts were at Mackinaw, at 
 Presqueville, at the mouth of the St. Joseph's, on 
 Starved Rock, and along the Father of Waters. 
 Yet another power was encroaching on them : a 
 sturdy race, clinging to the inhospitable Atlantic 
 shores, were coming over the mountains. The 
 murmurs of a conflict were already heard — a con- 
 flict that would change the fate of a nation. 
 
 The French were extending their explorations 
 beyond the Mississippi; they were also forming a 
 political organization, and increasing their influence 
 over the natives. Of a passive nature, however, 
 their power and their influence could not with- 
 stand a more aggressive nature, and they were 
 obliged, finally, to give way. They had the 
 fruitful valleys of the West more than a century; 
 yet they developed no resources, opened no mines 
 of wealth, and left the country as passive as they 
 found it. 
 
 Of the growth of the West under French rule, 
 but little else remains to be said. The sturdy 
 Anglo-Saxon race on the Atlantic coast, and their 
 progenitors in England, began, now, to turn their 
 attention to this vast country. The voluptuousness 
 
■■^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 33 
 
 of the French court, their neglect of the true 
 basis of wealth, agriculture, and the repressive 
 tendencies laid on the colonists, led the latter to 
 adopt a hunter's life, and leave the country unde- 
 veloped and ready for the people who claimed the 
 country from "sea to sea." Their explorers were 
 now at work. The change was at hand. 
 
 Occasional mention has been made in the his- 
 tory of the State, in preceding pages, of settle- 
 ments and trading-posts of the French traders, 
 explorers and missionaries, within the limits of 
 Ohio. The French were the first white men to 
 occupy the northwestern part of the New World, 
 and though their stay was brief, yet it opened the 
 way to a sinewy race, living on the shores of the 
 Atlantic, who in time came, saw, and conquered 
 that part of America, making it what the people 
 of to-day enjoy. 
 
 As early as 1669, four years before the discov- 
 ery of the Mississippi by Joliet and Marquette, 
 La Salle, the fixmous explorer, discovered the Ohio 
 lliver, and paddled down its gentle current as far 
 as the ftills at the present city of Louisville, but he, 
 like others of the day, made no settlement on its 
 banks, only claiming the country for his King by 
 virtue of this discovery. 
 
 Early in the beginning of the eighteenth cent- 
 ury, French traders and voyagers passed along the 
 southern shores of Lake Erie, to the mouth of the 
 Maumee, up whose waters they rowed their bark 
 canoes, on their way to their outposts in the Wa- 
 bash and Illinois Valleys, established between 
 1675 and 1700. As soon as they could, without 
 danger from their inveterate enemies, the Iroquois, 
 masters of all the lower lake country, erect a 
 trading-post at the mouth of this river, they did 
 so. It was made a depot of considerable note, 
 and was, probably, the first permanent habitation 
 of white men in Ohio. It remained until after 
 the peace of 1763, the termination of the French 
 and Indian war, and the occupancy of this country 
 by the English. On the site of the French trading- 
 post, the British, in 1794, erected Fort Miami, 
 which they garrisoned until the country came 
 under the control of Americans. Now, Maumee 
 City covers the ground. 
 
 The French had a trading-post at the mouth of 
 the Huron lliver, in what is now Erie County. 
 When it was built is not now known. It was, how- 
 ever, probably one of their early outposts, and 
 may have been built before 1750. They had an- 
 other on the shore of the bay, on or near the site 
 of Sandusky City. Both this and the one at the 
 
 mouth of the Huron lliver were abandoned before 
 the war of the Revolution. On Lewis Evan's map 
 of the British Middle Colonies, published in 1755, 
 a French fort, called " Fort Junandat, built in 
 175-4," is marked on the east bank of the San- 
 dusky lliver, several miles below its mouth. Fort 
 Sandusky, on the western bank, is also noted. 
 Several Wyandot towns are likewise marked. But 
 very little is known concerning any of these 
 trading-posts. They were, evidently, only tempo- 
 rary, and were abandoned when the English came 
 into possession of the country. 
 
 The mouth of the Cuyahoga River was another 
 important place. On Evan's map there is marked 
 on the west bank of the Cuyahoga, some distance 
 from its mouth, the words '■'■French House^''' doubt- 
 less, the station of a French trader. The ruins 
 of a house, found about five miles from the mouth 
 of the river, on the west bank, are supposed to 
 be those of the trader's station. 
 
 In 1786, the Moravian missionary, Zeisberger, 
 with his Indian converts, left Detroit in a vessel 
 called the Mackinaw, and sailed to the mouth of 
 the Cuyahoga. From there they went up the 
 river about ten miles, and settled in an abandoned 
 Ottawa village, where Independence now is, which 
 place they called " Saint's Rest." Their stay was 
 brief, for the following April, they left for the 
 Huron River, and settled near the site of IMilan, 
 Erie County, at a locality they called New Salem. 
 
 There are but few records of settlements made 
 by the French until after 1750. Even these can 
 hardly be called settlements, as they were simply 
 trading-posts. The French easily afiiliated with 
 the Indians, and had little energy beyond trading. 
 They never cultivated fields, laid low forests, and 
 subjugated the country. They were a half-Indian 
 race, so to speak, and hence did little if anything 
 in developing the West. 
 
 About 1749, some English traders came to a 
 place in what is now Shelby County, on the 
 banks of a creek since known as Loramic's 
 Creek, and established a trading-station with the 
 Indians. This was the first English trading-place 
 or attempt at settlement in the State. It was here 
 but a short time, however, when the French, hear- 
 ing of its existence, sent a party of soldiers to the 
 Twigtwees, among whom it was founded, and de- 
 manded the traders as intruders upon French ter- 
 ritory. The Twigtwees refusing to deliver up 
 their friends, the French, assisted by a large party 
 of Ottawas and Chippewas, attacked the trading- 
 house, probably a block-house, and, after a severe 
 
 :\ 
 
34 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 battle, captured it. The traders were taken to 
 Canada. This fort was called by the English 
 " Pickawillauy," from which "Piqua" is probably 
 derived. About the time that Kentucky was sot- 
 tied, a Canadian Frenchman, named Loramio, 
 established a store on the site of the old fort. He 
 was a bitter enemy of the Americans, and for a 
 long time Loramie's store was the headquarters of 
 mischief toward the settlers. 
 
 The French had the faculty of endearing them- 
 selves to the Indians by their easy assimilation of 
 their habits; and, no doubt, Loramie was equal to 
 any in this respect, and hence gained great influ- 
 ence over them. Col. Johnston, many years an 
 Indian Agent from the United States among the 
 Western tribes, stated that he had often seen the 
 " Indians burst into tears when speaking of the 
 times when their French father had dominion 
 over them ; and their attachment always remained 
 unabated." 
 
 So much influence had Loramie with the In- 
 dians, that, when Gen. Clarke, from Kentucky, 
 invaded the Miami Valley in 1782, his attention 
 was attracted to the spot. He came on and burnt 
 the Indian settlement here, and destroyed the store 
 of the Frenchman, selling his goods among the 
 men at auction. Loramie fled to the Shawanees, 
 and, with a colony of that nation, emigrated west 
 of the Mississippi, to the Spanish possessions, 
 where he again began his life of a trader. 
 
 In 1794, during the Indian war, a fort was 
 built on the site of the store by Wayne, and 
 named Fort Loramie. The last ofiicer who had 
 command here was Capt. Butler, a nephew of 
 Col. Ilichard Butler, who fell at St. Clair's defeat. 
 While here with his family, he lost an interesting 
 boy, about eight years of age. About his grave, 
 the sorrowing father and mother built a substantial 
 picket-fence, planted honeysuckles over it, which, 
 long after, remained to mark the grave of the 
 soldier's boy. 
 
 The site of Fort Loramie was always an im- 
 portant point, and was one of the places defined 
 on the boundary line at the Greenville treaty. 
 Now a barn covers the spot. 
 
 At the junction of the Auglaize and Maumee 
 Rivers, on the site of Fort Defiance, built by Gen. 
 Wayne in 1794, was a settlement of traders, 
 established some time before the Indian war 
 began. "On the high ground extending from the 
 Maumee a quarter of a mile up the Auglaize, 
 about two hundred yards in Avidth, was an open 
 S])ace, on the west and south of which were oak 
 
 woods, with hazel undergrowth. Within this 
 opening, a few hundred yards above the point, on 
 the steep bank of the Auglaize, were five or six 
 cabins and log houses, inhabited principally by 
 Indian traders. The most northerly, a large 
 hewed-log house, divided below into three apart- 
 ments, was occupied as a warehouse, store and 
 dwelling, by George Ironside, the most wealthy 
 and influential of the traders on the point. Next 
 to his were the houses of Pirault (Pero) a French 
 baker, and McKenzie, a Scot, who, in addition to 
 merchandising, followed the occupation of a silver- 
 smith, exchanging with the Indians his brooches, 
 ear-drops and other silver ornaments, at an 
 enormous profit, for skins and furs. 
 
 Still further up were several other fami- 
 lies of French and English; and two Ameri- 
 can prisoners, Henry Ball, a soldier taken in St. 
 Clair's defeat, and his wife, Polly JMeadows, 
 captured at the same time, were allowed to live 
 here and pay their masters the price of their 
 ransom — he, by boating to the rapids of the ]\Iau- 
 mee, and she by washing and sewing. Fronting 
 the house of Ironside, and about fifty yards from 
 the bank, was a small stockade, inclosing two 
 hewed-log houses, one of which was occupied by 
 James Girty (a brother of Simon), the other, 
 occasionally, by Elliott and McKee, British 
 Indian Agents living at Detroit."* 
 
 The post, cabins and all they contained fell 
 under the control of the Americans, when the 
 British evacuated the shores of the lakes. 
 While they existed, they were an undoubted 
 source of Indian discontent, and had much to do 
 in prolonging the Indian war. The country 
 hereabouts did not settle until some time after 
 the creation of the State government. 
 
 As soon as the French learned the true source 
 of the Ohio and Wabash Rivers, both were made 
 a highway to convey the products of their hunt- 
 ers. In coursing down the Ohio, they made 
 trading-places, or depots, where they could obtain 
 furs of the Indians, at accessible points, generally 
 at the mouths of the rivers emptying into the 
 Ohio. One of these old forts or trading-places 
 stood about a mile and a half south of the outlet 
 of the Scioto. It was here in 1740; but when 
 it was erected no one could tell. The locality 
 must have been pretty well known to the whites, 
 however; for, in 1785, three years before the 
 settlement of IMarietta was made, four families 
 
 ♦Narrative of 0. M. Spencer. 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 35 
 
 made an ineffectual attempt to settle near the same 
 place. They were from Kentucky, but were 
 driven away by the Indians a short time after 
 they arrived, not being allowed to build cabins, 
 and had only made preparations to plant corn 
 and other necessaries of life. While the men 
 were encamped near the vicinity of Piketown, 
 in Pike County, when on a hunting expedition, 
 they were surprised by the Indians, and two of 
 them slain. The others hastened back to the 
 encampment at the mouth of the Scioto, and 
 hurriedly gathering the families together, fortu- 
 nately got them on a flat-boat, at that hour on its 
 way down the river. By the aid of the boat, 
 they were enabled to reach Maysville, and gave 
 up the attempt to settle north of the Ohio. 
 
 The famous "old Scioto Salt Works," in Jack- 
 son County, on the banks of Salt Creek, a tributary 
 of the Scioto, were long known to the whites before 
 any attempt was made to settle in Ohio. They 
 were indicated on the maps published in 1755. 
 They were the resort, for generations, of the In- 
 dians in all parts of the West, who annually came 
 here to make salt. They often brought white 
 prisoners with them, and thus the salt works be- 
 came known. There were no attempts made to 
 settle here, however, until after the Indian war, 
 which closed in 1795. As soon as peace was as- 
 sured, the whites came here for salt, and soon after 
 made a settlement. Another early salt spring 
 was in what is now Trumbull County. It is also 
 noted on Evan's map of 1755. They were occu- 
 pied by the Indians, French, and by the Americans 
 as early as 1780, and perhaps earlier. 
 
 As early as 1761 Moravian missionaries came 
 among the Ohio Indians and began their labors. 
 In a few years, under the lead of Revs. Fredrick 
 Post and John Heckewelder, permanent stations 
 were established in several parts of the State, chief- 
 ly on the Tuscarawas River in Tuscarawas County. 
 Here were the three Indian villages — Shocnburn, 
 Gnadcnhutten and Salem. The site of the first is 
 about two miles south of New Philadelphia; Gna- 
 dcnhutten was seven miles further south, and about 
 five miles still on was Salem, a short distance from 
 the present village of Port Washington. The first 
 and last named of these villages were on the west 
 side of the Tuscarawas River, near the margin of 
 the Ohio Canal. Gnadcnhutten was on the east 
 side of the river. It was here that the brutal 
 massacre of these Christian Indians, by the rangers 
 under Col. Williamson, occurred March 8, 1782. 
 The account of the massacre and of these tribes 
 
 appears in these pages, and it only remains to 
 notice what became of them. 
 
 The hospitable and friendly character of these 
 Indians had extended beyond their white breth- 
 ren on the Ohio. The American people at large 
 looked on the act of Williamson and his men as an 
 outrage on humanity. Congress felt its influence, 
 and gave them a tract of twelve thousand acres, 
 embracing their former homes, and induced them 
 to return from the northern towns whither they had 
 fled. As the whites came into the country, their 
 manners degenerated until it became necessary to 
 remove them. Through Gen. Cass, of Michigan, 
 an agreement was made with them, whereby Con- 
 gress paid them over $G,000, an annuity of $400, 
 and 24,000 acres in some territory to be designated 
 by the United States. This treaty, by some means, 
 was never effectually carried out, and the princi- 
 pal part of them took up their residence near a 
 Moravian missionary station on the River Thames, 
 in Canada. Their old churchyard still exists on 
 the Tuscarawas River, and here rest the bones of 
 several of their devoted teachers. It is proper 
 to remark here, that Mary Heckewelder, daughter 
 of the missionary, is generally believed to have 
 been the first white child born in Ohio. How- 
 ever, this is largely conjecture. Captive women 
 among the Indians, before the birth of Mary 
 Heckewelder, are known to have borne children, 
 which afterward, with their mothers, were restored 
 to their friends. The assertion that Mary 
 Heckewelder was the first child born in Ohio, is 
 therefore incorrect. She is the first of whom any 
 definite record is made. 
 
 These outposts are about all that are known 
 to have existed prior to the settlement at Mari- 
 etta. About one-half mile below Bolivar, on 
 the western line of Tuscarawas County, are the 
 remains of Fort Laurens, erected in 1778, by 
 a detachment of 1,000 men under Gen. Mc- 
 intosh, from Fort Pitt. It was, however, occu- 
 pied but a short time, vacated in Aug-ust, 1770. as 
 it was deemed untenable at such a distance from 
 the frontier. 
 
 During the existence of the six years' Indian 
 war, a settlement of French emigrants was made 
 on the Ohio River, that deserves notice. It illus- 
 trates very clearly the extreme ignorance and 
 credulity prevalent at that day. In IMay or June 
 of 1788, Joel Barlow left this country for Europe, 
 " authorized to dispose of a very large body of 
 land in the West. " In 1790, he distributed pro- 
 posals in Paris for the disposal of lands at five 
 
 V 
 
fk 
 
 36 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 shillings per acre, which, says Volney, " promised 
 a climate healthy and delightful ; scarcely such a 
 thing as a frost in the winter ; a river, called by 
 way of eminence ' The Beautiful, ' abounding in 
 fish of an enormous size ; magnificent forests of a 
 tree from which sugar flows, and a shrub which 
 yields candles ; venison in abundance ; no military 
 enrollments, and no quarters to find for soldiers." 
 Purchasers became numerous, individuals and 
 whole families sold their property, and in the 
 course of 1791 many embarked at the various 
 French sea-ports, each with his title in his pocket. 
 Five hundred settlers, among whom were many 
 wood carvers and guilders to His Majesty, King of 
 France, coachmakers, friseurs and peruke makers, 
 and other artisans and artistes, equally well fitted 
 for a frontier Hfe, arrived in the United States in 
 1791-92, and acting without concert, traveling 
 without knowledge of the language, customs and 
 roads, at last managed to reach the spot designated 
 for their residence. There they learned they had 
 been cruelly deceived, and that the titles they held 
 were worthless. Without food, shelterless, and 
 danger closing around them, they were in a position 
 that none but a Frenchman could be in without 
 despair. Who brought them thither, and who was 
 to blame, is yet a disputed point. Some affirm 
 that those to whom large grants of land were made 
 when the Ohio Company procured its charter, were 
 the real instigators of the movement. They failed 
 to pay for their lands, and hence the title reverted 
 to the Government. This, coming to the ears of 
 the poor Frenchmen, rendered their situation more 
 distressing. They never paid for their lands^ and 
 only through the clemency of Congress, who after- 
 ward gave them a grant of land, and confirmed 
 them in its title, were they enabled to secure a foot- 
 hold. Whatever doubt there may be as to the 
 
 causes of these people being so grossly deceived, 
 there can be none regarding their sufierings. They 
 had followed a jack-o-lantern into the howling 
 wilderness, and must work or starve. The land 
 upon which they had been located was covered 
 with immense forest trees, to level which the coach- 
 makers were at a loss. At last, hoping to conquer 
 by a coup de main, they tied ropes to the branches, 
 and while a dozen pulled at them as many fell at 
 the trunk with all sorts of edged tools, and thus 
 soon brought the monster to the earth. Yet he 
 was a burden. He was down, to be sure, but as 
 much in the way as ever. Several lopped off the 
 branches, others dug an immense trench at his side, 
 into which, with might and main, all rolled the 
 large log, and then buried him from sight. They 
 erected their cabins in a cluster, as they had seen 
 them in their own native land, thus afibrding some 
 protection from marauding bands of Indians. 
 Though isolated here in the lonely wilderness, and 
 nearly out of funds with which to purchase pro- 
 visions from descending boats, yet once a week 
 they met and drowned care in a merry dance, 
 greatly to the wonderment of the scout or lone 
 Indian who chanced to witness their revelry. 
 Though their vivacity could work wonders, it would 
 not pay for lands nor buy provisions. Some of those 
 at Gallipolis (for such they called their settlement, 
 from Gallia, in France) went to Detroit, some to 
 Kaskaskia, and some bought land of the Ohio 
 Company, who treated them liberally. Congress, 
 too, in 1795, being informed of their sufFering^, 
 and how they had been deceived, granted them 
 24,000 acres opposite Little Sandy River, to which 
 grant, in 1798, 12,000 acres more were added. 
 The tract has since been known as French Grant. 
 The settlement is a curious episode in early West- 
 ern history, and deserves a place in its annals. 
 
 ":?" 
 
1^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 37 
 
 ENGLISH EXPLORATIONS 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 -TRADERS— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR IN THE WEST. 
 POSSESSION. 
 
 ■ENGLISH 
 
 AS has been noted, the French title rested on 
 the discoveries of their missionaries and 
 traders, upon the occupation of the country, and 
 upon the construction of the treaties of Ryswick, 
 Utrecht and Aix la Chapelle. The English 
 claims to the same region were based on the fact 
 of a prior occupation of the corresponding coast, 
 on an opposite construction of the same treaties, 
 and an alleged cession of the rights of the 
 Indians. The rights acquired by discovery were 
 conventional, and in equity were good only 
 between European powers, and could not affect the 
 rights of the natives, but this distinction was dis- 
 regarded by all European powers. The inquiry of 
 an Indian chief embodies the whole controversy: 
 " Where are the Indian lands, since the French 
 claim all on the north side of the Ohio and the 
 English all on the south side of it?" 
 
 The English charters expressly granted to all 
 the original colonies the country westward to the 
 South Sea, and the claims thus set up in the West, 
 though held in abeyance, were never relinquished. 
 The primary distinction between the two nations 
 governed their actions in the New World, and led 
 finally to the supremacy of the English. They 
 were fixed agricultural communities. The French 
 were mere trading-posts. Though the French 
 were the prime movers in the exploration of the 
 West, the English made discoveries during their 
 occupation, however, mainly by their traders, who 
 penetrated the Western wilderness by way of the 
 Ohio River, entering it from the two streams which 
 uniting form that river. Daniel Coxie, in 1722, 
 published, in London, "A description of the 
 English province of Carolina, by the Spaniards 
 called Florida, and by the French called La Louis- 
 iane, as also the great and famous river Mescha- 
 cebe, or Mississippi, the five vast navigable lakes 
 of fresh water, and the parts adjacent, together 
 with an account of the commodities of the growth 
 and production of the said province." The title 
 of this work exhibits very clearly the opinions of 
 the English people respecting the West. As early 
 as 1 G30, Charles I granted to Sir Robert Heath 
 "All that part of America lying between thirty- 
 
 one and thirty-six degrees north latitude, from sea 
 to sea," out of which the limits of Carolina were 
 afterward taken. This immense grant was con- 
 veyed in 1638, to the Earl of Arundel, and after- 
 ward came into the possession of Dr. Daniel Coxie. 
 In the prosecution of this claim, it appeared that 
 Col. Wood, of Virginia, from 165-1 to 1664, ex- 
 plored several branches of the Ohio and " Mescha- 
 cebe," as they spell the Mississippi. A Mr. Need- 
 ham, who was employed by Col. Wood, kept a 
 journal of the exploration. There is also the ac- 
 count of some one who had explored the Missis- 
 sippi to the Yellow, or Missouri River, before 1676. 
 These, and others, are said to have been there 
 when La Salle explored the outlet of the Great 
 River, as he found tools among the natives which 
 were of European manufacture. They had been 
 brought here by English adventurers. Also, when 
 Iberville was colonizing the lower part of Louis- 
 iana, these same persons visited the Chickasaws 
 and stirred them up against the French. It is also 
 stated that La Salle found that some one had been 
 among the Natchez tribes when he returned from 
 the discovery of the outlet of the Mississippi, and 
 excited them against him. There is, however, no 
 good authority for these statements, and they are 
 doubtless incorrect. There is also an account that 
 in 1678, several persons went from New England 
 as far south as New Mexico, " one hundred and 
 fifty leagues beyond the Meschacebe," the narrative 
 reads, and on their return wrote an account of the 
 expedition. This, also, cannot be traced to good 
 authority. The only accurate account of the 
 English reaching the West was when Bienville 
 met the British vessel at the "English Turn," 
 about 1700. A few of their traders may have 
 been in the valley west of the Alleghany Mount- 
 ains before 1700, though no reliable accounts are 
 now found to confirm these suppositions. Still, 
 from the earliest occupation of the Atlantic Coast 
 by the EngHsh, they claimed the country, and, 
 though the policy of its occupation rested for a 
 time, it was never ftilly abandoned. Its revival 
 dates from 1710 properly, though no immediate 
 endeavor was made for many years after. That 
 
 :^ 
 
38 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 year, Alexander Spottswood was made Governor of 
 Virginia. No sooner did he assume the functions 
 of ruler, than, casting his eye over his dominion, he 
 saw the great West beyond the Alleghany Mount- 
 ains unoccupied by the English, and rapidly filling 
 with the French, who he observed were gradually 
 confining the English to the Atlantic Coast. His 
 prophetic eye saw at a glance the animus of the 
 whole scheme, and he determined to act promptly 
 on the defensive. Through his representation, the 
 Virginia Assembly was induced to make an appro- 
 priation to defray the expense of an exploration of 
 the mountains, and see if a suitable pass could not 
 then be found where they could be crossed. The 
 Governor led the expedition in person. The pass 
 was discovered, a route marked out for future em- 
 igrants, and the party returned to Williamsburg. 
 There the Governor established the order of the 
 "Knights of the Golden Horseshoe," presented 
 his report to the Colonial Assembly and one to his 
 King. In each report, he exposed with great bold- 
 ness the scheme of the French, and advised the 
 building of a chain of forts across to the Ohio, and 
 the formation of settlements to counteract them. 
 The British Government, engrossed with other 
 matters, neglected his advice. Forty years after, 
 they remembered it, only to regret that it was so 
 thoughtlessly disregarded. 
 
 Individuals, however, profited by his advice. By 
 1730, traders began in earnest to cross the mount- 
 ains and gather from the Indians the stores beyond. 
 They now began to adopt a system, and abandoned 
 the heretofore renegade habits of those who had 
 superseded them, many of whom never returned to 
 the Atlantic Coast. In 1742, Joan Howard de- 
 scended the Ohio in a skin canoe, and, on the 
 Mississippi was taken prisoner by the French. His 
 captivity did not in the least deter others from 
 coming. Indeed, the date of his voyage was the 
 commencement of a vigorous trade with the In- 
 dians by the English, who crossed the Alleghanies 
 by the route discovered by Gov. Spottswood. In 
 1748, Conrad Weiser, a German of Herenberg, who 
 had acquired in early life a knowledge of the jMo- 
 hawk tongue by a residence among them, was sent 
 on an embas.sy to the Shawanees on the Ohio. He 
 went as far as Logstown,a Shawanee village on the 
 north bank of the Ohio, about seventeen miles bc- 
 k)W the site of Pittsburgh. Here he met the chiefs 
 in coun.sel, and secured their promise of aid against 
 the French. 
 
 The principal ground of the claims of the 
 English in the Northwest was the treaty with the 
 
 Five Nations — the Iroquois. This powerful confed- 
 eration claimed the jurisdiction over an immense 
 extent of country. Their policy differed considera- 
 bly from other Indian tribes. They were the only 
 confederation which attempted any form of gov- 
 ernment in America. They were often termed the 
 " Six Nations," as the entrance of another tribe 
 into the confederacy made that number. Tliey 
 were the conquerors of nearly all tribes from Lower 
 Canada, to and beyond the Mississippi. They only 
 exacted, however, a tribute from the conquered 
 tribes, leaving them to manage their own internal 
 affairs, and stipulating that to them alone did the 
 right of cession belong. Their country, under 
 these claims, embraced all of America north of the 
 Cherokee Nation, in Virginia; all Kentucky, and 
 all the Northwest, save a district in Ohio and Indi- 
 ana, and a small section in Southwestern Illinois, 
 claimed by the Miami Confederacy. The Iroquois, 
 or Six Nations, were the terror of all other tribes. 
 It was they who devastated the Illinois country 
 about Rock Fort in 1680, and caused wide-spread 
 alarm among all the Western Indians. In 16S4, 
 Lord Howard, Governor of Virginia, held a treaty 
 with the Iroquois at Albany, when, at the request 
 of Col. Duncan, of New York, they placed them- 
 selves under the protection of the English. They 
 made a deed of sale then, by treaty, to the British 
 Government, of a vast tract of country south and 
 east of the Illinois River, and extending into Can- 
 ada. In 1726, another deed was drawn up and 
 signed by the chiefs of the national confederacy by 
 which their lands were conveyed in trust to 
 England, " to be protected and defended by His 
 Majesty, to and for the use of the grantors and 
 their heirs."* 
 
 If the Six Nations had a good claim to the West- 
 ern country, there is but little doubt but England 
 was justified in defending their country against the 
 French, as, by the treaty of Uti-echt, they had 
 agreed not to invade the lands of Britain's Indian 
 allies. This claim was vigorously contested by 
 France, as that country claimed the Iroquois had 
 no lawful jurisdiction over the West. In all the 
 disputes, the interests of the contending nations 
 was, however, the paramount consideration. The 
 rights of the Indians were little regarded. 
 
 The British also purchased land by the treaty 
 of Lancaster, in 1744, wherein they agreed to pay 
 the Six Nations for land settled unlawfully in 
 Pennsylvania, Virginia and Maryland. The In- 
 
 * Annals of the West. 
 
l£ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 39 
 
 (lians were given goods and gold amounting to 
 near a thousand pounds sterling. They were also 
 promised the protection of the English. Had this 
 latter provision been faithfully carried out, much 
 blood would have been saved in after years. The 
 treaties with the Six Nations were the real basis 
 of the claims of Great Britain to ihe West ; claims 
 that were only settled by war. The Shawanee In- 
 dians, on the Ohio, were also becoming hostile to 
 the English, and began to assume a threatening 
 exterior. Peter Chartier, a half-breed, residing in 
 Philadelphia, escaped from the authorities, those 
 by whom he was held for a violation of the laws, 
 and joining the Shawanees, persuaded them to join 
 the French. Soon after, in 1743 or 1744, he 
 placed himself at the head of 400 of their war- 
 riors, and lay in wait on the Alleghany River for 
 the provincial traders. He captured two, exhib- 
 ited to them a captain's commission from the 
 French, and seized their goods, worth £1,600. 
 The Indians, after this, emboldened by the aid 
 given them by the French, became more and more 
 hostile, and Weiser was again sent across the mount- 
 ains in 1748, with presents to conciliate them and 
 sound them on their feelings for the rival nations, 
 and also to see what they thought of a settlement 
 of the English to be made in the West. The visit 
 of Conrad Weiser was successful, and Thomas Lee, 
 with twelve other Virginians, among whom were 
 Lawrence and Augustine AVashington, brothers of 
 George Washington, formed a company which 
 they styled the Ohio Company, and, in 1748, peti- 
 tioned the King for a grant beyond the mountains. 
 The monarch approved the petition and the gov- 
 ernment of Virginia was ordered to grant the Com- 
 pany 500,000 acres within the bounds of that 
 colony beyond the Alleghanies, 200,000 of which 
 were to be located at once. This provision was to 
 hold good for ten years, free of quit rent, provided 
 the Company would settle 100 families within 
 seven years, and build a fort sufficient for their 
 protection. These terms the Company accepted, 
 and sent at once to London for a cargo suitable for 
 the Indian trade. This was the beginning of 
 English Companies in the West; this one forming 
 a prominent part in the history of Ohio, as will 
 be .seen hereafter. Others were also formed in 
 Virginia, whose object was the colonization of the 
 West. One of these, the Loyal Company, received, 
 on the 12th of June, 1749, a grant of 800,000 
 acres, from the line of Canada on the north and 
 west, and on the 29th of October, 1751, the Green- 
 briar Company received a grant of 100,000 acres. 
 
 To these encroachments, the French were by no 
 means blind. They saw plainly enough that if 
 the English gained a foothold in the West, they 
 would inevitably endeavor to obtain the country, 
 and one day the issue could only be decided by 
 war. Vaudreuil, the French Governor, had long 
 anxiously watched the coming struggle. In 1774, 
 he wrote home representing the consequences that 
 would surely come, should the English succeed in 
 their plans. The towns of the French in Illinois 
 were producing large amounts of bread-stuffs and 
 provisions which they sent to New Orleans. These 
 provinces were becoming valuable, and mu.st not be 
 allowed to come under control of a rival power. 
 In 1749, Louis Celeron was sent by the Governor 
 with a party of soldiers to plant leaden plates, suit- 
 ably inscribed, along the Ohio at the mouths of 
 the principal streams. Two of these plates were 
 afterward exhumed. One was .sent to the 3Iary- 
 land Historical Society, and the inscription* deci- 
 phered by De Witt Clinton. On these plates was 
 clearly stated the claims of France, as will be seen 
 from the translation below. 
 
 England's claim, briefly and clearly stated, read 
 as follows: "That all lands, or countries west- 
 ward from the Atlantic Ocean to the South Sea, 
 between 48 and 34 degrees of North Latitude, 
 were expres.sly included in the grant of King 
 James the First, to divers of his subjects, so long- 
 time since as the year 1606, and afterwards con- 
 firmed in the year 1620; and under this grant, 
 the colony of Virginia claims extent so far west 
 as the South Sea, and the ancient colonies of Ma.ss- 
 achusetts Bay and Connecticut, were by their 
 respective charters, made to extend to the said 
 South Sea, so that not only the right to the sea 
 coast, but to all the Inland countries from sea to 
 sea, has at all times been asserted by the Crown of 
 England. "f 
 
 To make good their titles, both nations were now 
 doing their utmost. Professedly at peace, it only 
 needed a torch applied, as it were, to any point, to 
 instantly precipitate hostilities. The French were 
 
 * The following is the translation of the inscription of the plate 
 found at Venango : " In the year 1749, reign of Louis XV, King of 
 France, we, Celeron, commandant of a detiichment by Monsieur 
 thw Marquis of Giillisoniere, Commander-in-chief of New France, 
 to establish tranquillity in certain Indian villages in these Cantons, 
 have buried this plate at the confluence of the Toraclakoin, this 
 twenty-ninth of July, near the River Ohio, otherwise Beautiful 
 River, as a monument of renewal of possession which we have taken 
 of the said river, and all its tributaries; and of all the land on both 
 sides, as far as the sources of said rivers; inasmuch as th" preceding 
 Kings of France have enjoyed it, and maintained it by tlnir arras 
 and by treaties; especially by those of Eyswick, Utrecht, and Aix 
 La Chapelle." 
 
 1 Colonial Records of Pennsylvania. 
 
 "V 
 
40 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 bu.silj engaged erecting forts from the southern 
 shores of Lake Erie to the Ohio, and on down in 
 the Illinois Valley ; up at Detroit, and at all its 
 posts, preparations were constantly going on for the 
 crisis, now sure to come. The issue between the 
 two governments was now fully miule up. It ad- 
 mitted of no compromise but the sword. To that, 
 however, neither power desired an immediate ap- 
 peal, and both sought rather to establish and fortify 
 their interests, and to conciliate the Indian tribes. 
 The English, through the Ohio Company, sent out 
 Christopher Gist in the fall of 1750, to explore the 
 regions west of the mountains. He was instructed 
 to examine the passes, trace the courses of the 
 rivers, mark the falls, seek for valuable lands, ob- 
 serve the strength, and to conciliate the friendship 
 of the Indian tribes. He was well fitted for such 
 an enterprise. Hardy, sagacious, bold, an adept in 
 Indian character, a hunter by occupation, no man 
 was better qualified than he for such an undertak- 
 ing. He visited Logstown, where he w^as jealously 
 received, passed over to the Muskingum River and 
 Valley in Ohio, where he found a village of Wyan- 
 dots, divided in sentiment. At this village he met 
 Crogaii, another equally famous frontiersman, who 
 had been sent out by Pennsylvania. Together 
 they held a council with the chiefs, and received 
 assurance of the friendship of the tribe. This 
 done, they passed to the Shawnee towns on the 
 Scioto, received their assurances of friendship, and 
 went on to the Miami Valley, which they crossed, 
 remarking in Crogan's journal of its great fertili- 
 ty. They made a raft of logs on which they 
 crossed the Grreat Miami, visited Piqua, the chief 
 town of the Pickawillanies, and here made treaties 
 with the Weas and Piankeshaws. While here, a 
 deputation of the Ottawas visited the Miami Con- 
 federacy to induce them to unite with the French. 
 They were repulsed through the influence of the 
 English agents, the Miamis sending Gist word that 
 they would " stand like the mountains. " Crogan 
 now returned and published an account of their 
 wanderings. Gist followed the IMiami to its 
 mouth, passed down the Ohio till within fifteen 
 miles of the falls, then returned by way of the 
 Kentucky River, over the highlands of Kentucky 
 to Virginia, arriving in May, 1751. He had 
 visited the Mingoes, Delawares, Wyandots, Shawa- 
 nees and Miamis, proposed a union among these 
 tribes, and appointed a grand council to meet at 
 Logstown to form an alliance among themselves 
 and with Virginia. His journey was marvelous 
 for the day. It was extremely hazardous, as he 
 
 was part of the time among hostile tribes, who 
 could have captured him and been well rewarded 
 by the French Government. But Gist knew how 
 to act. and was successful. 
 
 While Gist was doing this, some English traders 
 established themselves at a place in what is now 
 known as Shelby County, Ohio, and opened a 
 store for the purpose of trading with the Indians. 
 This was clearly in the limits of the West, claimed 
 by the French, and at once aroused them to action. 
 The fort or stockade stood on the banks of Loramie's 
 Creek, about sixteen miles northwest of the present 
 city of Sydney. It received the name Loramie 
 from the creek by the French, which received 
 its name in turn from the French trader of 
 that name, who had a trading-post on this 
 creek. Loramie had fled to the Spanish country 
 west of the Mississippi, and for many years 
 was a trader there ; his store being at the junc- 
 tion of the Kansas and Missouri, near the present 
 city of Kansas City, Mo. When the English 
 traders came to Loramie's Creek, and erected 
 their trading-place, they gave it the name of Pick- 
 awillany, from the tribe of Indians there. The 
 Miami confederacy granted them this privilege 
 as the result of the presents brought by Crogan and 
 Gist. It is also asserted that Andrew Montour, 
 a half-breed, son of a Seneca chief and the famous 
 Catharine Montour, who was an important fac- 
 tor afterward in the English treaties with the 
 Indians, was with them, and by his influence did 
 much to aid in securing the privilege. Thus was 
 established the first English trading-post in the 
 Northwest Territory and in Ohio. It, however, 
 enjoyed only a short duration. The French could 
 not endure so clear an invasion of their country, 
 and gathering a force of Ottawas and Chippewas, 
 now their allies, they attacked the stockade in 
 June, 1752. At first they demanded of the Miamis 
 the surrender of the fort, as they were the real 
 cause of its location, having granted the English 
 the privilege. The Miamis not only refused, but 
 aided the British in the defense. In the battle that 
 ensued, fourteen of the Miamis were slain, and all 
 the traders captured. One account says they were 
 burned, another, and probably the correct one, 
 states that they were taken to Canada as prisoners 
 of war. It is probable the traders were from Penn- 
 sylvania, as that commonwealth made the Miamis 
 presents as condolence for their warriors that were 
 slain. 
 
 Blood had now been shed. The opening gun of 
 the French and Indian war had been fired, and both 
 
1^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 41 
 
 nations became more deeply interested in affairs in 
 the West. The English were determined to secure 
 additional title to the West, and, in 1752, sent 
 Messrs. Fry, Lomax and Patton as commissioners 
 to Logstown to treat with the Indians, and confirm 
 the Lancaster treaty. They met the Indians on 
 the 9th of June, stated their desires, and on the 
 11th received their answer. At first, the sav- 
 ages were not inclined to recognize the Lancaster 
 treaty, but agreed to aid the English, as the French 
 had already made war on the Twigtees (at Picka- 
 willany), and consented to the establishment of a 
 fort and trading-post at the forks of the Ohio. 
 This was not all the Virginians wanted, however, 
 and taking aside Andrew Montour, now chief of the 
 Six Nations, persuaded him to use his influence 
 with the red men. By such means, they were in- 
 duced to treat, and on the 13th they all united in 
 signing a deed, confirming the Lancaster treaty in 
 its full extent, consenting to a settlement southwest 
 of the Ohio, and covenanting that it should not be 
 disturbed by them. By such means was obtained 
 the treaty with the Indians in the Ohio Valley. 
 
 All this time, the home governments were en- 
 deavoring to out-maneuver each other with regard 
 to the lands in the West, though there the outlook 
 only betokened war. The French understood bet- 
 ter than the English how to manage the Indians, 
 and succeeded in attaching them firmly to their 
 cause. The English were not honest in their 
 actions with them, and hence, in after years, the 
 massacres that followed. 
 
 At the close of 1752, Gist was at work, in con- 
 formity with the Lancaster and Logstown treaties, 
 laying out a fort and town on Chartier's Creek, 
 about ten miles below the fork. Eleven families 
 had crossed the mountains to settle at Gist's resi- 
 dence west of Laurel Hill, not far from the Yough- 
 iogheny. Goods had come from England for the 
 Ohio Company, which were carried as fxr West as 
 Will's Creek, where Cumberland now stands ; and 
 where they were taken by the Indians and traders. 
 
 On the other hand, the French were eatherins; 
 cannon and stores on Lake Erie, and, without 
 treaties or deeds of land, were gaining the good 
 will of the inimical tribes, and preparing, when all 
 was ready, to strike the blow. Their fortifications 
 consisted of a chain of forts from Lake Erie to 
 the Ohio, on the border. One was at Presque Isle, 
 on the site of Erie ; one on French Creek, on the 
 site of Waterford, Penn.; one at the mouth of 
 French Creek, in Venango County, Penn.; while 
 opposite it was another, effectually commanding 
 
 that section of country. These forts, it will be 
 observed, were all in the limits of the Pennsyl- 
 vania colony. The Governor informed the Assem- 
 bly of their existence, who voted £600 to be used 
 in purchasing presents for the Indians n^ar the 
 forts, and thereby hold their friendship. Virginia, 
 also, took similar measures. Trent was sent, with 
 guns and ammunition and presents, to the friendly 
 tribes, and, while on his mission, learned of the 
 plates of lead planted by the French. In October, 
 1753, a treaty was consummated with representa- 
 tives of the Iroquois, Delawares, Shawanees, Twig- 
 twees and Wyandots, by commissioners from 
 Pennsylvania, one of whom was the philosopher 
 Franklin. At the conferences held at this time, 
 the Indians complained of the actions of the 
 French in forcibly taking possession of the dis- 
 puted country, and also bitterly denounced them 
 for using rum to intoxicate the red men, when 
 they desired to gain any advantage. Not long 
 after, they had similar grounds of complaint against 
 the English, whose lawless traders cared for nothing 
 but to gain the furs of the savage at as little ex- 
 pense as possible. 
 
 The encroachments of the French on what was 
 regarded as English territory, created intense feel- 
 ing in the colonies, especially in Virginia. The 
 purpose of the French to inclose the English on 
 the Atlantic Coast, and thus prevent their extension 
 over the mountains, became more and more ap- 
 parent, and it was thought that this was the open- 
 ing of a scheme already planned by the French 
 Court to reduce all North America under the do- 
 minion of France. Gov. Dinwiddle determined 
 to send an ambassador to the French posts, to as- 
 certain their real intentions and to observe the 
 amount and disposition of their forces. He selected 
 a young Virginian, then in his twenty-first year, 
 a surveyor by trade and one well qualified for the 
 duty. That young man afterward led the Ameri- 
 can Colonies in their struggle for liberty. George 
 Washington and one companion, Mr Gist, suc- 
 cessfully made the trip, in the solitude of a severe 
 winter, received assurance from the French com- 
 mandant that they would by no means abandon 
 their outposts, and would not yield unless com- 
 pelled by force of arms. The commandant was 
 exceedingly polite, but firm, and assured the young 
 American that " we claim the country on the Ohio 
 by virtue of the discovery of La Salle (in 1669) 
 and will not give it up to the English. Our orders 
 are to make prisoners of every Englishman found 
 trading in the Ohio Valley." 
 
 
42 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 During Washington's absence steps were taken 
 to fortify the point formed by the junction of the 
 Monongahela and Alleghany ; and when, on his 
 return, he met seventeen horses loaded with mate- 
 rials and stores for a fort at the forks of the Ohio, 
 and, soon after, some families going out to settle, 
 he knew the defense had begun. As soon as 
 Washington made his report, Gov. Dinwiddle 
 wrote to the Board of Trade, stating that the 
 French were building a fort at Venango, and that, 
 in March, twelve or fifteen hundred men would 
 be ready to descend the river with their Indian 
 allies, for which purpose three hundred canoes had 
 been collected ; and that Logstown was to be made 
 headquarters, while forts were to be built in other 
 places. He sent expresses to the Governors of 
 Pennsylvania and New York, apprising them of the 
 nature of affairs, and calling upon them for assist- 
 ance. He also raised two companies, one of which 
 was raised by Washington, the other by Trent. 
 The one under Trent was to be raised on the 
 frontiers, and was, as soon as possible, to repair to 
 the Fork and erect there a fort, begun by the Ohio 
 Company. Owing to various conflicting opinions 
 between the Governor of Pennsylvania and his 
 Assembly, and the conference with the Six Nations, 
 held by New York, neither of those provinces put 
 forth any vigorous measures until stirred to action 
 by the invasions on the frontiers, and until directed 
 by the Earl of Holderness, Secretary of State. 
 
 The fort at Venango was finished by the French 
 in April, 1754. All along the creek resounded 
 the clang of arms and the preparations for war. 
 New York and Pennsylvania, though inactive, 
 and debating whether the French really had in- 
 vaded English territory or not, sent aid to the 
 Old Dominion, now all alive to the conquest. The 
 two companies had been increased to six; Washing- 
 ton was raised to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, 
 and made second under command of Joshua 
 Fry. Ten cannon, lately from England, were for- 
 warded from Alexandria ; wagons were got ready 
 to carry westward provisions and stores through 
 the heavy spring roads; and everywhere men were 
 enlisting under the King's promise of two hundred 
 thousand acres of land to those who would go. 
 They were gathering along Will's Creek and far 
 beyond, while Trent, who had come for more men 
 and supplies, left a little band of forty-one men, 
 working away in hunger and want at the Fork, to 
 which both nations were looking with anxious eyes. 
 Though no enemy was near, and only a few Indian 
 scouts were seen, keen eyes had observed the low 
 
 fortifications at the Fork. Swift feet had borne 
 the news of it up the valley, and though Ensign 
 Ward, left in command, felt himself secure, on the 
 17 th of April he saw a sight that made his heart 
 sick. Sixty batteaux and three hundred canoes 
 were coming down the Alleghany. The com- 
 mandant sent him a summons, which evaded no 
 words in its meaning. It was useless to contend, 
 that evening he supped with his conqueror ; the 
 next day he was bowed out by the polite French- 
 man, and with his men and tools marched up the 
 Monongahela. The first birds of spring were fill- 
 ing the air with iheir song ; the rivers rolled by, 
 swollen by April showers and melting snows; all 
 nature was putting on her robes of green ; and the 
 fortress, which the English had so earnestly strived 
 to obtain and fortify, was now in the hands of the 
 French. Fort Du Quesne arose on the incomplete 
 fortifications. The seven years' war that followed 
 not only aff'ected America, but spread to all quar- 
 ters of the world. The war made England a great 
 imperial power ; drove the French from Asia and 
 America; dispelled the brilliant and extended 
 scheme of Louis and his voluptuous empire. 
 
 The active field of operations was in the Canadas 
 principally, and along the western borders of Penn- 
 sylvania. There were so few people then in the 
 present confines of Ohio, that only the possession 
 of the country, in common with all the West, 
 could be the animus of the conflict. It so much 
 concerned this part of the New World, that a brief 
 resume of the war will be necessary to fully under- 
 stand its history. 
 
 The fall of the post at the fork of the Ohio, Fort 
 Du Quesne, gave the French control of the West. 
 Washington went on with his few militia to re- 
 take the post. Though he was successful at first, 
 he was in the end defeated, and surrendered, 
 being allowed to return with all his munitions of 
 war. The two governments, though trying to 
 come to a peaceful solution of the question, were 
 getting ready for the conflict. France went stead- 
 ily on, though at one time England gave, in a 
 measure, her consent to allow the French to retain 
 all the country west of the Alleghanies and south 
 of the lakes. Had this been done, what a difi'erent 
 future would have been in America ! Other des- 
 tinies were at work, however, and the plan fell 
 stillborn. 
 
 England sent Gen. Braddock and a fine force 
 of men, who marched directly toward the post on 
 the Ohio. His ill-fated expedition resulted only 
 in the total defeat of his army, and his own death. 
 
■^ 
 
 HISTOEY OF OHIO. 
 
 43 
 
 Washington saved a remnant of the army, and 
 made his way back to the colonies. The En- 
 gHsh needed a leader. They next planned four 
 campaigns; one against Fort Du Quesne; one 
 against Crown Point; one against Niagara, and 
 one against the French settlements in Nova Scotia. 
 Nearly every one proved a failure. The English 
 were defeated on sea and on land, all owing to the 
 incapacity of Parliament, and the want of a suit- 
 able, vigorous leader. The settlements on the front- 
 iers, now exposed to a cruel foe, prepared to defend 
 themselves, and already the signs of a government 
 of their own, able to defend itself, began to 
 appear. They received aid from the colonies. 
 Though the French were not repulsed, they and 
 their red allies found they could not murder with 
 impunity. Self-preservation was a stronger incen- 
 tive in conflict than aggrandizement, and the 
 cruelty of the Indians found avengers. 
 
 The great Pitt became Prime Minister June 29, 
 1757. The leader of the English now appeared. 
 The British began to regain their losses on sea and 
 land, and for them a brighter day was at hand. 
 The key to the West must be retaken, and to Gen. 
 Forbes was assigned the duty. Preceding him, 
 a trusty man was sent to the Western Indians 
 at the head-waters of the Ohio, and along the Mg- 
 nongahela and Alleghany, to see if some compro- 
 mise with them could not be made, and their aid 
 secured. The French had been busy through their 
 traders inciting the Indians against the English. 
 The lawless traders were another source of trouble. 
 Caring nothing for either nation, they carried on a 
 distressing traffic in direct violation of the laws, 
 continually engendering ill-feeling among the na- 
 tives. "Your traders," said one of them, "bring 
 scarce anything but rum and flour. They bring 
 little powder and lead, or other valuable goods. 
 The rum ruins us. We beg you would prevent 
 its coming in such quantities by regulating the 
 traders. * * * These wicked whisky sell- 
 ers, when they have got the Indians in liquor, make 
 them sell the very clothes ofi" their backs. If this 
 practice be continued, we must be inevitably ruined. 
 We most earnestly, therefore, beseech you to remedy 
 it." They complained of the French traders the same 
 way. They were also beginning to see the animus 
 of the whole conflict. Neither power cared as 
 much for them as for their land, and flattered and 
 bullied by turns as served their purposes best. 
 
 The man selected to go upon this undertaking 
 was Christian Frederic Post, a Moravian, who had 
 lived among the Indians seventeen years, and mar- 
 
 ried into one of their tribes. Ho was amissionary, 
 and though obliged to cross a c(,ini.ry whose every 
 stream had been dyed by blood, and every hillside 
 rung with the death-yell, and grown red with the 
 light of burning huts, he went willingly on his way. 
 Of his journey, sufierings and doings, his own 
 journal tells the story. He left Philadelphia on the 
 15th of July, 1758, and on the 7th of August 
 safely passed the French post at Venango, went on 
 to Big Beaver Creek, where he held a conference 
 with the chiefs of the Indians gathered there. It 
 was decided that a great conference should be 
 held opposite Fort Du Quesne, where there were 
 Indians of eight nations. "We will bear you in 
 our bosoms," said the natives, when Post expressed 
 a fear that he might be delivered over to the 
 French, and royally they fulfilled their promises. 
 At the conference, it was made clear to Post that 
 all the Western Indians were wavering in their 
 allegiance to the French, owing largely to the fail- 
 ure of that nation to fulfill their promises of aid to 
 prevent them from being deprived of their land by 
 the Six Nations, and through that confederacy, by the 
 English. The Indians complained bitterly, more- 
 over, of the disposition of the whites in over-run- 
 ning and claiming their lands. "Why did you not 
 fight your battles at home or on the sea, instead of 
 coming into our country to fight them?" they 
 asked again and again, and mournfully shook their 
 heads when they thought of the future before them. 
 " Your heart is good," said they to Post. " You 
 speak sincerely ; but we know there is always a great 
 number who wish to get rich ; they have enough ; 
 look ! we do not want to be rich and take away 
 what others have. The white people think we 
 have no brains in our heads ; that they arc big, 
 and we are a handful ; but remember when you 
 hunt for a rattlesnake, you cannot always find it, 
 and perhaps it will turn and bite you before you see 
 it."* When the war of Pontiac came, and all 
 the West was desolated, this saying might have 
 been justly remembered. After concluding a peace. 
 Post set out for Philadelphia, and after incredi- 
 ble hardships, reached the settlement uninjured 
 early in September. His mission had more to do 
 than at first is apparent, in the success of the 
 English. Had it not been for him, a second Brad- 
 dock's defeat might have befallen Forbes, now on 
 his way to subjugate Fort Du Quesne. 
 
 Through the heats of August, the army hewed its 
 way toward the West. Early in September it 
 
 * Post's Journal. 
 
 us 
 
44 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 reached Raystown, whither Washington had been 
 ordered with his troops. Sickness had prevented 
 him from being here ah-eady. Two officers were 
 sent out to reconnoiter the fort, who returned and 
 gave a very good account of its condition. Gen. 
 Forbes desired to know more of it, and sent out 
 Maj. Grant, with 800 men, to gain more complete 
 knowledge. Maj. Grant, supposing not more than 
 21 M) soldiers to be in the fort, marched near it and 
 made a feint to draw them out, and engage them 
 in battle. lie was greatly misinformed as to the 
 strength of the French, and in the engagement 
 that followed he was badly beaten — 270 of his men 
 killed, 42 wounded, and several, including himself, 
 taken prisoners. The French, elated with their 
 victory, attacked the main army, but were repulsed 
 and obliged to retreat to the fort. The army con- 
 tinued on its march. On the 24th of November 
 they reached Turtle Creek, where a council of war 
 was held, and where Gen. Forbes, who had been so 
 ill as to be carried on a litter from the start, de- 
 clared, with a mighty oath, he would sleep that 
 night in the fort, or in a worse place. The Indi- 
 ans had, however, carried the news to the French 
 that the English were as plenty as the trees of the 
 woods, and in their fright they set fire to the fort in 
 the night and left up and down the Ohio River. 
 The next morning the English, who had heard the 
 explosion of the magazine, and seen the light of 
 the burning walls, marched in and took peaceable 
 possession. A small fortification was thrown up 
 on the bank, and, in honor of the great English 
 statesman, it was called Fort Pitt. Col. Hugh Mer- 
 cer was left in command, and the main body of the 
 army marched back to the settlements. It reached 
 Philadelphia January 17, 1759. On the 11th of 
 March, Gen. Forbes died, and was buried in the 
 chancel of Christ's Church, in that city. 
 
 Post was now sent on a mission to the Six Na- 
 tions, with a report of the treaty of Easton. He 
 was again instrumental in preventing a coalition of 
 the Indians and the French. Indeed, to this ob- 
 scure IMoravian missionary belongs, in a large 
 measure, the honor of the capture of Fort Du 
 Quesne, for by his influence had the Indians been 
 restrained from attacking the army on its march. 
 
 The garrison, on leaving the fort, went up and 
 down the Ohio, part to Presque Isle by land, part to 
 Fort Venango, while some of them went on down 
 the Ohio nearly to the Mississippi, and there, in 
 what is now Massac County, HI., erected a fort, 
 called by them Fort Massac. It was afterward 
 named by many Fort Massacre, from the erroneous 
 
 supposition that a garrison had been massacred 
 there. 
 
 The French, though deprived of the key to 
 the West, went on preparing stores and ammunition, 
 expecting to retake the fort in the spring. Before 
 they could do this, however, other places demanded 
 their attention. 
 
 The success of the campaign of 1758 opened 
 the way for the consummation of the great scheme 
 of Pitt — the complete reduction of Canada. Three 
 expeditions were planned, by which Canada, 
 already well nigh annihilated and suffering for 
 food, was to be subjugated. On the west, Prideaux 
 was to attack Niagara ; in the center, Amherst was 
 to advance on Ticonderoga and Crown Point ; on 
 the east, Wolfe was to besiege Quebec. All these 
 points gained, the three armies were to be united 
 in the center of the province. 
 
 Amherst appeared before Ticonderoga July 22. 
 The French blew up their works, and retired 
 to Crown Point. Driven from there, they re- 
 treated to Isle Aux Nois and entrenched them- 
 selves. The lateness of the season prevented fur- 
 ther action, and Amherst went into winter quar- 
 ters at Crown Point. Early in June, Wolfe 
 appeared before Quebec with an army of 8,000 
 men. On the night of September 12, he silently 
 ascended the river, climbed the heights of Abra- 
 ham, a spot considered impregnable by the 
 French, and on the summit formed his army of 
 5,000 men. Montcalm, the French commander, 
 was compelled to give battle. The British col- 
 umns, flushed with success, charged his half-formed 
 lines, and dispersed them. 
 
 "They fly! they fly!" heard Wolfe, just as he 
 expired from the effect of a mortal wound, though 
 not till he had ordered their retreat cut off, and 
 exclaimed, "Now, God be praised, I die happy." 
 Montcalm, on hearing from the surgeon that death 
 would come in a few hours, said, " I am glad of it. 
 I shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec." At 
 five the next morning he died happy. 
 
 Prideaux moved up Lake Ontario, and on the 
 6th of July invested Niagara. Its capture would 
 cut off the French from the west, and every en- 
 deavor was made to hold it. Troops, destined to 
 take the small garrison at Fort Pitt, were held to 
 assist in raising the siege of Niagara. M. de 
 Aubry, commandant in Illinois, came up with 400 
 men and 200,000 pounds of flour. Cut off by the 
 abandonment of Fort Du Quesne from the Ohio 
 route, he ascended that river as far as the Wabash, 
 thence to portage of Fort Miami, or Fort Wayne, 
 
 *?■ 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 47 
 
 down the Maumee to Lake Erie, and on to Presqu- 
 ville, or Presque Isle, over the portage to Le Bceuf, 
 and thence down French Creek to Fort Venango. 
 He was chosen to lead the expedition for the relief 
 of Niagara. They were pursued by Sir William 
 Johnson, successor to Prideaux, who had lost his 
 life by the bursting of a cannon, and were obliged to 
 flee. The next day Niagara, cut ofl" from succor, 
 surrendered. 
 
 All America rang with exultation. Towns were 
 bright with illuminations ; the hillsides shone with 
 bonfires. From press, from pulpit, from platform, 
 and from speakers' desks, went up one glad song of 
 rejoicing. England was victorious everywhere. 
 The colonies had done their fiiU share, and now 
 learned their strength. That strength was needed 
 now, for ere long a different conflict raged on the 
 soil of America — a conflict ending in the birth of 
 a new nation. 
 
 The English sent Gen. Stanwix to fortify Fort 
 Pitt, still looked upon as one of the principal for- 
 tresses in the West. He erected a good fortifica- 
 tion there, which remained under British control 
 fifteen years. Now nothing of the fort is left. No 
 memorial of the British possession remains in the 
 West but a single redoubt, built in 1764 by Col. 
 Bouquet, outside of the fort. Even this can hardly 
 now be said to exist. 
 
 The fall of Quebec did not immediately produce 
 the submission of Canada. M. de Levi, on whom 
 the command devolved, retired with the French 
 Army to Montreal. In the spring of 1760, he be- 
 sieged Quebec, but the arrival of an English fleet 
 caused him to again retreat to Montreal. 
 
 Amherst and Johnson, meanwhile, effected a 
 union of their forces, the magnitude of whose 
 armies convinced the French that resistance would 
 be useless, and on the 8th of September, M. de 
 Vaudreuil, the Governor of Canada, surrendered 
 Montreal, Quebec, Detroit, Mackinaw and all other 
 posts in Canada, to the English commander-in- 
 chief, Amherst, on condition that the French in- 
 habitants should, during the war, be "protected 
 in the full and fi-ee exercise of their religion, and 
 the full enjoyment of their civil rights, leaving 
 their future destinies to be decided by the treaty 
 of peace." 
 
 Though peace was concluded in the New World, 
 on the continent the Powers experienced some 
 difficulty in arriving at a satisfactory settlement. 
 It was finally settled by what is known in history 
 as the "family compact." France and Spain saw 
 in the conquest the growing power of England, 
 
 and saw, also, that its continuance only extended 
 that power. Negotiations were re-opened, and on 
 the 3d of November, 1762, preliminaries were 
 agreed to and signed, and afterward ratified in 
 Paris, in February, 1763. By the terms of the 
 compact, Spain ceded to Great Britian East and 
 West Florida. To compensate Spain, France 
 ceded to her by a secret article, all Louisiana west 
 of the Mississippi. 
 
 The French and Indian war was now over. 
 Canada and all its dependencies were now in pos- 
 session of the English, who held undisputed sway 
 over the entire West as far as Mississippi. It only 
 remained for them to take possession of the out- 
 posts. Major Robert Rogers was sent to take pos- 
 session ot Detroit and establish a garrison there. 
 He was a partisan officer on the borders of New 
 Hampshire, where he earned a name for bravery, 
 but afterward tarnished it by treasonable acts. On 
 his way to Detroit, on the 7th of November, 1760, 
 he was met by the renowned chief, Pontiac, who 
 authoritatively commanded him to pause and ex- 
 plain his acts. Rogers replied by explaining the 
 conquest of Canada, and that he was acting under 
 orders from his King. Through the influence of 
 Pontiac, the army was saved from the Indians 
 sent out by the French, and was allowed to pro- 
 ceed on its way. Pontiac had assured his protec- 
 tion as long as the English treated him with due 
 deference. Beletre, the commandant at Detroit, 
 refused to surrender to the English commander, 
 until he had received positive assurance from his 
 Governor, Vaudreuil, that the country was indeed 
 conquered. On the 29th of September, the colors 
 of France gave way to the ensign of Great Britain 
 amid the shouts of the soldiery and the astonish- 
 ment of the Indians, whose savage natures could 
 not understand how such a simple act declared one 
 nation victors of another, and who wondered at 
 the forbearance displayed. The lateness of the 
 season prevented further operations, but early the 
 next spring, Mackinaw, Green Bay, Ste. Marie, St. 
 Joseph and the Ouitenon surrounded, and nothing 
 was left but the Illinois towns. These were se- 
 cured as soon as the necessary arrangements could 
 be made. 
 
 Though the English were now masters of the 
 West, and had, while many of these events nav 
 rated were transpiring, extended their settlements 
 beyond the AUeghanies, they were by no means 
 secure in their possession. The woods and prairies 
 were full of Indians, who, finding the English like 
 the French, caring more for gain than the welfare 
 
\1 
 
 48 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 of the natives, began to exhibit impatience and re- 
 sentment as they saw their lands gradually taken 
 from them. The English policy differed very 
 materially from the French. The French made 
 the Indian, in a measure, independent and taught 
 him a desire for European goods. They also 
 affiliated easily with them, and became thereby 
 strongly endeared to the savage. The French 
 were a merry, easy-going race, fond of gayety and 
 delighting in adventure. The English were harsh, 
 stern, and made no advances to gain the friend- 
 ship of the savage. They wanted land to cultivate 
 and drove away the Indian's game, and forced him 
 farther west. "Where shall we go?" said the 
 Indian, despondently; "you drive us farther and 
 farther west; by and by you will want all the 
 land." And the Anglo-Saxon went sturdily on, 
 paying no heed to the complaints. The French 
 
 traders incited the Indian to resent the encroach- 
 ment. " The English will annihilate you and take 
 all your land," said they. " Their father, the King 
 of France, had been asleep, now he had awakened 
 and was coming with a great army to reclaim Can- 
 ada, that had been stolen from him while he slept." 
 Discontent under such circumstances was but 
 natural. Soon all the tribes, from the mountains 
 to the Mississippi, were united in a plot. It was 
 discovered in 1761, and arrested. The next sum- 
 mer, another was detected and arrested. The 
 officers, and all the people, failed to realize the 
 danger. The rattlesnake, though not found, was 
 ready to strike. It is only an Indian discontent, 
 thought the people, and they went on preparing to 
 occupy the country. They were mistaken — the 
 crisis only needed a leader to direct it. That 
 leader appeared. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 PONTIAC'S CONSPIRACY— ITS FAILURE— BOUQUET'S EXPEDITION— OCCUPATION BY THE 
 
 ENGLISH. 
 
 PONTIAC, the great chief of the Ottawas, was 
 now about fifty years old. He had watched 
 the conflict between the nations with a jealous eye, 
 and as he saw the gradual growth of the English 
 people, their encroachment on the lands of the In- 
 dians, their greed, and their assumption of the soil, 
 his soul was stirred within him to do something 
 for his people. He had been a true friend of the 
 French, and had led the Indians at the defeat of 
 Braddock. Amid all the tumult, he alone saw the 
 true state of affairs. The English would inevit- 
 ably crush out the Indians. To save his race he 
 saw another alliance with the French was neces- 
 sary, and a restoration of their power and habits 
 needed. It was the plan of a statesman. It only 
 failed because of the perfidy of the French. Matur- 
 ing his plans late in the autumn of 1762, he sent 
 messengers to all the Western and Southern tribes, 
 with the black wampum and red tomahawk, em- 
 blems of war, from the great Pontiac. "On a cer- 
 tain day in the next year," said the messenger, "all 
 the tribes are to rise, seize all the English posts, 
 and then attack the whole frontier." 
 
 The great council of all the tribes was held at 
 the river Ecorces, on the 27th of April, 1763. 
 There, before the assembled chiefs, Pontiac deliv- 
 
 ered a speech, full of eloquence and art. He 
 recounted the injuries and encroachments of the 
 English, and disclosed their designs. The French 
 king was now awake and would aid them. Should 
 they resign their homes and the graves of their 
 fathers without an effort? Were their young men 
 no longer brave? Were they squaws? The 
 Great Master of Life had chided them for their 
 inactivity, and had sent his commands to drive 
 the "Red Dogs" from the earth. The chiefs 
 eagerly accepted the wampum and the tomahawk, 
 and separated to prepare for the coming strife. 
 
 The post at Detroit was informed of the plot 
 the evening before it was to occur, by an Ojibway 
 girl of great beauty, the mistress of the com- 
 mander. Major Gladwin. Pontiac was foiled here, 
 his treachery discovered, and he was sternly ordered 
 from the conference. A regular seige followed, 
 but he could not prevail. He exhibited a degree 
 of sagacity unknown in the annals of savage war- 
 fare, but all to no purpose ; the English were too 
 strong for him. 
 
 At all the other posts, save one, however, the 
 plans of Pontiac were carried out, and atrocities, 
 unheard of before in American history, resulted. 
 The Indians attacked Detroit on the first of May, 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 49 
 
 and, foiled in their plans, a siege immediately fol- 
 lowed. On the 16th, a party of Indians appeared 
 before the fort at Sandusky. Seven of them were 
 admitted. Suddenly, while smoking, the massacre 
 begins. All but Ensign Paulli, the commander, 
 fall. He is carried as a trophy to Pontiac. 
 
 At the mouth of the St. Joseph's, the mission- 
 aries had maintained a mission station over sixty 
 years. They gave way to an English garrison of 
 fourteen soldiers and a few traders. On the 
 morning of May 25, a deputation of Pottawato- 
 mies are allowed to enter. In less than two min- 
 utes, all the garrison but the commander are slain. 
 He is sent to Pontiac. 
 
 Near the present city of Fort Wayne, Ind., 
 at the junction of the waters, stood Fort Miami, 
 garrisoned by a few men. Holmes, the com- 
 mander, is asked to visit a sick woman. He is 
 slain on the way, the sergeant following is made 
 prisoner, and the nine soldiers surrender. 
 
 On the night of the last day of May, the wam- 
 pum reaches the Indian village below La Fayette, 
 Ind., and near Fort Ouitenon. The commander 
 of the fort is lured into a cabin, bound, and his 
 garrison surrender. Through the clemency of 
 French settlers, they are received into their houses 
 and protected. 
 
 At Michilimackinac, a game of ball is projected. 
 Suddenly the ball is thrown through the gate of the 
 stockade. The Indians press in, and, at a signal, 
 almost all are slain or made prisoners. 
 
 The fort at Presque Isle, now Erie, was the 
 point of communication between Pittsburgh and 
 Niagara and Detroit. It was one of the most 
 tenable, and had a garrison of four and twenty 
 men. On the 22d of June, the commander, to 
 save his forces from total annihilation, surrenders, 
 and all are carried prisoners to Detroit. 
 
 The capitulation at Erie left Le Bceuf with- 
 out hope. He was attacked on the 18th, 
 but kept oif the Indians till midnight, when he 
 made a successful retreat. As they passed Ve- 
 nango, on their way to Fort Pitt, they saw only 
 the ruins of that garrison. Not one of its immates 
 had been spared. 
 
 Fort Pitt was the most important station west 
 of the Alleghanies. " Escape ! " said Turtle's 
 Heart, a Delaware warrior ; " you will all be 
 slain. A great army is coming." "There are 
 three large English armies coming to my aid," 
 said Ecuyer, the commander. " I have enough 
 provisions and ammunition to stand a siege of three 
 years' time." A second and third attempt was 
 
 made by the savages to capture the post, but all to 
 no avail. Baffled on all sides here, they destroy 
 Ligonier, a few miles below, and massacre men, 
 women and children. Fort Pitt was besieged till 
 the last day of July, but withstood all attacks. 
 Of all the outposts, only it and Detroit were left. 
 All had been captured, and the majority of the 
 garrison slain. Along the frontier, the war was 
 waged with fury. The Indians were fighting for 
 their homes and their hunting-grounds; and for 
 these they fought with the fury and zeal of 
 fanatics. 
 
 Detachments sent to aid Detroit are cut off. 
 The prisoners are burnt, and Pontiac, infusing his 
 zealous and demoniacal spirit into all his savage 
 allies, pressed the siege with vigor. The French 
 remained neutral, yet Pontiac made requisitions 
 on them and on their neighbors in Illinois, issuing 
 bills of credit on birch -bark, all of which were 
 faithfully redeemed. Though these two posts 
 could not be captured, the frontier could be 
 annihilated, and vigorously the Indians pursued 
 their policy. Along the borders of Pennsylvania 
 and Virginia a relentless warfare was waged, 
 sparing no one in its way. Old age, feeble infancy, 
 strong man and gentle woman, fair girl and hope- 
 ful boy — all fell before the scalping-knife of the 
 merciless savage. The frontiers were devastated. 
 Thousands were obliged to flee, leaving their 
 possessions to the torch of the Indian. 
 
 The colonial government, under British direc- 
 tion, was inimical to the borders, and the colonists 
 saw they must depend only upon their own arms 
 for protection. Already the struggle for freedom 
 was upon them. They could defend only them- 
 selves. They must do it, too ; for that defense is 
 now needed in a different cause than settling dis- 
 putes between rival powers. " We have millions 
 for defense, but not a cent for tribute," said they, 
 and time verified the remark. 
 
 Gen. Amherst bestirred himself to aid the 
 frontiers. He sent Col. Henry Bouquet, a native 
 of Switzerland, and now an officer in the English 
 Army, to relieve the garrison at Fort Pitt. They 
 followed the route made by Gen. Forbes, and on 
 the way relieved Forts Bedford and Ligonier, both 
 beleaguered by the Indians. About a day's jour- 
 ney beyond Ligonier, he was attacked by a body 
 of Indians at a place called Bushy Run. For 
 awhile, it seemed that he and all his army would 
 be destroyed ; but Bouquet was bold and brave 
 and, under a feint of retreat, routed the savages. 
 He passed on, and relieved the garrison at Fort 
 
 :^ 
 
50 
 
 HISTORY or OHIO. 
 
 Pitt, and thus secured it against the assaults of 
 the Indians. 
 
 The campaign had been disastrous to the En- 
 glish, but fatal to the plans of Pontiac. He could 
 not capture Detroit, and he knew the great scheme 
 must fail. The battle of Bushy Run and the 
 relief of Fort Pitt closed the campaign, and all 
 hope of co-operation was at an end. Circum- 
 stances were combined against the confederacy, 
 and it was fast falling to pieces. A proclamation 
 was issued to the Indians, explaining to them the 
 existing state of affairs, and showing to them the 
 futility of their plans. Pontiac, however, would 
 not give up. Again he renewed the siege of De- 
 troit, and Gren. Gage, now in command of the 
 army in the colonies, resolved to carry the war 
 into their own country. Col. Bradstreet was or- 
 dered to lead one army by way of the lakes, 
 against the Northern Indians, while Col. Bouquet 
 was sent against the Indians of the Ohio. Col. 
 Bradstreet went on his way at the head of 1,200 
 men, but trusting too much to the natives and 
 their promises, his expedition proved largely a fail- 
 ure. He relieved Detroit in August, 1764, which 
 had been confined in the garrison over fifteen 
 months, and dispersed the Indians that yet lay 
 around the fort. But on his way back, he saw how 
 the Indians had duped him, and that they were 
 still plundering the settlements. His treaties were 
 annulled by Gage, who ordered him to destroy 
 their towns. The season was far advanced, his 
 provisions were getting low, and he was obliged to 
 return to Niagara chagrined and disappointed. 
 
 Col. Bouquet knew well the character of the 
 Indians, and shaped his plans accordingly. He 
 had an army of 1,500 men, 500 regulars and 1,000 
 volunteers. They had had experience in fighting 
 the savages, and could be depended on. At Fort 
 Loudon, he heard of Bradstreet's ill luck, and saw 
 through the deception practiced by the Indians. 
 He arrived at Fort Pitt the 17th of September, 
 where he arrested a deputation of chiefs, who met 
 him with the same promises that had deceived 
 Bradstreet. He sent one of their number back, 
 threatening to put to death the chiefs unless they 
 allowed his messengers to safely pass through their 
 country to Detroit. The decisive tone of his 
 words convinced them of the fate that awaited 
 them unless they complied. On the 3d of Octo- 
 ber the army left Fort Pitt, marched down the 
 river to and across the Tuscarawas, arriving in the 
 vicinity of Fredrick Post's late mission on the 17th. 
 There a conference was held with the assembled 
 
 tribes. Bouquet sternly rebuked them fur their 
 faithlessness, and when told by the chiefs they could 
 not restrain their young men, he as sternly told 
 them they were responsible for their acts. He 
 told them he would trust them no longer. If they 
 delivered up all their prisoners within twelve days 
 they might hope for peace, otherwise there would 
 be no mercy shown them. They were completely 
 humbled, and, separating hastily, gathered their 
 captives. On the 25th, the army proceeded down 
 to the Tuscarawas, to the junction with White 
 Woman River, near the town of Coshocton, in 
 Coshocton County, Ohio, and there made prepa- 
 rations for the reception of the captives. There 
 they remained until the 18th of November; from 
 day to day prisoners were brought in — men, women 
 and children — and delivered to their friends. Many 
 were the touching scenes enacted during this time. 
 The separated husband and wife met, the latter 
 often carrying a child born in captivity. Brothers 
 and sisters, separated in youth, met ; lovers rushed 
 into each other's arms ; children found their 
 parents, mothers their sons, fathers their daughters, 
 and neighbors those from whom they had been 
 separated many years. Yet, there were many dis- 
 tressing scenes. Some looked in vain for long-lost 
 relatives and friends, that never should return. 
 Others, that had been captured in their infancy, 
 would not leave their savage friends, and when 
 force was used some fled away. One mother 
 looked in vain for a child she had lost years be- 
 fore. Day by day, she anxiously watched, but no 
 daughter's voice reached her ears. One, clad in 
 savage attire, was brought before her. It could 
 not be her daughter, she was grown. So was the 
 maiden before her. " Can not you remember some 
 mark?" asked Bouquet, whose sympathies were 
 aroused in this case. "There is none," said the 
 anxious and sorrowful mother. "Sing a song you 
 sang over her cradle, she may remember," suggested 
 the commander. One is sung by her mother. As 
 the song of childhood floats out among the trees 
 the maiden stops and listens, then approaches. 
 Yes, she remembers. Mother and daughter are 
 held in a close embrace, and the stern Bouquet 
 wipes away a tear at the scene. 
 
 On the 18th, the army broke up its encamp- 
 ment and started on its homeward march. Bouquet 
 kept six principal Indians as hostages, and re- 
 turned to the homes of the captives. The Indians 
 kept their promises faithfully, and the next year 
 representatives of all the Western tribes met Sir 
 William Johnson, at the German Flats, and made 
 
 ^: 
 
■^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 51 
 
 a treaty of peace. A tract of land in the Indian 
 country was ceded to the whites for the benefit of 
 those who had suffered in the late war. The In- 
 dians desired to make a treaty with Johnson, 
 whereby the Alleghany River should be the west- 
 ern boundary of the English, but he excused him- 
 self on the ground of proper power. 
 
 Not long after this the Illinois settlements, too 
 remote to know much of the struggle or of any of 
 the great events that had convulsed an empire, and 
 changed the destiny of a nation, were brought 
 under the English rule. There were five villages 
 at this date: Kaskaskia, Cahokia, St. Philip, Yin- 
 cennes and Prairie du Rocher, near Fort Chartres, 
 the military headquarters of these French posses- 
 sions. They were under the control or command 
 of M. de Abadie, at New Orleans. They had also 
 extended explorations west of the Mississippi, and 
 made a few settlements in what was Spanish terri- 
 tory. The country had been, however, ceded to 
 France, and in February, 1764, the country was 
 formally taken possession of and the present city 
 of St. Louis laid out. 
 
 As soon as the French knew of the change of 
 government, many of them went to the west side of 
 the river, and took up their residence there. They 
 were protected in their religion and civil rights by 
 the terms of the treaty, but preferred the rule of 
 their own King. 
 
 The British took possession of this country early 
 in 1765. Gen. G-age sent Capt. Stirling, of the 
 English Army, who arrived before summer, and to 
 whom St. Ange, the nominal commandant, surren- 
 dered the authority. The British, through a suc- 
 cession of commanders, retained control of the coun- 
 try until defeated by George Rogers Clarke, and 
 his "ragged Virginia militia." 
 
 After a short time, the French again ceded the 
 country west of the Mississippi to Spain, and re- 
 linquished forever their control of all the West in 
 the New World. 
 
 The population of Western Louisiana, when the 
 exchange of governments occurred, was estimated 
 to be 13,538, of which 891 were in the Illinois 
 country — as it was called — west of the Mississippi. 
 East of the river, and before the French crossed 
 into Spanish country, the population was estimated 
 to be about 3,000. All these had grown into 
 communities of a peculiar character. Indeed, that 
 peculiarity, as has been observed, never changed 
 until a gradual amalgamation with the American 
 people effected it, and that took more than a cen- 
 tury of time to accomplish. 
 
 The English now owned the Northwest. True, 
 they did not yet occupy but a small part of it, but 
 traders were again crossing the mountains, ex- 
 plorers for lands were on the Ohio, and families 
 for settlement were beginning to look upon the 
 West as their future home. Companies were again 
 forming to purchase large tracts in the Ohio coun- 
 try, and open them for emigration. One thing yet 
 stood in the way — a definite boundary line. That 
 line, however, was between the English and the 
 Indians, and not, as had heretofore been the case, 
 between rival European Powers. It was necessary 
 to arrange some definite boundarj" before land com- 
 panies, who were now actively pushing their claims, 
 could safely survey and locate their lands. 
 
 Sir William Johnson, who had at previous times 
 been instrumental in securing treaties, wrote re- 
 peatedly to the Board of Trade, who controlled the 
 greater part of the commercial transactions in the 
 colonies — and who were the first to exclaim against 
 extending English settlements beyond a limit 
 whereby they would need manufactures, and there- 
 by become independent of the Mother Country — 
 urging upon them, and through them the Crown, the 
 necessity of a fixed boundary, else another Indian 
 war was probable. The Indians found themselves 
 gradually hemmed in by the growing power of the 
 whites, and began to exhibit hostile feelings. The 
 irritation became so great that in the summer of 
 1767, Gage wrote to the Governor of Pennsylvania 
 concerning it. The Governor communicated his 
 letter to the General Assembly, who sent repre- 
 sentatives to England, to urge the immediate set- 
 tlement of the question. In compliance with these 
 requests, and the letters of prominent citizens, 
 Franklin among the number, instructions were sent 
 to Johnson, ordering him to complete the purchase 
 from the Six Nations, and settle all differences. 
 He sent word to all the Western tribes to meet 
 him at Fort Stanwix, in October, 1768. The con- 
 ference was held on the 24:th of that month, and 
 was attended by colonial representatives, and by 
 Indians from all parts of the Northwest. It was 
 determined that the line should begin on the Ohio, 
 at the mouth of the Cherokee (Tennessee), thence 
 up the river to the Alleghany and on to Kittan- 
 ning, and thence across to the Susquehanna. By 
 this line, the whole country south of the Ohio and 
 Alleghany, to which the Six Nations had any 
 claim, was transferred. Part of this land was 
 made to compensate twenty-two traders, whose goods 
 had been stolen in 1763. The deeds made, wore 
 upon the express agreement that no claims should 
 
 --« S) 
 
 19 
 
^- 
 
 53 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 ever be based on the treaties of Lancaster, Logs- 
 town, etc., and were signed by the chiefs of the Six 
 Nations for themselves, their alUes and dependents, 
 and the Shawanees, Delawares, Mingoes of Ohio, 
 and others; though the Shawanees and Delaware 
 deputies did not sign them. On this treaty, in a 
 great measure, rests the title by purchase to Ken- 
 tucky, Western Virginia and Western Pennsylva- 
 nia. The rights of the Cherokees were purchased 
 by Col. Donaldson, either for the King, Virginia, 
 or for himself, it is impossible to say which. 
 
 The grant of the northern confederacy was now 
 made. The white man could go in and possess 
 these lands, and know that an army would protect 
 him if necessary. Under such a guarantee, West- 
 ern lands came rapidly into market. In addition 
 to companies already in existence for the purchase 
 of land, others, the most notable of these being the 
 "Walpole" and the "Mississippi" Land Companies, 
 were formed. This latter had among its organizers 
 such men as Francis Lightfoot Lee, Richard 
 Henry Lee, George Washington and Arthur Lee. 
 Before any of these companies, some of whom ab- 
 sorbed the Ohio Company, could do anything, the 
 Revolution came on, and all land transactions were 
 at an end. After its close, Congress would not 
 sanction their claims, and they fell through. This 
 did not deter settlers, however, from crossing the 
 mountains, and settling in the Ohio country. In 
 
 spite of troubles with the Indians — some of whom 
 regarded the treaties with the Six Nations as un- 
 lawftil, and were disposed to complain at the rapid 
 influx of whites — and the failure of the land com- 
 panies, settlers came steadily during the decade 
 from 1768 to 1778, so that by the close of that 
 time, there was a large population south of the 
 Ohio River ; while scattered along the northern 
 banks, extending many miles into the wilderness, 
 were hardy adventurers, who were carving out 
 homes in the magnificent forests everywhere cov- 
 ering the country. 
 
 Among the foremost speculators in Western 
 lands, was George Washington. As early as 1763, 
 he employed Col. Crawford, afterward the leader in 
 " Crawford's campaign," to purchase lands for him. 
 In 1770, he crossed the mountains in company 
 with several gentlemen, and examined the country 
 along the Ohio, down which stream he passed to 
 the mouth of the Great Kanawha, where he shot 
 some buffalo, then plenty, camped out a few nights, 
 and returned, fully convinced, it seems, that one 
 day the West would be the best part of the New- 
 World. He owned, altogether, nearly fifty thou- 
 sand acres in the West, which he valued at $3.33 
 per acre. Had not the war of the Revolution just 
 then broken out, he might have been a resident of 
 the West, and would have been, of course, one of 
 its most prominent citizens. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 AMERICAN EXPLORATIONS— DUNMORE'S WAR— CAMPAIGN OF GEORGE ROGERS CLARKE- 
 LAND TROUBLES — SPAIN IN THE REVOLUTION — MURDER OF 
 THE MORAVIAN INDIANS. 
 
 MEANWHILE, Kentucky was filling with 
 citizens, and though considerable trouble 
 was experienced with the Indians, and the operations 
 of Col. Richard Henderson and others, who made 
 unlawful treaties with the Indians, yet Daniel 
 Boone and his associates had established a 
 commonwealth, and, in 1777, a county was 
 formed, which, erelong, was divided into three. 
 Louisville was laid out on land belonging to 
 Tories, and an important start made in this part 
 of the West. Emigrants came down the Ohio 
 River, saw the northern shores were inviting, and 
 sent back such accounts that the land north of the 
 river rapidly grew in favor with Eastern people. 
 
 One of the most important Western characters, 
 Col. (afterward Gen.) George Rogers Clarke, had 
 had much to do in forming its character. He 
 was born November 19, 1752, in Albemarle 
 County, Va., and early came West. He had an 
 unusually sagacious spirit, was an excellent sur- 
 veyor and general, and took an active interest in 
 all State and national affairs. He understood the 
 animus of the Revolution, and was prepared to 
 do his part. Col. Clarke was now meditating a 
 move unequaled in its boldness, and one that had 
 more to do with the success of America in the 
 struggle for independence than at first appears. 
 He saw through the whole plan of the British, 
 
'.iL 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 53 
 
 who held all the outposts, Kaskaskia, Detroit, 
 Vincennes and Niagara, and determined to circuna- 
 vent them and wrest the West from their power. 
 The British hoped to encircle the Americans by 
 these outposts, and also unite the Indians in a 
 common war against them. That had been 
 attempted by the French when the English con- 
 quered them. Then the French had a powerful 
 ally in the person of Pontiac, yet the brave front- 
 iersmen held their homes in many places, though 
 the Indians " drank the blood of many a Briton, 
 scooping it up in the hollow of joined hands." 
 Now the Briton had no Pontiac to lead the scat- 
 tered tribes — tribes who now feared the unerring 
 aim of a settler, and would not attack him openly — 
 Clarke knew that the Delawares were divided in 
 feeling and that the Shawanees were but imperfectly 
 united in favor of England since the murder of 
 their noted chiefs. He was convinced that, if the 
 British could be driven from the Western posts, 
 the natives could easily be awed into submission, 
 or bribed into neutrality or friendship. They 
 admired, from their savage views of valor, the 
 side that became victorious. They cared little for 
 the cause for which either side was fighting. 
 Clarke sent out spies among them to ascertain the 
 feasibility of his plans. The spies were gone 
 from April 20 to June 22, and fully corroborated 
 his views concerning the English policy and the 
 feelings of the Indians and French. 
 
 Before proceeding in the narrative of this expe- 
 dition, however, it will be well to notice a few acts 
 transpiring north of the Ohio River, especially re- 
 lating to the land treaties, as they were not without 
 effect on the British policy. Many of the Indians 
 north and south of the Ohio would not recognize 
 the validity of the Fort Stanwix treaty, claiming 
 the Iroquois had no right to the lands, despite 
 their conquest. These discontented natives har- 
 assed the emigrants in such a manner that many 
 Indians were slain in retaliation. This, and the 
 working of the French traders, who at all times 
 were bitterly opposed to the English rule, filled the 
 breasts of the natives with a malignant hate, which 
 years of bloodshed could not wash out. The 
 murder of several Indians by lawless whites fanned 
 the coal into a blaze, and, by 1774, several retalia- 
 tory murders occurred, committed by the natives 
 in revenge for their fallen friends. The Indian 
 slew any white man he found, as a revenge on some 
 friend of his slain ; the frontiersman, acting on the 
 same principle, made the borders extremely dan- 
 gerous to invaders and invaded. Another cause 
 
 of fear occurred about this time, which threatened 
 seriously to retard emigration. 
 
 Pittsburgh had been claimed by both Pennsyl- 
 vania and Virginia, and, in endeavoring to settle 
 the dispute, Lord Dunmore's war followed. Dr. 
 John Connelly, an ambitious, intriguing person, 
 induced Lord Dunmore to assert the claims of Vir- 
 ginia, in the name of the King. In attempting to 
 carry out his intentions, he was arrested by Arthur 
 St. Clair, representing the proprietors of Pennsyl- 
 vania, who was at Pittsburgh at the time. Con- 
 nelly was released on bail, but went at once to 
 Staunton, where he was sworn in as a Justice of 
 Peace. Returning, he gathered a force of one 
 hundred and fifty men, suddenly took possession of 
 Pittsburgh, refused to allow the magistrates to 
 enter the Court House, or to exercise the functions 
 of their ofiices, unless in conformity to his will. 
 Connelly refused any terms offered by the Penn- 
 sylvania deputies, kept possession of the place, 
 acted very harshly toward the inhabitants, stiiTed 
 up the neutral Indians, and, for a time, threatened 
 to make the boundary line between the two colonies 
 a very serious question. His actions led to hostile 
 deeds by some Indians, when the whites, no doubt 
 urged by him, murdered seven Indians at the 
 mouth of the Captina River, and at the house of 
 a settler named Baker, where the Indians were 
 decoyed under promises of friendship and offers of 
 rum. Among those murdered at the latter place, 
 was the entire family of the famous Mingoe chief, 
 Logan. This has been charged to Michael Cresap ; 
 but is untrue. Daniel Grreathouse had command 
 of the party, and though Cresap may have been 
 among them, it is unjust to lay the blame at his 
 feet. Both murders, at Captina and Yellow Creek, 
 were cruel and unwarranted, and were, without 
 doubt, the cause of the war that followed, though 
 the root of the matter lay in Connelly's arbitrary 
 actions, and in his needlessly alarming the Indians. 
 Whatever may have been the facts in relation to 
 the murder of Logan's family, they were of such 
 a nature as to make all feel sure of an Indian war, 
 and preparations were made for the conflict. 
 
 An army was gathered at Wheeling, which, 
 some time in July, under command of Col. Mc- 
 Donald, descended the Ohio to the mouth of Cap- 
 tina Creek. They proposed to march against an 
 Indian town on the Muskingum. The Indians 
 sued for peace, but their pretensions being found 
 spurious, their towns and crops were destroyed. 
 The army then retreated to Williamsburg, having 
 accomplished but little. 
 
 ■ T 
 
54 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 The Delawares were anxious for peace ; even the 
 Mingoes, whose relatives had been slain at Yellow 
 Creek, and Captina, were restrained; but Logan, 
 who had been turned to an inveterate foe to the 
 Americans, came suddenly upon the Monongahela 
 settlements, took thirteen scalps in revenge for the 
 loss of his family, returned home and expressed 
 himself ready to treat with the Long Knives, the 
 Virginians. Had Connelly acted properly at this 
 juncture, the war might have been ended; but 
 his actions only incensed both borderers and In- 
 dians. So obnoxious did he become that Lord 
 Dunmore lost faith in him, and severely repri- 
 manded him. 
 
 To put a stop to the depredations of the Indians, 
 two large bodies of troops were gathered in Vir- 
 ginia, one under Gren. Andrew Lewis, and one 
 under command of Dunmore himself Before 
 the armies could meet at the mouth of the Great 
 Kanawha, their objective point, Lewis' army, which 
 arrived first, was attacked by a furious band of Dela- 
 wares, Shawanees, Iroquois and Wyandots. The 
 conflict was bitterly prolonged by the Indians, who, 
 under the leadership of Cornstalk, were deter- 
 mined to make a decisive effort, and fought till 
 late at night (October 10, 1774), and then only by 
 a strategic move of Lewis' command — which re- 
 sulted in the defeat of the Indians, compelling them 
 to cross the Ohio — was the conflict ended. Mean- 
 while, Dunmore's army came into the enemy's 
 country, and, being joined by the remainder of 
 Lewis' command, pressed forward intending to an- 
 nihilate the Indian towns. Cornstalk and his 
 chiefs, however, sued for peace, and the conflict 
 closed. Dunmore established a camp on Sippo 
 Creek, where he held conferences with the natives 
 and concluded the war. When he left the country, 
 he stationed 100 men at the mouth of the Great 
 Kanawha, a few more at Pittsburgh, and another 
 corps at Wheeling, then called Fort Fincastle. 
 Dunmore intended to return to Pittsburgh the 
 next spring, meet the Indians and form a definite 
 peace ; but the revolt of the colonies prevented. 
 However, he opened several offices for the sale of 
 lands in the West, some of which were in the limits 
 of the Pennsylvania colony. This led to the old 
 boundary dispute again; but before it could be 
 settled, the Revolution began, and Lord Duamore's, 
 as well as almost all other land speculations in the 
 West, were at an end. 
 
 In 1775 and 1776, the chief events transpiring 
 in the West relate to the treaties with the Indians, 
 and the endeavor on the part of the Americans to 
 
 have them remain neutral in the family quarrel now 
 coming on, which they could not understand. The 
 British, like the French, however, could not let 
 them alone, and finally, as a retaliatory measure. 
 Congress, under advice of Washington, won some of 
 them over to the side of the colonies, getting their 
 aid and holding them neutral. The colonies only 
 offered them rewards for prisoners ; never, like the 
 British, offering rewards for scalps. Under such 
 rewards, the atrocities of the Indians in some quar- 
 ters were simply horrible. The scalp was enough 
 to get a reward, that was a mark of Indian valor, 
 too, and hence, helpless innocence and decrepit old 
 age were not spared. They stirred the minds of 
 the pioneers, who saw the protection of their fire- 
 sides a vital point, and led the way to the scheme 
 of Col. Clarke, who was now, as has been noted, the 
 leading spirit in Kentucky. He saw through the 
 scheme of the British, and determined, by a quick, 
 decisive blow, to put an end to it, and to cripple 
 their power in the West. 
 
 Among the acts stimulating Clarke, was the attack 
 on Fort Henry, a garrison about one-half mile 
 above Wheeling Creek, on the Ohio, by a renegade 
 white man, Simon Girty, an agent in the employ of 
 the British, it is thought, and one of the worst 
 wretches ever known on the frontier. When Girty 
 attacked Fort Henry, he led his red allies in regu- 
 lar military fashion, and attacked it without mercy. 
 The defenders were brave, and knew with whom 
 they were contending. Great bravery was displayed 
 by the women in the fort, one of whom, a Miss 
 Zane, carried a keg of gunpowder from a cabin 
 to the fort. Though repeatedly fired at by the sav- 
 ages, she reached the fort in safety. After awhile, 
 however, the effect of the frontiersmen's shots began 
 to be felt, and the Indians sullenly withdrew. 
 Re-enforcements coming, the fort was held, and 
 Girty and his band were obliged to flee. 
 
 Clarke saw that if the British once got con- 
 trol over the Western Indians the scene at Fort 
 Henry would be repeated, and would not likely, 
 in all cases, end in fiivor of the Americans. With- 
 out communicating any of his designs, he left Har- 
 rodsburg about the 1st of October, 1777, and 
 reached the capital of Virginia by November 5. 
 Still keeping his mind, he awaited a favorable op- 
 portunity to broach his plans to those in power, 
 and, in the meanwhile, carefully watched the exist- 
 ing state of feeling. When the opportunity came, 
 Clarke broached his plans to Patrick Henry, Gov- 
 ernor of Virginia, who at once entered warmly 
 into them, recognizing their great importance. 
 
HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 iL 
 
 Through his aid, Clarke procured the necessary au- 
 thority to prosecute his plans, and returned at once 
 to Pittsburgh. He intended raising men about 
 this post, but found them fearful of leaving their 
 homes unprotected. However, he secured three 
 companies, and, with these and a number of volun- 
 teers, picked up on the way down the Ohio River, 
 he fortified Corn Island, near the falls, and made 
 ready for his expedition. He had some trouble in 
 keeping his men, some of those from Kentucky 
 refusing to aid in subduing stations out of their 
 own country. He did not announce his real inten- 
 tions till he had reached this point. Here Col. 
 Bowman joined him with his Kentucky militia, 
 and, on the 24tli of June, 1778, during a total 
 eclipse of the sun, the party left the fort. Before 
 his start, he learned of the capture of Burgoyne, 
 and, when nearl}' down to Fort 3Iassac, he met 
 some of his spies, who informed him of the exag- 
 gerated accounts of the ferocity of the Long 
 Knives that the French had received from the 
 British. By proper action on his part, Clarke saw 
 both these items of information could be made 
 very beneficial to him. Leaving the river near 
 Fort Massac, he set out on the march to Kaskas- 
 kia, through a hot summer's sun, over a country 
 fiill of savage foes. They reached the town un- 
 noticed, on the evening of July 4, and, before 
 the astonished British and French knew it, they 
 were all prisoners. M. Rocheblave, the English 
 commander, was secured, but his wife adroitly con- 
 cealed the papers belonging to the garrison. In 
 the person of M. Gibault, the French priest, Clarke 
 found a true friend. When the true character of 
 the Virginians became apparent, the French were 
 easily drawn to the American side, and the priest 
 secured the surrender and allegiance of Cahokia 
 through his personal influence. M. Gibault told 
 him he would also secure the post at St. Vincent's, 
 which he did, returning from the mission about 
 the 1st of AugTist. During the interval, Clarke re- 
 enlisted his men, formed his plans, sent his pris- 
 oners to Kentucky, and was ready for ftiture action 
 when M. Gibault arrived. He sent Capt. Helm 
 and a single soldier to Vincennes to hold that fort 
 until he could put a garrison there. It is but 
 proper to state that the English commander, Col. 
 Hamilton, and his band of soldiers, were absent at 
 Detroit when the priest secured the village on the 
 " Ouabache." When Hamilton returned, in the 
 autumn, he was greatly surprised to see the Amer- 
 ican flag floating from the ramparts of the fort, 
 and when approaching the gate he was abruptly 
 
 halted by Capt. Helm, who stood with a lighted fuse 
 in his hand by a cannon, answering Hamilton's 
 demand to surrender with the imperative inquiry, 
 "Upon what terms, sir?" "LTpon the honors of 
 war," answered Hamilton, and he marched in 
 greatly chagrined to see he had been halted by 
 two men. The British commander sat quietly 
 down, intending to go on down the river and sub- 
 due Kentucky in the spring, in the mean time 
 off'ering rewards for American scalps, and thereby 
 gaining the epithet " Hair-buyer General." Clarke 
 heard of his actions late in January, 1779, and, as 
 he says, " I knew if I did not take him he would 
 take me," set out early in February with his troops 
 and marched across the marshy plains of Lower 
 Illinois, reaching the Wabash post by the 22d of 
 that month. The unerring aim of the Westerner 
 was eff"ectual. " They will shoot your eyes out," 
 said Helm to the British troops. " There, I told 
 you so," he further exclaimed, as a soldier vent- 
 ured near a port-hole and received a shot directly 
 in his eye. On the 24th the fort surrendered. 
 The American flag waved again over its ramparts. 
 The "Hair-buyer General" was sent a prisoner to 
 Virginia, where he was kept in close confinement 
 for his cruel acts. Clarke returned to Kaskaskia, 
 perfected his plans to hold the Illinois settlements, 
 went on to Kentucky, from where he sent word to 
 the colonial authorities of the success of his expe- 
 dition. Had he received the aid promised him, 
 Detroit, in easy reach, would have fallen too, but 
 Gen. Green, failing to send it as promised, the capt- 
 ure of that important post was delayed. 
 
 Had Clarke failed, and Hamilton succeeded, the 
 whole West would have been swept, from the Alle- 
 ghanies to the Mississippi. But for this small 
 army of fearless Virginians, the union of all the 
 tribes from Georgia to Maine against the colonies 
 might have been effected, and the whole current 
 of American history changed. America owes 
 Clarke and his band more than it can ever pay. 
 Clarke reported the capture of Kaskaskia and the 
 Illinois country early after its surrender, and in 
 October the county of Illinois was established, 
 extending over an unlimited expanse of country, 
 by the Virginia Legislature. John Todd was 
 appointed Lieutenant Colonel and Civil Governor. 
 In November, Clarke and his men received the 
 thanks of the same body, who, in after years, 
 secured them a grant of land, which they selected 
 on the right bank of the Ohio River, opposite 
 Louisville. They expected here a city would rise 
 one day, to be the peer of Louisville, then coming 
 
 J 
 
 :v 
 
56 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 into prominence as an important place. By some 
 means, their expectations failed, and only the 
 dilapidated village of Clarkesburg perpetuates 
 their hopes. 
 
 The conquest of Clarke changed the face of 
 aifairs in relation to the whole country north of 
 the Ohio River, which would, in all probability, 
 have been made the boundary between Canada and 
 the United States. When this was proposed, the 
 strenuous arguments based on this conquest, by 
 the American Commissioners, secured the present 
 boundary line in negotiating the treaty of 1793. 
 
 Though Clarke had failed to capture Detroit, 
 Congress saw the importance of the post, and 
 resolved on securing it. Gren. McCosh, commander 
 at Fort Pitt, was put in command, and $1,000,- 
 000 and 3,000 men placed at his disposal. By 
 some dilatory means, he got no further than the 
 Tuscarawas River, in Ohio, where a half-way 
 house, called Fort Laurens, for the President of 
 Congress, was built. It was too far out to be of 
 practicable value, and was soon after abandoned. 
 
 Indian troubles and incursions by the British 
 were the most absorbing themes in the West. 
 The British went so far as Kentucky at a later 
 date, while they intended reducing Fort Pitt, only 
 abandoning it when learning of its strength. 
 Expeditions against the Western Indians were led 
 by Gen. Sullivan, Col. Daniel Broadhead, Col. 
 Bowman and others, which, for awhile, silenced 
 the natives and taught them the power of the 
 Americans. They could not organize so readily 
 as before, and began to attach themselves more 
 closely to the British, or commit their depredations 
 in bands, fleeing into the wilderness as soon as 
 they struck a blow. In this way, several localities 
 suffered, until the settlers became again exasper- 
 ated ; other expeditions were formed, and a second 
 chastisement given. In 1781, Col. Broadhead 
 led an expedition against the Central Ohio Indians. 
 It did not prove so successful, as the Indians were 
 led by the noted chief Brant, who, though not 
 cruel, was a foe to the Americans, and assisted the 
 British greatly in their endeavors to secure the West. 
 
 Another class of events occun-ed now in the 
 West, civil in their relations, yet destined to form 
 an important part of its history — its land laws. 
 
 It must be borne in mind, that Virginia claimed 
 the greater portion of the country north of the 
 Ohio River, as well as a large part south. The 
 other colonies claimed land also in the West under 
 the old Crown grants, which extended to the 
 South or Western Sea. To more complicate mat- 
 
 ters, several land companies held proprietary rights 
 to portions of these lands gained by grants from 
 the Crown, or from the Colonial Assemblies. 
 Others were based on land warrants issued 
 in 1763; others on selection and survey and 
 still others on settlement. In this state of 
 mixed afiairs, it was difficult to say who held a 
 secure claim. It was a question whether the old 
 French grants were good or not, especially since 
 the change in government, and the eminent pros- 
 pect of still another change. To, in some way, 
 aid in settling these claims, Virginia sent a com- 
 mission to the West to sit as a court and determine 
 the proprietorship of these claims. This court, 
 though of as doubtful authority as the claims 
 themselves, went to work in Kentucky and along 
 the Ohio River in 1779, and, in the course of one 
 year, granted over three thousand certificates. 
 These were considered as good authority for a 
 definite title, and were so regarded in after pur- 
 chases. Under them, many pioneers, like Daniel 
 Boone, lost their lands, as all were required to 
 hold some kind of a patent, while others, who 
 possessed no more principle than "land-sharks" 
 of to-day, acquired large tracts of land by holding 
 a patent the court was bound to accept. Of all 
 the colonies, Virginia seemed to have the best 
 title to the Northwest, save a few parcels, such as 
 the Connecticut or Western Reserve and some 
 similar tracts held by New York, Massachusetts 
 and New Jersey. When the territory of the 
 Northwest was ceded to the General Government, 
 this was recognized, and that country was counted 
 as a Virginia county. 
 
 The Spanish Government, holding the region 
 west of the Mississippi, and a portion east toward 
 its outlet, became an important but secret ally of 
 the Americans. When the French revolt was 
 suppressed by O'Reilly, and the Spanish assumed 
 the government of Louisiana, both Upper and 
 Lower, there was a large tract of country, known 
 as Florida (East and West), claimed by England, 
 and duly regarded as a part of her dominion. 
 The boundaries had been settled when the French 
 first occupied Lower Louisiana. The Spaniards 
 adopted the patriarchal form of rule, as much as 
 was consistent with their interests, and allowed the 
 French full religious and civil liberty, save that all 
 tribunals were after the Spanish fashion, and 
 governed by Spanish rules. The Spaniards, long 
 jealous of England's growing power, secretly sent 
 the Governors of Louisiana word to aid the 
 Americans in their struggle for freedom. Though 
 
n 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 57 
 
 they controlled the Mississippi River, they allowed 
 an American officer (Capt. Willing) to descend the 
 river in January, 1778, with a party of fifty men, 
 and ravage the British shore from Manchez Bayou 
 to Natchez. 
 
 On the 8th of May, 1779, Spain declared war 
 against Great Britain; and, on the 8th of July, 
 the people of Louisiana were allowed to take a 
 part in the war. Accordingly, Galvez collected a 
 force of 1,400 men, and, on the 7th of September, 
 took Fort Manchac. By the 21st of September, 
 he had taken Baton Rouge and Natchez. Eight 
 vessels were captured by the Spaniards on the 
 Mississippi and on the lakes. In 1780 Mobile 
 fell; in March, 1781, Pensacola, the chief British 
 post in West Florida, succumbed after a long 
 siege, and, on the 9th of May, all West Florida 
 was surrendered to Spain. 
 
 This war, or the war on the Atlantic Coast, did 
 not immediately affect Upper Louisiana. Great 
 Britain, however, attempted to capture St. Louis. 
 Though the commander was strongly suspected of 
 being bribed by the English, yet the place stood 
 the siege fi-om the combined force of Indians and 
 Canadians, and the assailants were dispersed. This 
 was done during the summer of 1680, and in the 
 autumn, a company of Spanish and French resi- 
 dents, under La Balme, went on an expedition 
 against Detroit. They marched as far north as 
 the British trading-post Ke-ki-ong-a, at the head 
 of the Maumee River, but being surprised in the 
 night, and the commander slain, the expedition 
 was defeated, having done but little. 
 
 Spain may have had personal interests in aiding 
 the Americans. She was now in control of the Mis- 
 sissippi River, the natural outlet of the Northwest, 
 and, in 1780, began the troubles relative to the 
 navigation of that stream. The claims of Spain 
 were considered very unjust by the Continental 
 Congress, and, while deliberating over the question, 
 Virginia, who was jealously alive to her Western 
 interests, and who yet held jurisdiction over Ken- 
 tucky, sent through Jefferson, the Governor, Gen. 
 George Rogers Clarke, to erect a fort below the 
 mouth of the Ohio. This proceeding was rather 
 unwarrantable, especially as the fort was built in 
 the country of the Chickasaws, who had thus far 
 been true friends to the Americans, and who looked 
 upon the fort as an innovation on their territory. 
 It was completed and occupied but a short time, 
 Clarke being recalled. 
 
 Virginia, in 1780, did a very important thing; 
 namely, establishing an institution for higher edu- 
 
 cation. The Old Dominion confiscated the lands 
 of "Robert McKenzie, Henry Collins and Alex- 
 ander McKee, Britons, eight thousand acres," and 
 invested the proceeds of the sale in a public semi- 
 nary. Transylvania University now lives, a monu- 
 ment to that .spirit. 
 
 While Clarke was building Fort Jefferson, a force 
 of British and Indians, under command of Capt. 
 Bryd, came down from Canada and attacked the 
 Kentucky settlements, getting into the country be- 
 fore any one was aware. The winter before had 
 been one of unusual severity, and game was ex- 
 ceedingly scarce, hence the army was not prepared 
 to conduct a campaign. After the capture of Rud- 
 dle's Station, at the south fork of the Licking, Bryd 
 abandoned any further attempts to reduce the set- 
 tlements, except capturing Martin's Station, and 
 returned to Detroit. 
 
 This expedition gave an additional motive for 
 the chastisement of the Indians, and Clarke, on his 
 return from Fort Jefferson, went on an expedition 
 against the Miami Indians. He destroyed their 
 towns at Loramie's store, near the present city of 
 Sydney, Ohio, and at Piqua, humbling the natives. 
 While on the way, a part of the army remained 
 on the north bank of the Ohio, and erected two 
 block-houses on the present site of Cincinnati. 
 
 The exploits of Clarke and his men so effectually 
 chastised the Indians, that, for a time, the West 
 was safe. During this period of quiet, the meas- 
 ures which led to the cession of Western lands to 
 the General Government, began to assume a defi- 
 nite form. All the colonies claiming Western 
 lands were willing to cede them to the Government, 
 save Virginia, which colony wanted a large scope 
 of Southern country southeast of the Ohio, as far 
 as South Carolina. All recognized the justice of 
 all Western lands becoming public property, and 
 thereby aiding in extinguishing the debts caused by 
 the war of the Revolution, now about to close. 
 As Virginia held a somewhat different view, the 
 cession was not made until 1783. 
 
 The subject, however, could not be allowed to 
 rest. The war of the Revolution was now drawing 
 to a close ; victory on the part of the colonies was 
 apparent, and the Western lands must be a part of 
 the public domain. Subsequent events brought 
 about the desired cession, though several events 
 transpired before the plan of cession was consum- 
 mated. 
 
 Before the close of 1780, the Legislature of 
 Virginia passed an act, establishing the "town of 
 Louisville," and confiscated the lands of John 
 
 :V 
 
:^ 
 
 58 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 Connelly, who was one of its original proprietors, 
 and who distinguished himself in the commence- 
 ment of Lord Dunmore's war, and who was now a 
 Tory, and doing all he could against the patriot 
 cause. The proceeds of the sale of his lands were 
 divided between Virginia and the county of Jefferson. 
 Kentucky, the next year, was divided into three 
 counties, Jefferson, Lincoln and Fayette. Courts 
 were appointed in each, and the entry and location 
 of lands given into their hands. Settlers, in spite 
 of Lidian troubles and British intrigue, were 
 pouring over the mountains, particularly so during 
 the years 1780 and 1781. The expeditions of 
 Clarke against the Miami Indians ; Boone's cap- 
 tivity, and escape from them ; their defeat when 
 attacking Boonesboro, and other places — all 
 combined to weaken their power, and teach them 
 to respect a nation whose progress they could not 
 stay. 
 
 The pioneers of the West, obliged to depend on 
 themselves, owing to the struggle of the colonies 
 for freedom, grew up a hardy, self-reliant race, 
 with all the vices and virtues of a border life, and 
 with habits, manners and customs necessary to 
 their peculiar situation, and suited to their peculiar 
 taste. A resume of their experiences and daily 
 lives would be quite interesting, did the limits of 
 this history admit it here. In the part relating 
 directly to this county, the reader will find such 
 lives given; here, only the important events can 
 be noticed. 
 
 The last event of consequence occurring in the 
 West before the close of the Revolution, is one 
 that might well have been omitted. Had such 
 been the case, a great stain would have been spared 
 the character of Western pioneers. Reference is 
 made to the massacre of the Moravian Christian 
 Indians. 
 
 These Indians were of the Delaware nation 
 chiefly, though other Western tribes were visited 
 and many converts made. The first converts were 
 made in New York and Connecticut, where, after 
 a good start had been made, and a prospect of 
 many souls being saved, they incurred the enmity 
 of the whites, who, becoming alarmed at their suc- 
 cess, persecuted them to such an extent that they 
 were driven out of New York into Pennsylvania, 
 where, in 1744, four years after their arrival in 
 the New World, they began new missions. In 
 1748, the New York and Connecticut Indians fol- 
 lowed their teachers, and were among the founders 
 of Friedenshutten, "Tents of Peace," a hamlet 
 near Bethlehem, where their teachers were sta- 
 
 tioned. Other hamlets grew around them, until 
 in the interior of the colony, existed an Indian 
 community, free from all savage vices, and grow- 
 ing up in Christian virtues. As their strength 
 grew, lawless whites again began to oppress them. 
 They could not understand the war of 1754, and 
 were, indeed, in a truly embarrassing position. 
 The savages could form no conception of any cause 
 for neutrality, save a secret sympathy with the 
 English ; and if they could not take up the hatchet, 
 they were in the way, and must be removed. Fail- 
 ing to do this, their red brothers became hostile. 
 The whites were but little better. The old suspi- 
 cions which drove them from New York were 
 aroused. They were secret Papists, in league with 
 the French, and furnished them with arms and in- 
 telligence; they were interfering with the liquor 
 traffic; they were enemies to the Government, 
 and the Indian and the white man combined against 
 them. They were obliged to move from place to 
 place; were at one time protected nearly a year, 
 near Philadelphia, from lawless whites, and finally 
 were compelled to go far enough West to be out 
 of the way of French and English arms, or the 
 Iroquois and Cherokee hatchets. They came 
 finally to the Muskingum, where they made a set- 
 tlement called Schonbrun, "beautiful clear spring," 
 in what is now Tuscarawas County. Other settle- 
 ments gathered, from time to time, as the years 
 went on, till in 1772 large numbers of them were 
 within the borders of the State. 
 
 Until the war of independence broke out, they 
 were allowed to peacefully pursue their way. When 
 that came, they were between Fort Pitt and De- 
 troit, one of which contained British, the other 
 Americans. Again they could not understand the 
 struggle, and could not take up the hatchet. This 
 brought on them the enmity of both belligerent 
 parties, and that of their own forest companions, 
 who could not see wherein their natures could 
 change. Among the most hostile persons, were 
 the white renegades McKee, Girty and Elliott. 
 On their instigation, several of them were slain, 
 and by their advice they were obliged to leave their 
 fields and homes, where they had many comforts, 
 and where they had erected good chapels in which 
 to worship. It was just before one of these forced 
 removals that Mary, daughter of the missionary 
 Hecke welder, was born. She is supposed to be 
 the first white female child born north of the Ohio 
 River. Her birth occurred April 16, 1781. It 
 is but proper to say here, that it is an open ques- 
 tion, and one that will probably never be decided, 
 
 r'v 
 
.^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 59 
 
 L e. Who was the first white child born in Ohio ? 
 In all probability, the child was born during the 
 captivity of its mother, as history plainly shows 
 that when white women were released from the 
 Indians, some of them carried children born while 
 among the natives. 
 
 When the Moravians were forced to leave their 
 settlements on the Muskingum, and taken to San- 
 dusky, they left growing fields of corn, to which 
 they were obliged to return, to gather food. This 
 aroused the whites, only wanting some pretext 
 whereby they might attack them, and a party, 
 headed by Col. David Williamson, determined to 
 exterminate them. The Moravians, hearing of their 
 approach, fled, but too late to warn other settle- 
 ments, and Gnadenhutten, Salem and one or two 
 smaller settlements, were surprised and taken. 
 Under deceitful promises, the Indians gave up all 
 their arms, showed the whites their treasures, and 
 went unknowingly to a terrible death. When ap- 
 prised of their fate, determined on by a majority 
 of the rangers, they begged only time to prepare. 
 They were led two by two, the men into one, the 
 women and children into another "slaughter- 
 house," as it was termed, and all but two lads were 
 wantonly slain. An infamous and more bloody 
 deed never darkened the pages of feudal times ; 
 a deed that, in after years, called aloud for venge- 
 ance, and in some measure received it. Some of 
 Williamson's men wrung their hands at the cruel 
 fate, and endeavored, by all the means in their 
 power, to prevent it; but all to no purpose. The 
 blood of the rangers was up, and they would not spare 
 "man, woman or child, of all that peaceful band." 
 
 Having completed their horrible work, (March 
 8, 1782), Williamson and his men returned to 
 Pittsburgh. Everywhere, the Indians lamented 
 the untimely death of their kindred, their savage 
 relatives determining on their revenge; the Chris- 
 tian ones could only be resigned and weep. 
 
 Williamson's success, for such it was viewed by 
 many, excited the borderers to another invasion, 
 and a second army was raised, this time to 
 go to the Sandusky town, and annihilate the 
 Wyandots. Col. William Crawford was elected 
 leader ; he accepted reluctantly ; on the way, 
 the army was met by hordes of savages on the 5th of 
 
 June, and totally routed. They were away north, 
 in what is now Wyandot County, and were obliged 
 to flee for their lives. The blood of the murdered 
 Moravians called for revenge. The Indians de- 
 sired it ; were they not relatives of the fallen 
 Christians? Crawford and many of his men fell 
 into their hands ; . all sufi"ered unheard-of tortures, 
 that of Crawford being as cruel as Indian cruelty 
 could devise. He was pounded, pierced, cut with 
 knives and burned, all of which occupied nearly 
 three hours, and finally lay down insensible on a bed 
 of coals, and died. The savage captors, in demoni- 
 acal glee, danced around him, and upbraided him 
 for the cruel murder of their relatives, giving him 
 this only consolation, that had they captured Will- 
 iamson, he might go free, but he must answer for 
 Williamson's brutality. 
 
 The war did not cease here. The Indians, now 
 aroused, carried their attack as far south as into 
 Kentucky, killing Capt. Estill, a brave man, and 
 some of his companions. The British, too, were 
 active in aiding them, and the 14th of August a 
 large force of them, under Girty, gathered silently 
 about Bryant's Station. They were obliged to re- 
 treat. The Kentuckians pursued them, but were 
 repulsed with considerable loss. 
 
 The attack on Bryant's Station aroused the peo- 
 ple of Kentucky to strike a blow that would be 
 felt. Gen. Clarke was put at the head of an army 
 of one thousand and fifty men, and the Miami 
 country was a second time destroyed. Clarke even 
 went as far north as the British trading-post at the 
 head of the Miami, where he captured a great 
 amount of property, and destroyed the post. Other 
 outposts also fell, the invading army suffering but 
 little, and, by its decisive action, practically closing 
 the Indian wars in the West. Pennsylvania suf- 
 fered some, losing Hannahstown and one or two 
 small settlements. Williamson's and Crawford's 
 campaigns aroused the fury of the Indians that 
 took time and much blood and war to subdue. The 
 Revolution was, however, drawing to a close. Amer- 
 ican arms were victorious, and a new nation was 
 now coming into existence, who would change the 
 whole current of Western matters, and make of the 
 Northwest a land of liberty, equality and union. 
 That nation was now on the stage. 
 
 •i< 
 
 :^ 
 
^ 
 
 ® w_ 
 
 60 
 
 ^ ® 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 AMERICAN OCCUPATION— INDIAN CLAIMS— SURVEYS — EARLY LAND COMPANIES— COMPACT 
 OF 1787 — ORGANIZATION OF THE TERRITORY— EARLY AMERICAN SETTLE- 
 MENTS IN THE OHIO VALLEY — FIRST TERRITORIAL 
 OFFICERS— ORGANIZATION OF COUNTIES. 
 
 THE occupation of the West by the American, 
 really dates from the campaign of Gen. Clarke in 
 1778, when he captured the British posts in the 
 Illinois country, and Vincennes on the Wabash. 
 Had he been properly supported, he would have 
 reduced Detroit, then in easy reach, and poorly de- 
 fended. As it was, however, that post remained in 
 charge of the British till after the close of the war 
 of the Revolution. They also held other lake 
 posts ; but these were included in the terms of 
 peace, and came into the possession of the Ameri- 
 cans. They were abandoned by the British as 
 soon as the different commanders received notice 
 from their chiefs, and British rule and English 
 occupation ceased in that part of the New World. 
 
 The war virtually closed by the surrender of 
 Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown, Va., October 19, 
 1781. The struggle was prolonged, however, by 
 the British, in the vain hope that they could re- 
 trieve the disaster, but it was only a useless waste 
 of men and money. America would not be sub- 
 dued. "If we are to be taxed, we will be repre- 
 sented," said they, "else we will be a free govern- 
 ment, and regulate our own taxes." In the end, 
 they were free. 
 
 Provisional articles of peace between the United 
 States and Great Britain were signed in Paris on 
 the 30th of November, 1782. This was followed 
 by an armistice negotiated at Versailles on the 20th 
 of January, 1783; and finally, a definite treaty of 
 peace was concluded at Paris on the 3d of the next 
 September, and ratified by Congress on the 4th of 
 January, 1784. By the second article of the defi- 
 nite treaty of 1783, the boundaries of the United 
 States were fixed. A glance at the map of that 
 day shows the boundary to have been as follows: 
 Beginning at Passamaquoddy Bay, on the coast of 
 Maine, the line ran north a little above the forty- 
 fifth parallel of latitude, when it diverged southwest- 
 erly, irregularly, until it reached that parallel, when 
 it followed it until it reached the St. Lawrence River. 
 It followed that river to Lake Ontario, down its 
 center ; up the Niagara River ; through Lake Erie, 
 
 up the Detroit River and through Lakes Huron and 
 Superior, to the northwest extremity of the latter. 
 Then it pursued another irregular western course 
 to the Lake of the Woods, when it turned south- 
 ward to the Mississippi River. The commissioners 
 insisted that should be the western boundary, as 
 the lakes were the northern. It followed the Mis- 
 sissippi south until the mouth of Red River was 
 reached, when, turning east, it followed almost a 
 direct line to the Atlantic Coast, touching the 
 coast a little north of the outlet of St. John's 
 River. 
 
 From this outline, it will be readily seen what 
 boundary the United States possessed. Not one- 
 half of its present domain. 
 
 At this date, there existed the original thirteen 
 colonies : Virginia occupying all Kentucky and 
 all the Northwest, save about half of Michigan and 
 Wisconsin, claimed by Massachusetts ; and the upper 
 part of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, and the lower 
 part (a narrow strip) of Michigan, claimed by Con- 
 necticut. Georgia included all of Alabama and 
 Mississippi. The Spaniards claimed all Florida 
 and a narrow part of lower Georgia. All the coun- 
 try west of the Father of Waters belonged to Spain, 
 to whom it had been secretly ceded when the fam- 
 ily compact was made. That nation controlled the 
 Mississippi, and gave no small uneasiness to the 
 young government. It was, however, happily set- 
 tled finally, by the sale of Louisana to the United 
 States. 
 
 Pending the settlement of these questions and 
 the formation of the Federal Union, the cession of 
 the Northwest by Virginia again came before 
 Congress. That body found itself unable to fulfill 
 its promises to its soldiers regarding land, and 
 again urged the Old Dominion to cede the Terri- 
 tory to the General Government, for the good of 
 all. Congress forbade settlers from occupying the 
 Western lands till a definite cession had been 
 made, and the title to the lands in question made 
 good. But speculation was stronger than law, 
 and without waiting for the slow processes of courts, 
 
^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 61 
 
 the adventurous settlers were pouring into the 
 country at a rapid rate, only retarded by the rifle 
 and scalping-knife of the savage — a temporary 
 check. The policy of allowing any parties to obtain 
 land from the Indians was strongly discouraged 
 by Washington. He advocated the idea that only 
 the General Government could do that, and, in a 
 letter to James Duane, in Congress, he strongly 
 urged such a course, and pointed out the danger 
 of a border war, unless some such measure was 
 stringently followed. 
 
 Under the circumstances, Congress pressed the 
 claims of cession upon Virginia, and finally in- 
 duced the Dominion to modify the terms proposed 
 two years before. On the 20th of December, 
 1783, Virginia accepted the proposal of Congress, 
 and authorized her delegates to make a deed to 
 the United States of all her right in the territory 
 northwest of the Ohio. 
 
 The Old Dominion stipulated in her deed of 
 cession, that the territory should be divided into 
 States, to be admitted into the Union as any other 
 State, and to bear a proportionate share in the 
 maintenance of that Union; that Virginia should 
 be re-imbursed for the expense incurred in subduing 
 the British posts in the territory; that the French 
 and Canadian inhabitants should be protected in their 
 rights ; that the grant to Gen. George Rogers Clarke 
 and his men, as well as all other similar grants, 
 should be confirmed, and that the lands should be 
 considered as the common property of the United 
 States, the proceeds to be applied to the use of the 
 whole country. Congress accepted these condi- 
 tions, and the deed was made March 1, 1784. 
 Thus the country came from under the dominion 
 of Virginia, and became common property. 
 
 A serious difficulty arose about this time, that 
 threatened for awhile to involve England and 
 America anew in war. Virginia and several 
 other States refused to abide by that part of the 
 treaty relating to the payment of debts, especially 
 so, when the British carried away quite a number 
 of negroes claimed by the Americans. This re- 
 fusal on the part of the Old Dominion and her 
 abettors, caused the English to retain her North- 
 western outposts, Detroit, Mackinaw, etc. She 
 held these till 1786, when the questions were 
 finally settled, and then readily abandoned them. 
 
 The return of peace greatly augmented emigra- 
 tion to the West, especially to Kentucky. When 
 the war closed, the population of that county (the 
 three counties having been made one judicial dis- 
 trict, and Danville designated as the seat of gov- 
 
 ernment) was estimated to be about twelve thousand. 
 In one year, after the close of the war, it increased 
 to 30,0U0, and steps for a State government were 
 taken. Owing to the divided sentiment among its 
 citizens, its perplexing questions of land titles 
 and proprietary rights, nine conventions were held 
 before a definite course of action could be reached. 
 This prolonged the time till 1792, when, in De- 
 cember of that year, the election for persons to 
 form a State constitution was held, and the vexed 
 and complicated questions settled. In 1783, the 
 first wagons bearing merchandise came across the 
 mountains. Their contents were received on flat- 
 boats at Pittsburgh, and taken down the Ohio to 
 Louisville, which that spring boasted of a store, 
 opened by Daniel Broadhead. The next year, 
 James Wilkinson opened one at Lexington. 
 
 Pittsburgh was now the principal town in the 
 West. It occupied the same position regarding 
 the outposts that Omaha has done for several years 
 to Nebra.ska. The town of Pittsburgh was laid 
 out immediately after the war of 1764, by Col. 
 Campbell. It then consisted of four squares about 
 the fort, and received its name from that citadel. 
 The treaty with the Six Nations in 1768, con- 
 veyed to the proprietaries of Pennsylvania all the 
 lands of the Alleghany below Kittanning, and all 
 the country south of the Ohio, within the limits of 
 Penn's charter. This deed of cession was recog- 
 nized when the line between Pennsylvania and 
 Virginia was fixed, and gave the post to the Key- 
 stone State. In accordance with this deed, the 
 manor of Pittsburgh was withdrawn from market 
 in 1769, and was held as the property of the Penn 
 family. When Washington visited it in 1770, it 
 seems to have declined in consequence of the 
 afore-mentioned act. He mentions it as a " town of 
 about twenty log houses, on the Monongahela, 
 about three hundred yards from the fort." The 
 Penn's remained true to the King, and hence all 
 their land that had not been surveyed and returned 
 to the land office, was confiscated by the common- 
 wealth. Pittsburgh, having been surveyed, was 
 still left to them. In the spring of 1784, Tench 
 Francis, the agent of the Penns, was induced to 
 lay out the manor into lots and offer them for sale. 
 Though, for many years, the place was rather un- 
 promising, it eventually became the chief town in 
 that part of the West, a position it yet holds. In 
 1786, John Scull and Joseph Hall started the 
 Pittsburgh Gazette, the first paper published west 
 of the mountains. In the initial number, appeared a 
 lengthy article from the pen of H. H. Brackenridge, 
 
 
-^1 Si 
 
 63 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 afterward one of the most prominent members 
 of the Pennsylvania bar. He had located in 
 Pittsburgh in 1781. His letter gives a most hope- 
 ful prospect in store for the future city, and is a 
 highly descriptive article of the Western country. 
 It is yet preserved in the "Western Annals," and 
 is well worth a perusal. 
 
 Under the act of peace in 1783, no provision was 
 made by the British for their allies, especially the 
 Six Nations. The question was ignored by the 
 English, and was made a handle by the Americans 
 in gaining them to their cause before the war had 
 fully closed. The treaties made were regarded by 
 the Indians as alliances only, and when the En- 
 glish left the country the Indians began to assume 
 rather a hostile bearing. This excited the whites, 
 and for a while a war with that formidable con- 
 federacy was imminent. Better councils prevailed, 
 and Congress wisely adopted the policy of acquiring 
 their lands by purchase. In accordance with this 
 policy, a treaty was made at Fort Stanwix with 
 the Six Nations, in October, 1784. By this treaty, 
 all lands west of a line drawn from the mouth of 
 Oswego Creek, about four miles east of Niagara, 
 to the mouth of Buffalo Creek, and on to the 
 northern boundary of Pennsylvania, thence west 
 along that boundary to its western extremity, 
 thence south to the Ohio River, should be ceded 
 to the United States. (They claimed west of this line 
 by conquest.) The Six Nations were to be secured 
 in the lands they inhabited, reserving only six miles 
 square around Oswego fort for the support of the 
 same. By this treaty, the indefinite claim of the 
 Six Nations to the West was extinguished, and the 
 question of its ownership settled. 
 
 It was now occupied by other Western tribes, 
 who did not recognize the Iroquois claim, and who 
 would not yield without a purchase. Especially 
 was this the case with those Indians living in the 
 northern part. To get possession of that country 
 by the same process, the United States, through 
 its commissioners, held a treaty at Fort Mcintosh 
 on the 21st of January, 1785. The Wyandot, 
 Delaware, Chippewa and Ottawa tribes were pres- 
 ent, and, through their chiefs, sold their lands to 
 the Government. The Wyandot and Delaware 
 nations were given a reservation in the north part 
 of Ohio, where they were to be protected. The 
 others were allotted reservations in Michigan. To 
 all was given complete control of their lands, allow- 
 ing them to punish any white man attempting to 
 settle thereon, and guaranteeing them in their 
 rights. 
 
 By such means Congress gained Indian titles to 
 the vast realms north of the Ohio, and, a few 
 months later, that legislation was commenced that 
 should determine the mode of its disposal and the 
 plan of its settlements. 
 
 To facilitate the settlement of lands thus acquired, 
 Congress, on May 20, 1785, passed an act for dispos- 
 ing of lands in the Northwest Territory. Its main 
 provisions were : A surveyor or surveyors should be 
 appointed from the States ; and a geographer, and 
 his assistants to act with them. The surveyors 
 were to divide the territory into townships of six 
 miles square, by lines running due north and 
 south, and east and west. The starting-place 
 was to be on the Ohio River, at a point where the 
 western boundary of Pennsylvania crossed it. 
 This would give the first range, and the first 
 township. As soon as seven townships were 
 surveyed, the maps and plats of the same were to 
 be sent to the Board of the Treasury, who would 
 record them and proceed to place the land in the 
 market, and so on with all the townships as fast as 
 they could be prepared ready for sale. Each town- 
 ship was to be divided into thirty-six sections, or 
 lots. Out of these sections, numbers 8, 11, 26 and 
 29 were reserved for the use of the Government, 
 and lot No. 16, for the establishment of a common- 
 school fund. One-third of all mines and minerals was 
 also reserved for the United States. Three townships 
 on Lake Erie were reserved for the use of officers, 
 men and others, refiigees from Canada and from 
 Nova Scotia, who were entitled to grants of land. 
 The Moravian Indians were also exempt from 
 molestation, and guaranteed in their homes. Sol- 
 diers' claims, and all others of a like nature, were 
 also recognized, and land reserved for them. 
 
 Without waiting for the act of Congress, settlers 
 had been pouring into the country, and, when or- 
 dered by Congress to leave undisturbed Indian 
 lands, refused to do so. They went into the In- 
 dian country at their peril, however, and when 
 driven out by the Indians could get no redress 
 from the Government, even when life was lost. 
 
 The Indians on the Wabash made a treaty at 
 Fort Finney, on the Miami, January 31, 1786, 
 promising allegiance to the United States, and were 
 allowed a reservation. This treaty did not include 
 the Piankeshaws, as was at first intended. These, 
 refusing to live peaceably, stirred up the Shawa- 
 nees, who began a series of predatory excursions 
 against the settlements. This led to an expedition 
 against them and other restless tribes. Gen. Clarke 
 commanded part of the army on that expedition. 
 
liL 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 65 
 
 but got no farther than Vincennes, when, owing to 
 the discontent of his Kentucky troops, he was 
 obliged to return. Col. Benjamin Logan, how- 
 ever, marched, at the head of four or five hundred 
 mounted riflemen, into the Indian country, pene- 
 trating as far as the head-waters of Mad River. 
 He destroyed several towns, much corn, and took 
 about eighty prisoners. Among these, was the 
 chief of the nation, who was wantonly slain, 
 greatly to Logan's regret, who could not restrain 
 his men. His expedition taught the Indians sub- 
 mission, and that they must adhere to their con- 
 tracts. 
 
 Meanwhile, the difficulties of the navigation of 
 the Mississippi arose. Spain would not relinquish 
 the right to control the entire southern part of the 
 river, allowing no free navigation. She was secretly 
 hoping to cause a revolt of the Western provinces, 
 especially Kentucky, and openly favored such a 
 move. She also claimed, by conquest, much of the 
 land on the east side of the river. The slow move- 
 ments of Congress; the failure of Virginia to 
 properly protect Kentucky, and the inherent rest- 
 lessness in some of the Western men, well-nigh 
 precipitated matters, and, for a while, serious results 
 were imminent. The Kentuckians, and, indeed, 
 all the people of the West, were determined the 
 river should be free, and even went so far as to 
 raise a regiment, and forcibly seize Spanish prop- 
 erty in the West. Great Britain stood ready, too, 
 to aid the West should it succeed, providing it 
 would make an alliance with her. But while the 
 excitement was at its height, Washington coun- 
 seled better ways and patience. The decisive tone 
 of the new republic, though almost overwhelmed 
 with a burden of debt, and with no credit, debarred 
 the Spanish from too forcible measures to assert 
 their claims, and held back the disloyal ones from 
 attempting a revolt. 
 
 New Y^ork, Massachusetts and Connecticut ceded 
 their lands, and now the United States were ready 
 to fulfill their promises of land grants, to the sol- 
 diers who had preserved the nation. This did 
 much to heal the breach in the West, and restore 
 confidence there ; so that the Mississippi question 
 was overlooked for a time, and Kentucky forgot her 
 animosities. 
 
 The cession of their claims was the signal for 
 the formation of land companies in the East ; com- 
 panies whose object was to settle the Western coun- 
 try, and, at the same time, enrich the founders of 
 the companies. Some of these companies had been 
 formed in the old colonial days, but the recent war 
 
 had put a stop to all their proceedings. Congress 
 would not recognize their claims, and new com- 
 panies, under old names, were the result. By such 
 means, the Ohio Company emerged from the past, 
 and, in 1786, took an active existence. 
 
 Benjamin Tupper, a Revolutionary soldier, and 
 since then a government surveyor, who had been 
 west as far as Pittsburgh, revived the question. 
 He was prevented from prosecuting his surveys by 
 hostile Indians, and returned to Massachusetts. 
 He broached a plan to Gen. Bufus Putnam, as to 
 the renewal of their memorial of 1788, which re- 
 sulted in the publication of a plan, and inviting all 
 those interested, to meet in February in their re- 
 spective counties, and choose delegates to a con- 
 vention to be held at the " Bunch-of-grapes Tav- 
 ern." in Boston, on the first of March, 1786. On 
 the day appointed, eleven persons appeared, and 
 by the 3d of March an outline was drawn up, and 
 subscriptions under it began at once. The leading 
 features of the plan were : " A fund of $1 ,000,000, 
 mainly in Continental certificates, was to be raised 
 for the purpose of purchasing lands in the Western 
 country; there were to be 1,000 shares of $1,000 
 each, and upon each share $10 in specie were to 
 be paid for contingent expenses. One year's inter- 
 est was to be appropriated to the charges of making 
 a settlement, and assisting those unable to move 
 without aid. The owners of every twenty shares 
 were to choose an agent to represent them and 
 attend to their interests, and the agents were to 
 choose the directors. The plan was approved, and 
 in a year's time from that date, the Company was 
 organized."* 
 
 By the time this Company was organized, all 
 claims of the colonies in the coveted territory were 
 done away with by their deeds of cession, Connect- 
 icut being the last. 
 
 While troubles were still existing south of the 
 Ohio River, regarding the navigation of the Mis- 
 sissippi, and many urged the formation of a sepa- 
 rate, independent State, and while Congress and 
 Washington were doing what they could to allay 
 the feeling north of the Ohio, the New England 
 associates were busily engaged, now that a Com- 
 pany was formed, to obtain the land they wished 
 to purchase. On the 8th of March, 1787, a meet- 
 ing of the agents chose Gen. Parsons, Gen. Put- 
 nam and the Rev. Mannasseh Cutler, Directors for 
 the Company. The last selection was quite a 
 fitting one for such an enterprise. Dr. Cutler was 
 
 * Historical CoUectionB. 
 
 '^ 
 
66 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 an accomplished scholar, an excellent •gentleman, 
 and a firm believer in freedom. In the choice of 
 him as the agent of the Company, lies the fact, 
 though unforeseen, of the beginning of anti-slavery 
 in America. Through him the famous " compact 
 of 1787," the true corner-stone of the Northwest, 
 originated, and by him was safely passed. He 
 was a good "wire-puller," too, and in this had an 
 advantage. Mr. Hutchins was at this time the 
 geographer for the United States, and was, prob- 
 ably, the best-posted man in America regarding 
 the West. Dr. Cutler learned from him that the 
 mo.st desirable portions were on the Muskingum 
 River, north of the Ohio, and was advised by him 
 to buy there if he couH. 
 
 Congress wanted money badly, and many of the 
 members favored the plan. The Southern mem- 
 bers, generally, were hostile to it, as the Doctor 
 would listen to no grant which did not embody 
 the New England ideas in the charter. These 
 members were finally won over, some bribery be- 
 ing used, and some of their favorites made officers 
 of the Territory, whose formation was now going 
 on. This took time, however, and Dr. Cutler, be- 
 coming impatient, declared they would purchase 
 from some of the States, who held small tracts in 
 various parts of the West. This intimation brought 
 the tardy ones to time, and, on the 23d of July, 
 Congress authorized the Treasury Board to make 
 the contract. On the 26th, Messrs. Cutler and 
 Sargent, on behalf of the Company, stated in 
 writing their conditions; and on the 27th, Con- 
 gress referred their letter to the Board, and an 
 order of the same date was obtained. Of this Dr. 
 Cutler's journal says: 
 
 " By this grant we obtained near five millions 
 of acres of land, amounting to $3,500,000 ; 1 ,500,- 
 000 acres for the Ohio Company, and the remainder 
 for a private speculation, in which many of the 
 principal characters of America are concerned. 
 Without connecting this peculation, similar terms 
 and advantages for the Ohio Company could not 
 have been obtained." 
 
 Messrs. Cutler and Sargent at once closed a ver- 
 bal contract with the Treasury Board, which was 
 executed in form on the 27th of the next Octo- 
 ber.* 
 
 By this contract, the vast region bounded on the 
 south by the Ohio, west by the Scioto, east by the 
 seventh range of townships then surveying, and 
 north by a due west line, drawn from the north 
 
 * Land Laws. 
 
 boundary of the tenth township from the Ohio, 
 direct to the Scioto, was sold to the Ohio associ- 
 ates and their secret copartners, for $1 per acre, 
 subject to a deduction of one-third for bad lands 
 and other contingencies. 
 
 The whole tract was not, however, paid for nor 
 taken by the Company — even their own portion of 
 a million and a half acres, and extending west to the 
 eighteenth range of townships, was not taken ; and 
 in 1792, the boundaries of the purchase proper 
 were fixed as follows: the Ohio on the south, the 
 seventh range of townships on the east, the six- 
 teenth range on the west, and a line on the north 
 so drawn as to make the grant 750,000 acres, be- 
 sides reservations ; this grant being the portion 
 which it was originally agreed the Company might 
 enter into at once. In addition to this, 214,285 
 acres were granted as army bounties, under the 
 resolutions of 1779 and 1780, and 100,000 acres 
 as bounties to actual settlers; both of the latter 
 tracts being within the original grant of 1787, and 
 adjoining the purchase as before mentioned. 
 
 While these things were progressing. Congress 
 was bringing into form an ordinance for the gov- 
 ernment and social organization of the North- 
 west Territory. Virginia made her cession in 
 March, 1784, and during the month following the 
 plan for the temporary government of the newly 
 acquired territory came under discussion. On the 
 19th of April, Mr. Spaight, of North Carolina, 
 moved to strike from the plan reported by Mr. 
 Jefferson, the emancipationist of his day, a provis- 
 ion for the prohibition of slavery north of the Ohio 
 after the year 1800. The motion prevailed. From 
 that day till the 23d, the plan was discussed and 
 altered, and finally passed unanimously with the ex- 
 ception of South Carolina. The South would have 
 slavery, or defeat every measure. Thus this hide- 
 ous monster early began to assert himself. By the 
 proposed plan, the Territory was to have been 
 divided into States by parallels of latitude and merid- 
 ian lines. This division, it was thought, would make 
 ten States, whose names were as follows, beginning 
 at the northwest corner, and going southwardly : 
 Sylvania, Michigania, Cheresonisus, Assenispia, 
 Metropotamia, Illinoia, Saratoga, Washington, 
 Polypotamia and Pelisipia.* 
 
 A more serious difficulty existed, however, to 
 this plan, than its catalogue of names — the number 
 of States and their boundaries. The root of the evil 
 was in the resolution passed by Congress in October, 
 
 * Spark's Washington. 
 
:ii 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 67 
 
 1 780, which fixed the size of the States to be formed 
 from the ceded lands, at one hundred to one hundred 
 and fifty miles square. The terms of that resolu- 
 tion being called up both by Virginia and Massa- 
 chusetts, further legislation was deemed necessary 
 to change them. July 7, 1786, this subject came 
 up in Congress, and a resolution passed in favor of 
 a division into not less than three nor more than 
 five States. Virginia, at the close of 1788, assented 
 to this proposition, which became the basis upon 
 which the division should be made. On the 29th 
 of September, Congress having thus changed the 
 plan for dividing the Northwestern Territory into 
 ten States, proceeded again to consider the terms of 
 an ordinance for the government of that region. At 
 this juncture, the genius of Dr. Cutler displayed 
 itself A graduate in medicine, law and divinity ; 
 an ardent lover of liberty ; a celebrated scientist, 
 and an accomplished, portly gentleman, of whom 
 the Southern senators said they had never before 
 seen so fine a specimen from the New England colo- 
 nies, no man was better prepared to form a govern- 
 ment for the new Territory, than he. The Ohio 
 Company was his real object. He was backed by 
 them, and enough Continental money to purchase 
 more than a million acres of land. This was aug- 
 mented by other parties until, as has been noticed, 
 he represented over five million acres. This would 
 largely reduce the public debt. Jefi'erson and Vir- 
 ginia were regarded as authority concerning the 
 land Virginia had just ceded to the Greneral Gov- 
 ernment. Jefferson's policy was to provide for the 
 national credit, and still check the growth of slavery. 
 Here was a good opportunity. Massachusetts 
 owned the Territory of Maine, which she was crowd- 
 ing into market. She opposed the opening of 
 the Northwest. This stirred Virginia. The South 
 caught the inspiration and rallied around the Old 
 Dominion and Dr. Cutler. Thereby he gained the 
 credit and good will of the South, an auxiliary he 
 used to good purpose. Massachusetts could not 
 vote against him, because many of the constituents 
 of her members were interested in the Ohio Com- 
 pany. Thus the Doctor, using all the arts of the 
 lobbyist, was enabled to hold the situation. True to 
 deeper convictions, he dictated one of the most com- 
 pact and finished documents of wise statesmanship 
 that has ever adorned any statute-book. Jefferson 
 gave it the term, "Articles of Compact," and 
 rendered him valuable aid in its construction. This 
 " Compact" preceded the Federal Constitution, in 
 both of which are seen Jefferson's master-mind. 
 Dr. Cutler followed closely the constitution of Mas- 
 
 sachusetts, adopted three years before. The prom- 
 inent features were : The exclusion of slavery from 
 the Territory forever. Provision for public schools, 
 giving one township for a seminary, and eveiy six- 
 teenth section. (That gave one thirty-sixth of all 
 the land for public education.) A provision pro- 
 hibiting the adoption of any constitution or the 
 enactment of any law that would nullify pre-exist- 
 ing contracts. 
 
 The compact further declared that " Religion, 
 morality and knowledge being necessary to good 
 government and the happiness of mankind, schools 
 and the means of education shall always be en- 
 couraged." 
 
 The Doctor planted himself firmly on this plat- 
 form, and would not yield. It was that or nothing. 
 Unless they could make the land desirable , it was 
 not wanted, and, taking his horse and buggy, he 
 started for the Constitutional Convention in Phil- 
 adelphia. His influence succeeded. On the 13th 
 of July, 1787, the bill was put upon its passage 
 and was unanimously adopted. Every member 
 from the South voted for it ; only one man, Mr. 
 Yates, of New York, voted against the measure ; 
 but as the vote was made by States, his vote was 
 lost, and the " Compact of 1787 " was beyond re- 
 peal. Thus the great States of the Northwest 
 Territory were consecrated to freedom, intelligence 
 and morality. This act was the opening step for 
 freedom in America. Soon the South saw their 
 blunder, and endeavored, by all their power, to re- 
 peal the compact. In 1803, Congress referred it 
 to a committee, of which John Randolph was 
 chairman. He reported the ordinance was a com- 
 pact and could not be repealed. Thus it stood, 
 like a rock, in the way of slavery, which still, in 
 spite of these provisions, endeavored to plant that 
 infernal institution in the West. Witness the 
 early days of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. But the 
 compact could not be violated ; New England ideas 
 could not be put down, and her sons stood ready 
 to defend the soil of the West from that curse. 
 
 The passage of the ordinance and the grant of 
 land to Dr. Cutler and his associates, were soon fol- 
 lowed by a request from John Cleve Symmes, of 
 New Jersey, for the country between the Miamis. 
 Symmes had visited that part of the West in 178G, 
 and, being pleased with the valleys of the Miamis, 
 had applied to the Board of the Treasury for 
 their purchase, as soon as they were open to set- 
 tlement. The Board was empowered to act by 
 Congress, and, in 1788, a contract was signed, giv- 
 ing him the country he desired. The terms of his 
 
 j<, 
 
 :\: 
 
J^l 
 
 G8 
 
 HISTOEY OF OHIO. 
 
 purchase were similar to those of the Ohio Com- 
 pany. His appHcation was followed by others, 
 whose success or failure will appear in the narrative. 
 
 The New England or Ohio Company was all 
 this time busily engaged perfecting its arrange- 
 ments to occupy its lands. The Directors agreed 
 to reserve 5,760 acres near the confluence of the 
 Ohio and Muskingum for a city and commons, for 
 the old ideas of the English plan of settling a 
 country yet prevailed. A meeting of the Direct- 
 ors was held at Bracket's tavern, in Boston, No- 
 vember 23, 1787, when four surveyors, and twen- 
 ty-two attendants, boat-builders, carpenters, black- 
 smiths and common workmen, numbering in all 
 forty persons, were engaged. Their tools were 
 purchased, and wagons were obtained to transport 
 them across the mountains. Gen. Rufus Putnam 
 was made superintendent of the company, and 
 Ebenezer Sproat, of Rhode Island, Anselm Tup- 
 per and John Matthews, from Massachusetts, and 
 R. J. Meigs, from Connecticut, as surveyors. At 
 the same meeting, a suitable person to instruct them 
 in religion, and prepare the way to open a school 
 when needed, was selected. This was Rev. Daniel 
 Storey, who became the first New England minis- 
 ter in the Northwest. 
 
 The Indians were watching this outgrowth of 
 affairs, and felt, from what they could learn in Ken- 
 tucky, that they would be gradually surrounded by 
 the whites. This they did not relish, by any 
 means, and gave the settlements south of the Ohio 
 no little uneasiness. It was thought best to hold 
 another treaty with them. In the mean time, to 
 insure peace, the Grovernor of Virginia, and Con- 
 gress, placed troops at Venango, Forts Pitt and 
 Mcintosh, and at Miami, Vincennes, Louisville, 
 and Muskingum, and the militia of Kentucky 
 were held in readiness should a sudden outbreak 
 occur. These measures produced no results, save 
 insuring the safety of the whites, and not until 
 January, 1789, was Clarke able to carry out his 
 plans. During that month, he held a meeting at Fort 
 Harmar,* at the mouth of the Muskingum, where 
 the New England Colony expected to locate. 
 
 The hostile character of the Indians did not 
 deter the Ohio Company from carrying out its 
 plans. In the winter of 1787, Gen. Rufus Put- 
 
 *FortIIarmar was built in 1785, by a detachment of TJni tod States 
 soldiers, under command of Maj. John Doughty. It was named in 
 honor of Col. Josiah Harmar, to whose regiment Maj. Doughty was 
 attached. It was the first military post erected by the Americans 
 wit'iin the limits of Ohio, except Fort Laurens, a temporary struct- 
 ure liuilt in 1778. When Marietta was founded it was the military 
 post of that part of the country, and was for many years au impor- 
 tant station. 
 
 nam and forty-seven pioneers advanced to the 
 mouth of the Youghiogheny River, and began 
 building a boat for transportation down the Ohio 
 in the spring. The boat was the largest craft that 
 had ever descended the river, and, in allusion to 
 their Pilgrim Fathers, it was called the Mayflower. 
 It was 45 feet long and 12 feet wide, and esti- 
 mated at 50 tons burden. Truly a formidable affair 
 for the time. The bows were raking and curved 
 like a galley, and were strongly timbered. The 
 sides were made bullet-proof, and it was covered 
 with a deck roof. Capt. Devol, the first ship- 
 builder in the West, was placed in command. On 
 the 2d of April, the Mayflower was launched, 
 and for five days the little band of pioneers sailed 
 down the Monongahela and the Ohio, and, on the 
 7th, landed at the mouth of the Muskingum. 
 There, opposite Fort Harmar, they chose a loca- 
 tion, moored their boat for a temporary shelter, 
 and began to erect houses for their occupation. 
 
 Thus was begun the first English settlement in 
 the Ohio Valley. About the 1st of July, they 
 were re-enforced by the arrival of a colony from 
 Massachusetts. It had been nine weeks on the 
 way. It had hauled its wagons and driven its 
 stock to Wheeling, where, constructing flat-boats, 
 it had floated down the river to the settlement. 
 
 In October preceding this occurrence, Arthur 
 St. Clair had been appointed Governor of the Ter- 
 ritory by Congress, which body also appointed 
 Winthrop Sargent, Secretary, and Samuel H. 
 Parsons, James M. Varnum and John Armstrong 
 Judges. Subsequently Mr. Armstrong declined 
 the appointment, and 3Ir. Symmes was given the 
 vacancy. None of these were on the ground 
 when the first settlement was made, though the 
 Judges came soon after. One of the first things the 
 colony found necessary to do was to organize 
 some form of government, whereby difficulties 
 might be settled, though to the credit of the colony 
 it may be said, that during the first three months 
 of its existence but one diff'erence arose, and that 
 was settled by a compromise.* Indeed, hardly a 
 better set of men for the purpose could have been 
 selected. Washington wrote concerning this 
 colony : 
 
 " No colony in America was ever settled under 
 such favorable auspices as that which has com- 
 menced at the Muskingum. Information, prop- 
 erty and strength will be its characteristics. I 
 know many of the settlers personally, and there 
 
 ♦"Western Monthly Magazine." 
 
■^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 69 
 
 never were men better calculated to promote the 
 welfare of such a community." 
 
 On the 2d of July, a meeting of the Directors 
 and agents was held on the banks of the Mus- 
 kingum for the purpose of naming the newborn 
 city and its squares. As yet, the settlement had 
 been merely "The Muskingum;" but the name 
 Marietta was now formally given it, in honor of 
 Marie Antoinette. The square upon which the 
 blockhouses stood was called Campus Martius; 
 Square No. 19, Capitolium ; Square No. 61, Ce- 
 cilia., and the great road running through the 
 covert- way. Sacra Via.* Surely, classical scholars 
 were not scarce in the colony. 
 
 On the Fourth, an oration was delivered by 
 James M. Varnum, one of the Judges, and a 
 public demonstration held. Five days after, the 
 Governor arrived, and the colony began to assume 
 form. The ordinance of 1787 provided two dis- 
 tinct grades of government, under the first of 
 which the whole power was under the Governor 
 and the three Judges. This form was at once 
 recognized on the arrival of St. Clair. The first 
 law established by this court was passed on the 
 25th of July. It established and regulated the 
 militia of the Territory. The next day after its 
 publication, appeared the Governor's proclamation 
 erecting all the country that had been ceded by 
 the Indians east of the Scioto River, into the 
 county of Washington. Marietta was, of course, 
 the county seat, and, from that day, went on 
 prosperously. On September 2, the first court 
 was held with becoming ceremonies. It is thus 
 related in the American Pioneer: 
 
 "The procession was formed at the Point 
 (where the most of the settlers resided), in the 
 following order: The High Sheriff", with his 
 drawn sword; the citizens; the officers of the 
 garrison at Fort Harmar; the members of the 
 bar ; the Supreme Judges ; the Governor and 
 clergyman ; the newly appointed Judges of the 
 Court of Common Pleas, Gens. Rufus Putnam 
 and Benjamin Tupper. 
 
 "They marched up the path that had been 
 cleared through the forest to Campus Martius 
 Hall (stockade), where the whole countermarched, 
 and the Judges (Putnam and Tupper) took their 
 seats. The clergyman, Rev. Dr. Cutler, then 
 invoked the divine blessing. The Sheriff, Col. 
 Ebenezer Sproat, proclaimed with his solemn ' Oh 
 yes ! ' that a court is open for the administration of 
 
 * " Carey's Museum," Vol. 4 
 
 even-handed justice, to the poor and to the rich, 
 to the guilty and to the innocent, without respect 
 of persons; none to be punished without a trial of 
 their peers, and then in pursuance of the laws and 
 evidence in the case. 
 
 " Although this scene was exhibited thus early 
 in the settlement of the West, few ever equaled it 
 in the dignity and exalted character of its princi- 
 pal participators. Many of them belonged to the 
 history of our country in the darkest, as well as 
 the most splendid, period of the Revolutionary 
 war." 
 
 Many Indians were gathered at the same time 
 to witness the (to them) strange spectacle, and for 
 the purpose of forming a treaty, though how 
 far they carried this out, the Pioneer does not 
 relate. 
 
 The progress of the settlement was quite satis- 
 factory during the year. Some one writing a 
 letter from the town says: 
 
 "The progress of the settlement is sufficiently 
 rapid for the first year. We are continually erect- 
 ing houses, but arrivals are constantly coming 
 faster than we can possibly provide convenient 
 covering. Our first ball was opened about the 
 middle of December, at which were fifteen ladies, 
 as well accomplished in the manner of polite 
 circles as any I have ever seen in the older States. 
 I mention this to show the progress of society in 
 this new world, where, I believe, we shall vie with, 
 if not excel, the old States in every accom- 
 plishment necessary to render life agreeable and 
 happy." 
 
 The emigration westward at this time was, 
 indeed, exceedingly large. The commander at 
 Fort Harmar reported 4,500 persons as having 
 passed that post between February and June, 
 1788, many of whom would have stopped there, 
 had the associates been prepared to receive them. 
 The settlement was fi-ee from Indian depredations 
 until January, 1791, during which interval it 
 daily increased in numbers and strength. 
 
 Symmes and his friends were not idle during this 
 time. He had secured his contract in October, 
 1787, and, soon after, issued a pamphlet stating 
 the terms of his purchase and the mode he intended 
 to follow in the disposal of the lands. His plan 
 was, to issue warrants for not less than one-quarter 
 section, which might be located anywhere, save on 
 reservations, or on land previously entered. The 
 locator could enter an entire section should he de- 
 sire to do so. The price was to be 60f cents per 
 acre till May, 1788 ; then, till November, SI ; and 
 
70 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 after that time to be regulated by the demand for 
 hind. Each purchaser was bound to begin im- 
 provements within two years, or forfeit one-sixth 
 of the land to whoever would settle thereon and 
 remain seven years. Military bounties might be 
 taken in this, as in the purchase of the associates. 
 For himself, Symmes reserved one township near 
 the mouth of the Miami. On this he intended to 
 build a great city, rivaling any Eastern port. He 
 offered any one a lot on which to build a house, 
 providing he would remain three years. Conti- 
 nental certificates were rising, owing to the demand 
 for land created by these two purchases, and Con- 
 gress found the burden of debt correspondingly 
 lessened. Symmes soon began to experience diffi- 
 culty in procuring enough to meet his payments. 
 He had also some trouble in arranging his boundary 
 with the Board of the Treasury. These, and other 
 causes, laid the foundation for another city, which is 
 now what Symmes hoped his city would one day be. 
 
 In January, 1788, Mathias Denman, of New 
 Jersey, took an interest in Symmes' purchase, 
 and located, among other tracts, the sections upon 
 which Cincinnati has since been built. Retaining 
 one-third of this purchase, he sold the balance to 
 Robert Patterson and John Filson, each getting 
 the same share. These three, about August, agreed 
 to lay out a town on their land. It was designated 
 as opposite the mouth of the Licking River, to 
 which place it was intended to open a road from 
 Lexington, Ky. These men little thought of the 
 great emporium that now covers the modest site of 
 this town they laid out that summer. Mr. Filson, 
 who had been a schoolmaster, and was of a some- 
 what poetic nature, was appointed to name the 
 town. In respect to its situation, and as if with 
 a prophetic perception of the mixed races that 
 were in after years to dwell there, he named it Los- 
 antiville,* " which, being interpreted," says the 
 " Western Annals," " means ville^ the town ; aiiti^ 
 opposite to ; os, the mouth ; 7/, of Licking. This 
 may well put to the blush the Campus Martins 
 of the Marietta scholars, and the Fort Solon of 
 the Spaniards." 
 
 Meanwhile, Symmes was busy in the East, and, 
 by July, got thirty people and eight four-horse 
 wagons under way for the West. These reached 
 Limestone by September, where they met Mr. 
 Stites, with several persons from Redstone. All 
 
 ♦Judge Burnett, in his notes, disputes the above account of the 
 origin of the city of Cincinnati. Ho says the name " Loaantiville " 
 was determined on, but not adopted, when the town was laid out. 
 This version is probably the correct one, and will be found fully 
 given in the detailed history of the settlements. 
 
 came to Symmes' purchase, and began to look for 
 homes. 
 
 Symmes' mind was, however, ill at rest. He 
 could not meet his fii-st payment on so vast a realm, 
 and there also arose a difference of opinion be- 
 tween him and the Treasury Board regarding the 
 Ohio boundary. Symmes wanted all the land be- 
 tween the two Miamis, bordering on the Ohio, 
 while the Board wished him confined to no more 
 than twenty miles of the river. To this proposal 
 he would not agree, as he had made sales all along 
 the river. Leaving the bargain in an unsettled 
 state, Congress considered itself released from all 
 its obligations, and, but fur the representations of 
 many of Symmes' friends, he would have lost all 
 his money and labor. His appointment as Judge 
 was not favorably received by many, as they 
 thought that by it he would accjuire unlimited 
 power. Some of his associates also complained of 
 him, and, for awhile, it surely seemed that ruin 
 only awaited him. But he was brave and hope- 
 ful, and determined to succeed. On his return 
 from a visit to his purchase in September, 1788, 
 he wrote Jonathan Dayton, of New Jersey, one of 
 his best friends and associates, that he thought 
 some of the land near the Great Miami "positively 
 worth a silver dollar the acre in its present state." 
 
 A good many changes were made in his original 
 contract, growing out of his inability to meet his 
 payments. At first, he was to have not less than 
 a million acres, under an act of Congress passed in 
 October, 1787, authorizing the Treasury Board to 
 conti-act with any one who could pay for such 
 tracts, on the Ohio and Wabash Rivers, whose 
 fronts should not exceed one-third of their depth. 
 
 Dayton and JMarsh, Symmes' agents, contracted 
 with the Board for one tract on the Ohio, begin- 
 ning twenty miles up the Ohio from the mouth of 
 the Great Miami, and to run back for quantitj^ be- 
 tween the Miami and a line drawn from the Ohio, 
 parallel to the general course of that river. In 
 1791, three years after Dayton and IMarsh made 
 the contract, Symmes found this would throw the 
 purchase too far back from the Ohio, and apj^lied 
 to Congress to let him have all between the ]Mi- 
 amies, running back so as to include 1,000,000 
 acres, which that body, on April 12, 1792, agreed 
 to do. When the lands were surveyed, however, it 
 was found that a line drawn from the head of the 
 Little Miami due west to the Great Miami, would 
 include south of it less than six hundred thousand 
 acres. Even this Symmes could not pay for, and 
 when his patent was issued in September, 179-1, it 
 
HISTORY OP OHIO. 
 
 71 
 
 gave him and his associates 248,540 acres, exclu- 
 sive of reservations which amounted to 63,142 
 acres. This tract was bounded by the Ohio, the 
 two Miamis and a due east and west Une run so 
 as to inckide the desired quantity. Symmes, how- 
 ever, made no further payments, and the rest of 
 his purchase reverted to the United States, who 
 gave those who had bought under him ample pre- 
 emption rights. 
 
 The Government was able, also, to give him and 
 his colonists but little aid, and as danger from hos- 
 tile Indians was in a measure imminent (though all 
 the natives were friendly to Symmes), settlers were 
 slow to come. However, the band led by Mr. 
 Stites arrived before the 1st of January, 1789, 
 and locating themselves near the mouth of the 
 Little Miami, on a tract of 10,000 acres which 
 Mr. Stites had purchased from Symmes, formed 
 the second settlement in Ohio. They were soon 
 afterward joined by a colony of twenty-six persons, 
 who assisted them to erect a block-house, and 
 gather their corn. The town was named Columbia. 
 While here, the great flood of January, 1789, oc- 
 curred, which did much to ensure the future 
 growth of Losantiville, or more properly, Cincin- 
 nati. Symmes City, which was laid out near the 
 mouth of the Great Miami, and which he vainly 
 strove to make the city of the future, Marietta 
 and Columbia, all suffered severely by this flood, 
 the greatest, the Indians said, ever known. The 
 site of Cincinnati was not overflowed, and hence 
 attracted the attention of the settlers. Denman's 
 warrants had designated his purchase as opposite 
 the mouth of the Licking; and that point escap- 
 ing the overflow, late in December the place was 
 visited by Israel Ludlow, Symmes' surveyor, Mr. 
 Patterson and Mr. Denman, and about fourteen oth- 
 ers, who left JMaysville to "form a station and lay 
 ofi" a town opposite the Licking." The river was 
 filled with ice "from shore to shore;" but, says 
 Symmes in May, 1789, "Perseverance triumphing 
 over difficulty, and they landed safe on a most de- 
 lightful bank of the Ohio, where they founded 
 the town of Losantiville, which populates consid- 
 erably." The settlers of Losantiville built a few 
 log huts and block-houses, and proceeded to im- 
 prove the town. Symmes, noticing the location, 
 says: "Though they placed their dwellings in the 
 most marked position, yet they suffered nothing 
 from the freshet." This would seem to give cre- 
 dence to Judge Burnett's notes regarding the origin 
 of Cincinnati, who states the settlement was made 
 at this time, and not at the time mentioned when 
 
 jMr. Filson named the town. It is further to be 
 noticed, that, before the town was located by Mr. 
 Ludlow and Mr. Patterson, Mr. Filson had been 
 killed by the Miami Indians, and, as he had not paid 
 for his one-third of the site, the claim was sold to 
 Mr. Ludlow, who thereby became one of the origi- 
 nal owners of the place. Just what day the town 
 was laid out is not recorded. All the evidence 
 tends to show it must have been late in 1788, or 
 early in 1789. 
 
 While the settlements on the north side of the 
 Ohio were thus progressing, south of it fears of the 
 Indians prevailed, and the separation sore was 
 kept open. The country was, however, so torn by 
 internal factions that no plan was likely to suc- 
 ceed, and to this fact, in a large measure, may be 
 credited the reason it did not secede, or join the 
 Spanish or French faction, both of which were 
 intriguing to get the commonwealth. During 
 this year the treasonable acts of James Wilkinson 
 came into view. For a while he thought success 
 was in his grasp, but the two governments were at 
 peace with America, and discountenanced any such 
 efforts. Wilkinson, like all traitors, relapsed into 
 nonentity, and became mistrusted by the govern- 
 ments he attempted to befriend. Treason is al- 
 ways odious. 
 
 It will be borne in mind, that in 1778 prepa- 
 rations had been made for a treaty with the Indi- 
 ans, to secure peaceful possession of the lands 
 owned in the West. Though the whites held 
 these by purchase and treaty, yet many Indians, 
 especially the Wabash and some of the Miami In- 
 dians, objected to their occupation, claiming the 
 Ohio boundary as the original division line. Clarke 
 endeavored to obtain, by treaty at Fort Harmar, 
 in 1778, a confirmation of these grants, but was 
 not able to do so till January, 9, 1789. Rep- 
 resentatives of the Six Nations, and of the Wyan- 
 dots, Delawares, Ottawas, Chippewas, Pottawato- 
 mies and Sacs, met him at this date, and confirmed 
 and extended the treaties of Fort Stanwix and 
 Fort Mcintosh, the one in 1784, the other in 
 1785. This secured peace with the most of them, 
 save a few of the Wabash Indians, whom they 
 were compelled to conquer by arms. When this 
 was accomplished, the borders were thought safe, 
 and Virginia proposed to withdraw her aid in sup- 
 port of Kentucky. This opened old troubles, and 
 the separation dogma came out afresh. Virginia 
 offered to allow the erection of a separate State, 
 providing Kentucky would assume part of the old 
 debts. This the young commonwealth would not 
 
 :V 
 
73 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 do, and sent a remonstrance. Virginia withdrew 
 the proposal, and ordered a ninth convention, 
 which succeeded in evolving a plan whereby Ken- 
 tucky took her place among the free States of the 
 Union. 
 
 North of the Ohio, the prosperity continued. 
 In 1789, Rev. Daniel Story, who had been ap- 
 pointed missionary to the West, came out as a 
 teacher of the youth and a preacher of the Gospel. 
 Dr. Cutler had preceded him, not in the capacity 
 of a minister, though he had preached ; hence Mr. 
 Story is truly the first missionary from the Prot- 
 estant Church who came to the Ohio Valley in 
 that capacity. When he came, in 1789, he found 
 nine associations on the Ohio Company's purchase, 
 comprising two hundred and fifty persons in all ; 
 and, by the close of 1790, eight settlements had 
 been made: two at Belpre (belle prairie), one at 
 Newbury, one at Wolf Creek, one at Duck Creek, 
 one at the mouth of Meigs' Creek, one at Ander- 
 son's Bottom, and one at Big Bottom. An ex- 
 tended sketch of all these settlements will be found 
 farther on in this volume. 
 
 Symmes had, all this time, strenuously endeav- 
 ored to get his city — called Cleves City — favorably 
 noticed, and filled with people. Pie saw a rival in 
 Cincinnati. That place, if made military head- 
 quarters to protect the Miami Valley, would out- 
 rival his town, situated near the bend of the 
 Miami, near its mouth. On the 15th of June, 
 Judge Symmes received news that the Wabash 
 Indians threatened the Miami settlements, and as 
 he had received only nineteen men for defense, he 
 applied for more. Before July, Maj. Doughty 
 arrived at the "Slaughter House" — as the Miami 
 was sometimes called, owing to previous murders 
 that had, at former times, occurred therein. 
 Through the influence of Symmes, the detach- 
 ment landed at the North Bend, and, for awhile, 
 it was thought the fort would be erected there. 
 This was what Symmes wanted, as it would 
 secure him the headquarters of the military, and 
 aid in getting the headquarters of the civil gov- 
 ernment. The truth was, however, that neither 
 the proposed city on the Miami — North Bend, as 
 it afterward became known, from its location — or 
 South Bend, could compete, in point of natural 
 advantages, with the plain on which Cincinnati is 
 built. Had Fort Washington been built elsewhere, 
 after the close of the Indian war, nature would 
 have asserted her advantages, and insured the 
 growth of a city, where even the ancient and mys- 
 terious dwellers of the Ohio had reared the earthen 
 
 walls of one of their vast temples. Another fact 
 is given in relation to the erection of Fort Wash- 
 ington at Losantiville, which partakes somewhat of 
 romance. The Major, while waiting to decide at 
 which place the fort should be built, happened to 
 make the acquaintance of a black-eyed beauty, the 
 wife of one of the residents. Her husband, notic- 
 ing the affair, removed her to Losantiville. The 
 Major followed; he told Symmes he wished to see 
 how a fort would do there, but promised to give his 
 city the preference. He found the beauty there, and 
 on his return Symmes could not prevail on him to 
 remain. If the story be true, then the importance 
 of Cincinnati owes its existence to a trivial circum- 
 stance, and the old story of the ten years' war 
 which terminated in the downfall of Troy, which 
 is said to have originated owing to the beauty of 
 a Spartan dame, was re-enacted here. Troy and 
 North Bend fell because of the beauty of a wo- 
 man ; Cincinnati was the result of the downfall of 
 the latter place. 
 
 About the first of January, 1790, Governor St. 
 Clair, with his officers, descended the Ohio River 
 from Marietta to Fort Washington. There he es- 
 tablished the county of Hamilton, comprising the 
 immense region of country contiguous to the 
 Ohio, from the Hocking River to the Great 
 Miami; appointed a corps of civil and military 
 officers, and established a Court of Quarter Ses- 
 sions. Some state that at this time, he changed 
 the name of the village of Losantiville to Cin- 
 cinnati, in allusion to a society of that name 
 which had recently been formed among the officers 
 of the Revolutionary army, and established it as 
 the seat of justice for Hamilton. This latter fact 
 is certain; but as regards changing the name of 
 the village, there is no good authority for it. With 
 this importance attached to it, Cincinnati began at 
 once an active growth, and from that day Cleves' 
 city declined. The next summer, frame houses 
 began to appear in Cincinnati, while at the same 
 time forty new log cabins appeared about the 
 fort. 
 
 On the 8th of January, the Governor arrived at 
 the falls of the Ohio, on his way to establish a 
 government at Vincennes and Kaskaskia. From 
 Clarkesville, he dispatched a messenger to Major 
 Hamtramck, commander at Vincennes, with 
 speeches to the various Indian tribes in this part 
 of the Northwest, who had not fully agreed to the 
 treaties. St. Clair and Sargent followed in a few 
 days, along an Indian trail to Vincennes, where he 
 organized the county of Knox, comprisir?^ all the 
 
^i^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 73 
 
 country along the Ohio, from the Miami to the 
 Wabash, and made Vincennes the county seat. 
 Then they proceeded across the lower part of Illi- 
 nois to Ka.skaskia, where he established the county 
 of St. Clair (so named by Sargent), comprising all 
 the country from the Wabash to the Mississippi. 
 Thus the Northwest was divided into three coun- 
 ties, and courts established therein. St. Clair 
 called upon the French inhabitants at Vincennes 
 and in the Illinois country, to show the titles to 
 their lands, and also to defray the expense of a 
 survey. To this latter demand they replied through 
 their priest, Pierre Gibault, showing their poverty, 
 and inability to comply. They were confirmed in 
 their grants, and, as they had been good friends to 
 the patriot cause, were relieved from the expense 
 of the survey. 
 
 While the Governor was managing these affairs. 
 Major Hamtramck was engaged in an effort to con- 
 ciliate the Wabash Indians. For this purpose, he 
 sent Antoine Gamelin, an intelligent French mer- 
 chant, and a true friend of America, among them to 
 carry messages sent by St. Clair and the Govern- 
 ment, and to learn their sentiments and dispositions. 
 Gamelin performed this important mission in the 
 spring of 1790 with much sagacity, and, as the 
 
 French were good friends of the natives, he did 
 much to conciliate these half-hostile tribes. He 
 visited the towns of these tribes along the Wabash 
 and as far north and east as the Miami village, 
 Ke-ki-ong-ga — St. Mary's — at the junction of the 
 St. Mary's and St. Joseph's Rivers (Fort Wayne). 
 
 Gamelin's report, and the intelligence brought by 
 some traders from the Upper Wabash, were con- 
 veyed to the Governor at Kaskaskia. The reports 
 convinced him that the Indians of that part of the 
 Northwest were preparing for a war on the settle- 
 ments north of the Ohio, intending, if possible, to 
 drive them south of it; that river being still consid- 
 ered by them as the true boundary. St. Clair left 
 the administration of affairs in the Western counties 
 to Sargent, and returned at once to Fort Washing- 
 ton to provide for the defense of the frontier. 
 
 The Indians had begun their predatory incur- 
 sions into the country settled by the whites, and 
 had committed some depredations. The Kentuck- 
 ians were enlisted in an attack against the Scioto 
 Indians. April 18, Gen. Harmar, with 100 
 regulars, and Gen. Scott, with 230 volunteers, 
 marched from Limestone, by a circuitous route, to 
 the Scioto, accomplishing but little. The savages 
 had fled. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 THE INDIAN WAR OF 1795— HARMAR'S CAMPAIGN— ST. CLAIR'S CAMPAIGN— WAYNE'S 
 
 CAMPAIGN— CLOSE OF THE WAR. 
 
 A GREAT deal of the hostility at this period 
 was directly traceable to the British. They 
 yet held Detroit and several posts on the lakes, in 
 violation of the treaty of 1783. They alleged as 
 a reason for not abandoning them, that the Ameri- 
 cans had not fulfilled the conditions of the treaty 
 regarding the collection of debts. Moreover, they 
 did nil they could to remain at the frontier and en- 
 joy the emoluments derived from the ftir trade. 
 That they aided the Indians in the conflict at this 
 time, is undeniable. Just how, it is difiicult to 
 say. But it is well known the savages had all the 
 ammunition and fire-arms they wanted, more than 
 they could have obtained from American and 
 French renegade traders. They were also well 
 supplied with clothing, and were able to prolong 
 the war some time. A great confederation was on 
 the eve of formation. The leading spirits were 
 
 Cornplanter, Brant, Little Turtle and other noted 
 chiefs, and had not the British, as Brant said, 
 "encouraged us to the war, and promised us aid, 
 and then, when we were driven away by the Amer- 
 icans, shut the doors of their fortresses against us 
 and refused us food, when they saw us nearly con- 
 quered, we would have effected our object." 
 
 McKee, Elliott and Girty were also actively en- 
 gaged in aiding the natives. All of them were in 
 the interest of the British, a fact clearly proven 
 by the Indians themselves, and by other traders. 
 
 St. Clair and Gen. Harmar determined to send 
 an expedition against the IMaumee towns, and se- 
 cure that part of the country. Letters were sent 
 to the militia ofiicers of Western Pennsylvania, 
 Virginia and Kentucky, calling on them for militia 
 to co-operate with the regular troops in the cam- 
 paign. According to the plan of the campaign. 
 
 :v 
 
jLI 
 
 74 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 300 militia were to rendezvous at Fort Steuben 
 ( Jefferson ville), march thence to Fort Knox, at 
 Vincennes, and join Maj. Hamtramck in an expe- 
 dition up the Wabash ; 700 were to rendezvous at 
 Fort Washington to join the regular army against 
 the Maumee towns. 
 
 While St. Clair was forming his army and ar- 
 ranging for the campaign, three expeditions were 
 sent out against the Miami towns. One against 
 the Miami villages, not far from the Wabash, was 
 led by Gen. Harmar. He had in his army about 
 fourteen hundred men, regulars and militia. These 
 two parts of the army could not be made to affili- 
 ate, and, as a consequence, the expedition did little 
 beyond burning the villages and destroying corn. 
 The militia would not submit to discipline, and would 
 not serve under regular officers. It will be seen 
 what this spirit led to when St. Clair went on his 
 march soon after. 
 
 The Indians, emboldened by the meager success 
 of Harmar's command, continued their depreda- 
 dations against the Ohio settlements, destroying 
 the community at Big Bottom. To hold them in 
 check, and also punish them, an army under Charles 
 Scott went against the Wabash Indians. Little 
 was done here but destroy towns and the standing 
 corn. In July, another army, under Col. Wilkin- 
 son, was sent against the Eel River Indians. Be- 
 coming entangled in extensive morasses on the 
 river, the army became endangered, but was finally 
 extricated, and accomplished no more than either 
 the other armies before it. As it was, however, the 
 three expeditions directed against the Miamis and 
 Shawanees, served only to exasperate them. The 
 burning of their towns, the destruction of their 
 corn, and the captivity of their women and chil- 
 dren, only aroused them to more desperate efforts 
 to defend their country and to harass their in- 
 vaders. To accomplish this, the chiefs of the 
 Miamis, Shawanees and the Delawares, Little 
 Turtle, Blue Jacket and Buckongahelas, were en- 
 gaged in forming a confederacy of all the tribes of 
 the Northwest, strong enough to drive the whites 
 beyond the Ohio. Pontiac had tried that before, 
 even when he had open allies among the French. 
 The Indians now had secret allies among the Brit- 
 ish, yet, in the end, they did not succeed. While 
 they were preparing for the contest, St. Clair was 
 gathering his forces, intending to erect a chain of 
 forts from the Ohio, by way of the Miami and 
 Maumee valleys, to the lakes, and thereby effect- 
 ually hold the savages in check. Washington 
 warmly seconded this plan, and designated the 
 
 junction of the St. Mary's and St. Joseph's Rivers as 
 an important post. This had been a fortification 
 almost from the time the English held the valley, 
 and only needed little work to make it a formid- 
 able fortress. Glen. Knox, the Secretary of War, 
 also favored the plan, and gave instructions con- 
 cerning it. Under these instructions, St. Clair 
 organized his forces as rapidly as he could, although 
 the numerous drawbacks almost, at times, threat- 
 ened the defeat of the campaign. Through the 
 summer the arms and accouterments of the army 
 were put in readiness at Fort Washington. Many 
 were found to be of the poorest quality, and to be 
 badly out of repair. The militia came poorly 
 armed, under the impression they were to be pro- 
 vided with arms. While waiting in camp, habits 
 of idleness engendered themselves, and drunken- 
 ness followed. They continued their accustomed 
 freedom, disdaining to drill, and refused to submit 
 to the regular officers. A bitter spirit broke out 
 between the regular troops and the militia, which 
 none could heal. The insubordination of the mi- 
 litia and their officers, caused them a defeat after- 
 ward, which they in vain attempted to fasten on 
 the busy General, and the regular troops. 
 
 The army was not ready to move till September 
 17. It was then 2,300 strong. It then moved 
 to a point upon the Great Miami, where they 
 erected Fort Hamilton, the first in the proposed 
 chain of fortresses. After its completion, they 
 moved on forty -four miles farther, and, on the 12th 
 of October, began the erection of Fort Jefferson, 
 about six miles south of the present town of Green- 
 ville, Darke County. On the 24th, the army again 
 took up its line of march, through a wilderness, 
 marshy and boggy, and full of savage foes. The 
 army rapidly declined under the hot sun ; even the 
 commander was suffering from an indisposition. 
 The militia deserted, in companies at a time, leav- 
 ing the bulk of the work to the regular troops. 
 By the 3d of November, the army reached a 
 stream twelve yards wide, which St. Clair sup- 
 posed to be a branch of the St. Mary of the Mau- 
 mee, but which in reality was a tributary of the 
 Wabash. Upon the banks of that stream, the 
 army, now about fourteen hundred strong, en- 
 camped in two lines. A slight protection was 
 thrown up as a safeguard against the Indians, who 
 were known to be in the neighborhood. The Gen- 
 eral intended to attack them next day, but, about 
 half an hour before sunrise, just after the militia 
 had been dismissed from parade, a sudden attack 
 was made upon them. The militia were thrown 
 
 ^ a 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTOKY or OHIO. 
 
 75 
 
 into confiision, and disregarded the command of 
 the officers. They had not been sufficiently drilled, 
 and now was seen, too late and too plainly, the evil 
 effects of their insubordination. Through the 
 morning the battle waged furiously, the men falling 
 by scores. About nine o'clock the retreat began, 
 covered by Maj. Cook and his troops. The re- 
 treat was a disgraceful, precipitate flight, though, 
 after four miles had been passed, the enemy re- 
 turned to the work of scalping the dead and 
 wounded, and of pillaging the camp. Through 
 the day and the night their dreadful work con- 
 tinued, one squaw afterward declaring " her arm 
 was weary scalping the white men." The army 
 reached Fort Jefferson a little after sunset, having 
 thrown away much of its arms and baggage, though 
 the act was entirely unnecessary. After remain- 
 ing here a short time, it was decided by the officers 
 to move on toward Fort Hamilton, and thence to 
 Fort Washington. 
 
 The defeat of St. Clair was the most terrible re- 
 verse the Americans ever suffered from the Indi- 
 ans. It was greater than even Braddock's defeat. 
 His army consisted of 1,200 men and 86 officers, 
 of whom 714 men and G3 officers were killed or 
 wounded. St. Clair's army consisted of 1,400 
 men and 86 officers, of whom 890 men and 16 
 officers were killed or wounded. The comparative 
 effects of the two engagements very inadequately 
 represent the crushing effect of St. Clair's defeat. 
 An unprotected frontier of more than a thousand 
 miles in extent was now thrown open to a foe made 
 merciless, and anxious to drive the whites from the 
 north side of the Ohio. Now, settlers were scat- 
 tered along all the streams, and in all the forests, ex- 
 posed to the cruel enemy, who stealthily approached 
 the homes of the pioneer, to murder him and his 
 family. Loud calls arose from the people to defend 
 and protect them. St. Clair was covered with abuse 
 for his defeat, when he really was not alone to blame 
 for it. The militia would not be controlled. Had 
 Clarke been at their head, or Wayne, Avho succeeded 
 St. Clair, the result might have been different. As 
 it was, St. Clair resigned ; though ever after he en- 
 joyed the confidence of Washington and Congress. 
 
 Four days after the defeat of St. Clair, the army, 
 in its straggling condition, reached Fort Washing- 
 ton, and paused to rest. On the 9th, St. Clair 
 wrote fully to the Secretary of War. On the 12th, 
 Gen. Knox communicated the information to Con- 
 gress, and on the 26th, he laid before the Presi- 
 dent two reports, the second containing sugges- 
 tions regarding future operations. His sugges- 
 
 tions urged the establishment of a strong United 
 States iVrmy, as it was plain the States could not 
 control the matter. He also urged a thorough 
 drill of the soldiers. No more insubordination 
 could be tolerated. General Wayne was selected 
 by Washington as the commander, and at once pro- 
 ceeded to the task assigned to him. In June, 1792, 
 he went to Pittsburgh to organize the army now 
 gathering, which was to be the ultimate argu- 
 ment with the Indian confederation. Through the 
 summer he was steadily at work. "Train and dis- 
 cipline them for the work they are meant for," 
 wrote Washington, "and do not spare powder and 
 lead, so the men be made good marksmen." In 
 December, the forces, now recruited and trained, 
 gathered at a point twenty-two miles below Pitts- 
 burgh, on the Ohio, called Legionville, the army 
 itself being denominated the Legion of the United 
 States, divided into four sub-legions, and provided 
 with the proper officers. Meantime, Col. Wilkinson 
 succeeded St. Clair as commander at Fort Wash- 
 ington, and sent out a force to examine the field of 
 defeat, and bury the dead. A shocking sight met 
 their view, revealing the deeds of cruelty enacted 
 upon their comrades by the savage enemj'. 
 
 While Wayne's army was drilling, peace meas- 
 ures were pressed forward by the United States 
 with equal perseverance. The Iroquois were in- 
 duced to visit Philadelphia, and partially secured 
 from the general confederacy. They were wary, 
 however, and, expecting aid from the British, held 
 aloof. Brant did not come, as was hoped, and it 
 was plain there was intrigue somewhere. Five 
 independent embassies were sent among the West- 
 ern tribes, to endeavor to prevent a war, and win 
 over the inimical tribes. But the victories they 
 had won, and the favorable whispers of the British 
 agents, closed the ears of the red men, and all 
 propositions were rejected in some form or other. 
 All the embassadors, save Putnam, suffered death. 
 He alone was able to reach his goal — the Wabash 
 Indians — and effect any treaty. On the 27th of 
 December, in company with Heckewelder, the Mo- 
 ravian missionary, he reached Vincennes, and met 
 thirty-one chiefs, representing the Weas, Pianke- 
 shaws, Kaskaskias, Peorias, Illinois, Pottawatomies, 
 Mascoutins, Kickapoos and Eel River Indians, and 
 concluded a treaty of peace with them. 
 
 The fourth article of this treaty, however, con- 
 tained a provision guaranteeing to the Indians 
 their lands, and when the treaty was laid before 
 Congress, February 13, 1793, that body, after 
 much discussion, refused on that account to ratify it. 
 
 -^ 
 
*i- 
 
 76 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 A great council of the Indians was to be held 
 at Auglaize during the autumn of 1702, when 
 the assembled nations were to discuss fully their 
 means of defense, and determine their future line 
 of action. The council met in October, and was 
 the largest Indian gathering of the time. The 
 chiefs of all the tribes of the Northwest were there. 
 The representatives of the seven nations of Canada, 
 were in attendance. Cornplanter and forty-eight 
 chiefs of the New York (Six Nations) Indians re- 
 paired thither. " Besides these," said Cornplanter, 
 "there were so many nations we cannot tell the 
 names of them. There were three men from the 
 Gora nation ; it took them a whole season to come ; 
 and," continued he, " twenty -seven nations from 
 beyond Canada were there." The question of 
 peace or war was long and earnestly debated. Their 
 future was solemnly discussed, and around the 
 council fire native eloquence and native zeal 
 shone in all their simple strength. One nation 
 after another, through their chiefs, presented their 
 views. The deputies of the Six Nations, who had 
 been at Philadelphia to consult the "Thirteen 
 Fires," made their report. The Western bound- 
 ary was the principal question. The natives, with 
 one accord, declared it must be the Ohio River. 
 An address was prepared, and sent to the President, 
 wherein their views were stated, and agreeing to 
 abstain from all hostilities, until they could meet 
 again in the spring at the rapids of the Maumee, 
 and there consult with their white brothers. They 
 desired the President to send agents, "who are 
 men of honesty, not proud land-jobbers, but men 
 who love and desire peace." The good work of 
 Penn was evidenced here, as they desired that the 
 embassadors "be accompanied by some Friend or 
 Quaker." 
 
 The armistice they had promised was not, how- 
 ever, faithfully kept. On the 6th of November, 
 a detachment of Kentucky cavalry at Fort St. 
 Clair, about twenty-five miles above Fort Hamil- 
 ton, was attacked. The commander, Maj. Adair, 
 was an excellent ofiicer, well versed in Indian tac- 
 tics, and defeated the savages. 
 
 This infraction of their promises did not deter 
 the United States from taking measures to meet 
 the Indians at the rapids of the Maumee " when 
 the leaves were fully out." For that purpose, the 
 President selected as commissioners, Charles Car- 
 roll and Charles Thompson, but, as they declined 
 the nomination, he appointed Benjamin Lincoln, 
 Beverly Randolph and Timothy Pickering, the 1st 
 of March, 1793, to attend the convention, which, 
 
 it was thought best, should be held at the San- 
 dusky outpost. About the last of April, these 
 commissioners left Philadelphia, and, late in May, 
 reached Niagara, where they remained guests of 
 Lieut. Gov. Simcoe, of the British Government. 
 This officer gave them all the aid he could, yet it 
 was soon made plain to them that he would not 
 object to the confederation, nay, even rather fav- 
 ored it. They speak of his kindness to them, in 
 grateful terms. Gov. Simcoe advised the Indians 
 to make peace, but not to give up any of their 
 lands. That was the pith of the whole matter. 
 The British rather claimed land in New York, 
 under the treaty of 1783, alleging the Americans 
 had not fully complied with the terms of that 
 treaty, hence they were not as anxious for peace 
 and a peaceful settlement of the difficult boundary 
 question as they sometimes represented. 
 
 By July, "the leaves were fully out," the con- 
 ferences among the tribes were over, and, on the 
 15th of that month, the commissioners met Brant 
 and some fifty natives. In a strong speech, Brant 
 set forth their wishes, and invited them to accom- 
 pany him to the place of holding the council. The 
 Indians were rather jealous of Wayne's continued 
 preparations for war, hence, just before setting out 
 for the Maumee, the commissioners sent a letter to 
 the Secretary of War, asking that all warlike 
 demonstrations cease until the result of their mis- 
 sion be known. 
 
 On 21st of July, the embassy reached the head 
 of the Detroit River, where their advance was 
 checked by the British authorities at Detroit, com- 
 pelling them to take up their abode at the house 
 of Andrew Elliott, the famous renegade, then a 
 British agent under Alexander McKee. McKee 
 was attending the council, and the commissioners 
 addressed him a note, borne by Elliott, to inform 
 him of their arrival, and asking when they could 
 be received. Elliott returned on the 29th, bring- 
 ing with him a deputation of twenty chiefs from 
 the council. The next day, a conference was held, 
 and the chief of the Wyandots, Sa-wagh-da-wunk, 
 presented to the commissioners, in writing, their 
 explicit demand in regard to the boundary, and 
 their purposes and powers. "The Ohio must be 
 the boundary," said he, " or blood will flow." 
 
 The commissioners returned an answer to the 
 proposition brought by the chiefs, recapitulating 
 the treaties already made, and denying the Ohio 
 as the boundary line. On the 16th of August, 
 the council sent them, by two Wyandot runners, 
 a final answer, in which they recapitulated their 
 
 ^Fl 
 
1£ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 77 
 
 former assertions, and exhibited great powers of 
 reasoning and clear logic in defense of their po- 
 sition. The commissioners reply that it is impos- 
 ble to accept the Ohio as the boundary, and declare 
 the negotiation at an end. 
 
 This closed the efforts of the Government to ne- 
 gotiate with the Indians, and there remained of 
 necessity no other mode of settling the dispute 
 but war. Liberal terms had been offered them, 
 but nothing but the boundary of the Ohio River 
 would suffice. It was the only condition upon 
 which the confederation would lay down its arms. 
 " Among the rude statesmen of the wilderness, 
 there was exhibited as pure patriotism and as lofty 
 devotion to the good of their race, as ever won ap- 
 plause among civilized men. The white man had, 
 ever since he came into the country, been encroach- 
 ing on their lands. He had long occupied the 
 regions beyond the mountains. He had crushed 
 the conspiracy formed by Pontiac, thirty years be- 
 fore. He had taken possession of the common 
 hunting-ground of all the tribes, on the faith of 
 treaties they did not acknowledge. He was 
 now laying out settlements and building forts in 
 the heart of the country to which all the tribes 
 had been driven, and which now was all they could 
 call their own. And now they asked that it should 
 be guaranteed to them, that the boundary which 
 they had so long asked for should be drawn, and 
 a fijQal end be made to the continual aggressions of 
 the whites ; or, if not, they solemnly determined to 
 stake their all, against fearful odds, in defense of 
 their homes, their country and the inheritance of 
 their children. Nothing could be more patriotic 
 than the position they occupied, and nothing could 
 be more noble than the declarations of their 
 council."* 
 
 They did not know the strength of the whites, 
 and based their success on the victories already 
 gained. They hoped, nay, were promised, aid from 
 the British, and even the Spanish had held out to 
 them assurances of help when the hour of conflict 
 came. 
 
 The Americans were not disposed to yield even 
 to the confederacy of the tribes backed by the two 
 rival nations, forming, as Wayne characterized it, a 
 " hydra of British, Spanish and Indian hostility." 
 On the 16th of August, the commissioners re- 
 ceived the final answer of the council. The 17th, 
 they left the mouth of the Detroit River, and the 
 23d, arrived at Fort Erie, where they immediately 
 
 * Annals of the West. 
 
 dispatched messengers to Gen. Wayne to inform 
 him of the issue of the negotiation. Wayne had 
 spent the winter of 1792-93, at Legionville, in col- 
 lecting and organizing his army. April 30, 1793, 
 the army moved down the river and encamped at 
 a point, called by the soldiers " Hobson's choice," 
 because from the extreme height of the river they 
 were prevented from landing elsewhere. Here 
 Wayne was engaged, during the negotiations for 
 peace, in drilling his soldiers, in cutting roads, and 
 collecting suj^plies for the army. He was ready 
 for an immediate campaign in case the council 
 failed in its object. 
 
 While here, he sent a letter to the Secretarj^ of 
 War, detailing the circumstances, and suggesting 
 the probable course he should follow. He re- 
 mained here during the summer, and, when apprised 
 of the issue, saw it was too late to attempt the 
 campaign then. He sent the Kentucky militia 
 home, and, with his regular soldiers, went into 
 winter quarters at a fort he built on a tributary 
 of the Great Miami. He called the fort Green- 
 ville. The present town of Greenville is near the 
 site of the fort. During the winter, he sent a de- 
 tachment to visit the scene of St. Clair's defeat. 
 They found more than six hundred skulls, and 
 were obliged to "scrape the bones together and 
 carry them out to get a place to make their beds." 
 They buried all they could find. Wayne was 
 steadily preparing his forces, so as to have every- 
 thing ready for a sure blow when the time came. 
 All his information showed the faith in the British 
 which still animated the doomed red men, and 
 gave them a hope that could end only in defeat. 
 
 The conduct of the Indians fully corroborated 
 the statements received by Gen. Wayne. On the 
 30th of June, an escort of ninety riflemen and 
 fifty dragoons, under command of Maj. 3IcMahon, 
 was attacked under the walls of Fort Recovery by 
 a force of more than one thousand Indians under 
 charge of Little Turtle. They were repulsed and 
 badly defeated, and, the next day, driven away. 
 Their mode of action, their arms and ammunition, 
 all told plainly of British aid. They also ex- 
 pected to find the cannon lost by St. Clair Novem- 
 ber 4, 1791, but which the Americans had secured. 
 The 26th of July, Gen. Scott, with 1,600 
 mounted men from Kentucky, joined Gen. Wayne 
 at Fort Greenville, and, two days after, the legion 
 moved forward. The 8th of August, the army 
 reached the junction of the Auglaize and Mau- 
 mee, and at once proceeded to erect Fort Defiance, 
 where the waters meet. The Indians had abandoned 
 
 :^ 
 
78 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 their towns on the approach of the army, and 
 were congregating further northward. 
 
 While engaged on Fort Defiance, Wayne 
 received continual and full reports of the Indians — 
 of their aid from Detroit and elsewhere; of the 
 nature of the ground, and the circumstances, 
 favorable or unfavorable. From all he could 
 learn, and considering the spirits of his army, 
 now thoroughly disciplined, lie determined to 
 march forward and settle matters at once. Yet, 
 true to his own instincts, and to the measures of 
 peace so forcibly taught by Washington, he sent 
 Christopher Miller, who had been naturalized 
 among the Shawanees, and taken prisoner by 
 Wayne's spies, as a messenger of peace, offering 
 terms of friendship. 
 
 Unwilling to waste time, the troops began to 
 move forward the 15th of August, and the next 
 day met Miller with the message that if the Amer- 
 icans would wait ten days at Auglaize the Indians 
 would decide for peace or war. Wayne knew too 
 well the Indian character, and answered the mes- 
 sage by simply marching on. The 18th, the legion 
 had advanced forty-one miles from Auglaize, and, 
 being near the long-looked-for foe, began to take 
 some measures for protection, should they be at- 
 tacked. A slight breastwork, called Fort Deposit, 
 was erected, wherein most of their heavy baggage 
 was placed. They remained here, building their 
 works, until the 20th, when, storing their baggage, 
 the army began again its march. After advancing 
 about five miles, they met a large force of the ene- 
 my, two thousand strong, who fiercely attacked 
 them. Wayne was, however, prepared, and in the 
 short battle that ensued they were routed, and 
 large numbers slain. The American loss was very 
 slight. The horde of savages were put to flight, 
 leaving the Americans victorious almost under 
 the walls of the British garrison, under Maj. 
 Campbell. This ofiicer sent a letter to Gen. 
 Wayne, asking an explanation of his conduct in 
 fighting so near, and in such evident hostility to 
 the British. Wayne replied, telling him he was 
 in a country that did not belong to him, and one 
 he was not authorized to hold, and also charKintr 
 him with aiding the Indians. A spirited corre- 
 spondence followed, which ended in the American 
 commander marching on, and devastating the In- 
 dian country, even burning IMcKee's house and 
 stores under the muzzles of the English guns. 
 
 The 14lh of September, the army marched from 
 Fort Defiance for the IVliami village at the junc- 
 tion of the St. Mary's and St. Joseph Rivers. It 
 
 reached there on the 17th, and the next day Gen. 
 Wayne selected a site for a fort. The 22d of Oc- 
 tober, the fort was completed, and garrisoned by a 
 detachment under Maj. Hamtramck, who gave to it 
 the name of Fort Wayne. The l-lth of October, 
 the mounted Kentucky volunteers, who had be- 
 come dissatisfied and mutinous, were started to 
 Fort Washington, where they were immediately 
 mustered out of service and discharged. The 28th 
 of October, the legion marched from Fort Wayne 
 to Fort Greenville, where Gen. Wayne at once 
 established his headquarters. 
 
 The campaign had been decisive and short, and 
 had taught the Indians a severe lesson. The Brit- 
 ish, too, had failed them in their hour of need, and 
 now they began to see they had a foe to contend 
 whose resources were exhaustless. Under these 
 circumstances, losing faith in the English, and at 
 last impressed with a respect for American power, 
 after the defeat experienced at the hands of the 
 "Black Snake," the various tribes made up their 
 minds, by degrees, to ask for peace. During the 
 winter and spring, they exchanged prisoners, and 
 made ready to meet Gen. Wayne at Greenville, in 
 June, for the purpose of forming a definite treaty, 
 as it had been agreed should be done by the pre- 
 liminaries of January 24. 
 
 During the month of June, 1795, representa- 
 tives of the Northwestern tribes began to gather at 
 Greenville, and, the 16th of the month. Gen. Wayne 
 met in council the Delawares, Ottawas, Pottawato- 
 mies and Eel River Indians, and the conferences, 
 which lasted till August 10, began. The 21st 
 of June, Buckongahelas arrived ; the 23d, Little 
 Turtle and other Miamis ; the 13th of July, 
 Tarhe and other Wyandot chiefs ; and the 18th, 
 Blue Jacket, and thirteen Shawanees and Massas 
 with twenty Chippewas. 
 
 Most of these, as it appeared by their statements, 
 had been tampered with by the English, especially 
 by McKee, Girty and Brant, even after the pre- 
 liminaries of January 24, and while IMr. Jay was 
 perfecting his treaty. They had, however, all de- 
 termined to make peace with the "Thirteen Fires," 
 and although some difficulty as to the ownership of 
 the lands to be ceded, at one time seemed likely to 
 arise, the good sense of Wayne and the leading 
 chiefs prevented it, and, the 30th of July, the treaty 
 was agreed to which should bury the hatchet for- 
 ever. Between that day and the 3d of August, 
 it was engro.ssed, and, having been signed by the 
 various nations upon the day last named, it was 
 finally acted upon the 7th, and the presents from 
 
:^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 79 
 
 the United States distributed. The basis of this 
 treaty was the previous one made at Fort Harmar. 
 The boundaries made at that time were re-affirmed ; 
 the whites were secured on the lands now occu- 
 pied by them or secured by former treaties ; and 
 among all the assembled nations, presents, in value 
 not less than one thousand pounds, were distributed 
 to each through its representatives, many thousands 
 in all. The Indians were allowed to remove and 
 
 punish intruders on their lands, and were permitted 
 to hunt on the ceded lands. 
 
 " This great and abiding peace document wa.s 
 signed by the various tribes, and dated August 3, 
 1795. It was laid before the Senate December 9, 
 and ratified the 22d. So closed the old Indian 
 wars in the West." * 
 
 * Aanals of the West." 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 JAY'S TREATY— THE QUESTION OF STATE RIGHTS AND NATIONAL SUPREMACY— EXTENSION 
 OF OHIO SETTLEMENTS— LAND CLAIMS— SPANISH BOUNDARY QUESTION. 
 
 WHILE these six years of Indian wars were 
 in progress, Kentucky was admitted as a 
 State, and Pinckney's treaty with Spain was com- 
 pleted. This last occurrence was of vital impor- 
 tance to the West, as it secured the free navigation 
 of the Mississippi, charging only a fair price for 
 the storage of goods at Spanish ports. This, 
 though not all that the Americans wished, was a 
 great gain in their favor, and did much to stop 
 those agitations regarding a separation on the part 
 of Kentucky. It also quieted affairs further 
 south than Kentucky, in the Georgia and South 
 Carolina Territory, and put an end to French 
 and Spanish intrigue for the Western Territory. 
 The treaty was signed November 24, 1794. 
 Another treaty was concluded by Mr. John Jay 
 between the two governments, Lord Greenville 
 representing the English, and Mr. Jay, the Ameri- 
 cans. The negotiations lasted from April to 
 November 19, 1795, when, on that day, the treaty 
 was signed and duly recognized. It decided 
 effectually all the questions at issue, and was the 
 signal for the removal of the British troops from 
 the Northwestern outposts. This was effected as 
 soon as the proper transfers could be made. The 
 second article of the treaty provided that, "His 
 Majesty will withdraw all his troops and garrisons 
 from all posts and places within the boundary 
 lines assigned by the treaty of peace to the United 
 States. This evacuation shall take place on or 
 before the 1st day of June, 1796, and all the 
 proper measures shall be taken, in the interval, by 
 concert, between the Government of the United 
 States and His Majesty's Governor General in 
 America, for settling the previous arrangements 
 
 which may be necessary respecting the delivery 
 of the said posts; the United States, in the mean 
 time, at their discretion, extending their settle- 
 ments to any part within the said boundary line, 
 except within the precincts or jurisdiction of any 
 of the said posts. 
 
 " All settlers and all traders within the precincts 
 or jurisdiction of the said posts shall continue to 
 enjoy, unmolested, all their property of every 
 kind, and shall be protected therein. They shall 
 be at full liberty to remain there or to remove 
 with all, or any part, of their effects, or retain the 
 property thereof at their discretion ; such of them 
 as shall continue to reside within the said boundary 
 lines, shall not be compelled to become citizens of 
 the United States, or take any oath of allegiance 
 to the Government thereof; but they shall be at 
 full liberty so to do, if they think proper; they 
 shall make or declare their election one year after 
 the evacuation aforesaid. And all persons who 
 shall continue therein after the expiration of the 
 said year, without having declared their intention 
 of remaining subjects to His Britannic Majesty, 
 shall be considered as having elected to become 
 citizens of the United States." 
 
 The Indian war had settled all fears from that 
 source ; the treaty with Great Britain had estab- 
 lished the boundaries between the two countries 
 and secured peace, and the treaty with Spain had 
 secured the privilege of navigating the IMississippi, 
 by paying only a nominal sum. It had also bound 
 the people of the West together, and ended the 
 old separation question. There was no danger 
 from that now. Another difficulty arose, however, 
 relating to the home rule, and the organization of 
 
 :v 
 
80 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 the home government. There were two parties in 
 the country, known as Federalist and Anti-Federal- 
 ist. One favored a central government, whose au- 
 thority should be supreme ; the other, only a 
 compact, leaving the States supreme. The worth- 
 lessness of the old colonial system became, daily, 
 mure apparent. While it existed no one felt safe. 
 There was no prospect of paying the debt, and, 
 hence, no credit. When Mr. Hamilton, Secretary 
 of the Treasury, offered his financial plan to the 
 country, favoring centralization, it met, in many 
 places, violent opposition. Washington was strong 
 enough to carry it out, and gave evidence that he 
 would do so. When, therefore, the excise law 
 passed, and taxes on whisky were collected, an 
 open revolt occurred in Pennsylvania, known as 
 the "Whisky Insurrection." It was put down, 
 finally, by military power, and the malcontents 
 made to know that the United States was a gov- 
 ernment, not a compact liable to rupture at any 
 time, and by any of its members. It taught the 
 entire nation a lesson. Centralization meant pres- 
 ervation. Should a " compact " form of government 
 prevail, then anarchy and ruin, and ultimate sub- 
 jection to some foreign power, met their view. 
 That they had just fought to dispel, and must it 
 all go for naught ? The people saw the rulers 
 were right, and gradually, over the West, spread a 
 spirit antagonistic to State supremacy. It did not 
 revive till Jackson's time, when he, with an iron 
 hand and iron will, crushed out the evil doctrine 
 of State supremacy. It revived again in the late 
 war, again to be crushed. It is to be hoped that 
 ever thus will be its fiite. " The Union is insepa- 
 rable," said the Grovernment, and the people echoed 
 the words. 
 
 During the war, and while all these events had 
 been transpiring, settlements had been taking place 
 upon the Ohio, which, in tlieir influence ujjon the 
 Northwest, and especially upon the State, as soon 
 as it was created, were deeply felt. The Virginia 
 and the Connecticut Reserves were at this time 
 peopled, and, also, that part of the Miami Valley 
 about Dayton, which city dates its origin from that 
 period. 
 
 As early as 1787, the reserved lands of the Old 
 Dominion north of the Ohio were examined, and, 
 in August of that year, entries were made. As 
 no good title could be obtained from Congress at 
 this time, the settlement practically ceased until 
 1790, when the prohibition to enter them was 
 withdrawn. As soon as that was done, surveying 
 began again. Nathaniel Massie was amons; the 
 
 foremost men in the survey of this tract, and lo- 
 cating the lands, laid off a town about twelve miles 
 above Maysville. The place was called Manchester, 
 and yet exists. From this point, Massie continued 
 through. all the Indian war, despite the danger, to 
 survey the surrounding country, and prepare it for 
 settlers. 
 
 Connecticut had, as has been stated, ceded her 
 lands, save a tract extending one hundred and 
 twenty miles beyond the western boundary of 
 Pennsylvania. Of this Connecticut Reserve, so 
 far as the Indian title was extinguished, a survey 
 was ordered in October, 1786, and an office opened 
 for its disposal. Part was soon sold, and, in 1792, 
 half a million of acres were given to those citizens 
 of Connecticut who had lost property by the acts 
 of the British troops during the Revolutionary 
 war at New London, New Haven and elsewhere. 
 These lands thereby became known as " Fire lands " 
 and the "Sufferer's lands," and were located in the 
 western part of the Reserve. In May, 1795, the 
 Connecticut Legislature authorized a committee to 
 dispose of the remainder of the Reserve. Before 
 autumn the committee sold it to a company known 
 as the Connecticut Land Company for $1,200,000, 
 and about the 5th of September quit-claimed the 
 land to the Company. The same day the Company 
 received it, it sold 3,000,000 acres to John Mor- 
 gan, John Caldwell and Jonathan Brace, in trust. 
 Upon these quit-claim titles of the land all deeds 
 in the Reserve are based. Surveys were com- 
 menced in 1796, and, by the close of the next 
 year, all the land east of the Cuyahoga was divided 
 into townships five miles square. The agent of the 
 Connecticut Land Company was Gen. Moses Cleve- 
 land, and in his honor the leading city of the Re- 
 serve was named. That township and five others 
 were reserved for private sale; the balance were 
 disposed of by lottery, the first drawing occurring 
 in February, 1798. 
 
 Dayton resulted from the treaty made by Wayne. 
 It came out of the boundaiy ascribed to Symmes, 
 and for a while all such lands were not recognized 
 as sold by Congress, owing to the failure of 
 Symmes and his associates in paying for them. 
 Thereby there existed, for a time, considerable un- 
 easiness regarding the title to these lands. In 
 1799, Congress was induced to issue patents to the 
 actual settlers, and thus secure them in their pre- 
 emption. 
 
 Seventeen days after Wayne's treaty, St. Clairs 
 Wilkinson, Jonathan Dayton and Israel Ludlow 
 contracted with Symmes for the seventh and eighth 
 
liL 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 83 
 
 ranges, between Mad River and the Little Miami. 
 Three settlements were to be made: one at the 
 mouth of Mad lliver, one on the Little Miami, in 
 the seventh range, and another on Mad River. On 
 the 21st of September, 1795, Daniel C. Cooper 
 started to survey and mark out a road in the pur- 
 chase, and John Dunlap to run its boundaries, 
 which was completed before October 4. On No- 
 vember 4, Mr. Ludlow laid oiF the town of Day- 
 ton, which, like land in the Connecticut Reserve, 
 was sold by lottery. 
 
 A gigantic scheme to purchase eighteen or 
 twenty million acres in Michigan, and then pro- 
 cure a good title from the Government — who alone 
 had such a right to procure land — by giving mem- 
 bers of CongTcss an interest in the investment, 
 appeared shortly after Wayne's treaty. When 
 some of the members were approached, however, 
 the real spirit of the scheme appeared, and, instead 
 of gaining ground, led to the exposure, resulting 
 iu the reprimanding severely of Robert Randall, 
 the principal mover in the whole plan, and in its 
 speedy disappearance. 
 
 Another enterprise, equally gigantic, also ap- 
 peared. It was, however, legitimate, and hence 
 successful. On the 20th of February, 1795, the 
 North American Land Company was formed in 
 Philadelphia, under the management of such pat- 
 riots as Robert Morris, John Nicholson and James 
 Greenleaf. This Company purchased large tracts 
 in the West, which it disposed of to actual settlers, 
 and thereby aided greatly in populating that part 
 of the country. 
 
 Before the close of 1795, the Governor of the 
 Territory, and his Judges, published sixty-four 
 statutes. Thirty-four of these were adopted at 
 Cincinnati during June, July and August of that 
 year. They were known as the Maxwell code, 
 from the name of the publisher, but were passed 
 by Governor St. Clair and Judges Symmes and 
 Turner. Among them was that which provided 
 that the common law of England, and all its stat- 
 utes, made previous to the fourth year of James 
 the First, should be in full force within the Terri- 
 tory. " Of the system as a whole," says Mr. Case, 
 " with its many imperfections, it may be doubted 
 that any colony, at so early a period after its first 
 establishment, ever had one so good and applicable 
 to all." 
 
 The Union had now safely passed through its 
 most critical period after the close of the war of 
 independence. The danger from an irruption of 
 its own members ; of a war or alliance of its West- 
 
 ern portion with France and Spain, and many 
 other perplexing questions, were now effectually 
 settled, and the population of the Territory began 
 rapidly to increase. Before the close of the year 
 17 96, the Northwest contained over five thousand 
 inhabitants, the requisite number to entitle it to 
 one representative iu the national Congress. 
 
 Western Pennsylvania also, despite the various 
 conflicting claims regarding the land titles in that 
 part of the State, began rapidly to fill with emigrants. 
 The "Triangle" and the " Struck District " were 
 surveyed and put upon the market under the act 
 of 1792. Treaties and purchases from the various 
 Indian tribes, obtained control of the remainder of 
 the lands in that part of the State, and, by 1796, 
 the State owned all the land within its boundaries. 
 Towns were laid off, land put upon the market, so 
 that by the year 1800, the western part of the 
 Keystone State was divided into eight counties, viz.. 
 Beaver, Butler, Mercer, Crawford, Erie, Warren, 
 Venango and Armstrong. 
 
 The ordinance relative to the survey and dis- 
 posal of lands in the Northwest Territory has 
 already been given. It was adhered to, save in 
 minor cases, where necessity required a slight 
 change. The reservations were recognized by 
 Congi'ess, and the titles to them all confirmed to 
 the grantees. Thus, Clarke and his men, the 
 Connecticut Reserve, the Refugee lands, the 
 French inhabitants, and all others holding patents 
 to land from colonial or foreign governments, were 
 all confirmed in their rights and protected in their 
 titles. 
 
 Before the close of 1796, the upper North- 
 western posts were all vacated by the British, 
 under the terms of Mr. Jay's treaty. Wayne at 
 once transferred his headquarters to Detroit, where 
 a county was named for him, including the north- 
 western part of Ohio, the northeast of Indiana, 
 and the whole of Michigan. 
 
 The occupation of the Territory by the Ameri- 
 cans gave additional impulse to emigration, and a 
 better feeling of security to emigrants, who fol- 
 lowed closely upon the path of the army. Na- 
 thaniel Masf-ie, who has already been noticed as 
 the founder of Manchester, laid out the town of 
 Chillicothe, on the Scioto, in 1796. Before the 
 close of the year, it contained several stores, 
 shops, a tavern, and was well populated. With 
 the increase of settlement and the security guar- 
 anteed by the treaty of Greenville, the arts of 
 civilized life began to appear, and their influence 
 upon pioneers, especially those born on the frontier, 
 
 tv 
 
^1 
 
 -rf 5) 
 
 84 
 
 HISTOEY or OHIO. 
 
 began to manifest itself. Better dwellings, schools, 
 churches, dress and manners prevailed. Life 
 began to assume a reality, and lost much of 
 that recklessness engendered by the habits of a 
 frontier life. 
 
 Cleveland, Cincinnati, the Miami, the Mus- 
 kingum and the Scioto Valleys were filling with 
 people. Cincinnati had more than one hundred 
 log cabins, twelve or fifteen frame houses and a 
 population of more than six hundred persons. In 
 1796, the first house of worship for the Presby- 
 terians in that city was built. 
 
 Before the close of the same year, ManchcvSter 
 contained over thirty families ; emigrants from 
 Virginia were going up all the valleys from the 
 Ohio; and Ebenezer Zane had opened a bridle- 
 path from the Ohio River, at Wheeling, across the 
 country, by Chillicothe, to Limestone, Ky. The 
 next year, the United States mail, for the first 
 time, traversed this route to the West. Zane was 
 given a section of land for his path. The popu- 
 lation of the Territory, estimated at from five to 
 eight thousand, was chiefly distributed in lower 
 valleys, bordering on the Ohio River. The French 
 still occupied the Illinois country, and were the 
 principal inhabitants about Detroit. 
 
 South of the Ohio River, Kentucky was pro- 
 gressing favorably, while the '' Southwestern Ter- 
 ritory," ceded to the United States by North 
 Carolina in 1790, had so rapidly populated that, 
 in 1793, a Territorial form of government was 
 allowed. The ordinance of 1787, save the clause 
 prohibiting slavery, was adopted, and the Territory 
 named Tennessee. On June 6, 179(3, the Terri- 
 tory contained more than seventy-five thousand 
 inhabitants, and was admitted into the Union as a 
 State. Four years after, the census showed a 
 population of 105,002 souls, including 13,584 
 slaves and persons of color. The same year 
 Tennessee became a State, Samuel Jackson and 
 Jonathan Sharpless erected the Redstone Paper 
 Mill, four miles east of Brownsville, it being the 
 first manufactory of the kind west of the Alle- 
 ghanies. 
 
 In the month of December, 1796, Gen. Wayne, 
 who had done so much for the development of the 
 West, while on his way from Detroit to Philadel- 
 phia, was attacked with sickness and died in a 
 cabin near Erie, in the north part of Pennsylvania, 
 lie was nearly fifty-one years old, and was one of 
 
 the bravest officers in the Revolutionary war, and 
 one of America's truest patriots. In 1809, his 
 remains were removed Irom Erie, by his sou, Col. 
 Isaac Wayne, to the Radnor churchyard, near the 
 place of his birth, and an elegant monument erected 
 on his tomb by the Pennsylvania Cincinnati So- 
 ciety. 
 
 After the death of Wayne, Gen. Wilkinson was 
 appointed to the command of the Western anny. 
 While he was in command, Carondelet, the Spanish 
 governcjr of West Florida and Louisiana, made one 
 more effort to separate the Union, and set up either 
 an independent government in the West, or, Avliat 
 was more in accord with his wishes, effect a 
 union with the Spanish nation. In June, 1797, 
 he sent Power again into the Northwest and into 
 Kentucky to sound the existing feeling. Now, 
 however, they were not easily won over. The 
 home government was a certainty, the breaches had 
 been healed, and Power was compelled to abandon 
 the mission , not, however, until he had received a 
 severe reprimand from many who saw through his 
 plan, and openly exposed it. His mission closed 
 the eff'orts of the Spanish authorities to attempt 
 the dismemljerment of the Union, and showed 
 them the coming downfall of their power in Amer- 
 ica. They wei'e obliged to surrender the posts 
 claimed by the United States under the treaty of 
 1795, and not many years after, sold their Amer- 
 ican possessions to the United States, rather than 
 see a rival European power attain control over them. 
 
 On the 7th of April, 1798, Congress passed an 
 act, appointing Winthrop Sargent, Secretary of the 
 Northwest Territory, Governor of the Territory of 
 tlie INIississippi, formed the same day. In 1801, 
 the boundary between America and the Spanish pos- 
 sessions was definitely fixed. The Spanish retired 
 from the disputed territory, and henceforward their 
 attempts to dissolve the American Union ceased. 
 The seat of the Mississippi Territory was fixed at 
 Loftus Heights, six miles north of the thirty-first 
 degree of latitude. 
 
 The appointment of Sargent to the charge of the 
 Southwest Territory, led to the choice of William 
 Henry Harrison, who had been aid-de-camp to 
 Gen. Wayne in 1794, and whose cliaracter stood 
 very high among the people of the West, to the 
 Secretaryship of the Northwest, which place he held 
 until appointed to represent that Territory in Con- 
 gress. 
 
_< f) 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 85 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 FIRST TERRITORIAL REPRESENTATIVES IN CONGRESS— DIVISION OF THE TERRITORY— FORMA- 
 TION OF STATES— MARIETTA SETTLEMENT— OTHER SETTLEMENTS— SETTLEMENTS IN 
 THE WESTERN RESERVE — SETTLEMENT OF THE CENTRAL VALLEYS- 
 FURTHER SETTLEMENTS IN THE RESERVE AND ELSEWHERE. 
 
 THE ordinance of 1787 provided that as soon 
 as there were 5,000 persons in the Territory, 
 it was entitled to a representative assembly. On 
 October 29, 1798, Governor St. Clair gave notice 
 by proclamation, that the required population ex- 
 isted, and directed that an election be held on the 
 third Monday in December, to choose representa- 
 tives. These representatives were required, when 
 assembled, to nominate ten persons, whose names 
 were sent to the President of the United States, 
 who selected five, and with the advice and consent 
 of the Senate, appointed them for the legislative 
 council. In this mode the Northwest passed into 
 the second grade of a Territorial government. 
 
 The representatives, elected under the proclama- 
 tion of St. Clair, met in Cincinnati, January 22, 
 1799, and under the provisions of the ordinance 
 of 1787, nominated ten persons, whose names were 
 sent to the President. On the 2d of March, he 
 selected from the list of candidates, the names of 
 Jacob Burnet, James Findlay, Henry Vander- 
 burgh, Robert Oliver and David Vance. The 
 next day the Senate confirmed their nomination, 
 and the first legislative council of the Northwest 
 Territory was a reality. 
 
 The Territorial Legislature met again at Cincin- 
 nati, September 16, but, for want of a quorum, 
 was not organized until the 24th of that month. 
 The House of Representatives consisted of nine- 
 teen members, of whom seven were from Hamilton 
 County, four from Ross — erected by St. Clair in 
 1798; three from Wayne — erected in 1796; two 
 from Adams — erected in 1797; one from Jeifer- 
 son — erected in 1797 ; one from Washington — 
 erected in 1788 ; and one from Knox — Indiana 
 Territory. None seem to have been present from 
 St. Clair County (Illinois Territory). 
 
 After the organization of the Legislature, Gov- 
 ernor St. Clair addressed the two houses in the Rep- 
 resentatives' Chamber, recommending such meas- 
 ures as, in his judgment, were suited to the con- 
 dition of the country and would advance the safety 
 and prosperity of the people. 
 
 The Legislature continued in session till the 19th 
 of December, when, having finished their business, 
 they were prorogued by the Governor, by their 
 own request, till the first Monday in November, 
 1800. This being the first session, there was, of 
 necessity, a gTeat deal of business to do. The 
 transition from a colonial to a semi-independent 
 form of government, called for a general revision 
 as well as a considerable enlargement of the stat- 
 ute-book. Some of the adopted laws were re- 
 pealed, many others altered and amended, and a 
 long list of new ones added to the code. New 
 offices were to be created and filled, the duties at- 
 tached to thcai prescribed, and a plan of ways and 
 means devised to meet the increased expenditures, 
 occasioned by the change which had now occurred. 
 
 As Mr. Burnet was the principal lawyer in the 
 Council, much of the revision, and putting the laws 
 into proper legal form, devolved upon him. He 
 seems to have been well fitted for the place, and 
 to have performed the laborious task in an excel- 
 lent manner. 
 
 The whole number of acts passed and approved 
 by the Governor, was thirty-seven. The most im- 
 portant related to the militia, the administration of 
 justice, and to taxation. During the session, a bill 
 authorizing a lottery was passed by the council, 
 but rejected by the LegisUiture, thus interdicting 
 this demoralizing feature of the disposal of lands 
 or for other purposes. The example has always been 
 followed by subsequent legislatures, thus honorably 
 characterizing the Assembly of Ohio, in this re- 
 spect, an example Kentucky and several other 
 States might well emulate. 
 
 Before the Assembly adjourned, they issued a 
 congratulatory address to the people, enjoining 
 them to " Inculcate the principles of humanity, 
 benevolence, honesty and ])unctuality in dealing, 
 sincerity and charity, and all the social afiections." 
 At the same time, they issued an address to the 
 President, expressing entire confidence in the wis- 
 dom and purity of his government, and their 
 warm attachment to the American Constitution. 
 
 :^ 
 
86 
 
 HISTOEY OF OHIO. 
 
 The vote on this address proved, however, that the 
 differences of opinion agitating the Eastern States 
 had penetrated the West. Eleven Representatives 
 voted for it, and five against it. 
 
 One of the important duties that devolved on 
 this Legislature, was the election of a delegate to 
 Congress. As soon as the Governor's proclama- 
 tion made its appearance, the election of a person 
 to fill that position excited general attention. Be- 
 fore the meeting of the Legislature public opinion 
 had settled down on William Henry Harrison, and 
 Arthur St. Clair, Jr., who eventually were the only 
 candidates. On the 3d of October, the two houses 
 met and proceeded to a choice. Eleven votes were 
 cast for Harrison, and ten for St. Clair. The Leg- 
 islature prescribed the form of a certificate of the 
 election, which was given to Harrison, who at once 
 resigned his office as Secretary of the Territory, 
 proceeded to Philadelphia, and took his seat. Con- 
 gress being then in session. 
 
 " Though he represented the Territory but one 
 year, " says Judge Burnett, in his notes, " he ob- 
 tained some important advantages for his constitu- 
 ents. He introduced a resolution to sub-divide 
 the surveys of the public lands, and to offer them 
 for sale in smaller tracts ; he succeeded in getting 
 that measure through both houses, in opposition to 
 the intei-est of speculators, who were, and who 
 wished to be, the retailers of the land to the poorer 
 classes of the community. His proposition be- 
 came a law, and was hailed as the most beneficent 
 act that Congress had ever done for the Territory. 
 It put in the power of every industrious man, how- 
 ever poor, to become a freeholder, and to lay a 
 foundation for the future support and comfort of 
 his family. At the same session, he obtained a 
 liberal extension of time for the pre-emptioners in 
 the northern part of the Miami purchase, which 
 enabled them to secure their farms, and eventually 
 to become independent, and even wealthy." 
 
 The first session, as has been noticed, closed 
 December 19. Gov. St. Clair took occasion to 
 enumerate in his speech at the close of the session, 
 eleven acts, to which he saw fit to apply his veto. 
 These he had not, however, returned to the Assem- 
 bly, and thereby saved a long struggle between the 
 executive and legislative branches of the Territory. 
 Of the eleven acts enumerated, six related to the 
 formation of new counties. These were mainly 
 disproved by St Clair, as he always sturdily main- 
 tained that the power to erect new counties was 
 vested alone in the Executive. This free exercise 
 of the veto power, especially in relation to new 
 
 counties, and his controversy with the Legislature, 
 tended only to strengthen the popular discontent 
 regarding the Governor, who was never fully able 
 to regain the standing he held before his in- 
 glorious defeat in his campaign against the Indians. 
 
 While this was being agitated, another question 
 came into prominence. Ultimately, it settled the 
 powers of the two branches of the government, 
 and caused the removal of St. Clair, then very 
 distasteful to the people. The opening of the 
 present century brought it fully before the 
 people, who began to agitate it in all their 
 assemblies. 
 
 The great extent of the Territory made the 
 operations of government extremely uncertain, 
 and the power of the courts practically worthless. 
 Its division was, therefore, deemed best, and a 
 committee was appointed by Congress to inquire 
 into the matter. This committee, the 3d of 
 March, 1800, reported upon the subject that, "In 
 the three western counties, there has been but 
 one court having cognizance of crimes in five 
 years. The immunity which offenders experience, 
 attracts, as to an asylum, the most vile and aban- 
 doned criminals, and, at the same time, deters 
 useful and virtuous citizens from making settle- 
 ments in such society. The extreme necessity of 
 judiciary attention and assistance is experienced 
 in civil as well as criminal cases. The supplying 
 to vacant places such necessary officers as may be 
 wanted, such as clerks, recorders and others of 
 like kind, is, from the impossibility of correct 
 notice and information, utterly neglected. This 
 Territory is exposed as a frontier to foreign nations, 
 whose agents can find sufficient interest in exciting 
 or fomenting insurrection and discontent, as 
 thereby they can more easily divert a valuable 
 trade in furs from the United States, and also have 
 a part thereof on which they border, which feels 
 so little the cherishing hand of their proper gov- 
 ernment, or so little dreads its energy, as to render 
 their attachment perfectly uncertain and am- 
 biguous. 
 
 " The committee would further suggest, that 
 the law of the 3d of March, 1791, granting land 
 to certain persons in the western part of said Ter- 
 ritory, and directing the laying-out of the same, 
 remains unexecuted; that great discontent, in 
 consequence of such neglect, is excited in those 
 who are interested in the provisions of said laws, 
 which require the immediate attention of this 
 Legislature. To minister a remedy to these evils, 
 it occurs to this committee, that it is expedient 
 
 :7: 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 8T 
 
 that a division of said Territory into two distinct 
 and separate governments should be made ; and 
 that such division be made by a Una beginning at 
 the mouth of the great Miami River, running 
 directly north until it intersects the boundary 
 between the United States and Canada." * 
 
 The recommendations of the committee were 
 favorably received by Congress, and, the 7th 
 of jMay, an act was passed dividing the Ter- 
 ritory. The main provisions of the act are as 
 follows : 
 
 " That, from and after the 4th of July next, 
 all that part of the territory of the United States 
 northwest of the Ohio River, which lies to the 
 westward of a line beginning at the Ohio, opposite 
 to the mouth of the Kentucky River, and running 
 thence to Fort Recovery, and thence north until 
 it intersects the territorial line between the United 
 States and Canada, shall, for the purpose of tem- 
 porary government, constitute a separate Territory, 
 and be called the Indiana Territory. 
 
 "There shall be established within the said Ter- 
 ritory a government, in all respects similar to that 
 provided by the ordinance of Congress passed July 
 13, 1797." t 
 
 The act further provided for representatives, and 
 for the establishment of an assembly, on the same 
 plan as that in force in the Northwest, stipulating 
 that until the number of inhabitants reached five 
 thousand, the whole number of representatives to 
 the Greneral Assembly should not be less than seven, 
 nor more than nine ; apportioned by the Governor 
 among the several counties in the new Terri- 
 tory. 
 
 The act further provided that " nothing in the 
 act should be so construed, so as in any manner 
 to affect the government now in force in the terri- 
 tory of the United States northwest of the Ohio 
 River, further than to prohibit the exercise thereof 
 within the Indiana Territory, from and after the 
 aforesaid 4th of July next. 
 
 " Whenever that part of the territory of the 
 United States, which lies to the eastward of a line 
 beginning at the mouth of the Great Miami River, 
 and running thence due north to the territorial 
 line between the United States and Canada, shall 
 be erected into an independent State, and admitted 
 into the Union on an equal footing with the orig- 
 inal States ; thenceforth said line shall become and 
 remain permanently, the boundary line between 
 such State and the Indiana Territory." 
 
 *AniPri'-an State Papers. 
 fLand Laws. 
 
 It was further enacted, " that, until it shall be 
 otherwise enacted by the legislatures of the said 
 tei'ritories, respectively, Chillicothe, on the Scioto 
 River, shall be the seat of government of the ter- 
 ritory of the United States northwest of the Ohio 
 River; and that St. Vincent's, on the Wabash 
 River, shall be the seat of government for the 
 Indiana Territory." * 
 
 St. Clair was continued as Governor of the old 
 Territory, and William Henry Harrison appointed 
 Governor of the new. 
 
 Connecticut, in ceding her territory in the West 
 to the Genei'al Government, reserved a portion, 
 known as the Connecticut Reserve. When she 
 afterward disposed of her claim in the manner 
 narrated, the citizens found themselves without any 
 government on which to lean for support. At that 
 time, settlements had begun in thirty-five of the 
 townships into which the Reserve had been divided ; 
 one thousand persons had established homes there ; 
 mills had been built, and over seven hundred miles 
 of roads opened. In 1800, the settlers petitioned 
 for acceptance into the Union, as a part of the 
 Northwest ; and, the mother State releasing her judi- 
 ciary claims. Congress accepted the ti-ust, and 
 granted the request. In December, of that year, 
 the population had so increased that the county of 
 Trumbull was erected, including the Reserve. 
 Soon after, a large number of settlers came from 
 Pennsylvania, from which State they had been 
 driven by the dispute concerning land titles in its 
 western part. Unwilling to cultivate land to 
 which they could only get a doubtful deed, they 
 abandoned it, and came where the titles were 
 sure. 
 
 Congress having made Chillicothe the capital of 
 the Northwest Territory, as it now existed, on the 
 3d of November the General Assembly met at that 
 place. Gov. St. Clair had been made to feel the 
 odium cast upon his previous acts, and, at the open- 
 ing of this session, expressed, in strong terms, his 
 disapprobation of the censure cast upon him. He 
 had endeavored to do his duty in all cases, he said, 
 and yet held the confidence of the President and 
 Congress. He still held the office, notwithstanding 
 the strong dislike against him. 
 
 At the second session of the Assembly, at Chil- 
 licothe, held in the autumn of 1801, so much out- 
 spoken enmity wa-s expressed, and so much abuse 
 heaped upon the Governor and the Assembly, that 
 a law was passed, removing the capital to Cincinnati 
 
 * Land Laws. 
 
 :^ 
 
X 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 again. It was not destined, however, that the 
 Territorial Assembly should meet again anywhere. 
 The unpopularity of the Governor caused many to 
 long for a State government, where they could 
 choose their own rulers. The unpopularity of St. 
 Clair arose partly from the feeling connected with 
 his defeat ; in part from his being connected with 
 the Federal party, fast falling into disrepute; and, 
 in part, from his assuming powers which most 
 thought he had no right to exercise, especially the 
 power of subdividing the counties of the Terri- 
 tory. 
 
 The opposition, though powerful out of the 
 Assembly, was in the minority there. During the 
 month of December, 1801, it was forced to protest 
 against a measure brought forward in the Council, 
 for changing the ordinance of 1787 in such a man- 
 ner as to make the Scioto, and a line drawn from 
 the intersection of that I'iver and the Indian 
 boundary to the western extremity of the Reserve, 
 the limits of the most eastern State, to be formed 
 from the Territory. Had this change been made, 
 the formation of a State government beyond the 
 Ohio would have been long delayed. Against it, 
 IleprcsentativesWortliington,Langham, Darlington, 
 Massie, Dunlavy and Morrow, recorded their pro- 
 test. Not content with this, they sent Thomas 
 Worthington, who obtained a leave of absence, to 
 the seat of government, on behalf of the objectors, 
 there to protest, before Congress, against the pro- 
 posed boundary. While Worthington was on his 
 way, Massie presented, the 4th of January, 1802, 
 a resolution for choosing a committee to address 
 Congress in respect to the proposed State govern- 
 ment. This, the next day, the House refused to 
 do, by a vote of twelve to five. An attempt 
 was next made to procure a census of the Ter- 
 ritory, and an act for that purpose passed the 
 House, but the Council postponed the considera- 
 tion of it until the next session, which would com- 
 mence at Cincinnati, the fourth iMonday of No- 
 vember. 
 
 Meanwhile, Worthington pursued the ends of 
 his mission, vising his influence to effect that organ- 
 ization, "which, terminating the influence of tyr- 
 anny," was to "meliorate the circumstances of thou- 
 sands, by freeing them from the domination of a 
 despotic chief" His efforts wore siiccessful, and, 
 the -Ith of March, a report was made to the 
 House in favor of authorizing a State convention. 
 This report was based on the assumption that there 
 were now over sixty thousand inhabitants in the 
 proposed boundaries, estimating that emigration had 
 
 increased the census of 1800, which gave the Ter- 
 ritory forty-five thousand inhabitants, to that num- 
 ber. The convention was to ascertain whether it 
 were expedient to form such a government, and to 
 prepare a constitution if such organization were 
 deemed best. In the formation of the State, a 
 change in the boundaries was proposed, by which 
 all the territory north of a line drawn due east 
 from the head of Lake Michigan to Lake Ei'ie was 
 to be excluded from the new government about to 
 be called into existence. 
 
 The committee appointed by Congress to report 
 upon the feasibility of forming the State, suggested 
 that Congress reserve out of every township sections 
 numbered 8, 11, 26 and 29. for their own use, and 
 that Section 16 be reserved for the maintenance 
 of schools. The committee also suggested, that, 
 "religion, education and morality being necessary 
 to the good government and happiness of mankind, 
 schools and the means of education shall be forever 
 encouraged." 
 
 Various other recommendations were given by 
 the committee, in accordance with which, Congress, 
 April 30, passed the resolution authorizing the 
 calling of a convention. As tliis accorded with 
 the feelings of the majority of the inhabitants of the 
 Northwest, no opposition was experienced ; even 
 the Legislature giving way to this embryo gov- 
 ernment, and failing to assemble according to ad- 
 journment. 
 
 The convention met the 1st of November. Its 
 aiembers were generally Jeffersonian in their na- 
 tional politics, and had been opposed to the change 
 of boundaries proposed the year before. Before 
 proceeding to business. Gov. St. Clair proposed to 
 address them in his official character. This propo- 
 sition was resisted by several of the members; but, 
 after a motion, it was agreed to allow him to speak 
 to them as a citizen. St. Clair did so, advising 
 the postponement of a State government until the 
 people of the original eastern division were plainly 
 entitled to demand it, and were not subject to be 
 bovind by conditi(ms. This advice, given as it was, 
 caused Jefferson instantly to remove St. Clair, at 
 which time his office ceased.* "When the vote 
 was taken," says Judge Burnet, "upon doing what 
 
 * After thiH, St. Clair returned to his old home in the Ligonier 
 Valley, Pennsylviinia, where ho lived with his children in alnio-st 
 abject poverty. He had lost, money in his jmblic life, as he gave 
 close attention to public affairs, to the detriment of his own business. 
 He presented a claim to Congress, afterward, for supplies furnished 
 to the army, but the cbiira was outlawed. After trying in vain to 
 get the claim allowed, he returned to his home. Pennsylvania, 
 le!jrning of his distress, granted him an annuity of $.350, afterward 
 raised to S'>'^0. He lived to enjoy this but a short time, his death 
 occurring August 31, 1818. He was eighty-four years of age. 
 
 "7" 
 
±^ 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 89 
 
 he advised them not to do, but one of thirty-three 
 (Ephraim Cutler, of Washington County) voted 
 with the Grovernor." 
 
 On one point only were the proposed boundaries 
 of the new State altered. 
 
 " To every person who has attended to this sub- 
 ject, and who has consulted the maps of the West- 
 ern country extant at the time the ordinance of 
 1787 was passed, Lake Michigan was believed to 
 bo, and was represented by all the maps of that 
 day as being, very far north of the position which 
 it has since been ascertained to occupy. I have 
 seen the map in the Department of State which 
 was before the committee of Congress who framed 
 and reported the ordinance for the government of 
 the Territory. On that map, the southern bound- 
 ary of Michigan was represented as being above 
 the forty-second degree of north latitude. And 
 there was a pencil line, said to have been made by 
 the committee, passing through the southern bend 
 of the lake to the Canada line, which struck the 
 strait not far below the town of Detroit. The 
 line was manifestly intended by the committee 
 and by Congress to be the northern boundary of 
 our State; and, on the principles by which courts 
 of chancery construe contracts, accompanied by 
 plats, it would seem that the map, and the line 
 referred to, should be conclusive evidence of our 
 boundary, without reference to the real position of 
 the lakes. 
 
 "When the convention sat, in 1802, the under- 
 derstanding was, that the old maps were nearly 
 correct, and that the line, as defined in the ordi- 
 nance, would terminate at some point on the strait 
 above the Maumee Bay. While the convention 
 was in session, a man who had hunted many years 
 on Lake Michigan, and was well acquainted with 
 its position, happened to be in Chillicothe, and, in 
 conversation with one of the members, told him 
 that the lake extended much farther south than 
 was generally supposed, and that a map of the 
 country which he had seen, placed its southern 
 bend many miles north of its true position. This 
 information excited some uneasiness, and induced 
 the convention to modify the clause describing the 
 north boundary of the new State, so as to guard 
 against its being depressed below the most north- 
 ern cape of the Maumee Bay."* 
 
 With this change and some extension of the 
 school and road donations, the convention agreed 
 to the proposal of Congress, and, November 29, 
 
 * Historical Transactions of Ohio, — Judof, Burnett. 
 
 their agreement was ratified and signed, as was 
 also the constitution of the State of Ohio — so 
 named from its river, called by the Shawanees Ohio, 
 meaning beautiful — forming its southern bound- 
 ary. Of this nothing need be said, save that it 
 bore the marks of true democratic feeling — of full 
 faith in the people. By them, however, it was 
 never voted for. It stood firm until 1852, when 
 it was superseded by the present one, made neces- 
 sary by the advance of time. 
 
 The General Assembly was required to meet at 
 Chillicothe, the first Tuesday of March, 1803. 
 Tins change left the territory northwest of the 
 Ohio River, not included in the new State, in the 
 Territories of Indiana and Michigan. Subse- 
 quently, in 181G, Indiana was made a State, and 
 confined to her present limits. Illinois was made 
 a Territory then, including Wisconsin. In 1818, 
 it became a State, and Wisconsin a Territory at- 
 tached to Michigan. This latter was made a State 
 in 1837, and Wisconsin a separate Territory, which, 
 in 1847, was made a State. Minnesota was made 
 a Territory the same year, and a State in 1857, 
 and the five contemplated States of the territory 
 were complete. 
 
 Preceding pages have shown how the territory 
 north of the Ohio E-iver was peopled by the 
 French and English, and how it came under the 
 rule of the American people. The war of the 
 Revolution closed in 1783, and left all America in 
 the hands of a new nation. That nation brought 
 a change. Before the war, various attempts had 
 been made by residents in New England to people 
 the country west of the Alleghanies. Land com- 
 panies were formed, principal among which were 
 the Ohio Company, and the company of which 
 John Cleves Symmes was the agent and chief 
 owner. Large tracts of land on the Scioto and 
 on the Ohio were entered. The Ohio Company 
 were the first to make a settlement. It was or- 
 ganized in the autumn of 1787, November 27. 
 They made arrangements for a party of forty-seven 
 men to set out for the West under the supervision of 
 Gen. Rufus Putnam, Superintendent of the Com- 
 pany. Early in the winter they advanced to the 
 Youghiogheny River, and there built a strong boat, 
 which they named "Mayflower." It was built by 
 Capt. Jonathan Devol, the first ship-builder in the 
 West, and, when completed, was placed under his 
 command. The boat was launched x\pril 2, 1788, 
 and the band of pioneers, like the Pilgrim Fathers, 
 began their voyage. The 7th of the month, 
 they arrived at the mouth of the Muskingum, 
 
90 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 their destination, opposite Fort Harmar,* erected 
 in the autumn of 1785, by a detachment of 
 United States troops, under command of Maj. 
 John Doughty, and, at the date of the Mayflower's 
 arrival in possession of a company of soldiers. 
 Under the protection of these troops, the little band 
 of men began their labor of laying out a town, 
 and commenced to erect houses for their own and 
 subsequent emigrants' occupation. The names of 
 these pioneers of Ohio, as far as can now be 
 learned, are as follows: 
 
 Gen. Putnam, Return Jonathan Meigs, Win- 
 throp Sargeant (Secretary of the Territory ), Judges 
 Parsons and Varnum, Capt. Dana, Capt. Jonathan 
 Devol, Joseph Barker, Col. Battelle, Maj. Tyler, 
 Dr. True, Capt. Wm. Gray, Capt. Lunt, the 
 Bridges, Ebenezer and Thomas Cory, Andrew Mc- 
 Clurc, Wm. Mason, Thomas Lord, Wm. Gridley, 
 Gilbert Devol, Moody Russels, Deavens, Oakes, 
 Wright, Clough, Green, Shipman, Dorance, the 
 Masons, and others, whose names are now be- 
 yond recall. 
 
 On the 19th of July, the first boat of families 
 arrived, after a nine-weeks journey on the way. 
 They had traveled in their wagons as f\ir as Wheel- 
 ing, where they built large flat-boats, into which 
 they loaded their efiects, including their cattle, and 
 thence passed down the Ohio to their destination. 
 The families were those of Gen. Tupper, Col. 
 Ichabod Nye, Col. Cushing, Maj. Coburn, and 
 Maj. Goodale. In these titles the reader will ob- 
 serve the preponderance of military distinction. 
 Many of the founders of the colony had served 
 with much valor in the war for freedom, and were 
 well prepared for a life in the wilderness. 
 
 They began at once the construction of houses 
 from the forests about the confluence of the rivers, 
 guarding their stock by day and penning it by 
 night. Wolves, bears and Indians were all about 
 them, and, here in the remote wilderness, they 
 were obliged to always be on their guard. From 
 the ground where they obtained the timber to erect 
 their houses, they soon produced a few vegetables, 
 and when the families arrived in August, they 
 were able to set before them food raised for the 
 
 ♦The outlines of Fort Harmar formed a regular pentagon, 
 embracing within the area about three-fourths of an acre. Its 
 walls were formed of large horizontal timbers, and the bastions 
 of large uprighttimberaaboutfourteen feet in height, fastened to each 
 other by strips of timber, tree-nailed into each picket. In the rear 
 of the fort Maj. Doughty laid out fine gardens. It continued to be 
 occupied by United States troops until September 1700, when 
 they were ordered to Cincinnati. A company, under Capt. Haskell, 
 continued to raako the fort their headquarters during the Indian 
 war, occasionally assisting the colonists at Marietta, Belpre and 
 Waterford against the Indians. When not needed by the troops, 
 the fort was used by the people of Marietta. 
 
 first time by the hand of American citizens in the 
 Ohio Valley. One of those who came in August, 
 was Mr. Thomas Guthrie, a settler in one of the 
 western counties of Pennsylvania, who brought a 
 bushel of wheat, which he sowed on a plat of 
 ground cleared by himself, and from which that 
 fall he procured a small crop of wheat, the first 
 grown in the State of Ohio. 
 
 The Marietta settlement was the only one made 
 that summer in the Territory. From their arrival 
 until October, when Governor St. Clair came, they 
 were busily employed making houses, and prepar- 
 ing for the winter. The little colony, of which 
 Washington wrote so favorably, met on the 2d day 
 of July, to name their newborn city and its pub- 
 lic sqares. Until now it had been known as " The 
 Muskingum" simply, but on that day the name 
 Marietta was formally given to it, in honor of Ma- 
 rie Antoinette. The 4th of July, an ovation was 
 held, and an oration delivered by James M. Var- 
 num, who, with S. H. Parsons and John Arm- 
 strong, had been appointed Judges of the Terri- 
 tory. Thus, in the heart of the wilderness, 
 miles away from any kindred post, in the forests 
 of the Great West, was the Tree of Liberty watered 
 and given a hearty growth. 
 
 On the morning of the 9th of July, Governor 
 St. Clair arrived, and the colony began to assume 
 form. The ordinance of 1787 had provided for 
 a form of government under the Governor and 
 the three Judges, and this form was at once put 
 into force. The 25th, the first law relating to the 
 militia was published, and the next day the Gov- 
 ernor's proclamation appeared, creating all the 
 country that had been ceded by the Indians, east 
 of the Scioto River, into the county of Washing- 
 ton, and the civil machinery was in motion. From 
 that time forward, this, the pioneer settlement in 
 Ohio, went on prosperously. The 2d of Septem- 
 ber, the first court in the Territory was held, but 
 as it related to the Territory, a narrative of its pro- 
 ceedings will be found in the history of that part 
 of the country, and need not be repeated here. 
 
 The 15th of July, Gov. St. Clair had published 
 the ordinance of 1787, and the commissions of 
 himself and the three Judges. He also assembled 
 the people of the settlement, and explained to 
 them the ordinance in a speech of considerable 
 length. Three days after, he sent a notice to the 
 Judges, calling their attention to the subject of 
 organizing the militia. Instead of attending to 
 this important matter, and thus providing for their 
 safety should trouble with the Indians arise, the 
 
HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 91 
 
 Judges did not even reply to the Governor's letter, 
 but sent him what they called a "project" of a 
 law for dividing real estate. The bill was so 
 loosely drawn that St. Clair immediately rejected 
 it, and set about organizing the militia himself. 
 He divided the militia into two classes, "Senior" 
 and "Junior," and organized them by appointing 
 their officers. 
 
 In the Senior Class, Nathan Cushing was ap- 
 pointed Captain; George Ingersol, Lieutenant, 
 and James Backus, Ensign. 
 
 In the Junior Class, Nathan Groodale and Charles 
 Knowls were made Captains ; Watson Casey and 
 Samuel Stebbins, Lieutenants, and Joseph Lincoln 
 and Arnold Colt, Ensigns. 
 
 The Governor next erected the Courts of Pro- 
 bate and Quarter Sessions, and proceeded to ap- 
 point civil officers. Rufus Putnam, Benjamin 
 Tupper and Winthrop Sargeant were made Jus- 
 tices of the Peace. The 30th of August, the day 
 the Court of Quarter Sessions was appointed, 
 Archibald Cary, Isaac Pierce and Thomas Lord 
 were also appointed Justices, and given power to 
 hold this court. They were, in fact. Judges of a 
 Court of Common Pleas. Return Jonathan Meigs 
 was appointed Clerk of this Court of Quarter 
 Sessions. Ebenezer Sproat was appointed Sheriff of 
 Wa.shington County, and also Colonel of the militia; 
 William Callis, Clerk of the Supreme Court; 
 Rufus Putnam, Judge of the Probate Court, and 
 R. J. Meigs, Jr., Clerk. Following these appoint- 
 ments, setting the machinery of government in 
 motion, St. Clair ordered that the 25th of Decem- 
 ber be kept as a day of thanksgiving by the infant 
 colony for its safe and propitious beginning. 
 
 During the fall and winter, the settlement was 
 daily increased by emigrants, so much so, that the 
 greatest difficulty was experienced in finding them 
 lodging. During the coldest part of the winter, 
 when ice covered the river, and prevented navi- 
 gation, a delay in arrivals was experienced, only to 
 be broken as soon as the river opened to the beams 
 of a spring sun. While locked in the winter's 
 embrace, the colonists amused themselves in vari- 
 ous ways, dancing being one of the most promi- 
 nent. At Christmas, a grand ball was held, at 
 which there were fifteen ladies, "whose grace," 
 says a narrator, "equaled any in the East." 
 Though isolated in the wilderness, they knew a 
 brilliant prospect lay before them, and lived on in 
 a joyous hope for the future. 
 
 Soon after their arrival, the settlers began the 
 erection of a stockade fort (Campus Martius), 
 
 which occupied their time until the winter cf 
 1791. During the interval, fortunately, no hos- 
 tilities from the Indians were experienced, though 
 they were abundant, and were frequent visitors to 
 the settlement. 
 
 From a communication in the American Pioneer, 
 by Dr. S. P. Hildreth, the following description of 
 Campus Martius is derived. As it will apply, in 
 a measure, to many early structures for defense in 
 the West, it is given entire : 
 
 " The fort was made in the form of a regular 
 parallelogram, the sides of each being 180 feet. 
 At each corner was erected a strong block-house, 
 surmounted by a tower, and a sentry box. These 
 houses were twenty feet square below and twenty- 
 four feet square above, and projected six feet be- 
 yond the walls of the fort. The intermediate walls 
 were made up with dwelling-houses, made of wood, 
 whose ends were whip-sawed into timbers four 
 inches thick, and of the requisite width and length. 
 These were laid up similar to the structure of log 
 houses, with the ends nicely dove-tailed together. 
 The whole were two stories high , and covered with 
 shingle roofs. Convenient chimneys were erected 
 of bricks, for cooking, and warming the rooms. A 
 number of the dwellings were built and owned by 
 individuals who had families. In the west and 
 south fronts were strong gateways ; and over the 
 one in the center of the front looking to the Mus- 
 kingum River, was a belfry. The chamber beneath 
 was occupied by Winthrop Sargeant, as an office, 
 he being Secretary to the Governor, and perform- 
 ing the duties of the office during St. Clair's ab- 
 sence. This room projected over the gateway, like 
 a block-house, and was intended for the protection 
 of the gate beneath, in time of an assault. At 
 the outer corner of each block-house was erected a 
 bastion, standing on four stout timbers. The floor 
 of the bastion was a little above the lower story of 
 the block -house. They were square, and built up 
 to the height of a man's head, so that, when he 
 looked over, he stepped on a narrow platform or 
 " banquet " running around the sides of the bulwark. 
 Port-holes were made, for musketry as well as for 
 artillery, a single piece of which was mounted in 
 the southwest and northeast bastions. In these, 
 the sentries were regularly posted every night, as 
 more convenient than the towers ; a door leading 
 into them from the upper story of the block-houses. 
 The lower room of the southwest block-house was 
 occupied as a guard-house. 
 
 " Running from corner to corner of the block- 
 houses was a row of palisades, sloping outward. 
 
 ~~® 
 
 ^ 
 
92 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 and resting on stout rails. Twenty feet in advance 
 of these, was a row of very strong and large pick- 
 ets, set upright in the earth. Gateways through 
 these, admitted the inmates of the garrison. A 
 few feet beyond the row of outer palisades was 
 placed a row of abattis, made from the tops and 
 branches of trees, sharpened and pointing outward, 
 so that it would have been very difficult for an 
 enemy to have penetrated within their outworks. 
 The dwelling-houses occupied a space from fifteen 
 to thirty feet each, and were sufficient for the ac- 
 commodation of forty or fifty families, and did 
 actually contain from two hundred to three hun- 
 dred persons during the Indian war. 
 
 " Before the Indians commenced hostilities, the 
 block-houses were occupied as follows : The south- 
 west one, by the family of Gov. St. Clair ; the 
 northeast one as an office fur the Directors of the 
 Company. The area within the walls was one 
 hundred and forty-four feet square, and afi'orded a 
 fine parade ground. In the center, was a well 
 eighty feet in depth, for the supply of water to the 
 inhabitants, in case of a siege. A large sun-dial 
 stood for many years in the square, placed on a 
 handsome post, and gave note of the march of 
 time. 
 
 " After the war commenced, a regular military 
 corps was organized, and a guard constantly kept 
 night and day. The whole establishment formed 
 a very strong work, and reflected great credit on 
 the head that planned it. It was in a manner im- 
 pregnable to the attacks of Indians, and none 
 but a regular army with cannon could have reduced 
 it. The Indians possessed no such an armament. 
 
 " The garrison stood on the verge of that beauti- 
 ful plain overlooking the Muskingum, on which 
 are seated those celebrated remains of antiquity, 
 erected probably for a similar purpose — the defense 
 of the inhabitants. The ground descends into shal- 
 low ravines on the north and south sides ; on the 
 west is an abrupt descent to the river bottoms or 
 alluvium, and the east passed out to a level plain. 
 On this, the ground was cleared of trees beyond 
 the reach of rifle shots, so as to affiird no shelter 
 to a hidden foe. Extensive fields of corn were 
 grown in the midst of the standing girdled trees be- 
 yond, in after years. The front wall of palisades 
 was about one hundred and fifty yards from the 
 Muskingum River. The ajipearance of the fort 
 from without was imposing, at a little distance re- 
 sembling the military castles of the feudal ages. 
 Between the outer palisades and the river were 
 laid out neat gardens for the use of Gov. St. Clair 
 
 and his Secretary, with the officers of the Com- 
 pany. 
 
 " Opposite the fort, on the shore of the river, 
 was built a substantial timber wharf, at which was 
 moored a fine cedar barge for twelve rowers, built 
 by Capt. Jonathan Devol, for Gen. Putnam ; a 
 number of pii'ogues, and the light canoes of the 
 country ; and last, not least, the Mayflower, or 
 ' Adventure Galley,' in which the first detach- 
 ments of colonists were transported from the shores 
 of the ' Yohiogany ' to the banks of the Muskingum. 
 In these, especially the canoes, during the war, 
 most of the communications were carried on between 
 the settlements of the Company and the more re- 
 mote towns above on the Ohio River. Traveling 
 by land was very hazardous to any but the rangers 
 or spies. There were no roads, nor bridges across 
 the creeks, and, for many years after the war had 
 ceased, the traveling was nearly all done by canoes 
 on the river." 
 
 Thus the first settlement of Ohio provided for 
 its safety and comfort, and provided also for that 
 of emigrants who came to share the toils of the 
 wilderness. 
 
 The next spring, the influx of emigration was 
 so great that other settlements were determined, 
 and hence arose the colonies of Belpre, Waterford 
 and Duck Creek, where they began to clear land, sow 
 and plant crops, and build houses and stockades. 
 At Belpre (French for "beautiful meadow"), were 
 built three stockades, the upper, lower and middle, 
 the last of which was called " Farmers' Castle," 
 and stood on the banks of the Ohio, nearly oppo- 
 site an island, afterward famous in Western history 
 as Blennerhasset's Island, the scene of Burr's con- 
 spiracy. Among the persons settling at the upper 
 stockade, were Capts. Dana and Stone, Col. Bent, 
 William Browning, Judge Foster, John Rowse, 
 Israel Stone and a Mr. Keppel. At the Farmers' 
 Castle, were Cols. Gushing and Fisher, Maj. Has- 
 kell, Aaron Waldo Putnam, Mr. Sparhawk, and, 
 it is believed, George and Israel Putnam, Jr. At 
 the lower, were Maj. Goodale, Col. Rice, Esquire 
 Pierce, Judge Israel Loring, Deacon Miles, Maj. 
 Bradford and Mr. Goodenow. In the summer of 
 1789, Col. Ichabod Nye and some others, built a 
 block-house at Newberry, below Belpre. Col. Nye 
 sold his lot there to Aaron W. Clough, who, with 
 Stephen Guthrie, Joseph Leavins, Joel Oakes, 
 ]^]leazer Curtis, JVIr. Denham J. Littleton and Mr. 
 Brown, was located at that place. 
 
 "Every exertion possible," says Dr. Hildreth, 
 who has preserved the above names and incidents, 
 
HISTORY" OF OHIO. 
 
 93 
 
 "for men in these circumstances, was made to se- 
 cure food for future difficulties. Col. Oliver, 3Iuj. 
 Hatfield White and John Dod<z;e, of the Water- 
 ford settlement, began mills oa Wolf Creek, about 
 three miles from the fort, and got them running; 
 and these, the first mills in Ohio, were never de- 
 stroyed during the subsequent Indian war, though 
 the proprietors removed their faniiles to the fort 
 at Marietta. Col. E. Sproat and Enoch Shep- 
 herd began mills on Duck Creek, three miles from 
 Marietta, from the completion of which they were 
 driven by the Indian war. Thomas Stanley be- 
 gan mills farther up, near the Duck Creek settle- 
 ment. These were likewise unfinished. The Ohio 
 Company built a large horse mill near Campus 
 Martius, and soon after a floating mill." 
 
 The autumn before the settlements at Belpre, 
 Duck Creek and Waterford, were made, a colony 
 was planted near the mouth of the Little IMiami 
 River, on a tract of ten thousand acres, purchased 
 from Sy mines by Maj. Benjamin Stites. In the pre- 
 ceding pages may be found a history of Symmes' 
 purchase. This colony may be counted the second 
 settlement in the State. Soon after the colony at 
 Marietta was founded, steps were taken to occupy 
 separate portions of Judge Symmes' purchase, be- 
 tween the Miami Rivers. Three parties were 
 formed for this purpose, but, owing to various 
 delays, chiefly in getting the present colony stead- 
 fast and safe from future encroachments by the 
 savages, they did not get started till late in the fall. 
 The first of these parties, consisting of fifteen or 
 twenty men, led by 31 aj. Stites, landed at the 
 mouth of the Little Miami in November, 1788, 
 and, constructing a log fort, began to lay out a 
 village, called by them Columbia. It soon grew 
 into prominence, and, before winter had thoroughly 
 set in, they were well prepared for a fi-ontier life. 
 In the party were Cols. Spencer and Brown, Majs. 
 Gauo and Kibbey, Judges Goforth and Foster, 
 Rev. John Smith, Francis Dunlavy, Capt. Flina, 
 Jacob White, John Riley, and Mr. Hubbell. 
 
 All these were men of energy and enterprise, 
 and, with their comrades, were more numerous 
 than either of the other parties, who commenced 
 their settlements below them on the Ohio. This 
 village was also, at first, more flourishing; and, for 
 two or three years, contained more inhabitants 
 than any other in the Miami purchase. 
 
 The second IMiami party was formed at Lime- 
 stone, under Matthias Denham and Robert Pat- 
 terson, and consisted of twelve or fifteen persons. 
 They landed on the north bank of the Ohio, oppo- 
 
 site the mouth of the Licking River, the 24th of 
 
 December, 1788. They intended to establish a 
 station and lay out a town on a plan prepared at 
 Limestone. Some statements affirm that the town 
 was to be called " L-vs-aati-vilk-,'^ by a romantic 
 school-teacher named Filson. However, be this as 
 it may, Mr, Filson was, unfortunately for himself, 
 not long after, slain by the Indians, and, with him 
 probably, the name disappeared. He was to have 
 one-third interest in the proposed city, which, 
 when his death occurred, was transferred to Israel 
 Ludlow, and a new plan of a city adopted. Israel 
 Ludlow surveyed the proposed town, who.se lots were 
 principally donated to settlers upon certain condi- 
 tions as to settlement and improvement, and the 
 embryo city named Cincinnati. Gov. St. Clair 
 very likely had something to do with the naming 
 of the village, and, by some, it is asserted that he 
 changed the name from Losantiville to Cincinnati, 
 when he created the county of Hamilton the en- 
 suing winter. Tlie original purchase of the city'.'j 
 site was made by Mr. Denham. It included about 
 eight hundred acres, for which he paid 5 shillings 
 per acre in Continental certificates, then worth, in 
 specie, about 5 shillings per pound, gross weight. 
 Evidently, the original site was a good investment, 
 could Mr. Denham have lived long enough to see 
 its present condition. 
 
 The third party of settlers for the Miami pur- 
 chase, were under the care of Judge Symmes, 
 himself They left Limestone, January 20, 1789, 
 and were much delayed on their downward jour- 
 ney by the ice in the river. They reached the 
 '• Bend,'' as it was then known, early in February. 
 The Judge had intended to found a city here, 
 which, in time, would be the rival of the Atlantic 
 cities. As each of the three settlements aspired 
 to the same position, no little rivalry soon mani- 
 fested itself The Judge named liis proposed city 
 North Bend, from the fact that it was the most 
 northern bend in the Ohio below the mouth of the 
 Great Kanawha. These three settlements ante- 
 dated, a few months, those made near Marietta, 
 already described. They arose so soon after, partly 
 fi-om the extreme desire of Judge Symmes to settle 
 his purchase, and induce emigration here instead 
 of on the Ohio Company's purchase. The Judge 
 labored earnestly for this purpose and to further 
 secure him in his title to the land he had acquired, 
 all of which he had so far been unable to retain, 
 owing to his inability to meet his payments. 
 
 All these emigrants came down the river in the 
 flat-boats of the day, rude affairs, sometimes called 
 
 r^ 
 
94 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 " Arks," and then the only safe mode of travel in 
 the West. 
 
 Judge Symmcs found he must provide for the 
 safety of the settlers on his purchase, and, after 
 earnestly soliciting Gen. Harmar, commander of 
 the Western posts, succeeded in obtaining a de- 
 tachment of forty-eight men, under Capt. Kearsey, 
 to protect the improvements just commencing on 
 the Miami. This detachment reached Limestone 
 in December, 1788. Part was at once sent for- 
 ward to guard Maj. Stites and his pioneers. Judge 
 Symmes and his party started in January, and, 
 about February 2, reached Columbia, where the 
 Captain expected to find a fort erected for his use 
 and shelter. The flood on the river, however, de- 
 feated his purpose, and, as he was unprepared to 
 erect another, he determined to go on down to the 
 garrison at the falls at Louisville. Judge Symmes 
 was strenuously opposed to his conduct, as it left 
 the colonies unguarded, but, all to no purpose; the 
 Captain and his command, went to Louisville early 
 in March, and left the Judge and his settlement 
 to protect themselves. Judge Symmes immedi- 
 ately sent a strong letter to Maj. Willis, command- 
 ing at the Falls, complaining of the conduct 
 of Capt. Kearsey, representing the exposed situ- 
 ation of the Miami settlements, stating the indi- 
 cations of hostility manifested by the Indians, 
 and requesting a guard to be sent to the Bend. 
 This request was at once granted, and Ensign 
 Luce, with seventeen or eighteen soldiers, sent. 
 They were at the settlement but a short time, 
 when they were attacked by Indians, and one of 
 their number killed, and four or five wounded. 
 They repulsed the savages and saved the set- 
 tlers. 
 
 The site of Symmes City, for such he designed it 
 should ultimately be called, was above the reach of 
 water, and sufficiently level to admit of a conven- 
 ient settlement. The city laid out by Symmes 
 was truly magnificent on paper, and promised in 
 the future to fulfill his most ardent hopes. The 
 plat included the village, and extended across the 
 peninsula between the Ohio and Miami Rivers. 
 Each settler on this plat was promised a lot if he 
 would improve it, and in conformity to the stipu- 
 lation, Judge Symmes soon found a large number 
 of persons applying for residence. As the number 
 of these adventurers increased, in consequence of 
 this provision and the protection of the military, 
 the Judge was induced to lay out another village 
 six or seven miles up the river, which he called 
 South Bend, where he disposed of some donation 
 
 lots, but the project failing, the village site was de- 
 serted, and converted into a farm. 
 
 During all the time these various events wei-e 
 transpiring, but little trouble was experienced with 
 the Indians. They were not yet disposed to evince 
 hostile feelings. This would have been their time, 
 but, not realizing the true intent of the whites until 
 it was too late to conquer them, they allowed them 
 to become prepared to withstand a warfare, and in 
 the end were obliged to suff'er their hunting-grounds 
 to be taken from them, and made the homes of a 
 race destined to entirely supersede them in the 
 New World. 
 
 By the means sketched in the foregoing pages, 
 were the three settlements on the Miami made. By 
 the time those adjacent to Marietta were well estab- 
 lished, these were firmly fixed, each one striving to 
 become the rival city all felt sure was to arise. For 
 a time it was a matter of doubt which of the rivals, 
 Columbia, North Bend or Cincinnati, would event- 
 ually become the chief seat of business. 
 
 In the beginning, Columbia, the eldest of the 
 three, took the lead, both in number of its in- 
 habitants and the convenience and appearance of 
 its dwellings. For a time it was a flourishing place, 
 and many believed it would become the great busi- 
 ness town of the Miami country. That apparent 
 fact, however, lasted but a short time. The garri- 
 son was moved to Cincinnati, Fort Washington 
 built there, and in spite of all that Maj. Stites, or 
 Judge Symmes could do, that place became the 
 metropolis. Fort Washington, the most extensive 
 garrison in the West, was built by Maj. Doughty, 
 in the summer of 1789, and from that time the 
 growth and future greatness of Cincinnati were 
 assured. 
 
 The first house in the city was built on Front 
 street, east of and near Main street. It was 
 simply a strong log cabin, and was erected of the 
 forest trees cleared away from the ground on which 
 it stood. The lower part of the town was covered 
 with sycamore and maple trees, and the upper with 
 beech and oak. Through this dense forest the 
 streets were laid out, and their cornel's marked on 
 the trees. 
 
 The settlements on the Miami had become 
 sufficiently numerous to warrant a separate county, 
 and, in January, 171H), Gov. St. Clair and his 
 Secretary arrived in Cincinnati, and organized the 
 county of Hamilton, so named in honor of the 
 illustrious statesman by that name. It included 
 all the country north of the Ohio, between the 
 Miamis, as far as a line running " due east from the 
 
•^ 
 
 HISTOEY OF OHIO. 
 
 95 
 
 Standing Stone forks " of Big Miami to its inter- 
 section with the Little Miami. The erection of 
 the new county, and the appointment of Cincin- 
 nati to be the seat of justice, gave the town a fresh 
 impulse, and aided greatly in its growth. 
 
 Through the summer, but little interruption in 
 the growth of the settlements occurred. The 
 Indians had permitted the erection of defensive 
 works in their midst, and could not now destroy 
 them. They were also engaged in traffic with the 
 whites, and, though they evinced signs of discon- 
 tent at their settlement and occupation of the 
 country, yet did not openly attack them. The 
 truth was, they saw plainly the whites were always 
 prepared, and no opportunity was given them to 
 plunder and destroy. The Indian would not 
 attack unless success was almost sure. An oppor- 
 tunity, unfortunately, came, and with it the hor- 
 rors of an Indian war. 
 
 In the autumn of 1790, a company of thirty- 
 six men went from Marietta to a place on the 
 Muskingum known as the Big Bottom. Here 
 they built a block-house, on the east bank of the 
 river, four miles above the mouth of Meigs Creek. 
 They were chiefly young, single men, but little 
 ac((uainted with Indian warfare or military rules. 
 The savages had given signs that an attack on the 
 settlement was meditated, and several of the know- 
 ing ones at the strongholds strenuously opposed 
 any new settlements that fall, advising their post- 
 ponement until the next spring, when the question 
 of peace or war would probably be settled. Even 
 Gren. Putnam and the Directors of the Ohio Com- 
 pany advised the postponement of the settlement 
 until the next spring. 
 
 The young men were impatient and restless, and 
 declared themselves able to protect their fort 
 against any number of assailants. They might 
 have easily done so, had they taken the necessary 
 precautions ; but, after they had erected a rude 
 block-house of unchinked logs, they began to pass 
 the time iu various pursuits ; setting no guard, and 
 taking no precautionary measures, they left them- 
 selves an easy prey to any hostile savages that 
 might choose to come and attack them. 
 
 About twenty rods from the block-house, and a 
 little back from the bank of the river, two men, 
 Francis and Isaac Choate, members of the com- 
 pany, had erected a cabin, and commenced clearing 
 lots. Thomas Shaw, a hired laborer, and James 
 Patten, another of the a.ssociates, lived with them. 
 About the same distance below the block-house 
 was an old "Tomahawk Improvement" and a 
 
 small cabin, which two men, Asa and Eleazur 
 BuUard, had fitted up and occupied. The Indian 
 war-path, from Sandusky to the mouth of the 
 Muskingum, passed along the opposite shore of 
 the river. 
 
 " The Indians, who, during the summer," says 
 Dr. Hildreth, " had been hunting and loitering 
 about the Wolf Creek and Plaiufield settlements, 
 holding frequent and friendly intercourse with the 
 settlers, selling them venison and bear's meat in ex- 
 change for green corn and vegetables, had with- 
 drawn and gone up the river, early in the au- 
 tumn, to their towns, preparatory to going into 
 winter quarters. They very seldom entered on 
 any warlike expeditions during the cold weather. 
 But they had watched the gradual encroach- 
 ment of the whites and planned an expedition 
 against them. They saw them in fancied security 
 in their cabins, and thought their capture an easy 
 task. It is said they were not aware of the Big 
 Bottom settlement until they came in sight of it, 
 on the opposite shore of the river, in the afternoon. 
 From a high hill opposite the garrison, they had a 
 view of all that part of the bottom, and could see 
 how the men were occupied and what was doing 
 about the block-house. It was not protected with 
 palisades or pickets, and none of the men were 
 aware or prepared for an attack. Having laid 
 their plans, about twilight they crossed the river 
 above the garrison, on the ice, and divided their 
 men into two parties — the larger one to attack the 
 block-house, the smaller one to capture the cabins. 
 As the Indians cautiously approached the cabin 
 they found the inmates at supper. Part entered, 
 addressed the whites in a friendly manner, but 
 soon manifesting their designs, made them all pris- 
 oners, tieing tbem with leather thongs they found 
 in the cabin." 
 
 At the block-house the attack was far different. 
 A stout Mohawk suddenly burst open the door, 
 the first intimation the inmates had of the pres- 
 ence of the foe, and while he held it open his 
 comrades shot down those that were within. Rush- 
 ing in, the deadly tomahawk completed the on- 
 slaught. In the assault, one of the savages was 
 struck by the wife of Isaac Woods, with an ax, 
 but only slightly injured. The heroic woman was 
 immediately slain. All the men but two were 
 slain before they had time to secure their arms, 
 thereby paying for their failure to properly secure 
 themselves, with their lives. The two excepted 
 were John Stacy and his brother Philip, a lad six- 
 teen years of age. John escaped to the roof, 
 
 \ 
 
96 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 where he was shot by the Indians, while begging 
 for his Ufe. The firing at the block-house alarmed 
 the Bullards in their cabin, and hastily barring the 
 door, and securing their arms and ammunition, they 
 fled to the woods, and escaped. After the slaughter 
 was over, the Indians began to collect the plunder, 
 and in doing so discovered the lad Philip Stacy. 
 They were about to dispatch him, but his entrea- 
 ties softened the heart of one of the chiefs, who 
 took him as a captive with the intention of adopt- 
 ing him into his family. The savages then piled 
 the dead bodies on the floor, covered them with 
 other portions of it not needed for that purpose, 
 and set fire to the whole. The building, being 
 made of green logs, did not burn, the flames con- , 
 suming only the floors and roof, leaving the walls 
 standing. 
 
 There were twelve persons killed in this attack, 
 all of whom were in the prime of life, and valuable 
 aid to the settlements. They were well provided 
 with arms, and had they taken the necessary pre- 
 cautions, always pressed upon them when visited 
 by the older ones from Marietta, they need not 
 have suffered so terrible a fate. 
 
 The Indians, exultant over their horrible victory, 
 went on to Wolf's mills, but here they found the 
 people prepared, and, after reconnoitering the place, 
 made their retreat, at early dawn, to the great re- 
 lief of the inhabitants. Their number was never 
 definitely known. 
 
 The news reached IMarietta and its adjacent 
 settlements soon after the massacre occurred, and 
 struck terror and dismay into the hearts of all. 
 Many had brothers and sons in the ill-fated party, 
 and mourned their loss. Neither did they know 
 what place would fall next. The Indian hostilities 
 had begun, and they could only hope for peace 
 when the savages were eff"ectually conquered. 
 
 The next day, Capt. Ptogers led a party of men 
 over to the Big Bottom. It was, indeed, a melan- 
 choly sight to the poor borderers, as they knew not 
 now how soon the same fate might befall them- 
 selves. The fire had so disfigured their comrades 
 that but two, Ezra Putnam and William Jones, 
 were recognized. As the ground was frozen out- 
 side, a hole was dug in the earth underneath the 
 block-house floor, and the bodies consigned to one 
 grave. No further attempt was made to settle 
 here till after the peace of 1795. 
 
 The outbreak of Indian hostilities put a check 
 on further settlements. Those that were estab- 
 lished were put in a more active state of defense, 
 and every preparation made that could be made 
 
 for the impending crisis all felt sure must come. 
 Either the Indians must go, or the whites must 
 retreat. A few hardy and adventurous persons 
 ventured out into the woods and made settle- 
 ments, but even these were at the imminent risk 
 of their lives, many of them perishing in the 
 attempt. 
 
 The Indian war that followed is given fully in 
 preceding pages. It may be briefly sketched by 
 stating that the first campaign, under Gen Ilar- 
 mar, ended in the defeat of his army at the Indian 
 villages on the Miami of the lake, and the rapid 
 retreat to Fort Washington. St. Clair v/as next 
 commissioned to lead an army of nearly three thou- 
 sand men, but these were furiously attacked at 
 break of day, on the morning of November 4, 
 1791, and utterly defeated. Indian outrages 
 sprung out anew after each defeat, and the borders 
 were in a continual state of alarm. The most ter- 
 rible sufi"erings were endured by prisoners in the 
 hands of the savage foe, who thought to annihilate 
 the whites. 
 
 The army was at once re-organized. Gen. An- 
 thony Wayne put in command by Washington, 
 and a vigorous campaign inaugurated. Though 
 the savages had been given great aid by the Brit- 
 ish, in direct violation of the treaty of 1783, Gen. 
 Wayne pursued them so vigorously that they could 
 not withstand his army, and, the l^Oth of August, 
 1794, defeated them, and utterly annihilated their 
 forces, breaking up their camps, and laying waste 
 their country, in some places under the guns of 
 the British forts. The victory showed them the 
 hopelessness of contending against the whites, and 
 led their chiefs to sue for peace. The British, as 
 at former times, deserted them, and they were again 
 alone, contending against an invincible foe. A 
 grand council was held at Greenville the 3d day 
 of August, 1795, where eleven of the most power- 
 ful chiefs made peace with Gen. Wayne on terms 
 of his own dictation. The boundary established 
 by the old treaty of Fort Mcintosh was confirmed, 
 and extended westward from Loramie's to Fort 
 Recovery, and thence southwest to the mouth of 
 the Kentucky River. He also purchased all the 
 territory not before ceded, within certain limits, 
 comprehending, in all, about four-fifths of the State 
 of Ohio. The line was long known as " The Green- 
 ville Treaty line." Upon these, and a few other 
 minor conditions, the United States received the 
 Indians under their protection, gave them a large 
 number of presents, and practically closed the war 
 with the savages. 
 
:£. 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 97 
 
 The only settlement of any consequence made dur- 
 ing the Indian war, was that on the plat of Hamilton, 
 laid out by Israel Ludlow in December, 1794. Soon 
 after, Darius C. Orcutt, John Green, William Mc- 
 Clennan, John Sutherland,Jolin Torrence, Benjamin 
 F.Randolph, Benjamin Davis, Isaac Wiles, Andrew 
 Christy and William Hubert, located here. The 
 town was laid out under the name of Fairfield, but 
 was known only a short time by that name. Until 
 1801, all the lands on the west side of the Great 
 Miami were owned by the General Government ; 
 hence, vintil after that date, no improvements were 
 made there. A single log cabin stood there until 
 the sale of lands in April, 1801, when a company 
 purchased the site of Rossville, and, in March, 
 180-1, laid out that town, and, before a year had 
 passed, the town and country about it was well 
 settled. 
 
 The close of the war, in 1795, insured peace, 
 and, from that date, Hamilton and that part of the 
 Miami Valley grew remarkably fast. In 1803, 
 Butler County was formed, and Hamilton made 
 the county seat. 
 
 On the site of Hamilton, St. Clair built Fort 
 Hamilton in 1791. For some time it was under 
 the command of Maj. Rudolph, a cruel, arbitrary 
 man, who was displaceSHBy Gen. Wayne, and who, 
 it is said, perished ignobly on the high seas, at the 
 hands of some Algerine pirates, a fitting end to a 
 man who caused, more than once, the death of 
 men under his control for minor offenses. 
 
 On the return of peace, no part of Ohio grew 
 more rapidly than the Miami Valley, especially 
 that part comprised in Butler County. 
 
 While the war with the Indians continued, but 
 little extension of settlements was made in the 
 State. It was too perilous, and the settlers pre- 
 ferred the security of the block-house or to engage 
 with the army. Still, however, a few bold spirits 
 ventured away from the settled parts of the Terri- 
 tory, and began life in the wilderness. In tracing 
 the histories of these settlements, attention will be 
 paid to the order in which they were made. They 
 will be given somewhat in detail until the war of 
 1812, after which time they become too numerous 
 to follow. 
 
 The settlements made in Washington — Marietta 
 and adjacent colonies — and Hamilton Counties 
 have already been given. The settlement at Gal- 
 lia is also noted, hence, the narration can be re- 
 sumed where it ends prior to the Indian war of 
 1795. Before this war occurred, there were three 
 small settlements made, however, in addition to 
 
 those in Washington and Hamilton Counties. 
 They were in what are now Adams, Belmont and 
 Morgan Counties. They were block-house settle- 
 ments, and were in a continual state of defense. 
 The first of these, Adams, was settled in the winter 
 of 1790-91 by Gen. Nathaniel Massie, near where 
 Manchester now is. Gen. Massie determined to 
 settle here in the Virginia Military Tract— in the 
 winter of 1790, and sent notice throughout Ken- 
 tucky and other Western settlements that he would 
 give to each of the first twenty-five families who 
 would settle in the town he proposed laying out, 
 one in-lot, one out-lot and one hundred acres of 
 land. Such liberal terms were soon accepted, and 
 in a short time thirty families were ready to go 
 with him. After various consultations with his 
 friends, the bottom on the Ohio River, opposite 
 the lower of the Three Islands, was selected as 
 the most eligible spot. Here Massie fixed his sta- 
 tion, and laid off into lots a town, now called 
 iManchester. The little confederacy, with Massie 
 at the helm, went to work with spirit. Cabins 
 were raised, and by the middle of March, 
 1791, the whole town was inclosed with strong 
 pickets, with block-houses at each angle for de- 
 fense. 
 
 This was the first settlement in the bounds of 
 the Virginia District, and the fourth one in the 
 State. Although in the midst of a savage foe, 
 now inflamed with war, and in the midst of a 
 cruel conflict, the settlement at Manchester suf- 
 fered less than any of its cotemporaries. This 
 was, no doubt, due to the watchful care of its in- 
 habitants, who were inured to the rigors of a front- 
 ier life, and who well knew the danger about them. 
 " These were the Beasleys, Stouts, Washburns, 
 Ledoms, Edgingtons, Denings, Ellisons, Utts, 
 McKcnzies, Wades, and others, who were fully 
 equal to the Indians in all the savage arts and 
 stratagems of border war." 
 
 As soon as they had completed preparations for 
 defense, the whole population went to work and 
 cleared the lowest of the Three Islands, and jilanted 
 it in corn. The soil of the island was very rich, 
 and produced abundantly. The woods supplied an 
 abundance of game, while the river furnished a 
 variety of excellent fish. The inhabitants thus 
 found their simple wants fully supplied. Their 
 nearest neighbors in the new Territory were at 
 Columbia, and at the French settlement at Gallip- 
 olis; but with these, owing to the state of the 
 country and the Indian war, they could hold little, 
 if any, intercourse. 
 
 rV 
 
98 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 The station being established, Massie continued 
 to make locations and surveys. Great precautions 
 were necessary to avoid the Indians, and even the 
 closest vigilance did not always avail, as the ever- 
 watchful foe was always ready to spring upon tlie 
 settlement, could an unguarded moment be ob- 
 served. During one of the spring months. Gen. 
 Massie, Israel Donalson, William Lytle and James 
 Little, while out on a survey, were surprised, and 
 Mr. Donalson captured, the others escaping at 
 great peril. Mr. Donalson escaped during the 
 march to the Indian town, and made his way to 
 the town of Cincinnati, after suffering great hard- 
 ships, anc\ almost perishing from hunger. In the 
 spring of 1793, the settlers at Manchester com- 
 menced clearing the out-lots of the town. While 
 doing so, an incident occurred, which shows the 
 danger to which they were daily exposed. It is 
 thus related in Howe's Collections : 
 
 " Mr. Andrew Ellison, one of the settlers, 
 cleared an out-lot immediately adjoining the fort. 
 He had completed the cutting of the timber, rolled 
 the logs together, and set them on fire. The next 
 morning, before daybreak, Mr. Ellison opened one 
 of the gates of the fort, and went out to throw his 
 logs together. By the time he had finished the 
 job, a number of the heaps blazed up brightly, and, 
 as he was passing from one to the other, he ob- 
 served, by the light of the fires, three men walking 
 briskly toward him. This did not alarm him in 
 the least, although, he said, they were dark-skinned 
 fellows ; yet he concluded they were the Wades, 
 whose complexions were very dark, going early to 
 hunt. He continued to right his log-heaps, until 
 one of the fellows seized him by the arms, calling 
 out, in broken English, ' How do ? how do ? ' He 
 instantly looked in their faces, and, to his surprise 
 and horror, found himself in the clutches of three 
 Indians. To resist was useless. 
 
 " The Indians quickly moved off with him in 
 the direction of Paint Creek. When breakfast 
 was ready, Mrs. Ellison sent one of her children 
 to ask its father home ; but he could not be found 
 at the log-heaps. His absence created no immedi- 
 ate alarm, as it was thought he might have started 
 to hunt, after completing his work. Dinner-time 
 arrived, and, Ellison not returning, the family 
 became uneasy, and began to suspect some acci- 
 dent had happened to him. His gun-rack was 
 examined, and there hung his rifles and his pouch. 
 Gen. Massie raised a party, made a circuit around 
 the place, finding, after some search, the trails of 
 four men, one of whom had on shoes; and the 
 
 fact that Mr. Ellison was a prisoner now became 
 apparent. As it was almost night at the time the 
 trail was discovered, the party returned to the 
 station. Early the next morning, preparations 
 were made by Gen. Massie and his friends to con- 
 tinue the search. In doing this, they found great 
 difiiculty, as it was so early in the spring that the 
 vegetation was not grovrn sufficiently to show 
 plainly the trail made by the savages, who took 
 the precaution to keep on high and dry ground, 
 where their feet would make little or no impres- 
 sion. The party were, however, as unerring as a 
 pack of hounds, and followed the trail to Paint 
 Creek, when they found the Indians gained so 
 fast on them that pursuit was useless. 
 
 "The Indians took their prisoner to Upper 
 Sandusky, where he was compelled to run the 
 gantlet. As he was a large, and not very active, 
 man, he received a severe flogging. He was then 
 taken to Lower Sandusky, and again compelled to 
 run the gantlet. He was then taken to Detroit, 
 where he was ransomed by a British officer for 
 ^100. The officer proved a good friend to him. 
 He sent him to Montreal, whence he returned 
 home before the close of the summer, much to the 
 joy of his family and friends, whose feehngs can 
 only be imagined." 
 
 "Another incident occurred about this time," 
 says the same volume, "which so aptly illustrates 
 the danger of frontier life, that it well deserves a 
 place in the history of the settlements in Ohio. 
 John and Asahel Edgington, with a comrade, 
 started out on a hunting expedition toward Brush 
 Creek. They camped out six miles in a northeast 
 direction from where West Union now stands, and 
 near the site of Treber's tavern, on the road from 
 Chillicothe to JMaysville. They had good success 
 in hunting, killing a number of deer and bears. 
 Of the deer killed, they saved the skins and hams 
 alone. They fleeced the bears ; that is, they cut 
 off all the meat which adhered to the hide, with- 
 out skinning, and left the bones as a skeleton. 
 They hung up the proceeds of their hunt, on a scaf- 
 fold out of the reach of wolves and other wild ani- 
 mals, and returned to Manchester for pack-horses. 
 No one returned to the camp with the Edgingtons. 
 As it was late in December, few apprehended dan- 
 ger, as the winter season was usually a time of re- 
 pose from Indian incursions. When the Edgingtons 
 arrived at their camp, they alighted from their 
 horses and were preparing to start a fire, when a 
 platoon of Indians fired upon them at a distance 
 of not more than twenty paces. They had 
 
 ~® 
 
'k* 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 101 
 
 evidently found the results of the white men's labor, 
 and expected they would return for it, and pre- 
 pared to waylay them. Asahel Edgington fell 
 dead. John was more fortunate. The sharp 
 crack of the rifles, and the horrible yells of the 
 savages as they leaped from their place of ambush, 
 frightened the horses, who took the track for 
 home at full speed. John was very active on foot, 
 and now an opportunity offered which required his 
 utmost speed. The moment the Indians leaped 
 from their hiding-place, they threw down their 
 guns and took after him, yelling with all their 
 power. Edgington did not run a booty race. For 
 about a mile, the savages stepped in his tracks al- 
 most before the bending grass could rise. The 
 uplifted tomahawk was frequently so near his head 
 that he thought he felt its edge. He exerted 
 himself to his utmost, while the Indians strove 
 with all their might to catch him. Finally, he be- 
 gan to gain on his pursuers, and, after a long race, 
 distanced them and made his escape, safely reach- 
 ing home. This, truly, was a most fearful and 
 well-contested race. The big Shawanee chief, Capt. 
 John, who headed the Indians on this occasion, 
 after peace was made, in narrating the particulars, 
 said, "The white man who ran away was a smart 
 fellow. The white man run ; and I run. He run 
 and run ; at last, the white man run clear off from 
 me." 
 
 The settlement, despite its dangers, prospered, 
 and after the close of the war continued to grow 
 rapidly. In two years afler peace was declared, 
 Adams County was erected by proclamation of 
 Gov. St. Clair, the next year court was held, and 
 in 1804, West Union was made the county seat. 
 
 During the war, a settlement was commenced 
 near the present town of Bridgeport, in Belmont 
 County, by Capt. Joseph Belmont, a noted Dela- 
 ware Revolutionary officer, who, because his State 
 could furnish only one company, could rise no 
 higher than Captain of that company, and hence 
 always maintained that grade. He settled on a 
 beautiful knoll near the present county seat, but 
 erelong suffered from a night attack by the In- 
 dians, who, though unable to drive him and his 
 companions from the cabin or conquer them, 
 wounded some of them badly, one or two mortally, 
 and caused the Captain to leave the frontier and 
 return to Newark, Del. The attack was made 
 in the spring of 1791, and a short time after, 
 the Captain, having provided for the safety of his 
 family, accepted a commission in St. Clair's army, 
 and lost his life at the defeat of the General in 
 
 November. Shortly after the Captain settled, a 
 fort, called Dillie's Fort, was built on the Ohio, 
 opposite the mouth of Grave Creek. About two 
 hundred and fifty yards below this fort, an old 
 man, named Tato, was shot d(jwn at his cabin door 
 by the Indians, just as he was in the act of entering 
 the house. His body was pulled in by his daugh- 
 ter-in-law and grandson, who made an heroic de- 
 fense. They were overpowered, the woman slain, 
 and the boy badly wounded. He, however, man- 
 aged to secrete himself and afterward escaped to 
 the fort. The Indians, twelve or thirteen in num- 
 ber, went off unmolested, though the men in the 
 fort saw the whole transaction and could have 
 punished them. Why they did not was never 
 known. 
 
 On Captina Creek in this same county, occurred, 
 in May, 1794, the "battle of Captina," a fa- 
 mous local skirmish between some Virginians from 
 Fort Baker, and a party of Indians. Though the 
 Indians largely outnumbered the whites, they were 
 severely punished, and compelled to abandon the 
 contest, losing several of their bravest warriors. 
 
 These were the only settlements made until 
 1795, the close of the war. Even these, as it will 
 be observed from the foregoing pages, were tem- 
 porary in all cases save one, and were maintained 
 at a great risk, and the loss of many valuable lives. 
 They were made in the beginning of the war,and such 
 were their experiences that further attempts were 
 abandoned until the treaty of Greenville was made, 
 or until the prospects for peace and safety were 
 assured. 
 
 No sooner, however, had the prospect of quiet 
 been established, than a revival of emigration be- 
 gan. Before the war it had been large, now it 
 was largely increased. 
 
 Wayne's treaty of peace with the Indians was 
 made at Greenville, in what is now Darke County, 
 the 3d of August, 1795. The number of Indians 
 present was estimated at 1,300, divided among the 
 principal nations as follows : 180 Wyandots, 381 
 Delawares, 143 Shawanees, 45 Ottawas, 46 Chip- 
 pewas, 240 Fottawatomies, 73 Miamis and Eel 
 River, 12 Weas and Piankeshaws, and 10 Kicka- 
 poos and Kaskaskias. The principal chiefs were 
 Tarhe, Buckongahelas, Black Hoof, Blue Jacket 
 and Little Turtle. Most of them had been tam- 
 pered with by the British agents and traders, but 
 all had been so thoroughly chastised by Wayne, and 
 found that the British only used them as tools, 
 that they were quite anxious to make peace with 
 the " Thirteen Fires." By the treaty, former ones 
 
103 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 were established, the boundary lines confirmed and 
 enlarged, an exchange and delivery of prisoners 
 effected, and permanent peace assured. 
 
 In the latter part of September, after the treaty 
 of Greenville, Mr. Bedell, from New Jersey, 
 selected a site for a home in what is now Warren 
 County, at a place since known as " Bedell's Sta- 
 lion," about a mile south of Union Village. Here 
 he erected a block-house, as a defense against the 
 Indians, among whom were many renegades as 
 among the whites, who would not respect the 
 terms of the treaty. Whether Mr. Bedell was 
 alone that fall, or whether he was joined by others, 
 is not now accurately known. However that may 
 be, he was not long left to himself; for, ere a year 
 had elapsed, quite a number of settlements were 
 made in this part of the Territory. Soon after 
 his settlement was made. Gen. David Sutton, Capt. 
 Nathan Kelley and others began pioneer life at 
 Deerfield, in the same locality, and, before three 
 yeai's had gone by, a large number of New Jersey 
 people were established in their homes; and, in 
 18U3, the county was formed from Hamilton. 
 Among the early settlers at Deerfield, was Capt. 
 Robert Benham, who, with a companion, in 1779, 
 sustained themselves many days when the Captain 
 had lost the use of his legs, and his companion 
 his arms, from musket-balls fired by the hands of 
 the Indians. They were with a large party com- 
 manded by Maj. Rodgers, and were furiously 
 attacked by an immense number of savages, and 
 all but a few slain. The event happened during 
 the war of the Revolution, before any attempt 
 was made to settle the Northwest Territory. The 
 party were going down the Ohio, probably to the 
 falls, and were attacked when near the site of 
 Cincinnati. As mentioned, these two men sus- 
 tained each other many days, the one having per- 
 fect legs doing the necessary walking, carrying his 
 comrade to water, driving up game for him to 
 shoot, and any other duties necessary; while the 
 one who had the use of his arms could dress his 
 companion's and his own wounds, kill and cook 
 the game, and perform his share. They were 
 rescued, finally, by a flat-boat, whose occupants, 
 for awhile, passed them, fearing a decoy, but, 
 becoming convinced that such was not the case, 
 took them on down to Louisville, where they were 
 nursed into perfect health. 
 
 A settlement was made near the present town of 
 Lebanon, the county seat of Warren County, in 
 the spring of 1796, by Henry Taylor, who built a 
 mill one mile west of the town site, on Turtle 
 
 Creek. Soon after, he was joined by Ichabod 
 Corwin, John Osbourn, Jacob Vorhees, Samuel 
 Shaw, Daniel Bonte and a Mr. Manning. When 
 Lebanon was laid out, in 1803, the two-story log 
 house built in 1797 by Ichabod Corwin was the 
 only building on the plat. It was occupied by 
 Ephraim Hathaway as a tavern. He had a black 
 horse painted on an immense board for a sign, and 
 continued in business here till 1810. The same 
 year the town was laid out, a store was opened by 
 John Huston, and, from that date, the growth of 
 the county was very pro.sperous. Three years 
 after, the Western Star was established by 
 Judge John McLain, and the current news of 
 the day given in weekly editions. It was one of 
 the first newspapers established in the Territory, 
 outside of Cincinnati. 
 
 As has been mentioned, the opening of naviga- 
 tion in the spring of 179(5 brought a great flood 
 of emigration to the Territory. The little settle- 
 ment made by Mr. Bedell, in the autumn of 1795, 
 was about the only one made that fall ; others made 
 preparations, and many selected sites, but did not 
 settle till the following spring. That spring, colo- 
 nies were planted in what are now Montgomery, 
 Hoss, Madison, Mahoning, Trumbull, Ashtabula 
 and Cuyahoga Counties, while preparations were 
 in turn made to occupy additional territory that 
 will hereafter be noticed. 
 
 The settlement made in Montgomery County 
 was begun early in the spring of 1796. As early 
 as 1788, the land on which Dayton now stands was 
 selected by some gentlemen, who designed laying- 
 out a town to be named Venice. They agreed 
 with Judge Symmes, whose contract covered the 
 place, for the purchase of the lands. The Indian 
 war which broke out at this time prevented an 
 extension of settlements from the immediate 
 neighborhood of the parent colonies, and the proj- 
 ect was abandoned by the purchasers. Soon after 
 the treaty of 1795, a new company, composed of 
 Gens. Jonathan Dayton, Arthur St. Clair, James 
 Wilkinson, and Col. Israel Ludlow, purchased the 
 land between the Miamis, around the mouth of 
 Mad River, of Judge Symmes, and, the 4th of 
 November, laid out the town. Arrangements were 
 made for its settlement the ensuing spring, and 
 donations of lots, with other privileges, were offered 
 to actual settlers. Forty-six persons entered into 
 engagements to remove from Cincinnati to Day- 
 ton, but during the winter most of them scat- 
 tered in different directions, and only nineteen ful- 
 filled their contracts. The first families who 
 
 3?: 
 

 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 103 
 
 made a permanent residence here, arrived on the 
 first day of April, 1796, and at once set about 
 establishing homes. Judge Symmes, however, 
 becoming unable soon after to pay for his purchase, 
 the land reverted to the United States, and the set- 
 tlers in and about Dayton found themselves with- 
 out titles to their lands. Congress, however, came 
 to the aid of all such persons, wherever they had 
 purchased land of Symmes, and passed a pre-emp- 
 tion law, under which they could enter their lands 
 at the regular government price. Some of the set- 
 tlers entered their lands, and obtained titles directly 
 from the United States ; others made arrangements 
 with Daniel C. Cooper to receive their deeds from 
 him, and he entered the residue of the town lands. 
 He had been the surveyor and agent of the first 
 company of proprietors, and they assigned to him 
 certain of their rights of pre-emption, by which he 
 became the titular owner of the land. 
 
 When the State government was organized in 
 1803, Dayton was made the seat of justice for 
 Montgomery County, erected the same year. At 
 that time, owing to the title question, only five 
 families resided in the place, the other settlers hav- 
 ing gone to farms in the vicinity, or to other 
 parts of the country. The increase of the town 
 was gradual until the war of 1812, when its 
 growth was more rapid until 1820, when it was 
 again checked by the general depression of busi- 
 ness. It revived in 1827, at the commencement 
 of the Miami Canal, and since then its growth has 
 always been prosperous. It is now one of the 
 best cities in Ohio. The first canal boats fi-om 
 Cincinnati arrived at Dayton January 25, 1829, 
 and the first one from Lake Erie the 24th of 
 June, 1845. In 1825, a weekly line of stages 
 was established between Columbus and Cincinnati, 
 via Dayton. One day was occupied in coming 
 from Cincinnati to Dayton. 
 
 On the 18th of September, 1808, the Dayton 
 Repertory was established by William McClureand 
 George Smith. It was printed on a foolscap sheet. 
 Soon after, it was enlarged and changed from a 
 weekly to a daily, and, ere long, found a number 
 of competitors in the field. 
 
 In the lower part of Miamisburg, in this county, 
 are the remains of ancient works, scattered about 
 over the bottom. About a mile and a quarter 
 southeast of the village, on an elevation more than 
 one hundred feet above the level of the Miami, 
 is the largest mound in the Northern States, ex- 
 cepting the mammoth mound at Grave Creek, on 
 the Ohio, below Wheeling, which it nearly equals 
 
 in dimensions. It is about eight hundred feet 
 around the base, and rises to a height of nearly 
 seventy feet. When first known it was covered 
 with forest trees, whose size evidenced great age. 
 The Indians could give no account of the mound. 
 Excavations revealed bones and charred earth, 
 but what was its use, will always remain a con- 
 jecture. 
 
 One of the most important early settlements 
 was made cotemporary with that of Dayton, in 
 what is now Ross County. The same spring, 
 1796, quite a colony came to the banks of the 
 Scioto River, and, near the mouth of Paint Creek, 
 began to plant a crop of corn on the bottom. The 
 site had been selected as early as 1792, by Col. 
 Nathaniel Massie* and others, who were so de- 
 lighted with the country, and gave such glowing 
 descriptions of it on their return — which accounts 
 soon circulated through Kentucky — that portions 
 of the Presbyterian congregations of Caneridge and 
 Concord, in Bourbon County, under Rev. Robert 
 W. Finley, determined to emigrate thither in a 
 body. They were, in a measure, induced to take 
 this step by their dislike to slavery, and a desire 
 for freedom from its baleful influences and the un- 
 certainty that existed regarding the validity of the 
 land titles in that State. The Rev. Finley, as a 
 preliminary step, liberated his slaves, and addressed 
 to Col. Massie a letter of inquiry, in December, 
 1794, regarding the land on the Scioto, of which 
 he and his people had heard such glowing ac- 
 counts. 
 
 "The letter induced Col. Massie to visit Mr. 
 Finley in the ensuing March. A large concourse 
 of people, who wished to engage in the enterprise, 
 assembled on the occasion, and fixed on a day to 
 meet at the Three Islands, in Manchester, and 
 proceed on an exploring expedition. Mr. Finley 
 also wrote to his friends in Western Pennsylvania 
 
 * Nathaniel Massie was born in Gfoochland County, Va., Decem- 
 ber 28, 17G3. In 1780, he engaged, for a short time, in the Kevolu- 
 tionary war. In 1783, he left for Kentucliy, where he acted as a 
 surveyor. He was afterward made a Government surveyor, and 
 labored much in that capacity for early Ohio proprietors, being paiil 
 in lands, the amounts graded by the danger attached to the surv.y. 
 In 1791, he established the settlement at Manchester, and a year or 
 two after, continued liis surveys up the Scioto. Here he was con- 
 tinually in great danger from the Iiuiians, but knew well how to 
 guard against them, and thus jireserved himself. In 1790, he estab- 
 lished the Cbillicotho settlement, and made bis home in the Scioto 
 Valley, being now an extensive land owner by reason of his long 
 surveying service. In 18(l7, he and Return J. Meigs were compet- 
 itors for the office of Governor of Ohio. Meigs was elected, but 
 Massie contested his eligibility to the office, on the grounds of his 
 absence from the State and insuflnciency of time as a resident, as 
 required by the Constitution. Meigs was declared inelicible by the 
 General Assembly, and Massie declared Governor. He, however, 
 renigned the office at once, not desiring it. He waa often Repre- 
 Bentative afterward. He died November 13, 1813. 
 
104 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 informing tliem of the time and place of rendez- 
 vous. 
 
 " About sixty men met, according to appoint- 
 ment, who were divided into three companies, 
 under Massie, Finley and Falenash. They pro- 
 ceeded on their route, without interruption, until 
 they struck the falls of Paint Creek. Proceeding 
 a short distance down that stream, they suddenly 
 found themselves in the vicinity of some Indians 
 who had encamped at a place, since called Reeve's 
 Crossing, near the present town of Bainbridge. 
 The Indians were of those who had refused to 
 attend Wayne's treaty, and it was determined to 
 give them battle, it being too late to retreat with 
 safety. The Indians, on being attacked, soon fled 
 with the loss of two killed and several wounded. 
 One of the whites only, Joshua Robinson, was 
 mortally wounded, and, during the action, a Mr. 
 Armstrong, a prisoner among the savages, escaped 
 to his own people. The whites gathered all their 
 plunder and retreated as far as Scioto Brush 
 Creek, where they were, according to expectation, 
 attacked early the next morning. Again the In- 
 dians were defeated. Only one man among the 
 whites, Allen Gilfillan, was wounded. The party 
 of whites continued their retreat, the next day 
 reached Manchester, and separated for their homes. 
 
 " After Wayne's treaty, Col. Massie and several 
 of the old explorers again met at the house of 
 Rev. Finley, formed a company, and agreed to 
 make a settlement in the ensuing spring (1796), 
 and raise a crop of corn at the mouth of Paint 
 Creek. According to agreement, they met at Man- 
 chester about the first of April, to the number of 
 forty and upward, from Mason and Bourbon 
 Counties. Among them were Joseph McCoy, 
 Benjamin and William Rodgers, David Shelby, 
 James Harrod, Henry, Bazil and Reuben Abrams, 
 William Jamison, James Crawford, Samuel, An- 
 thony and Robert Smith, Thomas Dick, William 
 and James Kerr, George and James Kilgrove, 
 John Brown, Samuel and Robert Templeton, Fer- 
 guson Moore, William Nicholson and James B. 
 Finley, later a prominent local Methodist minister. 
 On starting, they divided into two companies, one 
 of which struck across the country, while the 
 other came on in pirogues. The first arrived 
 earliest on the spot of their intended settlement, 
 and had commenced erecting log huts above the 
 mouth of Paint Creek, at the 'Prairie Station,' 
 before the others had come on by water. About 
 three hundred acres of the prairie were cultivated 
 in corn that season. 
 
 " In August, of this year — 1796 — Chillicothe* 
 was laid out by Col. Massie in a dense forest. He 
 gave a lot to each of the first settlers, and, by the 
 beginning of winter, about twenty cabins were 
 erected. Not long after, a ferry was established 
 across the Scioto, at the north end of Walnut 
 street. The opening of Zane's trace produced a 
 great change in travel westward, it having pre- 
 viously been along the Ohio in keel-boats or canoes, 
 or by land, over the Cumberland Mountains, 
 through Crab Orchard, in Kentucky. 
 
 " The emigrants brought corn-meal in their pi- 
 rogues, and after that was gone, their principal 
 meal, until the next summer, was that pounded in 
 hominy mortars, which meal, when made into 
 bi'ead, and anointed with bear's-oil, was quite pal- 
 atable. 
 
 " When the settlers first came, whisky was S-4.50 
 per gallon; but, in the spring of 1797, when the 
 keel-boats began to run, the Monongahela whisky- 
 makers, having found a good market for their fire- 
 water, rushed it in, in such quantities, that the 
 cabins were crowded with it, and it soon fell to 50 
 cents. Men, women and children, with some excep- 
 tions, drank it freely, and many who had been 
 respectable and temperate became inebriates. 
 Many of Wayne's soldiers and camp-women settled 
 in the town, so that, for a time, it became a town 
 of drunkards and a sink of corruption. There 
 was, however, a little leaven, which, in a few 
 months, began to develop itself 
 
 '• In the spring of 1797, one Brannon stole a 
 great coat, handkerchief and shirt. He and his 
 wife absconded, were pursued, caught and brought 
 back. Samuel Smith was appointed Judge, a 
 jury impanneled, one attorney appointed by the 
 Judge to manage the prosecution, and another the 
 defense ; witnesses were examined, the case argued, 
 and the evidence summed up by the Judge. The 
 jury, having retired a few moments, returned with 
 a verdict of guilty, and that the culprit be sen- 
 tenced according to the discretion of the Judge. 
 'The Judge soon announced that the criminal 
 should have ten lashes on his naked back, or that 
 he should sit on a bare pack-saddle on his pony, 
 and that his wife, who was supposed to have had 
 some agency in the theft, should lead the pony to 
 every house in the village, and proclaim, 'This is 
 
 ♦Chillicothe appears to have been a favorite name among the 
 Indians, as many localities were known by that name. Col. John 
 Johnston says : "Chillicothe is the name of one of the principal 
 tribes of the Shawanees. They would say, Chil-i-cotheotany, i. e., 
 Chillicothe town. The Wyandots would say, for Chillicothe town, 
 Tat-a-ra-ra, Do-tia, or town at the leaning of the bank." 
 
•^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 105 
 
 Brannon, who stole the great coat, handkerchief 
 and shirt ; ' and that James B. Finley, afterward 
 Chaplain in the State Penitentiary, should see the 
 sentence faithfully carried out. Brannon chose 
 the latter sentence, and the ceremony was faith- 
 fully performed by his wife in the presence of 
 every cabin, under Mr. Finley 's care, after which 
 the couple made off. This was rather rude, but 
 effective j urisprudence. 
 
 " Dr. Edward Tiffin and Mr. Thomas Worth- 
 ington, of Berkley County, Va., were brothers-in-law, 
 and being moved by abolition principles, liberated 
 their slaves, intending to remove into the Ter- 
 ritory. For this purpose, Mr. Worthington visited 
 Chillicothe in the autumn of 1797, and purchased 
 several in and out lots of the town. On one of the 
 former, he erected a two-story frame house, the 
 first of the kind in the village. On his return, 
 having purchased a part of a farm, on which his 
 family long afterward resided, and another at the 
 north fork of Paint Creek, he contracted with Mr. 
 Joseph Yates, a millwright, and Mr. George Haines, 
 a blacksmith, to come out with him the following 
 winter or spring, and erect for him a grist and saw 
 mill on his north-fork tract. The summer, fall 
 and following winter of that year were marked by 
 a rush of emigration, which spead over the high 
 bank prairie, Pea-pea, Westfall and a few miles 
 up Paint and Deer Creeks. 
 
 " Nearly all the first settlers were either regular 
 members, or had been raised in the Presbyterian 
 Church. Toward the fall of 1797, the leaven of 
 piety retained by a portion of the first settlers be- 
 gan to diffuse itself through the mass, and a large 
 log meeting-house was erected near the old grave- 
 yard, and Rev. William Speer, from Pennsylvania, 
 took charge. The sleepers at first served as seats for 
 hearers, and a split-log table was used as a pulpit. 
 Mr. Speer was a gentlemanly, moral man, tall and 
 cadaverous in person, and wore the cocked hat of 
 the Revolutionary era. 
 
 " Thomas Jones arrived in February, 1798, 
 bringing with him the first load of bar-iron in the 
 Scioto Valley, and about the same time Maj. Eli?, 
 Langham, an officer of the Revolution, arrived. Dr. 
 Tiffin, and his brother, Joseph, arrived the same 
 month from Virginia and opened a store not far 
 from the log meeting-house. A store had been 
 opened previously by John McDougal. The 17th 
 of April, the families of Col. Worthington and 
 Dr. Tiffin arrived, at which time the first marriage 
 in the Scioto Valley was celebrated. The parties 
 were George Kilgore and Elizabeth Cochran. The 
 
 ponies of the attendants were hitched to the trees 
 along the streets, which were not then cleared out, 
 nearly the whole town being a wilderness. Joseph 
 Yates, George Haines, and two or three others, 
 arrived with the families of Tiffin and Worthing- 
 ton. On their arrival there were but four shingled 
 roofs in town, on one of which the shingles 
 were fastened with pegs. Col. Worthington's 
 house was the only one having glass windows. The 
 sash of the hotel windows was filled with greased 
 paper. 
 
 " Col. Worthington was appointed by Gen. Ru- 
 fus Putnam, Surveyor General of the Northwest 
 Territory, surveyor of a large district of Congress 
 lands, on the east side of the Scioto, and INIaj. 
 Langham and a Mr. Matthews, were appointed to 
 survey the residue of the lands which afterward 
 composed the Chillicothe land district. 
 
 "The same season, settlements were made about 
 the Walnut Plains by Samuel McCulloh and 
 others; Springer, Osbourn, Dyer, and Thomas and 
 Elijah Chenowith, on Darly Creek; Lamberts and 
 others on Sippo ; on Foster's Bottom, the Fosters. 
 Samuel Davis and others, while the following fam- 
 ilies settled in and about Chillicothe: John Crouse, 
 William Keys, William Lamb, John Carlisle, John 
 McLanberg, William Chandless, the Stoctons, 
 Greggs, Bates and some others. 
 
 "Dr. Tiffin and his wife were the first Metho- 
 dists in the Scioto Valley. He was a local preacher. 
 In the fall, Worthington's grist and saw mills on 
 the north fork of Paint Creek were finished, the 
 first mills worthy the name in the valley. 
 
 " Chillicothe was the point from which the set- 
 tlements diverged. In May, 1799, a post office 
 was established here, and Joseph Tiffin made Post- 
 master. Mr. Tiffin and Thomas Gregg opened 
 taverns; the first, under the sign of Gen. Anthony 
 Wayne, was at the corner of Water and Walnut 
 streets; and the last, under the sign of the 'Green 
 Tree,' was on the corner of Paint and Water 
 streets. In 1801, Nathaniel Willis moved in and 
 established the Scioto Gazette, probably, the sec- 
 ond paper in the Territory."* 
 
 In 1800, the seat of government of the North- 
 west Territory was removed, by law of Congress, 
 from Cincinnati to Chillicothe. The sessions of 
 the Territorial Assembly for that and the nest 
 year were held in a small two-story, hewed-log 
 house, erected in 1798, by Bazil Abrams. A wing 
 was added to the main part, of two stories in 
 
 * Recollections of Hon. Thomas Scott, of Chillicothe — Howe's 
 "Annals of Ohio. 
 
 :V 
 
106 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 height. In the lower room of this wing, Col. 
 Thomas Gibson, Auditor of the Territory, kept 
 his office, and in the upper room a small family 
 lived. In the upper room of the main building 
 a billiard table was kept. It was also made a re- 
 sort of gamblers and disreputable characters. The 
 lower room was used by the Legislature, and as a 
 cqurt room, a church or a school. In the 
 war of 1812, the building was a rendezvous and 
 barracks for soldiers, and, in IS-IO, was pulled 
 down. 
 
 The old State House was commenced in 1800, 
 and finished the next year for the accommodation 
 of the Legislature and the courts. It is said to 
 be the first public stone edifice erected in the Ter- 
 ritory. Alaj. William Rutledge, a Revolutionary 
 soldier, did the mason work, and William Guthrie, 
 the carpenter. In 1801 , the Territorial Legislature 
 held their first session in it. In it was also held 
 the Constitutional Convention of Ohio, which be- 
 gan its sessions the first Monday in November, 
 1802. In March, 1803, the first State Legislature 
 met in the house, and continued their sessions here 
 until 1810. The sessions of 1810-11, and 1811- 
 12, were held in Zanesville, and from there re- 
 moved back to Chiliicothe and held in the old 
 State House till 1816, when Columbus became the 
 permanent capital of the State. 
 
 INIaking Chiliicothe the State capital did much 
 to enhance its growth. It was incorporated in 
 1802, and a town council elected. In 1807, the 
 town had fourteen stores, six hotels, two newspa- 
 pers, . two churches — both brick buildings — and 
 over two hundred dwellings. The removal of the 
 capital to Columbus checked its growth a little, still, 
 being in an excellent country, rapidly filling with 
 settlers, the town has always remained a prominent 
 trading center. 
 
 During the war of 1812, Chiliicothe was made 
 a rendezvous for United States soldiers, and a 
 prison established, in which many British prison- 
 ers were confined. At one time, a conspiracy for 
 escape was discovered just in time to prevent it. 
 The plan was for the prisoners to disarm the 
 guard, proceed to jail, release the officers, burn the 
 town, and escape to Canada. The plot was fortu- 
 nately disclosed by two senior British officers, upon 
 which, as a measure of security, the officers and 
 chief conspirators were sent to the penitentiary 
 at Frankfort, Kentucky. 
 
 Two or three miles northwest of Chiliicothe, on 
 a beautiful elevation, commanding an extensive 
 view of the valley of the Scioto, Thomas Worth-- 
 
 ington,* one of the most prominent and influential 
 men of his day, afterward Governor of the State, 
 in 1806, erected a large stone mansion, the wonder 
 of the valley in its time. It was the most elegant 
 mansion in the West, crowds coming to see it 
 when it "was completed. Gov. Worthington named 
 the place Adena, " Paradise " — a name not then 
 considered hyperbolical. The large panes of glass, 
 and the novelty of papered walls especially attracted 
 attention. Its architect was the elder Latrobe, of 
 Washington City, from which place most of the 
 workmen came. The glass was made in Pitts- 
 burgh, and the fireplace fronts in Philadelphia, the 
 latter costing seven dollars per hundred pounds for 
 transportation. The mansion, built as it was, cost 
 nearly double the expense of such structures now. 
 Adena was the home of the Governor till his death, 
 in 1827. 
 
 Near Adena, in a beautiful situation, is Fruit 
 Hill, the seat of Gen. Duncan McArthur,! and 
 later of ex-Gov. William Allen. Like Adena, Fruit 
 Hill is one of the noted places in the Scioto Val- 
 ley. Many of Ohio's best men dwelt in the valley ; 
 men who have been an honor and ornament to the 
 State and nation. 
 
 Another settlement, begun soon after the treaty 
 of peace in 1795, was that made on the Licking 
 River, about four miles below the present city of 
 Nev/ark, in Licking County. In the fall of 1798, 
 John RatlifF and Elias Hughes, while prospecting 
 on this stream, found some old Indian cornfields, 
 and determined to locate. They were from West- 
 ern Virginia, and were true pioneers, living mainly 
 by hunting, leaving the cultivation of their small 
 cornfields to their wives, much after the style of 
 
 * Gov. Worthington was born in Jefferson County, Va., about the 
 yearl70'J. He sytiU-din Oliio in 17;i8. He was a firm believer in 
 liberty and came to the Territory al'tiT liberating his slaves. He was 
 oiie of the niosi eflicifiit men of his day; was a member of the 
 Constitutional Convention, and was sent on an important mission 
 to Congress relative to the admiosion of Ohio to the Union. He 
 was afterward a Senator to Congress, and then Governor. On 
 the expiration of his guSernatorial term, he was appointed a mem- 
 ber of the Board of Public Works, in which cajiacity ho did umch 
 to advance the canals and ral roads, and other public improve- 
 ments. He remained in this office till his death. 
 
 t Gen. Mc.\rthur was born in Dutchess County, N. T., in 1772. 
 When eight years of age, his father removed to ApVesteru Pennsyl- 
 vania. When eighteen years of age, he served in Harmar's 
 campaign. In 1792, he was a very elficient soldier among the front- 
 iersmen, and gained their ajiprobation by liis bravery. In 1793, he 
 was connected with Gen. jlassie, and afterward was engaged in 
 land speculations and became very wealthy. He was made a mem- 
 ber of the Legislature, in 1805 ; in 1800, a Colonel, and in 1808, a 
 Major Ganeral of the militia. In this capacity he was in Hull's 
 surrender at Detroit. On his return he was elected to Congress, 
 and in 1813 commissioned Brigadier General. He was one of the 
 most efticient officers in the war of 1812, and held many important 
 posts. After the war, he was again sent to the Legislature ; in 1822 
 to Congress, ar]d in 1830 elected Governor of the State. By an un- 
 fortunate accident in 1830, he was maimed for life, and gradually 
 declined till death came a few years after. 
 
i^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 107 
 
 their dusky neighbors. They were both inveterate 
 Indian-haters, and never allowed an opportunity to 
 pass without carrying out their hatred. For this, 
 they were apprehended after the treaty; but, 
 though it was clearly proven they had murdered 
 some iuolFensive Indians, the state of feeling was 
 such that they were allowed to go unpunished. 
 
 A short time after their settlement, others joined 
 them, and, in a few years, quite a colony had 
 gathered on the banks of the Licking. In 1802, 
 Newark was laid out, and, in three or four years, 
 there were twenty or thirty families, several stores 
 and one or two hotels. 
 
 The settlement of G-ranville Township, in this 
 county, is rather an important epoch in the history 
 of this part of the State. From a sketch pub- 
 lished by Rev. Jacob Little in 18-48, in Howe's 
 Collections, the subjoined statements are taken: 
 
 "In 1804, a company was formed at Granville, 
 Mass., with the intention of making a settlement 
 in Ohio. This, called the Scioto Company, was 
 the third of that name which effected settlemen1;g 
 in Ohio. The project met with great favor, and 
 much enthusiasm was elicited, in illustration of 
 which a song was composed and sung to the 
 tune of ' Pleasant Ohio ' by the young people in 
 the house and at labor in the field. We annex 
 two stanzas, which are more curious than poetical: 
 
 "'When rambling o'er these mountains 
 
 And rocks where ivies grow 
 Thick as the hairs upon your head, 
 
 "Mongst which you cannot go — 
 Great storms of snow, cold winds that blow, 
 
 We scarce can undergo — 
 Says I, my boys, we'll leave this place 
 
 For the pleasant Ohio. 
 
 " <Our precious friends that stay behind. 
 
 We're sorry now to leave; 
 But if they'll stay and break their shins, 
 
 For them we'll never grieve. 
 Adieu, my friends! — Come on, my dears, 
 
 This journey we'll forego. 
 And settle Licking Creek, 
 
 In yonder Ohio.' " 
 
 " The Scioto Company consisted of one hundred 
 and fourteen proprietors, who made a purchase of 
 twenty-eight thousand acres. In the autumn of 
 1805, two hundred and thirty-four persons, mostly 
 from East Granville, Mass., came on to the pur- 
 chase. Although they had been forty-two days on 
 the road, their first business, on their arrival, hav- 
 ing organized a church before they left the East, 
 was to hear a sermon. The first tree cut was that 
 
 by which public worship was held, which stood 
 just in front of the Presbyterian church. 
 
 On the first Sabbath, November 16, although 
 only about a dozen trees had been felled, they held 
 divine service, both forenoon and afternoon, on 
 that spot. The novelty of worshiping in the 
 woods, the forest extending hundreds of miles each 
 way ; the hardships of the journey, the winter set- 
 ting in, the thoughts of home, with all the friends 
 and privileges left behind, and the impression that 
 such must be the accommodations of anew country, 
 all rushed on their minds, and made this a day of 
 varied interest. When they began to sing, the 
 echo of their voices among the trees was so differ- 
 ent from what it was in the beautiful meeting- 
 house they had left, that they could no longer 
 restrain their tears. They ivept when they remem- 
 bered Zion. The voices of part of the choir were, 
 for a season, suppressed with emotion. 
 
 "An incident occurred, which many said Mrs. 
 Sigourney should have put into verse. Deacon 
 Theophilus Reese, a Welsh Baptist, had, two or 
 three years before, built a cabin, a mile and a half 
 north, and lived all this time without public wor- 
 ship. He had lost his cattle, and, hearing a low- 
 ing of the oxen belonging to the Company, set out 
 toward them. As he ascended the hills overlook- 
 ing the town plot, he heard the singing of the 
 choir. The reverberation of the sound from hill- 
 tops and trees, threw the good man into a serious 
 dilemma. The music at first seemed to be behind, 
 then in the tree-tops, or in the clouds. He stopped, 
 till, by accurate listening, he caught the direction 
 of the sound ; went on and passing the brow of 
 the hill, he saw the audience sitting on the 
 level below. He went home and told his wife that 
 ' the promise of God is a bond ' ; a Welsh proverb, 
 signifying that we have security, equal to a bond, 
 that religion will prevail everywhere. He said : 
 ' These must be good people. I am not afraid to 
 go among them.' Though he could not under- 
 stand English, he constantly attended the reading 
 meeting. Hearing the music on that occasion 
 made such an impression on his mind that, when 
 he became old and met the first settlers, he would 
 always tell over this story. The first cabin built 
 was that in which they worshiped succeeding 
 Sabbaths, and, before the close of the winter, they 
 had a schoolhouse and a school. That church, in 
 forty years, received more than one thousand per- 
 sons into its membership. 
 
 "Elder Jones, in 1806, preached the first ser- 
 mon in the log church. The Welsh Baptist 
 
 :^ 
 
\^ 
 
 108 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 Church was organized in the cabin of David 
 Thomas, Septen^^ber 4, 1808. April 21, 1827, 
 the Grranville members were organized into the 
 Granville Church, and the corner-stone of their 
 house of worship laid September 21, 1829. In 
 the fall of 1810, the first Methodist sermon was 
 preached here, and, soon after, a class organized. 
 In 1824, a church was built. An Episcopal 
 church was organized in May, 1827, and a 
 church consecrated in 1888. In 1849, there 
 were in this township 405 families, of whom 214 
 sustain family worship ; 1431 persons over four- 
 teen years of age, of whom over 800 belong to 
 church. The town had 150 families, of whom 80 
 have family worship. In 1846, the township 
 furnished 70 school teachers, of whom 62 prayed 
 in school. In 1846, the township took 621 peri- 
 odical papers, besides three small monthlies. The 
 first temperance society west of the mountains was 
 organized July 15, 1828, in this township; and, 
 in 1831, the Congregational Church passed a by- 
 law to accept no member who trafficked in or used 
 ardent spirits." 
 
 It is said, not a settlement in the entire West 
 could present so moral and upright a view as that 
 of Granville Township; and nowhere could so 
 perfect and orderly a set of people be found. 
 Surely, the fact is argument enough in favor of 
 the religion of Jesus. 
 
 The narrative of Mr. Little also states that, 
 when Granville was first settled, it was supposed 
 that Worthington would be the capital of Ohio, 
 between which and Zanesville, Granville would 
 make a great half-way town. At this time, wild 
 animals, snakes and Indians abounded, and many 
 are the marvelous stories preserved regarding the 
 destruction of the animals and reptiles — the 
 Indians being bound by their treaty to remain 
 peaceful. Space forbids their repetition here. 
 Suffice it to say that, as the whites increased, the 
 Indians, animals and snakes disappeared, until 
 now one is as much a curiosity as the other. 
 
 The remaining settlement in the southwest- 
 ern parts of Ohio, made immediately after the 
 treaty — fall of 1795 or year of 1796 — was in 
 what is now Madison County, about a mile north 
 of where the village of Amity now stands, on the 
 banks of the Big Darby. This stream received its 
 name from the Indians, from a Wyandot chief, 
 named Darby, who for a long time resided upon it, 
 near the Union County line. In the fall of 1795, 
 Benj amin Springer came from Kentucky and selected 
 some land on the banks of the Big Darby, cleared 
 
 the ground, built a cabin, and returned for his 
 family. The next spring, he brought them out, 
 and began his life here. The same summer he was 
 joined by William Lapin, Joshua and James Ew- 
 ing and one or two others. 
 
 When Springer came, he found a white man 
 named Jonathan Alder, who for fifteen years had 
 been a captive among the Indians, and who could 
 not speak a word of English, living with an Indian 
 woman on the banks of Big Darby. He had been 
 exchanged at Wayne's treaty, and, neglecting to 
 profit by the treaty, was still living in the Indian 
 style. When the whites became numerous about 
 him his desire to find his relatives, and adopt the 
 ways of the whites, led him to discard his squaw — 
 giving her an unusual allowance — learn the English 
 language, engage in agricultural pursuits, and be- 
 come again civihzed. Fortunately, he could remem- 
 ber enough of the names of some of his parents' 
 neighbors, so that the identity of his relatives and 
 friends was easily established, and Alder became a 
 most useful citizen. He was very influential with 
 the Indians, and induced many of them to remain 
 neutral during the war of 1812. It is stated that 
 in 1800, Mr. Ewing brought four sheep into the com- 
 munity. They were strange animals to the Indians. 
 One day when an Indian hunter and his dog were 
 passing, the latter caught a sheep, and was shot by 
 Mr. Ewing. The Indian would have shot Ewing in 
 retaliation, had not Alder, who was fortunately 
 present, with much difficulty prevailed upon him 
 to refrain. 
 
 While the southern and southwestern parts of 
 the State were filling with settlers, assured of safety 
 by Wayne's victories, the northern and eastern 
 parts became likewise the theater of activities. 
 Ever since the French had explored the southern 
 shores of the lake, and English traders had car- 
 ried goods thither, it was expected one day to be 
 a valuable part of the West. It will be remem- 
 bered that Connecticut had ceded a large tract of 
 land to the General Government, and as soon as 
 the cession was confirmed, and land titles became 
 assured, settlers flocked thither. Even before that 
 time, hardy adventurers had explored some of the 
 country, and pronounced it a "goodly land," 
 ready for the hand of enterprise. 
 
 The first settlement in the Western Reserve, 
 and, indeed, in the northern part of the State, was 
 made at the mouth of Conneaut* Creek, in Ash- 
 tabula County, on the 4th of July, 1796. That 
 
 'Conneaut, in the Seneca language, signifiea "many fish." 
 
.£. 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 109 
 
 day, the first surveying party landed at the mouth 
 of this creek, and, ou its eastern bank, near the 
 lake shore, in tin cups, pledged — as they drank the 
 limpid waters of the lake — their country's welfare, 
 with the ordnance accompaniment of two or three 
 fowling-pieces, discharging the required national 
 salute. 
 
 The whole party, on this occasion, numbered 
 fifty-two persons, of whom two were females (Mrs. 
 Stiles and Mrs. Gunn) and a child, and all deserve 
 a lusting place in the history of the State. 
 
 The next day, they began the erection of a large 
 log building on the sandy beach on the east side 
 of the stream. When done, it was named " Stow 
 Castle," after one of the party. It was the dwell- 
 ing, storehouse and general habitation of all the 
 pioneers. The party made this their headquar- 
 ters part of the summer, and continued busily 
 engaged in the survey of the Reserve. James 
 Kingsbury, afterward Judge, arrived soon after 
 the party began work, and, with his family, was 
 the first to remain here during the winter follow- 
 ing, the rest returning to the East, or going south- 
 ward. Through the winter, Mr. Kingsbury's 
 family suffered greatly for provisions, so much so, 
 that, during the absence of the head of the family 
 in New York for provisions, one child, born in his 
 absence, died, and the mother, reduced by her suf- 
 ferings and solitude, was only saved by the timely 
 arrival of the husband and father with a sack of 
 flour he had carried, many weary miles, on his 
 back. He remained here but a short time, re- 
 moving to Cleveland, which was laid out that same 
 fall. In the spring of 1798, Alexander Harper, 
 William McFarland and Ezra Gregory, with their 
 flimilies, started from Harpersfield, Delaware Co., 
 N. Y., and arrived the last of June, at their new 
 homes in the Far West. The whole population on 
 the Reserve then amounted to less than one hun- 
 dred and fifty persons. These were at Cleveland, 
 Youngstown and at Mentor. During the summer, 
 three famiHes came to Burton, and Judge Hudson 
 settled at Hudson. All these pioneers suffered 
 severely for food, and from the fever induced by 
 chills. It took several years to become accli- 
 mated. Sometimes the entire neighborhood 
 would be down, and only one or two, who could 
 wait on the rest "between chills," were able to do 
 anything. Time and courage overcame, finally. 
 
 It was not until 1798, that a permanent settle- 
 ment was made at the mouth of Conneaut Creek. 
 Those who came there in 1796 went on with their 
 surveys, part remaining in Cleveland, laid out that 
 
 summer. Judge Kingsbury could not remain at 
 Conneaut, and went nearer the settlements made 
 about theCuyahoga. Inthespring of 1798, Thomas 
 Montgomery and Aaron Wright settled here and 
 remained. Up the stream they found some thirty 
 Indian cabins, or huts, in a good state of preserva- 
 tion, which they occupied until they could erect 
 their own. Soon after, they were joined by others, 
 and, in a year or two, the settlement was permanent 
 and prosperous. 
 
 The site of the present town of Austinburg in 
 Ashtabula County was settled in the year 1799, 
 by two families from Connecticut, who were in- 
 duced to come thither, by Judge Austin. The 
 Judge preceded them a short time, driving, in 
 company with a hired man, some cattle about one 
 hundred and fifty miles through the woods, follow- 
 ing an old Indian trail, while the rest of the party 
 came in a boat across the lake. When they ar- 
 rived, there were a few families at Harpersburg ; 
 one or two families at Windsor, twenty miles 
 southwest; also a few families at Elk Creek, forty 
 miles northeast, and at Vernon, the same distance 
 southeast. All these were in a destitute condition 
 for provisions. In 1800, another family moved 
 from Norfolk, Conn. In the spring of 1801, sev- 
 eral families came from the same place. Part came 
 by land, and part by water. During that season, 
 wheat was carried to an old mill on Elk Creek, 
 forty miles away, and in some instances, half was 
 given for carrying it to mill and returning it in 
 flour. 
 
 Wednesday, October 21, 1801, a church of six- 
 teen members was constituted in Austinburg. 
 This was the first church on the Reserve, and was 
 founded by Rev. Joseph Badger, the first mission- 
 ary there. It is a fact worthy of note, that in 
 1802, Mr. Badger moved his family fi-om Buffalo 
 to this town, in the first wagon that ever came 
 from that place to the Reserve. In 1803, noted 
 revivals occurred in this part of the West, attended 
 I by the peculiar bodily phenomenon known as the 
 I " shakes " or "jerks." 
 
 I The surveying party which landed at the mouth 
 I of Conneaut'^ Creek, July 4, 1796, soon completed 
 j their labors in this part of the Reserve, and ex- 
 ! tended them westward. By the first of September, 
 I they had explored the lake coast as fiir west as the 
 outlet of the Cuyahoga* River, then considered 
 
 * Cuyahoga, id the Indian language, signifies "crooked."— 
 Boioe'H Cnlleclions. 
 
 "The liuiians called the river 'Cnyahoghan-uk,' 'Lake River 
 It is, emphaticiUy, a Lake river. It rises in lakes and empties into 
 a \a]i.e."—Atwate'-'s Hi lory of Ohio. 
 
 
110 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 by all an important Western place, and one des- 
 tined to be a great commercial mart. Time has 
 verified the prophecies, as now the city of Cleve- 
 land covers the site. 
 
 As early as 1755, the mouth of the Cuyahoga 
 River was laid down on the maps, and the French 
 had a station here. It was also considered an im- 
 portant post during the war of the Ilevolution,, 
 and later, of 1812. The British, who, after the 
 Ilevolution, refused to abandon the lake country 
 west of the Cuyahoga, occupied its shores until 
 1790. Their traders had a house in Ohio City, 
 north of the Detroit road, on the point of the hill 
 near the river, when the surveyors arrived in 
 1796. Washington, Jefferson, and all statesmen 
 of that day, regarded the outlet of the Cuyahoga 
 as an important place, and hence the early at- 
 tempt of the surveyors to reach and lay out a town 
 here. 
 
 The corps of surveyors arrived early in Septem- 
 ber, 1796, and at once proceeded to lay out a town. 
 It was named Cleveland, in honor of Gen. Moses 
 Cleveland, the Land Company's agent, and for 
 years a very prominent man in Connecticut, where 
 he lived and died. By the 18th of October, the 
 surveyors had completed the survey and left the 
 place, leaving only Job V. Stiles and family, and 
 Edward Paine, who were the only persons that 
 passed the succeeding winter in this place. Their 
 residence was a log cabin that stood on a spot of 
 ground long afterward occupied by the Commercial 
 Bank. Their nearest neighbors were at Conne- 
 aut, where Judge Kingsbury lived; at Fort 
 Mcintosh, on the south or east, at the mouth of 
 Big Beaver, and at the mouth of the river Raisin, 
 on the west. 
 
 The next season, the surveying party came again 
 to Cleveland, which they made their headquarters. 
 Early in the spring, Judge Kingsbury came over 
 from Conneaut, bringing with him Elijah Gunn, 
 who had a short time before joined him. Soon 
 after, Maj. Lorenzo Carter and Ezekiel Hawley 
 came with their fiimilies. These were about all 
 who are known to have settled in this place that 
 summer. The next year, 1798, Rodolphus Ed- 
 wards and Nathaniel Doane and their families set- 
 tled in Cleveland. Mr. Doane had been ninety- 
 two days on his journey from Chatham, Conn. In 
 the latter part of the summer and fill, nearly every 
 person in the settlement was down with the bil- 
 ious fever or with the ague. Mr. Doane's family 
 consisted of nine persons, of whom Seth, a lad six- 
 teen years of age, was the only one able to care for 
 
 them. Such was the severity of the fever, that 
 any one having only the ague was deemed quite 
 fortunate. Much suffering for proper food and 
 . medicines followed. The only way the Doane 
 family was supplied for two months or more, was 
 through the exertions of this boy, who went daily, 
 after having had one attack of the chills, to Judge 
 Kingsbury's in Newburg — five miles away, where 
 the Judge now lived — got a peck of corn, mashed it 
 in a hand-mill, waited until a second attack of the 
 chills passed over, and then returned. At one time, 
 for several days, he was too ill to make the trip, 
 during which turnips comprised the chief article 
 of diet. Fortunately, Maj. Carter, having only 
 the ague, was enabled with his trusty rifle and dogs 
 to procure an abundance of venison and other wild 
 game, His family, being somewhat acclimated, 
 suffered less than many others. Their situation can 
 hardly now be realized. " Destitute of a physician, 
 and with few medicines, necessity taught them to 
 use such means as nature had placed within their 
 reach. They substituted pills from the extract of 
 the bitternut bark for calomel, and dogwood and 
 cherry bark for quinine." 
 
 In November, four men, who had so far recov- 
 ered as to have ague attacks no oftener than once 
 in two or three days, started in the only boat for 
 Walnut Creek, Penn., to obtain a winter's supply 
 of flour. When below Euclid Creek, a storm 
 drove them ashore, broke their boat, and compelled 
 their return. During the winter and summer fol- 
 lowing, the settlers had no flour, except that 
 ground in hand and coffee mills, which was, how- 
 ever, considered very good. Not all had even that. 
 During the summer, the Connecticut Land Com- 
 pany opened the first road on the Reserve, which 
 commenced about ten miles south of the lake 
 shore, on the Pennsylvania State line, and extended 
 to Cleveland. In January, 1799, Mr. Doane 
 moved to Doane's Corners, leaving only Maj. Car- 
 ter's family in Cleveland, all the rest leaving as 
 soon as they were well enough. For fifteen months, 
 the Major and his fxmily were the only white per- 
 sons left on the town site. During the spring, 
 Wheeler W. Williams and Maj. Wyatt built the 
 first grist-mill on the Reserve, on the site of New- 
 burg. It was looked upon as a very valuable acces- 
 sion to the neighborhood. Prior to this, each fam- 
 ily had its own hand-mill in one of the corners of 
 the cabin. The old mill is thus described by a 
 pioneer : 
 
 " The stones were of the common grindstone 
 grit, about four inches thick, and twenty in diame- 
 
L±* 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 Ill 
 
 ter. The runner, or upper, was turned by band, 
 by a pole set in the top of it, near the outer edge. 
 The upper end of the pole was inserted into a hole 
 in a board fastened above to the joists, immedi- 
 ately over the hole in the verge of the runner. 
 One person fed the corn into the eye — a hole in 
 the center of the runner — while another turned. 
 It was very hard work to grind, and the operators 
 alternately exchanged places." 
 
 In 1800, several settlers came to the town and 
 a more active life was the result. From this time, 
 Cleveland began to progress. The 4th of July, 
 1801, the first ball in town was held at Major 
 Carter's log cabin, on the hill-side. John and 
 Benjamin Wood, and R. H. Bhnn were managers; 
 and Maj. Samuel Jones, musician and master of 
 ceremonies. The company numbered aboutthirty, 
 very evenly divided, for the times, between the 
 sexes. " Notwithstanding the dancers had a rough 
 puncheon floor, and no better beverage to enliven 
 their spirits than sweetened whisky, yet it is doubt- 
 ful if the anniversary of American independence 
 was ever celebrated in Cleveland by a more joyful 
 and harmonious company than those who danced 
 the scamper-down, double-shuffle, western-swing 
 and half-moon, that day, in Maj. Carter's cabin." 
 The growth of the town, fi-om this period on, re- 
 mained prosperous. The usual visits of the Indi- 
 ans were made, ending in their drunken carousals 
 and fights. Deer and other wild animals furnished 
 abundant meat. The settlement was constantly 
 augmented by new arrivals, so that, by 181-1, Cleve- 
 land was incorporated as a town, and, in 1836, as 
 a city. Its harbor is one of the best on the lakes, 
 and hence the merchandise of the lakes has always 
 been attracted thither. Like Cincinnati and Chil- 
 licothe, it became the nucleus of settlements in this 
 part of the State, and now is the largest city in 
 Northern Ohio. 
 
 One of the earliest settlements made in the 
 Western Reserve, and by some claimed as the first 
 therein, was made on the site of Youngstown, Ma- 
 honing County, by a Mr. Young, afterward a Judge, 
 in the summer of 1796. During this summer, 
 before the settlements at Cuyahoga and Conueaut 
 were made, Mr. Young and Mr. Wilcott, proprie- 
 tors of a township of land in Northeastern Ohio, 
 came to their possessions and began the survey of 
 their land. Just when they came is not known. 
 They were found here by Col. James Hillman, 
 then a trader in the employ of Duncan & Wilson, 
 of Pittsburgh, " who had been forwarding goods 
 across the country by pack-saddle horses since 
 
 1786, to the mouth of the Cuyahoga, thence to be 
 shipped on the schooner Mackinaw to Detroit. 
 Col. Hillman generally had charge of all these 
 caravans, consisting sometimes of ninety horses 
 and ten men. They commonly crossed the Big 
 Beaver four miles below the mouth of the She- 
 nango, thence up the left bank of the Mahoning — 
 called by the Indians " Mahoni" or " Mahonick" 
 signifying the " lick" or " at the lick " — crossing 
 it about three miles below the site of Youngstown, 
 thence by way of the Salt Springs, over the sites 
 of Milton and Ravenna, crossing the Cuyahoga at 
 the mouth of Breakneck and again at the mouth 
 of Tinker's Creek, thence down the river to its 
 mouth, where they had a log hut in which to 
 store their goods. This hut was there when the 
 surveyors came, but at the time unoccupied. At 
 the mouth of Tinker's Creek were a few log huts 
 built by iMoravian Missionaries. These were used 
 only one year, as the Indians had gone to the Tus- 
 carawas River. These and three or four cabins at 
 the Salt Springs were the only buildings erected 
 by the whites prior to 1796, in Northeastern Ohio. 
 Those at the Salt Springs were built at an early 
 day for the accommodation of whites who came 
 from Western Pennsylvania to make salt. The 
 tenants were dispossessed in 1785 by Gen. Harmar. 
 A short time after, one or two white men were 
 killed by the Indians here. In 1788' Col. Hill- 
 man settled at Beavertown, where Duncan & 
 Wilson had a store for the purpose of trading 
 with the Indians. He went back to Pittsburgh 
 soon after, however, owing to the Indian war, and 
 remained there till its close, continuing in his busi- 
 ness whenever opportunity offered. In 1796, 
 when returning from one of his trading expeditions 
 alone in his canoe down the Mahoning River, he 
 discovered a smoke on the bank near the present 
 town of Youngstown, and on going to the spot 
 found Mr. Young and Mr. Wolcott, as before men- 
 tioned. A part of Col. Hillman's cargo consisted 
 of whisky, a gallon or so of which he still had. 
 The price of "fire-water " then was 81 per quart 
 in the currency of the country, a deerskin being 
 legal tender for $1, and a doeskin for 50 cents. 
 Mr. Young proposed purchasing a quart, and 
 having a frolic on its contents during the even- 
 ing, and insisted on paying Hillman his cus- 
 tomary price. Hillman urged that inasmuch as 
 they were strangers in the country, civility re- 
 quired him to furnish the means for the entertain- 
 ment. Young, however, insisted, and taking the 
 deerskin used for his bed — the only one he had — 
 
 
 ~$) "V 
 
113 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 paid for his quart of whisky, and an evening's 
 froUc "was the result. 
 
 " HiUman remained a few days, when they ac- 
 companied him to Beaver Town to celebrate the 
 4th, and then all returned, and Hilhnan erected a 
 cabin on the site of Youngstown. It is not cer- 
 tain that they remained here at this time, and 
 hence the priority of actual settlement is generally 
 conceded to Conneaut and Cleveland. The next 
 year, in the fall, a Mr. Bi'own and one other per- 
 son came to the banks of the Mahoning and made 
 a permanent settlement. The same season Uriah 
 Holmes and Titus Hayes came to the same locality, 
 and before winter quite a settlement was to be seen 
 here. It proceeded quite prosperously until the 
 wanton murder of two Indians occurred, which, 
 for a time, greatly excited the whites, lest the In- 
 dians should retaliate. Through the efforts of 
 Col. Hilhnan, who had great influence with the 
 natives, they agreed to let the murderers stand a 
 trial. They were acquitted upon some technicality. 
 The trial, however, pacified the Indians, and no 
 trouble came from the unwarranted and unfortu- 
 nate circumstance, and no check in the emigration 
 or prosperity of the colony occurred."* 
 
 As soon as an efifective settlement had been es- 
 tablished at Youngstown, others were made in the 
 surrounding country. One of these was begun by 
 William Feuton in 1798, on the site of the pres- 
 ent town of Warren, in Trumbull County. He 
 remained here alone one year, when he was joined 
 by Capt. Ephraim Quimby. By the last of Sep- 
 tember, the next year, the colony had increased to 
 sixteen, and from that date on continued prosper- 
 ously. Once or twice they stood in fear of the 
 Indians, as the result of quarrels induced by 
 whisky. Sagacious persons generally saved any 
 serious outbreak and pacified the natives. Mr. 
 Badger, the first missionary on the Reserve, came 
 to the settlement here and on the Mahoning, as 
 soon as each was made, and, by his earnest labors, 
 succeedcid in forming churches and schools at an 
 early day. He was one of the most efficient men 
 on the Reserve, and throughout his long and busy 
 life, was well known and greatly respected. He 
 died in 18-46, aged eighty-nine years. 
 
 The settlements given are about all that were 
 made before the close of 1797. In following the 
 narrative of these settlements, attention is paid to 
 the chronological order, as far as this can be done. 
 Like those settlements already made, many which 
 
 * Recollections of Col. HiUman. — Boive's AnnaU. 
 
 are given as occurring in the next year, 1798, 
 were actually begun earlier, but were only tem- 
 porary preparations, and were not considered as 
 made until the next year. 
 
 Turning again to the southern portion of Ohio, 
 the Scioto, Muskingum and Miami Valleys come 
 prominently into notice. Throughout the entire 
 Eastern States they were still attracting attention, 
 and an increased emigration, busily occupying their 
 verdant fields, was the result. All about Chilli- 
 cothe was now well settled, and, up the banks of 
 that stream, prospectors were selecting sites for 
 their future homes. 
 
 In 1797, Robert Armstrong, George Skidmore, 
 Lucas Sullivant, William Domigan, James Mar- 
 shall, John Dill, Jacob Grubb, Jacob Overdier, 
 Arthur O'Hara, John Brickell, Col. Culbertson, 
 the Deardorfs, McElvains, Selles and others, came 
 to what is now Franklin County, and, in August, 
 Mr. Sullivant and some others laid out the town of 
 Franklinton, on the west bank of the Scioto, oppo- 
 site the site of Columbus. The country about this 
 locality had long been the residence of the Wyan- 
 dots, who had a large town on the city's site, and 
 cultivated extensive fields of corn on the river bot- 
 toms. The locality had been visited by the whites 
 as early as 1780, in some of their expeditions, and 
 the fertility of the land noticed. As soon as peace 
 was assured, the whites came and began a settle- 
 ment, as has been noted. Soon after Franklinton 
 was established, a Mr. Springer and his son-in-law, 
 Osborn, settled on the Big Darby, and, in the sum- 
 mer of 1798, a scattering settlement was made on 
 Alum Creek. About the same time settlers came 
 to the mouth of the Gahannah, and along other 
 water-courses. Franklinton was the point to which 
 emigrants came, and from which they always made 
 their permanent location. For several years there 
 was no mill, nor any such commodity, nearer than 
 Chillicothe. A hand-mill was constructed in 
 Franklinton, which was commonly used, unless the 
 settlers made a trip to Chillicothe in a canoe. 
 Next, a horse-mill was tried ; but not till 1805, 
 when Col. Kilbourne built a mill at Worthington, 
 settled in 1803, could any efficient grinding be 
 done. In 1789, a small store was openedin Frank- 
 linton, by James Scott, but, for seven or eight 
 years, Chillicothe was the nearest post office. 
 Often, when the neighbors wanted mail, one of 
 their number was furnished money to pay the 
 postage on any letters that might be waiting, and 
 sent for the mail. At first, as in all new localities, 
 a great deal of sickness, fever and ague, prevailed. 
 
IE 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 113 
 
 As the people became acclimated, this, however, 
 disappeared. 
 
 The township of Sharon in this county has a 
 history similar to that of Granville Township in 
 Licking County. It was settled by a " Scioto 
 Company," formed in Granby, Conn., in the winter 
 of 1801-02, consisting at first of eight associates. 
 They drew up articles of association, among which 
 was one limiting their number to forty, each of 
 whom must be unanimously chosen by ballot, a 
 single negative being sufiBcient to prevent an election. 
 Col. James Kilbourne was sent out the succeeding 
 spring to explore the country and select and pur- 
 chase a township for settlement. He returned in 
 the fall without making any purchase, through 
 fear that the State Constitution, then about to be 
 formed, would tolerate slavery, in which case the 
 project would have been abandoned. While on 
 this visit. Col. Kilbourne compiled from a variety 
 of sources the first map made of Ohio. Although 
 much of it was conjectured, and hence inaccurate, 
 it was veiy valuable, being correct as far as the 
 State was then known. 
 
 "As soon as information was received that the 
 constitution of Ohio prohibited slavery, Col. Kil- 
 bourne purchased the township he had previously 
 selected, within the United States military land 
 district, and, in the spring of 1803, returned to 
 Ohio, and began improvements. By the succeed- 
 ing December, one hundred settlers, mainly from 
 Hartford County, Conn., and Hampshire County, 
 Mass., arrived at their new home. Obeying to the 
 letter the agreement made in the East, the first 
 cabin erected was used for a schoolhouse and a 
 church of the Protestant Episcopal denomination ; 
 the first Sabbath after the arrival of the colony, 
 divine service was held therein, and on the arrival 
 of the eleventh family a school was opened. This 
 early attention to education and religion has left 
 its favorable impress upon the people until this day. 
 The first 4th of July was uniquely and appropri- 
 ately celebrated. Seventeen gigantic trees, em- 
 blematical of the seventeen States forming the 
 Union, were cut, so that a few blows of the ax, at 
 sunrise on the 4th, prostrated each successively 
 with a tremendous crash, forming a national salute 
 novel in the world's history."* 
 
 The growth of this part of Ohio continued 
 without interruption until the establishment of the 
 State capital at Columbus, in 1816. The town was 
 laid out in 1812, but, as that date is considered re- 
 
 *IIowe's Collections. 
 
 mote in the early American settlements, its history 
 will be left to succeeding pages, and there traced 
 when the history of the State capital and State 
 government is given. 
 
 The site of Zanesville, in Muskingum County, 
 was early looked upon as an excellent place to form 
 a settlement, and, had not hostilities opened in 
 1791, with the Indians, the place would have been 
 one of the earliest settled in Ohio. As it was, the 
 war so disarranged matters, that it was not till 
 1797 that a permanent settlement was effected. 
 
 The Muskingum country was principally occu- 
 pied, in aboriginal times, by the Wyanduts, Dela- 
 wares, and a few Senecas and Shawanees. An In- 
 dian town once stood, years before the settlement 
 of the country, in the vicinity of Duncan's Falls, 
 in Muskingum County, from which circumstance 
 the place is often called "Old Town." Near Dres- 
 den, was a large Shawanee town, called \5^.akato- 
 maca. The graveyard was quite large, and, when 
 the whites first settled here, remains of the town 
 were abundant. It was in this vicinity that the 
 venerable Maj. Cass, father of Lewis Cass, lived 
 and died. He owned 4,000 acres, given him for 
 his military services. 
 
 The first settlers on the site of Zanesville were 
 William McCulloh and Henry Crooks. The lo- 
 cality was given to Ebenezer Zane, who had been 
 allowed three sections of land on the Scioto, Mus- 
 kingum and Hockhocking, wherever the road 
 crossed these rivers, provided other prior claims 
 did not interfere, for opening "Zane's trace." 
 When he located the road across the Muskingum, 
 he selected the place where Zanesville now stands, 
 being attracted there by the excellent water privi- 
 leges. He gave the section of land here to his 
 brother Jonathan Zane, and J. Mclntire, who 
 leased the ferry, established on the road over the 
 Muskingum, to William McCulloh and Henry 
 Crooks, who became thereby the first settlers. The 
 ferry was kept about where the old upper bridge 
 was afterward placed. The ferry-boat was made 
 by fastening two canoes together with a stick. 
 Soon after a flat-boat was used. It was brought 
 from Wheeling, by Mr. Mclntire, in 1797, the 
 year after the ferry was established. The road cut 
 out through Ohio, ran from Wheeling, Va., to 
 Maysville, Ky. Over this road the mail was car- 
 ried, and, in 1798, the first mail ever carried 
 wholly in Ohio was brought up fi"om Marietta to 
 McCulloh's cabin by Daniel Convers, where, by 
 arrangement of the Postmaster General, it met 
 a mail from Wheeling and one from Maysville. 
 
 \ 
 
114 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 McCuIIoh, who could hardly read, was authorized 
 to assort the mails and send each package in its 
 proper direction. For this service he received 
 SoU per annum ; but owing to his inability to read 
 well, Mr. Convers generally performed the duty. 
 At that time, the mails met here once a week. 
 Four years after, the settlement had so increased 
 that a regular post office was opened, and Thomas 
 Dowden appointed Postmaster. He kept his office 
 in a wooden building near the river bank. 
 
 Messrs. Zane and Mclntire laid out a town in 
 1799, which they called Westbourn. When the 
 post office was established, it was named Zanesville, 
 and in a short time the village took the same name. 
 A few families settled on the west side of the river, 
 soon after McCulloh arrived, and as this locality 
 grew well, not long after a store and tavern was 
 opened here. Mr. Mclntire built a double log 
 cabin, which was used as a hotel, and in which 
 Louis Philippe, King of France, was once enter- 
 tained. Although the fire and accommodations 
 were of the pioneer period, the honorable guestseems 
 to have enjoyed his visit, if the statements of Lewis 
 Cass in his " Camp and Court of Louis Philippe" 
 may be believed. 
 
 In 1804, Muskingum County was formed by the 
 Legislature, and, for a while, strenuous efforts made 
 to secure the State capital by the citizens of Zanes- 
 ville. They even erected buildings for the use of 
 the Legislature and Governor, and during the ses- 
 sion of 1810-11, the temporary seat of govern- 
 ment was fixed here. When the permanent State 
 capital was chosen in 181G, Zanesville was passed 
 by, and gave up the hope. It is now one of the 
 most enterprising towns in the Muskingum Valley. 
 
 During the summer of 1797, John Knoop, then 
 living ft)ur miles above Cincinnati, made several 
 expeditions up the Miami Valley and selected the 
 land on which he afterward located. The next 
 spring Mr. Knoop, his brother Benjamin, Henry 
 G-arard, Benjamin Hamlet and John Tildus estab- 
 lished a station in what is now Miami County, near 
 the present town of Staunton Village. That sum- 
 mer, Mrs. Knoop planted the first apple-tree in 
 the Miami * country. They all lived together for 
 greater safety for two years, during which time 
 they were occupied clearing their farms and erect- 
 ing dwellings. During the summer, the site of 
 Piquawas settled, and three young men located at a 
 place known as " Freeman's Prairie." Those who 
 
 *The word Miami in the Indian tongue signified mother. The 
 Miamis wore the original owners of the valley by that name, and 
 affirmed they were created there. 
 
 settled at Piqua were Samuel Hilliard, Job Garard, 
 Shadrac Hudson, Jonah Rollins, Daniel Cox, 
 Thomas Rich, and a Mr. Hunter. The last named 
 came to the site of Piqua first in 1797, and 
 selected his home. Until 1799, these named were 
 the only ones ia this locality ; but that year emi- 
 gration set in, and very shortly occupied almost all 
 the bottom land in Miami County. With the 
 increase of emigration, came the comforts of life, 
 and mills, stores and other necessary aids to civil- 
 ization, were ere long to be seen. 
 
 The site of Piqua is quite historic, being the 
 theater of many important Indian occurrences, 
 and the old home of the Shawanees, of which 
 tribe Tecumseh was a chief. During the Indian 
 war, a fort called Fort Piqua was built, near the 
 residence of Col. John Johnston, so long the faith- 
 ful Indian Agent. The fort was abandoned at the 
 close of hostilities. 
 
 When the Miami Canal was opened through this 
 part of the State, the country began rapidly to 
 improve, and is now probably one of the best por- 
 tions of Ohio. 
 
 About the same time the Miami was settled, a 
 company of people fi'om Pennsylvania and Vir- 
 ginia, who were principally of German and Irish 
 descent, located in Lawrence County, near the iron 
 region. As soon as that ore was made available, 
 that part of the State rapidly filled with settlers, 
 most of whom engaged in the mining and working 
 of iron ore. Now it is very prosperous. 
 
 Another settlement was made the same season, 
 1797, on the Ohio side of the river, in Columbiana 
 County. The settlement progressed slowly for a 
 while, owing to a few difficulties with the Indians. 
 The celebrated Adam Poe had been here as early 
 as 1782, and several localities are made locally 
 famous by his and his brother's adventures. 
 
 In this county, on Little Beaver Creek, near its 
 mouth, the second paper-mill west of the Alle- 
 ghanies was erected in 1805-6. It was the pioneer 
 enterprise of the kind in Ohio, and was named the 
 Ohio Paper-Mill. Its proprietors were John 
 Bever and John Coulter. 
 
 One of the most noted localities in the State is 
 comprised in Greene County. The Shawanee 
 town, "Old Chillicothe," was on the Little Miami, 
 in this county, about three miles north of the site 
 of Xenia. This old Indian town was, in the an- 
 nals of the West, a noted place, and is frequently 
 noticed. It is first mentioned in 1773, by Cajit. 
 Thomas Bullitt, of Virginia, who boldly advanced 
 alone into the town and obtained the consent of 
 
HISTOEY OF OHIO. 
 
 115 
 
 the Indians to go on to Kentucky and make his 
 settlement at the falls of the Ohio. His audacious 
 bravery gained his request. Daniel Boone was 
 taken prisoner early in 1778, with twenty-seven 
 others, and kept for a time at Old Chillicothe. 
 Through the influence of the British Governor, 
 Hamilton, who had taken a great fancy to Boone, 
 he and ten others were sent to Detroit. The In- 
 dians, however, had an equal fancy for the brave 
 frontiersman, and took him back to Chillicothe, 
 and adopted him into their tribe. About the 1st 
 of June he escaped from them, and made liis way 
 back to Kentucky, in time to prevent a universal 
 massacre of the whites. In July, 1779, the town 
 was destroyed by Col. John Bowman and one 
 hundred and sixty Kentuckians, and the Indians 
 dispersed. 
 
 The Americans made a permanent settlement in 
 this county in 1797 or 1798. This latter year, a 
 mill was erected in the confines of the county, 
 which implies the settlement was made a short 
 time previously. A short distance east of the 
 mill two block-houses were erected, and it was in- 
 tended, should it become necessary, to surround 
 them and the mill with pickets. The mill was 
 used by the settlers at " Dutch Station," in Miami 
 County, fully thirty miles distant. The richness 
 of the country in this part of the State attracted a 
 great number of settlers, so that by 1803 the 
 county was established, and Xenialaid out, and des- 
 ignated as the county seat. Its first court house, 
 a primitive log structure, was long preserved as a 
 curiosity. It would indeed be a curiosity now. 
 
 Zane's trace, passing from Wheeling to Mays- 
 ville, crossed the Hockhocking* River, in Fairfield 
 County, where Lancaster is now built. Mr. Zane 
 located one of his three sections on this river, 
 covering the site of Lancaster. Following this 
 trace in 1797, many individuals noted the desira- 
 bleness of the locality, some of whom determined 
 to return and settle. " The site of the city had 
 in former times been the home of the Wyandots, 
 who had a town here, that, in 1790, contained 
 over 500 wigwams and more than 1 ,000 souls. 
 Their town was called Tarhee^ or, in English, the 
 Crane-toivn, a,nd derived its name from the princi- 
 
 * The word Hock-hock-ing in the Delaware langviago signifies 
 a bottle: tlie Shawanees have it Wen-lha-kiigh-qua sope, ie ; hoUle 
 rioer. John White in the Amprican Pioiietr says: "Aliout seven 
 miles nort 'wcst of Lancaster, tlipre is a fall In the Hockhocking of 
 about twuity feet. Above the fall for a short distance, the creek 
 is very narrow and straight forming a neck, while at the falls it 
 suddenly widens on each sideand swells into the appearance of the 
 body of a bottle. The whole, when seen from above, appears exactly 
 in the shape of a bottle, and from this fact the Indians called the 
 river Hock-hock-ing."' — Howe's CoUeciioiix. 
 
 pal chief of that tribe. Another portion of the 
 tribe then lived at Toby-town, nine miles west of 
 Tarhe-town (now Royaltown), and was governed 
 by an inferior chief called Toby. The chief's wig- 
 wam in Tarhe stood on the bank of the prairie, 
 near a beautiful and abundant spring of water, 
 whose outlet was the river. The wigwams of the 
 Indians were built of the bark of trees, set on 
 poles, in the form of a sugar-camp, with one square 
 open, fronting a fire, and about the height of a 
 man. The Wyandot tribe that day numbered 
 about 500 warriors. By the treaty of Greenville, 
 they ceded all their territory, and the majority, un- 
 der their chief, removed to Upper Sandusky. The 
 remainder lingered awhile, loath to leave the home 
 of their ancestors, but as game became scarce, they, 
 too, left for better hunting-grounds."* 
 
 In April, 1798, Capt. Joseph Hunter, a bold, 
 enterprising man, settled on Zane's trace, on the 
 bank of the prairie, west of the crossings, at a 
 place since known as " Hunter's settlement." For 
 a time, he had no neighbors nearer than the set- 
 tlers on the Muskingum and Scioto Rivers. He 
 lived to see the country he had found a wilderness, 
 full of the homes of industry. His wife was the 
 first white woman that settled in the valley, and 
 shared with him all the privations of a pioneer 
 life. 
 
 Mr. Hunter had not been long in the valley till 
 he was joined by Nathaniel Wilson, John and Al- 
 len Green, John and Joseph McMullen, Robert 
 Cooper, Isaac Shaefer, and a few others, who 
 erected cabins and planted corn. The next year, 
 the tide of emigration came in with great force. 
 In the spring, two settlements were made in Green- 
 field Township, each settlement containing twenty 
 or more families. One was called the Forks of 
 the Hockhocking, the other, Yankeetowu. Set- 
 tlements were also made along the river below 
 Hunter's, on Rush Creek, Raccoon and Indian 
 Creeks, Pleasant Run, Felter's Run, at Tobeytown, 
 Muddy Prairie, and on Clear Creek. In the fall, 
 — 1799 — Joseph Loveland and Hezekiah Smith 
 built a log grist-mill at the Upper Falls of the 
 Hockhocking, afterward known as Rock 31111. 
 This was the first mill on this river. In the latter 
 part of the year, a mail route was established over 
 the trace. The mail was earned through on horse- 
 back, and, in the settlements in this locality, was 
 left at the cabin of Samuel Coates, who lived on 
 the prairie at the crossings of the river. 
 
 * Lecture of George Sanderson. — Howe's CollecHont. 
 
 \ 
 
116 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 In the fall of the next year, Ebenezer Zane laid 
 out Lancaster, which, until 1805, was known as 
 New Lancaster. The lots sold very rapidly, at 
 $50 each, and, in less than one year, quite a vil- 
 lage appeared. December 9, the Governor and 
 Judges of the Northwest Territory organized 
 Fairfield County, and made Lancaster the county 
 seat. The year following, the Rev. John Wright, 
 a minister of the Presbyterian Church, came, and 
 from that time on schools and churches were estab- 
 lished and tliereafter regularly maintained at this 
 place. 
 
 Not far from Lancaster are immense mural es- 
 carpments of sandstone formation. They were 
 noted among the aborigines, and were, probably, 
 used by them as places of outlook and defense. 
 
 The same summer Fairfield County was settled, 
 the towns of Bethel and Williamsburg, in Cler- 
 mont County, were settled and laid out, and in 
 1800, the county was erected. 
 
 A settlement was also made immediately south 
 of Fairfield County, in Hocking County, by Chris- 
 tian Westenhaver, a German, from near Hagers- 
 town, Md. He came in the spring of 1798, and 
 was soon joined by several families, who formed 
 quite a settlement. The territory included in the 
 county remained a part of Ptoss, Athens and 
 Fairfield, until 1818, when Flocking County was 
 erected, and Logan, which had been laid out in 
 181(3, was made the county seat. 
 
 The country comprised in the county is rather 
 broken, especially along the Hockhocking River. 
 This broken country was a favorite resort of the 
 Wyandot Indians, who could easily hide in the 
 numerous grottoes and ravines made by the river 
 and its affluents as the water cut its way through 
 the sandstone rocks. 
 
 In 1798, soon after Zane's trace was cut through 
 the country, a Mr. Graham located on the site of 
 Cambridge, in Guernsey County. His was then 
 the only dwelling between Wheeling and Zanes- 
 ville, on the trace. He remained here alone about 
 two years, when he was succeeded by George Bey- 
 mer, from Somerset, Penn. Both these persons 
 kept a tavern and ferry over Will's Creek. In 
 April, 1803, Mr. Beymer was succeeded by John 
 Beatty, who came from Loudon, Va. His family 
 consisted of eleven persons. The Indians hunted 
 in this vicinity, and were frequent visitors at the 
 tavern. In June, 1806, Cambridge was laid out, 
 and on the day the lots were offered for sale, sev- 
 eral families from the British Isle of Guernsey, 
 near the coast of France, stopped here on their 
 
 way to the West. They were satisfied with the 
 location and purchased many of the lots, and some 
 land in the vicinity. They were soon followed by 
 other families from the same place, all of whom 
 settling, in this locality gave the name to the county 
 when it was erected in 1810. 
 
 A settlement was made in the central part of the 
 State, on Darby Creek, in Union County, in the 
 summer of 1798, by James and Joshua Ewing, 
 The next year, they were joined by Samuel and 
 David Mitchell, Samuel Mitchell, Jr., Samuel 
 Kirkpatrick and Samuel McCullough,and, in 1800, 
 by George and Samuel Reed, Robert Snodgrass 
 and Paul Hodgson. 
 
 "James Ewing's farm was the site of an an- 
 cient and noted Mingo town, which was deserted 
 at the time the Mingo towns, in what is now Logan 
 County, were destroyed by Gen. Logan, of Ken- 
 tucky, in 1786. When Mr. Ewing took posses- 
 sion of his farm, the cabins were still standing, 
 and, among others, the remains of a blacksmith's 
 shop, with coal, cinders, iron-dross, etc. Jonathan 
 Alder, formerly a prisoner among the Indians, 
 says the shop was carried on by a renegade white 
 man, named Butler, who lived among the Mingoes. 
 Extensive fields had formerly been cultivated in 
 the vicinity of the town."* 
 
 Soon after the settlement was established. Col. 
 James Curry located here. He was quite an influ- 
 ential man, and, in 1820, succeeded in getting the 
 county formed from portions of Delaware, Frank- 
 lin, Madison and Logan, and a part of the old In- 
 dian Territory. Marysville was made the county 
 seat. 
 
 During the year 1789, a fort, called Foi-t Steu- 
 ben, was built on the site of Steuben ville, but 
 was dismantled at the conclusion of hostilities in 
 1795. Three years after, Bezaleel Wells and Hon. 
 James Ross, for whom Ross County was named, 
 located the town of Steubenville about the old 
 fort, and, by liberal offers of lots, soon attracted 
 quite a number of settlers. In 1805, the town 
 was incorporated, and then had a population of 
 several hundred persons. Jefferson County was 
 created by Gov. St. Clair, July 29, 1797, the year 
 before Steubenville was laid out. It then included 
 the large scope of country west of Pennsylvania ; 
 east and north of a line from the mouth of the 
 Cuyahoga ; southwardly to the Muskingum, and 
 east to the Ohio ; including, in its territories, the 
 cities of Cleveland, Canton, Steubenville and War- 
 
 ■ Howe's Collections. 
 
 rV 
 
>^ 
 
 IIISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 119 
 
 ren. Only a short time, however, was it allowed 
 to retain this size, as the increase in emigration 
 rendered it necessary to erect new counties, which 
 was rapidly done, especially on the adoption c " the 
 State government. 
 
 The county is rich in early history, prior to its 
 settlement by the Americans. It was the home of 
 the celebrated Mingo chief, Logan, who resid id 
 awhile at an old Mingo town, a few miles below t le 
 site of Steubenville, the place where the troo )s 
 under Col. WilHamson rendezvoused on their i i- 
 famous raid against the Moravian Indians ; ar d 
 also where Col. Crawford and his men met, whf n 
 starting on their unfortunate expedition. 
 
 In the Reserve, settlements were often made 
 remote from populous localities, in accordance with 
 the wish of a proprietor, who might own a tract of 
 country twenty or thirty miles in the interior. In 
 the present county of Geauga, three families located 
 at Burton in 1798. They lived at a considerable 
 distance from any other settlement for some time, 
 and were greatly inconvenienced for the want of 
 mills or shops. As time progressed, however, 
 these were brought nearer, or built in their midst, 
 and, ere long, almost all parts of the Reserve could 
 show some settlement, even if isolated. 
 
 The next year, 1799, settlements were made at 
 Ravenna, Deerfield and Palmyra, in Portage 
 County. Hon. Benjamin Tappan came to the site 
 of Ravenna in June, at which time he found one 
 white man, a Mr. Honey, living there. At this date, 
 a solitary log cabin occupied the sites of Buffalo and 
 Cleveland. On his journey from New England, 
 My. Tappan fell in with David Hudson, the founder 
 of the Hudson settlement in Summit County. 
 After many days of travel, they landed at a prairie in 
 Summit County. Mr. Tappan left his goods in a 
 cabin, built for the purpose, under the care of a hired 
 man, and went on his way, cutting a road to the 
 site of Ravenna, where his land lay. On his return 
 for a second load of goods, they found the cabin 
 deserted, and evidences of its plunder by the In- 
 dians. Not long after, it was learned that the man 
 left in charge had gone to Mr. Hudson's settle- 
 ment, he having set out immediately on his arrival, 
 for his own land. Mr. Tappan gathered the re- 
 mainder of his goods, and started back for Ravenna. 
 On his way one of his oxen died, and he found 
 himself in a vast forest, away from any habitation, 
 and with one dollar in money. He did not falter 
 a moment, but sent his hired man, a faithful fellow, 
 to Erie, Penn., a distance of one hundred miles 
 through the wilderness, with the compass for his 
 
 guide, requesting from Capt. Lyman, the com- 
 mander at the fort there, a loan of money. At 
 the same time, he followed the township lines to 
 Youngstown, where he became acquainted with 
 Col. James Hillman, who did not hesitate to sell 
 him an ox on credit, at a fair price. He returned 
 to his load in a few days, found his ox all right, 
 hitched the two together and went on. He was 
 soon joined by his hired man, with the money, and 
 together they spent the winter in a log cabin. He 
 gave his man one hundred acres of land as a reward, 
 and paid Col. Hillman for the ox. In a year or 
 two he had a prosperous settlement, and when the 
 county was erected in 1807, Ravenna was made 
 the seat of justice. 
 
 About the same time Mr. Tappan began his 
 settlement, others were commenced in other locali- 
 ties in this county. Early in May, 1799, Lewis 
 Day and his son Horatio, of Granby, Conn., and 
 Moses Tibbals and Green Frost, of Granville, 
 Mass., left their homes in a one-horse wagon, and, 
 the 29th of May, arrived in what is now Deerfield 
 Township. Theirs was the first wagon that had 
 ever penetrated farther westward in this region 
 than Canfield. The country west of that, place 
 had been an unbroken wilderness until within a 
 few days. Capt. Caleb Atwater, of Wallingford, 
 Conn., had hired some men to open a road to 
 Township No. 1, in the Seventh Range, of which 
 he was the owner. This road passed through 
 Deerfield, and was completed to that place when 
 the party arrived at the point of their destination. 
 These emigrants selected sites, and commenced 
 clearing the land. In July, Lewis Ely arrived 
 from Granville, and wintered here, while those 
 who came first, and had made their improvements, 
 returned East. The 4th of March, 1800, Alva 
 Day (son of Lewis Day), John Campbell and 
 Joel Thrall arrived. In April, George and Rob- 
 ert Taylor and James Laughlin, fi-om Pennsylvania, 
 with their families, came. Mr. Laughlin built a 
 grist-mill, which was of great convenience to the 
 settlers. July 29, Lewis Day returned with 
 his family and his brother-in-law, Maj. Rogers, 
 who, the next year, also brought his family. 
 
 " Much suffering was experienced at first on 
 account of the scarcity of provisions. They were 
 chiefly supplied from the settlements east of the 
 Ohio River, the nearest of which was Georgetown, 
 forty miles away. The provisions were brought 
 on pack-horses through the wilderness. August 
 22, Mrs. Alva Day gave birth to a child — a fe- 
 male — the first child born in the township. 
 
±i^ 
 
 120 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 November 7, the first wedding took place. John 
 Campbell and Sarah Ely were joined in wedlock 
 by Calvin Austin, Esq., of Warren. He was 
 accompanied from Warren, a distance of twenty- 
 seven miles, by Mr. Pease, then a lawyer, after- 
 ward a well-known Judge. They came on foot, 
 there being no road; and, as they threaded their 
 way through the woods, young Pease taught the 
 Justice the marriage ceremony by oft repetition. 
 
 " In 1802, Franklin Township was organized, em- 
 bracing all of Portage and parts of Trumbull and 
 Summit Counties. About this time the settlement 
 received accessions from all parts of the East. In 
 February, 1801, Rev. Badger came and began his 
 labors, and two years later Dr. Shadrac Bostwick 
 organized a Methodist Episcopal church.* The 
 remaining settlement in this county. Palmyra, was 
 begun about the same time as the others, by David 
 Daniels, from Salisbury, Conn. The next year he 
 brought out his family. Soon after he was joined 
 by E. N. and W. Bacon, E. Cutler, A. Thurber, 
 A. Preston, N. Bois, J. T. Baldwin, T. and C. 
 Gilbert, D. A. and S. Waller, N. Smith, Joseph 
 Fisher, J. Tuttle and others. 
 
 " When this region was first settled, there was 
 an Indian trail commencing at Fort Mcintosh 
 (Beaver, Penn.), and extending westward to San- 
 dusky and Detroit. The trail followed the highest 
 ground. Along the trail, parties of Indians were 
 frequently seen passing, for several years after the 
 whites came. It seemed to be the great aboriginal 
 thoroughfare from Sandusky to the Ohio River. 
 There were several large piles of stones on the 
 trail in this locality, under which human skeletons 
 have been discovered. These are supposed to be 
 the remains of Indians slain in war, or murdered 
 by their enemies, as tradition says it is an Indian 
 custom for each one to cast a stone on the grave 
 of an enemy, whenever he passes by. These stones 
 appear to have been picked up along the trail, and 
 cast upon the heaps at diiFerent times. 
 
 "At the point where this trail crosses Silver 
 Creek, Fredrick Daniels and others, in 1814, dis- 
 covered, painted on several trees, various devices, 
 evidently the work of Indians. The bark was 
 carefully shaved off two-thirds of the way around, 
 and figures cut upon the wood. On one of these 
 was delineated seven Indians, equipped in a par- 
 ticular manner, one of whom was without a head. 
 This was supposed to have been made by a party 
 on their return westward, to give intelligence to 
 
 * Howe's Collections. 
 
 their friends behind, of the loss of one of their 
 party at this place ; and, on making search, a hu- 
 man skeleton was discovered near by." * 
 
 The celebrated Indian hunter, Brady, made his 
 remarkable leap across the Cuyahoga, in this 
 county. The county also contains Brady's Pond, 
 a large sheet of water, in which he once made his 
 escape from the Indians, from which circumstance 
 it received its name. 
 
 The locality comprised in Clark County was 
 settled the same summer as those in Summit County. 
 John Humphries came to this part of the State 
 with Gen. Simon Kenton, in 1799. With them 
 came six families from Kentucky, who settled 
 north of the site of Springfield. A fort was 
 erected on Mad River, for security against the In- 
 dians. Fourteen cabins were soon built near it, 
 all being surrounded by a strong picket fence. 
 David Lowery, one of the pioneers here, built the 
 first flat-boat, to operate on the Great Miami, and, 
 in 1800, made the first trip on that river, coming 
 down from Dayton. He took his boat and cargo 
 on down to New Orleans, where he disposed of his 
 load of " five hundred venison hams and bacon." 
 
 Springfield was laid out in March, 1801. Griffith 
 Foos, who came that spring, built a tavern, which 
 he completed and opened in June, remaining in 
 this place till 1814. He often stated that when 
 emigrating West, his party were four days and a 
 half getting from Franklinton, on the Scioto, to 
 Springfield, a distance of forty-two miles. When 
 crossing the Big Darby, they were obliged to carry 
 all their goods over on horseback, and then drag 
 their wagons across with ropes, while some of the 
 party swam by the side of the wagon, to prevent 
 its upsetting. The site of the town was of such 
 practical beauty and utility, that it soon attracted 
 a large number of settlers, and, in a few years, 
 Springfield was incorporated. In 1811, a church 
 was built by the residents for the use of all denom- 
 inations. 
 
 Clark County is made famous in aboriginal 
 history, as the birthplace and childhood home of 
 the noted Indian, Tecumseh."}" He was born in 
 
 * Howe's Collections. 
 
 f Tecumseh, or Tecumshe, was a son of Puckeshinwa, a member 
 of the Kiscopoke tribe, and Methoataske, of the Turtle tribe of the 
 Shawanee nation. They removed from Florida to Ohio soon after 
 their marriage. The father, Puckeshinwa, rose to the rank of a chief, 
 and fell at the battle of Point Pleasant, in 1774. After his death, 
 the mother, Methoata-ke, returned to the south, where she died at 
 an advanced age. Tecum°eh was born about the year 1768. He 
 early showsd a passion for war, and, when only 27 years of age, was 
 made a chief. The next year he removed to Deer Creek, in the 
 vicinity of Urbana. and from there to the site of Piqua, on the 
 Great Miami. In 1798 he accepted the invitation of the Delawares 
 in the vicinity of White River, Indiana, and from that time made 
 
'.^- 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 121 
 
 the old Indian town of Piqua, the ancient Piqua 
 of the Shawanees, on the north side of Mad River, 
 about five miles west of Springfield. The town 
 was destroyed by the Kentucky Rangers under 
 Gen. (xeorge Rogers Clarke in 1780, at the same 
 time he destroyed " Old Chillicothe." Immense 
 fields of standing corn about both towns were cut 
 down, compelling the Indians to resort to the hunt 
 with more than ordinary vigor, to sustain them- 
 selves and their wives and children. This search 
 insured safety for some time on the borders. The 
 site of Cadiz, in Harrison County, was settled in 
 April, 1799, by Alexander Henderson and his 
 family, from Washington County, Penn. When 
 they arrived, they found neighbors in the persons 
 of Daniel Peterson and his family, who lived near 
 the forks of Short Creek, and who had preceded 
 them but a very short time. The next year, emi- 
 grants began to cross the Ohio in great numbers, 
 and in five or six years large settlements could be 
 seen in this part of the State. The county was 
 erected in 1814, and Cadiz, laid out in 1803, made 
 the county seat. 
 
 While the settlers were locating in and about 
 Cadiz, a few families came to what is now Monroe 
 County, and settled near the present town of 
 Beallsville. Shortly after, a few persons settled on 
 the Clear Fork of the Little IMuskingum, and a 
 few others on the east fork of Duck Creek. The 
 
 next season all these settlements received addi- 
 tions and a few other localities were also occupied. 
 Before long the town of Beallsville was laid 
 out, and in time became quite populous. The 
 county was not erected until 1813, and in 1815 
 Woodsfield was laid out and made the seat of 
 justice. 
 
 The opening of the season of 1800 — the dawn 
 of a new century — saw a vast emigration west 
 ward. Old settlements in Ohio received immense 
 increase of emigrants, while, branching out in all 
 directions like the radii of a circle, other settle- 
 ments were constantly formed until, in a few years, 
 all parts of the State knew the presence of the 
 white man. 
 
 Towns sprang into existence here and there ; 
 mills and factories were erected; post ofiices and 
 post-routes were established, and the comforts and 
 conveniences of life began to appear. 
 
 With this came the desire, so potent to the mind 
 of all American citizens, to rule themselves through 
 representatives chosen by their own votes. Hith- 
 erto, they had been ruled by a Governor and Judges 
 appointed by the President, who, in turn, appointed 
 county and judicial officers. The arbitrary rulings 
 of the Governor, St. Clair, had arrayed the mass 
 of the people against him, and made the desire for 
 the second grade of government stronger, and 
 finally led to its creation. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 FORMATION OF THE STATE GOVERNMENT— OHIO A STATE— THE STATE CAPITALS— LEGIS- 
 LATION— THE "SWEEPING RESOLUTIONS"— TERRITORIAL AND STATE GOVERNORS. 
 
 SETTLEMENTS increased so rapidly in that 
 part of the Northwest Territory included in 
 Ohio, during the decade from 1788 to 1798, 
 despite the Indian war, that the demand for an 
 election of a Territorial Assembly could not be 
 ignored by Gov. St. Clair, who, having ascertained 
 that 5,000 free males resided within the limits of 
 the Territory, issued his proclamation October 29, 
 1798, directing the electors to elect representatives 
 to a General Assembly. He ordered the election 
 
 hia home with them. He was most active in the war of 1812 
 against the Americans, and from the time he began his work to 
 unite the tribes, his history is so closely identified therewith that 
 the reader is referred to the history of that war in succeeding pages. 
 It may not be amiss to say that all stories regarding the manner 
 of his death are considered erroneous. He was undoubtedly killed 
 in the outset of the battle of the Thames in Canada in 1814, and his 
 body secretly buried by the Indians. 
 
 to be held on the third Monday in December, and 
 directed the representatives to meet in Cincinnati 
 January 22, 1799. 
 
 On the day designated, the representatives * 
 assembled at Cincinnati, nominated ten persons, 
 whose names were sent to the President, who 
 selected five to constitute the Legislative Council, 
 
 * Those elected were: from Washington Clounty, Return Jona- 
 than Meigs and Paul Fearing; from Hamilton County, William 
 Goforth, William McMillan, John Smith, John Ludlow, Robert 
 Benham, Aaron Caldwell and Isaac Martin; from St. Clair County 
 (Illinois), Shadrach Bond; from Knox County (Indiana), John 
 Small; from Kandolph County (Illinois), John Edgar; from Wayne 
 County, Solomon Sibley, Jacob Visgar and Charles F. ( habert de 
 Joncaire; from Adams County, Joseph Darlington and Nathaniel 
 Massie; from Jefferson County, James Pritchard; fiom Uoss County, 
 Thomas Worthington, Elias Langham, Samuel Findley and Edward 
 Ti£Bn. The five gentlemen, except Vanderburgh, chosen as the 
 Upper House were all from counties afterward included in Ohio. 
 
 :^ 
 
122 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 or Upper House. These five were Jacob Burnet, 
 James Findley, Henry Vanderburgh, Robert 
 OHver and David Vance. On the 3d of March, 
 the Senate confii-med their nomination, and the 
 Territorial Government of Ohio* — or, more prop- 
 erly, the Northwest — was complete. As this 
 comprised the essential business of this body, it 
 was prorogued by the Governor, and the Assembly 
 directed to meet at the same place September 16, 
 1799, and proceed to the enactment of laws for 
 the Ten-itory. 
 
 That day, the Territorial Legislature met again 
 at Cincinnati, but, for want of a quorum, did not 
 organize until the 24th. The House consisted of 
 nineteen members, seven of whom were from Ham- 
 ilton County, four from Ross, three from Wayne, 
 two from Adams, one from Jefferson, one from 
 Washington and one from Knox. Assembling 
 both branches of the Legislature, Gov. St. Clair 
 addressed them, recommending such measures to 
 their consideration as, in his judgment, were suited 
 to the condition of the country. The Council 
 then organized, electing Henry Vanderburgh, Presi- 
 dent ; William C. Schenck, Secretary; George 
 Howard, Doorkeeper, and Abraham Carey, Ser- 
 geant-at-arms. 
 
 The House also organized, electing Edward Tif- 
 fin, Speaker ; John Reilly, Clerk ; Joshua Row- 
 land, Doorkeeper, and Abraham Carey, Sergeant- 
 at-arms. 
 
 This was the first legislature elected in the old 
 Northwestern Territory. During its first session, 
 it passed thirty bills, of which the Governor vetoed 
 eleven. They also elected Wilham Henry Harri- 
 son, then Secretary of the Territory, delegate to 
 Congress. The Legislature continued in session 
 till December 19, having much to do in forming 
 new laws, when they were prorogued by the Gov- 
 ernor, until the first Monday in November, 1800. 
 The second session was held in Chillicothe, which 
 had been designated as the seat of government by 
 Congress, until a permanent capital should be 
 selected. 
 
 May 7, 1800, Congress passed an act establish- 
 ing Indiana Territory, including all the country 
 west of the Great Miami River to the Mississippi, 
 and appointed William Henry Harrison its Gov- 
 ernor. At the autumn session of the Legislature 
 
 * Ohio never existed as a Territory proper. It was known, both 
 before and after the division of the Northwest Territory, as the 
 "Territory northwest of the Ohio River." Still, as the country 
 comprised in its limits was the principal theater of action, the short 
 resume given here is made necessary in the logical course of events. 
 Ohio, as Ohio, never existed until the creation of the State in 
 March, 1803. 
 
 of the eastern, or old part of the Territory, Will- 
 iam McMillan was elected to the vacancy caused 
 by this act. By the organization of this Territory, 
 the counties of Knox, St. Clair and Randolph, 
 were taken out of the jurisdiction of the old Ter- 
 ritory, and with them the representatives, Henry 
 Vandenburgh, Shadrach Bond, John Small and 
 John Edgar. 
 
 Before the time for the next Assembly came, a 
 new election had occurred, and a few changes were 
 the result. Robert Oliver, of Marietta, was cho- 
 sen Speaker in the place of Henry Vanderburgh. 
 There was considerable business at this session ; 
 several new counties were to be erected ; the coun- 
 try was rapidly filling with people, and where the 
 scruples of the Governor could be overcome, some 
 organization was made. He was very tenacious of 
 his power, and arbitrary in his rulings, affirming 
 that he, alone, had the power to create new coun- 
 ties. This dogmatic exercise of his veto power, 
 his rights as ruler, and his defeat by the Indians, 
 all tended against him, resulting in his displace- 
 ment by the President. This was done, however, 
 just at the time the Territory came from the second 
 grade of government, and the State was created. 
 
 The third session of the Territorial Legislature 
 continued from November 24, 1801, to January 
 23, 1802, when it adjourned to meet in Cincin- 
 nati, the fourth Monday in November, but 
 owing to reasons made obvious by subsequent 
 events, was never held, and the third session 
 marks the decline of the Territorial government. 
 
 April 30, 1802, Congress passed an act " to 
 enable the people of the eastern division of the 
 territory northwest of the Ohio River, to form a 
 constitution and State government, and for the 
 admission of such States into the Union on 
 an equal footing with the original States, and for 
 other purposes." In pursuance of this act, an 
 election had been held in this part of the Territory, 
 and members of a constitutional convention cho- 
 sen, who were to meet at Chillicothe, November 
 1, to perform the duty assigned them. 
 
 The people throughout the country contemplat- 
 ed in the new State were anxious for the adoption 
 of a State government. The arbitrary acts of the 
 Territorial Governor had heightened this feeling ; 
 the census of the Territory gave it the lawful 
 number of inhabitants, and nothing stood in its 
 way. 
 
 The convention met the day designated and 
 proceeded at once to its duties. When the time 
 arrived for the opening of the Fourth Territorial 
 
1^ 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 123 
 
 Legislature, the convention was in session and had 
 evidently about completed its labors. The mem- 
 bers of the Legislature (eight of whom were mem- 
 bers of the convention) seeing that a speedy 
 termination of the Territorial government was inev- 
 itable, wisely concluded it was inexpedient and 
 unnecessary to hold the proposed session. 
 
 The convention concluded its labors the 29th of 
 November. The Constitution adopted at that time, 
 though rather crude in some of its details, was an 
 excellent organic instrument, and remained almost 
 entire until 1851, when the present one was 
 adopted. Either is too long for insertion here, 
 but either will well pay a perusal. The one adopted 
 by the convention in 1802 was never submitted 
 to the people, owing to the circumstances of the 
 times ; but it was submitted to Congress February 
 19, 1803, and by that body accepted, and an act 
 passed admitting Ohio to the Union. 
 
 The Territorial government ended March 3, 
 1803, by the organization, that day, of the State 
 government, which organization defined the pres- 
 ent limits of the State. 
 
 " We, the people of the Eastern Division of the Ter- 
 ritory of tlie United States, Northwest of tlie River 
 Ohio, liaving the right of admission into the General 
 Government as a member of the Union, consistent with 
 the Constitution of the United States, the Ordinance 
 of Congress of one thousand seven hundred and eighty- 
 seven, and of the law of Congress, entitled ' An act to 
 enable the people of the Eastern Division of the Terri- 
 tory of the United States Northwest of the River Ohio, 
 to form a Constitution and a State Government, and for 
 the admission of such State into the Union on an equal 
 footing with the original States, and for other purpo- 
 ses ;' in order to establish justice, promote the well- 
 fare and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves 
 and our posterity, do ordain and establish the follow- 
 ing Constitution or form of government; and do mu- 
 tually agree with each other to form ourselves into a 
 free and independent State, by the name of the State 
 of Ohio."* — Preamble, Constitution of 180S. 
 
 When the convention forming the Constitution, 
 completed its labors and presented the results to 
 Congress, and that body passed the act forming 
 
 * The name of the State is derived from the river forming its 
 southern lioimdaiy. Its origin \<i somewliat obscure, liut is com- 
 monly ascribed to the Indians. On this point. Col. Johnston says: 
 " The Sliawanoese called the Ohio River ' Ki'<-ke-pi-la, Sepe, i. e., '■Engle 
 Etver.' The Wyamlots were in the country generations before the 
 Sliawanoese, and, consequently, their name of the river is the prim- 
 itive one and should stand in preference to all others. Ohio may 
 be called an improvement on the expression, '0-he-zuh,' and was, no 
 doubt, adopted by the early French voyagers in their boat-songs, 
 and is substantially the same wori as used by the Wyandots: the 
 meaning applied by the French, fair and beautiful ' la belle river,' 
 being the same precisely as that meant by the Indians — 'great, 
 grand and fair to look upon.' " — Howe's CoUeclioiis. 
 
 Webster's Dictionary gives the word as of Indian origin, and its 
 meaning to be, " Beautiful." 
 
 the State, the territory included therein was di- 
 vided into nine counties, whose names and dates of 
 erection were as follows: 
 
 Washington, July 27, 1788; Hamilton, Janu- 
 ary 2, 1790; (owing to the Indian war no other 
 counties were erected till peace was restored); Ad- 
 ams, July 10, 1797; Jeiferson, July 29, 1797; 
 Koss, August 20, 1798; Clermont, Fairfield and 
 Trumbull, December 9, 1800; Belmont, Septem- 
 ber 7, 1801. These counties were the thickest- 
 settled part of the State, yet many other localities 
 needed organization and were clamoring for it, but 
 owing to St. Clair's views, he refused to grant 
 their requests. One of the first acts on the as- 
 sembling of the State Legislature, March 1, 1803, 
 was the creation of seven new counties, viz., Gal- 
 lia, Scioto, Geauga, Butler, Warren, Greene and 
 Montgomery. 
 
 Section Sixth of the "Schedule" of the Consti- 
 tution required an election for the various oflicers 
 and Representatives necessary under the new gov- 
 ernment, to be held the second Tuesday of Janu- 
 ary, 1803, these ofiicers to take their seats and as- 
 sume their duties March 3. The Second Article 
 provided for the regular elections, to be held on 
 the second Tuesday of October, in each year. The 
 Governor elected at first was to hold his oflice 
 until the first regular election could be held, and 
 thereafter to continue in oifice two years. 
 
 The January elections placed Edward TiSin in 
 the Governor's office, sent Jeremiah Morrow to 
 Congress, and chose an Assembly, who met on the 
 day designated, at Chillicothe. Michael Baldwin 
 was chosen Speaker of the House, and Nathaniel 
 Massie, of the Senate. The Assembly appointed 
 William Creighton, Jr., Secretary of State ; Col. 
 Thomas Gibson, Auditor ; William McFarland, 
 Treasurer; Return J. Meigs, Jr., Samuel Hun- 
 tington and William Sprigg, Judges of the Su- 
 preme Court ; Francis Dunlevy, Wyllys Silliman 
 and Calvin Pease, President Judges of the First, 
 Second and Third Districts, and Thomas Worth- 
 ington and John Smith, United States Senators. 
 Charles Willing Byrd was made the United States 
 District Judge. 
 
 The act of Congress forming the State, con- 
 tained certain requisitions regarding public schools, 
 the " salt springs," public lands, taxation of Gov- 
 ernment lands, Symmes' purchase, etc., which the 
 constitutional convention agreed to with a few 
 minor considerations. These Congress accepted, 
 and passed the act in accordance thereto. The 
 First General Assembly found abundance of work 
 
 :f- 
 
A: 
 
 124 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 to do regarding these various items, and, at once, 
 set themselves to the task. Laws were passed re- 
 garding all these ; new counties created ; officers 
 appointed for the same, until they could be elected, 
 and courts and machinery of government put in 
 motion. President Judges and lawyers traveled 
 their circuits holding courts, often in the open air 
 or in a log shanty ; a constable doing duty as 
 guard over a jury, probably seated on a log under 
 a tree, or in the bushes. The President Judge in- 
 structed the officers of new counties in their duties, 
 and though the whole keeping of matters accorded 
 with the times, an honest feeling generally pre- 
 vailed, inducing each one to perform his part as 
 effectually as his knowledge permitted. 
 
 The State continually filled with people. New 
 towns arose all over the country. Excepting the 
 occasional sicknesses caused by the new climate and 
 fresh soil, the general health of the people im- 
 proved as time went (5n. They were fully in ac- 
 cord with the President, Jefferson, and carefully 
 nurtured those principles of personal liberty en- 
 grafted in the fundamental law of 1787, and later, 
 in the Constitution of the State. 
 
 Little if any change occurred in the natural 
 course of events, following the change of govern- 
 ment until Burr's expedition and plan of secession 
 in 1805 and 1806 appeared. What his plans 
 were, have never been definitely ascertained. His 
 action related more to the Greneral Government, 
 yet Ohio was called upon to aid in putting down 
 his insurrection — for such it was thought to be — 
 and defeated his purposes, whatever they were. 
 His plans ended only in ignominious defeat ; the 
 breaking-up of one of the finest homes in the 
 Western country, and the expulsion of himself and 
 all those who were actively engaged in his scheme, 
 whatever its imports were. 
 
 Again, for a period of four or five years, no 
 exciting events occurred. Settlements continued ; 
 mills and factories increased ; towns and cities 
 grew ; counties were created ; trade enlarged, and 
 naught save the common course of events trans- 
 pired to mark the course of time. Other States 
 were made from the old Northwest Territory, all 
 parts of which were rapidly being occupied by 
 settlers. The danger from Indian hostilities was 
 little, and the adventurous wliites were rapidly 
 occupying their country. One thing, however, 
 was yet a continual source of annoyance to the 
 Americans, viz., the British interference with the 
 Indians. Their traders did not scruple, nor fail 
 on every opportunity, to aid these sons of the 
 
 forest with arms and ammunition as occasion 
 offered, endeavoring to stir them up against the 
 Americans, until events here and on the high seas 
 culminated in a declaration of hostilities, and the 
 war of 1812 was the result. The deluded red 
 men found then, as they found in 1795, that they 
 were made tools by a stronger power, and dropped 
 when the time came that they were no longer 
 needed. 
 
 Before the opening of hostilities occurred, how- 
 ever, a series of acts passed the Greneral Assembly, 
 causing considerable excitement. These were the 
 famous "Sweeping Resolutions," passed in 1810. 
 For a few years prior to their passage, considera- 
 ble discontent prevailed among many of the legis- 
 lators regarding the rulings of the courts, and by 
 many of these embryo law-makers, the legislative 
 power was considered omnipotent. They could 
 change existing laws and contracts did they desire 
 to, thought many of them, even if such acts con- 
 flicted with the State and National Constitutions. 
 The " Sweeping Resolutions " were brought about 
 mainly by the action of the judges in declaring 
 that justices of the peace could, in the collection 
 of debts, hold jurisdiction in amounts not exceed- 
 ing fifty dollars without the aid of a jury. The 
 Constitution of the United States gave the jury 
 control in all such cases where the amount did not 
 exceed twenty dollars. Tiiere was a direct con- 
 tradiction against the organic law of the land — to 
 which every other law and act is subversive, and 
 when the judges declared the legislative act uncon- 
 stitutional and hence null and void, the Legisla- 
 ture became suddenly inflamed at their independ- 
 ence, and proceeded at once to punish the admin- 
 istrators of justice. The legislature was one of 
 the worst that ever controlled the State, and was 
 composed of many men who were not only igno- 
 rant of common law, the necessities of a State, and 
 the dignity and true import of their office, but 
 were demagogues in every respect. Having the 
 power to impeach officers, that body at once did 
 so, having enough to carry a two-thirds majority, 
 and removed several judges. Further maturing 
 their plans, the " Sweepers," as they were known, 
 construed the law appointing certain judges and 
 civil officers for seven years, to mean seven years 
 from the organization of the State, whether they 
 had been officers that length of time or not. All 
 officers, whether of new or old counties, were con- 
 strued as included in the act, and, utterly ignoring 
 the Constitution, an act was passed in January, 
 1810, removing every civil officer in the State. 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 125 
 
 February 10, they proceeded to fill all these va- 
 cant offices, from State officers down to the lowest 
 county office, either by appointment or by ordering 
 an election in the manner prescribed by law. 
 
 The Constitution provided that the office of 
 judges should continue for seven years, evidently 
 seven years from the time they were elected, and 
 not from the date of the admission of the State, 
 which latter construction this headlong Legisla- 
 ture had construed as the meaning. Many of the 
 counties had been organized but a year or two, 
 others three or four years ; hence an indescribable 
 confusion arose as soon as the new set of officers 
 were appointed or elected. The new order of 
 things could not be made to work, and finally, so 
 utterly impossible did the injustice of the proceed- 
 ings become, that it was dropped. The decisions 
 of the courts were upheld, and the invidious doc- 
 trine of supremacy in State legislation received 
 such a check that it is not likely ever to be repeated. 
 
 Another act of the Assembly, during this pe- 
 riod, shows its construction. Congress had granted 
 a township of land for the use of a university, and 
 located the township in Symmes' purchase. This 
 Assembly located the university on land outside 
 of this purchase, ignoring the act of Congress, as 
 they had done before, showing not only ignorance 
 of the true scope of law, but a lack of respect un- 
 becoming such bodies. 
 
 The seat of government was also moved from 
 Chillicothe to Zanesville, which vainly hoped to be 
 made the permanent State capital, but the next 
 session it was again taken to Chillicothe, and com- 
 missioners appointed to locate a permanent capital 
 site. 
 
 These commissioners were James Findley, Jo- 
 seph Darlington, Wyllys Silliman, Reason Beall, 
 and William McFarland. It is stated that they 
 reported at first in favor of Dublin, a small town 
 on the Scioto about fourteen miles above Colum- 
 bus. At the session of 1812-13, the Assembly 
 accepted the proposals of Col. James Johnston, 
 Alexander McLaughlin, John Kerr, and Lyne 
 Starling, who owned the site of Columbus. The 
 Assembly also decreed that the temporary seat of 
 government should remain at Chillicothe until the 
 buildings necessary for the State officers should be 
 
 erected, when it would be taken there, forever to 
 remain. This was done in 1816, in December of 
 that year the first meeting of the Assembly being 
 held there. 
 
 The site selected for the capital was on the east 
 bank of the Scioto, about a mile below its junction 
 with the Olentangy. Wide streets were laid out, 
 and preparations for a city made. The expecta- 
 tions of the founders have been, in this respect, re- 
 alized. The town was laid out in the spring of 1812, 
 under the direction of Moses Wright. A short 
 time after, the contract for making it the capital was 
 signed. June 18, the same day war was declared 
 against Great Britain, the sale of lots took place. 
 Among the early settlers were George McCor- 
 mick, George B. Harvey, John Shields, Michael 
 Patton, Alexander Fatten, William Altman, John 
 Collett, William McElvain, Daniel Kooser, Peter 
 Putnam, Jacob Hare, Christian Heyl, Jarvis, George 
 and Benjamin Pike, William Long, and Dr. John 
 M. Edminson. In 1814, a house of worship was 
 built, a school opened, a newspaper — The Wtstern 
 Intelligencer and Columbus Gazette^ now the 
 Ohio State Journal — was started, and the old 
 State House erected. In 1816, the "Borough of 
 Columbus" was incorporated, and a mail route once 
 a week between Chillicothe and Columbus started. 
 In 1819, the old United States Court House was 
 erected, and the seat of justice removed from 
 Franklinton to Columbus. Until 1826, times were 
 exceedingly " slow " in the new capital, and but lit- 
 tle growth experienced. The improvement period 
 revived the capital, and enlivened its trade and 
 growth so that in 1834, a city charter was granted. 
 The city is now about third in size in the State, 
 and contains many of the most prominent public 
 institutions. The present capitol building, one of 
 the best in the West, is patterned somewhat after 
 the national Capitol at Washington City. 
 
 From the close of the agitation of the " Sweeping 
 Resolutions," until the opening of the war of 1812, 
 but a short time elapsed. In fact, scarcely had 
 one subsided, ere the other was upon the country. 
 Though the war was national, its theater of opera- 
 tions was partly in Ohio, that State taking an act- 
 ive part in its operations. Indeed, its liberty 
 depended on the war. 
 
 ^^ '' 
 
.Jk s 
 
 126 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 LIST OF TERRITORIAL AND STATE GOVERNORS, 
 
 From the organization of the first civil government in the Northwest Territory ( 1 ' 
 
 Ohio was apart, until the year 1880. 
 
 to 1802), of which the State of 
 
 NAME. 
 
 (a) Arthur St. Clair 
 
 *Charles Willing Byrd 
 
 (6) Edward Tiiiin 
 
 (c) fThomas Kirker 
 
 Samuel Huntington 
 
 (d) Return Jonathan Meigs. 
 
 fOthniel Looker 
 
 Thomas Worthington , 
 
 (e) Ethan Allen Brown 
 
 fAllen Trimble 
 
 Jeremiah Morrow 
 
 Allen Trimble 
 
 Duncan McArthur 
 
 Robert Lucas 
 
 Joseph Vance 
 
 Wilson Shannon 
 
 Thomas Corwin 
 
 (/) Wilson Shannon 
 
 JThomas W. Bartley , 
 
 Mordecai Bartley 
 
 William Bebb , 
 
 (g) Seabury Ford 
 
 (h) Reuben Wood 
 
 (i)^ William Medill 
 
 Salmon P. Chase 
 
 William Dennison 
 
 David Tod 
 
 (k) John Brough 
 
 gCharles Anderson 
 
 Jacob D. Cox , 
 
 Rutherford B. Hayes , 
 
 Edward F. Noyes , 
 
 William Allen 
 
 (I) Rutherford B. Hayes 
 
 (m) Thomas L. Young 
 
 Richard M. Bishop 
 
 Charles Foster 
 
 COUNTY. 
 
 Hamilton 
 
 Ross , 
 
 Adams 
 
 Trumbull 
 
 Washington.. 
 
 Hamilton 
 
 Ross 
 
 Hamilton 
 
 Highland 
 
 Warren 
 
 Highland 
 
 Ross , 
 
 Pike 
 
 Champaign .., 
 
 Belmont - 
 
 Warren 
 
 Belmont , 
 
 Richland 
 
 Richland 
 
 Butler 
 
 Geauga 
 
 Cuyahoga 
 
 Fairfield 
 
 Hamilton 
 
 Franklin 
 
 Mahoning 
 
 Cuyahoga 
 
 Montgomery. 
 
 Trumbull , 
 
 Hamilton , 
 
 Hamilton 
 
 Ross 
 
 Sandusky 
 
 Hamilton 
 
 Hamilton 
 
 Sandusky 
 
 Term 
 Commenced. 
 
 July 13 
 Nov. 
 
 March 3 
 March 4 
 Dec. 12 
 Dec. 
 
 April 14 
 Dec, 
 
 Dec. 
 Jan. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec, 
 
 April 13 
 Dec 
 
 Dec. 
 
 Jan. 
 
 Dec. 
 
 July 
 
 Jan. 
 
 Jan. 
 
 Jan. 
 
 Jan. 
 
 Aug. 
 
 Jan 
 
 .Jan. 
 
 Jan. 
 
 .Jan. 
 
 Jan. 
 
 March 2 
 Jan. 14 
 Jan. 14 
 
 1788 
 1802 
 , 1803 
 , 1807 
 , 1808 
 , 1810 
 , 1814 
 , 1814 
 , 1818 
 , 1822 
 , 1822 
 , 1826 
 , 1830 
 , 1832 
 , 1836 
 , 1838 
 , 1840 
 , 1842 
 , 1844 
 , 1844 
 , 1846 
 ,1849 
 , 1850 
 , 1853 
 , 1856 
 . 1860 
 , 1862 
 , 1864 
 , 1 
 , 1866 
 , 1868 
 , 1 
 , 1874 
 , 1876 
 , 1877 
 , 1878 
 , 1880 
 
 Term Ended. 
 
 Nov. 
 
 March 3 
 March 4 
 Dec. 12 
 Dec. 8 
 March 25 
 Dec. 8 
 
 Dec. 
 Jan. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 Dec. 
 
 April 13 
 Dec. 3 
 
 Dec. 
 Jan. 
 Dec. 
 
 July 15 
 Jan. 14 
 
 Jan. 
 Jan. 
 Jan. 
 
 Aug. 29 
 Jan. 9 
 
 13 
 
 8 
 
 12 
 
 14 
 
 March 2 
 Jan. 14 
 Jan. 14 
 
 Jan. 
 Jan. 
 Jan. 
 Jan. 
 
 1802 
 1803 
 1807 
 1808 
 1810 
 1814 
 1814 
 1818 
 1822 
 1822 
 1826 
 1830 
 1832 
 1836 
 1838 
 1840 
 1842 
 1844 
 1844 
 1846 
 1849 
 1850 
 1853 
 1856 
 1860 
 1862 
 1864 
 1865 
 1866 
 1868 
 1872 
 1874 
 1876 
 1877 
 1878 
 1880 
 
 (a) Arthur St. Clair, of Pennsylvania, was Governor of the North- 
 west Territory, of which Ohio was a part.from July 13, 1788, when the 
 first civil government was estahliehed in the Territory, until about 
 the close of the year 1802, when he was removed by the President. 
 
 ♦Secretary of the Territory, and was acting Governor of the 
 Territory after the removal of Gov. St. Clair. 
 
 ib) Resigned March 3, 1807, to accept the office of U. S. Senator. 
 
 (c) Return Jonathan Meigs was elected Governor on the second 
 Tuesday of October, 1807, over Nathaniel Massie, who contested the 
 election of Meigs, on the ground that "he had not been a resident of 
 this State for four years next preceding the election, as required by 
 the ConstHution,"' and the General Assembly, in joint convention, 
 declared that he was not eligible. The office was not given to 
 Massie, nor does it appear, from the records that he claimed it, but 
 Thomas Kirker, acting Governor, continued to discharge the duties 
 of the office until December 12,1808, when Samuel Huntington was 
 inaugurated, he having been elected on the second Tuesday of 
 October in that year. 
 
 (d) Resigned March 25, 1814, to accept the office of Postmaster- 
 General of the United States. 
 
 («) Resigned January 4, 1822. to accept the office of United 
 States !?enator. 
 
 (/) Resigned April 13, 1844, to accept the office of Minister to 
 Mexico. 
 
 (3) The result of the election in 1848 was not finally determined in 
 joint convention of the two bouses of the General Asaembly until 
 January 19,1849, and the inauguration did not take place until the 
 22dof that month. 
 
 (h) Resigned July 15, 1853 to accept the office of Consul to Val- 
 paraiso. 
 
 0) Elected in October, 1853, for the regular term, to commence 
 on tlie second Monday of January, 1854. 
 
 (k) Died August 29, 18G5. 
 
 t Acting Governor. 
 
 i Acting Governor, vice Wilson Shannon, resigned. 
 
 ^ Acting Governor, vice Reuben Wood, resigned. 
 
 ^ Acting Governor, vice John Brough, deceased. 
 
 (I) Resigned March 2, 1877, to accept the office of President of 
 the United States. 
 
 (m) Vice Rutherford B. Hayes, resigned. 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 127 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 THE WAR OF 1812— GROWTH OF THE STATE— CANAL, RAILROADS AND OTHER IMPROVEMENTS 
 
 —DEVELOPMENT OF STATE RESOURCES. 
 
 IN June, 1812, war was declared against Great 
 Britain. Before this, an act was passed by Con- 
 gress, authorizing the increase of the regular army 
 to thirty-five thousand troops, and a large force of 
 volunteers, to serve twelve months. Under this 
 act. Return J. Meigs, then Governor of Ohio, in 
 April and May, 1812, raised three regiments of 
 troops to serve twelve months. They rendez- 
 voused at Dayton, elected their officers, and pre- 
 pared for the campaign. These regiments were 
 numbered First, Second and Third. Duncan Mc- 
 Arthur was Colonel of the First ; James Findlay, 
 of the Second, and Lewis Cass, of the Third. 
 Early in June these troops marched to Urbana, 
 where they were joined by Boyd's Fourth Regiment 
 of regular troops, under command of Col. Miller, 
 who had been in the battle of Tippecanoe. Near 
 the middle of June, this little army of about 
 twenty-five hundred men, under command of Gov. 
 William Hull, of Michigan, who had been author- 
 ized by Congress to raise the troops, started on 
 its northern march. By the end of June, the 
 army had reached the Maumee, after a very severe 
 march, erecting, on the way. Forts McArthur, Ne- 
 cessity and Findlay. By some carelessness on the 
 part of the American Government, no ofiicial word 
 had been sent to the frontiers regarding the war, 
 while the British had taken an early precaution to 
 prepare for the crisis. Gov. Hull was very care- 
 ful in military etiquette, and refused to march, or 
 do any ofi"ensive acts, unless commanded by his 
 superior officers at Washington. While at the 
 Maumee, by a careless move, all his personal 
 effects, including all his plans, number and strength 
 of his army, etc., fell into the hands of the enemy. 
 His campaign ended only in ignominious defeat, 
 and well-nigh paralyzed future efi"orts. All Mich- 
 igan fell into the hands of the British. The com- 
 mander, though a good man, lacked bravery and 
 promptness. Had Gen. Harrison been in com- 
 mand no such results would have been the case, 
 and the war would have probably ended at the 
 outset. 
 
 Before Hull had surrendered, Charles Scott, 
 Governor of Kentucky, invited Gen. Harrison, 
 
 Governor of Indiana Territory, to visit Frankfort, 
 to consult on the subject of defending the North- 
 west. Gov. Harrison had visited Gov. Scott, and 
 in August, 1812, accepted the appointment of 
 Major General in the Kentucky militia, and, by 
 hasty traveling, on the receipt of the news of the 
 surrender of Detroit, reached Cincinnati on the 
 morning of the 27th of that month. On the 30th 
 he left Cincinnati, and the next day overtook the 
 army he was to command, on its way to Dayton. 
 After leaving Dayton, he was overtaken by an ex- 
 press, informing him of his appointment by the 
 Government as Commander-in-Chief of the armies 
 of the Indiana and Illinois Territories. The army 
 reached Piqua, September 3. From this place 
 Harrison sent a body of troops to aid in the de- 
 fense of Fort Wayne, threatened by the enemy. 
 On the 6th he ordered all the troops forward, and 
 while on the march, on September 17, he was 
 informed of his appointment as commander of the 
 entire Northwestern troops. He found the army 
 poorly clothed for a winter campaign, now ap- 
 proaching, and at once issued a stirring address to 
 the people, asking for food and comfortable cloth- 
 ing. The address was not in vain. After his 
 appointment. Gen. Harrison pushed on to Au- 
 glaize, where, leaving the army under command of 
 Gen. Winchester, he returned to the interior of the 
 State, and establishing his headquarters at Frank- 
 liuton, began active measures for the campaign. 
 
 Early in March, 1812, Col. John Miller raised, 
 under orders, a regiment of infantry in Ohio, and 
 in July assembled his enlisted men at Chillicothe, 
 where, placing them — only one hundred and forty 
 in number — under command of Captain Ang-us 
 Lewis, he sent them on to the frontier. They erect- 
 ed a block-house at Piqua and then went on to 
 Defiance, to the main body of the armv. 
 
 In July, 1812, Gen. Edward W. ^Tupper, of 
 Gallia County, raised one thousand men for six 
 months' duty. Under orders from Gen. Winches- 
 ter, they marched through Chillicothe and Urbana, 
 on to the Maumee, where, near the lower end of 
 the rapids, they made an ineffectual attempt to 
 drive off" the enemy. Failing in this, the enemy 
 
 :i- 
 
A^ 
 
 128 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 attacked Tupper and his troops, who, though worn 
 down with the march and not a Httle disorganized 
 through the jealousies of the officers, withstood 
 the attack, and repulsed the British and their red 
 allies, who returned to Detroit, and the Americans 
 to Fort McArthur. 
 
 In the fall of 1812, Gcii. Harrison ordered a 
 detachment of six hundred men, mostly mounted, 
 to destroy the Indian towns on the Missisineway 
 River, one of the head-waters of the Wabash. 
 The winter set in early and with unusual severity. 
 At the same time this expedition was carried on, 
 Bonaparte was retreating from Moscow. The expe- 
 dition accomplished its design, though the troops 
 suffered greatly from the cold, no less than two 
 hundred men being more or less frost bitten. 
 
 Gen. Harrison determined at once to retake 
 Michigan and establish a line of defense along the 
 southern shores of the lakes. Winchester was 
 sent to occupy Forts Wayne and Defiance; Perkins' 
 brigade to Lower Sandusky, to fortify an old 
 stockade, and some Pennsylvania troops and artil- 
 lery sent there at the same time. As soon as 
 Gen. Harrison heard the results of the Missis- 
 ineway expedition, he went to Chillicothe to con- 
 sult with Gov. Meigs about further movements, 
 and tlie best methods to keep the way between the 
 Upper Miami and the Maumee continually open. 
 He also sent Gen. Winchester word to move for- 
 ward to the rapids of the Maumee and prepare for 
 winter quarters. This Winchester did by the 
 middle of January, 1813, establishing himself on 
 the northern bank of the river, just above Wayne's 
 old battle-ground. He was well fixed here, and 
 was enabled to give his troops good bread, made from 
 corn gathered in Indian corn-fields in this vicinity. 
 
 While here, the inhabitants of Frenchtown, on 
 the Raisin River, about twenty miles from Detroit, 
 sent Winchester word claiming protection from the 
 threatened British and Indian invasion, avowing 
 themselves in sympathy with the Americans. A 
 council of war decided in favor of their request, 
 and Col. Lewis, with 550 men, sent to their relief 
 Soon afler. Col. Allen was sent with more troops, 
 and the enemy easily driven away from about 
 Frenchtown. Word was sent to Gen. Winchester, 
 who determined to march with all the men he 
 could spare to aid in holding the post gained. He 
 lefl, the 19th of January, with 250 men, and ar- 
 rived on the evening of the 20th. Failing to 
 take the necessary precaution, from some unex- 
 plained reason, the enemy came up in the night, 
 established his batteries, and, the next day, sur- 
 
 prised and defeated the American Army with a 
 terrible loss. Gen. Winchester was made a pris- 
 oner, and, finally, those who were intrenched in 
 the town surrendered, under promise of Proctor, 
 the British commander, of protection from the 
 Indians. This promise was grossly violated the 
 next day. The savages were allowed to enter the 
 town and enact a massacre as cruel and bloody as 
 any in the annals of the war, to the everlasting 
 ignominy of the British General and his troops. 
 
 Those of the American Army that escaped, ar- 
 rived at the rapids on the evening of the 22d of 
 January, and soon the sorrowful news spread 
 throughout the army and nation. Gen. Harrison 
 set about retrieving the disaster at once. Delay 
 could do no good. A fort was built at the rapids, 
 named Fort Meigs, and troops from the south and 
 west hurriedly advanced to the scene of action. 
 The investment and capture of Detroit was aban- 
 doned, that winter, owing to the defeat at French- 
 town, and expiration of the terms of service of 
 many of the troops. Others took their places, 
 all parts of Ohio and bordering States sending 
 men. 
 
 The erection of Fort Meigs was an obstacle in 
 the path of the British they determined to remove, 
 and, on the 28th of February, 1813, a large band 
 of British and Indians, under command of Proc- 
 tor, Tecumseh, Walk-in-the-water, and other In- 
 dian chiefs, appeared in the Maumee in boats, and 
 prepared for the attack. Without entering into 
 details regarding the investment of the fort, it is 
 only necessary to add, that after a prolonged siege, 
 lasting to the early part of May, the British were 
 obliged to abandon the fort, having been severely 
 defeated, and sailed for the Canadian shores. 
 
 Next followed the attacks on Fort Stephenson, 
 at Lower Sandusky, and other predatory excur- 
 sions, by the British. All of these failed of their 
 design; the defense of Maj. Croghan and his men 
 constituting one of the most brilliant actions of the 
 war. For the gallant defense of Fort Stephenson by 
 Maj. Croghan, then a young man, the army merited 
 the highest honors. The ladies of Chillicothe voted 
 the heroic Major a fine sword, while the whole 
 land rejoiced at the exploits of him and his band. 
 
 The decisive efforts of the army, the great num- 
 bers of men offered — many of whom Gen. Harrison 
 was obliged to send home, much to their disgust — 
 Perry's victory on Lake Erie, September 10, 
 1813 — all presaged the triumph of the American 
 arms, soon to ensue. As soon as the battle on 
 the lake was over, the British at Maiden burned 
 
[ii 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 129 
 
 their stores, and fled, wliile the Americans, under 
 their gallant commander, followed them in Perry's 
 vessel to the Canada shore, overtaking them on 
 the River Thames, October 5. In the battle that 
 ensued, Tecumseh was slain, and the British Army 
 routed. 
 
 The war was now practically closed in the "West. 
 Ohio troops had done nobly in defending their 
 northern frontier, and in regaining the Northwest- 
 ern country. Gen. Harrison was soon after elected 
 to Congress by the Cincinnati district, and Gen. 
 Duncan McArthur was appointed a Brigadier 
 General in the regular army, and assigned to the 
 command in his place. Gen. McArthur made an 
 expedition into Upper Canada in the spring of 
 1814, destroying considerable property, and driv- 
 ing the British farther into their own dominions. 
 Peace was declared early in 1815, and that spring, 
 the troops were mustered out of service at Chilli- 
 cothe, and peace with England reigned supreme. 
 
 The results of the war in Ohio were, for awhile, 
 similar to the Indian war of 1795. It brought 
 many people into the State, and opened new por- 
 tions, before unknown. Many of the soldiers im- 
 mediately invested their money in lands, and became 
 citizens. The war drove many people from the 
 Atlimtic Coast west, and as a result much money, 
 for awhile, circulated. Labor and provisions rose, 
 which enabled both workmen and tradesmen to 
 enter tracts of land, and aided emigration. At the 
 conclusion of Wayu-^'s war in 1795, probably 
 not more than five thousand people dwelt in the 
 limits of the State ; at the close of the war of 1812, 
 that number was largely increased, even with the 
 odds of war against them. After the last war, tlie 
 emigration was constant and gradual, building up 
 the State in a manner that betokened a healthful 
 life. 
 
 As soon as the effects of the war had worn off, 
 a period of depression set in, as a result of too 
 free speculation indulged in at its close. Gradu- 
 ally a stagnation of business ensued, and many 
 who found the'inselves unable to meet contracts 
 made in "flush" times, found no alternative but 
 to fail. To relieve the pressure in all parts of 
 the West, Congress, about 1815, reduced the 
 price of public lands from $2 to $1.25 
 per acre. This measure worked no little 
 hardship on those who owned large tracts of 
 lands, for portions of which they had not fully 
 paid, and as a consequence, these lands, as well 
 as all others of this class, reverted to the 
 Government. The general market was in New 
 
 Orleans, whither goods were transported in flat- 
 boats built especially for this pupose. This com- 
 merce, though small and poorly repaid, was the 
 main avenue of trade, and did much for the slow 
 prosperity prevalent. The few banks in the State 
 found their bills at a discount abroad, and gradu- 
 ally becoming di-ained of their specie, either closed 
 business or failed, the major part of them adopt- 
 ing the latter course. 
 
 The steamboat began to be an important factor 
 in the river navigation of the West about this 
 period. The first boat to descend the Ohio was 
 the Orleans, built at Pittsburg in 1812, and in 
 December of that year, while the fortunes of war 
 hung over the land, she made her first trip fi-om the 
 Iron City to New Orleans, being just twelve days 
 on the way. The second, built by Samuel Smith, 
 was called the Comet, and made a trip as far 
 south as Louisville, in the summer of 1813. The 
 third, the Vesuvius, was built by Fulton, and went 
 to New Orleans in 1814. The fourth, built by 
 Daniel French at Brownsville, Penn., made two 
 trips to Louisville in the summer of 1814. The 
 next vessel, the ^tna, was built by Fulton & 
 Company in 1815. So fast did the business 
 increase, that, four years after, more than 
 forty steamers floated on the Western waters. 
 Improvements in machinery kept pace with the 
 building, until, in 1838, a competent writer stated 
 there were no less than four hundred steamers in 
 the West. Since then, the erection of railways 
 has greatly retarded ship-building, and it is alto- 
 gether probable the number has increased but 
 little. 
 
 The question of canals began to agitate the 
 Western country during the decade succeeding the 
 war. They had been and were being constructed 
 in older countries, and presaged good and prosper- 
 ous times. If only the waters of the lakes and 
 the Ohio River could be united by a canal run- 
 ning through the midst of the State, thought the 
 people, prosperous cities and towns would arise on 
 its banks, and commerce flow through the land. 
 One of the firmest friends of such improvements 
 was De Witt Clinton, who had been the chief man 
 in forwarding the " Clinton Canal," in New York. 
 He was among the first to advocate the feasibility 
 of a canal connecting Lake Erie and the Ohio 
 River, and, by the success of the New York canals, 
 did much to bring it about. Popular writers of the 
 day all urged the scheme, so that when thi; Assem- 
 bly met, early in December, 1821, the resolution, 
 offered by Micajah T. Williams, of Cincinnati, 
 
 :f^ 
 
*^- 
 
 130 
 
 HISTOEY OF OHIO. 
 
 for the appointment of a committee of five mem- 
 bers to take into consideration so much of the 
 Governor's message as related to canals, and see if 
 some feasible plan could not be adopted whereby a 
 beginning could be made, was quickly adopted. 
 
 The report of the committee, advising a survey 
 and examination of routes, met with the approval 
 of the Assembly, and commissioners were ap- 
 pointed who were to employ an engineer, examine 
 the country and report on the practicability of a 
 canal between the lakes and the river. The com- 
 missioners employed James Gleddes, of Onondaga 
 County, N. Y., as an engineer. He arrived in 
 Columbus in June, 1822, and, before eight months, 
 the corps of engineers, under his direction, had 
 examined one route. During the next two sum- 
 mers, the examinations continued. A number of 
 routes were examined and surveyed, and one, from 
 Cleveland on the lake, to Portsmouth on the Ohio, 
 was recommended. Another canal, from Cincin- 
 nati to Dayton, on the Miami, was determined on, 
 and preparations to commence work made. A 
 Board of Canal Fund Commissioners was created, 
 money was borrowed, and the morning of July 
 4, 1825, the first shovelful of earth was dug near 
 Newark, with imposing ceremonies, in the presence 
 of De Witt Clinton, Grovernor of New York, and 
 a mighty concourse of people assembled to witness 
 the auspicious event. 
 
 Gov. Clinton was escorted all over the State to 
 aid in developing the energy everywhere apparent. 
 The events were important ones in the history of 
 the State, and, though they led to the creation of 
 a vast debt, yet, in the end, the canals were a 
 benefit. 
 
 The main canal — the Ohio and Erie Canal — 
 was not completed till 1832. The Maumee Canal, 
 from Dayton to Cincinnati, was finished in 1834. 
 They cost the State about $G,000,UOO. Each of 
 the main canals had branches leading to important 
 towns, where their construction could be made 
 without too much expense. The Miami and Mau- 
 mee Canal, from Cincinnati northward along the 
 Miami River to Piqua, thence to the Maumee 
 and on to the lake, was the largest canal made, 
 and, for many years, was one of the most important 
 in the State. It joined the Wabash Canal on the 
 eastern boundary of Indiana, and thereby saved 
 the construction of many miles by joining this 
 great canal from Toledo to Evansville. 
 
 The largest artificial lake in the world, it is said, 
 was built to supply water to the Miami Canal. It 
 exists yet, though the canal is not much used. It 
 
 is in the eastern part of Mercer County, and is 
 about nine miles long by from two to four wide. 
 It was formed by raising two walls of earth from 
 ten to thirty feet high, called respectively the east 
 and west embankments ; the first of which is about 
 two miles in length ; the second, about four. These 
 walls, with the elevation of the ground to the 
 north and south, formed a huge basin, to retain 
 the water. The reservoir was commenced in 1837, 
 and finished in 1845, at an expense of several 
 hundred thousand dollars. When first built, dur- 
 ing the accumulation of water, much malarial 
 disease prevailed in the surrounding country, owing 
 to the stagnant condition of the water. The citi- 
 zens, enraged at what they considered an innova- 
 tion of their rights, met, and, during a dark night, 
 tore out a portion of the lower wall, letting the 
 water flow out. The damage cost thousands of 
 dollars to repair. All who participated in the 
 proceedings were liable to a severe imprisonment, 
 but the state of feeling was such, in Mercer County, 
 where the offense was committed, that no jury 
 could be found that would try them, and the affair 
 gradually died out. 
 
 The canals, so efficacious in their day, were, 
 however, superseded by the railroads rapidly find- 
 ing their way into the West. From England, 
 where they were early used in the collieries, the 
 transition to America was easy. 
 
 The first railroad in the United States was built 
 in the summer of 1826, from the granite quarry 
 belonging to the Bunker Hill Monument Associa- 
 tion to the wharf landing, three miles distant. The 
 road was a slight decline from . the quarry to 
 the wharf, hence the loaded cars were pro- 
 pelled by their own gravity. On their return, 
 when empty, they were drawn up by a single 
 horse. Other roads, or tramways, quickly followed 
 this. They were built at the Pennsylvania coal 
 mines, in South Carolina, at New Orleans, and at 
 Baltimore. Steam motive power was used in 1831 
 or 1832, first in America on the Baltimore & Ohio 
 Railroad, and in Charlestown, on a railroad there. 
 
 To transfer these highways to the West was the 
 question of but a few years' time. The prairies of 
 Illinois and Indiana offered superior inducements 
 to such enterprises, and, early in 1835, they began 
 to be agitated there. In 1838, the first rail was 
 laid in Illinois, at Meredosia, a little town on the 
 Illinois River, on what is now the Wabash Railway. 
 
 "The first railroad made in Ohio," writes Caleb 
 Atwater, in his "History of Ohio," in 1838, "was 
 finished in 1836 by the people of Toledo, a town 
 
 >^ <s~ 
 
>^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 131 
 
 some two years old then, situated near the mouth 
 of Maumee River. The road extends westward in- 
 to Michigan and is some thirty miles in length. 
 There is a road about to be made from Cincinnati 
 to Springfield. This road follows the Ohio River 
 up to the Little Miami River, and there turns 
 northwardly up its valley to Xenia, and, passing 
 the Yellow Springs, reaches Springfield. Its length 
 must be about ninety miles. The State will own 
 one-half of the road, individuals and the city of 
 Cincinnati the other half This road will, no 
 doubt, be extended to Lake Erie, at Sandusky 
 City, within a few short years." 
 
 "There is a railroad." continues Mr. Atwater, 
 "about to be made from Painesville to the Ohio 
 River. There are many charters for other roads, 
 which will never be made." 
 
 Mr. Atwater notes also, the various turnpikes as 
 well as the famous National road from Baltimore 
 westward, then completed only to the mountains. 
 This latter did as much as any enterprise ever en- 
 acted in building up and populating the West. 
 It gave a national thoroughfare, which, for many 
 years, was the principal wagon-way from the At- 
 lantic to the Mississippi Valley. 
 
 The railroad to which Mr. Atwater refers as 
 about to be built from Cincinnati to Springfield, 
 was what was known as the Mad River Railroad. 
 It is commonly conceded to be the first one built 
 in Ohio.* Its history shows that it was chartered 
 March 11, 1836, that work began in 1837; that 
 it was completed and opened for business from 
 Cincinnati to Milford, in December, 1842; to Xe- 
 nia, in August, 1845, and to Springfield, in Au- 
 gust, 1846. It was laid with strap rails until 
 about 1848, when the present form of rail was 
 adopted. 
 
 One of the earliest roads in Ohio was what was 
 known as the Sandusky, Mansfield & Newark Rail- 
 road. It was chartered at first as the Monroeville 
 & Sandusky City Railroad, March 9, 1835. March 
 12, 1836, the Mansfield & New Haven road was 
 chartered; the Columbus & Lake Erie, March 12, 
 
 1845, and the Huron & Oxford, February 27, 
 
 1846. At first it ran only from Sandusky to 
 Monroeville, then from Mansfield to Huron. These 
 
 * Hon. E D. Mansfield states, in 1873, that the " first actual piece 
 of railroad laid in Ohio, was made on the Cincinnati & Sandusky 
 Railroad; hut, about the same time we have the Little Miami Rail- 
 road, which was surveyed in 1836 and 1837. If this, the generally 
 accepted opinion, is correct, then Mr. Atwater's statement as given, 
 is wrong. His history is, however, generally conceded to be correct. 
 Written in 1838, he surely ought to know whereof he was writing, 
 as the railroads were then only in construction ; but few, if any, 
 in operation. 
 
 two were connected and consolidated, and then ex- 
 tended to Newark, and finally, by connections, to 
 Columbus. 
 
 It is unnecessary to follow closely the history of 
 these improvements through the years succeeding 
 their introduction. At first the State owned a 
 share in nearly all railroads and canals, but finally 
 finding itself in debt about $15,00U,000 for such 
 improvements, and learning by its own and neigh- 
 bors' experiences, that such policy was detrimental 
 to the best interests of the people, abandoned the 
 plan, and allowed private parties entire control of 
 all such works. After the close of the Mexican 
 war, and the return to solid values in 1 854 or there- 
 abouts, the increase of railroads in all parts of Ohio, 
 as well as all parts of the West, was simply marvel- 
 ous. At this date there are more than ten thou- 
 sand miles of railroads in Ohio, alongside of which 
 stretch innumerable lines of telegraph, a system of 
 swift messages invented by Prof Morse, and adopted 
 in the United States about 1851. 
 
 About the time railroad building began to as- 
 sume a tangible shape, in 1840, occurred the cele- 
 brated political campaign known in history as the 
 " Hard Cider Campaign." The gradual encroach- 
 ments of the slave power in the West, its arrogant 
 attitude in the Congress of the United States and 
 in several State legislatures : its forcible seizure of 
 slaves in the free States, and the enactment and 
 attempted enforcement of the "fugitive slave" law 
 all tended to awaken in the minds of the Northern 
 people an antagonism, terminating only in the late 
 war and the abolishment of that hideous system in 
 the United States. 
 
 The "Whig Party" strenuously urged the 
 abridgment or confinement of slavery in the 
 Southern States, and in the contest the party took 
 a most active part, and elected William Henry 
 Harrison President of the United States. As he 
 had been one of the foremost leaders in the war of 
 1812, a resident of Ohio, and one of its most pop- 
 ular citizens, a log cabin and a barrel of cider were 
 adopted as his exponents of popular opinion, as 
 expressive of the rule of the common people repre- 
 sented in the cabin and cider, in turn representing 
 their primitive and simple habits of life. He 
 lived but thirty days after his inauguration, dying 
 on the 9th of April, 1841, when John Tyler, the 
 Vice President, succeeded him as Chief Executive 
 of the nation. 
 
 The building of railroads ; the extension of com- 
 merce ; the settlement of all parts of the State ; 
 its growth in commerce, education, reHgion and 
 
 
©_ 
 
 132 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 population, are the chief events from 1841 to the 
 Mexican war. Hard times occurred about as often 
 as they do now, preceded by " flush" times, when 
 speculation ran rife, the people all infatuated with 
 
 an insane idea that something could be had for 
 nothing. The bubble burst as often as inflated, 
 ruining many people, but seemingly teaching few 
 lessons. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 MEXICAN WAR— CONTINUED GROWTH OF THE STATE— WAR OF THE REBELLION— OHIO'S 
 
 PART IN THE CONFLICT. 
 
 THE Mexican War grew out of the question of 
 the annexation of Texas, then a province of 
 Mexico, whose territory extended to the Indian 
 Territory on the north, and on up to the Oregon 
 Territory on the Pacific Coast. Texas had been 
 settled largely by Americans, who saw the condi- 
 tion of aft'airs that would inevitably ensue did the 
 country remain under Mexican rule. They first 
 took steps to secede from Mexico, and then asked 
 the aid of America to sustain them, and annex the 
 country to itself. 
 
 The Whig party and many others opposed this, 
 chiefly on the grounds of the extension of slave 
 territory. But to no avail. The war came on, 
 Mexico was conquered, the war lasting from April 
 20, 1846, to May 30, 1848. Fifty thousand vol- 
 unteers were called for the war by the Congress, 
 and $10,000,000 placed at the disposal of the 
 President, James K. Polk, to sustain the army and 
 prosecute the war. 
 
 The part that Ohio took in the war may be 
 briefly summed up as follows : She had five vol- 
 unteer regiments, five companies in the Fifteenth 
 Infantry, and several independent companies, with 
 her full proportion among the regulars. When 
 war was declared, it was something of a crusade to 
 many ; full of romance to others ; hence, many 
 more were offiered than could be received. It was 
 a campaign of romance to some, yet one of reality, 
 ending in death, to many. 
 
 When the first call for troops came, the First, 
 Second and Third Regiments of infantry responded 
 at once. Alexander Mitchell was made Colonel of 
 the First; John E. Wellerits Lieutenant Colonel ; 
 and Major L. Giddings, of Dayton, its Major, 
 Thos. L. Hamer, one of the ablest lawyers in Ohio, 
 started with the First as its Major, but, before the 
 regiment left the State, he was made a Brigadier 
 General of Volunteers, and, at the battle of Mon- 
 terey, distinguished himself; and there contracted 
 
 disease and laid down his life. The regiment's 
 Colonel, who had been wounded at Monterey, came 
 home, removed to Minnesota, and there died. 
 Lieut. Col. Weller went to California after the 
 close of the war. He was United States Senator 
 from that State in the halls of Congress, and, at 
 last, died at New Orleans. 
 
 The Second Regiment was commanded by Col. 
 George W. Morgan, now of Mount Vernon ; Lieut. 
 Col. William Irwin, of Lancaster, and Maj. Will- 
 iam Wall. After the war closed, Irwin settled in 
 Texas, and remained there till he died. Wall lived 
 out his days in Ohio. The regiment was never in 
 active field service, but was a credit to the State. 
 
 The ofiicers of the Third Regiment were. Col. 
 Samuel R. Curtis; Lieut. Col. G. W. McCookand 
 Maj. John Love. The first two are now dead ; 
 the Major lives in McConneUsville. 
 
 At the close of the first year of the war, these 
 regiments (First, Second and Third) were mustered 
 out of service, as their term of enlistment had 
 expired. 
 
 When the second year of the war began, the 
 call for more troops on the part of the Government 
 induced the Second Ohio Infantry to re-organize, 
 and again enter the service. William Irwin, of the 
 former organization, was chosen Colonel ; William 
 Latham, of Columbus, Lieutenant Colonel, and 
 William H. Link, of Circleville, Major. Nearly 
 all of them are now dead. 
 
 The regular army was increased by eight Ohio 
 companies of infantry, the Third Dragoons, and 
 the Voltigeurs — light-armed soldiers. In the Fif- 
 teenth Regiment of the United States Army, there 
 were five Ohio companies. The others were three 
 from Michigan, and two from Wisconsin. Col. 
 Moi'gan, of the old Second, was made Colonel of 
 the Fifteenth, and John Howard, of Detroit, an 
 old artillery ofiicer in the regular army. Lieutenant 
 Colonel. Samuel Wood, a captain in the Sixth 
 
 ^< 
 
:!t. 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 133 
 
 United States Inftintry, was made Major ; but was 
 
 afterward succeeded by Mill, of Vermont. 
 
 The Fifteenth was in a number of skirmishes at first, 
 and later in the battles of Contreras, Cherubusco 
 and Chapultepec. At the battle of Cherubusco, 
 the Colonel was severely wounded, and Maj. Mill, 
 with several oflacers, and a large number of men, 
 killed. For gallant service at Contreras, Col. Mor- 
 gan, though only twenty-seven years old, was made 
 a Brevet Brigadier General in the United States 
 Army. Since the war he has delivered a number 
 of addresses in Ohio, on the campaigns in Mex- 
 ico. 
 
 The survivors of the war are now few. Though 
 seventy-five thousand men from the United States 
 went into that conflict, less than ten thousand now 
 survive. They are now veterans, and as such de- 
 light to recount their reminiscences on the fields of 
 Mexico. They are all in the decline of life, and 
 ere a generation passes away, few, if any, will be 
 left. 
 
 After the war, the continual growth of Ohio, 
 the change in all its relations, necessitated a new 
 organic law. The Constitution of 1852 was the 
 result. It re-affirmed the political principles of 
 the "ordinance of 1787" and the Constitution of 
 1802, and made a few changes necessitated by the 
 advance made in the interim. It created the 
 office of Lieutenant Governor, fixing the term of 
 service at two years. This Constitution yet stands 
 notwithstanding the prolonged attempt in 1873-74: 
 to create a new one. It is now the organic law of 
 Ohio. 
 
 From this time on to the opening of the late war, 
 the prosperity of the State received no check. 
 Towns and cities grew ; railroads multiplied ; com- 
 merce was extended; the vacant lands were rapidly 
 filled by settlers, and everything tending to the 
 advancement of the people was well prosecuted. 
 Banks, after much tribulation, had become in a 
 measure somewhat secure, their only and serious 
 drawback being their isolation or the confinement 
 of their circulation to their immediate localities. 
 But signs of a mighty contest were apparent. A 
 contest almost without a parallel in the annals of 
 history ; a contest between freedom and slavery ; 
 between wrong and right ; a contest that could 
 only end in defeat to the wrong. The Republican 
 party came into existence at the close of President 
 Pierce's term, in 1855. Its object then was, prin- 
 cipally, the restriction of the slave power ; ultimately 
 its extinction. One of the chief exponents and sup- 
 porters of this growing party in Ohio, was Salmon P. 
 
 Chase ; one who never faltered nor lost faith ; and 
 who was at the helm of State; in the halls of Con- 
 gress; chief of one the most important bureaus of 
 the Government, and, finally, Chief Justice of the 
 United States. When war came, after the election 
 of Abraham Lincoln by the Republican party, Ohio 
 was one of the first to answer to the call for troops. 
 Mr. Chase, while Governor, had re-organized the 
 militia on a sensible basis, and rescued it from the 
 ignominy into which it had fallen. When Mr. 
 Lincoln asked for seventy-five thousand men, 
 Ohio's quota was thirteen regiments. The various 
 chaotic regiments and militia troops in the State 
 did not exceed 1,500 men. The call was issued 
 April 15, 1861 ; by the 18th, two regiments were 
 organized in Columbus, whither these companies 
 had gathered; before sunrise of the 19th the Jirst 
 and second regiments were on their way to Wash- 
 ington City. The President had only asked for 
 thirteen regiments; thirty were gathering; the 
 Government, not yet fully comprehending the 
 nature of the rebellion, refused the surplus troops, 
 but Gov. Dennison was authorized to put ten 
 additional regiments in the field, as a defensive 
 measure, and was also authorized to act on the 
 defensive as well as on the offensive. The immense 
 extent of southern border made this necessary, 
 as all the loyal people in West Virginia and Ken- 
 tucky asked for help. 
 
 In the limits of this history, it is impossible to 
 trace all the steps Ohio took in the war. One of 
 her most talented sons, now at the head of one of 
 the greatest newspapers of the world, says, regard- 
 ing the action of the people and their Legislature : 
 
 "In one part of the nation there existed a grad- 
 ual growth of sentiment against the Union, ending 
 in open hostility against its integrity and its Con- 
 stitutional law ; on the other side stood a resolute, 
 and determined people, though divided in minor 
 matters, firmly united on the question of national 
 supremacy. The people of Ohio stood squarely 
 on this side. Before this her people had been di- 
 vided up to the hour when — 
 
 '"That fierce and sudden flash across the rugged black- 
 ness broke, 
 
 And, with a voice that shook the land, the guns of Sum- 
 ter spoke ; 
 ********* 
 
 And whereso'er the summons came, there rose the 
 angry din, 
 
 As when, upon a rocky coast, a stormy tide sets in.' 
 
 " All waverings then ceased among the people 
 and in the Ohio Legislature. The Union must be 
 
 rT 
 

 134 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 preserved. The white heat of patriotism and fe- 
 alty to the flag that had been victorious in three 
 wars, and had never met but temporary defeat 
 then melted all parties^ and dissolved all hesitation, 
 and, April 18, 1861, by a unanimous vote of 
 ninety-nine Representatives in its favor, there was 
 passed a bill appropriating $500,000 to carry into 
 effect the requisition of the President, to protect 
 the National Government, of which sum $4.50,000 
 were to purchase arms and equipments for the 
 troops recjuired by that requisition as the quota of 
 Ohio, and $50,000 as an extraordinary contingent 
 fund for the Governor. The commissioners of the 
 State Sinking Fund were authorized, by the same 
 bill, to borrow this money, on the per cent bonds 
 of the State, and to issue for the same certificates, 
 freeing such bonds from taxation. Then followed 
 other such legislation that declared the property of 
 volunteers free from execution for debt during 
 their term of service; that declared any resident 
 of the State, who gave aid and comfort to the 
 enemies of the Union, guilty of treason against 
 the State, to be punished by imprisonment at hard 
 labor for life; and, as it had become already evi- 
 dent that thousands of militia, beyond Ohio's 
 quota of the President's call, would volunteer, the 
 Legislature, adopting the sagacious suggestion of 
 Gov. Dennison, resolved that all excess of volunteers 
 should be retained and paid for service, under 
 direction of the Governor. Thereupon a bill 
 was passed, authorizing the acceptance of volunteers 
 to form ten regiments, and providing $500,000 
 for their arms and equipments, and $1,500,000 
 more to be disbursed for troops in case of an in- 
 vasion of the State. Then other legislation was 
 enacted, looking to and providing against the ship- 
 ment from or through the State of arms or mu- 
 nitions of war, to States either assuming to be 
 neutral or in open rebellion ; organizing the whole 
 body of the State militia; providing suitable offi- 
 cers for duty on the staff of the Governor; re- 
 quiring contracts for subsistence of volunteers to 
 be let to the lowest bidder, and authorizing the 
 appointment of additional general officers. 
 
 " Before the adjournment of that Legislature, 
 the Speaker of the House had resigned to take 
 command of one of the regiments then about to 
 start for Washington City ; two leading Senators 
 had been appointed Brigadier Generals, and many, 
 in fact nearly all, of the other members of both 
 houses had, in one capacity or another, entered the 
 military service. It was the first war legislature 
 ever elected in Ohio, and, under sudden pressure. 
 
 nobly met the first shock, and enacted the first 
 measures of law for war. Laboring under difficul- 
 ties inseparable from a condition so unexpected, 
 and in the performance of duties so novel, it may 
 be historically stated that for patriotism, zeal and 
 ability, the Ohio Legislature of 1861 was the 
 equal of any of its successors ; while in that exu- 
 berance of patriotism which obliterated party lines 
 and united all in a common effort to meet the 
 threatened integrity of the United States as a 
 nation, it surpassed them both. 
 
 " The war was fought, the slave power forever 
 destroyed, and under additional amendments to her 
 organic law, the L^nited States wiped the stain of 
 human slavery from her escutcheon, liberating over 
 four million human beings, nineteen-twentieths of 
 whom were native-born residents. 
 
 " When Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court 
 House, Ohio had two hundred regiments of all 
 arms in the National service. In the course of 
 the war, she had furnished two hundred and thirty 
 regiments, besides twenty-six independent batteries 
 of artillery, five independent companies of cavalry, 
 several companies of sharpshooters, large parts of 
 five regiments credited to the West Virginia con- 
 tingent, two regiments credited to the Kentucky 
 contingent, two transferred to the United States 
 colored troops, and a large proportion of the rank 
 and file of the Fifty-fourth and Sixty-fifth Massa- 
 chusetts Regiments, also colored men. Of these or- 
 ganizations, twenty-three were infantry regiments 
 furnished on the first call of the President, an ex- 
 cess of nearly one-half over the State's quota ; one 
 hundred and ninety-one were infantry regiments, 
 furnished on subsequent calls of the President — 
 one hundred and seventeen for three years, twenty- 
 seven for one year, two for six months, two for 
 three months, and forty-two for one hundred days. 
 Thirteen were cavalry, and three artillery for three 
 years. Of these three-years troops, over twenty 
 thousand re-enlisted, as veterans, at the end of 
 their long term of service, to fight till the war 
 would end." 
 
 As original members of these organizations, Ohio 
 furnished to the National service the magnificent 
 army of 310,654 actual soldiers, omitting from 
 the above number all those who paid commuta- 
 tion money, veteran enlistments, and citizens who 
 enlisted as soldiers or sailors in other States. The 
 count is made from the reports of the Provost 
 Marshal General to the War Department, Penn- 
 sylvania gave not quite 28,000 more, while Illinois 
 fell 48,000 behind; Indiana, 116,000 less; 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 137 
 
 Kentucky, 235,000, and Massachusetts, 164,000. 
 Thus Ohio more than maintained, in the National 
 army, the rank among her sisters which her popu- 
 lation supported. Ohio furnished more troops than 
 the President ever required of her ; and at the 
 end of the war, with more than a thousand men in 
 the camp of the State who were never mustered 
 into the service, she still had a credit on the rolls 
 of the War Department for 4,332 soldiers, beyond 
 the aggregate of all quotas ever assigned to her; 
 and, besides all these, 6,479 citizens had, in lieu of 
 personal service, paid the commutation ; while In- 
 diana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and New York 
 were all from five to one hundred thousand behind 
 their quotas. So ably, through all those years of 
 trial and death, did she keep the promise of the 
 memorable dispatch from her first war Governor : 
 '' If Kentucky refuses to fill her quota, Ohio will 
 fill it for her." 
 
 "Of these troops 11,237 were killed or mor- 
 tally wounded in action, and of these 6,563 were 
 left dead on the field of battle. They fought on 
 well-nigh every battle-field of the war. Within 
 forty-eight hours after the first call was made for 
 troops, two regiments were on the way to Wash- 
 ington. An Ohio brigade covered the retreat from 
 the first battle of Bull Run. Ohio troops formed 
 the bulk of army that saved to the Union the 
 territory afterward erected into West Virginia ; 
 the bulk of the army that kept Kentucky from 
 seceding ; a large part of the army that captured 
 Fort Donelson and Island No. 10 ; a great part of 
 the army that from Stone River and Chickamauga, 
 and Mission Ridge and Atlanta, swept to the sea 
 and captured Fort McAllister, and north through 
 the Carolinas to Virginia." 
 
 When Sherman started on his famous march to 
 the sea, someone said to President Lincoln, "T hey 
 will never get through; they will all be captured, 
 and the Union will be lost." " It is impossible," 
 replied the President ; "it cannot be done. There 
 is a 'mighty sight of fight iji one hundred thou- 
 sand Western men^ 
 
 Ohio troops fought at Pea Ridge. They charged 
 at Wagner. They helped redeem North Carolina. 
 They were in the sieges of Vicksburg, Charleston, 
 Mobile and Richmond. At Pittsburg Landing, 
 at Antietam, Gettysburg and Corinth, in the 
 Wilderness, at Five Forks, before Nashville and 
 Appomattox Court House; "their bones, reposing 
 on the fields they won and in the graves they fill, are 
 a perpetual pledge that no flag shall ever wave over 
 their graves but that flag they died to maintain." 
 
 Ohio's soil gave birth to, or furnished, a Grant, 
 a Sherman, a Sheridan, a McPherson, a Rosecrans, 
 a McClellan, a McDowell, a Mitchell, a Gilmore, a 
 Hazen,a Sill, a Stanley, a Steadmau,and others — all 
 but one, children of the country, reared at West Point 
 for such emergencies. Ohio's war record shows 
 one General, one Lieutenant General, twenty Major 
 Generals, twenty seven Brevet Major Generals, and 
 thirty Brigadier Generals, and one hundred and 
 fifty Brevet Brigadier Generals. Her three war 
 Governors were William Dennison, David Todd, and 
 John Brough. She furnished, at the same time, 
 one Secretary of War, Edwin M. Stanton, and 
 one Secretary of the Treasury, Salmon P. Chase. 
 Her Senators were Benjamin F. Wade and John 
 Sherman. At least three out of five of Ohio's 
 able-bodied men stood in the line of battle. On 
 the head stone of one of these soldiers, who gave 
 his life for the country, and who now lies in a 
 National Cemetery, is inscribed these words : 
 
 " We charge the living to preserve that Constitution we 
 have died to defend." 
 
 The close of the war and return of peace brought 
 a period of fictitious values on the country, occa- 
 sioned by the immense amount of currency afloat. 
 Property rose to unheard-of values, and everything 
 with it. Ere long, however, the decline came, and 
 with it " hard times." The climax broke over the 
 country in 1873, and for awhile it seemed as if 
 the country was on the verge of ruin. People 
 found again, as preceding generations had found, 
 that real value was the only basis of true prosper- 
 ity, and gradually began to work to the fact. The 
 Government established the specie basis by 
 gradual means, and on the 1st day of January, 
 1879, began to redeem its outstanding obligations 
 in coin. The efi"ect was felt everywhere. Busi- 
 ness of all kinds sprang anew into life. A feeling 
 of confidence grew as the times went on, and now, 
 on the threshold of the year 1880, the State is en- 
 tering on an era of steadfast prosperity ; one which 
 has a sure and certain foundation. 
 
 Nearly four years have elaped since the great 
 Centennial Exhibition was held in Philadelphia ; 
 an exhibition that brought from every State in the 
 Union the best products of her soil, factories, and 
 all industries. In that exhibit Ohio made an ex- 
 cellent display. Her stone, iron, coal, cereals, 
 woods and everything pertaining to her welfare were 
 all represented. Ohio, occupying the middle ground 
 of the Union, was expected to show to foreign na- 
 tions what the valleys of the Mississippi and Ohio 
 
 V 
 
Jl- 
 
 -it ® 
 
 138 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 could produce. The State nobly stood the test 
 and ranked foremost among all others. Her cen- 
 tennial building was among the first completed 
 and among the neatest and best on the grounds. 
 During the summer, the Centennial Commission 
 extended invitations to the Governors of the several 
 States to appoint an orator and name a day for his 
 
 delivery of an address on the history, progress and 
 resources of his State. Gov. Hayes named the 
 Hon. Edward D. Mansfield for this purpose, and 
 August 9th, that gentleman delivered an address 
 so valuable for the matter which it contains, that 
 we here give a synopsis of it. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 OHIO IN THE CENTENNIAL— ADDRESS OF EDWARD D. MANSFIELD, LL. D., PHILADELPHIA, 
 
 AUGUST 9, 1876. 
 
 ONE hundred years ago, the whole territory, 
 from the Alleghany to the Rocky Mountains 
 was a wilderness, inhabited only by wild beasts and 
 Indians. The Jesuit and Moravian missionaries 
 were the only white men who had penetrated the 
 wilderness or beheld its mighty lakes and rivers. 
 While the thirteen old colonies were declaring 
 their independence, the thirteen new States, which 
 now lie in the western interior, had no existence, 
 and gave no sign of the future. The solitude of 
 nature was unbroken by the steps of civilization. 
 The wisest statesman had not contemplated the 
 probability of the coming States, and the boldest 
 patriot did not dream that this interior wilderness 
 should soon contain a greater population than the 
 thirteen old States, with all the added growth of 
 one hundred years. 
 
 Ten years after that, the old States had ceded 
 their Western lands to the General Government, 
 and the Congress of the United States had passed 
 the ordinance of 1785, for the survey of the pub- 
 lic territory, and, in 17 87, the celebrated ordinance 
 which organized the Northwestern Territory, and 
 dedicated it to freedom and intelligence. 
 
 Fifteen years after that, and more than a quarter 
 of a century after the Declaration of Independ- 
 ence, the State of Ohio was admitted into the 
 Union, being the seventeenth which accepted the 
 Constitution of the United States. It has since 
 grown up to be great, populous and prosperous 
 under the influence of those ordinances. At her 
 admittance, in 1803, the tide of emigration had 
 begun to flow over the Alleghanies into the Valley 
 of the Mississippi, and, although no steamboat, no 
 railroad then existed, nor even a stage coach helped 
 the immigrant, yet the wooden " ark " on the 
 Ohio, and the heavy wagon, slowly winding over 
 
 the mountains, bore these tens of thousands to the 
 wilds of Kentucky and the plains of Ohio. In 
 the spring of 1788 — the first year of settlement — 
 four thousand five hundred persons passed the 
 mouth of the Muskingum in three months, and 
 the tide continued to pour on for half a century in 
 a widening stream, mingled with all the races of 
 Europe and America, until now, in the hundredth 
 year of America's independence, the five States of the 
 Northwestern Territory, in the wilderness of 1776, 
 contain ten millions of people, enjoying all the 
 blessings which peace and prosperity, freedom and 
 Christianity, can confer upon any people. Of these 
 five States, born under the ordinance of 1787, Ohio 
 is the first, oldest, and, in many things, the greatest. 
 In some things it is the greatest State in the Union. 
 Let us, then, attempt, in the briefest terms, to 
 draw an outline portrait of this great and remark- 
 able commonwealth. 
 
 Let us observe its physical aspects. Ohio is 
 just one-sixth part of the Northwestern Territory 
 — 10,000 square miles. It lies between Lake Erie 
 and the Ohio River, having 200 miles of navigable 
 waters, on one side flowing into the Atlantic Ocean, 
 and on the other into the Gulf of Mexico. Through 
 the lakes, its vessels touch on G,000 miles of 
 interior coast, and, through the Mississippi, on 
 36,000 miles of river coast; so that a citizen of 
 Ohio may pursue his navigation through 42,000 
 miles, all in his own country, and all within naviga- 
 ble reach of his own State. He who has circumnavi- 
 gated the globe, has gone but little more than 
 half the distance which the citizen of Ohio finds 
 within his natural reach in this vast interior. 
 
 Looking upon the surface of this State, we find 
 no mountains, no barren sands, no marshy wastes, 
 no lava-covered plains, but one broad, compact 
 
 <s~ 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 139 
 
 body of arable land, intersected with rivers and 
 streams and running waters, while the beautiful 
 Ohio flows tranquilly by its side. More than three 
 times the surface of Belgium, and one-third of the 
 whole of Italy, it has more natural resources in 
 proportion than either, and is capable of ultimately 
 supporting a larger population than any equal sur- 
 face in Europe. Looking from this great arable 
 surface, where upon the very hills the grass and 
 the forest trees now grow exuberant and abundant, 
 we find that underneath this surface, and easily 
 accessible, lie 10,000 square miles of coal, and 
 4,000 square miles of iron — coal and iron enough 
 to supply the basis of manufacture for a world ! 
 All this vast deposit of metal and fuel does not in- 
 terrupt or take from that arable surface at all. 
 There you may find in one place the same machine 
 bringing up coal and salt water from below, while 
 the wheat and the corn grow upon the surface 
 above. The immense masses of coal, iron, salt and 
 freestone deposited below have not in any way 
 diminished the fertility and production of the soil. 
 
 It has been said by some writer that the char- 
 acter of a people is shaped or modified by the 
 character of the country in which they live. If 
 the people of Switzerland have acquired a certain 
 air of liberty and independence from the rugged 
 mountains around which they live; if the people 
 of Southern Italy, or beautifiil France, have ac- 
 quired a tone of ease and politeness from their 
 mild and genial clime, so the people of Ohio, 
 placed amidst such a wealth of nature, in the tem- 
 perate zone, should show the best fruits of peace- 
 ful industry and the best culture of Christian 
 civilization. Have they done so? Have their 
 own labor and arts and culture come up to the ad- 
 vantages of their natural situation? Let us exam- 
 ine this growth and their product. 
 
 The first settlement of Ohio was made by a 
 colony from New England, at the mouth of the 
 Muskingum. It was literally a remnant of the 
 officers of the Revolution. Of this colony no 
 praise of the historian can be as competent, or as 
 strong, as the language of Washington. He says, 
 in answer to inquiries addressed to him: "No col- 
 ony in America was ever settled under such favor- 
 able auspices as that which has just commenced at 
 the Muskingum. Information, prosperity and 
 strength will be its characteristics. I know many 
 of the settlers personally, and there never were 
 men better calculated to promote the welfare of 
 such a community," and he adds that if he were 
 a young man, he knows no country in which he 
 
 would sooner settle than in this Western region." 
 This colony, left alone for a time, made its own 
 government and nailed its laws to a tree in the vil- 
 lage, an early indication of that law-abiding and 
 peaceful spirit which has since made Ohio a just 
 and well-ordered community. The subsequent 
 settlements on the Miami and Scioto were made by 
 citizens of New Jersey and Virginia, and it is cer- 
 tainly remarkable that among all the early immi- 
 gration, there were no ignorant people. In the 
 language of Washington, they came with " infor- 
 mation," qualified to promote the welfare of the 
 community. 
 
 Soon after the settlement on the Muskingum 
 and the Miami, the great wave of migration 
 flowed on to the plains and valleys of Ohio and Ken- 
 tucky. Kentucky had been settled earlier, but the 
 main body of emigrants in subsequent years 
 went into Ohio, influenced partly by the great 
 ordinance of 1787, securing freedom and schools 
 forever, and partly by the greater security of 
 titles under the survey and guarantee of the 
 United States Grovernment. Soon the new State 
 grew up, with a rapidity which, until then, was 
 unknown in the history of civilization. On the 
 Muskingum, where the buffalo had roamed; on 
 the Scioto, where the Shawanees had built their 
 towns ; on the Miami, where the great chiefs of 
 the Miamis had reigned ; on the plains of San- 
 dusky, yet red with the blood of the white man ; 
 on the Maumee, where Wayne, by the victory of 
 the " Fallen Timbers," had broken the power of 
 the Indian confederacy — the emigrants fi-om the 
 old States and from Europe came in to cultivate 
 the fields, to build up towns, and to rear the insti- 
 tutions of Christian civilization, until the single 
 State of Ohio is greater in numbers, wealth, and 
 education, than was the whole American Union 
 when the Declaration of Independence was made. 
 
 Let us now look at the statistics of this growth 
 and magnitude, as they are exhibited in the cen- 
 sus of the United States. Taking intervals of 
 twenty years, Ohio had: In 1810, 230,760; in 
 1830, 937,903; in 1850, 1,980,329; in 1870, 
 2,665,260. Add to this the increase of population 
 in the last six years, and Ohio now has, in round 
 numbers, 3,000,000 of people — half a million 
 more than the thirteen States in 1776 ; and 
 her cities and towns have to-day six times the 
 population of all the cities of America one hund- 
 red years ago. This State is now the third in 
 numbers and wealth, and the first in some of 
 those institutions which mark the progress of 
 
 :\" 
 
140 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 mankind. That a small part of the wilderness of 
 1771) should be more populous than the whole 
 Union was then, and that it should have made a 
 social and moral advance greater than that of any 
 nation in the same time, must be regarded as one 
 of the most startling and instructive facts which 
 attend this year of commemoration. If such has 
 been the social growth of Ohio, let us look at its 
 physical development ; this is best expressed by the 
 aggregate productions of the labor and arts of a 
 people applied to the earth. In the census statistics 
 of the United States these are expressed in the 
 aggregate results of agriculture, mining, manufact- 
 ures, and commerce. Let us simplify these statis- 
 tics, by comparing the aggregate and ratios as 
 between several States, and between Ohio and some 
 countries of Europe. 
 
 The aggregate amount of grain and potatoes — 
 farinaceous food, produced in Ohio in 1870 was 
 134,938,413 bushels, and in 1874, there were 157,- 
 323,597 bushels, being the largest aggregate 
 amount raised in any State but one, Illinois, and 
 larger per square mile than Illinois or any other 
 State in the country. The promises of nature 
 were thus vindicated by the labor of man ; and 
 the industry of Ohio has fulfilled its whole duty 
 to the sustenance of the country and the world. 
 She has raised more grain than ten of the old 
 States together, and more than half raised by 
 Great Britain or by France. I have not the 
 recent statistics of Europe, but McGregor, in his 
 statistics of nations for 1832 — a period of pro- 
 found peace — gives the following ratios for the 
 leading countries of Europe : Great Britain, area 
 120,324 miles; amount of grain, 262,500,000 
 bushels; rate per square mile, 2,190 to 1; 
 Austria — area 258,003 miles ; amount of grain, 
 366,800,000 bushels; rate per square mile, 1,422 to 
 1 ; France — area 215,858 miles ; amount of grain, 
 233,847,300 bushels ; rate per square mile, 1,080 
 to 1. The State of Ohio — area per square miles, 
 40,000 ; amount of grain, 150,000,000 bushels ; 
 rate per square mile, 3,750. Combining the great 
 countries of Great Britain, Austria, and France, 
 we find that they had 594,785 square miles and 
 produced 863,147,300 bushels of grain, which was, at 
 the time these statistics were taken, 1 ,450 bushels per 
 square mile, and ten bushels to each one of the 
 population. Ohio, on the other hand, had 3,750 
 bushels per square mile, and fifty bushels to each 
 one of the population ; that is, there was five 
 times as much gi-ain raised in Ohio, in proportion 
 to the people, as in these great countries of Europe. 
 
 As letters make words, and words express ideas, so 
 these dry figures of statistics express facts, and 
 these facts make the whole history of civilization. 
 
 Let us now look at the statistics of domestic 
 animals. These are always indicative of the state 
 of society in regard to the physical comforts. The 
 horse must furnish domestic conveyances ; the 
 cattle must furnish the products of the dairy, as 
 well as meat, and the sheep must furnish wool. 
 
 Let us see how Ohio compares with other States 
 and with Europe : In 1870, Ohio had 8,818,000 
 domestic animals ; Illinois, 6,925,000 ; New York, 
 5,283,000; Pennsylvania, 4,493,000; and other 
 States less. The proportion to population in these 
 States was, in Ohio, to each person, 3.3 ; Illinois, 
 2.7; New York, 1.2; Pennsylvania, 1.2. 
 
 Let us now see the proportion of domestic ani- 
 mals in Europe. The results given by McGregor's 
 statistics are : In Great Britain, to each person, 
 2.44; Russia, 2.00; France, 1.50 ; Prussia, 1.02; 
 Austria, 1.00. It will be seen that the proportion 
 in Great Britain is only two-thirds that of Ohio ; 
 in France, only one-half; and in Austria and 
 Prussia only one-third. It may be said that, in 
 the course of civilization, the number of animals 
 diminishes as the density of population increases ; 
 and, therefore, this result might have been ex- 
 pected in the old countries of Europe. But this 
 does not apply to Russia or Germany, still less to 
 other States in this country. Russia in Europe 
 has not more than half the density of population 
 now in Ohio. Austria and Prussia have less than 
 150 to the square mile. The whole of the north 
 of Europe has not so dense a population as the 
 State of Ohio, still less have the States of Illinois 
 and Missouri, west of Ohio. Then, therefore, 
 Ohio showing a larger proportion of domestic ani- 
 mals than the north of Europe, or States west of 
 her, with a population not so dense, we see at once 
 there must be other causes to produce such a 
 phenomenon. 
 
 Looking to some of the incidental results of this 
 vast agricultural production, we see that the United 
 States exports to Europe immense amounts of 
 grain and provisions ; and that there is manufact- 
 ured in this country an immense amount of woolen 
 goods. Then, taking these statistics of the raw 
 material, we find that Ohio produces one-fifth of 
 all the wool ; one-seventh of all the cheese ; one- 
 eighth of all the corn, and one-tenth of all the 
 wheat ; and yet Ohio has but a fourteenth part of 
 the population, and one-eightieth part of the sur- 
 face of this country. 
 
 ~e) 
 
■^ 
 
 HISTOEY OF OHIO. 
 
 141 
 
 Let us take another — a commercial view of this 
 matter. We have seen that Ohio raises five times 
 as much grain per square mile as is raised per 
 square mile in the empires of Great Britain, France 
 and Austria, taken together. After making allow- 
 ance for the differences of living, in the working 
 classes of this country, at least two-thirds of the 
 food and grain of Ohio are a surplus beyond the 
 necessities of life, and, therefore, so much in the 
 commercial balance of exports. This corresponds 
 with the fact, that, in the shape of grain, meat, 
 liquors and dairy products, this vast surplus is con- 
 stantly moved to the Atlantic States and to Europe. 
 The money value of this exported product is equal 
 to $100,000,000 per annum, and to a solid capital 
 of $1,500,000,000, after all the sustenance of the 
 people has been taken out of the annual crop. 
 
 We are speaking of agriculture alone. We are 
 speaking of a State which began its career more 
 than a quarter of a century after the Declaration 
 of Independence was made. And now, it may be 
 asked, what is the real cause of this extraordinary 
 result, which, without saying anything invidious of 
 other States, we may safely say has never been 
 surpassed in any country? We have already 
 stated two of the advantages possessed by Ohio. 
 The first is that it is a compact, unbroken body of 
 arable land, surrounded and intersected by water- 
 courses, equal to all the demands of commerce and 
 navigation. Next, that it was secured forever to 
 freedom and intelligence by the ordinance of 1787. 
 The intelligence of its future people was secured 
 by immense grants of public lands for the purpose 
 of education ; but neither the blessings of nature, 
 nor the wisdom of laws, could obtain such results 
 without the continuous labor of an intelligent 
 people. Such it had, and we have only to take 
 the testimony of Washington, already quoted, and 
 the statistical results I have given, to prove that 
 no people has exhibited more steady industry, nor 
 has any people directed their labor with more in- 
 telligence. 
 
 After the agricultural capacity and production 
 of a country, its most important physical feature 
 is its mineral products; its capacity for coal and 
 iron, the two great elements of material civiliza- 
 tion. If we were to take away from Great Britain 
 her capacity to produce coal in such vast quanti- 
 ties, we should reduce her to a third-rate position, 
 no longer numbered among the great nations of the 
 earth. Coal has smelted her iron, run her steam 
 engines, and is the basis of her manufactures. 
 But when we compare the coal fields of Great 
 
 Britain with those of this country, they are insig- 
 nificant. The coal fields of all Europe are small 
 compared with those of the central United States. 
 The coal district of Durham and Northumberland, 
 in England, is only 880 square miles. There are 
 other districts of smaller extent, making in the 
 whole probably one-half the extent of that in 
 Ohio. The English coal-beds are represented as 
 more important, in reference to extent, on account 
 of their thickness. There is a small coal district 
 in Lancashire, where the workable coal-beds are in 
 all 150 feet in thickness. But this involves, as is 
 well known, the necessity of going to immense 
 depths and incurring immense expense. On the 
 other hand, the workable coal-beds of Ohio are 
 near the surface, and some of them require no ex- 
 cavating, except that of the horizontal lead from 
 the mine to the river or the railroad. In one 
 county of Ohio there are three beds of twelve, six 
 and four feet each, within fifty feet of the surface. 
 At some of the mines having the best coal, the 
 lead from the mines is nearly horizontal, and just 
 high enough to dump the coal into the railroad 
 cars. These coals are of all qualities, from that 
 adapted to the domestic fire to the very best qual- 
 ity for smelting or manufacturing iron. Recollect- 
 ing these facts, let us try to get an idea of the coal 
 district of Ohio. The bituminous coal region de- 
 escending the western slopes of the Alleghanies, 
 occupies large portions of Western Pennsylvania, 
 West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee. I 
 suppose that this coal field is not less than fifty 
 thousand square miles, exclusive of Western iMary- 
 land and the southern terminations of that field in 
 Georgia and Alabama. Of this vast field of coal, 
 exceeding anything found in Europe, about one- 
 fifth part lies in Ohio. Prof Mather, in his 
 report on the geology of the State (first Geologi- 
 cal Report of the State) says: 
 
 " The coal-measures within Ohio occupy a space 
 of about one hundred and eighty miles in length by 
 eighty in breadth at the widest part, with an area 
 of about ten thousand square miles, extending 
 along the Ohio from Trumbull County in the north 
 to near the mouth of the Scioto in the south. 
 The regularity in the dip, and the moderate incli- 
 nation of the' strata, afford facilities to the mines 
 not known to those of most other countries, espe- 
 cially Great Britain, where the strata in which the 
 coal is imbedded have been broken and thrown out 
 of place since its deposit, occasioning many slips 
 and faults, and causing much labor and expense in 
 again recovering the bed. In Ohio there is very 
 
 Is 
 
^1 
 
 142 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 little difficulty of this kind, the faults being small 
 and seldom found." 
 
 Now, taking into consideration these geological 
 facts, let us look at the extent of the Ohio coal 
 field. It occupies, wholly or in part, thirty-six 
 counties, including, geographically, 14,000 square 
 miles ; but leaving out fractions, and reducing the 
 Ohio coal field within its narrowest limits, it is 
 10,000 S(piare miles in extent, lies near the surface, 
 and has on an average twenty feet thickness of work- 
 able coal-beds. Let us compare this with the coal 
 mines of Durham and Northumberland (England), 
 the largest and best coal mines there. That coal 
 district is estimated at 850 square miles, twelve 
 feet thick, and is calculated to contain 9,000,000,- 
 000 tons of coal. The coal field of Ohio is twelve 
 times larger and one-third thicker. Estimated by 
 that standard, the coal field of Ohio contains 180,- 
 000,000,000 tons of coal. Marketed at only $2 
 per ton, this coal is worth $360,000,000,000, or, 
 in other words, ten times as much as the whole 
 valuation of the United States at the present time. 
 But we need not undertake to estimate either its 
 quantity or value. It is enough to say that it is a 
 quantity which we can scarcely imagine, which is 
 tenfold that of England, and which is enough to 
 supply the entire continent for ages to come. 
 
 After coal, iron is beyond doubt the most val- 
 uable mineral product of a State. As the mate- 
 rial of manufacture, it is the most important. 
 What are called the " precious metals " are not to 
 be compared with it as an element of industry or 
 profit. But since no manufactures can be success- 
 fully carried on without fuel, coal becomes the first 
 material element of the arts. Iron is unquestion- 
 ably the next. Ohio has an iron district extending 
 from the mouth of the Scioto River to some point 
 north of the Mahoning River, in Trumbull County. 
 The whole length is nearly two hundred miles, and 
 the breadth twenty miles, making, as near as we can 
 ascertain, 4,000 square miles. The iron in this dis- 
 trict is of various qualities, and is manufactured 
 largely into bars and castings. In this iron dis- 
 trict are one hundred furnaces, forty-four rolling- 
 mills, and fifteen rail-mills, being the largest num- 
 ber of either in any State in the Union, except 
 only Pennsylvania. 
 
 Althoughonly the seventeenth State inits admis- 
 sion, I find that, by the census statistics of 1870, 
 it is the third State in the production of iron and iron 
 manufactures. Already, and within the life of 
 one man, this State begins to show what must in 
 future time be the vast results of coal and iron. 
 
 applied to the arts and manufactures. In the 
 year 1874, there were 420,000 tons of pig iron 
 produced in Ohio, which is larger than the prod- 
 uct of any State, except Pennsylvania. The 
 product and the manufacture of iron in Ohio 
 have increased so rapidly, and the basis for 
 increase is so great, that we may not doubt that 
 Ohio will continue to be the greatest producer of 
 iron and iron fabrics, except only Pennsylvania. 
 At Cincinnati, the iron manufacture of the Ohio 
 Valley is concentrating, and at Cleveland the ores 
 of Lake Superior are being smelted. 
 
 After coal and iron, we may place salt among 
 the necessaries of life. In connection" with the 
 coal region west of the Alleghanies, there lies in 
 Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio, a large 
 space of country underlaid by the salt rock, which 
 already produces immense amounts of salt. Of 
 this, Ohio has its full proportion. In a large 
 section of the southeastern portion of the State, 
 salt is produced without any known limitation. 
 At Pomeroy and other points, the salt rock lies 
 about one thousand feet below the surface, but 
 salt water is brought easily to the surface by the 
 steam engine. There, the salt rock, the coal 
 seam, and the noble sandstone lie in successive 
 strata, while the green corn and the yellow wheat 
 bloom on the surface above. The State of Ohio 
 produced, in 1874, 3,500,000 bushels of salt, 
 being one-fifth of all produced in the United 
 States. The salt section of Ohio is exceeded only 
 by that of Syracuse, New York, and of Saginaw, 
 Michigan. There is no definite limit to the 
 underlying salt rock of Ohio, and, therefore, the 
 production will be proportioned only to the extent 
 of the demand. 
 
 Having now considered the resources and the 
 products of the soil and the mines of Ohio, we 
 may properly ask how far the people have employed 
 their resources in the increase of art and manu- 
 facture. We have two modes of comparison, the 
 rate of increase within the State, and the ratio 
 they bear to other States. The aggregate value 
 of the products of manufacture, exclusive of 
 mining, in the last three censuses were: in 1850, 
 $62,692,000; in 1860, $121,691,000; in 1870, 
 $269,713,000. 
 
 The ratio of increase was over 100 per cent in 
 each ten years, a rate far beyond that of the in- 
 crease of population, and much beyond the ratio of 
 increase in the whole country. In 1850, the man- 
 ufiictures of Ohio were one-sixteenth part of the 
 aggregate in the country ; in 1860, one-fifteenth 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 143 
 
 part; in 1870, one-twelfth part. In addition to 
 this, we find, from the returns of Cincinnati and 
 Cleveland, that the value of the manufactured prod- 
 ucts of Ohio in 1875, must have reached $400,- 
 000,000. and, by reference to the census tables, it 
 will be seen that the ratio of increase exceeded that 
 of the great manufacturing States of New York, 
 Massachusetts and Connecticut. Of all the States 
 admitted into the Union prior to Ohio, Pennsylvania 
 alone has kept pace in the progress of manufacture. 
 Some little reference to the manufacture of leading 
 articles may throw some light on the cause of this. 
 In the production of agricultural machinery and 
 implements, Ohio is the first State ; in animal and 
 vegetable oils and in pig iron, the second; in cast 
 iron and in tobacco, the third ; in salt, in machinery 
 and in leather, the fourth. These facts show how 
 largely the resources of coal, iron and agriculture 
 have entered into the manufactures of the State. 
 This great advance in the manufactures of Ohio, 
 when we consider that this State is, relatively to 
 its surface, the first agricultural State in the 
 country, leads to the inevitable inference that its 
 people are remarkably industrious. When, on 
 forty thousand square miles of surface, three mill- 
 ions of people raise one hundred and fifty million 
 bushels of grain, and produce manufactures to the 
 amount of $269,000,000 (which is fifty bushels 
 of breadstuff to each man, woman and child, and 
 $133 of manufacture), it will be difficult to find 
 any community surpassing such results. It is a 
 testimony, not only to the State of Ohio, but to 
 the industry, sagacity and energy of the American 
 people. 
 
 Looking now to the commerce of the State, we 
 have said there are six hundred miles of coast line, 
 which embraces some of the principal internal ports 
 of the Ohio and the lakes, such as Cincinnati, Cleve- 
 land, Toledo and Portsmouth, but whose commerce 
 is most wholly inland. Of course, no comparison 
 can be made with the foreign commerce of the 
 ocean ports. On the other -hand, it is well known 
 that the inland trade of the country far exceeds 
 that of all its foreign commerce, and that the larg- 
 est part of this interior trade is carried on its 
 rivers and lakes. The materials for the vast con- 
 sumption of the interior must be conveyed in its 
 vessels, whether of sail or steam, adapted to these 
 waters. Let us take, then, the ship-building, the 
 navigation, and the exchange trades of Ohio, as 
 elements in determining the position of this State 
 in reference to the commerce of the country. At 
 the ports of Cleveland, Toledo, Sandusky and Cin- 
 
 cinnati, there have been built one thousand sail and 
 steam vessels in the last twenty years, making an 
 average of fifty each year. The number of sail, 
 steam and all kinds of vessels in Ohio is eleven 
 hundred and ninety, which is equal to the number 
 in all the other States in the Ohio Valley and the 
 Upper Mississippi. 
 
 When we look to the navigable points to which 
 these vessels are destined, we find them on all this 
 vast coast line, which extends from the Gulf of 
 Mexico to the Yellowstone, and from Duluth to 
 the St. Lawrence. 
 
 Looking again to see the extent of this vast in- 
 terior trade which is handled by Ohio alone, we 
 find that the imports and exports of the principal 
 articles of Cincinnati, amount in value to $500,- 
 000,000; and when we look at the great trade of 
 Cleveland and Toledo, we shall find that the an- 
 nual trade of Ohio exceeds $700,000,000. The 
 lines of railroad which connect with its ports, are 
 more than four thousand miles in length, or rather 
 more than one mile in length to each ten square 
 miles of surface. This great amount of railroads is 
 engaged not merely in transporting to the Atlantic 
 and thence to Europe, the immense surplus grain 
 and meat in Ohio, but in carrying the largest part 
 of that greater surplus, which exists in the States 
 west of Ohio, the granary of the West. Ohio 
 holds the gateway of every railroad north of the 
 Ohio, from the Mississippi to the Atlantic, and 
 hence it is that the great transit lines of the coun- 
 try pass through Ohio. 
 
 Let us now turn from the progress of the arts 
 to the progress of ideas ; from material to intellect- 
 ual development. It is said that a State consists 
 of men, and history shows that no art or science, 
 wealth or power, will compensate for the want of 
 moral or intellectual stability in the minds of a 
 nation. Hence, it is admitted that the strength 
 and perpetuity of our republic must consist in the 
 intelligence and morality of the people. A re- 
 public can last only when the people are enlight- 
 ened. This was an axiom with the early legislators 
 of this country. Hence it was that when Vir- 
 ginia, Connecticut and the original colonies ceded 
 to the General Government that vast and then un- 
 known wilderness which lay west of the Allegha- 
 nies, in the valleys of the Ohio and Mississippi, thoy 
 took care that its future inhabitants should be an 
 educated people. The Constitution was not formed 
 when the celebrated ordinance of 1787 was passed. 
 
 That ordinance provided that, " Religion, mor- 
 ality, and knowledge being necessary to good 
 
 sW*" 
 
t. 
 
 j^®- 
 
 144 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 government and the happiness of mankind, schools 
 and the means of education shall be forever en- 
 couraged;" and by the ordinance of 1785 for the 
 survey of public lands in the Northwestern Terri- 
 tory, Section 16 in each township, that is, one 
 thirty-sixth part, was reserved for the maintenance 
 of public schools in said townships. As the State 
 of Ohio contained a little more than twenty-five 
 millions of acres, this, together with two special 
 grants of three townships to universities, amounted 
 to the dedication of 740,000 acres of land to the 
 maintenance of schools and colleges. It was a 
 splendid endowment, but it was many years before 
 it became available. It was sixteen years after the 
 passage of this ordinance (in 1803), when Ohio 
 entered the Union, and legislation upon this grant 
 became possible. The Constitution of the State 
 pursued the language of the ordinance, and de- 
 clared that "schools and the means of education 
 shall forever be encouraged by legislative provision." 
 The Governors of Ohio, in successive messages, 
 urged attention to this subject upon the people; 
 but the thinness of settlement, making it impossi- 
 ble, except in few districts, to collect youth in suf- 
 ficient numbers, and impossible to sell or lease 
 lands to advantage, caused the delay of efficient 
 school system for many years. In 1825, however, 
 a general law establishing a school system, and levy- 
 ing a tax for its support, was passed. 
 
 This was again enlarged and increased by new 
 legislation in 183(3 and 1846. From that time to 
 this, Ohio has had a broad, liberal and efficient sys- 
 tem of public instruction. The taxation for schools, 
 and the number enrolled in them at different pe- 
 riods, will best show what has been done. In 
 1855 the total taxation for school purposes was 
 $2,672,827. The proportion of youth of school- 
 able age enrolled was 67 per cent. In 1874 the 
 amount raised by taxation was $7,425,135. The 
 number enrolled of schoolable age was 70 per 
 cent, or 707,943. 
 
 As the schoolable age extends to twenty-one 
 years, and as there are very few youth in school 
 after fifteen years of age, it follows that the 70 
 per cent of schoolable youths enrolled in the ])ub- 
 lic schools must comprehend nearly the whole 
 number between four and fifteen years. It is im- 
 portant to observe this fact, because it has been 
 inferred that, as the whole number of youth be- 
 tween five and twenty-one have not been enrolled, 
 therefore they are not educated. This is a 
 mistake; nearly all over fifteen years of age have 
 been in the public schools, and all the native 
 
 youth of the State, and all foreign born, young 
 enough, have had the benefit of the public schools. 
 But in consequence of the large number who 
 have come from other States and from foreign 
 countries, there are still a few who are classed by 
 the census statistics among the "illiterate;" the 
 proportion of this class, however, is less in propor- 
 tion than in twenty-eight other States, and less in 
 proportion than in Connecticut and Massachusetts, 
 two of the oldest States most noted for popular 
 education. In fact, every youth in Ohio, under 
 twenty-one years of age, may have the benefit of a 
 public education ; and, since the system of graded 
 and high schools has been adopted, may obtain a 
 common knowledge from the alphabet to the classics. 
 The enumerated branches of study in the pub- 
 lic schools of Ohio are thirty-four, including 
 mathematics and astronomy, French, German and 
 the classics. Thus the State which was in the 
 heart of the wilderness in 1776, and was not a 
 State until the nineteenth century had begun, now 
 presents to the world, not merely an unrivaled de- 
 velopment of material prosperity, but an unsur- 
 passed system of popular education. 
 
 In what is called the higher education, in the 
 colleges and universities, embracing the classics 
 and sciences taught in regular classes, it is the pop- 
 ular idea, and one which few dare to question, that 
 we must look to the Eastern States for superiority 
 and excellence ; but that also is becoming an as- 
 sumption without proof; a proposition difficult to 
 sustain. The facts in regard to the education of 
 universities and colleges, their faculties, students 
 and course of instruction, are all set forth in the 
 complete statistics of the Bureau of Education for 
 1874. They show that the State of Ohio had the 
 largest number of such institutions; the largest 
 number of instructors in their faculties, except one 
 State, New York ; and the largest number of stu- 
 dents in regular college classes, in proportion to 
 their population, except the two States of Connect- 
 icut and Massachusetts. Perhaps, if we look at 
 the statistics of classical students in the colleges, 
 disregarding preparatory and irregular courses, we 
 shall get a more accurate idea of the progress of 
 the higher education in those States which claim 
 the best. In Ohio, 36 colleges, 258 teachers, 
 2,139 students, proportion, 1 in 124; in Penn- 
 sylvania, 27 colleges, 239 teachers, 2,359 students, 
 proportion, 1 in 150; in New York, 26 colleges, 
 343 teachers, 2,764 students, proportion, 1 in 176; 
 in the six NewEngland States, 17 colleges, 252 teach- 
 ers, 3,341 students, proportion, 1 in 105; in Illi- 
 
HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 145 
 
 nois, 24 colleges, 219 teachers, 1,701 students, 
 proportion, 1 in 140. 
 
 This shows there are more collegiate institutions 
 in Ohio than in all New England ; a greater num- 
 ber of college teachers, and only a little smaller ratio 
 of students to the population ; a greater number of 
 such students than either in New York or Pennsyl- 
 vania, and, as a broad, general fact, Ohio has made 
 more progress in education than either of the old 
 States which formed the American Union. Such 
 a fact is a higher testimony to the strength and the 
 beneficent influence of the American Government 
 than any which the statistician or the historian 
 can advance. 
 
 Let us now turn to the moral aspects of the 
 people of Ohio. No human society is found with- 
 out its poor and dependent classes, whether made 
 so by the defects of nature, by acts of Providence, 
 or by the accidents of fortune. Since no society 
 is exempt from these classes, it must be judged 
 not so much by the fact of their existence, as by 
 the manner in which it treats them. In the civil- 
 ized nations of antiquity, such as Greece and 
 Rome, hospitals, infirmaries, orphan homes, and 
 asylums for the infirm, were unknown. These 
 are the creations of Christianity, and that must be 
 esteemed practically the most Christian State which 
 most practices this Christian beneficence. In Ohio, 
 as in all the States of this country, and of all 
 Christian countries, there is a large number of the 
 infirm and dependent classes; but, although Ohio 
 is the third State in population, she is only the 
 fourteenth in the proportion of dependent classes. 
 The more important point, however, was, how does 
 she treat them ? Is there wanting any of all 
 the varied institutions of benevolence? How does 
 she compare with other States and countries in 
 this respect? It is believed that no State or coun- 
 try can present a larger proportion of all these 
 institutions which the benevolence of the wise and 
 good have suggested for the alleviation of suffer- 
 ing and misfortune, than the State of Ohio. With 
 3,500 of the insane within h§r borders, she has 
 five great lunatic asylums, capable of accommodat- 
 ing them all. She has asylums for the deaf and 
 dumb, the idiotic, and the blind. She has the 
 best hospitals in the country. She has schools 
 of reform and houses of refuge. She has " homes " 
 for the boys and girls, to the number of 800, who 
 are children of soldiers. She has penitentiaries 
 and jails, orphan asylums and infirmaries. In 
 every county there is an infirmary, and in every 
 public institution, except the penitentiary, there is a 
 
 school. So that the State has used every human 
 means to relieve the suff'ering, to instruct the igno- 
 rant, and to reform the criminal. There are in 
 the State 80,000 who come under all the various 
 forms of the infirm, the poor, the sick and the 
 criminal, who, in a greater or less degree, make 
 the dependent class. For these the State has 
 made every provision which humanity or justice 
 or intelligence can require. A young State, de- 
 veloped in the wilderness, she challenges, without 
 any invidious comparison, both Europe and Amer- 
 ica, to show her superior in the development of 
 humanity manifested in the benefaction of public 
 institutions. 
 
 Intimately connected with public morals and 
 with charitable institutions, is the religion of a 
 people. The people of the United States are a 
 Christian people. The people of Ohio have man- 
 ifested their zeal by the erection of churches, of 
 Sunday schools, and of religious institutions. So 
 far as these are outwardly manifested, they are 
 made known by the social statistics of the census. 
 The number of church organizations in the leading 
 States were : In the State of Ohio, 6,488 ; in 
 the State of New York, 5,627 : in the State of 
 Pennsylvania, 5,984 ; in the State of Illinois, 4,298. 
 It thus appears that Ohio had a larger number 
 of churches than any State of the Union. The 
 number of sittings, however, was not quite as 
 large as those in New York and Pennsylvania. 
 The denominations are of all the sects known in 
 this country, about thirty in number, the majority 
 of the whole being Methodists, Presbyterians and 
 Baptists. Long before the American Independ- 
 ence, the Moravians had settled on the Mahoning 
 and Tuscarawas Rivers, but only to be destroyed ; 
 and when the peace with Great Britain was made, 
 not a vestige of Christianity remained on the 
 soil of Ohio ; yet we see that within ninety years 
 from that time the State of Ohio was, in the num- 
 ber of its churches, the first of this great Union. 
 
 In the beginning of this address, I said that 
 Ohio was the oldest and first of these great States, 
 carved out of the Northwestern Territory, and that 
 it was in some things the greatest State of the 
 American Union. I have now traced the physi- 
 cal, commercial, intellectual and moral features of 
 the State during the seventy-five years of its 
 constitutional history. The result is to establish 
 fully the propositions with which I began. These 
 facts have brought out : 
 
 1. That Ohio is, in reference to the square 
 miles of its surface, the first State in agriculture 
 
 :^ 
 
:^i 
 
 146 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 of tlie American Union; this, too, notwithstand- 
 ing it has 800,000 in cities and towns, and a large 
 development of capital and products in manu- 
 factures. 
 
 2. That Ohio has raised more grain per square 
 mile than either France, Austria, or Great Britain. 
 They raised 1,450 bushels per square mile, and 
 10 bushels to each person. Ohio raised 3,750 
 bushels per square mile, and 50 bushels to each 
 one of the population ; or, in other words, five 
 times the proportion of grain raised in Europe. 
 
 3. Ohio was the first State of the Union in 
 the production of domestic animals, being far in 
 advance of either New York, Pennsylvania or Illi- 
 nois. The proportion of domestic animals to each 
 person in Ohio was three and one-third, and in 
 New York and Pennsylvania less than half that. 
 The largest proportion of domestic animals pro- 
 duced in Europe was in Great Britain and Russia, 
 neither of which come near that of Ohio. 
 
 4. The coal-field of Ohio is vastly greater than 
 that of Great Britain, and we need make no com- 
 parison with other States in regard to coal or iron ; 
 for the 10,000 square miles of coal, and 4,000 
 square miles of iron in Ohio, are enough to supply 
 the whole American continent for ages to come. 
 
 5. Neither need we compare the results of 
 commerce and navigation, since, from the ports of 
 Cleveland and Cincinnati, the vessels of Ohio 
 touch on 42,000 miles of coast, and her 5,000 
 miles of railroad carry her products to every part 
 of the American continent. 
 
 6. Notwithstanding the immense proportion 
 and products of agriculture in Ohio, yet she has 
 more th*an kept pace with New York and New 
 England in the progress of manufactures during 
 the last twenty years. Her coal and iron are pro- 
 ducing their legitimate results in making her a 
 great manuflicturing State. 
 
 7. Ohio is the first State in the Union as to 
 the proportion of youth attending school ; and the 
 States west of the Alleghanies and north of the 
 Ohio have more youth in school, proportionably, 
 than New England and New York. The facts on 
 this subject are so extraordinary that I may be 
 excused for giving them a little in detail. 
 
 The proportion of youth in Ohio attending 
 school to the population, is 1 in 4.2; in Illinois, 1 
 in 4.3; in Pennsylvania, 1 in 4.8; in New York, 
 1 in 5.2 ; in Connecticut and Massachusetts, 1 in 
 8.7. 
 
 These proportions show that it is in the West, 
 and not in the East, that education is now advanc- 
 
 ing; and it is here that we see the stimulus given 
 by the ordinance of 1787, is working out its great 
 and beneficent results. The land grant for educa- 
 tion was a great one, but, at last, its chief effort 
 was in stimulating popular education ; for the State 
 of Ohio has taxed itself tens of millions of dollars 
 beyond the utmost value of the land grant, to 
 found and maintain a system of public education 
 which the world has not surpassed. 
 
 We have seen that above and beyond all this 
 material and intellectual development, Ohio has 
 provided a vast benefaction of asylums, hospitals, 
 and infirmaries, and special schools for the support 
 and instruction of the dependent classes. There is 
 not within all her borders a single one of the deaf, 
 dumb, and blind, of the poor, sick, and insane, not 
 an orphan or a vagrant, who is not provided for 
 by the broad and generous liberality of the State 
 and her people. A charity which the classic ages 
 knew nothing of, a beneficence which the splendid 
 hierarchies and aristocracies of Europe cannot 
 equal, has been exhibited in this young State, 
 whose name was unknown one hundred years ago, 
 whose people, from Europe to the Atlantic, and 
 from the Atlantic to the Ohio, were, like Adam 
 and Eve, cast out — " the world be/ore them where 
 to choose^ 
 
 Lastly, we see that, although the third in pop- 
 ulation, and the seventeenth in admission to the 
 Union, Ohio had, in 1870, 6,400 churches, the 
 largest number in any one State, and numbering 
 among them every form of Christian worship. 
 The people, whose fields were rich with grain, 
 whose mines were boundless in wealth, and whose 
 commerce extended through thousands of miles 
 of lakes and rivers, came here, as they came to 
 New England's rock-bound coast — 
 
 " With freedom to worship God." 
 
 The church and the schoolhouse rose beside the 
 green fields, and the morning bells rang forth to 
 cheerful children going to school, and to a Chris- 
 tian people going to the church of God. 
 
 Let us now look at the possibilities of Ohio in 
 the future development of the American Repub- 
 lican Republic. The two most populous parts of 
 Europe, because the most food-producing, are the 
 Netherlands and Italy, or, more precisely, Belgium 
 and ancient Lombardy ; to the present time, their 
 population is, in round numbers, three hundred to 
 the square mile. The density of population in 
 England proper is about the same. We may 
 assume, therefore, that three hundred to the square 
 
■^ 
 
 HISTORY or OHIO. 
 
 147 
 
 mile is, in round numbers, the limit of comfortable 
 subsistence under modern civilization. It is true 
 that modern improvements in agricultural machin- 
 ery and fertilization have greatly increased the 
 capacity of production, on a given amount of 
 land, with a given amount of labor. It is true, 
 also, that the old countries of Europe do not 
 possess an equal amount of arable land with Ohio 
 in proportion to the same surface. It would seem, 
 therefore, that the density of population in Ohio 
 might exceed that of any part of Europe. On 
 the other hand, it may be said with truth that the 
 American people will not become so dense as in 
 Europe while they have new lands in the West 
 to occupy. This is true ; but lands such as those 
 in the valley of the Ohio are now becoming 
 scarce in the West, and we think that, with her 
 great capacity for the production of grain on one 
 hand, and of illimitable quantities of coal and 
 iron to manufacture with on the other, that Ohio 
 will, at no remote period, reach nearly the density 
 of Belgium, which will give her 10,000,000 of 
 people. This seems extravagant, but the tide of 
 migration, which flowed so fast to the West, is 
 beginning to ebb, while the manufactures of the 
 interior offer greater inducements. 
 
 With population comes wealth, the material for 
 education, the development of the arts, advance 
 in all the material elements of civilization, and the 
 still grander advancements in the strength and 
 elevation of the human mind, conquering to itself 
 new realms of material and intellectual power, 
 acquiring in the future what we have seen in the 
 past, a wealth of resources unknown and undreamed 
 of when, a hundred years ago, the fathers of the 
 republic declared their independence. I know 
 how easy it is to treat this statement with easy 
 incredulity, but statistics is a certain science ; the 
 elements of civilization are now measured, and we 
 know the progress of the human race as we know 
 
 that of a cultivated plant. We know the resources 
 of the country, its food-producing capacity, its 
 art processes, its power of education, and the unde- 
 fined and illimitable power of the human mind 
 for new inventions and unimagined progress. With 
 this knowledge, it is not difiicult nor unsafe to say 
 that the future will produce more, and in a far 
 greater ratio, than the past. The pictured scenes 
 of the prophets have already been more than ful- 
 filled, and the visions of beauty and glory, which 
 their imagination failed fully to describe, will be 
 more than realized in the bloom of that garden 
 which republican America will present to the 
 eyes of astonished mankind. Long before another 
 century shall have passed by, the single State of 
 Ohio will present fourfold the population with which 
 the thirteen States began their independence, more 
 wealth than the entire Union now has ; greater 
 universities than any now in the country, and a 
 development of arts and manufacture which the 
 world now knows nothing of. You have seen 
 more than that since the Constitution was adopted, 
 and what right have you to say the future shall 
 not equal the past ? 
 
 I have aimed, in this address, to give an exact 
 picture of what Ohio is, not more for the sake of 
 Ohio than as a representation of the products 
 which the American Republic has given to the 
 world. A State which began long after the 
 Declaration of Independence, in the then unknown 
 wilderness of North America, presents to-day 
 the fairest example of what a republican govern- 
 ment with Christian civilization can do. Look 
 upon this picture and upon those of Assyria, 
 of Greece or Rome, or of Europe in her best 
 estate, and say where is the civilization of the 
 earth which can equal this. If a Roman citizen could 
 say with pride, " Civis Romanus sum," with far 
 greater pride can you say this day, "I am an 
 American citizen." 
 
 ■"I e) 
 
 
r^ Q 
 
 148 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 EDUCATION* — EARLY SCHOOL LAWS — NOTES — INSTITUTES AND EDUCATIONAL JOURNALS- 
 SCHOOL SYSTEM — SCHOOL FUNDS— COLLEGES A.ND UNIVERSITIES. 
 
 WHEN the survey of the Northwest Terri- 
 tory was ordered by Congress, March 20, 
 1785, it was decreed that every sixteenth section 
 of hind should be reserved for the "maintenance 
 of pubhc schools within each township." The 
 ordinance of 1787 — thanks to the New England 
 Associates — proclaimed that, " religion, morality 
 and knowledge being essential to good government, 
 schools and the means of education should forever 
 be encouraged." The State Constitution of 1802 
 declared that " schools and the means of instruc- 
 tion should be encouraged by legislative provision, 
 not inconsistent with the rights of conscience." 
 In 1825, through the persevering eflforts of Nathan 
 Guilford, Senator from Hamilton County, Ephraim 
 Cutler, Representative from Washington County, 
 and other friends of education, a bill was passed, 
 " laying the foundation for a general system of 
 common schools." This bill provided a tax of one- 
 half mill, to be levied by the County Commis- 
 sioners for school purposes ; provided for school 
 examiners, and made Township Clerks and County 
 Auditors school officers. In 1829, this county 
 tax was raised to three-fourths of a mill ; in 1834 
 to one mill, and, in 1836, to one and a half mills. 
 In March, 1837, Samuel Lewis, of Hamilton 
 County,was appointed State Superintendent of Com- 
 mon Schools. He was a very energetic worker, trav- 
 eling on horseback all over the State, delivering ad- 
 dresses and encouraging school officers and teachers. 
 Through his efforts much good was done, and 
 
 * From the School Commissioners' Reports, principally those of 
 Thomns W. Harvey, A. M. 
 
 Note 1. — The first school taught in Ohio, or in the Northwestern 
 Territory, was iu 1791. The first teacher was Maj. Austin Tiipper, 
 eldestson of Gen. Benjamin Tnpper, both Revolutionary officers. 
 The room occupied was the same as that in which the first Court was 
 held, and was situated in the northwest block-house of the garrison, 
 called the stockade, at Marietta. During the Indian war school 
 was al.so taught at Fort Harmar, Point Marietta, and at other set- 
 tlements. A meeting was held in Marietta, April 29, 1797, to con- 
 sider the erection of a school building suitable for the instruction 
 of the youth, and for conducting religious services. Resolutions 
 were adopted which led to the erection of a building called the 
 Muskingum Academy. The building was of frame, forty feet long 
 and twenly-four feet wide, and is yet(lS78)standing. Thebuilding 
 was twelve ffet higlj, with an arched ceiling. It stood upon astone 
 foundation, three steps from the ground. There were two chimneys 
 and a lobby projection. There was a cellar under the whole build- 
 ing. It stood upon a beaiitiful lot, fronting the Muskingum River, 
 and about sixty feet back fiom the street. Some large trees were 
 
 many important features engrafted on the school 
 system. He resigned in 1839, when the office was 
 abolished, and its duties imposed on the Secretary 
 of State. 
 
 The most important adjunct in early education 
 in the State was the college of teachers organized 
 in Cincinnati in 1831. Albert Pickett, Dr. Joseph 
 Ray, William H. McGuffey — so largely known by 
 his Readers — and Milo G. Williams, were at its 
 head. Leading men in all parts of the West at- 
 tended its meetings. Their published deliberations 
 did much for the advancement of education among 
 the people. Through the efforts of the college, 
 the first convention held in Ohio for educational 
 purposes was called at Columbus, January 13, 
 1836. Two years after, in December, the first 
 convention in which the different sections of the 
 State were represented, was held. At both these 
 conventions, all the needs of the schools, both com- 
 mon and higher, were ably and fully discussed, 
 and appeals made to the people for a more coi'dial 
 support of the law. No successful attempts were 
 made to organize a permanent educational society 
 until December, 1847, when the Ohio State Teach- 
 ers' Association was formed at Akron, Summit 
 County, with Samuel Galloway as President; T. 
 W. Harvey, Recording Secretary; M. D. Leggett, 
 Corresponding Secretary ; William Bowen, Treas- 
 urer, and M. F. Cowdrey, Chairman of the Executive 
 Committee. This Association entered upon its 
 work with commendable earnestness, and has since 
 
 upon the lot and on the street in front. Across the street was an 
 open common, and beyond that the river. Immediately opposite 
 tlie door, on entering, was a broad aisle, and, at the end of the 
 aisle, against the wall, was a desk or pulpit. On the right and left 
 of the pulpit, against the wall, and fronting the pulpit, was a row 
 of slips. On each sideof the door, facing the pulpit, were two slips, 
 and, at each end of the room, one slip. These slips were stationary, 
 and were fitted with desks that could be let down, and there were 
 boxes in the desks for holding books and papers. In the center of 
 the room was an open space, which could be filled with movable 
 seats. The first school was opened here in 1800." — Letter of A. T. 
 Nye. 
 
 Note 2. — Another evidence of the character of the New England 
 Associates is the founding of a public library as early as 1796, or 
 before. Another was also established at Belpre about the same time. 
 Abundant evidence proves the existence of these libraries, all tend- 
 ing to the fact that the early settlers, though conquering a wilder- 
 ness and a savage foe, would not allow their mental faculties to 
 lack for food. The character of the books shows that "solid" 
 reading predominated. 
 
k^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 149 
 
 never abated its zeal. Semi-annual meetings were 
 at first held, but, since 1858, only annual meetings 
 occur. They are always largely attended, and al- 
 ways by the best and most energetic teachers. 
 The Association has given tone to the educational 
 interests of the State, and has done a vast amount 
 of good in popularizing education. In the spring 
 of 1851, Lorin Andrews, then Superintendent of 
 the Massillon school, resigned his place, and be- 
 came a common-school missionary. In July, the 
 Association, at Cleveland, made him its agent, and 
 instituted measures to sustain him. He remained 
 zealously at work in this relation until 1853, when 
 he resigned to accept the presidency of Kenyon 
 College, at Gambler. Dr. A. Lord was then chosen 
 general agent and resident editor of the Journal 
 of Education, which positions he filled two years, 
 with eminent ability. 
 
 The year that Dr. Lord resigned, the ex officio 
 relation of the Secretary of State to the common 
 schools was abolished, and the office of school com- 
 missioner again created. H. H. Barney was 
 elected to the place in October, 1853. The office 
 has since been held by Rev. Anson Smyth, elected 
 in 1856, and re-elected in 1859 ; E. E. White, 
 appointed by the Grovernor, November 11, 1863, 
 to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of C. 
 W. H. Cathcart, who was elected in 1862; John 
 A. Norris, in 1865; W. D. Henkle, in 1868; 
 Thomas W. Harvey, in 1871; C. S. Smart, in 
 1875, and the present incumbent, J. J. Burns, 
 elected in 1878, his term expiring in 1881. 
 
 The first teachers' institute in Northern Ohio 
 was held at Sandusky, in September, 18-15, con- 
 ducted by Salem Town, of New York, A. D. Lord 
 and M. F. Cowdrey. The second was held at Char- 
 don, Geauga Co., in November of the same year. 
 The first institute in the southern part of the 
 State was held at Cincinnati, in February, 1837; 
 the first in the central part at Newark, in March, 
 1848. Since then these meetings of teachers have 
 occurred annually, and have been the means of 
 great good in elevating the teacher and the public 
 in educational interests. In 1848., on petition of 
 forty teachers, county commissioners were author- 
 ized to pay lecturers from surplus revenue, and the 
 next year, to appropriate $100 for institute pur- 
 poses, upon pledge of teachers to raise half that 
 amount. By the statutes of 1864, applicants for 
 teachers were required to pay 50 cents each as an 
 examination fee. One-third of the amount thus 
 raised was allowed the use of examiners as trav- 
 eling expenses, the remainder to be applied to in- 
 
 stitute instruction. For the year 1871, sixty-eight 
 teachers' institutes were held in the State, at which 
 308 instructors and lecturers were employed, and 
 7,158 teachers in attendance. The expense incurred 
 was $16,361.99, of which $10,127.13 was taken 
 from the institute fund; $2,730.34, was contrib- 
 uted by members; $680, by county commis- 
 sioners, and the balance, $1,371.50, was ob- 
 tained from other sources. The last report of the 
 State Commissioners — 1878 — shows that eighty- 
 five county institutes were held in the State, con- 
 tinuing in session 748 days; 416 instructors were 
 employed; 11,466 teachers attended; $22,531.47 
 were received from all sources, and that the ex- 
 penses were $19,587.51, or $1.71 per member. 
 There was a balance on hand of $9,460.74 to com- 
 mence the next year, just now closed, whose work 
 has been as progressive and thorough as any former 
 year. The State Association now comprises three 
 sections; the general association, the superintend- 
 ents' section and the ungraded school section. All 
 have done a good work, and all report progress. 
 
 The old State Constitution, adopted by a con- 
 vention in 1802, was supplemented in 1851 by 
 the present one, under which the General Assem- 
 bly, elected under it, met in 1852. Harvey Rice, 
 a Senator from Cuyahoga County, Chairman of 
 Senate Committee on "Common Schools and 
 School Lands," reported a bill the 29th of March, 
 to provide "for the re-organization, supervision 
 and maintenance of common schools." This bill, 
 amended in a few particulars, became a law 
 March 14, 1853. The prominent features of the 
 new law were : The substitution of a State school 
 tax for the county tax ; creation of the office of 
 the State School Commissioner; the creation of a 
 Township Board of Education, consisting of repre- 
 sentatives from the subdistricts ; the abolition of 
 rate-bills, making education free to all the youth of 
 the State ; the raising of a fund, by a tax of one- 
 tenth of a mill yearly, " for the purpose of fur- 
 nishing school libraries and apparatus to all the 
 common schools." This "library tax" was abol- 
 ished in 1860, otherwise the law has remained 
 practically unchanged. 
 
 School journals, like the popular press, have 
 been a potent agency in the educational history of 
 the State. As early as 1838, the Ohio School 
 Director was issued by Samuel Lewis, by legisla- 
 tive authority, though after six months' continu- 
 ance, it ceased for want of support. The same 
 year the Fesfalozzian, by E. L. Sawtell and II. 
 K. Smith, of Akron, and the Common School 
 
150 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 Advocate, of Cincinnati, were issued. In 1846, 
 the School Journal began to be published by A. 
 I). Lord, of Kirtland. The same year saw the 
 Free School Clarion, by W. Bowen, of Massillon, 
 and the School Friend, by W. B. Smith & Co., 
 of Cincinnati. The next year, W. H. Moore & 
 Co., of Cincinnati, started the Western School 
 Journal. In 1851, the Ohio Teacher, by 
 Thomas Rainey, appeared; the News and Edu- 
 cator, in 1863, and the Educational Times, in 
 1866. In 1850, Dr. Lord's Journal of Educa- 
 tion was united with the School Friend, and 
 became the recognized organ of the teachers in 
 Ohio. The Doctor remained its principal editor 
 until 1856, when he was succeeded by Anson 
 Smyth, who edited the journal one year. In 1857, 
 it was edited by John D. Caldwell ; in 1858 and 
 and 1859, by W. T. Coggeshall; in 1860, by Anson 
 Smyth again, when it passed into the hands of 
 E. E. White, who yet controls it. It has an 
 immense circulation among Ohio teachers, and, 
 though competed by other journals, since started, 
 it maintains its place. 
 
 The school system of the State may be briefly 
 explained as follows: Cities and incorporated vil- 
 lages are independent of township and county con- 
 trol, in the management of schools, having boards 
 of education and examiners of their own. Some 
 of them are organized for school purposes, under 
 special acts. Each township has a board of edu- 
 cation, composed of one member from each sub- 
 district. The township clerk is clerk of this board, 
 but has no vote. Each subdistrict has a local 
 board of trustees, which manages its school affairs, 
 subject to the advice and control of the township 
 board. These officers are elected on the first 
 Monday in April, and hold their offices three 
 years. An enumeration of all the youth between 
 the ages of five and twenty-one is made yearly. 
 All public schools are required to be in session at 
 least twenty-four weeks each year. The township 
 clerk reports annually such facts concerning school 
 affiiirs as the law requires, to the county auditor, 
 who in turn reports to the State Commissioner, 
 who collects these reports in a general report to 
 the Legislature each year. 
 
 A board of examiners is appointed in each 
 county by the Probate Judge. This board has 
 power to grant certificates for a term not exceed- 
 ing two years, and good only in the county in 
 which they are executed ; they may be revoked on 
 sufficient cause. In 1864, a State Board of 
 Examiners was created, with power to issue life cer- 
 
 tificates, valid in all parts of the State. Since 
 then, up to January 1, 1879, there have been 188 
 of these issued. They are considered an excellent 
 test of scholarship and abiHty, and are very credit- 
 able to the holder. 
 
 The school funds, in 1865, amounted to |3,27l,- 
 275.66. They were the proceeds of appropriations 
 of land by Congress for school purposes, upon 
 which the State pays an annual interest of 6 per 
 cent. The funds are known as the Virginia Mili- 
 tary School Fund, the proceeds of eighteen quar- 
 ter-townships and three sections of land, selected 
 by lot from lands lying in the United States 
 Military Reserve, appropriated for the use of 
 schools in the Virginia Military Reservation; the 
 United States Military School Fund, the proceeds 
 of one thirty-sixth part of the land in the United 
 States Military District, appropriated "for the u.se 
 of schools within the same;" the Western Reserve 
 School Fund, the proceeds from fourteen quarter- 
 townships, situated in the United States Military 
 District, and 37,758 acres, most of which was lo- 
 cated in Defiance, Williams, Paulding, Van Wert 
 and Putnam Counties, appropriated for the use of 
 the schools in the Western Reserve; Section 
 16, the proceeds from the sixteenth section of 
 each township in that part of the State in which 
 the Indian title was not extinguished in 1803; the 
 Moravian School Fund, the proceeds from one 
 thirty-sixth part of each of three tracts of 
 4,000 acres situated in Tuscarawas County, orig- 
 inally granted by Congress to the Society of United 
 Brethren, and reconveyed by this Society to the 
 United States in 1824. The income of these funds 
 is not distributed by any uniform rule, owing to 
 defects in the granting of the funds. The territo- 
 rial divisions designated receive the income in 
 proportion to the whole number of youth therein, 
 while in the remainder of the State, the rent of 
 Section 16, or the interest on the proceeds 
 arising from its sale, is paid to the inhabitants of 
 the originally surveyed townships. In these terri- 
 torial divisions, an increase or decrease of popula- 
 tion must necessarily increase or diminish the 
 amount each youth is entitled to receive ; and the 
 fortunate location or judicious sale of the sixteenth 
 section may entitle one township to receive a large 
 sum, while an adjacent township receives a mere 
 pittance. This inequality of benefit may be good 
 for localities, but it is certainly a detriment to the 
 State at large. There seems to be no legal remedy 
 for it. In addition to the income from the before- 
 mentioned funds, a variable revenue is received 
 
'-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 151 
 
 from certain fines and licenses paid to either county 
 or township treasurers for the use of schools; 
 from the sale of swamp lands ($25,720.07 allotted 
 to the State in 1850), and from personal property 
 escheated to the State. 
 
 Aside from the funds, a State school tax is fixed 
 by statute. Local taxes vary with the needs of 
 localities, are limited by law, and are contingent 
 on the liberality and public spirit of different com- 
 munities. 
 
 The State contains more than twenty colleges 
 and universities, more than the same number of 
 female seminaries, and about thirty normal schools 
 and academies. The amount of property invested 
 in these is more than $6,000,000. The Ohio 
 University is the oldest college in the State. 
 
 In addition to the regular colleges, the State 
 controls the Ohio State University, formerly the 
 Agricultural and Mechanical College, established 
 from the proceeds of the land scrip voted by Con- 
 gress to Ohio for such purposes. The amount 
 realized from the sale was nearly $500,000. This 
 is to constitute a permanent fund, the interest only 
 to be used. In addition, the sum of $300,000 
 was voted by the citizens of Franklin County, in 
 consideration of the location of the college in that 
 county. Of this sum $111,000 was paid for three 
 hundred and fifteen acres of land near the city of 
 Columbus, and $112,000 for a college building. 
 
 the balance being expended as circumstances re- 
 quired, for additional buildings, laboratory, appa- 
 ratus, etc. Thorough instruction is given in all 
 branches relating to agriculture and the mechanical 
 arts. Already excellent results are attained. 
 
 By the provisions of the act of March 14, 1853, 
 township boards are made bodies politic and cor- 
 porate in law, and are invested with the title, care 
 and custody of all school property belonging to 
 the school district or township. They have control 
 of the central or high schools of their townships ; 
 prescribe rules for the district schools ; may appoint 
 one of their number manager of the schools of the 
 township, and allow him reasonable pay for his 
 services ; determine the text-books to be used ; fix 
 the boundaries of districts and locate schoolhouse 
 sites ; make estimates of the amount of money re- 
 quired ; apportion the money among the districts, 
 and are required to make an annual report to the 
 County Auditor, who incorporates the same in his 
 report to the State Commissioner, by whom it 
 reaches the Legislature. 
 
 Local directors control the subdistricts. They 
 enumerate the children of school age, employ and 
 dismiss teachers, make contracts for building and 
 furnishing schoolhouses, and make all necessary 
 provision for the convenience of the district schools. 
 Practically, the entire management rests with 
 them. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 AGRICULTURE— AREA OP THE STATE— EARLY AGRICULTURE IN THE WEST— MARKETS— LIVE 
 
 STOCK — NURSERIES, FRUITS, ETC. — CEREALS — ROOT AND CUCURBITACEOUS 
 
 CROPS— AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS— AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES— 
 
 POMOLOGICAL AND HORTICULTURAL SOCIETIES. 
 
 " Oft did the harvest to their sickles yield, 
 
 Their furrow oft the stubborn glebe has broke ; 
 
 How jocund did they drive their teams afield ! 
 
 How bowed the woods beneath their sturdy stroke." 
 
 THE majority of the readers of these pages are 
 farmers, hence a resume of agriculture in the 
 State, would not only be appropriate, but valuable 
 as a matter of history. It is the true basis of 
 national prosperity, and, therefore, justly occupies 
 a foremost place. 
 
 In the year 1800, the Territory of Ohio con- 
 tained a population of 45,365 inhabitants, or a 
 little more than one person to the square mile. At 
 
 this date, the admission of the Territory into the 
 Union as a State began to be agitated. When the 
 census was made to ascertain the legality of the 
 act, in conformity to the "Compact of 1787," no 
 endeavor was made to ascertain additional statis- 
 tics, as now ; hence, the cultivated land was not 
 returned, and no account remains to tell how 
 much existed. In 1805, three years after the ad- 
 mission of the State into the Union, 7,252,856 
 acres had been purchased from the General Gov- 
 ernment. Still no returns of the cultivated lands 
 were made. In 1810, the population of Ohio was 
 230,760, and the land purchased from the Gov- 
 
 
±1 
 
 152 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 ernment amounted to 9,933,150 acres, of which 
 amount, however, 3,569,314 acres, or more than 
 one-third, was held by non-residents. Of the lauds 
 occupied by resident land-owners, there appear to 
 have been 100,968 acres of first-rate, 1,929,600 
 of second, and 1,538,745 acres of third rate lands. 
 At this period there were very few exports from 
 the farm, loom or shop. The people still needed 
 all they produced to sustain themselves, and were 
 yet in that pioneer period where they were obliged 
 to produce all they wanted, and yet were opening- 
 new liirms, and bringing the old ones to a productive 
 state. 
 
 Kentucky, and the country on the Monongahela, 
 lying along the western slopes of the Alleghany 
 Mountains, having been much longer settled, had 
 begun, as early as 1795, to send considerable quan- 
 tities of flour, whisky, bacon and tobacco to the 
 lower towns on the Mississippi, at that time in the 
 possession of the Spaniards. At the French set- 
 tlements on the Ilhnois, and at Detroit, were 
 being raised much more than could be used, and 
 these were exporting also large quantities of these 
 materials, as well as peltries and such commodities 
 as their nomadic lives furnished. As the Missis- 
 sippi was the natural outlet of the West, any at- 
 tempt to impede its free navigation by the various 
 powers at times controlling its outlet, would lead 
 at once to violent outbreaks among the Western 
 settlers, some of whom were aided by unscrupulous 
 persons, who thought to form an independent 
 Western country. Providence seems to have had 
 a watchful eye over all these events, and to have 
 so guided them that the attempts with such objects 
 in view, invariably ended in disgi-ace to their per- 
 petrators. This outlet to the West was thought 
 to be the only one that could carry their produce to 
 market, for none of the Westerners then dreamed 
 of the immense system of railways now covering 
 that part of the Union. As soon as ship-building 
 commenced at Marietta, in the year 1800, the 
 farmers along the borders of the Ohio and Musk- 
 ingum llivers turned their attention to the culti- 
 vation of hemp, in addition to their other crops. In a 
 few years sufficient was raised, not only to furnish 
 cordage to the ships in the West, but large quan- 
 tities were worked up in the various rope-walks 
 and sent to the Atlantic cities. Iron had been 
 discovered, and forges on the Juniata were busy 
 converting that necessary and valued material into 
 implements of industry. 
 
 By the year 1805, two ships, seven brigs and 
 three schooners had been built and rigged by the 
 
 citizens of Marietta. Their construction gave a 
 fresh impetus to agriculture, as by means of them 
 the surplus products could be carried away to a 
 foreign market, where, if it did not bring money, 
 it could be exchanged for merchandise equally 
 valuable. Captain David Devoll was one of the 
 earliest of Ohio's shipwrights. He settled on the 
 fertile Muskingum bottom, about five miles above 
 Marietta, soon after the Indian war. Here he 
 built a "floating mill," for making flour, and, in 
 1801, a ship of two hundred and fifty tons, called 
 the Muskingum, and the brig Eliza Greene, of one 
 hundred and fifty tons. In 1804, he built a 
 schooner on his own account, and in the spring 
 of the next year, it was finished and loaded for a 
 voyage down the Mississippi. It was small, only of 
 seventy tons burden, of a light draft, and intended 
 to run on the lakes east of New Orleans. In 
 shape and model, it fully sustained its name. Nonpa- 
 reil. Its complement of sails, small at first, was 
 completed when it arrived in New Orleans. It 
 had a large cabin to accommodate passengers, was 
 well and finely painted, and sat gracefully on the 
 water. Its load was of assorted articles, and shows 
 very well the nature of exports of the day. It con- 
 sisted of two hundred barrels of flour, fifty barrels of 
 kiln-dried corn meal, four thousand pounds of 
 cheese, six thousand of bacon, one hundred sets 
 of rum puncheon shooks, and a few grindstones. 
 The flour and meal were made at Captain Devoll's 
 floating mill, and the cheese made in Belpre, at that 
 date one of Ohio's most flourishing agricultural dis- 
 tricts. The Captain and others carried on boating as 
 well as the circumstances of the days permitted, fear- 
 ing only the hostility of the Indians, and the duty 
 the Spaniards were liable to levy on boats going 
 down to New Orleans, even if they did not take 
 it into their erratic heads to stop the entire navi- 
 gation of the great river by vessels other than 
 their own. By such means, merchandise was car- 
 ried on almost entirely until the construction of 
 canals, and even then, until modern times, the 
 flat-boat was the main-stay of the shipper inhabit- 
 ing the country adjoining the upper Ohio and 
 Mississippi Rivers. 
 
 Commonly, very little stock was kept beyond 
 what was necessary for the use of the family and 
 to perform the labor on the farm. The Scioto 
 Valley was perhaps the only exception in Ohio to 
 this general condition. Horses were brought by the 
 emigrants from the East and were characteristic 
 of that region. In the French settlements in Illi- 
 nois and about Detroit, French ponies, marvels of 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 155 
 
 endurance, were chiefly used. They were impractic- 
 able in hauHng the immense emigrant wagons over 
 the mountains, and hence were comparatively 
 unknown in Ohio. Until 1828, draft horses 
 were chiefly used here, the best strains being 
 brought by the "Tunkers," " Mennonites," and 
 " Ormish," — three religious sects, whose members 
 were invariably agriculturists. In Stark, Wayne, 
 Holmes, and Richland Counties, as a general thing, 
 they congregated in communities, where the neat- 
 ness of their farms, the excellent condition of 
 their stock, and the primitive simplicity of their 
 manners, made them conspicuous. 
 
 In 1828, the French began to settle in Stark 
 County, where they introduced the stock of horses 
 known as " Selim," "Florizel," "Post Boy" and 
 " Timolen." These, crossed upon the descents of 
 the Norman and Conestoga, produced an excellent 
 stock of farm horses, now largely used. 
 
 In the Western Reserve, blooded horses were in- 
 troduced as early as 1825. John I. Van Meter 
 brought fine horses into the Scioto Valley in 1815, 
 or thereabouts. Soon after, fine horses were 
 brought to Steubenville from Virginia and Penn- 
 sylvania. In Northern Ohio the stock was more 
 miscellaneous, until the introduction of improved 
 breeds from 1815 to 1835. By the latter date 
 the strains of horses had greatly improved. The 
 same could be said of other parts of the State. 
 Until after 1825, only farm and road horses were 
 required. That year a race-course — the first in 
 the State — was established in Cincinnati, shortly 
 followed by others at Chillicothe, Dayton and Ham- 
 ilton. From that date the race-horse steadily im- 
 proved. Until 1838, however, all race-courses 
 were rather irregular, and, of those named, it is 
 difiicult to determine which one has priority of 
 date over the others. To Cincinnati, the prece- 
 dence is, however, generally given. In 1838, the 
 Buckeye Course was established in Cincinnati, and 
 before a year had elapsed, it is stated, there were 
 fifteen regular race-courses in Ohio. The eifect 
 of these courses was to greatly stimulate the stock 
 of racers, and rather detract from draft and road 
 horses. The organization of companies to import 
 blooded horses has again revived the interest in 
 this class, and now, at annual stock sales, these 
 strains of horses are eagerly sought after by those 
 having occasion to use them. 
 
 Cattle were brought over the mountains, and, 
 for several years, were kept entirely for domestic 
 uses. By 1805, the country had so far settled 
 that the surplus stock was fattened on corn and 
 
 fodder, and a drove was driven to Baltimore. The 
 drove was owned by George Renick, of Chillicothe, 
 and the feat was looked upon as one of great im- 
 portance. The drove arrived in Baltimore in ex- 
 cellent condition. The impetus given by this 
 movement of Mr. Renick stimulated greatly the 
 feeding of cattle, and led to the improvement of 
 the breed, heretofore only of an ordinary kind. 
 
 Until the advent of railroads and the shipment 
 of cattle thereon, the number of cattle driven to 
 eastern markets from Ohio alone, was estimated at 
 over fifteen thousand annually, whose value was 
 placed at $600,000. Besides this, large numbers 
 were driven from Indiana and Illinois, whose 
 boundless prairies gave free scope to the herding of 
 cattle. Improved breeds, "Short Horns," "Long 
 Horns" and others, were introduced into Ohio as 
 early as 1810 and 1815. Since then the stock 
 has been gradually improved and acclimated, until 
 now Ohio produces as fine cattle as any State in 
 the Union. In some localities, especially in the 
 Western Reserve, cheesemaking and dairy interests 
 are the chief occupations of whole neighborhoods, 
 where may be found men who have grown wealthy 
 in this business. 
 
 Sheep were kept by almost every family, in pio- 
 neer times, in order to be supplied with wool for 
 clothing. The wool was carded by hand, spun in 
 the cabin, and frequently dyed and woven as well 
 as shaped into garments there, too. All emigrants 
 brought the best household and farming imple- 
 ments their limited means would allow, so also did 
 they bring the best strains of horses, cattle and 
 sheep they could obtain. About the year 1809, 
 Mr. Thomas Rotch, a Quaker, emigrated to Stark 
 County, and brought with him a small flock of 
 Merino sheep. They were good, and a part of 
 them were from the original flock brought over 
 from Spain, in 1801, by Col. Humphrey, United 
 States Minister to that country. He had brought 
 200 of these sheep, and hoped, in time, to see 
 every part of the United States stocked with Me- 
 rinos. In this he partially succeeded only, owing 
 to the pi'ejudice against them. In 1816, Messrs. 
 Wells & Dickenson, who were, for the day, exten- 
 sive woolen manufacturers in Steubenville, drove 
 their fine flocks out on the Stark County Plains 
 for the summer, and brought them back for the 
 winter. This course was pursued for several years, 
 until farms were prepared, when they were per- 
 manently kept in Stark County. This flock was 
 originally derived from the Humphrey importation. 
 The failure of Wells & Dickenson, in 1824, placed 
 
 :^ 
 
156 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 a good portion of this flock in the hands of Adam 
 Hildebrand, and became the basis of his celebrated 
 flock. Mr. T. S. Humrickhouse, of Coshocton, 
 in a communication regarding sheep, writes as fol- 
 lows: 
 
 " The first merinos brought to Ohio were doubtr- 
 less by Seth Adams, of Zanesville. They were 
 Humphrey's Merinos — undoubtedly the best ever 
 imported into the United States, by whatever 
 name called. He kept them part of the time in 
 Washington, and afterward in Muskingum County. 
 He had a sort of partnership agency from Gen. 
 Humphrey for keeping and selling them. They 
 were scattered, and, had they been taken care of 
 and appreciated, would have laid a better found- 
 ation of flocks in Ohio than any sheep brought 
 into it from that time till 1852. The precise date 
 at which Adams brought them cannot now be as- 
 certained ; but it was prior to 1813, perhaps as 
 early as 1804." 
 
 "The first Southdowns," continues Mr. Hum- 
 rickhouse," " New Leicester, Lincolnshire and Cots- 
 wold sheep I ever saw, were brought into Coshocton 
 County from England by Isaac Maynard, nephew 
 of the famous Sir John, in 1834. There were 
 about ten Southdowns and a trio of each of the 
 other kinds. He was ofi"ered ^500 for his Lin- 
 colnshire ram, in Buffalo, as he passed through, 
 but refused. He was selfish, and unwilling to put 
 them into other hands when he went on a farm, 
 all in the woods, and, in about three years, most of 
 them had perished." 
 
 The raising and improvement of sheep has kept 
 steady tread with the growth of the State, and 
 now Ohio wool is known the world over. In quan- 
 tity it is equal to any State in America, while its 
 quality is unequaled. 
 
 The first stock of hogs brought to Ohio were 
 rather poor, scrawny creatures, and, in a short 
 time, when left to themselves to pick a livelihood 
 from the beech mast and other nuts in the woods, 
 degenerated into a wild condition, almost akin to 
 their originators. As the country settled, however, 
 they were gathered from their lairs, and, by feed- 
 ing them corn, the farmers soon brought them out 
 of their semi-barbarous state. Improved breeds 
 were introduced. The laws for their protection 
 and guarding were made, and now the hog of to- 
 day shows what improvement and civilization can 
 do for any wild animal. The chief city of the 
 State has become famous as a slaughtering place ; 
 her bacon and sides being known in all the civil- 
 ized world. 
 
 Other domestic animals, mules, asses, etc., have 
 been brought to the State as occasion required. 
 Wherever their use has been demanded, they have 
 been obtained, until the State has her complement 
 of all animals her citizens can use in their daily 
 labors. 
 
 Most of the early emigrants brought with them 
 young fruit trees or grafts of some favorite variety 
 from the " old homestead." Hence, on the West- 
 ern Reserve are to be found chiefly — especially in 
 old orchards — New England varieties, while, in the 
 localities immediately south of the Reserve, Penn- 
 sylvania and Maryland varieties predominate ; but 
 at Marietta, New England fruits are again found, 
 as well as throughout Southeastern Ohio. One of 
 the oldest of these orchards was on a Mr. Dana's 
 farm, near Cincinnati, on the Ohio River bank. It 
 consisted of five acres, in which apple seeds and 
 seedlings were planted as early as 1790. Part of 
 the old orchard is yet to be seen, though the trees 
 are almost past their usefulness. Peaches, pears, 
 cherries and apples were planted by all the pioneers 
 in their gardens. As soon as the seed produced 
 seedlings, these were transplanted to some hillside, 
 and the orchard, in a few years, was a productive 
 unit in the life of the settler. The first fruit 
 brought, was, like everything else of the pioneers, 
 rather inferior, and admitted of much cultivation. 
 Soon steps were taken by the more enterprising 
 settlers to obtain better varieties. Israel Putnam, 
 as early as 179G, returned to the East, partly to 
 get scions of the choicest apples, and, partly, on 
 other business. He obtained quite a quantity of 
 choice apples, of some forty or fifty varieties, and 
 set them out. A portion of them were distrib- 
 uted to the settlers who had trees, to ingraft. 
 From these old grafts are yet to be traced some of 
 the best orchards in Ohio. Israel Putnam was one 
 of the most prominent men in early Ohio days. 
 He was always active in promoting the interests of 
 the settlers. Among his earliest efforts, that of 
 improving the fruit may well be mentioned. He 
 and his brother, Aaron W. Putnam, living at Bel- 
 pre, opposite Blennerhasset's Island, began the 
 nursery business soon after their arrival in the 
 West. The apples brought by them from their 
 Connecticut home were used to commence the busi- 
 ness. These, and the apples obtained from trees 
 planted in their gardens, gave them a beginning. 
 They were the only two men in Ohio engaged in 
 the business till 1817. 
 
 In early times, in the central part of Ohio, 
 there existed a curious character known as "Johnny 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 157 
 
 Appleseed." His real name was John Chapman. 
 He received his name from his habit of planting, 
 along all the streams in that part of the State, 
 apple-seeds from which sprang many of the old 
 orchards. He did this as a religious duty, think- 
 ing it to be his especial mission. He had, it is 
 said, been disappointed in his youth in a love 
 affair, and came West about 1800, and ever after 
 followed his singular life. He was extensively 
 known, was quite harmless, very patient, and did, 
 without doubt, much good. He died in 1847, at 
 the house of a Mr. Worth, near Fort Wayne, 
 Indiana, who had long known him, and oflen 
 befriended him. He was a minister in the Swed- 
 enborgian Church, and, in his own way, a zealous 
 worker. 
 
 The settlers of the Western Reserve, coming 
 from New England, chiefly from Connecticut, 
 brought all varieties of fruit known in their old 
 homes. These, whether seeds or grafts, were 
 planted in gardens, and as soon as an orchard 
 could be cleared on some favorable hillside, the 
 young trees were transplanted there, and in time 
 an orchard was the result. Much confusion 
 regarding the kinds of fruits thus produced arose, 
 partly from the fact that the trees grown from 
 seeds did not always prove to be of the same qual- 
 ity as the seeds. Climate, soil and surroundings 
 oflen change the character of such fruits. 
 Many new varieties, unknown to the growers, 
 were the result. The fruit thus produced was 
 often of an inferior growth, and when grafts were 
 brought from the old New England home and 
 grafted into the Ohio trees, an improvement as 
 well as the old home fruit was the result. After 
 the orchards in the Reserve began to bear, the 
 fruit was very often taken to the Ohio River for 
 shipment, and thence found its way to the South- 
 ern and Eastern seaboard cities. 
 
 Among the individuals prominent in introducing 
 fi-uits into the State, were Mr. Dille, of Euclid, Judge 
 Fuller, Judge Whittlesey, and Mr. Lindley. 
 George Hoadly was also very prominent and ener- 
 getic in the matter, and was, perhaps, the first to 
 introduce the pear to any extent. He was one of 
 the most persistent and enthusiastic amateurs in 
 horticulture and pomology in the West. About 
 the year 1810, Dr. Jared Kirtland, father of 
 Prof. J. P. Kirtland, so favorably known 
 among horticulturists and pomologists, came from 
 Connecticut and isettled in Poland, Mahoning 
 County, with his family. This family has done 
 more than any other in the State, perhaps, to 
 
 advance fruit culture. About the year 1824, 
 Prof J. P. Kirtland, in connection with his brother, 
 established a nursery at Poland, then in Trumbull 
 County, and brought on from New England above 
 a hundred of their best varieties of apples, cherries, 
 peaches, pears, and smaller fruits, and a year or 
 two afler brought from New Jersey a hundred of 
 the best varieties of that State ; others were ob- 
 tained in New York, so that they possessed the larg- 
 est and most varied stock in the Western country. 
 These two men gave a great impetus to fruit cult- 
 ure in the West, and did more than any others 
 of that day to introduce improved kinds of all 
 fi-uits in that part of the United States. 
 
 Another prominent man in this branch of indus- 
 try was Mr. Andrew H. Ernst, of Cincinnati. 
 Although not so early a settler as the Kirtlands, 
 he was, like them, an ardent student and propa- 
 gator of fine fi'uits. He introduced more than 
 six hundred varieties of apples and seven hun- 
 dred of pears, both native and foreign. His 
 object was to test by actual experience the most 
 valuable sorts for the diversified soil and climate 
 of the Western country. 
 
 The name of Nicholas Longworth, also of Cin- 
 cinnati, is one of the most extensively known of any 
 in the science of horticulture and pomology. For 
 more than fifty years he made these his especial 
 delight. Having a large tract of land in the 
 lower part of Cincinnati, he established nurseries, 
 and planted and disseminated every variety of 
 fruits that could be found in the United States — 
 East or West — making occasional importations 
 from European countries of such varieties as 
 were thought to be adapted to the Western climate. 
 His success has been variable, governed by the 
 season, and in a measure by his numerous experi- 
 ments. His vineyards, cultivated by tenants, gen- 
 erally Gi-ermans, on the European plan, during the 
 latter years of his experience paid him a hand- 
 some revenue. He introduced the famous Catawba 
 grape, the standard grape of the West. It is 
 stated that Mr. Longworth bears the same relation 
 to vineyard culture that Fulton did to steam navi- 
 gation. Others made earlier effort, but he was the 
 first to establish it on a permanent basis. He has 
 also been eminently successful in the cultivation of 
 the strawberry, and was the first to firmly establish 
 it on Western soil. He also brought the Ohio Ever- 
 bearing Raspberry into notice in the State, and 
 widely disseminated it throughout the country. 
 
 Other smaller fi-uits were brought out to the 
 West like those mentioned. In some cases fruits 
 
158 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 indigenous to the soil were cultivated and improved, 
 and as improved fruits, are known favorably where- 
 ever used. 
 
 In chronology and importance, of all the cereals, 
 corn stands foremost. During the early pioneer 
 period, it was the staple article of food for both 
 man and beast. It could be made into a variety 
 of forms of food, and as such was not only palata- 
 ble but highly nutritious and strengthening. 
 
 It is very difficult to determine whether corn 
 originated in America or in the Old World. Many 
 prominent botanists assert it is a native of Turkey, 
 and originally was known as " Turkey wheat." Still 
 others claimed to have found mention of maize in 
 Chinese writings antedating the Turkish discovery. 
 Grains of maize were found in an Egyptian mum- 
 my, which goes to prove to many the cereal was 
 known in Africa since the earliest times. Maize 
 was found in America when first visited by white 
 men, but of its origin Indians could give no ac- 
 count. It had always been known among them, 
 and constituted their chief article of vegetable diet. 
 It was cultivated exclusiveFy by their squaws, the 
 men considering it beneath their dignity to engage 
 in any manual labor. It is altogether probable corn 
 was known in the Old World long before the New 
 was discovered. The Arabs or Crusaders probably 
 introduced it into Europe. How it was introduced 
 into America will, in all probability, remain un- 
 known. It may have been an indigenous plant, 
 like many others. Its introduction into Ohio dates 
 with the settlement of tlie whites, especially its 
 cultivation and use as an article of trade. True, 
 the Indians had cultivated it in small quantities ; 
 each lodge a little for itself, but no effort to make 
 of it a national support began until the civilization 
 of the white race became established. From that 
 time on, the increase in crops has grown with the 
 State, and, excepting the great corn States of the 
 West, Ohio produces an amount equal to any State 
 in the Union. The statistical tables printed in 
 agricultural reports show the acres planted, and 
 bushels grown. Figures speak an unanswerable 
 logic. 
 
 Wheat is probably the next in importance of the 
 cereals in the State. Its origin, like corn, is lost 
 in the mists of antiquity. Its berry was no doubt 
 used as food by the ancients for ages anterior to 
 any historical records. It is often called corn in 
 old writings, and under that name is frequently 
 mentioned in the Bible. 
 
 "As far back in the vistas of ages as human 
 records go, we find that wheat has been cultivated. 
 
 and, with corn, aside from animal food, has formed 
 one of the chief alimfentary articles of all nations ; 
 but as the wheat plant has nowhere been found wild, 
 or in a state of nature, the inference has been 
 drawn by men of unquestioned scientific ability, 
 that the original plant from which wheat has been 
 derived was either totally annihilated, or else cul- 
 tivation has wrought so great a change, that the 
 original is by no means obvious, or manifest to bot- 
 anists." 
 
 It is supposed by many, wheat originated in 
 Persia. Others affirm it was known and cultivated 
 in Egypt long ere it found its way into Persia. It 
 was certainly grown on the Nile ages ago, and 
 among the tombs are found grains of wheat in a 
 perfectly sound condition, that unquestionably 
 have been buried thousands of years. It may be, 
 however, that wheat was grown in Persia first, and 
 thence found its way into Egypt and Africa, or, 
 vice versa. It grew first in Egypt and Africa and 
 thence crossed into Persia, and from there found 
 its way into India and all parts of Asia. 
 
 It is also claimed that wheat is indigenous to 
 the island of Sicily, and that from there it spread 
 along the shores of the Mediterranean into Asia 
 Minor and Egypt, and, as communities advanced, 
 it was cultivated, not only to a greater extent, but 
 with greater success. 
 
 The goddess of agriculture, more especially of 
 grains, who, by the Grreeks, was called Demeter, 
 and, by the Romans, Ceres — hence the name ce- 
 reals — was said to have her home at Euna, a fertile 
 region of that island, thus indicating the source 
 from which the Greeks and Romans derived their 
 Ceralia. Homer mentions wheat and spelt as 
 bread; also corn and barley, and describes his 
 heroes as using them as fodder for their horses, as 
 the people in the South of Europe do at present. 
 Rye was introduced into Greece from Thrace, or 
 by way of Thrace, in the time of Galen. In 
 Caesar's time the Romans grew a species of wheat 
 enveloped in a husk, hke barley, and by them 
 called "Far." 
 
 During the excavations of Herculaneum and 
 Pompeii, wheat, in an excellent state of preserva- 
 tion, was frequently found. 
 
 Dr. Anson Hart, Superintendent, at one time, of 
 Indian Affiiirs in Oregon, states that he found 
 numerous patches of wheat and flax growing wild 
 in the Yackemas country, in Upper Oregon. There 
 is but little doubt that both cereals were intro- 
 duced into Oregon at an early period by the Hud- 
 son Bay, or other fur companies. Wheat was also 
 
 *7- 
 
^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 159 
 
 found by Dr. Boyle, of Columbus, Ohio, growing 
 in a similar state in tbe Carson Valley. It was, 
 doubtless, brought there by the early Spaniards. 
 In 153(>, one of Cortez's slaves found several grains 
 of wheat accidentally mixed with the rice. The 
 careful negro planted the handful of grains, and 
 succeeding years saw a wheat crop in Mexico, 
 which found its way northward, probably into 
 California. 
 
 Turn where we may, wherever the foot of civil- 
 ization has trod, there will we find this wheat 
 plant, which, like a monument, has perpetuated 
 the memory of the event; but nowhere do we find 
 the plant wild. It is the result of cultivation in 
 bygone ages, and has been produced by "progress- 
 ive development." 
 
 It is beyond the limit and province of these 
 pages to discuss the composition of this important 
 cereal ; only its historic properties can be noticed. 
 With the advent of the white men in America, 
 wheat, like corn, came to be one of the staple prod- 
 ucts of life. It followed the pioneer over the 
 mountains westward, where, in the rich Missis- 
 sippi and Illinois bottoms, it has been cultivated 
 by the French since 1690. When the hardy New 
 Englanders came to the alluvial lands adjoining 
 the Ohio, Muskingum or Miami Kivers, they 
 brought with them this "staiF of life," and forth- 
 with began its cultivation. Who sowed the first 
 wheat in Ohio, is a question Mr. A. S. Guthrie 
 answers, in a letter published in the Agricultural 
 Report of 1857, as follows: 
 
 " My father, Thomas Guthrie, emigrated to the 
 Northwest Territory in the year 1788, and arrived 
 at the mouth of the Muskingum in July, about 
 three months after Gen. Putnam had arrived with 
 the first pioneers of Ohio. My father brought a 
 bushel of wheat with him from one of the frontier 
 counties of Pennsylvania, which he sowed on a 
 lot of land in Marietta, which he cleared for that 
 purpose, on the second bottom or plain, in the 
 neighborhood of where the Court House now 
 stands." 
 
 Mr. Guthrie's opinion is corroborated by Dr. 
 Samuel P. Hildreth, in his " Pioneer Settlers of 
 Ohio," and is, no doubt, correct. 
 
 From that date on down through the years of 
 Ohio's growth, the crops of wheat have kept pace 
 with the advance and growth of civilization. The 
 soil is admirably adapted to the growth of this ce- 
 real, a large number of varieties being grown, and 
 an excellent quality produced. It is firm in body, 
 and, in many cases, is a successful rival of wheat 
 
 produced in the great wheat-producing regions of 
 the United States — Minnesota, and the farther 
 Northwest. 
 
 Oats, rye, barley, and other grains were also 
 brought to Ohio from the Atlantic Coast, though 
 some of them had been cultivated by the French 
 in Illinois and about Detroit. They were at first 
 used only as food for home consumption, and, until 
 the successful attempts at river and canal naviga- 
 tion were brought about, but little was ever sent 
 to market. 
 
 Of all the root crops known to man, the potato 
 is probably the most valuable. Next to wheat, 
 it is claimed by many as the staff of life. In 
 some localities, this assumption is undoubtedly 
 true. What would Ireland have done in her fam- 
 ines but for this simple vegetable? The potato is 
 a native of the mountainous districts of tropical 
 and subtropical America, probably from Chili to 
 Mexico ; but there is considerable difficulty in 
 deciding where it is really indigenous, and where 
 it has spread after being introduced by man. 
 Humboldt, the learned savant, doubted if it had 
 ever been found wild, but scholars no less fiimous, 
 and of late date, have expressed an opposite 
 opinion. In the wild plant, as in all others, the 
 tubers are smaller than in the cultivated. The 
 potato had been cultivated in America, and its 
 tubers used for food, long before the advent of the 
 Europeans. It seems to have been first brought 
 to Europe by the Spaniards, from the neighbor- 
 hood of Quito, in the 4?eginning of the sixteenth 
 century, and spread through Spain, the Netherlands, 
 Burgundy and Italy, cultivated in gardens as an 
 ornament only and not for an article of food. 
 It long received through European countries the 
 same name with the batatas — sweet potato, which 
 is the plant meant by all English writers down to 
 the seventeenth century. 
 
 It appears that the potato was brought from 
 Virginia to Ireland by Hawkins, a slave-trader, 
 in 1565, and to England by Sir Francis Drake, 
 twenty years later. It did not at first attract much 
 notice, and not until it was a third time imported 
 from America, in 1623, by Sir Walter Raleigh, 
 did the Europeans make a practical use of it. 
 Even then it was a long time before it was exten- 
 sively cultivated. It is noticed in agricultural 
 journals as food for cattle only as late as 1719. 
 Poor people began using it, however, and finding it 
 highly nutritious, the Royal Geographical Society, 
 in 1663, adopted measures for its propagation. 
 About this time it began to be used in Ireland as 
 
 -7- 
 
x: 
 
 IGO 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 food, aad from the beginning of the eighteenth cent- 
 ury, its use hiis never declined. It is now known 
 in every (juarter of the world, and has, by cultiva- 
 tion, been greatly improved. 
 
 The inhabitants of America learned its use 
 frorc. the Indians, who cultivated it and other 
 root crops — rutabagas, radishes, etc., and taught 
 the whites their value. When the pioneers of 
 Ohio came to its fertile valleys, they brought 
 improved species with them, which by cultiva- 
 tion and soil, are now greatly increased, and are 
 among the standard crops of the State. 
 
 The cucurbitaceous plants, squashes, etc., were, 
 like the potato and similar root crops, indigenous 
 to America — others, like the melons, to Asia — 
 and were among the staple foods of the original 
 inhabitants. The early French missionaries of 
 the West speak of both root crops and cucurbi- 
 taceous plants as in use among the aboriginal inhab- 
 itants. "They are very sweet and wholesome," 
 wrote Marquette. Others speak in the same terms, 
 though some of the plants in this order had found 
 their way to these valleys through the Spaniards 
 and others through early Atlantic Coast and Mex- 
 ican inhabitants. Their use by the settlers of the 
 West, especially Ohio, is traced to New England, 
 as the first settlers came from that portion of the 
 Union. They grow well in all parts of the State, 
 and by cultivation have been greatly improved in 
 quality and variety. All cucurbitaceous plants 
 require a rich, porous soil, and by proper atten- 
 tion to their cultivation, excellent results can be 
 attained. 
 
 Probably the earliest and most important im])le- 
 ment of husbandry known is the plow. Grain, 
 plants and roots will not grow well unless the soil 
 in which they are planted be properly stirred, 
 hence the first requirement was an instrument that 
 would fulfill such conditions. 
 
 The first implements were rude indeed ; gener- 
 ally, stout wooden sticks, drawn through the earth 
 by thongs attached to rude ox-yokes, or fastened 
 to the animal's horns. Such plows were in use 
 among the ancient Egyptians, and may yet be 
 found among uncivilized nations. The Old Testa- 
 ment furnishes numerous instances of the use of 
 the plow, while, on the ruins of ancient cities and 
 among the pyramids of Egypt, and on the buried 
 walls of Babylon, and other extinct cities, are rude 
 drawings of this useful implement. As the use 
 of iron became apparent and general, it was util- 
 ized for plow-points, where the wood alone would 
 not penetrate the earth. They got their plow- 
 
 shares sharpened in Old Testament days, also 
 coulters, which shows, beyond a doubt, that iron- 
 pointed plows were then in use. From times 
 mentioned in the Bible, on heathen tombs, and 
 ancient catacombs, the improvement of the plow, 
 like other farming tools, went on, as the race of 
 man grew in intelligence. Extensive manors in 
 the old country required increased means of turning 
 the ground, and, to meet these demands, ingenious 
 mechanics, from time to time, invented inqjroved 
 plows. Strange to say, however, no improvement 
 was ever made by the farmer himself This is ac- 
 counted for in his habits of life, and, too often, 
 the disposition to "take things as they are." When 
 America was settled, the plow had become an im- 
 plement capable of turning two or three acres per 
 day. Still, and for many years, and even until 
 lately, the mold-board was entirely wooden, the 
 point only iron. Later developments changed the 
 wood for steel, which now alone is used. Still 
 later, especially in prairie States, riding plows are 
 used. Like all other improvements, they were 
 obliged to combat an obtuse public mind among 
 the ruralists, who surely combat almost every 
 move made to better their condition. In many 
 places in America, wooden plows, straight ax 
 handles, and a stone in one end of the bag, to bal- 
 ance the grist in the other, are the rule, and for no 
 other reason ui the world are they maintained than 
 the laconic answer: 
 
 " My father did so, and why should not I? Am 
 I better than he? " 
 
 After the plow comes the harrow, but little 
 changed, save in lightness and beauty. Formerly, 
 a log of wood, or a brush harrow, supplied its 
 place, but in the State of Ohio, the toothed instru- 
 ment has nearly always been used. 
 
 The hoe is lighter made than formerly, and is 
 now made of steel. At first, the common iron 
 hoe, sharpened by the blacksmith, was in constant 
 use. Now, it is rarely seen outside of the South- 
 ern States, where it has long been the chief imple- 
 ment in agriculture. 
 
 The various small plows for the cultivation of 
 corn and such other crops as necessitated their use 
 are all the result of modern civilization. Now, 
 their number is large, and, in many places, there 
 are two or more attached to one carriage, whose 
 operator rides. These kinds are much used in the 
 Western States, whose rootless and stoneless soil is 
 admirably adapted to such machinery. 
 
 When the grain became ripe, implements to cut 
 it were in demand. In ancient times, the sickle 
 
■^ 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 161 
 
 was the only instrument used. It was a short, 
 curved iron, whose inner edge was sharpened and 
 serrated. In its most ancient form, it is doubtful 
 if the edge was but little, if any, serrated. It is 
 mentioned in all ancient works, and in the Bible is 
 frequently I'eferred to. 
 
 " Thrust in the sickle, for the harvest is 
 ripe," wrote the sacred New Testament, while 
 the Old chronicles as early as the time of Moses : 
 "As thou beginnest to put the sickle to the 
 corn." 
 
 In more modern times, the handle of the sickle 
 was lengthened, then the blade, which in time led 
 to the scythe. Both are yet in use in many parts 
 of the world. The use of the scythe led some 
 thinking person to add a " finger " or two, and to 
 change the shape of the handle. The old cradle 
 was the result. At first it met considerable oppo- 
 sition from the laborers, who brought forward the 
 old-time argument of ignorance, that it would 
 cheapen labor. 
 
 Whether the cradle is a native of America or 
 Europe is not accurately decided; probably of the 
 mother country. It came into common use about 
 1818, and in a few years had found its way into 
 the wheat-producing regions of the West. Where 
 small crops are raised, the cradle is yet much used. 
 A man can cut from two to four acres per day, 
 hence, it is much cheaper than a reaper, where the 
 crop is small. 
 
 The mower and reaper are comparatively mod- 
 ern inventions. A rude reaping machine is men- 
 tioned by Pliny in the first century. It was pushed 
 by an ox through the standing grain. On its 
 front was a sharp edge, which cut the grain. It 
 was, however, impracticable, as it cut only a por- 
 tion of the grain, and the peasantry preferred the 
 sickle. Other and later attempts to make reapers 
 do not seem to have been successful, and not till 
 the present century was a machine made that would 
 do the work required. In 1826, Mr. Bell, of 
 Scotland, constructed a machine which is yet used 
 in many parts of that country. In America, Mr. 
 Hussey and Mr. McCormick took out patents for 
 reaping machines of superior character in 1833 
 and 1834. At first the cutters of these machines 
 were various contrivances, but both manufacturers 
 soon adopted a serrated knife, triangular shaped, at- 
 tached to a bar, and driven through " finger 
 guards " attached to it, by a forward and backward 
 motion. These are the common ones now in use, 
 save that all do not use serrated knives. Sincf 
 these pioneer machines were introduced into the 
 
 harvest fields they have been greatly improved and 
 changed. Of late years they have been constructed 
 so as to bind the sheaves, and now a good stout 
 boy, and a team with a " harvester," will do as 
 much as many men could do a few years ago, and 
 with much greater ease. 
 
 As was expected by the inventors of reapers, 
 they met with a determined resistance from those 
 who in former times made their living by harvest- 
 ing. It was again absurdly argued that they would 
 cheapen labor, and hence were an injury to the 
 laboring man. Indeed, when the first machines 
 were brought into Ohio, many of them were torn 
 to pieces by the ignorant hands. Others left fields 
 in a body when the proprietor brought a reaper to 
 his farm. Like all such fallacies, these, in time, 
 passed away, leaving only their stain. 
 
 Following the reaper came the thresher. As 
 the country filled with inhabitants, and men in- 
 creased their possessions, more rapid means than 
 the old flail or roller method were demanded. At 
 first the grain was trodden out by horses driven over 
 the bundles, which were laid in a circular inclosure. 
 The old flail, the tramping-out by horses, and the 
 cleaning by the sheet, or throwing the grain up 
 against a current of air, were too slow, and 
 machines were the result of the demand. In Ohio 
 the manufacture of threshers began in 1846, in 
 the southwestern part. Isaac Tobias, who came 
 to Hamilton from Miamisburg that year, com- 
 menced building the threshers then in use. They 
 were without the cleaning attachment, and simply 
 hulled the grain. Two years later, he began 
 manufficturing the combined thresher and cleaner, 
 which were then coming into use. He continued 
 in business till 1851. Four years after, the in- 
 creased demand for such machines, consequent 
 upon the increased agricultural products, induced 
 the firm of Owens, Lane & Dyer to fit their estab- 
 lishment for the manufacture of threshers. They 
 afterward added the manufacture of steam engines 
 to be used in the place of horse power. Since 
 then the manufacture of these machines, as well as 
 that of all other agricultural machinery, has greatly 
 multiplied and improved, until now it seems as 
 though but little room for improvement remains. 
 One of the largest firms engaged in the manufact- 
 ure of threshers and their component machinery is 
 located at Mansfield — the Aultman & Taylor 
 Co. Others are at Massillon, and at other cities 
 in the West. 
 I Modern times and modern enterprise have devel- 
 I oped a marvelous variety of agricultural implements 
 
 rv 
 
162 
 
 HISTOKY OF OHIO. 
 
 — too many to be mentioned in a volume like 
 this. Under special subjects they will occasionally 
 be found. The farmer's life, so cheerless in pioneer 
 times, and so full of weary labor, is daily becom- 
 ing less laborious, until, if they as a class profit 
 by the advances, they can find a life of ease 
 in farm pursuits, not attainable in any other 
 profession. Now machines do almost all the work. 
 They sow, cultivate, cut, bind, thresh, winnow 
 and carry the grain. They, cut, rake, load, mow 
 and dry the hay. They husk, shell and clean the 
 corn. They cut and split the wood. They do al- 
 most all ; until it seems as though the day may 
 come when the farmer can sit in his house and 
 simply guide the affairs of his farm. 
 
 Any occupation prospers in proportion to the 
 interest taken in it by its members. This interest 
 is always heightened by an exchange of views, hence 
 societies and periodicals exercise an influence at 
 first hardy realized. This feeling among prominent 
 agriculturists led to the formation of agricultural 
 societies, at first by counties, then districts, then 
 by States, and lastly by associations of States. 
 The day may come when a national agricul- 
 tural fair may be one of the annual attractions of 
 America. 
 
 Without noticing the early attempts to found 
 such societies in Europe or America, the narrative 
 will begin with those of Ohio. The first agricul- 
 tural society oi'ganized in the Buckeye State was 
 the Hamilton County Agricultural Society. Its 
 exact date of organization is not now preserved, 
 but to a certainty it is known that the Society held 
 public exhibitions as a County Society prior to 
 1823. Previous to that date there were, doubt- 
 less, small, private exhibitions held in older local- 
 ities, probably at Marietta, but no regular organi- 
 zation seems to have been maintained. The 
 Hamilton County Society held its fairs annually, 
 with marked success. Its successor, the present 
 Society, is now one of the largest county societies 
 in the Union. 
 
 During the legislative session of 1832— .33, the 
 subject of agriculture seems to have agitated the 
 minds of the people through their representatives, 
 for the records of that session show the first laws 
 passed for their benefit. The acts of that body 
 seem to have been productive of some good, for, 
 though no records of the number of societies or- 
 ganized at that date exist, yet the record shows 
 that " many societies have been organized in con- 
 formity to this act," etc. No doubt many societies 
 held fairs from this time, for a greater or less 
 
 number of years. Agricultural journals* were, 
 at this period, rare in the State, and the subject of 
 agricultural improvement did not receive that at- 
 tention from the press it does at this time ; and, 
 for want of public spirit and attention to sustain 
 these fairs, they were gradually discontinued until 
 the new act respecting their organization wa.s 
 passed in 184G. However, records of several 
 county societies of the years between 1832 and 
 1846 yet exist, showing that in some parts of the 
 State, the interest in these fairs was by no means 
 diminished. The Delaware County Society re- 
 ports for the year 1833 — it was organized in June 
 of that year — good progress for a beginning, and 
 that much interest was manifested by the citizens 
 of the county. 
 
 Ross County held its first exhibition in the 
 autumn of that year, and the report of the mana- 
 gers is quite cheerful. Nearly all of the exhibited 
 articles were sold at auction, at greatly advanced 
 prices from the current ones of the day. The en- 
 try seems to have been ft-ee, in an open inclosure, 
 and but little revenue was derived. Little was ex- 
 pected, hence no one was disappointed. 
 
 Washington County reports an excellent cattle 
 show for that year, and a number of premiums 
 awarded to the successful exhibitors. This same 
 year the Ohio Importation Company was organ- 
 ized at the Ross County fair. The Company began 
 the next season the importation of fine cattle from 
 England, and, in a few years, did incalculable good 
 in this respect, as well as make considerable money 
 in the enterprise. 
 
 These societies were re-organized when the law 
 of 1846 went into eff"ect, and, with those that had 
 gone down and the new ones started, gave an im- 
 petus to agriculture that to this day is felt. Now 
 every county Iuls a society, while district. State 
 and inter-State societies are annually held; all 
 promotive in their tendency, and all a benefit to 
 every one. 
 
 The Ohio State Board of Agriculture was organ- 
 ized by an act of the Legislature, passed February 
 27, 1846. Since then various amendments to the 
 organic law have been passed from time to time as 
 
 *The Western TiVJerwas published in Cincinnati, in 1826. It was 
 "miscellaneous," but cuutaiued many excellent articles on agri- 
 culture. 
 
 The Farmers' Record was published in Cincinnati, in 1831, and 
 continued for several years 
 
 The Ohio Fanner was piitilished at Batavia, Clermont County, in 
 1833, by Hon. Samuel Medary. 
 
 These were the early agricultural journals, some of which yet 
 suri'ive, though in new name8,and under new management. Others 
 have, also, since been added, some of which havH an exceedingly 
 large circulation, and are an influence for much good in the State. 
 
>> 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 163 
 
 the necessities of the Board and of agriculture in 
 the State demanded. The same day that the act 
 was passed creating the State Board, an act was 
 also passed providing for the erection of county and 
 district societies, under which law, with subsequent 
 amendments, the present county and district agri- 
 cultural societies are managed. During the years 
 from 1 846 down to the present time, great improve- 
 ments have been made in the manner of conduct- 
 ing these societies, resulting in exhibitions unsur- 
 passed in any other State. 
 
 Pomology and horticulture are branches of in- 
 dustry so closely allied with agriculture that a 
 brief resume of their operations in Ohio will be 
 eminently adapted to these pages. The early 
 planting and care of fruit in Ohio has already been 
 noticed. Among the earliest pioneers were men of 
 fine tastes, who not only desired to benefit them- 
 selves and their country, but who were possessed 
 with a laudable ambition to produce the best fruits 
 and vegetables the State could raise. For this end 
 they studied carefully the topography of the coun- 
 try, its soil, climate, and various influences upon 
 such culture, and by careful experiments with fruit 
 and vegetables, produced the excellent varieties now 
 in use. Mention has been made of Mr. Longworth 
 and Mr. Ernst, of Cincinnati ; and Israel and Aaron 
 W. Putnam, on the Muskingum River ; Mr. Dille, 
 
 Judges Fuller and Whittlesey, Dr. Jared Kirtland 
 and his sons, and others — all practical enthusiasts in 
 these departments. At first, individual efforts alone, 
 owing to the condition of the country, could be 
 made. As the State filled with settlers, and means 
 of communication became better, a desire for an in- 
 terchange of views became apparent, resulting in 
 the establishment of periodicals devoted to these 
 subjects, and societies where diflFerent ones could 
 meet and discuss these things. 
 
 A Horticultural and Pomological Society was 
 organized in Ohio in 1866. Before the organiza- 
 tion of State societies, however, several distinct or 
 independent societies existed ; in fact, out of these 
 grew the State Society, which in turn produced 
 good by stimulating the creation of county societies. 
 All these societies, aids to agriculture, have pro- 
 gressed as the State developed, and have done much 
 in advancing fine fruit, and a taste for aesthetic cul- 
 ture. In all parts of the West, their influence is 
 seen in better and improved fruit ; its culture and 
 its demand. 
 
 To-day, Ohio stands in the van of the Western 
 States in agriculture and all its kindred associa- 
 tions. It only needs the active energy of her 
 citizens to keep her in this place, advancing 
 as time advances, until the goal of her ambition is 
 reached. 
 
 CLIMATOLOGY— OUTLINE - 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 -VARIATION IN OHIO— ESTIMATE IN DEGREES— RAINFALL - 
 —VARIABILITY. 
 
 -AMOUNT 
 
 THE climate of Ohio varies about four degrees. 
 Though originally liable to malaria in many 
 districts when first settled, in consequence of a 
 dense vegetation induced by summer heats and 
 rains, it has became very healthful, owing to clear- 
 ing away this vegetation, and proper drainage. 
 The State is as favorable in its sanitary char- 
 acteristics as any other in its locality. Ohio is re- 
 markable for its high productive capacity, almost 
 every thing grown in the temperate climates being 
 within its range. Its extremes of heat and cold 
 are less than almost any other State in or near the 
 same latitude, hence Ohio suffers less from the ex- 
 treme dry or wet seasons which affect all adjoining 
 States. These modifications are mainly due to the 
 influence of the Lake Erie waters. These not 
 
 only modify the heat of summer and the cold of 
 winter, but apparently reduce the profusion of 
 rainfall in summer, and favor moisture in dry pe- 
 riods. No finer climate exists, all conditions consid- 
 ered, for delicate vegetable growths, than that por- 
 tion of Ohio bordering on Lake Erie. This is 
 abundantly attested by the recent extensive devel- 
 opment there of grape culture. 
 
 Mr. Lorin Blodget, author of "American Clima- 
 tology," in the agricultural report of 1853, says; 
 "A district bordering on the Southern and West- 
 ern portions of Lake Erie is more favorable in this 
 respect (grape cultivation ) than any other on the 
 Atlantic side of the Rocky Mountains, and it will 
 ultimately prove capable of a very liberal extension 
 of vine culture." 
 
 :V 
 
1G4 
 
 HISTOKY or OHIO. 
 
 Experience has proven Mr. Blodget correct in 
 his theory. Now extensive fields of grapes are 
 everywhere found on the Lake Erie Slope, while 
 other small fruits find a sure footing on its soil. 
 
 " Considering the climate of Ohio by isother- 
 mal lines and rain shadings, it must be borne in 
 mind," says Mr. Blodget, in his description of 
 Ohio's climate, from which these ficts are drawn, 
 " that local influences often requii'e to be considered. 
 At the South, from Cincinnati to Steubenville, the 
 deep river valleys are two degrees warmer than the 
 hilly districts of the same vicinity. The lines are 
 drawn intermediate between the two extremes. 
 Thus, Cincinnati, on the plain, is 2° warmer than 
 at the Observatory, and 4° warmer for each year 
 than Hillsboro, Highland County — the one being 
 5U0, the other 1,000, feet above sea-level. The 
 immediate valley of the Ohio, from Cincinnati to 
 Gallipolis, is about 75° for the summer, and 54° 
 for the year; while the adjacent hilly districts, 
 800 to 500 feet higher, are not above 73° and 52° 
 respectively. For the summer, generally, the 
 river valleys are 73° to 75° ; the level and central 
 portions 72° to 73°, and the lake border 70° to 
 72°. A peculiar mildness of climate belongs to 
 the vicinity of Kelley's Island, Sandusky and 
 Toledo. Here, both winter and summer, the cli- 
 mate is 2° warmer than on the highland ridge ex- 
 tending from Norwalk and Oberlin to Hudson and 
 the northeastern border. This ridge varies from 
 500 to 750 feet above the lake, or 850 to 1,200 
 feet above sea level. This high belt has a summer 
 temperature of 70°, 27° for the winter, and 49° 
 for the year ; while at Sandusky and Kelley's 
 Island the summer is 72°, the winter 29°, and the 
 year 50°. In the central and eastern parts of 
 the State, the winters are comparatively cold, the 
 average falling to 32° over the more level districts, 
 and to 29° on the highlands. The Ohio Kiver 
 valley is about 35°, but the highlands near it fall 
 to 31° and 32° for the winter." 
 
 As early as 1824, several persons in the State 
 began taking the temperature in tlieir respective 
 localities, for the spring, summer, autumn and win- 
 ter, averaging them for the entire year. From time 
 to time, these were gathered and published, inducing 
 others to take a step in the same direction. Not 
 long since, a general table, from about forty local- 
 
 ities, was gathered and compiled, covering a period 
 of more than a quarter of a century. This table, 
 when averaged, showed an average temperature of 
 52.4°, an evenness of temperature not equaled 
 in many bordering States. 
 
 Very imperfect observations have been made 
 of the amount of rainfall in the State. Until 
 lately, only an individual here and there through- 
 out the State took enough interest in this matter 
 to faithfully observe and record the averages of 
 several years in succession. In consequence of 
 this fact, the illustration of that feature of Ohio's 
 climate is less satisfactory than that of the 
 temperature. "The actual rainfall of different 
 months and years varies greatly," says Mr. Blod- 
 get. "There may be more in a month, and, 
 again, the quantity may rise to 12 or 15 inches 
 in a single month. For a year, the variation may 
 be from a minimum of 22 or 25 inches, to a maxi- 
 mum of 50 or even 60 inches in the southern part 
 of the State, and 45 to 48 inches along the lake 
 border. The average is a fixed quantity, and, 
 although requiring a period of twenty or twenty- 
 five years to fix it absolutely, it is entirely certain 
 and unchangeable when known. On charts, these 
 average quantities are represented by depths 
 of shading. At Cincinnati, the last fifteen years 
 of observation somewhat reduce the average of 
 48 inches, of former years, to 46 or 47 inches." 
 
 Spring and summer generally give the most rain, 
 there being, in general, 10 to 12 inches in the 
 spring, 10 to 14 inches in the summer, and 8 to 
 10 inches in the autumn. The winter is the most 
 variable of all the seasons, the southern part of 
 the State having 10 inches, and the northern part 
 7 inches or less — an average of 8 or 9 inches. 
 
 The charts of rainfall, compiled for the State, 
 show a fall of 30 inches on the lake, and 46 inches 
 at the Ohio River. Between these two points, the 
 fall is marked, beginning at the north, 32, 34, 36 
 and 38 inches, all near the lake. Farther down, 
 in the latitude of Tuscarawas, Monroe and Mercer 
 Counties, the fall is 40 inches, while the south- 
 western part is 42 and 44 inches. 
 
 The clearing away of forests, the drainage of 
 the land, and other causes, have lessened the rain- 
 fall, making considerable difference since the days 
 of the aborioines. 
 
 :^ 
 
'k. 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 105 
 
 CHAPTER XVII.* 
 
 PUBLIC LANDS OF OHIO— THR MYSTERIES OF THE EARLY SURVEYS- 
 ITS ORIGIN AND ORGANIZATION. 
 
 -THE NEW rONNECTICUT— 
 
 TO the inexperienced student of the history of 
 Ohio, nothing is more perplexing and un- 
 satisfactory, than the account of its pubUc lands. 
 Held theoretically by the conflicting claims of col- 
 onies, each jealous of the other's prestige, and prac- 
 tically controlled by the determined assertion of his 
 cLiim by the Indian, its territory came under the 
 acknowledged control of the General Government 
 in a fragmentary way, and in the early surveys it 
 lacks that regular arrangement which marks the 
 larger part of the old Northwestern Territory. But, 
 to the early colonist, Ohio was the land of promise. 
 The reports of the early explorers who had been 
 sent to spy out the land were such as to stimulate 
 the rapacity of greedy adventurers to the highest 
 pitch, and Ohio became at once the center of at- 
 traction, not only to that class, but also to the pio- 
 neer settlements of the East. The spirit of land 
 speculation was fostered by the system of royal 
 charters and favoritism, and colonial officials were 
 rapidly acquiring titles to large tracts of the fertile 
 lands of the Northwest. Lord Dunmore, who rep- 
 resented the crown in Virginia, had made arrange- 
 ments to secure a large portion of this territory, 
 which were only frustrated by the precipitation of 
 the Revolutionary struggle. In all these operations 
 the rights or interests of the Indians were ignored. 
 Might was the measure of the white man's right, 
 and, in the face of formal treaties very favorable to 
 the whites, the lands reserved to the natives were 
 shamelessly bought and sold. Titles thus secured 
 were obviously of no value if the integrity of sol- 
 emn treaties were to be respected, but, so generally 
 had the public mind been corrupted by the greed 
 for gain, that this consideration offered no hindrance 
 whatever to this sort of traffic in land titles. In 
 1776, however, the colonies having renounced 
 their allegiance to the mother country, and having 
 assumed a position as sovereign and independent 
 States, a summary end was put to this speculation, 
 and all persons were forbidden to locate in this ter- 
 ritory, until its ownership and jurisdiction should 
 
 ♦Compiled from Howe's Historical rollpctions of Ohio, and a 
 pamphlet by Judge W. W. Boynton, of the Supreme Court of Ohio. 
 
 be determined. Each State claimed the right of 
 soil, the jurisdiction over the district of country 
 embraced by the provisions of its charter, and the 
 privilege of disposing of the land to subserve its 
 own interests. The States, on the contrary, which 
 had no such charter, insisted that that these lands 
 ought to be appropriated for the benefit of all the 
 States, as the title to them, if secured at all, would 
 be by the expenditure of the blood and moneys of 
 all alike. The treaty of peace with England was 
 signed at Paris, September 3, 1783, and Congress 
 at once became urgent in seconding this demand of 
 the non charter-holding States. Under the char- 
 ters held by the individual State, the General Gov- 
 ernment was powerless to fulfill its agreement with 
 the troops, to grant land to each soldier of the 
 war, and the general dissatisfaction occasioned by 
 this state of things, formed a powerful influence 
 which finally brought about a general cession of 
 these unappropriated lands, held by the different 
 States. In March, 1784, Virginia ceded her terri- 
 tory situated northwest of the River Ohio, reserving 
 the tract now known as the Virginia Military 
 Lands. In 1786, Connecticut ceded her territory, 
 save the " Western Reserve ;" reserved cessions 
 were made by Massachusetts in 1785, and by New 
 York in 1780. 
 
 When Ohio was admitted into the Federal 
 Union in 184)3, as an independent State, one of the 
 terms of admission was, that the fee simple to all 
 the lands within its limits, excepting those pre- 
 viously granted or sold, should vest in the Ignited 
 States. A large portion of the State, however, had 
 been granted or sold to various individuals, compa- 
 nies and bodies politic before this, and subsequent 
 dispositions of Ohio public lands have generally 
 been in aid of some public State enterprise. The 
 following are the names by which the principal 
 bodies of land are designated, taking their titles 
 from the different forms of transfer: 
 
 1. Congress Lands. 
 
 2. United States Military Lands. 
 
 3. Ohio Company's Purchase. 
 
 4. Donation Tract. 
 
 ?>MV 
 
■l±^ 
 
 166 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 5. Symmes' Purvliase. 
 
 6. Refugee Tract. 
 
 7. French Grant. 
 
 8. Dohrman's Grrant. 
 
 9. Moravian Lands. 
 
 10. Zane's Grant. 
 
 11. Maumee Road Lands. 
 
 12. Turnpike Lands. 
 
 13. Ohio Canal Lands. 
 
 14. School Lands. 
 
 15. College Lands. 
 
 16. Ministerial Lands. 
 
 17. Salt Sections. 
 
 18. Virginia Military Lands. 
 
 19. Western Reserve. 
 
 20. Fire Lands. 
 
 These grants, however, may properly be di- 
 vided into three general classes — Congress Lands, 
 the Virginia Reserve and the Connecticut Reserve ; 
 the former including all lands of the State, not 
 known as the Virginia Military Land or the 
 W(, stern Reserve. Previous to any grants of this 
 territory, the Indian title had to be acquired. Al- 
 though the United States has succeeded to the 
 rights acquired by the English from the Iroquois, 
 there were numerous tribes that disputed the right 
 of the dominant nation to cede this territory, and a 
 treaty was accordingly made at Fort Stanwix, in 
 1784, and in the following year at Fort Mcin- 
 tosh, by which the Indians granted all east of a 
 line drawn from the mouth of the Cuyahoga 
 River to the Ohio, and all south of what subse- 
 quently became known as the Greenville Treaty 
 line, or Indian boundary line. By this treaty, this 
 line extended from the Portage, between the Cuya- 
 hoga and the Tuscarawas Branch of the Muskingum, 
 " thence down that branch, to the crossing above 
 Fort Laurens, then westerly to the Portage of the 
 Big Miami, which runs into the Ohio, at the 
 mouth of which the fort stood, which was taken 
 by the French in 1752; thence along said Portage 
 to the Great Miami, or Omee River," whence 
 the line was extended westward, by the treaty of 
 Greenville, in 1705, to Fort Recovery, and thence 
 southwest to the mouth of the Kentucky River. 
 
 Congress Lands are so called becau.se they are 
 sold to purchasers by the immediate officers of the 
 General Government, conformably to such laws as 
 are, or may be, from time to time, enacted by 
 Congress. They are all regularly surveyed into 
 townships of six miles square each, under the au- 
 thority and at the expense of the National Govern- 
 
 ment. All these lands, except Marietta and a part 
 of Steubenville districts, are numbered as follows : 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 4 
 
 3 
 
 2 
 11 
 
 1 
 
 7 
 18 
 
 8 
 
 9 
 
 10 
 
 12 
 
 17 
 
 16 
 
 15 
 
 14 
 
 13 
 
 19 
 
 20 
 
 21 
 
 22 
 
 23 
 
 24 
 
 30 
 
 29 
 
 28 
 
 27 
 
 26 
 
 25 
 
 31 
 
 32 
 
 83 
 
 34 
 
 35 
 
 36 
 
 The seven Ranges, Ohio Company's Purchase, 
 and Symmes' Purchase are numbered as here ex- 
 hibited : 
 
 36 
 
 30 
 
 24 
 
 18 
 
 12 
 
 6 
 
 35 
 
 29 
 
 23 
 
 17 
 
 11 
 
 5 
 
 34 
 
 28 
 
 22 
 
 16 
 
 10 
 
 4 
 
 83 
 
 27 
 
 21 
 
 15 
 
 9 
 
 8 
 
 32 
 
 26 
 
 20 
 
 14 
 
 8 
 
 2 
 
 31 
 
 25 
 
 19 
 
 13 
 
 7 
 
 1 
 
 The townships are again subdivided into sec- 
 tions of one mile square, each- containing 640 acres, 
 by lines running parallel with the township and 
 range lines. The sections are numbered in two 
 different modes, as exhibited in the preceding fig- 
 ures or diagrams. 
 
 In addition to the foregoing division, the sec- 
 tions are again subdivided into four equal parts, 
 called the northeast quarter-section, southeast 
 quarter section, etc. And again by a law of Con- 
 gress, which went into effect July, 1820, these 
 quarter-sections are also divided by a north-and- 
 
 riV 
 
'\^ 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 167 
 
 s 
 
 30 4 
 
 R 
 T 
 
 S 
 
 213 
 3 
 
 1 
 
 south line into two equal parts, called the east half 
 quarter-section No. — , and west half quarler-sec- 
 tion No. — , which contain eighty acres each. The 
 minimum price was reduced by the same law from 
 $2 to $1.25 per acre, cash down. 
 
 In establishing the township and sectional cor- 
 ners, a post was first planted at the point of inter- 
 section ; then on the tree nearest the post, and 
 standing within the section intended to be desig- 
 nated, was numbered with the marking iron the 
 range, township, and number of the section, thus : 
 
 R 21 R 20 
 
 T 4 T 4 
 
 1 S 31 The quarter corners are marked 
 — 1 — 4 south, merely. 
 
 2R 20 
 
 T 3 
 
 S 6 
 
 Section No. 16 of every township is perpet- 
 ually reserved for the use of sclools, and leased or 
 sold out, for the benefit ot schools, under the State 
 government. All the others may be taken up 
 either in sections, fractions, halves, quarters, or 
 half-quarters. 
 
 For the purpose of selling out these lands, they 
 were divided into eight several land districts, called 
 after the names of the towns in which the land of- 
 fices are kept, viz., Wooster, Steubenville, Zanes- 
 ville, Marietta, Chillicothe, etc., etc. 
 
 In May, 1785, Congress passed an ordinance for 
 a.scertaining the mode of disposing of these lands. 
 Under that ordinance, the Jifst seven ranges, 
 bounded on the north by a line drawn due west 
 from the Pennsylvania State line, where it crosses 
 the Ohio River, to the United States Military 
 Lands, forty-two miles; and, on the west, by the 
 same line drawn thence south to the Ohio River, 
 at the southeast corner of Marietta Township, and 
 on the east and south by the Ohio River, were 
 surveyed in 1786-87, and in the latter year, and 
 sales were efl'ected at New York, to the amount of 
 $72,974. In 1796, further portions of these lands 
 were disposed of at Pittsbuigh, to the amount of 
 S43,44B, and at Philadelphia, amounting to $5,- 
 120. A portion of these lands were located under 
 United States Military land warrants, and the rest 
 was disposed of at the Steubenville Land Office, 
 which was opened July 1, 1801. 
 
 United States Military Lands are so called from 
 the circumstance of their having been appropriat- 
 ed, by an act of Congress of the 1st of June, 
 1796, to satisfy certain claims of the officers and 
 
 soldiers of the Revolutionary war. This tract of 
 country, embracing tlie.se lands, is bounded as fol- 
 lows : Beginninir at the northwest corner of the 
 original seven ranges of townships, thence south 
 titty miles, thence west to the Scioto River, thence 
 up i^aid river to the Greenville treaty line, thence 
 northeasterly with said line to old Fort Laurens, 
 on the Tuscarawas River, thence due east to the 
 place of beginning, including a tract of about 
 4,000 square miles, or 2,560,000 acres of land. 
 It is, of course, bounded on the north by the Green- 
 ville treaty line, east by the " seven ranges of town- 
 ships," south by the Congress and Refugee lands, 
 and west by the Scioto River. 
 
 These lands are surveyed into townships of five 
 miles square ; these townships were then again, 
 originally, surveyed into quarter townships, of two 
 and a half miles square, containing 4,000 acres 
 each; and, subsequently, some of these quarter- 
 townships were subdivided into forty lots, of 100 
 acres each, for the accommodation of those soldiers 
 holding warrants for only 100 acres each. And 
 again, after the time originally assigned for ihe 
 location of these warrants had expired, certain 
 quarter-townships, which had not then been loca- 
 ted, we re divided into sections of one mile .square 
 each, and sold by the General Government, like 
 the main body of Congress lands. 
 
 The quarter-townships are numbered as exhib- 
 ited in the accompanying figure, 
 the top being considered north. 
 .The place of each township is ascer- 
 tained by numbers and ranges, the 
 same as Congress lands ; the ranges 
 being numbered from east to west, 
 and the numbers from south to north. 
 
 Ohio Company's Purchase is a body of land 
 containing about 1,500.000 acr>s; including, how- 
 ever, the donation tract, school lands, etc., lying 
 along the Ohio River ; and including Meigs, nearly 
 all of Athens, and a consideralile jiart of Wash- 
 ington and Gallia Counties. This tract was pur- 
 chased by the General Government in the year 
 1787, by Manasseh Cutler and Winthrop Sar- 
 geant, from the neighhorhood of Salem, in ^Lassa- 
 chusetts, agents for the " Ohio Company," so 
 called, which had then been formed in Massachu- 
 setts, foi- the purpo.se of a settlement in the Ohio 
 country. Only 964,285 acres were ultimately 
 paid for, and, of cour.se. patented. This body of 
 land was then apportioned out into 817 shares, of 
 1,173 acres each, and a town lot of one-third of 
 an acre to each share. These shares were made 
 
 2 
 
 1 
 
 8 
 
 4 
 
 IT^ 
 
168 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 up to each proprietor in tracts, one of 640 acres, 
 one of 262, one of 160, one of 100, one of 8, and 
 another of 3 acres, besides the before-mentioned 
 town lot. Besides every section 16, set apart, as 
 elsewhere, for the support of schools, every Section 
 29 is appropriated for the support of religious 
 institutions. In addition to which were also 
 granted two six-mile-square townships for the use 
 of a college. But, unfortunately for the Ohio 
 Company, owing to their want of topographical 
 knowledge of the country, the body of land selected 
 by ihem, with some partial exceptions, is the 
 most hilly and sterile of any tract of similar ex- 
 tent in the State. 
 
 Donation Tract is a body of 100,000 acres, set 
 oif in the northern limits of the Ohio Company's 
 tract, and granted to them by Congress, provided 
 they should obtain one actual settler upon each 
 hundred acres thereof, within five years from the 
 date of the grant ; and that so much of the 100,- 
 000 acres aforesaid, as should not thus be taken 
 up, shall revert to the Greneral Government. 
 
 This tract may, in some respects, be considered 
 a part of the Ohio Company's purchase. It is 
 situated in the northern limits of Washington 
 County. It lies in an oblong shape, extending 
 nearly seventeen miles from east to west, and about 
 seven and a half north to south. 
 
 Symmes' Purchase is a tract of 311,682 acres of 
 land in the southwestern quarter of the State, 
 between the Great and Little Miami Rivers. It bor- 
 ders on the Ohio River a distance of twenty-seven 
 miles, and extends so far back from the latter between 
 the two Miamis as to include the quantity of land 
 just mentioned. It was patented to John Cleves 
 Symmes, in 1794, for 67 cents per acre. Every 
 sixteenth section, or square mile, in each town- 
 ship, was reserved by Congress for the use of 
 schools, and Sections 29 for the support of relig- 
 ious institutions, besides fifteen acres around Fort 
 Washington, in Cincinnati. This tract of land is 
 now one of the most valuable in the State. 
 
 Refugee Tract, a body of 100,000 acres of land, 
 granted by Congress to certain individuals who 
 left the British Provinces during the Revolutionary 
 war and espoused the cause of freedom, is a nar- 
 row strip of country, four and a half miles broad 
 from north to south, and extending eastwardly 
 from the Scioto River forty -eight miles. It has 
 the United States twenty ranges of military or army 
 lands north, twenty-two ranges of Congress lands 
 south. In the western borders of this tract is 
 situated the town of Columbus. 
 
 French Grant is a tract of 24,000 acres of land, 
 bordering upon the Ohio River, in the south- 
 eastern quarter of Scioto County. A short time 
 after the Ohio Company's purchase began to be 
 settled, an association was formed under the name 
 of the Scioto Land Company. A contract was 
 made for the purchase of a part of the lands in- 
 cluded in the Ohio Company's purchases. Plats 
 and descriptions of the land contracted for were 
 made out, and Joel Barlow was sent as an agent 
 to Europe to make sales of the lands for the bene- 
 fit of the company; and sales were effected of a 
 considerable part of the land to companies and 
 individuals in France. On February 19, 1791, 
 two hundred and eighteen of tlusc purchasers left 
 Havre de Grace, in France, and arrived in Alex- 
 andria, J). C, on the 3d of May following. On 
 their arrival, they were told that the Scioto Com- 
 pany owned no land. The agent insisted that 
 they did, and promised to secure them good titles 
 thereto, which he did, at Winchester, Brownsville 
 and Charleston (now Well;>burg). When they 
 arrived at Mai-ietta, about fifty of them landed. 
 The rest of the company proceeded to Gallipolis, 
 which was laid out about that time, and were as- 
 sured by the agent that the place lay within their 
 purchase. Every efi"ort to secure titles to the 
 lands they had purchased having failed, an appli- 
 cation was made to Congress, and in March, 1795, 
 the above grant was made to these persons 
 Twelve hundred acres additional, were afterward 
 granted, adjoining the above mentioned tract at its 
 lower end, toward the mouth of the Little Scioto 
 River. 
 
 Dohrman's Grant is one six-mile-square town- 
 ship of 23,040 acres, granted to Arnold Henry 
 Dohrman, formerly a wealthy Portuguese merchant 
 in Lisbon, fur and in consideration of his having, 
 during the Revolutionary war, given shelter and 
 aid to the American cruisers and vessels of war. 
 It is located in the southeastern part of Tuscara- 
 was County. 
 
 Moravian Lands are three several tracts of 
 4,000 acres each, originally granted by the old 
 Continental Congress in July, 1787, and confirmed 
 by act of Congress of June 1, 1796, to the Mora- 
 vian brethren at Bethlehem, in Pennsylvania, in 
 trust and for the use of the Christianized Indians 
 living thereon. They are laid out in nearly square 
 farms, on the Muskingum River, in what is now 
 Tuscarawas County. They are called by the namrs 
 of the Shoenbrun. Gnadenhutten and Salem tract.s. 
 
 Zane's Tracts are three several tracts of one mile 
 
 
HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 169 
 
 squire each — one on the Muskingum River, which 
 incUides the town of Zuncsville - one at the cross 
 of the Hocking River, on which the town of Lancas- 
 ter is laid out, and the third on the left bank of the 
 Scioto River, opposite Chillicothe. They were 
 granted by Congress to one Ebenezer Zane, in 
 May, 1786, on condition that he should open a 
 road tlirough them, from Wheeling, Va., to Mays- 
 ville, Ky. 
 
 There are also three other tracts, of one mile 
 square each, granted to Isaac Zane, in the year 
 1802, in consideration of his having been taken 
 prisoner by the Indians, when a boy, during the 
 Revolutionary war, and living with them most of 
 his life ; and having during that time performed 
 m;!i)y acts of kindness and beneficence toward the 
 American people. These tracts are situated in 
 Champaign County, on King's Creek, from three 
 to five miles northwest from Urbana. 
 
 The Maumee Road's Lands are a body of lauds 
 averaging two miles wide, l^ing along one mile on 
 each side ofthe road, from the Maumee River, at Per- 
 rysburg, to the western limits of the Wesiern Re- 
 serve, a distance of about forty-six miles, and com- 
 prising nearly 60,000 acres. They were originally 
 granted by the Indian owners, at the treaty of 
 Brownstown, in 1808, to enable the United States 
 to miike a road on the line just mentioned. The 
 General Grovernment never moved into the busi- 
 ness until Fibruary, 1823, when Congress passed 
 an act making over the aforesaid lands to the 
 State of Ohio, provided she should, within four 
 years thereafter, make and keep in repair a good 
 road throughout the aforei-aid route of forty-six 
 miles. This road the State government has 
 already made, obtained possession, and sold most 
 of the land. 
 
 Turnpike Lands are forty-nine sections, amount- 
 ing to 31,360 acres, situated along the western 
 side of the Columbus and Sandusky turnpike, in 
 the eastern parts of Seneca, Crawford and Marion 
 Counties. They were originally granted by an act 
 of Congress on March 3, 1827, and more specifi- 
 cally by a supplementary act the year following. 
 The considerations for which these lands were 
 granted were that the mail stages and all troops 
 and property of the United States, which should 
 ever be moved and transported along this road 
 should pass free fi-om toll. 
 
 The Ohio Canal Lands are granted by Congress 
 to the State of Ohio, to aid in constructing her 
 extensive canals. These lands comprise over one 
 million of acres. 
 
 School Lan Js — By compact between the United 
 States and the State of Ohio, when the latter was 
 admitted into the Union, it was stipulated, for and 
 in consideration that the State of Ohio should never 
 tax the Congress lands until after they should have 
 been sold five years, and in consideration tl at the 
 public lands would thereby more readily sell, that 
 the one-thirty-sixth part of all the territory in- 
 cluded within the limits of the State should be 
 set apart for the support of common schools there- 
 in. And for the purpose of getting at lands 
 which should, in point of quality of soil, be on an 
 average with the whole land in the country, they 
 decreed that it should be selected by lots, in small 
 tracts each, to wit: That it should consist of 
 Section No. 16, let that section be good or 
 bad, in every township of Congress land, also 
 in the Ohio Company's and in Symmes' Pur- 
 chases, all of which townvhips are composed of 
 thirty-six sections each ; and for the United States 
 military lands and Connecticut Reserve, a num- 
 ber of quarter-townships, two and a half miles 
 square each (being the smallest public surveys 
 therein, then made), should be selected by the 
 Secretary of the Treasury in different townships 
 throughout the United States military tract, 
 equivalent in quantity to the one thirty-sixth 
 part of those two tracts respectively ; and, for 
 the Virginia military tract, Congress enacted 
 that a quantity of land equal to the one- 
 thirty-sixth part of the estimated quantity of 
 land contained therein, should be selected by 
 lot, in what was then called the " New Pur- 
 chase," in quarter - township tracts of three 
 miles square each. Most of these selections were 
 accordingly made, but in some instances, by the 
 carelessness of' the officers conducting the sales, or 
 from some other cause, a few Sections 16 have 
 been sold, in which case Congress, when applied 
 to, has generally granted other lands in lieu 
 thereof, as, for instance, no Section 16 was re- 
 served in Montgomery Township, in which Co- 
 lumbus is situated, and Congress afterward 
 granted therefor Section 21, in township corner- 
 ing thereon to the southwest. 
 
 College Townships are three six-mile-square 
 townships, granted by Congress ; two of them to 
 the Ohio Company, for the use of a coll ge to be 
 established within their purchase, and one for the 
 use of the inhabitants of Symmes' Purchase. 
 
 Ministerial Lands — In both the Ohio Company 
 and the Symmes' Purchase every Section 29 (equal 
 to every one-thirty-sixth part of every township) 
 
4f 
 
 170 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 3 2 
 
 4 1 
 
 is reserved as a permanent fund for the Mipp(jrt of 
 a settled minister. As the purchasers of these two 
 tracts came from parts of the Union where it was 
 customary and deemed necessary to have a regu- 
 lar settled clergyman in every town, they therefore 
 stipulated in this original purchase that a perma- 
 nent fund in lands should thus he set apiirt for 
 this purchase. In no other part of the State, 
 other than these two pui'chases, are any lands set 
 apart f )r this object. 
 
 The Connecticut Western Reserve and the 
 Fire Lands are surveyed into townships of about 
 five miles square each ; and these townships are 
 then subdivided into four quarters ; 
 and these quarter- townships are 
 numbered as in the accompanying 
 figure, the top being considered 
 north. And for individual conven- 
 ience, these are again subdivided, 
 by private surveys, into lots of from fifty to five 
 hundi'ed acres each, to suit individual purchasers. 
 
 In its history, the Western Reserve is far more 
 important than any other of the early arbitrary 
 divisions of the State. It was peopled by a dom- 
 inant class that brought to this wilderness social 
 forms and habits of thought that had been fostered 
 in the Puritan persecutions of England, and crys- 
 tallized by nearly half a century of pioneer life in 
 Connecticut, into a civilization that has not yet 
 lost its distinctive characteristics. Dating their 
 history back to the early part of the seventeenth 
 century, the true descendant of the Puritan points 
 with pride to the permanency of their traditions, 
 to the progressive character of their institutions, 
 and marks their influence in the commanding 
 power of the schoolhouse and church. 
 
 The earliest measure which may be said to have 
 affected the history of the Reserve, originated in 
 1609. In this year, James I, granted to a com- 
 pany called the London Company, a charter, under 
 which the entire claim of Virginia to the soil 
 northwest of the Ohio was asserted. It was 
 clothed with corporate powers, with most of its 
 members living in London. The tract of country 
 embraced within this charter was immense. It 
 commenced its boundaries at Point Comfort, on 
 the Atlantic, and ran south 200 miles, and thence 
 west across the continent to the Pacific ; com- 
 mencing again at Point Comfort, and running 
 200 miles north, and from this point northwest to 
 the sea. This line ran through New York and 
 Pennsylvania, crossing the eastern end of Lake 
 Erie, and terminated in the Arctic Ocean. The 
 
 vast empire lying between the south line, the east 
 line, the diagonal line to the northwest, and the 
 Pacific Ocean, was claimed by virtue of this char- 
 ter. It included over half of the North American 
 Continent. Notwithstanding the charter of the 
 London Company included all the territory now 
 embraced witliin the boundaries of Ohio, James I, 
 on the 3d of November, 1620, by royal letters 
 patent, granted to the Duke of Lenox and others, 
 to be known as the Council of Plymouth, all the 
 territory lying between the fortieth and fortv- 
 eighth degrees of north latitude, and bounded on 
 the east by the Atlantic, and on the west by the 
 Pacific. This description embraced a large tract 
 of the lands granted to the Virginia or London 
 Company. In 1630, a portion of the same ter- 
 ritory was granted to the Earl of Warwick, and 
 afterward confirmed to him by Charles I. In 
 1631, the Council of Plymouth, acting by the 
 Earl of Warwick, granted to Lord Brook and Vis- 
 counts Say and Seal, what were supposed to be 
 the same lands, altliMUgh by a very imperfect de- 
 scription. In 1662, Charles II granted a charter 
 to nineteen patentees, with such associates as 
 they should from time to time elect. This asso- 
 ciation was made a body corporate and politic, by 
 the name of the Governor and Company of the 
 English Cotiony of Connecticut. This charter 
 constituted the organic law of the State for up- 
 ward of one hundi-ed and fifty years. The bound- 
 aries were Massachusetts on the north, the sea 
 on the south, Narragansett River or Bay on the 
 east, and the South Sea (Pacific Ocean) on the 
 west This description embraced a strip of land 
 upward of six miles wide, stretching from the 
 Atlantic to the Pacific, including a part of New 
 York and New Jersey, and all the territory now 
 known as the Western Reserve. 
 
 In 1681, for the consideration of £16,000 and 
 a fealty of two beaver skins a year, Charles II 
 granted to ^Villiam Penn a charter embracing 
 within its limits the territory constituting the 
 present State of Pennsylvania. This grant in- 
 cluded a strip of territor}- running across the en- 
 tire length of the State on the north, and upward 
 of fifty miles wide, that was embraced within the 
 Connecticut charter. Massachusetts, under the 
 Plymouth Charter, claimed all the land between 
 the forty-first and forty-fifth degrees, of north lati- 
 tude. In 1664, Charles II ceded to his brother, 
 the Duke of York, afterward James II, by Icttei-s 
 patent, all the countrybetween the St. Croix and 
 the Delaware. After the overthrow of the gov- 
 
HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 173 
 
 ernnient of " New Netherlands," then existing 
 upon that territory, it was chiimed that the grant 
 of the Duke of York extended west into the Mis- 
 sissippi A'alley. 
 
 Thus matters stood at the commencement of 
 the Revolution. Virginia claimed all the territory 
 northwest of the Ohio. Connecticut strenuously 
 urged her titles to all lands lying between the par- 
 allels -11° and 42° 2' of north latitude, from 
 the Atlantic to the Pacific. Pennsylvania, under 
 the charter of 1G81, had taken possession of the 
 disputed land lying in that State, and had granted 
 much of it to actual settlers. New York and 
 Massachusetts were equally emphatic in the asser- 
 tion of ownership to land between those lines of lat- 
 itude. The contention between claimants under 
 the Connecticut and Pennsylvania charters, on the 
 Susquehanna, frequently resulted in bloodshed. 
 The controversy between those two States was 
 finally submitted to a Court of Commissioners, ap- 
 pointed by Congress, upon the petition of Pennsyl- 
 vania, under the ninth article of the confederation, 
 which gave Congress power to establish a Court of 
 Commissioners, to settle disputed boundaries be- 
 tween States, in case of disagreement. The court 
 decided in favor of Pennsylvania, and this decision 
 terminated the controversy. The question of the 
 title to lands lying west of Pennsylvania, was not 
 involved in this adjudication, but remained a sub- 
 ject for future contention. A party sprung up 
 during the war that disputed the title of the 
 States asserting it, to lands outside of State 
 limits, and which insisted upon the right of the 
 States by whose common treasure, dominion was to 
 be secured, to participate in the benefits and results 
 arising from the joint and common 'effort for inde- 
 pendence. This party was particularly strong in 
 the smaller States. Those colonies that had not 
 been the favored recipients of extensive land 
 grants, were little inclined to acquiesce in claims, 
 the justice of which they denied, and which could 
 be secured to the claimants, only by the success of 
 the Revolution. 
 
 There is little doubt, that the conflict in the 
 early charters, respecting boundaries, grew out of 
 the ignorance of the times in which they were 
 granted, as to the breadth or inland extent of 
 the American Continent. During the reign of 
 James I, Sir Francis Drake reported, that, from 
 the top of the mountains on the Isthmus of Pan- 
 ama, he had seen both oceans. This led to the 
 supposition that the continent, from east to west, 
 was of no considerable extent, and that the South 
 
 Sea, by which the grants were limited on the 
 west, did not lie very far from the Atlantic ; and as 
 late as 1740, the Duke of Newcastle addressed his 
 letters to the ''Island of New Il]ngland." Hence 
 it was urged as an argument against the claims of 
 those States asserting title to Western lands, that 
 the term, in the grants, of South Sea, being, by 
 mutual mistake of the parties to the charter, an 
 erroneous one — the error resulting from misinfor- 
 mation or want of certainty concerning the local- 
 ity of that sea — the claiming State ought not to 
 insist upon an ownership resting upon such a foot- 
 ing, and having its origin in such a circumstance. 
 Popular feeling on the subject ran so high, at times, 
 as to cause apprehension for the safety of the confed- 
 eration. In 1780, Congress urged upon the States 
 having claims to the Western country, the duty to 
 make a surrender of a part thereof to the United 
 States. 
 
 The debt incurred in the Revolutionary contest, 
 the limited resources for its extinguishment, if the 
 public domain was unavailable for the purpose, the 
 existence of the unhappy controversy growing out 
 of the asserted claims, and an earnest desire to ac- 
 commodate and pacify conflicting interests among 
 the States, led Congress, in 1784, to an impressive 
 appeal to the States interested, to remove all cause 
 for further discontent, by a liberal cession of their 
 domains to the General Government, for the com- 
 mon benefit of all the States. The happy termi- 
 n .tion of the war found the public mind in a con- 
 dition to be easily impressed by appeals to its pat- 
 riotism and liberality. New York had, in 1780, 
 ceded to the United States, the lands that she 
 claimed, lying west of a line running south from 
 the west bend qf Lake Ontario ; and, in 1785, Mas- 
 sachusetts relinquished her claim to the same lands 
 — each Stat© reserving the same 19,000 square 
 miles of ground, and each asserting an independent 
 title to it. This controversy between the two 
 States was settled by an equal division between 
 them, of the disputed ground. Virginia had given 
 to her soldiers of the Revolutionary war, and of the 
 war between France and England, a pledge of 
 bounties payable in Western lands ; and, reserving 
 a sufiicien amount of land to enable her to meet 
 the pledge thus given, on the 1st of March, 1784, 
 she relinquished to the United States, her title to 
 all other lands lying northwest of the Ohio. On 
 the 14th day of September, 1786, the delegates in 
 Congress, from the State of Connecticut, being au- 
 thorized and directed so to do, relinquished to the 
 United States, all the right, title, interest, jurisdic- 
 
 IK* 
 
J^« 
 
 174 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 tion and claim that she possessed to the hinds ly- 
 ing west of a line running north from the 41° 
 north latitude, to 42° 2', and being 120 miles west of 
 the western line of Pennsylvania. The territory 
 lying west of Pennsylvania, for the distance of 120 
 miles, and between the above-named degrees of lat- 
 itude, although not in terms reserved by the in- 
 strument of conveyance, was in fact reserved — not 
 having been conveyed — and by reason thereof, was 
 called the Western Reserve of Connecticut. It 
 embraces the counties of Ashtabula, Trumbull, 
 Portage, Geauga, Lake, Cuyahoga, Medina, Lorain, 
 Huron, Erie, all of Summit, save the townships of 
 Franklin and Greene ; the two northern tiers of 
 townships of Mahoning; the townships of Sulli- 
 van, Troy and Ruggles, of Ashland ; and the 
 islands lying north of Sandusky, including Kelley's 
 and Put-in-Ba3% 
 
 During the Revolution, the British, aided by 
 Benedict Arnold, made incursions in the heart of 
 Connecticut, and destroyed a large amount of 
 property in the towns of Greenwich, Norwalk, 
 Fairfield, Danbury, New and East Haven, New 
 London, Richfield and Groton. There were up- 
 ward of 2,000 persons and families that sustained 
 severe losses by the de2")redations of the enemy. 
 On the 10th of May, 1792, the Legislature of 
 that State set apart and donated to the suffering 
 inhabitants of these towns, 500,000 acres of the 
 west part of the lands of the Reserve, to compen- 
 sate them for the losses sustained. These lands 
 were to be bounded on the north by the shore of 
 Lake Erie, south by the base line of the Reserve, 
 west by its western line, and east by a line par- 
 allel with the western line of Pennsylvania, and 
 so far from the west line of the Reserve as to in- 
 clude within the described limits the 500,000 
 acres. These are the lands now embraced within the 
 counties of Huron and Erie, and the Township 
 of Ruggles, in Ashland County. The islands 
 were not included. The lands so given were called 
 '• Suff"erers' Lands," and those to whom they were 
 given were, in 1796, by the Legislature of Con- 
 necticut, incorporated by the name of the " Pro- 
 prietors of the half-million acres of land lying 
 south of Lake Erie." After Ohio had become an 
 independent State, this foreign corporation was 
 not found to work well here, not being subject to 
 her laws, and, to relieve the owners of all embar- 
 rassment, on the 15th of April, 1803, the Legisla- 
 ture of this State conferred corporate power on 
 the owners and proprietors of the " Half-million 
 acres of land lying south of Lake Erie," in the 
 
 county of Trumbull, called " Sufferers' Land." 
 An account of the losses of the inhabitants had 
 been taken in pounds, shillings and pence, and a 
 price placed upon the lands, and each of the suf- 
 ferers received land proportioned to the extent of 
 his loss. These lands subsequently took the 
 name of " Fire Lands," from the circumstance 
 that the greater part of the losses suff"ered resulted 
 from fire. 
 
 In 1795, the remaining portion of the Reserve 
 was sold to Oliver Phelps and thirty-five others, 
 wh I formed what became known as the " Connect- 
 icut Land Company." Some uneasiness concern- 
 ing the validity of the title arose fi-om the fact 
 that, whatever interest Virginia, Massachusetts or 
 New York may have had in the lands reserved, 
 and claimed by Connecticut, had been transferred 
 to the United States, and, if neither of the claim- 
 ing States had title, the dominion and ownership 
 passed to the United States by the treaty made 
 with England at the close of the Revolution. 
 This condition of things was not the only source of 
 difficulty and trouble. The Reserve was so far 
 from Connecticut as to make it impracticable for 
 that State to extend her laws over the same, or 
 ordain new ones for the government of the inhabit- 
 ants; and, having parted with all interest in the 
 soil, her right to provide laws for the people was 
 not only doubted, but denied. Congress had 
 provided by the ordinance of 1787 for the gov- 
 ernment of the territory nurthwest of the Ohio ; 
 but to admit jurisdiction in the United States to 
 govern this part of that territory, would cast grave 
 doubt upon the validity of the company's title. It 
 was therefore insisted that the regulation.": pre- 
 scribed by that instrument for the government of 
 the Northwest Territory had no operation or 
 effect within the limits of the Reserve. To quiet 
 apprehension, and to remove all cause of anxiety 
 on the subject. Congress, on April 28, 1800, 
 authorized the President to execute and deliver, 
 on the part of the Unite 1 States, letters patent to 
 the Governor of Connecticut, whereby the United 
 States released, for the uses named, all ight and 
 title to the soil of the Reserve, and 3onfirmed it 
 unto those who had purchased it from that State. 
 The execution and delivery, however, of the letters 
 patent were upon the condition that Connecticut 
 should forever renounce and release to the United 
 States entire and complete civil jurisdiction 
 over the territory released. This condition was 
 accepted, and thereupon Connecticut transferred 
 her jurisdiction to the United States, and the 
 
HISTORY OF OHIO 
 
 175 
 
 United States released her claim and title to the 
 soil 
 
 While this controversy was going on, there was 
 another contestant in the field, having the advan- 
 tage of actual occupancy, and in no wise inclined 
 to recognize a title adverse to his, nor yield, upon 
 mere invitation, a possession so long enjoyed. 
 This contestant was the Indian. By the treaty at 
 Greenville in 1795, preceding treaties were con- 
 firmed, and the different tribes released their 
 claims to all territory east of the line of the Cuya- 
 hoga River and south of the Indian boundary line. 
 This left the larger part of the territory of 
 the Western Reserve still in the hands of 
 the savMge. On July 4, 18(l5, a treaty 
 was made at Fort Industry with the chiefs 
 and warriors of the different nations settled 
 in the northern and western sections of the 
 State, by which the Indian title to all the lands 
 of the Reserve, lying west of the Cuyahoga, was 
 extinguished. By this treaty all the lands lying 
 between the Cuyahoga and the Meridian, one 
 hundred and twenty miles west of Pennsylvania, 
 were ceded by the Indians for $20,000 in goods, 
 and a perpetual annuity of $9,500, payable in 
 goods at first cost. The latter clause has become 
 a dead letter, because there is no one to claim it. 
 Since this treaty, the title to the land of the Re- 
 serve has been set at rest. 
 
 The price for which this vast tract of land was 
 sold to the Connecticut Land Company was 
 $1,200,000, the subscriptions to the purchase fund 
 ranging from $1,683, by Sylvanus Griswold. to 
 $168,185, by Oliver Phelps. Each dollar sub- 
 scribed to this fund entitled the subscriber to one 
 twelve hundred thousandth part in common and 
 undivided of the land purchased. Having ac- 
 quired the title, the Company, in the following 
 spring, commenced to survey the territory lying 
 east of the Cuyahoga, and during the years of 1796 
 and 1797, completed it. The first surveying 
 party arrived at Conneaut, in New Connecticut, 
 July 4, 1796, and proceeded at once to celebrate 
 the twentieth anniversary of American Independ- 
 ence. There were fifty persons in the party, 
 under the lead of Gen. Moses Cleveland, of Can- 
 terbury, Conn. There will be found in Whittle- 
 sey's Early History of Cleveland an extract from 
 the journal of Cleveland, describing the particu- 
 lars of the celebration. Among other things noted 
 by him was the following : ''The day, memora 
 ble as the birthday of American Independence 
 and freedom from British tyrrany, and commemo- 
 
 rated by all good, freeborn sons of America, and 
 memorable as the day on which the settlement of 
 this new country was commenced, and ( which j in 
 time may raise her head among the most enlight- 
 ened and improved States" — a prophecy already 
 more than fulfilled. 
 
 For the purposes of the survey, a point wher ; 
 the 41st degree of north latitude intersected the 
 western line of Pennsylvania, was found, and from 
 this degree of latitude, as a base line, meridian lines, 
 five miles apart, were run north to the lake. 
 Lines of latitude were then run, five miles apart, 
 thus dividing the territory into townships five 
 miles square. It was not until after the treaty of 
 1805 that the lands lying west of the Cuyahoga 
 were surveyed. The meridians and parallels were 
 run out in 1806, by Abraham Tappan and his 
 assistants. The base and western lines of the Re- 
 serve were run by Seth Pease, for the Govern- 
 ment. The range of townships were numbered 
 progressively west, from the western boundary of 
 Pennsylvania. The first tier of townships, run- 
 ning north and south, lying along the border of 
 Pennsylvania, is Range No. 1 ; the adjoining tier 
 west is range No. 2, and so on throughout the 
 twenty-four ranges. The township lying next 
 north of the 41st parallel of latitude in each range, 
 is Township No. 1 of that range. The township 
 next north is No. 2, and so on progressively to 
 the lake. It was supposed that there were 4,- 
 000,000 acres of land between Pennsylvania and 
 the Fire Lands. If the supposition had proved 
 true, the land would have cost 30 cents per 
 acre ; as it resulted, there were less than 3,000,- 
 000 acres. The misca'culation arose from the 
 mistaken assumption that the south shore of Lake 
 Erie bore more nearly west than it does, and also 
 in a mistake made in the length of the east-and- 
 west line. The distance west from the Pennsyl- 
 vania line, surveyed in 1796-97, was only fifty-six 
 miles, the survey ending at the Tuscarawas River. 
 To reach the western limits of the Reserve a dis 
 tance of sixty-four miles was to be made. Abra- 
 ham Tappan and Anson Sessions entered into an 
 agreement with the Land Company, in 1805, to 
 complete the survey of the lands between the P^ire 
 Lands and the Cuyahoga. This they did in 1806, 
 and, from the width of Range 19, it is very evident 
 that the distance from the east to the west line of 
 the Reserve is less than one hundred and twenty 
 miles. This range of townships is gore-shaped, 
 and is much less than five miles wide, circum- 
 stances leading the company to divide all below 
 
176 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 Township 6 into tracts for the purpose of equaliza- 
 tion. The west line of Range 19, from north to 
 south, as originally run, bears to the west, and 
 between it and Eange 20, as indicated on the map, 
 tliere is a strip of land, also gore-shaped, that was 
 left in the first instance unsurveyed, the surveyors 
 not knowing the exact whereabouts of the eastern 
 line of the "half-million acres" belonging to the suf- 
 ferers. In 180G, Amos Spafford, of Cleveland, and 
 Almon Ilugiiles, of Huron, were agreed on by the 
 two companies to ascertain and locate the line be- 
 tween the Fire Lands and the lands of the Connecti- 
 cut Company. They first surveyed off the " half- 
 million acres " belonging to the " sufferers," and, 
 not agreeing with Seth Pease, who had run out 
 the base and west lines, a dispute arose between 
 the two companies, which was finally adjusted be- 
 fore the draft, by establishing the eastern line of 
 the Fire Lands wher.) it now is. This left a strip 
 of land east of the Fire Lands, called surplus lands, 
 which was included in range 19, and is embraced 
 in the western tier of townships of Lorain County. 
 The mode of dividing the land among the indi- 
 vidual purchasers, was a little peculiar, though 
 evidently just. An equalizing committee accom- 
 panied the surveyors, to make such observations 
 and take such notes of the character of the town- 
 ships as would enable them to grade them intelli- 
 gently, and make a just estimate and equalization 
 of their value. The amount of purchase money was 
 divided into 400 shares of $3,000 a share. Certifi- 
 cates were issued to each owner, showing him to be 
 entitled to such proportion of the entire land, as the 
 amount he paid, bore to the purchase price of the 
 whole. Four townships of the greatest value were 
 first selected from that part of the Western Reserve, 
 to which the Indian t tie had been extinguished, and 
 were divided into lots. P]ach township was di- 
 vided into not less than 100 lots. The number of 
 lots into which the four townships were divided, 
 would, at least, equal the 400 shares, or a lot to a 
 share, and each person or company of persons en- 
 titled to one or more shares of the Reserve — each 
 share being one four-hundredth part of the Re- 
 serve — was allowed to participate in the draft that 
 was determined upon for the division of the joint 
 property. The committee appointed to select the 
 four most valuable townships for such division, was 
 directed to select of the remaining townships, a 
 sufficient number, and of the best quality and 
 greatest value, to be used for equalizing purposes. 
 After this selection was made, they were to choose 
 the best remaining township, and tliis township was 
 
 the one, to the value of which all others were 
 brought by the equalizing process of annexation, 
 and if there were several of equal value with the 
 one so selected, no annexations were to be made to 
 them. The equalizing townships were cut up into 
 parcels of various size and value, and these parcels 
 were annexed to townships inferior in value to the 
 standard toicnship, and annexations of land from 
 the equalizing townships, were made to the inferior 
 townships, in quantity and quality, sufficient to 
 make all equal in value to the standard adopted. 
 When the townships had thus all been equalized, 
 they were drawn by lit. There were ninety-three 
 equalized parcels drawn east of the Cuyahoga, and 
 forty-six on the west. The draft of the lands east 
 of the river, took place prior to 1800, and of those 
 west of that river, on the 4th day of April, 18()7. 
 ]n the first draft, it required an ownership of 
 $12,903.23 of the original purchase money, to en- 
 title the owner to a township ; and in the second 
 draft, it required an ownership of §26,087 in the 
 original purchase-money, to entitle the owner to a 
 township. 
 
 The same mode and plan were followed in each 
 draft. The townships were nuiubered, and the 
 numbers, on separate pieces of paper, placed in a 
 box. The names of the proprietors who liad sub- 
 scribed, and were the owners of a sufficient amount 
 of the purchase-money to entitle them to a township, 
 were arranged ia alphabetical order, and when it 
 was necessary for several persons to combine, be- 
 cause not owning severally, a sufficient amount of 
 the purchase-money, or number of shares, to en- 
 title them to a township, the name of the person of 
 the company that stood alphabetically first, was 
 used to represent them in the draft, and in case the 
 small owners were unable, from disagreement 
 among themselves, to unite, a committee was ap- 
 pointed to select and class the proprietors, and 
 those selected were required to associate them- 
 selves together, for the purpose of the draft. The 
 township, or parcel of land, corresponding to the 
 first number drawn from the box belonged to the 
 person whose name stood first on the list, or to the 
 persons whom he represented; and the second 
 drawn belonged to the second person, and so down 
 through the list. This w'as the mode adopted to 
 sever the ownership in common, and to secure to 
 each individual, or company of individuals, their 
 interest in severalty. Soon after the conveyance to 
 the land company, to avoid complications arising 
 from the death of its members, and to facilitate the 
 transmission of title.'', the company conveyed the 
 
>k. 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 177 
 
 entire purchase, in trust, to John Morpran, John 
 Cadwell and Jonathan Brace ; and as titles were 
 wanted, either before or after the division by draft, 
 conveyances were made to the purchasers by these 
 trustees. 
 
 Little was known of this country at the time of 
 its purchase by the Land Company. It was for- 
 merly inhabited by a nation of Indians called the 
 Erigas or Eries, from which the lake took its 
 name. This nation was at an early date destroyed 
 by the Iroquois. In his '■ History of New France," 
 published in 1744, in speaking of the south shore 
 of Lake Erie, Charlevoix says : "All this shore is 
 nearly unknown." An old French map, made in 
 1755, to be seen in the rooms of the Western Re- 
 serve Historical Society, in Cleveland, names the 
 country between the Cuyahoga and Sandusky 
 Rivers, as Cauahogue ; and east of the Cuyahoga, 
 as Gwahoga. This is also the name given to that 
 river which is made to empty into Cuyahoga Bay; 
 and the country designated as Cauahogue is indi- 
 cated as the seat of war, the Mart of Trade, and 
 the chief hunting grounds of the Six Nations of the 
 lake. The earliest settlement was on the Reserve, 
 at Warren, in 1798, though salt was made in 
 Weathersfield, Mahoning County, as early as 1755, 
 by whites, who made short sojourns there for that 
 purpose. The number of settlers increased in this 
 section until, in 1800, there were some sixteen fam- 
 ilies. In 1796, the first surveying party for the 
 Land Company, landed at Conneaut, followed three 
 years later by the first permanent settler. Then 
 followed settlements in Geauga and Cuyahoga, in 
 1798; in Portage and Lake, in 1799; Summit, in 
 1800; Lorain. 1807, and iMedina, in 1811. "The 
 settlement of the Reserve commenced in a manner 
 somewhat peculiar. Instead of beginning on one 
 side of a county, and progressing gradually into 
 the interior, as had usually been done in similar 
 cases, the prorrietors of the Reserve, being gov- 
 erned by ditterent and separate views, began their 
 improvements wherever their individual interests 
 led them. Here we find many of the first settlers 
 immersed in a dense forest, fifteen or twenty miles 
 or more from the abode of any white inhabitants. 
 In consequence of their scattered situation, jour- 
 neys were sometimes to be performed of twenty or 
 fifty miles, for the sole purpose of having the staple 
 of an ox-yoke mended, or some other mechanical 
 job, in itself trifling, but absolutely essential for 
 the successful prosecution of business. These jour- 
 neys had to be performed through the wilderness, 
 at a great expense of time, and, in many cases, the 
 
 only safe guide to direct their course, were the 
 town.ship lines made by the surveyors. The want 
 of mills to grind the first harvest, was in itself a 
 great evil. Prior to 1800, many families used a 
 small hand-mill, properly called a .sweat-mill, which 
 took the hard labor of two hours to supply flour 
 enough for one person a single day. About the year 
 1800, one or two grist-mills, operating by water- 
 power, were erected. One of these was at Newburg, 
 now in Cuyahoga Co. But the distance of many 
 of the settlements from the mills, and the want 
 of roads, often rendered the expense of grinding a 
 single bushel equal to the value of two or three,"* 
 Speaking of the settlement of the Fire Lands, C. 
 B. Squier, late of Sandusky City, says : " The 
 largest suff'erers, and, consequently, those who 
 held the largest interest in the Fire LandS; pur- 
 chased the rights of many who held smaller inter- 
 ests. The proprietors of these lands, anxious that 
 their new territory should be settled, off"ered strong 
 inducements for persons to settle in this then un- 
 known region. It is quite difficult to ascertain who 
 the first settlers were, upon these lands. As early, 
 if not prior to the organization of the State, sev- 
 eral persons had squatted upon the lands at the 
 mouth of the streams and near the shore of the lake, 
 led a hunter's life, and trafficked with the Indians. 
 But they were a race of wanderers, and gradually 
 disappeared before the regular progress of the set- 
 tlements. Those devoted missionaries, the Mora- 
 vians, made a settlement, which they called New 
 Salem, as early as 1790, on Huron River, about 
 two miles below Milan. The first regular settlers, 
 however, were Col. Ji'rard Ward, who came in the 
 spring of 1808, and Almon Ruggles and Jabez 
 Wright, in succeeding autumn." The next year 
 brought a large inflow of immigration, which spread 
 over the greater portion of both Erie and Huron 
 Counties, though tlie first settlement in Sandusky 
 City was not made until 1817. 
 
 It was not until the year 1800 that civil govern- 
 ment was organized on the Western Reserve. The 
 Governor and Judges of the Northwest Territory, 
 under the ordinance of 1787, by proclamation in 
 the following year, organized the county of Wash- 
 ington, and included within it all of the Western 
 Reserve east of the Cuyahoga; and in 1790, the 
 year of the first occupation by the whites of the 
 New Connecticut, the county of Wayne was erected, 
 which included over one-ha'f of Ohio, all of the 
 Western Reserve west of the Cuyahoga, with a 
 part of Indiana, all of Michigan^ and the Ameri- 
 
 *Juiige Arazi Atwater. 
 
178 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO 
 
 can ])ortion of Lakes Superior, Huron, St. Clair 
 and Erie, to the mouth of the Cuyahoga, with the 
 county scat at Detroit. In 1797, Jefferson County 
 was estabUshed, and the Western lleserve, east of 
 the Cuyahoga, became a part of it, by restricting 
 the hiuits of Wiushington. Connecticut and the 
 Land Company refused to recognize the right of 
 the General Government to make such disposition 
 of the Reserve. The act of including this territory 
 within the counties of Washington, Jefferson and 
 Wayne, they declared to be unwarranted, and the 
 power of Congress to prescribe rules for the gov- 
 ernment of the same, they denied, and from the 
 opening settlement in 1796, until the transfer of 
 jurisdiction to the General Government was com- 
 plete, on May 30, 1800, the new settlers were entirely 
 without municipal laws. There was no regulation 
 governing the transmission of, or success to, prop- 
 erty on the decease of the owner ; no regulations 
 of any kind securing the protection of rights, or 
 the redress of wrongs. The want of laws for the 
 government of the settlers was seriously felt, and 
 as early as 1796, the company petitioned the 
 Legislature of Connecticut to erect the Reserve 
 into a county, with proper and suitable laws to 
 regulate the internal policy of the territory for a 
 limited period. This petition, however, was not 
 granted, and for upward of four years the inter- 
 course and conduct of the early settlers were regu- 
 lated and restrained only by their New England 
 sense of justice and right. But on the 10th of 
 July, 1800, after Connecticut had released her 
 jurisdiction to the United States, the Western 
 Reserve was erected into a county, by the name of 
 Trumbull, in honor of the Governor of Connecti- 
 cut, by the civil authority of Ohio. At the elec- 
 tion in the fall of that year, Edward Paine received 
 thirty-eight votes out of the forty-two cast, for 
 member of tlie Territorial Legislature. The elec- 
 tion was held at Warren, the county seat, and 
 was the first participation that the settlers had in 
 the affaiis of government here. During the same 
 year the Court of Quarter Sessions, a tribunal that 
 did not survive the Constitution of 1802, was es- 
 tablished and organized, and by it the ccmnty was 
 divided into eight organized townships. The town- 
 ship of Cleveland was one, and embraced a large 
 portion of territory east of the Cuyahoga, but all the 
 Reserve lying west of that river. On December 1 , 
 1805, Geauga County was erected. It included 
 within its limits, nearly all the present counties of 
 Ashtabula, Geauga, Lake and Cuyahoga. On 
 February 10, 1807, there was a mire general di- 
 
 vision into counties. That part of the Western 
 Restrve lying west of the Cuyahoga and north of 
 Township No. 4, was attached to Geauga, to be a 
 part thereof until Cuyahoga should be organized. 
 In the same year Ashtabula was erected out of 
 Trumbull aud Geauga, to be organized whenever 
 its population would warrant it ; also, all that part 
 of Trumbull which lay west of the fifth range of 
 townships, was erected into a county by the name 
 of Portage, all of the Western Reserve west of the 
 Cuyahoga and south of Townsbip No. 5, being 
 attached to it. The C' unty of Cuyahoga was 
 formed out of Geauga, on the same date, February 
 10, 1807, to be organized whenever its population 
 should be sufficient to require it, which occurred 
 in 1810. 
 
 On February 8, 1809, Huron County was 
 erected into a county, covering the Fire Lands, 
 but to remain attached to Geauga and Portage, for 
 the time being, for purposes of government. The 
 eastern boundary of this county was subsequently, 
 in 1811, moved forward to the Black River, but, 
 in the year 1822, it was given its present bounda- 
 ries, and, in 1838, Erie County was erected, di- 
 viding its territory. On the 18th of February, 
 1812, Medina was formed, and comprised all the 
 territory between the eleventh range of townships 
 and Huron County, and south of Township No. 
 5. It was attached to Portage, however, until 
 January 14, 1818, when it received an indepcLd- 
 ent organization. Lorain County was formed on 
 the 2Gth day of December, 1822, from the outly- 
 ing portions of Huron, Medina and Cuyahoga 
 Counties. It was organized with an independent 
 local administration, January 21, 1824. In 1840, 
 were organized Summit County, on March 3, and 
 Lake County on March G; the former drawing 
 from Medina and Portage, and taking two town- 
 ships from Stark County, and the latter being 
 formed from Geauga and Cuyahoga. ' In 1846, 
 Ashland County was formed, taking three town- 
 ships of the Reserve, on February 26, and Maho- 
 ning, on March 1, taking ten townships from 
 Trumbull, leaving the boundaries of the Reserve 
 as marked at present. 
 
 In the history of its social development, the 
 Western Reserve is not less interesting or peculiar 
 than in the beginning of its material interests. 
 The history of the mother State was peculiar, and 
 the Reserve, it was fondly hoped, would be a re- 
 production of the maternal features and graces, a 
 New Connecticut. A chronicler* of the early 
 
 *C'liarles W. Elliott. 
 
'ku 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 179 
 
 history of New England, writing of the New Ha- 
 ven Colony of 1G37, says: "During the first 
 year, little ' government ' was needed or exercised. 
 Each man was a lord to himself. On the 4th of 
 June (1638), the settlers met in Mr. Neuman's 
 barn, and bound themselves by a sort of Constitu- 
 tion. * * * They decided to make the Bible 
 their law-book ; but by and by new towns were 
 made, and new laws were needed, and they had 
 the good sense to make them. Their State was 
 founded upon their church, thus expressed in 
 their first compact, signed by one hundred and 
 eleven persons : ' That church members only 
 shall be free Burgesses, and that they only shall 
 choose Magistrates and officers among themselves, 
 to have the power of transacting all publique civil 
 affairs of this plantation, of making and repealing 
 laws, dividing of inheritances, deciding of differ- 
 ences that may arise, and doing all things or busi- 
 nesses of like nature.' " Twenty-seven years later, 
 when circumstances made a union of the two 
 Connecticut Colonies necessary, the greatest and 
 most lasting objection on the part of the New Ha- 
 ven Colony was the lessening of the civil power 
 of the church which would follow the union. In 
 1680, the Governor of the United Colonies, thus 
 describes the community: "The people are strict 
 Congregationalists. There are four or five Seven- 
 day men, and about as many Quakers. We have 
 twenty-six towns and twenty-one churches. Beg- 
 gars and vagabonds are not suffei-ed, but are bound 
 out to service." These characteristics of Connect- 
 icut have been marked by all historians as well as 
 the facts, that she " Early established and sup- 
 ported schools and colleges ; her people have, from 
 the outset, been industrious and honest ; crime has 
 not abounded ; while talent and character, and 
 courage and cleanliness, have been common through 
 all her history." It was to reproduce these 
 characteristics throughout the territory embraced 
 within the provisions of her charter, that the 
 mother State labored. For one hundred and 
 tliirty years she followed this purpose with an un- 
 deviating method. " One tract after another, suf- 
 ficient for a municipal government, was granted 
 to trusty men, who were to form a settlement of 
 well assorted families, with the church, the meet- 
 ing house, the settled ministry of the Gospel, the 
 seliool, the local magistracy, and the democratic 
 town-meeting represented in the General Assem- 
 bly. Under this method, se'f-governed towns in 
 what is now a part of Pennsylvania, were once 
 represented in the General Assembly at Hartford 
 
 and New Haven.'"* It was with the hope of ex- 
 tending this method to the Reserve that Connecti- 
 cut so strenuously asserted her jurisdiction to her 
 Western lands ; but in the years of rapid growth 
 succeeding the war of the Revolution, the old 
 method proved no longer practicable, and the par- 
 ent surrendered her offspring to the hands of 
 abler guardians. But there remained a field in 
 which solicitous regard could find action, and 
 the impress of her work in this direction is 
 plainly apparent to this day. It was her method 
 of " missions to the new settlements " which had 
 become crystallized into a system about this time. 
 Of the scope and character of this work. Rev. 
 Leonard Bacon thus speaks : " At first, individ- 
 ual pastors, encouraged by their brethren, and ob- 
 taining permission from their churches, performed 
 long and weary journeys on horseback into Ver- 
 mont and the great wilderness of Central New 
 York, that they might preach the Word and ad 
 minister the ordinances of religion to such mem- 
 bers of their flocks, and others, as had emigrated 
 beyond the reach of ordinary New England priv- 
 ileges. By degrees the work was enlarged, and 
 arrangements for sustaining it were systematized, 
 till in the year 1798, the same year in which the 
 settlement of the Reserve brgan, the pastors of 
 Connecticut, in then- General Association, instituted 
 the Missionary Society of Connecticut. In 1802, 
 one year after the jurisdiction of the old State 
 over the Reserve was formally relinquished, the 
 Trustees of the Missionary Society were incorpo- 
 rated. As early as 1800, only two years alter 
 the first few families from Connecticut had planted 
 themselves this side of Northwestern Pennsylvania, 
 the first missionary made hig appearance among 
 them. This was the Rev. Joseph Badger, the 
 apostle of the Western Reserve — a man of large 
 and various experience, as well as of native force, 
 and of venerable simplicity in character and man- 
 ners. In those days the work of the missionary 
 to the new settlements was by no means the same 
 with what is now ca'lcd ' Home Missionary ' work. 
 Our modern Home Missionary has his station and 
 his home ; his business is to gather around him- 
 self a permanent congregation ; his hope is to 
 grow up with the congregation which he gathers, 
 and the aid which he receives is given to help the 
 church support its pa-tor. But the old-fashioned 
 ' missionary to the new settlements,' was an itiner- 
 ant. He had no station and no settled home. If 
 he had a family, his work was continually calling 
 
 *AJdrrss by Leonard Bacon, D. D. 
 
 

 180 
 
 HISTORY OF OHIO. 
 
 him away from them. He went from one little 
 settlement to another — from one lonely cabin to 
 another — preaching from house to house, and not 
 often spending two consecutive Sabbaths in one 
 place. The nature of the emigration to the wilder- 
 ness, in those days, required such labors. 
 
 " It was soon felt that two mi-ssionaries were 
 needed for the work among the scattered settle- 
 ments. Accordingly, the Rev. Ezekiel J. Chap- 
 man was sent. He arrived on the Reserve at the 
 close of the year 1801, and returned to Connecti- 
 cut in April, 1803. His place was soon supplied 
 by a young man ordained expressly to the work, 
 the Rev. Thomas Robbins, who continued labor- 
 ing in this field from November, 1803, till April, 
 1806. In a letter of his, dated June 8, 1805, 
 I find the following statement : ' Since the be- 
 ginniag of the present year, I have been taking 
 pains to make an actual enumeration of the fami- 
 lies in this county.* The work I have just com- 
 pleted. There are one or more families in sixty- 
 four towns. January 1, 1804, the number of 
 families wa^ about 800. The first of last January 
 there were a little more than 1100, of which 450 
 are Yankees. There were twenty- four schools. 
 There are seven churches, with a pr. spect that 
 two more vail be organized soon, and more than 
 twenty places where the worship of God is regu- 
 larly maintained on the Sabbath.' " Such was the 
 beginning of an influence to which the people of 
 the Reserve are principally indebted for the early 
 and secure foundation of the church and school, 
 and for that individuality which marks them as a 
 peculiar and envied people in a great common- 
 wealth made up of the chosen intellect and brawn 
 of a whole nation. 
 
 Owing to the peculiar relation of the Reserve to 
 the General Government in early years, the history 
 of its public school fund is exceptional. Ry the ordi- 
 nance of Congress in 1785, it was declared that 
 Section 16 of every township should be reserved 
 for the maintenance of public schools in the town- 
 ship. The ordinance of 1787, re-afhrmed the 
 policy thus declared. The provisions ofthe.se ordi- 
 nances, in this respect, were not applicable to, nor 
 operative over, the region of the Reserve, because 
 of the fact that the United States did not own its 
 soil ; and, although the entire amount paid to 
 Connecticut by the Land Company for the terri- 
 
 *Trumbull County then iucludcd the whole of the Reserye. 
 
 tory of the Reserve was set apart for, and devoted 
 to, the maintenance of public schools in that State, 
 no part of that fund was appropriated to purposes 
 of education here. There was an inequality of 
 advantages between the people of the Reserve and 
 the remai.ider of the State, in that respect. This 
 inequality was, however, in a measure removed in 
 1803, by an act of Congress, which set apart and 
 appropriated to the Western Reserve, as an e(|uiv- 
 alent for Section 16, a sufficient quantity of land 
 in the United States Military District, to compen- 
 sate the loss of that section, in the lands lying east 
 of the "Cuyahoga. This amount was equal to one- 
 thirty-sixth of the land of the reserve, to which 
 the Indian title had before that time been extin- 
 guished. The Indian title to the lands of the Re- 
 serve west of the Cuyahoga, not then having been 
 extinguished, the matter seemed to drop from 
 public notice, and remain so until 1829. At this 
 date, the Legislature, in a memorial to Congress, 
 directed its attention to the fact, that, by the treaty 
 of Fort Industry, concluded in 1805, the Indian 
 title to the land west of the Cuyahoga, had been 
 relinquished to the United States, and prayed in 
 recognition of the fact, that an additional amount 
 of land lying within the United States Military 
 District, should be set apart for the use of the 
 public schools of the Reserve, and equal in quan- 
 tity to one thirty-sixth of the territory ceded 
 to the United States by that treaty. The memo- 
 rial produced the desired result. In 1834, Con- 
 gress, in compliance with a request of the Leg- 
 islature, granted such an additional amount 
 of land to the Reserve for scho 1 purposes, 
 as to equalize its di.stribu'ion of lands for 
 such purpose, and in furtherance of its ob- 
 ject to carry into effect its determination to 
 donate one thirty-sixth part of the public domain 
 to the purposes of education. The lands first 
 allotted to the Reserve for such purpose, were sit- 
 uated in the Counties of Holmes and Tuscarawas, 
 and in 1831, were surveyed and sold, the proceeds 
 arising from their sale as well as the funds arising 
 from the sale of those subsefiuently appropri- 
 ated, being placed and invested with other 
 school funds of the State, and constitute one of 
 the sources from which the people of the Reserve 
 derive the means of supporting and maintaining 
 their common schools. 
 
 *7tl 
 
u 
 
 0) 
 
 D 
 
 o 
 
 I 
 
 h 
 q: 
 
 D 
 O 
 
 u 
 
 >- 
 
 I- 
 z 
 
 D 
 
 o 
 u 
 
 to 
 
^ S'|>> 
 
 PART II. 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 CHAPTER I.* 
 
 INTRODUCTORY— DESCRIPTION— TOPOGRAPHY, ETC.— GEOLOGY— ALTITUDES IN THE COUNTY— THE 
 DRIFT— COAL DEPOSITS— AGRICULTURE, ETC. 
 
 "And riper eras ask for history's trutli." 
 
 —Vliviir Wendell HnJmes. 
 
 ri^^HE advantages resulting from the local his- 
 _L tory of cities and countries is no longer a 
 matter of doubt. Whether considered solel}' as 
 objects of interest or amusement, or as having the 
 still wider utilit}' of the places they describe, 
 these records are worthy of high consideration. 
 And although in a country like ours, this depart- 
 ment of history can claim to chronicle no great 
 events, nor to relate any of those local tradi- 
 tions that make many of the countries of the 
 Old World so famous in story and song, yet 
 they can fulfill the equal use of directing the 
 attention of those abroad to the rise, progress 
 and present standing of places which ma}' fairly 
 claim, in the future, what has made others great 
 in the past. And in any age, when everj' en- 
 ergy of the whole brotherhood of maij is 
 directed to the future, and when mere utilitari- 
 anism has taken the place of romance, it is a 
 matter of more than ordinary- interest and value 
 to all, to note the practical advancement, and 
 so to calculate, upon the basis of the past, the 
 probable results of the future of those places 
 which seem to present advantages, either social 
 or pecuniar}', to that large class of foreigners 
 and others, who are constantly seeking for 
 homes or means of occupation among us. Nor 
 is it to these alone that such local history is of 
 value. The country already possesses much 
 unemployed capital seeking for investment, 
 while many, having already procured the means 
 of living well, are seeking for homes more con- 
 genial to their tastes than the places where they 
 
 * Contributed by W. II. Perrin. 
 
 have lived but for pecuniary profit. To both 
 of these, the history of individual localities is 
 an invaluable aid in helping the one to discover 
 a means of advantageously employing his sur- 
 plus money, and in aiding the other to find a 
 home possessing those social advantages which 
 will render him comfortable and happy. But 
 it is to the emigrant foreigner that local his- 
 tory is of the greatest benefit. Leaving, as he 
 does, a country, with whose resources, social, 
 moral and political, he is intimately acquainted, 
 for one of which he knows almost nothing, such 
 works, carefully and authentically written, are 
 to him what the guide-books of the Old World 
 are to the wonder-seeking traveler ; they pre- 
 sent him at once with a faithful view of the 
 land of his adoption, and point out to him 
 every advantage and disadvantage, every chance 
 of profit or of pleasure, every means of gain, 
 every hope of gratification, that is anywhere to 
 be afforded. 
 
 Impressed with these opinions, it is proposed 
 to present the citizens of Summit County with 
 an authentic and impartial history ; one which 
 may be implicitly relied on in its calcula- 
 tions and statistical details, and which shall 
 present as accurate and faithful a survey as can 
 bo obtained from any data known to ihe writers 
 of the diflferent departments, or attainable by 
 them. With all the care that may be exercised, 
 however, the record will no doubt be found im- 
 perfect; incidents and names be left out, and 
 matters escape notice which many will deem 
 unpardonable omissions. This is one of the 
 things which detract from the pleasure of writing 
 local annals. But it is more or less unavoid- 
 
 ip^ 
 
182 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 able, as no one can know and remember every- 
 thing, and both the time and space allotted to 
 us are limited. 
 
 Summit County lies in the northeastern part 
 of the State, witli but one count}^ between it 
 and the lake, and is bounded on the north by 
 Cuyahoga County, on the east b}^ Portage, on 
 the south by Stark, on the west by Medina, 
 and embraces within its limits seventeen town- 
 ships (including Cuyahoga Falls). It is sit- 
 uated on the highlands, or the " summit " 
 (from which it derives the name of Sum- 
 mit), which separate the tributaries of the 
 Ohio from the waters flowing north into Lake 
 Erie, and has an average elevation of about 
 five hundred feet above the lake. " The Cuya- 
 hoga River, rising in the northern part of 
 Geauga County, runs for forty miles in a 
 southwesterly direction, then in the center of 
 Summit County turns sharply to the north, and 
 pursues a nearly straight course to the lake. 
 In Geauga and Portage, the Cuyahoga flows on 
 the surface of a plateau composed of the car- 
 boniferous conglomerate. At the town of 
 Cuyahoga Falls, in this county, this plateau is 
 cut through in a series of cascades which give 
 rise to much beautiful scenery. The river here 
 falls 220 feet in two miles, so that from the vi- 
 cinity of Akron to the north line of the county, 
 it flows through a narrow valley or gorge more 
 than three hundred feet deep. At frequent in- 
 tervals, the Cuyahoga receives tributaries, both 
 from the east and the west, and the valleys of 
 these streams contribute their part to give va- 
 riety to the topography of the central portion 
 of the county." * 
 
 In the geological and physical features of 
 the county, we shall draw our information prin- 
 cipall}^ from the State Geological Survey. It 
 is the official report of the State on these sub- 
 jects, and may be relied on as substantially 
 correct. And as there were but a limited num- 
 ber of them printed, and they are even now be- 
 coming scarce, the extracts from them incorpo- 
 rated in this work will be found of interest and 
 value to our readers. We quote further, as 
 follows : 
 
 " The highest lands in Summit are the hills 
 most distant from the channels of drainage, in 
 Richfield, Norton, Green, Springfield, Tallmadge, 
 and Hudson. In all these townships, summits 
 rise to the height of 650 above the lake. The 
 
 * Geological Survey. 
 
 bottom of the Cuyahoga Valley, in the north- 
 ern part of Northfield, is less than fifty feet 
 above Lake Erie, so that within the county we 
 have differences of level which exceed 600 feet. 
 The altitudes in Summit County ai'e thus offi- 
 cially given : Tallmadge, Long Swamp, above 
 Lake Erie 470 feet ; Tallmadge road, east of 
 Center, 543 feet ; Tallmadge, Coal No. 1, New- 
 berry's mine, 520 feet ; Tallmadge, Coal No. 1, 
 D. Upson's mine, 492 feet ; Tallmadge, summit 
 of Coal Hill, 636 feet ; Akron, door-sill of 
 court house, 452.65 feet ; Akron, railroad 
 depot. 428.13 feet ; Akron, summit level, 
 Ohio Canal, highwater, 395 feet ; Akron, P. 
 & O. Canal, 370.64 feet ; Cuyahoga Falls, rail- 
 road depot, 428.13 feet ; Monroe Falls, road 
 before Hickok house, 460 feet ; Hudson Station, 
 496 feet ; Hudson town, 547 feet ; Boston, 
 Ohio Canal, 94.66 feet ; Peninsula, Ohio Ca- 
 nal, 125.66 feet ; Yellow Creek, Ohio Canal, 
 180 feet ; Old Portage, Ohio Canal, 188 feet ; 
 Green, summit of Valley Railroad, 532 feet; 
 New Portage, street in front of tavern, 400 
 feet ; lake, between New Portage and Johnson's 
 Corners, 399 feet ; Wolf Creek, below Clark's 
 mill, 390.74 feet ; Wolf Creek, in Copley, one 
 mile west of north-and-south center road, 419- 
 .78 feet ; Little Cuyahoga, Mogadore, 477 feet ; 
 Little Cuyahoga, at Gilchrist's mill-dam, 457 
 feet ; Little Cuyahoga, old forge at trestle, 439 
 feet ; Richfield,^East Center, 531.80 feet ; Rich- 
 field, highest land (over), 675 feet ; Yellow 
 Creek, one-fourth mile west of Ghent, 371 feet. 
 " The soil of Summit County is somewhat 
 varied. In the northern part, even where un- 
 derlaid by the conglomerate in full thickness, 
 the soil derived from the drift contains a great 
 deal of clay, and Northfield, Twinsburg, Hudson, 
 etc., are, as a consequence, dairy towns. The 
 southern half of the countj^, however, has a 
 loam soil, and the attention of the farmers has 
 been directed more to grain-growing than stock- 
 raising. This difference of soil was clearly in- 
 dicated by the original vegetable growth. In 
 Hudson and Twinsburg the forest was com- 
 posed, for the most part, of beech, maple, bass- 
 wood and elm, while in Stow, Tallmadge, and 
 southward, the prevailing forest growth was 
 oak. In Franklin and Green, the soil is decid- 
 edly gravelly ; the original timber was oak, in 
 groves and patches, and these townships form 
 part of the famous wheat-growing district of 
 Stark, Wayne, etc. In the central part of the 
 
'-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 18a 
 
 county, between Akron and Cuyahoga Falls, 
 a few thousand acres, called " The Plains," 
 formerly presented a marked contrast to the 
 rolling and densely- timbered surface of all the 
 surrounding area. This is a nearly level dis- 
 trict of which the peculiar features are mostly- 
 obliterated by cultivation, but when in the state 
 of nature, it had the aspect of the prairies of 
 the West. It was almost destitute of timber, 
 was covered with grass and scrub-oak (quercus 
 baru'steri), and, in spring, was a perfect flower- 
 garden ; for a much lai^ger number of wild 
 flowers were found here than in any other part 
 of the county. The origin of these peculiar 
 features ma}' be traced to the nature of the 
 substructure of the district. This area forms 
 a triangle between the two branches of the 
 Cuyahoga and the coal-hills of Tallmadge ; 
 the soil is sandy, und this is underlaid by beds 
 of gravel of unknown depth. It seems that 
 there once existed here a deeply excavated rock 
 basin, which was subsequently partly filled up 
 with drift deposits and parti}' by water ; in 
 other words, that it was, for a time, a lake. 
 The waters of this lake deposited the sand 
 which now forms the soil. and. in its deeper 
 portions, a series of lacustrine clays, which are 
 well shown in the cutting recently made for a 
 road on the north side of the valley of the Lit- 
 tle Cuyahoga, near Akron. The sections of 
 these beds are as follows : 
 
 FKET. INCHES. 
 
 1. Stratified sand 10 
 
 2. Bkie clay 4 
 
 3. Mixed yellow and blue clay, stratified 1 1 
 
 4. Blue clay 10 
 
 5. Yellow clay 10 
 
 6. Blue clay 1 
 
 7. Red clay 1 
 
 8. Yellow clay 1 
 
 9. Blue clay 8 
 
 10. Red clay 2 
 
 11. Blue clay 6 
 
 12. Redclav 10 
 
 13. Blue clay 1 6 
 
 14. Red clay 3 
 
 15. Yellow clay 1 6 
 
 16. Blue clay 3 
 
 17. Red clay 1 
 
 18. Fine yellow sand 1 
 
 19. Yellow clay 3 
 
 20. Blue clay 4 
 
 21. Yellow clay 3 
 
 22. Blue clay 4 
 
 " In another section, exposed neaoly in the 
 valley of the Little Cuyahoga, the beds which 
 have been enumerated are seen to be underlaid 
 
 by about sixty feet of stratified sand and 
 gravel to the bed of the stream. To what 
 depth they extend is not known. On the op- 
 posite side of the Little Cuyahoga, on the main 
 road leading into Akron, the banks of the old 
 valley present a very dirterent section from 
 either of those to which I have I'eferred above. 
 There we find a hill composed of finely washed 
 and irregularly stratified sand, quite free from 
 pebbles. About ten or twelve feet of the up- 
 per part is yellow ; the lower part, as far as ex- 
 posed, white ; a waved line separating the two 
 colors. East and north of the locality where 
 the detailed section given above was taken, 
 heavy beds of gravel are seen to occupy the 
 same horizon ; from which we may learn that 
 these finely laminated clays were deposited in 
 a basin of water, of which the shore was formed 
 by gravel hills. A portion of the city of Ak- 
 ron is underlaid by thick beds of stratified 
 sand and gravel. These are often cross-strati- 
 fied, and show abundant evidences of current 
 action. They also contain large angular blocks 
 of conglomerate attd many fragments of coal, 
 some of which are of considerable size. ^Ye 
 apparently have some of the materials which 
 were cut out of the valleys that separate the 
 isolated outliei's of the coal measures which are 
 found in this part of the county. Beds of 
 gravel and sand stretch away southward from 
 Akron, and form part of a belt which extends 
 through Stark County, partially filling the old, 
 deeply-cut valley of the Tuscarawas, and ap- 
 parently marking the line of the southern ex- 
 tension of the valley of Cuyahoga when it was 
 a channel of drainage from the lake basin to 
 the Ohio. This old and partially obliterated 
 channel has been referred to in the chapter on 
 the physical geography of the State, and it will 
 be more fully described in the chapters on sur- 
 face geology and those formed by the reports 
 on Stark and Tuscarawas Counties. I will only 
 refer to it, in passing, to say that the line 
 of the Ohio Canal, of which the summit is 
 at Akron, was carried through this old water 
 gap, because it still forms a comparatively low 
 pass. In the western part of the State, the 
 Miami Canal traverses a similar pass, and an- 
 other, having nearly tlie same level with those 
 mentioned, in Trumbull County, connects the 
 valleys of Grand River and the Mahoning. 
 
 " The thick beds of gravel and sand which 
 underlie the plain and stretch eastward up the 
 
 '^P' 
 
184 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 valley of the Little Cuj'ahoga, through Southern 
 Tallmadge, perhaps form part of the great 
 gravel belt to which I have already alluded, 
 but may be of mere local origin. It seems to 
 me quite possible that the Cuyahoga, in former 
 times, passed eastward of its present course, 
 from Kent or Monroe Falls to Akron ; that the 
 falls of the Cuyahoga were then near the ' Old 
 Forge,' and that this excavated basin beneath 
 the ' plains ' was scooped out by them. We 
 know that the position of the falls has been 
 constantl}^ changing ; that they were once in 
 Cuyahoga County, and have gradually receded 
 to their present position. When they had 
 worked back to the great bend of the Cuyahoga, 
 the}' seem to have swung round the circle for 
 some time before starting on their present line 
 of progress. In this interval, the river appears 
 to have flowed over a bi'oad front of the con- 
 glomerate, and, cutting away the shales below, 
 to have produced the rock basin which has 
 been described. When the falls of the Cuya- 
 hoga were at the north line of the count}', they 
 must have had a perpendicular height of at 
 least two hundred feet, for the hard layers in 
 the Cu^'ahoga shale which produce the ' Big 
 Falls ' do not extend so far north. The entire 
 mass of the Cuyahoga shale there is soft argil- 
 laceous material, which must have been cut out 
 beneath the massive conglomerate, producing a 
 cascade at least equal in height to that of Ni- 
 agara. 
 
 " The north-south portion of the Cuyahoga 
 Valley seems to have been once continued 
 southward, and to have been connected with 
 the old valley of the Tuscarawas, which is ex- 
 cavated far below the bed of the present 
 stream. At the north line of the count}', the 
 valley of the Cuyahoga is cut down two hun- 
 dred and twent}' feet below the present river 
 bottom, as we learn by wells bored for oil. The 
 bottom of the valley of the Tuscarawas is, at 
 Canal Dover, one hundred and sevent3'-five feet 
 below the surface of the stream, and there are 
 many facts which indicate that there was once 
 a powerful current of water passing from the 
 lake basin to the Ohio through this deeply ex- 
 cavated channel. Subsequently, this outlet was 
 dammed up by heav}' Ijeds of drift; and the 
 Cuyahoga, cut from its connection with the 
 Tuscarawas, to which it had been a tributary, 
 was forced to turn sharpl}' to the north, form- 
 ing the abrupt curve that has always been re- 
 
 garded as a peculiar feature in the course of 
 this stream. The courses of the tributaries of 
 the Maumee are not unlike that of the Cuj-a- 
 hoga, and are probably dependent upon the 
 same cause, namel}-, the depression of the lake 
 level and the diversion of the drainage from the 
 Mississippi system, with which it was formerly 
 connectecl, into the lake basin. The drift clays 
 which underlie the northern part of Summit 
 County are plainly of northern origin, as they 
 contain innumerable fragments of the Huron, 
 Erie and Cuyahoga shales, and no such mass of 
 argillaceous material could be derived from the 
 conglomerate and coal measures which underlie 
 all the country toward the south. The direc- 
 tion of the glacial striae in the county is nearly- 
 northwest and southeast, and these clays are 
 plainly the result of glacial action. It is inter- 
 esting to note, however, that in the drift cla}' at 
 Hudson a large number of masses of coal have 
 been found, some of which were several inches 
 in diameter. This fact, taken in connection 
 with the character and histoiy of the drift 
 clays, proves — what we had good reason to be- 
 lieve from other causes — that the coal rocks 
 once extended at least as far north as the 
 northern limits of the count}', and that from all 
 the northern townships they were removed and 
 the conglomerate laid bare by glacial erosion. 
 A considerable portion of the drift gravels in 
 the southern part of the county are of foreign 
 and nox'thern orighi. As I have elsewhere re- 
 marked, these gravels and the associated lands 
 show distinct marks of water action, and have 
 apparently been sorted and stratified by the 
 sliore waves of the lake when it stood several 
 hundred feet higher than now. The bowlders 
 which are strewn over the surface in all parts 
 of the county are mostly composed of Lanren- 
 tian granite from Canada, and I have attributed 
 their transportation to icebergs. In North- 
 ampton, many huge bowlders of corniferous 
 limestone are found, and these evidently came 
 from the islands in Lake Erie. 
 
 " One of the most striking of the surface 
 features of Summit County is the great num- 
 ber of small lakes which are found here. These 
 are generally beautiful sheets of pure water, en- 
 closed in basins of drift, gravel and sand. They 
 form part of the great series of lake basins 
 which mark the line of the water-shed from 
 Pennsylvania to Michigan, and they have been 
 described, and their origin explained, in the 
 
 ^, 
 
,\^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 185 
 
 chapter on ' Physical Geography.' When a resi- 
 dent of Summit County, I mapped and visited i 
 nearly one hundred of these little lakes within 
 a circle of twenty miles radius drawn around 
 Cu^'ahoga Falls. Aside from the variety and 
 beauty which these lakelets give to the surface, 
 they afford many objects of scientific interest. 
 They are usually stocked with excellent fish, 
 and many rare and peculiar plants grow in and 
 about them. They also contain great numbers 
 of shells, some of which are rare. Springfield 
 Lake, for example, is the only known locality 
 of Melania gracilis, and Congress Lake contains 
 two species of lAnnea {L. gracilis and L. stag- ; 
 nalis), both of which are found in few, if any. ; 
 other, localities in the State. i\Lany of these 
 are being gradually filled up Ijy a growth of 
 vegetation that ultimately forms peat. Li all 
 those lakes where the shores are marshy and 
 shake under the tread, peat is accumulating. ! 
 We have evidence, too, that many lakelets have | 
 been filled up and obliterated by this process ; 
 for we find a large number of marshes in which 
 there is now little water, but the surface is un- { 
 derlaid b}' peat and shell marl, sometimes to 
 the depth of twent}' or thirty feet. Every town- 
 ship contains more or less of these, and some 
 of them are quite extensive. The larger ones 
 are usually known as whortleberry swamps or 
 cranberry marshes, sometimes as tamarack 
 swamps, from the growth of larch which fre- 
 quently covers the surface. Among the largest 
 of these is that west of Hudson, on Mud Brook, 
 in which the peat is fifteen feet deep. Another 
 lies east of Hudson, near the county line. In 
 Stow, on Mud Brook, is a long peat swamp, in 
 which the peat is not less than thirty feet deep. 
 In Coventry is one in which the peat is said to 
 be thirty or forty feet deep, and from this con- 
 siderable peat of excellent quality has been 
 manufactured b}^ J. F. Brunot. These peat 
 bogs have excited some interest as possible 
 sources of supply of fuel, and yet, where coal 
 is as cheap and good as in Summit County, it 
 seems hardl3' probably that peat can be profit- 
 abl}' emplo^'ed as a fuel. The best of peat, 
 when air-dried, contains nearly 20 per cent of 
 water and 20 per cent of oxygen, and has a heat- 
 ing power not greater than half that of our 
 coals, while it occupies double the space. Hence, 
 unless it can be produced at half the price of 
 coal in the markets of Summit County, it can 
 hardly compete with it. Peat is, however, an 
 
 excellent fertilizer, and many, even of the 
 
 smaller peat bogs, maj^ be made very valuable 
 to the agriculturist. In some localities, such 
 deposits of peat have been cleared up and cul- 
 tivated for many years, without a suspicion 
 that there was an^'thing of interest or value 
 below the surface. Deposits of shell marl 
 are frequently found underl3ang peat in ' cat 
 swamps ' and filled-up lakelets. This marl is 
 composed of the remains of the shells of mol- 
 lusks, which, after the death of the animals that 
 inhabited them, have accumulated at the bot- 
 tom of the water. In some instances, these 
 mai'ls are white, and nearly pure lime ; in others 
 they are mixed with more or less earth}' and veg- 
 etal3le matter. Such deposits occur in nearly 
 every township in the count}', but they have 
 attracted little attention, and their valuable 
 fertilizing properties have been very sparingly 
 made available. The deposit of shell marl on 
 the road between Hudson and Stow, on land 
 of Charles Darrow, is at least twelve feet deep 
 and very pure. Similar marl-beds, though less 
 extensive, are known in Hudson, Northampton 
 and other parts of the county. Usually a sheet 
 of peat or muck covers the marl, and it is not 
 likely to be discovered, unless by ditching or 
 special search. The simplest method of ex- 
 ploring marshes for peat or shell marl is with an 
 auger made from an old two-inch or three-inch 
 carpenter's auger welded to a small, square rod 
 of iron, on which a handle is made to slide, and 
 fasten with a key. With this all marshes may 
 be probed to the depth of eight or ten feet with 
 the greatest facility. 
 
 " The Erie shale is the lowest formation ex- 
 posed in Summit County, and is visible only in 
 the bottom of the valley of the Cuyahoga, where 
 it is cut deepest, in the township of Northfield. 
 About one hundred feet of the upper portion of 
 the Erie shale is exposed in the cliffs which 
 border the river, being a continuation of the 
 outcrops which have been fully described in the 
 report on the geology of Cuyahoga County. 
 The same fossils have been found in the Erie 
 shale in Northfield, as those collected in the 
 valleys of Chii)i)ewa and Tinker's Creeks. 
 
 '' The Lower Carboniferous or Waverly group 
 is freely opened in the valley of the Cuyahoga, 
 and we here find some of the most satisfactory 
 sections of this formation that can be seen in 
 the State. It has also yielded, perhaps, as 
 large a number of fossils in Summit Countv as 
 
:i£k 
 
 186 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 have been obtained from this group in any 
 other localities. The Cleveland shale is the 
 bi luminous shale which forms the base of the 
 Waverly group, and has been fully described 
 in the reports on the counties which form the 
 northern border of the State. The outcrops of 
 the Cleveland shale which are visible in the 
 valley of the Cuyahoga are continuations south- 
 ward of those noticed in Cuyahoga County. 
 As the dip of all the strata is here gently 
 southward, and the valley gradually deepens 
 toward its mouth, the Cleveland shale, though 
 on the north line of the county more than lUO 
 feet above the bed of the stream, sinks out of 
 sight near Peninsula, less than ten miles from 
 the county line. The average thickness of the 
 Cleveland shale in Summit County is about 
 fifty feet, and it presents precisely the same 
 lithological characters here as farther north. 
 No fossils have been discovered in it at the lo- 
 calities where it has been examined in this 
 count}', but more careful search would undoubt- 
 edly result in the discovery of the scales and 
 teeth of fishes similar to those found at Bed- 
 ford. As in Trumbull, Cuyahoga and Medina 
 Counties, the outcrops of the Cleveland shale in 
 Summit are marked by oil and gas springs, 
 which are plainl}' produced b}- the decomposi- 
 tion or spontaneous distillation of the lai'ge 
 amounts of carbonaceous matter it contains. 
 Tlie oil and gas springs which have been no- 
 ticed on the sides of the Cuyahoga Valley at 
 and below Peninsula, are distinctly' connected 
 with the Cleveland shale, and have, as a conse- 
 quence, misled those who have been influenced 
 by them to l)ore for oil in the bottom of the 
 valley. 
 
 '•The Bedford shale, a member of the Wa- 
 verly group, is not well exposed in the valley 
 of the Cuyahoga, though visible at a number of 
 localities. It outcrops usuall}' from slopes 
 covered with debris. Where the limits of the 
 formation are concealed, judging from the 
 glimpses obtained of it, the Bedford shale is 
 apparenily about seventy feet thick in the valley 
 of the Cu^'ahoga, and consists mainly of soft, 
 blue, argillaceous strata, similar to those in the 
 gorge of Tinker's Creek, at Bedford. In some 
 localities it is more or less red, and has been 
 here, as elsewhere, used as a mineral paint. In 
 the \alley of Braudywine Creek, below the 
 falls, the Bedford shale is fossiliferous, and 
 contains the same species found at Bedford. 
 
 Among these, Syringothyrls typa is the most 
 conspicuous and abundant, and slabs may be 
 obtained here which are thickly set with this 
 fine fossil, forming beautiful specimens for the 
 cabinet. 
 
 '■ The Berea sandstone is well exposed in the 
 valley of the Cu3'ahoga in the northern part of 
 the county, and forms two lines of outcrop — 
 one on each side of the river — running from 
 Peninsula to Independence on the west, and 
 to Bedford and Newburg on the East. At 
 Peninsula, the Berea grit has been extensively 
 quarried for many years. The base of the 
 formation is here from thirty to sixt}' feet above 
 the canal, so that the quarries are worked 
 with facility, and their product shipped with 
 comparatively, Utile expense. The entire thick- 
 ness of the formation in the valley' of the 
 Cuyahoga is about sixty feet. The stone it 
 furnishes varies considerably in character in 
 the different localities where it is exposed. At 
 the quarries of Mr. Woods, at Peninsula, it is 
 lighter in color than at Independence, resem- 
 bling the Berea stone in this respect, as also in 
 hardness. Some layers are nearly white, and a 
 large amount of excellent building stone has 
 been shipped from this locality and used for the 
 construction of various public buildings at 
 Cleveland, Detroit, Buffalo, Oswego, etc. This 
 stone is more firm and durable, but is harder 
 and less homogeneous than that from the Am- 
 herst quarries ; it is, however, so highly es- 
 teemed, that a read}' market has been found 
 for all that has been taken from the quarries. 
 During 1871, the stone shipped from Peninsula 
 was equal to 2,800 car loads of ten tons each. 
 Between Peninsula and the county line, the 
 outcrops of the Berea grit have been but imper- 
 fectly explored. They are much obscured b}' 
 the debris of the higher portion of the clifts, 
 and the examinations necessary to determine 
 the value of the stone would require the ex- 
 penditure of considerable time and money. 
 There is every probability, however, that good 
 quarries could be opened at a great number of 
 localities, and I think that I am quite safe in 
 predicting that in future j-ears this portion of 
 the valley of the Cu3'ahoga will be the theater 
 of a very active industr}' growing out of the 
 quarrying of Berea grit for the Cleveland mar- 
 ket. Should the railroad, now proposed, be 
 constructed through the valle^', this, with the 
 canal, will supply such facilities for transporta- 
 
 ^W 
 
fk* 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 187 
 
 tion, that, if the quality of the stone should 
 be found suitable, this district will contribute 
 as largely as any other to the market of the 
 great lakes. From the differences which are 
 everywhere exhibited iia the quality of the 
 stone in neighboring outcrops of the Berea 
 grit, the banks of the Cuyahoga should be 
 carefully examined, in order to discover such 
 localities as will furnish stone of a superior 
 quality. It is not too much to expect that 
 some of these will have gTeat pecuniar}' value. 
 The Berea grit forms the solid stratum that 
 produces the falls of the Brand^^wine at Bran- 
 dywine Mills, and it is here considerably more 
 massive than at the outcrops further north on 
 the same side of the Cu3-ahoga. No fossils 
 have been found in the Berea grit in Summit 
 County. It is elsewhere, as a general rule, re- 
 markably barren, and yet, at Chagrin Falls, fos- 
 sil fishes have been obtained from it, and at 
 Bedford a Discina, a Lingida and an Annularia. 
 These, and perhaps other fossils, may hereafter 
 be met with in the Cuyahoga Valley. 
 
 " The Cuyahoga shale is the upper division 
 of the Waverly group, and is better exhibited in 
 Summit Count}' than in any other part of the 
 State. It has a thickness of from 150 to 200 
 feet, and has been given the name it bears, be- 
 cause it forms the greater pai't of the banks of the 
 Cuyahoga, from Cuyahoga Falls, to the north 
 line of the county. A short distance above 
 Peninsula, the Berea grit sinks beneath the 
 river, and the whole thickness of the Cuyahoga 
 shale is revealed in the interval between that 
 rock and the Conglomerate which caps the 
 bluffs. In this part of the valley, the Cuya- 
 hoga shale exhibits little variety in composi- 
 tion, and consists of a mass of soft argillaceous 
 material, inter-stratified with thin and local 
 sheets of fine grained sandstone, rarel}' thick 
 enough to serve as flagging. The surfaces of 
 these sheets are marked with mud furrows, 
 and, occasionally-, with the impressions of 
 fucoids. At the ' Big Falls ' of the Cu^'ahoga, 
 eighty feet below the conglomerate, a number 
 of layers of fine-grained sandstone, from six to 
 twelve inches in thickness, and occup3'ing a 
 vertical space of about twenty feet, locall}' re- 
 place the softer material of the Cuyahoga 
 shale, and produce the beautiful waterfall at 
 this locality. These harder strata ma}^ be 
 traced for a mile or more down the river, but 
 are not distinguishable in the sections of the 
 
 Cuyahoga shale in the northern part of the 
 county. The sandstone of the Big Falls is a 
 compact, homogeneous rock, almost identical 
 in character and utility with the ' blue stone ' 
 of the East Cleveland quarries, although lying 
 at a considerably higher level ; the East Cleve- 
 land stone being a local modification of the 
 lower portion of the Bedford shale. The upper 
 part of the Cuyahoga shale near the Big Falls, 
 has furnished a great number of fine specimens 
 of 'cone-in-cone,' and they are referred to by 
 Dr. Hildreth, in his notes on Cuyahoga Valley, 
 published in Silinians Journal in 1836. This 
 singular structure has given rise to much specu- 
 lation ; it was, at one time, supposed to be or- 
 ganic ; subsequently, the result of crystalliza- 
 tion, and it is now considered by Prof 0. C. 
 Marsh as of purely mechanical origin. The 
 ' cone-in-cone ' consist, as is well known, of a 
 series of hollow cones, like extinguishers, placed 
 one within another, and it sometimes makes up 
 the entire mass of a stratum, several inches in 
 thickness and man}' feet in lateral extent. It 
 is by no means confined to this horizon, but is 
 found in the older paleozoic rocks, in the coal 
 measures, and is, perhaps, more abundant than 
 anywhere else, in the cretaceous formation in 
 the far West. This structure is apparently 
 confined to rocks of a peculiar chemical com- 
 position, viz. : to earthy limestones, or argilla- 
 ceous shales impregnated with lime. The con- 
 cretions, which include the great fishes of the 
 Huron shale, not unfrequentl}' exhibit the ' cone- 
 in-cone ' structure, and, in some instances, where 
 the calcareous material forms simply a crust on 
 the fossil, that ci'ust still shows more or less of 
 it. From the locality under consideration, in 
 the valley of the Cuyahoga. I have obtained 
 specimens of ' cone-in-cone ' enveloping nodules 
 of iron ore, and radiating in all directions from 
 such nuclei. Specimens of this character, and 
 the bones of BimchtJii/s, coated in all their 
 irregularities, with 'cone-in-cone,' seemed to 
 me incompatible with the theory that this 
 structure is the product of mechanical forces, 
 and appear rather to confirm the conclusion 
 that it is an imperfect crystallization. Through- 
 out most of its mass, and in most places, the 
 Cuyahoga shale is. very barren of fossils. This, 
 however, is fully compensated for b}' the ex- 
 treme richness of some layers and some locali- 
 ties. This is the rock which was excavated in 
 the formation of the canal in the valley of the 
 
 -^ ry 
 
188 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY 
 
 Cuyahoga, below the falls, and through which 
 an effort was made to conduct the water of the 
 river to the proposed town of Summit. In this 
 excavation, the formation was fully opened for 
 several miles, and yet, with the most careful 
 search, at various times during the progress of 
 the work, I was only able to obtain a mere 
 handful of fossils. At the base of the forma- 
 tion, however, immediately over the Berea grit, 
 the Cuyahoga shale is sometimes crowded with 
 millions of Linyula melia and Discina New- 
 herryi. The same species also occur at the 
 ' Big Falls ' of the Cuyahoga, and the valley of 
 the Little Cuyahoga, near Akron. In the up- 
 per part of the Cuj-ahoga shale, in vainous 
 parts of Medina County, and at Richfield, in 
 Summit Count}-, immense numbers of fossils 
 are found, and those which form a long list of 
 species. The Richfield locality is already quite 
 famous, as extensive collections were made 
 there before the commencement of the present 
 survey by Messrs. IMeek & Worthen and Dr. 
 Kellogg. Quite a large number of crinoids 
 were discovered here hy the latter gentleman, 
 which proved new to science, and were described 
 by Prof. James Hall. 
 
 "The carboniferous conglomerate underlies 
 all the higher portions of the county, and forms 
 the surface rock over all the middle and north- 
 ern portions, except where cut through by the 
 Cuyahoga and its tributaries. Though gener- 
 ally covered and concealed b}' beds of drift, 
 the conglomerate is exposed and quarried in 
 all of the townships north of Akron. It is, 
 however, best seen in the valley of the Cuya- 
 hoga, where it forms cliffs sometimes 100 feet 
 in perpendicular height. The rock is about 
 100 feet in thickness, generally a coarse-grained, 
 light drab sandstone, but in some localities, and 
 especially near the base of the formation, be- 
 coming a mass of quartz-pebbles, with just 
 enough cement to hold them together. There 
 are also some local bands of the conglomerate 
 which are red or brown in color, and furnish a 
 building-stone of great beauty. At Cu^'ahoga 
 Falls, such a band has been quarried for many 
 years, and has been used for the construction 
 of the best buildings in the town. This stone 
 is brown, contains much iron, and is very strong 
 and durable. At Akron, a similar local strat- 
 um in the conglomerate at Wolf's quarry, has 
 a deep, reddish-purple color, and forms, per- 
 haps, the most beautiful building-stone in the 
 
 State. This has been quite extensively used 
 in Cleveland. Unfortunately, the quantitv of 
 this variety of building stone is not large. Its 
 peculiar color is probably due to the fact that the 
 iron of which it contains a large quantity, is in 
 the condition of anh\'drous sesquioxide, and has 
 associated with it a small percentage of manga- 
 nese. Splendid sections of the conglomerate are 
 seen in the gorge of the Cuyahoga, below Cuya- 
 hoga Falls. Here, nearly the entire thickness of 
 the formation is exposed, and vertical and over- 
 hanging walls of 100 feet in height give great 
 variety and beauty to the scener}'. In descend- 
 ing the valley of the Cuyahoga, the walls of con- 
 glomerate recede from the river, of which the 
 immediate banks are formed by the underlj'ing 
 shales. J^y the w^ashing out of these, the 
 Mocks of conglomerate have been undermined 
 and thrown down, and thus the valley' has been 
 widened until in Boston and Northfield the con- 
 glomerate cliffs are several miles apart. They 
 still preserve their typical character, however, 
 and this is well exemplified by the 'ledges' in 
 Boston, which — like those of Nelson, in Por- 
 tage County, on the other side of the conglom- 
 erate plateau — are favorite places of resort to 
 the lovers of the picturesque. The fossils of 
 the .conglomerate are exclusively plants. These 
 are generally broken and floating fragments, 
 but are exceedingly numerous, their casts often 
 making up a large part of the rock. In certain 
 localities we find evidence that they have been 
 gathered by the waves into some receptacle, 
 and heaped up in a confused mass, like drift- 
 wood on a shore at the present da\'. Since 
 the conglomerate is composed of coarse mate- 
 rials which could be only transported by water 
 in rapid motion, it is evident all delicate plants 
 would be destroyed from the trituration they 
 would suflTer in the circumstances of its depo- 
 sition; hence, we only find here the remains of 
 woody plants, and of these usually only frag- 
 ments. The most common plants are trunks 
 and branches of Lepidodendron, Sigillaria and 
 Calamites, also the nuts which have been de- 
 scribed under the name of Trigonoearpon. Of 
 all these, the calamites are the most common, 
 and they are sometimes entire, showing not 
 only the upper extremity but also the roots. 
 More frequently, however, they are broken, 
 and it is not at all uncommon to find the nuts 
 to which I have referred, in the interior of a 
 calamite, indicating that when floating about 
 
 A 
 
iL 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 189 
 
 they were washed into the hollow, rush-like 
 stem. Grenerall}', the plants of the conglomer- 
 ate are represented simply by casts ; their car- 
 bonaceous matter having been entirely re- 
 moved. Occasionally, however, a sheet of coal 
 is found, surrounding the cast of each, and in 
 some localities ever}' plant is preserved in this 
 way, the amount of coal enveloping the casts 
 corresponding to the quantity of woody matter 
 in the plant. Still more rarely, when many 
 plants have accumulated, their carbon has 
 made an irregular coal seam, but never exceed- 
 ing a few inches in thickness, and a few rods 
 or feet in extent. These coal seams, however, 
 differ in many respects from coals of the over- 
 lying coal measure, as they have no underclays, 
 are very limited in extent, and evidently rep- 
 resent heterogeneous collections of drifted, 
 woody matter. The pebbles of the more peb- 
 bl}^ portions of the conglomerate are sometimes 
 as large as one's fist, but more generally range 
 from the size of a hickory nut to that of an 
 egg. They are most alwa}- s composed of quartz, 
 but in every locality where they are abundant, 
 more or less of them ma}' be found which are 
 composed of quartzite or silicious slate, which 
 shows lines of stratification. Sometimes these 
 quartz pebbles, when in contact with the im- 
 pressions of plants, are distinctly marked by 
 such impressions. This circumstance has given 
 rise to the theory that they are concretionary 
 in character ; i. e., that they have been formed 
 where found, and are not fragments of trans- 
 ported quartz rock. There can be no question, 
 however, that these pebbles are portions of 
 quartz veins, which have been brought hun- 
 dreds of miles from some area where meta- 
 morphic crvstalliue rocks have suffered erosion. 
 In process of transportation, the attrition to 
 which these fragments were subjected, commi- 
 nuted all but the most resistant, viz.: the 
 quartz. The banded, silicious slates which are 
 represented in the pebbles that accompany 
 those of pure quartz, as well as the internal 
 structure of the quartz-pebbles themselves, 
 afford conclusive evidence that their origin is 
 such as I have described. * * * * 
 
 " All the southern part of Summit County is 
 underlaid by the productive coal measures, and 
 workable seams of coal are known to exist in 
 Tallmadge, Springfield, Coventry, Norton, Cop- 
 ley, Franklin and Green Townships. The line 
 of the margin of the coal basin passes from 
 
 Portage County into Summit in the northeast- 
 ern portion of Tallmadge. It then runs west- 
 erly nearly to Cuyahoga Falls, and then sweeps 
 round to inclose what is known as Coal Hill ; 
 the continuity of the coal measures being sev- 
 ered by ' Long Swamp ' and the valley of Camp 
 Brook. On the east side of this stream, the 
 outcrop of the coal rocks passes southward to 
 the valley of the Little Cuyahoga ; turning up 
 this to the line of Portage County ; thence 
 sweeping back on the south side of the valley 
 across the township of Springfield to the vicin- 
 ity of Middlebury. It thence runs southwest- 
 erly to New Portage, where it crosses the Tus- 
 carawas and strikes northwesterly through 
 Norton and the corner of Copley to the Medina 
 line. There is also a narrow patch of coal- 
 measure rocks forming an isolated hill (Sher- 
 bondy Hill) southwest of Akron, on the west 
 side of Summit Lake. Along the line I have 
 traced, we find the outcrops of only the lowest 
 coal seam — Coal No. 1 (the Briar Hill coal) — 
 and this not with any great constancy, inas- 
 much as the coal occupies limited basins, and 
 their margins are exceedingly sinuous and ir- 
 regular. A large part of the territory which 
 holds the place of the coal, fails to hold the 
 coal itself, from one or the other of two causes, 
 which frequently disappoint the miner in this 
 region, as well as in the valley of the Mahon- 
 ing. These causes are : First, that the lowest 
 seam was formed from peat-like carbonaceous 
 matter which accumulated on the irregular 
 bottom of the old coal marsh, and the margin 
 of this marsh ran into innumerable bights and 
 channels, which were separated by ridges and 
 hummocks where the coal was never deposited ; 
 second, in many localities where the coal was 
 once found, it was subsequently removed by 
 erosion. The heavy bed of sandstone which 
 lies a little above Coal No. 1, was deposited by 
 currents of water moving rapidly and with such 
 force as to cut away the coal in many channels, 
 and leave in its place beds of sand, which, sub- 
 sequently hardened, have become sandstone. 
 These are frequently encountered by the miner, 
 and are designated by him, as Iwrsehacks. 
 Hence this excellent stratum of coal has been 
 discovered to be wanting over much of the area 
 where it was supposed to exist, and has there- 
 fore been of less value to Summit County than 
 was anticipated in the earlier days of coal min- 
 ing. The first mineral coal used on the lake 
 
190 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 shore was sent to Cleveland b\^ ray father, 
 Henry Newberrj^, from his mines in Tallmadge, 
 in 1828. It was there offered as a substitute 
 for wood in the generation of steam on the lake 
 boats. Wood, however, was so abundant, and 
 the population was so habituated to its use, that 
 it proved ver^' difficult to supplant this by an}^ 
 other fuel ; and it was necessary that nearly 
 twenty years should pass before the value of 
 the coal beds of Summit County was fully real- 
 ized. Then coal-mining began with real vigor, 
 and many thousand tons of excellent coal liave 
 since been sent every year to Cleveland from 
 the mines in Tallmadge and Springfield. As 
 has been stated, the coal of these townships 
 proved to be ver}' irregular in its distribution, 
 and variable in thickness and quality. It is 
 restricted to basins of limited extent, and is 
 wanting over much of the area where it was 
 supposed to be present. In the deeper por- 
 tions of the basins or channels it occupies, the 
 seam is from four and one-half to six feet in 
 thickness, and the coal a bright, handsome 
 open-burning variety, containing little sulphur, 
 and a small percentage of ash. It is softer and 
 more bituminous than the coal of the same 
 seam in Mahoning and Trumbull Counties, 
 but is still capable of being used in the raw 
 state in the furnace, and is very highly valued 
 both as a steam coal and a household fuel. In 
 the southern part of the county. Coal No. 1 is 
 more continuous, and has been proved, by recent 
 researches to exist over a large part of Spring- 
 field, Franklin and Green, and to reach into 
 Coventry and Norton. Many mines have been 
 opened in the townships referred to, and about 
 two hundred and fift}' thousand tons are now 
 sent from this region annuall}' to Cleveland. 
 Most of this coal is similar in quality to that of 
 Tallmadge, but in some localities, as at John- 
 son's shaft in Franklin, we find a recurrence of 
 the block charactei', which distinguishes the 
 coal of the Mahoning Valley. In former years, 
 nearly all of the coal used or exported from the 
 count}', was mined in Tallmadge, and this 
 mainly from ' Coal Hill,' which lies between the 
 center of Tallmadge and CuA'alioga Falls. 
 Several mines were once in active operation in 
 this hill. Of these mines, that of Henry New- 
 berry was situated at the north end of the hill, 
 and those of Dr. D. Upson, Asaph Whittlesey 
 and Francis Wright on the east side. On the 
 opposite side of the valley, mines were opened 
 
 b}' Mr. D. Harris and Dr. Amos Wright. In 
 all these mines the coal has been nearly ex- 
 hausted, as it was found to rise and run out 
 in the interior of the hill. From this fact, a 
 belief has come to be quite general, that the 
 coal is pinched out in the body of this and 
 other hills, by the weight of the superincum- 
 bent material ; whereas, we have here only an 
 instance of what has been before referred to, of 
 the thinning out of the coal on the margin of 
 the old coal swamp. In the central and east- 
 ern portion of Tallmadge, most of the land rises 
 high above the coal level, and basins of coal will 
 doubtless be hereafter discovered there, but the 
 same causes which have rendered coal mining 
 so uncertain heretofore, will undoubtedly limit 
 the productiveness of the nominally large coal 
 area which is included within the township lines. 
 In the southern part of Tallmadge, the surface 
 is occupied by heav}' beds of drift, by which 
 the underlying geology is very much obscured. 
 Here, as in the adjoining township of Brimfield, 
 in Portage County, nothing but patient and 
 careful search will determine the limits of the 
 basins of coal which unquestionably exist in 
 this vicinity. As the dip of the coal rocks is 
 toward the south and east, in Springfield, 
 Grreen and Franklin, Coal No. 1 lies lower than 
 in the more northerly townships where it occurs ; 
 hence it can only be reached by boring, and 
 that sometimes to the depth of 100 feet or per- 
 haps even 200 feet. We have every reason to 
 believe, however, that a considerable area in 
 Green Township is underlaid b}' Coal No. 1, 
 where it lies far below drainage ; and it is 
 almost certain that careful search, by boring, 
 will reveal the presence of basins of coal in this 
 township, such as are not now suspected to ex- 
 ist, and such as will contribute largelj' to the 
 wealth of the count}-. 
 
 ''In Summit County the lowest seam of coal 
 is usually separated from the conglomerate by 
 an interval of from twenty-five to fift}' feet, 
 which is filled with shale or shaly sandstone, 
 and, immediately beneath the coal, by a seam 
 of fire-clay, from two to six feet in tliickness. 
 This fire-clay is, in some places, of good qualit}-, 
 and may be used for fire-brick and pottery, 
 but it is generally more sandy and contains 
 more iron than the under-clay of the higher 
 seam — Coal No. 3 — to which I shall have occa- 
 sion to refer again. Coal No. 1 is usually 
 overlaid immediately by gray shale, from ten 
 
k. 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 191 
 
 to forty feet in thickness. This shale contains, 
 especially where it forms the roof of the coal, 
 large numbers of fossil plants, which are fre- 
 quentl}' preserved in great beaut}' and profu- 
 sion. About 150 species have already been 
 collected from the shale of Coal No. 1, in the 
 northern part of the State, and nearh' all of 
 these are found in Summit Count}'. 
 
 " Coal No. 2 is found thirty to fifty feet above 
 Coal No. 1 in many parts of Summit Count}' — 
 as in the Valley of the Mahoning — the second 
 seam of coal in the ascending series, and which 
 we have called Coal No. 2. It is usually from 
 twelve to eighteen inches in thickness, and, 
 though persistent over a large area, is nowhere 
 in Summit County of workable thickness. 
 Above Coal No. 2, and frequently cutting it 
 out, is a bed of massive sandstone, which is a 
 marked feature in "the geology of the county. 
 This is well seen in Coal Hill, Tallmadge, and 
 extends through the southern part of the county, 
 passing through Stark, where, in the valley of 
 the Tuscarawas, about and above Massillon, it 
 is quarried in many places along the bank of 
 the canal. The thickness of this sandstone 
 varies very much in different localities, and it 
 may be said to range from forty to one hundred 
 feet. It is also somewhat variable in character, 
 but is often massive, and affords a building- 
 stone of excellent quality. It may generally 
 be distinguished from the sandstones of the 
 carboniferous conglomerate by the absence of 
 quartz pebbles. So far as I know, no pebbles 
 are found in the sandstone over the coal in 
 Summit County. In Trumbull and Medina 
 there are some local exceptions to this rule, for 
 patches of conglomerate are sometimes found 
 there immediately overlying the lowest coal 
 seam. In Summit County the -pebble rock,' 
 found in the explorations for coal, aflibrds infall 
 ible evidence, when it is reached, that the hor- 
 izon of the coal has been passed. 
 
 " Coals Nos. 3 and 4 come next in order. 
 Near Mogadore, in Springfield Township ; the 
 higher lands are found to be underlaid by a 
 stratum of limestone, beneath which are usually 
 a thin seam of coal and a thick stratum of fire- 
 clay, the latter supplying the material from 
 which nearly all the stoneware of the county 
 is manufactured. From twenty-five to forty 
 feet aboA'e the limestone to which I have re- 
 ferred, is another, which also overlies a coal 
 seam. Both these mav be seen in Green 
 
 Township, between Greenburg and Greentown, 
 and they may be traced thence southerly, 
 through Stark, Tuscarawas and Holmes Coun- 
 ties, and, indeed, nearly or quite to the Ohio 
 River. These are the limestone coals that 
 will be found frequently referred to in the re- 
 ports on the counties that have been mentioned, 
 and those on Portage, Trumbull and Mahoning. 
 The lowest of these limestones lies from 130 to 
 ItiO above Coal No. 1; the upper limestone 
 about 150 to 200 feet. Hent;e they will serve 
 as useful guides in boring for the lower coal 
 seam in those parts of the county where it lies 
 considerably beneath the surface. 
 
 " I have already alluded to the former pro- 
 ductiveness of the coal mines of Tallmadge, 
 and have mentioned the fact that most of these 
 mines are now abandoned ; the basins of coal 
 in which they were located having been practi- 
 cally exhausted. Considerable coal is, how- 
 ever, still produced in the township, and it is 
 altogether probable, that with proper search, 
 other basins will be discovered, from which its 
 coal industry will be revived. The ' Centre ' 
 and a large area north, south and east of it, lie 
 considerably above the coal level, and as the 
 dip is southeast, there are some localities where 
 the horizon of the coal is nearly one hundred 
 and fifty feet below the surface. Over most of 
 the district I have mentioned, borings should be 
 made to at least the depth of one hundred feet 
 befoi'e the search is abandoned. It should be 
 remembered, too, that the basins of Coal No. 1 
 are frequently narrow, and the territory will 
 only be fairly tested by borings made at fre- 
 quent intervals. The principal center of coal 
 industry in the county at present, is in Spring- 
 field and Coventry. Steer's Mine, the mines of 
 the Brewster Coal Company, and Brewster 
 Brothers, and the Middlebury Shaft — all located 
 near the line between the above mentioned 
 townships— are now producing a large quantity 
 of coal for shipment to Akron and Cleveland. 
 The maximum thickness of the coal seam here 
 is about five feet, and it thins out on all sides 
 toward the margin of the basin. Doubtless here, 
 as elsewhere, the basins of coal are connected, 
 and future explorations will result in tracing 
 such connection south and east into other im- 
 portant deposits. ****** 
 
 " At the Franklin Coal Company's mine, in 
 the Northern part of Franklin, the coal is four 
 and a half feet thick, of good quality, closely 
 
 
J^ 
 
 192 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 resembling that obtained at Massillon. It lies 
 from sixty to one hundred feet below the sur- 
 face, the massive sand rock above it ranging 
 from forty to fift^^ feet in thickness. In the 
 southwest corner of Franklin Township, the coal 
 where opened is not as thick or as good as in 
 the last-mentioned localities. At Steer's new 
 shaft in Coventry, the coal is 4|- feet thick, 
 90 to no feet from the surface, overlaid b}^ 15 
 feet of black shale and from 30 to 40 feet of 
 sandstone. Little coal has yet been mined here, 
 but it seems to be of excellent quality. A sec- 
 tion taken near the north line of Franklin Town- 
 ship includes the following strata : 
 
 1. Sandstone 40 to 60 feet. 
 
 3. Shale 20 to 30 feet. 
 
 3. Hard iron ore 1 foot. 
 
 4. Coal 4ifeet. 
 
 " On the land of Mr. Thomas Britton, one 
 and a half miles east of Middlebury, is an im- 
 portant deposit of iron ore, which I refer, with 
 some hesitation, to the horizon of Coal No. 1. 
 The drift from which the ore is taken exposes 
 four feet of rock, which includes a thickness of 
 about two feet of ore. Sherbondy Hill, west of 
 Akron, is capped with the coal rocks, but gives 
 no indication of any valuable deposit of coal. 
 A band of iron ore, similar in character to that 
 referred to above, but thinner, is exposed in this 
 locality. A sheet of the coal measures under- 
 lies the surface in the west part of Norton Town- 
 ship, and a small area in Copley', but up to the 
 present time no important coal strata have been 
 found there. A boring made half a mile north 
 of the center of Norton revealed the following 
 section : 
 
 1. Earth 17 feet. 
 
 2. Shale 16 feet. 
 
 3. Conglomerate 75 feet. 
 
 All the borings made for coal in the township 
 give similar results, the conglomerate being 
 struck after passing through a thin bed of coal 
 shale. ******** 
 
 " The fire-claj^ which underlies Coal No. 3 
 has already become one of the important ele- 
 ments of wealth to the county. This deposit, in 
 parts of Summit County, is of unusual thickness 
 and purity, making excellent stoneware and fire- 
 brick. It is estimated that there are produced 
 from this stratum of clay in Springfield Town- 
 ship alone, about one and a half millions of gal- 
 lons of stoneware each year ; and a very large 
 amount of the material is transported into other 
 parts of the county and State. It is of interest 
 
 to notice in this connection that this bed of fire- 
 clay is the same with that worked at Atwater, 
 in Portage, and still more extensively in Co- 
 lumbiana Count3\ Over how large an area in 
 Summit County it maintains the dimensions 
 and excellence it exhibits in Springfield, we 
 have, as yet, no means of knowing. At East 
 Liberty it is apparently of good thickness and 
 quality, but in central and southern Stark 
 County — where exposed in the valleys of the 
 Nimisiiillen and Sandy — it is of less value. The 
 Springfield clay is eminentl}^ plastic, and hence 
 better fitted for stoneware than fire-brick, but 
 by mixing it largely with sand, and, still better, 
 with the hard clay of Mineral Point, Mr. J. 
 Parke Alexander, of Akron, has produced fire- 
 brick scarcely inferior in quality to an}'- other 
 made in the State, or even any imported. To 
 get the best results with this clay alone, in mak- 
 ing fire-brick, it should be first ground, made 
 into a paste, and this burned, then again coarsely 
 ground and the fragments cemented with one- 
 sixth to one-tenth of fresh plastered clay, 
 molded and burned again. 
 
 " The following analyses will give additional 
 information in regard to the useful minerals of 
 this countv. They were made by Dr. Worm ley. 
 State Chemist, with the exception of No. 4, 
 which was made by Prof W. W. blather : 
 
 1. Peat — Coventry Peat Company, Coventry. 
 
 Ultimate Composition in Normal State. Per cent. 
 
 Carbon 50.56 
 
 Hydroijen 6.43 
 
 Nitrogen 1.23 
 
 Sulplmr 0.33 
 
 Oxygen 34.85 
 
 Ash 6.6 
 
 100.00 
 
 Moisture 10.40 
 
 Consisting of hydrogen 4.15 
 
 Oxygen 6.25 
 
 2. Coal No. 1 — Johnson's shaft, Franklin Town- 
 ship. 
 
 3. Coal No. 1 — Franklin Coal Company, Frank- 
 lin Township. 
 
 4. Coal No. 1 — D. Upson's mine, Tallmadge 
 Township. 
 
 5. Coal No. 3 — Greentown, both benches. 
 
 Specific gravity 
 
 Water 
 
 Volatile combust, matter.. 
 
 Fixed Carbon 
 
 Ash 
 
 No. 
 
 1.256 
 
 2.70 
 37.30 
 58.00 
 
 2.00 
 
 100.00 
 
 No. 3. No. 4. 
 
 No. 5. 
 
 100.00100.00 
 
 3.25 
 38.75 
 55.05 
 
 2.95 
 
 100.00 
 
 :xr 
 
 ;Rr 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 193 
 
 No. 1. No. 2. No. 3. No. 4. 
 
 Sulphur.... 0.93 0.799 0.549 1.73 
 
 Ash White. White White. 
 
 Colie Compact. Compact Compact. 
 
 6. Iron Ore— H. Roberts, Middlebury. 
 
 7. Iron Ore— Over Coal No. 3, Greentown. 
 
 Specific gravity 
 
 Moisture combined. 
 Silicious matter. . . . 
 Iron, Carbonate . . . . 
 Iron, Sesquioxide. . . 
 
 Alumina 
 
 Manganese 
 
 Lime phosphate . . . . 
 Lime carbonate .... 
 Magnesia carbonate 
 
 Sulphur 
 
 Phosphoric acid . . . 
 
 No. 6. 1 No. 7. 
 
 3.333 
 1.24 
 
 21.08 
 58.76 
 4.53 
 1.00 
 0.80 
 1.81 
 4.25 
 5.22 
 0.41 
 
 3.342 
 2.65 
 
 12.23 
 70.68 
 
 0.40 
 1.65 
 
 7.66 
 
 5.54 
 
 0.17 
 
 0.013 
 
 99.10 100.333 
 
 Metallic Iron 
 
 Phosphoric acid 
 
 8. Fire Clay — Mogadore. 
 
 9. Fire Clay— East Liberty. 
 
 31.53 
 0.83 
 
 34.12 
 0.013 
 
 
 No. 8. 
 
 5.45 
 70.70 
 21.70 
 
 No. 9. 
 
 Water (combined) 
 
 7 00 
 
 Silicic acid 
 
 62.00 
 
 Alumina 
 
 24.80 
 
 Iron 
 
 traces 
 
 Lime 
 
 0.40 
 0.37 
 
 1.75 
 
 Magnesia 
 
 0.42 
 
 Potash and soda 
 
 3.22 
 
 
 
 
 
 98.62 
 
 99.39 
 
 The foregoing comprises the geology of Sum- 
 mit County, together with its coal deposits 
 and mineral resources. Closely connected with 
 the geology of a country is the science of agri- 
 culture. Indeed, "the geology of a countr3'," it 
 has been truthfully said, "determines the char- 
 acter of the industrial vocation of the inhabit- 
 ants of that country." In accordance with the 
 geological formations, mining, farming, herding 
 flocks, manufacturing, or even fishing, becomes 
 the prominent industry. "From the connection 
 of geology with agriculture, mining and manu- 
 factures, it ma}^ be said that in its different 
 branches this science lies at the foundation of 
 our modern civilization, inasmuch as the occu- 
 pations, the wealth and power of communities 
 and nations, in many, we may, perhaps, sa}' in 
 most, instances, depend directly upon the char- 
 acter, structure and resources of that portion 
 of the earth which the}^ inhabit."* From the 
 
 * state Report. 
 
 wealth, then, of Mother Earth, we draw our 
 sustenance, and when we have run out our 
 span of life, we return to her sheltering bosom. 
 
 " Where is the dust that has not been alive? 
 The spade, the plow, disturb our ancestors; 
 From human mold we reap our daily bread." 
 
 It is said that the agriculture of the State of 
 Ohio may be regarded, in a general sense, as 
 "being of a mixed character." The same may 
 very truthfully be said of Summit County. 
 Its agricultural resources are not only exten- 
 sive, but the adaptability of the soil in the dif- 
 ferent sections of the count}^ to agriculture, is 
 to be found in but few counties of the State. 
 In the southern part, wheat is the main staple ; 
 in the central and northern portions, grazing, 
 perhaps, predominates, while corn is exten- 
 sively grown. In the last State Agricultui-al 
 Report, we find, pertaining to Summit County, 
 the following statistics : 
 
 Wheat, 25,955 acres, yielding 518,979 bush- 
 els ; rye, 852 acres, yielding 5,150 bushels ; 
 oats, 14,284 acres, yielding 542,382 bushels ; 
 barley, 63 acres, yielding 14,010 bushels ; corn, 
 15,422 acres, yielding 1,077,945 bushels; tim- 
 othy, 22,788 acres, j'ielding 31,951 tons of hay ; 
 clover, 4,882 acres, yielding 6,910 tons of hay. 
 While much attention is devoted to stock-rais- 
 ing, the breeding of fine stock is not carried to 
 that extent that it is in man}' sections of Ohio. 
 More attention is given to cattle and sheep 
 than to other stock, and to the two (cattle and 
 sheep) the former is considered of more value 
 in this community, and the dairy business is 
 one of the largest ' interests of the agricultural 
 class, not only of Summit Count}- but of the 
 Western Reserve. From the State Report 
 above quoted, we extract the following of this 
 county : " Number of cattle, 24,348, value, 
 $364,184 ; number of pounds of butter, 775,- 
 915 ; number of pounds of cheese, 1,389,735." 
 The same report has the following in regard to 
 the dairy business of the Reserve : " x\lready, 
 complaints are made that dairy farming is 
 deteriorating the soil, but this complaint can 
 scarcely be well founded, or, if well founded, 
 must have reference more to the mechanical 
 than tlie chemical condition of the soil. Soils 
 very similar, geologically considered, haA'e been 
 pastured and tilled in England since the days 
 of the Saxon heptarchy, and no recuperating 
 process practiced until within the past hundred 
 years, and yet these British soils were at no 
 
 Tv 
 
194 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 time barren. There is no distinctive breed of 
 cattle recognized on the Reserve as being pecu- 
 liarly a dairy breed, but those in highest favor 
 are generally a cross breed, such as short-horn 
 or Devon crossed on the ' native.' * '"' * 
 The factory system of cheese-making was in- 
 troduced some years since, and has proved 
 eminently successful. Having no reliable statis- 
 tics at hand, there is no hazard in stating that 
 there are fuU^' one hundred and fifty factories in 
 active operation at the present time." Our 
 space, however, will not admit of an extended 
 notice in this connection, but the subject will 
 be alluded to again in the several township 
 histories. In addition to the cattle statistics of 
 the count}' from the same report, we gather the 
 following ; Number of horses, 8,552, value, 
 $-169,010; number of mules, 179, value, $8,750 ; 
 number of hogs, 11,577, value, $32,220 ; num- 
 ber of sheep, 24,965, value, $58,817 ; number 
 of pounds of wool shorn, 75,168. 
 
 Without going further into this branch of the 
 subject, we will now give place to the following- 
 interesting sketch of the Agricultural Society 
 of Summit County, prepared especially for 
 this work by S. A. Lane, Esq., and which will be 
 found of value to our readers : 
 
 The loss, by fire, of the records pertaining to 
 the Agricultural Societ}- matters of Summit 
 County prior to 1859, made the task of collat- 
 ing the proper materials for the commencement 
 of this chapter somewhat difficult, there being 
 radical differences in the recollections of the 
 several living participants upon whom the writ- 
 er called for information. By a patient search 
 of the files of the Summit County Beacon of 
 those da^'s, though its columns were far less 
 prolific of local news then than now, we have 
 been able to present to the reader a reliable, if 
 not a very attractive, resume of the matters 
 proper to be here treated of Though for some 
 years there had been a growing interest in the 
 subject thi;oughout the State, and, under the 
 fostering care and aid given thereto b}' the Leg- 
 islature of Ohio, a State Agricultural Society, 
 and quite a number of county societies, had 
 been organized previous to that date, the first 
 move looking to the organization of a society 
 in Summit County, was in 1849. From his po- 
 sition as Auditor of the county, N. W. Good- 
 hue, Esq., had abundant opportunity to ascer- 
 tain the views of the people of the county upon 
 the subject, and, believing, after consultation 
 
 with Col. Simon Perkins and others, that a fa- 
 vorable and hearty response would be made 
 thereto, on the 31st day of October, 1849, Mr. 
 Goodhue caused to be published in the Beacon 
 the following notice : 
 
 AGRICULTURAT; MEETING. 
 
 I, N. W. Goodhue, Auditor of Summit County, 
 Ohio, hereby give notice that a public meeting will 
 be held at the court house, in Akron, on the 14th 
 day of November next, at 2 o'clock, P. M., for the 
 purpose of perfecting the organization of a County 
 Agricultural Society, the preliminary steps contem- 
 plated in the act of March, 1839, having been al- 
 ready taken. 
 
 Nath'l W. Goodhue, 
 County Auditor. 
 Aiiditor's Office, Summit Co., ) 
 Akron, October 31, 1849. \ 
 
 An editorial in the same issue of the Beacon 
 thus calls attention to the above notice : 
 
 Attention is called to the notice of the Auditor, 
 in another cohuiin, issued in pursuance of law, for 
 an agricultural meeting on the 14th proximo. We 
 rejoice that a move has been made in the matter, by 
 the agriculturists of Summit County. The neigh- 
 boring counties have their agricultural associations 
 in successful operation. They have seen and felt 
 the advantages flowing from them. And while the 
 whole State seems to be awakening to a new inter- 
 est, and searching after an improved agriculture, it 
 would be mortifying to see the experienced and en- 
 terprising farmers of Summit County asleep. Speed 
 the plow ! Let tlie good work go forAvard in earn- 
 est ! 
 
 In the Beacon of November 21, 1849, ap- 
 pears the following official report of the pro- 
 ceedings of this preliminary meeting : 
 
 AGRIOUIiTURAL MEETING. 
 
 Agreeably to public notice, previously given, a 
 large number of gentlemen met in the court house 
 in Akron, at 2 o'clock P. M., November 14, 1849, for 
 the purpose of perfecting the organization of a 
 County Agricubural Society. The meeting was 
 called to order hy the County xluditor. A tempo- 
 rary organization was liad by appointing Capt. 
 Amos Seward, President; H. G. Weaver, Vice Presi- 
 dent and Nathaniel W. Goodhue, Secretary. After 
 the object of the meeting had been stated, the 
 Chair, on motion, appointed a committee of five to 
 report a constitution and code of by-laws for tlie 
 government of tlie society, consisting of Lucius W. 
 Hitchcock and William A. Hanford, of Tallmadge; 
 Talman Beardsley, of Coventry'; Sylvester H. 
 Thompson, of Hudson, and John Hoy, of Franklin. 
 On motion, a committee of one from each township 
 was appointed to procure members to the society as 
 follows: Bath, William Hale; Boston, Hiram V. 
 Bronson; Copley, Jonathan Starr; Coventry, Avery 
 Spicer; Franklin, John Hoy; Green, Alexander 
 Johnston; Hudson, Van R. Humphrey; Northamp- 
 
 ^ 
 
[£ 
 
 ■^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 195 
 
 ton, Reese Jones; Northfield, John C. Wallace; 
 Norton, Henry Van Hyning; Portage, Lucius V. 
 Bicrce; Riclificld, Isaac T. Welton; Spring-field, 
 Henry G. Weaver; Stow, Edwin Wetmore: Tall- 
 madge, Samuel Treat; Twinsburg, Lyman Cham- 
 berlain; Akron, Lucius S. Peck; Middlebury, Na- 
 thaniel W. Goodhue; Cuyahoga Falls, Henry Wet- 
 more; Hudson, Sylvester H. Thompson. 
 
 On motion, Lucius V. Bierce and Van R. Hum- 
 phrey, Esqs., were requested to deliver addresses 
 at the next meeting. 
 
 On motion, ordered that the proceedings of the 
 meeting be published in the several papers of the 
 county. On motion, adjourned to meet in the court- 
 room "on Wednesdaj^ the 28th inst., at 10 o'clock 
 A.M. 
 
 Amos Seward, President. 
 
 H. G. Weaver, Vice President. 
 
 N. W. GooBHUE, Secretari/. 
 
 From a postscript attached to the foregoing 
 report, it is learned, that at this meeting, about 
 sevent}' names were presented for membership. 
 In the Beacon of December 5, 1849, is found 
 the full report of the second meeting of the 
 embryo society, as follows : 
 
 agriculturaIj meeting. 
 
 The Summit County Agricultural Society met 
 November 28, at 1 o'clock P. M., pursuant to ad- 
 jom'nment, and was called to order by Capt. Amos 
 Seward, Chairman. In the absence of Henry G. 
 Weaver, Vice President, Milo Stone, Esq., of Tall- 
 madge, was chosen Vice President. 
 
 On motion, a committee of one from each town- 
 ship represented, was appointed by the Chair, to 
 recommend oflicers for the .society. 
 
 Committee appointed at former meeting, reported 
 a constitution for the society, as folloAvs: 
 
 ■'Article 1. This society shall be called the Sum- 
 mit County Agricultural Society. 
 
 "Art. 2. The officers of this society shall consist 
 of a President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer 
 and five managers, who, together, shall constitute a 
 Board of Directors for the general management of 
 the affairs of the society; they shall be elected an- 
 nually by the members of the society, and hold 
 their offices until their successors are appointed. 
 The President shall preside at all meetings of the 
 society, and of the Board of Directors; sign orders 
 on the Treasurer for awards of premiums and other 
 appropriations of the Board of Directors. The 
 Vice President, in the absence of the President, 
 shall be the presiding officer of the society and 
 Board. The Secretary shall keep an accurate record 
 of the proceedings of the society, and of the Board 
 of Directors; attend to correspondence ordered by 
 the Board, and report annually to tlie State Board 
 of Agriculture. The Treasurer shall receive the 
 funds of the society, and pay them in accordance 
 with the awards of the committees on premiums, 
 and the votes of the Board of Directors, upon the 
 order of the President, and shall, at the annual 
 meeting, render a full account of his doings. The 
 Board of Directors shall meet at the call of the 
 
 President; a majority shall constitute a quorum for 
 the transaction of business, and the Board shall 
 have power to transact all business for the society, 
 that shall not conflict with this instrument. 
 
 "art, 3. Members of this society must be res- 
 idents of this county, and pay $1 annually to the 
 Treasurer of the society. 
 
 "Art. 4. All competitors for premiums nuist be 
 members of the society. 
 
 "iVRT. 5. A list of the premiums offered by the .so- 
 ciety must be printed in the several newspapers pub- 
 lished in the county, at least one month previous to 
 the day of exhibition. 
 
 "Art. 6. All articles offered for premiums must 
 be owned by the persons offering the same, or by 
 members of their families, and products of the soil, 
 or manufactured articles, must be produced or man- 
 ufactured within the county. 
 
 "Art. 7. Premiums on grain and grass crops shall 
 not be awarded for less than one acre. 
 
 "Art. 8. The awarding committees shall consist 
 of three persons each, and shall be annually ap- 
 pointed by the Directors of the society. 
 
 "Art. 9. The annual exhibition of the society 
 shall be held between the 1st day of September and 
 the 1st day of November in each year, of which no- 
 tice shall be given with the list of premiums offered. 
 
 "Art. 10. The annual meeting of this society 
 shall be at the court house, on the third Wednesday 
 in November of each year, at 10 o'clock A. M., at 
 which time oflicers of the society shall be chosen. 
 
 "Art. 11. This Constitution may be amended at 
 any regular meeting, by a majority of the votes cast." 
 
 L. V. Bierce, Esq., addressed the meeting. 
 
 Committee reported oflBcers for the society, which 
 report was accepted, and the persons recommended 
 were unanimously chosen officers of the society, as 
 follows : Simon Perkins, President ; Henry G. Wea- 
 ver, Vice President ; William A. Hanford, Secretary ; 
 William H. Dewey, Treasurer ; John Hoy, Sylvester 
 H. Thompson, Avery Spicer, Philo C. Stone aud 
 James W. Weld, Managers. 
 
 On motion— " Eesohed : That the thanks of this 
 society be presented to L. V. Bierce, Esq., for his 
 interesting address, and that he be requested to fur- 
 nish a copy for publication." 
 
 Mr. J. Teesdale presented a circular from the St ate 
 Board of Agriculture, which was referred to the 
 President, Secretary and Capt. Amos Seward for 
 reply. On motion, adjourned. 
 
 Amos Seward, President. 
 Mn.o Stone, Vice President. 
 N. W. Goodhue, Secretari/. 
 
 Thus was the " Summit County Agricultural 
 Society " duly and legally organized, and en- 
 titled to draw from the county treasury, yearly, 
 for its support, the sum of $137.50, as provided 
 by law. The various oflicers, directors and 
 committees, together with the people of the 
 county, generally, both farmers and villagers, 
 from this time on worked heartily and cordially 
 for the success of the society, and for the 
 favorable outcome of its first annual fair. In 
 
•y 
 
 ji^ 
 
 196 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 the Beacon of August 21, 1850, appears this 
 announcement : 
 
 AGRICULTURAL NOTICE. 
 
 The Board of Directors for the Summit County 
 Agricultural Society will meet at the office of L. V. 
 Bierce, Esq., on Tliursday, the 22dinst., at 1 o'clock 
 P. M., to appoint committees to award premiums at 
 the Annual Fair, to be held at Akron, on the 2d and 
 3d days of October next. Those who have obtained 
 members will please forward the names and money 
 to th(! Auditor's office at Akron. 
 
 Simon Perkins, President. 
 W. A. IIanpord, Secretary. 
 
 Akron, August 19, 1850. 
 
 In the Beacon of September 11, 1850, ap- 
 pears the premium list, offering premiums rang- 
 ing from $1 to 1^8 on cattle ; from $3 to $8 on 
 horses ; from $2 to $5 on sheep ; from $2 to $4 
 on swine ; best kept dair}^, $10 ; best butter, 
 $3 ; best cheese, $3 ; from $1 to $3 on farm 
 implements ; from 50 cents to $3 on domestic 
 manufactures ; from $2 to $3 on factory flan- 
 nels and cloths ; $1 on grains and seeds ; from 
 $1 to $2 on vegetables and fruits ; from $1 to 
 $5 on field crops. Following, is a list of the 
 awarding committees : Cattle — Milo Stone, of 
 Tallmadge ; Frederick Baldwin, of Hudson ; 
 Marcus Newton, of Richfield, Horses — Thad- 
 deus H. Botsford, of Middlebuiy ; John Hoy, 
 of Franklin ; Henry Van Hyning, of Norton. 
 Saxony Sheep — John Brown (old " Ossawata- 
 mie " of Harper's Ferry fame), of Portage; Jus- 
 tin P. Goodale, of Middlebury ; Anson A. 
 Brewster, of Hudson. Merino and other Sheep 
 — Isaac T. Welton, of Richfield ; Jacob Allen, 
 of Akron ; Jonathan Starr, of Copley. Swine 
 — Miner Spicer, of Akron ; William Wetmore, 
 of Stow ; Simon P. Starr, of Copley. Dairies 
 — Edgar B. Ellsworth, of Hudson ; John B. 
 Clark, of Hudson ; Ethan Ailing, of Twinsburg. 
 Butter and Cheese— Mrs. Dana D. Evans, of 
 Akron ; Mrs. Daniel Hine, of Tallmadge ; Mrs. 
 Amos Avery, of Tallmadge ; Mrs. P^dwin Wet- 
 more, of Stow. Farm Implements — Samuel 
 Treat, of Tallmadge ; Alexander Johnston, of 
 Green ; Mills Thompson, of Hudson. Domes- 
 tic Manufactures — Mrs. Henry G. Weaver, of 
 Springfield ; Mrs. George Kirkum, of Akron ; 
 Mrs. John Hoy, of Franklin ; Mrs. N. W. Good- 
 hue, of Middlebury. Factory Products — Ros- 
 well Kent, of Middlebury ; Anson A. Brewster, 
 of Hudson ; Orlando Hall, of Akron ; Grains 
 and Seeds — Nathaniel Fiuch, of Akron ; Will- 
 iam Hale, of Bath ; Philo Atwood, of Spring- 
 
 field. Vegetables and Fruits — Van R. Hum- 
 phrey, of Hudson ; Lucius S. Peck, of Portage ; 
 Prof Sej-mour, of Hudson. Field Crops — 
 Clark Sackett, of Tallmadge ; John Hall, of 
 Springfield ; Talmon Beardsley, of Coventiy. 
 Non-enumerated Articles — Joseph Hawkins, of 
 Twinsburg ; Peter Voris, of Bath ; Daniel Hine, 
 of Tallmadge. A " plowing match " was also 
 announced for the second day of the fair ; pre- 
 miums, $5 and $3. No trotting nor racing pre- 
 miums were offered. 
 
 The Beacon of September 18, 1850, editorially 
 says : 
 
 We are gratified to find that much interest is 
 being awakened in the approaching agricultural 
 fair in this county. As there has not been an ex- 
 hibition of that character in the county since its 
 organization, those who have charge of the arrange- 
 ments have not the benefit of that amount of expe- 
 rience they Avould like in the performance of their 
 dutj'. Still, they have done and will do what they 
 can. The work of preparation should be entered 
 into in earnest. Hundreds can contribute their mite 
 to the interest of the occasion. Let the exhibition 
 be worthy of the object in view, and let there be a 
 gathering which will render the day a memorable 
 one. 
 
 The First Fair, October 2 and 3, 1850.— 
 Having no grounds nor buildings of its own, by 
 permission of the County Commissioners, the 
 court house and surrounding grounds were 
 made use of b}'^ the society in giving its initial 
 exposition. In the Beacon of October 16, 1850, 
 is the official report of President Perkins and 
 Secretary Hanford, together with a full list of 
 the premiums awarded, aggregating about $100 
 — quite a sum, when it is considered that no 
 entrance fees on articles exhibited were 
 charged, while admission to the fair was also 
 free. " A team of thirty-four 3'oke of oxen, 
 from Tallmadge, and another of fifteen span of 
 horses, from the same town, attracted consider- 
 able attention," says the report. Gen L. V. 
 Bierce, of Akron, delivered the annual ad- 
 dress. 
 
 The Beacon of same date editorially says : 
 
 The highest expectations were more than realized. 
 The attendance on both days was very large, several 
 thousand persons being present, all of whom seemed 
 inspired by the happiest spirit, and abundant ly 
 compensated for what of labor and care was inci- 
 dent to the exhibition. * * * The display of stock 
 was unexpectedly good, the arrangements being 
 such as to give a fair opportunity for exhibiting the 
 animals brought in. The specimens of fruit, grain 
 and vegetables were exceedingly fine. * * * A va- 
 riety of farming implements were exhibited. * * * 
 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 197 
 
 The court-house was fitted up for the horticultural 
 exhibition and the handiwork of Flora. The high- 
 est praise is due to the ladies for their taste in adorn- 
 ing the room, and the myriad evidences of their skill 
 displayed on every hand. The pyramid of flowers, 
 prepared at Mrs. Dodge's, and the various smaller 
 pyramids and rich bouquets exhibited, were the cen- 
 ter of attraction, exciting universal praise by their 
 gorgeous display of colors. The display of" fancy 
 needle-work would have excited admiration any- 
 where. Among other things exhibited in the ladies' 
 department, worthy of note, were a variety of bed- 
 quilts ; a counterpane, richly worked ; worsted work ; 
 a strcm-bonnet made from straw raised in this county ; 
 .some fancy cotton work, etc., etc. * * * An exhi- 
 bition terminating so propitiously cannot but lead 
 the way to others, and establish permanently a so- 
 ciety whose first fruits are so pleasant to the eye and 
 taste. In the awards of the future the managers of 
 the fair should not be forgotten. 
 
 /Second Annual Meeting. — The second annual 
 meeting of the society was held at the court 
 house, November 20, 1850. Treasurer Dewey 
 reported : " Total receipts, $327.58 : total pay- 
 ments to date, $221.86; balance in treasury, 
 $105.72 — $100 of which is due for premiums." 
 Officers were chosen for the ensuing- year, as 
 follows : Simon Perkins, of Portage, President ; 
 Amos Seward, of Tallmadge, Vice President ; 
 Nelson B. Stone, of Akron, Treasurer ; Nathan- 
 iel W. (loodhue, of Middlebury, Secretary ; 
 Henry Van Hyning, of Norton ; Daniel Hine, of 
 Tallmadge ; JNIilo Stone, of Tallmadge ; James 
 M. Hale, of Akron, and Harvey Baldwin, of 
 Hudson, Managers. On motion, the thanks of 
 the society were presented to Secretary Will- 
 iam A. Hanford, and his assistants, Messrs N. 
 W. Goodhue and C. B. Bernard, for their serv- 
 ices to the societ}'. 
 
 Second Annual Fair. — In the Beacon of Sep- 
 tember 10, 1851, appears the notice of Presi- 
 dent Perkins and Secretary (xoodhue, announc- 
 ing the second annual fair of the society, to be 
 held at the court house in Akron, October 16 
 and 17, with a somewhat enlarged premium list. 
 Committees ns follows : Cattle — John Newton, 
 of Richfield : Perry C. Carotliers. of Tallmadge ; 
 Frederick Baldwin, of Hudson. JMilch Cows — 
 William II. Devyey, of Akron ; Joseph Haw- 
 kins, of Twinsburg ; Clark Sackett, of Tall- 
 madge. Oxen — Perley Mansur, of Hudson ; 
 Isaac T. Welton, of Richfield ; Kbenezer Par- 
 dee, of Norton. Fat Oxen — Dennis A. Hine, 
 of Middlebury ; David French, of Green ; 
 Henry Van Hyning. of Norton. Best ten yoke '■ 
 oxen in a strin<j:. from one township, and best 
 ten span horses — Jedediah D. Cominins. of ! 
 
 Akron ; Charles W. Brown, of Portage ; Charles 
 B. Cobb, of Akron. Horses — Thaddeus H. 
 Botsford, of Middlebury ; John Miller, of Nor- 
 ton ; Ezra Starkweather, of Twinsburg. Long- 
 wool Sheep — Jacob Allen, of Akron ; William 
 Hale, of Bath ; Samuel N. Goodale, of Akron. 
 Merinos— James W. Wallace, of Northfield ; 
 Jonathan Starr, of Copley ; Van R. Humphrey, 
 of Hudson. Saxons — William A. Hanford, of 
 Cuyahoga Falls ; Lucius W. Hitchcock, of Tall- 
 madge ; Peter A. More, of Copley. Swine — 
 Avery Spicer, of Coventry ; George Darrow, 
 of Hudson ; John Hoy, of Franklin. Pottery 
 Ware — Allan Hibbard, Lorenzo B. Austin and 
 James Christy, all of Akron. Farming Imple- 
 ments, First Class — Alexander Johnston, of 
 Green ; Benjamin Bear, of Franklin ; Samuel 
 M. Combs, of Tallmadge. Second Class- 
 John B. Clark, of Hudson ; George Lillie, of 
 Northfield ; Talmon Beardsley, of Coventry. 
 Harness Work — Jonathan Page, of Richfield ; 
 John Johns, of Middlebury ; Harvey S. Weld, 
 of Richfield. Boots and Shoes — Zebulon Jones, 
 of Akron ; Peter Voris, of Bath ; John M. 
 Cutler, of Akron. Stoves, Castings and 3Ia- 
 chinery — Bradbury T. Blodgett, of Akron ; 
 Harrison N. Gillett, of Cuyahoga Falls ; Will- 
 iam S. Irish, of Middlebury. Carriages, etc. — 
 David A. Scott, Lewis, Benjamin and Nathan- 
 iel Finch, all of Akron. Musical Instruments 
 — ^Amos Wright, of Tallmadge ; George P. 
 Ashmun, of Hudson ; Henry Bill, of Cuyahoga 
 Falls. Cabinet Ware — Henry S. Abbe}', of 
 Akron ; Joseph T. HoUoway, of Cuyahoga 
 Falls ; Henry B. Horton, of Akron. Blank 
 Books, etc. — Elisha N. Sill, of Cuyahoga Falls ; 
 Lucius S. Peck and Jared Jennings, of Akron. 
 Flannels, etc. — Mrs. Henry G. Weaver, of 
 Springfield ; Mrs. Elias W. Howard, Mrs. 
 George Kirkum and Mrs. Allan Hibbard, of 
 Akron. Linens — Mrs. Louisa A. Baldwin, of 
 Middlebury ; Mrs. Harvey Baldwin, of Hud- 
 son ; Miss Sarah A. Stone, of Tallmadge ; Mr. 
 Alvin C. Voris, of Akron. Stockings, etc.— 
 Mrs. Dana D. Evans, of Akron ; Mrs. Ira Haw- 
 kins, of Portage; Mrs. Daniel Hine and 3Irs. 
 Lucius C. Walton, of Tallmadge. Factors- 
 Products — Roswell Kent, of Midcllebury ; Har- 
 vey B. Spell man, of Akron, and Ezra S. Corn- 
 stock, of Cuyahoga Falls. Grains and Seeds 
 — Solomon Markliam, of Green ; Jeremiah B. 
 Lambert, of Bath ; Andrew Harris of Spring- 
 field. Vegetables and Fruits — Daniel McNaugh- 
 
 ■^|C* 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 ton, of Middlebury ; John E. King, and Lu- 
 cius V. Bierce, of Akron. Crops — Daniel Hine, 
 of Tallraadge ; Aver}' Spicer, of Coventry ; 
 Edwin Wetmore, of Stow. Farms — Jolm C. 
 Wallace, of Northfield ; James W. Weld, of 
 Richfield ; Andrew Hale, of Bath. Butter — 
 Mrs. Samuel M. Combs, of Tallmadge ; Mrs. 
 John Hoy, of Franklin ; Mrs. William L. 
 Clarke, and Mrs. Frederick Wadsworth of Ak- 
 ron. Cheese — Mrs. Simon Perkins and Mrs. 
 Sebried Dodge, of Portage ; Mrs. Mills Thomp- 
 son, of Hudson ; Mrs. William L. Clarke, of 
 Akron. Fancy-work — Mrs. Henry W. King, of 
 Akron ; Mrs. Lucius C. Walton, of Tallmadge ; 
 Mrs. George E. Pierce, of Hudson ; Mrs. Hoyt 
 L. Henry, of Middlebury ; Mrs. John B. Clark, 
 of Hudson ; Mr. Charles B. Bernard, of Akron. 
 
 Of this second exhibition, the Beacon, of Oc- 
 tober 22, 1851, says : 
 
 The annual fair of the Summit County Agricult- 
 ural Society was held on Thursday and Friday of 
 last week. They were festive days among the 
 farmers of Summit, and such a congregating to- 
 gether of the true nobility of our county — the toil- 
 ing masses, whose brows are browned by heaven's 
 sunlight, whose hands are hardened by honest toil, 
 and whose hearts are softened by the kindlier sym- 
 pathies of humanity — we have rarely seen. The 
 turn-out was tremendous, exceeding "largely, it is 
 thought, that of last year. There was a perfect 
 jam in and around the court house throughout each 
 day, rendering it almost impossible to see many ob- 
 jects of interest, and demonstrating the absolute 
 necessity of erecting a suitable building for the fut- 
 ure agricultural and mechanical exhibitions of the 
 county. * * * Hon. Van R. Humphrey, of 
 Hudson, delivered an address to the multitude, 
 who were assembled in the court house inclosure 
 for want of a building of sufficient capacity to re- 
 ceive them. It was listened to with interest and 
 profit, and was in keeping with the interest of the 
 occasion. *^ * * It will afford much gratification 
 to our citizens generally to learn that Col. Simeon 
 Perkins, the President of the society, with a munifi- 
 cence characteristic of the man, has donated to the 
 society several acres south of Akron, admirably 
 adapted for future exhibitions, the erection of suit- 
 able buildings, etc., for the use of the society. A 
 subscription'was started for inclosing the ground, 
 and we cannot permit ourselves to doubt the suc- 
 cess of the laudable enterprise. 
 
 In the BeMcon of November 26, 1851, is the 
 official report of the annual meeting of the so- 
 ciety for 1851, held in the court house Novem- 
 ber 19. The officers elected for the ensuing 
 year were as follows : President, Avery Spicer, 
 of Coventry ; Vice President, Daniel Hine, of 
 Tallmadge ; Secretary, Nathaniel W. Goodhue, 
 of Middlebury ; Treasurer, Nelson B. Stone, of 
 
 Akron. Managers — Peter Voris, of Bath ; 
 Thomas H. Goodwin, of Akron ; Isaac T. Wel- 
 ton, of Richfield ; Samuel M. Combs, of Tall- 
 madge ; Solomon Markham, of Green. A com- 
 mittee of one from each township and village 
 in the county was appointed "to solicit sub- 
 scriptions to defray the expenses to be incurred 
 during the coming year in the erection of suit- 
 able buildings and fences and preparing other 
 permanent fixtures for the use of the society." 
 Among the proceedings of this meeting is 
 found this highly commendable item : 
 
 Resolved, That this society will award no premi- 
 ums on anything that will intoxicate. 
 
 At a meeting of the Directors, held at the 
 court house, it was arranged that the fair for 
 1852 should be held on Wednesday and Thurs- 
 da}', October 6 and 7, at the court house, the 
 new grounds donated by Col. Perkins not being 
 yet fitted up. The premium list, as published 
 in the Beacon of September 8, is about the 
 same as in 1851, and the committees judi- 
 ciously selected from every portion of the 
 county. The court-room was used solely as a 
 floral and fine-art department. A small admis- 
 sion fee to this department was charged, the 
 receipts being something over $100. The hall 
 was occupied by a display of fashionable fur- 
 niture, stoves, etc. On the north side of the 
 building was erected a temporary frame struct- 
 ure, forty by sixty feet, for the display of 
 fancy work, mechanical products, farming im- 
 plements, vegetables, fruits, etc. Horses, cattle, 
 sheep, hogs, poultry, etc., were grouped, at con- 
 venience of exhibitors, in various parts of the 
 inclosure. In its editorial notice of this Third 
 Annual Fair, the Beacon, of October 13, 1852, 
 says : " It was attended by a larger number 
 of persons, and, what is equally gratifying, the 
 exhibition, taken as a whole, was, undoubtedl}', 
 far in advance of its predecessors. * * * 
 The gorgeous flower-tree, nearly ten feet high, 
 blazing with dahlias of every conceivable shade, 
 was a thing of beauty. * * * From the 
 garden of Hon. E. N. Sill, of Cuyahoga Falls, 
 as also from the gardens of Col. Perkins and 
 Mrs. Dodge, were some of the finest dahlias 
 we have ever seen. A design of cut flowers 
 of every variety, arranged lay Mr. Thomas 
 Wills, Mr. Sill's gardener, excited universal 
 admiration. * * * But one opinion was 
 expressed on one point, viz. : the necessity of 
 the immediate erection of suitable buildings 
 
-ik^ 
 
 ^ 6) 
 
 1^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 199 
 
 for the agi'icultural fairs of Summit. It is 
 foll}^ to expend more on temporary buildings. 
 If eacli townsliip will move and select a good 
 committee-man, as Tallmadge has done, the 
 amount for the buildings, etc., ma}' be raised in 
 a fortnight. Col. Perkins is still ready to 
 donate the use of six acres of land as the site. 
 If the society does not take the work in hand, 
 the Commissioners should do so." The annual 
 address was delivered by Herman Canfield, 
 Esq., of Medina. \\\ their report, the officers 
 of the societ}' say : " The necessity of a perma- 
 nent building is apparent to all. The officers 
 of the society labor under much embarrass- 
 ment, and all that is necessary is the co-opera- 
 tion of each township, and the means requisite 
 for inclosing six acres of ground and erecting 
 a large and commodious building, can be raised. 
 We hope that the importance of immediate 
 attention to this matter will be borne in mind, 
 and that measures will be taken immediately 
 for raising whatever sum is ne(!essary." 
 
 At the annual meeting of the society held at 
 the court house in Akron, November 17, 1852, 
 officers for the ensuing year were elected as fol- 
 lows : President, Daniel Hine, of Tallmadge ; 
 Vice President, Sylvester H. Thompson, of Hud- 
 son ; Secretaiy, Nathaniel W. Goodhue, of 
 Akron ; Treasurer, Nelson B. Stone, of Akron ; 
 Directors, Talmon Beardsley, of Coventry ; 
 Andrew Hale, of Bath ; William Payne, of 
 Richfield ; Lucius W. Hitchcock, of Tallmadge ; 
 Henry W. Howe, of Akron. A committee of 
 one in each township was appointed to solicit 
 funds to build permanent buildings for the use 
 of the society. 
 
 The Beacon of September 7, 1853, editorially 
 says : " The Board of Directors of the Summit 
 County Agricultural Society have contracted 
 for inclosing the new fairgrounds of the society, 
 the erection of a suitable hall for future exhi- 
 bitions, etc. The work is to be completed by 
 October 10 ; the expense to be paid mainl}- by 
 subscriptions, the county- doing its share." The 
 grounds, six and a half acres, were substantially 
 fenced, a building 40x100 feet was erected, and 
 the grounds otherwise fitted up, at a total ex- 
 pense of about $1,800, and the fourth annual 
 fair was held there on VVednesday and Thurs- 
 day October 12 and 13, 1853. Increased in- 
 terest and attendance were manifested. A small 
 entrance fee of 10 cents was charged, by which 
 between $700 and $800 was realized, and, 
 
 though somewhat in debt on improvements, the 
 
 society was at last firmly established on a sound 
 financial basis. 
 
 The fifth annual meeting of the society was 
 held at the court house on Wednesday, Novem- 
 ber IG, 1853. Officers elected — President, 
 Daniel Hine, of Tallmadge ; A^ice President, 
 James M. Hale, of Akron ; Secretary, Nathaniel 
 W. Goodhue ; Treasurer, Nelson B. Stone ; Di- 
 rectors, Talmou Beardsley, of Coventry' ; Samuel 
 M. Bronson, of Tallmadge ; Henry W. HowBj 
 of Akron; Ethan Ailing, of Twinsburg; and 
 Jeremiah B. Lambert, of Bath. 
 
 The fifth annual fair was held on the grounds 
 of the society October 1 1 and 12, 1854. Though 
 the season had been very dry. there was a very 
 fine display of field and garden products, fruits, 
 flowers, etc., and, while stock and other de- 
 partments were quite largel}' represented, 
 "Ladies' Equestrianship " was a prominent 
 feature of this exhibition, and added ver^' ma- 
 terially to the niterest as well as to the financial 
 results of the fair. Beceipts, $800. 
 
 The sixth annual meeting was held on the 
 22d day of November, 1854, at the court house, 
 officers and Directors of previous year being 
 re-elected. 
 
 The sixth annual fair was held October 3, 4 
 and 5, 1855. Yearly- membership badges were 
 sold at $1 each, and a gate fee of 10 cents was 
 collected, the total receipts with ground rents 
 being $903. Ladies' horsemanship, both driv- 
 ing and equestrianism, was the chief attraction 
 of the fair ; premiums being awarded as fol- 
 lows : Mi.ss Harriet J. More, of Copley, $20 ; 
 Miss Anna E. Howe, of Akron, $15 ; Miss C. 
 L. Stauffcr, of Springfield, $10. A premium of 
 $20, donated by spectators, was also awarded to 
 Miss Cordelia Alden, of Medina, for her supe- 
 rior equestrianism, the awards of the society be- 
 ing confined to residents of the county. At 
 this fair also ever\- department in which pre- 
 miums were offered was a success, both in point 
 of number and quality of animals and articles 
 exhibited. 
 
 At the seventh annual meeting held at the 
 court house in Akron November 21, 1855, offi- 
 cers for the ensuing year were elected as fol- 
 lows : President, Talmon Beardsley, of Cov- 
 entry ; Vice President. Andrew Hale, of Bath ; 
 Secretary, Henry W. Howe, of Akron ; Treas- 
 urer, Charles B. Bern:ird, of Akron ; Directors, 
 Wm. B. Ashmun, of Tallmadge; Simon V. Starr, 
 
 
200 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 of Copley ; James M. Hale, of Akron ; Houston 
 Sisler, of Franklin; Julius Pond, of Hudson. 
 
 Secretary Howe announces, in the Beacon of 
 September 17, ISoG, that the Summit County 
 Agricultural Society have added to tlieir list 
 of premiums, to be awarded at their next an- 
 nual fair, the following : " Fastest trotting horse 
 owned within the county, $30 ; fastest trotting 
 horse, under four years old, owned witliin the 
 county, $20. A half-mile ring has been pre- 
 pared, and a lively competition may be ex- 
 pected." In a subsequent issue, Secretary Howe 
 thus expatiates : " The farmers and mechanics 
 of the county will remember that this is es- 
 peciall}' their festival, while all the ' rest of 
 mankind ' intend to be there to join them. The 
 list of premiums is large, the grounds are 
 beautiful and convenient ; the contests, upon 
 two days, between the fast trotting horses, will 
 be spirited ; the ' ladies riding,' upon the last 
 day of the fair, will attract all who love ' women 
 and horses,' and the smiling faces of friends 
 will everywhere greet those who are in attend- 
 ance. * * * Come all who delight in seeing 
 the best of stock, the finest of fruits, grains and 
 vegetables, who have a taste for the products 
 of the 'glide housewife,' andean appreciate the 
 value of churns and cultivators, carpets and 
 carriages. Come all who can admire the beau- 
 tiful in flowers, in needlework, in painting ; or 
 can find pleasure in ' crowds of fair women and 
 brave men,' expecting a rare entertainment, and 
 you need not go away disappointed." 
 
 Of this, the Seventh Annual Fair, held on 
 the 8th, 9th and lUth days of October, 185G, 
 the Beacon concludes a lengthy and enthusiastic 
 editorial as follows : " On the whole, we are 
 satisfied that the Summit County Fair of 1856, 
 not only surpassed all its former fairs, but, in 
 point of numbers attending and of a substan- 
 tial excellence of stock, grains, vegetables, me- 
 chanical and artistic skill, and whatever else 
 makes up the show, was beyond any county 
 fair of Ohio or any other State. We feel con- 
 fident that Summit is entitled to the premium. 
 In this judgment, we are supported by the vol- 
 untary expressions of manj' witnesses who 
 were present from abroad." The receipts at 
 this fair were $1,230.50, which, with receipts 
 from county authorized by law, paid the entire 
 indebtedness of the society, running expenses, 
 premiums, balance due for buildings, etc., and 
 left a surplus in the treasury of $224.73. 
 
 At the Eighth Annual Meeting, held No- 
 vember 19, 1856, the following officers were 
 elected : President, Talmon Beardsley, of Cov- 
 entry ; Vice President, Andrew Hale, of Bath ; 
 Secretar}', Henry W. Howe, of Akron ; Treas- 
 urer, Alvin C. Voris, of Akron ; Directors, Jo- 
 seph Hawkins, of Twinsburg ; William John- 
 ston, of Copley; Lucius L. Strong, of Tallmadge ; 
 Adam Yen-ick, of Green ; John R. Buchtel, of 
 Coventry. 
 
 Eighth Annual Fair held October 7 , 8 and 9, 
 1857.— Increased number of entries, increased 
 interest and increased attendance ; nearly three 
 columns in the Beacon of October 14 being 
 devoted to an editorial review of the fair. At 
 the Ninth Annual Meeting, held on the 18th 
 of November, 1857, officers were elected as fol- 
 lows : President, Samuel M. Combs, of Tall- 
 madge ; Vice President, Andrew Hale, of Bath ; 
 Secretary, Dudley Seward, of Akron ; Treas- 
 urer, Alvin C. Voris, of Akron ; Directors, 
 Avery Spicer, of Portage ; Lucius L. Strong, 
 of Richfield ; William B. Ashmun, of Tall- 
 madge ; Joseph Stauffer, of Green ; Horace P. 
 Cannon, of Twinsburg. 
 
 Ninth Annual Fair, October 6, 7 and 8, 1858. 
 — The crowd upon and about the little six-acre 
 inclosure, with the teams of visitors and ani- 
 mals for exhibition, produced, according to the 
 local reporter, " a perfect jam," and the cry for 
 larger grounds was universal. Total entries 
 for premiums, 965, as follows : Cattle, 105 ; 
 horses, 152 ; sheep, 48 ; swine, 10 ; poultry, 
 19 ; grain and seeds, 64 ; fruits, 40 ; garden 
 products, 154; field crops, 9; butter, cheese 
 and sugar, 51 ; farm implements, 30 ; domestic 
 productions, 124 ; flowers and shrubbery, 44 ; 
 carriages and harness, 17 ; boots, shoes, etc., 
 10 ; bonnets, etc., 7 ; fine ax'ts, 17 ; iron and 
 tin ware, 7 ; miscellaneous, 45 ; female eques- 
 trians, 6. Total receipts, $1,350. 
 
 At the Tenth Annual meeting, November 17, 
 1858, the following officers were elected : Presi- 
 dent, Samuel M. Combs, of Tallmadge ; Vice 
 President, Horace P. Cannon, of Twinsburg ; 
 Secretary, J. l*ark Alexander, of Akron ; Treas- 
 urer, John R. Buchtel, of Akron. Directors — 
 Avery Spicer, of Portage ; Lucius L. Strong, of 
 Richfield ; Lewis Ailing, of Twinsburg ; Ed- 
 win Upson, of Tallmadge ; Charles Coe, of 
 Norton. At this meeting, the question of pro- 
 curing other and more extensive grounds was 
 discussed, and an adjourned meeting for the 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 201 
 
 further consideration of the subject was held at 
 the office of Edgerton & Sanders, in iVkron, 
 January 8, 1859. At this meeting, President 
 Combs, Vice President Cannon and Treasurer 
 Buchtel " were appointed a committee to re 
 ceive sealed proposals from au}- of the town- 
 ships within the county for the site of fair 
 grounds, and that such proposals be established 
 by approved security for the amount sub- 
 scribed. The attention of those interested is 
 solicited. Proposals te be handed to Mr. Buch- 
 tel by October 29." 
 
 Of this action, the Beacon of January 12, 
 1859, editorially, says : " The citizens of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, we are informed, propose to give 
 $6,000 for the permanent location of the fair 
 grounds at or near that village. The question is 
 of importance to local interests as well as to 
 those of the society itself The latter will be, 
 we doubt not, the governing consideration with 
 those who will decide upon the matter. Other 
 things being equal, the count}' seat would seem 
 to be the proper location for a count}' society; 
 but there is some plausibility in the claim that 
 Cuyahoga Falls is more central, and, if the citi- 
 zens of that village subscribe $G,000 in good 
 faith for that purpose, the}' exhibit a high ap- 
 preciation of the advantages of secviring the 
 annual fair as a permanent institution. We 
 commend the consideration of this subject, in 
 all its bearings, to the business men, property- 
 holders and citizens of Akron, only observing 
 that the competition of the people of Cuyahoga 
 Falls is formidable and may be successful." 
 
 At an adjourned meeting, held January 29, 
 1859, the following proposal was submitted : 
 " The society can have the present location of 
 the fair grounds for |125 per acre by paying 
 $150 down and $200 each January following, 
 with 6 per cent annual interest, and that they 
 can have more or less land south of the present 
 grounds, in addition, at $80 per acre, or an ex- 
 change on the opposite side of the road, acre 
 for acre." This proposition was accepted b}' a 
 vote of forty-nine in favor to ten against. At 
 an adjourned meeting, held February 19, 1859, 
 it was voted " to confine the society to the pres- 
 ent location of the grounds." 
 
 Thus matters stood until late in the follow- 
 ing summer. In the meantime, not only had 
 the contiguous lands been sold to other parties, 
 but there was a rapidly growing conviction in 
 the public mind that the future success of the 
 
 society demanded both more room and a more 
 eligible location than the old grounds afltbrded. 
 So, too, in consequence of the differences of 
 opinion which had obtained as to the matter of 
 location, spirited rivalry had grown up, not only 
 in the two " union " organizations in the north- 
 east corner of the county, at Twinsburg, and 
 the northwest corner of the county, at Rich- 
 field, but in the spirited "union" association 
 then being projected at Cuyahoga Falls. These 
 considerations stimulated a number of the most 
 active promoters of the society, in connection 
 with the officers, to a combined and vigorous 
 effort to the accomplishment of the desired 
 change. At this juncture, our public-spirited 
 fellow-citizen, Hon. David L. King, submitted 
 a proposition, which, being at once accepted, 
 placed the society in possession of Summit 
 Grove — nearly thirty acres overlooking the city 
 on the west— the beautiful grounds now occu- 
 pied by the fine residences of Lewis Miller, 
 Esq., Capt. Arthur L. Conger, and others, on 
 Ash street and Park place, and immediately 
 east of the southern portion of the beautiful 
 grounds of the Akron Rural Cemetery. This 
 fine tract of land was leased to the society for 
 five years, at a reasonable annual rental, 31r 
 King stipulating to either sell the ground to 
 the society, at a price to be named by him, or 
 to pa}- the society for its buildings, fences, etc., 
 at their appraised value, on the expiration of 
 the lease. 
 
 Of these grounds, and the estimation in 
 which they were held by the public, the follow- 
 ing extracts from the Beacon, of September 7 
 and 14, 1859, abundantly testify : 
 
 The spot, has been appropriately named Summit 
 Grove. It is an elevated plateau, witli sparse but 
 large spreading oaks, of native growth, fm-uishing 
 resting-place and shade, free from undergrowth, 
 airy and dry ; in short, a natural park. * * * For 
 the purpose of securing and inclosing this elegant 
 piece of ground, erecting the proper buildings, and 
 putting it in order for this and future fairs, the cit- 
 izens of Akron, responsible business men, have con- 
 tributed something more than $1,500. * * * We 
 have never seen so much energy on the part of com- 
 mittees and citizens, in any public enterprise, as 
 has b(>en displayed in prep'aring the County Fair 
 Grounds at Summit Grove. * * * Nf)t in the 
 East or the West has any society a location more 
 inviting, etc., etc. 
 
 The buildings, fences, etc., from the old were 
 removed to the new grounds, which, with the 
 necessary additions, the erection of sheds, sta- 
 
 •^^Is r- 
 
202 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 bles, pens, etc., the construction of a superb 
 half-mile track, and other improvements, in- 
 volved an expense of $3,128.60, of which 
 amount $1,870.07 was contributed by the cit- 
 izens of Akron, and $1,258.53 was paid b}- the 
 societ}- ; a large amount of labor, of men and 
 teams, also being donated by the people of 
 Akron and contiguous towns, in the lltting-up 
 of the grounds. 
 
 From this time forward, the Summit County 
 Fair became, emphatically, tlic Fair of Northern 
 Ohio, not onW drawing together, in annual 
 '' Harvest Home Festival," in Octol)er of each 
 year, the great mass of the people of Summit 
 County, but attracting man}' visitors from con- 
 tiguous counties, and even from the more re- 
 mote portions of the State. 
 
 At the annual meeting of November 1 6. 1859, 
 a new constitution was adopted increasing the 
 number of directors from five to eighteen — one 
 for each township. At this meeting, officers 
 were elected as follows : President, Horace P. 
 Caimon, of Twinsburg ; Vice President, Will- 
 iam Wise, of Green ; Secrctar}-, James Mathews, 
 of Akron ; Treasurer, John II. Buchtel, of Ak- 
 ron. Directors : Bath, Andrew Hale ; Boston, 
 Edmund H. Cole ; Coventr}-, William Buchtel ; 
 Cu3'ahoga Falls. George Sackett ; Copley, Vin- 
 cent G. Harris ; Franklin, Henr}' Daile}- ; Green, 
 George Crouse ; Hudson, Julius Pond ; Middle- 
 bury, Charles A. Collins ; Northampton, Beese 
 Jones ; Northfield, John C. Wallace ; Norton, 
 Charles Coe ; Portage, Avery Spicer ; Rich- 
 field, John E. Hurlbut ; Springfield, John Ewart ; 
 Stow, Virgil M. Thompson ; Tailmadge, Clark 
 Sackett ; Twinsburg, Lewis Ailing. 
 
 Resolutions were unanimously adopted ex- 
 pressive of sorrow and condolence at the death 
 of Capt. Amos Seward, of Tailmadge, the first 
 President of the society under its written con- 
 stitution, and one of its most enthusiastic sup- 
 porters. Also a resolution tendering to the re- 
 tiring Seci'etary, J. Park Alexander, the thanks 
 of the societ}^ for his able and efficient services 
 during the preceding year. 
 
 Ax the expiration of the time for which the 
 grounds had been leased, Mr. King, pursuant to 
 his agreement, submitted a proposition to the 
 officers of the society, to sell them the entire 
 tract for $5,000, on ver}^ easy terms of payment, 
 stipulating only, that should the grounds ever 
 cease to be used for fair purposes, they should 
 revert back to him. his heirs, etc. This truly 
 
 munificent proposition, unfortunatel}' for the 
 society and the county, was not accepted, a 
 portion of the management, comparing the price 
 named with the value of farming lands less 
 eligibly situated, and more remote from the 
 city, not being able to appreciate the magnificent 
 prize they were letting slip through their fingers 
 until it was too late. The society now leased, 
 for the period of ten years, of Mr. P. D. Hall, 
 about thirty acres of land, covered by a fine 
 grove of original forest trees, in the western 
 part of the city, fronting on Maple street upon 
 the south, and Balch sti-eet upon the west, and a 
 short distance northwest of Akron Rural Ceme- 
 tery. To these grounds was removed the Imild- 
 ings, fences and fixtures from " Summit Grove," 
 and others were added, trotting track graded, 
 etc., at an expense of over $1,000 to the societ}', 
 over and above the liberal contributions of both 
 money and labor, from the citizens of Akron 
 and surrounding townships. These grounds 
 were first occupied by the society in October, 
 1864, the fair of that year not onl}' proving a 
 very great success, but being followed up with 
 such increasing interest, year by 3'ear, that the 
 management were enabled to accumulate a fund 
 of several thousand dollars in the treasury of 
 the society, with which to purchase grounds at 
 the expiration of their ten years' lease. In the 
 meantime, however, the rapid growth of the city 
 of Akron had so enhanced the value of the 
 grounds then occupied as to place them entirely 
 bej'ond the reach of the societ}^, while most of 
 the lands adjacent to the cit}^, suitable for fair 
 purposes, had been taken up and improved, or 
 were held so high as not to be within the sup- 
 posed ability of the society to purchase. 
 
 At the annual meeting in January, 1870, a 
 committee was appointed to select grounds to 
 be purchased by the societ}', the committee 
 reporting to the Directors March 15, 1870, the 
 propositions which had been made to them, as 
 follows : S. W. Bartges, thirty-five acres of the 
 Mallison farm, on Wooster avenue, at $500 per 
 acre; S. H. Coburn and Samuel Thornton, 
 thirty acres, south of city limits and west of 
 Main street, at $400 per acre ; A. C. Voris and 
 E. Steinbacher, twenty-six acres, on the south 
 line of city and east of Main street, at $500 per 
 acre ; Messrs. Falor and AUyn, such portion 
 of their lands on the north line of Coventry 
 Township as the society might need, at $400 
 per acre ; and Mr. J. H. Kramer, a tract of 
 
 
^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 203 
 
 twenty acres along the Ohio Canal, south of 
 cit}' limits, at $250 per acre. 
 
 June 4, 1870, at a meeting of the society, 
 called to consider these several propositions, 
 the vote to purchase grounds was reconsidered, 
 and the matter for the time being was dropped. 
 October 24, 1870, another resolution to pur- 
 chase grounds forthwith was adopted, and the 
 committee, consisting of Edward Cranz, of 
 Bath, James Hammond, of Copley, and David 
 S. Alexander, of Akron, were, on motion of 
 King J. Ellet, of Springfield, instructed to pur- 
 chase the Coburn and Thornton tract, at a price 
 not to exceed $400 per acre. At the annual 
 meeting, January 18, 1871, the minutes of the 
 October meeting were amended so as to show 
 that a resolution offered by William Wheatley, 
 of Richfield, was adopted, authorizing the com- 
 mittee to look around and purchase grounds 
 which, in their judgment, would be for the best 
 interest of the society ; the committee in the 
 meantime having purchased of James McAl- 
 lister thirty acres off from the east portion of 
 his farm, on the north side of the Medina 
 road, one mile west of Akron, at $200 per acre, 
 with a cash payment of $2,000. February 14, 
 1872, committee reported grounds all paid for, 
 with a balance due the Treasurer of $153.94. 
 
 A ver}^ considerable number of the members 
 and patrons of the society, both in the city of 
 Akron and in the eastern, northern and south- 
 ern townships of the county, dissatisfied with 
 the location which had been selected, had so 
 agitated and discussed the question, that, at 
 the annual meeting of the society, held January 
 20, 1874, after quite a stormy debate, a resolu- 
 tion offered by Mr. Jacob H. Wise, that it was 
 impracticable for the society to use the Mc- 
 Allister grounds, and that a committee be ap- 
 pointed to sell said grounds and secure others, 
 accessible by railroad running through the 
 county, was referred to the officers of the so- 
 ciet}', with instructions to report at the next 
 annual meeting. At an adjourned meeting, 
 held February 7, 1874, a resolution was adopted 
 that Nelson V. Wadsworth, of Hudson ; John 
 H. Christy, of Akron ; Jared Barker, of Bath ; 
 King J. Ellet, of Springfield ; Daniel Hine, of 
 Tallmadge ; James Hammond, of Copley ; and 
 Dennis Treat, of Tallmadge, constitute a com- 
 mittee to report to the Directors at their next 
 meeting what, if anything, should be done in 
 the matter of disposing of the McAllister 
 
 grounds and purchasing others. April 9, 1874, 
 the committee submitted a majority report in 
 favor of retaining and improving the grounds 
 owned by the society, and a minority report 
 in favor of disposing of those grounds and pur- 
 chasing the Fouse tract, near Bettes' Corners, 
 northeast of Akron, the majority report being 
 adopted by a vote of ten to six. October 7, 
 1874, the Directors resolved, by a vote of eight 
 to five, to proceed at once to improve the Mc- 
 Allister grounds. January 20, 1875, at the 
 annual meeting of the society, the officers of 
 the society, to whom was referred the resolu- 
 tion offered by Mr. J. H. Wise, at the previous 
 annual meeting, reported in favor of purchas- 
 ing the Fouse tract, Mr. Fouse submitting a 
 proposition to sell fift^^ acres to the society at 
 $200 per acre. Mr. A. T. Burrosvs also sub- 
 mitted a proposal to sell forty-five acres of his 
 land on the •' Chuckery," at $400 per acre, or 
 the whole tract at $450 per acre. A ballot on 
 grounds resulted as follows : Burrows tract, 
 336 ; McAllister grounds, 218. March 6, 1875, 
 Dennis Treat, John H. Christy and Stephen H. 
 Pitkin were appointed a committee, by ballot, 
 and empowered to purchase the Burrows tract 
 and sell the McAllister grounds. April 24, 
 committee reported that they were unable to 
 either buy or sell. A resolution was then 
 adopted, appointing Dennis Treat, of Tallmadge, 
 and William Wheatly, of Richfield, who, with 
 a third man, to be selected by them from with- 
 out the county, should finally decide the matter. 
 May 24, 1875, Mr. Treat reported that Hon. 
 R. P. Cannon, of Portage County, had been se- 
 lected as the third member of the committee, 
 and that a tract offered by Mr. Jacob H. Wise, 
 on the " Chuckery," had been agreed upon by 
 a majority of the committee, Mr. Wheatly dis- 
 senting ; but that, since his return home, Mr. 
 Cannon had receded from his action, and de- 
 clined to make any further report. A resolu- 
 tion was adopted, authorizing the committee to 
 call to their aid Hon J. P. Robinson, of Cuya- 
 hoga County, and that the committee, as thus 
 constituted, proceed to locate grounds. June 
 19, 1875, Mr. Treat reported that the committee 
 had failed to agree upon a location, ]Mr. Wheatly 
 reporting that the committee had failed for 
 want of effort, Mr. Treat not aiding him (Mr. 
 W.) in urging Dr. Robinson for an opinion. 
 Letters from Dr. Robinson were read, coun- 
 seling the society to meet and agree upon a 
 
204 
 
 IIISTOllY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 location. Tlie following resolution was then 
 adopted : 
 
 Reiiolreil, That all of the Directors meet June 26, 
 and view all the grounds offered, and then meet at 
 the Secretary's ottice for a final vote. 
 
 June 26, 1875, the Directors visited the Long, 
 AUyn, Howe, Powder, Fouse, Barrows, Wise, 
 Alexander and McAllister tracts, and adjourned 
 to July 3. At the adjourned meeting, July 3, 
 1875, the Directors proceeded to ballot for lo- 
 cation, with the following result : First ballot 
 — McAllister, 7 ; Fouse, 5 ; Burrows, 2 ; AUyn. 
 1 ; Powder, 6 — 21 votes. Second ballot — Mc- 
 Allister, 7 ; Fouse, 2 ; Burrows, 1 ; Alexander, 
 1; Powder, 10—21 votes. Third ballot— Mc- 
 Allister, 7 ; Fouse, 3 ; Alexander, 1 ; Powder, 
 10—21 votes. Fourth ballot— McAllister, 8 ; 
 Fouse, 3 ; Wise, 1 ; Powder, 9—21 votes. Fifth 
 ballot — McAllister, 8 ; Fouse, 1 ; Wise, 1 ; Pow- 
 der, 11 — 21 votes. The Powder tract having 
 thus received the majority of the ballots cast, 
 it was ordered that the President and Secretary 
 proceed to close a contract for said tract, con- 
 veying to the owners thereof the McAllister 
 grounds, and executing the necessary papers to 
 secure to them the balance of the purchase 
 price, $5,000. 
 
 The grounds thus selected, derisively called 
 the "Powder Patch," from the fact that the 
 works of the Austin Powder Company, now of 
 Cleveland, were originally located thereon, is a 
 tract of forty-five acres, in the valley of the 
 Little Cuyahoga Ptiver, and within the corpor- 
 ate linaits of the city of Akron. It is contigu- 
 ous to both the New York, Pennsjivania & 
 Ohio, and the Cleveland, Mount Vernon &' 
 Columbus Railroads, while the track of the 
 Valley Railway, from Cleveland to Canton, 
 which originally ran on a high trestle, directl3^ 
 through the grounds, has been thrown around 
 the southern edge of the inclosure, thus doing 
 away with one of the main objections which 
 was urged against their selection, while adding 
 very greatly to its accessibility and conven- 
 ience in the transportation of stock and visit- 
 ors to and from the fair. It is a romantic and 
 picturesque spot, with the ever-limpid waters 
 of the Little Cuyahoga, meandering through 
 them from southeast to northwest, while in- 
 numerable large springs, on the adjacent hills, 
 furnish an abundant supply of water for artifi- 
 cial lakes, fountains, etc ; the name of " Foun- 
 tain Park "■ having been given to the grounds 
 
 by common consent. A substantial high picket 
 fence incloses the grounds, and commodious 
 floral, commercial, agricultural, mechanical, 
 domestic and dining halls and offices have been 
 erected ; an abundant supply of cattle-pens 
 and stables have been provided ; one of the 
 finest half-mile trotting tracks in the State has 
 been built ; an extensive covered stand with 
 ample seating capacity, erected ; thousands of 
 hitching posts provided ; ornamental trees and 
 shrubbery planted, and the preliminary work 
 done toward making " Fountain Park," not 
 only one of the most convenient and beautiful 
 fair grounds in the State, but, as contemplated 
 improvements are completed, one of the most 
 desirable pleasure resorts in Summit County. 
 
 The first meeting held upon the society's 
 own grounds, in October, 1875, notwithstanding 
 the bitterness of feeling that had been engen- 
 dered in regard to their selection, was a very 
 decided success, as has been each subsequent 
 yearly exposition of the society, the growth 
 and steadily increasing popularity of its annual 
 fairs, being well illustrated by its semi-decennial 
 gross receipts, from 1850 to 1880, which, in 
 round numbers, were as follows : For 1850, 
 $327 ; for 1855, $903 ; for 1860, $2,100 ; for 
 1865, $2,800; for 1870, $3,698; for 1875, 
 $5,014 ; for 1880, $7,444. This munificent in- 
 crease of patronage, has not only enabled the 
 society, besides pajing its heavy running ex- 
 penses, premiums, etc., to go steadily forward 
 with the improvement of its grounds, and to 
 pay the interest and very considerably reduce 
 the principal of the debt incurred in the pur- 
 chase of the original grounds, and the erection 
 of the necessary buildings thereon, but has 
 warranted the management in purchasing be- 
 tween seven and eight acres of additional land 
 at $200 per acre, the fair grounds, proper, now 
 covering an area of something over fifty-two 
 acres. In 1876, the constitution was so amended 
 as to give a Director to each ward of the city of 
 Akron, thus making the present number of 
 Directors of the society twenty-four. 
 
 The space assigned to this chapter not per- 
 mitting a detailed statement of the proceedings 
 of the successive annual meetings of the societ}' 
 during its entire history, we can only give, in 
 brief, the name, place of residence, and term of 
 service, of the several gentlemen who have 
 filled the offices of President, Vice President, 
 Secretary and Treasurer, from 1860 to the pres- 
 
ii4i 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 205 
 
 ent date (1881). Presidents — -Perry C. Caro- 
 thers. Tallmadge, 1861, 18G2 ; Horace P. Can- 
 non, Twinsburg, 1863, 186-4 ; J. Park Alexan- 
 der, Akron, Januar}', 1865, to March, 1870, 
 when, tendering his resignation, John II. Buch- 
 tel, of Akron, was elected to fill the vacancy ; 
 James Hammond, Cople^', 1871 to 1874, inclu- 
 sive ; Dennis Treat, Tallmadge, 1875, 1876 ; 
 John F. Moore, Copley, 1877, 1878, 1879 ; Ste- 
 phen H. Pitkin, Portage, 1880 ; Simeon Dick- 
 erman, Northampton, 1881. Vice Presidents — 
 Charles Coe, Norton, 1861, 1862, 1863 ; Den- ! 
 nis Treat, Tallmadge, 1864, 1865, 1866 ; James | 
 Hammond, Copley, 1867 to 1870, inclusive ; 
 Dennis Treat, Tallmadge, 1871 to 1874, inclu- 
 sive ; John F. Moore, Cople}^ 1875, 1876 ; King 
 J. Ellet, Springfield, 1877, 1878; Wellington 
 Miller, Norton, 1879, 1880, 1881. Secretaries- 
 James Mathews, Akron, 1861, 1862 ; J. Park 
 Alexander, Akron, 1863, 1864 ; Hiram Viele, 
 Akron, elected for 1865, but resigning, James 
 Atkins, Akron, appointed to fill vacancy ; Jon- 
 athan Starr. Akron, 1866, 1867 ; Othello W. 
 Hale, Bath, Secretary ; Hiram S. Falor, Cov- 
 entry, Assistant Secretary. 1868 ^ George W. 
 Crouse, Akron, Secretar}^ ; Hiram S. Falor, As- 
 sistant, 1869 ; Hiram S. Falor, Secretary, 1870 ; 
 Stephen H. Pitkin, Portage, 1871 to 1879, 
 inclusive ; John H. Christy, Akron, 1880, 1881. 
 Treasurers— John K. Buchtel, 1861, 1862 ; Ja- 
 cob H. Wise, Akron, 1863 ; George D. Bates, 
 Akron, 1864 to 1870, inclusive ; John H. 
 Christy, Akron, 1871 to 1875, inclusive. Mr. 
 Christy resigning September 15, 1875, John J. 
 Wagoner, Akron, appointed to fill vacancy ; 
 John H. Christ}' again elected for 1876, but 
 again resigning September 6, 1876, William B. 
 Raymond, Akron, elected to fill vacancy, and 
 re-elected for 1877 ; Herbert A. Peck, Tall- 
 madge, 1878 to 1881, inclusive. 
 
 A considerable number of the people of the 
 western, northwestern and southwestern por- 
 tions of the county being dissatisfied with the 
 selection of the "Powder Patch " by the Sum- 
 mit County Agricultural Societ}-, and honestly 
 believing that the location was not only ineli- 
 gible and inconvenient, on account of the bro- 
 ken nature of the ground, but absolutely dan- 
 gerous for stock, because of its pi'oximity to 
 railroads, formed themselves into a joint-stock 
 company, with a capital of $5,000, leased the 
 Hall grounds, recently vacated b}' the old so- 
 ciet}', and, refitting them in good stjde with 
 
 new buildings, fences, sheds, etc., under the 
 name and style of the " Summit County Fair 
 Association,'" held a very successful fair of four 
 days in September, 1875, with James Ham- 
 mond, of Copley, President ; Frank A. Foster, 
 of Copley, Vice President ; Wellington Miller, 
 of Norton, Secretary ; and Philander D. Hall, 
 Jr., of Akron, Treasurer. Vigorous efforts were 
 made by the officers and members of the organ- 
 ization to make the " Summit County Fair 
 Association " one of the permanent institutions 
 of the county, and its second exhibition, in 
 Septembei", 1876, was also reasonably success- 
 ful. Exhibitors and visitors, however, not par- 
 ticularly desiring to contribute equally to the 
 support of two rival fairs so near together in 
 point of time and locality, and the new grounds 
 of the old societj' rapidlj^ growing into public 
 favor, the interest in the '• new fair on the old 
 grounds " gradually died out, and the associa- 
 tion disbanded, its affairs being placed in the 
 hands of a receiver for liquidation. The " little 
 unpleasantness " in regard to the selection of 
 grounds by the old society having given way 
 to general good feeling among the agriculturists, 
 manufacturers, merchants and other fair pro- 
 moters and supporters, it may be safel}' pre- 
 dicted that all will henceforth vie with each 
 other to make the Summit County Agricultural 
 Society and its truly delightful grounds the 
 model institution of its kind in Ohio. 
 
 The great distance of the extreme north- 
 eastern and northwestern townships of the 
 county from the county seat, together with the 
 remoteness of contiguous townships in adjoin- 
 ing counties from their respective county seats, 
 led to the formation of prosperous and spirited 
 union fair organizations in the localities indi- 
 cated, some twenty -five years ago. In 1851, the 
 people of Richfield organized a township soci- 
 ety, under the name and style of " Richfield 
 Agricultural Club," the annual exhibitions of 
 which became so popular that, in 1858, six 
 other townships, viz.: Bath and Boston, in 
 Summit; Brecksville and Royalton, in Cuya- 
 hoga, and Hinckley and Granger, in Medina, 
 united with her in an association known as the 
 " Union Agricultural and Mechanic Art So- 
 ciety," which was admirably managed for a 
 number of years, the grounds being leased for 
 the period of ten years, and the building, fenc- 
 ing, etc.. being largely done by voluntary con- 
 tributions. On the expiration of its lease, the 
 
 r 
 
206 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 association re-orgauized as a stock company, 
 and purchased the grounds previously occu- 
 pied, increased vitality and activity following 
 the re-organization for several years. As the 
 county fairs, however, of Summit and adjoining 
 counties, increased their attractions, the inter- 
 est in the local organization began to wane, 
 and the society disbanded in 1875, selling its 
 grounds and closing up its affairs in 1876. At 
 Twinsburg, also, after a township exhibition 
 upon the public square for two or three suc- 
 cessive years, there was organized a " union 
 fair " association, composed of the townships 
 of Twinsburg, Hudson and Northfield, in 
 Summit Count}' ; Aurora, in Portage County, 
 and Solon and Bedford, in Cu^^ahoga County. 
 The first meeting of the society was in Septem- 
 ber, 1856, and, like the Richfield association, 
 its annual fairs were, for many years, very suc- 
 cessful and popular, the society owning its own 
 grounds of some thirteen acres. The patrons 
 and promoters of this fair being largel}^ inter- 
 ested and engaged in dairying, and other kin 
 dred industries, a succession of dry and unpro- 
 ductive seasons, together with the decease and 
 removal of a number of its most active sup- 
 porters, so dampened the ai'dor of its remain- 
 ing members that the meetings were at length 
 discontinued, the last fair of the society being 
 held in September, 1871, the grounds being sold 
 and the affairs of the societj' closed in 1872. 
 
 The Summit Count}' Agricultural Societ}' 
 failing to accept the ver}^ liberal proposition 
 which had been made by the people of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls for the location of the county fair 
 grounds at or near that place, a number of the 
 citizens of that and adjacent townships organ- 
 ized a Union Fair Association in 1859, and 
 fitted up grounds, about a mile north of the 
 village, on the Hudson Road. The first regular 
 fair of the societj' was held September 1 , 2 and 
 3, 1859, and was in ever}^ respect a first-class 
 exhibition, both in point of display and at- 
 tendance, netting its projectors some $600 over 
 and above expenses. In addition to the usual 
 list of premiums offered for cattle, horses and 
 other farm stock, agricultural and mechanical 
 products, domestic manufactures, etc., especial 
 encouragement was given to matters pertaining 
 to the turf, many local celebrities in the way of 
 high and fast steppers being attracted thither. 
 The managers, however, failing to secure the 
 attendance of the intended " bis card " — the 
 
 then greatest of American trotters, Flora Tem- 
 ple — for the regular fiiir, arranged for a meet- 
 ing on the 28th day of October, the same year, 
 at which that renowned animal was pitted 
 against another reputed very fast nag, " Ike 
 Cook." The weather proved to be unpropitious 
 and the track heav}^, but though the attendance 
 was meager, the match came off on time, the 
 Beacon of November 2 recording the result as 
 follows : "Flora Temple, 1, 2, 1 ; Ike Cook, 2, 
 1, 2. Time — First heat, 2.28 ; second heat, 
 2.34 ; third heat, 2.33. This enterprise proved 
 a losing venture, absorbing nearly, if not quite, 
 all the profits of the September fair. Again in 
 1860, September 5, 6 and 7, the regular annual 
 fair of the society was held, also being reason- 
 ably successful, though little more, if any, than 
 paying the running expenses. The third an- 
 nual fair was held upon the grounds of the 
 society September 23, 24 and 25, 1861. The 
 war of the rebellion was then upon us. and 
 military displays at local fairs became very 
 popular. The show was a very fine one, but 
 the attendance was small, except on the last day. 
 the military display' and competition drawing 
 together quite a large crowd. There were pres- 
 ent the Bath Guards, Capt. Schoonover; the 
 Buckeye Guards, of Copley, Capt. Sackett ; 
 and the Cowles Tiger Zouaves, from Bedford,. 
 Cuyahoga County ; the latter, however, a very 
 fine company, being excluded from competition 
 for the prize by reason of being one member 
 short of the required number. After a drill 
 of thirty minutes each, the first prize, a silk 
 flag, was awarded to the Bath Guards, and the 
 second, a worsted flag, was awarded to the Cop- 
 ley Guards. At the conclusion of the drill, 
 a fantastic cavalry company, consisting of some 
 seventy-five or eighty horsemen (representing 
 the secesh army), came upon the grounds, and 
 after skirmishing around awhile, to the infinite 
 amusement of the crowd, were finally sur- 
 rounded, and the entire company taken pris- 
 oners, by the three companies of " regulars," 
 assisted by the Tallmadge Artillery, Capt. 
 Baimes, and the Young America Gun Squad, 
 of Cuyahoga Falls, who performed the batter}- 
 service of the occasion. The military and a 
 large number of invited guests were given a 
 free dinner upon the grounds, by the members 
 of the society and the citizens of Cuyahoga 
 Falls, and vicinity. Though a success as a 
 show, this third fair was a financial unsuccess, 
 
 ^" 
 
-1^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 207 
 
 the receipts being less tlian the disbursements, 
 and war mattei's and other enterprises engaging 
 the attention of its promoters, no further meet- 
 ings were held, and the affairs of the society 
 were closed. 
 
 The writer trusts that no apology is needed 
 from him for the space devoted to the subject 
 of the Agricultural Societ}' matters of Summit 
 County. A careful perusal of the foregoing 
 pages not onl^^ forcibly illustrates the value of 
 harmony and unity of purpose, in all efforts to 
 
 promote the public welfare, but also clearly 
 shows the inestimable worth of such associa- 
 tions, as educators of the people, not alone in 
 matters of husbandry, manufactures and sim- 
 ilar sciences, but also in a social and moral 
 point of view ; for who does not acknowledge 
 the benign influences arising from the friendly 
 mingling together of the masses of the people 
 from time to time, in such pleasant and cheer- 
 ful gatherings as the annual fairs of the Summit 
 Count}^ Agricultural Societ}' have grown to l)e. 
 
 CHAPTER IL* 
 
 THE EARLY INHABITANTS— A CLASSIFICATION OF TIIK M()UNl)-15UILDEliS' WORKS — rKE-HlSTOHlC 
 
 OCCUPATION AND REMAINS OF SUMMIT COUNTV— SKETCHES OF THE INDIAN TRIBES 
 
 — CUVAHOGA VALLEY INDIANS DUItlNd THE BORDER AVAIIS. 
 
 "Fought eye to eye, and hand to hand, 
 
 Alas! 'twas but to die! 
 In vain the rifle's deadlj^ flash 
 Scorched eagle plume and wampum sash — 
 
 The hatchet liissed on high ; 
 And down they fell in crhnsou heaps 
 Like the ripe corn the sickle reaps." 
 
 I^i the remote past ages of life upon the earth, 
 at a period that lies wholly within the prov- 
 ince of conjecture, and upon which the light of 
 sleepless inquiry fails to fall, a strange and 
 semi-civilized people, whose origin, customs 
 and final fate are enshrouded in comparative 
 obscurity, inhabited almost the entire territory 
 of the Western Continent. All attempts to un- 
 ravel the mysterj^ enveloping their peculiar 
 lives meet with an uncompromising rebuff, save 
 where the fast-decaying remnants of their works 
 cast a feeble ray of light on the otherwise im- 
 penetrable darkness. The first thought that 
 enters the mind of the antiquarian in this de- 
 partment of research, is, Whence originated 
 this peculiar people ? So far, no satisfactory 
 answer has been reached. Though many emi- 
 nent men have devoted the best years of their 
 lives in endeavoring to discover the origin of 
 man, or, more specifically, the origin of the 
 Mound-Builders, yet no word of encourage- 
 ment comes fi'om the past to cheer on the pa- 
 tient, tireless worker. Accepting the Mosaic 
 account of the creation, we are led to believe 
 that the Mound-Builders were the lineal de- 
 scendants of Adam. When they came to 
 
 *Co!itributcdby W. A. Goodspoed. 
 
 America, or how, does not alter the significance 
 and unquestionable correctness of the statement. 
 There were but two persons — Adam and Eve — 
 created, and from them, if we accept the record 
 of Moses, have sprung all the countless hosts 
 that have ever peopled the earth. If the Mosaic 
 account of man's origin be rejected, we are still 
 in darkness, on the sea of conjecture, tossed b}- 
 the wild waves of doubt and unbelief, without 
 helm or compass and with no land in sight. This 
 perplexing situation is to be met, and what can 
 l3e said ? Is the race of man descended from 
 the lower animals, and through them as inter- 
 mediate states ? or did it spring as a separate 
 growth from the common mother of life — the 
 Earth ? Had all life, both animal and vegeta- 
 ble, a common origin, or was each species, of 
 whatever kind, created apart from its fellows ? 
 In either case, whence originated the primitive 
 germ or seed from which life first sprung ? 
 Was it created by a new condition or relation 
 of its composing elements — by a new relation 
 of the natural laws under which the elements 
 united and quickened into life ? In the proc- 
 ess of the development of natural laws, acting 
 under new conditions, upon the simple organic 
 and in-organic elements, did that remarkable 
 phenomenon occur, bj' which the primitive 
 germ of life was created. If so, why is not a 
 repetition of the creative process possible ? 
 Has the tide of evolution swept beyond the 
 point at which the conditions of elements and 
 relations could originate life ? Is it not true 
 
 i^ 
 
a1± 
 
 208 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 that spontaneous generation, at one stage of 
 evolution, miglit have been possible, and that 
 it also, at a later period, might have become 
 extinct from natural causes ? x\ll these ques- 
 tions are pertinent in discussing the origin of 
 the Mound-Builders ; but no detinite answer is 
 received, and even the manner and time of their 
 appearance upon this continent, by whatever 
 means, are problems for coming generations to 
 solve. The most interesting point to be deter- 
 mined regarding these people is. Whether they 
 were created originally in America, or are the 
 descendants of pre-historic Asiatics, who crossed 
 over by way of Behring's Straits. Neither side 
 of the question can be answered. The majority 
 of authorities agree in sa}- ing that the Indians 
 had no knowledge, traditional or otherwise, of 
 the Mound-Builders, except what was derived 
 from their works. They denied having any 
 knowledge of the erection of the approximate 
 10,000 mounds scattered throughout the State. 
 or of the limitless number scattered throughout 
 the continent. It is urged that, inasmuch as 
 the Indians kept no record of events, their mea- 
 ger and short-lived traditions could not cover 
 the lapse of time since the Mound-Builders' oc- 
 cupancy of the soil, and that possibly the 
 former were the descendants of the latter. On 
 the other hand, it seems probable that, if this be 
 true, the Indians would have some traditional 
 or other knowledge of the mounds, fortifica- 
 tions, sepulchers, templar structures and va- 
 rious species of implements, undoubtedly be- 
 longing to the earlier race. However, with few 
 exceptions, they profess utter ignorance. In 
 opposition to this view, it is claimed that the 
 Indians have deteriorated in mental power- 
 have lost the use of many arts, etc., known to 
 their alleged remote ancestors. And again, to 
 meet this, it is asserted that many centuries 
 elapsed from the Mound-Builders' period to the 
 Indians, thus precluding the idea that the latter 
 were their descendants. From their works is 
 derived all that we know of their history, hab- 
 its, modes of life, degree of civilization, knowl- 
 edge of the arts of peace and war, mental and 
 moral progress ; but their fate is wrapped in 
 darkness. Many of their mounds and other 
 earthworks have been found from time to time 
 in Summit County ; and so much interest has 
 been aroused regarding this almost unknown 
 race of people, and so much light thrown b}^ 
 patient labor upon their m3'stei"ious lives, that 
 
 a brief statement will here be given of the prog- 
 ress that has been made in this branch of 
 archaeological research, before entering upon 
 the description of the mounds in this county. 
 
 Of all States or countries of the same limit, 
 Ohio furnishes a greater number of earthworks, 
 supposed to have been erected by Mound- 
 Builders, than any other. The extent, variety, 
 magnitude and labyrinthian intricacy of the 
 Ohio mounds have rendered them of great value 
 to antiquarians, who have come in pursuit of 
 knowledge from distant parts of the globe. 
 Here may be seen the perishing remains of 
 gigantic artificial structures, that reared their 
 summits high in the air, long years before the 
 State was covered with its present qualit}' of 
 timber, and unknown 3' ears before the Indians' 
 occupancy of the soil. These structures, or 
 mounds, have been properly divided into mounds 
 proper, effigies and iuclosures. Mounds proper 
 have been subdivided into sepulchral, templar, 
 sacrificial, memorial and observatory. Effigies 
 are animal, emblematic and symbolical. Iu- 
 closures are military, covered or sacred.* The 
 greater portion of the above works were con- 
 structed of earth, a few of stone, and fewer 
 still of earth and stone combined. Sepulchral 
 mounds are usuall}' conical, and some of them, 
 notwithstanding the lapse of time, are seventy 
 feet in height. Tliey are more numerous than 
 any other class, and beyond doubt were erected 
 as memorials to the dead. The}' always con- 
 tain one or more skeletons, together with im- 
 plements and ornaments supposed to have been 
 placed there when the individual was buried, 
 for use in the Spirit Land. The mounds are 
 of all sizes, and it has been conjectured that 
 their magnitude bears some relation to the 
 prominence of the persons in whose honor they 
 were erected. Ashes and cliarcoal are often 
 found in proximity to the skeletons, under con- 
 ditions which render it probable that fires were 
 used in the burial ceremony. With the skel- 
 etons are also found specimens of mica, pot- 
 tery, bone and copper beads, and animal bones. 
 Though in this class of mounds, ordinarily but 
 one skeleton is found, yet sometimes several 
 are unearthed. A few years ago, a mound, sit- 
 uated in Licking County, was opened, and 
 found to contain, in whole or in part, seventeen 
 skeletons. But the most noteworthy of all the 
 mounds was one in Hardin Count}', which con- 
 
 *Isaac Smucker, in Ohio Statistics. 
 
^_ 
 
 HISTOEY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 209 
 
 tained 300 crumbling skeletons. Col. Whittle- 
 sey and others, however, entertained the opin- 
 ion that they belonged to the Indians, who had 
 used the mounds for burial purposes. Templar 
 mounds are few in number, and are ordinarily 
 circular. They are invariably truncated, and 
 are often surrounded with embankments, in- 
 clined planes or spiral pathways or steps, lead- 
 ing to the summit. They are found round, 
 square, oblong, oval and octangular, and rest 
 generally upon a large base, but have a lim- 
 ited altitude. It is supposed that these eleva- 
 tions were surmounted with wooden temples, 
 all traces of which have been removed by the 
 ravages of time. These mounds and the build- 
 ings at their summits are thought to have been 
 erected for religious purposes. Sacrificial 
 mounds are ordinaril}' stratified, with convex 
 layers of claj- and loam above a stratum of 
 sand. Thej' generally contain ashes, charcoal, 
 igneous stones, calcined animal bones, beads, 
 stone implements, pottery and specimens of 
 I'ude sculpture. They are often found within 
 inclosures, which are supposed to have been 
 connected with the religious ceremonies of the 
 Mound-Builders. Altars of igneous clay or 
 stone are often found. Evidences of fire upon 
 the altars A^et remain, showing that various ani- 
 mals and probably human beings were immo- 
 lated to secure the favor of the Great Spirit. 
 These mounds infrequently contain skeletons, 
 together with implements of war ; mica from 
 the Alleghanies ; shells from the Gulf of Mex- 
 ico ; difTerentl}- colored varieties of obsidian ; 
 red, purple and green specimens of porph3-ry ; 
 and silver, copper and other metallic ornaments 
 and utensils. Mounds of observation were ap- 
 parentl}- designed for alarm-towers ■ or signal 
 stations. Some writers have fancied that they 
 " occur in chains, or regulai systems, and that 
 many of them still bear traces of the beacon 
 fires that were once burning upon them." They 
 are often found built like towers from the sum- 
 mits of embankments surrounding inclosures. 
 One of the latter, in Licking County, has a 
 height of twenty-five feet. " Along the Miami 
 River," says Judge Force, " are dotted small 
 mounds or projecting highlands, which seem to 
 have been built to carry intelligence by signals 
 along the valley." Memorial mounds are of 
 that class of ^(/Hn/7/ intended to commemorate 
 some important event, or to perpetuate the 
 memory of some distinguished character. Most 
 
 of the stone mounds belong to this class, and 
 usually contain no bones, for the supposed rea- 
 son that they were used only for sepulchers. 
 They are thought to correspond in design with 
 the Bunker Hill Monument, and with the beau- 
 tiful marble column on the field of Gettysburg. 
 Eflfigies are elevations of earth in the form of 
 men, beasts, birds, reptiles and, occasionally, of 
 inanimate objects, varying in height from one 
 foot to six feet above the surrounding soil, 
 and often covering many acres of land. Mr. 
 Schoolcraft expresses the belief that this class 
 of mounds was designed for "totems" or tribu- 
 lar symbols ; while Prof Daniel Wilson and 
 other writers of distinction entertain the opin- 
 ion that the}^ were erected in accordance with 
 the religious belief of the various tribes of 
 Mound-Builders, who worshiped, or in some 
 way venerated, the animals or objects repre- 
 sented by the elevations. A large mound near 
 Newark represents a bird of enormous size, 
 with its wings outspread in the act of flight. 
 Its total length is about 200 feet. An excava- 
 tion in. this efflg}' disclosed a clay and stone 
 altar, upon which were evidences of fire, to- 
 gether with ashes and charcoal. The sur- 
 roundings indicated that the altar had been 
 used for sacrificial offerings. It is called "Eagle 
 Mound " from its fancied resemblance to that 
 bird. Another mound near Newark repre- 
 sents a huge alligator, having a total length 
 of 200 feet. Prof Wilson believes that it 
 "symbolizes some object of special awe and 
 veneration, thus reared on one of the chief 
 'high places' of the nation, with its accompanj-- 
 ing altar, upon which these ancient people of 
 the valley could witness the celebration of the 
 rites of their worship, its site having been ob- 
 viousl}' selected as the most prominent feature 
 in a populous district abounding witli militarj'. 
 civic and religious structures." The greatest 
 breadth of the bodj' is twenty feet, and its 
 bod}' from hind legs to fore legs is fifty feet. 
 Each limb is twent3'-five feet long. The prin- 
 cipal portions of the animal are elevated about 
 six feet, wliile other portions are much lower. 
 The most remarkable mound in Ohio is in 
 Adams County. Its form is that of an enor- 
 mous serpent, more than a thousand feet in 
 length, with body in graceful, anfractuos folds, 
 and tail ending in triple coils. The greatest 
 width of the bodj' is thirty feet, and the effigy 
 is elevated about five feet above the surround- 
 
 :fz 
 
^1 
 
 , — i' u^ 
 
 210 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY. 
 
 ing soil " The neck of the figure," saj^s the 
 American Cyclopedia, " is stretched out and 
 slightly curved, and the mouth is opened wide, 
 as if in the act of swallowing or ejecting an 
 oval figure, which rests partly within the dis- 
 tended jaws. The combined figure has been 
 regarded by some as a representation of the 
 oriental cosmological idea of the serpent and 
 the egg.' 
 
 Defensive inclosures are irregular in form, and 
 are always on high ground, in positions dififl- 
 cult to approach b}^ a savage foe. "The walls," 
 sa3-s the American Cyclopedia, " generally wind 
 ax'ound the borders of the elevations they occu- 
 py, and when the natui'e of the ground renders 
 some points more accessible than others, the 
 height of the wall and the depth of the ditch 
 at these weak points are proportionally in- 
 creased. The gateways are narrow and few in 
 number, and well guarded by embankments of 
 earth placed a few j-ards inside of the openings 
 or gateways, and parallel with them, and pro- 
 jecting somewhat be^'ond them at each end, 
 thus fully covering the entrances, which, iu some 
 cases, are still further protected by projecting 
 walls on either side. These works are some- 
 what numerous, and indicate a clear apprecia- 
 tion of, at least, the elements of fortification, 
 and unmistakably point out the purpose for 
 which they were constructed. A large num- 
 ber of these defensive woi'ks consist of a line 
 of ditches and embankments, or several lines, 
 carried across the neck of peninsulas or bluff 
 headlands, formed within the bends of streams 
 — an easy and obvious mode of fortification 
 common to all rude peoples." The embank- 
 ments of one of this class in Warren County 
 are nearly four miles in length, varying in 
 height from ten to twenty feet to accord with 
 the locality to be protected, and inclose several 
 hundred acres. Covered ways or parallel walls 
 are often found, either connecting diflTerent in- 
 closures or portions of the same. The}' were 
 undoubtedly designed to protect those passing 
 back and forth within. There are large num- 
 bers of sacred inclosures in the form of circles, 
 squares, hexagons, octagons, ellipses, parallelo- 
 grams and others, many of which were designed 
 with surprising geometrical accuracy. They 
 are sometimes found within military inclosures, 
 and very likely were connected with the relig- 
 ious rites and ceremonies of the people, as small 
 elevations are found within them, which were 
 
 evidently used for altars, upon which sacrifices 
 of various kinds were offered. Some archiBolo- 
 gists maintain that many of the so-called sacred 
 inclosures were intended and used for national 
 games and celebrations, and it is probable that 
 those without the altar were used as such. 
 
 The mounds and their contents afllbrd abun- 
 dant opportunity to speculate as to the charac- 
 ter and customs of the ancient people, of whom 
 notliins; is left save their crumblins; habitation?. 
 They were a numerous people, as is clearly 
 proved by the magnitude and elaboration of 
 their works. Their presence here, beyond ques- 
 tion, antedates the coming of Columbus, and 
 very probabl}' extends back a thousand years or 
 more. Perhaps a majority of intelligent men 
 who have made the subject a stud}', place the 
 Mound- Builders' period back to that of the 
 Egyptians, Assyrians and Babylonians — to a 
 period two or three or more thousand years be- 
 fore the Christian era. Many interesting and 
 important considerations, too lengthy to be 
 narrated here, have been discovered in com- 
 paring the customs of the Mound-Builders with 
 those of ancient nations in the East. An un- 
 accountable similarity is found in religion, in 
 the arts of war and peace, in character and 
 quality of habitations, in methods of agricul- 
 ture, in domestic alfairs, and in many other essen- 
 tial particulars. The Mound-Builders were un- 
 questionably subservient to rulers, or superiors, 
 who had power to enforce the erection of gigan- 
 tic structures, which, considering the semi- 
 barbarous condition of the people, their lack of 
 suitable implements of labor, and their imper- 
 fect and insufficient knowledge of mechanical 
 principles, are surprisingly vast in extent and 
 ingenious in design. Their works indicate that 
 the people were warlike ; that they were famil- 
 iar with many mathematical and mechanical 
 rules ; that they were religious and probably 
 idolatrous ; that they were skilled in the man- 
 ufactui'e of bone and metnllic ornaments and 
 pottery ; that they had attained no little degree 
 of perfection in the working of metals ; and 
 that they were essentially homogeneous in cus- 
 toms, pursuits, religion and government. They 
 of necessity were an agricultural people, being 
 too numerous to live by the chase alone. They 
 offered burnt and other sacrifices and oblations, 
 to both good and bad spirits. Dr. Foster says 
 they worshiped the elements, such as fire, air 
 and water — also the sun, moon and stars, and 
 
 ~^ 
 
 =1^ 
 
^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 211 
 
 offered human sacrifices to the gods the}' wor- 
 shiped. Yet many of these views are specu- 
 lative, and have but little substantial evidence 
 upon which to rest. Authorities are widely at 
 variance in their views. But little can ever be 
 known of the history of these people, yet 
 throughout all the future, the civilized world 
 will look with awe upon the decaying remnants 
 of their works, and weave the bright fabric of 
 romance about their mysterious lives. 
 
 This much has been given on the authority, 
 among others, of Schoolcraft, Wilson, Pidgeon, 
 Smucker, the American Cyclopedia and others, 
 to prepare the way for the classification and 
 detailed description of the ancient earth and 
 stone works in this county. While almost every 
 township can boast of the presence of these 
 works within its limits, 3'et they are found in 
 greatest number and magnitude along the val- 
 Ic}' of the Cuyahoga K-iver, or on the adjacent 
 highlands. It not infrequently happened that 
 Indian villages were built on the sites of these 
 ancient works, and care must be used to pre- 
 vent confounding Indian earthworks with those 
 of the Mound-Builders. A few of the princi- 
 pal mounds and inclosures in the county have 
 l)een personally' inspected by the writer, and 
 these and all others of sufficient importance 
 will be described. The inclosures usually oc- 
 cupy naturall}^ strong, defensive positions, and, 
 where necessary, are formed by earth embank- 
 ments, varying in altitude and basal diameter, 
 and protected on the outer side by a deep pit 
 or moat. On the farm of Milton Arthur, Esq., 
 Northfield Township, is an ancient earth forti- 
 fication, of which the following description is 
 given by Charles Whittlesey : " The engineers 
 who selected the site of this fortitication un- 
 derstood very well the art of turning natural 
 advantages to good account. Wh}' they did 
 not embrace in their plan the whole of the level 
 space on the crest of the blutf is not easil}' ex- 
 plained, unless we presume that their numbers 
 were few, and not sufficient to defend the 
 whole. On all sides, the gullies are from eighty 
 to one hundred and ten feet deep, and are worn 
 by running water into the blue and yellow 
 hard-pan that here forms the bluffs along the 
 Cuyahoga River. The earth is as steep as it 
 will stand, and, in fact, is subject to slides, which 
 leave the soil in terraces, resembling platforms 
 made by art. Before the ground was cultivated, 
 the ditches are said by the owner to have been 
 
 so deep that a man standing in them could not 
 look over the wall. In the gully on the north, 
 the water is permanent at all seasons. But the 
 ancient inhabitants appear to have dug wells 
 within the fort at two or more points, and these, 
 as stated by old settlers, were stoned up like 
 our wells. On the western face of the bluff, 
 near where the road descends, is a small spring, 
 not reliable at all seasons. There are double 
 earth embankments on each exposed side of 
 the fortification, though they do not extend en- 
 tirely across the necks of land, there being in 
 two or three cases a small space left at the ends, 
 apparentl}' for a passage-way. There is one 
 small mound within the inclosure, and another 
 just without. The approach is along a sharp 
 I'idge, called a hog's back, nearly broad enough 
 for a single road track, for the distance of thirty 
 rods, and the sides are as steep as any part of 
 the bluffs adjacent. It is not very evident why 
 a few rods of ground were cut off by lines at 
 the southwest angle, nor why part of the ditch 
 was made on the inside on the north and west." 
 It must be observed that inclosures of this 
 character in the county are formed by an earth 
 embankment and a moat or ditch running along 
 its side, sometimes within and sometimes with- 
 out the fort. There are two or more others in 
 Northfield, similar in construction to the one 
 described. One of these is protected on one 
 side by a steep declivity, while on the exposed 
 sides is a semi-circular embankment in the 
 form of the curved portion of the letter D. 
 Near the residence of John Hovey, in Northamp- 
 ton, is a fort which, in early years, must have 
 been one of the finest in the county. The em- 
 bankment inclosed several acres, and was five 
 or six feet in height, and near the walls were 
 sevei'al low mounds, and small circular excava- 
 tions, apparently designed for arrow pits. The 
 walls can still be traced, although they have 
 been plowed over many 3ears. Several small 
 forts are to be seen in JBoston Township. There 
 are mounds at the fai-ms of Ambrose Bliss, 
 Mr. Wetmore, James Fairweather, Mr. McKay, 
 and the old farm of Watrous Mather. These 
 are usually some five or six feet in height, and 
 twenty or twenty-five feet in diameter at the 
 base. Several have been opened, but nothing 
 noteworthy was discovered. In the western 
 part of Northampton Township, where Hale 
 Run and Furnace Run come quite close to- 
 gether, is perhaps the most important fortifica- 
 
 i|v 
 
(2_ 
 
 212 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 tion of the kind in the county. The streams 
 approach each other, and form a steep, narrow 
 ridge, barely wide enough for the passage of a 
 wagon. This ridge descends some ten feet l:)e- 
 low the mainland, to which it is connected, and 
 extends about fifteen rods, when it gradually 
 assumes a width of some ten rods, and, finally, 
 after a distance of perhaps eighty rods from 
 the mainland is reached, the blutf terminates 
 perpendicularly- to the railroad track. When 
 the ridge begins to widen, it ascends until on a 
 level with the mainland. Beyond the neck or 
 ridge, the summit of the bluff consists of about 
 eight acres, and at the eastern extremity, where, 
 on all sides except the western, the bluff ter- 
 minates as abruptly as the soil will rest, is a 
 well-defined earth fortification. Back toward 
 the mainland, at a distance to leave at the ex- 
 tremity of the bluff about five acres, an unusually 
 large earth embankment, with its ditch, extends 
 across the ridge at right angles to its course. 
 The embankment is much larger than an}' other 
 seen by the writer in the county, and at each 
 end is an open space, evidenth' designed as a 
 passage. On both sides of these two open 
 spaces, are perhaps fifteen small circular exca- 
 vations, arranged so as to guard the passages, 
 and seemingly intended for arrow pits. The 
 embankment is four or five rods in length, and 
 on the side toward the extremity of the bluff, 
 several of the supposed arrow pits are found 
 at a considerable distance from the open spaces. 
 In fact, proceeding from the embankment to- 
 ward the termination of the bluff, it becomes at 
 once apparent that arrow pits Avere dug along 
 the edge of the bluflf, to defend the position 
 from an assaulting foe, that might make the 
 eflTort to ascend the steep sides. At the eastern 
 end of the bluff, within a small area, are some 
 fifteen or twenty more arrow pits, one of them 
 being about eight feet across and three feet 
 deep. This is one of the strongest positions of 
 the kind in the county. 
 
 In the same neighborhood are several other 
 forfs, two of them being small with quite high, 
 irregular walls, which seem to be strengthened 
 by Ijastions, though William Hale and others 
 reject this idea as improbable. These inclos- 
 ures comprise from two to five square rods of 
 land, and the interior has the appearance, as if 
 a party of men, with spades, had thrown up 
 the irregular embankment, leaving the surface 
 extremel}' uneven. There are, also, in the 
 
 same neighborhood, in a cultivated field, eight 
 mounds, one of them, over which the plow has 
 run for many years, being four feet high and 
 eighty feet in diameter at the base. This is 
 said to have been over eight feet high in early 
 years. An Indian skeleton, in a fair state of 
 preservation, was unearthed a number of 3'ears 
 ago on the summit about two feet below the 
 surface. An excavation was made to the cen- 
 ter of this mound, and a small quantit}' of 
 crumbled and crumbling bones was found. 
 William Hale, who was present at the time, 
 states that the bones were found in a position 
 to lead to the inference that the party or parties 
 were buried in a sitting posture, as the bones 
 of the body, save those of the arms and legs, 
 were together, while the latter extended out 
 into the sandy soil like lines of chalk. Tlie 
 remains, when found, were sufficiently well pre- 
 served to prove beyond doubt that they were 
 bones, though whether they were human bones 
 or not is another question, not quite so well 
 cleared up. The evidence satisfied all present, 
 however, that the remains were those of human 
 beings. The other seven mounds are not quite 
 so large, and those which have been opened 
 contained nothing of importance. It is thought 
 that the large mound contained the crumbling 
 bones of more than one person. The quantity 
 found, and its state of preservation, would 
 lead to this view. One of the small, irregular 
 forts referred to above and found in this neigii- 
 borhood on quite low land, has a double wall 
 on the side adjoining the river. Another in- 
 closure near this, but on high land, is an irregu- 
 lar octagon in shape, and comprises over half 
 an acre of land. William Hale's residence is 
 situated in a small valley, which, in his opinion, 
 was once a cultivated field. At the earliest 
 settlement, the land was covered with a heavy 
 forest ; but, when this was removed and the 
 soil turned up by the plow, various implements 
 were found, among which were arrow and spear 
 heads ; fleshing instruments of flint ; pestles 
 and mortars ; a small, smooth, hard, flat stone, 
 shaped like a diamond, with the central portion 
 elongated and perforated with a hole near each 
 end, supposed to have been used in weaving a 
 coarse cloth; and a rough, irregular stone, six 
 or eight inches in diameter, flat on two sides, 
 on one of which were from one to six artificial 
 holes, about an inch deep and an inch and a 
 half across, the use of which is extremely diffi- 
 
)^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 213 
 
 cult to determine. Many of these various liinds 
 are found a few rods north of Botzurn Sta- 
 tion, on the extremity of a blutf, through which 
 the railroad cut has been made, in an Indian 
 burying-ground. It comprises about an acre of 
 land, and some forty skeletons, the most of 
 which were in a fair state of preservation, have 
 been unearthed, and many more are yet in the 
 ground. They were first discovered in 1843, 
 when an addition made to the canal disclosed 
 several at the point of the bluff. When the 
 r.'iilroad was cut through the center of this 
 burying-ground, thirt}' or forty skeletons wei'e 
 plowed out in almost as many minutes. They 
 were lying in somewhat irregular rows, which 
 extended north and south, v.'hile the individ- 
 uals la}- with their heads some to the east and 
 some to the west. There were skeletons of 
 males and females, and perhaps one-third of 
 these belonged to children. Many crumbled 
 to pieces immediatel}' ; but quite a number of 
 skulls and some of the larger bones were pre- 
 served for several years — are perhaps in exist- 
 ence yet. The soil where each skeleton lay, 
 was discolored — was black — and in one of the 
 graves was found a stone kettle, four inches 
 deep and eight inches across. Various imple- 
 ments have been found in the soil and on the 
 surface. The skeletons were lying about two 
 feet beneath the surface. The teeth were as 
 sound and white, apparently, as when their 
 owners used them. Ver}' likely many of the 
 owners of these skeletons had been killed dur- 
 ing the latter part of the last century, b}' dar- 
 ing borderers from Virginia and Penns^dvania. 
 Perhaps the grandfathers of those who assisted 
 in unearthing these skeletons, were among 
 these borderers. Probably the most important 
 earth inclosure in the county, is in Copley 
 Township, near the residence of Delos Bosworth. 
 In the center of a swamp of muck and marl 
 and partially formed peat, is a circular island 
 about twenty-five rods across, which is elevated 
 from five to fifteen feet above the surface of 
 the swamp. There is no natural approach to 
 this island. It is surrounded on all sides by 
 twenty or thirty rods of what, in earl}^ years, 
 must have been an impassable swamp. On 
 this island and almost covering it, is an artifi- 
 cial inclosure of earth. The embankment is 
 about two feet high, and the ditch is on the 
 outside. There are twelve or fifteen openings 
 in the wall, and a causeway of earth leads from 
 
 these across the ditch, down to the edge of the 
 swamp. In some places, as on the south, a 
 distance of three or four rods lies from the 
 swamp to the edge of the wall ; but usually 
 the distance is much smaller, and in some cases 
 is reduced to a minimum. Supposing the sui-- 
 rounding swamp to have been extremely wet 
 and nasty (a Saxon word), as it must have 
 been at an early day, the position was practi- 
 cally impregnable. The island is covered with 
 large trees, mostly hard maple, and no critical 
 and extended examination has 3'et been made 
 of the soil and what it contains. Within the 
 inclosui'e may be seen numerous small mounds, 
 but these may have been thrown up b}' trees 
 that were blown down. Several of these have 
 been opened without any important discover}-. 
 The mainland approaches closest on the east 
 side, and here is a large gateway in the em- 
 bankment. A goodly number of arrow-heads 
 have been picked up on the point of mainland 
 closest to the fort. This island is called " Fort 
 Island." and a short distance south of it is an- 
 other called " Beech Island." On the southern 
 extremity of the last, are a great number of 
 small mounds which Gen. Bierce conceives to 
 be Indians' or Mound-Builders' graves. The 
 writer does not concur in this view, but refers 
 their formation to natural causes, or to beavers. 
 Several have been opened, but nothing was 
 found. Just south of Botzurn Station is a 
 very large mound, some thirty feet in height, 
 and about a hundred feet in diameter at the 
 base. Tliis was opened a few years ago by 
 students from Akron, but nothing was discov- 
 ered, save evidence from the soil to prove that 
 the mound was a natural formation. Tbe soil 
 was found to be similar to that of the adjacent 
 bluffs, and dissimilar to that in the valley where 
 the mound stands. Three hundred yards west 
 is a very large mound, having a truncated sum- 
 mit. This is connected by a low ridge with 
 the main formation of bluffs, and, in the opin- 
 ion of the writer, the other mound was once 
 similarly connected to this one, the whole form- 
 ing a bluff-projection into the valley. The 
 following is kindly furnished by J. M. Mc- 
 Creery, of Akron : •' On the land of Thomas 
 Barnes, in Norton Township, the conglomerate 
 sandstone rises into a very high knob, and 
 from the top a view may be had of the country 
 beyond Cuyahoga Falls in one direction, and of 
 that nine miles across the Tuscarawas Vallev 
 
 ■fv" 
 
 T 
 
214 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 in the other, while the view north and south is 
 ahnost as extended. At the time Mr. Barnes' 
 father settled on this farm, some sixt^-five or 
 seventy 3'ears ago, there was a mound built of 
 " hardheads" on the highest point of this knob. 
 It was about ten feet long and eight feet wide, 
 and, although some of the top stones had 
 fallen or been thrown down, it was still about 
 three feet high. A chestnut tree, twelve or 
 fourteen inches in diameter, was growing at 
 one corner, and in its growth had thrown the 
 corner down. There seems to be but little 
 doubt, that this elevated point was nsed as a 
 signal station, as a fire on its summit could be 
 seen farther than from an}" other point for 
 miles around, though whether this is Mound- 
 Builders' work, or that of the Indians, is diffi- 
 cult to determine. Owing to the scarcity of 
 ' hardheads,' or cobble-stones, in the vicinity, 
 the building of this mound was quite a labori- 
 ous task." Mr. McCreery also says : " Near 
 Turkey -Foot Lake, are two very singular works, 
 which are different from any I have ever seen 
 elsewhere. They are funnel-shaped depres- 
 sions, some ten or twelve feet across the top 
 and eight or nine feet deep, running to a point 
 at the bottom. They are walled around with 
 small bowlders, and unless they were used for 
 fire pits, I am unable to imagine any use to 
 which they could have been put, as the stone 
 work is too loose to suppose thej' were intended 
 for cisterns." 
 
 The principal earthworks in the county have 
 now been described, though there are many 
 others which as yet are comparativel}' un- 
 known, and which some future searcher may 
 moi'e fully disclose. Quite a number of small 
 circular inclosures and insignificant mounds 
 other than those above described are found 
 throughout the county, more especially along 
 the valley of the Cuyahoga and on the adja- 
 cent bluffs. A special description of these is 
 unnecessar}', as they are ver}- similar in con- 
 struction to some of those referred to above. 
 So far as can be determined, all the inclosures 
 in the county belong to the military class. 
 None seem to have been used as sacred or cov- 
 ered. Some of the mounds are certainly sepul- 
 chral, and beyond question some were me- 
 morial. Those containing bones were sepul- 
 chers, wherein were deposited the bodies of dis- 
 tinguished characters, while those without 
 bones and without any evidences that they 
 
 once contained bones are probably memorial 
 mounds. The ancient inhabitants had no need 
 to erect mounds of observation in this count}^, 
 as high bluffs in prominent positions furnished 
 abundant natural facilities for watchfulness 
 over a wide scope of country. There are sev- 
 eral places in the county — as at Turkey' Foot 
 Lake, at the gigantic truncated mound near 
 Botzurn Station, at the elevated inclosure in 
 northwestern Northampton and at various 
 other places along the Cuyahoga and through- 
 out the county — where, beyond doubt, fires 
 were kindled in ancient times. The stones 
 found at these places reveal this fact, and in 
 some cases ashes and charcoal have been dis- 
 covered. Of course, it is highly probable that 
 the Indians, and not the mound builders, 
 might have kindled these fires, and possibl}' 
 erected some of the earthworks. Indian vil- 
 lages were often found on the site of these 
 ancient works, and it is to be presumed that 
 some alterations were made. It is often diffi- 
 cult, and sometimes impossible, to distinguish 
 the individual works of these two people, yet in 
 general no difficulty is experienced by persons 
 well informed on the subject. 
 
 It is impossible and unnecessary to give a 
 description of all the ancient implements, orna- 
 ments and utensils that have been found in the 
 county. They are numbered by the thousand, 
 and include all the varieties of stone axes, 
 mauls, hammers, celts, mortars, pestles, flint 
 arrow and spear heads, fleshing and skinning 
 instruments, ceremonial stones, shuttles, col- 
 ored slate ornaments, breast-plates of stone or 
 shell, ornamental charms and totems, shell or- 
 naments, rude and imperfect specimens of pot- 
 ter}', bone and metallic ornaments, igneous 
 stones, and a multitude more of all sizes and 
 shapes, whose uses are unknown. In April, 
 1877, there was found buried in muck, about 
 three miles west of Akron, a heap of one hun- 
 dred and ninety-seven flint instruments. Of 
 these, one hundred and eighty-five were evi- 
 dentl}' designed for arrow and spear heads, 
 though the usual notches at one end are lack- 
 ing. They are probably unfinished ari-ow and 
 spear heads. They may be seen in the museum 
 of the cit}" library at Akron. The various im- 
 plements, ornaments, etc., just referred to, evi- 
 dently belonged partly to the Indian and 
 partly to the Mound Builder. It may be that 
 both races used the same implements, as it is 
 
 ■^FH 
 
;1^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 215 
 
 quite likel}- that the Indian would learn some- 
 thing from the scattered remnants of the 
 Mound Builders' works. Will the history of 
 this strange people ever be known ? Can re- 
 search ever clear up the mystery of their origin 
 and fate ? Who can sa}- what the human mind 
 will accomplish ? May not the evolution of 
 tliought into new and numerous fields so widen 
 the human understanding tliat existing evi- 
 dences may be sufficient to disperse the gloom 
 enveloping the origin of man ? If the theory 
 of evolution be true, and man is spared upon 
 the earth, who can measure the final result ? 
 the children of men will come and go upon the 
 earth ; imitated ideals will become loftier ; ex- 
 cellence in all the arts of mind and spirit will 
 be attained ; limitless intelligence will assume 
 startling forms of power and penetration ; 
 boundless wisdom will lead to prophecy ; 
 prophecy perfected will become a science, by 
 which past and future will be blotted out, and 
 time be measured b}^ the present ; new and 
 wonderful taculties of mind will be created by 
 the developing laws of evokition ; new percep- 
 tions and cognitions and emotions will open 
 Ijroad fields of beauty to the mind that before 
 were beyond the reach of human capabilities ; 
 man's capacity will be multiplied a thousand- 
 fold, and evidences will augment in a similar 
 degree ; mental conclusions will peer into the 
 sanctuarj' of creation, and the origin of life will 
 be reached. When this state is reached, the 
 history of the Mound Builders will be read as 
 in a book, but, if it be not reached, their origin 
 and fate will never be known until all mankind 
 shall stand face to face before the bar of God. 
 The Indian history of Summit County, though 
 somewhat meager as I'egards prominent events, 
 contains many interesting incidents, the princi- 
 pal of which will be recorded. In the 3'ear 
 l(Ji)U, the date at which the aboriginal history 
 of Northeastern Ohio begins, a tribe of Indians, 
 called the Eries, inhaliited that section of coun- 
 try.* How far their lands extended southward 
 from the lake is somewhat indefinite, although 
 it is probable that they included the greater 
 portion of Summit County, and, possibly, all 
 the soil within its present limits. It is gener- 
 ally admitted that the Eries were a member of 
 
 * I'e Witt Clintdn in hid Historical Discourse ii|)on tlie Imlians 
 of North America; Louis llciiiiepin, a Franciscan friar, whuse 
 travels in "New France" were piiblislicd in 1698; Brant, the Mo- 
 hawk chief, in a letter to Timothy Pick'jrinjr, November 20, 17a4, 
 and Charlevoix, the historian of " New France," all assign the 
 Kries or Erigas to the south shore of Lake Erie. 
 
 the Iroquois family, as distinguished from the 
 Algonquin tribes. At the date above given, 
 the Iroquois, consisting of the confederated 
 Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and 
 Senecas, occupied New York and Northern 
 Pennsylvania. These confederated tribes, called 
 the Five Nations, had formed their alliance as 
 early as 1605 ; and, so powerful had they be- 
 come, that their lands, acquired by conquest, 
 covered a large tract of country. When the 
 Tuscaroras were added to the alliance, the lat- 
 ter were styled the Six Nations. AH other 
 Northern tribes of Indians than those men- 
 tioned above were Algonquins. The leading 
 tribe of the latter was the Lenni Lenape, or 
 Delaware, whose traditions declare it to be the 
 parent stem whence other x\lgonquin tribes 
 have sprung. Other tribes of this family were 
 Wyandots, Ottawas, Shawanese, etc. The Iro- 
 quois, grown strong and arrogant b}' years of 
 confederated conquest, steadily enlarged their 
 lands from the spoils of conquered tribes. 
 About the middle of the seventeenth eentur}', 
 they drove, the Hurons or Wyandots from their 
 home in Canada, and took possession of their 
 lands. They likewise conquered the Neutral 
 Nation, the Andastes, the Satanas. or Shawanese, 
 and others. "In 1655, the}' turned against 
 their Erie brethren, and using their canoes as 
 scaling ladders, invaded the Erie strongholds, 
 leaping down like tigers among the defenders 
 and butchering them withohj. mere}'."* Those 
 that were not massacred or driven awa}-, were 
 adopted by the conquerors. So powerful had 
 the Iroquois become, that they conquered, with a 
 few exceptions, all the Indian tribes east of 
 the Mississippi. They thus came to own large 
 tracts of country, much of which was afterward 
 ceded by treaty to the colonies. In 1726, the\' 
 ceded their lands to England under certain 
 specified conditions, and from that time ceased 
 to occupy the arrogant position of conquering 
 tribes. After 1663, when the war broke out 
 between the Iroquois and the Canadian colo- 
 nists, the former could no longer continue their 
 conquests in Ohio, and several Indian tribes 
 hastened to occupy this beautiful country. In 
 1750, there were living in Ohio, among others, 
 the following Indian tribes : The Wyandots 
 (called Hurons by the French) ; the Delawares 
 and Shawanese (both members of the Algon- 
 
 *Histor)' of the Stat? 
 James W. Taylor. 
 
 of Ohio: Fir.^t Period, 1G50-1787, by 
 
^ 
 
 ® w- 
 
 216 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 quin group) ; the Miamis (also called Twig- 
 twees) ; the Mingoes (a branch of the Iroquois 
 or Six Nations), and the Ottawas and Chip- 
 pewas. The Wyandots occupied the countr}^ 
 in the vicinity of Sandusky River. The Dela- 
 wares were established on the Muskingum and 
 Tuscarawas Rivers, and at a few other points. 
 The Shawanese were chiefly' found on the Scioto 
 and Mad Rivers. The Miamis were on the 
 Great and Little Miami Rivers. The Mingoes 
 were in great force at Mingo Bottom, near Steu- 
 benville and at several other points in Ohio. 
 The Ottawas occupied the valleys of the Mau- 
 mee and Sandusky Rivers, and the Chippewas, 
 few in number, were confined to the southern 
 shore of Lake Erie. From 1750 to the war of 
 1812, these Indian tribes were found in differ- 
 ent portions of Ohio, and a great portion of the 
 time were engaged in border wars with the 
 daring pioneers. The history of these wars 
 would fill volumes. Parties of savages, dressed 
 in the spangled paraphernalia of war, would 
 hover about the settlements, and, when the ven- 
 turesome pioneers were off their guard, would 
 swoop down upon them, with horrid 3'ells, to 
 massacre and pillage and carry into hopeless 
 captivity, or for purposes of heart-rending tor- 
 ture. To punish the savages, bands of daring 
 borderers would make incursions into their 
 country, laying waste their homes and slaughter- 
 ing the inhabitants. Some of these Ohio tribes 
 were almost constantly at war with the whites 
 during the period mentioned. While members 
 of all the tribes mentioned above were found 
 in Ohio, only four tribes were, in numbers, 
 sufficient to merit a special sketch. These are 
 the Wyandots, Delawares, Shawanese and 
 Ottawas. 
 
 The Wyandots, as indicated by the idioms 
 and other characteristics of their language, were 
 related to the Iroquois, but about the middle of 
 the seventeenth century they embraced the re- 
 ligious faith of the Roman Catholics, and, for 
 some reason unknown, severed their connection 
 with their relatives, the Iroquois, and cast their 
 lot with the powerful Algonquins.* Their 
 original residence was in Canada, some author- 
 ities fixing their location on Georgian Bay, and 
 others, as Mr. Schoolcraft, on Montreal Island. 
 Their number is estimated to have been about 
 40,000 souls. Some time after this, the}^ be- 
 
 ♦From the American Cyclopedia the sketches of these four 
 Indian tribes have been taken. 
 
 came involved in a war with the Iroquois, by 
 whom they were nearly exterminated, after 
 which they removed first to Charity Island and 
 finally to Quebec. They were found south of 
 the great lakes, in 16G0, by some French trad- 
 ers, and, ten years later, having become in- 
 volved in a war with the powerful Sioux, they 
 removed to Michilimackinac, and were accom- 
 panied by Father Marquette. Afterward, they 
 established themselves at Detroit, their hunt- 
 ing-grounds extending into Northern Ohio. In 
 1778, remnants of the tribe were yet in Can- 
 ada, while that at Detroit was estimated to con- 
 tain about one hundred and eighty warriors. 
 In 1829, a small band of the tribe was located 
 in Michigan. They numbered about forty, and 
 were provided with annuities b}^ the Govern- 
 ment. Immediately after the war of 1812, the 
 principal portion of the Wyandots, numbering 
 about six hundred, was established on the San- 
 dusky River on a tract of land eighteen miles 
 long east and west, and twelve miles wide. In 
 1835, the Wyandots decided to sell a strip of 
 land five miles wide on the eastern border of 
 their reservation, and the land was accordingly 
 thrown into market, very likel}' through the in- 
 fluence of the whites, who coveted the pos- 
 sessions of the Indian. In 1843, the Wyan- 
 dots were transferred to Kansas, where they 
 have since resided, and the land of their reser- 
 vation was annexed to the adjoining counties. 
 The Shawanese are an erratic tribe of the 
 Algonquin family. A tradition of recent origin 
 makes them primarily one with the Kickapoo 
 nation ; but they moved eastward, and a part 
 are said to have remained, in 1648, along the 
 Fox River, while the main body was met south 
 of Lake Erie by the Iroquois, and was driven 
 to the Cumberland River. Some passed thence 
 to Florida and some to Carolina. One band 
 was in Pennsylvania at the close of the seven- 
 teenth century. Those in Florida lived at 
 peace with the Spaniards, and afterward be- 
 came known as Savannahs, or Yemassees. 
 These retired to the Creeks, and finally- joined 
 the Northern Shawanese. The Iroquois claimed 
 sovereignty over the Shawanese, and drove 
 them West. In 1731, they aided the French ; 
 but, in 1758, they sided with the English. They 
 joined the conspiracy of Pontiac, and were 
 active in war until subdued by Boquet. In 
 1774, enraged at the attacks of Col. Cresap, 
 they roused most of the Western tribes, and, in 
 
 *^ 
 
[iL 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 217 
 
 October, defeated the Virginians at Pleasant 
 Point, but sued for peace the following year. 
 Col. Bowman, who marched against them in 
 1779, was twice defeated. They joined the 
 peace of 1786 ; but took part in the Miami war, 
 in the campaigns against Harmar and St. Clair, 
 but were reduced by Gen. Wayne, and then 
 entered the peace treaty of 1795. The main 
 body was at this time on the Scioto ; but a few 
 had gone to Missouri, and another band had 
 moved South. During the war of 1812, urged 
 In^ Tecumseh and his brother, the Prophet, they 
 endeavored to unite the Western Indians 
 against the Americans ; but those in Ohio re- 
 mained faithful. The Missouri band ceded 
 their laud to the Government in 1825, and the 
 Ohio band in 1831. In 1854, the band of 
 Shawanese proper, living in that part of the 
 Indian Territory now included in Kansas, and 
 consisting of 1,600,000 acres, numbered 900 ; 
 but at this time, or soon after the tribal rela- 
 tion was dissolved by treaty, and the lands 
 were divided in severalty. Besides these, there 
 were, in 1872, 90 in the Quapau Agency, and 
 663 in the Sac and Fox Agency. 
 
 The Ottawas, when first known to the French 
 explorers, were located on the Manitoulin 
 Islands, and on the northwest shore of the 
 Michigan peninsula. The}^ believed in Micha- 
 l:)ou, "the great hare," a mythical personage, 
 who formed the earth and developed men from 
 animals ; in Mirabichi, " god of the water ;" in 
 Missabizi, "the great tiger." Soon after 16-49, 
 they fled before the Iroquois to Green Bay, 
 thence west beyond the Mississippi to the 
 country of the Sioux, with whom they became 
 involved in war, when they fell back to Che- 
 goimegon, before 1660, and finally to Mackin- 
 naw. The tribe became considerably divided 
 here, one of the divisions settling near Detroit, 
 and the one at Mackinaw passing over to Ar- 
 Iire Croche. The greater number of the Otta- 
 was were in the last war with the French, and 
 at its close Pontiac, an Ottawa chief, and one 
 of the ablest Indians of any tribe that ever 
 lived, organized a vast conspiracv for the de- 
 struction of the English. They were under 
 English influence during the Revolution, and 
 at this time numbered about 1,500. They par- 
 ticipated in the treaties of 1785, 1789 and 1795, 
 and afterward, by other treaties, the}" acquired 
 a tract of land on the Miami, thirty-four miles 
 square. By the treaty of 1833, they ceded 
 
 their land around Lake Michigan for land south 
 of the Missouri River, and soon ceased to be a 
 distinct band. A band of Ottawas at Maumee, 
 in 1836, ceded 49,000 acres to Ohio, and 200 
 emigrated to the Osage River, locating south of 
 the Shawanese. Some 230 remained and be- 
 came scattered in detached bands. In 1867, 
 they became citizens, and in 1870 were re- 
 moved to a reservation of 24,960 acres in In- 
 dian Territory. Several thousand are yet liv- 
 ing in scattei-ed bands in Michigan and Canada, 
 and all are self-supporting. 
 
 The Delawares are a tribe of the Algonquin 
 family, and, when first known to the whites, 
 were dwelling in detached bands, under sepa- 
 rate sachems, on the Delaware River. They 
 styled themselves Renappi, or, as now written, 
 Lenape or Lenni Lenape. The Dutch began 
 trading with them in 1616, and enjoyed friendl}' 
 intercourse with them until 1632, when the set- 
 tlement at Swanendael was utterly destroyed 
 by a sudden attack, but trade was soon after- 
 ward resumed. The Swedes made attempts to 
 Christianize them, and had Luther's Catechism 
 printed in their language. The Delawares claim 
 to have come from the West with the Minguas, 
 who soon afterward reduced them to a state of 
 vassalage, and when the}' were conquered by 
 the Five Nations, they were termed women by 
 the latter. The Delawares formed three fami- 
 lies, or clans — the Turtle, the Turkey and the 
 Wolf At the time of the " walking treat}" " 
 made by Penn, the Delawares complained that 
 they had been defrauded in the interpretation 
 of the treaty, and showed a reluctance to " walk," 
 upon which the authorities called upon the Six 
 Nations, who ordered the Delawai-es, as women, 
 to retire. The Delawares were now thrown 
 among warring people, and, though previously 
 mild and peaceable, they now became energetic, 
 and conducted their wars with great ferocity. 
 In a war with the Cherokees, they reached the 
 Ohio, where a portion remained until 1773. 
 They took up arms and fought with the French 
 at Braddock's Defeat and elsewhere, but suffered 
 so much from English attacks that they finally 
 treated for peace, part of them in 1757, and 
 the others after the fall of Fort Du Quesne. 
 They then centered on the Susquehanna, and a 
 small nuinber soon afterward settled on the 
 Muskingum. They took up arms in the border 
 war, but were badly defeated at Bushy Run, 
 August, 1763, by Boquet. Their towns on the 
 
 

 218 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Susquehanna were pillaged and burned, many 
 were killed and dispersed, and in 1768, they 
 emigrated to Ohio. In 1774. they were again 
 badly defeated at Pleasant Point, and a part 
 were afterward engaged in the Revolution. In 
 1772. the Christian Delawares settled on the 
 Muskingum, but were hastily removed to San- 
 dusky, in 1781, by the English. Early the fol- 
 lowing 3'ear, ninetj'-four who returned were 
 murdered by a party of enraged borderers 
 under Col. Williamson. By the treaty of 1785, 
 the Delawares occupied the soil between 
 the rivers Cuyahoga and Miami. At this 
 time there were many scattered bands of 
 Delawares, several of which were Christian, 
 and at peace with the whites. The main tribe, 
 at Grand Blaze, with 480 warriors, was hostile, 
 and 400 under Buckongahelas were at the de- 
 feat of St. Clair, in 1791 ; but four 3'ears later, 
 they joined the peace treat}' at Greenville. In 
 1808, there were 800 at Wapeminskink, a few 
 at Sandusk}', a few on the Muskingum, and a 
 large bod}- at Fairfield, Canada. In 1818, the 
 Delawares, 1.800 strong, ceded their lands to the 
 United States and emigrated to Missouri. In 
 1829, many went to Kansas, and some south of 
 the Red River. In 1853, they sold all their lands 
 to the United States, except that in Kansas. 
 During the last war, out of 201 able-bodied 
 warriors, 170 enlisted and served in the arm}'. 
 The}' sold their lands, in 1868, to the Missouri 
 Railroad, and settled on the Verdigris and Cone. 
 In 1866, they became citizens, though their 
 clans — Turtle, Turkey and Wolf — still exist. 
 
 During the border wars of the last half of 
 the last century, the Indian villages, in what is 
 now Summit County, were actively engaged.* 
 
 *Wheti these villagps wi-rs first Pitulilisbed is not definitely 
 liiiown ; but from an i>l(i mnp wliich Wiis publisherl in 1755, by 
 Lewis Evans it is .ascertained tliat at tU;it tirue there was a Mingo 
 vilbioje on the west liarjk of the river, pnibtbly in wliat is r,ow 
 ensteni Rath, and an Ottawa villago on the opposite side of the 
 river in Northampton, i>r peihaps, as 'omesay, in Boston. There is 
 also marUeil on the ni ip a Krench trading-bouse-, which was located 
 eitlicr in northwestern Boiton Township, or on the Cuyahoga, five 
 miles from its month The bitter view is rendered improbable, 
 from the fact, among othors, tint tlie house on the map is loeati^d 
 very near the Ottawa village. The house, beyond reasonable doubt, 
 was located on the bank of the river, about forty rods north of 
 Boston Village. A few old apple trees were found growing near the 
 ppotby the early settlers. These were probably idanted by the 
 French. When the whites appeared, this place was occupied by the 
 Ottawas, under their Chief Stigwanisli, while a hatf-milo northwest 
 was a Seneca village under the Chief Ponty. There were two other 
 Indian villages, in early years, at Cuyahoga Falls. On the north 
 side of the river was an encampment of Ilela wares, and on the Bonth, 
 one ol the Iroquois. There vvas a Delaware village in Coventry 
 Township, under Capt. Pipe, or in the Indian language, Tauhango- 
 cauponye, or IIopDcan. There were also, at times, temporary en- 
 campments in almost every township in the county. The Chippe- 
 was were found among others, as were also a few Wyandots. 
 
 They sent numerous small bands to Western 
 Pennsylvania to massacre the white pioneers 
 on the border, and destroy their habitations. 
 It is extremely probable that some of the 
 borderers who were captured on these ex- 
 peditions were tortured to death at the vil- 
 lages in Summit County. Perhaps these spots, 
 now so quiet and peaceful, once echoed with 
 the frenzied death-cries of white men, while 
 around, on every hand, circled the leaping and 
 exulting savages, tearing up with hot iron 
 the bleeding flesh of the despairing sufferers, 
 and filling the air with their dreadful yells 
 of revenge. Here the dusky savages, decked 
 in the gaudy ornaments of border war, invoked 
 the favor of their god before descending like 
 death upon the defenseless settlements. Here 
 could be heard their wild chants — 
 
 " Ne-gau nls-sau — ne-gau nissau 
 Kitchi-mau-li-sau — negau nissau" — 
 (I will kill— I will kill 
 The white man — I will kill)— 
 
 before they started on those expeditions, of 
 which we read in histories. In 1759, there 
 lived in Cumberland County, Penn., a family 
 named Campbell, consisting of the father and 
 a bright little girl, about seven years old, named 
 Mary. Residing in the same house was an 
 other family named Stuart, consisting of the 
 husband and wife, and four or five children, one 
 of these being an infant. One day, when the 
 men were absent, Mrs. Stuart left her children 
 in charge of the little girl Mary, and went a 
 mile or two distant to the house of a neighbor. 
 In her absence, a small band of Delaware In- 
 dians took possession of the cabin, and made 
 all the children prisoners, much to the conster- 
 nation of little Mary, who was old enough to 
 know that some awful calamity was pending. 
 The Indians, knowing that the adult members 
 of the families were not far away, made prep- 
 arations to receive them. As Mrs. Stuart, on 
 her return, approached the house, she heard 
 the children screaming, and hurried forward, 
 but was instantly made prisoner by the savages, 
 who then thought it best not to await the re- 
 turn of the men, but, with their prisoners, 
 started for their camp in Armstrong County. 
 They soon became tired of carrying the in- 
 fant, which was fretful, and one of them finally 
 took it, and, in the presence of its shrieking 
 mother, dashed its brains out against a tree, 
 and cast its quivering body in the bushes. The 
 
 "Tl. 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 219 
 
 Indians pushed on rapidly, uroiug their weary 
 and agonized prisoners to their best pace, and 
 carrying those that finally gave out. A little 
 boy about seven years old, named Samni}', was 
 carried upon the back of one of the Indians 
 until the latter was tired. On the third day, 
 this Indian fell behind the others, and when he 
 again appeared, the little boy was missing, 
 while at his belt Mrs. Stuart recognized the 
 curly locks of her little Samni}-. The poor 
 mother and her children were hurried on until 
 at last, weary and footsore, they reached the 
 Indian village. Here they were soon separated, 
 and one or more of them was adopted by the 
 Indians. The following 3"ear, Netawatwees, the 
 chief of this band, removed with his followers 
 and prisoners to their village at the " Big Falls " 
 of the Cuyahoga, now in Summit County, Ohio. 
 ^liivy had been adopted by the chief, and was 
 treated with uniform kindness, occupying a 
 position of equality with the Indian children. 
 Here the prisoners I'emained until 1764, when 
 they were delivered to Col. Boquet, at his fort 
 in Tuscarawas County, and soon afterward 
 were returned to their friends in Penns3'lvania. 
 It is vei'3' probable that other white prisoners 
 from the Indian villages in Summit County 
 were delivered up at this treaty. Col. Boquet 
 had come out with an army of 1,500 men. The 
 appearance of this force awed the Indians, and 
 they sued for peace in the most abject manner, 
 delivering up at the same time, some 300 white 
 captives. Fathers, brothers and husbands had 
 come out in hopes of finding their lost friends, 
 and when the captives were given up the scene 
 beggars description. " There were seen," says 
 a writer in the Historical Ilecord, " fathers and 
 mothers recognizing and clasping their once 
 captive little ones ; husbands hung around 
 their newly-recovered wives ; brothers and sis- 
 ters met after long separation, scarcely able to 
 speak the same language, or to realize that 
 they were children of the same parents ! In the 
 interviews, there w^as inexpressible J03' and 
 rapture ; while, in some cases, feelings of a very 
 different character were manifested by looks or 
 language. Man}' were flying from place to 
 place, making eager inquiries after relatives 
 not found, trembling to receive answers to their 
 questions, distracted with doubts, hopes and 
 fears ; distressed and grieved on obtaining no 
 information about the friends they sought, and, 
 in some cases, petrified into living monuments 
 
 of horror and woe on learning their unhappy 
 fate." " In many cases," Albach says, " strong 
 attachments had grown up between the savages 
 and their captives, so that they were reluctantly- 
 surrendered, some even not without tears, ac- 
 companied with some token of remembrance." 
 The girl, Mary Campbell, and Mrs. Stuart and 
 her children, were the first white persons known 
 to have lived in what is now Summit County. 
 During and after the Revolution, the Indians 
 of the Cuyahoga Valley were very troublesome 
 to the Pennsylvania pioneers. The details of 
 their savage barbarity would sicken the heart. 
 All along the Ohio Iliver, on both sides, the 
 Indians and borderers met in terrific conflicts, 
 which resulted in the death or captivity of one 
 of the parties. Almost the entire half of the 
 last century was a succession of border wars. 
 So dreadful and frequent became the attacks of 
 the savages that many expeditions were sent 
 to reduce their villages and slaughter the peo- 
 ple or drive them far off into the forest. Young 
 men on the border were trained to the one pur- 
 suit of killing Indians, and the names of Poe, 
 Kenton, Wetzel, Brady and a host of others 
 will ever bear a prominent place on the page 
 of the American border wars. The daring and 
 intrepidity of many of these Indian slayers 
 were astonishing. They seemed to delight in 
 the awful work and courted death and torture 
 with a reckless courage that arouses the keen- 
 est interest of those who read of their exploits. 
 Hundreds of Indians werfe killed without any 
 pretext, save the sport afforded the intrepid 
 borderers, or to avenge wrongs done by the 
 savages. Horse-stealing became a great pas- 
 time, in which the borderers and their savage 
 foes freely indulged ; and man}- of the fierce 
 pei'sonal conflicts, read of all over the country, 
 were occasioned by lawless incursions of this 
 character. Small armies were sent at various 
 times to different portions of Ohio to defeat 
 the Indians or treat with them for peace. 
 Among these were the expeditions of Cols. 
 Bradstreet and Boquet, in 1704, by which com- 
 parative peace was secured until 1774, when a 
 border war again slowly broke out. About 
 this time, several unfortunate attacks on the 
 Indians were made, in one of which the inof- 
 fensive relatives of Logan, the Mingo chief, 
 were ruthlessly murdered by a small command 
 under Col. Michael Cresap. This barbarous 
 act precipitated events, and the Indians, roused 
 
 r 
 
:^i 
 
 >> 
 
 2'20 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 for vengeance, began scouring the border to 
 murder and pillage. The utmost terror, gloom 
 and consternation pervaded all the frontier set- 
 tlements. Gen. Mcintosh conducted an expe- 
 dition against the Indians in 1778, and Col. 
 John Bowman the following year. Col. Q. K. 
 Clarke marched against them in 1780 ; Gen. 
 Daniel Broadhead in 1781 ; Col. Lowry the 
 same year ; Col. Williamson in 1782 ; Col. 
 Crawford the same year ; Gen. Clarke again in 
 1782; Col. Benj. Logan in 1786; and, besides 
 these, there were many others. It became the 
 pi'actice on the border to organize small com- 
 panies of " rangers," who, when the savages 
 swept down upon some family and either killed 
 or captured the members, would hastil}' assem- 
 ble and pursue the enemy, to chastise them 
 and recover the captives. A noted leader of 
 these rangers, in Western Pennsylvania, was 
 Capt. Samuel Brady. He was a man of pro- 
 digious size, strength, endurance, activity and 
 courage, and became known to all the Northern 
 Indians, who made desperate attempts to either 
 capture or kill him. A few years previous to 
 this, his father and brother had been killed b}' 
 the Indians, and he is said to have taken a 
 solemn vow to devote his future life to revenge. 
 The following is quoted from Howe's " Histori- 
 cal Collection :" " Brad3''s residence was on 
 Chartier Creek, on the south side of the Ohio, 
 and being a man of herculean strength, activity 
 and courage, he was generally selected as the 
 leader of the hardy borderers in all their in- 
 cursions into the Indian Territor}^ north of the 
 river. In about the 3'ear 1780, a large party 
 of warriors from the falls of the Cuyahoga and 
 the adjacent country had made an inroad on 
 the south side of the Ohio, in the lower part 
 of what is now Washington County, on what 
 was then known as the settlement of ' Cattish 
 Camp,' after an old Indian of that name who 
 had lived there when the whites first came into 
 the Moaongahela Valley. This party had mur- 
 dered several families, and with the ' plunder ' 
 had recrossed the Ohio before effectual pur- 
 suit could be made. Brady immediatel}' se- 
 lected a few chosen rangers of known courage 
 and activity, perhaps twelve or fifteen or more 
 in number, and hastened on after the Indians, 
 who, having one or two days the start, could 
 not be overtaken in time to prevent their re- 
 turn to their villages. Near the spot where 
 the town of Ravenna now stands, the Indians 
 
 separated into two parties, one of which went 
 to the north and the other west to the falls of 
 the Cuyahoga.* Brady's men also divided, a 
 part pursuing the northern trail, and a part 
 going with their commander to the Indian vil- 
 lage laying on the river in the present township 
 of Northampton, in Summit County. Although 
 Brady made his approaches with the utmost 
 caution, the Indians, expecting a pursuit, were 
 on the lookout, and ready to receive him with 
 numbers four times as great. When Brady's 
 men were attacked, it was instantly seen that 
 their only safet}' was in hasty flight, which, 
 from the ardor of the pursuit, soon became a 
 perfect rout. Brady directed his men to sep- 
 arate, and each one to take care of himself; 
 but the Indians knowing Brady, and having 
 a most inveterate hatred and dread of him, 
 from the numerous chastisements he had given 
 them, left all the others, and, with united 
 strength, pursued him alone. The Cuyahoga 
 makes a wide bend just liefore entering Sum- 
 mit County, thus forming a peninsula of sev- 
 eral square miles of surface, within which the 
 pursuit was hotly contested. The Indians, by 
 extending their line to the right and left, forced 
 him on to the bank of the stream. Having, in 
 times of peace, often hunted over this ground 
 with the Indians, and knowing ever}^ turn of 
 the Cuyahoga as familiarly as the villager 
 knows the street? of his own hamlet, Brady 
 directed his course to the river at a spot where 
 the width of the stream is compressed by the 
 rocky cliffs, into a narrow channel of only 
 twenty-two feet across the top of the chasm, al- 
 though it is considerably wider beneath, near 
 the water, and in height more than twice that 
 number of feet above the current. As he ap- 
 proached the chasm, Brady, knowing that life 
 or death was the issue, concentrated his utmost 
 efforts and leaped the river at a single bound. 
 It so happened that on the opposite side, the 
 leap was favored by a low place, into which he 
 dropped, and, grasping the bushes, he was thus 
 enabled to ascend to tlie top of the cliflT. The 
 
 *A celebrated Iiiilian w;ii'-path, extending from Sandusky lo 
 Bearer (Fort Mcfntosh), passed through Summit Cuuntj'. This was 
 the tr«il traversed by the Indians of Northern Ohio, in their expe- 
 ditions af;ainst the l)order settlements in Pennsylvania. The trail 
 crossed the Cuyahoga in Franklin Township. Portage County, at 
 what is called " Standing Slone," and divided at Fish Creek, the 
 northern branch extending across Stow and Northampton Town- 
 ships, to the Indian village in tlie latter, tlience across the river to 
 the INlingo village in Bath, and tlience westward, while the s lutliern 
 bran'h extending somewhat snuth of w. st, led to the villages at 
 Cuyahoga Falls, thence on through Portage and Coventry, to the 
 Tuscarawas lliver and the Delawaie village in Coventry. 
 
 ^ 
 
.1^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 331 
 
 Indians, who were in close pursuit, were for a 
 few moments lost in wonder and admiration, 
 and before the}^ had recovered their recollection 
 he was half way up the side of the opposite 
 hill, but still within reach of their ritles. They 
 could easily have shot him at any moment be- 
 fore ; but, being bent on taking him alive for 
 torture and to glut their long-delayed revenge, 
 they forbore to use the rifle ; but seeing him 
 now likely to escape thej^ all fired upon him, 
 one bullet severely wounding him in the hip, 
 liut not so badly as to prevent his pi'ogress. 
 The Indians had to make considerable of a cir- 
 cuit before the}' could cross the river, and b}' 
 this time Brady had advanced a good distance 
 ahead. His limb was growing stiff from the 
 wound, and, as the Indians were gaining on 
 him, he made for the pond, which now bears 
 his name, and, plunging in. swam under water 
 a considerable distance, and came up under the 
 trunk of a large oak which had fallen into the 
 pond. This, although leaving only a small 
 breathing place to support life, still completely 
 sheltered him from their sight. The Indians, 
 tracing him by blood to the water, made dili- 
 gent search all around the pond ; but, finding 
 no sign of his exit, finally came to the conclu- 
 sion that he had sunk and was drowned. As 
 they were at one time standing on the very 
 tree beneath which be was concealed — he, un- 
 derstanding their language, was very glad to 
 hear the result of their deliberations, and after 
 they had gone he emerged from his hiding- 
 l)lace, and, weary, lame and hungry, made good 
 his retreat to his own home. His companions 
 also returned in safety. The chasm across 
 which he leaped is in sight of the bridge, where 
 it crosses the Cuyahoga, and is known in all 
 that region as "Brady's Leap." The pond 
 where he concealed himself is also known as 
 Brady's Pond. Just where he was first at- 
 tacked by the Indians is not definitel}' known, 
 but it was somewhere in Northampton Town- 
 ship. It is not likely that the Indians, who 
 were expecting an attack, delayed their move- 
 ment upon the rangers until the latter reached 
 their village. It is probable that the}^ were in 
 ambush not far from their village, and the cau- 
 tion of the rangers alone prevented their being 
 caught in the trap. The savages came on in 
 great numbers, and the rangers very likely kept 
 together for several miles, or until they were 
 somewhere in Stow Township, when they sep- 
 
 arated, and each man provided for his own 
 safet}'. Brady, on another occasion very simi- 
 lar to the one above narrated, leaped a stream 
 in Pennsylvania, twenty-three feet wide, and 
 escaped from a large part}' of Indians, who 
 were almost upon him. 
 
 The Mingo village in Bath was no doubt 
 often visited by Logan, the famous Indian 
 chief He was the son of Shikellimus, a Cay- 
 uga chief, who dwelt at Shamokin, Penn., in 
 1742. The father was a personal friend of 
 James Logan, the Secretary' of the Province, in 
 whose honor the sou was named. They came 
 to Ohio about 1772, locating at Mingo Bot- 
 tom, near Steubenville. Here it was that, 
 about 1774, at the breaking-out of Lord Dun- 
 more's war, Logan's relatives were murdered. 
 This I'oused him to vengeance, and he began 
 an indiscriminate and extensive slaughter of 
 all the whites he met. Within six or eight 
 months, Logan alone murdered twenty or thirty 
 persons. The following speech, though im- 
 proved by Jefferson and others, was delivered 
 by Logan to John Gibson, an interpreter, who 
 had been sent out by Lord Dunmore to the 
 Indian towns. According to Gibson, Logan 
 asked him to walk out in the woods, and when 
 the two had reached a lonely copse and had 
 sat down, Logan, with many tears, delivered 
 his celebrated speech : 
 
 I appeal to any white man to say, if ever he en- 
 tered Logan's cabin hungry, and he gave him not 
 meat; if ever he came cold and naked, and he clothed 
 him not. During the course of the last long and 
 bloody war, Logan remained idle in his cabin, an 
 advocate for peace. Such was my love for the 
 whites, that my countrymen pointed as they passed, 
 and said: "Logan is the friend of white men." I 
 had even thought to have lived with you, but for 
 the injuries of one man. Col. Cresap, the last 
 spring, in cold blood and unprovoked, murdered all 
 the relations of Logan, not even sparing my women 
 and children. There runs not a drop of my blood 
 in the veins of any living creature. This called on 
 me for revenge. I have sought it. I have killed 
 many. I have fully glutted my vengeance. For 
 my country, I rejoice at the beams of peace. But 
 do not harbor a thought that mine is the joy of 
 fear. Logan never felt fear. He will not turn on 
 his heel to save his life. Who is there to mourn 
 for Logan? Not one. 
 
 Mr. Jeflferson says : " I may challenge the 
 whole orations of Demosthenes and Cicero, and 
 of any more eminent orator, if Europe has fur- 
 nished any more eminent, to produce a single 
 passage superior to the speech of Logan, the 
 
 » .. 
 
 ^ 
 
223 
 
 HISTOIIY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Mingo chief." It is considered a masterpiece 
 of Indian eloquence. Logan is said to have 
 been one of the noblest specimens of humanitj^ 
 of any race, that ever lived. He was, as he 
 said, the friend of the whites ; but the deliberate 
 murder of his relatives inflamed his savage 
 nature, and he "fully glutted his vengeance." 
 He had a high sense of honor, and when trusted 
 would die sooner than betray- the trust. He 
 undoubtedly visited the Mingo village in Bath. 
 At the mouth of Yellow Creek, in Northampton, 
 is an extensive Indian cemetery, which prob- 
 ably belonged to the Mingoes. This creek was 
 named for the one down the river from Steu- 
 benville, at which was the Mingo village, where 
 Logan's relations were murdered.* 
 
 The Delaware villages in Summit County, 
 about the time of Lord Dunmore's war, were 
 well populated ; though the larger villages of 
 this tribe, in Eastern Ohio, were on the Mus- 
 kingum. In the wars between Great Britain 
 and France for an extension of territory in 
 America, great efforts were made by both na 
 tions to secure the Indians as allies, for thereby 
 a dreaded and powerful weapon could be 
 wielded. Sometimes the French were success- 
 ful, and then the English pioneers in Pennsyl- 
 vania and Virginia experienced the horrors of 
 barbarous border wars. At other times, the 
 English succeeded and the French were made 
 to suffer in a like manner. Many times tribes 
 of Indians remained neutral, while the French 
 and English were struggling for the mastery ; 
 or perhaps portions of some tribe would en- 
 gage in the wars, while others would proclaim 
 their neutrality and remain at peace, cultivat- 
 ing their fields and engaging in the chase. 
 After the murder of the relatives of Logan, 
 several weeks were spent by the hostile Indian 
 tribes to effect a confederation of all the Ohio 
 Indians, for the blood}' purpose of an extermi- 
 nating and universal border war against the 
 American settlers. The Senecas and Shawa- 
 nese were eager for hostilities to begin ; but 
 the Delawares refused to join the confederation 
 as a nation, though many of her young men 
 were induced to take up the hatchet. They 
 could not endure the derisive title — Shoioon- 
 
 *This is not positivelj' known to the writer, though thorp are 
 numerous evidences to indicate its truth. No one in the county 
 who wa'i intprvicweii could tell why Yellow Creek was thus named, 
 but from tlu- fact that, after the murder of Logan's relatives, the 
 Jlingoes, or at least a large band of them, located in Bath near this 
 stream, it seems highly probable that the stream received its name 
 as stated iu the text. 
 
 noks, or white people — which their war-like 
 neighbors threw in their faces. The Delaware 
 bands in Summit County remained at peace, 
 though beyond a doubt many of their young 
 men joined the tide of hostilities. The neu- 
 trality of the Delawares, no doubt shortened 
 the war and prevented a concentration of the 
 hostile Indian forces. Just before the Ilevolu- 
 tion, when it was seen that war was inevitable, 
 great efforts were made by both the British and 
 the Americans to secure the assistance of the 
 Indians. It was estimated that the Indians in 
 New York, Ohio, and near the lakes, could 
 bring 10,000 warriors into the field ; and, it 
 was plainly apparent that this large force 
 might turn the pending crisis either way. The 
 English, through their artful emissaries, made 
 great efforts to effect an alliance, and were gen- 
 erally successful. Four out of the six tribes 
 of the Six Nations joined the British ; but, a 
 majority of the Delawares and a numerous 
 party of the Shawanese were for neutralit\'. 
 At the Pittsburgh conference, Capt. White Eyes, 
 a distinguished Delaware chief, boldly advo- 
 cated the American cause, much to the anno}'- 
 ance of the Senecas, who were for war in the 
 interest of the British. The Wolf faction of 
 the Delawares, under Newalike and Capt. Pipe, 
 withdrew toward Lake Erie to join the British ; 
 but Netawatwees, the Delaware chief, one of 
 whose villages was at Cuyahoga Falls, sustained 
 the view of Capt. White P]yes, as did also Big 
 Cat, Capt. John, Killbuck and others. These 
 chiefs sent embassies to all the hostile tribes, 
 exhorting them not to take up the hatchet or 
 to join either side. It will thus be seen that 
 the powerful Delaware tribe was the only one 
 in Ohio, which, as a nation, refused to take 
 up the hatchet. In New York, the friendship 
 of the Oneidas and Tuscaroras was secured. 
 However, the Delawares were afterward swept 
 into the vortex of war, but not until after the 
 French alliance had been consummated, where- 
 by much of the horror on the border was pre- 
 vented. By 1777, the hostile Indians had be- 
 gun their work in earnest, and the white settlers 
 sought the protection of the forts, or fled to the 
 colonies in the East. Numerous war parties of 
 savages, under their chiefs, or the white rene- 
 gades, Girty, McKee, Elliott, and others of their 
 ilk, conducted their dreadful expeditions with 
 such malignant ferocity as to cast gloom and 
 terror over the frontier settlements. The Otta- 
 
■K* 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY. 
 
 223 
 
 was, Senecas and Miiigoes, of Summit County, 
 were active in the war in the cause of the Brit- 
 ish, and, beyond question, Simon Girt}-, who 
 became a Seneca b}- adoption, and George 
 Girt}', wlio became a Delaware, were often at 
 these villages. The Delaware chiefs mentioned 
 above, who advocated neutrality, had been 
 mostly converted by the Moravian missiona- 
 ries. The venerable Netawatwees, chief of the 
 Turtle branch of the Delawares, was among 
 the number. As near as can be learned, it was 
 a band of the Turtle Delawares that had a vil- 
 lage at Cuj-ahoga Falls ; while, ver^' likel}-, the 
 band in Coventr}' was under Capt Pipe, or 
 Kogieschquano-heel, the celebrated Delaware 
 war-chief It was almost whoU}- due to the 
 missionaries and their converts that the Dela- 
 ware bands upon the Muskingum refused to 
 take part in the border wars. To these men — 
 the.se noble missionaries — should be accorded 
 the honor of preventing, in a material degree, 
 man}' of the direful results of the Indian bor- 
 der wars. Beyond all probability, these mis- 
 sionaries visited the Indian towns, in Summit 
 County, to conduct their good work of spiritual 
 regeneration. Indian villages were strewn all 
 along the valle}^ of the Tuscarawas, and on the 
 portage path in this county. So successful 
 were the missionaries in their efforts to secure 
 peace, that at last the renegades, Girty, McKee 
 and Elliott, complained to the British com- 
 mandant at Detroit, saying that the Moravians 
 not onl}^ prevented the Delawares from joining 
 the British, but held constant communication 
 with the Americans on the state of the war. 
 Immediatel}' after the Coshocton campaign, 
 when the peace-chiefs of the Delawai'es were 
 subordinated to the war-chiefs, Buckongahelas 
 became the controlling power at the head of 
 this nation, and through his influence the In- 
 dians, including many of those who had been 
 converted, took up the hatchet. The Christian 
 Indians were removed to Sandusk}' ; but a 
 number who afterward returned were cruelly 
 murdered ; but their death was bitterly avenged 
 by the defeat of Crawford, and the awful death 
 of himself and man}' of his command. 
 
 On the 21st of Januar}', 1785, the treaty of 
 Fort Mcintosh (Beaver) was effected, b}^ which 
 the boundary line between the United States 
 and the Delaware and Wyandot nations was 
 fixed as follows : To begin at the mouth of the 
 Cuyahoga, thence up said river to the portage 
 
 between it and the Tuscarawas ; thence down 
 said branch to the forks above Fort Laurens ; 
 thence west to the portage of the Big Miami ; 
 thence along said portage to the Ome River, 
 and down the southeast side of the river to its 
 month ; thence along the south shore of Lake 
 Erie to the mouth of the Cuyahoga. It will 
 thus be seen that the Delawares and W3'andots 
 were confined to the west side of the Cuyahoga, 
 the summit portage path, and the Tuscarawas ; 
 while the tribes of the Six Nations were east of 
 this dividing line. This boundary was con- 
 firmed by subsequent treaties ; but, in 1805, at 
 Fort Industry, the Delawares, Ottawas, Wyan- 
 dots, Chippewas, Shawanese, Menses and Pot- 
 tawatomies were removed to the western part 
 of the State, and the celebrated Cuyahoga 
 boundarv line became a thing of the past. The 
 Senecas relinquished their rights to the land 
 east of the Cuyahoga in 1796. This brings the 
 Indian annals down to the time of the first ap- 
 pearance of white settlers in the county. 
 
 In the year 1800, there wei'e living in what 
 is now Summit County^ bands of Delawares, 
 Senecas, Wyandots, Chippewas, Ottawas, Min- 
 goes, and very likel}' members of other tribes. 
 But six 3'ears before, the most of these had 
 been at war with the whites, and it was no wise 
 impossible that the savages might again fall 
 upon the settlers at an}- moment. All the war- 
 like customs of the tribes were retained and 
 practiced, probably to keep the warriors in 
 trim for another struggle, should it break out. 
 By 1805, many settlers had appeared in the 
 county, and the movements of the Indians be- 
 gan to be closely observed. They mingled freely 
 with the whites, and although many personal 
 encounters occurred, yet no general outbreak 
 was made. It became the custom of the white 
 hunters, many of whom had participated in the 
 fierce border wars, to assemble at the Indian 
 villages to talk with the natives, trade with 
 them, race with them, shoot with them, and 
 silently observe their peculiar customs. The 
 Indians, regardless of the prospect for continued 
 peace, still held their war and scalp dances, and 
 engaged in all their wild and savage customs. 
 The hunters, when present, were often invited 
 to join the revelry, which they frequently did, 
 but not with the peculiar and graceful skill of 
 the natives. Large fires were lighted, and the 
 savages, armed and painted as if for the war- 
 path, surrounded them in circles, and then, with 
 
 •IT 
 
>L> 
 
 324 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 a wild, monotonous song accompaniment, they 
 began their dance around the tire, springing up 
 and down, first on one foot and then on the 
 other, chanting in the meantime a guttural " he, 
 he, he ; iuiw, haw, haw ! " blending their dance 
 with innumerable antics, grimaces and contor- 
 tions, and interspersing their song with wild 
 whoops, made to quaver at first by the motion 
 of the hand on the lips, but ending with a clear- 
 ness and force that made the forest ring. Liquor 
 they dearl}' loved, and, when thirsty, would 
 part with anything they possessed to secure an 
 ample potation of their favorite beverage. Un- 
 der its influence, their savage and warlike 
 spirit became dominant, and they were ready 
 and anxious to assert their demands, and en- 
 force them if the}' were denied. The}' often 
 entered cabins and demanded whisky, and, if 
 it was denied them, they often took it, espe- 
 cially if the men were away from home. In a 
 case of this kind, the women were usually wise 
 enough to get rid of their guests at the earliest 
 possible moment, before the liquor began to as- 
 sert itself, as otherwise fright, anxiety, danger 
 and, possibly, injur}', were sure to result. Some- 
 times, however, the Indians refused to go, but 
 remained to flourish their scalping-knives and 
 tomahawks around the heads of the children, 
 and terrify the distracted mother by threats of 
 death. Sometimes the husband and father 
 would return while the Indians were at the 
 height of their deviltry, in which case a fight, 
 often accompanied with wounds, was sure to 
 ensue. Numerous instances of this character 
 will be found in the chapters of township 
 history. Capt. Heman Oviatt established a 
 store in Hudson Township, where liquor was 
 kept for sale. The Indians were drawn thither, 
 and numerous drunken brawls occurred in the 
 neighborhood. In the absence of Mr. Oviatt, 
 his wife occupied the position behind the coun- 
 ter (if there was such a piece of furniture), and 
 dealt out goods and liquor to the whites and 
 Indians. On one occasion of this kind, when 
 there was a small temporary encampment of 
 some twenty Indians, under the sub-chief, Wab- 
 raung, near the store, and the men were at work 
 in the woods, at a considerable distance from 
 the house, and out of sight, an Indian pre- 
 sented himself, saying that the chief, Wabmung, 
 had sent him to the store to get a small keg of 
 whisky. The credit of the chief was good, 
 and Mrs. Oviatt gave the messenger the liquor. 
 
 It occurred to her soon afterward that the chief 
 had not sent for the whisky at all, but that the 
 Indians, having no money nor credit, and desir- 
 ing a spree, had adopted the ruse to secure the 
 liquor. She instantly made up her mind to re- 
 gain what was left, at any rate. The Indians 
 were taking on at a great rate, and did not per- 
 ceive her until she had seized the keg, and had 
 gone some distance, on the run, toward the 
 store. A few half-drunken ones immediately 
 set up a yell and pursued her, but she succeeded 
 in reaching the store before the Indians. Eliz- 
 abeth Walker, a hired girl, was holding the 
 door, and she slammed it shut as soon as Mrs. 
 Oviatt had entered, but not before the foremost 
 Indian had caught up a frying-pan that was 
 on a bench at the side of the house, and had 
 struck savagely at the hired girl, preventing, at 
 the same time, the complete closing of the 
 door. He began pushing hai'd at the door, and 
 as the two women saw that he was half-helpless 
 on account of the liquor he had drunk, they 
 suddenly threw the door open, seized the Indian, 
 who had fallen prostrate, dragged him into the 
 room, and closed and barred the door just as 
 several others threw themselves against it. The 
 Indian in the room began kicking and thrashing 
 around, whereupon the two women got some 
 loose ropes and tied him securely. By this 
 time, the Indians on the outside were pounding 
 loudly on the door, demanding admittance ; but 
 Mrs. Oviatt caught up a rifle, and pointing it 
 through the window, warned them to leave or 
 she would fire, at which they withdrew a short 
 distance. She directed Betsy Walker to go to 
 the loft and blow the horn for the men, which 
 was promptly done, and soon they appeared, 
 whereupon the Indians beat a retreat. The 
 captive Indian was kept until dark, when his 
 squaw appeared, and asked for the person of 
 her recreant lord, but this was denied until he 
 was completely sober, when he was allowed to 
 depart with the ropes still about his arms. The 
 last seen of the couple was the tumble they 
 took together over a rail fence.* This event is 
 narrated to illustrate a common occurrence, 
 differing only in minor particulars. Sometimes 
 the difficulties resulted in severe fights, but 
 usually all the transactions between the two 
 races were amicable. When the Indians ex- 
 
 *Thiis circumstance is narrated on the autliority of Mrs. Eliza- 
 beth (Walker) Tappan. the hired girl who wslh present, and who is 
 yet living in Boston Township, at the unnsual age of ninety-three 
 yoar-i. 
 
 !) y 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 225 
 
 pected to have a " loud " time with whisky, it was 
 their custom to give up their weapons to their 
 squaws, so that no lives would be lost. In 
 1806, their difficulty with Daniel Diver occurred, 
 by which Nicksaw, a son-in-law of the chief, 
 John Bigson, was shot by the Indian slayer, 
 Jonathan Williams, an account of which will 
 be fouud in another chapter of this volume. 
 The village of Stigwanish was on the Cuyahoga, 
 in Boston Township. Here the tribe had 
 erected a wooden god, probably Missabiza, " the 
 great tiger," and when they departed on their 
 hunting expeditions, they were accustomed to 
 hang their choicest tobacco around his neck. 
 Some of the earliest settlers, knowing this, and 
 being very fond of " the weed " (not altogether 
 an unusual circumstance), often shiy appropri- 
 ated it. So far as known, no judgment was 
 ever sent against them for the sacrilegious act. 
 At the time of the Diver difficulty, the In- 
 dians held a council, in which some of the war- 
 riors insisted that the Indians should begin an 
 indiscriminate slaughter of the whites before 
 the latter had time to unite on a defense. The 
 Indians were thoroughly incensed, but after a 
 time better counsel prevailed. They saw that, 
 while they might have a temporary advantage, 
 and perhaps sla}' many of tlie whites, the tide 
 of war was sure to turn against them with 
 overwhelming force. The white hunters often 
 got the Indians drunk for no other purpose 
 than to get the better of them in trade. When 
 their senses returned, the Indians, not recollect- 
 ing anything of the affair, demanded their prop- 
 erty, and, in case of a non-compliance with 
 their demands, a light was sure to ensue. As 
 winter approached, it was the custom of the 
 Indians to lay in an abundance of wild meat 
 and provisions, and seek the shelter of their 
 larger and permanent villages, there to remain 
 during the cold months in comparative com- 
 fort ; but when spring came, witli her pleasant 
 weather and green leaves and grass, the winter 
 residences became almost deserted, and the 
 tribe, divided into small bands, often compris- 
 ing the members of but one family, traveled 
 far and near, to spend the warm months in 
 hunting and trapping. They pitched their wig- 
 wams on the banks of streams or by some 
 pleasant lake where an abundance of fish could 
 be obtained. It is asserted b}' the old settlers 
 that the Indians never wantonly slaughtered 
 the game, allowing the meat to lie in quantity 
 
 on the ground. On the contrary, they killed 
 onl}^ what they expected to use. They were 
 often hired to hunt for the settlers. They 
 would bring in a deer and exchange it for pro- 
 visions, such as potatoes, turnips, pumpkins, 
 melons, etc. At other times, the}' would agree 
 to furnish so much game for a specified quan- 
 tit}' of whisky, corn meal, flour or money. 
 Stigwanish, the chief of the Ottawas, and John 
 Bigson, his son, are said to have been fine 
 specimens of the North American Indian. The 
 latter was about six feet in height, straight as 
 a reed, possessing an enormous chest ; was 
 long- armed and powerfully built, with a pair 
 of coal-black e3'es that seemed to see every- 
 thing at once. In truth, he was as fine a man 
 as was ever pictured on the page of Cooper. 
 Stigwanish is also said to have been a fine old 
 fellow. He possessed some noble traits of 
 character that made him prominent among his 
 tribe, and a model for the imitation of the 
 whites. 
 
 Thus the years passed by, until the war of 
 1812. A great deal of apprehension was felt 
 among the settlers at this time, that the Indians 
 might unite in the war on the side of the 
 British, as they were almost sure to do, in 
 which case a fearful time of blood and death 
 might be expected. They were numerous, and 
 a short time before the war an unusual number 
 of war and scalp dances were held, and the 
 Indians seemed livelier than they had been for 
 ten 3'ears before. They would brandish their 
 weapons in a menacing manner, and the set- 
 tlers were aware that something unusual was 
 about to transpire. Some efforts were made to 
 ward off the coming calamity, and it is said 
 that a block-house was erected in the western 
 part of the county, where a few settlers assem- 
 bled for protection. During the early summer 
 of 1811, the Indians became very bold and 
 insolent ; but finally they all suddenly van- 
 ished, and a few days later, news of the battle 
 of Tippecanoe reached the whites. It was 
 afterward ascertained that, if the British had 
 been successful at Tippecanoe, the Indians 
 would have swept in fury upon the borderers. 
 As it was, they were silenced, and departed 
 towai'd the setting sun. A few afterward re- 
 turned to the scenes they knew so well, but 
 some of these were killed, and the others dis- 
 persed, and the story of the red man is now 
 told as a bright romance of the past. 
 
 Tv 
 
3L> 
 
 I2£ 
 
 226 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 CHAPTER III.* 
 
 EARLY SETTLEMENT OF THE WHITES — ORGANIZATION OF THE COUNTY —PUBLIC BUILDINGS- 
 COUNTY SEAT QUESTION — SETTLED BY VOTE — COUNTY OFFICIALS — CON- 
 GRESSMEN AND ELECTORS — THE COUNTY INFIRMARY, ETC. 
 
 IN presenting a brief liistory of Summit 
 County — its earl}' settlement, organization, 
 erection of public buildings, etc. — the writer will 
 not attempt to rehearse the generally well- 
 known early history of Ohio and the Western 
 Reserve, nor give in detail the thrilling experi- 
 ences of the hardy, enterprising and patriotic 
 pioneers by whom the several townships com- 
 posing the county were originally settled. It 
 is sufficient for the present purpose to say that 
 the first known settlement of whites, within the 
 present limits of Summit County, was made in 
 Hudson, in the year 1800, followed by North- 
 ampton in 1802 ; Stow in 1804 ; Boston, Cov- 
 entry and Springfield in 1806 ; Northfield and 
 Tallmadge in 1807; Green in 1809; Bath, 
 Norton and Richfield in 1810; Portage in 
 1811; Copley and Franklin in 1814; and 
 Twinsburg in 1817; and that to the indomi- 
 table energy and fortitude, superior intelligence 
 and unswerving integrity of those early set- 
 tlers, the present owners and occupiers of the 
 finely cultivated farms, and the dwellers in the 
 thriving villages and cities within its borders, 
 are wholly indebted for the priceless heritage 
 which they now enjoy. 
 
 Of the sixteen townships composing Summit 
 County, ten — viz., Northfield, Twinsburg, Bos- 
 ton, Hudson, Northampton, Stow, Portage, Tall- 
 madge, Coventry and Springfield — originally 
 belonged to Portage County ; four — viz., Rich- 
 field, Bath, Copley and Norton — to Medina 
 County ; and two — viz., Green and Franklin — 
 to Stark County. Interesting and appropriate 
 sketches of the several townships here enumer- 
 ated, with biographical sketches of the pioneer 
 settlers and other citizens thereof, will be found 
 elsewhere, under their appropriate titles. 
 
 With the opening of the Ohio Canal, finished 
 from Cleveland to Akron in 1827, and through to 
 Portsmouth in 1830, and the greatly increased 
 
 •■■vontrihuted by S. A. Lane. 
 
 facilities for travel and transportation which it 
 afforded, not only were the agricultural interests 
 of the State, along its entire line, ver}- largely 
 stimulated, but a ver^- marked impetus was there- 
 by given to commercial and manufacturing in- 
 terests, also. Thus, while the ver}- considerable 
 business operations previousl}' existing at Mid- 
 dlebury, and one or two other points in the 
 Cuyahoga Valley, were materially increased 
 thereby, the completion of the canal was imme- 
 diately followed b}' the utmost activity at Ak- 
 ron and Cuyahoga Falls, then just springing 
 into existence as manufacturing villages, both 
 being largely supplied with water-power — at 
 that early day the great desideratum in all man- 
 ufacturing enterprises. 
 
 So rapid was the development of these vil- 
 lages, and the several townships contiguous to 
 the great " thoroughfare," that the people soon 
 began to feel that their respective seats of jus- 
 tice, Ravenna, JMedina and Canton, where they 
 were compelled to go to serve as jurors and wit- 
 nesses, and for the payment of their taxes, were 
 too far from their business centers, and, as early 
 as 1835, began to talk " new count}'." The 
 proposition was not at all kindly received by 
 the county officials, and the people of the more 
 remote portions of Portage, Medina and Stark, 
 out of whose fair proportions the required ter- 
 ritory for the new county, if erected, would 
 have to be carved, and nothing was definitely 
 accomplished in that direction until 1840. 
 
 In the fall of 1839, by a special effort nnd 
 united action of the voters — both Whigs and 
 Deraocrats^of the two tiers of townships which 
 it was proposed to detach from Portage County. 
 Rufus P. Spalding, Esq., then practicing law in 
 Ravenna, and E|)hraim B. Hubbard, an influen- 
 tial farmer of Deerfield Township, were elected 
 as Representatives to the State Legislature, 
 both of those gentlemen being Democrats, but 
 pledged to the new county project, thus l)eing 
 
A 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY, 
 
 227 
 
 elected over the regular Whig nominees, Por- 
 tage County at that time, pai'ticularly the west 
 era portion, being largely Whig, on strict party 
 issues ; Simon Perkins, Jr., tlien as now a resi- 
 dent of Portage Township, a member of the 
 Whig party, being at the time a member of the 
 State Senate. 
 
 The Legislature convened and organized on 
 the 2d day of December, 1839, and, on the 17th 
 day of the same month, Hon. James Hoagland, 
 of Holmes County, as Chairman of the com- 
 mittee on new counties, reported to the house 
 " a bill to erect the county of Summit," which 
 was read the first time. The Stark Count}- 
 Representatives, Hons. John Smith and James 
 Welch, the Medina County Representative, Hon. 
 James S. Carpenter and the Lorain County 
 Representative, Hon. Albert A. Bliss, all di- 
 rectly and vigorously opposed the movement ; 
 the first three because of the curtailment of 
 their respective counties, in providing the re- 
 quisite territory for the proposed new county, 
 and the last because of the proposition to trans- 
 fer the townships of Spencer and Homer from 
 Lorain to Medina, to keep the territory of the 
 latter up to the constitutional requirement, after 
 being shorn of her eastern tier of townships. 
 Representatives of several other counties in 
 different portions of the State, in danger of be- 
 ing dismembered by similar new county proj- 
 ects, also earnestly opposed the measure, so 
 that it had to be fought through inch bj^ inch, 
 passing the House by a majority of three only, 
 on the 6th day of February, 1840. 
 
 In the Senate, also, the struggle was equall}^ 
 determined and severe. Senators Hostetter, of 
 Stark, Birch, of Lorain, Nash, of Meigs, and 
 Thomas, of Miami, actively and energetically 
 opposing the bill. Active and influential "lob- 
 bjnsts," both for and against the measure, were 
 also in attendance in full force, and the various 
 tactics and devices resorted to in promoting 
 the measure on the one hand, and retarding it 
 on the other, would make a good-sized volume 
 of "mighty interesting reading" if it could be 
 correctly written up. The progress of the bill 
 through the House and Senate, as briefly re- 
 corded in the proceedings of the two Houses, 
 will give the reader a pretty fair idea of the 
 bitterness of the fight, though b}- no means 
 conveying to the mind anything like an ade- 
 quate conception of the vast amount of argu- 
 ment, eloquence, repartee, vituperation, ridicule 
 
 and fun indulged in during the four months, 
 nearly, that it was under consideration. 
 
 On motion of Mr. Spalding, the bill was taken 
 up for consideration, December 21, when, on 
 motion of Mr. Welch, the further consideration 
 of the bill was postponed until the second 
 Thursday in January. Yeas, 42 ; nays, 28. 
 
 On motion of Mr. Spalding, the bill was 
 again taken up, January 11, when Mr. Welch 
 moved to recommit the bill to the Committee 
 on New Counties, with instructions to report 
 the number of petitioners and remonstrants for 
 and against the project — which was agreed to. 
 
 The committee having made its report, on mo- 
 tion of Mr. Spalding, the bill was again taken 
 up, Januar}' 17, when Mr. Welch moved to 
 postpone the further consideration of the bill 
 until the first Monday of December next, 
 which was lost — j'eas, 28 ; nays 32. The bill 
 was then laid on the table. 
 
 Mr. Spalding moved to take the bill from the 
 table, January 27, which was lost — yeas, 25 ; 
 na^'S 30. 
 
 Feb. 6. — On motion of Mr. Spalding, the bill 
 was again taken up, and, after some delay, 
 caused by Mr. Welch moving a call of the 
 House, was put upon its passage and carried — 
 yeas, 34 ; naj'S, 31. 
 
 The bill, as received from the House, was 
 read for the first time in the Senate February 7, 
 and February 27, Mr. Hostetter, of Stark, 
 moved to strike out of the bill that part of 
 the territory belonging to Stark County. Lost 
 — yeas, 15 ; na\^s, 18. 
 
 'Mr. Nash, of Meigs, moved to strike out 
 that portion of the bill exempting the people 
 resident in the Stark County townships from 
 taxation for the erection of the public build- 
 ings for the proposed new county. Lost — 
 3'eas, 14 ; nays, 19. 
 
 On being read the third time, February 28, 
 Mr. Thomas, of 3Iiami, moved to recommit the 
 bill to the Committee on New Counties, with 
 instructions to so amend as to strike out that 
 part exempting Green and Franklin Townships 
 from taxation for public buildings. Lost — 
 yeas, 13 ; nays, 21. 
 
 Mr. Hostetter then moved that the further 
 consideration of the bill be postponed until the 
 first Monday of December next. Lost — yeas, 
 7 ; nays, 27. 
 
 Mr. Birch, of Lorain, moved to refer the bill 
 to the Judiciarv Committee, with instructions 
 
 ^ 
 
228 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 to so amend as to strike out the two Lorain 
 townsliips. Lost — yeas, 9 ; nays, 25. 
 
 Mr. Hostetter moved to amend so as to leave 
 the matter to the voters of the proposed new 
 county, at the next October election. Lost — 
 yeas, 10 ; nays, 24. 
 
 The question then recurring on the final pas- 
 sage of the bill, Mr. Hostetter demanded the 
 yeas and nays, which were ordered, and were 
 as follows: yeas, 19; nays, 15. The bill as 
 passed is as follows : 
 
 .Section 1. Be it enacted by the General AssenMy 
 of tlie State of Ohio, That so much of the counties 
 of Portage, Medina and Stark, as comes within the 
 following boundaries, be, and the same is liereby 
 erected into a separate countj'. which shall be known 
 by the name of Summit, to wit : Beginning at the 
 northwest corner of the county of Portage ; tlience 
 east on the county line to the northeast corner of 
 the township of Twinsburg, in said county of Port- 
 age ; thence south on the line between the ninth and 
 tenth ranges of townships of the Western Reserve 
 to the southeast corner of the township of Spring- 
 field, in said county ; thence west on the line be- 
 tween the counties of Portage and Stark to the 
 northeast corner of the township of Green, in said 
 Stark Coimty ; thence south on tlie east line of said 
 township of Green, to the southeast corner of tlie 
 same ; thence west on the south line of the town- 
 ships of Green and Franklin, in saidcoiuity of Stark, 
 to the soiitlnvest corner of said township of Frank- 
 lin ; thence north on the line between the counties 
 of Stark and Wayne to the soutli line of the county 
 of Medina ; thence west on the south line of the 
 county of ]\Iedina to the southwest corner of the 
 township of Norton, in said county ; thence north 
 on the line between the tw^dfth and thirteenth 
 ranges of townships of the Western Reserve to the 
 northwest corner of the township of Richfield, in 
 said county ; thence east on the north line of said 
 county to tlie southwest corner of tlie township of 
 Nortlifield, in Portage County ; tlience north on th(> 
 west line of said Portage County to the place of 
 beginning; and for the purpose of restoi-ing the 
 county of Medina to its constitutional limits; the 
 townships of Spencer and Homer, in the county of 
 Lorain, be, and the same are hereby, attached to, and 
 made a part of, the said county of Medina. 
 
 Sec. 2. That all suits, whether of a civil or 
 criminal nature, which shall be pending within the 
 limits of those parts of the comities of Portage, 
 Medina and Stark, so to be set off and erected into 
 a new county previous to the organization of said 
 county of Summit; and all suits pending within the 
 limits of said townships of Spencer and Homer, pre- 
 vious to the taking effect of this act, shall be prose- 
 cuted to final judgment and execution within the 
 counties of Portage, Medina, Stark and Lorain, re- 
 spectively, in the same manner they would have 
 been if said county of Summit had not been erected, 
 and the said townships of Spencer and Homer had 
 not been attaclied to and made a part of said Me- 
 dina County ; and the Slicriffs, Coroners and Consta- 
 
 bles of the said counties, respectively, shall execute 
 all such process as shall be necessary to carry into 
 effect sncli suits, prosecutions and judgments, and 
 the collectors of the taxes for said counties, respect- 
 ively, shall collect all taxes that shall be levied and 
 unpaid within the parts of the aforesaid counties, 
 previous to the taking effect of this act. 
 
 Sec. 3. That all Justices of the Peace within 
 those parts of the counties of Portage, Medina and 
 Stark, which by this act are erected into a new 
 county; and also within said townships of Spencer 
 and Homer, shall continue to exercise the duties of 
 their offices until their times of service shall expire, 
 in the same manner as if they had been commis- 
 sioned for the counties of Summit and Medina, re- 
 spectively. 
 
 Sec. 4. That on the first Monday of April next, 
 the legal voters residing Avithin the county of Sum- 
 mit shall assemble within their respective townships 
 at the usual places of holding elections, and proceed 
 to elect their different county officers, who shall 
 hold their offices until the next annual election, and 
 until their successors are elected and qualified. 
 
 Sec. 5. That the Courts of Common Pleas and 
 Supreme Court of said county shall be holden at 
 some convenient house in the town of Akron until 
 the permanent seat of justice for said county shaU 
 be esta1)lished. 
 
 Sec. 6. That Commissioners shall be appointed 
 agreeably to the act entitled, "An act for the estab- 
 lishment of seats of justice," to fix upon a perma- 
 nent seat of justice for said count}' of Summit, 
 agreeably to tlie provisions of the above-recited act; 
 and the Commissioners aforesaid shall receive a com- 
 pensation for their services out of the treasury of 
 said county of Summit ; and said Commissioners 
 shall be authorized to receive propositions for the 
 erection of suitalde county buildings by the citizens 
 of such towns and villages as ma_y desire to have the 
 seat of justice of said county established within their 
 respective limits ; and in no event shall an}' tax for 
 the erection of county buildings for said county of 
 Summit be imposed upon the citizens of the town- 
 ships of Franklin aiul Green, which townships are 
 taken from the county of Stark, for and during th(; 
 term of fifty years from and after the passage of 
 this act. 
 
 Thomas J. Buchanan, 
 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
 William McLaughlin, 
 
 Speaker of the Senate. 
 
 Makch 3, 1840. 
 
 The next thing in order was the passage of 
 a joint resolution appointing Commissioners to 
 locate the county seat, which was adopted by 
 the House, February 7, and concurred in by 
 the Senate, February 10, as follows: 
 
 Besolved, By the Senate and House of Represent- 
 atives, that Jacob J. Williard, of Columbiana 
 County, James McConnell, of Holmes County, and 
 Warren Sabin, of Clinton County, be, and they are 
 hereby appointed Commissioners to establish the 
 seat of justice for Summit County, pursuant to an 
 
 
" "iry 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 229 
 
 act entitled "An act establishing seats of justice," 
 passed Februaiy 33, 1834. 
 
 Thomas J. Buchanan, 
 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
 William McLaughlin, 
 Speaker of tJie Senate. 
 
 The next stage in the proceedings, was the 
 passage of a bill to organize the new county, 
 which passed the House without opposition, 
 on the -Jrth da}" of March, 1840, and unani- 
 mousl}' concurred in by the Senate, March 10, 
 as follows: 
 
 Sec 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of 
 the State of Ohio: That the county of Summit be, 
 ' and the same is hereby organized into a separate 
 and distinct county. 
 
 Sec 2. All Justices of the Peace and Constables 
 within the territory taken from Portage, Medina 
 and Stark Counties, shall continue to discharge the 
 duties of their resi3ective offices until their com- 
 missions or terms of office shall expire, and until 
 their successors shall be chosen and qualified; and 
 suits commenced before the taking effect of this 
 act, shall proceed and be prosecuted as though this 
 act had not been passed. Provided, That all writs 
 and other legal process to be issued after the tirst 
 Monday of April next, shall be styled of Summit 
 County, instead of Portage, Medina or Stark County. 
 
 Sec 3. That on the tirst Monday of April next, 
 the legal voters residing within the limits of the 
 County of Summit, shall assemble in their respect- 
 ive townships, at the usual places of holding elec- 
 tions, and proceed to elect their different county 
 officers in the same manner pointed out in the act 
 to regulate elections, who shall hold their offices 
 until the next annual election, and until their suc- 
 cessors are chosen and qualified. 
 
 Sec 4. It shall be The duty of the Commission- 
 ers of said county of Summit, on or before the first 
 day of June next, to take charge of all paupers, 
 idiots and insane persons belonging to either of the 
 townships included in said county of Summit, and 
 now supported by either of the counties of Portage, 
 Medina or Stark, and the same to maintain there- 
 after at the proper expense of said Summit Count}'. 
 
 Sec 5. The countj^ of Summit, for judicial pur- 
 poses, is hereby attached to the Third Judicial Cir- 
 cuit, and the first Court of Common Pleas to be 
 holden in said county, shall commence its session 
 in the town of Akron, on the second day of July 
 next, and the second term of said court shall com- 
 mence on the eighth day of December next. 
 
 Sec. 6. That'' the Auditor of State in the re-ap- 
 apportionment of the surplus revenue received from 
 the General Government, according to the enumer- 
 ation of the year 1839, shall apportion to the county 
 of Summit "that snnount, which according to the 
 enumeration of the several townshii^s taken from 
 the Counties of Portage, Medina and Stark, said 
 county will l)e entitled to receive, wliicli revenue 
 shall be paid to the order of the Fund Commis- 
 sioners of said county on the first day of January. 
 1841. Provided, If within three months from said 
 first day of January, 1841, said Fund Commission- 
 
 ers do not draw for said revenue, the Auditor of 
 State shall be governed in the disposition of the 
 same by the first section of the act to provide for 
 the distril)ution and investment of the State's pro- 
 portion of the surplus revenue, pas.sed March 88, 
 1837. 
 
 Sec 7. That in all elections for members of Con- 
 gress, the count}' of Summit shall be attached to the 
 Fifteenth Congressional District. 
 
 Thomas J. Buchanan, 
 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
 William McLAr(;iii,[N, 
 Speaker of the Senate. 
 
 As soon as the news of the final passage of 
 the bill erecting the new county reached Akron, 
 by the arrival of the overland mail from Co- 
 lumbus, on Monday evening, March 2, 1840, 
 (the bill having passed the Senate the previous 
 Saturday, February 28, though not engrossed 
 and signed by the Speakers of the two houses 
 until March 3), there being no railroads or tele- 
 graphs in those days, an impromptu jollifica- 
 tion took place, which is thus graphically de- 
 scribed in one of the local journals of the da}' : 
 '' With the rapidity of lightning, the news was 
 spread from house to house, and in less than 
 half an hour the whole town was in motion. 
 Cheers, congratulations, bonfires and illumina- 
 tions were the order of the day, while the deep- 
 toned thunder of our cannon continued to pro- 
 claim the birth of the new count}' to all the 
 surrounding country. Such a spontaneous and 
 universal burst of feeling has seldom been wit- 
 nessed under any circumstances. It was a 
 scene to be looked upon, but cannot be de- 
 scribed ; such a noise as the shrouds make at 
 sea in a stiff tempest, as loud, and to as many 
 tunes. Hats, caps and cloaks, I think, flew up, 
 and, had their faces then been loose, this night 
 had lost them." In fact, the recollection of 
 the writer is to-day vivid and distinct, looking 
 back through the dim vista of the forty-one 
 intervening years, that through the entire night, 
 " until broad daylight in the morning," both 
 solid and liquid jollity and liappiness prevailed. 
 Nor did the citizens of Akron confine the re- 
 joicing over the glorious result to themselves 
 alone, but immediately took the initiatory 
 steps for a general new county celebration on 
 Wednesday, March 4. A committee of twelve 
 citizens of Akron and one from each town- 
 ship was appointed, and measures taken to 
 spread the '' glad tidings " as widely as possi- 
 ble. Dr. Jedediah D. Commins was made 
 President of the day ; Col. James W. Phillips, 
 
 ;t^ 
 
'll 
 
 .k 
 
 230 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Col. Justus Gale and Jacob Brown, Esq., of j 
 Akron, and Col. Frederick A. Sprague and i 
 Benjamin Rouse, Esq., of Kichfield, and Col. ; 
 Solomon Markham, of Green, Vice Presidents ; 
 Gen. Lucius V. Bierce, of Akron, was consti- 
 tuted Chief Marshal, with Col. Erastus Torrey 
 and Maj. Ithiel Mills, of Akron, as assistants. 
 A national salute was fired from the high 
 ground between the two villages, North and i 
 South Akron (the present court house site) at 
 sunrise. The militar}^ display was very fine, 
 being participated in by the Summit Guards, 
 the Akron Light Infantry and Cavalry, the 
 Copley Light Artillery, the Akron Band, under 
 the leadership of Mr. Henry S. Abbey, and the 
 Military Band, under the lead of Capt. Cleve- 
 land. The procession of several thousand men 
 and boys, after marching through several 
 streets, was joined by a large cortege of ladies, 
 dressed uniformly alike and carrying parasols, 
 who took their position between the Committee 
 of Arrangements and the military, and marched 
 the balance of the route to the place of feast- 
 ing, on the present court house grounds. After 
 dinner (abundant and toothsome), the following 
 regular toasts were announced and responded 
 to by the firing of cannon, music and cheers : 
 1. The Legislature of Ohio — They have at 
 length done justice to themselves and us. Bet- 
 ter late than never ! 2. Our Senator and Rep- 
 resentatives — Many have done well, but, these 
 have excelled them all ! 3. The County of 
 Summit — An infant Hercules. Give him a 
 wide berth, for he'll be a whopper ! 4. Our 
 Struggle — Almost another Trojan siege. The 
 pangs and throes it has cost our parents to 
 bring us forth are a certain presage of future 
 greatness. 5. Akron — Look at her as she was, 
 as she is, and as she iviU be ! 6. Our Young 
 County — The pride of our affections ; unsur- 
 passed in the elements of future greatness ; al- 
 ready populous and wealthy. If such is its 
 childhood, what will it be when it becomes a 
 man? 7. Portage, Stark aiul Medina — Among 
 them they have hatched a young eagle, full- 
 fledged and on the wing. She will soar above 
 them all ! 8. The Buckeye State — A germ of 
 future empire, marching right ahead in the road 
 of prosperity. She will not be turned aside 
 from the high destiny that awaits her. 9. Our 
 Canals and Public Improvements— \t such 
 things be done in the green tree, what will be 
 done in the dry? 10. The Late Meeting at 
 
 Ravenna — Malignity feeding on envy ; daws 
 pecking at eagles ; a striking instance of folly 
 re-acting on itself ! 11. The Memory of Greg- 
 ory Powers — We mourn the untimely fate of 
 this patriot, statesman and jurist. His memory 
 will long be cherished in the county of Summit, 
 his native and resting place. 12. The memory 
 of George Washington — The greatest and best 
 man ever produced in the tide of time. When 
 nature had formed him, she broke the mold, that 
 he might stand peerless and alone ! 13. The 
 Ladies of Summit — It is the summit of our ambi- 
 tion to stand in the summit of their affections ! 
 At the conclusion of the regular toasts, volun- 
 teer toasts were oflfered by Benjamin Rouse, 
 Esq., of Richfield ; Gen. Samuel D. Harris, of 
 Ravenna ; Hiram Bowen, Esq., editor of the 
 Beacon, Akron ; Dr. Joseph Cole, Akron ; Col. 
 Justus Gale, Akron ; Maj. Ithiel Mills, Akron ; 
 Col. Erastus Torrey, Akron ; Capt. Philo 
 Chamberlin, Akron ; John Hunsberger, Esq., of 
 Green ; Dr. Jedediah D. Commins, Akron ; 
 Julius A. Sumner, of Springfield ; Robert K. 
 Dubois, Akron ; Col. James W. Phillips, Ak- 
 ron ; Dr. Asa Field, Akron, and others. These 
 " sentiments " would, no doubt, be interesting 
 to the readers of these pages, but are altogether 
 too voluminous for the space at our disposal 
 in this chapter. In the evening, a convivial 
 party partook of a very fine supper at the 
 Ohio Exchange (present site of Woods' Block, 
 corner of Main and Market streets), and, says 
 the local reporter. " the day was closed with- 
 out accident or other untoward circumstance 
 to mar the festivities, amid bonfires and every 
 demonstration of joy. The 4th of March, 1840, 
 will long be remembered in Akron ! " 
 
 In accordance with the provisions of the bill 
 to organize the new county, an election for 
 county officers was held on the first Monday of 
 April, 1840, both Whigs and Democrats placing 
 tickets in the field, the Whigs securing the as- 
 cendency, and electing their entire ticket as 
 follows : 
 
 Commissioners — John Hoy, of Franklin ; 
 Jonathan Starr, of Copley, and Augustus E. 
 Foote, of Twinsburg. 
 
 Auditor — Birdsey Booth, of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 Treasurer — William O'Brien, of Hudson. 
 
 Recorder — -Alexander Johnston, of Green. 
 
 Sheriff"— Thomas Wilson, of Northfield. 
 
 Prosecuting Attorney — George Kirkum, of 
 Akron. 
 
s 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 231 
 
 Coroner — Elisha Hinsdale, of Norton. 
 
 Real Estate Appraiser — Frederick A. Sprague, 
 of Kichfield. 
 
 Assistant Appraisers — Milo Stone, of Tall- 
 madge, and Thomas E. Jones, of Franklin. 
 
 The Clerlv of tlie Court of Common Pleas, 
 was at that time appointed by the Judges of 
 the Court ; the Judges, in turn, being appointees 
 of the Legislature. The offices of Probate 
 Judge and County Surve^-ors were then un- 
 known among the County officials of Ohio. 
 
 Having given the requisite notice, the Com- 
 missioners elect, Messrs Hoy, Starr and Foote, 
 met, according to the record, at " McDonald's 
 Tavern," northeast corner of Main and Ex- 
 change streets (a portion of the same buikling 
 still remains standing in the same site), on the 
 9th da}' of April, 1840, for the organization of 
 the county offices. The Commissioners having 
 had the usual oath of office administered to them 
 l)y the one of Justices of the Peace of Portage 
 Township, one of their number administered a 
 similar oath to the other officers elect, and the 
 organization of the county was complete. 
 
 At this meeting, proposals for the I'ent of 
 rooms for county offices and court purposes, 
 pending the permanent location of the seat of 
 justice, and the erection of county buildings, 
 were received from Jacob Brown, Esq., for 
 May's Block, corner of Main and Exchange 
 streets, now the Clarendon Hotel, owned by F. 
 Schumacher, Esq. ; Benjamin W. Stephens, 
 Esq., for his three-story brick block on South 
 Main street, now part of Merrill's Pottery, and 
 from Hii-am Payne, Esq.. for the upper part of 
 the large three-story stone block, corner of 
 Howard and JMarket streets, on the site now oc- 
 cupied by the fine brick stores of M. W. Henry, 
 Esq., and Major E. Steinbacher. 
 
 At a subsequent meeting of the Commission- 
 ers, held on the 11th day of ^lay, the proposi- 
 tion of Mr. Payne was accepted, the large room 
 in the third story, afterward for several years 
 known as " Military Hall," being used as a 
 court-room, with entrance from Market sti'cet, 
 the southeast corner of the hall being partitioned 
 off for a jail, the county offices being located in 
 other portions of the second and thii'd stories 
 of the building. 
 
 The Locating Commissioners, ^lessrs. Will- 
 iard,McConnell and Sal)in, assembled in Akron 
 and entered upon the task assigned to them 
 about the middle of 3Lay, 1840. In the mean- 
 
 time, not onl}' had a sharp rivalry sprung up 
 between North and South Akron for the prize, 
 but Cuyahoga Falls also put forth a vigorous 
 effort to wrest it from both, claiming, with a 
 good degree of plausibility and justice, not only 
 superior water-power for manufacturing pur- 
 poses, but also to be considerably nearer to the 
 geographical center of the county than Akron 
 was ; and also claiming for that village superi- 
 or healthfulness, and a more advantageous lo- 
 cation for the building-up of a large manufact- 
 uring town or city, while the completion of the 
 Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal, then about to 
 be opened through from Akron to the Ohio 
 River, would give them transportation facilities 
 fully equal to those of Akron. 
 
 At that time, too, " The Portage Canal and 
 Manufacturing Company." with a capital stock 
 of $500,000, was in the full tide of " prospective " 
 prosperity. The managers of that corporation 
 claimed that on the consummation of their 
 project of bringing the entire waters of the 
 Big Cuyahoga River, through the race they 
 were then constructing, to " Summit Citv," 
 now known under the chaste and classical name 
 of the " Chucker}'," just north of the present 
 limits of the citj- of Akron, and one of its most 
 pleasant suburbs, a great manufacturing town 
 — a second Lowell — would immediately spring 
 into existence. As a compromise, therefore, 
 between Akron and Cuyahoga Falls, as well as 
 in its own behalf, and in the intei'ests of the 
 people of the county at large, the " Chuckery " 
 put in its claim for the location of the seat of 
 justice of the new county within its borders, 
 and, through its officers, urged the advantages 
 of the location upon the attention of the Com- 
 missioners. 
 
 After visiting and fully examining the sev- 
 eral localities named, and patieatlv listening to 
 the arguments of the several claimants, pro and 
 con, the Commissioners decided unanimously in 
 favor of Akron, and accordingly proceeded, in 
 the presence of a large concourse of interested 
 and jubilant spectators, to stick the stakes for 
 the county buildings upon the " gore " (where 
 they still stand), then a wedge-shaped piece of 
 unplatted land between North and South Akron, 
 belonging to Gen. Simon Perkins, of Warren, 
 the father of our present venerable fellow-citi- 
 zen. Col. Simon Perkins, of Akron. 
 
 The people of Akron were, of course, greatly 
 elated over the decision of the Commissioners 
 
 
h 
 
 ^H 
 
 A-. 
 
 232 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 in their favor, and as tlie buildings liad been 
 located upon neutral ground, about as t»con- 
 venient to the one as to the other, local jeal- 
 ousies were for the time being subordinated to 
 the common weal, and the people of the two 
 rival villages, cordially " shaking hands across 
 the yore-y chasm," set themselves vigorously 
 and unanimously at work to raise the neces- 
 sary amount of money and materials to con- 
 struct the public buildings, which, together 
 with the grounds, were to be provided free of 
 expense to the tax-payers of the county. The 
 land was donated by Gen. Perkins, by deed re- 
 ceived by the Commissioners, July 14, 1840, 
 and the building fund was raised by voluntary- 
 contributions ; the contract for the erection of 
 the court house and jail being entered into be- 
 tween the Count}' Commissioners and Simon 
 Perkins, Jr., and others, as Trustees, on the 
 24th da}' of September, 1840. The sub-con- 
 tractors, Maj. Ithiel Mills, of Akron, upon the 
 court house, and Sebbeus Saxton, of Norton, 
 upon tlie jail, commenced work at once, the 
 foundations of both structures being completed 
 before the closing in of winter the same 3'ear. 
 The term of Mr. Perkins, as State Senator, 
 having expired, Elisha N. Sill, Esq., of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, was chosen as his successor in Oc- 
 tober, 1840. Though Mr. Sill, in behalf of the 
 people of Cuyahoga Falls, had made a valiant 
 tight for the location of the seat of justice within 
 the limits of that enterprising village, there 
 was very little if any opposition made to his 
 nomination and election by the people of Akron, 
 for the reason that it was supposed that, the 
 location having been legally and fairl}- made, 
 and the public buildings commenced, ajfinality 
 had been reached, and that the arrangement 
 could not be disturbed. Through the influence 
 of Senator Sill, however, aided largely by the 
 same interests, if not the same men, that had 
 opposed the erection of the new county the 
 3'ear before, the question of location was re- 
 opened, during the winter of 1840-41, Summit 
 County's Representative in the House, Hon. 
 Henry 0. AVeaver, of Springfield, making a 
 vigorous but unsuccessful opposition against 
 the scheme. The following is the new act in 
 relation to the matter : 
 
 An Act to Review and Estabt.isii the Seat of 
 Justice of Summit County : 
 Section 1 . Be it enncted by the Oeneral Assembly 
 of the State of Ohio: That Jacob C. Hoaglaud, of 
 
 Highland County, Valentine "Winters, of Montgom- 
 ery .County, and William Kendall, of Scioto County, 
 be, and they are, hereby appointed Commissioners 
 to review the scat of justice of Summit County; and 
 if, in their opinion, the public interest requires it, 
 t ) relocate said seat of justice at such point in said 
 connty of Summit as they may deem most in ac- 
 cordance with the put)lic interest and convenience; 
 and said Commissioners shall be governed, in all 
 their doings, by an act passed February 3, 1824, es- 
 tablishing seats of justice. 
 
 Sec 2." That if the above-named Commissioners 
 shall, upon review, change the location of said 
 county seat, all su))scriptions of money and land, 
 and ail bonds shall be void which have been made 
 to the County Commissioners of said Summit 
 County, and which were conditioned upon the loca- 
 tion of the county seat at its present location; and 
 all sums of money or other propertj', if any, which 
 may have been paid on account of said subscrip- 
 tions to the Commissioners of said Summit County, 
 shall be repaid by the Commissioners to the said 
 subscribers having so paid the same; or if said 
 money or other property has been expended by said 
 Commissioners according to law, the same shall be 
 repaid, as above, out of the subscriptions provided 
 for in the third section of this act; and the property 
 for which said expenditures may have been made 
 shall be appropriated by said Commissioners toward 
 erecting the county buildings of said county where 
 the county seat shall be relocated. 
 
 Sec 3. That the above-named Commissioners 
 shall be authorized to receive subscriptions, payable 
 to the Connty Commissioners, for the purpose of 
 erecting county buildings for said Summit County, 
 and said Committee of review, hereby appointed, 
 shall relocate said county seat only upon condition 
 that said county buildings shall be erected b}' such 
 subscriptions at the place where said committee 
 shall so relocate. 
 
 Sec 4. That each of said Commissioners shall 
 receive the sum of |3 for each day he may be em- 
 ployed in the discliarge of his duties under this act, 
 and |3 for each twenty miles travel in going to and 
 returning from the seat of justice of said county, to 
 be paid out of the treasury of said county. 
 Seabuky Ford, 
 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
 William M. McLaughlin, 
 
 March 25, 1841. ^i'"'^'''' ^^ *^'' ^''"'*''- 
 
 The reviewing Commissioners, Messrs. Hoag- 
 land. Winters and Kendall, came upon the 
 ground early in the summer of 1841. After 
 examining the several localities named, they 
 resolved themselves into a high court of inqui- 
 I'y, at the stone church — then Universalist, 
 now Baptist — on North High street, when the 
 claims of the different points were exhaustively 
 argued before them by the following gentle- 
 men, viz.: Hon. R. P. Spalding, for Akron; 
 Hon. E. N. Sill, for Cuyahoga Falls, and Dr. 
 E. W. Crittenden, for Summit City: the church. 
 
 *:?1; 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 233 
 
 throughout, being crowded to its utmost capac- 
 ity by tlie anxious, and, at times, demonstra- 
 tive, baclvers of the respective speakers. After 
 listening to the able and eloquent addresses 
 from the gentlemen named, and " sleeping over 
 it " during an intervening night, the committee 
 proceeded the next morning to the " chuckery," 
 and, upon the first narrow bench of level land 
 north of the Little Cuyahoga River, at a point 
 about where the house of Mr. 11. A. Grimwood 
 now stands, commenced measuring off the 
 ground and formally sticking the stakes for 
 the count}' buildings, in the presence of a large 
 crowd of interested, as well as indignant specta- 
 tors. While thus engaged. Dr. Daniel Upson, of 
 Tallmadge, who, though living and having large 
 property interests somewhat nearer to Cuyaho- 
 ga Falls than Akron, rather favored the latter 
 place, rode up from the direction of Bettes' Cor- 
 ners. After watching the proceedings for a 
 few minutes, the old Doctor, with the emphatic 
 tone of voice and the peculiar curl of lip, so 
 characteristic of him when aroused, exclaimed : 
 '■ Nobody but fools or knaves would think of 
 locating county buildings in such a place as 
 that!" 
 
 The bluff old Doctors indignant remax'k so 
 aroused the ire of the majority of the Commis- 
 sioners, already probaljly somewhat prejudiced 
 against xlkron, that they forthwith gathered up 
 their locating paraphernalia and drove straight 
 to Cuyahoga Falls, where they struck the stakes 
 for the county buildings, on the very handsome 
 site now occupied by the Congregational 
 Church, on the south side of Broad street, and 
 between Broad and Second streets east and 
 west. 
 
 The relocating committee were not unani- 
 mous, however, as will be seen by the following 
 extract from the journal of the Court of Com- 
 mon Pleas of July 23. 1841 : 
 
 In the matter of the revieio and relocation of the 
 seat of justice for Suinmit County, Jacob C. Hoag- 
 land and Valentine Winter.s, two of the Commis- 
 sioner.s appointed by the Legislature to review and 
 locate the seat of justice of Summit County, having 
 returned to the oflfiee of the Clerk of this Court their 
 joint report, and WiHiam Kendall, the other Com- 
 missioner, having returned to the Clerk of this Court 
 his separate report, this day George Kirkuni, Esq., 
 a citizen and Prosecuting Attorney for said count}^ 
 presented the same reports to the Coiu't, and moved 
 that the report of said Hoagland and Winters be 
 filed and entered of record. Whereupon, the Com- 
 missioners of said county of Summit appear hy their 
 
 attorney and object to the filing and entering of said 
 reports of record, for various reasons by them set 
 forth, and the parties were heard by counsel, and 
 the Court, being ec(ually divided in opinion: It is 
 ordered that the said George Kirkum, Esq,, take 
 nothing by his said motion. 
 
 The Court being thus divided as to the legal- 
 ity of the proceedings, and the County Com- 
 missioners also being divided in opinion on the 
 same subject. Commissioner Foote favoring the 
 majority report, and Messrs. Starr and Hoy the 
 minority report, the county ofticers also assum- 
 ing the prerogative of deciding, each for him- 
 self, where his office should be kept. Auditor 
 Booth establishing his headquarters at Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, and Treasurer O'Brien having his 
 main office at the Falls, though maintaining a 
 branch office in Akron, no further action was 
 had in regard to the public buildings, the work 
 already commenced in Akron remaining in statu 
 quo until the following year. 
 
 At the October election, in 1841, the county- 
 seat question being the issue, Rufus P. Spald- 
 ing and Simon Perkins, Jr., were elected to the 
 Legislature, Summit Count}* that year being en- 
 titled to two members of the House, Represent- 
 atives, under the old constitution, being elected 
 annually, instead of bienniall}', as now. Sen- 
 ators, then, as now, being elected for two years. 
 Mr. Sill of course held his position during the 
 session of 1841-42. Through the exertions of 
 Messrs. Spalding and Perkins, the following 
 fjill, submitting the question to popular vote, 
 was enacted, the filibustering tactics to retard 
 and defeat it being much less determined and 
 persistent in the House than upon the original 
 bill for the erection of the new county, but vig- 
 orousl}' opposed in the Senate, the vote stand- 
 ing, in the House, 3'eas, 45 ; na3's, 19 ; and in 
 the Senate, 3'eas, 20 ; nays, 16, on the final pas- 
 sage of the bill, as follows : 
 
 An Act to establish permanently the Seat of 
 Justice of Summit County: 
 Section 1. Be it enacted hi/ the General Assembly 
 of the State of Ohio: That the (pialified electors of 
 Summit County shall be authorized to express their 
 preference for either Akron, or Cuj^ahoga Falls, as 
 the seat of justice for said coiuity, by placing on 
 their ticket.s', at the township elections, to be held 
 on the first Monda.y of April ne.xl, the words: "Seat 
 of Justice at Akroii," or, "Seat of Justice at Cuya- 
 hoga Falls," as their choice maj' be; and it shall be 
 the duty of the Trustees or Judges of the Election, 
 in the several townships in said county, to make re- 
 turn of the said votes in regard to the seat of justice 
 within three da^'s thereafter to the Clerk of the 
 
 IV 
 
231 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Court of Common Pleas of said county, whose duty 
 it shall be to canvass said votes, in the same man- 
 ner that by law he is required to canvass votes for 
 State and county officers. 
 
 Sec. 2. ff eitlier one of said towns shall receive a 
 majorit}^ of all the votes given, the same shall be 
 thenceforward the permanent seat of justice for 
 said (;ounty of Summit; but if neither shall receive 
 such majority, then, and in that case, the subject 
 shall remain open for the future action of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly. 
 
 Sec. 3. It shall be the duty of said Clerk to return 
 to the Coui't of Common Pleas of said county, next 
 to be held after the said election, an abstract of said 
 votes, duly certified, that tiie same may be entered 
 upon the journal of said court. 
 
 Sec. 4. Nothing herein contained shall be so con- 
 strued, as to release, or in any way discharge any 
 subscription of land, money, or materials lieretofore 
 made, for the pm-pose of erecting a court house and 
 jail at the place that may be selected by the people 
 as the permanent seat of justice for said county. 
 
 Sec. 5. The electors of Summit County shall be 
 notified of the passage of this act. by publication of 
 the same in some newspaper printed in said county, 
 at least two weeks previous to said election. 
 
 Rupus P. Spalding, 
 Speaker of the House of RepresentaUves. 
 James J. Fakan, 
 
 March 2, 1842. Speaker of the Senate. 
 
 On the passage of this bill, a lively election- 
 eering campaign immediately commenced, the 
 different parties in interest holding meetings, 
 making speeches, circulating documents, etc., 
 in ever}- portion of the count}', the activity and 
 bitterness of a modern political campaign be- 
 ing moderation and mildness itself compared 
 with it. 
 
 The result of the active measures thus taken, 
 was a very full vote, almost two-thirds declar- 
 ing in favor of Akron, as will be seen by the 
 fcjUowing abstract taken from the journal of 
 the Court of Common Pleas, May term, 1842, 
 as certified to by Lucian Swift, Esq., Clerk of 
 said court. 
 
 To the Honorable, the Court of Common Pleas of 
 the County of Summit, next to be holden in and for 
 said county: I do hereby certify that the following 
 is the a!)stract of votes given for the seat of justice 
 of said county, at the election held on the lirst Mon- 
 day of April, 1842, pursuant to an act of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly entitled "an act to establish perma- 
 nently the seat of Justice for Summit County," 
 passed March 2, 1842, as the same were returned to 
 me by the township authorities, respectively, and 
 as the same were canvassed; as witness my hand 
 and seal of office, this sixth day of April A. I). 1842. 
 Lucian Swift, Clerk [Seal]. 
 
 State of Ohio, Summit County, ss. : 
 
 We do hereby certify that at an election held on 
 the 4t]! day of April, inst., in pursuance of a law 
 
 passed by the Fortieth General Assembly of the State 
 of Ohio, entitled "An act to establish permanently 
 the seat of justice of Summit County" there were 
 two thousand, nine hundred and seventy-eight votes 
 given for the "seat of justice at Akron;" one 
 thousand, three hundred and eighty -four votes given 
 for the "seat of justice at Cuyahoga Falls;" one 
 hundred and one votes given for the "seat of jus- 
 tice at Summit," two votes "North Akron" and 
 twent.y-two blanks. 
 
 H. II. Johnson, Justice of the Peace. 
 
 L. L. Howard, Justice of the Peace. 
 
 Lucian Swift, Clerk of Court of Common 
 Pleas for Summit County. 
 April 6, A. D. 1842. 
 
 abstract of votes. 
 
 
 Akron. 
 
 y- r. 
 
 6 
 
 S --3 
 
 
 c 
 
 Bath 
 
 191 
 
 66 
 
 271 
 
 232 
 
 250 
 
 289 
 
 16 
 
 29 
 
 30 
 
 295 
 
 621 
 
 153 
 
 348 
 
 6 
 
 181 
 
 41 
 54 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 60 
 
 1 
 
 
 Boston 
 
 '^ 
 
 Copley 
 
 1 
 
 Coventry 
 
 
 
 
 Franklin 
 
 4 
 
 1 
 
 235 
 
 132 
 
 143 
 
 
 
 1'^ 
 
 Green 
 
 
 
 '?, 
 
 Hudson 
 
 
 
 
 Northampton . . . 
 Northfield 
 
 7 
 9 
 
 
 2 
 
 Norton 
 
 
 
 Portage 
 
 5 
 
 16 
 
 15 
 
 361 
 
 177 
 199 
 
 15 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 
 Richfield 
 
 
 Springfield 
 
 Stow 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 Tallmadge 
 
 Twinsburg 
 
 7 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 Total 
 
 2978 
 
 1384 
 
 101 1 2 
 
 2'>, 
 
 
 
 
 
 For Akron 2978 
 
 Total Opposition 1509 
 
 Majority for Akron 1469 
 
 The "vexed question" of location being now 
 definitely settled, the public buildings were 
 again proceeded with ; though, building opera- 
 tions not being conducted as rapidly then as 
 now, the}^ were not completed until late in the 
 following 3'car, as will be seen by the following 
 extract from the proceedings of the Count}' 
 Commissioners, under date December 5, 1843: 
 
 Dec. 5, 1843. Simon Perkins, Jr., Jedediah D. 
 Commins and Richard Howe, the trustees for build- 
 ing the court house and jail, and Ithiel Mills, the 
 court house contractor, submitted the court house 
 for inspection of the board for their acceptance. 
 
 Dec. 6. Having examined the court house, the 
 board proposed, as an offset to the general bad 
 character of the work, which the building trustees 
 
 37i' 
 
J^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 235 
 
 fully admitted, to accept it, if the windows were 
 made to work freely up and down, the doors better 
 hung or fastened, and provided with more suitable 
 latches and locks, and the windows in the Auditor's, 
 Clerk's and Recorder's offices secured by iron blinds 
 or shutters, made and fitted into them. 
 
 The contractor on the jail, Mr. Sebbens Sax- 
 ton, having died in August, 1841, on the final 
 settlement of the question of location the con- 
 tract was assumed by his younger brother, 
 Mr. Harve}^ Saxton, and the structure com- 
 pleted by him. Though the jail was accepted 
 by the Commissioners, and though, at the time, 
 it was regarded as well built, and as really a 
 model institution of its kind, it did not prove 
 to be remarkably safe, as the ver}^ first batch 
 of prisoners, some eight or nine in number, 
 confined therein, made their escape the very 
 first night, by pushing from the wall one of 
 the blocks of stone of which it was composed. 
 This defect was subsequently remedied by the 
 insertion of iron dowels, and no escapes from 
 that cause have since been made, though often 
 attempted. The jail building remains the same 
 as when constructed, with the exception of the 
 small brick wing upon the north side, added 
 some thirty years ago, and some slight interior 
 improvements. Though the doweling of the 
 walls has prevented the prisoners from pushing 
 out the blocks of stone, as in the instance 
 named, at least a score of escapes have since 
 been effected through other weak spots, and, 
 from the experience which the writer has had 
 therewith, he unhesitatingly affirms that both 
 in a sanitar}^ point of view, as well as in the 
 matter of safety and convenience, a new jail 
 structure is an immediate and pressing public 
 necessity. 
 
 The court house, however, has been very 
 raateriall}^ changed. The two wings, with the 
 porch and sustaining columns in front, have 
 been added upon the west end, and the smaller 
 porch upon the east end, while the court-room 
 and public offices have been correspondingly 
 enlarged, the additions and improvements being 
 authorized by a special act of the Legislature, 
 passed March 29, 1867. The entire space upon 
 the north side of the hall, upon the ground 
 floor, is now occupied by the County Treasurer, 
 greatl}' to the conA^enience of that officer, as 
 well of the tax-paying public, the same space 
 having originally been divided up into a grand 
 jurj- room upon the west, the Sheriff's office 
 upon the east, with the Treasurer's office in the 
 
 center, only one- third its present dimensions. 
 On the south side of the hall the Probate 
 Judge formerly occupied the room upon the 
 east end, now occupied by the Sheriff, the en- 
 tire space now occupied by the Auditor's and 
 Commissioner's oflices having been originally 
 about equally divided between the Auditor, 
 Clerk and liecorder. On the upper floor, a 
 stairwa}^, ante-room and jury-room, occupj'ing 
 about twelve feet of the east end of the build- 
 ing, have been thrown into the court-room, 
 greatly to the convenience of the court and bar 
 and all persons having business thei'ein. The 
 upper floor of the north wing is devoted to a 
 jury-room and a consultation-room, and the 
 lower floor to the joint use of the Recorder and 
 Surveyor, while the upper floor of the south 
 wing is occupied by the County Clerk, and the 
 lower floor by the Probate Judge. Notwith- 
 standing these improvements, taking increase 
 of population and a corresponding increase of 
 the public business, the present structure — to 
 say nothing of its yearl}' increasing condition 
 of dilapidation — is wholly inadequate to the 
 public requirements, and Summit County can- 
 not do itself a more important service than b}- 
 immediately inaugurating a movement for the 
 erection of a new court house — one that will 
 not only be commensurate with the public 
 necessities, but a credit, also, to the proverbial 
 good taste and public spirit of its people. 
 
 On the 5th day of March, 1851, Hosea Paul 
 and others presented to the County Commis- 
 sioners a numerously signed petition for the 
 creation of the township of Cuyahoga Falls, 
 and the board, being satisfied that the proper 
 preliminary steps had been taken, unanimously 
 granted the petition, the necessary territory', 
 an average of about two miles square, being 
 taken from the northeast corner of Portage, the 
 northwest corner of Tallmadge, the southwest 
 corner of Stow and the southeast corner of 
 Northampton Townships, the incorporated vil- 
 lage of Cuyahoga Falls also occupying a por- 
 tion of said territor}'. 
 
 The township of Middlebury was also, in 
 like manner, erected in March, 1857, the nec- 
 essary territory being taken fi'om Portage, 
 Tallmadge, Springfield and Coventry. Subse- 
 quently, the township of Middlebury became, 
 by legal annexation, the Sixth Ward of the city 
 of Akron, though still retaining a distinctive 
 township organization, to the extent of electing 
 
 ^ 
 
236 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 for itself a Justice of tlie Peace and one Con- 
 stable. 
 
 Under the old constitution of Ohio, the local 
 judiciary consisted of a Circuit or President 
 Judge, having jurisdiction over from four to 
 twelve counties, with three Associate Judges for 
 each county, all of whom were appointed by 
 the Legislature, their respective terms of office 
 being seven years, "(/'so long tliey behave tcell." 
 All Probate business was at that time trans- 
 acted by Common Pleas Courts, one or more 
 of the Associate Judges ofliciating for that pui*- 
 pose, as occasion required, during vacation. 
 
 Summit County on its organization became 
 a part of the Third Judicial Circuit, embracing, 
 as reconstructed under the act of April 11, 
 1840, the counties of Ashtabula, Trumbull, 
 Portage and Summit. Hon. Yan E. Humphre}', 
 of Hudson, was the Presiding Judge of the 
 Circuit on the accession of Summit thereto. 
 Hon. Eben Newton, of Canfield, then in Trum- 
 bull Count}', now Mahoning, succeeded Judge 
 Humphrey at the expiration of his term in IS-t-l. 
 Judge Newton resigned his position on the bench 
 in the winter of 1846-47, and was succeeded 
 by Hon. Benjamin F. Wade, of Jefferson, Ashta- 
 bula Count}', who in turn resigned on being 
 elected to the United States Senate March 15, 
 1851, Gov. HeubenWood filling the vacancy by 
 the appointment of Hon. (leorge Bliss, of Akron, 
 who held the position onh' nntil the taking 
 effect of the new constitution in February, 1852, 
 Common Pleas Judges thereafter being elected 
 by the people, one Judge only sitting in place 
 of the three or four under the old rule. 
 
 The first term of the Court of Common Pleas 
 for the new county of Summit, convened in 
 Akron on the 2d day of July, 1840, pre- 
 sided over by Hon. Van E,. Humphrey, with 
 Hon. Robert K. Dubois, of Akron, Hon. Charles 
 Sumner, of Middlebury, and Hon. Hugh R. 
 Caldwell, of Franklin, as Associate Judges: 
 though considerable probate and other busi- 
 ness, proper to be transacted in vacation, had 
 previously been done by one or the other of the 
 Associate Judges. 
 
 In 1845, Judges Sumner and Dubois de- 
 ceased, the former June 19 and the latter Oc- 
 tober 14. They were succeeded b}' Hon. John 
 B. Clark, of Hudson, and Hon. James R. Ford, 
 of Akron ; Hon. Sylvester H. Thompson, of Hud- 
 son, in turn succeeding Judge Clark, on the res- 
 ignation of the latter in 1846. 
 
 Judge Caldwell was succeeded by Hon. John 
 Hoy, of Frankhn, in April, 1847. Hon. Samuel 
 A. Wheeler, of Akron, also succeeding Judge 
 Ford on the death of the latter gentleman, at 
 the April term in 1849. 
 
 Judge Wheeler resigning his position on 
 leaving for California in the spring of 1850, 
 Hon. Peter Yoris, of Bath, was appointed his 
 successor ; Judges Thompson, Ho}^ and Yoris 
 serving thenceforth until the taking effect of the 
 new constitution in February, 1852. Though 
 none of the Associate Judges named were bred 
 lawyers, their duties, often delicate and intricate, 
 were discharged to the general satisfaction of 
 the people of the county during their respective 
 terms of service. 
 
 On the taking effect of the new constitution, 
 in 1852, Summit Count}' was attached to the 
 Second Subdivision of the Fourth Judicial Dis- 
 trict of the State, this subdivision embracing 
 Summit, Medina and Lorain Counties. Hon. 
 Samuel Humphreville, of Medina, was elected 
 Common Pleas Judge, in October, 1851, for five 
 years, serving his full term. Hon. James S. 
 Carpenter, of Akron, was elected Judge in Oc- 
 tober, 1856, also serving his full term of five 
 years. 
 
 There appearing to be an excess of business 
 upon the dockets of the several counties of the 
 subdistrict, on petition of the members of the 
 bar of said counties, an extra judgeship was 
 created for said subdistrict, by an act passed 
 by the Legislature in April, 1858. Hon. Will- 
 iam H. Canfield, of Medina, was elected to said 
 extra Judgeship in October, 1858, for five 
 years. Legal business becoming largely dimin- 
 ished, in the earlier years of the war, the extra 
 judgeship was abolished, at the close of Judge 
 Canfield's term, by an act of the Legislature, 
 passed April 16, 1862. Hon. Stephenson 
 Burke, of Elyria, was elected as Judge Carpen- 
 ter's successor in October, 1861, and re-elected 
 in 1866, but resigned the position and retired 
 from the bench, about two years before the ex- 
 piration of his second term. Hon. Washington 
 W. Boynton, of Elyria, was appointed by Gov. 
 Rutherford B. Hayes, in the spring of 1869, to 
 fill the vacancy occasioned by the resignation 
 of Judge Burke, and at the expiration of the 
 time for which he was appointed, in October, 
 
 1871, was elected for five years, from May, 
 
 1872, serving, besides the fraction of Judge 
 Burke's term, a single full term only, because 
 
^ 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 237 
 
 of his election to tlie Supreme Bench of Ohio, 
 in October, 1S76. 
 
 After the close of the war, legal business 
 again began to accumulate, and, at length, be- 
 came altogether too great for a single Judge to 
 properly perform. An extra judgeship, for 
 the Second Subdivision, was accordingl}' created 
 by act of the Legislature, in the spring of 1870. 
 Hon. Samuel W. McClure, of Akron, was elected 
 to this new Judgeship, in October, 1870, serving 
 to the end of his term, and declining to be a can- 
 didate for a second term. Hon. Newell D. Tib- 
 bals, of Akron, as Judge McClure's successoi", 
 was elected in October, 1875, for five years, from 
 Mav, 1876, and re-elected for a second term in 
 October, 1880. Hon. John C. Hale, of Elyria, 
 as Judge Boynton's successor, on the latter's 
 accession to the Supreme Bench, was elected in 
 October, 1876, taking his seat upon the bench 
 in May, 1877, for the term of five years. 
 
 It is. perhaps, proper to remark that, while 
 the present judicial system of Ohio has been, 
 generally, and particularh-, a vei'y great im- 
 provement over the old system, though still 
 ^■ery far from perfect, the manner in which its 
 functions ha^■e been performed b}' the several 
 successive Judges of the Second Subdivision of 
 the Fourth Judicial District, will take and 
 hold a commanding rank in the judicial pro- 
 ceedings of Ohio, or any sister State. 
 
 As heretofore mentioned, up to the adoption 
 of the new constitution, in 1851, the probate 
 business of the State had been done by the 
 Common Pleas Courts. Charles G. Ladd, of 
 Akron, was elected Probate Judge of Summit 
 Count}', in October 1851, for the term of three 
 3-ears. Judge Ladd's health failing soon after 
 his election to the office, Alvin C. Voris, Esq., 
 was appointed as his Deputy Clerk, and, for the 
 most part, performed the functions of the office 
 until the death of Judge Ladd, in August, 1852. 
 Roland 0. Hammond, of Akron, was appointed 
 b}- Gov. Reuben Wood, to fill the vacancy oc- 
 casioned by the deatli of Judge Ladd, to serve 
 until the next annual election, and until his 
 successor was elected and qualified. Constant 
 Br3-an, of Akron, was elected in October, 1852, 
 for the balance of Judge Ladd's term, two years. 
 Noah M. Humphrey, of Richfield, was elected 
 in 1854, and re-elected in 1857. holding the po- 
 sition two full terms, of three years each. Will- 
 iam M. Dodge, of Akron, was elected in October, 
 1860, for three years, but died in July, 1861. 
 
 Samuel A. Lane, of Akron, without solicita- 
 tion on the part of either himself or his friends, 
 was, on the 24th day of July, 1861, appointed 
 and commissioned as Judge Dodge's successor, 
 by Gov. William Dennison, but declined to ac- 
 cept the honor. Asahel H. Lewis, of Akron, 
 on petition of himself and friends, was then ap- 
 pointed to fill the vacancy until the next gen- 
 eral election. Stephen H. Pitkin, of Hudson, 
 was elected in October, 1861, for the balance of 
 Judge Dodge's term, two 3'ears ; re-elected in 
 1863, and again in 1866, holding the office 
 eight years. Ulysses L. Marvin, of xlkron, 
 elected in October, 1869. and re-elected in 1872, 
 serving two full terms of three 3-ears each. 
 Samuel C. Williamson, of Akron, elected in 
 October, 1875, and re-elected in 1878. 
 
 On the first organization of the Court of 
 Common Pleas, under the old constitution, in 
 1840, at a special term, held April 9, Rufus P. 
 Spalding, Esq., was appointed Clerk pro tem., 
 and was re-appointed at the first regular ses- 
 sion of said court, Jul}- 2, 1840 ; Clerks at that 
 time being appointed b}- the Judges of the 
 courts in which the}* were to serve, instead of 
 being elected by the people, as now. Mr. 
 Spalding held the office, his brother-in-law, Mr. 
 Lucian Swift, acting as his deputy, until De- 
 cember 14, 1840, when, tendering his resigna- 
 tion as Clerk pro tem., Mr. Swift was appointed 
 Clerk for the term of seven j^ears, resigning his 
 office ten days before the expiration of his 
 term, on the 3d da}' of December, 1847. Lu- 
 cius S. Peck, of Akron, appointed to fill the 
 vacancy occasioned by the resignation of Mr. 
 Swift, December 3, 1847, and also for the full 
 term of seven years. The adoption of the new 
 constitution in 1851 brought Mr. Peck's term 
 of office to a close after a service of about four 
 years. Nelson B. Stone, of Akron, was elected 
 first Clerk under the new Constitution, in Oc- 
 tober, 1851, for three 3'ears, serving one term 
 onl3-. Edwin P. Green, of Akron, elected in 
 October, 1854, and re-elected in 1857, serving 
 two full terms. John A. Means, of Northfield, 
 was elected in October, 1860, for three years. 
 In 1861, Clerk [Means entered the army, the 
 duties of the office being performed by his 
 son, Mr. Nathan A. Means, during the I'e- 
 mainder of the term. Charles Rinehart, of 
 Franklin, elected in October, 1863, and re- 
 elected in 1866, serving two full terms of three 
 years each. Capt. John A. Means was again 
 
238 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 elected in October, 1864, serviug a single term 
 onl}'. George W. Weeks, of Copley, was elected 
 in October, 1872, and re-elected in 1875, serv- 
 ing two full terms. Sumner Nash, of Akron, 
 elected in October, 1878, for three years from 
 February, 1879. 
 
 William M. Dodge, of Akron, was elected 
 Prosecuting Attorney at the first election for 
 county officers held in the new county, in 
 April, 1840, and i-e-elected in October of the 
 same year for two years. George Kirkum, of 
 Akron, was elected in October, 1842, serving a 
 single term of two years only. William S. C. 
 Otis, of Akron, was elected in October, 1844, 
 also serving but one term. Samuel W. Mc- 
 Clure, of Cuyahoga Falls, was elected in Octo- 
 ber, 1846, serving but a single term. William 
 H. Upson, of Akron, was elected in October, 
 1848, holding the position but two years. 
 Harvc}' Wheedon, of Hudson, was elected in 
 October, 1850, also retiring at the end of two 
 years. Sidney Edgerton, of Akron, was elected 
 in October, 1852, and re-elected in 1854, holding 
 the office four years. Henrj' McKinney, of 
 Cuyahoga Falls, was elected in October, 1856, 
 and re-elected in 1858. N. D. Tibbals, of 
 Akron, was elected in October, I860, and re- 
 elected in 1862. Mr. Tibbals going into the 
 100-days service in 1864, E. P. Green was ap- 
 pointed, and served as Prosecuting Attorney 
 ad interim. Edward Oviatt, of Akron, was 
 elected in October, 1864, and re-elected in 1866. 
 Jacob A. Kohler, of Akron, was elected in Oc- 
 tober, 1868, and re-elected in 1870. Henry C. 
 Sanford, of Akron, was elected in October, 
 1872, retaining the office but a single term. 
 James M. Poulson, of Akron, was elected in 
 October, 1874, holding the position but a single 
 term. P]dward W. Stuart, of Akron, was elected 
 in October, 1876, and re-elected in 1878, serv- 
 ing two full terms. Charles Baird, of Akron, 
 was elected in October, 1880. 
 
 Thomas Wilson, of Northfield, was elected 
 Sheriff in April, 1840, to serve until the next 
 annual election ; was re-elected in October, 
 1840, and again in 1842, serving, in all, four 
 years and seven months, notwithstanding the 
 constitutional provision that no Sheriff shall 
 serve more than four years, in any consecutive 
 six years — a provision for which no reason can 
 be assigned that would not equally apply to any 
 other county or State official. Lewis M. Janes, 
 of Boston, elected in October, 1844 ; re-elected 
 
 in 1846. William L. Clarke, of Middlebury, 
 elected in October, 1848 ; re-elected in 1850. 
 Dudley Seward, of Tallmadge, elected in Octo- 
 ber, 1852 ; re-elected in 1854. Samuel A. 
 Lane, of Akron, elected in October, 1856, and 
 re-elected in 1858. During his first term, the 
 law was changed so as to give Sheriffs elect 
 possession of their offices on the first Monday 
 of Januar}' instead of the first Monday of 
 November, after their election, so that the con- 
 stitution was again " fractured " by this incum- 
 bent holding the office four years and two 
 months, though supposed to have been mended 
 by his filing a new bond for the extra two months. 
 Jacob Chisnell, of Green, elected in October, 
 1860 ; re-elected in 1862. James Burlison, of 
 Middlebury, elected in October, 1864 ; re-elected 
 in 1866. Augustus Curtiss, of Portage, elected 
 in October, 1868, and re-elected in 1870. 
 Levi J. McMurray, of Franklin, elected in Oc- 
 tober, 1872 ; and re-elected in 1874. Samuel 
 A. Lane, after an interregnum of sixteen years, 
 then sixty-one years of age, was again elected 
 Sheriff in October, 1876, and re-elected in 1878, 
 holding the position, in all, eight years, a dis- 
 tinction accorded to no other incumbent of the 
 office in the history of the county. William 
 McKinney, of Twinsburg, elected in October, 
 1880. 
 
 Birdsey Booth, of Cu3'ahoga Falls, was 
 elected County Auditor in April, 1840, to serve 
 until the next annual election, and re-elected in 
 October, 1840, for the term of two years. The- 
 ron A. Noble, of Middlebury, elected in Octo- 
 ber, 1842 ; re-elected in 1844 and again in 
 1846, serving in all six 3'ears. Nathaniel W. 
 Goodhue, of Middlebury, elected in October, 
 1848 ; re-elected in 1850. Henr}' Newberry, of 
 Cuyahoga Falls, elected in October, 1852, serv- 
 ing but a single term. Charles B. Bernard, of 
 Akron, elected in October, 1854 ; re-elected in 
 1856. George W. Crouse, of Akron, elected in 
 October, 1858, and re-elected in 1860. Treasur- 
 er, Sullivan S. Wilson, having resigned his office, 
 the Count}" Commissioners appointed Mr. Crouse 
 to fill the vacancy, to serve from the 16th of Feb- 
 ruary, 1863, till the first Monday of the follow- 
 ing September, Mr. Crouse resigning his position 
 as Auditor (m his accession to the treasurershi p. 
 Sanford M. Burn ham, of Akron, elected in 
 October, 1862. Two weeks before the time 
 fixed by law for taking possession, Mr. Burn- 
 bam was appointed by the County Commis- 
 
 3<i: 
 
J^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUi^TY. 
 
 239 
 
 sioners to fill the vacancy occasioned b^'^ the 
 resignation of Auditor Grouse to take the 
 treasurership. Mr. Burnham was successiA^ely 
 re-elected in 1864, 1866 and 1868. B.y act of 
 the Legislature, passed April 18, 1870, the time 
 for taking possession of the office was changed 
 from the first of March to the second Monday 
 of November, the then incumbents holding over 
 until that time. Before the expiration of his 
 term, as thus extended, Mr. Ijurnham was 
 chosen to represent the people of Summit 
 County in the State Legislature, and resigned 
 his position as Auditor October 9, 1871, hav- 
 ing served in all nearly eight years and eight 
 months. Hosea Paul, of Cuyahoga Falls, was 
 appointed b}' the Commissioners to fill the va- 
 cancy occasioned by the resignation of Auditor 
 Burnham, from October 9 until the second 
 Tuesday in November. 1871 ; Mr. Burnham, 
 however, continuing to perform the duties of 
 the office as Mr. Paul's clerk, until the close of 
 the term. Edward Buckingham, of Middle- 
 bury, was elected in October, 1871, and suc- 
 cessively re-elected in 1873, 1875 and 1877, 
 the last time for three years, an act changing 
 the term of service from two to three j'ears, 
 having been passed March 28, 1877, being in 
 continuous service nine 3'ears ; Aaron Wag- 
 oner, of Akron, elected in October, 1880. 
 
 William O'Brien, of Hudson, was elected 
 County Treasurer, April, 1840, to serve until 
 the next annual election, and re-elected for two 
 3-ears in October, 1840, dying before the expi- 
 ration of his term, in February, 1842 ; Greorge 
 Y. Wallace, of Northfield, was appointed by 
 the County Commissioners, February 15, 1842, 
 to fill the vacancy occasioned b}' the death of 
 Treasurer O'Brien ; Milton Arthur, of North- 
 field, elected in October, 1842, re-elected in 
 1844, and again in 1846; William H. Dewey, 
 of Akron, elected in October, 1848, holding the 
 office for one term only ; Frederick Wadsworth, 
 of Akron, elected in October, 1850, also serv- 
 ing but a single term ; Chester W. Rice, of 
 Cu3-ahoga Falls, elected in October, 1852, oue 
 term only ; Houston Sisler. of Franklin, elected 
 in October, 1854, and re-elected in 1856 ; Sul- 
 livan S. Wilson, of Northampton, elected in 
 October, 1858, and re-elected in 1860, resign- 
 ing his office in Februar}-, 1863 ; Treasurers 
 under the law, not taking possession of their 
 offices until the first Monday in September 
 (nearly a j'ear) after their election ; George W. 
 
 Crouse, of Akron, appointed by the Commis- 
 sioners to fill the vacancy occasioned bj' the 
 resignation of Treasurer Wilson, to serve from 
 February 16, 1863, till the first Monday of the 
 following September, a little over seven months; 
 Israel E. Carter, of Akron, elected in October, 
 1862, and re-elected in 1864 ; Arthur L. Con- 
 ger, of Boston, elected in October, 1866, and 
 re-elected in 1868 ; Schuyler R. Oviatt, of 
 Richfield, elected in October, 1870, and re- 
 elected in 1872 ; David R. Paige, of Akron, 
 elected in October, 1874, and re-elected in 1876 ; 
 Henry C. Viele, of Akron, elected in October, 
 1878, and re-elected in 1880. 
 
 [Note. — Under the present State Constitu- 
 tion, Count}^ Treasurers, like Sheriffs, are pro- 
 hibited from serving more than four 3'ears in 
 an}' consecutive six years, a provision for whicli 
 it is difficult to find a good and valid reason.] 
 
 Alexander Johnston, of Green, was elected 
 County Recorder in April, 1840, and again for 
 a full term of three 3-ears in October, of the 
 same year ; Nahum Fa^', of Akron, was elected 
 in October, 1843, and re-elected in 1846; Jared 
 Jennings, of New Portage, was elected in Oc- 
 tober, 1849, serving one term onl}- ; Henr^' 
 Purdy, of Springfield, was elected in October, 
 1852, and re-elected in 1855 ; Philip P. Bock, 
 of Akron, elected in October, 1858, and re- 
 elected in 1861 ; James A. Lantz, of Akron, 
 elected in October, 1864, and re-elected in 
 1867 ; Grenville Thorp, of Bath, elected in Oc- 
 tober, 1870, and died before the expiration of 
 his first term in Februar}^, 1872 ; Henry C. 
 Viele, of Akron, appointed by the Count}- Com- 
 missioners to fill the vacancy occasioned b}' the 
 death of Recorder Thorp, to serve until the 
 next annual election ; George H. Payne, of 
 Akron, elected in October, 1872, and re-elected 
 in 1875 ; Albert A. Bartlett, of Akron, elected 
 in October, 1878. 
 
 Russell H. Ashmun, ofTallmadge. was elected 
 Count}' Survej'or, in April, 1840. and again elect- 
 ed for a full term of three j'^ears, the following 
 October ; Peter A^oris, of Bath, elected in Oc- 
 tober, 1843, serving one term onl}' ; Frederick 
 Seward, of Tallmadge, elected in October, 1846, 
 also holding the office but one terra ; Dwight 
 Newton, of Akron, elected in October, 1849, for 
 one term onl}^ ; Schuyler R. Oviatt, of Rich- 
 field, elected in October, 1852, for a single term 
 onl}- ; Hosea Paul, of Cuyahoga Falls, elected 
 in October, 1855, and re-elected successively in 
 
 V3' 
 
[^ 
 
 240 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 1858, 1861, 1864 and 1867, dying in June, 
 1870, after continuously holding the office for 
 nearly fifteen 3'ears ; Robert S. Paul, of Akron, 
 appointed by the Commissioners to fill the 
 vacancy occasioned by the death of his father, 
 Hosea Paul, in June, 1870, and elected to the 
 office in October of the same 3'ear ; Jacob 
 Mishler, of Springfield, elected in October, 
 1873, after qualifying, resigned without enter- 
 ing upon the duties of the office ; Robert S. 
 Paul, appointed by the Commissioners, Feb- 
 ruary' 3, 1874, to fill the vacancy, until the 
 next annual election ; John W. Seward, of 
 Tallmadge, elected in October, 1874, serving a 
 single term of three years only ; Robert S. Paul, 
 of Akron, elected in October, 1877, and re- 
 elected in 1880. 
 
 Elisha Hinsdale, of Xorton, was elected 
 County Coroner in April, 1840, and again in 
 the following October for a full term of two 
 years, and re-elected in 1842 ; Ithiel Mills, of 
 Akron, elected in October 1844, and re-elected 
 in 1846 ; Joseph T. Holloway, of Cu3'ahoga 
 Falls, elected in October, 1848, holding a single 
 term only ; John Nash, of 3Iiddlebury, elected 
 in October, 1850, re-elected in 1852, died Sep- 
 tember 7, 1853 ; Oliver E. Gross of Stow, elect- 
 ed in October 1853. serving a single term only; 
 William L. Clarke, of Akron, elected in Octo- 
 ber, 1855, serving but one term ; Noah Inger- 
 soll, of Coventry, elected in October, 1857, and 
 re-elected in 1859 ; Joseph T. Holloway, of 
 Cuyahoga Falls, elected in October, 1861, hold- 
 ing as before, but a single terra ; Porter Gr. 
 Somers, of Cuyahoga Falls, elected in October, 
 1863, re-elected in 1865, and by reason of a lapse 
 in the election of that officer, in 1867, holding 
 over until the election of his successor in 1868 ; 
 Oliver E. Gross, of Stow, elected in October, 
 1868, and re-elected in 1870 ; Almon Brown, of 
 Middlebury, elected in October, 1872, and suc- 
 cessively re-elected in 1874, 1876, 1878 and 
 1880. 
 
 The following gentlemen have served as 
 County Commissioners — Augustus E. Foote, 
 of Twinsburg, from April, 1840, to December, 
 1843 ; Jonathan Starr, of Coplev, from April, 
 1840, to December, 1844 ; John Hoy, of Frank- 
 lin, from April, 1840, to December, 1845 ; Mills 
 Thompson, of Hudson, from December, 1843, 
 to December, 1849 ; James W. Weld, of Rich- 
 field, from December, 1844, to December, 1853 : 
 Henry G. Weaver, of Springfield, from Decem- 
 
 ber, 1845, to December, 1851 ; Edwin Wetmore, 
 of Stow, from December, 1849, to December, 
 1 858 ; Hiram Weston, of 3Iiddlebury, from De- 
 cember, 1851, to December, 1854; James A. 
 Metlin, of Norton, from December, 1853, to De- 
 cember, 1856 ; Ambrose W. Bliss, of North- 
 field, from December, 1854, to December, 1860 ; 
 John S. Gilcrest, of Spiingfleld, from Decem- 
 ber, 1856, to December, 1862 ; John McFarlin, 
 of Bath, from December, 1858, to December. 
 1861 ; Nelson Upson, of Twinsburg, from De- 
 cember, 1860, to March, 1866. when he resigned ; 
 George Buel, of Akron, from December, 1861, 
 to Ma}-, 1864, when he resigned ; David E. 
 Hill, of Middlebury, from December, 1862, to 
 December, 1868 ; George D. Bates, of Akron, 
 appointed to fill the vacancy occasioned by the 
 resignation of Mr. Buel, from Mav, 1864. to 
 December, 1864 ; Sidney P. Conger, of Boston, 
 appointed to fill the vacancy occasioned b}' the 
 resignation of Nelson Upson, from Ma}', 1866, 
 to December, 1866 ; John McFarlin, of Bath, 
 from December, 1864, to December, 1867 ; John 
 C. Johnston, of Northampton, from December, 
 1866, to December, 1872 ; George Sackett, of 
 Cuyahoga Falls, from Decembei'. 1867, to De- 
 cember, 1870 ; Orson M. Oviatt,' of Richfield, 
 from December, 1868, to December, 1874 ; 
 John Hill, of Norton, from December, 1870, to 
 December, 1879; George W. Crouse, of Akron, 
 from December, 1872, to December, 1875 ; Giles 
 L'Hommedieu, of Cuyahoga Falls, from De- 
 cember, 1874, to December, 1877 ; William Sis- 
 ler, of Akron, elected in October, 1875, re- 
 elected in October, 1878 ; Moses D. Call, of 
 Stow, elected in October, 1877, and re-elected in 
 October, 1880 ; Hiram Hart, of Richfield, 
 elected in October, 1879. 
 
 Summit County has been represented in the 
 State Legislature by the following gentlemen : 
 Rufus P. Spalding and Ephraim B. Hubbard, 
 in office at time of erection of Summit County, 
 winter of 1839-40 ; Henry G. Weaver, of Spring- 
 field, elected October, 1840, term, one year ; 
 Rufus P. Spalding and Simon Perkins, of Ak- 
 ron, elected in October, 1841, for one year; 
 Amos Seward, of Tallmadge, elected in Octo- 
 ber, 1842; for one year ; John H. McMillen, of 
 Middlebury, and Augustus E. Foote. of Twins- 
 burg. elected in October, 1843, for one year ; 
 George Kirkum, of Akron, elected in October, 
 1844, for one year ; Hiram Bowen, of Akron, 
 elected in October, 1845, for one year ; Alex- 
 
 w 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 241 
 
 fk* 
 
 auder Johnston, of Grreen, elected in October, 
 1 84G, for one 3'ear ; Peter Voris, of Bath, and 
 Amos Seward of Tallmadge, elected in October, 
 1847, for one 3'ear, Mr. Seward being elected 
 as a " float," jointly- by Summit and Portage 
 Counties ; Samuel W. McClure, of Cuyahoga 
 Falls, elected in October, 1848, for one year ; 
 Harvey B. Spelman, of Akron, elected in Octo- 
 ber, 1849, for one year ; Nathaniel Finch, of 
 Akron, elected in October, 1850, for one year. 
 The new Constitution of Ohio, adopted in 1851, 
 made the term of office for Representative two 
 years instead of one year, as under the old Con- 
 stitution. Noah M. Humphrey, of Richfield, 
 elected in October, 1851, for two years ; Porter 
 Gr. Somers, of Cuyahoga Falls, elected in October, 
 185o, for two 3-ears ; Mendall Jewett, of Mog- 
 adore, elected in October, 1855, for two years ; 
 Ira P. Sperry, of Tallmadge, elected in October, 
 1857, for two years ; Sylvester H. Thompson, 
 of Hudson, and Alvin C. Voris, of Akron, 
 elected in 1859, for two years ; John Johnston 
 of Middlebury, elected in October, 1861, and 
 re-elected in 1863, four years ; John Encell, of 
 Cople}', elected in October, 1865, for two years ; 
 William Sisler, of Franklin, elected in October, 
 1867, for two years ; Alfred Wolcott, of Boston, 
 elected in October, 1869, for two years : Sanford 
 M. Burnham, of Akron, elected in October, 1871, 
 for two years ; Hiram H. Mack, of Bath, elected 
 in October, 1873, for two years ; Orrin P. 
 Nichols, of Twinsburg, elected in October, 1875, 
 but died before the expiration of his term, in 
 1877 ; Hiram H. Mack, of Bath, again elected 
 in October, 1877, for two years ; John Hill, of 
 Norton, and Leonidas S. Ebright, of Akron, 
 elected in October, 1879, for two years. 
 
 The following have been State Senators from 
 Summit and Portage Counties : Simon Per- 
 kins, Jr., in office at time of erection of Summit 
 County, in the winter of 1839-40 ; Elisha N. 
 Sill, of Cuyahoga Falls, elected in October, 
 1840, for twoj'ears ; John E. Jackson, of Port- 
 age County, elected in October, 1842, for two 
 years ; William Wetmore, of Stow, elected in 
 October, 1844, fortwo3ears ; Asahel H. Lewis, 
 of Portage County, elected in October, 1846, 
 for two years ; Lucian Swift, of Akron, elected 
 in October, 1848, for two years ; Darius Lyman, 
 of Portage County, elected in October, 1850, 
 for two years, but cut off at the end of one year 
 by new constitution ; Ransom A. Grillette, of 
 Portage County, elected in October, 1851, for 
 
 two 3'ears ; William H. Upson, of Akron, elect- 
 ed in October, 1853, for two 3-ears ; Oliver P. 
 Brown, of Portage Count}', elected in October, 
 1855, for two years ; George P. Ashmun, of 
 Hudson, elected in October, 1857, for two years ; 
 James A. Garfield, of Portage Count}^, elected 
 in October, 1859, for two 3'ears ; Lucius Y. 
 Bierce, of Akron, elected in October, 1861, for 
 two 3'ears ; Luther Da3', of Portage .bounty, 
 elected in October, 1863, but, being placed in 
 nomination as a Judge of the Supreuie Court, 
 in 1864, resigned his position as State Senator ; 
 Alphonso Hart, of Portage Count3', elected in 
 October, 1864, for one year, to fill vacanc}' 
 caused b3' resignation of Senator Day ; Newell 
 D. Tibbals, of Akron, elected in October, 1865, 
 for two years ; Philo B. Conant, Of Portage 
 County, elected in October, 1867, for two years, 
 but resigned after serving one year ; William 
 Stedman, of Portage County, elected in Octo- 
 ber, 1868, for one 3'ear, to fill vacanc3' ; Henr3'' 
 McKinney, of Akron, elected in October, 1869, 
 for two 3^ears ; Alphonso Hart, of Portage 
 County, elected in October, 1871, for two 3'ears ; 
 Nathaniel W. Goodhue, of Akron, elected in 
 October, 1873, for two 3'ears ; Marvin Kent, of 
 Portage County, elected in October, 1875, for 
 two years ; David Duncan Beebe, of Hudson, 
 elected in October, 1877, and re-elected in Oc- 
 tober, 1879 — the first successive re-election of 
 an incumbent of that office in the district. 
 
 Following the county officers and Representa- 
 tives, it is not inappropriate to mention the 
 names of those who have been called to repre- 
 sent our count3' in still higher stations of the 
 public service. Of these higher dignitaries, we 
 will notice, first, our Representatives in Con- 
 gress. 
 
 Summit County has been represented in the 
 Lower House of the National Legislature, in 
 common with other counties associated with 
 her in Congressional Districts, as follows : In 
 1840, Fifteenth District, composed of Cuya- 
 hoga, Portage, Summit, Medina and Lorain — 
 Hon. Sherlock J. Andrews, of Cuyahoga, Whig, 
 one term. In 1842-44, Nineteenth District, com- 
 posed of Trumbull, part of Mahoning, Portage 
 and Summit — Hon. Daniel R. Tilden, of Portage, 
 Whig, two terms. In 1846-48, Nineteenth Dis- 
 trict, same counties as above — Hon. John Crow- 
 ell, of Trumbull, Whig, two terms. In 1850, 
 Nineteenth District, same as above — Hon. Eben 
 Newton, of Mahoning. Whig, one term. In 
 
 
^<t^ 
 
 242 
 
 HISTORY OF su:\rMiT cou:n^ty. 
 
 1852, Eighteenth District, composed of Port- 
 age, Summit and Starli — Hon. George Bliss, of 
 Summit, Democrat, one term. In 1854-56, 
 Eighteenth District, same as al)ove — Hon. Ben- 
 jamin F. Leiter, of Starli, Republican, two 
 terms. In 1858-60, Eigliteenth District, same 
 as above — Hon. Sidney Edgerton, of Summit, 
 Republican, two terms. In 1862-64-66, Eight- 
 eenth District, composed of Lalce, Cuyahoga 
 and Summit — Hon. Rufus P. Spalding, of Cuy- 
 ahoga, Republican, three terms. In 1868-70, 
 Eighteenth District, same as above — Hon. Will- 
 iam H. Upson, of Summit, Republican, two 
 terms. In 1872-74-76-78, Eighteenth District, 
 composed of Lorain, Medina, Waj-ne and Sum- 
 mit--Hou. James Monroe, of Lorain, Repub- 
 lican, four terms. In 1880, Eighteenth Dis- 
 trict, same as above — Hon. Addison S. 3Ic- 
 Clure, of Wayne, Republican. 
 
 Since the organization, in April, 1840, Sum- 
 mit County has been associated, Congression- 
 ally, in various combinations, with Cuyahoga, 
 Lake, Portage, Trumbull, part of Mahoning, 
 Stark, Wayne, Medina and Lorain Counties, 
 and in Districts Fifteen, Eighteen and Nine- 
 teen. In each of the twelve Presidential elec- 
 tions which have been held, the district to' 
 which Summit County was for the time being 
 attached, was represented in the Electoral Col- 
 lege b^' the following-named gentlemen, the po- 
 litical party l\y which they were elected, and 
 the candidates for President and Vice President 
 for whom the}' severally voted, also being des- 
 ignated : In 1840, Fifteenth District, composed 
 of Cuyahoga, Portage, Summit, Medina and 
 Lorain, Hon. David King, of Medina, Wiiig — 
 voted for William Henry Harrison, of Ohio, for 
 President, and John Tyler, of Virginia, for Vice 
 President. In 1844, Nineteenth District, com- 
 posed of Trumbull, part of Mahoning, Portage 
 and Summit Counties, Hon. Jacob H. Baldwin, of 
 Trumbull, Whig — voted for Henry Clay, of Ken- 
 tuck}-, forPresident, and Theodore Frelinghuy- 
 sen,of New York, for Vice President. In 1848, 
 Nineteenth District, same counties as above, Hon. 
 John Caldwell, of Trumbull, Democrat — voted 
 for Lewis Cass, of Michigan, for President, and 
 William 0. Butler, of Kentucky, for Vice Pres- 
 ident. In 1852, Eighteenth District, composed 
 of Portage, Summit and Stark Counties, Hon. 
 Samuel D. Harris, of Portage, Democrat — 
 voted for Franklin Pierce, of New Hampshire, 
 for President, and William R. King, of Ala- 
 
 bama, for Vice President. In 1856, Eighteenth 
 District, same as above, Hon. John S. Herrick, 
 of Portage, Republican — voted for John C. 
 Fremont, of California, for President, and Will- 
 iam L. Dayton, of New Jersey, for Vice Presi- 
 dent. In 1860. Eighteenth District, same as 
 above, Hon. William K. IJpham, of Stark, Re- 
 publican — voted for Abraham Lincoln, of Illi- 
 nois, for President, and Hannibal Hamlin, of 
 Maine, for Vice President. In 1864, Eight- 
 eenth District, composed of Cu3^ahoga, Lake 
 and Summit Counties, Hon. Seth Marshall, of 
 Lake, Republican — voted for Abraham Lincohi, 
 of Illinois, for President, and Andrew Johnson, 
 of Tennessee, for Vice President. In 1868, Eigh- 
 teenth District, same as above, Hon. Stephen H. 
 Pitkin, of Summit, Republican — voted for Ulys- 
 ses S. Grant, of Illinois, for President, and 
 Schuyler Colfax, of Indiana, for Vice President. 
 In 1872, Eighteenth District, composed of Sum- 
 mit, Wayne, Medina and Lorain Counties, Hon. 
 John R. Buchtel, of Summit, Republican — 
 voted for Ulysses S. Grant for President, and 
 Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts, for Vice Pres- 
 ident. In 1876, Eighteenth District, same as 
 above, Hon. Samuel G. Barnard, of Medina, Re- 
 publican — voted for Rutherford B. Hayes, of 
 Ohio, for President, and William A. AVheeler, 
 of New York, for Vice President. In 1880, 
 Eighteenth District, same as above, Hon. Na- 
 thaniel W. Goodhue, of Summit, Republican — ■ 
 voted for James A. Garfield, of Ohio, for Pres- 
 ident, and Chester A. Arthur, of New York, for 
 Vice President. 
 
 William S. C. Otis, Esq., of Akron, was Summit 
 County's representative to the State Constitu- 
 tional Convention of 1850. The convention 
 met on the 6th day of Ma}', 1850, in Columbus. 
 July 9, adjourned to meet in Cincinnati on the 
 first Monday in December. The convention 
 completed its labors and adjourned sine die 
 March 10, 1851. The constitution was adopted 
 for twenty years at a special election held on 
 the 21st day of June, 1851, the vote of Sum- 
 mit County standing 2,025 "for" and 2,013 
 " against," being a majority of twelve only in 
 its favor. Gen. Alvin C. Voris, of Akron, was 
 the Summit County member of the Ohio Consti- 
 stitutional Convention of 1873. The convention 
 met in the House of Representatives, in Colum- 
 bus, May 13, 1873. On the 8th day of August, the 
 convention adjourned to meet in Cincinnati on 
 the 2d dav of December. On concluding its 
 
^w 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 243 
 
 business, the convention adjourned on the 3d 
 da}^ of Februar}-, 1874. The new constitution, 
 as presented by the convention, tliougli re- 
 garded by man}' of the most intelligent people 
 of the State as a great improvement upon the 
 constitution of 1850, was rejected by the peo- 
 ple of Ohio at a special election held August 
 18, 1874, the vote of Summit Count}' standing 
 2,112 " for" and 2,774 " against," being a neg- 
 ative majorit}' of 662. 
 
 In this chapter, devoted as it is to matters 
 pertaining to the count}' at large, we should 
 not omit an extended mention of the Summit 
 Count}' Infirmary. Up to 1849, the poor of the 
 county had been provided for in the temporary 
 quarters leased for the purpose, but altogether 
 inadequate for the proper accommodation and 
 care of that unfortunate portion of our popula- 
 tion. On the 12th day of January, 1849, the 
 County Commissioners, Messrs. Mills Thomp- 
 son, of Hudson, James W. Weld, "of Richfield, 
 and Henry G. Weaver, of Springfield, purchased 
 the McCune farm, one mile west of the corpor- 
 ate limits of Akron, consisting of 147 49-100 
 acres of land, for the sum of $3,953.33, pay- 
 ments to be made as follows : $400 April 1, 
 1849; $800 Februarv 1. 1850; $1,000 February 
 1, 1851; $1,000 February 1, 1852; $753.33 Feb- 
 ruary 1, 1853 ; interest at the rate of 6 per cent 
 to be paid annually. 
 
 On the 21st day of January, 1849, the 
 County Commissioners contracted with Mr. 
 Leander Starr, of Hudson, for the erection of 
 the necessary buildings for the accommodation 
 of the poor of the county for the sum of $1,- 
 958, the work to be completed by the 1st day 
 of July of the same year, the dwelling-house 
 already upon the premises being devoted to 
 the use of the Superintendent of the Infirmary 
 and his assistants. Mr. Starr's job was finished 
 on time, and formally accepted July 10, 1849, 
 with an allowance, in addition to the contract 
 price, of $8 for extra labor. 
 
 On the 11th day of July, 1849, the Commis- 
 sioners appointed Messrs. Roswell Kent, of 
 Middlebury, Avery Spicer, of Coventry, and 
 Lucius V. Bierce, of Akron, as 1he first regu- 
 larly constituted Board of Directors for the 
 management of the farm and the care of the 
 poor of the county, to hold their offices until 
 the next ensuing October election. The board 
 organized by electing Roswell Kent, President, 
 and L. V. Bierc6, Clerk, and by the appoint- 
 
 ment of Abraham Siehley as Superintendent. 
 Under the fostei'ing care of these four gentle- 
 men, aided by the County Commissioners, the 
 foundation was laid firm and broad for the sys- 
 tematic and liberal care of our poor, which, 
 steadily growing and improving from year to 
 year, has made the Summit County Infirmary 
 one of the very best local charitable institu- 
 tions in the State. 
 
 The buildings originally provided, as above 
 stated, with sundry additions which had been 
 made from time to time as necessity required, 
 becoming considerably dilapidated and, as our 
 population increased, altogether too straitened 
 for the accommodation of the inmates, the 
 County Commissioners and Infirmary Direct- 
 ors, in 1863, determined on the erection of a 
 more commodious and substantial structure. 
 To this end, legislative authority was invoked, 
 resulting in the passage, on the 23d dav of 
 March, 1864, of 
 
 An Act to Authorize the County op Summit 
 TO Build a County Infirmary, make Con- 
 tracts AND Increase the tax levy upon 
 
 THE TAXABLE PROPERTY OF SAID COUNTY: 
 
 Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly 
 of the State of Ohio: That the County Commission- 
 er.s of Summit County be, and they are hereby, 
 authorized to build a County Infirmary for the use 
 of said county, at a cost not exceeding $16,000, upon 
 such plan and in such manner as, in their opinion, 
 will be conducive to the best interests of the count J^ 
 and make all contracts necessary to carry out the 
 23rovisious of this act. 
 
 Sec. 2. To anticipate the receipts which may 
 come into the County Treasury by virtue of the tax 
 levied under the authority of this act, said Com- 
 missioners are hereby authorized to temporarily 
 transfer from moneys in the treasury of said county 
 belonging to the railroad fund, not exceeding fo.OOO, 
 and may also use, in the construction of said build- 
 ing, any unexpended money heretofore levied for 
 building purposes in said count}^ 
 
 Sec. 3. That for the purpose of providing money 
 to defray the expenses of building said infirmary, 
 and to re-imburse the money transferred from the 
 railroad fund, so provided in Section 2 of tliis act, 
 said Commissioners are hereby authorized to in- 
 crease the tax levy upon the "taxable property of 
 said county one lialf mill on the dollar in each of 
 the years 1864 and 186.5. 
 
 Sec 4. This act shall be in force from and after 
 its passage. 
 
 The making of the brick was done upon the 
 infirmary farm — most excellent clay for the 
 purpose being foinid thereon — under the super- 
 intendence of 3Ir. Elijah C. Briggs, of Akron. 
 The farm help, and, so far as practicable, pauper 
 
244 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 labor, was emplo3-ed in the manufacture of brick, 
 not only for the buildings in question, but to a 
 considerable extent for market, several hundred 
 thousand having been sold in and hauled to 
 the cit}- during the progress of the work, thus 
 bringing the material for the work within com- 
 paratively low figures. The stone for the found- 
 ations, of a most durable quality, were quarried 
 in the neighborhood, and bought by the perch, 
 delivered upon the ground. The mechanical 
 labor upon the foundation and walls was done 
 b}^ the day, under the superintendence of 3Ir. 
 George Allison, of Tallmadge, a practical brick- 
 mason. 
 
 The wood-work was done on contract by Mr. 
 George Thomas, of Akron, the architect being- 
 Col. S. C. Porter, of Cleveland, the entire job 
 being completed under the direct supervision 
 of Infirmary Director, Avery 8picer, and 
 County Commissioner David E. Hill, the latter 
 gentleman being constituted general superin- 
 tendent of the work by a vote of the board, 
 January 4, 1865. The building, being con- 
 structed upon the economical plan indicated, 
 was nominall}' brought within the provisions of 
 the act authorizing its construction, though, by 
 the application of home labor and material, the 
 actual cost was in reality several thousand dol- 
 lars more. It is of the following general de- 
 scription and dimensions : The main or central 
 building, two stories higii, exclusive of base- 
 ment and attic, is 26x40 feet in size, fronting 
 end to the north ; two wings on either side, 
 same height as main building, are each 25x32 
 feet, with a rear wing 30x32 feet, and a still 
 further rear extension 30x36 feet, for the use 
 of insane patients, and connected with the main 
 rear wing by a covered hall, or archway, eight 
 feet in width. The style of architecture is of a 
 mixed order, approximating to Gothic, with 
 brackets and five large dormer windows in the 
 roof to light the capacious garret. The main 
 building is entered from the north by a flight 
 of cut stone steps, surmounted by a handsome 
 porch. The front hall is seven feet in width, 
 with stairs leading to the second story and 
 basement. On the right of the hall, on the 
 ground floor, is the parlor, 15x20 feet, with bed- 
 room, 10x12 feet, and store-room, 8x12 feet. 
 On the left of the hall is the sitting-room, 15x20 
 feet, with bed-room, 12x12 feet, and two closets, 
 each about six feet square. Each side wing- 
 lias its separate entrance, east and west, with 
 
 seven foot hall and stairs, similar to the front 
 hall.. Each wing (fir.st floor), contains two bed- 
 rooms, each 0x12 feet, on the north side of hall, 
 and each a sitting-room, 12x24 feet, for the use 
 of the inmates on the south side of halls. The 
 rear wing has, on the main floor, a dining-room, 
 14x16 feet, two bed-rooms, 8x9 feet; pantiy, 
 6x9 feet, and kitchen, 15x18 feet, besides a 
 stairwa}^ extending from the basement to gar- 
 ret. In the basement of the entire structure, 
 besides several commodious cellars for the stor- 
 age of vegetables, fruits and other supplies, 
 there are two dining-rooms, 12x36 feet each, 
 kitchen, including pantiy, 16x28 feet, and wash- 
 room, 15x18 feet. In the second story, on 
 either side of the hall, in main part, are sick- 
 rooms, each 15x20 feet ; and in rear, extending 
 into rear wing, two wards, each 13x29 feet, back 
 of which are two 7x9-bed-rooms, with a 6x9 
 feet linen closet, hall, stairway, etc. On the 
 second floor of each side wing, there are five 
 9x12 feet bed-rooms, besides halls, stairways, 
 etc. The attic is mainly devoted to storage, 
 drying clothes, etc., though within a few years 
 past, an apartment has been partitioned off and 
 fitted up therein for the use of " tramps " and 
 other transient applicants for food and lodging. 
 In the insane department, at the extreme rear, 
 there are six cells, 5x8 feet, substantially built 
 with heavily grated doors. The corridor, on 
 either side, is lighted by three large Avindows, 
 one opposite each cell, the whole well ventilated, 
 and as well supplied with sanitaiy conveni- 
 ences as the insane habits of the inmates will 
 admit of. 
 
 The new infirmary building was not orticially 
 accepted by the County Commissioners until 
 the 5th day of March, 1866, though it was oc- 
 cupied and formally opened on the evening of 
 February 3 by a public supper, under the aus- 
 pices of the Directors and Superintendent 
 Frank T. Husong. A large number of invited 
 guests — representative men and women — from 
 eveiy portion of the count}' were present, and 
 all expressed themselves as greatly pleased with 
 the building and its appointments, and the in- 
 vestment which had thus been made by them 
 and their fellow-citizens, in the interest of b.'- 
 nevolence and humanity. At the close of the 
 supper, the guests organized by appointing 
 George D. Bates, Esq., Chairman, when short 
 approbatory speeches were made bv Gen. A. C. 
 Yoris. Wilfiam T. Allen, S. A. Lane. Dr. E. W. 
 
 :tz 
 
thL 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 245 
 
 Howard and others. Closing bj^ the unanimous 
 adoption of the following resolution : 
 
 Resolved, That the County Commissioners and 
 Directors of the County Infirmary, together with 
 those wlio have so faitlifully aided them in the un- 
 dertalving, are entitled to the thanks of the citizens 
 of Summit County, for the able manner in which 
 they have planned and prosecuted to completion, the 
 erection of an infirmary edifice, which is at once an 
 ornament and an honor to the county, and a mark 
 of the exalted humanity and liberality of its people. 
 
 Director Spicer and Commissioner Hill, duly 
 appreciating the advantages of having an 
 abundance of pure water in and about tlie in- 
 firmar}' buildings and grounds, entered into 
 negotiations with Mr. James McAllister for the 
 use of the surplus waters from the large spring in 
 front of his residence on the Medina road, and 
 directly north of the infirmary farm. The 
 Directors proposed to properly inclose and pro- 
 tect the spring by a suljstantial stone house, 
 with conveniences for using the water both by 
 Mr. McAllister and the pul)lic, and to convey 
 the surplus water by iron or leaden pipes across 
 the farm of Mr. McAllister to the infirmary 
 grounds and into the basement of the infirmary 
 building. On visiting Mr. McAllister for the 
 purpose of legall}' perfecting the arrangement, 
 that gentleman receded from the terms that had 
 been named, and seemingly acceded to, and 
 demanded a bonus of $500 before signing any 
 papers — a larger sum of money than Messrs. 
 Hill and Spicer felt justified in paying for the 
 privilege in question, especially in view of the 
 large outlay that would be required in building 
 the spring-house, and excavating for and laying 
 the pipes for so long a distance, and the proj- 
 ect was abandoned. In the meantime Mr. 
 Spicer made a thorough examination of the in- 
 firmary farm itself, and on a high knoll some 
 thirty or forty rods southeast of the new build- 
 ing, by digging a few feet only, struck a large 
 spring of pure soft water, not only of sufficient 
 abundance for the wants of the institution, but 
 with sufficient head to earr}' the water one story 
 higher in the building, while costing far less to 
 fit it up and put in the pipes and fixtures, than 
 the McAllister project would have done. 
 
 The Directors have from time to time, as their 
 resources would admit of, besides erecting: com- 
 modious Ijarns and other outbuildings, beauti- 
 fied the grounds, laying them out into suitable 
 drives and walks, planting with trees, shrubber3% 
 etc., thus rendering them both pleasant to the 
 
 inmates and attractive to visitors, while the 
 farm, from the largely wild and uncultivated 
 condition in which it was purchased, has be- 
 come one of the most tidy and productive farms 
 in the county, and very largely profitable in the 
 way of giving employment to that portion of 
 its unfortunate inmates mentally and physically 
 able to perform manual labor, and through its 
 annual products, rendering the institution 
 largely self-sustaining. 
 
 As commodious and as ample as the infirm- 
 ary buildings erected in 1864-65-66 were sup- 
 posed to be, they were found at the end of ten 
 years inadequate to the necessities of the county. 
 Accordingly, at the instance of the Board of 
 Directors and the County Commissioners, 
 Senator N. W. Goodhue and Representative 
 Hiram H. IMack, secured the passage of a 
 special law authorizing the building of an ad- 
 dition to said infirmary buildings, the bill be- 
 coming a law on the 30th day of March, 1875, 
 and reading as follows : 
 
 An Act authorizing the County Commissioners 
 OP THE County of Summit to levy taxes 
 
 for building an addition to THE COUNTY 
 
 Infirmary, and to borrow money and issue 
 
 BONDS therefor: 
 
 Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly 
 of the State of Ohio: That the County Commission- 
 ers of Summit County be, and they hereby are, em- 
 powered and authorized to levy a tax of any amount 
 they may deem necessary, not exceeding |10,000, 
 upon the taxable property of said county, for the 
 purpose of constructing and furnishing an addition 
 to the County Infirmary of said county, to be col- 
 lected by the County Treasurer upon the grand 
 duplicate as other taxes, and to be paid out upon 
 the order of the County Commissioners. 
 
 Sec. 2. That for the purpose of anticipating the 
 collection of taxes provided for in the first section 
 of this act, the said County Commissioners be, and 
 the}' are hereby, authorized to borrow any sura, 
 not exceeding $10,000, at a rate of interest not ex- 
 ceeding eight per cent, and to issue bonds therefor, 
 payable at any time not exceeding two j'ears from 
 the date thereof, and to be sold for not less than 
 their par value. 
 
 Sec 3. This act shall be in force from and after 
 its passage. 
 
 In accordance with the provisions of this 
 law, a contract was entered into, on the 27th 
 day of July, 1875, with Messrs. Derhamer, 
 Steese & Co., to erect a building upon the west 
 side, and attached to the west wing transversely, 
 corresponding in general appearance to the 
 central building, for the sum of $7,294.37, with 
 Jacob Snyder, Esq., as architect, at 3^ per cent 
 on the contract price, for his services in fur- 
 
 -\ 
 
 \ 
 
246 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 nishing the plan and superintending the work. 
 This addition was completed substantiall}' 
 according to contract, in a style and finish cor- 
 responding to the original structure, and is of 
 the following dimensions : I]ntire size, 32x42 
 feet. First floor divided as follows : Hall, 6x30 
 feet ; hall for stairs, 7 feet 6 inches by 14 feet 
 6 inches; sitting-room, 18x30; bed-room, 9 
 feet 6 inches by 14 feet 6 inches ; bath-room, 
 6x14 feet 6 inches ; store-room, 7x14 feet 6 
 inches. Second floor : Hall, 6x30 ; hall for 
 stairs, 7 feet 6 inches by 14 feet 6 inches ; three 
 bed-rooms respectively, 9 feet 6 inches by 14 
 feet 6 inches ; 12 feet 6 inches by 14 feet 6 
 inches; 11x18 feet; sick-room, 18x19 feet. 
 Attic : Hall for stairs, 7x21 feet ; two sleeping- 
 rooms, 15x22 feet 6 inches, and 18x30 feet, 
 respectively ; wardrobe, 7x22 feet. Basement : 
 Dining-room, 17x30 ; sitting-room, 12 by 13 
 feet 6 inches; bed-room, 12x13 feet 6 inches, 
 and hall 6x30 feet. The completion of this 
 fine improvement has enabled the Directors 
 and Superintendent not only to more comfort- 
 ably arrange and care for the ordinary number 
 of inmates, but to provide for such considera- 
 ble additions, as, in seasons of unusual severity' 
 or distress, may need the benefits of this mu- 
 nificent public charity. In addition, the Direct- 
 ors last year (1880), caused to be erected a 
 separate building for laundry and storage pur- 
 poses, a few rods east of the rear wing. It is 
 a substantial brick structure, 20x30 feet in 
 size. First floor: Store-room, 10x16 feet ; wash- 
 room, 17 feet 6 inches by 18 feet, with boiler 
 and other improved washing conveniences. 
 Second floor : Drying and laundry room, 18 
 feet 6 inches by 28 feet 6 inches. The aver- 
 age number of inmates during the year 1880, 
 was eighty-seven, though as usual, a large 
 amount of outside assistance was afforded to 
 the needy during inclement portions of the year. 
 After the purchase of the infirmary farm, the 
 County Commissioners, as before stated, on the 
 11th day of July, 1849, appointed Roswell 
 Kent, of Middlebury, Avery Spicer of Coven- 
 try, and Lucius V. Bierce, of Akron, as Infirm- 
 ary Directors, to hold their offices until the 
 next ensuing October election. The board or- 
 ganized by the election of Roswell Kent as 
 President and Lucius V. Bierce as Clerk. 
 From among the several applicants for the sit- 
 uation, Abraham Sichley, of Portage, was ap- 
 pointed Superintendent. 
 
 In October, 1849, the people of the county 
 elected Timothy L. Miller, of Cuyahoga Falls, 
 Roswell Kent, of Middlebury, and Gibbons J. 
 Ackle}', of Akron, Infirmary Directors for one, 
 two and three years, respectively. Mr. Miller 
 declining to serve, Avery Spicer, of Coventry, 
 was appointed by the County Commissioners to 
 fill the vacancy. President of the Board, Ros- 
 well Kent ; Clerk, Gibbons J. Ackley ; Abra- 
 ham Sichley continued as Superintendent. 
 
 In October, 1850, Avery Spicer was elected 
 for three years. Organization as before. Mr. 
 Gibbons J. Ackle}' having died before the ex- 
 piration of his term of office, Mr. Joseph E. 
 Wesener, of Akron, was, on the 9th day of Au- 
 gust, 1851, appointed b}' the Commissioners to 
 fill the vacancy until the ensuing October elec- 
 tion, Mr. Wesener also, by vote of the board, 
 filling Mr. Ackley's position as Clerk of the 
 Board. In October, 1851, Ira Hawkins, of 
 Portage, was elected for three years, and 
 George D. Bates, of Akron, for one year — the 
 balance of the unexpii'ed term of Mr. Ackley. 
 deceased — Messrs. Kent and Wesener retiring. 
 Spicer, President ; Bates, Clerk ; Sichley, Su- 
 perintendent. In October, 1852, George D. 
 Bates, of Akron, was re-elected for three years. 
 Organization same as before. In October, 
 1853, George Sherbondy, of Portage, was 
 elected for three j^ears, Mr. Spicer, retiring. 
 Hawkins, President ; Bates, Clerk ; Sichley, 
 Superintendent. In October, 1854, Ira Hawk- 
 ins, of Portage, was re-elected. Organization 
 same as before. In March, 1855, Mr. William 
 Chandler, of Akron, by vote of the board, suc- 
 ceeded Mr. Sichley as Superintendent of the In- 
 firmary. In October, 1855, Charles Hanscom. 
 of Akron, was elected for three years, Mr. 
 Bates retiring. Hawkins, President ; Hans- 
 com, Clerk ; Chandler, Superintendent. In 
 October, 1856, David A. Scott, of Akron, was 
 elected for three 3'ears, Mr. Sherbondy retiring. 
 Organization as before. In October, 1857. 
 Avery Spicer, of Akron, was elected for three 
 3'ears. Mr. Hawkins retiring. Scott, Presi- 
 dent ; Hanscom, Clerk ; Chandler, Superintend- 
 ent. In October, 1858, William Johnston, of 
 Cople}', was elected for three 3'ears, Mr. Hans- 
 com retiring. Spicer, President ; Scott, Clerk ; 
 Chandler, Superintendent. In October, 1859, 
 Richard B. Walker, of Akron, was elected for 
 three years, Mr. Scott retiring. Spicer, Presi- 
 dent ; Walker, Clerk ; Chandler, Superintend- 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY 
 
 247 
 
 ent. In October, 1860, Mr. Spicer was re- 
 elected for three j-ears. Organization as be- 
 fore. In January, 1861, ^Ir. Francis T. Hu- 
 song, of Copley, succeeded Mr. Chandler as Su- 
 perintendent of the Infirmary. In October, 
 1861, Alfred R. Townsend, of Akron, was 
 elected Director for three years, Mr. Johnston 
 retiring. Spicer, President ; Walker, Clerk ; 
 Husong, Superintendent. In October, 1862, 
 Mr. Walker was re-elected for three yeai-s. Or- 
 ganization as before. . In October, 1863, -Mr. 
 Spicer was re-elected for three 3'ears. Organi- 
 zation as before. In October, 186-4, Mr. Town- 
 send was re-elected for three 3'ears. Organiza- 
 tion as before. In October, 1865, Mr. Walker 
 was re-elected for three years. Spicer, Presi- 
 dent ; Townsend, Clerk ; Husong, Superintend- 
 ent. In October, 1866, Jonathan H. Brew- 
 ster, of Coventry, was elected for three years, 
 Mr. Spicer retiring. Walker, President ; Town- 
 send, Clerk ; Husong, Superintendent. In Oc- 
 tober, 1867, William M. Cunningham, of Ak- 
 ron, was elected for three 3'ears, Mr. Townsend 
 retiring. Walker, President ; Cunningham, 
 Clerk ; Husong, Superintendent. In April, 
 1868, George W. G lines, of Gates" Mills, Cuya- 
 hoga County-, by appointment of the Directors, 
 superseded Mr. Husong as Superintendent of 
 the Infirmar3^ In October, 1868, Francis T. 
 Husong, of Akron, was elected Director for 
 three j'ears, i^Ir. Walker, retiring. Brewster, 
 President ; Cunningham, Clerk ; Glines, Super- 
 intendent. In October, 1860, Mr. Brewster 
 was re-elected for three years. Organization 
 same as before. In October, 1870, Mr. Cun- 
 ningham was re-elected for three years. Or- 
 ganization same as before. In October, 1871, 
 Webster B. Storer, of Portage, was elected for 
 three years, Mr. Husong retiring. Organiza- 
 tion same as before. In October, 1872, Mr. 
 Brewster was re-elected for three years. 
 Storer, President ; Cunningham, Clerk ; Glines, 
 Superintendent. In October, 1873, A. K 
 Townsend, of Akron, was again elected for 
 three 3'ears, Mr. Cunningham retiring. Storei-, 
 President ; Townsend, Clerk ; Glines, Superin- 
 tendent. In October, 1874, Levi S. Herrold, of 
 Akron, was elected for three years, Mr. Storer 
 retiring. Herrold, President ; Townsend, 
 Clerk ; Glines, Superintendent. In October, 
 1875, Clement J. Kolb, of Akron, was elected 
 for three years, Mr. Brewster retiring. Organ- 
 ization same as before. In October, 1876, 
 
 H'enry Frederick, of Portage, was elected for 
 thi'ee years, Mr. Townsend retiring. Herrold, 
 President ; Kolb, Clerk ; Glines, Superintend- 
 ent. In October, 1877, A. R. Townsend was 
 again elected for three 3-ears, 3Ir. Herrold re- 
 tiring. Frederick, President ; Kolb, Clerk ; 
 Glines, Superintendent. Mr. Glines, whose 
 health had been failing for several 3'ears, d3ing 
 March 4, 1878, his assistant, ^Ir. George Feich- 
 ter, was, on the 1st day of April, 1878, tempo- 
 raril3' appointed Superintendent b3' the Direct- 
 ors, Mrs. Glines still continuing in charge as 
 Matron and General Manager. In October, 
 1878, Mr. Kolb was re-elected for three years. 
 Organization same as before. March 1, 1879, 
 the resignation of Mr. Feichter, as Superintend- 
 ent, was accepted, and Mrs. Julia F. Glines 
 was appointed to the position, and it is safe to 
 sa3^ that the institution has never been more 
 abl3' conducted than during the past two years' 
 incumbency of Mrs. Glines. In 1870, by 
 reason of his I'cmoval from the count)', Mr. 
 Townsend resigned his position as Director, 
 and, in October of that year, William South- 
 ma3'd, of Stow, was elected to till the vacancy 
 for one 3'ear, Mr. Frederick also being re- 
 elected for three yeai's. Frederick, President ; 
 Kolb, Clerk ; Mrs. Glines, Superintendent. In 
 Octol^er, 1880, Mr. Southmayd was re-elected 
 for three years. Southmayd, President ; Fred- 
 erick, Clerk ; Mrs. Glines, Superintendent. 
 
 Looking to the future necessities and conven- 
 ience of the institution, in the latter part of 
 1870, the County Commissioners contracted 
 with Mr. James McAllister for the purchase of 
 ^^Tin7 ^cres off the southwest corner of his 
 farm, and adjoining the western portion of the 
 Infirmar3' farm upon the north. The price 
 stipulated to be paid was $112.50 per acre, and 
 on the 0th da3' of March, 1880, the administra- 
 tor of Mr. McAllister executed a deed therefor, 
 the total cost of the addition being $4,223.25. 
 Though the cost per acre was more than four- 
 fold the original purchase, it is still regarded as 
 a highl3' desirable investment, adding to the 
 farm precisely the quality of land, and in the 
 precise locality where an addition was needed, 
 while if the Commissioners should desire to do 
 so they can at any time dispose of ten or twelve 
 acres off from the east end, the site of the orig- 
 inal infirmary buildings, at a figure equal to, if 
 not greater- than the cost of the new purchase. 
 Thus does ■' Little Summit,'" one of the 3'ounger 
 
 r 
 
248 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 as well as one of the smaller counties of the 
 State, occup}' an exalted position, not only 
 phj-sicall^y and altitudinally, but for the extent 
 and excellence of the provision which she has 
 made for the support and care of the indigent 
 and unfortunate portion of her population. 
 
 At the date of its erection and organization, 
 in 1840, Summit County had a total population 
 of 22,469, distributed as follows: Bath, 1,425; 
 Boston, 845; Copley, 1,439; Coventry, 1,308; 
 Franklin, 1,436 ; Green, 1,536 ; Hudson, 1,220 ; 
 Northampton, 963 ; Northfield, 1,031 ; Norton, 
 1,497 ; Portage (including Akron, then contain- 
 ing 1,664 inhabitants) 2,382 ; Richfield, 1,108 ; 
 Stow (including Cuyahoga Falls), 1,533 ; Spring- 
 field.(including part of Middlebury), 1,573 ; Tall- 
 raadge (including part of Middlebur}-), 2,134 ; 
 Twinsburg, 1,039. The census of 1880 makes 
 the total population of the county 43,788, a 
 gain in forty years of 21,319, about two-thirds 
 of the increase being in Akron alone. 
 
 Though one of the smallest counties in the 
 State, territoriall}'. Summit County is more di- 
 versified in it^ productions, and more nearl}' 
 independent of the " outside world " than, per- 
 haps, an}' other county in the State, large or 
 small. The two southern tiers of townships 
 are unsurpassed as grain producers, while 
 equally well adapted to the growing of other 
 field crops, fruits, sheep, swine, cattle horses, 
 etc. The eight northern are particularly adapted 
 to, and noted for, their dairy products, and, be- 
 sides producing large quantities of the finest 
 butter and cheese in the world, and many fine 
 cattle in excess of home requirements, are 
 nearly, if not quite, fully self-sustaining in the 
 matter of cereals, vegetables, fruits, wool, ma- 
 ple sugar, sirup, etc. The middle townships 
 are a happy combination of all the excellent 
 qualities of the two sections named, being 
 equally adapted to the raising of stock, grain, 
 fruits and general farm products ; and though 
 some portions of the northern townships, bor- 
 dering upon the river, are somewhat broken, 
 and a few hundred acres in the southern town- 
 ships are covered by the waters of the lakes 
 and reservoirs which feed the Ohio Canal and 
 supply water for milling and manufacturing pur- 
 
 poses, there is, perhaps, as little waste land in 
 Summit County as in the same area of contigu- 
 ous territory in any other portion of the State. 
 
 But, besides these varied and excellent ag- 
 ricultural advantages. Summit County possesses 
 mineral and manufacturing resources superior 
 to those of j^ny other county in Ohio. Nearly 
 the entire area of at least five townships in the 
 count}' are underlaid with the very best bitumin- 
 ous coal, large quantities of which are mined 
 yearly, not only for home consumption, but for 
 shipment to Cleveland and the upper lakes. The 
 finest building-stone in the State — both coarse 
 and fine grained sandstones — are largely quar- 
 ried in the middle and northern townships of the 
 county. Inexhaustible deposits of the very 
 best quality of potter's clay, from which mill- 
 ions of gallons of common and fine stoneware 
 are fabricated yearly, underlie the surface of 
 several of the townships of the county, the 
 same localities furnishing the material from 
 which has grown that immense manufacturing 
 interest that is supplying the vitrified sewer- 
 pipe, from one to thirty inches in diameter, 
 with which the cities of both the East and the 
 West are being so largely and so rapidly hon- 
 ey-combed, in the shape of drains and sewers, 
 at the present time, to say nothing of the im- 
 mense quantities now being used by the farm- 
 ers of the country in underdraining their lands, 
 and in the construction of gutters and sluices 
 upon public highways. The materials for 
 building-brick are not only abundant, but the 
 fire-brick and the roofing- tile manufactured 
 here are fast attaining an extensive sale and a 
 national reputation. 
 
 Added to the extensive water-power hereto- 
 fore alluded to, these accessory aids to manu- 
 factures have justly earned for Summit County 
 and her " tip-top " capital city, a reputation 
 for snap and push second to no other county 
 or city in the United States. The enumeration 
 of the varied enterprises that go to make up 
 this reputation and this thrift will be given in 
 detail by other writers, in the separate histories 
 of the city of Akron and the several villages 
 and townships of the county elsewhere in this 
 volume. 
 
 ^^ 
 
-^ '^ 
 
 lA 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY, 
 
 249 
 
 CHAPTER IV.* 
 
 WAR HISTORY— THE REVOLUTIONARY STRUGGLE— SECOND WAR WITH ENGLAND— THE MEXICAN 
 
 WAR— THE GREAT REBELLION— SUMMIT COUNTY TROOPS— SOLDIERS' 
 
 MONUMENTS- AID SOCIETIES, ETC., ETC. 
 
 ' ' War must be 
 While men are what they are ; while they have 
 Bad passions to be rous'd up." — Bailey. 
 
 OVER one hundred years ago, George III and 
 his arrogant cabinet assumed to themselves 
 the right to tax their American colonies at will, 
 and without representation in the home Govern- 
 ment. This Ifed to what is known in American 
 history as the " Revolutionaiy war," a long 
 and sanguinary struggle, which resulted in the 
 colonies throwing off forever the galling yoke 
 of the haughty Briton, and of achieving their 
 liberty and independence. Liberty and Inde- 
 pendence ! Often as the wheels of time roll on 
 the anniversafj' of American Independence, so 
 often does the patriotic zeal of the sons of 
 liberty blaze out from one end of the Union to 
 the other, in commemoration of those brave, 
 war-worn veterans 
 
 ' ' who fell 
 
 In Trenton's morning light, 
 Who crossed the freezing Delaware, 
 
 That cold December night; 
 When, as the columns onward marched 
 
 With firm, unbroken ranks. 
 The blood-marked footprints thick were left 
 
 Upon the wintry banks," 
 
 and the thousands and thousands of others 
 who fought and bled for the liberty we, their 
 descendants, enjoy to-da}-. When the war was 
 over, and our independence acknowledged by 
 the mother countr}-, our patriot soldiery were 
 paid off in valueless paper or in Western lands. 
 The bankrupt Government had no other means 
 of rewarding her faithful soldiers, and large 
 tracts of land in the then Northwestern Territory 
 (Ohio Territory) were set apart as a remunera- 
 tion for the long service of her patriotic sol- 
 diers. This brought many of these old Revo- 
 lutionary heroes to the Ohio Territory. How 
 many came to what is now Summit County we 
 are unable to say, but as settlements were made 
 here in less than a score of years after the close 
 of the Revolution, it is more than probable that 
 
 ♦Contributed by W. H. Perrin. 
 
 a number of them were among the early settlers 
 of Summit County. We have, however, an ac- 
 count of but four : Simeon Prior, who settled 
 in Northampton Township in June, 1802, was 
 a native of Massachusetts, and served in the 
 Revolutionary war, in the old " Ba}- State 
 Line." He died in 1837, at the age of eighty- 
 four years, and lies buried in Northampton 
 Cemeter3^ Nathaniel W. Bettis also served in 
 the Revolution. He was one of the early set- 
 tlers in the western part of Tallmadge Town- 
 ship, and when he died was buried with the 
 honors of war, and the solemn rites of Free- 
 masonry. Another of these veterans was Isaac 
 Seward, the grandfather of Col. Sewai'd, of 
 Akron. And still another, David Galpin, who 
 is buried in Akron Rural Cemetery. William 
 Neal, Capt. John Wright, David Preston and 
 Conrad Boosinger were likewise Revolutionary- 
 soldiers, and among the early settlers of Tall- 
 madge Township. But it is not intended to go 
 into a history of the Revolutionary war. It is 
 merely mentioned by way of introduction to 
 other wars in which the county bore an active 
 part. 
 
 In our second war with Great Britain, or the 
 war of 1812, although Summit County had not 
 3^et been organized, the territory of which it is 
 now composed contained a number of inhabit- 
 ants. Being near the seat of war, most of the 
 able-bodied male citizens participated in the 
 struggle at some time during the period of its 
 continuation. The opening scenes of this " un- 
 pleasantness," were characterized by defeat, dis- 
 aster and disgrace, but toward the close of the 
 struggle, a series of brilliant achievements made 
 amends for these misfortunes. Says a chronicle 
 of the time : '• Croghan's gallant defense of Fort 
 Stephenson ; Perry's victory on Lake Erie ; the 
 total defeat, by Harrison, of the allied British 
 and savages, under Proctor and Tecumseh, on 
 the Thames ; and the great closing triumph of 
 Jackson, at New Orleans, reflected the most 
 brilliant luster on the American arms. In every 
 
 -0) PV 
 
:c 
 
 250 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 vicissitude of this contest, the conduct of Ohio 
 was eminently patriotic and honorable. When 
 the necessities of the National Grovernment 
 compelled Congress to resort to a direct tax, 
 Ohio, for successive years, cheerfully assumed 
 and promptly paid her quota out of her State 
 Treasury. Her sons volunteered with alacrity 
 their services in the field ; and no troops more 
 patiently endured hardship or performed better 
 service. Hardly a battle was fought in the 
 Northwest in which some of these brave citizen 
 soldiers did not seal their devotion to their 
 countrj- with their blood." And what is true, 
 and to the honor of the State at large, is 
 equally true of the soldiers from this particular 
 section. 
 
 As a matter of some interest to our modern 
 soldiers, we give the following abstract from 
 the Quartermasters Department during the war 
 of 1812 : Rations : One and a quarter pounds 
 of beef, three-quarters of a pound of pork, 
 thirteen ounces of bread or flour, one gill of 
 whisky. At the rate of two quarts of salt, four 
 quarts of vinegar, four pounds of soap, and 
 one and three-quarter pounds of candles to 
 ever}* 100 rations. And from tlie Paymaster's 
 Department : Colonel, $75 per month, five ra- 
 tions and $12 for forage ; Major, $50 per month 
 and three rations ; Captain, $40 per month and 
 three rations ; First Lieutenant, $30 and two 
 rations ; Second Lieutenant, $20 and two 
 rations ; Ensign, $20 and two rations ; Ser- 
 geant Major, $9 ; Quartermaster's Sergeant 
 $9 ; other Sergeants, $8 ; Corporals, $7 ; Musi- 
 cians, $6, and Privates, $6 per month. 
 
 It has been a matter of much difficulty to 
 learn the particulars of this war, so far as the 
 few settlers of this section participated in it. 
 Most of these old veterans have met and con- 
 quered the last enem}' — death. A \evy few of 
 them are known to be now living. Nor could 
 the names of all who went from what is now 
 Summit County be obtained, but it is believed 
 that most of the able-bodied men of requisite 
 age took part in this war. Among those who 
 served from this county, we have the names of 
 the following: Col. Kiall McArthur, Joseph 
 D. Baird. John Hall, Timoth}' Holcomb (a Lieu- 
 tenant), Alexander Hall, James Baird, Lee More, 
 Nathaniel De Haven, Martin Willis, Hiram 
 
 King (an Ensign), Lusk (a Captain), 
 
 William I'rior, Timothy Sherwood, William 
 Wright, Joseph Foster, Henry Wood. George 
 
 Showandy, Timothy Clark, John Ellsworth, 
 
 McCook, Buck, Alfred Parker, 
 
 Benjamin Stark. John Dillamater, Andrews 
 Ma}^, Israel Lac}' and Jacob Harter. A few 
 years ago, when these old veterans were pen- 
 sioned by the Government, there were then 
 thirty-three living in the county, but, with per- 
 haps two or three exceptions, they are now all 
 gone. 
 
 "Soldiers, rest, thy warfare o'er, 
 Sleep the sleep thiit knows no waking." 
 
 After the close of the war of 1812, our peace 
 was no more disturbed, except by an occasional 
 Indian skirmish, until the war with Mexico. 
 If war with '^ blood-red tresses deepening in 
 the sun," and " death-shot glowing in his fiery 
 hands," raged in countries of the bid world, his 
 thunder came to us but as the - mutterings of 
 a distant cloud, whose lightnings could harm 
 us not." 
 
 The Mexican war grew out of the admission 
 of Texas, as a State, into the Federal Union. 
 The circumstances were briefly these : Texas 
 had been a province of Mexico, but had seceded 
 (as she tried to do from Ihicle Sam in after 
 years, but with less success), and for years its 
 citizens had been carrying on a kind of guerrilla 
 warfare with the mother country-. This war- 
 fare had been attended with varying results, 
 sometimes the one party, and sometimes the 
 other, being successful. But in 183G, the 
 famous battle of San Jacinto was fought, in 
 which the Texans were victorious, and cap- 
 tured Santa Anna, then Dictator of IMexico, 
 while his whole army was either killed or made 
 prisoners. Santa Anna was held in strict con- 
 finement, and finally induced to sign a treaty 
 acknowledging the independence of Texas. 
 But the Bej^ublic of Mexico, in violation of 
 every principle of honor, refused to recognize 
 this treaty, and continued to treat Texas and 
 the Texans just as she hatl previously done. 
 From this time on, petitions were frequently 
 presented by the Texans to the United States 
 Government, praying admission into the Union. 
 But Mexico, through sheer spite, endeavored to 
 prevent this step, constantly declaring that the 
 admission of Texas would be regarded as a 
 sufficient cause for a declaration of war, of the 
 opinion, doubtless, that this would serve to in- 
 timidate the United States. 
 
 In the Presidential contest of 1844, between 
 Henry Clay, of Kentucky, and James K. Polk, 
 
 >y 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 251 
 
 of Tennessee, the annexation of Texas was one 
 of the leading questions before the people, and 
 Mr. Polk, whose party (the Democrats) favored 
 the admission of Texas, being elected, this was 
 taken as a public declaration on the subject. 
 After this. Congress had no hesitancy in grant- 
 ing the petition of Texas, and, on the 1st of 
 March, 1845, formally received the " Lone Star" 
 into the sisterhood of States. In her indigna- 
 tion, Mexico at once broke off all diplomatic 
 relations with the United States, calling home 
 her Minister immediately. This, of itself, was 
 a declaration of war, and war soon followed. 
 Congress passed an act authorizing the Presi- 
 dent to accept the services of 50,000 volunteers 
 (which were to be raised at once), and appro- 
 priating $10,000,000 for the prosecution of the 
 war. In this call for 50,000 troops, Ohio was 
 required to furnish three regiments. With her 
 characteristic patriotism, she filled her quota 
 in a few weeks. Upon the organization of 
 these regiments at Cincinnati, the place of 
 rendezvous, there were almost men enough left 
 to form another regiment. These were fui'- 
 nished transportation to their homes at the ex- 
 pense of the Government. The regiments, as 
 organized, were officered as follows : First 
 Regiment, A. M. Mitchell, of Cincinnati, Colonel ; 
 John B. Weller, of Butler County, Lieutenant 
 Colonel ; T. L. Hamer, of Brown County, Ma- 
 jor. Second Regiment, Gr. W. Morgan, of Knox 
 County, Colonel ; William Irvin, of Fairfield, 
 Lieutenant Colonel ; William Hall, of Athens, 
 Major. Third Regiment, S. R. Curtis, of Wayne 
 County, Colonel ; Gr. W. McCook, of Jefferson, 
 Lieutenant Colonel, and J. S. Love, of Morgan, 
 Major. Under a second call for men, which 
 was known as the " Ten Regiments Bill," Ohio 
 filled up her quota without delay. Upon this 
 second call, made just after the fall of Mon- 
 terey, and in opposition to the war generally, 
 Hon. Thomas Corwin in the United States Sen- 
 ate made one of the ablest speeches of his life. 
 In this speech it was that he used the memora- 
 ble language, since grown almost into a prov- 
 erb : " If I were a Mexican I would tell you, 
 ' Have you not room in your own country to 
 bury your dead men? If you come into mine, 
 we will greet you with bloody hands, and wel- 
 come you to hospitable graves.'" 
 
 The majority of the Whig party, as we have 
 said, opposed the annexation of Texas upon 
 the grounds that it would cause a war between 
 
 the United States and Mexico, a war that, they 
 held, would be unjust and uncalled for. As 
 Summit County at that time was largely Whig 
 in its political sentiments, like a great majority 
 of that party it opposed the war, and declined 
 taking any active part in it. Hence, the num- 
 ber of men furnished by the county in the 
 different calls for troops was exceedingly 
 small. We have been enabled to learn the 
 names of onl}- the following : George, Otis 
 and Eliphaz Capron, Oliver P. Barney, Joseph 
 Gouder, Zettle, William H. and Ezra Try- 
 on and Adam Hart. There were, perhaps 
 others, but diligent inquiries have failed to 
 " materialize " any of them. Of those men- 
 tioned. Hart enlisted at Pittsburgh, Penn., and 
 Gouder, in Tennessee. Two of the Caprons 
 and 0. P. Barne}' are dead ; Eliphaz Capron 
 lives at Ellis' Corners ; Zettle and Gouder live 
 in Akron, and Hart lives in Middlebury. Bar- 
 ne}' was a Sergeant in the Mexican war, and 
 the following incident is still remembered by 
 many, as having been told by himself: When 
 Gen. Taylor's little arm}' was encamped at 
 Matamoras, Barney was on picket duty-, and 
 was lassoed by the Mexicans and pretty roughly 
 handled. The following paragraph in regard 
 to it, is from an old file of the Akron Democrat : 
 " We are sorry to observe that Sergt. 0. P. 
 Barney of this place has had both his feet 
 frozen during the late cold weather. The gal- 
 lant Sergeant has seen service on the line be- 
 tween Matamoras and Buena Vista, but he has 
 found a more formidable antagonist in Jack 
 Frost, than in the Mexican troopers and their 
 lassoes." Mr. Barney entered the late war, and 
 some years ago, died at the Soldiers' Home at 
 Dayton. 
 
 The great rebellion burst upon the country 
 in the spring of 1861, threatening to sweep 
 every^thing before it to destruction. Hitherto, 
 we had been called to measure arms with for- 
 eign foes, or with the howling savages, but now 
 a war among ourselves was inaugurated — a 
 civil war without parallel in the annals of his- 
 tory : 
 
 •• O war ! begot in pride and luxury. 
 1 The child of malice and revengeful hate : 
 
 ■ Thou impious good, and good impiety ! 
 
 Thou art tlie foul refiner of a State, 
 Unjust scourge of men's iniquity, 
 Sharp easer of corruptions desperate !" 
 
 Of all the wars that have ever scourged God's 
 
 - 9 
 
 If- 
 
252 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 earth, a civil war, wherein " the brother betraj's 
 the brother to death, and the father the son, 
 and children rise up against their parents, and 
 cause them to be put to death," is the most 
 dreadful. The rival houses of York and Lan- 
 caster, with their emblems of " White " and 
 " Red," shook old England to her center, filling 
 her houses with mourning, her fields with car- 
 nage, and wasting the blood of her bra\'est and 
 best ; but compared to our " war between the 
 States," it is dwarfed into insignificance. A per- 
 fect histor}' of our great civil war has never 
 been written ; it never can be written. Though 
 the " pen of inspiration were dipped in the gloom 
 of earthquake and eclipse," it could not write a 
 true history of those four long dreary years as 
 they were. All the evils of war, and all the 
 horrors of civil war were crowded into them, 
 and the refined cruelties known to the civiliza- 
 tion of the enlightened age in which we live, 
 were practiced by the opposing parties. Starva- 
 tion, the prison-pen, and the tortures incident to 
 the times, were the common doom of the unfoi't- 
 unate who fell into enem3''s hands. But after 
 four terrible years of strife, the Goddess of 
 Peace once more waved the olive branch over 
 the land, and the unnatural war was brought to 
 a close. That which had so long been deemed 
 a curse to the country, was developed into a 
 blessing, and it is safe to predict that the same 
 cause will never originate another war on Ameri- 
 can soil. Now that the trouble is over, and 
 peace and prosperity smile upon the land from 
 one end of the nation to the other, it is a source 
 of congratulation that the cause for strife be- 
 tween the sections is forever removed. In the 
 union of " the Roses" was found the germ of 
 England's future greatness and resplendent 
 glory, and in the harmonious blending of " the 
 Blue " and " the Gray," who shall limit the 
 greatness and the glory of America ? 
 
 It is highly creditable to Summit County that 
 she was represented in some of the first regi- 
 ments organized in the spring of 1861. When 
 the news was sent flying over the country that 
 the flag had been insulted, the people were 
 aroused to instant action. Who does not re- 
 member the blaze of excitement which followed 
 the bombardment of Sumter, when martial mu- 
 sic was heard in every town and hamlet, and 
 tender women, no less than brave men, were 
 wild with enthusiasm ? Wives encouraged their 
 husbands to enlist ; mothers urged their sons to 
 
 patriotic devotion, and sisters tenderly gave 
 their brothers to the cause of their country. 
 But ho reminders are necessary to revive a rec- 
 ollection of those stirring scenes, nor to recall 
 the names of the patriots who participated in 
 the struggle ; who " fought the good fight unto 
 the end," or, from the prison, the hospital and 
 the battle-field, crossed over to mingle with the 
 grand army beyond the river. Some of them 
 sleep in unknown graves, " in the land of cotton 
 and cane," where the palm-trees wave over their 
 tombs ; where the birds carol their matins above 
 them, and where the flowers sweeten the air 
 around them with their fragrance ; and it is no 
 reproach to their valor that they fell before foes 
 as brave as themselves. They are held memoria 
 ill (I'terna, and their patriotism is recorded in 
 the nation's history. Those who survived and 
 returned in safet}- to home and friends, have 
 their reward in the knowledge that the old flag 
 still floats over all the States. 
 
 A brief sketch of the regiment, containing 
 organized bodies of men from this county, will 
 now be given, together with all the local facts 
 to be obtained, of the companies recruited here 
 and mustered into the United States service. 
 Every exertion has been made to get the list of 
 county organizations complete. Newspaper files 
 have been examined, ex-offlcers and soldiers 
 consulted, and all publications on the subject 
 perused with care. And while there may be 
 slight errors and omissions in some cases, we 
 believe, however, that in the main the record 
 willbe found substantiall}' correct. 
 
 The first regiment in which Summit County 
 was represented was the Nineteenth Infantry'. 
 This regiment was originally organized for 
 three months, and drew two companies from 
 this count}', viz., G and K. Company G. was 
 recruited as " Company A, Akron Light In- 
 fantry," but, in organizing the regiment, was 
 changed to G. The original officers were Lewis 
 P. Buckley, Captain ; A. J. Fulkerson, First 
 Lieutenant, and G. S. Carpenter, Second Lieu- 
 tenant. Capt. Buckley was promoted to Major, 
 and, at the expiration of the term of service of 
 the regiment, was appointed Colonel of the 
 Twenty-ninth Infantrj-. Company K was re- 
 cruited as " Company B, Akron Union Light 
 Infantry," and, upon organization, became Com- 
 pany K, with the following officers : Andrew 
 J. Konkle, Captain ; Paul T. Kirby, First Lieu- 
 tenant, and James Nelson, Second Lieutenant. 
 
liL^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUJ^TY. 
 
 253 
 
 The regiment was filled up by the 15th of 
 May, and on the 27th it left Camp Taylor — 
 the place of rendezvous — for Columbus, and 
 occupied Camp Jackson. Hei'e it elected reg- 
 imental officers. Companies A and B were 
 armed and equipped and sent to Bellaire, 
 where they were employed guarding the ferry 
 until June 3, while the other eight companies 
 were sent to Camp Goddard, at Zanesville, to 
 perfect themselves in the drill. On the 20th 
 of June, Companies A and B joined the reg- 
 iment, and, with the Seventeenth and Twenti- 
 eth, were sent to Parkersburg. At Parkers- 
 burg the Nineteenth, Eighth and Tenth Ohio, 
 and Thirteenth Indiana were organized into a 
 brigade, under Brigadier-General W. S. Rose- 
 crans. The regiment, with its brigade, went 
 to Clarksburg on the 25th, and to Buckhannon 
 on the 29th, where it arrived on July 2. It 
 participated in the battle of Rich Mountain on 
 the 7th. The behavior of the Nineteenth in 
 this engagement, won from Gen. Rosecrans the 
 following : " The Nineteenth distinguished itself 
 for the' cool and handsome manner in which it 
 held its post against a flank attack, and for the 
 manner in which it came into line and delivered 
 its fire near the close of the action." The term 
 of service expired on the 23d, and it returned 
 to Columbus, Ohio, and was mustered out of 
 the service. Many of the officers busied them- 
 selves in recruiting for the three years' service, 
 and with such marked success that by the 26th 
 of September, nine full companies had reported 
 and were mustered in. 
 
 In the re-organization of the regiment for 
 three j^ears. Company K was made up of Sum- 
 mit County men, and went into the service with 
 the following officers : Paul T. Kirby, Cap- 
 tain ; G. R. Lentz, First Lieutenant, and J. J. 
 Agard, Second Lieutenant. Capt. Kirby re- 
 signed December 2, 1862. Lieutenant Lentz 
 resigned August 1, 1862. Lieut. Agard was 
 promoted to First Lieutenant February 9, 
 1862, to Captain June 19, 1863, and honor- 
 ably discharged January 27, 1865. Albert 
 Upson was promoted from First Sergeant to 
 Second Lieutenant February 9, 1862, to First 
 Lieutenant January 2, 1868, and to Captain 
 July 25, 1864, and, as such, mustered out with 
 the regiment. Wesle}- l^pson was promoted 
 from Third Sergeant to Second Lieutenant 
 January 2, 1863, and to First Lieutenant July 
 2, 1864. J. S. Cochran was promoted from 
 
 Second Sergeant to Second Lieutenant Jul}'' 2, 
 1864. Of other promotions we could obtain 
 no information. 
 
 The re-organization of the Nineteenth took 
 place at Camp Dennison, and, b}- the 7th of 
 November, 1861, it was full}' artned and 
 equipped and read}' for the field. It left camp 
 on the 16th and proceeded to Louisville, Ky., 
 by way of Cincinnati, and was the first reg- 
 iment to go into Camp Jenkins, five miles from 
 Louisville. It remained here, in command of 
 Gen. 0. M. Mitchell, until the 6th of December, 
 when it moved to Lebanon, Ky., and thence to 
 Columbia, where it arrived on the 10th, and 
 was brigaded with the Fifty-ninth Ohio, Sec- 
 ond and Ninth Kentucky Infantry and Hag- 
 gard's Regiment of Cavalry, Gen J. T. Boyle 
 commanding. 
 
 The following pleasant episode occurred 
 while stationed at Columbia : A beautiful silk 
 flag was received as a present from the ladies 
 of Canton to the Nineteenth. It was presented 
 to the regiment in a neat little speech by Mr. 
 A. Kitt. Capt. Mandersou received it, and, in 
 behalf of the Nineteenth, made appropriate 
 acknowledgment. 
 
 The Nineteenth, together with the Third 
 Kentucky Infantry, was ordered to the mouth 
 of Renick's Creek, near Burksville, on the 
 Cumberland River, on the 17th of January, 
 1 862, and soon after moved to Jamestown, where 
 they were joined by the Sixth Ohio Battery 
 of Artillery. The battle of Mill Springs took 
 place soon after, resulting in the defeat of the 
 rebels under Gen. Zollicoffer, when the troops 
 returned to Columbia. While lying at Colum- 
 bia, the men suffered severely from sickness, 
 and a number of the Nineteenth died, among 
 them Lieut. S. Lentz, of Company E. The 
 regiment was finally ordered to Nashville, 
 where it arrived on the 10th of March, and 
 went into camp five miles out on the Murfrees- 
 boro Pike. On the 1 8th of March it left Nash- 
 ville, with its brigade, for Savannah, on the 
 Tennessee River, and on the 6th of April, when 
 within fourteen miles of that place, the heavy 
 booming of cannon was heard in the direction 
 of Pittsburg Landing, and the troops started 
 on the double-quick, hoping to get there in time 
 to participate in the battle. But owing to a 
 lack of transportation, it was dark before they 
 arrived, and the dreary, rainy night was spent 
 in line on the battle-field. In the second day's 
 
 -^j^ 
 
^ 
 
 25i 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 fight, the Nineteenth took an active part. Gen. 
 Boyle, who commanded the brigade, said of 
 the Nineteenth : " The Colonel and Capt. Man- 
 derson (acting Major) held their men steady, 
 and deported themselves, as did their officers 
 and men, with coolness and conrage, until the 
 Colonel ordered them back to a position from 
 under the fire of the enemy's battery. This 
 position was held until the guns of the enemy 
 were silenced by the well-directed fire of Capt. 
 Bartlett's battery. Maj. Edwards, acting Lieu- 
 tenant Colonel, was shot dead from his horse, 
 and a number of privates were killed and 
 wounded." Among the killed and wounded of 
 the gallant Nineteenth, were Privates 0. T. 
 Powell and Horace H. Bailey, of Compan}^ C, 
 and Corporal W. E. Gribson, of Company H, 
 killed ; Lieut. William A. Sutherland, of Com- 
 pany H, severely wounded. 
 
 The next active duty of the regiment was at 
 the siege of Corinth. It entered that place on 
 the 29th of May, with the army, and on the 3d 
 of June marched in pursuit of the enemy, pro- 
 ceeding as far as Brownsboro, when it returned 
 to luka and joined Gen. Buell's forces. It 
 marched with his column to Florence, Ala., 
 and to Battle Creek, where it arrived on the 
 14th of July. On the 21st of August, it moved 
 to Nashville with Gen. McCook's division, 
 where it became a portion of Gen. Buell's 
 army, and with it made that famous march to 
 Louisville, Ky. The Nineteenth marched out 
 of Louisville on the 1st of October, with Gen. 
 Crittenden's division, and reached Perryville 
 on the 8th, in time to witness a portion of that 
 battle, but not to participate. Upon the retreat 
 of the rebel army from Kentucky, the Nine- 
 teenth marched through Somerset and Glasgow, 
 to Gallatin, Tenn., where it remained two 
 weeks on provost duty, then joined its division 
 at the '' Hermitage," and, passing through 
 Nashville, went into camp near its old quarters 
 on the Murfreesboro turnpike. It moved with 
 the army on the 26th of December, in the 
 advance on Murfreesboro. In command of Maj. 
 Charles F. Manderson, it was thrown across 
 Stone River on the 31st, with a view of swinging 
 around into Murfreesboro, but the disaster of 
 McCook's right wing compelled its withdrawal, 
 and, recrossing the river, it passed to the right, 
 and by a determined resistance, aided to check 
 the advance of the rebels. Under the personal 
 lead of Gen. Rosecrans, Beatty's brigade 
 
 charged the enemy, drove him about three- 
 fourths of a mile, and held the position until 
 relieved by Col. M. B. Walker's brigade. On 
 the 2d of January, 1863, the Nineteenth, with 
 its division, crossed Stone River, and received 
 the charge of the rebel column under Gen. 
 Breckeuridge. They were forced to retreat, 
 but the pursuing rebels coming under the range 
 of the masked artiller}-, were driven back over 
 the river and beyond it with great slaughter. 
 The Nineteenth Ohio and the Ninth Kentucky 
 were the first to cross Stone River, and with 
 the assistance of men of other regiments, capt- 
 ured four pieces of artiller}^ from the famous 
 Washington (La.) batter^'. The regiment suf- 
 fered severel}' in this battle. It entered it 
 with 449 men, rank and file, and lost in killed, 
 wounded and missing, 213, nearly one-half 
 Upon the fall of Murfreesboro, the regiment 
 went into camp on the Liberty turnpike. The 
 whole army remained at Murfreesboro until 
 the 29th of June, during which time the Nine- 
 teenth guarded an ammunition train to Man- 
 chester, and thence proceeded to McMinn- 
 ville, where it remained until the 16th of 
 August. It then crossed the Cumberland 
 Mountains to Pikeville, and with the division 
 passed over Lookout Mountain to Lee & Gor- 
 don's Mills, arriving on the 13th of September. 
 At Crawfish Springs, the regiment had a brisk 
 skirmish with the rebels, in which several men 
 were killed and wounded. 
 
 In the battle of Chickamauga, the Nineteenth 
 did its part of the hard fighting. On the 18th 
 of September, it was, together with the Seven- 
 ty-ninth Indiana, supported by the Ninth and 
 Seventeenth Kentucky, ordered to advance up- 
 on the enemy. With a cheer they advanced, 
 drove the enemy and captured a rebel battery, 
 with some prisoners. In the second day's 
 battle, the Nineteenth held an important posi- 
 tion, and performed its full share of hard fight- 
 ing. As a proof of the gallantr}^ of the regi- 
 ment, a private of Company G received severe 
 wounds during the first da^^'s battle. Capt. 
 Irwin received a wound from which he after- 
 ward died ; Lieut. McHenry was also severely 
 wounded. The aggregate loss was 100 men 
 killed, wounded and missing. At Orchard 
 Knob, on the 23d of November, the Nineteenth 
 lost twenty men killed and wounded. On the 
 25th, it took part in the charge of the rebel 
 works at the foot of Mission Ridge, where it 
 
 1^: 
 
)^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 255 
 
 lost oue man killed and thirteen wounded. It 
 was next sent with Sherman toward Knoxville. 
 This march was one of unexampled severity. 
 The men were ragged and shoeless, and their 
 footprints were marked with blood on the 
 SHOW}' ground. Finding that Gen. Longstreet 
 had raised the siege of Nashville, the army 
 moved to Strawberry Plains and Flat Creek. 
 Here, on the 1st of January, 1864, 400 of the 
 Nineteenth re-enlisted as veteran volunteers, 
 and, upon reaching Chattanooga on the 4th of 
 January, the three j'ears' regiment was mus- 
 tered out, and the veterans mustered into serv- 
 ice for another three years. It then returned 
 home on furlough, reaching Cleveland on the 
 IGth of February-. Upon the expiration of 
 their furlough, they returned immediately to 
 the front, arriving at Knoxville on the 24th of 
 March. The first active duty of the Nineteenth 
 was in the Atlanta campaign, which opened on 
 the 6th of Maj", and the regiment was sent to 
 Parker's Gap, to hold that pass. On the 20th, 
 it rejoined its brigade, and, moving with the 
 column, it participated in the fight at New 
 Hope Church, in which it lost forty-four killed 
 and wounded. Capt. Brewer, of Compan}- E, 
 was killed ; Maj. Nash lost his left hand, and 
 Capt. Smith, of Compan}' G, was severel}' 
 wounded. It was engaged at Kenesaw, at 
 Peach Tree Creek, and at the crossing of the 
 Chattahoochie River, and was under fire daily 
 up to the evacuation of Atlanta. The regiment 
 participated in the action of Lovcjoy Station 
 and lost seventy men killed and wounded. 
 Capt. Miller, of Compan^^ I, was killed ; Col. 
 Manderson was severely wounded, also Capt. 
 Agard, of Compan}' K. The entire loss of the 
 Nineteenth in the Atlanta campaign was, killed, 
 two commissioned officers and twenty-eight 
 men ; wounded, six commissioned officers and 
 ninety -six men ; missing, thirteen men ; total, 
 145. Lieut. McHenry, of Company I, was 
 killed in front of Atlanta on the 24th of Au- 
 gust, and Capt. Fix, of Company B, wounded 
 on the same day. 
 
 When Sherman started on his famous march 
 to the sea, the Nineteenth, forming a part of 
 Gen. Thomas' command, left Atlanta and 
 marched toward Nashville to aid in opposing 
 Hood. At the battle of Franklin, on the 29th 
 of October, it was held in reserve. It partici- 
 pated in the battle of Nashville, with slight 
 loss, and then followed in pursuit of the demor- 
 
 alized army of Gen. Hood to the Tennessee 
 River. On the 5th of January-, 1865, the reg- 
 iment was at Huntsville, Ala., where comforta- 
 ble quarters were erected. Col. Manderson 
 resigned March 17, from physical disability, 
 and Col. Stratton having resigned some months 
 earlier, Maj. Nash was promoted to Lieutenant 
 Colonel, and remained in command of the regi- 
 ment until mustered out. From Huntsville, it 
 moved into East Tennessee, marching as far as 
 the Virginia line, and then returned to Nash- 
 ville. It formed a part of that body of troops 
 sent to Texas, and arrived at Green Lake July 
 14, 1865, and at San Antonio on the 23d of 
 September. On the 21st of October, it was 
 mustered out of service at San Antonio, and 
 reached Columbus, Ohio, on the 22d of Novem- 
 ber, where it was paid off and discharged. 
 
 The Twenty-ninth Infantry contained a large 
 number of men from this county, some of 
 whom served in the old Nineteenth under its 
 three months' organization. Of the Twenty- 
 ninth, Companies D, G and H ma}- be termed 
 Summit Count}- companies (as we learn from 
 Capt. Nash), and were recruited almost wholly 
 in the count}'. Company D was organized 
 with the following commissioned officers : P. C. 
 Hard, Captain ; B. F. Perr}-, First Lieutenant, 
 and J. H. Grinnell, Second Lieutenant. Capt. 
 Hard did not leave camp with the regiment, 
 but resigned early. Lieut. Perry resigned, 
 June 20, 1862. Lieut. Grinnell was promoted 
 to First Lieutenant May 25, 1864, and honor- 
 ably discharged June 14, 1864. George W. 
 Dice was made First Lieutenant April 13, 1862, 
 promoted to Captain May 25, 1864, and killed 
 June 16, 1864. Companj^ G was organized 
 with John S. Clemmer, Captain ; James Treen, 
 First Lieutenant, and J. J. Wright, Second 
 Lieutenant. Capt. Clemmer was pi'omoted to 
 Major December 31, 1861, and resigned Decem- 
 ber 12, 1862. Lieut. Treen was promoted to 
 Captain October 1, 1862, but, owing to age, was 
 unable to withstand the fatigue incident to sol- 
 diering, and resigned Ma}- 22, 1863, but left 
 two stalwart sons in the ser\ice to represent 
 him. Second Lieut. J. J. Wright was pro- 
 moted to Captain December 21, 1861, and hon- 
 orably discharged October 1, 1862. C. H. Rus- 
 sell was promoted to Second Lieutenant April 
 13, 1862. to First Lieutenant January 24, 1863, 
 and honorably dischai'ged November 30, 1864. 
 W. F. Chamberlain was promoted to Second 
 
 1^ 
 
256 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY, 
 
 Lieutenant January 24, 1862. to First Lieu- 
 tenant Ma}' 25, 1864, to Captain October 12, 
 1864, and mustered out with the regiment. 
 Company H was organized with Jonas Schoon- 
 over, Captain ; A. J. Fulkerson, First Lieuten- 
 ant, and Henry Mack, Second Lieutenant. 
 Capt. Schoonover was at one time transferred 
 to Company E, Seventh Infantry, but afterward 
 back to his own regiment, and was regularly 
 promoted until he became its Colonel, and 
 as such was mustered out with it. Lieut. 
 Fulkerson was discharged August 15, 1864. 
 Second Lieut. Mack, owing to ill health, re- 
 signed earl}', and Thomas F. Nash became 
 Second Lieutenant October 27, 1862. Lieut. 
 Nash was promoted to First Lieutenant May 
 25, 1864, to Captain October 12, 1864, and 
 transferred to Company E. and was mustered 
 out with the regiment. D. W. Thomas was 
 promoted to First Lieutenant January 6, 1865, 
 to Captain April 10, 1865, and mustered out 
 with regiment. Thomas Folger was promoted 
 to First Lieutenant January 6, 1865, was made 
 adjutant of regiment, and, July 12, 1865, pro- 
 moted to Captain, but as such was not mus- 
 tered. James B. Storer, present Postmaster of 
 Akron, was promoted to Second Lieutenant 
 April 13, 1862, to First Lieutenant January 
 26, 1863, and became Adjutant of the regiment. 
 From wounds received, disabling him for life, 
 Lieut. Storer was honorably discharged No- 
 vember 30, 1864. Jacob Buck was promoted 
 to First Lieutenant July 12, 1865, and as such 
 mustered out. 
 
 Lewis P. Buckley, a resident of Akron, and 
 late Major 'of the Nineteenth Infantry (three 
 months' service) was appointed the first Col- 
 onel of the Twenty-ninth. The following 
 sketch of the life of Colonel Buckley is pub- 
 lished in a pamphlet descriptive of the Sol- 
 diers' Memorial Chapel in the Akron Rural 
 Cemeter}', and is given in this connection, as a 
 tribute to a worth}' soldier : 
 
 Lewis P. Buckley was born at Cayuga Lake, in 
 the State of New York, and became a resident of 
 Akron, Ohio, about the year 1834. Though — having 
 in early life received a military education at West 
 Point — he took considerable interest in the military 
 affairs of Akron and vicinity, at one time holding a 
 commission in one of the independent companies of 
 the village, his entire life, after coming to Akron, 
 was devoted to civil pursuits, until the breaking-out 
 of the rebellion, about two years of the intervening 
 time (from 1849 to 1851) being spent upon the Pacitic 
 coast at Sacramento City. On the call of President 
 
 Lincoln, in April, 1861, for three months' troops, 
 Mr. Buckley, though the disease which finally ter- 
 minated his life was even then beginning to develop 
 itself, promptly responded to the call, and raised a 
 company in Akron, with which he reported to Camp 
 Taylor, near Cleveland, about the middle of May. 
 With nine other companies, raised in Northeastern 
 Ohio, one of which was also from Akron, on the 
 27th of May they proceeded by rail to Camp Jack- 
 son, near Columbus, where they were organized 
 into the Nineteenth Regiment of Ohio Volunteer 
 Infantry, Capt. Buckley being elected Major of the 
 regiment. Securing their arms, the regiment pro- 
 ceeded to Camp Goddard, near Zanesville, to per- 
 fect themselves in drill. Remaining there until the 
 20th of June, the Nineteenth proceeded to West 
 Virginia, where it became ine()r])orated in Gen. 
 Rosecrans' Brigade, and a part of Gen. McClellan's 
 "Provisional Army of West Virginia." In his re- 
 port of the battle of Rich Mountain, Gen. Rose- 
 crans, in one portion, says: "The Nineteenth de- 
 ployed into line and delivered two splendid volleys, 
 when the enemy broke;" and, in another portion: 
 "The Nineteenth distinguished itself for the cool 
 and handsome manner in which it held its post 
 against a flank attack, and for the manner in which 
 it came into line and delivered its fire, near the close 
 of the action." 
 
 On the mustering-out of the three mouths' men, 
 about the 1st of August, 1861, Maj. Buckley imme- 
 diately set himself to work, under the auspices of 
 Hon. Joshua R. Giddings, to raise a regiment for 
 the three years' service. So promptly was this 
 done, that the Twenty-ninth Ohio Volunteer In- 
 fantry was organized at Camp Giddings, near Jef- 
 ferson, Ashtabula County, August 26, 1861, with 
 Maj. Bucklej' as its Colonel. This regiment, as a 
 part of the Army of the Potomac, participated in 
 the l)attles of Winchester, ]\Iarch 28, 1862; Port Re- 
 public, June 9-12, 1863, and Cedar Mountain, August 
 9, 1862, the gallantry of its Colonel being conspicu- 
 ous throughout. Following, with his regiment, the 
 varied fortunes of the Army of the Potomac, dur- 
 ing the balance of the year 1862, the rapidly declin- 
 ing health of Col. Buckley compelled him to reluc- 
 tantly resign his command and return home, his 
 resignation taking effect Jaiuiary 26, 1863. * * * 
 * * * On returning to Akron, though a constant 
 sufferer from the disease that was preying upon 
 him, he rendered valuable aid during the remainder 
 of the war, at the close of which, on the recom- 
 mendation of Hon. R. P. Spalding, Col. Buckley 
 received the appointment of Assistant Doorkeeper 
 of the House of Representatives at Washington. 
 He served faithfully in that capacity through the 
 Thirty-ninth Congress, and again entered upon his 
 duties at the beginning of the Fortieth Congress, 
 but soon became so feeble that he was compelled to 
 accept the leave of absence tendered him, and re- 
 turn home to die, struggling bravely and hopefully 
 to the last, his death, from consumption, occurring 
 Thursday, June 25, 1868, at the age of sixty-four 
 years. Tlie funeral of Col. Buckley was the largest 
 and most imposing ever held in Akron. It was at- 
 tended by the entire Masonic fraternity of Summit 
 and adjoining counties; by the surviving members 
 
fe* 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 257 
 
 of the Nineteenth and Twenty-ninth regiments, 
 and by the representatives of a large number of 
 other regmaents, both of infantry, cavalry and ar- 
 tillery, and b}' almost the entire population of the 
 city and surrounding towns, the immense procession 
 being commanded by Lieut. Col. Edward Hayes, of 
 WaiTen, one of the original officers of the Twenty- 
 ninth regiment. 
 
 Lewis P. Buckley was a faithful friend, a true 
 patriot, a brave soldier. Let us cherish his virtues, 
 by naming after him the Post of which we, as sol- 
 diers, are members, and bj^ erecting in his honor, 
 properljr inscribed and adorned, a beautiful window 
 in tlie magnificent memorial chapel which we, as 
 soldiers and citizens, this day dedicate. 
 
 The Twenty-ninth* was organized at Camp 
 Giddings. near Jefferson, Ashtabula County, 
 August 26, 1861, and was among the first to 
 answer the President's call for three years' serv- 
 ice. Owing to the man}' difficulties by which 
 it was surrounded, it was the 25th of December 
 before it was ready for the field. It then pro- 
 ceeded to Camp Chase, where it remained until 
 the 17th of January, 1862, when it was ordered 
 to Cumberland, Md. While at Cumberland, it 
 was brigaded with the Fifth, Seventh and Six- 
 ty-sixth Ohio, and the One Hundred and Tenth 
 Pennsylvania Regiments, commanded by Col. 
 E. B. Tyler, of the Seventh Ohio. The division 
 to which the brigade belonged was commanded 
 b}' Gen. Lander until his decease, about the 
 1st of March, 1862, when the command passed 
 to Gen. Shields. The troops, including the 
 Twent^'-ninth, remained but a few weeks at 
 Cumberland, when it joined the Army of the 
 Potomac, and with it participated in the battle 
 of Winchester on the 23d of March, in which 
 the rebels, under "Stonewall" Jackson, were 
 defeated. The brigade to which the Twenty- 
 ninth belonged pursued the enem}' all the next 
 day, halting near Cedar Creek, and again on 
 the next da}' (the 25th) beyond Strasburg some 
 two miles (Nash's notes), when the pursuit was 
 abandoned and the troops returned. On the 
 9th of June, the regimennt participated in the 
 battle of Port Republic, in which a number of 
 prisoners were taken, including Capt. Nash 
 (then Lieutenant in Compau}' H), and taken to 
 Salisbury, North Carolina. Capt. Nash re- 
 mained a prisoner of war nearly two months, 
 and was then released. He proceeded to Wash- 
 
 *We are indebted to Opt. Ttiomas W. Niwb and J. G. Caskey, 
 Esq., members of this pallant obi regiment, f.T the principal facts 
 from which this sketch is compiled. Tliey have both preserved 
 notes and memoranda of the regiment's movementn and operations, 
 which they kindly placed at our disposal, and for which they have 
 our thanks. 
 
 ington, where he arrived August 20, and, after 
 a short visit home, returned to his regiment. 
 In the battles of Cedar Mountain and the Sec- 
 ond Bull Run the Twenty-ninth took part, and 
 acquitted itself with honor. From the latter 
 battle until that of Chancellorsville, the regi- 
 ment was inactive, except camp routine and an 
 occasional scout or foraging expedition. In 
 May, 1863, occurred the battle of Chancellors- 
 ville. The following extracts are from Mr. 
 Caskey's notes : 
 
 At this moment the battle of Chancellorsville 
 opened in our front in dead earnest. ***** 
 The battle lasted foin- days— 1st, 2d, 3d and 4th days 
 of May. On the 2d, both armies seemed to be plan- 
 ning the best mode of attack and defense. A spy 
 gave reliable information concerning the rebels 
 and their plan of attack. Our artillery opened fire 
 in the direction indicated bj' the spy, and made 
 openings in the woods at every discharge. Limbs 
 and small trees were falling; sharpshooters who 
 had climbed into the trees were seen tumbling to 
 the ground. The "rebel yell" and the shrieks of 
 the wounded were mingled together. About sun- 
 set, Lee came up on our center three lines deep, but 
 was repulsed with heavy loss. ******* 
 On the 3d, Lee massed on our right center, in front 
 of the Eleventh Corps, took it by surprise, when it 
 broke and fell back on ours (the Twelfth), and, un- 
 der a cross-fire from the rebels we suffered severel3\ 
 But the reserves were brought up and the enemy 
 were checked. ***** That night at dark 
 we were in close action. It was very pretty, but 
 rather dangerous fire-works. On Monday night 
 our army commenced to retreat, and fell back to our 
 old camp. 
 
 An incident, partaking somewhat of the hu- 
 morous, is thus related b}^ Mr. Caskey in his 
 " reminiscences " of the Twenty-ninth : 
 
 About the last of May we had a grand review of 
 the Potomac Army. Gen. Green was reviewing- 
 officer, and we were marched four miles from camp 
 in the sand on the banks of the Potomac. The 
 weather was hot and dry and the roads dusty. 
 Gen. Green had brought his wife and daughters 
 down from Washington to see us. They were nicely 
 ensconced in their carriage, and we were " hoofing" 
 it back and forth through the sand, almost choked 
 for water — for it was a part of the red-tape of the 
 occasion that we were not allowed to leave rank to 
 get water or fill our canteens. FinallJ^ we were 
 ready to pass the reviewing-officer, the line was 
 nearly by, when one of the General's daughters 
 called to him, saying: "Trot 'em round again, papa; 
 I like to see them.'^ I don't know whether it was 
 wicked to swear about that time or not. If it was, 
 the boys were very wicked. We didn't trot round 
 again, all the same. 
 
 The Twenty-ninth participated in the battle 
 of Gettysburg, where it did its full duty. This 
 
 IV 
 
258 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 was one of the severest battles of the entire 
 Avar. The cannonading commenced earl}^ on 
 the morning of Jul}' 2, 1863, and for two whole 
 days the fighting continued almost constantly, 
 when, on the morning of the 4th, it was as- 
 certained that the rebels had retreated. This 
 was the last service of the Twenty-ninth in the 
 Army of the Potomac. On the 25th of Sep- 
 tember, it proceeded via Washington, Colum- 
 bus, Indianapolis and Louisville, to Chatta- 
 nooga, Tenn. Its first service in this depart- 
 ment was with the army of Gen. Hooker, and 
 on the 24th of November it participated in the 
 battle of Lookout Mountain, the famous " fight 
 above the clouds," where, in the language of 
 Prentice, 
 
 "* * * * * they burst 
 Like spirits of destruction throu.ii-h tlie clouds, 
 And mid a thousand luirtlinii- missiles swept 
 Tlieir foes before them as the whirlwind sweeps 
 The strong oaks of the forest." 
 
 The regiment re-enlisted the latter part of 
 December. 1863, and came home on a forlough 
 of thirty days. At the expiration of that time, 
 it returned to the front, and on the 4th of May, 
 1864, it joined the Atlanta campaign, and dur- 
 ing those days of arduous service, it bore its 
 part with its accustomed bravery. During the 
 entire campaign, until the fall of Atlanta, the 
 regiment was almost constantly under arms, 
 and engaged much of the time in fighting and 
 skirmishing. On the 15th of November, the 
 Twenty-ninth left Atlanta with Sherman on his 
 march to the sea, and bearing its part in all the 
 marches and skirmishes. It remained in North 
 and South Carolina until the close of the war, 
 when, on the 29th of April, 1865, it proceeded 
 to "Washington City, via Richmond. In Wash- 
 ington it took part in the grand review, and on 
 the 10th of June started for Louisville, Ky., 
 where it remained in camp until the 13th of 
 July ; then went to Cleveland, Ohio, and, on 
 its arrival at Camp Taylor, was paid off and 
 discharged, on the 22d and 23d of July, from 
 the United States service. 
 
 The Sixty-fourth Infantry was a regiment in 
 which Summit County was represented, but to 
 what extent we have been unable to learn def- 
 initely. Company G was made up wholly or 
 in part in this county, but of its commissioned 
 officers, we could learn but little beyond the 
 fact that R. S. Chamberlain, Dudley C. Carr, 
 Alonzo Hancock, Wilbur F. Sanders and A. M. 
 
 Bloom, served as such, the first three named 
 rising to the rank of Captain. Chamberlain 
 was honorably discharged on the 23d of Sep- 
 tember, 1864 ; Carr declined to accept a cap- 
 taincy, and Hancock was mustered out as Cap- 
 tain with tlie regiment. 
 
 This regiment formed part of the brigade 
 raised by Senator Sherman, and was organized 
 at Camp Buckingham, near Mansfield, in No- 
 vember, 1861. The Sixty-fourtii and Sixty- 
 fifth Regiments of Infantry, and the Sixth In- 
 dependent Battery, comprised the Sherman 
 Brigade. The Sixty-fourth served in Ken- 
 tucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisi- 
 ana and Texas. It witnessed the battle of 
 Perryville, Ky., without being permitted to 
 participate in it. It was at Stone River where 
 it lost heavily. In the Tullahoma campaign, 
 in which it took an active part, it lost over one 
 hundred men. The siege of Knoxville was an- 
 other service in which it was engaged. The 
 1st of January, 1864, about three-fourths of 
 the regiment re-enlisted for another three ^-ears' 
 service. At the expiration of its veteran fur- 
 lough, it reported at Chattanooga, and accom- 
 panied Gen. Sherman in his Atlanta campaign, 
 participating in all the liattles of that stirring 
 period. The Sixty-fourth also took part in the 
 battles of Franklin and Nashville — the closing 
 battles of the war. After the war ended, it was 
 sent to Texas, where it remained on duty until 
 the 3d of December, 1865, and it was then 
 mustered out, sent home, and paid oflf and dis- 
 charged. 
 
 The One Hundretl and Fourth Infantry 
 drew a large number of men from Summit 
 Count}'. Company H, entire, and several othei- 
 parts of companies were recruited here. Com- 
 pan}' H entered the field officered as followed : 
 Walter B. Scott, Captain ; Hobart Ford. First 
 Lieutenant, and Samuel F. Shaw, Second Lieu- 
 tenant. Capt. Scott died March 25, 1863, and 
 Lieut. Ford was promoted to Captain in his 
 place, but afterward placed on detached duty 
 on Gen. Cox's staff. Second Lieut. Shaw was 
 promoted to First Lieutenant May 20, 1863, 
 and detached at his own request. First Sergt. 
 B. L. Robertson was promoted to Second Lieu- 
 tenant February 26, 1863, to First Lieutenant 
 May 9, 1864, and to Captain May 11, 1865, 
 but mustered out as a First Lieutenant. Second 
 Sergeant Abram Paulus was promoted to 
 Second Lieutenent August 19, 1864, and to 
 
 "7i; 
 
>u 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 •259 
 
 First Lieutenant May 11, 1865, but mustered 
 out as Second Lieutenant. 
 
 This regiment was organized at Camp Mas- 
 sillon in 1862. It was mostl}' recruited in the 
 counties of Summit, Stark, Portage and Colum- 
 biana, and was mustered into the United States 
 service at Camp Massillon, its place of rendez- 
 vous, on the 30th of August, 1862, and on the 
 1st of September left for the seat of war. The 
 first active duty of the regiment was at Cov- 
 ington, Ky., where, upon its arrival, it went 
 into camp on the Alexandria Turnpike, near 
 that city. The rebel General, Kirb}' Smith, 
 was then menacing Cincinnati, and the One 
 Hundred and Fourth acted as the outpost of 
 the national forces. In a few days it was sent 
 to Fort Mitchell, near by, where the advanced 
 pickets of the rebel army Avere met. A slight 
 skirmish followed, in which the regiment lost 
 one man killed and five wounded — the first and 
 only blood spilled in defense of Cincinnati. On 
 the 12th of September, the One Hundred and 
 Fourth marched in pursuit of the rebel army 
 toward Lexington, and being its first march, 
 was very severe on the men. It reached Lex- 
 ington on the morning of the 15th of October, 
 just after the rear guard of the rebels had 
 evacuated the city. It remained here until 
 the 6th of December, perfecting itself in drill 
 and discipline, and with such success as to car- 
 ry off the palm in a competitive drill of the 
 forces at that place. On the 6th of December, 
 the regiment, with its brigade, resumed its 
 march, and on the evening of the 7th, arrived at 
 Kichmund, Ky., where the command, compris- 
 ing the One Hundredth, Fort3'-fourth and One 
 Hundred and Fourth, Ohio, and the Nine- 
 teenth Ohio Battery, built quite formidable 
 earthworks. The march was resumed on the 
 27th of December, and on the 28th the regi- 
 ment reached Danville. This movement was 
 made for the purpose of intercepting the rebe' 
 Gen. Morgan, then maneuvering in that vicini- 
 ty, but, be3'ond light skirmishing, nothing oc- 
 curred. From Danville it went to Frankfort, 
 the State capital, where it performed provost 
 duty, until the 21st of February, 1863. While 
 the brigade was in Frankfort, the Forty-fourth 
 Ohio was mounted. The regiment started for 
 Danville on the 21st of February, and contin- 
 ued to operate in that portion of Kentucky 
 until the first of September, when it joined Gen. 
 Burnside's army in East Tennessee, arriving at 
 
 Knoxville about the 5th. Before leaving Ken- 
 tucky, the One Hundred and Fourth had been 
 placed in the First Brigade, Third Division, 
 Twenty-third Army Corps, under Gen. Hart- 
 suff. The regiment, with its brigade, after a 
 short rest at Knoxville, was sent to Cumber- 
 land Gap, where it arrived on the 7th ot 
 September. Gen. Burnside demanded the sur- 
 render of the place, which was complied with 
 by Gen. Frazier, the commandant, who sur- 
 rendered his entire force as prisoners of war. 
 The One Hundred and Fourth was the first 
 regiment to enter the works, and received the 
 surrender of the rebel force and stores. The 
 regiment, after this, returned to Knoxville, 
 where for a time it was engaged on provost 
 dut}'. Its next active duty was in the siege 
 of Knoxville by Gen. Longstreet, where it was 
 held in reserve, but being ordered to the south 
 side of Holston River, it had an engagement in 
 which the enemy was repulsed. During the 
 siege it bore its part of active duty, and suffered 
 severely from exposure and privation. Its 
 rations were limited and inferior in quality ; 
 the weather was cold, drizzly- and disagreeable, 
 and the men, without tents, were compelled to 
 take their rest upon the mudd}' ground. Says 
 a war chronicle: "The One Hundred and 
 Fourth Ohio, with the national arm}', joined in 
 the pursuit of Longstreet, and followed him up 
 to Blain's Cross Roads, participating in the 
 various skirmishes of that pursuit. It wintered 
 in this inhospitable region during the whole of 
 that inclement season, and endured hardships 
 and privations like those suffered by our Revo- 
 lutionary forefathers at Valley Forge. Half- 
 starved, half-clad, those brave bo3's and self- 
 sacrificing men maintained their integrity to 
 the old flag, and in the midst of these terrible 
 sufferings declared a willingness to enter on 
 another three years' term of service, but their 
 enlistment not expiring within the time speci- 
 fied, thej- were not allowed to veteranize. '^ 
 
 The One Hundred and Fourth took part in 
 the Atlanta Campaign in 1864, and participated 
 in all the general engagements of that stirring 
 period. In the desperate assault at Utoy Creek 
 on the 6th of August, the loss of the brigade 
 was 600 killed and wounded ; the One Hundred 
 and Fourth lost twenty-six officers and men 
 killed and wounded. In the latter part of Au- 
 gust it proceeded to Jonesboro, and took part 
 in that engagement, and remained in the vicinity 
 
 ©" 
 
 V9 ^ 
 
260 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 until the fall of Atlanta, when it marched for 
 Decatur. During the month of October" it 
 operated against Hood's forces, and on the 6th 
 of November took the cars for Nashville. Un- 
 til the 26th almost dail}^ skirmishing was had, 
 in which it lost several men. It participated 
 in the battle of Franklin on the 30th, in which 
 it lost sixty men killed and wounded. Lieut. 
 Kimball, of Company C, and Capt. Bard, of 
 Company I, were killed in this battle. After 
 the battle, the regiment marched with the na- 
 tional forces to Nashville, bearing with it eleven 
 battle-flags captured from the enemy. It 
 reached Nashville on the morning of December 
 1, and took position in the front near Fort Neg- 
 ley. Nothing of note occurred until the 15th, 
 except the intense suffering of the men from 
 cold weather. It moved with the corps to 
 which it belonged, on the 1 5th, to the right to 
 support the cavalry, and had a brisk skirmish 
 in which several men were killed. After the 
 rebel works were taken, the regiment moved 
 in pursuit of the enemy and did not stop, ex- 
 cept a short halt at Columbia, until it reached 
 Clifton, Tenn., on the 6th of January, 1865. 
 It remained in camp here until the 16th, when 
 it embarked on a steamer for Cincinnati, and, 
 on the 22d, took the cars for Washington City, 
 and thence was transferred to North Caro- 
 lina, arriving at Federal Point on the 9th of 
 February. During the remainder of the month 
 it was actively engaged, skirmishing with the 
 enemy much of the time, and on the 4tli of 
 March it made a forced march to Kingston to 
 the relief of Gen. Cox, who was threatened by 
 overpowering numbers. 
 
 The regiment proceeded to Goldsboro from 
 Kingston, where it arrived on the 21st of March, 
 and where it remained until the 11th of April, 
 when it went to Raleigh. At the grand review 
 in Raleigh on the 21st of April, the regiment 
 received some high compliments from Gen. 
 Sherman and others for their etticiency in drill 
 and soldierly bearing. It remained in Raleigh 
 until May 2, when it was selected by Gen. Cox, 
 commanding the corps, to repair to Greensboro 
 and receive the arms and stores of Gen. John- 
 ston's army. It remained in Greensboi'o as pro- 
 vost guard until the 17th of June, 1865, when 
 it was mustered out and ordered to Camp Ta}'- 
 lor, near Cleveland, for final pay and discharge. 
 It arrived in Cleveland on the 24th, and, on the 
 27th of June, was paid off and mustered out. 
 
 The One Hundred and Seventh Infantry con- 
 tained nearly half a company' from Summit 
 County. This was a German regiment, and 
 was made up under special authority' from Gov- 
 ernor Tod, to serve under Gen. Sigel. Com- 
 pany I was made up in this and Tuscarawas 
 County, and of the first commissioned officers 
 the First Lieutenant was from the latter county, 
 while the Captain and Second Lieutenant were 
 from Summit. The company was organized 
 with Richard Ferederle, Captain ; Hamilton 
 Starkweather, First Lieutenant, and W. F. 
 Bechtel, Second Lieutenant. Capt. Ferederle 
 and Lieut. Starkweather both resigned early ; 
 Lieut. Bechtel resigned December 8, 1862. 
 George Billow, of Akron, was promoted to Sec- 
 ond Lieutenant November 30, 1862, to First 
 Lieutenant December 1, 1863, and to Captain 
 November 3, 1864, and as such was mustered 
 out at the close of the war. Capt. Billow 
 served but little with his company after his 
 promotion to Captain, but was detached as 
 Brigade Commissary, Post Commissary and 
 as Provost Marshal. 
 
 This regiment, as we have said, was com- 
 posed wholl}' of Germans, and was organized 
 at Camp Taylor, near Cleveland, in the latter 
 part of August, 1862. It was ordered to Cov- 
 ington, Ky., to repel an expected attack of the 
 rebel Gen. Kirby Smith. In November it was 
 ordered to Virginia, where it was assigned to 
 the Eleventh Army Corps, commanded by Gen. 
 Sigel. It served in Virginia until the 1st of 
 August, 1863, taking part in all the principal 
 battles of that period, including Chaucellors- 
 ville. It was in this battle that the Eleventh 
 Corps was fianked by Stonewall Jackson, in 
 which disastrous affair the One Hundred and 
 Seventh suffered severely, losing 220 officers and 
 men killed, wounded and prisoners. It also 
 participated in the battle of Gettj-sburg, where 
 it covered itself with honor. Its total loss in 
 killed, wounded and missing in this battle 
 amounted to over 400, out of 550, rank and 
 file engaged. August 1, 1863, the One Hun- 
 dred and Seventh was sent to South Carolina, 
 where it performed picket duty until January, 
 1864. It served in this department, scouting, 
 foraging and skirmishing with the enemy, until 
 the close of the war. While on a scout near 
 Georgetown, S. C, it received the news of the 
 surrender of Lee and Johnston's armies. A few 
 weeks later, it proceeded to Charleston, where 
 
 1^-. 
 
/ -Oxc/iy^^^n^^^y^—-^' 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 261 
 
 it performed provost dut}', until the 10th of 
 Jul}-, 1865, when it was mustered out, sent 
 home to Cleveland, where it was paid off and 
 discharged. 
 
 The One Hundred and Fifteenth Infantry was 
 well represented by Summit County men. Com- 
 panies C and Gr were raised in this county, 
 with perhaps some twenty men in Company I. 
 The commissioned officers of Company C were 
 John A. Means, Captain ; John Eadie, First 
 Lieutenant ; and George L. Waterman, Second 
 Lieutenant. Capt. Means was mustered out 
 with regiment at the close of its service. 
 Lieut. Eadie was promoted to Captain, but 
 commission was returned ; Lieut. Waterman 
 died of wounds September 19, 1863 ; John C. 
 Ely was promoted from Third Sergeant to Sec- 
 ond Lieutenant February 8, 1865, and was lost 
 on the steamer Sultana. The first commis- 
 sioned oflSicers of Company' Gr were A. W. Fitch, 
 Captain ; D. A. Lowry, First Lieutenant ; and 
 A. L. Conger, Second Lieutenant. In the or- 
 ganization of the regiment, Capt. Fitch was 
 promoted to Major. This led to a promotion 
 of the Lieutenants of Company G — Lowry to 
 Captain, and Conger to First Lieutenant. Sum- 
 ner Nash was made Second Lieutenant. Maj. 
 Fitch was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel July 
 20, 1864, and I'esigned Januarj- 5, 1865 ; Capt. 
 Lowry was lost on steamer Sultana April 27, 
 1865 ; Lieutenant Conger was mustered out 
 with regiment ; Lieut. Nash was promoted to 
 First Lieutenant August 11, 1864, and as such 
 mustered out with the regiment. M. S. Hurd 
 was promoted from First Sergeant, to Second 
 Lieutenant August 11, 1864. Of the men in 
 Company I from this count}^ Capt. Edward 
 Buckingham, late County Auditor, is the only 
 commissioned officer among them, so far as we 
 can learn. He went out as First Lieutenant, 
 and was promoted to Captain February 8, 1863, 
 and in that position was mustered out at the 
 close of the war. 
 
 This regiment was mostl}^ engaged during 
 its term of service on guard and provost duty. 
 It was organized at Camp Massillon in August, 
 1862, and mustered into the United States 
 service on the 18th of September. October 4, 
 it received orders to report to Gen. Wright at 
 Cincinnati, wliere, on the 9th, it was divided 
 — five companies, under command of Lieut. 
 Col. Boone, was sent to Columbus (Camp Chase) 
 to perform guard duty. The remaining five 
 
 companies, under command of Col. Luc}', re- 
 mained in Cincinnati, acting as provost guard. 
 The remainder of its history, during its service, 
 is thus given : 
 
 In November, 1863, the battalion at Columbus 
 was ordered to Maysville, Ky., uuder command of 
 Col. Lucy, leaving Lieut. Col. Boone in command 
 of the battalion at Cincinnati. In December, the 
 battalion at Maysville was ordered to Covington, 
 where it performed provost duty until October, 
 
 1863. It was then relieved, and ordered to report to 
 Gen. Rosecrans, at Chattanooga, Tenn. Reaching 
 Murfreesboro, it was ordered to report to the Post 
 Commander for duty. Part of the regiment was at 
 once mounted and sent out against the guerrillas, 
 then infesting the countrj" between Nashville and 
 Tullahoma. In June, 1864, that part of the regi- 
 ment not mounted was stationed on the line of the 
 Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad, in block-houses, 
 to prevent the guerrillas from destroying it. August, 
 
 1864, Block-House No. 4, in command of Sergt. 
 Flohr, of Company B, was captured by the forces 
 of the rebel Gen. Wheeler. Block-House No. 5, 
 commanded by Lieut. Orr, of Company B, was 
 attacked at the same time, and three men were 
 killed and seven wounded out of the detachment 
 of forty men. In this attack the rebels were hand- 
 somely repulsed, and failed in their desperate at- 
 tempt to capture the garrison. Shortly after this 
 affair, Company K (mounted), surprised and capt- 
 ured a squad of guerrillas, and lost Sergt. Richmond 
 killed, and three men wounded. During Hood's ad- 
 vance on Nashville, in December, 1864, Block-Houses 
 Nos. 1, 3 and 4 were assaulted by a large force of rebels 
 under Forrest, and their garrisons, consisting of 
 parts of Companies C, F and G, captured. The gar- 
 risons of Block-Houses Nos. 5 and 6 were, by order 
 of Gen. Thomas, withdrawn to Murfreesboro. 
 Block-House No. 7 was assaulted and surrounded by 
 the rebels, and for fifteen days the garrison dared 
 not venture outside. The garrison of Block-House 
 No 2, under command of Lieut. Harter, was as- 
 saulted December 9, 1864, by the enemj% with three 
 pieces of ritied artillery, and a continuous fire kept 
 up from 9 o'clock in the morning until dark. Two 
 of the garrison were killed and live wounded. Un- 
 der cover of the night, the garrison withdrew and 
 reached Nashville in safety. Shortly after this 
 afEair, the rebel Gen. Buford made a desperate 
 charge on Murfreesboro, but after tive hours of 
 hard fighting was driven back Avith heavj^ loss. On 
 the national side there was one killed and three 
 wounded. The garrison of Murfreesboro, at this 
 time, consisted of a battalion of the One Hundred 
 and Fifteenth Ohio, and the Fourth and Twenty- 
 ninth Michigan Regiments, under command of Gen. 
 Rousseau. 
 
 On April 2.5, 1865, the l^attalion of the One 
 Hundred and Fifteenth Ohio, captured by tlie rebels 
 at Block-Houses 1, 3 and 4, in December. 1864, was 
 on l)oard the ill-fated steamer Sultana, whicli ex- 
 ploded on the Mississippi River, near Memphis, 
 Tenn., and Capts. D. N. Lowry and John Eadie, 
 Lieut. J. C. Ely and eighty men were lost. The}^ 
 
 \ 
 
262 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 belonged to Companies B, C, F and G. These un- 
 fortunate men were on their way to Columbus, Ohio, 
 having been paroled for that purpose. The regiment 
 performed garrison duty at Murfreesboro, and guard 
 duty on tlie line of the Nashville & Chattanooga 
 Railroad, from Nashville to Tullahoma, until the 
 23d of June, 1865, when it was mustered out of the 
 service, and received its final discharge and pay at 
 Cleveland July 7, 1865. 
 
 The One Hundred and Twent3^-ninth In- 
 fantry contained a fractional part of a company 
 from this county, in which Capt. J. J. Wright, 
 formerly of the Twenty-ninth Infantry, was 
 Second Lieutenant. The regiment was organ- 
 ized in the latter part of the summer of 1863, 
 at Camp Taylor, near Cleveland, and mustered 
 into the service for six months. Its service, 
 during the term of its enlistment, was princi- 
 pally in Southeastern Kentucky and East Ten- 
 nessee. Although but a six months' regiment, 
 it saw hard service. It was mustered out at 
 Cleveland in March, 1864. 
 
 The Fifty-fourth Battalion of the National 
 Guard was made up wholly in Summit County. 
 The three companies forming the battalion, 
 were A, B and C, and were mustered into the 
 service (one hundred da^s) with the following 
 commissioned otflcers : Company A — N. L. 
 Everett, Captain ; D. W. Storer, First Lieuten- 
 ant, and C. R. Howe, Second Lieutenant. Com- 
 pany B — D. F. Hunsberger, Captain ; N. J. 
 Schroop, First Lieutenant, and D. J. Mettinger, 
 Second Lieutenant. Company C — N. S. Keller, 
 Captain ; F. H. Wright, First Lieutenant, and 
 Thomas E. Strong, Second Lieutenant. 
 
 Upon the organization at Camp Taylor, the 
 Fifty-fourth Battalion was consolidated with 
 the Forty-ninth Regiment of National Guard 
 from Seneca County. The consolidation was 
 effected on the 6th of May, 1864, and the reg- 
 iment became the One Hundredth and Sixty- 
 fourth Volunteer Infantry National Guard. It 
 was mustered into the United States service on 
 the 11th of May; was armed and equipped, 
 and on the 14th, left Cleveland for Washington 
 City, where it arrived on the 17th. It was 
 commanded by Col. John Calvin Lee, who was 
 brevetted Brigadier General at the close of 
 the war for meritorious services, and, later, was 
 Lieutenant Governor (two terms) with Gov. 
 (now ex-President) Haj'^es. Upon the arrival of 
 the regiment in Washington, it took position in 
 the defenses on the south side of the Potomac, 
 and during its one hundred days' service, 
 
 garrisoned Forts Smith, Strong, Bennett, Hag- 
 garty and other forts. It was very thoroughly 
 drilled, both in infantry and heavy artillery 
 tactics. During Gen. Early's invasion, the One 
 Hundred and Sixty-fourth was kept on duty 
 almost constantl}', and ever3' night was spent 
 either on the advance or beside the guns. 
 At the expiration of its term of enlistment, the 
 regiment received the thanks of President 
 Lincoln for the service it had performed, and 
 returned to Cleveland via Baltimore, Harris- 
 burg and Pittsburgh, where, on the 27th of 
 August, it was mustered out of the service and 
 discharged. 
 
 The Second Cavalry drew on Summit County 
 for a large number of men. Compau}' A was 
 made up in this county, while several other 
 companies were more or less represented by 
 Summit County recruits. The commissioned 
 officers of Company A were George A. Puring- 
 ton. Captain ; Dudley Seward, First Lieuten- 
 ant, and M. J. Collier, Second Lieutenant. 
 Capt. Purington was promoted to Major Sep- 
 tember 24, 1861, to Lieutenant Colonel June 
 25, 1863, and to Colonel, but as such was not 
 mustered, and retired from the service at the 
 end of three years. First Lieut. Seward was 
 promoted to Captain September 30, 1861, to 
 Major September 18, 1862, to Lieutenant 
 Colonel May 9, 1864, and to Colonel June 20. 
 1865, and as such mustered out with the regi- 
 ment. Second Lieut. Collier was promoted to 
 First Lieutenant May 10, 1861, and mustered 
 out by the consolidation, and afterward com- 
 missioned Major of the Twelfth Cavalry. Hen- 
 r}' 0. Hampson, Orderly- Sergeant, was pro- 
 moted to Second Lieutenant Juh' 22, 1862, 
 and resigned July 23, 1863. Sergt. A. N. 
 Bernhard was promoted to Second Lieutenant 
 December 20, 1861, to First Lieutenant July 
 15, 1862, to Captain February 17, 1863, trans- 
 ferred to Company K, and honorably' discharged 
 November 29, 1864. Sergt. L. J. McMurray 
 was promoted to Second Lieutenant May 9, 
 
 1863, and honorably discharged September 6, 
 
 1864. Capt. Purington was in the Nineteenth 
 (three months) Infailtry, as Orderly Sergeant, 
 and was promoted to Second Lieutenant ; and 
 Seward was in the same regiment as Third Ser- 
 geant. 
 
 The Second Cavalry saw hard service and a 
 great deal of it. From its organization as a reg- 
 iment to its muster-out at the close of the war. 
 
 

 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 26:i 
 
 its duties were varied, and extended over avast 
 range of country. Says Wliitelaw Reid in his 
 " Oliio in the War :" " The Second fought under 
 the following general officers : Buell, Wright, 
 Hunter, Denver, Sturgis, Blunt, Salomon, Cur- 
 tis, Schofield, Burnside, Carter, Gilmore, Shack- 
 elford, Foster, Kautz, Sedgwick, Wilson, Mcin- 
 tosh, Torbett, Sheridan, Custer, Meade and 
 Grant. Its horses have drank from, and its 
 troopers have bathed in, the waters of the Ar- 
 kansas, Osage, Cygnes, Missouri, Mississippi, 
 Ohio, Scioto, Miami, Cumberland, Tennessee, 
 Holston, Potomac, Shenandoah, Ilappahannock, 
 Rapidan, Bull Run, Mattapony, Pamunkey, 
 Chickahominy, James, Appomattox, Black- 
 water, Nottaway and Chesapeake. It has cam- 
 paigned through thirteen States and a Territorj- : 
 Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, 
 Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Geoi'gia, Alabama, 
 West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia and Indian 
 Territory. It has traveled as a regiment on 
 foot, horseback, by railroad and steamboat, on 
 land, river, bay and ocean. It has marched an 
 aggregate distance of twenty-seven thousand 
 miles ; has fought in ninety-seven battles and 
 engagements. It has served in five different 
 armies : The Army of the Frontier, of the Mis- 
 souri, of the Potomac, of the Ohio, and of the 
 Shenandoah — forming a continuous line of ar- 
 mies from the head-waters of the Arkansas to 
 the mouth of the James ; and its dead, sleep- 
 ing where they fell, form a vidette-line half 
 across the continent, a chain of prostrate senti- 
 nals two thousands miles long. Even in their 
 graves, may not these patriotic dead still guard 
 the glory and the integrity of the Republic for 
 which they fell ?" No regiment could desire a 
 more glorious record or prouder name. 
 
 This regiment was organized in the fall of 
 1861, under special authorit}- from the Seci'e- 
 tar}' of War. It rendezvoused at Camp Wade, 
 near Cleveland, where, on the 10th day of Octo- 
 ber, the last company was mustered in, and the 
 regiment was ready for duty. It was recruited 
 wholly in what is known as the " Western Re- 
 serve," and, being the second regiment of cav- 
 alry raised in the State, and the first in the 
 northern part of the State, it contained " a 
 large proportion of wealth, intelligence, capac- 
 ity and culture." In the last of November, 
 the regiment was ordered to Camp Dennison, 
 where it received sabers and continued in the 
 drill and discipline which had been begun be- 
 
 fore leaving Cleveland. Early in January, 
 18(32, it received orders from the War Depart- 
 ment to report to Gen. Hunter at Platte City, 
 Mo., and at once proceeded to that place. Up- 
 on its arrival there, it spent several weeks in 
 scouting the Missouri border. On the 22d of 
 Februar}', a scouting party from the Second, 
 consisting of one hundred and twenty men, had 
 a skirmish with a detachment under the notori- 
 ous Quantrell, in which the latter was defeated. 
 Doubleday's Brigade, to which the Second be- 
 longed, proceeded to Fort Scott, Kan., where 
 it arrived on the 1st of March. The regiment 
 was armed, at this time, with sabers, navy pis- 
 tols and Austrian carbines. The arm}- was 
 concentrated at Fort Scott in the latter part of 
 May, and early in June it moved into the In- 
 dian Territory by various roads, concentrating 
 again at Spring River. The entire command 
 soon moved to Baxter Springs, Indian Terri- 
 tory, where three regiments of loyal Indians, 
 mounted on ponies and armed with stpiirrel 
 rifles, joined the command. Later, the column 
 moved from Baxter's Springs southward, and 
 on the 8th of Juh' went into camp at Flat 
 Ci'eek, Indian Territory, and, shortly after, the 
 Second formed part of the force which captured 
 Fort Gibson. In the early part of August, the 
 command moved to Fort Scott, where it ar- 
 rived on the 15th and went into camp. At this 
 time, it was found " that there were less than 
 two hundred and fifty serviceable horses in the 
 Second, many of the men were sick, and a num- 
 ber had died on the march of a peculiar brain 
 fever, probably produced b}' the excessive heat 
 to which they were exposed."'* The regiment, 
 in the latter part of August, shared in a forced 
 march of ten days and nights in pursuit of a 
 part}' of rebel raiders, continually skirmishing, 
 l3ut without loss. About this time, one hun- 
 dred and fifty men and two otticers were detailed 
 from the Second to man, temporaril}-, a light 
 batter}'. Six months later, the detail was made 
 a transfer by the War Department, and consti- 
 tuted the "Twenty fifth Ohio Battery. The 
 mounted portion of the Second, early in Sep- 
 tember, with the Twenty-fifth Battery, moved, 
 with the army of (!en. Blunt, into Missouri and 
 Arkansas, and took an active part in the cam- 
 paign that ended in the capture of Prairie 
 Grove December 3, 1862. During this cam- 
 paign, the Second fought at Carthage and New- 
 
 Ip^ 
 
264 
 
 ■^ A^ ^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 tonia, Mo., camped at Pea Ridge, and fought 
 at Cow Hill, Wolf Creek, White River and 
 Prairie Grove. Efforts had been made to have 
 the Second transferred to an Eastern army, 
 which was successful, and the dismounted por- 
 tion of the regiment, in November, moved by 
 rail to Camp Chase, to remount and refit for 
 the field, and the mounted portion followed 
 in December, after the capture of Prairie 
 Grove. While at Camp Chase, the Second re- 
 ceived new arms and equipments, fresh horses 
 and sixty recruits, and, during the winter, 
 made great progress in drill and discipline. In 
 1863, the original twelve companies were con- 
 solidated into eight, and a battalion of four com- 
 panies raised for the Eighth Cavahy was added 
 to the Second. This battalion was then serv- 
 ing in Kentucky, and Maj. Purington was sent 
 to assume command until it should join the 
 regiment. 
 
 The Second left Camp Chase early in April, 
 and proceeded to Somerset, Ky., and, when near 
 Lexington, was joined by the new battalion. 
 With but an occasional reconnaissance, the Sec- 
 ond remained quietly in camp at Somerset un- 
 til the 27th of June. In the early part of June, 
 four companies of the Second formed part of a 
 raiding force, under Gen. Saunders, into East 
 Tennessee, where a large amount of stores were 
 destroyed, and several railroad bridges. 
 " Kautz's brigade, of which the Second was 
 a part, joined in pursuit of the rebel Gen. 
 Morgan on the 1st of July, followed the great 
 raider twelve hundred miles, through three 
 States, marching twenty-four hours out of 
 twenty-four, living wholl}' upon the gifts of the 
 people for twenty-seven daj-s, and finally shar- 
 ing in the capture at Buffington's Island. After 
 the raid, the Second re-assembled at Cincinnati, 
 from winch point nearly the whole regiment 
 was furloughed b}' Gen. Burnside, in recogni- 
 tion of its endurance and gallantry." The Sec- 
 ond re-assembled and re-fitted at Stanford, Ky., 
 and, in August, moved with the army to East 
 Tennessee. It was here brigaded with the Sec- 
 ond East Tennessee, Ninth Michigan, and Sev- 
 enth Ohio Cavalry, Col. Carter, Second East 
 Tennessee, commanding. On the 5th and 6th 
 of September, the regiment made a forced 
 march to Cumberland Gap, and, after the sur- 
 render of the place, returned to Knoxville, 
 whence it was ordered up the valley. It joined 
 the army at Henderson's Station about the 25th, 
 
 and, soon after, it received orders to report to 
 Gen. Rosecrans, then in command of the Army 
 of the Cumberland. It marched thirty miles 
 toward Knoxville, when it was suddenly or- 
 dered back to the front, and, on its return, 
 found an engagement in progress, in which it 
 at once took part, but without any serious re- 
 sults. A little later, it participated in the bat- 
 tle of Blue Springs. Late in October, as Long- 
 street advanced, the Second fell back, with other 
 cavalry, to Russellville, and then to the vicinity 
 of Cumberland Gap, and engaged Wheeler's 
 cavalry. During the siege of Knoxville, it op- 
 erated on the enemy's flank, and, when the 
 siege was raised, joined in the pursuit of the 
 rebels. On the 2d of December, it engaged 
 Longstreet's cavalry at Morristown, and, on the 
 4th, it formed the advance of a brigade which 
 attacked and fought eighteen regiments for two 
 hours, at Russellville, losing forty men killed 
 and wounded. On the 6th, it was at the front 
 five hours in the battle of Bean Station, and, 
 for the next five days, was almost constantly 
 under fire. After a few days' rest, the cavalry 
 crossed the Holston River and moved to Mossy 
 Creek, where the time was spent in skirmishing 
 and maneuvering until Januar}' 1, 1864, when, 
 of 470 men then composing the regiment, 420 
 re-enlisted, and were sent home on veteran fur- 
 lough. 
 
 The Second re-assembled at Cleveland on 
 the 20th of March, and, with 130 recruits, was 
 again ready for the front. The first objective 
 point was Mount Sterling, K}'., but, soon after, 
 it was ordered to Annapolis, Md., where it ar- 
 rived on the 29th of March. On the 13th of 
 x\pril, it was reviewed by Lieut. Gen. Grant, 
 Gens. Burnside, Washburn and Meigs. On the 
 22d, the regiment moved to Camp Stoneman, 
 D. C, and, b}- the 30th, was mounted, armed 
 and equipped. It moved out of camp on the 
 1st of Ma3% and on the 3d arrived at Warren- 
 ton Junction, where it reported to Gen. Burn- 
 side. With the Ninth Corps it moved to Brandy 
 Station, crossed the Rapidan, went into line on 
 the extreme right, and on the 7th engaged 
 Rosser's cavalry with slight loss. During the 
 campaign of the Wilderness, it was employed 
 covering the right flank of the infantry almost 
 constantly, either on picket or skirmishing. By 
 order of Gen. Grant, the Second was transferred 
 from the Ninth Army Corps, and attached per- 
 manently to Sheridan's Cavalry Corps, Array 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 265 
 
 of the Potomac, and on the 29th it reported to 
 Brig. Gen. J. H. Wilson, commanding Third 
 Cavahy Division, and was by him assigned to 
 the First Brigade, commanded by Brig. Gen. 
 J. B. Mcintosh. On the 31st, the division 
 crossed the Pamunkey, and the First Brigade 
 advanced on Hanover Court House, where a 
 severe engagement took place, in which the 
 Second bore a prominent part. The next day, 
 a portion of the First Brigade, including the 
 Second Ohio, proceeded to Ashland, where the 
 entire force was soon surrounded by Gen. Fitz 
 Hugh Lee, and a heavy engagement took place, 
 which lasted till sundown, when, under the 
 cover of night, the national forces withdrew, 
 the Second covering the retreat. From this 
 time to the crossing of the James, it was en- 
 gaged in picketing and fighting on the right of 
 the army from Hanover Court House to Cold 
 Harbor. It crossed the James on the 17th of 
 June, and the next day encamped with the di- 
 vision on the Blackwater. It took an active 
 part in the fights of Nottaway Court House, 
 Stony Creek and Ream Station, losing one hun- 
 dred men and five officers killed, wounded and 
 missing, and returning to the lines on the 1st 
 of July. Early in August, the division to 
 which the Second belonged went to Washing- 
 ton Cit}', and on the 13th moved to Winchester, 
 in the Shenandoah Valley, where it arrived on 
 the 17th. The division was ordered to act as 
 rearguard, and to hold the town until dark. 
 Gen. Early made an attack at 3 o'clock, P. M., 
 and at sundown, the division fell back ; the 
 Second Battalion and two companies of the 
 Third Battalion of the Second Ohio, acting as 
 the rear guard for the whole command, fighting 
 an hour in dense darkness in the streets of 
 Winchester, then joining the main column, and 
 falling back to Summit Point. Gen. Early 
 again attacked on the 19th, and, after a sharp 
 fight, the regiment retired to Charlestown, when 
 it was again attacked by Early, on the 22d, and 
 the Second was closely engaged. From Charles- 
 town, the army retreated to Harper's Ferr3^ 
 The Second, with its division, went to the right, 
 and was twice engaged with the enem}'. The 
 division was, on the 26th of August, ordered 
 to Boonesboro, and the Second encamped 
 twenty-four hours on the South Mountain bat- 
 tle-field, marched over Antietam, and re-crossed 
 the Potomac at Shepherdstown. It was in the 
 skirmish at Berr3^ville, Va., on the 30th, and in 
 
 the early part of September was engaged with 
 its division in picket dut}^ on the left of Sheri- 
 dan's army. On the 13th, Gen. Mcintosh's 
 Brigade (including the Second) was ordered to- 
 ward Winchester. With the Second in front, 
 the brigade charged Early's cavalry, driving it 
 back, and the Second Ohio, with the aid of the 
 Third New Jersey, captured an entire regiment 
 of infantry. The Secretary of War made 
 especial mention of the gallantry of the two 
 regiments in this exploit. Mcintosh's brigade 
 at the battle of Opequon, was ordered to capt- 
 ure a line of hills between the Opequon and 
 Winchester, which was accomplished after four 
 hours' hard fighting. In the retreat of Early's 
 army, the Second was the last regiment to leave 
 the pursuit on the Valley Pike. For several 
 weeks it was almost continually engaged fight- 
 ing and skirmishing. Gen. Custer assumed 
 command of the division to which the Second 
 belonged at Bridgewater. It shared in the 
 battle of Cedar Creek on the 19th of October, 
 and was pi'esent on the Valley Pike, when 
 Sheridan came to the front on his " famous ride 
 from Winchester." After the battle, the regi- 
 ment performed picket dut}' until the 1st of 
 Novenber, when it fell back to Kernstown. It 
 was engaged in active duty until the 28th of 
 December, when it went into winter quarters on 
 the Romney Pike, one and a half miles from 
 Winchester, where it remained until the 27th 
 of February, 1865. 
 
 On the 2"7tli, it started with Sheridan's cav- 
 alry on the last raid of the war. Near the 
 town of Waynesboro, Custer's division captured 
 the remainder of Early's army. In this en- 
 gagement, the Second Ohio captured five pieces 
 of artillery, with a large amount of military 
 stores, together with 650 prisoners, for which it 
 received the thanks of Gen. Custer on the field. 
 It continued to do its share of dut}' until the 
 20th of March, when, after resting a few days, 
 Sheridan's cavalry joined the Army of the Po- 
 tomac, and entered on the closing campaign of 
 the war. After the surrender of Gen. Lee, the 
 regiment, with its division, was ordered to 
 North Carolina, but, upon receiving information 
 of the surrender of Gen. Johnston, it returned 
 to Petersburg. The division soon moved to 
 Washington City, and, immediately after the 
 grand review, the Second Ohio was ordered to 
 report to Gen. Pope, at St. Louis, Mo., where it 
 arrived on the 7th of June. It remained here 
 
 #- 
 
>J^ 
 
 266 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 a month, when it was ordered to Springfield, 
 Mo., to relieve State troops. The order was 
 received for its muster-out about the 1st of 
 September. It proceeded to St. Louis, where 
 its papers were made out, and then returned to 
 Camp Chase, Ohio, and, on the 11th of Octo- 
 ber, 18ti5, was paid off and discharged. 
 
 The Sixth Ohio Cavalry drew a number of 
 men from this count}^ but not enough to form a 
 company. Of the Summit Count}' men. the 
 present Auditor. Mr. Aaron Wagoner, was the 
 onl}' commissioned officer. He was promoted 
 to Second Lieutenant on the 8th of April, 1 865. 
 The Sixth was a splendid regiment, and saw 
 much hard service, lleid closes his sketch of 
 it in the following words : " During the last 
 six months of its campaigning, it was under 
 command of a Captain, as it had not a field of- 
 ficer with it, nor in its organization. Nearly all 
 of its veteran officers were mustered out of serv- 
 ice in November, 1864,* and not a sufficient 
 number of men were on the rolls to have them 
 replaced ; but, in a regiment composed of ma- 
 terial like this, it made little difference whether 
 they were commanded by a Captain or a Brevet 
 Brigadier. As a neiospaper regiment, it has 
 not much history. Its record shows best in the 
 rolls of the killed and wounded, and the long 
 list of its honorable engagements." But our 
 space will not allow of a more extended men- 
 tion of this gallant regiment. 
 
 The Sixth Ohio Independent Battery was 
 made up principally in Summit Count}^ and 
 formed a part of the " Sherman Brigade." The 
 commissioned officers were C. Bradley, Cap- 
 tain ; 0. H. P. Ayres and J. 1*. McElroy, First 
 Lieutenants ; A. C. Baldwin and E. S. Fergu- 
 son, Second Lieutenants. Capt. Bradley was 
 mustered out Januar}' 17, 1865 ; Lieut. A^a'es 
 died July 8, 186-1, from wounds received in the 
 Atlanta campaign ; Lieut. McElroy resigned 
 March 10, 1864 ; Lieut. Baldwin was promoted 
 to Captain, and as such mustered out with the 
 battery : Lieut. Ferguson resigned November 
 7, 1862. 
 
 This battery was organized at Camp Buck- 
 ingham, near Mansfield, and mustered into the 
 service on the 20th of November, 1 861 . It com- 
 prised four ten-pound Parrot guns, and two six- 
 pound bronze Rodmans. Capt. Bradley is men- 
 tioned as an experienced artillery officer, and 
 had his battery in good trim for active service 
 
 *At expiration of three years' service. 
 
 before leaving Camp Buckingham. The bat- 
 tery and the brigade to which it belonged 
 moved, on the 15th of December, to Louisville, 
 K}'., and thence by steamer to Nashville, where 
 they reported to Cren. Buell on the 20th. The 
 brigade was here scattered to different localities, 
 and the battery found its way into Camp Gil- 
 bert, near the city, where, for some twenty 
 da^^s, it was occupied in perfecting its drill and 
 getting read}' for the field. It received orders, 
 on the 12th of January, 1862, to report to Gen. 
 Boyle, at Columbia, Ky., and arrived there on 
 the 15th, where it took a position blockading 
 the Cumberland Kiver. The battery was di- 
 vided, Lieut. McElroy's section remaining at 
 Columbia, while the other was taken to James- 
 town, Ky., there reporting to Col. Thomas E. 
 Bramlette. The battery remained on duty 
 here until the fall of Nashville, when, with the 
 Third Kentucky, Nineteenth Ohio, and Cul. 
 Woolford's cavalry, it proceeded to Nashville, 
 where it arrived on the 19th of March. At 
 Nashville, it was placed in the artillery reserve,- 
 commanded by Col. Barnet, First Ohio Light 
 Artillery, and marched with the army to Pitts- 
 burg Landing, arriving on the 15th of April, 
 and going into camp on the battle-field. It 
 was ordered to report to Brig. Gen. Wood on 
 the 29th of April, with whom it served until 
 the close of the war. It moved with the army 
 on Corinth, and entered that place on the 31st of 
 May, after its evacuation by the rebels. June 
 1, it moved across Northern Alabama, arriving 
 at Mooresville on the 3d of July. On the 18th, 
 it marched to Stevenson, Ala., where it went 
 into camp on the 21st of August, when it 
 joined Buell's forces in their great race after 
 Bragg to Louisville, Ky. They arrived at 
 Louisville on the 28th of September, and. after 
 a rest of three days, the line of march was 
 again resumed. It proceeded out the Bards- 
 town turnpike and reached Rolling Fork on 
 the 8th of October, where it was saluted with 
 the roar of battle at Perryville, only seven 
 miles distant. Later in the day, it marched 
 with its division to the battle-field, but was 
 compelled to be mere spectators of the battle. 
 After an unsuccessful pursuit of the enemy, 
 the national forces returned to Nashville, ar- 
 riving on the 26th of November. 
 
 At Nashville the army was re-organized by 
 Gen. Rosecrans, and the batteiy was engaged 
 much of the time in foraging, which several 
 
'\±^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 267 
 
 times brought it in contact with Gren. Wheeler's 
 Rebel Cavalry. It participated in the battle of 
 Stone River, and other battles incident to the 
 capture of Murfreesboro, which was entex*ed on 
 the 4th of January, 1863. In the battle of the 
 31st of December, the battery lost two of its 
 guns, but had the good fortune to re-capture 
 them. It lost severely in the several days' fight- 
 ing. After the battle, the following members 
 of the Sixth Battery were specially mentioned 
 for gallantry : First Sergt. Gr. W. Smelts ; 
 Sergts. Hust, Miller, Howard, Casey and Hart- 
 man ; Corporals Collins, Tool, Kimberk and 
 Scott ; Privates Evans, Kirby and Robbinett. 
 In the battle of Chickamauga, which was 
 fought on the 19th of September, the battery 
 participated and again lost heavily. Among 
 the wounded was Lieut. Smelts. During the 
 two days' battle, it expended 383 rounds of 
 ammunition, lost two caissons, a battery-wagon, 
 and had two horses killed. It was dismounted 
 while in Chattanooga (to which the armj^ had 
 fallen back, after the battle of Chickamauga), 
 owing to the want of forage and horses, and 
 thus remained for some time inactive. On the 
 12th of December two-thirds of the battery re- 
 enlisted as veterans, and started home Janu- 
 ary 1, 1864, on furlough — the non- veterans be- 
 ing transferred to the Twentieth Ohio Battery. 
 While the veterans were at home on furlough, 
 they added one hundred men to their ranks. 
 Upon the return of the batter}^ to the front, its 
 first active duty was in the Atlanta campaign, 
 in which it operated with Gen. Wood's (Third) 
 Division, Fourth Army Corps, and during the 
 120 days of that brilliant march, was almost 
 constantly engaged. Corporal William Mat- 
 thews was mortally wounded at Dallas, and the 
 next day Bugler Whitney was killed by sharp- 
 shooters. At Kenesaw Mountain, on the 19th 
 of June, private Alfred Hersh was killed, and 
 three others were wounded. It maintained its 
 position before Kenesaw, and was highly com- 
 plimented by Gen. 0. 0. Howard for accurate 
 firing. The battery expended 250 rounds of 
 ammunition in a charge made on the 27th. On 
 the 6th of Juh', Lieut. Ayres was wounded by 
 a rebel sharp-shooter, from the effects of which 
 he died on the 8th. From the 13th to the 25th, 
 the battery was busily engaged in bombarding 
 the citj' of Atlanta. August 25, it formed part 
 of the flanking movement to Jonesboro, and 
 took part in all the subsequent operations, and 
 
 on the 9th of September it entered Atlanta, 
 and while here was re-equipped for the field. 
 It moved with the Fourth Corps on the 3d of 
 October after Gen. Hood, who had commenced 
 his march to the rear of Atlanta. Capt. Bradley 
 being away on leave of absence, the command 
 of the battery devolved on First Lieut. A. C. 
 Baldwin. It participated in the battle of Frank- 
 lin on the 15th of December, of which action, 
 says Whitelaw Reid, "Eighteen stands of 
 colors were taken on the battery-front during 
 the battle, and the rebels so crowded the em- 
 brasure that Private Jacob Stinebaugh resorted 
 to the use of axes and picks with success. In 
 this battle the battery lost William B. Welch, 
 mortally wounded, and four others slightly. 
 Welch fell into the hands of a Mrs. Bentley, of 
 Franklin, who kindlj' nursed him, regardless of 
 rebel opposition, and when he died saw him 
 properly buried, with head-board and inscrip- 
 tion, and a representation of the flag he so no- 
 bly fought under cut upon the board." In the 
 second day's battle before Nashville, the battery 
 went into position in front of Overton's Hill, 
 eight miles from the cit}^ and engaged Sand- 
 ford's Mississippi rebel Batter}', completely 
 silencing it. It joined in the pursuit of the re- 
 treating rebels to the banks of the Tennessee 
 River, and then marched for Huntsville, Ala., 
 where it arrived on the 15th of Januar}', 1865. 
 It made a severe march to Eastport, Miss., in 
 February, but before reaching that place, it was 
 ordered back to Huntsville, where it remained 
 in quarters until the close of the war. It re- 
 turned to Ohio in the latter part of August, 
 and, on the 1st of September, 1865, was mus- 
 tered out of the service. It lost by death from 
 wounds, sixteen ; by disease, twenty-six ; dis- 
 charged by reason of disease, thirty ; of wounds, 
 four ; by expiration of service, twenty-one ; re- 
 enlisted as veterans, sixty-six. 
 
 The First Light Artillery (Col. James Bar- 
 net, of Cleveland), was represented by a bat- 
 tery or company from this county. Battery 
 D was recruited by Capt. Andrew J. Konkle, 
 and was made up in Summit County. The 
 original commissioned oflScers of Batter}' D 
 were Andrew J. Konkle, Captain ; Paul F. 
 Rhoerbacher, L. P. Porter, Senior and Junior 
 First Lieutenants ; and W. H. Pease, Henry C. 
 Lloyd, Senior and Junior Second Lieutenants. 
 Capt. Konkle was promoted to Major of the 
 First Artillery on the 8th of September, 1863, 
 
 :k 
 
^ 
 
 E. 
 
 268 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 and was honorably discharged August 8, 1864. 
 Lieut. Rhoerbacher resigned January 1, 1862 ; 
 Lieut. Porter resigned August 28, 1863 ; Lieut. 
 Pease was promoted to First Lieutenant Jan- 
 uary I, 1862, to Captain July 30, 1864, and 
 mustered out with battery ; Lieut. Lloyd was 
 mustered out October 23, 1863; Sergt. N. M. 
 Newell was promoted to Second Lieutenant 
 January 1, 1862, to First Lieutenant July 13, 
 1863, and mustered with battery ; Sergt. M. G. 
 Ransom, promoted to Second Lieutenant July 
 13, 1863, and resigned April 15, 1864; Henry 
 C. Grant was promoted to Second Lieutenant 
 March 30, 1863, and transferred to Battery A, 
 to First Lieutenant May 2, 1865, and mustered 
 out with battery ; Sergt. Josiah Brown was 
 promoted to Second Lieutenant May 9, 1864, 
 and transferred to Battery E. At the general 
 muster-out, the commissioned officers were 
 Giles J. Cockerill, Captain ; J. H. Bees, Will- 
 iam Edwards, Senior and Junior First Lieu- 
 tenants ; W. M. Welcher, Cornelius Linehan, 
 Senior and Junior Second Lieutenants.* 
 
 The First Artillery was originally organized 
 under the old militia law of 1860. Iramedi- 
 ateh" after the fall of Fort Sumter, it was 
 ordered to Columbus, and thence to Mari- 
 etta. It was afterward ordered to Virginia, 
 where it served until its expiration of three 
 month's service, when it was ordered to Colum- 
 bus for muster-out. It was at once re-enlisted 
 for three years, and for this organization it was 
 that Capt. Konkle's Batter}' D was recruited, 
 and mustered into the service in September, 
 1861. It left Camp Dennison on the 1st of No- 
 vember, and on the 10th, reported to Gen. Nel- 
 son at Mount Stei'ling, }^y. It was with Nel- 
 son until the 29th, when it reported to Gen. A. 
 M. McCook, at Munfordville, Ky. In Febru- 
 ary, 1862, it was again ordered to report to 
 Gen. Nelson, at P]lizabethtown, but soon re- 
 turned to its old quarters at Munfordville, 
 and thence proceeded with Gen. McCook to 
 Nashville. With the Fourth Division it moved 
 to Pittsburg Landing, thence to Corinth, and 
 on the 30tli of June it was at Athens, Ala. 
 July 30, the batterj^ moved from Columbia, 
 Tenn., with Gen. Nelson's command, to Leba- 
 non, Ky., and in September, at Munfordville, it 
 was overwhelmed by the enem}-, and its entire 
 force and material captured. The men were pa- 
 
 *Thfi local facts pertaining to this battery were furnished us by 
 Capt. H. C. Grant. 
 
 roled and sent home to Ohio, remaining at Camp 
 Chase until January, 1863, when they were 
 exchanged. The battery- was re-organized and 
 equipped at Columbus, and joined the Third 
 Brigade of the Fourth Division, Twenty -third 
 Army Corps, at Lexington, Ky., in March. It 
 served in Eastern Kentucky' until July, when 
 it marched with Gen. Burnside's army to Cum- 
 berland Gap, and took part in the capture of 
 that rebel stronghold. It participated in the 
 siege of Knoxville, and, immediately after the 
 siege was raised, re-enlisted as veterans, and 
 the men were sent home on the usual thirt}- 
 days' furlough. The ranks were filled up at 
 Cleveland, and early in 1864, it proceeded to 
 Knoxville, Tenn. It was with Sherman in the 
 Atlanta campaign, and participated in all the 
 fighting of that eventful period. It took part 
 in the battles of Franklin and Nashville, the 
 closing struggles of the war. It was finally 
 mustered out of the service at Cleveland, Ohio, 
 on the 15th of July, 1865. 
 
 The Ninth Independent Battery was made 
 up principally^ in this county. The first com- 
 missioned officers were H. S. Wetmore, Captain ; 
 L. P. Barrows, First Lieutenant, and John M. 
 Hinde, Second Lieutenant. Capt. Wetmore 
 resigned December 12, 1862, and Second Lieut. 
 H. B. York was promoted to Captain, and in 
 that position, mustered out with the battery. 
 This battery was organized at Camp Wood 
 Cleveland, on the 11th of October, 1861. It 
 was first fitted out as a four-gun battery, with 
 two ten-pounders and two twelve-pound howit- 
 zers, but afterward became a full six-gun bat- 
 tery. It served in Kentucky until the 1st of 
 January, 1863, and participated in several hard 
 fights. It was at Cumberland Gap and at Mill 
 Springs. For its gallantry at the latter place, 
 it was presented with two six-pound guns, by 
 Gen. Thomas, which had been captured from 
 the enemy at Cumberland Gap. During the 
 retreat of the national forces from the Gap 
 across the State to the Ohio River, in Septem- 
 ber and October, 1862, the Ninth Battery per- 
 formed the most arduous dut}'. Placed in charge 
 of a train, on the safety of which the whole 
 retreat depended, the batter}^ felt like sacrific- 
 ing themselves to a man rather than permit it 
 to be captured, and on this determination it 
 acted during the whole of that retreat. On the 
 26th of January, 1863, the battery received 
 orders to report to the Army of the Cumber- 
 
 H |ts 
 
-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 269 
 
 land at Nashville, where it arrived on the 1st 
 of February, and where it remained until the 
 6th of March, when it moved out to Franklin 
 and took position with the right wing of the 
 Army of the Cumberland. On the 21st of 
 November, the battery was assigned to the 
 First Division, Twelfth Corps, Depai-tment of 
 the Army of the Cumberland. Four men of 
 the battery were captured by guerrillas on the 
 23d of December, who treated them inhuman!}' 
 — tjing their hands behind them, shot them 
 and threw their bodies into the Elk River. 
 Two of them, however escaped, by getting 
 their hands loose and swimming to the shore 
 — one died the next day. The other, James 
 W. Fole}', of Hudson, was permanently^ disa- 
 bled in the right leg.* Under a general order 
 of the Army of the Cumberland, an assess- 
 ment of $30,000 on the neighborhood, was 
 made for the benefit of the families of the three 
 murdered men. In February, 1864, about 
 three-fourths of the battery re-enlisted, and 
 returned home on furlough. On the 9th of 
 April it reported at Tullahoma, with an aggre- 
 gate of 151 men, having received a number of 
 recruits while at home. In May, it acted with 
 Sherman in the Atlanta campaign. It went 
 also with him in his march to the sea. On the 
 29th of Jul}', 1865, it was mustered out and 
 discharged. 
 
 This comprises a sketch of the regiments 
 which were represented b}^ full companies from 
 Summit County, so far as we have been able to 
 learn them. In compiling these sketches of 
 different regiments, we have drawn freely on 
 "Ohio in the War," by Whitelaw Reid. But as 
 it is said to be not wholly free from errors, we 
 have endeavored so far as possible to have 
 members of the regiments noticed look over 
 and correct any errors recognizable, in order 
 that injustice may be done to none. 
 
 The number of soldiers contributed by Sum- 
 mit County during the war to the armies of 
 the Union may not be definitel}' given, but 
 probably exceeded 3,000 men. The different 
 arms of the service, viz., infantry, cavalry and 
 artillery, were each well represented. The 
 Beacon of Jul}' 24, 1862, published the follow- 
 ing list of soldiers, in the army at that time, 
 from the different townships : Bath, 27 men ; 
 Boston, 89 ; Copley, 34 ; Coventry, 26 ; Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, 55 ; Franklin, 43 ; Green, 62 ; Hud- 
 
 ♦Reid. 
 
 son, 58 ; Middlebury, 26 ; Northfield, 42 ; Nor- 
 ton, 15; Northampton, 28; Portage, 203; 
 Richfield, 42 ; Springfield, 51 ; Stow, 22 ; Tall- 
 madge, 44, and Twinsburg, 48 — a total of 910 
 men. The regiments recruited after that date, 
 including drafts and enlistments in old regi- 
 ments, comprised at least twice as many more. 
 From the Beacon we find that the county was 
 twice subjected to a draft, but each time the 
 number selected through the means of " for- 
 tune's wheel " was small. The first draft oc- 
 curred in October, 1862, and resulted as follows, 
 by townships : Bath, 7 ; Coplev, 27 ; Coventry, 
 49 ; Franklin, 59 ; Green, 26 ; Hudson, 8 ; 
 Northampton, 7 ; Norton, 40 ; Northfield, 7 ; 
 Portage, 49 ; Richfield, 29 ; Stow, 1 ; Spring- 
 field, 42, and Twinsburg, 7 men. Townships 
 not mentioned made up their respective quotas 
 by voluntary enlistments. The next draft took 
 place on the 7th of May, 1864, as follows : 
 Bath, 2 ; Cuyahoga Falls, 5 ; Boston, 3 ; Cop- 
 ley, 14; Coventry, 1; Franklin, 11; Hudson, 
 4 ; Middleburv, 4 ; Northampton, 13 ; Norton, 
 1 3 ; Springfield, 2 ; Stow, 6, and Tallmadge, 4 
 men. It is no reproach to the valor of Sum- 
 mit County that it was twice drafted. Many 
 loyal and brave counties were drafted more 
 than twice. Calls were made so often for sol- 
 diers that it was impossible to fill them as fast 
 as made, and often before one quota was com- 
 plete, another call was before the people. The 
 great wonder is that men volunteered as freely 
 as they did, notwithstanding the justness of the 
 cause in which they were engaged. When we 
 view the war in its full magnitude, it seems an 
 event well calculated to discourage the most 
 valorous. A war that in four years called for 
 the following troops : April 15, 1861. 75,000 
 men; Julv 22. 1861, 500,000; July 2, 1862, 
 300,000; August 4, 1862 (for nine months), 
 300,000; June 15, 1863, the militia; October 
 17, 1863, 500,000 ; March 14, 1864, 200,000 ; 
 April 22, 1864, 100 days' militia; July 18, 
 1864, 500,000 ; December 19, 1864, 300,000, is 
 without parallel in modern history, and the 
 alacrity with which these calls were responded 
 to is as unparalleled as the gigantic proportions 
 of the war itself When we take all this into 
 consideration, it is not in the least strange that 
 a few of these calls should be filled by draft ; 
 nor is it, as we have said, any reproach or re- 
 flection upon the valor of the county. 
 
 In commemoration of the services of those 
 
 t^ 
 
270 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 who laid down their lives upon the altar of 
 their country, memorials have been erected in 
 different parts of the county, which are intended 
 to symbolize the aflection of surviving friends. 
 These memorials consist of monuments, chapels, 
 etc., and are cit^^ or township aflairs, and will 
 receive appropriate mention elsewhere in this 
 work. Not being erected by the county at 
 large, a notice of them does not really belong 
 in this chapter, but in the chapters devoted to 
 the townships in which they are located. 
 
 An important element that was widely felt 
 throughout the Northern States during the late 
 war deserves more than a mere passing men- 
 tion. We allude to the active part borne by 
 the noble women of the country. Their deeds 
 deserve to be written in characters of gold. 
 Love and devotion to the unfortunate and 
 heart-felt pit}' for the woes of suffering human- 
 ity, are among their strongest characteristics. 
 Their kindly- smiles of sympathy break through 
 the clouds of misfortune, and their gentlest 
 tones rise amid the sighs of suffering and sor- 
 row. Hundreds and thousands of these noble, 
 self-sacrificing women, like ministering angels, 
 took their places in camp and hospital, where 
 many a brave soldier had cause to thank God 
 for their presence. They went forth, braving 
 all the dangers incident to the times and the 
 place, with the expressed sentiment that if they 
 died their loss would not be felt. Noble, l)ut 
 mistaken souls! The world sustains its heaviest 
 loss when such spirits fall. But not alone b}- 
 those who went forward to nurse and care for 
 the sick and wounded was all the good accom- 
 plished that is accredited to female hands. 
 Those who remained at home performed a good 
 work, '' the half of which has not yet been 
 told," but the results of which was felt b}^ 
 many a poor worn-out soldier. 
 
 The Soldiers' Aid Society, composed of 
 ladies, was an earl}' organization formed for the 
 benefit of the soldiers in the field, and was pro- 
 ductive of great good. Says Whitelaw Reid 
 upon this subject : " Efforts of the people in be- 
 half of their soldiers ma}- be gathered from 
 records of their organized action through the 
 medium of aid societies, sanitary commissions, 
 Christian commissions, soldiers' fairs, etc., some 
 names of the fortunate ones whose privilege it 
 was to work as the almoners of the people's 
 bounty ; some traces of the more public dem- 
 onstrations. But the real history of the work 
 
 will never be written, never can be written, per- 
 haps never ought to be written. Who shall in- 
 trude to measure the love of the mothers, and 
 sisters, and wives, at home for the soldiers in 
 the field ? Who shall chronicle the prayers 
 and the labors to shield them from death and 
 disease ? Who shall speak worthily of that 
 religious fervor which counted loss and suffer- 
 ing and life as nothing, so that b}' any means 
 Grod's work might be done in the battle for lib- 
 ert}' and right." The Cincinnati branch of the 
 Sanitar}- Commission was the most extensive 
 relief association in the State. A soldiers' aid 
 society was a State organization, with brandies 
 in each county. It found a I'eady response 
 among the ladies of Summit Count}'. An 
 organization, auxiliary to the State Aid Society, 
 was formed in Aliron, with branches in each 
 township, which was instrumental in accomplish- 
 ing a noble work. The following extract is from 
 a soldier's letter, published at the time, and is 
 illustrative of this good work : " It was about 5 
 o'clock in the afternoon when I arrived in the 
 hospital. Soon after my entrance, I was stripped 
 and bathed in a large tub of tepid water, shown 
 to bed, and a nice clean white shirt and a pair of 
 drawers were given me. I soon encased my 
 tired limbs in my new wardrobe, and while do- 
 ing so my eyes caught sight of the words 
 ' From the Woman's Aid Society,' stamped in 
 black ink on each garment. I lay down, pulled 
 the blanket over my head and thought of my 
 situation. Here 1 am in a hospital, prostrated 
 with disease, worn out in body and mind, over 
 eight hundred miles from any spot I can call 
 home, my own rrrother and sister long since 
 dead ; but the noble-hearted women of the 
 North — those angels of mercy — are supplying 
 the place of mother and sister, not only to me, 
 but to thousands of sufferiirg soldiers from 
 every State. Presently I felt two large tears 
 coursing down my cheeks and running into my 
 mustache, followed by myriads of others drop- 
 ping on the sheet under my chin, forming in- 
 numerable little salt-water pools. When well, 
 I am a strong man, and it requires some sud- 
 den and deep grief to bring me to tears ; but 
 tears of gratitude fiowed from me that evening 
 as freely as drops of rain from an April cloud ; 
 and, like a spoiled child, I cried myself to 
 sleep." This is but one instance, and how 
 many other soldiers of the armies of the Union 
 could tell the same story ! 
 
 :^ 
 
,u. 
 
 '\^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 271 
 
 The Ladies' Soldiers' Aid Society was formed 
 in Akron early in the summer of 1861, and con- 
 tinued in active operation until the close of the 
 war. As we have said, the real history of its 
 work can never be written. Funds were raised 
 by fairs, festivals, mite societies, etc., and as 
 soon as raised were invested in such articles as 
 were needed most, and immediately sent to 
 camps and hospitals. Many a blessing upon 
 
 the fair ones, and many a prayer for their hap- 
 piness was breathed by the recipients of these 
 timely favors. But we will not pursue the 
 subject. Full justice to these angels of mercy 
 cannot be done in our limited space. We will 
 only add, in conclusion of the chapter, a hope 
 that their efforts may never again be called 
 into play in a similar contest. 
 
 CHAPTER v.* 
 
 KARLV CHRISTIANITY— PIONEER MINISTERS— ESTABLISHMENT OF SCHOOLS— EDUCATIONAL STA- 
 TISTICS-COUNTY NEWSPAPERS— THE PRESS OF TO-DAY— RAILROADS— 
 —THEIR INVENTION— BENEFIT TO THE COUNTY. 
 
 G^ ye into all the world, and preach the 
 J" Gospel to every creature — was the com- 
 mand given over eighteen centuries ago by the 
 Man of Nazareth. Nor was it intended alone 
 for the salvation of those nations who, year 
 after year, brought tribute to Csesar. With 
 prophetic vision, the world's great Redeemer 
 gazed on nations then unborn, and heard the 
 cry ot those who, in all ages, even at the "ends 
 of the earth," groaned beneath the yoke of sin. 
 Then, for the redemption. He gave to His disci- 
 ples those commands which in later years have 
 caused His people to widely spread God's glo- 
 rious truth. When from Atlantic's coast, even 
 from Plymouth Rock, the Star of Empire first 
 renewed her journey westward, and the pioneers 
 of a mighty race descended the western slopes 
 of the AUeghanies, then in the van of the great 
 army, the heralds of salvation bore aloft the 
 Cross of Calvary. In the broad valley of the 
 Mississippi, destined to become the home of a 
 greater nation than any Caesar ever ruled, the 
 solitary settlers rejoiced to hear those early mes- 
 sengers proclaim the " glad tidings of gi'eat 
 joy," or wept at the story of Pilate, the crown 
 of thorns, and the agonies of Golgotha and 
 Calvary. The dark and gloomy forests were 
 pierced by the light that shone from the Star 
 of Bethlehem, and the hymns of praise to God 
 were mingled with the music of the woodman's 
 ax, for in those earl}' days, it could well be said 
 that 
 
 "The groves were God'.s first temples." 
 
 *Coutributed by W. H. Ptirrin. 
 
 The introduction of Christianity into the 
 wilderness of Ohio was coeval with the settle- 
 ment of the territory. Pioneer preachers and 
 ministers, sent out by missionary societies of 
 the older settled States of the East, wandered 
 to the Ohio Territory, when few human beings, 
 other than Indians, were to be found within its 
 limits. And what is now Summit County was, 
 in this respect, equally blest with other portions 
 of the Western country. With the pioneers 
 themselves, came missionaries, many of whom 
 devoted years of energy and faithful labor to 
 the Indians, teaching them " the way unto eter- 
 nal life. ' A case of this kind is recorded of 
 Rev. Mr. Badger, a missionary from Blanford, 
 Mass., who is said to have been the first minis- 
 ter ever on the Reserve, and for years devoted 
 his time equally to his white and red brethren. 
 Gen. Bierce, in his history of Summit County, 
 says : '• Mr. Badger came out and examined 
 his field of labor in 1800, and so well pleased 
 was he with the prospect, that he returned, re- 
 signed his charge in Blanford, where he had 
 labored fourteen years, and removed his family 
 to the almost trackless wilderness. He divided 
 his labors between the whites of the Reserve 
 and the Indians of Sandusky and Maumee. 
 He was not only a preacher of peace, but a man 
 of war. He was in Harrisons army during the 
 war of 1812, and at the siege of Fort Meigs. 
 In 1835, he tired of increasing civilization, and 
 removed to Wood County, Ohio, where he died 
 in 1846. ' Rev. Mr. Badger established the 
 first church, of which we have any record, in 
 
 ^ 
 
At 
 
 272 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Summit County, on the 4th of September, 1802, 
 at the house of Mr. Hudson, in Hudson Town- 
 ship. The societ}^ consisted of thirteen persons, 
 not one of whom but has been called to account 
 for " the deeds done in the bod3^" A full his- 
 tory of this pioneer church will be found in the 
 chapter devoted to Hudson. 
 
 The pioneers of Summit County had been 
 brought up under the rigid system of Puritan- 
 ism, imbibed, as it were, from Plymouth Rock 
 itself, and hence, when they came to " New 
 Connecticut," as this region was then called, 
 these religious principles were still held, and 
 most scrupulously guarded. A writer upon 
 this subject, whose ripe scholarship and vast 
 experience entitles his opinion to some weight, 
 sa3's : " They brought to this new land a relig- 
 ious spirit that eagerly seized upon ' The Re- 
 serve,' as a means to propagate a theology that 
 had hitherto flourished only within the rock- 
 bound limits of New England. In their native 
 land, hedged about by traditions that had com- 
 manded the unquestioning respect of parents 
 and children for many generations ; opposition 
 had been thrust out, and the people began to 
 feel, like the Jews of old, that they were es^je- 
 cially aided of God, and that they alone had 
 kept the faith undefiled. But, hitherto, it had 
 not been successfully transplanted, and, when 
 the ' Western Reserve ' was placed in the con- 
 trol of those ' to the manor born,' a prominent 
 thought in their minds was that now favorable 
 circumstances were to aid in transplanting the 
 Puritan faith to a spot peculiarly guai'ded, 
 from which its influence, like the light, should 
 dispel the the darkness, and make the Church 
 of New England the church universal. Ac- 
 cepting the dogma of ' original sin,' they got 
 beneath the denunciatory preaching of their 
 native land, with a meekness that was satisfied, 
 if, by the rigid rule of practice laid down, they 
 might, peradventure, be saved. But under this 
 quiet exterior, there was a true war-like spirit, 
 and the mind of each member of the church, 
 that had reached maturity of thought, was an 
 arsenal of theological weapons. At church 
 meetings, in the social circles, and on the street, 
 the ponderous themes of ' election,' ' fore-ordina- 
 tion,' ' the perseverance of the saints,' and kin- 
 dred subjects, were prominent topics, and 
 wielded with a power and an address that viv- 
 idly recalls the physical combat of mediseval 
 times. On coming to the new country, how- 
 
 ever, these characteristics experienced a change. 
 The standing army had been mobilized, and 
 each member was imbued with the enthu- 
 siasm of a crusader, but they found here an 
 enemy, to subdue whom their arsenal held no 
 adequate weapon. Their fulminations of the 
 decrees were met with an appeal to common- 
 sense philosophy ; dogmas were met with the 
 demand for freedom of thought ; and the result 
 here, as in many a physical conflict, was that 
 the light-armed forces completely demoralized 
 those strong only in their defensive armor, and 
 forced them to accept, and, in the end, to cham- 
 pion, that freedom of thought that they had 
 early learned to denounce as heresy." 
 
 The early religious history of '• The Reserve " 
 would make an interesting volume, and one of 
 considerable magnitude, but our space will not 
 admit of more than a passing glance in this 
 chapter. The early missionaries and pioneer 
 preachers, as we have said, came to the county 
 with the early settlers themselves. Rev. David 
 Bacon was one of these pioneer soldiers of the 
 Cross, and the next minister in this section, per- 
 haps, a Mr. Badger. He established a " Church 
 of Christ," in Tallmadge, in 1809. This early 
 temple of God consisted of ten members, five 
 males and five females, and, " having no meet- 
 ing-house, they met in private houses and 
 barns." Of the church, established by Mr. 
 Bacon, Gen. Bierce says : " Imbued with the 
 spirit of New England theology, Mr. Bacon 
 conceived the project of transplanting it into 
 the Western world. A religious colony was 
 his favorite theory, in which all should believe 
 alike and be bound to contribute to the support 
 of the Gospel by a tax on the land, which should 
 be tantamount to a mortgage on the property. 
 * * * Mr. Bacon had previously pur- 
 chased from Tallmadge & Starr 12,000 acres of 
 land at $1.50 per acre. * * * This 
 purchase gave him a controlling interest in the 
 township. In all subsequent sales by him, he 
 inserted a clause in the contract charging every 
 one hundred acres of land sold, with a tax of 
 $2 a year for the support of the Gospel — and 
 none but believers in the Saybi'ook platform 
 could have any land at any price, or on any 
 condition except that of joining the church." 
 Doubtless the reverend gentleman was looking 
 forward to that good time coming, when "the 
 lamb and the lion shall lie down together," and 
 we shall all see alike and be alike and love 
 
'k^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 273 
 
 each other like one great family. But the 
 world was not old enough nor ripe enough for 
 so grand and glorious a scheme, and hence Mr. 
 Bacon was doomed to a bitter disappointment. 
 Other individuals and companies holding lands, 
 sold them " unincumbered by restrictions as to 
 religious beliefs," and free of any tax for church 
 or Gospel purposes. The liberality and freedom 
 of these titles, compared to the entailed incum- 
 brance of the Bacon system, soon broke up 
 the latter and the '■ theory of an exclusive relig- 
 ious community failed." Members who, of 
 their own free-will and accord, were willing to 
 contribute to the support of the Gospel, pro- 
 tested against being driven into support of it, 
 whether the}' were willing or not, and, as a 
 natural consequence, a spirit of bitterness was 
 engendered in the church " which brought forth 
 anything but holiness." The feeling against 
 Mr. Bacon became so strong that he was finally 
 forced to resign his charge. This he did in the 
 spring of 1812 ; also, " gave up his land con- 
 tract and abandoned his Utopian scheme." He 
 was succeeded by Rev. Mr. Woodruff, who, it 
 seems, did not continue in the high esteem of 
 the church for any length of time. His resig- 
 nation was earnestl}' sought, and, when ten- 
 dered, was eagerly accepted. The history of 
 this church will be given more full}- in another 
 chapter. 
 
 A log meeting house was erected in Tall- 
 madge in 1814, and in 1817 an edifice for 
 church purposes was built in Hudson. Elder 
 Newcomb was an early divine of Coplc}' Town- 
 ship, and preached the first sermon in that 
 division of the county. The first society organ- 
 ized there, however, was by Mr. Pettitt, a Con- 
 gregational minister, in 1832. Religious meet- 
 ings were held in Twinsburg in 1820. A Con- 
 gregational Church was formed in that town- 
 ship in 1828, by Rev. Samuel Bissell. Thus 
 the Gospel spread and churches were organized 
 as the county became peopled by the whites, 
 until now, side by side with the schoolhouse, 
 we find in every section, those 
 
 "Steeple towers 
 And spires, whose silent fingers point to Heaven." 
 
 The cause of education received the earh' 
 attention of the pioneers of Summit County, 
 and among these Connecticut Yankees it found 
 a congenial soil in which it flourished, and has 
 brought forth fruit a hundred fold. In the 
 
 early settlement of this part of the State, there 
 were a great many influences that worked 
 against general education. Neighborhoods were 
 thinly settled, money was scarce, and the peo- 
 ple generall}' were poor. There were no school- 
 houses, nor was there an}' public school fund 
 to build schoolhouses, or even to pay teachers. 
 All persons of either sex, who had physical 
 strength enough to labor, were compelled to 
 take their part in the work, the labor of the 
 females being as heav}' and important as that 
 of the men ; and this straixi upon their industry 
 continued for years. Another drawback to 
 education was a lack of teachers and of books. 
 Taking all these facts together, it is a great 
 source of wonder that the pioneers had any 
 schools at all. But the earl}' settlers, who came 
 pi'incipally from New England, the seat of 
 learning and the birth-place of liberal educa- 
 tion, desen^e the highest honors for their 
 prompt and energetic efforts in the establish- 
 ment of schools. Just as soon as the settle- 
 ments would at all justify, schools were opened 
 at each one, and any vacant cabin, stable, barn 
 or other outhouse was used as a temple of 
 learning. The schools were paid for by sub- 
 scription, at the rate of about 50 or 75 cents a 
 month per scholar. Although the people of 
 Ohio and of Summit County displayed this 
 early interest in the cause of education, yet, 
 when the State Legislature passed a law in 
 1825, making education compulsory, it raised 
 quite a tempest for a time. The taxpayers of the 
 country at large very heartily indorsed the 
 Legislature in passing the Canal Law, which 
 voted away millions of money, but as heartily 
 condemned it for passing a law compelling them 
 to support " pauper schools," and the poorer 
 classes wei-e loud in their condemnation, be- 
 cause the law made •' pauper scholars " of their 
 children. 
 
 Those who remember the early school-laws of 
 Ohio will remember the frequent changes made 
 in them, and how crude and imperfect they 
 were as compared to the present law. The 
 early laws were changed every session of the 
 Legislature, until they became a perfect chaos 
 of amendments, provisions, etc., which none 
 were wholly able to explain or understand. 
 One district would act under one law, and an 
 adjoining district under altogether a different 
 one. But the adoption of a new Constitution 
 gave the State a revised school law, said, at 
 
 :rr 
 
274 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 the time of its adoption, to be the best and 
 most perfect within the bounds of the Union. 
 And from that day to the present, it has kept 
 its place as the best and most liberal school law 
 of any of the States. 
 
 The early schoolhouses, as a general thing, 
 were of the poorest kind. In towns, they were 
 dilapidated buildings, either frame or logs, and 
 in the countiy they were invariably of logs. 
 Usually but one style of architecture was used 
 in building them. They were erected, not from 
 a regular fund or by subscription, but by labor 
 given. The neighbors would gather together 
 at some place previously agreed upon, and with 
 ax in hand the work was soon done. Logs 
 were cut from sixteen to eighteen feet in length, 
 and of these the walls were raised. Broad 
 boards composed the roof, and a rude fire-place 
 and clapboard door, a puncheon floor, and the 
 cracks filled with " chinks," and these daubed 
 over with mud completed the schoolhouse, with 
 the exception of the windows and the furniture. 
 These were as rude and as primitive as the 
 house itself. The window was made by cutting 
 out a log the full length of the building, and 
 over the opening, in winter, paper, saturated 
 with grease, served to admit the light. Just 
 under this window, two or three stout pins 
 were driven in the log in a slanting direction, 
 on which a log puncheon was fastened, and this 
 was the "writing desk" of the whole school. 
 For seats, they used benches made from small 
 trees, cut in lengths of ten or twelve feet, split 
 open, and in the round side two large holes 
 were bored at each end, and in each a stout 
 pin, fifteen inches, was driven. These pins 
 formed the legs, and on rough and uneven 
 floors, hardly ever more than three of these legs 
 "touched bottom" at one and the same time. 
 And the books ! They were as promiscuous as 
 the house and furniture were rude. The New 
 Testament was the most popular reader. 
 " Introduction to the English Reader," " Sequel 
 to the English Reader," and finally the reader 
 itself, were in the collection of school-books of 
 the time. The New England Primer was one 
 of the primary books. The higher spellers 
 were Dil worth's and then Webster's. Gram- 
 mar was scarcely ever taught ; when it was, 
 the text-books used were Murray's and Kirk- 
 ham's Grammars. But it is unnecessary to 
 follow the description further. Those who have 
 known only the perfect system of schools of 
 
 the present can scarcely form an idea of the 
 limited capacity of educational facilities in this 
 favored region fifty to seventy years ago. There 
 are doubtless, however, many still living in 
 Summit County who. from personal experience, 
 know something of pioneer schools and school- 
 houses. 
 
 The first school taught in Summit County 
 was b}' George Pease, in the fall and winter of 
 1801. The house in which it was taught stood 
 on the southwest corner of Lot 56, of Hud- 
 son Township, and " near the center of what 
 was then the public square." The next 
 school in this settlement was taught in 
 the same house by Miss Patty Filer. The 
 first school was taught in Norton Township by 
 Sarah Wyatt, in a little log cabin near John- 
 son's Corners. In 1809, a school was taught 
 in Northampton by Justus Remington, and in 
 Richfield a Mr. Farnum was the pioneer peda- 
 gogue. In the winter of 1812, Reuben Upson 
 wielded the birch and ferule in Springfield 
 Township in a little house that stood near Cass' 
 Camp-ground ; Miss Luc}" Foster performed the 
 same office in Tallmadge Township in 1810, in 
 a small log shanty that stood south of the cen- 
 ter. Rachel Hammond, in 1811, taught the 
 first school in Bath Township, in a house be- 
 longing to Aaron Miller, and Lois Ann Gear 
 taught the first in Boston Township, in the 
 summer of the same 3'ear ; in 1817, Joseph 
 Mishler taught the first school in Franklin 
 Township, in a log house that had been built 
 for a church. 
 
 From these facts it will be seen that the 
 pioneers of Summit County lost no time in 
 establishing schools in the new country to 
 which they had come. As we have said, 
 there were no free schools then, but all schools 
 were paid for by general subscription. 
 
 The county, in addition to its excellent s^^s- 
 tem of common schools, has, at the present 
 time, several colleges, academies and high 
 schools in successful operation. These will be 
 written up fully in the respective townships in 
 which they are located. The educational his- 
 tory of each township will also be given, from 
 the small beginnings already noticed, through 
 its various changes and improvements, to its 
 present perfect state. 
 
 The following statistics, from the report of 
 the State Board of Education, will be found of 
 general interest : 
 
 j^: 
 
i^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 275 
 
 MONEY RECEIVED WITHIN THE YEAR. 
 
 Balance on hand September 1, 1878. . . . $67,558 30 
 
 State Tax 22,405 26 
 
 Irreducible School Fund 1,688 58 
 
 Local Tax for School and Schoolhouse 
 
 Purposes 84,371 49 
 
 Amount received on sale of bonds 1,040 20 
 
 From fines, licenses and other sources. . 3,130 77 
 
 Total receipts $180,194 60 
 
 Amount paid teachers $70,226 10 
 
 Managina; and superinten'g 2,005 00 
 
 Sites and" buildings 19,477 50 
 
 Interest on redemption of 
 
 bonds 6,683 49 
 
 Fuel and other contingent 
 
 expenses 18,610 53 
 
 Total expenditures 
 
 Balance on hand September 1, '79, 
 
 $117,002 62 
 $63,191 98 
 
 Payment to Summit County $19,362 00 
 
 Received from Summit County 22,003 28 
 
 Excess of Receipts from county. . $2,641 28 
 
 Section 16 Fund $ 588 70 
 
 Western Reserve Fund 1,115 52 
 
 Total 
 
 $1,704 22 
 
 Youths between six and twenty-one years- 
 White, males, 6,601 ; females, 6,241. . . 
 Colored, males, 51 ; females, 55 
 
 12,842 
 106 
 
 Total 12,948 
 
 Number of Schoolhouses in County — 
 
 Townships, primary, 144 ; high, 1 145 
 
 Separate districts, primary, 17 ; high, 7, 24 
 
 Total 169 
 
 Total value of School Property — 
 
 Townships, primary, $141,792 ; high, 
 
 $6,000 $147, 792 
 
 Separate district, primary, $157,500 ; 
 
 high. $38,800 $196,300 
 
 Total $344,092 
 
 Number of difEerent teachers employed — 
 Townships, primary, males, 125 ; fe- 
 males, 124 ; high, males, 2 251 
 
 Separate districts, primary, males, 3 ; 
 females, 68 ; high, males, 7 ; females, 
 13 
 
 Total 
 
 Average wages paid teachers — 
 
 Townships, primary, males, per month, 
 primary, females, per month, 
 
 high, males 
 
 high, females 
 
 Separate districts, primary, males. . . . 
 primary, females. . 
 
 high, males 
 
 Tiigh, females 
 
 91 
 342 
 
 $35 
 26 
 62 
 00 
 
 113 
 40 
 90 
 70 
 
 No. of different pupils enrolled within the year — 
 Townships, primary, males, 3,092 ; fe- 
 males, 2,552 ; high, males, 28 ; fe- 
 male, 23 5,665 
 
 Separate districts, primary, males, 1,- 
 742 ; females, 1,743 ; high, males, 
 346 ; females, 430 4,261 
 
 Total 9,926 
 
 Average daily attendance — 
 
 Townships, primary, males, 1,536 ; fe- 
 males, 1,231 ; high, males, 13 ; fe- 
 males, 11 2,791 
 
 Separate districts, primary, males, 1,- 
 326 ; females, 1,313 ; high, males, 
 210; females, 309 3,1.58 
 
 Total 5,949 
 
 Per cent of average daily attendance of monthly en- 
 rollment — Townships, .75 ; separate districts, 
 .92. 
 Teachers employed in private schools — 
 
 In townships, 5 ; separate districts 40 45 
 
 Pupils enrolled in private schools — 
 
 Separate districts, males, 205 ; females, 
 
 250 455 
 
 No. of students in attendance at Buchtel College- 
 Males, 104 ; females, 52 156 
 
 No. of students in attendance at Western Reserve 
 College — 
 Males, 93 ; females, 6 99 
 
 The following is from David Ellet, County 
 Examiner, to the State Board of Education : 
 "The schools of this count}' are slowly and 
 steadily improving in efficiency and usefulness. 
 The}' will compare favorably with those of the 
 adjoining counties. Many of our teachers de- 
 sire to know more of teaching as a profession, 
 and, as a result of this, avail themselves largely 
 of the opportunities furnished in this direction 
 by our county institutes. Our schools need more 
 good teachers — teachers better qualified by edu- 
 cation, by experience, and by devotion to their 
 work. They want more good school officers, 
 and more earnestness, more enthusiasm, a 
 greater sense of responsibility in all who are 
 connected with the schools. In some localities 
 an improved state of opinion is needed among 
 those who patronize the schools, a more intelli- 
 gent acquaintance with their present condition, 
 and a more enlarged appreciation of their capa- 
 bilities." The above is sound doctrine, and 
 should be well considered by those who are 
 concerned in the cause of education. 
 
 A few extracts from the annual report of 
 Hon. J. J. Burns, State Commissioner of 
 Schools, appear to us so appropriate in this 
 connection that we give place to them. He 
 
 #* 
 
276 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 saj'S : " How shall we cause our pupils to make 
 the largest possible attainments in these 
 foundation branches, and also have them, when 
 they leave school, thirsting for more knowl- 
 edge, and possessing trained mental faculties so 
 that they may acquire it ; the organ of these 
 faculties to be contained in a healthy body, 
 while mind and body are under the guidance 
 of correct moral principles ? To avoid waste 
 of time and labor is to be able to better do 
 the work in hand, and to apply the savings to 
 something beyond. A search for wastage is a 
 highly practical thing, and economy here, a 
 moral dut}'. I have often asserted that there 
 is a wastage in having pupils spend time in 
 learning to spell hundreds — yes, thousands — of 
 words which they never have occasion to use 
 outside of the spelling-class, while probably the 
 dictionary, which should be in constant use, 
 rests in pensive quietness on the teacher's 
 desk, if, indeed, there is one in the room. The 
 meaning of words and their pronunciation are 
 of far more moment than their spelling. The 
 best text-books from which to learn these are 
 the reader and dictionary ; and the best proofs 
 of progress are correct oral reading and written 
 compositions. Is there anything better than a 
 common spelling-book exercise to cause pupils 
 to think that we learn words for the sake of 
 knowing how to spell them ? that we are seek- 
 ing not kernels but shells ? In penmanship, 
 we want more drill in writing from dictation, in 
 having the pupils put their thoughts or recollec- 
 tions upon paper rapidly and neatly. Copying 
 that beautiful line at the top of the page with 
 care and patience is a good exercise, but some 
 better g3'mnastic is required to fit the writer for 
 hours of real work. In one way and another, 
 language rightly claims a large share of the at- 
 tention of the teacher. It is the grand charac- 
 teristic which distinguishes man from the other 
 animals, the most direct product of his inner 
 consciousness. 
 
 " The child has begun the study of language 
 before his school life commences. Learning to 
 talk seems as natural as learning to laugh, or 
 cry, or play. But so much of knowledge and of 
 the world is hidden in books, that a key must be 
 found to unlock these treasures, and that key is 
 reading — the power to translate the written 
 word ; to recognize it as the graphic symbol of 
 an idea before in possession, so that the ability 
 to reverse the process will follow, and printed 
 
 words become the source of ideas. As the 
 pupil masters words and their meaning, he is 
 getting into his possession the tools with which 
 he may dig in books for further knowledge, 
 make his own knowledge more useful to him as 
 a social being, and secure a body for his 
 thoughts, without which incarnation they are 
 as little subject to control as the weird fancies 
 of a dream. The art of silent reading deserves 
 more attention in school — practice in grasping 
 the meaning of a passage in the shortest 
 possible time, and reproducing it with pen or 
 tongue. But along with this, in its earlier 
 stages, and a short time preceding it, is the oral 
 reading exercise, wherein the reader must 
 serve as eyes to the listeners, so that they ma^', 
 through his voice, see the printed page. How 
 much inspiration is there in this work when each 
 listener has the page before his own eyes ? The 
 translation of a written sentence into a spoken 
 sentence is much more than the mere transla- 
 tion, in their right order, of the iconh of the 
 written sentence : and to do this well requires, 
 besides the names of the written characters, 
 culture of voice, training of eye, quickening of 
 emotion. To serve as a medium through which 
 others may know the printed page, catching its 
 syllables upon the ear, is not low art. To 
 breathe life into dead words, and send them 
 into the depths of the moral and intellectual 
 nature of the hearer, and that with power to 
 convince, to arouse, to subdue, greater than if 
 the hearer had been his own interpreter, is high 
 art indeed. We cannot, however, afford the 
 time, even if that were the only obstacle, to 
 train all our school children to be readers in 
 this artistic sense. We must content ourselves 
 with the more modest aim, and remember that, 
 after all, the prime object of the reading exer- 
 cise in school is not to train the 3'outh to shine 
 as elocutionists, or serve as a mirror for others, 
 but to impart to them the ability to get knowl- 
 edge from books, and to keep alive a hunger 
 for it, thus 'determinating the pupil to self- 
 activit}-,' which Hamilton calls the ' primary 
 principle of education.' 
 
 " Another language of great value is com- 
 mitting to memoi'y — learning by heart well, 
 plirases — choice selections, gems of thought 
 and expression, culled from the best writings of 
 the best writers. These should be judiciousl}' 
 selected, so as not to be too much be3-ond the 
 easy comprehension of the pupil. They should. 
 
 ■?1' 
 
tk^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 277 
 
 above all other requisites, be pure, healthful, 
 inspiring. The teacher should add interest to 
 the work by relating incidents in the life of the 
 authors. We know with what tenacity the 
 memory clings to the simple rhymes learned in 
 childhood. If this work be continued as it 
 should be, who can den}^ its lasting effects upon 
 life? A refined taste and quickened intellect 
 may be hoped for as the result of drinking in 
 and assimilating beautiful thoughts in chaste, 
 musical language— words of warning or of ap- 
 proval, flashed by the memory upon the judg- 
 ment in the time of temptation, of resistance 
 thereto. ********* 
 " One very good result of increased attention 
 to literature in the schools is the marked in- 
 crease in the amount of wholesome reading — 
 history, biography, travels, poetry, popular sci- 
 ence and the lessened demand for dime novels 
 and other low fiction. Few questions are, in 
 their bearing upon the future of our country, 
 more important than this : What are the hoys 
 and girls reading? I would not, then, have 
 less time spent in our schools upon language, 
 but teachers may well look into the subject, 
 and see whether that time is spent to the best 
 advantage. The puplic regard arithmetic, par 
 excellence, as the practical study. It is the 
 practical educator's strong tower, and we have 
 it taught in season and out. The nine digits 
 seem to have taken the place of the heathen 
 gods, and their demand for offerings knows no 
 cessation. Measured by any definition of the 
 practical, as a means either to fit one directly 
 for bread-getting in the common business of 
 life, or as a means of mental culture and disci- 
 pline, a large part of arithmetic, as found in 
 our books and taught from them, falls short. 
 Instead of introducing, at an early stage, the 
 science of geometry, we fritter away valuable 
 time upon annuities and alligation, and pro- 
 gression ; and, as for interest, one would think 
 that mankind in general made a living by shav- 
 ing each other's notes. Children begin early 
 to develop the idea of numbers. It concerns 
 matters of their daily life. The elemental steps 
 of writing and reading numbers, or the sym- 
 bols of numbers, naturally follow, and, usually, 
 are not difficult of acquirement. But there is 
 such a gap between the conditions needed for 
 the ready learning of these things, and the 
 more mature judgment and that knowledge of 
 business and the world, demanded in the intelli- 
 
 gent solution of ordinarily difficult problems in 
 discount and certain other branches of applied 
 arithmetic. Back and forth across this stretch 
 the boy's mind must swing like a pendulum, 
 repelled by what it cannot comprehend, and by 
 what it has grown tired of. He marks time, 
 when he could so readily oblique into some 
 other study and march forward. Then, by and 
 by, if these advanced parts of arithmetical 
 science are needed, their acquisition would be 
 easy. Meanwhile, the child may give increased 
 attention to literature and be learning interest- 
 ing and profitable lessons about this world into 
 which he has come, and in what he came, and 
 how to take care of it. While these priceless 
 practical lessons are in progress, one can fanc}'^ 
 that the arithmetic itself would enjoy the rest. 
 
 " In the time which can be saved, also a few 
 short steps could be taken in some other 
 branches now much neglected. The reason for, 
 and the practical mode of, doing man}' things 
 which are to be done in real life b}' the citizen, 
 the man of business, th6 manager of a house- 
 hold, might be taught in the schools. Some- 
 thing of the nature of the materials which we 
 eat, drink and wear, and economy in the buy- 
 ing and using, would be excellent lessons. If 
 He is a benefactor of mankind who causes two 
 blades of grass to grow where one grew before, 
 the language does not furnish a name for him 
 or her who shall cause the laboring man to 
 know how to make $1 produce the good results 
 for which he must now expend two. No mat- 
 ter whether we regard the school as established 
 primarily for the good of the children, or for 
 the preservation of the State, we must admit 
 that the most valuable result of all education, 
 is the building of good characters. This, to 
 speak definitely, is to instill correct principles, 
 and train in right habits. Citizens with these 
 ' constitute a State.' Men and women with 
 these are in possession of what best assures 
 rational happiness, the end and aim of human 
 life." 
 
 In his report of 1878, upon the subject of 
 Compulsory Education — a .subject which is now 
 receiving considerable attention in many of the 
 States — the State Commissioner says : " Con- 
 cerning the right of State or Grovernment to 
 pass and carry into effect what is known as 
 Compulsory Laws, and require parents and 
 guardians, even against their will, to send their 
 children to school, there does not appear to be 
 
 PT 
 
:^i 
 
 278 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 much diversity of opinion. Concerning the 
 polic}' thereof, dependent upon so many known 
 and unknown conditions, there is the widest 
 diversity. I can write no history of the results 
 of the act of March 20, 1877, for it does not 
 seem to have any. A great good would be 
 wrought if the wisdom of the General Assembly 
 could devise some means which shall strengthen 
 and supplement the powers of Boards of Edu- 
 cation, and enable them to prevent truancy, even 
 if only in cases where parents desire their chil- 
 dren to attend school regularly, but parental 
 authority is too weak to secure that end. The 
 instances are not few in which parents would 
 welcome aid in this matter, knowing that truan- 
 cy is often the first step in a path leading 
 through the dark mazes of idleness, vagabond- 
 age and crime. 
 
 " Whatever may be said of young children 
 working in mills and factories, j^outhful idlers 
 upon the streets of towns and cities should be 
 gathered up by somebody and compelled to do 
 something. If they learn nothing else, there 
 will at least be this salutary lesson, that society 
 is stronger than they, and without injuring them, 
 will use its strength to protect itself While we 
 are establishing reform schools for those who 
 have started in the way to their own ruin, and 
 have donned the uniform of the enemies of civil 
 society, it would be a heavenly importation to 
 provide some way to rescue those who are 3'et 
 lingering around the camp." 
 
 The Press of Summit County/^ — We have been 
 fortunate in finding the very " fountain head " 
 of the copious flow of local literature — polite, 
 political, miscellaneous and otherwise — with 
 which the people of the territory now embraced 
 in Summit County, have been blessed during the 
 past sixty years. In August, 1825, Mr. Laurin 
 Dewey, a young printer from Ravenna, after- 
 ward well-known as a prominent Whig politi- 
 cian in Northern Ohio, issued a prospectus for 
 a paper to be published in the village of Middle- 
 bury, now the Sixth Ward of Akron, to be called 
 the Ohio Canal Advocate. To aid him in this 
 enterprise, a subscription paper was circulated 
 among the people of Middlebury, of which the 
 following is a copy : 
 
 •' We, the subscribers, being anxious for the 
 prosperity of this section of the country, and 
 the dissemination of useful information gener- 
 ally, do severally agree to pay the sums set op- 
 
 * Written by Samuel A. Lane. 
 
 posite our respective names, for the purpose of 
 purchasing a printing press, types, etc., and for 
 erecting a printing establishment in the village 
 of Middlebury, under the direction of Mr. Lau- 
 rin Dewey, who will edit and publish a weekly 
 paper, devoted to the general interests of the 
 country, advertising, etc., the columns to be en- 
 riched by foreign and domestic news, religious 
 intelligence, poetry, etc.; the sums so by us paid 
 to be considered in the nature of a loan, to be 
 repaid whenever the editor shall consider him- 
 self able to do so." 
 
 The names of the signers of this document, 
 with their several contributions to the purchas- 
 ing fund, are as follows : Charles Sumner, $10 ; 
 Erastus Torrey, $10 ; Henry Chittenden, $5 ; 
 Nathan Gillett, Jr., $5 ; Rufus Hart, $3 ; Ed- 
 ward Sumner, $10 ; Samuel Newton, $10 ; 
 Charles W. Brown, $5 ; Benajah A. Allen, $3 ; 
 Phineas Pettis, $5 ; Elijah Mason, $5 ; John 
 McMillan, Jr., $10; Spencer & Morgan, $15; 
 Alexander C. Lawson, $2 ; William McGallard, 
 $2 ; D. W. Williams, $5 ; Thomas C. Viall, $2 ; 
 Jacob Kaufman, $5 ; Jesse Allen, $4 ; Ithiel 
 Mills, $3 ; Amos Spicer, $4 ; William Bell, $3 ; 
 Roswell Kent & Co., $5 ; Henry Squires, $5 ; 
 Elisha Farnam, $5 ; Joseph W. Brown ; $5 ; 
 Horatio Howard, $5 ; Ambrose S. Cotter, $5 ; 
 Henry Rhodes, $3 ; William Phelps, $2 ; Will- 
 iam J. Hart, $3 ; R. & S. McClure, $5 ; Theophi- 
 lus Potter, $2 ; Joshua Richards, $2 ; Bagley 
 & Humphrey, $10 ; Leonard Chatfleld, $2 ; 
 David Jones, $2 ; Titus Chapman, $2 ; Julius 
 A. Sumner, $3 ; Miner Spicei", $4 ; Alpheus 
 Hart, $1 ; Paul Williams, $2 ; Guerdon Geer, 
 $5. Total amount subscribed, $204, a sum 
 scarcely adequate to the purchase of a first-class 
 printer's outfit in these latter days. Ozias 
 Bowen, Esq., then a resident of Middlebury 
 (afterward a prominent citizen of Marion, and 
 Judge of the Court of Common Pleas of that 
 count}'), associated himself with Mr. Dewey in 
 the enterprise, but before the paper was started, 
 Mr. Dewey transferred his interest to Elijah 
 Mason, Esq. 
 
 The Portage Journal. — The Ohio Canal ques- 
 tion, meantime, having been substantially set- 
 tled, and needing no further advocacy, Messrs. 
 Bowen and Mason, before the first issue, 
 changed the name of their paper to the Porta.^e 
 Journal. The first number was issued on the 
 28th day of September, 1825. Printing mate- 
 rials were not as readily obtainable then as now, 
 
■k^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 279 
 
 and, as the utmost econom}- had to be exercised 
 in making the " plant." the Cleveland Herald 
 having just procured a new dress, the old types, 
 rules, chases, stands, cases, etc., purchased from 
 that establishment, together with an old ■'• Ram- 
 age " press- — the press of Benjamin Franklin — 
 constituted the ^entire outfit of the Portage 
 Journal, the whole concern being transported 
 overland, from Cleveland to Middleburj-, in a 
 couple of two-horse wagons. The size of the 
 paper was 19x24 inches, with four columns to 
 the page, the terms of publication being " Two 
 dollars per annum (exclusive of postage), if 
 payment be made within the 3'ear, or two dol- 
 lars and fift3' cents if payment be delayed until 
 the year expires. Ko paper will he discnntiuueeJ 
 until arrearages are jxdd." In politics, the 
 Jourval appears to have been neai'ly neutral, 
 with a ver}' decided leaning toward the anti- 
 Jackson, or Adams, part}'. The connection of 
 Mr. Bowen ceased with No. 57. October 27. 
 1826. Mr. John McMillan, Jr. (father of Mr. 
 George W. McMillan, of Northampton Town- 
 ship, to whom the writer is indebted for a por- 
 tion of the material for this chapter), purchas- 
 ing Mr. Bowen's interest, the new firm being- 
 McMillan & Mason, who changed the name of 
 the paper to the Portage Journal and Weekly 
 Advertiser — a pretty long name for so small a 
 paper. This arrangement continued just one 
 year, Mr. Mason retiring with No. 109, his 
 place being taken by Alvah Hand, Esq., then 
 practicing law in Middlebury, the new firm of 
 McMillan «fe Hand, with Mr."^ Hand as editor, 
 continuing its publication until January or Feb- 
 ruary, 1829, when it was discontinued for want 
 of adequate support, the materials of the office 
 being sold to parties in Massillon. Mr. George 
 W. McMillan, at present living among us, vig- 
 orous and hearty, and Hon. Hiram Bowen, af- 
 terward founder of the Beacon, and one term 
 Summit County's Representative in the State 
 Legislature, and still an active business man in 
 the State of Kansas, were both employes in 
 the pioneer printing office of Summit County — 
 the Porteige Journal. 
 
 The Ohio Observer. — The second place in 
 which the newspaper found a "local habitation 
 and a name " within the present limits of Sum- 
 mit County was Hudson. January 20, 1827, a 
 religious paper called the Western fntelligencer, 
 was started in Cleveland, edited b}' Harmon 
 Kingsbury, J. G. and D. B. McLain, and Kings- 
 
 I bury, being the publishers. August 31, 1827, 
 I Rev. Randolph Stone became associate editor, 
 and March 19, 1828, sole editor of the paper, 
 i with John (}. McLain as publisher, which ar- 
 rangement continued until the close of 1829, 
 when the publication of the paper was sus- 
 pended. In March, 1830, a new series was 
 commenced in Hudson, with Warren Isham as 
 j editor and proprietor, who at that time changed 
 the name to the Observer and Telegraph. De- 
 1 cember 30, 1830, Lewis Berry, a practical print- 
 er, became a partner with Mr. Isham in the 
 concern, but in April, LS32, Mr. Isham again 
 { became sole proprietor of the paper. 3Iay 10, 
 \ 1832, the name of Rev. James B. Walker ap- 
 [ pears joined with Mr. Isham, but was soon 
 ; afterward dropped, the paper, about this time, 
 j taking the name of the Ohio Observer. Feb- 
 I ruary"26, 1834, R. M. Walker and S. J. Brad- 
 street became the editors and proprietors of the 
 paper. December 11, 1834, Rev. James B. 
 Walker, afterward Pastor of the Congregational 
 Church in Akron, became sole editor and pro- 
 prietor. At the close of 1835 — about which 
 time the paper was temporarily crippled through 
 the breaking of its press, by a few stui'dy blows 
 from a blacksmith's sledge, wielded b}- a prom- 
 inent citizen of Hudson, whose moral character 
 the paper had or was about to call in question 
 — Rev. A. R. Clarke became its editor and pro- 
 prietor, and transferred the paper to Cleveland, 
 uniting it with the Cleveland Journal. Rev. 0. 
 P. Hoyt being associated with Mr. Clarke as 
 editor. November 1, 1838, the paper was dis- 
 continued, but its publication resumed January 
 9, 1839. April 16, 1840, the paper was returned 
 to Hudson, with Prof E. P. Barrows as editor, 
 the pecuniary responsibility for its publication 
 being assumed by an association of gentlemen 
 in Hudson and other portions of the Western 
 Reserve. October 2, 1842, Prof. Henry N. Day 
 became associated with Prof. Barrows as one 
 of the editors. February 14, 1844, the office, 
 press, tj'pes, fixtures, etc., were destroyed by 
 fire, and, for a short time, the paper was printed 
 at Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 After the fire, the association having charge 
 of the publication of the paper, paid up the 
 balance of its indebtedness and withdrew from 
 the concern. The paper then went into the 
 hands of A. TTpson & Co., who published it till 
 January-, 1848, at whicth date it was transferred 
 to W. Skinner & Co.. who, in turn, transferred 
 
 
-rf 9 
 
 280 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 it to Sawyer, IngersoU & Co., in January, 1851, 
 Messrs. Barrows and Day continuing to edit 
 the paper until 1852, tlieir services being per- 
 formed gratuitously, being purely a " labor of 
 love " for mankind in general, and the readers 
 of the Observer in particular. J. S. Sawyer was 
 the editor in 1852, and Rev. John C. Hart in 
 1853. January 11, 1854, the subscription-list 
 of the Family Visitor was transferi'ed to the 
 Observer, which was continued one year longer, 
 under the name of the Ohio Observer and Reg- 
 ister, when, upon the failure of the publishers, 
 the paper ceased to exist. The Observer, dur- 
 ing its many vicissitudes, was always very ably 
 edited. It was a religious, literary and polit- 
 ical (non-partisan) family newspaper, specially 
 representing the interests of the Presbyterian 
 and Congregational Churches, under the old 
 plan of union, and, during the nearly thirty 
 years of its existence, its influence for good 
 among the people of the Western Reserve can- 
 not well be over-estimated. 
 
 The Family Visitor. — Hudson's second news- 
 paper venture was the Family Visitor, com- 
 menced January 3, 1850, also in Cleveland, the 
 names of Prof J. P. Kirtland and 0. H. Knapp, 
 appearing as editors. On May 2, 1850, Mr. 
 Knapp's name was dropped, the paper at that 
 time being published simultaneous!}' in Cleve- 
 land and Hudson. In January, 1852, the paper 
 was wholly transferred to Hudson, and, in the 
 spring of that year. Prof Matthew C. Read be- 
 came its sole editor, continuing to act in that 
 capacity with great acceptance of the patrons 
 and readers of the ever-welcome Visitor until 
 January 11, 185-1, when its subscription list was 
 transferred to the Observer and Register, as be- 
 fore stated. The plan of the publishers and 
 editors of the Visitor was to furnish a fumil}'^ 
 paper — scientific, literarj-, religious and agricult- 
 ural — of a high moral tone, excluding ever}-- 
 thing in au}^ respect objectionable. It had sub- 
 scribers in every State in the Union, who deeply- 
 regretted its discontinuance. It was the first 
 of quite a large class of high-toned papers, which 
 have since become successful ; but, being in ad- 
 vance of the times, had to be given up, because 
 under the disaster-inviting credit system then 
 prevailing among newspaper publishers, and 
 their so-called " patrons," the proprietors could 
 not afford "to labor and to wait" for the future 
 harvest which was surely coming. 
 
 The Hudson Enterprise. — This paper was es- 
 
 tablished as an amateur sheet, in connection 
 with a small job office, in May, 1875, by H. M. 
 McDonald. It was a five-column folio, using 
 '' patent " outsides, the inside of the paper, only, 
 filled with local and general news, advertising, 
 etc., being printed in the office of publication. 
 The Enterprise, which by this time had come to 
 be an indispensable necessity in many of the 
 households of the village and surrounding town- 
 ships, was bought by Mr. J. H. Meek, in July, 
 1876, who in turn sold it to Col. Sullivan D. 
 Harris, the former able editor of the Ohio Cul- 
 tivator, in April, 1877. Col. Harris dying a few 
 weeks after his purchase of the papei", it was 
 bought by its present proprietor, Mr. C. Gr. Guil- 
 ford, who changed it into a five-column quarto, 
 the entire paper now being " set up " and printed 
 at home. The Enterprise, for a purely local 
 journal, is all that its name implies, and is 
 eminently worthy of the increasing prosperity 
 it now enjoys. 
 
 College City Venture. — In July, 1856, Mr. E. 
 F. Chittenden, an old compositor on the Visitor, 
 established a small weekly paper at Hudson, 
 under this title, calling to his assistance as edi- 
 tor, M. C. Read, Esq., but only a few numbers 
 were issued, though while it did live, it was 
 ver}' ably conducted, indeed. 
 
 Hudson Gazette. — In November, 1857, Rev. 
 Alexander Clark, afterward becoming a D. D. 
 and man of note in the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, in Pennsylvania, now deceased, started 
 a small paper at Hudson under the above title. 
 It was devoted to " Commerce, P]ducation, Agri- 
 culture, Arts and News," and was quite ably 
 edited but continued in existence on a few 
 weeks. 
 
 The Ohio Revieio. — The next point, in chro- 
 nological order, to be illumined by the effulgence 
 supposed to emanate from the printing press, 
 was Cuyahoga Falls. Largely through the in- 
 fluence of Judge Joshua Stow — then the owner 
 of a large proportion of the lands of the vil- 
 lage — Horace Canfield and Timothy P. Spencer, 
 a couple of enterprising young printers of Hart- 
 ford, Conn., were induced to remove to Cuya- 
 hoga Falls and open a newspaper and job print- 
 ing office in 1833. After many delays in getting 
 together the necessar}' materials, the first num- 
 ber of the Ohio Revieio was issued b}' Messrs. 
 Canfield & Spencer November 30, 1833. The 
 paper was neatly printed and quite ably con- 
 ducted, and, being neutral in politics, was well- 
 
 vT 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 281 
 
 liked by the people ; but its circulation being 
 necessarily very limited, and the income of the 
 establishment not proving sufficient to meet its 
 current expenses, the Review, after an existence 
 of something over one year, was temporarily- 
 discontinued December 12, 1834, Messrs. Can- 
 field & Spencer removing to Cleveland, and 
 from there, soon afterward, to Medina. The 
 printing office, however, remaining at the Falls, 
 the publication of the Review was soon after- 
 ward resumed b}- " An Association of G-entle- 
 men " — names not given — with Mr. James Low- 
 rev as printer. The exact date of its discon- 
 tinuance we have been unable to ascertain ; but 
 as Mr. Henr}- Wetmore has a number of the 
 fourth volume, dated April 13, 1837, in his pos- 
 session, and as an Akron contemporar}'^ of Ma^' 
 5, 1838, says : " There are four papers now 
 published at Cuyahoga Falls, three of which are 
 castigators, viz., the Renovator, the Young Buz- 
 zard and the Telescope,'' the three papers men- 
 tioned being ephemeral affairs, it is probable 
 that the Review was still in existence at that 
 date, and very likely continued for some 3'ears 
 thereafter. 
 
 The Cuyahoga Falls Reporter. — Tn the year 
 1870, Mr. E. 0. Knox, a practical printer, but 
 with very little money and absolutel}' no jour- 
 nalistic experience, commenced the publication 
 of a handsome nine-column weekl}' paper, un- 
 der the title of the Cuyahoga Falls Reporter. 
 Its outside pages are replete with choice litera- 
 ture, interesting miscellany-, and carefully col- 
 lated foreign and domestic news, its inside col- 
 umns being devoted to local intelligence, ad- 
 vertising, etc. The Reporter is edited with 
 ability, and, in point of newsy sprightliness, is 
 far above the average weekly papers of the 
 State. The Reporter, now well into the eleventh 
 year of its existence, is steadily growing in pub- 
 lic favor and circulation, and is exerting a pow- 
 erful influence in promoting the industrial in- 
 terests of the village, and in maintaining the 
 proverbial reputation of Cuyahoga Falls for in- 
 telligence, morality and thrift. 
 
 The Akron Post was the first paper ever pub- 
 lished in Akron proper. It was a five-column 
 weekly sheet. Democratic in politics, and edited 
 and published by Madison H. White, the mate- 
 rials having been imported from Medina. The 
 press was of the " Ramage " persuasion — a 
 wooden-framed affair, with stone bed, wooden 
 platen and screw power, each form requiring 
 
 two separate " pulls," the distinctness of the 
 impression depending altogether upon the mus- 
 cle and avoirdupois of the pressman, the forms 
 being inked with huge sheep-skin balls, stuffed 
 with cotton, even the glue-and-molasses hand- 
 rollers not being used in this far-off country at 
 that time. The first number of the Post was 
 issued on the 23d day of March, 1836, and the 
 last number on the 15th day of November of 
 the same 3-ear, the duration of its life being a 
 short two-thirds of a 3-ear only. 
 
 The Akron Journal, also Democratic, was the 
 next candidate for the public favor of the good 
 people of Akron. It was of about the same 
 size and general character as the Post, but far 
 more abl}- conducted, its editor and pi'oprietor 
 being our present venerable, well-preserved fel- 
 low-citizen, Judge Constant Br3-au. The first 
 number of the Journal — printed with the same 
 press and types as its predecessor — was issued 
 on the 1st day of December, 1836, and contin- 
 ued until the 15th day of June. 1837, the pe- 
 riod of its existence being six months and two 
 weeks onl3-. 
 
 The American Balance, devoted to the inter- 
 ests of the people of Akron, the State of Ohio 
 and the United States in general, and of the 
 Whig part3' in particular, was stai'ted by Hor- 
 ace K. Smith and Gideon Gr. Galloway on the 
 19th day of August, 1837. The materials were 
 second-hand, mostly procured in Cleveland, the 
 press being the same on which the Ohio Ob- 
 server had formerl3' been printed, and which 
 had been broken by an irate citizen of Hudson 
 a 3-ear or so before, as previousl3- related, a 
 new bed having been made for it at the foundry 
 and machine-shop of Benjamin R. Manchester, 
 then located on the east side of the Ohio Canal, 
 at Lock 7, in North Akron. IMr. Smith, a man 
 of education and a vigorous writer, was the ed- 
 itor of the Balance, while Mr. Galloway, being 
 a practical printer, conducted the mechanical 
 branch of the business. Early in 1838, Hiram 
 Bowen, also a practical printer, as well as a 
 sharp writer, purchased Mr. Galloway's interest 
 in the Balance, and, with the care, labor and 
 talent bestowed upon it, IMessrs. Smith & Bowen 
 ought to have made the American Balance a pe- 
 cuniary success. But, as with its two Democratic 
 predecessors, the fates were against them, the 
 conspiring causes being, first, in the general 
 stringency of the times, making it next to impos- 
 sible for publishers anywhere in Ohio to get in 
 
 n^ 
 
282 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 money enough from subscriptions, advertising, 
 etc., to pay running expenses ; and second, be- 
 cause Akron, being a mere dependency of Por- 
 tage County — tliongli tlien of more commercial 
 importance tlian its county seat — no official 
 patronage could be brouglit to tlie support of 
 any paper outside of Ravenna, wliile, at the 
 same time, for the same reason, the circuU\tion 
 of the local paper was confined almost exclu- 
 sively to the immediate vicinity of its publica- 
 tion. The Balance, therefore, after a precarious 
 existence of just one year, was discontinued on 
 the 9th day of August, 1838, though the job 
 department of the office was still kept running 
 by Messrs. Smith & Bowen. 
 
 The Akron Buzzard was next to play its 
 part upon the local newspaper stage. The his- 
 tory of this curiously-named and somewhat 
 notorious sheet may be briefly stated thus : 
 Its projector was a young house and sign 
 painter by the name of Samuel A. Lane — a 
 Connecticut Yankee — whose shop was in a room 
 adjoining the office of the discontinued Journal. 
 Akron, at that time being a rapidly growing 
 town, and having some eighteen or twenty 
 locks of the "great thoroughfare" — the Ohio 
 Canal — within its corporate limits, had become 
 a convenient stopping-place, and a ftivorite re- 
 sort for divers and sundry- vile characters, pro- 
 fessional gamblers, counterfeiters, confidence 
 men, etc., whose depredations upon the public 
 peace and the public morals, the civil authori- 
 ties were scarcely able to cope with. To aid 
 the officers of the law in ridding the community 
 of these disreputable characters, a number of 
 the young business men of the village in- 
 formally constituted themselves into a Vigi- 
 lance Committee for the purpose of obtaining 
 and imparting information in regard to the op- 
 erations of the gang, and "stirring up the ani- 
 mals" generally, through pointed public discus- 
 sions, scathing newspaper articles, anonymous 
 circulars, etc. Mr. Lane, having obtained some- 
 thing of a smattering of the " Art Preservative," 
 while acting as editor's assistant in the office of 
 a Georgia newspaper a few months in 1834, con- 
 ceived the idea tiiat, by making it a specialt}', 
 he could more efficiently accomplish the object 
 sought, than could be done through the other 
 channels named alone. Accordingly, getting 
 permission from Judge Bryan to use his types 
 and press, Mr. Lane, in the intervals of his 
 regular business, " unaided and alone," wrote 
 
 out, set up, struck off and flung to the breeze 
 the first number of the Akron Buzzard, on the 
 7th day of September, 1838. It was a three- 
 column folio, of 12x17 inches, published semi- 
 monthly at 75 cents a 3'ear, but doubled in size 
 at the end of the first year, and the price raised 
 to !^1. From the favor with which the initial 
 number was received, and not doubting its suc- 
 cess, arrangements were made with Messrs. 
 Smith & Bowen, for its regular semi-monthl}- 
 issue from the office of the American Balance. 
 The editorial noni de guerre assumed by Mr. 
 Lane was "Jedediah Brownbread, Esq., and 
 among his old acquaintances he is, to this day, 
 more commonly saluted b}' the familiar sobri- 
 quet of "Jed" than by his own proper name. 
 The style of composition adopted by the edi- 
 tor was the proverbial Yankee dialect, of which 
 the detestable styles of poor English, bad spel- 
 ling and worse grammar, more recentl}' used 
 by " Josh Billings," " Artemas Ward," " Par- 
 son Nasby " and other so-called humorists, are 
 fair samples. The character of the paper and 
 its object were fully set forth in its " saluta- 
 tory," which, translated into plain English, is 
 as follows : " The Buzzard will be a real jolly, 
 nothing-to-do-with-politics, anti-blackleg paper, 
 devoted to news, popular tales, miscellany, an- 
 ecdotes, satire, poetry, humor, the correction of 
 the public morals, etc. It will strike at the 
 vices of mankind, with an occasional brush at 
 its follies. It will expose crime, whether com- 
 mitted by the great or the small, and applaud 
 virtuous and noble actions, whether performed 
 by the rich or the poor. It will encourage the 
 honest man in well-doing, and make a trans- 
 parency of the breast of the h^'pocrite. In 
 short, it will be to society what the common 
 buzzard is to our Southern cities, viz. : It will 
 pounce upon, and hy its influence, endeavor to 
 reform or remove such loafers as are nuisances 
 in the community, by holding them up to the 
 gaze of a virtuous public." Though literally 
 holding his life in his hand, being often greeted 
 with " threatenings dire," laid in wait for by 
 the "fraternity," and several times severely 
 assaulted, the publisher of the Buzzard fear- 
 lessly stood his ground — meantime conducting 
 his regular business of house and sign paint- 
 ing — for a year and a half, the paper being dis- 
 continued on the 25th of February, 1839, not 
 for want of patronage, for it had more than a 
 local circulation, but because its conductor was 
 
v> 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 283 
 
 about to engage in another branch of business, 
 and because it was believed that the paper had 
 substantially accomplished its mission ; and in 
 closing this item, the writer — the veritable 
 " Jedediah Brownbread " himself — desires to 
 express his firm conviction, that though its 
 methods wei-e not approved by all of even the 
 better class of our people during the period of 
 its publication, that Akron and Summit County 
 are better to-day, morally, socially and pecu- 
 niarily, because of the publication of the Akron 
 Buzzard of 1837, 1838 and 1839, than they 
 otherwise would have been. 
 
 The Pestalozzian. — This was a small, neatly 
 printed monthly quarto, edited and published by 
 Horace K. Smith and S. L. Sawtell, the initial 
 number of which appeared on the 14th day of 
 April, 1838. It was devoted to education, sci- 
 ence, literature, etc., and though ably conducted 
 — both of the editors being men of talent and 
 culture — being in advance of the times, it was 
 not dul}' appreciated, and succumbed to the in- 
 evitable on the 30th day of September, 1838, 
 after a non-paying existence of less than half a 
 year. 
 
 The Ohian and Neio Era — During a portion 
 of the year 1838, Mr. Jonathan F. Fenn, one of 
 Akron's earliest merchants and manufacturers, 
 published a small folio sheet, devoted to free 
 banking. Though conducted with considerable 
 ability, and though a financial organ, it was not 
 a financial success, and had an existence of a 
 few months only. 
 
 The Glad Tidings and Ladies Universalist 
 Magazine. — This was a neatly printed eight- 
 page paper, published in Akron during the 
 years 1838, 1839 and 1840. It was edited and 
 published b}' Revs. S. A. Davis, N. Doolittle and 
 J, Whitney. It was a spirited exponent of the 
 doctrine of universal salvation, and was ver}^ 
 ably edited indeed. With the close of 1840, 
 the paper was removed to Cincinnati, where, 
 under the name of the Star in the West, it has 
 for the past forty years " fought a good fight " 
 in the interests of the denomination, by whom 
 its pioneer file-leader, the Glad Tidings, was 
 originally founded in Akron, being discon- 
 tinued only a few months ago, for reasons to the 
 writer unknown. 
 
 The Summit Beacon. — This paper, the legiti- 
 mate successor of the American Balance, was 
 started on the 11th day of April, 1839, by 
 Hiram Bowen, Esq., on a pledge of adequate 
 
 support from the business men of Akron, and 
 leading members of the Whig party within the 
 limits of the prospective new county then about 
 to be erected. Like most of the weekly papers 
 of that early day, the Beacon had a hard strug- 
 gle for existence for several years, but finally, 
 as the official organ of the new county, and 
 through the pluck and energy of its founder, 
 its success became assured, and though its 
 office of publication and total contents have 
 three times been consumed by fire, the paper, 
 for the full forty-two years of its existence, has 
 never missed an issue, though sometimes tem- 
 porarily diminished in size while recovering 
 from its several disasters, and now sturdily 
 stands, where it has ever stood, in the front rank 
 of the weekly papers of Ohio. In or about the 
 year 1845, Mr. Bowen sold the paper to Laurin 
 Dewe}^, Esq. (formerly editor of the Oliio Star, 
 at Ravenna, and Sheriff of Portage County ; 
 afterward Warden of the Ohio Penitentiary, and 
 more recently a prominent politician and a 
 member of the Legislature of Iowa, now de- 
 ceased), and his brother-in-law, Mr. Richard S. 
 Elkins, then a member of the book and drug 
 firm of Beebe & Elkins, and afterward Post- 
 master of Akron for eight years, under the ad- 
 ministration of Abraham Lincoln and Andrew 
 Johnson, Mr. E. now residing on a farm near 
 Ravenna, in the adjoining county of Portage. 
 On the 9th day of June. 1848, the office was 
 destroyed by fire, but immediately re-estab- 
 lished, and later in that year, Messrs. Dewey & 
 Elkins sold the paper to John Teesdale, Esq., 
 formerly editor of the Ohio State Journal, and 
 since the State Printer for Iowa. Mr. Teesdale 
 soon afterward formed a partnership with 
 Messrs. Beebe & Elkins, uniting the printing 
 with the book and drug business, under the firm 
 name of Elkins, Teesdale & Co., Mr. Teesdale 
 being the sole editor of the paper. He was a 
 graceful, but incisive writer, and under his man- 
 agement, the Beacon, becoming with the change 
 of parties in 1854-55, the organ of the Repub- 
 lican party, attained a high degree of popularity. 
 Mr. Teesdale sold his interest to his copartners, 
 Messrs. Beebe & Elkins, February 27, 1856, con- 
 tinuing, however, to act as editor until May 1, 
 of that year, when James S. Carpenter, Esq., 
 became sole editor of the paper. Under the able 
 editorial management of Mr. Carpenter, the 
 high reputation of the Beacon, as voicing the 
 advanced sentiment of the Republican party of 
 
 f* 
 
9 w 
 
 284 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 the Western Reserve, was fully maintained. On 
 his accession to the bench of the Court of Com- 
 mon Pleas of Summit, Medina and Lorain Coun- 
 ties, Judge Carpenter, on the 22d day of Octo- 
 ber, 185C, vacated the editorial chair in favor of 
 Hon. Asahel H. Lewis, a former State Senator 
 for Summit and Portage Counties, a thorough 
 scholar and a pungent writer, the name of Mr. 
 R. S. Elkins. one of the publishers, also at this 
 time appearing as associate editor. On the 29th 
 day of September, 1856, the office, together with 
 the book and drug store of its proprietors, was 
 again destroyed bj- fire, but. Phoenix-like, it once 
 more speedil}' arose from its ashes in a far more 
 attractive form than ever before. The editorial 
 connection of Mr. Lewis with the Beacon contin- 
 ued untilJanuary 10, 1861, when he was super- 
 seded by Mr. Samuel A. Lane, then just retiring 
 from four years of service as Sheriff of Summit 
 County. Mr. Lane, during the war, did the sole 
 editorial work of the paper, giving especial atten- 
 tion to army correspondence, and of both city 
 and county local news, the weekly circulation 
 increasing during four years of the war, from 
 1,300 or 1,400 "to about 2,500 copies. In 
 January, 1865. Mr. Lane, who had hitherto 
 been working on a salar}-, bought of Messrs. 
 Beebe & P]lkins, a one-third interest in the 
 Beacon, another third being bought by Mr. Hor- 
 ace G. Canfield, a practical printer and foreman 
 of the office, the firm name being changed to 
 Elkins, Lane & Co. Two years later, January, 
 1867, the remaining one-third interest of Beebe 
 & Elkins was purchased by Albertus L. Paine 
 and Denis J. Long, former apprentices in the 
 office, the Siimniif Count)/ Jour n(d {noticed else- 
 where) pul)lished by them being merged in the 
 Beacon, the firm name adopted being Lane, 
 Canfield & Co. Mr. Lane continued to act as 
 sole editor of the paper until the winter of 1868 
 -69, when Mr. Thomas C. Raynolds, an Akron 
 boy, freshly graduated from Michigan Univer- 
 sity, but with decided journalistic proclivities, 
 was employed as assistant editor and local re- 
 porter. In 1867, the strictly advance pay sys- 
 tem was adopted and rigidly enforced, a feat 
 that but few of the weekly papers of the coun- 
 try had at that time dared to attempt, a feature 
 highly advantageous to both the publishers of 
 the paper and its subscribers. 
 
 The Akron Daily Beacon. — In the meantime, 
 Akron had grown from a village of 3,000 inhab- 
 itants in 1860, to a city of 10,000 in 1869, with 
 
 an augmented commercial and manufacturing- 
 business to match, creating a demand for some- 
 thing faster than a weekly paper ; and on the 
 6th day of December, 1 869, the first number of 
 the Akron Daily Beacon, a seven-column folio, 
 was issued, Mr. Lane, as chief, and Mr. Ray- 
 nolds, as assistant, doing the entire editorial 
 and reportorial work. Though quite a large 
 advertising patronage was at once accorded to 
 the dail}^ b}- the liberal-minded business men 
 of Akron, its average daily circulation the first 
 year was onU^ about six hundred. Gradually, 
 however, the people have come to appreciate 
 its worth as a gatherer and disseminator of 
 local as well as fresh general news, and its 
 average dailv circulation is now (April, 1881) a 
 little over 2,200. In June, 1870, Mr. Raynolds 
 severed his connection with the paper, Carson 
 Lake, then a compositor in the office, taking his 
 place, and for several weeks during the summer 
 and fall of that year, during the illness and ab- 
 sence of Mr. Lane from the office, performing the 
 entire editorial and reportorial work upon the 
 paper. In December, 1871, the establishment 
 was transferred to the Beacon Publishing Com- 
 pany, Messrs. Canfield and Paine retiring, jMessrs. 
 Lane and Long holding their respective one- 
 third and one-sixth shares, as stock in the new 
 corporation, Mr. Lane being elected business 
 manager, and Mr. Long continuing to act as 
 superintendent of the news department, Mr 
 Raynolds being recalled and placed in charge of 
 the editorial department of the paper, in which 
 capacity, with the exception of one year's inter- 
 regnum, he has ever since acted, with Mr. Wilson 
 M. Day as his able and faithful associate. In the 
 meantime, the business of the concern had as- 
 sumed such large proportions, that the four- 
 story 22x60-foot building then occupied was 
 found to be too straitened for the purposes of 
 the company, and in March, 1872, the owner of 
 the building commenced work upon a 60-foot 
 addition in the rear. Before the walls were 
 completed, however, the entire concern was 
 again destroyed by fire on the 27th day of 
 April, 1872. Temporary quarters were pro- 
 cured, and new material ordered by telegraph 
 and express, so that on the fourth day after the 
 fire its regular issue on its own new type was 
 resumed, a smaller sheet being furnished to its 
 subscribers during the intervening three days, 
 through the courtesy of the publishers of the 
 Akron City Times. The burned building was 
 
 "^- 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 285 
 
 re-erected on the enlarged plan, considerably 
 improved, being 22x117 feet, three-stories high, 
 exclusive of the basement on Howard street, 
 and five stories on Canal street, with stone 
 front, large plate-glass windows, with steam 
 elevator running from the basement to the up- 
 per floor, and steam heating apparatus through- 
 out the entire building, the enlarged structure 
 being fitted up with strictly first-class fixtures, 
 machiner}' and materials from top to bottom. 
 By reason of the heavy loss occasioned by the 
 the fire (fully one-half of its $25,000 capital 
 stock) and the closely following financial and 
 commercial revulsion of 1873, the aflfairs of 
 the company became so seriously embarrassed 
 that, in January, 1875, the entire stock was 
 sacrificed, and the concern, with its machinery, 
 news and job printing materials, book-binding 
 apparatus, stationery stock, good-will, etc., was 
 transferred to Messrs Thomas C. Raynolds, 
 Frank J. Staral and John H. Auble, in consid- 
 eration of their assuming and paying its liabili- 
 ties, enough of the old stock-holders nominally 
 retaining sufficient stock to keep the corporate 
 organization of the company intact. About 
 two years later, Mr. Auble withdrew, leaving 
 Messrs. Raynolds and Staral sole proprietors, 
 under whose auspices the Beacon establish- 
 ment, in all its departments, is at this writing 
 (April, 1881) enjoying a high degree of pros- 
 perity. It would be interesting to minutely 
 trace its growth from a few fonts of second-hand 
 type, a patched-up, medium-sized hand press, 
 with a single journeyman printer, and the pro- 
 verbial printer's " devil," as its entire operative 
 force, to its present magnificent appointments, 
 but space will not permit. Suffice it to say 
 that, besides its full complement of news, job, 
 and book-binding materials, its machinery, run 
 by a finely-built eight-horse power steam en- 
 gine, consists of one mammoth four-roller Pot- 
 ter cylinder job pi'ess, with 82x50 inch bed ; 
 one two-roller Potter cylinder job and news 
 press, with 31x46-inch bed ; one two-roller 
 Potter job press, with 21x27-inch bed ; one 
 No. 1 improved Campbell jobber ; one quarto 
 Imperial jobber, and one eighth-medium Gor- 
 don card and circular press ; two large paper 
 cutters, besides a large-sized Wells hand press, 
 proof presses, card cutters, etc. ; the total oper- 
 ative force of the establishment at this writing 
 being forty-six, though at some seasons of the 
 year from fifteen to twenty more hands are 
 
 needed in the job and binding departments. 
 The Beacon, therefore, may well be considered 
 one of the permanent institutions of Summit 
 County, and taken all in all, is one of the most 
 complete establishments of its kind in the State. 
 
 The American Democrat. — On the 10th day 
 of August, 1842, Mr. Horace Canfield issued, 
 in Akron, the first number of the American 
 Democrat. With some slight changes of name, 
 the paper — being at one time under the edi- 
 torial control of Lyman W. Hall, Esq., of Ra- 
 venna, for one year, as a Free-Soil paper — 
 finally settling down into the Democratic Stand- 
 ard, was continued under that name until the 
 death of Mr. Canfield, December 29, 1853, and 
 for a short time thereafter by his two sons, 
 Thomas and Horace G. Canfield. The office 
 was afterward sold to Mr. H. P. Abel, and the 
 paper re-established, Mr. Abel, in the spring of 
 1855, also issuing a small daily. The venture, 
 however, was non-successful, Mr. Abel being 
 obliged, soon after, to discontinue both daily 
 and weekly. In the winter of 1855-56, the office 
 was purchased by Mr. W. D. Bien, and the 
 paper re-established under the name of the 
 Siumnit Democrat, afterward, in the winter of 
 1859-60, passing into the hands of Mr. J. 
 Hays Webb, who continued its publication 
 here until just before the Presidential election 
 of 1860, when the office was removed to Can- 
 ton, where, under the name of the True Demo- 
 crat, it was run until the spring of 1861. Mr. 
 Webb, on returning to Akron, changed its 
 name to the Summit Union, continuing its 
 publication here until the close of the Val- 
 landigham-Brough Gubernatorial campaign, 
 in the fall of 1863, when the paper was discon- 
 tinued and the office taken to Ravenna. 
 
 The Cascade Roarer. — After a peaceful slum- 
 ber of five years, the Akron Buzzard was re- 
 vived as a Temperance paper, March 15, 18-4-I, by 
 its former proprietor, Mr. Samuel A. Lane, and 
 Mr. William T. Coggeshall, afterward the author 
 of a number of finely-written and intensely in- 
 teresting literary works ; State Librarian under 
 Govs. Chase and Dennison, from 1856 to 1862 ; 
 and Minister to Ecuador, South America, in 
 1866, dying of consumption at Quito, in the 
 summer of 1857. The name of the paper was 
 changed to the Cascade Roarer — a five-column 
 weekly — which had a successful run of about 
 two years, when Mr. Lane disposed of his inter- 
 est to Mr. James Drew, the new firm, in the in- 
 
.^ 
 
 286 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 terest of Labor as well as Temperance reform, 
 changing the title of the paper to the Teetotal 
 Mechanic. Its publication here was continued 
 until September 24, 1846, when it was removed 
 to Cleveland and merged in the Ohio Temper- 
 ance Artisan, which, after a few months' sickly 
 existence, was finally discontinued. 
 
 TIte Summit County Journal. — In September, 
 1865, Messrs. Albertus L. Paine and Denis J. 
 Long, two practical printers, who had learned 
 their trade in the office of the Summit County 
 Beacon., on their discharge from the army, in 
 which they had faithfully served during the 
 war, started a new Republican weekl}' paper 
 under the above title, with Judge James S. Car- 
 penter as its editor. The Journal was neatlj^ 
 printed, ably edited, and reasonably successful, 
 but, on the accession of Messrs. Paine and Long 
 to a one-third ownership in the Beacon, the 
 Journal was discontinued, and the subscrip- 
 tion-list, good-will, etc., merged with those of 
 the Beacon, in January, 1867. 
 
 The Akron City Times.— On the 20th day of 
 January, 1867, Mr. J. C Loveland started a 
 new Democratic paper in Akron, a nine-column 
 weekly, entitled the Akron City Times. Mr. 
 Loveland's administration not proving very 
 satisfactory, to either the party upon whom he 
 mainly depended for support or the people of 
 Summit County, the office was transferred to 
 Mr. George C. Grain, in August, 1867. On the 
 28th day of April, 1868, Mr. Crain was suc- 
 ceeded by R. S. Bean & Co., who in turn trans- 
 ferred the concern to S. L. Everett & Son, in 
 October of the same year. On the death of 
 the senior Mr. Everett, some two or three years 
 later, the entire management of the paper de- 
 volved upon the son, Sebastian L. Everett — 
 more generally known by the familiar sobri- 
 quet of '' Don " — who successfully continued 
 its publication until 1873, when it was trans- 
 ferred to its present genial proprietor, Mr. 
 Richard H. Knight, under whose management, 
 with his son, Mr. Clarence R. Knight, as editor, 
 it is enjoying a high degree of prosperity, and 
 has evidentl}' become one of the fixed and per- 
 manent institutions of the city and count}^, 
 being printed on a cylinder power press, run 
 b}- steam, and having a well-stocked and liber- 
 ally patronized job printing office attached. 
 
 Tlie Akron Germania. — This is an independ- 
 ent weekly paper, published, as its name im- 
 plies, in the interests of the German-speaking 
 
 portion of our population. It was founded in 
 the. fall of 1868, by Mr. H. Gentz, Prof. C. F. 
 Kolbe succeeding to the proprietorship early 
 in the following year. September, 1872, the 
 paper was transferred to the Akron Paper and 
 Printing Company, and early in 1873, was 
 transferred to the Germania Company, with Mr. 
 Stephen Ginther as business manager, and Mr. 
 Paul E. Werner as editor. In October, 1875, 
 Mr. Werner bought and continued to edit the 
 same until 1878, when other duties claiming 
 his entire attention, Mr. Louis Seybold was em- 
 ployed as editor, which position he still ably 
 and efficiently maintains. The paper is now 
 owned by the Germania Printing Company, 
 formed in November, 1880, with Mr. Paul E. 
 Werner as business manager, and commanding 
 a good healthy circulation and a liberal adver- 
 tising patronage. The business and mechan- 
 ical departments of the Germania Printing Com- 
 pany are most complete, and, besides having a 
 full supply of the newest styles of job and fancy 
 type and other material, it has six powei*- 
 presses run by steam in constant operation, viz. : 
 a Cottrell & Babcock cylinder, with 33x46-inch 
 bed; a Cotti-ell & Babcock, air spring, with 
 25x38-inch bed ; a Potter Pony ; a quarter and 
 an eighth medium Liberty jobbers, and a 
 " Model " card press. There is also a book 
 bindery connected with the establishment, 
 which, in all its departments, is at this date 
 (April, 1881), in a highl}^ prosperous condi- 
 tion, with a regular operative force of tweut}'- 
 five hands, and occasionally demands from ten 
 to fifteen additional. 
 
 The Akron Daily Argus. — In March, 1874, the 
 Akron Daily Argus was commenced by H. G. 
 Canfleld & Co., with Elder John F. Rowe as 
 editor, a semi-weekly edition also being issued 
 by the same firm. It was an independent pa- 
 per and ably edited. The paper passing into 
 possession of the Argus Printing Company, sub- 
 sequently formed, was, in September, 1874, by 
 a majority vote of the stockholders, changed 
 into a Democratic paper under the editorial 
 management of Sebastian L. Everett — " Don " 
 — formerly of the City Times. March 20, 1875, 
 the concern passed into the hands of Elder John 
 F. Rowe, former editor, and his brother, Frank 
 M. Rowe, a practical printer, who under the firm 
 name of Rowe Brothers, again changed its 
 character from a political to an independent 
 paper. It was continued b}' Rowe Brothers 
 
 "a) "V 
 
^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 287 
 
 until December 25, 1876, when the establish- 
 ment was purchased by Mr. Carson Lake, un- 
 der whose business and editorial management it 
 was continued as a Democratic paper until July 
 1, 1879, at which date the otfice and fixtures 
 were bought by Messrs. Paul E. Werner and B. 
 F. Nelson, by whom the Argus was discontinued. 
 The Siindai/ Gazette. — This is a six-column 
 quarto, devoted to the general and local news 
 of the week, literature, miscellanj', religious in- 
 telligence, etc. It was started in December, 
 
 1878, by Mr. Paul K. Werner, as publisher, 
 and Prof. Carl F. Kolbe as editor. It was con- 
 solidated with the Weekly and Daily Tribune, 
 on the establishment of those papers, July 26, 
 
 1879, the name being changed to Sunday Trib- 
 une, but, after two or three issues, again 
 changed to Sunday Gazette, which name it still 
 bears. On the dissolution of the firm of Wer- 
 ner & Nelson, and the discontinuance of the 
 Tribune, on the 2d da}' of Februarj^, 1880, the 
 Gazette was continued by Mr. Paul E. Werner, 
 in connection with the German ia,\xwi\\ Septem- 
 ber 25. 1880, when it was sold to Mr. Carson 
 Lake, under whose management it is rapidl}' 
 increasing in circulation and popularity. 
 
 The Akron Commercial. — This is a nine col- 
 umn month!}', devoted largely, as its name im- 
 ports, to advertising and commercial matters, 
 but furnishing with each issue a large amount 
 of interesting miscellany, with a monthly spicy 
 editorial melange of local and general gossip. 
 It is published and edited b}' Josiah Jackson 
 Wright (commonly and for short called " Jack 
 Wright " ) formerly for many years the efficient 
 City Marshal of Akron. It was commenced in 
 the spring of 1874, and is still vigorous and 
 hearty, and apparent!}' one of the fixed news- 
 paporial stars of Akron and of Summit County. 
 
 The Akron Daily Tribune. — This paper, a 
 seven-column folio, was started on the 26th day 
 of July, 1879, by Paul p]. Werner and Benja- 
 min F. Nelson, who also issued a weekly edi- 
 tion in connection therewith. It was Demo- 
 cratic in politics, and ably conducted, under the 
 editorial management of Mr. Nelson, but, by 
 reason of having another longer-established 
 Democratic organ, the City Times, and the 
 firmly planted Daily Beacon, to compete with, 
 and from other causes, the enterprise was found 
 to be unremunerative, and both the Daily and 
 Weekly Tribune were discontinued on the 2d 
 day of February, 1880. 
 
 The Advance. — A daily paper under the above 
 title, as an organ of the National Greenback 
 Labor party, was started in Cleveland June 6, 
 1877, by Robert Schilling, a weekly edition also 
 being issued. In May, 1880, the daily was dis- 
 continued, and the weekly was transferred to 
 Salem, Columbiana County, an Akron edition 
 also being published, and mailed direct from 
 the ofiflce in Salem to its subscribers in Akron. 
 August 4, 1880, Mr. John P. Burns assumed 
 the business and editorial control of the Advance, 
 and January 1, 1881, removed the oflice to Ak- 
 ron. It is a five-column quarto, edited with 
 ability ; bids fair to become one of the perma- 
 nent periodicals of Summit County. 
 
 A large number of other periodicals have 
 from time to time been published in Akron 
 during the half-century we have passed over, 
 that we have no space to notice in detail, even 
 if we could recall them all to mind. Among 
 them were the Rose of the Valley, a literary 
 monthly, by Allison & Marriner ; Akron Offer- 
 *";^j by Callista Cummings ; the True Kindred, 
 by a Mrs. Sanford ; the Flail, a Democratic 
 campaign paper, by L. L. Howard, in 1840 ; 
 the Flower of the West, by Allison &, Rumrix, 
 in 1840 ; the Free-Soil Platform, a campaign 
 paper in 1848, by Hiram Bowen ; the Sentinel 
 of Liberty, a campaign paper, in 1855, by an 
 association of " Young Republicans ; " the Wide 
 Awake, a Republican campaign paper, in 1860, 
 by D. C. Carr, S. A. Lane and others ; the 
 Summitonian, a literary monthly, by H. Gr. 
 Canfield & Co., in 1873 ; the Beacon Magazine, 
 a literary monthly, in 1873, by the Beacon Pub- 
 lishing Co., as a premium to subscribers to the 
 Weekly Beacon ; and others remembered by 
 name only, such as the Casket, the Sockdola- 
 ger, the Whip, the School- Mistress, the Sunny 
 Side, the Church Journal, etc. 
 
 It will thus be seen that Summit County, if 
 not the very center of the newspaper universe, 
 has been untiring in its eflforts to become such. 
 There is no room and no need for comments, 
 except, perhaps, to add that while compara- 
 tively few of these ventures have proved re- 
 munerative to those who have made them, their 
 influence for good upon the community admits 
 of not a doubt. For where would Summit 
 County have been to-day but for its newspa- 
 pers, in advertising to the world its manifold 
 advantages ; in their advocacy of canals, rail- 
 roads and other public improvements ; in their 
 
 ■fv 
 
^ 
 
 288 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY, 
 
 encouragement to manufactures, and in the in- 
 numerable ways in wtiich the liberal use of 
 printer's ink benefits both individuals and com- 
 munities. 
 
 Railroads* — The railwa}' — wholl}' unknown 
 to the commercial world three-fourths of a cen- 
 tury ago — has become the greatest single factor 
 in the development of the material and social 
 progress, not onl}' of the United States and of 
 the other civilized nations of the earth, but its 
 inestimable blessings are being rapidly extended 
 into the hitherto semi-civilized and barbarous 
 portions of the globe. Though some rude tram- 
 wa3-s had previously been used in the mining 
 regions of England, the first attempt at railroad 
 building in the United States was in 1807 — a 
 line of a few hundred j'ards in length — for trans- 
 porting gravel from the top of Beacon Hill down 
 into Charles street, in the city of Boston, the 
 rails being entirel}^ of wood, and the propelling 
 power the momentum of the loaded cars, which, 
 in descending, b}' means of a rope attachment, 
 pulled the empty cars up, a double track, of 
 course, being uecessar}^ to the proper working 
 of the road. As late as 1827, the then longest 
 railroad in the United States was from the 
 Mauch Chunk coal mines to the Lehigh River, 
 in Pennsylvania, a distance of nine miles. The 
 loaded cars were run from the mines to the 
 river by their own gi-avity, and, on being emptied, 
 were drawn back to the mines b}- mules. From 
 this time on, the American people became deeply 
 interested in railroad enterprises, and, from 
 1827 to 1830, several short lines, run by horse- 
 power, were constructed, the first locomotive, 
 propelled by steam, to turn a wheel upon the 
 American continent, being a clumsy, uncouth 
 importation from England, called the " Stour- 
 bridge Lion," lauded in New York in 1829. So 
 slow, however, was the development, that in the 
 winter of 1833-34, it was the privilege of the 
 writer, then a mere boy, to ride over the then 
 longest railroad in the world, running from 
 Charleston, S. C, to Augusta, Ga., a distance of 
 130 miles, onh' ; the first hundred miles weSt 
 from Charleston being performed by steam- 
 power, the last thirty miles by negro-power, 
 owing to a sharp incline that the modern engine 
 driver would laugh at, the supposition being 
 that a stationary engine, with the proper hoist- 
 ing apparatus only, could overcome so heavy 
 a grade. The first locomotive ever built in 
 
 * Written by Samuel A. Lane. 
 
 America, called the " Best Friend," was used 
 upon this road during its construction. It was 
 built at the " West Point Foundry Shops," in 
 New York, and forwarded to Charleston by ship 
 Niagara, in October, 1830. The first trial trip 
 w^as made on a small portion of the road out of 
 Charleston, November 2, 1830, running, accord- 
 ing to the report of the excursion in the Charles- 
 ton Courier^ as " on the wings of the wind, at 
 the varied speed of fifteen to twenty miles an 
 hour ; annihilating time and space, and, like the 
 renowned John Grilpin, ' leaving all the world 
 behind.' " The '• Best Friend " was daily in 
 service, transporting workmen and materials 
 used in the construction of the road, until the 
 17th day of June, 1831, when it became disabled 
 by a singular accident, and the road was with- 
 out a locomotive for several months. Of this 
 disaster to the " Best Friend," the Charleston 
 Courier of June 18, 1831, gave the follow- 
 ing account : " The locomotive, ' Best Friend." 
 started yesterday morning to meet the lumber 
 cars at the forks of the road, and while turning 
 on the revolving platform, the steam was suf- 
 fered to accumulate by the negligence of the 
 fireman, a negro, who, pressing on the safety- 
 valve, prevented the surplus steam from escap- 
 ing, b}^ which means the boiler burst at the 
 bottom, was forced inward, and injured Mr. 
 Darrell, the engineer, and two negroes. The 
 one had his thigh broken, and the other received 
 a severe cut in the face, and a slight one in the 
 flesh part of the breast. Mr. Darrell was scalded 
 from the shoulder-blade down his back. The 
 boiler was thrown to the distance of twenty-five 
 feet. * * * The accident occurred in 
 consequence of the negro holding down the 
 safety-valve, while Mr. Darrell was assisting to 
 arrange the lumber cars." It will seem strange, 
 to the trained railroad operator of the present 
 day, that such an accident, from such a cause, 
 could have been possible ; but it must be re- 
 membered that the engineer, himself almost 
 wholly unskilled in locomotive driving, had to 
 perform all the functions of conductor, brake- 
 man, etc., in addition to his own proper duties, 
 his only help being such as above indicated, com- 
 mon unskilled laborers, unable to distinguish 
 between the lever of a safet^^-valve and the crank 
 of a grindstone. But without further tracing 
 the growth of the railroad system of the United 
 States, now forming a perfect net-work of iron 
 and steel in every portion of the country, on 
 
 V 
 
'^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 289 
 
 which daily and nightly and continuously run 
 thousands of locomotives, and tens of thousands 
 of freight and passenger cars, loaded with thou- 
 sands of tons of the products of the country, with 
 valuable merchandise from every part of the 
 world, and with tens of thousands of precious 
 human beings, dashing with lightning speed 
 from city to city, and from State to State, from 
 the Atlantic to the Pacific, and from the Lakes 
 to the Gulf, representing a capital of at least 
 $5,000,000,000, we will proceed at once to the 
 subject matter of this chapter — " The Railroads 
 of Summit County." The earliest freight and 
 passenger railroad project, to include an}' por- 
 tion of the territory now embraced in Summit 
 County in its route, was the 
 
 Cleveland & Pittsburgh Railroad. — A char- 
 ter was granted for this road by the Legislature 
 of Ohio, on the 14th day of March, 1836. 
 Work upon the road not being commenced 
 within the three years designated in the law, 
 the charter became dormant, and remained so 
 for six years, when, b}' an act passed March 11, 
 1845 — just nine years after the granting of the 
 original charter— the project was revived and 
 the charter amended. The promoters of the en- 
 terprise, though the times were hard and money 
 scarce, prosecuted the work as I'apidly as sim- 
 ilar enterprises were then built, though verj' 
 slowly in comparison with more modern rail- 
 road operations, the road not being completed 
 on the Cleveland end as far as Hudson, even, 
 until the latter part of the winter of 1851-52. 
 The road enters Summit County on the east, 
 near the southeast corner of the township of 
 Hudson, and running in a northwesterly' di- 
 rection, passes through the village of Hudson, 
 a small portion of the southwest corner of 
 Twinsburg, and through the village of Mace- 
 donia, in the eastern portion of Northfield 
 Township, and thence through Bedford and 
 Newburg, in Cuyahoga County, to Cleveland. 
 From the very beginning, the Cleveland & 
 Pittsburgh has been under an able and efficient 
 management, and has never experienced any of 
 those reverses and drawbacks so common to 
 railroad corporations in their earlier daj's, and 
 so disastrous and unprofitable to the original 
 stockholders and builders. 
 
 Akron (tr Canton Railroad. — The second 
 railroad enterprise to engage the attention of 
 the people of Summit County, was the Akron 
 & Canton Railroad, incorporated b}' act of the 
 
 Legislature February 21, 1845. Its capital 
 stock was $200,000, to be divided into shares 
 of $25 each ; but, by the provisions of the 
 charter, it was not to commence operations 
 till $100,000 was subscribed, the company 
 being prohibited from contracting debts or lia- 
 bilities to an amount greater than the stock 
 subscribed and held by responsible parties and 
 remaining unexpended, together with its means 
 on hand and that which might reasonably be 
 expected to accrue within three years from the 
 time of the making of the contract. The 
 company was also authorized to extend its 
 road to some point on the Ohio River, if deemed 
 advisable, and to increase its capital to an 
 amount sufficient for that object. This charter, 
 both liberal and illiberal in its provisions, was, 
 through the stringency of the times and the 
 indiflS'erence of the people along the route, per- 
 mitted to lapse before anything definite was 
 accomplished, and the Aki'on & Canton Rail- 
 road, proper, was never built except on paper. 
 
 Akron Branch Railroad. — The approaching 
 completion of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh road 
 through one corner of Summit County, its near- 
 est approach to the county seat being some fif- 
 teen miles, aroused our people to the importance 
 of having more direct and rapid communica- 
 tion with the outer world than canals and mud 
 roads afforded. Accordingly', a number of the 
 enterprising citizens of Akron, Hudson and 
 Cu3'ahoga Falls — one of the most active among 
 them being Col. Simon Perkins, of Akron — 
 took the matter in hand, and, in conjunction 
 with the officers of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh 
 Railroad, obtained an amendment to its char- 
 ter, by an act passed February 19, 1851, author- 
 izing the construction, under said charter, of ''a 
 branch railroad from some convenient point on 
 the Cleveland & Pittsburgh Railroad, in Hud- 
 son, Summit County, thi'ough Cuyahoga Falls 
 and Akron to Wooster, or some other point on 
 the Ohio & Penns3'lvania Railroad, between 
 Massillon and Wooster, and to connect with the 
 said Ohio & Pennsylvania Railroad, or any 
 other railroad running in the direction of Co- 
 lumbus," and increasing the capital stock of the 
 Cleveland & Pittsburgh Company $1,000,000. 
 
 The bill also stipulated that the subscriliers 
 to the stock of this branch road might form a 
 separate organization under the name of '' The 
 Akron Branch of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh 
 Railroad Company, entitled to all the privileges 
 
 
290 
 
 HISTORY OF .SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 and subject to all the restrictions and liabili- 
 ties granted or imposed by the original charter 
 and amendments thereto." 
 
 In the meantime, a raih-oad had been char- 
 tered to run from Cleveland to Zanesville, b}' 
 the way of Medina, Wooster, Millersburg, etc. 
 This, our people at once saw, or thought, would, 
 if completed, leave Summit County " out in 
 the cold," at least, for many years, for railroad 
 enterprises were not then as readily promoted 
 as in later years. A delegation of the " Branch," 
 headed b}- Col. Perkins, accordingl}- visited 
 Wooster to endeavor to get them to make a 
 diversion of their road from that point via 
 Doylestown, Wadsworth, Akron and Cuj'ahoga 
 Falls to Hudson, instead of going direct through 
 to Cleveland, as contemplated. To these over- 
 tures, however, the Woosterites turned a deaf 
 ear, and " The Cleveland, Wooster & Zanes- 
 ville Railroad " was never built. The failure 
 of the Akron Branch to thus " pool " its inter- 
 ests with the Wooster project was truly a god- 
 send to the people of Summit County, as the 
 present more convenient railroad system of the 
 county most clearly demonstrates. 
 
 The organization of " The Akron Branch 
 Railroad" was effected March 11, 1851, with 
 Simon Perkins, Milton W. Henry and John W. 
 McMillen, of Akron ; Horace A. Miller, of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls ; James Butler and Henry N. Day, 
 of Hudson, and John Carey, of Millersburg, 
 as Directors. Simon Perkins was elected Presi- 
 dent ; Henry N. Day, Secretary, and John W. 
 McMillen. Treasurer. George Robinson was 
 appointed Chief Engineer, and Isaiah Linton, 
 Assistant Engineer, by whom the original sur- 
 vey and estimates from Hudson to Akron were 
 made. Messrs. Robinson and Linton subse- 
 quently withdrawing from the road, their places 
 were filled b}' W. H. Gi'ant, of the Hudson 
 River Railroad, as Chief Engineer, and M. W. 
 Kellogg, as Assistant. The contracts were 
 awarded June 20, 1851, and the work com- 
 menced immediately thereafter. 
 
 As the project was one which it was believed | 
 would largely benefit every property owner in 
 the county, in addition to the amount raised 
 along the line of the road by voluntar}' stock 
 subscriptions, a special law was passed bv the 
 Legislature on the 24th da}' of March, 1851, 
 authorizing and requiring the County Commis- 
 sioners, with the consent of the legal voters of 
 the county, to subscribe to the capital stock of 
 
 said company "any sum not exceeding $100,- 
 000, and to borrow the necessary amount of 
 money for the payment of such stock subscrip- 
 tion, bonds for tlie amount so subscribed to be 
 issued in sums of not less than $100 each, bear- 
 ing interest a rate not exceeding 7 per cent, 
 pa3able annually, or semi-annually, redeemable 
 at such time as may be deemed expedient," 
 etc. This proposition was voted on at the 
 special election for the adoption of the New 
 Constitution of Ohio, June 21, 1851, the vote 
 " for subscription " and " against subscription," 
 in the several townships of the count}', being 
 as follows : 
 
 For 
 Siibscripti n. 
 
 Bath 78 
 
 Boston 40 
 
 Copley 160 
 
 Coventry 104 
 
 Cuyahoga Falls 275 
 
 Franklin 95 
 
 Green 69 
 
 Hudson 258 
 
 Middlebury 56 
 
 Northlield 33 
 
 Northampton 93 
 
 Norton 175 
 
 Portage 737 
 
 Richfield 48 
 
 Springfield 89 
 
 Stow 88 
 
 Tallmadge 31 
 
 Twinsburg 03 
 
 AgKinst 
 Subscriptiuii 
 
 103 
 
 94 
 
 56 
 
 58 
 
 12 
 170 
 177 
 
 20 
 
 72 
 165 
 
 57 
 
 40 
 
 03 
 
 70 
 167 
 
 72 
 114 
 156 
 
 1,605 
 
 Total vote 2,432 
 
 Majorit}' for subscription, 827. 
 
 In accordance with the authorit}' thus given 
 them, the County Commissioners, Messrs. Etl- 
 win Wetmore, of Stow, James W. Weld, of 
 Richfield, and Hiram Weston, of Middlebury, 
 proceeded, " For and in the name of Summit 
 County," to subscribe for .1100,000 of the stock 
 of said railroad, issuing therefor 100 bonds of 
 11,000 each, payable to the order of John W. 
 McMillen, in fifteen years, with thirty interest 
 coupons attached, at the rate of 7 per cent, 
 payable semi-annually. The Commissioners, 
 at the same time, in accordance with the pro- 
 visions of the act authorizing such stock sub- 
 scription, added to the rate of taxation an 
 amount sufficient not only to meet the interest 
 as it should fall due, but to also graduall}' cre- 
 ate a sinking fund for the final payment of tlie 
 bonds themselves. 
 
 The aid thus furnished, together with tlie 
 prompt payment of individual stock subscrip- 
 
 jp" 
 
^Uv 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 291 
 
 tions along the line, enabled the Board of Di- 
 rectors to push the work forward so vigorously 
 that, on the 1st day of January, 1852 — less 
 than ten months after the organization of the 
 company, and only about six months after the 
 contracts were awarded — the completion of the 
 road to that village was celebrated by the peo- 
 ple of Cuyahoga Falls, its completion to Akron, 
 five miles further, being celebrated on the 4th 
 of July of the same year. The work south 
 from Akron was also pushed vigorously- for- 
 ward, and the line speedily completed to Mil- 
 lersburg, in Holmes County, thus forming a 
 connection with the Ohio & Pennsylvania (now 
 the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago) Rail- 
 road at Orrville, in Wayne County, and giving 
 us an outlet in the direction of Columbus, Cin- 
 cinnati, and the Western and Southern States. 
 
 Although so heavy a vote was polled 
 against the subscription to the stock of this 
 road by the county, and though there was verj- 
 much grumbling by a portion of the tax-payers 
 of the county from year to year, while the in- 
 terest was being paid and the fund provided 
 for the payment of the bonds themselves, all 
 now admit that it was the best investment of 
 money ever made by the property -owners of 
 Summit County, there not being a single foot 
 of land within the limits of the count}' that was 
 not enhanced in value from ten to twenty fold 
 the amount of special tax thus paid upon it, 
 while an impetus was given to the trade, man- 
 ufactures and agricultural operations of the 
 county that could have been attained in no 
 other way. 
 
 TJie Cleveland, Zaiiesvil/e t('? Cincinnati Rail- 
 road. — With the view of extending the road 
 south from Millersburg to Zanesville, to form 
 a connection with Cincinnati via the Cincinnati, 
 Wilmington & Zanesville Railroad, application 
 was made to the Court of Common Pleas of 
 Summit County, at the March term, 1853, for a 
 change of name to the " Cleveland, Zanesville 
 & Cincinnati Railroad." which was accordingly 
 done. Embarrassments subsequently falling 
 upon the road, the contemplated extension was 
 indefinitely postponed. On the 22d day of 
 August, 1861, suit was brought, in the Com- 
 mon Pleas Court of Summit County, by the 
 creditors of the road, for foreclosure of mort- 
 gage and sale of the road. Col. Simon Perkins 
 being appointed Receiver b}' the court, to run 
 the road pending litigation. By decree of 
 
 court, the road and its franchises were sold by 
 the Receiver at public auction at the door of 
 the court house, in Akron, on the 2d day of 
 November, 1864, George W..Cass and John J. 
 Marvin, of Pittsburgh, being the purchasers. 
 Col. Simon Perkins being appointed Superin- 
 tendent of the road by the new ownei's. On 
 the 1st day of July, 1865, George W. Cass and 
 John J. Marvin, by deed, conveyed the road 
 and property pertaining thereto to the Pitts- 
 burgh, Fort Wa}'ne & Chicago Railway Com- 
 pany. July 1, 1869, the road passed, with the 
 lease of the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago 
 Railway, into the hands of the Pennsylvania 
 Railroad Company. November 4, 1869, the 
 Pennsylvania Railroad Company and the Pitts- 
 burgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railway Com- 
 pany sold and transferred, by deed, to the Pitts- 
 burgh, Mount Vernon, Columbus & London Rail- 
 road Company, the entire Cleveland, Zanesville 
 & Cincinnati Railroad, extending from Hudson, 
 in Summit County, to the coal mines southwest 
 of Millersburg, in Holmes Count}- — a distance 
 of sixty-five miles — with all its rolling stock, 
 machinei-y and fixtures, for the consideration of 
 22,000 shares of fully paid-up capital stock of 
 said Pittsburgh, Mount Vernon, Columbus & 
 London Railroad Companv, the par value of 
 the same being $1,100,000." December 1, 1869, 
 Gen. Goshorn A. Jones, of Mount Vernon, was 
 appointed Superintendent of the road. Col. Si- 
 mon Perkins retiring. On the 20th day of De- 
 cember, 1869, by a decree of the Court of Com- 
 mon Pleas of Knox County, the name of the 
 Pittsburgh, Mount Vernon, Columbus & Lon- 
 don Railroad Company was changed to Cleve- 
 land, Mount Vernon & Delaware Railroad Com- 
 pany. TTnder the new management, measures 
 were immediately taken, and vigorously i)rose- 
 cuted, to build the road through to its final 
 destination, Delaware, but soon so far modified 
 as to make Columbus, instead of Delaware, the 
 southern terminus. The road was completed 
 and the first passenger train from Hudson to 
 Mount Vernon was run June 25, 1872, and. on 
 the 23d day of November, 1873, the road was 
 opened through to Columbus, regular trains 
 commencing at that day and continuing to the 
 present. Various causes having combined to 
 prevent the road, though doing a fair business, 
 from meeting its liabilities, the owners of the 
 first mortgage bonds of the road, at the Sep- 
 tember term, 1880, of the Court of Common 
 
 ■w* 
 
292 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Pleas of Summit County, commenced a suit for 
 foreclosure and sale, Gen. G. A. Jones, by order 
 of court, being appointed and qualified as Re- 
 ceiver September 27, 1880. At the present 
 writing (April, 1881), there are strong hopes 
 that the Receiver may be able to relieve the 
 road of its embarrassments, the court having 
 already ordered the building of about three 
 miles of additional track to Fox Lake Coal 
 Mines, the purchase of four new locomotives, 
 four new passenger coaches and six miles of 
 steel rails. The officers of the road, at the 
 time of its transfer to the present company, 
 were as follows : Directors, R. C. Hurd, Charles 
 Cooper, S. Israel, Mount Vernon ; M. White, of 
 Gambler ; I. Harpster, of Millersburg ; Will- 
 iam M. Orr, of Orrville ; and Thomas D. Mess- 
 ier, of Pittsburgh, Penn.; President, R. C. 
 Hurd ; Secretar}', J. S. Davis ; Treasurer, J. D. 
 Thompson; Auditor, E. Mize ; Superintendent, 
 G. A. Jones ; Master Machinist, J. W. Hollo- 
 way. Present officers of the road are as fol- 
 lows : Directors, Thomas D. Messier and Will- 
 iam Shaw, of Pittsburgh ; George B. Roberts, of 
 Philadelphia ; Hon. J. R. Swan, of Columbus ; 
 S. Israel and Charles Cooper, of Mount Ver- 
 non ; William M. Orr, of Orrville ; I. Harpster, 
 of Millersburg ; M. White, of Gambler ; Pres- 
 ident, Thomas D. Messier ; Superintendent, G. 
 A. Jones ; Auditor, E. Mize ; Treasurer, J. D. 
 Thompson ; Secretary, J. S. Davis ; Master 
 Machinist, J. W. HoUoway ; General Freight 
 and Ticket Agent, J. A. Tilton ; Messrs. Mize, 
 Thompson, HoUowa}^ and Tilton also acting in 
 their respective positions, under the appoint- 
 ment of Receiver Jones ; Messrs. Mize and Hol- 
 loway having been connected with the road 
 nearly, if not quite, from its first completion as 
 the " Akron Branch." 
 
 Thf MassiUon Branch. — As an adjunct to the 
 Cleveland, Columbus & Delaware road, the 
 Massillon & Cleveland Railroad (commonly 
 called the Massillon Branch) was built by the 
 Massillon & Cleveland Railroad Compan3% and 
 runs from Clinton, in Summit County, to Mas- 
 sillon, in Stark County, a distance of some eight 
 or ten miles, only. This road was leased to the 
 Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railway 
 Company June 22, 1869; lease assigned by 
 that company to the Pennsylvania Railroad 
 Company Juh' 1, 1869 ; and b}' that company 
 and the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago Rail- 
 way Compan}^ lease assigned to the Pittsburgh, 
 
 Mount Vernon, Columbus & London Railway 
 Company (now Cleveland, Mount Vernon & Del- 
 aware Railroad Company), November 4, 1869. 
 The road is owned by the Massillon & Cleve- 
 land Railroad Company, and is now (1881) 
 operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad Com- 
 pany, operating the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & 
 Chicago Railway. Both the Cleveland, Mount 
 Vernon & Delaware, and the " Massillon 
 Branch " run through some of the most prolific 
 coal regions of the State, large shipments of 
 coal and other minerals daily passing over their 
 tracks. 
 
 Other Early Railroad Projects. — About the 
 the time the Cleveland & Pittsburgh and the 
 Akron Branch were being projected and built, 
 three other lines, centering in Hudson, were 
 chartered and a commendable degree of prog- 
 ress made in their construction, viz.: The 
 " Clinton Line," the " Clinton Line Extension," 
 and the " Hudson & Painesville." As early as 
 1830, Col. De Witt Clinton, Jr., then of the 
 United States Topographical Engineers, recon- 
 noitered aud recommended the construction of 
 a railway from the Atlantic to Council Bluffs, 
 on the Missouri River, on a route that would 
 bring the territory now embraced in Summit 
 County- upon its line. To this end, a number 
 of charters had been secured, companies organ- 
 ized and work commenced in the States of New 
 York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, 
 from 1840 to 1853. the several links, when 
 completed, to be consolidated into one '• grand 
 continental line," to be designated '' The Amer- 
 ican Central Railway," with the further plan in 
 I view of ultimately' continuing the line through 
 to the Pacific Coast. 
 
 The Clinton Line Railroad.— As one of the 
 links of this great through line, in 1852, the 
 " Clinton Line Railroad Compau}- " was char- 
 tered and organized, so named in honor of the 
 originator and promoter of the Erie Canal, the 
 greatest topographical and civil engineering 
 project of his time, De Witt Clinton. The most 
 active and liberal promoters of this road were 
 citizens of Hudson, with Prof Henry N. Day 
 as its President. The line extended from Hud- 
 son east to the Pennsylvania State line, a dis- 
 tance of fifty-five miles, running through Por- 
 tage and Trumbull Counties, and connecting 
 at the State line, in the Township of Kinsman, 
 with the Venango Railroad, then under con- 
 tract and in process of construction. The Pitts- 
 
'.^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 293 
 
 burgh & Erie, also, had the project in con- 
 templation of building a branch road to con- 
 nect with the Clinton line at Kinsman, thus giv- 
 ing the Clinton line the choice of two very 
 desirable routes to the Atlantic seaboard. 
 
 The Clinton Line Extension. — In 1853, the 
 Clinton Line Extension Railroad, from Hudson 
 west to Tiffin, in Seneca County, was organized, 
 with Prof Henry N. Day, also, as its President, 
 and Hon. Van R. Humphre}', of Hudson, as one 
 of its directors. The distance from Hudson to 
 Tiffin, by the line of this road, is about 94 
 miles. The Clinton Line Extension was to con- 
 nect at Tiffin with the Tiffin & Fort Wayne 
 Railroad, organized the same year, which road, 
 in turn, was to connect at Fort Wayne with the 
 Fort Wayne & Mississippi Railroad, organized 
 in 1853, which road was, through short interme- 
 diate links, to connect with the Philadelphia, 
 Fort Wayne & Platte River Air Line Railroad, 
 chartered in 1853, under the laws of the State 
 of Iowa, and extending from New Boston, on 
 the Mississippi River, to Council Bluffs, on the 
 Missouri River. At a convention of the offi- 
 cers of the several roads which were to form 
 this great through line, held at Fort Wa3'ne in 
 December, 1855, President Day reported of the 
 Clinton Line and the Clinton Line Extension as 
 follows : " On the Clinton Line, forty per cent 
 of the grading, masonry' and bridging has been 
 done ; contracts have recent!}' been closed for 
 the completion of the road-bed not already 
 under contract, and also for the superstructure 
 and equipment of the road, to be finished in 
 about a 3'ear. The company, about a month 
 since, commenced an effort to increase the local 
 cash subscription to its capital stock, which 
 has been carried far enough to assure the entire 
 success of the effort within a very few weeks. 
 The estimated cost of the road, under the 
 prices of the contracts, inclusive of equip- 
 ments, station buildings, fencing, telegraph, in- 
 terest and discounts, is $1,700,000. 
 
 "The Clinton Line Extension Company com- 
 menced work on the heavier sections of the 
 road (contiguous to the Cuyahoga River in Sum- 
 mit Count}-), with a view to the completion of 
 the entire road at the same time ; after expend- 
 ing about $70,000 on the eastern division, they 
 were induced by the financial embarrassments 
 of the time to confine their operations to the 
 western division — from Tiffin about forty-one 
 miles to New London, on the Cleveland, Co- 
 
 lumbus & Cincinnati Railroad — this division 
 being of easier construction, and completing, 
 in connection with other lines, a very promising 
 line of itself to Cleveland. Contracts have re- 
 centl}' been made for the completion of the en- 
 tire road for operation — the western division in 
 about one year, the eastern in a year afterward. 
 The cost of the road is estimated, on the basis 
 of the contract prices, at $3,200,000, inclusive 
 of equipments, station buildings, fencing, tele- 
 graph, interest and discounts." 
 
 The " effort to increase the local cash sub- 
 scription to its capital stock " did not prove as 
 successful as President Day anticipated, and 
 other embarrassments falling upon the organ- 
 izations, work was entirely suspended upon both 
 lines early in 1856 and never resumed ; the two 
 promising enterprises falling through for want 
 of the necessary funds to carry them forward 
 to completion, bringing also disaster and finan- 
 cial embarrassment to many of the citizens of 
 Hudson, and very seriously affecting, for the 
 time being, the prosperity of the village itself 
 
 The Hudson & PainesviUe HailroacL — In 
 1853, also, the Hudson & PainesviUe Railroad 
 Company was chartered and organized, with 
 Hon. Van R. Humphrey as its President. This 
 road was intended to be a direct continuation 
 of the Cleveland, Zanesville & Cincinnati Rail- 
 road to Lake Erie. To this enterprise, also, the 
 people of Hudson, in common with those of 
 PainesviUe and intermediate towns, subscribed 
 liberall}'. Though a large portion of the grad- 
 ing and other work was completed, or nearly so, 
 in the general financial stringency which caused 
 the suspension of work upon the Clinton Line, 
 and Clinton Line Extension, and collapsed the 
 railroad enterprises of the countr}' generall}', 
 the Hudson & PainesviUe had to succumb to 
 the inevitable, and go into liquidation. This 
 route, however, is still regarded with favor b}' 
 man}-, and it is not improbable that within a 
 few years, the " Hudson & PainesviUe Railroad" 
 may become a fixed, if not profitable fact. 
 
 The Atlantic d: Great Wes'ern Railway. — To 
 Hon. Marvin Kent, of the enterprising village 
 of Kent (then known as Franklin Mills), in the 
 neighboring county of Portage, is mainly, if not 
 solely, due the credit of projecting the Atlantic 
 & Great Western Railroad, which has, for several 
 years past, so largely engaged the attention of 
 the railway, financial and legal magnates of 
 both Europe and America. As early as 1850, 
 
 
XI 
 
 294 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 Mr. Kent, then, though comparatively a young 
 man, quite an extensive mill owner and manu- 
 facturer of that village, moved thereto, perhaps 
 by the fact that the management of the Cleve- 
 land & Pittsburgh road, then in process of 
 construction, in getting from Ravenna to Hud- 
 son, had run its track some two and a half miles 
 north of the village, conceived the idea of form- 
 ing a direct through broad-gauge line from New 
 York to St. Louis, a distance of nearly 1,200 
 miles, by connections with the New York & 
 Erie, at Salamanca, and, through the Da}' ton & 
 Hamilton, with the Ohio & Mississippi, at Cin- 
 cinnati. Having carefully traced upon the map 
 the route to be traversed, and dul}' considered 
 the feasibility of the project, Mr. Kent set him- 
 self quietly but vigorously at work to perfect 
 his plans for the accomplishment of his object. 
 In order not to arouse the jealousy and oppo- 
 sition of competing lines, great caution and 
 secrecy had to be observed, and considerable 
 strategy employed. Confiding his plans to a 
 few confidential advisers only, with a bill drafted 
 b}' his own hand, Mr. Kent proceeded to Co- 
 lumbus, in the winter of 1850-51, where he se- 
 cured the hearty co-operation of Hon. Milton 
 Sutliff, State Senator from the Trumbull Dis- 
 trict, and Chairman of Committee on Railroads, 
 through whose influence the modest bill, for the 
 charter of a seemingly local road, under the 
 modest title of the " Coal Hill Railroad " — 
 quietly changed, previous to its final passage, 
 to the still modest title of the " Franklin & War- 
 ren Railroad "■ — as written by Mr. Kent, was 
 passed March 10, 1851, as follows : 
 
 An Act to Incorporate the Franklin & War- 
 ren Railroad Company. 
 Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly 
 of the State of Ohio : That Thomas Earl, Zcnas 
 Kent, O. L. Drake, A. V. Horr, Cyrus Prentiss and 
 Marvin Kent, of the eoimty of Portage ; Simon 
 Perkins, Lucius V. Bierce, Harvey B. Spelman and 
 Daniel Upson, of Summit County, and Cliarles 
 Smith, Frederick Kinsman, Jacob Perkins, C. G. 
 Sutliff and Rufus P. Ranney, of the county of 
 Trumbull, and their associates, successors and as- 
 signs, be, and they are hereby created a body corpo- 
 rate and politic, by the name and style of the 
 Franklin & Warren Railroad Company, with per- 
 petual succession ; and by that name and stjde shall 
 be entitled to have and enjoj', and are hereby in- 
 vested with all the rights, privileges and franchises, 
 and be sul)ject to all the restrictions of the act en- 
 titled "An Act Regulating Railroad Companies," 
 passed February ll,"l848, and the act amendatory 
 thereto, except so far as the same may be modified 
 or changed by this act. 
 
 Sec 2. The capital stock of this company may be 
 any amount not exceeding two millions of dollars, 
 and said company shall have power to construct a 
 railroad from the village of Franklin, in the county 
 of Portage, to Warren, in the county of Trumbull, 
 and from thence to the east line of Ohio, and may 
 continue the same from its place of beginning, in a 
 westerly or southwesterly direction, to connect with 
 any other railroad within this State, which the di 
 rectors of said company may deem advisable. 
 
 Sec. 3. That said company shall be, and is hereby 
 autliorized to connect with any other railroad com- 
 pany, and to consolidate its capital stock with the 
 capital stock of such company, upon terms to be 
 agreed upon between the said companies, and to 
 have and use the name and style of such other com- 
 pany, and constitute a part of the same ; and any 
 other company may, in like manner, connect with, 
 and become a part of, the company hereby incorpo- 
 rated. 
 
 Sec 4. Said company shall have power to mort- 
 gage, or in any other way create a lien in favor of 
 any person or persons or company, for materials, la- 
 bor, or other thing necessary for said road ; and 
 said company shall be authorized to sell its own or 
 other corporate bonds at such rate of discount as 
 tliey may deem proper to further the objects of said 
 company, and said bonds may bear such rate of in- 
 terest as said company may deem advisable, and 
 said bonds may be sold in or out of the State, which 
 sales shall be valid. 
 
 Sec 5. Said company may, and they are hereby 
 authorized to, commence and complete any part of 
 said railroad from the place of beginning to any 
 point on the route which the interests of said com- 
 pany may require, and to employ and use said part 
 constructed, and to demand and receive suitable 
 rates of toll for the transportation of persons and 
 property thereon, according to the provisions of the 
 charter of said company, as fully as if the entire 
 work were completed and in operation ; and as soon 
 as twenty thousand dollars shall have been sub- 
 .scribed to the stock of said company, the persons 
 named in the first section, or any five of them, shall 
 call a meeting of the stockholders for the election 
 of directors for the government of said company. 
 
 Sec 6. That the track of the railroad hereby au- 
 thorized to be constructed, may be made of such 
 width as may be necessary to conform to the width 
 of any railroad with which it may connect. 
 
 John F. Morse, 
 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
 Charles C. Convers, 
 
 March 10, 1851. ''^P'"'^'' "^ ^^'' *'^''^^'- 
 
 This remarkably liberal charter having been 
 secured, Mr. Kent immediately addressed him- 
 self to the task of working up an interest in the 
 project, and procuring subscriptions to the cap- 
 ital stock of the road. His progress was at 
 first very slow, Mr. Kent himself finalh' sub- 
 scribing the entire $20,000 named in the char- 
 ter as a prerequisite to its organization, and 
 pledging himself to a number of other gentle- 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 295 
 
 men, whom he induced to take a sufficient num- 
 ber of shares to make up the proper comple- 
 ment of directors and officers, to take the stock 
 ofl" their hands if the venture should prove un- 
 satisfactory or unsuccessful. Thus the organ- 
 ization of the Franklin & Warren Railroad 
 Company was perfected on the 19th day of 
 June, 1851, at which time Zenas Kent, Sylves- 
 ter Huggins, Frederick Whipple and Marvin 
 Kent, of Franklin ; L. J. Iddings, of Warren : 
 Daniel Upson, of Tallmadge, and William Por- 
 ter, of Milton, Ohio, were elected Directors. At 
 a meeting of the Directors, held July 8, 1851. 
 Marvin Kent was chosen President ; Joel W. 
 Tyler, Secretary, and Sylvester Huggins, Treas- 
 urer. 
 
 In his first report made to the stockholders 
 of the new road, at a meeting held at Franklin, 
 Jul}' 19, 1853, President Kent said : " In its 
 earlier operations, delaj^s were interposed to the 
 commencement of the work by the policy of a 
 neighboring State, which, apparently, presented 
 a hostile attitude to its advancement, and 
 somewhat embarrassed the operations of its 
 Directors. Fortunately, these embarrassments 
 have been removed, and the company is placed 
 in that position which insures a speedy comple- 
 tion of the great end it has in view. The sec- 
 ond year of its existence opened a new era in 
 its prospects. The general interests of the 
 country require a gi'eat Eastern and Western 
 railwa}' communication, and the idea of a con- 
 tinuous route from the Atlantic to the Pacific 
 shores, took possession of the public mind. 
 Our enterprise, gentlemen, is no less than a 
 link (and an important one) in this great chain 
 of inter-communication. * * * At present, 
 the board proposes to locate the road from a 
 point in the eastern line of the State of Ohio, 
 northeast of Warren, in Trumbull County, to 
 Da3'ton, * * * passing through and secur- 
 ing the trade and traffic of all the important 
 business points in thirteen of the most produc- 
 tive counties in the State. * * * The town 
 of Akron alone, manufactured, during the past 
 season, 180,000 barrels of flour for shipment. 
 During the same period, fifty thousand barrels 
 were manufactured at the village of Franklin. 
 With this new means of transit during the 
 winter months, and the increasing prosperity 
 of the country, the quantitj^ would undoubted- 
 ly be increased 100 per cent. * * * As 
 for the through passenger business, it embraces 
 
 the East and the Great West, ailtt your road 
 ma}' therefore be emphatically denominated the 
 Atlantic & Great Western Railwa}-." 
 
 In accordance with this hint, by due legal 
 process, the name of the corporation was 
 changed from the Franklin & Warren, to the 
 Atlantic & Great Western Railroad Company, 
 during the 3'ear 1854. In December of the same 
 year, the capital stock of the company was in- 
 creased from $2,000,000 to $4,000,000. In the 
 meantime, parties interested in the success of 
 the enterprise, being unable to secure from the 
 Pennsylvania Legislature a direct charter for 
 the intermediate connecting link through that 
 State, bought, for $400,000, the existing charter 
 and franchises of the Pittsburgh & Erie road, 
 having sufficient branching powers to enable 
 them to span the State, and connect with the 
 Ohio branch upon the West, and the New York 
 branch upon the East. Subsequently, such 
 legislative action was had in the States of 
 Pennsylvania and New York, as to authorize 
 the organization of a company in each State, 
 under the same title as in Ohio, with a separ- 
 ate Board of Directors for each, the three com- 
 panies uniting under the general title of the 
 Altantic & Great Western Railway Company, 
 with a Central Board of Directors, President, 
 Secretary and Treasurer, with its headquarters 
 at Meadville, Penn. The Ohio Board was rep- 
 resented in the Central Board by Marvin Kent 
 and Dr. W. S. Streator. Large local subscrip- 
 tions were worked up through the efforts of 
 President Kent, Secretary Earl and others of 
 Franklin ; John H. Chamberlin, Jacob Allen 
 and others of Akron, and Dr. Daniel Upson and 
 others of Tallmadge (Akron and Summit County 
 furnishing their full quota, $100,000), and work 
 was commenced b}^ the contractor, Mr. Henry 
 Doolittle, on the Ohio Division, at Franklin 
 Mills, July 4, 1853, President Marvin Kent re- 
 moving the first earth. Mr. Doolittle's contract 
 embraced the entire Ohio division, from the 
 Pennsj'lvania State line to Da3'ton, a distance of 
 240 miles, and amounted to nearly $7,000,000 
 ($1,000,000 of which was to be paid in stock), 
 the largest contract which, up to that time, had 
 ever been taken by one man, either in America 
 or Europe. Grading and other work was prett}- 
 evenly distributed in the several counties from 
 the State line to Dayton, one of the conditions 
 of the subscription being that the money should 
 be expended in the counties where raised. Con- 
 
 ^ ^ 
 
 TT 
 
^■ 4^ — *- 
 
 :±=i£k, 
 
 296 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 siderable progress was made all along the line 
 in 1853 and 1854 ; but, like most contemporan- 
 eous railroad enterprises, it was beset with such 
 serious financial embarrassments that work was 
 practicalh' suspended in 1855, though, not en- 
 tirely stopped until 1858. Meanwhile, however, 
 the organization was kept intact, audits plucky 
 President, and the faithful few who manfully 
 stood by him, in both Portage and Summit 
 Counties, relaxed not one jot or tittle of their 
 zeal, their persevering efforts being rewarded by 
 the enlistment of James McHenry, Esq., of 
 London, and other capitalists in London, Paris 
 and Madrid, in the enterprise, Mr. McHenry 
 contracting in Mai'ch, 1861, to complete the en- 
 tire line from Salamanca, N. Y., to Dayton, 
 Ohio, the original contractor, Mr. Henry Doolit- 
 tle, having in the meantime deceased. Though 
 the contract stipulated that work should be 
 resumed in June, 1861, owing to the breaking- 
 out of the civil war in the United States, and 
 the complications with foreign nations, tempo- 
 rarilj- resulting therefrom, no great progress was 
 made until the spring of 1862. The work was 
 done under the immediate personal supervision 
 of Chief Engineer, Thomas W. Kennard, of 
 London, England, and was pushed through so 
 energetically that the palace car of Engineer 
 Kennard, with the officers and Directors of the 
 road, drove into Akron on the 17th da}' of 
 April, 186.3, to the great delight of our entire 
 populace. 
 
 Of this event, the Bmcon of April 23, 1863, 
 says : " As we stated in our last issue that this 
 grand enterprise was to be completed to this 
 place during the last week, without fail, we are 
 now happy to state that the track was com- 
 pleted to within a few rods of the Cleveland, 
 Zanesville & Cincinnati Company's depot, on 
 Saturday evening last. On Friday afternoon, ac- 
 cording to announcement, Chief Engineer Ken- 
 nard arrived within the limits of the corpora- 
 tion, direct from New York, with his magnificent 
 passenger car and engine, accompanied by sev- 
 eral gentlemen from Warren, Ravenna and other 
 points along the road. Their advent into town 
 was greeted by the liveliest enthusiasm of our 
 people, expressed through the soul-stirring 
 music of our most excellent band, and by a gen- 
 eral visit to the ' pioneer train ' and the track- 
 laying operations just around the bend." 
 
 Owing to the enhanced cost of labor and ma- 
 terials — incident to the war — the capital stock 
 
 of the company was found, even with the large 
 amount of bonds it was authorized to issue, to 
 be altogether inadequate to the finishing and 
 furnishing of the road, and on the 5th day of 
 November, 1863, at a stock-holders' meeting 
 called for that purpose, it was voted to increase 
 the stock from $4,000,000 to $6,000,000. Under 
 the vigorous management of Engineer Kennard, 
 the road was pushed through to Dayton, and its 
 completion to that, its Western terminal point, 
 was duly celebrated on the 21st day of June, 
 1864, in the presence of a large company of 
 railroad magnates of both the East and the 
 West. From the long and full report of the 
 proceedings, published in the Dayton Journal 
 of June 22, 1864, we give the following inter- 
 esting items : " President Kent announced the 
 object of the meeting, and T. W. Kennard, Chief 
 Engineer ; William Reynolds, President of the 
 New York & Pennsylvania Divisions ; H. F. 
 Sweetser, General Superintendent, and Mr. 
 Kent, proceeded to lay the last rails. The cer- 
 emony of spiking was introduced with consid- 
 erable merriment, Mr. Kennard driving the first 
 spike in the last rail at four sturdy blows. 
 Others followed in succession, one only — an 
 Irish track-layer — excelling Mr. Kennard, by 
 making the drive with one less blow, besides 
 President Kent, who, in driving the last spike, 
 with a nervy grasp, struck straight— one, two, 
 three, and the welkin rang with applause. The 
 work was well done — and the last rail of the 
 Atlantic & Great Western Railway was laid, the 
 last spike driven to the head." 
 
 Thus, after many delays, trials and tribula- 
 tions, was completed one of the finest lines of 
 railway in the United States, and one which, 
 though financially disastrous to a majority of 
 its earliest promoters and supporters, has been 
 of incalculable benefit to the entire section of 
 country through which it passes — especially to 
 the people of Summit County and its wide- 
 awake capital city. Space will not permit a 
 detailed history of this road from the time of 
 its completion, in 1864, to the present time. 
 Suffice it to say, that, by reason of unforeseen 
 complications — largely, no doubt, growing out 
 of the several branches built, purchased, leased, 
 etc., as tributaries and extensions, together with 
 the franchises, fixtures, property and liabilities 
 connected therewith— though always doing a 
 heavy freight and passenger business, such em- 
 barrassments were experienced that on the 7th 
 
 
k — 
 
 fk* 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 297 
 
 day of April, 1869, suit, in foreclosure of the 
 consolidated mortgage, was begun in the Sum- 
 mit County Court of Common Pleas, at which 
 time Jay Gould and William Archibald 0. 
 Daugherty, of New York, were appointed Re- 
 ceivers. It afterward transpiring that those gen- 
 tlemen were either ineligible b}' reason of their 
 location, or were unsatisfactory to other parties 
 in interest, their resignation was filed on the 
 26th day of November, 1869, and Hon. Reuben 
 Hitchcock, of Painesville, Lake County, Ohio, 
 was appointed Receiver of the road. The af- 
 fairs of the road were most admirably managed 
 by Judge Hitchcock, until the 26th day of 
 July, 1871, when it was sold by the Receiver, 
 acting as Special Master Commissioner, under a 
 decree of the court, at the door of the court 
 house, in Akron, to Gen. George B. McClellan, 
 Senator Allen G. Thurman and William Butler 
 Duncan, Esq., as Trustees for certain creditors 
 of the compan}', the purchasers organizing 
 under the name and style of the Atlantic & 
 Great Western Railroad Company, as distin- 
 guished from its predecessor, the Atlantic & 
 Great Western Railwaj^ Company. The price 
 paid for the road was as follows : Ohio Divis- 
 ion, subject to the lien of the first mortgage 
 thereon (about $2,400,000) including the lease 
 of its Mahoning Branch, sold for $4,435,- 
 500 ; Pennsylvania Division, with its various 
 branches, $600,000 ; New York Division, $655.- 
 000 ; total, $5,690,000. The new company did 
 not, however, long enjoy smooth sailing, new 
 suits, with almost infinite complications, being 
 commenced, also in the Court of Common 
 Pleas, of Summit County, on the 18th day of 
 December, 1874, the President of the road, Mr. 
 John H. Devereux, being appointed Receiver. 
 The litigation in this second suit extended over 
 a period of more than five 3'ears, and was prob- 
 ably the most complicated and closely con- 
 tested railroad suit ever tried and determined 
 in the United States, many millions of dollars 
 being involved, and the most eminent legal tal- 
 ent of both Europe and America being em- 
 ployed by the various parties in interest. In 
 these two suits, at different stages in the pro- 
 ceedings, arguments were made before Judges 
 Washington W. Boynton, Samuel W. McClure 
 and Newell D. Tibbals, by Hon. Samuel J. 
 Tilden and W. W. McFarland, Esq., of New 
 York ; Hon. Morrison R. Waite (late Chief Jus- 
 tice of the Supreme Court of the United States) ; 
 
 Hon. Stanley Mathews and Hon. George Hoad- 
 ley, of Cincinnati ; Hon. Rufus P. Ranney, 
 Hon.. Stephenson Burke and James M. Adams, 
 Esq., of Cleveland, and other distinguished at- 
 torneys from abroad, important interests being 
 represented in the two suits by Hon. William 
 H. Upson, Tibbals & McKinney, Oviatt & Allen, 
 and other members of the Summit County 
 bar. 
 
 On the final determination of the matters in 
 issue, the road was again sold by Receiver 
 Devereux, acting as Special Master Commis- 
 sioner, at the door of the court house in 
 Akron, on the 6th day of January, 1880, for 
 $6,000,000, to S. A. Strang and R. G. Rolsten, 
 as trustees for a new organization, composed 
 principally of the foreign bondholders of the 
 road, the name and style of the new organiza- 
 tion being "The New York, Pennsylvania & 
 Ohio Railroad Company." Since the transfer 
 of the road to its new management, the track 
 of the road has been reduced from six feet to 
 the standard gauge of four feet eight and one- 
 half inches, the rolling stock, of course, having 
 been correspondingly changed. The old com- 
 plications and embarrassments of the road 
 having been thus cleared away, and the finan- 
 cial and commercial embarrassments of the 
 country having also disappeared, it is to be 
 hoped that this road, notwithstanding the heavy 
 liabilities assumed by the new compan}' on be- 
 coming the purchasers thereof, ma}^, in common 
 with all other lines of railwa}' passing through 
 Summit Count}^, enjoy long years of uninter- 
 rupted prosperity. We have not the data at 
 hand to give the names of all the citizens of 
 Summit County who have held official relations 
 with this road, but, in the published reports be- 
 fore us, we find among the names of the differ- 
 ent boards of directors the names of Daniel 
 Upson, of Tallmadge, and Jacob Allen, Lucius 
 V. Bierce, John H. Chamberlin and William 
 H. Upson, of Akron. July 1, 1863, Mr. Upson 
 was appointed attorne}^ for the road, at a meet- 
 ing of the directors, at which time the company 
 executed to him a deed, in trust, of the Ohio 
 division of the road, for the purpose of securing 
 a loan of $4,000,000, with which to finish and 
 equip the road. Mr. Upson's relations to the 
 road as its attorney, at that time, existed only 
 about a 3'ear and a half ; but he was again ap- 
 pointed in 1873, and has ever since acted in 
 that capacity, and still holds that relation to 
 
 
298 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 the new organization, the New York, Pennsyl- 
 vania & Ohio Raih-oad Corapan}'. 
 
 The BaJtimore <(• Ohio Extension. — In the 
 spring of 1870, a proposition was made to ex- 
 tend the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and its 
 intermediate connection, the Pittsburgh & Con- 
 nellsville Railroad, westward from Pittsburgh 
 to Chicago, and to make Akron, in Summit 
 County, a point upon the line on certain con- 
 ditions, which are full}' set forth in the sub- 
 scription books opened in Akron in the summer 
 of that year, as follows : 
 
 Whereas, the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Com- 
 pany, and the Pittsbm-gli & Connellsville Rail- 
 road Company propose to construct a railroad from 
 Pittsburgh, Penn., westward through Akron, Sum- 
 mit County, Ohio, and to secure the location of 
 said road through Akron, it is necessary for the citi- 
 zens of Akron to subscribe to the stock of such 
 proposed raih'oad company, the sum of $300,000, 
 and, for certain persons, on behalf of the sub- 
 scribers, prior to the incorporation of said proposed 
 company, to pledge to said Baltimore & Ohio and 
 Pittsburgh & Connellsville Companies said sum of 
 $800,000, to aid them in locating and constructing 
 said proposed railroad through Akron, aforesaid. 
 Therefore, we, the subscribers, on the succeeding 
 pages of this book, for the purpose of authorizing 
 David L. King, Lewis Miller and Charles Brown, to 
 pledge and guarantee to said Baltimore & Ohio and 
 Pittsburgh & Connellsville Railroad Companies, said 
 sum of $300,000, and to save them harmless, by 
 reason of said pledge and guarantee, and for the 
 fm-ther purpose and consideration of securing the 
 location of said proposed railroad through Akron 
 for our mutual benefit, we do agree with said David 
 L. King, Lewis Miller and Charles Brown, and with 
 each other, to subscribe to the stock of said com- 
 pany, when organized, under whatever name the 
 same may be incorporated, and to pay the several 
 amounts by us here respectively subscribed, on the 
 succeeding" pages of this book, to such company or 
 persons as may be legally authorized to receive the 
 same, payable 10 per cent when said railroad is lo- 
 cated through Akron, and the stock-books of said 
 proposed railroad are legally opened, and the bal- 
 ance in monthly installments of 5 per cent each, as 
 the work progresses in Summit County. And wc 
 authorize saidKing, Miller and Brown, to pledge to 
 said Baltimore & Ohio and Pittsburgh & Connells- 
 ville Railroad Companies, or either of them, said 
 sum of $300,000 for the purpose aforesaid, and to 
 the extent of our respective subscriptions we sev- 
 erally agree to save them harmless from the pay- 
 ment of said sum. And we hereby authorize the 
 corporators of said proposed company, when duly 
 incorporated, under whatsoever name, when said 
 road is located through Akron, to transfer to the 
 stock-books of said company, when opened, our re- 
 spective subscriptions here made, and agree that 
 they shall have the same force and effect as if said 
 company was now incorporated, and said amounts 
 
 respectively signed and entered by us in said stock- 
 books, after they were formally opened by the cor- 
 porators of said company for that purpose. 
 
 Through public meetings and personal solici- 
 tation on the part of Messrs, King, Miller, 
 Brown and others, the full amount, $300,000, 
 with a sufficient margin to cover contingencies, 
 was speedily subscribed by the enterprising 
 citizens of Akron, all classes, from the largest 
 manufacturer, merchant, banker, etc., to the 
 humblest mechanic and laboring man, con- 
 tributing to the guarantee fund in proportion 
 to his several abilit}'. Then came long days of 
 waiting, expectation and suspense, until, finally, 
 in the spring of 1871, for reasons never satis- 
 factorily explained to its Akron promoters, the 
 project was indefinitel}' postponed, leaving the 
 subscribers to the above document free to 
 transfer their subscriptions to such new rail- 
 road projects as they might deem advisable. 
 
 The Valley Railway. — To David L. King, 
 Esq., are the people of Summit County more 
 largely indebted for the inception, prosecution 
 and completion of the Valley Railway, running 
 diagonally through our county, from northwest 
 to southeast, than to any other man. As early 
 as 1869, largely through the instrumentality of 
 Mr. King, a charter was obtained for the Akron 
 & Canton Railway, which afterward developed 
 into the larger and more important enterprise, 
 the Valley Railway, duly incorporated on the 
 21st day of August, 1871, the incorporators be- 
 ing Henry Chisholm, Nathan P. Payne, James 
 Farmer, Warwick Price and S. A. Fuller, of 
 Cleveland, and David L. King, of Akron. The 
 authorized capital stock of the company was 
 $3,000,000, the road to run from Cleveland, in 
 Cuyahoga County, via Akron, in Summit Count}', 
 Canton, in Stark Count}', through Tuscarawas 
 and Carroll Counties to Bowerston, in Harrison 
 County, on the Pan Handle Railroad. The first 
 first great movement for the promotion of the 
 enterprise was made at a meeting held at the 
 Academy of Music, in Akron, on the 4th day 
 of January, 1872. Representatives from Cleve- 
 land, Canton, Wheeling and intermediate points 
 on the contemplated route were in attendance, 
 together with a very large number of business 
 men of Akron and other towns in Summit 
 County. The meeting was presided over by 
 James A. Saxton, Esq., of Canton, with Mr. R. H. 
 Cochran, of Wheeling, as Secretary, and Hon. 
 Stephen H. Pitkin, of Akron, as Assistant Secre- 
 
iii^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 299 
 
 retary. David L. King, Esq., of Akron, briefly 
 stated the objects of the meeting, sa3ang that 
 the project of a road down the valley of the 
 Cuyahoga, from Akron to Cleveland, and south 
 from Akron to Canton and Wheeling, was no 
 new project. Such a road, Mr. King said, would 
 develop large quantities of coal and other miner- 
 als south of Akron, and a locomotive, after draw- 
 ing an ordinary train to Akron, could by 
 reason of continuous down grade, draw as many 
 loaded cars from Akron to Cleveland, as the 
 same locomotive could draw empty cars back. 
 Mr. King concluded his remarks by moving 
 the appointment of committeemen at different 
 points on the route to aid in raising the neces- 
 sary stock. Committeemen for Summit County 
 were appointed as follows : Xorthlield, Lucian 
 Bliss ; Boston, Frederick Wood, Frederick B. 
 Wadhams, John Douds ; Richfield, Orson M. 
 Oviatt, William C.Weld ; Bath, William Barker, 
 Andrew Hale ; Northampton, James R. Brown, 
 William Hard}^, John C. Johnston ; Portage, 
 S. W. Miller ; Akron, Jacob H. Wise ; Middle- 
 bury, Thomas H. Peckham ; Coventry, Alex- 
 ander Brewster ; Springfield, Cyrus Yerrick, 
 Robert V. Sawyer, Frank W. Myers : Green, 
 Alexander Johnston. Speeches were made by 
 Messrs. Newell D. Tibbals, Alvin C. Voris, 
 Charles Brown, Stephen H. Pitkin, Lewis Miller, 
 David L. King and others, of Akron ; James 
 Farmer, of Cleveland ; R. H. Cochran of Wheel- 
 ing ; James A. Saxton and Josiah Hartzell, of 
 Canton, and William McNeil, of Peninsula. The 
 importance and feasibility of the road was con- 
 ceded by all, the discussion being mainly over 
 the question of gauge, estimates being pre- 
 sented showing the comparative cost of both 
 the standard, four feet eight and one-half inches, 
 and the narrow, three feet tracks. At the con- 
 clusion of the discussion, the following resolu- 
 tion was unanimously adopted : 
 
 Resolped, That it be the sense of tliis meeting that 
 all our efforts be devoted to raising stock for the 
 ordinary four-foot eight and one-half inch gauge. 
 
 Subscription books were opened at Cleveland, 
 Akron. Canton and intermediate points on the 
 15th day of January, 1872, and a vigorous cam- 
 paign opened " all along the line," for raising 
 the necessary funds to build the road. Cleve- 
 land parties were pledged to raise $500,000, the 
 quota assigned to Akron and Canton being 
 $150,000 each, with such additional amounts 
 as could be raised at intermediate points in the 
 
 several counties interested. Meetings were held, 
 speeches were made and subscriptions were ob- 
 tained with commendable celerity, so that by 
 the 20th of March, $60,000 of Akron's quota 
 had been subscribed. Canton was the first to 
 announce that her full share was raised, Akron 
 coming in soon afterward with a similar good 
 report. Cleveland, however, was backward, 
 trusting to the plan of raising the requisite 
 aiBOunt, under the Boesel law, by a tax upon 
 the city. The proposition, however, was voted 
 down, precious time being thus wasted, though 
 the amount pledged was subsequent!}- raised l3y 
 voluntary subscriptions to the capital stock of 
 the compan}' through the vigorous efforts of 
 her soliciting committees. Other localities also 
 subscribed more or less liberally, so that the 
 total amount subscribed in each of the three 
 counties was as follows : Cu3'ahoga, $508,250 ; 
 Summit, $191,700 ; Stark, $119,750. The first 
 stockholders" meeting was held April 24, 1872, 
 at which James Farmer, Ambrose B. Stone and 
 Nathan P. Payne, of Cleveland ; David L. King 
 and John F. Seiberling, of Akron, and James 
 A. Saxton and George Cook, of Canton, were 
 elected Directors. At a subsequent meeting of 
 the Dii'ectors the same day, James Farmer was 
 elected President ; David L. King, Vice Presi- 
 dent, and Warwick Price, Secretary and Treas- 
 urer. At a meeting of the Directors, held 3Iay 
 10, 1872 ; Plymouth H. Dudley, then Akron's 
 most efficient City Engineer, was appointed 
 Chief Engineer for the new road. Two routes 
 from Akron to Cleveland were surveyed, one 
 directly down the valley of the Cuyahoga River, 
 the other •' overland," through Bath, Richfield. 
 Brecksville, etc., liberal subscriptions being 
 pledged along the latter route, should the loca- 
 tion be determined in their favor. The vallev 
 route was finall}' adopted, and the contract for 
 building the entire line from Cleveland to Bow- 
 erstown was awarded to Messrs. Nicholas E. 
 Vansickle and Arthur L. Conger, of Akron, on 
 the 3d day of February, 1873. 
 
 At a meeting of the stockholders, April 16, 
 1873, David L. King and John F. Seiberling 
 were chosen as Summit County's i-epresentatives 
 in the Board of Directors, Mr. King being con- 
 tinued as Vice President and Mr. Dudley as 
 Chief Engineer, Stillman Witt, of Cleveland, 
 being elected President. Ground was broken 
 in Springfield Township, Summit County, early 
 in March, 1873. The contractors immediately 
 
^ 
 
 300 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 went vigorousl}' to work, the result of the first 
 four months' operations being thus tersely stated 
 b}' Engineer Dudley, in his report of the prog- 
 ress of construction made to the Directors on 
 the 15th day of August, 1873, as follows : " On 
 the line between Cleveland and Canton, a dis- 
 tance of fifty-seven miles, the graduation was 
 commenced last March ; but on account of the 
 wet weather in April and Ma}', and other causes, 
 has not proceeded as fast as could be desired. 
 All the bridges are under contract, and part of 
 them up. I am, however, pleased to sa}- that 
 nearly two-thirds of the distance from Cleveland 
 to Canton is graded, and, should the weather 
 continue favorable, I see no reason to prevent 
 the completion of the remainder, ready to com- 
 mence laying track in October. This would 
 give you the use of the road most of the coming 
 winter, which would be an advantage you no 
 doubt fully appreciate." 
 
 The Engineer's anticipations, however, were 
 not realized, and the winter of 1873-74 set in 
 without Avitnessing the lading of the track or 
 the completion of the grading, bridging, etc. 
 On the 24th day of April, 1874, Hon. Reuben 
 Hitchcock, of Painesville, Lake County, was 
 elected President, Mr. King being continued as 
 Vice Pi-esident and Mr. Dudley as Engineer. 
 Owing to diflferences of opinion between tlie 
 Directors and the contractors, Messrs. Van- 
 sickle and Conger, the contract was canceled 
 and the work suspended on the 16th day of 
 May, 1874. President Hitchcock, on account 
 of failing health, having tendered his resigna- 
 tion, David L. King, of Akron, was elected 
 President on the 25th day of September, 1874, 
 with James Farmer, of Cleveland, as Vice Pres- 
 ident. The general stagnation of business, and 
 especially of all new railroad enterprises, grow- 
 ing out of the panic of September, 1873, with 
 the failure of Ja}' Cooke & Co., having ren- 
 dered the immediate resumption of work im- 
 possible, the Directors, as a condition precedent 
 to Mr. King's acceptance of the Presidency, in- 
 dividually assumed the entire liabilities of the 
 company, which, owing to inability to collect 
 stock subscriptions, amounted to over $150,000 
 — a burden from wliich the devoted Directors 
 were not relieved until April, 1879. Bat, by 
 the self-sacrificing assumption of this responsi- 
 bilit}^ the life of the company was saved 
 through the long period of financial distress 
 the country was then experiencing. Failing, 
 
 through the stringency of the times, to secure 
 aid in this country to complete the road, at the 
 earnest solicitation of the board, Mr. King 
 sailed for England, on the 6th day of February, 
 1875, to present the advantages of the invest- 
 ment to the capitalists of London. After weeks of 
 patient effort, struggle and disappointment, he 
 finally succeeded in securing a proposition for 
 the sale of the company's bonds on highly ad- 
 vantageous terms, and a time was fixed for the 
 execution of the contract. On the morning of 
 the da}' agreed upon for closing the matter up, 
 the publication, in the London papers, of the 
 report of a committee of the House of Com- 
 mons, discrediting the value of American se- 
 curities in general, and railroad securities in 
 particular, together with a cable dispatch re- 
 ceived from New York, published in the same 
 papers, that the Wabash & Western Railroad 
 (a very large amount of the bonds of this road 
 being held in London) had passed into the 
 hands of a Receiver, presented so discouraging 
 a prospect for the placing of American securi- 
 ties of any kind, as to cause the withdrawal of 
 the proposition and the non-execution of the 
 contract. By the advice of the parties with 
 whom he had been in negotiation, Mr. King 
 returned home without having a(!Complished 
 the object of his mission, to "await the logic 
 of events, " as it was considered damaging 
 to future sales, on the return of prosperity 
 at home, to urge the bonds of the company 
 further upon the attention of English capital- 
 ists at that time. The merits of the line were, 
 from time to time, brought liy President King 
 before the capitalists of Cleveland and the 
 East, and a succession of struggles to keep the 
 enterprise alive were continued for three weary 
 years longer, happily resulting in placing the 
 bonds on highly favorable terms at home with 
 Cleveland and New York capitalists, the capital 
 stock having in the meantime (April 13, 1876) 
 been increased from $3,000,000 to $6,500,000. 
 On the 7th day of August, 1878, the work on 
 the line l)etween Cleveland and Canton was re- 
 sumed by the new contractors, Messrs. Walsh 
 and Moynahan, the first rail upon the line l)e- 
 ing laid and the first spike driven by President 
 King, at Akron, at a point near the " Old 
 Forge," at 12 o'clock, M., on the 26th day of Oc- 
 tober, 1878, track-laying being immediately 
 proceeded with from this point both ways, and 
 also commenced in Cleveland a few days there- 
 
-^ — ^k ^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 301 
 
 after. The operations of the new contractors 
 not proving satisfactory to the company, the 
 contract with them was annulled on the 25th 
 day of January, 1879, and the work again tem- 
 porarily suspended. Subsequently, a new con- 
 tract was made with Messrs. Strong and Gary, 
 and work resumed on the 3d day of June, 
 1879. The road was finally completed through 
 from Cleveland to Canton, in the winter of 
 1879-80. The first continuous train from Cleve- 
 land to Canton, with the officers, Directors, and 
 other friends and promoters of the road on 
 board, started from Cleveland at 9:30 A. M., 
 January 28, 1880. Making short stops at the 
 several stations on the route, the train arrived 
 at Canton about 1 o'clock, P. M. Starting fi'om 
 Canton on the return trip at 3 o'clock, P. M., 
 tlie run from Canton to Akron, twenty-two 
 miles, was made in thirtj'-eight minutes, the en- 
 tire trip from Canton to Cleveland, fifty-seven 
 miles, being made in two hours — a remarkable 
 run, considering the newness of the road, and 
 evincing a very excellent degree of work in 
 the la3'ing of the track and the ballasting of 
 the road-bed. The first regular trains com- 
 menced running Februar}^ 2, 1880, and have 
 continued uninterruptedly to the present time, 
 with constantl}^ increasing freight and passen- 
 ger traffic, and though, by reason of the partial 
 occupation of the ground by other similar en- 
 terprises and prospective connections, the ex- 
 tension of the road beyond Canton has been in- 
 definitely postponed, the Valley Railwa}^ may 
 well be considered a successful venture for its 
 promoters, and a ver}^ valuable acquisition to 
 the travel and transportation facilities of the 
 people all along the line, as well as a material 
 addition to the enterprise and prosperity of the 
 cit}' of Akron, and of Summit County gener- 
 ally. 
 
 Officers of the road from the beginning to 
 the present date (April 1, 1881), as follows : 
 President — James Farmer, from April 24, 1872, 
 to April 5, 1873 ; Stillman Witt, from April 15, 
 1873. to April 24, 1874; Reuben Hitchcock, 
 April 24, 1874, to September 25, 1874 ; David 
 L. King, September 24, 1874, to April 16, 1879 ; 
 J. H. Wade, April IG, 1879, to date. Vice 
 President — David L. King, from April 24, 1872, 
 to September 25, 1874 ; James Farmer, Sep- 
 tember 25, 1874, to April 16, 1879 ; S. T. Ev- 
 erett, from April 16, 1879, to date. Treasurer 
 and Secretar}' — Warwick Price, from April 24, 
 
 1872, to April 15, 1873. Treasurer— S. T. Ev- 
 erett, from April 20, 1873, to date. Secre- 
 tary— S. T. Everett, from April 20, 1873, to 
 May 13, 1873. Secretary and Auditor — L. D. 
 Clarke, from May 13, 1873, to April 17, 1878 ; 
 William B. Porter, from April 17 to date. Su- 
 perintendent — Sam Briggs, from November 
 1, 1879, to date. Present Board of Di- 
 rectors — J. H. Wade, H. B. Payne, John 
 Tod, W. J. Boardman and L. M. Coe, of Cleve- 
 land ; David L. King, of Akron ; L. V. Bock- 
 ius, of Canton ; and H. M. Flagler, of New 
 York. 
 
 The Tuscarawas Valley Railroad. — This road, 
 a comparatively new enterprise, running from 
 Lake Erie, at Black River, in Lorain Count}*, 
 to Bridgeport, opposite Wheeling, W. Va., on 
 the Ohio River, via Grafton, in Lorain County ; 
 Medina and Seville, in Medina County ; Clinton, 
 in Summit County ; Massillon, in Stark County ; 
 New Philadelphia and Urichville, in Tuscarawas 
 County ; passes through about three-fourths of 
 a mile of the township of Franklin, in Summit 
 Count}^, having a station at its junction with 
 the Cleveland, Mount Vernon & Columbus 
 road, called Warwick, a short distance south 
 of the village of Clinton. This road is 157^ 
 miles in length, and is one of the principal coal 
 roads of the State, and beneficial to the people 
 of Summit Count}^ in reaching sundry points 
 between Akron and Wheeling, and in the ship- 
 ment of coal and other articles to points west 
 of Cleveland on the lakes. 
 
 The Connotton Valley Railicay. — The latest ac- 
 cession to the railroad system of Summit County 
 is the Connotton Valley Railway. It is strictly 
 a narrow-gauge road (three feet) and though 
 intended more especially for the transportation 
 of coal, its complement of rolling-stock em- 
 braces an adequate suppl}' of box freight cars, 
 and elegantly finished and furnished passenger 
 coaches. The southern terminus of the road 
 is at Bowerstown, on the Pan Handle road, in 
 Harrison County, and its northern terminus, 
 the city of Cleveland. The line passes through 
 CarroUton, in Carroll County ; Canton in Stark 
 County ; Mogadore, in Summit and Portage 
 Counties ; Kent and Streetsboro, in Portage 
 County; Twinsburg, in Summit County, and 
 Bedford and Newburg in Cuyahoga County. 
 The capital stock of the company is $3,000,000, 
 the funds being furnished mainly by Boston 
 capitalists, though a majority of the directors 
 
-y 
 
 -S) L^ 
 
 302 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 and officers are residents of Ohio. The present 
 officers of the road are as follows : William J. 
 Rotch, of New Bedfoixl, Mass., President ; Sam- 
 uel Allen, of Del Roy, Carroll Count}', Vice Pres- 
 ident; A. B. Proal, of Canton, Stark County, 
 Secretary and Treasurer ; W. N. MofFett, for- 
 merly of the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago 
 Railroad, Superintendent, and Robert Learaouth, 
 formerly of the Pan Handle road, Roadmaster. 
 The machine and repair shops, and the general 
 offices of the company, are located at Canton. 
 The entire length of the road is 118 miles, six- 
 ty-two miles of which is now (April, 1881) in 
 running order, being completed as far north as 
 Mogadore, and as far south as Del Roy, in Car- 
 roll Count}, and it is expected that cars will 
 be running over the entire line by July of the 
 present year. This road passes through from 
 sixteen to twenty miles of valuable coal fields, 
 fine beds of iron ore, potters' cla}', building- 
 stone, etc., besides having on its line some of 
 the most enterprising manufacturing cities and 
 villages in Northern Ohio. At Mogadore, the 
 road passes on the Portage County side of the 
 village, but strikes into Summit County for a 
 short distance, in circling around a hill just 
 north of the village, thence bearing north- 
 easterly to reach the village of Kent, and 
 thence, in a northerly and northwesterly direc- 
 tion, again strikes into Summit County on the 
 east line of Twinsburg Township, running diag- 
 onally across the township, and passing the vil- 
 lage about one-fourth of a mile east of the pub- 
 lic square. The Connotton Valle}- will prove 
 especiall}' valuable to the people of Mogadore, 
 in furnishing them an inlet for the large quan- 
 tities of coal which they consume yearly, and 
 an outlet for the immense quantities of stone- 
 ware which they yearly manufacture, which has 
 hitherto required a haul of eight miles, over 
 (at times) the very muddiest kind of mud 
 roads, to the nearest railroad shipping-point, 
 Akron. The road will also give the people of 
 Twinsburg facilities, not hitherto enjoyed, in 
 reaching a mai^ket with their dairy products, 
 
 and the invaluable building stone so abundant 
 in that township, and in obtaining their needed 
 supplies from Cleveland and other portions of 
 the outside world. 
 
 The Pittsburgh, Youngstown & Chicago Rail- 
 road. — This road was projected early in 1881, 
 by Chauncey H. Andrews, Esq., and other 
 wealthy men of Youngstown, with other out- 
 side backing. The company fully organized 
 March 18, 1881, with Mr. Andrews as Presi- 
 dent, when $1,500,000 of the .12,000,000 au- 
 thorized capital was reported to be subscribed. 
 The plan is to build the road from Pittsburgh, 
 through Youngstown and Akron, direct to 
 Chicago, the line, as surveyed, to enter Summit 
 County at Mogadore, and, passing down the 
 valley of the Little C!uyahoga River, entering 
 Akron via the Sixth Ward upon the east, and 
 Wolf Ledge Valley in the south part of the 
 city. Though not yet actually commenced, 
 there is at this writing (Api'il 1, 1881), great 
 confidence in railroad and business circles that 
 this road will soon be put under contract and 
 speedih' constructed. Other important railroad 
 projects, to pass through Summit County when 
 built, are being talked up, but for the time 
 being held in abeyance. Without our rail- 
 roads, where would Akron, na}', where would 
 Summit Count}' have been to-day ? Not a man- 
 ufacturing establishment, other than our water- 
 power mills, limited to some half-dozen in 
 number — with diminished usefulness at that, 
 by reason of a lack of speedy transportation 
 facilities — would exist among us, and, instead 
 of a city of 17,000 population, Akron would 
 have been the mere village of 2,000 inhabitants 
 that it was thii-ty years ago, if, indeed, it had 
 not retrograded in the meantime for want of 
 proper communication with the outside world. 
 So, too, with the county at large — fanning 
 lands, instead of being worth from $75 to $300 
 per acre, as they now are, would have remained, 
 like those of the other non-railroad-penetrating 
 counties of the State, at from $25 to $60 per 
 acre. 
 
 ;V 
 

 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 303 
 
 CHAPTER VI.* 
 
 THE PROFESSIONS— LEGAL LORE IN THE PIONEKR DAYS— GREGORY ROWERS — OTHER EARLY 
 LAWYERS — THE PRESENT SUMMIT COUNTY BAR— MEDICAL — PHJNEER PHYSICIANS- 
 DIFFERENT SYSTEMS — MEDICAL SOCIETIES, ETC. 
 
 THE history of the County would not be 
 considered complete, without a sketch of 
 the professions — legal and medical. 
 
 The following on the Summit County bar is 
 by Judge Carpenter, and is as follows: — [En.] 
 
 In the summer of 1832, the writer, a stran- 
 ger in Ohio, alert for information touching its 
 people, laws, soil, products and topography, 
 took the mail coach at Ravenna for Hudson. 
 There was sitting on the back seat a man 
 whose look would have taken his attention 
 anywhere. A green bag tilled with books lay 
 by his side. He was considerably under thir- 
 ty, tall and slim, but with limbs and contour 
 so round and trim as to suggest an embodi- 
 ment of muscular vigor, agility and toughness. 
 His dress was simple but fitted with faultless 
 neatness to his elegant figiu-e. 
 
 Conversation began at once. The writer's 
 various questions were answered with a j^re- 
 cision which evinced a thorough acquaintance 
 with Ohio, its public interests, its heterogen- 
 eous inhabitants, their difierent habits and 
 ])eculiarities. Unquestionably that fellow- 
 passenger was a man of keen observation. 
 But his easy flow of intelligence bore not the 
 slightest show of vanity or ostentation. His 
 master}^ of language, the complete finish of 
 every sentence, his faultless pronunciation and 
 the gi'ammatical accuracy and purity of his 
 English, might mark him for a college pi'o- 
 fessor. On reaching Stow Corners, he took the 
 road to Middlebury on foot, green bag in hand. 
 
 When the writer returned to Ravenna he 
 inquired of Mr. Coolman, the hotel kee}>er, 
 the name of his fellow-passenger, remarking 
 that he had been very pleasantly entertained 
 by him. and had set him down as a man of 
 mark who had traveled considerably with his 
 eyes and ears wide open. Mr. Coolman, who 
 
 •■■By Judge James S. Carpenter and I'r. Alvin K. Fuuser. 
 
 was himself an invaluable treasury of what open 
 eyes and ears could gather up, smiled at the 
 remark and replied: "That gentleman, sir, 
 is Gregory Powers. He is becoming a very 
 distinguished lawyer, and is, in truth, a rising 
 man; but as to his traveling, he was born and 
 brought up here in the woods, and I doubt 
 whether he was ever out of Ohio." It is true 
 that he had then seen little of the world out- 
 side of Ohio; and that his acquaintance had 
 rarely extended beyond the Western Reserve. 
 
 In his profession, Mr. Powers was not a 
 voluminous reader. His library was not at all 
 extensive, and his reading was mostly element- 
 ary. His practice at the bar was earnest, gi'ave, 
 strictly honorable and always courteous. Ad- 
 vocates had not in those days acquired the 
 art of inspiring jiu'ors by blowing in their 
 faces. They stood at a distance of six or eight 
 yards from the jiuy-box, and maintained a 
 manliness of deportment superior to the moie 
 recent practice. 
 
 But it was not orator'y that most distin- 
 guished the forensic efforts of Mr. Powers. 
 It was his ability by quick and clear analysis 
 to disentangle the most covert and complex 
 transactions among men, and follow them to 
 their legal consequences. And it was matter 
 of curious observation to a listener that his 
 high tension of voice and feeling was more 
 frequent and intense in his argimients to the 
 coiu*t on some abstract point of law. than in 
 unraveling facts to the jiu-y. In the latter 
 case, his highest ascents of voice and manner 
 were more mild and of a more even tenor, 
 intensely pressing the high claims of right 
 and justice He was born in the township 
 of Stow, then in Portage County, in 1805. His 
 father was a native of Naples, Italy, and had 
 been a sea cajitain. His mother was a lady of 
 Middletown, Conn., and died in 1811. Some- 
 
 (s" 
 
 V 
 
304 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 time after his mother's death, Gregory entered 
 Burton Academy and continued there two years, 
 making rapid progress in all studies which he 
 took in hand, being especially distinguished in 
 Latin and still more in mathematics. On 
 leaving the academy he began the study 
 of law, in the office of Judge Van R. Hum- 
 phrey, in Hudson. As a student at law. 
 Judge Humphrey said he was not a rapid 
 reader. He habitually quarreled with what 
 he was reading — turned back and read over 
 and over again, till he was master of the text, 
 and thus reconciled it to his sense of right as 
 he went along. 
 
 In 1832, Mr. Powers was elected by the 
 Clay men and Anti-Masons of Portage 
 County, to the House of Representatives of 
 Ohio. In 1833, he was a candidate for re- 
 election, but political alternations had fixed 
 that year for the Democratic party, and Mr. 
 Powers was succeeded by Roan Clarke. In 
 1838, Mr. Powers was elected by the Whigs 
 to the Senate of Ohio. In both branches of 
 the Legislature his course was marked by the 
 same high ability which had given him such 
 eminence at the bar. He came home from the 
 Senate apparently overworked and suffering 
 at the heart, which brought him to his death 
 at the age of thirty- foiu-, July 10, 1839, end- 
 ing a career, which, had it continued to the 
 common limit of old age, must have set him 
 among the loftiest characters of our country. 
 
 Van R. Humphrey was born at Goshen, 
 Conn., July 28, 1800. His educational train- 
 ing was wholly at the common school of his 
 native place, but it seems to have been so 
 thorough that he became a successful teacher 
 of a common school while in his teens. At 
 what time he commenced the study of law 
 is not ascertained, but a certificate of The- 
 odore North, attorney and counselor at law, 
 dated Goshen, May 11, 1821, says: "He pur- 
 sued his course of legal studies in my office 
 with u.ncommon attention and diligence." 
 A copy of the record of the Court of Common 
 Pleas of Litchfield County, Conn., duly certi- 
 fied by Frederick Wolcott, Clerk, shows that 
 in September, 1820, he was admitted an 
 attorney and counselor at law before all the 
 Com-ts of Common Pleas in Connecticut. 
 
 April 17, 1821, he was married to Stella 
 
 Beach, of Goshen, and settled in Hudson, 
 Ohio, the same year, where he continued his 
 residence through life. An official certificate 
 of S. Day, Clerk, shows that at a term of the 
 Supreme Court of Ohio, on the 1st day of 
 July, 1822, present the Hon. Calvin Pease 
 and Peter Hitchcock, Judges, Van R. Hum- 
 phrey was duly examined, admitted and 
 sworn as an attorney and counselor at law 
 and solicitor in chancery, within the State of 
 Ohio. In 1824, he was elected, commissioned 
 and qualified as Justice of the Peace for the 
 township of Hudson. December 26, 1828, he 
 was admitted to practice in the District Com*t 
 of the United States, within the State of Ohio. 
 In the year 1828, he was elected to the House 
 of Representatives of the Legislature of Ohio, 
 and was re-elected to the same office in 1829. 
 He was elected by the Legislature of Ohio 
 President Judge of the Coui't of Common 
 Pleas of the Third Judicial District for the 
 term of seven years, beginning in 1836 and 
 ending in 1813. 
 
 From 1830, or perhaps a little earlier, till 
 Judge Humphrey took his seat upon the bench, 
 he and Gregory Powers were pitted against 
 each other in most of the important cases in 
 Portage and Medina Counties. They were 
 both men of commanding presence, yet stand- 
 ing at the opposite extremes of manly dignity 
 and beauty. Powers tall, lithe and excitable, 
 yet always self-possessed. Humphrey cool and 
 impertm'bable, tall, large, though not unwieldy 
 or fleshy, but full and rounded out at every point 
 — a manifest embodiment of muscular strength. 
 His manner was deliberate; his voice loud, 
 clear, of large compass and never harsh. His 
 sarcasm, not frequent, and seeming ever to be 
 held back in reserve, and never sought after, 
 always hit its mark. His humor was inex- 
 haustible and spontaneous, and his wit forth- 
 coming at will. His imagination was splendid, 
 but would have been improved by early disci- 
 pline. His arguments were not distinguished 
 for consecutive reasoning, but they seemed to be 
 guided by a kind of insight into the essential 
 elements of his case, so that, if his imagina- 
 tion at any time outstripped his logic, there 
 was an inner light that still hu'ed him back 
 to the essential points which he seldom failed 
 so to group together and enlighten as to give 
 
'-^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 305 
 
 them eflfect. While Powei's went directly to 
 the leading points of his case and pressed 
 them to their inevitable sequence, Humphrey 
 swept in much of the smTounding mass, which, 
 under his glowing imagination, took the color 
 of his leading points. In a word. Judge 
 Humphrey had just that broad foundation for 
 a mental structure which early intellectual 
 training would have made more readily avail- 
 able for logical argument. 
 
 And yet, as Judge of the Court of Common 
 Pleas, his decisions were remarkably correct. 
 His quick and penetrative insight stood him 
 in good stead there. His invariable kindness 
 and impartiality, and the apparent ease with 
 which he disposed of business, gave to his 
 administration a general and hearty approval. 
 
 Christopher P. Wolcott was born in 1821, 
 probably in Steubenville, Jefferson Co., Ohio. 
 His father removed from Connecticut to that 
 place some time prior to that date, it is 
 believed. However, that may be, Steubenville 
 was the home of his childhood and youth. His 
 education, which was thoroughly classical, was 
 received at several institutions, but lastly, at Jef- 
 ferson College, Pennsylvania. He studied law 
 under the Hon. Edwin M. Stanton, our distin- 
 guished Secretary of war diu-ing the rebellion. 
 In the spring of 1846, he formed a partnership 
 withW. S. C. Otis, Esq., of Akron, to which place 
 he immediately removed his residence. The 
 chief indications he then gave of the eminence 
 which he afterward attained, were his accm'ate 
 knowledge of legal principles, the complete- 
 ness of whatever pleading or other written 
 document came from his hands, and the very 
 careful preparation of his briefs. It was 
 apparent that he distrusted himself before 
 a jury and felt far more confidence in his 
 ability to address the court. In truth, diffi- 
 dence of his own powers was then his besetting 
 impediment. Indeed, it was not till he had 
 toiled under tortured sensibilities through a 
 busy and laborious practice of several years 
 that he had so shaken off this nightmare as to 
 give full play to his forensic powers. He 
 had given proof in many cases of ability to go 
 through an extended statement of logical 
 inferences with extraordinary clearness and 
 force on questions of law, yet his efforts 
 before a jui-y had always seemed constrained i 
 
 and painful. But at length in the libel case 
 of Wilson vs. Blake, in Common Pleas, Novem- 
 ber term, 1852, he broke entirely away fi'om 
 his self-consciousness, and abandoned himself 
 with burning energy to the full flow of a warm 
 imagination. The coiul and bar were taken 
 by surprise, and the verdict showed that noth- 
 ing had been wasted on the jiu-y. 
 
 The trial of Parks for miuxler, in December, 
 1853, was the next occasion that aroused the 
 energies of Mr. Wolcott to their highest pitch. 
 For him it was simply a medium of thought; 
 and in his handling it became as transparent 
 as the air. But the argument which stands, and 
 forever must stand, as the monument of Mr. 
 Wolcott's intellectual power and of his high 
 attainments as a lawyer, was delivered as 
 Attorney General of Ohio before the Judges 
 of our Supreme Com't at Chambers on two 
 \vrits of habeas corpus, in the cases ex jfarfe 
 Bushnell and ex parte Langston, in May, 
 1859. It is reported in 9 Ohio State reports, 
 page 97, covering eighty- three pages. 
 
 In the summer of 1856, Mr. Wolcott was 
 appointed Attorney General of this State by 
 the Governor, to fill a vacancy in that office 
 occasioned by the death of F. D. Kimball. 
 He was elected to the same office in 1857, and 
 continued to discharge his duties with distin- 
 guished ability until February, 1860. On the 
 breaking out of the rebellion in 1861, the en- 
 listment of volunteers for the military service 
 was an easy matter. . But in a movement so 
 sudden, so extensive and multitudinous, it was 
 no easy matter to bring order and system out of 
 chaos and iiTepressible haste and confusion. 
 In this emergency, Mr. Wolcott spent much of 
 that year in aiding Gov. Dennison to regu- 
 late and systematize the militar}" operations of 
 our State. Early in 1862 his brother-in-law, 
 Hon. Edwin M. Stanton, having been appointed 
 Secretary of War, IVIi-. Wolcott was appointed 
 Assistant Secretary of War. It would be super- 
 fluous to speak of the labors which the war of 
 the rebellion imposed upon that department of 
 the Government. Mr. Wolcott's sleepless de- 
 votion to his official duties — the indefatigable 
 energy with which he plied both mind and 
 body in that service, soon wore him out. He 
 died in the summer of 1862, a martp' to his 
 country's cause. 
 
 [9 
 
3(Xi 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 Isaiah Hiimplirey, after serving a term in 
 the United States Army in fightincr Indians 
 and passing through the various vicissitudes 
 of guarding our Western frontiers, settled 
 down upon a farm in the township of Boston, 
 some fifteen miles from Akron. In the process 
 of clearing up his land and applying his labors 
 as a new farm exacts them of a luisbandman, 
 he thought there were minutes and i]aterstices of 
 time, which without damage to his agriculture, 
 he could devote to the enlargement of his 
 mind. He had a retentive memory, was a nat- 
 ural humorist, had a keen sense of the ludi- 
 crous, a perpetual fountain of ready wit, a 
 rare knack at narration whether of anecdotes 
 or of sober facts, and a good understanding, 
 which, with persevering effort, could be disci- 
 plined for logical reasoning. Here was a 
 foundation for a lawyer. The distance of his 
 residence from the county seat and its proxim- 
 ity to the Ohio Canal where law-siiits within a 
 justices' jurisdiction were necessarily frequent, 
 would of course often put in requisition a com- 
 bination of such mental qualities in aid of dis- 
 tressed litigants. Amid importunities of this 
 kind, Mr. Humphrey took up the study of the law 
 under his brother. Judge Van R. Humphrey, 
 of Hudson. Meanwhile his farm and his 
 family occupied his time as usual. His legal 
 studies having been pursued some miles from 
 Judge Humphrey's office, it very natiu'ally 
 happened that on his admission to the bar he 
 foimd himself much abler in the general prin- 
 ciples of the law than in matters of legal 
 practice, which require skill that comes only 
 with use. 
 
 It followed, of course, that in the Common 
 Pleas Mr. Humi)hrey's pleadings were often 
 defective and involved in perplexities. But his 
 impm'turbable coolness, good nature and tact 
 got the better of them with occasional loss of 
 time, which to the court and bar was amply com- 
 pensated by the interludes of wit and humor 
 that seemed to flash out in proportion as per- 
 plexities thickened. He did not leave his farm, 
 but with his farming went through many a 
 lively wrangle in his profession. He died 
 about April, 1877, sincerely lamented by his 
 brethren of the bar. 
 
 Wolsey Wells' card is found in the Portage 
 Jonrnal then published at Middlebmy in 1827, 
 
 giving notice that he had opened a law office 
 at Akron in the hotel. The same paper 
 informs us that the first boat on the Ohio 
 Canal reached Akron July 2, 1827, having on 
 board Gov. Trimble on his way to celebrate 
 the opening of the canal to navigation, at 
 Cleveland on the 4th of July. Gov. Trimble 
 was welcomed to Akron in a speech by Wolsey 
 W^ells, Esq. In 1885, Mr. Wells was in law 
 practice in company with Harvey Birch, Esq., 
 at Elyria. After some years, practice at Elyria, 
 he migrated to one of the northwestern coun- 
 ties of Ohio, as agent of the State for the sale 
 of public lands. It is reported that he died 
 there a few years since. He was a lawyer of 
 fine abilities and the strictest integrity. He 
 took an active part in the anti-slavery and 
 temperance reforms, in which he was out 
 spoken and disdained all compromise. 
 
 George Bliss was a native of Vermont and 
 came to Ohio quite young. He commenced 
 the study of law about 1841, in the office of 
 Hand & Cartter, and was admitted to the bar 
 about 1848. His examination for admission 
 was, with several other candidates, in the Su- 
 preme Court at Medina; and his thorough 
 understanding of legal principles and practice 
 was remarked on by the committee in their 
 retirement as pre-eminent among the candi- 
 dates, and as the harbinger of certain success 
 in his profession. He very soon rose to dis- 
 tinction and formed a partnership with D. K. 
 Cartter (now Judge of the Supreme Court of 
 the District of Columbia), their office being 
 in Akron. He had a voice of remarkable 
 smoothness. It was of the kind which Cicero 
 seems to have meant by his vox argentea. It 
 was a ringing, metallic voice, sliding through 
 gradations so easily and coming forth in full 
 volume with such apparent spontaneity, that 
 it never wearied the hearer however long con- 
 tinued. 
 
 A vacancy occm'ring in the Common Pleas 
 judgeship of this district in 1850, Mr. Bliss 
 was a candidate for election to that office by 
 the Legislature of 1849-50. There were two 
 other candidates. After numerous fruitless 
 votes were taken, no candidate having received 
 a majority, the Legislature gave the election 
 the go by, and adjourned leaving the vacancy 
 mffilled. The Governor of Ohio being then of 
 
:k* 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 307 
 
 the Democi'atic party, appointed Mr. Bliss to 
 the office. The short time he held it was long 
 enough to fix the general opinion of the bar 
 that his administration of it, if continued 
 for another term, would give general satis- 
 faction. 
 
 In 1852, Mr. Bliss was elected to the House 
 of Representatives in Congress by the Demo- 
 cratic party. He continued his residence in 
 Akron until about 1860, when he removed to 
 Wooster. He continued the practice of his 
 profession theie until his death about 1875. 
 
 Lucius V. Bierce was born in Connecticut. 
 He came to Ohio with his father's family 
 when a lad. He entered the Ohio University at 
 Athens, in Athens County, where he graduated 
 at the termination of the ciistomary college 
 course. He taught some years in one or more 
 of the Southern States, and then returned to 
 Ohio and studied law. On being admitted to 
 che bar he opened a law office at Ravenna, in 
 Portage County. He was a very fluent and 
 rapid speaker, had great facility in drafting 
 and readiness in the dispatch of business. 
 He soon became very popular as a lawyer, and 
 was elected Prosecuting Attorney several 
 terms in succession. About the year 1836, he 
 removed his office to Akron, which was then 
 in Portage County, where he continued his 
 professional practice until the war of the 
 rebellion broke out. 
 
 Gen. Bierce was neither an extensive nor a 
 profound reader of law. His chief character- 
 istic as a lawyer lay in his extraordinary tact 
 and ingenuity in putting his adversary in a 
 false position. When his opponent had made 
 out a clear case and set down with confidence 
 that it was standing in such blazing sunlight 
 that no mists could be conjui'ed uj^ to darken 
 it. Gen. Bierce was on his feet. Of all occa- 
 sions for calling up his magic skill that was 
 the one. Then all sorts of odd combinations 
 of the law and facts which could make the 
 false resemble the true were held up to the 
 gaze of the jury. Hints, suggestions, imag- 
 inings, possibilities outside and inside of the 
 case — the winged missives seemed to fill the 
 air and flap in every juror's face, and it was 
 good luck for justice and innocence if some 
 of them did not lodge in the breast of many a 
 juryman and puzzle the whole panel, in spite 
 
 a lucid charge from the court and all the 
 simshine that had blazed upon the case. 
 Yet, take him as he was, no member of the 
 Summit bar was so di'eaded before a jury as 
 Gen. Bierce. He was never tlirown off his 
 guard — never discomposed. The most threat- 
 ening discomfiture foimd him on his feet 
 ready to repel the onset. 
 
 In 1861, he was elected to the Senate of 
 Ohio by the Republicans of Summit and Port- 
 age Counties. He took a very active part in 
 raising troops for the Union in the late war ; and 
 in 1863 he was appointed Assistant Adjutant 
 General of Ohio, and discharged the arduous 
 duties of that office with faultless exactitude. 
 As a citizen and neighbor, Gen. Bierce was 
 public- spirited, obliging and generous. He 
 died November, 1876, and was buried with 
 military honors. 
 
 John Harris, Jr., was born at Canton, Stark 
 County, November 26, 1823. He was class- 
 ically educated at Western Reserve College, 
 of which he was a graduate. He stud- 
 ied law under his father's tuition at Canton, 
 and opened a law office at Akron about 184:5. 
 His health was delicate. He, however, showed 
 himself fully competent in his profession. 
 With abundant intellectual power to cany him 
 through a contest, he shrank fi'om the rough 
 collisions which coarser natures often invited. 
 Experience, however, would have given to his 
 sensibility a recoil against coarse and ill-tem- 
 pered thrusts all the more wounding to an ag- 
 gressor, because it came unsuspected, from a 
 keen and concealed weapon. Had he lived, 
 he would have taken a high stand in the pro- 
 fession, which all his practice would have 
 tended to dignify and refine. He died at 
 Canton March 12,' 1855. 
 
 Harvey Whedon was born at Litchfield, 
 Conn., in 1812. He opened a law office in Hud- 
 son, Ohio, probably in 1838. He soon acquired 
 a good office practice, and a reasonable share 
 of practice in the courts of this county. A 
 well-read, industrious lawj^er, of good judg- 
 ment, he was often consulted, and acquired a 
 reputation of a safe coxmselor. He was elected 
 Prosecuting Attorney of Summit County in 
 1852, and faithfully discharged the duties of 
 that office for the constitutional term of two 
 years. Mr. "\Miedon was a man of undoubted 
 
308 
 
 HISTOPtY OF SUMMIT COUNTY, 
 
 integrity and of solid woiih. He died of 
 typhoid fever August 29, 1855. 
 
 W. S. C. Otis was born in Cummington, 
 Mass. He entered Williams College, where 
 he took a high stand as a scholar, but left the 
 college some time in his senior year, and, for 
 awhile, followed teaching. In 1831, he en- 
 tered the law office of Whittlesey & Newton, 
 at Canfield, Mahoning County, and continued 
 there with unremitting application till he was 
 admitted to thw practice of law in Ohio in 
 1833. Soon after his admission, he became a 
 partner in his profession with Hon. Jonathan 
 Sloane, of Ravenna. Mi-. Otis' strength lay 
 in his keenly discriminative perceptions, his 
 ample powers of deduction, and the tenacity 
 with which he held to the controlling points 
 in his case, di'awing from them alone its ulti- 
 mate conclusions, and guarding every such 
 point as no one could do who had not viewed 
 and reviewed every phase of the matter in 
 hand. As an advocate, his voice and action 
 brought him little aid. He had great earnest- 
 ness, a ready memory, spoke fluently and always 
 to the point, though somewhat wordily. His 
 facts and alignments were laid out with rare 
 skill and judgment. To the comi and the 
 bar, however, he was much better known as 
 a lawyer than as an advocate. In argument, 
 whether to the court or jury, he was fond of 
 making historical or classical allusions, which 
 were always well selected and came in with 
 happy effect. Hi s ambition, when he began his 
 profession, was very high, and, so ffir as emi- 
 nence at the bar went, it was certainly not dis- 
 appointed. 
 
 ^Ii'. Otis was elected Prosecuting Attor- 
 ney for Summit County, in 1844, and, in 
 1850, he was elected as a delegate from this 
 county to the Constitutional Convention which 
 framed the Constitution of Ohio now in force. 
 Outside of his profession, he was a man of 
 large intelligence — a diligent reader of his- 
 tory, of the cmTent literatm-e of the times, of 
 the classics, both ancient and modern, and of 
 the Book above all books. He always kept up 
 a close acquaintance with the ancient authors, 
 both Greek and Latin, in their original tongues. 
 Not long before his last illness, he published 
 a pamphlet containing an examination into 
 the common translation of a passage in one of 
 
 the epistles of the New Testament, drawing 
 his conclusions from a critical acquaintance 
 with the original Greek. In truth, from the 
 beginning of his professional life, and we know 
 not how much longer, he made the study of 
 the Bible a specialty. 
 
 About 1842, ]VIi\ Otis removed his residence 
 from Ravenna to Akron, where he continued 
 his professional practice. He was elected 
 President of the first bank established in 
 Aki'on, and held that office for some years. 
 Abou.t 1875, he suffered fi'om a paralytic 
 shock, from which he so far recovered as to 
 give attention to his extensive business till 
 1877, when a second stroke of palsy gave wai'n- 
 ing that his work was done. He died leaving 
 his widow and family amply provided for. 
 
 William M. Dodge was born January 2, 
 1805, in the State of New York. He ob- 
 tained a good English education at the com- 
 mon schools of his native place. He came to 
 Ohio probably about 1828; studied law in 
 Geauga County, and was admitted to the bar 
 probably in 1830. Not long afterward, he 
 took up his residence at Middlebury, and there 
 opened a law office. After a short residence 
 there, he settled in Ala'on, where he continued 
 his professional business until he was elected 
 Probate Judge of Summit County, in 1860. 
 He had before then held the office of Prose- 
 cuting Attorney for Summit County, hav- 
 ing been elected to it in 1842, and discharged 
 its duties satisfactorily through the term. 
 Mr. Dodge was a public-spirited citizen. He 
 took a very active part in the organization 
 of the Aki-on school system. He was espe- 
 cially efficient as a member of the Board of 
 Directors, in all that pertained to building, or 
 otherwise providing schoolhouses. In all such 
 matters, he was a man of first-rate judgment, 
 and he bent himself to the gi'atuitous work 
 with untiring zeal. He died July 22, 1861. 
 
 William H. Gaston had been a school- 
 teacher. At what time or where he studied 
 law, or was admitted to the bar, is not known. 
 In 1844, he was doing business as a lawyer, in 
 company with W. S. C. Otis, at Akron. He 
 gave himself to the work of the law office with 
 unremitting diligence. He was a lawj^er of a 
 clear head, and of power to grasp and handle 
 a matter of manifold complications in chan- 
 
 'Tl'^ 
 
.1^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 309 
 
 eery and was ambitious to rise in his profes- 
 sion. But a fatal disease .seized upon his 
 lungs and took him from the jarring crowds 
 of suitors and lawyers, and jurors, and coui-ts, 
 and all the varied tumults of earthly things. 
 
 James D. Taylor was born at Youngstown, 
 Mahoning County, November 24, 1816. He 
 was admitted to the bar at Gallipolis, whither 
 he rode on horseback for that purpose. About 
 1845, he entered into partnership with Henry 
 W. King, Esq., of Akron, where he immedi- 
 ately fixed his residence. The firm carried on 
 a prosperous business till about 1850, when, 
 the health of both partners declining, their 
 partnership was dissolved. Mr. Taylor's ill- 
 ness was pulmonary. He spent some time in 
 the Southern States, in hopes, by help of a 
 favorable climate, to overcome the malady 
 which was wasting him away. It was sadly 
 in vain. He died at Enterprise, Fla., March 
 23, 1855. "While residing at Akron, he was 
 married to Miss Isabella Howard, now Mrs. 
 James Mathews, of Aliron. Mr. Taylor 
 was an industrious, clear-headed lawyer. He 
 had a sprightly imagination, a keen, well-dis- 
 ciplined intellect. A comely person, a good 
 memory and ready command of language, an 
 easy delivery, free but always graceful and 
 appropriate gestui'es, a soft though not very 
 sonorous voice, an animated countenance, and 
 a wit that could make a home-thrust almost in 
 a whisper, made him one of the most winning 
 speakers of the time. 
 
 But, better than all, a keen sense of honor 
 and integrity above suspicion, seemed to add 
 security and a high and commanding value to 
 all the mental qualities of the man. His 
 death, and its melancholy surroundings — far 
 from home, where his wife was detained with 
 a sick child — shed a deep and lasting sorrow 
 thi'oughout his acquaintance. 
 
 Chai'les G. Ladd was a native of Vermont. 
 He came to Ohio in his yoiith, and read law 
 with his brother-in-law. Gen. L. V. Bierce, 
 with whom, after being admitted to practice, 
 he became a partner, in the firm of Bierce & 
 Ladd. With no shining advantages, Mr. Ladd 
 soon began to show what influence can be ob- 
 tained over common minds by self-assm'ance, 
 and apparently an undoubting confidence that 
 one's own knowledge is one's own exclusively. 
 
 and can be shared in by others only as he 
 himself imparts it. This quality of tmflinch- 
 ing boldness he used with the address and tact 
 of a master. He entered the arena of politics 
 simultaneously with that of his profession, 
 youthful as he was, and very soon passed 
 tlirough a succession of minor trusts and offi- 
 ces, all of which he discharged faithfully and 
 with fair ability. 
 
 On the adoption of ovir present constitution, 
 in 1851, he was elected to the office of Probate 
 Judge of Summit County in October of that 
 year, but died in the following winter, with- 
 out entering upon the duties of the office. 
 
 Holland O. Hammond was born in Bath 
 Township, in Summit County. He displayed 
 in his childhood rare aptness in learning — so 
 much so that his parents singled him out from 
 among a large family of children for a liberal 
 education. He fitted for entering a college 
 course at the Preparatory Department of the 
 Western Reserve College, which he entered in 
 due time, and, in the regiilar progress of class- 
 ical and mathematical studies, showed brilliant 
 powers of acquisition. Chafing against the 
 common restraints of a college upon his irreg- 
 ularities, he left that institution and entered 
 Oberlin College. Finding the restraints there 
 quite as stringent as those at Western Re- 
 serve, he took leave of Oberlin some time in 
 his junior year. Not long afterward, in the 
 winter of 1846-47, he commenced the study 
 of law in the office of Carpenter & McClm-e, 
 at Akron. He mastered the customary text- 
 books with gi-eat facility, and, at the end of 
 the statutory two years of law-reading, was 
 admitted to the bar. 
 
 A brief nin of practice revealed in him the 
 elements of a fine legal mind, and a ready tact 
 at picking up bvisiness and inspiring confi- 
 dence in his clients. But such guaranties of 
 success were weakened by a ceaseless itching 
 for office and the wonted intrigues to secm-e 
 it. In mid-career, however, a fatal disease set- 
 tled upon his brain, fi-om which, after a linger- 
 ing illness, he died, in 1866, leaving a widow and 
 one daughter, and his memory for their heritage. 
 
 George Kirkum was a native of Connecticut. 
 He was for many years Clerk of the Coiu't 
 of Common Pleas of Portage Coimty, before 
 the erection of Summit. His skill in^putting 
 
 T^ 
 
!a w. 
 
 310 
 
 HISTOKY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 in order and systematizing the affairs of the 
 office of Clerk of the Coui-t of Common Pleas 
 was of public utility. In 1888, Mr. Kirk- 
 um was elected to the House of Represent- 
 atives of Ohio, from the county of Portage. 
 The special interest his election was expected 
 to subserve was the erection of Summit County 
 out of Portage, Stark, Wayne and Medina 
 Counties. Though a jnan of lai'ge intiuence 
 in a popular body, so strong was the opposition 
 that his indefatigable labors failed to cai'ry 
 the measiu'e through the Legislatm'e. 
 
 About the same time, Mi*. Kirkum took up 
 his residence in Aki-on, where he opened a law 
 office and practiced his calling for several 
 years. His health failing, he moved his resi- 
 dence to his farm in Norton Township, which 
 he managed for a few yeai's, and then moved 
 to another farm in the vicinity of Cleveland. 
 All the while, his inevitable tormentor, dyspep- 
 sia, followed him up, till he died at his last- 
 mentioned home some years since. 
 
 Frederick S. Hanford was born at Cuyahoga 
 Falls, and was educated at Western Reserve 
 College, where he graduated with distin- 
 guished honors. He studie d law in the office 
 of McKinuey & Tibbals in Akron, and at 
 the Columbia Law School in New York City, 
 where he was admitted to practice May 12, 
 1869. He entered into a law partnership with 
 Hon. S. C. Williamson (now Probate Judge of 
 Summit County), and afterward with Hon. N. 
 J). Tibbals (now Judge of the Court of Com- 
 mon Pleas). He rose rapidly in practice. 
 But, suffering from hemorrhage of the lungs, 
 he spent some months in Colorado in hopes of 
 invigorating his health by change of climate. 
 On returning to professional labor, hemor- 
 rhages followed from time to time with fatal 
 effect. He died at the home of his father-in- 
 law in Ashland, Ohio, January 29, 1879. 
 
 Hemy William King, son of the late Hon. 
 Leicester King, of Ohio, was bom at Westfield, 
 Mass., September 24, 1815. He was brought 
 to Warren, Trambull County, when his par- 
 ents settled there, in 1817. He was fitted for 
 college partly at Wan-en and partly at Hart- 
 ford, Conn., where he entered Washington 
 (now Trinity) College, and graduated August 
 4, 1836. He studied law with the late Hon. 
 Milton Sutliff at Warren, and also at the Cin- 
 
 cinnati Law School, under Judge Walker. 
 He was admitted to the bar at Gallipolis in 
 February, 1839. Li the fall of the same year, 
 he opened a law office at Aki'on, Summit 
 County. June 1, 1844, he formed a law part- 
 nership with James D. Taylor, which was dis- 
 solved June 1, 1849, on account of the failing 
 health of Mr. Taylor, who immediately re- 
 moved to Peiii, 111., where, his health improv- 
 ing, he carried on a very prosperous law busi- 
 ness for a few years, imtil his pulmonary 
 weakness could midergo the wear of strife no 
 longer. 
 
 Meanwhile, Mi'. King entered into partner- 
 ship with his brother, David L. King, and 
 vigorously pm-sued the business of the profes- 
 sion. In 1850, the Legislatm'e of Ohio elected 
 him Secretary of State. The duties of this 
 office he discharged for two years with his cus- 
 tomary exactness and punctuality. IVIr. King 
 was an indefatigable worker. He shi'ank fi'om 
 no legal di'udgery. This intense labor, how- 
 ever, bore down upon a constitution never 
 strong, until 1853, when his health gave 
 way, and he was therefore compelled to re- 
 linquish his professional practice. As a 
 means of recovering, he betook himself to 
 a more active life in open air, at Suamico, in 
 the lumber regions of Wisconsin. He also 
 tried a sea voyage, one or more, at mackerel 
 fishing, and a voyage to the Bermudas. But 
 his malady had laid fast hold on his life, and, 
 in spite of remedies, and hopeful friends, and 
 their tenderest cares, and the watchful nm-sing of 
 her who for years had held her own life sec- 
 ond to his, on the 2()th of November, 1857, he 
 left all for another and a better life. 
 
 The following are the names of lawj^ers who 
 once practiced in Summit County, but who 
 are still living elsewhere, or of whose decease 
 we have no certain knowledge: Rufus P. 
 Spalding, a native of Connecticut, graduate 
 of Yale College, was one of the Supreme 
 Judges of Ohio, when our State constitution 
 took effect in 1851. He represented this dis- 
 trict in Congress three successive terms, be- 
 ginning in 1862; and now enjoys a healthy 
 old age in Cleveland. Daniel R. Tilden, a 
 native of Connecticut, began business as a 
 lawyer ^'n Portage County about 1836; was 
 twice elected to Congress from this district. 
 
hL 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 311 
 
 He opened a law ofl&ce in Akron about the 
 winter of 1847-48; removed to Cleveland 
 about 1850; was elected Probate Judge of 
 Cuyahoga County in 1851, and has held that 
 oflfice without interruption ever since. Abel 
 B. Berry, a native of New Hampshire, gTadu- 
 ate at Dartmouth College, and was admitted 
 to practice in New England; came to Akron 
 in 1844; read law one year in the office of 
 Judge Spalding, and was admitted to practice 
 in Ohio in 1845. He opened a law office in 
 Akron, and after a few years returned to New 
 England, and is now practicing law in Boston, 
 Mass. Alvah Hand opened a law office in 
 Akron about 1827; removed to Oshkosh, Wis., 
 many years since. Seneca L. Hand kept a law 
 office in Middlebury (now Sixth Ward, 
 Aki-on), from about 1828 till about 1851, when 
 he moved to Dubuque, Iowa. Frederick A. 
 Nash was for some years a partner in law bus- 
 iness with Seneca L. Hand; afterward with 
 N. W. Goodhue, Esq., and still later with 
 Messrs. King & Green. For the last twelve 
 years or so, he has resided at Brattleboro, 
 Vt. Philemon Bliss, a native of Central New 
 York, and liberally educated there, opened a 
 law office at Cuyahoga Falls about 1841. 
 After a practice there of some three or foui* 
 years, he removed to Elyi'ia, Lorain County, 
 and there continued his law practice. While 
 residing there he was twice elected to Con- 
 gress. After some years' service in a Terri- 
 toi'ial judgeship, he took up his residence in 
 Missouri and became one of the Supreme 
 Judges of that State. He has recently pub- 
 lished a book of some note on code pleading, 
 and is Professor of Law in the Missoui'i State 
 University. H. H. Johnson kept a law office 
 some years in Akron, but, upon the erection 
 of the county of Ashland, he took up his resi- 
 dence and pursued his law practice at Ash- 
 land, the county seat of that county, where he 
 was soon afterward elected to the House of 
 Representatives in Congi-ess. David K. Cart- 
 ter is a native of Western New York, where 
 he was admitted to the bar. He opened a law 
 office in Akron about 1887, and removed to 
 Massillon, Stark County, about 1845. He 
 was elected to Congress in 1848, and again in 
 1850. Early in Mr. Lincoln's administration 
 he was appointed Chief Justice of the Su- 
 
 preme Court of the District of Coltunbia; and 
 is still the incumbent of that office. Henry 
 McKinney was born in Portage County, Ohio; 
 studied law under Judge S. W. McClure at 
 Cuyahoga Falls, was admitted to the bar and 
 entered into partnership with him in 1850. 
 After some years he removed his residence to 
 Akron, where he formed a partnership with 
 Judge N. D. Tibbals. He was elected to the 
 Senate of Ohio in 1809, and, in 1871, he re- 
 moved his residence to Cleveland. John A. 
 Pleasants is a native of Virginia. He settled 
 in Alii'on in 1848, where he practiced law for 
 several years, and then retui*ned to Virginia. 
 Charles Baldwin entered into a law partnership 
 with Gen. L. V. Bierce, of Ai'kon, about 1859 or 
 1860. He continued in that partnership till 
 the General's appointment to the office of 
 Assistant Adjutant General, when he a few 
 years later removed to Omaha, Neb. Wilbur 
 F. Sanders was born in New York, and read 
 law under Hon. Sidney Edgerton, at Akron. 
 He was admitted to practice and formed a law 
 partnership with Gov. Edgerton in 1857. 
 Upon Gov. Edgerton's appointment as Judge 
 for the Territory of Idaho, Mr. Sanders became 
 a resident of that part of the Territory now 
 included in Montana, where he has been in 
 practice as a lawyer ever since. Charles Rhine- 
 hart was born in Hopkinton, N. Y. He was 
 elected Clerk of the Com't of Com m on Pleas 
 of Summit County in 1868 ; and was re-elected 
 in 1866. At the end of the second term of 
 that office, he opened a law office in Akron, 
 where he continued practice till the fall of 
 1880, when he removed to Denver, Colo. 
 Eugene Pardee was born in Wadsworth, Me- 
 dina Co., Ohio; read law under Judge Van R. 
 Humphrey at Hudson. He resided respect- 
 ively in Wadsworth, Wooster and Aki-on, 
 where he practiced his profession, and, in 
 1880, again removed to Wooster, where at 
 present he resides. 
 
 [This closes the sketch of the bar of the past, 
 of Summit County, and brings us down to 
 those now living. As the present members of 
 the bar have biographical sketches in another 
 department of this work, we deem it imneces- 
 sary to repeat the same in this chapter. One 
 of the oldest representatives of the present 
 bar is Judge McClure, and to whpse biograph- 
 
 rV 
 
313 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 ical sketch the reader is referred, as iinto most 
 of the others following. — Ed.]. 
 
 Judge James S. Carpenter studied law with 
 Camp & Canfield, at Medina, Ohio, and was 
 ad:nitted to the bar May 29, 183S, at Spring- 
 field, Ohio. He came to Akron in 1846, and 
 has practiced here ever since. Judge C. Bryan 
 located in Akron in the fall of 1833, and was 
 admitted to the bar in Columbus in 1834. 
 Hon. Sidney Edgerton. (See biographical 
 sketch.) Judge S. H. Pitkin studied law in 
 Fulton County, 111., and was admitted to the 
 bar at Lewiston (same coimty) about 1836, and 
 came to this county in 1852. William H. Up- 
 son (see biographical sketch), was admitted to 
 to the bar at Cleveland in September, 1845: 
 Edward Oviatt, in September, 1846, at Medina; 
 N. AV. Goodhue, at the September term of the 
 Supreme Court, at Akron, in 1847; Edwin P. 
 Greene, at Akron, in September, 1852; Judge 
 N. D. Tibballs, at Akron, in September, 1855; 
 John J. Hall, at Canton, Ohio, in May, 1857; 
 Gen. A. C. Voris (see biographical sketch else- 
 where); J. A. Kohler was admitted to the bar 
 in 1859; H. W. Ingersoll, at Columbus, March 
 29, 1859; Judge U. S. Marvin, in May, 1860; 
 Gen. Thomas F. Wilde, at Cincinnati, in 1866; 
 Calvin P. Humpln-ey was admitted to the bar 
 in the fall of 1866; Edwin W. Stuart, at Cleve- 
 land, in 1866; H. C. San ford, at Ravenna, in 
 April, 1868; George T. Ford, in 1869; Newton 
 Chalker gi-aduated fi'om the Law Department 
 of the University of Albany in 1 869 ; James M. 
 Poulson was admitted to the bar in the fall of 
 1870 ; G. K. Pardee, in 1870 ; George S. May, in 
 1872; Richard P. Marvin, in May, 1873; John 
 H. Campbell graduated from the Law Depart- 
 ment of the Michigan University in 1873; 
 Charles Baird was admitted to the bar about 
 the year 1874; John M. Fraze, at Louisville, 
 Ky., in 1874; Charles R. Grant, in December, 
 1874; NewtonFord, at Akron, in August, 1876; 
 Noah Hodge was admitted to practic in the 
 Superior Court of Mississippi, in January, 
 1875; John C. Means was admitted to the bar 
 in the District Court of Summit County, in 
 August, 1876; John Johnston was admitted 
 to the bar in 1876; James McNaughten was 
 admitted to the bar in 1876; Charles Robin- 
 son, at Columbus, in December, 1877; E. T. 
 Voris, at Cleveland, in October, 1877 ; J. V. 
 
 Welsh, at New Lisbon, Ohio, May 26, 1877; 
 L. D. Seward, in 1878; R. J. Young, in June, 
 1879; Rolin W. Saddler, in April, 1878; 
 Frank D. Cassidy, in March, 1879; Charles 
 W. Foote, at Wooster, in June, 1879; L. D. 
 Watters, March 17, 1879; D. A. Dovle, in 
 May, 1880; F. M. Atterholt, October 5; 1880; 
 A. F. Bartges (see sketch). 
 
 [The following sketch of the medical pro- 
 fession of Summit County, is by Dr. A. K. 
 Fouser. — Ed.] 
 
 The history of the medical profession in 
 Summit County dates back to the year 1800, 
 or the time of the earliest settlements, the 
 demands for a doctor's services being then as 
 now proportionate with the spread of civiliza- 
 tion. The New England and Middle States 
 having furnished most if not all of our earliest 
 physicians, we have only to look at the history 
 of the profession in those States to become 
 acquainted with the material which made up 
 the pioneer doctors of this county. At, and 
 previous to, the period before mentioned, the 
 greater niunber of the physicians in the East 
 were what are called " regulars " — those who 
 bled, blistered, gave calomel, jalap, tartar- 
 emetic and the like. Homeopathy was scarce- 
 ly known on this side of the Atlantic, while 
 Thomsonianism, hydropathy, physiopathy, ther- 
 malism, magnetism and kindred dogmas had 
 not yet found their way into the world. 
 
 But without entering into an extended de- 
 scription of the different systems in vogue, then 
 and now, we will pass to the local history of 
 the different towns and townships, giving as 
 nearly as possible the succession of physi- 
 cians who have practiced in each with as much 
 of their personal history as could be ascer- 
 tained concerning the dead, and all that would 
 be expedient of the living. 
 
 Dr. Titus Chapman was probably the first 
 physician who practiced in the vicinity of 
 what is now known as Akron. He came to 
 Middlebiury, now Sixth Wai'd of Aki'on, soon 
 after the war of 1812, and practiced there 
 about thirty years, after which he went to 
 Tallmadge and thence to Oberlin where he 
 died. 
 
 Dr. Luther Hanchett was bom and educated 
 in Connecticut, and after practicing in New 
 York State a few years, came to Ohio, locating 
 
'.^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 313 
 
 in the vicinity of Middlebiuy while that place 
 was yet in its infancy. He was born in 1778, 
 and probably came to Akron about 1815. 
 After practicing about twenty years, he re- 
 moved to Michigan where he died in 1840. 
 Dr. Elijah Hanchett, a brother, was born in 
 Connecticut in 1776, and began practice in 
 Saratoga County, N. Y., in 1798, where he 
 remained until 1832, when at the solicitation 
 of his brother, he came to Middlebmy. He 
 then practiced in the vicinity of Middlebury 
 until 1836, when he removed to Tallmadge 
 where he died in 1843. 
 
 Dr. Joseph Cole was probably the first reg- 
 ular practitioner of medicine in what was at 
 that time Akron proper, and for many years 
 was the " old stand-by " of the profession. He 
 was bom in Winfield, Herkimer Co., N. Y., 
 in 1795, and lived on a farm until the age of 
 twenty. He then began the stvidy of and a 
 few years later graduated from Fairfield Med- 
 ical College in his native State. In 1824, he 
 came to Ohio and located at Old Portage, in 
 this county, where he practiced until 1827, at 
 which time he came to Akron where he 
 remained in practice until near the time of 
 his death— 1861. 
 
 Dr. Richmond came from Taunton, Mass., 
 and settled in Akron about 1833. After prac- 
 ticing here for three or four years, he fell a 
 victim to consumption, went to Kentucky and 
 died soon afterward; his idea of going South 
 was, " to die among strangers," as he expressed 
 it. Dr. E. F. Bryan, bi'other of Judge Bryan, 
 came to Akron in the summer of 1833, and 
 remained until 1836 or 1837, going then to 
 Grranville, Licking County. He was a na- 
 tive of Delaware County, N. Y., and received 
 his medical education at Yale College. Dr. 
 Ackley came from Rochester, N. Y., about 
 1834, and practiced in Akron for a few years, 
 going fi'om here to Cleveland, where he be- 
 came quite prominent in his profession, and 
 in his connection with the medical college. 
 Dr. Crosby came to Middlebury some time 
 about 1835, and remained there and in Akron 
 for a number of years. Though originally of 
 the regular school of medicine, he latterly 
 embraced the homoeopathic faith and made 
 some pretentions toward practicing it. How- 
 ever, medicine was a secondaiy matter to him, 
 
 as most of his time and energies were spent in 
 speculations of different kinds. Dr. Cleveland 
 practiced in Akron between 1830 and 1840. Dr. 
 D. D. Evans was a native of New York State; 
 came to Akron in 1836, and practiced here 
 until the time of his death which occun-ed 
 in December, 1849. He was a doctor of more 
 than ordinaiy ability for the time in which he 
 lived, enjoyed a good reputation and an exten- 
 sive practice; was universally esteemed, and 
 for many years was the leading man in the 
 profession of this section of the State. In 
 connection with the death of Dr. Evans, a sad 
 but very interesting circu^mstance is related, 
 which in substance is as follows : While treat- 
 ing a case of malignant erysipelas at Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, Dr. Evans in some manner became 
 infected with the poison and died within a 
 few days thereafter. A post-mortem examina- 
 tion of Dr. Evans was made at which quite a 
 number of physicians were present, and among 
 them were Drs. Huntington and Angel, both 
 of whom either became inoculated or absorbed 
 the vims, the former dying within a few 
 weeks, while the latter suflered immediate 
 sloughing of one arm, and died from the poi- 
 son a few years later. Nor was this all. A 
 Mr. Chapman, a brother-in-law of Dr. Hunt- 
 ington, while nui'sing the doctor in his sick 
 ness, also absorbed the virus and died from its 
 effects. 
 
 Dr. Kendrick came to Middlebury about 
 
 1837, and remained a few years. Dr. J. O. 
 Wade practiced in Middlebmy about the same 
 time. Dr. Wyram West was also one of the 
 early doctors in Middlebury. Dr. E. L. Mun- 
 ger, a native of Vermont, located in Akron about 
 
 1838, but after a few years removed to Portage 
 County. Dr. Kilbom-ne (Botanic), came to 
 Akron about 1838, and, after practicing about 
 fifteen years, removed into Coventry Township 
 and began farming. Some time after this his 
 mind became somewhat deranged, and in a fit 
 of temporaiy insanity he committed suicide on 
 his own farm. Dr. W. T. Huntington, a native 
 of Connecticiit, located in Aki'on in 1839, and 
 continued in practice until early in the year 
 1850, when he died as stated above. 
 
 Dr. Mendall Jewett was born in Greenwich, 
 Mass., in 1815, and came to Ohio in 1836. 
 He soon afterward began the study of medi 
 
 V9 
 
314 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 cine with Drs. Noble and Town, of Hudson, 
 and, in 1839, began practicing in Mogadore, 
 then in Portage County, where he remained 
 until 1858, in the meantime having taken a 
 course of lectiu*es at Willoughby Medical Col- 
 lege, and graduated after that college had 
 removed to Cleveland. He spent two years — 
 1850 and 1851 — in California, and, from 1855 
 to 1857, represented this county in the State 
 Legislature. Since 1858 up to the present 
 time, he has lived in Middlebury (Sixth Ward 
 of Akron ), and has during all this time followed 
 his profession, besides being engaged in other 
 business. 
 
 Dr. William P. Cushman was born at Ran- 
 dolph, Vt., in 1810, and up to the age of 
 twenty- two he worked on a farm during most 
 of the time. In 1882, he went to New York 
 State and taught school, and, in 1834, came 
 to Ohio and attended school at Oberlin, at the 
 same time reading medicine with Dr. Dascom. 
 He afterward attended the Cincinnati Medical 
 College, and, in 1838, began practicing his 
 profession in Elyria, remaining there two years 
 and then coming to Akron. He still lives 
 in Akron, but has retired from practice en- 
 tirely. 
 
 Dr. E. W. Howard was born in Andover, 
 Windsor Co., Vt., in 1816, and until the age 
 of nineteen lived with his parents on a farm, 
 securing in the meantime a liberal education 
 at the Chester Academy. He then took a trip 
 West, during which he visited his cousin. 
 Prof. E. L. Howard, at Elyi'ia, Ohio, and was 
 by him persuaded to study medicine. He at 
 once began reading in the office of his cousin, 
 where he continued until the following year, 
 when he attended a course of lectures in Pitts- 
 field, Mass. He then went home and read two 
 years with Dr. L. G. Whiting, and, in 1838, 
 graduated from the Berkshire Medical College, 
 Pittstield, Mass. After practicing one year 
 with his preceptor, he came to Akron in 1839, 
 and has since practiced here up to the present 
 time, being now the oldest practitioner in the 
 city. During the late war, he was sent South 
 by Gov. Tod, and served several months in 
 the hospitals at Frederick City, Md., and 
 Nashville, Tenn. 
 
 Dr. Edwin Angel was bom in Providence, 
 R. I., in 1802, but when a few years old 
 
 removed with his parents to Canandaigua, N. 
 Y. At the age of foui'teen, he entered Union 
 College at Schenectady, and gi'aduated two 
 years later. He then began the study of 
 medicine with his father, and soon aftei'ward 
 attended lectures, finishing his coiu'se at the 
 age of nineteen years. He then practiced 
 some as an assistant to Dr. Valentine Mott, 
 and on becoming of age received his degi'ee 
 after which he returned to Canadaigua, and 
 assisted his father. In 1840, he came to 
 Akron, where he practiced until the time of 
 his death, September, 1855. With his death 
 passed away the last physician in a family 
 which, for at least four generations, had been 
 represented in the regular profession. 
 
 Dr. Samuel W.Bartges(Uriscopist), was born 
 in Union City, Penn., in 1814, and, in 1833, 
 came with his parents to Columbiana County, 
 Ohio, where he was engaged for a few years 
 in a general merchand se store. In 1837, he 
 began reading medicine with Dr. John Dellen- 
 Ijaugh, with whom he remained for five years, 
 during the last two of which he practiced to 
 some extent. In 1842, he came to Akron, 
 where he has continued to practice until the 
 present time. Dr. Perkins Wallace came to 
 Akron in 1843, and practiced here a short 
 time. 
 
 Dr. William Sisler was born in Lycoming 
 County, Penn., in 1819, and at the age of 
 twenty-one came to Manchester, in this county, 
 where foi several years he was engaged in 
 teachino; school and workings on a farm. In 
 1843, he began reading medicine with Dr. 
 Fernando Dalwick, of Canal Fulton, Stai'k 
 Co., Ohio, and continued there until about 
 184r), when he retm'ned to Manchester and 
 began practicing. His brother, Adam, joined 
 him soon after, and while one can-ied on their 
 practice the other attended lectures, William 
 graduating from Cleveland Medical College in 
 1851, and Adam in 1852. They then continued 
 in practice together xmtil 1873, when William 
 came to Aki'on and engaged in the di'ug biisi- 
 ness which he can-ied on imtil 1879, when he 
 sold out and since then has been practicing 
 some in Aki'on besides being engaged in other 
 business. He served three months in the 
 hospitals dm-ing the late war, under the call of 
 Gov. Tod, and, in 1867, was elected on the 
 
 "717 
 

 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 315 
 
 Repiiblican ticket as Representative in the 
 State Legislatiu'e, serving one term. 
 
 Dr. John Weimer was born in Alsace, 
 France, in 1813, and at the age of nineteen 
 came to America. After working in a store 
 several months in BniTalo, he went to Balti- 
 more, Stark Co., Ohio, and began the study of 
 medicine with Dr. W. Underwood, with whom 
 he read two years, and then one year with Dr. 
 Breisacher, of Canton, Ohio. In 1886, he 
 located in Uniontown, Stark Co., Ohio, where 
 he continued in practice until 1847, coming 
 then to Aki'on, where he has continued to the 
 present day. 
 
 Dr. J. W. Hamilton, now Professor of Sur- 
 gery in Columbus Medical College, practiced 
 in Akron a short time about 1850. Dr. Joseph 
 Stanton, brother of Prof. Dr. Byron Stanton, 
 of Cincinnati, came to Aki'on about 1850: prac- 
 ticed four or five years and died. Dr. Alex- 
 ander Fisher, for several years a practitioner 
 of Western Star, came to Akron soon after the 
 death of Dr. Evans, and remained several years. 
 He then went West and is now in Chicago. 
 Dr. J. P. Peck read medicine with Drs. 
 Evans and Angel; gi'aduated from Cleveland 
 Medical College, and located in Akron about 
 1852. He practiced here several years in 
 partnership with Dr. Fisher, and then went 
 West, being at present a resident of Omaha. 
 Dr. J. S. Wilson came to Aki'on about 1856 
 or 1857, as a successor to Dr. Fisher, and 
 remained a few years. Dr. J. J. Smith was 
 born in Springfield Township, this county, 
 in 1820. Graduated fi'om Medical Depart- 
 ment of Univei'sity of Michigan in 1855'. 
 Practiced six months in Toledo, and located 
 in Akron in 1856. 
 
 Dr. William Bowen was born in Genesee 
 County, N. Y.. in 1805. As soon as he had 
 attained a suitable age, he was apprenticed to 
 a carpenter, and, at the completion of his 
 service, came West and settled in Stai'k 
 Coiinty, Ohio, where for several years he 
 worked at his trade, at the same time improv- 
 ing his spare moments in acquiring an ediica- 
 tion. Having attended school a short time, 
 he began teaching and soon afterward took up 
 the study of medicine with Dr. Estep, but, 
 owing to limited means, was obliged to con- 
 tinue his teaching in connection with his pro- 
 
 fessional reading. In 1832, he began prac- 
 tice in Doylestown, Wayne County, where he 
 remained u.ntil 1835. He then attended lect- 
 ures and graduated at the Medical College of 
 Ohio, receiving his degree in 1836. He then 
 practiced two yeai's in Canton, Ohio, going 
 next to Massillon, where he practiced nearly 
 twenty years, gaining in that time an exten- 
 sive practice and wide-spread reputation. In 
 1857, he came to Akron, and continued in act- 
 ive practice imtil the time of his death, Janu- 
 ary, 1880. 
 
 Dr. George P. Ashmun was a native of St. 
 Lawi-ence County, N. Y., and, in 1834, came 
 to Tallmadge. in this coiuity. In 1836, he 
 began the study of medicine with Dr. Amos 
 Wright, of that place, and, in 1839, gi'adu.- 
 ated from Cleveland Medical College. Prac- 
 ticed one year in Uniontown, Stark Couniy; 
 five years in Boston, Summit County, and 
 then in Hudson, Summit County, for nine 
 years. In 1862, entered the army and served 
 two years as Surgeon of the Ninety-third 
 Ohio Vohmteer Infantry, but, in 1864, re- 
 signed and retm'ned home, after which he 
 practiced in Aki'on till the time of his death, 
 in 1873. 
 
 Dr. J. A. Knowlton was born in Vermont in 
 1824, and received his early education in Rut- 
 land. Began reading medicine with Dr. Crit- 
 tenden, of Kent, Ohio, in 1841, and four years 
 later graduated fi'om Cleveland Medical Col- 
 lege. Practiced in Portage County until 
 1863, and since then has been in Akron. Of 
 late years he has given up the regular prac- 
 tice, and devoted his attention principally to 
 the drug business and treatment of clu-onic 
 diseases. 
 
 Dr. Charles R. Merriman was born in Dal- 
 ton, Berkshire Co., Mass., in 1829, but while 
 quite young came with his parents to this 
 coiuity. His early education was obtained at 
 the schools of Akron, Farmington and Nor- 
 Avalk, and, in 1847, he began the study of 
 medicine with Dr. Huntington, of Aki'on. 
 Attended Cleveland Medical College in 1849, 
 after which he practiced in Kentucky- and 
 Missouri until 1857, when he retui-ned to Ohio 
 and took another coiu-se of lectiu-es, graduat- 
 ing in the spring of 1858. He then practiced 
 a short time at Peninsula and Montrose, and 
 
 :rv 
 
316 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 then went West practicing at Virginia City 
 and Helena until 1865, when he returned to 
 Montrose. Practiced there until 1873, and then 
 removed to Akron, where he has since remained. 
 Dr. Charles R. Pierce came to Akron about 
 1858, and practiced until 1862, when he 
 entered the service as Assistant Surgeon. 
 Died in 1863. 
 
 Dr. B. S. Chase was born in Vermont in 
 1834, and was brought up on a farm until he 
 became of age, receiving in the meantime a 
 liberal education at the Chester Academy. 
 About 1856, he began reading medicine with 
 Drs. Andrews and Woodman, of Paw Paw, 
 Mich., and after taking one course of lectures 
 came to Akron and continued his studies with 
 his uncle. Dr. E. W. Howard. In 1856, he 
 graduated from University of Michigan, fol- 
 lowing which he practiced with Dr. Howard 
 until 1862, when he entered the army as 
 Assistant Surgeon of the Sixteenth Ohio Vol- 
 unteer Infantry. In June, 1863, he was pro- 
 moted to Surgeon and was transferred to the 
 Fifty-third Mississippi Colored Regiment, 
 with whom he served until the close of the 
 war, becoming very popular as a Surgeon 
 as well as a soldier. He served on the Op- 
 erating Board at the battles of Chickasaw 
 Bayou, and at the siege of Vicksburg. At the 
 close of the war he located in Akron, where he 
 continued in practice until the time of his 
 death, February, 1878. 
 
 Dr. T. M. Leight is a native of Snyder 
 County, Penn., and was born in 1827. When 
 twenty years of age, he began reading medi- 
 cine, and after four or five years oiJice tuition 
 began practicing at McKees Falls in his native 
 county. He remained here about nine years, 
 within which time he attended lectures in Phil 
 adelphia a month or two each year, graduat- 
 ing from Jefferson Medical College in July, 
 1857. He then practiced about seven years 
 at Mifflin, Penn., after which he came to Akron, 
 where he is at present. 
 
 Dr. Thomas McEbright was born at Car 
 lisle, Penn., in 1824, but at an early age came 
 with his parents to Wayne Comity, Ohio, 
 where he was brought up on a farm until the 
 age of sixteen, after which he attended the 
 Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware. In 
 1848, he began reading medicine with Dr. I. 
 
 H. Baker, of Wooster, and, in 1850, graduated 
 from Starling Medical College, at Columbus, 
 Ohio. Practiced seven years at Nashville, 
 Ohio, and then removed to Millersburg, where 
 he remained u.ntil 1861, going then into the 
 army as Surgeon of the Eighth Ohio Volun- 
 teer Infantry. After serving with the regi- 
 ment two years, he resigned and came home, 
 but soon after raised the Fifty-ninth Battalion, 
 and, upon the call of the " hundred days' men," 
 his battalion was attached to the One Hundred 
 and Sixty- sixth Regiment, of which he was 
 made Colonel, a position which he resigned in 
 favor of Col. Blake, the doctor preferring to 
 be Siu-geon. He was afterward made Brigade 
 Surgeon and detailed as Chief of the Operat- 
 ing Board. In 1864, he was mustered out 
 with his regiment and soon afterward came to 
 Akron, where he is still in active practice. 
 
 Dr. W. C. Jacobs is a native of Lima, Ohio, 
 and was born in 1840. His early life was 
 spent in his native village and on a farm. At 
 the age of sixteen he was appointed a cadet 
 midshipman, and attended school at Annapolis 
 until 1859, when he resigned and began the 
 study of medicine with Dr. Carson, of Cincin- 
 nati. In March, 1862, he graduated from 
 Medical College of Ohio at Cincinnati, and in 
 the following month was appointed Assistant 
 Surgeon of the Fourth Ohio Cavalry, with 
 whom he served until December, when he was 
 promoted to Surgeon and assigned to the 
 Eighty-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry. With 
 this regiment he remained until the close of 
 the war, and during the Atlanta campaign, 
 served on the Operating Board of the Six- 
 teenth Army Corps. In October, 1865, he 
 came to Aki'on, where he has since followed 
 his profession. 
 
 Dr. W. J. Underwood was born in York 
 County, Penn., in 1840, and received his early 
 education in the common and select schools of 
 the period. At the age of twenty, he began 
 reading medicine with Dr. Ira Day, of Me- 
 chanicsburg, and the next year attended a 
 course of lectures at Jefferson Medical Col- 
 lege. In 1862, he went into the army as 
 Assistant Surgeon, serving with the Nine- 
 teenth Pennsylvania Volunteer Militia a short 
 time, and then with the One Hundred and 
 Fifty-first Pennsylvania Volunteers during 
 
 -7\: 
 
-k-. 
 
 -s; > 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 817 
 
 the latter's term of enlistment. He then 
 completed his course at Jefterson Medical 
 College, and in the same spring (1864) came 
 to Ohio. Practiced at Canal Fulton two 
 years, and then came to Akron, where he still 
 remains. 
 
 Dr. Elizur Hitchcock was born in Tall- 
 madge Township in 1832, and up to the age 
 of eighteen worked on his father's farm and 
 attended the common and select schools of the 
 neighborhood. He then entered the Western 
 Reserve College, where he remained two years, 
 going thence to Yale, graduating from the lat- 
 ter in 1854. After spending several years in 
 teaching, he began reading medicine and 
 graduated from the Cleveland Medical College 
 in 1860. He then practiced three years in 
 Ashtabula County, and, in the spring of 1863, 
 entered the army as Surgeon of the Seventh 
 Ohio Volunteer Infantry, but after a service 
 of six months resigned and came home and 
 located at West Williamsfield, Ashtabula 
 County, continuing there until 1869. He 
 then attended a course of lectm-es in New 
 Y^oi'k City, and, in 1870, came to Akron, where 
 he has since been practicing. 
 
 Dr. A. E. Foltz was born in Wayne County, 
 Ohio, in 1840, and at the age of seventeen began 
 teaching school, in which calling he continued 
 until 1862. In July of the same year, he, 
 with four of his brothers, enlisted in the One 
 Hundred and Second Ohio Volunteer Infantry, 
 serving with the regiment until the close of 
 the war. In 1869, he began reading medi- 
 cine with his brother. Dr. W. K. Foltz, of 
 Sharon Center, Medina County, and, in 1869, 
 graduated at Charity Hospital Medical Col- 
 lege in Cleveland. Practiced one year at 
 Ashland and then came to Akron, where he 
 has since followed his profession. 
 
 Dr. L. S. Ebright was born at Eoyalton, 
 Fairfield County, Ohio, in 1844, and received 
 his early education in the common schools of 
 his native town. He served his country diir- 
 ing the rebellion, and after its close began the 
 study of medicine with his uncle. Dr. Thomas 
 McEbright, of Akron, graduating from Char- 
 ity Hospital Medical College in 1869 or 1870, 
 since which time he has practiced in Aki'on. 
 Is quite a politician, and is now (1881) a 
 member of the State Legislature. 
 
 Dr S. T. Odell was born at Bellville, Ind., 
 in 1842, and received his preliminary educa- 
 tion at Bellville Academy. In 1861, he en- 
 tered the army, serving until 1863 with the 
 Eleventh Indiana (Zouaves), and the balance 
 of his term with the Fifty-third United States 
 Colored Troops, of which he was Fii-st 
 Lieutenant and Adjutant. While connected 
 with the latter regiment, he read medicine 
 with the sm-geon. Dr. B. S. Chase, of Akron, 
 and at the close of his service — fall of 1865, 
 attended a course of lectures at Ann Arbor, 
 Mich., and the next year attended his second 
 course at the Rush Medical College, Chicago, 
 graduating in 1867. After practicing a few 
 years in Indiana and Kansas, he came to 
 Akron (Sixth Ward) in 1870, and has since 
 remained there in practice, with the exception 
 of about one year. 
 
 Dr. H. C. Howard, son of Dr. E. W. How- 
 ard, was born in Aki'on in 1842, and gradu- 
 ated from the Akron High School in 1863. 
 He then began the study of medicine with his 
 father, graduated fi'om Bellevue Hospital 
 Medical College in 1871, and has since fol- 
 lowed the profession with his father. 
 
 Dr. W. E. Chamberlin was born in Alle- 
 gheny City in 1840, and was educated at 
 Marietta (Ohio) High School. In 1854, he 
 began the study of medicine with his father 
 — then of Peninsula, in this county — and, 
 from 1859 to 1861, assisted him in his profes- 
 sion. He then entered the army and served 
 about one year, most of the time being detailed 
 as physician and nurse. At the close of his 
 service, he practiced in Portage Coimty sev- 
 eral years, and, in 1865, located at Clinton, 
 in this county, where he remained until 1875, 
 since which time he has practiced in Aki'on. 
 Dui'ing his stay in Clinton, he attended one 
 course of lectures at Ann Arbor, Mich., and 
 one at Cleveland Medical College, receiving 
 his degree from the latter in 1869. 
 
 Dr. O. E. Brownell was born in St. Law- 
 rence Coiinty, N. Y., in 1855, but at an early 
 age came with his j)arents to this county, 
 receiving his early education in the common 
 schools and Mount Vernon High School. In 
 1861, he entered thea rmy and served eighteen 
 months. He then read medicine with Dr. 
 Sisler, of Manchester, attended a course of 
 
 Ml 
 
318 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 lectures at Cleveland in 1868, practiced in 
 Greensbtirg until 1878, and then came to 
 Akron, where he is at present. He now pays 
 most of his attention to dentistiy. 
 
 Dr. A. F. Chandler was bom in St. Law- 
 rence County, N. Y., in 1845, but at an early 
 age removed with his parents to Rockford, 111. 
 In 1863, he enlisted with the One Hundred 
 and Forty-sixth Illinois Infantry, and served 
 with the regiment until the close of the war. 
 He then attended and graduated from Rock- 
 ford High School, and, in 1847, began reading 
 medicine with Dr. W. E. Chandler, of his own 
 place. In March, 1871, he graduated from 
 the Chicago Medical College, and in the fol- 
 lowing month located in Ala'on, where he has 
 since practiced. 
 
 Dr. H. D. Taggart was born in Wayne 
 County, Ohio, in 1851, and received his early 
 education in the common schools and the Hayes- 
 ville Academy. Began reading medicine in 
 the spring of 1870, with Doctor Roebuck, of 
 his native town, Dalton, and, in 1874, gradu- 
 ated fi-om Jefferson Medical College, Phila- 
 delphia. He then located at Easton, Wayne 
 County, remaining there six months, after 
 which he came to Akron, where he has since 
 continued in practice. 
 
 Dr. Gr. G. Ba]j:er was born in Norwalk, 
 Ohio, in 1849, and received his education at 
 the common schools of that place and at West- 
 ern Reserve College. In 1868, he began 
 reading medicine with Drs. Read and Ford, 
 of Norwalk, and, in 1872, came to Akron and 
 entered the office of Dr. Ashmim. In June. 
 
 1875, he graduated fi'om the Medical Depart- 
 ment of Michigan University, and since that 
 time has been practicing in Akron. 
 
 Dr. H. M. Fisher was born in Waii'en, 
 Penn., in 1848, and received his education in 
 the Franklin and Warren Academies and 
 Allegheny College. In 1867, he began read- 
 ing medicine with Dr. Stranahan, of his native 
 town, and, in 1872, graduated from Jefferson 
 Medical College, Philadelphia. After prac- 
 ticing in his native town a few months, he 
 came to Akron, where he also remained a few 
 months, going next to Allegheny City. In 
 
 1876, he returned to Aki-on and continues 
 there at this time. 
 
 Dr. A. K. Fouser was born in Stark County 
 
 in 1854, and graduated from Akron High 
 School in 1873. He then began reading med- 
 icine with Drs. Chase and Underwood, and 
 graduated from Medical College of Ohio at 
 Cincinnati in March, 1876, since which time 
 he has practiced in Aki'on. 
 
 Dr. James P. Boyd was born in England in 
 1850, but came to this country while quite 
 young. Received his education at James- 
 town, N. Y., and Ann Arbor, Mich., and, in 
 1872, began reading medicine with Dr. Hasel- 
 tine, of Grand Rapids, Mich. In 1875, he 
 graduated from Long Island College Hospital, 
 and in the following year located in Akron, 
 where he now remains. 
 
 Dr. F. C. Reed was born in Ashtabula 
 County in 1852, and was educated at the 
 Grand River Institute in his native town — 
 Austinburg. In 1872, he began reading med- 
 icine with his brother. Dr. A. B. Reed, of 
 Cleveland, and graduated from Charity Hos- 
 pital Medical College in 1876, since which 
 time he has followed his profession in the 
 Sixth Ward of Akron. 
 
 Dr. C. C. Davison was born in Northamp- 
 ton Township in 1851, and was brought up on 
 a farm. In 1872, he began reading medicine 
 with Dr. E. W. Howard, and graduated from 
 Columbus Medical College in 1877. After 
 practicing several months at Botzum Station, 
 in this county, he came to Sixth Ward, Akron, 
 where he is now practicing. 
 
 Dr. A. C. Belden was born at Castile, N. Y, 
 in 1845, but at an eai'ly age removed with his 
 parents toBvu'eau County, 111., receiving his ed- 
 ucation at Dover Academy and at Poughkeepsie, 
 N. Y. In 1863, he entered the army and 
 served until the close of the war as private in 
 Sixty-foiu-th Illinois Infantry. In 1870, he 
 began the study of medicine with Dr. Thomp- 
 son, of Princeton, 111., and graduated from 
 Bellevue Hospital Medical College in 1875. 
 In the following year, he came to Akron, and, 
 in July, 1877, began the practice of his pro- 
 fession, in which he has since continued. 
 
 Dr. W. K. Foltz was born in Mifflin County, 
 Penn., in 1829, and until the age of eighteen 
 remained at home, alternately working and 
 attending school. He then taught school for 
 several years, and, in 1850, began reading- 
 medicine with Dr. Stauber, of Wooster, Ohio. 
 
HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 319 
 
 In 1855, be began practice at La Fayette 
 Center, Medina County, and the following 
 year removed to Sharon Center, where he 
 remained until 1867, in the meantime having 
 attended lectures and graduated at the Eclec- 
 tic College of Medicine, Cincinnati, in 1859. 
 From 1867 to 1877, he was engaged in the 
 drug business at Ashland, and since then has 
 been practicing in Aki'on. 
 
 Dr. L. S. Sweitzer was born in Tuscarawas 
 County, Ohio, and was educated at Heidel- 
 berg College, Tiffin, Ohio. Began reading 
 medicine with Dr. Buchman in 1872, and 
 graduated from Cleveland Medical College in 
 1875, after which he served eighteen months 
 in the Cleveland Hospital. He then prac- 
 ticed some time in his native county, spent 
 one year in New York City attending lectures, 
 and, in the spring of 1879, located in Akron, 
 where he is at the present time. 
 
 Dr. L. J. Proehl was born at Aki'on in 1850, 
 but at the age of eight removed with his par- 
 ents into Coventry Township. In 1873, he 
 entered the National Normal School at Leb- 
 anon, Ohio, graduating in 1876. He then 
 began the study of medicine with Dr. W. C. 
 J acobs, and gi'aduated from Medical College 
 of Ohio, at Cincinnati, in 1879, since which 
 time he has practiced in Akron. 
 
 Dr. Eli Conn was born in Butler County, 
 Penn., in 1839. In 1861, he entered the 
 army, serving four years, after which he 
 attended Baldwin University, graduating in 
 1868. Attended lectures at Cleveland Medi- 
 cal College in 1869 and 1871; practiced a 
 short time, and, in 1872, was elected to the 
 office of Prothonotary of his native county, 
 serving four years. In the spring of 1876, 
 he graduated from Charity Hospital Medical 
 College; practiced in Butler County until 
 1880, when he came to Akron. 
 
 Dr. T. K. Jacobs, Jr., was born in Lima in 
 1856, and, from 1873 to 1876, attended Ohio 
 Wesleyan University, at Delaware, Ohio. He 
 then began reading medicine with his brother, 
 Dr. W. C. Jacobs, graduated from Medical 
 College of Ohio, at Cincinnati, in 1880, and 
 same year began practice with his brother in 
 Akron. 
 
 Dr. J. W. Lyon is a native of Copley, and 
 was educated in the common schools of his 
 
 neighborhood. Began reading medicine in 
 1874 with Drs. Chase and Underwood, of 
 Akron. Graduated from Columbus Medical 
 College in 1877. Practiced several years at 
 Clinton, after which he came to Akron and 
 entered the dental profession. 
 
 In addition to the above we have the fol- 
 lowing-named physicians who have practiced 
 in the county, but of whom, for various rea- 
 sons, no definite notes could be procured. 
 
 Dr. B. B. Brashear is a native of Fayette 
 County, Penn., where he was bom in 1822. 
 Duringr the late war he served as Surgeon of 
 the Sixteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantiy, and, 
 in 1878, came to Akron. 
 
 Dr. D. A. Scott was born in Harrison County, 
 Ohio, and, since 1848, has practiced medicine 
 in Akron. 
 
 Dr. Frank A. Hanford, a native of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, and graduate of Western Beserve 
 College; read medicine with Dr. T. Mc- 
 Ebright, and graduated at Charity Hospital 
 Medical College in 1875. He then practiced 
 in Sixth Ward a short time, but his health 
 failing he went to California, where he soon 
 afterward died of consumption. 
 
 Dr. John Wyltenbach practiced in Akron 
 for some years previous to about 1876. He 
 now lives in the South. 
 
 Dr. J. K. Holloway came to Aki-on from 
 Pennsylvania somewhere about 1870, and 
 practiced until the time of his death in 1874. 
 
 Dr. W. P. Morrison practiced in Akron a 
 few years in the 70's, and then went to Can- 
 ada, where he died. 
 
 Dr. A. F. Peck came to Aki'on in the early 
 part of last decade; practiced a few years, and 
 then went to Cleveland where he died in 1877. 
 
 Dr. O. D. Childs (Homoeopath), was bom 
 at Moretown, Vt, in 1840, and up to the age 
 of twenty-one lived at home on a farm, receiv- 
 ing in the meantime a common and high 
 school education. In 1863, he began reading 
 homoeopathy at Oshkosh, Wis., and graduated 
 from the Cleveland Homoeopathic College in 
 1867, since which he has j)racticed in Aki'on. 
 
 Dr. William Mmxioch (Homoeopath), was 
 born in Scotland in 1842, but at an early age 
 came with his parents to this country and 
 became a resident of Triunbull County, Ohio. 
 His preliminaiy education was obtained at the 
 
-« ® l>> 
 
 320 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 Orvill Normal School, and at Eastman Busi- 
 ness College. In 1809, he began the study 
 of homoeopathic medicine, and graduated from 
 the Cleveland Homoeopathic Hospital College 
 in 1873, since which he has followed his pro- 
 fession ; two years at Garrettsville and the bal- 
 ance of the time in Alcron. 
 
 Dr. J. W. Rockwell (Homoeopath), was born 
 at Hudson in 1840, and attended the Akron 
 schools. In 1873, he began the study of med- 
 icine with Dr. Childs, graduated from Chicago 
 Hahnemann College in 1877, and since then 
 has practiced in Akron. 
 
 Dr. DeWitt Cx. Wilcox (Homoeopath), was 
 born in Akron in 1858, and graduated from 
 the Akron High School in 1876, after which 
 he attended Buchtel College for a few years. 
 He then began the study of medicine with 
 Dr. Murdoch; graduated from Cleveland Ho- 
 moeopathic College in 1880, and since then 
 has practiced in Akron. 
 
 Dr. T. R. Grow (Homoeopath), practiced in 
 the Sixth Ward of Akron for several years, 
 going thence to Vermont in 1880. 
 
 Dr. Whitmore (Homoeopath), read medicine 
 with Dr. Grow, and is now practicing in 
 Sixth Ward, Akron. 
 
 Dr. C. W. Rice, the first physician who was 
 ever pennanently located in Cuyahoga Falls, 
 was born in Middlefield, Otsego Co., N. Y., in 
 1803; studied medicine with Dr. Spafford, of 
 Cooperstown, N. Y., and gi-aduated from Fair- 
 field College, at Cazenovia, in the same State 
 in 1829. After practicing one year with his 
 preceptor, he came to Cuyahoga Falls in 1830, 
 and there followed his profession until his 
 death, which occm-red in 1861. He was a 
 man of very decided character, positive in his 
 likes and dislikes, bitter in his denunciations 
 of homoeopathy, and outspoken in his oj5]iosi- 
 tion to Freemasomy ; but withal was a skillful 
 siu*geon as well as a benevolent and highly 
 respected citizen. 
 
 Dr. John Davis came to Cuyahoga Falls in 
 1840. He was well educated in medicine, 
 acquired a good practice and was highly 
 spoken of by the profession as well as by the 
 people generally. He removed to Michigan 
 about 1853. 
 
 Dr. P. G. Summers, of what is known as the 
 Thomsonian School of Medicine, practiced in 
 
 Cuyahoga Falls a niunber of years, during 
 which time he attained a good reputation as 
 a physician and was held in high esteem by 
 the people. He sei'\'ed one tenn in the State 
 Legislature, and held the office of Postmaster 
 under Lincoln and Johnson. 
 
 Dr. Foote, an adherent of the botanical 
 system of medicine, practiced in Cuyahoga 
 Falls a number of years. Among those who 
 practiced in this village at some time or other 
 in the past, but of whom nothing definite 
 could be learned, we find the names of Dr. 
 Corry, Dr. S. Perham, Dr. J. S. Newbury, Dr. 
 Hubbard, Dr. Shoemaker and Dr. Henshaw, 
 the last being of the homoeopathic school. 
 
 Dr. Mary Watson lived in Cuyahoga Falls 
 some twenty years, leaving there in 1870. 
 She claimed to be an Eclectic, and is reported 
 to have had some practice, especially among 
 her own sex, but is probably best remembered 
 on account of her rather eccentric character. 
 
 Dr. G. C. Upson, our oldest living practitioner 
 of medicine, was born in Tallmadge Township, 
 Summit County, Ohio, in 1821. He read 
 medicine with Dr. Rice, of Cuyahoga Falls, 
 and attended lectures at the medical depart- 
 ment of Western Reserve College, graduating 
 fi-om that institution in 1847. After practic- 
 ing three years with Dr. Taylor, of Twinsbm'g, 
 in this county, he located at Cuyahoga Falls, 
 where he has since practiced. 
 
 Dr. T. F. Heath was born in Connecticut, 
 but spent most of his early life in Western 
 New York. Attended a course of lectures at 
 the medical college in Pittsfield, Mass., and 
 afterward two courses at the College of Physi- 
 cians and Surgeons in New York City, gradu- 
 ating fi'om the latter in March, 1851. In July 
 of the same year, he came to Cuyahoga Falls 
 where he has since practiced his profession, 
 besides being of late years connected with the 
 drug business. 
 
 Dr. J. M. Crafts was born in 1840, and is 
 the son of Dr. Ambrose S. Crafts, who came 
 to Ravenna in 1860. He graduated from 
 Charity Hospital Medical College, Cleveland, 
 in 1864, and then entered the army as Assist- 
 ant Surgeon, serving as such for nearly three 
 years. In 1873, he came to Cuyahoga Falls, 
 and is practicing there at the present time. 
 
 Dr. W. S. Hough was born in Portage 
 
ik* 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 320a 
 
 County, Ohio, in 1844, and served during the 
 late war as a private. At the close of his army 
 life he studied medicine, and graduated from 
 Charity Hosptial Medical College in 1866. 
 Practiced ten years with Dr. J. C. Ferguson 
 at Mogadore, and then came to Cuyahoga 
 Falls, where he is now practicing in partner- 
 ship with Dr. J. M. Crafts. 
 
 Dr. A. H. Bill was born in Cuyahoga Falls 
 in 1851. Studied medicine with Dr. C. M. 
 Fitch, of Chicago, and graduated fi-om Rush 
 Medical College in 1875. Practiced in the 
 office of his preceptor until November, 1875, 
 when he returned to his old home, where he 
 is now practicing. 
 
 Dr. H. W. Carter (Homoeopath), was born 
 in Twinsbiu'g, Summit Co., Ohio, in 1841. 
 Graduated fit-om the Cleveland Homoeopathic 
 Medical College in 1869, and after one year 
 of professional experience at Knoxville, Tenn., 
 he located in Cuyahoga Falls, his present 
 place of business. 
 
 Dr. Moses Thompson was in all proba- 
 bility the first physician w^ho was ever per- 
 manently located in that section of the 
 country now known as Summit County, and to 
 Hudson belongs the credit of fiu-nishing this 
 historical character. He studied medicine in 
 Litchfield County, Conn., with Dr. Everest 
 and Dr. North, and with such training as he 
 got from his worthy preceptors, he went to 
 what is now known as Kinderhook, N. Y., to 
 practice his profession. While here the Con- 
 necticut Company's great land purchase and 
 the consequent Western fever attracted him, 
 and being authorized by his father and 
 brother to go and "spy out the land" for them, 
 he came to Hudson with the colony under the 
 guidance of Daniel Hudson. Having selected 
 land for his father and brothers, he went 
 East on foot and brought back his own family 
 and those of his father and two brothers. 
 This was in the year 1800, when he began the 
 practice of his profession in the wilderness, 
 and for some years there was no other physi- 
 cian nearer than Warren, and his ride ex- 
 tended fi-om Cleveland to fifty miles south of 
 Hudson. In 1815, he retired fi-om practice 
 and went into general business, which he fol- 
 lowed until his death, which occun'ed in 1858. 
 
 Dr. Jonathan Metcalf, the second physician 
 
 to settle in Hudson, was a native of Connecti- 
 cut, and received his early education at the 
 academies of Franklin and Colchester, and 
 the public schools of the period. In 1807, he 
 went to Middlebury, Vt, and commenced the 
 study of medicine with Dr. BaiT, and dm'ing 
 his three yeai's stay here he attended two 
 courses of medical lectures at Dartmouth Col- 
 lege. After completing his medical education 
 in the spring of 1812, he stai'ted on horseback 
 to look up some good field for practice in the 
 West. In this way he came to Am'ora, then 
 a settlement of a few years' growth, but not 
 being very favorably impressed with the out- 
 look, he was on the point of returning to 
 Pittsburgh, when he met Mr. Hudson, of the 
 Hudson colony, who persuaded him to visit 
 the latter place, which he did on the 6th of 
 June, and being highly pleased with the pros- 
 pect he decided to remain, and at once began 
 the practice of his profession. At that time 
 Twinsburg and Streetsboro were not yet set- 
 tled, but subsequently his practice extended 
 into those places as well as to Am'ora, Mantua, 
 Aubmrn, Troy, Hiram, Brecksville and Bath. 
 He retired fi'om active practice in 1850, and 
 died in 1869. 
 
 Dr. Israel Town came fi'om Connecticut to 
 Hudson dm-ing the first half of the second dec- 
 ade of present century. Of his early life 
 nothing definite can be obtained, but he is 
 credited with being a well-read and careful 
 practitioner, his coimsel in critical cases being 
 especially in demand. He continued in the 
 practice of his profession until within a few 
 years of his death. 
 
 Dr. William Everett was a native of Ver- 
 mont, and came to Hudson some time between 
 1 825 and 1 830. He continued in practice imtil 
 his death, which occiu'red in 1833. On the 
 occasion of his death, the Congregational 
 Chvu'ch, of which he was a member, made the 
 following record: "Dr. Everett was chosen to 
 the office of Deacon in November, 1831, which 
 office he well discharged while living. He 
 adorned his profession as a Christian, and 
 died universally lamented." 
 
 Dr. L. D. Osborne, after receiving an 
 academic education, entered the Lake Erie 
 Medical College, since merged into the Star- 
 ling Medical College, Columbus, Ohio; study- 
 
 
A^ 
 
 3201. 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY. 
 
 ing in the meanwhile as a private student 
 under Dr. Delemater, a professor in the insti- 
 tution. He graduated in 1845, and, after 
 practicing in various parts of the State, came 
 to Hudson in 1854, where he has since fol- 
 lowed his profession up to the present time. 
 
 Dr. F. Hodge began his collegiate course 
 in Western Reserve College, subsequently 
 gi-aduating at Yale College. He studied med- 
 icine with Dr. Frank Hamilton, now of New 
 York City, and attended lectures at the Buf- 
 falo Medical College. In 1804 he settled in 
 Hudson, where he is now practicing. 
 
 Dr. A. E. Berbower began the study of med- 
 icine with Dr. Baker, of Wooster, Ohio, and 
 subsequently became the private pupil of Prof. 
 Weber, of Cleveland. Grraduated from Medi- 
 cal Department of the Wooster University in 
 1865, after which he practiced his profession 
 until 1880, when he died of consumption. 
 
 Dr. G. L. Starr is a native of Hudson, and 
 an alumnus of Western Reserve College, Class 
 of '56. He studied medicine with Di-. May- 
 nard, attended lectm'es at the Cleveland Med- 
 ical College, and subsequently graduated from 
 the Bellevue Hospital Medical College in New 
 York City. Located in Hudson in 1878, and 
 continues in his profession to this time. 
 
 Dr. J. P. Sobey graduated from the Cleve- 
 land High School in 1871, and fi'om the Cleve- 
 land Homoeopathic Medical College in 1877. 
 Came to Hudson in the following year, and 
 has since followed his profession in that 
 place. 
 
 Dr. Harrison Danforth, a native of New 
 Hampshire, came to Hudson about the year 1840 
 and read medicine with Dr. Town. After sev- 
 eral years of study, he adopted the so-called 
 Eclectic system of medicine which he has since 
 continued to practice. In the early years of his 
 practice, he devoted some of his time to farm- 
 ing, but for the past twenty years he has given 
 his entire attention to the practice of his pro- 
 fession in the vicinity of Hudson. 
 
 Tallmadge Township, though it claims but a 
 small share in the medical history of the 
 county, yet furnishes one of the most valuable 
 contributions in our whole collection, its spe- 
 cial interest being due to the fact that tliree 
 generations of the same name and family 
 have been regular practitioners of medicine in 
 
 the township; the first of whom was one of 
 the earliest settlers, as well as the second phy- 
 sician in the county; the second being now 
 one of the oldest physicians in this section of 
 the country, while the third has but recently 
 entered the profession. /-nj 
 
 Dr. Amos C. Wright was born in Winsted, 
 Litchfield County, Conn., September 5, 1782. 
 His father, Captain John Wright, was an 
 officer in the Revolutionary war, and a pioneer 
 in the settlement of the northern part of Con- 
 necticut. At the age of sixteen, the subject of 
 our sketch began the study of medicine with 
 Dr. Minor, remaining with him about five 
 years, and being in the meantime licensed to 
 practice by the Litchfield County Medical So- 
 ciety. In 1801, he came to Ohio and settled in 
 Vernon, Trumbull County, where he remained 
 about a year and a half practicing and teach- 
 ing school, after which he went back to Con- 
 necticut and was married to Miss Lydia Kinne. 
 Accompanied by his wife and his father's fam- 
 ily, he retui'ned to Ohio in 1803, and prac- 
 ticed in Vernon, Trumbull County, until 1808, 
 when, at the solicitation of Rev. David Bacon, 
 he came to Tallmadge. At that time there 
 were only three or four families in the town- 
 ship, and Dr. Thompson, of Hudson, was the 
 only physician in Summit County. In 1812, 
 he was appointed Sui'geon to a company of 
 militia which was stationed at Old Portage, 
 by order of Gren. Harrison, until after Perry's 
 victory on Lake Erie. Dr. Wright continued 
 in the practice of his profession until near the 
 close of his life; was successful, had a wide- 
 spread reputation and was highly esteemed by 
 all who knew him. He died in 1845. 
 
 Dr. Amos Wright, the son and successor of 
 Dr. Amos C. Wright, was born in 1808, and 
 was the first white male child born in Tall- 
 madge Township. When nine years of age, 
 he was sent to the academy to study the class- 
 ics as preparatory to a professional ediication, 
 and, at the age of nineteen, began the study 
 of medicine under his father. In 1830, he 
 attended his first course of lectures at the Med- 
 ical College of Ohio, in Cincinnati, and the 
 next year attended the Medical Department of 
 Yale College, receiving his diploma fi'om the 
 last-named institution in the spring of 1832. 
 
 He first began practicing medicine in Mid- 
 
-4^ 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 320c 
 
 dlebuT}^, now the Sixth Ward of Akron, and 
 while there kept the first exchisive drug store 
 in the county. Six months later he went to 
 Vernon, Trumliull County, where he remained 
 three years, gaining quite an extensive prac- 
 tice, but, in 1835, at the earnest solicitation of 
 his father he returned to his native town, 
 where he has been in practice continuously up 
 to the present time. 
 
 Dr. Samuel St. John Wright, son of Dr. 
 Amos Wright, was born in Tallmadge and re- 
 ceived his education at the common schools 
 and at Western Reserve College. At the age 
 of eighteen he began reading medicine with 
 his father, and a few year's later gi'aduated 
 from Cleveland Medical College. He practiced 
 one year in Tallmadge, then removed to Ne- 
 braska, where he remained four years, and 
 since that time has practiced with his father 
 in Tallmadge. 
 
 Dr. Sperry has for many years been a resi- 
 dent of Tallmadge, but diu'ing a considerable 
 portion of the time has been engaged in the 
 manufactui'ing business. His early history 
 and place of birth were not ascertained. Sev- 
 eral more physicians have at vai'ious times 
 been located in Tallmadge, but none except 
 those named above have ever remained for any 
 great length of time. 
 
 Concerning the eai'ly history of medical 
 practice in Norton Township, very little can 
 now be ascertained, but from careful research 
 we find that since 1840 no less than fifteen phy- 
 sicians have at various times been located with- 
 in its limits for the practice of their profession. 
 
 Dr. Alexander Fisher was born in Massa- 
 chusetts, read medicine with a Dr. Richards 
 in, or near, Skaneateles, N. Y., and came to 
 Western Star sometime between 1840 and 
 1845, where he remained until about 1852; 
 then practiced in Akron until near the time of 
 the breaking-out of the rebellion, v/hen he 
 went West and is now practicing in Chicago. 
 During his stay in Norton he enjoyed the rep- 
 utation of being a splendid physician for his 
 time, and had probably more students than 
 any one doctor ever in the township. Among 
 the latter were Drs. Amos Warner, Harry 
 Spellman, A. H. Agard, E. Gr. Hard, now of 
 Medina, and John Hill, now a member of the 
 Ohio State Legfislatiu'e. 
 
 Dr. M. M. Dickson came to Norton Town- 
 ship in 1852, and began the study of medi- 
 cine, soon afterward taking his degi-ee from 
 Cleveland Medical College in 1855. The next 
 year he located at Johnson's Corners, where 
 he practiced until 1862, when he entered the 
 service of his country as Assistant Surgeon. 
 Was attached to the Western army under Gen. 
 Rosecrans in the campaign of Stone River 
 and Chattanooga, and thence with "Sherman 
 to the sea." After a service of two years and 
 eight months he retm^ned to Johnson's Corners, 
 where he has continued in the practice of his 
 profession until the present time. 
 
 Dr. A. H. Agard succeeded his preceptor, 
 Dr. Fisher, in the practice of medicine at 
 Western Star, but after a stay of only a few 
 years he went West and is now at Sandusky, 
 Ohio. 
 
 Dr. Dreher began practicing at Western 
 Star some time near the beginning of the late 
 war, but after a few years removed to Loyal 
 Oak where he remained two years, going next 
 to Smithville where he now resides. 
 
 Dr. John Hill was born in Sussex, England, 
 in 1823. His father, Mr. John Hill, came to 
 this country in 1828, and settled near Utica, N. 
 Y., where he was engaged in farming until 1837, 
 when he came to Cuyahoga County, in this State. 
 The subject of this sketch left home at the 
 age of fifteen, and by means of hard work and 
 teaching school, succeeded in acquiring a lim- 
 ited education. In 1847, he began the study 
 of medicine with Dr. Alexander Fisher, of 
 Western Star, and in the two following win- 
 ters attended lectures in the Cleveland Medi 
 cal College. In 1850, he went to California 
 where he remained about thi*ee years, going 
 from there to Australia, then to London and 
 finally back home again in 1854. During the 
 winter of 1854-55, he attended lectures at 
 Cleveland Medical College, and the following 
 winter went to Jefierson Medical College, Phil- 
 adelphia, graduating in the sjiring of 1856. 
 After practicing m Sharon, Medina County, 
 for nearly a year, he settled on a fann near 
 Western Star, where he now resides. For a 
 few years he devoted part of his time to prac- 
 tice, but soon di-o])ped medicine entirely and 
 paid his entire attention to fanning. In 1870, 
 he was elected to the office of County Commis- 
 
 f 
 
 
H>^ 
 
 320d 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 sioner, which office he held by virtue of re- 
 elections until 1879, when he resigned by 
 reason of his election to a seat in the State 
 Legislature. 
 
 Dr. F. F. Falk served dui'ing the late war 
 as Hospital Steward of the Sixteenth Ohio 
 Volunteers, and while acting in that capacity 
 read medicine under the preceptorship of Dr. 
 B. S. Chase. After being mustered out of serv- 
 ice he attended lectures at Starling Medical 
 College, Columbus, Ohio, receiving his degree 
 in the spring of 1865. He then went to Nash- 
 ville, Tenn., where for the next six months he 
 did efficient hospital duty under an appoint- 
 ment of Assistant Surgeon United States 
 Army. Upon his return to Ohio, he located 
 at Western Star; but after a few years prac- 
 tice he fell a victim to consumption and died. 
 
 Dr. Charles F. H. Willgohs, a native of 
 Germany, settled at Dennison, in Norton Town- 
 ship, about the year 1870, and continued prac- 
 ticing there until about 1878, when he 
 removed to Doylestown, Wayne County, his 
 present home. 
 
 Dr. F. W. Swan, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 succeeded Dr. Dreher, as the next physician, 
 at Loyal Oak. He remained but two years. 
 
 Dr. William T. Parmele, a native of New 
 York State, came to Loyal Oak in 1875. After 
 practicing in that place about three years, he 
 went to Greensburg, but two years later, in 
 1880, returned to Norton Township, locating 
 this time in New Portage, where he is now 
 practicing. 
 
 Dr. Austin T. Woods read medicine with 
 Dr. J. A. Knowlton and Dr. H. M. Fisher, of 
 Akron, graduated from Cleveland Medical Col- 
 lege in 1879, and soon afterward began prac- 
 ticing at Loyal Oak, where he is at the pres- 
 ent time. 
 
 Dr. A. B. Campbell, Dr. Griesmer, Dr. 
 Zwisler and Dr. Mikesell, each practiced in 
 the township a short time. 
 
 Dr. Alpheus Babcock was one of the earliest 
 settlers of Coventry Township, and practiced 
 there for a number of years. 
 
 Dr. Elijah Canfield, another of the early set^ 
 tiers, practiced medicine in the township for 
 over thirty years. 
 
 Dr. Samuel Austin practiced in the town- 
 ship a few years. 
 
 Dr. Jackson Chapman began practicing in 
 Copley about the year 1835, and continued 
 twelve or fifteen yeai's. 
 
 Dr. Byron Chapman began the practice of 
 his profession in Copley about 1845, and has 
 continued up to the present time. 
 
 The history of Green Township furnishes 
 us with an addition of about fifteen to our 
 already long list of Siimmit County doctors, 
 but, unfortunately for the I'eader as well as 
 for futiu'e historians, little if anything more 
 than a mere mention of their names can be 
 said of a majority of them at this time. 
 
 Dr. Smith, first name not known, was the 
 first man wlio practiced medicine in this towTi- 
 ship, and all that can be learned concerning 
 him is that he was an old man in 1830. 
 
 Dr. John Thomas was the first physician in 
 the village of Greensbm'g. He came there 
 about 1838, and remained two years, removing 
 thence to Wood County. 
 
 Drs. A. H. Mann, H. Peters, Jacob Musser, 
 Wesley Boden, David Joseph, Benjamin F. 
 Sampseil and Garber followed in close succes- 
 sion, each remaining a year or two. Then 
 came Dr. C. A. Perdue, who practiced in the 
 village about six years, though not continu- 
 ously. Next came Dr. Markam, who re- 
 mained one year; then Dr. O. E. Brovraell, 
 who remained ten years, and is mentioned 
 among the Akron sketches. Following him 
 came Dr. Howland who remained two years, 
 Dr. Parmele, one year, and Dr. Reynolds, who 
 was there at the same time and also remained 
 one year. 
 
 East Liberty has had two doctors, L. S. 
 Witwer and Jonathan Buchtel, each of whom 
 remained about six years. The township is 
 without a physician at present. 
 
 Richfield Township has for the last fifty 
 years or more been well supplied with medical 
 men, so far at least as niimbers are concerned ; 
 and fi-om the date of the earliest settlements 
 in the county up to 1840, the sm-roimding 
 towns to a distance of about eight or ten miles 
 depended upon Riclifield doctors. 
 
 Dr. Secretary Rawson, the first physician in 
 the township, was born in the town of Warwick, 
 now Franklin Co., Mass., in the year 179(3, and 
 received his early education in the common 
 schools of that State. At the age of ten he 
 
k. 
 
 IILSTOKY OF SVMMIT COINTY. 
 
 5-20e 
 
 received from an uncle a share in a circulate 
 ing library, which for the next six years occu- 
 pied his leisure hoiu's; reading mostly at 
 night and by the light of a pitch-pine knot 
 stuck in the chimney corner, which, "as he 
 says," not only gave light and intelligence to 
 the recipient, biit to the whole household. 
 When seventeen years old he began a regular 
 coiu'se of study at New Salem Academy, where 
 he continiied through the summer months of 
 the next four years, his winters in the mean- 
 while being spent in teaching school. He then 
 entered the office of Dr. Secretary Rawson, of 
 Waterbury, Vt., where he remained two years, 
 going thence to Royalston. Mass., where he 
 spent three years in the office of Dr. Batchel- 
 lor. During the last two years of his medical 
 course of study he practiced enoiigh to pay his 
 own expenses, and at its close received a 
 diploma from a medical society at Montpelier, 
 Vt. In 1823, he came to Ohio, and after prac- 
 ticing one year in Madison, Geauga County, 
 came to Richfield, where he continued in 
 active practice for the next forty-two years. 
 In 18(j(), he removed to Des Moines, Iowa, 
 where he still resides. He was always an en- 
 ergetic and well-informed physician, and had 
 the will and ability to defend his opinions with 
 tongue or pen. being then, as he is now, a fre- 
 quent contributor to the newspapers. 
 
 Dr. Bela B. Clark practiced in Richfield 
 fi'om 1830 to 1830, going then to Brunswick, 
 Medina County. Next came Dr. Hiram Whee- 
 ler and Dr. W^illiam Miuison, both of whom 
 did a large business for a niunber of years. 
 The former died several years ago, and the 
 latter is now living in Independence, Cuya- 
 hoga County. Following these came a Dr. 
 Everett, who practiced in the township a few 
 years only. 
 
 Dr. Nathan Stevenson read medicine in 
 Richfield with Dr. Mimson, and after gi'aduat- 
 ing fi'om a college in New York City, prac- 
 ticed some years with his preceptor. He Chen 
 removed to Illinois; served as Surgeon durino- 
 the rebellion, and died some years ago. 
 
 Dr. A. E. Ewing came to Richfield in 1850, 
 and has ever since resided there except when 
 his roaming propensity has carried him off to 
 some other field for a short time. He gradu- 
 ated from an old medical collej/e in New En- 
 
 gland, but, as he says, "is not considered quite 
 orthodox in medicine or anything else." Dr. 
 H. B. Johnson, now of Beloit, Wis., practiced 
 in the township some years, and sei-ved as 
 Sm-geon of an Ohio regiment during the re- 
 bellion. Dr. I. B. Beach also practiced here 
 a few years in company with his son-in-law. 
 Dr. Johnson. Dr. William Jones studied med- 
 icine with Dr. Johnson, and like his preceptor 
 served as Surgeon in the late wai*. Dr. Cra- 
 ven practiced here about three years in the 
 first half of the present decade. Besides the 
 above a Dr. Jewett was here a short time pre- 
 vious to 1840, and a Dr. Dickerson fi-om about 
 1860 to 1870. Three or fom- homoeopaths 
 have at different times tried to gain a patron- 
 age in the township, but their success has 
 never warranted more than a short residence 
 in the place. 
 
 At the present time the health of the town- 
 ship is looked after by Dr. Ewing, Dr. Wesley 
 Pope and Dr. Chamberlin. 
 
 In Bath Township there are several doctors 
 practicing at present. Dr. E. K. Nash, at 
 Montrose, and Dr. R. Randall, at Haiimiond's 
 Corners. 
 
 In Franklin Township Dr. Adam Sisler, a 
 native of Pennsylvania, has practiced in Man- 
 chester since about 1850. Dr. D. Rowe has 
 practiced in the same j^lace since about 1873 
 
 O ID. 
 
 Twinsburg Township has foimd need for 
 physicians like all the world beside, but very 
 few have ever found it a profitable field for 
 practice. 
 
 Dr. Otis Bois, from Blanford. Mass., came 
 to the township about 1834. and practiced 
 medicine about two yeai's in connection with 
 carrying on a general merchandise store. The 
 next was Dr. Taylor, from Aurora, Portage 
 County, who came to Northfield about 1840, 
 and practiced successfully about three or four 
 years. Following Dr. Taylor came Dr. John 
 E. Stevens, who remained a few years and 
 then went to Youngstown, Ohio. About the 
 same time or perhaps a little later, Dr. Selby 
 moved into the townshi]) from Colimer, and re- 
 mained a few years. In 1803. Dr. Collins, of 
 Bedford, came into the township where he 
 practiced for the next three or fovir years. 
 About the same time Dr. Seth Freeman, who 
 
 ■'T 
 
■S2(Y 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY 
 
 had privately read homoeopathy, began the 
 practice of his profession, and has advanced 
 to a fair business. Not far from the same 
 time Dr. Proctor Clark, after attending lec- 
 tvu-es in Cleveland began the practice of ho- 
 moeopathy. 
 
 Suman Grriste, a brother-in-law of Dr. 
 Freeman, studied homoeopathy with the lat- 
 ter, and is to-day practicing his profession. 
 
 The first physician of whom we have any 
 record as having practiced in Noiilifield Town- 
 ship was Dr. Hosea Bliss. He gradiiated from 
 Burlington (Vermont) College, in 1825. and, 
 fn 1884, came to Northfield where he continued 
 in practice until the time of his death, in 
 1874. 
 
 Dr. Perkins Wallace came to Brandywine, 
 in this township, some time about 1886, and 
 remained one year. After this we find the 
 names of Dr. Caruther. Dr. Jones, Dr. Benja- 
 min, Dr. Haseltine, Dr. Carley, homoeopath, 
 and Dr. Cranmer, homoeopath, each of whom 
 remained about one year. 
 
 Next came Dr. H. B. Hart, who remained 
 two years. 
 
 Dr. K. S. Hul)bard came to the place in 
 1877, and continues in practice at the pres- 
 ent date. He was educated at Baldwin Uni- 
 versity, and is a graduate of Charity Hospital 
 Medical College. 
 
 The oidy physician who was ever located in 
 Stow Township was Dr. Luther Spaulding. 
 He came from Connecticut and located at 
 what is known as Stow Corners in the spring 
 of 1825, practicing there until August of the 
 same year, when he died. 
 
 From Boston Township we get the follow- 
 ing brief history: Dr. S. Pixley was born in 
 Franklin County, Mass., in 1810, but came to 
 this county before he was a year old. Having 
 received his preliminary education at the com- 
 mon schools and Wadsworth Academy, he be- 
 gan the study of medicine with Drs. Trask 
 and Leonard, of Stringsville, about the year 
 1841. He afterward read one year with Dr. 
 Miinson, of Richfield. Gradiiated fi'om Cleve- 
 land Medical College in 1847, and since then 
 
 has practiced most of the time in Penin- 
 sula. 
 
 Dr. Humplu'ey I'ead medicine with Dr. Pix- 
 ley, and has practiced in Peninsula for foiu-- 
 teen years. 
 
 Dr. A. M. Cole also read medicine with Dr. 
 Pixley, and has been in Peninsula for the last 
 six years or more, though engaged in other 
 business than the practice of his profession 
 during most of the time. 
 
 Coventry Township has for the most part 
 depended upon Aki-on and Manchester for its 
 doctors. Dr. William Reed practiced for a 
 number of years in Thomastown, and, about 
 1876, removed to Mogadore. Dr. J. W. Sor- 
 rick was born at Manchester, this county, in 
 1848, and received his education in the com- 
 mon schools of that place, and the Noimal 
 School at Lebanon, Ohio. About 1871, he be- 
 gan reading medicine wdth Dr. W. C. Jacobs, 
 of Akron, and, in 1875, graduated at medical 
 college of Ohio at Cincinnati. Practiced in 
 Aki-on until 1878, since which time he has 
 been practicing at Thomastown. Dr. John B. 
 Thomas was reared in the vicinity of Thomas- 
 town, read medicine with Drs. Bowen and 
 Foltz; graduated at Charity Hosiptal Medical 
 College, Cleveland, in 1880, and has since 
 then been practicing at his old home. 
 
 It is but appropriate that some notice of the 
 medical societies of Summit County should be 
 made in this sketch of the profession. Our 
 limited space, however, will admit of the very 
 briefest mention. As early as 1842, the 
 meml^ers of the medical profession met to- 
 gether and organized a society by adopting a 
 "preamble and constitution," and fonnally 
 constituting themselves into a regular society. 
 This society continued in existence a number 
 of years, and finally became extinct. Again, 
 in Febraury, 18()('), a meeting was held in the 
 ofiice of Dr. J. J. Smith, its object being the 
 re-organization of a medical society, and as a 
 final result the "Suimnit County Medical So- 
 ciety" was organized. This society is still in 
 existence, and is an institution of considerable 
 interest to the profession of the county. 
 
 -:f]: 
 
.--^x-tr^^^^^C ^-^^^^^t^^-^ 
 
 
PORTACxE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 321 
 
 CHAPTER VII.* 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP — INTRODUCTION — TOPOGRAPHY — EARLY SETTLEMENT— CANAL LOTTHRV- 
 THE COUNTERFEITING PLOT— TOWNSHIP OFFICERS, ETC. 
 
 r|"^HE township of Portage possesses a pe- 
 1 culiarl}' interesting history. Its celebrated 
 " Portage Path " not only turnished a name to 
 the township, but also to the county in which it 
 was situate prior to the erection of Summit 
 Count}-. As the Portage Path has served so 
 man}- uses as a boundary line, it will not be out 
 of place to here briefl}- note them. In the first 
 place, it constituted a portion of the ancient 
 line of separation between the confederated 
 Six Nations and the Western Indians. B}- the 
 treat}' of Fort Mcintosh, near where is now 
 Beaver, Penn., in 1785, the United States ac- 
 quired from the Indians all the territory be 
 yond the Ohio River and east of this line. 
 When the great Northwest Territory, including 
 this and more, was established in 1787, by 
 ordinance of the Continental Congress, the 
 Governor and three Judges thereof were ap- 
 pointed by Congress. These men entered upon 
 their duties with headquarters at Campus Mar- 
 tins, now Marietta. Their first act was to cre- 
 ate the county of Washington, July 27, 1788, 
 named in honor of Gen. George Washington. 
 Its western boundary was the Cuyahoga River, 
 the old portage path, and the Tuscarawas River 
 as far south as the southern line of the West- 
 ern Reserve. This was practically the western 
 border of the United States, and so remained 
 until the year 1805. In 1796, August 15, the 
 county of Wayne was set off, having for its 
 eastern limit the same line. July 29, 1797, 
 Jefferson County was erected out of Washing 
 ton, its western line being so far coincident 
 with that of Washington. 
 
 On the 4th of July, 1805, at Fort Industry, 
 on the Maumee River, representatives of both 
 the General Government and the Connecticut 
 Land Company, after much delay and reluct- 
 ance on the part of the Indians, succeeded in 
 negotiating a treaty with them, by which a final 
 settlement of their unextinguished claim to all 
 lands of the Reserve west of the Cuyahoga 
 River, the portage path and the Tuscarawas 
 
 ■' By Charles Whittlesey Foote. 
 
 River, was accomplished ; all their right and title 
 to the lands in question were thereby ceded to the 
 United States. Thus we see that for a consid- 
 erable time a portion of what is now the town- 
 ship of Portage was within the United States, 
 while another portion was not. After several 
 further unimportant territorial modifications, 
 the counties of Cuyahoga and Portage were 
 authorized the same day, by act of the Ohio 
 Legislature, February 10, 1807, and were both 
 within a few years erected in accordance with 
 that act. Now, for the first time, the •' Portage 
 Path " loses its distinctive service of impor- 
 tance as a dividing line. All the early convey- 
 ances of land in its vicinity make frequent 
 reference to it as a well-known monument, and 
 all parcels abutting upon it were so described 
 and bounded. And now, having at such length 
 evolved it historically, let us inquire as to just 
 what the path was. Years before the white 
 man invaded this country, the Indians had 
 been in the habit of traveling across between 
 Lake Erie and the Ohio River. The canoe was 
 their most natural and easy mode of journey- 
 ing. Ascending the Cuyahoga as far as the 
 great bend, then transporting the boats and 
 luggage by this, the shortest trail, a little more 
 than eight miles in length, over to the head- 
 waters of the Tuscarawas, they could reach 
 the Ohio by way of the ^luskingum River 
 without again touching land. Many a burden 
 of those various things in which their traffic 
 consisted has been packed "over the portage," 
 one of the links in this chain of communica- 
 tion and commercial highway. One of the 
 very earliest maps of this section known, is 
 that of Evans', published in Philadelphia in the 
 year 1755. Upon it appears, witli tolerable 
 geographic accuracy, the "Cayahoga" River, 
 the " Portage, " and a stream evidently designed 
 to represent the Tuscarawas. 
 
 In a publication by Capt. Thomas Ilutchins, 
 London, 1788, is a mention, among the '^ Carry- 
 ing Places between the Ohio and Lake Erie," 
 as follows : "From Muskingum to Cayahoga, 
 
 ^^ 
 
322 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 a creek that leads to Lake Erie, which is 
 muddy and not very swift, and nowhere ob- 
 structed with falls or rifts, is the best portage 
 between the Ohio and Lake Erie." 
 
 Evidences of the location of the path were 
 plainly visible many years after its original 
 followers were sunk again into the retreating 
 forests. In fact, the track may now be observed 
 in places, and the entire course closely followed 
 from end to end. The path was very winding, 
 a characteristic of all Indian trails, avoiding 
 hills wherever possible and sidling up them 
 when they must be climbed. Leaving the Cuy- 
 ahoga near the present village of Old Portage, 
 perhaps three miles north from Akron, it ran 
 up the hill westwardly a half mile, then south- 
 erly until near Summit Lake, passing just west 
 and outside of the present corporation of Akron 
 City ; thence nearl}' south to the Tuscarawas, 
 which it reached about a mile above New Port- 
 age. 
 
 In July, 1797, Moses Warren, one of the Con- 
 necticut Land Company's surveyors, ran the 
 path from the Cuyahoga southward, meeting 
 Seth Pease, who, with his party, had been run- 
 ning the southern line of the Reserve. He 
 made the length of the path 6-44.55 chains, or 
 8 miles 4 chains and 55 links. The path was 
 again surveyed in 1806, by Abraham Tappan. 
 
 To Col. Whittlesey's valuable " Early History 
 of Cleveland," we are indebted for the following 
 interesting description of a scheme looking to 
 the improvement of this highway of commerce : 
 
 The improvement of the Cuyahoga and Tusca- 
 rawas was then (1807) the great idea of this part of 
 the country and of Ohio. 
 
 It was thought if $12,000 coukl by some means 
 be raised, the channels of those streams could be 
 cleared of logs and trees and the portage path made 
 passable for loaded wagons. Thus, goods might 
 ascend the Cuyahoga in boats to the Old Portage, 
 be hauled seven miles to the Tuscarawas, near New 
 Portage, and tiience descend that stream in batteaux. 
 This great object excited so much attention that the 
 Legislature authorized a lottery to raise the money. 
 A copy of the scheme and one of the tickets is here 
 given: 
 
 Q No. 11441 
 
 CUYAHOGA AND MUSKINGUM NAVIGATION 
 
 LOTTERY. 
 
 This ticket entitles the bearer to such Prize as 
 shall be drawn against its number (if called for 
 within twelve months after the drawing is com- 
 pleted), subject to a deduction of 12| per cent. 
 No. 11441' J. WALWORTH, 
 
 Afjeiit for the Boitrd of ConDniHsionerti. 
 
 SCHEME 
 
 OP A 
 
 LOTTERY 
 
 FOK 
 
 Improving the Navigation 
 between lake erie and the river ohio, through 
 
 THE 
 
 Cuyahoga and Muskingum. 
 The Legislature of the State of Ohio having, at 
 their last Session, granted a Lottery to raise the sum 
 of Twelve Thousand Dollars, for the above-men- 
 tioned purpose and appointed the subscribers com- 
 missioners to carry the same into effect. They offer 
 the following scheme to the public: 
 
 FIRST CLASS. 
 12,800 tickets AT $5 each, $64,000. 
 
 1 Prizeof. ...$5,0Q0is $5,000 
 
 2 do .... 2,500 5,000 
 
 5 do .... 1,000 5,000 
 
 10 do .... 500 5,000 
 
 50 do .... 100 5,000 
 
 100 do .... 50 5,000 
 
 3400 do .... 10 34,000 
 
 3568 $64,000 
 
 Prizes subject to a deduction of twelve and a half 
 per cent. 
 
 The drawing of the First Class will commence at 
 Cleveland on the hrst Monday of January, 1808, or 
 as soon as three-fourths of the tickets shall be sold; 
 and the prizes will be paid in sixty days after the 
 drawing is completed. 
 
 Holders of Tickets, drawing prizes of Ten Dol- 
 lars, may, at their election, receive the money, or 
 two Tickets of Five Dollars each in the Second 
 Class. 
 
 For the convenience of the owners of fortunate 
 numbers. Persons will be appointed in Boston, Hart- 
 ford, New York and Albany, to pay Prizes. Their 
 names, together with a List of Prizes, will be pub- 
 lished in some Newspaper printed in each of those 
 places, and in three of the Newspapers printed in 
 the State of Ohio. Persons will also be designated 
 to pay Prizes in Zanesville and Steubenville. 
 
 The subscribers have taken the Oath and given 
 the Bonds required l)y Law\ for the faithful dis- 
 charge of tlieir trust, and they flatter themselves 
 that an oljject of such extensive importance will 
 not fail to attract the attention and patronage of 
 many, who are not allured by the advantageous pros- 
 pects held out in the Scheme. 
 
 John Walworth, Esq., of Cleveland, is appointed 
 Agent of the Commissioners, to sign the Tickets and 
 transact the business of the Board in their recess. 
 
 (Then follow the names of the twelve members 
 of the Board of Commissioners.) 
 
 Ci.eveland, May 23d, 1807. 
 
 CRAMER, PRINTER. 
 
 The drawing never came off. Those who had 
 purchased tickets, many years afterward received 
 their money back without interest. 
 
 The price of each ticket was $5. 
 
 The native timber of this section was oak, 
 hickory, maple, cliestnut and box, according to 
 
 
.^ 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 323 
 
 the notes of Moses Warren, Jr., before referred 
 to. 
 
 The white man who first settled permanently 
 within this township came from Groton, New 
 London Co., Conn., Maj. Minor Spicer, in the 
 summer of 1810. He purchased from the 
 Connecticut Land Company, whose headquar- 
 ters were at Hartford, Conn., and who originally 
 bought the entire territory of the Western Re- 
 serve from the State of Connecticut (excepting 
 two tracts previously sold, together aggregating 
 something over a half million acres, or about 
 one-sixth part of the whole area). Maj. Spicer's 
 farm consisted of 260 acres of land, two-fifths 
 of a square mile, and was situated about mid- 
 way between what is now Akron's Sixth Ward 
 and South Akron. From that time to this 
 there have always been members of the Spicer 
 famil}' living upon the site of the original pur- 
 chase, and "the Spicer settlement " is a well- 
 known section of town. Just what was paid 
 for the land we have been unable to ascertain. 
 It is worth noting, however, that the State of 
 Connecticut, in October of 1786, several years 
 prior to her sale of the Reserve to the Land 
 Company as mentioned above, by resolution 
 fixed the selling price at tliree shillings (50 
 cents) per acre. With a spirit strongly charac- 
 teristic of the time and thought, she also pro- 
 vided that 500 acres of land in each township 
 should be reserved to the support of the Gospel 
 ministry (in those days there was no opposi- 
 tion to a union of church and State), 500 acres 
 to the maintenance of schools, and 240 acres 
 to the first minister who should locate within 
 the township. As Connecticut did not succeed 
 in disposing of her land at the figure above 
 given, she once more, in Ma}', 1795, resolved 
 the price at not less than one-third of a dollar 
 an acre. The ensuing summer developed onl}- 
 fruitless negotiations, but, finall}', on the 2d of 
 September of the same year, a bargain was 
 struck by the terms of which 3.000,000 acres 
 of the Reserve next west from the Pennsyl- 
 vania line (which was afterward found to be a 
 little in excess of the exact quantity of land 
 then actuall}' remaining within the limitations 
 of the Reserve, after deducting the " Salt Spring 
 Tract" of 24,000 acres already sold to Gen. 
 Samuel H. Parsons, and located in Trumbull 
 County, and the gi-ant of 500,000 acres com- 
 monly known as the Fire Lands, from the 
 western end (in 1792), were deeded to the Land 
 
 Company for the consideration of $1,200,000, or 
 40 cents per acre. 
 
 To return from our digression : At the time 
 when Maj. Spicer prospected and located his 
 purchase, he was the only white person within 
 the township. About him stretched the un- 
 broken forest with no clearing nor path, save 
 that made by the hostile aborigine. In a sense 
 more literal and forcible than comes to most 
 men, was it true that 
 
 " The world was all before him, where to chdose 
 His place of rest." 
 
 With admirable judgment he made his selec- 
 tion. After some little labor and improvement, 
 he returned in the fall of the 3'ear, to his home 
 and family in the East. Leaving Groton again 
 in June, of 1811, with the sturdy conveyance 
 of an ox team and wagon, and this time accom- 
 panied by his famil}', his brother Amos and 
 Paul Williams, he once more reached the spot 
 that was for more than twoscore years to be 
 his home. Vigorous efforts soon erected a log 
 house, the first in Portage Township, the site 
 of which was but a few rods from the comforta- 
 ble residence where still lives Averj' Spicer, 
 son of Minor, in the dignity of a ripe old age 
 and the assurance of the esteem and respect of 
 an entire community, sprung up beneath his 
 observation, and the recipient of many and 
 substantial favors at his hands. Mrs. Avery 
 Spicer, a daughter of Joshua King, Esq., was 
 born at Old Portage, and was the first white 
 child born in the township. 
 
 We subjoin an incident in the life of Maj. 
 Spicer, as we find it narrated in Howe's " Ohio, 
 its History and Antiquities : " 
 
 One night just l)efore retiring, lie heard some one 
 call in front of his house, and went out and saw a 
 large Indian with two rifles in his hand, and a deer 
 quartered and luing across his horse. Spicer in- 
 quired what he wanted. The Indian replied in his 
 own dialect, when the other told him he must speak 
 English or he would unhorse him. He finally gave 
 him to understand that he wished to stay over- 
 night, a request tliat Avas reluctantly granted. Ilis 
 rifles were placed in a corner, his venison hung up 
 and his horse put into a large pig-stye, the only 
 stable attached to the premises. 
 
 The Indian cut out, a piece of venison for Mrs. 
 Spicer to cook for liim, which she did in the usual 
 way, with a liberal quantity of pepper and salt. 
 He drew nj) to the table and ate but a mouthful or 
 two. The family being ready to retire, he placed 
 his scalping knife and tomahawk in the corner with 
 his rifles, and stretched himself upon the hearth be- 
 fore the fire. When he supposed the family were 
 asleep, he raised himself slowly from his reclining 
 
 i "V 
 
324 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 position and sat upright upon the liearth, looking 
 stoalthil_y over his shonhlor to seo if all was still. 
 He then got up on his feet and stepped lightly 
 aeross the floor to his implements of death. At 
 this juncture, the feelings of Spicer and his wife 
 may be well imagined, for they were only feigning 
 sleep and were intently watching. The Indian 
 again stood for a moment, to see if he had awakened 
 any one, then slowly drew from its scabbard the 
 glittering scalping knife. At this moment, Sjncer 
 Avas about putting his han<l upon his rifle, which 
 stood by his bed to shoot the Indian, but concluded 
 to wait further demonstration, which was an en- 
 tirely different one from what lu' liad anticipated, 
 for tlie Indian cut a piece of his veiuson, weighing 
 about two pounds, and laying it upon the livecoals 
 until it was warmed through, devoured it and went 
 to sleep. Mrs. Spicer's cooking liad not pleased 
 lum, l)eing seasoned too high. 
 
 In the year 1811, a large body of Indians, 
 under the leadership of one of their braves, 
 Onondaga George, evidently ill-natured and 
 bent on trouble, suddenly appeared along the 
 Cuyahoga River. A few days later, they as 
 suddenly disappeared. Soon after their depart- 
 ure came tidings of the battle of Tippecanoe. 
 It then became clear that these Indians were 
 plotting to act their part in a great intended 
 tragedy, the massacre of all the frontier whites, 
 but were deterred from carrying the terrible 
 project to an accomplishment by the intelli- 
 gence, brouglit them by their fleet runners three 
 days before it reached the settlers, of the disas- 
 trous issue of that battle. While they remained 
 hovering about the neighborhood, they kept a 
 lookout stationed upon the high bliiff west of 
 the canal lock at Old Portage. 
 
 During the war of 1812, a camp was estab- 
 lished at Old Portage (or as it was then known 
 and had been since the exploring expedition of 
 the surveyors of 1797, the Upper Headquarters) 
 by (xen. Wadsworth in September. The post 
 was regarded as of great importance through- 
 out the war. In order to i-each the immediate 
 scene of action, Gen. Wadsworth's soldiers, not 
 daring to follow the lake shore from Cleveland 
 to Huron on account of the British, ascended 
 the Cuyahoga as far as the Upper Headquarters. 
 Thence they felled trees and cut a road north- 
 westerly through the woods to Camp Avery on 
 the Huron River, not far from where Milan now 
 stands, a distance of sixty-five miles. This road 
 was of great service to the American forces. It 
 was afterward known as the "old Smith road," 
 and portions of it are to this day used for pur- 
 poses of travel. 
 
 The next 3'ear, 1813, there were built at Old 
 Portage and floated down to Lake Erie, two 
 vessels, the Portage and the Porcupine, which 
 took a conspicuous part in the ever memorable 
 naval victory achieved by Commodore Perry, 
 September 10. 
 
 For a time. Minor Spicer, Amos Spicer and 
 Paul Williams, with their families, constituted 
 the entire settled population of the township. 
 Others, however, began to come in, among them 
 being Charles W. Brown, in 1816, and Talmon 
 Beardslev, Andrews May and Julius Sumner, • 
 in 1818." 
 
 In 1825, the town of Akron was laid out ; 
 the same year work was here begun upon the 
 Ohio Canal, and a great number of laborers 
 were imported for its construction. 
 
 Ohio Cantd. — We, of a day of steamboats 
 and a multiplicity of railroads with the full and 
 rapid transportation the}' aftbrd, cannot appre- 
 ciate the importance to the early pioneers of 
 this enterprise, which was regarded as a won- 
 derful accommodation, inasmuch as by its 
 means the few necessities unobtainable from 
 their wilderness surroundings could be brought 
 from the regions of civilization at the remarka- 
 ble speed of four miles an hour, and as often as 
 once or twice a week. The Ohio Canal, origi- 
 nally denominated the " Lake Erie and Ohio 
 Canal," was first formally suggested in a reso- 
 lution brought before the lower body of the 
 Assembly, January 7, 1819. 
 
 Six and a half 3'ears elapsed before work was 
 actually commenced. Finally, on the 4th of 
 July, 1825, in the presence of Gov. Do Witt 
 Clinton, of New York — -the man to whom more 
 than any other is to be accredited the honor of 
 the successful accomplishment of the great 
 Erie Canal — and other notables, the first spade- 
 ful of earth was upturned upon the Port- 
 age summit near Summit Lake. The thing 
 first required was the lowering of the surface of 
 that lake five feet, which was done by means of 
 a ditch cut to about where Lock No. 1 now 
 stands. 
 
 It was worth noting, in passing, that the 
 water of Summit Lake flows both north by way 
 of the canal, Lakes Erie and Ontario, and the 
 St. Lawrence River to the Atlantic Ocean, and 
 south via canal, Ohio and Mississippi Rivers 
 and Gulf of Mexico, ultimately reaching the 
 same great depository. The work all along the 
 line from Portage summit to Cleaveland (as it 
 
k. 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 325 
 
 was then spelled), was speedil}' let to contract 
 and energetically prosecuted. Precisely two 
 years to a day from the practical inception of 
 the work, on the 4:th of July, 1827, the first 
 boat — the Allen Trimble — with (lov. Trimble, 
 the Canal Commissioners, and other prominent 
 persons on board, cleared from Akron, passed 
 over the thirty-seven intervening miles of water, 
 and reached Cleveland the same day. Here 
 was an event of no slight moment to the people 
 of Akron and vicinity. It constituted an epoch 
 in the town's histor}'. Henceforwai'd there was 
 to be easy communication with the most con- 
 siderable town west of Marietta, and Akron's 
 certainty of development was secured. 
 
 After many obstacles overcome and vast 
 labor expended, the canal was completed from 
 Cleveland to Portsmouth in the summer of 
 1833. 
 
 The total of the receipts for tolls and water 
 rents at the Akron office for the year 1835 was 
 $7,028.23, a verj' creditable showing for so early 
 a day. 
 
 Immediately upon the opening of the canal 
 for business between Akron and Cleveland, in 
 1827, Wolsey Wells was appointed Collector of 
 the Port. He appears to have been a man of 
 versatile talents, or at any rate of varied occu- 
 pations. Besides his Collectorship, he held the 
 position of Postmaster, and was also attorne}^ 
 at law and a Justice of the Peace. Notwith- 
 standing all these respective duties, a desk of 
 two feet by one and one-half, sufficed to con- 
 tain all his business papers. 
 
 Doubtless every one, during the last year, 
 has read or heard of the early experience, as 
 driver upon a canal, of the man who now fills 
 the highest place within the gift of the Ameri- 
 can people. James A. Garfield once, when a 
 young man, worked upon this same Ohio Canal, 
 and, as in evexything else to which he turned 
 his hand or attention, did his work well. As 
 he was passing down the Valley Railroad one 
 day last fall (1880), in company with President 
 Hayes and others, he pointed out many famil- 
 iar places along the line of the canal, and re- 
 galed his companions with anecdotes and inci- 
 dents connected with his former acquaintance 
 with it under so diverse circumstances. 
 
 The Counterfeiting Pint. — We have also to 
 record as matter of history, a thing which for 
 years rendered the northern portion of Portage 
 Township and vicinit}' ver}- notorious, and im- 
 
 pressed a blight which never has been, and 
 probably never will be, effaced. We refer to 
 the remarkable operations of the gang of coun- 
 terfeiters, which, through a period of nearly or 
 quite a score of 3'ears, made their headquarters 
 and conducted their business at Old Portage 
 and Yellow Creek. Without question, this was 
 the most thorough, daring and successful 
 scheme of the sort ever devised and carried out 
 in this country or any other. The system had 
 its ramifications throughout the whole United 
 States and Canada ; not a State or Territory 
 but had its agents, and scarcely a count}^ in 
 an}' State without them. The head and front 
 of this stupendous complication was one James 
 Brown, a man of rare talent, of wonderful ener- 
 gies, and possessed of a degree of personal 
 attraction and power few men have ever wielded. 
 He was six feet and two inches in height, with 
 a well-propoi'tioned fine physique, of command- 
 ing presence, and keen, penetrating eyes, like 
 an eagle's. Just how early he began the work 
 is not known, but early in the thirties he was 
 notorious as the " Prince of counterfeiters " in 
 all the country round. Many marvelous stories 
 are told of his achievements. One of the earli- 
 est of his exploits consisted in passing off upon 
 a prominent New England bank a forged draft. 
 Relays of fleetest horses had been previously 
 provided at a series of stations known to him- 
 self, and in care of his agents. He departed 
 instantly, rode day and night until he reached 
 home at Yellow Creek. He was arrested, taken 
 East, and, upon trial, established an alibi to the 
 satisfaction of the Court, proving by numerous 
 and trustworthy witnesses that he was seen here 
 so soon after the occurrence at the bank that, 
 as the Court held — " it was utterly impossible 
 that he could have been there so shortly be- 
 fore." In conversation, he seemed to delight 
 in letting fall remarks confirmatory of his gen- 
 eral reputation, 3'et never saying anything dis- 
 tinctl}' declaring its well-foundeduess. A young 
 man, whose 3'outh had been spent in Western 
 New York, and who, like every one else, had 
 heard many tales of the prowess of Jim Brown, 
 became an assistant teller in a Cleveland bank. 
 One day, a tall man of impressive appearance 
 called at the bank, produced a large amount of 
 monej' and an account book, stating that he 
 wished to make a deposit. Upon the book the 
 clerk noticed the name, James Brown. Half 
 frightened and thrilled to the marrow at sup- 
 
 T^ 
 
326 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 posing that he was at last beholding the veritable 
 genius of the wonderful stories of his boyhood, 
 he stepped to the cashier, and in an awed whis- 
 per inquired if this were the Jim Brown, and if 
 so, whether he should receive the money. The 
 cashier replied " certainl3^'" The clerk stepped 
 back to the counter, when Brown, who readily 
 guessed the nature of the quick conference, ob- 
 served, " Young man, you need not be con- 
 cerned that I should bring anything but good 
 money here ! " 
 
 He had some traits of character which any 
 man might well emulate. It is said that his 
 word was alwa3's as good as a bond. That he 
 should be so rigid in keeping a pi'omise and 
 entertain so high an idea of personal honor, 
 coupled with a profession seemingly so devoid 
 of everything of the kind, was indeed strange. 
 About the year 1832, he was tried in the Me- 
 dina Court of Common Pleas upon the usual 
 charge of counterfeiting. The confinement of 
 the jail was exceedingly irksome to one of his 
 vigorous, energetic temperament. So great con- 
 fidence had the Sheriff in Brown's veracity, 
 that, upon his request and a parole promise to 
 return at night, he permitted him every morn- 
 ing to go out, unattended, and spend the da}^ 
 as and where he chose. He never proved rec- 
 reant to the trust, but returned regularly and 
 voluntaril}' each evening. He was convicted 
 and sentenced to the penitentiary. The Sheriff 
 started with him for Columbus, but was over- 
 taken by the service of a writ of error at Mt. 
 Vernon, and obliged to return. The judgment 
 of the Court of Common Pleas was reversed. 
 Brown gave bail for his appearance at the 
 proper time, but before the trial came on, two 
 or three essential witnesses had disappeared, 
 and the indictment was nollied. 
 
 So great was Brown's popularity in his own 
 neighborhood that he was repeatedly elected 
 to township oflfices. He held the position of 
 Justice of the Peace several successive terms ; 
 in fact, was an incumbent of that office when, 
 in 1846, the first check was put upon his career. 
 It was largely due to this condition of things 
 that it was impossible to secure his conviction 
 by the ordinary methods of the lower courts. 
 This was often attempted and as often failed, 
 until it was generally recognized by every one 
 else as well as himself and friends. Of this 
 immunity he publicly boasted ; when at last, by 
 the intervention of Federal processes, he was 
 
 brought to bay, he is said to have observed, 
 " Well, boys, now the United States have taken 
 hold of me, I may get floored, but I could have 
 worried out a county." In 1846, William S. C. 
 Otis was the Prosecuting Attorney for Summit 
 County. That year proof was obtained that 
 Brown was at the time engaged in counterfeit- 
 ing the circulating coin of the United States. 
 Through the efforts of Otis, Samuel W. Mc- 
 Clure, Esq., then a young lawyer of Cuyahoga 
 Falls, was appointed a United States Commis- 
 sioner for the State of Ohio (the State being 
 then comprised in one district), for the purpose 
 chiefly of instituting proceedings against Brown 
 through the media of the Federal Courts, those 
 of the State being found insufficient, as Com- 
 missioner McClure issued a warrant for his 
 arrest. While the warrant was yet in the hands 
 of Sheriff Janes, then Sheriff of Summit County ; 
 but, prior to its service, McClure had occasion 
 to represent a party litigant before Brown in 
 his capacity as Justice of the Peace. Brown 
 reserved his decision of the case for further 
 consideration. In the meantime, he was placed 
 under arrest and imprisoned. McClure, in be- 
 half of his client in the case, called upon Brown 
 in the jail, before the day assigned for the pre- 
 liminary examination. Brown then announced 
 his judgment as Justice in favor of McClure's 
 client, and, at the same time remarked, that 
 when his case should come before him (McClure) 
 he hoped he would be able to render a judgment 
 in h is favor. The preliminary examinat ion came 
 on for hearing ; the United States was repre- 
 sented by Otis, and the defense by R. P. Spald- 
 ing, afterward Judge Spalding of the Supreme 
 Bench. The examination was held at the court 
 house and continued several days. It resulted 
 in Brown's being held to bail in the sum of 
 $20,000 for his appearance before the Circuit 
 Court of the United States at Columbus at its 
 next session. In default of bail, he was re- 
 turned to jail ; but afterward, upon application 
 to a Federal Judge, the bond was reduced to 
 $5,000. That amount was furnished, and Brown 
 set at liberty. He appeared at Columbus for 
 trial. The District Attorney was assisted by 
 Mr. Otis. Pending the trial, affidavits were 
 filed, satisfying the Judge that if at liberty 
 when the verdict would be rendei'ed, and that 
 verdict should be guilty, it was the intention of 
 Brown's friends — of whom Columbus was full — 
 to put him out of the way of the consequences. 
 
 
■l±* 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 327 
 
 A bench warrant was issued, and he was again 
 imprisoned. He was convicted, and, for the 
 first time in his life, incarcerated in the Ohio 
 Penitentiary, though he had run a career of 
 crime for over twent}' years. During the short 
 time of Gen. Zachary Ta^-lor's Presidency 
 (March, 1849, to Jul}', 1850), the Asiatic cholera 
 broke out in the Ohio Penitentiary. Brown 
 was himself an attendant in the prison hospital 
 at the time, and such was the courage with 
 which he cared for the cholera patients, and his 
 unwearied attention to them, that he secured 
 the influence of that institution, and some of 
 the State officers, so that President Taylor was 
 induced to and did pardon him. He returned 
 to his former place of I'esidence in Northampton, 
 and was believed to be as extensively engaged 
 in the counterfeiting business as ever, though 
 it was not known that he then dealt in spurious 
 coin. Experience had taught him that it was 
 easier, more profitable, and less liable to detec- 
 tion to manufacture false paper money than 
 coin. It is said that he had a confederate in 
 the ver}'^ banking house which then stamped for 
 and furnished bills to the United States Bank ; 
 that through the agency of this pal, the genuine 
 plates themselves were conveyed into Brown's 
 hands, and immense quantities of the illegal 
 issue (not exactly counterfeit, inasmuch as they 
 were struck from the identical plates with the 
 true, and, therefore, also not discoverable 
 through an}' peculiarities of impression), par- 
 ticularl}^ of $100 bills, were accumulated. About 
 this time, James, and a brother Daniel, engaged 
 in the same enterprise, conceived a scheme of 
 bold magnitude, and extremely flattering in 
 promise. This was no less than to procure a 
 suitable ship, load her with this spurious scrip, 
 and visit China and other oriental countries, 
 where United States Bank bills circulated at 
 par, purchasing a cargo of teas, coflees, silks, 
 etc., to be disposed of again in England and 
 upon the continent. They had associated with 
 them in this device a man b}' the name of Tay- 
 lor. They proceeded to New Orleans, obtained 
 a vessel, filled it according to programme, and 
 set sail for China. A discovery of their real 
 character, however, was just then made, the 
 vessel overhauled before fairly out of the Mis- 
 sissippi, and the three rogues committed to the 
 " calaboose." There they were detained some 
 time. Daniel became sick, and finally died, as 
 it was reported, but not generally believed, in 
 
 this section of the country. Certain it is, how- 
 ever, that he never appeared hereabouts there- 
 after, and so, possibly, the report may have been 
 true. The wife of James, who, though believed 
 to have had nothing to do with her husband's 
 operations, remained faithful and devoted to 
 him until some years be^'ond this period, 
 traveled on horseback from Old Portage to New 
 Orleans in order to be present at the trial, and 
 use her influence in his behalf Several other 
 witnesses also went down from here to testify 
 in his interest. Brown turned State's evidence, 
 implicated Taylor, and himself escaped. This 
 is one of the few really mean incidents related 
 of him. 
 
 A few years later he was arrested in Michi- 
 gan, convicted of the same crime, and sentenced 
 to the Jackson Penitentiary. He there served 
 a full term of three years, whence he returned 
 to Northampton, but returned a broken-down 
 man and a confirmed drunkard. Not until now 
 did his fond wife give him up. His habits of 
 drink rapidly grew upon him ; his good traits 
 began to deteriorate, and finally departed alto- 
 gether ; his wife obtained a divorce, and Jim 
 Brown, who, had his abilities been honorably 
 directed, might have been a man of great power 
 and influence, became a perfectly worthless fel- 
 low, not even commanding the respect of his 
 associates in crime. Finally, in 1865, as he 
 was one day returning from Cleveland upon a 
 canal boat,"he fell from the walking plank to 
 the hold, striking his head upon a beam. The 
 concussion rendered him unconscious ; from 
 that state he never rallied, but died two or three 
 days later. So miserably closed the life of a 
 man of whom it was said that " he was as well 
 known by reputation as any President of the 
 United States." 
 
 Officers of the Township. — The following is a 
 list of the officers elected on the 2d day of 
 April, A. D. 1838, at a meeting held at tlie house 
 of Mr. Warren H. Clark. 
 
 Trustees.— V^iWiam B. Mitchell, Simon Per- 
 kins, Jr., and George Babcock ; Clerk, Horace 
 K. Smith ; Treasurer, Samuel A. Wheeler. 
 
 Since that time the following persons have 
 been elected and served as Trustees : 
 
 1839, William B. Mitchell, Simon Perkins, 
 Jr , John Sherbondy ; 1840, Charles W. Brown, 
 Jesse Allen, John Ay res ; 1841, Simon Perkins, 
 Jr., Jesse Allen, Charles W. Brown ; 1842, Si- 
 mon Perkins, Jr., Eber Blodget, Charles W. 
 
 ;t^ 
 
*M: 
 
 328 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 Brown ; 1843, Simon Perkins, Jr., Eber Blodget, 
 Charles W. Brown ; 1844, Simon Perkins, Jr., 
 Moses Smith, John Sherbondy ; 1845, Simon 
 Perkins, Lucius V. Bierce, Silas M. Wilder ; 
 1846, Silas M. Wilder, Lucius V. Bierce, Justus 
 Gale ; 1847, Henr}- Converse, Lucius V. Bierce, 
 (jeorge Sherbondy ; 1848, Webster B. Storer, 
 David Miller, John Ay res ; 1849, David Miller, 
 Nathaniel Finch, George Sherbondy. In Octo- 
 ber, Miller died, and George D. Bates was ap- 
 pointed to fill the vacancy ; 1850, Nathaniel 
 Finch, George Sherbondy, Joseph F. Gilbert ; 
 1851, Joseph F. Gilbert, Ira Hawkins, Robert 
 Jackson ; 1852, Elias W. Howard, George Sher- 
 bondy, Robert Jackson ; 1853, Joseph F. Gil- 
 bert, Robert Jackson, George Sherbondy ; 1854, 
 Ira Hawkins, Elias L. Munger, George Sher- 
 bondy ; 1855, George W. McNiel, Elias L. 
 Munger, George Sherbondy ; 1856, Benjamin 
 McNaughton, George W. McNiel, Reuben Sher- 
 bondy ; 1857, Charles Merriman, Clement J. 
 Kolb, Webster B. Storer ; 1858, George Miller, 
 Melchiah Sherbondy, Jacob Snyder; 1859, 
 Houston Sisler, Clement J. Kolb, John R. 
 Buchtel ; 1860, Houston Sisler, John R. Buch- 
 tel, Clement J. Kolb ; 1861, Houston Sisler, 
 John R. Buchtel, C. Obevholtz ; 1862, Houston 
 Sisler, John R. Buchtel, C. Oberholtz. In June 
 of 1862, Houston Sisler died and Roland O. 
 Hammond was appointed for the unexpired 
 term ; 1863, John R. Buchtel, Simon Perkins, 
 G. F. W. Fisher ; 1864, Simon Perkins, John 
 R. Buchtel, G. F. W. Fisher ; 1865, Simon Per- 
 kins, John R. Buchtel, G. F. W. Fisher; 1866, 
 John R. Buchtel, James F. Scott, Clement J. 
 Kolb ; 1867, John R. Buchtel, F. T. Husong, 
 Joseph Babb ; 1868, Joseph Babb, F. T. Hu- 
 song, Abraham Sichley ; 1869, F. T. Husong, 
 Joseph Babb, Millard F. Hamlin ; 1870, Joseph 
 Babb, Millard F. Hamlin, N. C. Hawkins ; 1871, 
 Millard F. Hamlin, N. C. Hawkins, Abner C. 
 Caldwell : 1872, N. C. Hawkins, Millard F. 
 Hamlin. H. Sherbondy ; 1873, H. Sherbondy, 
 Millard F. Hamlin, Frederic Oberholtz ; 1874, 
 A. L. Caldwell, Abraham Sichley, Henry Fred- 
 erick ; 1875. Heni-y Frederick, Abraham Sich- 
 fey, A. L. Caldwell ; 1876, Henry Frederick, 
 A. L. Caldwell, Abraham Sichley ; 1877, Simon 
 Perkins, Hiram Sherbondy, Abraham Sichley ; 
 1878, Stephen H. Pitkin, Avery Beardsley, 
 John McCausland ; 1879, Stephen H. Pitkin, 
 Albert H. Mallison, Ephraim Erdly. In July, 
 Erdl}' died and Uriah Sherbondy was ap- 
 
 pointed to serve out the term ; 1880, Jacob 
 Carpenter, Albert H. Mallison, Charles W. 
 Brown ; 1881, Jacob Carpenter, Albert H. Malli- 
 son, Millard F. Hamlin. 
 
 aerks.—lSm, Horace K. Smith ; 1838, Jo- 
 seph Cole; 1840, Nahum Fay; 1841, William 
 H. Dewey; 1842, H. C. Crosby ; 1843, William 
 H. Dewey; 1844, Nahum Fay; 1845, Charles 
 W. Tappan; 1846, Charles W. Tappan; 1847, 
 Charles W. Tappan ; 1848, Tillman Wagener ; 
 1849, Tillman Wageman ; 1850, Edward W. 
 Perrin; 1851, Edward W. Perrin ; 1852, Rol- 
 and 0. Hammond ; 1853, Roland 0. Hammond ; 
 1854, Roland 0. Hammond ; 1855, Roland 
 O. Hammond; 1856, Roland 0. Hammond; 
 1857, Newell D. Tibbals; 1858, Jacob A. Kohler, 
 1859, Jacob A. Kohler ; 1860, George T. Mc- 
 Curdy; 1861, George T. McCurdy ; 1862, George 
 T. McCurdy; 1863, William C. Allen; 1864, 
 William C. Allen ; 1865, William C. Allen ; 
 1866, William C. Allen ; 1867. William C. Allen ; 
 1868, John McGregor ; 1869, John McGregor ; 
 1870^ John McGregor ; 1871, John McGregor ; 
 
 1872, G. Tod Ford ; 1873. G. Tod Ford ; 1874, 
 G. Tod Ford ; 1875, G. Tod Ford. In Septem- 
 ber, Ford resigned and Charles Baii'd was ap- 
 pointed to the office. 1876, Charles Baird ; 
 1877. Charles Baird: 1878, Peter J. Moersch ; 
 1879. Peter J. Moersch; 1880, Peter J. Moer- 
 sch ; 1881, Peter J. Moersch. 
 
 Treamre):s.~18'^S, Samuel A. Wheeler ; 1839, 
 Lewis P. Buckley ; 1840, Samuel A. Wheeler : 
 1841, Samuel A. Wheeler; 1842, Samuel A 
 Wheeler; 1843, Samuel A. Wheeler; 1844, 
 Samuel A. Wheeler ; 1845, Samuel A. Wheeler : 
 1846, Samuel A. Wheeler; 1847. Samuel A. 
 Wheeler; 1848, Zebulon Jones; 1849, Zebu- 
 Ion Jones ; 1850, Benjamin McNaughton; 1851, 
 Benjamin McNaughton ; 1852, Benjamin Mc- 
 Naughton ; 1853, Benjamin McNaughton ; 1854, 
 Edward W. Perrin ; 1855, Edward W. Perrin ; 
 1856, Edward W. Perrin; 1857, Houston Sis- 
 ler; 1858, John T. Good; 1859, John H. 
 Chamberlin; 1860, John H. Chamberlin ; 1861, 
 Charles Cranz ; 18(J2, Charles (^-anz, 1863, 
 Charles Cranz ; 1864. Charles Cranz ; 1865, 
 Charles Cranz; 1866, Charles Cranz; 1867, 
 Charles Cranz; 1868, Charles Cranz; 18(59, 
 Charles Cranz ; 1870, Arthur L. Conger ; 1871, 
 Arthur L. Conger; 1872, Arthur L. Conger; 
 
 1873, David R. I'aige Jr.; 1874. Jacob H. Wise ; 
 1875, Frank B. Buchtel; 1876, Frank B. Buchtel; 
 1877, John McGregor; 1878, John McGregor; 
 
 ^G 
 
'^ 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 329 
 
 1879, John McGregor; 1880, John McGregor; 
 1881, John McGregor. 
 
 Assessors. — The first Assessor elected was 
 Minor Spicer m 1841 ; 1842, Justus Gale ; 
 1843, Justus Gale ; 1844, Justus Gale. Gale 
 declined to serve and John H. Crawford was 
 appointed in his stead. 1845, Albert G. Malli- 
 son ; 1846, Nahum Fay ; 1847, Joseph F. Gil- 
 bert; 1848, John Sherbondy; 1849, Alfred R. 
 Townsend ; 1850, Nahum Fay ; 1851, George 
 Howe; 1852, George Howe; 1853, John Sher- 
 bondy ; 1854, Nahum Fay; 1855, Nelson C. 
 Hawkins ; 1856, Ira Hawkins ; 1857, Alfred R. 
 Townsend ; 1858, Frank Adams ; 1859, Alfred 
 R. Townsend ; 1860, Nahum Fay ; 1861, Jacob 
 H.Wise; 1862, Jacob H.Wise; 1863, Nahum 
 Fay ; 1864, Charles Hanscom ; 1865, Edward A. 
 Barber ; 1866, Edward A. Barber ; 1867, Homer 
 C. A3' res ; 1868, Augustus Curtis; 1869, John 
 G. Goble; 1870, Aaron Teeple; 1871, Aaron 
 Teeple ; 1872, Albert H. Mailison ; 1873, George 
 Miller ; 1874, Albert H. Mailison ; 1875, George 
 Miller ; 1876, Hiram Sherbondy ; 1877, Randall 
 McAllister; 1878, Randall McAllister; 1879, 
 Randall McAllister ; 1880, Joseph Schnee ; 
 1881, H. Sherbondy. 
 
 Justices of the Peace. — [The Justice has al- 
 ways been a township officer, and therefore is 
 elected by the voters of the township. His 
 commission is for three years.] Jacob Brown, 
 1836-39 ; Seneca L. Hand, 1836-39 ; Harvey 
 
 H. Johnson, 1837-40 ; Leander L. Howard, 
 1839-42 ; Ebenezer Martin, 1839-42; Harvey 
 H. Johnson, 1840-43; William M. Dodge, 
 1842-45 ; Lewis P. Buckley, 1842-43 ; Henry 
 Converse, 1843-46 ; Jacob Brown, 1843-t6 ; 
 William M. Dodge, 1845-48 ; George Babcock, 
 1846-49 ; Noah M. Green, 1846-49 ; Joshua C. 
 Berry, 1848-51 ; George Babcock, 1849-52 ; 
 Noah M. Green, 1849-52 ; Abel B. Berry, 1851- 
 54; Daniel B. Hadley, 1852-55; Noah M. 
 Green, 1852-55 ; Joseph F. Gilbert, 1854-57 ; 
 John W. Stephens, 1855-58 ; Noah M. Green, 
 1855-58 ; William L. Clark, 1857-60 ; John 
 W. Stephens, 1858-61 ; John L. Robertson, 
 1858-61 ; Edward Allen (died in June, 1861), 
 1860-61 ; John W. Stephens (died in March, 
 1863), 1661-63; John Lugenbeel, 1861-64; 
 William L. Clark, 1861-64; Lewis N. Janes 
 (died in July, 1865), 1863-66; William L. 
 Clark, 1864-67 ; William M. Cunningham, 
 1865-68 ; William L. Clark, 1867-70 ; Henry 
 Pui'dy, 1868-71 ; William M. Cunningham, 
 1868-71 ; William L. Clark, 1870-73 ; Henry 
 Purdy, 1871-74; Florence Weber, 1871-74; 
 Dudley Seward, 1873-76 ; Thomas C. Brandon, 
 1874-77 ; Thomas H. Goodwin, 1874-77 ; Dud- 
 ley Seward, 1876-79 ; Henry Purdy, 1877-80 ; 
 Thomas C. Brandon, 1877-80 ; Dudley Seward, 
 1879 ; Henry Purdy, 1880 ; Thomas C. Bran- 
 don, 1880. 
 
 ^ 
 
'V 
 
 -^ — ^ 
 
 330 
 
 HISTOEY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII.* 
 
 CITY OF AKRON — LAYING OUT A TOWN — IMrROVEMENTS — THE CANALS — THE TOWN INCORPO- 
 RATED—CITY OFFICERS— GROWTH OF AKRON— THE COUNTY SEAT 
 QUESTION— INCIDENTS. ETC., ETC. 
 
 peopled this world, during the Champlain peri- 
 od, the nameless river which first excavated the 
 channel whose bed is now so scantily covered by 
 the modern Cuyahoga, like " a pigmy in a 
 giant's clothes," instead of turning to the north 
 at the abrupt bend two miles above the city by 
 which it now almost doubles upon its course, 
 in fact did continue southerly through the broad 
 deep valley before mentioned, eventually losing 
 itself in the synchronous parent of the present 
 Ohio. The ancient channel has been traced 
 from its point of deviation most of the way 
 across the State. Numerous borings along its 
 course have shown that it has been almost filled 
 with earth and soil, the detritus pushed in by 
 the slow grinding glaciers and washed down by 
 the storms of later time, and that, as was to 
 have been expected, within its entire length 
 there is no exposure of rock in situ. Such was 
 undoubtedly the origin of this lovely valley ; 
 upon the south and west of it the subjacent 
 sandstone conglomerate crops out at frequent 
 intervals, as in the cutting of the Cleveland, 
 Mount Vernon & Columbus road for some dis- 
 tance north of Market street bridge, and along 
 the bed of the Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal, 
 where it circles the crest of the hill near the 
 fair grounds, while upon the north and east 
 there is an extensive table-land of richest soil, 
 with not a rock or stone to be seen except the 
 small rounded bowlders so characteristic of the 
 former presence of the ice-river. In fact, north 
 hill appears to have been a terminal moraine, 
 and several of the gravel knolls at the Old 
 Forge, by their sti'atification, show them to have 
 been local or lateral deposits. The Little Cuy- 
 ahoga now flows through the valley we have 
 thus minutely described, in a converse direction, 
 a tributary to the river proper. No wonder the 
 Indians called the river " Cuyahoga " — " the 
 winding ; " a glance at the map will demon- 
 strate the eminent propriety of the name. 
 Under our State Constitution of 1802, mu- 
 
 
 AKRON is by some held to be derived from 
 a privative and ypthoc time, its significance 
 upon this theory being of " the unending," liter- 
 ally, " without time." This highly poetic idea, 
 pregnant with widest intimations of meaning, 
 and so self-satisfying to the good citizen who en- 
 tertains a genei-ous pride in our county capital, 
 and her flattering promise of growth and devel- 
 opment, brought to the crucial test of fact, must 
 give way to the undoubted intent of those who 
 chose and formally declare the name, Akron, 
 from ahpaq summit, this being upon the very 
 ridge-top of the water-shed between Lake Erie 
 on the one hand and the Ohio River on the 
 other. Situated on an average 400 feet above 
 the lake level, and 960 feet above the ocean, 
 Akron is the summit city in point of elevation, 
 the highest incorporated city in the State. 
 More hills she covers than eternal Rome, and 
 extravagant indeed is the man who would think 
 to number or name them all. The surface con- 
 formation is rolling. The immediate neighbor- 
 hood, particularly at the Old Forge, presents a 
 problem of remarkable geologic interest, and 
 one as yet unsolved. To the visitor approach- 
 ing from the north, east or south, by either of 
 the three railroads here intersecting — the (Cuy- 
 ahoga) Valley Railway, the Cleveland, Mount 
 Vernon & Columbus, and the New York, Penn- 
 sylvania & Ohio — the shifting scenes of the 
 panoramic valley, along whose verge he enters, 
 are strikingly beautiful. This valley, with a 
 depth below the general surface of one to two 
 hundred feet, constitutes the only considerable 
 variation from what we have already designated 
 the rolling contour of the vicinage. It is 
 asserted by careful and competent geologists 
 (and the investigation bestowed upon the topic 
 warrants the acceptance of the belief as more 
 than speculative theorizing) that away back in 
 the past, before that history other than that " in 
 nature's records writ" began, before mankind 
 
 * By Charles W. Foote. 
 
 ^^ 
 
 ® 
 
£l>L 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 331 
 
 nicipal corporations were classified as cities, 
 towns, villages and special road districts. Un- 
 til the year 1825, Portage Township had been 
 the only territorial distinction recognized. At 
 that time, during the construction of what was 
 then regarded as a great commercial highway 
 — the Ohio Canal — Gen. Simon Perkins and 
 Paul Williams platted and laid out a town which 
 they denominated " Akron," upon and sur- 
 rounding the present intersection of Main and 
 Exchange streets, in upper town. The only 
 road in the new town was that one leading to 
 Middlebur}', about upon the line where Ex- 
 change street now lies. In the fall of that year, 
 1825, the laborers on the canal put up about a 
 hundred cabins along the line of work and 
 within the town. The canal, when completed, 
 gave a wonderful impetus to businsss, and at 
 the same time aflforded its needed facilities of 
 transportation. South Akron grew rapidly for 
 a few years. In fact until 1832 there was noth- 
 ing of any consequence outside of that section 
 of the town, but in the year just mentioned 
 several buildings were erected at and near the 
 intersection of Market and Howard streets, and 
 gradually business was diverted to the newer 
 locality. 
 
 A very great rivalry had for some time ex- 
 isted between the two villages of North and 
 South Akron. A committee of one, Erastus 
 Torrey, was authorized by a number of the 
 south end people to wait upon Mr. Hall and 
 tender him the use of a large brick block in 
 upper town, free of expense for a term of three 
 years, if he would remove there. Mr. Hall, 
 upon deliberation, declined the kind offer, and 
 has never regretted his conclusion. In the ter- 
 rible strain of the panic of 1837, Hall's was one 
 of the three, out of fourteen stores in North 
 Akron, which escaped a failure. By the time 
 the town was incorporated, in 1836, the two 
 villages of North and South Akron were not 
 far from an equalit}-, and considerable bitter- 
 ness of feeling was aroused by their jealous 
 rivahy. Upon the northwest corner of Market 
 and Howard streets stood the " Pavilion," a 
 hotel, and a large wooden building, kept by 
 Charles B. Cobbs, Esq. Two or three years 
 later, Mr. Cobbs became proprietor of the " Ohio 
 Exchange," a noted landmark upon the site at 
 present occupied by the Paige Brothers' hard- 
 ware store. Upon the northeast corner of 3Iarket 
 and Howard, and from there up to the trench 
 
 of the Water Power Companj^ stood a row of 
 low, wooden buildings. The same was the case 
 also upon the south side of jNIarket street, ex- 
 cept upon the corner, where was being erected 
 a fine three-stor}' stone block, and in which were 
 afterward located the county offices, court room 
 and jail, put up and owned by Hiram Payne. 
 Thence southwardly, upon both sides of How- 
 ard street, as far as to where Cherry' street now 
 enters, were one-story and a story-and-a-half 
 wooden buildings closely contiguous. Then 
 came a gap and a deep gully ; and finally, upon 
 the corner of Mill and Howard streets, where 
 the post office now stands, was a two-story 
 wooden building belonging to Lewis P. Buckley. 
 In addition to these was the house of Gen. 
 Bierce, in process of construction, and that of 
 Dr. Bartges, upon opposite corners of INIarket 
 and High streets, the house which is now the 
 third south from the corner on the east side of 
 High, and one on the corner of Main street and 
 Mill ; and with these w^e have enumerated all 
 of North Akron's buildings. At that time, 
 Leicester King and Gen. Simon Perkins owned 
 prett}' much all the land in this part of town. 
 They together had a map published, which 
 represents Akron as it then was, and which is 
 elsewhere referred to quite at length. The 
 house issuing this map was Messrs. Robinson 
 & Co., of Reading, Yt. They had a branch 
 office in Akron under the charge of Mr. Na- 
 hum Fay, in Buckley's Block before alluded to. 
 Earl}' in 1837, the IMap Publishing Company 
 removed to a building of their own on North 
 High street, upon the lot where James B. Storer 
 now resides, and had a shop in the rear. To the 
 north and east of them, there was only dense 
 woods. When the old stone church (now occu- 
 pied b}' the Baptist society, but built and first 
 used by the Universal ists) was erected bj' 
 Charles W. Brown, in 1838, the forest was so 
 thick as that the church could scarcely be seen 
 from Market sti'eet. 
 
 Akron had remained a " town " by eourtes}' 
 and general consent, from its platting, in 1825, 
 until 1836. March 12, of that year, there passed 
 the General Assembly, at Columbus, an " Act to 
 incorporate the town of Akron, in the county of 
 Portage." By this act it was provided : 
 
 That .so much of the town.ships of Portage aiul 
 C'livcntry. in the county of Portage, as is comprised 
 witliiuthe following- limits, to wit : Beginning on 
 the south lino of tract No. 8, in said township of 
 
 ©~- 
 
 JRT 
 
 1 
 
332 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 Coventry, and at a point in said line wliichi is three- 
 fourths of a mile east of the southeast corner of the 
 south town plat of Akron, as surveyed by John 
 Heushaw; thence north to a line running due east 
 and west, drawn ten rods north of Lock 16, of the 
 Ohio Canal; thence west along such east and west 
 line, one and a half miles; thence south to the south 
 line of Tract No. 8, aforesaid; thence east, along 
 said south line, to the place of beginning, be and 
 the same is hereby created a town corporate, and 
 shall henceforth be known and distinguished by 
 the name of " The town of Akron." 
 
 Translating this into a form which shall con- 
 vey a meaning to other people beside survey- 
 ors, and indicating the same points and lines 
 by landmarks recognizable to-day, we should 
 bound and describe as follows: Beginning 
 upon the present southern corporation line — 
 that is, upon South street, at a point a little 
 east of its junction with Spicer street ; thence 
 north in a straight line intersecting Spicer 
 street just below Exchange street, passing 
 through the Fourth Ward a little west of Spicer 
 street, through the Second Ward about on Fir 
 street, through the First Ward in a continuation 
 of the same right line, until the present north- 
 ern boundary of the city is reached, a little be- 
 yond the Little Cuyahoga River ; thence due 
 west along the northern boundary to the pres- 
 ent northwest corner of the corporation ; thence 
 south along the present west line of the city to 
 the south line of Tract No. 8 — that is, the 
 southwest corner of the corporation ; and thence 
 east along said tract line (with whicli the south 
 side of South street coincides, so far as it ex- 
 tends) to the place of beginning. Thus we see 
 that the original survey of Akron, when incor- 
 porated as a town, was a rectangular plat of 
 one mile and a half breadth, east and west, and 
 about two and a quarter miles length, north 
 and south, therefore containing almost three 
 and one-half square miles of area. We note, 
 also, that the western boundary was identical 
 with the present and also considerable portions 
 of both the northern and southern lines. At 
 this date, there were open to use, or platted, 
 the following streets, bearing in a general east- 
 erly and westerly direction : Furnace, Tall- 
 madge. Market, Mill, Ash, Quarry, Water (now 
 a portion of Bowery), State, Middlebury, a part 
 of Carroll, Exchange, Cedar, Chestnut, Cather- 
 ine, Second, Third and Bridge streets ; this last 
 corresponding with Thornton street, of the 
 present day. Bearing generall}^ north and 
 south were West street. Maple, Oak, Walnut, 
 
 ^^tna. Locust, Bowery, Water, Canal, Howard, 
 Main, High, Broadway, Summit, and, in the so- 
 called " Eastern Addition," First, Second and 
 Third streets. 
 
 About this time, Middlebury and Cuyahoga 
 Falls partook also of the general business 
 activity, and for some years bade fair to push 
 Akron vigorously in a contest as to which 
 should prove the coming metropolis. When, 
 however, the Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal at 
 last passed by on one side, Middlebury received 
 a blow whicii substantialh' put her out of the 
 race. From that time destiny seemed to thrust 
 her down to a subordinate rank, and that fate 
 was philosophicall}' accepted. Cuyahoga Falls, 
 however, stoutly maintained her priority, both 
 as to time and station, for the Falls had ob- 
 tained an incorporation just one week before 
 Akron, on the 7th of March, 1836, the same 
 day that Cleveland was advanced from a vil- 
 lage to a city. The Falls people obstinately 
 refused to believe that Akron possessed or 
 could promise any better things than Cuyahoga 
 Falls could offer. They pointed to their prac- 
 tically illimitable water-power, and dilated up- 
 on the superior healthfulness of their town, yei, 
 nevertheless, Akron unreasonably insisted up- 
 on keeping just a little ahead in point of num- 
 bers. So matters went until the new county of 
 Summit was carved out of the adjacent ones of 
 Portage, Stark and Medina, in 1840. 
 
 Section 2 of the act incorporating the town of 
 Akron provided for the election, upon the sec- 
 ond Tuesday of the next ensuing June, by " the 
 white male inhabitants, who have resided within 
 the aforesaid limits of said town for the space 
 of six months next preceding, etc., etc.," of one 
 Mayor, one Recorder and five Trustees, together 
 constituting a Town Council. In pursuance of 
 this provision, the first election of town officers 
 was held at the house of Asa Larned, June 
 14, 1836, with the following result : Total num- 
 ber of votes cast, 166, of which for Mayor, 
 Seth Iredell received 91, and Eliakim Crosby, 
 75 ; for Recorder, Constant Brj-an received 87 
 votes, Charles W. Howard 75, and H. Johnson 
 4 ; Erastus Torrey, Jedediah D. Commins, Will- 
 iam B. Mitchell, William E. Wright and Noah 
 M. Grreen were chosen Trustees. The first 
 meeting of the " Town Council of the town of 
 Akron" convened on Saturday, the 18th of 
 June. After some preliminary business, the 
 first ordinance was passed, entitled, " An Ordi- 
 
 ^ < 
 
 =^==if 
 
CITY OF AKRON 
 
 333 
 
 nance regulating Exhibitions and Public Shows 
 in the town of Akron." As William B. Mitch- 
 ell declined the honor of a Trusteeship, at an 
 adjourned meeting held Monda}', the 20th of 
 June, Justus Gale was appointed a Trustee in 
 his stead. Samuel A. Wheeler was also ap- 
 pointed Treasurer. At the next Council meet- 
 ing, Ithiel Mills was elected Marshal. From 
 that time until Akron advanced in grade, be- 
 coming a village at the adoption of the State's 
 new constitution in 1852, by virtue of the gen- 
 eral act, the officers were as follows : 
 
 3Iayors— 1836, Seth Iredell ; 1837, John C. 
 Singletarv, Jr.; 1838, John C. Singletarv, Jr. ; 
 1839, Lucius V. Bierce ; 1840, Arad^Kent; 
 1841, Lucius V. Bierce ; 1842, Harvey H. John- 
 son ; 1843, Harvev H. Johnson ; 1844, Lucius 
 V. Bierce ; 1845^ Philo Chamberlin ; 1846, 
 Philo Chamberlin ; 1847, Levi Rawson ; 1848, 
 Israel E. Carter ; 1849, Lucius V. Bierce ; 1850, 
 Greorge Bliss. In April, of 1851, Bliss re- 
 signed the position, but no new Ma3'or was 
 elected until the next regular election in June. 
 1851, Charles Q. Ladd ; 1852, Frederick Wads- 
 worth. Up to this time the Mayor, Recorder, 
 and Trustees had been elected by the people 
 upon the first Monday of June of each year. 
 
 Recorders — 1836, Constant Bryan; 1837, 
 William E. Wright ; 1838, William'^E. Wright; 
 1839, Robert K. DuBois ; 1840, Robert K. Du 
 Bois ; 1841, Robert K. DuBois ; 1842, Nahum 
 Fay ; 1843, Nahum Fay ; 1844, William H. 
 Dewey ; 1845, William H. Dewey ; 1846, Will- 
 iam H.Dewey ; 1847, Nahum Fay; 1848, Arad 
 Kent; 1849, Arad Kent; 1850, Edward W. 
 Perrin ; 1851, Arad Kent : 1852, Horace Can- 
 field. 
 
 Treasurers— 1836, Samuel A.Wheeler; 1837, 
 Horace K. Smith ; 1838, Horace K. Smith ; 
 1839, Russell Abbey ; 1840, Gibbons I. Ack- 
 ley ; 1841, Gibbons I. Ackle}- ; 1842, Gibbons 
 I. Ackley; 1843, Gibbons I. Ackley ; 1844 
 Gibbons I. Ackley ; 1845, Gibbons I. Ackley 
 1846, Grove N. Abbey ; 1847, Grove N. Abbey 
 1848, Grove N. Abbey ; 1849. Grove N. Ab- 
 bey ; 1850, Milton W. Henry ; 1851, Milton W. 
 Henry ; 1852, Milton W. Henry. 
 
 Trustees — 1836, Erastus Torrey, Jedediah D. 
 Commins, William B. Mitchell, William E. 
 Wright, Noah M. Green ; Mitchell declined to 
 serve, and Justus Gale was appointed to the 
 vacancy. 1837, William K. May, William I. 
 Mather, David D. Evans, Jesse Allen, Eber 
 
 Blodget ; in September, May having removed 
 from Akron, his seat was declared vacant, and 
 William Patterson was elected b}' the other 
 Trustees to succeed him. 1838, Jesse Allen, 
 Ebenezer Martin, Justus Gale, James W. Phil- 
 lips, Ansel Miller. 1839, Samuel Manning, 
 Seth Iredell, James W. Phillips, Lewis P. 
 Buckley, Ebenezer Martin ; Martin declining. 
 Ansel Miller was appointed instead ; in July, 
 Phillips resigned, and Ithiel Mills succeeded 
 him. 1840, Seth Iredell, Samuel Manning, 
 Ithiel Mills, Samuel A. Wheeler, William E. 
 Wright ; Wheeler resigned in July, and Ansel 
 Miller became his successor. 1841. Seth Ire- 
 dell, Webster B. Storer, Jacob Allen, Ansel 
 Miller, Leverett J. Ives. 1842, Ansel Miller, 
 Seth Iredell, David Allen, George F. Ray, Hor- 
 ace Ma}' ; in January, 1843, Allen died, and 
 James Mathews filled the vacancy. 1843, 
 Seth Iredell, James Mathews, George F. Ray, 
 Horace May, Ansel Miller. 1844, William M. 
 Dodge, Robert K. Du Bois, Nahum Fay, Jesse 
 Allen, Samuel A. Wheeler ; in September, Jesse 
 Allen resigned, and Jacob Allen was appointed. 
 1845, Robert K. Du Bois, Justus Gale. Lucius 
 V. Bierce. William M. Dodge, James H. Craw- 
 ford ; Gale refused to serve, and Samuel A. 
 Wheeler was elected to the vacanc}'. In Novem- 
 ber, Du Bois died and Horace Caufield suc- 
 ceeded him. 1846, Horace Canfield, Samuel A. 
 Wheeler, Allen Hibbard, Nicholas E. Vansickle, 
 Lucius V. Bierce. 1847, Allen Hibbard, Lucien 
 Swift, Samuel A. Wheeler, Joseph A. Beebe. 
 Ansel Miller. 1848, Ansel Miller, Nathaniel 
 Finch, Benjamin McNaughton, John M. Cutler. 
 George W. Bloom. 1849, Nathaniel Finch, Ansel 
 Miller, Charles Webster, George W. Bloom. 
 Milton N. Henry ; in October, Finch resigned, 
 and the remaining Trustees elected John M. 
 Cutler. 1850, Thomas H. Goodwin, John 
 Howe, Hiram Viele, Robert Jackson, L. C. 
 Parker ; in October, William M. Dodge was 
 elected to the place made vacant by the re- 
 moval of Howe. 1851, James M. Hale, Ben- 
 jamin McNaughton, William 0. Sanford, Milton 
 W. Henry, D. F. Bruner. 1852, James M. Hale, 
 William 0. Sanford, R. P. Myers, Peter Osburn, 
 Ansel Miller. 
 
 The total vote upon the occasion of the first 
 town election, in 1836, was 166. At the last 
 town election, in 1852, there were cast 278 
 votes. Tlie year previous, however, fifteen 
 years after the first vote above mentioned, 
 
 
334 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY 
 
 there were 334 ballots cast, just two more than 
 doable the first vote. From the time that 
 Akron became a village until advanced to a 
 city of the second class, in 18G5, the following 
 were officers of the corporation, and were 
 elected by popular vote ui)on the first Monday 
 of April of each year. The Mayor, Recorder, 
 and the five Trustees together constituted the 
 Village Council : 
 
 Mayors— 1853, Philip N. Schuyler; 1854, 
 William T. Allen ; 1855, Nathaniel Finch ; 
 1856. Nathaniel Finch ; in December, Finch 
 resigned, and in February of 1857, Frederick 
 A. Nash was elected to succeed him ; 1857, 
 Frederick A. Nash ; 1858, Frederick A. Nash ; 
 1859, George W. McNeil ; 1860, Henry Purdy ; 
 1861, Henry Purdy; 1862, Charles A. Collins ; 
 1863, Henry A. Collins; 1864, George .D. 
 Bates. 
 
 Recorders — 1853, Horace Canfield ; in De- 
 cember, Canfleld died, and the Council elected 
 R. S. Elkins to fill the vacancy- thus caused ; 
 1854, R. S. Elkins ; 1855, Joseph E. Wesener ; 
 1856, Joseph E. Wesener ; 1857, Ralph P. 
 Waterbury ; 1858, Ralph P. Waterbury ; 1859, 
 Allen Hibbard ; 1860, Alvin Rice ; 1861, 
 James Holmes; 1862, Alvin Rice; 1863, Al- 
 vin Rice ; 1864, Henry W. Ingersoll. 
 
 Trustees— 1853, William T. Allen, Daniel H. 
 Wheeler, R. S. Elkins, David A. Scott, George 
 Thomas ; Elkins being appointed Recorder in 
 January' of 1854, S. A. Lane was elected to 
 fill the vacant place ; 1854, James B. Taplin, 
 Thomas H. Goodwin, Richard Howe, David 
 Hanscomb, James M. Hale ; 1855, Richard 
 Howe, George Thomas, James B. Taplin, Will- 
 iam T. Allen, David A. Scott ; in /Vpril, Taplin 
 resigned, and R. S. Elkins succeeded him ; 
 1856, Henry Purdy, David A. Scott, Thomas 
 H. Goodwin, Henry S. Abbey, Joseph Milli- 
 gan ; 1857, George Thomas, Henry Fisher, Jr., 
 Henry S. Abbe}', Henry Purdy, Charles Cranz ; 
 1858, Charles Cranz, R. B. Walker, John Cook, 
 Joseph Milligan, Job Pierce ; 1859, William L. 
 Everett, Job Pierce, R. B. Walker, Thomas H. 
 Goodwin, Joseph Milligan ; 1860, Richard 
 Howe, Ferdinand Schumacher, Robert L. Mof- 
 fatt, James Christ}-, William S. Painton ; 1861, 
 Robert L. Moffatt, Ferdinand Schumacher, 
 George Buel, John Douglass, Henry Fisher ; in 
 October, Fisher resigned, and, in November, 
 George W. McNeil was chosen by the Council 
 to serve out the term ; 1862, Charles Webster, 
 
 John E. Bell, John Douglass, Isaac Harter, 
 George Buel ; 1863, Arad Kent, John E. Bell, 
 J. W. Hollowa}-, Jacob Goldsmith, John H. 
 Wagoner ; 1864, Allen Hibbai'd, Stephen H. 
 Pitkin, William H. Lapens, Charles W. Bon- 
 stedt, James Christy. 
 
 Treasurers — 1853, Milton W. Henry ; at this 
 time, the election of the Treasurer was trans- 
 ferred from the Council to the people; 1854, 
 Milton W. Henry ; 1855, Milton W. Henry ; 
 1856, Milton W. Henry ; 1857, Milton W. Hen- 
 ry ; 1858, John Good ; 1859, John H. Cham- 
 berlin ; 1860, John H. Chamberlin ; 1861, 
 Charles Cranz; 1862, Charles Cranz; 1863, 
 Charles Cranz ; 1 864, Chai'les Cranz. 
 
 In January, 1865, as is set forth more at 
 length elsewhere, Akron became a city of the 
 second class. From that time to the present, 
 her officers have been the following : 
 
 Mayors — Elected by the people, term two 
 years: 1865, James Mathews; 1866, James 
 Mathews ; 1867, Lucius V. Bierce ; 1868, Lu- 
 cius V. Bierce ; 1869, J. L. Robertson ; 1870, 
 J. L. Robertson ; 1871, J. L. Robertson ; 1872, 
 J. L. Robertson ; 1873, Henry Purdy ; 1874, 
 Henry Purdy ; 1875, Levi S. Herrold ; 1876, 
 Levi S. Herrold ; 1877, James F. Scott ; 1878, 
 James F. Scott; 1879, James M. Fraze ; 1880, 
 James M. Fraze ; 1881, Samuel A. Lane. 
 
 Clerks — Elected by the Council, term one 
 year. The office is that of which the incum- 
 bent was formerly denominated Recorder ; 
 1865, Jerr}- A. Long; 1866, Jerry A. Long; 
 1867, Mills B. Purdy ; 1868. Mills B. Purdy ; 
 1869, Mills B. Purdy ; 1870, Mills B. Purdy ; 
 1871, Mills B. Purdy ; 1872, Mills B. Purdy ; 
 1873, John A. Means ; 1874, John A. Means ; 
 1875, John A. Means ; 1876, Mills B. Purdy ; 
 1877, Adams Emerson; 1878, Adams Emer- 
 son ; 1879, Newton Ford ; 1880, Newton Ford, 
 1881, Newton Ford. 
 
 Members of City Council — Elected by the 
 people. Term two years. After the first elec- 
 tion, the six persons elected drew lots as to 
 which ones should serve the full term of two 
 years, and which the half term, until the next 
 election, resulting as follows : 
 
 First Ward — Two 3'ears, George W. Crouse ; 
 one 3'ear, Charles W. Bonstedt. Second Ward — 
 Two years, Henry W. Howe ; one }- ear, John 
 E. Bell. Third Ward— Two years, Lewis Mil- 
 ler ; one year, J. Park Alexander. Each year 
 thereafter there has been elected one from each 
 
 
'-^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 335 
 
 ward, as follows : 1866 — First Ward, J. J. Wag- 
 oner ; Second Ward, J. H. Collins ; Third Ward, 
 George Sechrist. 1867 — First Ward, George 
 W. Grouse ; Second Ward, W. H. Payne ; Third 
 Ward, J. A. Long. 1868— First Ward, J. W. 
 Holloway ; Second Ward, J. H. Collins ; Third 
 Ward, J. Park Alexander. 1869— First Ward, 
 C. R. Howe ; Second Ward, W. J. Atwood ; 
 Third Ward, Clement J. Kolb. 1870— First 
 Ward, William T. Allen ; Second Ward, W. P. 
 Cassidy ; Third Ward, J. Park Alexander. 
 1871 — First Ward, David R Paige Jr.; Second 
 Ward, John Memmer ; Third Ward, Elias W. 
 Howard ; Fourth Ward, Robert McElhinney, 
 George Burkhardt ; Fifth Ward, R. F. Palmer, 
 Clement J. Kolb. 1872— First Ward, William 
 T. Allen ; Second Ward, 0. C. Barber ; Third 
 Ward, J. Park Alexander ; Fourth Ward, Noah 
 N. Leohner ; Fifth Ward, James A. Metlin. 
 1873— First Ward, Milton W. Henry ; Second 
 Ward, James Christy, H. E. Merrill ; Third 
 Ward, H. L. Carr ; Fourth Ward, David Lam- 
 parter ; Fifth Ward, A. J. Hamlin ; Sixth 
 AYard, J. A. Baldwin, Thomas Johnson. 1874 — 
 First Ward, William T. Allen ; Second Ward, 
 E. H. Merrill ; Third Ward, Elias W. Howard ; 
 Fourth Ward, Robert McElhinney ; Fifth Ward, 
 James A. Metlin ; Sixth Ward, Enoch Rowley. 
 1875— First Ward, Milton W. Henry ; Second 
 Ward, A. Brewster ; Third Ward, William A. 
 McClellan ; Fourth Ward, J. H. Derhammer ; 
 Fifth Ward, Simon Hankey : Sixth Ward, Da- 
 vid E. Hill. 1876— First Ward, William Buch- 
 tel ; Second Ward, John W. Baker ; Third 
 Ward, John J. Cook ; Fourth Ward, John 
 Schott ; Fifth Ward, Christian Vogt ; Sixth 
 Ward, Enoch Rowley. 1877— First Ward, 
 Charles A. Collins ; Second Ward, James 
 Christy ; Third Ward, J. Park Alexander ; 
 Fourth Ward, D. W. Morgan ; Fifth Ward, Ed- 
 ward A. Lawtou ; Sixth Ward, David E. Hill. 
 1878— First Ward, L. G. Thorp ; Second Ward, 
 W. J. Underwood ; Third Ward, Mason Chap- 
 man ; Fourth Ward, John Schott ; Fifth Ward, 
 Christian Vogt ; Sixth Ward, Enoch Rowley. 
 1879 — First Ward, Ulysses L. Marvin ; Second 
 Ward, N. A. Carter ; Third Ward, J. Park Alex- 
 ander ; Fourth Ward, Estep ; Fifth Ward, 
 Edward A. Lawton ; Sixth Ward, F. W. In- 
 man. 1880— First Ward, Milton W. Henry ; 
 Second Ward, Henry H. Brown ; Third Ward, 
 B. F. Goodrich ; Fourth Ward, John Schott ; 
 Fifth Ward, Charles F. IngersoU ; Sixth Ward, 
 
 Thomas H. Peckham. 1881— First Ward, Da- 
 vid L. King ; Second Ward, N. A. Carter ; Third 
 Ward, J. Park Alexander ; Fourth Ward, Philip 
 Weber ; Fifth Ward, Edward A. Lawton ; Sixth 
 Ward, James Housel. 
 
 Pennsylvania cO Ohio Canal. — Judge Leices- 
 ter King, of Warren, father of David L. King, 
 Esq., of this city, was the man to whom, more 
 than all others, Akron was indebted for her 
 second canal, an enterprise which very mate- 
 rially aided in developing the commercial in- 
 terests of the growing village. B}' personal 
 eftbrt and influence. Judge King conquered the 
 many obstacles in the path, and carried to a 
 successful completion, after many 3'ears of 
 tireless endeavor, the project to which he had 
 devoted his energies, and in whose eventual ac- 
 complishment he had the fullest confidence. 
 An old paper in the possession of Mr. George 
 McMillen, of Portage Township, indicates that 
 the lobby system obtained in full vigor over 
 fifty years ago, and is not, therefore, one of the 
 inventions of modern politics. We subjoin a 
 copy of a portion of the paper, bearing date of 
 " Middlebury, December 12, 1826," and running 
 as follows : " We, the subscribers, citizens of 
 the villages of Middlebury and Akron and their 
 vicinity, confident that inestimable advantages 
 would result to our villages and this section of 
 the countr}' generall}', from a canal connecting 
 the Ohio Canal at the Portage Summit with the 
 Pennsylvania Canal at Pittsburgh, and anxious 
 that an act should pass the Legislature of Ohio 
 at their present session, authorizing the con- 
 struction of such canal, will pay the sums an- 
 nexed to our respective names, to John Mc- 
 Millen, Jr., and Peter Bowen, for the purpose 
 of defraying the expenses of delegates from the 
 aforesaid villages to the Legislature, to assist 
 in procuring the passage of such an act. Pay- 
 ment to be made at the time of subscribing." 
 To this are attached nineteen names. The 
 delegates and other supporters of the measure 
 proved speedily successful, for the Pennsyl- 
 vania & Ohio Canal was incorporated by act of 
 the General Assembly of the State of Ohio 
 January 10, 1827, which act authorized '-the 
 construction of a canal to meet or intersect the 
 Pennsylvania, or Chesapeake & Ohio Canal, at 
 or near the city of Pittsburgh, in the State of 
 Pennsylvania." The act was to take effect and 
 be in ibrce " whenever the Legislature of Penn- 
 sylvania should pass a law giving their assent 
 
 
336 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 to and confirming the provisions of said act of 
 Ohio," etc. Pennsylvania's Legislature subse- 
 quentl}' passed the act desired. Hindrances of 
 one sort and another intervened, and, a^ times, 
 it looked as though the canal would never be 
 built. Finally, in 1836, the State of Ohio was 
 induced to extend a helping hand, which she 
 did by a pledge to take one dollar of stock for 
 every ticn dollars of private subscription ob- 
 tained. Mr. King then visited Pittsburgh, 
 Philadelphia and other Eastern cities, and, by 
 dint of earnest solicitation, secured a favorable 
 attention from a number of capitalists, and re- 
 turned, bringing with him across the mountains 
 many thousands of dollars, in an ordinar}- hand 
 satchel. Altogether, $840,000 was secured 
 from private individuals, and the State, in pur- 
 suance of her promise, added $420,000 of stock. 
 As originally projected, the canal was to 
 have passed through Middlebury, which at that 
 time was about as large and as promising a 
 place as Akron. However, since the connection 
 with the Ohio Canal was to be made " on the 
 Portage Summit," and some difficult}- was ex- 
 perienced in accomplishing both these things, 
 by act of the Legislature, March 2, 1836, the 
 State Canal Commissioners were empowered to 
 determine anew the location of the connection. 
 The Board of Canal Commissioners ordered 
 Leander Ransom, Acting Commissioner, to in- 
 vestigate the matter and report. This he did, 
 voluminously, January 29, 1837, fixing the 
 junction " at the north end of the lower basin 
 in South Akron, a few rods from the foot of 
 Lock No. 1 of the Ohio Canal." The canal was 
 at last completed from its eastern terminus at 
 Beaver, Penn., to Akron, and opened through- 
 out in 1841. Late in the fall, the first boat ar- 
 rived from the East. A number of prominent 
 citizens of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York 
 and other Eastern cities, were on board Gov. 
 Thomas Corwin, of Ohio, and Gov. David Por- 
 ter, of Pennsylvania, werfe specially invited to 
 attend the formal opening. Gov. Corwin was 
 detained at home by sickness, but Gov. Porter 
 was present. When the boat, decorated with 
 flags and banners, and carrying a cannon and 
 a brass band, reached Warren, it met a hearty 
 reception at the hands of the enthusiastic citi- 
 zens. There Judge King, who was President of 
 the Canal Compan}^ and his son David, then a 
 lad of seventeen, and others interested, joined 
 the party. At every town and village the peo- 
 
 ple had turned out with hearty good-will to see 
 the boat go by, and to every such gathering 
 Gov. Porter declaimed his same set speech 
 till all the passengers had memorized it as 
 thoroughly as the speaker. At Ravenna, an- 
 other accession was received, and at Franklin 
 Mills (now Kent) and Cuyahoga Falls. Akron 
 had been advised of their approach, and the en- 
 tire populace went out to meet them, which they 
 did about noon, at the big bend at the Old 
 Forge. The escort accompanied the boat to 
 town ; the company disembarked at the west- 
 ern end of the long trench, in South Akron, 
 and repaired to a large upper room in May's 
 Block (where the Clarendon Hotel now is), 
 where a grand banquet had been spread. One 
 of the most important factors of the boat's 
 cargo was its ample supply of liquor. There 
 was a barrel of sherry, another of Madeira, and 
 a great many dozen bottles of champagne ; 
 what was left of these was conveyed to the 
 dinner- room. Besides this thoughtful provision, 
 much more of a like sort had been forwarded 
 in anticipation of the event, and there was no 
 lack of that with which to make merry. Not a 
 few were attacked with a dizziness not incident 
 to sea-sickness. In the evening, another jolli- 
 fication was indulged in at the Ohio Exchange, 
 a noted tavern, where Paige Brothers' hardware 
 store now stands. Speeches were made and 
 drinks taken ; bands played, and toasts were 
 ofiered and responded to ; refreshment flowed 
 freel3^ One of the visitors — old Gen. S., of 
 Warren — imbibed too much, and died before 
 morning, of apoplexy. A son the next day, 
 himself also considerably obfusticated, sobbing 
 and moaning to a friend, Mrs. E., remarked 
 that "he always cried when his father died." 
 One of the Ravenna part}^, upon his return, 
 was narrating the joyfulness of the occasion to 
 a group of neighbors, when one of them re- 
 ferred to this death of a man who had taken so 
 conspicuous a part, inquiring if that occurrence 
 did not cast a shadow over the genei'al hilarity, 
 to which he responded : " It was dora'd fine ! 
 
 dom'd fine ! That dying of S 's was too 
 
 bad, to be sure ; but the old fellow went out of 
 the world with bis belly full of beefsteak and 
 brandy ! " 
 
 As is mentioned elsewhere, the canal com- 
 pany took possession of the ditch through 
 which the water-power was conveyed to Akron, 
 from Old Forge to Moody's shop on Main 
 
<S k^ 
 
 -^ r ^ 
 
 CITY OF AKKON. 
 
 337 
 
 street, between Market and Mill, widening and 
 deepening it, but reserving to the Middleburj' 
 H3'draulic Co. — the owners of the power — all 
 their rights. For a time the canal flourished 
 apace. A large amount of business was done 
 and it became the thoroughfare of a consider- 
 able passenger traffic. Besides the merchan- 
 dise brought here or shipped from here, every- 
 thing from Pittsburgh or Warren destined for 
 Cleveland of course passed through Akron, and 
 thence via the Ohio Canal. 
 
 The outlook promised well for the stock- 
 holders ; in fact, several small dividends were 
 declared. The tolls collected at the port of 
 Akron during the year 1852, amounted to 
 $6,966.61 ; in 1853, $8,110.54. The maximum 
 was reached in 1856, in the sum of $8,786.78. 
 Very unfortunately for the canal, in 1854 a 
 controlling interest passed into the hands of 
 men who were also financially interested in 
 the new newly constructed Cleveland & Ma- 
 honing Railroad. This end was accomplished, 
 first by obtaining stock of the canal compan}- 
 as subscriptions to the railroad company, and 
 afterward by buying from the State her inter- 
 est. These two, the railroad and canal, being 
 parallel, were necessarily either coadjutors or 
 active competitors. At first the}' promised to 
 act together, and largely upon that considera- 
 tion the same men secured the relation of Di- 
 rectors to each. That policy, however, was 
 not long maintained ; tolls upon the canal were 
 speedily put up to an exorbitant figure, while 
 the railroad transported between the same 
 points for a much lower cost. The eflfect is 
 clearly exhibited in the showing of the receipts 
 of toll upon the canal at Akron for the next 
 few years : 1857, $6,538.96 ; 1858, $5,400.96 ; 
 1859, $2,143.42 ; 1860, $853.27 ; 1861, $772.88. 
 
 A joint resolution passed the Legislature 
 April 12, 1858, authorizing the sale of the 
 State's canal stock b}^ the Commissioners of 
 the Sinking Fund, to the highest and best pur- 
 chaser. Nothing was, however, eflTected under 
 the order until some years later. Finall}', in 
 1862, November 20, the stock, for which the 
 State of Ohio had paid $420,000, was sold to 
 Charles L. Rhodes, of Cleveland, for $35,000. 
 He at once turned it over to the Cleveland & 
 Mahoning Railroad, of which he was Vice 
 President and Superintendent, and the bondage 
 of the canal became complete. Just prior to 
 this sale, the General Assembl}- had been 
 
 urged to permit the canal company " to sell the 
 canal, and that such portions might be closed 
 as the purchasers might think proper."' This 
 was rejected in the Senate by a heavy adverse 
 vote. After 1862, the business of the canal 
 was very small and constantly decreasing. No 
 monej- was expended on repairs ; bridges and 
 locks became dilapidated, and the people along 
 its banks were clamorous for a removal of the 
 source of so much sickness. In January, 
 1867, the canal company again petitioned the 
 Legislature for permission to remedy matters 
 in some wa}' or other, and secured the passage 
 of an act (March, 1867) "authorizing the Di- 
 rectors of the Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal to 
 lease, sell or abandon such portion or portions 
 of said canal and its appendages as may, in 
 their opinion, be for the interest of said com- 
 pany, and not prejudicial to the public inter- 
 est." * * * Negotiations were then 
 pending between the Middlebury Hydraulic 
 Company before mentioned and the canal com- 
 pany, which, upon the passage of the above 
 act, were completed. The Hj'draulic Company, 
 whose rights had full}- continued through the 
 period of the canal's active operation, now 
 leased that portion contained between the 
 Portage County summit near Ravenna and the 
 western end, the junction with the Ohio Canal, 
 and including the Shalersville reservoirs, in- 
 tending to maintain its use as a canal, and also 
 as to the portion between Middlebury and 
 Akron its original purpose of a water-power. 
 Business had now substantiall}' ceased ; the 
 water in the channel beyond the Old Forge 
 was stagnant, and by its offensive odors and 
 malarial influences provoked its neighbors be- 
 yond the point of their endurance. One night 
 in the spring of 1868, a party of men cut the 
 banks at Cuyahoga Falls and at two other 
 places east and west of that village. By 
 morning only a reeking ditch remained. The 
 State threatened to prosecute the actors, but 
 never did so, and the breaks were never re- 
 paired. 
 
 Again, in the spring of 1874, the canal was 
 cut one night in Akron by a party of dis- 
 guised men, between Exchange street and 
 Main. Those engaged in the afl'air were ar- 
 rested and tried before a Justice of the Peace, 
 but were never punished. Soon after this, the 
 western part from Mill street to Exchange was 
 permanently^ closed, and now steps are being 
 
 :v 
 
la 
 
 338 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 taken to conduit that part of the channel still 
 open upon Main street, from Tallmadge to 
 Mill 
 
 An enthusiastic set of men, chiefly from the 
 East, built — on paper — a great city upon the 
 top and side of North Hill, at a point be- 
 tween Cuj'ahoga Falls and Akron, which was 
 in time to have absorbed both these lesser 
 towns into its suburbs. The imaginary city 
 was to be supplied with a limitless water- 
 power — the sine qua non of all manufacturing 
 interests in those days — by means of a canal 
 dug ai'ound the brow of the hill, and tapping 
 the Cuyahoga River just below the village of 
 the Falls, and so great was the faith of the pro- 
 jectors of the idea, that they exemplified it in 
 the good Scriptural way, b}' works. They 
 formed a joint-stock company with a nominal 
 capital of $500,000. Prominent among its 
 members were E. C. Sackett, Dr. Eliakim Cros- 
 by', who had successfully originated and carried 
 out the similar scheme above mentioned of 
 bringing a water motive power from Middle- 
 bury, Col. James W. Phillips and Dr. E. W. 
 Crittenden. These four men contracted to 
 build the canal or aqueduct for $118,000. Col. 
 Phillips at once went East, where, in New York 
 and Philadelphia, he interested a number of 
 capitalists in the project and recruited laborers 
 for the work. The company' also issued scrip 
 and paid in land whenever possible ; the}' 
 owned the entire tract of " the chucker}-." 
 They had a map of their prospective cit}' 
 platted, published and circulated as an adver- 
 tisement. One of the heaviest proprietors (from 
 Rochester. N. Y.) offered to stake every dollar 
 he owned in the world, that in less than ten 
 3'ears the best corner lots would be worth as 
 much in the market as those of Rochester. 
 They cut and quarried from the precipitous 
 cliffs along the east side of the river an aque- 
 duct four miles in length, to the site of their 
 well-nigh Utopian scheme. A dam was con- 
 structed across the river by which to throw 
 into the raceway so much water as should be 
 needed. Work was begun in 1838 and pushed 
 energetically that year and the next, so that by 
 the latter part of 1839, the water was turned 
 in. With some changes and repairs at places 
 along the route, the canal seemed to operate 
 nicely. But, unfortunately, right here the 
 funds of the organization had been expended, 
 some of its instigators had lost confidence in 
 
 its ultimate success, there had been no such in- 
 flux of population as had been expected, and 
 no capitalists came forward to utilize the power 
 now that it was secured. Several serious breaks 
 occurred in the sandy embankments, the water 
 was shut oft', and thenceforward matters re- 
 mained in statu quo. Strong efforts were put 
 forth by the plucky proprietors to overcome 
 the untoward circumstances. Now that the 
 major part of the cost had been met, the labor 
 practically completed, it indeed appeared as 
 though just a Jittic more capital would restore 
 the concern to a firm basis, and bring the much- 
 longed-for manufacturing enterprises. 
 
 In 1843, the Universalist Church, which had 
 a strong societ}- in Akron, held a mass conven- 
 tion in the old stone church (now the Baptist 
 Church), upon which delegates were in attend- 
 ance from all over the United States. Among 
 them was Horace Greeley. The officers of the 
 Canal Company showed the entire trench to 
 Mr. G-reeley, expatiated upon their intentions 
 and expectations, and the great manufacturing 
 city that was sure to grow upon their plats and 
 records. Evidently a great impression was 
 made upon the editor's mind or the editor's 
 heart, or both, for upon his return the New 
 York Trihunc contained a lengthy article wher- 
 in the whole scheme was enthusiastically set 
 forth, and the prophecy volunteered that Sum- 
 mit Cit}^ would become the " Lowell of the 
 West." No funds, however, came to the ex- 
 chequer of the company ; on the contrary, they 
 became involved in litigation and debt, and so 
 what was once one of the greatest business proj- 
 ects of the day has entirely passed into ob- 
 livion, save as it is called back into historical 
 notice. The monument to their blasted hopes 
 is now plainly visible almost its whole extent, 
 and evokes many curious questions from vis- 
 itors and the younger generations. This young 
 city, with little existence, except on paper, en- 
 tered the lists as a competitor for the seat of 
 justice of the county, but was unsuccessful in 
 its aspirations in that direction. All this, how- 
 ever, is full}- given in the chapter devoted to 
 the organization of Summit County, and will 
 not be repeated here. 
 
 It is probably impossible for us of the pres- 
 ent day to at all adequately comprehend the 
 wonderful hold which certain moral and the- 
 ological questions obtained upon the minds 
 and feelings of the people forty years ago. It 
 
-^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 339 
 
 was ill those days that eveiy pulpit was a forum 
 ol' polemic display and every discourse a labored 
 argument. The same combative style charac- 
 terized the newspapers, both secular and relig- 
 ious, and lust}' blows were given and taken for 
 opinion's sake. One of the strongest and strang- 
 est vagaries was that adopted and preached 
 everywhere in season and out of season by the so- 
 called Millei'ites. Here in Akron they had a 
 considerable following as well as in neighboring 
 towns. In an April number of the American 
 Democrat, issued each week by Horace Canfield, 
 appeared this notice : 
 
 The present week is a time of great interest to 
 tlie believers in the personal reign of Christ, and in 
 the Second Advent as now near. This week, we 
 believe, will conclude the 2,300 years from the going 
 forth of the decree to restore and build Jerusalem, 
 at which time the word of God has been given that 
 tlie sanctuary shall be cleansed, and there shall be 
 an end of indignation. * * * The time of the 
 feast of the passover was the first full moon after 
 tlie vernal equinox, which will occur on Friday of 
 the present week. We know not how to escape the 
 fact that there the 2,300 years will terminate, and 
 from that time we shall be in constant expectation 
 of seeing the Lord. 
 
 Second Advent Conference to be held at Akron 
 (if the Lord does not come before that time) on 
 Wedneseay, April 19, 1843, at 10 o'clock A. M. 
 Friends from all quarters are invited to attend. 
 
 Akron has been inclined to agitate the mat- 
 ter of the allowance or prohibition of intoxi- 
 cating drinks from an early date and at 
 frequent intervals. At a Council meeting May 
 15, 1841, Auisel Miller presented the following 
 preamble and resolution, and the same were 
 adopted : 
 
 Where .\s. The licensing of groceries for the 
 retailing of ardent spirits by the Town Council is 
 an action on which much difference of opinion ex- 
 ists among the citizens of Akron, therefore. 
 
 Resolved, That for the instruction of the Coun- 
 cil, the voters at the coming election are hereby 
 requested to write or print on their tickets License 
 or No License. 
 
 Accordingly, upon the succeeding day of 
 election, June 1, the voters declared in favor 
 of No License. The Council accepted their 
 verdict, and refused the petitions of all desir- 
 ing licenses. A pressure was brought to bear 
 upon the State legislators at the session of 
 1842-43, which effected the following bill in 
 February : 
 
 Sec 2. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of 
 the tState of Ohio, That the Town Council of 
 
 Akron, in Summit County, shall have powers to pass 
 such l)y-laws as maj' be necessar}' to prohibit with- 
 in the corporate limits of said town the retailing, 
 vending or selling of ardent spirits or other intoxi- 
 cating liquors by any pei'son or persons other 
 than licensed tavern-keepers or ph3^sicians in the 
 course of medical practice. 
 
 In pursuance of the power therein conferred, 
 the Town Council convened in special session 
 February 28, and appointed a committee of 
 two — the Mayor, Harvey H. Johnson, and 
 James Mathews — to draft an ordinance in 
 accordance with its intent. The ordinance 
 passed its third reading March 11, 1843, by a 
 unanimous vote, and immediately took effect. 
 This was about the time of the noted " Wash- 
 ingtonian Movement." The County Washing- 
 tonian Society called its annual meeting for 
 the 22d of February-. A stirring address was 
 delivered by H. W. King, Esq., before a large 
 gathering. The society reported over five 
 thousand members in the countj'. Henry 
 Rhodes was elected President, and L. V. Bierce, 
 Greorge Bliss and R. McMillen an Executive 
 Committee. At the time of the vote upon the 
 adoption or rejection of our new constitution, 
 June 17, 1851, the question of license or no 
 license as a S3-stem to be incorporated into the 
 State's organic law was separately submitted 
 to the decision of the electors of the State. 
 The vote of Portage Township (including 
 Akron) stood — For license to sell intoxicating 
 drinks, 275. Against license to sell intoxicat- 
 ing drinks, 312. In common with nearly all 
 the cities and villages of Northern Ohio, Akron 
 was strongly affected by the maelstrom of feel- 
 ing in the temperance cause which swept over 
 the country in 1874, commonly known as the 
 " Crusade." The movement was countenanced 
 and abetted by the best classes of society. 
 A few were displeased with its methods, and 
 held themselves aloof, but by far the larger 
 part of the city's best people either acted a 
 part or at least sympathized with the endeav- 
 ors of the crusaders. An interesting episode 
 of the campaign occurred upon the evening of 
 Monday, April 6. It had been the day of the 
 municipal elections. The great question at 
 issue was that of temperance ; all other mat- 
 ters were retii'cd from prominence in compari- 
 son. A large and enthusiastic concourse, with 
 a considerable proportion of ladies included, 
 gathered at the Council rooms, as it was gen- 
 erall}' known that a proposed ordinance pro- 
 
 5) 
 
 ^r 
 
-W- 
 
 340 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 hibitorj in character was that night to come 
 up for its third and final reading. Every one 
 wishing to first learn the result of the day's 
 work at the polls, the early portion of the 
 evening was devoted to short and stirring 
 speeches by prominent citizens, music, etc. 
 The returns coming in indicated a signal vic- 
 tory for the temperance interests. At 10 
 o'clock. President J. Park Alexander called the 
 Council to order. The third reading of the 
 ordinance before mentioned was made the 
 special business of the session, and by a unan- 
 imous vote of the eight Councilmen present it 
 became a law. Amid intense enthusiasm and 
 outbursts of applause, Mr. Alexander append- 
 ed his name as President of the Council, and 
 the deed was accomplished. It was announced 
 that a jollification meeting would take place 
 the next evening at the Academy of ^Iusic, 
 and that at that time the gold pen with which 
 President Alexander's signature had been 
 affixed would be sold at auction to the highest 
 bidder, the proceeds to be devoted to some 
 charitable object. The next night the Acad- 
 emy was packed ; standing-room even could 
 not be had, and many were obliged to turn 
 away disappointed. John R. Buchtel was 
 assigned the post of auctioneer, and the fun 
 began. The first bid was 10 cents ; from that 
 it jumped to $10, then rapidly mounted by 
 tens and fives until finall}' it was struck oflT to 
 Mr. Ferdinand Schumacher for $252.50. That 
 is probabl}' the most costly pen in tlie United 
 States. Undoubtedly, some permanent good 
 was accomplished by the Crusade, but a con- 
 siderable portion of the effect proved but tem- 
 porary, as, indeed, might be expected from the 
 nature of the means emplo^-ed — a species of 
 coercion — and when the restraint was removed 
 the evils of course returned. Still later have 
 occurred the " Murphy Movement" and a num- 
 ber of lesser waves of temperance reform. 
 While these several spasmodic efforts have 
 been followed by many discouraging lapses 
 and much that tended to dishearten the truly 
 earnest and temperate lovers of temperance, 
 yet we believe that, unconsciously to itself, 
 perhaps, the public has thereby been educated 
 to a higher grade of thought and feeling upon 
 the subject. This we regard as practically the 
 most valuable result of these periodic agita- 
 tions. 
 
 Akron's noted Glendale is justly considered 
 
 one of the most beautiful and best kept ceme- 
 teries in the entire country. Centrall}' located, 
 yet possessed of remarkable natural advan- 
 tages, it is at once removed from all indications 
 of city surroundings, and pleasingl}' diversified 
 in surface contour. The spacious grounds are 
 under the charge of an experienced and com- 
 petent manager, who devotes his whole time to 
 the task. There is a fine stone lodge at the 
 city gatewa}^, and just inside a costl}^ me- 
 morial chapel, reared in 1875 by the Buck- 
 le}' Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, 
 aided by outside subscriptons, in remembrance 
 of the bra^'e comrades fi'om Akron and Port- 
 age Townships, who fell in the war of the re- 
 bellion. There are also fine greenhouses in con- 
 nection with the yard, and a well-arranged 
 vault. This brief notice will not undertake to 
 describe Glendale ; no attempt at description 
 would conve}' to one unacquainted with the 
 actual appearances an at all adequate idea of 
 its summer beauty, and to one knowing it the 
 effort would doubtless seem to fall far short 
 of reality. 
 
 In 1839, the Town Council passed an act to 
 regulate the public burying-ground (which had 
 alread}' been located where it now is), providing 
 for its thorough care under the supervision of 
 a committee appointed directh' by themselves. 
 This management continued until 1850, at 
 which time, in Februar}', the corporation trans- 
 ferred all its right and title to the " Akron Ru- 
 ral Cemeter}' Association," an organization 
 chartered for the purpose, and in whose hands 
 it still remains, conditioning the transfer upon 
 a perpetuation of the same methods of conduct. 
 
 A large share of credit for the present state 
 of improvement is due to tlie judicious and ef- 
 ficient labors of the Ladies Cemetery Associa- 
 tion, an adjunct of the Rural Cemetery Associa- 
 tion before mentioned, an organization broader 
 than any denomination or set, and whose mem- 
 bers represent them all. These ladies, both by 
 direct exertion and by means of numberless 
 fairs, bazars, musical and other entertainments, 
 have raised considerable sums of money, which 
 have been expended in improving and adorn- 
 ing this beautiful " God's Acre." 
 
 The inception of the town, in 1825, was far 
 from promising. Its main features were alder 
 swamps and barren sand hills. A more unin- 
 viting site could hardlj^ be found in the neigh- 
 borhood. The completion of the Ohio Canal 
 
 Tv" 
 
lIl 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 341 
 
 to this point, however, in 1827, worked wonders. 
 That year and those immediately subsequent 
 greatly increased the population, so that by 
 1830, the census of Portage Township (includ- 
 ing Akron, which constituted almost the whole 
 of the enumeration), showed 475. By 1832, 
 Akron was thought to contain about 600 in- 
 habitants ; in 1836, when it became legally a 
 town, 1,200 ; and in 1840, it had reached 
 1,664. 
 
 The imports in 1836 amounted to $500,000, 
 and the exports $400,000, indicating a thriving 
 state of business, a characteristic which has 
 been thoroughly maintained and to a remarka- 
 ble degree ever since. The chapter upon our 
 industries and manufactures will exhibit this 
 fact more clearly. The growth has been in 
 general of a very steady uniform sort, not 
 greatly fluctuating from time to time. It has 
 also been of a desirable kind, healthy and con- 
 stant. The great panic of 1837, to be sure, 
 was disastrous, but the town soon rallied, and 
 proved to have suflfered no lasting check. In 
 the hard times of 1873, and the four years next 
 succeeding, Akron endured the strain much 
 better than the majority of towns and cities of 
 the State. 
 
 Quite a number of times she has been visited 
 by extensive conflagrations — notably those of 
 1848, 1849, 1851, 1854, 1856,1869, and several 
 of later dates — by which large portions of the 
 heaviest business sections of town have been 
 destroyed, but from the ashes of which, phoenix- 
 like, better forms have followed. 
 
 In 1853, Akron had eight churches, five 
 flouring-mills, one woolen factory, three found- 
 ries, sixty stores, six hotels, one bank, three 
 printing offices and two telegraph offices. 
 
 The State Legislature in 1845 chartered a col- 
 lege in Akron, with power to confer literary, le- 
 gal, medical and theological degrees. It seems 
 that nothing was ever accomplished in the prac- 
 tical furtherance of this idea. The incorpora- 
 tors evidently had in mind the establishment 
 of a university composed of several colleges. 
 Why the project died we cannot learn. 
 
 Akron was, however, provided with a clas- 
 sical college, first opened to students in 1872, 
 through the munificence of Hon. John R. Buch- 
 tel, seconded by the contributions of many 
 others, particularly of the Universalist denom- 
 ination. An extended sketch of Buchtel Col- 
 lege is elsewhere presented in this work, so we 
 
 will simply refer the reader to that for fuller in- 
 formation. 
 
 A number of severe fires in the earl}' years 
 of the town rendered the need of some organ- 
 ized protection imperative. In December of 
 1839, the Council, by ordinance, provided for 
 the creation and maintenance of volunteer fire 
 companies. Accordingly, a company under 
 the name of the " North Akron Fire Company," 
 was formed January 28, 1840, with twentj^-six 
 members. To these persons there was subse- 
 quently issued by the Town Recorder, upon the 
 direction of the Council, certificates of mem- 
 bership dating back to the time of joining. 
 February 10, 1846, eight more persons became 
 members, and " No. 1 " was added to the 
 name. The application of " Niagara Fire En- 
 gine Company, No. 2," was accepted by the 
 Council December 20, 1845, and thirty-seven 
 men appointed members. Again in 1847, a 
 hook and ladder company was, bj^ the same 
 authority made a fire company, and clothed 
 with the name " Tornado Fire Company, No. 
 3," indicative, we suppose, of the vast energy 
 of its thirty-two members. 
 
 Still other companies were from time to time 
 added, all volunteer organizations. In Ma}', 
 1858, the Council first declared a compensation, 
 further than the statutory privileges, to the 
 members of these companies. This was the 
 princely sum of $2 each per year, and that 
 conditioned upon a strict compliance with the 
 prescribed regulations. 
 
 Gradually, however, improved appliances and 
 a paid service have been substituted for the 
 former less capable but hearty labor, and now 
 Akron is abreast with the foremost cities in 
 the efficiency of her protection against fire. 
 
 A petition was presented to the Town Coun- 
 cil July 29, 1847, signed by H. B. Ely, praying 
 the privilege of constructing a line of telegraph 
 through Akron. The petition was granted, and 
 a resolution in pursuance adopted whereby 
 '• The Lake Erie Telegraph Company was au- 
 thorized to run their line of comtounication 
 through this town, provided they do not inter- 
 fere with or obstruct any street or alley in said 
 town, to the inconvenience of the citizens or 
 public." 
 
 This was the earliest move in the direction 
 of telegraphic facilities. The line was built 
 and operated for a few years, but for some rea- 
 son or other was discontinued. 
 
 ^ 
 
342 
 
 HISTOEY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 The railroads of Akron and the county at 
 large are treated of in a distinct ai'ticle bj- an- 
 other writer. We will here merel}- advert to 
 them, for a fuller and more interesting descrip- 
 tion, referring to that chapter. The " Akron 
 Branch" of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh Rail- 
 road was projected early in 1851 ; the survey be- 
 gan April 15. In June of the same year, the 
 people of Summit County by a majority vote of 
 827, instructed the County Commissioners to 
 make a subscription of $100,000 to the pro- 
 posed road in behalf of the county. The con- 
 tract for building from Hudson, its northern 
 terminus and point of junction with the main 
 line, to Akron, was let June 21. The work 
 was pushed with vigor. By the 1st of the suc- 
 ceeding January, the road was in use as far as 
 Cuyahoga Falls. B}' the next 1st of June it 
 connected at the Old Forge with a packet line 
 of boats upon the Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal. 
 Early on the morning of Sunday, July 4, 1852, 
 it was completed so as to allow the passage of 
 cars into Akron. A mild form of jubilee had 
 to be indulged in although it was Sunda}', but 
 the great day of jollification occurred on Mon- 
 da}-, the 5th. Of that we will give no narration, 
 as we presume the article devoted specially to 
 this topic will contain it in full, onl}- mentioning 
 that at the great dinner at Cuyahoga Falls, in 
 the afternoon. Col. Simon Perkins, President of 
 of the compau}' proposed a name for the new 
 road, " Cleveland, Akron & Zanesvillc Rail- 
 road," which was then and there formally 
 adopted. Subsequently the name was still 
 further amplified in significance — the Cleve- 
 land, Zancsville & Cincinnati Railroad — no one 
 of which places, by the way, has it ever 
 reached. It is now known as the Cleveland, 
 Mt. Vernon & Columbus Railroad. 
 
 Our next road was the Atlantic & Great 
 Western, completed to Akron in April, 1863, a 
 broad guage, tributary to the New York & 
 Erie. Of the tribulations of this unfortuuate 
 and ill-managed road, a vast chapter might be 
 written. x\fter many successive mutations, the 
 road is at last under an entirely new and dis- 
 tinct organization and with a new name — the 
 New York, Penns3'lvania & Ohio — we hope, 
 upon a better, sounder foundation, and in a 
 fair way to serve its patrons respectably and 
 repay its investors. 
 
 The third road to enter Akron was the Cuy- 
 ahoga Valle}', commencing operations the 1st 
 
 of February, 1830. Though having but just 
 made a beginning, its management appears to 
 have been judicious ; it has certainly striven 
 to accommodate the public, and has secured 
 verj' many foiends who warmly desire for it 
 an unqualified success. 
 
 In 1860, a strong effort was made to secure 
 the location of the new State Penitentiary at 
 Akron. Several prominent citizens were sent 
 to Columbus to lobby for the measure. In 
 December, the Council empowered our Repre- 
 sentatives to tender to the State an eligible site 
 of twenty acres of land or more if needed, free 
 of charge, for that purpose ; the offer was not 
 accepted. 
 
 With reference to the advancement of Akron 
 from its grade of an incorporated village to 
 become a cit}' of tiie second class, an enumera- 
 tion of the inhabitants was taken upon the 
 14th day of December, 1864. It was thus 
 learned that the requisite 5,000 was exceeded, 
 and steps were at once instituted looking to 
 the desired action. Upon the 20th of Decem- 
 ber, by I'esolution of the Council reciting tlie 
 above fact, the proper State oflScials were re- 
 quested to advance the grade as prayed for. 
 In consideration of this petition, and in accord- 
 ance with the statutory provisions, Gov. 
 Brough, Auditor of State Godman and Secre- 
 tary of State Smitli declared Akron to ha\'e 
 become a city of the second class, January 21, 
 1865. 
 
 In September of 1865, there was annexed to 
 the cit}' the territory lying just east of the 
 then eastern corporation line, and extending as 
 far as Middlebury Township, i. e., to where 
 now Middlebury street intersects East Market. 
 
 The census of 1860 had shown a^population 
 of 3,520 in Akron ; that of 1870 showed 
 10,006. The city had almost trebled in the 
 decade, though the count}' as a whole had 
 gained but 26^ per cent ; of the 7,275, the 
 total county increase, 6,486 had occurred in 
 Akron. This effect was in a measure to Vie 
 sure due to the gain by annexation before 
 mentioned. 
 
 The next and last change in the corporation 
 boundaries took place in 1872. August 24, 
 1871, tlie Council provided that at the regular 
 spring election, to be held on the first Monday 
 of April, 1872, the question ''Shall the incor- 
 porated village of jNliddlebur}' be annexed to 
 the city of Akron ? " should be submitted to 
 
 vt 
 
■J> 
 
 CITT OF AKRON. 
 
 343 
 
 the electors of that village. By subsequent 
 action it was also ordained that the same ques- 
 tion, at the same time, and in the same man- 
 ner should be declared upon by the voters of 
 Akron. The result was as follows : Akron — 
 For annexation, 1,042 ; against, 16. Middle- 
 bury — For, 140 ; against, 26. Upon this deci- 
 sive vote, the Council appointed William T. 
 Allen, George W. Grouse and David L. King 
 Commissioners on the part of Akron to ar- 
 range terms and conditions with the Commis- 
 sioners appointed by Middlebury, namelj^', 
 Mendall Jewett. Frank Adams and George F. 
 Kent. Upon the 13th of April, the terms of 
 annexation were agreed upon, and, upon the 
 24th, the report of the Commissioners was pre- 
 sented to the Council, by it adopted, and the 
 former village of Middlebury formally added 
 to the city and made to constitute its Sixth 
 Ward. Final action, perfecting the work, was 
 taken by the County Commissioners October 
 28, 1872. 
 
 From a population of 10,006 in 1870, Akron 
 grew to 16,462 in 1880, a gain of 64^ per cent. 
 Excluding the effect of the annexation of Mid- 
 dlebury, the increase would be 49^ per cent. 
 During the same period the increment of the 
 county was 26 per cent, the same as for the 
 decade preceding. 
 
 As a city, we are at the present in the midst of 
 an era of active and great improvement. The 
 telephone system has been in operation less 
 than two years, and the eit}' is radiated in 
 every direction by its wires. It has passed 
 beyond the experimental stage, and from an 
 interesting novelty has become almost a neces- 
 sity. Akron was the first place in the State, 
 excepting three or four of the largest cities, to 
 possess the telephone. Under the charge of 
 the private company which owns and controls 
 this s^'stem, are lines now in successful opera- 
 tion from x\kron to Tallmadge, a distance of 
 four miles ; x\kron to Doylestown, fourteen 
 miles ; Canton to Massillon, eight miles, and a 
 line nearl}' constructed between Akron and Can- 
 ton, twenty-two miles. When this is com- 
 pleted, Tallmadge, Akron, Canton, Massillon 
 and Do3'lestown will, for the first time in his- 
 tor3', be on speaking terms with one another. 
 To this circuit will in time be added Cleveland 
 and Cu3'ahoga Falls, and eventually a number 
 of other places. 
 
 In the winter of 1879-80, Akron was ac- 
 corded the privilege of a free postal deliver}-, 
 and early in the succeeding spring the system 
 was carried into execution, to the great satis- 
 faction of every one. 
 
 Akron is a pioneer in the matter of utilizing 
 electricity as a means of lighting streets, and 
 is the t^THt city of the world to adopt the meth- 
 od of high masts for that purpose. It is yet 
 too early to predicate the means or the method 
 a success or otherwise, but certainly the begin- 
 ning augurs well for the future. A new cit}' 
 hall IS nearly ready for occupancy' ; the needs 
 which this will supply have been long and se- 
 verely felt. 
 
 A system of water-works of the most im- 
 proved type is well on toward completion. It 
 is being put in by a private company, upon 
 which falls the entire responsibility, expense 
 and hazard. We are now promised the turn- 
 ing on of the water by the 1st of June next, 
 aud when it comes it will assuredly meet a 
 hearty welcome from all our citizens. Besides 
 this, a complete plan of sewage has been de- 
 vised b}' our city Civil Engineer, and the nec- 
 essary work is now being done. A new paving 
 with stone to replace the worn-out Nicholson has 
 been ordered upon East Market and Mill streets, 
 and before man}- months, in all probabilit}', 
 sevei'al other streets will be repaired in the 
 same manner. With all these progressive 
 steps, Akron \Qi enjoys the unique position 
 among cities of being wholly free from debt. 
 It is to be hoped that this blissful state of 
 things will continue. 
 
 Two more improvements seem earnestly de- 
 manded in the near future. One of these, at 
 least, will doubtless soon follow. We mean 
 the hiding from sight that long-time eyesore — 
 the ditch where was once the Penns3'lvania & 
 Ohio Canal — alike obnoxious to the nostrils 
 and deleterious to the health of our people. 
 The initial steps toward so desirable a result 
 have already been taken in the Cit}' Council, in 
 a resolution to the effect that the old canal bed 
 should be conduited from Tallmadge street to 
 its end at Mill street. 
 
 The other is the introduction of street rail- 
 ways, and we confidentl}'^ predict that not man}- 
 years will elapse before that also will be chron- 
 icled among the manifold advantages of Akron. 
 
 :^ 
 
dt 
 
 ^ S) 
 
 344 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 CHAPTER IX.* 
 
 CITY OF AKRON — ITS MANUFACTORIES 
 SEWER PIPE AND POTTERIES- 
 
 -THEIR RISE AND PROGRESS — THE REAPER WORKS- 
 -MILLS, OATMEAL, ETC.— OTHER INDUSTRIES. 
 
 "The bellows-puff, the hammer-beat, the whistle 
 and the song, 
 Told, steadfastly and merrily, toil rolled the hours 
 along." — Street. 
 
 THE first steps taken to inaugurate manu- 
 facturing within what are now the corpo- 
 rate limits of the city of Akron were b}^ Jo- 
 seph Hart in 1807. This movement was com- 
 menced in what is now the Sixth Ward, Middle- 
 bury. Mr. Hart began, during that year, the 
 erection of a " grist-mill." He soon sold one- 
 half the land he had purchased to Aaron Nor- 
 ton, and the two completed the structure in 
 partnership, finishing their work in 1809. For 
 many years this mill did the work of the sur- 
 rounding country in the way of grinding — as 
 did " Bagley's Factory " the cloth-dressing and 
 carding. The projecting of the Ohio Canal 
 gave an impetus to the manufacturing interests 
 of Middlebury — mills, factories and mechanical 
 shops springing into existence ; but Akron, on 
 the canal, when once under way, brought a sad 
 discomfiture to the village eastward. In 1831, 
 Dr. Eliakim Crosby conceived the project of 
 bringing the Little Cuyahoga from Middlebury 
 round to Akron, thus creating a fine water- 
 power. No sooner was the project conceived 
 than it was undertaken ; the " Cascade mill- 
 race " was dug and the Stone Mill put in 
 operation. Thus was started on its astonish- 
 ing career of prosperity the manufacturing in- 
 terests of Akron proper. Middlebury lan- 
 guished for awhile ; its factories closed, and 
 the " grinding ceased." However, in the course 
 of time, mechanical establishments began to 
 increase and its water-power was improved. In 
 the end, the pottery business gave it a per- 
 manence, so that now the Sixth Ward is em- 
 phatically a manufacturing ward of the city. 
 
 Among the prominent industries of Middle- 
 bury, nearly thirty years ago, was the carriage 
 manufactory of C. A. Collins, which then 
 turned off goods to the amount of $20,000 an- 
 nually. Their carriages were of " the highest 
 
 ♦Contributed by C. W. Butterfield. 
 
 finish and st3-le, and in great demand in the 
 Southern and Southwestern States." Irish, 
 McMillan & Co. had an extensive machine 
 shop, " where all kinds of machinery were man- 
 ufactured." Their building was three stories 
 high, and about three hundred feet long by forty 
 wide. This firm averaged, in manufactured ar- 
 ticles, about $14,000 a j^ear. Their fire-engines 
 were superior to those made in Eastern estab- 
 lishments. 
 
 . " The pottery business," says a writer of that 
 period, in speaking of the manufactories of 
 Middlebury, " is carried on extensively. There 
 are three devoted to the making of ordinar}- 
 stoneware, one to the manufacture of stone 
 pipes and pumps, and one to Liverpool ware. 
 The clay is procured from Springfield, and the 
 ware is of the best quality. The pipe for 
 pumps or water drains, is made in joints of 
 twent}- inches, and by shoulders and cement 
 are put together so as to present an entirely 
 smooth inner surface. They are glazed inside 
 and out, to prevent decay of the pipe and an 
 unpleasant taste to the water. They are des- 
 tined to supersede all metallic pipes. 
 
 " The potteries," continues the writer, " fur- 
 nish 80,000 gallons of the manufactured arti- 
 cles annually, which average five cents a gallon. 
 There is also a cabinet-shop in this town (Mid- 
 dlebury), which turns off an immense number 
 of articles in its line. Every operation, from 
 jacking an oak board to vaneering the choicest 
 mahogany, is done b}- machinery. Rawson, 
 Goodale & Co. have a woolen factory which 
 employs a large number of hands and turns off 
 a considerable amount of broadcloths, satinets 
 and flannels. These goods are taken to the 
 New York market, the Ohio mark taken off, 
 and then, by the merchants, returned to Ohio 
 and sold as European manufacture. The de- 
 ception is a harmless one, as their goods are 
 decidedly preferable to those imported. There 
 is also a comb and button factory in Middle- 
 bury, one of fanning-mills, and several for mak- 
 ing: lucifer matches." Such was the state of 
 
 y[- 
 
iiaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiaiiitiiiiisii^^^^^^^^ 
 
I^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 345 
 
 manufacturing industries in what is now the 
 Sixth Ward of Akron, something more than a 
 quarter of a century ago. 
 
 From 1831, when the first mill was built in 
 the village of Akron, to 1854 — a period of 
 twenty-three years — the manufactories of the 
 place had largely increased both in number and 
 importance ; but the great want was a speedy 
 transportation. Says the writer already quoted : 
 " When our immense beds of stone-coal, iron 
 and pottery shall have an opening to market ; 
 when our flour, by a speed^^ transportation, can 
 come in competition with the New York and 
 Eastern pi'oduction ; and when the milk from 
 our dairies can be sent almost warm to the New 
 York market, then Akron will indeed be not 
 only the child of promise but of fulfillment." 
 
 In 1857, there were in Akron two woolen- 
 factories, five flouring-mills, a steam engine 
 factory, a blast-furnace, a mineral paint mill, a 
 card-factory, and an extensive stove-factor}', 
 besides a number of smaller works. The next 
 seventeen years showed a large increase ; for, 
 in 1874, there were in the whole city, two 
 woolen-mills, two paper-mills, seven flouring- 
 mills, four foundries, one rolling-mill, one 
 blast-furnace, one forge, three planing-mills, 
 two manufactories of reapers and mowers, one 
 of pearl barley, one of oat-meal, one of knives 
 and sickles, one of rubber goods, one of chains, 
 one of matches, and three machine shops. 
 There were, also, one manufactory of boilers, 
 two of plows, one of woolen goods, one of horse 
 hay-rakes, one of stoves, one of iron fences, ten 
 of stoneware, and one of blank books. 
 
 There is now, probably, no city in the United 
 States of the same population, presenting such 
 a diversity of manufactories as Akron. The 
 receiving and shipping facilities enjo^-ed by the 
 manufacturers of the city may be regarded as 
 one of the important factors in their progress 
 and prosperity. The magnificent water-power 
 is another noteworthy advantage ; and the 
 abundant suppl}- of cheap fuel from the neigh- 
 boring coal-banks is still another. The market 
 is stocked, at all seasons, with cheap farm prod- 
 uce ; house rents are reasonable ; in fact, all 
 the expenses of living are verj' moderate. The 
 city has already three railways. Tliis gives 
 competing lines East and West, and insures the 
 lowest rates for fare and freights. 
 
 In no department of the mechanic arts, it is 
 safe to say, has more marked progress and im- 
 
 provement been made within the last quarter 
 of a century than in that of labor-saving farm 
 machiner3^ The problem of how to construct 
 the most economical and eflective mechanism 
 for the consummation of a given purpose in the 
 arena of agricultural enterprise, has for a series 
 of years been made the patient and unremitting 
 study of some of the most talented of Ameri- 
 can inventors. While admiring a beautiful 
 and perfect piece of machinery, the creation of 
 some master mind, how little conception has the 
 beholder of the many months and even years 
 of studious application, of persistent experi- 
 menting, of scientific induction, that were in- 
 volved in the successful development of it. 
 This is known only to the inventor himself, and 
 it is in entire accord with the doctrine of com- 
 pensation that he should reap the legitimate 
 reward for his incessant toil and pre-eminent 
 skill. That this reward, in its fullest measure, 
 is due to Lewis Miller, of Akron, inventor of 
 the Buckeye Mower and Reaper, will be con- 
 ceded by every one acquainted with his inven- 
 tions. The fact that the machine is to-day, in 
 its essential principles and mechanical construc- 
 tion, the same as when originall}' brought out 
 — in 1855 — is assuredly an emphatic tribute to 
 Mr. Miller's genius. Of course, minor improve- 
 ments have from year to year been made upon 
 it — here a little and there a little — but its main 
 features remain the same. 
 
 These machines were first manufactured in 
 Canton, Ohio, by the firm of C. Aultman & Co. 
 In 1863, the works in Akron were started as a 
 branch of the Canton house. There is now 
 another branch, located in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 
 Taken together they rank among the largest 
 works of the kind in the world. They are mak- 
 ing at Akron sixty-five machines a day, and 
 have shipped an average of three car loads a 
 day since the middle of December, 1880. From 
 this writing (March, 1881) until July following, 
 the average will be about eight car loads a day. 
 The works comprise in Akron a main building, 
 450x50 feet, with four floors ; a warehouse, 
 50x200 feet, having also four floors ; a mold- 
 ing shop, equivalent to 150x70 feet, one floor ; 
 engine and boiler-rooms, 50x40 feet, two 
 floors ; a blacksmith-shop, 30x200 feet, one 
 floor ; an old wood-room, 50x100 feet, having 
 three floors ; a new building, 265x60 feet, with 
 four floors ; a new engine-room, 20x30 feet, one 
 floor ; a repair room, 30x50 feet, two floors ; an 
 
346 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 iron warehouse, 35x116 feet, and an office build- 
 ing, 40x80 feet, witli three floors ; the total 
 area of the buildings being 243 900 feet, or 
 upward of five and two-thirds acres. These 
 buildings are thoroughh' equipped with very 
 complete machinery, especiallv adapted to this 
 kind of business, and operated by steam-power 
 supplied from engines of colossal proportions. 
 The machines are sold all over the United 
 States ; but, the principal demand is from the 
 wheat-growing districts west of the Mississippi. 
 At the works in Akron are now manufactured 
 the Buckeye Mower ; the Buckeye Single Reap- 
 er ; the Buckeye Combined Mower and Drop- 
 per, rear delivery ; the Buckeye Combined 
 Mower and Table Rake, side delivery ; the 
 Buckeye Harvester, for hand binding; the 
 Buckeye Twine Self-Binder, and the Buckeye 
 Wire Self-Binder. 
 
 The firm of Aultman, Miller & Co. was or- 
 ganized in 1865, with a capital of $300,000, 
 since increased to $1,000,000, for the exclusive 
 purpose of manufacturing these machines. The 
 headquarters and main works of the company 
 are located at Akron. 
 
 But the "Buckeye" is not the only mower 
 and reaper manufactured in Akron. The 
 " Empire," made by J. F. Seiberling, at his 
 works in the city, belongs to the lighter class 
 of machines, and is now sold in ever}' State 
 and Territory in the Union. In its construction 
 numerous improvements have been made since 
 its first introduction into the market. It has 
 been thoroughly tested in all kinds of grass 
 and grain, and on all conditions of ground, 
 with gratifying results. For compactness, 
 simplicity, lightness of draft, ease of manage- 
 ment and beauty of finish, it ranks deservedly 
 high. The Empire Mower and Reaper Works 
 were established in Akron by Mr. Seiberling in 
 1875. Their capacity is now 7,000 machines a 
 year. The Empire works turn out a mower 
 which is a two-wheeled, front-cut machine ; to 
 this can be added, at any time, a reaping at- 
 tachment. This consists of a separate finger- 
 bar, with either the dropper or Empire side- 
 delivery table-rake, or sweep rake. Mr. Seiber- 
 ling also manufactures the Empire Harvester 
 and Binder, which is a new member in his 
 family of machines. The buildings of Mr. 
 Seiberling are those of the old P]xcelsior Mow- 
 er and Reaper Works, located immediately east 
 of the depot of the New York, Pennsylvania & 
 
 Ohio Railroad, on Forge and Lincoln streets. 
 They consist of a foundry, 110x95 feet ; a main 
 building, 45x180 feet ; a warehouse, 45x90 feet, 
 and a blacksmith-shop, 35x40 feet. The steam 
 engine which supplies the motive power of the 
 works is of eighty-horse-power. 
 
 That such a prosaic subject as the manufact- 
 ure of shirts should have been made so highly 
 poetical, under the magic touch of an English 
 poet, as to immortalize his name, is strange in- 
 deed ; but such is the fact, for 
 
 "With fingers weary and worn, 
 With eyelids heavy and red, 
 A woman sat in unwomanly rags, 
 Plying her needle and thread ; 
 
 Stitch ! stitch ! stitch ! 
 In poverty, hunger and dirt, 
 And still with a voice of dolorous pitcli. 
 She sang the 'Song of the Shirt.' " 
 
 That is to sa}-, it was wonderfully sung by 
 Thomas Hood, as every one knows. But men- 
 tion of the two factories in Akron will not be 
 made in verse ; nor will the wa}^ their owners 
 do business be chronicled in harmonious num- 
 bers. The office and factory of Cleorge W. 
 Wright & Co. are located at No. 112 South 
 Howard street, on the third fioor. These gen- 
 tlemen do excellent work, and are the sole man- 
 ufacturers of the patent diamond neckband, 
 which is used in all their shirts. The other 
 factory is upon the same street, at No. 167, and 
 is owned b}' Sperling & Roberts. The}' make 
 first-class goods of four grades. 
 
 The manufactory of Frank I). Howard, wiio 
 makes plows, cultivators, field-rollers, road 
 scrapers, farm bells and other articles, is on 
 the corner of High and Mill streets. This 
 manufactory was first started in 1869, by A. 
 Rice & Co., and continued under that name un- 
 til 1872, when the firm changed to Benjamin & 
 Howard, and, in 1877, the present proprietor 
 became sole owner. The premises occupied by 
 the business covers a space of 120 feet on Mill 
 street and 115 feet on High street. The build- 
 ing consists of a two-story brick with basement, 
 35x70 feet, used as a factory, sample and sales- 
 room and office ; a foundr}^ 40x50 feet ; a 
 blacksmith-shop, 20x30 feet ; and an engine- 
 room, 15x20 feet, with sheds and warehouse for 
 storage of material and stock. A forty-horse- 
 power steam engine is used in driving the ma- 
 chinery. Mr. Howard makes superior chilled 
 iron and steel plows, in which he has a large 
 trade. In the foundry department, car wheels 
 
 
fe* 
 
 CITY OF AKEON. 
 
 sr, 
 
 for coal cars are the chief product. The trade 
 of this house extends throughout Central, 
 Northern and Eastern Ohio, Western Pennsyl- 
 vania, and the Eastern and Western States. 
 
 In the Scriptures, carriages or chariots are 
 frequently alluded to. Upon the flight of the 
 the Israelites out of Egypt, they were pursued 
 by Pharaoh with six hundred chariots, all of 
 which were swallowed up by the Red Sea. 
 Chariots and carriages were used mostl}' by 
 kings and grandees on state occasions. The 
 Greeks and Romans had chariots, but, strange 
 to relate, it was so late as the sixteenth centur}- 
 (1550) that carriages were introduced into 
 France ; and at that date only three were known 
 in Paris, then quite a large city. Since taste 
 enters so largely into the construction of mod- 
 ern vehicles, and their price brings them to the 
 doors of many, the manufticturing of them has 
 become general. There are in Akron four car- 
 riage manufactories, where goods of that kind 
 can be obtained second to none in the countr3\ 
 
 C. A. Collins & Son have the oldest estab- 
 lishment for manufacturing carriages in North- 
 ern Ohio. It was commenced in 1837, by C. 
 A. Collins. All styles of open and top buggies, 
 fancy carriages, spi'ing wagons and sleighs are 
 made b}- this firm. Their works ai-e located on 
 the corner of Main and Church streets ; their 
 repository is on the "old gas works" propertj-. 
 An addition 30x50 feet, three stories high, has 
 recently been made to their buildings. 
 
 Another manufactory of carriages in Akron 
 is that of John Heppert, at the corner of Mar- 
 ket and College streets. IMr. Heppert com- 
 menced in this line in 1858, in the Sixth Ward, 
 then Middlebury. He now occupies as office, 
 salesroom and repository two floors of the 
 spacious building, 50x50 feet in size, at the cor- 
 ner of the streets just mentioned. He turns 
 out some of as fine carriages, road wagons, 
 buggies, express wagons and other vehicles as 
 are to be found in this section of country. 
 
 A third raanufactor\' of carriages is that of 
 Chai'les Vogt, who commenced business in that 
 line in 1876, at the corner of Main and Middle- 
 bury streets. Mr. Vogt has good manufactur- 
 ing advantages and a prosperous trade. The old 
 wood department and paint-shop measure 35x 
 70 feet, and the smith-shop 30x45 feet. These 
 are now store buildings. His new and com- 
 modious brick structure is used as an office and 
 wareroom on the first floor. The second floor 
 
 is occupied as a paint room and repository. 
 This building is on the northwest corner of the 
 streets before mentioned, while the old build- 
 ings are on the southwest corner. His new 
 frame building in the rear of the brick is used 
 as a blacksmith -shop. 
 
 In addition to the manufactories of carriages 
 before described, there is one belonging to Har- 
 pham Brothers, in the Sixth Ward, at 102 High 
 street ; but this firm is employed more espe- 
 cially in the making of wagons. They do a 
 large and thriving business and their work is 
 first-class. 
 
 The large establishment of the Whitman & 
 Barnes Manufacturing Company makes nothing 
 but articles ai)pertaining to agricultural imple- 
 ments. This compau}' is the outgrowth of two 
 others : th{^ Whitman & Miles Manufacturing- 
 Company of Akron, and George Barnes & Co., 
 of Syracuse, N. Y., and was formerly con- 
 ducted as a branch of a iMassachusetts house, 
 founded a number of years ago. The capital 
 stock of the W^hitman & Barnes Manufacturing 
 Company is $500,000. The works at Akron 
 are very extensive, and consist of a number of 
 buildings erected and fitted up expressly for 
 the rapid and perfect prosecution of this par- 
 ticular branch of industr}-. They make mower 
 knives, reaper sickles, sections, spring keys, 
 guard plates and other articles of this nature. 
 The demand for their goods extends from the 
 rugged and rocky hillsides of New England, 
 across the fertile prairie lands of the Mississippi 
 Valley to the sunny slopes of the Pacific coast. 
 They export large quantities to England, France 
 and Germany. The annual business of the 
 Akron bi-anch of this corporation is fully 
 $500,000. Two immense engines of 150-horse- 
 power each arc used at these works. The com- 
 panj^ has a smaller brancii house at Canton. 
 
 The tobacco trade is one of the most exten- 
 sive in the United States, whether we regard 
 the extent of the capital invested, or the num- 
 ber of hands to whom it gives stead}- employ- 
 ment. The use of " the weed "' is ^'ery general, 
 notwithstanding the theories put forth by cer- 
 tain medical writers concerning its bad eftccts 
 upon the sj-stem, and the practice of smoking 
 is on the increase, while chewing is perhaps 
 scarcely holding its own, and snuflT-taking is a 
 thing of the past. Cigar manufectories are 
 multiplying all over the country. There are 
 no less than ten in Akron : Freuderaan Broth- 
 
 • (3 
 
348 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 ers, 165 South Howard street ; M. H. Hart, 
 125^ same street ; Holstein & Golberger. same 
 street (No. 155) ; Louis Walde, uear the fair | 
 ground ; John Lotze, 707 South Main street ; [ 
 Benjamin McNaughton, 916 East Market street ; 
 J. Mengendsorf, 1 25 South High street ; H. F. 
 Shrank, 258 West Market street ; Peter Lang- 
 endorf & Brother, 927 South Howard street, 
 and John F. Weber, 164 same street. 
 
 There are two tanneries in Aliron. The Ak- 
 ron Tannery is the property of James Christy 
 & Sons, and is located on Howard and Main 
 streets. The business was founded here in 
 1842, by the present senior member of the firm, 
 and, from a comparatively small beginning, has 
 steadily increased to its present extent and 
 magnitude. The firm now occupies as office, 
 storeroom and finishing department, four floors 
 of the spacious new brick structure, 38x60 feet, 
 at the intersection of Howard and Main streets, 
 with a two-story building, 40x100 feet, the first 
 floor of which is used for the storage of bark, 
 and the second as a dry-room for hanging hides, 
 and a two-story tanner}' building, 80x80 feet. 
 They have all the latest improved machinery 
 in the various departments of their extensive 
 establishment, and manufacture every descrip- 
 tion of leather of superior grades, and the most 
 excellent qualities, making a leading specialty 
 of fine harness leather, which latter product has 
 attained a national reputation for its uniform 
 excellence and reliability. 
 
 John H. Christ}^ is the owner of the other 
 establishment. He is the successor of J. H. 
 Christy & Co., who started the business in 
 Akron in 1849. At that time, the firm pur- 
 chased the tannery at the corner of Howard 
 and North streets, which had been erected ten 
 years before by Christy & Sawyer. The busi- 
 ness continued under the firm name of J. H. 
 Christy & Co. until April, 1849, when, by 
 purchase of the company's interest, John H. 
 Christy became sole owner. The building, occu- 
 pied for storing and displaying goods, and as 
 an office and salesroom, is a three-story brick, 
 at 109 Market street. In rear of this is a brick 
 warehouse, three stories high, 25x40 feet, with 
 slate roof. Upon the site of the old tannery, 
 an elegant one of brick, three stories high, 
 100x100 feet, is erected. The leather manu- 
 factured is harness, upper and calf The trade 
 of the house extends throughout all parts of 
 the United States. 
 
 Beds have come down to us from the •' ages 
 primeval." An easy couch for the weary or 
 sick— what is more comfortable ? 
 
 " When thoughts 
 Of the last bitter hour come like a blight 
 Over thy spirit, and sad images 
 Of the stern agony, and shroud and pall. 
 And breathless darkness, and the narrow house, 
 Make thee to shudder and grow sick at heart ;" 
 
 When disease has laid us upon a sick bed, 
 and our bodies racked with pain, what greater 
 boon than an improved spring bed-bottom for 
 our couch on which to lie ? F. F. Hale manu- 
 factures Champion spiral spring bed-bottoms 
 at 206 Mill street. He began business in 
 April, 1880. H. Limbert also makes goods of 
 this description on Summit street. He manu- 
 factures, in addition, patent swings. 
 
 The Akron Steam Forge Company was orig- 
 inall}' a partnership concern, established in 
 1865, but, in 1879, it became an incorporated 
 company under the above title, with a capital 
 of $60,000. The area of ground owned by 
 the corporation is ten acres, and the works oc- 
 cup}- a space of 60x265 feet. These buildings 
 have a fine appointment of mechanical appli- 
 ances adapted for the special work performed 
 here. In the axle-shop are four steam ham- 
 mers — one 4,000-pound upright, taking steam 
 both ways ; two halves, each with hammer- 
 head weighing 2,000 pounds, and one with 
 head of 1,500 pounds; five heating furnaces, 
 and every requisite modern convenience com- 
 mended by thorough experience. 
 
 The product of this company comprises car, 
 driving and locomotive axles, shafting, eleven 
 sizes of eye-bars for bridges, and every descrip- 
 tion of wrought shape work. In all depart- 
 ments are employed long-experienced and well- 
 skilled artisans, none but the best selected 
 materials, and absolute perfection is aimed at 
 and attained in all their manufactures. Hence, 
 wherever these uniformly fine goods have been 
 introduced and used, their qualit}', strength, 
 finish and durabilit}' are acknowledged to be 
 unsurpassed by the output of any other like 
 establishment in the Union. In their line of 
 manufacture, the character of the stock em- 
 ployed is an all-important consideration, and 
 therefore the}' use nothing but carefully se- 
 lected wrought scrap, of tough and fibrous 
 texture, insuring the most satisfactory re- 
 sults. 
 
 1/ 
 
■hL 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 349 
 
 The company are doing a very prosperous 
 business, and their product is in active demand 
 by railway and other corporations, keeping 
 the works constantly busy. They now give em- 
 plo3'ment to some fift}- hands, while their pa}-- 
 roU foots up to $2,000 per month. The pres- 
 ent output is at the rate of about $300,000 per 
 year. 
 
 The shipping facilities of this company are 
 all that need be desired. The Valle}- Railway 
 runs through their premises, and they have 
 switches connecting with the A. & Gr. W. and 
 C, Mt. V. & C. roads, whereby the}' are enabled 
 to ship their products to all parts of the country 
 at competing rates. The office and works are 
 east of the Fountain Driving Park. 
 
 One of the large industries of Akron is the 
 manufacture of oat-meal. An analysis made 
 by the eminent chemists Liebig and Hassal, 
 shows that while wheat and barley contain 
 14 per cent of the nutritious elements — the 
 life and muscle-giving qualities — and corn but 
 12 per cent and a fraction, oats contain nearly 
 20 per cent. The phosphorescent qualities of 
 the latter act as a gentle and healthy stimulant 
 to the brain ; and on no food can one endure 
 so great or so prolonged mental labor as on 
 oat-meal porridge. To a A'ery great number of 
 people the value of oat-meal is little known, 
 although the prejudice against it is fast giving 
 place to a more just opinion, especially among 
 the educated classes who are capable of appre- 
 ciating the value of the favorable verdict of 
 chemists and physiologists. There is more 
 oat-meal now consumed in the United States 
 than in Scotland. As it contains in an unusu- 
 all}' large degree all the essentials which go to 
 produce health, hardiness and long life, b}' all 
 means give us more porridge, and less pastr}'. 
 From a highly instructive paper on oat-meal, 
 b}' Dr. H. A. ^lott, an eminent analytical 
 and consulting chemist, of New York, we learn 
 that of all cereal meals, oat-meal is far supe- 
 rior for the following reasons : Because it con- 
 tains more fattening matter than any other 
 cereal grain ; it contains a large amount of ni- 
 trogenous matter (gluten); it contains so much 
 nutriment in small bulk ; it can be eaten for 
 long periods with beneficial I'esults ; it keeps 
 unchanged for a long time. In oat-meal the 
 nitrogenous and carbonaceous elements exist 
 in such proportions as to admit of it being 
 eaten alone as a sustainina: diet ; hence it is a 
 
 typical food. The proper preparation and use 
 of oat-meal for the table to make it palatable, 
 is, as yet, not well understood by a large por- 
 tion of American cooks. The}' cannot prepare 
 it properly. To do so, requires a double kettle 
 for boiling in water and steam — iron outside, 
 and tin about an inch smaller inside. In this 
 way the meal cannot be scorched. 
 
 The oat-meal mills of Akron may properly 
 be said to have given the cit}' a goodly share 
 of its wide celebrit}^ as a manufacturing cen- 
 ter. The man as yet best known in this con- 
 nection is Ferdinand Schumacher. Before he 
 inaugurated the production in this country of 
 this wholesome article of diet, it was generally 
 believed that such a commodity as good oat- 
 meal could not be made in America, simply be- 
 cause it then was not. But .Mr. Schumacher 
 entertained a different opinion in the premises, 
 and, having had some experience in his native 
 country (Germany) in this line, he came to the 
 conclusion that the experiment looking to the 
 production of superior oat-meal here should be 
 persistently attempted. The signal success he 
 has met with in his efforts in this direction 
 shows that he was perfectly right in his judg- 
 ment. When he began, all the oat-meal con- 
 sumed in this country was imported from Can- 
 ada and Europe ; but his excellent pi-oduct at 
 length led the market, and at present the im- 
 portations of this valuable hygienic food are 
 comparatively trifling in amount. 
 
 Near the depot of the New York. Pennsyl- 
 vania & Ohio llailroad are located Mr. Schu- 
 macher's German 31ills, devoted exclusively to 
 the manufacture of this article of food. His 
 are among the largest and best-equipped mills 
 in the country'. They are seven stories high, 
 and cover an area of 60x90 feet. They are 
 fully furnished, from foundation to the top 
 floor with the latest improved machiner}' and 
 manufacturing apparatus. The engine, 20x42, 
 is of 125-horse-power, built b}' the Putnam 
 Machine Company, of Fitchburg, Mass., as were 
 also all the other engines in this establish- 
 ment. ^ 
 
 The German Mills have two basement sto- 
 ries, each thirteen feet high, containing sixteen 
 oat-driers, with a capacity of 3,000 bushels per 
 day. The oats are kept constantly stirred and 
 turned b}- machinery, so as to secure perfect 
 uniformity in drying. Though the fuel used is 
 coal, the arrangement of the driers is such that 
 
sio 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 no smoke or smut can come in contact with the 
 grain. 
 
 In these mills are eleven hulling stones and 
 buhrs for grinding feed, which are all run from 
 a line shaft by ([uarter-twist bells. When per- 
 fectly- hulled and cleaned, the berry of the oats 
 are cut by ingenious machinery patented by 
 Mr. Schumacher, consisting of a series of knives 
 operating in connection with vibrating perfo- 
 rated plates, for the purpose of cutting the 
 meal, instead of bruising and crushing the berry 
 as in the old process, whereby a large propor- 
 tion of the starch was unavoidably converted 
 into a comparatively worthless meal or flour. 
 The packing and warerooms are ver^- commo- 
 dious, light and airy, and kept scrupulousl}- 
 clean. The oat-meal is conveyed from the mill 
 into this department b3' machinery, for the pur- 
 pose of being packed and shipped fresh every 
 day. A fair proportion of the meal is put up 
 in fourteen-pound air-tight tin packages, in 
 which it ma}- be kept perfectly sweet for years. 
 The "German Mills American Oatmeal" brand 
 is largely shipped to every State in the Union, 
 and its quality and flavor are pronounced un- 
 surpassed on ever}' hand. 
 
 Carter & Steward also manufacture oat-meal 
 in Akron, at 111 South Main street. The 
 buildings occupied by this enterprising firm 
 were erected more than a quarter of a century 
 ago and used as flouring-mills until 1873, when 
 they passed into the hands of the present pro- 
 prietors, and extensive alterations and improve- 
 ments were made, and since that time the}' 
 have been used exclusively for the manufacture 
 of oat-meal. The main building is 83x95 feet in 
 size, and the engine house and kiln, or depart- 
 ment for drying oats, is 15x95 feet. The mill 
 is supplied with complete machinery, especially 
 adapted to the uses for which it is employed, 
 and all the appointments of these works are of 
 the best and latest improved designs. The 
 products of these mills are sold in all portions 
 of the United States, from Portland, Me., to 
 San Francisco, Cal., in New Orleans and 
 throughout the entire South. An idea of the 
 capacit}' of the works and the extent of the 
 business transacted b}' this house may be gath- 
 ered from the fact that their annual sales in 
 this one item alone exceeds .f 100,000. 
 
 Besides the two mills already spoken of, there 
 are those in Akron of Hower & Co., successors 
 to Turner & Co., which make oat-meal, on the 
 
 corner of Canal and Cherry streets. Turner & 
 Co. started in 1877, and were succeeded by 
 Hower & Co. In December, 1880. Their mills 
 are now known as the Akron Oat-Meal Mills. 
 Their capacity is sixty-flve barrels a day. The 
 trade of the firm extends from Michigan to 
 Maine. 
 
 The latest addition to these mills is the man 
 ufacture of rolled avena (rolled oats), which is 
 oat-meal as originally made, and claimed to be 
 superior in flavor and much more easily cooked 
 than the granulated meal. 
 
 There are in Akron four extensive planing - 
 mills. The Weary, Snyder, Wilcox Manufact- 
 uring Company have their buildings on Main 
 street. This company was founded in 1864, hy 
 Wear}-, Snyder & Co. It became a joint-stock 
 company in 1877, with an authorized capital 
 of $150,000. This company handles about 
 3,000,000 feet of lumber annually. Their yards 
 and mills occupy about four acres of ground 
 opposite the Empire House. The factory build- 
 ing is three stories in height, and 80x120 feet 
 in size. This is equipped with a variety of 
 machinery especially adapted for this particu- 
 lar branch of industry, among which is a gang 
 of saws twenty-eight in number, planing ma- 
 chines, ten single saws, numerous scroll saws, 
 a dove-tailiug machine of their own invention, 
 used especially in the manufacture of boxes 
 for the establishment of F. Schumacher for the 
 packing of oatmeal, pearl barley and cracked 
 wheat : door, sash and blind machineiy, etc., 
 operated by a forty-horse power engine. In 
 this establishment is manufactured doors, win- 
 dow sash, blinds, door and window frames, cas- 
 ings and brackets. 
 
 In 1852, J. H. Dix & Co. started a planing- 
 mill at the ^tna Mills — ^the first in Akron. 
 They moved in 1855 to south Howard street 
 near the gas works, where the business is still 
 carried on — but by other parties. They con- 
 tinued the work for three years, when they sold 
 their mill to J. Rockwell & Co. The last-men- 
 tioned firm conducted the business about three 
 years, when their intei'est was disposed of to W. 
 L. Evert & Co., who continued the work for a 
 time when the property was sold to W. B. 
 Doyle & Co., the present owners. This firm 
 manufacture doors, sash and blinds and other 
 articles appertaining to house-building. They 
 also have a lumber-yard connected with their 
 mill. They carry on an extensive business. 
 
:^ 
 
 CITY or AKRON. 
 
 351 
 
 Plaster, as a fertilizer, is also manufactured by 
 them. 
 
 Another planing-mill is that of Simon Han-' 
 key. This was started at his present location, 
 1136 South Main street, in July, 1872, where 
 he occupies three acres of ground. By reason 
 of his straightforward course, characteristic 
 push and integrity in all his dealings, he has 
 succeeded in establishing a prosperous and con- 
 stantly amplifying trade. His fine planing-mill 
 measures 60x122 feet, part of which is of two 
 stories. He has the latest improved machinery 
 for general planing and the manufacture of 
 sash, doors, blinds and moldings. His trade 
 is chiefly that of the city and county. 
 
 The planing-mill of D. W. Thomas, at 244 
 West Market street, is an extensive one. It 
 was first started as a furniture factory b}' George 
 Thomas, father of the present owner. After 
 going through several hands and being changed 
 to a planing-mill, the ownership finally passed 
 to Mr. Thomas, who now conducts a large lum- 
 ber business in connection with his mill. 
 
 All nations, ancient and modern, savage and 
 civilized, have considered respect for the dead 
 a virtue, and burial-places as sacred. Abra- 
 ham bought the cave of Machpelah as a burial- 
 place. Egyptians hewed sepulchers out of solid 
 rock, and built vast pyramids to serve as repos- 
 itories for their dead, whose bodies were so em- 
 balmed that after 3,000 years they are found in 
 a good state of preservation. The Romans 
 honey-combed the hills of Southern Italy with 
 catacombs, in the niches of which they placed 
 their dead. The cemeteries of modern civiliza- 
 tion are fast getting to be picturesque cities of 
 the dead. Monuments of all kinds mark the 
 resting-places of those who slumber in the 
 bosom of the earth. Akron is not behind her 
 sister cities in the manufacture of these stand- 
 ing memorials. The proprietor of the Akron 
 Marble Works, M. H. Crumrine, manufactures 
 and deals in American and Italian marble and 
 in American and Scotch granite mantles and 
 grates. He first started the business in Massil- 
 lon, in 1857, and in 1863 changed its location 
 to Akron, when he purchased a lot at 219 and 
 221 East Market street, 100x40 feet, and erected 
 a frame building in which he continued his bus- 
 iness until in 1866, when he moved the frame 
 building to the rear of its former location, and 
 on the same site erected a fine three-story brick 
 block known as Castle Hall Block. In 1868, 
 
 at 15 North High street, one door from the cor- 
 ner of Market street, he erected a brick building 
 53x16, which he has since occupied as sample 
 and salesroom and office, with a work-shop im- 
 mediately in the rear 35x20. 
 
 Besides the marble works just mentioned are 
 those of Emil Feige, who manufactures monu- 
 ments and tombstones of Italian and American 
 marble, sandstone and other varieties, at 235 
 Main street. This house was founded in 1858, 
 by Jennings & Henry. In 1877, the present 
 proprietor, E. Feige, purchased the establish- 
 ment and became sole proprietor. The build- 
 ing at present occupied by the business is a 
 frame 20x45 — the fi'ont portion used for display 
 of manufactured good and the rear for manu- 
 facturing. 
 
 Not only oat-meal, but pearl barley is exten- 
 sively manufactured in Akron. The Empire 
 Barley Mills of Ferdinand Schumacher are lo- 
 cated near the depot of the New York, Penn- 
 sylvania & Ohio Railroad. These mills have 
 six fioors, each measuring 85x()0 feet. The en- 
 gine room contains a double engine with com- 
 bined power of 250 horse. A 40-inch belt on 
 an 18-foot pulley conveys the power to the 
 pearling machines, which, thirteen in number, 
 are attached to a long line shaft, and have a 
 united capacity of 250 half barrels of pearl 
 barley per day, of 110 pounds each. 
 
 On the first floor are the barley machines, 
 consisting of an iron shell turning in the oppo- 
 site direction, from rapidly-revolving sand- 
 stones, four feet in diameter by fourteen inches 
 across. This mill, the German Mill, the model 
 Akron (A) elevator, and the commodious pack- 
 ing-houses, which are all adjoined, have a total 
 frontage of 293 feet. 
 
 Gorner & Planz are the pi'oprietors of the 
 Akron File Works, located between Carroll and 
 East Middlebury streets. This firm is the only 
 one in Summit County engaged to any extent 
 in this branch of manufacture. 
 
 The enterprise was first started by Methias 
 Harter, in 1868. The senior partner of the 
 present firm became a partner in 1870, and the 
 business was conducted until 1873 under the 
 firm name of Harter & Gorner, when Mr. Gor- 
 ner purchased the interest of Harter, and for a 
 year and a half continued the business alone. 
 In 1875, H. Pohle purchased the works from 
 Gorner, and continued the business with Planz 
 as partner until 1877, when Mr. Gorner re- 
 
 rpv 
 
!>>. 
 
 352 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 purchased the interest of Pohle ; and since, the 
 firm name has been Grorner & Planz. The 
 buildings occupied for the conduct of the busi- 
 ness are two in number — one, 16x82, the other 
 16x22. The location of the works is just east 
 of the Buckeye Shops, and in the rear of the 
 Akron Knife Works. In the works is a ten- 
 horse-power engine, which is used principally 
 in the grinding of files, five cutting-blocks, and 
 all tools and machinery used in cutting files. 
 The trade of the house extends throughout 
 Northern, Central and Eastern Ohio, a large 
 amount of the product being sold to the large 
 manufacturing establishments of Akron. 
 
 Baker, Merriam & Co. manufacture wood and 
 clay smoking pipes, enameled teapot knobs, 
 pail woods and cigar boxes, also all styles of 
 Hamburg and Shaker pipes, at the corner of 
 Bowery and Ash streets. J. W. Baker began 
 business at this point in 1870, in the manufact- 
 ure of cigar boxes alone, and was joined in the 
 fall following b}- J. C. McMillen, who purchased 
 an interest in the concern. They made cigar 
 boxes about four years, after which they added 
 wood smoking pipes and tinners' teapot knobs. 
 They now carry on a large and flourishing busi- 
 ness in the articles above mentioned. 
 
 Among the multifarious industries of the city 
 of Akron, there is no single one which has con- 
 tributed in a greater degree to give the cit^' a 
 wide-spread reputation than that of the pro- 
 duction of sewer pipe. From the rock-bound 
 coasts of New England to the prairie cities of 
 the far West the fame of the Akron sewer pipe 
 is familiar as household words, and has repeat- 
 edl}^ received the highest encomiums from 
 Mayors and boards of public works, engineers, 
 contractors and chemists. It is manuftictured 
 from a combination of the celebrated " Summit 
 County Clays," which b}' careful analysis have 
 been found to be superior to any yet discovered 
 for this particular purpose. By skilled labor 
 and powerful machinery of the latest and most 
 approved design, the material is rendered homo- 
 geneous and uniform throughout, and under 
 immense pressure the pipe is made ver}' com- 
 pact, and under a high temperature becomes 
 thoroughl}'^ vitrified and impervious to the 
 action of acids, gases and steam, all of which 
 are found to a greater or less extent in cit}' 
 sewei's. This kind of clay receives a perfect 
 glaze from the vapors of salt, and does not re- 
 quire slip or other foreign substances which are 
 
 liable to cut or scale off by the action of sewer 
 gases. 
 
 The subject of thorough and perfect sewer- 
 age is beginning to receive the general public 
 attention and recognition which its importance 
 demands. That the health of communities is 
 seriously affected and impaired bj' faulty or 
 inadequate drainage is a proposition suscepti- 
 ble of ample demonstration. The disease-breed- 
 ing miasmas contaminating the atmosphere of 
 thousands of neighborhoods and homes, pois- 
 oning the human sj'stem with noxious effluvia 
 and deadl^y exhalations, are the sure and direct 
 result of heedlessness with regard to sanitar}^ 
 teachings in this direction. Go into a neigh- 
 borhood where typhoid and typhus fevers pre- 
 vail, and you will certainly find a cause for this 
 infectious malady in the noisome gases eman- 
 ating from the undrained soil or from imperfect 
 sewerage, and, not infrequently, in consequence 
 of drinking well water impregnated with fetid 
 percolations from contiguous privy vaults and 
 cess-pools. 
 
 It is, moreover, unquestionable that many 
 other forms of disease are contracted by similar 
 means, emphasizing the vital importance of 
 counteracting and removing this pestilent cause 
 of disease and death. 
 
 The fact of the need of a universal system 
 of sewerage being well established, it now re- 
 mains for us to consider and determine as to 
 the best and most approved material for this 
 purpose, inasmuch as upon this point of perfect 
 sewerage depends the health and well-being of 
 the public. 
 
 The strange anomaly is too often observed 
 of a house-builder, in order to save a few dol- 
 lars, contracting for the introduction into his 
 premises of a poor and cheap sewer connection, 
 thus inviting febrile disease into his house- 
 hold ; but then does the victim employ a quack 
 doctor to attend his family ? No ; he hesitates 
 not to summon the best physician to be had. 
 Here is an illustration of obtuse empiricism at 
 the first and corrective skill at the last, although 
 perhaps the latter is employed too late to pre- 
 vent fatal consequences of the imprudence of 
 '' saving at the spigot and leaking at the bung." 
 
 The initial process in the manufacture of 
 vitrified pipe is the grinding and tempering of 
 the clay, some of which is extremely " refrac- 
 tory," in huge mills — the substance being ma- 
 nipulated by large revolving discs describing 
 
l£l 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 353 
 
 diverse circles, and moving gradually from cen- 
 ter to circumference of the clay receiver by the 
 operation of an automatic screw. From the 
 mills the tempered mass is thi'own into the 
 " blockers," which expel the air, solidify the 
 substance, and form it into blocks, which are 
 brought b}^ elevators up to the powerful screw 
 and steam presses, the cylinder whereof con- 
 tains an inside die suspended from the top of 
 the press, taking the place of the core in iron 
 castings, and an outside die which forms the ex- 
 terior of the pipe. The clay is forced down 
 between these dies, producing pipe ranging in 
 diameter from one to twenty-four inches, and 
 is cut off at proper lengths by a series of knives. 
 The present forms are then transported b}' 
 steam and hydraulic elevators, consisting of 
 endless belts, to the drying and finishing de- 
 partments, where they are seasoned for three or 
 four days by steam heaters. The}' are then 
 taken by tramways to the burning kilns, ten in 
 number, each of which is as large as a good- 
 sized room, where for several days they are 
 subjected to a most intense heat, perhaps not 
 far from a thousand degrees — a " warmth " that 
 would have made old Dr. LeMoyne, of crema- 
 tory fame, dance with delight. The torridness 
 of this temperature may be imagined Avhen it 
 is stated that thereby iron can be reduced to a 
 cinder. 
 
 After the clay has approached the melting or 
 fluxing state, coarse alkaline salt is thrown upon 
 the fires, producing a dense vapor which per- 
 meates every part of the kilns, circulating 
 through and around the sections of pipe, com- 
 pletely enveloping their inner and outer surfaces. 
 This vapor chemicall}' unites with the pipe 
 communicating to it a smooth and glossy finish, 
 whereby the substance becomes vitreous or 
 glass-like, and the glaze is an integral part of 
 the pipe itself ; not a mere varnish-like coating, 
 as is the case with the " slip "-glazed pipe. The 
 contents of the kilns are allowed to gradualh^ 
 cool off, and usually at the expiration of a week 
 they are in proper condition for removal and the 
 market. 
 
 The Akron Sewer Pipe has for man}- years 
 been in satisfactory use in every section of the 
 country, and is its own complete recommenda- 
 tion. Its even interior surface has no hum- 
 mocks to arrest any floating substance, and its 
 glassy smoothness enables a very small flow of 
 water to carry along with it all the solid matter 
 
 that finds its way into the sewer. For over 
 twenty years the " Akron " has been the stand- 
 ard in Chicago, where the flat, low-lying surface 
 requires the most perfect sewers, because of the 
 very slight fall possible in their construction. 
 The experience of other cities and towns which 
 have adopted this pipe uniformly corresponds 
 with that of Chicago, and wherever practically 
 tested it has maintained its justly exalted repu- 
 tation. 
 
 Another significant fact is that these pipes 
 have been and are employed in chemical works 
 and retorts, holding the strongest acids, and 
 nothing has ever been used which will produce 
 the slightest effect upon them ; they cannot be 
 disintegrated or even weakened by any known 
 chemical. 
 
 There are three sewer pipe companies in 
 Akron, each one which is largely engaged in 
 the manufacture of sewer pipe. The Akron 
 Sewer Pipe Company, at 173 North Water 
 street. Sixth Ward, make standard Akron sewer 
 pipe. The business is conducted under the 
 name and style of the Akron Sewer Pipe Com- 
 pany, was founded in this city in 1848, by Mer- 
 rill, Powers & Co. It subsequently was trans- 
 ferred to Hill & Adams, who were succeeded in 
 1867, by the Hill & Adams Sewer Pipe Com- 
 pany. In 1871, the company was again recon- 
 structed and became as at present, with a paid- 
 up capital of $175,000, and an authorized cap- 
 ital of $300,000. It is a joint-stock company, 
 incorporated under the laws of the State of 
 Ohio, with works and general headquarters at 
 Akron, and agencies in all the principal cities 
 of the United States. The works consist of one 
 two-story brick structure, 50x240 feet in size, 
 and one four-story structure, 50x150 feet, with 
 numerous smaller buildings, sheds, etc. They 
 have ten down-draft kilns, each with a capac- 
 ity of twenty-five tons. These kilns are con- 
 structed so as to secure a uniform heat, vitrify- 
 ing each piece of pipe, which by gradual cool- 
 ing is rendered free from checks and scales. 
 The products of the company are sold in almost 
 every State in the Union. These were the first 
 sewer pipe works started west of New York 
 City, and the second established in the United 
 States. 
 
 Th« Buckeye Sewer Pipe Company manufact- 
 ure, at 921 East Exchange street. Sixth Ward, 
 vitrified salt-glazed sewer pipe. This company 
 was incorporated in 1872, with an authorized 
 
 I^ 
 
'1^ 
 
 354 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 capital of $100,000. The buildings occupied 
 were erected in 1867, for the manufacture of 
 woolen machinery, and were occupied for this 
 purpose until in 1872, when the business was 
 changed to that of the present. They consist 
 of two main shops of brick, 170x45 and 80x40 
 respectively, office, sheds, etc. The shojis are 
 equipped with all modern appliances for the 
 manufacture of sewer pipe ; six kilns of two 
 car-loads dimensions each. 
 
 The Hill Sewer Pipe Companj- also manufact- 
 ure sewer pipe in Akron. Their place of bus- 
 iness is at 1175 East Market street. This 
 company was founded under its present title in 
 1873, as a stock company, with a capital of 
 $80,000. D. E. Hill, one of the stockholders, 
 and the gentleman from whom the company 
 takes its name, originated the sewer pipe busi- 
 ness in the United States, and to him is largely 
 due the honor of bringing about a much needed 
 reform in the sewerage system of most of the 
 cities of the Union, by the introduction of this 
 pipe, which is now acknowledged to be a safe 
 and reliable article for sewers. The works oc- 
 cupied b}' the Hill Sewer Pipe Company occupy 
 a large tract of ground, and contain one four- 
 story structure. 50x100 feet in size, equipped 
 with all the necessary- machiner}^ for the manu- 
 facture of these improved pipes, and four kilns, 
 15x30 feet in dimension. 
 
 That the taste for personal decoration is a 
 universal expression of human existence, and 
 that the art of making jewehy was one of the 
 first at which mankind arrived, is evident from 
 the immense stores taken from the tombs of 
 ruined cities of the Eg\'tians and other nations. 
 In the manufacture of jewelry but little is done 
 in Akron, but that little is well done by George 
 J. Neiberg, at 179 South Howard street. 
 
 Matches in their present form were first 
 made public about 1830, b}- Farada}', and 
 came rapidly into public use. The tip of the 
 match is a combination of sulphur and phos- 
 phorus. The phosphorus ignites at the heat of 
 120 degrees, which a slight friction will pro- 
 duce, and this in turn ignites the sulphur, 
 which requires 450 or 500 degrees. The flame 
 of the sulphur sets fire to the pine of which 
 the match is composed, and which ignites at 
 about 600 degrees. The combination is neces- 
 sary because the phosphorus alone would not 
 kindle the match, while the sulphur alone 
 would not ignite with ordinary friction. The 
 
 number of matches that are annually con- 
 sumed in this country is something wonderful 
 to contemplate. According to the late report 
 of the Kevenue Department, the tax on 
 matches for the last year yielded revenue to 
 the amount of $3,561,306. At 1 cent a box, 
 this would represent, in round numbers, 356,- 
 000,000 boxes. Calling our population 50,- 
 000,000, this would give over 7 boxes to ever}'^ 
 man, woman and child in the country. The 
 taxes paid on matches by each individual in 
 the land would thus be 7 cents. The revenue 
 tax on matches is 1 cent for each 100 in a box. 
 Where such an immense quantity' of matches 
 are consumed, there must be considerable facil- 
 ities for manufacturing them. This we have 
 in the ingenious machinery used in making 
 them, as most all of the processes in manu- 
 facturing them are conducted by mechanical 
 appliances. The wood used is the best — clear 
 white pine — which is first sawed into blocks of 
 equal size, and of two matches in length. 
 These blocks are then made into splints of a 
 proper size, by being forced through tubes with 
 numerous perforations, made as near together 
 as possible, leaving just enough strength for 
 cutting purposes. These perforations may be 
 either round, square or diamond shaped, the 
 latter forming the name of the new combina- 
 tion. The square forms are called '• telegraph " 
 matches. These and the diamond are prefera- 
 ble to the round, as they do not break so 
 easily. After the splints are cut into proper 
 sizes, the3' are fed through a hopper and re- 
 ceived by a double chain, which carries them 
 to the sulphur vat, then to the phosphorus vat, 
 when they are taken off and removed to the 
 packing room. The phosphorus composition 
 into which the matches are dipped is composed 
 of phosphorus, niter, glue, red ochre and smalt 
 in proper proportions. In safet}' matches, the 
 phosphorus is in sand paper on the box, and 
 other materials on the end of the match, so 
 that neither can be ignited without the use of 
 the other. Matches are also made without 
 dipping into sulphur, paraffine oil being used 
 as a substitute. The parlor match is made 
 without the use of sulphur, and phosphorus is 
 replaced by the chlorate of potash and anti- 
 mon3^ The wood is prepared with stearine or 
 paraffine. 
 
 On the 1st day of January, 1881, the Dia- 
 mond Match Company, with branches in diflfer- 
 
 e) 
 
^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 355 
 
 t'iit parts of the United States, went into 
 operation. (3ne of the largest of these 
 branches is what was previously tlie Barber 
 Match Company, of Akron. The Alvron works 
 were established in 1847, by George Barber. 
 The first factory was a small barn ; but, from 
 the very beginning of the business, owing to 
 the superior quality of the goods produced, 
 the demand steadily increased. The average 
 product of this branch is 1,500 gross, of 14,- 
 400 each, or 1^1,660,000 matches ever}' da}^, 
 with a possible capacit}- for turning out 6,804,- 
 000,000 matches per annum. The United 
 States revenue laws require a 1-ceut stamp to 
 1)6 placed on every 100 matches, and to do so 
 requires an expenditure by the Akron works of 
 over $1,900 a da}-. They use annually from 
 2.500,000 to 3,000,000 feet of the best quality 
 of white pine lumber, 70 tons of brimstone 
 17,000 pounds of phosphorus, 33,600 pounds 
 chlorate of potash, 30,000 pounds of glue, 
 50,000 pounds of parafflne wax for parlor and 
 drawing-room matches or tapers, and a large 
 quantit}' of other material. They manufacture 
 their own packages, and use about 250 tons of 
 straw board for boxes, and 20 tons of other 
 paper, and for shipping boxes over 1,000,000 
 feet of Cottonwood lumber. Two printing- 
 presses are kept constantly employed printing 
 labels, and 15 box-making machines, each capa- 
 ble of turning out from 7,000 to 10,000 straw 
 board boxes per day. Three hundred and 
 fifty hands, including men, boys and girls, are 
 constantly employed, and the monthly pa3--roll 
 amounts to full}' $6,500. The works are 
 equipped throughout with the most perfect 
 match-making machinery now in use, propelled 
 I)}- two engines of 250 and 150 horse power re- 
 spectivel}'. The works are located on Falor 
 street. This branch makes about one-fifth of 
 the entire product used in the United States. 
 The Diamond Match Company also run a fac- 
 tory near their match works, where animal 
 pokes, curry-combs and smoking pipes are 
 made. This factory was formed}' run by the 
 Hopkins & Robinson Manufacturing Company. 
 The Akron xMachine Works of Taplin, Rice 
 & Co. are located on Broadway and Church 
 street. These works were established in 1861, 
 by Taplin, Rice & Ford. In 1867, under the 
 manufacturing laws of the State of Ohio, it be- 
 came an incorporated company, with a paid- 
 up capital stock of $100,000, under the name 
 
 and style of Taplin, Rice & Co. They have 
 now a surplus of $40,000. The works cover a 
 large area and consist of several commodious 
 buildings, all connected, being 550 feet in ag- 
 gregate length and of an average width of about 
 fifty feet. In addition to these is a separate 
 structure, 40x100 feet, used as a pattern-shop. 
 The works are divided into three separate de- 
 partments, as follows : Foundry, machine shop 
 and stove department. The buildings are all 
 supplied with the latest improved machinery, 
 tools and appliances requisite for carrying on 
 the business in all its various features and de- 
 partments. The company manufactures stoves 
 in every variety, and turn out brass and iron 
 castings of all kinds. They make a leading 
 specialty of steam engines, mill gearing, shaft- 
 ing and pulleys, potters' and sewer-pipe ma- 
 chinery, and Mason's Patent Friction Clutch 
 and Pulleys. They attend to the repairing of 
 machinery and gearing of every description. 
 The company have recently purchased, directly 
 opposite their works on Church street the ex- 
 tensive buildings formerly occupied by J. F. 
 Seiberling in the manufacture of his Empire 
 mower and reaper. The patronage of Taplin, 
 Rice & Co. is largely West, extending to the 
 States of Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and Kansas, 
 and east to the western portions of Pennsylva- 
 nia. 
 
 American inventive genius is to be credited 
 with some of the most wonderful achievements 
 of the age, and in the production of valuable 
 articles the eminence of our country is univer- 
 sally conceded. It is no less remarkable how 
 quickly and thoroughly this talent finds appli- 
 cations in the perfection of new ideas and the 
 improvement of old ideas, so that no sooner 
 has a discovery been announced, or a new in- 
 vention made, than active minds are at once 
 developing its capabilities and extending its 
 uses in all directions. Economy in time, labor 
 and material is the greatest desideratum, never 
 lost sight of by the practical men in our midst, 
 and the wastefulness and inefficiency of prima- 
 tive methods are never allowed to shelter them- 
 selves long behind the plea that nothing better 
 has been thought of 
 
 This train of musing can be particularly ap- 
 plied to the drug trade. Skilled pharmacists 
 become important factors to the trade of all 
 cities. The Smith Brothers manufacture phar- 
 maceutical products at No. 193 South Howard 
 
 r'v- 
 

 356 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 street. This house was founded in 1873, by 
 Sislei" & Hoy, who conducted the business suc- 
 cessfull}' until September, 1878, when they 
 were succeeded b}' the present proprietors. 
 These gentlemen occupy two flooi's in the three- 
 story brick structure, No. 193 Soutli Howard 
 street, as office, salesroom and laboratoiy. 
 Their laborator}- is supplied with the latest im- 
 proved devices and appurtenances of chemical 
 science for the manufacture of solid and fluid 
 extracts, elixirs, pepsin, gelatine coated pills, 
 and a great variety of chemical and pharma- 
 ceutical preparations. They manufacture 120 
 different varieties of gelatine-coated pills. This 
 house does a wholesale and retail business, 
 dealing directly with druggists and physicians. 
 
 An industr}- of considerable dimensions in 
 Akron is that of the manufacture of chains, by 
 the Miller Chain Company. This company 
 succeeded to the business of S. Matherson, at 
 Cu\-ahoga Falls, in 1879. In order to increase 
 their facilities, and the better to accommodate 
 their increasing trade, in September of that 
 year, the}- established themselves at Akron, 
 where the}^ have spacious and well-arranged 
 works, with materially improved appliances 
 and conveniences for manufacturing their va- 
 rious goods. 
 
 The works comprise four buildings, two brick 
 and two frame, each having dimensions of 
 20x100 feet ; one brick, 60x80 feet, and one 
 brick, 40x60 feet, besides a large packing-room- 
 offlce building, etc. The firm make cable, crane, 
 agricultural, machine and harness chains of 
 ever}' description. The\' also make car-brake 
 and other chains to an}* designated length, and 
 chains for special purposes, from sample or 
 drawing. 
 
 All their chain are made from carefull}' se- 
 lected stock, in the most faithful and workman- 
 like manner, and are thoroughl}- inspected be- 
 fore leaving the works. Hence, they can safely 
 guarantee their productions to be of superior 
 quality and finish. 
 
 Possessing every modern facility, ample ca- 
 pacity, and unsurpassed advantages for the 
 economic prosecution of this department of in- 
 dustry, they are enabled to oflTer the most 
 favorable terms to manufacturers using large 
 quantities of chain, and to the trade gener- 
 ally. 
 
 Their product finds a market from Maine to 
 California, and they have a prosperous and in- 
 
 creasing trade in St. Louis, Chicago, and 
 through the Northwestern States. 
 
 The Akron Iron Company is a stock com- 
 pany, founded in 1866, under its present name. 
 Its location is in South Akron. The capital in- 
 vested in the business is $400,000. The}' man- 
 ufacture ever}' variety of bar and pig iron, hot- 
 polished shafting, best, common, refined and 
 charcoal iron, American-Scotch pig iron of all 
 grades and make. A leading specialty is the 
 production of superior qualities of iron for ag- 
 ricultural implements. This is one of the 
 largest establishments of the kind in the Uni- 
 ted States devoted expressly to the manufacture 
 of iron for agricultural implements ; and for 
 extent, capacity and general completeness of 
 appointments, will compare favorably with any. 
 The buildings occupied by this company are 
 capacious and extensive, and are equipped in 
 all their departments with the most perfect ma 
 chinery and devices for carrying on their exten- 
 sive business. Power is supplied at the Akron 
 works by engines of 500-horse-power, and 175 
 men are regularly employed, many of whom 
 are skilled and experienced mechanics. The 
 company also owns and operates a blast fur- 
 nace at Buclitel, Ohio, where engines of 700- 
 horse-power are in operation. They also oper- 
 ate coal and iron ore mines in the Hocking 
 Valley regions, furnishing employment at the 
 mines and furnaces to 175 additional hands. 
 The total monthly pay-roll of these extensive 
 works ranges from $10,000 to $15,000, and the 
 amount of business transacted by the company 
 reaches nearly three-quarters of a million dol- 
 lars per annum. Their trade is principally de- 
 rived from the large manufacturing establish- 
 ments within a radius of one hundred miles 
 around Akron. 
 
 The manufacture of flour is extensively car- 
 ried on in Akron. This is made possible by 
 the fine water-power of the city, and the cheap- 
 ness of coal to drive engines. The Cascade 
 Mills are located at the foot of North Howard 
 street. They are owned and operated by Fer- 
 dinand Schumacher. They are run exclusively 
 by water-power, and manufacture the highest 
 grades of flour and farina, by the most approved 
 patent process. The buildings are " L "' shaped, 
 and have six floors. The mill measures 50x80 
 feet, with warehouses attached, 40x80 feet, and 
 barrel-house, 40x40 feet. 
 
 The water-power is ample at all seasons. It 
 
 ^ 
 
ik 
 
 CITT or AKRON. 
 
 357 
 
 has a head and fall of 38 feet. The power is 
 derived from an iron overshot wheel, 35 feet in 
 diameter, with a 10-foot face. This immense 
 wheel weighs 37 tons, and yet, being well bal- 
 anced, it revolves on its shaft as steadily and 
 smoothly as if it were made of the lightest wood. 
 The wheel contains a series of 96 steel buckets, 
 having a total weight of 16,000 pounds. Each 
 bucket is made of a single sheet of cold-rolled 
 steel one-eighth of an inch in thickness. This 
 complete wheel cost $8,000, and about $4,000 
 additional were expended for its foundation, 
 which is built on the solid rock. The water 
 supply flows through a 6-foot subterranean 
 tube, to an iron stand-pipe rising about 18 feet 
 to the level of the basin, and flowing from an 
 iron-tank 26 feet long, 8 feet wide and 4^ feet 
 high, to the iron-gate, which gauges and de- 
 livers it to the buckets at the apex of the wheel. 
 From spur-wheels, connected with a 12-foot 
 pulle}-, by a 40-inch leather-double belt, 120 
 feet long, power is communicated to the line- 
 shaft over a 10-foot pulley, whence the 12 run 
 of buhrs are operated by quarter- twist belts. 
 
 The mills are equipped with thirteen middlings 
 purifiers, one pair each porcelain and iron-rolls, 
 two cockle-machines, an ending-stone and brush- 
 machine for cleaning wheat, and other appli- 
 ances, all of the latest improved mechanism. 
 
 The Ohio Canal runs through the premises, 
 affording convenient facilities for receiving and 
 shipping product. The waste water, as well as 
 the water discharged from the wheel, flows into 
 the Cu3'ahoga River through two substantial 
 12-foot stone underground conduits, each 220 
 feet long. 
 
 The Stone Mills, of which Commins & Allen 
 are proprietors, are located on Howard, Ash 
 and Mill streets. 
 
 These mills were erected in 1832, by Gen. 
 Perkins and E. Crosby, and by them transferred 
 to Ebenezer Beech, of Rochester, who, with his 
 successors, continued in possession until about 
 1867, when they were in turn succeeded by the 
 present proprietors, Commins & Allen. This 
 is not only the largest mill in the city, but the 
 oldest. The main mill structure is of stone, 
 five stories in height, and covers an area of 
 60x120 feet. The machinery is all of the most 
 complete character, and comprises eleven run 
 of buhrs, from 4 feet to 4 feet 8 inches in diame- 
 ter, six of which are propelled by water, and 
 five by steam-power. One engine and boiler, 
 
 of 125-horse-power, and water-power estimated 
 as fully equal to 100 horses, furnish the motive 
 power for the machinery employed. The amount 
 of capital invested in the business is large and 
 ample. The products of the Stone Mills are 
 known by the following brands : The " Akron 
 Mills," the " Stone Mills," the " Star Mills," the 
 " Lake Mills," the " California Mills " and others. 
 These gentlemen also manufacture and make a 
 leading specialty of superior patent flour. 
 
 The Allen Mills were originally a building 
 used as woolen mills, which was changed to a 
 flouring-mill in 1853, by Jacob Allen, Jesse 
 Allen and J. D. Commins, who conducted their 
 business under the firm name of J. & J. Allen 
 & Company. The original building was erected 
 by S. Perkins, J. D. Commins, Jacob Allen and 
 Jesse Allen, who together constituted the Per- 
 kins Company. The Allen Mills are located on 
 Canal street, between Mill and Cherry streets, 
 and are owned by F. H. Allen, Y. J. Allen and 
 W. A. Palmer. The building, which is of brick, 
 is 35x110 feet. The machinery of the mills is 
 all first-class. The flour manufactured is the 
 fancy patent, and the fine grades of family and 
 baker's flour. The capacity of these mills is 
 225 barrels in twenty-four hours. 
 
 A distillery was first erected on the spot 
 where the ^Etna Mills now stand. The build- 
 ing was enlarged and changed to a flouring-mill 
 in 1837, and run by Chamberlain & Standard, 
 of Cleveland. Subsequently, it passed into 
 the hands of Rawson & Noble, who conducted 
 the business until the building burned down. 
 Upon the spot of the burned mill was erected, 
 in 1857, the present mills by Buell & Taylor, 
 who continued proprietors until 1862, when the 
 mills were purchased by the Chamber Com- 
 pany. They were owned by this company un- 
 til 1877, when they became the property of the 
 Second National Bank of iVkron. By the bank 
 they were leased to McNeil & Baldwin, who 
 conduct the business at the present time. The 
 capacity of the mills is 200 barrels of flour 
 in twenty-four hours. McNeil & Baldwin 
 manufacture the straight grade and patent 
 flour. 
 
 The South Akron Mills are now owned by 
 the Brewster Coal Company. These mills are 
 located on South Main street. They were 
 erected by George Steese, who sold them to L. 
 S. Herrol'd, the latter disposing of them to the 
 present owners in 1875. Only custom work is 
 
 ;;k 
 
358 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 done at these mills. Connected with them is a 
 saw-mill — the onh' one in Akron. 
 
 Coopering, as might be expected, is carried 
 on to a considerable extent in Akron. The 
 Union Stave Company-. C. B. Maurer, General 
 Superintendent, carry on a large business at 
 402 South High street. This company is now 
 erecting four new frame buildings. One of 
 these will be 28x40 feet in dimensions, 14 feet 
 high ; two other buildings will be 30x54 feet 
 each and 18 feet high. These three buildings 
 will front on High street. The fourth structure 
 will be in the rear of the other buildings and 
 will be 30x108 feet in dimensions, 18 feet high. 
 
 The first-named building will be used for 
 manufacturing purposes, and the remaining ad- 
 ditions will be for storage room. 
 
 The material used in the manufacture of 
 barrels, at this place, is prepared from the for- 
 est at Union City, Penn., by a force of about 
 fifty men under Mr. Maurer's management. 
 The annual shipments to this cit}- of staves, 
 hoops and headings by Mr. Maurer is fully 200 
 car loads. This immense amount of stock is 
 here made into about 1 60,000 barrels per year, 
 b}' a force of fifty men. The trade is growing- 
 very rapidly, and the present year's business 
 will reach at least 175,000 barrels. Another 
 item of interest in this connection is that, while 
 the prepared material is shipped to this place, 
 the finished barrels are shipped from here filled 
 with fiour from the mills of F. Schumacher, and 
 Coramins & Allen's (Stone) Mills. 
 
 There are other establishments in Akron 
 where barrels are made in large numbers : B_y 
 T. J. Walk(M', corner of Middlebur^' and South 
 Main streets ; b}' Lapp & Riner, near the ^Etna 
 Mills ; by George Roth, 353 South Main street ; 
 and by Edward Zschech, 362 same street. 
 
 The question of ability to manufacture an 
 artificial stone that would, in point of dura- 
 bilit}' and genei'al efficiency, come up to all 
 requirements has, for many years, received the 
 attention not only of the curious and inquiring, 
 but also the practical and scientific, and much 
 time and labor has been devoted to the dis- 
 covery of a successful process of manufacture. 
 Success has crowned the effort, and now an 
 artificial stone in every way equal to the best 
 natural stone is produced at much less expense, 
 while the fact of its being much lighter and 
 more easil}^ molded into an}' desired shape, 
 renders it more desirable. For building pur- 
 
 poses it is superior to brick, as it is impervious 
 to water, and is not affected by heat or frost, 
 and will " stand fire " much better than either 
 brick or natural stone. This stone .is of a hy- 
 draulic nature and will harden when set in 
 water, and will resist the action of steam, acids, 
 and other disintegrating influences, as well as 
 our best building stone. The artificial stone 
 was patented b}^ James Harr}' Thorp, of New 
 York, September 11, 1877, being the second 
 patent issued to himself The process of manu- 
 facturing being simple and requiring but few 
 tools. Wood patterns are made of whatever 
 shape the stone is wanted, sand and cement are 
 then mixed together in proportions three to one, 
 when thoroughlv incorporated, the chemical is 
 added in (luantit}- sufficient to dampen the 
 mixture, which is then tamped into patterns, 
 the patterns are then taken away in pieces, the 
 stone is allowed to stand a few days to harden 
 and dry, and is then ready for use. In our 
 larger cities this stone is fast superseding the 
 use of other building material, and is being 
 extensivel}' used for walks, trimming brick 
 houses, etc. The sand found in this vicinity is 
 particularly well adapted to making this stone, 
 and thus the article can be furnished here very 
 cheap. The expense of the material does not 
 average one half that of natural stone. This 
 industry which promises to be of importance 
 to Akron, is carried on at Palmer & Pruner's 
 Artificial Stone Works, 203 North Howard 
 street — H. A. Palmer and H. A. Pruner. pro- 
 prietors. They manufacture this stone under 
 the patent Ijetbre mentioned, the firm control- 
 ing the right in the counties of Summit, Trum- 
 bull, Portage and Stark. The}- make orna- 
 mental lawn vases, window caps, sills and keys, 
 cemetery work, pavements in mosaic and other 
 styles, cisterns and cellars, chimney tops, fount- 
 ain basins, door steps, horse blocks, and lot 
 fencing and solid stone of all kinds for build- 
 ing purposes, of any size or dimensions. 
 
 The Webster, Camp & Lane Machine Com- 
 pany have their works on North Main street. 
 They were established in 1851, under the name 
 and style of the Globe Foundry. In 1860, a 
 stock company, known as the Welister, Camp, 
 & Lane Machine Company, was organized with 
 a capital stock of $100,000. The works were 
 remodeled and enlarged, and the scope of bus- 
 iness considerably increased. The machine- 
 shop, which is two stories in height, covers an 
 
^ 
 
 CITY OF AKEON. 
 
 359 
 
 area of 52x150 feet, and is constructed of 
 brick, in the most thorough manner. The 
 foundr}' building is one stor}-, of wood, 60x100 
 feet in size. The storehouse is a two-story 
 wooden structure, 40x90, and the smith-shop 
 of one stor}', 20x40. These buildings are all 
 thoroughly equipped and supplied with the 
 most approved styles of machinery for carr}'- 
 ing on the extensive business of the company, 
 in its varied departments and ramifications. 
 One fort3'-five horse-power engine furnishes the 
 motive power required. The compan}' manu- 
 facture ever}^ description of gearing and pul- 
 le3's, mining and milling machinery' (these two 
 latter being leading articles of manufacture by 
 this house), ix)ttery machiner}', brass castings 
 of every description, steam and water pipe fit- 
 tings, and other articles pertaining to this line. 
 They make a specialty of furnishing engines 
 constructed and fitted up with special reference 
 to simplicity of mechanism, durabilit}- and 
 freedom from derangement, regularity of speed, 
 economy of fuel, and the largest amount of 
 power. 
 
 The trade of this house extends all over the 
 West, particularly throughout the States of 
 Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, etc. 
 
 The manufacture of boilers of every descrip- 
 tion, and heavy sheet and boiler iron work, is 
 extensivel}' carried on by J. C. McNeil, at the 
 Akron Boiler Works, on South Broadway, di- 
 rectly opposite the Buckeye Works. This bus- 
 iness was established in January, 1866, by the 
 present proprietor. The main building covers 
 an area of 40x75 feet, and is supplied with the 
 latest improved machinery and devices for car- 
 r3ing on this extensive business. The sheds 
 adjoining the main works cover an equal space, 
 and are used for storage, and for the heavier 
 work. One ten-horse-power engine and boiler 
 furnishes the motive power required, and 
 twenty skilled and experienced workmen are, 
 on an average, emplo^^ed at this establishment. 
 Mr. McNeil manufactures every description of 
 ordinary boilers, making a specialty of heavy 
 sheet and boiler iron work. His repairing de- 
 partment is in charge of competent and expe- 
 rienced workmen, and is made a prominent 
 feature of his steadily increasing business. 
 The Akron Boiler Works are thoroughl}' 
 equipped in every particular, and will compare 
 favorably' with any similar establishment in the 
 West. 
 
 Almost every manufacturing establishment 
 in the cit}^ of Akron use and testify to the su- 
 periority' of his boilers. He also makes a 
 specialty' of steam heating " magazine " boilers 
 for public and private buildings. The new 
 buildings measure 66x100 feet, and the ship- 
 ping facilities are as good as those of any 
 manufacturing establishment in the city, being- 
 located immediately on the New York, Penn- 
 s^dvania & Ohio and Cleveland, Mt. Vernon & 
 Columbus Railroads, thus alfording the great- 
 est facilities for loading and shipping the prod- 
 uct to any part of the countr}'. 
 
 There are two creditable upholstering estab- 
 lishments in Akron, where are manufactured 
 everything in the line of upholstered stock, es- 
 specially lounges and mattresses. The first is 
 the house of Klinger & Dodge, originally 
 Klinger & Grintz. Their place of business is at 
 126 Howard street. The other manufactory is 
 that of K. Gintz, 114 Mill street, which was 
 opened in 1880. The work at both these estab- 
 lishments is done in the best manner, and sold 
 at reasonable prices. 
 
 Edam & Johnson, manufacturers of commer- 
 cial fertilizers and best quality of Kelly Island 
 White Lime, have their works at the corner of 
 Cedar and William streets. George Edam be- 
 gan the business in 1877, and Charles N. John- 
 son pui'chased an interest in January, 1880. 
 Their establishment is a large one ; they burn 
 about forty tons of lime in twenty-four hours, 
 and grind twenty tons of fertilizers in the same 
 length of time. Their new buildings are 40x60 
 feet ; the old ones nearly the same dimensions. 
 Their engine room is 25 feet square. They 
 furnish ground limestone, land-plaster, pure 
 bonedust, white lime, plastering hair, calcined 
 plaster and cement. 
 
 The Akron Straw Board Company are located 
 in the Sixth Ward, Middlebury. Their works 
 were established in 1873, by the present pro- 
 prietors, J. F. Seiberling and M. Seiberling. 
 Since that time their business has steadily in- 
 creased, until it has now reached the handsome 
 aggregate of $75,000 to $100,000 per annum. 
 The works consist of three two-story buiUlings, 
 one being 30x100 feet in size, one 40x85 feet. 
 and one 40x60. These buildings are supplied 
 with the most approved styles of machinery 
 manufactured expressly for this line of business, 
 and on which numerous improvements have 
 been made by the members of the firm. The 
 
 '9 . 
 
Jkl 
 
 360 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 mills are in every respect thoroughly equipped, 
 and for general appointments and capacity will 
 compare favorably with any similar establish- 
 ment in the United States. The products of 
 these works, which consist principally of a 
 superior quality of steam-dried straw board, in 
 numbers ranging from thirty-five to one hun- 
 dred and fifty, are used for a variety of pur- 
 poses, and meet with a ready' sale in the Phila- 
 delphia, New York and Boston markets, where 
 this trade is principally located. The capacity 
 of the mills is at present from eight to ten tons 
 of finished board per day, the demand for which 
 is fully equal to the supply. 
 
 The firm of May & Fieberger are .successors 
 to Cramer & May in the manufacture of gal- 
 vanized iron cornice, window caps and other 
 work. They are located at 114 North Howard 
 street, and do a large and successful busi- 
 ness. 
 
 Caoutchouc, or, as it is commonly called, India 
 rubber, has within the last twenty-five or thirty 
 years become a very important article of com- 
 merce and industry. It is procured from the 
 creamy exudations of several plants, and is 
 found in abundance in a number of tropical 
 countries, the principal sources of supply being 
 Para, Java, Penang, Singapore, Assam and 
 Central America. The best quality of rubber 
 comes from Para, though much of the Central 
 American product is in quality nearly equal 
 to it. 
 
 The India rubber tree is a beautiful specimen 
 of the vegetable kingdom, being very tall and 
 straight, with smooth bark, and measuring in 
 many cases eighteen inches through at the base. 
 In these trees small longitudinal gashes are cut, 
 from which flows a white sap, of about the con- 
 sistenc}' of cream, which is conveyed through 
 an earthen spout to a trough placed beneath. 
 The curing process is performed by means of a 
 fire made from the nuts of the Urucury palm, 
 the smoke of which has the peculiar propert}- 
 of solidifying and curing the rubber in a ver}' 
 thorough manner. The workman dips a wood- 
 en paddle in the creamy fluid, turing it quickly 
 in order to separate the sap as much as possi- 
 ble, then passes it repeatedly through the 
 smoke, until the substance assumes a grayish 
 yellow color and becomes solidified. After the 
 rubber has accumulated to a thickness of about 
 two inches on each side of the paddle, it is cut 
 open on one side, peeled from the tool, and 
 
 hung up to dry out the water that accumulates 
 between the layers. 
 
 The color of the cured rubber is a light 
 yellow, but it gradually changes until with age 
 it takes on the dark brown so familiar in the 
 rubber of commerce. 
 
 An eflJbrt is being made, aided by the Brazil- 
 ian Govei'nment, to systematize the cultivation 
 of India rubber, and this, if successful, must 
 largely^ increase the production beyond the re- 
 quirements of manufacturers, thus decreasing 
 the cost of the raw material, as also of the 
 finished product. 
 
 The chemical properties of India rubber are 
 somewhat remarkable, inasmuch as, unlike all 
 other solid vegetable products, it contains no 
 oxygen, the constituents, according to Dr. Ures' 
 analysis, being 90 per cent carbon and 10 per 
 cent hydrogen. It is quite insoluble in alcohol, 
 but in ether, derived from alcohol by washing 
 with water, it readily dissolves and affords a col- 
 orless solution. When the ether is evaporated, 
 the rubber becomes again solid. When treated 
 with hot naptha distilled from native petrole- 
 um, or from coal tar, it swells to thirty times its 
 former bulk, and if triturated with a pestle and 
 pressed through a sieve it atfords a varnish. 
 
 The present skilled stage in the manufacture 
 of India rubber has only been reached after 
 years of patient labor. To get two pieces of 
 clean rubber to unite firmly together, at their 
 recently cut surface ; to obtain fagile adhesion 
 by the use of hot water ; to cut the rubber by 
 the use of a wet blade ; to collect the refuse 
 pieces, make them up into blocks, and then cut 
 the blocks into slices, required years of time, 
 the greatest patience and ingenious machinery 
 to effect. Mackintosh, Hancock and Groodj'ear 
 alike record the simple manipulations they first 
 employed, and the impression produced at last 
 when they compare their individual efforts with 
 the gigantic and complex machinery now used 
 to secure the same result. 
 
 Of all the wonderful changes affected by 
 chance, observation or chemical experiment of 
 late years, few have been so important as the 
 change in India rubber by the process called 
 vulcanizing, which was discovered and patented 
 by Charles Goodyear, of New York. The union 
 of sulphur with rubber, to give new properties 
 so valuable that it may be said the prior well- 
 known (piality of elasticity is now rendered so 
 variable that almostevery range, from the most 
 
(^(f-//. 
 
 (^'YT.^ 
 
fe* 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 361 
 
 delicate tenuity to the hardness of metals, is 
 obtained at will by the manufacturer. 
 
 India rubber, until the time of Goodyear's 
 invention, had been greatly restricted in use 
 owing to the fact of its being entirely unfitted 
 for man}' purposes ; but now, with extraor- 
 dinary impetus, the ingenuity of manufactur- 
 ers was employed in producing an immense 
 variety of articles, which were constantly de- 
 manded by the ever augmenting utility of 
 vulcanized rubber in the arts and in mechan- 
 ical construction. This invention, judged by 
 its great usefulness to societ}', deserves lo rank 
 among the leading discoveries of the nine- 
 teenth century. 
 
 There are thi'ee different and distinct classes 
 of manufacturers of rubber goods, viz., those 
 manufacturing belting, hose, packing, springs, 
 wringer rolls, tubing — in short, goods used for 
 mechanical purposes ; those making boots and 
 shoes and clothing, and those producing the 
 thousand and one small articles of utility and 
 ornament which are ever increasing in variety. 
 
 There is but one factory in Akron of rubber 
 goods, but this one produces all articles made 
 of caoutchouc adapted to mechanical purposes. 
 This is the Akron Rubber Works, located at 
 111 Factor}' street. These works were estab- 
 lished in 1869. The resources and trade of 
 this concern have more than kept pace with 
 the general prosperity of Akron. The capital 
 employed is $75,000, and the annual trade 
 reaches $300,000. The buildings occupied by 
 these works consist of a main building, 120x60 
 feet (three stories), an additional back building 
 of 80 feet in length, and a stock-room of 50 
 feet in length, all built of brick. The parties 
 composing tlie firm are B. F. Goodrich, H. F. 
 Wheeler and B. T. Morgan. The trade of 
 these works extends over various States be- 
 sides our own, and their products, among 
 which may be found belting from 2-inch to 24- 
 inch in width, 2 3 and 4 ply, steam packing 
 for making steam-tight joints, standard hose 
 of all kinds and for all purposes, which are 
 unsurpassed, many of the processes used being 
 of their own invention and the result of man}- 
 years' experience. Hose for fire department 
 service, springs, grain drill tubes, wringer rolls, 
 billiard-table cushions, and, in fact, all articles 
 made of rubber adapted to mechanical pur- 
 poses. 
 
 The Akron Paper Company, the proprietors 
 
 ot which are Thomas Phillips & Co., have a 
 fine brick mill, 100 feet square, with two 
 floors, containing a full equipment of improved 
 machinery, which is propelled by two steam- 
 engines of respectively 80 and 18 horse power. 
 They make a specialty of manilla flour-sack 
 paper, turning out, on the average, 2 tons 
 every 24 hours, and consuming 3^ tons of old 
 rope per diem. The number of hands em- 
 ployed is 70 ; annual product, between 600 and 
 700 tons of paper, worth in the neighborhood 
 of $160,000. 
 
 Besides a very large local demand by the 
 millers of this city, the Akron Paper Company 
 have considerable trade with the millers west 
 to Chicago and St. Louis, and some Southern 
 custom ; the aggregate demand being fully 
 equal to the full producing capacity of their 
 mill. 
 
 The business was inaugurated in 1872 by 
 Thomas Phillips (deceased in 1878), and it was 
 through his eflbrts that the enterprise was 
 made a success. 
 
 Merrill & Ewart manufacture, on Brook 
 street, Merrill's patent vitrified diamond roof- 
 ing tile. This firm commenced the manu- 
 facture of this tile in Akron in 1875. The 
 works consist of a two-stor}^ brick, 64x32 feet 
 in size, with a wing 24x48, and were erected 
 by the firm at a co.st of $10,000. One 40- 
 horse-power engine is used in driving the 
 machinery, which consists in the main of a 
 clay mill, clay packer and tile presser. The 
 trade extends through Ohio, Pennsj'lvania and 
 the Eastern States generally. The house has 
 an agency in New York City, Boston and Phil- 
 adelphia. The sizes of tile made by this con- 
 cern are 14x8^ inches and 6x10 inches, and 
 require 250 and 500 respectively to the square. 
 This firm also manufacture a superior quality 
 of drain tile. 
 
 The business of D. A. James, designer and 
 manufacturer of fine wood work, was inaugu- 
 rated by him in 1875, on Main street, between 
 Market & Mill, and was removed to the present 
 location, 218 West Market street, in 1876. W. 
 P. DeLand was admitted to partnership May 1, 
 1879, when the firm assumed the above title. 
 The partnership continued one year, when Mr. 
 DeLand retired. Mr. James makes fine office 
 and church furniture from architects' or their 
 own designs. All their work in this line is 
 executed in a highly artistic and workmanlike 
 
 
 1^" 
 
362 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 manner, from the best selected materials. He 
 makes a specialty of ornate picture and mirror 
 frames and room cornices, from unique and 
 original designs, with the most elaborate and 
 artistic finish. He produces special designs to 
 order, which ai-e never duplicated except by 
 permission. This superb art work is executed 
 in precious natural woods, some of them very 
 rare, including Hungarian ash, English oak, 
 burr oak, chestnut, white holly, ebon}', African 
 amboine, bird's-eye maple, silver-gray maple, 
 thu3'a and tulip woods. Making a constant 
 study of this special line of manufacture, and 
 exercising cultured taste and skill in its perfect 
 development, these gentlemen have met with 
 marked success in their sedulous efforts to 
 please their numerous patrons. He likewise 
 pays special attention to wood decorations for 
 dwellings, such as window and door casings, 
 etc., in natural woods susceptible of rich carv- 
 ing and high finish. 
 
 The Akron Varnish Works, of which Kuliler 
 & Beck are the proprietors, were established in 
 Akron by E. Gr. Kubler, who, after many years 
 of practical scientific experience in some of 
 the largest manufactories of varnishes and 
 japans in the East, concluded to " go West." 
 He found Akron to be an advantageous point 
 for manufacturing and shipping, and the de- 
 cision to locate here proved to be a wise one. 
 
 Mr. Kubler is a thoroughl)' skilled chemist, 
 possessing intimate knowledge of all its de- 
 tails, and enjoys the prestige of careful busi- 
 ness training, ripe experience and uprightness 
 in all his dealings. With this ample fortifica- 
 tion, he has constituted it his strong point to 
 manufacture none but the purest and best 
 goods. After patient experimenting, he has 
 brought the production of black baking japan 
 to such perfection that even his competitors 
 acknowledge the fact that it is unsurpassed in 
 quality and durability. 
 
 Owing to the constant growth of the busi- 
 ness thus established on a firm foundation, it 
 was found necessary to enlarge the facilities for 
 manufacturing, and a copartnership was formed 
 under the style of the Akron Varnish Works, 
 Kubler & Beck, proprietors. Mr. Beck is also 
 a gentleman of fine business ability, and has 
 acquired a practical knowledge of producing 
 processes in this line. Their goods are sold all 
 over the United States to the largest manufact- 
 urers of every description who have occasion 
 
 to use varnishes. Their old works are located 
 on Bowery street ; their new works on South 
 Main street. 
 
 Lager beer, in its use among Americans, is 
 fast superseding whisky. The perfection to 
 which its manufacture is brought in Akron is 
 due in a great measui'e to F. Horix, who carries 
 on a brewery on North Forge street. Mr. 
 Horix came to Akron in 1868, and, soon after 
 his arrival here, entered upon the brewery 
 business, and has continued in it to the present 
 time. His first start was in a small building 
 which he erected on Exchange street. The 
 buildings which he now occupies consist of the 
 brewery proper, a three-story structure of stone 
 and brick, 68x92 feet, a wai-ehouse of brick, 14x 
 14 feet, and an ice-house 30x80 feet. The cellar 
 used for cooling purposes is beneath the brewery, 
 inclosed by stone, and is 68x90 feet. The 
 arrangement of these buildings is most per- 
 fectly adapted to the business. These build- 
 ings were erected in 1873 by F. Overholtz. 
 The premises, with all impi'ovements, were pur- 
 chased by Mr. Horix March 1, 1879, and imme- 
 diately taken possession of by him. The 
 capacity of this establishment is 20,000 barrels 
 per annum. Excellent lager beer is also manu- 
 factured by the Wolf Ledge Ale and Lager 
 Beer Brewery, at 154 Sherman street, by Will- 
 iam Burkhardt, proprietor. 
 
 At 210 Cherry street, west of the Brick 
 Mill, are manufactured the " Celebrated Cahow 
 Pumps," by H. J. Cahow. He makes deep- 
 well pumps a speciality. His work includes a 
 great variety of force, suction and chain pumps. 
 He also manufactures water pipe. Mr. Cahow 
 does an extensive business in his line. 
 
 The city of Akron is not only famous far 
 and wide for the superiority of the sewer pipe 
 and stoneware made within her limits, but like- 
 wise for the excellence of the fire brick here 
 produced. 
 
 For a series of years J. Park Alexander, 
 proprietor of the Diamond Fire Brick Works, 
 made a careful, erudite studj^ of the subject of 
 making first-class fire brick, expending many 
 thousands of dollars in his laudable endeavors 
 to bring about the consummation he so desired 
 to achieve, and being ultimately rewarded with 
 signal success. 
 
 Mr. Alexander commenced the manufacture 
 of fire brick in 1866 — the first one to start in 
 this business in Northern Ohio, if not in the 
 
 \^ a 
 

 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 3G3 
 
 entire State. His previous large experience in 
 tlie production of stoneware from the chemi- 
 cally peculiar clays of this region, with very 
 satisfactory results, led him to experiment 
 therewith in the making of fire or furnace 
 brick. It was soon demonstrated, however, 
 that only a low-grade brick, suitable for ordi- 
 nary heating apparatus, could be made from it. 
 In no wise disheartened at the comparative 
 failure, he subsequently made a thorough test 
 of the best clays from New Jersey, Penn.sylva- 
 nia and elsewhei'e, laying under contribution, as 
 it were, the divers aluminous deposits of the 
 whole country, but still without the successful 
 outcome aimed at. Though baffled, he contin- 
 ued to persevere in his research after the cov- 
 eted secret, ever keeping in view the adage that 
 " persistency wins the day " at last. 
 
 In 1870, or thereabouts, Mr. Alexander inau- 
 gurated a series of experiments with the sili- 
 ceous pebbles found in abundance in the con- 
 glomerate rock formation near the western cor- 
 poration line of Akron, feeling assured that 
 therein he had the material for the production 
 of an infusible and non-shrinkable brick. After 
 long and patient study and experimenting with 
 silica and alumina, and a large pecuniary out- 
 lay, he succeeded in discovering a process 
 whereby fire brick of unequaled qualit}' and 
 durability could be made from silica alone. He 
 made application for letters-patent on his new 
 process, which were duly granted. 
 
 The material alluded to was analyzed by 
 Prof Cassell, and found to contain 98.75 per 
 cent of pure silica — an extraordinary propor- 
 tion — and affording an advantage not enjoyed 
 by other localities. Mr. Alexander has availed 
 himself of tliis, and for about three years past 
 has made the silica fire brick, known as the 
 "Diamond" brand. 
 
 The manufactor3- of Allison & Hart is on 
 Bank street. Sixth Ward. This firm manufact- 
 ures fire brick also on a large scale ; they 
 also make stove and furnace linings, and ground 
 fire clay for laying fire brick. 
 
 The uncommonly fine plastic clays of Summit 
 County, rich in alumina, and practically inex- 
 haustible in extent of deposit, formed the basis 
 for the early inception of pottery manufacture 
 in Akron. It was started hei'e on a somewhat 
 extensive scale, when the town had but a few 
 hundred inhabitants, it being the first mechan- 
 ical industr}' of importance established here. 
 
 From the date of its introduction, about 1830, 
 it gradually grew in volume up to the year 
 1852, the surrounding country being supplied 
 with brown, yellow and stone ware from this 
 point. Up to the period mentioned^ the means 
 of transportation were restricted to wagon con- 
 veyance and the Ohio Canal, and, consequently, 
 the commercially tributary area was limited. 
 
 In 1852, however, when the Atlantic & Great 
 Western Railway was opened to Akron, the 
 business gained a fresh impetus, and has steadily 
 increased in volume ever since. 
 
 The fame of Akron stoneware has extended 
 pretty much all over the country, and it ma}- be 
 qualifiedly affirmed that it is the onl}- real stone- 
 ware made on the continent. The peculiar fire 
 qualities of the cla}' found here are such that 
 the ware made therefrom is capable of standing 
 any degree of heat to which it may be sub- 
 jected ; neither fire nor hot water will aflTect it 
 injuriously-. Hence, it may be used the same 
 as iron vessels for culinary purposes. On the 
 contrar}', the so-called stoneware made in New 
 Jersey and elsewhere, from the friable cla}- of 
 other sections, must be '• handled with care," 
 and can only be preserved from fracture In* keep- 
 ing it at a safe distance from caloric infiuence. 
 
 By reason of this fact, Akron stoneware has 
 justly achieved a wide reputation, and the de- 
 mand therefor is rapidly extending. It is now 
 being shipped largely to all parts of the West 
 and Northwest (Chicago being one of the prin- 
 cipal distributing points), to the South, to the 
 interior of Pennsylvania, and latterh^, consider- 
 able orders for this excellent ware have come 
 from Philadelphia, New York, Boston and other 
 Eastern cities. 
 
 The business of Whitmore, Robinsons & Co., 
 was established in a comparatively small wa3-, 
 in 1857, by a number of practical potters, under 
 the style of Johnson, Whitmore & Co. They 
 commenced with one kiln, and their whole area 
 for working consisted of about a quarter of an 
 acre of land, situate on the south side of Market 
 street, Middlebury, now the Sixth Ward of 
 Akron, where they set to work making yellow- 
 ware, then a new manufacture in this section. For- 
 tune favoi'ed them, and their business prospered. 
 
 In January, 18(12, 'Slv. Johnson retired, and 
 in the following April, James B. Manton be- 
 came a member of the firm, whereupon the style 
 changed to Wliitmore, Robinsons & Co.. con- 
 sisting of Richard Whitmore. Thomas Robinson, 
 
 f 
 
364 
 
 HISTOEY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 William Robinson and James B. Manton. In 
 1866, Henry Robinson was taken into the co- 
 partnership. From time to time, commodious 
 additions were made to their works, thus in- 
 creasing their producing capacity', until they 
 had the satisfaction of knowing that theirs was 
 the most extensive and complete stoneware 
 pottery in the world. They run six mills, oper- 
 ated by three steam engines, with a total of 175- 
 horse-power. 
 
 While this company make stoneware their 
 principal manufacture, they also produce all 
 kinds of yellow and Rockingham ware. In this 
 department, they have two up-draft kilns, which 
 are run to their full capacity. 
 
 The buildings of this immense concern have 
 the following dimensions : Main building, of 
 brick (stoneware department), 177x50 feet, three 
 stories ; kiln sheds and engine houses attached, 
 177x50 feet, one stor^' ; yellow ware warehouse, 
 of brick, 80x34 feet, three stories, with wing 
 20x30 feet ; yellow and Rockingham ware fac- 
 tory, of stone, 70x36 feet, three stories ; stone- 
 ware factory, of stone, 180x36 feet, two stories ; 
 slipware shop, of brick, 50x40 feet, two stories ; 
 dipping-house and green-house, frame, 100x30 
 feet, two stories ; other small buildings for va- 
 rious uses, about half an acre of area. The 
 aggregate floor surface of these works is 97,660 
 square feet, or about two and a quarter acres. 
 
 They ship their goods principally to the 
 West, and Southwest as far as Texas, while 
 the}' also have a growing Eastern trade. 
 
 The Akron Pottery, owned and carried on by 
 E. H. Merrill & Co., was established in 1861. 
 They do a large and prosperous business in the 
 manufacture of beer and ink bottles, pump 
 cylinders and all styles of stone tobacco pipes. 
 They manufacture a variety of novelties in stone- 
 ware, which are the invention of the proprietors, 
 and they have also made many improvements 
 in machinery, especially applicable to this 
 branch of business, among which we may men- 
 tion a bottle machine and a pipe machine, con- 
 structed on new and improved principles. They 
 have also invented an improvement in clay 
 mills, which greatly facilitates the manufacture 
 of their specialties. The buildings occupied by 
 this firm consist of one three-story structure, 
 30x60 feet in size, and one-story building, 
 70x100 feet, equipped with all the necessary 
 machinery and implements required in this 
 branch of industry, with an engine and boiler 
 
 40-horse-power. Their place of business is at 
 404 South Main street. 
 
 Meyres & Hall manufacture Ohio stoneware, 
 having their office and warehouse near the depot 
 of the New York, Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad. 
 Their works, although located in another town, 
 may appropriately be classed among the indus- 
 tries of Akron. The business was established 
 in 1864, by S. L. Stall & Co., at Mogadore, and 
 passed into the hands of the present proprietors 
 in 1873. The}' manufacture a superior grade 
 of goods, widely known as " Ohio Stoneware," 
 consisting in part of churns, butter, pickle and 
 snufF-jars, milk pans, jugs, water fountains, fruit, 
 preserve and cream-jars, bean pots, stove tubes, 
 etc. The office and warerooms of the firm are 
 located near the union depot, Akron, and the 
 potteries at Mogadore. These consist of one 
 building, 60x40 feet, with an L-shaped addition, 
 40x50 feet ; another building, 40x50 feet, and 
 numerous smaller structures, sheds, etc. These 
 are supplied with all the necessary machinery' 
 and appliances, operated by one 20-horse-power 
 engine and boiler, which serves to turn the 
 lathes and to heat the buildings. All the ma- 
 chinery is of the most perfect construction, es- 
 peciall}' adapted to this line of business. 
 
 Stoneware is manufactured by F. J. Knapp, 
 wholesale dealer, east of Fountain street. He 
 and his father began business at that point 
 many years ago. The present buildings were 
 erected by them. Mr. Knapp purchases his 
 cla}' in Springfield. He has two kilns. His 
 works have a capacity of 14,000 gallons a week. 
 His motive power is furnished by a steam en- 
 gine of thirty-horse-power. 
 
 At 115, 117 and 119 Fountain street, are the 
 pottery works of Whitsel, Gibbs & Co., man- 
 ufacturers and wholesale dealers in Ohio stone- 
 ware. Their buildings were erected over twenty 
 years ago by F. J. Knapp and his father, who 
 afterward sold to Beecher & Lantz. The latter 
 ran the works one year and sold them to Peter 
 Bodenbohl, who disposed of them to Shenkle 
 Brothers & Mann. This firm conducted the 
 business until last year, when the works were 
 purchased by the present proprietors. The 
 capacity of the establishment is 15,000 gal- 
 lons a week. There are three kilns. Their 
 trade goes West, largely. 
 
 Next to the works of Whitmore. Robinsons & 
 Co., those of the Akron Stoneware Company, 
 on Bank street, Sixth Ward, are the largest in 
 
 ^1 
 
 S) 
 
-^ 
 
 CITY or AKRON. 
 
 365 
 
 Akron. This is an incorporated company, or- 
 ganized May 1, 1879, vvitla a capital of $60,000. 
 Joseph Cook, President ; R. H. Kent, Secretary 
 and Treasurer ; David A. Butler, General Agent. 
 This company manufactures every variet}' of 
 standard Akron stoneware. Their works are 
 large and their trade extensive. 
 
 Johnson & Baldwin occupy the works first 
 started by Johnson & Dewey as a redware 
 manufactory, on the coi'uer of 3Iarket and High 
 streets. Sixth Ward. The proprietors are 
 Thomas Johnson and Harve}- Baldwin. Their 
 works have a capacity of 15,000 gallons a 
 week. They have two down-draft kilns. Their 
 entire trade is disposed of to Quigle3' Brothers, 
 of Akron, wholesale dealers in stoneware. The 
 latter have an office at 215 High street, Sixth 
 Ward, also one near the depot of the New 
 York, Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad. 
 
 Jones, Waite & Co. carry on the manufacture 
 of stoneware on River street, Sixth Ward ; 
 William Rowley on the same street ; Cook & 
 Fairbanks on South High sti-eet ; and Viall & 
 Markle on East Market street, same ward. 
 These works are all extensive and their trade 
 widely extended. 
 
 Akron has three broom factories ; that of 
 Bachtel & Pontius was established in 1870. 
 This firm, of whom the members are A. C. 
 Bachtel and N. Pontius, manufacture in large 
 quantities every variety of the best brooms, at 
 125 Carroll street. Their broom-corn is brought 
 from Illinois ; their handles from Columbus, 
 Ohio ; their wire from Cuyahoga Falls ; and 
 their twine from New York City. The shop of 
 H. B. Cross, who also manufactures brooms, is 
 at Lock No. 1, Ohio Canal ; that of Mr. Hardy 
 is on Mill street. 
 
 The Akron Malleable Iron Works are located 
 on East Water street. Sixth Ward, Hope & 
 Greer proprietors. W. Foster Hope, Business 
 Manager ; John F. Greer, Superintendent. This 
 firm manufacture malleable iron castings, 
 nickel-plated castings, models for patents, and 
 gray iron castings of every description. 
 
 Lepper & Sackett make Bohemian or hulless 
 oat-meal at their Bohemian Oat-Meal Mills, on 
 Water street. Sixth Ward. Their goods are 
 sent to various parts of the country. 
 
 In addition to the industries already noticed, 
 there are a number in Akron helping to swell 
 the aggregate, each one of which is of impor- 
 tance : Louis Cohn's Awning Manufactory is lo- 
 
 cated in the Phoenix Block, South Howard street. 
 N. 0. Freer, makes, at 176, same street, furnaces 
 for heating and ventilating buildings. He 
 began his business first on Mill street, in 1876, 
 and moving to his present rooms in 1878. G. 
 W. McNeil & Sons manufacture stone grain 
 scourers and polishers on South High street. 
 George W. McNeil, Jr., makes, at the same 
 place, the Acme Wheat Steamer. M. Shouler 
 manufactures soda water, ginger ale and Seltzer 
 water, at the Akron City Bottling Works, 834 
 Bowery street. At 240 Mill street, R. L. & A. 
 Andrew make window shades. The}' have been 
 established in the business since 1876. Nahum 
 Fa}', at 926 East Market street, manufactures 
 cordage. John J. Grether makes soap and can- 
 dles, at 717 South Broadwa3^ He established 
 the candle business in Akron in 1852, adding 
 soap manufacture some years subsequent. 
 Adam Beck also manufactures soap near the 
 fair grounds. Walter Andrews makes candies 
 at the Akron Steam Candy Works, selling them 
 at wholesale only. J. Bergdorf is engaged in 
 the manufacture of baskets on Cuyahoga street. 
 
 A summary of the manufacturing interests of 
 Akron is as follows : Capital invested, $6,127,- 
 250 ; hands employed, 4,163 ; total value of 
 materials consumed, $4,606,774 ; total annual 
 production, $9,313,451. 
 
 Number of establishments that turn out a 
 product annually of $1,000,000 or over, 2 ; 
 $900,000 or over annually, 1 ; $250,000 and less 
 than $900,000 annually, 7 ; $100,000 and less 
 than $250,000 annually, 7 ; $50,000 and less 
 than $100,000 annually, 11 ; $25,000 and less 
 than $50,000 annually, 18 ; $10,000 and less 
 than $25,000 annually, 34. 
 
 It may be said, therefore, with truth, that the 
 crowning glory of Akron is her manufactories. 
 It has been shown that a number of them are 
 among the largest and most successful of their 
 kind in the United States, giving them almost 
 the control of the market for the particular 
 commodities manufactured. The history of 
 most of them shows a gradual development 
 from small beginnings. Not all, of course, have 
 been alike successful ; but, the rule has been, 
 to which there have been but few exceptions, 
 that every industry persevered in and conducted 
 on strictly business principles in Akron, has, in 
 the end, proved a success. There really seems 
 no limit to the increase of the manufacturing 
 interests of this thriving city. 
 
 
(2 »i>-. 
 
 IE 
 
 366 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 CHAPTER X.* 
 
 (ITV OF AKRON— ITS EAULV CHRISTIANITY— FORMATION OF CHURCHES— HUILDING OF CHURCH 
 EDIFICES- RFLKilON AT THE PRESENT DAY- SUNDAY SCHOOLS, ETC. 
 
 "Magna est Veritas, ct prevalebit.'" 
 rr^HE church history of Akron dates back 
 J_ almost to the dawn of its existence as a 
 town or settlement. The great truths of re- 
 ligion make their appeals to man, whatever 
 may be his circumstances or surroundings. If 
 there has ever been a church-going habit ; if 
 the Sabbath has ever found recognition from 
 him ; and truth and love to God predominated 
 in his heart ; then, when deprived of the oppor- 
 tunities of going to church, this religious nature 
 will make its appeals with the recurrence of 
 the seventh day, demanding that he should 
 rest, or by some means recognize the day set 
 apart for rest, by special command. This de- 
 mand, or religious influence, is early felt in 
 pioneer life ; and, because the opportunities for 
 church-going are few, they are, therefore, the 
 more highly prized. In a very early period in 
 the histor}' of the town, religious societies were 
 formed, and churches established, as will be 
 gathered from a perusal of the sketches follow- 
 ing of the different religious denominations 
 having organized churches within the city 
 limits. These sketches have been written, 
 either by the Pastor or some leading member 
 of their congregations, and are as full and com- 
 plete as our limited space will allow, and are 
 given without comment. 
 
 The First Methodist Episcopal Church of 
 Akron comes first in the order of formation, 
 and dates its organization back to 1830. The 
 following historical sketch of it was furnished 
 for this work by Mr. Jacob Snyder, and will be 
 found of interest to its members : With the 
 characteristic zeal of the Methodist Episcopal 
 societies of the world, that of the First Method- 
 ist Episcopal Church, Akron. Ohio, secured a 
 location in this cit}^ when it was but a 3'oung 
 village. The society was organized in about 
 1830. and by the Rev. John Janes, of the North 
 Ohio Conference, of the territory- of which the 
 then village of Akron formed a part. In about 
 the same jear of the organization of the so- 
 
 * E.!ited by W. H. Perrin. 
 
 ciety, the erection of a church edifice was com- 
 menced, which was an unpretentious wooden 
 structure of 40x60 feet, located directly in 
 front of the present one, and fronting toward 
 the West. It was destroyed by fire in jNIarcli, 
 1841, and upon its foundation another of like 
 design was immediately built. In 1836, this 
 city was taken within the bounds and placed 
 under the control of the Erie Conference, when 
 Revs. Thomas Carr and John L. Holmes were 
 appointed to serve the society. In 1837, the 
 appointees were Daniel M. Stearnes and Thomas 
 Graham ; in 1838, Horatio N. Stearnes ; in 
 
 1839, John Robinson and Caleb Brown ; in 
 
 1840, John Robinson continued, and Benjamin 
 K. Maltby ; in 1841, Ira Eddy and John Wood ; 
 in 1842, Timothy Goodwin' M. D. ; in 1843, 
 William H. Hunter ; and in 1844-45, Edwin J. 
 Kinney. 
 
 The busy throng in practical life is apt to be 
 absorbed onl}' b}' what the present forces upon 
 it ; yet there is now and then one, who, some- 
 what more far-sighted, overleaps the general 
 boundar}', and invites to remembi'ance the men 
 and the deeds of the past. Such was Rev. 
 Samuel Gregg, who was appointed to this sta- 
 tion in 1846, and who was the author of "The 
 History of Methodism in the Erie Conference," 
 in two volumes, which we have taken the lib- 
 erty to use in preparing these historical sketches. 
 In 1847, James R. Locke was the appointee to 
 the station ; in 1848, Martin C. Briggs ; in 
 1849, Reuben J. Edwards ; in 1850-51, Ezra 
 Jones ; in 1852-53, John Tribby : in 1854, Gay- 
 lord B. Hawkins ; in 1855-56, William F. Day ; 
 in 1857-58, George W. Clark; in 1859, Thomas 
 Stubbs, and in 1860-61, John D. Norton. 
 
 With this last-mentioned pastorate, the time 
 had arrived when, to meet the increased wants 
 of the society, the old church must undergo 
 extension and reparation. The Pastor seeing 
 this necessity, urged upon the trustees its pos- 
 sible accomplishment, which resulted in revers- 
 ing its front, enlarging the building, and in 
 otherwise improving its several apartments, at 
 
l^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 367 
 
 a cost in all of about $3,500. In 1862-63, 
 John Peate was appointed to the charge ; in 
 1863, E. A. Johnson, and in 1865-67, D. C. 
 Osborne. It was during the latter's pastorate 
 in 1866 that the centennial of Methodism was 
 celebrated by the society in the old church, at 
 which time there was subscribed and paid about 
 $30,000, as a nucleus from which the present 
 edifice sprang. During this year and the early 
 part of the following one, the Centenary pict- 
 ure, now decorating the main Sunday-school 
 room was made, whose design embodies the 
 ideal of the then prospective departments, and 
 exhibits the members of the entire Sunday 
 school, as well as many of the congregation of 
 the old church, to the extent of between seven 
 and eight hundred photographic likenesses made 
 by G. W. Manly, Esq. 
 
 In the spring of 1867, ground was broken for 
 the present edifice, and by late autumn, the 
 foundation walls were elevated to about one- 
 half their designed height. The work was then 
 delayed in the winter, and again resumed in 
 the spring of 1868, and thence prosecuted to 
 the entire inclosing of the building by the 
 return of the next autumn. Another winter's 
 cessation from the work was followed by its 
 resumption in the spring of 1869, and the 
 completion of the Sunday-school and the lec- 
 ture-room apartments in April, 1870, when the 
 transition fi'om the old church to the present 
 one was made by the society and Sunday 
 school. On the 15th of this month, the finished 
 apartments of the first story, main building, 
 and the second story of the Sunday-school 
 rooms were formally dedicated by Dr. C. H. 
 Fowler, of Chicago, and Dr. J. H. Vincent, of 
 New York. At this time, W. F. Day, D. D., 
 had charge of the appointment, he having after 
 an interval of about twelve years been re-ap- 
 pointed thereto in 1868, and he continued in 
 the position until August, 1871. During the 
 last ten years previous to the occupancy of the 
 new edifice, the ratio of increase of member- 
 ship, both of church and Sunday school was 
 greater than of any previous decade of the 
 society's history. 
 
 In June, 1871, the work upon the audience- 
 room of the present church was resumed which 
 had been permitted to rest during the interval 
 of completing the other departments of the 
 chui'ch ; and in the January following, it was 
 completed and dedicated. Bishop Wiley and Dr. 
 
 B. I. Ives conducting the dedicatory exercises. 
 Both the main audience-room and the Sunday- 
 school apartments are considered models of 
 excellence, and, to an extent, even beyond a 
 State-wide reputation. 
 
 In 1871, W. W. Ramsay, of the Cincinnati 
 Conference, was transferred to the Erie, and 
 appointed to this charge, his term of service 
 ending in 1874, when Henry Baker became 
 his successor, and continued until 1877. In 
 the latter j'ear, I. A. Pierce became the ap- 
 pointee, and in 1878 W. W. Case, the present 
 incumbent was transferred from the Cincinnati 
 Conference to the East Ohio, and appointed to 
 the charge. The present membership of the 
 church is about eight hundred, and that of the 
 Sunday-school about seven hundred and fifty. 
 
 When the pews of the spacious audience- 
 room are well filled, their united capacity is 
 about one thousand sittings. When all of the 
 vacant places of the room are supplied with 
 extra means of seating, this capacity may be 
 increased to 1,500, and the possible capacity 
 by the availment of all of the standing room, 
 which probably has been the case in a few in- 
 stances, is 2,000. Both in the church and 
 Sunday school there seems to be a continually 
 growing interest upon the part of all connected 
 therewith. And it seems as if the Sunday- 
 school appointments especially were likely at 
 some not far distant day to become too strait- 
 ened to accommodate the growing attendance. 
 For here ma}^ be seen 
 
 " ' Fathers and mothers, brothers, sisters, friends," 
 And very little boys and girls — around, 
 Across, within the spacious sacred rooms, 
 'They walk, they sit, they stand,' what 
 Crowds press in !" 
 
 The church and Sunday school are both 
 greatly indebted to Mr. Lewis Miller for the 
 great proportions the}' have assumed since the 
 enterprise of the present church edifice was 
 commenced, he having both by an unusual 
 expenditure of time and money contributed 
 to the advancement of their interests. 
 
 The First Presbyterian Church of Middle- 
 bury (now the Sixth Ward of Akron) is one of 
 the early church organizations of this section. 
 The following sketch of it was written by Mrs. 
 Henry Robinson especially for this work : At 
 a meeting held in the schoolhouse in the village 
 of Middlebury, then Portage, now Summit 
 County, Thursday, December 15, 1831, the First 
 
 r^ 
 
368 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Presbyterian Church of Middlebury was organ- 
 ized by Kev. Benson C. Baldwin, assisted by 
 Rev. John D. Hughes, of Springfield. The fol- 
 lowing-named persons were then admitted to 
 membership : Jesse Neal and Nanc}', his wife ; 
 Dr. Titus Chapman, Richard Chapman, Mrs. 
 Eliza Chapman, Mrs. Sj'lvia Chapman, Woolsey 
 Welles, Mrs. Mary B. Welles, James Neal, 
 William F. Astroon, Harvey B. Spellman, Ed- 
 gar Chapman (only member now living). Miss 
 Sallie Allen, Miss Amanda Gillet, Miss Mary 
 A. Gillet, Miss Naomi Hickox, Miss Louisa 
 Neal, Miss Sophronia Neal, Miss Sophia Neal, 
 Miss Mary Erwin, Miss R. M. Jennison, Mrs. 
 Jane Bell, Mrs. Mary Ann Cotter, Mrs. Clarissa 
 Hickox, Mrs. Allen and Miss Emeline King. 
 The officers of the church were Woolsey Welles 
 aud Richard Chapman, Ruling Elders ; Jesse 
 Neal, Deacon. Rev. Benson C. Baldwin re- 
 mained a much-loved Pastor of this little 
 church until Sejrteraber 30, 1838. when he re- 
 moved to ^ledina. He was succeeded by Rev. 
 Almon Saunders, of Unionville, who commenced 
 his labors October 7, 1838, and continued with 
 the church for one year. In July, 1840, the 
 Rev. H. A. Sackett took charge, remaining 
 until the next January. During his labors 
 large numbers were added to the church. In 
 the fall of 1841, Rev. James Shaw was settled 
 as Pastor. The church was greatly blessed 
 during his pastorate, 109 members being added. 
 In the fall of 1845, on account of failing health, 
 he requested that his pastoral relations with the 
 church be dissolved. This good man passed 
 to his eternal rest in 1874 or 1875. 
 
 Soon after Mr. Shaw ceased his relations with 
 the church, a part of the members seceded. The 
 subject of slavery had for some time been agi- 
 tated, and a part of the church, on this account, 
 not being willing to retain their connection with 
 Presbytery, withdrew and formed a Congrega- 
 tional Church. From this time until the fall 
 of 1846, the pulpit was supplied by the aged 
 minister. Rev. William Hanford. In September 
 of that year, the Rev. Horace Foot was engaged 
 for one year, and in January, 1848, Rev. Elroy 
 Curtis was called, and labored as Pastor until 
 the spring of 1854, faithfully and efficiently. 
 In 1860, the slaver}' question, which had di- 
 vided the churches, being settled, they were 
 united, and formed an independent church, un- 
 der the charge of Rev. William Dempsey, who 
 remained until 1863. He died in 1864 at Me- 
 
 dina. The church then hired Rev. Mr. Hicks, 
 who remained for three years, and was suc- 
 ceeded by Rev. John G. Hall. He remained 
 three 3'ears, and in May, 1871, Rev. Henrj- 
 Aver}' came, remaining until May, 1874 ; Rev. 
 Carlos Smith then officiated for three months. 
 
 This brings us to the period in the history of 
 the church, when it again connected itself with 
 the Presbytery. This was accomplished through 
 the earnest efforts of Mr. Ambrose L. Cotter, 
 who has been connected with it for forty-six 
 years having become a member in 1835. He 
 has alwa^'s been an earnest and zealous worker 
 in the cause of Christ, and, though now past 
 his fourscore j^ears, his enthusiasm kindles at 
 the very mention of the church. The next min- 
 ister in charge was Rev. C. E. Barnes, who 
 came in October, 1874, and was employed as 
 stated supply until 1877. On the 1st of April, 
 1878, Rev. J. H. Jones was formally' installed 
 as Pastor, and still continues his labors as such. 
 During all these years, this little church has 
 had but thi'ee regularly installed Pastors, viz.: 
 Rev. James Shaw, Rev. E. Curtis and Rev. J. 
 H. Jones, the others having officiated merely 
 as stated supply. 
 
 There are very few of the earlier members 
 now known to be living. Mrs. D. A. Hine, who 
 resides here, and who united with the church 
 at the same time as did Mr. Cotter, is still an 
 earnest and devoted Christian worker. The 
 society is now recognized as the " First Pres- 
 byterian Church of Akron." Its present mem- 
 bership is sixty-one ; the officers are Rev. J. 
 H. Jones, Pastor ; A. L. Cotter, J. K. Robin- 
 sou and Henry Hart, Ruling Elders ; James B. 
 Manton, William Robinson, Dr. F. C. Reed, 
 Harvey Baldwin and J. K. Robinson, Trustees. 
 The church edifice was erected in 1833, but has 
 since been remodeled and repaired. 
 
 The Sabbath school has been in existence 
 ever since the organization of the church, and 
 at present numbers over one hundred, with an 
 average attendance of sixty-five. The officers 
 are Dr. C. C. Davidson, Superintendent ; Mrs. 
 Henry Robinson, Assistant Superintendent ; 
 B3'ron Robinson, Secretary ; Miss Kate Palm- 
 er, Treasurer ; Miss Frances Robinson, Organ- 
 ist ; and Miss Belle Berger, Chorister. 
 
 In connection with the church is a Ladies' 
 Foreign Mission Society, formed May 17, 1880, 
 by Miss Loring ; and at the same time the 
 children formed a home Mission Band, to be 
 
 

 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 369 
 
 known as the " Austin Mission Band." They 
 have undertaken the support of a pupil in Miss 
 Austin's School, at Sitka, Alaska. Members, 
 thirty -nine ; amount of money raised in less 
 than a year over $45 ; officers, Mrs. Henry 
 Robinson, Superintendent ; Miss Kate Palmer, 
 Assistant Superintendent ; Miss Lizzie Clriffin, 
 President ; Henry B. Manton, Vice President ; 
 Miss Nellie Farwell, Secretary ; and Park T. 
 Robinson, Treasurer. 
 
 St. Paul's Episcopal Church,* Akron, Ohio, is 
 another of the early church organizations. The 
 records of the church were burned and conse- 
 quently much that would be deemed necessary 
 for its history is lost. What we give here has 
 been collated from journals, Episcopal address- 
 es, etc. Rev. A. Sanford reports in 1832 : 
 " Solemnized one marriage at Akron." Bishop 
 Mcllvaine in 1834, says : "From Stow to Mid- 
 dlebur}', October 11 ; two or three Episcopal 
 families in the neighborhood ; heard of none in 
 the village ; preached at night in the school- 
 house to a very considerable and attentive au- 
 dience ; next day went to xlkron, to take the 
 canal-boat for Massillon. This growing place is 
 destined to become a manufacturing town of 
 great importance. There was no place of wor- 
 ship in it when I was there, and seldom any 
 preaching of the Grospel. It should be a mis- 
 sionary station as soon as possible. I should 
 have preached there, had not the constant ex- 
 pectation of the boat prevented." The Rev. W. 
 K. Newman took charge of St. John's, in Stow, 
 and of two new parishes at Akron and Franklin. 
 
 From the Bishop's address, 1836 : " Jul}' 8, 
 visited St. Paul's, Akron ; preached and met 
 the Vestry, the Rev. Mr. Barrow has been invited 
 to assume the care of this point and Franklin." 
 This minister reports, in the same 3'ear, five com- 
 municants. Mr. John Hanford was the first lay 
 delegate from this parish to the diocesan con- 
 vention. Rev. Mr. Barrow remained one year. 
 In 1837, nine communicants are reported. In 
 1838, the Bishop reports preaching in the Bap- 
 tist Church, and confirming five persons. This 
 year the Rev. T. J. Davis, of Connecticut, as- 
 sumed charge of the church. In 1839, Mr. 
 Davis reports fifteen communicants, and that a 
 Sunday-school has been organized, which num- 
 bers twenty-five children ; also the organization 
 of a society called the Christian Knowledge Soci- 
 ety. A room was fitted up in a stone building 
 
 * By Rev. K. L. Ganter. 
 
 on the ground now occupied by Mr. Henry's 
 store, to be used as a place of worship. 
 
 Referring to a visitation made in 1839, Bishop 
 Mcllvaine says : " In a large upper room in a 
 warehouse fitted up for a church, I preached, 
 catechised the young, addressed the parents, 
 and confirmed three. This parish has much 
 prospered since that date." November 6, 1840, 
 the Bishop visited St. Paul's and confirmed six 
 persons. It was this year, on a Sunday morn- 
 ing, at the hour of worship, that a severe storm 
 threw a large chimney and heav}' ornamental 
 stones in upon the assembled congregation, and 
 although the people were hurled down through 
 a broken floor, but one man was killed and a 
 few others injured. 
 
 About this time the congregation undertook 
 the building of what is known under the name 
 of the old " Cobb House," northwest of the city, 
 near the bend of the canal. It was to serve for 
 the combined purposes of parsonage, seminar}^ 
 and parish school. From a letter of a Warden, 
 dated November, 1840, we give the following 
 extract : " This parish has received donations, 
 solicited by Rev. Mr. Davis, about $900 from 
 the friends of the church in Philadelphia, and 
 this diocese to assist in the erection of a tem- 
 porary house of worship and parsonage and 
 support of the Rector. It would probably be a 
 satisfaction to the donors to know that their 
 benevolent wishes have been fulfilled in the 
 erection of the building contemplated, and the 
 establishment of the church upon a permanent 
 basis." This year occurred the first attempt to 
 chant, under the direction of Mrs. Cowan. It 
 was a nine da3's' wonder. In November, 1840, 
 Rev. Mr. Davis resigned. The resolutions 
 passed bj' the Vestry were exceedinglj- compli- 
 mentaiy to Mrs. Davis, and were signed by 
 John Hanford and E. W. Chittenden, Wardens ; 
 Alvah Hand, Abram Smith and J. G. Darby, 
 Vestrymen. 
 
 In 1841, Rev. Lyman Freeman was called. 
 During his administration, the building in 
 which the congregation is now worshiping was 
 undertaken. For this purpose $1,770 was col- 
 lected from persons other than citizens of 
 Akron. Mr. Lyman Cobb had the contract for 
 building, and in part payment on contract, the 
 title of the Cobb House was transferred to him. 
 On the 2d of June, 1844, the church was con- 
 secrated. The parish then numbered sixty 
 communicants, and the building was described 
 
 1^ 
 
^ 
 
 370 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 as being 40x60 feet. Four inonths after the 
 consecration of the church, the Rev. Mr. Free- 
 man resigned. Rev. Mr. Cox took charge De- 
 cember 8, 1844. Rev. Mr. Mcllhinney, Novem- 
 ber, 1847. Rev. J. K. Stuart in 1848. Rev. 
 E. H. Gumming, December 20, 1850. He was 
 followed by Rev. R. S. Nash, and he in turn was 
 succeeded in November, 1854, by Rev. D. C. 
 Maybin. The Rev. Edward Meyer preached his 
 first sermon December 16, 1855. He reports 
 that " during the summer of 1856, through the 
 exertions of the ladies' society, a set of neat 
 green blinds were procured for the south side 
 windows, adding greatly to the comfort of the 
 worshipers, and furnishing a pleasant and sub- 
 dued light ; the cost was $40." Mr. Meyer's 
 resignation was accepted July, 1859. The Rev. 
 Henry Adams took charge in 1860 ; the Rev. 
 Samuel Maxwell in 1863 ; the Rev. W. T. Fitch 
 in 1866 ; the Rev. Henry Grregory in 1869, and 
 the Rev. R. L. Ganter, the present Rector, in 
 1870. 
 
 In 1870, the church edifice was enlai-ged and 
 a new organ procured. The same year, also, a 
 commodious parsonage was erected on North 
 Summit street. In 1872-73, $4,000 were ex- 
 pended for new Sunday-school rooms. 
 
 The following are the pi-esent otHcers of the 
 church : R. L. Ganter, Rector ; Senior Warden, 
 D. L. King ; Junior Warden, Philo Bennett ; 
 Vestrymen, Frank Adams, J. A. Beebe, 0. C. 
 Barber, C. A. Collins, A. L. Conger, G. W. 
 Grouse, U. L. Marvin, W. B. Raymond ; Super- 
 intendent of Sunday school, H. J. Church ; 
 Assistant Superintendent, U. L. Marvin ; Sec- 
 retar}^ A. N. Sanford ; Assistant Secretary, 
 Percy W. Leavitt ; Treasurer, W. B. Raymond ; 
 Librarians, W. F. Snook and W. A. Noble. 
 
 Ladies' Aid Society' : President, Mrs. Frank 
 Adams ; Vice President, Mrs. Lorenzo Hall ; 
 Treasurer, Mrs. A. Gommins ; Assistant Treas- 
 urer, Miss Ruth Hubdell ; Directors, Mesdames 
 H. H. Brown, E. W. Shook, A. Brewster, L. 
 Camp, James McNeil, 0. C. Barber, G. B. Cobb 
 and E. Buckingham. 
 
 St. Paul's Church numbers 170 families, 230 
 communicants. Sunday-school teachers and 
 officers, 31 ; scholars, 283 ; total, 314. 
 
 The Baptist Ghui-ch of Akron* was organized 
 at Middlebury (now Sixth Ward of Akron) 
 April 18, 1834, under the name of the Akron 
 and Middlebury Baptist Church. The names 
 
 ♦Written by Rev. N. S. Burton. 
 
 of Elder Caleb Green and Elder Araasa Clark 
 appear as Moderator and Scribe of the Council. 
 The church at its organization was composed of 
 three male members — -Horace Barton, Daniel 
 B. Stewart, Henry H. Smoke ; and six females — 
 Miss C. Barton, Mrs. Thirza J. Smoke, Mrs. 
 E. Burton, Mrs. Sally Smith, Miss Amanda 
 Smith and Miss Elizabeth Stewart. The first 
 house of worship (now owned by the German 
 Reformed Church), on Broadway, just south of 
 the Court House, was dedicated in September, 
 1837. 
 
 The church had the services of several min- 
 isters for brief periods for about two years 
 after its organization, services being held in 
 sclioolhouses in Akron and Middlebury. In 
 the year 1836, Rev. E. Crane became the set- 
 tled Pastor, and services were held in a hall in 
 Middlebury, and in a schoolhouse in Akron 
 while the first house of worship was in process 
 of erection. Mr. Crane is still living, and 
 resides at Mount Pleasant, Iowa. Rev. H. 
 Carr succeeded Mr. Crane, and was the Pastor 
 at the dedication of the house of worship in 
 1837. 
 
 While the church worshiped in this house, 
 it had as Pastors Rev. H. Carr, Rev. S. Van 
 Voris, Rev. C. S. Clark, Rev. J. Hall (after- 
 ward President of Denison University), Rev. 
 D. Bernard, Rev. L. Ransted, Rev. J. M. 
 Gregory (now President of Illinois State Uni- 
 versity) Rev. J. C. Courtue}' (who died after a 
 brief pastorate), and Rev. A. Joy, during whose 
 pastoi'ate the house on Broadway was sold, and 
 the present house on North High street pur- 
 chased and remodeled. It was dedicated June 
 17, 1853. Mr. Joy was succeeded by Rev. J. 
 W. Hammond in 1855, whose pastorate contin- 
 ued one year. Rev. Samuel Williams became 
 Pastor in 1856, and remained five years. Rev. 
 N. S. Burton succeeded him after an interval in 
 1862. Rev. F. Adkins was Pastor from 1866 
 to 1868. His successor was Rev. C. T. Chaffee, 
 from 1869 to 1872. He was succeeded by 
 Rev. J. P. Agenbroad for one year. Chai'les 
 A. Hayden was ordained, and became Pastor 
 Nov. 25, 1873. He resigned in May, 1876. 
 The present Pastor, Rev. N. S. Burton, entered 
 upon his second pastorate in July, 1877. The 
 present membership is about 145. R. A. Grim- 
 now and W. T. Allen are Deacons, and J. W. 
 Burton, Clerk and Treasurer. 
 
 A Sunday school was organized when the 
 
^^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 371 
 
 church entered its first house of worship, and 
 iias been maintained since. Its present Super- 
 intendent is Dr. Denitt G. Wilcox. The aver- 
 age attendance about 110. 
 
 Three of the Pastors, J. W. Hammond. F. 
 Adkins and C. A. Haj'den, received ordination 
 here. More than most churches, tliis church 
 has suftered loss by the removal of valuable 
 members to larger cities, where the}' have be- 
 come efficient workers in church work. Though 
 small in numbers in comparison with neighbor- 
 ing churches, it has always had its full propor- 
 tion of men and families of high standing in 
 business and social circles. 
 
 St. Vincent De Paul's Congregation (Roman 
 Catholic) of Akron, Summit Count}'. Ohio, 
 comes next in order of church organizations. 
 The following sketch of it was wi'itten at our 
 request by Rev. T. F. Mahar, the present Pas- 
 tor : Previous to the organization of this con- 
 gregation, and as early as 1835, visits were paid 
 to the few Catholics of Akron, by Father Henni, 
 the present Archbishop of Milwaukee, who 
 came on horseback from Cincinnati, and said 
 mass in a log cabin owned by James McAllis- 
 ter. Right Rev. J. B. Purcell, now Archbishop 
 of Cincinnati, followed soon after and said mass 
 here ; and the Rev. Louis De Goesbriand, Pas- 
 tor of Louisville. Stark County, visited shortly 
 after him. Rev. Father McLaughlin, of Cleve- 
 land, was also here, and Rev. Basil Short bap- 
 tized the children and attended the Catholics 
 from 1837 to 1842. 
 
 Hitherto mass was said in private houses or 
 rented halls. The frame church on Green 
 street was commenced by Rev. M. Howard, in 
 1843, and he remained in charge of Akron 
 Congregation to 1844. Father Cornelius Daly 
 succeeded in February, 1845, and was the first 
 resident Pastor. He remained in charge till 
 1848, and enlarged and finished the church 
 commenced by Father Howard. During the 
 charge of Father Daly, the Archbishop of Cin- 
 cinnati ordained Rev. J. V. Conlan, in the old 
 frame church now used for school purposes. 
 The Rev. Cassina Moavet, was here from Octo- 
 ber, 1848, to June, 1850, then came Rev. Father 
 Goodwin. He was succeeded by Rev. Francis 
 McGann, who owned the present site of the 
 new church and the present cemetery. Father 
 McGann was here from December, 1850, to 
 August, 1855. Rev. L. Molon came in January, 
 1856, and was succeeded by Rev. Thomas 
 
 Walsh. Then followed the Rev. W. O'Connor, 
 now a Redemptorist. Rev. M. A. Scanlon, was 
 appointed to this charge in July, 1859, and 
 remained here to November, 1873. During his 
 pastorate the Catholic Germans, who till then 
 formed part of St. Vincent's congregation, sep- 
 arated (in 1861) and organized themselves by 
 permission of Bishop Rappe, as St. Bernard's 
 congregation. Rev. Father Scanlon was suc- 
 ceeded November 23 1873, by Rev. Timothy 
 Mahoney. Father Mahoney, after having freed 
 the congregation from the greater part of a 
 burdensome debt, was transferred August 1, 
 1880, to the larger and more important charge 
 of St. Patrick's Church, Cleveland, and was 
 succeeded by Rev. T. F. Mahar, D. D., the 
 present Pastor. Among the prominent laymen 
 and pioneer members of the congregation may 
 be mentioned James Mcx\llister, John Cook, 
 John Dunne — father of Judge Dunne — Thomas 
 Jones, J. McSweeny, Martin Quigley and Thom- 
 as Garaghty. 
 
 The present and second church edifice built 
 by St. Vincent De Paul's congregation was 
 commenced on St. Patrick's Day, 1864, by Rev. 
 M. A. Scanlon. It is a massive stone structure, 
 fifty feet wide and one hundred feet long, and 
 of Roman style of architecture. The interior 
 is quite attractive, the ceiling, especially, being 
 very beautifully stuccoed. Thei-e are no pillars, 
 and hence an unobstructed view is had of the 
 whole interior. The twelve elegant, stained- 
 glass windows are gifts from the different 
 church societies and from several members of 
 the congregation. The altar is only tempora- 
 ry, and will be replaced by another as soon as 
 the debt is somewhat diminished. The cost of 
 the church is estimated at about $50,000. The 
 parish school was organized during the pastor- 
 ate of Rev. Francis McGann, about the year 
 1853. There are at present two divisions with 
 an average attendance of one hundred and fifty 
 children. 
 
 The Universalist Church* is among the early 
 religious societies organized in Akron. Some 
 time in the summer of 1837, Rev. Freeman 
 Loring visited Akron for the purpose of estab- 
 lishing a Universalist Church. His meetings 
 were held in the building now known as Mer- 
 rill's pottery, and, subsequently, in a hall on 
 the site now occupied by the store of Wolf, 
 Church & Beck. Among those who became 
 
 * By Kev. Bicbard Eddy. 
 
 V9 
 
373 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 interested in the movement was Dr. Eliakim 
 Crosby, tlien a man of wealtli and great enter- 
 prise in business. An organization was ef- 
 fected in a few months. Dr. Crosby, Minor 
 Si)icer, Jacob and Jesse Allen and Henry 
 Chittenden being among the more prominent 
 members. WhoU}^ at the expense of Dr. 
 Crosby, and under the superintendence of Mr. 
 Loring, a stone church edifice 44x57 feet, sur- 
 mounted by a steeple 100 feet high, was 
 erected, and dedicated in November, 1839. 
 The cost of the building was about $8,000. 
 Mr. Jesse Allen presented the church with a 
 fine organ, and the building was completely 
 furnished with the church conveniences of that 
 day. Mr. Loring was installed as Pastor on 
 the day of the dedication, and the membership 
 then amounted to about one hundred persons. 
 Dr. Crosb}- was at this time engaged in the con- 
 struction of a canal, commonly known as " The 
 Chuckei'y Race," for the pui'pose of bringing wa- 
 ter power from the Cuyahoga, at the falls, to Ak- 
 ron, a project which proved to be a disastrous 
 failure, involving the doctor in financial ruin. 
 To relieve his embarrassment in a measure, 
 the members of the church organized a stock 
 company, and bought the church building, pay- 
 ing therefor $7,000. Mr. Loring resigned in 
 the fall of 1839, and was succeeded by Rev. 
 Nelson Doolittle, whose pastorate extended 
 through several 3'ears. To him succeeded 
 Revs. J. Gr. Foreman and Z. Baker. Under 
 the latter there were divisions growing out of 
 the introduction by the Pastor, of skeptical 
 theories and so-called Spiritualism. The build- 
 ing needing extensive repairs, and the church 
 becoming discouraged, the edifice was at last 
 sold by the stockholders to the Baptist society, 
 by whom it is now held and occupied. 
 
 A new efiort to organize a church was made 
 in November, 1872, when twenty-four persons 
 adopted and subscribed a profession of faith 
 and church government — John R. Buchtel, 
 Moderator ; S. M. Burnham, Clerk ; Avery 
 Spicer and Talmon Beardsley, Deacons. Rev. 
 G. S. Weaver was chosen Pastor in April, 
 1873, and the church held its meetings- in the 
 lecture room of Buchtel College. Thirty mem- 
 bers were added to the church during the 
 first year of Mr. Weaver's pastorate ; twentj-- 
 three the second 3'ear. In December, 1876, 
 Mr. Weaver resigned. He was succeeded by 
 Rev. H. L. Canfield, whose terra of service 
 
 lasted about eighteen months, during which 
 time there was a small increase of member- 
 ship. Rev. E. L. Rexford, D. D., became Pas- 
 tor in April, 1878, and remained till July, 
 1880, when he resigned. During Dr. Rexford's 
 pastorate, the church completed the erection, 
 at a cost of about $45,000, of an elegant 
 church edifice, on the corner of Broadway and 
 Mill street. Large accessions were also made 
 to the membership. The present Pastor, Rev. 
 Richaixl Eddy, commenced his labors in Sep- 
 tember, 1880. The officers of the Church, 
 elected in Januar}-, 1881, are W. D. Shipman, 
 Moderator ; S. M. Burnham, Clerk ; J. H. Pen- 
 dleton, Treasurer ; Ferdinand Schumacher, 
 John R. Buchtel, D. S. Wall, George W. Weeks, 
 J. H. Pendleton, Dr. William Murdock, S. M. 
 Burnham, William Hard}^, D. T. Parsons, 
 Trustees. The present membership is 160. 
 
 A Sunday school, the membership unknown, 
 was established in connection with the early 
 organization. The present school was organ- 
 ized in 1872, and has a membership of 190, 
 with an average attendance of 160. The pres- 
 ent Superintendent is Mr. George W. Weeks. 
 
 The creed of the Church is expressed in the 
 following Profession of Belief, adopted by the 
 Universalist Convention in 1803: 
 
 I. We believe that the Holy Scriptures of the 
 Old and New Testaments contain a revelation of 
 the character of God, and of the duty, interest and 
 final destination of mankind. 
 
 II. We believe that there is one God, whose na- 
 ture is love, revealed in one Lord Jesus Christ, by 
 one Holy Spirit of Grace, who will tinally restore 
 the whole family of mankind to holiness and hap- 
 piness. 
 
 HI. We believe that holiness and true happiness 
 are inseparably connected, and that believers ought 
 to be careful to maintain order and practice good 
 works; for these things are good and profitable un- 
 to men. 
 
 The Church of Christ of Akron was organ- 
 ized in 1839, but its history dates back several 
 ^•ears bej-ond the period of its formation as a 
 church. The following sketch was furnished by 
 its Pastor, Elder C. C. Smith : 
 
 In the history of ever}' church, there is first, 
 the period of struggle previous to organization, 
 when a few devoted persons, strong in faith and 
 conviction, fight for a place among the workers 
 in God's vineyard. This time of warfare in this 
 church occupied about ten 3'ears preceding the 
 beginning of the history of the Akron Church 
 of Christ proper. From the time when Elder 
 
 *7[. 
 
CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 373 
 
 William Hayden and E. B. Hubbard preached 
 a few sermons in Middlebury in 1829, to the 
 organization of the church in 1839. Some of 
 the first fruits of the early seed-sowing was the 
 baptizing of William Pangbura and Mrs. Judge 
 Sumner, by Elder 0. Newcomb ; also the bap- 
 tizing of Mrs. Pangburn and Levi Allen (still a 
 member of the church), by Elder Hayden. 
 
 Prominent at this early time may be noticed 
 Elder M. S. Wilcox, who preached as opportu- 
 nity permitted, in schoolhouses and private res- 
 idences. A discussion was held in Middlebury 
 between him and a Methodist minister of the 
 name of Graham. The name of Elder A. B. 
 Green is also prominent in the early history of 
 the church. We could not very well give too 
 much prominence to the labors of two women 
 connected with this work, viz., Mrs. Dr. Parker 
 and Mrs. J. N. Botsford. Brother A. S. Hayden 
 sa3's : " These were the days of heart-song 
 and heaven-reaching prayers and the preach- 
 ing ! It was hail mingled with rain. The pro- 
 longed hour flitted away unconsciously. The 
 group of Disciples tarried, exhorted each other, 
 sung warmh' and feelingly a parting hymn, and 
 with a final, earnest supplication, they com- 
 mended one another to the good Shepherd and 
 separated. But they were unspeakably happy !" 
 In the year 1839, Brothers Bently and Bos- 
 worth came at the call of the brethren, and in the 
 building on Main street, now occupied by Mer- 
 rill's pottery, the}' organized, with thirty-two 
 members, into the Church of Chi'ist of Akron, 
 and with Levi Allen and Samuel Bangs as 
 Elders ; W. R. Storer and Jonah Allen, Dea- 
 cons. Although organized into a society, the 
 church had no regular place of meeting. Some- 
 times it came together at Middlebury, and some- 
 times in Akron in schoolhouses and private 
 residences. In 1843, a meeting was held by 
 Elder John Cochrane, assisted by Elder John 
 Henry, of Mahoning County (of whom it was 
 said, he " was swift to hear, but not slow to 
 speak"), which resulted in fortj'-nine conver- 
 sions to Christ, and in greatl}' increasing the 
 influence of the church. Shortly after this, the 
 church purchased a small frame building on a 
 lot on High street, the present site of the Ger- 
 man Lutheran Church building and parsonage, 
 which was its first home. 
 
 In 1845, Dr. William F. Pool moved into 
 Akron, and while practicing his profession, 
 greatly strengthened the church, " laboring in 
 
 word and doctrine." In 1849, M. J. Streator 
 became Pastor of the flock, remaining with it 
 about ten months. In 1854, W. S. Gray com- 
 menced his three years' service for the church ; 
 in 1857, during his last year's stay, it sold the 
 above mentioned house and lot. For six years 
 the church rented Tappin Hall, on Market street, 
 for its place of meeting. Here Elder Warren 
 Belding held for them a very successful meet- 
 ing, and here they were blessed with the labors 
 of Elder J. Carroll Stark. In 1861, Elder J. G. 
 Encil commenced his pastorate. While he still 
 remained with the church, a lot was purchased 
 in 1863, and the building now occupied was 
 erected at a cost of about $6,000. Then came 
 the following ministers in the order named : J. 
 O. Beardsley, L. R. Norton, R. L. Howe, L. 
 Cooley, John L. Rowe. R. G. White, F. M. 
 Greene and C. C. Smith, the present Pastor. 
 The pastorate of L. Cooley was the longest of 
 any, five years, and his memory is still held 
 dear by those who labored with him. The 
 labors of R. G. White during three years were 
 signalized by a large ingathering of souls, and 
 the establishing of the Mission Church at Mid- 
 dlebury, Sixth Ward of Akron, resulting in 
 eighty members going out from the church for 
 that purpose. 
 
 The otticers of the church at the present time 
 are : Elders — Levi Allen, Dr. William Sisler, 
 Jacob Rhodes and C. C. Smith. Deacons — 
 William Allen, Bennett Smetts, William Wes- 
 ton, Elijah Briggs, Edwin A. Barber, John No- 
 ble and J. P. Teeple. Clerk — Horton Wright. 
 Treasurer — Albert Allen. There is upon "the 
 church books, 444 members, a net increase of 
 164 members during the four years of the last 
 pastorate. It is in a vigorous and healthy con- 
 dition, and stands first among the churches of 
 Christ in the State in its liberality to establish 
 the cause at home and abroad. Then there is 
 the unwritten history of the struggles and tri- 
 umphs of the individual members, and the un- 
 recorded number who have taken membership 
 from the church below to the church above. 
 The names of the following ministers (not men- 
 tioned above) were prominently connected with 
 the early work of the church here : Elders A. 
 S. Hayden, J. W. Jones, Benjamin Franklin 
 and R. Moflett. 
 
 The Sunday school was in existence as far 
 back as 1845, but was not permanently organ- 
 ized until 1864. under Brother Beardslev's ad- 
 
 j "^ 
 
^1 
 
 374 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 ministration, since which time it has been 
 steadily on tlie increase. Mrs. Harv}', Daniel 
 Storer, Camden Rockwell, J. P. Teeple and 
 Byron Grove were, at dilTerent times, Superin- 
 tendents, and stand prominently connected 
 with the woi'k. The present Superintendent is 
 John Noble; Assistant, Charles Trarler ; Clerks, 
 Eugene and P. Howe. During 1880, the aver- 
 age attendance was 160 ; average collection, 
 per Lord's Day, $5.60. It is but just to state 
 that the attendance would be much greater if 
 there were accommodations in the house for a 
 larger school. 
 
 In September, 1876, the sisters organized 
 "The Akron Auxiliary of the Christian 
 Woman's Board of Missions," with Mrs. Levi 
 Allen as President. The society has been in a 
 flourishing condition from the start, and is now 
 one of the largest and most efficient societies 
 of the kind in the State. 
 
 The Congregational Church, although one of 
 the oldest churches in the Western Eeserve, 
 did not organize in Akron as early as some of 
 the other denominations. The following sketch 
 of " the Congregational Church of Akron," was 
 written, at our request, by the Pastor, Rev. T. 
 E. Monroe : 
 
 On the 30th of May, 1842, a number of per- 
 sons met to consider the expediency of organ- 
 izing the present Congregational Church. A 
 resolution was then adopted, declaring such or- 
 ganization desirable, and appointing a commit- 
 tee of three gentlemen — Mr. Seth Sackett, Mr. 
 H. B. Spell man and Mr. A. R. Townsend — to 
 prepare a confession of faith and a covenant, as 
 a basis for final and permanent organization. At 
 the same meeting a similar committee was ap- 
 pointed to prepare a statement of the reasons 
 which seemed to require another church organi- 
 zation, and to invite neighboring ministers to as- 
 sist in forming it. The meeting then adjourned 
 to January 2, 1843. At this adjourned meeting, 
 the articles of faith and the covenant were 
 approved, and their adoption deferred to the 
 8th of June, at which time a Council was con- 
 vened, to which these proceedings, witli the 
 reasons which justified them, were submitted 
 for advice. This Council was composed of 
 Rev. Seagrove Magill, of Tallmadge ; Rev. Jo- 
 seph Merriam, of Randolph ; Rev. Mason 
 Grosvenor, of Hudson, and Rev. William 
 Clark, of Cuyahoga Falls. This Council ad- 
 vising the formation of a church, it was organ- 
 
 ized b}' twenty-two persons signing the con- 
 fession of faith and covenant. On the 3d of 
 July, nine others united with the infant church, 
 when, on the 7th of July, with thirty-one mem- 
 bers, the first election of officers was made, 
 Mr. H. B. Spelhnan being elected Deacon and 
 Mr. Allen Hibbard being chosen Clerk. 
 
 On the 1st of May, 1843, Rev. Isaac Jen- 
 nings, having ministered to the church for six 
 months as a supply, was called to be its first 
 Pastor. This call was accepted, and on the 14th 
 of June following he was ordained and in- 
 stalled. In June, 1845, the society completed 
 a comfortable house of worship, situated on 
 North Main street, at a cost of .$1,800. Mr. 
 Jennings remained Pastor of the church until 
 June 7, 1847, when he tendered his resignation. 
 Several meetings of the church having been held 
 at which he was urged to withdi-aw his resigna- 
 tion, it was reluctantly accepted on the 7th of 
 February following, and the separation was ap- 
 proved by Council, convened upon the joint re- 
 quest of the church and Pastor, on the 12th of 
 February, 1847. Rev. W. R. Stevens supplied 
 the pulpit of the church from November, 1847, 
 until iMay, 1849, when Rev. N. P. Bailey began 
 his ministry to this people. On the 7th of Oc- 
 tober following, he was ordained and installed 
 l:)y Council. This relation continued until May, 
 1856, when Mr. Bailey tendered his resignation. 
 This resignation was accepted on the 3d day of 
 August following, without convening a Coun- 
 cil. The church was supplied liy Rev. A. Dun- 
 casson from February, 1857. to November, 
 1858, when Rev. Abram E. Baldwin was invited 
 to officiate as Pastor for one year, with refer- 
 ence to future settlement. This invitation was 
 accepted, and at the close of this engagement 
 it was renewed, and, in February, 1860, he was 
 ordained by Council convened upon invitation 
 of the church, and his ministrv continued until 
 May, 1861. On December 30,"l861, the church 
 called the Rev. Carlos Smith to become its Pas- 
 tor, who accepted the call, and entered upon his 
 pastorate February 2, 1862. The church at 
 this time had a membership of about sixty. It 
 had been heartily engaged in the great reforms 
 of the day, and its new Pastor cordially co- 
 operated in every work which sought the purity 
 of society and the progress of reform. 
 
 During Mr. Smith's pastorate, the present 
 church edifice was erected, at a cost of about 
 $40,000, and the membership of the church in- 
 
h^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 375 
 
 creased from 60 to 268. About three hundred 
 members had united with the church during 
 this time, a flourishing Sunday school had been 
 maintained, and the church had prospered in 
 all its activities. In the winter of 1873, after 
 a pastorate of eleven years, which had endeared 
 him to the entire people, Mr. Smith resigned 
 his relation to the church, but remained a com- 
 municant of it until his death, which occurred 
 April 22, 1877, as the bell was tolling for 
 morning service, at the age of seventy-six 
 years. Few ministers have been so widely 
 beloved or have made so warm personal friends. 
 
 During the winter of 1873, the church called 
 Rev. T. E. Monroe, who commenced his minis- 
 try here on the first Sabbath of April, 1 873, 
 and is still Pastor of the church. During this 
 time, new Sunday' school rooms have been built 
 below, and a gallery, accommodating 150 peo- 
 ple, built in the audience-room above. An 
 organ floor and small choir have been built in 
 the rear of the church. These improvements, 
 with repairs, cost $5,000, and furnish accom- 
 modations for a Sunda}' school of 400 children 
 and sittings for 750 people in the audience. 
 The present membership is a little more than 
 six hundred resident members, with about one 
 hundred who are absent. The various benevo- 
 lent activities of the church are earnestly pros- 
 ecuted, and the church enters the current 3-ear 
 with fresh hopes of usefulness. 
 
 On the night of the second Saturday of Feb- 
 ruar\', 1881, the house was seriously damaged 
 b}' fire to an extent requiring .$9,000 for repairs. 
 Extensive improvements are at present pro- 
 posed, and subscriptions are now circulating 
 for this purpose which will, if executed, aftbrd 
 convenient accommodation for 550 children in 
 the Sabbath school rooms, and 950 sittings in 
 the audience room. The church is to be heated 
 throughout with steam, ever\' pew having its 
 steam- heated foot-rest, and every class-room its 
 radiators. X superior organ will be procured, 
 open-grate fires to be introduced as an attract- 
 ive feature, and every convenience for social and 
 public church work amply provided. 
 
 The Sunda}^ school has been for eight years 
 under the efficient management of Mr. Sam- 
 uel Findly, to whom it is indebted for its emi- 
 nent order and intelligence. Mr. Hear}' Per- 
 kins, an officer beloved by all our pupils, was 
 elected to the office of Superintendent for the 
 current year, and, though the school suffered se- 
 
 riousl}' from changes rendered necessary by the 
 fire, it is regaining its numbers and its in- 
 terest. 
 
 Should the present plans for improvement be 
 carried out, this church will be very ampl}^ fur- 
 nished for a growing future work, and ought to 
 prosper in the j^ears to come quite as much as 
 in those gone by. 
 
 The Methodist Episcopal Church of Middle- 
 bury (Sixth Ward of Akron) is one of the very 
 old churches of Summit County, or, rather, has 
 grown out of the old Middlebury Methodist 
 Church. In a very early period of the histor}' 
 of the county, the Rev. Doctor Clark and the 
 Rev. Mr. Monk, of Tallmadge, preached at this 
 place. From the present Pastor of the church. 
 Rev. Mr. Arundel, we obtained some of the facts 
 pertaining to the history of this church, and 
 which are here given. 
 
 What is now known as the Second Methodist 
 Episcopal Church of Akron was formerly part 
 of a circuit consisting of Tallmadge, Pleasant 
 Valley, Mogadore, Brimfield and Middlebury. 
 Soon after, or about the time of the annexa- 
 tion of Middlebury to the city proper, in 1870, 
 this church was set off" as a charge b}' itself, 
 and, since that time, has been supplied by the 
 following clerg3'men : Revs. Painter, Greer, El- 
 liott, Merchant, Wilson, Corry. Randolph, and 
 Arundel, the present Pastor. Some three years 
 ago, the old building was entirely remodeled, 
 under the efficient direction of Mr. Jacob Sny- 
 der, architect of Akron, at a cost of $3,000. 
 The audience-room and parlor are ver}^ neat and 
 conveniently arranged, and, together with the 
 Sunday-school room, have just been handsomely 
 decorated by Messrs. Diehl and Caske}', of this 
 city. The present membership is about eightv- 
 five. The Sunday school has some two hun- 
 dred enrolled on its books, and an average at- 
 tendance of one hundred and fift}'. 
 
 The following historical sketeh of the First 
 German Reformed Church of Akron was 
 furnished for this work by the Pastor, Rev. J. 
 Dahlmann. The First German Reformed Church 
 of Akron, Summit Co., Ohio, had its origin in 
 and was the continuation of the German Evan- 
 gelical Protestant congregation which was or- 
 ganized about 1842, and worshiped in the 
 stone church on North High street near the 
 Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal. The building 
 still stands, but is now turned into a dwelling 
 house. The Lutheran element separated from 
 
 r 
 
376 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 the congregation in 1852 and organized a con- 
 gregation of tlaeir own. Tiie Reformed element 
 remained and continued their organization 
 until the year 1855, when it united with the 
 German Reformed Church of Akron and be- 
 came identified with it. Before the two con- 
 gregations united their interests, the latter had 
 already purchased the frame church building 
 of the Baptists on the northwest corner of 
 Broadway and East Center streets. After 
 uniting their interests, they mutually assumed 
 the responsibility to cancel the debt which 
 still rested on the church property. Divine 
 services were held in the English and German 
 languages on alternate Sundays b}' Rev. L. C. 
 Edmonds, a 3'oung minister of talent and en- 
 ergy- 
 
 The English portion of the congregation did 
 not possess sufficient activity to go forward 
 energetically. After Rev. L. C. Edmonds had 
 resigned, the German portion, not wishing to be 
 long without a Pastor, called Rev. John F. 
 Engelbach, of the German Reformed Church in 
 the United States as their minister. They had 
 undertaken much and were successful. Under 
 the pastorate of Rev. J. F. Engelbach, the 
 German portion of the congregation — the En- 
 glish portion merely existing in name — ^obtain- 
 ed a charter, and was incorporated on the 27th 
 day of April, 1857, as the First German Re- 
 formed Church of Akron, Summit Co., Ohio. 
 
 The following are some of the original mem- 
 bers : John Heintz, Philip Heintz, Louis Koch, 
 Joh. Kling, Peter Brecht, Carl Schwing. J. 
 Jacob Grether, George Billau, Jacob Grether, 
 George Grether, Michael Grether, Friedrick 
 Gessler, George x\ngne, Cail Nilhr, Joh. Brobt, 
 Nicolaus Fuchs, Adam Schaaf, Joh. Schaab, 
 Joh. Fink, William Fink, Conrad Fink, Jacob 
 Steigner, Christoph Baumgartel, Joh. Hiltter- 
 ich, Christoph Oberholz, Conrad Zettel, Gott- 
 fried Stegner, Andreas Koch, Joh. Gush and 
 Friedrick Haushalter, etc. 
 
 The First German Reformed Church con- 
 tinued to worship in the house of God which 
 they owned conjointly with the English portion 
 or the German Reformed Church of Akron, 
 Ohio, until the fall of 1858, when the former 
 bought the latter out and obtained full posses- 
 sion of the church properly which they still 
 hold. 
 
 Rev. J. F. Engelbach labored faithfully for 
 the welfare of the congregation, and resigned 
 
 near the end of the year 1860. The}^ were 
 for some time without a Pastor. 
 
 Rev. Robert Koehler, formerly of Mount 
 Eaton, Ohio, took charge of the congregation 
 in April, 1861, and entered as Chaplain of 
 volunteers in the United States service in Au- 
 gust, 1864. Very little progress was made dur- 
 ing his pastorate, and this was that the con- 
 gregation was separated from other congrega- 
 tions and became a charge itself 
 
 Mr. J. D. Leemann, an educated school- 
 teacher, preached over two years to the con- 
 gregation, and established a parochial school 
 in the German language on the northwest 
 corner of South High and East Center streets. 
 This school flourished for some time, and with 
 its discontinuance his labors came to a close, 
 especially when the consistory and the congre- 
 gation forbid him to preach any longer for them. 
 
 Rev. John Bauragilrtner, an educated minis- 
 ter, from Canton Berne, Switzerland, who had 
 been Pastor for some time of a Reformed con- 
 gregation in Pittsburgh, Penn., was chosen as 
 Pastor. He entei'ed upon his labors in the fall 
 of 1866, and continued until September 18, 
 1870. During his pastorate, a new constitu- 
 tion for the congregation was drawn up and 
 accepted, and an attempt made to sever the 
 connection of the congregation with the Re- 
 formed Church in the United States which was 
 not successful. 
 
 Rev. Christoph Schiller, from Limaville, Ohio, 
 was by the congregation unanimously elected 
 as Pastor on October 16, 1870, and entered 
 upon his duties on November 27, 1870. He 
 was successful in rescuing the congregation 
 from ruin and enervate it to new life. It began 
 to live again and became conscious of its duty 
 as a Christian congregation. Under his labors, 
 the congregation increased in membership and 
 activit}', and purchased and enlarged the par- 
 sonage next to the church on East Center 
 street. In the summer of 1876 he resigned, 
 and moved to Toledo, Ohio. 
 
 Rev. Julius Herold, of Charleston, Ind., was 
 his successor by unanimous election, and en- 
 tered upon the pastorate in July, 1876. He 
 was active, and caused the church edifice to be 
 remodeled inside, and the purchasing of over 
 seven acres of land on the west end of the 
 city, north of Market street, for a burial-place, 
 which was dedicated in August, 1880, for that 
 purpose. After having resigned his pastorate 
 
 --^ 
 
C^^.^5&t^ 
 

 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 377 
 
 in August, he continued his labors until No- 
 vember 14, 1880. 
 
 Rev. Jacob Dahlmann, D. D., of Philadelphia, 
 Penn., succeeded him on the 9th of December, 
 1880. He was born in Barmen, Rhein Prussia, 
 and emigrated with his parents to the United 
 States in 1848, and entered upon his studies 
 for the Christian ministry in Franklin and 
 Marshall College, Lancaster, Penn., in 1855. 
 After graduating in honor in 1860, he pursued 
 his theological studies at the seminary of the 
 German Reformed Church at Mercersburg, 
 Penn., under Dr. Philip Schaff and others. 
 There was a call extended to him, in 1862, to 
 go to Philadelphia, Penn., and organize the 
 Emanuel's German Reformed Church in West 
 Philadelphia, to which he responded, and, after 
 laboring nearly nineteen years in his first 
 charge, having built a large and beautiful 
 church and parsonage, he accepted a call from 
 this congregation for the purpose of leaving 
 the general church work, which became too 
 burdensome for him, to other hands. Having 
 served the Reformed Church, especially the 
 German portion thereof, in the East in various 
 ways, he continues to be Assistant Stated 
 Clerk of the General Synod of said church, 
 and it is hoped that his pastorate will, his life 
 being spared, be of long duration and crowned 
 with great success. 
 
 The church edifice, on the northwest corner 
 of Broadway and East Center streets, was 
 erected more than forty years ago, by the Bap- 
 tist congregation. It is a frame building, 
 massive in timbers, 40x60 feet, with four large 
 pillars in front, and a steeple, in which Summit 
 County placed a bell more than twenty-five 
 years ago for the purpose of announcing the 
 time for the convening of the court, and until 
 latel}^ to give the alarm for fire. 
 
 The congregation has 420 communicants 
 and 280 unconfirmed members. The Pastor is 
 Rev. Jacob Dahlmann, D. D.; the Elders, John 
 Kling and John George Eberhard ; the Dea- 
 cons are Henry Schmiedel, Charles Brodt, 
 Louis Midler and Peter Kuhn. These form the 
 consistory of the congregation, and constitute 
 at the same time the Board of Trustees. 
 
 The Sunday school of the congregation was 
 organized by Mr. John Heintz, in 1857, with 
 20 to 30 scholars, and who continued to be 
 Superintendent until 1862, when the school 
 had increased to 50 and more scholars. Elder 
 
 John Kling and others held the ofllce of 
 Superintendent of the Sunday school. Elder 
 John George Eberhard was, during the last ten 
 years or more, on or off Superintendent until 
 lately, when the Pastor, Rev. Jacob Dahlmann, 
 D. D., became (ex officio) Superintendent of 
 the Sunday school. The Sunday school is held 
 every Sunday morning from 9 to 10:30 o'clock. 
 There are 150 children on the roll, and 130 or 
 more in regular attendance in the summer and 
 110 in the winter. 
 
 Grace Reformed Church has been in exist- 
 ence in Akron for a third of a century. The 
 following historical sketch is by Rev. Emil P. 
 Herbruck, its present Pastor : Grace Reformed 
 Congregation was organized on the 5th of 
 March, 1853, by Rev. N. Gehr, Missionary of 
 the German Reformed Church in the United 
 States. At a meeting held in the old Univei*- 
 salist Church on High street, a constitution 
 was adopted, and signed by the following per- 
 sons : John Weimer, Catharine Weimer, Thomas 
 Moore, Susanna Moore, William Heil, Esther 
 Heil, Philip Kremer, Henry Rinehart, Sophia 
 Rinehart and Magdalena Kremff. Rev. N. 
 Gehr was elected Pastor, and served the con- 
 gregation about one 3^ear. He was followed 
 by Revs. P. J. Spangler, L. Edmonds, J. 
 Schlasser, J. F. Helm, William McCaughey, 
 W. H. H. Snyder, S. S. Miller, J. M. Mickley 
 and I. E. Graff, in pastorates ranging from one 
 to three years in length. In May, 1868, Rev. 
 Edward Herbruck accepted a call to the 
 charge, and under his direction it enjoyed a 
 greater measure of prosperity than at an}' pre- 
 vious time. He labored in the congregation 
 successfully for four years, though having 
 almost unsurmountable difficulties to over- 
 come. Rev. M. Laucks became his successor, 
 and served for about two years. In April, 
 1876, Rev. Emil P. Herbruck assumed the 
 pastorship, and has discharged its duties ever 
 since. 
 
 The first edifice was bought at second-hand 
 from the Congregational Church in Middle- 
 bury, and moved piece-meal to the present lot 
 on Broadway, where it was in constant use b}' 
 the congregation for eighteen years. In 1881, 
 it became apparent that a new building was 
 necessarj^ to meet the growing demands of the 
 church. Accordingly, on the third Sunday in 
 April, the corner-stone of the present structure 
 was laid. It is built of brick, with stone 
 
378 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 dressing, and is 52x80 feet in dimensions. The 
 auditorium is ampiiitheatrical in shape, and, in 
 connection with a quarter gallery, has a seat- 
 ing capacity of about five hundred. The com- 
 modious basement is arranged for the Sunday 
 school, with class-rooms of semicircular form. 
 The building is neat and attractive, furnished 
 with the modern conveniences, and cost 
 $15,000. 
 
 The present membership of the church is 
 270, and is constantly increasing. The officers 
 for the year 1881 are: Elders, John Weimer 
 and Frank Bolander; Deacons, John Kritz, 
 Isaac Kittenger, Jacob Bans and A. F. Hun- 
 sicker. 
 
 The Sunday school was organized in 1853, 
 and has been kept up ever since, though with 
 a somewhat fluctuating attendance. It is at 
 present in a flourishing condition, having an 
 average attendance of 175. The school is well 
 conducted by its Superintendent, Gr. F. Eber- 
 hard. 
 
 The G-erman Zion's Lutheran Church* was 
 organized on the 6th day of August, 1854, by 
 the Rev. P. J. Buehl. The original members 
 were J. Beyruther, N. Henke, Ch. Baum- 
 gaertel, J. Grad, D. Steinhagen, J. Rogler, J. 
 Bauernfeind, B. Seidel, J. Dietz, W. Gerdts, H. 
 Wishmeier, Mrs. W. Beck, Ch. Schmidt, L. 
 Strobel, W. Strobel, A. Voss, N. Oellrich, G. 
 Kling, J. Feuchter, I. Frank, G. Proehl, C. 
 Kroeger, Mrs. Kaiser, J. Harter, G. Beck, J. 
 Miller, W. Schroeder, P. Bibricher, B. Ditles, 
 W. Hageman, J. Bernitt, D. Lamparter, J. 
 Stein, C. Beinhard, S. Schmidt, G. Miller, J. 
 Wolf, J. Brod, G. Goetz, J. Bitsch, Mrs. Sorrik, 
 Ch. Nehr, J. Reibly, Mr. Schneider, G. Tents, 
 Mrs. Shraiefield, Mr. Dresler. In 1855, the so- 
 ciety purchased a church edifice for their own 
 from the Disciples, a building which was the 
 pioneer house of worship in Akron, having 
 been erected in 1834-35, by the Congregation- 
 alists, on a portion of the present court house 
 grounds. Rev. Buehl having accepted a call 
 to the Lutheran Church at Massillon, Rev. G^. 
 Th. Gotsch was called as his successor in 1864, 
 who served the congregation until 1872, when 
 the present Pastor, Rev. H. W. Lothmanu, was 
 called, and took charge of the congregation. 
 On account of the rapidly growing member- 
 ship, a larger structure as a place of worship 
 became a necessity, and, on the 16th day of 
 
 *By Bev. H. W. Lothmann. 
 
 September, 1877, the present building, costing 
 $16,000, was solemnly dedicated to the serv- 
 ices of the triune God. It is situated at the 
 corner of High and Quarry streets, and covers 
 a space 50x100 feet, with a spire 150 feet high; 
 it has a seating capacity of about five hundred 
 people, and is built of brick. The congrega- 
 tion at present consists of about one hundred 
 and fifty families with 450 communicants. A 
 school containing 130 scholars, is connected 
 with the church, in which the children are 
 taught both the German and English lan- 
 guages, Mr. F. Stricter acting as teacher. The 
 school is held in the old church building, 
 which was removed to the rear of the lot back 
 of the new church edifice. The present officers 
 of the church are as follows : George Haas, 
 Treasurer; F. Manthey, W. Wiese and W. 
 Woehler, Trustees ; Ch. Baumann, H. Dietz 
 and F. Kunz, Vestrymen. 
 
 St. Bernard Catholic Church* (German) was 
 organized in 1861. In that year, the few Ger- 
 man families deemed it proper to form a sepa- 
 rate congregation, and for this purpose gathered 
 in the cooper-shop of Geoi'ge Roth, on Green 
 street. The number of families then were 
 twenty -three, and they resolved to separate 
 from St. Vincent De Paul's Church, to which 
 they had belonged up to that time. A church 
 was formed under the title of St. Bernard 
 Catholic Church. The lot on the northeast 
 corner of Center and Broadway was purchased, 
 where the present building of the society 
 stands. Rev. Father Loure, of St. Peter's 
 Church, Cleveland, attended the little flock for 
 some time, and, in 1862, the corner-stone of 
 the new church was laid by Very Rev. Father 
 Loure. In June, 1862, Rev. Louis Shiele was 
 appointed the first regular Pastor of the con- 
 gregation, and remained one year. In Jan- 
 ary, 1863, they took possession of their new 
 building, and, in July, of the same year, Rev. 
 Peter Donnerhoflfe succeeded Father Louis 
 Shiele, and, on the 19th of July, 1866, Rev. 
 Father Donnerhofle was succeeded by Rev. J. 
 B. Broun, the present Pastor. 
 
 In 1865, the residence of the Pastor was 
 purchased, at a cost of about $2,200.; in 1866, 
 the cemetery was purchased for $2,500 ; in 
 1867, the schoolhouse was built at a cost of 
 $1,400; in 1868, the church was renovated 
 throughout, and stained-glass windows put in, 
 
 * By Rev. J. B. Broun. 
 
 
^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 379 
 
 at a cost of $1,150; in 1870, two bells were 
 bought, at a cost of $1,350 ; in 1872, the organ 
 was purchased, costing $1,260; in 1874, some 
 improvements were made at a cost of $1,200 ; 
 in 1877, the tower on the church was built, at 
 a cost of $2,600 ; the church frescoed at a cost 
 of $400 more, and a large bell bought at $946, 
 and other improvements at a cost of $200. In 
 1880, an addition was built to the church at a 
 cost of $12,000. The present strength of the 
 church is about three hundred families, with 
 some four hundred attendants at the Sundaj' 
 school. At the school, conducted under charge 
 of the Church, the attendance is about two 
 hundred and eight}- children. 
 
 The Akron Hebrew congregation dates its 
 organization back to the 3-ear 1865. On the 
 2d of April of that year, the following named 
 gentlemen met and formed themselves into a 
 societ}', to be known as the Akron Hebrew As- 
 sociation, the object of the association to be the 
 establishment of a school and synagogue, for 
 the promotion of the educational, moral and re- 
 ligious interests of the Jewish community. The 
 charter members were Michael Joseph, Theo. 
 Rice, J. L. Joseph, S. B. Hopfman, Simon Jo- 
 seph, H. W. Moss, Isaac Levi, 8. M. Ziesel, 
 Moses Josei^h, Herman F. Hahn, J. N. Leopold, 
 D. Leopold, Louis Calish, Caufman Koch and 
 Jacob Koch. The first Jewish residents in 
 Akron were Mr. Isaac Levi and Mi-. Caufman 
 Koch, who were engaged in business in Akron 
 as early as the year 1845, when Akron was a 
 mere village. Mr. S. B. Hopfman came to 
 Akron in the year ] 851 ; Mr. H. jMoss in the 
 year 1856 ; Mr. Michael Joseph in the year 
 1864, and thus the Jewish population gradually 
 increased, until at the present writing (March, 
 1881), it numbers 175 souls, while the books of 
 the congregation show a membership of 30. 
 Owing to the fact that the congregation has 
 never called upon the community at large for 
 pecuniary assistance, a policy to which, until 
 now, it has strictly adhered, its financial strength 
 has been slow but steady, and constant in its 
 development. For four years after its founda- 
 tion, the congregation found itself unable to 
 provide a permanent place of worship ; but had 
 to content itself with the establishment of a 
 school for instruction in German, Hebrew, Jew- 
 ish history and religion ; holding religious serv- 
 ice onl}' on special occasions, and on holida3's. 
 In the fall of the year 1869, the congregation 
 
 rented a hall and fitted up a synagogue and 
 school on the third floor in Allen's Block, which 
 it occupied for five years, when the steady in- 
 crease in membership made the rooms inade- 
 quate, and its financial prosperity enabled it 
 to secure more commodious quarters. In the 
 meanwhile, the Congregation had purchased 
 " bui-ial grounds " adjoining the Akron Bural 
 Cemetery ; but, the " grounds " being unsuit- 
 able, they were exchanged, October 15, 1871, 
 for a large section in the southeast corner of 
 the Akron Rural Cemetery, the congregation 
 paying the cemetery association the additional 
 sum of $1,000. The new synagogue and school- 
 room, which were located in Clark's building, 
 were dedicated on the 26th of October, 1874. 
 Besides supporting a school and s^-nagogue, 
 employing a regular teacher and minister, and 
 purchasing burial grounds, the congregation 
 responded freeh- to appeals to its benevolence, 
 contributing in the year 1868, $477 to the 
 newly-established Jewish Orphan Asylum in 
 Cleveland, and, sending in November, 1871, 
 $198, raised by voluntary subscription, to the 
 sufferers by the Chicago fire. In the 3'ear 1880, 
 the increased membership, and the additional 
 number of pupils, compelled the Congregation 
 to seek new accommodations, and the third floor 
 of the newl^'-erected Barber Block was leased 
 for a term of five years. Over a thousand dol- 
 lars were expended in fitting up the synagogue 
 and school -room, which were dedicated to di- 
 vine worship on the 23d of July, 1880, and 
 which will compare favorably with the temples 
 of man}' much larger congregations. As an 
 adjunct to the congregation, the ladies organized 
 a societ}^ called " Der Schweslerbund," which 
 has been in existence for over thirteen j-ears, 
 and which has nobly assisted in promoting the 
 great objects of the congregation. During the 
 sixteen years of its existence, the executive 
 power of the congregation has been in the hands 
 of the following nine Presidents : Isaac Levi, 
 Moses Joseph (two terms), H. F. Hahn, S. B. 
 Hopfman (two terms), Isidor Cohn. George Ma- 
 rienthal, and the present presiding officer, Ben- 
 jamin Desenberg. The first minister was the 
 Rev. N. Hirsch, succeeded in regular order b}' 
 Rev. N. L. Holstein, Rev. J. Jesselson, Rev. A. 
 Suhler, Rev. A. Schreier, Rev. A. Burgheim and 
 the present minister Rabbi S. M. Fleischman. 
 This is the histoiy of the Akron Hebrew Con- 
 gregation from the days of its inauguration to 
 
380 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 the present time. Its prosperous condition in- 
 dicates a bright future, and it is hoped that 
 when the congregation is again compelled to 
 remove from its present location, it will dedi- 
 cate a temple built by its own money on its 
 own property. — [Wn'tten by Rabbi *S'. 31. Fleisch- 
 man fur this work.^ 
 
 Calvary Church, of the Evangelical Associa- 
 tion of Akron, was organized in 18G6, by Rev. 
 H. F. S. Sichley, of the Bristol Circuit. To the 
 Rev. L. W. Hankey, the Pastor, we are indebted 
 for the following facts pertaining to this church : 
 Calvary Church was organized with the follow- 
 ing members : Benjamin Stahl (leader), Cath- 
 arine Stahl, Henry Nicholas, Catharine Nicho- 
 las, Samuel Nicholas, Leah Nicholas, Joseph 
 Nicholas, Martha Nicholas, Louisa Cook, Nancy 
 Henninger, W. W. Farnsworth, Max-garet Farns- 
 worthand John and Eliza Shaffer. In 1867, it was 
 determined by Conference that Akron should be 
 made a Mission, under the charge of Rev. Mr. 
 Sichley. There was no preaching, however, in 
 the early part of the the year, on account of 
 being unable to obtain a suitable building. A 
 church was commenced during the year and the 
 basement completed, and dedicated in October, 
 1867, by Rev. John StuU, Presiding Elder. 
 The dedicatory sermon was preached by him, 
 on the 6th of October. During the winter of 
 1867-68, the main audience-room of the church 
 was finished, and dedicated to the service of 
 God May 3, 1868, by Rev. Joseph Long, Bishop. 
 The building, which is a substantial frame, cost 
 about $4,000, outside of considerable work and 
 material, which was contributed by individual 
 members. It has been remodeled and improved 
 since it was originall}' built, and is now a hand- 
 some and commodious church edifice, located 
 in South Akron. 
 
 The following Pastors have been called to 
 the charge since organization : Revs. Jesse 
 Lerch, A. Swartz, H. E. Strauch, A. E. Dreis- 
 bach, S. S. Condo, A. Yandersoll, and the pres- 
 ent Pastor, Rev. L. W. Hankey. The member- 
 ship at this time is two hundred and twenty- 
 seven. 
 
 The Sunday school of this church was organ- 
 ized on the 27th of October, 1867, and num- 
 bered at the time about forty scholars. It has 
 continued since without interruption, and, at 
 the present time, is in a very flourishing state, 
 with a general attendance of 240 scholars, un- 
 der the superintendence of W. S. Youts. 
 
 The English Evangelical Lutheran Church 
 of the Holy Trinity, Akron, Ohio, was organ- 
 ized in the spring of 1870. The pioneer work 
 which resulted in this organization was per- 
 formed by Rev. W. A. Passavant, D. D., of Pitts- 
 burgh, and Rev. S. Laird, now of Philadelphia, 
 Penn. There were about thirty members at the 
 time of its organization. The first regular Pas- 
 tor of the congregation was Rev. U. P. Rutli- 
 rauff, now deceased. It was during his minis- 
 try that the fine gothic church on Prospect 
 street was built and the parsonage purchased, 
 at a cost of about $45,000. The church, though 
 not yet completed in its towers and Sunday 
 school arrangements, was consecrated in June, 
 1872. Rev. W. P. Ruthrauff soon after resigned 
 the charge and was succeeded by Rev. J. F. 
 Fahs, the present Pastor, who took charge of 
 the congregation in October, 1872. The con- 
 gregation now numbers about one hundred and 
 ninety-five communicant members. 
 
 The Sunday school was organized soon after 
 the organization of the congregation, and num- 
 bers about one hundred and twenty-five schol- 
 ars, with an average attendance of about one 
 hundred. Mr. R. N. Kratz is the Superintend- 
 dent. — [Written by Rev. J. F. Fahs.'\ 
 
 The Church of Christ of Middlebury, or the 
 Sixth Ward of Akron, is of recent organiza- 
 tion. The facts for the following sketch of it 
 were furnished by the Pastor, Elder T. D. But- 
 ler : The Church of Christ, Middlebury, Sum- 
 mit County, Ohio, was organized March 30, 
 1875, with eighty members, and the following 
 officers : H. J. White, A. Brown, M. Jewett, El- 
 ders ; F. W. Inman, G. F. Kent, T. H. Botsford 
 and Richard Whitmore, Trustees ; G. F. Kent 
 and T. H. Botsford, Deacons ; S. C. Inman, 
 Clerk, and Almon Brown, Treasurer. The 
 membership of the church at present is eighty- 
 five. The first Pastor was Elder H. J. White. 
 He has been followed by Elders F. M. Green, 
 R. G. White, J. W. James, W. H. Rogers (in 
 the order named), and by the present Pastor, 
 Elder T. D. Butler. The church building is 
 quite a model of architectural beauty, and was 
 erected in 1878, at a cost of about 16,000. 
 
 The Sunday school of this church was or- 
 ganized during the summer of 1875, and is in 
 a flourishing condition, with an average attend- 
 ance of abcut eighty children, under the super- 
 intendence of C. J. Robinson. 
 
 
:|A 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 381 
 
 CHAPTER XI.* 
 
 CITY OF AKRON— EDUCATIONAL HISTORY— THE EARLY SCHOOLS— PERFECTION OF THE COMMON 
 SCHOOLS— BUCHTEL COLLEGE- PRESIDENT AND FACULTY— ENDOWMENT, ETC. 
 
 Precepts and rules are repulsivfl to a cliild, but happy illustra- 
 tions wiuneth him. — Tiipper. 
 
 IN a history of Akron, its common schools 
 and educational facilities occupy a prom- 
 inent place. The following historical sketch of 
 the schools of the city was written by Judge C. 
 Bryan, and is so full and complete that we in- 
 corporate it almost bodil}' in this work. It is 
 as follows : " In 1846, there were within the in- 
 corporated limits of the village of Akron, 690 
 children between the ages of four and sixteen 
 years. Of this number, there was an average 
 attendance at the public and other schools the 
 year through of not more than 375. During 
 the summer of 1846, one of the district schools 
 was taught in the back room of a dwelling 
 house. Another was taught in an uncouth, in- 
 convenient and uncomfortable building, gratu- 
 itously furnished by Capt. Howe, for the use of 
 the district. There were private schools, but 
 these were taught in rooms temporarily hired, 
 and unsuited for the purpose in man}' respects. 
 Reading, writing, spelling, arithmetic and gram- 
 mar were more or less attended to in the pri- 
 vate and public schools ; but of the above num- 
 ber, there were, as estimated, 200 who did not at- 
 tend school at all, who ought to have been re- 
 ceiving the benefits of good school instruction. 
 " It was in view of this state of things that 
 Rev. I. Jennings, then a young man, and Pas- 
 tor of the Congregational Church of Akron, 
 self- moved, set himself to work to re-organize 
 the common schools of Akron. There were 
 many friends of a better education in the place, 
 who co-operated with Mr. , Jennings, and, on 
 the 16th of May, 1846, at a public meeting of 
 the citizens, a committee was appointed, of 
 which he was Chairman, ' to take into consid- 
 eration our present educational provisions and 
 the improvement, if any, which may be made 
 therein.' On the 21st of November, 1846, there 
 was an adjourned meeting of the citizens of 
 Akron, at Mechanics' Hall, at which Mr. Jen- 
 nings, on behalf of the committee, submitted 
 
 ♦Contributed by W. H. Perrin. 
 
 their report. It was a good, business-like doc- 
 ument, clear in its statements, definite in its 
 recommendations, and so just and reasonable 
 in its views, that it I'eceived the unanimous ap- 
 proval and adoption of the citizens there assem- 
 bled, and a committee, consisting of R. P. 
 Spaulding, H. W. King, H. B. Spelman and L. 
 V. Bierce. was appointed to secure the neces- 
 sary legislation. The following is the plan of 
 the committee : 1. Let the whole village be 
 incorporated into one school district. 2. Let 
 there be established six primar}- schools in dif- 
 ferent parts of the village, so as best to accom- 
 modate the whole. 3. Let there be one gram- 
 mar school, centrally' located, where instruction 
 may be given in the various studies and parts 
 of studies not provided for in the primary 
 schools, and yet requisite to a respectable En- 
 glish education. 4. Let there be gratuitous ad- 
 mission to each school in the system, for the 
 children of residents, with the following re- 
 strictions, viz.: No pupil shall be admitted to 
 the grammar school who fails to sustain a 
 thorough examination in the studies of the 
 primarj' school, and the teacher shall have 
 power, with the advice and direction of the Su- 
 perintendent, to exclude for misconduct in ex- 
 treme cases, and to classify the pupils as the 
 best good of the schools may seem to require. 
 5. The expense of establishing and sustaining 
 this system of schools shall be thus provided 
 for : First, by appropi'iating what public school 
 money the inhabitants of the village are enti- 
 tled to, and what other funds or propert}' ma}' 
 be at the disposal of the board for this pur- 
 pose ; and, secondly, a tax to be levied by the 
 Common Council upon the taxable property- of 
 this village for the balance. 6. Let six Super- 
 intendents be chosen by the Common Council, 
 who shall.be charged with perfecting the sys- 
 tem thus generally defined, the bringing of it 
 into operation, and the control of it when 
 brought into operation. Let the six Superin- 
 tendents be so chosen that the term of office 
 of two of them shall expire each year. 
 
382 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 " The plan was adopted by the Legishiture, 
 and embodied in the 'act for the support and 
 better regulation of common schools in the 
 town of Akron,' passed February 8, 1847, with 
 a change in the name and mode of election of 
 officers named in the sixth paragraph only, the 
 the substance being retained. The committee 
 urged in behalf of this plan, that it will secure 
 a thorougii classification of pupils, bring dif- 
 ferent classes into constant fellowship, lay hold 
 of native talent and worth, whether rich or poor, 1 
 and secure the best superintendence and man- 
 agement. It will not only give the best i 
 schools, but the cheapest : for while such in- . 
 struction as the youth of Akron now get costs I 
 about $2,200 a year, or $6.82 for each of the 
 375 who attend school, under the plan proposed ; 
 500 can be instructed for $1,700 a year, or $3.40 I 
 a scholar for cost of instruction. The interval ] 
 between the meetings in May and November, 
 1846, was improved by Mr. Jennings in col- 
 lecting information, maturing the plan and 
 elaborating the report. The idea originated 
 with Mr. Jennings, and the labor of visiting 
 e^'ery house in the village, to ascertain what 
 children went to school and who did not go, 
 and who went to public schools and Avho went 
 to private, and how much was paid for school 
 instruction, was performed by him. He went 
 to Cleveland and Sandusk}' City in the same 
 interest, to see the operation of graded schools 
 there. He procured estimates by competent 
 mechanics, of the cost of erecting a grammar- 
 school building to accommodate 500 pupils, 
 and omitted no detail of the plan that was nec- 
 essary to show it in organic completeness ; and 
 whatever credit and distinction Akron may 
 have enjoyed for being the first to adopt the 
 principle of free graded schools in Ohio, is due 
 to Mr. Jennings. Others saw and felt the need 
 of a system and of better methods of instruction 
 and management, but in his practical and sa- 
 gacious mind the subject took form and propor- 
 tion as an organic whole, and under his pre- 
 sentation the plan looked so feasible, so ad- 
 mirable, that hostility was disarmed and the 
 people were eager for its adoption. 
 
 '■ Mr. Jennings was the father and founder of 
 the Akron schools ; and, though he did not re- 
 main in Akron to see their operation, he gave 
 them their first impulse and direction, and in- 
 spired their management and administration. 
 His plan was flexible to the needs of the 
 
 growth and enlargement, and in essential feat- 
 ures remains as it first took form on the stat- 
 ute book. For actions less signal and benefi- 
 cent, men have been honored and recognized 
 as public benefactors. The first election under 
 the law was in the spring of 1847, and L. V. 
 Bierce, H. B. Spelman, James Mathews, Will- 
 iam H. Dewey, William M. Dodge and Joseph 
 Cole constituted the first Board of Education, 
 which organized by choosing L. V. Bierce, Pres- 
 ident ; H. B. Spelman, Secretary, and William 
 H. Dewey, Treasurer. The Town Council ap- 
 pointed J. S. Carpenter, A. B. Berrj' and H. K. 
 Smith, Examiners. The work of the board for 
 the first year was mainl}' that of organization. 
 They divided the Akron school district into 
 eight subdistricts, built two primary school- 
 houses, 25x32 feet, at a cost of $370 each, pur- 
 chased two and a half acres of land on Mill, 
 Prospect and Summit streets, at a cost of 
 $2,137.31, on which stood a dwelling-house, 
 which, at an expense of $613.44, was fitted up 
 for a grammar school. Mr. M. D. Leggett, late 
 Commissioner of Patents, was employed as 
 teacher and superintendent at a salary of $500, 
 assisted b}' Miss Wolcott, at a salary of $200, 
 and Miss Pomeroy, at a salary of $150. The 
 primaries were taught by young ladies, at 
 $3.50 per week. There were two terms of the 
 grammar school, the first commencing in x\u- 
 gust, and enrolling 127, with an average daily 
 attendance of 112, or eight3'-eight per cent; 
 the second term enrolling 188, and having an 
 average attendance of 167, or eight^'-nine per 
 cent. The primaries during the year showed 
 an average attendance of fifty-five per cent, and 
 an enrollment during the first term of 641. 
 During the second term, 880 was the number 
 enrolled. Some of these were from with- 
 out the district. Such was the state of opin- 
 ion at the first annual report, made in March, 
 1848, that the board felt called upon to justify 
 the employment of female teachers in the pri- 
 maries on the ground, first, of economy, and, 
 second, that the Superintendent was required to 
 spend one hour each day in these schools, vis- 
 iting them in rotation, which the Board be- 
 lieved secured all the advantages to be derived 
 from the employment of male teachers. 
 
 " The Akron school law and the operations of 
 the first board under it had a strong opposition 
 from property-holders. The principle of free 
 graded schools had not yet been recognized. 
 
 
'i^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 383 
 
 These men felt it a grievance that their proper- 
 ty should be taxed to educate the children of 
 the village. An unlimited power of taxation 
 for school purposes had been given the board 
 which they felt to be dangerous, and made an 
 objection to the system. As a peace-offering 
 to this class and to disarm opposition, the first 
 call was for but two mills on the dollar. But 
 the board went farther, asking the Legislature 
 to limit its power to five mills. The act was 
 amended, fixing the limit at four mills a year 
 for school purposes. This change was unfortu- 
 nate. The State had just changed its rate of 
 taxation for school purposes, by which the 
 amount Akron would otherwise receive was 
 reduced over $300. Schoolhouses had to be 
 built, lots purchased and paid for, and the 
 board was compelled to an economy of man- 
 agement that bordered upon parsimony, and in 
 the second year to lose the services of Mr. Leg- 
 gett, who was doing well for the school. The 
 board was able, however, to make a good show- 
 ing in its first annual report in this, that the 
 cost of tuition for each scholar was less than 
 $2 a year — a saving to the town of from $1,340 
 to $1,776 a year on the common-school system. 
 In the grammar school were taught orthogra- 
 phy, reading, writing, arithmetic, geographj^, 
 history, grammar, algebra, geometry, trigonom- 
 etry, physiolog}^, natural philosophy, mental 
 philosophy, chemistry, book-keeping, astrono- 
 my, phonogi'aphy, and an hour each week given 
 to composition and declamation. The board 
 bears honorable testimony to the zeal and effi- 
 ciency of teachers of grammar and primary 
 schools, and to the Board of Examiners for 
 ' efficient and valuable suggestions,' and in view 
 of all the facts may be pardoned if it slightly 
 magnified its work when it said it had given 
 ' the benefits of a, finished English education to 
 all the children of the town at less than the 
 average rate of tuition under the common- 
 school system.' During the second year, end- 
 ing March 31, 1849, two new schoolhouses 
 were erected for the primaries, at a cost of 
 $480 each, but the accommodations were still 
 inadequate. The schools were crowded, and 
 more room needed without the means to build. 
 The average daily percentage of attendance in 
 the primaries had risen to be 62 per cent, 
 and that of the grammar fallen to 71 for the 
 first term and 80 for the last. In the third 
 3^ear the subdistricts were increased to nine, the 
 
 primaries were graded, and the grammar school 
 suspended from April 27 to September 3, 1849. 
 At the latter date, Mr. C. Palmer took the 
 charge under an engagement for two years, 
 assisted by Mrs. Palmer and Mr. Graham. The 
 suspension was a financial necessity', but the 
 board was enabled to speak assuredly of the 
 improvement in the public regard for the 
 schools. 'The ardor of novelty had subsided, 
 but the sober judgment of the people fully sus- 
 tained the system.' 'We doubt,' the board 
 say, ' whether at any time a motion to relapse 
 into our former chaotic state would have been 
 met by a more determined or numerous oppo- 
 sition than now. In truth, we think our school 
 system may be looked upon as having passed 
 the crisis, and as being fixed in the convictions 
 and cherished in the conscious wants of the 
 people." 
 
 "In the winter of 1850-51, the board en- 
 tered into a contract with Mr. Charles Brown 
 for laying the foundation of a brick edifice, 
 70x50 feet, and two stories high, for the gram- 
 mar school, an undertaking for which there 
 was pressing need on account of the entire un- 
 fitness of the building then in use for that pur- 
 pose. The corner-stone of this edifice was laid 
 with due ceremonies Aug. 18, 1851, and 
 the walls finished before the commencement of 
 winter. The grammar school was taught but six 
 weeks during the fifth school year, and closed 
 in consequence of the illness of Mr. Palmer, 
 the Superintendent, not to be opened again 
 until the new building was read}' for occupa- 
 tion. The necessity of this suspension lay in 
 the state of the finances and the limited powers 
 of the Board for taxation. Mr. and Mrs. 01m- 
 stead were emploj^ed at $50 a month to teach 
 a high grade primary school, which took the 
 place of the grammar school. The salary of 
 Mr. Palmer was $600. In the fourth annual 
 report the term, ' High School, ' first appears in 
 the transactions of the board. During the 
 third and fourth school years, J. S. Carpenter, 
 Esq., is President of the Board, and the reports 
 deal more in certain general aspects, the meth- 
 ods, means and ends of education ; less external 
 stimulation, and more of self-help in the school 
 room. The fifth annual report shows the same 
 aptness for comparative statistics as the first 
 and second, and gives the cost of tuition for the 
 whole 3'ear : Per scholar upon average enrolled, 
 $2 ; per scholar upon average attendance. 
 
 & V 
 
#-4- 
 
 384 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 $2.80 ; per scholar upon average enumeration, 
 $1.12, and believes an instance cannot be found 
 where so thorough an education can be obtained 
 at so small an expense. 
 
 "On the 13th of October, 1853, the new 
 structure was completed and dedicated to the 
 cause of education. The cost of the building 
 was $9,250, and in its plan and appearance was 
 creditable to the then village of Akron. Mr. 
 Samuel F. Cooper was put in charge of the 
 high school, assisted b}' Mrs. Cooper and Miss 
 Voris ; Miss Codding, assisted by Misses Prior 
 and Gilbert, had charge of the grammar school. 
 A nucleus of a philosophical apparatus and 
 geological calnnet was formed under Mr. 
 Cooper. In April, 1856, the engagement of 
 Mr. Cooper closed. In the October following, 
 H. B. Foster. Esq., of Hudson, entered upon 
 the office of instruction and superintendence, 
 and continued until the following spring, when 
 his engagement closed. He was assisted by 
 Misses Bernard and Williamson, all able and 
 competent teachers, with whom the board was 
 loath to part. Mr. Foster declining a re-engage- 
 ment, Mr. E. B. Olmstead was employed to 
 take his place, and J. Park Alexander was put 
 in charge of the grammar school at $35 per 
 month. The primary teachers were paid from 
 $3.75 to $5. per week. In 1855-56, the 
 grammar school was in charge of Mr. George 
 Root, assisted a part of the year by Misses 
 Angel and McArthur. Mr. Root gave special 
 attention to penmanship and book-keeping in 
 the high school, and his instruction in those 
 branches was attended with marked results. 
 The paj'-roll of teachers for the year ending 
 April, 1856, was $2,777.42, including superin- 
 tendence. In the report made April, 1857, the 
 estimated expense of running the schools for 
 the next year was $4,200, ' including inci- 
 dentals,' and it was in this report that claim 
 was first made for compensation* to members of 
 the board for their services. It was in this 
 report also that the first rule was laid down 
 touching the reading of the Bible and religious 
 instruction in the schools. The following is 
 the rule : ' Teachers may open their schools in 
 the morning by singing with the scholars, or 
 reading a short passage of Scripture (the 
 Lord's pra3'er, for instance), without note or 
 comment, or without any general exercise, as 
 they may think proper.' In this report also is 
 laid down the rule of the board touching the 
 
 qualifications of teachers. ' The board, as a 
 general rule, have determined to emplo}' no 
 teachers in the Akron schools but those of 
 ripe age, ample experience and successful tact in 
 their profession, while it is entirely necessary 
 and essential that a teacher shall have a fine 
 education, and an ample fund of general knowl- 
 edge, it is as important to possess tact also.' 
 Besides these, the teacher must have ' great 
 goodness and kindness of heart, indomitable 
 perseverance, good common sense, and last, but 
 not least, the qualities, in a measure, of a suc- 
 cessful military general.' It might excite our 
 wonder that so rare and so fair a cluster of 
 graces and acquirements could be had for the 
 asking in the year 1854, and at so low figures 
 as from $3.50 a week in the primaries to $65 a 
 month to the principal of the high school and 
 Superintendent of all the schools. The board 
 hints at no difficulty in procuring teachers of 
 ripe age, ample experience, successful tact, fine 
 education, etc., or that the market is not full of 
 that description of candidates for the office of 
 instruction. The high school lot is being 
 graded, and, when done, " the grounds will be 
 planted with forest trees, evergreens and shrub- 
 bery, such as will best conduce to the appear- 
 ance of the place, and, in after years, to the 
 comfort of the scholars.' A substantial stone 
 wall has been erected on the west front, and on 
 the other three sides a tight board fence. 
 
 " The Akron School District was, in April, 
 1857, divided into five subdisti'icts, in- the first 
 and second of which, primar}- and secondary 
 grades of pupils were to be taught by the same 
 teacher in the same room. In the other sub- 
 districts, the primaries and secondaries were to 
 be taught separately. A course of study is 
 laid down. Reading and spelling run through 
 the four grades, ' writing when desired,' in the 
 secondary, and every day in the grammar and 
 in the high school, ' so as to be able to write a 
 fair hand.' The scholars in the grammar school 
 shall be taught to read and spell the fourth 
 reader fluently ; to master the first half of 
 Stoddard's Intellectual Arithmetic ; the whole 
 of Trac3^'s and Stoddard's Practical as far as in- 
 terest ; the general definitions in grammar ; 
 Colton and Fitch's Modern School Geography ; 
 to practice writing every day ; map drawing ; 
 declamation one hour each week, and general 
 practical oral instruction daily. The high 
 school course included, 3d, Stoddard's Practical 
 
 *7[. 
 
1± 
 
 CITY OF AKROT^. 
 
 385 
 
 Arithmetic, after which Greenleafs National 
 ma}' be taken up (one class), and the whole 
 school practiced in mental arithmetic ; 4th, 
 English grammar and parsing ; 5th. map draw- 
 ing and geograph}' ; 6th, philosophy ; 7th, his- 
 tor}' ; 8th, physiology ; 9th, algebra ; 10th, 
 chemistry ; 1 1th, astronomy ; 12th, botany and 
 geometry. Declamation and composition to be 
 practiced by each pupil every four weeks. 
 These in their order, the 1st and 2d being occu- 
 pied by reading, spelling and writing. The 
 Superintendent is to be Principal of the high 
 school and institutes, and spend two hours each 
 week visiting the other public schools of the 
 town, advising with the teachers, examining the 
 classes with reference to their classification, 
 progress and promotion, and to report monthh' 
 to the board. 
 
 " This outline closes the tenth year of the 
 Akron schools. One of the features of this 
 period is the ' Specimen Schools or Teachers' 
 Institutes', held each Saturday morning in the 
 presence of all the teachers, members of the 
 board, etc. One teacher, b}' previous appoint- 
 ment, calls her school together on Saturday 
 morning, and pursues her routine course for an 
 hour and a half, and then dismisses it. After 
 this, lectures, discussions, etc. These institutes, 
 the board say, ' have worked admirably.' 
 Teachers were required to attend them. It was 
 in the seventh 3'ear of the schools (1854), that 
 we first hear of these ' Specimen Schools or 
 Teachers' Institutes.' They gave way in 1860 
 to teachers' meetings, which were designed for 
 mutual improvement, and to enable the teacher 
 to keep place with progress in the ' art of teach- 
 ing.' When Latin and Greek were dropped does 
 not appear, but here is the mind of the board 
 upon the subject : ' The introduction of the 
 study of languages into the high school has 
 often been urged by a few of our citizens ; but, 
 the board have been of the opinion that a good 
 practical English education is all that an}' one 
 has a right to expect or exact at the hands of a 
 generous public' The Akron schools have now 
 been in operation ten years, and under five dif- 
 ferent Superintendents, three of whom, Leggett, 
 Palmer and Foster, were capable, competent 
 and valuable men for the place. Their work 
 was mainly that of instruction in the depart- 
 ment under their immediate charge ; the super- 
 vision of other schools being quite nominal, 
 consisting chiefly in occasional visitation. In 
 
 the existing state of opinion and resources of 
 the board, this was the best that could be done. 
 But the necessity of permanence in the office 
 of superintendence and instruction was being 
 felt. The evils of frequent changes had become 
 apparent. The schools had not at all times 
 maintained the prestige they at first enjoyed, 
 nor the pre-eminence to which they were entitled 
 as the pioneer free graded schools of Ohio. In the 
 eleventh annual report, the board declare their 
 conviction that the ' lowest wages ' principle was 
 not the best economy, and that such compensa- 
 tion should be paid for superintendence and in- 
 struction as would secure the best skill and 
 ability in both departments. Acting upon these 
 views, Mr. T. C. Pooler, a teacher of experience 
 in the State of New York, was employed as 
 Superintendent, at a salary of f 1,000, assisted 
 by Misses M. K. Parsons and H. A. Bernard in 
 the high school. Mr. H. M. Ford, assisted by 
 Miss Coftman, was made Principal of the gram- 
 mar school. During a part of Mr. Pooler's first 
 year, Misses Angel and Church were his assist- 
 ants, Miss Bernard coming in the second year. 
 Mr. Pooler retained the position three years, and 
 declined a re-engagement. With him began 
 superintendence and the practice of making 
 annual reports to the board. At this point also 
 begins a change in the school year from the 31st 
 of March, to the 31st of August, consequently 
 this report covers fifty-three weeks of the 
 schools— fifteen in the spring and summer of 
 1857, and forty weeks from September, 1857, to 
 July, 1858. Hereafter the school year will 
 commence with September. The above state- 
 ment that with Mr. Pooler, superintendence 
 commenced, must be qualified, for if it com- 
 menced it did not continue to any valuable ex- 
 tent. Rule fifth, of the board, adopted Septem- 
 ber, 1859, provided that 'he shall visit each 
 school at least once in four weeks, and advise 
 and direct the several teachers in regard to 
 classifying and disciplining their pupils.' His 
 reports are practical, and relate to matters with 
 which he is charged. The statistics of enroll- 
 ment and attendance show an improving condi- 
 tion in these regards. 
 
 " The engagement of Mr. I. P. Hole as Princi- 
 pal of the high school and Superintendent 
 commenced September, 1870, at a salary of 
 $900 a year, and continued until September, 
 1868, during which period his salary was from 
 time to time increased, until it reached $1,500. 
 
 ^1^ 
 
'^1'^ 
 
 386 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Besides this substantial approval by successive 
 boards, Mr. Hole was cordially indorsed, as 
 reports and resolutions of the Board abundantly 
 show. His report as Superintendent was pub- 
 lished during the first six years of his engage- 
 ment, and are useful for the information they 
 contain of the condition of the schools. The 
 average attendance for all the schools is 
 91 per cent for the year 18G6, while for the 
 3'ears 1863 and 1864 it is 78 per cent. The 
 tables accompanying his reports show an in- 
 crease in enrollment and attendance during 
 this period, and they also show that the num- 
 ber attending the high school as steadily di- 
 minished. In 1860 and 1861, tiie total enroll- 
 ment in that department was 141 ; monthly 
 membership, 83, and average daily attendance, 
 63, while in 1865 and 1866, the total enroll- 
 ment was 67 ; monthly membership, 44 ; aver- 
 age attendance, 41. * * * The schools 
 had become crowded. Six primaries taught 
 during the fall of 1865, and seven during the 
 winter and spring following, had an enrollment 
 of 724 pupils ; one secondary school, employ- 
 ing three teachers, enrolled 216, and the gram- 
 mar school, with three teachers, enrolled 156 
 pupils. The high school, with an enrollment 
 of 67, employed one teacher regularly, one 
 about half of the time, and the Principal 
 something over one-half Of all these schools, 
 except the high, he has words of unqaalified 
 praise, and of that he says, • decorum seems to 
 forbid that I should speak.' He makes hon- 
 orable mention of Mrs. Coburn, who had been 
 associated with him in that department six 
 years, and had resigned, 'as deserving to be 
 held in grateful remembrance by the people of 
 Akron, and the hundreds of young persons 
 whom she had served so earnestly and faith- 
 fully.' llule 13 of the Board, adopted Sep- 
 tember, 1859, defining the duties of Superin- 
 tendents, says : ' He shall hold a meeting of 
 the parents at the commencement of each 
 school year, or oftener, and address them in 
 reference to their school duties and obliga- 
 tions.' He did not restrain himself to 'such 
 facts connected with the operation of our pub- 
 lic school system as may be of general interest 
 to the community,' but sometimes expressed 
 himself at large on the duties of parent and 
 citizen. In his report of 1863, he notices the 
 assumption of parents and teachers that when 
 pupils have memorized the text-books put into 
 
 their hands, 'that their work has been well 
 done.' This assumption he saj's, ' stops too 
 short,' and he proceeds to elaborate his views 
 of the processes of the mind in acquiring 
 knowledge through eight successive and dis- 
 tinct operations, from impressions on one of 
 the five senses, to reason, ' the most important 
 characteristic of rationality." The moral tone 
 is always good. The report of 1864 contains 
 the first notice of graduation from the high 
 school. Miss P. H. (xoodwin, of Akron, is the 
 graduate of this year. We find no published 
 reports of the board or of Mr. Hole, as Super- 
 intendent, for the last two years of his con- 
 nection with the schools, and the history of 
 his period of principalship and superintend- 
 ence substantially closes with September, 1866. 
 In February, 1868, he tenders his resignation. 
 The board passes a resolution of confidence, 
 ' earnestly invokes the confidence and support 
 of the community as being eminently due to 
 those having charge of our public schools, as 
 Superintendent and teachers, and as at present 
 advised, decline to accept the resignation.' In 
 December, 1865, the board assumes the con- 
 trol of the Spicer Addition to the Akron School 
 District, with about one hundred pupils, and in 
 
 1866, enters upon the enlargement of the high 
 school building, bj' the addition of two wings, 
 with two schoolrooms to each wing, and recita- 
 tion rooms adjoining. An enlargement of 
 school accommodations had become a neces- 
 sity, and to meet this expense a loan of |15,- 
 000 was authorized by the board in May, 
 
 1867, and, in April, 1868, bonds in that amount 
 were provided for by resolution of the board. 
 
 " Before entering upon a new period of man- 
 agement and administration of the schools, 
 there are certain points of interest in the past 
 which deserve to be noticed. In the second 
 year of the schools, instruction was given in 
 Latin and (xreek languages, and in the fourth 
 year, classes and teachers were commended for 
 thoroughness of training in those branches, as 
 well as for others taught in the high school. 
 Wlien these were dropped does not appear, but 
 probably during the suspension of the gram- 
 mar school. We have seen the stand taken by 
 the board in 1858 in reference to these 
 branches, but, in August, 1865, Latin and 
 Greek were again admitted by resolution. 
 Tardiness and irregularity of attendance are a 
 grievance from the first organization of the 
 
\^. 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 387 
 
 schools — the refrain of every report down to 
 1865. Sometimes the remedy was supposed to 
 be with the parents, and sometimes with teach- 
 ers or pupils, or all combined. The expedient 
 is tried of closing the doors against pupils 
 a few moments after the hour for opening has 
 arrived, and shutting them out until recess. 
 This did not cure the evil. In 1864, three 
 absences during one month were visited with 
 suspension, and boards at succeeding meetings 
 heard and granted restoration. This rule 
 worked better. It put parents to inconven- 
 ience ; made them feel the power of the board, 
 and to see that Boards of Education had 
 rights. In 1847-48, the percentage of attend- 
 ance in the primaries was 55^ ; in the gram- 
 mar school, 88 per cent ; while in 1866, the 
 percentage of attendance reached 90 per cent 
 for the schools. This improvement became a 
 matter of gratulation with boards and Super- 
 intendents. In the report of the board for 
 1861, jets of humor for the first time appear in 
 these documents. As a Board of Education 
 of Akron, after fourteen years' experience, 
 ma}- be supposed to know something of boards 
 and teachers in general, this board ma}^ be 
 allowed to speak on the subject. Of the 
 numerous applications for places as teachers in 
 our schools, and the qualifications, or rather 
 the want of them, which many of those appl}'- 
 ing exhibit, the board says : ' Without heads 
 or hearts for the teacher's work, come the Jer- 
 emy Diddlers, out at the elbows, and the Flora 
 McFlimseys, with nothing to wear, seeking the 
 salaries of the schoolroom to mend their coats 
 and failing fortunes, and to enlarge their scanty 
 wai'drobes. Teachers and boards are often 
 sadly at fault in their anatomy of the soul and 
 body of the young. They would define a pupil 
 to be a boy or girl from five to twenty-one 
 3'ears of age, having no heart to make better 
 or keep pure, no bones and joints to grow 
 strong and shapel}-, no muscles to train and 
 develop to flexibility, no taste for the beautiful 
 to be cultivated, but onl}* a head to be filled 
 with syntaxes and prosodies, with ratios and 
 quantities, with ologies and osophies — onl}^ 
 this and nothing more. Herbert Spencers 
 work on " Education " should be added to the 
 library of all who give or accept this definition 
 of a pupil.' Whether it was the expression of 
 an abstract opinion by the board, or whether it 
 was suggested by the state of things then 
 
 existing in the high school does not appear, 
 but the}' say in substance that, inasmuch as 
 the high school had taken the place of the 
 academy and seminary, where attention was 
 paid to ethics and the proprieties of social life, 
 the high school "should care somewhat for 
 these things.' In 1859, a course of study was 
 prescribed. For the grammar and high school 
 it was a three-years course. There were to be 
 exercises in singing daily by the pupils who 
 could sing. Music was not a branch of in- 
 struction, but an exercise. Moral instruction 
 and attention to manners are enjoined upon 
 the first division of the secondary, and in the 
 grammar school, oral instruction in manners 
 and behavior was to be given daily. The 
 board regards its work with favor, and says 
 'the prominence which it assigns to moral 
 culture, to drawing and to music, heretofoi'e 
 much neglected, will meet with the approba- 
 tion of all whose approbation is worth having.' 
 Two years later, the course of study was 
 revised — that for the high school enlarged to 
 four years, and the same prescription as to 
 manners and behavior in the grammar school 
 continued. Why this discrimination does not 
 appear, for the board, as we have seen, this 
 year suggested that these matters were being 
 neglected in the high school. To all that the 
 board enjoins in regard to ' moi-als, manners 
 and behavior,' it may be objected that they 
 'stop too- short.' Standards vary with persons 
 and places, and what the ideal of this board 
 was as to what constituted good morals and 
 manners is left to conjecture. The ninth sec- 
 tion of the act for the support and better regu- 
 lation of common schools in Akron made 
 provision for periodical visitation of the 
 schools by persons to be appointed by the 
 Council and Mayor. With thorough and sys- 
 tematic superintendence of the schools, there 
 would be little or no need of these visitations ; 
 but that period had not yet arrived. Rev. S. 
 Williams was appointed school visitor under 
 that section of the law, and made, in the years 
 1858 and 1859, his reports to the Council, 
 which were published, and, so far as appears, 
 were the first official visitations made. Mr. 
 Williams was a man of culture and of much 
 experience as a teacher, and competent for the 
 work he undertook. He was too kindly and 
 urbane in manners for trenchant criticism, but 
 he discriminates with candor, and leaves the 
 
 it \, 
 
^« 
 
 388 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 reader of his reports means of an opinion as to 
 excellences and defects of particular schools. 
 He marked the absence of historical studies 
 from the grammar and high school, and, in the 
 year following, we find history in the course of 
 study for those departments. With the fifteenth 
 annual report of the board is published the re- 
 port of R. 0. Hammond, Esq., as school visitor 
 for that year. His report shows the value of in- 
 dependent criticism and observation of the 
 conduct and management of the schools. He 
 commends warml}' and censures unsparingly. 
 He says : ' The board say in their report that 
 mental philosophy, political economy, moral 
 science and evidences of Christianity are 
 taught in the fourth year. But they are not 
 taught. And yet there is no good reason why 
 the}' are omitted.' He urges the cultivation of 
 vocal music. 'This, in my judgment,' he says, 
 ' should be taught in our schools as a compo- 
 nent part of daily instruction. I mean that 
 the principles of music should be taught — 
 taught as a science. In this way, at a small 
 expense, singers with well cultivated voices, 
 able to read music readily, may be fitted for 
 the choir, the concert and the parlor.' 
 
 "The school j^ear beginning September 1, 
 1868, was the beginning of a new period in the 
 histor}' of the Akron schools. x\kron had become 
 a city. Its school population numbered 3,007. 
 The growth and promise of the place had 
 brought in new men, and with new business 
 success and prosperity, larger and more liberal 
 views had come to prevail. Akron had no in- 
 stitution or interest it cherished as it did its 
 schools. They had acquired a sure footing in 
 the regard and affection of the people. The re- 
 port of the board by its President, Dr. Bowen, 
 shows this by its tone of cheerful assurance. 
 Mr. Hole and other teachers of the high and 
 grammar schools had resigned, and it became 
 the duty of the board to fill their places. ' They 
 cast about for teachers who had attained a high 
 rank in their profession, and were known by 
 competent judges to have come honestly by their 
 good reputations.' There were not man}- such, 
 and the demand was lai-ge. ' Other Boards of 
 Education were abroad as bidders, and having 
 made selections, based, as was believed, on a 
 full fitness for the work to be done, it remained 
 for us to pay such prices as would take the 
 teachers we wanted from other bids, and bring 
 them to our schools, instead of allowing them 
 
 to go elsewhere.' This is frank, free from tone 
 of apology, and the board is to be commended 
 for carrying out so good a programme. Mr. 
 Samuel Findley, a gentleman of good scholarly 
 attainments and ripe experience as a teacher, 
 was secured as Superintendent ; Mrs. N. A. 
 Stone, of State- wide reputation as a teacher and 
 disciplinarian, was put in charge of the high 
 school, and Miss Herdraan, a teacher of much 
 experience and rare excellence, was put in 
 charge of the grammar school. At the close 
 of the year, the board was justified in sa3'ing 
 of the work done, that it was well done. Mr. 
 Findle}' had shown rare executive ability. The 
 leading features of an improved management 
 of the high school, under Mrs. Stone, assisted 
 by Misses Saunders and Trowbridge, ' were 
 thoroughness in preparing the lesson, an ani- 
 mated, accurate and full recitation of it, and 
 more of polite deportment.' The grammar 
 school, under Miss Herdman, assisted by Misses 
 Voris and Worthington, ' has become a well- 
 behaved room, where decorum prevails, and 
 where lessons are thoroughly studied and well 
 recited. Never in all its life has its order been 
 so good and its teaching so thorough.' The 
 primary schools also were well taught. The 
 board makes a financial exhibit for the year 
 ending September 1, 1869, showing a total of 
 disbursements of $32,763. Of this amount, 
 the salaries of Superintendent and teachers 
 were $14,002.50 ; building sites, building and 
 repairs, $15,752.60 ; fuel and other contingent 
 expenses, $2,907.98 ; total receipts, $35,553.34. 
 * * * * * For the work Mr. Find- 
 ley has shown I'are fitness and abilit}'. With 
 great firmness he unites courteous manners and 
 an openness of mind to what is new and also 
 good in school management and instruction. 
 He found it necessary, early in the year, to re- 
 duce the eleven primary school districts to six, 
 giving two schools to each district, except one, 
 and making two grades of primary scholars. 
 By this change, the teaching force was nearly, 
 if not quite, doubled, without any increase in 
 the number of teachers, or in expense. With 
 this came a course of study for the primary 
 and grammar schools, of four j-ears in each de- 
 partment. Text-books are excluded from the 
 primaries, except readers, and the school hours 
 of the lowest grade reduced to four. There are 
 to be monthly written examinations in the high 
 and grammar schools. English literature takes 
 
'A 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 389 
 
 its place in the high school, and vocal music 
 becomes a specialty of instruction in all de- 
 partments of the central building. Drawing, 
 heretofore neglected, ' has been promoted to the 
 rank of a regular study,' and runs through the 
 grammar and lower grades. Morals and man- 
 ners run through the three first years of the 
 primary course in this specific form : ' Incul- 
 cate reverence and love for God as the Great 
 Father of all, obedience to parents and teachers, 
 and a kind, forgiving spirit toward brothers and 
 sisters and schoolmates. Guard against rude- 
 ness of manners, and suppress profanity and 
 other immoral practices.' This is a rule on the 
 subject of moral instruction of all the schools : 
 ' It shall be a duty of the first importance on 
 the part of the teachers, to exercise constant 
 supervision and care over the general conduct 
 of their scholars ; and they are especially en- 
 joined to avail themselves of every opportunity 
 to inculcate the observance of correct manners, 
 habits and pi'inciples.' Results for the first 
 year must be regarded as satisfactory. The 
 percentage of punctualit}- in no school falls be- 
 low 96, and in many of them reached 98 and 
 99. and the average for all was 9*^.4. The per- 
 centage of attendance on average number be- 
 longing, for all the schools, was 93.1, and but 
 two fell below 90. How much of this was due 
 to the steady toning up of the Superintendent, 
 is best known to the teachers. 
 
 " Reports of the board and Superintend- 
 ent, after the year 1869, are for the school 
 years 1871-74-75. The board reports are 
 plain and intelligible statements of the finan- 
 cial condition and transactions of the board 
 and the general state of the schools. In 
 1870, there were paid for building, repairs, 
 furniture, etc., $17,412 ; and, in 1874, for sites 
 and buildings, $17,200. In 1871, the primaries 
 are crowded, and the necessity pressing for ad- 
 ditional accommodation for the present and in- 
 creasing population of the city. The board 
 has settled upon a plan of systematic enlarge- 
 ment of school structures, which is thus ex- 
 plained in the report of G. W. Grouse, Esq., 
 President of the Board : In providing addi- 
 tional buildings, it is the present policy of the 
 board that each additional school building 
 erected shall be part of a general plan, which 
 shall have for its object the supplying of each 
 section of our cit}- with a suitable school build- 
 ing, located centrall}' with reference to the part 
 
 of the city it is designed to accommodate, and 
 which shall contain not less than six rooms.' 
 The estimated cost of such structures was $15,- 
 000, and, in pursuance of this plan, the North 
 Broadway building has been enlarged to the 
 capacity above named, and the school edifices 
 known as the Perkins and Spicer, have been 
 erected and occupied. The estimated value of 
 all school property, in 1874, was $136,000. To 
 this is to be added the Spicer Schoolhouse, since 
 built, estimated at $25,000. In the report of 
 this year, by Lewis Miller, Esq., Px-esident of 
 the Board, attention is called to the fact that, 
 about twenty-eight years ago, the experiment 
 of free graded schools was authorized in Akron, 
 by special act of the Legislature, and that about 
 a year since the Legislature, b}^ general act, had 
 extended the principle to all the public schools 
 of the State. 
 
 " In the year 1872, Middlebury became a part 
 of the Akron School District, bringing with it 
 163 pupils, and the Board of Education, from 
 1872, consisting of twelve members, instead of 
 six, as formerly. The reports of the Superin- 
 tendent that accompany these reports of the 
 board ax'e instructive reading. They relate to 
 matters that come under his official supervision 
 and are within the legislative sphere of the 
 board. He carefully considers what he says, 
 and gives trustworthy information and matured 
 opinions on educational matters. The follow- 
 ing summaries from the Superintendent's ta- 
 bles, contain evidences of good condition and 
 healthfulness. The averages are so high that 
 they leave little room for improvement in that 
 line : 
 
 1874 — Number of youth between si.x and 
 twenty-one 3,809 
 
 1875 — Number of youth between six and 
 twenty-one 3.964 
 
 Number of schools: 
 
 High school 1 
 
 Grammar schools 8 
 
 Primary schools 24 
 
 Teachers in high school 4 
 
 Teachers in grammar schools 13 
 
 Teachers in primary schools 24 
 
 Music teacher 1 
 
 Average number of regular teachers 40.3 
 
 Average number of i)upils in daily attendance at 
 
 Highschool 111-8 
 
 Grammar schools 513.8 
 
 Primary schools 1,158.8 
 
 Total average daily attendance 1.754.4 
 
 :fV 
 
390 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COl NTY 
 
 The percentage of average daily attendance on the 
 average number belonging 
 
 In tlie high school 95.6 
 
 In the grammar schools 94.8 
 
 In the primary schools 95 
 
 In all the schools 94.9 
 
 " The number of graduates from high school 
 prior to 1869, beginning in 1864, were 15 ; in 
 1869, 5 ; in 1871, 4 ; in^l872, 17 ; in 1873, 11 ; 
 in 1874, 16 ; in 1875, 18. 
 
 "The course of study adopted in 1869 has 
 been adhered to. The high school course has 
 been cut down to three 3"ears, and the scholars 
 of the A (xrammar Grade, who have been hitherto 
 included in the high school have been confined 
 to their proper department. Written examina- 
 tions are twice a term instead of monthl}^ and 
 promotions twice a year instead of annually. 
 School hours have been reduced to five. Musical 
 instruction runs through all grades, and is 
 in the hands of a specialist in that department. 
 ' The lessons in music,' he says, ' are given daily, 
 and occupy from fifteen to thirty minutes, ac- 
 cording to the age of the pupil. The instruc- 
 tion is thoroughl}^ graded, commencing in the 
 lowest primary grade with the simplest exer- 
 cises in distinguishing and making musical 
 sounds, and advancing b}^ regular gradations to 
 the practice of classic music in the high school.' 
 As Mr. Findley declares himself an original 
 skeptic on the subject of musical capabilities, 
 he may be allowed to state his conversion in his 
 own words : ' Before investigating the subject 
 and hearing the testimon}' of tliose who had 
 made the experiment, I shared in the common 
 belief that musical talent is a special gift, and 
 that only the favored few have it in sufficient 
 degree to make its cultivation desirable. That 
 this is a fallacy has been amply proven. Noth- 
 ing else in all my experience, in connection 
 with the work of instruction has given me such 
 enlarged views of what is attainable in the di- 
 rection of the cultivation of the human powers. 
 We can fix no limits to the possibilities of hu- 
 man culture.' 
 
 "The competence of women for instruction 
 and discipline has been fairl}' tried in the 
 Akron schools, and the results thus stated in 
 the report of 1874 : ' The average number of 
 regular teachers employed was thirty-seven — 
 all women. I have no hesitation in sa3'ing, 
 that the experiment we have made the last six 
 years in employing none but women as regular 
 teachers in our schools, has been eminently 
 
 successful.' Moral and religious instruction is 
 a subject wliich undergoes discussion in these 
 reports. The views entertained on this subject 
 b}' successive boards and Superintendents may, 
 so far as they have given them expression, be 
 briefl}' stated. In the second year, the moral 
 nature is recognized as of equal rank with the 
 intellectual. But this cannot have been a senti- 
 ment rather than a conviction, though it led to 
 no definite provision then and there for the 
 moral nature. With teachers of the right 
 ethical tone, the whole matter of ' morals and 
 manners ' in schools might, with safety, be 
 left, and this is where the earh' boards seem to 
 have left them. In the tenth year, came the 
 rule for the qualified reading of the Bible as 
 an opening exercise. In the twelfth j-ear, 
 ' moral culture,' heretofore neglected, or but 
 little cared for, ' was assigned a rank with draw- 
 ing and music' In the fifteenth year, Mr. 
 Hole gave ' moral training ' a prominence, and 
 introduced Cowdery's ' Moral Lessons,' but the 
 board protested ' that nothing sectarian has 
 been introduced into your schools — nor any 
 sectarian practice permitted.' All Mr. Hole's 
 convictions inclined him to do in the schools 
 whatever could be done for the moral nature, 
 and the twelfth board quotes this with ap- 
 proval : ' It has become quite evident that 
 moral education, not occasional and irregular, 
 but systematic and thorough, is entitled to a 
 fixed position in every system of instruction.' 
 We share the surprise and conviction of Super- 
 intendent Findley, as expressed in his report of 
 1869 : ' It seems strange that any attempt 
 should be made to divorce intellectual and 
 moral culture. The two are inseparable. Our 
 moral and intellectual faculties are so closely 
 allied as to be scarcely distinguishable to our 
 consciousness ; at least, life's intellectual activi- 
 ties and pleasures find their culmination and ful- 
 fillment in the moral. The moral is the pinnacle 
 of our whole being. A man is whatever his heart 
 is. His faith, his love, his purposes — these deter- 
 mine his character.' He touches the key-note 
 to the whole great question of the Bible in the 
 public schools, in the above passage, and others 
 in the same and subsequent report : ' It is not 
 so much what the teacher says, as what he /.s 
 and does, which effects for good or evil the 
 future lives and characters of his pupils. All 
 the moral and religious influences of the school 
 which is of an}- worth must come as an 
 
•l^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 391 
 
 emanation from the teacher's character and 
 
 life.' 
 
 ****** 
 
 "In his report of 1874, the Superintendent 
 called the attention of the board to the neces- 
 sity of employing untrained and inexperienced 
 teachers, as the greatest evil with which they 
 have to contend, without, however, suggesting 
 at that time any remedy. It is but one step 
 from the discovery of an evil or want, to the 
 invention and application of a remed}'. The 
 remedy' in this case is simple, and consists in 
 the conversion of the new Spicer building into 
 a training or normal school. Young ladies, 
 graduates of the high school, without experi- 
 ence in teaching, are employed, nominal salaries 
 for the first year, and set to teaching. Over 
 them is placed a teacher of tried skill and 
 abilit}' in the instruction and government of 
 schools, who oversees and directs the work of 
 the new teachers. It is an experiment which 
 has beeh entered upon during the present year, 
 and has the merit of originality' and simplicity, 
 with a promise of good results. * * * * 
 * * * Certain results have been reached, 
 which are a promise of good fruits in the 
 future. One of these is a demand for a higher 
 education, as shown b}' the increased attend- 
 ance upon the high school, which amounts for 
 the six years ending January 25, 1875, to 234 
 per cent, while the increase in all the schools 
 has been 50 per cent for the same period. 
 That the suppl}' has kept pace with the demand, 
 ma}' be seen in the fact that, at the close of the 
 spring and summer term of 1874. four boys of 
 the Akron High School passed creditable ex- 
 aminations for admission to Western Reserve 
 College, and three of them entered that insti- 
 tution the fall following. Three of the four 
 were prepared wholly under Miss Oburn, assist- 
 ant in the high school, and the fourth in part. 
 Another gain is the punctuality of attendance, 
 and the substantial cure of tardiness and irregu- 
 larity. This subject is referred to in the report 
 of 1871, which sa^'s : 'Irregular attendance 
 and tardiness have become unpopular with the 
 pupils themselves, and the majority of parents 
 appreciate the importance of punctual and con- 
 stant attendance.' 
 
 " Miss Herdman remained in charge of the 
 Senior Grammar School with the same eminent 
 success that marked her first year, until the 
 spring of 1874, when she withdrew on account 
 
 of ill health, and died in the November follow- 
 ing. Her Superintendent saj's of her : ' Her 
 strength of character, combined with fervent 
 affection and genial humor, gave her great 
 power over her pupils. She governed by the 
 strength of her own character, rather than by 
 the inflictions of pains and penalties.' Miss P. 
 H. Groodwin, for many years an assistant in the 
 high school, paid a touching tribute to her 
 memory in a paper read befox'C the teachers' 
 meeting : ' She has given to us an example of 
 a true teacher, wrought out before our eyes in 
 characters of light — a grand six years' object 
 lesson that increases in significance as we study 
 its harmony of parts.' 
 
 " Mrs. N. A. Stone contuiued in charge of the 
 high school as Principal until the close of the 
 school 3'ear, 1873, a period of five 3'ears, with 
 the same success and abilit}' which marked her 
 first year, and then resigned for a 3'ear of rest 
 and travel. She was succeeded by Miss Maria 
 Parsons, who still holds the position, and is 
 eminentl3^ faithful and successful in it. Many 
 teachers in the Akron schools, not alread3' 
 named, have attained a high degree of success ; 
 but for a long and faithful service of sixteen 
 years, Mrs. M. L. Harvey deserves honorable 
 mention. During the first ten 3'ears of the 
 schools, the labor of supervision, now per- 
 formed b3- the Superintendent, was thrown upon 
 the Board and Examiners ; and for the faithful 
 and valuable services, the three first Presidents 
 of the Board, Messrs. Bierce, Carpenter and 
 Howard, and the three first Examiners, Messrs. 
 Carpenter, Berr}' and Smith, deserve to be hon- 
 orabl3' remembered ; especially Gen. Bierce, for 
 eight 3'ears of service on the board — six of 
 these as President ; and Judge Carpenter, for 
 four years of service as member of the Board 
 of Examiners — who gave to the schools in that 
 period of construction and organization, the full 
 benefit of their practical ability and generous 
 public spirit. 
 
 " The first death that occurred in the board 
 was that of Dr. Joseph Stanton, in the year 
 1 855, of whom the board of that year say : ' In 
 his death the board has lost a valuable member, 
 the State an honorable citizen, and the cause of 
 education an earnest friend.' The death of 
 Houston Sisler, member and late Treasurer of 
 the board, is announced in the report of 1861- 
 62, and of him the board say : ' We can bestow 
 no fitter eulogy upon him than to sa3' that he 
 
 ■^ 
 
±1 
 
 392 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 was an honest, intelligent and conscientious 
 man, just to himself, and just and generous to 
 his neighbors.' The death of J. K. HoUoway 
 is recorded at a meeting of the board April 18, 
 1874, and in him the board ' mourn the loss of 
 a valuable member, a c )ngenial companion, an 
 esteemed friend, and useful citizen.' The fol- 
 lowing have been Presidents of the Board of 
 Education of Akron for the periods named : 
 Gen. L. V. Bierce, six j-ears ; Judge J. S. Cai*- 
 penter, two years ; Dr. E. W. Howard, two 
 years ; C. B. Bernard, two years ; Rev. S. Will- 
 iams, three years ; M. W. Henry, two years ; 
 Dr. I. E. Carter, two 3^ears ; Dr. William Bow- 
 en, one year ; Judge S. H. Pitkin, two years ; 
 George W. Grouse, two years ; Lewis Miller, 
 two years ; Dr. Thomas McEbright, one year. 
 There was fitness in the choice of these gentle- 
 men as presiding otficers of the board." 
 
 This closes the sketch of Judge Bryan, and 
 but little more can be said of the public schools 
 of Akron. In the foregoing, their history has 
 been traced from a period when they were in a 
 " chaotic state " to their present perfection. 
 We will add but a few names and statistics. 
 The following is from the last report of the 
 Board of Education to the Countj^ Auditor : 
 
 Balance on hand September 1, 1879 $26,423 32 
 
 State tax 6,697 50 
 
 Irreducible fund 429 37 
 
 Tax for school and schoohouse purposes. 85,953 76 
 
 Amount received from sale of bonds 5,000 00 
 
 Fines, licenses, etc 1,282 50 
 
 Total receipts $75,795 45 
 
 Whole amount paid teachers in 
 common schools $37,507 50 
 
 Paid manager or Superintend- 
 ent, 2,000 00 
 
 Paid for sites and buildings, . . . 9,641 25 
 
 Interest on redeption of bonds. 26,486 67 
 
 Paid for fuel and other ex- 
 penses 9,892 39 
 
 Total expenditures $75,527 81 
 
 Balance on- hand September 1, 1880. .$ 267 64 
 
 Total value of school property 105,000 00 
 
 Number of teachers employed 56 
 
 Average wages paid teacliers per month $49 00 
 
 Pupils enrolled : 
 
 Primary— males 1,448; females 1,417 2,865 
 
 High— males 61 ; females 129 190 
 
 Total 3,055 
 
 Average daily attendance: 
 
 Primary — males 1,154; females 1,121 2,275 
 
 High— males 48; female 102 150 
 
 Total 2,425 
 
 The following is the roster of teachers* for 
 the present year (1880-81), according to the 
 grade or department in which they are em- 
 ployed : Prof Samuel Findley, Superintendent 
 of Instruction. High School : Wilbur V. Rood, 
 Principal ; M. J. 0. Stone, Assistant ; M. A. 
 Strong, Assistant ; M. E. Stockman, Assistant ; 
 Ira Baird, Assistant. Grammar Schools, Grade 
 A — J. A. Newberry, Principal ; M. M. Parsons, 
 Assistant. Grade A and B — N. J. Malone, 
 Principal ; Lizzie Bowers, Assistant. Grade 
 B — S. A. Hi His, Principal ; Estelle Simmons, 
 Assistant. Grade C — Mar}- Baird, Principal ; 
 Carrie Allen, Assistant. Grade C and D — 
 Clara Hemmings, Principal ; Cai'rie McMillan, 
 Assistant. Broadway School : Sarah C. Lake, 
 Principal, and teacher of D Primary ; M. C. 
 Andrews, D Grammar ; Lida M. Dussell, A 
 Primary ; Lillie Rice, B Primary' ; Lillian Walt- 
 ers, B and C Primary ; Libbie Fish, C Primary. 
 Crosb}' School : Ida B. Foote, Principal, and 
 teacher of C and D Grammar ; Rilla Boardman, 
 A Primary ; S. P. Bennett, B and C Primary ; 
 Malana Harris, C and D Primary. Perkins 
 School : S. I. Carothers, Principal, and teacher 
 of D Primary ; Hattie A. Sill, D Grammar ; H. 
 E. Applegatc, A Primary ; M. A. Bennett, A 
 and B Primarj' ; Helen Fisher, B and C Pri- 
 mary ; Mary A. Sill, D Primarj'. South School : 
 Jennie E. McLain, Principal; Alice V. Chis- 
 nell, D Primar}' ; N. E. Brown, C Primary ; 
 Libbie Berg, B Primary ; Carrie Jones, B Pri- 
 mary ; Addle Hamman, A Primary ; Anna Hol- 
 linger, D Grammar ; Mary Cochran, C Gram- 
 mar. Spicer School : M. L. Macready, Prin- 
 cipal, and teacher of C and D Primary ; Fannie 
 Sisler, C Grammar ; Maggie T. Bender, D Gram- 
 mar ; Kate L. Palmer, A Primary' ; Julia L. 
 Allyn, A and B Primary ; Nellie L. Wilcox, B 
 Primary ; Lillian A. Randolph, C Primary ; M. 
 Elma Campbell, C and D Primary. Sixth Ward 
 School : Ada M. Kershaw, Principal, and teachi^r 
 of C and D Grammar ; M. K. Pearce, A and B 
 Primary ; M. E. Miller, B and C Primary ; 
 Eliza Skidmore, D Primary. Bell School : Sa- 
 rah J. Bardsley, C and D Primary. South Hill 
 School : Clara Chisnell, C and D Primary. 
 
 * Currected a!id revised by Piof. Findley. 
 
v 
 
<3 k^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 393 
 
 Teacher of vocal music (two days each week), 
 N. L. Glover. Teacher of writing and drawing, 
 Mary E. Bradley. 
 
 The Board of Education at present (1880-81), 
 comprise the following gentlemen : First Ward, 
 Thomas McEbright, W. B. Raymond ; Second 
 Ward, S. M. Burnham, W. C. Jacobs ; Third 
 Ward, A. M. Armstrong, Lewis Miller ; Fourth 
 Ward, E. W. Wiese, N. N. Leohner ; Fifth Ward, 
 F. L. Bishop, F. L. Danforth ; Sixth Ward, J. A. 
 Baldwin, H. J. Griffin, with Thomas McEbright, 
 President of the Board ; E. W. Wiese, Secretary, 
 and W. B. Ra^'mond, Treasurer. The term of 
 service of the present board will expire in April, 
 1881, but not in time for an}' changes that may 
 occur to be corrected for this work. 
 
 Buchtel College now claims our attention. 
 The following excellent sketch was written by 
 Bev. Orello Cone, D. D., President of the insti- 
 tution, at our special request, and is given in 
 full. President Cone notices the founding of 
 the college, and traces its history down to the 
 present time. His sketch is as follows : 
 
 The founding and establishment of Buchtel 
 College, in the city of Akron is due to a move- 
 ment which originated with the Universalist 
 Church of the State of Ohio. In the year 1867, 
 the Ohio State Convention of Universalists, 
 composed of the clergy of the State, and repre- 
 sentatives from all its parishes, heard a report 
 from its Committee on Education in favor of 
 establishing a Seminary for the education of 
 the young of both sexes. At the next annual 
 session of the convention, in June, 1868, a plan 
 for the establishment of an academy was pre- 
 sented by Rev. Andrew Willson, and unani- 
 mously adopted. This plan was not, however, 
 carried out, and, in 1869, the convention recon- 
 sidered its former resolution, and authorized 
 the Board of Trustees and Committee on Edu- 
 cation to take the necessarj' steps for the estab- 
 lishment of a college. The Board of the Con- 
 vention then consisted of Rev. J. S. Cantwell, 
 Rev. Andrew Willson, Rev. H. L. Canfield, Rev. 
 J. W. Henley and 0. F. Haymaker, Esq.; and the 
 Committee on Education of Rev. E. L. Rexford, 
 Rev. M. Crosley and Rev. B. F. Eaton. 
 
 In view of the near approach of the One 
 Hundredth Anniversary of the Universalist 
 Church of the United States, it was desired to 
 make the new college the centennial offering 
 of Ohio. Accordingly, at a joint meeting of 
 the above-mentioned board and committee, 
 
 held in November, 1869, Rev. H. F. Miller, of 
 Indiana, was invited to become their Financial 
 Secretary, to supervise and direct the raising of 
 the money necessary for buildings and endow- 
 ment. Mr. Miller accepted the invitation, and 
 entered upon the duties of his office in Janu- 
 ary, 1870. 
 
 Petitions from several places praying for the 
 location of the college were received and con- 
 sidered by the board, and finallj^ at a joint 
 meeting held in Columbus, February 16, 1870, 
 the location was fixed in Akron on the condition 
 that the citizens of Summit County legally se- 
 cure $60,000 to the State Convention of Uni- 
 versalists. In pursuance of this oflTer, a prompt 
 and vigorous effort was made at Akron to 
 secure the location of the college in that city. 
 John R. Buchtel led off with a subscription of 
 $25,000 for the endowment fund and $6,000 
 for the building. He was followed by others 
 so that on the 31st of May, 1870, the Financial 
 Secretary was able to report to the Board of 
 Trustees and Committee on Education that the 
 ^60,000 necessary to secure the location of the 
 college at Akron had been subscribed. This 
 body then in a joint meeting on the above- 
 mentioned day, passed a resolution locating 
 the college which was then called the " Uni- 
 versalist Centenary School of Ohio," in the 
 city of Akron, and named as " corporators " to 
 act in conjunction with itself. Rev. H. F. Miller, 
 Rev. Willard Spaulding, Rev. George Messen- 
 ger, Henry Blondy, Esq., and the following 
 resident freeholders of Summit County : John 
 R. Buchtel, Hon. N. D. Tibbals, E. P. Green, 
 Esq., Col. George T. Perkins, James A. Lantz 
 and George Steese, Esq. 
 
 The steps prescribed by the laws of the State 
 of Ohio for the organization of the corporation 
 were then taken, and articles of association 
 were drawn up and adoj^ted. The association 
 which took the name of " Buchtel College " and 
 organized " for the establishment and mainte- 
 nance of a college of learning for both sexes, to 
 be under the control of the Ohio State Con- 
 vention of Universalists," was composed of 
 John R. Buchtel, Rev. J. S. Cantwell, George 
 T. Perkins, Henry Blond}', Rev. George Mes- 
 senger, Rev. B. F. Eaton, N. D. Tibbals^Rev. J. 
 W. Henley, E. P. Green, 0. F. Haymaker, Rev. 
 Willard Spaulding, James A. Lantz and George 
 Steese. It was made the duty of these to elect 
 a Board of eighteen Trustees, five of whom 
 
 i> V 
 
^ 
 
 394 
 
 HISTORY OF SI^MMIT COUNTY. 
 
 should always be resident freeholders of Sum- 
 mit County, and who should be the directors 
 of the college with power to make all necessary 
 by-laws, erect suitable buildings, etc. It was 
 provided that after the first election of Trustees 
 by the corporators, the Ohio State Convention 
 of Universalists should at each annual session 
 nominate at least fifteen persons whom they 
 may think to be suitable for the office of Trust- 
 ees, and that the acting Trustees should from 
 the persons so nominated make all elections 
 and fill all vacancies. 
 
 The first board elected was composed as fol- 
 lows : For three years, John R. Buchtel, Presi- 
 dent, H. Blondy, Philip Wieland, J. D. Auger, 
 E. P. Green, George T. Perkins ; for two years. 
 Rev. H. L. Canfleld, Rev. E. L. Rexford, Gen. 
 James Pierce, J. F. Seiberling, Rev. J S. Cant- 
 well, Hon. N. D. Tibbals ; for one year, 0. F. 
 Haymaker, S. M. Burnham, Secretary ; J. R. 
 Cochrane, Charles Foster, Rev. George Messen- 
 ger, Avery Spicer. George W. Crouse, not a 
 member of the board, was appointed Treasurer. 
 
 As early as the next meeting of the board, 
 December 28, 1870, it was voted that the Finan- 
 cial Secretary' be authorized to make contracts 
 for perpetual scholarships at 11,000, and a com- 
 mittee was appointed to prescribe a form of 
 contract for such scholarships. It was not, 
 however, until November 19, 1872, that the 
 report of this committee was made to the 
 board, when the form of contract presented was 
 adopted. According to this form, the donor 
 agrees to pay at his decease the sum of $1,000 
 to found and secure for himself and heirs a 
 perpetual scholarship in Buchtel College, and 
 agrees to pay interest annuall}' on this sum, at 
 a rate per cent to be agreed upon when the con- 
 tract is signed. This rate of interest has gen- 
 erally been fixed at 6 per cent. The privileges 
 of these scholarships were limited, by action of 
 the board, to the regular courses in the college 
 and preparatory department, and may be used 
 to defray the expenses of •' tuition and room 
 rent as defined by the catalogues," but do not 
 "include any extras therein specified." 
 
 On the 28th of December, 1870, plans for 
 the college building were submitted to the 
 board by the architect, Thomas W. Lilloway, of 
 Boston, and a building committee of seven was 
 appointed to proceed with the construction of 
 the edifice according to the plan adopted. The 
 building was located on an eminence overlook- 
 
 ing the city of Akron, and said to be one of the 
 highest points of land in the State. On the 
 4th of Jul}', 1871, the corner-stone was laid 
 with appropriate ceremonies, and an address 
 was delivered by Hoi'ace Greeley, on " Human 
 conceptions of God as they effect the moral 
 education of the race." The address was a 
 masterly advocacy and defense of Theism in 
 opposition to the spirit and tendency of an 
 atheistic materialism. At no time, probabl}', 
 within the next half-centur}', will the following 
 vigorous words of this great and good man be 
 inappropriate in the contest between these con- 
 flicting and apparently irreconcilable forces of 
 modern thought : 
 
 " There are those who talk sonorousl}', stri- 
 dently of law — of the law of development or 
 progress — as though they had found in a word a 
 key which unlocks all the mysteries of creation. 
 But I am not silenced by a word ; I demand 
 its meaning, and then seek to determine how 
 far that meaning bridges the gulf which the 
 word was invoked to overleap. To my appre- 
 hension law is the dictate of an intelligent will, 
 or it is nothing. That it should please the 
 Author of all these things to make each ma- 
 terial bod}' to attract every other in a ratio pro- 
 portioned to their relative weight, and with an 
 intensit}' corresponding to their distance from 
 each other, I readily comprehend ; that such at- 
 traction should inhere in and be inseparable 
 from matter as an unprompted impulse, an in- 
 evitable property, I cannot conceive. To ray 
 apprehension gravitation, magnetic attraction, 
 electricity, etc., are properties of matter which 
 in themselves afford proofs of creative purpose 
 —of Omnipotent design. In short, whatever 
 demonstrates the presence of law in nature at- 
 tests the being and power of God." 
 
 It can hardl}^ be out of place in the histor}' 
 of the foundation of a college, to quote Mr. 
 Greeley's estimate of the function of this class 
 of public institutions : 
 
 " This, then, I apprehend, is the proper work 
 of the college : To appreciate and measure, 
 and undistrustfully accept and commend, the 
 gigantic strides which physical science is mak- 
 ing in our day, yet be not swept awa}' by them ; 
 to lend an attentive and unprejudiced ear to the 
 bold speculations of our Darwins and Hux- 
 leys, wherein the}' seem almost to lay a confi- 
 dent finger on the very heart of the great mys- 
 tery of life, without fear that they will ever 
 
 
>^, 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 395 
 
 evict God from His uniA^erse, or restrict Him to 
 some obscure corner tliereof; to welcome all 
 that is true and beneficent in the impetuous 
 currents of modern thought, but not to exag- 
 gerate their breadth and depth, nor accept their 
 direction as authoritative and final ; to proffer 
 a genial and gracious hospitalitj- to whatever is 
 nobl}^ new, yet hold fast, and from time to time 
 assert, the grand old truths which are grounded 
 in the nature of man and his relations to the 
 universe, in the firm assurance that no discov- 
 eries in science, no advances in human knowl- 
 edge, can ever invalidate or ever belittle the 
 Golden Rule, and no conclusions of philosoph}- 
 ever equal in importance that simple affirmation 
 of the untaught Judean peasant, who long ago 
 perceived and proclaimed that God is Love." 
 
 Rev. T. B. Thayer, D. D., of Boston, Mass., 
 having declined a call to the presidency of the 
 college, a call was extended to the Rev. S. H. 
 McCallister, of New Hampshire, in March, 
 1872, which was accepted. The building was 
 rapidly pushed to completion, and was ready 
 for occupancy in the fall of 1872. On the 22d 
 of September of this year. President McCallis- 
 ter was inaugurated, the college having been 
 opened for the reception of students a few 
 days before. The Faculty was constituted as 
 follows : Rev. S. H. McCallister, A. M., Pres- 
 ident, and Professor of Mental and Moral Phi- 
 losophy ; N. White, A. M., Professor of An- 
 cient Languages ; 8. F. Peckham, A. M., Profes- 
 sor of Natural Science ; Carl F. Colbe, A.. M., 
 Professor of Modern Languages ; Miss H. F. 
 Spaulding, L. A., Professor of Rhetoric and 
 English Literature ; Alfred Welsh, A. B., Pro- 
 fessor of Mathematics ; H. D. Persons, Profes- 
 sor in Normal Department ; Gustavus Sigel, 
 Professor of Music ; Miss Hattie L. Lowdon, 
 Teacher in English. 
 
 The number of students registering the first 
 year for the classical course was only seven, of 
 whom six were classified as freshmen and one 
 as junior. Tliese entered for the regular col- 
 lege course of four years. For the short course 
 of two years, called the philosophical course, 
 thirt3--nine registered. The academical or pre- 
 paratory department, numbered 171, making a 
 total of 217, of w4iom 119 were gentlemen, 
 and 98 ladies. This was the greatest number 
 in attendance at one time during the year. 
 
 The large number of ladies in attendance is 
 worth}' of notice, as showing the confidence of 
 
 the public at this time in co-education. Co- 
 education was, indeed, no longer a novelty in 
 the West, the experiment having been pretty 
 thoroughly tested in Oberlin, Delaware, Anti- 
 och College and other institutions. It is proper 
 to add that the experience of Buchtel College 
 up to this time (1881), has tended to confirm 
 its officers in the opinion that the founders of 
 the institution acted wisely in opening its doors 
 on equal terms to both sexes. 
 
 At the opening of the college but two courses 
 were established — a classical course of four 
 years with three years of work in the prepara- 
 tory department, and a philosophical course of 
 two years with preparatory work of three years. 
 The classical course corresponded with that 
 usually pursued in colleges in the United 
 States, and has continued substantially the 
 same to the present time (1881), except that in 
 1879 it was considerably strengthened in the 
 department of mathematics, so that it is now 
 equal to that of the best colleges in the country-. 
 
 The philosophical course of two years, with 
 three years of preparator}- study was extended 
 to three years in 187-1, with two years of pre- 
 paratory work, and was called the Philosophical 
 and Engineering Course. In 187G, the name 
 was again changed to that of Philosophical 
 Course, when it was extended to four j'ears, 
 with two years of stud^^ in the preparatory 
 department. Besides the regular English 
 studies usually pursued in college, it contained 
 the modern languages, and the usual course in 
 natural science, and was especiallv strong in 
 mathematics. In 1878, this course was discon- 
 tinued, and, in 1879, it was restored as a four 
 years' college course, with three years of pre- 
 paratory study, and Latin was substituted in 
 place of the higher scientific and mathematical 
 studies which it had formerly contained. As 
 such it remains to this time (1881), containing 
 the modern languages (two years of German 
 and one year of French), the usual English 
 studies, a thorough coui-se in the natural 
 sciences and mathematics, and most of the 
 Latin of the classical course. 
 
 In 1874, a scientific course of three j'ears, 
 with two years of preparatory work, was 
 established, containing, in addition to the usual 
 English, scientific and mathematical studies, 
 all the Latin of the classical cour.se. In 1876, 
 this was made a four years' course, with two 
 3-ears of pi'eparatory work. In 1877. the 
 
 ^ 
 
^1 
 
 -V- 
 
 5 
 
 396 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 Latin work was reduced to Csesar, Cicero and 
 one session of Virgil. In 1879, it was changed 
 into a scientific course in the stricter sense of 
 the term b}' excluding Latin, with the excep- 
 tion of one year's work in this language in the 
 preparatoiy school, in which form it remains to 
 the present time (1881). It has now four years 
 of college and three of preparatory work, and 
 is especially in English and mathematics, 
 including studies in engineering. 
 
 It belongs to the history of the college to 
 mention a course established for ladies in 1877 
 under the name of the Ladies' Literary Course. 
 This was a course of four years, and the prepa- 
 ration required was the ordinar^^ discipline in 
 the common P]nglish branches. In 1878, it 
 was made a three years' course, with two 3'ears 
 of preparatory discipline, and, in 1879, it was 
 discontinued. 
 
 It will be seen that the college courses, as 
 now constituted, embrace (1) the ordinary clas- 
 sical course ; (2) a philosophical course, from 
 which Greek is excluded, but which contains 
 most of the Latin of the classical course, P]n- 
 glish studies, German and French, a thorough 
 discipline in the natural sciences and the mathe- 
 matics usually taught in colleges ; (3) a scien- 
 tific course, which is without Latin or Greek, 
 but contains French and German and natural 
 science, and is especially strong in mathematics 
 (including studies in engineering) and in En- 
 glish. 
 
 The college has been generality fortunate in 
 its Facult}'. The changes have been few, and 
 some who began their work with the opening of 
 the college are still members of its Faculty. It 
 has had three Presidents : 
 
 1. Rev. Sullivan H. McCallister, D. D., as- 
 sumed the office at the opening of the college 
 September 11, 1872. He was ordained to the 
 Universalist ministry in 1854 ; had filled several 
 important pastorates, and been for some years 
 wrincipal of Westbrook Seminar^', located at 
 Pevens Plains, near Portland, Me. He won 
 Stany friend.s during his administration, which 
 mas distinguished b}^ a singular disinterested- 
 ness, consecration and devotion to his duties. 
 Dr. McCallister offered his resignation at the 
 close of the college 3'ear, June, 1877. It was 
 not, however, accepted until June, 1878, at the 
 annual meeting of the Board of Trustees. He 
 has resumed pastoral work, and is at present 
 settled in Bellows Falls, Vt. 
 
 2. Everett L. Rexford, D. D. He gi'aduated 
 in 18G5, at the Theological School of St. Law- 
 rence University, Canton, N. Y., and settled as 
 Pastor over the First Universalist Parish in 
 Cincinnati, Ohio. Thence he moved to Co- 
 lumbus, accepting a call to the church in that 
 city. The New Universalist Parish in San 
 Francisco, recognizing his distinguished abil- 
 ity as a pulpit orator, soon after secured his 
 services as Pastor, from which field of labor he 
 removed in 1878 to Akron, and assumed the 
 Presidenc}' of the college, and the pastorate of 
 the Universalist Parish in the city. After two 
 years of service in this double capacity, he re- 
 signed, and accepted a call to the pastorate of 
 the New Universalist Parish, in Detroit, Mich., 
 where his abilities as a preacher have won a 
 striking success. 
 
 3. Rev. Orello Cone, A. M., D. D. He en- 
 tered the Universalist ministry from a profes- 
 sorship in St. Paul's College, Palmyra, Mo., in 
 1862, and was ordained in 1864, as Pastor of a 
 church in Little Falls, N. Y. He was called to 
 the Chair of Biblical Languages and Literature 
 in the Theological School of St. Lawrence Uni- 
 versity, Canton, N. Y., in 1865, and held this 
 position for fifteen years, when, in 1880, he ac- 
 cepted a call to the Presidency of the college. 
 
 The professors and instructors who have 
 served in the colleafe are as follows : 
 
 1. Rev. Nehemiah White, A. M., Ph. D. He 
 was a graduate of Middlebur}- College, Ver- 
 mont, and was Professor of Mathematics in St. 
 Lawrence University, Canton, N. Y., from 1865 
 to 1869. He assumed the Chair of Ancient 
 Languages in Buchtel College, on the opening 
 of the institution, and served until the close of 
 the fall session, in 1875, when he accepted a 
 call to the Pesidency of Lombai'd University, 
 Galesburg, 111., which position he now holds. 
 
 2. S. F. Peckham, A. M. He was Professor 
 of Natural Science from the opening of the 
 college for one year, when he accepted a call to 
 the Chair of Chemistry, in the Universit}- of 
 Minnesota, where he remained until 1880. 
 
 3. Miss Helen F. Spaulding, L. A. She was 
 Professor of Rhetoric and English Literature for 
 one year from the opening of the college. 
 
 4. Karl F. Kolbe, A. M. Prof Kolbe is a 
 graduate of the University of Gottingen. and 
 had already had considerable experience as a 
 teacher of modern languages before he took 
 this chair in Buchtel as a member of its first 
 
 ^ 
 
'k^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 397 
 
 Faculty in 1872. He held this position until 
 the close of the college year in 1877, when he 
 assumed charge, for one year, of an academy 
 in Pennsylvania, after which he returned to the 
 Chair of JModern Languages, which he had left, 
 where he has since remained. 
 
 5. Alft-ed Welsh, A. M. He was educated 
 in Baldwin University and was the first pro- 
 fessor of mathematics. He held this position 
 for two years and was then made Professor of 
 Natural Sciences, and served in this capacit}- 
 for one year to the end of the college year in 
 1875, when he accepted a position as teacher in 
 the Columbus High School, where he still is. 
 
 6. Elias Fraunfelter, A. M., Ph. D. He was 
 educated at Vermillion Institute, at Hayesville, 
 Ohio, and was for a number of ^ears instructor 
 in Mathematics and English in that school. In 
 1866, he was made co-Principal of Savannah 
 Academ}', and Instructor in Mathematics, Nat- 
 ural Science and Modern Languages. He was 
 called to the collage as Professor of Civil En- 
 gineering at the opening of the second year in 
 1874. The next year he was made Professor 
 of Mathematics (his chair being made to include 
 the instruction in Engineering) in which posi- 
 tion he still remains completing this year 
 (1881) his twent3'-first year of service as an in- 
 structor. 
 
 7. Sarah M. Glazier, A. M. She graduated 
 from Vassar College, and immediately accepted 
 a call to the Chair of Natural Science in 1874. 
 After serving in this capacit}' for one year, she 
 accepted a call to a chair in Welleslev College. 
 
 8. Charles M. Knight, A. M. After grad- 
 uating from Tuft's College he took the Chair of 
 Natural Science in 1876, which he still holds. 
 
 9. I. B. Chote, A. M. He was called to the 
 Chair of Ancient Languages in 1876, which he 
 occupied until the close of the college year in 
 1878. He is at present studying in Harvard. 
 
 10. G. H. G. McGrew. He graduated from 
 Harvard and occupied the Chair of Modern Lan- 
 guages during the absence of Prof Kolbe in 
 1878. 
 
 11. Rev. George A. Peckham, A. M. He 
 graduated from the college in the class of 1875, 
 and was made a Tutor in Ancient Languages 
 and Mathematics in 1876, which position he 
 held for two years. After an absence of one 
 year, as Pastor of a Disciples' Church, he was 
 called to the Chair of Ancient Languages, 
 which position he filled until 1880, when he ac- 
 
 cepted a call to the Chair of Mathematics in 
 Hiram College. 
 
 12. Benjamin T. Jones, A. M. He was ed- 
 ucated at Bethany College, where he was after- 
 ward for some years instructor in Ancient 
 Languages. He was for a number of years 
 Superintendent of Public Schools in Millers- 
 burg and Ashland. In 1880, he accepted a call 
 to the Chair of Rhetoric and English Litei-a- 
 ture, and was the next year transferred to that 
 of Ancient Languages, of which he is still the 
 incumbent. 
 
 13. Miss Maria Parsons. She graduated 
 from Putnam Seminary in 1857, in which in- 
 stitution she afterward taught two 3'ears. She 
 has been employed for some twent}- 3'ears in 
 the high schools of Zanesville, Mansfield and 
 Akron, in which last she was Principal for 
 seven years. In the fall of 1880, she accepted 
 a call to the Chair of English Literature in the 
 college. 
 
 14. H. D. Persons was, during the first year, 
 a Professor in the Preparator}- Department and 
 afterward entered the profession of journalism 
 in Union City, Penn. 
 
 15. Miss Hattie L. Lowdon. She was teacher 
 of English in the Preparatory Department dur- 
 ing the first year. 
 
 16. Wallace Mayo, A. M. He graduated 
 from Tuft's College, Boston, Mass., in 1873, 
 and accepted a call to the Preparatory Depart- 
 ment, as instructor in Latin, Greek and other 
 branches, in 1874. He continued until 1876, 
 when he left and went into business in Akron. 
 
 16. Miss Mary E. Stockman, L. A. She was 
 called from a chair in Westbrook Seminary, 
 Maine, in 1874, as teacher of Latin and En- 
 glish in the Preparatory Department, and con- 
 tinued until 1876, when she was called to a 
 position in the Akron High School, which she 
 still holds. 
 
 17. Miss Susan E. Chamberlain, M. S. She 
 is a gi'aduate of the college, in the Class of 
 
 1873, and was appointed teacher in English, in 
 
 1874, in the Preparatory Department. In 1879, 
 she was made Professor of Mathematics in the 
 same department, and, in 1881, she was en- 
 gaged as a teacher of English branches. 
 
 18. Miss Jennie Gifllbrd. She is a graduate 
 of the Normal School at Lebanon, Ohio. In 
 
 1875, she was engaged as instructor in English 
 branches in the Preparatory Department, and 
 was made Principal of that department and 
 
4 
 
 398 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Professor of Science and Normal Studies, whicii 
 position she still holds. 
 
 19. Miss Mary B. Jewett, A. B. She grad- 
 uated from the College in the Class of 1876, 
 and was appointed tutor in Latin in the Pre- 
 parator}' Department, in which position she 
 remained until 1878, when she accepted a call 
 to a chair in Hiram College, where she still re- 
 mains. 
 
 •20. William D. Shipman, A. M. He gradu- 
 ated from the college in 1877, and became Pro- 
 fessor of Ancient Languages in the Preparatory 
 Department in 1878, which position he still oc- 
 cupies. 
 
 21. Miss Lizzie N. Slade, A. M. (now Mrs. 
 E. F. Voris) was a graduate of the college in 
 the Class of 1877, and became a tutor in the 
 Preparatory Department during the 3'ear 1878. 
 
 22. Inez L. Shipman, M. S. She graduated 
 from the college in 1876, and, in 1878, was 
 made a tutor in the Preparatory Department, 
 in which position she remained only during 
 that year. 
 
 23. James H. Aydelott, B. S. He graduated 
 from the Normal School in Lebanon in 1878, 
 and became tutor in Mathematics in the Pre- 
 parator}- Department in 1879, entering, at the 
 same time, the Junior Class, and graduating 
 with the same. In 1881, he was made Pro- 
 fessor of Mathematics in the Preparatory De- 
 partment, which position he still holds. 
 
 24. Gustavus Sigel was made Professor of 
 Music at the opening of the college, and held 
 the position until 1879. 
 
 25. Mrs. K. L. Rexford was made Director 
 of Music in 1879, and held the position until 
 the close of the college year of 1880. 
 
 26. Arthur S. Kimball, a graduate of the 
 Boston Conservator}' of Music, was made 
 teacher of Vocal Culture and Harmon}' in 1881 . 
 
 27. Miss Ella H. Morrison, a graduate of 
 the Musical Department of the Ohio Wesleyan 
 College, was appointed as teacher of instru- 
 mental music in 1881. 
 
 Buchtel College, it will be seen, is yet com- 
 paratively a young institution. It has, how- 
 ever, enjoyed a large share of patronage, and 
 is now thoroughl}' organized and equipped for 
 complete college work. Its courses of study 
 are equal to those of the oldest institutions in 
 the State, and it has all the usual apparatus 
 and appliances for instruction in its several 
 departments. Among its present Faculty it 
 
 reckons instructors of large experience, ripe 
 scholarship and rare skill in teaching and dis- 
 cipline. Its aim is thoroughness and exact 
 knowledge, which it seeks to secure by requir- 
 ing faithful application and conscientious work 
 of all its students. The results of its training 
 already appear in many of its graduates, who 
 are rising young men in several of the profes- 
 sions. The authorities insist on a strict classi- 
 fication, and aim to encourage and promote the 
 class spirit — the esprit de corps — -in all the 
 classes, believing that in this wa}' alone can the 
 permanent success of a college be secured, 
 though it ma}' sometimes lead through diffi- 
 culties, and require the sacrifice of such stu- 
 dents as are destitute of strength and resolute 
 purpose. No student is allowed to graduate 
 who has not faithfully completed the course 
 whicli he has chosen. 
 
 The college is under the auspices of the 
 Universalist Church, but is not sectarian in its 
 teaching, nor does it attempt in any way to 
 exert upon its students a doctrinal influence. 
 It aims to maintain a high standard of morals, 
 and insists on dignified, refined and genteel de- 
 portment on the part of all under its control. 
 Devotional exercises, conducted by some mem- 
 ber of the Faculty, are held in the assembly 
 room at the opening of every day on which 
 college work is done, and students are required 
 to attend every Sunday the church of their 
 choice, or that which may be designated by 
 their parents or guardians. No excuses from 
 attendance at church are granted to minors, 
 except on request of parents or guardians. 
 
 Special facilities are offered by the excellent 
 courses in the Preparatory Department for 
 Normal work, and many young ladies and gen- 
 tlemen intending to follow the pi'ofession of 
 teaching in the common and high schools here, 
 pursue the studies preparatory to that work. 
 The Principal of that department is a graduate 
 of a normal school, and has had a large expe- 
 rience in training teachers. 
 
 The study of ornamental branches has been 
 provided for, and especial attention is given to 
 vocal culture and instrumental music. In- 
 structors in these departments are permanently 
 connected with the college, and pianos are fur- 
 nished for practice. 
 
 The property of the college, including build- 
 ing, grounds, philosophical and chemical appar- 
 atus, furniture, etc., cost originally about $175,- 
 
i^ 
 
 MIDDLEBURY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 399 
 
 000. It has two endowments of $25,000 each 
 given, one by Mrs. L. A. E. Messenger, in mem- 
 ory of her deceased hushand. Rev. George 
 Messenger, and one bj' John H. Hilton, of 
 Akron. There are also two endowments of 
 $20,000 each, one of which was given by the 
 women of Ohio and Pennsylvania, to endow a 
 Woman's professorship. Of this amount, $10,- 
 000 were given by Mrs. Chloe Pierce, of Sharps- 
 ville, Penn., and the professorship has been 
 called by her name. The other was endowed 
 by J. R. Buchtel, in the name of his wife, Mrs. 
 Elizabeth Buchtel. There are thirty scholarships 
 of $1,000 each, of which those already pro- 
 ductive are paying six per cent per annum. Of 
 these, two were endowed by residents of Summit 
 County — John K. Smith and Mrs. John H. 
 Hilton. 
 
 The students have organized three literary 
 societies — the Bryant and Everett, composed 
 of gentlemen, and the Cary, composed of ladies. 
 They all have well-furnished halls, and two of 
 them have already made a good beginning in 
 the accumulation of libraries. 
 
 The Greek-letter societies, or inter-collegiate 
 fraternities are represented by two chapters. 
 
 Buchtel College is named after its most muni- 
 
 ficent benefactor and real founder, Hon. John 
 R. Buchtel. It will appear from his biography, 
 which is given in another part of this volume, 
 that he has devoted himself to the college with 
 singular consecration from its foundation to the 
 present time. He has come to its assistance in 
 every time of need, and has already bestowed 
 upon it more than $75,000. To its maintenance 
 and endowment he has consecrated his tireless 
 energy and his whole fortune. 
 
 Among those who were active and prominent 
 in the foundation of the college, and in its di- 
 rection down to the present time, are deserving 
 of especial mention Rev. George Messenger, 
 whose counsel was of great value amidst the 
 difficulties attending its establishment ; Rev. J. 
 S. Cantwell, whose services as editor of the 
 Star in West were unremitting in its behalf, and 
 who has often spoken for it with great effect in 
 public assemblies ; S. M. Burnham, for many 
 years its Secretary ; Aver}^ Spicer, Hon. N. D. 
 Tibbals, E. P. Green, Gen. A. C. Voris, Joy H. 
 Pendleton, F. Schumacher, Henry Blondy, 
 George T. Perkins, James Pierce, and Rev. E. 
 L. Rexford, D. D., active and efficient member of 
 its Board of Trustees, Executive Committee 
 and Committee on Teachers. 
 
 CHAPTER XII.* 
 
 MIDDLEBURY TOWNSHIP— FOUNDING OF THE VILLAGE— EARLY INDUSTRIES— CHARCOAL MANU. 
 FACTURE— NAMES OF EARLY SETTLERS— INCORPORATION— FORMATION OF TOWN- 
 SHIP—ANNEXATION TO AKRON — EDUCATION AND RELIGION. 
 
 "O, Country! rich in sturdy toil, 
 
 In all that makes a people great; 
 We hail thee, queen of Buckeye soil, 
 
 And fling our challenge to the State, 
 We hail thee, queen, whose beauty won 
 
 Our fathers in their golden years; 
 A shout for greater days begun, 
 
 A sigh for sleeping pioneers." 
 
 THE American people are becoming fa- 
 mous for their love of celebrities. 
 In opposition to the democratic theory of 
 human equality, they have become genuine 
 hero-worshipers, and usually select their idols 
 from the nobler specimens of the race. 
 They are not particular whether the per- 
 son be dead or in the full vigor of life. So 
 strong has become this sentiment, that the mind 
 
 * Contributed by W. A. Goodspeed. 
 
 is unsatisfied with homel}^ realities, but seeks 
 faultless conceptions that lie within the magic 
 circle of inspiration. Imagination comes for- 
 ward and decks the images with the flowering 
 attributes of nobility. The location of the be- 
 ing worshiped, in point of time, depends upon 
 the age of the devotee, his moral and intellect- 
 ual temperament, and the natural elevation of 
 his soul. The path which men pursue in life, 
 the dark waves they struggle to repel, the placid 
 waters the}' endeavor to traverse, and their tem- 
 poral happiness, depends almost whoU}- upon 
 surrounding circumstances. To the war-like, 
 the names of Alexander and Napoleon will be 
 fresh in the memorj- forever. Musicians bow 
 in adoration at the gi'ave of Mozart. Poets 
 burst into songs of inspiration over the gothic 
 
 
*^^ 
 
 400 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 bard of Avon. Philosophers view with wonder 
 the logic of Bacon and Aristotle. Astronomers 
 are astonished at the discoveries of Newton and 
 Laplace. Artists stand entranced before the 
 sublime paintings of Raphael or Angelo. The 
 past is filled with venerated beings, many 
 of whom had no just claims of pre-eminence. 
 The uutrod paths of future years are partially 
 explored bj* the feeble light of existing human 
 experience ; the present is illumed by the daz- 
 zling genius of the progressive man ; and the 
 past, is seen in spectral relief through the many 
 sided prism of the soul. The distance that 
 lends enchantment to the view of the past, hides 
 a cold sterility. Ideality takes the limpid clay 
 of beings long since returned to dust, re-creates 
 it in the image of divinitj', and breathes into it 
 the breath of life. Contemptible creatures are 
 lifted from among the undeserving, and crowned 
 with the bright flowers of unearned greatness 
 and eternal remembrance. Beings with tran- 
 scendent virtues pass into obscurit}- and forget- 
 fulness. The faculty of the human mind to 
 venerate the dead, had its origin in the general 
 results of evolution. It began in its lowest 
 type in primitive and barbarous man, and as it 
 steadily developed, mortals were deified and 
 gods created. Ancestral worship is universal, 
 and has been from time immemorial. The vir- 
 tues or vices of the dead, as one or the other 
 preponderates, are magnified by the passage of 
 time, thus leading inevitably to hero-worship. 
 The demand for such a sentiment, and its 
 steady and rapid growth when begun, have re- 
 sulted in its universal development in man, and 
 have changed the whole current of his life. De- 
 votion to God is the highest type of hero-wor- 
 ship. Devotion to ancestors is second in degree 
 of reverence, while the great beings of the pres- 
 ent and the shadowy ones of the future, afford 
 perhaps the lowest degree. The fact that history 
 is but a record of the lives of men, and the 
 relation of those lives to the plastic forms of 
 social and political being, renders such a study 
 of vast interest to mankind, ' in view of the 
 statement that in the past are found the greater 
 number of those heroes who are venerated by 
 the race. Where is the youth who is not told 
 to imitate the virtues of some person long since 
 dead ? The existence of near relationship mul- 
 tiplies the loyalty of the race to the departed 
 ancestors. How tenderly we cherish the mem- 
 ory of a parent or other dear friend, who has 
 
 been laid at rest in the silent grave. Histor}- 
 is the record of our hopes, ambitions, experi- 
 ences, thoughts, deeds and accomplishments, 
 and, consequently, is the most important study 
 in the curriculum. 
 
 But the historian has wandered far from the 
 topic before him, and must retrace his steps. So 
 far as Middlebury has contributed to the history 
 of Summit County, appropriate and ample credit 
 will be given. That it has played the part of a 
 star actor in the drama of the county, becomes 
 evident to those who will take the pains to ex- 
 amine the memorials of its rise and progress. 
 It was at the height of its power and prosperity 
 when Akron was first founded ; and at that 
 time was one of the most important trading- 
 points in Northeastern Ohio. Much of its early 
 history was never recorded, and the fact that 
 all the early settlers are dead, transports the 
 subject to the province of conjecture. An at- 
 tempt, however, has been made to gather the 
 prominent events of early years, with what 
 fidelity the reader is required to determine. A 
 citizen, well known to the people of the county,* 
 writes as follows : " The founder of this village 
 was Capt. Joseph Hart. In 1807, he purchased 
 fifty-four acres of land, including the site now 
 occupied by the village, moved on the farm thus 
 selected, and commenced erecting a mill. He 
 soon after sold one-half of his purchase to Aaron 
 Norton, and the two in company finished the 
 erection of the mill." The building was a one- 
 storied affair, with one run of stone, a large tub 
 wheel, and, from the fact that the Little Cuj^a- 
 hoga, upon which the mill was located, con- 
 tained three times as much water as at present, 
 it was capable of operating the entire 3'ear. 
 Near the spot where it was built, was a natural 
 fall in the stream, of about ten feet. Instead 
 of endeavoring to utilize this fine power, the 
 owners of the mill had built a strong dam about 
 five rods below it, and, at this point, on one side 
 of the stream, was the log grist-mill, and, on 
 the opposite side, a saw-mill, which was built 
 soon afterward. Why the owners did not take 
 advantage of the natural fall of water is difficult 
 to determine. The labor would have been 
 greater, the dam much more insecure, and the 
 cost multiplied, had they done otherwise than 
 they did. At least, these reasons seem to have 
 been in their minds when they selected the mill- 
 site below the fall. A splendid custom work 
 
 * Gen. L. V. Bierce. 
 
 ^< 
 
.^ 
 
 MIDDLEBURY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 401 
 
 was immediatel}' secured, and the mill continued 
 to be, until the building of the canal, the most 
 valuable mechanical enterprise in the county. 
 Settlers came for flour to this mill thirty and 
 forty miles, and the Middlebury Mills became 
 famous. No merchant work was done, as, on 
 account of the enormous cost of transportation, 
 it was impossible to compete with those mills 
 near the consumer. The mill was a godsend 
 to all the settlers for miles around, and was the 
 cornei*-stone of the Middlebur}- of sixty years 
 ago. After a few years, Mr. Hart died, and his 
 interest went to his heirs. His son, William J. 
 Hart, afterward a prominent man at Middle- 
 bur}', controlled this interest until about the 
 3'ear 1818, when the settlement of the father's 
 estate having been perfected, the son became 
 the owner of one-half interest in the mill. At 
 this time, about 1818, the old mill was torn 
 down, and a new three-storied frame, 30x40 feet, 
 was erected a short distance above it. Two run 
 of stone were emplo3'ed, and the vast custom 
 trade was renewed. At the death of Judge 
 Norton, the nature of the mill was altered. The 
 saw-mill was operated successfully until the 
 time when the new grist-mill was built, and was 
 then removed. 
 
 It should be noticed that at this time Mid- 
 dlebury did not exist as it does now. Four 
 townships centered at that point, and the vil- 
 lage had not been laid out. Heavy forests 
 covered the land, and stumps and trees could 
 be seen in all directions. In about the year 
 1810, John and Samuel Preston, then living in 
 Tallmadge, purchased a small portion of the 
 land belonging to Mr. Hart, and erected there- 
 on a small frame building, in which was placed 
 machiner}' for carding wool and fulling cloth. 
 The machinery was simple, and the work was 
 done largely by hand. Few sheep were in the 
 country at that period, but a few j'ears later 
 the carding-mill had all the custom woi'k it 
 could do. Wool was brought to the mill to be 
 carded, after which it was taken to the cabins 
 to be spun and woven into cloth, and then 
 returned to the mill to be fulled and perhaps 
 dressed. The fulling, dressing and coloring 
 were done by hand. These men continued 
 their enterprise until about the year 1820, 
 when Bagley & Humphrey assumed control, 
 and increased the scope of the mill. They 
 purchased machinery for weaving, and em- 
 plo3'ed a first-class weaver of satinet. They 
 
 manufactured considerable cloth, which was 
 mostly used at home. Some five or six hands 
 were employed. Mr. Almon Brown remem- 
 bers that he purchased a suit of inferior 
 broadcloth for the consideration of a barrel of 
 whisk\' and $2. 
 
 One of the industries in early years was a 
 " furnace," erected by Laird & Norton. Con- 
 sidering the meager population in the county 
 at that time, the magnitude of this undertak- 
 ing was gigantic. More than sixt}' employes 
 were connected with it in one way or the 
 other. The ore was obtained in Springfield, 
 Copley, Northampton and other townships, and 
 consisted of two kinds — bog-iron ore and kid- 
 ney ore or stone ore. Large quantities of the 
 latter were hauled by men with teams and 
 unloaded at the furnace. Here it was first 
 burned on log heaps, under which process it 
 crumbled into lumps about as large as a wal- 
 nut. It was then ready for the melting pro- 
 cess. As soon as the molten ore was read}^ 
 it was ladled into moldings, and there received 
 its permanent shape. Man}' large cast-iron 
 kettles were made, some of them containing a 
 hundred gallons. These were sold to the 
 settlers, and used in the manufacture of pot- 
 ash, of which enormous quantities were pre- 
 pared in the backwoods in early years. Smaller 
 kettles for culinary and domestic purposes 
 were also made. Flat-irons, andirons, chim- 
 ney jambs and other useful articles were also 
 provided. One of the chief articles manu- 
 factured was stoves. These were known as 
 box stoves, or ten-plate stoves. Ten distinct 
 iron plates were cast with holes at the coi'- 
 ners, and these were fastened together with 
 iron rods, and sold to the settlers. They were 
 looked upon as the perfection of inventive 
 skill. A house containing one of these, instead 
 of the old fire-place, was supposed to be with- 
 out a care in the world, and its inmates were 
 regarded as the happiest of mortals. The fuel 
 used in this furnace was almost wholly char- 
 coal. A score or more of men were em- 
 ployed to chop the surrounding forests into 
 cord-wood, and experienced colliers were given 
 control of the subsequent proceedings. Under 
 their direction the cord-wood was placed in 
 great bowl-like heaps, often containing 100 
 cords, after which the whole was covered with 
 several inches of leaves raked up in the forest. 
 This being done, the entire heap was covered 
 
 Pv 
 
jy. 
 
 402 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 with some five inches of earth, the leaves serv- 
 ing to prevent the dirt from falling down be- 
 tween the wood. In the center of the heap, a 
 small opening was left, with which air-holes 
 communicated. Here, material was left that 
 fired the kiln after its erection was completed. 
 The fire having been lighted, the blaze slowly 
 ate its way through the heap of wood, under 
 the guidance of the collier, who seemed to know 
 just where it was burning and how rapidly. 
 Care was necessary to prevent the fire from 
 consuming the wood, instead of charring it as 
 desired. A few small air-holes, changed as the 
 charring progressed, were carefully guarded ; 
 and when, in the judgment of the collier, the 
 process was completed, all the air-holes were 
 closed, and in a short time the charcoal was 
 ready to be taken from the kiln. Mr. Beards- 
 lee, who worked in the furnace for a number 
 of 3'ears, says, that a pi'emium of a gallon of 
 whisky was promised the collier for each stick 
 of charred cord-wood he could produce un- 
 broken. Sometimes several were found, in 
 which case the liquor was provided and enjoyed. 
 The kiln was first opened on the lower edge, 
 and, as the wood was yet a mass of glowing- 
 coals, the fire had to be smothered before the 
 charcoal could be loaded into wagons and taken 
 to the furnace. This smothering was done by 
 means of the covering of earth, but air must 
 be kept from the interior, as otherwise the wood 
 would be wholly consumed and the kiln a total 
 loss. It occasionally happened that, either from 
 the structure of the kiln or its subsequent man- 
 agement, the wood and labor were lost in the 
 manner stated. A novice would he unable to 
 tell when the burning was finished, and when 
 the fire should be smothered out. Not so the 
 collier. He could tell from several signs, the 
 chief one being the settling of the covering of 
 earth. The owners of the furnace employed, 
 as stated above, some sixty hands in the vari- 
 ous departments of mining and hauling the ore, 
 melting it, and from the molten mass manufact- 
 uring the desii'ed article, and cutting the cord- 
 wood and burning the kilns and hauling the 
 charcoal. This industry alone would have 
 founded a village around it, as the greater 
 number of the employes had wives and fam- 
 ilies, who lived in the village. Some twelve or 
 fifteen families lived at the village in 1812, and 
 six or eight years later it had a population of 
 between two and three hundred. Just before 
 
 Akron sprang into existence with its gigantic 
 manufacturing interests, the population of Mid- 
 dlebur^' was almost or quite four hundred, and 
 if the emphatic statements of the early settlers 
 are to be believed, there were no idlers nor 
 loafers. 
 
 x\nother early and important industry was a 
 nail-factory, begun and conducted by the Sum- 
 ner brothers. The enterprise was begun in 
 1820, and is said to have been the first "com- 
 bined rolling-mill and nail-factory " in Ohio. 
 From three to five hundred pounds of nails 
 were manufactured daily. The heavy iron was 
 taken, and, by repeated rollings, given the de- 
 sired thickness ; then, by means of suitable 
 machiner}^ run by water-power, the plates were 
 cut into rough nails, and the heading and point- 
 ing process was done entirely b}' hand, the 
 "header"' being able to prepare about one hun- 
 dred pounds per day. The iron was largely 
 obtained from New York, Philadelphia and 
 other Eastern cities, and was transported to the 
 village at the enormous cost of 12^ cents per 
 pound. This was the cost of transportation 
 alone ; four, six, eight and tenpenny nails 
 were manufactured, and, on account of the 
 scanty supply of ready money, the nails, 
 kettles and other articles manufactured in 
 the village became almost a legal tender. 
 These products were exchanged for farm prod- 
 uce, and many a promissory note was given, 
 payable in nails, kettles or agricultural prod- 
 ucts. The fuel used in the nail factory was 
 charcoal, and many men were employed in this 
 branch of the business. A forge was built on 
 the stream, some distance below the village. 
 The furnace, nail-factory and forge, it is said, 
 were capable of consuming from four hundred 
 to eight hundred bushels of charcoal per day. 
 This fitly illustrates the enormous quantity of 
 charcoal prepared. It was not long before the 
 heavy woods, for several miles around, were 
 leveled with the earth and used in the manner 
 stated. This accounts for the denuded condi- 
 tion of the surrounding country. The nails 
 were sold for about 25 cents per pound, and 
 the enterprise was continued until about the 
 year 1828, and then abandoned. About this 
 time Heine & Sherman owned and conducted a 
 small furnace. They likewise made considera- 
 ble potash. All the establishments having run- 
 ning machinery were operated by water-power, 
 most of them having large overshot wheels. It 
 
^ 
 
 MIDDJ.EBURY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 403 
 
 was also about this time that a small machine- 
 shop was erected by Nathan Gillett, Jr., at 
 which cards for the woolen-mills were manu- 
 factured, besides other mechanical articles. 
 
 When the furnace was closed in about 1828, 
 Dr. Crosb}' l)egan manufacturing cast-iron 
 plows on a small scale ; but soon afterward 
 sold out to Daniel Stewart, who enlarged the 
 scope of the enterprise. The plow was " Wood's 
 Patent, " and man}' were manufactured and sold 
 throughout the surrounding countr}'. A Mr. 
 (xraham opened a distillery at a spring a short 
 distance east of the grist-mill. This was about 
 1811, and terminated in 1815. Considerable 
 liquor was manufactured. Mr. Gillett also con- 
 ducted an establishment of the same nature, 
 beginning in about 1817. It was continued in 
 operation a few j-ears, and manufactured whisk}' 
 at the rate of about eight gallons per day. All 
 this found a speedy home consumption, selling 
 at from 15 to 25 cents per gallon, largely in 
 trade. During all these years, whisky was im- 
 bibed b}^ everybody, and the most respectable 
 people were often engaged in the mauufacture 
 that is looked upon with so much disfavor at 
 present. It is stated that all the leading mer- 
 chants at Middlebui'y, in early years, kept a keg 
 of whisky on their counters, at all times, for 
 the free indulgence of customei'S. A tavern 
 without a bar-room was a novelty that met 
 with comment and criticism, if it did not meet 
 with studious avoidance from the traveling 
 public. In truth, taverns of this character 
 were compelled to suspend business from a lack 
 of patronage. Abstainers were careful not to 
 adopt the occupation of hotel-keeping. Samuel 
 Newton erected a large hotel in about 1817, and 
 continued to entertain the public for many 
 years. His old building was burned down but 
 a short time since. He, on one occasion, bought 
 twentj'-five barrels of whisky of a man in the 
 Miami Valle}^, who was compelled to sell, pay- 
 ing 16 cents per gallon, and finding a I'eady 
 disposal for the whole. 
 
 An early writer has this to say of Middle- 
 bury : "From 1815 to 1828, business of all 
 kinds increased, and the village became the 
 center of trade and fashion for all the sur- 
 rounding country. It seemed destined to be- 
 come the leading town on the Reserve. As 
 Akron had no habitation, not even a name, 
 Middlebury became the resort of the enterpris- 
 ing and business men, who were bidders and con- 
 
 tractors on the Ohio Canal. So great was the 
 business at that time (about 1825), that there 
 were no less than sixteen stores in the village, 
 and all doing a good business. Mills, factories, 
 and mechanical shops sprang into existence as 
 if by magic. On the location of the canal, 
 Akron sprang up with its immense water-power, 
 and, for a time, entirely overshadowed Middle- 
 bury. Several of the early friends of the village 
 died. Othei's looking to immediate effects, 
 became discouraged, and with their capital, left 
 the place. The factories closed, the grinding 
 ceased, the thronged streets were transferred 
 to Akron, and the epitaph of Carthage was 
 almost inscribed on her monument. The friends 
 of Middlebury then discovered that prosperity 
 did not lie in speculation nor fashion, but in 
 industry and enterprise. Mechanical estab- 
 lishments began to increase, and the valuable 
 water-power was improved. A company was 
 incorporated by the Legislature of Ohio, called 
 the Middlebury Hydraulic Company, and au- 
 thorized to raise the natural sui'face of Spring- 
 field Lake, in which the Little Cuyahoga had its 
 rise, six feet, and lower it four feet below 
 the natural surface. This gave to the water- 
 power of the village a permanency and suffi- 
 ciency that could at all times be relied on." 
 Aaron Norton, one of the founders of the vill- 
 age, did a great deal in earl}' years to improve it. 
 The same writer continues, " AVhile the Judge 
 was upon the bench, a fellow who had been em- 
 ployed in the Middlebury Mills was indicted 
 and tried for stealing a log-chain. His defense 
 was former good character, to sustain which 
 he called on the Judge who swore his character 
 was about as good as that of millers in general. 
 After the adjournment of court, Gen. Wood- 
 ward, of Franklin, who was a miller took Nor- 
 ton to task for what he called an impeachment 
 of the character of the millers. ' I was bound,' 
 said Norton, ' to swear to the truth. I believe 
 his character for honesty is as good as millers 
 in general, but I believe he stole the log-chain.' " 
 The first tavern was opened by Peleg Mason. 
 In about the year 1815, this man brought a 
 small stock of goods to the village. About 
 three years later, Orriu Pitkin began with a 
 stock. Several others came in within the next 
 two years. By 1 825, ten years after the first store 
 was opened, there were, as stated above, sixteen 
 stores in the village. Among the more prom- 
 inent were H. & H. A. Howard, dry goods, gro- 
 
 1^ 
 
404 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 ceries, hardware, crocker}', glassware, stone and 
 hollow-ware, tinware, drugs, medicines, surgical 
 instruments, etc.; Hiram Johnson & Co., the 
 same. (These firms bought all sorts of produce, 
 flour, pork, whisky, pot and pearl ash, giving in 
 exchange their goods or paying their mone}-.) 
 McClure Brothers, general assortment ; John 
 McMillan, ditto ; Kent & Oviatt, ditto ; McNor- 
 ton & Cleveland, ditto. Besides these there were 
 H. Briggs, boots and shoes ; James Ross, soap 
 and candle factory ; M. Johnson, druggist and 
 physician ; H. Loveland, attorney at law ; G. F. 
 Norton, ditto ; Barlow & Allen, wool-carding and 
 cloth-dressing ; William Bell, saddles, harness 
 and bridles ; L. Chatfield, fancy and dining 
 chair factory ; Hard & Sumner, wool-carding 
 and cloth-dressing ; H. Rhodes, tavern keeper ; 
 G. Powers, Jr., attorney at law ; McNaughton 
 & Cleveland, tanners ; Mrs. L. Wheeler, mil- 
 liner ; Phineas Pettis, plow manufactory ; John 
 McMillan, grain buyer ; Zenas Chase, boot and 
 shoe maker ; Alva R. Chapman, painter ; B. A. 
 Allyn, cabinet-maker ; Payne & Squire, distil- 
 lers at Old Forge ; Linus Potter, tailor ; 
 Humphrey & Kirkum, attorneys at law ; John 
 & Legrand Hanford, hat manufacturers ; Ed. 
 Sumner, tavern keeper ; McNorton & Cleve- 
 land, grain bu3'ers ; Erastus Tarre}', ditto ; Daniel 
 Crist, boot and shoe maker ; and a multitude 
 of others, in for a short time at various pur- 
 suits. 
 
 A Masonic lodge was organized in about the 
 year 1822. It was known as "Middlebury 
 Lodge, No. 34." It participated in the cere- 
 monies of the laj'ing of the corner stone of the 
 first college building erected at Hudson. A 
 post office was secured at an early day, and 
 soon a tri-weekly mail was obtained. Hem- 
 perly & Sumner ran stages between Middlebur}- 
 and the villages of Cleveland, Canton and 
 Wooster. While the canal was in process of 
 construction, large quantities of flour, pork 
 and produce were purchased, to be consumed 
 b}' the laborers. When the canal was opened 
 in 1827, several companies of men began buying 
 enormous quantities of grain preparatory to 
 being shipped away when the canal was opened. 
 But the greater portion of this business died 
 out, when Akron sprang full-fledged into life. 
 There was a company of firemen organized at 
 Middlebury in an early day. From the fiict 
 that McMillan & Dodge were engaged in the 
 manufacture of " brake engines," the value of a 
 
 fire organization was rendered at once easy and 
 desirable. According to the statements of 
 Julius A. Sumner, a " bucket company " was also 
 organized. Whether these firemen had much 
 work to do is not recorded. The Sumner 
 Brothers engaged quite extensivel}' in buying 
 and shipping cattle and horses. Julius Sumner 
 sa3's he crossed the mountains eight times 
 while engaged in this business. Oxen were 
 purchased for about |40 a yoke, and three-year- 
 old steers for some $10 or $12 a head. The 
 brothers rode all over the country, buying 100 
 or 150 cattle, which were driven to Philadel- 
 phia or New York. Mr. Sumner sa^'s he made 
 $500 on his first drove, and continued the occu- 
 pation until over a thousand cattle had been 
 thus purchased and disposed of A few droves 
 of horses were also bought and driven to New 
 York, whence they were shipped mostl}' to the 
 West Indies, to be used on the large sugar 
 plantations. 
 
 An independent rifle compan}- was organized 
 in Tallmadge during the war of 1812, many of 
 its members residing in what is now Middle- 
 bury, a considerable portion of which belonged 
 to the former township. It was under the 
 command of Capt. Rial McArthur. The fol- 
 lowing correspondence between the citizens and 
 Gen. Wadsworth is intei'esting. as showing the 
 exposed situation of the country at the com- 
 mencement of the war of 1812 : 
 
 To THE Hon. Maj. Gen. Elijah Wadsworth, Esq. : 
 Sir: We, your petitioners, humbly pray that 
 you will take into consideration the defenseless 
 condition we are in; therefore, we pray your 
 Honor to issue orders for Capt. Rial McArthur's 
 Independent Company and the Fourth Company of 
 the Independent Battalion. Fourth Brigade and 
 Fourth Division of Ohio Militia, commanded by 
 Capt. Sanuiel Hale, to be retained for public safety, 
 as we are on the frontier ; that said companies be 
 drilled one day in each week, and hold themselves 
 in constant readiness in case of an attack to march 
 at a moment's warning. Those families that were 
 to the west of us have moved into the settlement, 
 and we are left on the frontier ; therefore, we, j^our 
 petitioners, wish you to take this into considera- 
 tion, and act as in yoiu' wisdom you shall see fit, 
 (Signed) 
 
 Philander Adams, 
 Jesse Neal, 
 Charles Chittenden, 
 Henry Chittenden, 
 Elizur Wright, 
 John Wright, 
 
 Peter Norton. 
 Springfield, July 13, 1812 
 
 Nathaniel Chapman, 
 Aaron Norton, 
 David Preston, 
 Amos Spicer, 
 Hosea Wilcox, 
 Jonathan Sprague, 
 
 •^s- 
 
 ■.^ 
 
MIDDLEBURY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 405 
 
 "k* 
 
 This communication proves that the citizens 
 in the vicinity of Middlebury were thoroughly 
 aroused to the fact of their exposed situation ; 
 but subsequent events proved that their fears 
 were almost wholly groundless. It may be 
 supposed that the following letter afforded 
 universal satisfaction : 
 
 Capt. Rial McArthur : 
 
 Sir: You doubtless are sensible of the critical 
 situation of our country at this time. War being 
 declared by the United States against Great Britain, 
 it becomes necessary, as we have become the front- 
 ier, for the ■whole body of the militia to be in per- 
 fect readiness to meet the enemy ; and, sir, yours 
 being an independent company, I place great confi- 
 dence in your ability and activity in l)eing ready 
 with your company to march and meet the enemy 
 of your country at a moment's w^arning. You will, 
 therefore, please to order your company to meet at 
 any place you may think proper and convenient, 
 one day in each week, and in the most perfect man- 
 ner possible. See that every man furnishes himself 
 with arms and ammunition, and other necessary 
 accouterments for actual service. You will please 
 to inform me after the first meeting of your com- 
 pany of their actual situation, 
 
 Elijah Wadsworth, 
 Maj. Ge/i. Fourth Division Ohio Militia. 
 
 Soon after this correspondence was held, the 
 Independent Rifle Company was ordered, first 
 to Cleveland, and afterward to Old Portage, 
 the headquarters of Gen. Wadsworth, and, 
 finally, to the camp of Gen. Simon Perkins, a 
 temporary post on the Huron River. They 
 returned during the spring of 1813, after a 
 short, bloodless, though arduous, service in the 
 field. There were forty-eight men in the com- 
 pany, as follows : 
 
 Captain^Rial McArthur, 
 
 Lievitenant — Wiley Hamilton. 
 
 Ensign — Charles Powers. 
 
 Sergeants — Alpha Wright, Justus Barnes, Daniel 
 Kennedy, Samuel Clieney. 
 
 Corporals — Edmund Strong, Shubael Lowery, 
 Jolin Campbell, Justin E. Frink. 
 
 Drummer — Stephen Butler, 
 
 Fifer— Ara Gillett. 
 
 Privates — Philander Adams, Samuel Allyn, Sam- 
 uel Atkins, Christian Cackler, Jr., Titus Chapman, 
 Nathaniel Darrow, Liverton Dickson, Thomas 
 Ellett. David Ellett, Samuel Fogger, Jesse Neal, 
 Asa Draper, David Powers, Samuel Preston, Lot 
 Preston, David Prior, Amos Spicer, Jr,, Joseph 
 Towsley, Jonathan Williams, Abner Green, James 
 Thompson, Henry King, Elisha Perkins, John S. 
 Preston, Norman Sackett, John Wright, Jr., Eph- 
 raim Clark, Jr., Aaron Norton, Joshua King, 
 James Bradley, John Collins, Drake Fellows. 
 Henry Bierce, John Castle, David Preston, Jr. 
 
 When the above company was first ordered 
 into the service, it comprised but forty-four 
 men, several of whose names do not appear 
 above, and were as follows : Luman Bishop, 
 Charles King, Stephen Perkins and William 
 Prior. The following men were not members 
 of the company during the first enlistment: 
 Samuel Atkins, Asa Draper, David Prior, Jona- 
 than Williams, Abner Green, James Thompson, 
 Ephraim Clark, Jr., Aaron Norton and Joshua 
 King. This company first volunteered, and 
 were ordered into the service of the United 
 States for the protection of the frontiers, on 
 the 22d of August, 1812. Their first term of 
 service ended February 22, 1813. Although 
 the company was then out of service, it did not 
 disband, but kept drilling about once a 
 week. 
 
 On the 17th of April, 1813, Gov. R. J. Meigs 
 wrote to Gen. Wadsworth, advising him that 
 "The Fort at the rapids of the Miami (Fort 
 Meigs) is threatened with an attack from 
 British and Indians," and ordering him im- 
 mediately to detach " one flank company to 
 strengthen the post at Lower Sandusk}', as the 
 post at the rapids is, I fear, too weak." In 
 pursuance of this order, Gen. Wadsworth, on 
 the 20th of April, 1813, ordered Capt. Mc Ar- 
 thur's company to march to Lower Sandusky 
 immediately, and to take with them five or six 
 days' provisions, or a sufficient allowance to 
 take them to that place. Gen. Wadsworth says 
 in his order, " You will be shortl}' relieved, as 
 a large number of troops are on their march to 
 re-enforce that army." This was the company 
 whose names appear at length above. It will 
 be noticed that many members of the company 
 lived at old Middlebury. Immediately after 
 the surrender of Detroit by Gen. Hull, in 
 August, 1812, Gen. Wadsworth was ordered to 
 organize a brigade of 1,500 men. To eflect 
 this, volunteers were called for, and, finally, the 
 General was obliged to resort to a draft. The 
 company above mentioned, with one or two 
 exceptions, volunteered. Among the drafted 
 were Reuben Upson. John Caruthers, Norman 
 Sackett, Moses Bradford, Ara Gillett and Joth- 
 am Blakeslee. Old Portage was the head- 
 quarters of these forces, and became celebrated 
 on that account. In later 3-ears, Col. John C. 
 Hart organized a regiment of cavalry militia 
 at Middlebury and the surrounding countrj'. 
 It will be observed that almost all the members 
 
A^ 
 
 406 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 of Capt. McArthur's company lived in what is 
 now Summit County. 
 
 It is now necessaiy to go back and notice 
 other matters relating to the earh' history of 
 Middlebur^'. The village comprises land for- 
 merly belonging to the townships of Tallmadge, 
 Springfield, Coventry and Portage. Some of 
 the first owners of the Middlebury land were 
 Capt. Joseph Hart, Aaron Norton, Liverton 
 Dickson, William Neil and Ara Gillett, in Tall- 
 madge ; Peter Norton, Rial McArthur and 
 others, in Springfield ; Amos Spicer and Jesse 
 Allen, in ('oventr^- ; and Amos Spicer, Jr., in 
 Portage. 
 
 During all the early history of the vil- 
 lage, and for eleven years after the comple- 
 tion of the canal, the electors residing in the 
 village met to poll their votes in their respect- 
 ive townships — the four mentioned above. The 
 original village was in the southwestern corner 
 of Tallmadge ; but, as it gradually enlarged, 
 portions of the other three townships were occu- 
 pied, after being surveyed into lots. Among the 
 early residents of what afterward became Mid- 
 dlebury, were the following, although this is 
 neither a complete nor a perfect list : Capt. 
 Joseph Hart, Judge Aaron Norton, Rial McAr- 
 thur, Liverton Dickson, Samuel and John Pres- 
 ton, Amos Spicer, Sr. and Jr., Ara (lillett, Peter 
 Norton, William Neil, Barney Williams, Mr. 
 Graham, William J. Hart, George Siiucox, Peleg 
 Mason, Orrin Pitkin, John McMillan, Elijah 
 Mason, Mr. Hazen, Thomas Sumner and his 
 sons, Charles, Holland, Joseph, John, Increase, 
 Edward and Julius A., the latter yet living at 
 Akron ; Nathan Gillett, probably the first Post- 
 master, and many others. The village was first 
 regularly laid out into lots, and probabl}- re- 
 corded at Ravenna, in 1818, by William J. 
 Hart. That portion of the village known as W, 
 was probably the first laid out, as it is recorded 
 in Book F, at Ravenna ; while E and S are re- 
 corded in Books S and K, respectively. It is 
 likely that over fift}' lots were laid out by Mr. 
 Hart, to which additions were made as the rapid 
 growth of the village required. The " boom " 
 at the time of the building of the canal no 
 doubt vastly increased the number of lots, as it 
 did the number of buildings of all kinds. 
 
 It is likely that the village was incorporated 
 b}' a special law of the Ohio Legislature, 
 enacted during the session of 1837-38, as the 
 following, quoted from the Middlebury records, 
 
 would seem to imply, if it does not explicitly 
 state : 
 
 At a meetiug of the (lualified flcctors of the vil- 
 lage of Middleliury, held in said vilhige on the first 
 Tuesday in May, A. D., 1838, agreeable to an act to 
 incorporate the village of ]\Iiddleliury, for the pur- 
 pose of electing officers of said corporation. Roan 
 Clark, Henry Chittenden and William L. Clark were 
 chosen Judges, and Tlieron A. Noble was chosen 
 Clerk of said election, whereupon, the following 
 officers were elected: Henry Chittenden, President 
 of the Council; Theron A. Noble, Recorder; Ros- 
 well Kent, Jesse Neal, Gregory Powers, Thadeus H. 
 Botsford and Harry Pardee, Trustees. 
 
 (Signed) T. A. Noble, Recorder. 
 
 These officers were immediately qualified, and 
 entered upon the discharge of their several 
 duties. The following committees were then 
 appointed : T. A. Noble and Gregory Powers, 
 on bj'-laws ; and R. Kent, Jesse Neal, Harry 
 Pardee and T. H. Botsford, on appointments. 
 At a session, May 6, 1838, the " set of rules for 
 the regulation of the Council " was unanimously 
 adopted ; also, Smith Burton was appointed 
 Marshal ; Roswell Kent and T. H. Botsford, 
 Committee on Streets, Highways and Nuisances ; 
 Jesse Newland, Harry Pardee, Committee on 
 Revenue and Expenditure ; and Gregory Powers 
 and T. A. Noble, Committee on By-Laws and 
 Ordinances. Soon afterward, John H. McMil- 
 lan was appointed Treasurer ; Daniel McNaugh- 
 ton, Assessor ; and William L. Clark, Surveyor. 
 The records reveal the fact that the Council be- 
 gan at this time to make a vigorous attack upon 
 all nuisances, and passed several stringent ordi- 
 nances looking to the abatement of the same. 
 On the 21st of July, 1838, it was enacted by 
 the Council '' That the Chief Warden be author- 
 ized to procure a suitable number of hooks and 
 ladders at the expense of the corporation, to be 
 made and finished as he may direct, to be used 
 in cases of fire and not otherwise." The five 
 fire wardens appointed a short time before were 
 Ambrose Cotter, Daniel McNaughton, Samuel 
 Newton, Harry Pardee and John Johns. In 
 1843. Philpot and Camp were permitted to build 
 a horse railroad through certain streets of the 
 village, the road to be used for the passage of 
 coal obtained in Springfield. In 1845, the first 
 stone bridge over the Little Cuyahoga was con- 
 structed, under the contract of Increase Sumner, 
 who erected the stone work for $1.74 per perch, 
 the whole cost amounting to $578.55. So far 
 as can be learned, the village electors voted in 
 their respective townships until the act of incor- 
 
3 
 
 t* 
 
 MIDDLEBURY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 407 
 
 poratiou was passed ; after which, the village, 
 having been constituted an election district, 
 the}' met there to poll their votes. The follow- 
 ing is quoted from the records of November, 
 1846 : " The Council did not meet at the office 
 of the President in Sherman's building accord- 
 ing to adjournment, because the President was 
 out of town on business, with the ke^' in his 
 pocket. (Signed) George W. McMillan, Re- 
 corder." The second stone bridge was built in 
 1847, by Abraham Rhodes, at a cost of $350. 
 The total cost was, however, much greater than 
 that amount. The inference from the following, 
 taken from the records of 1849, is, that the sani- 
 tar}' regulations of the village were inoperative 
 or neglected : " Resolved, That $10 be appro- 
 priated for the use of the Marshal in procuring 
 Jifti/ bushels of hme, as required b}' the ordinance 
 relating to nuisances." It is also to be inferred 
 that the desired results were not secured ; for 
 two months later, it was " Resolved, That each 
 member of this Council be appointed a special 
 committee to examine and report what is neces- 
 sary for a thorough cleansing of this town, and 
 to report at the next meeting." The records of 
 a few succeeding meetings, show active work in 
 the right direction on the part of the select 
 committees. 
 
 Early in 1857, the citizens of Middlebury 
 petitioned the Count}^ Commissioners as fol- 
 lows : " The undersigned householders residing 
 in Middlebury, in said county, respectfully pe- 
 tition your honorable body to erect and set otf 
 a new township, to be composed of the terri- 
 tory' embraced within the corporate limits of 
 the village of Middlebury, in the county afore- 
 said." This petition was signed b}' eighty-four 
 householders of the village. Attached to the 
 petition was " The undersigned. Trustees of the 
 townships interested in the formation of a new 
 township, as proposed in the above petition, 
 hereby give our consent that the said new town- 
 shij) ma}' be erected and set off in accordance 
 with the prayer of said petition, to be composed 
 of the territory embraced within the corporate 
 limits of Middlebury." This was signed by a 
 majority of the Trustees of each township. The 
 County Commissionei'S, at the March session of 
 1857, proceeded as follows : " The Commission- 
 ers, being satisfied that the majority of the 
 householders residing in the village of Middle- 
 bury had signed the petition, and that the eon- 
 sent of a majority of the Trustees of the sev- 
 
 eral townships affected by the creation of the 
 new township had been obtained, and that the 
 necessary legal notices had been given, Oi-- 
 dered. That the territory comprised within the 
 corporate village of Middlebury be set off from 
 the townships of Coventry, Portage, Springfield 
 and Tallmadge, and be hereafter known as the 
 township of Middlebury." Notices were also 
 issued by the Commissioners for the qualified 
 electors of the new township to meet at the 
 town hall in Middlebury, on the first Monday 
 in April, 1857, for the purpose of electing town- 
 ship officers. Thus the village remained until 
 the spring of 1872, when the question of its an- 
 nexation to the city of Akron, as the Sixth 
 Ward, was submitted to the electors in both 
 towns with the following result : Votes in 
 Akron — for annexation, 1,042 ; against annexa- 
 tion, 16. Votes in Middlebury ^for annexa- 
 tion, 140 ; against annexation, 26. The neces- 
 sary number of affirmative votes having been 
 secured, each town elected a committee to con- 
 fer with that of the other town, to unite on the 
 terms of annexation. These terms are too vol- 
 uminous to be quoted here, yet it ma}' be said 
 that both towns will be benefited, in the end, 
 by the annexation. The later history of Mid- 
 dlebury will be found in another chapter. 
 
 The first schoolhouse in Middlebury was 
 erected near the site of the present one, in 
 about the year 1811. It was a small one-sto- 
 ried frame, 20x25 feet, with a broad fire-place 
 in one end. The first teacher is not remem- 
 bered ; but, in 1813-14 and 181^15, J. P. 
 Skinner, from near Ravenna, taught. This man 
 was a skillful disciplinarian and a competent 
 instructor. He received his pay by subscrip- 
 tion, at the rate of some $12 or $15 per month. 
 The three R"s were largely dwelt on, and woe 
 unto the scholar with a neglected lesson. Whis- 
 pering was prohibited, and, in case the rule was 
 violated, dire and summary correction was sure 
 to follow. The old-time school-teachers were 
 very strict about their rules. They usually 
 succeeded in creating an understanding among 
 their scholars that the violation of a rule of the 
 school was an unpardonable offense, and it was 
 often amusing to see how the guilty one lan- 
 guished. Sometimes young men were severely 
 feruled, and more than one school has terminat- 
 ed in a promiscuous fight. One day Mr. Skin- 
 ner, annoyed from having so much laughter in 
 the room, made a rule that the first one that 
 
 
408 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 laughed out should take the ferule and hand it 
 to the next one that laughed out, who was to 
 do likewise, and so on, and the scholar having 
 the ferule when school was dismissed, should 
 be feruled by the teacher. A short time after- 
 ward some one laughed, whereupon the teacher 
 handed him the ferule, of which he must get 
 rid, or he would be punished when school 
 closed. It passed through several hands, and 
 finally' went to Ira Dixon. The rule was, by 
 this time working altogether too well to suit 
 the teacher. He, therefore, announced that the 
 next one who laughed should ferule Dixon, 
 and the latter should ferule him. Almon 
 Brown and Ira Dixon were great friends, 
 and, when the former saw that the latter was 
 in for sure punishment, his mirth knew no 
 bounds. He endeavored to repress the tide, 
 and his efforts resulted in volcanic peals of 
 laughter. That instantly precipitated events, 
 and the teacher told the boys they must ferule 
 one another. This each one did, laying it on 
 with a gusto not at all appi-eciated by the other. 
 By this time, the gravity of the whole school 
 was seriousl}' affected. Mutterings were heard 
 here and there, and at last a 3'oung man named 
 Denison Williams burst into a roar of laugh- 
 ter. He was feruled by the teacher, greatly 
 to' his mortification, and then the rule that 
 had pla3'ed so much mischief was declared 
 annulled. Such scenes often transpired in 
 the early schools, and even in later ones. 
 There were fifty-nine scholars enrolled dur- 
 ing the winter of 1814-15, at which time 
 the above funny, though serious, event oc- 
 curred. This schoolhouse was used, summer 
 
 and winter, until 1828, when J. A. Sumner and 
 others were employed to construct what is 
 known in history as the "Old Brick." Both 
 of these houses were used for school, church, 
 town and other purposes. In 1826, Mr. I. N. 
 Mason taught a "select grammar school" in 
 the village. Other terms were subsequently 
 taught. In 1853, the old brick schoolhouse was 
 purchased by the Village Council for $255, and 
 converted into a town hall, to which use it was 
 devoted for many years. It is likely that the 
 present school building was erected about the 
 same time, although nothing is before the wri- 
 ter of this chapter proving that to have been 
 the case. 
 
 From the fact that Tallmadge was blessed 
 with good churches, and that many of the early 
 residents of Middlebury belonged to these, no 
 efforts looking to the organization of religious 
 societies in the village were made until about 
 the 3'ear 1830. Many of the villagers were 
 laborers in the various shops, and were not 
 professors of religion ; while the few who were 
 professors preferred going to Tallmadge to 
 church, instead of sustaining the cost of erect- 
 ing a building of their own. However, soon 
 after the completion of the Ohio Canal, several 
 religious societies sprang into existence. The 
 Methodists started up at an unknown date. 
 The Presbyterians put up their church in De- 
 cember, 1831, and the Congregationalists, in 
 December, 1845. Other religious organizations 
 have been established, and Middlebury is now 
 well supplied with churches. Many other in- 
 teresting historical events in the village will be 
 found narrated in other chapters. 
 
HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 409 
 
 CHAPTER XIII.* 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP — ITS PRIMITIVE ATTRACTIONS — THE FIRST START IN THE WOODS— -OF 
 
 MOVING ACCIDENTS BY FLOOD AND FIELD"— ON THE BORDER— THE 
 
 EARLY RESOUR' . OF THE SETTLERS. 
 
 "The sweet remembrance of the just, 
 Like a green root, revives and bears, 
 A train of blessings for his heirs, 
 When dying nature sleeps in dust." 
 
 ^'^O form a correct idea of the early history 
 JL of the Western Reserve, it is essential 
 that it should be viewed thi'ough the con- 
 temporaneous history of the parent State. 
 The Pui'itan colony which had been planted 
 in Connecticut some one hundi'ed and sixty 
 years before, had grown to the dignity of a 
 State. Its primitive customs, involving a close 
 union of Church and State, had gi'own with its 
 gi'owth until the chm'ch militant had become 
 the chm'ch triumphant so far as it concerned 
 municipal governments and cormnunities. Each 
 tovni had its ministerial fund, schools were 
 everywhere provided, and a patriotic pride in 
 the individuality of its institutions was the 
 dominant influence with every citizen of the 
 State. The Puritan of the last centmy was no 
 weakling in his least estate, but at this period 
 he was at the summit of his power. Of a 
 robust nature, physically and mentally, he 
 handled the ponderous themes of the time as 
 the mythological deities did thunderbolts, and 
 in the lowest condition of life counted himself 
 " a hero in the strife." Thus equipped, he 
 was aggressive in every fiber of his being, and 
 pushed his conqviests with an imperiousness 
 that abated not a tittle of his eai'thly or heav- 
 enly heritage. It was with something of this 
 spirit that the State maintained her right to 
 the territory embraced by the provisions of her 
 charter, in the midst of conflicting^ claims and 
 the overwhelming opposition of non- claiming 
 States. But when at last in the interest of 
 harmony, Connecticut sun-endered her preten- 
 sions, save to the Reserve, and finally relin- 
 quished her jm-isdiction to that, she had 
 sun-endered only her feeblest power. Her 
 
 * Contributed by J. H. Battle. 
 
 conquering spirit laid hold of its civilization, 
 and in the hearts of its citizens she rules the 
 Western Reserve to-day. 
 
 The early settlement of the Reserve was an 
 effort to reproduce in this Western wild the 
 honored institutions of the motherland. This 
 was the beginning of the golden period of 
 the Connecticut churches, a period marked by 
 revivals of religion throughout the State, dis- 
 tinguished for their power, purity and perma- 
 nent influence, gi'eatly enlarging the chm-ches, 
 improving the moi-als of society, and bringing 
 the people of the State, to a great extent, 
 under the control of religion." It was just at 
 this time also that the Connecticut method of 
 " missions to the new settlements " was com- 
 pleted, which was destined to play so impor- 
 tant a part in the New Connecticut; and these 
 civilizing influences combined to leave an 
 impress upon the plastic civilization of the 
 new land that has been ciystallized in the cult- 
 m'e of to-day. These influences were early 
 marked, and perhaps nowhere more distinctly 
 than in the region which is now embraced in 
 Summit County. A letter from the Western 
 Reserve to Eastern friends dated 1812, reads 
 as follows: "I like Tallmadge better on sev- 
 eral accounts than any other place I have 
 seen. The settlers in this toA\Ta are much the 
 most respectable of any on the Reserve. There 
 is provision made for the pennanent support 
 of preaching, which is not the case in any 
 other town." Another letter dated from Tall- 
 madge in the same year, speaks in the same 
 strain: "I am persuaded that if any of 
 om' fi'iends tliiulv of going to a new country, 
 they will find none that they will be so well 
 pleased with, either on account of the quality 
 of the land or of the society. I do not think 
 there is in the State of Connecticut a society 
 where there is that attention paid to the Sab- 
 bath, and to religion generally, that there is 
 
^^ 
 
 410 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 here. There are very few who do not attend 
 meeting regularly, and very few prayerless 
 families." There is no question but that the 
 early histoiy of Tallmadge was exceptional in 
 some respects, but of Hudson it was scai'cely 
 less true. Its founder, the son of a tailor who 
 taught his children as he plied his trade, grew 
 up to advanced manhood embracing skeptical 
 notions. Caught by the sweeping power of 
 the chiur.h movement of this period he was 
 converted, and with the characteristic practi- 
 cability of the Pm-itan mind, he sought an 
 opportunity to prove his faith in work. The 
 missionary spirit that had begun to pervade 
 the religious communities of his native State, 
 and the recent organization of the gi'eat Land 
 Company, prepared the way which he adopted 
 without hesitation. Zealous in his new found 
 faith, " he wished to do something to repair 
 the injury he had done, and to advance, to 
 the extent of his ability, the interests of that 
 cause which he had early labored to destroy. 
 These were the views that led him to emigrate. 
 * * * * The early efforts and sacrifices 
 of the men who came to Hudson, show that 
 they were actuated by the motives I have 
 ascribed to them. They never suffered the 
 Sabbath to pass by after the settlement was 
 commenced, without religious worship; and 
 by great effort and great pecuniary expendi- 
 ture, they provided for the enjoyment of relig- 
 ious ordinances among themselves, and sought 
 to promote the progi-ess of religion in this 
 part of our country. It was the first desire of 
 ^Ir. Hudson's heart to see the day when a 
 chm'ch shou^ld be organized within the town- 
 ship, and he rejoiced in that day. The next 
 object of desire was that this chiu-ch might 
 enjoy the labors of a settled Pastor, and he 
 lived to see that day and was glad. Then it 
 was in his heart to see a house erected for the 
 worship of Grod, and that he saw completed to 
 his great satisfaction. 'But,' said he, 'the 
 college — the college; that was a child of my 
 old age. I never expected to live to see that.' 
 Yet the college was in coincidence with his 
 plans and with his missionary spirit. He 
 spent most of his time in visiting Clmstian 
 families in all parts of the Reserve, and secur- 
 ing the organization of churches and it was 
 with him a matter of painful solicitude, how 
 
 the infant chm*ches rising up on the Reserve 
 were to be supplied with able, faithful minis- 
 ters, in sufficient numbers to meet their wants. 
 The college came in as the appropriate instru- 
 ment to supply the deficiency."* 
 
 The site chosen for this enterprise — Town- 
 ship 4, Range 10 — was centrally located in the 
 land company's purchase, and contained what 
 has since proven to be among the best farm- 
 ing lands in Summit County. It was laid 
 down in the original survey, however, as a 
 swamp township and was " equalized " by the 
 addition of 10,000 acres, situated in the town- 
 shi}>s of Norton and Chester. West of the 
 central line of the township the land was cov- 
 ered by an almost impassable swamp, which, 
 filled with innumerable springs, gave rise to 
 the Brandy wine Creek, flowing in a northwest- 
 erly course to the Cuyahoga River and Mud 
 Brook, flowing neaily due south in Hudson 
 but fiu'ther on in its com'se, taking a ciu've to 
 the westward finds an outlet in the Cuya- 
 hoga. A branch of Mud Brook in the south- 
 west part of the township, known as Powers' 
 Brook, and Tinker's Creek, which flows in a 
 northerly com'se in the northeast part of the 
 township, crossing back and forth from Hud- 
 son to Stratsboro, completes the list of the 
 more important water-courses of the township. 
 None of these, however, were found available 
 in the first years of the settlement for such 
 pioneer industries as the community needed, 
 save the latter stream for a short period. 
 Other water-com-ses were foiuid which in the 
 changes wrought by the process of clearing 
 and tilling, have become extinct or insignifi- 
 cant, that afforded suitable power for the early 
 attempts at milling and manufacturing. The 
 township is now inhabited by a purely agri- 
 cultm'al community. The luxuriant growth 
 of heavy timber which once covered every 
 acre, has largely given way to meadow-lands 
 and grain-fields, save where each farmer's 
 woodland gives token of the grandetu* of 
 "God's first temple." The soil in the low- 
 lauds of the western part is largely a black 
 muck, rich but saturated with moistiu'e and 
 liable to frost. In the eastern part the siu'f ace 
 is more rolling with a soil varying from a 
 stiff, stubborn clay to a clay loam. There is 
 
 *Address by Kev. G. E Pierce, I>. D. 
 
;k* 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 411 
 
 but little regularity in the disposition of these 
 varieties, though in the southern and north- 
 eastei'n parts it is said the clay-loam predom- 
 inates. Eighty years of tillage has wrought 
 great changes in the character of the soil, and 
 the swampy portion of the early township has 
 given place to good farms, and it is estimated 
 that not over one thousand two hundred acres 
 of low wet land remains. Water is every- 
 where easily accessible. Springs abound in 
 the western part, while in other portions of 
 the township there is no special difficulty 
 experienced in securing good wells: some 
 artesian wells, however, have been sunk. The 
 soil is the chief material resource of the town- 
 ship, though there is an abundance of a fair 
 quality of sandstone which has been utilized 
 in the constniction of the foundations of the 
 college buildings, most of the residences, rail- 
 road culverts, etc. The chief objection to the 
 stone is its dark color and its lack of weather- 
 ing qualities. These objections would proba 
 bly prove no serious obstacle to its general 
 use, if the more desirable stone was not found 
 in the near vicinity which is placed upon the 
 ground here as cheaply as the product of the 
 home quarries can be got ready for transporta- 
 tion. As in most townships of the Reserve, 
 the social and business center is at the geo- 
 graphical center of the township. An early 
 cluster of houses in the southern part of the 
 township on the central road has given name 
 to the road, and across the line in the adjoin- 
 ing township it is designated, in the nomen- 
 clature of the map, Darrowville. The early 
 jurisdiction of the township embraced what is 
 now known as the towniships of Stow, Boston, 
 Twinsburg, Aurora and Mantua, besides its 
 own territory. As the settlement increased in 
 these tov^^lships the jurisdiction of Hudson 
 became limited to the lines of the original 
 survey, which now bou.nds it on the north by 
 Twinsburg, east by Stratsboro, in Portage 
 County, south by Stow and west by Boston. 
 
 The original purchasers of this township 
 with its annexes, were Nathaniel Norton, of 
 Bloomfield, N. Y.,Birdseye Norton and David 
 Hudson, of Goshen. Conn. There are no 
 means now of ascertaining the arrangement 
 between these partners in relation to this pur- 
 chase. Nathaniel Norton was a well-to-do 
 
 farmer in Bloomfield, N. Y., where he had 
 come as an early settler ; Birdseye Norton was 
 a wealthy merchant of Goshen, and David 
 Hudson a farmer in comfortable circumstances, 
 but of little cash capital. From such evidence 
 as the old account books of Mr. Hudson afford, 
 it is probable that Birdseye Norton furnished 
 one-half of the capital and each of the others 
 contributing a fourth, Mr. Hudson probably 
 turning in his Connecticut farm to Mr. Birds- 
 eye Norton. The land was purchased at 52 
 cents per acre, but with the equalizing annexes 
 the average cost per acre was reduced to 34 
 cents. Nathaniel Norton, some time in 1S()1, 
 disposed of his share, probably to Stephen 
 Baldwin, Benjamin Oviatt and Theodore Par- 
 mele. The first di-aft of the Reserve was 
 made in 1798. and earlv in the following: yeai'. 
 Mr. Hudson started out to explore and survey 
 the land for the company in which he was a 
 partner. His preparations for his new advent- 
 ui'e were carefully made, as the following 
 exhibit taken from an old account-book shows : 
 
 David Hudson, Birdskye Norton and Nathan- 
 iel Norton to Norton & Richardk, Dr. : 
 
 May 11. 1799. 
 
 £. s. d. 
 
 By 2 sickles, 8s; 2 bells © 10s 1 8 00 
 
 By 1 doz. o-ardeu seeds (cc Is 6d 16 00 
 
 By 1 lb. allspice, 4s; 2 hoes, C«) 8s 6d 1 1 00 
 
 By 1 grindstone, wt. 62 lbs., fw Id 1 16 2 
 
 By 1 pail fa 5s 6d; 7^ lbs lead. 9s 4d. . . . 12 10 
 
 BV 1 comb. Is 6d; 1 almanack. Is 2 6 
 
 Bv 1 ax, 12s; 1 gallon bottle, os 17 00 
 
 By 1 bed-cord, 8s: 1 clothes-line. 6s 14 00 
 
 By 9* fts. dried venison, 7 1 
 
 By 693 lbs. pork 27 14 3 
 
 By 25 lbs. gammon @ Is 4d 1 14 00 
 
 By 1 carpenter's adze 14 00 
 
 Total £37 15 10 
 
 Th(! above articles were bought of Thadeus Ciia- 
 pin. 
 
 Mav 13, 1799: 
 
 £. s. .1. 
 To 4 lbs. ginger @ 2s 8; 2 lbs. tea @ 13s6d 1 15 00 
 To 6 lbs. chocolate @ 3s 6d; to 81 lbs. 
 
 cheese (a- Is 5 2 00 
 
 To44 11)s, chain (fc 2s 4d; to 1.V ll)s. of 
 
 chalk r«^ 9d..... 5 4 00 
 
 To 3 lbs. powder (a 10s: to 3 lbs. pep- 
 per W 4s 8d ' 2 4 00 
 
 To 281 lbs. sugar @ Is Id: to 50i lbs. 
 
 nails (a 2s 20 5 5 
 
 To 9^ lbs', leather (« 2s 6d 1 3 9 
 
 To 1 small account book 6 00 
 
 To 1 quire of paper, 2s 6d; 1 draw-shave, 
 5s 8d 8 2 
 
412 
 
 HISTOKY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 £. 8. d. 
 
 To 8 narrow axes @ 16s 6 8 00 
 
 To 2 bells @ 17s 17 00 
 
 To 1 plowshare, 50s 2d; 1 spider, 7s 6d. . 2 17 8 
 To 2 hoes @7s 14; 1 skimmer. Is; 1 dip- 
 per. Is 6d 16 6 
 
 To 2 plane-irons To) Is 8d; 2 chisels ((b 3s. 8 4 
 To 1 chisel, 2s 6; 1 doz. awls, 8d; 3 awl- 
 hafts. Is 6d 3 8 
 
 To 1 spade, lis; 3 gimlets. Is 6d; 3 au- 
 gers, 17s , 19 6 
 
 To jacknives, lis, 4d; 1 pincer. Is od. .. 12 10 
 To i doz. fish-hooks, 3s; 1 line, 4s (used 
 
 as chalk-line) 7 00 
 
 To 1 saw, 18s; 2 set teaspoons, 2s 4d 1 4 
 
 To 1 carving-knife and fork, 6s 9d 6 9 
 
 To i bushel clover seed 3 4 00 
 
 To 12 bushels oats @ 2s 6d 1 10 00 
 
 To 1 bushel and i peck herd-grass seed. 1 16 00 
 To 1 bushel peas, 10s; 2 sets teacups, 5s 
 
 8d 15 8 
 
 To 1 razor, 6s; razor-strop, 2s 6d 8 6 
 
 To 1 shaving-box, 2s lOd; 4 cakes soap, 
 
 lOd .'. 6 2 
 
 To 3 barrels, 24s; 1 hammer, 4s 1 8 00 
 
 To 5 first blankets @ 32s 8 00 00 
 
 To 3 do («) 16s 8d 2 10 00 
 
 To 4i yards tow-cloth @ 3s 13 6 
 
 To 3 ax-helves @ Is 3 00 
 
 To 1 trowel, 4s; 1 hasp, 2s 6 00 
 
 To 100 dollars cash 40 00 00 
 
 To 1 set spoons, 3s; 2 knives. Is 8d 4 8 
 
 May 15, 1799: 
 
 To 311 gallons whisky @ 18s 12 14 00 
 
 To 1 barrel 8 00 
 
 Total £122 4 3 
 
 On the same date Nathaniel Norton sup- 
 plied the following items: 
 
 1 set harrow-teeth 5 1 4 
 
 1 iron kettle 3 4 00 
 
 3 bushels of salt @ 10s; 1 barrel, 6s 1 16 00 
 
 1 coflfee-pot, agreed at 3s 3 00 
 
 90 lbs, bread (0) 3d 12 6 
 
 1 hat , 18 00 
 
 2 yoke oxen 46 8 00 
 
 34' bushels wheat @ 8s 13 12 00 
 
 2 yokes and bows, irons, etc 1 6 8 
 
 1 cow, 20 dollars 8 00 00 
 
 7 barrels® 4s 1 8 00 
 
 2 barels pork @ 18 14 8 00 
 
 Transportation to Gerundagut 7 4 00 
 
 1 boat, 33 dollars 13 4 00 
 
 i bushel peas (a^ 5s 5 00 
 
 1 bushel potatoes @ 2s 6d 2 6 00 
 
 1 bag, 4s 4 00 
 
 1 cow. 13 dollars 5 4 00 
 
 Total £125 14 4 
 
 These articles, involving an outlay of 
 
 upward of $700, were principally secured at 
 
 Bloomfield. This point, at that time, was on 
 the frontier, and the overland pioneer to the 
 
 far West was forced to depend upon the uncer- 
 tain guidance of Indian trails and the survey- 
 or's marks. The thoroughfare of Western 
 travel was by the lakes, and IVIr. Hudson has left 
 a carefully prepared " traveler's guide " over 
 that route as follows: From Black Rock to 
 Buffalo Creek, tlu-ee miles; Buffalo Creek to 
 Five Mile Creek, live miles; Five Mile Creek 
 to Eighteen Mile Creek, thirteen miles; Eight- 
 een Mile Creek to Cattaraugus, twelve miles; 
 Cattaraugus to Four Mile Creek, four miles; 
 Four Mile Creek to Fifteen Mile Creek, eleven 
 miles; Fifteen Mile Creek to Chataqua, 
 twenty-live miles; Chataqua to Lowiy's, six- 
 teen miles; Lowry's to Presque Isle, sixteen 
 miles; Presq^^e Isle to Walnut Creek, twelve 
 miles ; Walnut Creek to Elk Creek, eight miles ; 
 Elk Creek to Conneaut, ten miles; Conneaut to 
 Ashtabula, fourteen miles; Ashtabula to Grand 
 River, twenty-six miles; Grand River to Cha- 
 grin, ten miles; Chagrin to Cuyahoga, twenty 
 miles; a total of 205 miles. The only public 
 source of information in regard to this country 
 was " Morse's Geography," which represented 
 the latter river as navigable for sloops for 
 forty miles from its moiith. 
 
 On the 22d day of April, 1799, in company 
 with Jesse Lindley, William McKinley, whom 
 he had hired as assistants, and Ira, his son of 
 eleven years, Mr. Hudson started for Bloom- 
 field, N. Y. The party was accompanied by a 
 wagon driven by Thaddeus Lacey, who brought 
 his wife and two childi'en. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Lacey were engaged as purveyor and cook for 
 the party, and were in charge of the supplies 
 with which the wagon was loaded. Their 
 route lay toward Albany, where they arrived 
 on the 24th. Here Mr. Hudson hired Joseph 
 Darrow for six months, at $10 per month, to 
 accompany the expedition, terms similar to 
 those on which the others had been engaged. 
 Their course then led tlu'ough Schenectady, old 
 Fort Schuyler, Onondaga to Bloomfield. Six- 
 teen miles west of Schenectady, Mr. Hudson, 
 leaving his son and Lindlev with the wagon, 
 pushed on ahead with Darrow, making his 
 way on foot to Fort Schuyler on the 29th, where 
 he engaged Jonah Meecham; to Onondaga on 
 May 2, where he added Richard H. Blin to his 
 party, reaching Nathaniel Norton's in Bloom- 
 field on the 5th day of May. Here the little 
 
 *7" 
 
 — © 
 
HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 413 
 
 party was detained eleven days, which they 
 employed in fiu'ther providing for their enter- 
 prise in the wilderness. Here IMr. Hudson 
 fell in with Benjamin Tappan, later known as 
 Judge, on his way to his town of Ravenna. 
 ]VIi\ Ta])pan here bought a yoke of oxen and 
 ]VIi'. Hudson, as will appear in the preceding 
 statement, bought two yoke of oxen and two 
 cows. These animals were conhded to the care 
 of Meacham, who assisted by some of Tappan' s 
 hired men, brought them safely on the Indian 
 trail thi'ough Buffalo, until he found near the 
 lake the west line of the seventh range on the 
 Reserve. This line, the eastern boundary of 
 the present township of Paiuesville, Concoi'd, 
 Chardon, Monson, Newburg, Auburn, Mantua, 
 Shalersville and Ravenna, they followed due 
 south for more than forty miles, crossing the 
 Grand and Cuyahoga Rivers and striking the 
 Salt Spring Indian trail near the southeastern 
 corner of Ravenna, and thence to their desti- 
 nation. In the meanwhile Hudson had his 
 baggage and supplies transported to Grondi- 
 gut Bay, where, to his great disappointment, 
 he found his boat in no condition for u.se. He 
 sent back Eliada Lindley and Farr and 
 Straight, whom he had secured at Bloomlield, 
 and obtained passage in one of Tappan's 
 boats for himself and DaiTow. He also had 
 the good fortune to find Eli as Harmon here, 
 about to start out with his wife for Mantua. In 
 one of his boats he obtained passage for Blin 
 and McKinley, dividing such of his store as he 
 was able to take between the two boats. This 
 was on the 16th of May, but meeting with bad 
 weather the little fleet did not reach Niagara 
 until the 22d, when to their astonishment 
 they found the river full of floating ice. They 
 proceeded up the river, however, against the 
 united strength of the cmi'ent and floating ice, 
 and with great effort reached Buffalo Creek 
 on the 26th, where they were blocked up with 
 ice " at least twelve feet high." Happily the ice 
 broke up that night leaving Lake Erie clear, but 
 with so heavy a swell rolling that the expedition 
 was obliged to lay by until the 29th, when for 
 three days the lake was almost at a dead calm. 
 Prompt use was made of these advantageous 
 circumstances, the little party rowing from 
 Buffalo to Elk Creek, a distance of 120 miles in 
 the meantime. On the 1st of June they put out 
 
 and attempted to continue their jomTiey and 
 rowed six miles, but they were obliged to beach 
 their boats at Crooked Creek, and lay wind- 
 bound for several days. "On the 5th," says 
 IVIi-. Hudson, " we put out fi'om Crooked Creek 
 and dined in Conneaut, with a fair wind 
 fi'om the northeast. At 2 o'clock P. M., the 
 wind shifted into the north and blew on the 
 shore with such violence that the boat in 
 which myself and Darrow were, and which 
 was heavily loaded, filled with water before a 
 single article could be got on shore. With 
 most unremitting and violent exertion, we 
 saved oin: boat and loading, and spent the 
 remainder of the day and part of the next in 
 diying our loading which was much damaged 
 with water. On the 7th and 8th we sailed to 
 Grand River, using the bed blankets as sails. 
 The boat in which McKinley and Blin had 
 taken passage and which was in oiu- company, 
 fai'ed worse, it being stove, and a part of my 
 potatoes went thi'ough her bottom. But after 
 the wind had subsided they got her up, and 
 with the help of my nails they so far repaired 
 the wTeck that they got her into Grand River 
 with her loading on the same day we got 
 there."* This was the destination of JNIi-. 
 Harmon's goods and as there was no way of 
 securing the transportation of the goods on 
 board, he pui'chased this boat of IVli*. Harmon 
 for $1 and proceeded with his boat, leaving 
 Blin and McKinley to proceed up the river 
 some fom* miles, discharge Harmon's goods 
 and then to continue the joiu-ney to the Cuya- 
 hoga River. 
 
 Without waiting for his second boat, Mr. 
 Hudson j^roceeded, reaching the Cuyahoga 
 River on the 9th, where, on the following day, 
 finding that the other boat had not come up, 
 he left Darrow to assist the inen up the river. 
 He also took the precaution to lighten IVIi'. 
 Tappau's boat of a large part of his stores, 
 leaving them to be broiight on by his newly 
 pm-chased boat, and proceeded up the river. 
 The season previous to their coming having 
 been very dry. they had proceeded but a few 
 miles when they found the water in places only 
 eight or ten inches deep, and were often 
 obliged to get out, join hands and di'ag their 
 boats over shallow ]>laces. In this way they 
 
 *Diary of David Hudson. 
 
 1^ 
 
414 
 
 HISTORY OF SUAnilT COUXTY. 
 
 proceeded until the 12th, when they reached 
 such a rapid ciuTent that it was impossible to 
 draw the boat any further. Mr. Hudson con- 
 tinues in his diary as follows: " I, myself, 
 went on the land searching for some survey- 
 or's line whereby we coiild find oxu' township. 
 In this place my men overtook us, and to my 
 great concern informed me that my boat had 
 been })lundered the night before of a consider- 
 able quantity of whisky. ])ork, flour and some 
 few potatoes. The men suspected of this vil- 
 lainy was an Indian in the Sandusky tribe, and 
 a white man who calls himself Armstrong. 
 They are two villains, famous in this quarter, 
 and their conduct is not allowed of by their 
 chiefs. 
 
 " 13th. — We now took a part of Tappan's 
 load into my boat, and by our united strength 
 we got the two boats along slowly up the 
 rapid and shallow water, I still continuing 
 on the land searching for some town line. 
 In this way we proceeded until the 17th, 
 when, as I had not been able to find any land 
 mark, we determined to take a few days' pro- 
 visions and strike our course in a southeast 
 direction till we could find some clew whereby 
 we could tell what part of the world we were 
 in. It was at this time I most heartily re- 
 pented having undertaken the expedition, but 
 I must now persevere. I proceeded with my 
 men and Tappan with several of his assistants, 
 and to my great joy found the southwest cor- 
 ner of No. 4, Range 10, at about 11 o'clock 
 on the 17th of June. I immediately went 
 about making a road, getting oiu* stores up 
 from the river, and in endeavoring to get a 
 road into the middle of the town. In the lat- 
 ter attempt a new dilficulty was met. I tried 
 at many places and could find no pass for a 
 road across a swamp which stretched itself 
 from the south line of the town, aboiit three 
 and a half miles, as I afterward found in a 
 northerly direction about one-half mile from 
 the west line. I afterward went across the 
 swamp and found excellent land beyond. In 
 this dilemma. I determined to set my men at 
 work on the west side of the swamp", until the 
 land could be so far surveyed as to find some 
 pass for a road. We found it a work of time 
 and difficulty to get a road across the gullies 
 which lie in No. 4, Range 11 (Boston), but, 
 
 by the 25th of June, we got some of otir things 
 on." 
 
 By a very happy combination of circum- 
 stances the cattle, of which the explorers were 
 just now begimiing to need, arrived at the land- 
 ing on the 18th, just one day after the discov- 
 ery of the township line. The journey of 
 these men over some three hundred and fifty 
 miles, guided ])y the tortuous trails of the 
 Indian and the township lines of the siuweyor, 
 through a totally unknown land, was one of 
 the difiiculties of which we are scarcely able 
 to appreciate. Their mode of traveling was 
 to secure firmly upon the backs of the oxen 
 several bags of flour and pork, together with 
 two blankets and an ax. They waded fordable 
 streams and compelled their cattle to swim 
 those that could not be forded, crossing these 
 streams themselves with their provisions on 
 rafts hastily constructed of sticks. The teams 
 thus happily at hand, rude sleds were con- 
 structed and the labor of transporting the 
 goods from the boats to the place where Mr. 
 Hudson had decided to begin operations com- 
 menced. In the meanwhile a road had been 
 cut out and a bark shelter erected. The cattle 
 were greatly tormented by the immense swarms 
 of flies that attacked them at all times, nearly 
 di-iving them mad. It is said they actually 
 killed one of Mr. Tappan's cattle. 
 
 Aboiit this time David Kellogg with his 
 wife, applied to be taken into Mr. Hixdson's 
 employ. He had come out in the service of 
 Mr. Tappan, but for some reason desired to 
 change his service. Judge Tappan afterward 
 took occasion in the public prints to say that 
 Mr. Hudson enticed him away, which is an 
 entirely mistaken idea. The provisions of the 
 Hudson colony were very low, and he had great 
 fears that those already dejiendent upon him 
 would sufter for lack of supplies. He, how- 
 ever, granted the request, but Mr. Kellogg 
 never became a permanent settler in this col- 
 ony, though staying for a year or two. 
 
 As soon as the first most pressing duties 
 were accomplished, Mr. Hudson set about mak- 
 ing a clearing, aided by his four men. The 
 robbing; of his boat and the faihu'e of his 
 goods, shipped by wagon, to come on began 
 to give him some uneasiness as to their 
 means of subsistence. He borrowed some 
 
3^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 415 
 
 pork of a Capt. Stoddard, settled in what is now 
 Northampton, and taking his boat as soon as 
 unloaded on the 24th of June, proceeded alone 
 down the river in quest of Lacey. Speaking 
 of this trip in his diary, IVIr. Hudson says : " I 
 had the misfortime to lose my fire, and being 
 exceeding wet and the night very cold, I 
 experienced the most uncomfortable night I 
 ever felt. I arrived at Cleveland in twenty- 
 eight hours, and, although several boats had 
 lately arrived, I could not get any information 
 concerning Lacey. I had not heard a word 
 from him since I left him on the Mohawk River 
 near Schenectady in April. I was at a great 
 loss what to do, but, on the whole, I thought 
 best to wait a little longer. In three days an 
 opportunity presented of going down the lake, 
 and, after a quick and dangerous passage, I 
 had the good fortune to find my boy, Lacey 
 and the boat." It appears that Lacey had got 
 as far as Cattaraugus Creek with the boat 
 which Mr. Hudson found unfit for a voyage 
 when he left, and was resting there very much 
 at his ease. He had also quite an addition 
 for the colony in the way of several hired men, 
 which Nathaniel Norton had secured to go to 
 the settlement. But of what the settlement 
 needed the most [they were nearly destitute. 
 " My joy at finding the boat," says Mr. Hud- 
 son, " was turned to sorrow on finding that 
 they had but little more flour than enough to 
 last through the voyage, excepting three bar- 
 rels that belonged to Capt. Austin (Eliphalet 
 Austin, of Austintown). I foimd myself 
 under the most disagreeable necessity of 
 abandoning my men, who were at work, to their 
 fate, quitting the whole expedition and return- 
 ing home, or else taking Capt. Austin's flour. 
 After a sleepless night deliberating what was 
 my duty in the trying case, I determined 
 as the least of two evils to take Austin's 
 floiu", to dismiss my hands, saving barely 
 enough to manage the boat, pay Austin what- 
 ever his damage might be and prosecute my 
 business. Having written my situation and 
 reasons to Capt. Austin and Esquire Norton, 
 I proceeded on my voyage. In a few days, by 
 rowing in the nigrht and crowding our business, 
 I got to Cuyahoga, and without meeting any 
 further disaster we arrived with all oiu- load- 
 ing at the landing on No. 4, Range 11, on 
 
 the 19th of July." It must be remembered 
 
 that these voyages were made in open boats 
 and were propelled by oars save when a light 
 breeze was taken advantage of to raise a sail 
 rudely constructed out of blankets. The courses 
 of these boats were necessarily near the shore 
 and were completely at the mercy of a brisk 
 wind, and were greatly hindered in their voy- 
 ages on this account. The present case was a 
 pressing one, and Mr. Hudson made good 
 some of the delays diu'ing the day by rowing 
 nights. Among the crew was one Lindley, 
 who declared that he was hired to work 
 by the day and refused to work nights. Mr. 
 Hudson therefore excused his rowing in night 
 voyages, but when forced to lay by in the day- 
 time put him at "chopping wood." A day or 
 two of this experience caused him to smTender 
 unconditionally. 
 
 The supplies came just in time, and after 
 getting them into the shelter (which took one 
 hand and the team several days), three days 
 were spent in cutting over the land begun for 
 a wheat-patch. Hitherto the bark shanty which 
 had been hastily erected, on their first arrival, 
 had been their only shelter. Rain had fallen 
 almost incessantly, and with the recent addi- 
 tions the little colony, swelled to thirteen per- 
 sons, demanded something better for their 
 protection. A log house 16x18 feet was at 
 once erected, and within a week's time the 
 whole party were made comfortable beneath 
 its roof. A day and a half had been spent in 
 the meanwhile in stu'veying, the only fair 
 weather during the week, but now matters were 
 in a comfortable shape for the time being, IMi*. 
 Hudson was anxious to get the township ready 
 for settlement. " I now determined," says he, 
 " to crowd the surveying business to the utmost, 
 and if possible to get time to sm'vey om- annex- 
 ation, but, in the last week in July, J. Lindley, 
 Dai-row, Meecham and Blin were all taken 
 sick, and, in short, there was none save myself 
 that could be called well. For f ovu- weeks oiu- 
 people who kept about did little else than take 
 care of the sick. Rain fell in showers about 
 every other day, and in those four weeks we 
 cut three small stacks of poor hay which was 
 much damaged by the rains, and fired and 
 biu-nt the brush on about nine acres — the rain 
 being such that we could not biu-n oiu- brush 
 
 :^ 
 
416 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 any other way than to pull our heaps to pieces 
 and lay them on the fire. My original design 
 was to sow a large piece to tm-nips, but not 
 being able to burn the land over, I sowed on 
 the 1st day of August a small piece from 
 which we cut the timber and brush the week 
 preceding. 
 
 " On the 22d day of August, our people hav- 
 ing gradually recovered, we resumed siu*veying 
 and jiressed it closely as possible until the 
 12th of October, when the business and Merit- 
 ing was completed." The settlement so far 
 had been confined to the northeast corner of 
 Lot 11, but on the 1st of September Mr. Hud- 
 son brought his men to the center of the town- 
 ship and began to cut brush and timber on 
 Lots No. 55 and 56. Here he designed to 
 make his home, and " twenty-three days' work" 
 were spent in building a temporary hut and 
 making the clearing for the more substantial 
 cabin. " Sixteen days' work " erected a good 
 log-house on the line of these two lots where 
 Baldwin street now abuts on Main in Hudson 
 Village, and two days were spent " in trying 
 to dig a well." While this work was progress- 
 ing the surveying party were finishing their 
 work, while another party comiected the two 
 clearings with a road; cut out another to the 
 boat landing in "No. 4, Range 11," now 
 called Boston. About the middle of this month 
 they foiind their store of jirovision nmning 
 very low. Supplies were expected every day 
 from Nathaniel Norton, but at this point Mr. 
 Hudson realized something must be done to 
 avert possible distress. He went immediately 
 to Cleveland and purchased of Lorenzo Car- 
 ter a small field of corn and potatoes for 
 $50, tm-ning in a yoke of oxen as the larger 
 pai-t of the payment. In case of necessity he 
 thought the corn might be pounded up in 
 mortars juid sustain the company imtil relief 
 should come. He hastened back to his station, 
 but having previously heard that Ebenezer 
 Sheldon had made a road through the wilder- 
 ness to Aiu'ora, and that there was a bridle- 
 path thence to Cleveland, he thought it prob- 
 able that he might obtain pork for present 
 necessity from that quarter. He accordingly 
 set out on foot and alone, and regulated his 
 course by the range of his shadow, making 
 allowance for change in the time of day. He 
 
 foiuid the Cleveland path near the center of 
 Aurora, in a dense forest. Thence he pro- 
 ceeded two and a half miles to Mi-. Sheldon's 
 cabin, bu.t foimd he coiild obtain nothing 
 within a reasonable distance. The next morn- 
 ing he retiu-ned to his colony to find that his 
 long-expected boat had aiTived, and that there 
 was once more plenty in the camp. 
 
 Having completed their surveying on the 
 11th of October, and got affairs well under 
 way to make comfortable his family, and such 
 colonists as he might bring back with him, he 
 started on the following day with his son Ira, 
 Meacham and Darrow for Connecticut. They 
 went down the river in the old Harmon boat, 
 intending to transfer to the sti'ong boat which 
 Lacey had brought when he came, but on 
 arriving at the mouth of the river he foimd 
 the boat borrowed without leave and gone to 
 Detroit. It was late in the year and any 
 delay would only bring nearer the season of 
 the year when such navigation was impossible 
 or extremely hazardous, and they proceeded on 
 their way in the old wreck. There was no tar 
 at hand with which to " pitch " the seams, and 
 it proved so leaky that it required one hand 
 most of the time to bail out the water, and so 
 weak that it bent considerably in crossing the 
 waves. Dm'ing their passage the weather was 
 generally cold and boisterous; tluve different 
 times they narrowly escaped drowning by 
 reason of the darkness of the night or violence 
 of the wind. Referring to one of these nar- 
 row esca|)es from both the wind and darkness, 
 Mr. Hudson writes in his diary: " This salva- 
 tion has determined me never in futm-e to put 
 into the lake in a dark night." Lying wind- 
 bound at Chataqua for several days, they eked 
 out their scanty stock of provisions by living 
 on boiled chestnuts. They arrived at Gerun- 
 dagut on the 31st of October, whence their 
 joivrney to Goshen was by land. Mr. Hudson 
 in the middle of November, found his family 
 well and anxioxis to hear of the land which 
 was to be their new home. No time was spent 
 in idling, however, and by the 1st day of Jan- 
 uaiy, 1800, he had made his arrangements to 
 leave with his family, his native State with all 
 its tender and endearing associations, for the 
 wilderness where he had knovna so much anx- 
 iety and hardship. " Thus," says he, " ends 
 
 ■S 
 

 HUDSON TOAVNSIIIP. 
 
 417 
 
 the eventful year of 1799, filled with many 
 troubles, out of all of which hath the Lord hath 
 delivered me." His stay at his old home had 
 been a busy time for him. He had settled 
 accounts with the Norton brothers; had sought 
 cunong his old fi'iends and acquaintances for 
 colonists; and had his own afiairs in his old 
 home to settle as well as to provide supplies 
 for the one to which he was about to move his 
 family. His accounts for the first year are 
 interesting to read over and vividly illustrate 
 the character of the man and the enterprise. 
 Among the items of expenditiu'es are the fol- 
 lowing: April. 1799, " paid $3 for an excellent 
 dog which we lost in Schenectady;" May, " lent 
 JVIi". Bacon $5 for ageeing to pilot us, for 
 which he gave his note, which note I lost with 
 all my minutes and observations on the Cuya- 
 hoga in wading the stream;" "paid Mr. Holly 
 for twelve bushels seed wheat, $18;" October, 
 " Gave Mr. Kellogg as a present to support him- 
 self and family, they being sick, $3; " October 
 19, "Gave as a gift to Mr. Berion, of Con- 
 neaut, he and his family being sick and in dis- 
 tress, $1 ;" November 16, " Retiu'ued to Goshen, 
 expended in returning $9.75." The whole ac- 
 count reaches some $300, which does not include 
 the unpaid balance of wages due his help, and 
 which was applied on the land which each 
 purchased, nor the supplies which had been 
 brought from the East. On the credit side, 
 Mr. Hudson shows tools and materials still in 
 possession of the j^roprietors to the amount of 
 $350.90; surveying instrmnents, $33; "nine 
 acres of wheat on the ground calculated at $20 
 per acre, $180; smidry other articles not here 
 enumerated, $36.91;" making a grand total of 
 $600 worth of property for little more than an 
 equal expenditure. In raising recruits for the 
 new colony, his efforts had been marked with 
 excellent success. It is said that he offered a 
 bounty of forty acres to the first one to vohm- 
 teer, and Ruth Gaylord, whom Rev. John Sew- 
 ard calls " an ancient maiden " received the 
 land, which afterward she gave to her niece, 
 the daughter of Elijah Nobles. Among the 
 party that were prepared to return with Mr. 
 Hudson and his family, were Samuel Bishop 
 with his ioxxr sons, David, Reuben, Luman ;md 
 Joseph, Joel Gaylord, Hemau Oviatt, Dr. 
 Moses Thompson, Allen Gaylord, Stephen 
 
 Perkins, Joseph and George Darrow, William 
 McKinley and three men from Vermont by the 
 names of Derrick, Williams and Shefford. 
 The women in the company were the wives of 
 Messrs. Hudson, Bishop and Nobles, with 
 Miss Riith Gaylord and Ruth Bishop. The 
 six childi-en of ]VIi-. Hudson completed the 
 party that started for the New Conneeticut. 
 Among these names will be noticed those of 
 some who went out the preceding year. Dar- 
 row returned with his brother, Joel Gaylord 
 and Heman Oviatt went out to view the land 
 with the intention of taking their families 
 thither if the situation proved favorable. Mr. 
 Bishop, with his son-in-law Elijah Nobles, 
 alone hazarded everything on the single cast 
 of the die. The three men from Vermont 
 were evidently acqu.aintances of Lacey, thi'ough 
 whom they had probably learned of this settle- 
 ment, and was desirous of tiying their fortune. 
 They probably did not stay long as no men- 
 tion is made of them in any of the old papers 
 of Mr. Hudson. 
 
 In January, 1800, Mr. Hudson started, with 
 his family, on sleighs, from Goshen for 
 Bloomtield, N. Y., the place of rendezvous. 
 Here he occupied an empty cabin of Eber Nor- 
 ton's during the winter, employing his time 
 in preparing for his journey by the lakes. 
 He prociu'ed four boats, in addition to the 
 Harmon boat, which he thoroughly repaired, 
 and loaded them with supples, including win- 
 dow-glass for his cabin put up the preceding 
 fall, a large quantity of woolen and linen cloth, 
 peach and apple seeds, garden seeds, addi- 
 tional tools, and a supply of groceries in- 
 tended to last his family for a full year — the 
 whole reaching a cost of some $2,000. The 
 balance of the party secured tliree boats for 
 their transportation, and all was completed 
 on the 29th of April. " The next night," said 
 Ml'. Hudson, "while my dear wife and six 
 children, with all my men, lay soundly sleep- 
 ing around me, I could not close my eyes. 
 The reflection that those men and women, 
 with most all that I held dear in life, were 
 now to embark in an expedition in which so 
 many chances appeared against me; and, 
 should we survive the dangers in crossing the 
 boisterous lakes, and the disti'essing sickness 
 usually attendant on new settlements, it was 
 
 M\ 
 
ji.: 
 
 S) 
 
 418 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 highly probable that we ratist fall before the 
 tomahawk and scalping-knife. As I knew, at 
 that time, no considerable settlement had been 
 made but what was established in blood, and 
 I was about to place all those who lay around 
 me on the extreme frontier, and, as they 
 would look to me for safety and protection, I 
 almost sank under the immense weight of 
 responsibility resting upon me. Perhaps my 
 feelings on this occasion were a little similar 
 to those of the patriai'ch, when exj^ecting to 
 meet his hostile brother; but, after presenting 
 my case before Israel's God, and committing 
 all to His care, I cheerfully launched out, the 
 next morning, upon the great deep." The 
 little tieet experienced little difficulty coming 
 up the lakes until they reached the mouth of 
 the Cuyahoga River. The wind on this day 
 was rather high, and IVIr. Hudson, in attempt- 
 ing to enter with his boat, missed the channel 
 and stuck fast upon the bar. In this perilous 
 situation, the boat shipped considerable water, 
 and the occupants must have inevitably all 
 been drowned had not a mountain wave struck 
 the boat with such power as to tioat it clear of 
 the obstruction. On reaching a point within 
 two miles of their destination, darkness com- 
 ing on, they were obliged to stop for the night 
 a little north of Nortbfield, at a place called 
 the Pinery. They encamped on the baiiks, 
 which were somewhat low. During the night, 
 a tremendous rain set in, which had so raised 
 the river by daybreak that it overflowed its 
 banks, and was on the point of floating off the 
 very beds on which they were lying. Every- 
 thing was drenched, many finding themselves 
 without a dry thread upon them, and here 
 they were obliged to wait Ave days before the 
 water had so far subsided as to allow them to 
 force their boats against the current. On the 
 sixth day. May 28, they reached the landing 
 place near the Boston line. Here Mr. Hud- 
 son left his family and the crew to look after 
 the unloading, and hurried to visit the people 
 he had left in the clearing, whom he found in 
 good spirits. Before leaving Bloomtield, Mr. 
 Hudson had secured some hogs, fourteen cows, 
 a bull and a horse, which, with a yoke of 
 oxen belonging to Mr. Bishop, were intnisted 
 to the care of Elijah Nobles to bring through 
 the wilderness by the route by which the cat- 
 
 tle had been brought the preceding year. 
 These arrived about the time the boats were 
 unloaded, biit Mr. Hudson, busy in arranging 
 for the large accession to the colony, did not 
 take his horse to the landing after his family 
 for several days. When he arrived, he found 
 his family suffering from the persistent attacks 
 of the gnats and mosquitoes that infested 
 the woods at this season, and his wife, who 
 had cheerfully borne all the trials of the jour- 
 ney hitherto, was now very much discouraged. 
 A change to more cheerful siuToundings, and 
 a fairly comfortable house, wi'ought a great 
 change in her feelings, and she nobly seconded 
 the eftbrts of her husband. The work of 
 transporting the goods from the boats to the 
 settlement on wooden sleds, over eight miles 
 of hilly woods-road, was no slight undertak- 
 ing, and it was several days before it was 
 accomplished. After all the persons belong- 
 ing to the settlement had collected, Mr. Hud- 
 son led them in rendering thanksgiving to the 
 God of mercy, who had brought them safely 
 to their desired haven. Public worship on 
 the Sabbath, which had been discontinued in 
 his absence, was resumed. In relating the 
 fact, Mr. Hudson said : " I felt, in some meas- 
 tu'e, the responsibility resting on first settlers, 
 and their obligations to commence in that 
 fear of God which is the beginning of wis- 
 dom, and to establish those moral and relig- 
 ious habits on which the temporal and etei-nal 
 happiness of a people essentially depends." 
 
 Once settled in their new quarters, the lit- 
 tle commimity was at once a scene of bustling 
 activity. Joel Gaylord selected and purchased 
 640 acres lying in a square piece on the south- 
 west corner of the public square; Dr. Moses 
 Thompson, who had been promised by Mr. 
 Hudson $50, in medicine, if he concluded to 
 settle here, selected for his father and brothers 
 eight and a half lots, of K50 acres each, four 
 of them forming a square mile of land adjoin- 
 ing the southeast part of the public square; 
 Heman Oviatt selected a site soiith of the vil- 
 lage about a mile, adjoining the Thompson 
 property; a large elm tree standing on the 
 road line to the farm now owned by Philan- 
 der Ellsworth, which sprang from a riding- 
 whip which Mr. Oviatt brought on one of his 
 trips to Pittsburgh, and carelessly stuck in the 
 
'.iL 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 419 
 
 ground there, marks the vicinity where he 
 erected his cabin in this year. Dr. Thompson 
 made some clearings and planted a crop on 
 thi'ee lots, and all found plenty of work to do. 
 DaiTow bought in the southern tier of lots, 
 near the central road, and in July, Ebenezer 
 Stone, of Boughton, Ontario Co., N. Y., came 
 out and bought Lot 70. Notwithstanding 
 the fi'equent rains, the season on the whole 
 was very favorable for the crops, and there 
 was an abundant harvest of potatoes and tm*- 
 nips and wheat. 
 
 On the 28th of October of this yeai', oc- 
 cm'red the tirst native accession to the settle- 
 ment. On this date, a daughter was born to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hudson, and, notwithstanding 
 the lack of professional aid, with the attend- 
 ance of the women of the settlement, mother 
 and child prospered finely. The heroine of 
 this occasion, and the eldest born of the 
 county, was Anna Maria Hudson, later the 
 wife of Hai-vey Baldwin, who now lives in a 
 vigorous old age, to rejoice in the results of 
 her parents' pioneer labors. Two weeks later, 
 another event occurred which served to viv- 
 idly impress upon these people the stern real- 
 ity of frontier life. Milo and William, two 
 sons of Mr. Hudson, were sent to drive the 
 hogs out where they could find plenty of nuts 
 to feed upon. The path tliey followed was 
 very rough, and Milo, who was barefooted, 
 experienced a good deal of pain in tiying to 
 travel in it. His brother, finding that he did 
 not need his assistance, sent him back and 
 proceeded on alone with his charge. In re- 
 tm*ning, Milo left the path to walk upon the 
 leaves in the wooded part to avoid the " hubs," 
 and inadvertently strayed too far and became 
 lost. A slight snow had fallen, and it was a 
 chilly autumn day. He looked about him for 
 some clew to his whereabouts, and, seeing a 
 clearing at some distance, ran toward it only 
 to find that it marked the site of a swamp. 
 The return of William and the absence of his 
 brother at once excited alarm, and the men 
 rallied out with horns, guns and bells to find 
 the lost boy. He heard the signals of those 
 in search, but, deluded by the appearances of 
 a clearing made by the various swamp lands, 
 he only got farther away, until, night coming 
 on, worn out with the anxiety and exertion of 
 
 the day, he prepared to pass the night in the 
 wilderness. Raking a pile of leaves beside a 
 great log, and wrapping his bare feet in his 
 jacket, which he had taken ofi" for thepiu'pose, 
 he biuTowed deep into the leaves and fell 
 asleep. The hunters could not thus easily 
 lay aside their cares. The unsuccessful 
 search caused them to redouble their exertions 
 dming the night, and Mr. Hudson, with a 
 father's anxiety, offered a reward of $40 to 
 stimulate a search in which the keenest inter- 
 est was already enlisted. The search was con- 
 tinued without avail until 11 o'clock the fol- 
 lowing day, when the boy was foiind still 
 asleep, his hair fi'inged with fi'ost and his toes 
 slightly frosted, but otherwise unharmed. 
 
 It was some years before the danger of 
 being lost in woods was overcome by the num- 
 ber of settlements. As late as 1809, a little 
 girl of Eben Pease, eight or nine years old, 
 was lost. She was sent on an errand to Ben- 
 jamin Oviatt's, about two miles north of the 
 center. She got there safely, but on her 
 retm-n, mistaking a cow-path for the trail, she 
 wandered off and was lost. Not retm'ning 
 by dark, her parents became alaimed, and, 
 going to Oviatt's, learned she had left there 
 early and was probably lost. The neighbor- 
 hood was rallied out in search. Guns and 
 horns were brought into requisition, but it was 
 10 o'clock the next day before she was found 
 by Richard Croy. She was foiuid asleep on 
 a log, with her feet wrapped in some aprons 
 which she had taken to bring home. 
 
 The following spring brought the families 
 of Joel Gay lord and Heman Oviatt, who came 
 in wagons by the overland route, bringing 
 with them Benjamin Oviatt, John Bridge and 
 James Newton. Their wagons were the first 
 that ever penetrated the wilderness in this 
 part of the Reserve, and these pioneers were 
 obliged to chop their way through the woods 
 for miles. A little later in this year came 
 Eliada Lindley, John Oviatt, William Bough- 
 ton, Aaron Norton, Ezra Wyatt, James Walker, 
 Deacon Stephen Thompson with his sons, 
 Abraham, Stephen, Jr., and Moses, and his 
 sons-in-law, George Pease and Bradford Kel- 
 logg. In the same company came George 
 Kilbom-ne and William Leach. Dr. Moses 
 Thompson had expended his patrimony in 
 
 Tv* 
 
.t 
 
 420 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 prosecuting his medical studies, biit his father 
 proposed to give him a lot of land if he would 
 investigate the Hudson settlement and, if fav- 
 orably impressed, move the family out to it. 
 After coming out with Mr. Hudson and select- 
 ing the land, he retiu'ned on foot to Goshen, 
 carrying his provisions in a pack at his back. 
 He made the 650 miles in eleven and a half 
 days, helped to do the haying, and, returning 
 with his father's brother's family, as well as 
 his own. He secured some apple seeds from 
 some pmnace at a cider-mill in Reading, 
 Penn., and the lirst apples from this seed, 
 were the admiration of the little folks, who 
 had never seen an apple before. 
 
 His land was situated northwest of the 
 village, on what is known as the Northampton 
 road, where he lived until the day of his death. 
 He was the earliest doctor in the township, 
 and had a practice that took him over a terri- 
 tory a hundred miles in extent. He retired 
 from his practice in 1815, to engage in busi- 
 ness. Christian Cackler came here in the 
 spring of 1804, together with his father and 
 eldest brother, settling on a part of Lot 10, in 
 the southeast corner of the township. They 
 came from Pennsylvania, bringing a horse 
 and a yoke of oxen, and such supplies as 
 could be packed on a horse. Coming to 
 Ravenna, they found a few residents, and a 
 road marked out and partly underbiiished to 
 Hudson. Here they came, selected their land, 
 and, going to the site, put up a temporary 
 shelter. Four forks were driven into the 
 ground, and upon them were laid poles, upon 
 which a covering of bark was laid. The same 
 material supplied the floor and the sides of 
 this hastily constnicted tabernacle. Beds 
 made of leaves and covered with blankets 
 completed their household arrangements, and 
 they proceeded at once to clear their lands for 
 their spring crops. It was then the 10th of 
 May, but they put in about three acres of 
 corn, and cleared off another piece in time to 
 sow some wheat. Provisions were hard to 
 prociu*e, and were obtained by working for 
 their neighbors. In his published reminis- 
 cences, Mx. Cackler says : " In September, my 
 father and brother went back after the family, 
 and left me in care of the shanty until they 
 should return. I was then only twelve years 
 
 old. They left for my use a small loaf of 
 bread, an old rifle that carried an oimce ball 
 and some powder and bullets, that I might 
 kill squirrels for meat. They thought they 
 would be back in three weeks. It was a try- 
 ing time for me. I could get along very well 
 through the day, but when night came, I was 
 lonesome indeed. I would build a big fire 
 and roll myself up in my blankets so that I 
 could not hear anything, and there remain 
 until morning. I managed so about two 
 weeks. My loaf began to get very small, and 
 I had to make my allowance still smaller to 
 make it hold oiit. Tln-ee weeks expired and 
 nobody came. The foxuih passed; my bread 
 was gone and squirrels furnished my only 
 food. The fifth passed, and found me with- 
 out bread or bullets. I managed to kill some 
 squirrels with gravel-stones, but the most of 
 those I shot at escaped without serious injury. 
 I stayed there until the sixth week began to 
 di'ag its slow length along, when one aft,ernoon 
 in the cabin, to avoid a heavy thunder shower, 
 I fell asleep, and awoke to find it growing 
 dark. The th-e had gone out, and everything 
 was so satm-ated with the rain that I could 
 not relight. While tinkering with the fii'e, I 
 was startled by the howl of the wolves in the 
 near vicinity. I seized my gun loaded with 
 stone, and, wrapping my blankets about me, 
 sat down to defend myself against the wolves. 
 I sat there until morning without a visit fi"om 
 the wolves, and then I left the shanty to cai'e 
 for itself, and went over to where Harry 
 O'Brien lived, about three miles distant, and 
 remained until om' family came back, which 
 was not long." Others came from time to 
 time to gladden the heai'ts and share the bm*- 
 densof the little fi-ontier community. It is not 
 possible, at this time, to learn all the particulars 
 of their coming, or even of their names. Among 
 those who came dm'ing the first fifteen years 
 of the colony were David Hudson, 1799; 
 Thaddeus Lacev, 1799; R. H. Blin, 1799; Will- 
 iam McKinley, 1799; David Kellogg, 1799; Jo- 
 seph Darrow, 1799; Jonah Meacham, 1799; 
 Jesse Lindley, 1799; Samuel Bishop, 1800; 
 David Bishop, 1 800 ; Joseph Bishop, 1800; Lu- 
 man Bishop, 1 800 ; George Darrow, 1 800 ; Allen 
 Gaylord, 1800; Joel Gaylord, 1801; Heman 
 Oviatt, 1801; Stephen Thompson, Sr., 1801; 
 
 -r* 
 
^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 421 
 
 Abraham Thompson, 1801; Stephen Thomp- 
 son, Jr., 1801; Dr. Moses Thompson, 1801; 
 John Bridge, 1801; James Newton, 1801; 
 George Pease, 1801; Eben Pease, 1801 ; Will- 
 iam Leach, 1801; George Kilbourne, 1801; 
 Bradford Kellogg, 1801; Amos Lusk, 1801; 
 John Oviatt, 1801 ; Eliada Lindley, 1801 ; Will- 
 iam Boiighton, 1801; Ezra Wyatt, 1801 ; Aaron 
 Norton, 1801; Robert Walker, 1801; John 
 Walker, 1801; James Walker, 1801; Robert 
 Walker, Jr., 1801; George Walker, 1801; 
 Elisha Norton, 1802; George Holcomb, 1802; 
 Nathaniel FaiTand, 1803; Robert O'Brien, 
 1803; John O'Brien, 1803; Charles Miles, 
 1804; Rev. David Bacon, 1804; Henry Post, 
 1804; Zina Post, 1804; Jonathan Williams, 
 1804; Chi-istian Cackler, Sr., 1804; Owen 
 Brown, 1805; Benjamin Whedon, 1805; 
 Marmadxike Deacon, 1805; Daniel Johnson, 
 1809; William Chamberlain, 1809; William 
 Chamberlain, Jr., 1809; Nathaniel Stone, 
 1810; Samuel Hollenbeck, 1810; Gad Hol- 
 lenbeck, 1810; Joseph Kingsbury, 1810; 
 Elisha Ellsworth, 1810; Dr. Jonathan Met- 
 calf, 1812; Augustus Baldwin, 1812; Frede- 
 rick Baldwin, 1812; Dudley Humphrey, 1812 
 Ai-iel Cobb, 1813; Gideon Mills, 1814 
 Chauncey Case, 1814; Harvey Baldwin, 1814 
 Rev. John Seward, 1814. Most of these per- 
 sons came fi'om Litchfield County, Connec- 
 ticut, or Ontario County in the State of New 
 York. The larger proportion were married, 
 and some brought into the country large fami- 
 lies, that interman'ied, so that few of the earli- 
 est families remained unrelated in this way. 
 " David Hudson brought in a family of six 
 children — Samuel, Jxa, William, Timothy. 
 Milo and Abigail. Ii'a Hudson maiTied Hul- 
 dah Oviatt; William mairied Phoebe Hutch- 
 inson; Milo married Hannah Rogers; Abigail 
 maiTied Birdseye Oviatt. Samuel Bishop had 
 a family of five sons and four daughters: 
 Timothy man-ied Rebecca Craig; David mai'- 
 ried Miss Kennedy; Luman man-ied Rachel 
 Gaylord; Reuben died single; Joseph man-ied 
 Miss Hollenbeck; one of the girls married 
 Stephen Perkins; one, Elijah Nobles; one, 
 Samuel Vaile; and one. Gad Hollenbeck. Joel 
 Gaylord brought with him thi'ee sons and foiu- 
 daughters: John, Daniel, Harvey, Sally, Olive 
 and Betsey; Sally Gaylord man-ied William 
 
 Leach; and afterward a John Ford; Olive 
 man-ied George Darrow; Betsey man-ied Will- 
 iam McKinley; and Nancy man-ied William 
 Chamberlain." * 
 
 The little settlement thus dropped in the 
 woods, like a pebble in the ocean, seemed lost 
 in the vast expanse of wilderness that stretched, 
 with interminable proportions, from the front- 
 iers of Western New York along the lakes to 
 the great West. By the treaty 1785 with the 
 savages, the Cuyahoga River was made a pai-t 
 of the dividing line between the territories of 
 the contracting parties. Eight miles to the 
 east of this national boundary, separated from 
 the civilized world by hundreds of miles of 
 wearisome, hazardous joiu-ney on land or sea, 
 were a little handful of resohite men, with their 
 wives and children, while on its western bank 
 clustered the strongholds of the merciless sav- 
 age, whose barbarous warfare had written the 
 history of the Northwest in letters of fire and 
 blood. None felt the seriousness of the situa- 
 tion, and the crushing weight of responsibility 
 which it brought, more keenly than the heroic 
 founder of this colony. He knew the jealous 
 watchfulness with which the natives mai-ked 
 the coming of each accession to the white 
 colony; the sentiment of reckless indifference 
 to the rights of others which possessed that 
 class of hunters and ti-appers which hang about 
 the outskirts of advanced settlements, and, to 
 prevent the contact of these antagonistic ele- 
 ments, and to smooth the natural, inevitable as- 
 perities of the situation, was his constant cai-e 
 from the beginning. He was constantly en- 
 gaged in Indian conferences, entertaining them 
 at his house and giving them presents, and 
 to his upright dealings and judicious manage- 
 ment may be credited the hai-monious relations 
 and commanding influence of the community 
 with the natives. The Seneca, Chippewa and 
 Ottawa tribes had villages in the vicinity of 
 the Hudson colony, and were fi-equently found 
 among the whites on trading or begging expe- 
 ditions. Stigwanish, the chief of the Seneca vil- 
 lage, was on intimate terms with his new neigh- 
 bors, and was a fi-ecjuent and welcome visitor 
 at Mr. Hudson's cabin. He was a large, mus- 
 cular man, standing straight as an an-ow, 
 neai-ly six feet in height, with a stei-n expres- 
 
 *Bemiii;8ceuce8 by Chrijlian Cackler. 
 
 V;' 
 
^1 
 
 422 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 sion of coiintenaiice and a keen black eye. 
 He is represented, by all who knew him here, 
 as well disposed toward his white neighbors, 
 and npright in his dealings, strongly discomi- 
 tenancing anything in his followers which was 
 likely to provoke trouble. His peojile had 
 corn-fields on the river bottoms near where the 
 village of Cnyahoga Falls now stands, which 
 they cultivated for years. On one occasion, 
 having reason to fear an attack from another 
 tribe, he requested his white fi'iends to bnild 
 him a fort near the falls of the river, which 
 they did, though, happily, it was never needed 
 for the pm-pose of defense. Heman Oviatt, 
 with a shrewd eye to business, early estab- 
 lished a trading- point at his cabin, about a mile 
 south of the site of the village. This was a 
 place of great attraction to the Indians, who 
 gathered here in considerable numbers, ex- 
 changing the furs they secured by trapping 
 and hiuiting for trinkets of various kinds, 
 powder, lead and whisky. The latter was in 
 the greatest demand, and a scale of prices, 
 according to Christian Cackler's account, was 
 established, as follows: Coon-skins, a half-pint 
 of whisky; buck-skins, one pint; beai'-skins' 
 fom* quarts. Mrs. Oviatt soon acquired their 
 language' and gained quite an ascendancy 
 over their "untutored minds." Before giving 
 them any considerable amount of whisty, she 
 was in the habit of demanding their guns, 
 tomahawks and knives, which they siUTendered 
 to her until they got sober, as they invariably 
 got " kok kusi." One of these orgies, as de- 
 scribed by Cackler, was as follows: "They 
 were of the Ottawa tribe, and there were about 
 fifteen or eighteen of them. They were pro- 
 vided with a deer-skin suit, like a little boy's 
 suit, all whole, but open before, and sui)plied 
 with openings for legs and arms. When put 
 on, it was tied in fi'ont. It was ornamented 
 aroimd the arms and lews with fringe some 
 three inches three inches in length, to which 
 was attached a vai-iety of animal claws, such 
 as those of the tiu'key, coon, deer, bear, etc. 
 One would put on this suit, and jump, hop, and 
 kick about in a sort of Indian ' Highland 
 fling,' while two others furnished the inspira- 
 tion by patting and humming. The success 
 of the performer seemed to depend upon his 
 ability to get the greatest possible amount of 
 
 clatter out of the claws attached to the fringe. 
 When tired, he would doff the garment, take 
 a diink of the whisky provided, and give place 
 to another Terpsichorean artist. In this way, 
 each one would try his agilitv, and gradually 
 get beastly intoxicated. This they kept up 
 two days. Before the proceedings began, 
 however, they placed all their weapons in the 
 hands of their squaws, who were quiet specta- 
 tors of the scene. At the end of two days, all 
 save two of the squaws who were assigned to 
 the charge of the ])apooses, got di'imk, and 
 exhibited all the worst phases of this degrad- 
 ing revel." It was hardly to be expected that 
 the free use of whisky in this way should 
 always result so harmlessly to the general 
 interests of the community at large. The 
 women and children could never learn to look 
 upon the savages with any degree of equanim- 
 ity, and the natives were not slow to perceiv(^ 
 this. Occasionally, an ill-disposed fellow, 
 inflamed by whisky, would frighten a woman 
 if he found her unprotected in an isolated 
 cabin. On one occasion, a paiiy of Indians 
 came to the cabin of Marmaduke Deacon, situ- 
 ated where his son now resides, and, finding his 
 wife alone with her children, approached her 
 in a threatening manner, making some demand 
 in their own langiiage. Not able to understand 
 their iitterances, she provided them with a gen- 
 erous supply of provisions. They still main- 
 tained their menacing attitude, when she 
 seciu'ed and gave them every cent of money 
 there was in the cabin, and, finding them 
 still unsatisfied, she left her childi'en and pro- 
 ceeded, through the snow, to the cabin of 
 O'Brien, who lived some distance away, for 
 more to satisfy their demands. She reached 
 her destination, but the fright, added to the 
 exposm-e, was too much for her feeble strength, 
 amd she never left alive, dying of qTiick con- 
 sumption in a few weeks. This circumstance 
 aroused the revengeful disposition of a certain 
 class of the whites, who, known as " Indian 
 haters," became Indian slayers whenever occa- 
 sion offered the chance of escaping the penalty 
 of their acts. Jonathan Williams, who came 
 in with Christian Cackler, Sr., in 1804, was 
 one of this class. " George Wilson," a son of 
 Stigwanish, was a quarrelsome fellow when 
 under the influence of liquor, and had several 
 
1^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 423 
 
 sei'ious misvinderstandiugs with the whites. 
 One time, when feeling paiiicnlarly surly, he 
 happened at the cabin of " Old Mother New- 
 ell," on Paines' road, near the town line. She 
 was alone, and, noticing his approach, she 
 took the precaution to hi\x the door. Denied 
 admittance to the cabin, which had but one 
 door, he pnt his gun-baiTel through the open- 
 ing between the logs, and satisfied his ugly 
 disposition by forcing her, with threats, to 
 dance in the middle of the floor till, tired of 
 the sport, he went away. He had scai'cely left 
 before IVIi's. Newell, on the watch for some 
 passer-by, saw Williams coming along the 
 trail with his gim on his shoulder, as usual. 
 She called him, and related the circumstances. 
 Williams waited only to hear the story, and 
 pushed on after the Indian. Williams' char- 
 acter was not unknown to the natives, and, 
 finding him on his trail, Wilson left the road 
 and struck tlu'ough the woods hoping to avoid an 
 encoimter. Williams gained upon him slowly 
 but sm'ely, and, when in vicinity of a piece of 
 "honey-comb swamp," taking advantage of a 
 moment when the Indian was off his guard, he 
 shot and killed him. Drawing his body into this 
 piece of swamp, he thiiist it out of sight, send- 
 ing, also, the Indian's rifle down with him. The 
 mysterious disappearance of Wilson created a 
 great commotion among the Senecas, and great 
 effort was made to discover the whereabouts of 
 his remains and the cause of his final taking- 
 off. The Indians suspected what the whites 
 did not learn imtil years afterward, and Will- 
 iams was obliged ever afterward to be con- 
 stantly on his giTard against surprise. It is 
 said, on another occasion while hunting while 
 there was a light coating of snow on the 
 gromid, he lost for awhile his bearings, and 
 found himself following his own track in a 
 circle. He observed, in coming upon his own 
 trail, the track also of a moccasined foot, and, 
 with a himter's instinct, recognizing his pur- 
 suer, he took to a tree and shot him as he 
 came again following the trail. 
 
 By the treaty of 1805, the Indians were 
 removed from the near neighborhood of the 
 whites, who were rapidly poiunng into this 
 country, but they still continued to come back 
 in squads to their old haiuits, to trade or hiint. 
 In]1806, Stigwanish, with his sons, John Big- 
 
 son, John Amur, his sons-in-law, Nickshaw 
 and Wobmimg, and others of their family, 
 came to their old camps inDeerfield. During 
 their stay, Nickshaw traded his pony with a 
 settler by the name of John Diver. The In- 
 dian felt aggrieved, and complained to some 
 of the leading settlers, and endeavored to trade 
 back with Diver, without success. Nickshaw 
 felt that he had been cheated, and agreed, with 
 Mohawk, to shoot Diver. Until this horse 
 trade, there had been the kindliest relations 
 existing between the parties, and no fears 
 were entertained that the disagreement would 
 cause a ruptiu-e. The young men called at 
 Daniel Diver's cabin soon afterward, and 
 sought to get his brother within their gi-asp 
 by strategem, but failed. A little later in the 
 same evening, Daniel, in going out to placate 
 the Indians, was shot so as to blind him — a 
 wound which did not prove mortal — and fled, 
 supposing he had killed the one with whom 
 they had had the difficulty. A party of set- 
 tlers at once started in pursuit. Their camp, 
 some three miles distant, was found deserted, 
 but, following their trail along the great 
 Indian road from the Ohio River to Sandusky, 
 they crossed the Cuyahoga River, where Kent 
 now stands, and the center road of Hudson, 
 about a mile south of the village, thence across 
 the Cuyahoga again near the site of Peninsula, 
 in Boston Township. The trail entered Hud- 
 son on Lot No. 10, and passed within sixty 
 rods of Cackler's cabin, and the pursuers, imder 
 the lead of Maj. H. Rogers, reached this cabin 
 about 1 o'clock in the morning. It was a 
 clear, cold night in the latter part of Decem- 
 ber of 1800; the moon was shining with pecu- 
 liar brightness upon the earth, lightly covered 
 with snow, giving the pursuers every facility. 
 When they arrived here, however, some of the 
 party were nearly frozen, and a nimiber of 
 them went no further Rogers got Christian 
 Cackler, Sr.,his oldest son and Jonathan Will- 
 iams, to accompany him in continuing the 
 pursuit. " They went to Hudson, got a new 
 I'ecruit, and followed on to near the west part 
 of Richfield. Here the Indians had stopi)ed, 
 built a Are, stacked their arms, tied their 
 ponies, and lain do^vn with their feet to the 
 fire. Most of them had pulled off their moc- 
 casins. When Rogers and his men saw the 
 
424 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 fire, they scattered and surrounded the Indians, 
 some of whom were in a doze, and some 
 asleep. As they were closing up, Nickshaw 
 and Mohawk sprang up and ran oif bare- 
 footed. They closed in on the rest, and, it 
 beginning to be light, Rogers wanted some- 
 body to go after Nickshaw, and George Dar- 
 row, of Hudson, and Jonathan Williams, vol- 
 unteered to go. The Indians' feet began to 
 bleed before they got a mile, when they sat 
 down on a log, tied pieces of blanket on their 
 feet, and then separated. DaiTOw and Will- 
 iams followed one of them, who proved to be 
 Nickshaw, and whom they overtook in about 
 three miles. He looked back, and, seeing 
 them, gave a whoop and increased his speed, 
 and they after him like hounds after a fox. 
 In about a mile they overtook him, and asked 
 him to come back, but he would not. Dar- 
 rows said he thought he would clinch him; 
 but, when he made the attempt, Nickshaw 
 would piTt his hand under his blanket as 
 though he had a knife. Darrow thought he 
 would get a club and knock him down, but 
 Mr. Indian could get a club and use it too. 
 They got out of patience, and Williams fired 
 his gun over Nickshaw's head, to let him know 
 what was coming if he did not yield. This 
 did not make the desired impression, and Will- 
 iams loaded his gun and killed him by a sec- 
 ond shot. They placed him under a log, cov- 
 ered him with brush and old chiuiks, and 
 came back to Hudson."* The whites returned 
 with Bigson and his two sons, who were com- 
 mitted, by the Justice of Deerfield, to the jail 
 at Warren. A squaw belonging to them was 
 allowed to escape, and, it is said, perished in 
 the snow. The killing of Nickshaw, however, 
 it was thoiTght was unwarrantable, and. fearing 
 the consequences of such an act if allowed to 
 pass unnoticed, David Hudson, Heman Oviatt 
 and Owen Brown mounted their horses and 
 brought in the body of the dead Indian. The 
 matter was brought before the proper legal 
 authorities, l^ut the investigation came to a 
 lame concliTsion, and finally ended in a "hoe- 
 down," where whisky was plenty, and a collec- 
 tion of $5 for Williams as a reward for the 
 deed. Bigson was finally set at liberty, and 
 remained near the settlements for years. 
 
 ♦Cackler's Reminiscences. 
 
 The affair occasioned no further trouble, 
 although it occasioned considerable uneasiness 
 amongst the settlers for a time. The Indians 
 either acquiescing in the judgment of the 
 whites, or realizing their inability to success- 
 fully cope with the settlers, made a virtue of 
 necessity and passed it by without notice. 
 
 The year 1806 was a marked one in other 
 respects, to both the whites and Indians. A 
 full eclipse of the sun occun'ed on 17th of 
 June, much to the terror of the untutored sav- 
 age, and gi-eatly to the injury of the crops of 
 the whites. The Indians were greatly fright- 
 ened by the event, and, though it had been in 
 some cases foretold by some of the sqviaws 
 (how they learned of the fact has never been 
 ascertained), it was not believed, and the 
 women were executed as witches. When the 
 event occurred, therefore, they were greatly 
 frightened, and. forming in a circle, and 
 marching around in regular order, each one 
 fired at the evil spirit that was threatening the 
 destruction of the world. Happily for one 
 "brave," he discharged his gun just as the 
 shadow began to move off, and he was created 
 a chief on the spot for his bravery and the 
 great service he had performed for the natives. 
 The whites, though less affected by the phe- 
 nomenon, were hardly less seriously aftected 
 by its effects, if the reminiscences of Mr. 
 Cackler are to be relied upon. He says: 
 " The day of the great eclipse was a beautiful, 
 warm day; we were hoeing corn the second 
 time, with only shirts and pants on, but, after 
 the eclipse was off, the weather was so much 
 colder that we had to put on our vests and coats 
 to work in. There were frosts every month 
 that summer; no corn got ripe, and the next 
 spring we had to send to the Ohio River for 
 seed-corn to plant. The next summer was the 
 hardest time I ever saw. There was no gi-ain 
 in the country. My father and Adam Nigh- 
 man went to Georgetown, on the Ohio River, 
 for flour; they had no money, but took a rifle 
 and pledged it for floiu*, and I guess they 
 never redeemed it." 
 
 A good rifle was a valuable piece of prop- 
 erty to the first settlers. Next to his ax and 
 plow, he depended upon it for support in sub- 
 duing the wild land in which he reared his 
 cabin home. The vast forests abounded with 
 
 ~^FU 
 
9 
 
 Ain^' 
 
HITDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 425 
 
 game, which at first was his principal depend- 
 ence for sustenance, and later his greatest an- 
 noyance and damage. Elk, the common deer, 
 bears, wolves, panthers, with otters, beavers and 
 raccoons infested the country and preyed on the 
 crops and stock of the early community with 
 comparative impunity. Bears came right into 
 the settlement, and, seizing a hog, caiTied it, 
 struggling and squealing, to the woods, and 
 destroyed it before the aroused settlers could 
 prevent. Wolves attacked stock, killing calves 
 and yearlings, and frequently assailed travel- 
 ers, though generally with no serious results. 
 Squirrels, raccoons and blackbirds, in their 
 attack upon the grain-fields, were hardly less 
 troublesome, and all the available children of 
 the community wei'e pressed into the service 
 of protecting the growing crops from their 
 depredations. As the settlement became less 
 dependent upon game for food, the disadvan- 
 tages of this abundance became more appar- 
 ent, and organizations were made, much 
 against the wishes of the professional hunter, 
 to drive it out of the coimtry. The towTiship 
 of Streetsboro, on the east of Hudson, was not 
 settled for years after its neighbors, and 
 offered a secure retreat for the animals that 
 played such havoc upon the stock of the pio- 
 neer settlements. The commimities which suf- 
 fered most from this state of affairs deter- 
 mined, in 1819, to rid themselves of these 
 impleasant neighbors. A committee was ap- 
 pointed, which marked off thirty or forty acres 
 a little south of the center, into which the 
 game was to be driven. The settlers of Hud- 
 son came in on the west, of Franklin on the 
 east, and of Aurora on the north. In d( ascrib- 
 
 ing the hiuit, Cackler, who was an old hunter, 
 says : " When the ring closed up, there was the 
 gi'eatest sight I ever saw. There were over a 
 hundred deer, and a large number of bears 
 and wolves. As they ran around the ring, the 
 guns cracked like a battle. The deer came 
 in great hei'ds, forming a splendid sight with 
 their large antlers, and, as they came toward 
 the ranks, the hunters made wide gaps and let 
 them out, closing in again to keep the bears 
 and wolves. When we thought all dead, a 
 wounded wolf came limping along a few rods 
 from the line, calling out a perfect shower of 
 bullets. A Hudson man, with another of the 
 band, standing near each other, filled at the 
 wolf when he fell dead. Both claimed the 
 scalp, which then was worth |7, not a small 
 sum for that time, and began a struggle for it 
 that ended in a bout of fisticuffs. When 
 finally the Hudson man was conquered, the 
 wolf's scalp was gone. The proceeds of this 
 hunt, when brought together, comprised over 
 sixty deer, seven bears and five wolves. A 
 large number of the wolves escaped, and many 
 of the slaughtered animals were picked up and 
 carried off by those who had not joined in the 
 hunt, but enjoyed the game. The larger game 
 grew rapidly scarce after this. The hunters of 
 Hudson frequently went to the region of San- 
 dusky Bay, the swamps of the Hui'on and 
 Portage Rivers, and seciu'ed furs and plenty 
 of game, but the lawlessness of the people who 
 congregated at these points, and the dangers 
 of lake travel, made it a hazardous rmdertak- 
 ing, that scarcely remunerated the hunter for 
 his risks and hardships. 
 
 ■'v S 
 
 IV 
 
426 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV.* 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP— CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COMMUNITY— ORGANIZATION— PIONEER INDUS- 
 TRIES—VILLAGE OF HUDSON— ITS INCORPORATION AND GROWTH- 
 FOUNDING OF CHURCH AND SCHOOL. 
 
 " A'oTi ignara nali, rnineris mccurrere disro.'^ 
 
 THE early community of Hudson was patri- 
 archal in its characteristics. It originated 
 in the self-sacrificing devotion of its founder; 
 its first steps were directed by his judgment, 
 and in its maturer years it bears his name and 
 the impress of his character. It is difficult to 
 imagine the early prosperity of this settlement 
 without the material and moral support of Mr. 
 Hudson. He is the central figure in all its 
 early history, and remained so until his death. 
 Coming with ample resources for the prosecu- 
 tion of his enterprise, he allowed no desire for 
 private ends to swerve him from his chosen 
 course. He sought to establish a center of 
 civilizing influence ; his was the mission of a 
 public benefactor, and the records of that time 
 bear ample evidence of his faithfulness. The 
 sick and unfortunate found in him a helpful 
 friend ; public enterprises were placed beyond 
 the danger of failure by his eftbrts ; struggling 
 merit never failed for lack of material aid when 
 solicited of him, while his old account books, 
 bearing the names of every member of the set- 
 tlement in those early days, tell many a tale of 
 his devotion to his people. In the building-up 
 of the influence he sought, Mr. Hudson exer- 
 cised his power without the aid of compulsion. 
 He laid no restrictions upon the freedom of 
 thought or action in the sale of his land. The 
 support of church and school was voluntary 
 on the part of each one, but his personal in- 
 fluence — not an unimportant factor in the issue 
 — he put without reserve in favor of these in- 
 stitutions, and in the end he wrought success, 
 where more exacting methods reaped failure. 
 There were two elements here from the first, 
 antagonistic to each other in both politics and 
 religion, but Mr. Hudson, commanding the re- 
 spect of his cotemporaries in years, and the 
 reverence of the young, on the principle of the 
 resolution of forces, though his influence united 
 
 ♦Contributed l.y J. H. Battle. 
 
 them in carrying forward the general principles 
 upon which the settlement was founded. There 
 was in all this, however, no spirit of asceticism. 
 The New England pleasures of the husking- 
 bee and apple-paring were added to the West- 
 ern logging-bees and spinning matches. 
 
 "When toil remitting lent its turn to play, 
 And all the village train, from labor free, 
 • Led up their sports." 
 
 Dancing was a common form of amusement. 
 There were plenty of violins and many a hard 
 day's work in the field and cabin was supple- 
 mented by a night's scarceh' less vigorous ex- 
 ercise in dancing. The first ball in Cleveland 
 was attended from all the surrounding settle- 
 ments, and among the rest Hudson sent her 
 complement. The occasion was the 4th of July, 
 1801, and R. H. Blinn, of Hudson, was one of 
 the '' managers." An old chronicle says : " Not- 
 withstanding the dancers had a rough puncheon 
 floor, and no better beverage to enliven their 
 spirits than whisk}' sweetened with maple sugar, 
 yet it is doubtful if the anniversary of Ameri- 
 can independence was ever celebrated in Cleve- 
 land by a more joyful and harmonious compa- 
 ny than those who danced the scamper-down 
 double-shufile, Western swing, and half-moon 
 fort3--six [eight}'] years ago in the log cabin of 
 ^laj. Carter." The only record we have of the 
 observance of this day in Hudson was on July 
 4, 1800. There were then just forty-two souls 
 in the settlement, the most of whom had come 
 in the preceding month. These all sat down 
 at a table of elm bark, in the woods on what is 
 now a part of the public square, a few rods 
 north of the actual center of the township, 
 and a very little west of the north-and-south 
 road. Their fare may be imagined ; their 
 guests were David Hudson, his wife Anna Hud- 
 son, their children, Samuel, Ira. William N., 
 Milo L., Timothy and Abigail L. Hudson ; 
 Thaddeus Lacey, his wife Rosanna Lacey, their 
 children, Isaac H., Ann and Susan Lacey ; 
 
>^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 427 
 
 David Kellogg, his wife Mrs. Kellogg, their 
 children, Eleanor, Hiram and an infant ; Sam- 
 uel Bishop, his wife, Mrs. Bishop, their chil- 
 dren, Ruth, David, Luman, lleuben, Joseph, 
 Phoebe, and a maiden sister of Mrs. Bishop, 
 Ruth Gajdord ; Elijah Noble, his wife, Anna 
 Noble and child, Ira Noble. Those not having 
 families at that time, or whose families were 
 still in the East, were Joel (laylord, Heman 
 Oviatt. Dr. Moses Thompson, Stephen Perkins, 
 William Leach, Reuben Parker, George Dar- 
 row, Joseph Darrow, Gordon Crandall and John 
 Wood. 
 
 The property of the early community was 
 very evenl}' distributed, and there were none 
 who could be termed wealthy, even by the 
 standard of that da}'. A few would be, per- 
 haps, accurately placed by that New England 
 term of-' fore-handed farmers." The accumula- 
 tions of a well-advanced life-time invested in the 
 cheap lands of the Reserve made a somewhat 
 imposing show, but all were blessed with large 
 families, among whom the parents sooner or 
 later divided their property, so that there was 
 but little difference in the size of their farms. 
 All fared on the same food. The woods fur- 
 nished freely to all an abundance of game, 
 berries, honey and nuts, while none were so 
 poor after a few years' residence that he could 
 not raise his own pork and snppl}' his own 
 table with milk, butter, cheese and flour. The 
 most marked difference perhaps was in the su- 
 perior comfort of some of the dwellings, and 
 the fact that some wore shoes the year round. 
 But even this difference brought with it the 
 compensating burden of responsibility and risk 
 to its possessor. The first, and perhaps the 
 most pretentious house in the vilhige was the 
 hewed-log cabin built by Mr. Hudson, on Bald- 
 win street. This was supplied with glass win- 
 dows, and was in its appointments a fitting 
 residence for the principal man of the town. 
 In 1802, his growing family and his duties of 
 hospitality demanded a larger cabin, and he set 
 about putting it up, choosing a site a few feet 
 east of the first one. This he had completed 
 and had moved a few beds and other things into 
 it, and being in the middle of " moving " the 
 family slept in their new home, the children 
 leaving their clothing in the old one. An arbi- 
 tration had been held in the old house untd 
 quite late at night, and a roaring fire had been 
 maintained on the hearth. A short time after 
 
 closing the business and Mr. Hudson had retired 
 to bed in the new building, he was aroused b}' the 
 flames showing in the chamber of the old cabin. 
 The old " cat-and-clay" chimney had proved rec- 
 reant to its trust, and the chamber loft had been 
 set on fire. Mr. Hudson saved his valuable 
 papers, but everything else was lost, including 
 a large stock of supplies intended to provide 
 for his family and such of the settlers as would 
 need them for a full year, and even his chil- 
 dren's shoes. His loss was estimated at a 
 .f 1,000, and was the more serious from the fact 
 that the nearest market was Pittsburgh, which 
 could onl}' be reached by traversing miles of 
 trackless woods. There were others, like Chris- 
 tian Cackler, Jr., who found consolation in that 
 traditional old lady's philosophy, '' blessed be 
 nothing." On moving from Hudson in 1816, 
 •' our furniture," says he, " proved no incon- 
 venience ; m}' wife had a bed, I had an ax, I 
 added to this by purchase of Zenas Kent three 
 white cups and saucers costing 75 cents, three 
 knives and forks and a wooden pail. The 
 woman who lived with us gave three wooden 
 plates, and a kettle to cook our victuals in. 
 My wife's father also gave us a table which 
 completed our ' set out.' " (In 1870, his prop- 
 erty was estimated at $30,000). Such a distinc- 
 tion was obviously too slender a foundation 
 upon which to build a spirit of caste. Indeed, 
 the whole fabric of societ}- rested upon an aris- 
 tocracy of labor, and none were so high or so 
 low that he did not minister to his necessities 
 with his own hands. The fathers of the com- 
 munity wrought in the fields with their sons, 
 and were not less strong in action than wise 
 in counsel. Their endurance is the marvel of 
 later generations. 
 
 In 1802, Mr. Hudson was called to Goshen 
 on business pertaining to the land which he 
 held in company- with ^Ir. Norton. He started 
 out on horseback and alone, carrying his pro- 
 visions with him. It was in July, and after 
 going some fifty miles he found his horse jaded 
 by the journey and used up l)y the flies which 
 were the scourge of animal life in the new 
 country. He accordingly sold his horse, and 
 slinging his pack upon his shoulder he pro- 
 ceeded on his way on foot. On reaching the 
 Cattaraugus Creek, which was considerably 
 swollen with rains, and finding no one there to 
 aid him. he determined to cross on his own ac- 
 count. It was not far fi'om its mouth and the 
 
 V 
 
428 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 current was dangerously rapid, but taking an 
 old hall-rotten sled that chanced to be near, he 
 launched out for the other shore. Unfortunately 
 he had miscalculated the force of the current 
 and he found himself borne rapidly toward the 
 open lake. To proceed far in this way meant 
 death, and taking advantage of the course of 
 the current he leaped from his raft upon a 
 shifting sandbank which the current was piling 
 up near the bank and after severe effort secured 
 firm ground on the same side of the stream 
 from which he had started, a wet but wiser 
 man. Going some distance up the stream, he 
 forded it in safety, continued his journey to 
 Bloomfield, in New York, where he bought a 
 horse and completed his journey and back to 
 the settlement in safet}'. This was the exploit 
 of a man over forty years of age. 
 
 The matrons were of a not less hardy race, 
 and are no less a marvel to the women of these 
 •'degenerate days." " Carpets, or even painted 
 floors, were not then found even in the houses 
 of comparativel}" well-to-do families, but the 
 floors were kept scoured to a snowy whiteness, 
 and in the best rooms were neatly sanded and 
 then marked into fantastic figures. Crockery, 
 or queensware, as it was then called, was too 
 expensive for the tables of the yeomanry, and 
 the dresser was supplied with pewter platters, 
 which must be kept polished to a silvery white- 
 ness. The thrifty housewife kept her deal ta- 
 bles and benches and unpainted doors washed 
 to immaculate cleanness. The towels, table- 
 linen, bed-linen, and most of the summer 
 clothing of the family were the products of 
 home industry. The mothers and daughters 
 hatcheled the flax, at a small wheel spun the 
 thread, and afterward their hands threw the 
 shuttle that formed the durable fabrics, the re- 
 mains of which are held as heir-looms by the 
 descendants of the old families, and proudly- 
 shown as proofs of the handiwork of hands 
 long since laid to rest. Spinning, knitting and 
 weaving linen, and braiding straw hats and 
 bonnets, were a large part of the regular work 
 of the winter. Bleaching, cutting, making and 
 fashioning these ready for use was spring work. 
 Then came cleansing, picking and carding the 
 wool into bats ready for spinning on the large 
 wheel. The yarn was woven into blankets 
 for bedding. Some was made into checked 
 flannel for aprons and dresses for the women, 
 and died red for the children's dresses. Part 
 
 of the flannel was fulled for clothing for the 
 men and boj's. Then there must be many 
 skeins of yarn of divers shades and colors for 
 the hose and mittens and comforters of all. 
 Knitting occupied the evenings of the grand- 
 mother and daughters in the family of the 
 olden time, and she was considered a poor 
 knitter who could not show a well-shaped sock 
 or a double mitten as the result of a winter 
 evening's work. Summer gloves or mitts were 
 made of linen thread with a hook similar to 
 the modern crochet needle. Nor were these 
 branches of home industry confined to the 
 families of farmers. No woman was held of 
 much account whose hands- laid not hold of the 
 spindle and distaflT, and who looked not well to 
 the ways of her household, or could even be 
 suspected of eating the bread of idleness. 
 The strength of these women Avas equal to 
 their da}^, and their work did not hurry them 
 so that they could not occasionally make and 
 receive visits of half a day with neighbors and 
 friends. They were able to attend two long 
 services in church on the Sabbath, and to 
 stand through the longest prayer that was ever 
 oftered."* There was present in the earl}^ so- 
 ciety not only the plain virtue of helpfulness, 
 but there were some homes that without losing 
 this, foreshadowed the culture which to-day is 
 Hudson's crown of glory. 
 
 The fathers of the colony were not men of 
 learning or of courtly demeanor. With tastes 
 formed by the experiences of New England 
 farm life, and the echoes of that controversial 
 conflict which was characterized more by the 
 power exhibited than b}* the culture of the 
 combatants, their intellectual tastes preferred 
 "sound common sense" to the elegant ac- 
 complishments. But they brought with them 
 an earnest appreciation of and desire for edu- 
 cational advantages, which attracted those 
 like-minded, and early cast over the commu- 
 nity here an air of culture that vvas to be found 
 nowhere else on the Reserve. By the permis- 
 sion of Miss Emily Metcalf, we are permitted to 
 look in upon one of these early homes, which 
 she has sketched with such a " tender grace." 
 Mrs. Metcalf came to Hudson in 1814. "The 
 first ten years of her married life were spent 
 in a house of hewed logs, its four rooms neatly 
 hung with newspapers ; an article only procured 
 
 *Meinoirof Mra. Liioy D- Blown, widow uf Harm >n Hinslale 
 auU Oweu Biown. 
 
 "^ 
 
=^]^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 429 
 
 in sufficient numbers through the generosity 
 of her ministerial friends and her legal friend, 
 Judge Parkmau. Its windows were of glass 
 instead of oiled paper, which ranked the ap- 
 pointments of the house as decidedly superior, 
 nor was it wanting in a certain air of refine- 
 ment, which could not be absent from a house 
 of which she was mistress. The house stood 
 near the woods, a mile from the nearest neigh- 
 bor. Wild animals from the forest often vent- 
 ured near, and Indians frequently- called to 
 light the pipe and beg a mug of cider. Her 
 husband's ride in the practice of medicine was 
 over sevei'al contiguous counties. * * * 
 At such times the wife, left alone with her 
 small children, had no diversion from intense 
 solicitude except in reading ; and, in the scar- 
 city of books and papers of general interest, 
 she resorted to her husband's medical library 
 In the long nights, when anxiety forbade sleep 
 to the defenseless wife and motiier, these med- 
 ical works were read and re-read, until, without 
 aiming at such acquisition, she had gained a 
 very creditable knowledge of medicine, which 
 became of great value to her, both in rearing 
 her own family, and in kindly offices for 
 the sick in other families, when her services 
 were ever esteemed above price." Mrs. Met- 
 calf, before her marriage, had pursued a course 
 of stud}' in the academy at Westfield, Mass. 
 Here her fine mental powers, stimulated by 
 that unquenchable thirst for knowledge which 
 characterized her whole life, ranked her high 
 in every department of study. Especially 
 did the artistic chord in her nature respond re- 
 joicingly to the aesthetic culture of the school, 
 and, after a period of nearly sixty years (1870), 
 she leaves as heirlooms several paintings and 
 pieces of finest ornamental needle-work, exe- 
 cuted by herself at chat time."* 
 
 Dr. Jonathan Metcalf came to Hudson in 
 1812. After a long tour of inspection on 
 horseback, he came to Aurora, and was about 
 to leave for Pittsburgh, when he was met by 
 David Hudson, who persuaded him to visit the 
 Hudson settlement. The place pleased him, 
 and he took up his abode with Mr. Hudson on 
 the 6th of June. Two weeks later, the little 
 community was startled by the intelligence 
 that war had been declared with Great Britain. 
 The militia which had been formed a few years 
 previous were ordered out. A company formed 
 
 * Memoir of Abigail L. Metcalf. 
 
 from Hudson and the several adjoining town- 
 ships, had its headquarters here, and was under 
 the command of Amos Lusk as Captain. A 
 good deal of uneasiness prevailed in this front- 
 ier settlement, although there seemed no 
 necessity for any public measure of safety save 
 to remain constantly on the alert. Late one 
 Saturday evening in August, a messenger from 
 Newburg entered Mr. Hudson's house, bringing 
 the news of Hull's surrender, and the further 
 rumor that the British and Indians in great 
 numbers were making their way down the lake 
 in flatboats. 
 
 The whole communit}- was thrown at once 
 into a fever of excitement. Preparations 
 were made for placing the women and chil- 
 dren in a place of safet}-, and the company- 
 of militia was summoned to their place of 
 rendezvous. On the Sabbath moi'ning follow- 
 ing, Capt. Lusk paraded his compan}' on the 
 green, prepared to act upon the first informa- 
 tion or order, when a messenger from the Com- 
 mittee of Public Safet}- at Cleveland announced 
 that the forces approaching were the paroled 
 troops of Gen. Hull. At this juncture, Capt. 
 Lusk called for a volunteer to carry the news 
 to Warren, to which Dr. Metcalf responded, as 
 he was provided with a good riding horse. 
 •' There was then only a bridle path by marked 
 trees to Warren, and no bridges across the 
 streams, and he was an entire stranger to the 
 country. He left Hudson about 11 o'clock 
 with a letter of introduction from Capt. Lusk 
 to Col. Edwards, of Warren, and rode forty 
 miles on a sultry August da}-, swimming the 
 Mahoning River two or three times, the water 
 coming nearly to the seat of the saddle. He 
 reached Warren about dark, found Col. Ed- 
 wards at the house of Gen. Perkins, delivered 
 his communication, and was invited to stay all 
 night at the house of the former. In the morn- 
 ing he found an Eastern acquaintance who was 
 trading in Warren, who informed him that 
 Col. Cotgrave, who was then encamped with his 
 regiment on the common, under marching 
 orders, had raised a great excitement the pi'e- 
 ceding night. It was alleged that Metcalf was 
 a British officer in disguise, and had brought 
 the message to delay the marching of the regi- 
 ment and gain time for the British. It was 
 intimated, moreoxer, that if lie had not enjoyed 
 the protection of Col. Kdwards, his life would 
 probably have been sacrificed by the excited 
 
 -^ V 
 
430 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 soldiers."* Fortunately, the excitement was 
 allayed by morning, and Mr. Metcalf returned 
 to Hudson in safety. Capt. Lusk's compan}- 
 was ordered a little later to old Portage under 
 Gen. Wadsworth's command, and afterward to 
 Huron and Sandusky, being out some three 
 months, but saw no active service. While in 
 the service. Dr. Metcalf accompanied them as 
 Surgeon in charge. These troops were armed 
 with such weapons as each man owned, and 
 something of their effectiveness may be learned 
 from an incident that occurred at old Portage. 
 A compan}' of some twenty men practicing in 
 firing b}' platoons found only one gun that did 
 not miss fire at the first shot. The peace 
 establishment after the war was entered into 
 with enthusiasm by the Hudson people. A 
 company of '' light infantry " was organized, 
 which was the pride of the colony and the env^- 
 of the regular militia at general musters in 
 Ravenna. 
 
 The political organization of Hudson was very 
 early. The settlement here was, at that time, the 
 largest on the Reserve, and the townships of 
 Stow, Boston, Twinsburg, Aurora and Mantua 
 were attached to it for township purposes. It 
 has been agreed among the original proprietors 
 that the township should be named after its 
 founder, and, in 1802, the Commissioners of 
 Trumbull County, sitting at Warren, the county 
 seat, organized this territory with the name of 
 Hudson. On the 5th of April following, twenty 
 electors gathered at the cabin of David Hud- 
 son, and elected Thaddeus Lacey, Township 
 Clerk ; Heman Oviatt, Ebenezer Sheldon and 
 Abraham Thompson, Trustees ; Elias Harmon 
 and Samuel liishop, Poormasters ; Aaron Nor- 
 ton, John Oviatt and Jotham Atwater, Fence 
 Viewers ; Joel (xaylord and Elias Harmon, x\p- 
 praisers of Houses ; George Kilbourne, Moses 
 Pond and Moses Thompson, Supervisors of 
 Highways ; Ebenezer Lister, Aaron Norton and 
 Rufus Edwards, Constables. Of the election, 
 Mr. Hudson was Chairman, and the voters were 
 D. Hudson, J. Darrow, G. Darrow, Dr. Thomp- 
 son, T. Lacey, William McKinley, A. Norton, 
 H. Oviatt, P]. Sheldon (of Aurora), E. Nobles, 
 S. Bishop, J. Gaylord, A. Thompson, Deacon S. 
 Thompson. Robert Walker (of Stow), Elias 
 Harmon (of Mantua), Jotham Atwater, Moses 
 Pond, Rufus Edwards and George Kilbourne. 
 In J 801, Gov. St. Clair Appointed Mr. Hudson, 
 
 * MSS. of Misb) Emily Metcalf. 
 
 Justice of the l^eace, and his first official act 
 beai's date of March 21, 1801, with the follow- 
 ing entry on his docket : '• Issued a writ of 
 arrest in favor of Thaddeus Lacey against 
 Thomas and Daniel Judd, to balance book ac- 
 counts ; said Lace}' having made oath that, 
 in his opinion, he is in danger of losing the 
 debt due him from said Judds." It is proba- 
 ble, that in his opinion he was mistaken, for 
 there is no further entries upon that subject, or, 
 in fact, in that year. His official services were 
 called into requisition, however, during the lat- 
 ter part of that year, but hardly in a way to 
 call for a docket entry. This was on the occa- 
 sion of the marriage of George Darrow to Miss 
 Olive Gaylord, which he legalized on the 11th 
 of October, 1801. On the 5th of November 
 following, he performed the same functions for 
 Stephen Perkins and Miss Ruth Bishop, all of 
 Hudson. These marriages were before pro- 
 vision had been made to record such events, 
 and they are found noted upon the fly-leaf of 
 an old land record book in the Recorder's 
 office at Warren. In the first case, Mr. Hud- 
 son is said to have been considerably embar- 
 rassed, and was obliged to correct himself re- 
 peatedl}' before he could satisfy himself that 
 he had discharged his duty in the premises. 
 The lady in the case did not exhibit so much 
 trepidation, and showed her housewifely care, 
 by dropping the hand of the groom at a criti- 
 cal point, and proceeding across the room re- 
 moved a "thief" that was "guttering" the 
 candle. On resuming her position, the cere- 
 monies went on. The story is told of her, that 
 a little later, when the first census taker called 
 on her with his usual bundle of interrogations, 
 her only response was, " George and I live 
 here," and with this the enumerator was forced 
 to satisfy himself The year previous, a log 
 schoolhouse had been erected, and this served 
 for 3^ears in the threefold capacity of meeting, 
 town and school house. The early records are 
 in an excellent state of preservation, but they 
 present nothing of any interest to the present 
 generation. There was very little parade made 
 by the governing powers, and, save the record- 
 ing of " ear-marks," and noting the proceedings 
 of each " annual meeting," there was no call 
 for records. The April election was an impor- 
 tant event, however, in the township, and was 
 scrupulously attended by the male -i^ortion of 
 the community. The business was generally 
 
 ^1 
 
1^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 431 
 
 opened with prayer, and the day spent as a 
 holiday. After surveying the whole township 
 into one hundred lots, following the plan of 
 New England villages, the proprietors laid out 
 a public square on the geographical center of 
 the township. This consisted of two acres in a 
 square form, taken equally from the converg- 
 ing corners of Lots Nos. -45, 55, 56 and 46. 
 There was, then, according to the record, " laid 
 out to the proprietors of said town of Hudson, 
 of mechanic lots, each lot containing two and a 
 half acres, being 5.00 square, bounded south 
 on the east and west center line ; west on Lot 
 No. 54 ; north on the remaining part of David 
 Hudson's Lot No. 55 ; east on the public green ; 
 said lots taken off 5.00 wide from the south side 
 of said Hudson's Lot, No. 55. Also seven me- 
 chanic lots laid off from the south side of Lot 
 No. 56 ; bounded west on the public green ; north 
 on the remaining pai't of said Hudson's Lot 
 No. 56 ; east on Lot No. 57 ; south on east and 
 west center line ; each lot containing two and 
 one-half acres, being 5.00 square. Also seven 
 mechanic lots taken from the north side of Lot 
 No. 46 ; bounded west on the public green ; 
 north on the east aud-west center line ; east on 
 Lot No. 47 ; south the remaining part of Lot 
 No. 46 ; the above said mechanic lots divided 
 by posts and lines at 5.00 distance. Thaddeus 
 Lacey, surveyor ; David Hudson, agent for 
 proprietors." The earliest road which opened 
 this settlement to the outside world was that 
 one leading to the boat landing in Boston 
 on the Cuyahoga. This was the only outlet, 
 and was used for several years. In 1802, Ed- 
 ward Payne laid out what is known under the 
 various titles of Aurora road, Payne road or 
 Old State road, from Painesville to Chillicothe, 
 then the capital of the State. This passed 
 tlirough Kirtland, Chester, Bainbridge, Aurora, 
 Hudson, etc. It entered the latter township 
 where the Aurora road does, and followed its 
 course until it struck the village, when it changed 
 its course and followed the center road south, 
 about a mile from the village, where it branched 
 off to the southwest, touching a little later Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls and then on to old Portage. About 
 the same time, or perhaps a little earlier, the 
 road from Cleveland to Canton passed through 
 Hudson on the north-and-south center road, 
 which is yet known as the Cleveland road. It 
 was in this year also (1802) that Mr. Hudson, 
 at the request of Capt. Olmsted, the proprietor 
 
 of Franklin Township, laid out the Ravenna 
 road. The work was set on foot by petition to 
 the Commissioners in February, and it was the 
 last of December before he was ready to build 
 a bridge where the road crossed the Cu3'ahoga 
 River. On the 31st of December, he secured 
 nine volunteers — S. Bishop, E. Lindley, W. Mc- 
 Kinley, A. Thompson, H. Oviatt, M. Parker, G. 
 Darrow, W. Leach and T. Lacey, to accompany 
 him to construct a bridge across the " Narrows," 
 near the scene of Brady's leap. This was no 
 slight undertaking, poorly provided as they 
 were with tools and machinery. A tree stand- 
 ing on the bank near at hand was first felled 
 across the stream, and with this start, aided by 
 three yoke of cattle and some volunteex-s from 
 Ravenna, the structure was completed in two 
 days, and was the first bridge constructed in 
 this vicinity. The men took their provisions with 
 them, camping out until their work was accom- 
 plished, and though each one thought he was 
 contributing his labor, Mr. Hudson secured them 
 pay at 50 cents per day. The general line of this 
 road is still marked by Ravenna street and its ex- 
 tension. Some years afterward, the east-and- 
 west center road was extended to Warren. The 
 town thus early made accessible, took on a 
 vigorous growth. The road thus laid out 
 brought considerable through travel to Hudson, 
 which could not fail to build up its business in- 
 terests. A stage route was established from 
 Cleveland to Pittsburgh as early as 1 825, pass- 
 ing through Hudson. Jabez Gilbert was the 
 earliest of a long line of stage-drivers who are 
 remembered by the older residents of the place. 
 He drove at first a two-horse vehicle, which 
 with the increase of business was exchanged 
 for one drawn by the regular four-in-hand, with 
 frequentl}' a half-dozen '• extras " following it. 
 The great drawback to this enterprise here as 
 elsewhere, was the almost impassible condition 
 of the roads during the inclement seasons. 
 These were often in places too muddy to travel 
 at all, and it was a common occurrence for 
 teams passing on the Aurora road to make a 
 detour on the high ground that is found to the 
 noi'th of it. 
 
 The first mill in this part of the country was 
 at Newburg, which was erected by W. W. Will- 
 iams in 1800. The Hudson colonists brought 
 considerable fiour with them, and were forced 
 occasionally to go to considerable distances to 
 renew the supply before the}' secured a harvest, 
 
 f* 
 
433 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Dr. Thompson going at one time to George- 
 town on the Ohio River, a distance of eighth- 
 miles. The first harvest was derived from tlie 
 nine acres which Mr. Hudson had sown in 1799. 
 The yield was 183 bushels, one-foui'th of which 
 Lace}' got for harvesting and threshing. The 
 balance was apportioned among the pi'oprietors 
 as follows : " Birdseye Norton, one-half and 
 one-half a quarter, 85.25 bushels ; Hudson, one- 
 quarter, 34.10 bushels; Oviatt, Parmele and 
 Baldwin, one-eight, 17.5 bushels." The wheat 
 was all used in the colonj-, however, and what 
 was not lost was ground at the Newburg mill. 
 " To go to mill " was a three days' task ; two 
 consumed on the journey of twenty miles and 
 return, and one in waiting for the grist. The 
 first load of wheat was taken to mill by Samuel 
 Bishop, in February, 1801, under a bargain of 
 receiving one-half for his trouble. He was 
 obliged to set out shortl}- after a rain, and 
 arriving at Tinker's Creek he found the stream 
 considerably swollen bj' the rainfall. He ven- 
 tui-ed to cross, however, but found the current 
 too strong for him, and he got back to shore, 
 losing his entire load of wheat, and barel^' sav- 
 ing his oxen and sled. At another time Dr. 
 Thompson and William Leach undertook the 
 task of going to the same mill in the spring of 
 the year. They had three yoke of oxen and a 
 cart. The river was high and the current 
 strong, but they urged their team across. The 
 lead cattle soon began to swim, then the second 
 yoke, and soon the third yoke and cart. For- 
 tunately the first yoke had b}- this time gained 
 their footing and enabled the others to succes- 
 sivel}- come to the shallower water. But the cart 
 swinging down stream with the current, and 
 not being a seaworthy craft, lost its load of 
 wheat, and barely caiTied the drivers through 
 in safety. The Doctor was not thus brought 
 to the end of his resources. He bought some 
 wheat for which he gave his note, got it ground, 
 and returned with his flour to find the stream 
 lower and fordable. It was not possible for all 
 to go to this expense for flour. Corn was sub- 
 stituted for wheat and smashed in wooden 
 mortars, i. e., a stump with a hole burned in it 
 with a long wooden pestle attached to a spring- 
 pole. More of it was prepared on what was 
 called " blood mills," a tin grater made by 
 punching holes in a piece of old tin, then giv- 
 ing it a curve and nailing it to a piece of board. 
 The community was placed under such disad- 
 
 vantages but a short time. In preparing for 
 the settlement, Mr. Hudson had not forgotten 
 this important feature of frontier life, and in 
 his first bills of articles, mill-stones were prom- 
 inent items. But who put up the first mill in 
 Hudson is as variously claimed as the killing 
 of " Cock Robin." In 1801, Ezra Wyatt and 
 Aaron Norton commenced building mills on 
 Tinker's Creek, in the northeast part of this 
 township. From evidence gathered from the 
 account-books of Mr. Hudson, though not clear, 
 it is made probable that Mr. Wyatt began this 
 undertaking alone, encouraged and assisted by 
 Mr. Hudson. An entry without date is as fol- 
 lows : '' Have been at the expense of furnishing 
 all W3'att's provisions and laborers, and all 
 things necessaiy to build one-half of the mills, 
 and to take my payment in boards one, two, 
 three and four 3ears hence, without intei'est. 
 Also I have engaged to make him a free gift of 
 100 acres of land to encourage him to go on 
 with the mills after the discovery of quicksand." 
 Notwithstanding this liberal subsid}', Mr. W^'att 
 became tired of his undertaking, and Mr. Nor- 
 ton took his place, the former going to Cleve- 
 land. The saw-mill was completed for busi- 
 ness that fall, and the grist-mill so that it would 
 grind, but not bolt, in the spring of 1802, not 
 far from the 18th of April. A distillery was 
 started in connection with the mills soon after- 
 ward, and the whole business run in the name 
 of Hudson & Norton. It stood but a year or 
 two, when the whole establishment was de- 
 stroyed by fire in the latter part of 1803. Nor- 
 ton, in 1806, built mills on Mud Brook in 
 Northampton, and two years later built others 
 in Middlebury. Deacon Thompson built a saw- 
 mill immediatelj- after the destruction of the 
 Norton mill, on the site of the present Holmes 
 mill. This stood until it rotted down, and was 
 then replaced by Augustus Baldwin, and sub- 
 sequently two others were built upon the same 
 site. Joel Gaylord also erected a mill not far 
 from the same time that Deacon Thompson put 
 up his, which was replaced b}- George Leach, 
 who at difi'erent times built two other mills on 
 Breakneck Creek. The coming of Owen Brown 
 in 1805, introduced another industry that was 
 second only to the mills in its usefulness to the 
 new settlement. He was a tanner by trade, 
 and at once set about preparing to ply his trade 
 here. He sank his vats a little west of the vil- 
 lage, and made a good market for such skins 
 
 ^' 
 
HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 433 
 
 as the settlers derived from the game. A few 
 3-ears afterward, he and his son John, known 
 better to fame in Uxter 3'ears through his aggres- 
 sive opposition to the slave-power, started 
 another northwest of the village near where 
 Morris Johnson now lives. Greorge Kilbourne 
 essa^yed the same business about a mile and a 
 half south of the town on the Center road. It was 
 not a very extensive affair ; vats were sunk and 
 a well dug, and some sheds erected, but no 
 great amount of business was done. The well 
 and the signs of the vats still mark the spot. 
 Some time afterward, Asahel Kilbourne started 
 a tannery on the run which passes Sherman 
 Thompson's house, choosing a site just across 
 where the railroad now runs. This was a more 
 vigorous institution, and continued for some 
 years. The most successful business in this 
 line, however, was probably done bj' William 
 Dobbs. He came here from Canton, and, pur- 
 chasing the Brown tannery, extended the trade, 
 and carried it on until the development of the 
 country grew beyond his reach, and the busi- 
 ness passed into the category of lost arts in this 
 community. Another branch of the manufact- 
 uring business, which subserved an excellent 
 purpose in those pioneer times was an asher}*, 
 established, and conducted by Hillis & James, 
 early merchants in Hudson. Here the ashes 
 of the settler's hearth and log-heaps were con- 
 verted into " potash, pearl-ash and black salts," 
 and made to serve him again in its new form. 
 
 The social customs of the time, and the only 
 avenue of foreign trade, made the distilling of 
 liquor an early and profitable business. Oviatt, 
 who commenced trading with Indians as early 
 as 1801, found whisky not onh- a legal tender 
 for whatever he cared to bu}-, but a commodity 
 in ver}' lively demand by the natives. He 
 built a distillery on the stream near Sherman 
 Thompson's residence, but probably not until 
 the Hudson & Norton distiller}' had burned 
 down. This he continued for some 3'eai-s, but 
 the sale of it to the Indians was forbidden b}' 
 the Government, and he finally abandoned it, 
 though it had proved very profitable to him. 
 George Darrow erected another about 1815, 
 where the Eagle Cheese Factory now stands, 
 and manufactured rye and corn whisky for 
 years, selling it at his place of business to such 
 as wanted it. There was an abundant demand 
 for it for 3'ears after the Indians had generallj^ 
 removed. Whisky was found ever\'where in 
 
 the earl}' society, and none were "Puritanic" 
 enough in their sentiments to object to its use. 
 At the stores the customer found it "on tap," to 
 use free of expense ; ever}' social gathering was 
 enlivened by its presence and use ; and even 
 preachers and people drew nearer each other in a 
 social glass. The good judgment of people was 
 not blinded to the evil which was growing up in 
 the shadow of this social custom, and a move- 
 ment to curtail its use was begun by those who 
 had used it freely for years. It began to be re- 
 fused at house-raisings, perhaps, as early as 1820 
 or 1825, to the no small opposition of a consid- 
 erable portion of the community. At one of 
 these temperance raisings, it is said, the two 
 elements of society met, and the opposition re- 
 fused to let the building go up. They held on to 
 the frame-work, until, by the redoubled efforts 
 of the temperance men, who were in a major- 
 ity, they were lifted off the ground and the 
 structure went up. In 1828 or 1830, the barn 
 of Dr. Everett was raised without whisky and 
 without opposition, the opposition staying 
 away entirely An incident is related of Rev. 
 Randolph Stone which illustrates how strongly 
 the habitual use of liquor had become fixed in 
 the social intercourse of the time. Mr. Stone 
 had taken a very pronounced position in favor 
 of temperance, going to the extent of advising 
 that all apple-trees should be destroyed to pre- 
 vent the manufacture of cider. Soon after tak- 
 ing this position, he took some students to 
 board that had come to attend the Western Re- 
 serve College, then just opened, and placed 
 upon the table for their use, some " whisky and 
 fennel," of which, however, he did not partake. 
 This was probably from the force of habit and 
 the desire to avoid the appearance of discourt- 
 esy, but was very soon abandoned. 
 
 The early years of the township did not de- 
 mand a hotel to dispense its hospitality. Each 
 pioneer entertained strangers as often without 
 pecuniary remuneration as with it. But as the 
 town grew in proportion and the through lines 
 of travel wei'e established through the place, 
 there was a demand for an inn. Heman Oviatt 
 first provided such entertainment at his cabin, 
 a mile south of the village, but, about 1813, he 
 preferred to confine his attention to the more 
 lucrative business of trade, and persuaded Mr. 
 Hudson to open his house to the public in this 
 way, and this was perhaps the first regular inn 
 in the village. This was at the house where 
 
 i) rj, 
 
iJ' 
 
 434 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Mrs. Harvey Baldwin now resides. Mrs. Bald- 
 win, when a girl, often presided at the bar, and 
 the fare dispensed in those days may be in- 
 ferred from the fact that on one occasion the 
 whole female force of the family was occupied 
 the whole day in baking '• corn pones" for the 
 consumption of their guests. In 1816 or 
 thereabouts, George Kilbourne oflered " enter- 
 tainment for man and beast ' where Justin 
 Kilbourne now lives ; some years afterward — 
 about 1825 — Augustus Baldwin opened a hotel 
 in the house where Mrs. Buss at present resides, 
 and another was kept b}- George Darrow at the 
 present residence of William Darrow. The 
 "Mansion House," the only survivor of this 
 race of public benefactors, was built in 1830, 
 for Samuel Edgerly. It was afterward put into 
 a lottery by Mr. Hertzell and disposed of, but 
 who the fortunate possessor of the ticket was 
 is not revealed. A long line of hosts have en- 
 tertained the public here, among whose names 
 appear those of Edgerly, Hertzell, Shields, 
 Wadham and Boutou, the present host. In the 
 palmy days of the stage business, the Mansion 
 House was a place of consequence, and at- 
 tracted a large ci'owd of patrons of the stage 
 and idle lookers-on, which of late years has 
 been transferred to the railway' station. 
 
 Business beginnings found their start with 
 Heman Oviatt a mile south of the center of 
 the township. His trade was at first confined 
 chiefly to the Indians, who, so long as they re- 
 mained, were his most valuable customers. 
 When he had accumulated skins enough to make 
 two good-sized bales, he would load them on a 
 horse across a pack-saddle, and take them to 
 Pittsburgh, which was his nearest market. His 
 return load was made up of shawls, blankets, 
 powder, lead and whisk}-. The latter he soon 
 made himself and avoided transportation, and 
 gradually worked into the sale of commodities 
 to the settlers. About 1800, he came to the 
 " Center " and opened up his business, more 
 especially for the patronage of the settlement oc- 
 cupying the front room of the Grosvenor House 
 in later years. He was a keen business man, 
 requiring the last cent in a bargain, but just as 
 ready to pay it when he agreed to do so. A 
 story is told of him which illustrates the for- 
 mer characteristic of his dealings. In the course 
 of some dealing with a member of the settle- 
 ment he had taken a note for .fl.Ol, which was 
 nothing unusual in those days of fractional 
 
 cents and petty dealings. A short time after- 
 ward, the drawer of the note handed Oviatt $1 
 which he accepted with some hesitation, and, 
 after some cogitation, said, '' I suppose you 
 want this indorsed on your note, don't you, 
 John ? " He was alwa3's on the alert for a safe 
 business venture, and, in the fall of 1815, he 
 put in $1,000 into a partnership with Zenas 
 Kent, the latter furnishing $500 more and set- 
 ting up a store in Ravenna, which proved a 
 " paying " business. He was a partner with 
 Alison Kent in Canfield and with Roswell Kent 
 in Middlebury. He retired from business about 
 1825, and is remembered as a close bargainer, 
 strictly honest and successful in business. In 
 1812, the business circle of Hudson received a 
 valuable accession in the Baldwin brothers. 
 Pomeroy Baldwin, after the death of his father, 
 came to Hudson in 1811, to look after the prop- 
 erty the family owned here. He remained but 
 a short time, and returned to his home in 
 Goshen in company with Mr. Hudson. The 
 journey was made in a " pung " sleigh, with 
 conveniently shaped roots as runners. In the 
 following year, Augustus and Frederick came 
 to Hudson, arriving on the 12th of June, bring- 
 ing with them Dudley Humphrej', who had 
 shipped a lot of boots and shoes as a specula- 
 tion. The Baldwins proposed to open up a 
 business in dry goods, and all the goods were 
 shipped from Buffalo, whither the}- had brought 
 them with two teams. Seventeen daj'S were 
 consumed in reaching Buffalo from Goshen. 
 The distance from the former place to Cat- 
 taraugus Creek, thirty-two miles, was accom- 
 plished in a single day, w^hich was con- 
 sidered a remarkable event. Their store was 
 built near the site of C. H. Buss' present store, 
 and, in 1827, the}- put up that building. The 
 character of the early trade may be imagined ; 
 cotton cloth, three-quarters of a yard wide, sold 
 for 50 cents ; 75 cents for the yard-wide cloth. 
 At that rate, it took three days' work to buy a 
 shirt. The Baldwins built Mechanics' Hall 
 about 1830. This was a frame building, placed 
 in the rear of where Buss' store now stands, 
 and, in accordance with the original plan of the 
 founders of the town, was occupied by tiie me- 
 chanics of the place. Here was the shop of the 
 shoe-maker, the tailor and cabinet-maker, " to 
 their majesties," tlie popular sovereigns of Hud- 
 son. This formal arrangement did not last 
 long, and each workman was soon found where 
 
■k* 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 435 
 
 inclination or favoi-able circumstances suggested 
 to him. Before this, the tanners were shoe and 
 harness makers as well, and it was the custom 
 to " cat whip it " throughout the community, 
 {. e., the workman went to each family with his 
 kit of tools, and worked up the leather which 
 each provident citizen provided for the family, 
 shoes and such harness as he needed. Among 
 the early blacksmiths were Treat (who after- 
 ward went to Aurora), Ruggles, Perley Mansur, 
 and Hinsdale who came here in 1814. The 
 Baldwin brothers changed the members of the 
 firm several times, one brother and another re- 
 tiring until they were succeeded by J. H. Ci'aw- 
 ford & Co., who gave wa}' to Hillis & James, 
 whom Mr. Buss followed in occupying the store. 
 Mr. Augustus Baldwin went to Franklin Mills 
 in 1836, to engage in the banking business, and 
 his brother Frederick to farming in Hudson. 
 
 In 1830, A. A. Brewster came from Ravenna 
 and opened a store in a building which has 
 since beeu enlarged and used by Mr. Farvvell as 
 a blacksmith-shop. Soon afterward he moved 
 into a building on the corner of Main and Au- 
 rora sti'eets, where the present brick building 
 was erected. Mr. Brewster first began business 
 here in partnership with Zenas Kent, of Ra- 
 venna, the latter being represented solely by his 
 capital. Mr. Kent came to Hudson in the 
 spring of 1814, and settled on Darrow street. 
 He came, it is said, with his wife, in a one- 
 horse peddling wagon, bringing in some goods. 
 He worked the first summer at the carpenter's 
 trade, and in the winter taught school. In the 
 following fall he went to Ravenna and opened 
 up business with Oviatt, where he amassed con- 
 siderable property, buying out his partner and 
 conducting the business alone for years. In 
 1833, he reciprocated the interest of Oviatt, 
 and induced Mr. Brewster to come to Hudson 
 under a similar arrangement. The latter pur- 
 chased Mr. Kent's interest, and, in 1855, ad- 
 mitted D. D. Beebe as partner, who eventually 
 succeeded to full control and still conducts the 
 business. About the same time with the com- 
 ing of Kent & Brewster came Hamlin & Dawes, 
 which changed later to firm name of Hamlin & 
 Ellsworth, and then to Ellsworth & Buss, and, 
 finally, to John Buss alone. Mr. Buss came to 
 Hudson in 1833, to attend college, but, his health 
 failing, he went South. Returning, he entered 
 the store of Kent & Brewster, and, about 1841, 
 entered into business with Ellsworth in the 
 
 present old bakery building. While here the 
 firm changed to Buss & Bond ; and, in 1845, Mr. 
 Buss bought the store where his son, C. H. 
 Buss, succeeded him in the business, which he 
 still continues. The only attempt at banking 
 in Hudson was by Mr. Brewster, who furnished 
 facilities for collection and discount of commer- 
 cial paper in connection with his dry goods 
 business. He continued it only a few years. 
 
 Up to 1851, Hudson's only means of commu- 
 nication with tlie outside world was such as the 
 dirt roads afforded, and these for a large part of 
 the year were nearly impassable for light ve- 
 hicles, not to mention heav3'-ladened wagons. 
 Yet, in spite of these disadvantages incident to 
 an inland town, the village gradually increased 
 in size and importance, and the projected rail- 
 road from Cleveland to Pittsburgh, which was 
 agitated some time previous to 1851, did much 
 to increase its prosperity. The first charter 
 granted for this I'oad expired by limitation, be- 
 cause it was not used ; but, in 1846, it was re- 
 newed. The people of Hudson took a great 
 interest in this movement, and subscriptions 
 were made to the extent of the people's ability. 
 Judge Sylvester H. Thompson being one of the 
 commissioners appointed ou behalf of the State. 
 In 1850, the road was finished to this place, and 
 the people and the members of the Legislature 
 received the first train in Hudson with great 
 rejoicings in 1850. The business men and citi- 
 zens of all classes became enthusiastic over the 
 future prospects of the village, and an enter- 
 prise was at once put on foot to construct 
 another line of railroad, one that should connect 
 New York with Omaha direct. The plan was 
 to combine a number of separate lines through 
 New York and Pennsylvania to the Ohio line. 
 From this point, it was proposed to build the 
 Clinton Air Line along the line surveyed years 
 before for the Clinton Canal, to Hudson. The 
 plan further proposed an " extension " west 
 from this village to Toledo, and one to Omaha. 
 During this movement, the " Akron Branch " 
 of the Pittsburgh road was completed to Akron, 
 and Hudson seemed right in the direct line of 
 preferment. The Clinton Air Line was par- 
 ticularly a Hudson enterprise, and some $200,- 
 000 were subscribed in stock, and some of the 
 citizens prominent on the Board of Directors. 
 The work was pushed with vigor, and some 
 $18,000 expended on the road-bed in this town- 
 ship. 
 
 i) >y 
 
^- 
 
 436 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY. 
 
 This activity in railroad matters stimu- 
 lated business circles in the little village into a 
 perfect frenzy of speculation. Henry N. Day, 
 who came to Hudson as a Professor in the col- 
 lege, and who had some capital, went into 
 business, and put up the Pentagon at a cost 
 of $18,000, in 1849-50. It was occupied by 
 Sawyer, IngersoU & Co., Mr. Day constituting 
 the " company." This firm launched into the 
 publishing business on the broadest scale. The 
 town was known as an intellectual center, and 
 a paper of considerable influence had been pub- 
 lished here for years, and the firm proposed to 
 build up a large publishing house. All branches 
 of the business were undertaken, and proved 
 successful so long as they confined their atten- 
 tion to jobbing. Ambitious, however, to gain a 
 reputation as publishers, they began to publish 
 on their own account, and soon found their 
 capital locked up in unprofitable books. The 
 firm then changed hands, and D. Marshall & 
 Co. took the business. The change brought 
 no increase of capital to the concern, and it soon 
 changed to the Hudson Book Company, which 
 finally made an assignment. In the west part 
 of the building, J. W. Smith & Co. opened a 
 dry goods store about the same time. Prof 
 Day and Jeremiah Day, of New York City, 
 forming the company-. This firm, possessed by 
 the same spirit of peculation, expanded their 
 operations to the fullest extent, trusting to the 
 realizations of the future to justify their risks. 
 In the meanwhile, large accessions to the popu- 
 lation of the village were attracted, and every 
 house was crowded. Rents and property were 
 high, and the demand was for more houses. 
 At this juncture, a planing mill and lumber 
 company was formed to cater to this demand 
 for more buildings. Smith was the prime mover 
 in this enterprise, and the business was planned 
 on a large scale. A $10,000 stock of lumber 
 was secured, houses were built for everybody 
 on eas}^ terms, and the village bid fair to become 
 a city on the strength of railroad promises. All 
 this business activity exacted a large expendi- 
 ture of mone}^, and far in excess of what the 
 persons engaged in the operations possessed. 
 But they had friends who were easily convinced 
 that the future of Hudson was assured, and 
 readily advanced large sums of money. In ad- 
 dition to this outla}', the promoters of these 
 projects were also deeply interested in the suc- 
 cess of the Clinton Air Line Railroad, and were 
 
 subscribers to a large amount, as were most of 
 the mone^'ed citizens. 
 
 All this activity and expenditure was crowd- 
 ed into the space of some five or six years, 
 and, before that time had elapsed, the suspicion 
 began to be entertained that neither the pres- 
 ent nor future of the village warranted this 
 extravagant outlay of capital. Public faith in 
 the final completion of the new railroad began 
 to waver, the terrible strain upon the authors 
 of this artificial business activity began to be 
 observed, and the whole commercial fabric of 
 the village, like a great wall tottering to its 
 fall, seemed about to end in a crash. The end 
 soon came, as it might have been foreseen, 
 perhaps, from the beginning. There was one 
 assignment after another, until not only was all 
 of the overestimated business wiped out, but 
 all business received such a shock as to re- 
 quire several j'ears to rally. The lumber com- 
 pany suspended with $35,000 liabilities, and 
 J. W. Smith, who was active in all these enter- 
 prises, retired with $100,000 liabilities and 
 .$80,000 nominal assets. On the heels of all 
 this came the realization of the worst fore- 
 bodings of the Clinton Railroad, involving not 
 onl}' a loss of all subscriptions, but a liability 
 for an equal amount in addition. Fortunately', 
 by the misplacement of some records, the Hud- 
 son subscribers escaped from the full penalty 
 of their enterprise in this matter, or the whole 
 business communit}' would have been finan- 
 cially annihilated. Belonging to this period, 
 though in no way connected with the movers 
 in other enterprises, were J. C. Sn3-der and I. 
 C. Dowd, produce merchants, who, attracted 
 by the business activity of the village, linked 
 their fortunes with the place. The latter built 
 a warehouse near the depot, and both did con- 
 siderable business, but, in the end, they only 
 served to swell the general disaster. Tall- 
 madge & Jaynes' grist-mill, built on the 
 Brandywine Creek, where the Cleveland & 
 Pittsburgh road crosses the stream, was built 
 in 1852 or 1853. Though suffering in the 
 general depression, it did not cease altogether. 
 It changed into the hands of a Mr. Wilson, and 
 after an existence of some ten or twelve years 
 was destroyed b}- fire. 
 
 Singularly enough, in this prostration of 
 business are found the beginning of some of 
 the largest enterprises of the present. After a 
 tedious litigation, the planing-mill property fell 
 
-^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 437 
 
 into the hands of Osborne, Dunham & Co., 
 who fitted it up and manufactured the Buckeye 
 Land Roller, and, later, with Benjamin Wheel- 
 ock, manufactured chairs. The business did 
 not prove successful, and the property came 
 into the hands of Mr. Wheelock alone, and, in 
 the fall of 1873, Jacob Miner put in two run 
 of stone, and fitted it up for milling purposes, 
 taking a share in the whole property. Thi'ough 
 Wheelock's business embarrassment, the prop- 
 erty once more fell into the hands of the law 
 and the Sheriff. It has finally become the 
 property of A. R. Hurd. It has since been 
 improved by the addition of two new run of 
 stone and otherwise improved to the capacity 
 of fifty barrels per day. It is rented by the 
 Hudson Mill Company, and does a large cus- 
 tom business, filling an}' spare time on a light 
 jobbing trade which they have fallen into 
 rather than built up. 
 
 On the ruins of the old Pentagon enterprises 
 is now established the flourishing factory busi- 
 ness of S. Straight & Son. The senior partner 
 of this firm was, at the time of the Hudson 
 depression, a member of the firm of Straight, 
 Demming & Co., commission merchants of 
 Cincinnati, and had done considerable business 
 with the produce dealers here. One of the 
 the Hudson dealers becoming involved, secured 
 the Cincinnati firm on a part of this property 
 here, which, in the end, was bid in for the Cin- 
 cinnati house. Subsequently, when Mr. Straight 
 retired from active relations with the Cin- 
 cinnati business, this propert}- attracted his 
 attention to Hudson, and was influential in 
 determining his locating here. He began the 
 cheese-factor}' business in Hudson in 1867, by 
 the purchase of two and the building of one 
 factory. He secured the Pentagon building 
 and fitted it up with shelving for 15,000 
 cheeses for his business, at a cost of about 
 17,000 ; later, admitted his son to the business, 
 and has enlarged the business from year to 
 3'ear, until now the firm owns and operates 
 thirteen cheese-factories, making the milk of 
 over 6,000 cows into 50,000 cheeses annually. 
 In 1878, the firm erected a large brick curing- 
 house in the rear of the Pentagon, 60x60 feet, 
 with two stories and a basement, at a cost of 
 $10,000. This building is supplied with an 
 engine and boilers, steam elevators, three large 
 exhaust fans, and shelving for 12,000 cheeses. 
 The basement has storage capacity for 250,000 
 
 pounds of butter. An ice-house, with a stor- 
 age capacit}' of 450 tons of ice, is provided 
 with a series of pipes through which the air is 
 drawn by the exhaust fans for the cooling of 
 the curing-house. In addition to the large 
 amount of cheese manufactured by this firm, 
 they bu}' immense quantities in Illinois and 
 elsewhere, shipping it East or storing it in 
 their buildings in Hudson until the market will 
 warrant its shipment. The firm employs sixty- 
 five hands, and buys all the milk of the farm- 
 ers, each factory working up the milk of 
 from two hundred and fifty to six hundred 
 cows. The capital invested in fixtures is esti- 
 mated at .$100,000, and the business of the 
 firm is rated among the few large Western 
 firms in this business. 
 
 Closely connected, historically, with these 
 enterprises is the Hudson Butter-Tub and 
 Cheese-Box Company. In 1870, Mr. E. A. 
 Osborne, in connection with E. Cro}', built a 
 small building and started this business. These 
 gentlemen had had a connection with the enter- 
 prises that preceded the grist-mill and with- 
 drew to supply the demand which the cheese 
 trade of S. Straight & Son began to make. The 
 business rapidly developed, and seven or eight 
 hands wei'e constantly employed in the manu- 
 facture of cheese-boxes. In 1873, the ma- 
 chinery for the manufacture of butter-tubs was 
 added, and the business prosecuted together 
 until 1878, when the partnership was dissolved. 
 The firm is now E. A. Osboi'ue & Sons. They 
 turn out in the busy season about one hundred 
 tubs and two hundred cheese-boxes per day. 
 The timber is taken in the log and worked up 
 with little waste, the parts unsuitable for the 
 boxes and tubs are worked up into staves, 
 heading and spokes. The business demands 
 an outlay of about $500 per month. Their 
 boxes are sold principally to S. Straight & Son; 
 the tubs are sold in Chicago, Cleveland and 
 Pittsburgh. Closely adjoining is the saw-mill 
 and cheese-box works of E. Croy, who estab- 
 lished an independent business on the dissolu- 
 tion of partnership in 1878. This covers the 
 manufacturing business of the village at pres- 
 ent, save the Oviatt Manufacturing Company. 
 This company was organized in Januar}', 1878, 
 for the purpose of manufacturing the " Oviatt 
 Grain-Thresher," the - Common-Sense Wagon,' 
 and the " Independent Runner Sled." The 
 patents are held by S. E. Oviatt and it was 
 
 V3J 
 
 1^ 
 
438 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 proposed to build up a manufacturing enter- 
 prise of considerable extent. The company 
 was composed of eight members, principally 
 mechanics, on the co-operative plan. In a 
 short time, four of the company bought the 
 stock of the other four, but a lack of the nec- 
 essary capital has greatly restricted the enter- 
 prise thus far. Their products have met with 
 abundant encouragement wherever placed upon 
 the market, and the expectation is that at no 
 distant day the necessary capital will be se- 
 cured and the business developed. 
 
 Meanwhile, the "internal improvements" of 
 the de facto village had kept pace with its busi- 
 ness enterprise. The earliest frame building 
 was the barn of Mr. Hudson, built almost en- 
 tirely of black-walnut lumber, sawed at Norton's 
 mill. This was followed, in 1806, b}' the house 
 which Mrs. Baldwin now owns and occupies as 
 a residence. These pioneer frame buildings 
 were soon followed b}' others as there was 
 neither a dearth of timber nor scarcit}' of mills. 
 In 1826, the college was established and the 
 buildings, gradually put up, improving the ap- 
 pearance of the town and stimulating its citi- 
 zens to build more comely structures for dwell- 
 ings. The soil rendered the supply of brick in- 
 exhaustible and cheap. The brick needed for 
 the spacious hearths and great chimneys of Mr. 
 Hudson's house, were made by a Mr. Lj'on on 
 the site now occupied b}" the Atheneum, the 
 mud being tramped into condition for molding 
 by two yoke of oxen. The first brick dwelling 
 was put up by Julian Lusk. on the site occu- 
 pied b}' Farrar's Block, and ante-dated the 
 college buildings some three years, being 
 erected in 1823. An early brick house and 
 perhaps the second one was that erected by 
 Asahel Kilbourne and now occupied by Sher- 
 man P. Thompson, situated south of the village. 
 The college brought a large accession to the 
 population of the village, and the village began 
 to expand. It was the design of the founder's 
 that the town should gather about the geo- 
 graphical center of the township, but there 
 were several obstacles in the wa}'. The ground 
 toward the south was low and undesirable for 
 dwellings and the owners of these lands were 
 rather reluctant to sell in small parcels, and 
 the village early began to extend northward 
 and eastward to the higher ground. The loca- 
 tion of the college buildings, secured by a liber- 
 al donation of land by Mr. Hudson, had some- 
 
 thing to do with the direction in which the ex- 
 pansion of the village took. With all this 
 growth, however, such improvements as munic- 
 ipal government grants to a community, was 
 left to the voluntary action of the people with- 
 out any very great results, and it was not long 
 before the citizens began to agitate the desira- 
 bility of securing a village de jure, with its ad- 
 vantages in this respect. On April 1, 1837, 
 an act of the Legislature was signed, incorpor- 
 ating the village to be known thereafter as " The 
 town of Hudson." The boundaries, inclosing 
 an area one mile by one and a half miles, are 
 described in the act as follows : " Beginning at 
 the southwest corner of the herein contemplated 
 corporation limits, at a stake and stones 160 
 poles west of the north-and-south center road, 
 leading through said township of Hudson, and 
 240 poles south from the east-and-west center 
 road, running through said township ; thence 
 from said southwest corner, running north in 
 a line parallel with said north-and-south center 
 road 480 poles to a stake and stones ; thence 
 east in a line parallel with said east-and-west 
 center road, 320 poles ; thence south in a line 
 parallel with the west line, 480 poles to a stake 
 and stones ; thence in a line parallel with the 
 north line, 320 poles to the place of beginning." 
 These limits have not been found to interfere 
 with the metropolitan aspirations of the village, 
 and no extensions have been made. A few un- 
 impoi-tant additions liave been platted on the 
 Aurora road, and somewhat built up, but there 
 has been no positive demand on the part of the 
 owners of this property to be admitted to a 
 share in tlie municipal taxes. 
 
 The first election under the act of incorpora- 
 tion was held on the first Tuesday in Ma^-, 1837, 
 resnlting in the choice of Heman Oviatt as 
 Ma3'or ; Lyman Hall, Recorder ; Frederick 
 Baldwin. John B. Clarke, Jesse Dickenson, 
 Harve}' Baldwin, Daniel C. (lay lord, Trustees. 
 The largest number of votes received by any 
 candidate was nineteen. The records of the 
 Board of Trustees, or, in more modern phrase, 
 of the Council, are devoid of any particular in- 
 terest in the earl^' 3ears. One or two entries, 
 however, afford a striking illustration of the 
 vanit}' of all aspirations for wealth, when they 
 appear on the tax lists. The real estate valua- 
 tion of the village, in 1837, was placed at $93,- 
 967.58, and personal property at $19,474 ; in 
 1844, the next entry of the tax list, the real es- 
 
HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 439 
 
 tate had shrunk to $30,427, and the personal 
 propert}' to $12,177. The attention of the 
 Council during the first eight or ten 3'ears was 
 to sidewalks and streets. The latter had been 
 pretty well provided for by land owners before 
 the incorporation of the village, and needed but 
 little attention in the way of originating high- 
 ways. The sidewalks was a subject of more 
 portentous proportions, and gave the average 
 Councihnan no end of worrj'. It was first oi*- 
 dained that the sidewalks should by constructed 
 of " brick, four feet wide, and curbed with heavy 
 timbers," plank was afterward allowed as a sub- 
 stitute for the brick, and represents the char- 
 acter of nine-tenths of the sidewalks in the 
 town at this day. Stock was " ordered off the 
 streets," and a " pound " provided for, at the 
 first meeting of the Council, but it was a year 
 before the structure was ready to serve the 
 public, and cost about $20 In 1852, the 
 first step was taken to improve the pub- 
 lic square. As early as 1812, the tendency 
 of tlie village to extend northward was ob- 
 served, and the Township Trustees took steps 
 to modif}- the " public green " to suit the new or- 
 of things. B}' exchanging portions of the 
 original green, that portion of the green above 
 Church street was secured. Nothing wa.s done 
 to improve it save to clear it of the timber un- 
 til 1852. The Council then provided a fence, 
 seventy-four trees and had it plowed, sowed to 
 oats and ''seeded down." In 1854, the sub- 
 ject of proper protection from fire came before 
 the Council. Neither the township nor village 
 had suffered severely' from fire, if the terrible 
 fatalit}^ in connection with the destruction of 
 the cabin of Nathaniel Stone, in 1845, is ex- 
 cepted. 3Ir. Stone was one of the early settlers, 
 and was then occupying a cabin where his son, 
 Roswell Stone, lives, when it caught fire. A 
 son and daughter occupied the upper cham- 
 bers, and, when they were aroused, the stair- 
 way was in flames, having ignited from the 
 fire-place. The chambers were filled with 
 smoke, but the son, making his way to a win- 
 dow, escaped ; but the daughter, some twentj' - 
 two 3'ears of age, stifled with smoke and be- 
 wildered with fright, was too late, and perished 
 in the flames. Undoubtedly this tragedy made 
 a lasting impression, and the growing village 
 rendered the danger of fires more threatening. 
 A small, rotar}' engine was bought at Middle- 
 bury, but before it was paid for the au- 
 
 thorities desired to " back out." The sel- 
 ler would not accede to their wishes in 
 this matter, and the coffee-mill afl'air was 
 brought to scare the fire fiend awa}'. Res- 
 ervoirs were constructed from time to time, 
 but the inadequacy of the engine became more 
 and more apparent, and, in 1858, the Council 
 bought the present machine of Button & 
 Blake. The pumps are 9 and 7 inches, 17^- 
 foot brakes, 16 -foot suction hose, and wheels of 
 28 and 35 inches diameter. The cost was $725. 
 The company organized to work the first engine 
 took this in charge, and of this organization 
 the fire department consists to-day. There is 
 a chief of the department, and the company' 
 is allowed a small remuneration for attending 
 the fires that occur. The engine-house is found 
 in the rear of the Congregational Church, to 
 to which it belongs, but is given rent-free to 
 the village so long as it is used as an engine- 
 house and the machine kept there. In 1879, 
 the Council re-organized this department, pro- 
 posing to pay each member $1 each six months, 
 provided that the number should not exceed 
 forty. In 1870, the corporation rose to the 
 dignity of a " lock-up." This was situated 
 upon a corner of the school-lot, and was a 
 wooden affair, with some iron supports about 
 the windows, erected at a cost of some $125. 
 It fell into disrepute with certain citizens, and 
 was set on fire, it is supposed, b}' some one who 
 had had a more intimate acquaintance with it 
 than he enjoyed, and totally destroyed. An effort 
 was put forth by the Council this 3'ear to im- 
 prove the streets by the use of cinders from 
 the rolling mills at Cleveland. This material 
 was bought at the mills at $1.50 per car. 
 and freighted here by rail at $6 per car load. 
 A part of Main and College streets were treated 
 with a layer of this material, covered with 
 gravel from the vicinity of the village, with 
 ver}^ beneficial results. Some portions of other 
 streets have been treated in like manner, with 
 some variation in the price of materials. In 
 1877, lamps for lighting the streets were pro- 
 vided, on condition that certain parties who 
 were chiefly benefited would supply the material 
 for the lighting and care for the lights. A year 
 later the Council took the matter into their 
 own hands ; and from a start of thirteen lamps, 
 in 1877. the number has doubled at the present. 
 In 1878, the subject of a town hall began to be 
 agitated. The Council had met in various 
 
 1 
 
 ^ 
 
440 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 rooms and offices about town, and after the 
 lock-up was burned, there was no provision for 
 municipal criminals, and the demand seemed 
 to be pressing. The Township Trustees took 
 the proposition in hand, and, after submit- 
 ting the matter to a vote, made preparation 
 for the erection of such a building. The Coun- 
 cil then proposed to join with them and provide 
 for the need of the corporation in the same 
 structure. Such an agreement was made, the 
 Council buying the site of the old Congrega- 
 tional Church for $800, and leasing it to the 
 Township Trustees for ninety-nine j'ears, in 
 consideration of the latter providing a coun- 
 cil-room and cells, with an upper hall open 
 alike to both parties. The contract for the 
 building was let in 1878 to Thomas Crisp and 
 Charles W. Stewart, for $4,575, and finally a 
 further allowance of $215 for extra work was 
 paid. The building is a two-story brick, with 
 a large hall on the second floor, neatly seated, 
 and two rooms below for the use of Trustees 
 and Council with two cells in the rear for coi*- 
 poration culprits. The first meeting of the 
 Council in their new quarters was on Novem- 
 ber 11, 1879. The Council took action in May 
 of this year to support a public reading-room 
 and librar}'. This project had been set on foot 
 by private enterprise, but was likely to fail, 
 and the Council stepped in and has maintained 
 it since. There is no library in connection, 
 although tiie original plan contemplated such 
 an addition. Another department of the mu- 
 nicipal government is the cemetery. 
 
 The original cemetery purchased by the 
 Township Trustees was situated on the Brandy- 
 wine Creek, southwest of the village. The 
 first death in the settlement was that of Ira 
 Nobles, a child eight j^ears old, who died Aug. 
 23. 1801, and, it is supposed, was the first 
 burial here. It was used as a burial-place 
 until 1808, when, on the occasion of the death 
 of Mrs. Owen Brown, it was found too wet, and 
 Mr. Hudson effected an exchange for the 
 ground on College street. Here Mrs. Brown, 
 with a babe resting upon her arm, was the first 
 occupant. This continued to be used until 
 1855, when Markellie laid out one in the north- 
 west part of the village. At his death in 
 1869, he willed the ground to the corporation, 
 the gift being accepted in the spring of that 
 3^ear. Since then it has been cared for by a 
 regular appropriation. It has been enlarged 
 
 since then, systematically laid out, and is the 
 only place for burial in the corporation. Burials 
 have been forbidden in the old burial ground 
 on College street, and efforts have been made 
 to remove the remains from that place, but it 
 has been resisted hitherto. There are a num- 
 ber of cemeteries about the township, some 
 private and others for neighborhood purposes. 
 Of the latter, an acre contributed by Mr. 
 O'Brien in the southwest part of the township 
 and Maple Grove Cemetery, on Darrow street, 
 are the more important. 
 
 Hudson village, of the present, is pleasantly 
 situated, of some seventeen hundred inhabitants, 
 noted for its neat dwellings, its general air of cul- 
 ture, and the seat of the Western Reserve College. 
 The business portion, situated principally on 
 Main street and about the public green, con- 
 sists of four general stores, four saloons, three 
 hardware stores, three meat markets, five black- 
 smith-shops, three harness-shops, two groceries, 
 two barber-shops, two drug stores, two wagon- 
 shops, two livery stables, a bakery, millinery 
 store, undertaker's establishment, boot and 
 shoe store, merchant tailor store, jeweler's shop, 
 and one hotel. Of the public buildings, there 
 are three church buildings, the town hall and 
 the Adelphi Hall, or l^etter known as Farrars 
 Block. This is composed of two large store- 
 rooms below, with offices on the second story, 
 and a fine large hall which occupies the whole 
 of the upper stor}'. The hall has a seating- 
 capacity of 900. is provided with commodious 
 dressing rooms, a spacious stage and fine 
 scenery. Such a hall, accessible to an apprecia- 
 tive community, attracts some of the finest 
 entertainments, and Hudson is favored far 
 beyond the average village of its size. This 
 block was erectedin 1866 by C. W. Farrar and 
 Dr. A. E. Berbower. 
 
 Hudson Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, 
 No. 510, finds a home here. Its lodge, room 
 is in the upper part of the old bakery building. 
 The lodge was organized November 25, 1874, and 
 worked under a dispensation until a charter 
 was issued under date of October 18, 1876. The 
 first officers were Lewis Lemoin, W. M.; James 
 K. Frost, S. W. ; S. E. Judd, J. W. The charter 
 members were J. K. Frost, S. E. Judd, C. H. 
 Buss, and twenty-one others. They have a 
 fine rented hall pleasantly furnished. There 
 was an early lodge established hero, of wliich 
 many of the prominent citizens — D. Hudson, 
 
 vT 
 
 (S ^ 
 
JOHN BUCHTE L 
 
HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 441 
 
 Harvey Baldwin and others — were members. 
 During the excitement succeeding the abduc- 
 tion of Morgan, the lodge was abandoned, and 
 an opposition sprung up to this fraternity that 
 lasted for years. 
 
 In a settlement founded upon the principles 
 upon which Hudson was established, it would 
 be natural to find the church organization 
 among the earliest institutions of the place. 
 The difficulties in the way of such an organi- 
 zation should not, however, be underrated. 
 Ministers were few, and could not have been 
 adequately supported by the scattered com- 
 munities then planted in the wilderness, if 
 there had, been more. Providentially the de- 
 mands of the time and place were met by the 
 representative of the Connecticut Missionary 
 Societ}', Rev. Joseph Badger, whom Congrega- 
 tionalists delight to call the " Apostle of the 
 Reserve." From his printed diaiy, the first 
 inception of the Hudson Congregational Church 
 is learned as follows : He had come from 
 Cleveland to Newburg. "In coming from 
 Cleveland to this place, I fell in company with 
 a man from Hudson, who wanted to know if I 
 was going there to form a church. I replied 
 that if I found suitable characters, I should. 
 ' Well,' said he, ' if 3^ou admit old Deacon 
 Thompson,' and some others he named, ' it shall 
 not stand ; I will break it down. I will have 
 an Episcopal Church.' I observed to him, 
 '■ You must undertake a dangerous work to 
 break down the church of Christ ; I advise 
 you not to meddle with such an undertaking.' 
 I went on to Hudson, preached on the Sabbath, 
 and on Wednesday organized the church in 
 that place, in which Deacon Thompson, Esquire 
 Hudson and others were united." This was on 
 September 4, 1802, the original members being 
 Stephen Thompson and Mary, his wife ; David 
 Hudson ; Abraham Thompson and Susanna, 
 his wife ; Stephen Thompson, Jr., and Abigail, 
 his wife ; George Kilbourne and Almira, his 
 wife ; Heman Oviatt and Eunice, his wife ; 
 Amos Lusk and Hannah Lindley. These were 
 all members of the Congregational Church, at 
 Goshen, Conn., save the last two, who were 
 members of the same denomination at Bloom- 
 field, N. Y. 
 
 The church thus established depended up- 
 on Mr. Badger and other missionaries for what 
 preaching they had. Services were held in the 
 log schoolhouse that was erected in 1801, and 
 
 which served for all public gatherings relating 
 to church or State. The absence of a minister 
 did not prevent public worship and it is re- 
 lated witli pride that not a single Sabbath since 
 the latter part of June, 1800, has passed with- 
 out public religious services of some character. 
 The Rev. David Bacon, who had gone in be- 
 half of the Connecticut Missionary Society as 
 a missionary to the Indians in 1801, was re- 
 called to New Connecticut in 1804. "In the 
 month of August he left the isle of Mackinaw, 
 with his wife and two children, the 3'oungest 
 less than six weeks old, and, after a weai-y and 
 dangerous voyage, some part of which was 
 performed in an open canoe, they arrived safe 
 on the soil of the Western Reserve. About 
 the 1st of October they were at Hudson, 
 where they found a temporary home."* The 
 church proposed then to hire him one-half of 
 his time, provided the society would retain 
 him in their employ for the balance. This ar- 
 rangement was effected — the first time that the 
 Gospel was administered in any township oth- 
 erwise than by occasional visits of itinerant 
 missionaries — and continued until 1807, when 
 he moved to Tallmadge. On the 19th of 
 April, 1811, it was voted unanimously by the 
 church that " Benjamin Whedon be appointed 
 a committee for us, and in our behalf to pro- 
 cure a minister of the Gospel to dispense the 
 Word and ordinances in this place, and the said 
 Mr. Whedon is hereby requested and author- 
 ized to make such negotiations and arrange- 
 ments on the subject as he shall judge prudent 
 and proper." The result of this action on the 
 part of the church was a vote, February- 27, 
 1815. to call the Rev. William Hanford. The 
 call was issued under date of June 10, 1815, 
 and brought an affirmative response under 
 date of August 10, 1815, followed by the in- 
 stallation of Mr. Hanford by the Grand River 
 Presbyter}', on the 17th of August, 1815, the 
 church having come under the care of the 
 Presbytery shortly before this occasion. 
 
 It would be interesting to note here that 
 "Plan of Union" which eventually agitated 
 church circles throughout the Reserve, and 
 found in Hudson its main support and exponent. 
 Eventually the church became divided upon this 
 subject, and, in 1826, the article prescribing the 
 form of its prudential committee was erased 
 from its regulations. In 1830, a movement 
 
 *A(l<ir('SS of Rev. Lvonanl Bacon. 
 
 I® 
 
 r 
 
^- 
 
 442 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 was inaugurated to sever the connection of the 
 church with the Presbytery, and, five years 
 later, the Presbyter}- granted a release. Since 
 that time, it has been what it was originally, a 
 Congregational Church. The organization still 
 retains a large Presbyterian element, which, in 
 connection with the majority, works harmo- 
 niously to the end of all church effort. The 
 internal growth of the church has been regular 
 and uninterrupted. Up to the pastorate of 
 Rev. William Hanford twent3'-seven members 
 had been admitted, principally by Revs. Joseph 
 Badger and Abraham Scott, both missionaries 
 of the Connecticut Society. Daring Mr. Han- 
 ford's pastorate, from 1815 to 1831, 133 were 
 added ; in the pastorate of Rev. Amri Nichols, 
 from July to December, 1832, nine were added ; 
 by Rev. Giles Doolittle, supply, 1832-4(1 fifty- 
 two were admitted ; by Rev. Josiah Town, July 
 to October, 1840, eight were admitted ; Rev. 
 Mason Grosvenor, during his pastorate, 1840- 
 43, admitted fifty-six ; Rev. William Hanford, 
 in October, 1843, admitted two ; Rev. John C. 
 Hart, in his pastorate, 1844-52, admitted 122 ; 
 Rev. N. Barrett, 1853-58, admitted ninet}-- 
 seven ; Rev. G. Darling, 1858-74, admitted 
 196 ; Rev. E. W. Root, 1874-76, admitted 
 twenty-six ; Rev. J. Towle, 1876, admitted 
 two ; and Rev. T. Y. Gardner, 1876, — ; the 
 present pastor has admitted forty-one up to 
 October 6, 1878. There are now about 200 
 members. 
 
 The outward improvement of the church be- 
 gan in 1819. On the 26th of June, 1817, at a 
 " town meeting " held in the " Center School- 
 house," it was voted that "there shall he a 
 place selected for the purpose of building a 
 house of public worship, according to a sub- 
 scription paper now in circulation, provided 
 the difl!'erent denominations do not unite in 
 building a house together. Voted, that the 
 house shall stand on the west side of the green, 
 the southeast corner to stand where tliere is 
 now a stake stuck in the ground, and to extend 
 thence north from said stake, and as far back 
 as it shall be necessary to build said house. 
 Voted, that Joel Gaylord, Daniel H. Johnson 
 and Owen Brown shall be a committee for the 
 purpose of adopting some method upon which 
 to unite in building a meeting house for differ- 
 ent denominations of Christians." At this time 
 there was a great deal of denominational differ- 
 ence among the members of the community. 
 
 A church building resulted from this action, 
 and was erected upon the site chosen, but the 
 bond of union in this project trenched too 
 much upon the orthodox notions of such men 
 as Mr. Hudson, Owen Brown, Benjamin Whe- 
 don and others, and they decided to build for 
 themselves. Timbers for the frame work were 
 brought upon the ground, but they laid upon 
 the ground near the schoolhouse for nearly two 
 years while the people wrangled over the proper 
 site. In March, 1818, the Congregational so- 
 ciet}', having decided to build a place of wor- 
 ship on their own account, selected the site now 
 occupied by the town hall. The building com- 
 mittee consisted of Benjamin Whedon, Moses 
 Thomp.son and Heman Oviatt, with Augustus 
 Baldwin as Treasurer. Owen Brown was the 
 contractor, and was two years in completing 
 the building, which cost upward of $5,000. It 
 was dedicated on March 1, 1820, and. in the 
 old New England style, was for several years 
 without the means of warming it during the 
 cold season.* In 1865, this building was aban- 
 doned for church purposes, and served, under 
 the name of Thompson's Hall, for public gath- 
 erings until 1878, when it gave place to the 
 town hall. The present brick edifice on Aurora 
 street was projected in 1863, and completed 
 some two years later, at an expense of $10,000, 
 in addition to the cost of lot and furniture. 
 
 The Union Church building, the result of the 
 effort above mentioned, was used in common 
 by the Universalists, Methodists, and any oth- 
 ers that desired to have a hearing. Among 
 others remembered as preaching here, are John 
 Campbell and his son Alexander. The Meth- 
 odists finally built a place of worship on Aurora 
 street, and the '' Free Church " was after awhile 
 sold and used for a blacksmith-shop. 
 
 The Methodist Episcopal Church was organ- 
 ized in 1828, with Daniel Gaylord, Moses 
 Draper, Perley Mansur and their wives as earl}- 
 membei-s, with others. In 1846, their building 
 which stands on Aurora street was erected, Mr. 
 F. W. Bunnell being the contractor. What the 
 contract price was is unknown, but the con- 
 tractor received $1,600 in addition to contribu- 
 tions of labor, etc., on the part of subscribers. 
 
 * Eliziir Wright relates an incident of his early going to 
 church which illustrates the difficulties attending the early wor- 
 ship here. Ho says: "I remember taking my brother-in-law 
 Hanford'sold gray liorse, and taking my wife upon the horse behind 
 me. She'was not used to this way of riding, and when the horse 
 besan to flounder in the mnd of the bottoms near the green, she 
 became alarmed, and alighting iu the mud, lost one of her shoes." 
 
i^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP 
 
 443 
 
 The first pastors in the new house were Rev. 
 D. Prosser and Rev. Pinney. The church has 
 suffered severely by removals and death, and 
 gradually dwindled in numbers, until there is 
 now no regular service held in this church 
 building on the Sabbath. The last entry upon 
 the chui'ch records is as follows : "I, Thomas 
 Hickling, came to Hudson from Massillon, in 
 the boundar}' of the Pittsburgh Conference, on 
 April 4. 1873, to reside and do business, and 
 found the society in a very indifferent condition, 
 without an}' regular means of grace, and, being 
 an ordained local preacher, volunteered my 
 services and found them appreciated."' There 
 were then twenty-seven members. 
 
 Early in the year 1840. a few residents of 
 Hudson Township, desiring a place "where the 
 worship of God could be conducted according 
 to the primitive usages," proposed the organiza- 
 tion of an Episcopal Church. Henry O'Brien 
 and Frederick Brown were the leaders in this 
 movement, and finally' invited T. B. Fairchild, 
 of Cuyahoga Falls, to come to Hudson to 
 preach. The call thus extended was accepted, 
 and Mr. Fairchild held the first services in this 
 j-ear in the Congregational meeting-house. 
 The second service was held in the room over 
 Kent & Brewster's store, and continued there 
 until late in the fall of 1840, when, by the con- 
 sent of the authorities of the Methodist 
 Church, their services were held there. Dur- 
 ing the following spring, Mr. Fairchild, with 
 Rev. George S. Davis, of Franklin, conducted 
 services here alternatelj' every two weeks. 
 During the summer, each of the clergy of the 
 Northwest Convocation arranged to give two 
 Sunda3's to Hudson. The services were then 
 transferred to the " brick academy," and, with 
 a view of forming, a regular parish, the follow- 
 ing document was circulated for signatures : 
 "We, whose names are here affixed, deeply 
 impressed with the importance of the Christian 
 religion, and wishing to promote its holj' influ- 
 ence in the hearts of ourselves, our families 
 and our neighbors, do hereb}' associate ourselves 
 under the name, style and title of the Parish 
 of Christ Church, Hudson, Count}- of Summit, 
 and State of Ohio. And b}' so doing, do 
 adopt the constitution and canons of the Prot- 
 estant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of 
 Ohio, in communion with the Protestant Epis- 
 copal Church of the United States of Amer- 
 ica." Thirty-seven names were secured to this 
 
 paper, among which were those of Henry 
 O'Brien, A. A. Brewster. Frederick Brown, 
 Arthur Sadler, David O'Brien, Dr. Israel Town 
 and others, nearly all of whom were heads of 
 ftimilies. July 11, 1842, an organization was 
 effected and sei'vices were regularly held in the 
 old brick academy until it was sold, when 
 services were again held over Kent & Brew- 
 ster's store. At a meeting of the Vestry on 
 Januar}' 6, 184G, discussed the necessity of 
 a church building ; Rev. A. Phelps, the Rector, 
 offered s^lOO of his salaiy toward the object, 
 and a building committee, consisting of A. A. 
 Brewster, David O'Brien and Joshua Hertzell, 
 was finally appointed. A lot on the public 
 square was secured, plans were drawn by S. C. 
 Porter, and the corner-stone laid b}' Rt. Rev. 
 C. P. Mcllvaine, D. D., Bishop of the Diocese 
 of Ohio, in April, 1846. It was completed in 
 five months, and the opening services conduct- 
 ed on the 25th of September, 1846, b}- Bishop 
 Mcllvaine. The church was free from debt ; 
 provided with an organ through the exertions 
 of the ladies of the church and the liberality 
 of Mr. Brewster, and a bell as the gift of D. 
 H. Arnold, of New York. In 1847, Mr. Phelps 
 resigned his pastoral charge of the church to 
 engage in the church school, which had been in 
 contemplation some time, pi-eaching one-half 
 the time until August 1, 1848, when Rev. T. B. 
 Fairchild was again invited, and accepted. He 
 continued with the church until 1856, when he 
 again resigned, and removed from town. The 
 pulpit was temporarily supplied by Rev. L. L. 
 Holder until June 1, 1859, when Mr. Fairchild 
 was a third time invited to preach here. He 
 accepted, and continued until 1870. when he 
 resigned to accept a call to St. John's Church 
 in Kewanee, 111. The succeeding Rectors have 
 been Rev. Robert A. McElhennev, 1871-72; 
 Rev. Albert B. Putnam, 1873-74, and Rev. S. 
 W. Garrett, October 4, 1874, and the present 
 incumbent. In 1849, the town clock was pre- 
 sented to the society b}' Mr. Brewster ; in 
 1875. a new vestry-room was added, at a cost 
 of $350 ; in the winter of 1 876. a cabinet organ 
 was purchased for the Sabbath school at a cost 
 of $100 ; and in May, 1878, a new organ was 
 purchased for the church at a cost of S700. 
 There are al)out one hundred members at 
 present. 
 
 The St. Mary's Catholic Church of Hudson 
 dates to about the year 1858, when the present 
 
444 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 small place of worship was built. Before this 
 date, the Catholics of this section were visited 
 monthl}' by pastors resident in Cleveland. The 
 first priest to locate in Hudson was Rev. P. H. 
 Brown, who remained five years ministering 
 to the wants of the few scattered and poor peo- 
 ple he found professing liis faith. Mr. Brown 
 died in Cleveland in 1879. He was succeeded 
 by J. Hannon, who held charge for nine years, 
 when he moved to Youngstown. Rev. A. Pag- 
 anini succeeded, him but remained only a yeai*. 
 He is at present located at Eagle Harbor, Mich. 
 In July, 1877, the present Pastor, Rev. P. H. 
 O'Mara, took charge of this church. Improve- 
 ments have been added under each succeeding 
 Pastor, and to-day the little church building, 
 though not a very imposing structure, is neat 
 and comfortable. Cuyahoga Falls and Penin- 
 sula are also attended b}' the Pastor at Hud- 
 son. The members of St. Mary's Church are 
 generall}' farmers, some of them among the 
 most substantial in the county. The church 
 has recently purchased thi-ee acres of land in 
 the corporation for cemetery purposes. 
 
 The common school preceded the church in 
 Hudson one 3'ear. This project needed no out- 
 side assistance, and was established in 1801. 
 The work of the founders was eminently 
 characterized by thoroughness, and Mr. Hud- 
 son is found, on his visit to Connecticut, pur- 
 chasing a library for public use, fashioned upon 
 the old custom of the East. He expended $100, 
 not an inconsiderable sum in that time, and on 
 his return sold shares in his lif)rary among the 
 settlers in Hudson, Aurora and Mantua. This 
 library has long since passed away, but its nat- 
 ural successor still occupies its place in the 
 communit}' in a public library for the Union 
 School, which was established in 1871. The 
 first school building was a rude log structure, 
 located on the east side of Main street, on the 
 public green, a little below Mr. Buss' store. A 
 second was built a little south of this, and sub- 
 sequently a frame building was erected on the 
 other side of the street but in the near vicinit}'. 
 The first school was taught by George Pease 
 and the second by Miss Patty Fields. The third 
 was taught b}^ Miss Amy Cannon, of Aurora, 
 in the southeast quarter, near John Oviatt's 
 residence. Among the early teachers ai'e re- 
 membered Titus Wetmore, Martha Filer and 
 Benjamin Whedon, the latter teaching in 1807. 
 Schoolliouses were erected in various parts of 
 
 the township, as the convenience of the grow- 
 ing population demanded, until, in 1825, the 
 Township Trustees divided the township into five 
 school districts, the first at the center, second 
 in the northwest, third in the southwest, fourth 
 in the southeast, and the fifth in the northeast. 
 In 1827, another district was added, in 1830 
 one more, and, in 1838, District No. 1 was di- 
 vided and others erected, making a total of nine 
 districts in the township. In 1855, the two cor- 
 poration districts were united, under the law of 
 1845, and the joint district set off as an inde- 
 pendent one. The schools were graded, Misses 
 Sabin and Birge being the first teachers under 
 the new dispensation. In 1857, another school 
 building was erected at the end of the old brick 
 house then in use in tlie southern portion of the 
 corporation, and a third teacher added. Mat- 
 ters worked harmonioush' in this way until 
 18G3, when the north corporation district with- 
 drew from the union arrangement. The State 
 School Commissioner decided against the val- 
 idity of this action and the two districts re- 
 united. The school facilities did prove sat- 
 isfactor}' to a large part of the citizens, and an 
 agitation for a high school began to be made. 
 In 18G5, therefore, a lot. No. 13, was bought of 
 Mr. Porter, on which to erect a suitable struct- 
 ure for school purposes. In 1867, $5,000 was 
 voted for a schoolhouse, but, on receiving plans 
 and bids, it was found insuflScient for the pur- 
 pose, and $1,500 more was asked for and granted 
 by the people in 1868. The contract was let to 
 G. W. Church, for $6,225, and completed and 
 accepted b}' the Board of Education on the 18th 
 of November, 1868. The proceeds of the school- 
 houses and the sale of part of the lot, supplied 
 the board with additional funds for furnish- 
 ing the schoolrooms. In 1871, the new build- 
 ing was found to be too small for the accom- 
 modation of the district. The Seminary build- 
 ing, on Baldwin street, was secured for a part 
 of the scholars, and is still used, though the 
 board is seriously considering the question of 
 building a new house. The question in regard 
 to the removal of the Western Reserve College 
 has suggested the feasibility of securing one of 
 the college buildings in case of their becoming 
 vacant, has caused a dela}' in taking measures 
 to secure a more suitable buildinii'.* 
 
 *Amoiifr tlie stiuleiits of ninlsoirs comiiioii sclinols mimv I'e 
 ni'iitioiH'il Rev. T.oonani Biiron aii'l Jiiliii Btiiwn, bolli ol wli'Hn 
 have giiinccj a iiatioiiui ifpiitation. 
 
 

 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 445 
 
 The intellectual activity occasioned by the 
 presence of a college in the village has given 
 rise to repeated attempts to furnish a school 
 for that class of youth for which the college 
 made no provision. The history of these 
 efforts, and especiall}' that which sought to es- 
 tablish a school for 3'oung ladies in Hudson is 
 nearly co-extensive with that of the college. 
 In 1827, Mrs. Nutting, wife of tutor, afterward 
 Prof Nutting, opened a school for 3'oung ladies, 
 Mrs. Raymond, sister of Rev. Mr. Hanford, 
 opening the parlor of her residence on what is 
 now Aurora street, for the schoolroom. This 
 was the pioneer effort in the cause of female 
 education in Hudson. Prof Nutting gave in- 
 struction in the higher branches of English 
 study, and Mrs. Nutting in the common 
 branches, embi'oidery, painting in water colors, 
 etc. Her pupils were from the families of Rev. 
 Messrs. Pitkin and Coe, Dr. Thompson, Esquire 
 Brown, Capt. Ellswoi'th and others. There 
 was also considerable patronage from neigh- 
 boring towns. This school was continued with 
 varying success for several 3'ears, and was 
 finally superseded by a select school, opened in 
 the building just south of Farrar's Block, by a 
 Miss Eggleston, from New York. 
 
 About 1832, a small school building was 
 erected by subscription on land which was 
 owned by Rev. Mr. Doolittle, Capt. Oviatt and 
 Judge Humphrey. In 1833, Miss Upham, 
 sister-in-law of Rev. Mr. Doolittle, commenced 
 a school for 3'oung ladies in this building. This 
 school numbered thirt}- or more pupils, and 
 was liberally patronized from abroad. 
 
 In 1834, H. H. Gross came from Connecti- 
 cut and opened a school on Aurora street, which 
 was well patronized and encouraged him to 
 erect in front of his schoolhouse a brick build- 
 ing which has become generally known as the 
 " Brick Academy." This was a two-stor^' 
 building with a basement, and was erected in 
 1835 at an expense of $3,000. The basement 
 was designed for a primary school, the first 
 story for a bo3's' school, and the second story 
 for a 3'Oung ladies' department. This building 
 was subsequently purchased b}^ a joint-stock 
 company of the citizens of Hudson, and was 
 furnished rent free to the teachers who depended 
 on the receipts from tuition for their salaries. 
 This institution was styled the Hudson Acade- 
 my. The first teacher in the female depart- 
 ment was Miss Smith, who afterward married 
 
 Lyman Hall, Esq., of Ravenna. In 1840, Miss 
 Eunice Towne was employed in this depart- 
 ment, and taught fors ome time with great 
 acceptance. Her successor was Miss Re 
 becca H. Dana, now Mrs. Atwater, of New 
 Haven. 
 
 In the spring of 1843, Miss Mary Strong be- 
 came Principal of the school, and brought to 
 its management such distinguished abilit}- that 
 the school which at first numbered not more 
 than twenty pupils increased in interest and 
 patronage until it often numbered sixty or more 
 pupils. In 1845, Miss Strong erected a two-story 
 frame building on the west side of Main street. 
 In the following year, she opened the spring 
 term of her school in the new edifice and chris- 
 tened it Hudson Female Seminar}^, the old 
 " Brick Academy " in the meantime falling 
 into the hands of the corporation school board. 
 The seminar}^ remained under Miss Strong's 
 superintendence until the spring of 1854, when 
 her health failed, and the school was suspended. 
 During the continuance of this school there were 
 three female seminaries in Hudson ; the " Hud- 
 son Young Ladies Seminar}-,"' b}- Mr. Grosve- 
 uor, and the " Seminary for Ladies." by !Mr. 
 Phelps, in addition to Miss Strong's school. 
 These, save the latter, were boarding and day 
 schools, and, for a time, received a liberal pat- 
 ronage from the towns on the Reserve. 
 
 The " Hudson Young Ladies' Seminar^' " was 
 opened in 1843 by- Rev. ^lason Grosvenor, in a 
 building on the east side of the public square. 
 Mr. Grosvenor gave instruction in Latin and 
 mathematics, and his sister, Miss Lucy Grosve- 
 nor, presided in the schoolroom and gave 
 instruction in the common branches of study, 
 drawing, painting, etc. In 1845, Miss Grosve- 
 nor married, and the school was discontinued 
 until the autumn of 1846, when Mr. and Mrs. 
 Skinner, from Massachusetts, re-opened it. The 
 next spring Miss Charlotte Lee took charge of 
 the academic department, and Mr. and Mrs. 
 Messer of the boarding-house. The school 
 continued until about 1852. The third of these 
 seminaries was opened under the auspices of 
 the Episcopal Church, in 1840. by Rev. Mr. 
 Phelps. The building occupied as a school- 
 room, is now occupied as a blacksmith-shop liy 
 Mr. Farwell, on Aurora street, the boarding- 
 house maintained in connection with the school 
 now being used by Mr. Farwell as his residence. 
 Miss Dever was Principal of the academic de- 
 
Jkl 
 
 44G 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 partment until 1851, when the school was dis- 
 continued. 
 
 In 1853, Mr. J. W. Smith prepared a suite of 
 rooms in the third story of the Pentagon for 
 school purposes, furnished them with improved 
 furniture ordered from Boston, visited the 
 seminar}' at South Hadley, Mass., and se- 
 cured the services of Miss Elizabeth Burt, as 
 Principal, and became personally responsible 
 for the expenses of the school. This seminary 
 was well sustained for about two years, when 
 the general business failure in 1855 closed the 
 school. In the fall of this year, an association 
 of gentlemen, citizens of Hudson, was formed, 
 who purchased the school furniture, rented and 
 repaired the " Hudson Female Seminary '' l)uild- 
 ing. and sent to Mount Holyoke Female Semi- 
 nary for a teacher. In response to this appli- 
 cation, a Miss Everett came on and assumed 
 the direction of the school. This lady lacked 
 that '^ suarifer in m.udo,'' which is conducive of 
 the highest success, and, at the expiration of 
 the academic 3"ear, the association found itself 
 in debt, and the school greatly reduced in num- 
 
 bers. Then came a time chiefly remarkable 
 for the short tenure of office, on the part of the 
 teachers. Not less than five had charge of the 
 school in four years, and, though most of them 
 were competent and efficient teachers, such was 
 the depressed condition of things in Hudson 
 that the school made poor returns for the labor 
 expended upon it. 
 
 In 1860, Miss Emily Metcalf assumed the 
 charge, and a few years later purchased the 
 building, and moved it to its present site on 
 Baldwin street. The course of stud}- was en- 
 larged, and the school, for the greater part of 
 thirteen years, received a flattering patronage. 
 The advance of the high school system, the 
 general opening of colleges to women, were 
 causes that began to make an unfavorable 
 effect upon the seminary in Hudson, and in 
 1873, it was again suspended. After the lapse 
 of an academic 3'ear, it was again opened by 
 Rev. B. W. Hosford. whose daughters con- 
 ducted it for one year, when it finally suspended. 
 The building is now used b}' the Board of Edu- 
 cation of the independent district of Hudson.* 
 
 C H A P T E R X \.\ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP — THH WKSTHllN RRSERVE COLLEGE— ITS LOCATION AT HUDSON — EARLY 
 
 SUBJECTS OF AGITATION — DIFFERENT ADMINISTRATIONS — PREPARATORY 
 
 SCHOOL — LIBRARY, APPARATUS, ET(\ — THE REMOVAL. 
 
 IN 1801, when there could not have been 
 1,500 inhabitants on the Beserve, a petition 
 to the Territorial Legislature by Rev. Joseph 
 Badger, the onl}- minister on the Reserve, ex- 
 cept one, and the onl}' one from Connecticut, 
 praying for a charter that steps might even thus 
 earl}' be taken to found a college. The petition 
 was not granted, but the petitioners bided their 
 time. 
 
 Ohio was admitted to the Union as a State in 
 February, 1803. The first Legislature convened 
 on the 1st day of March. On the IGth of 
 April, an act was passed incorporating the 
 " Erie Literary Society." The preamble of the 
 act declares that : " Whereas, it has been rep- 
 resented to this assembly b}' certain persons 
 associated under the name of the Erie Literai'y 
 Society, that a number of proprietors of land 
 
 tCorapik'd by J. H. Battle, from a historv hy President Carroll 
 Cutler. 
 
 within the county of Trumbull are desirous to 
 appropriate a part thereof to the support of a 
 seminary of learning within said county, and 
 that the intent of such donations cannot be 
 carried into effect without the interference of 
 the Legislature, b}' incorpoi'ating a Board of 
 Trust for the reception and management of any 
 property, real or personal, that may be given 
 for said purpose and for the establishment and 
 direction of such seminary, as soon as funds 
 sufficient shall be collected — Be it enacted, etc." 
 The first name in the list of corporators is 
 David Hudson, and the last Joseph Badger. 
 Trumbull County at that time embraced the 
 whole Reserve, and the population was prob- 
 ably less than three thousand. The intention 
 of these Trustees was to establish an academy 
 
 *Tl)o matter pertaining to the seminaries of Hudson has been 
 compiled chiefly from a sketch prepared in 1868 by Miss Emily 
 Metcalf. 
 
 ;^ 
 
iL 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 447 
 
 or college, with President, professors, instruct- 
 ors, library and apparatus, and the act gave 
 them full powers to hold property, erect build- 
 ings, have a common seal, fill their own vacan- 
 cies, and do all those things usually done b}' 
 such corporations. 
 
 The small and scattered population, wholly 
 occupied in clearing the land, making roads and 
 gaining a livelihood, could evidently do but lit- 
 tle for the endowment or patronage of such an 
 institution as yet. But they showed their wis- 
 dom and proved themselves true sons of Con- 
 necticut, b}' thus early taking steps to establish 
 the higher institutions of education. Common 
 schools were of course established in all the 
 scattered settlements, as fast as the numbers 
 of the population would allow. Social libraries 
 were early founded in man}- places. The Erie 
 Literary Society received some gifts of land, b}' 
 way of endowment. With the avails of these 
 lands an academy building was erected in 1805, 
 at Burton, and in that or the following year, 
 the school was opened — the first of its kind in 
 Northern Ohio. This school was maintained 
 more or less continuously until 1810, when the 
 building was bui'ned, as was supposed, by an 
 incendiary. In July, 180(i, Mr. William Law, 
 of Connecticut, a large land owner on the Re- 
 serve, donated to the society 1,130 acres of 
 land, to revert, however, to his heirs, if the 
 college should ever be removed from Burton. 
 
 It had become obvious that the sparse popu- 
 lation could not support an academical school 
 continuously. After the loss of the building, 
 therefore, the Trustees were slow to move for a 
 new one. The war of 1812, came on speedily, 
 and produced as serious an effect on the pros- 
 perity of the Reserve as on that of any other 
 part of the countr}-. The educational move- 
 ment was retarded with all other good causes. 
 After the war, in 1817, the Trustees determined 
 to erect another building, and open the school 
 so soon as a suitable instructor could be found. 
 The}' resolved " that the Principal should be a 
 graduate of some American College." In May, 
 1 820, the school was opened under the instruc- 
 tion of Mr. David L. Coe, a graduate of Williams 
 College, and continued in operation under its 
 charter until 1884. 
 
 It is probable that the chief movers in the 
 Erie Literary Societ}' were the land- owners, with 
 an eye to speculation ; but their movement was 
 earnestl}^ seconded by the clergy. In February, 
 
 1817, the Presbytery of Grand River, which 
 embraced nearl}' all the Presbyterian and Con- 
 gregational ministers and churches of the Re- 
 serve, formed itself into a society " for the edu- 
 cation of indigent, pious young men for the 
 ministry, within the limits of the Presbyter}'." 
 They say that, " considering the destitute situ- 
 ation of many churches and congregations 
 among ourselves, as to the means of religious 
 instruction and edification, and the great and 
 increasing call for ministerial labors in many 
 parts of our land and the world at large ; con- 
 sidering that at the present day there is a call 
 for special efforts accoixling as God has pros- 
 pered His people, to raise up men to go forth' 
 into the extensive fields which are now becom- 
 ing white to harvest ; and. considering the im- 
 portance of some general plan of operation, 
 whereby many indifferent places may be enabled 
 to act in concert, and bring their small scattered 
 sums into a common stock, that they may be 
 expended to the best advantage ; the Grand 
 River Presbytery think it important to form a 
 general society " for the purpose. 
 
 They adopted a constitution, elected Trustees 
 and a Treasurer, and endeavored to stir up the 
 people to form auxiliary societies. The next 
 year, they published au address to the " friends 
 of science and religion," urging them to enter 
 into this work. Young men were already com- 
 ing forward to avail themselves of the aid thus 
 proffered. These beneficiaries pursued their 
 studies privately with some one of the ministers, 
 more commonly with Dr. Giles H. Cowles, of 
 Austenburg ; ReA^ John Seward, of Aurora ; 
 Rev. Caleb Pitkin, of Charleston, or Rev. Harvey 
 Coe, of Vernon. After the school at Burton 
 was re-opened, they studied there. 
 
 In 1818, the Presbytery of Portage was 
 erected, and also formed itself into an education 
 society in the same manner. These societies 
 held their annual meetings, and took annual 
 collections. The urgent need for more minis- 
 ters to supply the destitute chui'ches, and do 
 missionary work, led these two Presbyteries, 
 in 1822, to appoint committees to confer together 
 for the purpose of devising '■ ways and means 
 for establishing on the Connecticut Western 
 Reserve, a Literary and Theological Institution." 
 The committee of Grand River Presbytery were 
 Rev. Giles H. Cowles, Rev. Harvey Coe and 
 George Swift ; that of Portage Presbytery were 
 Rev. John Seward, Rev. Joseph Treat and 
 
 j) y 
 
448 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Elizur Wright. These committees met at War- 
 ren on the 16th of April, 1822." The afternoon 
 of the day preceding was, b}- recommendation 
 of the Presbyteries, observed as a concert of 
 prayer by the clmrches, that the blessing of 
 God might attend the deliberations of the com- 
 mittees, and lead to a happy result. " On the 
 13th of April, the two Presbyteries held a joint 
 meeting at Warren," to hear and consider the 
 reports of their committees. The report, which 
 was adopted, recommends the Presbyteries to 
 establish a theological institution, on the foun- 
 dation of the Erie Literary Societ}', located at 
 Burton, (jeauga County, provided the Trustees 
 accede to the following conditions, to wit : 
 
 1. That the Trustees enact laws binding 
 themselves. 
 
 (a.) To appropriate to the education of 
 pious, indigent young men for the Gospel min- 
 istry all mone3'S that may be intrusted to them 
 for this purpose. 
 
 {b.) To allow no person to hold the office of 
 President in the institution who is not a mem- 
 ber of some Christian church. 
 
 (c.) To allow no person to hold the office of 
 Professor in the Theological Department, un- 
 less he shall subscribe to the confession of faith, 
 which every Professor supported on the Asso- 
 ciate foundation in the Theological Seminary at 
 Andover, Mass., is required to subscribe. 
 
 (d.) To permit, while this connection con- 
 tinues, the managers of the education fund an- 
 nually' to examine into tlie progress of the insti- 
 tution, the state of said fund, and the manner 
 in which it is applied. 
 
 2. That the Trustees give bonds to re-convey 
 to the managers of the education fund, within 
 one year after demanded by them, all such un- 
 expended property, personal and real,' as the^' 
 shall have received from them. 
 
 The conditions were unanimously accepted 
 by the Trustees. The Presbyteries, having 
 been certified of the fact, proceeded to appoint 
 a Board of Managers of the Education Fund. 
 The Presbytery of Grand River appointed for 
 this purpose Zalmon Fitch, George Swift, Rev. 
 Ephraim T. Woodruff and Rev. Amasa Loomis. 
 The Presbytery of Portage appointed Elizur 
 Wright, Joshua B. Sherwood, Rev. Caleb Pit- 
 kin and Rev. Benjamin Fenn. This Board of 
 Managers was to have perpetual succession, 
 and to fill their own vacancies. They were to 
 receive and convey to the Erie Literary Society, 
 
 agreeably to the conditions named, all property 
 intrusted to them for the education of pious 
 and indigent .young men for the sacred minis- 
 try, annually to visit the institution to exam- 
 ine into its state and progress and the applica- 
 tion of the education fund, and to attend to 
 such other business as shall b}' them be deemed 
 necessar}- to promote the great objects of edu- 
 cating young men for the Gospel ministry. 
 They were also to make a report annually to 
 each Presbytery. 
 
 At this joint meeting at Warren, the Portage 
 Presbytery appointed a committee to prepare 
 and publish an address on the subject of edu- 
 cation. This committee consisted of Rev. 
 Messrs. Pitkin, Seward, Curtis and Stone, Mr. 
 Benjamin Whedon and Mr. George Swift. 
 The}' issued an urgent and spirited appeal '' to 
 the patrons of literature and religion, on the 
 subject of establishing a literary and theologi- 
 cal institution in the Connecticut Western Re- 
 serve." They say that, " as considerable de- 
 lays must be occasioned and expense incurred 
 by the formalities of obtaining a separate act 
 of incorporation, and as ample powers and 
 privileges were already given in the charter of 
 the Erie Literary Society, it was judged expe- 
 dient both to save time and money, and to pre- 
 serve unity of design and harmon}' of feeling, 
 to erect a theological department on the foun- 
 dation of that charter. 
 
 The connection thus formed between this 
 Board of Managers and the Erie Literary Soci- 
 ety " continued a little more than two years, 
 until June 8, 1824. In the course of the 3'ear 
 1823, the Managers became convinced that an 
 institution equal to their desires and expecta- 
 tions and to the necessities of the public could 
 not be built up at Burton. They, therefore, re- 
 quested the Trustees of the Erie Literary So- 
 ciety to remove their establishment to a more 
 eligible situation. The request was, at sevei'al 
 meetings of the Trustees, full}- discussed and 
 ultimately rejected." The ground of this dis- 
 couragement at Burton and effort to remove 
 the institution, according to the testimony of 
 many persons, was the supposed unhealthiness 
 of the place. It is probable, also, that there 
 was a desire to place the college nearer the 
 center of the Reserve. During those 3'ears, 
 Burton had been visited with very severe and 
 fatal sickness, so as even to break up the school 
 for a time. The effort of the Managei's to in- 
 
 
ll^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 449 
 
 duce the Trustees to remove the institution to 
 a more eligible situation, and "preserve the 
 unity of design and harmony- of feeling," full}' 
 proves that there was no discord between the 
 boards on any other subject, and that the^- 
 were willing to continue their co-operation. 
 The unwillingness of the Trustees to accede to 
 the request of the Managers is adequately ac- 
 counted for by the fact that the Board held 
 lands which must i-evert to the donors or their 
 successors if the college should ever be removed 
 from Burton. Those of the Trustees who were 
 especiall}- interested in that part of the Reserve 
 doubtless believed also that the unhealthiness 
 was merely temporar}-, which, indeed, proved 
 to be the case. The academ}' at Burton was 
 popular and useful for some 3'ears. after the 
 withdrawal of the Managers, when the sickness 
 which proved to be incident to the newness of 
 the country had passed awa}'. 
 
 " The managers applied to the Presb3'teries 
 to appoint four commissioners, two ministers 
 and two laymen, from each, to meet at Aurora 
 on June 2, 182-t, for the purpose of consulting 
 and advising as to the course which the Board 
 of Managers shall pursue under existing cir- 
 cumstances." The Presb3'teries complied with 
 the request. The Presbytery of Grand River 
 appointed Rev. Giles H. Cowles, Rev. Joseph 
 W. Curtis and Mr. Titus Brockway ; the Pres- 
 bytery of Portage appointed Rev. John Sew- 
 ard, Rev. Joseph Treat, Mr. David Hudson 
 and Mr. Lucretius Bissell ; the Presbytery of 
 Huron, which had been formed by dividing 
 that of Portage, since the Board of Managers 
 had been constituted, appointed Rev. Simeon 
 Woodruff, Rev. Israel Shailer and Mr. Harmon 
 Kingsbury. The Board of Managers met with 
 these commissioners. At this meeting it was 
 determined to discontinue the connection with 
 the Erie Literai-y Societ}-, and tr}' to establish 
 a separate institution. It was also resolved 
 that it was expedient to request the Presb^'ter}' 
 of Huron " to appoint four persons — two minis- 
 ters and two laymen — who, together with the 
 Board of Managers, should constitute the 
 Board of Trustees for the contemplated insti- 
 tution." It was resolved to recommend the 
 Presbyteries to appoint four commissioners 
 each, to locate the institution, who should 
 meet at Hudson on September 22, " and come to 
 a decision as soon as practicable." 
 
 The Presbyteries approved of this action, and 
 
 appointed their commissioners, from Grand 
 River, Revs. Giles H. Cowles and Harve}' Coe, 
 Mr. Abraham Griswold and Mr. Eliphalet Aus- 
 tin, Jr.; from Portage, Revs. John Seward and 
 Joseph Treat, Col. Lemuel Porter and Mr. 
 John H. Whittlesey ; from Huron, Revs. Al- 
 fred H. Betts and Lot. B. Sullivan, Mr. Samuel 
 Cowles and >Ir. David Gibbs. These commis- 
 sioners were directed in making their decision 
 " to take into view all circumstances of situa- 
 tion, moral character, facility of communica- 
 tion, donations, health, etc." The principal 
 places which competed to secure the location 
 were Burton, Aurora, Euclid, Cleveland and 
 Hudson. After several meetings at different 
 places, the commissioners, in January, 1825, 
 ■ decided in favor of Hudson. The amount of 
 the subscription at Hudson to secure the col- 
 lege was $7,150, of which $2,142 was contrib- 
 uted by Mr. David Hudson. In the competi- 
 tion between different locations within the 
 town, Mr. Hudson gave 160 acres of land to 
 secure it for the place it now occupies, rather 
 than have it put half a mile south of the center 
 of the town. The Presbytery of Huron now 
 added to the Board of Managers, as they had 
 been invited to do, the names of Rev. Simeon 
 Woodruff, Rev. Stephen I. Bradstreet, Hon. 
 Henry Brown and Mr. Harmon Kingsbury. 
 
 This Boai'd of Managers, now called Trustees, 
 held their first meeting at Hudson on February 
 15, 1825. They approved of the report of the 
 Commissioners for locating the institution, made 
 arrangements for erecting a college edifice, ap- 
 pointed Benjamin W^hedon Treasurer, and Da- 
 vid Hudson, Owen Brown and Heman Oviatt a 
 Committee of Agency, to superintend the work 
 of building. The}' also adopted a confession 
 of their religious faith, and elected Rev. John 
 Seward and Mr. Samuel Cowles members of the 
 board. The}^ iDcgan their efforts to procure 
 funds, prepared a draft of a charter to be pre- 
 sented to the Legislature, and of a petition in 
 favor of the charter, to be circulated for sub- 
 scription on the Reserve ; appointed Hon. 
 Henry Brown " to procure the granting of the 
 charter by the Legislature ' at its next session, 
 adjusted the lines of the college plat, procured 
 deeds of the ground, drew up a detailed plan 
 of the first building, and decided upon the 
 mode of laying out the campus. Their plan 
 was to erect the buildings in a line from north 
 to south, on the height of ground where they 
 
450 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 now stand, but facing toward the east ; in front 
 of tiie buildings, a street sixt}' feet wide was to 
 be laid out, and on the east side of it, facing 
 westward, were to be erected the houses for the 
 President and Professors. Middle College was 
 accordingly built facing eastward. The plan 
 was changed for a west front in 1828, and the 
 pi'csent location for Professors' houses was se- 
 lected. 
 
 It is said that the eftbrt to secure a charter 
 encountered severe opposition in the Legisla- 
 ture, especiall}' on account of the religious 
 character which the institution was likel}' to 
 bear. The names of the corporators contained 
 in the petition were tiiose of seven clergymen 
 and seven laymen. There were men in the Leg- 
 islature of infidel sentiments, who were unwill- 
 ing that education should be so much under the 
 influence of the clergj-. These men so modified 
 the draft of the charter asked for as to exclude 
 all religious instruction from the college. It 
 appears, also, that the}' made determined oppo- 
 sition to two names among the corporators, so 
 that these had to be dropped. This is said to 
 have been on account of personal hostility. 
 Eev. E. T. Woodruff" and Rev. Amasa Loomis 
 had been appointed Managers of the Education 
 Fund by the Presbytery of Grand River, and 
 their names must therefore have been in the list 
 of cor})orators in the petition, but the}' are not 
 found in the charter. By some means, also, the 
 name of Samuel Cowles was replaced by that 
 of David Hudson. The corporators were thus 
 seven la3'men and five clergymen. 
 
 A cop3^ of the charter thus amended was sent 
 to Mr. Hudson, who laid it before Mr. Pitkin. 
 Mr. Pitkin immediatel}' started on horseback, 
 in midwinter, for Brownhelm, and rode from 
 there with Judge Brown to Columbus, to pre- 
 vent the passage of this charter and secure an 
 acceptable one. After laboring earnestly to- 
 gether for some time with the opponents. Judge 
 Brown, seeing the situation, said to Mr. Pitkin : 
 " You had better go home and leave me to man- 
 age this matter. This is a thing which sinners 
 can manage best." Mr. Pitkin returned home, 
 and Judge Brown secured, if not the charter 
 asked for, at least an acceptable one — we trust 
 not by sinful methods. The charter bears date 
 of February 7, 1826. This was the fifth col- 
 lege chartered in the State, not counting the 
 Erie Literary Societ}'. 
 
 In accordance with the charter, the Trustees 
 
 met at Hudson on the 1st of March, 1826, and 
 organized by electing Rev. Caleb Pitkin, Presi- 
 dent ; Rev. John Seward, Vice President ; Rev. 
 William Hanford, Secretary ; and Benjamin 
 Whedon, Treasurer. The}" went immediately 
 forward in their work with the greatest energy 
 and harmony. They closed contracts for the 
 building, fixed the proper forms for their busi- 
 ness transactions, appointed agents to solicit 
 funds, adopted a common seal, elected a pruden- 
 tial committee and determined their duties, 
 appointed a committee to prepare by-laws, and 
 " a committee to prepare a condensed history 
 of the origin " of the college, and attended to 
 their duties as managers of the education fund 
 of the Presbyteries. Preparation of materials 
 had been made during the previous winter for 
 the new building, and under the superintend- 
 ence of Mr. Heman Oviatt, the foundation was 
 ready in April. On the 26th of April, the cor- 
 ner-stone was laid with great ceremony in the 
 presence of a large assembly. It was a warm 
 June like day. A procession was formed at 
 Mr. Hudson's house, and moved to the meeting 
 house, where there was prayer and singing. 
 The procession then moved to the college 
 campus, where an address was delivered in 
 Latin by 3Ir. Pitkin, and the stone laid with 
 Masonic ceremonies. The procession then 
 returned to the meeting house, where Mr. Brad- 
 street delivered an address on the principles 
 which actuated the Trustees in the work they 
 had undertaken. 
 
 Owing to innumerable hindrances and em- 
 barrassments, the building was not completed 
 until August, 1827. But the work was thor- 
 oughly and substantially done, as is proved by 
 the fact that, with very slight repairs, old Mid- 
 dle College did service until the summer of 
 1875, when it was thoroughly repaired within 
 and without. 
 
 In the summer of 1826, a cabinet and a 
 library were begun, the first books and minerals 
 having been presented b}' Rev. Judah Ely. On 
 the 22d of September, Mr. David L. Coe, a 
 graduate of Williams College and an excellent 
 scholar, " was appointed Tutor j»-o tempore, and 
 authorized, if application should be made, to 
 examine and admit those whom he should find 
 qualified into a Freshman class, and to take the 
 class under his particular care and instruction. 
 Mr. Coe had been Principal of the Burton 
 Academy from 1820 to 182-1:, and was now 
 
 ^\ 
 
l^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 451 
 
 teaching in the Academy at Tallmadge. He 
 was not required to remove to Hudson because 
 the building was not yet complete, and he 
 could perform his office as Tutor while teaching 
 the Acadeni}-. In December, he admitted to 
 the Freshman class in college, J]llery Bascom, 
 Charles M. Preston and Oren C. Thompson, and 
 took charge of their studies during the 3'ear. 
 
 Thus the college was established, and was 
 actually carrying forward in 182G the work 
 of building and the work of instruction. 
 In the autumn of 1827, the first building was 
 completed here and filled with students. In 
 tlie catalogue of that year are found Sopho- 
 more and Freshmen classes, a preparatory class 
 and students in a partial course, under the 
 instruction of Mr. Ephraim T. Sturtevant, a 
 graduate of Yale College. 
 
 It is astonishing with what energy the Trust- 
 ees took hold of their work so soon as the}^ 
 secured their charter. The Trustees of the 
 Erie Literary Society had made very little ef- 
 fort to establish and carry forward the college. 
 Mr. William Law had made a donation of 1,130 
 acres of land for the college at Burton, but it 
 does not appear that an}^ effort was made for 
 further endowment until after the managers of 
 the education fund had united with them. The 
 supposed unfavorableness of Burton as a loca- 
 tion for the college and the consequent attempt 
 to secure its removal, doubtless restrained 
 the managers from any great exertion to in- 
 crease the endowment while it remained there. 
 They did, however, secure some donations of 
 land and of money. But so soon as the college 
 was located at Hudson, its Trustees and friends 
 most earnestly and systematically began to 
 canvass the Reserve and sent agents to the 
 East to raise the means requisite to build and 
 support instructors. Mr. Pitkin, Mr. Kings- 
 bury and Mr. Coe, of the Trustees, labored es- 
 pecially in this work. A good deal of this 
 kind of service was also performed b}' Rev. 
 Daniel W. Lathrop and Rev. Greorge Sheldon. 
 A number of others, both clergymen and \ay- 
 meu, as much interested in the success of the 
 college as its Trustees, engaged in agencies for 
 short periods as special services were needed. 
 Mr. Pitkin, who was President of the Board, 
 seems to have been employed almost exclusive- 
 I3' in some form of agency from January, 1826, 
 until x\ugust, 1843. His devotion to the col- 
 lege, and that of all those early Trustees, was 
 
 most hearty and self-sacrificing. They never 
 spared time, labor or expense when the inter- 
 est of the college required their services. They 
 would attend meetings of the Trustees or Pru- 
 dential Committee four or five times a year, 
 coming some of them fifty or sixty miles, 
 through the horrible roads of a new country, 
 with their own conversances, and remaining from 
 two to six days together in earnest council and 
 action. 
 
 This unreserved devotion and indefatigable 
 energy could not but secure them all the suc- 
 cess which the nature of the case permitted. 
 The country was yet very new and though 
 population was increasing rapidly, there was 
 3'et ver}' little acquired wealth ; money was 
 extremely scarce, access to markets difficult 
 and the people still mostl}- engaged in the rough 
 work of the pioneei's. The contributions, 
 therefore, were made chiefly in land which bore 
 a very low price, or in cattle or in some form 
 of merchandise which required much care, en- 
 ergy and prudence, to work them over into col- 
 lege buildings and professors' salaries. This 
 kind of donations, from the nature of the case, 
 lasted a long time, and was a great source of 
 perplexit}- and embarrassment down to the 
 close of President Pierce's administration. 
 This is not to be thought of as a discredit to 
 the donors in an^- respect. On the contrary, 
 it was greatl}- to their credit that with so little 
 of read}' means, the people had such a sense of 
 the importance of higher education, that they 
 would give, though their gift might be small 
 and of a kind not easily convertible. Thus, 
 the college received donations of land and sold 
 it for stone, lumber or labor. Mr. Pitkin re- 
 ceived two-tliirds of the compensation for his 
 services in kind. Tutor Sturtevant received a 
 part of his salary in board and washing. Mr. 
 Daniel Metcalf, iii 1827, gave the college $450 
 in goods. In looking over the list of donations, 
 many are found to have come in ver}' queer 
 forms. This " store pay," and what was worse, 
 no pay, the Trustees and Faculty knew a great 
 deal about for many ^^ears. These difficulties 
 which met the Trustees at the beginning were 
 inevitable. They foresaw them, of course, and 
 being all hardy pioneers and pioneer mission- 
 aries they were never daunted by them. 
 
 The idea of a college which these men en- 
 tertained, was of such an institution as they 
 had been acquainted with and had enjoyed the 
 
 :^ 
 
^ 
 
 453 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 advantages of in New England. The Western 
 Reserve was a second New England in all her 
 interests and aspirations, especiall}' as per- 
 tained to education and Christianit}-. All the 
 clerical members of the board were college 
 graduates — four from Yale, two from Williams 
 and one from Dartmouth ; of the lay members 
 Mr. Elizur Wright was a graduate of Yale, and 
 Judge Brown had been a student at Harvard ; 
 the rest were Connecticut men familiar with 
 the organization, spirit and noble record of 
 Yale College. The other ministers who so 
 earnestly aided and encouraged the work of 
 founding the college, from Father Badger's first 
 petition for a charter in 1801, were almo.st all 
 graduates of New England colleges. The peo- 
 ple of the Reserve were mostly Connecticut 
 people. They honored and loved those institu- 
 tions, and believed that a college, which was to 
 do the same work for the sons of New England, 
 transplanted to a new soil, ought by all means 
 to be of the same type, and should aim to be of 
 the same rank. This explains how the}' came 
 to speak of their college as the Yale of the 
 West. The Reserve was very commonly called 
 New Connecticut, both here and in New En- 
 gland ; it was like in manner and for the same 
 purpose to have its college, and it was both 
 natural and probably wise, to pattern after that 
 old college they had known and revered so well. 
 The instruction for the year 1827-28 seems 
 to have been given entirely by Mr. Sturtevant. 
 Mr. Hanford, then Pastor of the church in the 
 village, and Secretary of the Trustees, was ap- 
 pointed to superintend the students, but it does 
 not appear that he gave any instruction. In 
 March, 1828, Rev. Charles Backus Storrs, then 
 pastor of the church in Ravenna, was elected 
 Professor of Sacred Theology. He accepted 
 the appointment and entered upon his office in 
 December, 1828. It does not appear that theol- 
 ogy, be^'oud what forms a part of the course 
 now, was taught at that day in the college, nor 
 that there were special theological students 
 here until 1831. But this chair was filled first 
 on account of the prominence of the idea that 
 the college was planted in order to raise up 
 ministers for the destitute churches. Mr. Storrs 
 probably instructed in mental and moi'al 
 science, and the evidences of Christianity. Rev. 
 Rufus Nutting, a graduate of Dartmouth Col- 
 lege, was engaged in August, 1828, to give in- 
 struction for the fall term, and finally engaged for 
 
 the entire year. In March following, he was ap- 
 pointed Professor of Languages, and Mr. Elizur 
 Wright, a graduate of Yale College, was ap- 
 pointed Professor of Mathematics and Natural 
 Philosophy-. In August, 1830, Rev. Beriah 
 Green, a graduate of Middlebury College, was 
 appointed Pi'ofessor of Sacred Literature, and 
 the theological department was established. 
 
 After man}' efforts to secure a President, 
 Prof Storrs was finally persuaded to accept 
 that office in August, 1830. He was in all re- 
 spects admirably qualified for it, except in the 
 matter* of bodil}' strength. He was born at 
 Long Meadow, Mass., in 1794, descending from 
 a long line of able and scholarly ministers. 
 He had not graduated at au}^ college, but had 
 neai'l}' completed the junior year at Princeton 
 with the highest rank as a scholar, and distin- 
 guished alike for talents and diligence, when 
 ill health compelled him to abandon his stud- 
 ies. After a time devoted to the restoration of 
 his health, he studied theology in private, was 
 licensed, and preached a year, when he was 
 again compelled bj' feeble health to abandon 
 labor. In 1817, he entered the theological 
 seminary at Andover, and passed through the 
 regular course of stud}' there, after which he 
 went South and labored as a missionary' in 
 South Carolina and Georgia. Again inter- 
 rupted by poor health, he traveled northward 
 through Ohio in 1822, and accepted a call to 
 the church at Ravenna, where he labored with 
 great success until he came to the college. He 
 was very retiring, unselfish, unambitious, with 
 a very deep and earnest religious devotion, in- 
 flexible in his adherence to principle, solid, 
 acute and comprehensive in thought, greatly 
 loved and revered b}- all the students, of won- 
 derful eloquence as a preacher. As a theologian, 
 he was of the school of President D wight. 
 His ill health had doubtless tended to make 
 him more a man of reflection, and to heighten 
 those qualities which excited the love and rev- 
 erence of all who knew him. He was a quiet, 
 unassuming man of power, suited to make 
 deep and lasting impressions upon all who 
 came under his instruction. 
 
 Mr. Sturtevant left the township in May, 
 
 1829. Mr. Charles M. Preston, of the Class of 
 
 1830, was tutor in 1831-32, and Mr. Ralph M. 
 Walker, of the Class of 1832, did excellent 
 service as tutor from 1832 to 1835. The first 
 Faculty was at length organized, with two pro- 
 
 
-4* 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 453 
 
 fessors and a tutor in the academic depart- 
 ment, and two professors of theology. The 
 institution was thus fully under way, but des- 
 tined to encounter severe trials speedily. The 
 few years which succeeded 1830 were years of 
 great excitement upon most weighty questions 
 respecting the internal management of the col- 
 lege, which arose here as they did almost 
 everywhere else. The first was, whether so 
 large a use of heathen authors, as they were 
 called, in the course of study, was necessary or 
 right ; the second was respecting the manual 
 labor S3stem. 
 
 In regard to the former question, after con- 
 siderable agitation, a committee of the Facultj' 
 was appointed to examine and report on the 
 subject. In August, 183-4, this committee pre- 
 sented an able and sensible report, taking 
 the ground on which the college had always 
 stood in favor of the classics, but recommend- 
 ing the study of the Bible also in the original 
 languages. The discussion was carried on 
 with much earnestness among the students and 
 friends of the college, but good sense pre- 
 vailed, and the classics in fact always retained 
 their accustomed place in the course of study. 
 
 The manual labor system was, at that time, 
 a fashionable hobb}^ all over the land. The 
 Presbyteries of Grand River and Portage, in 
 their capacity as Education Societies, had, in 
 1822-23, b}' resolutions "recommended to the 
 managers of the education fund, to adopt a 
 system of manual labor for all students under 
 their care, and that the avails be applied for 
 the support of those students by whom the 
 labor is performed. 
 
 In March, 1830, the Trustees resolved '-that 
 they deem it expedient that the students in 
 this college, during term time, labor for exercise 
 and the preservation of health, either in agri- 
 culture or some of the mechanical arts, at 
 least two hours every day, except the Sabbath, 
 according to regulations hereafter to be made, 
 and that it be recommended to all students 
 now connected with the college, and required 
 of all who shall hereafter become members, to 
 labor in conformity with such regulations, ex- 
 cept in extraordinar}'^ cases, of which cases a 
 committee appointed for the purpose shall 
 determine." 
 
 To carry out this system, the college pro- 
 vided three workshops — -a cooper-shop, cabinet- 
 shop and wagon-shop — and a form for those 
 
 who preferred that kind of work. They even 
 went so far in 1837, as to consider the expedi- 
 ency of opening a blacksmith's shop. These 
 shops and the farm were provided with tools 
 and superintendents, and an earnest and perse- 
 vering effort was made to carr}' out the plan 
 successfully. At one time, the students formed 
 a mechanical society to carry on work, and had 
 a standing advertisement in the Ohio Observer 
 of their cabinet wares. A steam engine was 
 procured for the shops. No care or expense 
 seems to have been spared. But the students, 
 like so many other people, proved to be disin- 
 clined to manual labor. A^ery few had any 
 knowledge whatever of the use of tools, and 
 many had no capacity to learn to use them 
 skillfull}', especially as the inclination was 
 wanting. The wares were found to be rude, 
 ill-jointed, unworkmanlike and hard to sell. 
 Many, for various reasons, got relieved from 
 the requirement to labor, and an invidious dis- 
 tinction grew up between the workers and the 
 non-workers. It even turned out that this un- 
 willing labor was not beneficial to health. 
 Grradually, after many shifts, one part of the 
 system after another was reluctantly' given up, 
 until the whole was abandoned. The last lin- 
 gering ray of it is found in the catalogue for 
 1851-52. 
 
 But greater questions than these agitated the 
 college. About the time of founding the col- 
 lege, the slavery question began to agitate the 
 country. It was in 1829 that Grarrison came 
 out boldly and decidedly in the advocacy of 
 the immediate and unconditional abolition of 
 slaver}'. He went on to attack the scheme of 
 colonization as aflbrding no remedy for the evil, 
 and its advocates as enemies of the slave and 
 real supporters of the system of slavery with 
 all its horrors. The Liherafor first published 
 in 1831, quickly aroused the whole nation 
 North and South. Many men of keen, moral 
 sensibilities took up the cause of the oppres.sed 
 with great fervor, and with true martyi'-spirit 
 were read} to sacrifice everything — to make all 
 other questions and all other interests subor- 
 dinate to this one. The Liberator found its 
 way to the Western Reserve ; it came into 
 the hands of President Storrs, of Profs. 
 Wright and (jrreen, and into the hands of the 
 students. Its arguments and appeals were 
 here '' like good seed sown on good ground.'' 
 One of the students who had recently hid an 
 
 
454 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY, 
 
 interview with Garrison, and had brought a 
 package of documents and copies of the Lih- 
 cnitor to distribute in tlie college, calling on 
 President Storrs " and, seeing the Liberator on 
 his table, asked the slow-spoken, sedate thinker 
 what he thought of Garrison's writings on 
 slavery. The answer was, '■ I do not see how 
 the}' can be refuted." President Storrs and 
 Profs. Wright and Green immediatel}' became 
 ardent ad^-ocates of Garrison's views, and lost 
 no opportunity to proclaim and defend them. 
 They were able and eloquent men, and their 
 advocacy had great influence in the community. 
 In 1832, Prof. Wright began to write in the 
 Ohscrvor and Telegraph, then published at Hud- 
 son, against colonization, and in favor of aboli- 
 tion. These articles aroused a great deal of 
 opposition with some and great favor with 
 others. In the summer of 1832, Profs. Wright 
 and Green sent for Mr. Amos P. Hawle3% of 
 the sophomore class, and requested him to pre- 
 pare a colloqu}' to be spoken at the ensuing- 
 commencement, and gave him for the subject 
 of it "The Recaptured Slave." The colloquy 
 was successful. At the opening of the next 
 term, the question of negro slaver}' and its re- 
 lations to colonization became prominent sub- 
 jects of discussion among the students. 
 
 On the 8th of May, 1833, President Storrs 
 and Prof Green delivered addresses at the 
 annual meeting of the Tallmadge Anti-Slavery 
 Society. President Storrs spoke nearly three 
 hours with great power. It was his last work. 
 He had always been feeble in body, but now 
 his lungs were seriously aflfected, and this 
 great excitement and over exertion prostrated 
 him. On the 26th of June he received leave 
 of al)scence for six months that he might travel 
 and recruit his health. He went lo Braintree, 
 Mass., to the house of his brother, the Rev. R. 
 S. Storrs, where he rapidly declined and died 
 of pulmonary consumption September 15, 
 1833. Prof Green received a call to the Pres- 
 idency of the Oneida Institute, at Whitestown, 
 N. Y. He resigned his professorship and left 
 Hudson in June. Prof Wright resigned at 
 commencement in August. Thus only Prof 
 Nutting and Tutor Walker were left of the old 
 Faculty. 
 
 When Profs. Green and Wright resigned, 
 conservative people rejoiced, and declared that 
 they had been dismissed by the Trustees and 
 their course, and all their opinions on this sub- 
 
 ject, condemned. This was not true. There is 
 no intimation of anything of the kind in any 
 of the records of the college. Prof Green de- 
 clared it to be false in a letter to the African 
 Repository. He resigned only because he deemed 
 it his duty to accept his call to Whitestown. 
 Prof. Wright, in a letter to the Observer and 
 Telegraph, dated Hudson, September 9, 1833, 
 says : " My resignation was produced, not by 
 any attitude the board had assumed or was 
 likely to assume, but simply by an invitation to 
 another field of labor." The effect, however, of 
 this year's transactions and of the misunder- 
 standings which grew out of them, on the pros- 
 perity of the college was very great, and con- 
 tinued for a long time. 
 
 This was a reformatory era in other respects 
 also, and the students were thoroughly impreg- 
 nated with the spirit of it. They entered with 
 ardor into the temperance movement under the 
 lead of the Faculty. They had their Temper- 
 ance Society, made investigations and published 
 their reports. The Society of Enquiry entered 
 into what was called the moral reform move- 
 ment. They had a standing committee on lewd- 
 ness, and published a lengthy report on the 
 subject. In 1834, they formed what they 
 called a " Magdalen Society," in defense of the 
 seventh commandment, in sympathy with Mr. 
 McDowell and his movement in New York. 
 One of the students prepared and published a 
 tract on the subject for general circulation. The 
 young men went abroad lecturing on this sub- 
 ject also. They seem to have felt the moral 
 burden of the world resting heavily upon their 
 shoulders, and they were determined to dis- 
 charge their responsibilities manfully. We can 
 not but admire their devotion to duty, as they 
 understood it, and to righteousness. But it is 
 difficult to imagine the students of the present 
 day going about the fcountry lecturing on slav- 
 ery and the seventh commandment, however 
 much they may debate any and all subjects of 
 present interest in college. 
 
 On the 13th of July, 1831, the college church 
 was organized with twenty members. Seven 
 other persons joined the church on the same 
 day. The reasons for forming a separate church 
 are not stated in the record, nor is it known 
 who were the chief movers in the matter. It is 
 probable that the founders had before their 
 minds the example of Yale College and And- 
 over Theological Seminary. The college church 
 
^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 455 
 
 has been greatly' blessed with frequent and 
 powerful revivals from the first down to the 
 present year, though the effect of these revivals 
 is but partiall}- seen in the membership of the 
 church. Many young men born into the king- 
 dom here have preferred to unite with churches 
 at their homes. The church now unites with 
 the village church in preaching services, main- 
 taining, however, in all other respects, an inde- 
 pendent organization. 
 
 The financial condition of the college, up to 
 the close of President Storrs' administration, 
 had been steadily improving. At the time the 
 charter was obtained, the property in the hands 
 of the Trustees amounted to about $10,000. At 
 the close of the 3-ear 1833, all the receipts 
 from donations had amounted to about $54,000. 
 There had been expended for grounds, buildings, 
 including Middle and South College, the Presi- 
 dent's dwelling-house,* the work-shop, etc., $14,- 
 600 ; for agencies, instruction, library, appar- 
 atus, etc., probably about $17,000. The funds 
 in hand, therefore, aside from the buildings, 
 grounds and appliances for instruction, were a 
 little over $22,000. Besides this sum in actual 
 possession, more than $32,000 had been sub- 
 scribed, which, for various causes, was never 
 paid, though there was then good reason to 
 expect that it would be paid. President Storrs 
 himself devoted very little of his time to finan- 
 cial affairs ; he had not the health, and probably 
 not the inclination for verj- much work of that 
 kind. He was a student, a teacher and a 
 preacher. 
 
 After commencement in 1833, the first work 
 of the Trustees was to fill the chairs made vacant 
 by death and resignation. The instruction for 
 the succeeding year was provided for by the 
 appointment of Mr. Clement Long, Instructor, 
 and Mr. William C. Clark, Tutor,"both gradu- 
 ates of Dartmouth College. In November, Rev. 
 Nathaniel S. Folsom, a graduate of Dartmouth, 
 was elected Professor of Sacred Literature, to 
 succeed Mr. Green, and probably entered upon 
 his work immediately. In March. 1834. Mr. 
 Long was elected Professor of Intellectual and 
 Moral Philosophy. The chair of 3Iathematics 
 was not filled until 1835, when Mr. Jarvis Gregg, 
 also a graduate of Dartmouth, accepted an 
 appointment to it ; the work meantime was per- 
 
 * South" Coll«ge was built in 1830-31, at a cost of Rb mt S5,000. 
 The double-house for the President and Professor of Theology was 
 built in 1830. 
 
 formed by Tutor Walker. Ptev. George E. 
 Pierce was elected President in March, 1834, 
 but did not enter on his ofHce until commence- 
 ment. The college year 1833-34, was, there- 
 fore, an interregnum ; but there was the same 
 number of instructors as during the previous 
 year, and the work went on probably with more 
 calmness after the first anti-slavery excitement 
 was over. 
 
 President Pierce was a Connecticut man, a 
 graduate of Yale College in 1816, had taught 
 an academ}' two years, studied theoleg}' at 
 Aiidover, and had been a most successful Pastor 
 of the church at Harwiiiton Conn., for twelve 
 years. When he entered upon his office as 
 President, he was just fort}' 3'ears of age, with 
 good health and great animation, and his spirit 
 and energ}' were immediateh' felt in eveiything. 
 He was deeply imbued with the Connecticut 
 idea of a college, and he kindled anew the 
 determination to carry it out speedily and 
 thoroughly. He immediately began the effort 
 to increase the endowment, to erect new build- 
 ings, to establish new professofships, to elevate 
 the standard of scholarship, to increase the 
 library and apparatus for instruction. 
 
 The Trustees were ready to follow such a 
 leader, and to support him in all his projects. 
 The building of the chapel was begun early in 
 1835. President Pierce appealed, through the 
 Ohio Ohsercer and the New York Ecdiic/elist, to 
 the friends of the college to contribute $50,000 
 to increase its resources, and agents entered on 
 the work of raising the mone}'. There was an 
 obvious and decided improvement of college 
 affairs in all respects. The number of students 
 increased, the requirements for admission were 
 raised, the course of study was made much 
 fuller, fences and grounds were improved, trees 
 were planted in the college campus and on the 
 streets. Eveiything showed that a man of 
 taste, force and high ideal and decided views 
 was at the head. 
 
 The work went forward with great rapidity. 
 In 1836, the chapel was completed and dedi- 
 cated at commencement, with a sermon by 
 President Pierce. In the same year, Rev. Lau- 
 rens P. Hickok, a graduate of TJnion College, 
 came as Professor of Theology, the work of 
 that department having been performed during 
 the interim since President Storrs' death b}' 
 President Pierce. After the accession of Prof 
 Hickok, President Pierce gave instruction in 
 
 K 
 
456 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 other branches of theology. Prof. Folsom 
 having resigned, Prof. Elijah P. Barrows, a 
 graduate of Yale College, came, in 1837, to the 
 Chair of Sacred Literature. With this enlarge- 
 ment of the theological facult}'. North College 
 was built in 1837-38 for the use of divinity 
 students. Prof Gregg served but a part of a 
 year in the Chair of Mathematics and Physics, 
 and was then transferred to the Chair of Homi- 
 letics and Pastoral Theology. His sudden and 
 premature death in less than a year from his 
 first appointment was a serious loss to the col- 
 lege, for he was a man of fine scholarship, of 
 great promise, greatly beloved by the Faculty 
 and students. The Chair of Mathematics and 
 Physics thus made vacant was immediatel}' 
 filled by the appointment of Mr. Elias Loomis, 
 a graduate of Yale College, who went to Eu- 
 rope for a j-ear's stud}' and travel, commis- 
 sioned also to procure books for the library and 
 apparatus for the department of physics and 
 instruments for the observator}-. He brought 
 to his chair great abilities and enthusiasm in 
 his department and power of work. Under his 
 guidance the mathematical part of the libraiy 
 and the apparatus were considerabl}' increased, 
 and, in 1838, the observatory- was erected and 
 admirably equij^ped. In 1838, Dr. St. John, a 
 graduate of Yale College, was appointed Pro- 
 fessor of Chemistry and Geology, and a large 
 apparatus for that department was procui'ed. 
 This led to the erection of a new building for 
 the accommodation of the two departments of 
 physics and of chemistry and geology. This 
 building, called Atheneum, was not completed, 
 however, until 1843. Meantime, in 1840, Rev. 
 Henry N. Da}-, a graduate of Yale College, had 
 been added to the Facult}-, taking the chair of 
 of Homiletics and Pastoral Theology ; and in 
 the same year Mr. Nathan P. Seymour, also a 
 graduate of Yale College, had taken the Chair 
 of Languages vacated b}- Prof Nutting. In 
 February, 1844, a modification of the charter 
 was procured from the Legislature so as to 
 allow the establishment of the medical depart- 
 ment in the city of Cleveland. A course of 
 medical lectures had been begun in Cleveland 
 in the autumn of 1843 by Dr. Delemater and 
 his distinguished associates. The department 
 was fully organized, and the first class gradu- 
 ated in March, 1844. 
 
 It is evident that during the first decade of 
 President Pierce's administration, there had 
 
 been a great enlargement and improvement of 
 the institution. Three large, convenient and 
 substantial edifices had been erected, and an 
 astronomical observatory had been built and 
 equipped. The Faculty had been increased 
 from four to eight members, besides tutors. 
 The number of students had increased from 83 
 to 140 ; the apparatus and librar}- had been 
 enlarged ; the requirements for admission and 
 those for graduation greatly increased ; a new 
 and flourishing department added. The Fac- 
 ulty which President Pierce gathered was com- 
 posed of men distinguished for learning, gen- 
 eral ability and teaching power, men who would 
 have given honor and distinction to any insti- 
 tution. He showed himself to be an admirable 
 judge of men. Not only did the broad founda- 
 tion of the college seem to have been laid, but 
 the Connecticut ideal seemed to have been ac- 
 tually realized. It was almost to the minutest 
 particular a faithful copy of Yale College. 
 
 During the second half of President Pierce's 
 administration, the financial difficulties of the 
 college increased until the}- became well-nigh 
 overwhelming. The causes of these difficul- 
 ties were two — first, what seemed to be unwar- 
 rantably large expenditures for buildings and 
 instruction ; and, second, the opinion of some, 
 whether well or ill founded, that the manage- 
 mens of the funds was not so cai-eful and pru- 
 dent as it should have been. The four build- 
 ings erected during the first half of President 
 Pierce's administration, viz., the Chapel, North 
 College, Observatory and Atheneum, cost but 
 little above $22,000, or the actual fund inher- 
 ited from President Storrs' administration. If 
 the question were asked whether these build- 
 ings were all necessary, we should have to re- 
 ply that the plan on which Yale College was 
 conducted was adopted here as the sum of all 
 wisdom in such matters. The plan required 
 abundant dormitories and a separate church — 
 all the appliances for a community complete in 
 itself, and separated from the rest of the world. 
 It is easy now to find fault with the plan, and 
 to point out other less expensive methods 
 which have proved successful elsewhere. But 
 the buildings then erected have proved ver}- 
 useful ever since, and are indispensable acconl- 
 iug to that plan. If we look at the expendi- 
 ture for instruction, it certainly cannot be said 
 that the salaries of the Faculty were ever large, 
 and if we consider how much the President and 
 
 M- 
 
HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 457 
 
 Professors contributed to the fund of the col- 
 lege out of their salaries, it will be acknowl- 
 edged that they were quite inadequate to their 
 support. But even these small salaries, under 
 the pressure of the circumstances, were often 
 paid in a manner which made them b}' no 
 means equal their nominal value. Seven hun- 
 dred dollars was the highest salary paid to any 
 one except the President, who received $900 ; 
 and President Pierce often gave out of this 
 $200 a year to the college, and the Pi'ofessors 
 were in general equall}^ liberal in their dona- 
 tions. Indeed, it is doubtful if an}- college was 
 ever served by such able men for so meager 
 stipends. The number of the Faculty was such 
 that the salaries of all, with that of the Treas- 
 urer, amounted from $3,500 to $7,500 a year. 
 If the number of the Faculty should be drawn 
 into question as unwise and unnecessar}-, the 
 answer is eas}', that it was the plan to have the 
 institution a real college of the highest order ; 
 it must therefore be fully manned by able schol- 
 ars and teachers. If the number of students 
 was as yet small, it was reasonably expected 
 that they would increase as the population 
 grew, and that an able Faculty would attract 
 students. Indeed, the number of students was 
 increasing, and the learning and ability of the 
 Faculty did establish for the college the high- 
 est reputation, until the operation of the second 
 cause mentioned led on to the most serious 
 disastei's. 
 
 It has alread}' been said that the financial 
 necessities of the college kept President Pierce 
 in the field as an agent a large part of the time 
 for several years. His self-sacrifice and devoted 
 labor in this hard and unpleasant task, we 
 should think, have rarely been equaled ; but. 
 with all his toil, to make ends meet, it was impos- 
 sible. As early as 1836, the college had a debt 
 of $6,000, though the nominal assets were 
 $60,000. But these assets were largely sub- 
 scriptions, many of which, after years of 
 waiting, finally failed altogether ; others wei'c 
 land, or other property, whicli could not then 
 be wisely converted, or converted at all without 
 serious loss. This state of things continued 
 — the expense going on, which must be met 
 with ready monc}' — the assets, however much 
 they might be nominall}-, never answering to 
 their face, and hard to bring into usable form. 
 The debt steadily increased, until, in 1846, it 
 stood at $35,000, and the assets at $38,000. 
 
 The annual deficit at that time was such that 
 five years more would consume all the assets in 
 hand, and leave only the fixtures and the debt. 
 The difficulty in paying the salaries of the Pro- 
 fessors, and the sacrifice required of them, led 
 to the resignation of Prof Hickok and Prof. 
 Loomis in 18-14, the former being called to the 
 Chair of Theology in Auburn Seminary, and the 
 latter to the Chair of Mathematics and Physics 
 in the University of New York. This was in 
 every respect a most serious loss to the college. 
 But it was not to be expected that such men 
 would submit to so much perplexity in the 
 matter of support when they could do the same 
 work elsewhere in more comfortable circum- 
 stances. Their places were, however, speedily 
 filled, and the college went on doing its solid 
 work, maintaining its high scholarl}- and liter- 
 ary character, but groaning under its financial 
 burdens. Prof Hickok's place was filled by 
 the transfer of Prof Long to the Chair of Theol- 
 ogy ; Prof Loomis', by the appointment of Mr. 
 James Nooney, a graduate of Yale College. 
 Prof. Long's chair was filled by the appointment 
 of Rev. Samuel C. Bartlett, a graduate of Dart- 
 mouth College. 
 
 In view of the failure of pledges and the de- 
 preciation of property, the board resolved, in 
 1845, to enter on an effort to raise $40,000 to 
 replace the losses and pay the debts. This 
 subscription was completed in 1848. They im- 
 mediately began a new effort to add $60,000 to 
 the permanent fund, the entire sum to be raised 
 by January 1, 1850. This effort, entered upon 
 with great vigor, was also successful. But the 
 slowness with which payments were made left 
 the college still in difficulty. Although the 
 debt was diminishing, it was still $28,000 in 
 1850. The pressure of creditors and the im- 
 mediate necessities of life led to the practice of 
 loaning the money of the permanent fund to 
 the general fund. From this and other causes, 
 such as an inadequate S3stem of book-keeping, 
 arose a suspicion, in the minds of some of the 
 Trustees, whether well grounded or not, that 
 the management of the funds was not good ; 
 that there was a lack of business accuracy and 
 order ; that the distinction l)etween mnim and 
 fuum in the funds was not accurately kept. 
 There can, of coui'se, be nothing dishonest in 
 the mere loaning from one fund to another ; 
 but, considering the difficulty in which the col- 
 lege then was — the pressure on every side — it 
 
 \ 
 
458 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 is not strange that it excited nervousness in tlie 
 hard-worked and ill-paid Faculty, and among 
 some of the donors. No one could for a mo- 
 ment question the perfect integrit}^ and high 
 Christian character of President Pierce and the 
 Trustees. But " the best-laid plans of mice 
 and men gang aft agley," and the college had 
 had too serious an experience already of the 
 uncertaint}' of pledges to trust the general 
 fund too far with the sacred resources of the 
 permanent fund. Moreover, it was the growing 
 sentiment on all sides that the expenses should, 
 by some means, be brought down to the proba- 
 ble income, or nearl}' to that, and that the gen- 
 eral fund should be so managed as speedily to 
 remove all indebtedness. 
 
 In 1850, the sum of .$60,000 had been sub- 
 scribed to the permanent fund. In view of this 
 fact and of the importance of the work of col- 
 lecting and securely investing this, and in view 
 also of the earnest request of President Pierce, 
 that he might, as speedily as possible, be re- 
 leased from all financial responsibility, at the 
 meeting of the board in March, a Ji nance com- 
 mittee was appointed, consisting of President 
 Pierce, Mr. Joseph Perkins, Hon. E. N. Sill and 
 Mr. C. L. Latimer, all of them men who were 
 skilled and practiced in financial business, to 
 take charge of the whole matter of collecting 
 and investing the new fund, of the administra- 
 tion of the general fund, and the payment of 
 the debt. They were specially " charged to 
 see that no part of the permanent fund was 
 diverted from its proper purpose, or entangled 
 with other funds or effects of the college." 
 This committee, at the outset, made a full and 
 minute survey of the state of affairs. With a 
 debt of $28,000 they find assets applicable to 
 its payment of $38,000. They declare that 
 this debt must be paid without further delay, 
 that the assets applicable to the purpose are 
 "barely sufficient to meet the demands," and 
 that '• decision and energy will be very requi- 
 site " in the management of the matter, or " the 
 funds will melt in our hands and our debts be 
 left an incubus upon us." Besides interest, 
 the annual expenses were then $1,500 beyond 
 the reliable income. But all attempts at the 
 reduction of expenditure were met wifh oppo- 
 sition. There seemed to be a great desire on 
 all hands to retrench, without retrenching ; and 
 the committee, finding at the end of a year and 
 a half that, with all their efforts they could not 
 
 secure the requisite control, that the debt was 
 reduced only $7,500, while the available assets 
 had shrunk $1G,000, resigned. Their duties re- 
 turned to the hands of the prudential com- 
 mittee. 
 
 This brought on a crisis in the affairs of the 
 college. This finance committee had been di- 
 vided in opinion — on the one side, President 
 Pierce, the Chairman, on the ground, with the 
 actual control in his hands, and dreading in 
 an}' degree to impair the number or efficiency 
 of the Facult}', which had brought the institu- 
 tion up to his ideal in that respect — on the 
 other side the other membei'S who saw clearly 
 and felt deepl}' the financial necessities of the 
 case. The disagreement which brought about 
 the resignation of this committee now entei'ed 
 into the board and divided it so that the cast- 
 ing vote was alwa3-s in the hands of the Presi- 
 dent, and he always cast it with the same side. 
 The division touched every question of policy 
 and of popular action. The Faculty, feeling 
 most deeply ever3'thing which threatened the 
 honor, stability and efficiency of the college 
 for which they had so devotedly labored 
 and sacrificed, and, though not doubting 
 the integrity and good will, yet doubting the 
 ability of President Pierce and the pruden- 
 tial committee to successfully cope with the 
 financial problem, insisted that the finance 
 committee should be continued, and should 
 have complete control of the funds according 
 to its original plan. Disheartened and foresee- 
 ing evil from the resignation of that committee, 
 Profs. Barrow, St. John and Bartlett resigned, 
 Prof Long having also resigned a few days be- 
 fore the committee. This was almost a break- 
 ing-up of the college, since there only remained 
 besides the President, Prof Day in the Theologi- 
 cal Department, Prof Seymour in the Academic, 
 and Prof Frost Shepherd, who never received 
 a salary, was never responsible for any fixed 
 duty, and who was here but a small part of the 
 time. After much agitation and negotiation 
 with meetings of the Alumni and of students 
 to consider the subject, and express their opin- 
 ions and wishes at commencement in July, 
 1852, Prof Lord withdrew his resignation, and 
 the other Professors were re-appointed, with 
 the expectation that they would continue their 
 labors, and the college would still live and 
 flourish as of old. But these hopes were 
 blighted. Personal disagreements had grown 
 
k^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 459 
 
 up out of questions arising in the Facult}', as 
 well as deep differences of opinion growing out 
 of the financial and other questions arising in 
 the Board of Trustees, and concei'ning general 
 policA'. The strong feelings excited could not 
 be easih' calmed. The Professors, being widely 
 distinguished in their departments, had tempt- 
 ing offers of important positions elsewhere, 
 where their fields would be larger and their 
 salaries sure. The attempt to restore the old 
 order of things failed. The Professors left, 
 the students mostly left, and the labor and pa- 
 tience of many good men for many years, 
 seemed to have failed of the promise. 
 
 Aside from the debt and the general fund 
 available for its pa3-ment, the college had also 
 a permanent fund, amounting nominally to 
 $85,000 ; but $54,000 of this was in the "form 
 of subscription notes, for the most part on in- 
 terest, and payable between the years 1850 and 
 1855; $10,600 was in stocks and bonds; the 
 remainder chiefly in real estate, bills receivable 
 and the like, with $3,000 in cash. The discords 
 and contentions in the college interfered with 
 the collection of the principal and interest of 
 this fund as it became due, thus greatly re- 
 ducing the expected income and increasing the 
 embarrassment. The}' alienated man}' of the 
 donors, also, as might have been expected, and 
 undoubtedly had an injurious influence upon 
 other young colleges in the West which w'ere 
 seeking to raise their flrst endowments. Men 
 who had means to give to them had their fears 
 excited that their donations might be lost 
 through the discords, if not the mismanage- 
 ment of boards of trust. In this view, the 
 I " Societ}' for the Promotion of Collegiate and 
 Theological Education at the West."' which had 
 between the years 1845 and 1848 given the 
 college about $13,000, and recommended it to 
 the favor of the churches and Christian people 
 at the East, took a deep interest in all these 
 transactions here, and urged the speedy settle- 
 ment of the difficulties. In Febuary, 1855, 
 this society even sent a committee of distin- 
 guished men, which met the Board of Trustees 
 in their semi-annual meeting at Cleveland, and 
 urged them to refer all their differences to arbi- 
 tration. This friendly counsel was rejected by 
 a majority of the board. They seemed to feel 
 themselves bound to work the matter through 
 without outside aid or advice. 
 
 At the beginning of the academic year 
 
 1852-53, the Faculty consisted of President 
 Pierce, Prof Seymour and Tutor Gates. Prof. 
 Day still retained his office, but as the Theo- 
 logical Department had no students, he ren- 
 dered no service. There were only two classes 
 — the sophomore and freshman — with twenty- 
 three members. In March, 1853, Rev. Alfred 
 Emerson, a graduate of Yale College, was 
 elected Professor of Mathematics and Physics, 
 and entered on his duties at the beginning of the 
 year 1853-54. In November, 1853, Rev. Heury 
 B. Hosford, a graduate of Williams College, 
 was elected Professor of Intellectual and Moral 
 Philosophy and Rhetoric, and entered on his 
 duties in January, 1854. Both these elections 
 were opposed and strongly protested against 
 by a portion of the board, not out of objection 
 to the men, well qualified pledges, but because 
 in their view it was necessary to the prosperity 
 of the institution that President Pierce should 
 retire from office, and that there should be an 
 entire reconstruction. 
 
 At commencement in 1853 there were no 
 graduates, and the commencement exercises 
 consisted of the oration before the Alumni, by 
 Mr. Hoadley, of the Class of 1844, the inaugu- 
 ral address by Prof Emerson, two orations by 
 representatives of the societies, and three mas- 
 ters' orations. In the next year, beside the 
 President, there w-ere three Professors, a Tutor 
 and twenty-five students, all the classes being 
 represented. The work of the college went on 
 after the old fashion, according to the old 
 sfandai'd, though the continued agitation in the 
 newspapers and in private, must have made 
 all parties extremely uncomfortable. Even 
 through another year did this weary time of 
 conflict extend. 
 
 On the 31st of May, 1855, President Pierce, 
 having arrived at the age which he had long 
 before set as the proper time for him to retire, 
 resigned his office, and Rev. Henry S. Hitch- 
 cock, of Columbus, a graduate of Yale College 
 and a distinguished minister, was elected his 
 successor. All parties seem to have l>ecome 
 weary of the conflict, as well they might. Mr. 
 Hitchcock was inaugurated at commencement, 
 on the I'ith of July. Several members of the 
 Board of Trustees resigned : there places were 
 filled by men having the confidence of both 
 parties, and the college entered upon its new 
 era. 
 
 President Pierce lived sixteen vears after his 
 
 rfv 
 
460 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 retirement b}' the side of the college, rejoicing 
 in its revived prosperity, its larger endowment, 
 and in its faithfulness to the standard and the 
 traditions which he had established. During 
 these later years his health allowed him to do 
 but little labor, but he had a keen interest in 
 all public affairs and was full of sociality and 
 good humor. Death came suddenly upon him 
 at last without warning, and he was mercifully 
 saved from a painful sickness, which he had 
 always greatly feared. He died on Sunday 
 morning, May 28, 1871, in the seventy -seventh 
 year of his age. 
 
 The task which President Hitchcock under- 
 took was one of great difficulty on account of 
 the labor involved, and of great delicacy in con- 
 sequence of the excited state of feeling concern- 
 ing the college in the community and among the 
 graduates. Eveiy step he took was sure to be 
 criticised ; all his acts and every aspect of the 
 c 'liege under him were sure to be compared with 
 the great days of old when achievements as 
 well as hopes were high and skies were clear. 
 He came to the college in the prime of his life, 
 at forty-two years of age, with his powers well- 
 disciplined by seventeen years of ministerial 
 labors, in which he had learned to manage diffi- 
 cult financial affairs as well as preach the 
 Word. Singularly enough, he was a native of 
 Burton, a pupil, and subsequently a teacher in 
 the Academy of the Erie Literary Society, his 
 father being a Trustee and all his family and 
 friends stout defendants of that institution, 
 when the attempt was made to remove it to 
 Hudson. The sequel will show what a grand 
 revenge Burton and that society had on Hud- 
 son and the Western Reserve College. He 
 bore one of the most honored names in the his- 
 tory of the State of Ohio, and by his wisdom, 
 prudence and earnest Christian labors had 
 proved himself worth}- of it. He was not only 
 made President, which brought upon him the 
 financial responsibility, but he was also made 
 Professor of Christian Theology and Pastor of 
 the College Church. The professorship of the- 
 ology required that he should teach natural 
 theology and evidences of Christianity as 
 they are usually taught in colleges. As Pas- 
 tor of the church he was expected to preach 
 twice on Sunday in the chapel during term 
 time, and to do whatever other pastoral labor 
 he should find desirable. His preparation for 
 this last office was abundant ; for in all his min- 
 
 istrj' he had written faithfully and had acquired 
 the habit of extempore speaking. The teach- 
 ing which he did gave him one recitation or 
 lecture a day for half the year. For this he 
 always studied diligently and he had an admir- 
 able grasp of the subjects of his department. 
 
 The teaching and the preaching would certain- 
 ly be consiilered a sufficient burden for one man 
 to bear in ordinar}^ circumstances ; but Presi- 
 dent Hitchcock had other burdens greater than 
 these. He had the financial burden of paying 
 the debt and collecting the subscriptions from 
 subscribers, many of them reluctant or hostile 
 by the transactions which had occurred since 
 they made their pledges ; and the task of doing 
 away with the prejudice in the communit}', en- 
 gendered by the quarrels of the last five years, 
 of winning back alienated friends and divided 
 Alumni. 
 
 Few men could have been found willing to 
 undertake such a work. It required a man who 
 was ready to face long and incessant labor, will- 
 ing to subject himself to ungrateful criticism, 
 to encounter rebuffs, and tov/ait long for recog- 
 nition and obvious success. President Hitch- 
 cock had all these qualities. When he had 
 made up his mind that duty called him to the 
 work, his whole soul was devoted to it, so that 
 no obstacles daunted him, and nothing that he 
 possessed was kept back. He had all the en- 
 ergy, devotion and spirit of self-sacrifice, which 
 characterized President Pierce, but he was 
 especially fitted for his difficult office because 
 he was yielding and conciliator}- in his temper, 
 never asserting himself, but always putting for- 
 ward his cause, and, while firmly adhering to 
 principle, and always insisting on what was just 
 and right, he was cautious not to offend. He 
 was kindly, charitable toward all men, friendly 
 with everybody, considerate of everybody. 
 He was such a thorough Christian man that 
 none who knew him could fail to see that he 
 was not serving himself but God. His modest, 
 unassuming Christian character impressed it- 
 self upon the students, and made it eas}- for 
 him to govern and to lead them in right wa^-s. 
 
 Another thing which fitted President Hitch- 
 cock for his general work outside the college, 
 was his ability as a preacher and his tact and 
 experience in revivals of religion. This made 
 him a valuable man to the religious interests 
 of this part of the State, in a way which every- 
 body could see and appreciate. His value as a 
 
Iv> 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 461 
 
 mail won friends to his cause. Indeed, we ma}' 
 almost say that Dr. Hitchcock had no quality., 
 intellectual, moral or personal, and there was 
 no event in his previous histoiy which did not 
 directly fit him for the laborious and delicate 
 task whicii he now undertook. 
 
 The most pressing demand which President 
 Hitchcock met when he entered upon his work 
 was the payment of the debt. This debt he 
 found, at the beginning of his term of office, 
 about $22,000. It had not been reduced at all 
 since October, 1851. On the withdrawal of 
 President Pierce it was increased to $25,000 by 
 the vote of the board to pay him $3,000, rather 
 as some small recognition of his past services 
 than as a compensation for them. The general 
 fund applicable to the pa3'ment of this debt 
 had mostly disappeared. As no part of the 
 permanent fund could be used for this purpose, 
 it was necessary to raise the means by a special 
 subscription. This was a hard thing to do, 
 but one which absolutely must be done if the 
 college was to survive. To this, therefore, the 
 President applied himself It was necessary 
 that he should go about it by personal solicita- 
 tion. The work went on slowly but steadil}', 
 as he could gain time from his other duties. It 
 was no slight labor, meanwhile, to manage the 
 obligations and to meet the interest. It was 
 onlj' after nine years, in 18G4, that the last of 
 the debt was paid. It had begun to accumu- 
 late as early as 1836, and thus, after twent}'- 
 eight years, having caused unspeakable vexa- 
 tion and having nearly swamped the college in 
 the meantime, it was removed. The lesson was 
 one which this college will not soon forget. The 
 good friends who helped to lift that load de- 
 serve to be held in special gratitude. 
 
 But this was not the only financial work of 
 the President during this period. The out- 
 standing pledges to the permanent fund, which 
 amounted, in 1855, to about $43,000, were now 
 all full}' due, and needed to be immediately 
 collected, principal and interest, and invested. 
 This was essential in order to provide for the 
 running expenses. But such was the state of 
 feeling among many of the subscribers, grow- 
 ing out of the discords in the college, which 
 had become so notorious, that we cannot won- 
 der that the}' were very reluctant to meet their 
 pledges. The financial crisis of 1858 brought 
 a new difficult}" in the case of many who had 
 not yet paid. But the work was carried stead- 
 
 ily forward by this quiet, kindly, persistent 
 man, until nearly the whole sum was paid or 
 compromised. In connection with these labors, 
 the President began, as early as April, 1856, to 
 solicit new subscriptions to the permanent fund. 
 This was necessary if the college was to main- 
 tain its old standard of scholarship and in- 
 struction ; for the Faculty must be enlarged, 
 and salaries must be raised in order to get and 
 retain suitable Professors. The means for sup- 
 porting instruction must not only be more am- 
 ple, but must not be contingent, as in the olden 
 times, nor would it do again to pay Professors 
 with orders nor with store pay. In 1859, he 
 began to secure donations to the general fund. 
 These various labors he carried forward simul- 
 taneously, with such respites as the state of the 
 country required, until the time of his death in 
 1873, when, it is found, that he added $67,000 
 to the permanent fund and $99,000 to the gen- 
 eral fund, besides paying the debt and collect- 
 ing all that was collectable of the money due 
 on the pledges made between 1848 and 1850. 
 A considerable portion of this general fund was 
 afterward transferred to the permanent fund. 
 And this work he did himself, not by agents, 
 except in the matter of about $6,000. Besides 
 this, with the aid of the prudential committee, 
 of course, he had the care of the funds, and of 
 their safe investment — a duty of no small im- 
 portance — which he performed with great wis- 
 dom and prudence. 
 
 Of the Faculty of the old palmy days, only 
 Prof Seymour remained under the new regime, 
 Prof Day retaining a mere nominal connection 
 with the college until 1859. Prof Emerson, 
 who had come into the Chair of Mathematics 
 and Physics during the interim, retired in April, 
 1856, and was succeeded in January following 
 by Mr. Charles A. Young, a graduate of Dart- 
 mouth, who served the college with great suc- 
 cess until February, 1866, when he resigned 
 to accept the Chair of Physics and Astronomy 
 at Dartmouth College — a chair which had been 
 filled by his father and grandfather before him. 
 In April of that year, Mr. Young was succeeded 
 by Mr. Allen C. Barrows, of the Class of 1861, 
 who served until the close of the year 1869-70, 
 when Mr. Charles J. Smith, of the Class of 
 1870, the present incumbent, entered upon that 
 office. Prof Hosford came in, also, in what 
 we may call the interim, to the Chair of Intel- 
 lectual Philosophy and Rhetoric, which he 
 
 rf^: 
 
46-: 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 filled until December, 1859. He was succeeded 
 by the present incumbent in April, 1860. 
 Prof. Seymour retained the Chair of tlie Greek 
 and Latin Languages until 1870, having en- 
 tered upon this professorship in September, 
 18-10. He thus served the college with distinc- 
 tion from the days of its greatest prosperit}' 
 under President Pierce, through the period of 
 conflict and darkness, until the time of its 
 gi'eatest prosperity in the new era. On his 
 i-esignation, he was made Emeritus Professor. 
 He has since given instruction on two occa- 
 sions, when his services were needed. Mr. 
 Edwin S. (Iregory, a graduate of Harvard Col- 
 lege, held the position of Atljunct Professor of 
 Latin, and gave instruction in the college from 
 18G1 to 1866, while he was Principal of the 
 preparatory school. 
 
 On the retirement of Prof Seymour, the pro- 
 fessorship was divided, 3Ir. Thomas D. Se}-- 
 mour, his son, of the Class of 1870, being ap- 
 pointed to the Chair of Greek and Modern 
 Languages, with leave of absence for two 3'ears, 
 that he might study and travel in Europe. The 
 work of the Greek Department v/as performed 
 meantime b}^ William R. Perkins, of the Class 
 of 1868. The Chair of Latin and English Lit- 
 erature was taken b}- Prof Allen C. Barrows, 
 who filled it but one year, when he resigned to 
 become Pastor of the church at Kent. He was 
 succeeded immediatel}* by Kev. Lemuel S. Pot- 
 win, a graduate of Yale, the present incumbent. 
 In 1868, Mr. Edward W. Morley, a graduate of 
 Williams College, was appointed Professor of 
 ( 'hemistry and Natural History, a chair which 
 had been vacant since Prof St. John resigned 
 in 1852. The instruction in this department 
 had been given, meantime, by lecturers — two 
 years, 1855 and 1856, by Prof. Chadbourne, 
 now President of Williams College, and from 
 1857 to 1868 inclusive by Prof Cassell, of the 
 Medical Department. Mr. Morley began his 
 services as Professor in Januar}-, 1869. In 
 1860, Prof Long returned to the college as 
 lecturer for one term in the Department of Moral 
 Philosophy. From 1869 to 1872, Hon. Thomas 
 Hastings, of Cleveland, gave a course of lect- 
 ures each year on Municipal Law. Since 1869, 
 Mr. M. C. Read, of the Class of 1848, has given 
 a course of lectures each year on Practical Ge- 
 ology and Zo'.jlogy. Such were the changes in 
 the Faculty during President Hitchcock's ad- 
 ministration. 
 
 The prosperity of the college, which was ob- 
 viously returning in all respects, received a se- 
 vere check at the breaking-out of the war in 
 1861. It was then the first thought of every 
 one that all else must be sacrificed if need be, 
 for the salvation of the country. Young men 
 in college were among the first to feel the pat- 
 riotic impulse. Several students entered the 
 army at the first call for volunteers. During 
 the summer term in 1861, all the students en- 
 tered heartily into military drill under the in- 
 struction of Col. Ilayward, of Cleveland. At 
 the beginning of the next term, the classes 
 were verj' much diminished, a considerable 
 number entering the service for the war. The 
 grammar school also furnished a large quota of 
 soldiers. It is much to be regretted that no 
 record was kept of the undergraduates who en- 
 tered the array. The catalogue of 1862-63, at 
 the end of the summary, adds the remark : " In 
 addition to those named and enumerated above, 
 there are in the army sixteen members of col- 
 lege classes, and twenty-seven members of the 
 preparatory school." Of course there were many 
 others before and after that year who left to 
 serve the country. In May, 1862, after the de- 
 feat of Banks in the Shenandoah Valley, Presi- 
 dent Lincoln issued a new call for volunteers to 
 serve three months. The students had a well- 
 drilled military- compan^' and immediately of- 
 fered their services to Gov. Tod. They were 
 accepted and repaired to Columbus, where 
 they remained in charge of the military prison 
 for three months, after which they were sent to 
 Vicksburg in charge of a large body of prison- 
 ers for exchange. They were mustered out 
 September 29. Commencement was held that 
 year on the 15th day of October, and the first 
 term of the new academic 3'ear began on the 
 following da}^ This was the only interruption 
 of the regular work of the college during the 
 war, but of course the numbers were kept down 
 and the financial progress was doubtless much 
 retarded. Of those undergraduates who en- 
 tered the army, quite a number lost their lives, 
 and those who returned found themselves either 
 past the college age, or from other causes un- 
 able to complete their studies. The war record 
 of the college must be considered good, since 
 somewhat more than 100 out of -102 of the ac- 
 ademic alumni served in the army, to say 
 nothing of the theological and medical gradu- 
 ates. They were found in all ranks from pri- 
 
 T 
 
fe* 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 463 
 
 vate and hospital steward up to Major Gen- 
 eral. 
 
 It might well be supposed that no man could 
 bear alwaj's such a burden of care and labor 
 as that which President Hitchcock took upon 
 his shoulders. He maintained great vigor and 
 elasticity of health and constitution for several 
 years ; but, in 1867, his health seemed to be 
 giving way, and it was obvious that he must 
 rest or break down. He desired to be released 
 from his connection with the college, but 
 neither the Faculty nor the Trustees would con- 
 sent to his resignation. The physicians ad- 
 vised at least six months of rest. At a meeting 
 of the prudential committee in September, 
 leave of absence was given him for eight 
 months, the Faculty undertaking to do his 
 teaching and to supply the pulpit during his 
 absence. Leaving home on the 8th of October, 
 he went to the southern part of France, where 
 he spent the winter. After some travel he 
 returned home in season for commencement the 
 following June, very much recruited in health. 
 But the old energy and power to work never 
 fully returned. He went on, however, as before, 
 with some assistance in the pulpit, still improv- 
 ing the financial condition of the institution, 
 and discharging his ordinary public duties. 
 But, in February, 1870, feeling too much the 
 pressui'e of care, he tendered his resignation ; 
 but, at the earnest solicitation of the Trustees, 
 withdrew it. Again, in June, 1871, he renewed 
 his resignation, which was now accepted. He 
 remained, however, in his professorship as Pas- 
 tor^of the church and in care of the financial 
 affairs. He was really relieved only from the 
 government of the college and from responsi- 
 bility for home affairs. After the great im- 
 provement in the financial condition, it was the 
 responsibility for the government which had 
 especiall}^ worn upon him. Dr. Hitchcock con- 
 tinued in the discharge of his duties until the 
 summer of 1873, when a few daj's before com- 
 mencement he was taken sick and died on the 
 6th of July in the sixtieth 3'ear of his age. 
 
 On the resignation of President Hitchcock, 
 at commencement, in 1871, Prof Carroll Cutler 
 was elected to fill the vacancy. He entered on 
 the duties of the oflSce immediately, but was 
 not inaugurated until commencement in 1872. 
 The presence of Dr. Hitchcock and the respon- 
 sible position which he still filled caused the 
 affairs of the college to go on as before, and 
 
 there was nothing to indicate to any one that 
 any change had occurred. Before 1872, the 
 question so much discussed in some other col- 
 leges of the same type with this, in regard to 
 the admission of women to equal privileges of 
 study and instruction, had been often privately 
 considered by the Facult}'. Especially when 
 some women asked to be admitted to Wabash 
 College and were refused, the question was 
 sprung, " What course should we take in like 
 circumstances ?" It was unanimousl}- agreed 
 that if any woman thirsting for knowledge 
 should seek it at their fountain she should not 
 be refused merely because she was a woman. 
 Neither the charter nor the laws of the college 
 presented any obstacles to the admission of 
 women, and, on inquiry, it was thought there 
 would be no objection on the part of the 
 Trustees. In his inaugural address, therefore, 
 Mr. Cutler announced the fact that women 
 would be admitted to all the privileges of the 
 college on the same conditions with men. In 
 the autumn of 1872, several 3'oung ladies 
 entered the preparatory school ; in 1874, one 
 entered the Freshman class, and, in 1875-76, 
 there was one in the Senior class, one in the 
 Sophomore, and two in the Freshman class. So 
 far they have been conducted with credit and 
 maintained an average grade of scholarship. 
 
 During the existence of the Theological De- 
 partment, its histoiy was one with that of the 
 college, and has been substantially recounted 
 above. It really began operation when Mr. 
 Green came here as Professor of Biblical Liter- 
 ature, in 1830, and continued until 1852. The 
 time of its greatest prosperit}' was from 1842 
 to 1850. It was abandoned because there were 
 not funds enough to support Professors. The 
 necessit}' for a Seminary had ceased also, be- 
 cause two others had been planted since the 
 opening of this, one in and another near the 
 field which this was intended to occup}'. The 
 funds which were contributed as a permanent 
 endowment of this department were very 
 small. Mr. Heman Oviatt gave $10,000 in 
 1837 to endow the Chair of Sacred Rhetoric. 
 In 1853, Mr. Oviatt, in writing, expressed his 
 desire to the Trustees that, in view of the then 
 present state of the college, the Professor, on 
 his endowment, should give instruction in the 
 Collegiate Department. To the endowment of 
 the other theological chairs, there was contrib- 
 uted only about $5,800. Twelve hundred dol- 
 
 V 
 
464 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 lars of this was o;iven by "sundry persons," 
 through Moses Allen, of New York, and no 
 further record can now be found of it. Four 
 thousand six hundred dollars were given by 
 eighty-six persons in small sums, the largest 
 single donation being $212. All other funds 
 were for current use. 
 
 The high character of the seminary is obvi- 
 ous from the abilit}' of the men who ftUed its 
 chairs of instruction, and also from the stand- 
 ing and usefulness of those who received their 
 theological education here. One needs but to 
 recall the names of President Storrs, Professors 
 Green, Folsom. Long, Hickok, Barrows and 
 Day to show that the instruction was nowhere 
 abler. These names, also, as well as those of 
 their pupils, clearly indicate the doctrinal 
 views taught. Those who studied here have, 
 many of them, occupied prominent positions, 
 and all of them have been very useful in the 
 ministrj' of the Presbyterian and Congrega- 
 tional Churches, in both the home and foreign 
 fields. The seminary was linked to that eccle- 
 siastical system which grew upon the Reserve, 
 called the '-Plan of Union." The Professors 
 all entered heartily into it in good faith, as did 
 most of the churches, until restless and grasp- 
 ing men on both sides drove forward the work 
 of division. The seminary, however, and all the 
 Professors, continued their adhesion to the Plan. 
 The number of those whose names appear in the 
 catalogue as theological students is 106. It 
 does not look at present as though this de- 
 partment would ever be resumed, at least in 
 its old form. The seminaries now in operation 
 are enough for the wants of the countr}-, and 
 will be for a long time to come. 
 
 A preparatory school was opened in connec- 
 tion with the college at the very first. Per- 
 haps it would be better to say that the college 
 was first opened in connection with a prepara- 
 tory school ; for the first Freshman class was 
 admitted and studied the first year at Tall- 
 madge, in the academ}-, under Mr. David L. 
 Coe, who was Principal of the school, and col- 
 lege tutor pro tempore. When the college 
 opened in the new building at Hudson, in the 
 fall of 1827, the first catalogue shows that 
 there was a Sophomore and a Freshman class, 
 a preparatory class and a class pursuing a par- 
 tial course. There has been a preparatory 
 class ever since. The name " Preparament ^' 
 was first used in 1838. In 1843, there was a 
 
 Preparatory Department in two sections, class- 
 ical and English. In 1850, this department 
 was first called a " Grammar School," a name 
 which it retained until 1860, since which date 
 it has been called a " Preparator}' School." 
 
 It was the expectation of the Trustees that it 
 would be necessary to continue the school but 
 a very few 3'ears, they supposing that academies 
 would be established and endowed on the Re- 
 serve as they had been in New England. At 
 one time there were as man}' as twenty acade- 
 mies in successful operation. First and last 
 there have been more than thirty academies on 
 the Reserve. But nearly all of these schools 
 were entireh' unendowed, and as the public 
 schools improved, the number of pupils in them 
 diminished, and as new, more exciting and more 
 remunerative fields of labor opened, teachers 
 could not be found for them, and the}- were 
 abandoned. A number of them have been 
 attached to the school system of the towns 
 where they are as high schools. But the}" do 
 not thus accomplish the object of endowed 
 academies. The necessit}' for the preparatory 
 school, therefore, continues to this da}-, and we 
 can see no prospect that it will soon cease. 
 
 This school has always been under the super- 
 vision of the college Faculty, and taught for the 
 most part by some of the younger graduates. Oc- 
 casionally some of the Professors have given in- 
 structions there for brief periods, and Professor 
 Gregory was Principal and carried on the school 
 for five years, with the aid of a tutor, after he 
 was made Adjunct Professor of Latin in college. 
 The school has never been self-supporting, ex- 
 cept for two years, 1850-52, under Mr. Turner. 
 During the period when the great calamity and 
 depression were upon the college, from 1852 to 
 1860, the teachers received only the tuition fees, 
 but the college furnished for it a local habita- 
 tion. 
 
 The early catalogues show that there were 
 from the beginning, students here in a partial 
 course. The precise nature and extent of that 
 course is not indicated. As these men were 
 not Bachelors of Arts, it is probable that they 
 pursued the higher English studies with the 
 college classes and received a certificate of pro- 
 ficiency, but not a degree. In 1855, when 
 President Hitchcock entered on his office, a 
 Scientific course was announced in the cata- 
 logue, '' designed for those who desire a more 
 complete education than is furnished by acada- 
 
 TT 
 
■^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 465 
 
 mies and high schools, without pursuing the 
 learned languages." The course of study was 
 intended to be three 3'ears. In 1839, the cata- 
 logue contains the names of two resident grad- 
 uates, and in 1845, one besides those engaged 
 in theological study. They were pursuing 
 those studies which properl}' belong to a Phil- 
 osophical Department. In 1847, appear the 
 names of eleven Bachelors and Masters of Arts, 
 who were engaged here in such work, and in 
 1848 there were sis names in the same class. 
 
 The library has grown, but ver}- slowl}-, to 
 some 7,000 volumes, mostly by donations of 
 books, while the college has paid out of the 
 treasury probably about $1,200 for this object 
 previously to the year 1874. The library has 
 now an endowment of $3,700, and waits with 
 strong desire for the payment of the remainder 
 of the $10,000 subscribed for its endowment at 
 commencement in 1873. The society libraries 
 contain about 5,400 volumes, purchased by the 
 students from time to time. 
 
 The ph3^sical apparatus, which must have 
 been reasonably good for so young an institu- 
 tion according to the ideas of those early times, 
 was greatly increased by Prof Loomis when he 
 entered upon his work here in 1837. He 
 brought with him from Europe the most im- 
 portant instruments for investigation and in- 
 struction, to the value of $2,200. This appa- 
 ratus has been well preserved, and since 1868, 
 has been steadily increased by the addition of 
 almost all those new instruments which the ad- 
 vance of science has made necessary or useful 
 in a college in order that the instruction might 
 keep pace with the times. 
 
 The astronomical observatory was built un- 
 der the direction of Prof Loomis in 1838, at a 
 cost of a little above $1,000, and furnished 
 with a transit circle, equatorial telescope and 
 siderial clock, procured in Europe at an ex- 
 pense of $1,750. 
 
 When Dr. St. John came, in 1858, $2,500 
 was appropriated as an outfit for his depart- 
 ment, some $500 of which was probably ex- 
 pended in the purchase of chemical apparatus, 
 and the $2,000 upon the cabinet. Accordingly, 
 the cabinet seems to have grown and prospered 
 for some time ; but, during the period of 
 depression and disaster, it was almost entirely 
 neglected. In 1858, it received a valuable 
 accession from Rev. Horace S. Taylor, of the 
 Class of 1840, and a missionary in India. He 
 
 procured a large fragment of a meteorite 
 which fell within his field of labor February 
 28, 1857, and sent it to the college. This was 
 broken up in consequence of man}- applica- 
 tions for specimens, and b}' exchanges the cab- 
 inet contains now a series of seventy-six 
 different meteoric irons and stones. There are 
 1,450 named and labeled specimens of mine- 
 rals in ca,ses, 500 not labeled, 250 specimens 
 of shells, with many duplicates, and a series of 
 casts of typical fossils, 173 in number, which 
 were added in 1874. There is also a small 
 collection of archaeological specimens. 
 
 The chemical apparatus procured by Prof 
 St. John had almost wholly disappeared when 
 President Hitchcock entered on his office. Very 
 little was done in the way of repairing these 
 losses until Prof Morley came, in 1869. Since 
 that date, this department has received its 
 proper share of attention. An admirable ap- 
 paratus for the purpose of anal^'sis and re- 
 search, as well as for use in instruction, has been 
 procured, mostly purchased in P]urope, at an 
 expense of $2,500. There is a well-furnished 
 laboratory for the use of students, where 
 the class perform, under the guidance of the 
 professor, all those experiments which are suit- 
 able for them. The departments of natural 
 science, which, from the very first, seem to 
 have attracted the enlightened attention of the 
 Trustees, have thus been well provided with 
 the means of instruction. 
 
 At the present, an important change in the 
 history of the college is pending, which must 
 result in important consequences to the insti- 
 tution. At a meeting of the Trustees at 
 Cleveland in 1876, the question was proposed 
 to the President as to how much money would 
 cover the cost of removing the college from 
 Hudson to Cleveland. After deliberation, the 
 sum was placed at $500,000 by President Cut- 
 ler, and an itemized statement to that effect 
 was drawn up. Subsequently, Amasa Stone, 
 Esq., of Cleveland, offered that amount if the 
 removal should be effected. A movement was 
 at once put in progress to secure this end, and 
 the success of this effort seems to be not far 
 from realization. There is, of course, a decid- 
 ed difference of opinion upon the wisdom, of 
 this course, some of the Alumni believing with 
 the great majority of the citizens of Hudson 
 that it does great injustice to those who have 
 sacrificed a great deal in its behalf, and at the 
 
^ 
 
 466 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUITTY. 
 
 same time carries the youth right into the 
 midst of temptations from which it is of the 
 greatest importance to shield them. On the 
 other hand, it is urged that Cleveland is des- 
 tined to attract a university, which, if the 
 Western Reserve College should neo;lect its 
 
 present opportunity, would result disastrously 
 to its interests. By removing to Cleveland, it 
 is hoped that the scope of the college's influ- 
 ence will be enlarged, its prosperity enhanced, 
 and that it will speedily assume that place 
 which its founders hoped for in its inception. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI.* 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS — INTRODUCTORY — FIRST IMPROVEMENT— EARLY SETTLERS— LAYING OUT OF 
 
 VILLAGE — INCORPORATION — ORGANIZATION AS A TOAVNSHIP— INDIANS 
 
 AND THEIR TRAILS — BANKS, CANAL AND OTHER 
 
 BUSINESS— FACTS, INCIDENTS, ETC. 
 
 ^r^HK citizen of the incorporated village of 
 J._ Cuyahoga Falls who looks back upon the 
 privations and labors which his predecessors 
 went through, and sees how many comforts and 
 advantages he has inherited, can hardly realize 
 how short the time is since the work first be- 
 gun. Those earliest laborers have all passed 
 away except Henry Wetmore. He still resides 
 in the town, at the age of over eighty yeai's. 
 He has seen every step of the progress of the 
 place, from the first real emigration to the pres- 
 ent time. He has been an active participant in 
 all these changes, since the day he helped to 
 mark the spot where the first work was to be 
 done. He alone can have a full, a complete 
 realization of the change that has been wrought. 
 To chronicle the leading incidents which have 
 taken place since the first settlement of the 
 village, and to record the changes brought 
 about since that period, is the object of this and 
 the following chapter. 
 
 Cuyahoga Falls is among the most thor- 
 oughly enterprising villages in Ohio. With im- 
 portant manufacturing industries, fine business 
 houses, and a progressive class of citizens, it is 
 worthy of conspicuous notice in the history of 
 vSummit County. It is situated on the Cleve- 
 land, Mount Vernon & Columbus Railroad, 
 thirty-four miles from Cleveland and five miles 
 distant from Akron, the county seat. The place 
 is four hundred feet above Lake Frie, with a 
 healthy and pure atmosphere, abundance of 
 purest water, fine churches and private resi- 
 dences, and one of the most complete school 
 buildings in the State. 
 
 * Contributed by C. W. Butterfleld. 
 
 There is probably no point in Ohio which of- 
 fers more desirable manufacturing advantages ; 
 and, as a place of residence, its elevated posi- 
 tion freeing it from miasmatic influences, its 
 beautiful scener}', and accessibility to the larger 
 cities of the State, renders it most desirable. 
 It has become a favorite resort for pleasure- 
 seekers and excursionists during the summer 
 months, where visitors can enjoy the beauties 
 of natural scenery unequaled in Ohio. For the 
 last twenty 3'ears its growth has not been rapid. 
 According to the Federal census of 1860, the 
 village had 1,516 inhabitants ; increased in 
 1870 to 1,859 ; in 1880 to 2,294. 
 
 As early as 1812, the water-power of the 
 Cuyahoga River, at the place where the stream 
 is now crossed by the railroad, having been 
 improved by Kelsey & Wilcox, there sprang 
 up in that immediate vicinity a number of 
 houses. This is still called the -'old village." 
 But the real founders of Cu3'ahoga Falls were 
 Joshua Stow (nominally), William Wetmore and 
 Henry Newberry. 
 
 The Western Reserve had been sold by the 
 State of Connecticut to the Connecticut Land 
 Company, who had it surveyed in 1797. It 
 was laid off" in townships five miles square, and 
 was designated b}' numbers and ranges. Num- 
 ber 3, of Range 10, came into possession of 
 Joshua Stow, of Middletown, Conn., and was 
 named after him. The township of Tallmadge 
 became the property' of two companies, of one 
 of which Roger Newberrj^ was a member. His 
 share was 1,000 acres. It la}- in the northwest 
 part of the township, now the southeast por- 
 tion of Cuyahoga Falls. So it was that the 
 
[^ 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 467 
 
 two — Stow and Newberry — ^owned what after- 
 ward constituted (as will soon be shown) " the 
 town of Cuyahoga Falls." 
 
 The undivided half of 210 acres in the south- 
 west corner of Stow's township — which now 
 embraces the northeast part of the village — was 
 purchased by William Wetmore, and together 
 they began the improvement of the tract in 
 1825. In 1814, Henry Newberry, the son of 
 Ivoger Newberry, came on to see his lands 
 which had been given him by his father, which 
 have been just described as 1,000 acres lying 
 in the northwest part of Tallmadge Township. 
 Henry was so well pleased with his gift that 
 he resolved to make there his future home. He 
 did not remove to Ohio, however, until 1824. 
 He first lived upon a farm at Stow Lake (now 
 Silver Lake) two j^ears, meanwhile making im- 
 provements at the Falls ; so that those of Stow 
 and Wetmore on the north, and those of New- 
 berry on the south were begun at about the 
 same period. The year 1825 may, therefore, 
 be considered as the one from which to date 
 the existence of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 While Henry Newberry was living at Silver 
 Lake, he ei'ected a log house for his workmen 
 upon the spot where George D^^re's house now 
 stands, and cleared about an acre between it 
 and the river. This was the first building upon 
 his part of the town. Stow and Wetmore 
 began their improvements by the erection of a 
 cabin where the brown house now stands north 
 of the livery stable, directly west of the upper 
 dam. The improvements made by them of the 
 water-power at this point will be noticed here- 
 after. 
 
 William Wetmore was born in Middle- 
 town, Conn., September 15, 1771. He was a 
 descendant of Thomas Wetmore, one of the 
 proprietors of Middletown, who purchased the 
 site of the Indians in 1662. He removed to 
 Ohio in July, 1804, and built the second house 
 that was erected in what was afterward Stow 
 Township. It stood about twenty rods east- 
 wardly of the northeast corner of Lot 36. In 
 1808, Stow Township was organized, and he 
 was elected a Justice of the Peace. In August 
 of that year, the county of Portage being or- 
 ganized he was appointed Clerk of the Court 
 at Kavenna. He afterward resigned the office, 
 moved back to Stow and settled on his farm. 
 He died at his residence on the east bank of 
 Silver Lake, October 27, 1827. Henry New- 
 
 berry was born in Windsor, Conn., in January, 
 1783. In 1814, soon after the death of his 
 father, he came to Ohio, as before stated, to 
 look at his possessions in the Western wilds. 
 He first lived at Silver Lake two years, having 
 moved there, as previously mentioned, in 1824, 
 and then took up his residence at the Falls. 
 He died in 1854, in the stone house, afterward 
 the residence of James H. Cooke. Such, in 
 brief, are the biographies of the founders of 
 Cuyahoga Falls.* 
 
 In 1822, Elkanah Richardson came from 
 Stow and built the house long known as the 
 " Red House," which stands a little north of the 
 " Big Spring," on the west side of Main street. 
 This house was the first frame house erected 
 south of the "old village." The first frame 
 building put up on Stow and Wetmoi'e's land 
 was intended for a dwelling-house and store. 
 It was built by William Wetmore, Jr., in 1826, 
 and is now known as the " Perry House." In 
 
 1828, the store now occupied by Giles L'Homme- 
 dieu was built, and the goods removed into it, 
 leaving the first to be used for a dwelling only. 
 It was not long before it became a place of en- 
 tertainment for strangers, and finally a regular 
 hotel. It was first kept by Benjamin F. Hop- 
 kins. He was succeecled by E. B. 31organ, and 
 he by Ira Loomis. It was known as the Amer- 
 ican House. It has passed through several 
 hands since then, but has been little changed. 
 The same j^ear (1828), Jabez Hamlin came and 
 built the house next south of the " Big Spring," 
 and, soon after, the tannery now owned b}' C. 
 Kettleberger. In 1829, Mr. Richardson built a 
 log house in the southeast corner of what is 
 now George Sacketts yard, and afterward the 
 thii'd house south of Falls street, on Front 
 street, in which he spent the rest of his life. 
 He died in 1836. 
 
 John Wells came to Cuyahoga Falls not long 
 after Jabez Hamlin, and built the house now 
 owned by the widow of the late John Tift. In 
 
 1829, John Rumrill came as the foreman in 
 Stow & Wetmore's paper-mill. He built the 
 house near the depot, known as the Jones 
 House. Rowland Clapp came from Vermont 
 and took up his residence in the village in 1828. 
 He has made it his home in the place ever 
 
 ♦Although Joshua Stow came to the township named after him 
 in 1804, he returned to Connecticut the next year; So that he can 
 only be identified as one of thefounders of the Falls from thecircum- 
 stances of his having an interest therein. On that account no 
 sketch of his life is given in this connection. 
 
 \ 
 
^- 
 
 468 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 since. E. N. Sill came in 1829, an<l, in 1834 
 and the year following, built the center part of 
 his house, the wings having been added at a 
 later date. The builder was Mr. Lodge, who is 
 still a resident of the Falls. Grrant E. Turner, 
 with his father, came in 1828 ; soon went to 
 Ravenna, but returned in 1835, and has resided 
 in the town since then. C. W. Wetmore and 
 S. D. Wetmore came to the place in 1832, and 
 built their houses soon after. John Eadie and 
 George Dailey came in 1830. 0. B. Beebe ar- 
 rived in 1831, and Israel James in 1832. Be- 
 fore this date came also the following : Pres- 
 cott Sawyer, Noah E. Lemoine, Henry James, 
 William Lauson, J. T. HoUoway, J. Blair, S. 
 D. Clark, Alexander Gillispie, Noah Rice, John 
 Willard, Birdsey Booth. Alexander English, 
 Isaac Gill, Prince Hopkins (colored), Asa Mar- 
 iner, Mr. Lamb, Mr. Teal, Thoma- Gill, John 
 Alexander, Simon Brown, William Perkins, 
 Charles Hamlin, Henr}' Barger, J. Jenkins, A. 
 Yockey, Joseph- Beebe, Dr. C. W. Rice, John 
 Braiuard, Nathan Rose, '• Judge " Burgess, 
 William Alley, James Alley, H. N. Pool, David 
 Wadsworth, A. Wadsworth. Many of these were 
 heads of families. 
 
 The town of Cuyahoga Falls was first laid 
 out in 1825, by Elkanah Richardson. It was 
 subsequently re-surveyed, platted and recorded 
 by Birdsey Booth. It was located in the town- 
 ships of Stow and Tallmadge, and included all 
 of the present platted village except so much 
 as has since been platted east of the Cuyahoga 
 River and north of the Tallmadge Township 
 line. The part last mentioned was platted and 
 recoi'ded by R. A. Ashman, Count}' Surveyor, 
 in 1837. The original proprietors were Henr^' 
 Newberr}', Joshua Stow and William Wetmore. 
 The proprietor of the addition was Joseph 
 Hale. No allotment has been made to the orig- 
 inal plat except the one of 1837. That part 
 lying in the township of Stow was owned b}' 
 Stow and Wetmore ; that part included in Tall- 
 madge was the propert}' of Newberr^'. 
 
 The name of the village is derived from the 
 falls in the Cuyahoga River, to be seen within 
 its limits. The stream has cut a channel into 
 the sandstone from eighty to one hundred feet 
 in depth. This deep-cut channel extends over 
 two miles. In it ai"e the falls. The name first 
 given to the village was Manchester ; but, as 
 there were many towns of that name in the 
 Union, and the falls of the river were seen to 
 
 be of great value and importance, it was 
 changed to Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 B}' an act of the General Assembly of the 
 State of Ohio, passed March 5, 1836, it was 
 provided that "so much of the townships of 
 Tallmadge and Stow as is comprised within 
 the following limits, to wit : Beginning at the 
 northwest corner of the township of Tallmadge 
 and running south on the west line of said 
 township, two hundred and forty rods ; thence 
 east two hundred and forty rods ; thence north 
 to the north line of Lots Nos. 1 and 2 in said 
 [township] of Stow ; thence west two hundred 
 and forty rods ; thence south to the place of 
 l)eginning ; and any addition thereto that may 
 be hereafter platted and i-ecorded, be hereby 
 constituted a town corporate, by the name of 
 Cu^-ahoga Falls." The act also provided for 
 the election of a Mayor, Recorder and five Trust- 
 ees — constituting the Town Council. This 
 body was given power, among other things, to 
 " provide for the election or appointment of a 
 Treasurer, a Town Marshal, and such other 
 subordinate officers as the}' may find neces- 
 sary." Unfortunately, the provisions of this 
 act were not known to the electors of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls " until after the day on which, b}- 
 said provisions, the election of the Town Coun- 
 cil should have been holden ; " and doubts hav- 
 ing " arisen whether the privileges granted by 
 said act " had not ceased by the neglect of such 
 election, therefore a bill was passed to revive 
 and amend the before-mentioned act, giving it 
 vitalit}' and removing all doubts as to its legal- 
 ity ; also providing for an election of oflScers 
 to be holden " on the first or any succeeding 
 Tuesday in April next," after the second act 
 took effect. 
 
 Pursuant to public notice, on the 4th of 
 April, 1837, the qualified electors of the town 
 of Cuyahoga Falls met at the schoolhouse for 
 the purpose of electing officers under the acts 
 of incorporation just described. Henry New- 
 berry was chosen Ma^^or ; Grant B. Turner, 
 Recorder; 0. B. Beebe, Asa G. Bill, E. B. 
 Dennison, E. N. Sill and Henr}- Wetmore, 
 Trustees. On the 7th of the same month, 
 these officers were qualified and the Council 
 organized. Ogden Wetmore was elected Treas 
 urer the same day, and, on the day following, 
 Sherman Peck was chosen Marshal. 
 
 The town of Cuyahoga Falls, thus organized, 
 continued its existence until March 1, 1852 — a 
 
•A 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 469 
 
 period of nearly fifteen years. During that 
 time, the following gentlemen filled, success- 
 ively, the office of Mayor : Henry Newberry, 
 C. W. Wetmore, Hosea Paul, C W. Wetmore, 
 Birdsey Booth, Hosea Paul, 0. B. Beebe and 
 C. W. Wetmore. It may here be mentioned 
 that a township was organized in April, 1851, 
 out of the corners of Tallmadge, Stow, North- 
 ampton and Portage, called Cuyahoga Falls. 
 Some time subsequent to this, it was generally 
 conceded by the denizens of the town of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, that it would be to the benefit of 
 all that the corporation should be given up 
 and cease to exist — that it should be, in fact, 
 merged into the newly created township of the 
 same name. So, on April 30, 1853, "on mo- 
 tion,'" said the Town Council, '• we do commit 
 all interests of the town of Cuyahoga Falls to 
 the Trustees of Cuyahoga Falls Township, and 
 that we do now adjourn without day." So the 
 town of Cuyahoga Falls ceased its corporate 
 existence. 
 
 In March, 1868, there was presented to the 
 Commissioners of Summit County, at their reg- 
 ular session, a petition of 215 residents and 
 qualified voters of the township of Cuyahoga 
 Falls, asking " that the territory known as the 
 township of Cuyahoga Falls " be made an in- 
 corporated village, under and b}^ the name of 
 the incorporated village of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 Thereupon, on June 3 of that year, the County 
 Commissioners entered upon their records the 
 following order : 
 
 The matter of the incorporation of the township 
 of Cuyahoga Falls under and by the name of the 
 " Incorporated Village of Cuyahoga Falls," came 
 up for hearing to-day, as adjourned from the March 
 session ; and, on consideration thereof, we, the 
 Commissioners of said county, do find and deter- 
 mine that due notice of the rtling and pendency of 
 said petition was given according to law ; and we 
 are of the opinion that the prayer of the petitioners 
 should be granted. And we do order that said town- 
 ship of Cuyahoga Falls may l)e organized under and 
 by the name of " The Incorporated Village of Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls," and order the same to be recorded. 
 
 The " village " was organized by the election, 
 September 1, 1868, of William A. Hanford, 
 Mayor ; Porter G. Somers, Recorder ; Henry 
 C. Lockwood, Treasurer ; T. F. Heath, Charles 
 Hunt, L. W. Loomis, W. M. Griswold and John 
 Hinde, Trustees, and l)y these gentlemen, on 
 the 9th of that month, taking the oath of the 
 office to wliich the}' were several I3' elected, and 
 assuming the duties thereof The following 
 
 gentlemen have successively filled the office of 
 Mayor : Richard Blood, C. P. Humphrey, J. 
 L'Hommedieu, H. B. Camp, George W. Rice, 
 William A. Hanford. The village is, as al- 
 read}^ shown, co-extensive with the township. 
 Its exact limits will hereafter be given. 
 
 At the March session of 1851 of the Board 
 of Commissioners of Summit County, " Hosea 
 Paul and others came and presented a numer- 
 ously signed petition, from the village of Cuj-a- 
 hoga Falls and vicinity, asking the Board of 
 County Commissioners to construct a new 
 township from the northwest corner of Tall- 
 madge Township, the southwest corner of Stow 
 Township, the southeast corner of Northamp- 
 ton Township, and the northeast corner of 
 Portage Township." On AVednesda}', March 5, 
 1851, •' The Board all present. Then came 
 Hosea Paul and others presenting a petition, 
 and urging personally that a new township be 
 formed out of the northwest corner of Tall- 
 madge, northeast corner of Portage, southeast 
 corner of Northampton, and the southwest cor- 
 ner of Stow Township, furnishing a map of the 
 proposed new township ; and the board l^enig 
 satisfied that all necessary legal preliminary 
 steps had been taken, and there is an incorpor- 
 ated village (Cuyahoga Falls) within the bounds 
 of the proposed new township, ordered that lots 
 one, two, eleven and twelve (1, 2, 11, and 12), 
 in the township of Stow ; lots eight, nine and 
 ten (8, 9 and 10), in the Township of North- 
 ampton ; all of tract one and fort}' rods of the 
 north part of tract five, in the Township of Tall- 
 madge, and so much of the northeast corner of 
 Portage Township as is embraced within the 
 following boundary, to wit : Beginning at the 
 northeast corner of said Portage Township, and 
 running thence west on the north line of said 
 
 Portage Township rods to the west line of 
 
 George Sackctt's farm of 160^^^ acres, thence 
 due south to the Cuyahoga River ; thence east- 
 erly on the north liank of said river to the east 
 line of said Portage Township ; thence on said 
 east line to the place of beginning — be consti- 
 tuted a township, and that the legal steps be 
 taken to organize the same under and by the 
 name of Cuyalioga Falls Township, Hosea Paul 
 pledging himself that he would give notices 
 required l)y law, and that the new township of 
 Cuyahoga Falls would defray all the expenses 
 incurred by the creation of said township." 
 
 The township thus set apart from the cor- 
 
 ^'y 
 
A^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 470 
 
 HISTOKY OF SUMMIT COUXTY. 
 
 ners of four others was erected by the County 
 Commissoiiiers for the purpose of accomo- 
 dating the citizens of the town of Cuyahoga 
 Falls. As the boundaries defined by the Com- 
 missioners were afterward adopted as the 
 boundaries of the incorporated village, it fol- 
 lows, of course, as already mentioned, that one 
 is co-extensive with the other ; and the limits 
 just given as those of the " township of Cu3'a- 
 hoga Falls " are the limits also of the " incor- 
 porated village of Cuyahoga Falls." 
 
 At the first election held in the Township of 
 Cuyahoga Falls, on the 7th of April, 1851, the 
 following persons were chosen officers for the 
 _year following : Trustees, Horace A. Miller, 
 Henry Newberr}^, Jr., and Porter Gr. Somers ; 
 Township Clerk, Grant B. Turner ; Township 
 Treasurer, Lucius Bradley ; Assessor, William 
 H. Taylor ; Constables, William W. Lucas and 
 William J. Wilson ; Supervisor, Seymour Dem- 
 ing. Upon the qualification of these officers, 
 and their assuming the duties of their respect- 
 ive offices, the township of Cu3^ahoga Falls 
 was legallj' organized. 
 
 The people of Cuyahoga Falls had before 
 been dependent upon four townships for the 
 administration of their affairs ; for, of course, 
 each township exercised jurisdiction over that 
 part lying within its limits. This Avas a great 
 inconvenience, as the citizens of the village felt 
 that they had a unity of interests. As it was, 
 a concert of action necessary to their relation 
 with each other was impossible. The organi- 
 zation of the new township was therefore a re- 
 lief in many wa^'s, and gave a new start to the 
 prospects of the town ; but its histor}' is so 
 merged into that of the village, that the two 
 are inseparable. 
 
 A writer, in speaking of Tallmadge Town- 
 ship, says : 
 
 "The water-power at the southwest and 
 northwest corners of the Township concentrated 
 population at these points till their numbers 
 were so great that Middlebury and Cuyahoga 
 Falls were made separate election districts, 
 and, at length, the northwest corner was set 
 off to the new township of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 " Of the aboriginal inhabitants, few, probably, 
 had ever inhabited this part of the country 
 even prior to the surrender of their title to the 
 whites. There are, indeed, evidences that, at 
 some remote period, this country was occupied 
 b}' a people more numerous and of a higher 
 
 type of civilization ; but this is true of Indians, 
 who occupied the country at the time of its 
 settlement by the whites. This had been the 
 border ground of different tril^es, and was oth- 
 erwise an unfavorable location for a large peo- 
 ple, depending mainly upon hunting for a sub- 
 sistence. Wild game, though seemingly abund- 
 ant to the whites, was ^-et too limited for the 
 wants of a larger population. 
 
 '• Living partly by a rude cultivation of the 
 soil and by fishing, as well as by hunting, the 
 Indians preferred the open and fertile bottom 
 land of rivers and lakes. There were, indeed, 
 some small and scattered villages or encamp- 
 ments of Indians in this vicinity. [The writer 
 here speaks of Tallmadge Township, but the 
 remark is equally true of Cuyahoga Falls.] A 
 small number of Senecas lived near the junc- 
 tion of the main and Little Cuyahoga, at or near 
 the place somewhat widely known in modern 
 times as the Chuckery. 
 
 " An anecdote of Stigwanish, the chief of these 
 Indians, has been related to me, which seems 
 to furnish evidence of somewhat higher moral 
 perceptions than has alwa^'s been ascribed to 
 untaught Indians. Stigwanish was friendl}- to 
 the whites, and often visited the settlement at 
 Hudson. It was at just about the time of the 
 first settlement of Tallmadge that this chief wtis 
 at the house of a Mr. Pease in Hudson, and. to 
 persuade a son of Mr. Pease, a child of some 
 four or five years of age, to come and sit upon 
 his lap, he offered to give him his pipe-hatchet. 
 The offer proved sufficient to overcome the re- 
 pugnance of the child to the swarthy face of 
 Indian. As the chief was about to leave, the 
 return of the hatchet was proffered, but reso- 
 lutely refused, Stigwanish saying. 'Musn't lie to 
 children — no good.' This native chief had 
 scarcely learned this precept from the whites, 
 however frequently, in his intercourse with 
 them, he might have had illustrations of its 
 truth, and he who obeyed it could scarcely have 
 been a savage. S. Pease, of Cuyahoga, was the 
 recipient of the chief's hatchet.'' 
 
 " A branch of an Indian trail," writes Gen. 
 Bieree, in 1854, in speaking of Cuyahoga Falls 
 Township, " from Fort Mcintosh, on the Ohio 
 [Beaver, Penn.,], to Sandusky, passes through 
 this township. On arriving near Fish Creek, 
 in Franklin, Portage Count}-, it branches — one 
 branch of the trail passing north, through the 
 Indian towns in Northampton and Bath ; the 
 
CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 471 
 
 other turning south to the Great Falls, called 
 by the Indians ' Coppacaw.' This was a cel- 
 ebrated trail for the Indians in their war ex 
 cursions, as well as with the ' Rangers ' in their 
 pursuit of them. It was on these two trails 
 that Bradj^'s men were divided, at the time of 
 his defeat near the towns on the Cuyahoga, 
 and on which a part made their retreat. Sev- 
 eral years ago, a rifle barrel was found in the 
 Big Spring, in this village, a remnant, proba- 
 bly, of that hasty flight. 
 
 "Tlie trail passes nearly in front of Mr. 
 Newberry's house, and, near where the canal 
 bridge now is, was a plateau of about twenty-five 
 feet square raised about a foot, where probably 
 had been a council house. In his garden, as 
 well as on the rise of ground north of the Big 
 Spring, are remains of Indian wigwams. But 
 poor ' Logan, the friend of the white man,' with 
 his braves, who so often traversed these grounds, 
 has gone to the spirit-land, where it is to be 
 hoped his fidelity will receive a better reward 
 than it did on earth — if not, justice is unknown 
 in earth or heaven." 
 
 The topography of Cuyahoga Falls presents 
 but few interesting features except in the im- 
 mediate vicinity of the river. Back from the 
 stream, the surface is gently undulating. The 
 falls are the most striking natural objects 
 within the limits of the village. The river, for 
 a distance of about two miles in this township 
 and Portage, has a descent of two hundred 
 and twenty feet. There are, in that distance, 
 three falls of considerable height, but the de- 
 scent for the whole wa^' is so rapid that it 
 forms a continuous water-power. The river 
 has made for itself a deep channel, with pre- 
 cipitous banks of great height, as already 
 mentioned. These are clothed with evergreen 
 and other trees, presenting very picturesque 
 scener}-. As will hereafter be shown, the eftect 
 of these natural embellishments in beautifying 
 the landscape has been to cause it to become a 
 fixvorite I'esort for parties of pleasure during 
 the summer months. This scenery' extends 
 from north to south nearly through the whole 
 length of the village. The town is underlaid 
 by sand rock, in which is an abundant supplv 
 of pure water. The slope of the land is such 
 as to render drainage an easy matter. This 
 furnishes special reasons for the healthiness of 
 the place. 
 
 Concerning the water-power of Summit 
 
 Count3% but particularly that of Cuyahoga 
 Falls, a writer in 1837, in a published state- 
 ment, says : 
 
 " The western part of the county of Portage 
 [now Summit County] affords, indeed, a field 
 full of interest, not only to the geologist, but 
 also to the agriculturist, the merchant, the 
 mechanic, and especially to the manufacturer, 
 for here are to be found in rich profusion all 
 the incentives to active industry and enlight- 
 ened enterprise. Within the space of about 
 fifteen miles north and south, and ten miles 
 east and west, it contains an extent of water- 
 power (so rarely to be found in abundance in 
 the State) which is known to be equaled by 
 an}" west of the mountains, and so distributed 
 as to accommodate an abundant population 
 and a great extent of country. This water- 
 power is the result of the fall of the main 
 Cuyahoga and the Little Cuyahoga Rivers 
 from the high level of the country, about two 
 hundred and fifty to three hundred feet to their 
 junction, and the fall of their united streams 
 thence to the north boundary of the count}-, 
 being about one hundred and seventy-feet. 
 The whole power is equal to drive 3-46 run of 
 mill-stones, each run being capable of grind- 
 ing 200 bushels of wheat a day ; or, to 3,460 
 horse-power, each one being equivalent to 
 raising 25,000 pounds one foot a minute." 
 The writer divides the " runs " as follows : "At 
 Franklin, 18 ; at Monroe Falls, 5 ; at Cuyahoga 
 Falls (within town plat), 80 ; at the same place 
 (within two miles of the center of the village), 
 114; Middlebury, 5 ; Akron (including acces- 
 sion by canal, etc.), 19 ; at the same place (on 
 Little Cuyahoga, within three miles north), 9 ; 
 on the main Cuyahoga River, at Niles, Boston, 
 and other places, 94 ; total, 346 run." There are 
 now (1881) five dams across the Cuyahoga 
 within the limits of the village, and all within 
 a distance of about a quarter of a mile. The 
 river is crossed by four bridges — the iron 
 bridge, which is the upper one, and is located 
 at the " old village ; " the stone bridge ; the 
 covered bridge, a wooden structure ; and the 
 high bridge, of iron. There is also a railroad 
 bridge which crosses the stream at the " old 
 village." 
 
 Coal of the best quality was discovered at 
 an early day upon Mr. Newberry's land, and 
 has been ever since mined with profit. The 
 first coal carried to Cleveland was from these 
 
 ^ 
 
473 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 mines, and the speculation proved a bad one. 
 " It was in the summer of 1828," says H. V. 
 Bronson, the pioneer of canal coal-carriers of 
 this region, " that I carried the first load of 
 coal over the Ohio Canal from the Tuscarawas 
 Valley. It came from the mine of Henry 
 Newberry, near Cuyahoga Falls — I can't tell 
 the exact location. It was brought from the 
 mine by wagon to Lock 20, where it was 
 loaded on the boat. There was about one 
 hundred tons of it. We took it to Cleveland, 
 and it required Newberry three years to get 
 rid of it, and he never sold one-third of that 
 even. People would come along and ask what 
 it was, and when told that it was cannel coal 
 would take a chunk away as a curiosity, but 
 they couldn't be induced to burn it ; they 
 didn't understand it, and preferred wood." 
 
 " When the Ohio Canal was opened to 
 Akron, in 1827," saj^s Col. Whittlesey, " it was 
 thought coal might be taken in wagons from 
 the mines, about three miles, to the canal at 
 Lock 16, north of Akron. Mr. Newberry tried 
 the experiment, I think, in 1828, but the Canal 
 Collector's returns do not show receipts of 
 coal till 1829." 
 
 '•Deacon E. Wright," continues the writer, 
 " and his son, Francis H. Wright, about this 
 time made an entry on the east side of the 
 coal hill, about one-foui'th of a mile south of 
 Newberry's. In 1830 or 1831, Cyrus Menden- 
 hall, formerly' of Cleveland, now of Jefferson 
 County, made explorations and borings on 
 Coal Hill. He found and opened coal at the 
 south end of this hill, but it was too thin to 
 work profitably. Another opening was made 
 at the end of the ridge by Mr. Woodruff soon 
 after, and this was worked until 1838. From 
 1829 to 1837, Mr. Newberry, F. H. Wright 
 and Messrs. Whittlesey & Newton mined coal 
 for Cleveland, which was hauled to the canal 
 at Lock 16." 
 
 It was customary in early times in Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, as well as in other places, to make 
 free use of whisky on most all occasions. For 
 laborers it was thought to bo almost as neces- 
 sary as bread. Stow & Wetmore furnished 
 a barrel a week to their workmen as their 
 stated supply. They also kept it on their 
 counter at the store for the use of all who chose 
 to drink, and a few refused. But they were 
 convinced that it was unnecessary and hurtful ; 
 and, after mature deliberation, they resolved to 
 
 banish its use and sale from their establish- 
 ment. In May, 1828, they put their resolution 
 into practice by refusing to furnish it to their 
 workmen. Upon this, the workmen withdrew 
 in a body to consult upon the course they 
 should pursue. They soon returned and de- 
 manded their accustomed supply. Upon the 
 repetition of the refusal, they left their work 
 and demanded their pay. About one-third of 
 the men came back on the new terms, but the 
 rest held out, and it was two mouths before 
 their places were filled liy new men. and they 
 could go on with their work. The firm adhered 
 to their purpose, and never returned to the use 
 or sale of it again. A temperance society was 
 organized at the time, which is believed to 
 have been the first in Ohio. It numbered at 
 first but nine men ; afterward sixty-five per- 
 sons in Stow Township became members. 
 There were at this time four distilleries in the 
 township, but in less than two years they had 
 all closed. 
 
 " On the north bank of the Cuyahoga, below 
 the village of Cuyahoga Falls," writes Gen. L. 
 V. Bierce, in his " Historical Reminiscences of 
 Summit County," " is a remarkable cavern. I 
 discovered it in 1826, when the country' around 
 there was a wilderness. It is on the very brink 
 of the chasm cut by the river ; and the small 
 opening but just large enough to admit a per- 
 son's body was on a level with the ground. A 
 few leaves, or a rotten log, will easil}' conceal 
 it. In company with Charles B. Thompson, 
 Orville B. Skinner and Jabez Gilbert, formerly 
 mail contractor from Pittsburgh to Cleveland, 
 I entered it, and found it about ten feet high. 
 It was divided into two rooms, with a small 
 passage between, barely sufficient for a person 
 to pass. There was no opening, except at the 
 place where I entered, from which I was let 
 down by my companions. It being totally dark 
 in the cavern, I could make but few examina- 
 tions ; and, fearing some chasm in the bottom, 
 I did not let my curiosity tempt me far in ni}- 
 explorations." 
 
 The Portage County ^Mutual Fire Insurance 
 Company was incorporated in 1831. It was 
 organized at Ravenna in 1832, by the appoint- 
 ment of William Coolman, Jr., Cyrus Prentiss, 
 Frederick Wadsworth, Edwin Wetmore, Elias 
 Smith, Charles Clapp and George T. Wallace, as 
 Directors, and Samuel D. Harris as Secre- 
 tary. 
 
"Il 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 473 
 
 No Inisiness was done b}- the company under 
 this organization. In Angust, 1833, a new 
 organization was effected, with Henr}' Newberry, 
 Henr}' Wetmore, William Coolmau, Jr., Edwin 
 Wetmore, George T. Wallace, as Directors ; 
 Henry Newberry as President ; E. N. Sill, Sec- 
 retary, and the company's office located at Cuya- 
 hoga Falls. Its business commenced immedi- 
 ately, and continued during the twenty-five 
 3'ears of its chartered existence, under the same 
 management, excepting only that, upon the 
 resignation of Henry Newberry in 1839, Justin 
 Gale was appointed President ; and, upon his 
 death in 1842, Frederick Wadsworth was ap- 
 pointed, and served till the close of the com- 
 pany's business. This company was the first 
 mutual insurance company organized in the 
 State, and one of the earliest in the country. 
 Its operations extended over the entire State, 
 and into the contiguous portions of the several 
 adjoining States. Tiie amount of its business 
 and its benefits largely' exceeded the anticipa- 
 tions of its original projectors. Its insurance 
 covered many millions, and it paid a proportion- 
 ate amount of losses. 
 
 No efibrt was made to extend the period of 
 its charter, it being the opinion of its long-time 
 manager that a diffei'ent plan of fire insurance 
 was better adapted to the changed financial 
 condition of the countr}'. 
 
 Another old " institution " of the village was 
 the " Cuyahoga Falls Band. ' This was organ- 
 ized in 1834, and was the first of the kind in 
 Northern Ohio. It was established upon tem- 
 perance principles, no one joining it who did 
 not pledge himself to refrain from the use of 
 intoxicating liquors. Its leader was Henry W. 
 Bill. It was composed of about a dozen mem- 
 bers. In 1835, they went to Cleveland to cele- 
 brate the Fourth of July. The Cleveland com- 
 mittee sent a packet boat to Old Portage to 
 convey them to the city. They also played at 
 the celebration of the opening of the Ohio and 
 I]rie Canal. They made an excursion to Mas- 
 sillon, where the}' gave a concert to the edifica- 
 tion of that infant town, besides participating 
 in other patriotic and festive scenes. The mem- 
 bers were E. N. Sill C. W. Wetmore, T. R. 
 Butler, C. Bronson, C. Wilcox, L. Wilcox, J. 
 H. Brainard, Mr. Sperr}^, R. Upson, H. Y. 
 Beebe, C. Thornburgh, Israel James. 
 
 In 1837, a description of Cuyahoga Falls was 
 published as follows : 
 
 Cuyahoga Falls is situated in the geographical 
 and business center of an interesting section of 
 country. It has an unrivaled water-power. This 
 water-power is all available. The descent of about 
 two hundred and forty feet in the Cuyahoga River 
 is by a long slope, the commencement and termina- 
 tion of which is but about two miles apart, and 
 which admits of tlie easy use of the whole fall, and 
 in such portions as may be desirable. The sides 
 and bottom of the river are rock, and the banks 
 furnish an abundance of the finest stone for all con- 
 structions whicli may be desired. 
 
 Coal is found in the hill forming the slope on 
 the eastern bank of the river and is supposed to l)e 
 within a short distance of the (Ohio & Pennsylva- 
 nia) canal; but no mines have j^et been opened less 
 than about a mile from the village. Its quality is 
 not surpassed by that of any in the State, and the 
 quantity is in exhaustible. 
 
 Within the village three dams are now erected, 
 giving a fall at each of fifteen, ten and twenty feet, 
 and another of twenty feet is about to be erected. 
 One is above Portage street; one below Broad street; 
 and one at the foot of Reed street. One of twenty 
 feet fall has been commenced near the foot of Tay- 
 lor street, and one of the same fall is about to be 
 erected at the foot of Prospect street. 
 
 The population of the village is now (1837) about 
 1,250. Three and a half years since, it was but 
 375. The whole number of deaths within its 
 bounds during the last six years has been as follows: 
 Adults — scarlet fever, one; chronic inflammation, 
 two; old age, one; epilepsy, one; consumption, one; 
 drowned, one; total, seven. Children over two 
 years — fever, one; killed by a fall, one; drowned, 
 one; measles one; total, four. Under two years of 
 all diseases, eight, Making a grand total of only 
 nineteen deaths in six years! 
 
 In each of the last two years (1836 and 1837), 
 there have been erected about one hundred houses. 
 The last season there would have been nearly double 
 that number built, had it not been for the derange- 
 ment in the currency of the country. The gross 
 receipts of the post office will probably exceed 
 $1,000 for the year (1837). This will indicate 
 in some measure the amount of business done 
 here. 
 
 The town (of Cuyahoga Falls) is binlt on both 
 sides of the (Cuyahoga) river. The land ascends 
 gradually from each bank about a half a mile, af- 
 fording fine situations for residences, combined with 
 facility of access to the water-power and canal, 
 around which the business, of course, centers. 
 Water of the purest quality is easily found any- 
 where in the sandstone rock which underlies the 
 town at various depths. The soil is well adapted 
 for building upon, for roads and for gardens. Thfre 
 are no stagnant waters in the vicinity, the rapi<l de- 
 scent of the river causing a gentle draught of air from 
 the high grounds during the stillest nights, which 
 prevents the a('(;umulation of those damp exhala- 
 tions which are usually found in the vicinity of 
 streams; and the inhabitants enjoy a degree of 
 health rarely to be found in any country. The 
 charaeter of the inhabitants may be in some meas- 
 ure estimated b}- tlie fact that it "is not known that 
 
 ^ 
 
474 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 ardent spirits are sold at any place in the village 
 (that is, in 1887, not 1881). 
 
 There is, in the village, a handsome Episcopal 
 church building; a Congregational meetinghouse; 
 and preparations are made for a Methodist meeting 
 house. There are common schools, a lyceum (en- 
 dowed with at least $3,000), a female seminary, and 
 preparations are making for a high school. The 
 scenery in and around the village is uncommonly fine ; 
 as you approach it, you acknowledge the justness of 
 the designation which has been given it as the 
 "Village of White Houses." The view of the falls 
 is said hardly to be sin-passed in beauty by any in 
 the country. 
 
 The amount of manufactures and sales of goods 
 within the last year (1836), have been carefully esti- 
 mated, and amount to $407,000; and the sales of real 
 estate have been to the amount of probably $300,- 
 000. The machinery propelled by water-power is 
 as follows: Two large paper-mills, one flouring-mill, 
 two saw-mills, one oil-mill, one pump-making estab- 
 lishment, one tilt-hammer, ax and scytlie factory, 
 one woolen-mill, one stone saw^-mill, one chair fac- 
 tory, oneplaning-mill, one furnace and foundry, one 
 engine and machine shop, and other smaller works. 
 There are two drug and medicine shops, one printing 
 office, one book-bindery, one book store, three shoe- 
 shops, four blacksmith-shops, one milliner's-shop, 
 two groceries, one hat and fur store, one pump-shop, 
 one clothing store, eight dry goods, etc., stores, four 
 tailor-shops, two tin factories, one plow factory, two 
 cabinet-shops. 
 
 After the revulsion in money matters in 
 1837, there was great embarrassment for want 
 of a eurrency, which led to the adoption of a 
 plan for issuing notes in the similitude of bank 
 notes, upon the basis of real estate for security. 
 But it was soon abandoned as a failure, caus- 
 ing loss to some, but without very serious inju- 
 ry to many persons. Some of these notes are 
 preserved by a few persons as curiosities and 
 mementoes of the past. They are signed by 
 Moses Thompson, President ; Ogden Wetmore, 
 Cashier. Upon their face are printed these 
 words : " Real estate pledged by deed of trust 
 to double the excess of issue beyond the capi- 
 tal paid in and stockholders liable." The "in- 
 stitution" was known as the Cuyahoga Falls 
 Association. The nearest banks at this time to 
 Cuyahoga Falls, were at Cleveland, Painesville, 
 Warren, Canton, Massillon and Wooster. 
 
 The Summit County Branch of the State 
 Bank of Ohio, was organized at Cuyahoga Falls 
 in 1845, by Joseph Hale, Horace H. Miller, 
 William Rattle, H. B. Tuttle, and others, with 
 a capital of $100,000, and Joseph Hale, as 
 President, and H. B. Tuttle, Cashier. 
 
 In January, 1851, its stock was transferred to 
 E. N. Sill, S. W. McClure, E. S. Comstock, 
 
 Charles Cantess and others — with E. N. Sill, 
 President, and E. S. Comstock, Cashier — with 
 which organization, with an occasional partial 
 change in the Board of Directors, it operated 
 till January, 1862, when J. H. Stanley was 
 appointed Cashier, and without other change 
 till the expiration of its charter in 1866, at 
 which time the First National Bank of Cuyaho- 
 ga Falls was organized with a capital of $50,- 
 000, by E. N. Sill, T. W. Connell. Henry New- 
 berry, C. S. Sill and others, with E. N. Sill, 
 President, and J. N. Stanley. Cashier. The 
 First National continued business till April, 
 1869, when it sold its franchises to the First 
 National Bank of x\kron. Its stockholders 
 then formed a banking partnership, under the 
 firm name of the International Bank of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, with the same officers — which last 
 organization is still continued. These three 
 banks had no legal connection, but were prac- 
 tically successors, their business never having 
 been publicly interrupted during the thirty-six 
 years now past. 
 
 After the completion of the Ohio & Erie 
 Canal, it was thought indispensable to the pros- 
 perity of this section of country that there 
 should be a water communication between 
 Cleveland and Pittsburgh, through the Western 
 Reserve and Pennsylvania. After much exer- 
 tion the Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal, extend- 
 ing from Akron, Ohio, to Beaver, Penn., was 
 completed. It passed through Cuyahoga Falls 
 and entered the Cu3'ahoga River at Frank- 
 lin Mills. A writer in 1837, says: "The Penn- 
 sylvania & Ohio Canal, now in the course of 
 rapid completion, forms a junction with the 
 western section of the Pennsylvania Canal at 
 New Castle, and unites with the Ohio Canal at 
 Akron. It strikes the bank of the Cuyahoga 
 River just below the village of Cuyahoga Falls, 
 and passing through that village on the bank 
 of the river adjoining, a water-power of about 
 150 feet fall in that stream, it passes through 
 the villages of Monroe Falls and Franklin, 
 affording to this part of the State a ready com- 
 munication with the Ohio, with the interior of 
 the State, Lake Erie, the Atlantic seaports, and 
 furnishing the means of a ready exchange of 
 the manufactures, the coal, and the various 
 other productions of the one ; for the iron, the 
 wool, the merchandise, and the agricultural 
 productions of the other." But necessity for 
 the canal had been greatly over-estimated, and 
 
 "TH 
 
A. 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 475 
 
 its tolls were never sufficient to pay expenses 
 and keep it in repair. It was found, also, that 
 as the eountr}- was alread}' up, the volume of 
 water in the Cuyahoga River was greatly re- 
 duced, so that in the summer it was necessai-y 
 to suspend some of the works at Cuyahoga 
 Falls for want of power, on account of its be- 
 ing diverted from the river by the canal at 
 Franklin. At a later period, the railroads laid 
 through this region being more direct and ex- 
 peditious, rendered the canal unnecessary, and 
 measures were taken to return the stream to 
 its ancient bed. After much contention with 
 the mill-owners at Akron, who alone were in- 
 terested in keeping it open, the canal was final- 
 1}' vacated, and the water allowed to resume 
 its old channel. 
 
 The growth and prosperity' of Cuyahoga Falls 
 have suffered for man}' years from a plan which 
 was undertaken in early times to divert the 
 water-power and use it elsewhere. Persons 
 came to the village and bought separate por- 
 tions of it, under profession of desiring to util- 
 ize it on the spot, but when the}' had possessed 
 themselves of the whole in the lower part of 
 the town, the}' organized a company called 
 the Portage Canal and Manufacturing Com- 
 pany, popularly known as the " Chuckery 
 Company." In 1843, they built a dam at the 
 upper end of their purchase with a race be- 
 ginning opposite what is now Hinde's Mill ; 
 this race they carried at great expense to what 
 is known as " Chuckery Plains," where they 
 planned for a city of magnificent proportions, 
 which they called " Summit City." They suc- 
 ceeded in getting this through, but they got 
 into quarrels among themselves and the work 
 was stopped. Law-suits followed, and after 
 years of litigation the company broke np and 
 the scheme was abandoned. Their dam and 
 race went to decay, and the ruins of the latter 
 and the gloomy remembrances of surviving 
 members of the " Chuckery Company," are all 
 that remain of the magnificent scheme. '• Sum- 
 mit City," which was to have been one of the 
 largest manufacturing places in the United 
 States, has dissolved "into thin air." 
 
 Li 1852, the Cleveland & Pittsburgh Rail- 
 road was completed, thereupon steps were 
 taken to build a railroad which should leave 
 the first-mentioned road at Hudson and go 
 south through Cuyahoga Falls. It resulted in 
 what is now the Cleveland, Mount "N^ernon & 
 
 Columbus Railroad. It was opened to Akron 
 before the close of the year, and, in two years, 
 was completed as far as Millersbui'g. This 
 gave to Cuyahoga Falls a new means of transit, 
 and has done much to increase the prosperity 
 and comfort of the people. The track runs 
 near the bank of the river through the entire 
 village, from north to south ; and, from its con- 
 spicuous position, gives passengers an excel- 
 lent view of the scenery, and of the natural 
 advantages of the place as a business center. 
 The road is convenient to all the shops, giv- 
 ing them access to its cars without expense 
 for side tracks, and ofl[ers superior inducements 
 to manufacturers to invest their money where 
 they have so many advantages at so little ex- 
 pense for cartage or individual outlay, to ac- 
 commodate their business. 
 
 In 1853, the school district library was com- 
 menced, and for several years was kept in the 
 school building. In 1873, the library, contain- 
 ing 800 volumes, was removed to the business 
 street, and, by the efforts of the G. A. R., was 
 added to a free reading-room under the charge 
 of J. H. Brainard, Librarian. In 1878, by the ef- 
 forts of the Temperance Union, a building was 
 constructed for the library and reading-room 
 free to all. Under Mr. Brsinards charge, the 
 reading-room has been supplied with the Cleve- 
 land and Akron papers, and with scientific, ag- 
 ricultural and literary periodicals, and the libra- 
 ry has been increased by the addition of scien- 
 tific statistical works. 
 
 Joshua L'HoMMEDiEr, Plaintif, 
 
 against 
 George A. Wait and 
 Elizabeth W. Wait, Defendants. J 
 
 Plaintiff complains of the said defendants for 
 that the said phiintiff was on the 6th day of ]\Iarch, 
 A. D. 1858, the owner and tlien in possession of a 
 certain liarrel or cask of brandy, thenl)ein,<r and sit- 
 uate in the Township of Cnyaliosra Falls, Countyof 
 Summit and State of Ohio. 
 
 Phiintiff' further comphiins of the defendants 
 for that on said 6tli (hiy of March, A. 1). 18.-)8. the 
 said defendants did with force and arms, at lliesaid 
 township of Cnyahosi'a Falls, break open said barrel 
 of brandy, wlie'reby the contents of .said l)arrel. to 
 wit : twenty-tive gallons of brandy, were wholly 
 lost and des'troyeiC to the damage of the plaintiff, 
 in the sum of .*n()0. Whereupon the said plaintiff 
 asks judgment against the said defendants for the 
 sum of 1 100. 
 
 Such was the commencement of a suit for 
 damages brought ^[ay 9, 1859, by Joshua 
 L'Hommedieu against the defendants al)ove- 
 
 In (laninges. 
 
 K 
 
476 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 named, before C. W. Wetmore, a Justice of the 
 Peace, in Cuyahoga Falls. The result of the 
 suit was a judgment for $60. One of the de- 
 fendants, Mrs. E. W. Wait, was said to have 
 been one of the compan}' of ladies engaged in 
 what is known as the '' Whisky Riots," on March 
 6, 1858, when divers barrels of whisky, brandy, 
 beer and other 'beverages" were taken vie et 
 armis and emptied into the gutters of the vil- 
 lage ; hence, the bringing of the above-men- 
 tioned suit. 
 
 Cuyahoga Falls, during the war of the re- 
 bellion, was not behind her sister towns in her 
 readiness to assist the country in her sorest 
 need. A large number of men were enlisted in 
 several regiments and batteries. Of these, the 
 following fill soldiers' graves : Capt. D. N. Low- 
 ry, Thomas Evans, J. D. Cooke, J. I. Patterson, 
 William Lyons, George L. Holden, David Mc- 
 Arthur, First Lieut. John Eadie, Jr., Second 
 Lieut. J. C. Ely, J. W. Eddv, Robert Cxaylord, 1. 
 J. Wood. C. Neeley, A. K. Goodrich, F. B. Pu- 
 rine, Robert Green, Edward Green, John Patter- 
 son, J. B. Lyon, Seneca Blood, John Congden, 
 John Shellhorn, Charles E. Moon, G. G. Crane, 
 J. Murphy, John C. Schneible, H. F. Eddy, H. 
 J. Ligalls. J. Hogle. These names should be 
 cherished as a precious treasure, to be handed 
 down to posterity, that they may give them the 
 honor they so justly deserve. To them and 
 their many associates is due the preservation of 
 the country in its integrit3^ 
 
 The people of Cuyahoga Falls were long 
 noted for their social qualities. They came to 
 the town from difterent places, having been 
 reared under different influences. In the early 
 settlement of the place, they were all, of course, 
 brought into contact, and there was, of neces- 
 sity, a toning down of many of the asperities 
 peculiar to New England manners and habits. 
 The consequence was, that there was a friend- 
 ship which continues, though in a modified 
 form, to the present day. Later years and the 
 coming in of new residents have changed the 
 aspect of aftairs somewhat ; not, however, to 
 the gain of happiness or the pleasures of social 
 life. The recollections of the older inhabitants 
 are always pleasant, as they go back over those 
 early days, and the regret which they often ex- 
 press because of the change shows how superior 
 was the enjoyment then to what is now the 
 rule. This, however, is not wholly the fault of 
 the present. In those days, the inhabitants 
 
 were largely dependent on each other ; their 
 cares were confined to narrow bounds, and they 
 were driven to find amusement in each other's 
 company for the want of other resources. It 
 was before the days of railroads or daily pa- 
 pers, concerts or lyceum lectures. 
 
 The first resident preacher in Cuyahoga Falls 
 was J. T. Holloway, recently deceased. He 
 was a licensed local 3Iethodist preacher. The 
 first store opened was by Stow & Wetmore in 
 1825 ; another was brought in by Mr. Stanley 
 in 1829, and opened on the corner of Water 
 and Broad streets, north of the present covered 
 bridge. The first birth in the village was Ed- 
 ward, son of William Wetmore, Jr. This was 
 in 1827. The first death was a son in the same 
 family in 1826. The first adult who died in 
 in the place, was the first wife of E. N. Sill, a 
 daughter of Henry Newberry. The first mar- 
 riage is believed to have been the daughter of 
 Deacon Hamlin to Washington Butler. The 
 first Postmaster was Henry Newberry, who held 
 the office till he was led to resign it because of 
 the pressure of his other business. The first 
 bank in 'the county was the Summit County 
 Bank, organized under the State banking law 
 in Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 Cuyahoga Falls has been visited by several 
 destructive fires. In 1833, a warehouse be- 
 longing to Stow & Wetmore, filled with paper 
 stock was burned. In 1851, a flouring-mill, 
 the property of these gentlemen, was likewise 
 destroyed by fire. In 1866, a stone building, 
 known at the time as the bank building, which 
 stood upon the site of James' Block, and occu- 
 pied b}' H. C. Lockwood, with several adjoin- 
 ing structures, were consumed. At this fire, 
 John Marsh Hinde lost his life. The woolen- 
 mill on the west side cf the river, as previously 
 mentioned, was burned ; also the paper-mill on 
 the same side, twice. Messrs. Bills machine 
 shop and foundry, and the Empire Paper Mill, 
 belonging to llanford Brothers were burned in 
 1872. Several residences have gone down in 
 devouring flames, but, general!}', they were not 
 of great value. From the earliest times, the 
 village has been exceedingly fortunate as to its 
 dwellings, in regard to fires. Since the forego- 
 ing was written, the works of the Falls Wire 
 Manufacturing Company were largely burned. 
 This occurred on the evening of March 31, 
 1881. They will be immediately rebuilt. 
 
 Cuvahoya Falls has become noted as a sum- 
 
^ 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 477 
 
 mer resort. High Bridge, Grlens and Ctives, 
 Big Falls, Silver Lake and tiny steamboats 
 upon the riv^er, are the chief attractions. The 
 Lake and Big Falls are outside of, but near to, 
 the corporate limits. The High Bridge is 
 elsewhere described. At this structure, the 
 entrance to the Glens and Caves, a rude stair- 
 way has been constructed, which leads down to 
 a plateau, where has been erected a building 
 with spacious dining-room and kitchen at- 
 tached, where dinner and other parties are 
 served refreshments, and under the same roof 
 is a restaurant, where everything in the line of 
 refreshments can be had. On this level is also 
 a fine croquet ground and numerous rustic 
 seats, shadowed by overhanging, high perpen- 
 dicular rocks. 
 
 A few feet below is Lovers' Retreat, a broad 
 ledge of rocks, shadowed by large forest trees, 
 and down still another flight of stairs, close by 
 the river-side, hedged in by rustic work, is a 
 broad, level surface, which forms the entrance 
 to Fern Cave, a subterranean cavity in the solid 
 rock, 35x54 feet in dimensions. This retreat 
 is supplied with numerous rude seats of iron 
 and wood, where those weary from climbing 
 can rest. Leaving the Cave, we pass down the 
 strongly-braced stairway, running diagonally 
 with the ftice of the wall, and reach Observa- 
 tion Rock, a huge stone of over one hundred 
 tons' weight. Fi'om this point, a magnificent 
 view is presented to the eye. Looking back 
 and up the stream, one gets a fine view of the 
 waterfalls above, of from fifteen to twenty 
 feet in height ; also High Bridge, some eighty 
 feet above. Still farther below, and immedi- 
 ately under Fern Cave, is Doves' Retreat, a 
 huge cavern, with an overhanging roof of rock 
 twent^'-five feet above. To the right and down 
 the stream is Suspension Bridge, which crosses 
 the stream above high-water mark. It is made 
 of strong rods of iron, crossing the chasm, se- 
 curely fastened to huge bowlders upon either 
 side, with strong hand-rails, and affords a se- 
 cure passage over the foaming, surging waters 
 
 below. Crossing the bridge, we are upon the 
 east side of the river, near Cascade Point, 
 which is a lovely retreat, reached by a path 
 made of rocks and bowlders, under Weeping 
 Cliffs, a solid wall of overhanging rock, one 
 hundred feet in height, and fringed at the top 
 with hemlock and birch trees. Here a beauti- 
 ful spring of cold mineral water gushes forth 
 from the face of the rock, climbing over and 
 under a high point. A broad avenue is pre- 
 sented, which borders the rugged bed of the 
 stream for a mile. This is called the Grand 
 Promenade, and is hedged in on one side by 
 lofty, overhanging rocks, and on the other by 
 innumerable shade trees and the winding river. 
 Here sunlight has to struggle for an entrance, 
 and it is always a cool and romantic retreat. 
 Swings and croquet here abound. Ferns and 
 mosses literall}- cover the grounds and rocks 
 upon every side. 
 
 Boys & Clarkson had a steamer built in 
 Akron by William Paine, in 1878, and has run 
 on the river two seasons. It is called the Sil- 
 ver Wave. It cost $1,200. The boat is now 
 owned by J. N. Clarkson. This was the first 
 one on this stream. Another boat was built in 
 Cuyahoga Falls in 1880. She ran one season 
 only. She was built by Dailey & Barker. The 
 boating distances on the river run b}' these 
 boats is from the upper dam to Snakes' Den 
 and Goose Egg Island. The round trip is 
 three miles ; fare 10 cents, during the boating 
 season. 
 
 There is but one public hall in Cuyahoga 
 Falls. It is now called Apollo Hall, formerly 
 James' Hall. It is located in the third story of 
 James' Block, and was completed in 1869. It 
 was opened April 12 of that year, with a con- 
 cert given by Miss Fannie A. Sill and her pu- 
 pils. The seating capacity of the hall is 500, 
 with standing room for 200. It was refitted 
 and newly decorated in 1879, having new and 
 elaborate scenerv. The proprietors are George 
 Sackett, 0. B. Beebe and W. 0. Beebe. 
 
 ;v 
 
478 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 CHAPTER XVII.* 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS — EDUCATIONAL — CUYAHOGA FALLS 1N8TITUTF— CHURCHES— SKETCHES OF 
 THE DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS— BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES—THE MANU- 
 FACTURING INTERESTS — G ENEKAL BUSINESS. 
 
 THE subject of education has always held a 
 high place in the estimation of the people 
 of Cuyahoga Falls, as evinced by the interest 
 manifested by them in their common schools. 
 Previous to the erection of a new township out 
 of the corners of Stow, Tallmadge, Northamp- 
 ton and Portage, the village schools were those 
 belonging to these several townships. How- 
 ever, soon after the organization of the town- 
 ship of Cuyahoga Falls and the creation of a 
 Township Board of Education, the whole terri- 
 tory was erected into one school district, as will 
 hereafter be shown. Previous to this time, the 
 histor}'' of the schools is that only of ordinary 
 district schools of the country ; but with the 
 new order of things began an increased interest 
 in these " nation's colleges." 
 
 The school building located north of St. 
 John's Churcli edifice was built by the Wesley- 
 ans for church purposes. The structure was 
 afterward sold to the School Directors for a 
 high school. In 1872, the new high school 
 building was ready for nse and that school was 
 transferred to it, since which time the other 
 house has been used for schools of a lower 
 grade. The two accommodate all the schools 
 of the village. The smaller structures — the 
 district schoolhouses — have all been sold. 
 
 In pursuance of an act passed by the Legis- 
 lature of Ohio, entitled " An act to provide for 
 the re-organization, supervision and mainte- 
 nance of common schools."' the following- named 
 persons — L. L. Holden, Clerk of the Directors 
 of Cuyahoga Falls School District No. 1 ; P. J. 
 Lee, Clerk of Union District No. 8 ; and 
 Charles Clark, Township Clerk — met at the 
 office of McClure & McKinney and organized a 
 Board of Education for Cuyahoga Falls, by 
 appointing L. L. Holden Chairman, the Town- 
 ship Clerk being by law the Clerk of the Board 
 of Education. This was on the 18th of April, 
 1853. That portion of School District No. 8 
 
 ^Contributed by 0. W. ButterfieUl. 
 
 lying in the township of Cuyahoga Falls, and 
 the Cuyahoga Falls School District No 1, were 
 united and formed into one district on the 24th 
 of xVpril, 1854, to be known as the " Cu3-ahoga 
 Falls School District." On the 2Gth of June, 
 L. L. Holden was appointed Acting Manager of 
 Schools for the township. On the 15th day of 
 Ma}', 1855, " Mr. Taylor" was 'appointed Prin- 
 cipal of the Central School," and " Mrs. Tay- 
 lor" his assistant. Together they were to be 
 paid the sum of $700 '-for the year of forty 
 weeks." On that day the Board " Resolved^ 
 That we attach great importance to the good 
 government of a school and the moral instruc- 
 tions which the children receive, and the thor- 
 oughness with which they are drilled in the pri- 
 mary branches and first principles of educa- 
 tion." 
 
 On the 25th day of May, 1855, the record of 
 the board says : "This day sold to John Love 
 the schoolhouse near the Widow Ga^dord's for 
 the sum of $100." For the school year ending 
 August 31, 1857, the whole number of pupils 
 enrolled was 482 ; number of teachers em- 
 ployed, 7 — one male and six females. Union 
 District No. 10 in Tallmadge and Cuyahoga 
 Falls Townships was discontinued June 18, 
 1858. H. K. Taylor, Principal, on the 1st day 
 of July, 1861, " made a summary report from 
 the high school, showing general improvement 
 in scholarship and deportment for the last 
 month." Seventeen days thereafter, Mr. L. H. 
 Delano was " emplo}' ed to teach the Central 
 school ; whereupon, on the 1st day of August 
 following, " a petition numerousl}' signed by 
 citizens of Cuyahoga Falls was presented " to 
 the board, asking them " to reconsider their 
 action changing the Principal of the high 
 school or resign ; " but they did neither. 
 
 The Board of Education resolved July 2, 
 1863, "that William L Chamberlain, of Hud- 
 son, be employed to teach as Principal in the 
 high school at a salary of $600 per annum." 
 
'k* 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 479 
 
 The total number of youth enrolled in the 
 schools at this date was 452. The number of 
 schoolhouses was five ; the number of schools, 
 five — four common schools and one high 
 school. The school library was valued at 
 $300, having on its shelves 755 volumes. 
 June 24, 1864, Mr. Chamberlain's salary was 
 raised to $75 a month. 
 
 On the 26th of June, 1865, George Mc- 
 Laughlin was employed to teach the Central 
 school as Principal at a salary of $650 per 
 annum. At this time, besides the central 
 school, there were . the southwest primary, 
 southeast primary, northeast primary and 
 northwest primary. The next year, the salary 
 of the Principal was raised to $750. Jul}^ 18, 
 1866, W. C. Kogers was employed as Principal 
 of the central or high school at a salary of $75 
 per month. The successor of Mr. Rogers as 
 Principal was B. B. Tremlin, who was em- 
 ployed in December, 1866. 
 
 On the 16th of January, 1867, at a meeting 
 of the electors of the township, it was resolved 
 to move all the schools into one building. On 
 the 16th of February, 1867, at a meeting of 
 the qualified voters of Cuj'ahoga Falls School 
 District, it was moved and carried that a tax 
 not exceeding three-fourths of one per cent be 
 levied annually for a period not exceeding five 
 years, for the purpose of building a central or 
 union schoolhoase in the village. On the 17th 
 of May, 1867, the qualified electors voted 
 '' that the School Directors be authorized to 
 purchase of H. A. Miller for a schoolhouse 
 site, the nine lots north of the hotel lots, be- 
 tween Front and Second streets, and south of 
 Stow street. 
 
 Virgil P. Kline was, on July 1, 1867, em- 
 ployed as Principal. At this time, there were 
 five common schools in the district and the 
 high school. The number of pupils enrolled 
 was 456. The total value of schoolhouses and 
 grounds was $2,400. It was voted by the 
 board, on the 5th of November of that year, 
 that, "Whereas, it is ascertained that at the 
 last school'exhibition a young lady's dress was 
 accidentally damaged seriously, and that there 
 remains unexpended some of the avails of 
 said exhibition, the sum of $3 be paid out of 
 said avails to the owner of said dress." At a 
 meeting of the qualified voters of the district, 
 held Januar}' 3, 1868, it was voted that the 
 site of the new central schoolhouse should be 
 
 the " Cooke Lot." This lot was deeded by 
 James H. Cooke to the district in consideration 
 of $1. The deed conveyed two acres of land 
 on the south side of the old township line 
 road and foi'ty-eight rods east of Newberry 
 street, conditioned that the building should be 
 commenced within five 3'ears. On the 8th of 
 May, 1868, the salary of Mr. Kline was raised 
 to $1,000. 
 
 On the 12th of May, 1869, the board deter- 
 mined that the school building to be erected 
 should be three stories high. At the same 
 time A. Koehler, architect, of Cleveland, was 
 employed to prepare necessary plans and 
 specifications for the house. In July, 1869, 
 Miss Booth " agreed to remain in the high 
 school as teacher another year, upon a salary 
 of $1,000," Mr. Kline having declined to labor 
 an}' longer as Principal. The pupils of the 
 intermediate school were taken into the high 
 school. 
 
 On the 4th day of August, 1869, the board 
 contracted with Greorge Allison, of Tallmadge, 
 for the erection of the basement story of the 
 new Union Schoolhouse, for the sum of $5,200. 
 On the 7th of September following, Ed- 
 ward Sill was engaged as Principal of the 
 high school at a salary of $900. The number 
 of schoolhouses was four frame and one brick ; 
 total, five. On the 29th of November an ad- 
 ditional tax was voted b}' the qualified voters 
 of the district to erect the school building, of 
 three-fourths of one per cent. An agreement 
 was entered into by the board with George 
 Allison, on the 1st day of March, 1870, to do 
 the mason work for the school building, except 
 the plastering, for $11,701.51. They agreed 
 with Dunn & Witt, of Cincinnati, for $2,630, to 
 have the roofing and galvanized iron work 
 done. The Board engaged George Thomas & 
 Son, of Akron, for the residue of the work, in- 
 cluding joiner work, painting, plastering, etc., 
 for the sum of $12,400. The original contract 
 price, thei'efore, for the building amounted to 
 $31,931.51. This, of course, was exclusive of 
 heating the building. This cost an additional 
 $3,000. There was also paid Mr. xVUison for 
 extra work $617.37. The contract for seating 
 the building was made on the 21st of June, 
 1871. There was allowed Thomas & Son 
 $1,698 for extra work. 
 
 Miss A. A. Booth was engaged as Superin- 
 tendent of the public schools at a salary of 
 
 -©PV 
 

 480 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 $1,200, on the 12th of July, 1871. It was 
 voted at an election held April 8, 1872, by the 
 qualified voters of the district, to sell the Cen- 
 tral school house and the four primar}- school- 
 houses and their lots. The northwest primary 
 school l)uilding was sold for $800. The ex- 
 pense of seating the new high school building 
 was $1,773.50. The northeast primar}' school- 
 house and lot was sold for $400. 
 
 The Board of Education was re-organized 
 under the school law of 1873, on the 20th of 
 April, 1874, by the election of L. J. Germain, 
 President ; G. W. Rice, Clerk, and W. M. Gris- 
 wold, Treasurer. The supervision of the 
 schools was assigned to Mr. Germain. On the 
 1st of August of that year the board passed a 
 resolution to " advertise for a competent and 
 experienced teacher as Principal of our Union 
 Schools." George L. McMillan was the suc- 
 cessful applicant, at a salary of $1,000. The 
 number of schoolhouses in the district at this 
 time was one union and one not used ; the 
 number of rooms, exclusive of rooms used 
 onl}" for recitation, high school, one ; primary, 
 three ; total, four. The value of school prop- 
 erty' was $36,000. The number of teachers 
 employed, six. On the 4th of November, the 
 clergymen of the village were requested to act 
 as a visiting board of the schools. On tlie 
 26th of April, 1875, the President of the 
 Board was " authorized to emplo}^ Mr. A. X. 
 Bernard as Superintendent and Master of the 
 Union School for the balance of the present 
 school term," at a salaiy not exceeding $1,200 
 per annum. His services were continued at 
 the rate of $120 a month salary. There were 
 this year enrolled in the school 401 pupils. 
 
 On the 17th of February, 1876, the board or- 
 dered that " any scholars who have been sus- 
 pended from the public school of this district on 
 account of exposure to the small-pox, shall fur- 
 nish the Superintendent, before they shall be 
 re-instated, with proof that they have been vac- 
 cinated." Four days after this, an order passed 
 that " hereafter no pupil shall be admitted to 
 the schools of this village until they have fur- 
 nished the Superintendent with proofs of vac- 
 cination." Besides this, the schools were "sus- 
 pended until further notice." They were not 
 opened until the second IMonday of April fol- 
 lowing. Previous to this, at an election of the 
 qualified voters of the district, it was deter- 
 mined to increase the board from three to six 
 
 members. The following resolution was passed 
 unanimously April 24, 1876 : '' ResoJeed, That 
 Dr. Heath be requested to furnish Mr. Bernard, 
 School Superintendent, with a list of such fam- 
 ilies as should, for the present, be held back 
 from sending their children to school ; that at 
 least thirty days should elapse after an}' case 
 shall have terminated before an}' family shall 
 be allowed to send their children to school, and 
 that all school books be destroyed that ma}' 
 have been exposed in families who have had 
 the small-pox." 
 
 On the 6th of May, 1878, it was stated at a 
 meeting of the boai'd that " it was the opinion 
 of many that the population of our village was 
 more than 2,500 ; if so, then by law it is our 
 privilege to have our own Boaixi of Examiners of 
 Teachers." And they had them ! On the 28th 
 of June, 1878, Mr. Bernai'd was continued Su- 
 perintendent, at a salary of $1,100. The num- 
 ber of pupils enrolled during this year was 502. 
 The Union School building was fitted up with 
 a steam-heating apparatus during the year 1879, 
 at a cost of about $1,500. On the 21st of June, 
 1 880, the board passed a resolution " that Joanna 
 Cutler, Lizzie M. Richardson, Mary A. Clark, 
 Jessie Knox, Grace E. Sykes, Rial Smith, Otto 
 C. Richardson and Albert Kingsbury, the mem- 
 bers of the class of the high school of 1880, 
 be graduated on Friday evening, June 25." 
 
 The branches now taught in the Union 
 School in Cuyahoga Falls are reading, spelling, 
 writing, arithmetic, geography, English gram- 
 mar, oral lessons, composition, drawing, vo- 
 cal music, United States history, physical 
 geography, natural philosophy, German, al- 
 gebra and Latin. The schools are in a high 
 state of efficiency, owing to the interest taken 
 by the parents of the district ; to the intelli- 
 gent labors of the Board of Education, and the 
 wisdom and zeal of the Superintendent and 
 teachers. 
 
 One of the first efforts in the promotion of 
 education, outside the common school, was the 
 oi'ganization and charter of the Cuyahoga Falls 
 Institute, under the management of the Rev. 
 Mr. Brooks and Charles Clark. The school 
 was started and kept in operation some time, 
 but the hard times which came in 1837 made it 
 necessary to abandon the project. After the 
 building of St. John's Church, a seminary for 
 girls was kept in the schoolroom adjoining, by 
 Miss Sarah Carpenter. She was succeeded by 
 
 7- 
 
•-^ 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 481 
 
 Miss Frances C. Barron, the last named b}- Miss 
 Eliza Deaver. 
 
 Churches were early established in the vil- 
 lage of Cuyahoga Falls ; but. instead of com- 
 fortable church buildings, those who came first 
 were obliged to meet in schoolhouses and other 
 inconvenient places. As a consequence, church 
 services were irregular and infrequent. 
 
 In giving the histor}- of St. John's Church, 
 in Cu\-ahoga Falls, it is necessar}' to go back to 
 the time when stately forests covered the land- 
 scape, and over the fertile fields where now the 
 eye rests with delight upon the evidences of 
 civilization, but few marks of improvement 
 were anywhere to be seen. Log cabins dotted 
 it here and there, and some clearings were 
 begun, but the roads went winding through the 
 forest, and communication between points was 
 slow and tedious. The Cuyahoga River sang 
 its merry song in freedom, fettered onl}' by the 
 rocks which gave it voice. Its waters had not 
 been forced to turn the busj' wheels, and few 
 sounds had been heard upon its banks, except 
 the song of the birds, the howl of the wild 
 beasts, or the more savage yell of the wild 
 Indian. Akron had not been thought of, and 
 Cleveland was known as a little village six 
 miles from Newburg. Here and there a farm 
 was opened, and the busy settlers were making 
 the wide forests ring with the sound of their 
 axes, which were letting in the light where long 
 had brooded only the somber shade of its 
 matted woods. The first settlement at Stow 
 Corners was made by a few families from the 
 same Eastern home, most of them relatives. 
 Just south of Gross' Tavern, it will be remem- 
 bered, there is an orchard, but, in 1818, there 
 was a log cabin standing in that lot, which dis- 
 appeared many years ago, and in it lived Josiah 
 Wetmore, with his wife and children. No 
 sooner were they settled than Mrs. Wetmore, 
 who was a devout member of the Protestant 
 Episcopal Church, gathered in her neighbors 
 for worship, which she continued to do for 
 three years. There was no other service held 
 in the settlement, and they came with ox teams 
 and on horseback from all the region around. 
 After the}' had met in that wa}- for about a 
 year, Mrs. Wetmore reading the service and 
 her husband the sermon, the Rev. Roger 
 Searle, who lived at Medina, and oflftciated in 
 many places on the Western Reserve, paid a 
 visit to the place, and preached in Mrs. Wet- 
 
 more's house. This was in 1819, and was the 
 first sermon preached and the first service held 
 by an Episcopal clergyman in all the region. 
 
 The people who came to these services in 
 Mrs. Wetmore's house increased in numbers, 
 and soon filled her house, and in warm weather 
 the yard about it. The}' had no boards of 
 which to make seats, but split logs, and hewed 
 them into what was called puncheons, and put- 
 ting them upon legs, raised them high enough 
 to be used for seats for the assembled worship- 
 ers. They had no carriages to convey them 
 to the place of worship, but came upon sleds 
 drawn by oxen, and on horseback, and many on 
 foot. Thus they gathered, and there can be no 
 doubt that as acceptable worship was offered in 
 that humble cabin as ever went up among the 
 fretted arches of a cathedral ; and there in that 
 humble cabin was the first step taken, which 
 twelve years afterward culminated in the or- 
 ganization of St. John's Church. 
 
 After three 3'ears' residence thei'e, Mr. Wet- 
 more went back to New England with his 
 famil}' to give them such advantages of educa- 
 tion as they could not get in this new state of 
 societ}'. After the}' left, the services were held 
 in different places, centering, however, about 
 the Corners. After some years the}' came back 
 to Cuyahoga Falls, where Mrs. Wetmore lived 
 until 1865, esteemed by all who knew her for 
 her virtues, when she fell asleep in Jesus, and 
 was buried in the cemetery, where she awaits a 
 glorious resurrection. Mr. Wetmore lived until 
 1867, when he was laid beside his wife, at the 
 age of eighty-four years. 
 
 Along the center line of Stow there were 
 many families settled by this time who had 
 been reared in the Episcopal Church. On the 
 western end of that line lived Orin Gilbert, and 
 a little way north of him was Arthur Sadler 
 and Henry O'Brien. East of Mr. Gilbert was 
 Frederick Sanford, and striking southeast were 
 the Wetmores and Frederick Wolcott (who had 
 become attached to the service since its estab- 
 lishment), Roland Clapp, and some families of 
 Gaylords In Tallmadge there were also sev- 
 eral families ; and up the river, in the western 
 part of Franklin, were Col. Stanley, Mr. Furber, 
 the Furgesons and some others. Some of 
 these were young men, who with their wives 
 had come to make their homes in the then far 
 West, and some of them were in middle age, 
 with half-grown children, who had reached this 
 
 ;Rr 
 
482 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 distant point after long and painful journe3'S ; 
 but all were of slender means, and depended 
 upon the blessings of a kind Providence on their 
 labor, and the returns of strenuous ettbrt from 
 a generous soil. 
 
 These scattered families, spreading over not 
 less than ten miles square, and others about 
 them, as we have seen, had been accustomed to 
 meet on Sundays for divine service in the use 
 of the Book of Common Prater, and hearing a 
 sermon read from such collections as they had 
 brought from their Eastern homes. These 
 services, after the first three years, were held 
 in different places, and were participated in by 
 persons coming from parts of Stow, Hudson 
 Tallmadge, Franklin, and parts adjacent, with 
 great labor and inconvenience, to worship G-od 
 as they had been taught in the homes from 
 which the\' came. 
 
 Like most of the emigrants from New En- 
 gland, they were of decided opinions and firm 
 convictions, and the principles they had im- 
 bibed in early life were clung to with a tenacity 
 which showed their fitness to be founders of 
 new societies, and to transmit to their suc- 
 cessors the institutions under which they were 
 reared, in their integrity. Those who had been 
 reared in the Episcopal Church could not be 
 satisfied to give up the church of their fathers, 
 and showed how deeply they were attached to 
 its ordinances by the pains they took to enjoy 
 those ordinances, with no other than lay serv- 
 ices. 
 
 The first step toward organization was to ob- 
 tain, from Bishop Chase, licenses for Roland 
 Clapp, a young man from Vermont, and Col. 
 Stanley, of Franklin, as la}^ readers, who were 
 authorized to gather the people together and 
 hold regular service, with the reading of such 
 sermons as were specified by the Bishop. Thus 
 their love for the church was fostered, and some 
 were led to unite with them who were reared 
 under other influences. But ministers were 
 very scarce in those days, and those w^ho loved 
 the church were obliged to content themselves 
 with lay services for a long time after the}' were 
 accustomed to meet for social worship. 
 
 The next minister of the church who ofl3- 
 ciated for them was Rev. William N. Lyster, who 
 was acting as a missionary in Trinity Church, 
 Cleveland, then a small village upon the lake 
 shore. He came on foot, and preached in Hud- 
 son and Stow on the first Sunday in February, 
 
 1830. He came again on the first Sunday of 
 the following month, and preached in Franklin 
 (now Kent) in the morning, and in Stow in the 
 afternoon. Two months after this, he preached 
 in the morning in Hud.son, and at Stow, in the 
 tavern, in the afternoon. During that visit, the 
 first steps were taken toward the organization 
 of a parish. Their lay service was continued 
 by uniting from all parts within reach, till the 
 following winter, when Rev. James McElroy, 
 who had succeeded Mr. Lyster in his mission- 
 ary work at Cleveland, paid them a visit. He 
 preached in Hudson in the morning, and in 
 Stow in the evening, and, before they separated, 
 they organized the parish of " St. John's Church, 
 Stow." This was in 1830. The organization 
 of the parish of Christ Church, Franklin, was 
 eflfected some time afterward, but the prospect 
 of establishing the church in Hudson was not 
 thought encouraging enough to warrant any 
 further eflbrt there, and all the members in 
 Hudson Township were enrolled in St. John's 
 Church. 
 
 After the organization of the parish, lay serv- 
 ices were held regularly until 1834. A dam 
 had been built near the present railroad bridge, 
 and a mill had been erected upon it, and sev- 
 eral houses were built in the neighborhood ; 
 and, among others, a log schoolhouse. The 
 services were held in this house, which stood 
 in the south part of what was long known as 
 the ■' old village." It was supposed that the 
 town would be built at this point. After a 
 time, a building was erected for a store further 
 north ; it stood on the west side of the present 
 railroad, between the two crossings. The serv- 
 ices were then removed to that building, but 
 Stow Corners was most convenient for the wor- 
 shipers, and larger numbers could be gathered 
 there, and, as the services were first begun 
 there, they were taken back, and continued to 
 be held there until the present edifice was ready 
 for use. 
 
 But the water-power at this point had been 
 brought into use, and the town had been rapidly 
 filling up with a busy population, and it was 
 manifest that there was to be an important vil- 
 lage lower down the stream than they first be- 
 gan to build ; and when the society was ready 
 to build, they resolved, after long debate, to 
 have the church at Cuyahoga Falls. In 1834, 
 Rev. C. V. Kelley was appointed a missionary 
 at Ohio City, -with, instructions to give every 
 
 ^^ 
 
CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 483 
 
 ^ 
 
 alternate Sunday to the parish at Stow. He 
 had not been otHciating long under this ar- 
 rangement, before it was thought best that he 
 should go to New York to solicit aid for these 
 feeble churchmen in building their church ; 
 and after a protracted absence he returned, 
 and paid over for this purpose $700, which was 
 used in the erection of this church. He then 
 rc!turned to New York and took charge of St. 
 Bartholomew's Church, and St. John's was 
 without a minister. 
 
 In the spring of 1835 the}' chose this site, 
 and began the work of building. The town 
 had grown very much, and manufactures of 
 many kinds were introduced, and it was thought 
 that a very large population would soon be 
 gathered ; and it was seen that here was the 
 place for the church. But the services were 
 still held at the Corners. While they were 
 building it was thought best also to secure the 
 services of the minister, and they proceeded to 
 secure the services of a minister, and they pro- 
 ceeded to call Rev. William H. Newman, of 
 Bristol. R. I., who accepted the rectorship on 
 the 10th of November, and continued in charge 
 of the parish till June 18. 1837, when he re- 
 signed and removed to Newark, Licking Co., 
 Ohio. 
 
 The church edifice was completed in 1836 
 and consecrated to the worship of Almighty 
 God by Bishop Mcllvaine on the 10th of July 
 of that year. It is the oldest church within a 
 very large area, unless it be the Congregational 
 Church at Tallmadge, which stands to-day as it 
 was originally built. The plan adopted was 
 the same essentially^ as that of old Trinity 
 Church. Cleveland, except that the front of the 
 building was more showy, and the chancel more 
 elaborate and expensive. But such as it was 
 at first it remains to this day, except the 
 ciiange in the chancel made last year. There 
 were present at the consecration. Rev. Abraham 
 Bronson, of Peninsula, and Rev. Thomas Bar- 
 row, missionary- at Akron, and the Rector. 
 
 The first Sunda}^ school was organized the 
 same month, and has continued till the present 
 day without intermission. After the removal 
 of Mr. Newman, the Rev. Zachariah Mead, of 
 Virginia, was called to the rectorship, but he 
 was not pleased with the people of the North, 
 and after spending three or four weeks in the 
 parish, he returned to Virginia. 
 
 After him the Rev. Mr. Cushman was called. 
 
 but he remained only a short time, and noth- 
 ing is found upon the records as done by him. 
 
 In 1837, Rev. Albert T. Bledsoe, who was 
 one of the converts at West Point, under Bishop 
 Mcllvaine's chaplainc}*, and was ordained by 
 him, was called : but, after about four mouths, 
 he became dissatisfied with his profession, and 
 resigned both the rectorship and the ministry, 
 and went to Virginia, where he has long held a 
 professorship in the University of Virginia. 
 
 After his removal, the parish was vacant 
 until the 10th of April, 1839, when a call was 
 given to Rev. James Bonnar, Deacon, of Utica, 
 Licking Co., Ohio. He accepted the call, and 
 was ordained Presbj'ter, together with Rev. 
 Charles C. Townsend, in this church. He re- 
 mained less than a year, and, resigning, went 
 to Marietta, Muskingum County. 
 
 In February, 1840, Rev. Thomas B. Fairchild, 
 of Orafton, was called to the vacant rectorship, 
 and entered upon his duties immediately. In 
 the meantime, a parish had been organized in 
 Franklin, called Christ Church, which took 
 several members who had been enrolled in St. 
 John's Church ; but he found upon the list the 
 names of forty persons. In 1842, he organized 
 the parish of Christ Church, Hudson, which took 
 several prominent members. He remained un- 
 til 1844, when he resigned, and went to W^ooster, 
 Wayne County, leaving upon the record sixty- 
 four resident members. 
 
 He was succeeded by Rev. Alvah Guion, who 
 stayed not over a year. Rev. David J. Burger 
 was called to fill his place in the summer ; but 
 died suddenly, after a few months in charge 
 here, while on a visit to Toledo, where he had 
 previously lived. 
 
 Upon his death, a call was given to Rev. Levi 
 L. Holden, of Gi'afton, who removed to the 
 parish in July, 1847. He held the rectorship 
 till 1867, twenty years, when he resigned, and 
 went to W^ooster, leaving a large circle of 
 friends, both out of the church and in it, who 
 remember and speak of him with esteem and 
 affection. 
 
 Services were held at irregular intervals, by 
 Rev. Mr. Fairchild, then at Hudson, and Rev. 
 E. B. Kellogg, of Gambler, until the next sum- 
 mer, when Rev. George Bosley, Deacon, was 
 sent by the Bishop to fill the parish. The next 
 3'ear. he was advanced to the Priesthood, and 
 continued in charge till 1871, when he resigned, 
 and went to Marion, Ohio. 
 
484 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 In March, 1871, Rev. T. B. Fairchild, Rector, 
 in charge of St. John's Church, Kewanee, 111., 
 was called back to his old charge, and, on the 
 first Sunday of April, began his labors. He 
 continued in charge until March 8. 1879, when 
 he died. His successor was Rev. George W. 
 Williams, the present Rector. 
 
 When Mr. Newman left the parish, there were 
 forty-nine members upon the record. Of these, 
 onh' two remain— Roland Clapp, Mrs. Lucy 
 Rice. The rest have died or removed ; proba- 
 bly most of them have passed away from earth. 
 " There were no entries made in the church 
 record from his removal,'" writes ]Mr. Fairchild 
 in 1875, "until m}^ residence, but there were 
 forty communicants when I came. During my 
 first rectorship, fifty-three were added to the 
 number. The organization of the parish in 
 Hudson took several valuable members ; but, 
 of those added during the four years and three 
 months, there are now twenty members upon 
 the list. After my removal, I was present at 
 the visitation of the Bishop, and presented ten 
 persons for confirmation, who had been prepared 
 for it before I left. Of those ten, not one is left. 
 Nine were added by ]Mr. Burger, but they are 
 all gone. During Mr. Holden's rectorship, I 
 find 72 names entered in his hand-writing, but 
 of these only 20 are members to-day. After 
 his removal, 3'our present Rector held services 
 for a while in the afternoon, and, as the fruit of 
 that labor, 14 were confirmed, and 10 of those 
 are members still. During Mr. Bosley's resi- 
 dence, 50 names were added, but onlj- 23 of 
 these are members now. Since my return. 24 
 have been added, and 6 of these have died or 
 removed, leaving 87 resident members. The 
 whole number, from the beginning, being 305 
 members. 
 
 " Upon the record of baptisms, I find recorded 
 by Mr. Newman 22, Mr. Bonnar 8, Mr. Gruion 
 4, Mr. Holden 94, Mr. Bosley 50. and by myself 
 90, making 279 persons since the oi'ganization 
 of the parish. But I am persuaded that there 
 were many baptisms in its earlier days which 
 have not been recorded, as there were no entries 
 made until Mr. Newman's time. 
 
 " The first confirmation recorded was held by 
 Bishop Mcllvaine, but there are several persons 
 whom I know to have been confirmed before 
 this, whose names are not recorded. There 
 are, however, 154 names upon the record, and 
 may safely be reckoned at nearly two hundred. 
 
 showing that at least two-thirds of all the mem- 
 bers who have lived here, first made their pro- 
 fession in this church. 
 
 " Of marriages, Mr. Newman solemnized 2, 
 Mr. Guion 4, Mr. Holden 75, Mr. Bosley 15, 
 and myself 23, making 119 couples in all. 
 
 " Upon the record of burials I find eleven b}' 
 Mr. Newman. On the 21st of October, 1837, 
 when the parish was vacant, that teri'ible tor- 
 nado passed over Stow, and Rev. Ebenezer 
 Boyden, of Cleveland, was called to lay its four 
 victims in one grave. Mr. Guion buried 4. Mr. 
 Holden 112, Mr. Boslej' 26, buried by myself 
 72, by other persons 22, making in all 242 per- 
 sons, of whom 136 were adults and the rest 
 children and 3'ouths. Of those committed to 
 the ground, I tliink hardly a family connected 
 with the parish has failed to furnish a part, 
 while in some cases, whole families have joined 
 the gi'eat congregation. The consolation of its 
 funeral rites has been given freely to all, and 
 few in this region have not shared them. I 
 have myself in all these 3'ears, preached 5,579 
 times ; baptized 296 ; married 149 couples, 
 and buried 302 persons." 
 
 As will be seen by these statements, the 
 hindrance to the growth of St. John's Church 
 has been its continual losses by removals, which 
 have been vei-y heavy from the first. The ad- 
 ditions by removal from other parishes have 
 been comparatively small ; and the great pro- 
 portion of the members we have lost from this 
 cause, has been of those who first became com- 
 municants here, and then removed to other 
 parishes. 
 
 The history of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church is this : The " Twinsburg Circuit " was 
 organized November 1, 1832. The society in 
 Stow Township, now Cuyahoga Falls, was one 
 of the appointments. The members met in a 
 storehouse at the " old village," as it is now 
 known. The first Presiding Elder was W. B. 
 ^lack. The circuit preachers were Thomas 
 Carr and John E. Akin. They preached once 
 in two weeks alternateh'. Carr was re-ap- 
 pointed for 1833, and L. D. Prosser as his col- 
 league. The preachers for the next 3'ear (1834) 
 were Ira Eddy and A. Reaves. At this date, 
 William Stevens was Presiding Elder. In 
 1835, E. H. Taylor and J. L. Holmes were sent 
 to the circuit. The meetings were then held in 
 the basement of the church building, at the 
 Falls. The circuit preachers, in 1836, wei'e E. 
 
 ^ « 
 
L£ 
 
 CUYxlHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 485 
 
 H. Taylor and Horatio N. Stearns. In 1837 
 and 1838, Rev. E. T. Kinney was in charge. 
 Artluir M. Brown was preacher in 1839, and 
 Wesley Maltby was his assistant. The Falls 
 then became a station. Rev. Timothy Good- 
 win was station preacher for the next two 
 years — 1840 and 1841. He was succeeded, for 
 
 1842, by Rev. AV. French, and the latter, in 
 
 1843, by A. Calendar. The successor to Mr. 
 Calendar was Rev. D. Prosser. This was for 
 the year 1844. The latter was re-appointed for 
 the next year, 1845. B. W. Hager was the 
 preacher for 1846. For the next two years 
 (1847 and 1848), Rev. A. M. Brown. The fol- 
 lowing Pastors have since had charge : 1849, A. 
 Hall ; 1850, A. Hall ; 1851, A. Rogers ; 1852, A. 
 Rogers; 1853, Thomas Stubbs; 1854, John Trib- 
 by ; 1855, John Tribbv ; 1856, D. C. Wright ; 
 1857, D. C. Wright ; 18'58, E. J. L. Baker ; 1859, 
 G. W. Chesbrough ; 1860, G. W. Chesbrough ; 
 1861,E. S.Gillet"; 1862,E. S. Gillet ; 1863, J. E. 
 Chapin ; 1864, J. E. Chapin ; 1865, C. T. 
 Kingsbury ; 1866, C T. Kingsbury ; 1867, J. 
 R. Lyon; 1868, J. R. Lyon; 1869, R. M. Bear; 
 1870', R. M. Bear ; 1871, E. A. Squire ; 1872, 
 E. A. Squire ; 1873, E. A. Squire ; 1874, 1875 
 and 1876, G. W. Gray ; 1877, 1878 and 1879, 
 Dr. S. M. Hickman ; 1880, Dr. W. A. Davidson. 
 
 The church edifice was commenced on the 
 lot deeded to the society, on the public square, 
 about 1834 ; meetings were held in the base- 
 ment until the structure was completed. This 
 was in 1840, the dedication of the building 
 being on the last day of that year. The house 
 was enlarged in 1864, and the inside materi- 
 ally changed. The edifice will seat comforta- 
 bly 500 persons. The organization has been 
 from the beginning ver}- prosperous. The 
 members number at present 200. The only 
 town clock in tlie village is in the steeple of 
 this church. The organ cost $1,600. 
 
 The following are the oflBcers of the church : 
 Trustees, Israel James, Jacob Weidner, Hi- 
 ram Gaylord, Alexander J. Billman, Orin 
 James, Mathew Crawford, Hiram W. Carter, 
 Arthur Lewis and Isaac Reid ; Stewards, Israel 
 James, Edgar Inskeep, Henry Plum, William 
 Hill, Isaac Reid, Richaixl Blood, Jacob Weid- 
 ner and Simeon Dickerman ; Class-leaders, Rich- 
 ard Blood, A. R. Knox, L. D. Williams and H. 
 W. Carter. 
 
 There is one supernumerar}' preacher, J. C. 
 Castle ; and one local preacher, Richard Blood. 
 
 In connection with the church there is a well- 
 organized and efficient Sunday school, having 
 an average attendance of 1 50. Officers — Super- 
 intendent, Dr. H. W. Carter ; First Assistant, 
 Arthur Lewis ; Second Assistant, Mrs. Mathew 
 Crawford ; Secretary, Mrs. David Brown ; Treas- 
 urer, Mathew Crawford ; Librarians, Isaac Reid 
 and Mary C. Weidner. 
 
 " The Congregational Church of Cuyahoga 
 Falls," wrote Birdsey Booth in 1861, "was or- 
 ganized February 14, 1834, by Rev. B. C. Bald- 
 win (then residing at iMiddleburj), and Rev. J. 
 C. Parmelee, of Tallmadge. Ten persons, five 
 male and five female (five by letter, and five by 
 profession), united in the organization. Of the 
 ten thus uniting, one removed his connection ; 
 six are no more, for God has taken them, they 
 having died in the faith ; and three remain to 
 this day. The whole number which have been 
 received into connection with the church, is 
 287, of whom 188 were received on certificate, 
 and 99 on profession (about one-third by pro- 
 fession). 
 
 " Of the 287 which are, or have been, mem- 
 bers, 41 have died ; 123 have removed their 
 connection ; 23 dismissed for prolonged absence ; 
 14 have been excommunicated ; leaving pres- 
 ent number 86, of whom some 14 are probably 
 permanently absent. 
 
 '• Twenty- four adults and twenty infants have 
 been baptized since April, 1841, previous to 
 which there is no record of any. 
 
 "From the organization to January- 1, 1835, 
 the pulpit was supplied by Rev. B. C. Baldwin, 
 preaching ever}' alternate Sabbath. From Jan- 
 uary 1, 1835, to October of the same year, l)y 
 Prof Long, of Western Reserve College ; from 
 October, 1835, to May. 1836, by Prof Gregg, 
 of Western Reserve College ; from May, 1836, 
 to November 23, same year, by various individ- 
 uals ; from November 23, 1836, to May, 1838, 
 by Rev. Joel Byington ; from May, 1838. to 
 October, same year, by various individuals. 
 October 24, 1838, Rev. William C. Clark was 
 ordained and installed Pastor of the church. 
 Mr. Clark continued his services with the church 
 down to x\pril 5, 1847, about eight and a half 
 years, when, on account of ill health, he re- 
 quested to be released from his pastoral labors, 
 which, the church acceding to, was dissolved 
 by action of Portage Presbytery called for that 
 purpose. (It should be remarked here, that the 
 church was organized in connection with Port- 
 
486 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 age Presbytery, and until the meeting above re- 
 ferred to, had been regularly represented in that 
 body. Ou this occasion, the church presented 
 to Presbyter}' a resolution previously adopted, 
 requesting a dissolution of its connection with 
 that body, which was granted at the meeting- 
 aforesaid. Since then, the church has been an 
 independent Congregational body, except as it 
 has entered into mutual relations with other 
 Congregational Churches.) 
 
 " From April 5, 1 847, to October 12 of the same 
 year, the pulpit was supplied by various indi- 
 viduals, but chiefly by Rev. William C. Foster, 
 whom the church and society invited to become 
 their pastor, and was ordained and installed by 
 Council, October 12. 1847. The relation thus en- 
 tered into continued until May 28, 1849 (a little 
 more than a year and seven months), when the 
 relation terminated by his request, acquiesced 
 in by the church and action of Council, called 
 for the purpose. A few Sabbaths after, the 
 pulpit was supplied by Rev. S. P. Leeds, who, 
 having supplied the pulpit for two years, ac- 
 cepted the call of the church and society, and 
 was ordained by Council June 18, 1851. Mr. 
 Leeds continued the relation thus entered into, 
 until June 23, 1855 (four years), when it was 
 terminated by his request, reluctantly ac- 
 quiesced in by the church and Council. From 
 the termination of Mr. Leeds' labors, June 28, 
 1855, down to May 2. 1858, the pulpit was sup- 
 plied b}- many different ministers — for several 
 months by Prof H. B. Hosford, of Western Re- 
 serve College, and for one year by Rev. J. L. 
 Tomlinson ; subsequently, b}' Prof H. N. Day, 
 of Western Reserve College, for several months 
 to May 2, 1858, when Rev. Dr. T. S. Clark, who 
 is still with us, commenced his labors. 
 
 "January 1, 1838, Jabez Hamlin and Ogden 
 Wetmore were chosen Deacons of the church. 
 On the 8th day of June, 1841, Deacon Wetmore 
 died, and, on the 24th of November following. 
 B. Booth was chosen his successor. January 7, 
 1858, Deacon Hamlin, by reason of the infirm- 
 ities of age, requested a discharge ft-om further 
 duties of the office and a successor chosen. 
 Whereupon Mr. Charles Clark was chosen his 
 successor. 
 
 " Mr. E. N. Sill was the first Clerk of the 
 church, and held the office to Ma}- 24, 1841, 
 when iVIr. Charles Clark was chosen Clerk. Mr. 
 Clark held the office to October 5, 1842, when 
 B. Booth was chosen. 
 
 " The church was organized in a schoolhouse 
 standing on the same lot or near where the 
 present churcli edifice stands. The next year 
 a building was erected on an adjoining lot bv 
 the citizens of the village, for public assemblies, 
 called the Lyceum, which was, however, under 
 the control of our church for religious pur- 
 poses. In this house the church worshiped 
 until the spring of 1847, when the present 
 church edifice was dedicated. 
 
 '•There was a revival in the spring of 184(1, 
 while Rev. W. C. Clark was Pastor, the fruits 
 of which were added to the church by profes- 
 fession, at the communions in April and July, 
 twenty-five persons. One in the spring of 1 848, 
 under Rev. W. C. Foster's pastoral labors, 
 whereby there were added to the church in 
 April and July, thirteen by profession. One 
 under the pastoral labor of Rev. S. P. Leeds. 
 in 1854, when in July seventeen were added to 
 the church by profession."' 
 
 Since that time, 215 liaA'e been added to the 
 church, 137 by profession. The present num- 
 ber of members is 165 — male, 50 ; female, 115. 
 Hon. E. N. Sill is the onh' remaining one of the 
 original ten members. 
 
 Dr. Clarke's labors terminated June 8. 1862. 
 During the two years following, the pulpit was 
 supplied b}- various individuals — from June 19, 
 1864, to April 1, 1866, by Rev. D. M. Rankin. Oc- 
 tober 28, 1866, Rev. E. V. H. Danner commenced 
 his labors ; was ordained and installed January 
 3, 1867, and is still the Pastor. In 1870, the 
 church edifice was enlarged and improved, at an 
 expense of $6,121.56. The Sunday school was 
 organized in 1838, and has been held uninter- 
 ruptedly since then. Organizations under the 
 management of the ladies of the church, sew- 
 ing societies, or dime societies, have existed al- 
 most from the organization of the church, and 
 have proved very efficient aids in raising funds 
 for the church. In March, 1875, two ladies' 
 missionary societies (one for young people) 
 were organized, and are still active. Annual 
 contributions are made by the church to the 
 American Bible Society, the American Board 
 of Commissioners of Foreign Missions, the 
 American Home ^Missionary Society, the Amer- 
 ican Missionary Association, the Education So- 
 ciety-, and the Congregational Union. During 
 the pastorate of Rev. S. P. Leeds, this church 
 and Pastor were active in the formation of the 
 Puritan Conference. 
 
CUYAHOCxA FALLS TOWXSHIP. 
 
 487 
 
 The Church of Christ is the youngest of the 
 church organizations at Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, 
 its existence as an independent church body 
 dating from the 27th day of March, A. 0.1881. 
 The history of the efforts made by the disciple 
 that led to the organization of the church, cov- 
 ers a period of about two years. 
 
 In the month of January-, 1 879. upon the in- 
 vitation of the Ohio Christian Missionary So- 
 cietN', District No. 15, and the church at Stow, 
 Elder T. D. Grarvin, of Columbus, Ohio, visited 
 Cuyahoga Falls to hold a series of meetings. 
 James' Hall (now called Apollo Hall), was ob- 
 tained for this purpose. The weather during 
 these meetings — which continued nearly four 
 weeks — was excellent, and the members of the 
 church at Stow attended nearly all the meet- 
 ings. James' Hall was filled night after night 
 to the close. Rev. T. D. Garvin's labors on 
 this occasion were rewarded by quite a num- 
 ber of additions to the church. The expenses 
 of the meeting were borne jointly b}' the mis- 
 sionary society and the Stow church. 
 
 In the spring of 1879, the members of the 
 Stow church, who were living at the Falls, or- 
 ganized a mission, rented the hall over J. 
 L'Hommedieu's store, and held regular meet- 
 ings, for social worship, preaching and com- 
 munion. 
 
 These meetings were continued during the 
 year with rather indifferent success. A. S. 
 Wlieelei", Elder of the Stow church, had charge 
 of the mission, and the mone^' necessary to sus- 
 tain it was contributed b}' the missionary so- 
 cietv and the members of the church resident 
 at the Falls. 
 
 In December, 1879, Elder T. D. Garvin held 
 a second series of meetings in Apollo Hall, 
 which continued till Januar}' 12, 1880. Like 
 the meetings of the previous winter, these were 
 largely attended, and resulted in some thirty 
 additions to the church at Stow. The expense 
 of the meetings, which was about $8 per daj', 
 was paid in equal parts by the missionary so- 
 ciety and by the brethren and friends of the 
 mission. 
 
 In February, perhaps, of 1880, the mission 
 rented the hall over Giles L'Hommedieu's store, 
 where it has since held its meetings. In April 
 of the same year, William Southmayd, an El- 
 der of the Stow church, moved to the Falls and 
 took an active part in the work of the mission. 
 A Sunda}' school was organized in connection 
 
 with the mission on May 1, 1880, and William 
 Southmayd was chosen Superintendent. A 
 good corps of teachers was secured, and with 
 an enrollment of about twenty-five (which at this 
 writing. May 28, 1880, has grown to nearly 
 fifty), the Sunday-school work of the mission was 
 begun. 
 
 About April 15, of the same year, Leonard 
 Southmayd was emplo3'ed to preach regularly 
 for the mission. He pi'eached regularly from 
 the time of his employment up to the date of 
 the organization of the church, ever}-- Lord's 
 Day morning, with one exception. The expense 
 incident to this period of the mission's life was 
 borne bj^ the members of the mission, the mis- 
 sionary societv and the church at Stow. 
 
 In December, 1880, Elder C. C. Smith, of 
 Akron, held a protracted meeting in G. L'Hom- 
 medieu's hall, which resulted in a few accessions 
 to the church. The church at Akron gave El- 
 der Smith's time. Elder Southmayd supplying 
 the Akron pulpit during Elder Smith's labors 
 here. A pleasant feature of the close of this 
 meeting was the presentation to the Mission 
 Sunday School by Elder Smith, in behalf of the 
 Akron Sunda}- School, of the beautifully -framed 
 mottoes which now adorn the walls of the Sun- 
 day-school room. 
 
 On February 7, 1881, at the request of mem- 
 bers of the mission, the State Evangelist, Elder 
 R. Moffat, called a conference to take into con- 
 sideration the propriety and practicability of 
 organizing a church. At this conference which 
 met at William Southma3xVs. there were present 
 from Stow, Ulysses Marvin, Eli Gaylord, L. Har- 
 tle, C. B. AVetmore, Josiah Wetmore, J. 0. Will- 
 iamson, Joseph Whittlesc}', L. Southma}^! and 
 A. B. Griffith ; from the Falls, A. S. Wheeler, 
 William Southmayd, John Jones, 0. M. Hart, 
 Zeno Culver, J. T. Ream. In addition to these 
 there were present R. MolTat, State Evangelist 
 of the Ohio Christian Missionar}' Society, Linus 
 Rogers, C. C. Smith and A. E. Myers, State 
 Evangelist of West Virginia. 
 
 The unanimous conclusion of the conference 
 was that a church be organized at the Falls, 
 provided such act met the approval of the 
 brethren of the mission. 
 
 The Elders of the Stow Church gave their 
 consent to the transfer of some fifty-seven 
 names from their church record to the record 
 of the church at the Falls whenever organ- 
 ized. 
 
<s 
 
 488 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Subsequently the members of the mission 
 concluded to effect an organization. With 
 that end in view, the State Evangelist, Elder 
 R. Moffatt was invited to hold a series of meet- 
 ings at the hall of the mission, which he did 
 beginning on Saturday evening, iMarch 18, 
 1881, and closing on Sunday evening, March 
 27, 1881. On March 27, 1881, by appropriate 
 exercises, the church was formally organized, 
 though not legally incorporated as the Church 
 of Christ, of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and the 
 following officers were chosen : A. S. Wheeler 
 and William Southraayd, Elders ; 0. M. Hart, 
 John Jones and T. J. Ream, Deacons ; W. M. 
 Griswold, Treasurer, and Charles Fillius, Clerk. 
 
 There are in Cuyahoga Falls but few secret 
 societies. Howard Lodge, No. 62, I. 0. 0. F., 
 was instituted March 12, 1846, by 0. P. Stid- 
 ger, D. D. G. M., of Canton, Ohio. The char- 
 ter membex'S were Philemon Bliss, Richard 
 Creighton, George Rouse, Augustus Einger and 
 Daniel M. Curtiss. Their charter was surren- 
 dered August 27, 1862. The lodge, however, 
 was re-instituted August 1, 1872, by H. Y. 
 Beebe, P. G. M., of Ravenna, Ohio. The new 
 charter members were John Grimm, D. H. 
 Jones. William Daugherty, Andrew Schmidt, 
 W. H. Dailey, A. M. Musson, John Little, E. 
 L. Babcock and C. Kittleberger. The present 
 officers of the lodge are : I. N. Reid, N. G.; 
 George Williams, V. G.; George W. Rice, Sec- 
 retary ; W. H. Dailey, Recording Secretary ; 
 W. M. Griswold, Treasurer. The Trustees are 
 George J. Parks, George W. Rice, A. C. 
 Goble, Humphrey Parkin, W. I. Clarkson. The 
 names of the Past Grands now connected with 
 the lodge are D. H. Jones, John Grimm, Will- 
 iam Daugherty, Andrew Schmidt, E. L. Bab- 
 cock, W. H. Dailey, George W. Rice, Nelson 
 Holcomb, E. A. Inskeep, A. C. Goble, Thomas 
 Garret}', C. Kittleberger, George J. Parks, W. 
 S. Hough, George F. Patterson, W. I. Clarkson, 
 John D. Thomas, David Forbes and Joseph 
 Jones. The present number of members is 
 seventy-three. Their night of meeting is Tues- 
 day' ; their place, Loomis Block, northeast 
 corner of Front and Portage streets. 
 
 Letters of dispensation were granted to Star 
 Lodge, F. & A. M., by the Grand Lodge of the 
 State of Ohio January 9, 1850. The first offi- 
 cers of the lodge were : Richard Creighton, 
 W. M.; H. N. Gillett, S. W.; H. Dowd, J. W.; 
 G. L'Hommedieu, Treasurer ; John Davis, 
 
 Secretary ; A. M. Manchester, S. D.; I. Lewis, 
 J. D.; William Wright, Tiler. The lodge re- 
 ceived their charter from the Grand Lodge of 
 the State of Ohio the 17th day of October, 
 1850. 
 
 The following were charter members of the 
 Lodge : Richard Creighton, Harrison M. Gil- 
 lett, Henr}- Dowd, Charles W. Whetmore, Giles 
 L'Hommedieu, John Davis, Alonzo N. Man- 
 chester, Isaac Lewis, William Wright, Timothy 
 Brainard, George Allen and Robert Peebles. 
 
 The following members were Past Masters 
 of the lodge : R. Creighton, J. Chamberlain, 
 A. M. Manchester, C. W. Whetmore, P. V. 
 Curch, S. Comstock, John Hinde. R. Peebles, 
 I. James, M. Crawford and E. L. Babcock. 
 
 The lodge holds two regular communications 
 a month in the Buck Block, on the corner of 
 Front and Portage streets. 
 
 The present officers of the lodge are ; Will- 
 iam Sid well, \V. M.; William Blong, S. W.; 
 J. M. Craflts, J. W.; C. Kittleberger, Treas- 
 urer ; C. A. Hall, Secretar}' ; D. Forbes, S. D.; 
 C. Clarke, J. D.; H. M. Stanley, Tiler; J. H. 
 Insande and J. I. Reid, Stewards. 
 
 Royal Arcanum, Enterprise Council, No. 234, 
 was organized January 3, 1879. The charter 
 members were E. L. Babcock, W. S. Hough, 
 John I. Jones, P. H. Standish, T. F. Heath, J. 
 J. Moore, George Paul, Thomas Garrety, 
 George F. Patterson, E. A. Inskeep, W. A. Tay- 
 lor, W. A. Harrington, A. J. Vaughn, T. J. Fran- 
 cisco, E. A. Chamberlin, W. 0. Beebe, W. M. 
 Griswold, J. C. Reid, H. E. Howard, George J. 
 Parks. The first officers were E. L. Babcock, 
 Past Regent ; T. F. Heath, Regent ; A. J. 
 Vaughn, Vice Regent ; W. 0. Beebe, Collector ; 
 W. M. Griswold, Secretary ; John I. Jones, 
 Treasurer. The Lodge meets twice a month in 
 G. A. R. Hall, in the James Block. The pres- 
 ent officers are : W. S. Hough, Past Regent ; 
 Thomas Garrety, Regent ; W. S. Hough, Col- 
 lector ; W. M. Griswold, Secretary ; E. A. 
 Chamberlin, Treasurer. 
 
 The Council is one of man}' similar councils 
 of secret organization, extending nearly all over 
 the United States, organized for the purpose of 
 mutual insurance on the assessment plan, each 
 member paying, according to age. Upon the 
 death of a member in good standing, the heirs 
 are paid from the fund raised by the assess- 
 ment the sum of $3,000. 
 
 It also has a social interest for which pro- 
 
.f'^ 
 
 ^]sW^> 
 
 9^'A 
 
'Uv 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 motion its stated council meetings are held. 
 Besides its assessments, each council collects 
 its quarterl}' dues for defraying its running ex- 
 penses and creating a fund from which each 
 member is entitled to not less than $1 per week 
 in case of sickness. 
 
 On the 8th day of June, 1867, the following 
 citizens of Cuyahoga Falls — L. W. Loomis, I. 
 N. Reid, G. M. Patterson, Amos Wills, W. H. 
 Shaffer, D. Shumway, M. V. Burt, R. M. Hin- 
 man,W. H. Carloss and B. B. Tremblin — former 
 soldiers of the late war, met for the purpose of 
 organizing a Post of the Grand Army, and 
 signed an application for a charter which was 
 forwarded to the headquarters of the then 
 Eighteenth District, at Cleveland. On the 
 evening of Jul}' 5, 1867, they met and were 
 regularly mustered in by Col. George L. Childs, 
 District Commander. The names of Josiah 
 Brown, A. S. Emerson, J. H. Shewey were added 
 to the charter list. 
 
 The officers elected at this meeting for one 
 year were A. S. Emerson, Post Commander ; 
 R. H. Hinman, Senior Vice Commander ; D. 
 Shumway, Junior Vice Commander ; B. B. 
 Tremblin, Post Adjt. ; L. W. Loomis, Post 
 Quartermaster ; W. H. Shaffer, Surgeon ; G. M. 
 Patterson, Chaplain. 
 
 The name chosen for the Post was Eadie 
 (Post No. 232), in honor of the Eadie boys — 
 John, James and Henry — who lost their lives as 
 soldiers during the rebellion. The number was 
 afterward changed to No. 37. 
 
 The first meetings were held in the old Tem- 
 perance Hall, but in a few weeks the Post made 
 arrangements to occupy the hall in the Loomis 
 Block with the I. 0. G. T. 
 
 The organization grew rapidly during the 
 years up to 1870. In that year the Post had 
 increased from fourteen members to over one 
 hundred and twenty -five. But in the year 1869, 
 it pleased the National Headquarters to intro- 
 duce a new system known as the " Three 
 Grades " — (1st) recruit ; (2d) soldier ; (3d) vet- 
 eran. For soldiers, this sj'stem did not work 
 well. In consequence, recruiting about stopped, 
 members became delinquent, and, finally, in 
 December, 1873, the old Post ceased to exist. 
 While it flourished, no member that belonged 
 to it need be ashamed of its work. They col- 
 lected, outside of the regular fees and dues, from 
 the years 1867 to 1873, about $1,200, and used 
 the same for charitable pui'poses. They took 
 
 care of their own sick and poor ; they buried 
 their own dead, and helped to establish the Sol- 
 diers' Orphan Home. Slany a strange soldier 
 was sent on his way rejoicing through the kind- 
 ness of the comrades of Eadie Post. The last 
 work they did was one of practical benefit to 
 Cuyahoga Falls, the donating of the last $100 
 in the treasury to establish the free reading 
 room, which is an honor to Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 In March, 1880, there met in the office of 
 George Paul, a number of the old members of 
 the G. A. R. and old soldiers, and signed an 
 application for a new charter. The meeting 
 for organization was held March 17, 1880, in 
 the old Temperance Hall, and the Post was 
 duly organized by Judge L. C. Williamson and 
 comrades from Buckley, of Akron. Twenty- 
 six members were regularly mustered in. 
 
 The officei's elected from the charter list for 
 the first year ending January 1, 1881. were 
 W\ 0. Beebe, P. C; J. A. Ramp, Sr. V. C.; H. 
 Ingals, Jr. V. C; C. T. Parks, Adjt. ; J. C. Reid, 
 Q. M.; G. M. Patterson, 0. D.: M. H. Diffendorf, 
 0. G.; W. S. Hough, Surg.; J. A. Craffts, Chap- 
 lain ; H. Steele, Sgt. M.; M. C. Tifft, Q. M. Sgt.; 
 George Paul, Dept. Aid de Camp. 
 
 The old name and old number was adopted, 
 " Eadie Post, No. 37, Department of Ohio." 
 
 Since April 1, 1880, the Post has occupied a 
 lodge-room in Apollo Hall block. The Post 
 has steadily increased in the last 3'ear, having 
 now about fifty members, good and efficient 
 officers, and well- attended meetings. In fact 
 its future never was brighter than at present. 
 There is but one grade ; the object is fraternit}', 
 charity and loyalty. Since the re-organization, 
 the Post has lost by death one of our most 
 valued members, Adjt. W. J. Patterson, a brave 
 soldier, and the most efficient Adjutant that 
 has occupied that office since the Post was es- 
 tablished in Cuyahoga Falls. The death roll 
 as near as is known since 1877, of tlie Post is 
 John Williams, Christopher Post, Frederick 
 Bethel, Frank Brainard, William Cooper, A. 
 H. Goble and William J. Patterson. 
 
 In 1812, Kelsey & Wilcox built a dam across 
 the Cuj-ahoga River at the place in Cu^'ahoga 
 Falls where the railroad bridge crosses it. At 
 this point they erected a grist-mill and a saw- 
 mill. These were the first in the village. After 
 the war with Great Britain of 1812-15, the 
 property- was purchased by Stow & Wetmore, 
 and an oil-mill l)uilt. 
 
^1 
 
 490 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 It is well known that, at an early day, there 
 was a portage or carrying- place between the 
 waters of the Cuyahoga and those of the Tus- 
 carawas used by the Indians and traders to 
 transport their canoes and peltries within the 
 present Summit County. This portage was an 
 important path, even after the country was 
 occupied by the whites. At a point on this 
 carrying-place was erected by the United 
 States Government a military post, and what 
 was called a " navy yard," and supplies were 
 gathered here for their maintenance. These 
 were drawn from as far south as Chillicothe, 
 being brought up to the head-waters of the 
 Muskingum and conveyed overland to the Cuy- 
 ahoga. William Wetmore was appointed Com- 
 missary of this post, and all the lumber neces- 
 sary to supply the wants of the Government at 
 the station was supplied b}^ the saw-mill at the 
 "old village," near, as we have seen, where the 
 railroad bridge crosses the river. 
 
 In the course of time it was discovered that 
 a "power" existed farther down the river 
 much to be preferred to the one which had thus 
 been improved ; so the last named gentlemen 
 commenced in April, 1825, to make improve- 
 ments at the latter place. William Wetmore, 
 Jr., acting for Stow & Wetmore, gathered thirty 
 men from the surrounding country, who were 
 set to work to construct a dam where the upper 
 one now stands. This was finished in June 
 following. Here was erected a grist-mill, also 
 a saw-mill and an oil-mill. As the erection of 
 this dam flooded the one above, the mills first 
 built were taken down. 
 
 In 1830, Stow & Wetmores (the father of the 
 latter was then dead) built a paper-mill upon 
 the east side of the river. The first sheet of 
 paper was run off on the 8th of December of 
 that year. Previous to this, the tannery, now 
 occupied by C. Kittleberger, was erected. 
 
 "On the 1st day of April, 1825," writes 
 Henry Wetmore, " Brother William and I came 
 to what is now the village of Cuyahoga Falls 
 from the banks of Silver Lake, in the township 
 of Stow. We cut away the alders on the bank 
 of the river, where Israel James' flouring-mill 
 was afterward erected, to take a look at the 
 river, and the wild scenery on each side. The 
 next day Father came to line out the 210 acres 
 which were subsequently the Stow Township 
 part of the village, and to take a level of the 
 fall of the river, to ascertain the height of the 
 
 dam he was to build. All around was an un- 
 broken forest. On the 30th of April we had a 
 house up, and a goodly numl)er of men em- 
 ployed in cutting and hewing timber for our 
 dam and saw-mill, flour and linseed oil mill, all 
 of which were built in the year 1825-26. 
 
 " In December we completed our paper-mill, 
 it being the first mill in the State to make 
 paper by the method of gathering the pulp on 
 a cylinder. There were three or four small 
 hand mills in Ohio which made paper with 
 selves by dipping up the pulp and shaking it. 
 Joshua Stow, of Middletown, Conn., was our 
 partner, under the firm name of Stow & Wet- 
 mores. In March, 1837, I sold out m}' interest 
 in the firm to Mr. Stow. Since then the de- 
 stroying hand of time and decay wore out the 
 paper-mill frame and timbers, and it was pulled 
 down. Some fiend burned the flouring-mill, 
 and the oil-mill was discontinued for want of 
 seed to stock it. 
 
 "In 1836, a gentleman came to Cuyahoga 
 Falls to locate in business. He liked the place 
 much, but he had heard of a place called Chi- 
 cago, and he would go and see it before locating. 
 On his return, he said Cuyahoga Falls was 
 doing the most business, and would always 
 continue to do so ; so he located here !" 
 
 While Stow & Wetmores, in 1825, were con- 
 structing their dam and building their mills as 
 before mentioned, Henry Newberry was engaged 
 in making improvements in the lower part of 
 the present village. What is now Turner, 
 Parks & Co.'s dam was built by him during 
 that year. The next year he erected on the 
 west side of the river a saw-mill, and on the 
 east side an oil-mill. The latter was carried 
 away by a flood in 1832, but a new mill was 
 immediately put up, and was used by E. N. 
 Sill and Ogden Wetmore. It was afterward 
 sold to John Rumrill, who disposed of it to 
 Prentiss Dow, the latter converting it into a 
 paper-mill. Dow ran it in company with Rum- 
 rill, under the firm name of Dow, Rumrill & 
 Co. This partnership was closed after a time, 
 and then run by P. & G. Dow. The building 
 was finally removed. 
 
 The first woolen factory in Cuyahoga Falls 
 was erected near where are now the shops of 
 Turner, Vaughn & Taylor. This factory was 
 burned — the incendiary was spontaneous com- 
 bustion. There was an oil-mill which was run 
 by Penfield & Starr, adjoining the woolen fac- 
 
>^. 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 491 
 
 Uivy at the time of its destruction, which was 
 saved ; but this has '• gone where the woodbine 
 twineth." In 1834, a foundry and trip-hammer 
 shop was built by Mr. Vaughn, on the south 
 side of what is now the stone bridge, where the 
 saw-mill stands ; but this was burned and 
 never rebuilt. Just south of this was a car- 
 riage-shop carried on b}^ Isaac Lewis. The 
 building was afterward changed to a paper- 
 mill, and run by George E. Clarke in com- 
 pany with his nephew, Sej'mour ; but like 
 others of its class, it, too, has passed away. 
 In 1834. Ogden Wetmore and B. R. Manches- 
 ter built a foundry and machine-shop near 
 where the brick paper-mill now stands. They 
 ran the foundry for about two years, when 
 Manchester's place was taken by L. W. Butler. 
 In 1835, the machine-shop was leased by the 
 Messrs. Bill, who afterward purchased the prop- 
 erty' and used it until 1843, when it was de- 
 stroyed by fire. 
 
 In 1845, the Messrs. Bill put up a brick build- 
 ing for a foundry and machine-shop, but, for 
 the purpose of renting it to J. M. Smith & Co. 
 for a paper-mill, the}- erected a small shop on 
 the other side of the street for their own use. 
 The lease of this company was for ten years, 
 but, before its expiration, they were succeeded 
 by Harrison & Hanford, who purchased the 
 propert}- and added to it till it became what 
 was known as the Empire Mill. This came 
 into the hands of Hanford Brothers, who ran it 
 until 1872, when it burned down. The Messrs. 
 Bill took into copartnership James Chamber- 
 lain, and their shops were run for several j'ears 
 under the firm name of Bill & Chamberlain. 
 To accommodate their increasing business the}' 
 removed the shops first built, and put up large 
 buildings opposite the Empire Mill. There 
 were some changes in the proprietorship from 
 time to time, but the shops were kept running 
 until the fire of 1872, when they disappeared 
 with all their contents. A paper-mill, built by 
 T. L. Miller, once stood on the east side of the 
 canal. This was run by steam. It was sub- 
 sequentl}- occupied by Caleb Howard, but fell 
 into decay and was taken down. Among the 
 " ancient institutions " of Cuyahoga Falls was 
 a distillery. A portion of the buildings con- 
 nected with it afterward were appropriated by 
 the Taylor Wire Cloth Company. The " deadly 
 worm " has long since disappeared. 
 
 A lard oil and candle factory was started in 
 
 Cuyahoga Falls in 1842, by George A. Stanley 
 and Henry Holbrook, in the first building north 
 of what is now the covered bridge on the west 
 side ; but the enterprise was soon abandoned. 
 Among other earl}' industries undertaken, but 
 which was of short continuance, was a starch 
 factory, by Birdsey Booth, at the spring on the 
 bank of the river, near the present mill of Mr. 
 Hinde. Another one was b\' G. & I. L'Hom- 
 medieu, near the depot, a sandpaper and glue 
 fiictory, under the management of Mr. Smith. 
 Still another was a pump factory, on the east 
 side, carried on by R. S. Williams. In 1852, 
 there were in the village three paper-mills, two 
 oil-mills, two forges, one webbing factory, one 
 fork, hoe and tool factory, three machine-shops 
 one saw-mill, one fork and hoe factory, two 
 grist-mills, one flax factory and one shovel 
 factor}'. 
 
 In 1854, Cuyahoga Falls had three paper- 
 mills in operation, and another in process of 
 erection. The}- consumed 675 tons of the raw 
 material, making 525 tons of paper annuall}'. 
 In them were employed eight}' persons. They 
 consumed $9,000 worth of chemicals and colors 
 annually. There were two oil-mills, consuming 
 16,000 bushels of seed annually, making 30,000 
 gallons of oil. There was one forge for manu- 
 facturing car-axles, consuming from six to seven 
 hundred tons of pig-metal, and making about 
 five hundred and fifty tons of axles annually. 
 The establishment employed from twenty to 
 twenty-five men. There were three foundries 
 and machine-shops. One of them consumed 
 from 300 to 400 tons of stock, manufacturing 
 about $75,000 worth of machinery annually, 
 and affording constant employment to about 
 thirty men. There was also a steel-fork manu- 
 fiictory, which turned out, on an average, 100,- 
 000 forks annually, consuming twenty tons of 
 cast-steel, and employing from fifteen to twenty 
 hands ; one shovel-factory, which made six 
 dozen shovels daily ; one grist-mill, one tool- 
 factory, two tanneries, one ashery, two flax- 
 mills, and one distillei-y, as previously men- 
 tioned. This last-mentioned •• institution " con- 
 sumed 75,000 bushels of grain annually, mak- 
 ing 30,000 gallons of high-wines. Tt furnished 
 food for 3,000 hogs, '-and drinl: for ten times 
 that number.' 
 
 In 1876, there were in operation within the 
 corporation one foundry, one rolling-mill, two 
 grist-mills, two saw-mills, a rivet-factory and 
 
 'f 
 
493 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 clay-mill, a wire-factory, wire-weaving works, 
 a large foundry and machine-shop, a small 
 machine-shop and town-clock factory, two pa- 
 per-mills, another partly erected, an extensive 
 sewer-pipe factory, two potteries, a planing- 
 mill, a tannery, a tow-bagging mill and a tile- 
 factory. 
 
 Having thus briefly outlined the rise and 
 progress of the manufacturing industries of Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls, man}^ of which " were, but are 
 not," the attention of the reader is asked while 
 we recount the story of such as are now in ex- 
 istence. 
 
 The buildings of the Variety Iron Works of 
 Turner, Vaughn & Taylor consist of the main 
 building, 36x74 feet ; an L-shaped attachment, 
 32x76 feet ; and a wing, 36x72 feet— each con- 
 taining two stories and a basement. The first 
 shop upon the place where these buildings 
 stand was used by a man by the name of Kel- 
 ley as a chair- factor}'. Mr. Lawson used it for 
 the same purpose for some time afterward. 
 This was replaced by one built by Vaughn, 
 Hunt & Co., which was removed to give place 
 to the Variety Iron Works, founded in 1856, b\ 
 the firm of Turner, Parks & Co. Mr. Parks 
 and Mr. Wetmore afterward retired. The re- 
 maining members were succeeded by Turner, 
 Parks & Taylor, and the latter, in 1879, by 
 Turner, Vaughn & Taylor, the present proprie- 
 tors. The buildings of this firm are equipped 
 with the most perfect machinery known in all 
 the departments of iron and wood working, op- 
 erated by water, aggregating seventy-five-horse 
 power. The specialties of this house are im- 
 proved steam engines, grain-cleaning machin- 
 ery, mill-gearing, wire-working machinery and 
 clay-grinding machines, which latter article is 
 patented by this firm. They constructed all 
 the wire-drawing machinery of the extensive 
 Cleveland RoUing-Mills, and have made ma- 
 chinery for every wire-mill in the United States, 
 with but a single exception, and are now super- 
 intending the erection of similar machinery in 
 England. In addition to the leading products 
 enumerated above, they also manufacture steam, 
 hydraulic and screw presses for sewer-pipe, 
 paper-mill, flour-mill and clay-mill machinery-, 
 iron and brass castings in great variet}' to 
 order ; Russia, sheet and galvanized iron and 
 zinc screens, light cast-iron pipe for heating by 
 steam, flange-pipe, etc. They have also facili- 
 ties for sawing every description of lumber to 
 
 order, and for grinding flour, feed, etc., for cus- 
 tomers as required. 
 
 The Falls Wire Manufacturing Company are 
 located in Cuyahoga Falls, on the bank of the 
 Cuyahoga River. The main building is of brick, 
 40x85 feet, three stories and a basement, with 
 a wing 30x55 feet, well supplied with improved 
 modern machinery and appurtenances for the 
 production of every gi'ade of iron and steel 
 wire. The production of this article, in all its 
 forms and sizes, furnishes an interesting sight 
 to the curiosity-seeker. Regarded as a promi- 
 nent article of commerce, entering largely as it 
 does into a variety of industrial pursuits, its 
 manufacture forms no insignificant item in the 
 manufactures of the village. The works were 
 first known as the Falls Wire Mill, operated by 
 the Falls Wire Company, a stock company or- 
 ganized in 1873, for the manufacture of iron 
 wire. This company was succeeded b}' the 
 Falls Wire Manufacturing Company, organized 
 in 1879, with an authorized capital stock of 
 $100,000. The waters of the Cuyahoga River 
 furnish the power (65-horse-power), to turn the 
 machinery. There is here produced annually 
 over one thousand tons of the various sizes of 
 finished wire. The trade of this company is 
 principally in the West. They make a specialty 
 of wire for fine purposes, such as spring-wire 
 for woven-wire mattresses, the extra grades of 
 tinned wire, and broom and binder wire. On 
 the evening of March 31, 1881, since the fore- 
 going was written, these works were largel}' 
 desti'oyed by fire. They will, however, be im- 
 mediately rebuilt, with but a few weeks' inter- 
 ruption of the business of the compan3^ 
 
 The peculiar adaptability of the clay deposits 
 of Summit County for the manufacture of potter}' 
 has been spoken of in another chapter. Ohio 
 stoneware has acquired an extensive reputa- 
 tion. The Cuyahoga Falls Stoneware Factory 
 was founded about eighteen years ago b}' the 
 firm of Tiiomas & Harris. Thomas Brothers 
 are the present proprietors. The building oc- 
 cupied l)y tills company is a two-story structure, 
 36x120 feet in size, and is furnished with a 
 complete and thorough outfit of machiner}' es- 
 pecially adapted to the manufacture of the line 
 of articles turned out, consisting of churns, 
 butters, pans, Dutch pots, jugs, preserve jars, 
 fruit jars with label tops, covers, stove tubes, 
 etc. The capacity of the factor}' is upward of 
 300,000 gallons per annum, valued at not less 
 
 :7i" 
 
 . V. 
 
CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 493 
 
 than $15,000, the demand for which is principally 
 in the States of Michigan, Illinois and Indiana. 
 Their manufactor}' is on the corner of Main and 
 Broad sti'cets. 
 
 At the corner of Front and Portage streets is 
 the business house of L. W. Loomis. It was 
 founded in 186i, under the firm name of Loomis 
 & Co., with L. W. Loomis, H. E. Loomis, and 
 Smith & Harington, of New York, as partners. 
 Since 1868, it has been under the sole control 
 and management of L. W. Loomis. A specialty 
 of this house is the manufacture of tinware, for 
 which purpose a large force is employed. A 
 number of wagons are kept on the road dispos- 
 ing of the manufactured stock. 
 
 The clay banks of Summit County ai'e uni- 
 versally acknowledged to be superior to any in 
 the United States for the manufacture of sewer 
 pipe and similar articles, and the class of goods 
 manufactured here have a national reputation. 
 The value of these immense deposits of cla}' is 
 estimated at nearly $2,000,000 a year, and, as 
 the variety and extent of these important arti- 
 cles of commerce is continually on the increase, 
 without any perceptible diminution of the raw 
 material, there can scarcely be a limit to this 
 great and important source of wealth and pros- 
 perity. At Cuyahoga Falls, the manufacture 
 of sewer pipe is extensivel}' carried on b}' G-eorge 
 C. Germain. The works now conducted by 
 him were founded in 1865, by Lewis, Fosdick 
 & Camp, and, after passing through a number 
 of changes in proprietorship, came into the 
 possession of James H. Cooke in 1877. Mr. 
 Cooke has since died. The trade has consider- 
 ably increased, and now extends all over the 
 United States from INIaine to Minnesota. Mr. 
 Germain occupies a spacious and commodious 
 building four stories in height, covering an 
 area of 40x180 feet, with convenient yards ad- 
 jacent. The works are located on the banks of 
 the Cuyahoga River, where they have water- 
 power equivalent to eighty horses, using one 
 sixty horse-power and one twenty horse-power 
 wheel. The works are supplied with the most 
 appi'oved and latest styles of machinery, and 
 appliances especially adapted to this branch of 
 industry, and tor capacity, extent and general 
 excellence of appointments, as well as for su- 
 periorit}' of productions, will compare favorabl}' 
 with any similar establishment in the State. 
 He turns out ever}' variety of straight, bent, 
 elbow, slant and branch pipe, with elbows, 
 
 angles, ring joints and sockets of a superior 
 quality. The pipe is vitrified by the chemical 
 action of salt while in the process of burning, 
 which renders it impervious to the action of 
 steam, gas and acids, and is particularly notice- 
 able for fine finish, durability and uniformity. 
 On the site of these works there once stood an 
 oil-mill, built by Cyrus Pi-entiss. It was after- 
 ward used by Henr}- Wetmore to make linseed 
 oil, till 1863, when it gave place to the works 
 before mentioned. 
 
 The Cu^'ahoga Paper Company was organized 
 in 1875. Their first building occupied was the 
 one built for a grist-mill by Yockey, Vantine & 
 Co. This mill was run for the manufacture of 
 flour for some years ; but was finally purchased 
 by J. M. Smith & Co., and changed to a paper 
 mill. Soon after, it was burned down. Another 
 mill was immediatel}^ erected in its place, which 
 was run bj- Harrison & Hanford, until that one 
 was also burned to the ground. Again it was 
 built, and used by the gentlemen last mentioned, 
 until bought by the Cuyahoga Paper Company. 
 This company went into possession in 1875. 
 The last-named firm was organized by Robert 
 R. Peebles, George Dow and George Sacket, for 
 the purpose of manufacturing wrapping and 
 colored papers, the latter article being used for 
 posters, handbills and tobacco labels principally. 
 In 1879, Mr. Dow and Mr. Sacket retired, and 
 J. M. Loeser, A. S. Deutsch and S. Levi entered 
 the firm. They occupy a number of buildings 
 on the banks of the river, which are supplied 
 with improved machinery, especially adapted 
 to this branch of business. The capacity of 
 the mills are 8,000 pounds a day. The motive 
 power of the works is supplied by steam, and 
 the water of the river. 
 
 One of the largest and most complete manu- 
 facturing establishments of its kind in the 
 United States, is that of P. H. Standish, de- 
 voted to the production of chains and chain 
 machinery, and wrought saddlery hardware of 
 every description. These works were established 
 at this place in 1878, and comprise at the lower 
 works one main building 30x50 feet, three 
 stories in height ; one blacksmith-shop 30x75 
 feet, and one" 20x100 feet; a building 16x35 
 feetj used as a japanning and trimming depart- 
 ment, and a coke shed 28x30 feet. The upper 
 works consist of one main building 50x200 feet, 
 with two additions, one 5(1x30 feet, the other 
 20x50 feet. All of the buildings are thoroughly 
 
±lf 
 
 __S) 
 
 494 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 equipped with most perfect and complete ma- 
 chiner3-, mueli of wliich is of Mr. Standish's own 
 invention, and protected by letters patent from 
 the United States Government. Water-power, 
 equivalent to 100 horses, supplies the motive 
 power required. The leading productions of 
 these works are ever}' description of harness 
 coil, agricultural and wagon chains and chain 
 ma<rhinery, patent wrought swivels, rings, hooks, 
 hvp rings, lap links, S-hooks, dees, tees, staples, 
 snaps, clips, finch buckles, japanned harness 
 rings, buckles, etc. The demand for these arti- 
 cles is principally in New York, Philadelphia, 
 Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Chicago, St. Louis, Bal- 
 timore. Fort Wayne, Evansville, and in fact all 
 over the United States. Mr. Standish came to 
 Cuyahoga Falls from St. Louis. 
 
 The attention of farmers throughout the 
 country' has of late years been called to the 
 importance and the advantages of a thorough 
 sj'stem of underdrainage by means of drain 
 tile, and it has been demonstrated that for 
 sloughs and swampy places this system is no 
 longer an experiment, but an absolute necessity 
 for profitable and practical agricultural and hor- 
 ticultural purposes. Undei'drainage, when good 
 tile are used, is a. permanent and valuable im- 
 ment, and the old adage that "Whatever is 
 worth doing at all is worth doing well," is as 
 applicable to this case as to any other. The 
 Cuyahoga Falls Drain Tile are made from a 
 very su2)erior qualit}' of potters" clay, the same 
 which has obtained a national reputation in the 
 manufacture of the celebreted Akron Sewer 
 Pipe, and it is admitted to be the best clay in 
 the United States for this and similar purposes. 
 Tlie tile are smooth, strong, well made and well 
 burned. The firm of Camp & Babb first en- 
 gaged in the manufacture of these tile, but the 
 works are now owned by H. B. Camp. They 
 occupy two spacious buildings, one 12x70, and 
 one 24x60, supplied with all the requisite ma- j 
 chinery, operated b}' a 120-horse-power engine. [ 
 They manufacture, in addition to a superior j 
 qualit}' of drain tile, roofing tile, building [ 
 blocks and a variet}' of other products of a ' 
 similar description. The building blocks area 
 recent innovation and invention, and a specialty 
 manufactured by no other house. They are ; 
 s(iuare blocks made hollow, and possess many 
 advantages for building purposes over the or- 
 dinary brick. They are made from the same 
 material as the drain tile. The demand for 
 
 roofing tile is principally in the East, and for 
 drain tile at the present time principally in 
 Northern Ohio, although as its merits and ad- 
 vantages become known, the demand is extend- 
 ing through other States. The yearly products 
 of these works are about $10,000 in value. 
 
 The planing-mill and factory of Snyder & 
 Blood occupies two spacious and conveniently- 
 arranged buildings — one 36x70, and one 80x36, 
 furnished with planing machines, door, sash 
 and blind machinery' of the most approved 
 st3des and designs, and all the tools, appliances 
 and machinery pertaining to this branch of in- 
 dustry. The power used at their factories is 
 one thirty-five-horse-power engine and boiler ; 
 and their yearly business, which amounts to 
 not less tlian $30,000, is principally derived 
 from Summit and adjoining counties. The 
 house was founded in 1876, by the present pro- 
 prietors. 
 
 The manufacture of rivets is becoming quite 
 an important industr}' in this country, and has 
 grown very rapidly within the last few years, 
 especially in the West, where manufacturing of 
 every description is constantly assuming greater 
 proportions, thus bringing into active and aug- 
 menting demand the thousand and one items in 
 the shape of material entering into the con- 
 struction of mechanical appliances and appa- 
 ratus. One of these items of importance — as 
 necessar}' to manufacturers generally as nails 
 to the house-builder — is the article of rivets. 
 There are in the United States several large es- 
 tablishments engaged in this branch of indus- 
 try, but in no one of them are goods turned 
 out superior to those produced by the Falls 
 Rivet Company. 
 
 This concern went into operation in the year 
 1873. The works, first used as a flouring-mill 
 and sash, door and blind factory, are fully pi'o- 
 vided with ingeniously devised laboi'-saving 
 machinery of the most approved mechanism, 
 and thus they are enabled to produce first-class 
 goods with the utmost economy practicable. 
 They use the best Norway iron exclusively in 
 their manufactures, and employ thoroughly' ex- 
 perienced workmen. Their marked success in 
 this enterprise is measurabl}' attributable to the 
 high standard of excellence attained by their 
 product, and they are determined to allow none 
 to surpass them in the style, finish and quality 
 of their work. Among their manifest advan- 
 tages is that of favox'able location, as regards 
 
 VI 
 
CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 495 
 
 supplj'ing the Western trade, inasmuch as thej 
 can reach the Western markets six days in ad- 
 vance of Boston. Their rivets are regarded as 
 '• standard " throughout the West, and are 
 shipped as far East as Syracuse, N. Y. There are 
 several large users of these goods in Akron, 
 such as the Whitman & Barnes Manufacturing 
 Company, and Aultman, Miller & Company. 
 
 The Falls Rivet Company was recently incor- 
 porated under the State law, with a capital of 
 $100,000. They are working a full force of 
 men, in the manufactui-e of all kinds and styles 
 of iron rivets, both block and tinned, including 
 carriage, block, machine, tire, hame, belt, coop- 
 ers' and wagon box, riveting burrs, wagon and 
 hinge nails. They guarantee every pound of 
 their goods to be of the best quality. Special- 
 sized or shaped goods in their line of manu- 
 facture are made to order on short notice, and 
 at the lowest prices. 
 
 The factory of this company is a commo- 
 dious two-story building, situated on the east 
 side of the river, and is supplied with abund- 
 ant water and steam power, together with 
 every requisite convenience and appliance for 
 the rapid production of the goods made here. 
 
 C. Kittleberger's tannery was established a 
 number of years ago by the present proprietor, 
 whose business since that time has steadily 
 increased. The tannery building proper, is 
 60x50 feet in size, containing two floors ; and 
 the currying building, which is also two stories, 
 covers an area of 24x48. Both buildings are 
 thoroughly equipped with all the necessary 
 machinery and appliances, and one sixteen- 
 horse-power engine supplies the motive power 
 required. Mr. Kittleberger manufactures and 
 carries in stock every variety of calf, kip, up- 
 per and harness leather, making a specialty of 
 the latter article, in which line he has estab- 
 lished a wide-spread reputation. He is at all 
 times prepared to pay cash for hides and pelts 
 at the very highest market rates. His trade, 
 which amounts to nearly $20,000 per annum, 
 extends both East and West, and the products 
 of this tannery meet with a ready sale in all 
 parts of the United States. 
 
 The flouring-mill of Turner, Vaughn & Tay- 
 lor, was first built for a planing-mill by Henry 
 Newberry, and was run b}' him in company 
 with Henry A. Sill. It was soon after leased 
 by Penfleld & Starr, who changed it into a pa- 
 per-mill. It afterward passed into the hands 
 
 of Henry Wetmore, who, in company with a 
 man named Wright, ran it for a time. But it 
 passed again into Mr. Newberry's hands, who 
 removed the paper machiner}^ and changed it 
 to a grist-mill, for which purpose it is still oc- 
 cupied. It does custom work. 
 
 Buildings were first erected upon the dam of 
 what is known as the Chuckery Company, in 
 the south part of the village, for making shov- 
 els, forks, etc. These buildings were slight 
 and soon went to decay. They came, finally, 
 into the hands of John Hinde, who rebuilt 
 them and employed them in making rope and 
 twine. He afterward changed them into a mill 
 for making coarse bagging. The manufactory 
 is now closed. 
 
 The Improved Barber and Dental Chair Com- 
 pany, of Cuyahoga Falls, manufactures L. W. 
 Boys' improved quadruple motion revolving 
 barber and dental chairs. The President of 
 the company is H. M. Stanley ; the Secretary 
 and Treasurer, C. H. Reeve ; the Superintend- 
 ent, L. W. Boys. The last named, after sev- 
 eral years of close application to the matter of 
 inventing a barber and dental chair, at length 
 produced the one now being manufactured by 
 this company. 
 
 The Blakeslee Manufacturing Company has 
 works on the west side of the river. The com- 
 pany manufactures machine-forged nuts, bridge 
 and tank rivets, forged nut machines, heading 
 machines for heading rivets, track bolts, plow 
 bolts and square or hexagon head bolts. 
 
 The grist-mill known as James' Mill, was 
 built for and run as an oil-mill. It is now 
 owned by B. F. Thompson, and stands on the 
 west side of the river. Mr. James, many years 
 ago, purchased the mill and repaired it. He 
 ran it until July, 1880, when it passed into the 
 hands of the present proprietor. The mill 
 does custom work and has two run of stone. 
 
 The rolling-mill and forge near by were long 
 the property of Israel James. They are now 
 run by Robert Turner. 
 
 The Taylor Wire Cloth Company which manu- 
 factured, for several years, all kinds of wire 
 cloth, riddles, selves and wire goods generally, 
 was incorporated under the Ohio laws, in Feb- 
 ruary, 1874. It is not now operating as a 
 manufacturing company. The pottery of Hol- 
 loway & Hoots, formerly a glue factory, is no 
 longer engaged in the manufacture of stone- 
 ware. 
 
 :(x: 
 
iJ 
 
 ^ 2) 
 
 ki* 
 
 496 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 In concluding this sketch of the manufact- 
 ures of Cu\-ahoga Falls, it maj- be said that 
 although its romantic and beautiful surround- 
 ings have given to this localit}- a wide-spread 
 reputation as a pleasure resort, its various in- 
 dustrial and manufacturing establishments, 
 have contributed in a more practical manner 
 to its fame. 
 
 There are many industries in the village 
 besides its manufactories, deserving mention, 
 at least, in a sketch of the '• Cuj-ahoga Falls of 
 to-da3^" The following ma}- be noted : 
 
 Agricultural Implements — Jones & Howe. 
 
 Attorneys at Law— J. C. Castle, Charles Fill- 
 ins, E. C. Kuggles. 
 
 Bakers— F. Link, Fred Ikins. 
 
 Bank — International Bank. 
 
 Billiards — Hoyt & James, M. Deafendorf. 
 
 Book Binders— A. R. Knox, John H. Brain- 
 erd. 
 
 Books and Stationery— F. S. Heath & Co., 
 H. F. Bannard. 
 
 Boots and Shoes — John Cook, George Han- 
 son, Henry Plum. 
 
 Builders — Harvey Snyder. 
 
 Carriage Makers— W. A. Allen & Co., Clay- 
 ton & Reid. 
 
 Cigar Manufacturers — T. J. Francisco. 
 
 Clothing — H. E. Howard. 
 
 Coal and Wood— W. M. Griswold, Phillip 
 Thomas, Thomas Brothers. 
 
 Dentist — A. B. Curtiss. 
 
 Dress Making — Mrs. Charles Dow, Mrs. 
 Alice Dow, Miss Hurley. 
 
 Druggists— F. S. Heath & Co., H. F. Bannard. 
 
 Dry Goods— I. A. Mather, 0. B. Beebe & Co., 
 Groves, Quilty & Co. 
 
 Furniture — S. Brown. 
 
 Grocers — A. Patterson, J. H. Byrne, P. L. 
 Norton, Isaac Lewis & Son, L. D. Williams, 
 
 Jones Brothers, G. L'Hommedieu, J. L'Hom- 
 medieu. 
 
 Harness and Saddles — Ezra Saxe, H. Avery. 
 
 Job Printing— E. O.Knox, F. H. Duffy. 
 
 Livery Stables— C. H. & W. Moon, A. L. 
 Gilbert, Jr., W. M. Post. 
 
 Lumber — Harvej^ Sn^'der. 
 
 Mai'ble Works — Wiemer Brothers. 
 
 Meat Markets— S. D. Tifft, Andrew Porter, 
 Briese & Martin. 
 
 Restaurant — G. Bitterman. 
 
 Merchant Tailoi' — Augustus Seidshlag. 
 
 Millinery — George A. Brock, Annie Don- 
 nelly. 
 
 Photographer— Henry L. Shumwa}'. 
 
 Physicians— T. F. Heath, G. C. Upson, W. 
 S. Hough, A. H. Bill, H. W. Carter. 
 
 Undertaker — S. Brown. 
 
 Wagon Makers — Clayton & Reid, Allen & 
 Co. 
 
 Watches, Clocks and Jewelry — 0. B. Carr, 
 C. M. Hibbard. 
 
 House and Sign Painters — Alfred Letts, 
 Sames Hogarth. 
 
 Insurance Agents — William Southmayd, W. 
 A. Hanford, Dr. T. F. Heath, A. H. Bill. 
 
 Village Express — W. M. Griswold. 
 
 Barbers — David Berkhimer, L. W. Boys, H. 
 W. Johns, F. Ransom. 
 
 Blacksmiths — Joseph Jones, S. Loveland, 
 H. McKay. 
 
 Crockery and Glass Ware — L. W. Loomis. 
 
 Stoves and Tinware — G. J. Parks, L. W. 
 Loomis. 
 
 Coopers — Jacob Weiduer, Andrew Schmidt, 
 David Hawn. 
 
 Hardware — G. J. Parks. 
 
 Hotels — Perry House, Bouys House, Glen 
 House. 
 
 ^ 
 
>> 
 
 NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 497 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII.* 
 
 NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP— ITS EAllLY HISTORY — PHYSICAL FEATURES — COMING OF THE 
 WHITKS— INCIDENTS— PIONEER INDUSTRIES— RELIGIOUS— EDU- 
 CATIONAL— STATISTICS, ETC. 
 
 "NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP comprises 
 J_\| twenty-five square miles of territory, and 
 was included in an immense grant by King 
 Charles II of England, in A. D. 1665, to the State 
 of Connecticut, of which a large portion now 
 comprises the State of Ohio. All that portion 
 of the grant not included in the State of Con- 
 necticut was, in 1786, released to the United 
 States, except that included in the following 
 boundar}- : North b}' the parallel of 42° 2', east 
 by the western line of Pennsylvania, south by 
 forty-first degree of north latitude, and westb}^ a 
 line 82° 55', west longitude. This tract, the 
 " Connecticut Western Reserve," was laid off into 
 townships five miles squai'e, and numbered from 
 south to north, beginning on the forty -first de- 
 gree north as a base, and the ranges to succeed 
 each other b}' increasing numbers westward, 
 the Pennsylvania line being taken as a starting 
 point. Northampton, being fift}' miles west 
 from Pennsylvania and ten miles north from 
 the foity-first parallel, took its place as Range 
 1 1 and Town 3. That portion of Northampton 
 lying east of the Cuyahoga River was held and 
 occupied by the Indian tribes till the treaty of 
 Fort Mcintosh, in 1785, when it was ceded by 
 them to the United States, and in May, 1801, 
 the State of Connecticut also ceded to the 
 United States its jurisdiction over this territo- 
 ry, and the President, Jolm Adams, by patent, 
 conveyed it back to the Governor for the use of 
 the grantees of that State. Thus the title was 
 passed from the Indians and through the sev- 
 eral Governments, to secure its validity, and 
 was then sold by the State of Connecticut to 
 what was known as the Connecticut Land Com- 
 pany, which secured to them about four mill- 
 ion acres, at a cost of $1,200,000, averaging 
 30 cents per acre. This company' then con- 
 veyed its title to the lands to John Morgan, 
 Jonathan Brace and John Caldwell, to hold in 
 trust for the proprietors, and they lived to sell 
 or dispose of all the land, and thus closed their 
 
 * Contributed by VVllliam Prior. 
 
 trust. Those wishing to purchase would pay 
 over their money and take certificates, which 
 were numbered and drawn by lotter}^ but the 
 book of drafts, in which the account of these 
 drawings was kept, is not received as legal evi- 
 dence, yet it is upon this that all the titles to 
 lands are based, as shown b}' the records of our 
 Trumbull County. In this Book of Drafts is 
 found Town 3, Range 11 (Northampton), as the 
 seventeenth draft, and thus passed to the own- 
 ership of W. Billings, Oliver P. Holden, Solo- 
 mon Stodard, Jr., John Stodard, Daniel Wright, 
 Joseph Pratt, Luther Loomis, David King, 
 John Levitt, Jr., Ebenezer King, Jr., Timothy 
 Phelps and Fidelio King. 
 
 This township was first included within the 
 limits of Washington County, with its seat of 
 justice at Marietta. It afterward belonged to 
 Jefferson Count}', with its county seat at Steu- 
 benville, next to Trumbull County, erected in 
 the year 1800, with its Court of Quarter Ses- 
 sions (similar to our Common Pleas), under the 
 Territorial Governor, St. Clair, located in War- 
 ren. It next passed, in 1808, under the juris- 
 diction of Portage Count}', with count}'-seat at 
 Ravenna, and finally became one of the sixteen 
 townships of Summit County, in 1840, with its 
 seat of justice at Akron. 
 
 The outline boundary of Northampton as 
 other townships along the Cuyahoga River, was 
 completed by a surveying party of thirteen men 
 sent out from Connecticut in 1797, but its re- 
 survey into quarter-section lots was made by a 
 party under John Stodard some time after, and 
 it is said that, in their journey to this place, they 
 bought at Buffalo a 15-gallou keg of French 
 brandy to be used in the work, which may ac- 
 count for the irregular lines and erroneous metes 
 and bounds in the survey. As the brandy be- 
 came exhausted before the township was com- 
 pleted, part of the men were sent back for a 
 fresh supply, and while they were absent, those 
 remaining put in their time laying out a village 
 plat in the northeast corner of Lot 26, now 
 
 W 
 
498 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 owned by James Harrington and Amos L. Rice. 
 This was a " village on paper," nothing more. 
 The lots of this township were numbered from 
 north to south, commencing on the east side, 
 and were intended to contain 160 acres each, 
 but owing to causes before referred to, and per- 
 haps some others, they frequentl}' overrun 
 from 5 to 40 acres, while others fell short. The 
 south tier of lots were of full length, but only 
 a few rods in width, and were called a " gore." 
 Of the aboriginal six nations occupying ter- 
 ritor}' east of the Cuyahoga lliver, the fierce 
 and warlike tribe of Tawas controlled Northamp- 
 ton, except that part west of the river, which 
 was occupied by the remnant of Mingoes, of 
 whom the celebrated Logan had been chief, 
 with their town near the west line of the town- 
 ship, and a fort and earthwork for defense just 
 over in Bath. Within a radius of half a mile 
 are numerous mounds as large as fifty or sixty 
 feet in circumference, and from five to ten feet 
 high, which are overgrown with large trees. 
 Another fortification opposite this, and on the 
 east side of the river containing one-half an 
 acre, is in the center of a cultivated field, and 
 now nearl}' obliterated by the frequent turnings 
 of the plowshare. Another is at a place where 
 Hales and Furnace run from the west, with 
 banks nearly a hundred feet high, approach so 
 closely as to form a sliding ridge, so that but 
 one person can be admitted at a time, thence 
 diverging to several rods in width, terminating 
 in banks too high for ascent. In this plat are 
 holes arranged in a square, and about ten feet 
 from each other, which seem to have been used 
 for cisterns or store-rooms, and are nearly filled 
 with dirt. To the south of this and near its 
 narrowest point are the remains of a breast- 
 work over eight}' feet in length, with an inside 
 moat. The engineering skill displaj-ed in the 
 location and construction of these fortifications 
 for defense, is unquestionably of a high order 
 for savages. In tlie forest near where Yellow 
 Creek crosses under the canal, is an extensive 
 Indian or pre-historic burying-ground, covered 
 with full-grown trees, and from its numerous 
 graves must have been the final I'esting-place 
 of an immense population. Specimens of earth- 
 ern dishes have been taken from their graves, 
 but the early date of the ancient race that peo- 
 pled these regions is lost and forgotten. We 
 have evidences of existence, which proves they 
 were numerous and the fortifications show their 
 
 warlike character. Their burial mounds hand 
 down to coming generations an evidence that 
 they wished to perpetuate a memory of names 
 and deeds. But of that nothing now remains. 
 " Their history is unwritten and they themselves 
 forgotten and unknown." 
 
 It was to these fortifications in Northampton 
 that, in the summer of 1780, Capt. Samuel 
 Brady, commander of a company of rangers 
 from Chartier Creek, Penn., pursued a band of 
 warriors who had crossed over into that State, 
 committing depredations, murder and plunder. 
 Retreating back to their defenses, they here 
 received the attack, when a fierce and bloody 
 battle ensued. With forces largely outnum- 
 bering his own, they defeated him and put his 
 men to flight. Singling out Brady and leaving 
 all the rest, he was hotly pursued till he 
 arrived at the Cuyahoga River in Franklin, 
 just north of whei'e the bridge now stands, on 
 the Ravenna road. Here, to hem him in, they 
 closed round, and with loud shouts of ti'iumph 
 they thought their prisoner safe. Perpendicular 
 rocks here form both banks of the river, with 
 a chasm twenty-two feet across. With a 
 bound impelled by the energy of despair and 
 the certainty of death for failure, he cleared 
 the abyss and gained the opposite bank, and, 
 while his pursuers were hunting a place to 
 cross, he ran to a little lake, called " Brady's 
 Lake " to this day, and sunk his bod}' under 
 the surface of the water, where he remained, 
 breathing through a hollow weed, until his 
 enemies abandoned the search, when he made 
 his escape. 
 
 A celebrated Tawa chieftain lived here, 
 called by the Indians Stig-wan-ish, and, by the 
 whites, Seneca. He was a fine athletic speci- 
 men, tall, dignified, and of pleasing address ; 
 could swing a robe over his shoulders as grace- 
 fully as an oriental prince. In youth, he had 
 been addicted to habits of intemperance, and, 
 in a drunken tantrum, had attempted to kill his 
 squaw, but, missing her, sunk his tomahawk 
 into the head of his favorite papoose, which 
 was lashed to her back. This sobered him, 
 and he afterward drank only cider and wine 
 very sparingly. Stigwanish was civil and 
 friendly, had two beautiful squaws for wives, 
 and lived in his wigwam until the whites built 
 him a block-house on the river to protect him 
 from his enemies. Indians remained here on 
 friendly terms with the whites, except when 
 
 - to 
 
l!t^ 
 
 NOKTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 499 
 
 crazed with " fire-water," until 1812, when on 
 the breaking-out of war, thc}^ joined the Brit- 
 ish. Onl}' five of them ever after returned, 
 and those formed a camp in the great bend of 
 the river, where Capt. Mills, of Portage Coun- 
 ty, with his Indian haters and hunters, at- 
 tacked and fired upon them in the night, killing 
 four of the five. The other one escaped, and 
 was the " last of the Tawas " in Northampton. 
 
 Indian Wilson was notorious for drunken- 
 ness, and when in that condition was ugly. 
 Returning one day from Hudson, where he got 
 " cockazy," as the Indians called it, he stopped 
 in a house where he found a woman and two 
 little children alone. Seizing them by the 
 hair, he flourished his scalping-knife as if in- 
 tending to take their scalps, and, after fright- 
 ening them to his heart's content, left. Soon 
 after, came in Williams, who was brought up 
 at Indian Wheeling. He was without educa- 
 tion, and the only things he had ever learned 
 thoroughly were to love his gun and hate the 
 Indian. This Williams called at that house 
 soon after the Indian left, and, hearing the 
 woman's stor}'^ he went out with his gun, and 
 the Indian was not heard from for years, when 
 Williams owned to having shot him as he was 
 crossing the marsh stream on a log, from 
 which he fell, and Williams then pushed him 
 down into the soft muck far as he could reach 
 with his gun. Another one of a similar ugl}' 
 disposition lived in this township, who fre- 
 quently boasted of his success in killing pale- 
 faces. The ninety-nine notches cut in the 
 handle of his tomahawk represented, he said, 
 the number he had scalped and killed, but he 
 would not feel satisfied till one more was add- 
 ed. He, too, " came up missing," and Williams 
 used to say significantl}^ that some one else 
 wou'd have to cut the hundredth notch for the 
 Indian himself. 
 
 The eastern part of this township is gently 
 rolling or level, while the western is very broken 
 and hill^^ with deep ravines coursing their way 
 down to the Cuyahoga River, which flows 
 across the whole breadth of the township from 
 south to north in a line nearly parallel with its 
 western boundary. Intersected by the eastern 
 line is Mud Brook Pond from which a stream, 
 by the same name flows south, then southwest, 
 across that corner of the township, and becomes 
 a tributary to the river at Old Portage. The 
 soil along the river valley is exceeding rich and 
 
 fertile, producing crops of corn equal to any 
 other lands of Ohio, but some portions of the 
 uplands are sterile. The most valuable timber 
 is oak, of which the forests produced the great- 
 est abundance and of excellent qualit}'. The 
 other varieties were beech, maple, hickory, ash 
 and elm, with more limited quantities of black- 
 walnut, butternut and whitewood. 
 
 Northampton at its settlement was a dense 
 wilderness peopled only by Indians, and in- 
 fested with wild animals. The first white man 
 who settled here was Simeon Prior, with his 
 wife and ten children. They were from West- 
 field River, near Northampton, Mass., and 
 landed at Cleveland, from an open boat, in 
 July, 18U2, the year Ohio was admitted as a 
 State into the Union. Cleveland was then but 
 a hamlet of log cabins. Mr. Prior then came 
 to Hudson which had been settled two years 
 earlier. He left the famil}" here until the new 
 home was hunted up in the woods. A log 
 cabin was built on east part of Lot 25, in North- 
 ampton, and in August the family moved in. 
 Simeon Prior purchased 400 acres, of which 
 one lot — No. 19 — is still owned by his descend- 
 ants and heirs. Lot 33, now owned bj' D. G. 
 Myers, was also a part of this original pur- 
 chase. Their nearest neighbors were at Hud- 
 son, six miles distant, with no roads, no con- 
 veniences, no comforts ; they were compelled 
 to be self-reliant and dependent on their own 
 resources. Meal made from corn pounded fine 
 on a stump, was the material from which bread 
 was made mixed with water, salted and baked 
 on a split shingle before the open fire. Their 
 meat was the flesh of deer, bears and turkeys 
 killed in the woods ; their clothing from flax, 
 grown upon the farm, worked up into cloth, 
 and all of which was done by different mem- 
 bers of the family. Linen and tow-cloth were 
 the domestic staple products, but for winter 
 wear buckskin moccasins, pants and jackets 
 were used until in after years when sheep could 
 be protected from the wolves, and woolen 
 cloth was manufactured by the family. After 
 settlement had become more general, a large, 
 two-story hewed-log house was built, which 
 was used for a hotel for the accommonation of 
 travelers. A blacksmith-shop was also built 
 and furnished with tools and stock brought 
 here with their household goods. 
 
 On this farm Simeon Prior lived till his de- 
 cease, in 1837, at the age of eighty-two. The 
 
 f> y 
 
^: 
 
 500 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 family becoming of age, dispersed and settled 
 in different places. The oldest daughter, Sarah, 
 married Joseph Darrow, of Darrow street, a 
 prominent surveyor at that time. William, the 
 oldest son, went south to Chillicothe, the first 
 State capital, where he purchased a farm, but 
 soon sold it and returned to Northampton. He 
 married Sarah Wharton, of Indian Wheeling, 
 in Virginia, and lived in Northampton till his 
 death in 1872, at the age of ninet}'. David 
 bought a farm in Stow Township, where he 
 lived for many 3'ears, but sold out and went to 
 Missouri where he died. Gurden, the last sur- 
 viving member of the family-, sold his farm 
 here, a part of the old original homestead, and 
 moved to Iowa, where he now lives in comfort 
 on the divide between the two great waters, the 
 Missouri and Mississippi. The first marriage 
 lisense issued in Portage County, was for one 
 of the daughters, Polly, who married Eben 
 Kennedy. Erastus and Pinkney also moved 
 West and died in Iowa. Jerusha, Eliza, Judith 
 and Elisha remained, lived and died in Summit 
 County. 
 
 The next family moving into this township 
 was that of David Parker, from Hartford, Conn. 
 His residence was at the foot of the hill where 
 the Smith road now comes down into the val- 
 ley. He built the first saw-mill on the Yellow 
 Creek, in Northampton, and. soon after its com- 
 pletion, took malarial fever and died. His son, 
 Richard E. Parker, now of Akron, was the first 
 white male child born in Northampton, at the 
 date of March 9, 1811. 
 
 In 1809, Samuel King moved in with his 
 family, settling at Old Portage, where he pur- 
 chased a farm and built a tavern and store, and 
 embarked in many useful enterprises. He 
 reared a family of eiglit children, some of whom 
 filled places of honor, trust and responsibilit}'. 
 While the canal was building, Ambrose King, 
 a son, held the oflflce of Constable, and, with a 
 warrant, went to arrest an Irish laborer for 
 some offense, and found him in an unfinished 
 lock-pit above Old Portage, in company with a 
 gang of other workmen, who, when ascertaining 
 King's business, refused to permit the arrest, 
 surrounded him, threatening to take his life. 
 Armed with picks, spades and cudgels, the}' 
 cornered him in the lock. With only a horse- 
 pistol for defense, he warned them to desist ; 
 but, instead, they made a charge when he fired, 
 the ball striking one of them on his rib, glanc- 
 
 ing off without inflicting a serious wound. 
 Being ver}- active, he sprang up the steep bank 
 and ran for his life ; was followed, overtaken, 
 knocked down and beaten with clubs until sup- 
 posed to be dead. His friends hearing of the 
 affra}^ sent a wagon for him, put him in it, and 
 started for Akron, followed by the workmen, 
 with threats and imprecations. Meeting a 
 ph3'sician, they halted, while an examination 
 was made, and King was pronounced 3'et alive. 
 " Then," shouted an excited Irishman standing 
 by, " we will kill him yet," striking a blow at 
 his head with a long club, but the horses were 
 frightened and started off, and the blow missed 
 its mark. Then the furious laborer turned 
 upon a German standing b}-, and, with a sweep- 
 ing blow of his club, struck him on the head, 
 from which he fell as though shot. He was 
 left with the Irish and never seen again. It 
 was supposed they buried him secretly at night 
 in the canal bed, where he could not be found. 
 This aroused indignation and vengeance to its 
 highest pitch. Next day the military company 
 was called out, armed with rifles and ammuni- 
 tion ; a bottle of whisk}' was passed round, 
 and a battle and bloodshed were imminent. 
 Just then a rider came dashing up, his horse 
 covered with dust and foam. He was a con- 
 tractor, and had just heard of the diflSculty, 
 and asked for time to hold a consultation with 
 his emplo^-es, hoping to induce a surrender 
 without resistance. He rode down, found them 
 intrenched for defense, and explained what 
 folly it would be to resist ; that every man 
 would be shot down, if necessary, to make the 
 arrest. They laid down their weapons, surren- 
 dered and were marched to Middlebury for 
 safe keeping, where the military stood guard 
 till the trial and conviction of their leader. As 
 King recovered, the penalt}- was not very severe, 
 and peace was again restored. 
 
 The first hamlet in Northampton Township 
 was old Portage, on the Cuyahoga River, near 
 the southern boundary. This was the head of 
 navigation on this stream, and the northern 
 terminus of the " carr}' " between the Cuya- 
 hoga and Tuscarawas Rivers. It was a recog- 
 nized landmark in the western boundary line 
 of the United States in the treat}- of Ft. Mcin- 
 tosh in 1798. This place became famous as a 
 trading-post for both whites and Indians before 
 and after the building of the Ohio and Erie 
 Canal. Some time before the war of 1812, a 
 
^^ 
 
 NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 501 
 
 Frenchman moved in these to carr}^ on a 
 tratfle with the Indians. He used to sell them 
 "fire-water ' till they got drunk, then reduce 
 with river water till they would drink them- 
 selves sober. Then they would say, " Indian 
 get too much Cuyahog-guh," and he would 
 have to make it strong again. In weighing out 
 powder and lead to them he used to put his 
 hand on the scales, saying it weighed just a 
 pound. This Frenchman used to indulge in 
 some ugly traits by beating and flogging his 
 wife, who was a half-breed Indian. The other 
 squaws would interfere to save her from such 
 punishment, but she would beg of them to let 
 her alone, " for," she said, " it was so good 
 making up again she really enjoyed the 
 quarrel." 
 
 After the canal was built, it was for a time 
 called Booth's Port, after Birdsey Booth, a 
 surveyor, and some goods shipped here were 
 so directed, but the old name has been retained. 
 It was said to be not an unusual occurrence for 
 a hundred or so of teams to be seen there at 
 one time engaged in receiving and transpoi'ting 
 overland the goods and merchandise shipped by 
 canal for places as far east as Canfleld and 
 Warren, south for Canton and Massillon^ and 
 west as far as Medina. 
 
 Robert Thompson, in 1813, purchased Lot 
 No. 24, now owned by William Viall, Esq. He 
 raised a large family and after partly clearing 
 up the farm, sold and moved on to the west half 
 of Lot No. 23, where he lived till his death. 
 Part of this place is yet owned and occupied 
 by his son, Amos Thompson. Robert Tliomp- 
 son was a shoemaker by trade, and, in the earl}' 
 times, it was customary for the tailor, harness- 
 maker and shoemaker to go round from house 
 to house, boarding with the families, while 
 making up a supply of such goods as needed. 
 Mr. Thompson used to make himself, while on 
 his mission, interesting to his customers by the 
 odd and funny stories he knew so well how to 
 relate, emphasizing the jokes by a sharp bat of 
 his hammer on the sole of some unfinished shoe. 
 Barcla}- Hogue was a harness-maker who used 
 to go round in the same wa3^ carrying his awls 
 and clamps with him, and many a broad " back- 
 band " hung in the stables for years as relics 
 of that old and easy style. Jesse Ellis was an- 
 other early settler, and, besides hunting and 
 fishing, his chief occupation was burning lime. 
 His wife was the daughter of a wealthy, proud 
 
 and aristocratic family in Canada, and their en- 
 gagement being opposed by her parents, she 
 eloped with Jesse, and married at the age of 
 fourteen. They reared a family of twenty 
 children, the first being born when the mother 
 was fifteen and the last at sixt^'-five. She is 
 still living, at the age of eighty-one, in Kent 
 County, Mich., where her husband died in 
 March, 1879, aged one hundred. Abel Vallen 
 was one of the first to settle on the uplands 
 west of the river, where he purchased a large 
 tract in Lots 4, 5 and 6. John George Bot- 
 zum located on the north half of Lot 76. He 
 was a Prussian, from Luxembourg, and recol- 
 lected distinctly hearing the cannonading at 
 the battle of Waterloo. 
 
 Walter Waite purchased a large tract in 
 Lot 71, where he built a house and set an or- 
 chard, the trees of which are standing 3'et, and 
 the fruit is enjoyed by his children's children. 
 The settlers in the northern and eastern parts 
 of the township were the families of Burrill 
 Viall, William Hill, Benjamin Templeton (a 
 singing-master), William McLoney, John Cow- 
 ick, David Billman, H. Chase, the two Dicker- 
 son families, Jacob Bonesteel, John Everett, 
 George Richardson, Eli Benedict and John 
 Sapp. Nearer the center were Thomas Owens, 
 Adam Gallowaj', John Best, Samuel Hart, 
 Reese Jones, Franklin Carr, C. Davidson, Dr. 
 Rogers, the Coulters, Tibbets, Porters. Lehman 
 Bear, Sweitzer Fike, Frank Penfield and Dean. 
 The Job Harrington farm, Lot 26, was first 
 settled on by Thomas Yanhyning, who built his 
 house on the east side of State road, where it is 
 crossed by the center road going east. The 
 spring of water used was the one near where 
 Alvin Kelso now lives. Lot 14 was settled by 
 Thomas M. Turner, of New York, who left that 
 city the da}- after the landing and reception of 
 La Fa3'ette, on his last visit to America. The 
 impressions made by that grand pageant were 
 not forgotten by Mr. Turner while he lived. 
 The old home farm is now owned by his son, 
 Thomas M. Turner. Daniel Turner settled on 
 Lot 29, and built his house on the low ground 
 between the hills, and planted an apple or- 
 chard around it. of which many trees yet re- 
 main. William Carter, a brick-mason, settled 
 on a farm adjoining. He built the I^rick l)lock 
 in Franklin, now known as the Kent Alpaca 
 Mills. Henry Billman and George T. Uhner 
 took farms along the road farther west, toward 
 
 
^ 
 
 502 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 Portage. Nathaniel Hardy purchased a large 
 farm on the Cuyahoga River, which is yet 
 owned by his sons. Austin Blacli, who was 
 the last of the early pioneers in Northampton, 
 bought Lot 37, the east half of which he spent 
 a life of toil in clearing up, and in the full pos- 
 session of which he died in 1 880. Many others, 
 who came at a later date are not mentioned 
 here. 
 
 In the fall of 1812, an army for the protec- 
 tion of these frontier settlements was stationed 
 at Old Portage, under the command of Gen. 
 Wadsworth, and after the surrender of Gen. 
 Hull, this post was re-enforced witli a battalion 
 under Maj. George Harrow, of Hudson, and 
 Rial McArthur was Captain of one of the com- 
 panies. Two of the boats composing the fleet 
 on Lake Erie, under Commodore Perry, were 
 built at Old Portage. They were launched and 
 floated down the river to the pineries, and 
 there detained for masts, and while the build- 
 ers were preparing them, a wild porcupine was 
 killed, and from this one of the boats was 
 named the " Porcupine " and the other " Port- 
 age," both of which took part in Perry's battle, 
 on the 10th of September, 1812. 
 
 In 1805, one Aaron Norton, afterward Judge 
 Norton, of Portage County, bought of Solomon 
 Stodard ten acres of land in the southeast cor- 
 ner. Lot 27, now comprising the waterfalls and 
 iron bridge, where he erected the first grist- 
 mill in tlie township. This was duly appre- 
 ciated as a great convenience by the inhabit- 
 ants of this and adjoining townships. Previous 
 to this, the method of grinding meal was to 
 cut a tree so as to leave a concave surface in 
 the solid stump, shaped like a wash basin, then 
 bend over a small tree or sapling for a spring- 
 pole, bringing its tip over the stump. To this 
 tie a barlv or wythe and suspend an iron wedge, 
 ax or other weight, for a pestle. The corn was 
 then shelled and poured in the stump, and the 
 weight taken in hand when the pounding pro- 
 cess was commenced, and was continued till a 
 tolerable good quality of meal was made. The 
 next great public necessity seemed to be a dis- 
 tillery, and one was built on the present site of 
 the cheese factory, and the dammed waters 
 (this is not intended for profanity) of the little 
 brook from the opposite side were piped across 
 to be used in the distillery. Gains in the 
 rock on the south side 3-et show the location of 
 that ancient dam. This building was destroyed 
 
 by fire, and another distillery was erected by 
 Wyley Hamilton and Aaron Norton just below 
 the rock, at the south end of the present iron 
 bridge. It was so situated that the little brook 
 trickling over the rock was taken into the 
 building high enough to run of its own accord 
 into the vats or still-tubs. The mill property 
 was afterward bought by Col. Rial McArthur, 
 and run by him for years. When the distillery 
 was abandoned as a manufactory of whisky, it 
 was used as a dwelling, where lived Abraham 
 Osborn and his two sons, Elias and Arad, who 
 were millers. Afterward it was used as a 
 meeting-house, then for a schoolhouse, and, 
 finally, went to ruins. In the erection of the 
 mill, Mr. Norton employed one Seth Webster, 
 a skilled workman from Blanford, Mass., as 
 millwright. Having become such an immod- 
 erate drinker, he was hired, with the promise of 
 three gallons of whisk}', extra, to abstain from 
 drinking the day the mill was raised, as it 
 stood in a precipitous, rock}', and dangerous 
 place. This promise he kept, and, on the com- 
 pletion of the work, took his extra allowance, 
 and in company with a colored man, started on 
 foot to Canton, and stopping for the night at a 
 camp in the woods, Webster had become crazed 
 with whisk}' and called for some water. While 
 his traveling companion had gone after it, Web- 
 ster, in a fit of delirium, ran out into the woods, 
 got lost and died. He was found the next 
 morning. It was rumored that he had been 
 murdered, but he undoubtedly died of ddiriioti 
 tremens, and his body was covered by brush to 
 protect it from the wolves, till he was taken 
 back to Northampton for burial. He was tlie 
 first white man buried in the township. Another 
 man by the name of Burge, from Pennsylvania, 
 was employed as a workman on tliis mill, who 
 acquired an unenviable reputation on account 
 of the marvelous an incredible stories he was 
 in the habit of telling. One of these was as 
 follows : That once upon a time, he was en- 
 gaged in shingling a mill on the bank of a 
 stream. When near the ridge his foot slipped 
 and he fell, sliding head foremost down the 
 roof. At the eaves he caught the cornice with 
 his hands, and turned a complete somersault 
 through the air, and fell into the water without 
 being harmed. Immediatel}- after telling this, 
 he was sent on to the rock shelf to fix a prop to 
 the timbers of the dam, which had nearly- filled 
 with water, and while doing this, he, by some 
 
 ;k: 
 
^l^ 
 
 NOKTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 503 
 
 unluck}' mishap, knocked loose the fastening, 
 when the dam gave way, and he was swept 
 over the rocky precipice by the resistless floods, 
 falling twenty feet into the chasm below. Those 
 who saw him swept over supposed he would be 
 either crushed by the timbers, killed in the fall, 
 or drowned in the seething waters. They 
 rusiied down below to hunt for his mangled re- 
 mains, and were surprised to see him crawl out 
 with tangled, matted hair, eyes and mouth 
 tilled with mud and sand and water dripping 
 from his person, yet unharmed. As this seemed 
 more strange and incredible than anything he 
 had told, it reversed the opinion of those who 
 thought him unreliable, and thereafter, his 
 reputation for truthfulness improved, while he 
 became quite a hero. 
 
 Rial McArthur sold this mill to Capt. Law- 
 ler, an educated Irishman, who had been a 
 teacher. After getting possession, he claimed 
 the building had not been properly constructed, 
 and needing repairs, he took out the machinery 
 and pulled down the structure, by which time 
 his money had become exhausted, and he, 
 drunken and dissipated, took to staying in a 
 cavern some twenty rods below the mill. There 
 he had placed a board upon the rocks, near a 
 trickling spring, from the rocky ceiling over- 
 head. So, while lying upon his board, he 
 could reach his cup for a drink of pure, cool 
 water on one side, or his jug for a drink of 
 whisky on the other — making himself happy as 
 Diogenes in his tub, until, one da}^ Arad Os- 
 born and a young friend, walking along the 
 bank overhead, heard him singing below. See- 
 ing a bowlder lying handy, and the size of a 
 salt-barrel, they rolled it over the bank, and it 
 went crashing among the rocks below, as if 
 loosened by an earthquake. Excited and fright- 
 ened, Lawler ran out, calling upon tlie Holy 
 Saints to protect him from destruction. Not 
 daring to go back there again, he hired a boy 
 to bring out his jug. Provoked at the destruc- 
 tion of the mill and the loss of payment for it, 
 McArthur ordered him to leave the country, 
 which he promptly did, and, not long after, was 
 drowned in the Upper Cuyalioga. His summer 
 resort has since been known as " Lawler's Cave." 
 
 Mr. Burnham and wife, accompanied by a 
 neighbor, were one day going to see a wild 
 precipice, half a mile below Lawler's Cave. 
 Twin children, Almira and Alvira, were with 
 them. Mrs. Burnham was carrying one of 
 
 them, and her husband the other, when, just at 
 the crest of a short, steep hill, down which 
 they were to go, Burnham's foot was tripped 
 by a root, and he, unable to resist, was sent 
 rapidly down to the very verge of the precipice, 
 over which he seemed to be impelled b}' the 
 momentum he had acquii*ed, when, with a des- 
 perate effort, he threw back the child, and it 
 caught by the limbs of an evergi-een shrub, 
 growing from the crevices of the rocks, and 
 was thus saved. That place is known as 
 " Burnhams Jump Ofl^," to this day. Just 
 above this place was, in early days, built, by 
 Moses and Oliver Dewey, a saw-mill, periiaps 
 the first one in the township ; but, as it was off 
 the line of the main road, and of ditficult ac- 
 cess, went, after a time, into disuse, and, as 
 another one had been built up at the grist-mill, 
 this was allowed to go to ruins. In 1S24, two 
 brothers-in-law, Elislia Prior and Elisha Per- 
 kins, erected a saw-mill about two miles further 
 up this stream, which, with the mill erected 
 by F. J. French and Jesse Hays, manufactured 
 most of the lumber used in the buildings of 
 this township, besides large quantities for Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls and Akron. At the place where 
 the State road crosses this stream, the cas- 
 cade is formed bj^ a broad, shelving rock, pro- 
 jecting far out over the retreating cavern be- 
 low. Over this the water pours in a veil of 
 glistening lace-work, behind which the pedes- 
 trian could pass under the unbridged stream 
 drj'-footed, and was used as a sort of dry-ford 
 b}' the Indians. From the gorge below, where 
 William Prior and sons built their grist-mill, a 
 most picturesque and beautiful view is ob- 
 tained. Looking up stream, the old mill on 
 the right, the shining cascade and precipitous 
 rocks and cavern, while, higher up, the mason- 
 ry and airy structure of the iron bridge, grace- 
 fully arching the stream with a single span, the 
 tapering evergreen trees overhanging their 
 banks and casting shadows in the water, with 
 cheese-factory and gently sloping hills in the 
 distance, presents a picture of rare beauty and 
 loveliness. The Prior & Perkins saw-mill was 
 purchased by Harry Pardee, who. in 1842. 
 erected in connection an extensive woolen fac- 
 tory, which was continued in successful opera- 
 tion for many years. Besides this, a chair-fac- 
 tory, wood-turning and other industries, were 
 carried on, but being remote from the public 
 road, it was allowed to go into disuse. 
 
504 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 A distillery was built by Abel Vallen in 
 about 1814, near the junction of Mud Bi'ook 
 with the Cuyahoga River, for the manufacture 
 of potato whisky. The secret of this process 
 was known only b}' old Mr. Hovey, who im- 
 parted his skill to Samuel Sage. A sufficient 
 quantity was made up to suppl}' the home de- 
 mand, which was quite extensive, besides 
 freighting an open barge, which was sent to 
 Mackinaw, and disposed of with satisfactory 
 results. Potato whisky was fiery and "dev- 
 ilish " till it got old and smooth, when it be- 
 came more palatable, and was considered a good 
 article. This distillery was afterward convert- 
 ed into a castor-oil factory, and the people 
 cultivated Richius communis^ but not in suffi- 
 cient quantities to keep up the manufacture. 
 In later years the dairying business was sup- 
 posed to pay better than Falma Christi, and on 
 the site of the old distillery, a joint-stock corn- 
 pan}^ cheese factory- was erected, but for some 
 cause the manufacture of cheese has been also 
 discontinued, showing this to be a fated localit}' 
 for enterprise. On the river bank in Lot 72, 
 Stephen Ayres erected grindstone works, and 
 supplied a necessity to the local trade, besides 
 shipping largely to Cleveland. In the same 
 building he used as a factory he bored for salt, 
 and at a depth of 125 feet entered a vein of 
 salt water and gas. He intended to establish 
 salt works, but was taken off by the yellow or 
 gold fever of California, in 1850, and the prop- 
 erty went into the hands of L. J. Mix, who util- 
 ized the gas for light and fuel for his residence, 
 and the saline waters for salting his stock and 
 curing meat. This well would have been a 
 great boon in early times when salt had to be 
 brought from Cleveland on pack-horses, and 
 cost from $25 to $35 per barrel. Prospecting 
 was afterward made in this locality for petrole- 
 um oil, but as no great depth was ever reached, 
 the search was a failure. A pioneer hunter liv- 
 ing two miles above here was visited one 
 winter's day by Julius Sumner, then of Middle- 
 bury, who delighted in a ramble through the 
 forest in pursuit of game. With a gun on his 
 shoulder he started down the Cu3'ahoga, arriv- 
 ing at the cabin of his friend at sunset, tired 
 and hungry enough. Being invited in at the 
 door through which he was hauling great logs 
 of wood for a fire, he made known his wants 
 and was told that there was not a mouthful of 
 food in the house, but that a deer, killed in the 
 
 morning, hung to a tree just over the river, 
 which, after kindling the fire, was brought over, 
 sliced, stuck on sticks, and held over the fire to 
 broil. In the absence of salt, a puncheon floor 
 plank was pulled up, which covered an empty 
 pork barrel, in which was some brine ; in this 
 they saturated the cooking venison, and ate a 
 heart}^ supper seasoned with a good appetite. 
 Next day a boy was sent to mill with a bag of 
 corn for meal, and a jug for whisk}-, when feast- 
 ing and revelry ensued. 
 
 All the records of Northampton Township 
 showing its organization, naming, first elec- 
 tion and officers up to the 3'ear 1820, were 
 destroyed by fire at the burning out of 
 Capt. Aaron French. The only original doc- 
 ument now known to be left is in the posses- 
 sion of J. M. Hale, of Akron. It is part of a 
 poll-book tally-sheet, from which the date has 
 been torn, of an election held when Northamp- 
 ton and Bath must have constituted one elec- 
 tion precinct. There were eighteen votes cast, 
 of which six were by electors living in Bath, 
 The following named persons were chosen offi- 
 cers : Samuel King, Town Clerk ; John Hale, 
 Simeon Prior and David Norton, Trustees ; Wi- 
 ley Hamilton, Overseer of the Poor ; Elisha 
 Perkins, Constable ; William Prior, Israel Par- 
 ker and Jason Hammond, Supervisors ; Luman 
 Bishop, Fence Viewer ; and Simeon Prior, Treas- 
 urer. The first Justice of the Peace in this 
 township was Samuel King. The principal 
 township officers elected April 3, 1820, were 
 Aaron French, Township Clerk ; William Prior, 
 Abel Woodward and James French, Trustees ; 
 and Daniel Turner, Treasurer. The clerks 
 elected for the ten succeeding years were as fol- 
 lows : 1821, Moses Dewe}' ; 1822, James French ; 
 
 1823, William Prior ; 1824, ; 1825, Bees 
 
 Jones, who refused to serve ; 1826, William 
 Prior: 1827, Gurden Prior; 1828, William 
 Prior ; 1829, Oliver Dewey ; and April 5, 1 830, 
 William Prior, and the persons filling that place 
 for the next ten ^-ears to 1840 were Gurden 
 Prior, Oliver Dewey, George W. Hogue, Anson 
 Greenman, J. C. Alvord, Henry W. Prior, Peter 
 Voris, Jr., and Daniel Penfield. Those serving 
 as Township Clerk after that to present date 
 were Arad Osborn, four terms ; Gurden Prior, 
 seven terms ; Seth W. Harrington, six succes- 
 sive terms ; J. C. Johnston, seven terms ; Will- 
 iam Prior, Jr., seven successive terms ; C. L, 
 Norton, one, and A. B. Galloway, two. Daniel 
 
(^y^^'/^a-^^?^ /^U^yi^M4^^^' 
 
NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 505 
 
 Turner, Hezekiah King, Elisha Prior, John 
 Smith, Rees Jones, Nathaniel Hardy, Job Har- 
 rington, Adam Gallowa}'^, Joseph Wallace and 
 F. L. Harrington have filled the offices of 
 Treasurer, and Simeon Prior, Abel Woodward, 
 James French, Aaron French, Hezekiah King, 
 William Prior, Gribson Gates, Silas Greenman, 
 Job Harrington, Rial McArthur, Alvin Wright, 
 Rees Jones, Joseph Sanford, William Norton, 
 Nathaniel Hardy, Anson Greenman, Benjamin 
 Templeton, Cj'rus Parker, W, H. Boyce, Frank- 
 lin Carr, Walter Waite, Jobn Harrington, 
 George S. Richardson, 0. F. Rice, H. W. Prior, 
 William Hardy, William McLoney, P. D. Hardy, 
 George Botzum, Adam Botzum, Edwin Folk, 
 Abner Hitchcock. James Harrington, S. S. 
 Prior and Henry Lowrey have at some time 
 since its organization officiated as Township 
 Trustees. 
 
 The Ohio and Erie Canal was laid through 
 this township along the Cuyahoga River in 1825, 
 was built in tw^o 3'ears, and, on July 4, 1827, 
 Job Harrington took his team to Akron, and 
 towed the first boat to Cleveland. On board 
 was the Governor of the State, and other im- 
 portant officers, with many eminent citizens, 
 and a band of music. The pomp and circum- 
 stance of this trip, with banners fluttering in 
 the breeze, and inspiring strains of music echo- 
 ing among the hills, was such a pageant as 
 never before witnessed. Jonathan Williams, 
 the old Indian hunter, was present, as the boat 
 moved slowl}' into the lock at Old Portage, and 
 stood gazing in wonder and astonishment when 
 a friend ventured to ask his opinion. He said 
 it " looked almost exactly as he expected it 
 would, except the boat was about three-eighths 
 of an inch too long." 
 
 Northampton had for many 3'ears, and has 
 not yet entirely outgrown its reputation, of 
 having a grade of morals scarcely up to that 
 of the more fortunate surrounding townships. 
 This was due principally to the influence of its 
 distilleries, and the fact that, at and after the 
 building of the canal, the river region was fre- 
 quented by rough characters, among whom was 
 a river bully b}' the name of Isaac Wells, who 
 would drink whisky, quarrel and fight at every 
 opportunity. Besides this, it was infested with 
 a notorious gang of counterfeiters and horse- 
 thieves. The Mallett brothers, from an adjoin- 
 ing township, erected a '' mint " on a lonely iso- 
 lated point of land, densel}' covered with timber. 
 
 and ever since known as the " money shop." 
 Here a foundry for melting mixed metals with 
 molds, dies, plates, engraver's tools, etc., were 
 kept secreted. When the annoyance to the 
 citizens of this locality, from the presence of 
 strange and suspicious visitors, became no longer 
 endurable, a public meeting was called, and, 
 by mutual agreement, the mint was destroyed. 
 This disconcerted the manufacturers ; but the 
 business was not suspended. Other and better 
 secured localities were provided, where bogus 
 coin was minted, and counterfeit bills manu- 
 factured extensively for the trade outside. One 
 of the leaders of this gang, a man of portly, 
 dignified mein, prepossessing in his personal 
 appearance, generous to his friends, kind and 
 benevolent to the poor, always read}^ to relieve 
 the wants and suflferings of the sick or distressed, 
 had so won the affections of his fellow-towns- 
 men, that he was elected a Justice of the Peace, 
 which office he was filling satisfactorily, till 
 arrested, and himself taken before a higher 
 court, tried, convicted and sent to punishment. 
 Even there, his self-sacrificing generosity won 
 him hosts of friends, and made him con.spicuous 
 among all the others, securing for him, finall}^, 
 his restoration to freedom and citizenship. The 
 invasion by Asiatic cholera, so fatal in many 
 localities, entered the precincts of his prison 
 walls, claiming more than its share of victims 
 from among these unfortunate people. Here, 
 standing bj- the bedside of the sick and dying, 
 which appalled the bravest hearts, he did not 
 shrink from dut}', and, for this devotion, he was 
 pardoned, and retired to quiet, private life. 
 Notwithstanding the questionable character of 
 some of its earlier inhabitants, Northampton 
 has not j'et been destitute of citizens possess- 
 ing as high a grade of moral principles, honest 
 integrity and respectibility as anj* in the land. 
 Joseph Ritter and Jacob Morton came on 
 from the East and built a house on the west 
 side of the river, where they moved in and 
 made themselves obnoxious to the citizens b}^ 
 living with w^omen to whom they were not mar- 
 ried. Neighbors objected to the scandal, from 
 this pernicious cause, but to no purpose ; quiet 
 remonstrance was in vain. The}' were notified 
 to leave, but refused to go, and then William 
 Hardy, Morris Mills and Tra Hovey went there 
 in the daytime and commenced tearing down the 
 house. Ritter came out with his gun to shoot the 
 assailants, but was seen b}' a neighbor, Mrs. 
 
 )Rr 
 
J^ 
 
 5U6 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Eddins, who screamed with fright. Her husband 
 started after Hitter, who ran, but was caught, 
 the gun taken from him, discharged and thrown 
 away. The house was demolished and the par- 
 ties dispersed. Next da}^ a warrant was issued 
 by Squire Osborn for their arrest, and Loveland, 
 the Constable, went first to Hovey's. The 
 young man, seeing him, ran up stairs on the 
 ladder, and attempted to pull it up after him, 
 but the lower end was seized by the Constable 
 when the tug commenced, Mrs. Hovey, in the 
 meantime, plying the broomstick and hot words. 
 Loveland secured the ladder, and when part 
 way up his cornered prisoner kicked a hole 
 through the clapboard-roof and went out, jump- 
 ing to the ground fastened the door outside, 
 got on the Constable's horse and rode off. Har- 
 dy was next found on a load of hay, but re- 
 fused to get off to be arrested, so the warrant 
 was returned without producing the prisoners 
 in court, and costs were afterward paid by 
 friends. 
 
 The first frame house built here was a store 
 for Col. Rial McArthur, and was framed by 
 scribe rule, fitting each tenon to its mortise, 
 then numbered and taken apart till all was fin- 
 ished. This store was said to have been 
 stocked by goods brought in a single box, and 
 distributed about the different shelves. The}' 
 would go a good way in supplying finery for 
 the sparse population at that date. The first 
 building framed b}^ square rule was the school- 
 house built at Steel's Corner, in 1832, of which 
 Edward Prior was architect and boss car- 
 penter. The timbers were hewn and framed in 
 different localities, and not brought together 
 till ready for raising when the spectators were 
 disappointed at seeing it go together without a 
 mistake. 
 
 The early settlers were employed in clearing 
 off the forest which cumbered the ground. 
 Large fields of fine forest trees were cut down 
 and felled into great timber windrows, or heaps, 
 and after becoming dried and seasoned were 
 set on fire and burnt. Timber was a drug in 
 the market ; lumber sawed and delivered in 
 market was only worth from $4 to $6 per thou- 
 sand. Good barrel staves and heading, at $1, 
 and " pit coal," bui'nt and delivered in Akron 
 only brought $3.50 per hundred bushels. Agri- 
 culture, stock-raising and dairying has since 
 become the prevailing occupation. Before 
 dairying became general, choice sheep, imported 
 
 from Canada, were brought here till the flocks 
 were greatly improved. The increased value 
 of dairy products induced the citizens here to 
 form a joint-stock compan}', in the winter of 
 1870-71, which chose Henry W. Prior as its 
 President and Fred S. Prior as its Secretary. 
 The factory was erected on the French farm, on 
 the north bank of Mud Brook, just above the 
 State road crossing, and is known as the Iron 
 Bridge Factory, costing about $2,000, and was 
 opened for business in the spring of 1871. The 
 average price paid for milk the first few sea- 
 sons, was about 10 cents per gallon. This fac- 
 tor}- business has developed a better grade of 
 dairy cows, and put more ready money in cir- 
 culation among its patrons than they had be- 
 fore. It was leased to S. Straight & Son, of 
 Hudson, and soon after bought by them, at a 
 loss to the stockholders of one-half its cost 
 price. In the season of 1880, it manufactured 
 from the milk of about 500 cows, 20,000 pounds 
 of butter, and 168,000 pounds of cheese, and 
 the average price paid for milk was 9^ cents 
 per gallon of ten pounds. In 1839, William 
 Prior & Sons, Edward and Henry, bought of 
 Jesse and Eliza Hays the water-power and 
 site in the gorge below the waterfalls, where 
 they erected and put in operation a grist and 
 flouring mill. Two run of French buhr stones 
 and bolters were put in, and power supplied b}' 
 a nineieen-foot breast wheel. The senior mem- 
 ber owned his interest in this property till his 
 death in 1 872, but the other shares changed 
 owners frequently until the whole property was 
 bought b}' John Hart and Adam G. Steel. 
 
 Trumbull Countv records show a road to 
 have been laid from the salt springs in that 
 county to Old Portage, crossing diagonally 
 through the southeast corner of Northampton, 
 a portion of which, between McArthur's cor-* 
 ners and the Elisha Prior residence, was va- 
 cated to accommodate the mills. ^ In 1807, a 
 public highway was laid out from Canton, via 
 Middlebury, to Cleveland, and known in North- 
 ampton as the " old State road," from which 
 the trees were cut and cleared by William 
 Prior, under a contract, and the proceeds of 
 this job averaged him 25 cents per day for 
 himself, team of oxen and an extra hand, they 
 sleeping in blankets on the ground, and work- 
 ing industriously from daylight till dark. The 
 road from McArthur's kept on directly east 
 to Stow Village, at the big spring, instead of 
 
 
 e) 
 
NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 SOI 
 
 turning to the right for Cu^^ahoga Falls, as now 
 located. 
 
 In 1836, Peter Voris, a surveyor,- who then 
 lived in Northampton with one Snodgrass and 
 Judge Henry, laid out a hundred acres at the 
 the mouth of Yellow Creek, west side of river, 
 into a village plat, and called it Niles. But 
 few lots were ever sold. The property was 
 afterward bought by J. and J. Vallen, and re- 
 duced back to common lands, on account of 
 high taxes. A warehouse and store was built 
 here at the opening of the canal, and Nathaniel 
 Hai'dy also erected a tavern, which received 
 extensive patronage for many years. Nicholas 
 Botzum and Thomas Owen ran rival mercan- 
 tile establishments here at the same time, each 
 occup3'ing opposite sides of the canal, but the 
 decease of Thomas Owen and sale of his goods 
 by administrators, broke up competition, and, 
 at the building of the Valley Railroad through 
 Northampton, a station was located here, called 
 " Botzum," in honor of John A. Botzum, a most 
 thorough and energetic business man, who 
 took an active part in the railroad enterprise. 
 He has been a merchant here for 3'ears, and is 
 now the station-agent and Postmaster. Below 
 here, on waste waters of tlie canal, have been 
 two saw-mills built to manufacture lumber for 
 the Cleveland trade. The Browns have also 
 kept up a steam saw-mill on their farm for 
 years, which has contributed largely to the 
 convenience of lumber business. A railroad 
 known as Clinton Air Line was laid in a diag- 
 onal line across this township, from northeast to 
 southwest, crossing the Cu^-aiioga between the 
 Hovey and Brown farms. The grading of some 
 portions of this road was commenced and stone 
 hauled on for culverts, but, for some reason, 
 the enterprise was abandoned. A rude and 
 primitive establishment was built down the 
 Mud Brook by William Rose, in which he 
 turned a considerable quantity of wooden bowls 
 for the local trade. It was near this that 
 Mr. Filley built a saw-mill, and the property 
 was afterward bought by L. D. Clements, who 
 erected another and lai'ger, known as the 
 Clements Saw-mill. 
 
 The first school was taught in this township 
 by Justus Remington in 1809, and the school- 
 house was built on the north side of a road, 
 from McArthur's Corners to Elisha Prior's, and 
 run diagonally across Lots 17 and 18. The 
 house stood on the lot line between lands now 
 
 owned by H. P. Smith and Martin Shellhorn. 
 Since that time, and within the radius of a half 
 mile, there have been erected six different 
 buildings in which schools were taught. But, 
 owing to geographical diversities and configura- 
 tion of land, schools for the whole youth of the 
 township have been maintained at great incon- 
 venience. The river divides the township into 
 two sections, almost inaccessible to each other, 
 and the deep gullies running down into the 
 ri\er valley form almost impassable barriers, 
 making opportunities for schooling a portion of 
 the children exceedingly difficult. Under the 
 general school laws of Ohio, seven subdistricts 
 and three union school districts were formed 
 where most thorough and efficient schools have 
 been maintained, and the pupils arc in no wa}' 
 inferior to those of surrounding townships. 
 Many of the youth have been educated abroad. 
 Emory A. Prior entered Buchtel College at 
 Akron in 1871, and graduated with the degree 
 of B. S. in 1873. Theiice he entered the Law 
 Department of Harvard Universit}- at Cam- 
 bridge, Mass., from which he graduated in 
 1877, and was the same year admitted to the 
 bar before the District Court of Cleveland. 
 Miss Viola Smitli also commenced a course of 
 stud}' at Buchtel College in 1872. which she 
 pursued for two \ears, then changed to Western 
 Reserve College, from which she (the first of 
 her sex) graduated in 1876. She has since 
 then pursued certain courses of study in Cor- 
 nell University, New York, and at Harvard, in 
 Cambridge. John A. Johnston, Rial Smith. S. 
 Hart, J. Botzum, George and Frank Billman, 
 T. W. Motz and several others are now, or have 
 been, students in either Western Reserve or 
 Buchtel College. 
 
 Methodism was the pioneer religious denom- 
 ination of Northampton. Most of the earl}* 
 families were members of this church. Before 
 the organization of a societ}', the believers of 
 both sexes would walk or ride on horseback to 
 Darrow Street, or Hudson, on a Thursday even- 
 ing, to attend prayer-meeting, wiiich could not 
 be doubted as a sufficient test of tlieir sincerity 
 and devotion. I'rotracted and quarterly meet- 
 ings were held in the private re.><idences. barns 
 or groves, and were attended by those from 
 miles around. Among the early preachers were 
 Revs. Crawford, Jones. McLean, Ford, Stearns, 
 Holloway and one Gavit, a " four foot" dwarf, 
 and notoriously smart. Compared with the 
 
 r 
 
^ 
 
 508 
 
 HISTOEY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 larger ministers, he was said to be as a silver 
 sixpence among the coarser copper coins — 
 smaller but worth them all. He could interest 
 and hold spellbound by his eloquence, and 
 practical hits, the large audiences he addressed. 
 A missionary purse was raised, and he was 
 thought to be a suitable person to send West to 
 convert the heathen. The last heard of him 
 he was said to be comfortably located, and in 
 possession of a fine farm in Michigan, bought 
 with church missionary funds. No early record 
 of this denomination can now be found, but 
 among the papers of the late Job Harrington, 
 who was an active member, there are found evi- 
 dences of a most prosperous Sabbath school as 
 far back as 1831. 
 
 The Methodists in 1855, b}' the help of other 
 denominations and contributions from the citi- 
 zens generally, without regard to theological 
 opinions, erected a large and commodious 
 church edifice at the center of the township. 
 The prime movers in this undertaking were 0. 
 F. Rice, Isaac Scott, S. W. Harrington, S. R. 
 Perkins, Elisha Prior, Samuel McLoney and 
 others. The building when completed cost 
 about $2,000, and reflected much credit on the 
 building committee, the citizens generall}', and 
 specially to the architect and builder, J. C. 
 Johnston. 
 
 The Baptists for many years kept up a flour- 
 ishing organization, and numbered among its 
 members some of the best citizens of the town- 
 ship. 
 
 The Congregationalists were also, at one 
 time, quite numerous, and they also built a 
 church edifice at Steel's Corners, and occupied 
 it for years, but by reason of removal, loss by 
 death and other causes, the members became 
 reduced, and the building was taken down and 
 removed to the sewer pipe and tile works of 
 H. B. Camp & Company, Cuyahoga Falls. Un- 
 der the ministrations of Rev T. B. Tait, this 
 Congregational society' fused with the Method- 
 ists, when they became one organization at the 
 building of the center church edifice. 
 
 One John Smith and family of this place be- 
 came early converts to the Mormon faith. The}' 
 were frequently visited by Prophet Joseph 
 Smith and his associate Rigdon, while the Mor- 
 mons were at Kirtland, and upon their removal 
 to Nauvoo, Smith with his family, which had 
 been baptized in Northampton, went with them, 
 and thence to Salt Lake City. In the earl}' 
 
 days, a few of the citizens of this township 
 joined the Masonic Order, but the opposition 
 and prejudice caused by the supposed Morgan 
 I murder, prevented its being very generally en- 
 dorsed, and those who became members joined 
 lodges in other localities. Since that time, 
 some have associated themselves with Odd 
 Fellows, Sons of Temperance, etc. In March 
 of the centennial year, there was a Grange or- 
 ganized or Order of Patrons of Husbandry, 
 which is an unobjectionable association of 
 farmers, with their wives and families, united 
 for social and educational purposes. This so- 
 ciety numbers among its members some of the 
 most progressive and intelligent farmers in 
 the communit}'. Since its organization, George 
 W. Baile}' has boen its presiding officer. It 
 was in an exceedingly prosperous condition, 
 numbering over one hundred members, until 
 driven into litigation to defend itself against 
 the collection of an illegal claim, in a suit 
 brought up against it by the officers and Ex- 
 ecutive Committee of Ohio State Grange. This 
 suit, after creating considerable disturbance 
 and ill-feeling, was finally decided in favor of 
 Northampton Union Grange. Although this 
 township was early the location of distilleries, 
 they were soon discontinued and the inhabit- 
 ants have usually been sober and temperate. 
 Whenever necessary temperance societies have 
 been organized and sustained with good eflfect. 
 The " Murphy's Society," of 1879, with Mrs. 
 Lodica Jones as President, and Miss Hattie 
 Harrington as Secretar}', has proved a most ef- 
 ficient power in the work of reformation. The 
 Literary and Dramatic Club, of 1881, has de- 
 veloped sufficient talent so gain some notoriety. 
 In the war of the Revolution, Northampton, 
 being peopled only by savage Indians, fur- 
 nished no troops, but its first settler, Simeon 
 Prior, was a Revolutionary soldier. In the 
 war of 1812, the able-bodied men belonging to 
 an independent rifle company, under the com- 
 mand of Capt. McArthur, went into service, 
 first at Old Portage, then at Sandusky, protect- 
 ing the frontier settlements from invasion and 
 Indian hostilities. In the Mexican war no 
 troops from this place were called for, and none 
 furnished. But in the war of the great rebell- 
 ion, Northampton was not found wanting. 
 Sixty-three recruits were sent into the field, all 
 of whom proved brave and heroic soldiers in 
 that bloody struggle, man}- of them giving their 
 
NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 509 
 
 lives for their country's cause. We would glad- 
 1}^ inscribe the name of each individual soldier 
 with his brave deeds, but space will not per- 
 mit. In another chapter of this work will be 
 found a complete sketch of the late war, and 
 the part taken in it by the county at large. A 
 list of the dead heroes of this township only 
 will be attempted in this chapter : 
 
 Lewis Clements, son of L. D. Clements, en- 
 listed at sixteen. But a mere lad of slender 
 build and constitution, he could shoot as far 
 and straight as those of greater strength and 
 endurance. He was fearless of danger, and 
 went undaunted where duty called. At the 
 battle of Rich Mountain, mistaking the bugle- 
 call for retreat, he charged through the rebel 
 ranks, where, failing to find his comrades, he 
 turned and charged back again, rejoining his 
 company unharmed. Newton Harrington, after 
 nearly three years of active service at the 
 front, sickened from the exposure and hard- 
 ships of camp life, and died at Cumberland 
 Gap. His remains were brought home and in- 
 terred in the cemeter}' on his father's farm. 
 George W. Prior, Orderly Sergeant Company 
 D, Sixth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, 
 after nearly serving out his term of enlistment, 
 and taking part in many fiercely contested 
 fields, was killed in the battle of the Wilder- 
 ness May 9, 1864. His remains by enemies 
 were buried in an unknown grave. The soil of 
 Virginia will be to us forever sacred, for it 
 holds the last remains of our dearest friends. 
 George Bonesteel was captured by the rebels 
 and starved to death in the prison pen of An- 
 dersonville. David Bonesteel was also taken 
 prisoner, and so reduced by starvation that he 
 died en route for exchange. Robert Hogue 
 sickened and lived to reach home, where he 
 died a short time after his arrival. John 
 Shellhorn and Phillip Smathers sleep the sleep 
 of death in unknown graves. Riley Dickinson, 
 Charles Stout, William Waterman, William and 
 Charles Stephens, the two Chase brothers and 
 George Pa^-ne were drowned at the wreck of 
 the Sultana. 
 
 Owing to absence of manufactures, farming 
 implements were mostly of home construction, 
 and ver\' rude. The " bull plow " had a point 
 made of wrought iron or steel, with a landside 
 and mold-board of wood. Common black- 
 smiths of that day could make the share, and 
 an ingenious farmer, with an ax and an auger, 
 
 could make all the rest, requiring about a day's 
 time. Mowing was done by hancl with a scj'the, 
 and harvesting by a sickle, cutting and laying 
 the grain by handfuls. This method was su- 
 perseded by a grain -cradle, and finally the 
 scythe and cradle gave way to the mowing 
 machine. The first one in the township was 
 purchased by Job Hayte, and operated by 
 his son, Seth S. Grain was either tramped out 
 by horses on a floor, or thrashed by hand with 
 a flail (which consisted of a short club tied to 
 the light end of a handle with buckskin thongs) 
 and winnowed from a broad, flat basket. In 
 about 1834, the first horse-power cylinder ma- 
 chine was introduced, which only thrashed the 
 grain, without separating it from the chaft*. 
 Charles Kellogg and John Harrington were the 
 first to bring in and operate a power-machine 
 that thrashed and cleaned the grain read}' for 
 market. The Prior brothers — Styles A., Ben- 
 jamin H. and Fred S. — introduced steam-en- 
 gine power and improved machiner}', b}' which 
 from 1,000 to 1,500 bushels of oats could be 
 thrashed per day, and 1,000 bushels of wheat. 
 The}' also brought in and operated portable 
 steam saw-mills, going where wanted on to a 
 man's farm and sawing a job of lumber for 
 building or fencing, without the inconvenience 
 of hauling logs away to streams for saw-mills. 
 
 In 1851, Lots 8, 9 and the "gore," 10, com- 
 prising al30ut 335 acres, were taken from 
 Northampton and set to the newly-erected 
 township of Cuyahoga Falls, forming, there- 
 after, part of its territory. In the year 1873. 
 a new and commodious town hall w-as built to 
 better accommodate elections and other public 
 business of the township, and the old hall 
 basement at the center schoolhouse was aban- 
 doned. 
 
 Many traces of ox3'dized or dead iron ore 
 are found upon the surface in the southern 
 part of this township, and, from a bed in Lot 
 27, a good quality of ore was taken to the 
 Middlebury furnace while it w^as in blast. A 
 bed of lime rock underlies the surface of some 
 portions of the D. G. Myers farm, Lot 33, and 
 plenty of this stone used to be found upon the 
 surface east of the center, and burned into a 
 splendid quality of white lime. A quarry of 
 first-class building sandstone was, in 1874, pur- 
 chased by L. IT. Cox near the iron bridge on 
 the north l)ank of the creek, from which he has 
 built so many substantial stone culverts in the 
 
 ^ 
 
510 
 
 IIISTOPvY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 roads of this and adjoining townsliips. E. C. 
 Hovey also has, near the old Avers (Jrindstone 
 Works, a quarry of ver}' fine building stone. 
 
 The following statistics pertaining to this 
 township raa}^ be of some interest to our read- 
 ers : Number of horses 348 ; value, $184.15. 
 Cattle, 1,344 ; value, $21,876. Sheep, 983 ; 
 value, $2,665. Hogs. 454 ; value, $1,370. To- 
 tal value of personal property, $86,264 ; esti- 
 mated full value, $107,835. Total value of real 
 property, $333,711 ; estimate full value, $416,- 
 16(5. Aggregate value of real and personal 
 property as.sessed, $419,971 ; aggregate value 
 of real and personal property', estimated full 
 value. $524,001. Total receipts from taxation, 
 $5,709.84. 
 
 Expenditures — Expended for schools, $2,- 
 015.86 ; paid for roads and bridges. $1,007.83 ; 
 for poor, $167.99 ; all other purposes, $2,- 
 518.16. Total expenditures, $5,709.84. 
 
 The first place set apart for the burial of the 
 dead was on the Yanhyning farm, and now 
 known as the Harrington burying-ground, and 
 is opposite the Grange Hall. The next regu- 
 larly laid out cemetery was one-half mile west 
 of the Center, on the hills above Bell Hollow. 
 But, in early days, several private burial-places 
 were made for separate families. Just on the 
 west line of Lot 29, where crossed by the Port- 
 age road at the hilltop, are Ijuried old Mr. 
 Daniel Turner and wife. On the east side of 
 the State road and nearly opposite the resi- 
 dence of Mrs. Candace Thorndyke, there have 
 been several buried. On the north bank of 
 Woodward Run, near the river road crossing on 
 the William Hardy farm, was started a private 
 burial-place. In the center of Lot 19, on the 
 William Prior farm, was also a private famil}' 
 cemetery, where eight or nine were buried, some 
 of them long years ago. But a portion of them 
 have been taken up and removed to public 
 cemeteries. 
 
 John Smith, who settled on and cleared up 
 what is now known as the Keck Farm, Lot 34, 
 and, who afterward went to Nauvoo, was a man 
 of some inventive genius. To supply the de- 
 mand for chairs, spinning-wheels, etc., he con- 
 structed a turning-lathe, which consisted of a 
 mandrel attached to a table, and was made to 
 revolver by a string, one end of which was 
 fastened to a spring-pole over head, then down, 
 and took a few turns round the mandrel, and 
 then to a treadle plied by the foot. This ma- 
 
 chine, revolving both wa3-s,. allowed the turning 
 to be done only half the time, or when the mo- 
 tion was direct. A rocking-chair, now owned 
 b}' Thomas Turner, and another by John Hovey, 
 made in 1831, are specimens of J. Smith's 
 handiwork. A Mr. Collar, who was partially 
 blind, moved into the northeast part of the 
 town, and, being also very ingenious, built a 
 model propeller screw, and, for trial, attached 
 it to a canal boat, where it worked to satisfac- 
 tion. This was claimed to be an original inven- 
 tion of the propeller screw. Simeon Prior also 
 contrived a device for making wire by hand, 
 and he probably made tiie first wire west of the 
 Alleghanies. Richard Tew, a blacksmith, was 
 skilled in the art of forging wrought iron, or 
 steel points and shares used on the wooden or 
 bull plows of that day. His house and shop 
 stood east side the road, on the north bank of 
 Mud Brook, where the lane now turns in to the 
 cheese factor^-. After he died, his fiimily moved 
 away, and the residence was used for a school- 
 house. 
 
 The fourth balloon ascension ever made in 
 Summit County was by John C. Johnston, of 
 Northampton. He procured an aerostat, and, 
 on the 28th September, 1875, made his first 
 ascent from the fair grounds at Akron, in the 
 presence of a vast concourse of anxious specta- 
 tors. The balloon arose majesticall}-, drifting 
 in a northeasterly direction, and, when nearly 
 over the village of Cu\'ahoga Falls, and at the 
 height of over 7,000 feet, it exploded, and the 
 perilous fall of about one mile took place. The 
 fabric of this airship, being confined by the 
 cordage, formed a parachute, while the aeronaut, 
 suspended in his basket below, vibrated like a 
 pendulum, by the swaying motion of the balloon 
 in its fearfull}' rapid descent, after the gas had 
 escaped. Almost miraculousl}', he landed on 
 terra firma without bodily harm. Not satisfied 
 with this exciting adventure, he constructed a 
 new balloon, with 25,000 cubic feet capacity, 
 and the next year, after its inflation at the gas 
 works, it was taken to Fountain Park Fair 
 Grounds, where, in starting, some of the ropes 
 were held too long by the attendants, and this 
 balloon was thrown against the top limbs of a 
 tree, and so torn that he did not deem it safe 
 to i)roceed, and onl}' reached the altitude of 
 1,000 feet, when the gas was let out, and he 
 landed safely within one-half mile of starting 
 place. His third attempt was made a few days 
 
 & 
 
■ii* 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 511 
 
 later ; but, as it was boisterous and stormy, the 
 balloon was torn to pieces in conveying it from 
 the gas works to Fountain Park, since which 
 time, he has made no further public attempts 
 at ascension. He is still sanguine of final suc- 
 cess, and continues to give the subject such 
 
 attention as his time will permit, believing that 
 hydrogen in such vast quantities, being one- 
 eighth part of all the water, is ultimately con- 
 nected with the solution of the great problem 
 of aerial navigation. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX.* 
 
 STOW TUVVNSmi'— EARLY PHYSICAL CONDITION— FIRST SETTLUMKNT AND SUBSEQUENT GROWTH 
 —PROGRESS OF INDUSTRIES AND IMPROVEMENTS— VILLAGES, CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS. 
 
 STOW, in many respects, is superior to any 
 other township in the county. Its fertile 
 soil, valuable timber, winding streams and 
 beautiful lakes, surround it with attractions 
 which coming generations will not fail to ap- 
 preciate and enjoy. There is found through- 
 out the township that divei'sity of natural 
 features — that fine blending of the beautiful 
 and picturesque, which delights the eye of 
 the landscape gardener. The Cuyahoga River, 
 which winds across the southern part, that fine 
 body of water — Silver Lake — and the various 
 gorges or chasms which are cut deeply into 
 the soil, disclosing perpendicular embankments 
 of fine stone, furnish abundant material upon 
 which the hand of art, in future 3'ears, may 
 labor. When we look back through the years 
 to that bright page in the history of mankind — 
 Grecian glory — when we see how the develop- 
 ing mind of man caught the beautiful of that 
 sunny clime, and grouping together the various 
 charms, gave to each some name which lingers 
 with it like the sweet memory of joys that are 
 past, we are led to believe that our own beauti- 
 ful land, adorned as it is with Nature's lavish 
 gifts, will share a similar happy lot. Each 
 lake, each stream, each hill and vale will be 
 associated with some event, around which the 
 fair}' fingers of hallowed recollection will en- 
 twine the sweet flowers of other years. Even 
 at this early day, local names spring up from 
 surrounding events — names that will live, when 
 those persons associated with them have long 
 since passed into oblivion. Other names will 
 come as time sweeps onward ; and for the 
 pleasure of those who live in the future, these 
 and the circumstances which gave them birth, 
 must be carefully recorded. 
 
 * Contributed by W. A. Goodapeed. 
 
 The greater part of Stow is rolling, though 
 quite a large tract near the center is compara- 
 tively level. The soil, though largely clay, 
 contains sufficient alluvium to insure abundant 
 crops of all kinds. In the vicinity of the lakes 
 and the depressed portions, of which there are 
 several, the earth is thoroughl}' mingled with 
 decaying vegetable material, a large portion of 
 which has been washed in by past inundations. 
 Large quantities of sandstone can be had for 
 the trouble of quarrying in exposed places. 
 The streams give ample drainage, even in the 
 region of the lakes, though some portions ai'e 
 so low and flat that they were, in former years, 
 very wet, and even yet are not suitable for cul- 
 tivation. In the course of time these will be 
 ditched, thoroughly drained, and final!}- culti- 
 vated. Cuyahoga River enters the township 
 on Lot 10, thence flowing across Lots 9, 8, 7, 6, 
 5, 15, 14, 4, 3, and leaving from 13. This well- 
 known stream has considerable fall, and excel- 
 lent water-power can be secured through the 
 medium of dams. Kelsey Ci'eek enters the 
 river from the south, and Fish Creek from the 
 north, in the extreme southeastern part. Silver 
 Lake is located almost wholly on Lots 24, 23 
 and 33, and its outlet is a small branch of the 
 Cuyahoga. A small stream which should be 
 named Wetmore Creek, rises a short distance 
 northeast of Stow Corners, and flows south- 
 westwardly into the river. It has cut by ero- 
 sion a deep gorge in the sandstone rocks, which 
 is known as the "Gulf Cochran Pond is 
 located a few rods northwest of Silver Lake, 
 but has no connection with the latter, its outlet 
 being a small irregular stream, which flows north 
 and then west into 31 ud Brook. Powers' 
 Brook and Mud Brook, from their tortuous 
 course, flow half around the township. Powers' 
 
i^L 
 
 512 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Brook first flows across the northeast corner, 
 thence into Hudson, thence into the northern 
 part of Stow, thence again into Hudson, where 
 it unites with Mud Brook. The latter stream 
 flows across the northwest corner of Stow, 
 entering Turtle Lake on the northeast side. It 
 flows from this lake first into Northampton, 
 tlience takes a turn in the western side of 
 Stow, and finally leaves the latter a short dis- 
 tance north of Cuyahoga Falls. Turtle Lake, 
 the largest bod}- of water in the northern part 
 of the county, is intersected by the boundary 
 line, dividing Stow from Northampton. On 
 several sides the land is so low and marshy 
 that artificial approaches to the lake are neces- 
 sary, if mud and stagnant water are to be 
 avoided. In short, the lake has but two or 
 three really good beaches. Cochran Pond, 
 named for the first settler on its banks, com- 
 prises some four or five acres, and has a low 
 and muddy beach, except, perhaps, on the 
 eastern side. It is too small and shallow to be 
 of any great economic value. Silver Lake is, 
 in many respects, a fine sheet of water. Its 
 length is nearly a mile, and its width nearly 
 half that distance, while its greatest depth 
 approximates twelve fathoms. Some of its 
 approaches are fine, consisting of coarse sand 
 or gravel. Many portions of the bottom are of 
 the same nature, rendering the lake vei-y 
 attractive to bathers, a very essential feature 
 among a people who teach, and evidently prac- 
 tice to a reasonable degree, that " cleanliness 
 is next to godliness." Many 3'ears ago, when 
 the question of supplying the city of Akron 
 with water was on the tapis, Silver Lake was 
 carefully examined ; but its water was found to 
 contain impurities, which rendered it unsuita- 
 ble for that purpose. The lake was once the 
 property of Joshua Stow, who purchased the 
 township of the State of Connecticut. The 
 township was named in his honor, and remained 
 in his possession until his death, when it fell 
 into the hands of his son-in-law, Horace Miller, 
 who sold it to its present owner, Ralph Lodge. 
 Purchasers of land in its vicinity did not want 
 the lake, so that the shore is owned by others. 
 In about the year 1850, Zina Buel constructed 
 a small steamboat, and launched it upon the 
 lake. A wharf was built out from the shore, 
 and buildings were erected for excursionists. 
 A small fare was charged for a ride around the 
 lake ; but there was not realized a suflScient 
 
 revenue to pay for the investment, and the boat 
 was removed. Several persons at diflferent 
 times have been drowned. There are at present 
 several bathing-houses for the benefit of the 
 uncleanlj^ and others. 
 
 Joshua Stow, the proprietor of the township, 
 was one of the first exploring party sent out to 
 the Western Reserve in 1796. He officiated in 
 the important capacit}' of Commissarj', and the 
 first storehouse built at Conneaut was named 
 " Stow Castle," in his honor. The first cabin 
 in the township was built by a Virginian named 
 William Walker, who had come to Hudson the 
 year before. He was a squatter and built his 
 small, round-log cabin in the northeast corner, 
 on Lot 89.* Here he remained alone until 
 1804, when Joshua Stow arrived at Hudson to 
 make arrangements for the survey of his town- 
 ship. He employed Joseph Darrow, a resident 
 of Hudson, who began and completed the sur- 
 vey in ] 804, and immediately thereafter there 
 came in William Wetmore, Gregory Powers, 
 Josiah Starr, John Campbell, Thomas Rice and 
 Titus Wetmore. The most of these men built 
 further south in the neighborhood of what is 
 now called Stow Corners. Prior to the war of 
 1812, there also came in John Gaylord, John 
 Arbuckle, George Darrow. Adam Steele, John 
 Saddler, Joseph Harman, William Lappin, 
 William Leach, Samuel Burnett, Samuel Baker, 
 Jacob Cochran, Caleb Wetmore, Isaac Wilcox, 
 Frederick Victor, Francis Kelsc}', Mr. Kelso, 
 Samuel Cheney, Constance Rogers, Jonathan 
 Gaylord, Stephen Butler, Erastus Southmaj^l, 
 David Ruggles, William McClellan, Bemus 
 Hamilton, Mr. Dai ley,' Isaac and'Thomas Steele 
 and very likely several of the following, who, 
 at least, came in prior to 1825 : Joshua Pendle- 
 ton, Timothy Brainard, David Strong, Ira 
 Barnes, Ethe Wetmore, James Smith, George 
 Hartle, John Kemp, Jesse Pratt, David San- 
 ger, Mr. McAvoy, Chancey Lowery, Mr. Beck- 
 ley, Martin and Arthur Saddler, William Hib- 
 bard, William Galloway, V. M. Thompson, John 
 Graham, Ezra Wyatt, Jacob Richmond, Andrew 
 Rich, Dr. Spaulding, Henry Kenyon, John 
 Blackman, John Sawyer, Thomas Gaylord and 
 many others. This is not intended as a perfect 
 list, and neither are the dates free from error ; 
 yet it is thought that there are but few mis- 
 takes. By 1810, there were fifteen or twen- 
 
 *Elizal)etli (Walker) Lappin, of Boston Township, aged ninety- 
 three years. 
 
>> 
 
 STOW TOWXSHIP. 
 
 513 
 
 ty families living in Stow, in rude log cabins 
 scattered at intervals throughout the township. 
 The forests began to go down rapidly, and 
 improvements multiplied. Land steadily in- 
 creased in value, and settlers poured in to pur- 
 chase before it over-reached their means. 
 
 It was not until 1808 that Stow was organ- 
 ized and its first officers elected. At the time 
 Hudson was organized, in 1802, Stow was 
 included in that township, and remained thus 
 until 1808. William Wetmore was the first 
 Justice of the Peace ; but, during the month 
 of August, 1804, the county of Portage, of 
 which Stow was a part, having been created, 
 Wetmore was appointed Clerk of the Court, 
 and removed to IJavenna ; but, not being satis- 
 fied with the empty honor of his official posi- 
 tion, he soon resigned, moving back to Stow, 
 and locating just east of Silver Lake. The 
 early records of Stow were not preserved, and 
 the names of the other first officers cannot be 
 given. The first election was held at the resi- 
 dence of Mr. Wetmore. Capt. Gregory Powers 
 built on Lot 85. He was a genius in his way, 
 and had had a great deal of experience with 
 the world. He was an Italian, and, for many 
 years, had followed the wild and extremely 
 dangerous profession of privateering on the 
 ocean. His daughter Harriet was united in 
 marriage with John C. Singletary in 180G, the 
 wedding being the first in the township. A 
 few months later, on the 29th of Januar}', 
 1807, William Lappin and Elizabeth Walker 
 were married at Stow Corners by Squire Wet- 
 moi'c. In 1806, George Darrow built a frame 
 barn, the first frame structure in Stow. In the 
 fall of 1803, "Betsey" Walker was born, her 
 birth being the first in the township. Samuel 
 Walker was born in 1805. Mary Campbell 
 was born in 1804, and Clarissa ( Rice) South- 
 mayd February G, 1805. In February, 1807, 
 Mrs. Powers died, her death being the first. 
 Elizabeth Gay lord died in 1809. • 
 
 As early as 1805, the township had put on 
 many of the characteristics of civilization. 
 The ring and report of ax and rifle awoke the 
 echoes of the forests. Numerous small, unpre- 
 tentious cabins rested in the center of insig- 
 nificant clearings, upon which could be seen 
 the green plumage of growing grain. Wild 
 animals roamed through the forests. Deer 
 could be seen at almost an}' hour of the da}'. 
 Many of the settlers had, for several years, no 
 
 meat except venison and smaller game. 
 Wolves were troublesome, especially in the 
 night, when they seemed to enjoy surrounding 
 some log cabin when the inmates were lost in 
 slumber and making the night hideous with 
 their howls. Bears were frequently seen, and 
 there was scarcely an early settler who was not 
 accustomed to roam the woods on hunting ex- 
 cursions that did not encounter them, often 
 under thrilling and extremely dangerous cir- 
 cumstances. The Indians, whose headquarters 
 were at Boston and Northampton Townships, 
 were accustomed to spend the summers in the 
 neighborhood of Silver and Turtle Lakes. In 
 1810, the carriage road at Silver Lake was a 
 continuous line of Indian huts. These were 
 made of round poles about six inches in diam- 
 eter, the chinks being filled with moss and sod. 
 About one hundred rods from the huts, on the 
 lake shore, on a neighboring hill, were a great 
 many more. About five hundred Indians — 
 men, women and children — established them- 
 selves here for several summers prior to the 
 war of 1812. They wei-e in constant inter- 
 course with the white settlers, and usually all 
 dealings were of a friendly nature. It was 
 well known to the settlers, however, that the 
 Indians might " dig up the hatchet " at any 
 moment, and begin the dreadful work of 
 slaughter. These thoughts filled the mind, 
 more especially when it first became known 
 that war with England had commenced. When 
 news of the battle of Tippecanoe reached the 
 Indians, they all withdrew and went toward 
 the western part of the State, much to the re- 
 lief of the apprehensive settlers. 
 
 It seems proper in this connection to notice 
 a few of the many interesting anecdotes that are 
 told concerning adventui'es had with wild ani- 
 mals or with the Indians. One day, when John 
 Campbell was away from home, his wife placed 
 her little child on "the floor, with a cup of milk 
 and a spoon, and closing the door, went a short 
 distance to one of the neighbor's, on an errand. 
 She soon returned, and, stepping up to the little 
 window, looked in to see what her baby was 
 doing. There sat the child upon the floor, 
 while close at its side was coiled up a large, 
 yellow, repulsive rattlesnake. It had crawled 
 up through the cracks of the floor, and, when 
 first seen by Mrs. Campbell, was lapping or 
 drinking the milk, which had been spilled by 
 the child. Just as the mother was taking her 
 
 'TZ 
 
-4 2) 
 
 514 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMxMIT COUNTY. 
 
 first lightning survey of the fearful sight, the 
 child reached out its spoon, either to give the 
 reptile some millv or to touch its shining body 
 with the sjDoon. The mother gave a piercing 
 scream, and the snake slid down a crack and 
 disappeared. Mr. Campbell came in soon after- 
 ward, and, raising a plank of the floor, killed 
 the snake. The "gulf" at Stow Corners was 
 filled with these reptiles, and it was many years 
 before they were killed off. So numerous were 
 they, and so dangerous, that the settlers took 
 turns in watching the rocks, to kill all that came 
 forth. This was done on sunny days in early 
 spring, when the snakes first came from their 
 holes to bask in the sun. It fell upon Mr. 
 Baker to watch the gulf one Sunda}^, when 
 Deacon Butler was holding a class-meeting in a 
 log cabin close by. While looking down into 
 the gulf, Mr. Baker saw a large number of rat- 
 tlesnakes crawl from a crevice in the rocks and 
 coil tiiemselves in the sun. When it seemed 
 that all had come forth, Mr. Baker dropped his 
 coat near the crevice, and, with a long pole pre- 
 pared for the purpose, pushed the garment into 
 the opening. He then descended to the rock, 
 and killed sixfy-Jioe of the venemous reptiles. 
 The first intimation that the worshipers had of 
 what had taken place, was made known by a 
 son of Mr. Baker, who ran to the log meeting 
 house at the top of his speed, crying out with 
 a loud voice, " Oh, dad's killed a pile of 
 snakes ! dad's killed a pile of snakes ! " This 
 adjourned the meeting, and the members re- 
 paired to the gulf, to continue their thanks for 
 the victory over ihe ancient enemy of man. 
 The rock whence the snakes had crawled was 
 blasted open the next day, though but one was 
 found — a lai'ge female, that was thought to be 
 the mother of the numerous progeny that had 
 been killed. Several persons were bitten, and 
 many had narrow escapes from death. A 
 young man — a relative of William Walker- 
 was struck twice on the heel by a large rattle- 
 snake, and did not recover. The Indians had 
 a peculiar plant, which was used as a remedy 
 in case of snake-bite. It is said that when 
 the Indians left the plant also disappeared, 
 and could not be found growing in the 
 woods as usual. This seems somewhat im- 
 probable, though the statement comes from 
 some of the oldest and most respected citizens. 
 One da}^, as Henry Wetmore was gathering nuts 
 near his father's cabin, he heard a sudden com- 
 
 motion in the bushes near him, and immediately 
 saw a drove of hogs break cover and run across 
 the clearing to his father's stable. Following 
 close at their heels was an enormous black 
 bear, that halted barely long enough to see the 
 bo}- and continued the pursuit to the pen where 
 the swine took refuge. Mrs. Wetmore, hearing 
 the confusion outside, came to the door, and, 
 seeing the bear and at the same time her boy, 
 motioned for the latter to take a circuit so as 
 to avoid the animal, that seemed in doubt 
 whether it was best to attack the swine in their 
 pen or not. When the boy was safe in the cabin, 
 Mrs. Wetmore went out, and, by shouting, 
 frightened the bear into the woods. On another 
 occasion Jacob Cochran, while in his cabin, 
 heard one of his hogs squealing terribly, and, 
 surmising the cause, he seized his rifle and ran 
 out, in time to see a large bear disappearing in 
 the bushes, in whose company was an unwill- 
 ing, remonstrating hog. The bear finally 
 dropped the hog, which fell in between two sap- 
 lings so that it could not be extricated. The 
 detention enabled Mr. Cochran to overtake the 
 bear, which was immediately shot. It was nec- 
 essary to kill the hog also, as it was terribly 
 torn and mangled. It is probable that William 
 Walker was the most successful and intrepid 
 bear hunter ever a resident of the township. 
 He killed sixteen bears, sometimes under cir- 
 cumstances which would appall the stoutest 
 heart. More is said of him in the Twinsburg 
 history. 
 
 In 1803, Mr. Walker's dogs treed a large 
 bear in a chestnut tree a few rods from the 
 cabin. It was shot, and was found to weigh 
 400 pounds, and was so extremely fat that oil 
 accumulated within the cavity of the bod}' 
 within a few minutes after the animal had been 
 killed. Mr. Walker was a chair-maker, and had 
 a small log shop near his cabin. One day 
 George Wilson, an Indian, came to the cabin 
 and asked for whisky, which was given to him. 
 He drank the liquor and sat down, and a few 
 minutes later was asked to take a seat at the 
 table and eat with the family. He accepted the 
 invitation with due dignity, seated himself, and 
 was handed a plate well loaded with meat and 
 vegetables. But by this time the liquor had 
 worked into his blood and brain, and, actuated 
 by a devilish spirit, he suddenly, without any 
 provocation, dashed the plate and its steaming 
 contents in Mr. Walker's face. The latter leaped 
 
J^ 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 515 
 
 to his feet in a passion at the inhospitable act, 
 anil started for his rifle to make short worii of 
 the savage. But the latter, perceiving the dan- 
 ger he was in, ran into a small bedroom and 
 under the bed. Mr. Walker, rifle in hand, en- 
 deavored to follow him, but was hindered by 
 his wife and daughter, who had no desire to see 
 the Indian shot. The latter noticed the dela}' 
 and made his escape through the bedroom win- 
 dow, taking refuge in the chair-shop already 
 mentioned. By this time the other members of 
 the family had succeeded in pacifying Mr. Wal- 
 ker, and the refractory redskin was permitted 
 to depart — without his dinner. One day Will- 
 iam Lappin and William Leach were at the 
 cabin of John Arbuckle, when six or seven 
 Indians, among whom were John High, a 
 tall, ugh'-looking savage, six feet three or 
 four inches in height, and Wabmung, an under- 
 chief of the Ottawas, passing along, stopped to 
 talk with the settlers and get some tobacco. 
 Mr. Leach traded his his hat with one of the 
 Indians for some article belonging to the latter ; 
 but, immediately perceiving that he had been 
 cheated, he snatched the hat from the head of 
 the redskin and placed it on his own. This 
 was an insult which the savage would not 
 brook, so, raising his fist, he knocked Leach 
 flat on the ground. The act was no sooner 
 done than Lappin sprang forward and with 
 one blow sent the Indian sprawling by the side 
 of Leach. Lappin was immediately assailed by 
 John High and several others, though he suc- 
 ceeded in keeping them at bay, and the fight 
 became general. Blood began to flow from 
 sundry noses, and knives gleamed in the air. 
 One of the Savages snatched up a rifle, and 
 pointed it at Lappin, intending to shoot him ; 
 but the Chief Wabmung, who had remained an 
 impassive spectator of the fight thus far, sprang 
 forward and struck the muzzle up just as the 
 gun was discharged. No harm was done, and 
 the Indian, thinking, doubtless, he might get 
 into trouble, took to his heels and was soon 
 out of sight. The fight was over and the In- 
 dians took their departure. Jonathan Will- 
 iams, the Indian-hunter, lived for a number of 
 years in a little log cabin, in the northwest part 
 of the township, on Mud Brook. He gained 
 great notoriety for his antipath}- for the Indi- 
 ans, many of whom he shot on the slightest 
 pi'ovocation. He had been one of those pro- 
 fessional Indian slayers who, during the latter 
 
 part of the last century, were in the habit of 
 invading the Indian country to carry on their 
 work of extermination. Williams was a dead 
 shot, and was feared b}' the Indians. One da}- 
 a member of the tribe came to his cabin and 
 told him that a snake was on his track and 
 would bite him. Without any further explana- 
 tion the Indian went away. Mr. Williams con- 
 strued this statement to mean that one of the 
 tribe was lurking around to get a favorable op- 
 portunity to shoot him. He, therefore, began 
 to watch closely for his foe. The following 
 morning, before leaving the cabin, he took a 
 careful look from the little window, and, while 
 scrutinizing the woods on the border of the 
 clearing, saw an Indian suddenly peer from be- 
 hind a tree about twenty rods distant, and then 
 as suddenly conceal himself Williams told 
 his wife what he had seen, and, taking his rifle 
 down, looked carefully to the flint and priming. 
 He said to his wife, " It's now death for one of 
 us ; I'll trick him. Tie up the dog, and don't 
 be scared." So saying, he suddenly opened 
 the door, and before the Indian had time for a 
 hostile movement, the former took refuge be- 
 hind a bank of earth near the house. He hur- 
 ried a short distance and got behind a large 
 tree, and, with his rifle ready, began to watch 
 cautiously for the approach of his foe. He saw 
 the Indian's dog coming toward him, and 
 thought it must soon discover his hiding-place. 
 Suddenly, the Savage glided through a small 
 glade in the edge of the woods. This was suf- 
 ficient, and, like a flash, Williams raised his 
 rifle and fired, just as his enemy was disappear- 
 ing behind- the bank already alluded to. The 
 bullet went straight to its mark, and the Sav- 
 age fell upon the earth and expired. Williams 
 hurried forward, and, securing the gun, shot 
 the dog that had come so near revealing his 
 hiding-place. He was at a loss at first what to 
 do with the body. The death of the Indian 
 would be avenged, if known to his friends. 
 Finally, it was taken and sunk in Mud Brook. 
 Williams went back to the cabin, and his wife, 
 who had heard the report of both rifles, and 
 was greatly distressed, not knowing what shape 
 affiiirs had taken, was overjoyed to know that 
 he was safe. The death of this savage, George 
 Wilson, was not discovered until after the In- 
 dians had left the county, so that all danger 
 from them was averted. 
 
 The Indians seemed to take especial pleas- 
 
516 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 ure in frightening the wives of the settlers when 
 the latter were absent. They would enter the 
 cabins and flourish their weapons in an omi- 
 nous manner, and a plentiful supply of whisky 
 and victuals would be their reward. The^^ 
 would often brandish their scalping knives 
 over the heads of children until the mother 
 was half-distracted, when they would get almost 
 anything the}' demanded, and go off grunting 
 with satisfaction at the success of their artifice. 
 It way be said, however, that generally the 
 Indians were orderl}^ unless the}- had been 
 abused or were under the influence of whisky. 
 
 Mud Brook Swamp in the northwest corner, 
 was the resort during the spring of the 3'ear of 
 countless thousands of pigeons. They would 
 come to this place to roost after having feasted 
 all day on beech and other nuts growing on 
 the higher grounds. When they all took wing, 
 the noise was like the rushing of a mighty 
 wind. They often filled the air so that the sun 
 could not be seen ; and when they settled in 
 the forest, large trees were broken down by 
 them. It was dangerous to go into the swamps 
 that were filled with pigeons, and the voice had 
 to be elevated to be heard. 
 
 The early settlers in Stow suffered the usual 
 hardships incident to pioneer life. They were 
 obliged often to live as best the}- could. Flour 
 and meal were difficult to get, and when pro- 
 cured were judiciously used and made to go as 
 far as possible. It was a universal rule in 
 pioneer mathematics, that the means of supply 
 were inversely as the appetite to be gratified. 
 The taste could not be petted with a variety of 
 articles, but the meal very often consisted of 
 but one, and that in such limited quantities 
 that the cravings were unsatisfied. Roads 
 were bad, conveyances were bad, supplies of 
 all kinds were exorbitant, labor of the hardest 
 kind received scarcely any reward, and all efforts 
 were exhausted in the one object — to live. It 
 is singular how the plastic nature of mankind 
 can be molded for almost an}- condition of cir- 
 cumstances. Actual enjoj-ment can be had in 
 the midst of imminent peril or distressing sur- 
 roundings. The settlers saw the bright side 
 of their situation, and made the most of it. 
 They were contented, because their customs 
 were homogeneous, and their trials identical. 
 If some settler had come in very wealthy and 
 aristocratic ; if he had dressed his family in 
 silks, satins and broadcloths cut according to 
 
 the latest and prevailing fashion ; if he had 
 scorned to associate with his neighbors, him- 
 self and family would have been practicall}' 
 ostracised — the}- would have been shunned 
 like the plagues of Eg3'pt. It was a fortunate 
 thing that they remained in the East with their 
 money bags — fortunate for them and for the 
 rapid settlement and improvement of the West. 
 But, after all, hard times were experienced — 
 times when it seemed as if the utmost effort could 
 scarcely keep body and soul together. A large 
 family of small children to feed and clothe, 
 and nothing but strong hands and honest hearts 
 to meet the demand ! This was the problem 
 that many solved, and upon which many others 
 failed. 
 
 It was not long after the settlers had become 
 quite numerous, before industries began to 
 spring up in various parts of the township, to 
 furnish for the stead}- demand supplies nearer 
 home. While some settlers erected frame houses, 
 the majority did not for many years, but lived 
 contented in their rude, though comfortable log 
 cabins. It thus occurred that there was not as 
 strong a demand for sawed lumber as might 
 have been expected. So far as can be learned, 
 the first saw-mill in the township was built on 
 the river at Moni'oe Falls, in about the year 
 1817, by Griswell & Wolcott. At the same 
 time, a man named Francis Kelsey erected a 
 grist-mill at the same place. These three men 
 united means and built a log-dam where the 
 present one is located. The grist-mill was 
 located on the north side of the river, and the 
 saw-mill on the south. The land on the north 
 side was owned by John Graham, but he en- 
 tered into an agreement with Kelsey, to deed 
 the latter two acres for a mill site, provided a 
 grist-mill was erected and operated. Both mills 
 were supplied with water by means of short 
 flumes or races, and a sutficient mill-head was 
 obtained to operate both mills at a rapid rate. 
 It was not long before both were on a firm 
 financial basis, and a fair profit was realized by 
 the investment. They were conducted by these 
 men (or perhaps they had a change of owners) 
 until 1836, with a few insignificant interrup- 
 tions, at which time they were purchased by the 
 Moni'oe brothers, of Boston Township. For a 
 number of years prior to this change in owners, 
 the mills had been neglected, especially the 
 saw-mill, which had become somewhat rickety, 
 and sadly in need of repairs. The Monroes, at 
 
'1l 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 517 
 
 the time they purchased the mills, also secured 
 about two hundred and fifty acres of land, all, 
 or at least a portion, upon which the village of 
 Monroe Falls is situated. They had a grand 
 project in view, which was to found a village 
 that should become the public mart of all the 
 surrounding country, and a metropolis of opu- 
 lence and importance. At this period there 
 were some eight or ten residences in the village ; 
 but, so far as can be learned, no lots had been 
 regularly surveyed and platted. It is thought 
 that William Stow built the first dwelling in 
 the village ; at least, he built there at a very 
 early day. His father had been the proprietor 
 of the township, but had sold a large por- 
 tion of it to settlers and speculators. His 
 residence was located on the south side 
 of the river, and is 3'et standing. John 
 Graham lived on the north side, but had 
 sold out and left a few years before, or, 
 perhaps, sold to the Monroes. There also 
 lived at the village, in 1836, Samuel Cheney, 
 Zebulon Stow, Mr. Griffiths and several others. 
 The Monroes evidently expected to make their 
 fortunes. They were quite wealthy when they 
 purchased the village and mill-sites, and they 
 ventured all they had in the enterprise, confi- 
 dently anticipating, as many did in early years, 
 that a city would spring up around them, like 
 mushrooms from a hot-bed. They immediately 
 laid out about a hundred lots, and in a few 
 3'ears succeeded in securing the incorporation* 
 of the village, which, in their honor, had been 
 named Monroe Falls. At the time they pur- 
 chased all the land for sale in the village or 
 surrounding it, they built a small storeroom, 
 and placed therein about $1,200 worth of 
 goods. A number of years before, perhaps as 
 earl}- as 1830, John S. Harvc}' had come to the 
 Falls, had built a residence and a small store, 
 and had placed in the latter $600 worth of a 
 general assortment of goods, consisting mostly 
 of groceries and notions. He had obtained a 
 fair country trade, and, according to the re- 
 ports, had refused to sell to the Monroes, who 
 desired to purchase his property. The Mon- 
 roes wished no competition in the early history 
 of their village, and had tried to purchase all 
 property or enterprises that would in any way 
 interfere with their intentions or obstruct their 
 rapid march to opulence and fame. Several 
 lots were sold, and tradesmen and mechanics 
 
 * Gen. Bii-rce. 
 
 appeared, and it seemed at first as though the 
 bright expectations of the Monroes were to be 
 realized. They founded a " bank," and began 
 issuing " wild-cat," " red-dog " bills of credit in 
 limited quantities.* Hax'vey soon found that 
 the Monroe store was materially injuring his 
 trade, so, about two years after the appear- 
 ance of the brothers, he either sold out or 
 closed out, and went to Akron, according to 
 the reports. The Monroes purchased his store- 
 room and filled it with goods, and thus monop- 
 olized the trade in the village. Their stock 
 was increased until they probably owned about 
 $5,000 worth of goods. About the year 1828, 
 or perhaps earlier, James Griffiths erected a 
 wooden factory a few rods below the saw-mill, 
 on the same (south) side of the river. He se- 
 cured a paying custom trade. Wool-growers 
 in the vicinity brought their wool to him to be 
 carded, after which it was taken b}- them and 
 spun, and then returned to the factory to be 
 manufactured into flannel and various other 
 varieties of cloth. It must be remembered 
 that there were no readj-made clothing stores 
 in those days. Suits for men and women were 
 cut and made in the houses by the wives of the 
 settlers, many of whom became expert tailors, 
 especially if they had lai*ge families and large 
 quantities of cloth to be disposed of. At cer- 
 tain seasons of the year, the entire family 
 would be provided with new suits. Journey- 
 men tailors traveled from house to house, and 
 took contracts at reduced rates to make suits 
 for the whole family, often furnishing the 
 cloth. Griffiths conducted his factor}' until 
 1836, when the entire property was bought by 
 the Monroes. Converse & Barnes began man- 
 ufacturing chairs in about 1833, and soon had 
 quite a brisk trade. They peddled their wares 
 in a wagon, which traversed the country for a 
 circuit of many miles. Converse was a local 
 preacher, and conducted many of the early 
 meetings at the village. Some three or four 
 men were employed to assist in the manufact- 
 ure of the chairs. The owners continued the 
 business until 1836, when the property, like 
 almost all the balance, fell into the hands of 
 the Monroe Brothers. Many years before this, 
 iMr. Graham, who had lived on the north side 
 of the river, built a small distillery, and began 
 manufacturing a limited quantity of whisk}-. 
 Considerable liquor was made, which found a 
 
 IT^ 
 
 iz 
 
518 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 ready sale in the neighboi'hood. Mr. Wet- 
 more, also, at an early day, erected a distiller^' 
 on what was then called Stow Pond. He also 
 made ([uite a quantity of the drink which in- 
 ebriates. These enterprises (which, by the 
 way, brought to the owners a profitable rev- 
 enue), were quite popular in early years, and 
 continued so throughout what is now Summit 
 County, until about the year 1830, when a 
 large number of temperance societies was or- 
 ganized, whose objects were to depict the enor- 
 mity of the evil tendency of the liquor traffic, 
 and to suppress the supply and demand among 
 the settlers. The two distilleries above men- 
 tioned were closed, however, before this cru- 
 sade. The temperance movement became so 
 strong and universal, that William Stow was 
 induced to oflfer 160 acres of land just north of 
 Silver Lake (this land is yet known as " tem- 
 perance lot"), to be divided equally among 
 those who would take the pledge and become 
 abstainers. Many were thus induced to re- 
 nounce their intemperate habits ; but a deed to 
 the land was not made out, was neglected, and, 
 at Mr. Stow's death, his heirs refused to com- 
 ply with his promises, and retained the owner- 
 ship of the " temperance lot." 
 
 It will be seen that the Monroes became the 
 owners of about all the business enterprises in 
 the village in 1836. These men threw a vast 
 deal of energy and capital into their gigantic 
 undertaking, and deserved a better financial 
 fate than they were compelled to suffer. They 
 soon found that they had miscalculated. But 
 few artisans and no capitalists came to their 
 relief Instead of rising in value, the property 
 depreciated from the price fixed bv the Mon- 
 roe purchase. The proprietors had encoun- 
 tered large expense. They tore down the grist- 
 mill and the saw-mill, and erected larger and 
 better ones. The saw-mill was located on the 
 north side of the river, and the grist-mill on 
 the south side, the reverse of what had for- 
 merly been. The latter mill was established 
 further down the river, and a long race, coming 
 from the dam, supplied it with water-power. 
 After struggling some ten years with their un- 
 dertaking, the Monroe Brothers, seeing that 
 they had failed and had lost large sums of 
 money, gradually went out of business. Their 
 " promises to pay " were not fulfilled, and 
 many others besides themselves lost quite 
 heavil}'. The property, or the most of it, fell 
 
 into the hands of Oliver Brown, or, as some 
 say, into the hands of William Cartright. At 
 least, both men at different times owned the 
 mills, and it may be that others also, at times, 
 owned an interest in them previous to their be- 
 ing purchased b}- the Cleveland Paper Com- 
 pany. The saw-mill was owned by various 
 parties, as was also the grist-mill. E. P. Willis 
 sold goods in the village about the time of the 
 Monroe purchase. Others have followed the 
 mercantile pursuit at different times. A small 
 hotel was built on the canal in early years. 
 Phillip North, in about the year 1842, was en- 
 gaged in manufacturing hoes — cutting the me- 
 tallic portions from plates of iron or steel, and 
 furnishing them with handles. Luther Loorais 
 conducted an excellent store for many ^-ears. 
 Charles Heed has a small store at present. In 
 1866, the grist-mill was purchased by the 
 Cleveland Paper Company. It was fitted up 
 with the apparatus necessary for the manufact- 
 ure of paper ; but after a year or two was 
 burned to the ground, whereupon the present 
 commodious building was erected on the same 
 site. Under the superintendency of Mr. Hall, 
 there has been manufactured an average of 
 three tons of paper each da}-. About thirty 
 employes are kept constantly at work, and the 
 village, at present, is populated almost wholly 
 by the families of these workmen. All the 
 coarser varieties of paper are manufactured. 
 Many other things might be said about Monroe 
 Falls, but enough has been given to exhibit its 
 general growth and decay. 
 
 It must be noted that other industries arose 
 than those in the two villages in the township. 
 Henry Wilcox owned and operated a saw mill 
 on Mud Brook as early as 1820, Josiah Starr 
 having built it a year or two before. The 
 " Bryan Mill " was started quite early, and con- 
 tinued many years. There was also an excel- 
 lent saw-mill on Fish Creek at an early day. 
 Many others have been conducted at different 
 times. In about the year 1 810, Mr. Thorndyke, 
 son of a wealthy merchant of Boston, Mass., 
 opened a general store on Lot 14. After a short 
 time, the store was moved to Lot 12 ; but, at the 
 expiration of two or three years, the enterprise 
 was abandoned, and the building was used by 
 the Methodists as a house of worship. After 
 the first settlers had opened up the township, 
 and greatly modified the hardships to be under- 
 gone, improvements went on rapidly. Capital 
 
'.[^ 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 519 
 
 sought investment, and, erelong, Stow could 
 boast of a population as large and as enlightened 
 in general knowledge as it can at present. A 
 much larger portion of the land was covered 
 with forest than now, and the roads and streams 
 were in a very unsatisfactory condition. In 
 the 3'ear 1837, there occurred one of those 
 circling tornadoes, which occasionally strike the 
 earth, spreading death and destruction in their 
 course. It visited the township on the 20th of 
 October, about 3 o'clock in the morning, strik- 
 ing the earth first, in the western part, near the 
 center road, and thence passing a trifle north of 
 east, until it reached alDout the center of the 
 township, when it either spent itself, or arose 
 above the tops of the trees. The force of the 
 wind must have been terrific, as large trees 
 were snapped ofl[* like pipe-stems, and carried 
 bodily several yards from the stump. Those 
 who heard its approach, knew from the awful 
 roar that was mingled with the crash of falling 
 trees, that something unusual and dreadful was 
 in the air. Its pathway had an average width 
 of about forty rods, and, though its course la}^ 
 through the heaviest timber, not a tree was left 
 standing ; but all were heaped in tangled and 
 promiscuous confusion. It was accompanied 
 with almost incessant flashes of vivid lightning 
 and volle3'S of the deepest thunder, and the 
 rain came down in angry torrents. It struck 
 Cochran Pond, and ver\- likely carried up large 
 quantities of water. The residence of Frederick 
 Sandford was torn into a thousand fragments, 
 and the frightened inmates carried aloft in the 
 air. The two sons, Charles and Norman, aged 
 respectively twenty-five and eighteen 3-ears, 
 were both killed and terribly bruised. Mr. 
 Sandford's jaw was broken, as was also his 
 thigh, in two places. He was alive when found, 
 but died in a few hours, without recovering the 
 use of his mind. Mrs. Collins, the mother of 
 Mrs. Sandford, was also killed, while the latter, 
 with the exception of a few bruises, was unin- 
 jured. Mary, the daughter, aged about sixteen, 
 was found lying insensible on a gate that had 
 been wrenched from its hinges, and carried ten 
 or twelve rods from the house. When found, 
 she held in her hand a dress, which she was 
 probably endeavoring to put on in the few ter- 
 rible moments before the cloud struck the house. 
 She was comparatively uninjured, and, after a 
 spell of sickness, caused by the drenching rain, 
 and the nerv^ous shock accompan3'ing so dire a 
 
 calamity, she fully recovered, and is yet living 
 within a few rods of where the old house stood. 
 The cloud passed on ; wrenched asunder Mr. 
 Graham's new house ; carried off the roof of 
 the one occupied by Dr. Wells ; crushed in the 
 gable of the Barnes residence, pinning several 
 members of the famil}' fast until they were re- 
 leased, and finally ended its mad freaks by un- 
 roofing the Butler residence. The east and 
 west road was filled with fallen timber. It 
 must be understood that the last-mentioned 
 houses wore only on the edge of the course taken 
 by the gyrating cloud. Had it been otherwise, 
 the historian would have more deaths to record. 
 A plow, that had been left in a field in an up- 
 right position, though not in the ground, was 
 plunged in to the depth of eighteen inches, and 
 a furrow in the form of a semi-circle, whose 
 diameter was about six feet, was thrown up, 
 and the earth scattered six or eight feet around, 
 after which the plow was thrown out of the 
 ground with landside, mold-board, share and 
 other portions of the plow twisted and broken. 
 Fowls and birds were plucked entire!}' destitute 
 of feathers, and killed. The bed upon which 
 Mary Sandford had been sleeping, was found 
 lodged in the top of a tree, thirty feet from the 
 ground. An ox-cart was blown thirtv rods. 
 Articles belonging to the house were picked up 
 several miles away ; among these was a small 
 purse of money. Quite a number of domestic 
 animals were killed or mangled. 
 
 The first house in Stow Corners was built as 
 early as 1806, by Ezra Wyatt, and was a small 
 log building, located on the southwest corner 
 of Lot 36. Within the next two years, three 
 or four others were erected. Stephen Perkins 
 built on the northwest corner of Lot 26, on a 
 small tract of five acres which he owned there. 
 Caleb Wetmore built soon afterward, as did also 
 Titus Wetmore a few months later. The last 
 named built a double log house for the pur- 
 pose (as stated by one of his descendants) of 
 furnishing a dancing-hall for the neighl)or- 
 hood. Samuel Baker lived near by, and was a 
 blacksmith by trade, the first in the township. 
 Several other residences were erected in the 
 village, but no store was opened until about 
 the year 1820, when a man named Johnson 
 placed a small stock of goods in the Wyatt 
 log house, which, a number of years before, 
 had been fitted up by Erastus Southmayd for a 
 tavern. Lyman Beckley soon got possession 
 
520 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 of the building, using it for a tavern. He was 
 succeeded b}- Allen Nickerson, who, in about 
 1843, transferred the property to Gen. Gross 
 The latter kept the most disreputable place 
 ever in the township. It was a resort for the 
 lewd and vicious, and was a disgrace to the 
 neighborhood. The old building was discard- 
 ed many years ago, and a new one erected. 
 Dr. Sweeney owned and conducted the tavern 
 for a number of years. It has since changed 
 hands several times, and is at present owned 
 by C. E. Kidne}^, who has a small stock of 
 liquors, which he vends to convivial spirits. It 
 is styled the Cliff House. Mr. Gross kept a 
 few goods for sale, as did also a man named 
 Edmunds. Enoch Brainard conducted a tan- 
 nery for some four years, beginning in 1842. 
 A few other industries have arisen in the vil- 
 lage at different times. 
 
 Knowledge obtained of the early schools is 
 exceedingly limited. Recollection, upon which 
 the historian largely depends, is erratic and 
 treacherous. Traditions are vague, improba- 
 ble and unsatisfactory. No one in the past 
 has taken the trouble to gather crumbs of 
 information for the intellectual appetite of 
 coming generations. It has been a matter of 
 no pecuniary interest or advantage, and has 
 been studiousl3^ omitted from the curriculum 
 of pursuits. The plodding details of agricult- 
 ure have been far more attractive, for therein 
 was seen the glitter of gold. The historian 
 casts his hook in the Stream of Time ; it is 
 swept backward ; a strange sensation is felt 
 along the line ; a sudden effort is made, and a 
 few quivering minnows of information are 
 thrown upon the shores of the Present. Mrs. 
 (Walker) Lappin, of Boston, sa3's that the first 
 school in Stow was taught in the northeast 
 corner, in the cabin of William Walker, as 
 early as the winter of 1806-07. A young Vir- 
 ginian, named Dennis B^-an, who had just 
 come into the township, and who was decidedh' 
 averse to chopping all day in the woods for a 
 pittance, made the effort, and succeeded in get- 
 ting a sufficient number of scholars subscribed 
 to insure him something more than a living. 
 The term was three months in length, and the 
 subscription per scholar was $1.50. The 
 teacher boarded around, and probably cleared 
 the greater share of his wages. About fifteen 
 scholars were enrolled, quite a number of 
 whom came from the southern part of Hudson 
 
 Township. Samuel Burnett had built a log 
 cabin in the northern part in about the year 
 1805, but had vacated it some two years later, 
 going no one knew whither. This building 
 was appropriated for school purposes, and 
 terms were taught there for several years, be- 
 ginning in 1808. A man named Lowell taught 
 here quite early. As near as can be learned, 
 a schoolhouse was built in the vicinity of Stow 
 Corners in about the year 1810, at which time 
 the Burnett house mentioned above was alian- 
 doned, and the children in the northern part 
 sent to the former. It is possible that this 
 building — the Wetmore Schoolhouse — was 
 erected two or three 3'ears before 1810. It was 
 located a short distance west of the present 
 village site, and used until about 1816, when a 
 frame building was erected, and located nearly 
 south of where Josiah Wetmore's residence 
 now stands. This house was used some twenty 
 or twenty-five 3'ears, when the present one was 
 constructed. The latter has been enlarged and 
 remodeled until it resembles a newly-built 
 schoolhouse. The first school building was 
 erected at Monroe Falls in about the year 
 1816. Two other houses have succeeded it, 
 each au improvement on its predecessor. 
 School was taught in the cabin of Mr. Rice, 
 near the Center, by Emma Cannon, as early as 
 1810. In 1825, there were more schoolhouses 
 in the township than the present number — 
 eight. There were then at least nine, and very 
 probably ten or eleven. The greater number 
 were built of logs, and were rude, inconvenient, 
 unattractive, cheerless affairs. Notwithstand- 
 ing their gloomy, dismal surroundings, they 
 were well attended, and were the basis of the 
 splendid public school system of to-day. One 
 important feature of the early schools should 
 be noticed. Knowledge was not turned into 
 scholars by a sort of pouring process. The 
 teacher refused to afford any assistance save 
 where the scholar, after patient and protracted 
 study, could not succeed. The schoolhouse 
 was not a playhouse ; it was a workhouse — a 
 place where many a self-made man received his 
 first insight of the hard labor that was before 
 him. Erastus Southmayd was one of the earl}^ 
 teachers at the Center. He taught many 
 terms, and his reputation as a competent in- 
 structor became widespread. 
 
 It is universally the case in the earlier his- 
 tory of a township, that dift'erent religious de- 
 
 "71" 
 
-iT^^uWfc^ 
 
J^ 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 521 
 
 nominations arose and prospered— some of 
 them for short periods, and others until the 
 present time. Owing to the fact that fine 
 churches have been erected in Cuyahoga Falls 
 and Hudson, and are within a few miles of all 
 parts (the farthest) of the township, a large 
 portion of tlie citizens of Stow attend these, 
 thus affording but little material upon which 
 the historian of that township may work. For 
 the first few years, the settlers went to Hudson 
 to attend religious service. When Deacon But- 
 ler came to the township in about the year 
 1806, he began forming a small class, which 
 met regularly at his cabin. The meetings were 
 conducted in pioneer fashion, and were full of 
 entlnisiasm. Local preachers from Hudson 
 addressed the congregation occasionally, as did 
 also itinerant preachers. Butler was a Presby- 
 terian, and an entertaining speaker. The society 
 used the schoolhouse. Among the early mem- 
 bers were Stephen Butler, William Stow, John 
 
 Graylord, Thomas Gaylord and their families, 
 and others. They built a small frame church 
 in about 1833, in which they continued to wor- 
 ship with increasing numbers, until near 1843, 
 when the Disciples got possession of the church, 
 and the Presbyterians went to Cu3'ahoga Falls. 
 This building was used until a few years ago, 
 when the present structure was erected. The 
 above is given on the authority of Josiah Wet- 
 more. It is stated that a St. John's Church 
 society was organized at Stow Corners in about 
 the year 1818 ; that it grew and flourished, and 
 was finally removed to Cuyahoga Falls, where 
 it yet lives, well advanced in j^ears, but with 
 the vigor of youth in its limbs, if the figure 
 may be indulged in. The chui'ch at the Cor- 
 ners is the only one in the township ; but from 
 this it should not be inferred that the citizens 
 lack religious interest and zeal. They belong 
 to churches in other townships. 
 
 CHAPTER XX.* 
 
 COVENTRY TO WNSHir— DESCRIPTION AND PHYSICAL FEATU^^FS— WHITE SETTLEMENT — GROWTH 
 
 AND IMPROVEMENT — PIONEER REMINISCENCES —CHURCHES AND 
 
 CHURCH BUILDINGS— EDUCATIONAL, ETC. 
 
 •■ Tiie ax rang sharply 'mid those forest shades 
 Which, from creation toward the sky 
 Had tower'd in unshorn beauty." 
 
 — Mrs. Sigourney. 
 
 IT is difficult to realize, as we walk the streets 
 of our beautiful towns and cities, and note 
 the squares of solid blocks, the immense ware- 
 houses, the bus}' mills, the ceaseless hum of a 
 hundred factories, where the bulk of a busy 
 population " gains its bread by the sweat of its 
 brow," that scarcelj' a century ago these beau- 
 tiful hills and valleys were peopled by wander- 
 ing savages, and formed a part of one vast wil- 
 derness, which gave no sign or promise of the 
 multitudes of a strange race b}' which it is now 
 peopled, or of the mighty developments in 
 science and art which should make their lives 
 so different from that of their rude predecessors. 
 Here the bold immigrant pitched his loneh' Lent 
 and staked all beside some stream or near some 
 spring of pure and sparkling water, and be- 
 neath those " forest shades " where erst the un- 
 
 * Contributed by George I. Wrigbt. 
 
 tamed children of Nature had so long roamed 
 unmolested, at one time in search of food, and 
 again engaged in the wild pleasures which 
 seemed the onl}' occupation of their simple 
 lives, and the onl}' end of their existence. The 
 sound of the woodman's ax rang out amid this 
 mighty solitude, frightening the denizens of the 
 forest from their peaceful slumbers, and start- 
 ing reverberations whose last re-echo has 
 changed into the screech of the iron horse, and 
 into the varied hum of a thousand industries, 
 which now occupy the millions of busy men and 
 women, who have been born and reared under 
 a civilization which had its first beginnings in 
 the rude log-cabins of those sturd}- pioneers. 
 
 A pleasanter task could scarce!}^ be given than 
 that which devolves upon the chronicler of our 
 early history. Could he l)ut reproduce the scenes 
 of three-quarters of a century ago, with all their 
 natural surroundings, that the reader in imag- 
 ination might see the unhewn log hut with its 
 crevices filled with clay ; the adobe chimney' ; 
 the broad fire-place, and the rough, unseemly 
 
 T^ 
 
522 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 furniture ; that he might see the small clearing, 
 so covered with stumps that one could easily 
 have leaped from one to another, and in that 
 way have passed across the entire breadth of 
 the farm. Could he picture the rude shed, made 
 of poles and covered with branches, which was 
 the forerunner of the fine bank barn, in which 
 our modern owner of the same farm stores the 
 wealth of grain and produce gathered from the 
 fields his forefathers conquered, or the winding 
 path to the edge of the woods, where, beneath 
 some spreading beech or maple, the spring 
 bubbled forth and cut for itself a tiny path 
 toward some larger stream, where, after their 
 slaking thirst, in the hot midday, the settler and 
 his boys would rest for a time from their toil, 
 and talk of the trip to the mill or post office ten 
 or fifteen miles awa}- . Could he show the read- 
 er '' the slashing," where the men, the boys and 
 the girls were busy, making and burning log- 
 heaps and brush-piles getting another piece 
 ready for wheat or corn, the paths that indicate 
 the direction of their near neighbors, perhaps 
 miles away. Could the historian, we repeat, 
 picture all these scenes in their wild but natural 
 beauty, he would bring before many a reader 
 similar scenes, whose impress have been left in 
 the mind by the oft-repeated stories of the gray- 
 haired grandsire, recounted with man}' an ani- 
 mated gesture, as he " lived o'er again those 
 olden times." 
 
 But we must reluctantly recall the reader 
 from these general recollections to the more 
 prosy subject of our work. Coventry Town- 
 ship is bounded on the north by Portage Town- 
 ship and Akron City ; on the east by Spring- 
 field Township ; on the south by Green and 
 Franklin Township ; and on the west by the 
 Tuscarawas River and Norton Township. A 
 small portion of its territory projects from the 
 northern center into Portage, on the western 
 margin of the corporation line of Akron City. 
 Its southern boundary is the famous south line 
 of the Western Reserve, or forty-first parallel 
 of north latitude. This line was run during the 
 spring and summer of 1797, by one Seth Pease 
 and an assistant, one of an expedition seut 
 out by the Connecticut Land Company, to sur- 
 vey the land which they had purchased of the 
 State of Connecticut. This company paid 
 $1,200,000 for the tract included between lati- 
 tude 41° and 42° 2' north, and extending west 
 120 miles from the Pennsylvania line. This 
 
 was surveyed into townships five miles square, 
 as far as the Tuscarawas and Cuyahoga in 
 1797. In 1806 and 1807, the balance was sur- 
 veyed, until which time the Indians owned all 
 territor}' west of these rivers. This land was 
 divided among the stock-holders in this way. 
 The numbers of the townships were placed on 
 slips of paper, and all but a few were put into 
 a box from which each one drew. Those that 
 were not drawn were called " equalizing town- 
 ships," among which was Coventry. The ob- 
 ject of thus reserving some was to give strips 
 of this " equalizing land " to those who had 
 drawn poor townships, and in that way make 
 them equal to an average township. 
 
 The book in which these assignments of ^ter- 
 ritory was kept, was called the " Book of 
 Drafts," and was the foundation of all titles to 
 land on the Reserve. Coventry was the first 
 township in Range 11, and was parceled out 
 to several parties. Samuel Hinckley, who was 
 proprietor of Hinckley Township, in Medina 
 County, got the southeast quarter of Coven- 
 try. Gen. Wadsworth and others got strips of 
 this township as equalizing land. The survey, 
 before noticed, closed on the bank of the Tus- 
 carawas, fifty-six miles west of the Pennsyl- 
 vania line, this being the western boundary of 
 the United States at that time, and on a tree, 
 possibly still standing, on the bank of the river, 
 the surveyor. Pease, marked the result of his 
 measurement — "56 M." This base line was 
 re-run, in 1806, by Abram Tap^mn, who diflTered 
 somewhat from the original survey, but not 
 much considering the distance and sui-round- 
 ings. South of this line, the land belonged to 
 " Uncle Sam," and was surveyed by order of 
 Congress, townships made six miles square, 
 and was called " Congress Land " to distinguish 
 it from the " Reserve." At the time of this 
 survey, that part of Coventry which lies west 
 of the Tuscarawas and the " Indian trail," be- 
 longed to the Indians, and hence the township 
 was fractional. This additional territor}-, how- 
 ever, was added to it, when the survey was 
 completed in 1806, just after it was ceded to 
 the Government by the Indians in 1805. The 
 Tuscarawas encroaches upon the territory of 
 Norton, in the southwest corner of Coventry. 
 But the river was retained here as the bound- 
 ary, thus giving to Coventry more than the 
 twenty-five square miles, and leaving Norton a 
 fractional township. 
 
<2_ 
 
 X£ 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 523 
 
 The general surface outline is quite diversi- 
 fied, and, when we consider the whole area we 
 find as great a variety as could well be shown on 
 as limited an area. The Tuscarawas enters near 
 the middle of the southern half of the eastern 
 boundary, passing in its beautifull}' winding 
 course through the central part to the center of 
 the western boundary, thence continuing in a 
 southwesterly dii'ection until it leaves the con- 
 fines of Coventry, entering Franklin and contin- 
 uing onward toward " The Father of Waters," to 
 be lost in its bosom or carried onward to mingle 
 with the waters of the great ocean. The Tus- 
 carawas has many small tributaries, perhaps 
 the most important of which is Brewster's Run, 
 which enters from Springfield and traverses the 
 eastern half of the township, entering the river 
 above the outlet of "Long Lake." This lake 
 is a natural basin of pure water containing ex- 
 cellent fish, which formed a source of provision 
 for the earl}- settlers, as well as the savage red 
 men who ranged the forest and fished in these 
 beautiful lakes with his crude tackle, and per- 
 haps had as good luck as some modern experts 
 who frequent the place. Another lake of con- 
 siderable note, not onl}' on account of its situa- 
 tion but for the uses to which it has been put 
 by the enterprising advocates of "rapid tran- 
 sit," is Summit Lake, situated in the extreme 
 northern center and occupying a position on 
 the "divide" which separates the lake system 
 of drainage from that of the Mississippi Valley. 
 Originally it was surrounded b}' an impenetra- 
 ble tamarack swamp, without any outlet worthy 
 the name, and its source of supply springs at 
 the sides and bottom, with the waters from the 
 surrounding hills. It was, in 1825 or there- 
 abouts, used as the source of supply for the 
 upper level of the Ohio Canal, which passes 
 through it. There is a number of smaller 
 lakes, among which is Manning's Pond, on the 
 northern margin of Summit Lake, connected 
 therewith b}' a stagnant stream through which 
 the water flows either wa}' according to the 
 varying supply in the larger bod}'. Another 
 is Nesmith Lake situated about a fourth of a 
 mile west of the geographical center of the 
 township. The Indian trail, or portage path, 
 touched at the eastern side, and the dusky 
 warriors perchance were wont to rest arid slake 
 their thirst at this point on their expeditions to 
 and from the North. A small body of water 
 east of Long Lake and connected with it in 
 
 high water, is called " Mud Lake," perhaps, on 
 account of the swampy and uncertain character 
 of the shores. Its dark waters are said never 
 to have been fathomed, and the stories of the 
 bed-cords and clothes-lines that have been 
 used in the fruitless search for the remote 
 foundations thereof, are, at least, interesting to 
 one who has ofttimes paddled the frail canoe 
 over its placid surface while trying to catch 
 the "speckled bass" or the "blue sunfish." 
 
 Perhaps, the most interesting body of water 
 in the township is the reservoir, a series of con- 
 nected lakes and ponds, partly natural and 
 partly artificial. It is situated in the extreme 
 southern part, extending into Gi'een and 
 Franklin Townships and covers considerable 
 territor}-. It was built in 1840 or thereabouts, 
 and was designed to secure a sufficient quanti- 
 ty of water for the use of the canal, which was 
 at this time the principal outlet for the trade 
 of Central Ohio. The great number of boats 
 passing through threatened to exhaust the sup- 
 posed abundant supph' in Summit Lake. 
 
 A few items of the secret history of the Penn- 
 sylvania & Ohio Canal, and " the bearings of 
 which (as ' Bunsby ' would say), are in the ap- 
 plication thereof" At the time when the 
 Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal was projected, the 
 route was located through Middlebury into 
 Coventry, and following the Wolf Ledge Run 
 was to have emptied into the Ohio Canal above 
 the guard lock, b}' means of a lock, which would 
 have helped to supply the deficiency on the 
 summit level, for which the reservoir was con- 
 structed at a cost of over f 15(),()00 to the tax- 
 payers of the State. But the Akron mill-own- 
 ers perceived that if this canal could be brought 
 into Akrou on the line of the Crosby race (by 
 which they were supplied with water-power) by 
 enlarging it and running up to the Summit ba- 
 sin by means of a lock located (ilore their sup- 
 ply race, they would get the benefit of both the 
 enlargement and of each lockful of water let 
 down, eventually, from the summit level ; hence 
 pressure was brought to bear and the route was 
 changed. But the supply of water on the sum- 
 mit level was not sufficient for both canals, and 
 the reservoir was built. It is supplied l)y means 
 of a race which starts from the Tuscarawas 
 about a mile from the eastern boundary line, 
 near the Steese coal bank, runs west along the 
 hillsides which skirt the valley, to within half a 
 mile of Lono- Lake where it turns south, still 
 
524 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 skirting the hills, and enters the reservoir near 
 the 'Squire Freese farm. A huge embankment 
 was built from this point across the lowland to 
 the hills southward, and an extensive lake was 
 thus formed. This discharges through an im- 
 mense iron pipe (and runs into Long Lake when- 
 ever there is need of water from this source), 
 by means of gates which are raised to let the 
 water into the sluice. Long Lake is likewise 
 connected with Turkey- Foot Lake, making it 
 also a part of the great suppl}' reservoir. These 
 discharge through Long Lake into the Tusca- 
 rawas, a little south of the center of the town- 
 ship. This point was also made the terminus 
 of the Portage path by the Indians, because the 
 accession of waters from these lakes made the 
 river navigable at all seasons to this point for 
 their birch canoes. Being nearly on a level 
 with the canal, a dam and a supply race or 
 feeder were built, by means of which a never- 
 failing supply was delivered into the canal. 
 
 These lakes, creeks, and the Tuscarawas, form 
 a most complete system of drainage. Aside 
 from some low lands along the natural depres- 
 sion in which the township was located, the 
 township is quite free from waste lands. The 
 soil is generall}' fertile, and especiall^^ in the 
 southern part, where it is considered the best 
 wheat land in the Reserve. Along the valley 
 of the Tuscarawas are beautiful meadows, and, 
 in the spring and summer seasons, the rich 
 verdure relieved by occasional patches of tim- 
 ber left to remind one of what it was fift}' years 
 ago, forms as pleasant a sight as often meets 
 the eye of the lover of the beautiful in natural 
 scenery. In the northern part the soil is more 
 inclined to clay, and is better adapted to gen- 
 eral husbandry and stock raising. 
 
 The geological structure presents many in- 
 teresting features. The ridge or divide which 
 crosses the township, anciently formed part of 
 the beach of a great inland sea which extended 
 over the entire basin now occupied by our 
 chain of great lakes. One of several outlets 
 to this sea, in all probabilit}^, cut through this 
 divide and followed the lowlands to the Tus- 
 carawas, which at that remote time conducted 
 the overflow from the sea toward the gulf At 
 a more recent time, after this sea had receded 
 toward its present limits, the Cuyahoga passed 
 through this water gap into the valley of the 
 Tuscarawas, until, becoming dammed up, it cut 
 for itself a new channel toward the lake, making 
 
 the sharp curve in the river at this point. 
 These facts are shown by an examination of 
 the character of the deposits along this old 
 channel. The surface is of drift origin, while 
 underlying it we find the carboniferous forma- 
 tion in full. The coal measures are overlaid 
 with shale, while above this is sand rock. Im- 
 mense quantities of coal are being mined in 
 this township, and of an excellent quality. 
 The vein averages in thickness about four and 
 a half feet. There is some irregularity, how- 
 ever, due, no doubt, to the uueven bottom of 
 the old coal marsh, in which the vegetation it is 
 formed of. was deposited, and when the overly- 
 ing claj's were deposited, the coal material lay 
 between the.se ridges and irregularities which 
 are now found to obstruct the progress of the 
 miners, and are called " horse-backs," or " hogs- 
 backs." A bed of hard iron ore is found over 
 nearly all the measures opened, varying from 
 a few inches to a foot in thickness. Peat bogs 
 are also found, some of which are said to be 
 from thirty to forty feet in depth. This, by a 
 process of drying, is made into an article of 
 fuel, which may develop into a possible future 
 supply, in case the coal measures are exhausted. 
 Mr. J. F. Brunot prepared some for market, but 
 it has no more than one-half the heating power 
 of coal, and cannot compete with it at paying 
 prices. It is an excellent fertilizer, and is of 
 great value to the intelligent agriculturist. 
 Shell marl is sometimes found, which is one of 
 the most valuable fertilizers in the market. 
 Any one finding this should test it, and ascer- 
 tain its value and reap a harvest from the cat- 
 swamp or marsh, that will make a garden of 
 the whole farm. These peat and marl beds are 
 the filled-up lakelets that ages ago occupied 
 their sites, and which became overgrown with 
 weeds and grasses, until they finall}' disap- 
 peared. Some of them are even good meadows, 
 over which cattle have roamed for j-ears. One 
 of these dead lakes was discovered recently 
 near Mogadore, on the route of the Connotton 
 Railroad. All lakes with boggy oj' swampy 
 shores, where one can shake the ground for 
 rods, are in the first stages of progress toward 
 the formation of peat bogs. Man}' granite 
 bowlders are found, and the curious ma}' won- 
 der whence the}' came. These rocks are evi- 
 dences of the powerful iceberg and glacial 
 agency in the distril)ution of the surfiice rocks, 
 and in the formation of surface features. They 
 
 y\- 
 
 r^ 
 
:^i 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 525 
 
 are strangers here, from the Laurentian hills of 
 Canada, and tell the tale to the people of to- 
 day of the wondrous changes and mighty 
 forces that had played their parts in the con- 
 struction of this continent. 
 
 Before the first waves of immigration, pre- 
 cursors of an overwhelming tide that was soon 
 to sweep away the last vestige of a crude and 
 imperfect civilization began to throw upon 
 these shores the scattered settlers who were to 
 form the picket line for the conquering race, 
 there lived besides these lakes and streams 
 bands of Indians belonging to the Delaware 
 tribe. The territory over which these Indians 
 roamed extended from the bend of the Cuya- 
 hoga southward to the Ohio River. On the 
 east was the country of the Iroquois family, or 
 "Six Nations," while to the north and west lay 
 the hunting-grounds of the Ottawas and W}'- 
 andots. Thus we find ourselves on the borders 
 of disputed grounds. The Delawares had been 
 driven from the homes of their forefathers on the 
 fertile banks of the Susquehanna and Delaware, 
 b}^ the powerful Iroquois confederation, which 
 extended from the Hudson to the valley of the 
 Cuyahoga, some time in the middle of the pre- 
 ceding centui'y. After wandering through 
 Pennsylvania and into Ohio, they finally set- 
 tled down in the beautiful valley of the Tus- 
 carawas and Muskingum. They belonged to 
 the great Algonquin family, which included all 
 the tribes east of the Mississippi and north of 
 the Tennessee, except the isolated Iroquois be- 
 fore mentioned. They all spoke dialects of 
 the same language, while the Iroquois had a 
 different language. The Wjandots and Otta- 
 was were Iroquois, but spoke a different dialect 
 from the Six Nations, and were at bitter enmity 
 with them, and frequentl}' combined with the 
 Delawares against their kinsmen. When in- 
 cursions were made to the northward, their 
 route was from New Portage (their principal 
 village in the north) to the southern terminus 
 of the Indian trail, by canoe, thence overland 
 (often carrying their canoes with them) along 
 this portage path, past the western . border of 
 Summit Lake, and over the hill past the pres- 
 ent site of the house of Col. Simon Perkins, 
 northward to the Cu3-ahoga at Old Portage, 
 where they again embarked. These Delawares, 
 or Lenni Lenapes, as they called themselves, 
 were a brave and intelligent people. It is true 
 they were at times cruel, and not very discrim- 
 
 inating in their judgments. Many of those 
 venturesome persons who preceded the actual 
 settler, styled Indian hunters, met with tragic 
 deatlis at their hands. 
 
 Hopocan, or Capt. Pipe, as sometimes called, 
 a Delaware chief, had his village near New 
 Portage, in Coventry Township, which was con- 
 sidered of much importance on account of its 
 being at the head of navigation. The whites 
 looked upon it in a somewhat similar manner, 
 for we find that, in 1787, an ordinance was 
 passed declaring the Tuscarawas navigable to 
 this point, and " forever to be kept open for the 
 use of the United States." By the treaty of 
 Fort Mcintosh, in 1785, Coventiy, with all the 
 land east of this stream, and the Cuyahoga, was 
 ceded to the United States by the Indians. 
 The history of the " State of Coventr}^ " begins 
 with the downfall at this date of the " King- 
 dom of New Portage," King Hopocan soon being 
 obliged to move his headquarters west of the 
 river, under the above-named treaty, which he 
 signed with all the dignity of a born monarch, 
 as " Hopocan, King of New Portage." This 
 treaty remained in force, with onl}^ occasional 
 infringements, until 1805, when the treaty of 
 Fort Industry was signed, by which the west- 
 ern boundary was moved further west, and the 
 Indians, who remained in this territory for 
 some 3'ears longer, remained b}' sufferance of 
 the Government. 
 
 The Delawares were generally friendly to the 
 settlers, except when on the war-path. Hopo- 
 can led them in the battle in which St. Clair 
 was defeated, and he afterward declared that 
 he had that day " tomahawked whites until his 
 arm ached." He was at Maumee Rapids when 
 " Mad Anthony " broke the spirit of the Indians 
 of the northwest, who had combined to drive 
 the invaders from their chosen hunting-ground. 
 In 1812, Hopocan and his tribe took sides with 
 the British, and when the fate of war was de- 
 cided against them, he signed the treaty of 
 Greenville. After lingering for a time in the 
 lands which th^' had chosen, but which was 
 now rapidly filling up with whites, these Dela- 
 wares bade farewell to tiie iiomes they had hoped 
 would be permanent, but which, alas, had proved 
 to them hut, a transient resting-place in the in- 
 evitable pilgrimage which fate had marked out 
 for them, toward the setting-sun ! Successive 
 removals followed, before the stead}" and re- 
 lentless march of a higher civilization, which 
 
jy< 
 
 52G 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 sweeps everything before it. The weak and 
 broken remnant of a once proud and powerful 
 nation was finally settled upon a small reserva- 
 tion in the Indian Territory. 
 
 In 180G, Daniel Haines eame into the un- 
 settled wilderness of Coventry. He was from 
 Pennsylvania, and settled on a piece of land 
 near the northeast corner of the township, on 
 what is now known as the Sumner farm. His 
 log cabin was built in the midst of the forest, 
 a little south of the site of the large stone 
 house, which now occupies the sightly position 
 on the hill back from the road. A small red 
 house now occupies almost the exact spot, and 
 thus keeps in rememlii'ance the location of the 
 tirst house built by tlie hands of the paleface 
 in Coventry. " Uncle Dan," as the younger 
 people of that day called him, built his cabin and 
 cleared a small place, where he lived happily 
 in his forest home for a number of years. Ariel 
 Bradley, at Mogadore, Joseph Darrow, at Dar- 
 row Street, and old Deacon Hudson, at Hudson, 
 were his nearest and only neighbors for a year 
 or two. When the Harts and some others came 
 to Middlebury, in 1811, the neighborhood began 
 to get too crowded for '' Uncle Dan," and he 
 sold out and went into the woods again. This 
 time he settled in the central part of the town- 
 ship, in a small ravine by the side of a spring, 
 about a mile and a half from the north line, 
 and about the same distance from the east line 
 of the township, on or near what is now the 
 Elias Hartong place. There he built another 
 cabin and lived in peace, and raised a goodly 
 family of children, who figure largel}' in the 
 history of the early settlement of this sec- 
 tion. The next settler of whom we have 
 definite record was Capt. Amos Spicer, who 
 located just north of the Haines place, in the 
 northeast corner of the township. He was a 
 cousin of Maj. Minor Spicer, and came at the 
 same time, in 1810 or 1811. They were near 
 neighbors, and were wont to go back and forth 
 almost daily to see that all was well with the 
 respective families. At this jtime there were 
 a number of settlers in the vicinity, some at 
 Middlebur}-, and a few in Portage Township, 
 in the neighborhood in which Akron is now 
 located, so that they were not so much alone in 
 the world as " Uncle Dan '' had been for some 
 years l)efore. Still they felt isolated from the 
 world outside of their little settlement, and cut 
 off from friends and acquaintances, and wh}' 
 
 should they not feel so, for were they not em- 
 barked in an uncertain venture, in a wild and 
 untrained country ? Many anecdotes are re- 
 lated of the skill with which the old Captain 
 could avoid the difficulties of living in a region 
 where men were obliged to depend upon their 
 own resources and ingenuity in the emergencies 
 that daily arose. One incident in which he 
 figured as an actor was related to us by an old 
 settler. It seems that an old bear made a raid 
 on the pig-pen of Maj. Spicer. and carried off 
 the squealing porker to the ravine in the edge 
 of the cemetery, where he proceeded to make a 
 meal. After satisfying himself, he left the re- 
 mains for the morrow, and betook himself to 
 his ramblings. But Avery Spicer, a boy of 
 twelve, caught bruin in the act, and straightway 
 ran to get Capt. Spicer to help to capture him. 
 They soon matured a plan, which was to set a 
 gun-trap, so that when he returned to get the 
 rest of his pork (as the}' had no doubt he would), 
 he would shoot himself They loaded their 
 muskets with big loads, putting in several balls, 
 and placed them on forks driven in the ground, 
 just high enough to be in range with the bear, 
 should he get upon their strings at any point. 
 Three of these guns were set with strings from 
 the triggers, running over little forks to the dead 
 hog. After having everything arranged, they 
 retired to the house to await developments. In 
 the night, they were startled by the report of 
 one of the old muskets, and. on going out, they 
 found the bloody trail of bruin leading down 
 the ravine. They followed cautiously for some 
 rods, when they came upon the dying thief 
 The old musket had sent its load clear through 
 him. Such adventures formed the spice and 
 variet}' of life to these old pioneers, and they 
 enjoyed an occasional diversion from the routine 
 of wood-chopping and clearing. 
 
 About this time, Jesse Allen bought out old 
 Daniel Haines, and settled by the side of Capt. 
 Spicer. This was also in 1811, and shortly 
 after, Nathaniel Allen, his half-brother, came 
 in south of them, and bought the farm that is 
 now the Philemon Allen farm. Jesse Allen 
 was the first Justice of the Peace in the town- 
 ship, in which capacity he served for many 
 years. In 1815, Israel Allen also came into 
 the same neighborhood, and was also a Justice 
 of the Peace for many years. Nathaniel and 
 his good wife, " Aunt Massey," as the boys 
 called her, planted the first orchard in the 
 
 "Tfc 
 

 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP, 
 
 527 
 
 township, and some of the trees or stumps are 
 still standing. They were not such fine grafted 
 fruit as we have at the present time, but the}' 
 were the best they could get, simply " seed- 
 lings," raised in the garden from seeds gath- 
 ered wherever they could get the fruit. Here, 
 in after years, they had a cider-mill, the first 
 one in the Section, where, whoever had apples, 
 came to get cider made, and those who had 
 none came and bought of the Aliens, who had 
 a large orchard. People came here from ten or 
 twelve miles in all directions to get cider. 
 Here, surrounded by their children, their broth- 
 ers and families, they lived and died, after 
 witnessing many wonderful changes that the 
 next half a century produced on all sides of 
 them. Their sons and daughters grew up, 
 married, and their children are among the peo- 
 ple who to-day are performing the work allot- 
 ted to this generation. Another settler in this 
 part of the township was Maj. Hart, who bought 
 what is at present known as the Stillwell 
 place. Stephen Brewster settled just south of 
 the Nathaniel Allen place, at an early day, on 
 what is now the land of the Brewster broth- 
 ers. The old coal-bank of Alexander Brewster 
 was one of the first in the township, and has 
 been in operation for many years. It was 
 originallj' opened by a Mr. Whittlesey, who 
 leased the place, but afterward the lease was 
 bought off, and since that time it has been op- 
 erated by Alexander Brewster or his sons. 
 Stephen Brewster's sister married old John 
 Bellows, and they settled near there at about 
 the same time, and the two families raised their 
 childi'en here, where the}' lived for many years 
 and died, to be succeeded by their descendants, 
 who still own the most of the lands their fath- 
 ers or grandfathers cleared. Ithamore Bel- 
 lows, who is looked upon as an old settler, 
 though a son of the John Bellows before men- 
 tioned, when he reached manhood took up land 
 in the woods, back to the westward of the Allen 
 neighborhood. He married a daughter of 
 Daniel Haines, and a story is told of him that 
 illustrates the methods of pioneer courtship. 
 During the winter of 1815, two young fellows 
 came over from Green Township to split rails 
 for some settlers -in the neighborhood. One 
 evening they followed young Ithamore through 
 the woods to the log cabin of " Uncle Dan," 
 where, unconscious of pursuit, he entered the 
 house, and the spies secreted themselves so 
 
 that they could see the proceedings on the in- 
 side as they transpired. Late in the evening, 
 " Cupid " was making rapid strides toward 
 match-making, and the curtain ought to have 
 been down, when a laugh from the outside in- 
 terrupted proceedings. Young Bellows seized 
 his hat and gave chase. We are led to sus- 
 pect that one or both of these fellows engaged 
 in this shabby trick was smitten by the same 
 fair face. But Ithamore came out winner. 
 William Triplet lived west of the Brewster 
 place, and opened probably the first coal-bank 
 in the township. It was a thin vein, however, 
 and was abandoned after the Brewster bank 
 was opened. His father settled in Green Town- 
 ship, and William came over into Coventry and 
 settled, where he lived and died. Another of 
 the boys lived farther south, but we could not 
 learn the name ; but, after his father died, the 
 mother came up and lived on this son's farm. 
 She had a little house whei'e she lived alone, 
 not far from the log schoolhouse that used to 
 stand near the Gregg farm. Here the sciiool 
 children went for water, but they were always 
 quiet and orderly, for they were afraid of "Old 
 Granny Triplett." 
 
 Basil Viers, the ancestor of the numerous 
 families of that name who still live in various 
 parts of the township, located near William 
 Triplett's place, west of Stephen Brewster. He 
 was among the very first settlers, and is remem- 
 bered only by the old, gray-haired patriarchs of 
 to-day. Just this side of the little log cabin in 
 which Dan Haines lived, Wheeler Heniman 
 located, on the place now known as the " Beck 
 Farm," on what might be called South Main 
 Street Extension. Little is known definitely 
 about him as to where he came from, but he is 
 spoken of as a good neighbor, and was well 
 thought of Adam Falor settled in the northern 
 center, just east of South Main street, in the 
 hollow not far from the rolling-mill. He built 
 and run a distillery, the first and, as far as we 
 are able to find, only one in the township. It 
 was located where the old stone house stood, 
 through which the Brewster Coal Railroad cut 
 its way just after passing under the track of 
 the N." Y., P. & 0. R. R. Here the sturdy old 
 settlers came from all the country around to 
 get the necessary material for raising barns and 
 houses, as well as for running the husking bee, 
 and other social gatherings. Here Adam and 
 his wife Eve lived in peace, never dreaming of 
 
 ) "S* 
 
Xt 
 
 k 
 
 52S 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 "temperance societies," "crusaders," or Mur- 
 pliy pledges. They raised a family, many rep- 
 resentati\'es of whom are still living in that 
 neighborliood. Abram Falor, a son of Adam 
 and Eve above-mentioned, built a saw-mill on 
 what is now known as Falor's Run, whei'e he 
 did a good business for many years. Chester 
 Judd was another early settler who came into 
 this same section some time before the year 
 1820, though that is the time at which we find 
 him located just beyond the Adam Falor place. 
 Peter and Moses Osburn, brothers, also lived 
 adjoining, and near neighbors to Judd. Little 
 could be learned in regard to them, as we find 
 none of their descendants in the township. 
 Thomas Grranger, an old Revolutionary- pen- 
 sioner who lived like a king on the credit 
 he got on account of his $8 per month 
 from the Government, built his log cabin just 
 beyond the railroad, on the present Moses 
 Falor farm. Granger, with some half dozen 
 other pensioners from neighboring townships, 
 often congregated at the little store at Middle- 
 bury, where they traded out their pension 
 money, and had a gay time recounting the 
 wonderful adventures in which they had par- 
 ticipated to the gaping crowd of younger peo- 
 ple, who are always eager to listen to anything 
 that sounds of war. It is said that their stories 
 rivaled those of Baron Munchausen in the mar- 
 velous, and the}- themselves, like the old Baron, 
 even came to believe in the truth of their won- 
 derful yarns. In the northwestern part of the 
 township several families had located at an 
 early day, before 1820 at least, though the 
 exact date could not be ascertained. Among 
 them was Old Basil Cahow, a ftimily of Roots, 
 a large family of Hethmans, Seibert Dodge and 
 Samuel Nash. One of the sons of old man 
 Hethman was for a good many years Justice of 
 the Peace. He was an old bachelor, and is 
 remembered by many as an eccentric but intel- 
 ligent and well-read man. Samuel Nash kept 
 a kind of tavern just beyond the Dodge farm. 
 This was the first tavern in the towmship, and 
 it consisted of nothing more than the log cabin 
 of the settler and a stable for the horses, but 
 they made the tired traveler welcome, and fed 
 man and beast with the best the land aflTorded. 
 In 1819, William W. Laird built himself a 
 cabin on the banks of the Tuscarawas at New 
 Portage, and began the construction of flat- 
 boats to run on the river. Henry Chittenden, 
 
 of Springfield, Abram Norton, of Middlebury. 
 and Philander Adams, of Tallniadge, at tlie 
 same time became contractors and speculators 
 in the produce of the country, which they 
 bought up of the farmers all over the country 
 and hauled to New Portage, and shipped on 
 Laird's boats to New Orleans. This seems 
 almost incredible to those who know the present 
 Insignificant size of the river at this point. 
 But such was the case, as we learn from the 
 old people, who still remember this river as a 
 turbulent stream, which, at certain seasons, it 
 was impossible to ford, and which at all times 
 was a goodly stream. Now, however, it has 
 sadly fallen, and the little school-boys wade 
 across its pebbly bed or catch the minnows 
 which sport in its shallow waters. Shortly 
 after the starting of this new industry and the 
 opening of New Portage as a port, one Ambrose 
 Palmer and a Dr. Clark settled in what they 
 considered the future metropolis, and started a 
 glass factory, the site of which is in that part 
 of New Portage located in Norton Township. 
 It was in operation for several years, and 
 turned out considerable quantities of glassware. 
 Its history, however, is more particularly given 
 in the chapter on Norton Township. The}- 
 finally abandoned the glass business, and 
 Palmer left for the West, where he died, in the 
 Mormon settlement in Utah. Talmon Beards- 
 ley, who was for a good many years a resident 
 of the township, and some twelve years its 
 Clerk, and about the same period Justice of the 
 Peace, has in his possession a quart bottle 
 which was turned out from this establishment 
 in 1822. It is large at the base, and has a long, 
 tapering neck, with a peculiar flare at the top. 
 The glass is a good article, but has a yellowish 
 green cast. 
 
 In 1821, Van R. Humphreys, a young attor- 
 ney, located in New Portage, thinking, with 
 many others, that it was destined to be the 
 principal city in Northern Ohio. But he soon 
 became satisfied of his mistake and abandoned 
 the new city, finally settling in Hudson. He 
 was at one time Judge of the Court of Com- 
 mon Pleas for this county. One of the first 
 settlers at New Portage was Michael Dixon, 
 who came there in 1814 or 1815. He lived 
 there during the rise and fall of the varying 
 waves of prosperity that came upon this, the 
 only town and capital of the " State of Cov- 
 entry," as this was wont to be called. He 
 
w^ 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 529 
 
 shared not only its prosperity but also its ad- 
 versit}^ for he remained long after its star had 
 set and its prospects sunk into insignificance. 
 At a later period, Mr. Viers sought to revive 
 its waning prospects by laying out an addition, 
 which was to grow and swallow up the old 
 town and retrieve its sinking fortunes. One 
 lot was sold to Jacob Brown, after whom it 
 was proposed to name the place Brownville. 
 But Fate did not smile upon the project, for 
 but one house was built in the place, which was 
 afterward for many years used as a match fac- 
 tor}'. Such is the hard fate of many a beauti- 
 ful prospective city. One other character must 
 be mentioned before we leave the town. Joe 
 Keeler was not only a celebrated Mormon 
 preacher, but also a notorious passer of coun- 
 terfeit money. He built a brick house near the 
 canal bridge, where he lived in the purity of 
 his faith for years, or until " religious perse- 
 cution " thi'eatened to send him to Columbus. 
 Jacob Kepler was one or Coventry's pioneers ; 
 he settled early in the century in the south- 
 western part of the township, and is still living, 
 surrounded by the numerous family of children 
 and grandchildren, who own some of the finest 
 and most profitable farms in the entire town- 
 ship. Many are the stories that this old settler 
 can tell of the hardships and adventures of 
 those early days. Here also came the Harters, 
 another family of pioneers, and the Wagoner 
 family settled in the same corner, west of the 
 Long Lake. In the southeast corner, the earlier 
 settlers were David Lee, Fred Hevener, Henry 
 Billman, John Buchtel, Daniel Pontius, Dan 
 Rex, and possibly' a few others. 
 
 One of the events of the season in those 
 days was the periodical coming of the itinerant 
 shoemaker, one of whom — Dan Burns — fre- 
 quented this corner of the township. He car- 
 ried his tools and stock from place to place, and 
 while there he generalh^ shod the entire family, 
 living as one of the family meanwhile ; then 
 he would take the next on the list, and serve 
 them, and so on, until he had finished his list. 
 Those coming late to engage him were often 
 obliged to go barefoot until after mid-winter on 
 account of their negligence. 
 
 John Haines, a son of old Daniel Haines, was 
 the first or pioneer preacher in the township. 
 He was of the Baptist faith, though holding 
 the " fore-ordination doctrine " of the Presby 
 terians. This, however, he afterward renounced, 
 
 saying that he had a revelation while hoeing 
 corn, in which he was convinced of the error of 
 that doctrhie, and the old man is said to have 
 cried when he thought of the many people to 
 whom he had preached it, and to whom he 
 could not preach the new revelation. He often 
 went oflT to the neighboring townships to pro- 
 claim the "glad tidings" to the backwoodsmen 
 and their families. On Sunday mornings he 
 could be seen making his way to some log 
 cabin or schoolhouse near home, where he 
 would preach to his friends and acquaintances. 
 Then he would start through the woods, follow- 
 ing some path, crossing streams on fallen logs, 
 until he reached a place where some old settler 
 had promised to meet him with a horse or 
 wagon, when they would journe}- on together. 
 The waters of Summit Lake seemed to suit 
 his idea of a baptising medium, and many was 
 the young convert to the doctrines which he 
 taught, who came from far and near to go 
 through the ceremony of baptism. Here Cath- 
 arine Buchtel and Nancy Richards came from 
 Green Township in 1824, and were led into the 
 lake and immersed, both of whom are still liv- 
 ing " to testif}^ to the faith that was in them." 
 Another pioneer preacher of the same faith was 
 Elder Derthick, or, as the impious and irrever- 
 ent young sinners of those days used to call 
 bim, "Old Deathhook." He settled on the 
 Abel Allen place, where he liv^ed and expounded 
 the truth to the residents of the northeast. 
 Many of the old residents remember to have 
 gone to the schoolhouses often to hear him 
 preach. One of his favorite places was the 
 Falor Schoolhouse. Here one of the oldest 
 cemeteries is located, and all the old settlers of 
 the neighborhood were laid here, " to sleep the 
 sleep that knows no waking," until Gabriel 
 shall blow the trump that is to quicken these 
 old bodies with the "life immortal." To these 
 two men the earlier settlers owed a debt of 
 gratitude, at least, for their unselfish devotion 
 to the cau§e of religion during all these years 
 of trials and hardships. In after years, when 
 the soil had been broken, others came in and 
 carried the bannei'S. 
 
 Several churches have been built in different 
 parts of the township. Perhaps the oldest is 
 Wesle}' Chapel, on the banks of the Tuscarawas 
 at Pleasant Valle}', a place which at one time 
 bore the fateful name of " Sodom." Another 
 at Thomastown belongs to the Welsh, who pre- 
 
 >f^ 
 
530 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 dominated in that place. There is also a church 
 and cemetery just west of the Center, toward 
 New Portage, and also one west of the reser- 
 voir, on the place owned by Benjamin Bowers. 
 In the cemeter}- back of each one may read 
 much of the history of the early settlers. The 
 moss-covered slab tells the tale of the sweep of 
 old Time's scythe more truly than could be writ- 
 ten by our feeble pen, and the little mounds, 
 with the short records and dates, tell to the 
 wanderer through these silent resting-places of 
 the recklessness with which Death marked as 
 his own the old and the young indiscriminately. 
 Another character who played a conspicuous 
 part in the very early settlement was Liber- 
 tine Dixon, the Indian hunter and fighter. Be- 
 tween this man and the red men, a deadly ha- 
 tred existed, which often led to the shedding 
 of blood. Dixon lived for many years in Mid- 
 dlebury or near there, but his time was spent 
 largely in the woods with his invariable com- 
 panion, a long, ungainly looking rifle, which 
 he always spoke of with respect, calling it by 
 the peculiar name of " Starling." Many are 
 the stories of wild, reckless disregard of human 
 life, which are told of Libertine Dixon, or 
 rather of his gun " Starling." He seemed to 
 feel as though an}' Indian who had an oppor- 
 tunity would shoot him as quick as he would 
 a wolf, and acting upon that supposition, he 
 always tried to get the first chance. One inci- 
 dent illustrating both this feeling, and his re- 
 gard for his gun, was told by an old gray- 
 haired man who knew him well and knew of 
 the particular time mentioned. One day in 
 1815, the narrator of this story was in Middle- 
 bury Mills, to see after some sawing, grinding 
 or something, at any rate, which called him to 
 the mill, when some Indians were seen to come 
 into the town and stop at the grocery, where 
 Dixon was. As they entered at the front door, 
 he came out the back way and hastily went to 
 his cabin, saying that the Indians were after 
 him, and if they wanted to see him they should 
 come for him in the woods. He took his gun, 
 ammunition and some dried beef and was gone, 
 and did not return for some time; when he did, 
 he told this story to our informant : " I went 
 into the woods and kept low until the}- left, 
 when I followed them, but kept myself so con- 
 cealed that they did not suspect me. They 
 were, however, on the lookout for some one, and 
 scouz-ed the woods, until finally the}"* seemed to 
 
 give it up, and started toward Old Portage. 
 One, however, watched the ravine closely where 
 the Big Cuj'ahoga flows through the chasm near 
 the Big Falls, and once, as he was hanging by one 
 arm over the precipice holding to a hemlock 
 tree on the edge of the rock, and looking closely 
 up and down the valley, I stepped out from 
 behind a big chestnut and 'Starling' spoke to 
 him. But ' Old Starling ' spoke so suddenly 
 that it scared the fellow, and he jumped oft' the 
 bank on to the rocks below some forty feet and 
 killed himself After awhile, I went up to 
 him and as he didn't seem to want his gun and 
 other things an}' longer, I took them." At 
 another time, when he was hunting down by 
 Long Lake in Coventr}', he stepped to the edge 
 of the lake, when he discovered an Indian fish- 
 ing from a birch canoe. He jumped behind a 
 ti'ee and Old Starling thought he would speak 
 to the fellow. The Indian was so frightened 
 that he uttered a terrific yell and jumped into 
 the lake. The smoke had hardl}' cleared away 
 when another Indian, a companion probably, 
 who was making afire on the bank above, came 
 rushing down to see what his companion had 
 shot. While he was looking after his friend, 
 Dixon slipped away and disappeared. He also 
 shot one on a little lake west of East Liberty, 
 whose yell can be heard frequently on moon- 
 light nights even to this da}', and many times 
 would the young people of that neighboriiood 
 go miles around rather than pass that little 
 lake, from fear of hearing the unearthly yell of 
 the murdered Indian or seeing his shadowy 
 form gliding over the smooth surface of the 
 lake in his birchen canoe, that made " not a 
 ripple as he passed." So goes the story, at 
 least, and no believer in ghosts and hobgoblins 
 has any reason to cast discredit on so well 
 authenticated a story as the above. Many of 
 the Dixons who live in Coventry are descended 
 from this old Indian hunter. 
 
 Between 1815 and 1820, Ben Haines, a son 
 of Dan Haines and a brother of the pioneer 
 preacher, built a rude grist-mill on the Tusca- 
 rawas, near the place where the Steese Coal 
 Railroad crosses the river, and on the David 
 Jones farm. The dam crossed the valley where 
 the road now runs. The old race can still be 
 seen on the west side of the road just south of 
 the bridge, and some of the old timbers still 
 remain to mark the place where the first mill 
 of the township was built. Possibly Ben 
 
 ^^ 
 
fc* 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 531 
 
 Haines might have built up a good business 
 had he attended strictly to it, but it soon run 
 down, and at last, for a number of j'ears, he 
 occupied himself in studying on " perpetual 
 motion," that bane of many inventive geniuses. 
 A story is told of Ben's "machine" which we 
 do not vouch for, but give as we heard it : At 
 one time the builder thought he had succeeded 
 (and perhaps he had, who liuows ?) at any rate 
 be agreed to let some parties see it, if they 
 would swear eternal secrecy, which thej^ agi'eed 
 to do when he conducted them into the old 
 tumble-down mill and started liis machine. It 
 was constructed in some odd way b}^ an ar- 
 rangement of iron balls, chains, wheels, etc. It 
 started otf in good style, but began soon to go 
 with accelerated speed, until the men who had 
 been called in ran out as if to save their lives, 
 for the " machine " became wild, and made a 
 terrible din. Old Ben himself became fright- 
 ened, and in order to stop it he threw a green 
 handspike into the midst of the flying wheels, 
 which broke it in such a way as to render it 
 harmless at least, and it is said that old Ben 
 never tried it again. 
 
 The mill now known as the Steese or Brews- 
 mill, situated on the Tuscarawas River, on 
 the Springfield line, was not built until 1834-35, 
 b3' John Wyley. Before its construction, the 
 people in this part of Coventry and neighboring- 
 townships were obliged to go to Middlebur}' 
 mills, or to the Emerley mill in Franklin 
 Township, at the foot of Turkey Foot Lake. 
 This latter mill site was destroyed when the 
 reservoir was constructed, but in 1842, or there- 
 about, the State mill was built, utilizing the 
 overflow from the reservoir and furnishing bet- 
 ter accommodations to the farmers of this sec- 
 tion. The first saw-mill was the one built by 
 Abram Falor, on '' Falor Run," mentioned 
 before. Another earl}^ mill was one built by 
 Daniel Rex, a little west of the feeder dam, which 
 supplies the reservoir on the Tuscarawas River, 
 near Steese's coal bank. Another was in pro- 
 cess of construction at quite an earl}' day a 
 little above this, the old race of which can still 
 be seen near the road that runs east and west 
 past " Wesley Chapel." This was built b}- John 
 Buchtel, Sr., taking the water from the river just 
 back of "Wesley Chapel" Cemetery. It run west 
 some half a mile, and discharged again into the 
 river near the place where the railroad of Stam- 
 baugh, Tod & Co. crosses the river. But this 
 
 was never finished, owing to delays that held it 
 in an unfinished condition until the feeder came 
 in there and their dam was built just below, 
 which backed the water on them and spoiled the 
 site. 
 
 The first frame house is sand to have been 
 built by one of the Aliens, on the road to Mid- 
 dlebury, and it was the wonder and admiration 
 of the young people of several townships, some 
 of whom made trips of a dozen miles to see it. 
 
 Of the early schools very little can be said, 
 except that the houses were rude log struct- 
 ures, with a great fire-place in one end built on 
 the outside, after the fashion of the day. The 
 benches were made of logs split in halves and 
 legs put in on the round side, while the split 
 side was smoothed up with an ax. Not a plane 
 ever touched them, and they were not the most 
 comfortable seats in the world. It was not 
 necessary to resort to bent pins, the school- 
 boy's device, in order to produce a sensation, 
 for all that was required was to pinch some one 
 and get him to slide along the bench. Some 
 of the bad boys are said to have lined the 
 seats of their pantaloons with large pieces of 
 leather for their protection, both from the 
 roughness of the benches and the roughness of 
 the "teacher's ferule. There were no fine desks 
 with all the furniture of a modern schoolhouse, 
 but simply these benches, along which the 
 children ranged themselves, and which had to 
 serve the double purpose of seat and desk, each 
 pupil piling his books and slate on the seat be- 
 side him. These seats of learning were in the 
 midst of the forest, near some road (or path, 
 along which the settlers expected to make a 
 road some time). The pupils gathered from 
 all directions, coming through the woods by 
 paths known only to themselves, crossing the 
 streams on logs or fallen trees. On one occa- 
 sion, in time of high water, a family of some 
 half a dozen children, were crossing on a fallen 
 tree when the youngest, a little girl, becoming 
 dizzy, fell into the rushing water and was be- 
 ing whirled rapidly down stream, when in 
 plunged her older brother, who swam lustily 
 after her, finally capturing her some rods be- 
 low, bringing her safely to shore ; after which 
 they hastened on to school, instead of going 
 home again, and dried their clothes by the fire 
 in the schoolhouse. This shows that even the 
 children thought little of such hardships and 
 paid little heed to mishaps that would produce 
 
 
J^^ 
 
 532 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 consternation in a whole neighborhood to-day. 
 One of these pioneer school houses was situated 
 not far from the center of the township, and 
 was known as the " Tamarack Schoolhouse." 
 In this old log building the town meetings and 
 elections were frequently held. During those 
 early times, they were not so precise as they 
 are now, as to the exact place of holding elec- 
 tions, which were held here and there to suit 
 the convenience of the people. There was an 
 early schoolhouse in the woods on what is now 
 the Sol. Renninger place, on the road just 
 west of the Grregg place. These were built, 
 probably, between 1820 and 1825. Then the 
 Falor and the Allen Schoolhouses were also 
 quite early, the dates of which I am unable to 
 learn. 
 
 This township was first organized in 1808, as 
 a part of Springfield, which was then a part of 
 Trumbull County. This county was afterward 
 divided and Portage County formed, of which 
 our township continued to form a part until 
 1840, when Summit County was erected, and 
 Coventr}', with nine other townships, was taken 
 from Portage County. Two of the early officers 
 of this township are still living, viz., Avery 
 Spicer and Talmon Beardsley ; possibl}^ many 
 others, whose modesty forbade them to men- 
 tion it, but who will be remembered by manj^ 
 
 who read this sketch, as having rendered gra- 
 tuitous service to their fellows in some of the 
 various capacities. Some years ago, a fine 
 town hall was built near the center, on the hill 
 above the canal, at the famous " Waterloo Gro- 
 cery." Here now the town meetings and elec- 
 tions are held. 
 
 When we seek to understand the whole sig- 
 nificance of a recital of the facts and incidents 
 relating to these previous generations, we must 
 bear in mind that we owe to these same people 
 the many advantages we enjoy. They came 
 and conquered the wilderness, and made it to 
 blossom as the rose. It is true that ignoi'ance 
 and superstition prevailed, and a crude, imper- 
 fect civilization took the place of the savage 
 state ; but they were in unison with their sui*- 
 roundings, and consistent in all respects. They 
 were neither ahead of, nor yet behind the age in 
 which they lived. It would not become us to 
 belittle their labors ; but rather should we extol 
 them, for they underwent the hardships, while 
 we I'eap the harvest and enjoy the benefits ; 
 they strove to make tolerable the path in life 
 along which they were to travel, while we strive 
 to enjoy the many advantages which are ours, 
 not as the result of our own exertions, but be- 
 cause our lot was cast in the middle of the nine- 
 teenth century instead of a century before. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI.* 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP— ORIGINAL PROPRIETORS— TOPOGRArHY AND GKOLOGY— OHGANIZATION AND 
 
 FIRST SF/PTLEMRNT— COUNTERFEITING AND UNDERGROUND RAILROAD— G1U)WTH 
 
 OF INDUSTRIES- VILLAGES— SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES. 
 
 IT is not generally known, even by those 
 living in the northeast corner of the State, 
 how the land of the Western Reserve became 
 parceled out among its various owners, or how 
 it came to pass that citizens in Connecticut 
 sometimes found themselves in possession of 
 tracts separated the entire length of the Re- 
 serve. Accompanying this volume will be 
 found a detailed description of the manner in 
 which this was accomplished. It may be prop- 
 erly stated here that the lands of the Reserve 
 were divided into 400 shares, valued at $3,000 
 each, and that residents of Connecticut could 
 purchase, if their means were limited, a frac- 
 
 *Con(ributed by W. A. Goodspeed. 
 
 tion of a share, or, on the other hand, could 
 purchase as many shares as they desired and 
 could bu3\ It was often the case that several 
 citizens formed themselves into a com pan}-, 
 each contributing as much as he could, or as 
 much as he desired, and all together suflScient 
 to purchase one township, or perhaps one 
 share. The membei's of the company would 
 decide among themselves as to their order of 
 choice out of the tract purchased. Some 
 townships were " equalizing townships." That 
 is. inasmuch as they were inferior to the aver- 
 age township, they were either divided into 
 tracts which were distributed to other inferior 
 townships to make the latter equal to the aver- 
 
 ~r^ 
 
■k^ 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 533 
 
 age, or portions in other parts of the Reserve 
 were attached to them to make them equal in 
 value to the average. 
 
 Boston was an "equalizing township." It 
 was divided into three tracts (and perhaps oth- 
 ers) which were attached to other townships. 
 It was decided by a committee appointed for 
 the purpose, that, from the fact that Boston 
 was crossed by the Cu^-ahoga River, and by 
 ranges of steep bluffs which could never be 
 cultivated, it was unequal to the average, and 
 it was accordingly distributed to others. Tract 
 1, lying in the northwest corner, was attached 
 to Eaton Township, Lorain County, and was 
 owned by Judge Jared Kirtland, Mr. Blinn 
 and others. Tract 2, in the southwest corner, 
 was attached to Columbia Township, Lorain 
 County, and was owned by a company of five 
 men, as follows : Harmon, Levi and x\zor 
 Bronson, Calvin Hoadley and Jared Pritchard. 
 It is not remembered how the land east of the 
 river was divided and owned, except that He- 
 man Ely possessed the greater portion. When 
 Tract i was surveyed by its owner, Judge 
 Kirtland, it was found to have a surplus of 200 
 acres ; whereupon he instructed his survej'or, 
 Alfred Wolcott, to survey Tract 2, and this 
 was found to have an excess of 400 acres. 
 The Judge immediately shouldered the respon- 
 sibility of equalizing the two tracts, by sever- 
 ing 129 aci'es from Tract 2 and attaching them 
 to Tract 1. This equalizing tract was soon 
 afterward sold to Robert and Thomas Brannan, 
 a barrel of whisky being given in part pa}'- 
 raent. But, when Harmon Bronson came to 
 the township and found a portion of his land 
 occupied and claimed bj^ the Brannans, he 
 commenced an action of ejectment, and, after 
 considerable annoyance, succeeded in having 
 Kirtland's equalizing act set aside and the 
 Brannans ousted. The Kirtland tract was sur- 
 veyed into nine lots ; the Bronson tract into 
 ten ; and all that portion of the township east 
 of the river into forty-five. 
 
 When the first settlers came to the township, 
 the prospect was anything but encouraging. 
 The Cuyahoga River, then a marshy stream 
 that overflowed its banks altogetlier too often 
 for the happiness or prosperity of the settler, 
 passed northward across the township a short 
 distance west of the center. Along the adja- 
 cent valley were frequent bogs and marshes of 
 decaying vegetable matter, that, under the heat 
 
 of the summer sun, threw off noxious vapors 
 to poison and contaminate the air. A large 
 portion of the township was cut by narrow, 
 deep gorges and ravines, that were overhung 
 by precipitous ridges and hills, covered with a 
 heavy forest, and having a heavy, sterile soil 
 that gave no word of encouragement or prom- 
 ise to the backwoodsman. The woods were 
 filled with wild animals, and, what was equall}- 
 a cause for apprehension of danger, bands of 
 Indians were near that might begin the work 
 of slaughter at Siuy moment. Markets and 
 mills were miles distant, and the journe}' by 
 team through the woods was rendered so slow 
 and harassing b}' reason of mud and fallen 
 timber, that the distance was practically doub 
 led. It became evident — painfully so — that 
 the settler must rel}' largely upon his rifle 
 to supply his family with, very often, only the 
 bare necessities of life. Thus was the settler 
 surrounded with discouragements, disappoint- 
 ments, and apparently unending future priva- 
 tions. But he fortunately possessed unbend- 
 ing resolution, dauntless courage, and incredi- 
 ble hardihood, and the pleasant homes we have 
 to-day were founded by him. 
 
 It is well to notice the topographical and 
 phj'sical features of Boston before proceeding 
 further with its settlement and improvement. 
 It is five miles square, with the exception of about 
 three hundred acres,which a number of 3'ears ago, 
 were taken from the center of the northern side 
 and attached to Northfield for school purposes. 
 The Cuyahoga enters the township from the 
 south, about a mile east of the southwest cor- 
 ner, passing in a zigzag course to within about 
 half a mile of the center, thence flowing west 
 of north and leaving the township one mile 
 and a quarter east of the northwest corner. 
 The river valley- varies in width from a few 
 rods to a mile, and though now almost wholly 
 cleared and under cultivation, was once heavily 
 timbered and extremeh' wet. The vallej' is 
 skirted with precipitous bluffs, which can never 
 be used except as grazing land, and which ex- 
 tend back from the valley more than half a 
 mile. The Waverly group of rocks is exposed 
 thi'oughout the township, moi'e especially along 
 the river, where inexhaustible beds of splendid 
 stone abound. Along the river in the northern 
 part the Erie shale is exposed, while in the 
 eastern part where the Waverly group first 
 comes to the surface, ledges of sandstone con- 
 
 •^ (S~ 
 
 Tv 
 
534 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 glomerate rise perpendicularly above the sur- 
 rounding country, in some cases sixty or sev- 
 enty feet. These ledges stand isolated and 
 alone, far separated from their kindred strata, 
 monuments to the eroding effects of time. 
 Numerous small streams enter the river from 
 the east, among which are Salt Creek, Richey's 
 Run, Haskell's Run, Peninsula Run and Stan- 
 ford's Run. The principal ones from the west 
 are Oil Run, Slippery Run and Furnace Run.' 
 A few small tamarack swamps were to be seen 
 in early days in different parts of the township, 
 but these have been drained, and a few of 
 them are now under cultivation. When the 
 settlers first came to the count}', a tract of 
 land comprising thirty or forty acres, lying in 
 the valley on the east side of the river a short 
 distance below the center, was cleared of trees, 
 and was under cultivation. It was an Indian 
 corn-field, and it is stated that in about 1804, 
 settlers living in Hudson went to this field and 
 purchased corn of the natives. How long the 
 field had been under cultivation is not known. 
 A few stone implements, evidently used in till- 
 ing the field, are occasionally turned up by the 
 plow. Long before the whites came into the 
 Northwest Territory', Boston was the site of 
 large Indian villages, the evidences still remain- 
 ing of their humble habitations. Going back 
 still farther — back to an unknown age of the 
 world — that peculiar, mysterious people known 
 as Mound-Builders, whose gigantic earth and 
 stone works excite so much curiosity and spec- 
 ulation, dwelt in the valley of the Cuyahoga, 
 as is shown by the mounds, sacred, militar}- 
 and festival, which are scattered along the 
 bluffs on either side of the river. What these 
 two races had to do with Boston will be found, 
 so far as known, in a separate chapter of this 
 work. One thing is certain, when the whites 
 first came to the county, the Indians under 
 Ponta were stilled encamped about half a mile 
 north of the village of Boston, on the west 
 side of the river. Half a mile south of this 
 camp, on the same side of the river, the chief 
 of the Ottawas — Stigwanish — was also en- 
 camped with a few of his followers. A de- 
 tailed description of these camps, and many 
 interesting incidents connected therewith, will 
 be found in the chapter above referred to. We 
 now come to the first settlement made by 
 whites in Boston Township. 
 
 On or about the 1st of March, 1806, Alfred 
 
 Wolcott, John Teale and Samuel Ewart ap- 
 peared in Boston, and immediately erected a 
 rudely constructed log shanty, about eight feet 
 square, and of barely sufficient height on the 
 interior to insure safety to the heads of the in- 
 mates. This building was erected on the pres- 
 ent site of the Boston Village cemetery , and was 
 intended to be occupied only until the men had 
 time to build better dwellings on the farms. 
 Teale was a single man, but the other two had 
 wives, and, perhaps, children, who were left at 
 Hudson until suitable cabins for their occu- 
 pancy had been erected b}' the husbands. 
 These three men " bached " and did their own 
 cooking, except bread, which was brougiit by 
 one of their number about once a week from 
 Hudson, the nearest settlement. No difficulty 
 was experienced in procuring venison, wild tur- 
 key, squirrel, and occasionally a delicious 
 piece of bear steak. Within about two months, 
 Wolcott, with the assistance of Ewart, who was 
 in some way connected with him in business, 
 had built a large round-log cabin, about one 
 one hundred rods northeast of Boston Village. 
 It seems that Wolcott had purchased tlie farm 
 soon afterward settled on by Stanford, but his 
 wife, whom he had just married, objecited to 
 locating on the farm, stating that she was ap- 
 prehensive of sickness from the proximity of a 
 disagreeable swamp lying just south of where 
 the cabin must be built. This objection in- 
 duced the fond husband to reverse the injunc- 
 tion of the bridal vows, and to exchange his 
 farm for one owned by James Stanford, the 
 latter being willing, as, notwithstanding the 
 presence of the swamp, a fine spring of pure 
 water was discovered on the premises. Wol- 
 cott immediately erected a cabin on his new 
 farm, and was soon as comfortably situated as 
 could be expected. On the 23d of March, 
 180G, James Stanford, William and Adam 
 Vance, and Abner Robinson, a nephew of the 
 Yances, came to the township. The Vances 
 were Irishmen and old bachelors, and brought 
 with them tlieir niece, a young lady named 
 Eleanor Ashcroft, who came out to keep house 
 for them. One cabin was erected, in which all 
 these relatives resided. James Stanford owned 
 land on Lot 41. This was sold to a man 
 named David Cohoon, who, so far as can be 
 leai'ned, did not reside in Boston, although he 
 owned land there. These were the first set- 
 tlers in the township. After this they con- 
 
^l^ 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 535 
 
 tinued to come in about as follows, although 
 the dates are not absolutely correct : Henry 
 Post, Isaac and Jacob Ozmun, Moses Canning- 
 ham, William Beer, Aaron sillier, Andrew 
 Johnson, Robert Guy, Timothy Bishop, Jona- 
 than Iddings, Lancelet Mays, James Jordan, 
 John Cunningham, Andrew and Robert Don- 
 aldson, John Duncan, Capt. Abraham Miller, 
 Joseph Breen, John Galloway', Moses Decker, 
 Jacob Morter, Samuel and Abraham Miller and 
 John G. Mallet came prior to 1810 ; Samuel 
 Brown, William Brown, Jonathan Williams, 
 Erastus West, William Cranej' and others by 
 1812 ; Elizur Loveland, John Britt, William 
 Brannan, Robert Wallace, John Robinson, 
 James Dean, John Menough, Abial Hovey, 
 Watrous Mather, Ephraim Moody, Nathan 
 Drake. Alexander Metlin, James Fitch, Uriah 
 Singletar}', came prior to 1820, and the most 
 of them about 1814. There also came in previ- 
 ous to 1830 the following : Jesse Thompson, 
 William Collier. Daniel Collier, Joseph Lamb, 
 Ichabod Lindle}-, Thomas Carter, Edward Coyn, 
 John L. Butler, Samuel Coffin, W. L. Rich- 
 ards, John A. Ackle}^, William Downs, Elisha 
 Mather, William McCreary, Henry Burnam, H. 
 T. Avery, Thomas Whelen, Nathaniel Parsons, 
 William McBride, James Brown, J. A. Clapp, 
 Benjamin Wait, Elisha Burnett, Stephen N. 
 Sargent, Henry Wetmore, Talmon Bronson. 
 Don C. Mathes, William Brannan, Herman 
 Bronson, Alonzo Dee, Benjamin Randall, Mar- 
 tin Morton, James Rumage, Billings Robinson, 
 Amos Fletcher, Caleb Carpenter, Joshua Lilli- 
 bridge, Samuel Hogue, Thomas Owens, Philan- 
 der Carpenter, George Leveiy and others. 
 
 The township was first organized in 1811. 
 Upon the solicitation of the citizens, the Com- 
 missioners of Portage County, of which Boston 
 was then a part, ordered an election of town- 
 ship officers to be held at the residence of Tim- 
 oth}^ Bishop, on the 15th of January, 1811. 
 The following action taken on that occasion is 
 found the township records : ■• The inhabitants 
 of the township of Boston, having met at the 
 dwelling of Timothy Bishop in said township, 
 by order of the Commissioners of Portage 
 County, for the purpose of electing two Justices 
 of the Peace and other officers, and having 
 chosen Capt. Abraham Miller, Chairman, and 
 Timothy Bishop, Lancelet Mays and Jonathan 
 Iddings, Judges, and Alfred Wolcott and Will- 
 iam Beer, Clerks for the Justices' election, and 
 
 Andrew Johnson and Isaac Bacon, Judges of the 
 township election, and after being sworn as the 
 law directs, the following gentlemen were elect- 
 ed : Alfred Wolcott and Moses Cunningham, 
 Justices ; William Beer, Clerk ; Aaron Miller, 
 Andrew Johnson and Timoth}' Bishop, Trust- 
 ees ; Jonathan Iddings and Isaac Bacon, Over- 
 seers of the Poor ; Lancelet Mays, Treasurer ; 
 and James Jordon, Constable. Although this 
 election was held in accordance with the order 
 of the Commisioners, yet the term of office 
 could run only until the following April, at 
 which date the following additional officers 
 were elected : Alfred Wolcott and James Stan- 
 ford, Fence Viewers ; Moses Cunningham and 
 William Beer, Listers ; Aaron Miller, John 
 Cunningham, James Stanford and Isaac Bacon, 
 Supervisors ; Robert Donaldson, Constable, and 
 John Duncan, Treasurer. When Boston was 
 first created, and its earliest officers duly elect- 
 ed, Northfield and Richfield were attached to it 
 for election purposes. This will explain why 
 some of Boston's first officers really resided in 
 those townships. The propriety of creating 
 Boston into a separate township began to be 
 discussed as early as 1807. It was about this 
 time that James Stanford, Alfred W^olcott, 
 Samuel Ewart, John Teale, William and Adam 
 Vance, and a few others, when together one 
 day, began casting about them for a suitable 
 name for the township, which they anticipated 
 would soon be created. Mr. Ewart modestly 
 suggested Ewartsville ; Mr. Wolcott thought 
 Wolcottsburg a much more euphonious cogno- 
 men ; the Vances, Stanford, and the others were 
 silent, though it was clearly perceptible that no 
 name 3'et proposed was satisfactor}*. Finally 
 Mr. Stanford said : " Suppose we name it Boston, 
 after old Boston in Massachusetts." This prop- 
 osition seemed to please all present, and the 
 name was adopted. Thus the township had its 
 creation and first settlement, and now its growth 
 and improvement remain to be noticed. 
 
 It may here be stated that Boston, in com- 
 mon with almost every portion of Ohio, was 
 first inhabited by wandering hunters, who loved 
 no society except that afforded by the forest, 
 and who thought the countr} was becoming too 
 thickly settled when a dozen families lived 
 within as many miles. The result was that the 
 settlers above referred to caught but a momen- 
 tary glimpse, as it were, of these roving hunt- 
 ers, as they shouldered their rifles and moved 
 
 "e) V 
 
^1 
 
 536 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 farther out into the depths of the forest. Prob- 
 abl}- the most noted hunter ever in Boston, or 
 perhaps in Summit County, was Jonathan Will- 
 iams, who lived for short periods in several of 
 the townships. He was remarkabl}' skillful and 
 successful in his hunts, but perhaps the most 
 distinguishing element of his character was the 
 intolerable, murderous hate he bore the In- 
 dians. He lost no favorable opportunity to 
 shoot them down without a moment's hesita- 
 tion, and, in consequence, was feared and 
 shunned by them. His constant companions 
 were his two dogs and a long-barreled rifle that 
 carried a ball weighing nearly an ounce. His 
 dogs were so thoroughly trained that they 
 obeyed the slightest sign from their master, and 
 were of great assistance to Williams in bloody 
 conflicts with bears and other dangerous animals. 
 Physically, Williams was a remarkable man. 
 He was six feet in height, and his movements 
 were as noiseless and graceful as those of a pan- 
 ther. It was a sight to see him in the forest 
 in pursuit of game of more than usual size or 
 ferocity. He knew no fear, and would pene- 
 trate the deepest swamps, no matter what they 
 contained. He went dressed like an Indian, 
 with leggings and moccasins, and always took 
 pains to have his clothing so harmonize with the 
 color of the forest that the Indians or game could 
 not easily see him. He wore a buckskin blouse, 
 serrated in front and bordered with a fringe of 
 otter skin. He was swarthy-complexioned, and 
 it is reported that Indian blood ran in his veins, 
 and this was generally believed by those who 
 knew him, though undoubtedly incorrectl}-. He 
 had a wife and family, who were supported by 
 his rifle. To account for his hate for the In- 
 dians, the tradition is that all his relatives were 
 murdered by the Indians before he came to 
 Ohio, in consequence of which he is said to 
 have sworn " to kill them just as long as he 
 lived." The.se reports are all incorrect. On 
 one occasion some trouble arose between the 
 Indians and whites at Deerfield, Portage County, 
 regarding a horse trade that had been made. 
 An Indian, to retaliate for some real or sup 
 posed injury, shot Daniel Diver in such a man- 
 ner as to put out both his eyes without other- 
 wise injuring him. The Indians fled to their 
 camp in Boston, but were pursued by the infu- 
 riated friends of the injured man. The latter 
 were joined by Jonathan Williams when they 
 reached Boston. The Indian culprits discov- 
 
 ered their pursuers and continued their flight 
 westward, but were overtaken in Bath and one 
 of them named Nicksaw, a harmless and inno- 
 cent old Indian, was instantly shot by Jonathan 
 Williams. 
 
 Other incidents will be found in this work 
 of his hostility toward the Indians. One night, 
 Williams, with his two dogs, went to watch a 
 deer lick in southern Boston. He remained 
 there all night without meeting with the desired 
 success. Just as the gray light of coming day 
 began to steal through the forest, his dogs be- 
 came uneas}- and restless, and eyed a small 
 thicket near by, in such a manner that Will- 
 iams knew that something more than usual was 
 concealed there. He peered cautiously through 
 the leaves, and. indistinctl}', saw the shadowy 
 form of some large animal crouching behind a 
 small bush. His dogs remained obediently at 
 his side, and raising his rifle he fired at the 
 animal. A thrilling scream rang ©ut on the 
 morning air, and the animal bounded off through 
 the woods, swiftly followed by the dogs, which 
 had been told to " go." The animal ran up a 
 tree, and Williams, hurrying forward, discov- 
 ered a large panther crouched on a limb about 
 thirty feet above his head. He had lost all his 
 rifle balls except one. This was discharged at 
 the panther, but only a slight wound was made, 
 as it was yet quite dark, and the animal was 
 partly' concealed by the limb. The hunter, at 
 first, was at a loss what to do ; but, finall}^, he 
 cut a branch that would about fit his gun bar- 
 rel. The limb was cut up into plugs about an 
 inch long, and with these hastily -improvised 
 bullets, Williams continued firing at the pan- 
 ther. A settler, named Carter, living near by 
 and hearing the reports, started out to ascer- 
 tain the cause. He came to the spot, and, 
 handing his rifle to Williams, who was standing 
 in a favorable position, he told the latter to 
 " bring it down." One shot was sufficient, and 
 the panther fell dead to the ground. It proved 
 to be one of the largest of its species, and is 
 said to have measured eleven feet " from tip to 
 tip." Its hide was cut in numerous places by 
 the wooden bullets fired at it by Williams. 
 Thomas Owens was another noted hunter, and 
 often joined Williams in his hunts. When 
 these two hunters " put their heads together," 
 they rarely tailed in killing whatever game they 
 desii'ed. Owens had no particular antipatli}- 
 for the Indians, and the Indian hunting branch 
 
 »<^ (5" 
 
 ~^ 
 
 -51 
 
(^vA^ 
 
J^ 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 537 
 
 of their sport was turned, without question, over 
 to Williams. These two hunters often went on 
 long expeditions to sections of the country 
 that were wholly unsettled, and, when they re- 
 turned, they were loaded with valuable hides 
 and furs. Their families were the sufferers on 
 these occasions. 
 
 It was in this township that the Indian chief, 
 Seneca, erected a wooden god, which was 
 worshiped by his followers for many years prior 
 to the advent of the settlers. When the Indians 
 removed farther West in about 1812, ihis god 
 was taken with them. It was proba))ly their 
 god of war, as they held feasts and war-dances 
 to propitiate his favor, just befoi'e starting on 
 their marauding expeditions. On these occa- 
 sions, an offering of tobacco was hung around 
 the neck of the god, and as soon as the Indians 
 were gone, some of the settlers whose taste for 
 tobacco was stronger than their respect for the 
 Indian deity, would steal forward and appro- 
 priate the dried leaves of nicotiana tohacum. It 
 is said to have been excellent tobacco. 
 
 In 1814, the township was quite well settled. 
 Cabins arose along the valley of the river and 
 on the neighboring highlands, and the forest 
 was disturbed by the busy hum of human life. 
 Forests went down with a rapidity, which, if 
 continued a few years, would entirely disrobe 
 the land of its primeval covering. Wild animals 
 became fewer and fewer, and soon none but 
 stragglers remained. Those who were depend- 
 ent on the products of the chase for subsistence 
 were compelled to abandon the township, and 
 depart for homes farther westward. Roads 
 were laid out and cleared, that, in after years, 
 were to be pressed by the feet of distant de- 
 scendants of those who first worked them. The 
 years rolled slowl}- by, fraught with mingled 
 pleasures and privations. 
 
 Malinda Wolcott, daughter of Alfred Wol- 
 cott, is said to have been the first white female 
 child born in the township. Her birth occurred 
 April 14, 1807; she married Sherman Oviatt, 
 and lived for many years in Hudson. The 
 first male child born was Andrew J., son of 
 James Stanford, his birth occurring March 27, 
 1806; and Alexander I., his l)rother, was born 
 Ma}' 21, 1807 It had been generally thought 
 that Henry Post, Jr., whose birth occurred 
 April 8, 1809, was the first white male child 
 born in Boston, but this is a mistake, as shown 
 b}- the dates. Mary Ann Post was the first 
 
 one to die in the township ; her death occur- 
 ring June 9, 1808. Henr}^ Post raised the first 
 crop of wheat in the township; this was in 1807. 
 On July 29, 1812, William Carter and Elizabeth 
 Ma3^s were united in marriage, it being the 
 first. Soon afterward, during the same year, 
 Israel Ozmun, of Boston, was married to Susan 
 Mallet, daughter of John Mallet, of Richfield. 
 Abner Robinson was what was known in early 
 years as " a poet." He could compose " poetry" 
 on all occasions and subjects, and took special 
 delight in immortalizing any wrong doing, in 
 verse. Two of his neighbors were guilty of 
 stealing hogs ; and this fact, coming to the 
 public ear, induced some young men to hang a 
 hog's skin at the door of one of the men, and a 
 hog's head, with eyes protruding, at that of the 
 other ; whereupon Robinson evolved the fol- 
 lowing : 
 
 "There is a man on Furnace Run, 
 Who keeps a dog, but not a gun. 
 In hunting hogs he takes great pride, 
 He lives by the sign of 'the hog's hide.' 
 
 "Another neighbor lives close bj^ 
 And has the sign of ' the pig's eye.' 
 ' Hog's hide ' to ' pig's eye ' thus did say ; 
 'We will steal hogs while others pray.' " 
 
 On another occasion, in a trial before Justice 
 Chaffee, when Judge Bliss was opposing coun- 
 sel to Abner, the latter gave the following im- 
 promptu adverse decision : 
 
 "My name is Billings Chaffee, 
 In Boston I do dwell — 
 There's not a neighbor in the town, 
 But wishes me in hell. 
 
 " They say that I am partial, 
 And all such stuff as this. 
 That I've no judgment of vay own. 
 But follow that of Bliss." 
 
 On yet another occasion, when Jacob Morter, 
 whose reputation for honesty was on the wane, 
 asked Abner Robinson and Robert Mays, the 
 "poet," of Richfield, to compose some verses 
 on the occasion of his presentation to them of 
 a gallon of metheglin, they responded as follows: 
 
 "Abner Robinson and Rob Mays 
 Are truly worth}' of groat praise ; 
 For what a neiglibor does that's wrong, 
 Like two d— d tools, they'll tell in song. 
 
 "Thus, Jacob Morter, it is said. 
 Steals all the corn that makes his bread ; 
 And while his noiglibors are asleep, 
 He prowls about and steals their sheep," 
 
 Tv* 
 
538 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY, 
 
 Morter paid the gallon of metheglin, which 
 was relished by " the poets " far better than 
 the former relished the " poetry."* 
 
 Boston was for many years notorious on ac- 
 count of a band of counterfeiters who made the 
 deep, inaccessible gullies and ravines of the 
 township their headquarters. Not only was 
 silver coin counterfeited, but State bank notes, 
 especially those of Indiana, were turned out by 
 the bushel. Some of the most influential citi- 
 zens of the township were induced to engage 
 in the unlawful business, and it is even stated 
 that a certain aspect of respectibility was con- 
 ceded to this occupation. In 1832, the coun- 
 terfeiting reached the zenith of its power and 
 circulation, and at that period is said to have 
 been "the most extensive banking establish- 
 ment in Ohio, if not in the Union." There were 
 branch offices or " banks," in Cleveland, in 
 Rising Sun, Ind., in Vermont and in other sec- 
 tions of country-. Coins of some heavy mate- 
 rial were first manufactured and then covered 
 with a thin film of silver ; or the coin was first 
 prepared in plates and then stamped with a 
 die of the denomination of money desired. 
 Some of the dies used are now at the county 
 seat. So successful were the counterfeiters in 
 manufacturing and passing their money, that 
 they contemplated visiting the Old World and 
 even China, where they expected to exchange 
 their money for the products of those countries. 
 These products they expected to ship to dis- 
 tant points to be sold. Their anticipations, how- 
 ever, were doomed to encounter reverses and 
 rebuffs. They proceeded as far as New Orleans, 
 where they were detected and arrested. One 
 of the men died in prison in the latter city ; an - 
 other escaped, and, like the Wandering Jew, 
 began an unending pilgrimage on the earth ; 
 another was tried by the United States Court 
 and sent to the penitentiary for ten years, but 
 was pardoned by President Taylor. The last- 
 mentioned offender was a resident of Boston 
 and was one of its most intelligent and influen- 
 tial citizens. Several of his descendants are 
 yet living in the county, and are highly moral 
 and upright people. Another one of the of- 
 fenders died in the Ohio Penitentiary in 1838. 
 Still another was sent to the same place from 
 Liverpool Township, Medina County. He also 
 died there. Others were prosecuted in differ- 
 
 *From Historical Keminiscences of Summit Coun'.v by Gen. L. 
 V. Bierce. 
 
 ent parts of the State, many of whom suffered 
 the extreme penalty of the law. The gang was 
 at last broken up and it members scattered 
 over the countr}- to repent at leisure for their 
 misdeeds. It is stated that some of the most 
 honored men in the county and in Cleveland 
 were so connected with the unlawful business as 
 to share its profits without incurring any of its 
 liabilities. For many years after the gang was 
 broken up, dies, counterfeit mone}', and various 
 implements used in the manufacture were 
 found in the ravines, and even in the houses of 
 some of the citizens. There was scarcely a res- 
 ident of the township who was not tempted to 
 pass the coin and bills. On one occasion, a 
 man with a valise came to Mr. Wait, now living 
 in the northern part of Northampton, and asked 
 him if he would purchase counterfeit bills on the 
 State Bank of Indiana, at the same time opening 
 his valise and showing it packed full of those 
 bills. He offered them for sale at 25 cents on the 
 dollar ; but Mr. Wait informed him that he 
 had come to the wrong man, and the fellow 
 departed to try his scheme on some other per- 
 son. About twenty-five years ago, when a 
 house belonging to one of the most respected 
 citizens was torn down, a small leather bag 
 filled with counterfeit coin in dollars and half- 
 dollar pieces, amounting to more than a hun- 
 dred dollars, was found concealed under the 
 edge of the roof In the eastern part of the 
 township are numerous sandstone ledges, which 
 arise from the surrounding level in various 
 forms and positions. Several deep, dark clefts 
 or caverns are thus formed, and it is said that 
 in these caves the counterfeiters were wont to 
 ply their violations of the law. Evidences of 
 their fires there are yet to be seen, and a few iron 
 implements, evidently used in counterfeiting, 
 were found a number of years ago. A great 
 many other intei'esting incidents might be nar- 
 rated, if lack of space did not prevent. 
 
 It is said that, as late as 1860, an old orchard 
 which had been planted by the French or Indi- 
 ans was yet standing near Boston village. The 
 trees were quite large, and were bearing when 
 the white settlers first came to the township. 
 How long they had been planted is not known. 
 Of course, the fruit was none of our grafted 
 and improved varieties, but was no doubt 
 produced from seed obtained at some of the 
 frontier settlements. This was the oldest orch- 
 ard in the county. 
 
 ^ — 
 
BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 539 
 
 The settlers, when they first came in, usually 
 drove a few head of cattle, hogs, and, perhaps, 
 sheep ; but the latter were found too tender to 
 withstand the trials brought upon them by a 
 home in the wilderness, and usually' died — 
 those that did not furnish a repast for the 
 wolves and bears. A team of horses was usu- 
 ally brought, although many a settler came to 
 the forests of Ohio with nothing save his rifle 
 and his ax. When Abial Hove}' appeared in 
 the township he had no horse, and was told 
 that he could have one by purchase from Will- 
 iam Beers. But Mr. Hovey told Mr. Beers 
 that buying the horse was impossible without 
 money. " You may clear land for me and thus 
 pay for the horse," replied Beers. " But I 
 have no time," responded Hovey. "Make a 
 'bee,' and get your neighbors to help you,' 
 suggested Beers. This seemed feasible and to 
 the point, and Hove}' at last consented. The 
 day appointed for the " bee " came and went, 
 and tlie land was cleared, and the hoi'se paid 
 for. Some time afterward, when Messrs. Beers 
 and Hovey, whose land adjoined, were fixing 
 the line between their farms, the land as above 
 cleared was found to hdong to Hovey. The two 
 men stood looking blankl}- at one another for 
 about a minute. The silence was at last broken 
 by Beers, who quietly remarked to Hovev, 
 " Let's take a drink." All controversy or dis- 
 pute was prevented by the " devil-may-care "' 
 influences of King Alcohol. How diflferent 
 would be the course pursued to-day ! A knock- 
 down would be very likely to occur, followed 
 b}^ law-suits which would swamp horse and 
 land, and create everlasting enmit}'. In after 
 years, William Beers was a great friend of the 
 escaping slave, and assisted many of them in 
 reaching Canada. One named Lewis Boler 
 came from Kentucky, and not fearing pursuit 
 hired out to Beers, with whom he remained a 
 year or more. Finally, his master appeai-ed, 
 but meeting with decided rebuffs from Beers, 
 he resorted to the plan of coaxing his slave to 
 return with him to Kentuck}'. But the wily 
 slave could not be deceived by promises, and 
 was, in consequence, a few nights afterward, 
 forcibh' and secretly taken and hurried toward 
 his former home in the " Sunn}' South." Mr. 
 Beers, upon learning of the act, summoned a 
 few neighbors, and together they pursued the 
 master, and despite his protests returned to 
 Boston with Boler. The latter was told to 
 
 push for Canada, which he accordingly did, 
 arriving there in safety. Another escaping 
 slave named Sandy came to Beers and obtained 
 employment. His master came on and made 
 all sorts of promises to induce him to return to 
 the South, offering to make a " boss " or over- 
 seer of him, and to make him a present of a 
 dog and a beautiful white pony. Sandy could 
 not resist all these offerings, and returned with 
 his master. \ 
 
 In 1824, a dreadful fever (probably typhoid) 
 visited the country along the Cuyahoga River, 
 and swept off about a score of old settlers — • 
 those who had reached advanced ages and 
 whose physical vitality was on the wane. With 
 the exception of a few cases of this kind, the 
 township has ever enjoyed good health. In 
 the year 1830, there were living in Boston five 
 persons of about one hundred years of age. 
 These were Henry Brown, Andrew Johnson, 
 Thomas Brannan, Eleazer Gillson and Eleazer 
 Mather, the first three being Irishmen. Brown 
 died at the age of one hundred and three 
 years. In early years, there was raised an oc- 
 casional crop of what was known as '' sick 
 wheat.'' Animals that ate the grain in quan- 
 tity died, and persons, upon eating a small 
 quantity, were taken with violent vomiting and 
 made deathly sick. No one is remembered to 
 have died from this cause. 
 
 Four or five cheese-factories have been in 
 operation since comparatively early times. 
 One is now owned h\ Mr. Straight, of Hudson, 
 and, during the summer season, twenty-five or 
 thirty cheeses, of about twenty pounds' weight 
 each, are manufactured daily and shipped to 
 Cleveland and other points. 
 
 The building now occupied by Alanson Swan 
 at ■• Johnnycake," or Everett, was built by 
 Henry Iddings before 1820, and was the first 
 in the village. Mr. Swan bought the Iddings 
 property soon after the opening of the Ohio 
 Canal. Mr. Swan's farm was n.creased until 
 he owned 500 acres, including the land upon 
 which the village now stands. The second 
 building in the village was a store, erected l)y 
 Swan & Smith in about 1885, into which about 
 $500 worth of groceries, dry goods and notions 
 were placed. The stock was selected with a 
 view to the demand on the canal at that point. 
 Smith sold out to Swan in about a year later, 
 and the latter conducted the business alone for 
 a few years, and then sold to other parties. 
 
 
J> ■ 
 
 540 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 David Baxter & Son owned this store for a 
 number of years, as did also Ansel Hardy, L. 
 J. Mix, Mr. Richardson, Henry Monroe and oth- 
 ers. Swan also repurchased the property and 
 sold it again two or three times. The stock 
 was increased until it was worth probabl}' 
 $2,000. Elihu Chilson opened a small store 
 on land belonging to the State, near the canal 
 lock, as early as 1838, but this never amounted 
 to' much. In 1842, Mr. Swan erected a 
 warehouse on the canal in the village, and be- 
 gan buying corn, oats, hay, etc., to be fed to 
 the horses and mules used in drawing the 
 canal-boats and packets. A large stable, or 
 barn, was erected, where the canal horses were 
 fed and groomed. The packet company failed, 
 and, in consequence, Mr. Swan lost several 
 hundred dollars. The creditors of the com- 
 pany at the village attached the packet horses, 
 but Mr. Swan i-efused to do this, and, in conse- 
 quence, lost what was due him. When it is 
 remembered that nearly three hundred horses 
 were fed by Mr. Swan, it will be seen that the 
 business undertaken was on an extensive plan. 
 Alexander Stewart bought the greater share of 
 the Swan property about ten years ago, though 
 the latter yet retains the old homestead, and 
 lives there at an advanced age. Before com- 
 ing to the State, Mr. Swan was licensed to 
 preach by the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
 and, ever since living in the township, he has 
 been identified with religious and moral im- 
 provement and growth. He deeded all his 
 property except the homestead to his children, 
 and can now sorrowfully say with King Lear : 
 
 "You heavens, give me that patience I need ! 
 You see me here, yoii gods, a poor old man. 
 As full of grief as age ; wretched in both ! 
 If it be you that stir these children's hearts 
 Against their father, fool me not so much 
 To bear it tamely ; touch me with noble anger ! 
 ***** You think I'll weep ; 
 No, I'll not weep ; — 
 
 I have full cause of weeping ; but this heart 
 Shall break into a hundred thousand flaws. 
 Or ere I'll weep — O fool, I shall go mad, 
 
 ******* 
 How sharper than a serpent's tootli it is 
 To have a thankless child — away, away ! " 
 
 The village has been called " Johnnycake '" 
 since 1828. In the spring of that year, a flood 
 in Furnace Ilun swept into the canal and 
 stopped navigation, and the crews and passen- 
 gers were compelled to live, water-bound, as 
 
 best they could. They were at last reduced to 
 johnnycake, which constituted their diet for a 
 number of da^'s. It has even been asserted 
 that one baking of johnnycake early in the 
 morning furnished the ravenous passengers 
 with their only warm daily meal. The cake 
 was warmed up for dinner and served cold for 
 supper. However, there are probably some 
 mistakes in these early traditions. 
 
 Since the advent of the railroad, the village 
 has somewhat revived. Its present name was 
 bestowed upon it in honor of an officer of the 
 road. It was also at one time called Union- 
 ville. Evidences of oil appearing near the vil- 
 lage in 1865, several members of Cleveland and 
 New York oil companies appeared, leased the 
 land where the oil was discovered, and began 
 boring for oil. The laud was leased upon the 
 conditions that the owner was to have from 
 one-fourth to three-fourths of the oil produced. 
 The terms of the contract were much more sat- 
 isfactory and promising than the quantity of 
 oil obtained. Oil was found in very small 
 quantities. On a small creek near the sand- 
 stone ledges, Norton & Ta^'lor began manu- 
 facturing salt at an early day. The brine was 
 taken and evaporated in several large kettles, 
 and the salt found a ready sale at an advanced 
 price. On one occasion, a barrel of salt was 
 exchanged for a good cow. Abial Hovey was 
 also connected with the salt works, as were 
 several others ; but the quantity of salt capa- 
 ble of being produced was limited, and, as the 
 works proved unprofitable, the manufacture 
 was discontinued. 
 
 Probably the first building in Peninsula 
 village was a log structure built on the east side 
 of the river, near where Abel Thompson re- 
 sides, by Alonzo Dee, in about 1818. Not far 
 from the same time, John Robinson, James 
 Brannan and one or two others built at or 
 near Peninsula. Brannan was located a half- 
 mile west of the village proper ; though, owing 
 to the fact that the corporation includes some 
 2,000 acres, the builtling was really within 
 its limits. Other houses were added ; and 
 very likely during the building of the Ohio 
 Canal, a tavern and one or more stores were 
 located, at least temporarily, in the village. 
 However, Peninsula had its real beginning 
 when Hermon Bronson came to the township 
 in 1824. In about the year 1833, J. M. Adams 
 was conducting a general store, on the west 
 
^ 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 541 
 
 side of the river. James Fielding was also 
 there about the same time, with $1,000 worth 
 of goods. Charles Curtis began about 1838 or 
 1840. He owned a good store, and made 
 money. It was discovered that the way he got 
 rich was by selling " 0-P" goods (those costing 
 45 cents) for $1. He evidently was not resid- 
 ing in the village merely for his health. He 
 began with some $2,000 worth of goods, and 
 verj' soon succeeded in doubling his capital. 
 William Haskell opened a store with a stock 
 valued at $2,000, not far from 1843. Fielding 
 sold out and left in 1836. Curtis continued 
 until 1849, when he sold to Wood, Cole & Co. 
 These men are yet in business in the village, 
 though the partnership was dissolved many 
 years since. Mr._ Cole died, but his sons 
 succeeded him in the business. In 1838 or 
 1840, Adams died, and his goods were closed 
 out. Merrill Boody began with a general store 
 in about 1858, and continued until about three 
 or four years ago. Others have sold goods in 
 Peninsula at different times, though those men- 
 tioned are the principal ones. There are at 
 present three groceries, two hardware stores, 
 two dry goods stores, two tin-shops, a barber- 
 shop, a meat market, a harness-shop, and 
 several shops the nature of which is difficult 
 to ascertain. Hermon Bronson, two years after 
 reaching Peninsula, built a warehouse about 
 thirt3^-five feet square and two stories in height, 
 and began buying pork, cheese, lard, butter 
 and grain, which were shipped by boat to Cleve- 
 land. This was continued until 1835, when 
 Mr. Bronson sold out to Janes & Thompson, 
 who, at the expiration of five years, retired, 
 leaving the warehouse business in the hands of 
 Charles Curtis and Wood, Cole & Co. The 
 village has had for many years a brisk traffic 
 in coal, timber, stone, etc. In the year 1826, 
 Herman Bronson built a saw- mill on Slippery 
 Rock Run, a small stream which empties into 
 the river at the village. The mill was a rough 
 frame structure, located on a short race fed by 
 water from a dam a few rods above the mill. 
 The capacity of the mill was about two thou- 
 sand feet per day. It was operated some four 
 years, and then the machinery was removed to 
 a building erected on the river in the village. 
 At this point Bronson and Dee built a log dam 
 across the river, which is yet standing, though it 
 has been rebuilt and re-adjusted several times 
 since. The mill was built over the edge of the 
 
 dam. It was operated by Mr. Bronson until 
 1835, when it was purchased by Janes & 
 Thompson, who, in 1843, sold to Mr. Holcomb, 
 and he, a few years later, to William Wetmore. 
 This mill was located on the west side of the 
 river. But at the time of its erection Alonzo 
 Dee, who had an interest in the dam. also built 
 a saw-mill on the east side, and continued 
 Operating it some four j-ears, when it was 
 claimed by Mr. Haskell, who had purchased 
 the land upon which the mill stood. Dee 
 had built his mill on land owned by Mr. 
 Ely, one of the origina' proprietors of that 
 portion of the township east of the river, 
 and when the land was purchased by Has- 
 kell, all the fixtures and appurtenances 
 thereof came into the ownership of the latter. 
 Dee, however, received his pay for the mill, 
 which remained in the possession of the Has- 
 kell family until about ten years ago. It is 
 now owned by Otis Fitts. The river makes 
 a wide detour at the village, and comes back to 
 within fifty feet from where it started. A fall of 
 about eight feet is thus created at the neck of 
 the peninsula, which was taken advantage of 
 by Mr. Bronson, who, in 1832, tunneled through 
 about fifty-two feet, and built a grist-mill which 
 is yet in operation. A first class natural water- 
 power is thus secured, which is very valuable, 
 in view of the fact that the dams along the 
 river require constant watching and a vast 
 amount of labor to prevent being washed away. 
 In 1849, the mill came into the ownership of 
 H. V. Bronson, a son of the Bronson already 
 mentioned, who operated it until 1863, when 
 the mill and dam site were sold to Pomeroy & 
 Fisher. This firm sold out at the expiration of 
 three years, and the property has been owned 
 by several parties since. The mill saw its best 
 days under the control and ownership of Her- 
 man Bronson. Not only was a large custom 
 work done, but considerable flour was shipped 
 by canal to Cleveland. The merchant work 
 was most extensive about 1840. In 1837, Her- 
 man Bronson secured the services of a sur- 
 veyor, and laid off seventy-one lots on the west 
 side of the river, and mimed the village thus 
 started " Peninsula," after the natural bend in 
 the river already referred to. A plat of the 
 village was recorded at the county seat. In 
 1866, Mr. Bronson made an addition of many 
 lots, which was also recorded. Mr. Haskell 
 also laid off a number of lots on the east side, 
 
 
'>" 
 
 542 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 but this addition was not properly recorded. 
 No otlier man has done so much to build up 
 Peninsula, and people it with intelligent, moral 
 and enterprising citizens, as Herman Bronson. 
 He was its founder, and was tlie first to 
 introduce moral and religious tactics among 
 tlie vicious and unlawful practices of the canal- 
 boat men. He gave freely of his land and 
 means to religious and educational purposes*. 
 More will be said of him in the proper con- 
 nection. 
 
 Alonzo Dee built a small distillery at Penin- 
 sula in about 1833, in which was placed a small 
 still, where a limited quantity of whisk}' was 
 manufactured. The liquor was consumed about 
 as fast as it was made. This would impl}' that 
 it was a superior article. The still was re- 
 moved at the end of some two years. The 
 village was incorporated some twenty years 
 ago for school purposes, and now has an area 
 of about 2,000 acres, with a population of some 
 600. Peninsula is the most important village 
 on the Valley Railroad, in Summit County, 
 north of Akron. It has been the leading place 
 for canal-boat building, there having been from 
 one to thirty boats built per annum, since the 
 canal was first navigated. James A. Garfield, 
 the President-elect, often stopped at Peninsula 
 while working on the canal. It is said that he 
 was so apt and bright, that the Captain of the 
 boat upon which the bo}' worked remarked 
 that he was too smart to be working upon the 
 canal, and should seek some other employment. 
 Within the limits of Peninsula are inexhausti- 
 ble beds of the finest sandstone. Tlie stone 
 belongs to the same stratum as the Berea grit, 
 and is superior to the latter in point of dura- 
 bility. Stone, at the rate of about a canal-boat 
 load per day. is being taken out of these quar- 
 ries, which are situated on the summit of steep 
 bluffs, which border the river and canal. A 
 large amount of labor is thus avoided in load- 
 ing the stone on the boats. Another valuable 
 property of the stone is, its capability of be- 
 ing divided into slabs, varying in thickness 
 from a few inches to man}- feet. 
 
 The first building in the village of Boston 
 was erected in 1820, and was a frame dwelling 
 house. The following year, a saw-mill and 
 grist-mill were erected on a dam that was built 
 across the river, on the site of the village. 
 Watrous Mather built the dwelling and the 
 saw-mill, while Talmon Bronson Iniilt the grist- 
 
 mill. Mather put up a two-story frame dwell- 
 ing in 1824, and. two years later, Mr. Bronson 
 also built one. Abram Holmes came to the 
 village in 182G. Mather built a large ware- 
 house in 1828, as did also Mr. Holmes two or 
 three years later. In 1826, Brown & Ta3'lor 
 built a storeroom, and placed therein about 
 $1,500 worth of goods, which were sold to 
 Mather in 1828. Brown then moved the store 
 across both the river and the canal to the east 
 side, where it was fitted up for a tavern, of 
 which he was landlord for many years. While 
 standing in the door of his tavern one day, he 
 was struck by lightning and knocked about a 
 rod into the yard. His clothing was torn into 
 shreds ; his boots were literally torn into a hun- 
 dred pieces and carried several rods away, and 
 the man was rendered insensible b}' the shock. 
 He had a remarkable physical development, 
 and was a noted wrestler for miles around. 
 Few men could throw him down. He is said 
 to have irreverently remarked, after he recov- 
 ered from the lightning stroke, " No man ever 
 threw me so quick as Grod x\lmighty did." 
 William T. Mather sold goods from a stock 
 valued at $1,000, beginning in 1830. In 1835, 
 he sold out to the Boston Land & Manufactur- 
 ing Compau}'. This company purchased the 
 mills and warehouse, but, failing in 1838, the 
 property fell into other hands — that which was 
 not closed permanentl}'. Benjamin Morse 
 brought in a few goods at an early day. Wat- 
 rous Mather, after opei'ating his saw-mill a 
 number of years, tore it down and built a bet- 
 ter one across the river, on the east side. It 
 fell into the hands of the company, in 1836. 
 When the company failed, William Smith be- 
 came owner of the grist-mill. J. D. Edson 
 bought it in 18-18. It was considered a good 
 mill. The village of Boston, in early 3'ears, 
 gave great promise, but its subsequent history 
 is unattractive. William McBride operated a 
 saw-mill for three years, beginning in 183-1, 
 about a mile down the river from Boston Vil- 
 lage. The canal destroyed his water privilege, 
 and he was obliged to stop. Dr. Eleazer 
 Mather was the first physician in the village, 
 coming as early as 1822. A Mr. Fursons built 
 a distiller}' at Boston at an earl}' day. It was 
 furnished with one large still, and during its 
 most rapid workings could turn out about three 
 barrels of whisky per day. It was conducted 
 some twelve or fifteen years. Alonzo Dee, 
 
 n^ 
 
BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 543 
 
 also, was connected in early years with the 
 manufacture of liquor at Boston Village. 
 
 So far as can be learned, the first school in the 
 township was taught during the summer of 1811, 
 by Miss Lois Ann Gear, a young lady whose 
 pai'ents, a number of 3^ears befoi'e, had been 
 murdered by the Indians at Upper Sandusky. 
 She was alone in the world and almost friend- 
 less, and her proposition to teach a term of 
 school in an old log building, erected by James 
 Stanford within five rods of the present resi 
 dence of his son George, was accepted, and the 
 house rudely fitted up for the accommodation 
 of teacher and pupils. She received as com- 
 pensation for her labors seventy-Jive cents per 
 week, and " boarded 'round." Where is the 
 teacher who would teach at the present day for 
 less than seventy-five cents per day? And yet, 
 it is highly probable, that Miss Gear saved 
 almost, or quite, all she earned. Her board 
 was evidentl}- the principal consideration ; and 
 what a feast of it she must have had ! Was she 
 to be envied even in this respect ? She taught 
 six months during the warm months, and after 
 that no term is remembered to have been taught 
 again until 1816, when a log schoolhouse was 
 erected by the neighborhood about thirty rods 
 north of the residence of Mr. Stanford, and a 
 term of three months was taught therein by 
 Alfred Wolcott, the first settler in Boston. 
 Wolcott, the survej^or of the township, was 
 well educated, and no doubt taught an inter- 
 esting and instructive term of school. This 
 was the first genuine schoolhouse in the town- 
 ship, and was used every winter until about 
 1820, when a schoolhouse was built at Boston 
 village, and the old house was deserted. In 
 1826, the house at Boston was too much to one 
 side of the settlement to aflford satisfaction, and 
 the greater number of the children were sent to 
 Brandywine, which left the old house at the 
 the village so nearly deserted that no teacher 
 was employed there for a number of years, and 
 the building was left vacant. In about the 
 3'ear 1836, a frame schoolhouse was built at 
 Boston Village, which was used continuously 
 until the erection of the present brick building, 
 a short time before the late war. In the north- 
 eastern part of Boston, in the Wolcott neigh- 
 borhood, a school was taught as earlj' as 1813, 
 and perhaps 1812. Mr. Wolcott is said to have 
 been the teacher, and in the absence of any 
 data to the contrary, he will be accorded the 
 
 honor. The school was taught in a building 
 that had been used a few years as a dwelling ; 
 but which, becoming no longer comfortable or 
 attractive, was thought ample and suitably 
 adapted for school purposes, and was accord- 
 ingly devoted to that use. A few years later, 
 a log schoolhouse was built, and this has been 
 succeeded by two or three other school build- 
 ings, each of which has been a better building 
 than the one before it. School was first taught 
 in the southeast pai't in about 1820, but noth- 
 ing of importance can be learned regarding this 
 school. It is probable that school was taught 
 at Everett as early as 1825. No facts to sup- 
 port this, however, can be given. School was 
 taught in about 1830, in a small log building 
 near the residence of Mr. Swan. The first 
 teacher is unknown, but among the first were 
 Miss Gillett and Hector Osborn. A few years 
 later, an acre of land was deeded by Mr. Swan 
 to the school district for school purposes, and 
 upon this a small frame school-building was 
 erected in about the year 1838. The building 
 was replaced by the present one a few years 
 ago. A schoolhouse, located across the river 
 from Everett and about half a mile further 
 down the stream, was built in 1818. Squire 
 Greenman was the first teacher, who received 
 his pay by subscription. The house was built 
 of logs by the neighborhood, and was used 
 about seven years, when the children were 
 either sent to Everett or to the " Holcomb 
 School," in northwest Northampton, probably 
 the latter. In 1829, school was held at Penin- 
 sula, in a log house that had been used for a 
 dwelling. Probably this was not the first. The 
 teacher, in 1829, was Miss Rhoda Payne, who 
 was paid by private subscription, and whose 
 weekly (or perhaps weakly) recompense was $1. 
 Her school comprised some dozen backwoods 
 children. For a number of years, the east and 
 the west sides had a common school, but after 
 man}' years it was found best to divide the dis- 
 trict, the river being the line, and since that 
 period the village has had two schools, both of 
 which are well attended and prosperous. A 
 young man named Homer Warner was the first 
 teacher on the west side. He received S13 
 per month and boarded round. The east side 
 schoolhouse, which is built of stone, was erect- 
 ed in about 1857. It is a two-storied building, 
 the upper story being used as a town hall. The 
 west side house is a frame building. A few 
 
 a) 
 
 W 
 
-W^ 
 
 544 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 years before the last war, the citizeus of Penin- 
 sula became dissatisfied with the character of 
 their village school, as compared with the 
 amount of school tax they were called upon to 
 pay. There were six or seven scliool districts 
 in the township, and the one at the village was 
 called upon to pay from a fourth to a half of 
 the school fund raised per annum. Other con- 
 siderations growing out of this state of things ' 
 vexed the citizens for a number of years, until 
 at last they concluded to incorporate the entire 
 school district in the village of Peninsula, which 
 was accordingly done. This altered state of 
 affairs gave greater satisfaction, as the surplus 
 of school tax raised could be applied to the vil- 
 lage schools, and not to those in distant parts 
 of the township. Since the village has been 
 called upon, however, to support two schools, it 
 is difficult to see what has been gained b}' the 
 incorporation of the whole school district. The 
 township was divided into six school districts in 
 1826, and three years later these were materi- 
 ally altered. Numerous alterations have been 
 made since. 
 
 It is extremely difficult to tell with accuracy 
 where the different church societies of Boston 
 wei'e first organized, or under what condition 
 of circumstances. Many of the settlers were 
 religious, havinsr belonged to some church in 
 the East, and did not abandon Christian wor- 
 ship, at least in their families, after their ar- 
 rival in the township. It is also (juite proba- 
 ble that in the earliest da^'S of the settlement, 
 various Christian families assembled at some 
 selected cabin, and even went so far as to 
 semi-organize a religious society, perhaps in 
 different parts of the township. These con- 
 jectures are rendered plausible by the fact that 
 sincere Christian people are disposed to worship 
 God, not only within the pale of civilization, 
 but in the uninhabited and deserted depths of 
 the forest. Religious services were held in the 
 vicinity of Evei'ett soon after the erection of 
 the old log schoolhonse, on the Butler farm, in 
 1818. But little is known except that occa- 
 sional sei'vices were held here, ver}- likel}', by 
 traveling preachers. When Alanson Swan, 
 ■who had been licensed to preach by a Method- 
 ist Episcopal society, in Connecticut, came to 
 the township in 1834, he immediately united 
 with others in his neighborhood, including por- 
 tions of Bath and Northampton, and organ- 
 ized a religious society, which continued to 
 
 meet quite regularly in dwellings and school- 
 houses, until it was at length divided by an 
 alteration in the views of a portion of the 
 members. Perhaps a majorit}^ of the mem- 
 bers of this society lived in the two townships 
 already mentioned. After flourishing for a 
 number of years, and attaining a membership 
 of about fift}", a detachment of about half, 
 headed by Mr. Swan, separated from the re- 
 mainder and re-organized at Everett under the 
 name Protestant Methodists. No church was 
 built by this society. Some ten years ago, it 
 was so broken up by various causes, that the 
 United Brethren came in and organized a so- 
 ciety out of the fragments and out of new ma- 
 terial. This is the ruling society at present. 
 As earlj' as 1824, Herman Bronson, who was 
 an Episcopalian, began holding religious serv- 
 ices at his cabin in Peninsula. His few neigh- 
 bors were invited to lend their encouragement 
 and support in assisting to build up a strong, 
 permanent religious society in the neighbor- 
 hood. It is probable, however, that no so- 
 ciety of this denomination was organized un- 
 til about 1837. Some four years later, a 
 small church was built, almost wholly at 
 the cost of Mr. Bronson. This church is yet 
 used. Mr. Bronson was clearly its founder 
 and patron, and did more to sustain it than 
 any other man. He deeded the lot upon which 
 it stands to the society, and also gave a fine 
 lot for a cemetery and one for a public school- 
 house. The church cost something like $1,000. 
 At the death of Mr. Bronson, he willed to the 
 church he had founded a sufficient fund to af- 
 ford about $325 per annum, to be used in de- 
 fra3'ing the expense of employing a minister. 
 This permanent fund has undoubtedly sus- 
 tained the society from falling into decay at 
 numerous periods of its existence. Some of 
 the members of this church have been Herman 
 Bronson, Daniel F. Bachelor, Hezekiah Bell, 
 James Morrell John Fairweather, Thomas Mc- 
 Carday, Jacob Barnhart, Nisbett Wood, W. H. 
 Payne, Asa Kimball, Harry Janes, and most of 
 their families. Abraham Bronson was the first 
 minister in charge of the society ; and was paid 
 a few hundred dollars for his services. A Con- 
 gregational Society- was organized at the vil- 
 lage about the same time that the Episcopalians 
 began. Their meetings were held in school- 
 houses and dwellings at first ; and sometimes 
 the use of the Episcopal Church was tendered 
 
^'^ *"^ 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 #1 
 
 
 /■^^^^^K^^ 0/r7^^^^??<u ^C~~ 
 
^ 
 
 SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 545 
 
 them ; but their services were mostl}' held in 
 the upper story of Mr. Haskell's store building, 
 on the east side. After continuing a number 
 of years, the society was so reduced by death 
 and removals that it was disbanded. Among 
 its members were Roger and George Haskell, 
 L. M. Janes, Charles Curtis, Mrs. Thomp- 
 son and children, Mrs. McGrouty and oth- 
 ers. A Methodist society' was organized in 
 the village as early as 1834, or perhaps as 
 early as 1830. It is thought that a circuit 
 preacher Rev. Mr. Conant, organized it ; though 
 others think that Rev. Thomas W. Pope de- 
 serves the honor. The society grew slowly 
 in membership and wealth until some twelve 
 years ago, when a frame church, costing about 
 $2,000, was built on the east side. A por- 
 tion of the members have been Rev. Thomas 
 W. Pope, a local preacher ; Billings Chaffee and 
 wife ; John H. Curtis and wife, the husband 
 also being a local preacher ; Mr. Ford and wife, 
 Mr. Davis and wife, Dr. Lunt and others. This 
 society has passed through periods when it was 
 extremely difficult to tell whether it lived or 
 
 not. If not, like a cat, it possessed nine lives ; 
 for it is now as strong and full of life as could 
 be expected. A Methodist society was organ- 
 ized on the State road as early, perhaps, as 
 1825. This, however is not known with cer- 
 taint}'. In after years it became well known, 
 and was well attended. But little could be as- 
 certained concerning this church. Religious 
 services have been held from time to time 
 in the schoolhouses in and near Boston Village, 
 but no church has been erected and no perma- 
 nent society organized in that poi'tion of the 
 township. 
 
 In March, 1837, a post office was first located 
 at Peninsula. It was secured largely through the 
 influence of H. V. Bronson, one of the most 
 prominent and respected citizens of the place, 
 who was commissioned first Postmaster, an 
 office he retained until 1845, when Billings 
 Chaflfee succeeded him. The post office at 
 Boston Village was secured as early as 1830, 
 mainly through the instrumentality of William 
 Mather. One was secured at " Johnnycake " 
 a few years later. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII.* 
 
 SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP— ITS PHYSICAL FEATURES — EARLY SETTLEMENT— MINERAL WEALTH- 
 POTTER'S CLAY— VILLAGES— CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS— INCIDENTS. 
 
 THREE-QUARTERS of a century ago, this 
 division of Summit County was a wilder- 
 ness, undisturbed by the enterprise of the 
 Anglo-Saxon race. But with the j^ear 1807 the 
 history of Springfield actually begins. The in- 
 flux of population that commenced with the 
 dawn of that year, ceased not until all the va- 
 cant land was occupied. The earl^- settlers of 
 Springfield Township, forgetful of their own 
 ease, at a time when 3'ears of toil could reason- 
 abl)' have demanded repose for their declining 
 daj's, they braved the difficulties of the un- 
 known wilderness, that their children might 
 achieve that wealth and greatness their faith 
 pictured in the future. The broad lands, rich 
 and fertile, the thousand homes, adorned with 
 the comforts and luxuries of an advanced 
 civilization, the vast resources of mineral 
 wealth that abound, not only in this township 
 
 * Contributed by W. n. Pen in. 
 
 but throughout this section of country, are 
 among the memorials that attest the wisdom of 
 their choice. The inducements which invited 
 the immigration of the pioneers of Springfield 
 was all that the most exacting could demand, 
 or that Nature in her pleasantest mood could 
 oflTer. Fine forests, streams of flowing water, 
 productive lands, and, as afterward discovered, 
 vast stores of mineral wealth. Such advantages 
 as these were not to be overlooked in the se- 
 lection of homes. 
 
 Springfield is situated in the east tier of town- 
 ships, and but one from the southeast corner of 
 the county. It intrudes its northwest corner 
 into the city of Akron, and is bounded on the 
 north by Tallraadge Township ; on the east by 
 Suffield Township, in Portage County ; on the 
 south by Green Township; on the west by 
 Coventr}' Township, and is designated as Town- 
 ship 1, Range 10. The south line of Spring- 
 
 -k* 
 
M 
 
 546 
 
 IIISTOKY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 field is on the southern boundary of the Western 
 Reserve — the fort^'-first parallel of latitude. 
 This causes a slight jog in the east line of the 
 count}-, as the townships south of the Reserve 
 are of a different survey. The surface of the 
 township is rolling ; but not sufficiently so to 
 be termed broken, with one or two small ex- 
 ceptions. It is drained mainl}' through the 
 little Cuyahoga River, in the north part, and 
 the Tuscarawas in the south part and their 
 tributaries, together with a number of little lake- 
 lets in different parts of the township. The 
 largest of the latter is vSpringfield Lake, in the 
 geographical center of the township, and is 
 about a mile in length and half a mile in width. 
 Of this little lake, Gen. Bierce says : •' A com- 
 pany at Middlebury, a few 3'ears ago (1854), got 
 a special act of the Legislature authorizing them 
 to raise Springfield Lake six feet, and lower it 
 four, from its natural level. This rise and fall 
 affords a sufficient suppl}', on which to draw 
 when other sources fail. The right is now 
 owned by the mill-owners of Akron." The soil 
 of Springfield is a rich, sandy loam, and well 
 adapted to wheat growing, although other small 
 grain, as well as corn, are produced in more 
 or less abundance. Stock-raising also receives 
 some attention, but is not made a specialty by 
 the farming communit}-. The timber consists 
 of the kinds common in this section viz., beech, 
 maple, ash, elm, poplar, hickor}-, white oak, 
 walnut, etc. Coal-mining was rather extensive 
 at one time. This, however, with the potter's 
 clay industries, will again be referred to in this 
 chapter. An extensive cranberry marsh was 
 iu Springfield in early times, near Springfield 
 Lake, and embraced some 200 acres ; but this 
 has been cleared up, thoroughly drained, and 
 is now as productive corn land as there is in 
 the township. " Springfield was an equalizing 
 township, and was surveyed by Simon Perkins 
 in the summer of 1806. He first ran a north- 
 and-south line through the center, the east half 
 of which was set to Town 4, Range 8, to make 
 that equal with the average. A strip off the 
 west side was attached to Shalersville. It was 
 drawn and belonged to Mr. Shaler, of Middle- 
 town, Conn., father of Judge Shaler, of Pitts- 
 burgh."* Shaler sold the east half to Messrs. 
 Olds, Collar and More, of what is now Mahoning 
 Count}', and the strip off the west side to Henry 
 and Charles Chittenden. 
 
 *Gen. Bierce. 
 
 The first permanent settlement in Springfield 
 Township was made by one Ariel Bradle}', in 
 1807, on Lot 12, of the " Shaler Tract," where 
 he died years ago. His family are all gone 
 from the neighborhood, though, we believe, his 
 youngest son is yet living in Lucas Count}', 
 Ohio. Gen. Bierce gives the following interest- 
 ing sketch of Mr. Bradley : '■ He was born in 
 Salisbury, Conn., in 1 767. Naturally of a strong, 
 discriminating mind, he was employed, with 
 success, when a boy, in scenes and business 
 which would have appalled older and more ex- 
 perienced heads. Just before the battle of 
 White Plains, in 1776, young Bradley, being 
 then only nine years old, was employed by Gen. 
 Washington to enter the British camp as a spy. 
 He took an old horse, and, putting a load of 
 grain on his back, got astride of it himself, and 
 boldly passed within the British lines under 
 pretense of going to mill. He was arrested, as 
 he expected to be, and taken to the British 
 camp for examination. Here, without exhibit- 
 ing any unusual curiosity, he observed all that 
 was going on. A long consultation was held by 
 the officers, as to what should be done with 
 him ; but young Bradley acted the ' Johnny 
 Raw ' so completel}' that they finally dismissed 
 him, thinking him more fool than spy. As he 
 w-as leaving, one of the officers remarked, ' I 
 believe the little devil will betray us." The 
 mill-boy made his way back to the American 
 camp, with the desired information. In 1801, 
 in company with Belden and Simeon Crane, he 
 removed to Canfield, Mahoning County. They 
 left Salisbury on the 14th of June, 1801, and 
 arrived in Canfield in August following. He 
 remained in Canfield until 1805, when he re- 
 moved to Suffield Township, in Portage County, 
 and settled on what is known as the old Kent 
 farm ; and, in 1807, settled in Springfield, in 
 what is now Mogadore. When he first came 
 to Canfield, but little could be obtained, north- 
 west of the Ohio River, to alleviate hunger, 
 except by the chase. Wheat and flour were 
 brought on pack-horses from Georgetown, on 
 the Ohio ; and salt was an unknown article. In 
 1802, Bradley went to Georgetown for bi-ead- 
 stuff ; but was unable to get a pound of flour 
 or meal. A man there had raised a little wheat, 
 and Bradley got the privilege of pounding out 
 some, with which he started home through the 
 woods. On his way back, and, when about 
 thirteen miles south of Canfield, his horse was 
 
SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 547 
 
 taken sick, and he was compelled to camp out 
 in the woods. He hitched his horse, and, for 
 his own security, climbed a tree. Soon after 
 dark, the wolves surrounded him, determined 
 to have him or his horse ; but Bradley was not 
 disposed to surrender either, and, descending 
 from the ti'ee, he procured a good club, with 
 wliich he stood sentry over his horse and cargo 
 of wheat. As the wolves would come near him, 
 he would strike at them, and they would retreat. 
 Near morning, one more brave than the rest, 
 came so near that he hit him over the head. 
 The fellow sounded a retreat, and the rest fol- 
 lowed with tremendous yells. 
 
 The same year that saw Bradley settle in 
 Springtield witnessed the coming of Benjamin 
 Baldwin, Nathan More and Reuben Tapper, 
 all of whom were originall}' from Salisbury, 
 Conn., the native place of Bradley. Baldwin 
 settled just across the town line, west from the 
 Kent farm, where he died in 1847. More and 
 Tupper also died in the township. John and 
 James Hall, brothers, came from Pennsylvania 
 in 1807, and were the next settlers in Spring- 
 field ; John was about eighteen years old and 
 his brother was still younger, and thej' remained 
 alone in tlie wilderness the first year. Their 
 cabin was built near a spring half a mile east 
 of the Presbyterian Church of North Spring- 
 field, and, at the time, there was not a road to 
 or from it in an}' direction. As Indians were 
 plenty, thej- dare not sleep in the house, but, 
 at night, would make up a fire in the house and 
 then take their guns and go into a corn-field to 
 sleep, stationing themselves so that they could 
 see any one entering the door. In this manner 
 they passed the first summer and fall. John, 
 the elder of these two brothers, died in Marion 
 County, and James went to Huron County. 
 John Hall, a lawyer in Akron, is a son of John 
 Hall referred to above. Robert Hall, also from 
 Pennsylvania, came next and settled on the 
 place now owned by Peter Lepper. He died in 
 the summer of 1808, from the bursting of a 
 blood-vessel, and was the first death in the town- 
 ship. He was buried in the cemetery northeast 
 of Middlebury. 
 
 The old Keystone State contributed the fol- 
 lowing Pennsylvania Dutchmen to the settle 
 ment of Springfield Township : Rev. Thomas 
 Beer, Thomas Metlin, -John Vallandiiigham, 
 James McKnight, Samuel Wood, Capt. William 
 Foster, Abraham DeHaven, Francis Irvin, Dea- 
 
 con Ewert, Joseph Scott, Jacob Winters, Sam- 
 uel Hinson, James Wertz, the Bairds, Judge 
 Robert Clark, George McGrew, Patrick and Ar- 
 chie Christy, the Smiths, Deacon McWright, the 
 
 Pallets, Robert Smith, Henderson, James 
 
 McCormic, and perhaps others. Mr. Beer was 
 a Presbyterian preacher of the strictest old- 
 school principles ; he moved away and is dead. 
 Metlin settled in 1814, and moved into Norton 
 Township, where he died. Vallandingham 
 settled in 1811-12, and moved to Holmes 
 County and died there. He was an uncle to 
 Hon. Clement L. Vallandigham, who, when a 
 boy, used to visit his uncle in Springfield, and 
 is well remembered by many of the older resi- 
 dents of the neighborhood. McKnight was a 
 brother-in-law of John Vallandiiigham, and 
 came in 1814, moved to Stark County and died, 
 Wood was the father of John B. Wood, of Ak- 
 ron ; came in early, and died man}- years ago. 
 Capt. Foster was a brother-in-law of Wood, and 
 died in the township at the age of eight^'-seven 
 years. DeHaven came in 1809, and died many 
 years ago. Mrs. Clark, of Akron, is a daughter 
 of his. Irvin and DeHaven were brothers-in- 
 law. Deacon Ewert came about 1809-10, and 
 died on the place of his original settlement, at 
 an advanced age. Joseph Scott settled in 1811 ; 
 died about 1830, while making a visit to Penn- 
 sylvania ; he was brought home and buried by 
 the side of his wife in the Kent burying-ground. 
 David Scott, of Akron, is his son. Winters 
 came with Wood and Metlin, and was from the 
 same place ; he died in Richland County. Hin- 
 son came in early ; he met with a melancholy 
 accident which resulted in his death ; returning 
 from Middlebury one evening, his horse ran 
 away with him and threw him with such vio- 
 lence that he died in a few hours from the ef- 
 fects of the fall. Wertz died on the place of 
 his settlement many years ago. The Bairds 
 were a large famil}-, of whom Joseph, James 
 George and Robert were brothers, and came in 
 about 1809 or thereabouts. Judge Clark also 
 came in 1809, and was one of the first Justices 
 of the Peace in the township, and one of the 
 first Surve3ors in Portage County ; he was also 
 Associate Judge of Portage County. McGrew 
 came in 1809-10, and died in the neighborhood 
 as did also his wife. The Christys were early 
 settlers ; Patrick died in Akron and Archie 
 moved back to Pennsylvania. The Smiths, as 
 they are everywhere, were a large famih', and 
 
 >w 
 
548 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 came in about 1811 ; there were Thomas, Jacob, 
 George, James and Caleb, who were all brothers. 
 Thomas fitted out a flat-boat at Massillon, loaded 
 it, and started for the Crescent City via the 
 Tuscarawas and Muskingum Rivers, to the Ohio. 
 He arrived safely at Natchez, Miss., with his 
 boat, but was there taken sick and died. Dr. 
 Smith, of Akron, is his son. Jacob Smith was 
 a hatter, and used to follow his trade in Spring- 
 field. 
 
 Deacon Mc Wright came in about 1809- 
 10, and was one of the original members of the 
 Presbyterian Church. The EUets were early 
 settlers, and comprise quite a large family. 
 The old gentleman of all was a Revolutionary 
 soldier. A Mr. Henderson was an early settler 
 in the extreme south part of the township. 
 Robert Smith, another family of those men- 
 tioned above, came in shortly after Bradley and 
 cleared up the first farm in Springfield. McCor- 
 mic also came the same 3'ear, and settled in the 
 corner of the township. It will thus be seen 
 that Springfield was settled originalh' mostly 
 from Pennsylvania. 
 
 Peter Norton, who came in quite early, was 
 from Connecticut, and came to Trumbull 
 County, Ohio, at an early day. In 1809, he 
 moved over into Tallmadge, and, four years 
 later, came to Springfield and settled in the 
 woods. He died there in 1822. Two sons are 
 still living — Lester, now eight^'-three years of 
 age, and " Tommy," as everybod}' calls him, who 
 is seventy-five years of age. Geoi'ge Carroll 
 settled near Springfield Lake. It is not known 
 where he came from, but it is supposed he was 
 from German}', as he could speak very little 
 English when he first moved in. He lived and 
 died upon the place of his settlement. John 
 Weston ranks among the early settlers of 
 Springfield. He was considered well off at that 
 early period, because when he came he had a 
 wagon and two yoke of oxen. He stopped with 
 Norton until he got a cabin put up to go in. 
 A son, Francis Weston, is still living on the old 
 homestead, an old man now himself, and near- 
 ly ninety years old. The old gentleman was a 
 Revolutionary soldier, and died at the age of 
 eighty-three. Henry and Charles Chittenden, 
 mentioned as having bought the west side of 
 the township, came from the East (probably 
 from Connecticut) and were early settlers. Pe- 
 ter Rodenbaugh came in about 1815, and Capt. 
 Fulkerson in 1820. Manv others settled with- 
 
 in the next few j'ears, and soon there was no 
 vacant land left in the township. 
 
 At tlie time of the organization of Spring- 
 field as a township, it was a part of Trumbull 
 County, as the first records are headed, " At a 
 meeting held in the township of Springfield, 
 count}' of Trumbull and State of Ohio." It 
 then embraced, besides its present territor}', 
 Randolph and Suffleld, in Portage County, and 
 Tallmadge, Portage and Coventr}', in Summit. 
 At the election held on the day of organization, 
 Josiah Ward, of Randolph, was one of the 
 Judges ; John Foster, of Mantua, Clerk ; John 
 Goss (of Randolph), Benjamin Baldwin (of 
 Springfield) and Stephen Upson (of Tallmadge), 
 Trustees. The following is a transcript of the 
 township records, and shows their mode of doing 
 business : " At a meeting of the Trustees, on 
 the first Monday in March, in the year of our 
 Lord 1810, they settled with all and balanced 
 accounts ; Supervisor James McCormic, ex- 
 cepted. Found due from him, $2.40, for which 
 said James gave his note, payable in labor on 
 some county road in Springfield, on or before 
 the 1st da}' of April next, at the rate of 62^ 
 cents per day." On the 13th day of March, 
 Benjamin Baldwin was sworn in as a Justice of 
 the Peace, being the first Justice elected in the 
 township. Robert Baird was probabl}' the 
 next Justice of the Peace in Springfield ; Aus- 
 tin Weston was an early Justice of the Peace, 
 also, in this township. 
 
 Springfield Township affords some fine mill 
 sites along the Little Cuyahoga and Tuscara- 
 was Rivers, which run through the township, 
 and upon the outlet of Springfield Lake. One 
 branch of the Little Cuyahoga has its source 
 in this lake, and the other in Sufltield Lake 
 which makes the flood of water ver}- uniform. 
 As an example of the fine water-power, the 
 water in the race opposite the Empire House 
 in Akron, is 172 feet below the level of Spring- 
 field Lake, and the latter is nearly 700 feet 
 above the level of Lake Erie. The following 
 incident is related of this beautiful little sheet 
 of water : "In the spring of the year, just be- 
 fore the breaking up of the ice on Springfield 
 Lake, there is often heard a curious, moaning 
 sound that is audible, at times, for miles. The 
 first time it was noticed was in 1813, by James 
 McKnight, while out hunting. He supposed it 
 to be some huge animal, and started with his 
 gun and little bo}' in pursuit. The sound ap- 
 
 ■71^ 
 
'K* 
 
 SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 549 
 
 peared to be near the outlet, at the northeast 
 part of the lake. In crossing the lake on the 
 ice, when near the deepest part, it being ver}'^ 
 dark, he stepped into an ' air-hole ' and went 
 entirely under ; but holding on to his rifle, 
 which reached across the hole, he drew himself 
 out by it and thus saved himself The longest 
 cords that have been tried, or that can be pro- 
 cured, cannot sound the lake in its deepest 
 parts." But to return to the water-power. 
 One of the first mills in Springfield was built 
 by James Brewster, the father of Alexander 
 Brewster, in the extreme south part of the 
 town, and is now known as the Fritts Mill. 
 The next one, perhaps, was McCormic's, at Mog- 
 adore. Clinton also built a mill very early, 
 but it has long since passed away, and another, 
 known as " Gilchrist's Mill," has been built in 
 its place. DeHaven built a mill in 1830, on 
 the Massillon road not far from the " White 
 Grocer}'," on the outlet of Springfield Lake. 
 Another of the earlj' mills was built on the 
 Tuscarawas in the south part of the township. 
 There were mills built in Middlebury very 
 eai'ly which were well patronized by the people 
 of Springfield. 
 
 Springfield Township is intersected by the 
 Valley Railroad, which enters at the northwest 
 corner and passes out near the center of the 
 south line. While there is no station in the 
 township, it is of great benefit to the people, 
 as Middlebury is within easy reach and has 
 good roads leading to it from all parts of 
 Springfield. 
 
 There are several hamlets laid down on the 
 map of Springfield, but none of them amount 
 to much in the way of towns. Indeed, they 
 have not even arrived at the dignity of villages. 
 This, perhaps, arises from the fact that other 
 villages and trade-centers sprang up, leaving 
 but little or no necessity for villages in the 
 township. Middlebury, a portion of which is 
 in Springfield, was, at one time, the most im- 
 portant place in Summit County. It com- 
 manded the entire trade on this side of the 
 count}', far beyond the present county limits. 
 The nearest approach to a village in Spring- 
 field, outside of Middlebury, is Mogadore, on 
 the east line of the township, and about as 
 much in Portage County as in Summit. It 
 consists of a few dozen or so of houses, a store 
 or two, shops, several potteries and a couple of 
 churches, and, as we said, is on both sides of 
 
 the county line. The Disciples and Methodists 
 have churches in the village, though we believe 
 the Methodist Church is over in Portage Coun- 
 ty. The Disciples" Church has been there for 
 a number of years. Alexander Campbell, him- 
 self, was the first to preach that particular doc- 
 trine at Mogadore, and established the church, 
 which has ever since continued. One of the 
 first merchants was Henry Sawyer, who had a 
 small store there many years ago. Several 
 others have had stores since, and Robert Atchi- 
 son has one there at the present time. Thomas- 
 ton is a coal mining place, and consists of a few 
 straggling houses and a post office. It is on 
 the line and mostly in Coventry Township, and 
 is too near the city of Akron to ever amount 
 to anything of a town. North Springfield, or 
 North Center, is another small collection of 
 houses, sometimes honored by the name of vil- 
 lage. It is situated just north of Springfield 
 Lake, and is known as the township center, 
 because Springfield Lake occupies the geo- 
 grapical center, and the only means by which 
 the official center of the township could have 
 been placed in the geographical center, would 
 have been to have it like the city of Mexico, in 
 the midst of a lake. And, in this case, the 
 danger would be that, as the lake is said to be 
 bottomless, the town house might have gone 
 down to China, sometime in the midst of an im- 
 portant township meeting. There is no store 
 at North Center or Springfield, but the place 
 consists of a few houses only, the town house, 
 a pottery and the Presbyterian Church. Mil- 
 heim is a hamlet in the south part of the town, 
 and as regai'ds population and Importance, is 
 on a par with North Center and Thomaston. 
 
 One of the first coal mines opened in Summit 
 County was opened in Springfield Township, 
 by Abrara DeHaven, in 1808. It cropped out 
 on his land, and was accidentally discovered by 
 him. He mined it there for years, and the coal 
 was hauled away in wagons. About 1842, 
 Philpot leased the mines and built a horse rail- 
 road to them, and thus facilitated the work. 
 These are the only mines that have ever been 
 worked to any extent in the township. A 
 small one is owned by L. Sumner, but has 
 not been worked very extensively. 
 
 The clay used in the various potteries is of 
 far more importance in Springfield Township 
 than coal mining. There is an almost endless 
 number of potteries in the township, turning 
 
 ^T 
 
550 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 out annually, it is estimated, not far short of 
 1,000,000 gallons of manufactured stoneware. 
 As the ela}' is inexhaustible, this is an industry 
 destined to cut a large figure in the history of 
 Springfield. Says Gen. Bierce : " Immense 
 amounts of the cla}' are carried to other States, 
 and even to Canada. In fixing a tariff of duties 
 for Canada, John Bull laid a heav}- duty on 
 stoneware manufactured in the States, but not 
 on cla}'. The enterprising Yankees came it 
 over him b}' carrying the clay to Canada and 
 manufacturing it there." The first of this cla}^ 
 discovered in Springfield was by Fisk. about 
 1828, who manufactured the first stoneware in 
 Springfield, under the firm of Fisk & Smith. 
 Mr. Fisk discovered the cla}- on a four-acre lot, 
 owned by a man named Cutchel. Fisk & Smith 
 bought it of him and started a potter}-. Since 
 then, almost hundreds of potteries have been 
 established, and the amount of stoneware, 
 sewer-pipe, drain-tile, etc., etc., made each year, 
 is simply immense, and must be passed with 
 this brief notice. 
 
 The Presbyterians organized the first church 
 in Springfield as early almost as any settle- 
 ments were made. Rev. Thomas Beer was the 
 first preacher, and was of the most unadulter- 
 ated old school, believing in all the strict ten- 
 ets of that strict sect. As an old gentleman 
 informed us, he " believed in fore-ordination, 
 predestination and infant damnation.' A 
 church was built by them at North Center 
 about the year 1812. This building was 
 burned and another erected, which lasted some 
 time, when the present one was erected. The 
 last one is said to have been built in 1828, and 
 hence is a rather old church building. Rev. 
 Beer was the first Pastor, and was followed 
 some years later by Rev. Benjamin Peini. 
 Other earl}' ministers, who preached in this old 
 church, were Revs. Lathrop, Merriman, Han- 
 ford, Sheldon, etc. The membership has de- 
 creased within the last decade by death and 
 removals, but the church is still prosperous. 
 A Methodist Church was built at North Center 
 about the year 1831, but it did not last long, 
 and was finally torn down and moved away. 
 
 A post office was established in the southeast 
 corner of the township about the year 1818, 
 with Benjamin Baldwin as Postmaster. He 
 was a Whig in politics, but kept the office for 
 many years through Democratic administra- 
 tions as well as Whig. Samuel Ellet was 
 
 the next Postmaster in Springfield, and kept 
 the ofiSce at his residence on the Canton 
 road, about ten miles from Middlebury. It 
 was established in 1835. The first white 
 child born in Springfield Township was Jane 
 Hall, a daughter of Robert Hall, born in 1 809, 
 who, when grown, was married, and removed to 
 Indiana. The first marriage was John Hall, a 
 son of Robert Hall, to Margaret Blair. The 
 marriage took place in 1810, and afterward 
 they removed to Huron County, where they 
 both died. The first death recorded in the 
 township was Robert Hall, in 1808, who died 
 from the effects of bursting of a blood-vessel, 
 and was buried in the cemetery northeast of 
 Middlebury. Samuel Hinson was another of 
 the early deaths, and died from the effects of 
 a fall from his horse, which ran away with 
 him. 
 
 The first school taught in Springfield was in 
 a little log cabin, which stood near Cass' camp- 
 ing ground. It was taught in the winter of 
 1812, by Reuben Upson, and was on the sub- 
 scription and " board-around" plan. Here, in 
 this little log structure, 
 
 " skilled to rule. 
 Master Upson taught his little school ; 
 A man severe he was, and stern to view," 
 
 as every truant and culprit soon learned to 
 know to their sorrow. The next school was 
 taught by a Mr. Briggs, in the Vallandingham 
 Schoolhouse. This was followed by one taught 
 by Jesse Hall, which was in what was known 
 as the Virginia Schoolhouse. Austin Weston 
 was the next teacher, and wielded the ferule 
 in the Sheep Schoolhouse. This schoolhouse 
 was called after a family- who settled in the 
 neighborhood very earl}-, named Sheep. They 
 finally grew tired of being considered Kheejnsh, 
 and had their names changed by legislative act 
 to Morton, a cognomen that their neighbors soon 
 perverted into Mutton. Benjamin Meachem 
 followed Weston as the next teacher, and taught 
 in the McGrew Schoolhouse ; next came Will- 
 iam L. Clark, whose widow has died in Akron 
 since this work (1881) has been in the course 
 of preparation. He was followed by Robert 
 Baird, who taught in the Metlin Schoolhouse ; 
 and Baird was followed by Henry Westfall, 
 who taught in the Dunbar Schoolhouse. Sam- 
 uel Ellet next taught in the Ellet Schoolhouse, 
 and after him P. C. McDonald, in the Roden- 
 
ihL^ 
 
 SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 551 
 
 baugh Schoolhouse. This comprises the earl}' 
 schools of Springfield, and brings the educa- 
 tional history of the township down within the 
 period of the free school system. Springfield 
 now has some six schoolhouses, all of which 
 are good, comfortable brick buildings, well 
 furnished and appointed, in which schools are 
 taught by competent teachei's during the requi- 
 site terms each year. 
 
 For years after the first white people settled 
 in Springfield, their highways of travel were 
 blazed paths through the forest. The |irst road 
 laid out was that leading from Canton to Middle- 
 bury, known as the " Canton and Middlebury 
 road." The next, perhaps, was the Middleburj' 
 and Kendall road. These were followed by oth- 
 ers, mostly centering in Middlebury, then a place 
 of much importance. The first mails were 
 brought to the post oflfice at Baldwin's, on 
 horseback, along a blazed path through the 
 woods, from Canton to Middlebury and back 
 again. This road afterward^ became a some- 
 what noted thoroughfare, and was a stage 
 route between Cleveland and Canton. John C. 
 Hart, of Middlebury, ran a line of stages over 
 this route for a number of ^ears. 
 
 Originall}', as we have stated,, Randolph, Suf- 
 field, Springfield and Tallmadge comprised a 
 single township. This was the case in 1812, 
 and, under the old militia law of that period, 
 all able-bodied men between eighteen and forty- 
 five years of age, were compelled to drill on 
 certain days of each year. The township 
 above-mentioned was a military district, and 
 formed a militia company, of which Bailey 
 Hubbard was Captain ; Ariel Bradley Lieuten- 
 ant, and Aaron Weston, Ensign. Weston was 
 also Ensign of the company of volunteers from 
 this section, under Capt. John Campbell, who 
 were surrendered by Gen. Hull at Detroit, in 
 the opening period of the war of 1812. 
 
 When John Bull, in 1812, unchained his 
 hungry lion upon the United States, there was 
 considerable population in this section of Ohio. 
 In Springfield Township there had settled quite 
 a number of families. Gen. Bierce thus tells 
 the war news of that period : " After Hull's 
 surrender, a draft was made, and eight were 
 taken fi'om Springfield — Joseph D. Baird, John 
 Hall, Timothy Holcomb, Alexander Hall, James 
 Baird, Lee Moore, Nathaniel DeHaven, and Mar- 
 tin Willis, who went as a substitute. They be- 
 longed to the company commanded by Capt. 
 
 Lusk, of Hudson; Lieut. Holcomb, of Hudson, 
 resigned to John Caris, of Rootstown, who was 
 Second Lieutenant ; Hiram King, formerly' of 
 Middlebury, was Ensign. The}' belonged to 
 the regiment commanded by Col. Rayen, of 
 Youngstown, in the brigade of Gen. Simon 
 Perkins. Joseph D. Baird, Timoth}' Holcomb, 
 Nathaniel DeHaven and Lee Moore are yet liv- 
 ing.* John Hall died in Huron Coimty, and 
 Alexander Hall died at Camp Huron ; James 
 Baird died at La Grange, Ind.; and Martin 
 Willis died on his way home at Tinker's Creek. 
 On the return of the wreck of Hull's armj', 
 after his surrender at Detroit, the ' Ohio volun- 
 teers,' under Cols. Cass and McArthur, passed 
 through Springfield, and encamped on the 
 banks of the river near the south end of the 
 bridge, at ' Clinton's Mill.' Samuel EUet, the 
 father of John and Jehu Ellet, who then lived 
 where Jehu Ellet now does, measured off half 
 an acre of green corn and tui-ned it out to the 
 soldiers, who picked and roasted it for their 
 suppers. The following year, Maj. Croghan, 
 when going to the lines with his command, en- 
 camped on the same ground. At that time, 
 Dr. Joseph DeWolf. of Ravenna, was the onl}- 
 practicing ph3'sician, except Dr. Ashmun, of 
 Hudson, between Cleveland and Canfield. De- 
 Wolf being a Democrat and a strong supporter 
 of the war, could do no less than attend on the 
 the sick and wounded soldiers as the}' were re- 
 turning from what was worse than sickness, 
 Hull's disgraceful surrender. He rode night 
 and day, performing that unpaid oflBce of hu- 
 manity. The poor soldiers owe him a debt of 
 gratitude, and his countr}' ought to compensate 
 him. Man}' a political brawler has received 
 thousands of dollars for far less meritorious 
 service than that performed by Dr. DeWolf in 
 receiving the sick of the ' Ohio volunteers.' 
 Whatever may become of the pecuniary ob- 
 ligation of this Government to him, let not the 
 gratitude be canceled by the statute of limit- 
 ation. 
 
 " After the surrender of Hull, a press was 
 made for horses for the use of the Govern- 
 ment. David Preston, of Tallmadge, and oth- 
 ers, were in the employ of the United States 
 collecting horses in Springfield. The Rev. Mr. 
 Beers, of Springfield, had five horses when the 
 
 * The abovp extract from Gen. Bierce wag written in 1H54 ; all 
 of the squad there mentioned have fought their last battle, and 
 are now at rest. — [Ed. 
 
'Hi 
 
 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 553 
 
 kins, of Warren, being at the time agent for 
 the proprietors, had a survey made of Town 2, 
 Range 10, into lots a mile square, making a 
 total of twent^'-five lots, No. 1 being at north- 
 west corner of the township. Caleb Palmer 
 made this survey in 1803, and it was on this 
 survey that the Brace Company, Starr and 
 Tallmadge, made the partition of their land in 
 May of the same year. The Brace Company 
 were Jonathan Brace, Roger Newberry, Justin 
 Ely, Elijah White and Enoch Perkins. In this 
 partition the Brace Company received 6,105^'^^ 
 acres l3'ing on the west side of the township. 
 Ephraim Starr received 3,493,^3 acres, being 
 a strip one mile wide through the center of the 
 township, from the north to the south line, and 
 Lot 24, east of Lot 23, on the south line. Col. 
 Tallmadge received about 5,611 acres, lying on 
 the east side of the township. The first sale of 
 land to individuals was to John and Selah Payne, 
 and Jotham Blakslee, of Kent, Conn., by Eph- 
 raim Starr and Hannah, his wife ; the deeds 
 were dated June 28, 1805. John Payne and 
 Elizabeth Payne, his wife, conveyed to Col. 
 Benj. Tallmadge 884 acres of land for $1,026, 
 the deed to which was dated August 19, 1806. 
 These deeds may be found among the land 
 records of Trumbull County. 
 
 Rev. David Bacon made a contract July 12, 
 1806, with Ephraim Starr, and soon after with 
 Col. Tallmadge, also with the Brace Compan}' 
 (for part of their lands), to become their agent 
 for the sale of their lands in Town 2, Range 10. 
 Mr. Bacon established himself with his family 
 in Hudson until read}' to commence operations. 
 His first step was a re-survey of the township. 
 Seth I. Ensign was employed to make the sur- 
 vey on a plan devised by Mr. Bacon, which 
 was to survey into great lots or tracts one and 
 a fourth miles square, and the lines running 
 to the four cardinal points of the compass to 
 be roads, and then diagonal roads crossing at 
 the center and terminating at or near the cor- 
 ner of the township. The public square or 
 green of seven and one-half acres as a parade 
 ground for the militia on training days, and on 
 which the meeting house and the academy were 
 to stand, occupied the center of the town. This 
 square was surrounded by the store, the tavern, 
 the mechanics' shops, dwelling houses, etc., 
 and from it eight roads diverged, so that all 
 residents of the townships had a road to come 
 to meeting on the Sabbath Day. This showed 
 
 Mr. Bacon's foresight, thus placing every lot or 
 subdivision on a road, which has had a ten- 
 dency to prevent much contention about roads, 
 that some of the neighboring townships have 
 been subjected to. Mr. Ensign made this sur- 
 vey in November, 1806. His assistants as far 
 as known were Justus Sackett and Salmon 
 Weston, of Wan-en, Conn., and a man named 
 Singletar3\ William Prior says : " I carried 
 their provisions to them on a mule from North- 
 ampton Mills to their camp. They found the 
 noi'thwest corner of the township, then run 
 east two and a half miles, then south two and 
 a half miles, where they set the center stake, 
 and turned their attention to a camping-place. 
 They chose a spot about a fourth of a mile 
 southwest from the center stake on the bank 
 of the brook." Mr. Weston informed the writer 
 that the camp was between the brook and a 
 bank several feet high. They felled a large bass- 
 wood tree which stood on the bank, and from 
 it split puncheons with which the sides and top 
 of their "camp" were formed. This circumstance 
 it was that gave to the little stream the name 
 of Camp Brook. When their camp was fin- 
 ished, they again went to the northwest corner 
 and commenced work. They run a line south 
 one and a fourth miles, then east to town line, 
 then south one and a fourth miles to the center 
 line, then west again. The northwest corner 
 tract was No. 1 ; the northeast corner tract 
 was No. 4 ; and the southeast corner tract No. 
 1 6. The tracts were subdivided into six lots 
 generally, which was done by Ensign, except 
 Tracts 1 and 4 — the latter was surveyed by 
 Elizur Wright in 1817, for Col. Tallmadge. 
 
 The land of Tallmadge Township is rolling 
 and somewhat elevated ; several points rising 
 to a height of 540 feet above the level of Lake 
 Erie. The summit of Coal Hill (near Daniel 
 Hines'), is 636 feet, and is the highest point of 
 land in the county, with one exception. The 
 highest point is in Richfield Township. The 
 soil is a light loam, and in places, somewhat 
 sandy, but upon the whole, well adapted to 
 grain, and also to grass. The prevailing tim- 
 ber is oak and chestnut, intermixed with which 
 is hickory, elm, ash, white and black walnut, 
 bass, cucumber, with beech and maple on 
 the streams. On many tracts, quite a collec- 
 tion of sugar maples were found, from which 
 quantities of sugar and molasses were manu- 
 factured. The drainage of Tallmadge is all into 
 
 \ 
 
554 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 the Cuyahoga River on the north, and the Little 
 Cuyahoga on the south ; the east and west 
 center road being about the divide. The 
 streams are all small. The Little Cuyahoga 
 runs through Springfield near the line, and the 
 Cuyahoga runs near the north line in Stow, 
 making a sharp bend into Tallmadge on the 
 Speng farm. The streams are fed by numer- 
 ous springs, furnishing water on almost every 
 farm in abundance. The swamps have been 
 mostly reclaimed, so that at the present day, 
 there is in the township but very little land un- 
 suitable for cultivation. 
 
 Tallmadge Township was originally bounded 
 on the north by Stow Township, on the east by 
 Brimfield Township (in Portage County), on 
 the south by Springfield Township, and on the 
 westb}' Portage Township. In 1851, Cuyahoga 
 Falls was set off as a township, and takes from 
 Tallmadge the whole of Tract No. 1, containing 
 899 ^acres, and about 100 acres oft' the north 
 side of Lots 1, 2 and 3, in Tract 5. Then in 
 1857, Middlebur}' was set ofl" as an independ- 
 ent township, taking from Tallmadge Lots 3 
 and 5, containing b}' Ensign's survey-, 299 acres. 
 The productions of the township are the various 
 kinds of grain, grass and fruit. The pursuit 
 of a large majority of the inhabitants has been 
 that of farming in its different branches, no one 
 branch being made a specialt3\ 
 
 The first permanent settlement in Tallmadge 
 Township, from the most reliable testimou}', 
 seems to have been made by George Boosinger. 
 He was born in 1777, and, in 1801, his father 
 emigrated to Ohio with his family, and located 
 in Ravenna, in Portage County. George lived 
 there until ^rown to manhood, when he mar- 
 ried Miss Nancy Simcox. He then bought 
 seventy -five acres of land in this township, in 
 Lot 6, Tract 14, of Jotham Blakslee, of 
 Ravenna, and off' the west side of the lot. 
 This farm is now (1881) owned bv Sherman 
 Pettibone. Boosinger came over and selected 
 a spot on which to build, which was at a fine 
 spring of water, near the south line of the 
 township, and then returned to Ravenna. In 
 March, 1807, he again came over, and brought 
 help with him preparatory to building a house 
 on his new purchase. Those who came over 
 with him were Henry Sapp, Jotham Blakslee, 
 Jr., John McManus, Moses Bradford, Philip 
 Ward, William Price, David Jennings, William 
 Chared, Robert Campbell, Abel Forshey and 
 
 Henry Bozor. They assembled on the ground 
 in the morning, cut the logs and raised the 
 house, which was about 16x20 feet in dimen- 
 sions, made the long shingles, or " shakes " (as 
 they were called), put on the roof, cut out a 
 door and laid down a floor of puncheons. 
 These puncheons were split out of a straight- 
 grained tree, and hewed smooth on one side 
 and laid down upon the sleepers. As they 
 seasoned, they were driven up close together, 
 and made a good substitute for board or plank 
 floors. The doors were also made of punch- 
 eons, pinned on to wooden battens or hinges, 
 and often not a nail was used in making them. 
 The windows of the pioneer cabins were quite 
 as primitive as the doors. A place was cut 
 out, across which sticks were put at right 
 angles, and tovered with greased paper as a 
 substitute for glass. 
 
 His cabin being ready for occupancy, Boos- 
 inger left Ravenna the last of March or the 
 first of April, and with his famil}' moved into 
 his new home, thus becoming the original set- 
 tler of Tallmadge Township. At the semi- 
 centennial of the settlement of the township, 
 Hon. E. N. Sill, in his address on that day, 
 gave to Rev. David Bacon the honor of mak- 
 ing the first settlement. This was disputed at 
 the time b}^ several pioneers who were present, 
 and who were familiar with all the circum- 
 stances. The}' were well satisfied of the fact 
 that Boosinger settled in the township in 
 March or April, 1807. These pioneers are 
 now dead, but, in years that are past, the 
 writer has interviewed some of them, and has 
 given that attention to the subject which has 
 confirmed him in the opinion that Boosinger 
 was the first settler. There was no intention 
 on the part of any one to deprive Mr. Boosin- 
 ger of all the honor that belonged to him, but 
 there was evidentl}' a hast}' conclusion of 
 some to give the honor of priorit}' in settle- 
 ment to Mr. Bacon. Soon after Boosinger's 
 settlement, his wife went back to Ravenna, 
 and, while there, gave birth to twins — a boy 
 and girl. As soon as prudent, she returned to 
 her home in Tallmadge. In a few weeks after- 
 ward, the boy sickened and died, and was 
 buried on his father's farm. This was the first 
 death in the township. Mr. Boosinger and his 
 wife were honest, upright and industrious peo- 
 ple, and just in their dealings with their fellow- 
 men. He was not in sympathy with Bacon 
 
'A 
 
 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 555 
 
 and his grand scheme for supporting the 
 church by direct taxation, and united with the 
 Presbyterian Church in Springfield, where lie 
 and his family attended meeting. Mrs. Boos- 
 inger died in Tallmadge, and he married a sec- 
 ond time, to a Miss Wolfert. He sold his farm 
 to Pettibone in 1836, and removed to Macoupin 
 County, 111., where he died in 1862. 
 
 To the Rev. David Bacon this township is 
 greatly indebted for its religious and moral 
 standing in the community. His influence in- 
 duced many others to settle here from towns 
 on the Western Reserve, and to co-operate with 
 him in his plans for building up a state of 
 society of Puritan tendencies. Mr. Bacon was 
 born in Woodstock, Windham Co., Conn., in 
 1771. In early life he had a strong desire for 
 a college education, but this he was unable to 
 obtain. Tt did not lessen his desire, however, 
 to preach the Gospel, and to this end he com- 
 menced the study of theolog}' with Rev. Levi 
 Hart, D. D., of Preston, New London Co., Conn. 
 He was ordained a minister of the Gospel 
 December 31, 1799, and was married to Miss 
 Alice Parks about the same time, at Lebanon, 
 Conn. He left Hartford on the 8th of August, 
 1800, under the patronage of the Connecticut 
 Missionary Societ}', with a view of visiting the 
 Indian tribes bordering on Lake Erie. He 
 sailed from Buffalo September 8, arriving at 
 Detroit on the 11th, and about the middle of 
 December he returned to Connecticut with 
 much valuable information. The next year 
 he came back to Ohio, bringing his wife with 
 him, arriving in safet}' at Detroit. This place 
 was then but little else than a trading-post of 
 the Indians, and a military point, garrisoned 
 by United States troops. Here Mr. Bacon 
 labored as a missionar}' among the Indians for 
 some time, and here his eldest child (Rev. 
 Leonard Bacon, D. D., of New Haven, Conn.), 
 was born February 14, 1802. He went from 
 Detroit to Mackinaw, where he labored until 
 the latter part of the summer of 1804, when he 
 left the place, and after a long and dangerous 
 voyage, part of the time in a canoe, he arrived 
 with his family on the soil of the Western Re- 
 serve. About the 1st of October, he found a 
 home temporarily at Hudson. He labored on 
 the Reserve as a missionary, but soon became 
 convinced that more good could be accom- 
 plished for the Reserve by a township with all 
 the appliances and the accomplishments of 
 
 New England civilization as an example. Dr. 
 L. Bacon, in an address delivered June 24, 
 1857, speaking of his father, says : ''Being on 
 the western limits of civilization, he looked 
 about for a vacant township, in which such an 
 experiment might be tried. His prophetic 
 mind saw the capabilities of Township 2, 
 Range 10 ; its fertile soil, its salubrious air, 
 its beautifully undulating surface, its pure and 
 abundant water, its streams singing in the 
 grand old woods and rich with power for the 
 service of man. He saw the proprietorship 
 of it was in the hands of men who, as his 
 trusting and hopeful nature led him to believe, 
 would enter into his views, and would even be 
 willing to sacrifice something of their possible 
 gains (if need should be) for so great a scheme of 
 public usefulness as that with which his mind 
 was laboring.'" He went to Connecticut with 
 his family near the close of the year 1804, and, as 
 alread}' stated, secured the agenc}- of tiie pro- 
 prietors of most of the land in Tallmadge 
 Township. Being a descendant of the Puri- 
 tans, and deeply imbued with New England 
 Puritanism, he was thought by man}- to be 
 visionar}'. His ideas were uf the true Puritan 
 stamp — the church first, and next the school- 
 house. The church was to be Congregational, 
 and no inhabitants were to be admitted into 
 the settlement but those of that denomination, 
 or who were in sympathy with the strictest 
 Puritan principles. As a people and a town- 
 ship we are greatly indebted to Mr. Bacon for 
 laying, as he did, foundations so broad and 
 deep, and embellished with moral, religious 
 and educational principles. Some of the land 
 he was unable to control, and a few persons 
 settled on it that did not agree with Mr. Bacon 
 in all his grand views. The majority of the 
 settlers, however, for the first twenty-five years, 
 were his adherents, and were firm supporters 
 of the Gospel, and of elevating the standard 
 of morality. 
 
 In the spring of 1807, Mr. Bacon began to 
 make prepartions for moving into Tallmadge. 
 He hired a man named Justin E. Frink, who 
 had just arrived at Hudson from Vermont, to 
 clear a piece of ground for a garden, and on 
 which to build a house. He and Bacon came 
 over and selected a place which was near Starr's 
 west line, and the south li^c of the township, 
 at a spring of good water, and about a mile 
 west of Boosinger's cabin. Frink cleared off 
 
 :; iVsu 
 
556 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 the ground and cut logs for a house. The house 
 was built, and was of pioneer pattern, with its 
 puncheon floor and door, stick chimney, etc., 
 and when completed the family moved into it. 
 Says Dr. Bacon in the address already quoted 
 from : " I well remember among the dim and 
 scattered reminiscences of earl}- childhood, the 
 pleasant day in the month of July, if I mistake 
 not, when the family made its removal from the 
 center of Hudson, to the new log house that 
 had been prepared for it, in the township which 
 had no other designation than ' No. 2, Range 
 10.' The father and mother, poor in this 
 world's goods, but rich in faith and in the treas- 
 ure of God's promises rich in their well-tried 
 mutual affection, rich in their hopes of useful- 
 ness, and of the comfort and competence to be 
 ultimatel}" achieved by their enterprise, rich in 
 the parental jo}- with which the}- looked upon 
 the three little ones that were carried in their 
 arms or nestled among their scanty household 
 goods in the slow-moving wagon, were familiar 
 with whatever there is in hardsliip and peril, 
 and in baffling disappointment, to try the cour- 
 age of the noblest manhood or the immortal of 
 a true woman's love. The little ones were na- 
 tives of the wilderness, the youngest a delicate 
 nursling of six months. This child's name was 
 Juliana ; was born in Hudson February 25, 
 1807. The others were born in a far remoter 
 and wilder West than this was even then. 
 These five were the family who, on that day, 
 removed to their new home. I remember the 
 setting out ; the halt before the door of good 
 old Deacon Thompson to say farewell ; the 
 fording of the Cuyahoga, at Monroe Falls ; the 
 slow day's journey of somewhat less than thir- 
 teen miles, along a road that had been merely 
 cut, not made, through the unbroken forest ; the 
 little clearing where the journey ended ; the 
 new log house so long our home, with what 
 seemed to me a stately hill behind it, and with 
 a limpid rivulet winding near tlie door. And 
 when at night, the first famil}' worship was 
 offered in that lonel}' cabin, when the father 
 and mother, having read from this Bible (Dr. 
 Bacon holding up to the audience the identical 
 Bible his parents used on that occasion), then 
 commended to their Covenant God, themselves, 
 and their children, and the work which they 
 had that day begun ; the prayer that went up 
 from those two saintly' souls, breathed the same 
 spirit with the prayer that went of old from the 
 
 deck of the Mayflower, or from beneath the 
 wintry sky Plymouth. In the ear of God, it 
 was as, ' The voice of one crying in the wilder- 
 ness, prepare 3'e the way of the Lord, make His 
 paths straight.'" 
 
 From April, 1807, up to February, 1808, the 
 only persons in Tallmadge were George Boos- 
 inger and wife and child ; Rev. David Bacon, 
 his wife and three children, and J. E. Frink, a 
 hired man in Mr. Bacon's family, making in 
 all five adults and four children. In 1808, 
 Ephraim Clark, Jr., came in, being the third 
 regular settler in the township. He was a na- 
 tive of Southington, Conn., and, when he was 
 sixteen years of age, his parents removed to 
 Russell, Mass., where he lived until his matu- 
 rit3^ He caught the Western fever, and, in 
 1799, left his laome in Massachusetts, his des- 
 tination being " New Connecticut," his object- 
 ive point. Town No. 7, Range 7, of the Western 
 Reserve, now known as Burton Township, in 
 Geauga County. Alone and on foot, he trav- 
 eled the distance, often camping out at night 
 without fire or blanket, but, finally, arrived in 
 safet}-. He liked the country and settled in 
 Burton Township. Like many others of the 
 pioneei's of the times, he was fond of hunting. 
 He once found the carcass of a deer that had 
 been killed by a wolf Around the carcass he 
 built a pen with an opening and a door, which 
 was set with what trappers and hunters called 
 a figure 4, and thus caught the wolf He 
 pealed elm bark, made a rope, formed a noose 
 at one end, which he succeeded in putting over 
 the wolf's head, and by this means led it, as 
 one might lead a dog, to Burton Square, where 
 he tied the rope to the sign post of the tavern. 
 Judge Calvin Pease, with an Eastern friend, 
 were present, and the " Eastern friend " pro- 
 posed to give a gallon of whisky for the priv- 
 ilege of shooting the beast, that he might tell 
 it at home that he had killed a wolf Clark 
 agreed, and when the whisky was given him, 
 he handed his gun to the man, who performed 
 the great feat of shooting a wild wolf — tied to 
 a tree. Mr. Clark killed many deer, wolves 
 and bears. In 1805. he left Burton and settled 
 in Mesopotamia, where, in 1807, he married a 
 Miss Sperry, and, in 1808, removed to this 
 township. His wife died in 1833, and he, in 
 1858, at the age of eighty years, having lived on 
 the Reserve fifty-nine years. The next settler 
 in Tallmadge was, probably, Jonathan Sprague, 
 
^h. 
 
 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 557 
 
 who came from Connecticut. In 1801, he emi- 
 grated to the territory northwest of the Ohio 
 River, crossing over the mountains with his 
 team. He stopped in Canfield where he re- 
 mained until his removal to this township. He 
 came here to co-operate with Mr. Bacon in his 
 broad and liberal plans, and in him Mr. Bacon 
 found an able and zealous coadjutor. He 
 bought Lot No. 5, in Tract 14, of the Brace 
 Company upon which he lived until his death. 
 He was spoken of as a Puritan of the most 
 approved Puritan style. 
 
 Next in the catalogue of earl}' settlers, we 
 may mention Deacon Nathaniel Chapman, 
 Charles Chittenden, William Neal and George 
 Kilbourn, all of whom were from Connecticut 
 originally. Deacon Chapman, with his brother 
 William, made a trip to the Western Reserve in 
 1800, on a tour of inspection. They stopped 
 at Canfield, and, being pleased with the coun- 
 try, he selected land and made what prepara- 
 tions he could for settling on it, and then leav- 
 ing his brother he returned to Connecticut. 
 The next year, with an ox team, he started 
 with his family, taking the " south road," as it 
 was called, through Pennsylvania, and over the 
 mountains to Pittsburgh. When within ten 
 miles of Canfield, his wagon sunk into the 
 mud and his team was unable to move it. He 
 was in a rather helpless and forlorn condition ; 
 no help near, nor any means visible, by which 
 he might extricate himself from his difficulties. 
 In his trouble, he sat down on a log, the better 
 to contemplate the situation, and while thus 
 engaged, his brother William's dog came to him. 
 He used often to say, that he never, in all his 
 life, met so welcome a friend, for he knew that 
 help was near. His brother soon appeared 
 with a yoke of oxen and assisted him to Can- 
 field with his family, which then consisted of 
 his wife and five children, and his father, Titus 
 Chapman. Mr. Bacon, when he heard of his 
 arrival, visited Canfield, and unfolded to him 
 his plans in Tallmadge. Mr. Chapman at once 
 fell in with the views of Bacon, by whom he 
 was induced to sell out at Canfield and remove 
 to this township. He came here with his 
 family in April, 1808, and settled upon Lot 3 in 
 Tract 14. Being of the strictest Puritan prin- 
 ciples, he heartil}' coincided with Mr. Bacon in 
 the great work he had inaugurated. His daugh- 
 ter Sally was the first bride in Tallmadge ; she 
 was married to John Collins on the 7th of 
 
 January, 1809, and the ceremon}- was per- 
 formed by Joseph Harris, of Randolph, a Jus- 
 tice of the Peace. His father, Titus Chapman, 
 died November 8, 1808, and was the first death 
 of an adult person in the township, the first 
 death being, as already noted, Boosinger's 
 child. Mr. Chapman, Sr., was the first buried 
 in the old Middlebury graveyard. Deacon 
 Chapman was the first Justice of the Peace in 
 the township after its organization. He was 
 an exemplar}' man, and died November 12, 
 1834, at the age of sixty-six yeai's. Charles 
 Chittenden removed to Canfield with his family 
 in 1801, where his wife and child died. He 
 afterward married Elma Steele, and, in the 
 early part of 1808, removed into this township. 
 He settled on Lot No. 6, Tract No. 13, which 
 he bought of the Brace Company, and built 
 his cabin at a spring, on the place now owned 
 by the Buckle family. Here the first white 
 child in Tallmadge Township w-as born in June, 
 1808, to Mr. and Mi's. Chittenden. She after- 
 ward married Isaac Newton, and removed to 
 the far West. Mr. Chittenden was a strong 
 Episcopalian, and not in accord with the Ba- 
 conian ideas of Puritanism. He sold to Deacon 
 Gillett about the year 1811, and moved over 
 into Springfield Township, where he died in 
 1833. William Neal came to Ohio in the win- 
 ter of 1806-07, and it is believed that he settled 
 in this township in the spring of 1808. He 
 bought land of the Brace Company, the north 
 half of Lot No. 4, Tract 13, and lived the re- 
 mainder of his life in Tallmadge and Coventry. 
 He was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. and 
 died in December, 1842, aged seventy-eight 
 years. George Kilbourn left Connecticut on 
 the 1st day of September. 1801, with ox team, 
 and crossed the mountains to Pittsburgh, and 
 thence to Hudson Township in this county, 
 where he arrived on the sixtieth day of his 
 journey. He was a tanner and shoemaker by 
 trade, and had been in business in Farmington, 
 where he had been quite successful before 
 coming West. In 1805, he removed to New- 
 burg, where he worked at tanning and shoe- 
 making. In the spring of 1808, he came to 
 this township and settled on Lots 8 and 9, in 
 Tract 10, antl also bought at same time Lots 1 
 and in Tract 11. He and his sons carried on 
 the farm and tanning business on Camp Brook. 
 This was the first tannery in the township. He 
 built a frame barn in 1811, and a ft-ame dwell- 
 
 »f 
 
 IT 
 
Ml 
 
 558 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 ing in 1815. In 1817, he sold to Aaron Hine, 
 untl bought the farm of Capt. Heinan Oviatt, 
 in Hudson Township, where he died March 15, 
 18G6, aged ninet3'-six years. His wife had 
 died in 1859, aged eighty-seven years. They 
 had traveled together over life's rugged road 
 for sixt^'-eight years. 
 
 To this period in the history of Tallraadge it 
 had been known and designated as Town 2, 
 Range 10, and as yet had no other name. 
 There is, however, some traditions, borne out 
 b_v more or less evidence, that the settlers met 
 at the house of Mr. Bacon in June, 1808, for 
 the special purpose of selecting a name. Mr. 
 Bacon expressed a desire to have it called for 
 Col. Tallmadge. one of the original proprietors 
 of the land, a proposition that was agreed to. 
 It is not known whether all the settlers were 
 present at this christening of the township ; the 
 following, however, were holders of land at that 
 time : Rev. David Bacon, Ephraim Clark, Jr., 
 George Boosinger, Jonathan Sprague, Nathan- 
 iel Chapman, George Kilbourn, Charles Chit- 
 tenden, William Neal and Capt. Joseph Hart. 
 The latter was the first settler in Middlebury, 
 now the Sixth Ward of Akron. Justin B. 
 Frink, a single man, and another single man 
 named Bradley, were in the town at the time. 
 At the close of the year 1808. in addition to 
 those named above, the following had moved in, 
 viz. : Aaron Norton, Dr. Ainos C. Wright, Mo- 
 ses Bradford from Ravenna, Thomas Dunlap, 
 from Pennsylvania, and Eli Hill, from Vir- 
 ginia. These were all men of families, except 
 Hill. The following births had occurred in the 
 township since the first settlement : Cornelia, 
 daughter of Charles Chittenden ; Eliza, daugh- 
 ter of Capt. Hart, and who was the first born 
 in Middlebury : Eliza, daughter of (leorge Kil- 
 bourn : Amos, son of Dr. Wright, and the first 
 male child born, not only in Tallmadge, but in 
 the county ; and Alice, daughter of Mr. Bacon, 
 making a total, perhaps, of seventy souls in the 
 township. 
 
 Dr. Amos C. W^righL was from Connecticut, 
 and settled in Tallmadge in the latter part of 
 the year 1808. He settled originall}- in Smith- 
 field, now Vernon, in 1802, but the influence of 
 Mr. Bacon brought him to tliis township, where 
 he became an active participant in everj'thing 
 calculated to promote the interests of the com- 
 munity. He died May 19, 1845, at the age of 
 sixty-five years. In February, 1809, the first 
 
 additions for the year was made to the settle- 
 ment, in the persons of Edmoud Strong and 
 John Wright, Jr., natives of Connecticut. They 
 left Morgan, where they had previously lo- 
 cated, in sleds drawn by oxen, and by this 
 mode of travel brought their families to this 
 township. Thej' came by wa^^ of Cleveland, 
 and were three days in coming from Gleasoa's 
 Mills, in Bedford, in Cuyahoga County, to 
 Tallmadge. Strong settled on Lot No. 3, Tract 
 No. 6, and was the first settler north of the east 
 and west center road. Wright settled on the 
 south half of Lot No. 10, Tract 10, where he 
 lived until his death, in 1845. Capt. John 
 Wright, the father of the one just mentioned, 
 emigrated to Ohio with his fixmil}' in 1802, and 
 came to Tallmadge in the spring of 1809. He 
 was a Revolutionary soldier, and lived here 
 until his death, which took place July 29, 1825, 
 aged eighty-two years. This branch of the 
 Wright family were famous singers and music 
 teachers, and it may be very truthfully said 
 that, from 1808 to the present time, the choir 
 of the Congregational Church of Tallmadge has 
 not been without some representative of the 
 Wright famil}'. Alpha, another son of Capt. 
 Wright, and who was but fourteen years of age 
 when his father came to Ohio in 1802, settled 
 with his father, in 1809, on Lot No. 8, in Tract 
 11, and continued a resident of the township 
 until his death, in 1856. Jotham Blakslee set- 
 tled on Lot 4, in Tract 15, in the earl}' part of 
 1809. His nephew, also named Jotham Blaks- 
 lee, and who married his daughter, came to the 
 settlement with him. The}^ had originally set- 
 tled in Portage County, near Ravenna, in 1^05, 
 and the marriage of Jotham Blakslee, Jr., to his 
 cousin, was the second marriage ceremony per- 
 formed in Portage County. During the sum- 
 mer of 1809, he, in company with Gen. Elijah 
 Wadsworth, of Canfield, Selah Pa3'ne and a 
 Mr. Stewart, explored Tallmadge Township, 
 and at night struck up camp on Coal Hill. 
 The next morning, they followed the lot lines 
 to the center. Here Gen. Wadsworth said to 
 young Blakslee, " Boy, let us cut a brush-heap 
 here at the center ; I shall not live long to tell 
 of it, but you may." Three years later, Blaks- 
 lee became a resident of the township, and so 
 remained until his death, sixty-one j-ears after- 
 ward. He it was that helped Boosinger build 
 his log cabin, the first in the township. He was 
 a blacksmith, and made wrouo;ht nails, when 
 
1L£ 
 
 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 559 
 
 nails were a scarce article, not only in Tall- 
 madge, but on the Reserve. He made the nails 
 used in Dr. A. C. Wright's barn, the first 
 framed barn in the township, and which was 
 built in 1810. He was of strong anti-slavery 
 principles and a devoted Christian. He died 
 in 1870, at the age of eighty years. Conrad 
 Boosinger, father to him who is recorded as the 
 first settler in Tallmadge, settled near his son, 
 in the spring af 1809. He was also a Revolu- 
 tionary soldier. Both he and his wife died on 
 the place of their settlement, which was on Lot 
 6, in Tract 14. 
 
 Elizur Wright, a wealthy farmer of Connec- 
 ticut, exchanged his improved farm there for 
 3,000 acres of land in Tallmadge Township, 
 and, in 1809, came out to see his new posses- 
 sions. Of Puritan descent, and strong in that 
 faith, he easily became a disciple of Bacon, 
 and adopted his views for the building-up of a 
 church and religious society. He made arrange- 
 ments to have some land cleared and a house 
 built, and then returned to Connecticut to pre- 
 pare for removing his family to Ohio. On the 
 22d of May, 1810, he left his old home in the 
 Nutmeg State for his new one in Tallmadge. 
 His goods were brought in two large wagons, 
 each drawn by two 3'oke of oxen ; the family 
 came in a carriage drawn by two horses, and 
 their route was over the mountains by wa}^ of 
 Pittsburgh, arriving at their destination on the 
 30th of June. A man of wealth, he was a 
 valuable acquisition to the little community ; 
 liberal in his support of the church, and all 
 worthy, benevolent objects. Through his im- 
 mediate influence, David Preston was induced 
 to sell out in Connecticut, and move to Tall- 
 madge. Mr. Preston came in the summer of 
 1810, and bi'ought with him his wife ; Drake 
 Fellows and wife and two children ; John S. 
 Preston and wife and two children. Mr. Preston 
 settled on Lot 2, Tract 13. He was a soldier 
 of the Revolution, and died July 11, 1827. 
 Fellows bought the south half of Lot No. 1, in 
 Tract No. 14. William Neal, with that true 
 hospitality characteristic of pioneer life, opened 
 his cabin to Fellows until the latter could build. 
 For the benefit of some of our modern people, 
 we will give the following true description of 
 Mr. Neal's cabin at the time he took in Mr. 
 Fellows and his family : " It was about 18x24 
 feet ; a bed in one corner ; a loom in another 
 corner, in the others a table, some chairs, pots. 
 
 frying-pan, etc., while Mr. and Mrs. Fellows 
 made their bed on the floor under the loom. 
 This was the way the pioneers roughed it." It 
 is believed that Elizur Wright built the second 
 frame barn in Tallmadge in 1811. It stood 
 west of the residence of Daniel A. Upson, a 
 grandson of Mr. Wright, and was taken down 
 (the barn) a few years ago. This barn was 
 used as a place of worship before there were 
 an}' churches or schoolhouses built in the town- 
 ship, and, within its walls, the pioneers were 
 assembled together for divine worship, when 
 the news came of Hull's sui'render at Detroit. 
 The little band instantly dispersed, and, before 
 nightfall, all the able-bodied men in the settle- 
 ment were ready to march to the defense of 
 Cleveland. A second dispatch, however, as- 
 sured them that Cleveland was in no immediate 
 danger. It was also in this barn that Rev. 
 Simeon Woodrufl" preached his first sermon in 
 Tallmadge, July 25, 1813. Mr. Wright was the 
 senior deacon of the church for thirty years ; 
 he died in December, 1845, aged eight3'-three 
 years. Samuel McCoy, a native of Ireland, 
 came to the township in 1810, and bought Lot 
 No. 4, in Tract 14 ; and, the same year. Deacon 
 Salmon Sackett came to Tallmadge to look at 
 the land, with a view of exchanging for some 
 of it his farm in Connecticut. He was well 
 pleased with the country, and, returning home, 
 made a trade with Col. Tallmadge for 648 
 acres of land, which he took in part payment 
 for his farm. He moved on it in 1811, and 
 arrived on the first Monday in Jul}-. In speak- 
 ing of his first visit to Tallmadge, in after ^ears. 
 Deacon Sackett said : " On my arrival in Tall- 
 madge, I was cordially received by the people 
 after the good old New England fashion. They 
 met for Sabbath worship in Capt. Wright's 
 log house ; the inhabitants of the township were 
 mostly there, men, women and children, and we 
 had a good meeting. I found that a majority 
 of the people were from my native county of 
 Litchfield, and among them was Deacon Elizur 
 Wright. It was so much like New England 
 that I felt at home." Of his sons, and sons-in- 
 law, with their families, the party that Deacon 
 Sackett brought to the town numbered seven- 
 teen persons, quite a valuable addition to the 
 settlement. He settled on JiOt 9, in Tract 11, 
 and died in November, 1846, at the age of 
 eighty-four years. In April, 1811, John Car- 
 ruthers moved in from Pennsylvania. His 
 
 "7 
 
 •^k- 
 
560 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 family consisted of his wife and four children, 
 and they settled on 100 acres, which he pur- 
 chased on the east side of Lot No. 1, in Tract 
 IG. When he arrived, he stopped at the cabin 
 of Thomas Dunlap, who received him in true 
 pioneer style, for both were Pennsylvanians. 
 Mr. Carruthers was of Scotch descent, and Pres- 
 byterian to the core. The lives of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Carruthers were spent in Tallmadge, where 
 they were useful members of society. He died 
 in 1853 ; she in 1836. Luther Chamberlain 
 settled in Tallmadge in June, 1811, and lived 
 to an advanced age. In 1811, Deacon Nathan 
 Gillett and his son Ara, bought out Charles 
 Chittenden, and settled on his place. Mr. Gil- 
 lett was also a Revolutionary soldier. Hosea 
 Wilcox came from Morgan, and bought out 
 Peter Norton ; and, in 1812, Reuben Upson and 
 famil}' came in ; also, Jesse Neal, from New 
 York, settled in the township the same year. 
 The following incident is illustrative of the 
 times of which we write : Hosea Wilcox, Ed- 
 mond Strong and Adam Cowles, early in the 
 spring of 1802, left Connecticut on foot for the 
 Western Reserve. At Gennesee River, they 
 overtook Rev. Joseph Badger with a four-horse 
 team, moving with his family and goods. As 
 both parties were bound to the same place, Mr. 
 Badger proposed to them to put their knapsacks 
 in his wagon and travel with him, which they 
 did. Wilcox drove Mr. Badger's team, which 
 is said to have been the first wagon that came 
 through from Buffalo to the Western Reserve. 
 Cowles and Strong went ahead with axes to 
 remove any obstructions that might be in the 
 way. The road had been cut through the 3'ear 
 before by Gen. Pa3^ne, but had not been used. 
 Strong and Wilcox were both pioneers of Tall- 
 madge. 
 
 The time of the pioneer was taken up with 
 his farming operations, or in performing a piece 
 of work for a neighbor to obtain some needed 
 article for the benefit of his family. In early 
 days all able-bodied men, between eighteen and 
 forty-five years of age, were subject to mili- 
 tary duty. This was all the holiday the peo- 
 could afford to enjoy, the 4th of July, perhaps, 
 excepted. The laws of Ohio set apart the first 
 Friday in September for " company training," 
 and " regimental training ' the last of the same 
 month. Everybody attended these meetings, 
 even those who had passed beyond the milita- 
 ry age of forty-five, and all seemed to enjoy 
 
 them. A great source of enjoyment, especially 
 to the young people, was the pioneer "quilting 
 party." A lady would invite her friends to 
 assist her in getting out a quilt. It must be 
 done before night, as parlor, dining-room and 
 kitchen were invariably comprised in one room. 
 In the evening the quilt and its frame gave 
 place to the tea-table, which in turn gave way 
 to social enjoyment, as darkness usuall}' brought 
 in the young men of the neighborhood, when 
 plays, forfeits, etc., were introduced for the en- 
 tertainment of the young people. Sometimes, 
 and in some particular places, a man would 
 enter the room with a mysterious package un- 
 der his arm in a green baize bag. The entrance 
 of this important personage was the signal to 
 " clean the deck for action," or in other words, 
 to clear the room of chairs and tables for a 
 dance, as the opening of the green baize bag 
 always produced the fiddle, and to its enliven- 
 ing music the youngsters would '-trip the light 
 fantastic toe," regardless of the rough puncheon 
 floor. A puncheon floor in a log cabin of one 
 room was no obstacle to those who liked to 
 dance a jig or reel to the stirring tune of 
 "Money in Both Pockets," or, "Polly Put the 
 Kettle on," or, "Durang's Hornpipe," or, "The 
 Girl I Left behind Me," or, " The White Cock- 
 ade," etc. The pleasure and enjoyments of 
 those days, if not so refined as now, were of 
 quite as much interest to the young people. 
 Ye aged pioneers, how was it in the years long 
 ago, when, on horseback, you rode to the log 
 cabin home of her, with whom, perhaps, you 
 have since walked life's rugged journey, and 
 found her dressed in a flannel, linsey-woolsey, 
 or calico dress ; and when from the corner of 
 the rail fence, or from a convenient stump, she 
 sprang on the horse behind you and put her 
 arms around you to keep her seat — well ! no 
 bad feeling existed then. People, perhaps, 
 were more honest than they are in this fast age. 
 The family supplies of the pioneers were mostl}^ 
 produced by themselves. Meat, bread and a 
 few vegetables were the main staples in the way 
 of provisions. Whisky was very common after 
 1818, and in a few families previous to that 
 date. The surplus grain was made into whisky 
 and thus it was put into better and more con- 
 venient shape to handle. Whisky was almost 
 a legal tender. Previous to the opening of the 
 Erie Canal, goods were hauled from Albany 
 and Buffalo in Conestoga wagons, and from 
 
 \^ a 
 
TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 ifil 
 
 Philadelphia and Baltimore across the mount- 
 ains. Of course, this put upon the goods so 
 high a tariff that home manufactures were the 
 main dependence for clothing. But little at- 
 tention was then dev^oted to stock-raising, or to 
 the improvement of stock. Horses and cattle 
 were of inferior breed, and hogs even worse if 
 possible. Long and gaunt, with snouts of suf- 
 ficient length to root a foot deep without get- 
 ting dirt in their e3'es ; regular racers and 
 chuck full of fight. Sheep were native breeds, 
 and course of wool, verj' unlike those we have 
 now. The pioneer farmer worked to a great 
 disadvantage ; his teams were oxen, and his 
 plow was what was called the " bull plow," and 
 was made principally' of wood, by some farmer, 
 more handy with tools than his neighbors. 
 Crops were not raised and harvested without 
 the sevex'est manual labor. 
 
 Coal-mining in Tallraadge has been carried 
 to some extent, but as this branch of industry 
 has been more particularly mentioned in another 
 chapter, we shall say but little on the subject. 
 Coal was discovered at an earl}' day, at or near 
 the southeast corner of the township. There is 
 a tradition that it also was discovered one mile 
 west of the center, by means of a woodchuck, 
 which, in digging its burrow, threw out pieces 
 of coal. Col. Charles Whittlesey says : " Coal 
 was first found at Coal Hill, in 1810. There 
 was an entry made in a ravine north of the east- 
 and-west road, which was owned b}- Asaph 
 Whittlesey and Samuel Newton. The demand 
 for coal in 1824 was considerable, and no other 
 mine was opened then. About this time, Hen- 
 ry Newberr}', of Cuyahoga Falls, discovered 
 coal at the northwest six corners." In later 
 years, coal has been extensively mined in the 
 township, and the deposits by some are sup- 
 posed to be nearly exhausted. The first attempt 
 at manufacturing in Tallmadge was in 1817. 
 Asaph Whittlese}', in connection with Lair & 
 Norton, built a forge and manufactured bar- 
 iron. The location is still known as the " Old 
 Forge." In 1827, Amos Avery opened a shop 
 for the manufacture of wagons. William C. 
 Oviatt had opened a blacksmith-shop the year 
 before, and in 1836, he and Avery entered into 
 partnership for the manufacture of carriages. 
 This business, under various firms, has been 
 continued to the present time. The manufact- 
 ure of stoneware is carried on extensively, 
 and sewer-pipe was made by Sperry & Richie 
 
 until they were burned out. John A. Carruth- 
 ers at one time did a large business in the man- 
 ufacture of sorghum sirup. After carrjing on 
 the business for some time, he turned his atten- 
 tion to the making of apple-butter*. Barnes 
 Brothers also do a large business in this line. 
 The first tannery was opened on Camp Brook, 
 south of the center, by George Kilbourn. in 
 1809. He was followed by Anson Ashley, who 
 for several years carried on the business. John 
 Carruthers also did some tanning in the south- 
 east part of the town. The streams of water 
 in Tallmadge were small, and of little force as 
 a water-power, but were utilized to some ex- 
 tent. A saw-mill was built on the Sperr}' Farm 
 in 1828, but finally failed for lack of water. 
 Another, built in the southeast corner of the 
 township, on the farm of Seth Meacham, failed 
 from the same cause. Two steam saw-mills 
 have for years supplied lumber to the people ; 
 one of them is still in operation. A tavern was 
 opened by Aaron Hine in 1819, and was the 
 first public-house in the township. This tav- 
 ern was south of the center. He was followed 
 in the business by William S. Granger", who kept 
 a tavern on the south side of the public square. 
 He was succeeded b}^ William Kingsbury, 
 Ephraim Shaler and others. A large house 
 was built on the east side of the public square, 
 and has since been opened as a public-house. 
 There has nearly always been a tavern in oper- 
 ation at the center since 1819, the date of the 
 first one opened in the township. 
 
 When Tallmadge first became known to the 
 whites, there was a well-defined Indian trail 
 passing through the township in a southeasterly 
 course from Cuyahoga Portage, and crossed the 
 town line a short distance west of the center 
 road. Another trail passed up the south side 
 of the river, through the township, and half a 
 mile from the northeast corner passed into Stow 
 Township, crossed the corner into Franklin, 
 thence near the river to the '' Standing Stone," 
 where was the Indian fording-place. One of the 
 first roads in Tallmadge was the north-and-south 
 center road. The petition for it was granted by 
 the County Commissioners of Portage County, 
 soon after its organization as a county in 1808. 
 The signers to the petition for this road were 
 Charles Clinttenden, Ephraim Clark, Jr., Jona- 
 than Sprague, Nathaniel Chapman, Joseph 
 Towsley, Theodore Bradley, William Neal, Jus- 
 tin E. Friuk and Joel Gaylord. Upon granting 
 
Al' 
 
 562 
 
 HISTOEY OF SUMMIT COT/NT Y. 
 
 the petition, George Kilbourn, Nathaniel Chap- 
 man and David Bacon were appointed a com- 
 mittee, and Joseph Darrovv, Surveyer. About 
 1824, a State road was laid out from Canton to 
 Cleveland through Tallmadge, on the north- 
 and-south center road. Another State road 
 from Wooster to Mantua, in Portage County, 
 passed through Tallmadge on the northeast and 
 southwest diagonal road, and was laid out about 
 1827. A second petition for a road, dated 
 February 20, 1809, was for what is now the 
 southeast diagonal road to the center, thence to 
 the east line of Great Lot No. 1, and thence to 
 the most conv,enient place to build a bridge 
 over the Cuyahoga River, near the north line of 
 the town. Another road was laid out from 
 Hart & Norton's Mill, called the " mill road." 
 It was laid out in 1809-10, and another from 
 Middlebury to Cuyahoga Falls, passing the old 
 Forge and Bettes' Corners. The first mail 
 route was established in 1814, over the road 
 from Cleveland to Canton, the mail passing 
 twice a week. For some years it was carried 
 on horseback ; then a hack or stage was put 
 on, and passengers as well as the mail were car- 
 ried between those points. Some years later, 
 another route was established from Akron to 
 Kent and Ravenna, and returning via Brim- 
 field. Still later a mail route was established 
 from Cuyahoga Falls to Tallmadge. the mail 
 being carried on horseback. The mail for 
 Tallmadge is now received dail}' by the Penn- 
 sylvania, New York & Ohio Railroad. The At- 
 lantic & Great Western — ^now the New York, 
 Pennsylvania & Ohio Railway — was survej-ed 
 through the township and in order to have it 
 pass tbe center, the people of the township 
 subscribed $43,000. This road has been of in- 
 estimable value to us. The Valley Railroad 
 touches a ver^- small corner of Tallmadge. The 
 railroad history', however, is moi'c fully given 
 in another chapter. The first store was opened 
 in a building which stood in front of the resi- 
 dence of I. P. Sperrj', and it is supposed 
 that the firm was Fenn & Howard. They con- 
 tinued in business some time, and were followed 
 by Christopher C. Sturdevant. He erected the 
 building now used as a store. Wiswell &Groff 
 opened a store in this building, but did not re- 
 main long, and Eleazer C. Sackett was the next 
 merchant. William A. Hanford clerked for 
 Sackett, and eventually bought half of his in- 
 terest ; then Homer S. Carter bought out Sack- 
 
 ett. This firm carried on business until E. V. 
 Carter bought out Hanford, when the firm be- 
 came H. S. & E. V. Carter. E. V. sold to his 
 partner, who carried on the store until Clement 
 Wright took an interest, and the firm became 
 Carter & Wright. Carter finally withdrew, and 
 Wright still continues the business. A man 
 named Clark opened a store about the year 
 1835, in the house now the residence of Benja- 
 min D. Wright, which was continued for some 
 two years or more. A post office was estab- 
 lished in Tallmadge April 9, 1814, with Asaph 
 Whittlesey as Postmaster, a position he held 
 uniil his death in 1842. His son, S. H., suc- 
 ceededed him as Postmaster, and he was suc- 
 ceeded by H. S. Carter. During Buchanan's 
 administration, Heman K. Parsons was ap- 
 pointed, who resigned at the beginning of Mr. 
 Lincoln's administration, and H. S. Carter was 
 again appointed, who retained the office until 
 the appointment of Clement Wright, the pres- 
 ent Postmaster. 
 
 The first church society organized in the 
 township is known as the " First Congrega- 
 tional Church of Tallmadge," and has borne 
 that title for sixty years. Rev. David Bacon 
 preached the first sermon, not only in Tallmadge 
 but in Springfield and Suffield, for the few scat- 
 tered inhabitants of the three townships would 
 gather on the Sabbath Day, at the cabin of some 
 settler, and Mr. Bacon would officiate as a vol- 
 unteer missionar}- to the little congregation. The 
 first meetings were held in his cabin, and after- 
 ward barns were used as temples of worship. 
 It is supposed that Rev. Jonathan Leslie was 
 the next preacher to Mr. Bacon. He was a mis- 
 sionary, and sent out in the interest of the 
 missionary' society of Connecticut. Rev. Sim- 
 eon WoodruflT was another of the early minis- 
 ters who proclaimed the woi'd to the pioneers 
 of Tallmadge, and the first regular Pastor of 
 the church. Rev. Jonathan Leslie preached 
 his first sermon on the 20th of Jauuar}', 1809, 
 and, on the next day, which was Saturday, a 
 number of persons met together for the pur- 
 pose of foi-ming a ■■ Church of Christ," Mr. Les- 
 lie acting as Moderator. The following is the 
 record of the Sabbath meeting, January 22, 
 1809 : " Met according to adjournment. Pres- 
 ent, George Kilbourn, Almira his wife ; Eph- 
 raim Clark, Jr., Amelia his wife : Alice Bacon ; 
 Amos C.Wright, Lydia his wife ; Hepsibah Chap- 
 man and Justin E. Frink. The persons above 
 
 ^1 
 
 TV 
 
k. 
 
 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 563 
 
 named presented themselves to be constituted 
 a Church of Christ. A system of faith was then 
 read, to which the}^ gave their consent. They 
 were then led to the solemn adoption of a cov- 
 enant, in which the}- engaged to keep and walk 
 in the ordinances of the (xospel of Christ. The}' 
 were then declared a Church of Christ, com- 
 mended to His blessing, and charged solemnly 
 to keep covenant and walk worth}' the follow- 
 ers of the Lord Jesus, the head of tlie church. 
 (Signed) Jonathan Leslie, Moderator." This 
 organization took place in Mr. Bacon's cabin, 
 and, at the same time, the Sacrament of the 
 Lord's Supper was administered for the first time 
 the township. The ordinance of baptism was 
 also administered on four children, viz., Juliana 
 and Alice, daughters of Mr. Bacon ; Amos, son 
 of Dr. Amos C. Wright, and Eliza, daughter of 
 George Kilbourn. The last one of the original 
 nine members died in Hudson. This was the 
 venerable George Kilbourn, who died there 
 March 14, 1866, at the age of ninety-six years. 
 The spot whereon Mr. Bacon's house stood and 
 in which this church was organized has been 
 marked, and is looked on as almost sacred. 
 Here it was that the Scriptures were first read in 
 the township, here the first sermon was preached, 
 and here the first church society was organized 
 — almost equal to the spot on which King Sol- 
 omon's temple stood, which had been " thrice 
 dedicated to the one true and living God." 
 The Congregational Church of Tallmadge is 
 claimed to be the eleventh church organization 
 on the Western Reserve, a fact that is probably 
 beycmd dispute. The first is the Fii'st Presby- 
 tei'ian, of Youngstown, which was organized in 
 1800— this following in 1809. 
 
 There were some of Mr. Bacon's ideas that 
 were not by any means popular with the mass 
 of the people, and eventually proved impracti- 
 cable. He found theory was one thing and 
 practice another. One of his cherished ideas 
 was that none should receive land but those 
 who were either members of the Congregational 
 Church or in sympathy with its principles, and 
 $2 were to be paid on each one hundred acres 
 of land, the sum to go toward the support of 
 the Gospel. This provision was inserted in 
 some of the early contracts and deeds, but 
 never went into general use. The clause was 
 as follows : •' Reserving an annuity of $2 on 
 each and every 100 acres of land sold, to be 
 paid on the 1st day of January of each year 
 
 forever, to the committee of the Society of Tall- 
 madge for the support of the Gospel Ministry 
 of the Calvinistic faith, and of the Congrega- 
 tional order of said society forever, with a right 
 and power to distrain for the same in case the 
 same be in arrear. Which annuity we, for di- 
 vers good considerations, especially for the 
 sum of $1, received of the society in Tall- 
 madge, in the county of Portage, do for our- 
 selves and our heirs hereby give, grant, sell, 
 assign and transfer the aforesaid annuity of $2 
 on each and every 100 acres of land in the said 
 society of Tallmadge, and to their successors 
 forever ; to hold and receive the same in trust, 
 for the use and purpose of supporting the min- 
 istry aforesaid in said society forever. (Signed) 
 David Bacon." As we have said, this provision 
 did not go into general use. Edmond Strong re- 
 fused to pay the sum thus levied on his land, 
 and Mr. Bacon commenced a suit against him 
 as a test of the legality of such contracts. Pe- 
 ter Hitchcock, of Burton, since a Member of Con- 
 gress and Judge of the Supreme Court of Ohio, 
 was Mr. Strong's attorney. Mr. Bacon lost the 
 case, and thus ended the perpetual land tax to 
 support the church in Tallmadge. This suit 
 took place about the year 1811. But, notwith- 
 standing these little difficulties, a majority of 
 the people were Bacon's warm, true friends, and 
 he was held in high estimation in the commu- 
 nity. Early in 1812, he made his arrangements 
 to return to Connecticut with his family. The 
 people assembled in the schoolhouse at the four 
 corners on top of the hill, near Jesse Sprague's, 
 to hear his farewell sermon. He chose for his 
 text 2 Tim., iii, 9 : " But they shall proceed no 
 further : for their foil}' shall be manifest unto 
 all men, as theirs also was. ' From the account 
 given of this sermon by Mr. Blakslee, who was 
 present, Mr. Bacon did not spare the little flock, 
 and was very pointed and emphatic in his re- 
 marks to Ephraim Clark, Jr., and Mr. Sprague 
 for the course they had pursued in opposition 
 to his cherished plans. Mr. Bacon died in Hart- 
 ford, Conn., August 27, 1817, at the early age 
 of forty -six years. 
 
 The first regular Pastor of the Congrega- 
 tional Church of Tallmadge was Rcy. Sim- 
 eon Woodruff", already alluded to incidentally. 
 He was a native of Litchfield, Conn., and a 
 graduate of Yale College. He studied theol- 
 ogy at Andover, and was licensed to preach in 
 1S12. In 1813, he was sent to the Western 
 
 (T- 
 
 f 
 
564 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Reserve as a missionary, and on the 18th of 
 May of that year he was installed Pastor of 
 the church in Ephraim Clark's barn, a building 
 that is still standing. His pastorate closed 
 September 19, 182.3, and he died in Bainbridge, 
 Mich., in August, 1839. The second Pastor 
 was Rev. John Ke^'s, a native of New Hamp- 
 shire, and a graduate of Dartmouth College. 
 He was installed Pastor of the Tallraadge 
 Church by the Presbyter}' of Portage Septem- 
 ber 9, 1824, and continued until April 16. 
 1832, when his connection ceased. He died in 
 Cuyahoga County in January, 1867. Rev. 
 Jedediah E. Parmelee succeeded Mr. Ke3's, 
 and began his duties as acting Pastor of the 
 church Januai'3' 18, 1833. Owing to failing 
 health, he resigned his charge April 1-1, 1840, 
 and died in New York in June, 1841. Rev. 
 William Magill commenced his duties as 
 Pastor of Tallmadge Church in 1840, and was 
 regularly installed as Pastor August 16, 1841. 
 He remained until 1843, when his connec- 
 tion ceased ; he is yet living. Rev. Carlos 
 Smith was the next Pastor, and commenced 
 his ministrations July 25, 1847. By vote 
 of the church he was called to the pastor- 
 ate, but was never installed as such. He 
 labored as Pastor elect until January 14, 1862, 
 when he received and accepted a call from the 
 Second Congregational Chui'ch of Akron. He 
 died in Akron April 22, 1877, at the age of 
 seventy-six years. Rev. Seth W. Segur suc- 
 ceeded Mr. Smith as Pastor of the Tallmadge 
 Church, and commenced his labors on the 8th 
 of June, 1862. He continued until April, 
 1871, when he tendered his resignation, which 
 was accepted, and, on the 30th of the month 
 (Sabbath), he preached his farewell sermon. 
 He was invited to attend the semi-centennial 
 of the church held September 8, 1875. He 
 came and participated, but was very unwell, 
 and after the services went with IMr. Daniel 
 Hine to his home, where he died on the 24th. 
 He was the first of the Pastors of our church 
 buried in Tallmadge. At this time (1881) 
 there are sleeping in the little graveyard at 
 Tallmadge Center nine ministers of the Gos- 
 pel, viz.: Rev. Aaron Kinne, Rev. Aaron Kinne 
 Wright, Rev. Fayette D. Matthews, Rev. Will- 
 iam "Hanford, Rev. Elisha S. Scott, Rev. Will- 
 iam Monk, Rev. Benjamin Fenn, Rev. John 
 Seward and Rev. S. W. Segur. The next Pas- 
 tor of the Tallmadge Church was Rev. Charles 
 
 Cutter, who commenced his pastoral duties 
 September 1, 1871, and closed his work with 
 the church May 30, 1875. The present acting 
 Pastor is Rev. William Blackmore Marsh. 
 
 The Congregational Church of Tallmadge 
 erected a temple of worship in 1822. It is 56 
 x44 feet in dimensions, surmounted b}' a steeple 
 100 feet high. The building was raised and 
 inclosed in 1822, but not llnished until 1825. 
 On the 8th of September of that year, it was 
 dedicated to divine worship. The exact cost 
 of it is not known, but will probabl}- approxi- 
 mate $8,000. It was remodeled in 1849, and 
 re-dedicated in 1850. At the time of its first 
 dedication, it was considered the best house of 
 worship on the Western Reserve, and upon re- 
 search was proven to be the fifth built with a 
 steeple, after the New England fashion. The 
 first of these five was built at Austinburg (now 
 in Ashtabula County) in 1816 ; the second in 
 Euclid, now known as Collamer, about the 
 year 1817; also in the same year, the old 
 brick meeting-house at Aurora was begun, but 
 was not finished until 1825 ; the fourth was 
 built in Hudson in 1819. All of these ancient 
 temples have passed away before the march of 
 improvement, but those of Tallmadge and Col- 
 amer. The number of communicants of the 
 Tallmadge Church at the present time are 105 
 males and 169 females. The Sunday school 
 was organized probably about the spring of 
 1822, although classes had been taught after 
 the manner of Sunday schools previous to that 
 time by Deacon Elizur Wright and others. 
 Previous to 1335, the school would disband at 
 the beginning of winter, and resume work in 
 the spring, but since that time (1835) has con- 
 tinued in active operation throughout the en- 
 tire year. 
 
 The Methodist Episcopal Church is the only 
 religious denomination, aside from the Congre- 
 gational Church, that has ever been represented 
 in Tallmadge by an organized society. The 
 first introduction of Methodism into the town- 
 ship occurred somewhat as follows :. Milo Stone 
 and Jotham Blakslee, not fully agreeing with 
 the Congregational doctrine in ever\- particular, 
 went over to Middlebury to listen to the words 
 of wisdom falling from the lips of Rev. Billings 
 0. Plimpton, at that time preaching on the 
 Canton Circuit of the M. E. Church. Being 
 well pleased with the liberal doctrine promul- 
 gated by Rev. Mr. Plimpton, they invited him 
 
 
Li* 
 
 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 565 
 
 to Tallmadge Center to expound the truth in 
 that localit}'. He accepted the invitation, and 
 preached his first sermon in the schoolhouse, 
 which tlien stood west of the Center road, 
 nearly in front of the town hall. He contin- 
 ued his labors at intervals, and near the close 
 of the year formed a class at the Center con- 
 sisting of Jotham Blakslee (class leader), Milo 
 Stone, Sarah B. Stone, his wife, S. H. Lowrey, 
 Anna P. Lowrey, his wife, and Mrs. Martha 
 Stephens. Mr. Plimpton was returned to the 
 Canton Circuit the next year (1826), and Tall- 
 madge Center became one of his regular ap- 
 pointments. At this time it was in the juris- 
 diction of the Pittsburgh Conference, and so 
 remained until 1837, when it became a part of 
 the Akron Circuit, Ravenna District, and Erie 
 Conference. The first meeting-house was a 
 plain structure, about forty feet square perhaps, 
 costing some $1,500, and stood about two hun- 
 dred rods northeast of the public square ; built 
 in 1832, and completed and dedicated the next 
 year. The dedicatory services were performed 
 by Presiding Elder Rev. W. B. Mack. It was 
 occupied b}' the church until 1874, when a lot 
 was purchased on the south side of the square, 
 and the present elegant edifice erected at a cost 
 of $8,000, and dedicated on the 4th day of 
 April, 1875, by Rev. J. H. Vincent, D. D. The 
 present Pastor is Rev. E. A. Simmons, with a 
 large and flourishing membership. A Sunday 
 school was organized in 1830, which has been 
 continued to the present time. It is a note- 
 worthy fact that these two denominations have 
 always worked together in harmony and love, 
 holding Thanksgiving services alternately at 
 each church, and the ministers frequently 
 exchanging pulpits. The cause of temperance 
 has always had many warm friends and sup- 
 porters in Tallmadge, though sixt}' years ago it 
 was not considered derogatory to the character 
 and standing of a family to use spirituous 
 liquors as a beverage. Very many farmers 
 would exchange their grain for whisky, and 
 often would have a barrel of it in their houses. 
 But about 1828-30, many began to abandon 
 the use of it altogether as a beverage, and this 
 feeling has continued to the present day. It is 
 highly creditable to the people of Tallmadge 
 that there has never been but one distillery 
 within the town limits, and this existed but 
 about two years, and was near the northwest 
 six corners. 
 
 The church and the schoolhouse were always 
 leading points in the minds of the Puritans of 
 New England, and wherever they went they al- 
 ways carried these principles with them ; first, to 
 organize a church, ei'ect a building suitable for 
 holding meetings, and, next, to erect a school- 
 house. Mr. Bacon, in his plan of settlement of 
 the town, was, as we have seen, to provide for 
 the preaching of the Gospel and its support, 
 and also was to provide for common schools 
 and academic instruction. In the survey made 
 b}^ Ensign there was to be at the Center and at 
 each six corners erected district schoolhouses, 
 while at the Center was to be located the acad- 
 em}'. On the hill now occupied as a cemeter}', 
 where sleep so many of the pioneers of Tall- 
 madge, Mr. Bacon located in his mind the 
 Western Reserve College, the Yale of New 
 Connecticut. The first attempt at a school of 
 which we have any account was in the spring 
 of 1810. A small log building was erected for 
 school purposes at the south four corners. 
 A meeting was called at this place, as the 
 writer was informed by Jotham Blakslee, but 
 two men got into an altercation, and it was 
 broken up without accomplishing an3'thing. 
 But so deeply interested was Mrs. Blakslee in 
 having a school, that she undertook the duty of 
 visiting the settlers upon the subject. She also 
 went to Martin Kent's, in SuflSeld, and hired a 
 Miss Lucy Foster as a teacher. She came and 
 taught school during the spring and summer of 
 1810, which was doubtless the first school in 
 Tallmadge. She afterward married Alpha 
 Wright, and spent the remainder of her long 
 and useful life in Tallmadge, and died Septem- 
 ber 30, 1875, at the ripe age of eighty-five 
 3'ears. It is thought that a schoolhouse was 
 "built in the fall of 1810, on the hill at the 
 southwest four corners, and a school kept in 
 it during the winter of 1810-11. A similar 
 house was built at the south four corners, and 
 another in the east part of the township, soon 
 after those already mentioned. The first frame 
 schoolhouse was built on the public square, on 
 the spot now occupied by the Congregational 
 Church. It was commenced in 1814, but not 
 finished until the next 3'ear ; was 20x30 feet, 
 two stories high, the lower story being occupied 
 by the district school, and the upper story by 
 the academy, and also for religious worship. 
 The academj' was opened with Rev. Simeon 
 Woodruff as teacher or Principal, and was sue- 
 
 ^i: 
 
 
 ^ 
 
566 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 ceeded by Elizur Wright and others. An act 
 incorporating the Tallmadge Academ}'^ was 
 passed February 27, 1816. The academy 
 buikling was burned on the night of January 
 12, 1820, and a new building erected the same 
 year, especially for the purpose. A separate 
 building was erected for the district school, 
 southeast of the town hall, and it was in this 
 building that the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 was organized. As the population and wealth 
 of the township inci'eased, frame school build- 
 ings were erected in other districts, and some 
 have been replaced with handsome and com- 
 modious bricks. When the new town hall was 
 built, the people, by subscription, raised a suf- 
 ficient amount to build the second story for the 
 academ}', and for several years competent 
 teachers were employed in this department. 
 But the system of graded schools finally super- 
 seded the academy. A special district was 
 formed at the Center June 1 1 , 1870, and a lot was 
 purchased and a building was erected, which 
 was used until it was burned. It was speedily 
 rebuilt, at a cost (building and furniture) of 
 $4,500. There are four departments, occupying 
 four rooms, with competent teachers. 
 
 The Deaf and Dumb School of Tallmadge 
 was an institution that should have a place in 
 the township's history. This project was in- 
 augurated in consequence of there being a 
 family in the neighborhood in which there 
 were three children who were deaf mutes. A 
 meeting was held March 19, 1827, to look 
 into the matter, and a committee, consisting of 
 Rev. John Keys, Deacon Elizur Wright, Dr. 
 Philo Wright, Garney Treat and Alfred Fenn, 
 with power to act and devise means for a 
 
 school. The}' finally adopted a measure for 
 organizing a deaf and dumb school, secured 
 rooms and employed Col. Smith, who had taken 
 a thorough course in the Deaf and Dumb Asy- 
 lum at Hartford, Conn. The school was 
 opened May 1, 1827, in a room of Alpha 
 VVright's house, one mile south of the Center. 
 Tuition was $6 per quarter, and the session 
 was for six months. In 1829, the Deaf and 
 Dumb Asylum was established at Columlnis, 
 and the school was transferred to it. But 
 Tallmadge claims the honor of establishing the 
 first institution of the kind in the State. 
 
 A library was organized in Tallmadge in 
 1813, and continued in existence for over fifty 
 years. The idea of a public library- was 
 brought from New England. It was supported 
 by shares of stock, or memberships, fines, bids, 
 donations, etc., etc., and it continued to in- 
 crease until it contained over three hundred 
 volumes of standard works. Plays and novels 
 were excluded, and the best of works only 
 allowed. The good accomplished through this 
 means cannot very well be measured. 
 
 Perhaps we should not close the history of 
 Tallmadge Township without a brief notice of 
 anti-slaverj', a question in which Tallmadge 
 felt the most lively interest. A large number 
 of the people were in sympathy with the anti- 
 slaver}' movement, and a man who would in- 
 form upon or arrest a colored individual under 
 the Fugitive Slave Law would have found Tall- 
 madge a rather warm climate to live in. The 
 cause gained strength gradually, and, when 
 Fort Sumter was fired on, in 1861, Tallmadge 
 was read}' for her part in the great battle f(.)r 
 humanity and the Union. 
 
 (T' 
 
:£ 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 567 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV.* 
 
 NOHTHFIELD TOWNSHIP— OUTLINE OF PIIVSICAL FEATURES — RISE. PROGRESS AND DECAY OF 
 
 INDUSTRIES— IMPORTANT .nTATISTICS FROM OLD RE'^oRDS— INSTITUTIONS FOR 
 
 MORAL AND INTELLECTUAL IMPROVEMENT — VILLAGES. 
 
 ^TORTHFIELD was one of the equalizing 
 l\i townships. It was originally' called Town 
 5, Range 11 ; and the reason of its being 
 classed as one of the equalizing townships will 
 be found elsewhere in this volume. It was in- 
 cluded among the few townships which were su- 
 perior to the average, and each proprietor was 
 anxious to have a portion of it ; consequently, 
 it was divided into shares of 160 acres each, 
 and parceled out among the New England pro- 
 prietors, who, not having seen the land, and 
 believing that, from its stated superiority, it 
 should be retained until time had assured the 
 settlers of its value, refused to sell for a num- 
 ber of years, thus accounting for the tardy 
 appearance of this portion of the county in 
 market. It may also be stated that some of 
 the original proprietors died, leaving their pos- 
 sessions in this township to minor children, 
 thus preventing the disposal of the land until 
 after these children had arrived at their ma- 
 jorit}'. The fact of its being one of the best 
 townships in the Reserve served to prevent 
 its earl}' appearance in market. It will be 
 noted in this connection that, while average 
 townships were not altered or cut up into seg- 
 ments and distributed to others, on the other 
 hand, townships both poorer and better than 
 the average were parceled out as has been de- 
 scribed. Northfield was accounted one of the 
 best sections of country in the Reserve, and 
 the various reasons for this view will now be 
 carefully noticed. 
 
 Its location was thought at that time to be 
 excellent. Along its entire western border was 
 a river that could be navigated by boats of the 
 largest size, thus favoring the township with 
 easy and constant communication with Lake 
 Erie and all the towns upon its shore. At that 
 time, twice the present volume of water swept 
 down the river, and it was not dreamed in the 
 philosophy of the earl}' settlers, that the quan- 
 
 *Contril)Utcd by W. A. Goodspeed. 
 
 tity would ever be materially decreased, at least 
 to such an extent as to prevent extensive navi- 
 gation. The valley of the river on the North- 
 field side was sloping and well drained, giving 
 abundant promise that future years would dis- 
 close a soil of unusual fertility and strength. 
 The bluffs bordering the valley, though too 
 abrupt and precipitous to be turned up by the 
 plow in the future, were sufficiently sloping to 
 afford fine pasture land. Back of the hills was 
 as fine a land for -the agriculturist as lay 
 beneath the sun. Though sufficiently flat to be 
 too damp for the farmer in early years, it was 
 also sufficiently rolling to promise that, when 
 the heavy woods were removed, and the cheer- 
 ful light and heat of the sun were permitted to 
 drink up the superficial waters, a soil would 
 be found of excellent adaptability to agricult- 
 ural purposes. The soil is largely alluvial, 
 and contains an unusual percentage of par- 
 tially decayed vegetable material, though 
 years have elapsed since it was first brought 
 under cultivation. It contains less clay and 
 more organic I'emains than almost any other 
 portion of the county ; and for this reason, as 
 well as for the fact that there is but little waste 
 land, the township was classed by the examin- 
 ing committee as one of the finest in the entire 
 Reserve. 
 
 The river on the west affords the principal 
 source of drainage. It has various small 
 branches, which traverse the township with 
 sufficient fall, in many places, to furnish fine 
 water-power. Of these branches. Brandywine 
 Creek is the main one. This stream flows from 
 near the southeast corner toward the north- 
 west, until the village of Little York is reached, 
 when it is joined by Indian Run, and takes a 
 coarse toward the southwest, dipping across 
 what was once the township line into Boston, 
 but returning toward the northwest, and finally 
 uniting with the river on Lot 70. Indian Run 
 rises near the northeast corner, and flowing a 
 
 TV 
 
:i^ 
 
 568 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 trifle west of south, unites with Brand3'wine 
 Creek at Little York. Much of the northern 
 part is drained b}- Sangamore Creek, while the 
 western part sends its waters to the river by 
 means of numerous small unnamed streams. 
 There are several valuable stone quarries in 
 Northfield, though from their remoteness from 
 the river, they will not prove as profitable as 
 those from which the stone can be loaded with- 
 out much expense on the canal boats. A few, 
 however, are found bordering the river ; these 
 in time will secure merchant work, though at 
 present, the stone is mostly used at home. 
 
 The first settler was Isaac Bacon, a native 
 of Boston, Mass., who, in 1806, purchased 160 
 acres (Lot 63) in Northfield, and the following 
 year, in April, came with his family to their 
 forest home. No settler lived within six or 
 eight miles ; and, as Mr. Bacon was a total 
 stranger, and was uncertain where to go to 
 secure help in rearing his log cabin, he at last 
 concluded to undertake it alone. This was no 
 light undertaking, as the logs were much too 
 heavy to be raised b}' one man to their elevated 
 positions on the wall. Mr. Bacon was there- 
 fore compelled to resort to some skillful pro- 
 cess, whereby the needed assistance might be 
 avoided. Large skids were braced against the 
 wall, and then, by means of a long rope, which 
 passed over the half-finished building, a yoke 
 of oxen pulled the heavy logs to the required 
 position. At the end of five days the cabin 
 was raised, and covered with a roof made of 
 bark ; the family living, in the meantime, in 
 the wagon, which stood near. With no neigh- 
 bor nearer than Tinker's Creek for three years, 
 with the privilege of seeing white faces only 
 by traveling many miles, the family of Mr. 
 Bacon lived here isolated and alone. Mrs. 
 Bacon was afterward often heard to remark, 
 that for six months after their arrival she saw 
 the face of no white woman, save the one re- 
 flected to her aye when she looked in some 
 clear pool of water. Many incidents of the 
 dangers and privations endured by this family 
 ere the township received other settlers have 
 been gathered ; and a few of these, which illus- 
 trate the lonely, deserted and dangerous sur- 
 roundings of the forest will be narrated. At 
 this period, almost every stream of any note 
 which flowed into Cuyahoga River was the site 
 of numerous Indian encampments, which varied 
 in size from one wigwam, which sheltered one 
 
 family, to encampments containing several 
 hundreds of the semi-civilized race. A small 
 camp of three wigwams was on Mr. Bacon's 
 farm, and these families continued to camp 
 there at stated seasons for many years, or until 
 they took their final departure for the West. 
 One daj' when Mrs. Bacon was alone in the 
 cabin, a party of six or seven Indians went to 
 the house, and, after entering without ceremony 
 or invitation, called for whisky-. 3Irs. Bacon, 
 knowing her helpless condition, and foreseeing 
 difficulty and very likely extreme danger should 
 her visitors become intoxicated, informed them 
 that she had none, and that they had better be 
 going on, as her husband would soon appear. 
 After talking among themselves a few minutes, 
 and carefully and suspiciously e3'ing Mrs. 
 Bacon and the various articles in the room, the 
 Indians finally insisted that she did have whisky, 
 and immediately proceeded to search for it, 
 notwithstanding the energetic and earnest pro- 
 tests of the defenseless woman. A large bottle 
 containing about a gallon of the liquor was soon 
 found, and was quickly passed from hand to hand 
 until all was gone, when the Indians, with man}- 
 grimaces and threatening looks and gestures, 
 quitted the premises, to the great relief of the 
 apprehensive woman. She had attempted to 
 interfere when the bottle was first discovered, 
 but several of the Indians drew their knives, 
 and circling them in the air as if in the act of 
 scalping, sternly motioned her back. They de- 
 parted and were seen no more. The Indians 
 were not the only human beings to be feared. 
 Many desperate men, numbers of whom were 
 undoubtedly outlaws, passed through the front- 
 ier settlements on the look-out for any game, 
 no matter how dark, that would meet their de- 
 sires of avarice or selfishness. One day, about 
 noon, a dark-visaged man made his appearance 
 at the cabin when Mr. Bacon was awa}', and, 
 after learning of the absence of the husband, 
 and asking all sorts of impudent questions, sat 
 down with his fierce eyes fixed on the woman, 
 and on a large dog that lay near the hearth 
 watching, with suspicious glances, ever}' motion 
 of the strange visitor. That the stranger did 
 not relish the presence of the dog was soon ev- 
 ident from his uneasiness. That Mrs. Bacon 
 did not relish the presence of the strange man 
 was also clearly evident. As night approached, 
 the man was informed that he could not be ac- 
 commodated until morning, and, as several 
 
liL 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 569 
 
 miles intervened until the nearest house was 
 reached, that he would better be going on. He 
 did not seem inclined to go, and to add to 
 the alarm of Mrs. Bacon he asked one of the 
 little bo3-s to turn the grindstone, while he 
 sharpened his knife. He took his place in the 
 cabin, and the woman, with the dog before her, 
 sat down to watch and wait. As midnight ap- 
 proached, the stranger asked why she did not 
 turn out the dog and go to bed. She replied, 
 that the dog was allowed to sleep in the house. 
 He then opened the -door and told the animal 
 to go ; but the faithful creature, with a fierce 
 growl, refused to move. The man seemed dis- 
 appointed and sat down, and thus matters stood 
 until morning, when the unwelcome guest de- 
 parted and was seen no more. The family have 
 ever since thought, that the presence of the dog 
 alone saved Mrs. Bacon from insult or death, or 
 perhaps both. 
 
 Wild animals, both fierce and dangerous, 
 were often seen in the vicinity of the cabin. 
 Wolves would approach in the night, attracted 
 by the scent of meat, and howl dismally until 
 the break of dawn. Deer were seen by the 
 hundreds, and often came quite close to the 
 cabin. On one occasion, in broad daylight, a 
 bear came quickly from the woods near the 
 cabin, and, seizing a half-grown hog, carried it 
 bodily off into the woods, where it was partly 
 devoured and left. Mr. Bacon obtained a few 
 sheep at quite an earl}' day, but they were 
 found to be more bother than they were worth. 
 One day a pack of wolves got after them, 
 when they ran into the cabin, and were saved 
 for that time. Mr. Bacon was the only inhab- 
 itant until June, 1810, when Jeremiah Cranmer, 
 Mr. Bacon's brother-in-law, arrived, and built 
 a cabin on Lot 72, within half a mile of the 
 cabin of the former. During the excitement 
 occasioned by the war of 1812, Bacon and 
 Cranmer made preparations to take their fam- 
 ilies and seek the protection of the more pop- 
 ulous settlement at Hudson. While the prep- 
 arations were in progress, an Indian was seen 
 skulking in the woods near, and was told that 
 if he valued his scalp he had better depart 
 without dela}'. He departed. After the}' had 
 started, a report reached them that there was 
 no danger, whereupon they returned, though 
 they kept up an anxious watch for several 
 weeks afterward. Mi*. Bacon was drafted and 
 ordered to Cleveland, but was soon afterward 
 
 discharged and sent home. Here, in Novem- 
 ber, 1812, he was taken sick and died, and was 
 buried on Tinker's Creek. Prior to this sad 
 event, the Bacon family had, in 1808, lost an 
 infant daughter, her death being the first in 
 the township. 
 
 In 1813, Abraham Cranmer appeared and 
 bought the north half of Lot 72. His cabin 
 was built with the assistance of Bacon and 
 Jeremiah Cranmer, and his family made as 
 comfortable as possible. In June of the same 
 year, a young man named Henry Wood, one 
 who was destined to play an important part in 
 the affairs of Northfield, came to the township. 
 While here, he won the affections of Estber, 
 daughter of Jeremiah Cranmer, who accepted 
 his proposal, and the}' were married September 
 22, 1813, at the residence of the bi'ide's father. 
 This was the first wedding in Northfield. 
 Henry Wood was in the war of 1812, and in 
 his compan}' were Henry Post, who acted as 
 Orderl}' Sergeant ; Abner Robinson, the poet of 
 Boston, and Jonathan Williams, the latter 
 serving in the capacity of scout. The com- 
 pany went west as far as Sandusky, but did 
 not see any active service. It was Henry 
 Wood who, in passing a small creek in the 
 township, and seeing several small parties of 
 Indians encamped thereon, called it Indian 
 Creek, a name it yet retains in honor of this 
 man, who is yet living at the unusual age of 
 ninety-one years. Mr. Wood often had hogs 
 killed by the bears. It is related by him that 
 on one occasion, he owned one shoat in a lot 
 of sixteen, which ran wild in the forest. Hear- 
 ing loud squealing one night, he took his rifle 
 and hurried out to ascertain the cause, where- 
 upon he found that his pig had been selected 
 out of the herd, and carried off by a large 
 bear. The squealings at a distance in the 
 dai'k forest disclosed its fate. 
 
 In 1814, George Wallace came to Brand}^- 
 wine, and built a saw-mill. A relative of his 
 named John Menough took charge of the mill, 
 and Mr. Wallace returned to Cleveland, and 
 did not bring his family out until 1818. In 
 1815, Robert Wallace came on with his fjimily, 
 and built a small log cabin at Brandywine. It 
 is said that this village and the creek of the 
 same name were named by John Menough, 
 after the historical stream in the East, where 
 Gen. Washington fought a severe battle during 
 the Revolution. In March, 1817, Henry Wood, 
 
 t 
 

 570 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 John Duncan, Maurice Cranmer and a few other 
 families moved into the township. There also 
 came in, prior to 1819, William Cranney, Will- 
 iam Mather, Abel Havens, Abner Hunt, Daniel 
 Robertson, Edward Coyne, John Britt and 
 Shubael Austin. The following is taken from 
 the township records : 
 
 " At a meeting of the qualitied electors of the 
 township of Northfield on the 24th of May, 
 1819, the following officers were elected for the 
 occasion : John Britt, Moderator ; Jeremiah 
 Cranmer and John Duncan, Judges ; Orrin 
 Wilcox, Clerk. After the officers had been 
 duly sworn, the following township elections 
 were made : Henry Wood, Clerk ; George 
 Wallace, Jeremiah Cranmer and John Duncan, 
 Trustees ; William Cranney and William Mather, 
 Overseers of the Poor ; Robert Wallace and 
 Maurice Cranmer, Fence Viewers ; Watrous 
 Mather, Treasurer ; John Duncan, Abel Havens, 
 Daniel Robertson and Abner Hunt, Supervisors 
 of Highways ; Edward Coyne and Abraham 
 Cranmer, Constables." Mr. Wood, who is yet 
 living, says that this first election was held at 
 the cabin of William Cranney. He also says 
 that just before the township received its 
 name, the settlers, who had assembled to erect 
 a log house near the cemetery, began to sug- 
 gest names. Mr. Wood wanted it called " York." 
 Other names were suggested by several parties, 
 among which was "Northfield," by Jeremiah 
 Cranmer. A vote was taken on the various 
 names suggested, and -'Northfield" was se- 
 lected. The following is quoted from the 
 records : " Poll Book of Northjield, Portage 
 County, Ohio, October 12, 1819 — Jeremiah 
 Cranmer, (xeorge Wallace and John Duncan, 
 Judges of Election, and Henry Wood and John 
 Britt, Clerks. Number and names of electors 
 on this day : Abraham Cranmer, Abel Havens, 
 Jeremiah Cranmer, John Duncan. Shubael Aus- 
 tin, George Wallace, John Britt, Henry Wood, 
 Robert Wallace and Edward Coyne— in all ten. 
 Names of persons voted for and for what offices, 
 containing the number of votes cast for each 
 candidate : For Convention, 1 ; against Con- 
 vention, 8. For Senator, Almon Ruggles, 7 ; 
 William Whitmore, 1. For Representative, 
 Samuel King, 10. For County Commissioner, 
 Stephen Woodward, 8 ; Rial McArthur, 2." 
 The ten electors just mentioned were not all 
 there were in the township, and yet there were 
 but few others. The following oflScers were 
 
 elected April 3, 1820, as shown by the records : 
 Henry Wood, Clerk ; John Duncan, Maurice 
 Cranmer and A. Cranmer, Trustees ; Amos 
 Richardson and Nathaniel Parsons, Overseers 
 of the Poor ; Edward Coyne and Abner Hunt, 
 Fence Viewers ; Dorsey Viers, Isaac Lake, A. S. 
 Honey and Robert Richardson, Supervisors of 
 Highways ; William Cranney and Robert Men- 
 dal. Constables ; William Mather. Treasurer. 
 Three weeks later, another election was held for 
 the purpose of electing two Justices of the Peace, 
 resulting as follows : George Wallace and Wm. 
 D. Mather. At this election, there were twenty- 
 six votes polled. The following items, which 
 are deemed worthy of preservation, are taken 
 from the records, which are fast falling into 
 pieces : " State of Ohio, Portage County, North- 
 field Township : To the Constable of said Town- 
 ship, Greeting : Abraham Cranmer, Constable : 
 You are commanded to warn Huldah Seeley out 
 of said township forthwith, by the order of the 
 Trustees and of the Poor Masters for said town- 
 ship, and to cany her to the Constable of Inde- 
 pendence Township, or Newburg, Cuyahoga 
 County, Ohio. Of this writ make legal service 
 and due return. Given under our hands and 
 seals, this 2d day of June, 1819. George Wal- 
 lace and J. Cranmer, Trustees ; W. D. Mather 
 and William Cranney, Jr., Poor Masters. Per- 
 sonally served by me, Abraham Cranmer, Con- 
 stable." It is told by way of joke in North- 
 field, that Mr. Cranmer, the Constable, not 
 knowing how to dispose of his charge, Huldah 
 Seeley, finally took her on horseback to New- 
 burg, where he left her, his idea being that the 
 law would be best subserved by removing her 
 as far as possible from the township. 
 
 In 182G, there were thirty-nine householders 
 in Northfield, and the following year there were 
 forty-seven, as follows : George Phipps, Abner 
 Hunt, Electa Dewey, Casper Noel, David Bow- 
 ersmith, William Barkhamer, Widow Lesley, 
 Daniel Croninger, Paul H. Beard, George Hills, 
 Jonathan Pike, Jeremiah Cranmer, William 
 Cliflbrd, A. B. Cranmer, Levi Leach, D. C. Ba- 
 con, Henry Hopkins, William Cranney, H. 
 Bump, Dorsey W. Viers, Sally Pritchard, Henry 
 Croninger, Thomas Hills, Shubael Austin, John 
 Wilson, Daniel Stanley, Thomas Appleton. Eliza- 
 beth Richardson, John Jones, Maurice Cran- 
 mer, A. D. Havens, Abraham Cranmer, Chester 
 Northrup, John Duncan, Thomas McKee, Rob- 
 ert Guy, William Guy, Allen Burroughs, George 
 
 ® - 
 
ii 
 
 NORTIIFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 571 
 
 McClelland, Erastus Burdick, Robert Wallace, 
 George Wallace, David Dilley, Joshua Post, 
 Nathaniel Holmes, Mr. Townsend and Marv 
 Post. 
 
 By this time, the township was almost as 
 well settled and improved as it is at present. 
 But we must go back and trace the growth of 
 industries, etc. As was before stated, George 
 Wallace erected a saw-mill on Brandywine 
 Creek ; and this mill, until Lots 19 and 40, of 
 Boston, were attached to Northfleld, was in the 
 former township. It was a frame mill, and was 
 located on the creek where an abrupt fall of 
 about ten feet gave an excellent and enduring 
 water-power. It was built in 1814, and, in the 
 following 3'ear, a grist-mill was built on the 
 opposite side of the fall. This mill was a three- 
 storied, frame structure, and is 3-et standing, 
 being in a fair state of preservation. About 
 the same time that the grist-mill was erected, a 
 distillery was built back some distance on the 
 farm, and given in charge of Allen Burris, a 
 practical distiller. It disposed of some twelve 
 bushels of grain dail}', and turned out in the 
 same time between thirt}- and forty gallons of 
 excellent whisky. The old account-books of 
 Mr. Wallace are yet in existence, and reveal 
 that, not onl}^ was whisky used b}^ ever}' one, 
 including ministers (and perhaps abstainers), 
 but was used extensively as an article of ex- 
 change, serving the purpose almost as well as 
 bank notes. Almost every entry involves the 
 word " whisk}'." John Menough, who owned a 
 third or a half interest in the grist-mill, was the 
 miller, and operated it for many years. Robert 
 Wallace owned an interest in the saw-mill, and 
 was the sawyer until the mills were given into 
 other hands. The distillery was conducted un- 
 til about 1830, when it was abandoned. The 
 saw-mill was operated, with several change of 
 owners, until about the year 1851. The grist- 
 mill is yet running. Mr. Wallace built a woolen- 
 factory near the mills in 1821. During the first 
 year of its operation, nothing was attempted, 
 except wool-carding and cloth-dressing ; but 
 the following year, and for many years there- 
 after, the whole process of carding and spinning 
 and weaving and dressing was conducted on 
 an extensive scale, and a fine income realized. 
 This was, perhaps, the most important industry 
 ever in Northampton. At one time, the fac- 
 tory, the grist-mill, the store, the saw-mill and 
 the distilleiy were all in operation, and. as 
 
 these various industries required the assist- 
 ance of from twelve to twenty employes, the 
 extent and importance of these eflbrts in the 
 backwoods can be plainly seen. It is stated 
 that, in about 181G, the village of Brandywine 
 rivaled the village of Cleveland. But all has 
 not yet been told. In 1816, Mr. Wallace sent 
 some $1,600 worth of goods to the village, and 
 placed them in an apartment that had been 
 set oflf" for that purpose in the second story of 
 the grist-mill. James, the son of George Wal- 
 lace, was placed in the store to dispose of the 
 goods. He had come from Cleveland with the 
 teamster who brought the goods. The wagon 
 moved very slowly through the muddy roads, 
 and, as night was fiist coming on when they 
 reached the northern part of the township, the 
 boy James concluded he would hurry ahead, 
 and reach home before the teamster. He was 
 walking on quite rapidly, guided by the ob- 
 scure markings of the winding road, when 
 suddenly he was startled by a large deer 
 which bounded across the path but a few yards 
 in front of him. Almost at the same instant, 
 he heard a loud crashing in the bushes close 
 by, and a moment later a large, dark animal 
 came swiftly into the path before him. The 
 terrified boy saw that the animal was a large 
 bear, and, though his blood froze in his veins, 
 he determined not to run. But the bear, with 
 scarcely a moment's hesitation, and without 
 paying the slightest attention to the cowering 
 boy. continued its headlong pursuit after the 
 deer. The boy was so terrified that he ran on 
 for several miles, when, reaching the cabin of 
 a settler near Brandywine. he prevailed upon 
 some of the boys to accompany him until he 
 reached the village. It is scarcely necessary 
 to add that the various pursuits thus begun at 
 Brandywine w'ere the means of bringing to the 
 neighborhood numerous families of settlers, 
 and soon the place had all the appearance of a 
 thriving village. In 1825, all tliat portion of 
 the property owned by George "\\'allace fell to 
 the ownership of James Wallace, his son, who 
 is yet living, at a hale old age, near Macedonia. 
 A year later. Robert Wallace also secured an 
 interest in ihe various pursuits, and then the 
 business firm was Wallace Brotliers. In 1843, 
 a remarkable flood occurred, which swept the 
 factory away, scattering the debris for miles 
 along the banks, and badly injuring the grist- 
 mill. This, however, was immediately repaired, 
 
 IV 
 
573 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY. 
 
 but the factory was not rebuilt. After this, 
 the property gradually fell into other hands, 
 and its former usefulness was greatly impaii'ed. 
 The firm of Wallace & Wallace opened a store 
 at the village in about 184-i, and carried a 
 stock of some $2,000 worth of goods for ten or 
 twelve years. This storehouse is now used as 
 a dwelling. In about 1822, George Wallace 
 succeeded in getting a post office established 
 at Brandywine. Mr. Wallace was appointed 
 Postmaster. The village at its best contained 
 some ten or twelve families. 
 
 The village of Little York has had a less 
 eventful history. In about 1825, Henry Post 
 built a saw-mill on the site of the village. He 
 did not own the land, but -'squatted" there for 
 the purpose of sawing lumber. His mill was 
 operated b}' water-power, partly by natural 
 facilities and partlj' by artificial. There was 
 at that point a heavy forest of whitewood, 
 which at that time was greatly in demand for 
 boats on the canal, and for vessels on Lake 
 Erie. The mill was enabled to run some eight 
 months of the year, and, for six years, Mr. 
 Post did an extensive and profitable business. 
 George Leach then got possession of the mill, 
 and, as the dam was a cheap aflTair and liable 
 to be washed away by the first freshet, a 
 larger and stronger one was built in the same 
 place. This man continued many 3'ears, and, 
 at times, did an enormous amount of work, 
 operating two saws, and shipping by canal 
 large quantities of oak, maple and whitewood 
 lumber to Cleveland. In the early history of 
 the village, a blacksmith, a shoemaker, a tan- 
 ner and a few other tradesmen and mechanics 
 located there. This has been about the extent 
 of the rise and fall of Little York. 
 
 The first building at the Center was very 
 likely a schoolhouse, built as early as 1825.* 
 Hezekiah H. Palmer erected the first dwelling. 
 This was a round-log cabin, about thirty feet 
 square, built in 1832, and divided by partitions 
 into bedrooms and sitting-rooms. A 3'ear later, 
 George Lillie built the second dwelling, and, 
 soon afterward, Lucien Bliss, the third. All 
 these were rough log cabins, hastil}' constructed, 
 and, from their external appearance, it was evi- 
 dent that the architect was inferior in point of 
 genius to Michael Angelo, or, perhaps, he thought 
 that the more beautiful products of his skill could 
 and would not be appreciated in the forest. At all 
 
 * Narrated to the writer by Ambrose Bliss. 
 
 events, the buildings were neither models of 
 architectural beauty and precision, nor equal in 
 point of sumptuousness to Aladdin's palace. 
 However, the families seemed to enjoy life just 
 as well as they whose habitations were supe- 
 rior and more elegant. During the same year, 
 1833, or perhaps the following spring. Col. 
 Milton Arthur built a storeroom which is now 
 a part of an outhouse belonging to Mr. McCon- 
 nell. Arthur placed in this storeroom some 
 $500 worth of goods, consisting of a general 
 assortment that had been purchased at Cleve- 
 land. The store did not amount to much, but 
 was an accommodation to those living in the 
 vicinit3f and was well patronized. A few years 
 later, B. F. Cannon placed a small stock of 
 goods in another building, but, after a short 
 time, sold out to Hosea and Lucien Bliss, who 
 increased the stock somewhat. Soon after the 
 Bliss brothers opened their store, Frank Allen 
 built another building near by, and placed 
 therein a small general assortment. After this, 
 frequent changes were made in the merchants, 
 none of whom remained any great length of 
 time. The village was not a very lively trad- 
 ing-point. Many country stores were located 
 in adjoining townships, and even in Northfield, 
 and storekeepers, with a few fortunate excep- 
 tions, were compelled to continue, if at all, 
 upon meager remuneration. However, there 
 have been some good stores in the village. Af- 
 ter Frank Allen and the Bliss Brothers, the fol- 
 lowing merchants have held forth at various 
 times in about the order given : Warner Wal- 
 lace, Mr. Putnam, Woodman & Howe, James 
 McElroy, Nelson Decker, M. O'Neil, S. K. Alex- 
 ander, Lyon & Logue and J. G. Alexander, the 
 present merchant. The most of these men kept 
 ordinar}' country stores, including limited deal- 
 ings in all the various kinds of country produce. 
 It was usual to accumulate a considerable quan- 
 tity of the latter, which was then conveyed to 
 some shipping-point and sent off for foreign 
 consumption. Other industries have existed 
 for short periods in the village. Bliss & Taub- 
 man (the latter being an experienced tailor), 
 opened a clothing store soon after. Ready-made 
 clothing was kept, and suits of every descrip- 
 tion were made to order on short notice. 
 
 In 1841, 0. A. Bishop built a tavern which 
 was thrown open for the entertainment of the 
 public the same year. The building is now 
 used as a combined grocery and post office. 
 
 ~:f\: 
 
«> 
 
 ht* 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 573 
 
 The tavern, which was located on the State 
 road, did a good business until the Cleveland 
 & Pittsburgh Railroad was projected through the 
 township, when it was closed for lack of cus- 
 tom. The first blacksmith in the village was 
 a man named Phillips. Ambrose Bliss was 
 the first carpenter. Dr. Hosea Bliss was the 
 first resident physician. He became well 
 known, and continued to practice his profession 
 until five or six years ago. Dr. Hazleton ap- 
 peared a number of j-ears later, and soon se- 
 cured a lucrative practice. George Lillie was 
 the first Postmaster, receiving his commission 
 in about 1836, the office having been removed 
 from Brand3wine to the Center. In about the 
 3'ear 1840, George Lillie, Hezekiah Palmer, 
 Lucien Bliss and Col. Ai'thur, each of whom 
 owned a corner at the cross-roads, threw out 
 half an acre of land each for a public square. 
 This square is yet sacred to the use of the 
 public, and is likely to remain so. The village 
 has not been regularly' surveyed and platted, 
 the lots being laid off and sold as calls are 
 made for them. Perhaps the greatest popula- 
 tion the village has had at any one time has 
 been about seventy-five. 
 
 It is proper at this point to narrate an occur- 
 rence which took place in the township at an 
 early day, and which, from its peculiarity, de- 
 serves preservation. We quote as follows from 
 Gen. L. V. Bierce : " An Englishman named 
 Rupert Charlesworth, who was boarding with 
 Dorsey Viers in 1826, suddenly and mysteri- 
 ously disappeared. He was traced to the 
 cabin of Viers on the night of the 23d of 
 July, but on the following morning when a 
 Constable went there to arrest him, he was 
 gone, and no trace of him could be found. On 
 the arrival of the Constable Mrs. Viers was 
 found mopping up the floor. Questions were 
 asked, but Mr. Viers told contradictor}- stories 
 as to the disappearance of the man. alleging in 
 one instance that he jumped out of the win- 
 dow and ran off and could not be caught, and 
 in another, that he left when Viers was asleep, 
 and the latter knew nothing of his where- 
 abouts. A few days later, some one announced 
 having heard the report of a rifle at Vier's 
 cabin the night of the man's disappearance, 
 and of having seen blood on a pair of bars 
 which led from the cabin to the woods. Years 
 rolled on, and the excitement grew stronger 
 with age, until, on the 8th of January, 1831, 
 
 complaint was entered before George Y. Wal- 
 lace, Justice of the Peace, that Viers had mur- 
 dered Charlesworth. Viers was arrested, and 
 a trial of eight days followed. Not only were 
 the circumstances above narrated proved, but 
 a hired girl who was working for Viers at the 
 time of the man's disappearance swore that a 
 bed blanket used by Charlesworth was missing 
 from the cabin on the day of his departure, 
 and that it was afterward found concealed un- 
 der a haystack, with large black spots on it, 
 resembling dried and clotted blood. It was 
 also proved that Charlesworth had a large 
 amount of money, and that Viers was, previ- 
 ous to the disappearance of the man. compar- 
 atively poor, but immediately afterward was 
 flush of mone^^ To complete the chain of 
 circumstantial evidence, a human skeleton had 
 been found concealed under a log in the woods, 
 beyond the bars already mentioned. Matters 
 were in this shape when two men from San- 
 dusky unexpectedly appearejl and swore that 
 the}^ had seen Charlesworth alive and well after 
 the time of the supposed murder, though when 
 seen he was passing under an assumed name. 
 On this testimony Viers was acquitted, liut his 
 acquittal did not change public sentiment as 
 to his guilt. It was generally believed that 
 the witnesses had been inducted to perjure 
 themselves. Viers, however, did not let the 
 matter rest at this stage. He began a vigor- 
 ous and protracted search for the missing man, 
 and continued it with unwavering perseverance. 
 He visited all parts of the Union, and, after a 
 search of years, he one day went into a tavern 
 at Detroit, and in the presence of a large as- 
 semblage of men, inquired if an}' one knew of 
 a man named Charlesworth. x\ll replied no. 
 Just as he was about to leave, a man stepped 
 up to him, and, taking him to one side, inquired 
 if his name was Viers, from Northfield. Viers 
 replied that it was. The stranger then said, 
 'lam Rupert Charlesworth. but I pass here 
 under an assumed name.' Charlesworth was 
 informed of all that had taken place, and he 
 immediately volunteered to go to Northfield 
 and have the matter cleared up. On their ar- 
 rival, a meeting of the township was called, 
 and after a thorough investigation it was the 
 unanimous vote, with one exception, that the 
 man alleged to have been murdered now stood 
 alive before them. It appears that he had 
 passed a counterfeit $10 bill on Deacon Hud- 
 
 
574 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 son, and fearing an arrest he left the cabin of 
 Viers suddenly, and soon afterward went to 
 England, where he remained two years, at the 
 end of which time he returned to the United 
 States under an assumed name, and went into 
 the backwoods of Michigan, where his real 
 name, former residence and liistory were un- 
 known. Tlie name of the family was thus, al- 
 most b}' accident, cleared of infamy and shame. 
 This renuirkable case is rivalled only b}' the 
 celebrated case of the Bournes in Vermont.'' 
 
 The following is also quoted from Bierce's 
 history : 
 
 *• A more tragic affair occurred in Northtield, 
 on the 24th of July, 1837. On the night of 
 that date, some person or persons entered the 
 house of Robert McKisson, a respected citizen 
 of the township, and with an ax struck Mrs. 
 McKisson as she lay on the bed, splitting, or 
 rather hewing, the right side of her head 
 nearl}' away, and leaving the brain exposed or 
 scattered upon the bedding. Lucinda Croning- 
 er, Mrs. McKisson's daughter by a former hus- 
 band, lying on an adjoining bed, hearing the 
 confusion, raised up and sci'eamed, but was in- 
 stantly knocked down, senseless, with the ax. 
 An alarm was given by some other member of 
 the familj', and the murderer made off. The 
 neighbors collected and obtained from Mrs. 
 McKisson, who, a few hours later, died, the 
 statement that the murder had been committed 
 by her father-in-law, Samuel McKisson. This 
 was the d^'ing declaration of the murdered 
 woman, and the testimony of the daughter at 
 the trial. Samuel McKisson was arrested that 
 night at his own house. Suspicion immediate- 
 ly attached to David McKisson, a brother-in- 
 law of the murdered woman, who had been 
 paying his addresses to the daughter, but who 
 had been refused admission to the house by 
 the mother. He had been lurking around for 
 several days, during which time he had ob- 
 tained several interviews with Miss Croninger, 
 in one of which they exchanged rings. A few 
 minutes after the murder, a person was heard 
 running past a house toward the canal from the 
 direction of the McKisson cabin. The next 
 morning, at daylight, he was seen on the canal, 
 about three miles from the place, getting a 
 passage to Cleveland. A few days later, he was 
 arrested on the Government works at the 
 mouth of Maumee Bay, with the blood still on 
 his shirt-sleeves. The father and son were in- 
 
 dicted for murder by the grand jury in Sep- 
 tember, 1837, and soon afterward tried. The 
 father was acquitted, but the son was convicted 
 of murder in the first degree, and, on the 9th 
 of February, 1838, was executed at Ravenna." 
 Abraham Cranmer, in 1824, built the first 
 house in Macedonia. It was a hewed-log 
 building, with the usual inconveniences and 
 lack of attractions, and was located in the 
 northeastern part of the village. This house 
 stood until 1854, when it was taken down. 
 Edwin Hutchinson built the second, just above 
 the church, in about 1831. About this time, 
 or soon afterward, George Shattuck and Eras- 
 tus Beldin also built dwellings at the village. 
 All these buildings were of logs, and some per- 
 sons have insisted that the three buildings last 
 referred to were probably erected some four 
 years sooner than as stated above. The above, 
 however, is given on the authorit}' of Mrs. 
 (Cranmer) Munn, who was living in the village 
 with her father, Abraham Cranmer, at the 
 time, and who is probably not mistaken. Sev- 
 eral other dwellings were erected soon after- 
 ward, and the citizens then began to suspect 
 that a village was springing up around them. 
 A few mechanics and tradesmen appeared, but 
 no stock of goods was bi'ought to the village 
 until 1852, when Odell, Price & Co. placed 
 about $4,000 worth in a storeroom that had 
 been built by John Odell the year before. This 
 partnership began a brisk business, selling or 
 exchanging their goods to the surrounding 
 country, and shipping farm produce, including 
 eggs, butter and cheese, to Cleveland. The 
 quantity of cheese handled by this firm was re- 
 markable. They began slowl}^, like cautious 
 and experienced merchants, feeling their way, 
 until at last all hesitancy was thrown aside, 
 from the steady condition of the market, and 
 enormous quantities of cheese were purchased 
 and shipped to Cincinnati and other points. 
 The cheese and butter products of sixty dairies 
 were handled by the partnership. Each dairy 
 avei'aged one cheese of twenty- pounds" weight 
 dail)', making, in all, 1,200 pounds that were 
 shipped away each day, from the 1st of May 
 until the middle of September. When the 
 number of days are considered, it will be seen 
 that about 175,000 pounds of cheese were 
 shipped from Macedonia each season. During the 
 same period, flft)' pounds of butter were re- 
 ceived daily from these dairies, and shipped oflF 
 
 n^ 
 
^ 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP 
 
 575 
 
 with the cheese, making a total of about 7,000 
 pounds handled per annum. In 1854, this 
 firm was succeeded by Odell & Co., who con- 
 ducted the same business even more extensive 
 ly than the former firm. Either goods or 
 money were given for butter and cheese. Two 
 years later, Odell & O'Neil took charge of the 
 business, but, at the end of about eight months, 
 the senior partner bought the junior's interest, 
 and conducted the business alone until July, 
 1857, when he failed and closed out his stock. 
 Archibald Nesbitt took up the broken threads 
 of this trade in 1858, and conducted a fair busi- 
 ness until about the time the last war com- 
 menced. After this, for a few 3'ears, the store- 
 room was vacant. Michael O'Neil was in for a 
 few months, during the latter part of the war. 
 In 1866, Sage & Hine opened with a small 
 stock, and, a year later, Hine sold his interest 
 to Chamberlain, and, in 1869, Sage also sold to 
 Chamberlain ; but, soon afterward, Darling & 
 Drennan took charge of the store, increasing 
 the stock until it was valued at $5,200, and 
 handling, at the same time, the cheese of two 
 factories. Lewis Lemoin became owner in the 
 spring of 1875, but sold out at the end of a 
 year to J. C. Johnson, who continued until the 
 spring of 1879, when S. M. Ranney & Co. took 
 possession and have continued since. It would 
 seem by the constant change of ownei's, that 
 the merchants were either novices at their call- 
 ing, or that the mercantile pursuit in the vil- 
 lage was as uncertain as it was unprofitable 
 and unsatisfactory. Probably both of these 
 reasons have contributed to the failures. 
 O'Neil & Wilcox opened a store, with $800 
 worth of goods, in 1854, but, soon afterward, 
 O'Neil sold his interest to his partner, who, a 
 year or two later, failed with maledictions on 
 his lips. Marvin Ford sold groceries for a 
 short time about 1865. Lewis Lemoin bought 
 him out, and after continuing eight months, 
 with Palmer as his partner part of the time, 
 sold his share to Mr. Stone, the latter selling to 
 Alton Griswold a year later. In 1870, Palmer 
 sold to Griswold, and, four years later, the lat- 
 ter sold an interest to L. L. Palmer, who, at the 
 end of a year, bought his partner's share, and 
 continued alone until 1878, when the present 
 firm of Munn Brothers assumed ownership. 
 Merchants of Macedonia have surely experi- 
 enced a checkered career. They spring up from 
 all quarters, like mushrooms from a hot-bed. 
 
 L. Gr. Odell was the first Postmaster, receiv- 
 ing his commission in 1852. Zedick Everest 
 built an ashery in 1844, and continued the 
 manufacture of potash until 1858, turning out 
 a ton a week the year round, the most of the 
 time he conducted the business. When the 
 woolen factory at Brandywine was swept 
 away in 1843, David Armstead and Carl 
 Storrs bought a portion of the machinery, and 
 immediately thereafter erected a fine saw-mill 
 at Macedonia. They owned and operated the 
 mill until 1852, when Alexander Nesbitt bought 
 them out, and four years later a man named 
 Griffith became owner. Stone & Buswell 
 owned and operated it during the war, and 
 did an enormous business. They sawed vast 
 quantities of car and wagon lumber from oak, 
 ash, maple and black walnut, which was shipped 
 by rail to Cleveland. They made their fortunes 
 and sold out when the war ended. Since then 
 Woodbury, Lemoin, Barnum and others have 
 owned the mill. Shields & Chapin have owned 
 it since 1872, and are at present doing a large 
 business for the car manufacture at Cleveland. 
 David Armstead built a hotel in 1840. The 
 •Riley House " was built seven years ago.* 
 
 It is probable, though not certain, that the 
 first term of school was taught at Brandywine. 
 A log schoolhouse was built there as early as 
 1817, and a Mr. Stiles was employed to teach 
 the few children then in the village. He kept 
 irregular hours and was paid at the rate of 
 about $1 per scholar for the term. He taught 
 several terms, prior to 1820, in the same house, 
 which was occupied until about 1830, when a 
 frame schoolhouse was built across the road 
 opposite the old one. This building was used 
 many years, and, though silent and deserted at 
 present, is yet standing, a relic of pioneer times. 
 The old log schoolhouse at Brandywine was 
 well attended from 1820 to 1830. The children 
 within a radius of several miles were sent to it 
 without regard to township lines ; for it made 
 little difference whence they came, provided 
 they paid promptly their allotted subscription. 
 Children from up nearly to the center were 
 given their first schooling in this house, while, 
 also, many of those who had attended the Stan- 
 ford School while the old log schoolhouse was 
 standing there, were sent to Brand3'wine when 
 it was taken down. Everybody at that time 
 looked upon Brandywine as an unusually prom- 
 
 *Giv<'ii on the authority of Mr. Odell, of Macedonia. 
 
 rv 
 

 576 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 ising village, and for many years it was the 
 center of education, religion and industry. The 
 place was deemed so important, that its being 
 situated partly in Boston and partly in North- 
 field was regarded as a drawback to its im- 
 provement and growth, and the result was that 
 through the influence of the Wallaces and 
 others, two lots were severed from Boston and 
 attached to Northfield. The following action 
 was also taken by the Trustees of the two 
 townships at a joint meeting : "■ The second 
 school district in the Township of Northfield is 
 this day annexed to the second fractional school 
 district in the Township of Boston, by the 
 Trustees of the said townships. December 1, 
 1827." 
 
 It is thought by several, that the first school 
 in the township was taught in the Bacon neigh- 
 borhood. It will be remembered that, in 1815, 
 there were several families living there, each 
 of which comprised several children. Henry 
 Wood, whose memory is now slowly failing 
 him on account of age, but who is probably 
 correct, says that school was taught prior to 1 81 7 
 in a vacated log dwelling known as the Row- 
 ley house. If this be true, it was the first in 
 Northfield. A man named King was the first, 
 or one of the first three or four who taught 
 there. In about 1818 or 1819, a log school- 
 house was built within a quarter of a mile of 
 the cemetery which lies half a mile north of 
 the Center. Henry Wood was one of the first 
 teachers in this house. This was used until 
 not far from 1825, when a schoolhouse was 
 built at the Center, and another about two 
 miles northwest of the Center. The following 
 action taken from the records was probably the 
 first relating to the division of the township 
 into school districts : " At a meeting of the 
 Trustees of Northfield on April 12, 1826, for 
 the purpose of dividing the township into 
 school districts, the following division was 
 made : Commencing at the northwest corner 
 of said township, thence south to the center 
 line of said township, thence east along said 
 center line to the road running north and south 
 through the center of said township, thence 
 south along said road to the south line of Lot 
 7, thence east along said line to the east line 
 of said township, thence north to the northeast 
 corner of said township, thence west to the 
 place of beginning — said district containing 
 twenty-four householders, and to be known as 
 
 No. 1. Also, commencing on the east line of 
 said township and running east along the 
 center line to the center road running north 
 and south through said township, thence south 
 along said road to the south line of Lot 47, 
 thence east along said line to the east line of 
 said township, thence south along said line to 
 the north line of Boston, thence west along 
 said line to the Cuyahoga River, thence north 
 to the place of beginning — said district con- 
 taining fifteen householders, and to be known 
 as No. 2." The following is also quoted from 
 the records : " We, the Directors, Maurice Cran- 
 mer and Levi Leach, do agree to have two 
 schools in District No. 1, to the best ad- 
 vantage of the inhabitants, and the public 
 monc}' to be divided to the number of scholars 
 each school affords as one school, April 5, 
 1828." This division was formally made on 
 the 3d of the following Ma}^, the two districts 
 thus formed being designated 1 and 8. Prior 
 to the division of 182G, the township schools 
 had been supported wholly b}^ subscription. 
 The houses had been built by everybody with- 
 out regard to public or individual expense. 
 The one built at the Center, as previously 
 stated, was used until 1835, when a frame 
 structure was erected to take its place, and was 
 used until two years ago. Robert Smith, after- 
 ward School Examiner, taught a select school 
 in the Putnam storeroom after the latter sold 
 out. He taught several terms of excellent 
 school. He also taught in the town hall, which 
 was built in 1848. Rev. Andrews also taught 
 a select school in the Presbyterian Church. 
 Esther Cranmer taught the first school in 
 Macedonia. She went to Hudson for her cer- 
 tificate, and was examined in geography, reading 
 writing, spelling and arithmetic by Lawyers 
 Humphrey and Kirkham. She taught a summer 
 school of four months, and received ten shill- 
 ings per week, and boai'ded around. This 
 school was taught in about the year 1833. 
 The old house was soon disused and a new one 
 built, and another has taken the place of the 
 place of the last. There are now seven school 
 districts in Northfield. 
 
 There are four churches in the township. 
 For many years prior to 1831, Methodists, 
 Presbyterians, Baptists and Seceders held meet- 
 ings in dwellings and schoolhouses, yet, so far 
 as known, no society was regularl}' organized 
 until the year mentioned. From Mrs. Bacon 
 
 
L^ 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 577 
 
 we learn that the Methodists organized a society 
 on the 21st of Juh-, 1831, with the following 
 members : Abner Hurt, Charles Leader, Caleb 
 Brown (the first minister), Betsey Hurt, Jere- 
 miah Cranraer and wife, David C. Bacon and 
 wife, Daniel S. Stanley and wife, Abram Cran- 
 mer and daughter Esther, William Guy and his 
 mother, Mrs. Duncan, Morris Cranmer and 
 wife, Lyman Richardson, and one other whose 
 name is forgotten, making eighteen members. 
 The minister. Rev. Mr. Brown, preached his 
 first sermon from the text, " Why halt ye 
 between two opinions ?" etc. The society wor- 
 shiped in a log schoolhouse at Northfield Cen- 
 ter for some time, and in Mr. Stanle3''s house 
 also. Mr. Brown, after organizing the church, 
 preached but twice before going to Conference. 
 He was succeeded by Revs. Alfred Bronson 
 and John J. Steedman. The circuit at that 
 time included Cu3'ahoga Falls, Ravenna, etc. 
 The surviving members of the first organiza- 
 tion are Mrs. Jane C. Bacon and Esther Cran- 
 mer, now Mrs. Munn. Mrs. Bacon remembers 
 a camp-meeting held in August, 1832, the next 
 3'ear after the formation of the church in 
 Northfield, over in Hudson Township, at which 
 Mr. Steedman preached one night from the 
 text, " And at midnight there was a cry made. 
 Behold, the bridegroom cometli ; go ye out to 
 meet him." During the .sermon a most terrific 
 thunder-storm came up, and as the people 
 sought shelter in their tents, the minister took 
 the opportunity' to make the storm an applica- 
 tion of his argument — that if they did not 
 have refuge in Christ, etc., etc., and following 
 the application, he commenced singing in a 
 tremendous voice the h^mn beginning — * 
 
 " He comes, He comes, the Judge severe, 
 The seventh trumpet speaks him near. 
 The lightnings flash, the thunders roll." etc. 
 
 The whole scene made a lasting impression 
 upon the congregation, and was the means of 
 starting a great revival, which continued 
 throughout the meeting. 
 
 About the year 1836, the societj' built a 
 church edifice. There were several members 
 who lived at Macedonia, which led to the organi- 
 zation of a separate society there, and the use 
 of the church at that place, or perhaps its undi- 
 vided ownership was thus secured. This 
 church was built in about 1835 by people who 
 held a variety of religious opinions, among 
 whom perhaps the Free- Will Baptists predomi- 
 
 nated. One of the greatest revivals ever in 
 Northfield was conducted at Macedonia, in the 
 old log schoolhouse, b}^ Rev. Mr. Worrellow. 
 It lasted five weeks, and sixty-five were con- 
 verted, a portion of whom joined the Free-Will 
 Baptists, others the Methodists, and still others 
 the Presbyterians. The first services held by 
 the Presbyterians in Northfield were by Rev. 
 Mr. Hanford, who came over from Hudson and 
 preached occasionally. A church was built by 
 this denomination in 1834, which was used 
 until about thirt}- years ago, when the present 
 one was built. Among the earl}- members of 
 this church were A. Chapin, John and Matthew 
 Wilson, Levi Taylor, Mrs. Ozmun, Mr. Hall 
 and others. A Congi'egational society was 
 early organized, mainly through the influence 
 of the Taylors. A small church was built by 
 them about the year 184-1. Most of this 
 societ}^, however, eventually united with the 
 Presbyterians, and their church, which was thus 
 left vacant, was used a few times in which to 
 hold select schools, and was then fitted up for a 
 dwelling, and is still used as such. The follow- 
 ing has been handed us b}' Rev. J. W. Logue, 
 of Northfield : •• The earliest members of the 
 First United Presbyterian Church of this town- 
 ship came from Ligonier Valley, Penn., in 
 1831. These and a few others that came in a 
 short time afterward, numbering in all foui'teen 
 souls, formed themselves into a church society 
 in 1833 by the election of William Lemmon, 
 Ruling Elder. A short time afterward John 
 Nesbitt, Jacob- Leslie and John Phillips were 
 elected to serve in the same capacity. Their 
 first communion was held in a schoolhouse in 
 the vicinity, the above number of communi- 
 cants uniting with them. Their first settled 
 minister was Rev. Joseph Banks, who com- 
 menced his ministry among them in 1834, 
 remaining some five years. Their first church 
 building was a comfortable frame house, about 
 35x45 feet, and was erected in 1837 at a cost of 
 about $1,000, and located near the center of 
 Northfield. Their second settled minister was 
 Rev. James W. Logue, who began his labors 
 among them in 1843, and has continued until 
 the present time. Their second church is a 
 commodious frame building, about 40x60 feet, 
 tastefully constructed and furnished at a cost of 
 some $8,000. It was erected in 1871 on the 
 site of the former one. This church, the 
 strongest in the township, is strongly Calvinistic 
 
iJ; 
 
 578 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 in its principles. It took an early and leading 
 part in the anti-slaver}' reformation in this 
 community, and has always been active in all 
 moral reforms.'" 
 
 In 1864, a cornet band was- organized in the 
 township, composed of the following members : 
 Thomas W. Kichey, William F. Drennen, Milton 
 A. Van Horn, Joseph Wilson, L. Bliss, J. Gr. 
 Alexander, George Eichey and Charles Peck. 
 These members, with their own means, pur- 
 chased a set of second-hand brass instruments, 
 and their subsequent efforts were crowned with 
 moderate success. The band continued thus, 
 with some changes, until 1872, when, through 
 the efforts of A. W. Bliss and the liberality of 
 many citizens of the township, a set of fine new 
 silver instruments was purchased at a cost of 
 $841. This was sufficient to lirouse the mem- i 
 bers of the band to their greatest efforts, and 
 the surrounding hills and dales echoed with 
 music as sweet as that of Orpheus. Perhaps, 
 also, the birds of the air, the fish in the streams, 
 the wild beasts of the forest, and even the trees, 
 rocks and hills, gathered around to hear the 
 divine strains. The members of the band shared 
 a fate almost as sorrowful as that of Orpheus. 
 Three years after their new instruments were 
 purchased, they disbanded, and their delicious 
 music died out in plaintive echoes. In 1877, a 
 new band was organized, composed in part of 
 members of the former band. This is yet in 
 existence. The members have furnished them- 
 
 selves with new brass instruments, and have 
 recently made their appearance in a bright new 
 uniform. The present members are George 
 Bliss, Isaac Buskirk, Charles Peck, Frank 
 Brower, John N. McConnell, Cass Proctor, J. 
 L. Ranney, Henry Nesbitt, L. E. Stanley, W. Tj. 
 Palmer, Frank Buggies and Will Howe. The 
 band is a credit to the township, and should be 
 encouraged in a hearty and substantial man- 
 ner. 
 
 A Lecture Association was organized in North- 
 field in the winter of 1878, of which the folio wing- 
 were the six original members : M. A. Van Horn, 
 Dr. R. S. Hubbard, Lorin Bliss, G. M. Seidell, 
 J. G. Alexander, Jo Harter, and afterward B. 
 A. Bobinotte was added. The first officers were 
 M. A. Van Horn, President ; J. G. Alexander, 
 Secretary ; Dr. R. S. Hubbard, Corresponding 
 Secretary, and G. M. Seidell, Treasurer. It be- 
 gan as a matter of experiment, and they hired 
 their own lecturers, for which they paid out of 
 their individual pockets. It proved a success. 
 Lectures were held on Thursdaj' evenings of 
 each week, alternating in the different churches. 
 The association has become self-sustaining by 
 the sale of family tickets, memberships, etc., 
 and is apparently- on a firm basis. The pi-esent 
 officers are Jo Harter, President ; B. A. Bob- 
 inette, Vice President ; Dr. R. S. Hubbard, Cor- 
 responding Secretary ; Lorin Bliss, Assistant 
 Corresponding Secretary : J. G. Alexander, Sec- 
 retarv and Treasurer. 
 
 CHAPTER XXV.* 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHll'— ITS PHYSK'AL FEATURES— COMING OF TFIE WHITES — PIONEER INDUSTRIES 
 —GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT— VILLAGES— CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS. 
 
 ■Ar|"ORTON TOWNSHIP was originally 
 .jJN known as Town 1, Range 12, and was a 
 a part of Wolf Creek Township, which com- 
 prised all that territory now known as Norton 
 and Copley, in Summit Countv, and Wads- 
 worth, Sharon, Guilford and Montville, in Me- 
 dina County. Wolf Creek Township was or- 
 ganized in 1816, and, at an election held in 
 April of that year, at the house of Philemon 
 Kirkham, which stood on Lot 11, in Norton, 
 Henry Van Hyning, Sr., and Salmon Warner 
 
 * Contributed by M. L. Shook. 
 
 were chosen the first Justices of the Peace. 
 Van H3'ning lived on Lot 19, and Warner, 
 just across the line in what is now Wadsworth 
 Township. Philemon Kirkham was elected 
 Town Clerk ; Nathan Bates, Jacob Miller and 
 Abraham Van Hyning were elected Trustees. 
 Twenty-two votes were polled at this first elec- 
 tion in a precinct whose boundaries inclosed 
 150 square miles. In 1818, Norton Township 
 was organized, with its boundaries the same as 
 at pi'esent. It had been surve3'ed eight or nine 
 years previous to this by Joseph Darrow and 
 
 (r~ 
 
-^ 
 
 :NOIiTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 579 
 
 others, and platted into lots half a mile square, 
 numbering from one to one hundred, and be- 
 ginning in the northwest corner of the town- 
 ship, numbering fi'om the west to east, thus : 
 the west lots were 1, 11, 21, 31, 41, 51, 61, 71, 
 81, 91, to the southwest corner. It is bounded 
 on the north bj- Copley ; on the east by Coven- 
 try, part of which boundary is marked b}^ the 
 Tuscarawas River ; on the south l)y Franklin 
 and Chippewa, and on the west by Wadsworth. 
 Norton is not exactly five miles square, as are 
 most of the townsliips on the Western Reserve, 
 the reason for which we will endeavor to show. 
 That part of the Reserve lying east of the Cuy- 
 ahoga River, Portage Path and Tuscarawas 
 Branch of the Muskingum was acquired of the 
 Indians by the treaty of Fort Mcintosh in 1785. 
 It was surveyed in the years 1796 and 1797, 
 by running the base line of forty-one degrees 
 north latitude through from the Pennsylvania 
 line to the Tuscarawas, where a mark was made 
 on a tree, " 56m," meaning fifty-six miles 
 from the Pennsylvania line. This made eleven 
 ranges and one mile over on the base line. The 
 territory west of Cuyahoga River, Portage 
 Path and Tuscarawas River was not ceded 
 b}- the Indians until the treaty of Fort Indus- 
 try, in 1805, after which the balance of the Re- 
 serve was survej^ed, and that part of Range 12, 
 Town 1, or Norton, lying east of the Tusca- 
 rawas, having been annexed to Range 11, Town 
 1, years before, was never transferred. An in- 
 cident which occurred at the time the survey 
 was made will not be out of place. Squire 
 David Hudson, of the town of Hudson, being 
 one of the original owners of Norton Township, 
 concluded to go down and see how the land 
 which he owned lay ; and also to ascertain how 
 the survey was moving along. Arriving in 
 Norton, he accompanied the surveying party 
 several days, and, one day while looking around 
 through the forest, he became detached from 
 the rest of the part}' and partially lost, or at 
 least did not know which direction to take to 
 find his companions. The surveyors did not 
 miss him until they heard some one making 
 a terrible noise a little distance off, and at 
 once made their way to the spot from which 
 the sounds came. Here they found Hudson, 
 with his arms closel}^ clinging to a tree, which 
 he was vainly trying to climb, and calling 
 lustily for some one to •' Shoot the bear ! " 
 It seems he had happened to surprise an 
 
 old she bear and two cubs, which took to 
 their heels as soon as they saw him, being as 
 much frightened as the Squire himself was. It 
 is reported that he kept close to the surveying 
 party after this. 
 
 This township is drained by the Wolf Creek 
 and its tributaries. Wolf Creek enters the 
 township from the north, in Lot 7, takes a 
 southerly course in general, and empties into 
 the Tuscarawas River from Lot 88. Its chief 
 tributaries are (beginning at the north) Pigeon 
 Creek, which enters the township from Copley 
 in Lot 10, flows south and a little west of 
 south through or across the corner of ]jots 10 
 and 20, and empties into Wolf Creek in Lot 19. 
 Van Hyning Run, which rises in a marsh near 
 the north line of the township in Lots 3 and 4, 
 takes a southeasterly course through Lots 14, 
 15, 16, 26, 27, 37, 38, and empties into Wolf 
 Creek on Lot 48. Hudson Run rises partly in 
 Wadsworth Township, Medina County, and 
 partly in Norton Township, flows southeasterly 
 through Lots 21, 31, 32, 42, 43, 53, 54, 64, 65, 
 75, 76, 77, and empties into Wolf Creek on 
 Lot 78, near Wolf Creek Lock. Silver Creek, 
 a branch of the Chippewa River, drains a 
 small portion of the southwest corner of the 
 townsliip. Hubbard Run rises near Western 
 Star, in Wadsworth Township, enters Norton in 
 Lot 41 , takes an easterly course through Lots 
 51, 52, 62, 63, 53, and empties into Hudson 
 Run on Lot 54. A small lake, called Davis 
 Lake, in Lot 68, is the only lake in the town- 
 ship. It has no visible outlet, and is fed by 
 springs, it is supposed, from the bottom. It is 
 about a mile in circumference, and a pleasant 
 spot. The bottom is sandy, and it is conse- 
 quently a favorite resort during the summer 
 months for bathing. 
 
 The soil in Norton Township is somewhat 
 diversified. The extreme eastern portion, 
 north and east of Wolf Creek, is inclined to- 
 ward a sandy loam, in some parts more sandy 
 than in others. This land is very easy to till, 
 and with care brings abundant crops. The 
 land l^ing adjacent to the Wolf Creek is of 
 a loamy, mucky nature, and, when first turned 
 up by the plow, resembles decayed vegetable 
 matter, of which, indeed, it is largely com- 
 posed. West and southwest of Wolf Creek, 
 we find the soil contains more clay, but in 
 places so mingled with gravel and loam as to 
 make the best of soil for agricultural purposes. 
 
 D "V 
 
580 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Drainage is sufficient in all parts of Norton 
 with the exception of the south half of the 
 Wolf Creek bottoms and a portion of swamp 
 lying partly in this township and partly in 
 Copley. At the building of the Ohio Canal, 
 the waters of Wolf Creek were taken to feed 
 the canal below Wolf Creek Lock. This 
 caused a stagnation in the last few miles of its 
 flow, which is the source of a great deal of 
 waste wet land, and that the ver}' richest soil 
 in the township. The eastern part of the 
 township is somewhat broken and hilly, al- 
 though very little of it is so rough as not to be 
 utilized. A ledge of sandstone just strikes the 
 township on the northeast corner. Another 
 ledge forms the Western boundary of the 
 Wolf Creek bottoms, this last passing entirely 
 through the township from north to south, and 
 from one to two miles from the east line. This 
 sandstone is quarried at several places, and 
 makes the best of building stone. Among the 
 quarries now open may be mentioned those of 
 Shaw's, near Wolf Creek Lock ; Irish's, on Lot 
 47, and Miller's, on Lot 37. The principal 
 productions of Norton Township are wheat, 
 oats, corn and live stock and coal. This shows 
 agriculture to be the chief occupation of the 
 citizens. Considerable attention has been paid 
 the past few years to the raising of stock. 
 Some fine thoroughbred cattle are owned in 
 the township. Among cattle-raisers, the name 
 of A. D. Betz takes first rank, although 
 others have made considerable advance toward 
 fine stock. Norton has long been noted for its 
 draft horses, and, at the fairs of the county, 
 the farmers of Norton very rarely take the sec- 
 ond place in the matter of horses. Norton is 
 well supplied with villages, no less than seven 
 being wholly or in part included in its terri- 
 tory. New Portage is situated near the east 
 line of the township, and midway between the 
 north and south lines, on Lots 50 and 60. 
 Loyal Oak, in the north part of the township, 
 about one and three-fourths miles from the 
 center ; Western Star, partly in this and partly 
 in Wadsworth Township, on the county line 
 between Summit and Medina Counties, two and 
 one-half miles west of Norton Center ; Denni- 
 son Station, one and one-half miles west and 
 one mile south of Norton Center ; Johnson's 
 Corners, one and one- half miles south of Nor- 
 ton Center ; Hametown, one and three-fourths 
 miles southwest of Johnson's Corners, on the 
 
 Wooster roajj ; and, last and least, Norton Cen- 
 ter, situated in the geographical center of the 
 township. 
 
 Norton Township, as we have said, was Town 
 1, Range 12, in the Western Reserve, and at its 
 formation was named after Birdsey Norton, 
 one of the original owners of the township. It 
 was formed into an independent township in 
 the spring of LS18 ; and at an election held on 
 the first Monday of April, Joseph D. Hum- 
 phrey was elected Town Clerk ; Abraham Van 
 Hyning, Ezra Way, and Charles Lyon, Trust- 
 ees. Among the Supervisors of Highways 
 for that year, of whom there were five, we find 
 the names of Joseph Holmes, Elisha Hins- 
 dale and John Cahow. Henry Van Hyning, 
 Sr.. was Justice of the Peace. Probably the 
 first purchase of land was made by James Rob- 
 inson, he having purchased Lot 19, as early as 
 1810, and built a hut on it. It seems, however, 
 that he did not make this his permanent resi- 
 dence. He was originally from Otsego County, 
 N. Y. In 1815, he sold his lot to Mr. Henry 
 Van Hyning, Sr. About the same time that 
 Robinson came to Norton, John Cahow settled 
 on Lot 20, about a half-mile east of Robinson's 
 place, and erected a log cabin. It is a matter 
 of some dispute, whether Robinson's or Cahow's 
 house was the first one built in the township. 
 Some authorities claim the former and others 
 the latter. Cahow came from Marjdand and 
 had raised some crops before the war of 1812, 
 and kept a hotel or tavern as it was then called, 
 during that war ; his place being on the great 
 trail from old Portage, on the Cuyahoga, to the 
 Scioto. No progress was made toward set- 
 tling up the township until after the war of 
 1812, when a general rush of settlers found 
 their way through the trackless forest. Among 
 them we notice Philemon Kirkham. who set- 
 tled on Lot 11 ; Seth Lucas, on Lot 12 ; the 
 Bates brothers, who settled south of what is 
 now Johnson's Cornel's at first, and soon after 
 two of them removed to where Loyal Oak now 
 is. Their names were Nathan and Lyman 
 Bates. The}' each erected a cabin, one on the 
 southwest and one on the northeast corner. 
 The place took its name from them. Abraham 
 Van Hyning came in 1814 and settled on Lot 
 75, now Johnson's Corners. His house stood 
 on a spot about twenty rods nearly due west of 
 the present storehouse, on the l)ank. John 
 Bryan, or O'Brien, perhaps more properly, set- 
 
 w — 
 
•-4* 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 581 
 
 tied a little southwest of Van Hyning's place, 
 near the present Wooster road, on Lot 85. i 
 About the same time, a family by the name of 
 Clark settled at New Portage, and built a log 
 cabin, partly in this and partly in Coventry' 
 Township. A son of this familj', named Miles, 
 afterward became the first physician of the 
 township. In 1815, quite a number of families 
 settled in the township, among them Henry 
 Van Hyning, who, with his sons, plaj^ed a 
 most important pai't in the earlj' history of 
 Norton. Having purchased Lot 19, of James 
 Robinson, he I'emoved his family from North- 
 ampton, where he had settled ten years before, 
 to Norton, where he had intended to pass the 
 remainder of his days. Van H3'ning came 
 originall}' from Saratoga, N. Y., and was of \ 
 Dutch origin, his forefathers having emigrated ; 
 from Holland to New York, when that was 
 called New Amsterdam. His second wife was I 
 a direct descendant of the great Bogardus men- 
 tioned in history. Van H3'ning, with his fam- 
 ily, left Saratoga for the West in 1805, with two 
 yoke of oxen attached to wagons, and his wife 
 riding horseback through the forest, driving 
 three cows which followed the wagons and re- 
 quiring little effort on her part. Their course 
 lay through Buflfalo, N. Y., to Erie, Penn., near 
 which place Mr. Van Hyning built canoes, 
 lashed them together and launched them on 
 French Creek. He passed down this creek to 
 the Allegheny, and thence to Pittsburgh, whith- 
 er his teams were coming as fast as they could 
 travel. From Pittsburgh they went across 
 the counti-y to what is now Canfield, Mahoning 
 County, Ohio, where they stopped about two 
 months. The lamily was here increased by one 
 who was named Sylvester, and who is now liv- 
 ing on the old homestead. During the stop at 
 Canfield, Mr. Van Hyning went on to North- 
 ampton to locate his home, whither he removed 
 as soon as circumstances would permit. From 
 Canfield they went to Ravenna, thence back to 
 Warren where the}' laid in a stock of provis- 
 ions, consisting of a barrel of pork, a barrel of 
 flour and a barrel of whisky, with numerous 
 other articles of necessity to a backwoodsman. 
 From Warren they made their way to west- 
 ward to the Cuyahoga River, which they crossed 
 at a point called " Brady's Leap.'" The bridge 
 across the stream at tiiis place, consisted of 
 two " stringers," or logs, placed across the stream 
 (which was about twenty' feet wide) and a split 
 
 puncheon floor. Over this they crossed and 
 to Northampton they were obliged to cut a road 
 most of their way. The journey, including the 
 stop at Canfield, occupied about four months. 
 These early settlers were subjected to many 
 privations ; their provisions did not hold out 
 until more could be produced and after a crop 
 was raised they had no mill within a distance 
 of thirty miles. When they went to mill they 
 had to take a big load or the teams would eat 
 it all up before they got back home. A few 
 years, however, removed the diflSculty. The 
 mill and other comforts were added from time 
 to time. This is a sample of the journey across 
 the unbroken wilderness by the earl}' settlers, 
 and one will suflSce as all were much alike. 
 
 About the same time that Van Hj^ning 
 came to Norton, Benjamin Hoadley moved in 
 and settled in Lot 15, near Loj'al Oak. He 
 was from Connecticut and had bought eighty 
 acres of land, which he afterward cleared and 
 where his widow still lives to tell of the hard- 
 ships of their early life. In 1816, Joseph 
 Holmes settled on Lot 67, having bought 197 
 acres in Lots 67 and 68. Holmes came from Mass- 
 achusetts originally, but like a great many more 
 had stopped several years in New York State, and 
 from there moved to Ohio. Previous to this, the 
 settlers had erected a log house near the line 
 between Norton and Coventry for school and 
 church purposes. Here Holmes landed and 
 stayed a few days. He moved on to his land 
 on a Wednesday, and camped beside a big tree 
 which had blown over on a spot near where 
 William George now lives. Next day, Thurs- 
 day, he cut the logs for a cabin, on Friday the 
 neighbors helped him -^ log it up," and on Sat- 
 urday his family moved into it. This shows 
 how expeditious these old pioneers were. Of 
 course the house was not " chinked up." or 
 plastered with clay, yet it was a dwelling, and 
 sheltered the inmates from the chilling April 
 storms. Our informant was one of the party 
 who camped beside that big log. He says the 
 wolves howled around them all night long, but 
 they knew no fear, and suffered no harm from 
 them. The same day that Holmes raised his 
 house, Charles Miller, father of Cyrus Miller, 
 now living near Norton Center, landed in the 
 township. He settled a little west of Johnson's 
 Corners on the south side of the Wooster road. 
 Numerous other settlers came this same year, 
 and small clearings began to spring up all over 
 
 i<r, 
 
582 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 the township. The 3^ears 1817-18 brought 
 still more emigrants, and the foundation for 
 some of the numerous villages were laid. 
 Nearh' or quite all of tliose mentioned hereto- 
 fore were either from New York State or from 
 the New England States, and they earl}' showed 
 their special traits of character in regard to 
 social customs and domestic life. \Iuch of 
 their time was spent in cutting I'oads, clearing 
 up the land and helping each other build their 
 houses. When a road was to be opened, all 
 turned out and helped to cut the trees and get 
 them out of the way. If a man had a lot 
 cleai'ed, that is, cut, he invited his neighbors to 
 help him roll the logs together and burn them. 
 None were selfish in those days, for each one 
 knew that he was dependent on the others to 
 some extent for his own and his family's safety 
 and comfort. Tallmadge, or as it is now called 
 ^liddlebury, was the nearest trading-post, and 
 goods were shipped there in boats up the Cuy- 
 ahoga to that spot, or up the Muskingum to 
 Upper Portage on the Tuscarawas, and thence 
 to Middlebury by teams. These boats were 
 long, narrow vessels, frequently " dug outs " as 
 they were called, from twenty to forty feet 
 long and from three to five feet wide, and pro- 
 pelled by means of poles. Their capacity was 
 ten to twelve barrels of pork, salt, flour or 
 whisky. This last being a verj' important 
 article of consumption in those early days. 
 Stock of all kinds was scarce. Sheep could 
 not be kept on account of the wolves, and many 
 a family's suppl}* of pork was prematurely ex- 
 hausted hy the hungry bears which prowled 
 around the cabins of the settlers. For the ben- 
 efit of butter-makers, we will relate the follow- 
 ing of Van Hyning's trip to this township. 
 As already mentioned, Mrs. Van Hyning rode 
 on horseback and drove three cows. Their 
 milk which remained unused on breaking 
 camp in the morning was placed in a large jug 
 and deposited in one of the wagons. By night 
 a nice chunk of butter would have been formed 
 in the jug churned by the jolting of the wagon 
 over the beech roots. Farming was poor busi- 
 ness in those days. Corn was the main staple, 
 as this could be fed to the cattle and pigs as 
 well as the human beings ; wheat was raised 
 only for bread and seed, as prior to the open- 
 ing of the Ohio Canal it cost more to get the 
 wheat to market than it was worth after it was 
 there. Beans were also a very important article 
 
 of production, since they could be used with- 
 out being ground. Indeed many would cook 
 shelled corn with the beans to make them hold 
 out longer. But this was only the case prior 
 to the building of mills within reach of the 
 settlement. 
 
 The first birth within the present boundai'ies 
 of Norton was a child of L\'man Bates, which, 
 however, did not live long. Bates then lived 
 south of Johnson's Corners. A few years later 
 another was born, who lived. Soon after this, 
 Bates house was burned and he removed to 
 what is now Loyal Oak. The first death of 
 a white person was Patty O'Brien, daughter 
 of John O'Brien, aged about two years. 
 James Robinson and Lois Bates were the first 
 couple married in the township. They were 
 married at the residence of the bride's parents 
 south of Johnson's Corners, by William Prior, a 
 Justice of the Peace, of Northampton. This 
 was in the fall of 1811. Probably the second 
 wedding was that of James Cahow and Miranda 
 Holmes, daughter of Joseph Holmes, which 
 took place at her father's residence about a mile 
 east of Norton Center, April 0. 1818, by Henry 
 Van Hyning, Sr. 
 
 No Indians remained in the township after 
 1812, consequently the settlers were at peace, 
 with the exception of a personal squabble once 
 in awhile. A few incidents and personal ad- 
 ventures will illustrate the times of which we 
 write : Soon after Benjamin Hoadley settled in 
 Norton, he and Henry \n.n Hyning, Jr., went 
 into the woods on a hunting excursion, as was 
 customai'y when provisions ran low. In the 
 course of their hunt they found a bee-tree, and. 
 as it was in the fall of the year, concluded to 
 leave it until the weather was colder, and then cut 
 it down and convc}' the hidden sweets to their 
 homes. Some time during the winter following 
 they went forth to cut the tree. But lo ! the 
 tree had fallen down, and the bears, who like 
 honey as well as the human family, had got 
 away with the whole of it. A few years after, 
 the same parties again found a bee-tree 
 over in the southeast part of what is now 
 Sharon Township. This time they thought 
 they would make sure of their prize, :uid 
 accordingly the next da}-, armed with axes 
 and a pail apiece, they made for the spot. The 
 tree was soon felled, and the honey literally 
 flowed. The pails were soon filled with fine 
 white comb. Thei'e beins: so much left and the 
 
 
.[£ 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 583 
 
 distance so great, they began to contrive means 
 to take more of it, and not be at the necessity 
 of making another trip, nor at the risk of losing 
 the honey by the cunning bears, who woukl no 
 doubt find it before they could make another 
 trip for it. Van Hyning wore a long, loose sort 
 of a blouse, and of this they contrived to make 
 a sack, which the}' thought would hold comb 
 honey. So they tied the blouse together at one 
 end, filled it with the choicest honey, and secured 
 the other end in a like manner. Slinging this 
 with their pails on a pole which they had cut, 
 and Van Hyning taking the lead, oft' they 
 trudged toward home. But they had •' reckoned 
 without their host ; " the blouse was not very 
 closel}' woven, and the jar caused by walking 
 through the woods, over logs, and up hill and 
 down, caused the honey to run out of the comb 
 and drip out through the blouse. Hoadley was 
 soon almost covered with hone}', and never for- 
 got this, the sweetest adventure he ever expe- 
 rienced. 
 
 Henry Van Hyning, Sr., had two noted dogs, 
 Bose and Grunner by name — very large and 
 powerful, and ver}- skillful in hunting bear. 
 One time soon after Nathan Bates had erected 
 the first cabin on the site where now stands 
 Bates" Corners, Henry Van H3'ning. Jr., went to 
 see how he was getting aloug. When he got 
 to Bates' place, Bates told him that there had 
 been a bear seen in the woods not far away the 
 evening before, and suggested that they go and 
 find him. Two of Bates' brothers were also 
 with him at the same time. Van Hj'ning, al- 
 though acknowledged a skillful hunter, had left 
 his rifle at home that morning, and had only 
 l)r<)ught one dog with him. They therefore 
 concluded to send one of the brothers down to 
 Van H3-ning's place for the rifle, and for 
 •' Bose,' with instructions to meet them on what 
 was called the " Hog Back," a hill on the farm 
 now owned by Jacob Wertraan. Van Hyning 
 and the two Bates went to this spot with "(run- 
 ner " and two rifles. Near the '' Hog Back ' was a 
 spring, and just below the spring was a bed of 
 sweet sicily. This was a favorite resort fijr bear, 
 and for this reason, the men went to this place, 
 when Gunner began to show signs of •' bar." 
 His bristles stood erect. He sniffed the air and 
 whined as though impatient for the fray. 
 "Well," said his master, " go for them. Gunner," 
 and Gunner went. He had no sooner entered 
 the marsh than he raised the roar, which told 
 
 the men that he had found a bear, and the 
 sound told them which direction the bear and 
 dog was taking. Snatching a rifle from Bates, 
 Van Hyning started across the ravine to head 
 off" the bear. In this he succeeded by taking a 
 route diagonal to that taken by the bear. As 
 soon as the latter saw him he started toward 
 him for a fight. Van Hyning reserved his fire 
 until he could be sure of his aim. He was 
 quite a distance from the rest of the part}^ and 
 had a rifle to which he was unused, which placed 
 him in a serious position. The bear, when 
 about ten or twelve feet from the hunter, threw 
 his head down for a moment, and this moment 
 was suflScient for Van Hyning, who fired. The 
 bear turned a complete somersault and landed 
 in a little hollow, but was not dead, although 
 his neck had been broken by the ball. The 
 Bates brothers now came up, and one of them 
 placed the other rifle to the bear's ear with the 
 intention of blowing his brains out, but the rifle 
 missed fire. '• Open the pan," said Van Hyning, 
 and, priming the empt}^ gun in his hand, he 
 held the two pans together, and flashed the one, 
 which ignited the other. This finished the bear. 
 On dressing him and weighing his quarters, it 
 was found that they weighed 500 pounds. It 
 was the largest bear killed in all the country 
 around, if not the largest in the State. V^m 
 Hyning, who still lives to tell the story, says 
 he would not run the same risk again, and take 
 the chances, for the whole of Summit County. 
 
 As we have stated, money was scarce and 
 hard to get in those early days. Prior to the 
 opening of the Ohio Canal, wheat was of no 
 value except for food, and man)- had wheat 
 stored up, some to the amount of several hun- 
 dred bushels. But when tax-paying time came, 
 some would take their rifles and shoot deer, take 
 the hides on their backs to Cleveland, and thus 
 get money to pay their taxes. The canal, how- 
 ever, worked a great change in all this. Wiieat 
 went up first to 50 cents, then on to $1 per 
 bushel. Some settlers had scoffed at their 
 neighbors " who were spending their time sow- 
 ing and harvesting more wheat than they needed 
 for family use," and storing it up in their gar- 
 rets. In at least one instance, the joist had to 
 be propped up to keep them from breaking 
 down. When wheat went up, however, to $1 
 per bushel, Joseph D. Humphrey, one of the 
 scoffers, said to one of his provident neighbors : 
 " Squire, I am just $1,000 out of pocket." 
 
 
Jli 
 
 584 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 " Why so ? " said the " Squire." " Why," said 
 Huraphre}', " because I have not got 1,000 
 bushels of wheat to sell. I might as well have 
 raised that much and stored it up as not." 
 
 New Portage was the scene of an epidemic 
 from the years 1825 to 1828, which was called 
 typhus or malarial fever. This nearly wiped 
 the town out of existence. It seemed fatal, 
 and those who had clung to it as the El Dorado 
 of their hopes, were loath to leave, but were 
 forced to do so, or die in their tracks, as scarcely 
 an}^ escaped the deadly disease. 
 
 During the early history of this township, a 
 great deal of counterfeit money was in circula- 
 tion, and a great deal of suspicion was attached 
 to persons then living in Johnson's Corners. 
 One De Course}' was generallv considered the 
 ringleader of the whole crookedness. He was 
 a sharp, shrewd man — one who seemed to know 
 all that was going on in the whole neighbor- 
 hood — for no sooner did the Justice issue a war- 
 rant for his arrest than he took to the woods, 
 where he would remain until the storm had 
 blown over, when he would again make his ap- 
 pearance. At one time, when the Constable 
 came with a posse to arrest him, De Coursey 
 spied them coming, and quick as thought he 
 pulled off his coat, tossed it to George Beach, 
 who was with him at the time, saying, " Be 
 quick, George. Put on that coat and streak for 
 the woods." Beach did not wait to be told a 
 second time, but " streaked." The Constable 
 and posse took after him full speed. Beach ran 
 until he thought he had carried the joke far 
 enough, when he turned around and faced the 
 music with the remark : " What in hell do you 
 want ? what's the matter ? " " Sucked, by G — !" 
 said the Constable. De Coursey in the mean- 
 while had time to escape. About 1825, a young 
 man named Henry Flickinger came to Johnson's 
 Corners with about $300 in money, which was 
 good, but not the kind that would pass at the land 
 office where he wished to use it for the purpose 
 of buying land. De Course}' then had a man 
 with him named Downs, who, they said, could 
 exchange money with Flickinger. This Flickin- 
 ger was glad to do, but alas ! when Flickinger 
 came to the land office with his money, it was 
 found to be spurious Virginia mone3^ He swore 
 out a warrant for the arrest of Downs, before 
 Esquire Van Hyning. It was served by Hen- 
 ry Sparhawk, Constable, who found his man at 
 Yellow Creek Basin, then a favorite resort for 
 
 counterfeiters and horse-thieves. Downs had a 
 fine horse which he rode. They proceeded 
 on their wa}' to Norton, but had not gone far 
 when Downs took to the woods, leaving the 
 horse in possession of the Constable, who 
 brought it to Norton, gave it up to the Squire, 
 who in turn delivered it to Mr. Flickinger, who 
 thus had a horse in exchange for his $300. 
 Suspicion also pointed to one James Hender- 
 shott, who once lived in a house on the high 
 knoll just south of where Jacob Wertman now 
 lives. When the house was torn down, soon 
 after he left it, some counterfeit half-dollars 
 were found in the cellar, supposed to have been 
 left there by him, as he was the last and the 
 only suspicious character who ever lived there. 
 
 At the organization of the township, only 
 three Democratic voters were present. They 
 were Abel Irish, Joseph D. Humphrey and Levi 
 Waj', who lived in the southeast part of the 
 town. Now, the Democrats have a raajorit}' of 
 about sixty in the township. 
 
 Norton Township is abundantly supplied 
 with coal of a good quality, no less than four 
 coal mines being in operation within the limits 
 of the township at the present time. The first 
 coal was found cropping out of the bank of a 
 creek, near where the Bartges or Williams 
 Brothers bank now is, as early perhaps as 
 1825. This coal was sold for $1 per load, and 
 each one dug his own coal at first. About 
 1830-31, the bank on the northeast side of this 
 creek was opened by Jason Jones and a man 
 named Funk. iVbout ten years afterward, Jo- 
 seph Burgess opened the bank on the other side 
 of the creek, and, years after, the one now in 
 operation on his farm, south of Johnson's Cor- 
 ners. In 1876, a coal mine was opened on the 
 farm of Charles Stuver. In 1863, the Atlantic 
 & Great Western Railwa}', now known as the 
 New York, Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad, was 
 opened through the township from east to west, 
 and while grading this, coal was found in a cut 
 at Dennison, which led to the opening of a coal 
 mine at that place. Hundreds of thousands 
 of tons of coal have been taken from this 
 mine, and within the last three 3'ears two new 
 openings have been made, and the old bank 
 abandoned and allowed to fill up with water. 
 This mine supplies the railroad with coal for 
 their engines, at the chutes, near the mine, thus 
 saving transportation on a great amount of 
 coal. 
 
 ■7[< 
 
k^ 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 585 
 
 Probably the first tavern or public house 
 kept in the township was situated on Lot 20, a 
 little east of the Wolf Creek. It was kept by 
 John Cahow, who settled here as early as 1810, 
 and kept travelers at his cabin during the war 
 of 1812, and after, Joseph Holmes who has 
 already been mentioned as settling on Lot 57, 
 also kept a hotel for the accommodation of 
 travelers after 1820. Thomas Van Hyning, 
 who settled on the farm now occupied by Mer- 
 vin Shaw, was also an earl}^ tavern-keeper. 
 Others will be mentioned in the history of the 
 villages of the township. The first saw-mill 
 in the township was built by Thomas Johnson, 
 near Johnson's Corners, several rods south of 
 the present grist-mill. It was built about the 
 year 1823. Thomas Van Hyning built one a 
 little farther up the creek. Hezekiah Ward 
 built a saw-mill on Hudson Run, up near the 
 Wadsworth line, about 1825. These were what 
 was called sash-frame saws and worked very 
 slow. About 1837, Nathan Seiberling, who 
 had settled on his present farm in 1831, built a 
 saw-mill introducing what was called a geared 
 mule}' saw, which cut much faster than theold 
 style. Some years after, another mill was built 
 still farther down the creek than Seiberlings, 
 and which is still in use, although steam has 
 been substituted for water-power. The five 
 saw-mills just mentioned were all on Hudson 
 Hun ; one was built on Van Hyning Creek, at an 
 earl}^ date, by Henry Van Hyning, Jr. The first 
 grist-mill built in Norton was at Johnson's Cor- 
 ners, and is still in operation. It was built by 
 Thomas Johnson about 1830 ; he soon after 
 built another farther down the creek, which, 
 however, did not long continue. At the 
 raising of this mill, Dennis Bates fell from it 
 and was killed, having struck his head on a 
 rock and crushed in his skull. Clark's Mill 
 was built by Carlos Clark about 1836-37. A 
 great deal of litigation has been had about this 
 mill and its water-power. The mill was finally 
 burned to the ground in 1879 ; how the fire 
 originated was never ascertained. The mill 
 had been repaired but a short time before, and 
 was just getting under way and doing good 
 work. There has been but one distillery in the 
 township, and it was a short-lived affair. It 
 was at New Portage, and was carried on by 
 Uriah IM. Chapel, probably as earl}- as 1825. 
 The proprietor was a powerful man, noted for 
 his strength and agility as a wrestler, but he 
 
 eventually found his match in the person of 
 Henry Van Hyning, Jr., who threw him twice 
 in succession, at one of the numerous " bees " 
 so common in those earl}' da3's. The first tan- 
 nery in the township was at Western Star. It 
 was built prior to 1830, and was at that date 
 operated by Lebbens Hoskinson, late of John- 
 son's Corners. In 1835, another was started at 
 Bates' Corners, but by whom we are not able 
 to say ; both of these are still in operation. 
 A third was started at Johnson's Corners, con- 
 siderably later, but has long since ceased to ex- 
 ist. Samuel Baker was the first blacksmith in 
 the township, and, prior to his moving to Nor- 
 ton, he plied his trade in Stow, where some 
 Norton people went to get their blacksmithing 
 done. Baker's brother-in-law, Abe Van Hj'u- 
 ing, of Johnson's Corners, was in need of some 
 blacksmithing, and concluded to go to Stow to 
 get his friend Sam to do his work. He had a 
 natural dislike for bear's meat, which formed a 
 very important part of Baker's provisions, and, 
 indeed, was the only kind of meat they had at 
 the time. Baker's wife knew of this aversion, 
 but thought she would fix him up a steak that 
 he would relish. Accordingl}-, as Van Hyning 
 had to sta\' all night, she brought him a piece 
 of meat nicely served, calling it beef for his 
 supper, saying that she knew he did not like 
 bear meat, so she had cooked him some beef 
 they had got of a neighbor. Van Hyning ate 
 heartily of the heef^ and at last said, " Just cut 
 me a small slice of the bear meat to taste." 
 He was helped to a small piece from the other 
 dish, but pronounced it " strong, couldn't eat it 
 no how." The Bakers managed to keep from 
 smiling until the meal was over, but after this, 
 whenever Van Hyning said he didn't like bear 
 meat, some one was ready to remind him of the 
 time he ate it and liked it, but supposed it to 
 be beef When Baker came to Norton, he put 
 up his shop at Clark's Mills, near where George 
 Turner now lives. 
 
 The great Scioto Trail, from the Cuyahoga 
 Portage to the Scioto River, lay through this 
 township. This trail struck the township near 
 the northeast corner of Lot 20, crossed Wolf 
 Creek where Van Hyning's Bridge now is, 
 passed down the west side of Wolf Creek Bot- 
 toms, where Stauffer and Irish now live, taking 
 nearly the same course of the present road, till 
 near "where A. D. Betz lives. It then made a 
 straight cut to Johnson's Corners. From there 
 
'VK 
 
 5«6 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 it took a southwesterl}' course nearly identical 
 with the Wooster road. This was the onl}' 
 important Indian trail in the township, and was 
 the course the first settlers traveled to find their 
 homes. It was marked by a well-beaten path, 
 in some places almost a foot deep, but was onl}' 
 passable for foot passengers. Trees had to be 
 cut and underbrush cleared away, before a team 
 could get through. The first road was cut 
 out upon this trail prior to 1816 as far as 
 Johnson's Corners. Philemon Kirkham had 
 settled on Lot 11, and Seth Lucas on Lot 12. 
 They petitioned for a road from Bigelow Chapel 
 to Wolf Creek. This was called the Black 
 Snake Road, on account of its crookedness. 
 Next a road was cut through from the east line 
 of Lots 57 and 67, and passed through the cen- 
 ter of the township, and on through to Harris- 
 ville, Medina County, where a settlement 
 had been formed by Judge Harris, some time 
 between 1818 and"l822. Peter Waltz, having 
 bought Lot 81, came in to clear up his place. 
 He got as far as Johnson's Corners without 
 anything more serious happening than getting 
 stuck in the mud at Hudson Run ; but west 
 from Johnson's Corners, however, the fun came 
 in. The neighbors turned in and out, a day's 
 time, cut a road through the woods to his 
 place, which enabled him to proceed. Soon 
 after this, a road was cut through from New 
 Portage to Johnson's Corners ; next from New 
 Portage to the east end of the center road, on 
 Lot 67. In the meantime, the settlers had cut 
 cross roads, to facilitate travel in all directions, 
 so that, in the course of twelve or fifteen years, 
 the township was pretty well supplied with 
 roads, such as the^' were. The one across 
 Wolf Creek Bottom, east of the center, was a 
 corduroy road, that is, made of logs thrown in 
 crosswise, and notches cut in for the wheels to 
 run in, causing a great deal of jolting to those 
 who were obliged to use it. A stage route, 
 from Cleveland to Massillon, passed through 
 Norton. This was the onl}' public conveyance 
 known before the canal was opened. A mail 
 route was established from Johnson's Corners 
 to Cleveland. The first post office of the town- 
 ship was probably at New Portage, but whether 
 it was in Norton Township or Coventry, is a 
 matter of some dispute. The Ohio Canal was 
 opened for traffic in 1827, and caused quite a 
 revolution in the business of the township. 
 Farm productions advanced in price, and pros- 
 
 perity began to smile on the inhabitants. But 
 the unstable quality of the mone}' of this early 
 day was a matter of great anno3^ance, as a man 
 might go to bed at night with a snug little fort- 
 une under his pillow, and wake up the next 
 morning and find himself a beggar bj^ the 
 breaking up of a " wild-cat " bank. Henr}- 
 Van Hyning, Jr., who was Justice of the Peace 
 in those early daj'S, and who did a great deal 
 of collecting for other parties, would notifj- the 
 parties in this manner : " Your money is col- 
 i lected, and is all good to-day, but I will not 
 warrant it to-morrow." In 1856. the Cleve- 
 land, Mount Vernon & Dayton Railroad was 
 built along the canal, through Norton Town- 
 ship. The first train passed over the track 
 late in the fall, and, as a free ride had been ad- 
 vertised, crowds gathered along the track, 
 thinking the train would stop at an}' place 
 where there were people to be seen. Hundreds 
 were left standing and gaping at the iron 
 horse on this, his first trip through this 
 section. Some tried to catch the train, but it 
 outran them. In 1863, the Atlantic & Great 
 Western Railway was built. Considerable 
 mone}' was raised b}' subscription on this road, 
 and but little was ever realized from the in- 
 vestment. Many citizens worked on the grad- 
 ing with teams and b}' hand, and, as wages 
 were high at that time, money was plent}- all 
 over the township. 
 
 The first bridge built in Norton was the one 
 across Wolf Creek, near Sylvester Van Hyning's 
 place. The abutments of this bridge were 
 made of logs laid up " cob-house " st^'le, and 
 four logs flattened on their upper sides were 
 laid across for " stringers. " These were cov- 
 ered with split puncheons laid as tight as pos- 
 sible. The approaches were filled up with logs 
 and dirt until they were passable. More of the 
 same sort were built at other points as they 
 were needed. Stone was, however, soon put in 
 instead of logs for abutments, and plank were 
 substituted for split puncheons. Now we have 
 several substantial iron structui-es ; one across 
 Wolf Creek, near Wolf Creek Lock, and two 
 more on the road leading from Johnson's Cor- 
 ners to New Portage. An immense wooden 
 viaduct was built over Hudson Run by the 
 railroad compan}-, about one-half a mile west 
 of the north-and-south center road. This was 
 probably seventy feet high at its highest point, 
 and at least four hundred feet long. A splendid 
 

 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 587 
 
 arched culvert was afterward thrown over the 
 run and the gull}^ filled up with earth, leaving 
 the timbers in their places. Just west of this 
 fill the railroad enters a rock cut about three 
 hundred feet long and from ten to twenty-five 
 feet deep. Betweim this cut and the fill a new 
 branch was built in 1880, running south about 
 two miles to Williams Bros', coal mine. New 
 Portage was probabl}' the first village laid out 
 either wholly or in part in the township. It 
 was laid out in 1818 by Ambrose Palmer, or at 
 least the part was which belonged to Norton. 
 Buildings both log and frame sprang up, and 
 soon a thriving town stood where, a few years 
 before, there were nothing but woods to be 
 seen. A glass factory was started by Palmer, 
 soon after, in a large barn-like structure, with 
 the stack or furnace in the center. His pots 
 and molds were brought from Zanesville, Ohio. 
 Sand was procured by pounding sandstone in a 
 huge trough, the pounding or crushing being 
 done by means of a spring pole and pestle. 
 Black salt was used as a flux. This was 
 abundant, as black salt was made at many 
 places through this new country where ashes 
 were plenty from the log heaps that were 
 burned b}' thousands in all directions. Wood 
 was used for fuel for smelting the sand, and the 
 consequence was that much of the glass was 
 smok}' and could not be used for window glass, 
 when it was made into hollow ware, such as 
 tumblers, goblets, drinking glasses, bottles, and 
 many other articles useful and oi'uamental. At 
 first six blowers were employed, but, afterward, 
 the shop was enlarged and eight blowers were 
 employed. Sand of good quality was found in 
 the marshes of Coventr}- about the time of the 
 enlargement, and it was used from this time on. 
 But the business proved a failure, and Palmer 
 joined the Mormons and " went West." The 
 glass factory was situated on the hill north of 
 where the church and burying-ground are at 
 present located. The glass business failed in 
 1828, and soon after New Portage fell a pre}' to 
 typhus fever, as already noted, which uearl}- 
 annihilated the settlement. Thomas Johnson 
 kept a tavern at New Portage in 1817 for some 
 time, when he moved on to a farm just across 
 the south line of Norton Townshii). A family 
 named Nesmith came in 1821. One of the 
 descendants of this family, Thomas Nesmith. 
 is still living in Norton. A great part of the 
 business of New Portage, for the period of per- 
 
 haps tweut3'-five years, was carried on in 
 Coventry Township. About 1850, however, 
 the Norton part of the town again began to 
 revive, but this time farther down the canal, as 
 at present. During the decade following 1850, 
 a pottery was built by Jacob Welsh just west of 
 the present store. This was operated for about 
 twelve years, at first with one kiln, afterward 
 with two. This pottery was twice burned to 
 the ground — rebuilt the first time and enlarged. 
 Welsh also had a store and did a large business. 
 Thirteen wheels were in use in the pottery. One 
 kiln of ware was burned each week, turning out 
 six to eight thousand gallons of ware per week, 
 which at first was shipped b}- canal, l)ut soon 
 after the railroad was finished it was shipped b^' 
 rail. Welsh had the post office in his store 
 during the time that he was in business, and 
 the mail, it was thought, was robbed several 
 times while he kept the office. He, it seems, 
 suspected that some one was in the habit of 
 breaking open the store during the night, rob- 
 bing the mail of valuable letters. Upon a cer- 
 tain occasion in November, 1869, his son Cor- 
 win and himself concluded to watch the office 
 awhile to see if an}* one should make an attempt 
 upon it. The first night the}' watched, both 
 Corwin and his fixther stayed in the store until 
 midnight, when Corwin went home, leaving the 
 fiither alone on watch. Soon after the son left, 
 Welsh heard a noise at the basement window, 
 next to the canal ; the window shutter was 
 pried open, the window raised, and some one 
 was heard coming up the steps from the base- 
 ment, who entered the storeroom just before 
 the west end of the counter. Welsh was stand- 
 ing back of this counter with a loaded shot-gun 
 in his hand, and as the burglar arrived at the 
 head of the stairs and stooped to strike a match 
 on the floor, Welsh fired. The man was not 
 over six feet from the muzzle of the gun. As 
 the man fell he exclaimed, • My (iod, Welsh, 
 you've killed me," and expired. The neigh- 
 bors were aroused by the noise of the gun. and 
 soon came to see what was the matter. The 
 supposed burglar was found to be a citizen of 
 the place. These are the facts as nearly as can 
 be obtained from those present at the in(iuest. 
 A chip was found broken out of the wall out- 
 side of the window where the bar had been 
 rested while prying open the window. Welsh 
 was ac(}uitted from all blame by the inquest 
 held over the bod}'. 
 
 ^ 
 
^. 
 
 588 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 L. B. Schneider, now of Akron, had a store 
 at New Portage in 1863, and was in business 
 several years. After him came first Weary & 
 Bro., then Weary & Witner, and still later 
 Weary & Downer, each continuing about a year. 
 Next, Joe Ellis & Co., then Corwin Welsh, dur- 
 ing whose stay the shooting above related took 
 place. Next, Harry Diesern took the store, 
 and. last. Mr. John McNamara, who is still 
 doing business in the old original room. His 
 stock in trade is probably worth |1,200. New 
 Portage is a station on the Cleveland, Mount 
 Vernon & Columbus Railroad, and New York, 
 Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad. The former road 
 does a cash business of al^out $100 per month 
 at this office in freight and passenger traffic — 
 the latter about $75 or $80. Mr. David L. Cart- 
 mill has had charge of the office of the New 
 York, Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad for fifteen 
 years or more. The coal shipped from Norton 
 Township over this road is all billed from New 
 Portage. This road has a frame depot build- 
 ing, pumping-house of brick and a water tank, 
 and a side track for trains to pass, of nearly a 
 mile in length. 
 
 New Portage has one of the finest springs of 
 fresh water that can be found in the county. It 
 runs a stream just so strong, and is never more 
 or less so, whether in wet or dry weather. The 
 post office at this place was established at an 
 early day, but the exact date is not known, but 
 is probably the earliest in the township. At 
 present, Mr. W. C. Jaquith is the Postmaster. 
 The office pays a salar}' of about $140 per j'ear. 
 Two canal boats are owned at this place — 
 "Lily," Wellman Witner, Captain, owned by 
 Witner Brothers, and " Wheeling.'" Willson 
 Witner, Captain and owner. 
 
 Next in the order of villages, we find Bates" 
 Corners (Lo3al Oak P. 0.) This place was set- 
 tled by and named after two brothers — Nathan 
 and Lyman Bates — who settled here about 1817 
 or 1818. one building on the northeast corner, 
 the other on the southwest corner, as it now 
 stands. The first tavern was kept by James 
 Moore, but it could hardly be called a public 
 house. Moore was also the first blacksmith in 
 the place. Thomas Brown was the first mer- 
 chant of the place, and had a small store on 
 the southeast corner, as it now stands, but did 
 not remain long, others taking his place in the 
 same business. Bates" Corners has seen so 
 man\' changes in its early da3's, that the half 
 
 of them cannot be noticed here. A tanner}' 
 was started in 1835, and is still in operation, 
 although it has been rebuilt since that time. 
 Mr. John J. Bauer is the present owner, having 
 bought it in 18C4, remodeled it, and introduced 
 steam power. His son, Byron B. Bauer, is at 
 present connected with him in the business. 
 Bates' Corners owes a great deal of its pros- 
 perity to Mr. Peter Lerch, who alone has had 
 nearly as many buildings erected as all the rest 
 of its inhabitants together. He at present occu- 
 pies the new hotel at that place. Mr. Edward 
 Laubach built a steam saw-mill in 1867, at a 
 cost of $3,200. Business was good, and he in- 
 troduced a pair of chopping buhrs for grinding 
 feed, with which he did a large amount of work. 
 In 1874, the mill burned to the ground, but he 
 immediately rebuilt it, at a cost of about 
 $1,000. It is at present owned by J. J. Knecht 
 & Brother, who are doing considerable work. 
 Mr. Jacob Flickinger is the blacksmith at pres- 
 ent. He builds some wagons, and occupies a 
 substantial frame building just east of the 
 Lo3^al Oaks House. Bates' Corners has one 
 church edifice. It is built of stone, as a union 
 church, by the Lutheran and German Reformed 
 societies, in 1851. Mr. A. Schneider is the 
 present mei'chant and Postmaster. The post 
 office at this place was not established until re- 
 cently. Western Star, or, as it was originally 
 called, Griswold's Corners, was first settled b}' 
 a family named Richards, consisting of the 
 father and five or more sons, of whom the 
 father and three sons, named Mills, CuUen and 
 Ezekiel, lived in Norton, the others in Wads- 
 worth. They came here as early as 1819, per- 
 haps earlier ; the father lived where the old 
 Himmelwright homestead now is. Nathan 
 Starr, of Connecticut, was the original owner 
 of a large tract of land lying adjacent to and 
 east of Western Star. About 1825, Hezekiah 
 Ward built a saw-mill about a mile north of this 
 place, and, four years later, in 1829, the Gris- 
 wold brothers came and settled here. Prior to 
 this, however, several other families had settled 
 in and around the place, so that quite a settle- 
 ment was formed. Dr. Austin, the first ph}'- 
 sician of the place, lived in a house on what is 
 now known as the Reimer lot. The place was 
 named Griswold's Corners from the brothers of 
 that name, just mentioned, who came here in 
 1829. William Heustis came the same year, 
 and worked for the Griswolds, who had a store 
 
iht^ 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 589 
 
 and two asheries, or black salt factories, in oper- 
 ation soon after their advent in the town — one 
 at this place and one near where Dennison now 
 is, on the farm latel}'^ owned by Alpheus M3'ers. 
 The second 3-ear the Griswolds were here, they 
 cleared up 300 acres of land and sowed it in 
 wheat. A post office was established about this 
 time, but who the first Postmaster was we were 
 unable to ascertain. The Sutton House is the 
 first tavern of which we have any trace, al- 
 though there probably* was one earlier. Julius 
 Richards had a wagon-shop in operation at a 
 ver}' early day. In 1831, Nathan Seiberling 
 bought out one of the Richards brothers and 
 settled where he still lives. The first store 
 building was erected on the northeast corner. 
 The first schoolhouse was a little farther north, 
 opposite Shaft'er's harness-shop. The first 
 church was organized about 1835-36. The 
 present school building was erected as a semi- 
 nary in 1844. The site, containing one acre of 
 land, was deeded by Nathan and Grrace T. 
 Starr, of Middletown, Conn., to certain persons 
 named therein as trustees, with the proviso that 
 " they shall erect a suitable building for a sem- 
 inary building, and shall keep in good repair 
 at all times, otherwise the land to revert to the 
 original owners." This deed is dated November 
 7, 1844. The seminary was started the follow- 
 ing spring, with Revs. Lorenzo D. Williams and 
 Merritt Matteson as teachers. At present. 
 Western Star contains two school buildings, 
 one church (United Brethren), two stores 
 (Dague Brothers & Co. and Levi Shaffer), a 
 carriage shop, b}' Warren Hanshue, who is at 
 present refitting an old building as a repository 
 and varnish room, one tanner}-, and, on the 
 Wadsworth side, a hotel, by William Stevens, 
 shoe-shop and harness-shop. It was incor- 
 porated in 1842, with Maj'or, Marshal and 
 Council. Has a graded school, and is generally 
 prosperous, (jr. C. Dague is present Postmas- 
 ter, Aaron Eicheberger Mayor, and Warren 
 Hanshue, Marshal. 
 
 Dennison (Sherman Post Office), on the New 
 York, Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad, has 
 sprung into existence since the railroad was 
 built. At one time, it contained a store, kept 
 by the Koplin Brothers ; but at present is with- 
 out a merchant. The post office was established 
 about 1864, with Joel C. Koplin as Postmaster, 
 who has held the office ever since, with the 
 exception of a few months. The principal busi- 
 
 ness of the place is that caused by the Norton 
 Coal Compan3''s mines, which are located here, 
 with coal chutes and a telegraph office. Hame- 
 town, one and a half miles south of Dennison, 
 has also been brought into existence by the 
 coal business. It contains a store, kept by J. 
 W. James, and two saloons and a shoemaker's 
 shop — ^F. Schneider, proprietor. 
 
 Johnson's Corners was the second settlement 
 in the township. The first person to settle 
 here was Abraham Van Hyning, in 1 814. John 
 O'Brien came soon after, Jacob Miller and 
 others followed soon. Charles Miller came in 
 1816, with others ; but all settled around where 
 Johnson's Corners now stands. About 1822-23, 
 Thomas Johnson moved from his place just 
 across the line, south of Norton, to this place, 
 and began to build up the town. His saw-mill 
 was built soon after he came, and, about 1826-27, 
 he erected the hotel which is still occupied as 
 such. This was, however, not finished for several 
 years. In 1830, Johnson commenced the first 
 grist-mill ever erected in Norton Township, 
 which is still in use for the same purpose. The 
 saw-mill that he had built stood a few rods 
 farther south. Two or three 3ears after, John- 
 son erected another mill, nearly' a mile farther 
 doAvn the stream, and nearly opposite where 
 Jacob Hoch now lives. At the raising of this 
 mill, Dennis Bates, who had volunteered to help 
 to put on the rafters, fell from the plate, struck 
 on a rock, and shattered his skull, causing 
 almost instant death. Johnson had, in the 
 meantime, started a store, and held the office of 
 Postmaster. He was probably the first Post- 
 master in the place. In the year 1835-36, a 
 Methodist Church society was organized, with 
 Johnson as the first class leader. Rev. Mr. 
 Bigelow was probably the first minister. He 
 was soon afterward ordained as Presiding Elder, 
 and Rev. Messrs. Jaynes and Hazzard took the 
 circuit. A church building was erected about 
 1841, which served as a place of worship thirty 
 years, when a new and imposing building was 
 erected b}- the 3Iethodist society. It is one of 
 the best church buildings in the county, outside 
 of the incorporated towns, surmounted by a 
 tower and belfry, and is lighted by elegant 
 stained glass windows. The walls and ceiling 
 are frescoed in fine style. 
 
 The first school taught in the township was 
 kept at Johnson's Corners, in a log schoolhouse, 
 about 1818-1 9. It was taught by Sarah Wyatt. 
 

 .l£ 
 
 590 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 This village has been blessed with perhaps more 
 different schoolhoiises than any other in the 
 township. At present, it has a comnaodious 
 school building, well filled with scholars when 
 school is in session. One or more stores have 
 been in existence ever since Johnson's time, 
 Mr. Amos Miller being present merchant and 
 Postmaster. Besides this, the village contains 
 a hotel, by John T. Price ; two blacksmiths, one 
 wheelwright, one harness-shop, two shoe-shops 
 and a steam saw-mill, built in 1807, b}' Peter 
 Hunsicker, at a cost of $8,600. It was burned 
 to the ground in 1875 ; but was again rebuilt, 
 and is doing considerable business. The cost 
 of rebuilding was about $800. 
 
 Wolf Creek Lock, a small hamlet on the Ohio 
 Canal, near the mouth of Wolf Creek, contains 
 a small grocer}', kept many years ago by Will- 
 iam Pierce, and, in later times, by James Owry, 
 who has lately sold to William Hablinger ; one 
 boat is owned at this place, the " Fisher ;'" 
 John Reichard, Captain. Norton claims another 
 boat, the ' Crawford ;"" Henry Manderbach, Cap- 
 tain and owner. 
 
 The first settlement made at Norton Center 
 was by Joseph D. Humphrey. He was a grad- 
 uate of Yale College, and had studied law. 
 He settled at Norton Center about 1816-17, 
 and began clearing up Lot 60. He was after- 
 ward elected as fix'st Township Clerk of Norton 
 Township, in the spring of 1818. Li 1823-24, 
 Mr. Thomas Brown came from Bates' Corners 
 and built, or started to build, the house still 
 standing on the southwest corner of the public 
 square. It was intended for a store and 
 dwelling. Brown, however, died before it was 
 completed, when Henr}' Van Honing, Jr., 
 bought it and finished it up. Soon afterward, 
 he rented it to a man named Gillet, who occu- 
 pied it as a store and dwelling-house for man}^ 
 years. A log-house was built soon after the 
 above on the northwest corner, and, after a 
 number of 3'ears, one on the northeast corner. 
 Three acres of land were deeded to the town- 
 ship by Birdsey Norton's heirs and Deacon 
 David Hudson for a public square, as early as 
 1818. A schoolhouse was also an early acqui- 
 sition. The first was a log structure, which 
 was superseded by a frame building, this again 
 by brick, and last a substantial frame school- 
 house, the largest and best in the township, 
 with a belfry and spire. During the last 
 twenty years of its histoi'y. Norton Center has 
 
 been a dull place. In 1869, Mr. Lewis Setg- 
 fried built a hotel on the northeast corner of 
 the square, into which he moved on the last 
 da}- of March, 1870. For j-ears previous to 
 this, he had kept a hotel about a mile east of 
 the Center. In 1871, Mr. Aaron Hartzell and 
 M. M. Dickson opened a store in partnership. 
 A storehouse was built, a stock of goods 
 bought and placed in it, and on May 1, 1871, 
 the store was opened to the public for business. 
 In the fall of 1872, the stock was moved to 
 Johnson's Corners, as the room had grown too 
 small for the business carried on. In the 
 spring of 1877, Mr. A. (}. Seas moved his 
 stock of goods from Johnson's Corners to Nor- 
 ton Center, into this same building. M. L. 
 Shook was taken in as a partner, and together 
 the}' did a small business until the spring of 
 1879, when the stock was closed out and the 
 partnership dissolved. The post office was 
 established at a ver}' early day, but the date 
 and the first Postmaster's name have not been 
 ascertained. Thomas Young was Postmaster 
 for many ja^ars, until the year 1872 — probably 
 the winter of 1872-73— when it was trans- 
 ferred to George Lahr, who had it until the fall 
 of 1873, when J. J. Stauffer was appointed 
 Postmaster. He moved away from the Center 
 the following spring, and the post oflBce was 
 discontinued. During the fall of 1877, an 
 effort was made by the citizens of the Center 
 and vicinity to have the oflflce again estab- 
 lished, which was finally successful, and, in 
 the spring of 1878, Mr. A. G. Seas received 
 his appointment as Postmaster. He retained 
 the office until the 1st day of October, 1880, 
 when M. L. Shook was appointed in his place, 
 who still retains the office. 
 
 During the spring of 1876, an eflFort was 
 made by several prominent farmers of Norton 
 Township to organize a grange. Their eflforts 
 were finally successful, and, on the 1st of 
 June, 1876, a grange was organized at Norton 
 Center, with E. H. Yiers, Master ; A. D. Betz, 
 Overseer, and Reuben Stauffer, Secretary. It 
 was called Summit Grange, P. of H., and num- 
 bered 1,283. Meetings were first held in the 
 store building owned by A. Hartzell. The 
 organization, strong in numbers from the start, 
 slowl}' increased, and, the following year, a 
 large hall was built on the southeast corner of 
 the square. The hall is 28x50 feet, and two 
 stories high, with a cellar under the south half 
 
 "71' 
 
fe^ 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 591 
 
 of the building. The lower story is finished 
 for a kitchen and dining-room. The upper 
 floor has two comfortable ante-rooms and 
 lodge-room proper, with arched ceiling and ros- 
 trum. The acoustic qualities are exceptionally 
 fine, and, all in all, it is one of the best halls for 
 the purpose outside of the cities. The grange is 
 still in a flourishing condition, with about sixty 
 members square on the books. Present Mas- 
 ter, Henry Tippery ; Overseer, A. D. Betz ; 
 Secretary, Wellington Miller ; Treasurer, Jo- 
 seph Burgess. 
 
 Prior to the 3' ear 1830, the population of 
 Norton Township consisted principally of New 
 England people or their descendants, with a 
 few Irish and a few English interspersed. But 
 about that time a thrifty, industrious class of 
 Pennsylvania farmers began to show them- 
 selves, and, attracted by the fertility of the soil, 
 soon we find them buying out the Yankees and 
 superseding them in all manner of business. 
 Among the first Pennsylvania Dutch families 
 we find Nathan Seiberling, 1831 ; Abraham 
 Koplin, 1831 ; Lautzenhiser, 1831 ; the next 
 year brought still others, until among the 
 farming" community we find at present more 
 than 75 per cent of Pennsylvania people and 
 their descendants. According to the census 
 of 1880, the population of Norton is 2,067. 
 Among them we find 81 persons over sixty-five 
 years of age ; 54 over seventy years of age, and 
 9 over eighty years of age. Twelve pairs of 
 twins were enumerated, of whom two pairs 
 were both females, seven pairs both males and 
 three pairs of one male and one female. Two 
 hundred and eight farms were enumerated, 
 averaging seventy-two acres per farm, and in 
 the crop report for 1880, we find seventy -two 
 farmers reporting 57,276 bushels of corn in the 
 ear, averaging ninety bushels per acre. Seven- 
 ty farmers reported 23,126 bushels of oats, or 
 thirty-eight bushels per acre. Seventy-eight 
 farmers report 28,551 bushels of wheat on 
 1,035 acres, or 27.5 bushels per acre. Sixty- 
 nine farmers reported 18,285 bushels of apples 
 (estimated). 
 
 The first organized church in Norton was a 
 Methodist society formed as early as 1816, 
 in the northeast part of the township. The 
 earlier Class-leaders were natives of Coventry 
 Township. They held their meetings in pri- 
 vate houses for a number of 3'ears. James 
 McMahan and John P. Kent were the circuit 
 
 preachers at that time. John C. Brooks came 
 on in 1817, and was instrumental in bringing 
 about a great revival of religion in that year. 
 We next find Dennis Goddard and a Mr. Booth 
 on the circuit, with James B. Findlay as Pre- 
 siding Elder. About this time the log-church 
 building in the woods north of New Portage 
 was erected, where powerful work was done 
 for the cause of religion. Under the direction 
 of Brooks, a Methodist society was formed at 
 Bates' Corners, soon after the great revival of 
 1817. This was at one time a verj' strong 
 society. A church was built and the society 
 was prosperous for a considerable number of 
 3'ears. Next after the Methodists, the Baptists 
 got a footing at Bates' Corners, and organized 
 a society, but by whom is not known. They, 
 in their turn, were succeeded by the Disciples 
 and Congregationalists, and in 1 8-17 a Union, or 
 more strictly speaking, a Lutheran society was 
 formed with about forty members. Daniel 
 Bauer and David Moser were the first Elders, 
 with Charles Miller and William Sweitzer, 
 Deacons. John Buhl, a Reformed minister, 
 was the first one employed regularly. Meet- 
 ings were held in the Disciples' Church until 
 1851, when the Evangelical Lutheran and Ger- 
 man Beformed united and together erected the 
 church building now in use. The corner-stone 
 was laid about the 10th day of Ma^-, by Revs. 
 D. Rothacker and J. W. Hamm ; the latter had 
 been serving the society some time before. The 
 church is built of stone and finished with a gal- 
 lery on three sides, at an expense of about 
 $2,300 ; was dedicated in November, some time 
 toward the close of the month. Rev. Rothacker 
 was emploj^ed b}' the Evangelical Lutheran 
 society at that time, and continued to serve 
 them until October 1, 1875, when the Rev. J. 
 H. Smith was called to the pulpit, and has 
 served them since. Father Hamm served the 
 German Reformed societv from 1849 till 1862. 
 Rev. C. H. Reiter. 1862 till 1868. since which 
 Rev. S. C. Leiter has had charge of the flock. 
 Present number of communicants : Lutheran, 
 190; Reformed, 140. 
 
 At Western Star, a Methodist Church was 
 organized about 1835, or perhaps later. Among 
 the early circuit preachers were Rev. Lorenzo 
 Bevin, in charge of the society at this place. 
 No regular church building was erected, al- 
 though a lot was deeded to a religions associa- 
 tion by Nathan Starr and wife, of Middletown, 
 
 W 
 
A< 
 
 592 
 
 HISTOKY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Conn., which was to revert back to the grantors 
 if not used for the purposes and in the manner 
 specified. In 1878, the United Brethren formed 
 a society at this place, with a membership of 
 fifty-two, and, the following year, a church 
 building was erected, at a cost of $2,200. It 
 was dedicated by Bishop Weaver. Revs. 
 Sprang and Whitney served the congregation 
 the first year, and at present Revs. Sprang and 
 Moody have the charge. Present membership, 
 about fifty. In 1838, a union society of Ger- 
 man Reformed and Evangelical Lutheran com- 
 municants was formed in the southwest part of 
 Norton Township, with some members in Chip- 
 pewa Township. A site was secured, and a 
 building erected by Petei Burkert (now living 
 in Akron). The building was quite large, with 
 gallery on three sides. It was used as a 
 church for thirty -five years, and originally cost 
 about $1,700. In 1873, a new church was built 
 on the opposite side of the road in Waj-ne 
 County, at a cost of $3,200. Father J. W. 
 Hamm served this charge for thirty-three 
 years in succession, having been the first Re- 
 formed minister installed as Pastor of this 
 church. The present Pastors are Rev. S. C. 
 Leiter and Rev. Mr. Sponseller. At Johnson's 
 Corners a Methodist society was organized, as 
 already mentioned, in 1835-36. A church 
 building was erected in or about 1841, and 
 used as such until 1871, when a new church 
 was built for the same society at a cost of 
 $5,000. It was dedicated by Rev. Mr. Osborn, 
 of Akron. Present Pastor, William S. Fitch ; 
 number of communicants, forty. The old 
 church was at first seated with rough boards 
 laid across poles, with legs put in by boring 
 holes in the poles and inserting a short stick. 
 These served as seats for some time, when 
 Thomas Reese finall}' put in better seats. 
 
 The Reformed Church at Johnson's Corners 
 was organized in 1852 by Rev. P. J. Spangler, 
 with David Waltz and Henry Yaukey, Elders, 
 and John Hoffman and Michael Wise, Esq., as 
 Deacons, and about twenty-five lay members. 
 Their meetings were held in the old Methodist 
 Church until 1868. Prior to the organization of 
 this society. Rev. George Schlosser, a German 
 Reformed minister, had preached at and around 
 this place in schoolhouses. He was a power- 
 ful speaker, talented and able in debate. Span- 
 gler was also a good speaker and served the 
 
 society seven or eight years ; he was followed 
 by Rev. Jesse Schlosser, who remained about 
 two years ; next came Rev. David H. Reiter, 
 who also served the charge about two years, 
 then Rev. Jesse Hines about four years, Rev. 
 J. J. Excell not quite two years, when S. C. 
 Goss took the charge, and has retained it ever 
 since. He was educated at Heidelberg College, 
 Tiffin, Ohio. In 1868, the society erected a 
 house of worship of their own, which was dedi- 
 cated about the 1st of November. The church 
 cost about $2,200, is a medium-sized, com- 
 fortable building ; present membership about 
 seventy-five. In 1868, a church was built at 
 New Portage for the Methodist society of that 
 place, which cost $2,500. It is well finished 
 throughout, and stands on a hill overlooking 
 the surrounding country. The present number 
 of members is about seventy-five, under the 
 charge of William S. Fitch. The history of 
 the churches of Norton would be incomplete 
 without the mention of the great Mormon ex- 
 citement between 1832 and 1838, and even con- 
 siderably later than that. When Joseph Smith 
 settled at Kirtland, Ohio, to establish his earthly 
 Zion, one of his followers (who afterward be- 
 came an Elder), Sidney Rigdon, began to work as 
 a missionar3^ Around New Portage meetings 
 were held, frequentl}^ at private houses, and 
 people joined the Mormons by the score. A 
 great love feast was held by them at one time, 
 at which Joseph Smith himself was present. 
 Rigdon suflfered considerable persecution for 
 his faith, having at one time been treated to a 
 coat of tar and feathers at Kirtland, along with 
 Smith. Rigdon was the originator of the " spir- 
 itual wife " theory, which afterward led to 
 polj'gamy. Upward of twenty-five souls left 
 Norton and followed the Mormons on their 
 Westward journe}- in search of Zion, and many 
 more remained behind whose faith in Mormon- 
 ism remained apparently unshaken. 
 
 Norton Township supports eleven schools, 
 most of which are in session nine months in 
 the year. During the year 1880, $2,707.60 
 was expended as tuition for an average daily 
 attendance of 400 scholars. Average price per 
 month paid to teachers was to males, $28 ; 
 females, $20. Total enumeration between the 
 ages of six and twenty-one, 664 ; total value of 
 schoolhouses and grounds, $8,350. 
 
ll. 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 593 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI.* 
 
 ,r..\ T0WN8II IP— I'H VSICA L FEATURES — SQUATTER-H I NTERS — AN 1N( "1 DENT — SETTLEMENT — 
 I'lONEEK HAUDSH IPS — MILLS AND OTHER INDUSTRIES — SCHOOLS— 
 (CHURCH ES — GRAVEYARDS — VILLAGES. El'C. 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP is situated in the 
 southern part of Summit County, below 
 the forty-first parallel of latitude, which is the 
 southern limit of the Western Reserve. This 
 township is bounded on the north by Coventry 
 and Springfield ; on the east b}' Lake Township, 
 of Stark County ; on the south b^" Jackson 
 Township, of Stark County, and on the west b}' 
 Franklin Township. Green is Township 12 of 
 Range 9. in what is known as " Congress land." 
 It is six miles in extent from east to west, and 
 about five and one-half miles from north to 
 south, containing nearl}' if not quite thirty three 
 square miles of land. The general character 
 of the land might be considered rolling, but 
 toward the southwestern portion the undula- 
 tions are much higher and these elevations are 
 called " hills " by the inhabitants. The town- 
 ship is naturally well drained by several small 
 streams and creeks, which wind around the 
 hills and through the vales, but this natural 
 drainage has been improved by numerous 
 ditches. The water-shed between the Missis- 
 sippi Valley and the St. Lawrence basin ex- 
 tends into this township and divides the waters 
 which descend from the heavens. This can 
 plainly be seen on several diflFerent farms. A 
 short distance west of the Gongwer School- 
 house, near the center of the township, are two 
 small swamps ; the overflow from one finds its 
 way to the Gulf of Mexico, while the waters of 
 the other reach Lake Erie, on their route to the 
 sea. The soil of the township is very fertile 
 and well adapted to farming, and Green ranks 
 with Springfield and Franklin Townships among 
 the richest agricultural townships in Ohio. Sev- 
 eral of the farms are underlaid with beds of 
 rich coal, and the owners of other tracts sus- 
 dect that the vein is also hidden beneath their 
 lanp, but their fears of disappointment pre- 
 vent them from prospecting for the desired 
 treasure. A mine has been worked on Wise's 
 
 * Contributed by Thomas P. Hopley. 
 
 farm, in Section 24, for some twelve years, and 
 another on Whitacre's land, about one half- 
 mile south of Greentown Station, for nearly, if 
 not quite, three decades. Some thirty rods 
 east of the township line they discovered a vein 
 of iron ore, man}- years ago, which they mined 
 for a short time, but failed to find a sufficient 
 amount to make the mine a profitable invest- 
 ment. Several veins of coal have been struck 
 while miners were prospecting on various farms 
 in Green Township, but the results obtained 
 did not please the operators, and the mining was 
 discontinued. Among these abandoned shafts 
 is one on John Kepler's farm, southeast of the 
 village of East Liberty. 
 
 On Sections 7 and 18 of this township, is a 
 portion of Turkey Foot Lake, the greater part 
 being situated in Franklin Township, on Sec- 
 tions 12 and 13. This body of water is about one 
 mile in length from east to west, and varj^ing 
 in its width. At the narrowest point, directly on 
 the township line, it is but little over a quarter 
 of a mile in width, but, at both ends, it is from 
 one-half to three-quarters of a mile in width. 
 It is called Turkey- Foot Lake because the shape 
 of the sheet of water resembles the foot of a 
 turkey. Just north of this lake is the " Reser- 
 voir," a portion of which extends into Green 
 Township, on Section 6. Another small lake 
 or pond is situated in this township, upon Sec- 
 tion 33. This sheet of water, which would pos- 
 sibly be more correctly' termed a marsh, lies be- 
 tween the hills, and is about one mile in extent 
 from north to south and ver}' irregular in 
 width. The southern portion seems to termi- 
 nate in a sink-hole, which is said by some to be 
 bottomless, but, by more reliable authority, 
 from sixty to eight}- feet in depth ; the sink- 
 hole covers an area of about three acres. There 
 are also three very deep little lakes or sink-holes 
 on and near the southwest corner of Section 20, 
 which have destroyed man}- head of cattle in 
 times past that approached too near them and 
 
 
 rnv" 
 
4 
 
 \^ 
 
 594 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 were swallowed in the miry muck which sur- 
 rounds the ponds. Tritt's pond, on Section 31, 
 and Heckman's mill-race on Section 18, are ar- 
 tificial reservoirs, which serve as water-power 
 for mills. Gren. Bierce says : '' One of the great- 
 est curiosities of the township in the early settle- 
 ment was 'Rattlesnake' Spring, on Section 25, 
 first owned by John Yarrick. It is on the road 
 from Greentown to Grreensburg. When Yarrick 
 first purchased this land, the spring was a great 
 resort for rattlesnakes. The water issues from 
 a crevice in a limestone rock, overlaid with a 
 bold bank of about twenty feet high. In the 
 \ fall of the year, the snakes would resort to this 
 spring and enter the crevice of the rock, where 
 the^' remained through the winter. When the 
 warmth of spring revived them from their tor- 
 i por, they would emerge from their winter quar- 
 \ ters to bask in the sun. At this season they 
 j fell an easy prey to the destroyer. Yarrick and 
 I his family' would kill hundreds of them, then 
 I pile the snakes on a log-heap and burn them. 
 By this wholesale butchery the spring was soon 
 rid of rattlesnakes, but it ever afterward bore 
 the name of its first venomous inhabitants.'' 
 
 For many years previous to the settlement of 
 Ohio by the whites. Green Township must have 
 been a fiivorite resort of the aboriginal race 
 which then inhabited the State, for in the early 
 day, man}' remains of their handiwork were 
 found. Gen. Bierce says : " The northwest 
 quarter of Section 25, on land purchased by 
 Cornelius Johnston of the United States in 
 1813, appears to have been a favorite hunting- 
 ground of the Indians, as arrow-heads, hatchets, 
 skinning knives and other implements have i 
 been found there in great abundance. From ' 
 the numerous flint chips found on that quarter j 
 of the section, it would seem to have been a : 
 place for manufacturing their stone hatchets I 
 and arrow-heads. Where they found the stone 
 is unknown. This spot seems to have been se- ! 
 lected on account of its being light-timbered, 
 clear from underbrush, and elevated a little 
 above the surrounding lands. Scattered over ; 
 this elevated plateau were found piles of stones, 
 varying in size from a man's fist to his head, 
 and arranged in heaps of from four to six feet 
 to a little larger or smaller. Tradition assigns i 
 to them the honor of holding the ashes of some ! 
 warrior or chief, but as no bones or human re- 
 mains have ever been found in them, I am in- 
 clined to think them altars, on which they sac- 
 
 rificed to their gods, and the spirits of their 
 departed braves. Among all the tribes sacri- 
 fices were common. Tradition saj-s that one 
 of the early settlers in Green attempted to 
 desecrate one of the altars, but after throwing 
 down three or four feet of it, and when he was, 
 as he supposed, about to accomplish his object, 
 he was seized with a supernatural fear, and 
 abandoned the enterprise." Previous to the war 
 of 1812, Indians were quite plenty in the town- 
 ship, but as they sided with the British the}' 
 were compelled by the white settlers to leave, 
 and since then an Indian has rarely been seen 
 within the limits of Green. Man}' families who 
 located after the war declare the red men had 
 all left when they came from Pennsylvania. 
 The remains of their old forts and wigwams 
 were seen as late as 1855, according to Gen. 
 Bierce, at the head-waters of the Nimishilla, on 
 Sections 36 and 25. They also occupied sev- 
 eral camps near Turkey Foot Lake, and what 
 is now the reservoir, in 1809, when the Kepler 
 family first located in the township. " Among 
 the celebrated Indians who used this township 
 for a hunting-ground was a chief called by the 
 whites ' Beaver Hat.' He had a settlement at 
 what is how the south part of the village of 
 Wooster, where the Baptist burying-ground now 
 is. His Indian name was Paupellnan, and his 
 settlement he called ' Apple Chanquecake,' or 
 apple orchard. He was a bitter enemy of the 
 whites, and, when drunk, he would take out a 
 string with thirteen white men's tongues on it, 
 dried, and exhibit them with much pride. One 
 day he got out his string of tongues, and began 
 to shake them, when George Harter took his 
 rifle and started after him, sa3ing he would go 
 and kill a buck. The report of a rifle was soon 
 after heard, but he brought back no game, nor 
 was Beaver Hat ever heard of more." — Bierce. 
 Harter lived immediately south of Section 16 
 land for a few years at an early day. Most of 
 the original permanent white settlers of Green 
 Township were Pennsylvania Dutch and their 
 descendants, and the cast and tone of morals 
 and society still retain a decidedl}' German 
 character. The citizens are honest, frugal, in- 
 dustrious and wealth}'. Although the dialect 
 of the Pennsj-lvania Dutch is to a great extent 
 the medium of communication between the 
 residents of the township, it is seldom an in- 
 habitant is found who cannot understand when 
 asked a question in English, and these exeep- 
 
ik^ 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 595 
 
 tional cases are generally the aged and infirm. 
 Many of the early settlers and their children 
 refused to adopt the advanced ideas and new 
 improvements advocated by the genius of the 
 most progressive nation known to history, and 
 many of these old fellows died still clinging 
 to their old notions of the past, but occasion- 
 ally one still living and blessed with wealth will 
 declai'e how little he cares for those glories of 
 the nation as shown by mighty works of archi- 
 tectural grandeur ; and this poor mortal will 
 expect you to accord to him a meed of praise 
 and make a virtue of his ignorance. But the 
 descendants of these men have, by mingling 
 with a different race, caught the spirit of prog- 
 ress which will in future years bring forth a 
 rich harvest, for by uniting to the bone and 
 muscle the industry and frugalit}- of the Ger- 
 man, the refinement and progressive spirit of 
 the Yankee, a generation will be born in Green 
 that will i-ank with the best bone, muscle and 
 mind of the country. 
 
 Green Township was for many years the 
 hunting ground of several families, mere 
 •' squatters" on the land, who were as nomadic 
 in habit as the}' were transient in location. 
 They lived chiefly b}' hunting and fishing, and 
 many of them paid very little attention to ftirra- 
 ing. Among these were Johnny Holmes, an 
 old fellow who was raised with the Indians and 
 was possibly a half-breed. He married an In- 
 dian squaw, and they lived with Williams, an 
 Indian, who camped on Williams Run. When 
 the war of 1812 broke out, Williams was anx- 
 ious to leave for Upper Sandusky, but Holmes 
 did not wish to go, and this created bad feeling 
 between the two. Williams left with his wife 
 and after two days sent back for Holmes, re- 
 porting that he had reached a place where much 
 game abounded ; this had the desired effect 
 upon Holmes, and he left with his wife for the 
 favored locality-, but upon reaching the place 
 found that Williams was still feeling savage 
 toward him, for at supper time he refused to 
 let Holmes have anything to eat, but supplied 
 Mrs. Holmes and his own wife. This to Holmes 
 was a ver}- bad sign, and he left that night for 
 his old home by a different route from the one 
 he had previously traveled. By special agree- 
 ment his wife returned another way ; they met 
 at a secret place in the vast wilderness which 
 was known to both ; they were then tired and 
 hungry, so famished that they were willing to 
 
 feast on a hedge-hog which Holmes shot. This 
 old fellow afterward settled near New Portage, 
 and after living ihere some years moved 
 away. 
 
 There is considerable ignorance among many 
 old pioneers of Green in regard to the first 
 family that settled in the township. Gen. 
 Bierce in his history stated that " it was John 
 Kepler, who came in the fall of 1809." This is 
 a slight error ; Kepler was the first person to 
 purchase Government land and make a perma- 
 nent settlement, but when he arrived in 1805), 
 there were several families temporarily located 
 on Section 16 land. These were John Cruzen, 
 David Hartman, Bazil Viers, the Dixons, the 
 Triplets, and their families. This statement is 
 made on the authority of Jacob Kepler, son of 
 John, Mrs. Mary Paulner and Mrs. Sarah War- 
 ner, daughters of Andrew Kepler, and John 
 Buchtel. The former three are over seventy- 
 five years of age, and came with their parents 
 in 1809 and 1810. Mr. Buchtel was twelve 
 years old when he settled in Green, shortly 
 after the Keplers did. Both John and Andrew, 
 sons of Andrew, deny this statement and de- 
 clare that no other families were living in 
 Green Township when the Keplers came, but 
 Andrew was not born till 1815, and consequent- 
 ly obtains his knowledge through other parties, 
 and John says he was only three years old 
 when his fiither moved to Ohio. Very little is 
 known of some who located temporarily on 
 these school lands at an early day. They were 
 generally very poor, and the Trustees of the 
 township permitted them to live on Section 16 
 lands if they would each year put a certain 
 amount of improvements upon the farms they 
 occupied. There is some doubt in regard to 
 which family first located on these lands. 
 Mrs. John Hunsberger, of Greensburg, a daugh- 
 ter of William Triplet, relates that her father 
 always claimed that either he or John Cruzen 
 was the first settler of the township. The wives 
 of these two men were cousins. Cruzen had 
 a large family of children. He once killed an 
 elk near a small stream which was afterward 
 named Elk Run. This spot was one mile and a 
 half southwest of Greensburg Village on the 
 farm now owned by Widow Beltz. It is claimed 
 that this was the only elk ever killed in this 
 section of the State, but a pair of elk-horns 
 were afterward found on old Philip Hartong's 
 farm. Cruzen remained in Green Township 
 
 3) 
 
 :tv: 
 
596 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 but a few years, and then removed to near San- 
 dusk}- City. 
 
 William Triplet, who was the second settler 
 of the township if Cruzen was the first, appeared 
 about 1807. By the statements of John Buch- 
 tel and Mrs. Sarah Warner, he came several 
 years previous to 1809 (the year John Kepler 
 located in the township). William was the son 
 of Joseph Triplet, who also settled in Grreen 
 with his family' a short time after his son did. 
 Joseph was born in England, and for many years 
 followed the sea as a captain's cook. By his 
 first wife he had three children — Hetty, John 
 and Charles ; they did not remove to Green 
 with the father. The two sons left for the West 
 before their father did, and were never heard of 
 afterward. Joseph's second wife was a Miss 
 Drake, of Mar^^land. He followed butchering 
 in Baltimore, then moved to South Branch, Ya., 
 where his daughter Hett}' married a man named 
 Wolf Joseph removed to Pennsylvania, then 
 located for a short time in Ohio, near Steuben- 
 ville, and afterward in Green Township. This 
 old gentleman must have spent much of his 
 time moving ; he finally died about the year 
 1825, aged seventy-one, at the residence of his 
 son William, in Coventry Township. He dressed 
 in buckskin, with coat, pantaloons and vest of 
 that material ; wore moccasins on his feet and 
 a fur cap, made from wild-cat, otter or raccoon 
 skin, on his head. Bj' his second wife, Joseph 
 had eight children, all of these were early set- 
 tlers of Green Township. They were William, 
 the first or second settler of Green ; James 
 died in Coventr}^ ; Polly, married Simeon Payne 
 and removed to Licking County ; Abraham, 
 settled inDe Kalb County, Ind.; Betsy, married 
 Jonathan Potts, and they moved West ; Sallie, 
 married Samuel Hanes, they settled in Brimfield 
 Township ; Solomon, who traveled with a cir- 
 cus at an early da}', and afterward located in 
 Licking County ; Jacob moved to Indiana. 
 These eight children of Joseph Triplet are all 
 dead. Many incidents are related in regard to 
 this family. When they first located in Green 
 Township, they had to secure all supplies at 
 Steubenville, and secured their grist at a mill 
 on the Sandy Biver, until the old '' tub-mill " 
 was built at Middlebury. It is said that Will- 
 iam Triplet would plow all day with his horse, 
 and turn it out to pasture at uight, but the 
 wolves being very troublesome, it was neces- 
 sary to guard the animal, and Triplet would 
 
 lay down near the animal with his rifle, remain- 
 ing all night near the faithful beast, in order to 
 protect it. One day the Triplets heard their 
 pigs squealing, and when William visited the 
 pen to investigate matters, he discovered a bear 
 walking off with a fine article of bacon ; Bruin 
 alwaj's relished pork meat, and never failed to 
 make the settlers uneasy in regard to the safe- 
 ty' of their winter supply. An Indian squaw 
 paid a visit to the Triplet family on one occa- 
 sion, and greatly admired the dress worn by 
 little John Triplet ; the effect of her covetous- 
 ness was that she stripped the white child, and 
 adorned her own papoose with the stolen 
 clothing. William once shot at a deer and 
 missed it ; he followed the animal for a short 
 distance, and was suddenly confronted by an 
 Indian, who exclaimed, " Whoa ! see me buck ? " 
 This unexpected appearance of the native who 
 desired information in regard to ' his buck " 
 cooled the ardor of the white deer- hunter, and 
 he relinquished all claim to the animal he de- 
 sired to capture. The Indians claimed all the 
 game in the forests, and when the whites com- 
 menced to settle the county, the red men ap- 
 peared moi'e frequentl}' on this portion of their 
 hunting-ground, in order to secure as much of 
 their '' own property " as they could. W^illiam 
 Triplet was drafted during the war of 1812 ; 
 that is, ever}' able-bodied man was expected to 
 turn out and })rotect the settlement fi'om the 
 British and Indians. Triplet visited Canton, 
 but was so sick that the doctor exclaimed, " We 
 don't want any such looking men as you are ! '" 
 and William was sent home. The Triplets 
 lived on Section 16 land for six or seven 
 years, then moved to Coventry Township, where 
 Joseph and his son William died. The latter 
 married Mary Dixon, daughter of Thomas Dix- 
 on, an early settler of Green Township. Will- 
 iam Triplet was the father of nine children — 
 John, Hetty, Cynthia, Joshua, Eliza, William, 
 Amanda, Marian and Sophia. The eldest, John, 
 is now a resident of Coventry Township ; Cyn- 
 thia is now living in Greensburg, the wife of 
 John Hunsberger. These are the onl}' two of 
 Triplet's children now living in Summit County. 
 Another early settler on Section 16 land 
 was Thomas Dixon. John Buchtel thinks that 
 the Dixons were the first settlers of Green 
 Township. They appeared about the same time 
 the Triplets did, and the two families were con- 
 nected by marriage. Thomas was a weaver by 
 
-^—^ 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 597 
 
 trade, and his daughter Ann assisted him at 
 this occupation. The Dixons had previously 
 lived near Steubenville, Ohio. Thomas had 
 five daughters and four sons— Marj' Dixon mar- 
 ried William Triplet ; Ann married Bazil 
 Viers ; Betsy married Jacob Smith ; Margaret 
 married David Hartman ; the fifth daughter, 
 Jane, died, being unmarried. Triplet, Viers, 
 Hartman and Smith were early settlers in 
 Green ; the first three lived on Section 16 
 land, near their father in-law. Very little is 
 known in regard to Hartman and Viers, but it 
 is related of old " Grann}' " Viers, possibly the 
 mother of Bazil, that she was a good hand to 
 call on in case of sickness, and once, when a 
 cow in the neighborhood was bitten bj' a snake, 
 old granny collected some herbs and cured the 
 valuable beast. It is to be hoped that many 
 other good deeds were recorded for this old 
 lady in the " good book above," for she passed 
 over the river fifty years ago. Thomas Dixon 
 afterward removed to Coventry Township, with 
 his two sons-in-law, Triplet and Viers, and died 
 about the year 1822. Dixon's four sons were 
 Liberton, Michael, James and John ; the latter 
 died at New Portage ; James and Michael re- 
 moved to Richland Count}-. 
 
 About the name of Liberton Dixon is clus- 
 tered much that is romantic, for he of all the 
 earl}' settlers of Green Township has been 
 handed down to posterit}' as the daring advent- 
 urer of the early day. There is considerable 
 added to the credit of this mighty hunter of 
 the past which would not bear the closest scru- 
 tiny of an unbiased historian ; but, if we 
 should fail to give Green Township due credit 
 for lieing the home of this illustrious Nimrod, 
 and record on these pages some of the stories 
 told about him, then every true son of Green 
 would brand the Summit County history as a 
 ''fraud." It is said that Liberton lived with 
 the Indians for seven years, until one evening 
 an old Indian got mad at Liberton while they 
 were around the camp-fire, and took after liim 
 with a huoe knife. The famous hunter being 
 convinced that " discretion is the better part of 
 valor," fled from the camp and was followed by 
 the warrior. Liberton accidentally tumbled 
 over a brush heap, and the brave sliared the 
 same misfortune. It was a lucky accident for 
 Liberton, but an unlucky one for the Indian, 
 who dropped the knife when he fell ; Liberton 
 seized the weapon, killed the savage, and 
 
 decided to return again unto the haunts of civili- 
 zation. When on the way to the white settle- 
 ments he was chased by the Indians who had 
 discovered the body of their comrade. Liber- 
 ton sought shelter from their bullets behind a 
 tree, but the trunk was so small that it did not 
 satisfactorily answer the desired purpose, and 
 some seven shots were put through his clothing, 
 but nevertheless, he escaped, and afterwai'd set- 
 tled in Green Township ; but, in his after years, 
 he became a bitter enemy of the red man in 
 consequence of their treachery toward him. 
 According to his own accounts man}' Indians 
 sufljered death by his hands. It is said that, in 
 relating his exploits, be would always leave his 
 hearers to infer that the savage antagonists 
 with whom he had frequent encounters had all 
 been sent to the " happy hunting grounds " in 
 consequence of his skill as an " Indian hunter." 
 But the event of his life, which relates more 
 particularly to Green Township, was the tragic 
 death of Wam-pe-tek. This savage was the 
 chief of a band containing about forty, and 
 they had their headquarters near Turkey Foot 
 Lake. These inoffensive red men never harmed 
 the whites, but spent most of their time hunt- 
 ing, fishing and resting, at which latter occupa- 
 tion they were very successful. But one day 
 Liberton and the chief quarreled about a bee- 
 tree which both claimed. The result was, 
 shortly afterward, the Indian was missing. Some 
 one hearing the report of a rifle, asked Liberton 
 what he had shot. " I shot at a deer," was the 
 reply. " Where is your prize ?" was the next 
 question, and his answer was, "I missed the 
 animal." Dixon was a crack shot with the 
 rifle, and never missed the object he fired at ; 
 consequently, his statements on this occasion 
 were not believed, and it has always been said 
 that Wam-pe-tek, and not the deer, was his 
 mark ; the chief never appeared to clear the 
 mystery, and the supposition is that, while 
 the savage was standing on a log near Indian 
 Pond the fatal bullet struck him. Dixon then 
 threw the body in the pond, which is situated 
 about one mile west of East Liberty, and just 
 northwest of the schoolhouse at that point. 
 Other persons add other statements in regard 
 to the matter. It is stated that a few days 
 after tlie chief disappeared the aslies of a fire 
 were discovered in the woods, and in them only 
 half consumed were several articles formerly 
 owned by the savage. Also that the band of 
 
 
 tr 
 
® k^ 
 
 598 
 
 IILSTOHY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Indians suspected Liberton, and would have 
 killed him, but Dixon's brother John interfered. 
 This. brother John was also a hunter of some 
 note ; but, fortunately, did not consider it was 
 necessary to slaughter ever}' inoffensive Indian 
 who crossed his path. It is related of John 
 that he killed a very large wild-cat at the 
 swamp which is just west of Grreensburg, and 
 this locality was afterward called " Wild-Cat 
 Swamp." He also shot a large bear which was 
 on a chestnut tree, standing upon land now 
 owned by Widow Spitler, of Greensburg. Lib- 
 erton married Mrs. Hannah Culver, formerly 
 Miss Pelton, and removed to Coventry Town- 
 ship, where he died about 1830. There are 
 some old settlers who declare that toward the 
 end of his life he was afraid to go out after 
 night through fear that the spirits of some of 
 the savages he had killed would capture him. 
 Liberton was the father of four children ; they 
 all moved West. It is related of Liberton and 
 his brothers that they were brought up in the 
 backwoods and were inured to all kinds of 
 hardships ; they could sleep on the ground, and 
 were not particular about a shelter to protect 
 them from snow and rain if they desired repose ; 
 they could eat an^-thing and live, march, and 
 work without eating for a much longer time 
 than the men who were the permanent settlers 
 of the township. The Dixons were not afraid 
 of danger, and, therefore, more valuable in 
 turbulent times during the war of 1812 than a 
 score of the farmers who inhabited the town- 
 at that time. 
 
 John Kepler, who made the first permanent 
 settlement in Green Township, came out to the 
 new country with his family in the fall of 1809. 
 Re was a blacksmith by trade, and worked at 
 this occupation some in his new home. Tlis 
 brother Andrew brought him out to Ohio with 
 his four-horse team ; he then returned to Penn- 
 s\ivania for his own family, and they reached 
 Green Township in the spring of 1810. The 
 Keplers were born in Bucks County, Penn., 
 and married twin sisters. John's wife was 
 Magdalena Cramer, and Andrew married Mary. 
 The Keplers purchased from the Government 
 320 acres, comprising the east half of Section 
 17. John occupied the western part of this 
 tract and Andrew the eastern half In after 
 years they purchased other extensive tracts, 
 which are now the propert}' of their descendants. 
 When John first arrived with his family, they 
 
 lived for some time in a hut built beside a log ; 
 then erected a more permanent residence on 
 the land afterward occupied by his brother An- 
 drew, which the}' owned during the first win- 
 ter, and for a short time after Andrew's fiimily 
 came, in 1810 ; for a brief period both families 
 occupied the same cabin. John Kepler was 
 not able to go to the war of 1812. and so he 
 assisted in sending young John Dixon as his 
 substitute, furnishing him with blankets and 
 other articles of clothing. John was a resident 
 of Green Township for about twenty-five j^ears 
 and was then killed while working a cider-press. 
 His wife survived him many years. John was 
 buried in the grave^'ard on his brother An- 
 drew's farm. He was the father of nine children, 
 as follows : Catharine, married Henry Warner, 
 of Coventr}- ; John, formei'ly of Green ; Jacob, 
 now a resident of Coventry ; Andrew, shot 
 on August IG, 1871, by his son-in-law; Dan- 
 iel, moved to De Kalb County, Ind. ; George, 
 formerl}' of Coventry, now deceased ; Henry, 
 died at eighteen ; Samuel, died in Illinois, and 
 Lena, died after marrying Henry Cook. Dan- 
 iel was the ^'oungest child when the family re- 
 moved to Ohio. After x\ndrew Kepler moved 
 his family to Ohio, he sold two of his horses to 
 his brother John, and, shortly afterward, the 
 other two animals died. He then purchased 
 oxen to aid in farming. The family suffered 
 man}' hardships for several years. The Indians 
 would frequently appear with their ponies, dogs 
 and papooses ; the}' brought baskets which 
 they desired to trade for flour, meal, potatoes 
 and other articles. When Andrew was with 
 the American army, during the war of 1812, 
 the Indians kept his wife supplied with ven- 
 ison, which they exchanged for meal and pota- 
 toes. Mrs. Kepler never feared the savages, 
 for they were always friendly and kept their 
 promises. It was only necessary to supply one 
 with a loaf of liread and tell him that venison 
 was desired at a certain time, and he never 
 failed to respond. But the wolves were ver}- 
 troublesome, and would occasionally approach 
 within five or six rods of the fire where Mrs 
 Kepler was cooking the meals. Mrs. Rebecca 
 Herring, formerly Miss Kepler, says : •' We 
 children did not hate the Indians so much as 
 we did the wolves ; these animals howled 
 around the house at night until we thought 
 the clap-boards on the roof were shaking." 
 Finally, the State offered a bounty for each 
 
 ■7< 
 
GREEX TOWNSHIP. 
 
 59!) 
 
 wolf scalp, and the howling tribe of the forests 
 commenced to decrease in numbers, and in a 
 score of years farmers were able to raise sheep 
 with profit. At one time, during the absence 
 of her husband, Mrs. Andrew Kepler caught a 
 wild turke}' with her hands ; she made a feast, 
 to which she invited her relatives and friends. 
 About the same time, old Joseph Triplet's wife 
 having obtained a rumor, from some source, 
 that the British and Indians were coming, 
 alarmed the neighborhood. The two Kepler 
 families, the Smiths and the Buchtels hastil}' 
 prepared to leave, and got half-wa}' to Canton 
 before they found the alarm was false. (This 
 was possibly at the time Capt. Drake, in order 
 to try his men, gave a false alarm, and his 
 men became panic-stricken.) Andrew Kepler, 
 after living in the township nearly fifty years, 
 died January 16, 1855, at the advanced age of 
 seventy-eight years and eleven months. He 
 was buried in the graveyard at East Liberty. 
 He was the father of eleven children. Nine 
 grew to maturity, were married and raised 
 large familes, and the Kepler descendants are 
 very numerous in Green Township and else- 
 where. These nine children are located as fol- 
 lows : Elizabeth married Samuel Stover and re- 
 moved to Illinois ; Mary married three times, 
 and is now the widow of Jacob Paulner, at 
 Grreensburg ; Catharine married Peter Wilhelm, 
 of Green, and died ; Safah, now Mrs. David 
 Warner, of Green ; John, of Green ; Rebecca, 
 now the widow of Lewis Herring, of Green ; 
 Jacob A. died in Green ; Andrew, of East Lib- 
 erty, and Samuel, struck by lightning on August 
 10, 1854. 
 
 Gen. Bierce says in 1854 : -Jacob Smith, Ja- 
 cob Coleman and Col. Dillman nextcame into the 
 township. They were all from Center County. 
 Penn. Coleman and Smith died about fifteen 
 ^•ears ago (1839) and Dillman twentj^ (1834)." 
 Of these three men, Coleman settled on land now 
 owned by Alex Stine, and was buried at Union- 
 town ; Jacob Smith was the son of Conrad 
 Smith, who entered the northwest quarter of 
 Section 17 in the spring, and died six months 
 after .settling upon it; previous to his death, 
 he endeavored to make a bedstead to sleep up- 
 on but failed. His son Jacob put a large 
 bowlder upon his grave, and in rough letters 
 carved the name of his father on the stone. 
 It is reported that, after the farm was sold to 
 the Baughmans, this rude monument was taken 
 
 for the corner-stone of a new barn. "Col. 
 Dillman," it should be Conrad Dillman, settled 
 upon 1 GO acres now owned by John Gougler ; 
 he was a very moral and religious man, and 
 would go from house to house with his Bible 
 teaching the people. He was a prominent 
 member of the Methodist Church at an early 
 day, and afterward united with the Evangelical 
 Association. His youngest daughter married 
 Rev. Adam Klinefelter, for many years a prom- 
 inent citizen of Green Township. Dillman was 
 buried on the southwest corner of his farm. 
 The Buchtel family also settled in Green 
 Township at an earl}' da}-. Peter Buchtel 
 came in May, 1811, with a large family of chil- 
 dren, and entered at the Government office at 
 Steubenville the land now owned by John 
 Kepler. Peter was in the iVmerican army dur- 
 ing the war of 1812, and died of disease at 
 Sandusk}' Cit}-. John, his oldest son, who re- 
 sides north of Akron, is the father of Hon. 
 J. R. Buchtel, of that cit}'. John relates the 
 following : ■• The first house we lived in was 
 built of stakes taken from a large chestnut 
 tree which we cut down, and formed a rude 
 hut by leaning the stakes against the log ; 
 there were eleven children in our family, but 
 we never had a doctor in our house. We lived 
 mostly on deer's meat and wild honey ; father 
 killed twenty-five deer one fall, and found one 
 bee-tree which contained eighteen gallons of 
 honey ; after father died, I had to assist in 
 supporting the family ; I had to work four 
 days for a bushel of wheat, and two da3's for a 
 bushel of rye." Peter Buchtels wife was Mar- 
 garet Cramer ; she was a sister of Mrs. 
 Mary and Magdalena Kepler ; their brother 
 Daniel, Jacob and Abraham Cramer were also 
 early settlers of Green Township, locating up- 
 on Vfovernment laud about 1812. Among 
 those who settled in the township previous to 
 1820, were John Yarrick, who entered the east 
 side of Section 25 about 1809; his daughter 
 was the mother of Lewis Miller, Esq.. of 
 Akron ; William Ball, southwest quarter of 25. 
 about 1809 ; Thomas Macbee, northwest of 36, 
 about 1809 ; Abraham DeHaven. southwest of 
 24, about 1810; Ludwig Spotts, southeast of 
 34, in 1812; Daniel Raber, southeast of 24. 
 about 1813: William Beltz. southwest of 26. 
 about 1813; Henry Everhart, northeast of 36, 
 about 1813; Jacob Sichley, northeast of 26, in 
 1813 (this gentleman always claimed he heard 
 
^ 
 
 -Jl §1 
 
 600 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 the roar of the cannon during Perry's victory 
 on Lake Erie, from his farm in Green Town- 
 ship); — Swales, southeast of 26, about 1813 ; 
 Cornelius Johnston, northwest of 25, in May, 
 1814; Simon Yarrick, father of Adam, in 
 1814; Daniel Wise, about 1813; John Kreigh- 
 baum, in 1814 ; Michael Myers and sons with 
 their families, in 1814 ; Philip Hartong, about 
 1813; Henry Raber, Sr., about 1814; Adam 
 Working, about 1815; Robert Hall, in 1817; 
 Jost Sn3'der, in 1810 ; John Hunsberger came 
 with his family in 1822, and purchased 400 
 acres on Sections 15 and 22 ; he brought $800 
 with him from Pennsylvania, and the money 
 was hid in the churn while traveling to Ohio ; 
 Hunsberger built upon his land the finest house 
 and barn which, up to that time, had been 
 erected in the township ; the children of the 
 family received in Pennsylvania a good com- 
 mon-school education, and have always taken 
 a prominent position in Green Township. 
 Abi'am, the eldest son, taught school for twenty- 
 one successive winter terms; served as Jus- 
 tice of the Peace for twenty-four years, and 
 was also Township Clerk twenty-one years. 
 Among the prominent families who have set- 
 tled in the township since 1820, are the follow- 
 ing: John Foust, in 1822; Henry Warner, 
 1823; Jacob Hartong, 1824; Jacob Dicker- 
 hoff, 1826 ; Henry Beard, 1827 ; Michael Heck- 
 man, 1828; Peter Thornton, 1829; George 
 Chisnell, previous to 1830 ; Jacob Vandersoll, 
 John Mottinger and George Bidleman, in 
 1830; David Grotz, 1832; Jacob Humbert 
 and Michael Schreiner, about 1833 ; Joseph 
 Grable and Charles Stroman, Sr., 1834; Peter 
 Wise, 1835; David Smith, 1836; John Goug- 
 ler, about 1837 ; Jacob Grable, 1838 ; Joseph 
 Stauffer, 1840; Isacc Franks, about 1841; 
 George Foster and George Kline, in 1842. 
 
 Most of the early settlers of Green Township 
 suffered many hardships. At first, there were 
 no mills nearer than Steubenville, Ohio, and 
 other supplies had to be obtained about the 
 same distance from their new homes ; fre- 
 quently, some families would run entirely out 
 of provisions, or, by living on short rations for 
 weeks, secured an appetite which would de- 
 vour anything that could be " chawed." Alex 
 Johnston relates an incident in regard to one 
 family in their neighborhood, who, for a time, 
 had only " parslej' for breakfast, parsle}^ for 
 dinner and parsley for supper." Fortunately, 
 
 after several days, the}' secured other diet. 
 Another household demolished the last food in 
 the larder. After planting their early potatoes 
 and growing hungry, they dug up the " seed- 
 lings," devoured the outside, and then planted 
 the eyes. But the soil was very fertile, and, in 
 a few years, all had an abundance. Then each 
 man desired to sell his surplus grain ; but, for 
 years, there was no market for anything raised 
 on the farm. Consequently, money was very 
 scarce. When a new settler arrived from Penn- 
 sylvania, he generally had a small balance in 
 cash, but desii'ed something to eat. The result 
 was, that there was a strife among those having 
 produce to see these new settlers before their 
 neighbors did, and secure a portion of this 
 money to pay necessary bills, such as taxes. 
 John Spotts relates that when his father settled 
 in the township in 1812. wheat was so scarce 
 that Ludwig had to pay $3 for a bushel. In a 
 few years, the old gentleman had wheat to sell, 
 and then he could not get 25 cents for the same 
 amount of grain. In those days, farmers re- 
 ceived so little for their produce that frequently 
 men hauled a load of wheat to Cleveland, and 
 exchanged it for a barrel of salt. Money being 
 scarce, people considered themselves poor, al- 
 though they had plenty to eat and clothes to 
 wear. Their apparel, however, was general h' 
 home-made. Before the canal was completed, 
 all store goods were high, and, consequently, 
 settlers without funds could not alwa3-s secure 
 these high-priced luxuries ; but they clothed 
 themselves, for there were many spinning-wheels 
 brought from Pennsylvania, and the women 
 knew how to use them. The men frequently 
 wore buckskin, and garments made from tliis 
 material were not an uncommon sight many 
 years after 1820. The forests, for a few years, 
 were full of game ; but the white population of 
 the township increased so i-apidly that b}' 1825 
 scarcel}- any wolves or deer could be found. 
 The last deer shot in the township was possibly 
 killed by Simon Yarrick, about the year 1830. 
 Bears and panthers were hunted down and ex- 
 terminated many y(iars previous. Gen. Bierce 
 saj-s : " Superstitious notions about ' spooks ' 
 were formerly somewhat common among many 
 of the early Dutch settlers, who dreaded the 
 spirit of a dead Indian far more than they did 
 the living spirit encased in flesh and bones, 
 however well armed. In the earl}' settlement 
 of the township, the low grounds were noted 
 
/.^ 
 
 ^J^^:;^^^^^:-^^-^' <LA/y^^^^i^ 
 
k 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 601 
 
 for the appearance of the ignis fatuus, or ' Will- 
 o-the-wisp." By the superstitious pioneers, 
 these dancing and deceiving lights were sup- 
 posed to be the spirits of the Indians or ' spooks,' 
 who had come back to visit their hunting- 
 grounds, and upbraid the pale faces for their 
 fraud and double tongues. These harmless 
 lights caused many a strong man to tremble, as 
 he paced his solitary waj' through the dense 
 and dark forest. 
 
 But the early settlers of Green Township 
 were not all farmers, and this was fortunate, 
 considering the large amount of produce raised 
 each 3'ear, which could not be sold, for want of 
 a market. When these tillers of the soil ex- 
 changed, at Canton, forty-four bushels of r^-e 
 for a barrel of salt, they could not so readily 
 complain because some men thought it was not 
 expedient for all mankind to be farmers, and so 
 followed other occupations. Some of the early 
 settlers who purchased farms, occasionally 
 worked at trades thej^ had learned in Pennsyl- 
 vania. John Kepler and Michael Myers were 
 blacksmiths as early as 1814," and erected 
 forges near their dwellings. Myers transferred 
 his forge to his son Henry, and he to his son 
 Michael, who to-da}' uses the vise brought from 
 Pennsylvania by his grandfather. Ludwig 
 Spotts, who came in 1812, also followed black- 
 smithing. A man named Kauffman started a 
 rude tan-3-ard at an early day, on the farm now 
 occupied by C. Long, west of Greensburg. In 
 those days, tanners were " luck}^ " men, for 
 their goods were in greater demand than the 
 fruit of the soil. Nearly everybody had wheat, 
 but few had leather, which they all needed ; 
 consequently, leather was valuable, and it was 
 the article with which everj'thing else could be 
 obtained. Tanners would not exchange their 
 work for wheat at all times, for in those da3's 
 leather was as good as cash, and it was 
 frequently the medium of exchange between 
 the settlers, notwithstanding it did not have the 
 stamp of the Government upon it. Kauffman 's 
 tannery was afterward removed to Greensburg. 
 There was also a tan-3'ard near East Liberty at 
 an early da}'. The first shoemaker that started 
 a regular shop was old Adam Musser's son 
 John, who manufactured and repaired, about 
 one mile east of what is now Greensburg. 
 Previous to this, Adam Working followed this 
 trade some at his farm, which he entered about 
 1815. John Foust, who came in 1822, was a 
 
 shoemaker, and worked at this occupation 
 during the winter, when his services were more 
 in demand. In those early days, the Knights 
 of St. Crispin would wander through the coun- 
 try, and deliver the settlers from the evils of 
 going barefooted. These cobblers would re- 
 main with a family until all the members were 
 " shod " to order, and then seek emplo3-ment 
 elsewhere. The first weaver who appeared was 
 Thomas Dixon, and he was assisted by his 
 daughter Ann. George Dull, who came in 
 1814, was a weaver for two years, then returned 
 to Pennsylvania. Jost Snyder appeared in 
 1819, bringing his loom from Pennsylvania, 
 and followed weaving for many years. In 1824, 
 Jacob Hartong, father of Cyrus, settled on land 
 now owned b}^ the Widow Thursby, and, while 
 his sons farmed, Jacob provided the clothing 
 for his own families and man3' other settlers of 
 the neighborhood. Philip Hartong, brother of 
 Jacob, came in 1 8 1 3. For several years, he kept 
 an inn on the old Portage road, near where Ja- 
 cob King's brick residence is at the present 
 time. The hotel business being unprofitable, 
 he built a saw-mill on land now owned by 
 Henr}' Krumroy. This mill was erected about 
 1819, and reported to be the first in the town- 
 ship, but this is ver}^ doubtful, as there were 
 man3^ families 133' that time, and. in all new set- 
 tlements, a saw-mill is generall3' provided b3'^ 
 some enterprising man at a much earlier period 
 in the histor3^ of the community. However, 
 mills of this description were soon numerous. 
 The Hartong Mill was run b3' Philip and his 
 son Samuel for some twenty -five 3'ears. About 
 the same time Hartong erected his saw-mill, 
 John Richards built one on the site now occu- 
 pied b3' the Peter Heckman mill. Richards 
 ran this about five 3'ears, until he died, in Oc- 
 tober, 1823. Another was also erected previ- 
 ous to 1827, in the extreme southeastern part 
 of Green Township, on land now owned b3' 
 Simon Young. Henr3' Beard started another 
 mill by 1828, and he thinks there was also one 
 on Turkey Foot Lake, in Green, run by a Mr. 
 Rex. Beard continued the business nearl3- 
 forty years. He also Iiad a fulling-mill and 
 carding machine in connection with his saw- 
 mill, which establishments were conducted for 
 some fifteen years. David Eb3" also ran a card- 
 ing and fulling-mill for several 3'ears. There 
 were also one or two flouring-mills operated at 
 an earl3- day. Gen. Biercesays : " George A. 
 
602 
 
 HISTOEY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 Rex erected the first mill in the township 
 (1816-17), at the outlet of Turkey Foot Lake 
 (this was possibly in Franklin Township), but 
 when the State took possession of the water 
 for their reservoir, and raised the level, the 
 mill-site was ruined."' However, the State paid 
 damages. Christian Swartz milled at what is 
 now the StaufFer flouring-mill, for three 3'ears 
 after he came, in 1835, and, in 1827, Tritt op- 
 erated a mill, which stood near the present site 
 of the Tritt Mill. When Peter Wilhelm set- 
 tled in Grreen Township, May, 1814, he put up 
 a distillery, at which was manufactured much 
 that did not improve the citizens. The estab- 
 lishment was located just south of the present 
 site of Greensburg. John Yarrick also started 
 a still-house about 1820, just southwest of what 
 is now Greentown Station. After some twelve 
 years, this "gin-mill " was discontinued, as was 
 also Wilhelm's. 
 
 The eary settlers of Green Township found it 
 a very difficult task to travel from one section 
 to another for the lack of roads. The first 
 thoroughfare laid out through what is now 
 Summit County, was the old Portage " Path," 
 which extended from Canton to Cleveland, bj' 
 the way of Portage. This was in the early 
 days a route extensively traveled by many 
 desiring to journey from Stark County and that 
 section of Ohio, to the lake. The road was 
 located at a very early period, but not com- 
 pleted as a highway for several years. This 
 Portage road entered the township at the south- 
 east corner of Section 35, and crossed it in a 
 northwesterly direction, passing nearly one 
 mile west of what is now Greensburg. A 
 considerable portion of this old " Portage Path " 
 is still used as a highway, but in some places 
 has been vacated. Many years since. Rev. E. 
 Staver had the section across his farm, in 
 Green Township, abandoned and a new road 
 opened. When the early settlers wished to go 
 any place with their wagons, it was necessary 
 to go out with an ax and cut the underbrush 
 away. The second road through the township 
 was laid out by John Richards, from his farm, 
 on the northwest quarter of Section 13, to Can- 
 ton. It is doubtful if Richards ever had the 
 route of his highway recorded, but deemed 
 that by general consent the settlers would al- 
 ways permit the road to remain, and so they 
 did, for the " Richards " road remains to this 
 day, cutting across Sections 24, 25 and 36 of 
 
 Green Township in a southerly direction, and 
 bearing to the east. Other roads were planned 
 and finished to suit various neighborhoods, but 
 for years some of these were ver^^ unsatisfactory 
 highways, at first only paths cut out through 
 the trackless forests, but they were improved 
 year after year, until at the present time the 
 roads of Green Township will compare favor- 
 ably with the highwa3's of any other farming 
 township in the State not traversed by stone 
 pikes. 
 
 Until 1840, Green Township formed a por- 
 tion of Stark County, which was organized in 
 1809. In 1811, what is now four townships 
 in the northern part of the county, was organ- 
 ized, with one set of officers. Gen. Bierce says 
 in regard to this : ' The township then em- 
 braced Green, Lake, all of Franklin lying east 
 of the Tuscarawas, and Jackson. The first 
 election was held at the house of Nathan De- 
 Haven, one and a half miles northwest of Green- 
 town, on the 6th of JUI3', 1811. Abraham De- 
 Haven, Jacob Harsh and Joseph Triplet were 
 Judges of the election ; Jonathan Potts and 
 William Triplet were Clerks. Peter Dicker- 
 hof, of what is now Lake Township ; Christian 
 Bolmer, of what is now Jackson ; and John 
 Yarrick, of what is now Green, were elected 
 first Trustees. Samuel Spitler, a resident of 
 what is now Lake, was elected Clerk ; George 
 Knoddle, Treasurer ; William Ball, Assessor ; 
 Simeon Harsh and John Kepler, Constables. 
 At the fall election, October 3, 1811, there were 
 only sixteen votes polled in the territory com- 
 prised by these townships, and, at the Pres- 
 idential election, October 20, 1812, during the 
 war, only nine votes. Peter Dickerhoff was the 
 first Justice of the Peace ; his commission bore 
 date August 21, 1811. The commission of 
 John Wise, who was the next Justice, bore 
 date June 16, 1814. He resided in what is now 
 Lake Township, and died in Greentown, in 
 January, 1853." Green Township as it now is 
 was organized April 7, 1815, and the following 
 officers were chosen : Trustees, George Mc- 
 Cormic, William Ball and Joshua Richards ; 
 Clerk, Robert Lawson ; Treasurer, Daniel Wise ; 
 Constables, David Hartman and Thomas Par- 
 ker. At the election held only seventeen votes 
 were polled. Green Township continued a por- 
 tion of Stark County until 1840, when Summit 
 was formed from fourteen townships of the 
 Western Reserve, and Franklin and Green, 
 
i\£l^ 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 603 
 
 from Stark County. Bierce says in regard to 
 this : "That it was the first instance in which 
 the southern line of the Reserve had been 
 brolven in the erection of a county, and when 
 the bill was being considered in the Legislature, 
 Senator Hostetter, of Stark, declared : ' You 
 might as well attempt to make a Dutch horse 
 and a Yankee broad-horn work together, as the 
 inhabitants on the opposite sides of that line 
 to amalgamate.' Experience, however, has 
 shown that such fears were groundless, and 
 such divisions wholly imaginary." However, 
 the citizens of Green Township were not gen- 
 erally satisfied with the new arrangement, and, 
 consequently, when the question of a county 
 seat was submitted to the voters, certain men 
 from Cuyahoga Falls appeared among them 
 and promised to use their influence and have 
 Green re-attached to Stark if the dissatisfied 
 citizens of Green would cast their votes in 
 favor of Cuyahoga Falls as the county seat in 
 preference to Akron. If any votes were se- 
 cured by these fickle promises, they failed to 
 change the result of the election, for it was de- 
 cided in favor of Akron. 
 
 Most of the early settlers of Green Township 
 were Pennsylvania Dutch, and many of these 
 were veiy ignorant and superstitious, conse- 
 quentl}' at an early da^- the cause of education 
 did not flourish. Possibl}' the first school held 
 in the township was taught b}- William Trip- 
 let, who endeavored to instill into a few youth- 
 ful minds the first rudiments of knowledge. 
 The children assembled at an old shanty on 
 Section 16 land, and Triplet undoubtedly did 
 his duty, but was not appreciated by the par- 
 ents of his pupils. John Buchtel, who resides 
 north of Akron, states : " I never learned to 
 write, as there were no schools in Green Town- 
 ship at an early da}-." Mrs. Herring, of East 
 Libert}-, says : "In those days, they had to pay 
 50 cents a month for each scholar, and if a 
 teacher failed to secure enougii scholars, no 
 school could be held for two or three years." 
 Mrs. Herring was the daughter of Andrew 
 Kepler ; her sister, Mrs. Paulner, declares : " I 
 had to plow many a day for my father, and 
 had no time to go to school." This was the 
 secret of the absence of educational facilities; 
 it cost something, and they wanted the children 
 to work, and the ignorant minds possessed by 
 some of Green Township's early inhabitants 
 failed to comprehend the benefits of a culti- 
 
 vated intellect ; consequently they refused to 
 permit their oflTspring to have advantages 
 W'hich were possessed by themselves in Penn- 
 sylvania, and a race was multiplied, a genera- 
 tion raised in ignorance the effect of which will 
 be felt to the third and fourth generation. Sev- 
 eral years after Triplet attempted to establish 
 a school in that neighborhood, Nicholas Sichley, 
 who married Andrew Kepler's sister. Susan, 
 made a second trial in a log building on Sec- 
 tion IG land ; this building had possibly been 
 occupied as a residence by some of the early 
 settlers on the school lands. Sichley 's sup- 
 port was not extensive, and he was followed 
 months afterward by William Early in the 
 same building. This gentleman also taught in 
 other districts of Green Township. About 
 1820, he was employed in a building on the 
 southeast corner of the land belonging to the 
 Foust heirs ; William Sweeney also taught at 
 the same place. A schoolhouse was put up at 
 an early day in what is now the King District, 
 which was also used as a church. Alex John- 
 ston says : " The first school I attended was at 
 what is now Greensburg about 181 G. It was 
 taught ]iy an Irishman named Robert Lawson, 
 in a building which had been erected by George 
 Dull for a weavers shop." The first school- 
 house in District 6 was built about one mile 
 west of my residence after 1820, but at that 
 time, there were special buildings for school 
 purposes in other districts. Simon Yarrick 
 relates : " We didn't go to school much in those 
 days, in good weather had to stay at home and 
 tramp our wheat ; boys attended school longer 
 than they do now, sometimes until twenty- 
 four and twenty-five }ears of age.'" In about 
 1823, a German school was tauglit by a Mr. 
 Crum in the district east of East Liberty ; it 
 was held in a log building put up for school 
 purposes some two years previous. Henry 
 Beard taught a few scholars at his home about 
 the year 1827. and thinks this was the first at- 
 tempt made in southwestern Green, but the lands 
 in that section were not settled until after many 
 inhabitants were in other portions of Green. It 
 is a satisfaction to learn of one Dutch mother 
 who appreciated education, as Adam Yarrick 
 relates : " My mother used to spin on the spin- 
 ning wheel in order to secure money to i)ay ttie 
 tuition of her children. She got a dollar for 
 spinning six dozen cuts and could finish eighteen 
 each day, netting her twenty- five cents. Con- 
 
 i V^ 
 
604 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 sequentlj' we got a better education than most 
 children of the township." Among those who 
 taught in the township at an early day, not 
 previously mentioned, were Henry Gates, John 
 
 Betz, Pjlecta Tuppei', McCauley, Jacob 
 
 Everhart, George Tousley, Showalter. Mc- 
 Cauley went to sleep one day in his chair, and 
 was tipped over by the large boys of the school. 
 Alex Johnston also taught many terms, and 
 Abram Hunsberger was emplo3ed for twenty- 
 one successive winters at teaching in various 
 districts. Simon Yarrick relates of him : " Once 
 we barred old Abram Hunsberger out, and 
 kept him out for three days because he would 
 not treat us to apples on Christmas." Apples 
 were very scarce in those days and prized more 
 by the children than at the present time, when 
 every farm contains a fine orchard of the 
 choicest varieties. 
 
 The first ministers to preach the Gospel in 
 Green Township were pioneer missionaries of 
 the Methodist Church ; among these were Revs. 
 Hollowa}' and Green. Several families, formerly 
 members of the Evangelical Association in Penn- 
 sylvania, united with the Methodist Episcopal 
 congregation, continuing their support to this 
 denomination until some time after Evangel- 
 ical ministers appeared in the township ; one of 
 these early members was Conrad Dillman, who 
 would go from cabin to cabin with bis Bible 
 teaching the settlers. The public services were 
 held at private cabins and log schoolhouses for 
 over two decades ; in later years, the congrega- 
 tion used the First Evangelical Church until 
 some time after 1840, when a brick meeting- 
 house was erected in Greensburg on land do- 
 nated by a Mr. Switzer ; William McBride 
 built this church, which was fi^nall}^ torn down 
 in the spring of 1881. At one time, the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal congregation was a strong and 
 influential church, containing about seventy 
 members, but man}- died or moved West ; 
 other troubles weakened the church, and services 
 were held very irregularl}' ; at the present time, 
 the few members left are without a church or 
 regular preaching. Closely following the Meth- 
 odist ministers in the pioneer days, were 
 missionaries of the Reformed and Lutheran 
 Churches, holding services in the German lan- 
 guage. At that time, the differences between 
 these two denominations were so slight that 
 many families encouraged and supported minis- 
 ters of both sects. It is said that Rev. John 
 
 Hamm, a Reformed or German Presbyterian, 
 first conducted services in a round log-house 
 which stood on Phillip Hartong's farm, now 
 owned b}' Jacob King. This building had former- 
 ly been used by Hartong as a residence, but when 
 he built another cabin, his first rude home was 
 donated for school and church purposes. Rev. 
 Hamm lived at Manchester for man}^ years, 
 until he died some five years since. In the 
 early days it was his custom to walk over from 
 Manchester to this log building, accompanied 
 by his wife ; he organized the Reformed Con- 
 gregations in Green Township, both at Greens- 
 burg and East Liberty, and it is said those at 
 Uniontown and Mud Brook. It is possible, 
 however, that Rev. Wier, of the Lutheran, and 
 Rev. Faust, of the Reformed Church, conducted 
 services in Green Township, at private houses, 
 before Rev. Hamm did, as they preached at 
 Manchester before he appeared in this section 
 of the State. Among the early ministei's of 
 these sects were Revs. Wyant, Happock, Hart- 
 brook and others. The Reformed Congrega- 
 tion erected the church at Greensburg, now used 
 by the Church of God, or Winebrennarians, 
 and another building was erected at East Lib- 
 erty and used b}^ both the Lutherans and Re- 
 formed congregations. The principal religious 
 sect in the township at the present time is the 
 Evangelical Association, which has two flour- 
 ishing and influential congregations, one at 
 Greensburg and the other at East Liberty. It 
 is not certain who the minister of this denomi- 
 nation was that first held services in Green, 
 but among those who preached at the cabins 
 of early settlers and log schoolhouses were 
 Revs. Hosier, Samuel Van Gundy, — Fr}^, Abra- 
 ham or Henry Neeble, George Mottinger, Jo- 
 seph Long, Aaron Yombert, Adam Klinefelter, 
 Elias Staver. John Kopf, Abraham Ream, Adam 
 Hennich, John Triesbach and others. Each 
 one of the last four has been claimed by differ- 
 ent persons to have been the first minister who 
 conducted services in the township in the in- 
 terest of the Evangelical Association, but it is 
 conceded by most authorities that the first 
 regular circuit was organized in 1829, that 
 Revs. Adam Klinefelter and P^lias Staver were 
 the ministers in charge ; they organized the 
 association at Greensburg, which was the first 
 congregation of this sect established perma- 
 nently in Summit County. These men rode a 
 circuit of about four hundred miles ; it was 
 
 (S — 
 
 ?iv 
 
llL 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 605 
 
 said of Rev. Klinefelter at his death : ■' His 
 travels were extensive, as he frequently had to 
 make long and tedious journeys back and forth 
 from Pennsylvania to Ohio in the saddle ; the 
 circuits then embraced as much territory as 
 the entii-e conference district does at the pres- 
 ent time. He preached almost ever}' day ; was 
 exposed to all kinds of weather ; lodged in 
 poor huts and rude log cabins, with a great 
 change of diet ; almost impassable roads. The 
 greatest hardships he endured were in Ohio, 
 when the country was yet a wilderness, thinly 
 inhabited and the people mostl}' poor." Serv- 
 ices were conducted at the cabins of various 
 pioneer settlers ; among these were Jacob Kauff- 
 man's, Conrad Dillman's, Elias Benner's, Fan- 
 nej-'s, John Mottinger's, John Buchtel's, Peter 
 Thornton's and others. Schoolhouses were also 
 occupied for man}' j'ears ; finally, about the 
 year 1838, the congregation erected a house of 
 worship about three-fourths of a mile west of 
 Greensbui'g, at the present site of the grave- 
 yard. This church was dedicated by Bishop 
 Long and the General Conference of the Evan- 
 gelical Association held in it from October 23 
 to November 2, 1843. Some years afterward, 
 another edifice was erected in Greensburg, 
 which building is now occupied by the congre- 
 gation. The church at East Liberty was erected 
 in 1869, at a cost of $3,200 ; the congregation 
 was organized many years previous, and a Sun- 
 day school started since 1869. The first camp- 
 meeting held in Green Township was conducted 
 about the year 1828 on land belonging, at that 
 time, to Phillip Dundore, now to John Leonard ; 
 it was continued about one week under the 
 direction of Revs. Joseph Long, Aaron Yom- 
 bert, George Mottinger and others. Several 
 camp-meetings were afterward held at the same 
 place in after yeai's. Disciple ministers ap- 
 peared occasionally after 1840 and held meet- 
 ings ; among these were Elders Row, Green 
 and his son, Lockhart and others. Services 
 were conducted in the schoolhouse at Greens- 
 burg, and afterward in the Winebrennarian 
 Church. About four j-ears since the Disciple 
 congregation built their present meeting-house, 
 which is one of the neatest chapels in the 
 county. The Church of God or " Winebren- 
 narians " organized their congregation after the 
 year 1850, and about twenty years since pur- 
 chased their present house of worship from the 
 Reformed Church for $400. Rev. Cassell is 
 
 Pastor at the present time. This sect has 
 another congregation in the southwestern part 
 of the township, who occupied ■ Tritt's Bethel." 
 This building was erected about the 3'ear 1871, 
 while Rev. Lily was Pastor ; Samuel Thursby, 
 Joseph Tritt and Emanuel Working were the 
 first Trustees of the association. A Total Absti- 
 nence Societ\^ was started by Abram Huns- 
 berger and Jacob Dillman previous to 1830, 
 which, for a short time, exerted quite an influ- 
 ence on some of the young men. 
 
 " All that tread the earth are but a handful 
 to the tribes that slumber in its bosom." This 
 can be appreciated by one who endeavors to 
 write a record of all the burying-grounds of 
 Green Township. It is not known who was the 
 first white person laid beneath the sod by those 
 earl}' pioneer settlers. Andrew Kepler's little 
 son, Andrew, died about 1812, and was buried 
 on his father's farm, and possibly the first regu- 
 lar graveyard of the township was then estab- 
 lished. The exact spot is near the center of 
 the east eighty acres of the southeast quarter 
 of Section 17. When others died in this neigh- 
 borhood, they were laid beside young Kepler. 
 About fifty interments wei'e made, but scarcely 
 a dozen stones were erected to the memory of 
 these departed ones, and most of the graves 
 have been desecrated. Possibly, old Conrad 
 Smith died before young Kepler. He was buried 
 on his own land, and a huge stone placed over 
 the grave by his son, who carved upon it his 
 father's name. In after years, the bowlder was 
 used for the corner stone of a barn. When 
 John Rhodes died, about the year 1825, he was 
 buried on the southwest corner of Conrad Dill- 
 man's land. Other settlers were buried here, 
 and the spot of ground became consecrated 
 earth, and sacred to the memory of these dead, 
 was fenced in, and Mr. Dillman deeded the 
 ground for cemetery purposes. Years after- 
 ward, he was interred upon this land, as was 
 also his wife, Rev. Adam Klinefelter, his son- 
 in-law, Mrs. Klinefelter and many of their chil- 
 dren. When a man named Herring committed 
 suicide, about 1828, he was buried just south- 
 west of this ground. John Richards died Octo- 
 ber 26, 1823, and his wife Katharine, two days 
 later. They were buried on their own land. 
 Their graves were inclosed by a neat fence, and 
 plain stones put up to mark the spot. Some of 
 Mr. Palmer's children, who lived where Levi J. 
 Hartong does now, were interred on that farm 
 
 T^ 
 
606 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 as early as 1830. Old Jonatliaii (Irable was 
 also buried here, and about one dozen others. 
 When Henr}' Beards infant daughter Christina 
 died, May 4, 1832, slie was laid beneath the sod 
 on Beard's farm. Others of that neighborhood 
 were placed beside her. The ground was fenced 
 in, but no stones ever erected. The Evangelical 
 Church gravej'ard, about one half mile west of 
 Grreensburg, was started about the year 183G. 
 Peter Thornton states he donated the first piece 
 of this land to the church for cemetery pur- 
 poses, and that his son, Creorge Thornton, aged 
 about twelve, was the first person buried there. 
 In 1875, an additional acre of land was pur- 
 chased from George Gougler, and added to this 
 cemetery. Rev. Klias Stoeber was possibly the 
 first person buried in the new addition. The 
 cemetery at East Libert}' was started about 
 1845, and is already well filled with those who 
 formerly lived in that neighborhood. But those 
 who died in Grreen Township were not all laid 
 within these cemeteries ; for in those early da3's, 
 many mothers oft wept beside little graves 
 placed in leafy dell, or near the babbling brook. 
 These little mounds, unmarked by marble slab, 
 were only consecrated b}' their tears. Many of 
 these lonely burial-places have been desecrated, 
 and the ground plowed over by those who were 
 either ignorant or careless in regard to the 
 sacredness of that soil. 
 
 There is considerable speculation in regard 
 to the first marriage ceremony performed in 
 Green Township. Gen. Bierce says in regard 
 to this : " The first recorded marriage in the 
 township was Abraham Bair to Elizabeth Har- 
 ter, who were married by Abraham DeHaven 
 on March 31, 1812, though tradition shows that 
 previous to that time Jacob Smith, Jr., was 
 married to Miss Betsy Dixon, but of which no 
 record was ever made. Ti'adition says the mar- 
 riage ceremony of this first couple was ' You 
 bromis to take te voman you holt by te hant to 
 pe your vife, and tat you will shtick to her 
 through hell-fire and dunder ? Den I bronounce 
 you man and voman, by cot ! " Blair died soon 
 after the marriage, and his widow subsequently 
 married Jehu Grubb, and now resides in Plain 
 Township, Stark County." (This was written 
 in 1855 : it is said that she is still living there, 
 although it is now nearly seventy years since 
 her first marriage). The general opinion of 
 many old settlers is that the quaint ceremony 
 above mentioned was actually performed, and 
 
 that the man who married the couple was old 
 Andrew Kepler. Several of his children ad- 
 mit that he performed the ceremon}', but his 
 oldest living daughter, Mrs. Mary Paulner, says 
 the story is not true. John Buchtel states that 
 Kepler performed this marriage before he re- 
 ceived his commission of Justice of the Peace, 
 and that afterward he refused to serve in this 
 capacity. Others state that the last words ut- 
 tered by Kepler to the bride and bridegroom 
 were "Now, vers mine tollar?" These ad- 
 ditional words furnish more convincing proof 
 to the truth of this incident than the second- 
 hand statements of several men. It is doubt- 
 ful who the first child born in Green Township 
 was. The earliest of which we can obtain anj' 
 knowledge is John Triplet, son of William, who 
 is now a resident of Coventr}'. He was born 
 March 4, 1809, and must have been among 
 the first two or three white natives of the town- 
 ship. However, there were several other fam- 
 ilies at that time living near Triplet's, and the 
 first birth might have occurred among one of 
 these. 
 
 Since the settlement of Green Township, three 
 villages have been laid out within its borders ; 
 these are Greensburg, East Liberty and My- 
 ersville. Greensburg, the oldest of these, was 
 surveyed August 27, 1828, by David Baer, on 
 land belonging to Abraham Wilhelm. This 
 village is located on the southwest part of the 
 northeast quarter of Section 27 ; it lies consid- 
 erabl}^ south and a little east of the township's 
 center. A short time after the village plat was 
 first made and recorded, Wilhelm decided not 
 to establish a town on his land, but, after sev- 
 eral years, the village was permanently located. 
 The place contained only six or eight houses 
 for many years. The tax duplicate of 1846 
 shows that it then had onl}' ten frame houses, 
 although the plat contained at that time Mty- 
 three lots. When Greensburg Seminary was 
 established, it received a " boom," and a move- 
 ment was made to have the place incorpor- 
 ated, but it is said objection was raised to 
 this by some who were afraid their cows would 
 not then be permitted to graze on the streets, 
 and the movement was squelched. Among the 
 earl}^ business of the burg and vicinity were the 
 following establishments : Wilhelm kept an 
 inn a short distance south previous to 1820 ; he 
 also had a stopping-place for the old stage line 
 which ran from Massillon to Middlebury, but 
 
GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 607 
 
 this four-horse stage was only run a short time 
 over this route and then changed to a road run- 
 ning through Manchester and Canal Fulton. 
 One of the Wilhelms had a distillery just south 
 of the village, previous to 1820, and, after it 
 was discontinued, a Mr. Moulton ran a chair- 
 factory in the same building. John Shick 
 started the first store, about 1836, and also kept 
 the first hotel ; he ran this latter establishment 
 five or six years, and it was finally destroyed 
 by fire ; another was built on the same site, 
 which was run by Benjamin Seiss for about ten 
 years ; it passed through several hands and is 
 now owned bj' Peter Thornton and run by Jerry 
 Garmon. The present landlord enlisted in 1861 
 in the Union army, and served faithfully during 
 the war ; he then joined the regular army for 
 several years. Jacob Garmon, his father, put 
 up a hotel on the northwest corner, previous to 
 1840, and this building was also destroyed by 
 fii'e. John Hunsberger started his mercantile 
 establishment in the village about 1838 ; he was 
 appointed first Postmaster of the place under 
 Van Buren's administration ; when he settled 
 in the village, there were only six houses ; these 
 were two hotels, one pump-factory, Hunsberg- 
 er's residence, and a wagon-shop, which was 
 run b}' George E. Smith for many years. The 
 pump-maker, Peter Weidman, remained about 
 ten years. About 1840, the first schoolhouse 
 was built in the village ; previous to this the 
 scholars went to school about one mile south. 
 Harry Raefsnider started a tan3^ard south of 
 the village previous to 1838, but quit after a 
 few years ; then another was established nearer 
 Greensburg by Jacob Kauffman ; this was af- 
 terward sold to John Hunsberger, who trans- 
 ferred it to I. W. France. The first blacksmith- 
 shop was owned by Lewis Denious, and John 
 Wetzel built the first saw-mill. Some thirty 
 years since, a brickyard was established b3^Adam 
 Leopard. Daniel Bender commenced man- 
 ufacturing and repairing harness as early as 
 1843. 
 
 Many other industries have been carried 
 on for a time in the village and then discon- 
 tinued. The first physician to locate there was 
 Dr. John Thomas, who remained about two years. 
 Among those who practiced there in later 3'ears 
 were A. H. Mann, H. Peters. Jacob Musser, 
 Wesley Boden, Garber, C. A. Perdue, Da- 
 vid Joseph, B. F. Sampsell, Levi Markam, A. 
 M. Weidler, 0. E. Brownell, Parmlee, 
 
 Howland, 
 
 Reynolds and others. An 
 
 addition was added to the village by Elias Her- 
 ring, which was surveyed by Henry Beard ; 
 John Switzer afterward added another. 
 
 The most important enterprise ever estab- 
 lished at Greensburg was the seminary. This 
 educational institution was for a few ^^ears in a 
 very flourishing condition. It was, to a great 
 extent, under the control of the Evangelical 
 Association, and, at one time, two conferences 
 of this sect desired to control the seminary, 
 and much bad feeling was occasioned. It was 
 finally re-organized with twenty-six stockhold- 
 ers, at $50 per share, and at another period of 
 its history was conducted in the interest of the 
 Disciples' Church. It was originally started in 
 1855, with Prof J. W. Raubalt as Principal, 
 and Miss Jennie Wells as x\ssistant. The di- 
 rectors at that time were Revs. Abraham 
 Leonard, P. W. Hahn and E. Stavei-, Alex 
 Johnston and D. Cramer. Prof Raubalt re- 
 mained two years, and was succeeded for three 
 years bj' Prof Barnes, who had assisted Rau- 
 bault one year ; then Prof Idgins was Princi- 
 pal for one year, and he followed by Profs. A. 
 A. Smith and J. W. Hahn. Under the Disci- 
 ples' Church management, Prof Williams had 
 charge and G. F. Burgetts was assistant. 
 Prof Davis ran the institute for a short time 
 in his own interest. During the time the sem- 
 inary was conducted, many of the young folks 
 of Green Township attended ; these acquired a 
 higher and more complete education than the 
 children of those settlers who did not appre- 
 ciate the value of the institution. During the 
 Know-Nothing movement, quite an influential 
 order of this political secret society was estab- 
 lished at Greensburg, and for a time flourished 
 like a " green bay tree," and then gave way 
 before the " irrepressible conflict "' which re- 
 sulted in the rebellion of 1861. The farmer 
 opposed the " middlemen " for a short time by 
 organizing a grange which continued for sev- 
 eral years, but the onlv secret societ}' of Green 
 Township at the present time is Hadassah 
 Lodge, No. 450, of the I. 0. O. F.; this was in- 
 stituted July 9. 1870, by Horace Y. Beebe, 
 with seven charter members, as follows : D. F. 
 Hunsberger, O. E. Brownell, J. P. Snyder, W. 
 P. Hoff'ert, J. H. Anderson, Stephen Zembrot 
 and C. Intermela. The lodge met for some 
 eight }"ears in a small room back of Hunsber- 
 ber's store. At the present time they have one 
 
 
 -a) V 
 
^1 
 
 -^R 
 
 608 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 of the finest lodge-rooms in Ohio for a village 
 the size of Greeusburg. 
 
 East Liberty was laid out on land belonging 
 to John Castetter February 15, 1839. It was 
 surveyed b}- Henr}' Beard, and Adam Yerrick 
 assisted in carrying the chain. George An- 
 drews put up the second house immediately 
 south of Castetter's, who then occupied the 
 southeast corner of the town ; Castetter kept 
 a cabinet-shop there for about fifteen years. 
 George Andrews opened the first shoe-shop. 
 Daniel Lutz started a tannery at an early day, 
 which he sold to Henry Raefsnider and David 
 Thornton ; the latter sold out to the former, 
 and after ten years the business was continued. 
 About 1841, Andrew Kepler built the tavern 
 now owned by Kroft. Several stores have 
 been established in the village during the past 
 forty years ; prominently among these is the 
 establishment conducted by Charles Stroman 
 for some fifteen years. This gentleman taught 
 school for twenty-one terms, was Clerk and 
 Treasurer of the township for many years, 
 took the census for one decade, and was Post- 
 master ten or twelve years ; he died May 8, 
 1879. The first physician who settled in the 
 village was Dr. L. S. Witwer, who remained 
 about six years, and was succeeded for about 
 five years by Jonathan Buchtel. There is 
 some jealousy and strife between the two 
 villages of East Liberty and Greensburg, which 
 is manifested mostly at spring elections. By 
 
 general consent, the polls are held at Greens- 
 burg in the fall and at East Liberty in the 
 spring. The result of this is that the town- 
 ship officers are generally " East Libertyites," 
 and this occasionally causes some of those as- 
 piring to these same positions who reside at 
 and near Greensburg to feel dissatisfied with 
 the successful political spring campaigns 
 waged by the sons of Liberty, but in the fall the 
 Greensburgites generally do the "smiling." 
 
 Myersville, which is destined in the near 
 future to be the most important village of 
 Green Township, was surveyed by Jacob Mish- 
 ler on the land of J. B. Myers. The plat has 
 not yet been recorded by Mr. M3'ers. The first 
 house was built by Moses Kroft in the summer 
 of 1876. The next year William Miller 
 erected one, and Curt. Brause and James Rilej^ 
 started the saw-mill. A storeroom was built 
 and Edward Steese opened out a stock of 
 goods, and afterward sold out to William 
 Sweeten, who continued the business from 
 April, 1880, to February, 1881, when he re- 
 moved to East Liberty. The warehouse was 
 erected b}^ Edward Steese in the summer and 
 fall of 1879 ; it is now leased by Hunsberger 
 & Shick ; the first grain was purchased March 
 17, 1880. The construction train of the Val- 
 ley road first passed over the Uniontown pub- 
 lic Road at Myersville Station August 4, 1879, 
 at 10:15 A. M. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIL* 
 
 RK'IIIIKLK TOWNSinr— DKS('Kir»TION AND TOPOGRAPHY —EARLY SETTLEMENT — DEVELOPMENT 
 
 OF INDUSTRIES— VILLAGF^IS — CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS— INCIDENTS 
 
 — THE GREAT SLEIGH-RIDE. ETC.. ETC. 
 
 IN writing the history of even so small a 
 pai't of the earth's surface as is contained in 
 one of the Western Reserve townships, it 
 becomes evident that nothing like absolute jus- 
 tice and impartiality can be attained in any 
 history whatever. The truth is, no history 
 absolutely correct in every particular was ever 
 written. To give just the right amount of 
 importance and space to each individual and 
 interest would manifestly be impossible. It 
 might be a curiosity to see a book wherein each 
 
 * Contributed by Dr. A. E. Ewing and S. U. Oviatt. 
 
 individual was allowed to dictate or write up 
 his own consequence and that of his family ; 
 but such a production would give a very incor- 
 rect idea of individuals and their affairs. Some 
 would be swelled out of all proportion to their 
 real importance in the community, while others, 
 through innate modesty, would only occupy a 
 few lines, if they allowed themselves to appear 
 at all. 
 
 Gen. Bierce, of Akron, published in 1854 a 
 small volume of "reminiscences." His labor 
 must have been great, and his reward small. 
 
 «<^ s- 
 
L^ 
 
 RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 609 
 
 From his book many items in this sketch are 
 taken and duly acknowledged. Where his 
 words have been copied, quotation marks are 
 used ; but, in some cases, his facts are given 
 without such credit. Of Indian history, treat- 
 ies, etc., Gen. Biei'ce saj^s : " By the treaty of 
 Fort Mcintosh in 1785, the Cuyahoga River, 
 Portage Path and Tuscarawas River were 
 the western boundary of the United States. 
 Tliis was confirmed by what was called ' Wa3'ne's 
 Treaty,' made at (Ireenville, August 3, 1795; 
 the chiefs of twelve tribes were present and 
 ratified it. The land on the west side of the 
 Cuj'ahoga was not purchased until 1805, when 
 the United States acquired it by the treaty of 
 Fort Industry, on the Maumee. This fort was 
 on the land of a Wyandot chief b}^ the name 
 of Ogonst, who, with his tribe, hunted on the 
 grounds between the Maumee and Cuyahoga, 
 in connection with the Miamis, Pottawatomies, 
 Delawares, Shawanese, Ottawas and Senecas. 
 There was also a small band of Mingos on the 
 west bank of the Cuj-ahoga, being a part of the 
 Ca^nigas, but formed a distinct band." Here 
 follows in Gen. Bierce's book some further par- 
 ticulars, which will be found in fewer words, 
 and with a trifling error or two corrected 
 further along in this chapter. 
 
 The township of Richfield is known as Town 
 4, in Range 12, and may well be considered 
 one of the choice townships in the Connecticut 
 Western Reserve. Its estimated value in an 
 early da}' as a township was adjudged above 
 the average. A strip of land, designated as 
 " Tract 7," about seventy-two rods in width 
 east and west, and extending the whole length 
 of the township from north to south, containing 
 about seven hundred acres, was cutoflF the east 
 side of the tovvnship and annexed to the town- 
 ship of Boston, thereby placing the geograph- 
 ical center about thirty-six rods west of the 
 centers of other townships in the same range. 
 
 The surface of the land in Richfield, from a 
 point about a mile northeast of the center, in 
 what is called '• Furnace Run Valley," to the 
 southeast corner of the township, is very 
 broken and hill}-, but the township generall}' 
 exhibits a rolling and undulating surface, pos 
 sessing a rich and fertile soil, and consisting of 
 a gravelly loam, with a clay subsoil, producing 
 good crops of both grain and grass, and distin- 
 guished likewise for its fine fruits. The extreme 
 altitude of the township is about eight hundred 
 
 feet above Lake Erie, and 1,365 feet above tide 
 water at New York, giving to it a circulation of 
 pure air, free from miasma or any malarial 
 influence. One of the old pioneer physicians, 
 Dr. Rawson, after forty years' practice, said that 
 he never knew a case of fever and ague that 
 originated in this township. Richfield is 
 bounded on the north b}- Brecksville Township, 
 in Cuyahoga Count}' ; on the east by Boston 
 Township ; on the south by Bath Township, and 
 on the west by Hinckley Township, in Medina 
 County. It abounds in springs of pui'e water 
 well distributed, and two considerable creeks, 
 viz.: a branch of Rocky River, which flows for 
 a mile or two through the west part of the 
 township in a southerly direction, then enters 
 Medina County and Furnace Run, which rises 
 in the northwest part of Richfield, flows south- 
 east and empties into the Cuyahoga River at 
 Everett, in the southwest part of Boston Town- 
 ship. The name of Furnace Run was obtained 
 through the discover}- of iron ore in the valley 
 bordering it, and the probability of the erection 
 of a furnace in the immediate neighborhood. 
 When first seen by white men there were in the 
 west and south parts of the township a heavy 
 growth of beech, maple, hickory, ash, black 
 and white walnut, interspersed with large oaks 
 of the diflferent varieties, while nearly all the 
 eastern part was covered almost exclusively 
 with white oak. 
 
 When the Western Reserve was conveyed to 
 the State of Connecticut, and, in turn, by the 
 State to the " Connecticut Land Company," 
 Richfield, in " the draft," became the property 
 of five or six proprietors or land speculators. 
 Col. Benjamin Tallmadge owned the northwest 
 quarter, which was designated as " tract one ; " 
 Capt. John Smith, tract two, and a fraction 
 north, in southwest quarter ; Edwards & Green, 
 tract three, in south and southeast part of the 
 township ; Uriel Holmes, a tract in the north- 
 east quarter, and J. Wilcox tract six, in the 
 east part. The northwest quarter, or tract one, 
 containing 4,000 acres, was sold in 1811, by 
 Col. Tallmadge to Capt. Heman Oviatt, for the 
 sum of $5,000, who, soon after, had it re-sur- 
 veyed into quarter-sections by Alfred Wolcott, 
 the father of Hon. A. Wolcott, of Boston 
 Township. For this service he received fifty 
 acres of land, and was allowed to take his 
 choice of any fifty acres in tract one. He 
 chose a lot near where John Corastock now 
 
 ^ 
 
 «♦• 
 
610 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 lives. The name Richfield seems to have orig- 
 inated from a weed whicli grew here in great 
 abundance, in an early day, and which was very 
 nutritious and greatly relished by stock. It 
 was called b}- some " ox-balm," but more gen- 
 erall}- known as "rich-feed," and, bj- a very 
 slight corruption, it became " Richfield." This 
 name was given to the township at the time of 
 its organization in 1816, by the Commissioners 
 of Portage County. For two years after the 
 organization of Richland, it included what is 
 now the township of Bath. The first officers 
 elected for Richfield, in April, 1816, were as 
 follows : Daniel Keys, Nathaniel Oviatt and 
 William Jourdan, Trustees ; John Bigelow, 
 Clerk ; Isaac Welton, Treasurer ; Jared Barnes 
 and John Farnam, Overseers of the Poor ; John 
 Bigelow and Isaac Hopkins, Constables ; John 
 Farnam, Jason Philips, Isaac Welton, P]lijah 
 Hale and John Holmes, Supervisors. In the 
 3'ear 1818, the township of Bath was setoff 
 from Richfield, leaving the boundaries of the 
 latter as they are at the present da3\ 
 
 The first white man to settle in what is now 
 Richfield Township was Launcelot Mays, who 
 came here in 1809, and was followed, in 1810, 
 by Jared Barnes, Daniel and John Mallet 
 (father and son), with their families. During 
 the same year, a daughter was born to Mr. and 
 Mrs. John Mallet, which was the first white 
 child born in the township. In 1811, Nathaniel 
 Oviatt, of Goshen, Conn., came to this town 
 with his family, performing the journey with 
 oxen and cart the whole distance. The same 
 year, also, Enoch D. Buck, Mr. Nelson, Jason 
 Philips and Ben Payne ai-rived, with their 
 families. In 1812, the first death of a white 
 person occurred, that of Polly Payne, who 
 died at the age of eighteen years and three 
 months. She was a sister of the venerable 
 John Payne, who; at the age of eighty-four 
 years, is still living in the town. The first 
 couple married was William Carter and Miss 
 Betsey Mays. They were married b}^ Alfred 
 Wolcott, a Justice of the Peace, in 1812. Al- 
 fred Wolcott and Lernan Farnam were the 
 two Justices of the Peace for the territory' now 
 comprising the townships of Richfield, Bath, 
 Boston and Northampton from 1812 to 1816, 
 when, upon the organization of the township of 
 Richfield, Isaac Welton was elected Justice of 
 the Peace, his commission (now in the hands 
 of I. T. Welton) bearing date July, 1816. 
 
 In 1812, Amos and Johnsey Barnes also 
 settled in the township. Judge Isaac Welton 
 came in 1812, cleared off the ground and sowed 
 six acres of wheat. He then returned to Con- 
 necticut on foot, and moved back here with his 
 family in 1813. John Farnam and family came 
 also in 1812, and located north of the center, 
 on what, with its numerous additions, is called 
 the " Farnam Domain," and is owned by Ever- 
 ett Farnam, who is still living, at the agejaf 
 fourscore 3'ears. At about this time, and for 
 two or three years following, we find Amos and 
 Jonathan Searles, Timothy Hurlburt, Moses 
 Woi'den, Jacob Spaftbrd, John Bigelow, Ste- 
 phen Welton, Elijah Welton, Bildad and Israel 
 Hubbard, Stephen Pixley, John Wilcox, Na- 
 than Carpenter, Daniel Moulton (father of Col. 
 Moulton, now of the Treasury' Department), 
 Earl Moulton, William West, Reuben Coole}', 
 Alvin Coole}', Newcomb Carter, Bradfoi'd Stur- 
 tevant, Salmon Oviatt, Elijah Ellsworth, Augus- 
 tus Adams, Birdse}' H. Oviatt, Samuel Robin- 
 son and John Newton, as settlers in Richfield 
 Township, nearly all of whom came from Con- 
 necticut and Massachusetts. Vigorous in mind 
 and body, and with willing hands, they came 
 prepared to battle with the wild beasts of the 
 forest, and have succeeded in leaving to their 
 descendants the beautiful homes they to-da}' 
 enjoy. 
 
 [The following narrative, which scarcely be- 
 longs in the histor}' of Richfield Township, is 
 given herewith, as illustrative of pioneer life, 
 and, at the request of the writers of the chap- 
 ter on Richfield, many of whose citizens are 
 descendants of the " captives " mentioned. The 
 narrative was originality published in the Litch- 
 field (Conn.) Enquirer in 1833, and in the Ohio 
 Observer in 1846. — Historian.] 
 
 Soon after the " Frencli and Indian war," Mr, 
 Nathaniel Carter removed from Killingworth to 
 Cornwall (Conn.), where he purcliased a farm and 
 resided for some years. But, as the tide of emigra- 
 tion was at that" time setting from New England 
 toward the pleasant and fertile valleys of the Dela- 
 ware and Susqueliauna in Pennsylvania, early in 
 1763, Mr. Carter, with some of his hardy neighbors, 
 began to make i)n'i)arations for removing thither, 
 Tlie aeeounts wliicli they had received of that 
 country had filled them with glowing antieii)ations, 
 though they were by no means unmindful of the 
 fact that the life of a pioneer was one of hardship 
 and peril. Mr. Carter's family at this tune con- 
 sisted of a wife and six children — Jemima, the eld- 
 est daughter, having a short time before been mar- 
 ried to Mr. John Bates, of Warren. The other 
 
4<- 
 
 RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 611 
 
 children were Nathan, Surah aged eleven years, 
 Elizabeth eight, Nathaniel six, and an infant. 
 
 On a beautiful morning in the spring of the year 
 above mentioned, this family (except the married 
 daughter), together with two other families from 
 the same neighborhood, took up the line of their 
 journey to the " land of promise." After a tedious 
 tour, marked with the usual vicissitudes and advent- 
 ures of such a journey, they arrived in safety at 
 the forks of the Delaware, where they remained a 
 short time, and ultimately settled on the Lacka- 
 waxen Creek, in Wayne Count}', about twelve miles 
 below the site of the present town of Bethany. 
 They advanced about lifteen miles beyond any 
 other white settlement, cleared a small spot near 
 the bank of the stream and erected a building of 
 logs, in which the three families resided. Here 
 they passed a few months in apparent security, en- 
 gaged in various employments to improve the safety 
 and comfort of their new residence. The tall trees 
 immediately before their dwelling they had in part 
 cleared away, some grain and garden vegetables 
 were growing near b^^ while around the doorway a 
 few flowers, transplanted from their dear native 
 New" England, were budding and blossoming — add- 
 ing variety and beauty to the scenes of their wil- 
 derness home. While some were laboring, others 
 carried the muskets and ammunition, acting as 
 sentinels, that they might seasonably be apprised of 
 approaching danger, Every day seemed more prom- 
 ising of future happiness and security, and added 
 something to their little stock of comforts. The 
 wild scenery had become familiar to their view, and 
 an agreeable interest had associated itself with 
 most of the objects which were embraced by the 
 little horizon, formed ])y the tall and unbroken 
 forests which stretched away to an almost inter- 
 minable breadth around them. 
 
 One day in the latter part of September, when the 
 inmates of this little settlement were occupied in 
 their usual pursuits, Mr. Carter, with his eldest son 
 and one or two others, being engaged in building a 
 house a short distance in the woods, and the man 
 whose business it was to act as sentinel having 
 gone a few rods out of sight of the house to examine 
 some traps, the Indians, who had been secretly 
 watching for their prey, uttered their savage war- 
 whoop, and rushed upon these defenseless women 
 and children. At this moment, Mrs. Carter and 
 her daughter Elizabeth were a few yards from the 
 door engaged in picking corn for dinner, Elizabeth, 
 seeing them before the war-whoop was given, and 
 knowing from their peculiar appearance that they 
 were banded for war, turned to her mother and 
 gave the alarm, but her words were scarcely uttered 
 before she saw that beloved parent turn deadly 
 pale, and the next moment she beheld the toma- 
 hawk buried deep in her skull. The Indians, 
 twelve in number, then rushed into the house, 
 where were the elder females, one of whom was 
 confined to the bed by illness, a daughter of the 
 same woman aged sixteen, who was also ill; the in- 
 fant daughter of Mr. Carter and five other children. 
 One of the Indians seized the infant and dashed its 
 brains out against the logs of the house; and the 
 two sick women were instantly put to death with 
 
 tomahawks. The man who had gone to examine 
 the traps, hearing the shrieks of the sutferers, hast- 
 ened to their defense, but had only time to dis- 
 charge his gun once, before he received a death- 
 blow from the hands of the assailants. 
 
 The Indians, having selected such of their cap- 
 tives as they supposed could best endure the hard- 
 ships of savage life and taken the scalps from thos(> 
 they had killed, and also having taken the clothing 
 and utensils which the}' thought would best serve 
 their convenience, they set fire to the house, and 
 then hurried off to their encampment a short dis- 
 tance from thence, on the opposite side of the creek. 
 The captives were three children of Mr. Carter 
 (Elizabeth, Sarah and Nathaniel), Mrs. Duncan, and 
 three children belonging to the other family. At 
 the encampment they found about 200 Indians, 
 principally warriors. Several large fires were burn- 
 ing, around which the Indians began to regale 
 themselves with roasted corn and other refresh- 
 ments, which they had brought from the white 
 settlement. After having freely indulged them- 
 selves in exultations at their recent success, and, 
 night approaching, they secured their captives with 
 cords and stretched themselves on the ground aroimd 
 the fires. Sarah, the eldest of the three children of 
 Mr. Carter, appeared perfectl}" distracted by the 
 circumstances of her situation. She continued cry- 
 ing and calling for her father to come and rescue 
 her. The Indians several times appeared deter- 
 mined to silence her screams with the tomahawk. 
 At length, when they had become Ijuried in sleep, 
 Sarah obtained a small brand from the fire, with 
 which she barely succeeded in burning the cord 
 which bound her to the savages, but leaving her 
 hands still tied together. In this situation, and 
 surrounded by the midnight dai-kness, she suc- 
 ceeded in finding a canoe, and loosing it from its 
 fastenings, in which she reached the opposite bank, 
 and, finally, found her way back to the smoking 
 ruins of her recent home, where she gave way to 
 the most violent lamentations. Though her cries 
 were distinctly heard at the encampment, she was 
 not pursued until morning, when she was re-taken. 
 
 The Indians then commenced their journey 
 through the woods, carrying their captives on 
 horseback. After pursuing their route three days 
 in a westerly direction, they halted and sent back a 
 war party of about one hundred. After five or six 
 days, the party returned with several scalps, and 
 the horror of the unfortunate c«i:)tives can scarcely 
 be imagined, when they discovered among the num- 
 ber, those of Mr. Carter and Mr. Duncan. These 
 men on returning from their labors and seeing the 
 desolation wrought by the Indians, repaired to the 
 nearest white settlement, and procured the aid of 
 forty men, with whom they returned for the cattle, 
 and with the faint hope of" recovering the captives. 
 Just as they gained the vicinity of their recent 
 home, they were suddenly surprised by the yell of 
 these savages and by the flight of their arrows. 
 About half of Carter's men instantly deserted, and 
 left their companions to fight the battle as best they 
 could. Yet. though struggling against such fearful 
 odds, these brave men stood their ground, till Car- 
 ter fouml himself alone — all besides having l»eeu 
 
 ® 
 
 (^ 
 
^t 
 
 613 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 either killed or disabled. lie had stationed himself 
 behind a rock, and still kept up the fire until struck 
 down by the tomahawks of the enemy. Some four 
 or five of those wounded in the earl}^ part of the 
 enjj;agement, succeeded in crawling so far into the 
 forest as to elude the subsequent search of their 
 wily foes, and at length reached their homes. 
 
 On the return of the Indian warriors to the en- 
 campment, there was great lamentation and mourn- 
 ing among the savages, over those of their number 
 who had fallen in the battle, more than half of the 
 100 being afliong the slain. The Indians then re- 
 commences their march through the woods to the 
 residence of their nation. As nearly us the captives 
 could recollect, they traveled several days diligently 
 in a northwesterly direction, and at length arrived 
 at their place of destination. Here in dark filthy 
 huts, ornamented with the scalps of their parents 
 and friends, separated from each other, did these 
 lonely captives spend the long and tedious winter, 
 in a state of almost perfect starvation. The Indians 
 would never go abroad to obtain new supplies of 
 food so long as one morsel remained, and then some- 
 times returned with little success. 
 
 Nathaniel, the youngest of the captives, having 
 from the first been a general favorite with the Indi- 
 ans, was treated by them with great comparative 
 kindness and attention, and with so much success, 
 that the little white stranger soon ceased to mourn 
 his bereavements, and join heartily in the amuse- 
 ments and pastimes which they devised for the pur- 
 pose of diverting him, and making sport for tliem- 
 selves. Early in the spring they deserted their 
 winter quarters and journeyed toward the lakes. 
 After a tour of several weeks the}" arrived in the 
 vicinity of Fort Niagara, where Elizabeth and Sarah 
 were ransomed through the negotiations of Sir Will- 
 iam Johnson. But all efforts to obtain Nathaniel 
 were unavailing. No consideration would tempt 
 the Indians to part with him, and, strange as it may 
 appear, he had become so much attached to them 
 that he would not consent to leave them. His sis- 
 ters, after bidding him an affectionate and final 
 farewell, were conveyed to Albany, where their 
 Connecticut friends, being apprised of their ransom, 
 met them, and they soon had the unspeakable grat- 
 ification of once more visiting the home of their 
 nativity, and of finding themselves surrounded by 
 sympathizing friends and relatives. Yet it was 
 long, very long, b^ore thej' ceased to mourn over 
 the dreadful scenes through which they liad passed, 
 and their sad bereavements. 
 
 The reader who has followed thus far our narra- 
 tive, may feel an interest to know something of the 
 subsequent historj^ of the captives. Sarah Carter, 
 from h(!r ill treatment and mental sufferings never 
 fully recovered. Though she lived to old age, her in- 
 tellect was permanently impaired; she died in Go- 
 shen, Conn. Elizabeth was married to Mr. Benjamin 
 Oviatt, of Goshen, and died in that town in 1835. 
 Among her children were Mr. Luman Oviatt, of Go- 
 shen; Ileman Oviatt, Esq., an enterprising citizen 
 of Hudson, and a liberal patron of the college at 
 that place, more recently a resident of Richfield; 
 Mr. Nathaniel Oviatt and Mr. Salmon Oviatt, of 
 Richfield. 
 
 Nathaniel grew up among the Indians, im- 
 bibed their habits, and married one of their 
 daughters. It is a remarkable circumstance that 
 among the articles which the Indians carried away 
 with their captives was a Bible, which they after- 
 ward gave to their young favorite. He had previ- 
 ously learned to read, and by means of this book, 
 which he kept till manhood, he ever retained that 
 knowledge. He died in the Cherokee nation, at the 
 age of about seventy. 
 
 Some years later, while the foreign mission school 
 was in operation at Cornwall, Conn., Mr. Isaac 
 Bates, a warin friend of the school, received a letter 
 from a missionary among the Indians, stating that 
 he had sent on to be educated a young half-breed 
 Indian, of fine talents and exemplary piety, named 
 Carter, exj^ressing a wish that he would become ac- 
 quainted with him. An early acquaintance with 
 the young man was sought by Mr. Bates, and great- 
 ly to his siu-prise he discovered in him a son of the 
 long lost captive. The youth remained at the school 
 some time, frequentlj^ visiting his relatives in that 
 vicinity. After completing his studies, he returned 
 to his native country with a view of there preach- 
 ing the Gospel. 
 
 The first saw-mill was built in 1818 by John 
 Farnam, about one and one-fourth miles north 
 of the Center, on Furnace Run, near what is 
 now called " Lake John." A few ^^ears later, 
 it was moved lower down the creek. In subse- 
 quent 3'ears, there were no less than seven saw- 
 mills on Furnace Run at different times, and 
 two saw-mills and one grist-mill in the west 
 part of the township. But the first and most 
 primitive grist-mill was built by Enoch D. 
 Buck. It was made by hollowing out the top 
 of a white-oak stump, and using a pestle 
 worked by a spring-pole to crack or grind the 
 grain. 
 
 There are two villages in the township, one 
 at the Center and one (now the largest and 
 most flourishing) about three-fourths of a mile 
 west of the Center, and is called West Rich- 
 field. Between the two villages, and near 
 West Richfield, is a steam grist and saw mill, 
 that has been in successful operation for 
 twenty-three years, owned by A. C. Shepard. 
 The oldest frame building now standing is at 
 the center of Richfield (occupied b}^ S. R. 
 Oviatt), and was built by Gen. 0. M. Oviatt in 
 1820. He also built the store at the center of 
 Richfield in the same year. Two of the old 
 pioneers who assisted in building the store are 
 still living, viz., John Paj'ne and Lester Hall. 
 The following year, the frame houses of John 
 Farnam, John Newton, Salmon Oviatt and 
 Nathaniel Oviatt were erected. The two latter 
 
 ^^. 
 
:li 
 
 RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 613 
 
 were built by two young men who were car- 
 penters, and who came on foot from Guilford, 
 Conn., in 1820, with their knapsacks, and set- 
 tled for a short time in Brecksville ; their 
 names were Martin Chittenden and James W. 
 Weld. A few years later, they settled in Rich- 
 field, and, together with Deacon T. E. Ells- 
 worth, were for some years the building 
 mechanics of Richfield, and were among our 
 most worthy citizens. Deacon T. E. Ellsworth 
 still is living in West Richfield. Mr. Chitten- 
 den served a few years as Justice of the Peace, 
 and died in 1841. James W. Weld, about 
 1830, built and occupied the first frame hotel 
 (now called the Ellas House) at the center of 
 Richfield. It was the stopping-place for the 
 four-horse stage-coach on its route through 
 from Cleveland to Massillon. He was Justice 
 of the Peace for a number of years, and a 
 well-read lawyer, although he never practiced 
 at the bar. He was Treasurer of Medina 
 County two years, from 1840 to 1842. He 
 returned to Richfield, and was an active leader 
 in every moral and religious enterprise. He 
 died in March, 1863. 
 
 Among those who devoted considerable at- 
 tention to fine fruit, for which Richfield was 
 distinguished in an early day, may be men- 
 tioned the Weltons, Lernan Farnam, J. Humph- 
 rej' and Wadhams ; and, at a more recent date, 
 J. W. Weld. 
 
 William Wheatly and Robert Garget have 
 paid special attention to Durham cattle, and 
 are among the largest owners in the township. 
 In an early day, I. T. Welton did much to im- 
 prove the stock of this section. Richfield, 
 although a grazing and farming township, is 
 not without its mechanical industries. Three 
 or four blacksmith-shops, two harness-shops, 
 two carriage and wagon shops, two furniture- 
 shops, two drug stores, two dry goods stores, 
 two hotels, one grocery and meat-market, and 
 one barber-shop are among its business indus- 
 tries. 
 
 Richfield contains four churches, viz., Con- 
 gi'egational, Methodist Episcopal, Baptist and 
 United Brethren. The first church organiza- 
 tion was effected Ma}- 15, 1818, under the 
 name of the " Church of Christ," and is now 
 known as the " First Congregational Church of 
 Richfield." It was organized by two mission- 
 aries, viz., Rev. William Hanford and Rev. 
 John Seward, from Portage Coimt}', with the 
 
 following members : Elijah W^elton and Han- 
 nah, his wife ; Isaac Welton and Anna, his 
 wife ; Stephen Pixley, Newcomb Carter, Bird- 
 sey N. Oviatt, Augustus Adams (now living), 
 Mary Oviatt, wife of Salmon Oviatt, Sarah 
 Sturtevant, wife of Bradford Sturtevant, and 
 Lj'dia Carter. Newcomb Carter was the first 
 Clerk, and he and Isaac Welton the first 
 Church Committee. Meetings were occasionally 
 held under the auspices of Missionaries Sew- 
 ard and Hanford until November 2, 1820, when 
 Revs. J. Treat and Israel Shaler, as mission- 
 aries, oflSciated. Rev. Israel Shaler was duly 
 installed the first Pastor of the " Church of 
 Christ" April 24, 1821, and Stephen Pixley 
 elected the first Deacon August 30, 1822. The 
 church formerly united with the (jrand River 
 and Portage Presbytery February 18, 1824. 
 In April, 1837, it united with the Western 
 Reserve Congregational Association at Ober- 
 lin. April 1, 1833, the First Congregational 
 society, of which this church formed a part, 
 was " incorporated " and organized. It hired 
 the Rev. Horace Smith as its Pastor until 1849, 
 and again from April, 1854, to April, 1860. 
 Rev. S. C. Leonard occupied the pulpit from 
 1849 to April, 1854, and Rev. Reuben Hatch 
 from 1860 to 1863. From August, 1864, to 
 the present time. Rev. J. A. McKinstry lias 
 supplied the pulpit. The church building was 
 erected in 1832, and is still in good condition. 
 
 The first Methodist church building erected 
 was raised and inclosed in 1822, but not fin- 
 ished for many 3'ears, and was burned in 1852. 
 It was succeeded by the present beautiful 
 building, nearly west of Richfield, with a flour- 
 ishing societ}- worshiping therein. The Baptist 
 Church, built at West Richfield in 1838, is still 
 in good condition, and has sustained religious 
 services most of the time since its erection. 
 The Church of the United Brethren, in south- 
 east Richfield, is a large and flourishing church, 
 with a new building, recently erected, called 
 the " Centennial Church." 
 
 The old Richfield Academy- is worth}' of 
 mention. It was built in 1836, and was in 
 successful operation for about thirt}-five years ; 
 then, yielding to the modern free-school sj'S- 
 tem, it passed away with other relics of the 
 pioneer days. Under the administration of 
 Rev. Harvey Lyon, who was its Principal for 
 many years, it stood in the foremost rank of 
 the academical institutions of the West. From 
 
 © 
 
 W 
 
614 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 its spacious halls, where " studious lore was 
 conned,"' went forth many of our practical 
 business men. Teachers in vast numbers, 
 students for college, merchants, mechanics, 
 surveyors, etc., etc., here received their educa- 
 tion and the foundation for their liigher 
 honors. 
 
 Richfield was one of the foremost townships 
 in Summit Count}' in establishing a township 
 librar}'. Such an organization was made in 
 1825, under the supervision of Dr. Rawson. It 
 contained at one time several hundred volumes 
 of the best standard works to be obtained, and 
 was well sustained and patronized until re- 
 centh', when our common and high school 
 libraries have superseded it. 
 
 Among the historical incidents of Summit 
 Count}', and one which attaches to Richfield 
 Township, possessing more than a passing in- 
 terest to its citizens, is the great sleigh-ride of 
 1856. The following is the substance of this 
 memorable event, as taken from a recent news- 
 paper article : The winter, like the one just 
 past (1880-81), was one of unusal severity, with 
 much snow, which lay on the ground until far 
 into the spring. Upon a certain occasion dur- 
 ing the winter, a border township turned out 
 quite a number of four-horse sleighs, while one 
 of the number bore a rude banner made of cot- 
 ton, a yard square, upon \\4iich was painted a 
 negro boy with his thumb upon the end of his 
 nose, his hand spread out, and a scroll from his 
 mouth bearing the legendary words, " You can't 
 come it." This friendly challenge brought 
 other townships into competition, and the rude 
 banner passed as a prize, from one to another, 
 as it was captured by a larger number of four 
 or six-horse ("none other counted) sleighs than 
 had been turned out by the predecessor, until 
 it finally became the prize of Richfield Town- 
 ship. To such an extent had the affair gone 
 that it now became a county matter, and Cu}-- 
 ahoga and Medina Counties entered the contest. 
 A day was set— March 14, 1856 — when they 
 (one or the other) would wrest the prize from 
 Summit. The day came, and with it a large 
 concourse of people to witness the friendl}- bat- 
 tle. As Richfield held the prize, it was decreed 
 that the meeting should take place in this town- 
 ship, and the particular township turning out 
 the largest number of sleighs on the great trial 
 day should receive the flag, and in turn present 
 it to its respective county. When all had as- 
 
 sembled, the marshals proceeded to count the 
 sleighs from each county, when they were 
 found to be as follows : Medina County, 140 ; 
 Cu^'ahoga County, 151 ; and Summit County, 
 171 — a total numlxu" of 462 four and six-horse 
 sleighs in one grand and friendly rivalry for a 
 rude banner that cost originally just — six 
 cents. The procession was formed, and passed 
 on to Akron with the most perfect order and 
 decorum. Upon arrival, the flag was presented 
 to Hudson Township, as having the largest 
 number of teams, by James W. Weld, of Rich- 
 field, and received on behalf of Hudson by Dr. 
 C. R. Pierce, who presented it, in accordance 
 with a pre- arrangement, to the County of Sum- 
 mit. It was variously estimated b}- eye-wit- 
 nesses that not less than five or ten thousand 
 persons witnessed this grand slelgh-ride. Many 
 of the sleighs were handsomely decorated with 
 evergreens and profusely ornamented with 
 flags. All passed off in the utmost harmony, and 
 not an accident of any kind occurred during the 
 day. Akron received the baimer with great 
 dignity, which was to be preserved among the 
 valuable relics of the county until some rival 
 should come with a larger number of teams 
 than she had turned out on this occasion. The 
 glory of being the possessor of the prize was 
 short-lived. On the following Tuesda}-, Medina 
 County came over with 185 four and six-horse 
 sleighs, being fourteen more than Summit 
 County had turned out. The banner was 
 turned over to her and carried to Medina, where 
 it was de})osited among the archives of the 
 county, to be kept until captured by some other 
 rival. It still remains the prize of Medina 
 County. And thus ended the most remarkable 
 sleigh-ride on record. 
 
 For a period of nearly twenty 3'ears, Rich- 
 field was tiie central point for the union fair of 
 this and adjoining townships. The institution 
 is now abandoned, and the agricultural, horti- 
 cultural and mechanical interests of the town- 
 ship are more or less represented in the county 
 fair at Akron. 
 
 A lodge of Free and Accepted Masons was 
 instituted in Richfield September 5, A. L. 5823, 
 known as Meridian Sun Lodge, No. 69. The 
 charter members were Isaac Welton, Isaac M. 
 Morgan, Abraham Freese, John Smith, Adon- 
 iram Swift, Jonathan Sheldon, Salmon Oviatt, 
 David Green, David Jones and others. The 
 first Master of the lodge was Isaac Welton, who 
 
'i^ 
 
 RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 615 
 
 held the office until November, 1826, when 
 Solomon Curtis was elected Master, and served 
 as such until 1828. The lodge held its meet- 
 ings at the house of Orson M. Oviatt from 
 1823 to the close of the year 1828, when they 
 removed to the house of Ebenezer Palmer. 
 Willis Welton was elected Master in 1828, and 
 served as such until 1832, at which time the 
 lodge disbanded. In October, 1855, it was re- 
 organized as Meridian Sun Lodge, No. 266, in 
 Richfield, with the following charter members : 
 Hiram Bronson, L. F. Ward, James W. Ward, 
 Elihu Parmelee, Joshua Finch, Ebenezer 
 Palmer, John Churchill, Sr., Thomas E. Ells- 
 worth and Oliver Hart. The first Master was 
 Hiram Bronson. The lodge room is located 
 over the furniture store of Thomas E. Ells- 
 worth, in West Richfield. 
 
 The township of Richfield early took an act- 
 ive and prominent part in the war of the re- 
 bellion. When the news came that the rebels 
 had fired on Fort Sumter, the excitement was 
 intense, and in a few days the men, old and 
 young, were drilling. The first company' that 
 grew out of the excitement was composed of 
 all classes of citizens, and was commanded b}' 
 Norris Humphrey as Captain, and Martin Big- 
 elow, First Lieutenant. The company were 
 usually known as the " String Beans." We 
 met every Saturday afternoon for drill, and, 
 though no one knew ver}' well what was re- 
 quired in the way of military tactics, we made 
 up for all deficiencies by the ardor with which 
 we went to work. This organization finallj^ 
 died a natural death, and from its remains wei'e 
 formed the Richfield Grays, A. N. Goldwood, 
 Captain ; R. C. Ellsworth, First Lieutenant ; C. 
 W. Wood, Second Lieutenant. The members 
 of this company were of the very best material 
 (all young men), and was one of the most thor- 
 oughl}- drilled and efficient volunteer militar}^ 
 companies ever in Summit County, nearly all 
 of the members of which sooner or later drifted 
 into the army. Our township furnished 137 
 soldiers for the Union arm}' in the great war of 
 the rebellion. There are at the present forty 
 soldiers living in Richfield. Of this number, 
 twenty-five are of the original 137 ; the balance 
 are those that have come into the township 
 since the war. 
 
 About the 1st of October, 1862, tlic first and 
 only draft of men occurred. Of Richfield men, 
 thirt}' were taken, none of whom went into the 
 
 army at that time, but all furnished substi- 
 tutes. We lost in the war twenty-seven sol- 
 diers. Of this number five were killed ; the 
 rest died of disease contracted while in the 
 South. Six of our soldier friends carr}- hon- 
 orable scars, received from our misguided 
 brethren in the late unpleasantness. Thirteen 
 remember the genial hospitalities extended to 
 them b}' the Southern Brigadiers in the pleas- 
 ant picnic grounds of Libb}^, Andersonville, 
 Salisbur}' and other pleasant resorts of comfort, 
 happiness and plent}-, which were so freelj' ex- 
 tended to them by their rebel friends. The 
 larger part of our old comrades have emigrated 
 to the Western States, where the}' are now en- 
 gaged in the different pursuits of life. 
 
 Another of Richfield's claims to notoriet}- is 
 contained in the fact that the now famous ' Old 
 John Brown " was once a resident within its 
 borders. If he was not an •' Ohio man '' origi- 
 nally, he was certainly a citizen of Ohio for a 
 time. For a few years — how many is not re- 
 membered now — between 1840 and 1850, he 
 lived in Richfield Township. Says a corre- 
 spondent writing from Richfield : '■ A man 
 though somewhat visionary and unfortuate in 
 business aflfairs, yet honest, firm and unyield- 
 ing in his convictions of right, he challenged 
 the admiration of the world in his devotion to 
 human liberty and freedom." 
 
 To Dr. T. E. Ellsworth are we indebted for 
 a record of mortality for a portion of the time 
 in our past history. From 1839 to 1880, a 
 period of 41 years, there were 860 deaths : the 
 greatest number in one year was 31, the least 
 being in 1838, which was 4. In 1822, 17 chil- 
 dren died who were under seven years of age. 
 The population of our town the last 50 years 
 has been from 1,000 to 1,300, being in 1870, 
 1,019, and in 1880, 1,253 ; it is thought that in 
 1840 it was about 1,300. There have been 
 9 residents of our town who were pensioned 
 for services rendered in the war of 1812, of 
 whom Stephen Welton is the only survivor. 
 
 Many of our Western Reserve townships 
 have been, in the way of holding re-unions from 
 from year to year, for the purpose of getting 
 together present and past residents, renewing 
 old memories, etc., but Richfield was behind in 
 this respect till August 11, 1880. On that day, 
 such a gathering was witnessed in a grove 
 owned by Mr. John Kirby, as was never held 
 here before. It is safe to say that at some time 
 
 ;r^" 
 
616 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 during the day, every man, woman and child in 
 town, able to be around, visited the grounds. 
 The neighboring towns all sent huge delega- 
 tions, and many old residents were here from 
 hundreds of miles away. Gov. Axtell, Presi- 
 dent of the Re- union Association delivei'ed a 
 fine address of welcome, after which he read 
 the following " greeting," written by Dr. A. E. 
 Ewing, who was not able to be present, and 
 was therefore compelled to perform his part b}' 
 proxy. The greeting is as follows : 
 
 "Back to the mother that bore you ; back to the 
 land of your birth; 
 
 From field, from workshop and office, back from the 
 ends of the earth; 
 
 Back to the haunts of your childhood we welcome 
 you every one ; 
 
 Yet not as the patriarch hoary welcomed his prod- 
 igal son. 
 
 "We hall you with unalloyed pleasure, imtinged by 
 
 sorrow and tears; 
 But the patriarch's joys were darkened at thought 
 
 of the wasted years; 
 At thought of the wasted treasure the profligate 
 
 youth had strown 
 Among the wanton and vicious, while traveling 
 
 that broadway down. 
 
 "We gi-eet you with song and with laughter, from 
 hearts all aglow with delight; 
 
 But sigh as we must for the missing, who've per- 
 ished and gone from our sight; 
 
 May we meet them again in the future, when life 
 and its turmoils are o'er; 
 
 Or is their abode so distant that their presence will 
 glad us no more V 
 
 " Let us trust that they still are near us and join in 
 our joys to-day; 
 
 That none of us here are more blissful than those 
 who liave fallen by the way; 
 
 And hope, when our time comes to travel the shad- 
 owy road they have trod, 
 
 We may meet in a grander re-union by the bright- 
 shining rivers of God." 
 
 After this, speeches were called for and re- 
 sponses came from S. R. Oviatt, Sheriff Lane, 
 of Akron, Andrew Hale, of Bath, the first white 
 child born west of the Cuj'ahoga River ; George 
 Howlet, of Cleveland, and F. Wilcox — sons of 
 
 Richfield. Then followed Gen. Voris, of Akron, 
 Rev. M. McKinstry and the Hon. M. C. Hills, of 
 Medina, Dr. Pixley, of Peninsula, and possibly 
 others not now remembered. The music, both 
 vocal and instrumental, was highly appreciated, 
 and the dinner, which was abundant in quantity 
 and superb in qualit}', was enjoyed by the many 
 thousands in attendance. Toward the close 
 of the afternoon, a vote was taken, and with- 
 out a dissenting voice, all agreed to meet on 
 the same grounds one year from date. 
 
 The second man who settled in the township, 
 as already stated, was Henr}' Mallet. He 
 located in the southeast part, on land owned 
 afterward by Richard Sweet. Mallet had two 
 brothers, John and Daniel, who, as well as him- 
 self, were in favor of hard currency. They 
 accordingly erected a mint on a point of land 
 ever since known as "the money shop," just 
 over the line in Northampton, where they manu- 
 factured " the hard " currency to order. This 
 drew to the settlement a set of individuals that 
 did not add to its respectability, and the inhab- 
 itants, therefore, destroyed the shop with fire. 
 Notwitlistanding the destruction of his mint, 
 Mallet continued to tinker with the currency 
 until he was finally " taken into the employ of 
 the State," and died in Columbus. 
 
 In 1820, the people, being without a stated 
 preacher, met in town council to elect a person 
 " to lead in meeting " (presumably a sermon 
 reader). The candidates were Bradford Stur- 
 tevant and Elijah Ellsworth. On a full can- 
 vass, Ellsworth was declared duly elected ''to 
 hold his office during good behavior." As he 
 was somewhat addicted to swearing, he agreed 
 to abandon the practice so long as he held the 
 office. He fulfilled his engagement, and more 
 than answered the expectations of his friends. 
 In fact, he did his work so well that he was 
 afterward elected the first " train-band captain " 
 in town, and finally rose to the post of Colonel. 
 He lived in town till quite an old man, and 
 then moved to the south part of Bath, where 
 he died about twenty years ago. 
 
^{T-O 
 
 O-D 
 
® 4^ 
 
 liL 
 
 BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 617 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII.* 
 
 BATFf TOWNSHIP — DESCRll'TIVE — THE I'INERY — SQUATTKflS AND EARLY SETTLERS— PfONEER 
 
 HARDSHIPS— ERECTION OF MILLS— AGRIOULTURAL IMPROVEMENTS 
 
 — V I LLAGES — SCHOOLS — CH U RCH ES. 
 
 THE greater share of Bath Township is ex- 
 tremely rough and preciiDitous. Its central 
 and northern portions, though far from being 
 level, are not as rough and irregular as the bal- 
 ance of the township. The eastern third, and all 
 the land along the valley of Yellow Creek are cut, 
 divided and subdivided into innumerable bluffs 
 and hills of all shapes, sizes and altitudes. 
 Deep gorges wind around the bases of the bluffs, 
 and in some cases are fully 300 feet below the 
 summits of the conical knobs, which appear 
 almost mountainous, when viewed from below. 
 On account of the extreme roughness of Bath, 
 the land was not considered desirable ; so that, 
 in early j-ears, settlers passed on, and it was 
 only after the lapse of time, that large additions 
 were made to the original pioneers. The prin- 
 cipal and only stream of note is Yellow Creek. 
 In many respects, it probably has no equal in 
 the county. It is reported that, either from 
 actual measurement or careful estimation, this 
 stream, in flowing across the township (five 
 miles), has a fall of 400 feet. While the stream 
 does not afford any noticeable natural falls, 
 almost its entire course is characterized by a 
 succession of rapids, rendering the creation of 
 first-class water-power an undertaking at once 
 easy and permanent. Since the earliest settle- 
 ment, these facts have been well known, and 
 tliis will account for the large number of saw 
 and grist mills that have been located along the 
 stream. During the warmer months of dry 
 seasons, the water becomes almost or quite in- 
 sufficient for milling purposes ; but, in ordinary 
 years, and especially during the rainy months, 
 the creek is a rushing torrent, which sweeps 
 noisily down the valley over its bed of I'ocks. 
 One of the finest natural views in the county is 
 in this valley, in the eastern part of the town- 
 ship. At a place where the creek takes a sud- 
 den turn toward the north, a basin of two or 
 three acres is formed on the western side of the 
 
 * Cjiitiibuted by \V. A. Goodspeed. 
 
 creek bottom. Looking southward from the 
 northern part of this basin, the beholder sees 
 an attractive picture. The iDluffs, which extend 
 upward at an angle of forty-five degrees, form 
 a graceful curve, and are covered with a fine 
 forest of pine trees. These trees are found no- 
 where else along the creek, and form a beauti- 
 ful contrast with the neighboring oaks and 
 maples, which greets the eye of the spectator 
 with pleasure. The}- are the white pine {Fiiius 
 strobiis), and extend along the creek, mostly on 
 the south side, for a distance of about eighty 
 rods. The larger ones have been cut down and 
 sawed into lumber, several of which measured 
 almost four feet in diameter, though at present 
 they are largely' of a smaller growth. Numer- 
 ous springs of pure water are found in various 
 parts of the township. A small stream, in the 
 northeast part, drains that portion of the town- 
 ship, and flows directl}' into the Cuyahoga. 
 Another interesting creek rises near the north- 
 west corner, and takes a southeasterly course, 
 flowing into Yellow Creek at Ghent. On the 
 northwest corner of Lot 37 is quite a large 
 pond, drained by the last-named creek, which, 
 so far as the writer knows, is nameless. 
 
 Yellow Creek flows across Lots 80, 79, 78, 83, 
 77, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69 and 70. Its bed is 
 stony, and the stream, through an unknown 
 period of 3'ears, has cut its way deeply into the 
 soil. This is rendered apparent by the steep, 
 high bluffs, bordering the creek and the rapid 
 flow of the water. The surface soil is largely 
 clay, mingled in many places with pebbles, ren- 
 dering tillage unpleasant and difficult. In ba- 
 sin-like portions of the township, the soil con- 
 tains considerable decaying vegetation, and 
 these portions are valued highly by the agri- 
 culturist. An abundance of excellent sand- 
 stone is easily obtained. The eastern half of 
 the township is rich in mineral and fossiliferous 
 remains. There is, unquestionably, a large per- 
 centage of iron oxides, or perhaps bog iron ore. 
 
 ) i«y 
 
4v 
 
 618 
 
 HISTORY OF SITMMIT COUNTY 
 
 in the soil, as is proved by the character of the 
 water and the peculiar coloring of earth when 
 newl}' turned up. The most of the water is 
 strongl}^ ferriferous, and even the streams de- 
 posit along the banks a reddish precipitate, or, 
 perhaps, this peculiar coloring is produced by 
 the action of the iron held in solution in the 
 water, upon the clay along the banks. At an}- 
 rate, the soil along the banks is discolored, and 
 iron is the agent. Col. Riall McArthur, who 
 originally survej'ed the township, made the fol- 
 lowing entry in his note-book : " The attraction 
 of the needle on these lines (in the eastern part 
 of Bath), is on account of the vast quantity of 
 iron ore that lies in the earth, under where the 
 lines pass or near them. There is all the ap- 
 pearance of ore in the rivulets. Small pieces 
 lifted and held toward the needle had particular 
 influence on it, and by passing through the deep 
 hollows has had particular influence on the 
 lines." Upon examination the stones, even on 
 the surface, are found to contain a large per- 
 centage of iron, and the swampy portions of 
 the township are usually underlain with a 
 thick bed of bog-iron ore. Swampy tracts of 
 land that have been drained are found to 
 contain this ore. It is utterly improbable, 
 however, that smelting works and iron manu- 
 factories will ever be erected in Bath. The 
 iron ore is much too scanty and impure to ever 
 be profitabl}' mined, although it is possible 
 that future years may reach some vein of the 
 requisite richness. Tn portions of the eastern 
 part, there are also found large quantities of 
 fossiliferous limestone. So far as the writer 
 knows, this has not been classed, by those who 
 have examined it. with an}' known group of 
 rocks. On the contrary, the formation seems 
 to have been placed there by local causes, the 
 nature of which is difficult to deterniine. The 
 rock seems to be made up almost wholly of the 
 casts of animals that must have existed under 
 the surface of water. A more detailed descrip- 
 tion of this I'ock will l^e found in the chapter 
 on geology. The rock is covered with man}' 
 feet of earth. It has been used for making 
 lime, and is excellent for that purpose. It 
 would pay the owners of the land where it is 
 found to burn it and ship the lime by rail to 
 distant points. Large quantities of coral of 
 the honeycomb and sponge varieties are also 
 found, not only on the surface but far under 
 the soil. 
 
 Bath Township was not owned by the Grov- 
 ernment until after the treaty of Fort In- 
 dustry in 1805. If any persons other than the 
 Indians, and, perhaps, French, lived upon the 
 soil, they were squatters, and only held a 
 " squatter sovereignty " in the land. The 
 township is No. 3 in Range 12, and was 
 originally called Wheatfleld, and is so named 
 in the field-book of Rial McArthur and R. 
 Warden, who surveyed the township into lots 
 in 1808. The name is said to have been given 
 by these men from the fact that the soil looked 
 as though it would raise excellent wheat. How 
 long the name was used is not definitely 
 known, but it went out of use in two or three 
 years, and then the township became popu- 
 larly known as Hammondsburg, named thus 
 for one of the earliest and most prominent 
 settlei's. Letters from Connecticut with this 
 address were received. They also came direct- 
 ed to Township 3. Range 12, Western Reserve, 
 Ohio. In fact, this was the ordinary way of 
 addressing letters that, were sent to this section 
 of country. 
 
 Bath was not settled as early as some of the 
 neighboring townships, at least by those who 
 owned the soil. When the squatters first 
 entered cannot be known with any degree of 
 certainty. It may be that wandering hunters 
 built their rude cabins immediately after the 
 treatv at Fort Industry. At least, it is well 
 known that when the first permanent settlers, 
 who were owners of the land, appeared in 
 1810, there were then living in the township 
 some six or eight squatters, several of whom 
 had made no little improvement. It was not 
 customary, however, for squatters to bother 
 themselves much about the clearing of the 
 land or other improvements. All they wanted 
 was a small garden, wherein their half-clothed, 
 half-starved wives and children could raise a 
 few potatoes and other vegetables. Many of 
 these squatters lived in the rudest and most 
 primitive fashion. They apparently copied the 
 customs of the Indians, and many of them 
 existed in about the same miserable plight. 
 The Indians got so they built small bark shan- 
 ties, but little better than deer-skin wigwams, 
 and many of the squatters erected and inhab- 
 ited the same kind of dwellings. The meat 
 was largely venison, but this was extremely 
 dry, so that the earliest settlers, when they 
 could procure a piece of fat pork, thought they 
 
 ■71 
 
BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 619 
 
 had secured a luxuiy indeed. Wild turkej-s 
 were abundant, and were so fat, it is said, that 
 sometimes when the}' fell to the eartli after 
 being shot from the top of high trees, the skin 
 upon their backs burst open like a ripe pod. 
 Wolves were very troublesome, and gave the 
 settlers any amount of annoyance if sheep and 
 other domestic animals were to be protected. 
 Sheep brought into the backwoods had a sorry 
 time of it, and usually died either under the 
 sharp fangs of wolves or bears, or on account 
 of the peculiarities of the food upon which 
 they were necessarily compelled to subsist. 
 Even cattle and horses suffered greatly on the 
 latter account. The poor oxen were annoyed 
 by swarms of flies and gnats that thirsted for 
 their blood. It is even asserted that oxen were 
 killed by these flies, so great was the annoy- 
 ance. Bears seemed to relish pork better than 
 any other kind of meat, and woe unto the 
 porker that fell into their hands (or rather 
 claws). A bear would attack a hog in the 
 woods, would mount upon its back, burj-ing 
 the sharp teeth in the neck, and tearing the 
 sides of the fated swine with its powerful 
 claws. Piercing squeals would re-echo through 
 the forest, sometimes reaching the ears of the 
 owner, who would seize his rifle and rush to 
 the rescue, and then it often fared hard with 
 Mr. Bruin. Sometimes the owner would be 
 glad to give up the swine and call the account 
 square ; but, in a case of this kind, the}' 
 always changed their minds soon afterward, 
 and vowed future vengeance upon all members 
 of the genus Ursus. The bears were usually 
 so well satisfied with the terms of settlement 
 that they afterward undertook to obtain a re- 
 newal of the account, that a similar settlement 
 might be enjoj-ed. Sometimes they succeeded ; 
 sometimes they died. 
 
 Prior to 1810, there lived in the township 
 the following squatters : Aaron Miller, Gib- 
 son Gates, Hezekiah Burdit, Aaron and Moses 
 Decker and Moses Latta. When these men 
 first entered the township has not been ascer- 
 tained, and probably never will be. Two or 
 more of them, at least, came in during the 
 spring of 1810, but the date of the arrival of 
 the others is missing. These men had erected 
 rude shanties in different parts of the township, 
 and were busily engaged in hunting and. possi- 
 bly, trapping, and some of them had begun to 
 make improvements. The township was owned 
 
 by several proprietors in Connecticut, among 
 whom were Ezekiel Williams and Thomas Bull, 
 of Hartford. In the Bull tract, Jason Ham- 
 mond had first choice, and Jonathan Hale .sec- 
 ond. Moses Latta had squatted near Ellis' 
 Corners, and Aaron Miller had performed the 
 same act on Lot 11. Mr. Hammond's lots were 
 26, 27, 28, 20 and 30. Jonathan Hale's were 
 11, 12. 13 and part of 14. The other squatters 
 named above located mostly in the southeast- 
 ern part. Abel Vallen also located in that por- 
 tion, though whether as a squatter or an owner 
 is not stated. A few jears later, this man was 
 living on the Cuyahoga, in Northampton, where 
 he opened adistiller}-. These and a few others 
 were the first settlers, and for a number of 
 years they were alone in the toAvnship. West 
 of them was an unsettled wilderness of indefi- 
 nite extent, while east of them various settle- 
 ments had been made, some of them ten years 
 previous. William Cogswell, one of the most 
 expert hunters ever in this part of the county, 
 lived in the township for a number of years, 
 and there is scarceh' a hill or vale that has not 
 echoed with the sharp report of his rifle. He 
 became celebrated as a bear hunter, and subse- 
 quent generations have listened with interest to 
 his recital of daring acts, that, beyond doubt, 
 actually transpired. On one occasion, he 
 started, late in the evening, from Granger to go 
 to the cabin of Aaron JMiller. in northeastern 
 Bath. Night came on, and Cogswell, not wish- 
 ing to proceed zx\y farther at that time, pre- 
 pared a couch of branches, and, stripping the 
 bark from a large tree, covered himself with it 
 and laj' down to sleep. At daylight he awoke, 
 and, throwing oft' his coverlet, arose to his feet, 
 when he found that, during the night, about 
 three inches of snow had fallen, cohering him 
 completely, and rendering his situation warm 
 and comfortable. He started on toward the 
 cabin of Miller, where he soon arrived with an 
 excellent appetite for breakfast. 3Irs. 3Iil]er 
 furnished him with a quantity of cold boiled 
 hominy, which he devoured with relish and sat- 
 isfaction, apparently thinking his breakfast fit 
 for a king. Indeed, it was no uncommon oc- 
 currence for settlers to live for weeks upon a 
 single article of food. Sometimes venison was 
 all the cabin could furnish ; at otlier times, 
 especially in the dwellings of those settlers who 
 were inferior hunters, meat would be lacking 
 for man}' days. Hunters fared better as re- 
 
 :rz 
 
::s: 
 
 620 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 gards meat, while those who devoted more at- 
 tention to gardening enjoyed eating the greater 
 number of vegetables. 
 
 The settlement and improvement of Bath 
 were at first slow. The war of 1812 no doubt 
 had something to do with this state of things. 
 A few came in during the war. but no extensive 
 improvements were made until a short time 
 prior to 1820. As near as can be remembered, 
 the following arrivals, at about the dates men- 
 tioned, took place : Old man Jourdan and his 
 sons James, Moses. Joseph and John, 1813 ; 
 old man Dunbar and his sons Lewis, Thomas 
 and two or three others, 1814 ; Isaac Hopkins, 
 1813 ; Salmon Skinner and Eleazur Rice. 1816 ; 
 Hopkin Nash, 1817 ; Theodore and Calvin 
 Hammond. 1814; Phineas Nash, 1819; and 
 besides these, there came in during the same 
 years, or perhaps later, the following well- 
 known men : George W. Story, the first black- 
 smith in the township. William Jones, Junius 
 Darrow. Lemuel Hoadle}', James Hoot, Nathan 
 Green, David Willey, Elijah Jacox, Joseph and 
 Samuel Hawkins, Benjamin Bishop, James P. 
 Baldwin. Mr. Heater. Mr. Boughton, Mr. Brad- 
 ford, Mr. Seakons, Mr. Frost. John McFarland, 
 William Williamson, Orville and William Mc- 
 Farland, Deacon Crosby, Simeon Crosby, John 
 Kent, Manville Thorp, E. W. Simmons! Noble 
 Simmons, Asa Jackson, Mr. Collins, Mr. Hatch, 
 George Phillips, a large family of Shaws, the 
 father's name being Constant, and some of his 
 sons, Sylvester, Samuel and Phillip, Mr. Doolittle, 
 Levi Bissell. Asa Hurd, Adam Vance, Seymour 
 Ganyard, Benjamin Damon. Dr. Henry Hutson, 
 two or three Whitcrafts. some of whom be- 
 came prominent in the township, Henry Van- 
 sickle, Mr. Fowler, Lyman Nash. John Duryea, 
 William Davis ; after 1830, Deacon Smith. Abin 
 Sage, Mr. Lloyd, and many others whose names 
 have passed out of recollection. It may be 
 said that the greater number of these men were 
 Connecticut Yankees, and almost all came di- 
 rectly from that State to the Western Reserve. 
 Several came from the settlements a few miles 
 east, and undoubtedl}' a great manj' came in 
 who afterward became dissatisfied and removed 
 farther west, or went back to the East. The 
 The settlers were usually industrious, and it 
 was not long before cabins could be seen in 
 great numbers over the township, and the busy 
 hum of human life took the place of the wolf's 
 dismal howl and the Indian's wild whoop. In 
 
 every direction forests could be seen going 
 down, that were afterward burned in great con- 
 flagrations, that rivaled the sweeping prairie 
 fires of the West. Small fields of corn and 
 wheat waved their green plumage in the sum- 
 mer air ; deer bounded past within easy rifle 
 shot ; the peculiar howl of wolves could be 
 heard ; the ring and echo of ax and rifle awoke 
 the sleeping voices of the hills ; snakes, irmum- 
 erable and venomous, wound their slow length 
 along, and a multitude of circumstances, un- 
 known to the present generation, presented 
 themselves. And 3'et the early settlers were 
 happy, or thought themselves so, which is much 
 the same. They made enjo^^ment from their 
 surroundings. But the cultivation of the high- 
 er qualities of mind and heart were omitted 
 from the forest curriculum, and it may be 
 wisely doubted whether the early settlers en- 
 joyed themselves so well after all. 
 
 The township was organized in 1818, and, 
 when that is said, about all the tale is unfolded. 
 Where the first election was held, who were the 
 first officers, what action was taken on that in- 
 teresting occasion, and many other important 
 things, have been locked forever in the jeweled 
 casket of the Muse of history. Some other 
 historian will be allowed the privilege of prowl- 
 ing through the township to quicken into life 
 the dying embers of the fires of recollection. 
 Until then, many events will remain in the 
 gloom of forgetfulness. Success to the patient 
 worker ! As was before remarked, the town- 
 ship was first called Wheatfield, and then Ham- 
 mondsburg. At the time of the organization 
 of the township, the settlers were called upon 
 to select a name by which said township should 
 be known in the future. Various names were 
 suggested, but none seemed to give satisfaction. 
 A few insisted on its being called Hammonds- 
 burg, whereupon Jonathan Hall called out, 
 " Oh, call it Jerusalem, or Jericho, or Bath— 
 anything but Haramondsburg.'' Bath was im- 
 mediately selected and bestowed upon the town- 
 ship. Dr. Henry Hutson (or Hudson) was 
 the first Justice of the Peace, if the writer is 
 correctly informed, while Eleazer Ilice was the 
 first Constable. Rice was a small man, and 
 was not verjf well liked. One Sunday, Lewis 
 Hammond and Isaiah Fowler, in sport, tipped 
 over Rice's sled, and lo ! it was broken. Rice 
 entered complaint before Squire Hutson. for a 
 violation of the Sabbath, and as he was the 
 
BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 621 
 
 only Constable, the warrant was placed in his 
 hands for service. The two men went willingly 
 before the Squire to answer to the charge ; but, 
 just as they got there, instigated by a little of 
 the spirit that Jesus once cast out of a Syro- 
 Phenician woman's daughter, they both started 
 and ran in opposite directions. The Constable 
 was in a dilemma. He linally started in pur- 
 suit, unfortunately, of the larger man. How 
 the " trial" terminated, the writer has not been 
 informed. This was the first " case " in the 
 township. Abner Robinson, the poet, men- 
 tioned elsewhere in this work, lived in Bath for 
 a time. He had a peculiar manner of speaking, 
 which Gen. Bierce characterizes as "crawfish." 
 Robinson one day said of Jacob Morter : ■ Jake 
 says. ' Abner, come and look at my pigs.' I 
 went, and they were fine ones. Jake says, ' The 
 youngest is the oldest — no — I mean the biggest 
 is the littlest — no-o — I talk like a d — d fool ! 
 Any liow, they. look so much apart you can't 
 tell 'em alike.' " A petition for a road leading 
 from Boston to Old Portage, was presented in 
 1811, to the Commissioners at Ravenna. This 
 was the first authorized road that touched Bath. 
 Perhaps the next was the one on the southern 
 line of the township, called the Smith road. This 
 was well traveled in early years, and numerous 
 taverns for the accommodation of travelers were 
 erected, one or two of them in Bath. Moses 
 Latta opened his house for a public tavern as 
 early as 1818. He took in a great many shil- 
 lings from travelers, and made considerable 
 money. 
 
 By 1820, the township was quite well popu- 
 lated. Improvements were pushed rapidh^, 
 and industries began to arise as the demand 
 for various articles nearer home was created. 
 In 1818, Maj. Hoadle}' built a saw-mill at 
 Ghent. Excellent water-power was obtained, 
 and the enterprise promised success. The fol- 
 lowing year the mill was purchased by James 
 Root, but was sold again in two or three years 
 to James Myers. The mill was located so far 
 from the dam, that, on account of the great 
 fall of the stream, the lower part of the race 
 was a wooden trough, resting on posts. The 
 wheel was overshot. A few years later, Mr. 
 Root built a new saw-mill about a quarter of 
 of a mile west of Ghent. This, in after years, 
 proved a valuable mill. David Parker built 
 one about the same time, locating it down Yel- 
 low Creek, not far from the eastern boundary 
 
 of the township. An enormous dam, built on 
 the " beaver principle," was constructed ; but 
 some time afterward this was washed awa}- b}' 
 a sudden freshet. James Root built a distillery 
 at an early day. It was at the height of its 
 prosperity when the great temperance revival 
 swept over the county. Some of the citizens 
 asked him to stop his distillery, whereupon he 
 turned suddenly upon them with the pointed 
 question, • Stop ! what am I to live on ? cow- 
 slips ? T can't stop the distillery." And he 
 did not stop, but whisky flowed from it at 
 the rate of about two barrels per day. Much 
 of this was shipped oft', and sold at the rate of 
 from 12 to 18 cents per gallon. James P. 
 Baldwin did more in early 3'ears to improve the 
 township than any other man. He built many 
 mills, both for sawing lumber and grinding 
 grain, and filled every enterprise that he touched 
 with life. James Root built several mills, and 
 was quite a wealth}' man, but he did not put the 
 energy into his undertakings that was necessary 
 to make them highly successful and useful. 
 He is said to have remarked in later years, 
 "I have ruined the township; " meaning thereby 
 that most of his enterprises had been of no 
 use to the township. Yet this is not doing Mr. 
 Root credit. It is certain that his improve- 
 ments drew intelligent and enterprising citizens 
 to the township. Many mills were built in 
 early years, and very likely errors will occur in 
 attempting their description. In about 1826, 
 J. P. Baldwin built the Miller grist-mill. It 
 was a frame building, three stories in height, 
 about thirty-five b}- seventy feet, and in it were 
 placed four sets of stone. It was one of the 
 best mills ever in the township. In addition 
 to custom grinding, it did a large amount of 
 merchant work, sending, during its best years, 
 about three hundred and fifty liarrels of flour 
 each day to Cleveland, by canal. After a num- 
 ber of yeai's, the mill was purchased by Henry 
 Harris ; but a few years later it was destroyed 
 by fire. The present one was built on the same 
 site in about 1846. It is a large frame build- 
 ing, and has done good work. It is at present 
 owned by W. C R. Miller. Baldwin also built 
 a saw-mill the same time his grist-mill was 
 built. It was coimected by shafting, or other- 
 wise, with the machinery of the grist-mill. 
 This was also destroyed by fire. In 1859, 
 Henry Harris, Jr., built a saw-mill on the same 
 site. This is 3'et in operation. Baldwin built 
 
^1 
 
 633 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 another saw-mill a sliort distaiujc down the 
 creek from this mill. It did good work for a 
 few years. Jason Hammond and his sons 
 built a saw-mill, as early as 1820, on a branch 
 of Yellow Creek, west of the center. The dam 
 was so situated that thirty or forty acres of 
 woodland was flooded with water. The trees 
 man}" of them, fell down and began to decaj', 
 and soon this dam was regarded as a breeder 
 of malaria and pestilence. At last proceedings 
 were begun in law to abate the whole thing as 
 a nuisance. The proceedings were successful, 
 and the water was let oft, much to the relief of 
 families living in the neighborhood. A Mr. Beach 
 built a saw-mill near where William Barker 
 lives, in about the year 1838. It was operated 
 some eight or ten years, and then was aban- 
 doned. William Barker bnilt one near the 
 same place, in 1859. This mill has furnished 
 considerable material, which has been shipped 
 awa}', among which are railroad ties, three-inch 
 plank and flitch. A year or two ago. the dam 
 was washed away, and the mill is not running 
 at present. Just after the last war, Hemming- 
 way. Hopkins & Burris and William Barker 
 erected a hub, spoke and felloe factory within 
 a lew rods of INIr. Barker's dwelling. The com- 
 pany and Mr. Barker each owned a half inter- 
 est in the business. A planing-mill was con- 
 nected with the factor}-, and for a number of 
 3^ears a good business was done, but the 
 destruction of the dam caused it to stop. Will- 
 iam Jones conducted a distillery for a number 
 of years. tt was located back on his farm 
 some distance from the road. It is said that 
 the bears, on several successive nights, had 
 carried oft' his hogs, and he determined to 
 watch. He summoned a few convivial spirits, 
 and with those already at the distillery, had a 
 loud time of it during the night. No bears 
 were seen. The Ghent Champion Mill was 
 built by James Root at an early day. It was 
 operated b}' him until 1853, when Alanson 
 Barker assumed control, but a year later Will- 
 iam Barker became owner, and remained so 
 until 1871, when the mill went to Edward 
 Heller, who now owns it. The mill has done a 
 great deal of good work ; not only custom, but 
 merchant. Mr. Root also built and operated a 
 saw-mill, near the grist-mill, at an early day. i 
 Peter and John Marshall erected a woolen | 
 factory about a quarter of a mile east of the j 
 Harris grist-mill. It was probably built in 
 
 about 1840. A limited quantity of light cloth 
 was manufactured, but in about ten or twelve 
 years the Marshalls retired from the pursuit, 
 and the building was transformed into a lath 
 factory. The grist-mill west of Ghent was 
 erected earl}', antl has been one of the best in 
 the township. It has changed owners various 
 times, and has done considerable merchant 
 work. Several other mills have been built and 
 operated along Yellow Creek and its branche.« ; 
 and it may be said that on no other stream in 
 the county, of the same size, has thei'e been so 
 many mills and so good ones. Dams are easily 
 built from the stone and timber along the creek, 
 and owing to the narrow bed of the stream and 
 the narrow valley, short dams, strongly built, 
 furnish splendid water-power. We will now 
 leave the imperfectly treated subject of mills 
 and notice the growth of villages. 
 
 Unlike other townships, Bath's Center never 
 grew to the dignity of a village. A small shoe- 
 shop, opened there at quite at an early day, 
 was about the only attempt toward village- 
 making. Shoes were taken to this shop for re- 
 pairs, but probably before this was opened, the 
 following circumstance occurred : One day, 
 Alonzo Coffin, his little sister and another girl 
 of about her age, none of whom were older than 
 ten years, were sent to Brandywine to have 
 their shoes mended. The families lived near 
 there at that time. The shoes were mended, 
 but by this time darkness had thrown her sa- 
 ble curtain over the earth. Just as the chil- 
 dren were about to start for home, the wolves 
 were heard howling dismally in the woods, 
 through which they must pass, and Mr. Mc- 
 Clellan, the cobbler, declared he would not go 
 through the woods at that time for anything, 
 and told the children they had better sta}' 
 all night. But Alonzo said he was not afraid, 
 and told Mr. McClelian to " get me a torch, and 
 I'll go." A large torch of hickory bark was 
 procured and lighted, and the three little chil- 
 dren started out through the darkness for 
 home. They had no sooner reached the woods 
 than the wolves surrounded them with angry 
 howls, but kept at a respectful distance on ac- 
 count of the fire. The children hurried on, 
 keeping close together, and the wolves con- 
 tinued to follow them until they were within a 
 few rods of home, when the savage animals, 
 disappointed at not getting the expected feast, 
 ran off through the dark forest. It was custo- 
 
 •el 
 
 f 
 
 — ^ 
 
BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 623 
 
 mar}^ in early years, for cobblers to travel 
 around from house to house to pl}^ their craft, 
 often furnishing everything and making shoes 
 for the whole family. Three villages proper 
 have arisen in Bath — Hammond's Corners, 
 Ghent and Ellis' Corners. The Hammonds 
 were probabl}' the first residents at the former. 
 It is thought that Royal and Horatio Ham- 
 mond brought the first stock of goods to the 
 village, but the date is indefinite. If there at 
 all, they probably opened up before 1830. John 
 Rhodes was there with a small stock soon after 
 1833. Reison Randolph sold goods there for 
 many years. Joseph Whitcnift is there at 
 present, and has been doing a good country 
 store trade for quite a number of years. Him- 
 self and store are highly spoken of A few 
 others have sold goods in the village. Among 
 other industries may be mentioned the wagon- 
 works of Clem Jagger. This man has followed 
 the occupation for many years. A post office 
 was secured at the Corners in about 1838. 
 Prior to that date, the office had been at the 
 Center, whei*e Phineas Nash, Theodore King, 
 and probably Lewis F. Lane and others, had 
 served as Postmaster. Various parties have 
 held the office at the Corners, the present one 
 being Mr. Whitcraft. Dr. Hutson, who came 
 to the township in about 1819, was the first 
 practicing physician in the township. His res- 
 idence and office were a short distance north of 
 the Center. He was a kind old man, and would 
 preach to the settlers in their dwellings, or in 
 the schoolhouses. Some time after 1833, Dr. 
 H. A. Robinson came to the township, and for 
 man}' years he prescribed for the temporal dis- 
 orders of the citizens. He was quite skillful 
 with ague and the typhus fevers, and secured a 
 lucrative practice. Ghent has had a different 
 experience and a different growth. In 1818, 
 there were three or four families living at what 
 is now Ghent. Mr. Boughton opened a small 
 store about the same time, placing his goods 
 in* a small, rough, frame building that is 
 3'et standing, though altei'ed and remodeled, on 
 the east side of the Center road, near the 
 bridge. This man had considerable money, 
 which was invested in young cattle. The ani- 
 mals were herded in the woods and along the 
 open spaces near the streams. The foi'ests fur- 
 nished abundant food for the cattle. The rich 
 browse was abundant, and was eaten in large 
 quantities with excellent results, as the ani- 
 
 mals gained rapidly in weight, until at last 
 they were driven to the Eastern markets. Oth- 
 ers engaged successfully in the same pursuit, 
 Mr. Boughton did not continue his store but for 
 about four years. As near as can be ascer- 
 tained, the village, after he left, was without a 
 store for a number of years. Moses McFarland 
 was in with a stock of goods in 1844, and had 
 probably begun as early as 1840. Mr. Leggitt 
 was connected with him in business, and, in 
 about 1848, bought McFarlands interest in the 
 stock and store. A few years later, he sold to 
 Francis Husong, who probably had about $1,500 
 worth of goods. Finney & Fairchild succeeded 
 Husong, but closed their store after a few 
 years. Thomas Pierson sold groceries about 
 thirty-five years ago. Henry Pardee opened a 
 store during the last war. This he conducted 
 until 1881, when he sold out to James Green- 
 leese, the present storekeeper. Mr. Pardee 
 kept a good store, and has been an energetic 
 and respected citizen. The oldest woolen fac- 
 tory in the State is located in the village. It 
 was first started in 1832, by x\lleu & Bloom, 
 but, three years later, was sold to Alpheus Bab- 
 cock, and soon after this to Spafford Brothers. 
 These men failed in business, and the property 
 fell into the ownership of Johnson & Fuller. 
 In 1801, the factoi'y was purchased by its pres- 
 ent owner, Alonzo Coffin, who has conducted 
 it, with the exception of five years, ever since. 
 As high as 10,000 pounds of wool have been 
 bought in one year. Yarns, flannels, satinets, 
 fulled-cloth, cassimeres and other kinds of 
 cloth, have been manufactured. Five or six 
 years ago, Mr. Coffin removed to Akron, and 
 the factory was idle. It is now in operation 
 again. Soon after 1850, Thomas Pierson be- 
 gan making barrels, buckets, kegs, etc., and do- 
 ing a general cooper- wook, which he continued 
 some twelve or fifteen years. James Myers 
 conducted a small grist-mill (or ' pepper-mill," 
 as it was significantl}- called) in the village, in 
 about 1828. Whether he built the mill is not 
 stated. It was finally destroyed by fire. Mc- 
 Farland & Leggitt were conducting an ashery 
 at Ghent in 1858. Archibald Hubbard owned 
 and conducted it before them. How early he 
 began is not remembered. James Root is said 
 to have built the first house in Ghent. This 
 was the Boughton store-building. In 1846, 
 there were about twelve families living in the 
 village. It may be stated that Mr. Pardee was 
 
 f 
 
 N* 
 
t 
 
 624 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 connected with the woolen factory for a few 
 years, perhaps about 1858. He is now en- 
 gaged in manufacturing water-proof goods, ac- 
 cording to some new and valuable recipe. 
 Thomas Pierson was very likely the first Post- 
 master at this point. Mr. Pardee assumed 
 control of the office about the time Mr. Lin- 
 coln went into the White House. The mantle 
 of Government position looked well on Mr. 
 Pardee. However, he did not become afflicted 
 with aristocracy on that account, nor did he 
 believe himself a prospective candidate for said 
 White House, because he had been honored(?) 
 with an humble position under Uncle Sam. 
 James Root is thought to have laid out the 
 original surve}' of lots at Ghent. The date is 
 indefinite. Some say that James Myers named 
 the village, but wh}' the particular name Ghent 
 was selected is not known. Dr. Cooley lived 
 and practiced in the township before 1820. Dr. 
 Darling and Dr. Chaffee were in the township 
 at an early day. 
 
 Mr. Latta's tavern was the center around 
 which the citizens of Latta's Corners congre- 
 gated in early years. This man probably erected 
 the first building in the village. Other tavern- 
 keepers were Mr. Ellis, Parvin Delong, Milo Ful- 
 ler, Moses McFarland, James Moore, Carter 
 Smith, and others. Orrin Walker was selling 
 goods in about 1835. After him were Frank 
 Smith, Mr. Doolittle, Archibald Hubbard, Fred 
 Nash, N. D. Hanson, A. R. Damon and Albert 
 Beach. All these, except Walker, were east of the 
 hotel, and some of them kept excellent stores. 
 Morris Lyon is the present merchant. The 
 village was at first Latta's Corners, but when 
 Mr. Ellis became the central figure it graduall}' 
 assumed the name, Ellis' Corners. Dr. Humphre}' 
 Robinson located at the village not far from 
 1830. He continued to practice until his death, 
 about thirty years ago. He was succeeded by 
 Dr. Robert McNeil, who also died a short time 
 before the last war. Dr. Sales was the resident 
 physician just before the war, as was also Dr. 
 Merriman. Dr. E. King Nash located perma- 
 nentl}' in the village, and began to pi'actice 
 his profession in 1865. He served the coun- 
 try during the war in 
 sistant Surgeon of the 
 Fortieth Regiment, but 
 war came out as Surgeon, 
 practiced in the village after 
 
 the capacit}' of As- 
 One Hundred and 
 at the close of the 
 Dr. Merriman 
 the war, and 
 
 until four years ago. Among the indus- 
 
 tries that have been conducted was an ashery 
 at an early da}^ by Mr. Ellis. Also a wagon- 
 shop b3' Burris & Son. This, in outline, has 
 been the growth and decay of business indus- 
 tries. A post office was secured at an early 
 day, and letters came directed to Montrose. 
 
 Schools are the oflTspring of civilization. 
 They are unknown among barbarous people, 
 and are found numerous and perfect in the 
 degree of the removal from the savage state. 
 The ignorant, those who willfuUj^ and persist- 
 ently remain unlettered, triumphantly quote, or 
 rather misquote, " Ignorance is bliss ; 'tis folly 
 to be wise."' The}' assert that extended educa- 
 tion only opens the eyes and heart to disap- 
 pointments and defeats, and that nothing but 
 absolute ignorance of the great majority of 
 surrounding circumstances can give satisfaction 
 and the resulting happiness. That mode of 
 conduct, carried into effect by actual experi- 
 ment, would reduce man to the savage state, 
 and lead to the utter extinction of the race. 
 Knowledge does not end with a revelation of 
 cares and defeats. It reveals countless paths 
 of happiness to be traversed, and points to the 
 cultured a ready means to avoid those spots on 
 the journe}' of life, over which the dark clouds 
 of sorrow and sin pass. Knowledge is the 
 shield that wards off the strokes of unpropi- 
 tious surroundings. At the same time it pro- 
 tects the shrinking form of humanit}' from the 
 bitter blasts of adversity. It amplifies the 
 vision of the intellect, widens the moral and 
 social capabilities, and elevates the enchanted 
 observer to mountainous heights, from which 
 countless glittering domes of beauty and excel- 
 lence are seen. It multiplies the sources of 
 enjoyment, divides those of sorrow, and adds 
 to the happiness of human life. It is highly 
 necessary for the preservation of the American 
 Govei'nment that the people should foster and 
 protect schools as the}' would their jewels. 
 The nature of the government and the pecu- 
 liarities of its institutions should be taughtin 
 every school. Too many young men, and even 
 those in maturer 3'ears, know comparatively 
 nothing of the aim of the government as out- 
 lined in the constitution. There is seen the 
 strange paradox of citizens voting for officials 
 to administer laws, the nature of which, though 
 vitally important to them, is almost whoU}- un- 
 known. The wonderfully rapid growth of 
 educational advantages insures to the masses 
 
-•^ 
 
 BATH TOWXSIITP. 
 
 625 
 
 of the people a speedy and practically pei'fect 
 knowledge of the fundamental principles of the 
 government. Millions in mone}' are annuall}- 
 expended in rearing that unpretending temple 
 of learning — the sehoolhoase. The standard 
 of scholarship is steadily rising in the United 
 States among the great body of the people. 
 This is the onl}' salvation for our government, 
 but the people must learn to control their 
 excesses, or the nation we all love so well will 
 go down in darkness like Rome. Tlie morals 
 must be educated, the appetites must be con- 
 trolled, the passions must be checked, the 
 desires must be directed to proper objects, pur- 
 suits and practices must be elevating in their 
 tendencies, and together with all these people 
 must acquire wisdom. 
 
 The first school in Bath was taught in the 
 northeastern corner, in a log house that had 
 been built in 1810, by Aaron Miller, one of the 
 few first settlers in the township. The building 
 was about sixteen feet square, and the first 
 teacher's name was Maria Lusk. The first 
 terra was in 1811, and after that date schools 
 were held quite regularly in the neighborhood, 
 sometimes in one house and sometimes in 
 another, depending for location on their prox- 
 imity to the homes of the greater number of 
 children. In truth, the schools for many years 
 continued to follow the scholars, going as near 
 as possible to where the greater number lived. 
 Alfred Wolcott was one of the early teachers. 
 Tt is related that on one occasion, that genius 
 of mischief, the school-boy, in the absence of 
 the teacher at intermission, fortified the chair 
 of the latter with pins bent in a fiendish man- 
 ner. The result was a sudden bound, and the 
 following I'everent exclamation : " Who, in 
 heaven's name, has been meddling with this 
 chair ? ' Such questions were often asked in 
 early j'ears, but seldom answered. So far as 
 known, Mr. Wolcott shared the same fate as 
 other early teachers. There were several 3'ears 
 when no school was taught in northeastern 
 Bath, but the scholars were sent to a well- 
 attended school in northwestern Northampton. 
 A veiy early school was taught in Mr. Ham- 
 mond's house. Mr. Lucas was one of the first 
 teachers in that neighborhood. Schools were 
 usually taught b}- subscription, and at stated 
 times teachers were accustomed to send in their 
 bills for collection or settlement. Although 
 it seems unaccountable, 3'et it is asserted that 
 
 the first schoolhouse in the northeastern part 
 was not erected until after 1830, but that schools 
 continued to be held in dwellings and abandoned 
 houses. This house was a frame, about 16x16 
 feet, and the first teacher, as near as can be as- 
 certained, was Edward Brown, a nephew of 
 John Brown, whose soul is yet supposed to be 
 marching on. This house was used for some 
 twenty-five years, when the present one was 
 built. A school was taught very early at Mr. 
 Yallen's residence in the southeastern part, but 
 unfortunately nothing definite could be learned 
 of it. It ma}' be said, in general, that all schools, 
 prior to 1820, were held in buildings that were 
 temporarily devoted to that use. It is probable 
 that the first building erected for a school- 
 house was either near Hammond's Corners or at 
 Grhent, although both the dates and the facts 
 are uncertain. School was taught as earl}' as 
 1816, at Latta's Corners, and at Ghent a few 
 years later. In 1820, the citizens living at 
 Ghent sent their children to school in a log 
 house that had been built about thirty rods 
 from the present residence of Mr. Spitzer, b}'^ 
 William Wood. Mr. Wood had abandoned the 
 house, which was then devoted to educational 
 purposes. Henry Boot was one of the first 
 teachers in this house, and the following circum- 
 stance is related of him by Benjamin Bishop : 
 The teacher started one cold morning for his 
 schoolhouse, and while on his wa}^ through the 
 woods was confronted by a large, gaunt, hun- 
 gry-looking wolf The animal, evidentl}- ren- 
 dered desperate by hunger, advanced with open 
 mouth and glaring eyes upon the apprehensive 
 teacher, who, having no weapons save a jack- 
 knife, caught up a heavy club, and backed 
 against a rail fence as the wolf continued to ap- 
 proach. When the animal was within reach, 
 Mr. Root struck at its head, but only succeeded 
 in giving it a partial stroke. The wolf caught 
 the end of the club in its teeth, and for some 
 moments Mr. Root was unable to withdraw it 
 for the purpose of delivering another blow. 
 Several blows were struck, all of which the 
 wolf avoided, but finally a fortunate stroke 
 disabled the animal, which was then quickly 
 dispatched by repeated blows on the head. 
 How many teachers would now enjoy such an 
 encounter? Do not all speak at once. Mr. 
 Root then dragged the dead wolf to the school- 
 house, where it remained during the day. The 
 historian is also compelled to record that the 
 
 :V 
 
626 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 teacher complained of the confusion and whis- 
 pering in the schoolroom, and of the almost 
 universally imperfect lessons on that day. A 
 young lady named Eveline Hall taught in this 
 same building as early as 1818. School was 
 early taught in Mr. Rice's house. There have 
 been three different schoolhouses at Ghent, the 
 last one being built a few years ago. In the 
 Hurd neighborhood, in a building that had been 
 vacated by Mr. Banks, school was taught as 
 early as 1828. The next year a schoolhouse 
 was erected near by, and one of the first teach- 
 ers was Robert McNeil. The building was used 
 as a meeting-house, but after a number of years 
 it took fire and burned to the ground. Two 
 other houses in the neighborhood have suc- 
 ceeded it. The township was first divided ofi" 
 into two school districts, and some alterations 
 were made in these annually, until, at last, 
 another one or two were added. Many disputes 
 arose in consequence of the shifting of the dis- 
 tricts. iVU desired schools within a few rods 
 of their own dwellings, and when this was 
 found to be impossible, the vials of their wrath 
 were freely poured upon the naked heads of 
 all opposers. The districts continued to be 
 divided and subdivided, until they at present 
 number ten. 
 
 Religious societies took root in the township 
 in early days. It is always the case in a newly 
 settled country, that the citizens, many of them, 
 are members of churches in the land whence 
 they came, and having experienced the bless- 
 ings and reality of religion, ai-e desirous of 
 renewing their devotions. This state of afiairs 
 would result in numerous meetings at the set- 
 tlers' homes, where either a local preacher or 
 an itinerant one would be called upon to pre- 
 side. The Presbyterians and Congregation al- 
 ists built a log meeting-house on the " accom- 
 modation plan," at the Center, in about the 
 year 1818. This building afterward became 
 famous for its revivals. It saw continual use 
 until about 1834, when a frame building was 
 erected in its stead. The frame was used until 
 1870, and was then remodeled and converted 
 into a town hall. The following is quoted from 
 the church records : "At a meeting previouslj' 
 appointed to be held at Bath, November 2-1, 
 1823, present Caleb Pitkin, John Seward and 
 Israel Shaler, missionaries, the meeting was 
 opened with prayer by Brother Seward, after 
 which Robert Bell and Mary, his wife, from the 
 
 church in Stow ; William Jones, from the 
 church in Randolph ; William and Hannah 
 Smith, from the church in Sandsfield, Mass.; 
 Mrs. Mary Heater, from the church in Can- 
 field ; Mrs. Mercy Hall, from the church in 
 Grlastonbury, Conn.; Laura, wife of William 
 Jones, and Samuel Petei's and Esther, his wife, 
 from the world, presented themselves with the 
 request to be organized into a Church of Christ. 
 As a preparatory step, the council proceeded 
 to an examination of these persons respecting 
 their doctrinal and experimental knowledge of 
 the Christian religion, and their views of the 
 duties and privileges of a Christian Church. 
 Being satisfied on these subjects, the council 
 proceeded to organize the church. Brother 
 Pitken preached from the text, " Jesus answered, 
 ' My kingdom is not of this world,' " etc., after 
 which Brother Seward read the confession of 
 faith and covenant to the persons above named, 
 and proceeded to constitute them a church, 
 regularly organized and entitled to all the priv- 
 ileges and ordinances of the Grospel, and 
 solemnly charged them in the name of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ to work worthy of the high 
 calling. Being thus organized, the church was 
 put under the care of the Presbytery of 
 Huron, as the First Congregational Church of 
 Bath. Their confession of faith, covenant and 
 articles of practice are the same that have been 
 prepared and presented b}^ the Presbytery in 
 this section of the county (signed) Caleb Pit- 
 kin, Clerk of Organizing Committee." Al- 
 though not so stated in the report of the meet- 
 ing, the session was held in the old log house 
 at the center of the township. The following 
 persons joined the church June 30, 1832 : 
 Ward K. Hammond and wife, Rojal Hammond, 
 Robert McNeil, Nancy Smith, Aurora Piper, 
 Elisha and Ann McNeil, Mary and Jane Ful- 
 ton, Sarah Nash, wife of Phineas Nash, and 
 Lavina Banks. Phineas Nash joined in Decem- 
 ber, 1823. It is stated that James Root gave 
 nearly $3,000 as a permanent fund for the use 
 of this church. The truth of this is left to the 
 reader. The church since its organization has 
 not always been in good working order. Al- 
 though there is no church building at Ellis' 
 Corners at present, the L'nited Brethren have 
 a society there. Among the members are Will- 
 iam Reed, Abraham Spitzer, Lot Watson, Mor- 
 ris Lyon, Samuel Briggs and N. I). Hauser. 
 This society purchased a Methodist Church, 
 
 Y 
 
FRANKLIN T0WN8H1P. 
 
 627 
 
 located at Stony Hill, and moved it to the Cor- 
 ners a short time after the last war. This was 
 used b}' the society for a number of years ; 
 l)ut the building was subsequently sold for $50, 
 and is now devoted to other uses, and the mera- 
 "i)ers assemble in the schoolhouse. Rev. William 
 Whitney is prominent among the membership. 
 A Methodist societ}' was instituted at Ghent as 
 earl}' as 1818, some of the members being 
 Messrs. Hoadley, Bradford. Seakins, Rice and 
 Frost. They assembled in dwellings for a few 
 years, and finally the organization was dis- 
 solved, or, perhaps, as some say, it finally 
 started up again, and became the foundation of 
 the present iVIethodist Church in the northern 
 part. Their building was erected many years 
 ago, and is known as •• Moore's Chapel." It 
 cost some S3,000, and is the best building of 
 the kind in the township. This church is well 
 attended and prosperous. There are many 
 Germans living in the eastern part, and this 
 section of the township is familiarl}' known as 
 • Germany." Many years ago, an Evangelical 
 society was organized, and soon afterward a 
 small chun^i was built in •' Germany. " Here 
 
 this industrious class of citizens meet to con- 
 duct their religious ceremonies in their char- 
 acteristic way. The United Brethren started 
 up at an early day, and first began holding 
 meetings in the schoolhouse near Kurd's Cor- 
 ners. Here the}'^ assembled for some time, 
 shifting their location, finall}', to neighboring 
 schoolhouses, to be as near as possible to the 
 greater number of members. After a few 
 years, this state of things became somewhat ob- 
 noxious, and the propriety of erecting a small 
 comfortable church was discussed. Several 
 objected, saying that the tax was greater than 
 they desired to sustain. At last the voice of 
 majorit}' was in favor of Iniilding such a church, 
 which was accordingly done, at what is known 
 as Hurd's Corners. Although there are but 
 four churches in the township, the religious 
 element is not confined to these alone ; for at 
 Ellis' Corners is a society, and a large portion 
 of the citizens in the western part belong to a 
 Disciples' Church, which is located in Granger 
 Township, Medina County. The churches and 
 schools throughout Bath are up to the standard 
 of those in the country townships in the count3^ 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX.* 
 
 FRANKLIN TOWNSHir — THVSI(\A.L FEATURES— COAL AND OTHER MINERALS — SETTLEMENTS OK 
 
 THF, WHITES— CH.ANBMRRY GATHERING— INDUSTRIAL GROWTH— VI LLAOES 
 
 — EDUCATIONAL AND RELIG OUS INSTITUTIONS. 
 
 T' 
 
 the mysteries of the silent past do not 
 end with the beginning of authentic history, 
 but linger with multiplied beauty around the 
 strange myths and fairy tales that come to us 
 through the lapse of unknown centuries. 
 Through the medium of ethnology, archgeology 
 and philolog}^, a wonderful vision of past 
 years is revealed to the present age — one that 
 haunts the inquiring mind of the historical in- 
 vestigator like the face of an angel, instead of 
 like the dismal shadow that shook its gory 
 locks at Macbeth. The vision reveals that, 
 thousands of years before the Christian era — 
 unknown centuries before a means of recording 
 human events had been invented — the human 
 race lived a quiet pastoral life in Central Asia. 
 
 *Contributed by W. A. Goodspeed. 
 
 Seen through the mists of years, their homes 
 and haunts became the source of many a legend 
 or poetic tale, that had its creation on the bold 
 summits of the Scythian hills, or in the fertile 
 valley of the Oxus or the Jaxartes. Every 
 known field has been carefully searched to 
 clear up the darkness that antedates recorded 
 history ; but the sacrifice of time and labor by 
 the assiduous inquirer has been almost wholly- 
 fruitless, and has met with continued disap- 
 pointment and rebuff; and the early mythical 
 traditions are believed to be an imperfect ac- 
 count of what actually transpired in pre-his- 
 toric times. Since tlie origin of writing, the 
 most valuable invention ever given to the hu- 
 man race, remarkable strides have been made 
 in intellectual and moral advancement, and in 
 all that makes a people great. During the 
 
J^dl 
 
 hL 
 
 628 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 passage of time, though unnumbered events of 
 vital importance to the liuman race have been 
 left unrecorded ; yet " line upon line and pre- 
 cept upon precept" of measureless value to 
 man have been written for his perusal and im- 
 provement. History is but an imperfect record 
 of human experience, though, notwithstanding 
 its defects, it is of almost infinite importance 
 to the race, for the probable events of the 
 future can be foreknown only b}' a knowledge 
 of the past. Men and nations are wise only as 
 they can look into the future and anticipate 
 coming events which cast their shadows before, 
 and this can be done onl}^ from analog}' with 
 what has taken place in the past. " The proper 
 study of mankind is man," and history in its 
 widest and grandest sense is such a study. 
 This places the historian in the light of a pub- 
 lic benefactor to succeeding generations ; but 
 a prophet — one that can anticipate the future 
 — labors on without the respect or honor of his 
 own country and age. His name will become 
 embalmed in song as the C3'cles of time sweeps 
 by, will become colossal in the hearts of gen- 
 erations yet unborn, a sublime monument to 
 the departed genius of past ages. 
 
 It is not expected that the simple narrative 
 of these pages will be prophecy, for the art of 
 divination is yet in its swaddling clothes. It 
 is difficult enough for ordinary capabilities to 
 acquire a correct and comprehensive knowl- 
 edge of what has taken place in past years, 
 without borrowing trouble by attempting to 
 peer with curiosit}' into some Pandora's box of 
 the future. Fictions and hopes and idealisms 
 are thrown down, and facts of all hues are 
 taken up to be woven into the gaudy Miric of 
 local historv. The historian, like the insur- 
 ance agent or the undertaker, has a thankless 
 task, but he takes comfort in knowing that 
 coming generations will fully appi'eciate the 
 result of his labors. It may appear to some 
 that the historian has an easy time in rummag- 
 ing through dusty memorials, or following- 
 some Jack-with-the-lantern tradition that con- 
 stantly eludes him, but knowing as he does 
 that the weight of the responsibility of record- 
 ing the truth, giving to each item of history 
 its appropriate and comparative degree of im- 
 portance, leaving no path partially neglected or 
 wholly unsearched, resisting the demands of 
 the bigots who insist in having their names en- 
 rolled high on the page of honor, rests upon 
 
 his shoulder like the sphere of Atlas, he puts 
 forth his greatest powers to encompass the sit- 
 uation and to hand to posterity an accurate 
 and comprehensive record. Nothing but pa- 
 tient, protracted labor brings the desired infor- 
 mation. It thus occurs that, in looking over 
 Franklin Township, much difficulty is experi- 
 enced in accumulating its past history. Tra- 
 ditions are vague and unsatisfactor}', and an 
 accurate knowledge of all the facts is out of 
 the question. It often occurs that no two men 
 who are questioned give a similar account of 
 the same event, thus adding much to the per- 
 plexity of the historian, or placing the subject 
 beyond the possibility of a correct solution. 
 A cheerful readiness to tell eveiything known, 
 and to volunteer much information of events 
 of doubtful occurrence, is met with everywhere. 
 Men yet living, who were in the township at 
 the time of its creation, cannot i-ecall any of 
 the incidents connected therewith. The names 
 of many of the earliest settlers have passed 
 beyond the powers of recollection, and the 
 gloom surrounding many important circum- 
 stances refuses to yield to the historian's re- 
 peated and emphatic injunction, "Let there be 
 light ! " It is again necessar}- to call the at- 
 tention of the reader to the fact that history 
 at best is but a partial narration of events. 
 
 In 1854, Lucius V. Bierce wrote: "The 
 portion of Franklin Township lying east of the 
 Tuscarawas was surveyed in February, 1800, 
 by Kbenezer Buckingham. The Tuscarawas 
 was then the boundary between the United 
 States and the Indians, which was the reason 
 why the balance of the township was not sur- 
 ve5"ed at the same time. It will be recollected 
 that the Indian title east of the Cuyahoga, the 
 Tuscarawas and the portage path was extin- 
 guished by the treaty of Fort Mcintosh 
 (Beaver) in 1785. Their title to the territor}' 
 west of those rivers was not extinguished until 
 the treaty of Fort Industry, in 1 805. It is a 
 singular feature of these treaties that the In- 
 dians, in the first treaty, ceded the territory 
 east of those rivers, and, in the last treaty, all 
 west of those rivers, but have never ceded the 
 rivers, the fee of which is still in the Indians. 
 This township is No. 2 of Range 10 of the 
 Ohio Land Company's purchase. In forming 
 ranges, the United States began at the east 
 line of the State, on the base of the Western 
 Reserve, and ever}- six miles west was a range, 
 
 yr, 
 
J^j 
 
 FRANKLIN TOAVNSHIP. 
 
 639 
 
 numbering- from the east toward the west' 
 The townships on the east side counted from 
 the Ohio River north to the base line of the 
 Reserve. Thus the north township in tlie first 
 range in Stark County on the base line of 
 the Reserve is No. 19, Range 16, lying nine- 
 teen townships, or 114 miles north of the Ohio 
 River, and 6 townships or 36 miles west of the 
 east line of the State. The townships contin- 
 ued to be thus numbered until they reached 
 the Ohio Land Company's purchase, when they 
 count from the nortli line of that purchase. 
 This regularity continues until Range 10 is 
 reached, when the north township (Franklin) is 
 numbered 2 from the following circumstances : 
 Li 1800, when the survey was made and the 
 township and ranges numbered, there was but 
 a fraction of Franklin lying east of the Tusca- 
 rawas and within the Grovernment limits — all 
 west of the river belonging to the Indians. In 
 running the west line of Range 10, the survey- 
 ors struck the Tuscarawas in Lawrence Town- 
 ship, next south of Franklin, and, as they 
 could not cross the river to complete the 
 required six miles east and west of those two 
 townships, they named them Fractions 1 and 2 
 in Range 10. In 1807, two years after the 
 land west of the Tuscarawas became the prop- 
 ert}^ of the (xovernment, it was surveyed b}^ 
 Joseph H. Harwell, and enough was added to 
 the fractional townships on the east to make 
 two full townships each six miles square, but 
 the numbers have never been changed ; so that 
 what originally stood for the numbers of frac- 
 tions now stands for the numbers of the town- 
 ships." Franklin is thus No. 2 instead of No. 
 1, as it should be to conform with adjoining 
 townships. 
 
 In early years the situation of the township 
 was looked upon with favor by the settlers. 
 An abundance of excellent water-power could 
 easily be obtained on almost ever}' stream, es- 
 pecially at places where the smaller ones en- 
 tered the Tuscarawas. The river, then a much 
 larger stream than it is at present, afforded fine 
 communication with the southern portion of 
 the State. Several lakes were in the township, 
 in which an abundance of excellent, though 
 small, fish abounded. The soil, though lying 
 flat and ver}' wet, was rich with decaying vege- 
 table remains, and gave promise of boundless 
 fertility, when the stagnant water could be 
 turned into some of the neighboring streams, 
 
 and the action of the sun could be unchecked 
 by the removal of the forests. The township 
 is a fraction over five miles north and south, 
 and exceeds that distance by a little east and 
 west, although not quite six miles. The sur- 
 face like the greater portion of Ohio is irregular, 
 though in some portions is comparatively level. 
 There are thirty-six sections. No. 1 being in the 
 northeast corner, and No. 36 in the southeast. 
 The northern and western tiers of sections are 
 fractional. The Tuscarawas River enters the 
 township on Section 4, thence crossing Sections 
 9, 16, 20, 29, 32, and leaving from 31. Chip- 
 pewa River joins the Tuscarawas on Section 31. 
 Nimisilla Creek drains the greater portion of 
 the southern part, and finally unites with the 
 Tuscarawas in Stark County. The southeastern 
 part is drained by several small streams which 
 flow into the Tuscarawas. Polecat Run rises in 
 the northwestern part, and flowing southward 
 joins the river about a mile north of Clinton. 
 Mud Lake, a small body of water of about fifty 
 acres, lies in the eastern part of Section 32. 
 Turkey Foot Lake, pi'obabl}' the largest body 
 of water in the county, lies near the northeast- 
 ern corner of the township. It is said to have 
 been named for a noted Indian chief Its out- 
 line is very irregular, the lake consisting of 
 several distinct bodies of water, joined by 
 straits of different width. It probably covers 
 about a section of land, and its extreme length 
 is about two miles, while the greatest width will 
 not exceed half a mile. An enlargement of the 
 outlet of this lake, in the extreme northeast 
 corner, is used as a reservoir, where large quan- 
 tities of water are stored up during the rainy 
 months, to be gradually' used for milling and 
 other purposes in dr}' portions of the year. The 
 lake is quite deep, though the water is inclined 
 to be ' drumlie," as Robert Burns says of the 
 streams about the Castle of Montgomer3^ 
 However it is a fine lake, and its value will be 
 slowly developed as time passes. There are 
 several small lakes, or rather ponds, scattered 
 over the township, though the number has 
 greatly decreased since the township was first 
 settled. Several have been drained, others have 
 dried up, and a few yet remain to l)e subjected 
 to the same fate. In traveling over the town- 
 ship, ihe chief characteristic which meets the 
 eye is the prevalance of depressed tracts of 
 land, or more properly basins, that at an indefi- 
 nite period in the past wei'e undoubtedly small 
 
 ■<< 
 
630 
 
 HISTOin^ OF SUMMIT COrNTY 
 
 lakes. Some of these contain peat, and not a 
 few of them contain a considerable quantity of 
 bog iron ore. The township is rich in that 
 valuable mineral deposit, coal. In 1838, there 
 were three coal mines worked, but at that 
 date a Prussian miner, named Michael Becker, 
 came to the township and opened up several 
 others, giving such impetus to coal raining that 
 about fifteen yeai's later the exports of coal ex- 
 ceeded 60,000 tons annually. There ai-e now 
 twelve or fifteen mines, and the exports are not 
 far from 100,000 tons per annum. Side tracks 
 are laid b}' the railroad companies to many of 
 the mines, thus favoring extensiA^e and rapid 
 work. The coal deposits are enormous and are 
 practically inexhaustible. 
 
 In earl}' years thousands of bushels of cran- 
 berries grew annually in the numerous Franklin 
 swamps. These cranberry fields were called 
 marshes, and the berries were gathered by the 
 Indians before the first settlers arrived, and 
 taken to Pittsburgh and other towns in Pennsyl- 
 vania and Virginia, where they were exchanged 
 I'or ammunition, clothing, ornaments, etc. The 
 berry is a member of the heath family, and is 
 known to liotanists as Oxycoccus macrocarpus. 
 The plant is a creeper, or trailer, with slender, 
 hardy, woody stems and small evergreen leaves, 
 more or less white underneath, with single 
 flowers, borne on slender, erect pedicles, and 
 having a pale, rose corolla. The stems are 
 from one to three feet long, and the flowers are 
 lateral, rendering easy the gathering of the 
 berries. Tlie plants require very wet ground, 
 and are often found growing where the soil is 
 covered with several inches of water. The 
 conditions for the possible life of the plant 
 have been removed almost wholly, and cran- 
 berries no longer grow in paying quantities in 
 the township or county. Tlie berries, which 
 get ripe in autumn, are red, with some 3'ellow, 
 and are ver}' acid. The harvest begins in 
 October, and is only closed by cold weather, or 
 perhaps the quantity of berries fails. They are 
 gathered during the spring months also, having 
 remained out all winter. The}' are less acid 
 when gathered in the spring, as the freezing 
 converts portions of the starchy substance of 
 the berries into sugar compounds, and in this 
 condition the berries are valued more highly, 
 as less sugar is required to fit them for the 
 table. When the township was first settled the 
 berries were almost worthless, as there was no 
 
 market for them in the west, and the lack of 
 sugar required to sweeten them prevented their 
 general use in the cabins of the settlers. The 
 settlers were compelled to forego the use of 
 such luxuries, being satisfied often with the 
 bare necessities of life. However, after a few 
 years they were worth 25 cents per bushel, 
 and, in about 1830, had arisen to from 50 cents 
 to |1 per bushel. The cranberry business then 
 became very extensive. Thousands of bushels 
 were purchased annually by the merchants at 
 Clinton, Manchester, and other neighboring vil- 
 lages, and taken by v/agon to Pittsburgh, Phila- 
 delphia and New York, the teamsters bringing 
 back loads of dry goods, groceries, salt, notions, 
 etc. Water-tight barrels were filled with tlie 
 berries, after which the remaining space was 
 filled with water, and the barrel closed. In 
 this condition the berries kept fresh and bright 
 for many months. So great became the quan- 
 tity purchased at one timeb}' Mr. Patterson, an 
 early merchant at Clinton, that he either could 
 not find market for them, or could not procure 
 wagons in which to ship them East, and 300 
 bushels spoiled on his hands, and were thrown 
 away. Very likely the same thing happened 
 to others. When cranberry picking was at the 
 height of its prosperit}' many of the settlers 
 were thus engaged, several of whom made no 
 little money. Tiiose gathering the berries — 
 men and women — wore long-legged boots to 
 keep out the water, and as a precaution against 
 snake bites. , The berries grew on their short 
 stems, on the under side of long, wiry vines 
 that crept over the mosses and sedges, growing 
 in profusion in the marshes. A section of 
 plank from a foot and a half to two feet long 
 and about a foot wide was taken, and around 
 one end was bound a tough band of hickory 
 bark, forming a sort of box. The other end of 
 the plank was serrated, the teeth being about 
 eight inches long. Two handles were attached, 
 and the rude implement thus completed was 
 used in gathering cranberries. The teeth were 
 placed over one of the long, slender vines, and 
 the implement was held so that when it was 
 pushed along tlie berries were scooped into the 
 box at tlie other end. Fifteen or twenty 
 bushels were often gathered in one day with 
 this implement. Whole families turned out 
 during the cranberry season, and the marshes 
 swarmed with settlers, some of whom came 
 man}' miles and remained several days, camp- 
 
 e) 
 
:l^ 
 
 FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 631 
 
 ing in their wagons. AVhen a sufficient quan- 
 tity of berries was gattiered to fill the wagon- 
 bed, it was taken to some of the villages and 
 sold. The berries when first gathered were full 
 of leaves, moss and grass, and had to be cleaned 
 before they were taken to market. A sort of 
 ladder was made, having the cross pieces about 
 an inch apart. When emptied upon this rude 
 seive, the berries fell through the slits, and the 
 grass, etc., was collected on the slats. Large 
 quantities of berries were cleaned in a few 
 hours b}' means of this rude screen. 
 
 Immediately after the Indian title to the 
 soil west of the river was extinguished, a 
 wealthy Quaker, named Richard Carter, living 
 in Wheeling, purchased the land, and em- 
 ployed John Harris, Esq., and David L. Mc- 
 Clure to lay out a town at the junction of the 
 rivers, Tuscarawas and Chippewa, the latter at 
 that time being known as Indian Creek. This 
 was accomplished in Septembei', 1806, and the 
 village in honor of its founder was named 
 Cartersville. It was located on the low land at 
 the junction of the rivers, and at ever}- freshet 
 its uninhabited lots and unworn streets were 
 overflowed by the murky waters. If any build- 
 ing was erected in this village, or if an}' im- 
 provement was made other than laying out the 
 streets and lots and platting the same on paper, 
 such improvements are unknown. Very likely 
 the village existed only in name, but the infer- 
 ence is that as soon as it had its origin on 
 paper, its ambitious founder made efforts to 
 have settlers locate there. Like many another 
 man in early years, his hopes were destined to 
 be blasted. His village died out with the plat- 
 ting and christening, and nothing remains to 
 mark the spot where it once was located. It 
 surpasses in loneliness the " deserted village " 
 of Groldsmith : 
 
 "Sweet smiliug- village, loveliest of the hiwn. 
 Thy sports are fled and all tlij' eliarms withdrawn. 
 Amidst thy bowers the Tyrants hand is seen. 
 And desolation saddens all thy green." 
 
 After this event, no permanent improvement 
 or settlement was made until the spring of 
 1814. Prior to that time, the township was 
 the home of those wandering hunters, who kept 
 moving westward as the tide of settlement ad- 
 vanced, and whose practical training in wood- 
 craft and in the arts of the chase could furnish 
 pleasure onl}' in the depths of the uninhabited 
 
 wilderness. The forest was filled with wild 
 game, and the swamps, rivers and lakes were 
 the resort of man3M'^aluable fur-bearing animals, 
 that afforded the trappers almost his only 
 means of support. Small cabins were erected 
 in which were domiciled their wives, who, to 
 all appearances, were capable of living without 
 any visible means of support, and who were 
 frequently left alone in the cabins for weeks at 
 a time, while the husband and father was off 
 on a long hunting excursion. The whole family 
 were inured to privation, and if the cabin did 
 not contain the needful supply of food, it was 
 no unusual occurrence for the mother to go out 
 into the surrounding woods and bring down a 
 deer or a squirrel or some other animal that 
 would afford food for the hungry children. 
 This was true, not only of the families of the 
 professional hunters who came to the most 
 remote frontier ; but also of families living in 
 localities where considerable advancement had 
 been made in settlement and civilization. A 
 skillful hunter often made by the sale of flesh 
 and furs, upward of a $1,000 during the hunt- 
 ing and trapping season, a large share of which, 
 instead of being used in purchasing land, or in 
 providing much needed comforts for the family, 
 was squandered at neighboring grog-shops and 
 distilleries. Traditions are in existence, that 
 several of these hunters lived for short periods 
 in rough shanties or wigwams in the vicinity 
 of Turkey Foot Lake and on the Tuscarawas. 
 In the spring of 1814, Christopher Johnson, 
 or " Yankee Johnson," as he was called by the 
 Dutch, came to the township and settled on the 
 southwest corner of Section 24. He built a log 
 cabin and made some improvements in the way 
 of clearing and cultivation, but after a few 
 years he became tired of his home, and, dis- 
 posing of his land, he removed his family to 
 Steubenville. What finally became of liim is 
 not known. On the 20th of April, 1814, two 
 men — Thomas Johnson, from the Keystone 
 State, and William Hallowell, from Eastern 
 Ohio — arrived in the township, built their rude 
 dwellings, and began making improvements. 
 Thomas Johnson located on Section 27. where 
 he resided with his family several years, after 
 which he moved to Norton Township, settling 
 at what, in his honor, was afterward known as 
 " Johnson's Corners." Wdliam Hallowell lo- 
 cated on Section 28, about a mile northeast of 
 Clinton. Here he lived and labored until 
 
 
632 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUXTY. 
 
 1833, when he sold out and moved to Rich- 
 field. After this, the settlers came in quite 
 rapidly. Among the settlers who came in at 
 this time, or soon after, were Jacob Sour, Jo- 
 seph Mishler, John Hick, Mr. Hai'ter, Jacob 
 Balmer, George Rex, Jacob HoUinger, Michael 
 Bradenburg, David Harvey, Mahlon Stewart, 
 John Snider and others. By 1820, there were 
 as many as thii'ty families living in the town- 
 ship. Other early settlers were the following, 
 who obtained patents of their land from the 
 Government: Samuel Burgner, Mr. Vander- 
 hof, Mr. Smith, Mr. Himelright, Matthias Da- 
 vis, John Swaisgood, Adam Marsh, and a little 
 later, Mr. Ludwick, Christian Clay, John Spi- 
 del, Mr. Waltenberger. George Righley, Mr. 
 Wholf, Mr. McMurray, William Harvey* John 
 Scott, Ephraim Brown, Mr. Wise, Mr. Green- 
 hoe, Jacob Hook, Gorham Chapin, Mr. Rosse- 
 ter, Jacob Grove, John Stump, John A. Stump, 
 Charles Herring. JohnTeeple, Mr. Bliler, George 
 Wirt, Mr. Wagner, John Hoy, J. W. Hamm, Dr. 
 Levi Brooks, Dr. Troup, Henry Troup, Mr. Dai- 
 ley. Mr.Wiltrout, Benjamin Bear, Jacob and John 
 Row, John and Adam Sorrick, and many others. 
 The names of some of the most prominent of 
 the early citizens have been unfortunately for- 
 gotten. From 1815 to 1820, the rush into the 
 township was very great, the settlers being 
 largely Dutch from Pennsylvania, with a 
 sprinkling of Yankees from the Reserve and 
 from the East. Improvements were begun in 
 all directions, and waving seas of wheat and 
 corn could be seen where once the monarch of 
 the forest reared his majestic head. Villages 
 sprang up as if by magic ; the forests echoed 
 with the hum of industries ; schools and 
 churches began their mission of intellectual 
 and moral improvement, and the aspect of the 
 township became materially altered. 
 
 Early in 1817, the Commissioners of Stark 
 County, having been properly petitioned by 
 the citizens then residing in Franklin, ordered 
 the organization of the township by the election 
 of the necessarjf number of officei's. The elec- 
 tion was held in April, 1817, but only part of 
 the officers elected on this important occasion 
 are remembered. Jacob Balmer and David 
 Harve}' were elected Justices of the Peace, and 
 Jacob Hollinger, Michael Bradenburg and Mah- 
 lon Stewart, Trustees. From this time onward, 
 the growth of the township was rapid. The set- 
 tlers belonged mostlv to that industrious and 
 
 sober class of people of whom William Penn 
 was a representative man. Instead of endeav- 
 oring to make a living by their wits, or by 
 hunting and trapping, they went resolutely to 
 work, and their comfortable homes soon proved 
 the wisdom of their course. In 1814, John 
 Johnson, a son of Thomas Johnson, was 
 born, being the first birth in the township. 
 The parties to the first marriage, which oc- 
 curred in 1815, were John Hick and Cath- 
 arine Flickinger. The second was in 1816, 
 between Jacob Sour and Mary Hartner. Dur- 
 ing the summer of 1815, the wife of Jacob 
 Balmer was bitten b}- a rattlesnake, and before 
 the needed relief could be obtained, she died 
 from the effects, her death being the first. 
 
 The rapid settlement of the township be- 
 tween the 3ears above mentioned, led to the 
 immediate erection of mills and other mechan- 
 ical industries. During the winter of 1816-17, 
 George Rex erected a grist-mill at the outlet of 
 Turkey Foot Lake. The mill was a rude af- 
 fair, but was the outgrowth of home demand. 
 Notwithstanding the presence of a good mill at 
 Middlebury and at other neighboring villages, 
 the demand for one in the township resulted in 
 its erection. The distance to Middlebury was 
 practically double that at present, owing to the 
 almost impassable condition of pioneer roads 
 (if the}' deserve such a dignified title). Rex 
 built a dam across the outlet of the lake, lo- 
 cating it at a point where he could obtain the 
 advantage of as much tall as possible. He suc- 
 ceeded in furnishing quite a fair article of 
 flour, and was sufficiently well patronized to 
 warrant continuing the pursuit for many years. 
 Finally, when the lake was converted by the 
 State into a resorvoir for feeding the canal, the 
 mill-site was ruined, and Ptcx was paid for the 
 damage done him. His mill was one of the 
 best in the township in earl}' years. In about 
 the year 1825. or perhaps later, Mr. Caldwell 
 built a saw-mill in the western part, on Polecat 
 Run. He succeeded in obtaining a fair water- 
 power, and continued operating the mill some 
 fifteen or twenty years, when it was abandoned, 
 and a grist-mill built on the same stream a lit- 
 tle below it. After a number of years it was 
 sold at Sheriff's sale. Prior to the erection of 
 Mr. Caldwell's saw-mill, another had been built 
 very early above it, on the same stream. It 
 was located on a low piece of ground, and how 
 it was operated is a mystery, as there is no 
 
 IV 
 

 FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 G33 
 
 stream passing the site of the old mill, and ap- 
 parently never was one. The location seems 
 to have been a swamp, but this does not explain 
 the nature of the motor. Its owner and oper- 
 ator are forgotten. At a point on the river 
 just east of Clinton, Mr. Harvey built a grist- 
 mill in about the year 1820. He did a paying 
 business until the canal was projected through 
 the township. At that time some understand- 
 ing was entered into between Harvey and the 
 canal authorities as to the surplus water of the 
 canal, in consequence of which Harvey went to 
 work to build a large, strong dam ; but the 
 canal, instead of being projected according to 
 agreement, was extended along the opposite 
 side of the river, and his mill-site was ruined. 
 He had conve^'ed large stones into the river 
 where the dam was to be located, but all this 
 labor was thrown away. Mr. Chapin also 
 built a saw-mill at an early day, on the waste 
 water of the canal. It was located at a point 
 where there was considerable fall, and the result 
 was that the dam was washed away some five 
 times, entailing an additional cost for repairs 
 of nearly $1,000. He then abandoned the en- 
 terprise that had lost him so much monej'. 
 His mill was a good one, with patented re-action 
 wheels, but was idle a large portion of the 
 time, on account of the frequent breakage of 
 the dam. Mr. Smith also located a saw-mill 
 on the canal, using the waste water. The mill 
 has been operated almost all the time until the 
 present, and has been one of the most valuable 
 in its time ever in the township. Mr. Smith 
 and the members of his famil}- have owned and 
 operated it during the entire period of its con- 
 tinuance. It is impossible to estimate the 
 enormous quantity of native lumber turned 
 out b}' this mill. John Grill erected a saw- 
 mill on Polecat Run, locating it a short dis- 
 tance above the Caldwell Mill He drove a 
 thriving business for a number of 3'ears. On 
 account of the large number of frame build- 
 ings that were going up in early years, the 
 mills, notwithstanding their number, ordinarily 
 did a thriving and paying business. Roughly 
 though strongly built frame buildings soon 
 took the p'ace of the primitive log cabin, 
 though occasionally one of the latter is yet to 
 be seen, standing like a monument over the de- 
 caj'ing habitations of early 3-ears. The first 
 cabins were usually built of I'ound logs, but a 
 little later nicel}' constructed hewed-log build- 
 
 ings could be seen, and later still, the present 
 frames were erected. As soon as the canal was 
 opened, much native lumber was sent to Cleve- 
 land for ship-building on the lakes, and for 
 shipment to other cities. This no doubt con- 
 tributed to the paying operation of the mills. 
 There were several other mills in the township 
 in early years, both for grinding grain and for 
 sawing lumber. After Mr. Chapin died in 1841, 
 his old mill is said to have been haunted. 
 Strange sounds are said to have been heai'd 
 there by those who had occasion to pass the 
 old mill during the solemn hours of the night. 
 It was said by the credulous that Mr. Chapin's 
 ghost would wander into the old mill, and 
 a strange noise like the filing of a saw thrilled 
 the hearts of listeners. There was a grist- 
 mill, which did a large amount of grinding, 
 erected at an early day, either at Manchester or 
 near there, but the name of the owner has been 
 forgotten. 
 
 Three or more distilleries were erected in the 
 township prior to 1833. A Mr. Wholf built 
 one probably as early as 1820, but this was 
 abandoned about 1830. John Hoy and Mr. 
 Rex each built one as early as 1825, but these 
 were likewise abandoned before 18-40. The 
 grain out of which the liquor was manufactured 
 was probably ground at the nearest grist-mills. 
 A certain aspect of respectability was conceded 
 the distiller in early years. Whisky was upon 
 every side-board, and the custom of dram- 
 drinking was universal. It was no uncommon 
 thing for women to indulge in this luxur}', and 
 many children ma}' be said to have been raised 
 on the whisky bottle. In view of this fact, and 
 the fact that children largely inherit the appe- 
 tite for strong drink from their parents, it must 
 not be wondered at that the (}uantity of liquor 
 consumed is so large. That the quantity con- 
 sumed, on the average, per capita, is a great 
 deal less at present than it was formed}' is evi- 
 dent to those who have made the subject a 
 study. Liquor will always be drunk so long as 
 there is a demand for it, and the demand will 
 only decrease as the appetite is denied or eradi- 
 cated altogether. People must learn to control 
 their appetites ; until then the problem of 
 intemperance will remain unsolved. The dis- 
 tilleries mentioned had a large custom trade, 
 though it is not remembered whether their 
 products were shipped away or not. They 
 started up about the time the canal was being 
 
 n^ 
 
jVl? 
 
 Jk- 
 
 634 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 built, as it was seen that an enormous demand 
 for liquor would be made by the canal laborers. 
 There is no neighborhood through which the 
 canal extended that did not have its drunken 
 brawls and fights, often accompanied with seri- 
 ous injmy to one or more participants. The 
 expression, " Can drink as much as a boatman," 
 became familiar to settlers living along the 
 canal. It is likely that the distilleries turned 
 out whisk}- or brandy at the rate of about a 
 barrel per day each. The old settlers speak in 
 high terms of the qualit}' of this whisk}'. They 
 say " It was no such stuff as we get now-a- 
 days." They also state that there was not as 
 much drunkenness at the " rollings " and 
 " raisings " in early times as there is at present 
 throughout the township. This is probably a 
 mistake. The fact that liquor-drinking was so 
 common removed all cases of debaucheiy be- 
 yond observance, except the more serious ones. 
 To-day every case is noted and criticised, and 
 the careless comparison magnifies the present 
 number of drunkards. Almost every early 
 settler, soon after he came in, set out a peach 
 orchard, and in a few years enormous quantities 
 of peaches were raised. The prevalence of 
 heavy timber throughout the State modified the 
 climate, rendering this condition of things pos- 
 sible. The distilleries made an excellent quality 
 of peach brandy that was rapidly consumed by 
 the early settlers. In addition to this, large 
 quantities of peaches were dried and shipped 
 East, so long as the demand was lucrative. 
 These distilleries closed as stated, and there 
 has been but one in the township since. This 
 was built in about 1854, and located about half 
 way between Clinton and Manchester. It did 
 not amount to much, and closed at the end of 
 about three years to the joy of all. 
 
 Prior to 1860, a well-traveled line of under- 
 ground i-ailroad crossed the township, being 
 confined to what is known as the Chestnut 
 Ridge, with occasional side tracks. Prominent 
 oflScials on this road were Alexander Russell. 
 James Hile, Harvey Maranville, Washington 
 Heffleman and George Wirt. These men lost 
 no opportunity of assisting runaway slaves to 
 Canada. On one occasion, Messrs. Russell and 
 Maranville were notified that five slaves — two 
 women and three men — were west of Clinton, in 
 the heavy woods on Chestnut Ridge, waiting 
 for food and clothing. They were accordingly 
 supplied, and directed on their course to the 
 
 next station. On another occasion, a settler in 
 the township who had come from Kentucky, 
 seeing a negro traveling northward through the 
 woods with a gun on his shoulder, ran after 
 him and took away the gun, saying as he did 
 so, " It's against the law for nig's to carry a 
 gun." Two or three of the men mentioned 
 above informed this settler to return the gun 
 to the negro immediately, or trouble would en- 
 sue, whereupon the fellow reluctantly did so. 
 When questioned as to where the gun was ob- 
 tained, the negro replied that " Massa Wales," 
 of Massillon, had given it to him to kill part- 
 ridges and other game, upon which to subsist 
 while traveling North. Wales was probably 
 train-dispatcher on this road. He was a good 
 one, and no collision has since been computed 
 to his fault. John Hall, of Springfield Town- 
 ship, often took negroes who were closely pur- 
 sued by their masters, and, having concealed 
 them several days at his residence, placed them 
 in his close carriage and conveyed them the en- 
 tire distance to Cleveland, where he saw them 
 safe on board Canada-bound steamboats before 
 he parted from them. This man was a promi- 
 nent oflBcial on another line. Mr. Hile was a 
 Methodist, and a poor man. as far as this worlds 
 goods were concerned, but in many of the car- 
 dinal virtues, was a millionaire. It is said that 
 " He would run his legs off any time to assist 
 runaway slaves." The reader is cautioned 
 against construing this statement in a literal 
 sense. It simply means that Mr. Hile would 
 fly ai'ound the township when escaping slaves 
 were in trouble. The reader is further cau- 
 tioned not to render the last sentence in a literal 
 sense, for Mr. Hile would have been a rara avis 
 indeed, had such a condition of things tran- 
 spired. 
 
 Franklin has been the site of four or more 
 villages. The first laid out has already been 
 referred to. No house was built there, and 
 consequently the '' village " existed only in the 
 '' mind's eye " of the projector. In the ex- 
 treme southwestern part of the township, on 
 the north side of Chippewa River. David Har- 
 vey laid out a village as early as Mai'ch, 1816. 
 It was platted, and properly recorded at Can- 
 ton, and one or more additions of lots were 
 afterward made. Lots sold quite rapidly, and 
 erelong the Aallage could boast of a popula- 
 tion of about sixty. One or more small stores 
 were built and filled with a small stock of 
 
k.. 
 
 FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 635 
 
 goods each. A blacksmith came in, and the 
 sound of his hammer re-echoed through the 
 muddy streets. A carpenter appeared, and 
 began to ply his craft. A shoemaker built a 
 small shop, whei'e " patching ' could be se- 
 cured on short notice. He probabl}- kept a 
 small stock of shoes for sale. A tailor also 
 located in the village, and passers-by on the 
 streets could see him sitting cross-legged in 
 his little shop, busil}' engaged on a suit of 
 clothes for some one of the settlers. It is likeh' 
 that a saw-mill was started on the river in the 
 village, although this is not certain. The vil- 
 lage, which had been named Savannah, grew 
 quite rapidly — not so much so, perhaps, as 
 " Jack's bean stalk " or " Jonah's gourd " — 
 yet improvements went on until it was seen 
 that the coming canal would not touch the 
 town, in which case the latter would be sup- 
 planted by its more fortunate rivals. The 
 location of the village was not healthful, as 
 some, of the citizens were shaking or ailing 
 almost all the time. In addition to these, 
 other circumstances arose, and, finally, in 
 about 1825, a grand rush was made for Clinton 
 and other points on the canal, and Savannah 
 became entirely deserted. The stores and the 
 trades were the first to leave, and soon after- 
 ward the villagers, seeing the impending fate 
 of their village, likewise - took up their beds 
 and walked." It is stated that, in 1827, no 
 family resided in the village, although several 
 deserted buildings were yet standing. Many 
 of the buildings were taken apart and re- 
 moved, after which they were again put to- 
 gether where they had been conveyed. Thus 
 were the hopes of Mr. Harvey blasted. How- 
 ever, he had cause to be grateful, as his son, 
 William Harvey, who had laid out Clinton in 
 Februarj-, 1816, owned valuable property at that 
 place, and as the rush from Savannah was main- 
 1}' to Clinton, the loss to the famil}- was not so 
 serious after all. Clinton, from 1825 to 1840, 
 did more business compared with its popula- 
 tion than any other village in Summit County. 
 The village had no sooner been laid out by Mr. 
 Harve}- than William Christmas and J. W^. 
 Lathrop made additions to it, and industries 
 of various kinds made their appearance imme- 
 diatelv. Stores were opened, hotels were 
 erected, mechanics and tradesmen appeared, 
 numerous dwellings were built, and finally the 
 rush from Savannah and the opening of the 
 
 canal tripled improvements of all kinds, and 
 lifted Clinton to prominence and wealth. The 
 village immediately entered upon a career of 
 prosperity unknown to it before or at present. 
 Three good storerooms were built, and were 
 constantly occupied b}' fair stocks of goods, in 
 charge of capable salesmen. Tradesmen and 
 mechanics began their needed labors. Black- 
 smiths, carpenters, shoemakers, tailors, gun- 
 smiths, wagon -makers, merchants, doctors, 
 lawyers, butchers, tavern-keepers, liquor-deal- 
 ers, millers, warehousemen, preachers, teach- 
 ers, and a variety- of others, entered upon the 
 prosecution of their individual duties, and the 
 village soon gained wide reputation as a lively 
 trading-point. Three large warehouses were 
 built quite early, and the quantit}- of grain 
 purchased and shipped north on the canal 
 seems marvelous. All three buildings were 50 
 feet square ; one was three and a half stories 
 in height and the others two and a half Mr. 
 Maranville, who kept books and purchased 
 grain for the owners, saj's, that at one time the 
 largest warehouse was filled to the roof with 
 wheat, and contained 100,000 busliels. and the 
 other two were almost as full. He says that 
 he purchased as high as 1,500 bushels of 
 wheat from sun to sun, and that several other 
 buyers at the same time did about the same. 
 Farmers from as far west as 3Iansfield brought 
 their grain to the village. In fact, a largo 
 share of the producers in Richland. Ashland, 
 Wayne and Medina Counties sold their grain 
 at Clinton. The presence of so man}' farmers 
 in the village afforded the merchants an exten- 
 sive trade. From 1840 to 1850 more wheat 
 was purchased at Clinton than at Akron. 
 It is said that lines of teams extending into 
 the countr}' a mile waited their turns to 
 unload, and many a man sat in his wagon 
 patientl}- waiting until after midnight. An 
 average price of about 40 cents per bushel 
 was paid for wheat. Clinton became a point 
 to which merchants living west in the coun- 
 ties above referred to ordered their goods 
 to be shipped. Upon their arrival by boat, an 
 arrangement was made by which they were de- 
 posited in the warehouses until the owners could 
 send teams for them. A small commission was 
 charged for the storage. Teams loaded with 
 grain, coming from distant villages, returned 
 loaded with goods for the merchants. Corn, 
 clover-seed and other grains and seeds, were 
 
 j) fy 
 
^'. 
 
 636 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 purchased b}' parties in the village. The 
 enormous grain trade infused life into every 
 industry in the village. It soon became a great 
 coal center, and large quantities were shipped 
 b}' boat to Cleveland, to be used on the lake 
 steamers, and to be taken to cities on the lake 
 shore. Large quantities of iron and salt, and 
 leather, and merchandise and other articles, 
 came to the village, to be used throughout the 
 country by the farmers, mechanics and dealers. 
 A large wool business was also done at the vil- 
 lage. A carding machine was started, but, for 
 some unknown reason, abandoned the contem- 
 plated project. Among the merchants have 
 been Mr. Chapin, Hardy & Mofflt, John Patter- 
 son, Sorrick and Welhouse, Filson & McCon- 
 nell, Alexander Russell, M. D. Wellman, Henry 
 Davis, John Price, and many others. Mr. Rus- 
 sell kept store many years. He died a few 
 years ago, and his business was graduall}' 
 closed b}^ his daughter Maggie. Dr. Alexan- 
 der Porter located in Savannah when that vil- 
 lage was at the zenith of its prosperity. Some 
 of the Clinton followers of Esculapius have 
 been Dr. Chapin, Dr. Richie, Dr. David Chi- 
 chester (the last two keeping drugs). Dr. Ed- 
 wards and Dr. Andrew Oberlin. Dr. William 
 Bo wen, of Massillon, practiced in the township, 
 as did also Dr. Dolbear, of Fulton, and Dr. 
 Armstrong, of Do3^1estown. Charles Rinehart, 
 a lawyer, lived at the village a number of years. 
 Several pettifoggers, the most prominent being 
 Jacob Bradenstine, have also practiced law. A 
 post office was secured about the time the canal 
 was opened. Mr. Rosseter, who kept a small 
 tavern on the bank of the canal, in 1833, was 
 one of the first Postmasters. He made out 
 three different reports for the same time, all of 
 which were returned marked " incorrect." He 
 said to Mr. Maranville, " I've made out three 
 reports, and can't make 'em stick." Mr. Maran- 
 ville assisted him, and the next report " stuck." 
 Some of the merchants employed five or six 
 clerks, although the stock of goods kept on 
 hand was usually not very large. Clinton, like 
 almost every other village, has been in its time 
 a "tough place." Large quantities of liquor 
 were drunk there in earl}- years, and several 
 times the crowds of half-drunken men have 
 taken possession of things. Squads of miners 
 would come to the village, get drunk, and con- 
 vert themselves into beasts generally. The 
 citizens were imposed upon, until, finall}', they 
 
 sent to Cleveland and purchased a dozen re- 
 volvers, or perhaps pistols, and warned those 
 who were in the habit of creating a disturbance 
 that such conduct must cease. It gradually 
 did. Like all places where miners are in the 
 habit of congi'egating, fights and drunken 
 brawls have been unpleasantly frequent. The 
 village at its best has had a population upward 
 of five hundred. At present it is about three 
 hundred. Clinton was first laid out on the west 
 bank of the river, but, in 1835, Gorham Cha- 
 pin, on the opposite side, laid out another vil- 
 lage, which he named Orradeen. The lots were 
 so low and wet, however, that but few persons 
 located there, and two years later William and 
 Francis Pumro}- laid out the village of Pumroy, 
 on the east side of the river, adjoining Orradeen 
 and a little below it. Here it was that the 
 business centered, and Clinton proper, on the 
 west side, was almost deserted, many of the 
 lots being sold at Sheriff's sale. The post of- 
 fice is. Clinton, but, in conve3'ances of real prop- 
 erty, the names Orradeen, Pumroy and Clinton 
 are employed, depending where such property 
 is located. 
 
 Manchester has had, in many essential re- 
 pects, a widely different history. In Septem- 
 ber, 1815, Mahlon and Aaron' Stewart laid out 
 the village, platting the same and properly re- 
 cording it at the county seat. Lots were im- 
 mediately sold, and the village began a per- 
 manent and rapid growth. The site was much 
 pleasanter than that of Clinton, and in many 
 I'cspects a better class of citizens located at the 
 former place. Mr. Palmer opened the first 
 store, not onlj- in Manchester, but also in the 
 township, and John Snider opened the first tav- 
 ern. The settlers poured into the neighbor- 
 hood rapidly, manj' of whom built dwellings 
 in the village, where they resided. Tradesmen 
 mechanics, teachers, merchants, etc., appeared, 
 and by the time the canal Avas opened through the 
 township, three or four good stores and other in- 
 dustries to a like extent were in good running 
 order. By this time, Manchester had become 
 quite prominent as a trading-point. Its stores 
 were well-conducted, and were capable of sup- 
 pl3'ing almost an3'thing in the usual line of 
 merchandise. Its citizens were enterprising 
 and industrious, and withal Manchester was a 
 pleasant place for country people to trade. 
 When the proposed canal became a settled re- 
 ality. Manchester suffered considerablv, as 
 
 
>l^ 
 
 FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 fi3'; 
 
 many of its citizens removed to the more favored 
 villages that sprang up on this highway of wa- 
 ter. It did not die, far from it. It suffered the 
 drain from its vitals, and when the worst had 
 been done, it slowl}' regained much of its lost 
 strength. Of course, Manchester was never the 
 grain point that Clinton was. Its removal 
 from the canal rendered that out of the ques- 
 tion, besides several industries that were con- 
 ducted with great vigor at Clinton. On the 
 other hand, Manchester enjojed the absence of 
 many perplexing problems, proposed for the 
 villagers at Clinton to solve. It was never 
 captured b}- a brutal and drunken mob of reck- 
 less men, nor were its citizens insulted and 
 persecuted. Whisky was sold, and men got be- 
 yond their reason, or in other words, drunk, but 
 beyond a few light skirmishes at times, the 
 citizens enjoyed the blessings of peace. Ad- 
 ditions have been made to the village, and 
 Manchester at its best has had about as large 
 a population as Clinton. Hon. John Hoj^ lived 
 at Manchester, and Hon. Hugh R. Caldwell at 
 Clinton, both of whom served as County Judges 
 after Summit was created. When this event 
 occurred, or just before it, great opposition was 
 manifested in the township, when it was pro- 
 posed that Franklin should be severed from 
 Stark County, and made a portion of the new 
 county of Summit. The citizens opposed it to 
 the bitter end, and emplo3'ed every means to 
 prevent it, but without avail. They dx'eaded 
 the idea of becoming a part of '' Cheesdom," as 
 thej' called the Reserve, and clung with filial 
 affection to '' Molly Stark," to whom they were 
 deeply attached. They begged to be let alone, 
 and, like Rachael weeping for her children, re- 
 fused to be comforted because they were not. 
 Notwithstanding their earnest and repeated pro- 
 tests, the dreaded change took place, and went 
 into effect as silently and perfectlj- as the late 
 financial resumption. Nobod}' saw any change 
 save in their " mind's e3'e, Horatio." The Dutch 
 mingled with the Yankees with impunity, and 
 were not harmed. The Yankees visited the 
 Germanic portion of the count}', and went back 
 loaded to the muzzle with glowing metaphors 
 in its praise. The change took place without a 
 ripple, and the quiet waters of contentment 
 laughed to scorn the words of prophec}', that 
 had predicted unpleasant and even direful re- 
 sults. 
 
 Schools were opened in Franklin at an earl}^ 
 
 day. The necessity for educating the pioneer 
 children forced itself upon the attention of the 
 early settlers, and, like the ghost of Banquo, 
 would not " down." Some of the adjoining 
 townships had been settled earlier, and had 
 opened school, such as they were, at the time 
 the township was first visited. Large scholars 
 could traverse the long distance through the 
 woods to these distant schools, but the smaller 
 ones were compelled to remain at home until 
 nearer schools were begun, or until they in 
 turn had grown large enough to be trusted on 
 the long journev. It is stated that a small 
 log church had been built at Manchester 
 as early as 1816 or 1817. This building was 
 probably intended both for a church and a 
 schoolhouse. At least, it is remembered that 
 in the year 1817, a 3'oung man named Joseph 
 Mishler, of Teutonic descent, taught in this 
 old log building. The room was provided with 
 a goodl}' number of roughly constructed seats. 
 A large fire-place, capable of taking in a log of 
 almost any dimensions, occupied one end of the 
 room, and a small table was provided at the 
 other, to establish for the teacher a permanent 
 position from which to pronounce decrees, issue 
 commands, and administer condign punishment 
 to offending pupils, or, perhaps, it was intended 
 as an altar, from which some pioneer preacher 
 could thunder the anathemas of heaven upon 
 the hj-dra- headed forms of infidelity, or pour 
 divine blessings, in golden showers, upon the 
 joyous hearts of the faithful. As was stated, 
 Joseph Mishler was a German, and could 
 handle the glib idioms of his native tongue 
 with fluency and precision. Mr. Mishler had 
 but one personal drawback — he was verj' 
 homely. It is true he could not help that, al- 
 though it may be presumed that be ruefully 
 contemplated his ugh' features in that blessing 
 of civilization — a looking-glass— and wished 
 with all his heart that he could have the priv- 
 ilege of chiseling his nose to a more respect- 
 able shape, of rounding the irregular outlines 
 of his face, or of taking all the features of his 
 face apart and putting them together again 
 after the ideal his aching heart had created. 
 These things are to be presumed. Yet, through- 
 out all his trials, Mr. Mishler remained as 
 homely as ever. One thing is certain, he was 
 a good disciplinarian and a competent in- 
 structor, and his school was liked so well that 
 it was continued from that time onward. Mr. 
 
 
63» 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 ^lishler enjoyed the honor of " boarding 
 around." It is no wonder tii.it he vviis homely, 
 and tliat gray liairs soon sliovved tliemselves in 
 the auburn loclis on his brow. •' Boarding 
 around " is a direful enough punishment 
 among relined people ; but when that burden 
 is thrust upon the unfortunate shoulders of a 
 pioneer pedagogue by backwoods people, it 
 becomes cruelty unspeakable. This old house 
 was used but a few 3'ears, and was then replaced 
 by a larger and better one. One or more other 
 schoolhouses have taken the place of the old 
 one. It is quite certain that school was taught 
 in Savannah, although nothing definite on this 
 point has been learned. Where fifty or sixty 
 people resided for several ^ears, it is not out of 
 place to presume that schools sprang into life. 
 At all events, when Savannah was deserted, a 
 building that had been used there, either for a 
 schoolhouse or a store, was taken apart, con- 
 veyed to Clinton, where it was put together 
 again, and used for a schoolhouse. This 
 building was thus used until about 1836, when 
 a "compromise" schoolhouse was erected about 
 half a mile north of the village. This was 
 caused by the fact that, from the shape of tlie 
 school district, several families, living about two 
 miles north, were unwilling to go so far to school, 
 and insisted on having the new schoolhouse 
 located nearer their i-esidences. It may be 
 said here that, in early 3'ears, schools followed 
 the scholars instead of the reverse. Two other 
 schoolhouses have been built in Clinton. About 
 the time the canal was projected through the 
 township, two or tlu-ee school districts were 
 formed. As time passed on, these were in- 
 creased, and now Franklin can boast of having 
 many good schools. Mr. Maranville, who 
 located in Franklin in 1833, says, that at that 
 time there wei'e but few competent teachers in 
 the township. Large numbers applied for cer- 
 tificates to the Board of Examiners, and if any 
 were permitted to teach, the grade of the teach- 
 ers' qualification must be lowered. This was 
 done, and persons not familiar with even the 
 rudiments of the fundamental branches became 
 teachers. Mr. Maranville says that, on one 
 occasion, a " teacher " came to him for assist- 
 ance, having become " stuck " on a problem in 
 long division. Teachers assembled evenings 
 and assisted each other on the next day's 
 problems. Spelling schools were numerous, 
 and afforded a 2:reat deal of amusement. It is 
 
 related that one of the country spelling 
 schools was once broken up b)' a gang of 
 roughs, and the occasion ended in a pitched 
 battle, although it is probable that some of the 
 participants did not afterward designate the 
 occasion as ainusive. 
 
 The early church history of the township is 
 almost wholly lost in the shadows of the past, 
 and man}' dates and interesting incidents re- 
 lating thereto have faded from the memory of 
 the oldest settlers. Many of the early settlers 
 were members of various religious organiza- 
 tions, and these began to meet earl}^ at des- 
 ignated dwellings to woi'ship God. It was not 
 long ere the propriety of erecting log churches 
 began to be discussed. Itinerant ministers ap 
 peared in the township as early as 1816, and 
 held meetings in the cabins of the settlers. 
 They traveled over large sections of country, 
 and always stopped to preach where a few were 
 readv to listen. At the close of the services, a 
 collection was usually' taken for the benefit of 
 the preacher. Some of these collections did 
 not " pan out " as well as the minister desired, 
 i^tany of the earlj' preachers were eccentric 
 characters, singularly- gifted with a rude elo- 
 quence that fired the hearts of the pioneers. 
 Man}' had renounced all social ties, save such 
 as bound them to the house of praise and 
 prayer. With hearts overflowing with love for 
 Grod and humanity, they had come into the 
 wildnerness to preach " peace on earth ; good 
 will toward men." They were instrumental in 
 laying the foundation of man}' of the fine relig- 
 ious organizations that are seen throughout the 
 country to-day. So far as known, the first 
 church was the old log building located at 
 Manchester, as alreadv referred to above, unless 
 
 '■ The groves wore God's first temples." 
 
 Meetings were conducted in this old house by 
 local preachers, and by some of the more prom- 
 inent of the early settlers. It is not certain 
 which denomination, if an}', predominated at 
 these gatherings. It is likely that all pro- 
 fessors of religion, without regard to creeds or 
 sects met here and worshiped in unison and 
 harmony. An early minister in the township 
 was Rev. J. ^Y. Hamm, an Old-School Presby- 
 terian, who was a Grerman, and who could 
 preach either in his native tongue or in broken 
 English. If the German element predominated 
 in his cono-regation. the word of God was 
 
'/• 
 
 COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 639 
 
 preached in that language ; but if many were 
 present who could understand German imper- 
 fectly or not at all, the sermon was preached 
 in English. The Presbyterians built a church 
 at Manchester a few 3'ears after the canal was 
 opened, and this society, at times, has been 
 quite strong, and has done much good in the 
 neighborhood. It is impossible to estimate 
 the great good done by a lively religious so- 
 ciety. The nobler instincts of life are strength- 
 ened, many species of vice are shunned, and 
 the result is an abundant harvest of pure lives 
 and morals. May religious societies continue 
 their noble work until — 
 
 ' ' All crimes shall cease, and ancient frauds shall fail, 
 Returning Justice lift aloft her scale ; 
 Peace, o'er the world, her olive wand extend, 
 And white-robed Innocence from heav'n descend. ' ' 
 
 Some eight or ten years after the Presby- 
 terian Church was built, an Evangelical Church 
 was erected at Manchester. This society is 
 
 said to be doing well. About the same time, 
 the Methodists constructed a church at Clinton. 
 At the head of this denomination were Alex- 
 ander Russell, Washington Heffleman, James 
 Hile and others. The United Brethren also 
 built a church at Clinton, during the late war. 
 About four years ago, the English Lutherans 
 started up, and built a church at Clinton. The 
 most of these churches are doing well. When 
 the Germans make up their minds to join a 
 church, like a flock of sheep they go with a 
 rush, and go to stay. The German Lutherans 
 have a small church in the northern part. The 
 congregation is considerably- reduced. Franklin 
 is well supplied with good churches and schools, 
 and no family of children need be raised to 
 their ma,jority without a good common-school 
 education, sufficient for the transactions of life, 
 and the acquirement of that earl}' religious and 
 moral training, which furnishes sober, intelli- 
 gent and upright citizens. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX.* 
 
 (OPLEV TOWNSHIP— EARLY PHYSICAL CONDITION — NAMES OK EARLY SETTLERS — PIONEER 
 
 IVIPROVEMENTS — RISE AND PROGRESS OF INDUSTRIES— COPLEY 
 
 CENTER— SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES. 
 
 THE generations of to-day can scarcely 
 realize the hardships passed through by 
 their parents and grandparents more than half 
 a century ago. The countiy was covered with 
 an unbroken forest, through which wild ani- 
 mals and wild men roamed at will, and nothing 
 but continued toil and privation could be ex- 
 pected if pleasant homes were to be created. 
 The roads were mere paths through the woods, 
 and these were in a state bordering on chaotic. 
 Indeed, it is averred by the early settlers that 
 during the spring of the year they could be 
 traveled in but one direction — toward China — 
 and during the remainder caused many a sober 
 and moral man to violate his church vows. 
 What caused the greatest anxiet}', however, 
 was the extreme difficulty in getting supplies of 
 every kind. Men who came to the back woods 
 with but little money or property and a large 
 family of almost helpless children, were, indeed, 
 to be pitied, as, in nine cases out of ten, a mis- 
 
 ♦Contributed by W. A. Goodspeed. 
 
 erable existence was before them, without any 
 satisfactory promise of improvement for a 
 score or more of years. Store supplies of all 
 kinds were almost fabulous in price ; wages 
 were reduced to a starving minimum ; crops 
 raised under tr^'ing and adverse circumstances 
 brought scared}' any return ; schools did not 
 exist, even in name ; neighbors were far apart, 
 each struggling to make a living, and the 
 homes were cheerless, uninviting, and too often 
 uncomfortable. This is the darker side of the 
 picture. Some families came to the backwoods 
 with abundant means. These succeeded in ren- 
 dering their situation comfortable, and very often 
 attractive, and, after a comparatively short pe- 
 riod were independent and happy. 5lany times 
 families were compelled to relinquish their 
 farms and return to their former homes in the 
 East. 
 
 The long slopes of land in Copley Township 
 render it one of the most beautiful tracts of 
 land in the county. The vision is not bounded 
 
 V 
 
^'i 
 
 ^ ^>' 
 
 640 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 by short distances, but extends across exten- 
 sive valleys or basins, through which the prin- 
 cipal streams flow. These valleys are not 
 bounded by bluffs, but have a gradual ascent, 
 in some cases, for several miles, and the higher 
 lands, even after that distance, do not reach an 
 altitude but little exceeding eighty feet. How- 
 ever, there is some rough land in the township, 
 perhaps mostly in the eastern and southern 
 portions. Wolf Creek enters from the west, 
 crossing Lots 31, 32, 39, 42, 43, 48 and 47. 
 Pigeon Creek rises in the northwest corner, 
 and flows across Lots 11, 20, 19, 22, 23, 17, 24, 
 25 and 26. Shocolog Creek (an Indian name, 
 probably) rises in the northern part, and crosses 
 Lots 3, 8, 7, 14, 17, 16 and 25. The land 
 bordering these streams, with some exceptions, 
 is swampy even at the present day, and in eai'ly 
 years must have been great bodies of muck 
 and water. Wolf Creek, throughout the most 
 of its course, is not so swampy. Shocolog 
 Pond is an enlargement of the creek of the 
 same name. White Pond is located on Lot 35, 
 and Black Pond on Lot 36. In several places 
 along the swampy valleys of these streams, 
 there are what might be called islands. These 
 are small, irregular-shaped bodies of land, rising 
 in some cases fifteen or twenty feet above the 
 level of the swamp, and presenting the appear- 
 ance of having been surrounded with water at 
 no very remote period. One of these, called 
 " Fort Island," near the residence of Delos Bos- 
 worth, is the site of what is unquestionably the 
 remains of an ancient earth fortification. A 
 description of this interesting " fort " will be 
 found elsewhere in this volume. An island 
 near this is called " Beech Island," and is sup- 
 posed to have been used in ancient times as a 
 cemetery, and small mounds, resembling graves, 
 are pointed out. Another body of land farther 
 down the same stream (Shocolog Creek) is 
 called "Sugar Island." Pigeon Creek, after 
 leaving the township from Lot 26, takes a cir- 
 cuit in Portage Township, and returns, crossing 
 Lots 36, 45 and 46. These three lots are cov- 
 ered with an extensive swamp, which, in early 
 days, was the resort of countless millions of 
 pigeons that came there to roost. In fact, all 
 along the valleys of these streams, the pigeons 
 were accustomed to assemble in spring and 
 autumn. Large numbers were killed and eaten 
 by our parents. It was dangerous to enter the 
 swamps at night, as very often large limbs 
 
 were broken from the trees when the birds set- 
 tled upon them. An unusual noise would cause 
 millions to rise,' and after they had circled 
 around a short time in the darkness, all the 
 time following a leader, they would suddenly 
 descend, and, very likely, all would try to 
 alight on the same tree, which would be broken 
 down. In the northeast part is a small creek, 
 called Sand Run. An abundance of excellent 
 sandstone is to be found in the township. The 
 traveler over Copley notices that the township 
 is crossed by several prominent ridges, which 
 have a general direction east and west. These 
 ridges are a mile or two apart, and seemingly 
 belong to that series of terraces or ridges, which 
 extends across Ohio, south of Lake Erie and 
 north of the water-shed, which geologists main- 
 tain was formed during the Glacial period. On 
 the farm of William Wagner is a large mound, 
 supposed by some to have been built by the 
 Mound-Buiiders, and by others to have been 
 formed by natural means during the Griacial 
 epoch. 
 
 The whereabouts of the early records of the 
 township is unknown or forgotten, and thus 
 much interesting material is placed be^'ond the 
 reach of the historian. •' What is everybod^^'s 
 business is nobody's business," is verified in 
 the case of the early records. The proceedings 
 on the occasion of the oi'ganization of the town- 
 ship are alwa^^s interesting, and will continue 
 to become more so as time advances. A few 
 items are recollected and these will be recorded 
 in their proper connection. The first settler in 
 the township is said to have been Jonah Turner, 
 who came from Pennsylvania and located on 
 the Stony Ridge east of Miller's Tavern. He 
 came in 1814, and built a small log cabin. A 
 3'ear or two before. Turner had marched along 
 what is now well known as the Smith road with 
 the battalion under Maj. Crogan, of which he 
 was a member. The army had camped near 
 where Turner afterward selected his farm, and 
 on this occasion (as is related) he concluded 
 that, if his life was spared thi'ough the dangers 
 of war, he would locate in that vicinity. He 
 lived here until his death. William Green also 
 came to Copley in 1814. It is not known 
 to the writer whether this man was a relative of 
 Gardner Green, one of the purchasers of the 
 township, from Connecticut, or not. The latter 
 owned perhaps more than any other of the 
 original proprietors, and in his honor the town- 
 
 ^ 
 
a k^ 
 
 J>L 
 
 COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 641 
 
 ship had been informally styled " Greenfield ; " 
 but afterward, for some reason unknown, the 
 name was changed to Copley in honor of 
 Green's wife, whose maiden name was Copley. 
 These two were probably the only settlers in 
 the township until the foil of 1815, when Sam- 
 uel Hawkins came from the Green Mountain 
 State, and located in the northwest corner. 
 His son, George Washington, was the first 
 white child born in Copley, his birth occurring 
 December 29, 1815. The following list is only 
 approximately correct : Lawrence 3Ioore, a 
 Scotchman who had come to x\merica in 1797, 
 settled on Lot 1, in 1816. He was a sailor, and 
 soon after coming to this country was im- 
 pressed on board the British frigate, Tartar, 
 where he served for six years, but finally pur- 
 chased his release by paying $1,225. Moore 
 built a small log cabin, and lived until a few 
 years ago. In 1817, Allen Bosworth came 
 from Rhode Island, and settled near the center. 
 His son Delos was the second child born in the 
 township, his birth occurring in January of the 
 following year. Delos Bosworth is yet living, 
 and it is due to his unusuall}' retentive mem- 
 ory that many of the events narrated here are 
 rescued from falling into forge tfulness. In 
 1818, Jacob Spafford, Nathaniel Davis, Jona- 
 than Starr antl Gat Yale ai'rived. In 1819. 
 Chester Orcutt came. In 1820, Parker and 
 Benjamin Taylor, and within the next ten years 
 the first settlers came about as follows : David, 
 Samuel and James Griffin, H. C. Aikens, Na- 
 thaniel Norville, Erastus, Flavil and Harvej' 
 Beckworth, David Ta3'lor, Chauncey and Will- 
 iam Davis, Smith and Austin Hull, Noah, Al- 
 bert and Thomas Spafford, Budd Hopkins, 
 Levitt and Peter Wicks, Benjamin Sandford, 
 Noah Robinson and otiiers. There also came 
 in soon afterward Henry Francisco, Jackson 
 Chapman, Ashabel Chapman, H. D. Patch, Will- 
 iam and Hiram Randall, James Smith, Frank 
 Wilcox, Darwin and CuUen Clark, Lorenzo 
 Russell, Joseph Younglove, William Hanson, 
 Dr. Alpheus Babcock, S. P. Starr, Thomas Cole, 
 Dow Hanson, Lawrence Brewer, Alonzo Coon, 
 George Traver, William, Jacob and Thomas 
 Weager, M. D. Pratt, John Mann and several 
 others. Dr. Elijah Canfield and his bi'other 
 William came in about 1824. Prior to 1835, 
 there also came in Lyman Green, William Hux- 
 ley, Chauncey Lease, Robex't Stimpson, Henry 
 Begun, Daniel, Joseph and Richard Riley, Dan- 
 
 iel Sandford, John Pratt, Salmon Haysington 
 and several others. 
 
 In 1825, evidences of civilization were every- 
 where apparent. Log houses sprang up from 
 all directions, and various industries began to 
 arise. The settlers slowl^^ began to surround 
 themselves with something more than the bare 
 necessities of life. Schools, churches, mills, 
 etc., began to appear, and something like pleas- 
 ure was felt in living in the fast disappearing 
 forests. 
 
 The homely ways and rude garb be- 
 gan to give way before the advance of the 
 autocTat Fashion. Calico could be obtained 
 for less than 75 cents a yard ; axes were no 
 longer $5 or $6 ; all supplies steadily decreased 
 in cost, as the roads and means of transporta- 
 tion became better ; wages for the poor man 
 were soon higher, and the township, and in- 
 deed many other townships in Ohio, entered an 
 era of prosperity unknown to it before. In 
 1281, a ball was given in the township, at 
 which all attended. The girls came out with 
 their calico dresses with flowing skirts, and the 
 boys appeared in the rustic garb of fashiona- 
 ble pioneers. The entertainment was a finan- 
 cial enterprise, created in the brain of Smith 
 Hull, who agreed to furnish everything neces- 
 sary except whisky and music, provided each 
 gentleman would chop wood for him two da3's. 
 Roswell Barnett played the fiddle, for which 
 each couple paid him a bushel of corn (not the 
 juice). AH was gayety and enjoyment. Cupid, 
 the little wretch, was abroad, armed with bow 
 and arrows, whose barbed points had been 
 dipped in the green poison of jealousy. His 
 skill at archery was better than usual on that 
 occasion, and even he, hard-hearted though he 
 be, must have enjoyed the music and dance, as 
 during the evening he shot several arrows into 
 warm hearts — arrows that had not been pois- 
 oned with jealousy — hearts that wxre after- 
 ward united. The ball was a domestic event, 
 as well as a financial success. "Scheming 
 mammas" were present to select husbands for 
 their daughters — at least they were present. 
 There was snow on the ground, and what a 
 merry time they had going home. How " eyes 
 looked love to eyes," and each throbbing heart 
 beat a responsive echo to the one near it ! How 
 short seemed the walk through the woods, and 
 how the parting was protracted, as the first 
 warm kiss of love was given and returned ! 
 
 -^ 
 
642 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 There comes to the mind the sweet music of 
 Burns — 
 
 •'How sweetl}^ bloomed tlu' gay green birk! 
 
 How rich the hawthorn's blossom! 
 As underneath their fragrant shade, 
 
 I clasped her to my bosom. 
 The golden hours on angel wings 
 
 Flew o'er me and my dearie; 
 For dear to me as life and light. 
 
 Was mj^ sweet Highland Mary." 
 
 ■' Wi' mony a vow and locked embrace, 
 Our parting was fu' tender; 
 And pledging aft to meet again 
 We tore oursel's assunder." 
 
 But the walk, so short and enjoyed so much, 
 was ended — the sweet dream, like a vision of 
 heaven passed awaj^ and the sober realities of 
 pioneer life swept over the bright scene with 
 their gloom and shadow. How many hearts 
 that on that happy evening beat with love for 
 the first time, could afterward cry out in sorrow 
 as Burns did — 
 
 "O! pale, pale now, those rosy lips, 
 
 I aft hae kissed sae fondly; 
 And clos'd for aye that sparkling glance, 
 
 That dwelt on me sae kindly. 
 And moldering now in silent dust. 
 
 The heart that loved me dearly: 
 Yet still within my bosom's core, 
 
 Shall live my Highland Mary." 
 
 Is there anything more precious than the sweet 
 recollection of a sainted face that was once s » 
 bright in youth and health, but which now lies 
 pale and cold in the embrace of death "? Ah ! 
 how man}' hearts, in the morning of life, with 
 every prospect delightful and ever}' impulse of 
 heart and mind ennobled by the vision of 
 divine ideals, have been stricken down in fren- 
 zied sorrow as their earthly idols were laid low 
 in the dust — have gone weeping away, clothed 
 in the mourning raiment of sackcloth and 
 ashes. Then how kind is Solace to enter the 
 sorrowing heart with sweet promises of the 
 renewal of love in the shadowy world revealed 
 to us in dreams. 
 
 Copley belonged to Medina County before 
 Summit County was created. It was Town- 
 ship 2, Range 12, of the Western Reserve, and 
 was one of six which composed Wolf Creek 
 Township, the others being Norton, Wads- 
 worth, Sharon, Guilford and Montville. It was 
 organized into a distinct township, with its 
 present boundaries and territory, in July, 
 1819. The first township election was held in 
 
 the barn of Allen Bosworth, as is shown by 
 the following, which is quoted from the rec- 
 ords : " On motion, Thomas Beckwith was 
 elected Chairman, and then the meeting was 
 adjourned to the barn of Allen Bosworth for 
 the purpose of doing business." A year or 
 two before, Lawrence Moore had been com- 
 missioned one of the Justices of Wolf Creek 
 Township, of which Coplej' was a part, and 
 after the creation of the latter he served out 
 his time. At this first election, Joseph Bos- 
 worth and Jonathan Starr were rival candi- 
 dates for the position of Justice of the Peace 
 (not much rivalry, however, as neither was 
 anxious to officiate in that capacity). Thirteen 
 votes were polled, of which Bosworth received 
 seven and Starr six. Owing to some imperfec- 
 tion, either in the election or in the qualifica- 
 tion, these proceedings were annulled, and a 
 new election was ordered to be held June 10, 
 1820, at which time Starr was elected. From 
 the fact that the official duties in early years 
 were light or altogether wanting, it was cus- 
 tomary to honor one man with the responsibil- 
 it}' and dignity of several offices. It thus 
 occurred that Starr was the first Township 
 Clerk. Thomas Beckwith was elected Super- 
 visor in April, 1820, and Jacob Spafford and 
 Lawrence Moore were elected Overseers of the 
 Poor. The names of the other early officers 
 are forgotten. The first lawsuit begun in Cop- 
 ley was before Justice Lawrence Mooi'e. Suit 
 was instituted at the suggestion of David 
 Point, whose wife had loaned a spinning-wheel 
 to Mrs. William Green, the latter, as was 
 alleged, refusing to return certain portions of 
 the machine. The matter was compromised 
 before trial through the influence of Moore, 
 who advised Mrs. Point in this wise : " You 
 keep the grass too well trod between your 
 houses ; let it grow thicker, and you will agree 
 better." Some years afterward, Gat Yale arose 
 one Sunday morning, and going out, discovered 
 a bear endeavoring to escort a member of the 
 genus Sus. against its wishes and vociferous 
 protests, into the forest ; whereupon Yale, re- 
 gardless of the day, pursued the bear and shot 
 it. He was prosecuted before Squire Moore 
 for violating the Sabbath, and, upon conviction, 
 was fined $1. Whether this had anything to 
 do with Gat's subseijuent conduct is not 
 known ; but he soon afterward joined the 
 Mormon ranks, and was living, not many years 
 
COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 ^ «) 
 
 643 
 
 k 
 
 ago. ;it Salt Lake City. From the fact that 
 most of the earlier settlers of Cople}^ have 
 passed awa}- like the twilight, and also that the 
 township was settled later than others in its 
 vicinit}^ it has been impossible to get posses- 
 sion of personal incidents of adventure, with- 
 out which a township record lacks an attractive 
 feature. That many exciting and interesting 
 hunts took place in early years is well known 
 to the citizens. A circular hunt was instituted 
 in about the year 1823, and a large portion or 
 the whole of the township was inclosed. The 
 center was one of the lax'ge swamps. But lit- 
 tle could be learned by the writer concerning 
 this hunt, except that quite a large number of 
 deer, bears, wolves, etc., was killed. It is related, 
 that, in the disposal of the game after the 
 hunt had ended, two men, each of whom enter- 
 tained a bitter grudge against the other, be- 
 came angry, and a savage and protracted fight 
 occurred, in which both men were badly used 
 up. William Cogswell, who settled in Granger 
 Township, Medina County, was one of the 
 most noted of the early hunters in this section 
 of country. He often penetrated the swamps 
 in Cople}'. and, if the fticts could be known, 
 many an exciting and dangerous hunt, in 
 which he played the role of a star actor, could 
 be told. Almost all of the earliest settlers 
 who had arrived at man's estate when they 
 first came in could boast of having killed bears 
 during the few earliest ^-ears. At that time, it 
 was no trouble to kill deer, as even the most 
 inexperienced could fire a rifle (if they had a 
 rest), and often that was the only effort neces- 
 sary to bring down the quarry. 
 
 It was not long ere Copley was well popu- 
 lated, with numerous industries and institutions, 
 which arose to improve the domestic, intellectual 
 and moral status of the citizens. The steady 
 and extensive demand for alcoholic drinks gave 
 rise (as it alwaj-s will) to numerous distillei'ies, 
 which began to furnish an abundance of whisky, 
 which numbers its victims by the millions. So 
 prevalent had become the practice of drinking, 
 and so manj' men had become confirmed drunk- 
 ards, despite reiterated statements to the con- 
 trary, that efforts, made in a few localities to 
 end the manufacture and consumption, atti'acted 
 general attention, and were imitated throughout 
 not only Copley and vicinit}-, but over the State 
 and country. These efforts received a splendid 
 impetus in about 1830, at which time almost 
 
 every township in what is now Summit County 
 organized well-attended temperance societies, 
 and soon the various organizations could num- 
 ber its members in the aggregate by thousands. 
 In 1828. the church societies throughout the 
 country' recommended a day to be observed in 
 humiliation, fasting and prayer, on account of 
 the prevailing sin of intemperance. In accord- 
 ance with this recommendation, a meeting was 
 announced to be lield for the purpose stated at 
 the old log schoolhouse, on the northwest corner 
 of Copley. The house was filled with enthusi- 
 astic people, and prayers for the speed}^ termi- 
 nation of the prevailing evil were freely offered. 
 Remarks were made b}^ several of those present, 
 during which the pointed question was asked, 
 " Is it consistent for Christians to pray for the 
 abrogation of any particular sin, or evil, when 
 their actions and influence favor its continu- 
 ance ?" This question unmasked the whole 
 situation, and led to a spirited discussion as to 
 what should be done in the case b}^ consistent 
 and earnest Christian people. A committee 
 was appointed to draft a constitution, which 
 was to be submitted for adoption or rejection 
 at a subsequent meeting. On the 29th of Janu- 
 ary, 1829, the committee reported the following 
 preamble and constitution, which is given in 
 full, as it is said, on good authority, to have 
 been the first one drafted and adopted in Ohio : 
 
 Viewing, with feelings of deep regret, the fatal 
 consequences resulting from the intemperate use of 
 ardent spirits, and believing that so far from con- 
 tributing to health, happiness or prosperity, the 
 immoderate use of ardent spirits has a direct ten- 
 dency to destroy health, debase the understanding 
 and corrupt the morals ; and that it introduces vice 
 and misery into families, and has a demoralizing 
 influence on the community at large. 
 
 We, therefore, the subscribers, professing to be 
 friends to morahty and good order, and desiring to 
 lend oin- influence to check the progress of an evil 
 so fatal in its consequences, do hereby form our- 
 selves into a Temperance Society, by adopting and 
 adhering to the following constitution : 
 
 Article 1. This society shall be called "The 
 First Temperance Society of Medina Count}-." 
 
 Art. 3. The object oi the compact shall be the 
 suppression of intemperance, by doing away with 
 the unnecessary use of ardent spirits. 
 
 Art. 6. The members of this society pledge 
 themselves not to use ardent spirits, unless neces- 
 sary for the promotion of health or its restoration, 
 and also to discoiu'age their use by others. 
 
 Art. 4. (Refers to the duties and appointment 
 of officers). 
 
 Art. 5. The members of the compact shall make 
 use of the means in their power to prevent the in- 
 
 
644 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 temperate use of ardent spirits, and shall use their 
 endeavors to disseminate a knowledge of the direful 
 and fatal effects of intemperance upon individuals 
 and upon society generally. 
 
 Art. 6. (Refers to the time of holding meetings). 
 
 Art. 7. Each meeting shall be opened and closed 
 by prayer. 
 
 Art. 8. Any person may be a member of this 
 society, by signing the foregoing articles and ad- 
 hering to the same. 
 
 Art. 9. This constitution may be altered by a 
 majority vote of the society, notice being given to 
 that effect at a previous meeting. 
 
 John Codding, of Coddingville, is believed 
 to have been the writer of this constitution. It 
 was the first declaration of temperate independ- 
 ence in Ohio, and the first four persons who 
 appended their •' John Hancock's " to this in- 
 teresting document are, in order, as follows : 
 Lawrence Moore, John Codding, Eurt Codding 
 and Charles Goodwin. This organization did 
 good work, and yet apparently, it did not de- 
 crease, in the least, the use of alcoholic drinks ; 
 for, while some few signed and kept the pledge, 
 many — through spite or otherwise — -resisted the 
 movement, and encouraged the manufacture 
 and consumption of whisky. The organization 
 of the society' was largely brought about by 
 the evil effects of several distilleries which had 
 early been erected in the township, and which 
 were doing a large business. The first one had 
 been erected by Chancey and William Davis, 
 about half a mile north of the Center, in the 
 year 1820. Their grain was ground at neigh- 
 boring mills, and finally at Akron, and, despite 
 the establishment of temperance societies and 
 the attack made on intemperance, this distil- 
 lery was conducted for more than thirty years, 
 turning out during its continuance large quan- 
 tities of whisky, brandy, gin, and wine for 
 sacramental and other purposes. It is said to 
 have averaged as high as fifty gallons a day, 
 and large quantities were shipped to distant 
 points, and a fine revenue was returned to the 
 owners. In about 1826, Allen Bosworth erected 
 a distillery one-half mile west of the Center. 
 He did a large, paying business for a number 
 of years, and then rented the distillery to 
 Alonzo Coon, who also conducted the business 
 almost as extensively. It is said that the dis- 
 tillery averaged about forty-five gallons a day 
 while it was conducted. The building and ap- 
 paratus were purchased in 1842, by Heman 
 Oviatt, who almost immediately closed out the 
 business. About this time, Alonzo Coon built 
 
 another on the opposite side of the road. He 
 also manufactured extensively for some four 
 years, when he severed his connection with the 
 business. Daniel Arnold erected a distillery in 
 about the year 1840, and for some ten or twelve 
 years averaged about twenty-five gallons of 
 liquor a day, at the end of which time he like- 
 wise changed his occupation. William Wel- 
 house built an institution of the same kind 
 about the same time, and averaged some forty 
 gallons a day during the greater part of ten 
 years. This sums up the record of these dis- 
 tilleries, and yet it is impossible to write their 
 complete history. Who shall tell of the evil 
 done by them, of the homes and lives made 
 desolate, of the misery created in families that 
 before were bright with the sunshine of happi- 
 ness. The business was so common, that those 
 engaged in it thought no evil of what they were 
 doing ; and, in earlier days, the manufacture 
 was considered respectable and even laudable, 
 as the distilleries furnished a market for grain, 
 and supplied whisky, which, on account of cus- 
 tom, was indispensable to farm management. 
 It thus occurred, that many of the most re- 
 spected and prominent citizens were engaged 
 in the manufacture and sale of liquor. 
 
 It is thought that Chancey and William 
 Davis built the first saw-mill in the township. 
 It was located a short distance north of the 
 village. They put in the same building a turn- 
 ing-lathe and one run of stone for grinding 
 grain. A dam was built across Pigeon Creek, 
 and a fair water-power was obtained by means 
 of a race. After operating the mill about ten 
 years, it was sold to Reuben Lord. It after- 
 ward was owned and operated for short peri- 
 ods b^^ Col. John Stearns, Charles Fuller, Hen- 
 ry Clark, George Welhouse, Charles Crum, 
 Henry Stimpson, Ransom Arnold, and several 
 others. It is yet standing, and is owned by 
 Mr. Arnold. While in the possession of Mr. 
 Lord, the turning-lathe and set of stones were 
 removed, and were not afterward replaced. 
 The mill has always been a good one, and, in 
 its time, has furnished large quantities of lum- 
 ber, much of which ma}- yet be found in dwell- 
 ings and other buildings over a large tract of 
 country. 
 
 Lawrence Moore built a saw-mill in about 
 the year 1830, locating it on Yellow Creek, 
 in the northwest part of the township. 
 It was abandoned at the end of some ten or 
 
•K* 
 
 COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 645 
 
 twelve years. A saw-mill was built on Wolf 
 Creek, in about the year 1832, by Col. John 
 Stearns, but was sold a year or two later to 
 Benjamin Stimpson, who, after operating it six 
 or eight years, sold out to John Hetrick, upon 
 whose hands it ran down, and was not subse- 
 quently rebuilt or re-operated. Parker & T3'ler 
 built one on the same stream a year or two 
 after the erection of the last mentioned, and 
 after operating it quite extensively fifteen or 
 twent}^ years, it was purchased by Allen Par- 
 dee, who improved it and built a grist-mill on 
 the same dam. The saw-mill was soon afterward 
 discontinued. Peter and Levitt Wicks also 
 built a saw- mill on Wolf Creek prior to 1835. 
 At the expiration of about five years, the mill 
 was purchased by George Welhouse, under 
 whose management it was conducted success- 
 fully for about fifteen years, when it went into 
 the possession of Mr. Austin, who removed the 
 machiner}' to another locality. Chancey 
 Davis and Col. Stearns built a saw-mill in the 
 swamps in the eastern part, in about the year 
 1844. It ran for a number of yeai's, and was 
 burned down, but was rebuilt. It was aban- 
 doned long ago. Two or three others have 
 been built in the swamps in later years, the 
 most of which have been operated by steam. 
 David Grill built one within the corporate lim- 
 its of the village some seven years ago. It 
 is operated by steam. A carding-mill was 
 erected at an early da}- on Wolf Creek, but af- 
 ter two or three years, the enterprise was aban- 
 doned. 
 
 The grist-mill, conducted by the Davis Broth- 
 ers north of town, was the first in Copley. 
 Allen Pardee conducted his grist-mill, men- 
 tioned above, until some sixteen years ago. 
 Charles Zeigler owns and operates the mill at 
 present. It is said that Allen Pardee was the 
 only one among the earl}' owners of grist-mills 
 who derived a paying income from the busi- 
 ness. The mill under his management is said 
 to have been excellent, and a large amount of 
 merchant work was done in addition to the reg- 
 ular custom work. Mr. Welhouse, at the time 
 he got possession of the saw-mill on Wolf 
 Creek, built a grist-mill on the same dam, 
 wliich was burned down some ten years later. 
 It was a good mill, and did good work. Col. 
 Stearns and Darwin Clark built a grist-mill at 
 the Center in about 1858, in which were placed 
 three run of stone. The mill started finely, but. 
 
 two years later, was burned to the ground, and 
 was not afterward rebuilt. 
 
 In 1837, a stock company was formed for the 
 purpose of furnishing teams and a stage, to be 
 run from Cleveland to Massillon, by the way 
 of Brecksville, Copley and Clinton. Some $2,500 
 worth of stock was subsci'ibed and paid in, and 
 sixteen horses were purchased to be used on the 
 route. The round trip from Cleveland was 
 made in two daj's by a change of horses at the 
 different stations. The Shepard Brothers, at 
 Brecksville, had been largely instrumental in 
 securing the subscription, and some twent}- or 
 twenty-five men along the route had taken stock 
 in the company, several of whom lived in Cop- 
 ley. About a year after the stage began run- 
 ning, for some cause which the writer was un- 
 able to learn, all the horses were taken to 
 Cleveland, where they were detained, and the 
 stage ceased its regular trips. The company 
 was not incorporated, the members being simply 
 bound together by a naked contract. The de- 
 tention of the horses at Cleveland was probably 
 a scheme to defraud the greater number of the 
 members out of their stock. But this was not 
 to be permitted, and several citizens along the 
 route went to Cleveland and got at least a num- 
 ber of the horses, and the matter was finally 
 adjusted. 
 
 The first building at the center was a log 
 schoolhouse, located opposite Mr. Cole's Hotel, 
 and was built in the year 1819. In referring 
 to the village, the present corporate limits are 
 not included, but simpl\- the clusters of houses 
 at the geographical center. According to the 
 reports, the next building was the Thomas store, 
 built by Peter and Levitt Wicks in about the 
 year 1826. These men, as stated by several, 
 placed in the building about $500 worth of 
 goods, which the}^ continued to sell until they 
 were bought out by Oviatt & Baldwin. Other 
 reports are to the effect that the Wicks Brothers 
 did not keep a stock of goods at all. but that 
 the storeroom was unoccupied until it was pur- 
 chased by Oviatt & Baldwin. At least, it is 
 known that the latter firm placed goods valued 
 at about $2,000 in the room, in about the j-ear 
 1832, and continued selling some five years, 
 when the partnership was dissolved, and the 
 junior member entered the Cole Hotel, which 
 had been erected by him two jears before, and 
 formally opened the building for the entertain, 
 ment of the public. After the dissolution of 
 
 :v 
 
4j 
 
 646 
 
 HLSTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 the partnership, Mr. Oviatt almost immediately 
 retired, and engaged in other pursuits. Patch 
 & Robinson succeeded him, probably' buying 
 his stock of goods, which was increased ; but 
 these men retired after about one }ear and a 
 half They were followed by Robert Codding, 
 who likewise engaged in other pursuits after 
 two or three years. The room remained unoc- 
 cupied for a short time ; but, in 1845, Augus- 
 tus Warner entered it with a small stock, 
 which was steadily increased, until, at the ex- 
 piration of six years, it was worth at least 
 $3,000. He kept a good store, and is said to 
 have made considerable money, which he knew 
 how to save. Nash & Stebbins followed War- 
 ner, but two years later they were succeeded 
 by John Starr, who continued until the spring 
 of 18G5, making in the meantime no little 
 money. He then sold to Mr. Lame}^, who, at 
 the end of eighteen months, transferred the 
 stock to William P. Craig, the latter remaining 
 in the business some six 3'ears. Nathan Furst 
 was Craig's partner, at least, a portion of the 
 time. He continued the pursuit after the re- 
 tirement of Craig, but six months later failed, 
 and his goods were sold at auction and other- 
 wise throughout the surrounding country'. The 
 building was then vacant a year or so, after 
 which Mr. Gardner placed in it a small stock 
 of goods ; but in about 1875, 0. T. Lane be- 
 gan with a new stock, and two years later sold 
 to Callow & Leonard. The building is at pres- 
 ent occupied by Mr. Thomas. 
 
 The town hall building was erected by Joseph 
 and Henry White in about the year 1837. It 
 was designed for a storeroom, but for some 
 reason unexplained was not entered until about 
 1841, when Wicks & Parmele placed a stock 
 of goods in the building, and conducted the 
 mercantile pursuit some three years, when Par- 
 melee purchased his partner's share, and soon 
 afterward removed his stock to the Welhouse 
 settlement, at which place he sold goods for a 
 number of years. Two or three other parties 
 were in the White building for a short time. 
 George Babcock was in with a small stock 
 some twelve years before the last war, but with- 
 drew at the expiration of about two 3'ears, and 
 the building has not been used since as a store- 
 room. This has been the extent of the mer- 
 cantile pursuit in Copley Center, though there 
 have been one or two country stores in the 
 western part of the township. The tavern 
 
 building has been used as such the greater por- 
 tion of the time since it was built and opened 
 b}' Andrew Baldwin. Since then, the follow- 
 ing and others have kept public house in the 
 village : Noah Robinson, Hiram Randall, Mr. 
 Van Evera, Lewis Norton and Daniel Taylor. 
 The building was used a number of years by 
 Oviatt & Stearns as a cheese dry-iiouse. It is 
 now occupied b}' Dennis Cole, an experienced 
 landlord, whose personal appearance in every 
 way resembles that of his fellow-countr3'man, 
 the patron saint of boys (not girls), Santa Glaus, 
 or Kurcht Globes. It is also true that — 
 
 " The stump of a pipe he holds tight in his teeth. 
 And the smoke it encircles his head like a wreath, 
 He lias a broad face and a little round body 
 That shakes when he hiuglis like a bowl fidl of 
 toddy," 
 
 Various industries have flourished in the 
 village. Isaac Moneysraith, as early as 1833, 
 erected a suitable building, and began doing 
 cabinet work. He emplo^^ed three or four 
 workmen, and made bedsteads, tables, bureaus, 
 chairs, etc., and continued until about 1837, 
 when Douglass Storr became proprietor. This 
 man continued the l)usiness perhaps ten years, 
 or possibly longer, manufacturing coffins and 
 running a hearse a portion of the time. The 
 building was finally burned down. Dow Ben- 
 nett was engaged in cabinet business for a 
 short time. Soon after the last war, Coon & 
 Son started a cheese factory, one-half mile west 
 of the Center, and have continued doing a good 
 business since. The White Brothers opened a 
 wagon-shop in about the year 1832. They 
 employed some four workmen, and continued 
 the occupation ten 3'ears, when they sold to W. 
 P. Craig, who, at the end of three or four years, 
 transferred the property to William Whitehill, 
 in whose ownership it burned down. It was 
 rebuilt by Henry Leiby about eight years ago. 
 Edward Voluntine now owns the shop, and is 
 doing a fair business. The public green or 
 square at the Center was the joint gift of four 
 men. whose land in earlj- years cornered at the 
 cross-roads. These four men were Heman 
 Oviatt, Levitt Wicks, Simon P. Starr and Jon- 
 athan Starr, who gave the land in about the 
 year 1832. It is said that Mr. Oviatt, about 
 the same time, laid out a number of lots on the 
 northwest corner, which were platted and prop- 
 erly recorded at the county seat. Additions 
 have since been made to the original lots, and 
 
 ?p 
 
COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 647 
 
 possibly some of these additions have been 
 recorded. A Grange lodge was organized in 
 the village a few years ago. Dr. Alpheus Bab- 
 cock, who was among the earliest settlers, 
 began practicing his profession soon after his 
 arrival, and continued some ten years. Dr. 
 Elijah Canfield practiced in the township for 
 thirty 3^ears, over a large section of country. 
 Dr. Samuel Austin was in for a few years. Dr. 
 Jackson Chapman began about 1835, and con- 
 tinued twelve or fifteen years. Dr. Byi'on 
 Chapman was the township phj^sician about 
 thirty-five years ago. The township, since its 
 creation, has had a resident physician the 
 greater portion of the time, several of whom 
 secured a wide practice and the confidence of 
 their fellow-citizens. 
 
 Opinion is divided in the township as to 
 where the first school was taught, and where 
 and when the first house was built. The old 
 log schoolhouse at the Center, as before men- 
 tioned, was erected in 1819, and the first term 
 therein was taught the following winter by 
 Jonathan Starr. Other reports are to the ef- 
 fect that while Starr might have taught the 
 first school in the township, he was not the 
 first teacher in the old house at the Center, this 
 honor being accorded to John Codding, Esq. 
 They were both verj- early teachers, and it 
 may be that the first school was taught in the 
 old log schoolhouse in the northwest corner of 
 the township, instead of in the schoolhouse at 
 the Center, as it is known that the Hawkins 
 Schoolhouse was built very early, some ac- 
 counts fixing the date before that when the 
 log house was built at the Center. The subse- 
 quent township historian will be allowed the 
 honor and pleasure of uni'aveling the mystery. 
 The old house at the Center was used for school 
 and many other purposes some tea or twelve 
 years, when a frame building was erected on 
 the square to take its place, after which it was 
 abandoned. The frame building was used as 
 a schoolhouse until the erection of the brick 
 building in about 1858, and possibly several 
 terms were taught there after the erection of 
 the brick. It is said that two or three years 
 before the last war was begun, two or three 
 schools were in session in the village at the 
 same time. The frame building is now used 
 as a shop, and the brick was disused in 1872, 
 when the present house was devoted to school 
 purposes. This building is located in the 
 
 southern part of the village, and since it has 
 been used the village has had an excellent 
 school. In truth, no other village in the county 
 of the same size, except, perhaps. Peninsula, 
 in Boston Township, haa had so much to do 
 with school ventures and enterprises as Copley 
 Center. A short time before the last war, the 
 villagers became dissatisfied with the appli- 
 ances made of the township school fund. They 
 saw that, while the village had no better 
 schools than those in suri'ounding districts, the 
 Center District was paying a much greater 
 amount of school tax than any of the others. 
 New schoolhouses in neighboring districts were 
 erected, and the villagers were burdened with 
 a tax which seemed out of proportion, and 
 which they paid only under remonstrance. 
 The subject was freely discussed, and it was at 
 last resolved to secure the incorporation of the 
 Center School District, which was accordingl}^ 
 done. This procedure freed them from anj^ 
 school tax, save that necessary for the main- 
 tenance of their own school. The interest in 
 school affairs had arisen to high-water mark, 
 and while at the flood the tide was turned in 
 the proper direction, and it ma^' be said that, 
 since the incorporation of the district for school 
 purposes, the interest in educational progress 
 has been strong and steady. In about 1858, 
 the building now used as a town hall, which 
 had been built at an early day for a storehouse, 
 was purchased for $1,000, by ten men, each of 
 whom furnished $100. These men were M. D. 
 Pratt. Cyrus Wicks, J. H. Lyon, John C. 
 Stearns, Peter Wicks, James Hammond, Aaron 
 Oviatt, Lorenzo Chamberlain, Delos Bosworth 
 and Alanson Foster. They fitted up the build- 
 ing for a schoolhouse, and employed Rev. John 
 Ensell, a capable instructor and a scholarly 
 gentleman, to take charge of the school, which 
 was then opened. A goodly number of schol- 
 ars was enrolled, and a moderate tuition i)aid, 
 and it seemed as if the school was destined to 
 exert a wide and beneficial influence. But the 
 war came on with its damaging influence, other 
 discouraging events arose, and the school 
 ended some five years after it began. The 
 school in the northwest corner has always been 
 a good one. It is a union district, comprising 
 parts of Copley, Bath. Granger and Sharon. 
 It was an early settled neighborhood, and on 
 account of the interest which centered there, 
 became well known and largely attended. One 
 
648 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 or more new houses have taken the place of 
 the old log one. In other neighborhoods than 
 the northwest corner and the Center, schools 
 were not taught until about 1828, and in some 
 districts even later than that. It was about 
 that period, also, that the township was first 
 laid out into school districts. 
 
 Two religious societies were organized in tlie 
 township, but the date when this occurred can 
 not be given, at least with certainty. The 
 Methodists and Congregationalists started up 
 about the same time, and the date is not far 
 from 1830. Among the leading Methodists 
 were Joseph and Henry White, Parker Tyler, 
 Alpheus Northrup and others. In the winter 
 of 1836-37, this society had the greatest re- 
 vival probabh' ever in the township. The 
 sweeping statement is made, " Why, everybody' 
 joined church." Two ministers of State reputa- 
 tion — Dr. Cone and Elder Poe — had charge of 
 the meetings, and under their experienced 
 and able guidance and management, scores 
 were converted and the churches strength- 
 ened by large additions to the membership. 
 Alpheus Noi'thrup was a local minister, about 
 whom a curious incident is related by M. D. 
 Pratt. Pratt was converted— at least, he joined 
 the Methodist Church — and one day Northrup 
 came to him and wanted to borrow one of his 
 horses, of which he owned several, some of 
 them being idle. The request was readily 
 granted, and the local man of Grod rode the 
 animal away. After two or three weeks had 
 elapsed, several of the neighbors' boys, at dif- 
 ferent times, spoke to Mr. Pratt, saying that 
 the horse which had been borrowed was getting 
 poor and did not appear to be well taken care 
 of, upon which the owner conferred with the 
 minister about the matter, the latter confessing 
 that the animal was getting thin, and saj'ing 
 that he would get some grain and see that bet- 
 ter care was taken in the future. A few weeks 
 later, the minister called on Mr. Pratt, saying 
 that the horse was dead, and expressing his de- 
 sire to pay for the damage done. He also in- 
 sisted that, under existing circumstances, the 
 price should be cut down at least half Mr. 
 Pratt, glad to get an3'thing for the animal from 
 the minister, who was in extremely indigent 
 circumstances, agreed to the proposal, and the 
 
 price was fixed at $25. Northrup gave his 
 note for the amount, and took his departure. 
 A few days later, Pratt was astonished to see 
 the minister riding the animal which was re- 
 ported to have died, and he perceived that he 
 had been outflanked. He kept still, however, 
 hoping to realize on the note ; but time passed 
 awa}', the day of maturity came around, but 
 nothing was paid, and thus the matter rests to- 
 day. It is said that Mr. Northrup's mind was 
 injured in some wa}', and that he often did pe- 
 culiar things — things which otherwise would 
 reflect seriously on his honest intentions. Mr. 
 Pratt tells the tale with some bitterness, 
 which, under the peculiar circumstances of the 
 case, may be permitted. The Congregational 
 society grew in strength and grace, and among 
 its early members were the following : Law- 
 rence Moore, Heman Oviatt, Joseph and Sam- 
 uel Hawkins and Andrew Baldwin. In the 
 year 1844, the two societies united means and 
 erected the church at the Center. Here they 
 have continued to assemble alternately until 
 the present. Each society has had its years of 
 adversity and prosperity, sometimes rejoicing 
 in the strength of a large memberstiip and an 
 abundance of funds, at other times reduced in 
 numbers, funds depleted, and a noticeable lack 
 of religious zeal. That the societies have done 
 a great deal to improve the morals of the com- 
 munity and control the wayward tendenc}' of 
 youth, is apparent to all who will soberly think 
 of the subject. However skeptical a man may 
 be, though his opinions may be those of Diab- 
 olus himself, he cannot successfuU}' deny the 
 beneficent effect of good morals on society. 
 He may denounce the church and traduce its 
 servants, yet he cannot truthfully deny that it 
 creates a world-wide benefit to the human race. 
 A Methodist Church was built at quite an early 
 daN' on the northern line of the township, the 
 members living both in Cople}- and Bath. The 
 The building is now used as a dwelling in the 
 village of Ellis' Corners, if the historian has 
 been correctly informed. Citizens in the west- 
 ern part of Cople}' attend church in Medina 
 County, while man}- of those on the opposite 
 side attend the Akron churches when the 
 weather is fair. 
 
> 
 
 ^v 
 
 ? ■ 
 
TWINSBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 649 
 
 k. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI.* 
 
 TWINSBURG TOWNSHIP— PHVSICAL AND CLIMATIC FEATURES— EARLY SETTLEMENT AND IM- 
 PROVEMENT—PROGRESS OF INDUSTRIES— INCIDENTS OF PERSONAL NATURE 
 —TWINSBURG INSTITUTE — SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES. 
 
 Toe AL history possesses a peculiarity which 
 J evades a cursory view, remaining concealed 
 until persons of greater penetration peer be- 
 neath the covering of average superficial human 
 thought. People must be content with an ac- 
 cuiate, though sifted, partial narration of events. 
 Innumerable transactions and events occur in 
 life that should and must forever remain unre- 
 corded, that should die out in memory with the 
 age in which they transpired. History, at best, 
 is but a partial narration of particulars, depend- 
 ing largely upon the mental and moral caliber 
 and culture of the writer. Perhaps no two 
 writers, in describing the same historical event, 
 will present the same features, the same shades 
 of thought or sentiment, the same degree of 
 power and importance which each composing 
 element bears to its fellows or to the whole. 
 Historians cannot, especially if they were 
 absent when the event transpired, which is 
 Lisuall}' the case, they cannot write all the cir- 
 cumstances, all the motives, all the intricate 
 blendings and relations of which an occurrence 
 is composed. The}' must give an outline, must 
 give the salient points with their proper degree 
 of importance, must overleap the dark chasms 
 of non-essentials which j'awn beneath them, 
 and touch only on the heights where the sun- 
 shine of human experience, human nature and 
 human frailties reveals not only the object for 
 Avhich history is written, but the long vistas of 
 prominent events which are to be recorded for 
 future usefulness and improvement. 
 
 The peculiarity spoken of, which is connected 
 with the narration of local history, consists in 
 the writer's being required by an inexperienced 
 and short-sighted people to give an account of 
 occurrences which are better unrecorded, which 
 have no special significance nor value in com- 
 ing years, which are a clog to the mind of the 
 reader while endeavoring to decipher the more 
 important events from the general obscurity, 
 
 ♦Contributed by W. A. Goodspced. 
 
 and which are onlj' required that the}- may 
 answer individual ends. On the other hand, 
 the historian must be careful, must be broad of 
 heart and mind, that he may grasp the local 
 situation, and paint events in their true colors ; 
 must be argus-eyed, that nothing may escape 
 his scrutiny ; and must be honest and consci- 
 entious, that his discoveries may be truthfully 
 recorded. He should also be a good judge of 
 human nature, that the suggestions of selfish 
 and bigoted people may be impartially scanned, 
 and accepted or rejected. Events are often 
 omitted, which, apparently, should have been 
 given ; and again, events ave often given which 
 should have been omitted. Human judgment 
 is prone to err " as the sparks to fl}' upward ;" 
 and even historians are not exceptions to this 
 rule. It is the object in these pages to give 
 onl}- that portion of the past that is worthy of 
 preservation. Trifiing personal incidents, ad- 
 ventures and ambitions are omitted, except 
 such as show the surroundings under which the 
 settlers labored ; and the great mass of histor- 
 ical rubbish, though perhaps of present interest, 
 is thrown aside as useless and burdensome. 
 Onl}' those events which will be valuable twenty 
 generations hence are designed to be given. 
 
 Twinsburg is situated in the northeast corner 
 of the county. It was originally attached to 
 Portage County, from which it was severed 
 when Summit Count}- was formed. LjMng as 
 it does at the side of North field, its soil par- 
 takes largely of the valuable character of the 
 latter. There are several valuable stone quar- 
 ries lying so near the surface that a heav}- blast 
 of powder would, apparently-, throw out hun- 
 dreds of perches of the gritty sandstone. As 
 it is, large quantities are taken out, and are 
 used not merely in the count}-, but in adjacent 
 counties. The township is well watered, and 
 also well drained. In times of drought, the 
 wells are not so liable to fail as those located 
 on the bluffs which bound the Cuyahoga 
 
-4.: 
 
 650 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT C0U:NTY. 
 
 River. The township is drained almost wholly 
 by Tinker's Creek. This stream enters near 
 the southeast corner and flows northwest, leav- 
 ing one mile east of the northwest corner. 
 There are several valuable falls, the principal 
 one being at Millville. In early years, in the 
 northern part of the township, the bed of the 
 creek widened out to three or four times its 
 ordinary width, thus creating what might be 
 termed a lake on a small scale. There is con- 
 siderable quite level land, which, when the 
 country was new, was very wet, affording but 
 little satisfaction to those who were obliged to 
 cross it. Since the opening of the forests has 
 let in the heat of the sun, the soil is found to 
 be in about the proper condition to work. The 
 soil is mainl}' destitute of clay, consisting 
 mostly' of a dark loam, which contains a large 
 proportion of decaj'ing vegetable ingredients. 
 Large quantities of stone are being taken out 
 at the quarry one mile north of the Center. 
 
 Much of the early history of this township 
 has already been written by some of its earliest 
 and most reliable citizens. While much of this 
 must be repeated, not only from its value, but 
 from the fact that it is unusually complete, 
 new items of historical importance, which have 
 been carefully gathered and selected, will be 
 added. The writer has taken pains to collect 
 additional information on those subjects which 
 are treated quite fully by Ethan Ailing, Luman 
 Lane and Gen. Bierce. In a few instances, 
 those writers have made mistakes, some of 
 which have been discovered and will be 
 avoided. Other subjects have not been treated 
 as thoroughly as their historical value de- 
 mands, resulting no doubt from the primary 
 nature of these records. Again, other impor- 
 tant topics have been altogether overlooked. 
 The writings of the above-named men are valu- 
 able, and ai'e mainly followed. 
 
 The original proprietors of Twinsburg were 
 Mills & Hoadley, who owned the south and 
 southeasterl}' parts ; Henry Champion, who 
 owned the west and northwesterly parts, and 
 Moses and Aaron Wilcox, who owned the north 
 and northeasterly parts. The principal stream 
 in the township was named by Gen. Moses 
 Cleaveland, in honor of the principal boatman, 
 Joseph Tinker, who accompanied the first ex- 
 ploring expedition sent to the Western Reserve 
 by the Connecticut Land Company. While par- 
 ties of the surveyors were running the merid- 
 
 ians in the eastern part of the Reserve, during 
 the summer of 1796, Gen. Cleaveland, accom- 
 panied by Joseph Tinker, went up the lake on 
 an exploring voyage, as far as the mouth of the 
 Cuyahoga, and then up that river until they 
 discovered a large creek, which, in honor of his 
 boatman. Gen. Cleaveland named " Tinker's 
 Creek." Tinker was engaged the following 
 year in the same capacity, in the second explor- 
 ing expedition to the Reserve. In the fall, 
 when the company was returning down the lake, 
 the boat containing Tinker was capsized, and 
 he was drowned. But the stream still bears his 
 name, and will until the end of time. 
 
 In 1810-17, Lewis Ailing, of Connecticut, 
 purchased 400 acres of land of Mills & Hoad- 
 ley, l3'ing in the southeast part of Millsville 
 Township (now Twinsburg). On the 3d of 
 March, 1817, he sent his son Ethan, then a strip- 
 ling aged sixteen years, to this land in the Re- 
 serve to commence an improvement. Three 
 young men — Zeri Ailing, Rodolphus Wolcott 
 and Lex Johnson — were hired and sent out at 
 the same time to assist him. After a muddy 
 journc}', except one day's travel on the ice from 
 Buflialo to Dunkirk, this little part}' of four ar- 
 rived at the cabin of Mr. Post, in Hudson, on 
 the last day of March. The next da}' the party, 
 accompanied, or rather guided, by Mr. Mills, 
 started north to have a look at the land, upon 
 which they were destined to undergo many hard 
 da3's' labor. Following a line of marked trees, 
 they at last reached a spot which Mr. Mills in- 
 formed them was the center of the township. 
 They all sat down and rested under a beech 
 tree which stood just at the southeast corner of 
 the square. The spot was muddy and uninvit- 
 ing, and the party followed up the creek until 
 the}^ came to "the falls," where the}' found some 
 sticks of hewed timber which had been drawn 
 there by settlers of Hudson who designed build- 
 ing a saw-mill. The project, however, had been 
 abandoned, although a small, partly finished 
 log cabin had been erected, which was yet 
 standing, an emblem of desertion and loneliness. 
 After returning to Hudson and remaining there 
 two weeks, clearing in the meantime a piece 
 of land to be planted in corn, the boys selected 
 a hill known now as the Hawkins farm, the 
 land being a portion that had been purchased 
 by Lewis Ailing, and began clearing oft' the 
 timber. On the 15th of April, the}' "moved" 
 to the half-finished log cabin already referred to, 
 

 TWINSBUEG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 651 
 
 taking with them a barrel of stale pork that had 
 been bought of Capt. Oviatt for $25, a barrel 
 of flour that had cost $8, ten bushels of pota- 
 toes that had cost $5, and a gallon of whisky 
 that had cost $1.50. The}" were supplied with 
 a bake-kettle without a bail, two tin pans, one 
 case knife, one iron spoon, and were compelled 
 to use chips for plates and sharp sticks for 
 forks. Ethan Ailing kept house, doing the 
 cooking, etc., not onl}' for his part}- but for va- 
 rious visitors who were attracted to the spot, in 
 order, perhaps, to get a " square meal." On the 
 7th of Jul}', Lewis Ailing and his family ar- 
 rived, and moved into a log house that had been 
 erected b}' the boys about the 1st of June. This 
 building was the home, during the 3'ear, of the 
 Ailing famil}-, and also of several others, num- 
 bering in all fourteen persons. The house was 
 two-storied, having one room above and one 
 below, and, although ever^'thing was in the most 
 primitive fashion. 3-et all seemed to live well 
 and enjoy themselves. Provisions were very 
 costl}', though venison could be had without 
 much trouble. Pork sold for about $8 per hun- 
 dred, while the same quantity of venison could 
 be bought for $\. Salt was $10 per barrel, cot- 
 ton shirting 50 cents per yard, and calico 75 
 cents per 3ard. 
 
 Toward*^the latter part of May, 1817, Maj. 
 Elisha Loomis, E. W. Mather and Lester Davis 
 arrived from Connecticut, and, after stopping 
 a few days with the Allings, built a log cabin 
 at a place since known as Loomis Mills. Mr. 
 Loomis had been a sailor on the ocean for 
 many years, having sailed twice round the 
 world in the ship Oneida. Frederick Stanley 
 came in about the saine time Loomis did. On 
 the 1st of Jul}-, Lewis Ailing, Jr., Gideon 
 Thompson and Zenas Ailing arrived with a 
 drove of 104 merino sheep, having driven them, 
 in thirty days, 660 miles. It was thought that 
 sheep-rearing could be made profitable, but the 
 owners were doomed to disappointment. The 
 wolves killed many of them, as did also the 
 dogs, while others died of strange diseases 
 which baffled all care. The flock were soon all 
 gone. At the close of 1820, the following set- 
 tlers had found homes in the township : Lewis 
 Ailing. William Allen, Elisha Loomis, Elias 
 Mather, Joel W. Thompson, Josiah Myric, 
 Noah P. Nichols, A. J. Palmer, Henry Bennett, 
 Amos C. Taylor, Lyman Richmond, Keuben 
 Chamberlain, Frederick Stanley, John Bassett, 
 
 Samuel Vail, Edwin Vail, Homer Vail, John 
 Dodge, Isaiah Humphrey, Roman Humphrey. 
 Nestor Hurlbut, Ezra Osborn, Preston Pond, 
 Samuel Alger, Cyrus Hodskin, N. S. Barnett, 
 Cotton M. Leech, Levi Leech, Emery Alger, 
 Elijah W. Bronson, Asa l^pson. Orrin Tucker, 
 Leonard Kilbourn, Oliver Clark and Messrs. 
 Perkins, Sawyer, Davis and Darling. 
 
 The township was organized in 1819. An 
 election was ordered to be held in April of that 
 year, by the Commissioners of Portage County, 
 and on that occasion nineteen voters were pres- 
 ent. Frederick Stanley was chosen Clerk, and a 
 few other offices were filled ; but it was found nec- 
 essary during the following autumn to elect the 
 the remainder, at which time Lewis Ailing and 
 Samuel Vail were chosen Justices of the Peace, 
 receiving their commissions from the county 
 court. Elisha Loomis was the second Clerk. 
 E. W. Bronson third, and Luman Lane fourth, 
 the latter serving in 1822. The township was 
 named in 1819, in honor of and at the sugges- 
 tion of, the Wilcox brotheis. who were twins. 
 These brothers did not come West until 1823 ; 
 but owning as they did several thousand acres 
 in the northeastern part, they proposed giving 
 six acres at the center for a public square, and 
 $20 toward building the first schoolhouse. pro- 
 viding the township was named Twinsburg in 
 their honor. Their proposal was accepted : but 
 prior to that time the township was known 
 either by its range and number, or as Millsville. 
 Elijah W. Bronson was the real estate agent of 
 the Wilcox brothers, being authorized to dis- 
 pose of their land previous to their coming to 
 the township. Luman Lane was the first, or 
 one of the first, to erect a dwelling on the Wil- 
 cox tract. Maria Stanley was the first child 
 born, that event occurring November 23. 1819. 
 The first death was in the spring of 1819. and 
 was that of a child of Reuben Chamberlain. 
 The first marriage occurred INIarch 19. 1821. 
 between p]mery W. Alger and Eliza Dodge, 
 Lewis Ailing, Esq.. performing the ceremony in 
 backwoods fashion. 
 
 In 1817, Elisha Loomis erected a saw-mill in 
 the southeastern corner on Tinker's Creek. A 
 natural fall in the stream, of some ten feet, aided 
 by a strong dam. furnished a fine water-power. 
 Water was supplied by means of a race, and 
 the mill continued to do good work for a num- 
 ber of years. In 1818, E. W. Mather built a 
 frame grist-mill at the same place, on the op- 
 
 "e) ^ 
 
652 
 
 HISTORY or SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 posite side of the creek. This mill was oper- 
 ated until about 1840, when it ceased from lack 
 of patronage. The presence of these two mills 
 at the falls served to atti-act settlers to that 
 locality, and several dwellings were soon seen 
 on the adjoining hills. This proceeding met 
 the approval of the proprietors of that tract, 
 who had already placed on paper a plat of the 
 prospective village of " Millsville." They saw 
 a general disposition on the part of the settlers 
 to locate there, and determined to profit by it. 
 They accordingly laid out a number of lots, and 
 offered them for sale at prices ranging from 
 $50 to $200 ; but they had greatly miscalcu- 
 lated, as scarcely a lot was sold. There were 
 but few mechanics in the country then, and 
 they sought larger villages in which to pi}' their 
 craft. And then the price asked was ten times 
 too much for that early period of the growth of 
 the village. All shunned the village, and at 
 last, when the proprietors awoke to the true 
 state of affairs, they were too late to remedy 
 the evil. There was no demand for the lots 
 then at any price. The tradesmen, mechanics 
 and merchants had gone elsewhere, leaving the 
 proprietors to repent in sackcloth and ashes for 
 their short-sightedness. The mills, at this antici- 
 pated village, were not the only ones in Twins- 
 burg in early years. Apollos White built a 
 dam across Tinker's Creek in about 1835, and 
 erected thereon two mills — one for grinding 
 grain and the other for sawing lumber. Both 
 did fair work for a number of years. White 
 finally sold the grist-mill to a man named Gibbs, 
 who, after operating it a few years, sold to other 
 parties. It finall}- burned down in about 1865, 
 George and Alfred Ledgsham being the owners 
 at the time. These mills did good work, and 
 had an extensive patronage in their day. It 
 was an accommodation to get flour and lumber 
 so near home, for it saved tiresome journeys 
 through roads whose bottom was too far down 
 to be reached with comfort. 
 
 Roads were important considerations when 
 the countr}' was first settled. If a path was 
 cleared through the woods for that purpose, it 
 seemed as if all the stagnant water for rods 
 around was sure to settle there. The turnpike 
 was largel}' graded by the owners of the land 
 across which it ran. Mills and Hoadley worked 
 the turnpike along their land, as did also Henry 
 Champion. These men evidently had an ob- 
 ject in view in this proceeding, as they after- 
 
 ward charged an additional dollar per acre more 
 for the land adjoining the turnpike than for 
 other portions. The citizens gave from $10 to 
 $50 each to assist in defraying the expense of 
 constructing this road, the amount given reach- 
 ing very nearly $3,000. In 1821, the citizens 
 living on the road running north from the Cen- 
 ter, pledged themselves to labor on that road 
 each alternate Saturda}'^ afternoon, or forfeit a 
 half-gallon of whisk}'. Tradition tells us of a 
 great many forfeits paid ; but does not utter a 
 syllable as to what became of the whisky. In 
 spring time, when Tinker's Creek was raging, 
 the settlers living on the opposite side found it 
 extremely difficult to cross over to the Center. 
 This finally led to the erection of a bridge more 
 than forty rods in length, which lasted for a 
 number of years. Brush and stone and logs 
 were placed in muddy spots in the roads ; and, 
 some time in the distant future, when these 
 places are invaded, and portions of the wood 
 found in a fair state of preservation, newspaper 
 speculations as to how long they have been 
 there will be in order. 
 
 In 1825, J]than Ailing began the dairy busi- 
 ness with twenty-two cows, several of which 
 had been bought for $12 each. The butter 
 made was taken to Akron once each week, and 
 sold at 8 cents per pound for the use of the 
 canal laborers. Considerable cheese was also 
 made, but from a lack of suitable places in 
 which to keep it, a large portion was lost. Six 
 hundred pounds, however, were sold at Aurora 
 for 5 cents a pound. This was the first cheese 
 made in Twinsburg. In 1828, Joseph Cham- 
 berlain also began making cheese and butter 
 from the milk of some thirty cows. About the 
 same time, several others began the same occu- 
 pation, which was conducted so extensively 
 that money began to flow into Twinsburg, in- 
 stead of out of it as befoi'e. About $1,000 
 came to the township in 1833 from this source 
 alone. Twinsburg has since been noted for its 
 interest in dairy matters. The sales steadily 
 increased until, in 1860, they amounted to 
 more than $75,000, and in 1880 to nearly 
 $100,000. It is difficult to conceive how scarce 
 money was in pioneer times, and how people 
 managed to get along without it. When the 
 settlers first rushed to the township, there was 
 considerable money for a few years ; but when 
 a lull in the immigration occurred, the ready 
 money flowed away like water, leaving the set- 
 
 \J<j(s- 
 
■k^ 
 
 TWTNSBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 653 
 
 tiers to discover some means of getting along 
 without it. At first, when raone^^ was abund- 
 ant, prices were ver}' high ; bat when the mone}^ 
 had served its purpose and gone to distant 
 places, prices gradual!}' went down until they 
 became ver}^ low. The settlers, who afterward 
 came drizzling in (if the expression may be 
 allowed) brought ready mone}', and the settlers 
 already there were anxious to become their 
 bosom friends. This rapid change created two 
 distinct prices — one called the trade price, and 
 the other the cash price. Promissory notes, 
 due at some future day, were made payable in 
 horses, cattle, hogs, wheat, potatoes, etc., etc. 
 Quite a number who came early were induced 
 to promise to pay $5 or $6, per acre for their 
 farms. Some succeeded, but most of them 
 failed, and were obliged to leave the farms, 
 several of which, with all their improvements 
 upon them, were afterward sold for $3 an acre. 
 Early in the spring of 1821, Joel W. Thomp- 
 son, seeing around him a strong demand for 
 liquor, erected a small distillery at a spring in 
 the southeastern part of the township. Con- 
 siderable rye whisky was made for a short 
 time, which was carried away in gallon bottles, 
 as fast as it was made. In 1826, a strong im- 
 pulse was given to the temperance cause in 
 Summit County, or what is now Summit County. 
 Societies for the suppression of liquor-traffic 
 and liquor-drinking were organized in every 
 township, not only in this county, but through- 
 out the eastern part of the Reserve. Great en- 
 thusiasm prevailed among the workers, and 
 scores of persons ceased to manufacture and 
 sell ardent spirits. A branch society, with 
 headquarters at Cuyahoga Falls, was organized 
 in Twinsburg in about 1830, and, three years 
 later, the society boasted of 224 members — all 
 living in the township. Those who were sell- 
 ing liquor at the Center were induced to close 
 up their business and join the society, which 
 could soon boast that there was no place in the 
 township where liquor was sold. It was about 
 the time of the organization of this society 
 that the first effort was made to secure the 
 raising of log-buildings without whisky, but 
 the movement was met with violent opposition 
 from those who thought liquor one of the neces- 
 saries of life. These men refused to appear at 
 such raisings, but, when their temperate neigh- 
 bors refused to assist them, unless whisk}' was 
 omitted from the programme, they finally either 
 
 dropped the use of liquor on such occasions, 
 or sought associations more congenial with 
 their intemperate habits. A spirit of hostility 
 was thus created between parties, which termi- 
 nated only when the temperance cause pre- 
 vailed. 
 
 Many interesting incidents are told by old 
 hunters or their descendants concerning advent- 
 ures had with bears or other wild animals. 
 Ezra Clark was one day chopping on a piece of 
 woodland belonging to Mr. Lane, when sud- 
 denly he heard a hog, off some twenty rods 
 distant, begin to squeal as though in the great- 
 est distress. Clark instantly surmised that a 
 bear was endeavoring to carry off the hog. or 
 was killing it on the spot. Though unarmed, 
 he instantly made up his mind to prevent, if 
 possible, the untimely death of the tSus scro/a. 
 He hurriedly cut a heavy club, and, seizing it, 
 he ran rapidly forward to a large log, behind 
 which he beheld a scene which was often 
 enacted in the backwoods. A savage-looking 
 bear of average size had thrown a full-grown 
 hog on the ground, and was busily engaged in 
 tearing its flesh with teeth and claws. A large 
 hole, from whii;h the blood freely flowed, had 
 been torn in the hog's shoulder, and, when first 
 seen, the bear had just fastened his long white 
 teeth in the tender flesh, with the design of 
 tearing out another large mouthful. Mr. Clark 
 was at first in a quandary what to do, whether 
 to consult his own safety in flight, or to cour- 
 ageously attack the bear. His ax was still in 
 his hand, and, after hesitating but a moment, 
 he approached with the intention of striking it 
 into the bear. But the moment the bear be- 
 held his approach, it leaped back from the hog. 
 and, rearing up on its hind feet, in the act of 
 defense, faced the woodsman with a savage 
 growl, showing two rows of gleaming teeth 
 discolored with blood. The man stopped 
 short, as he had no desire to encounter the em- 
 braces of the animal. He threw his club, how- 
 ever, with all his strength, fairly striking the 
 bear, which dropped on all fours and shambled 
 off a few rods, when it turned, showed its teeth, 
 and, after viewing the intruder a moment, 
 turned and made off as fast as it could through 
 the forest. On another occasion, a bear was 
 seen to pass across the southern part of the 
 township, going north. An alarm was given, 
 and a party of men with dogs and guns started 
 rapidly in pursuit. The bear was overtaken 
 
 :^ 
 
^'. 
 
 654 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 by the dogs, and treed near the cabin of Aaron 
 Post. The men came up, when one of them 
 fired, bringing the bear to the ground. It was 
 badly wounded, but had plenty of life and 
 flight remaining, and the men, knowing that it 
 could not escape them, determined to have 
 some fun, if it could be called fun. The dogs, 
 five or six in number, were urged on ; but 
 whenever they came within reach of the bear, 
 they wex'e knocked about like foot-balls. They 
 soon learned, by sorry experience, to keep at a 
 respectable distance, contenting themselves 
 with sudden approaches and nips, when the 
 bear's back was turned. The animal handled 
 its fore feet with remarkable strength and dex- 
 terity, wheeling round and round to escape the 
 sharp teeth of the dogs, and occasionally send- 
 ing one of ihem end over end a rod or more 
 away. At last, one of the men, with gun 
 cocked, went close to the bear, and fired di- 
 rectly at its head, expecting to stretch it dead 
 in its tracks ; but, just as he fired, the bear 
 made a sudden movement, and thus escaped 
 the shot unhurt. Another tried the same ex- 
 periment, and succeeded in killing the wounded 
 animal. It is related by Mrs. Elizabeth 
 (Walker) Lappin, of Boston Township, who is 
 the oldest settler living in the count}', having 
 been born in October, 1788, and who came to 
 Hudson in 1802, that, on one occasion, a man 
 named Cackler, while hunting in the woods in 
 Twinsburg. as early as 1808, came very nearly 
 being killed by a bear. While following its 
 trail rapidly, with head bent down, he came di- 
 rectly upon it so suddenl}' that he had no time 
 to raise his gun or retreat. The animal reared 
 upon its hind feet, with a fierce growl, and 
 struck a fearful blow at the hunter with its 
 fore-paw, but, luckily, he leaped back far 
 enough to avoid the stroke. He raised and 
 cocked his rifle, probabh' in the same move- 
 ment, and, as the bear was upon him, he thrust 
 out his gun, with the intention of making a 
 quick shot, and, as luck would have it, the 
 muzzle was plunged into the animal's mouth. 
 The trigger was instantly pulled, and a ball 
 went crashing through the brain of the huge 
 animal, which, a moment later, fell upon the 
 ground in the agonies of death. Had it not 
 been for the lucky thrust of the rifle, it would 
 have fared hard with the intrepid hunter. Mrs. 
 Lappin says that her father, John Walker, 
 killed sixteen bears after coming to the county, 
 
 and that, on several occasions, he had narrow 
 escapes from death. He had a large butcher- 
 knife, which he invariably carried with him, 
 and, whenever a bear was killed, a notch was 
 cut on the deer-horn handle. This knife is 
 now in possession of Mr. Walker's grandson, 
 who lives in Indiana, and upon the handle are 
 the sixteen notches, cut there more than half a 
 centur}^ ago by the fearless old bear hunter. 
 Many other interesting stories of a similar na- 
 ture might be narrated. 
 
 It is probable that I^lijah W. Bronson, the 
 laud agent of the Wilcox brothers, erected the 
 first house in the village of Twinsburg. The exact 
 date is not remembered, but was prior to 1824. 
 The second house was built by Mr. Myric, and was 
 a frame structure, located on the south side of 
 the public square. The Bronson building was 
 on the east side, and was constructed of logs. 
 In 1824, Leverett Clark bought the Myric 
 property, the latter moving East. A man 
 named Gould lived about ten rods west of the 
 square in 1824. In 1823, Moses and Aaron 
 Wilcox built a small frame house on the north 
 side, and hei'e the brothers " bached '' for a 
 short time, selling, in the meantime, portions 
 of their land, and using their best efforts to 
 induce settlers to locate at the village or farther 
 north on their tract. They did not commit the 
 mistake that resulted so disastrously to Mills 
 & Hoadle3^ The}' had already given land for 
 the public square, and $20 toward building the 
 first schoolhouse, and they now not only sold 
 their village lots at a low figure, but gave lots 
 to tradesmen and mechanics who would locate 
 there permanently. The result was that in five 
 or six 3'ears, ten or twelve families were living 
 at or near the Center, and various industries 
 had arisen, giving the place a business-like ap- 
 pearance. While •' baching,'' the brothers em- 
 ployed Mi's. Clark to bake their bread ; but 
 they otherwise, very probably, did their own 
 cooking. In about 1826, each of the brothers 
 built a small frame house on the north side, 
 and both of these buildings are yet standing 
 in a fair state of i^reservation, and both are 
 occupied. In the fall of 1825, Ethan Ailing, 
 after quitting the dairy business, commenced 
 building a tavern at the Center, and the follow- 
 ing year, the structure having been completed, 
 Mr. Ailing moved in about the 1st of Decem- 
 ber. The tavern was formally opened on 
 Christmas with a ball, and music and dancing 
 
 "e) V 
 
:k^ 
 
 TWINSBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 655 
 
 ruled the hour. This building is yet standing, 
 and composes a part of the large, low frame 
 structure which stands, dark and deserted, on 
 the southeast corner of the square. In the bar of 
 this tavern, liquor was kept for sale, a universal 
 thing in those days. The Wilcox brothers had 
 succeeded in getting a Post Office at the Center 
 as early as 1825, and Moses Wilcox was com- 
 missioned first Postmaster. At his death, 
 which occurred in the autumn of 1827, iMr. 
 Ailing applied for the appointment, and was 
 commissioned October, 1827. Mail was then 
 obtained from Hudson once a week. The total 
 amount of postage received in 1828 was 
 .S36.01 ; in 1839, it was 8256.67, and in 1860, 
 about $400. Twenty periodicals came to the 
 office in 1828 ; about seven hundred came in 
 1 860. At that time a well-traveled stage route, 
 running from Hudson to Cleveland, passed 
 through Northfield Township, bringing an 
 enormous custom to hotels there, and filling 
 every industry with life. Mr. Ailing and others 
 in Twinsburg saw this, and became envious ; 
 or, at least, they resolved to make the effort to 
 have the stage route changed so as to pass 
 through Twinsburg Center. With this object 
 in view, Ethan Ailing and Jabez Gilbert, in 
 1828, bought out the entire stage pi-operty. 
 The sequel is easily guessed. The route was 
 immediately changed, and the splendid impetus 
 given to every industry at the village soon pro- 
 duced a marked result. New life was infused 
 into every undertaking ; mechanics and teach- 
 ers appeared, and the outlook for the village 
 seemed highly favorable. It was one of the 
 most important events occurring in the history 
 of the township. A tri-weekly mail was thus 
 secured, and from one to five stages passed 
 over the route daily. The road was exten- 
 sively traveled by persons going to Cleveland 
 to market, who had previously' gone by some 
 other route. It is said that very often as high 
 as fifty horses were kept over night at the tav- 
 ern barn. But although the stage line was a 
 splendid thing for the village and township, it 
 was a losing investment to the owners. This 
 is difficult to understand in view of the 
 fact that, so far as can be learned, the stage 
 line was well patronized. However, Mr. Ailing 
 lost $600 the first year he was connected with 
 the undertaking, and it is likely that those 
 connected with him also lost heavily. In 1829, 
 Mr. Ailing commenced the mercantile pursuit 
 
 in his tavern bar, a room six feet by eight, 
 placing therein $3.50 worth of tobacco and 
 Scotch snuff. A few groceries were added the 
 following year, and as the trade, though ex- 
 ceedingly limited, seemed brisk and prom- 
 ising, Mr. Ailing finally concluded to engage in 
 the pui'suit more extensively. He accordingly 
 rented his tavern in 1831, to Samuel Edgerly, 
 and built a frame house, an apartment in which 
 he fitted up for a storeroom, the remainder 
 being devoted to the use of his family. A few 
 hundred dollars' worth of goods comprised his 
 stock ; but this was slowly and steadily in- 
 creased until, in 1835, the goods wei-e valued 
 at some $600, when he erected a large store- 
 room on the northwest corner of the square. 
 Here a good business was done with a stock 
 which, at its best, was worth about $7,000. All 
 the different varieties of country produce were 
 bought and sold, and the store did much to 
 centralize the efforts of the citizens in the vil- 
 lage. The sales of goods, exclusive of flour, 
 salt and produce, amounted in 1817 to $14,000, 
 In 1848, Mr. Alling's sons, Frank A. and George 
 H., were given charge of the store, and con- 
 tinued until about 1851, when George pur- 
 chased his brother's interest, and conducted 
 the business until 1856, when he died, and the 
 store fell into the hands of Bishop & Chamber- 
 lain. The stock at this time was worth about 
 $10,000, and a brisk and profitable trade was 
 had with the surrounding country. At the 
 expiration of two years. Chamberlain sold his 
 interest to his partner, the latter continuing 
 alone until about the opening of the war, when 
 he likewise sold out. In 1830, the tavern now 
 owned and conducted by Mr. E. W. Clark, was 
 built by Eli and Otis Boise. It was intended 
 for a combined store and dwelling, and, in 
 what is now the office, about $1,000 worth of 
 goods were placed. The brothers sold or traded 
 out, two years later, to Edward Kichardson, 
 who, at the end of some three years, disposed 
 of his goods and converted the building into a 
 tavern, a use to which it has since been devoted. 
 In about the year 1839, Odell & Taylor erected 
 a frame store building on the present site of 
 the stone store, and began the mercantile pursuit 
 with between $4,000 and $5,000 worth of a gen- 
 eral assortment of goods. They likewise bought 
 produce, and enjoyed a lucrative trade. At 
 the end of about five years, Mr. Odell pur- 
 chased his partner's interest and continued 
 
 ^ 
 
JV' 
 
 656 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY 
 
 until his death, which occurred in about 1851. 
 He was succeeded by his son, Delos Odell, now 
 conducting a harness-shop in Macedonia, and 
 two or three other gentlemen, all under the 
 partnership name of Odell, Price & Co. In 
 1857 or 1858, A. L. Nelson took possession of 
 this store building, but was soon afterward 
 burned out, whereupon he erected the stone 
 store building he now occupies. This mer- 
 chant, at times, has done an excellent business. 
 Messrs. Hart, Dodge, Santford and Bishop, in 
 about 1851, built the store building now occu- 
 pied by the Madden Brothers. These men, 
 who were partners, began selling goods, and 
 continued thus some four or five years, when 
 Mr. Bishop sold to the others and withdrew. 
 Three years later, Mr. Dodge sold to the Ste- 
 phens boys, and thus the partnership continued 
 until some three years later, when the parties 
 failed and made an assignment of their goods. 
 After that, the building was vacant, or practi- 
 cally so, until 1866, when MaddenBrothers took 
 possession and began to manufacture and sell 
 ready-made clothing. They were practical tail- 
 ors, and did a good business in their line, con- 
 tinuing until the present time. The firm is 
 known as I. & P. Madden. Richardson & Tay- 
 lor commenced the mercantile pursuit in about 
 1846, and continued until 1850, when Mr. 
 Richardson sold to Mr. McFarland, and the 
 latter, two years later, to Osman Riley. Soon 
 afterward, the partners failed in business, and 
 the building was finally destroyed by fire, and 
 was not rebuilt. Other merchants have held 
 forth in the village at different times, but these 
 were the principal ones. James Alexander, at 
 an early day, began to manufacture wagons, 
 conducting the work in a small shop, on a small 
 scale. He steadily increased his business until, 
 in 1849, he gave employment to ten or twelve 
 workmen, and turned out large numbers of 
 first-class wagons and carriages. He burned 
 out in 1851, but immediately rebuilt, and has 
 continued the same occupation until the pres- 
 ent, although in late years the business has 
 greatly fallen off. It should be mentioned that 
 Mr. Ailing, at an early day, bought ashes and 
 manufactured a limited quantity of potash for a 
 number of years, in the village. A few other 
 industries of less consequence have flourished 
 from time to time. 
 
 It was customary when the country was first 
 settled that, when a death occurred, the de- 
 
 ceased should be buried on their own farms. 
 This was done in Twinsburg. In September, 
 1823, a cemetery of one acre was purchased 
 northeast of the square, and Lucretia Hull, 
 who died in September of the same year, was 
 the first person buried there. In 1846, a new 
 cemetery was prepared on Lot 10, Tract 3, 
 consisting of an acre and a half The yard 
 was fitted up, planted with trees, and a 
 stone wall built around it, at an expense of 
 $1,079.66. Other improvements were made, 
 and, by 1860, the cemetery had cost the citi- 
 zens about $1,850. It is known as Locust 
 Grove Cemetery. 
 
 It should be noticed that the first principal 
 settlement in the township was made upon the 
 Wilcox tract. This tract, it seems, was in- 
 cumbered by a mortgage which had been given 
 by the Wilcox Brothers to the State of Con- 
 necticut. These men, though undoubtedly up- 
 right in their intentions, were unable to pay off 
 the mortgage, thus leaving settlers who had 
 purchased of them in an embarrassing situa- 
 tion. When this condition of things became 
 known, settlement upon this tract largely 
 ceased, which accounts for the slow manner in 
 which it was improved. Finally, the Rev. Mr. 
 Bissell took the matter in hand, and, by his 
 intercession with the proper authorities, suc- 
 ceeded in obtaining prompt and honorable 
 relief The Wilcox Brothers were remarkable 
 in many respects. As has been said, they 
 were twins, and, upon arriving at man's estate. 
 married sisters, Huldah and Mabel Lord, of 
 Killingsworth, Conn. " In life, they so resem- 
 bled each other that none but their most inti- 
 mate friends could distinguish between them. 
 They married sisters, had an equal number of 
 children, held all their property in common, 
 wrote alike, thought alike, looked alike, dressed 
 alike, were taken sick on the same day, with 
 the same disease, died on the same day, and 
 were buried in the same grave-yard."* This 
 remarkable coincidence in similarity probably 
 never before occurred. 
 
 In the year 1822, a log schoolhouse was 
 built upon the square at the Center. This was 
 the first public building of any character in the 
 township, and it was used as a schoolhouse, a 
 town hall and a church. The first teacher was 
 Miss Lovina M. Miream, who taught a short 
 term, receiving her pay by subscription. This 
 
 *Gen. Bierce. 
 
'i^ 
 
 TWINSBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 657 
 
 lady afterward became the wife of Mr. North. 
 Other district schools were not instituted until 
 about 1828, and several were as late as 1833. 
 The houses put up were usually rude log build- 
 ings, which were used for a few years, or until 
 there seemed occasion for the erection of better 
 ones. Although these schools have been fair 
 in their wa}', j'et they have been mainly primar}^ 
 in their nature, from the reason that, ordinarily, 
 as soon as the scholars became quite well ad- 
 vanced in their studies, they were sent to the 
 Twinsburg Institute. So that, really, the 
 country schools have been hardly equal to the 
 average throughout the county. The history 
 of the township would be incomplete without 
 a record of the Twinsburg Institute, an insti- 
 tution which, for more than half a century of 
 usefulness, has done more to improve the in- 
 tellect and morals than perhaps any other or- 
 ganization, not even excluding the churches. 
 It dates its origin as far back as 1 828, when 
 yet the townsnip was but a frontier settlement, 
 and almost its entire surface was covered with 
 primitive forests. Its founder and supporter, 
 who is 3'et living, hale and hearty, at the ad- 
 vanced age of more than fourscore years, was 
 Rev. Samuel Bissell, a native of Connecticut 
 and a graduate of Yale College. Immediately 
 after receiving his diploma, Mr. Bissell began a 
 course of theological studies, designing to en- 
 ter the ministry upon their completion. These 
 studies were completed under many difficulties ; 
 in truth, the life of this man has been one un- 
 ceasing round of struggles, through which 
 nothing but invincible determination in the 
 path chosen and unfaltering patience and self- 
 denial could have proved triumphant. Soon 
 after his ordination, he came to Aurora, Ohio, 
 and, in 1826, began a private school, which 
 was continued until 1828, when he was invited 
 to take charge of the Congregational society 
 at Twinsburg, an invitation he accepted. A 
 block-house had been erected for his accom- 
 modation, about a mile west of the Center, into 
 which he moved. On the same lot was a rude 
 log house, twenty by thirty feet, with rough 
 boards on the floor, and loose ones for the ceil- 
 ing, the building having been originally built 
 for a shoe-shop. Three openings were made in 
 the logs composing the walls, in each of which 
 was placed a sash containing four small panes 
 of glass, while at one end of the dismal room 
 was a broad fire-place, with chimney built of 
 
 stones and sticks plastered with cla}'. In the 
 room were placed a few rudely and hastily con- 
 structed seats and desks, and the onl}- cheerful 
 feature of the apartment was the roaring fire 
 which lighted the place with fitful and ruddy 
 glow. Mr. Bissell, upon his arrival, had made 
 known his wish to teach the youth of the neigh- 
 borhood ; and with his first school in the room 
 just described began that unusual system of 
 philanthropy which became a characteristic 
 feature of his institute, and was the means 
 of educating so many indigent 3'outh. This 
 schoolroom was thrown open to any young 
 people who desired to attend, without any 
 charge, except from those disposed to pay, 
 in which case the tuition for the term 
 was to be $2. About forty students attended 
 the first winter, and so much interest was creat- 
 ed that several terms were taught in the old 
 house, but in 1831, a combined church and 
 schoolhouse was erected, in which Mr. Bissell 
 taught and preached until 1835, when he went 
 to Portage Count}', but returned in 1837, and 
 built a house 20x35 feet, in which he taught 
 for twenty-nine consecutive years. Two years 
 later, this building was enlarged, and other ar- 
 rangements made to meet the growing demands 
 of the institute, which was fast getting a name. 
 In 1843, a large, two-storied frame building 
 (the Ailing Hotel property) was secured and 
 fitted up for the accommodation of students, a 
 lai'ge number of whom were from a distance, 
 and were compelled to board in the village. 
 Within the next five years, two other large 
 buildings were secured for a similar purpose. 
 There were now in attendance about three 
 hundred students, at least fifty of whom were 
 boarders. Seven teachers and assistants, at 
 the head of whom was the Principal, Mr. Bis- 
 sell, were necessary to conduct the numerous 
 classes. A thorough academical course of 
 studies, including the classics, higher mathemat- 
 ics, French and German, vocal and instru- 
 mental music and penmanship, was provided, 
 and all necessary opportunities were aflforded 
 to prepare students for college. No charter 
 was ever obtained, and no public money ever 
 appropriated to strengthen the institute, which 
 rested upon the shoulders of one man. The 
 :^uition charged was usually $2 for the term, 
 and never more than $4, even when the classics 
 were taught. Elaborate and systematic ar- 
 rangements were made for boarding the stu- 
 
 IV 
 
658 
 
 HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY. 
 
 dents in the numerous buildings referred to, at 
 a cost to eacli of from to 12 shillings per 
 week. The great value of the institute to the 
 village and to all the surrounding countr}' 
 need not be detailed. Twinsburg became noted 
 lor its thrift, energy and general excellence in 
 education and morals. More than six thou- 
 sand students have been in attendance at the 
 institute during its continuance, and, out of 
 these, about two hundred have been Indians of 
 the Seneca, Ottawa, Pottawatomie and Ojibway 
 tribes. Ministers, statesmen, generals, law- 
 yers, professors, physicians and artisans, in all 
 portions of the country, trace the beginning of 
 their education to the door of the Twinsburg 
 Institute. A good librar}^ was secured, and 
 literary and other societies were instituted. 
 The benevolence of Mr. Bissell was such that 
 he not only greatly lowered the tuition, but 
 even educated hundreds at his own expense, 
 who were unable to pay their own wa^^ He 
 was accustomed to give such students a few 
 light chores to do, and these trifling duties 
 were so divided and subdivided, that the work 
 was more in name than in reality. It is re- 
 lated that on one occasion, after Mr. Bissell 
 had gone to extremes in this respect, some of 
 the students thus detailed grumbled about 
 having more to do than others. Considerable 
 ill-will was thus incited. One morning Mr. 
 Bissell arose at his usual hour, 5 o'clock, and, 
 beginning with these chores, completed the en- 
 tire round before the time for opening the 
 school. Not a word was said, but the act 
 spoke in volumes to the fault-fiuding students, 
 who, after that, vexed the ear of the Principal 
 with no more grumblings. Among the Indian 
 youth was George Wilson, a Seneca, about whom 
 a great deal has been said. He became a fine 
 scholar — superior in mauj^ important respects 
 to any other ever in the institute. His pres- 
 ence was fine and imposing, and he displayed 
 rare gifts in logical force and fervid eloquence. 
 Mr. Bissell saj^s that the qualitj^ of his elo- 
 quence, the unusual power of his intellect and 
 the force of his delivei'y, resembled in a marked 
 manner those of Daniel Webster. He after- 
 ward became chief of his tribe, and was sent 
 to represent their interests to the New York 
 Legislature, and to the New York Historical 
 Society, receiving from the latter several thou- 
 sand dollars for his people, who were in a starv- 
 ing condition in the West. Another one named 
 
 Jackson Blackbird, or " Mack-a-de-bennessi," 
 was an Ottawa, and a direct descendant of Pon- 
 tiac. He excelled in composition, and composed 
 a comedy, three hours in length, that was pre- 
 sented by the societies of the institute publicly 
 to lai'ge audiences with great success. He 
 afterward did his people good service in Mich- 
 igan, as is seen b}' the following in his own 
 language: " I left Traverse Bay the last of 
 February, 1851, and went on snow-shoes to 
 Saginaw Ba}^, on m}- way to the capital of Mich- 
 igan with petitions from my people to become 
 citizens of the State. I appeared before the 
 Governor and officers of the State, and obtained 
 the passage of a joint resolution of both Houses 
 in favor of the petitions." Mr. Bissell became 
 known throughout the Reserve for his philan- 
 thropy in the cause of Indian education. 
 Some two hundred were educated at the Institute, 
 from whom no compensation worth mention- 
 tioning was ever received. AH their expenses 
 were paid, including board, tuition, room, fuel, 
 light, washing, books and stationery, and some 
 clothing, at the fair estimate of $200 each, a 
 year. This expense, borne by no one except 
 the Principal, estimated at these figures, has 
 amounted, during the history- of the institute 
 to over $40,000. Almost as much has been 
 expended on indigent white youth, and when 
 the cost of erecting the various buildings 
 is added to this, the total amount foots 
 up to the enormous sum of over $80,000, 
 all of which has been borne b}' Mr. Bissell. To 
 offset this, not more than $12,000 have been 
 received from all sources. These expenses 
 were too heav}^ to be borne, and an embarrass- 
 ing debt was the result. When the last war 
 broke out, the institute was greatly injured. 
 Several of the buildings were sold to pa}' the 
 debts, which amounted to some $6,000. A few 
 hundred dollars were left, which purchased a 
 small building that was used for the school. 
 At this time, and without means, the founda- 
 tion of the present stone building was laid. 
 The manual labor connected with the erection 
 of this house was largel}' done by Mr. Bissell. 
 He obtained the loan of $1,500, and with this 
 purchased the necessary tools, a horse and 
 wagon, etc., and without any previous experi- 
 ence, put on the roof, made the doors, window 
 frames, etc. The entire cost was about $8,000, 
 and when it is known that the age of Mr. Bis- 
 sell at that time was seventy, not only was the 
 
-I 3 
 
 ht. 
 
 T W I IS SBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 659 
 
 undertaking gigantic, but its wisdom may be 
 doubted. The institute is likelj' to fail altogether, 
 when the Principal's hand is removed by death 
 from the helm. Mr. Bissell is now almost 
 penniless, and is compelled to teach for a liv- 
 ing at the age of more than eighty years. Con- 
 sidering the invaluable service he has ren- 
 dered the village and township in the past, how 
 scores of people now living there have been 
 the recipients of his generous bounty, how 
 patient self-denial and faith in God have been 
 the watchwords of this venerable old man, it is 
 unquestionably due from the citizens to pro- 
 vide him with at least the necessaries of life. 
 Religious meetings were held in the township 
 prior to 1820. They had been held in one or 
 two of the few dwellings and, it is said, in the 
 upper stor}' of the grist-mill, ver}^ likely bj' 
 Kevs. John Seward, of Aurora, and William 
 Hanford, of Hudson. After the erection of 
 the schoolhouse, in 1822, at the Center, they 
 were usually held there. Lewis Ailing, Sr., 
 usually led the meetings ; Asa Upson also did. 
 A circuit minister, whose name is forgotten, 
 organized a class at the house of Asa Upson 
 as early as 1821, and the first members were 
 Asa Upson, Emer}^ Alger and their families. 
 Mr. Seward was preaching for the society at 
 this time about once a month. Mr. Hanford 
 also held regular service there. A Congrega- 
 tional society was organized August 23, 1822, 
 and at that time consisted of the following 
 members : Lewis Ailing, Luman Lane, Han- 
 ford White, John A. Wells and the following 
 and their wives : Robert Hurd, J. H. Kelsey, 
 Belizer Beech, also Irena Thomas, Comfort 
 Nichols and Julia White. Revs. Seward and 
 
 Hanford organized the society. It was greatly 
 strengthened by a revival in 1827. On the 
 30th of April, 1828, Rev. Bissell was given 
 charge of the societ}'. Rev. Hair was its Pas- 
 tor in 1835. At this time or soon afterward, a 
 division was made in the society, and Rev. 
 Bissell became the Pastor of one of them. 
 Revs. Treat, Ward and Chapin occasionally 
 preached at the Center. Rev. R. C. Learned 
 was Pastor in 18-13 ; Horace W. Palmer, in 
 1848 ; Joseph H. Scott, in 1853 ; Sidney Bry- 
 ant, in 1860, and the President and professors 
 of Western Reserve College have also filled the 
 appointment. A proposition to build a com- 
 bined church and schoolhouse on the square 
 met with opposition. Timbers were prepared, 
 and, finally, under protest, the house was 
 erected. The house was twice moved, and 
 then torn down. Another building was erected 
 in 1831, at a cost of $700. The present one 
 was built in 1848, at a cost of $3,000. 
 
 The fine marble monument standing in the 
 public park is a credit to the patriotism of the 
 citizens and an emblem of gratitude to the 
 brave boys, living and dead, who fought in the 
 last great war. Their names and the compa- 
 nies and regiments in which they served are 
 chiseled into the white stone. The structure 
 was erected the " semi-centennial year of the 
 settlement of Twinsburg.'" Its total height is 
 twenty-eight feet, and it rests upon three 
 superimposed bases of sandstone, which form 
 a series of steps to the foot of the marble col- 
 umn. Standing on the summit, with wings 
 outspread, is a life-sized statue of the Ameri- 
 can eagle. 
 
 s F- 
 
 :Rr 
 
PART III. 
 
 BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES. 
 
 ^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 ALLEN FAMILY, Akron. Jesse Allen, Sr., 
 the progenitor of the Allen family, was born 
 in 1770, in Cornwall, Conn. His father Na- 
 thaniel Allen was killed in the Revolutionary 
 war, when Jesse was rather young. He (Jesse) 
 lived with a family in Connecticut, until he grew 
 up, and there learned shoemaking. When a 
 young man he went to Tompkins Co., N. Y., 
 where he married a lady of German origin 
 named Catharine Teithrich, in 1796 ; she was 
 born in Trenton, N. J., in 1776. He abandoned 
 his trade for farming, and bought a farm near 
 Ithaca, N. Y., but lost it by " bailing " a man, 
 and thus his hard earnings were swept away, 
 except a few hundred dollars, with which he 
 determined to remove to Ohio, and, in the sum- 
 mer of 1811, set out with his family of seven 
 children, and brother's famil}-, bound hither ; he 
 bought land which adjoins the Sixth Ward, 
 then Middlebur}'. During the war of 1812, he 
 served under Maj. Spicer, and, while gone an 
 Indian spy came into the house, and the little 
 boys working in the clearing came with their 
 axes to hew him down ; it is supposed the same 
 Indian was killed near Summit Lake. Mr. Al- 
 len continued to reside in Coventry Township 
 until his death, Sept. 12, 1837. Mr. A. was a 
 member of the Baptist Church, and in the early 
 days, before ministers came to the country, he, 
 being an excellent reader, used to read sermons 
 at the pioneer religious meetings. He was the 
 father of ten children, seven of whom were born 
 near Ithaca, N. Y., as follows : Jonah (see 
 sketches in Coventry Township). 
 
 Levi, the second son, was born Feb. 10, 1799, 
 and was 12 years old when the family came to 
 Ohio ; he walked all the way and drove cattle. 
 
 The following incident is not inappropriate. 
 When on the beach of Lake Erie, the wagons 
 with the provisions were delayed by accident, 
 and Levi and other boys, with John, a little fel- 
 low, were on before with the cattle and were 
 without provisions, except the milk of the cows. 
 At night, he (Levi) covered John with sand to 
 keep him warm, and thus they passed the night 
 alone. Their first work upon arriving, in July, 
 1811, was reaping in a harvest field for Mr. 
 Norton. He (Levi) grew up a close thinker, 
 and was a man of sound judgment. 
 
 David, the third son, was born Dec. 2, 1800 ; 
 when about 18, he learned the trade of machin- 
 ist ; he and his brother Jesse and McMillin com- 
 menced the manufacture of carding machines 
 about 1833. He (David) married, in 1829, 
 Beulah Jones. He died in 1842. 
 
 Jacob, the fourth son of Jesse and Catharine 
 Allen, was born in Lansing, Tompkins Co., N. 
 Y., Feb. 11, 1803 ; he was 8 j'earsold when his 
 family removed to Akron ; he learned his trade 
 with Humphrey & Bagley in the woolen mills 
 at Middlebury, Ohio, and, when about 18, he 
 went to New York State and built a woolen 
 factory near Ithaca, where he lived until 1835, 
 when he returned to Akron and built several 
 woolen factories, which he started, and sold 
 while in successful operation. He was in corn- 
 pan}' with Simon Perkins and Jedediah Cum- 
 mins for several jears, and was interested in 
 all the railroads, doing all he could to promote 
 the interests of Akron, widening Howard street 
 and making various improvements. He was 
 interested in the manufacture of flour for sev- 
 eral years, and established an office for its sale, 
 which his son, Frank H., is now conducting in 
 
lLl 
 
 662 
 
 BIOGRAPPIICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 New York City. He was a Democrat ; never 
 sought office, but was several times in the Coun- 
 cil. He married Miss Catharine Van Sickle 
 Feb. 10, 1830 ; she bore him five children, three 
 of whom are living— Frank H., Mrs. Rufus 
 Wright, of Brooklyn, Long Island, and Miss 
 Lizzie Allen. He was liberal in the support of 
 all churches, and died Nov. 25, 1879, in his 77th 
 year. 
 
 John, the fifth son, was born Dec. 5, 1804 ; 
 he learned the trade of stone-cutter, and was a 
 contractor on the locks of the Ohio Canal. He 
 died at Piketon, Ohio, Nov. 23, 1829. 
 
 Jesse, the sixth son, was born May 1. 1807 ; 
 he learned the trade of stone-cutter also, and, 
 with his brother David, manufactured carding 
 machines in Akron in early times ; he engaged 
 in flouring-mills in 1856, which he continued 
 until his death, Sept. 24, 1863. He was a strong 
 Whig during the last thirt}' years of his life, 
 and an active business man, and firmly estab- 
 lished in uprightness and integrity ; of high 
 moral standing, talented ; to know him well was 
 to esteem him. 
 
 Catharine was born Feb. 9, 1809, and died 
 at the age of 32 3'ears. She married Mills 
 Thompson, of Hudson, Ohio ; leaves six chil- 
 dren. 
 
 Sarah was born Jan. 3, 1812, and was the 
 first one of the children born in Ohio. She mar- 
 ried James M. Hall, .^larch 22, 1832. She died 
 Jan. 27, 1877. 
 
 Hiram was born Sept. 14, 1814 ; he came to 
 Akron in 1840, and, with Jacob Allen, his 
 brother, erected in succession a woolen mill on 
 Cherrj' street, the old portion of Cit}- Mills and 
 brick mills, now occupied b^' Allen & Co., first 
 used as woolen factories ; he erected the block 
 north of the Beacon Block, and which burned 
 in 1871, when he immediatel3' put up the pres- 
 ent one. He died Sept. 21, 1878, unmarried. 
 
 Christiana (Allen) Caldwell, the youngest 
 of ten children, was born Jan. 30, 1822 ; she 
 came to Akron in 1840, where she still resides 
 in a pleasant home on Broadway'. 
 
 Albert Allen, the son of Levi Allen and the 
 grandson of Jesse Allen, Jr., was born March 
 12, 1827, in Coventry Township, where, until he 
 attained his majority, he was emploved at farm- 
 ing and clearing, after which he learned mill- 
 wrighting under John S. Gilcrest, of Spring- 
 field, and engaged in pl3'ing his trade for a 
 period of nine years. In 1856, he built for 
 
 J. & J. Allen & Co., the Allen Mill, and was 
 employed as manager of the same for ten 
 years. In 18(j7, in company- with Alexander 
 H. Commins. he purchased the Stone Mills, 
 which then had but four runs of stone ; they 
 conducted a successful business under the 
 firm name of Commins & Allen, which contin- 
 ued up to the time of the death of Mr. Com- 
 mins, in 1880, since which time the firm name 
 has not been altered. The mills do an entirely 
 merchant business, and grind from two hundred 
 and fifty to three hundred barrels of flour per 
 day. In the spring of 1881, the mills were 
 changed to the Hungarian process, which en- 
 larges the capacity of the mills to four hundred 
 and fift}' barrels of flour per da}'. 
 
 FRANK ADAMS, President and Superin- 
 tendent of Akron Sewer Pipe Company. Sixth 
 Ward ; was born in Windsor Co., Vt., July 5, 
 1819, and is the son of Benjamin and Betsey 
 (Crowley) Adjuns, who were natives of Massa- 
 chusetts, and were married in Vermont, where 
 they had moved with their parents when young. 
 In 1838, they came to Ohio, the journey being 
 made by a wagon to Troy, N. Y.; thence by 
 canal to BuflTalo ; thence b}' lake to Cleveland : 
 and thence to Norton Township, in what is now 
 Summit Co., where they settled on a farm pre- 
 viousl}' purchased ; the}' farmed thereabout ten 
 3'ears, when they removed to Akron, v>'here 
 the}' lived a retired life until his death, which 
 occurred Nov. 22, 1849 ; Mrs. Adams died 
 about twenty years later. They were members 
 of the M. Vj. Church for more than forty years, 
 and took an active interest in all church affairs. 
 Frank remained at home until within a few 
 months of his majority ; his education was 
 confined to a limited attendance at the district 
 schools. Upon leaving home, he went to live 
 with his brother-in-law, Mr. Samuel Manning, 
 who was publishing maps, and with him re- 
 mained two years, in the printing department. 
 He then engaged as clerk in the post office at 
 Akron, remaining one year, when he left, and. 
 at the expiration of another year, he returned 
 to the post office, remaining this time two 
 years, when he engaged in the map business, 
 forming the partnership of ^Manning & Co., and 
 remained one year, when the firm became Ad- 
 ams & Egleston, the latter buying out Man- 
 ning. They continued until the spring of 1 848, 
 when their building was destroyed by fire, 
 which necessitated a dissolution of the firm and 
 
<i fc-_ 
 
 k. 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 663 
 
 the discontinuance of the business in Akron. 
 He then took an active part in the campaign, 
 and was Treasurer of the Whig Club. In March, 
 1849, he , was appointed Postmaster of Akron 
 by President Zachary Taylor, and held the of- 
 fice during his administration and that of his 
 successor, Millard Fillmore. After retiring 
 from the post office, he opened a hat store, 
 which was burned in the spring of 1855. In 
 May following, he purchased an interest in the 
 business of Mei'rill, Powers & Co., and, in 1859, 
 the firm became Hill & Adams, which contin- 
 ued until 1868, when the business was merged 
 into a stock compan}', known as the Hill & 
 Adams Sewer Pipe Company, and, in January, 
 
 1871, Mr. Hill retired, and the corporate name 
 became, as now, "The Akron Sewer Pipe Com- 
 pany-," of which Mr. Adams was made President, 
 also Superintendent, which offices he still re- 
 tains, having held them from the first for- 
 mation of the stock company. During the 
 war, Mr. Adams served as a member of the 
 School Board, member of Council, Treasurer of 
 School Board, Corporation Treasurer, and Treas- 
 urer of the Soldiers' Relief Fund. He was 
 married Jan. 21, 1846, to Miss Sarah J. Gale, a 
 native of Vermont, who came to Akron when 
 young, with her parents. She died Jan. 11, 
 1863. They had three children, two living, 
 viz., Julia Latham and Ma}' Perkins, both of 
 Akron. He was again married, Sept 2, 1863, 
 to Mrs. Janetta L. Murphy, formerly Miss Hart ; 
 they have two children, viz., Frank H. and 
 Belle M. Mr. Adams was a Whig up to the 
 formation of the Republican party, and a Re- 
 publican since that time. He has been a mem- 
 ber of the Episcopal Church for twelve years. 
 
 ISAAC C. ALDEN, Treasurer of Whitman 
 & Miles Manufacturing Co., Akron, Ohio ; is a 
 son of Henr}' and Abbie C. (Smith) Alden, and 
 was born Nov. 20, 1851, at Bridgewater, Mass. 
 When very young, the family moved to Abing- 
 ton, Mass., where he went to school until he 
 was 15 3'ears old, and then entered a wholesale 
 dry goods store in Boston, remaining two 
 3ears. In 1869, he entered the knife manufac- 
 or}' at Fitchburg, which place he held until 
 
 1872, when he came to Akron and was made 
 Assistant Treasurer of the Whitman & Miles 
 Manufacturing Co., and, in 1877, he was made 
 Treasurer of the concern. He was married, 
 Dec. 10, 1874, to Miss Emma L. GiflTord, of 
 Fitchburg, Mass. 
 
 ANGELO ANDREW, of R. L. & A. Andrew, 
 Akron ; was born Feb. 1, 1846, in Boston Town- 
 ship, this county ; he lived at home until 1 7 3'ears 
 of age, when he was apprenticed to the printer's 
 trade with the Akron Bmcon. After serving 
 two years, he went to Cleveland and worked on 
 the Ohio Farmer until Aug. 23, 1864, when he 
 enlisted in Co. H, 177th O. V. I., and served 
 until the close of the war, taking part in all the 
 engagements in which his regiment partici- 
 pated. On his return from the arm3', he fol- 
 lowed the business of painting, in Peninsula, 
 for three 3'ears ; he then engaged as clerk in 
 the same village, in a general merchandise 
 business, for a period of five 3'ears. He then 
 came to Akron and worked at his trade with his 
 brother, and, in 1877, formed the partnership 
 indicated above. Their business is confined to 
 wall paper decorations for public buildings and 
 residences, which they handle by the wholesale 
 as well as retail, and all kinds of painting, em- 
 plo3'ing from six to twelve skilled workmen. 
 Their store is 22x66 feet, with two stories and 
 a basement ; church and hall decorations are a 
 special feature of their business. Aug. 14, 
 1873, he married Miss Lizzie Warburton, a 
 native of Northampton Township ; they have 
 three children — Ma3'belle. Frank and Bessie. 
 
 R. L. ANDREW, of R. L. & A. Andrew, 
 Akron. R. L. Andrew, senior partner of the 
 firm of R. L. & A. Andrew, is a native of Bos- 
 ton Township, this count3' ; his parents, Robert 
 and Ann A. ( Tubbs) Andrew, were natives of 
 England ; his father came to America in 1838, 
 and lived with a brother in Boston, Summit Co., 
 Ohio ; in the following 3'ear, he returned to En- 
 gland and married, returning to Boston with his 
 wife in 1840 ; here he followed the trade of orna- 
 mental painter, remaining in Boston until 1873, 
 when he moved to Akron, where he has since re- 
 sided. Mrs. Andrew died in Akron Oct. 3, 1879. 
 R. L. Andrew was born May 24, 1841. the eldest 
 of three children ; he lived at home, learning 
 the trade of his father, and clerking at Penin- 
 sula and Akron for some five years until 1862. 
 In June of this year he enlisted in the 85th O. 
 V. I., Co. B. and served four months, taking 
 part, in the meanwhile, in the engagements at 
 Prentiss, Miss., and Yickburg. In August, he 
 enlisted in Co. H, 177th 0. V. I., and served to 
 the close of the war with the rank of Sergeant ; 
 he was present at the battle of the Cedars, the 
 engagement at Shelb3'ville Pike, Town Creek, 
 
 
664 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and was present at Johnston's surrender. Re- 
 turning home after the war, he engaged as clerk 
 in the store of E. H. Cole, at Peninsula. He 
 subsequently went to Michigan and clerked in 
 a store in lona, then at Marshall, and finall}' at 
 Ann Arbor, for E. B. Thompson & Sons, who 
 moved their business about as indicated. 
 Oct. 6, 1869, he came to Akron and took up 
 the business connected with his trade of orna- 
 mental painting. In 1873, he built the present 
 store propert}', 240 East Mill street, where he 
 has since conducted his business. Jan. 1, 1877, 
 he formed the partnership with his brother An- 
 gelo. Sept. 6, 1866, he married Miss Emerancy 
 Hall, a native of Northampton ; she died April 
 3, 1879. Two children were born to them, both 
 deceased. 
 
 JOHN H. AUBLE, real estate, insurance, 
 railroad, steamship and foreign exchange agent, 
 Akron, Ohio ; was born Dec. 2, 1842, and is a 
 son of Daniel and Susanna (Orwig) Auble, na- 
 tives of Miftliuburg, Union Co., Penn., where 
 our subject was born. His parents came to 
 Ohio in 1854, and settled near Wadsworth, 
 Medina County. He worked on a farm until 
 15, when he entered the store of E. G. Loomis, 
 at Wadsworth, as a clerk, until July, 1861, 
 when he was made a partner, under the firm 
 name of Loomis, Auble & Co. He was doing 
 a prosperous business, when he enlisted in Co. 
 I. 103d 0. V. I., Aug. 2, 1862. Soon after en- 
 listment he was detached as Clerk A. G. 0., 
 under Maj. Gen. A. J. Smith, and served in the 
 army of Mississippi ; was in active service first 
 against the rebel Gen. Kirb}' Smith, in Ken- 
 tucky ; at the siege of Vicksburg, with Gen. 
 Sherman, on the Yazoo, and Grant at its final 
 surrender. He was in the Missouri campaign 
 under Rosecrans, with Thomas at Nashville, 
 and in Gen. Scofield's department during the 
 last months of service. He was mustered out 
 with his regiment at Camp Cleveland, June 24, 
 1865, and returned home. He was at once 
 emplo3'ed as salesman by M. W. Henry & Co., 
 of Akron, where he remained five years, and, 
 in 1871, engaged in the real estate, insurance, 
 foreign passage and exchange business. In 
 January, 1875, he took the business manage- 
 ment of the Beacon Publishing Co., leaving it 
 in the fall of 1877 with its financial condition 
 greatl}' improved. He is Secretary of the 
 Akron Coal Co., operating rich mines in Guern- 
 sey County. In May, 1880. he was appointed 
 
 agent for the New York, Pennsylvania & Ohio 
 Railroad, a position he still holds. He was 
 married in August, 1870, to Miss Harriet E., 
 only daughter of Rev. W. F. Day, D. D., for- 
 merly of Akron M. E. Church. They have five 
 children — Anna Helen, Susie Orwig, Hattie 
 Day, Bessie Norris and John Henry, Jr. 
 
 J. PARK ALEXANDER. The subject of 
 these lines was born to John and Mai-y (Scott) 
 Alexander on Aug. 7, 1834, in Bath township. 
 Summit Co., Ohio, where he worked on a farm 
 until the age of 18, attending district school 
 and the academy at Richfield. At the age of 
 20 he went to the normal school at Marlboro, 
 entering the engineering class under Pi'of 
 Holbrook, being a class-mate of Prof Menden- 
 hall. Having completed an engineering course, 
 he was, in 1856, emplo^-ed in the public schools 
 of Akron, where lie taught two years. In 
 1865-66, he bought the present site of his fire- 
 brick manufactory-, then used as a manufactorj' 
 of stoneware, being, at that time, a small con- 
 cern. He enlarged the buildings, and at the 
 same time contracted for such an amount of 
 stoneware as twelve or fifteen manufactories of 
 Summit count}- could make. The aggregate 
 amount of some years was two million gallons 
 of ware. He established a warehouse at De- 
 troit, maintaining it eight years, and one at 
 Chicago five years. In 1867, he began manu- 
 facturing fire-brick, which he has greatl}- im- 
 proved in quality. In 1875, he succeeded in 
 obtaining a patent for the manufacture of a 
 nearl}' pure (98.78) silica brick from white 
 pebble. This was the first business of the kind 
 in Ohio. They make about one and one-half 
 million bricks per year, employing twenty men 
 in the making, and a large number in the hand- 
 ling of them for market. In 1872, he bought 
 two oil refineries in this city and ran them, in 
 connection with the Standard Oil Compau}-, for 
 five years. In 1858, he was elected Secretary 
 of the Summit County Agricultural Society, 
 holding the position for five years, which were 
 followed by seven 3'ears in the presidency of tiie 
 same, during which time (1858 to 1870), great 
 improvements were made in the society. In 
 1868, he was elected member of the State 
 Board of Agriculture, and, in 1872, Treasurer 
 of the same. He was made member of the City 
 Council in 1865, and, with the exception of two 
 years, has continued such, being for the past 
 eight vears President of the same, and witness- 
 
 :rv: 
 
iUl 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 665 
 
 ing during that time all the public improve- 
 ments, the city having grown from 3,500 to 
 20,000 inhabitants. Religious and educational 
 institutions have repeatedly been the recipients 
 of his munificent gifts. On Sept. 5, 1860, he 
 was married to Miss Martha D. Wright, of Tall- 
 madge, Ohio, daughter of Francis H. Wright, of 
 which union there were eight children, one of 
 whom, George B., is dead. Those living are 
 Clara W., Helen B., Grace F., Mattie D., Bessie 
 H., J. Park, Jr., and Alice S. 
 
 DAVID S. ALEXANDER, agricultural im- 
 plements, Akron, Ohio ; is a son of John and 
 Mary (Scott) Alexander, both of whom were 
 born in Washington Co., Penn., and were mar- 
 ried in 1828. In February, 1831, they came to 
 Ohio, and settled in Bath Township, where he 
 had previoush' bought 175 acres of land, upon 
 which was some impi'ovements. He followed 
 farming there for several years, and, about 
 1840, began to import fine sheep (Saxon breed) 
 from Washington Co., Penn., of the McKeever 
 stock, driving overland. He was for some 
 years a prominent breeder and wool-grower, 
 and brought into the county the first flock of 
 Spanish merinoes. He died in 1856, aged 58, 
 and his wife in June, 1880, at the age of 80 
 years. The^' had four sons, of whom David, the 
 subject, was the oldest, and was born July 7, 
 1829, in Washington Co., Penn., and was an in- 
 fant when the family came to this county. He 
 grew up on the farm in Bath Township, receiv- 
 ing his education in the schools of Bath, and 
 attending school in Akron from 18-47 to 1849, 
 under Gen. Leggett, now of Cleveland. At 24 
 years of age, he commenced business for himself, 
 and, in 1851, bought the farm of J. P. Baldwin, 
 and for eleven years followed grain and stock 
 farming successfully. In 1861, he came to 
 Akron, and bought several lots on " Ely 
 Tract," and commenced dealing in sheep, but 
 dogs were very destructive to them, and he 
 quit the business. In 1871, he began to deal 
 in agricultural implements, which he still con 
 tinues. His establishment was destroyed by 
 fire in 1879, entailing upon him a loss of 
 $12,000. In rebuilding, he fell from a scaffold 
 and broke his thigh. In June, 1853, he mar- 
 ried Miss Sarah C. Hale, a daughter of William 
 Hale, of Bath Township. Five daughters were 
 born to them. Lucy J. was the wife of C. R. 
 Grant, of Akron, and died June 8,1880. Three 
 brothers of subject died when 3'oung ; those 
 
 living are David S. (subject), Joseph H., J. 
 Park and William G., who is a commission 
 merchant at Toledo, Ohio. 
 
 FRANK M. ATTERHOLT, lawyer, Akron, 
 son of John and Emeline (Williams) Atterholt, 
 was born Dec. 19, 1848, near New Lisbon, Ohio, 
 where he lived on a farm until he was 14 years 
 of age, in the meantime attending school, and 
 then entered the New Lisbon High School, 
 which he attended for three years. At the age 
 of 17 he began teaching, and continued some 
 twelve years, spending his summer vacations 
 in the National Normal School of Lebanon. He 
 graduated from Mt. Vernon College in 1870, 
 having entered three years previous. He was 
 for three years Superintendent of the Colum- 
 biana Public Schools, and for some time editor 
 of the Independent Register of that place. In 
 the Medina Normal School of 1872 he taught 
 mathematics, and in 1873 was made Principal 
 of the West Salem Public Schools, which posi- 
 tion he retained for five years. In June, 1878, 
 he began the stud}' of law under the direction 
 of Upson, Ford & Baird, and pui'sued his 
 studies with them two years, being admitted to 
 the bar on Oct. 5, 1880, at the session of the 
 Supreme Court at Columbus, and has since 
 been in practice here, having moved here in 
 1879. He was married to Miss Mar}' E. Beard, 
 of Columbiana, Ohio, Dec. 31, 1872 ; she was a 
 teacher in the public schools of that place. She 
 bore him one child, a son. 
 
 O. C. BARBER, Vice President Diamond 
 Match Co., Akron. The subject of this sketch 
 is a natiA'c of Middlebury, now Sixth Ward 
 of Akron, Ohio. He was born April 20, 1841, 
 and is the fourth of eight children born to 
 George and Eliza Barber, who were natives 
 of Connecticut and Ohio respectively. George 
 Barber was born in the year 1804. His par- 
 ents, Ezriah and Ann Barber, moving to Onon- 
 daga Co., N. Y., when he was 1 year old, and 
 where he remained until he became of age, 
 his schooling was confined to a few months 
 each year at the district schools of his neigh- 
 borhood. At the age of 18, he was appren- 
 ticed to coopering, and worked for three years. 
 In the year 1826 — feeling the same pioneer 
 spirit that had actuated his parents and grand- 
 parents before him (he being a descendant of 
 a family that came to this country from En- 
 gland in 1620) — he thought he would take a 
 look at what was then considered the far 
 
 :fv" 
 
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 West, i. e., Ohio, and, after a few years' travel 
 through the State hi the clock business, he 
 finally settled down at Middlebury, where a 
 considerable milling interest was well estab- 
 lished, and where and at Akron he followed his 
 trade until the year 1845, when he began the 
 manufacture of matches, being one of the first 
 to take up the business in the West. Meeting 
 with indifferent success at first, owing to the 
 great difficult}^ of distributing the goods he 
 manufactured. There being no railroads at that 
 time that would transport matches, it was nec- 
 essary to distribute his product by wagons. In 
 the year 1852, feeling somewhat tired of the 
 struggle, and the necessity of a rest, he con- 
 cluded to retire from the business, and traded 
 his fixtures and factoiy for a hotel at Middle- 
 bury, and was appointed Postmaster of Middle- 
 bury, under Pierce's administration. Of this 
 he tired in about one year, and again engaged 
 in the manufacture of matches and buttons, the 
 latter part of the enterprise proving unprofit- 
 able was soon abandoned, and he again gave 
 his entire time and attention to the manufacture 
 of matches, the facilities for which were in- 
 proved from time to time, to keep pace with 
 the growing demands of the trade ; and from 
 making matches by hand in a barn, step by 
 step the business was so increased that in the 
 year 1880, the business was conducted in build- 
 ings that, if on one floor twenty-two feet wide, 
 would be over one mile long, and in which are 
 made enough matches every twenty-five days, 
 if placed end to end, to span the earth, and 
 from which the Grovei'nment received for inter- 
 nal revenue stamps over $2,000 per day. Our 
 subject, who is the only surviving son of the 
 founder of this immense business, was raised 
 in his native village, and received a course of 
 study in the common schools. The circum- 
 stances of the family early ushered him into 
 business affairs, thus at the age of 16, he began 
 selling matches for his father, operating in Ohio, 
 Indiana, Michigan and Penns3dvania, in which 
 States, through his activity and industr}', the 
 reputation of the Barber match soon became 
 well-established. In the 3'ear 18(52, the entire 
 management was left to his dictation, from 
 which time the success of the enterprise became 
 more marked. Ver}^ much of this success Mr. 
 Barber attributes to his associate and active 
 business friend, J. K. Robinson, who about this 
 time took charge of introducing the goods into 
 
 new markets, as well as the taking charge of 
 the markets where the reputation of the goods 
 were established, and no man in the entire West 
 is better or more favorably known to the job- 
 bing grocer trade of the country than Jack 
 Robinson, as he is familiarh' dubbed by his 
 many friends. In 1864, the business was merged 
 into a stock company', known as the Barber 
 Match Co., of which George Barber was the 
 President and 0. C. Barber the Secretary and 
 Treasurer, and John K. Robinson was General 
 Agent. In January, 1881, the company had by 
 far the largest and best equipped match works 
 on this continent. The same enterprise that 
 had made it what it was, suggested to Messrs. 
 Barber & Robinson the propriety and economy 
 of consolidating all the match companies of the 
 States into one ownership or one company, and 
 through them and other active manufacturers, 
 a consolidation was made of twenty-eight of 
 the leading manufacturers of the country, un- 
 der the name of the Diamond Match Co., 
 with a capital of $2,250,000, of which William 
 H. Swift, of Wilmington, Del., is President ; 
 0. C. Barber, Vice President ; and William B. 
 Gates, of Frankfort, N. Y., is Treasurer. The 
 business of this company' is conducted or man- 
 aged by these officers, as an Executive Com- 
 mittee, with co-ordinate powers, the subject 
 of this sketch having charge more direct!}' of 
 all the compan^^'s factories in the States west 
 and south of Pennsylvania ; the sales depart- 
 ment in the same territory being in the charge 
 of John K. Robinson. 0. C. Barber married 
 Miss Laura L. Brown, of Akron, Oct. 10, 1866. 
 By the marriage there have been two children, 
 one of whom is living, viz., Anna Laura : 
 Charles H. is deceased. 
 
 JOHN RICHARD BUCHTEL, manufact- 
 urer of reapers and mowers, Akron, whose por- 
 trait appears in this work, was born Jan. 18, 
 1822, in Summit Co., Ohio. He was the son 
 of John Buchtel, a farmer, and the grandson 
 of Peter Buchtel, who was a native of Penn- 
 sj'lvania, whence he moved to Ohio in 1809, 
 entering service here as a soldier in the war of 
 1812, and dying in the army. He engaged in 
 farming when a youth, with no opportunity of 
 obtaining other education than such as he 
 could acquire b}' himself so that, when he at- 
 tained his majority, he could with difficulty 
 write his name. At that age he began to work 
 land on shares, continuing it for several years, 
 
 *7l 
 
-^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 667 
 
 until at length he was able to purchase a small 
 farm of twent}^ acres. Finally disposing of 
 this, he bought a farm of IGO acres in Coven- 
 try Township, Summit Co., Ohio, which he im- 
 proved and lived upon until 1854, when he 
 sold it, and purchased a farm in La Porte Co., 
 Ind., purposing at the time to remove there, 
 and continue faiming. Before doing so, how- 
 ever, he modified his plans and entered into 
 the employ of Ball, Aullman & Co., of Can- 
 ton, then just beginning to make and introduce 
 very extensively the ''Ohio," and afterward the 
 " Buckeye" mower and reaper, continuing as 
 their agent until the spring of 1856. The fiim 
 was burnt out soon alter, and made an assign- 
 ment to him for the benefit of its creditors. 
 They obtained an extension, and he gave them 
 such important aid that the fiim, C. Aullman & 
 Co., was again on a secure foundation. In 
 1864, he succeeded in persuading the Canton 
 manufacturers of the "Buckeye" machines, to 
 build a manufactorj' at Akion also, and he 
 superintended the constiuction of the neces- 
 sary buildings, and purchased a one-sixth inter- 
 est in the new establishment. By the following 
 spring they began manufacturing their ma- 
 chines in the new buildings. The next year 
 the business was organized as a stock ccmpany, 
 of which he was elected President. This com- 
 pany has over $1,000,0(10 of paid-up cap- 
 ital, and $500,000 surplus. Its works have 
 capacit}- for building over ten thousand ma- 
 chines annuall}'. The Akron Iron Company, 
 with its large rolling-mills and fine blast furn- 
 aces, and the Akron Knife Works, of the Whit- 
 man & Miles Manufacturing Ccmpany. for the 
 production of knives and sickles for mowers, 
 grew indirectly out of the establishment of the 
 Buckeye works ; and the Akron paper-mill of 
 Thomas Phillips & Co., the rubber works, the 
 the chain works, and man}- other flourishing 
 industries, owed very much to Mr. Buchtel for 
 their location in Akron. He was an officer of 
 the Canton incorporation of C. Aultman & Co., 
 a Director of the Akron Iron Company, of the 
 Bank of Akron, and of the Weary. Snyder & 
 W^ilcox Manufacturing Company, besides many 
 smaller business interests. In politics a Re- 
 publican, and in temperance matters a prohibi- 
 tionist ; he was the candidate of the latter 
 party for Secretary of State of Ohio, in 1874. 
 He was appointed by Gov. Hayes, and con- 
 firmed by the Senate, one of the Trustees of 
 
 State Agricultural College, and was a member 
 of the executive committee during the erec- 
 tion of its buildings. Througliout the war of 
 Secession, his services to the community were 
 simply invaluable. When others deemed the 
 obstacles to filling up the quota and escaping 
 the draft to be insurmountable, he, b}- his di- 
 rect and supervisory eflfbrts obtained the appor- 
 tionment laid upon his town. In religious be- 
 lief, he is a stanch I^niversalist, but neverthe- 
 less contributed for the erection of everj- 
 church built in Akron, after he began to take 
 an active part in ati'airs. The crowning work 
 of his unstinted liberality was reached in the 
 establishment and endowment of Buchtel Col- 
 lege, Akron, an institution under the control 
 i and patronage of the Universalist dencmina- 
 j tion of Ohio. As the outgrowth of three 
 I years of earnest thought and persistent eflfert, 
 I the corner-stone of this college was laid Julj- 
 4, 1871, Horace Greeley delivering the address 
 of the occasion. Besides donating at the out- 
 j set, his library to the institution, he from time 
 to time contributed toward its ccm.pleticn and 
 peimanent endowment, until his gilts, in this 
 direction, amounted to over $100,000. This 
 college, at first an experiment, steadily made 
 its way foiward until it holds a place of ac- 
 knowledged merit among the most flourishing 
 institutions of the West. His generous contri- 
 butions to the Akron Library Association, of 
 which he was President, did much to place 
 that organization upon a peimanent basis. It 
 ma}- be safely said that he gave away all he 
 earned, and was a great public and private 
 benefactor. In 1844, he married Miss Eliza- 
 beth Davidscn. and their union is without 
 issue. In 1877, Mr. Buchtel went to Athens 
 Co., Ohio, where he purchased for the Akron 
 Iron Company, on the line of the Hock- 
 ing Valley Branch Bailroad, 1,400 acres, com- 
 prising some of the richest deposits of 
 coal and iron in the State. During the same 
 year, the railroad compan}- located a station on 
 these lands, and in honor of his ettbrts to de- 
 velop the mines, they named the station Buch- 
 tel. and later, the post office there received the 
 same name. As purchaser, projector and gen- 
 eral manager of the company during the past 
 four years, he has made five openings and es- 
 tablished large furnaces, which combined, re- i 
 quire a force of over four hundred men to 
 operate, with a mining capacity' of 1,000 tons 
 
 ^^=f* 
 
668 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 of superior furnace coal. The rich veins of 
 iron there are worked with great facility on 
 account of contiguous quarries of limestone 
 which produce lime suitable for fluxing. 
 
 CAPT. GEORGE BILLOW, undertaker, 
 Akron, the representative of his line of busi- 
 ness, has an eventful history. He was born 
 April 2, 1833, in Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, 
 and is the son of John and Elizabeth (Milljus) 
 Billow, both natives of Hesse-Darmstadt. His 
 parents, with five sons and two daughters, emi- 
 grated to the United States about the year 
 1844, and settled on a farm near Sandusky, 
 Ohio. George remained with his parents till he 
 was 17 3'ears old, and then went to Fremont, 
 Ohio, to learn the trade of a wagon-maker ; he 
 spent three years there at learning his trade, 
 and then he went to Cleveland, where he fin- 
 ished in fine workmanship ; he then came to 
 Akron, and for a time was emplo3'ed by E. A. 
 Collins. About this time he was married to 
 Miss Mary, daughter of Conrad and Charlotte 
 (Graff) Fink ; their marriage took place on 
 Sept. 19, 1854. His wife, as well as her father 
 and mother, were natives of Germany. After 
 his marriage he returned to Cleveland for a 
 time, and then again came to Akron, when he 
 engaged in the manufacture of spokes for Mr. 
 Collins, and for Oviatt & Sperry, of Tallmadge. 
 About the time he was engaged in this busi- 
 ness, the war of the rebellion had grown to a 
 point when President Lincoln issued a call for 
 300,000 men. Mr. Billow sold out and closed 
 up his interests as best he could, and then entered 
 the army ; he enlisted in Co. I, 107th 0. V. I., 
 as a private ; this was a German regiment, and 
 was enlisted specially for Sigel's command ; he 
 entered the army in July, and in the following 
 November he was promoted to Second Lieu- 
 tenant ; shortly after this he rose to the rank 
 of First Lieutenant, and then was made Captain 
 of his company. Much of his term of enlist- 
 ment was spent in detail service, though he saw 
 some hard fighting ; he was in the Fredericks- 
 burg campaign, and was at the battle of Chan- 
 cellorsville from July 1 to 4 ; in the first bayonet 
 charge at this battle, the Captain and thirty 
 men of his company were lost. Hagerstown 
 and Boonsboro will also l)e remembered by 
 him as places of battle in which he participated. 
 From Warrenton Junction they embarked for 
 South Carolina ; their command had been so 
 cut up that the 1st Division of the 11th Corps 
 
 was united with Gordon's Division, and the com- 
 mand known thereafter as Gordon's Division. 
 They went to Folly Island, under command of 
 Gen. Q. A. Gilraore. Capt. Billow was at the 
 capture of Fort Wagner, and about Christmas, 
 1863, he was at the battle of James' Island ; 
 he was subsequently ordered to the assistance 
 of the troops at Jacksonville, Fla. ; there he 
 was stricken with typhoid fever, and, after re- 
 covering, he was detailed Brigade Commissary 
 of Subsistence, which position he held for three 
 months, and had the honor of having been 
 complimented by Commissary General Kil- 
 bourn on his success. Again he was detailed, 
 and this time on the staff of Gen. Foster, as 
 Post Commissary at Fernandina ; he remained 
 there about nine months, and was then sent to 
 Jacksonville as local Provost Marshal, and was 
 there for three months, and then he was re- 
 turned to Fernandina, where he remained till 
 the close of the war. When he returned from 
 the army he engaged in the grocery business 
 in Akron, with Mr. C. Kolb ; thev were in busi- 
 ness for about two years, when he took charge 
 of the co-operative grocery ; he then, for about 
 one and a half 3'ears, was traveling and selling 
 stoneware. Having seen much of the South 
 during the war, he removed to Huntsville, Ala., 
 where, for four years, he was on a cotton plan- 
 tation ; finding this speculation unprofitable, he 
 returned to Akron, where he arrived the 1st of 
 April, 1875. He has now been Notary' for five 
 years, and is doing an extensive business as 
 agent for different ocean steamship lines and in 
 foreign exchange ; this, in connection with his 
 business as undertaker, makes an extensive 
 trade. He is a member of Akron Commander}', 
 No. 25 ; and while he was in Alabama, he was 
 a member of Huntsville Commander}-, No. 7, 
 and held the office of Grand Captain of the 
 Guard of the order in that State. Politically, 
 he is a Republican. His famil}^ consists of the 
 following children : Anna, George W., Charles 
 Fernando (named after the Major), Ida, Albert 
 C, Jacob L., Edwin M., and the baby, Claire. 
 WILLIAM BUCHTEL, lumber, etc., Akron; 
 a son of John and Catharine (Richards) Buch- 
 tel, was born Dec. 23, 1822, in Green Township 
 of this county. His father had but little means, 
 except his land (106 acres) and his children 
 only went to school when they could be spared 
 from the farm in winter. He (subject) and his 
 brother, John R., cleared a large portion of his 
 
'k^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 669 
 
 father's farm. At 22. he commenced for him- 
 self, and in one year bought the homestead, and 
 engaged largely in wheat-raising. He followed 
 farming until 1856, when he bought an interest 
 (having rented out his farm) in the Chamberlin 
 Mills, which he operated for some time with 
 good success. He served in the 164th 0. N. Gr. 
 during the late war, and was honorably dis- 
 charged in the fall of 1864. After leaving the 
 arm}', he removed to Akron, and in the follow- 
 ing year he made one of the firm of Jackson, 
 Buchtel & Co., and engaged in the lumber 
 business for five years — subject being most of 
 the time in the pineries near Saginaw, Mich., 
 supe^-intending the manufacture of lumber. He 
 is at present in the lumber business. Since 
 1865, he has located and handled over 20,000 
 acres of GoA'ernment and State lands, in Clare, 
 Isabella and Missaukee Counties, Mich., and 
 still owns some 3,000 acres there. He was 
 married March 7, 1842, to Miss Martha Hen- 
 derson, of Springfield Township. By this mai'- 
 riage there are four children, viz. : James H., 
 John D., Wm. M. and C. J. 
 
 JOHN D. BUCHTEL, Akron, second son of 
 Wm. and 3Iartha (Henderson) Buchtel was born 
 May 20, 1849, in Coventry Township, this county. 
 In 1864, when his father went into the army, he 
 came to Akron, and worked in the mill until 
 his return, when he went to school for two 
 3'ears. He then engaged in a flour and feed 
 store ; attended commercial school in Pough- 
 keepsie in 1868, and spent two summers at 
 Saginaw, Mich. He was in the employ of 
 Thomas & Son one year (1871), and teller in 
 the Citizens' Savings and Loan Association, 
 from May, 1872, to March, 1877, when his health 
 failed and he lay sick for some time. In 1878, 
 he was a member of Tlermania Printing Co. for 
 a short time and then went to Chautauqua Lake 
 where he clerked in a hotel for three months. 
 He then came back to Akron, and in November, 
 1878, opened a feed store on Mill sti'eet, which 
 he kept until the spring of 1881, when he be- 
 came a member of the firm of Wm. Buchtel & 
 Sons, lumber dealers. 
 
 CHARLES W. BROWN, barber, Akron, a 
 son of John and Margaret (Groves) Brown, was 
 born in Cleveland, Ohio, May 7, 1843, where he 
 lived until 15 years of age, attending the public 
 schools of that city. At the age of 14 he en- 
 tered his father's barber shop as an apprentice ; 
 he, being a leading barber on Superior street 
 
 for some fifty j-ears. Subject worked in the 
 shop until the war broke out. He had drilled 
 with a compan}' of colored men under Capt. 
 Paddock of the " Cleveland Grays." This 
 company, through John Brown (subject's father) 
 tendered their services to Gov. Tod, who tele- 
 graphed in response : " When we want niggers 
 we'll let you know." Subject then recruited fif- 
 teen men, and upon offering themselves to Rhode 
 Island were accepted. He then returned and 
 raised twenty men more, but Ohio had, in the 
 meantime, discovered that "niggers" would 
 stop bullets as well as whites, and got out an 
 injunction against their leaving the State. 
 Gov. Sprague of Rhode Island was notified, and 
 sent two of his ablest attorney's to manage the 
 case. In the trial of the case, Gov. Tod's tele- 
 gram was offered in testimon}', and after a full 
 discussion of the pros and cons, the " niggers " 
 were allowed to follow their own bent, and at 
 once reported to Rhode Island, where they 
 were mustered into the 14th Rhode Island 
 Heavy Artillery. They entered the service in 
 October, 1862, and were discharged at New 
 Orleans in the spring of 1865. Subject served 
 in the Gulf Department, and was in the battles 
 of Red River, Mobile, Plaquemine, La., and was 
 1st Sergeant of Co. K. He came to Akron in the 
 fall of 1865, and has done a good business as 
 barber ever since. His shop is located under 
 the x\cademy of Music, and runs from three to 
 five chairs with competent artists, and has a 
 bath room attached. He has always been a 
 stanch Republican and is the first colored man 
 elected to office in Summit Count}', b}' a popular 
 vote, being elected Trustee of Portage Township 
 in 1880, an oflfice he has faithfully filled. He 
 was married, July 29, 1867, to Miss Laura V. 
 Lewis, of Cleveland ; the}' have two daughters 
 and one son. His parents were free-born and 
 came to Cleveland about 1820, where the 
 mother still lives, aged 85 : father died in 1868. 
 They had two sons and two daughters. Sub- 
 ject is a fine musician, and was leader of the 
 first colored band ever raised in Akron. 
 
 DAVID BUNN, policeman. Akron. Ohio ; 
 a son of Jacob and Sarah A. (Whaler) Bunn ; 
 was born in Wells Co., Ind., May 23, 1842, his 
 father having mo\'ed to that locality in an early 
 da}'. Subject worked on a farm, and helped to 
 clear 200 acres of woodland. He went to 
 school, two miles distant, and, at 19, came to 
 Ohio, where he worked for David Gailhouse. of 
 
670 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Wayne Coimty, on farm and in coal bank. He 
 enlisted, Aug.* 22, 1862, in Co. G, of the 120tli 
 0. V. I., and participated in the Trans-Missis- 
 sippi and Vicksburg campaign, and the Red 
 River expedition. He was captured at Snagg 
 Point, Red River, and imprisoned at Camp Ford 
 for thirteen months ; was at one time sentenced 
 to be shot by the rebels, and taken out for that 
 purpose, but was not executed for some cause. 
 After being inhumanly treated, rendering him 
 an invalid for five years, he was, in 1865, pa- 
 roled at Camp Ford, and returned to Doyles- 
 town, Ohio, and clerked for one year for his old 
 employer, on farm and in coal bank. He was 
 married, October 11, 1866, to Miss Almira 
 Spriiiger, of Doylestown, where he lived until 
 1875. They have three children, two sons and 
 one daughter. Mr. B., in 1866. engaged in the 
 grocer}' business, and afterward dealt in dry 
 goods. In 1875, he came to Akron, and opened 
 a boot and shoe store on Howard street, for 
 about three years, when he closed out and en- 
 tered the employ of Teeples & Maxim for about 
 one and one-half years. In 1878, he was ap- 
 pointed, by Mayor Scott, policeman for the 
 Fourth Ward, and has been on the force ever 
 since, a faithful and vigilant officei'. He has 
 always been a stanch Republican in politics. 
 
 J. MARTIN BECK, Akron Varnish Works, 
 Akron, Ohio, is a son of Adam and Christina 
 (Hoefer) Beck, and was born in the town of 
 Selb, Bavaria, Germany, Oct. 14, 1843. At 14, 
 he entered as an apprentice in a wholesale gro- 
 cery and drug house, and served four years 
 without compensation, and paid over $300 to 
 learn the business. He passed a regular ex- 
 amination, and came to the United States in 
 1862, and to Akron in August of the same 
 year. Here he first entered the employ of M. 
 W. Henry & Co., Mr. Wolf, his half-brother, 
 being a partner. He remained six 3'ears, when 
 his health failed, and he changed his location 
 to Cleveland, where he was employed by E. I. 
 Baldwin & Co. as a salesman for one year. In 
 the spring of 1869, he went to Europe and re- 
 mained till fall, and returned to the United 
 States in improved health. He entered into 
 partnership with John Wolf and H. J. Church, 
 in the dry goods business, until 1878, when he 
 sold out, and shortly after formed a partner- 
 ship with E. G. Kubler, and established the 
 Akron Varnish Works, the first and only fac- 
 tory of the kind in the county. The business 
 
 has largely increased since its establishment. 
 Jan. 12, 1871, he married Miss Kate J. Buch- 
 tel, daughter of William Buchtel, Esq. The}' 
 have two sons and one daughter. 
 
 SOL J. BUCHER, Constable, Akron; son 
 of David and Catherine (Baird) Bucher, was 
 born in Franklin Township, this county, April 
 10, 1846. He lived there until the war broke 
 out. At 16, he entered the array, enlisting 
 August 5, 1862, in Co. H, 104th 0. V. I. He 
 served in the Kentucky and East Tennessee 
 invasion, and the Atlanta campaign. At Co- 
 lumbia, Tenn., he was wounded on the 28th of 
 November, 1864, while on skirmish line ; he 
 was shot by a sharpshooter, and the ball en- 
 tered under his left nostril, crashing through 
 the hard palate, grazing the base of the skull, 
 and lodged between his ear and bones of the 
 neck. The wound was probed by surgeons, 
 and they removed a half ounce ball. His hear- 
 ing and eyesight were affected for some time. 
 He joined his regiment at Greensboro, N. C, 
 in May, 1865, and was mustered out at Cleve- 
 land with his regiment. On his return, he en- 
 gaged in farming in Coventry Township, until 
 1869, when he removed to Akron, and was 
 there in the employ of Thomas & Sous, in the 
 planing business, for about a year ; then, for 
 some time, engaged in the grocery business. 
 Next, he worked in the different departments 
 of the '' Excelsior Works," on i-eapers and mow- 
 ers, and subsequently in the Akron Rubber 
 Works. In 1875, he was elected Constable for 
 Portage Township, which position he has filled 
 by annual elections ever since. He has been a 
 member of the Republican County Committee 
 for two years. September 28, 1866, he mar- 
 ried, at Millersburg, Ohio, Mrs. Harriet L. 
 Bucher, widow of the late David Bucher, Jr., 
 and daughter of David Flickinger, formerly of 
 Summit Co. His father was born in Maryland 
 in 1808, and came to Canton with his parents 
 in 1810, the present city having then but four 
 cabins. He grew up there, and moved near 
 Clinton, this county, in 1838. He married 
 Miss Catharine Baird, of Canton, a lady of 
 Scotch descent, born in 1813. He farmed in 
 Franklin Township until his death, in 1858. 
 Ho was one of the "Minute Men" during the 
 Mexican war. He was the father of fourteen 
 children, eleven of whom are deceased ; but six 
 grew up, viz., David, Jr., John, Joseph, Solo- 
 mon J., Lavina and Amelia, Henry (deceased). 
 
 ^ 
 
L^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 671 
 
 John was a member of the 1st Battalion of the 
 18th U. S. A., and died at Park Barrack, Louis- 
 ville, Ky., Dec. 9, 1862. Mrs. David Bucher, 
 Sr., is still living. Theobald Bucher, grand- 
 father of subject, was a French soldier, and re- 
 moved from Alsatia, France, to America, just 
 after the American Revolution, settling at Bal- 
 timore, Md.; then removed to Bellefonte, Center 
 Co., Penn., and, in 1810, to Canton, Ohio, with 
 his family. 
 
 JAMES BUCHANAN, foreman in paper 
 mills, Akron ; is a son of James and Elizabeth 
 (Patterson) Buchanan ; she a daughter of Frank 
 Patterson. All were natives of County Donne- 
 gal, Ireland ; but emigrated to America, and 
 settled at Quebec, Canada, in 1853, the same 
 year coming to Cuyahoga Falls. James and 
 Elizabeth Buchanan had four children, two of 
 whom are living — our subject, born in 1846, 
 and Helen, now a Mrs. Fred Langs ; he a 
 molder at Webster, Camp & Lanes. The j^oung- 
 est and the oldest children died in infancy. 
 James received a limited education, and, at 9 
 years of age, began working in the paper mill 
 at Cuyahoga Falls, wliere he worked a number 
 of years, and learned the different departments 
 of the work. In Aug. 2, 1862, he enlisted in 
 Co. G, 115th 0. V. I., and was afterward trans- 
 ferred to the Second U. S. Calvary, in which he 
 served two and a half years. He was mustered 
 out of service in August, 1865 ; returned home, 
 and learned the harness-maker's trade, at which 
 he worked three years. In 1868, he re-engaged 
 in the paper mill at the falls, working with the 
 engines and machines, until, in the year 1874, 
 from which time until, in 1876, he was em- 
 ploj^ed at the Monroe Falls Paper Mills. In 
 1876, he came to the Akron Paper Company, 
 and, in 1879, accepted the position of foreman 
 of the works. He was married to Mary Ann 
 Nesbitt, by whom he had four children, three 
 of whom are now living, viz., Ellen, Emma and 
 Frank. He is a member of Summit Lodge, 
 No. 50, I. 0. 0. F. He is also connected with 
 the Episcopal Church. 
 
 FREDERICK BISHOP, Superintendent Ak- 
 ron Iron Company, Akron ; son of Thomas and 
 Ann (Warner) Bishop ; was born in the county 
 of Warwickshire, England, October 30, 1843. 
 When a child, his parents removed to the iron 
 region of South Staffoi'dshire, England. When 12 
 years old, he entered a rolling mill at Wednes- 
 bury, Eng., in the heart of the iron coun- 
 
 tr}'. He worked in almost ever}^ department 
 of the business there, and came to the United 
 States in 1868, stopping at Pittsburgh, Penn., 
 from August to November, when he came to 
 Akron, and entered the employ of this company, 
 as puddler's helper for some six months, when 
 he was assigned the management of the finish- 
 ing mills, a position he held some six years, 
 after which he was employed in the mills of the 
 Mahoning Valley as superintendent of mills 
 (at different points) for four years. He then 
 entered the employ of the Akron Iron Company, 
 in September, 1878, as superintendent, which 
 position he has held ever since. He has been 
 in the iron business for twentj'-six years, and 
 is thoroughly acquainted with all the processes 
 known as to its manufacture. May 31, 1869, 
 he married Miss Ann Baldwin, of Wednesbury, 
 England. He has two children living, and three 
 dead. His father was a farmer, and is living 
 with his wife in England. They were once in 
 the United States. 
 
 JOHN BROWN, deceased. The champion 
 of universal liberty, the zealous friend of the 
 colored race, and the hero of Harper's Ferry, 
 was born at Torrington, Conn., on the 9th of 
 May, in the year 1800, and was the son of Owen 
 and Ruth (Mills) Brown. His ancestry is 
 traced back in an unbroken line to Peter 
 Brown, one of the fugitive pilgrims, who landed 
 from the Mayflower on Plymouth Rock in De- 
 cember, 1620. Without tracing the family 
 back to this renowned ancestor, suffice it to say 
 that Capt. John Brown (the grandfather of 
 subject), was an officer in the Revolutionary 
 army, and died of disease during his term of 
 service. He was of the fourth generation from 
 Peter Brown in regular descent. Capt. John 
 Brown's youngest son was named Owen, and 
 was the father of our subject. He came to 
 Ohio in 1805, when the latter was but five 
 years old, and settled in Hudson Township 
 (now in Summit County), where he became one 
 of the principal pioneer settler's of that section. 
 He was commonly called Squire Brown, and 
 was one of the Board of Trustees of Oberlin 
 College; was spoken of as being endowed with 
 energy and enterprise, and of going down to his 
 grave honoi-ed and respected, about 1852, at 
 the age of 87 years. Subject's mother died 
 when he was but 8 years old, a loss he mourned 
 long and sincerely. When the war broke out 
 with England (1812), his father engaged in fur- 
 
 \ 
 
672 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 nishing the troops with beef (sattle. During 
 this war lie had some chance to form his own 
 bo3'ish judgment of men and measures, and to 
 become somewhat familiarly acquainted with 
 many who figured before the country in after 
 3'ears. A circumstance occurred during this 
 war that made him a most determined Aboli- 
 tionist, and led him to declare eternal war on 
 slavery. He was staying for a short time with 
 a man who owned a slave boy about his own 
 age. This man made a great pet of him (sub- 
 ject), brought him to table with his first com- 
 pany and friends, and called their attention to 
 every little smart thing he said and did, while 
 the negro boy was badly clothed, poorly fed 
 and lodged in cold weather, and beaten before 
 his eyes with anything that came first to hand. 
 At the age of 10 an old friend induced him to 
 read a little history, by which he acquired some 
 taste for reading ; formed the principal part of 
 his early education and diverted him, in a great 
 manner, from bad company. By reading the 
 lives of great and good men, and their writings, 
 he grew to dislike vain and frivolous conversa- 
 tion and persons. In early life he became am- 
 bitious to excel in an3'thing he undertook to 
 perform, and especially in the full labor of a 
 man in any hard work. At an early age he 
 became, to some extent, a convert to Chris- 
 tianity, and was ever after a firm believer in 
 the divine authenticity of the Bible. With this 
 book he became very familiar, and possessed 
 an unusual memory of its entire contents. He 
 was married June 21, 1820, at Hudson, to Miss 
 Dianthe Lusk, an industrious and economical 
 girl of excellent character, earnest piet^^, and of 
 good practical common sense. By this marriage 
 he had seven children, viz., John, Jason, Owen, 
 Frederick. Ruth, Frederick (2d), and an infant 
 son, buried with its mother, Aug. 10, 1832. 
 three days after its birth. By his second wife, 
 Mary A. Da^-, to whom he was married at 
 Meadville, Penn., he had thirteen children, viz., 
 Sarah, Watson, Salmon, Charles, Oliver, Peter, 
 Austin, Anne, Amelia, Sarah (2d), Ellen, infant 
 son, Ellen (2d). From his 21st to his 26th 
 3-ear, he was engaged in the tanning business 
 and as a farmer in Ohio. At 26, he went to 
 Crawford Co., Penn., where he carried on his 
 old business until 1835, characterized as a 
 thoroughly honest man. In 1835, he moved 
 to Franklin Mills, Portage Co., Ohio, where he 
 remained until 1840, when he went to Hudson 
 
 and engaged in the wool business with Mr. 
 Oviatt, of Richfield. In 1814, he moved to 
 Akron, and in 1846, to Springfield, Mass., where 
 he lived until 1849, and then removed to Essex 
 Co., N. Y. In 1851, he returned, with his 
 family to Akron, Ohio, where he managed Mr. 
 Perkins' farm and carried on the wool business. 
 It was in 1839 that he first conceived the idea 
 of liberating the Southern slaves. He had seen 
 the blasting and blighting manhood of the 
 nation, and had listened to the "voice of the 
 poor that cried." This sentiment was cherished 
 b}' him, and his efforts in that direction pushed 
 forward, until he expiated with his life the zeal 
 he felt for the down-trodden African. In 1855, 
 on starting for Kansas, he again moved his 
 household to Essex Co., N. Y., where now his 
 "bod}' lies moldering in the dust." But from 
 the period of his going to Kansas, until an 
 ignominious death closed his eventful career, 
 his acts and his deeds are a part of the nation's 
 history, and require no repetition in this 
 sketch. 
 
 JAMES N. BALDWIN, merchant miller, 
 Akron. Benson C. Baldwin was born in 1797, 
 in Granville, Mass., and his wife, Louisa A. 
 Neal, in Tallmadge, Ohio, in 1812. He was 
 a minister in the Presbyterian Church, and 
 preached up to the time of his death, which 
 occurred at Medina in 1844. He was the 
 father of three sons, and James, the second 
 child, was born Feb. 22, 1839, in Medina, Ohio. 
 He lived in Middlebury from 1844 to 1851, 
 when his mother moved to Hudson. Here he 
 attended school until he was 19, when he came 
 to Akron and clerked for the Hall Bros, until 
 1862, when he was emplo^'ed as book-keeper 
 and Secretary of the Chamberlain Company, 
 continuing until 1878, in which year he formed 
 a partnership with George AV. McNeil, and 
 leased the ^Etna Mills, which they have con- 
 ducted with ftiir success since. In March, 
 1864, he was married to Miss Augusta Eldred, 
 of Akron, who bore him two children ; she 
 died in January, 1875. In July, 1879, he mar- 
 ried Miss Harriet L. Andrus, of Akron. 
 
 DENNISON BABCOCK, butcher, Akron, is 
 a son of George, he of Samuel Babcock, who 
 were natives of Groton, Conn. George, with 
 two brothers and one sister, came to Ohio at 
 an early date, he settling in Middlebury, and 
 engaging in mercantile pursuits, which he aft- 
 erward pursued in Akron Cit}' proper. He 
 
 IV 
 
CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 673 
 
 was married, June 14, 1829, to Clarissa Will- 
 iams as a second marriage, by whom he had 
 five children — ^Martha Calista, born July 1, 
 1830; Sarah Susannah, May 18, 1833; Will- 
 iams Pierpont, Oct. 27, 1835 ; Clarissa E., 
 Jul}' 31, 1840 (now deceased), and the subject 
 of 'this sketch, born Feb. 12, 1844. Paul 
 Williams, born in 1767, and Sarah Williams, 
 born in 1763, the grandparents of our subject, 
 came to Akron and erected the first log-house 
 in the cit}' proper, the location of which was 
 on Broad street, near the knife works. The 
 family nearly all died during the building of 
 the canal, none being left except the grand- 
 mother and the mother of the subject of this 
 sketch, who lived until 1868. The grand- 
 mother died in 1832, from the effects of sick- 
 ness in 1827. Dennison attended school in 
 Akron until 17 years of age, when he learned 
 butchering, and worked for a time at the car- 
 penter's trade. At 18 j-ears of age, he enlist- 
 ed in Co. H, 104th 0. V. I., in which he served 
 until July, 1865, receiving in the meantime a 
 wound at the battle of Knoxville which sent 
 him to the hospital for a considerable time, 
 which he occupied in filling the position of 
 Hospital Steward. In the spring of 1867, he 
 engaged with his brother in the feed-store bus- 
 iness, but disposed of the same the following 
 fall. Then engaged in butchering for about 
 two years, after which time he traveled four 
 years for Alfred Pitkin & Co., steam-heating 
 apparatus, subsequent!}' engaging in the bus- 
 iness of carpentering and pattern-making for 
 
 D. W. Thomas, continuing for about three 
 years. In March, 1879, he began the butcher- 
 ing business with a meat market at No. 322 
 East Mill street, where he is now engaged with 
 
 E. W. Russell, doing an average business. He 
 was married, Nov. 12, 1873, to Lucy Maria 
 Upson, daughter of Julius Upson, a resident 
 of Cuyahoga Falls. He is prominently identi- 
 fied with the Republican party. 
 
 JOHN H. BELLOWS, retired farmer ; P. O. 
 Akron ; is the eldest son of Itharaar Bellows, 
 who was born Feb. 11, 1794, in Groton, Conn., 
 and died in 1868, he being a son of Ephraim, 
 who came, among the earh' settlers, to Coventry 
 and Springfield Townships. The wife of Itha- 
 mar was Lanah Haynes, born June 28, 1796 ; 
 died Jan. 17, 1867. Her parents were Daniel 
 and Jane (Ha3'nes) Haynes, who were the first 
 white settlers in Coventry Township. The father 
 
 of our subject drove an ox -team from Groton, 
 Conn., to Coventry, in the fall of 1811, for 
 Capt. Amos Spicer, with whom he lived until 
 his marriage to Lanah Haynes. b}^ whom he 
 had seven children — Laura, born March 30, 
 1816 ; John H., April 24, 1818 ; Samantha J., 
 Oct. 20, 1823; Ephraim G., Dec. 15, 1825; 
 Harriet D., March 11, 1830 ; Henry J., Dec. 18, 
 1833, and Mary E., Dec. 22, 1837. He was 
 alwa^'s a ver}' hard-working man, honest and 
 upright in all his dealing, by which he amassed 
 a considerable fortune, although very liberal, 
 and meeting with many reverses. John H., 
 being the oldest son, received a very limited 
 education, he being employed in assisting his 
 father in clearing up the old homestead until 
 about 25 years of age. He was married, Oct. 
 9, 1857, to Lydia Ann Myers, daughter of 
 Simeon Mj^ers, an old settler in Norton. They 
 have two sons — Francis Leroy, born Dec. 25, 
 1859, now engaged as Assistant Superintendent 
 at Akron Rubber Works — and Charles Orlando, 
 born Oct. 25, 1861, now engaged in the manu- 
 facturing of brooms, with Bechtel & Pontius. 
 
 JAMES H. BURT, book-keeper at Brewster 
 Coal Chutes, Akron ; was born Aug. 19, 1843 ; 
 the son of William Burt, whose father was also 
 named William ; they were natives of England. 
 Our subject is a native of Glamorganshire, 
 South Wales ; and, in the fall of 1853, came 
 from Liverpool to New York with his parents 
 and four sisters. They resided at Wampum, 
 Penn., for one 3ear ; then came to the cit}' of 
 Youngstown, Ohio, where the father now lives, 
 and is engaged as an horticulturist. His mother 
 was a sister to John Beese, whose histor}' ap- 
 pears in Coventr}' Township. James attended 
 school until 13 years of age, when he engaged 
 as a mule driver in the Mahoning Valley until 
 the breaking-out of the war, when he enlisted 
 as drummer in an independent band called 
 " Dixon's Band ;" but was subsequentl}^ con- 
 nected with the 155th Penns3'lvania Regiment, 
 the band being discharged some time after en- 
 listment, he returned home, and re-enlisted in 
 the 84th 0. V. I. three montlis' men ; but were 
 kept several months overtime, when they were 
 discharged. He then, immediately, Jan. 2, 1864, 
 enlisted in the 15th Ohio Battery, in which he 
 served until June, 1865, when he returned home, 
 and worked on a farm and attended school un- 
 til April, 1866. when he was engaged as book- 
 keeper l)y the Crawford, Davis & Co. Coal Mining 
 
 :|^ 
 
074 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES; 
 
 Companj', near Youngstown, until 1874, at which 
 time he accepted the position which he now 
 occupies. He was married, Nov. 28, 1867, to 
 Harriette E. Beatty, daughter of John and Lu- 
 cretia (Darrow) Beatty, natives, he of Ii'eland, 
 she of New England. B_y this marriage, there 
 were five children — Harrison J., Franklin P., 
 Clara May, Alfred and Martha J. 
 
 ARTHUR F. BARTGES, Akron ; son of Dr. 
 Samuel W. Bartges ; was born in North George- 
 town, Ohio, April 2, 1838, and came with his 
 parents to Akron in 1842, where he attended 
 the public schools until he was 16, entering 
 Western Reserve College of Hudson in 1856, 
 where he spent two j-ears. In 1857, he entered 
 the law office of Ranney, Backus & Noble, of 
 Cleveland, being admitted to the bar at the 
 session of the Supreme Court at Columbus, 
 April 4, 1859. Returning at once to Akron, 
 he formed a partnership with Gen. A. C. Voris, 
 which lasted until 1864. In 1865, he opened a 
 coal mine in Norton, and engaged in the coal 
 business, going to Cleveland in 1869, vvhere he 
 had his principal office, and did a large busi- 
 ness in the sale of coal until 1877, when he 
 again came to Akron, and resumed the practice 
 of law, being in active practice ever since. 
 
 CAPT. A. P. BxiLDWIN, Agent Akron 
 Iron Company, Akron, oldest son of James 
 and Mary (Robertson) Baldwin, was born Jan. 
 28, 1838, near 110 North Howard street, 
 Akron ; at 14, he entered the employ of P. D. 
 Hall & Co., as clerk, where he remained until 
 1859, when his father opened a hardware store 
 on Howard street, under the firm name of 
 James Baldwin & Son ; this they conducted 
 until the war broke out, and, in October, 1861, 
 he enlisted in the 6th Ohio Light Batter}^ or- 
 ganized at Mansfield, Ohio, b}' John Sherman, 
 by whom he was commissioned 2d Lieutenant. 
 After the battle of Mission Ridge he was pro- 
 moted to 1st Lieutenant, and during the Hood 
 campaign he was made Captain of the 6th 
 Battery ; he was mustered out at New Orleans 
 September 1, 1865, having served nobly in the 
 Pittsburg, Shiloh, Perryville, Stone River, Chat- 
 tanooga, Lookout Mountain, Atlanta Cam- 
 paign, Resaca, Atlanta (Jonesboro), Spring 
 Hill and Nashville battles. For his gallant 
 services at Spring Hill, of Franklin, Tennessee, 
 he was offered a commission in the regular army, 
 by Corps Commander Gen. D. Stanley, but de- 
 clined it. On his return to Akron he went into 
 
 the hardware business with H. W. Wetmore, 
 under the firm name of Wetmore & Baldwin, and 
 in 1 867, it became Wetmore, Baldwin & Paige, so 
 continuing until 1869, when he retired, and in 
 March became General Agent for the Akron 
 Iron Compan}', a position he still retains, repre- 
 senting the company throughout the East, West 
 and South. November 10, 1863, he married 
 Miss Celia F. Ayres, of Akron ; he has four 
 children — James A., John Sherman, Susie and 
 Mary E 
 
 JAMES BALDWIN, Akron, was born at 
 Amsterdam, N. Y.,in 1S05, and came to Akron 
 in 1831, having but little means ; he was a car- 
 penter and builder. The firm of Kilbour & 
 Baldwin was presented with lots on corner of 
 Howard & Market streets, for the purpose of 
 erecting a hotel, which they did, and named it 
 the "Pavilion Hotel;" they rented it to Charles 
 B. Cobb, who kept it for several years. Mr. 
 Baldwin put up the present block, comprising 
 Nos. 102,104 and 108 North Howard st. He 
 went into the hardware business in 1859, con- 
 tinuing until 1864, when he retired, and died 
 Sept. 19, 1865. His wife, Mary (Robertson) 
 was born in Pittsburgh, Penn., in 1805, came to 
 Ohio, with her parents, in 1831, and was mar- 
 ried. She died in 1872, leaving a family of six 
 children, viz., Miranda P., resident of Aki'oii ; 
 Isabella R., wife of William C. Sullivan, of Oak- 
 land, California ; Aaron P. (of whom see 
 sketch) ; James W., died in 1875, near Cincin- 
 nati ; Mar}' J., who was the wife of B. D. A. 
 Melvin, of Akron, and died in 1877 ; and Olive 
 J., wife of C. L. Benjamin, of Dennison, Tex. 
 James Baldwin was a civil engineer on the 
 railroad from Schenectady to Albany, N. Y., in 
 1830, the first railroad in the United States, 
 with Hon. Horatio Allen and James Mills ; he 
 was a man of great industry, and possessed a 
 character without a flaw. 
 
 JAMES F. BRUOT, Notary Public, general 
 insurance and real estate agent, Akron ; was 
 born Jan. 29, 1827 ; is the son of John Nicho- 
 las Bruot and Catharine Bruot, nee Guyot, of 
 Valentigney, near Montbeliard, Department of 
 Doubs, France, and the descendant of an an- 
 cient Huguenot family. He was educated in 
 the normal school of his native town, and in 
 1843 came out best of his class and drew the 
 first prize of honor ; in May, 1848, he came to 
 the United States, stopping at Buffalo, N. Y., 
 where he engaged to work for an attorney in 
 
 w 
 
CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 675 
 
 order to learn the English hmguage ; he went 
 back to France in 1851 on a visit, and while 
 tliere received a power of attorney from Mr. 
 Peter Gressard, of Coventry Township, Summit 
 Co. On his return to the United States, and at 
 the solicitation of Mr. Gressard, he came to this 
 count}' and visited the latter, when he first became 
 acquainted with his wife ; he did not remain 
 long, however ; he, being an only child was 
 again called to France by his parents for the 
 third time. AVhile there his father died acci- 
 dentally, and, after arranging matters relating 
 to the estate, he returned to Buffalo, and, Dec. 
 2, 1854, was married in Akron to Miss Kosalie 
 Gressard. He took his wife to Buffalo, and re- 
 mained there in the grocery and provision bus- 
 iness until November, 1857, when he sold out 
 his house, lot and business, at a good margin, 
 and took his wife and first child on a visit to 
 Europe. In 1860, he returned with his lamily 
 to Akron, where, a few months later, after the 
 death of his father-in-law, he purchased the 
 latter's farm. In 1864, he erected a large build- 
 ing on South Main street, where he opened a 
 wholesale and retail grocery store, and, a few 
 years later, erected the Harmonic Block, at a 
 cost of $23,000 ; in November, 1871, he en- 
 gaged in the general insurance and real estate 
 business, and is at present Notary Public, insur- 
 ance and real estate agent. He has five chil- 
 dren, all of whom are living. Mr. B. has made 
 eight trips to Europe, which, with his original 
 trip to the United States, makes seventeen times 
 crossing of the Atlantic. 
 
 G. C. BERRY, merchant, Akron, of the well- 
 known firm of G. C. Berry & Co. — of which so 
 much is said in the sketch of Mr. Henry of this 
 firm — is a native of Medina Co., Ohio, though he 
 became aresidentof Summit County when he was 
 3 years old ; in 1863, he became a partner in the 
 firm of which he now stands at the head, which 
 change was made in 1874. His has been a life 
 without remarkable incident, yet crowned with 
 success. During his early life he had the ad- 
 vantage of the public schools of Akron ; his 
 opportunities were not left unimproved, the re- 
 sult of which was the acquirement by himself 
 of a good education. In social as well as in 
 business affairs, he is not given to ostentation. 
 He was a member of Co. F of the 164th 0. V. I., 
 100 days service during the war of the rebell- 
 ion ; he has been a member of the Board of 
 Education of Akron, which fact is pretty good 
 
 evidence of his ability and the confidence of the 
 people ; he is a member of Summit Lodge, No. 
 50, I. 0. 0. F., and a Republican in politics. 
 He has been almost wholly dependent upon 
 his own resources, and, however prominent 
 his position may be in connection with the 
 mercantile industries of Akron, that position 
 has been attained by his own energy, ambition 
 and honesty. 
 
 GEORGE BURKHARDT, retired, Akron, 
 who is a representative of the industrious and 
 enterprising German element of Akron popu- 
 lation, was born in Baden, Germany. When he 
 was 11 years old, his father died, and, at the 
 age of 13, he was doubly orphaned by the 
 death of his mother. He, however, had the 
 advantage of attending school until he was 14 
 years of age. When 15 years of age, he was 
 apprenticed for three years to a toolmaker to 
 learn that trade, in addition to serving which 
 time, he paid $32. At the closing of his term 
 of apprenticeship, he began life among stran- 
 gers on his own account, by beginning a tour of 
 five years' travel through the States of Germany, 
 and by special pass into France and Switzer- 
 land. This period of travel was for the pur- 
 pose of working in the different States of Ger- 
 many, and was what was known as his term of 
 journey-man workmanship, at the end of which 
 time he was termed a master workman. In 
 1848, he emigrated to America and came direct 
 to Akron, where he has since resided. He first 
 began work for a Mr. James Hale, at Lock No. 
 7, of Akron. His work has been principally 
 in iron and brass. He has received good 
 wages on account of his being a fine workman. 
 By saving his mone}' and investmg it in real 
 estate he has become the owner of valuable 
 residence and business propert}' in Akron. To 
 aid him in succeeding better in his business, he 
 for a time, shortly after his arrival in Akron, 
 attended a night school for the special instruc- 
 tion of Germans in the American or English 
 language. Mr. Burkhardt has not been a 
 political office seeker, though he has held the 
 office of Chief Engineer of the Akron Fire 
 Department, and has been a member of the 
 Akron City Council from the Fourth Ward. 
 He is a member of the order of A., F. & A. M., 
 and of a number of secret societies that are 
 strictly German. He is also a member of the 
 Reformed Church. In 1870, he paid his Father- 
 land a visit, where he remained for about three 
 
 "TH 
 
 v 
 
A^ 
 
 
 676 
 
 BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 months. He is now one of that class of the 
 residents of Akron who are reaping the reward 
 of their early industry and economy in the 
 possession of a comfortable home and a com- 
 petency for old age. 
 
 ALMON BROWN, County Coroner and 
 Justice of the Peace, Middlebury (Sixth Ward, 
 Akron), was born in Tompkins Co., N. Y., 
 Nov. 26, 1801, on his father's farm, and is the 
 third child of a family of eight children, born 
 to Holland and Sarah (Mix) Brown. They 
 were natives of Brimfield, Mass., and Litchfield, 
 Conn., and were married in Tompkins Co., 
 whither they had removed with their parents. 
 In January, 1814, Mr. Brown and family, then 
 consisting of seven children, came to Ohio. 
 His means of transportation was a sled, drawn 
 by two yoke of oxen, the stronger members of 
 the family, of whom was Almon, our subject, 
 walking the entire distance. The trip required 
 twenty-six days. Upon his arrival he bought 
 160 acres of timber land, and, while building a 
 cabin, lived with a friend. The cabin put up 
 b}^ Mr. Brown was twenty feet square, and of 
 round logs ; there was one room, " cut down " 
 inside, oiled paper window, board door, made 
 from the sled box, and a stick chimney. He 
 lived here two years, then sold his improve- 
 ments and bought 135 acres adjoining, on 
 which he erected another log cabin, and com- 
 menced clearing his land. He lived in the 
 vicinity some ten j^ears, making in the mean- 
 time several improvements. He then removed 
 to what is now Wadsworth Township, Medina 
 Co., where he bought land, upon which he lived 
 until his death, which occurred in April, 1844. 
 His wife died in Medina in. 1861, where she had 
 lived with a daughter most of the time after 
 her husband's death. Almon Brown, our sub- 
 ject, made his home with his parents until he 
 was 21 years of age. He received but a limited 
 education — his schooling amounting to about 
 four months' attendance, one month each at 
 four different terms of district schools. He 
 was married, Jan. 1, 1828, to Miss Rosalind 
 Hinman, a native of Allegany Co., N. Y., who 
 came to this county (Coventry Township) with 
 her parents about the year 1818. She died 
 May 13, 1847, leaving five children. He was a 
 second time married, on Sept. 9, 1847, to Miss 
 Evan Shively, a native of Columbiana Co., 
 Ohio. She died June 17, 1857. Two children 
 were born of this marriage. May 13, 1858, he 
 
 was again married, to Mrs. Read, formerly Miss 
 Catharine Paulus, a native of Huntingdon Co., 
 Penn. She was born June 13, 1811, and was 
 the third of five children born to Daniel and 
 Hannah (Miller) Paulus. They were natives 
 of Pennsylvania and Virginia, and were mar- 
 ried in Pennsylvania, removing to Ohio in the 
 year 1815. The}' settled in Jackson Township, 
 Stark County, where Mr. Paulus died the next 
 year after settlement. His widow, two years 
 later, married Mr. Jacob Jubb, and bore him 
 five children. They lived in Stark Co. until 
 his death, when she went to Indiana, and 
 passed the remainder of her life with her 
 children. Catharine, the wife of our subject, 
 lived at home until her first marriage to John 
 Read, a wagon-maker in Middlebury. He died 
 Aug. 18, 1856 ; they had no children. She has 
 since resided here, with the exception of about 
 eight 3'ears passed in the western part of the 
 county. x\fter the first marriage of our sub- 
 ject, he followed carpentering for about twenty 
 years, and then worked at wood-turning in 
 Norton Township, and, in 1866, came to Mid- 
 dlebury, where he has since resided. He has 
 served most of the time as Justice of the 
 Peace ; also served as Ward and Township 
 Assessor some eight or nine years. He was 
 mail agent for several years, and is now serv- 
 ing his fifth term as County Coroner. He was 
 Mayor of Middlebury- two terras — the last dur- 
 ing the vote to annex it to Akron. He has 
 been a member of the Disciples' Church since 
 1834,. and an J]lder of the same a number of 
 years. Mrs. Brown was a Methodist about 
 thirty years, but since 1860, has been a mem- 
 ber of the Disciples' Church. Mr. Brown's 
 first vote for a Presidential candidate was for 
 John Quinc}- Adams. He was a Whig until 
 1840 ; then anti-slavery until the organization 
 of the Republican party, since which time he 
 has been a zealous member of it. 
 
 JUDGE CONSTANT BRYAN, lawyer, Ak- 
 ron. A son of Elijah and Content (Fowler) 
 Bryan ; was born Sept. 6, 1809, in Delaware 
 Co., N. Y., where he was brought up on a farm 
 until he was 16 years old. He then com- 
 menced teaching, continuing it for three years, 
 when he entered upon the stud}' of the law at 
 Bainbridge, Chenango Co., N. Y., in the office 
 of John C. Clark, remaining with him about 
 two years. In the fall of 1831, he went to 
 Milford, Conn., and afterward to New Haven, 
 
<a »^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 677 
 
 where he continued his studies in the Law De- 
 partment of Yale College, teaching in the pub- 
 lic schools during the summer vacation. In 
 the fall of 1833, he came to Ohio and located 
 in Akron, and, in 1834, was admitted to the 
 bar at Columbus, he walking to Wooster, and 
 going by stage from that place. He opened an 
 office for practice at once ; was the partner of 
 George Bliss for two or three years. In 1852, 
 he was elected Probate Judge of Summit Co. 
 Judge BrN'an's practice has been chiefly in 
 civil cases and in the chancery courts. He 
 was the first Recorder of the incorported vil- 
 lage of Akron, and long a member of the 
 School Board. He was one of the early Free- 
 Soilers, and was elected Probate Judge by that 
 party and the Democrats. He was married in 
 May, 1839, to Miss Sophia Dennison, a native 
 of Rutland, Vt. Two children were born of 
 this marriage, one of whom is living — Henry 
 E., City Clerk of Columbus, Ohio. His wife 
 died, and in September, 1854, he was again 
 married, to Miss Susan L. Barnum, of Flor- 
 ence, Huron Co., Ohio. Of this marriage, 
 there are two children living — Fred C, in the 
 Cincinnati Law School, and Isaac J., at home. 
 Judge B. is a member of the Congregational 
 Church. 
 
 REV. JOHN B. BROUN, Pastor of St. 
 Bernard's (German Catholic) Church, Akron, 
 was born in Rennes, France, March 2, 1834. 
 When he was 13, his family emigrated to the 
 United States and settled in Monroe, Mich., in 
 1847. He entered Assumption College at 
 Sandwich, Ontario, at the age of 20, remaining 
 there three years, then entered St. Thomas 
 College, near Bardstown, Ky., where he gradu- 
 ated in June, 1859 ; was in St. Mary's Semi- 
 nary one year in Cleveland ; studied theology 
 three years in Assumption College, and, Aug. 28, 
 1863, was ordained priest, in the Cathedral St. 
 Mary, by Bishop Baraga. He was located at Eagle 
 Harbor, on Lake Superior, Mich., having a ter- 
 ritory of fifty miles in length, containing three 
 churches and sixteen missions, comprising over 
 one thousand families. He visited each mis- 
 sion every month and church every two weeks, 
 for three years, often traveling on foot. In 
 1866, he came to Cleveland, and was sent to 
 St. Bernard's Church at this place, where he 
 has since remained, with the exception of a 
 short visit to Europe in 1873. The church 
 had but sixty families when he came, and now 
 
 it has three hundred with about nine hundred 
 communicants, full particulars of which are 
 given in the history of St. Bernard's Church in 
 another chapter. 
 
 J. W. BAKER, of Baker, Merriman & Co., 
 Akron, was born in Auburn, Cayuga Co., N. 
 Y., Jan. 27, 1827, and was the youngest of ten 
 children born to Edward and MoUie (Sherman) 
 Baker, who were natives of Massachusetts. 
 He was an edge-tool maker. In 1843, he came 
 to Ohio and settled in Akron. The subject of 
 these lines lived at home about one year after 
 coming to Akron, and then went to Columbus, 
 Ohio, where he learned the cabinet-maker's 
 trade, serving until he became of age, and 
 then returning to Akron, working at his trade 
 until 1850. In company with others, he then 
 went to California overland, where he remained 
 two years, engaged in mining. He returned 
 via Panama and New York, and engaged in the 
 manufacture of musical instruments, continu- 
 ing until the spring of 1857. He then became 
 a member of the Akron Melodeon Company, 
 manufacturers of musical instruments, contin- 
 uing in that business ten j^ears, when he en- 
 gaged in the manufacture of cigar boxes, and 
 gradually added wood-turning and -japanning. 
 In about 1870, he and Mr. J. C. McWilliam 
 established the present business, which they 
 have since continued. In May, 1853, he mar- 
 ried Miss Caroline Tha3er, a native of New 
 York, who bore him three children, two of 
 whom are living, viz., Frank and Alice. Politi- 
 cally, he is a Democrat. 
 
 CHARLES BAIRD, Prosecuting Attorney, 
 Akron. Is a son of Robert and Helen Knox 
 (Moir) Baird ; was born in Akron March 25, 
 1853. His father was the son of William and 
 Susan (Smith) Baird, and was born in Kineff, 
 Kincardineshire, Scotland, March 8, 1818. His 
 father and grandfather were blacksmiths, and 
 while quite a boy he learned the trade, which he 
 has followed all his life. In 1842, he and his 
 brother came to the United States, and he 
 worked at his trade at Buffalo until Ma}-, 1843, 
 when he came to Akron, engaging his services 
 at his trade until 1846, when he established a 
 shop of his own on Main street, at which place 
 and in which business he still continues. On 
 Sept. 21, 1846, he married Miss Helen Knox 
 Moir, a native of Buchan, Forfarshire, Scot- 
 land. She bore him five children, viz., Will- 
 iam (of Akron), Isabel, Charles and Mary (of 
 
 ^" 
 
 ll'-Y 
 
678 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Akron), and Helen, who died at the age of 21. 
 Charles, the subject of this sketch, attended 
 the public schools of Akron, from which he 
 graduated in 1872. In August, 1873, he en- 
 tered the office of Upson & Ford, where he 
 studied law, being admitted to the bar at the 
 session of the Supreme Court at Columbus 
 Nov. 2, 1875, immediatel}' afterward forming a 
 partnership with William H. Upson, under the 
 firm name of Upson & Baird, which continued 
 until the return of Mr. Ford from Mexico Jan. 
 10, 1877, when the firm became Upson, Ford & 
 Baird. Oct. 20, 1875, he was appointed Clerk 
 of Portage Township, which office he retained 
 until April, 1878, being twice elected. On 
 Feb. 15, 1879, he was appointed Canal Col- 
 lector for the port of Akron, which he contin- 
 ued to be until, on Jan. 15, 1881, he resigned 
 the office to take charge of the Prosecutor's 
 office, having been elected Prosecuting Attor- 
 ney of Summit Co. in October, 1880,*at which 
 election he ran largely ahead of his ticket. 
 With the exception of one year, he has been a 
 member of the Republican Central Committee 
 since 1875. 
 
 ALFRED BALDWIN, undertaker, Akron. 
 William and Lucinda (Ladd) Baldwin were 
 natives of Vermont, and were the parents of 
 three sons and three daughters, their second 
 son Alfred, the subject of these lines, being 
 born to them on March 18. 1823, near Sackett's 
 Harbor, in Northern New York. In 1836, they 
 moved to Ohio, and settled on a farm in Port- 
 age County, where the}" lived until 1870, except 
 a period of seven years. The subject of this 
 sketch lived there on a farm until 1853, when 
 he went to Ravenna, Ohio, there to assume the 
 duties of Deput}^ Auditor, remaining such until 
 185G, when he was elected Auditor of Portage 
 County on the Republican ticket, which posi- 
 tion he held for two years, at the end of which 
 time he again served as Deputy- for two years. 
 (At that time, the County Auditor was given 
 but one term.) In 1 863, he became Deputy Clerk 
 in the Probate Judge's office, which he continued 
 two years. During these years, he retained 
 the farm which he owned at Rootstown, on 
 which he lived until 1865, when he came to 
 Akron and purchased the furniture estab- 
 lishment of E. D. Dodge, and, with E. A. 
 Reed, continued the business one year, when 
 Reed retired. In February-, 1880, Mr. George 
 W. Weeks became a partner, and the busi- 
 
 ness since then has been conducted under 
 the firm name of Baldwin & Weeks. They 
 cany a full line of undertakers' goods, bur- 
 ial robes, caskets, and the elegant appoint- 
 ments of the business. On Sept. 29, 1850. he 
 married Miss Anjanette E. Reed, of Roots- 
 town, Portage Co., daughter of Horace Reed, 
 who was born in 1806. in Rootstown, and who 
 is said to be the first white male child born in 
 Rootstown. One daughter — Lois E., was born 
 of that marriage. Subject is a member of the 
 Congregational Church. His father died in 
 1870, aged 90 years, and his mother, nine years 
 later, followed him, aged 91. Both were con- 
 sistent members of the M. E. Church. His 
 brothers and sisters are Wm. L., Methodist 
 minister, now located at Clilmore, Ohio ; Rev. 
 Chance}', of Centralia. 111., and Eucebia, wife 
 of Thomas Kingsbury, of Berwick, 111. His 
 sister Sarah A., who was the wife of Harvey 
 Laughlin, died at Deerfield, Portage Co., Ohio, 
 in her 25th 3'ear. One sister, Armelia, died at 
 16 years of age. 
 
 TALMON BEARDSLEY, retired, Akron. 
 On Dec. 15, 1799, to Daniel and Hannah 
 (Bailey) Beardsley, was born a son, whom they 
 named Talmon, and who, over eighty years 
 later, becomes the subject of our sketch, and 
 we would pen a few incidents in a life well 
 spent. The place of his birth was Delhi Town- 
 ship. Delaware Co., N. Y., where he lived on a 
 farm until 1810, when his parents moved to 
 Licking Co., Ohio, settling on wild land, whore 
 Talmon aided at clearing and farming, making 
 out of chaos a clean spot for a home; here also, 
 he went to school about three months peryenr. 
 The schoolhouse was one of those primitive 
 kind, having slab-seats, paper windows, and a 
 fire-place the full length of the building, with a 
 "cat-and-clay " chimne}'. In the summer of 
 1818, he started for Middlebury with only his 
 walking stick as a companion, intent upon find- 
 ing something to do as a means of earning a 
 livelihood, and further schooling. When he 
 reached this place, he found the old Cuyahoga 
 furnace in operation, and secured work there 
 for a few months, going to school a part of the 
 time. He was employed in 1819 by Henry 
 Chittenden, and for fourteen years, he made his 
 home with iiiin. working by the year at farm- 
 ing and teaming, doing a considerable amount 
 of the latter, as his employer had contracted 
 to furnish 1 6.000 bushels of lime for the locks 
 
'JLI 
 
 J^^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 G79 
 
 of the Ohio Canal then in progress. In haul- 
 ing the lime, he drove a six-horse team. On 
 the memorable occasion of the first breaking of 
 the ground on the Licking Summit for the Ohio 
 Canal, he was present, and a witness to the 
 formal and ceremonious reception of De Witt 
 Clinton, two Van llensselaers and other dis- 
 tinguished personages who, on their arrival, 
 accompanied b}- their colored waiters, and a 
 fine display of baggage, were met near Newark 
 and greeted with cannonading and martial 
 music. On that day, 3Ir. Beardsley drove the 
 team which bore the waiters and baggage. 
 Clinton, who threw out the first shovelfuls, did 
 so with great ceremony. Under the contract of 
 Chittenden & Crosby, Mr. Beardsley superin- 
 tended the construction of the deep cut on the 
 canal of a half-mile between Bolivar and Zoar, 
 having charge of about fifty hands, and he 
 built the locks near Zoar for a man named 
 Rhodes. The first boat was sent on July 4, 
 1827, to Cleveland. In the years 1824 and 
 1825, he was employed in a hotel. On Oct. 27, 
 1831, he married Miss Temperance Spicer, who 
 was the fourth daughter of Maj. Minor Spicer. 
 The five children are, viz., Ann, wife of George 
 Hart, a farmer of Stow Township ; Mills H., 
 hotel keeper at Ogden, U. T.; Avery S.. farmer 
 in Portage Township ; Harriet, wife of A. Gr. 
 Babcock. of Akron, and Louisa D., wife of 
 George Stover, Canal Fulton, Stark Co. A 
 daughter, Emily, died at the age of 19. After 
 marriage, he settled near Middlebury on a farm 
 of 75 acres, which he purchased for .$6 per 
 acre. This land was where the shaft of Pa3aie 
 & Cross, of Cleveland, mines are now. At that 
 time, the existent coal in that locality was un- 
 suspected b}' any one, else he would not have 
 sold the land as he did two or three years after 
 for the small sum of $20 per acre. After sell- 
 ing that, he moved to Coventry Township where 
 he bought 100 acres of land and farmed it. 
 The date of his going to Coventry was 1833 ; 
 a year previous to tlys, he was made Captain 
 of the canal boat " Western Reserve," carrying 
 iron ore from Zoar to this place, and provis- 
 ions to Cleveland, Ohio, from 1832 to 1835, 
 from which date up to 1858 he followed farm- 
 ing in Coven tr}', when he left that place and 
 moved to Akron, where he has since retired 
 from business, except attending to affairs con- 
 nected with his estate. He was a Whig, cast 
 his fii'st vote for Henr3' Clay, and has been a 
 
 Republican ever since the organization of the 
 part}-. He was Justice of the Peace at Cov- 
 entry, and filled man}' other township offices. 
 He has been Assessor of the ward in which he 
 lives a number of times. He is a Universalist, 
 and a member of the church. 
 
 CHARLES W. BROWN, Akron, whose por- 
 trait appears in this work, son of Jonas 
 and Mary (Williams) Brown, was born Oct. 
 2, 1796, in North Stonington, Conn. His 
 father died when he was 5 ^eai's old, at New 
 London, Conn., of yellow fever. After the 
 death of his father, he went to district 
 school until he was 18 j-ears of age, attending 
 about two months per year. When he was 
 16 years jold, he commenced learning the car- 
 penter and joiner trade, serving as an appren- 
 tice two years, at the end of which time he 
 commenced working at Lyme, Conn., where 
 he remained a year. On Feb. 3, 1817, with 
 one 3'ear's wages as his onl}- capital, he. in 
 company with two other 3'oung men, shoul- 
 •dered their knapsacks and started, on foot, 
 for Ohio — for the purpose of making places for 
 themselves in the great, bustling world — reach- 
 ing Middlebury, on the evening of the 28th of 
 February, after a journe}- of about 700 miles. 
 On his arrival he found about sixteen buildings, 
 the majorit}' of which were log. there being but 
 a very few frame houses then at this place. 
 (Previous to his coming here, he was married 
 in Connecticut, to Miss Henrietta Halsey, 
 which marriage occurred on June 9, 1816 ; his 
 wife came here in August, 1817, with Capt. 
 Gear, who drove through with an ox team.) 
 At Middlebur}' he kept house some fifteen 
 years, engaged at his trade, and putting up 
 many of the first frame houses there, and in 
 that vicinity. In 1825, he purchased 45 acres 
 of woodland, where his present place is situ- 
 ated, moving there in 1832, and adding to it 
 various lots, until he owned 115 acres. Several 
 of the earl}' bridges were built by him, and 
 quite a number of buildings in Akron are of 
 his handiwork, among which is the Baptist 
 Church. He helped to cut the way for Market 
 street, and, in after years, graded the same 
 road for five miles, reaching from Akron to 
 Copley. After 1840, he devoted himself to 
 other pursuits. For five years he held a Lieu- 
 tenant's commission. He raised five daughters 
 and one son, viz., Mary, wife of Kdward F. 
 Pulsifer. of Chicago, and Prudence, wife of 
 
 ^ 
 
680 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 J. W. Sabin, of Akron, both of whom are dead. 
 Antoinette, wife of Benjamin McNaughton, of 
 Akron ; Luc}', who died in 1850, and was tlie 
 wife of Robert Henry ; Alice, wife of William 
 H. Mills, of Akron, and Henry H. Brown, of 
 Akron. His wife, Henrietta, died on Sept. 
 23, 1859. On May 14, 1864, he married Mrs. 
 Lydia Williams, of Connecticut, who died on 
 Sept. 6, 1865. For some years he has en- 
 joyed the rest which his toiling has so richly 
 deserved. At the present time, in the same 
 house, are four generations of the Brown fam- 
 ily, each of which is represented by a male 
 member. 
 
 PHILO BENNETT, retired, Akron. This 
 gentleman was born in Herkimer Co., N. Y., Feb. 
 16, 1810, and is the oldest of three children born 
 to Ephraim and Lucinda (Hutchins) Bennett. 
 Shortly after his birth, the family moved to 
 Brownville, where he lived until he was 22 years 
 of age. At the age of 16, he was apprenticed 
 to the harness and saddle trade, and served un- 
 til he became of age. A year later, he moved 
 to Cleveland, Ohio, and worked at his trade and 
 at carriage trimming until 1837, when he moved 
 to Tallmadge, and worked at his trade. The 
 following year he visited St. Louis, returning 
 in 1839. In 1842, he came to Akron, engaged 
 in the harness business, and was identified with 
 the same until 1862, since which time he has 
 retired. In September, 1852, he married Miss 
 Emma Francis, a native of England, who came 
 to Akron about the year 1843, where she lived 
 with her sister until her marriage. By their 
 marriage there was one child, now deceased. 
 
 ANTON BERG, lock and gunsmith, Akron ; 
 is a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany. He 
 was born Feb. 14, 1820. His father. Christian, 
 was a farmer, and Anton assisted in work on 
 the farm until he reached his 16th year, when 
 he was apprenticed in the city of Worms, on 
 the Rhine, to the locksmith business. After 
 serving three years, he worked as a journeyman 
 for a 3'ear, when he was drafted into the array. 
 He served twent3^-one months in active military 
 service, but during the remainder of his six 
 3'ears' term of service, he worked at his ti'ade. 
 A part of the tiine he was empioj-ed at the ar- 
 senal, manufacturing friction cannon caps, the 
 inventor of which was his commanding officer, 
 Capt. Hartman. After serving his full term of 
 service, and being discharged, he began prepar- 
 ations for emigrating to America. He manu- 
 
 factured the tools he needed for his trade, and 
 on June 9, 1847, he started for the new coun- 
 try, landing in New York in the following Au- 
 gust. He left immediately for Buffalo, where 
 he met friends and got work at his trade, being 
 employed by Mr. Ketchum, an inventor of a 
 reaping aud mowing machine. Mr. Berg made 
 the first knife bar for machines, a business that 
 has since grown to large proportions. In the 
 spring of 1848. he came to Cleveland, Ohio, 
 where he had relatives, and worked at his trade 
 until 1849. On June 16 of that year, he 
 walked to Akron, and found work on stove 
 mounting, which he followed five years. Sept. 
 6, 1854, he returned to his old business, manu- 
 facturing and repairingguns, etc., which he still 
 continues. Mr. Berg is a Republican in politics, 
 beginning as a strong anti-slavery man. He was 
 a personal friend of John Brown, and when the 
 latter went to Kansas, Mr. Berg repaired his 
 arms free, working nights in order to escape the 
 detection of hostile parties. Dec. 17, 1849, he 
 married Miss Augusta Cappella, a native of 
 Germany, who had that year come from her na- 
 tive land, and came to Akron the same day he 
 did, though not formerly acquainted. Four 
 children have resulted from this marriage, three 
 of whom are living : Sarah, now Mrs. William 
 Durand ; Edward, grain dealer in McPherson, 
 Kan.; and Libbie, a teacher in the South School, 
 in Akron, Ohio ; Hermann died in infancv. 
 
 CAPT. EDWARD BUCKINGHAM^ ex- 
 County Auditor, Akron ; was born in Water- 
 town, Conn., July 15, 1835, and is the eldest of 
 three children of George and Betsy (Merriman) 
 Buckingham, who were natives of Connecticut. 
 In 1844, they came to Middlebury, Ohio, where 
 he engaged in the manufacture of woolen ma- 
 chinery, and followed the same until his death 
 in 1861. Mrs. Buckingham is still living on 
 the old homestead. At about the age of 18, 
 Edwai'd engaged as clerk in a wholesale house 
 in Cleveland. A few years later, he became a 
 clerk in the post office at Indianapolis, a posi- 
 tion he obtained through his acquaintance with 
 Judge Weeks, the Postmaster, and served there 
 some three years. In August, 1862, he enlisted 
 in the 115th 0. V. I., and served until the close 
 of the war ; he entered the service as First 
 Lieutenant, and in three months was promoted 
 to Captain of his company. During this term, 
 he served as Provost Marshal of Cincinnati for 
 awhile, also of Murfreesboro ; of Cincinnati 
 
k,. 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 681 
 
 during the Morgan raid. After the close of the 
 war, he returned to Akron, and became Collector 
 of Internal Revenue, which office he held until 
 1871, when he entered the office of County 
 Auditor — serving continuously for nine years, 
 being elected to the office on the Republican 
 ticket. He was married March 10, 1863, to 
 Miss Frances Johnston, a daughter of John and 
 Elizabetli (Newton) Johnston, old residents of 
 the county. By this marriage there have been 
 born six children, of whom four are living, viz. : 
 George E., John S., William J. and Hulda ; all 
 of them are living at home. 
 
 G. S. BEATTY, dentist, Akron ; is an old 
 member of the dental profession, though lo- 
 cated in Akron but for a few months. He be- 
 gan the stud}' of dentistry in Meadville, Penn., 
 and after finishing his studies, he went to Mer- 
 cer, ^Mercer Co., Penn., and practiced there for 
 one and a half 3'ears. In 1844, he removed to 
 Canton, Ohio, where he practiced until the fall 
 of I860, and then he went to Silver Creek, 
 Chautauqua Co., N. Y. From there he removed 
 to the cit}' of Toledo, Ohio, and for thirteen 
 years he was engaged in the practice of his 
 profession in that city. He was married in 
 Silver Creek, and while a resident of Toledo, 
 his wife died. From Toledo he went to Penn- 
 sylvania, and in the fall of 1880, he returned to 
 Ohio and located at Akron. During all these 
 travels, he has been an earnest student of the 
 profession, and now, after so many years of 
 practice, he is able to do the very finest of op- 
 erating ; the fitting of celluloid plates, or of the 
 artificial palate, known as the Kingsley patent. 
 In his short term of practice in Akron, he has 
 already become well and favorably known, and 
 bids fair, in a short time, to stand as an equal 
 in reputation to an^- of the dentists of the 
 city. He is a member of the Order of A.. F. 
 & A. M., and has made frequent contributions 
 to scientific journals. 
 
 DR. WILLIAM BOWEN (deceased) , was 
 born in Genesee Co., N. Y., July 30, 1805 ; 
 his father was a soldier of the war of 1812, and, 
 having served out his term of enlistment, was 
 returning to his home across Lake Erie on the 
 ice, and, losing his way, perished from cold. 
 His widow was left with six small children, 
 and in ver}' limited circumstances. Our subject 
 was apprenticed to the carpenter's trade when 
 very young, and, completing his terra of service, 
 he came West, stopping in Stark Co., Ohio, 
 
 where he obtained employment with John 
 Brown, at that time building a grist-mill near 
 Canton, for William Reynolds. The subject 
 was what was termed a " book- worm," and had 
 but little taste for the pleasures and sports in 
 which young men usually indulge, but pre- 
 ferred spending his leisure hours with some fa- 
 voi'ite book. These facts coming to the knowl- 
 edge of Mr. Reynolds, who being pleased with 
 the young man, he kindly proffered to lend him 
 assistance. Mr. Reynolds also assisted him to 
 attend the select school of Barak Michener, at 
 that time a popular teacher in the higher 
 branches of education. Upon the completion 
 of a term at school, he commenced teaching in 
 the village of Paris, Stark Co.; while thus en- 
 gaged, he made the acquaintance of Dr. Robert 
 Estep, then living in Paris, and a warm friend- 
 ship at once sprang up between them. Through 
 the influence of Dr. Estep, our subject was in- 
 duced to undertake the study of medicine ; but 
 as this part of Dr. Bowen's life is given in the 
 chapter devoted to the medical profession, it 
 will be omitted here. In 1853, he purchased a 
 tract of land near New Portage, in Summit Co., 
 and, without giving up his practice, he devoted 
 considerable attention to farming. He moved 
 to Akron in 1857, where he remained until his 
 death, which took place Jan. 14, 1880, in the 
 75th year of his age. He married Miss Huldah 
 Chittenden while engaged m the study of his 
 profession ; there were born of this marriage 
 nine children, seven girls and two boy, only 
 three of whom, with their mother, still survive 
 him. Dr. Bowen was emphatically a self-made 
 man ; his success was the result of his own in- 
 dividual eflTorts, improving the circumstances 
 and advantages as they presented themselves. 
 S. M. BURNHAM, Secretary Webster, Camp 
 & Lane Machine Compan}-, Akron ; was born in 
 Genesee Co., N. Y., Jan. 23, 1824, and is the 
 second of ten children of Simeon and Anna 
 (St. John) Burnham, natives of Massachusetts 
 and New York. He moved to New York with 
 his parents about the j-ear 18U9, and lived at 
 home with them until his marriage, about the 
 3'ear 1821 ; his wife moved to New York with 
 her parents a few years after he did, and 
 after their marriage, IMr. B. followed farming, 
 and also was in the insurance business as an 
 agent — a business followed during the latter 
 years of his life ; he died May 10, 1862 ; his 
 death resulted from an accident with a run- 
 
 ^F 
 
*i^ 
 
 682 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 1 
 
 away team ; she continued on the old home- 
 stead, and died a few days later. S. M. (the 
 subject) lived at home until 1844, and received 
 an academic education in a neighboring village, 
 finishing off at the Wyoming Academy. In 
 1844, he came to Ohio and taught school in 
 Madison, Lake Co., and the following summer 
 he returned to New York and attended school 
 at Wyoming Academy ; after this he took a 
 commercial course in Buffalo, where he after- 
 ward taught penmanship. In April, 1848, he 
 settled in Akron, and engaged as a clerk in the 
 Rattle & Tappan warehouse on the Ohio Canal ; 
 two years after, Mr. Tappan retired and opened 
 an iron store, where Mr. B. went with him as 
 clerk and with his successor until 1855 ; he 
 then engaged with the Austin Powder Co., and 
 was with them two years, and. after being 
 book-keeper in Franklin Mills for a time, he, in 
 January, 1858, engaged as Deput}- Auditor for 
 Gr. W. Crouse, and also as Deputy for S. S. 
 Wilson, County Treasurer, serving in both 
 nearly four yeai's, and serving as Auditor for 
 an unexpired term b}^ appointment. In March, 
 1862, he became Count}^ Auditor by election, 
 and was re-elected for the three succeeding 
 terms. In the fall of 1872, he was elected to 
 the Legislature from the Summit County Dis- 
 trict in the Sixtieth Assembl}', in which he 
 took an active part. Upon his return in vaca- 
 tion, he was made Secretary and one of the 
 Board of Trustees building Buchtel College. 
 In 1873, he engaged in his present business, 
 and was made Secretar}-. He was married, Nov. 
 5, 1848, to Miss Anne M. Row, a native of 
 Connecticut ; she came to Medina Co., Ohio, 
 with her parents when quite 3'oung ; they had 
 six children, three of whom are living, viz., 
 Lillie M., Charles S. and Clifford D. 
 
 A. A. BARTLP:TT, Recorder, Akron ; is a 
 native of Chautauqua Co., N. Y., and was born 
 June 22, 1840. Until the age of 17, he lived 
 upon the farm ; he then went to work in a saw- 
 mill for a year or two, subsequentl}' conducting 
 the mill on the shares. He was thus engaged 
 at the breaking-out of the war. In July, 1861, 
 he enlisted in Co. A, 49th N. Y. V. I., for three 
 3'ears or during the war. He served with the 
 regiment in the Potomac army, and was in all 
 the engagements of the command up to the 
 battle of Antietam, where he was wounded, 
 which occasioned the loss of his left arm. 
 April 6, 1863, he was discharged, and returned 
 
 to his home in New York, and gave his atten- 
 tion to a small place he owned. Some two 
 years later, he went to Corry, Penn., where he 
 engaged in a steam saw-mill as engineer, and, 
 one year later, took charge of the business. In 
 the spring of 1867, he came to Akron, and soon 
 engaged in the planing-mill of George Thomas 
 & Son, and was connected with the business 
 until 1870. During the latter eight years of 
 that time, he served as foreman of the estab- 
 lishment, though conducted under sevei'al 
 different firm names. In the fall of 1878, he was 
 elected on the Republican ticket as County Re- 
 corder, and entered upon the duties of his office 
 in January following. In 1860, he married 
 Miss Imogene Travers, a native of Chautauqua 
 County, N. Y.; by the marriage, there has been 
 three children, two of whom are living — Mary 
 and Jennie. 
 
 ALEXANDER BREWSTER, President 
 Brewster Coal Co., Akron ; was born in Augusta 
 Township, Oneida Co., N. Y.,Sept. 10, 1808, on 
 his father's farm, and is the youngest of six 
 children, born to Stephen and Lydia (Bellows) 
 Brewster, who were natives of Connecticut. 
 Mr. Brewster traces his ancestors back to Rev. 
 William Brewster, one of the Pilgrims who 
 came over in the Mayflower. Stephen Brew- 
 ster, the father of our subject, was born May 4, 
 1770 ; in 1797 he moved to New York, with his 
 wife and onechild, and, in 1811, he came to Ohio. 
 He bought 160 acres of land in what is now 
 Coventry Township, and then returned to New 
 York, and the next year brought out his fam- 
 ily. They started in June, and came by ox 
 team, and were thirty-three days on the way, 
 landing in Coventry July 4, 1812. His cabin 
 was the fourth built in the township, and was 
 the proverbial log cabin. They lived here until 
 1815, when the}- were enabled to build a better 
 one. He was a carpenter, and worked at his 
 trade, building many of the houses of the early 
 settlers. He died July 4, 1858, at the advanced 
 age of 88 years ; his wife died in the fall of 
 1842, aged 71. Our subject lived at home un- 
 til of age, receiving a limited education at the 
 district schools. He learned the carpenter's 
 ti'ade with his father. He was married Jan. 9, 
 1830, to Miss Margaret Ann Kinney, a native 
 of Ontario Co., N. Y., and who came to Spring- 
 field, Ohio, about the year 1813. She was the 
 youngest of three children, born to Ephraim 
 and Mary (Danes) Kinney, natives of New 
 
-l£ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 083 
 
 York. They settled in Springfield Township in 
 1813, where the}' lived until their death; he 
 died about 1820, and she in 1861. IMr. Brew- 
 ster now owns the place on which they settled. 
 Mrs. Brewster, the wife of subject, died in Novem- 
 ber, 1854, leaving five children, four of whom are 
 living, viz., Alfred A., General Agent of the 
 Brewster Coal Co. ; Austin K., Secretary and 
 Treasurer of the Brewster Coal Co.; Louisa, 
 now Mrs. J. F. Meeham, of Akron ; Mar^^ M., 
 now Mrs. Russell Kent, of Akron. Mr. Brew- 
 ster married a second time in December, 1857, 
 to Mrs. Brown, formerly Minerva Dyer, a native 
 of Cuyahoga Co., Ohio ; she died June 27, 
 1873. In September, 1877, he married Mrs. 
 Chamberlain, formerh' Luc\' Jane Gale, a na- 
 tive of Massachusetts, who came to Ohio with 
 her parents in the year 1825. ]\Ir. B., after 
 marriage, followed farming in Coventry until 
 1 848. Coal having, in the meantime, been dis- 
 covered on his farm, he turned his attention to 
 mining, and, in 1849, shipped over 1,000 tons 
 to Cleveland via canal. In 1850, he left his 
 mines in competent hands, and went to Cali- 
 fornia overland, his object being mining. He 
 remained in the land of gold but a short time, 
 and returned home via Panama and New Or- 
 leans, arriving home in 1851. He prosecuted 
 his coal mining, and, about the year 1865, 
 formed a stock company, of which he is the 
 President, the capital being $100,000. He and 
 his sons subscribed the stock. They built a 
 railroad from the mines to the basin of the 
 Ohio Canal, a distance of five miles, which cost 
 about $120,000, the rolling stock making it 
 about $150,000. They mine from 30,000 to 
 60,000 tons of coal per year, and own docks in 
 Cleveland for the purpose of handling coal, and 
 sell as high as 200.000 tons per annum. In 
 July, 1872, Mr. B. moved to Akron, where he 
 has since resided. In 1871, he visited Califor- 
 nia, in company with his eldest daughter. 
 
 GEORGE G. BAKER, physician, Akron ; is 
 a native of Ohio ; he was born at Norwalk, Hu- 
 ron Co., Dec. 3, 1849, and is the third of four 
 children born to Daniel A. and Harriet (Van- 
 dercook) Baker. They were natives of Con- 
 necticut and New York. Daniel A. Baker came 
 to Ohio when about 17 j'ears of age. or about 
 the year 1831, and located in Huron Co., where 
 he began as a clerk in a mercantile business, 
 and, after a number of years, he became a part- 
 ner, and was identified with the mercantile in- 
 
 terests of Norwalk most of the time until the 
 year 1858 or 1859, when he became interested 
 ui the banking business of that place, and has 
 continued in the same to the present time. Our 
 subject entered the Western Reserve College at 
 Hudson, Ohio, at the age of 17. and graduated 
 in 1869 ; he began reading medicine in 1868, 
 with Drs. Read & Ford, of Norwalk, Ohio, and, 
 having in the mean time taken two courses 
 of lectures at Ann Arbor and Brooklyn, N. Y., 
 he began practice in 1872 with Dr. George P. 
 Ashmun, of Akron ; in 1875, he graduated at 
 Ann Arbor, Mich. The Doctor is a member of 
 the Summit Count}' Medical Society, and also 
 a member of the Union Medical Association of 
 Northeastern Ohio, of which he has been Record- 
 ing Secretar}' a number of years. In June, 1 873, 
 he married 3Iiss Celia, a daughter of Dr. George 
 P. Ashmun, of Akron ; by this marriage there 
 has been four children, of whom three are liv- 
 ing, viz., Fred A., Harry and an infant. 
 
 B. F. BATTELS, photographic art gallery, 
 Aki'on, was born in Wadswortb, Medina Co.. Ohio, 
 April 21, 1832, and is the second child in a family 
 of seven children born to Caleb and Juliana 
 (Hard) Battels ; they were natives of IMassa- 
 chusetts and Vermont ; he came to Middlebur}^, 
 Ohio, when he was young ; arriving before the 
 canal was built, he overseeing the building of 
 locks on same. Mrs. Battels came to Ohio with 
 her parents, who settled in River Styx, Medina 
 Co., Ohio, at an earl}' day, they being pioneers 
 in that locality. After the marriage, Caleb, 
 who is a natural mechanic, worked as a carpen- 
 ter and builder ; about the year 1852, he came 
 to Summit Co., Ohio, and bought and occupied 
 his present place where he now lives. Our 
 subject lived with his parents until he was 20 
 years of age ; he was brought up on the farm, 
 and I'eceived a common school course of study ; 
 also taught a number of terms during the win- 
 ters. In 1852, the family moved to Mount Ver- 
 non ; B. F.. tiring of farm life, began looking 
 around for a suitable change, and was favorably 
 impressed with daguerreotyping, then quite a 
 new business ; he soon obtained an opportunity, 
 and learned the new business, and such was the 
 ability he displayed that within a few weeks he 
 had a set of tools and was on his way to Wads- 
 worth, where he opened an office ; the business 
 those days was of a transient character, and lie 
 moved from i)lace to place. In 1 852, he located 
 at Bucyrus, Ohio, and in the winter of 1855 he 
 
 W 
 
^ 
 
 684 
 
 BI0GRA.PH1CAL SKETCHES: 
 
 came to Akron, and opened his present place 
 in the spring following, and lias remained in 
 the same location since. In his chosen field he 
 has found ample room for his genius, and his 
 popularity as an artist attests the appreciation 
 of his patrons for his genius. He married 
 Miss Sarah M. Edgerly, a natiA'e of Hudson, 
 Ohio. 
 
 A. M. BARBER, buyer and shipper of grain 
 and produce, Akron. The subject of this sketch 
 was born in Bath Township, Summit Co., Ohio, 
 Oct. 2, 1830, and is the fourth of five children born 
 to Isaac W. I. and Mary (Brown) Barber ; they 
 were natives of Connecticut and New York. 
 Isaac W. I. Barber was raised on a farm ; about 
 the year 1820, he left Connecticut for the West, 
 coming with a wagon load of boots, shoes, etc.; 
 arriving in Bath Township he bought 110 acres 
 of wild land, which he cleared and improved. 
 March 1, 1824, he married Miss MarjJ^, a daugh- 
 ter of Samuel and Lucinda (Coy) Brown. 
 Samuel Brown was a Revolutionary soldier and 
 a pensioner during latter years ; he was a na- 
 tive of New York, and came to Ohio about the 
 year 1810, settling in Boston Township, and 
 later moving to Springfield Township, where 
 he died in 1845 ; he was twice married ; his first 
 wife died in Boston Township soon after they 
 came there; in 1817, he married Miss Lucinda 
 Bishop. I. W. I. Barber settled on his land in 
 Bath Township after his marriage, and lived 
 there until his death, in 1833 ; he was a mem- 
 ber of the Presbj'terian Church, in the affairs 
 of which he took an active interest ; foremost 
 in improvements, he was well known, and his 
 death was lamented by a wide circle of friends. 
 Some years after his death, Mrs. Barber married 
 Capt. Fanning, who died in 1845, she continuing 
 on the old homestead until 1856, when she sold 
 her interest to A. M. Barber and moved to 
 Kansas, where she lived with her children until 
 her death, about the year 1874. A. M. Barber 
 was raised on the farm ; the country being new, 
 and he losing his father during his infancy, 
 afforded him limited opportunities for obtaining 
 an education. Oct. 6, 1857, he married Miss 
 Sarah, a daughter of Henr}^ and Mary (Em- 
 mons) Vansickle ; after the marriage, he re- 
 mained on the farm one year, and in January, 
 1859, came to Akron and bought the Pearl 
 Mills, which business he was identified with for 
 four years ; he then engaged in the grain and 
 produce business, in which he has done an ex- 
 
 tensive trade ; the volume of his transactions 
 have amounted to $1,500,000 per annum ; he 
 was a director upon the formation of the Bank 
 of Akron, and is also identified with several of 
 the leading manufacturing interests in the city. 
 In 1880, he had finished his elegant and com- 
 modious brick block, Nos. 150 and 152 South 
 Howard street, known as Barber's Block, which 
 ranks among the leading business blocks of the 
 city. Though starting out in life in the most 
 adverse circumstances, he has by his energy 
 and perseverance been successful, and, while 
 remembering that he has been the architect of 
 his own fortune, he has also lived so as to not 
 only win, but also to deserve the respect and 
 confidence of all who know him. 
 
 JUDGE JAMES S. CARPENTER, attor- 
 ney, Akron ; is the son of William and Lucina 
 (Sumner) Carpenter ; he was born at Swanzey, 
 Cheshire Co., N. H., on Aug. 17, 1805, from 
 which place his father moved eighteen months 
 later to the woods of St. Lawrence Co., at Pots- 
 dam, N. Y. ; here he labored hard on the farm 
 and at clearing. He does not know when or 
 where he first learned the beauties and myste- 
 ries of the alphabet, but it was probably at 
 home, for his earliest recollections of school 
 experience was spelling in his a-b, abs, in one 
 of the primitive log cabin schoolhouses, where 
 subscription teachers applied the kibricating 
 oil to the complicated machiner3' of the human 
 mind ; his first lessons in reading he well re- 
 members were at the side of his mother's foot- 
 wheel, which was fast flying, when, after some 
 assistance on her part, and utter unbelief of 
 his ability to read " in readings," he astonished 
 himself by finding that with a little help from 
 her he could and did read " The history of a 
 little boy found under a haycock." He spent 
 the greater part of his youth on the farm, and 
 at the age of 17 attended the St. Lawrence 
 Academy, in Potsdam ; he taught in the State 
 of New York a part of each year until he at- 
 tained his twentieth 3'ear, by which time he had 
 acquired a fair knowledge of the English 
 branches. In the winter of 1825-26, he taught in 
 New York, and in tlie spring of 1826 he went 
 to Lower Canada, where he taught until the 
 fall of 1828, a part of the time in Montreal ; 
 from there he went to Amherst, Mass., and be- 
 came assistant teacher in the Amherst Academy, 
 and later teacher of the Ladies' Seminary at 
 Springfield, Mass.,duringthesummerof 1829 ; in 
 
 
k^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 685 
 
 the fall of that year he entered the freshman class 
 of Amherst College, where he remained until 
 his health failed from overwork, being engaged 
 simultaneously in the capacity of both pupil 
 and teacher. He then returned to his home in 
 New York, where he resumed teaching, and 
 kept up his studies in the branches of the 
 college course. In June, 1832, he came to 
 Cleveland, Ohio, where he taught languages in 
 the Cleveland Academy, but the school was 
 shortly' after broken up by the sudden appear- 
 ance of cholera, which was brought to Cleve- 
 land by the steamboat " Henry Clay." Mr. 
 Carpenter next removed to Ravenna, Ohio, 
 where he organized a class in French, but de- 
 parted soon after for Massillon, where he taught 
 that winter ; in the spring of 1833, he returned 
 to Ravenna, and became Principal of the 
 Ravenna Academy, which position he held for 
 two years. He retii'ed then, being still in a 
 poor state of health, and rented a portion of 
 a farm near there, which he farmed one season. 
 On May 1, 1835, he was married to Miss Fran- 
 ces C Saltonstall. of Geneva, N. Y. In Novem- 
 ber of the same 3' ear, he went to Medina, Ohio, 
 and there started the Medina Constitutionalist, 
 a Whig and anti-slaveiy paper, of which he 
 was the editor, at the same time studying law 
 under the direction of Camp & Canfield ; he 
 continued with the paper until the winter of 
 1838-39. On May 29, 1838, he was admitted 
 to the bar, at Springfield, Ohio, reaching there 
 on horseback, after a journey of four days. 
 He practiced at Medina, with Judge McClure, 
 from 1840 to 1850. In the fall of 1839, he 
 was elected a member of the Ohio Legislature, 
 and of the Ohio Senate in 1840, serving with 
 distinction in both houses ; in the Legislature 
 he was the onl}- avowed Abolitionist. While 
 he was a member of the House. Mr. Fisher, of 
 Shelby, introduced a set of resolutions denounc- 
 ing the Abolitionists with barbaric vituperation. 
 It was in a speech upon these resolutions that 
 Mr. Carpenter declared that slaver}' and freedom 
 could not co-exist in this (xovernment, a doc- 
 trine which, ten years later, blazed from a higher 
 standard, when Mr. Seward proclaimed the " ir- 
 repressible contiiet," in the United States Sen- 
 ate. While in the Senate, Mr. Carpenter had 
 frequent occasion to defend his Abolition prin- 
 ciples, on bills introduced by him to charter 
 institutions for the education of the colored 
 people ; they being then wholh' excluded from 
 
 the common schools and from the common 
 school fund, and yet taxed to support that fund, 
 and in numei'ous other ways, when the course 
 of legislation brought before the Senate the 
 injustice and cruelty they were suffering in 
 Ohio, both under and against its laws. About 
 the last of these conflicts was on a bill to re- 
 peal the charter of Oberlin College. It was de- 
 feated. Our subject never joined the Liberty 
 party ; he said he was for the abolition of 
 slavery everywhere. The Liberty part}' was 
 organized not for the abolition of slaverj', but 
 to stop its advance. The abolition move- 
 ment was by the diffusion of moral truth, 
 while the Liberty party was political. What- 
 ever moral truth it disseminated was outside of 
 its platform, and but auxiliary to its political 
 end. He was Secretary, in 1834, of the first Coun- 
 ty Anti-Slavery Society, at Ravenna, and has 
 held various prominent positions of trust. He 
 came to Akron in 1846, and has practiced law 
 here ever since. In 1856, he was elected Judge 
 of Court of Common Pleas, and served a term 
 of five years. He is the father of three chil- 
 dren, viz., Gilbert S., Captain in regular army 
 at Camp Douglas, near Salt Lake Cit}', Utah ; 
 Dr. William T. Carpenter, of Ishpeming, Mich., 
 and Abbie L., still at home. He is a mem- 
 ber of the Congregational Church. 
 
 N. A. CARTER, contractor and builder, 
 Akron, Ohio ; was born in Twinsburg, Sum- 
 mit Co., Ohio, and is the second of nine chil- 
 dren born to Thaddeus A. and Esther A. 
 (Marshall) Carter ; they were natives of Con- 
 necticut ; he was brought up on a farm and 
 early went to peddling clocks, operating prin- 
 cipally in the Western Reserve ; about the yeav 
 1826, he settled in Twinsburg Township, Sum- 
 mit Co., Ohio, where he cleared a farm upon 
 which he lived until his death in 1870. He 
 was twice married; his first wife died Sept. 1, 
 1845. In December of that year, he married 
 Miss Margaret McKisson, a native of Marj-- 
 land ; she died about the year 1846. He was 
 a member of the Metliodist Episcopal Church, 
 and took an active interest in its affairs ; he 
 was well-known and respected b}' all. Our 
 subject lived at home seventeen years : he then 
 apprenticed to the carpenter and joiners trade 
 at Hudson, serving three years, after which he 
 worked as a journeyman in that vicinity until 
 1871, when he came to Akron, where he has 
 continued in the business as contractor and 
 
 :r^ 
 
686 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES; 
 
 builder. la all he has followed the trade for 
 a third of a century, during which time he has 
 built many buildings, principal among which 
 are the Buchtel College, the Bttckeije office and 
 many other leading structures. He served on 
 the Board of Education of Hudson, and also 
 as a Councilman. In 1879, he was elected a 
 member of the Akron Council for Second Ward 
 and was re-elected in 1881. June 24, 1852, he 
 married Miss Jane R. Herrick, a native of 
 Twinsburg; they had live children, four of 
 whom are living — Ella J., Frank N., Walter T. 
 and Emor}' J. Mr. Carter is a u:ember of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, in which he has 
 held man}- of the offices usual to that denomina- 
 tion, and has otherwise taken an active interest 
 in its affairs. 
 
 DR. MASON CHAPMAN, dentist, Akron ; 
 was born on his father's farm in Copley Town- 
 ship, Summit Co., Ohio, June 28, 1838. His 
 parents, Lucius and Sally B. (Mason) Chap- 
 man were natives of New York ; he was a 
 farmer ; was born Nov. 20, 1807, on a farm 
 called Cone Hill, in Onondaga Co.; were mar- 
 ried in Sennet, N. Y., June 2, 1829; they 
 came to Ohio in June, 1833, and settled in 
 Copley Township, where they lived until 1857. 
 Mrs. Chapman died in 1852. In 1857, he 
 moved to Wisconsin, and later, to Anamosa, 
 Jones Co., Iowa, where he now resides. His 
 father, Ashbel Chapman, was born in Massa- 
 chusetts May 20, 1775 ; he came to Ohio about 
 the year 1836, and settled near Copley Center, 
 where he died Jan. 25, 1865 ; his wife also died 
 there March 9, 1862; they were married in 
 Massachusetts Aug. 8, 1800. Our subject lived 
 with his father until December, 1 864 ; his early 
 life was spent on the farm. In Wisconsin he 
 clerked in a grocery and boot and shoe store, 
 after which he joined his father in Iowa, and 
 assisted on the farm. The following winter, he 
 attended Cornell College at Mt. Vernon, Iowa, 
 alternating on the farm and at college for two 
 3'ears. He then taught school for two terms, 
 and, in the fall of 1862, he began the study of 
 dentistry- with Dr. Matson, of Anamosa, with 
 whom he studied for two years ; he then visited 
 in New York State, and, in the spring of 1865, 
 he came to Akron and practiced one year with 
 Dr. Bolles, after which he bought the business, 
 and has continued the practice since. Nov. 3, 
 1867, he married Miss Alice L. Randall, a na- 
 tive of Copley Township, Summit Co., Ohio. 
 
 They have one child — Clo3'd M. Chapman. 
 During the term 1878 to 1880, the doctor 
 served the cit}' of Akron as Councilman. 
 
 DR. JOSEPH COLE, deceased ; was born in 
 Winfield, N. Y., in September, 1795 ; he was 
 raised on the farm and began reading medicine 
 in 1820, with Dr. Clark, graduating from the 
 Fairfield, N. Y., Medical College. In 1824, he 
 came to Summit County, Ohio, and practiced 
 for three years at Old Portage ; he then came to 
 Akron, where he jn-acticed until his death in 
 1861 ; he was married in November, 1826, to 
 Miss Charlotte Dewe\', a native of Westtield, 
 Hampden Co., Mass. ; she came West with her 
 parents in 1822 ; there were ten in the family ; 
 all came in one wagon, the male members often 
 walking ; they settled at Old Portage and with- 
 in three years, father, mother, three brothers 
 and one sister died from the fever then preva- 
 lent in that localit}'. Charlotte lived with her 
 brothers, who were farming in that vicinity, un- 
 til her marriage ; by the marriage were seven 
 children, all of wliom have since died. Mrs. 
 Cole is living in the old homestead, where she 
 has lived since 1832, and by her family has 
 thi-ee grandchildren — Helen L. Agard, of Sara- 
 toga, N. Y., and H. D. and Fannie F. Cole, living 
 with her. Their father, H. D., was the young- 
 est son of Dr. Joseph and Charlotte (Dewe}') 
 Cole ; he was born in Akron in 1840 ; he re- 
 ceived a high school education, and in his latter 
 years was engaged in the livery and undertak- 
 ing business ; he died in April, 1876. In 1864, 
 he was married to Miss Hattie Farnam, a na- 
 tive of Akron, daughter of Daniel Farnam ; they 
 had two children, viz. : H. D. and Fannie F. 
 Mrs. Hattie Cole is also living in the old home- 
 stead with her mother-in-law. 
 
 CHARLES A. COLLINS, carriage manu- 
 facturer, Akron ; is a native of Richmond, 
 Berkshire Co., Mass. He was born July 26, 
 1816, and is the 3'oungest of six children born 
 to Ralph and Hannah (Hickox) Collins ; the}' 
 were natives of Connecticut ; he died in Mas- 
 sachusetts Aug. 4. 1817. Our subject lived 
 with his mother until 1827, when they moved 
 to Berkshire, Tioga Co., N. Y., where she lived 
 for three years with her married daughter. 
 Charles A., while in Massachusetts, worked 
 about at farm work, and attended district 
 school. In New York he lived with an uncle, 
 working on the farm in summers, and attend- 
 ing select school winters. In the fall of 1830, 
 
^ 2) 
 
 K 
 
 CITY OF AKRON 
 
 687 
 
 he and mother came to Ohio and settled at 
 Talhnadge, where his brother-in-law, Mr. Amos 
 Aveiy, was engaged in the manufacture of wag- 
 ons. Charles A. apprenticed with his uncle, 
 and remained until he became of age. His 
 mother lived there with a 'laughter until her 
 death in November, 1849. In 1838, the firm 
 of Collins & Hale established a carriage manu- 
 factory in Middlebury, now Sixth Ward, Akron. 
 The}' continued until 1841, though Mr. Collins 
 was identified with the business until it was 
 burned in 1860. During this year, the business 
 was established b}' Collins & Bell in South 
 Akron, where the business was conducted until 
 1869. In February, 1870, the present firm of 
 C. A. Collins & Son erected a shop corner of 
 Main and Church streets, Akron, where they 
 have done business since. While residing in 
 the Sixth Ward, Mr. Collins served as a mem- 
 ber of the Board of Education for several 
 terms, a member of the Village Council, and 
 Mayor of Akron for the years 1 862 and 1863, also 
 member of City Council, 1876 to 1878. Jan. 
 16, 1839, he married Miss Louisa Hine, a na- 
 tive of Milford, Conn., and youngest child of 
 Abraham and Abigail (Elton) Hine, who came 
 to Summit Co., Ohio, about tlie year 1820. By 
 the marriage there have been seven children, of 
 whom four are living, viz.: George A., with 
 father ; Mrs. Josephine A. Kent, of Kent, 
 Ohio ; Charles E., formerly cashier Second Na- 
 tional Bank of Akron, now with the Colwell & 
 Collins Manufacturing Co. of Cleveland, and 
 Nettie E., at home. 
 
 A. L. COTTER, retired, Akron City; was 
 born in Cornwall, Conn., Dec. 28, 1795, and is 
 the second of five children born to Andrew and 
 Rhoda (Rogers) Cotter, natives of Connecticut, 
 and who died in their native State. Our sub- 
 ject lived at home until he was 22 years of age. 
 He assisted his father at farming, and in his 
 blacksmith-shop. His education was limited, 
 and confined to the district schools. At the 
 age of 22 years, he opened a blacksmith-shop 
 of his own some three miles from his father's, 
 where he continued in business for about two 
 years, when he went to Bristol, and worked 
 there for one 3'^ear, engaged in ironing wagons. 
 He returned to his native place, where he was 
 identified with the blacksmith business until 
 1824, when he came to Ohio, with a cousin who 
 lived in Middlebury. Satisfied with the coun- 
 try, he returned home, made himself a wagon, 
 
 and removed to Ohio with his family, consisting 
 then of a wife and one child. He located in 
 Middlebury, where he followed blacksmithing 
 until about the 3'ear 1868, when he retired to 
 his present place, where he has since resided. 
 His residence was destroyed by fire on Feb. 12, 
 1875, and the following year he built his pres- 
 ent dwelling. He served a number of years as 
 Trustee of Tallmadge Township while a resident 
 of Middlebury. He was married, Nov. 21, 1821, 
 to Miss Mary Ann Pratt, a native of Killing- 
 worth, Conn. ; she died July 28, 1836. The 
 result of this marriage was seven children, of 
 whom five are living. Samuel A. and James 
 P. live in Connecticut ; Charles S. lives in Ra- 
 venna, Ohio ; Mary E., now Mrs. Myers, lives 
 near the old home ; Henry C. lives in Toledo ; 
 Edward died in 1831 and Emily in 1868. Mr. 
 Cotter was married on Nov. 1, 1837, to Miss 
 Mary Talcott, a daughter of Alvin and Philo- 
 melia (Root) Talcott. Mr. Talcott traces his 
 ancestry back to the family of Warwickshire, 
 England. The original emigrant, the Worshipful 
 John Talcott, came to Boston, Mass., Sept. 16, 
 1632, in the ship Lyon. He soon after went to 
 Hartford, Conn., where he was married, and 
 afterward lived. Mr. Cotter is a Presbyterian, 
 and has been a member of that church for over 
 fifty 3'ears ; Mrs. Cotter has been a member for 
 over fort}^ years. Mr. C. has been a Republican 
 in politics ever since the organization of that 
 party. 
 
 JAMES H. CASE, druggist, Middlebury 
 (Sixth Ward), Akron ; was born Dec. 23, 1844, 
 and is a native of Middlebury, Ohio. He is the 
 eldest of two children, born to S. S. and Jane 
 (McDowell) Case, who were natives of New York. 
 S. S. Case came to Ohio in an eai-l}^ day, and lo- 
 cated in the vicinity of Painesville, where he fol- 
 lowed harness-making ; and, a})out 1842, came to 
 Middlebury. Here he followed the harness busi- 
 ness, and later, became an extensive dealer in 
 stoneware. He also took some contracts on 
 the Mount Vernon Railroad. In 1864, he en- 
 listed in the army, and was transferred to the 
 Government shops at Chattanooga for the manu- 
 facturing of harness, etc. He served until the 
 close of the war, and then located in Cincinnati, 
 thence to Xenia, where he died June 9, 1879, 
 at the age of 67 years. James H. (the subject), 
 has always made his home in Middlebury. At 
 the age of 17 A'ears, he apprenticed himself to 
 the carriage-ironing trade, at Greenville, Penn.; 
 
 \ 
 
688 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 be did not complete his apprenticeship, but 
 retired to Middlebury, and worked one and a 
 half 3-ears in the machine shops of Kent & Bald- 
 win. In ISUa, he enlisted in the Second Ohio 
 Cavahy, and served until the close of the war. 
 He was in the battles of the Wilderness, Peters- 
 burg, Shenandoah, Cedar Creek, Winchester, 
 Five Forks and at the surrender of Lee. He 
 was at the grand review at Washington, and 
 then moved West, remaining at Springfield, 
 Mo., until the September following, when he, 
 with regiment, was mustered out at St. Louis, 
 and returned home. He then completed his 
 trade as a machinist, and followed it some four 
 years. He then worked in the Buckeye Reaper 
 W^orks until the spring of 1876, when he opened 
 his present business. He was married, Jan. 1, 
 1872, to Wiss Ella S. Farrar, a native of Massa- 
 chusetts, and a daughter of C. S. Farrar, of 
 Akron, whither they came about the year 1870. 
 By the marriage, there is one child, viz., Charles 
 F."^ Case. 
 
 DR. W. E. CHAMBERLIN, physician, Ak- 
 ron, was born in Allegheny City, Penn., Nov. 
 29, 1840, and was raised in Maryland and Vir- 
 ginia, where his parents lived during his 
 infancy, moving to Peninsula, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, in 1858. His father, C. W. Chamberlin, 
 was a physician and druggist. Our subject 
 began at the age of 12 years to assist in his 
 father's store and to read medical works, which 
 he continued in connection with his schooling, 
 which consisted of a high-school course and a 
 course by a special instructor, which included 
 French and German. At the age of 18, he be- 
 gan practice under his father, and Sept. 9, 1861, 
 he enlisted in Co. D, 1st Ohio Light Artiller3% 
 and was detailed by Gen. Nelson as physician 
 and surgeon, in which position he served until 
 October, 1862, when, owing to ill health, he 
 was discharged and returned home. During 
 the winter, he attended lectures at the Univer- 
 sity of Michigan at Ann Arbor, resuming his 
 profession in the spring at Brimfield, Portage 
 Co., Ohio. Tn September, 1865, he removed to 
 Clinton, Summit Co., where he practiced until 
 Januar}^, 1875, during which time he became 
 well known as a newspaper correspondent, cor- 
 responding for the Akron Beacon, City Times, 
 Cleveland Hemhl, the Plaindealer and numer- 
 ous others. From Clinton he came to Akron 
 and located at 1 04 North Howard street, where 
 he has remained since. In 1869, he graduated 
 
 at the Charity Hospital Medical College of 
 Cleveland. A member of the Union Medical 
 Societ}' of Northeastern Ohio, he has served 
 the same as delegate to the State and 
 National Medical Conventions. March 31, 
 
 1862, he married Miss Mary E. Pritchard, 
 of Medina Co., Ohio, Of their two children, 
 one is living, viz., M^-rtle. June 22, 1875, 
 he married Mrs. McCoy, formerly Miss Wilhel- 
 mina Kohler. While in Franklin Township, 
 the Doctor served as Justice of the Peace and 
 Notar}'. He also conducted a drug business, 
 which was destroyed by fire in 1874. 
 
 B. S. CHASE, M. D. (deceased), was born 
 Jan. 9, 1834. He was a native of Vermont, 
 and lived on a farm until he came of age, gain- 
 ing an education in the meanwhile at the pub- 
 lic schools and an academic course at the 
 Chester Academy. On reaching his majority, 
 he came West and engaged in the sale of some 
 maps for which he had secured territory in 
 Michigan. After several years spent in this 
 way, he came to Akron and began reading 
 medicine with his uncle, Dr. E. W. Howard, of 
 Akron, and afterward graduating at Ann Ar- 
 bor, Mich. He began his practice in partner- 
 ship with his uncle and preceptor, continuing 
 in this way until 1862, when the war opened 
 up a new avenue for his services. He entered 
 the army as Assistant Surgeon of the 16th 0. 
 V. I., remaining with the regiment until June, 
 
 1863, when he was transferred to the 53d Mis- 
 sissippi (colored) Regiment as Surgeon. He 
 continued with this regiment to the close of 
 the war, acting on the Operating Board at the 
 battle of Chickasaw Bayou and during the 
 siege of Vicksburg. Subsequently he returned 
 to Akron, where he continued his practice until 
 his death Feb. 23, 1878. Jan. 26, 1863, he 
 married Miss Henrietta Sabin, a native of 
 Akron, and a daughter of Joseph W. Sabin, a 
 long-time and prominent merchant of Akron. 
 Mrs. Chase's mother was Prudence, a daughter 
 of C. W. Brown (who is mentioned elsewhere), 
 a native of New York and an earl}' pioneer of 
 the Sixth Ward of Akron. Mr. Sabin died 
 March 5, 1876 ; his wife died Dec. 27, 1880. 
 Mrs. Chase's family consists of five children — - 
 William S., Charles H., Martha, Byron S. and 
 Sabin Ford, the latter a nephew whom she has 
 adopted into her family. 
 
 J. G. CASKEY, of Diehl & Caskey, Akron ; 
 is a native of Lancaster Co., Penn.; was born 
 
'k* 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 689 
 
 in Strasburg Township, Sept. 3. 1832. His 
 parents, Samuel and Mary (Brown) Caske}', 
 were natives of York and Lancaster Cos., Penn. 
 His father was a miller by trade, and was born 
 July 1, 1798. In 1835, his parents, with four 
 children, came in wagons to Norton Township 
 in this county. Here his father bought wild 
 land, cleared a farm, and, in the meanwhile, 
 worked at milling on shares. The latter busi- 
 ness occupied the principal part of his time 
 until 1869, when he gave up a calling in which 
 he had engaged for nearly tifty years. Feb. 1, 
 1875, his wife died at the age of 75. Both 
 were members of the M. E. Church, in which 
 he still takes an active interest. In politics, he 
 followed the fortunes of the Democratic party 
 until the rise of the Republican part}', to which 
 he has since given his suffrage. He still lives 
 at the old homestead in Norton, and lacks but 
 a few days of being the oldest man in the 
 township. J. Gr. Caskey lived at home until he 
 reached his majority, working on the farm and 
 in the mill, gaining a practical knowledge of 
 both occupations. On becoming of age, he 
 entered the Baldwin University at Berea, where 
 he studied for two years. At the expiration of 
 this term, he returned to the farm, spending 
 his winters in teaching school for some two 3'ears. 
 He then turned his attention exclusively^ to 
 milling, which he followed until 1871, save 
 two years while in the army. Aug. 30, 1862, 
 he enlisted in Co. D, 29th 0. V. V. I., and 
 served two years, taking part in the battles of 
 Chancellorsville, Gett3'sburg, Lookout Moun- 
 tain and jMission Ridge. Mr. Caskey- was sub- 
 sequenth' taken ill and confined in the hospital 
 at Murfreesboro, and later received a furlough 
 and discharge. He returned home, and, after 
 regaining his health, he resumed his milling 
 business. In 1871, he moved to Akron and 
 conducted a restaurant for some nine years. 
 In 1880, he became a partner in the present 
 business. Feb. 15, 1860, he married Miss Har- 
 riet B. Burget, a native of Wayne Co., Ohio. 
 They have two children, S3'bil A. and Charlie E. 
 JOHN S. CLEMENS, foreman gearing de- 
 partment of Aultman, Miller & Co., Akron ; 
 a native of Stark Co., Ohio, was born Aug. 30, 
 1832, and is the oldest son in a family of three 
 children born to Daniel and Leah (Cameron) 
 Clemens, natives of Stark Co. His (subject's) 
 grandfather, Nicholas Clemens, was a soldier in 
 the war of 1812, and came from Pennsylvania 
 
 to Stark Co. previous to that war. At the 
 age of 19, subject was apprenticed to learn 
 blacksmithing at Paris, in Stark Co., where he 
 worked until 1857, when he entered the employ 
 of Aultman, Miller & Co., at Canton, as a 
 blacksmith. He remained here until 1864, 
 when, at the opening of the company's shops 
 at Akron, he came here to take charge of the 
 blacksmithing department, and was foreman of 
 that department until 1869, when he was made 
 foreman of the gearing department, which he 
 has made very efficient. He was married in 
 November, 1854, to Miss Elizabeth Flickmyer, 
 of Paris, Ohio. They have two sons ; a daugh- 
 ter died in childhood. 
 
 JOEL R. CARTER, of Carter & Steward, 
 millers, Akron, a son of Joel R. and Mary 
 (D^er) Carter, was born in Devonshire, En- 
 gland, March 13, 1841. His father was a miller, 
 and when but a boy he began to learn the mill- 
 ing business. He worked in the City Mills of 
 London, England, about five jears, and in 1865, 
 he came to the United States and to Akron. 
 He entered the present mill, where he worked 
 for Robert Turner one 3^ear, and, in 1868, 
 bought a fourth intei'est in the firm. He be- 
 came half-owner in 1873, with Mr. Steward, 
 firm Carter & Steward. In February, 1869, he 
 was married to Miss Jane Rhodes, daughter of 
 John Rhodes, of Cuyahoga Falls. There has 
 been born of this marriage one son and one 
 daughter. Mr. C. came here without capital, 
 and by his own exertions has become one of 
 Akron's stanch business men. His parents 
 still reside in P]ngland, where his father has 
 followed milling all his life, at Dotten, twelve 
 miles from Exeter. 
 
 JOHN COOK, deceased, was born April 18, 
 1818, in Bavaria, Germany. On leaving school 
 in his native country, he learned the trade of 
 stone-mason, at which he worked until he came 
 with his parents to the United States in 1839. 
 He came at once to Akron, and found employ- 
 ment in the JEtna Mills, where he soon became 
 foreman in the packing department. He went 
 overland to California in 1850. encountering 
 many perils and hardships. He remained there 
 two years in the provision business, and re- 
 turned home via Panama route. In 1855, he 
 started a giocery on Market street, and b}' 
 close application to business built up a large 
 and lucrative trade — was one of the largest 
 dealers in Akron, and for several years the 
 
 
690 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 business partner of Jacob Dussell. When his 
 sons John J. and William H. Cook o^rew up, he 
 took them into partnership, which lasted until 
 his death, Dec. 1, 1880. He was raised a Cath- 
 olic, and at the organization of the German 
 Catholic; Church became a member, and was 
 for many years a trustee and liberal supporter 
 of it ; later in life was a member of the St. Vin- 
 cent's Church. He was Councilman two 3'ears, 
 and took an active interest in public affairs. 
 He was married October 17, 1843, to Miss 
 Mary Bilz, of Akron. She was born in Ger- 
 many, Dec. 5, 1821, and came with her parents 
 to the United States in 183G, and were among 
 the earl}^ residents of Akron. Subject has two 
 sons living — William H. and John J.; oldest 
 son, Francis, died when he was but two 3'ears 
 old. 
 
 DR. ISRAEL E. CARTER, retired, Akron, 
 was born in Concord, N. H, April 8, 1810, 
 where he lived in the vicinity until 1836. 
 He began the stud}' of medicine in 1831, 
 and at the same time supported himself 
 by teaching school during the winters. He 
 graduated in June, 1835, from the Ver- 
 mont Medical College at Woodstock, and 
 came to Ravenna, Ohio, in May, 1836 ; being 
 in poor health, he found he could not stand 
 regular practice, so took up the study of den- 
 tistry with Dr. M. T. Willard, of Concord, N. H., 
 in 1835, and after coming to Ravenna began 
 its practice. He did a successful business then 
 from 1836 to 1843, when he came to Akron 
 and located here permanently. He remained in 
 active practice here until his election as Count}' 
 Treasurer in 1862, holding the office until 
 1867, being elected each time by the Repub- 
 lican party. He was Mayor of the incorporated 
 village of Akron in 1848 and 1849, and mem- 
 ber of the School Board two terms. Owing to 
 failing health, he has retired from active busi- 
 ness. He was married July 4, 1840, to Miss 
 Mary L. Williamson, of Ravenna. Three chil- 
 dren by this marriage are living — Frances L. 
 (Mrs. t. D. McGillicuddy); William H., book- 
 keeper ; and Charles E. His wife died June 
 19, 1862, in her 43d year. He is a charter 
 member of Summit Lodge, No. 50, I. 0. 0. F., 
 organized in 1845, and has always been an 
 active and zealous member of it ; was Deputy 
 Grand Master one term. 
 
 HENRY J. CHURCH, merchant, Akron. 
 Calvin Church was born in East Haddam, 
 
 Conn., in 1794, where the Church family set- 
 tled on their arrival from England, in the lat- 
 ter part of the seventeenth century. The early 
 members of the family were in the war of the 
 Revolution, and he was in the war of 1812, and 
 Adjutant in the Ohio militia. He settled in 
 Rome, x\shtabula Co., Ohio, in about 1804. 
 Miss Susan Crowell, whom he married, was a 
 sister of Judge Crowell, of Cleveland, Ohio. 
 The Crowell family came from Connecticut 
 about the same time that the Church family 
 did, and were among the first pioneers of Rome, 
 Ohio. Both families were strong churchmen of 
 the Episcopal faith, and Bishop Chase preached 
 in his grandfather William Crowell's kitchen, 
 as early as 1819. The descendants have been 
 Episcopalians ever since. To Calvin Church 
 were born seven children, of whom the subject 
 of this sketch is the youngest. His wife died 
 in her 73d year, in 1876, and he in his 63d 
 year, in 1856. Henry J. Church was born at 
 Thompson, Geauga Co., Ohio, on April 16, 
 1845. In December, 1858, two years after his 
 father's death, he came to Akron, where he en- 
 tered the employ of Henry & Oberholser, as 
 clerk, attending school during the winters for 
 six years, at the end of which time he became 
 salesman, with Oberholser, Keller & Co., con- 
 tinuing for five years, when he received an in- 
 terest. Avhich, at the end of one year, he sold 
 out. April 20, 1870, the copartnership of 
 Wolf Church & Beck was formed, and they 
 did a large wholesale and retail business in dry 
 goods. In 1878, Mr. Beck retired, and the 
 firm dropped his name, being Wolf & Church. 
 Their business rooms are at Nos. 200 and 202 
 East Market street, being 100x37 feet dimen- 
 sions, with basement and second story. They 
 employ eleven men and two ladies as clerks, 
 salesmen and book-keepers. On May 6, 1868, 
 he married Miss Mary H. Sanford, daughter of 
 D. G. Sanford, of Akron ; she bore him six chil- 
 dren, five living. He was confirmed in the 
 Episcopal Church in 1869, as was also his wife. 
 For ten years he has been Superintendent of 
 the Sabbath school. He is a member of Sum- 
 mit Lodge, No. 50, I. 0. 0. F., and has been its 
 presiding officer, and was one of the charter 
 members of Akron Lodge, No. 547, whose or- 
 ganization he was among the first to suggest. 
 THOMAS W. CORNELL, Akron ; was born 
 in Dutchess Co., N. Y., Jan. 8, 1820, raised on 
 a farm, and, at 22, with but little capital, com- 
 
 ^; 
 
CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 691 
 
 menced in life for liimself. He was for some ! 
 time in a brewery in Auburn, N. Y. He came j 
 to Cuyahoga Falls in December, 1855, where 
 he bought a distillery, which he conducted 
 seven or eight years. In 1863, he came to 
 Akron, Ohio, and became one of the original 
 stockholders of the First National Bank at their 
 first meeting, being elected President, which 
 position he has since retained. The original 
 capital stock was $100,000, and the deposits 
 have reached to $250,000. Since 1865, he has 
 been President of the Akron Gas Works. 
 
 REV. W. W. CASE, Pastor of First M. E. 
 Church, Akron ; is a son of William and Polly 
 (Hempsted) Case, natives of Rensselaer County, 
 N. Y., and was born Dec. 13, 1838. His father 
 was a farmer, and he was brought up on a farm 
 until 17 years of age, when he commenced 
 teaching, and at 19 became Superintendent of 
 Schools of Dunkirk, N. Y. During the year 
 1858, he was converted, and soon after entered 
 tiie ministry under the auspices of the M. E. 
 Church, laboring for the first five years in 
 Western New York. In 1864, he was trans- 
 ferred to the Wisconsin Conference, and filled 
 successively the pulpits at Edgerton, Beloit, 
 Milwaukee (latter place three years), and then 
 at Fond du Lac. He was transferred to the 
 Cincinnati Conference in 1875, and stationed at 
 Mt. Auburn Church, Cincinnati, for three years, 
 and was then transferred to First M. E. Church 
 of Akron. He is a member of the Examining 
 Committee of Mt. Union College ; has been a 
 member of the Board of Management of Law- 
 rence University, and of Phoenix Literary So- 
 ciety of that institution. 
 
 CHARLES CRANZ, Secretary of Wads- 
 worth Coal Co., Akron ; is a son of Daniel and 
 Wilhemina (Renz) Cranz, and was born Feb. 
 13, 1817, in Wiesenbach Village, Wurtemberg, 
 German}'. He was educated in his native 
 country, and spent two years as an*apprentice 
 in a drug store. At the age of 17 he came to 
 the United States with his parents, arriving in 
 Baltimore in July, 1834. The}', journeyed by 
 team to Wheeling, Va., when the river proved 
 too low for navigation, and they continued on 
 their journey by land to Holmes Co., Ohio, 
 where the father, who was a Lutheran minister, 
 had letters of introduction to parties. He 
 resided there until his death in 1876, in his 
 87th year, having continued preaching until 
 the age of 82. Subject worked on a farm in 
 
 Holmes County two years, when he started out 
 for himself, securing a clerkship in Nashville, 
 Holmes Co., for a short time, when he went to 
 Canton and became a clerk in a hardware store 
 for six years. In 1842, he came to Akron, and 
 together with F. A. Schneider (firm of C. Cranz 
 & Co.), opened the first hardware store in the 
 cit}' ; while in business, donated arms to •' Old 
 John Brown." Continued for about ten j'^ears, 
 when Mr. C. Ijought out his partner, and in 
 1865, L. B. Schneider became a partner, re- 
 maining as such until 1875, when subject sold 
 out to him. Mr. C. was one of the original 
 stockholders and incorporators of J. F. Seiber- 
 ling & Co., and was consecutively Director, 
 General Agent, Secretary and Treasurer, and 
 upon the failure of the company became one of 
 the assignees by request of the creditors and 
 stockholders. He is at present Secretary of the 
 Wadsworth Coal Co. In September, 1845, he 
 was married to Miss Mai'garet D. Schneider, 
 daughter of F. A. Schneider, of Akron. The}' 
 have four sons and one daughter, viz., Charles, 
 Jr., and Frank are in the mines of Arizona ; 
 Harry, clerk in a hardware stoi'e in Omaha, 
 Neb.; William S., a student in Lehigh Univer- 
 sity, and Emma R., is the wife of Thomas K. 
 Pei'kins, of Akron. 
 
 FRANK D. CASSIDY, lawyer, Akron ; is a 
 son of William P. and Caroline M. (Kohler) 
 Cassidy, and was born Jan. 29, 1849, at Penin- 
 sula, Summit Co. His father was a carpenter 
 and joiner, and moved to Akron about the year 
 1853 ; was a native of Blair Co., Penn., and 
 was born in October, 1811. He was of Irish 
 descent, his great-grandfather coming to Penn- 
 sylvania from Ireland, and the larger portion 
 of the family still living in Blair County, where 
 the elder Cassidy laid out the town of Newry, 
 named for their native town in Ireland. The 
 father of subject was for fifteen years foreman 
 in the factory of W. B. Doyle & Co., of Akron, 
 and died in June, 1878. leaving two sons and 
 one daughter— Frank D. (subject); James H., 
 physician at Sharon Centre, Medina Co., and 
 Mary E., wife of D. G. Steese, of Akron. In 
 1869, he (subject) became assistant bookkeeper 
 in the Akron Iron ('o., remaining one year, and 
 then went to Cleveland and accepted the posi- 
 tion of assistant book-keeper in a wholesale 
 coal concern, which he held for three years, 
 when he became a partner in the firm of Steese 
 & Co., coal dealers and shippers, continuing until 
 
 -^ » 
 
693 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 1875, when he returned to Akron, and for some 
 time assisted his father in the management of his 
 real estate business, In 1877, he began the 
 study of the law with Edgerton & Kohler, and 
 was admitted to the bar in March, 1879, and 
 has been in practice here ever since. He was 
 married Dec. 30, 1878, to Miss Sarah J. Francis, 
 a daughter of Joseph Francis, Sr. They have 
 one cliild — Carrie M. 
 
 JOHN H. CAMPBELL, lawyer, Akron ; is 
 a son of John and Matilda (Ervine) Camp- 
 bell ; was born Nov. 9, 1848, in Wayne Co., and 
 when an infant, the family moved to Hancock 
 Co. He lived there on a farm until 1861, when 
 the family moved back to Wayne (.o. He be- 
 gan teaching in 1868, and in 1870 graduated in 
 Mt. Union Commercial School ; in the fall of 
 1871, he entered the Law Department of the 
 Michigan University, from which he graduated 
 March 26, 1873, and was admitted to the bar 
 at Wooster in June, 1872. In April, 1873, he 
 came to Akron, and began practice, and Janu- 
 ary, 1875, became a member of the firm of 
 Edgerton, Kohler & Campbell, until August, 
 
 1876, when the firm was dissolved, and he has 
 been alone since. He is now located in Math- 
 ews' block, over No. 127 South Howard street. 
 In October, 1870, he was married to Carrie E. 
 Oswald, of Wayne Co. They have three sons. 
 His father (John Campbell) was born in Greene 
 Co., Penn., Oct. 29, 1810, and came there with his 
 father, George Campbell, in 1822 ; his father 
 dying three years thereafter, John virtually be- 
 came the head of the family, and worked on 
 the farm until the youngest child was 21 years 
 old. January 21, 1842, he married Matilda 
 Ervine, of Baughman Township, of that county. 
 John H. is his only son. 
 
 NEWTON CHALKER, lawyer, Akron. 
 James Chalker was born in Soutliington, Ohio, 
 his parents being natives of Connecticut, as 
 were also those of Miss P]liza Hyde, whom he 
 married, and whose birthplace was Farmington, 
 Trumbull Co.. Ohio. His ancestors settled in 
 Saybrook, Conn., in about 1640, and his parents 
 moved to Ohio in about the year 1805, as also 
 did hers. To James and Eliza (Hyde) Chalker, 
 at Southington, Ohio, on Sept. 12, 1842, was 
 born the subject of this sketch, Newton 
 Chalker, who spent his early youth at his native 
 home, on a farm, until he was 15 years of age, 
 a year previous to which time he entered the 
 Western Reserve Seminary of Farmington, 
 
 continuing with his studies there until he was 
 
 20, teaching in the district schools, in the 
 meantime, from the age of 16, In June, 1862, 
 he enlisted in Co. B, 87th 0. V. I., his term 
 expiring in October of the same year. In the 
 spring of 1863, his 21st year, he entered Alle- 
 ghan}' College, at Meadville, being assigned to 
 the freshman class ; taking a classical course, 
 he graduated in June, 1866. In the fall of the 
 same year, he was elected by the Trustees of 
 Dixon Seminary, at Dixon, 111., Principal, 
 which position he filled for one year, when he 
 was elected Superintendent of the Darlington 
 Union Schools, Wisconsin, filling that position 
 for the same length of time. In August, 1868, 
 he entered the Law Department of the University 
 of Albany, N. Y., graduating there in June, 
 1869. Shortly after his graduation, he opened 
 an oflflce for the practice of law in Cameron, 
 Mo., where he remained five years. On Aug. 
 14, 1874, he came to Akron, where he has 
 practiced law ever since. 
 
 CHARLES S. COBBS, City Solicitor, Akron, 
 was born near Alliance, Columbiana Co., Ohio, 
 Julv 7, 1853, and lived on a farm until 18 ; he 
 entered Mt. Union College in the fall of 1872, 
 and graduated in July, 1877. He then became 
 Superintendent of the Malvern Union Schools, 
 continuing two years, studying law in the mean- 
 time. May, 1879, he came to Akron and entered 
 the law^ office of J. J. Hall, stud3'ing until his 
 admission to the bar in May, 1880, at the session 
 of the Supreme Court at Columbus, Ohio, after 
 which he located in Akron, and has been in 
 active practice since. In April, 1881, he was 
 elected City Solicitor, on the Republican ticket. 
 
 JAMES CRISTY, tanner, Akron. James, 
 oldest son of Patrick and Eliza (McMoran) 
 Cristy, was born Feb. 4, 1820, in Spring- 
 field Township, this count3', where he lived 
 on a farm until he attained his majority, 
 attending clistrict school in his earliest school 
 days, and select school at Middlebur}- from the 
 time he was 16 until he reached his 19th jear. 
 At the age of 20, he began teaching, in which 
 he engaged for two terms. Soon after he was 
 
 21, he came to Akron, where he soon estab- 
 lished a tannery on North Howard sti'eet, in 
 company' with one James Sawyer, who was his 
 partner, running it under the firm name of 
 Cristy & Sawyer, until 1851, when the part- 
 nership dissolved. The year following, he and 
 his brother, John H. Cristy, fitted up a small 
 
 ^1 
 
 'i^ 
 
i^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 693 
 
 tannery on the same street, which they ran un- 
 til 1856. when they built the present one, con- 
 tinuing as partners until 1879. when the firm 
 dissolved, leaving subject proprietor, who then 
 took in, as partners, his sons James, Jr., and 
 William, under the firm name of James Cristy 
 & Sons. They are doing a good business at 
 the present time, manufacturing leather, buying 
 and selling leather, hides, furs and leather find- 
 ings, and making a specialty of harness leather. 
 In 18-11, he started in business at this place 
 with but $500, and whatever of success he has 
 attained is the result of his own labor, energy 
 and perseverance. In politics he is a Republi- 
 can, having been such since the organization of 
 the part}'. A member of no church, he attends 
 the Congregational, and gives it his support. 
 For several years he has been a member of the 
 City Council. His father, a native of New Jer- 
 sey, was of Irish descent, and his mother, a 
 Scotch lady, was born in Scotland. In 1812, 
 they came to Stark County from Northumber- 
 land Co., Penn., settling in Springfield Town- 
 ship, this county, two years later, purchasing 
 30 acres of land of Judge Hinckley, for whom 
 the father of our subject was land agent. Our 
 subject was one of nine children, of whom but 
 three are living — himself, a brother and Mrs. 
 Saw3'er, widow of his former partner. His 
 father died in 1864, being in his 74th year, and 
 his mother's death occurred in 1872, in her 
 83d year. Subject was married October, 1849, 
 to Miss Jennie Warner, of Akron, Ohio, and of 
 this union five children were the issue, all of 
 whom are living. 
 
 ALEXANDER H. COMMINS (deceased). 
 His father, Jedediah D. Commins. was born in 
 the town of Charlotte, Yt., on the 9th day of 
 July, 1790 ; in 1814, he was united in marriage 
 with Sophia Field, of Wethersfield, Windsor 
 Co., Vt. They soon after removed to Western 
 New York, where the}' resided until 1832. At 
 that date he came to Akron ; here he found 
 but few improvements, but being a keen lover 
 of nature, <he selected for his home the most 
 desirable site adjacent to the village, and 
 erected a residence on Fir street, ever since re- 
 tained by the family. Mr. Commins opened 
 the first drug store in the village, and for many 
 years was the leading druggist of the town ; 
 he was a very careful and precise merchant, 
 sustaining his credit through the panic of 
 1837, which wrecked all the other merchants of 
 
 that period except his friend P. D. Hall. He 
 espoused the principles of Democracy, and at 
 once became a leader of his party in this sec- 
 tion. Among the first he saw the advantages 
 which would arise from the organization of a 
 new county with Akron as its center, and, with 
 unceasing efforts, he gave time and influence to 
 that end ; he was sent as a lobby member to the 
 Legislature, and to his labors with that body 
 we are indebted largely for the organization of 
 Summit County. But this was not his only 
 measure of beneficence ; he originated the 
 idea of a rural cemeter}^, and secured the 
 passage of a bill authorizing corporations to 
 purchase lands for such purposes, and put his 
 beautiful theory into operation in the purchase 
 of 40 acres for the Akron Rural Cemeter}', 
 probably the first of its kind in the State. 
 That he was denied the discipline of school 
 training did not discourage a mind which could 
 draw a lesson from every object of nature. He 
 gathered, studied and classified a fine collec- 
 tion of insects, minerals and flowers. He was 
 an excellent botanist and a thorough student of 
 nature ; he was familiar with the best works of 
 French and English literature ; he greatly ad- 
 mired Shakspeare, and could repeat many pas- 
 sages from memory, and could read the French 
 language with ease. He was a highly esteemed 
 and influential citizen, who labored earnestly 
 for the public weal as foremost champion of 
 every good work. He died in 1867, respected 
 by all. Alexander H. Commins, oldest son of 
 Jedediah D. Commins, was born at Lima, Liv- 
 ingston Co., N. Y., June 21, 1815 ; at 17. he 
 came with his father to this locality, and ere- 
 long entered the Western Reserve College, at 
 Hudson, where he spent some time in laying 
 the foundation for his future usefulness. On 
 leaving college, Mr. Commins entered the drug 
 store of his father, and for several 3'ears de- 
 voted his talents to that business. In 1845, 
 with Col. Simon Perkins, he became interested 
 in the woolen mills of Akron ; he continued in 
 the manufacture of woolen goods for a period 
 of ten years, and, in 1856, converted it into a 
 flouring-mill ; he at this time formed a partner- 
 ship with Jacob and Jesse Allen, which lasted 
 until I860. In company with Albert Allen, in 
 1867, he purchased the old stone mills, which 
 have since been known as the Commins & Allen 
 Mills, on account of the large and important 
 additions made to the original structure by 
 
 ^ 
 
 \ 
 
094 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 them. During the period of copartnership of 
 Mr. Corainins with Mr. Albert Allen, mutual 
 friendshii) and confidence became so strong that 
 Mr. Commins so fashioned his will that his es 
 teemed partner was given entire control of his 
 large business and estate until the heirs should 
 reach their majority, and, in case of the death 
 of their mother, he should become the guar- 
 dian of his children and executor of his will, 
 and all without bonds {dr hoiu's noit). This 
 partnership continued with the most cordial re- 
 lations, until his death, Aug. 17, 1880. Mr. 
 Commins was raised in the l^resbyterian 
 Church, but later in life gave his support to the 
 Episcopal Church. He inherited man}' of 
 the admirable traits of his father, having ex- 
 cellent business capacity ; an extensive reader, 
 he was well informed on all current topics. 
 He, like his father, was a stanch Democrat, and 
 although he never sought office, had those qual- 
 ities which stamped him as a leader of his 
 party in this county and district, hence he was 
 nominated for many positions of honor and 
 trust. Oct. 8, 1860, he was united in marriage 
 to Miss Addie H. Starks, of Buffalo, N. Y.; of 
 this marriage nine children were born, seven of 
 whom are yet living Mr. Commins was a pub- 
 lic-spirited citizen, whose loss was deeply felt. 
 GEORGE W. CROrSE, manufacturer, 
 Akron. George W. Crouse, manufacturer of 
 reapers and mowers, at Akron, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, was born November 23, 1832, at Tall- 
 madge, same county. He is the son of George 
 Crouse, a native of Pennsylvania, and Margaret 
 H. (Robinson) Crouse, of Irish descent. His 
 boyhood was passed on a farm, during which 
 period he acquired such knowledge of the En- 
 glish branches as, at the age of 17, enabled him 
 to teach school in a creditable manner, which 
 occupation he engaged in for a period of five 
 years. Ambition, which country school-teach- 
 ing and farming could not satisfy, having en- 
 tered " the chamber of the gifted boy," he com- 
 menced looking about him for more congenial 
 employment, and so it happened that, in 1855, 
 he came to Akron with no other capital than 
 energy, integrity, common sense and detei'mi- 
 nation to aid him in securing such a position as 
 he desired. Arriving here, he very soon found 
 employment under the County Auditor and 
 Treasurer, as accountant and penman, in both 
 of which he excelled. He held these positions 
 for three jears, during which time he became 
 
 so familiar with the work of each, and had also 
 extended his acquaintance so favorably, that, 
 in the fall of 1 858, he was elected County Aud- 
 itor, being only 25 years of age, and, at that 
 time, the youngest officer ever elected in the 
 county. He held this office during the follow- 
 ing two 3'ears, and was tluni re-elected, but. be- 
 fore the expiration of his second term, a vacan- 
 cy occurred in the office of County Treasurer, 
 which the County Commissioners appointed 
 him to fill. This led to the resignation of his 
 office as Auditor. His conduct in these offices 
 had become so favorably known throughout the 
 county that he was solicited to accept a respon- 
 sible agency for the Atlantic & Great Western 
 Railroad Co., the road having been completed 
 as far as Akron. The agency being local, he 
 accepted, and conducted both the business of 
 his county office and that of his new engage- 
 ment with great care and efficienc}'. About 
 the 20th of August, 1863, he connected him- 
 self with the firm of C. Aultman & Co., being 
 financial manager of their branch concern at 
 Akron. In co-operation with J. R. Buchtel, 
 he superintended the erection of the new build- 
 ings of the same, at the same time attending 
 wholly to the financial managementof the branch 
 house. In the summer of 1865, it was re-or- 
 ganized as a stock company, under the firm 
 name of Aultman, Miller & Co., of which, as a 
 stockholder, Mr. Crouse was elected Secretary 
 and Treasurer, his duties being to manage the 
 finances and dispose of the goods. The first 
 year of its existence, the company manufact- 
 ured 2,900 machines. Under the able manage- 
 ment of its executive officers, the business so 
 rapidly increased that, in 1880, the machines 
 manufactured were 12,000, the gross sales 
 amounting to $1,800,000. The capital invested 
 is $1,000,000. the business giving employment 
 to over 400 men. Decidedly successful, this 
 company has returned a dividend each year to 
 its stockholders. Mr. Crouse has done his full 
 share in achieving a well-merited success for 
 the " Buckeye Mower and Reaper." His qual- 
 ities of industry and rare ability have caused 
 him to be much sought by his townsmen for 
 local offices. A member of the City Council, 
 he has served as its President ; mem!)er and 
 President of the Board of Education, he has 
 been three years a Count}' Commissioner, and 
 Chairman of the County Central Republican 
 Committee. He is a member of the Protestant 
 
 <3 
 
CITT OF AKRON. 
 
 695 
 
 Episcopal Church, and, for some years, has 
 been a Vestryman of the same. In addition to 
 the business in which he is principally en- 
 gaged, he has encouraged and aided other busi- 
 ness enterprises in Akron, among which were 
 the Whitman & Barnes Manufacturing Co., the 
 Akron Rubber Works, doing business as B. F. 
 Goodrich & Co., a joint stock company in 
 which he is a Director ; the Akron Manilla 
 Paper Co., doing business as Thomas Phillips 
 & Co., a copartnership in which he is a one- 
 third owner. In 1870, he assisted to organize 
 the Bank of Akron, in which he is a stock- 
 holder, and of which he is President. In poli- 
 tics, he is a Republican, carrying the same ear- 
 nestness into the partisanship of his political 
 convictions that characterizes him elsewhere. 
 He married Miss Martha K. Parsons, of Port- 
 age County, on Oct. 18, 1859, of which union 
 there are five children, four daughters and one 
 son, viz., Martha P., Julia M., Mary R., Nellie 
 J. and George W., Jr. 
 
 ARTHUR L. CONGER, manufacturer, Ak- 
 ron, was born to John and Hannah (Beales) 
 Conger Feb. 19, 1838, in Boston, this county, 
 Ohio. He spent his early days working on his 
 father's farm and in his brick-yard, until he 
 was 20 years old, when he spent two summers 
 boating on the Ohio Canal, attending school in 
 winter, b^' his own efforts gaining such knowl- 
 edge of the English branches as enabled him 
 to teach, which vocation he followed from 1860 
 to July, 1802, when he enlisted in the 115th 0. 
 V. I. as a private soldier, having recruited a 
 large number of men before entering the serv- 
 ice. Of this company he was successively 
 made 1st Lieutenant and Captain, serving with 
 it nearly three years in the Army of the Cum- 
 berland under Gen. Thomas, being mustered 
 out in Jul}^ 1864, having been for much of the 
 time on detached duty. Assigned to the staff 
 of Gen. Ammon, as Acting Assistant Adjutant 
 General, at Covington, Ky.; there he acted al- 
 so as Provost ^larshal, and served as a member 
 of the court martial under Judge Advocate R. 
 M. Corwin, serving on this court 100 days, 
 during which time a large number of impor- 
 tant cases were disposed of B}' Mr. Corwin's 
 special request, he then became a member of 
 a new court martial subsequentl3' organized, 
 but his regiment being ordered to the front, he 
 went with it, and was detailed in the Engineer 
 Corps as an Assistant Inspector of railroad 
 
 defenses in the Department of the Cumberland. 
 His experience in this branch becoming known 
 to Gen. Thomas, that officer recommended his 
 appointment as a Captain and Commissary of 
 Subsistence, with the view of having him is.sue 
 rations by special train to the garrisons of tiie 
 block-houses and railroad defences throughout 
 the Department of the Cumbei'land, in addition 
 to his duties as Inspector, but the war came to 
 a close before this appointment could be made, 
 and Mr. Conger returned to Boston, and for a 
 year after worked on a farm, when, in 1866. he 
 was elected Treasurer of his native county, 
 serving one term, when he was re-elected and 
 served the second term, in all four years. His 
 wife, formerly Miss Emily V. Bronson, of Pe- 
 ninsula (second daughter of H. V. Bronson, 
 one of the pioneers of Boston Township, of 
 whom see sketch), whom he married Nov. 1, 
 1864, proved herself truly worthy by assist- 
 ing him at that time, doing whatever of writ- 
 ing he could place in her hands, which saved 
 for him no small amount of the salary which 
 otherwise had been placed in the pocketbook 
 of a deputy. It cannot be estimated how 
 much of men's success, financially and other- 
 wise, is due to their wives' helpful, loving 
 hearts and hands. In 1867, Mr. Conger moved 
 to Akron, and, in 1870, he became a stock- 
 holder and director in the Whitman & Miles 
 Manufacturing Co., and at the close of his 
 official duties as Treasurer of Summit Co.. he 
 became the traveling salesman for this com- 
 pany, and much of its western business was 
 built up by his sagacity and personal efforts. 
 The business of the company was manufactur- 
 ing mower and reaper knives, sickles, sections, 
 etc. In 1876, he was made Vice President of 
 this company. In 1877, the Whitman & Miles 
 Manufacturing Co. was consolidated with 
 George Barnes & Co., of Syracuse, N. Y., under 
 the name of The Whitman & Barnes Manufact- 
 uring Co., with works at Akron, Ohio, and Syra- 
 cuse, N. Y. Of this new compan}' he was made 
 Vice President, with increased responsibilities. 
 Later the corapan}- established works at Can- 
 ton, Ohio, and St. Catharines, Ontario, and Mr. 
 Conger was given the management of the 
 western business. The new company make a 
 specialty of manufacturing mower and reaper 
 knives, sickles, sections, guard-plates, spring 
 keys and cutlery, and complete cutting appa- 
 ratus for mowers and reapers. It is the larg- 
 
 
^1 
 
 696 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 est establishment of the kind in the United 
 States or in the world, employing in all over 
 five hundred men, and its business aggre- 
 gating over $1,000,000. In 1879, Mr. Conger, 
 in company with G. W. Grouse, Col. George 
 T. Perkins and John McGregor re-organized 
 the old Akron Steam Forge Company. Of 
 this new organization, Mr. Conger was elected 
 President. The company have done a prosper- 
 ous business in the manufacture of car-axles 
 and heavy bridge works, with an annual prod- 
 uct of $150,000. He has been a member of 
 the Board of Education of Akron, and Secre- 
 tary of the same. Has served several j-ears as 
 Treasurer of Portage Township and the city of 
 Akron. He is a prominent Republican, and 
 an active and sagacious worker in its organi- 
 zation. Has been for man}' years a member 
 of the Republican Count}^ Central and State 
 Committees, and, in 1880, served as Chairman 
 of the Republican State Central Committee. 
 He is a member and vestr3'man of St. Paul's 
 Episcopal Church, Akron. He has four chil- 
 dren, viz.; Kenyon Bronson, Erastus Irving 
 (deceased), Arthur Whitman and Latham Hub- 
 bard. 
 
 WILSON M. DAY, associate editor of the 
 Daily Beacon, Akron, is of New England par- 
 entage. His father, Rev. William F. Da^', D. D., 
 now of Titusville. Penn., was born in West 
 Springfield, Mass., Nov. 11, 1821, and his mother, 
 whose maiden name was Ann Delia Grover, was 
 born in Tolland, Conn., March 19, 1822. Both 
 came to the West early in life. Mr. Day, their 
 second son, was born in Clarion, Clarion Co., 
 Penn., Nov. 5, 1850. Following the fortunes of a 
 Methodist minister's famil}', he lived success- 
 ively in Clarion, Penn., in 1850 ; Franklin, 
 Penn., in 1851-52; Northeast, Penn., in 1853-5-1; 
 Akron, Ohio, in 1855-56 ; Poland, Ohio, in 
 1857-58; Cleveland, Ohio, in 1859-60; Ravenna, 
 Ohio, in 1861-62; Meadville. Penn., in 1803- 
 65; Jamestown, N. Y., in 1866-67; removing 
 to Akron for the second time in August, 1868. 
 Completing his preparatory- studies in the 
 Jamestown, N. Y., Union School and Collegiate 
 Institute, from which he graduated June 17, 
 1868, he entered the Sophomore Class of Ohio 
 Wesleyan Univei'sit}', Delaware, Ohio, in the 
 fall of 1868, graduating from the classical 
 course June 29, 1871, one of a class of 46 mem- 
 bers. In 1874, he received from his Alma 
 Mater the degree of M. A., in cursu. He ac- 
 
 cepted the position of city editor of the Akron 
 Daily Beacon, under Mr. S. A. Lane, in August, 
 1871, and upon the accession of Mr. T. C. Rej'- 
 nolds to the editorship, in December of that 
 year, became associate editor, which position he 
 has suice held, with the exception of an interval 
 of about six months — from November, 1874, 
 to Ma}', 1875 — when he served as night editor 
 of the Cleveland Leader. In March, 1876, he 
 sailed for Europe, spending six months abroad, 
 and visiting England, Scotland, Ireland, Hol- 
 land, Belgium, France, Ital}', Bavaria, German^' 
 and Switzerland. He was married, May 15, 
 1878, to Mattie A., eldest daughter of Judge N. 
 D. Ti))bals, and has had two children, one of 
 whom died June 7, 1880. 
 
 WILLIAM F. DRESSLER, grocer, Akron, 
 eldest son and second child of Reuben and 
 Matilda Dressier, was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, 
 May 4, 1841, and lived on a farm until he was 
 25, when he came to Akron. His father and 
 mother were of German descent, and natives of 
 Berks Co., Penn.; they both came to Ohio when 
 young and were married in Wayne Co. His 
 father still lives in Wadsworth ; he was a plas- 
 terer, and our subject learned the trade of him 
 when a boy and engaged at it at Akron until 
 1 877, controlling from fifteen to thirt}' hands and 
 executing plain and ornamental work on the 
 principal buildings of Akron. October, 1877, 
 he opened a grocery and provision store at 624 
 East Mill street, which since he has conducted 
 with good success. March 9, 1871, he married 
 Miss Sue F. Zwisler, of Canfield, Mahoning 
 Co., Ohio. They have one child. His sisters 
 and brothers are : Miss Flora, of Akron ; Sam- 
 uel, of Akron ; Mary M., wife of J. H. Arm- 
 strong, Wayne Co., Ohio ; Miss Laura, of Akron, 
 and Miss Adelia, a student at Oberlin. 
 
 REV. JACOB DAHLMAN, minister, Ak- 
 ron ; was born at Barmen, Rhenish-Prussia, 
 to John Jacob W. and Helena (Hahn) Dahl- 
 man, on the 11th day of April, 1831. He was 
 baptized on the 27th, and confirmed at the 
 adjoining town of Elberfeld April 7, 1846, by 
 the Rev. F. W. Krummacher, D. D., afterward 
 court preacher of William IV. After his con- 
 firmation he entered as apprentice in a count- 
 ing-house at Elberfeld, where he remained two 
 years. In the spring of 1848. with the family 
 of his father, he sailed for the United States, 
 and landed at New York City in June. They 
 journeyed westward to Wooster, Ohio, where 
 
 IV. 
 
^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 697 
 
 our subject, not being able to speak English, 
 found employment in a tannery, and served a 
 thorough apprenticeship at the tanner and cur- 
 rier's trade for three years with one Harvey 
 Robinson. He then worked at his trade as 
 journe3'man throughout the cities of Ohio, 
 Pennsylvania, New York and Michigan, and 
 while soj aiming at Detroit in 1854, from his 
 convictions of dut}' for some time impressed 
 upon his mind, he determined to study for the 
 ministr3^ From this time he so shaped his 
 affairs that in September, 1855, he entered 
 Franklin and Marshall College at Lancaster, 
 Penn., from which he graduated in 1860. He 
 then entered for two 3'ears the theological sem- 
 inary at Mercersburg, Penn., graduating in 
 1862. He became a member of the Philadel- 
 phia Classis of the Reformed Church, and was 
 by it ordained to the work of the ministry 
 June 15, 1862, and simultaneously began his 
 ministerial labors in the organization of a Ger- 
 man congregation in West Philadelphia, which 
 was effected in 1862, and was known as the 
 (lerman Evangelical Reformed Emanuel's 
 Church. On Sept. 23, 1862, he married Miss 
 Catherine M. Kopp, of Lancaster, Penn. His 
 first pastorate extended over a period of over 
 eighteen years, during which he built a large 
 church and commodious i^arsonage, and raised 
 the membership to 245 communicants. But 
 Mr. Dahlman's labors were not confined to 
 simpl}' his own congregation. He was Stated 
 Clerk of the Philadelphia Classis from 1863 to 
 1873, and while in that body labored, and also 
 in the General Synod of which he was Assistant 
 Clerk, for the interests of the German portion 
 of the church, and to his efforts are largely due 
 the organization of the German Classis, which 
 leaves that element in the Church unfettered to 
 advance the interests of their people without 
 the restraint of geographical limits. He also 
 labored for the organization of the German 
 Synod, of which he is Stated Clerk. Mr. Dahl- 
 man received the degree of Doctor of Divinity 
 from Ursinus College, of Collegeville, Penn., in 
 1880. In November, 1880, Dr. Dahlman re- 
 ceived a call to the pastorate of the First Ger- 
 man Reformed Church of Akron, and severing 
 the valued and cordial relations with his first 
 charge, he assumed the new duties in 1880. 
 
 R. N. DOWNEY, proprietor Cascade House, 
 Akron ; was born in Yates Count}-, N. Y., Aug. 
 1, 1831, where he spent his youth on a farm, re- 
 
 ceiving common school advantages. He en- 
 tered a hotel when 21 at Watkins, N. Y., serv- 
 ing as clerk some four years. In 1858, he re- 
 moved to Elmira, N. Y., and clerked in a hotel 
 until 1862, when he went to Penn Yan, N. Y., re- 
 maining two years in a like position. July 13, 
 1864, he came to Akron and clerked for Brown 
 & Folger, in the Empire House, until April 1, 
 1866, when he bought the entire stock and fur- 
 niture and leased the building, conducting the 
 house with fair success until 1876, a year later 
 leasing the Cascade House, which hotel he still 
 conducts. The house is convenient to the 
 depot, and has thirty-six light, airy, comforta- 
 ble rooms for guests, and the proprietor fur- 
 nishes his table with the substantial and luxu- 
 ries of the season. He was married July 4, 
 1864, to Julia A. Kitchen, of Wayne County, 
 N. Y. They have one daughter. 
 
 WILLIAM A. DURAND, Chief Clerk and 
 Cashier N. Y., P. &. 0. R. R., Akron Depot, is a 
 native of Pennsylvania. He was born in Provi- 
 dence Township, Luzerne Co., of that State, 
 April 30, 1848, and is the second of five chil- 
 dren born to Silas and Phoebe (Drake) Durand, 
 a sketch of whom will be found elsewhere in 
 this work. William lived at home until he was 
 26 years of age. At the age of 16 he was ap- 
 prenticed to a brass molder and served about 
 three years ; he then came to Akron and took 
 the position of laborer in the freight house of 
 the N. Y., P. &. 0. R. R., and has been in the 
 employ of the company ever since, save about 
 eighteen months. By strict attention to busi- 
 ness, he has been advanced through the differ- 
 ent positions up the important one he now 
 holds. During some ten years of his time with 
 this company, he had charge of the ticket de- 
 partment of the road at this station. In No- 
 vember, 1877, he accepted the position of book- 
 keeper for Barber & Gi'ant, grain dealers, but 
 returned to the emplo}' of the railroad in the 
 spring of 1879. He has held his present posi- 
 tion upward of eleven years, save the time 
 stated. Feb. 25, 1874, he was married to Miss 
 Sarah Berg, a native of Akron, and daughter of 
 Anton and Augusta (Capella) Berg. By this 
 marriage there are two children — Lottie A. and 
 Edward J. 
 
 DtEHL & CASKEY, house furnishing, dec- 
 oration and floor covering, Akron. This firm was 
 established in 1875 by Diehl & Oviatt. In 1878, 
 the business was moved to Nos. 219 and 221 East 
 
 (^ 
 
698 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Market street, where the business occcupies 
 the entire three floors, 90x40 feet. In 1880, 
 the present partnership succeeded the old firm, 
 Mr. Caskey bu^'ing the interest of Mr. Oviatt. 
 This is the only house in the city dealing ex- 
 clusively in this line of goods. W. H. Diehl of 
 this firm is a native of Summit County, being 
 born in Manchester July 5, 1843. His father, 
 Daniel Diehl, came here from York County, 
 Penn., and settled in Franklin Township, this 
 county, in 1827 ; he married Miss Hannah Har- 
 ter. W. H. Diehl was the second of four chil- 
 dren born of this marriage. His younger days 
 were spent in Manchester, but at the age of 
 11 years his parents moved on a farm, where 
 he remained until 1861. In August of this 
 year he enlisted in the 2d 0. V. C, and served 
 three j'ears, taking part in the engagements 
 and raids led by Gen. Sanders to Knoxville ; 
 at Bull's Gap. Richmond, Ky., where he was 
 slightly wounded, but remained with his com- 
 pany ; at Lebanon, Ky., HuflT's Ferry, Tenn., 
 Campbell's Station, at the siege of Knoxville, 
 and in the march to Atlanta. In September, 
 1864, he returned home and attended school at 
 Akron. In the following spring, he entered a 
 dry goods store of Akron as clerk, where he 
 was engaged for eight years. In 1871, he en- 
 gaged with Oliver Baker as clerk in the carpet 
 business, and some four years later, opened up 
 a business of his own. Mr. Diehl, on Sept. 26, 
 1867, married Miss Mary A. Sisler, a daughter 
 of Dr. William Sisler, of Akron. This marriage 
 has been blessed with three children — John, 
 Jennie and Fred. 
 
 SILAS DURAND, General Station Agent 
 New York, Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad, 
 Akron ; was born in Schoharie Co., N. Y., 
 March 7, 1822, and is the third child of a fam- 
 ily of five children born to Samuel and Phoebe 
 (Earner) Durand ; his father was a farmer, and 
 Silas assisted on the farm, gaining his rudiment- 
 ary education at the district schools until the 
 age of 19 ; at this time, he began attending an 
 academy, and, after studying a 3'ear, he began 
 teaching, following this occupation for a number 
 of years in York State and Pennsylvania, in 
 Providence and Scranton. In 1848, he engaged 
 with a mercantile establishment in Dunmore, 
 near Scranton, as book-keeper, where he re- 
 remained until 1850. Moving then to Monroe- 
 ville, Ohio, he engaged with the firm of D. 
 Squires & Co., merchants of that place, and 
 
 continued with them for about two years, when 
 the business was destroyed by fire, and the fix'ra 
 dissolving by mutual consent, the business was 
 not revived. Mr. Durand then went to Crest- 
 line and took charge of the books of a ware- 
 house and lumbering establishment, continuing 
 here some four or five years, during which 
 time he served one term as Mayor of the vil- 
 lage. From this point he went to Delaware, 
 and became Auditor and Treasurer of the 
 S., Mt. V. & P. Railway, holding the position 
 until the sale of the road some three years 
 later ; he then moved to Gallon, Ohio, where he 
 was appointed Ticket Agent of the C, C, C. & 
 I. Railway ; subsequently he engaged with the 
 A. & G. W. R. R. Co., and was assigned to the 
 office at Urbana, which he opened ; being versed 
 in the business and the first agent here, he 
 instructed the agents along the line toward 
 Gallon; November, 1 864, he was sent by H. 
 F. Sweetzer, General Superintendent, as agent at 
 Akron, Ohio ; in the following spring, he moved 
 his family to Akron, and has since been a resi- 
 dent of the city. While teaching at Providence, 
 Penn., he married Miss Nancy Drake, a native 
 of that city ; five children have blessed this 
 union — Mary H., now Mrs. Parrott, of Bryan. 
 Ohio ; William A.; Norman N.; Frank S., bag- 
 gage master and car clerk at Akron ; and Eu- 
 gene, deceased November, 1864, at Gallon. 
 Mr. Durand is an old member of the Methodist 
 Church, dating his connection with the church 
 some thirty-eight years back. In politics, he 
 affiliates with the Democratic party, but is 
 more infiuenced by the fitness of the candi- 
 date than by his party connections. 
 
 JOHN H. DIX, Superintendent of W. B. 
 Doyle & Co., Akron ; was born in Portage Co., 
 Ohio, Oct. 25, 182:^, and is the eighth of ten 
 children of John and Polly (Bigelow) Dix, who 
 were natives of Vermont and came to Portage 
 Co. in 1813 ; he was a stone-cutter b^' trade, 
 and also followed farming ; he cleared up a farm 
 in Portage Co., on which he died July 4, 1839. 
 Mrs. Dix is still living in the vicinity of the old 
 homestead at the advanced age of 91 years. The 
 subject lived at home until 1846 ; in the fall of 
 that year, he married Miss Rosette Durham, 
 who died in 1857 ; they had three children, two 
 of whom are living — Ella R. and Edwin H. 
 Mr. Dix came to Akron in 1847, and worked as 
 a carpenter until 1852; in company with Na- 
 thaniel Finch the firm of J. H. Dix & Co. was 
 
 ^ 
 
,> 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 G99 
 
 formed and leased a water-power near the 
 ^■^]tna Mill, and fitted up a planing-mill and 
 flouring-mill — the first in the eit}' — and con- 
 tinued until 1856, when the mill was burned ; 
 after burning out, the firm erected the brick 
 mill now occupied b}^ W. B. Doyle & Co.; in 
 1857, the firm of J. H. Dix & Co. sold out, and 
 Mr. Dix worked as foreman seven years in the 
 same mill with different firms ; he in Septem- 
 ber, 18G5, became a partner in W. B. Doyle & 
 Co., which has since continued. April 10, 18G3, 
 he was married a second time to Miss Celia 
 Stowell, a native of Connecticut, who came to 
 Summit Co. with her parents about the year 
 1853 ; three children are the result of this mar- 
 riage, viz., Harry N. G., Marian J. B. and Ber- 
 tie C. W. Mr. D. has aflSliated with three 
 political parties — was raised a Democrat, then 
 was a Eepublican, and of late years has been a 
 Green backer. 
 
 W. B. DOYLE, of the firm of W. B. Doyle 
 & Co., lumber dealers and manufacturers, 
 Akron, Ohio, was born in Franklin Co., Penn., 
 March 5, 1825, and is the youngest of three 
 children born to Thomas J. S. and Ann (Ta}-- 
 lor) Doyle. His mother was a native of Carlisle, 
 Cumberland Co., Penn. His father, Thomas 
 J. S., was a native of Franklin Co., Penn., and 
 was the son of Barnabas, the son of Felix 
 Doyle, who came from Ireland to this country, 
 and, as near as can be learned, first settled in 
 Eastern Pennsylvania, and afterward joined a 
 party of pioneers who attempted to make a set- 
 tlement at Burnt Cabins, in Southwestern Penn- 
 sylvania, which was then Indian territor}'. These 
 settlers were driven out by the soldiers under 
 orders of the Governor, and their cabins burned. 
 This was before the French and Indian wars. 
 Afterward he purchased 1,000 acres of land in 
 Franklin Co., then a wilderness, and settled 
 there, where four generations have since lived. 
 Thomas J. S. Do^ie was raised a farmer ; during 
 the latter part of his life he engaged in mer- 
 cantile business at Concord, in his native county. 
 W. B. Doyle was also raised on the farm, and 
 received a limited common-school education. 
 At the age of 13, he went to Shippensburg, 
 Penn., where he apprenticed to the cabinet trade, 
 and served for three 3'ears ; he then returned 
 home, and soon after visited his brother, a man- 
 ufacturer of fanning-mills at Williamsport, Md. 
 While here, he determined to go to Tiffin, Ohio, 
 taking a boat on the canal, which met with an 
 
 'accident at Johnstown, I'enn., and he walked 
 from there to Pittsburgh (ninet}' miles), where 
 he worked a few months and then resumed his 
 journej', stopping at Akron, where he got a job 
 at his trade, and concluded not to go to Tiffin. 
 He worked at his trade, and in the fall bought 
 the business of his employers. Being short of 
 funds, he fell back with the rent, and in the 
 spring he made a trip to Pennsylvania, where 
 he made some collections, and returned and 
 paid his rent, continuing in the business several 
 3ears, when he sold out and engaged in the 
 meat business, which he followed for fifteen 
 years. He then occupied a farm near Akron 
 he had previously bought, and lived on same 
 for four years, when he sold the place and stock 
 for $16,000. Going back to his old home in 
 Pennsylvania, he decided to go to Tennessee, 
 but having some business in Akron, he visited 
 the city, and while there bought the lumber 
 manufacturing business of S. G. Wilson, the 
 consideration being $35,000, and associated J. 
 H. Dix and Daniel Farnam with himself, staling 
 the firm W. B. Doyle & Co.; they have contin- 
 ued to the present. Mr. Doyle has been four 
 times married ; first in 1845 to Miss Phebe 
 Budd, a native of Ithaca, N. Y.; she died about 
 the year 1 850. The second wife was Miss Har- 
 riet Sage, a native of Monroe Co., N. Y.; she 
 died in 1862 ; of their tAvo childreii one is liv- 
 ing. The third wife was Miss Mary Ann Lantz, 
 a native of Akron, Ohio ; she died in her native 
 city ; they had three children, viz. : Willie, 
 Delia and Dean, all at home. His present wife 
 was Mrs. Louisa Baird, a native of Springfield 
 Township, Summit Co., Ohio. They have one 
 child, viz., Anna. 
 
 WILLIAM EMMITT, retired, Akron, whose 
 portrait appears in this history as a representa- 
 tive pioneer of Springfield Township, was born 
 Sept. 20, 1805. His people are of Scotch ori- 
 gin, though his grandfather was a native of 
 Ireland. He emigrated to the United States 
 in an early day and settled in Lancaster Co., 
 Penn. During the war of 1812, when the 
 Indians were giving the settlers in Montour 
 Co. (whither they had removed) so much 
 trouble, he returned to liancaster Co. When 
 the Indian troubles had subsided, he removed 
 to what is now Columbia Co., Penn. There 
 John Emmitt, the father of William, was mar- 
 ried to Jane Aikman, whose people were for- 
 merly of New Jersey. William was the young- 
 
 -^^ 
 
700 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 est of eight children, and when he was about 6 
 months old his father died. His mother, with a 
 large family of small children, was left to manage 
 the farm and bring her family to honorable 
 manhood and womanhood. William attended 
 school until he was 12 years old, and then had 
 no more opportunities for doing so until he 
 was 18, except a few weeks in his 17th year. 
 When 18, he spent three months only in 
 school, but he had a natural aptitude for learn- 
 ing, and with the poor opportunities afforded 
 him he succeeded in getting a good education, 
 and in becoming a good civil engineer, a busi- 
 ness that he has spent more or less time at 
 since his becoming a resident of Summit Co. 
 In September, 1829, he married Miss Mary 
 McBride, an old schoolmate, and, in the follow- 
 ing April, they began a twelve days' joui'ne}' 
 westward by team, which brought them to 
 their new home in Springfield Township. Two 
 children were born to them — Franklin and 
 John, both of whom are well-to-do farmers of 
 Tallmadge Township. They were given a lib- 
 eral start b}^ their father, and have profited by 
 his kindness. Mr. Emmitt first bought 125 
 acres of land upon his arrival in Springfield, 
 and though he has bought, sold and given 
 awa}^ other tracts since that time, he still owns 
 his original purchase. During his residence 
 in the township of Springfield, he held the 
 different offices of Township Trustee, Clerk 
 and Justice, besides, in 1870, he took the cen- 
 sus of several townships of Summit Co. The 
 1st of April, 1875, he bought a neat little home 
 in Akron, whither he and his wife removed. 
 Mrs. Emmitt, however, lived but a short time 
 to enjoy the rest she had so richly earned. On 
 April 27, the same month of their arrival, she 
 died, leaving Mr. Emmitt but little hope of 
 happiness in the new home that had been 
 looked forward to with so much of gladness. 
 Mr. Emmitt is a member of the Disciples' 
 Church, and during his life he has always 
 taken an active interest in the building-up of 
 churches and schools and in the cause of tem- 
 perance. 
 
 G. L. W. EDAM, of Edam & Johnston, 
 manufacturers of white lime, etc., Akron, is a 
 native of Baden, Germany, and was born April 
 21, 1849, and came to the United States with 
 his parents when but 3 or 4 years old. They 
 settled in Cleveland, where they now live. In 
 1869, subject went to Marblehead, near San- 
 
 dusky, where he conducted a limestone quarry 
 for five 3'ears ; he then engaged in the lime 
 business in partnership with his brother J. A. 
 (firm of Edam Bros.), in Cleveland, and in 1875 
 he came to Akron and built the present manu- 
 factor}'. The}' continued business here and in 
 Cleveland until January, 1879, when subject 
 became the sole proprietor, and the following 
 January- he took Mr. C. N. Johnston in as a 
 partner, and the firm still continues. At first 
 the business was nothing more than a lime 
 manufactory, and has since added commercial 
 fertilizers, employing in the business ten men. 
 He was married May 5, 1874, to Miss Mary 
 Groh, a native of Cleveland. They had three 
 children, two living — Mary Annie and George 
 Adam ; Anna Clara is dead. 
 
 TIMOTHY ERASMUS, retired, Akron, is a 
 native of Northampton Co., Penn., where he 
 was born Oct. 6, 1810. His father, John Eras- 
 mus, was a tailor b}' trade, though he taught 
 school a considex'able portion of the time, hav- 
 ing qualified himself at Bethlehem College. He 
 died in Philadelphia about 1817 ; he was a 
 native of Lehigh Co., Penn., and was a soldier 
 in the Revolutionary war. At the age of 10 
 years, Timotly was put to work on a farm in 
 his native county, where he worked until he 
 was 18 years of age, when he was apprenticed 
 to the cabinet trade, serving three years in Beth- 
 lehem. He then went to Philadelphia, where he 
 worked several years, participating, while there, 
 in the celebration of Washington's birthda}'. 
 From here he went to Easton, where he worked 
 two years at the carpenter's trade ; thence to 
 New York City, and in 1836, he went to Mas- 
 sillon by wagon with a friend. Here he re- 
 mained one year, working at the carpenter's 
 trade, when he went to Chiy Co., Ind., and 
 entered some land. He made his wa^- west on 
 foot and returned in the same way to Massillon 
 in the following spring. In the summer of 
 1839, he came to Akron, where he has lived 
 since. He engaged at his ti-ade of carpenter 
 and builder until the past ten 3'ears, during 
 which he has lived a retired life. October 19, 
 1841, he married Miss Clarissa K. Smith, a 
 native of Connecticut ; she came West with her 
 parents when young. She died in 1850, leav- 
 ing three children, all of whom have since died. 
 January 3, 1854, he married Mrs. Anson, for- 
 merly- Mar}' J. Barriball, a native of Baltimore, 
 and came west with her people when young. 
 
 «/ 
 
 ^ 
 
:1^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 701 
 
 In 1 880, he served as Real Estate Assessor for 
 the First, Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth 
 Wards of Akron City. 
 
 JOHN GEORGE EBERHARD, Eberliard 
 Manufacturing Co., Akron, Ohio, was born in 
 Baden, Germany, March 21, 1829, where he went 
 to school until he was 1-1 years old, and in addi- 
 tion to public schools, he for three years had 
 instruction in mechanical ai'ts. He also worked 
 in his father's shop (his father was a tool-maker), 
 and at 16 could fashion almost any edged tool. 
 At 19, he went to Berne, Switzerland, and 
 worked for a short time in a carriage-shop ; 
 also worked a short time in a manufactory of 
 agricultural implements, when he returned 
 home. Soon after, he was drafted into the 
 German army, when he left without pass, and 
 went to France ; sailing from Havre, he arrived 
 in New York Aug. 31, 1850. From there he 
 went to Newark, N. J., where he worked for 
 a time in edge tools, carriage-shop, and at 
 ship-building, and afterward in a harness 
 and trimming shop and forging wrought-iron 
 hames. In the fall of 1859, he came to Sharon, 
 Medina Co., Ohio, where he bought a farm, 
 when for six 3'ears he engaged in farming and 
 in the manufacture of wooden and wrought-iron 
 hames. In December, 1866, he came to Ak- 
 ron, and built a shop for the manufacture of 
 hames and machinery. Shop was in Akron 
 until November, 1880, when he moved it to 
 Cleveland, where it is now in successful opera- 
 tion under the name of Eberhard Manufactur- 
 ing Co. He was married May 22, 1852, to 
 Miss Louisa Clauser, of Newai'k, N. J. She 
 was born in Wurtemberg, German}-, and 
 came to the United States in October, 1850. 
 Three sons and four daughters were born of 
 this marriage — George F., Louisa, John J., 
 Anna C, Fredei'ick, Bertha and Katie. Mr. E., 
 in 1875, invented the ''hollow hame," now 
 largely used. He is a member of the German 
 Reformed Church, in which, for fourteen years, 
 he has been an Elder, and long the Superintend- 
 ent of the Sundav school. 
 
 WILLIAM EBERHARD, Akron; son of 
 George F. and Mary Catharine (Miller) Eber- 
 hard ; was born in Baden, Germany, June 17, 
 1837. His father was a manufacturer of edged 
 tools, near Millheim, Baden, and with him our 
 subject worked at odd times from his 10th to 
 his 16th year. When 10 years old, he made a 
 pocket knife. When 16, the family came to the 
 
 United States, reaching Akron in December, 
 1852. William worked for Lorenzo Chamber- 
 lain, in Copley Township, during the first year, 
 at agricultural implements, and on the farm. 
 Afterward, for two 3'ears, he worked with his 
 brother at Sharon in the blacksmith-shop. In 
 1857, he went to Keokuk Co., Iowa, and worked 
 there a 3'ear in his brother's shop ; thence to 
 Washington, same State, where he engaged in 
 the forging department of the engine machine- 
 shop, working his wa}' up until he was given a 
 partnership in the business for his services. In 
 the summer of 1861, he enlisted in the 5th Iowa 
 V. I. He passed through the Missouri cam- 
 paigns with Gens. Fremont and Halleck ; was 
 at New Madrid, and Island No. 10, and was in 
 the battle of luka. Miss. September, 1862, he 
 was wounded by a musket ball, while his regi- 
 ment was making a desperate attack on the 
 rebel ranks of Gen. Price. Only twelve men of 
 his company (F) came out of the battle alive. 
 Twentv' of these brave men were buried in one 
 grave, and twelve were badl}- wounded. The 
 shot fractured the bone, one and a half inches 
 below his left shoulder, and fourteen pieces of 
 bone were taken out ; the ball split and tore 
 away a large portion of the muscles of the up- 
 per arm. He la}^ twenty -four hours, weak from 
 loss of blood, on the field, and then walked some 
 miles to luka. By constant application of water 
 he saved his arm from amputation ; but it is 
 still badly disabled. While at Corinth, Miss., 
 in the camp hospital, weak and covered with 
 vermin, from which, in his helplessness, he could 
 not protect himself, the surgeons decided to 
 amputate his arm ; but a woman, named Mrs. 
 A. M. Penfield, dressed and bound it, setting 
 the bone, and attended him for a week, thus 
 saving it for him. He was discharged at Keo- 
 kuk, Iowa, Feb. 27, 1863. He was foreman and 
 partner in the machine-shops at Washington, 
 Iowa, for two years ; and, in 1865, he came to 
 Akron, Ohio, where, on July 2, 1867, he mar- 
 ried Mrs. Matilda Allgayer, of Sigourney, Iowa. 
 He established a machine-shop here in 1865, 
 and has been engaged in that business ever 
 since. He is now a member of the firm of W. 
 & J. G. Eberhard, and manufactures oat-meal 
 machinery, engines and boilers. He has taken 
 out several patents, the principal ones being 
 for the improvement of oat-meal machinery and 
 steam boilers. He has suffered b}' fire several 
 times ; but is doing a good business, with fair 
 
 1^ 
 
703 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 prospects for future success. He has two chil- 
 dren. 
 
 HON. SIDNEY EDGf]RTON, lawyer, Akron, 
 Ohio, is a son of Amos and Zervia (Cxraham) 
 Edgerton, and was born Aug. 17, 1819, in 
 Cazenovia, Madison Co., N. Y. His father died 
 when he was but two years oltl, and, having 
 been blind for some tiraci, left his ftxmih' in 
 actual proverty. His widow moved with her 
 family to Ontario Co., N. Y., where he (sub- 
 ject) lived until he was 8 A^ears old, when he 
 started iu life for himself, and by his own in- 
 domitable energy managed to educate himself 
 out of his wages, and at the age of 16 set 
 in to learn the trade of carpenter and joiner 
 with his brother. At 17 he began teaching, 
 and, at 18, entered Wesleyan Seminary at 
 Lima, N. Y.; after remaining two terms, he 
 was emplo3'ed as teacher. In April, 18-14, he 
 came to Akron a stranger, and with but $3 
 in money ; after being here a few days, he be- 
 gan the study of law with Judge Rufus P. 
 Spaulding, and, in 1846, graduated from the 
 Cincinnati Law School, and was admitted to 
 the bar in that cit}'. He opened an office here 
 in 1846, and was elected Prosecuting Attorney 
 in 1852, serving four years; in 1858, he was 
 elected to Congress, and re-elected in 1860, the 
 second Republican elected from this district ; 
 assisted in organizing the Republican party at 
 Pittsburgh, in 1856. His term expired in Con- 
 gress in 1863, when he was appointed Chief Jus- 
 tice of Idaho by President Lincoln, and took his 
 family from Omaha to Bannock Cit}^ in wagons ; 
 in January, 1864, he came on horseback from 
 there to Salt Lake City, sleeping on the ground 
 during the trip, and via coach to IMississippi 
 River ; proceeding to Washington, he succeeded 
 in having Montana organized, the bill for which 
 he prepared himself After its passage, he set 
 out to return home, and upon his arrival at 
 Salt Lake City, he found that he had been ap- 
 pointed Governor of Montana by President 
 Lincoln ; this position he held until Feb. 23, 
 1865, when he resigned, his resignation being 
 accepted in July, 1865. He returned to Akron 
 in Januar}', 1866, overland, and has been in 
 active practice here since. In April, 1849, he 
 married Miss Mar}' Wright, of Tallmadge. 
 
 NEWTON FORD, City Clerk, Akron, son of 
 Marvin and Lydia (Cornwell) Ford ; was born 
 on jNIarch 24, 1852, in Northfield Township, 
 this county, where he resided on a farm until 
 
 1863 ; he resided in Hudson from 1863 to 1868, 
 assisting father in post office and store at Mace- 
 donia ; in the spring of 1870, he entered the 
 Western Reserve College, remaining until 1873, 
 when he began teaching in the public schools 
 of this county. The following 3'ear, he began 
 the study of law under H. B. Foster, of Hud- 
 son ; two 3'ears later, he came to Akron to con- 
 tinue his studies with Foster, Marvin & Grant ; 
 being admitted to the bar at this place on Aug. 
 28, 1876, and in April, 1877, located here for 
 the practice of his profession, up to which time 
 he had continued at intervals in the vocation of 
 teaching. In February, 1878, he associated him- 
 self with H. C. Sanford, having since continued 
 under the firm name of Sanford & Ford. He 
 was elected Clerk by the City Council in April, 
 1879, and re-elected in 1880. In November, 
 1879, he married Miss Rosine McKinley, of 
 Hudson. 
 
 GEORGE TOD FORD, lawyer, Akron, son 
 of James R. and Julia A. (Tod) Ford ; was born 
 May 21, 1841, in Akron, where he attended 
 the public schools until he was 16 years of 
 age. In 1865, he graduated from Yale College, 
 and, two years later, entered upon the studv of 
 law under the direction of W. H. Upson ; he 
 was admitted to the bar in 1869, and entered 
 upon the practice of his profession at Akron. 
 In 1873, he formed a partnership with W. H. 
 Upson, which continues. 
 
 SAMUEL FINDLEY, Superintendent of 
 Schools, Akron, is a son of Abel Findley, a 
 native of Pennsylvania, of Scotch-Irish descent. 
 Our subject was born in New Concord, Ohio, 
 Dec. 1, 1831, whei'c his grandfather, David 
 Findlc}', settled in about 1806. His grand- 
 father was Judge of the court in early times, 
 and gave each of his six sons a one-fourth sec- 
 tion of land near New Concord. Samuel is the 
 second son living of his father. He lived on 
 the farm, entering the Preparator}' Department 
 of the Muskingum College when quite young, 
 and continuing there until about 17 when 
 his father moved to a farm in Greene Co., 
 Ohio, where he assisted in farm labor two years, 
 and then taught country schools in the same 
 county some four years, in the meantime teach- 
 ing one 3'ear in the Xenia Public Schools. In 
 1855, he went to Cincinnati, and for two years 
 was publisher and manager of the Freshi/terian 
 Witness, carrying a religious book concern with 
 it. In the spring of 1857, he removed to Mon- 
 
li.; 
 
 ■k. 
 
 CITY or AKRON. 
 
 703 
 
 mouth, 111., where he engaged in the book busi- 
 ness for a short time, selling his interest to his 
 partner, and again resuming school-teaching 
 near Monmouth, continuing two j-ears with 
 good success. In the fall and winter of 1859, 
 he was the agent of Monmouth College, work- 
 ing in Ohio. In 1860, he began teaching in 
 Greene Co., and in the fall of 1861, became 
 teacher in the Xenia Union Schools, leaving 
 that position after a few months to accept a 
 call to the principalship of a ward school of 
 Columbus, Ohio. Here he taught two years. 
 In June, 1864, he was called to the principal- 
 ship of the old Brownell Street School of 
 Cleveland. In 1865, a new building was sub- 
 stituted, and he organized the new school, with 
 eighteen teachers, remaining until the fall of 
 1868, when he was called to the superintend- 
 ency of the Akron Schools, which position he 
 accepted and retains. Then the schools had 
 but twenty-three teachers in all, there being 
 but eleven little frame buildings of one room 
 each, in addition to the central building. There 
 are now fiftj^-seven teachers. Since 1869. he 
 he has been County Examiner here ; most of 
 that time. Clerk of the Board, and member of 
 the City Board of Examiners since 1870. For 
 twenty years he has been a member of the State 
 Teachers' Association. In 1873, he was Presi- 
 dent of the Superintendents' Section, and Presi- 
 dent of the Association in 1877. He received a 
 State certificate ; was given the degree of A. 
 M. by Buchtel College in 1876, and, in 1880, 
 that of Ph. D. from Wooster University. In 
 March, 1853, he married Miss Mary A. Hardie, 
 of Xenia, Ohio. She bore him four sons and 
 two daughters ; all are living. 
 
 PROF. ELIAS FRAUNFELTER, Professor 
 of Mathematics in Buchtel College, Akron ; is 
 a son of John and Elizabeth (Reaser) Fraun- 
 felter, natives of Pennsylvania, who came to 
 Ohio in 1846, settling near Ashland, where 
 they resided until their death, she in 1871 and 
 he in 1879, leaving three sons and six daugh- 
 ters. Of this family, the subject is the second 
 son, and was born near P]aston, Northampton 
 Co., Penn., April 3, 1840, and came here when 
 but 6 years of age. He lived on a farm until 
 17, when he began teaching in the public 
 schools of Ashland, and about the same time 
 entered Vermilion Institute, and was made 
 Tutor of Mathematics in 1859, continuing as 
 such until 1862, when he enlisted in the 120th 
 
 0. V. I., organized at Mansfield. He entered 
 as a private, and was soon after made Sergeant, 
 then Orderly Sergeant, and after the battle of 
 Chickasaw Bluffs and Arkansas Post was com- 
 missioned First Lieutenant. He was detailed 
 as aide-de-camp to Gen. Osterhaus, command- 
 ing Ninth Division of Thirteenth Army Corps. 
 In May, 1863, he was commissioned Captain of 
 Co. F in his regiment, and commanded it in all 
 the engagements during the seige of Vicksburg. 
 He was made Adjutant of the 120th 0. V. I., 
 and was with Gen. Banks in the invasion of 
 Louisana after the fall of Vicksburg. His reg- 
 iment was with Gen. Banks on the Red River 
 Expedition, and on the 4th of May, 1864, he 
 and a large portion of the regiment were cap- 
 tured at Snaggy Point, on Red River, and were 
 taken to different points, until finally landed at 
 rebel prison in Texas called Camp Ford, where 
 they were confined for thirteen months, and 
 were badly treated and ill-fed on chopped corn. 
 He and Capt. Miller were the only ones ex- 
 changed at New Orleans in July, 1865, were 
 furloughed home and mustered out at Colum- 
 bus in August. He then returned to Vermil- 
 ion Institute as teacher of mathematics, remain- 
 ing until spring of 1866, when he with Rev. S. 
 T. Boyd organized Savannah Academy, at Sa- 
 vannah, Ohio, a private school, where he con- 
 tinued until 1873, successfully put up large 
 buildings, and in the fourth year (1870) cata- 
 logued 385 students. In 1873, he came to 
 Akron, and accepted the Chair of Mathematics 
 in Buchtel College, which he still fills. He was 
 married April 2, 1867, to Miss Laura J. Cald- 
 well, a daughter of Rev. J. P. Caldwell, of 
 Barnesville, Ohio. They have one son and one 
 daughter. Prof F. received the degree of 
 Master of Arts in Bethany College in 1873, 
 and the degree of Ph. D. in Lombard University 
 at Galesburg, 111., in July, 1879. 
 
 CHARLES WHITTLESEY FOOTE, lawyer, 
 Akron ; is a son of Horace and Rosanna 
 (Whittlesey) Foote, a sister of Col. Charles 
 Whittlese}', and was born in Tripoli, Syria, near 
 Beyrout, Jan. 21, 1853 ; his parents were mis- 
 sionaries. When he was about 2 years old, 
 they returned to America ; his mother died 
 Dec. 24, 1854, off" Sand}' Hook; his father came 
 on with his child to Tallmadge, where he lived 
 with his uncle. Dr. L. C. Walton. In the fall 
 of 1870, the subject entered Western Reserve 
 College, and graduated as valedictorian of class 
 
 :i^ 
 
704 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 of 1874. lie spent the next three years in 
 Cornell Universit}' in post-graduate studies, 
 received the degree of A. M. in 1876, Ph. D. in 
 1877 ; the next year was spent in Tallmadge 
 with his father, and during the summer and 
 fall of 1878 was assistant historian on Cuya- 
 hoga Count}' Histor}-, published by Lippin- 
 cott & Co. In the fall of 1878, he began read- 
 ing law with Marvin & Grant, and was admitted 
 to the bar in June, 1879, at Wooster. He at 
 once became a member of the firm, with whom 
 he had studied. He was married July 30, 1879, 
 to Miss Harriet M., daughter of Prof. Hosford, 
 of Hudson. 
 
 REV. JOSEPH F. FAHS, minister, Akron ; 
 was born at York, Penn., Jan. 18, 1825. At 
 14 he entered a store as clei'k at Litiz, Penn., 
 remaining four years, in the meantime, through 
 his own endeavors, obtaining a fair knowledge 
 of the English branches. At 18, he returned 
 to York, where he again clerked in a store and 
 recited, in his leisure moments, to a Moravian 
 minister. In two 3'ears he began teaching in a 
 private school, continuing about two years, at 
 the same time carrying on his studies, when he 
 was appointed a teacher in the York Co. Acad- 
 emy, and there pursued the languages. At the 
 expiration of one j'ear, he taught vocal music, 
 and engaged in the study of theology and 
 languages. At this time, through his own ef- 
 forts, he was proficient in Latin and Greek. In 
 1851, he placed himself under the instruction 
 of the Rev. Dr. Seiss, of Cumberland, Md., for 
 about one and one-half years. In 1852, he 
 was licensed to preach by the Maryland Synod 
 of the Lutheran Church, and began his minis- 
 terial labors at Hancock, Md., where he re- 
 mained three years, at the end of which time 
 his health failed. After recovering, he took 
 charge of a Lutheran Church in Newtown, Va., 
 for foui'teen months, when his health again 
 failed. His next field of labor was at Williams- 
 port, Penn.; here he continued five years, and 
 was then called to Allentown, Penn., where he 
 labored for about ten years with good success, 
 part of the time teaching in Nuremburg Col- 
 lege. In October, 1872, he came to Akron, 
 where he became Pastor of the Evangelical 
 Lutheran Church of the Holy Trinity, which 
 position he still retains, having more than 
 trebled the membership of the church in less 
 than a decade. May, 1854, he married Miss 
 Emma Miller, of Norristown. Penn. There 
 
 whom are living. 
 
 CHARLES S. FARRAR, Akron, oldest son 
 of Sumner and Sophia (Bruce) Farrar ; was 
 born in Old Concord, Mass., Feb. 22, 1825. 
 Here he lived until he was 14, when he lived 
 at Millbury, same State, for four years, after 
 which he went to Fitchburg, Mass., where he 
 learned the carpenter's trade, at which he 
 worked until he was 29, when he entered the 
 employ of Page, Whitman & Co., first as wood- 
 worker for a 3'ear, and he subsequently worked 
 on the knives, sickles and edged tools, working 
 as journeyman and foreman there until 1869, 
 in April of which year he came to Akron, 
 Ohio, and took charge of the manufacturing 
 department of the Akron Knife Works, having 
 charge, also, of the erection of the buildings, 
 which at that time were not commenced. He 
 has since been Superintendent of the works. 
 Aug. 21, 1847, he married Miss Emma Bruce, 
 of Fitchburg, Mass. She bore him three chil- 
 dren, viz., Mary T., Freddie S. and Ella S. 
 The}' adopted two children, viz., Willie, who 
 died when ten months old, and George Francis, 
 who died at Akron Sept. 18, 1880, in his 30th 
 year. Sumner B'arrar died ten years after the 
 birth of our subject, leaving him to battle for 
 himself 
 
 NAHUM FAY, manufacturer, etc., vVkron ; 
 is a son of Hannaniah and Rebecca (Mansfield) 
 Fay, and was born July 26, 1811, in Reading, 
 Windsor Co., Vt. His youth was spent there 
 on a farm until he was 20 years old. He re- 
 ceived a common-school and academic educa- 
 tion, and began teaching at the age of 18, con- 
 tinuing for six winters. He then traveled for 
 three years for a map publishing company, 
 during the time learned the art of printing them 
 from copper-plates. In July, 1836, he came to 
 Akron in the interest of his company. Their 
 maps were of the United States, also of Ohio 
 and other States. He worked in the establish- 
 ment (except winters) for six years. In 1837, 
 he went back to Vermont and was married to 
 Miss Lucia Cumings, of Windsor Co., Vt, and 
 at once returned to Ohio by canal and lake. 
 They have two children — Henry C. M., and 
 Emma V., wife of James W. Chamberlain, of 
 Akron. Mr. F. taught five winters in North 
 Akron, the first two winters in the old post 
 oflSce building. In the fall of 1843, he was 
 elected by the Whig party County Recorder 
 
'k^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 705 
 
 and re-elected in 184G, serving in all six years; 
 he had also been City Clerk and Marshal and 
 Township Clerk. He was appointed Deputy 
 Treasurer in 1849 under Wm. H. Uewey for 
 two years, and under Frederick Wadsworth two 
 years, and under Dr. Rice two years, afterward 
 bought grain for several j'ears. About the 
 year 18G0, he began the manufacture of cord- 
 age, which he has continued ever since. His 
 machines are run by hand, and the articles of 
 cordage thus made are of the best qualit3^ 
 Mr. Fay is the third son in a family of three 
 sons and four daughters, two of whom are 
 living. 
 
 DR. W. K. FOLTZ, physician, Akron ; is a 
 native of Mifflin Co., Penn. He was born Nov. 
 15, 1829. His father was a carpenter and 
 joiner, and he was raised to the same business. 
 At the age of 18, he began teaching, which he 
 continued till 1850, when he began reading 
 medicine with Dr. C. F. Stauber, of Wooster, 
 Ohio, and read with him for two years. He 
 then attended the Heidelberg College, at Tif- 
 fin, Ohio, and alternated teaching for two 
 3'ears. In the summer of 1855, he began prac- 
 tice in La Fa^^ette Center, Medina Co., and, the 
 following year, he moved to Sharon Center, 
 where he remained until 1867. He graduated 
 from the Eclectic Medical College of Cincin- 
 nati. In 1867, he engaged in a drug business, 
 and practiced his profession at Ashland, Ohio. 
 April 14, 1877, his business was consumed by 
 fire, and, the following August, he came to 
 Akron, where he has practiced since. He is 
 a member of the American Pharmaceutical 
 Association. He was married. May 12, 1856, 
 to Miss Carrie L. Lehman, a native of Wayne 
 Co., Ohio ; they have one child — Kent 0. 
 
 DR. A. E. FOLTZ, physician, Akron ; is a 
 native of Wayne Township, Wayne Co., Ohio, 
 and was born Jan. 29, 1840. His father, Moses 
 Foltz, was a carpenter by trade, and taught 
 school during winters. A. E., the subject, 
 learned his father's trade. At the age of 17, 
 he began teaching, and lived at home until 
 1862. In July, of that 3'ear, he enlisted in the 
 102d 0. V. I., Co. I, in which compan}' and in 
 one tent wei'e his four brothers. He served 
 until the close of the war. The five brothers 
 were in the various engagements of the regi- 
 ment, among which were the siege of Decatur, 
 and the battle of Athens. They returned home 
 at the close of the war. Our subject began 
 
 reading medicine in October, 1865, at Sharon 
 Center, Medina Co., with Dr. W. K. Foltz, and 
 graduated in the spring of 1869 at Charity 
 Hospital Medical College of Cleveland, which 
 is now known as the Medical Department Uni- 
 versity of Wooster. In the summer of 1869, 
 he began practice at Ashland, Ohio, and, after 
 one year, came to Akron, where he has since 
 practiced. He is a member of the Summit Co. 
 Medical Society, and also the Union Medical 
 Society of Northeastern Ohio. Oct. 6, 1870, 
 he married Miss Frances, a daughter of Dr. 
 William Bowen. She is a native of Stark Co., 
 Ohio. 
 
 L. H. FARRAND, groceries, Akron ; is a 
 somewhat recent addition to the list of grocery 
 merchants of Akron, yet one who has, by good 
 financiering and a close attention to his busi- 
 ness, placed himself among the rank of success- 
 ful merchants, and, as such, is entitled to more 
 than a passing mention. His name is of En- 
 glish origin, and he is a native of Wyoming 
 Co., N. Y., whei'e, at the age of 18 years, he 
 began work at the carpenter's trade, and fol- 
 lowed it as a business until he engaged in the 
 grocer}' trade, except the time spent in the 
 army during the war of the rebellion. In Au- 
 gust, 1862, he enlisted in Co. C, of the 140th 
 N. Y. V. I., but was transferred to the 1st N. 
 Y. Dragoons, with which force he served for a 
 time, and was then detailed as Sei'geant of a 
 corps of engineers, which was stationed near 
 Fortress Monroe. In due time he received an 
 honorable discharge from the proper authori- 
 ties, after which he returned to his old home in 
 New Yoi'k. Seven years ago, he came to 
 Akron, when his first introduction into the 
 business in which he has been so successful 
 was in the capacit}^ of a salesman for Messrs. 
 Heaston & Smith, with whom he remained for 
 about four months. He then, in company- with 
 Mr. N. B. Allen, engaged in the business on his 
 own account, and located in South Akron. The 
 firm was known as N. B. Allen & Co., Mr. Far- 
 rand having almost exclusive charge of the 
 business. His next step was to bu}- Mr. 
 Allen's interest in the business, and, a few 
 years thereafter, he moved to his present place 
 of business, corner Main and Exchange streets, 
 which is a well-finished business room. 20x65 
 feet. His success in the future can hardl}' be 
 questioned, if the past may be taken as a cri- 
 terion, as he began business on a capital of 
 
 'K 
 
J^ 
 
 9 i^ 
 
 706 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 $150, and has now a business of an aggregate 
 annual sale of $3,200. He employs two clerks, 
 and runs a delivery wagon. Lest he may 
 think we design this as an advertisement, in- 
 stead of a brief sketch of his business career, 
 as well as other historical facts, we will only 
 add that, in 1 854, he was married to Miss Try- 
 phena H. Lancaster, who is the mother of their 
 only child. Master Alfred, aged 4 years. 
 
 DANIEL FARNAM, of W. B. Doyle & Co., 
 Akron, was born in Essex Co., N. Y., April 8, 
 1816, and is a son of Amasa and Polly 
 (Thompson) Farnam, natives of the Eastern 
 States, who were married in New Hampshire, 
 and moved to Northern New York at an early 
 day, and to Vermont in 1817, where they re- 
 sided until 1831, when they came to Ohio, their 
 mode of traveling being by team and canal to 
 Buffalo, thence by lake to Sandusky, Ohio, and 
 by team to Marion County ; thence a few years 
 later to Hardin County. Here they died, and their 
 son, the subject of this sketch, came to Akron 
 on a visit to relatives and concluded to remain. 
 He worked awhile in a saw-mill, and then in 
 the powder factorj-, where he remained for six 
 years. He then bought an interest in the lin- 
 seed oil works, and three years later, the oil 
 and powder business were consolidated. Mr. 
 F. was identified with the business some three 
 years, when he sold out and bought a farm in 
 Hardin County. Two years later, he rented 
 his farm and went to Xenia, where he became 
 superintendent of the powder works, continuing 
 for two and a half years, during the time buj-ing 
 an interest in the powder works of Akron, and 
 finally returning to that place. He continued 
 in the business until 1865, when he sold out 
 and became a partner in the present business. 
 He was married Dec. 23, 1843, to Miss Lydia 
 Todd, a native of Seneca Co., N. Y. She was 
 living in Akron with her sister, Mrs. Andrews. 
 Seven children were born of this marriage, of 
 whom six are living, viz., Harriet A., now Mrs. 
 Cole, of Akron ; George D., who lives in Akron ; 
 Abbie T., now Mrs. Reed, of Iowa ; Francis J., 
 Carrie;, and Mary E., at home. Mr. F. voted 
 first for Gen. Harrison, and has voted with the 
 Whig and Republican parties ever since. He 
 is a Baptist, and has been a member of that 
 church for over fifty years. 
 
 DR. H. M. FISHER, physician, Akron, is a 
 native of Warren, Penn., where he was born 
 Sept. 1, 1848, and is the eldest of six children 
 
 and one of two surviving, born to Andrew and 
 Elizabeth (Shafer) Fisher. He is a native of 
 Alsace, France, and came to the United States 
 when but 13 ^ears of age, with his parents, who 
 settled at Warren, Penn. He is a dentist b}' 
 profession, and has followed it for the past 
 thirt}' years. His wife is a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania. They now live at Warren. H. M. (the 
 subject), lived at Warren until 1872, except six 
 years spent with his parents in Illinois and 
 Wisconsin. He received an academic education 
 in the Fi'anklin and Warren Academies, and en- 
 tered and pursued a collegiate course at the Alle- 
 gheny College, at Meadville, Penn., for two and 
 a half years, when, owing to ill health, he was 
 compelled to discontinue his studies. He began 
 reading medicine in 1867, with Dr. Daniel 
 Shanahan, of Warren, and in March, 1872, he 
 graduated at the Jefferson Medical College of 
 Philadelphia. In June following, he began 
 practice in Warren, remaining a few months, 
 when he came to Akron. In December, 1872, 
 he removed to Allegheny- City, Penn., where he 
 practiced in partnership with Dr. Thomas El- 
 liott until March, 1876, when he again came to 
 Akron, and has since practiced here. He was 
 appointed surgeon for the N. Y., P. & 0. R. R. 
 at Akron Jan. 26, 1881. He is a member of 
 Union Medical Society of Northeastern Ohio, 
 and of the Summit County" Medical Society, of 
 which he has been Recording Secretary. He 
 was married Ma}- 21, 1873, to Miss Mary Tal- 
 bott, a native of Warren, Penn. They have two 
 children, viz., Frank T. and Clara E. 
 
 NATHAN L. GLOVER, teacher of music, 
 Akron. The subject of these lines is a son of 
 Joel and Elizabeth (Shannon) Glover. He was 
 born in Coshocton Co., Ohio, Dec. 1, 1842. 
 Here he grew to manhood, emplo3-ed b}^ the 
 multifarious duties of farm life, until he 
 reached the age of 28. When but a bo}^, how- 
 ever, he began the study of music, and, at 10 
 years old, could read it quite readily. Im- 
 pelled solely by his love for the art, he strug- 
 gled on with only the meager advantages 
 aftbrded at home and at the singing school 
 until, in 1865, he gained such a mastery of 
 vocal music that he began teaching and form- 
 ing classes, first in Indiana and subsequently 
 at various points in his native State. In 1868, 
 he became a pupil of the Normal Music School 
 held that year at Painesville. Ohio, under the 
 management of N. Coe Stewart and S. B. 
 
 "©IV 
 
.^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 707 
 
 Hamlin, and, in 1869-70, he resumed the work 
 of teaching, with increased success. During 
 the summer of 1870, he entered the school 
 again at Painesville, Ohio, as pupil. In 1871, 
 the Normal Music School, which for several 
 years has been under the direction of Prof. 
 N. Coe Stewart, of Cleveland, Ohio, who has 
 associated with him some of the finest musi- 
 cians and prominent teachers in the West, was 
 held in Akron, Ohio. This school, held each 
 year (except 1876) in some town or city of 
 Ohio, has educated a large number of pupils 
 throughout Oliio and adjoining States, who 
 have done more, perhaps, to popularize music 
 than any other agenc}' in the State. Mr. 
 Cxlover became assistant teacher in the Normal 
 of 1871, and, in the spring of 1872, he went to 
 Cleveland, Ohio, and placed himself under the 
 personal instruction of Prof. Stewart, remain- 
 ing until the summer session opened in Akron, 
 where he was again emploj^ed as instructor. 
 In September, 1872, he was employed as 
 teacher of music in the public schools of Ak- 
 ron. Up to this time, no systematic attempt 
 had been made to introduce music in the 
 Akron schools. A few lessons had been given 
 by Mr. N. C. Stewart at long intervals. While 
 a vast number desired musical instruction for 
 their children, many believed that only the 
 •' favored few " could be taught to sing and 
 read music, and among the last-named were 
 some of the members of the board, who looked 
 upon the introduction of music as a doubtful 
 experiment. It was during this crucial period 
 that our subject began his labors in the Akron 
 schools, and nine years of persistent, earnest 
 work have removed this branch of stud}^ from 
 the realm of uncertainty. It has demonstrated 
 that every child not deformed can be taught to 
 sing. The course, which begins with the ele- 
 ments in lowest primaries, carries the pupil 
 step by step over a twelve j'ears' course to the 
 high school, where classical music is sung. 
 The results which follow the systematic study 
 of music arc second to none in importance, 
 and offer discipline of mind and culture of the 
 heart that can be obtained in no other way. 
 In addition to Mr. Grlover's continuous nine 
 years' work in the Akron schools since 1872, 
 he has simultaneously taught six years in the 
 Wooster schools, seven years in Kent, seven 
 years in Ravenna, two years in Wads worth 
 and one year in the Cuyahoga Falls public 
 
 schools, and has at present over five thousand 
 pupils under his immediate instruction. Since 
 1871, he has been associate teacher during the 
 summer sessions of the Normal Music School, 
 held successively at Akron, Zanesville, Woos- 
 ter, Sandusky, Delaware, Warren, Youngstown 
 and Shelby. Mr. Glover was chorister of the 
 Congregational Church of Akron from 1872 to 
 1877, when he was called to a like position in 
 the First M. E. Church, where he still remains. 
 He has also been leader of the Choral Society 
 of Akron for several years. He was married, 
 Aug. 21, 1873, to Miss Kate Morledge, of 
 Waynesburg, Ohio. Of this mai'riage there 
 are two daughters — Mary M. and Nellie L. 
 
 CHARLES R. GRANT, attorney at law, Ak- 
 ron ; son of William T. and Esther (Treat) 
 Grant ; was born Oct. 23, 1846, in Orange, New 
 Haven Co., Conn., where he lived until the war 
 of the rebellion broke out, when he enlisted in 
 the 12th Conn. V. I., under Gen. Butler, and held 
 the position of dispatch bearer (which was often- 
 times a very perilous one, as at times he was 
 obliged to journey from 400 to 500 miles), on 
 Gen. Butler's staff in the Department of the 
 Gulf, and continued in that position on Gen. 
 Banks' staff until October, 1863, when he was 
 discharged. In April of the following year, he 
 located at Cuyahoga Falls, where he engaged 
 in farming until 1868, in the meantime employ- 
 ing his spare moments in study. In September 
 of the same 3'ear, he entered the freshman class 
 of the Western Reserve College, from which he 
 graduated in 1872, as valedictorian of his class, 
 which was composed of eighteen students. He 
 then went to Denver, Colo., where he remained 
 until the fall of 1873, recruiting his health. In 
 October of that year, he returned to Ohio, and 
 married Miss Frances J. Wadhams, of Boston 
 Township, after which he entered the office of 
 Judge Tibbals, of Akron, as student, and was 
 admitted to the bar in September, 1874, at 
 this place. His wife died Sept. 14, 1874. His 
 health failing him, he again engaged in farming, 
 until January, 1876, when he formed a partner- 
 ship with H. B. Foster, and began the practice 
 of law at Hudson, continuing until Nov. 9, 1876, 
 when he married Miss Luc}' J. Alexander, of 
 Akron, and at once located here, where he has 
 since continued practice, under the firm name 
 of Foster, Marvin & Grant. He has contributed 
 several articles to the Central Law Journal, of 
 St. Louis, and the Southern Law Review, which 
 
 
708 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 have attracted considerable attention from the 
 legal magnates, some of his subjects being as 
 follows, viz., " Statutor}' Liability of Guardians," 
 " Constitutionality of Local Option Laws," and 
 " A Monograph on the Monroe Doctrine." His 
 second wife died on June 8, 1880, leaving one 
 daughter. His father is a native of Virginia, 
 of Scotch descent. His grandfather, William 
 Grant, was shot by a Tor}'^, on his return from 
 the Revolutionary war. His mother was a de- 
 scendant of Gov. Robert Treat, one of the early 
 Colonial Governors of Connecticut. The father 
 of our subject moved to Connecticut when a 
 young man, and married, in about the year 
 1830. He was a shoemaker by ti'ade, and an 
 intelligent, well-read man, being a member of 
 the Connecticut Legislature in 1844-45, and 
 Justice of the Peace for twenty-five 3^ears. He 
 was the father of three sons and four daughters, 
 of which family our subject is the 3^oungest 
 son. One of the children is now deceased. 
 Charles R. Grant is a verj' able attorney, and 
 possesses rare intellectual endowments. 
 
 EDWIN P. GREENE, lawyer, Akron, a son 
 of Charles and Mary T. I. (Bowen) Greene, and 
 was born March 10, 1828, at Gaysville, Windsor 
 Co., Vt. He lived in the village until about 15 
 years of age, receiving his education at com- 
 mon schools, and at Bradford Academy. After- 
 ward, he commenced the study of law at Little- 
 ton, N. H., and, in 1852, came to Akron, where 
 he finished his studies with Upson & Edgerton, 
 and was admitted to the bar in Akron in Sep- 
 tember, 1853. In the fall of 1854, he was 
 elected Clerk of the Court, which office he held 
 for six years, when he resumed his practice of 
 the lay , and has continued it ever since. 
 
 BENJAMIN F. GOODRICH, President of 
 rubber goods manufactory, Akron, is a native 
 of Ripley, N. Y., and a son of Anson and 
 Susan (Dinsmore) Goodrich, and was born Nov. 
 4, 1841. He was brought up on a farm until 
 12 years of age, when his parents died. About 
 four years were spent in schools at Fredonia, 
 N. Y., and Austinburg. Ohio. In 1858, he 
 commenced the study of medicine at Westfield, 
 N. Y., and graduated at the Western Medical 
 College at Cleveland in February, 1861. He 
 went into the 9th N. Y. V. C. as Hospital 
 Steward, and, the following spring, was made 
 Assistant Surgeon, and assigned to the Bat- 
 talion of U. S. Engineers, serving in that 
 capacity until November, 1862, when he entered 
 
 the University of Pennsylvania to attend a 
 course of lectures, returning to his old post in 
 the army in the spring of 1863, and serving 
 until September, 1864 ; a short time in charge 
 of a hospital at Aquia Creek. In 1865, he 
 went to New York City and engaged in real 
 estate business until 1870, when he came to 
 Akron, and, in the following fall, built a factory 
 and commenced the manufacture of rubber 
 goods, and, in partnership with H. W. Tew, 
 conducted the business until 1875. The first 
 year, $60,000 worth of goods was manufact- 
 ured, which was increased under his manage- 
 ment to $300,000. The business was con- 
 ducted until June, 1880, under the partnership 
 of B. F. Goodrich & Co., when a stock com- 
 pany was formed, with subject as President ; 
 A. Work, Vice President, and Geo. T. Perkins, 
 Secretary and Treasurer. This was the first 
 factory of the kind west of the Alleghany Mount- 
 ains. It employs from eighty to a hundred 
 hands in the busy season. Mr. G. is President 
 (1880) of City Council. He was married, in 
 1869, to Miss Mary Marvin, a daughter of 
 Judge R. P. Marvin, of Jamestown, N. Y. 
 Three children are the fruit of this marriage. 
 HON. NATHANIEL W. GOODHUE, law- 
 yer, Akron, is a native of Lincoln Co, Me.; 
 was born Dec. 20, 1818, and is a son of James 
 and Elizabeth (Pei'kins) Goodhue, also natives 
 of Maine. They were married in Grafton Co., 
 N. H. Father died at village of St. Christo- 
 pher in 1866, in his 83d 3'ear, and mother died 
 in 1867, in her 80th 3'ear. The3' had seven 
 children ; five living — Julia, second daughter, 
 is Mrs. Aai'on Morrill, of Danville, Quebec ; 
 James, a merchant at St. Cristopher ; (subject); 
 Jacob P. died in 1852 on his wa3' to California 
 and is buried in the Pacific Ocean ; Joseph L. 
 is merchant and manufacturer at Danville, and 
 Elizabeth P. is teacher in Summit Co. The 
 grandfather of subject, Stephen Goodhue, was a 
 soldier in the Revolutionary war, and, but 17 
 years of age, was in the battle of Bunker Hill, 
 where he was wounded ; he was within a few 
 feet of Gen. Warren when he fell in that battle. 
 When subject was 3 3'ears old, the famil3^ 
 moved to the Province of Lower Canada, now 
 Quebec, where they lived on a farm in the 
 woods for a number of years, the nearest house 
 to them being thirteen miles distant ; followed 
 lumbering and farming. In May. 1837, he 
 removed to Canaan Township, Wayne Co., 
 
 •^ Q 
 
'.\t 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 709 
 
 Ohio, where subject employed himself teaching 
 during winter and peddling in summer. Most 
 of his education, except two terms at Danville, 
 Canada, was obtained around the fireside. He 
 commenced teaching at 1 8, and, in April, 1840, he 
 came to Greensburg in this county, where he 
 taught during the summer, and in the winter in 
 Greentown village (Lewis Miller, C. Aultman, 
 Jacob Miller, Geo. Cook were pupils). Early 
 in the summer of 1841, he became a clerk for 
 Johnston & Irving, of Middlebury, Ohio ; after- 
 ward, Kent & Co. He taught the Middlebury 
 school in the winter of 1845-46. In February, 
 1845, he began the study of law with Hand & 
 Nash, and, in the winter of 1846-47, was 
 Engrossing Clerk of the House of Representa- 
 tiA'es at Columbus, and was admitted to the 
 bar at the September term of the Supreme 
 Court, at Akron, in 1847. In October, 1848, 
 he was elected County Auditor, and re-elected 
 in 1850, both times on the Whig ticket. On 
 the expiration of his last term as Auditor, he 
 opened a law office in Akron, where he has 
 been in practice ever since. He was, by ap- 
 pointment of Gov. Chase, Canal Collector 
 from 1856 to 1858, and, from September, 1862, 
 to September, 1866, was Deputy Collector of 
 Internal Revenue, haAdng entire charge in Sum- 
 mit County. In 1873, he was elected on the 
 Republican ticket to the State Senate from the 
 district composed of Summit and Portage Cos. 
 He declined a renomination to the position. 
 He was chosen Republican P]lector for the 
 Eighteenth Ohio District in 1880, and was 
 President of the Electoral College of Ohio. 
 His first vote was cast for Harrison in 1840, 
 and has been Whig and Republican ever since. 
 He was married, Dec. 20, 1841, to Miss Nancy 
 Johnston, of Green Township, in this county. 
 They have four children — James P., died at 8 
 months old in January, 1844 ; Allan J., manu- 
 facturer at Rochester, N. Y., and served three 
 years in the 104th O. V. I.; Mary H., wife of 
 Rev. Samuel Maxwell, Rector of St. Paul's 
 Church of Youngstown, Ohio, and Nathaniel 
 P., law student and assistant in his father's 
 office. Mr. G. is a member of the Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 JOHN T. GOOD, retired, Akron ; was born 
 Oct. 25, 1818, and is a son of John and Mar- 
 garet (Richert) Good, natives of Alsace, France, 
 lived within twenty miles of Strasbourg. He 
 attended common schools until 14 yeai's of age. 
 
 and one year at a private school. His father 
 was a farmer and grain dealer, and took con- 
 tracts to convey emigrants from Bavaria and 
 Baden to Havre, a distance of 500 miles, in 
 wagons ; in 1838, he came to the United States, 
 arriving in New York on the 5th of May, where 
 he took canal to Buffalo, and lake to Cleveland, 
 Ohio, thence to Chicago, and from thereto Cin- 
 cinnati by stage, and on foot thence to St. 
 Louis ; thence to New Orleans, where he had 
 intended staying, but fearing yellow fever, 
 went to Pittsburgh, remaining there and work- 
 ing in brewery until the next year, when he 
 came to Canton, Ohio ; he secured work with 
 a wealthy farmer in the neighborhood of Can- 
 ton, where he remained until December, when 
 he became a clerk in the store of John Robin- 
 son, at Canal Fulton, the largest establishment 
 outside of the cities. For eighteen months he 
 continued in the store, and in May, 1842, came 
 to Akron, where he obtained emploj'ment in 
 the store of P. D. Hall, then the largest in the 
 city ; he remained in this store about three 
 years, and went into the grocery business. In 
 1845, he built the first brewery in Summit 
 County, which he operated until 1855, and kept 
 a grocery until 1865, with good success. In 
 March, 1850, in company with about forty 
 others, he went to California, under Capt. Howe, 
 reaching Placerville in August ; he worked in 
 the mines for awhile, but his health failing, he 
 went into a grocery and provision store, and in 
 December returned to Akron, via Panama. 
 In 1865, he bought the oil refinery on Furnace 
 street, which he enlarged until it had a capacity 
 of 250 barrels per da}'. His son, Charles W., 
 was his partner in this business, and, as J. T. 
 Good & Co., conducted it successfully until 
 1872, when he retired from active life. He was 
 married, April 16, 1844, to Miss Barbara C. 
 Yost, of Stark, Co., Ohio ; four children living — 
 Charles W., hardware merchant, of Cleveland ; 
 Charlotte, wife of Edward Schweyer, of New 
 York City ; George P., wholesale merchant, of 
 Joplin, Mo. ; J. Edward, student in Kenyon 
 College. Mr. G. is a member of the English 
 Lutheran Church, and is Republican in politics. 
 OMAR N. GARDNER, Akron, son of James 
 and Elvira C. (Chamberlain) Gardner ; was born 
 in Akron on Dec. 2. 1854 ; his parents were 
 natives of New York State, and came here from 
 Genesee Valley in about 1850 ; here his father 
 followed the trade of brick- mason, and died in 
 
 yr. 
 
 
^'. 
 
 710 
 
 BIOGllAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 the spring of 1873 ; his mother died in 1876. 
 He is the only son, and has one sister in James- 
 town, Lottie S., now Mrs. K P. Robertson. 
 Until the age of 16 he attended the public 
 schools ; in 1872-73, he was engaged as engi- 
 neer on the Valley Railroad, and in the fall of 
 1873, he entered Buchtel College, remaining 
 one year. In 1875, he entered the City En- 
 gineer's Office, as assistant, and remained nearl}^ 
 a year ; from that time to 1878, he was engaged 
 in engineering and surveying. In the spring of 
 1878, he was elected to the office of City En- 
 gineer, and has been re-elected every ^^ear 
 since. In 1880, he got up a system of sewer- 
 age for the entire city, and superintended the 
 sewering, grading, curbing and guttering of 
 Carroll street. In September, 1877, he married 
 Miss Ella J. Bush, of Jamestown, N. Y. 
 
 THEODORE GORNER, Akron, senior mem- 
 ber of the firm of Gorner & Planz, file manu- 
 facturers. He purchased the establishment of a 
 Mr. Harter, the founder, in 1873. and carried on 
 the business one and a half years, when he sold 
 to H. Pohle, he taking in Mr. Planz, and being 
 unable to pay for the business, it reverted to 
 the former owner. He was born Dec. 15, 1845, 
 in Saxon}', near Waldenberg, to Gotlieb and 
 Catharine (Magenhammer) Gorner, she a native 
 of Bavaria, the father a native of Saxony, a 
 shoemaker by trade, and came to his son in 
 this country about five years ago. The subject 
 of this sketch learned the trade of file-cutting 
 in 1859, at which he worked in Germany, Den- 
 mark, France and Austria, until his departure 
 for this country in 1867. After his arrival in 
 this country, he worked in the principal Eastern 
 cities and traveled throughout the Western 
 country, returning in 1868, and began working 
 for Mr. Harter, who had, in that year, started 
 the works. He was married in 1873 to Eliza- 
 beth Miller, a native of Akron and daughter of 
 Jacob and Christine Seidle. They have no 
 children. He is a member of the Knights of 
 Pythias. 
 
 ALDEN GAGE, deceased ; son of Elijah B. 
 and Margaret (Hoffman) Gage, was born in Her- 
 kimer, Herkimer County, N. Y., July 27, 1836. 
 The family moved to Norfolk, N. Y., where his 
 mother died when he was but 4 years old, 
 and he lived on a farm adjacent to Norfolk, at- 
 tending a school taught by one E. P. Greene. 
 When a young man, he entered the Academy 
 at Potsdam, N. Y., to prepare for college, and 
 
 spent two years in Amherst College, when his 
 father died, after which he came to Akron in 
 1856, and secured the position of Deputy Clerk 
 of the Court under Edwin P. Greene, whose 
 pupil he had been in Norfolk. In the fall of 
 1861, he became Assistant Quartermaster un- 
 der Capt. Myers, and followed the fortunes of 
 the Union array until the fall of 1864. In No- 
 vember, 1865, he secured a clerkship under 
 Capt. Nash in the Provost Marshal's office at 
 Cleveland, Ohio, remaining in that position a 
 year, during which time, on Sept. 20, 1865, he 
 married Miss Belle Webster, second daughter 
 of Charles Webster, of Akron, Ohio. Mr. Gage 
 returned to Akron in 1865, and became Cashier 
 of the Second National Bank, continuing five 
 years. In Julv, 1870, at the opening of the 
 bank of Akron, he became First Cashier and 
 held that position until his death, November 
 12, 1875, at Santa Barbara, Cal., where he had 
 gone to find relief from consumption. He was 
 highly esteemed, public spirited and well in- 
 formed. He was an ardent Republican, but 
 never sought office. His only child, Martha, 
 died when but 8 months old. 
 
 H. G. GRIFFIN, groceries, notions, etc., Mid- 
 dlebury, is a native of Ohio ; he was born on his 
 father's farm in Geauga County, Oct. 8, 1840, his 
 parents, S. B. and Huldah (King) Griffin, were 
 natives of Pennsylvania and Ohio. He came 
 West and settled in Geauga Co., Ohio, in the 
 year 1829, and farmed there until his death. 
 He was well known and respected ; he was a 
 member of the Baptist Church, and took an 
 active interest in its affairs. Mrs. Griffin lives 
 on the old homestead ; our subject lived at 
 home until 1861. On Sept. 10 of that year, he 
 enlisted in Company G, 41st 0. V. I., and served 
 two and a half years ; he was in the battles of 
 Shiloh, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, Mission 
 Ridge and the other engagements of the Army 
 of the Cumberland to which he belonged, up to 
 the time of his dischai'ge, by reason of ill 
 health. After recuperating on the farm about 
 a year he began the manufacture of cheese for 
 Budlong & Stokes, of New York, the factory be- 
 ing located in Geauga Co., Ohio. He con- 
 tinued some three 3'ears ; then started a cream- 
 ery for L. J. Randall, being the first in this 
 State ; about a year later, he went to Kentucky 
 and managed a cheese factory in Woodford 
 County for two 3'ears, when he moved to Paines- 
 ville, Ohio, and, in company with L. F. Miller, 
 
-^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 711 
 
 opened a groceiy and crockery establishment, 
 and about one and a half years later, he came 
 to Middlebury, where he became connected 
 with the grading of the Valley Railroad. In 
 1875, he engaged in the general merchandise 
 business with George Viall & Co., and, in Sep- 
 tember, 1880, he began his present business. 
 On Dec. 22, 1865, he married Miss Hattie Tay- 
 lor, a native of Ohio. The}' have two children, 
 viz. : Lizzie T. and Lucy H. He is a member 
 of the School Board of Akron, a Republican 
 in politics, and has taken an active interest in 
 the party. 
 
 NOAH HODGE, lawyer, Akron, Ohio ; was 
 born in Springfield, 111., Feb. 6, 1842, to Richard 
 and Catharine E. (Divelbiss), and lived there 
 until 1868. His father started to California 
 with his family in 1852, and died of cholei-a 
 about seventy miles west of Ft. Kearney, where 
 he is buried, near the Platte River. After the 
 father's death, the family returned to Spring- 
 field, where the subject of these lines attended 
 the Illinois State University, now St. Paul's 
 College. From this he graduated in June, 
 1 862, and the following month he enlisted in 
 the 124th 111. V. I., and fought in the Vicks- 
 burg campaign. In September, 1864, he was 
 commissioned 1st Lieutenant ; he held the 
 regimental position of Adjutant in the 52d U. 
 S. Colored Regiment until his resignation in 
 1865, the war being over, immediately after 
 which he became a tutor in the college from 
 which he graduated, continuing one year, when 
 he was made Professor of English and Latin, 
 and Principal of the Preparatory Department, in 
 which capacity he acted until 1868, when he 
 received the degree of A. M. from the college ; 
 and the same year became Superintendent of 
 the public schools of Mt. Carmel, 111., continu- 
 ing a year. In September, 1868, he married 
 Miss D. L. 0. Johnston, of Clinton, Miss., whom 
 he had met while in the army. In June, 1869, 
 he went to Clinton on a visit, and in the fall 
 he removed with his family to Jackson, Miss. 
 He was appointed by the military commander, 
 Gen. Ames, Clerk of the Circuit Court of Hines 
 County, Miss., and subsequently, b}' Gov. Al- 
 corn, in November, 1871 ; he was re-elected to 
 the same position, retaining it until 1876. He 
 began the study of law in 1865, continuing it 
 at intervals, and was admitted to the bar by 
 the Supreme Court of Mississippi in January, 
 1875. His wife died Aug. 10, 1874, at Jack- 
 
 son, Miss., of typhoid fever, and is buried there. 
 She left a son, Edgar 0., and a daughter, D. L. 
 0. In February, 1876, he came to Columbus, 
 Ohio, was examined by the Supreme Court, on 
 the 2d, and admitted to the bar ; in March fol- 
 lowing, he opened an office in Akron, and has 
 since been in active practice here. May 16, 
 1876, he married Miss Sarah W. Ashmun, 
 daughter of the late Dr. George P. Ashmun, of 
 Akron ; she bore him a daughter, Fanny A., 
 who died in her third year. 
 
 MILTON W. HENRY, merchant, Akron, 
 Ohio, is a son of William and Rachel (Frary) 
 Henry, and was born Oct. 13, 1816, in Blan- 
 ford, Hampden Co., Mass., where he lived on a 
 farm until 13 years of age, engaged, as he says, 
 in useful emploj'ment. In May, 1830, the 
 family came to Westfield Township, Medina 
 Co., by teams, and settled in the woods, where 
 a home was carved out of the great wilderness. 
 In the fall of 1835, subject entered McGregor 
 Academy, at Wadsworth, remaining one year, 
 and during the time aiding Roswell, H. B. Kent 
 & Spelman in their ^store of mornings and even- 
 ings and of Saturdays. At the expiration of 
 his year, he was employed by them at $100 per 
 year. He remained with them until they sold 
 out in the latter part of 1837, and was employed 
 by the new firm, G. & J. Miller, until 1841. 
 In the meantime, Mr. Spelman located in Akron, 
 and with Mr. Clapp, opened a store under firm 
 name of Clapp & Spelman. An urgent letter 
 from Mr. Spelman to subject brought him to 
 Akron in October, 1841, and as a clerk he re- 
 mained with them until the spring of 1843, 
 when, having saved up $1,000, he bought a 
 third interest in the store, Mr. Spelman owning 
 the balance, and Clapp having retired. The 
 firm was now H. B. Spelman & Co., and so 
 continued until 1848. when Mr. Henry bought 
 out Spelman, and subsequently sold an interest 
 to Jas. Zwisler, and firm name, M. W. Henry 
 & Co., lasted three years. Dec. 27, 1849, a fire 
 destroyed a large portion of building and goods, 
 on which was a small insurance. At 10 o'clock 
 he had rented another building, and with the 
 few goods left began business, continuing three 
 years, when the owner rebuilt on the present 
 site and Mr. H. bought an interest in the build- 
 ing and entered it in 1854, and has remained in 
 it ever since. He remodeled it in 1857, and re- 
 built it in 1877. The firm of G. C. Berry & Co. 
 was formed in 1875. The first floor of this 
 
 ;r^ 
 
712 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 elegant store is 40x65 feet ; the second is same 
 size, and comprises tlie wall paper, shawl and 
 underwear departments ; the third floor, car- 
 pets, oil cloths, matting, etc. The upper floors 
 are utilized by the aid of an elevator ; there 
 are fourteen persons emploj'ed, three of whom 
 are ladies. The cash principle was adopted in 
 1876. Mr. H. has been a member of the City 
 Council for a number of years, and a member 
 of School Board for nine years. He is a stock- 
 holder and director in Taplin, Rice & Cos'. 
 foundry, and in Austin Powder Co., of Cleve- 
 land. In 1863, he became one of the original 
 stockholders of the First National Bank of 
 Akron, and has since been its Vice President 
 and Director. He was married Dec. 5, 1843, to 
 Miss Abigail Weeks, a daughter of Moody 
 Weeks, of Copley Township. Of this marriage 
 there ai'e six daughters and one son, viz. : Olive 
 C, Ella C, Julia A., Hattie A., Charles M., Grace 
 P. and Mattie W., all of whom are living. 
 
 PHILANDER D. HALL, prominent and old- 
 est merchant of the city of x\kron, Ohio, repre- 
 sents the seventh generation of the Hall family, 
 who came from Lancashire, England, with the 
 New Haven colony in 1639. They soon after- 
 ward took possession of a grant of land given 
 tliem by Charles I, extending from Long Island 
 Sound northerly, twelve miles long and three- 
 fourths of a mile wide, and near the city of 
 Bridgeport, Conn., a part of which city it now 
 includes, and where the subject of this sketch 
 was born Oct. 10, 1808. He was educated at 
 Weston Academy, where his family held a free 
 scholarship, the academ}' being endowed by land 
 given to it by his famil3\ At the age of 20. he left 
 the school at Weston, and taught in the acad- 
 em}' at Saugatuck, Conn., afterward entering a 
 dry goods store at that place, wiiere he remained 
 one and one-half years. Returning to Bridge- 
 port, he engaged in the grocery shipping busi- 
 ness, and importing West India products. In 
 July, 1834, he made his first visit to Akron, 
 and in May, 1835, opened his goods in his pres- 
 ent location, then called Cascade Store ; he 
 rentedofDr. Crosby, the assignee of Howard, Ire- 
 dell & Fenn, who had recently failed ; the crash of 
 1837 destroyed the credit of all the merchants, 
 fourteen in number, except his own, J. D. Com- 
 mins and Kent's. Feb. 17, 1851, his store build- 
 ing was destro3'ed by fire, and the present build- 
 ing was rebuilt and occupied in December of 
 the same year. From 1835 to 1857, Mr. Hall 
 
 gave his entire attention to the business, remov- 
 ing in the fall of 1857 to New York City, where, 
 as buyer for Hall Bros., he still resides; 1858, 
 Mr. Hall spent most of the year in traveling in 
 Europe, visiting the principal countries on the 
 continent and the British Islands, and has since 
 made two journeys to the Pacific Coast. Mr. 
 J. D. Commins, Mr. R. P. Spalding and Mr. Hall 
 were among the original subscribers to the 
 Akron Rural Cemetery, and he, with Dr. Ackly, 
 originated, and helped support the P]piscopai 
 Cluirch. Orlando Hall, deceased, the younger 
 brother of P. D. Hall, was born on the family 
 place near Bridgeport, Conn., in 1820. He 
 joined his brother in business at Akron in 1842. 
 He was married to Sophia R. Towne Dec. 12, 
 1854, and died March 10, 1855. He was a pop- 
 ular business man, greatly- esteemed by a large 
 circle of acquaintances for his many virtues, 
 and sincerely lamented. 
 
 CALVIN P. HUMPHREY, lawyer, Akron, 
 Ohio ; is a son of Van Rensselaer & Laura 
 (Pease) Humphre}-, and was born in Hudson, 
 Ohio, June 21, 1840. His father was a native 
 of Litchfield Co., Conn., and his mother of 
 Trumbull Co., Ohio. She was a daughter of 
 Judge Calvin Pease, and married first G. W. 
 Tallmadge, who died in Tallmadge Township, 
 where she afterward married Mr. Humphrey. 
 Subject graduated at Western Reserve College 
 in 1863, and began the study of law with his 
 father. Judge Humphre}^, who died in 1864. In 
 the fall of 1865, he (subject) entered Cleveland 
 Law College, from which he graduated in 1866. 
 After graduating, he located at Cuyahoga Falls, 
 and lived there until 1 874, when he came to 
 Akron. He was elected City Solicitor in the 
 spring of 1879. On the 20th of September, 
 1864, he was married to Miss Delia Whedon, 
 of Hudson. 
 
 WILBUR F. HAWXHURST, insurance 
 agent, Akron ; second son of Isaac and Clarissa 
 (Miller) Hawxhurst ; was born in El^ria, Lo- 
 rain Co., Ohio, June 19, 1844. He was 14 when 
 his father died. Shortly after, in 1860, he en- 
 tered Baldwin Universit}-, at Berea, where he 
 studied two years, and was then employed 
 by the Western Union Telegraph Co. about two 
 years as operator at the stations at Elyria and 
 Youngstown. March 20, 1864, he enlisted in 
 the 65th 0. V. I. as private soldier. In the 
 summer of the same year, he was detached as 
 clerk for the Assistant Inspector General of 
 
J^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 713 
 
 the District of Etowah, and located at Chatta- 
 nooga, Tenn., for Capt. Mills and his successor, 
 Capt. George M. Bray ton, until June, 1865, 
 when he was ordered to his regiment, then in 
 Nashville, and again detailed as clerk to the 
 Assistant (James I. Wilson) Commissary of 
 Musters for the Second Division of the Fourth 
 Army Corps, and served in that position until 
 March 4, 1866, when he was discharged at In- 
 dianola, Texas. On his return, he was in the 
 commercial school at Oberlin for some time. 
 He again entered Baldwin University in the 
 fall term of 1866, remaining two years. In 
 1868, he became book-keeper for Charles W. 
 Stearns & Co., of Cleveland, and continued un- 
 til 1870, when he entered the insurance office 
 of W. F. Fox, of Cleveland, State agent for the 
 old Putnam Insurance Co., and, in the fall of 
 the same year, he opened a local agency fire 
 insurance office at Lebanon, Ohio, which he 
 conducted one year. In November, 1871, he 
 was given the Ohio and Indiana State agency 
 for the Watertown Fire Insurance Co., and con- 
 tinued in that field until January, 1874, when 
 he accepted a like agency for the Royal Insur- 
 ance Co., of Liverpool, England, serving one 
 year. In 1875, he was employed for a year as 
 rating agent at Cincinnati, Ohio, by the Na- 
 tional Board of Fire Underwriters, and served 
 also another year as rating agent throughout 
 the Western States. In 1877, he was special 
 agent in Ohio, Indiana and Michigan for the 
 Connecticut Fire Insurance Co., of Hartford, 
 and, in December of the same 3'ear, he located 
 at Akron, and associated with M. Mattison in 
 local insurance, representing several of the 
 leading fire and life companies. Sept. 22, 1868, 
 he married Miss Clara L. Mattison, of Hinckley, 
 Medina Co., Ohio. They have one son living, 
 and one son deceased. 
 
 JOSEPH HAYS, foreman molders' depart- 
 ment Aultman, Miller & Co., Akron ; a son of 
 Hugh and Mary (Pollock) Ha3-s ; was born 
 Oct. 17, 1843, in Stark Co., Ohio, and is the 
 youngest son in a famil}' of ten children, five 
 of whom are living ; parents are both deceased 
 and were both natives of Ireland. In 1858, he 
 began to learn the trade of molder with E. 
 Ball, at Canton, Ohio, where he worked at 
 molding until June 5, 1861, when he enlisted 
 in Co. F, 4th 0. V. I., for three years. He was 
 with McClellan in the Army of West Virginia, 
 and the Shenandoah Valley, with Gen. Shields, 
 
 and joined the Army of the Potomac after the 
 seven days' fighting before Richmond, and re- 
 mained with it until the battle of Chancellors- 
 ville, March 3, 1863, where he was wounded by 
 a musket-ball, which shattered his elbow-joint. 
 He was disabled eighteen months, and in Wash- 
 ington Hospital about eight months, when, in 
 Febi-uary, 1864, he was discharged. He draws 
 a pension. He came to Akron soon after, and 
 began work as a molder for Aultman, Miller 
 & Co.. in March following. He woi'ked as a 
 journeyman until Feb. 21, 1880, when he was 
 made foreman in the molding department, 
 which, when full, employs 110 men, and melts 
 about twenty-eight tons of iron per da}-. He 
 was married Aug. 10, 1865, to Miss Cora Dun- 
 bar, of Canton, Ohio ; they have one son. 
 
 JOHN W. HOLLOWAY, master of ma- 
 chinery on C, Mt. V. & C. R. R., Akron, a son 
 of Joseph T. and Susan (Hawk) Holloway, 
 was born in Stark Co., Ohio, May 26, 1831. 
 In 1848, he apprenticed himself to the trade 
 of machinist, first at Cleveland, but in 1849 
 came to Akron and entered the machine shops 
 of G. D. Bates & Co., serving with them 
 two years. He went to Cumberland, Md., and 
 took a place in the shops for a time, and dur- 
 ing one year run a locomotive from Cumber- 
 land to the mines. He next became an engineer 
 on a steamboat on the Ohio River, plying 
 between Shawneetown, 111., and Paducah, Ky., 
 and was so employed for about one year. In 
 the fall of 1854, he went to La Fayette, Ind., 
 and was employed in the shops of the La Fay- 
 ette & Indianapolis Railroad Company for one 
 and one-half years, and, in 1856, became mas- 
 ter of machinery on the Cleveland, Zanesville 
 & Cincinnati Railroad, now the Cleveland, Mt. 
 Vernon & Columbus, a position he has held 
 ever since. In November, 1854, he was mar- 
 ried to Miss Caroline E. Tifft,of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 Of this marriage there are five children. His 
 (subject's) father was a native of New Jersej', 
 and came to Stark Co., Ohio, about 1820, 
 where he lived until 1831, when he removed to 
 Cuyahoga Falls, and resided there until his 
 death in 1878. He was a cabinet-maker, and 
 in later years was an insurance agent, Justice 
 of the Peace, etc.j served also as Coronor of 
 the count}'. 
 
 REV. JOSEPH D. HOLLINGER, deceased 
 (widow resides at No. 1203 South Broad wa}-, 
 Akron), died Oct. 4, 1871, and was buried at 
 
 if^r 
 
714 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Manchester, Franklin Township, witli other of 
 his rehitives. His birth occurred near the 
 place of his burial Jan. 22, 1839. His educa- 
 tion was obtained in the district schools, with 
 the additional advantages of the seminary at 
 Greensburg, Summit Co., Ohio. He was the 
 oldest son of Jacob and Barbara (Dail}') Hol- 
 linger, she a daughter of Jacob Daily, one of 
 the old pioneers of Franklin Township. The 
 father of our subject was a twin brother to 
 Michael Hollinger, who has resided in Franklin 
 Township the longest of any person now liv- 
 ing. Our subject connected himself with the 
 Evangelical Association and began preaching 
 in his 23d 3'ear, first serving at North Lima, 
 Ohio, for one year ; then at New Salem, Penn., 
 one year ; near New Hamburg, Mercer Co., Ohio, 
 one year ; thence back to North Lima, where he 
 served two years ; thence to Osnaburg, Stark 
 Co., Ohio, where he served two years, subse- 
 quently returning to the State of Pennsylvania, 
 where he filled the pulpit at Fulton Street Mis- 
 sion, Pittsburgh. While there, he was elected 
 as Presiding Elder of Franklin District by the 
 Church Conference then in session. While 
 serving in this office, his lamentable death oc- 
 curred as stated above. The supposition is 
 that his fatal sickness was caused by overwork, 
 as the ministers of that church are required to 
 go through a four years' course of study be- 
 fore becoming regular members of Conference, 
 their examinations occurring every year, the 
 successful termination of their second exami- 
 nation being the occasion of their ordination 
 as Deacons, and the fourth entitling them to 
 the highest honors of the church, that of 
 Elders, receiving license in full. The spring 
 following the death of her husband, Mrs. Hol- 
 linger moved to the city of Akron, where she 
 now resides. He was married, Dec. 13, 1858, 
 to Mary E. Leuszler, born May 5, 1836, of 
 Holland Dutch extraction, to John and Catha- 
 rine (Long) Leuszler, he of Hesse-Darmstadt, 
 Germany. Came early with his parents from 
 the land of his nativity and settled in Doyles- 
 town, Penn., and, in 1853, settled near Wads- 
 worth, Medina Co. Their children are Anna 
 M., born Aug. 23, 1859, teacher at No. 7, south 
 building public school ; Harvey M., Aug. 28, 
 1861, engaged in the Buckeye works ; Clara 
 E., May 7, 1863 ; Royal E., April 10, 1866. 
 
 LEVI S. HERROLD, ex-Mayor, 958 South 
 Main street, Akron ; was born on the 17th day 
 
 of November, 1820. Is a son of Col. John 
 George, the son of Frederick Herrold, who 
 came from Germany to that part of Northum- 
 berland Co., Penn., now known as Snyder 
 County, deriving its name from a distinguished 
 gentleman of that name. The Herrolds were 
 the first settlers in a township of the above- 
 named county, where they took up several 
 hundred acres of land and have always resided. 
 The family having grown numerous, occup}- 
 the principal part of one or two townships in 
 that section of country. His mother was Mary 
 Steese, daughter of Frederick Steese, a verj' 
 prominent man and mill-owner in Union and 
 other counties in Pennsjdvania. The subject of 
 this sketch, on account of the indigent circum- 
 stances of his parents, was compelled to labor 
 in various employments to support himself and 
 secure the meager educational advantages 
 which he received, amounting to three terms of 
 district school. He at one time was employed 
 as driver on the canal from McKees' Half-Falls 
 to Havre de Grace on the tide-water ; then 
 steadily advancing, as his own energy and nat- 
 ural tact in business have shown in following 
 him briefl}' through his subsequent business 
 life of about ten years in general merchandising. 
 Immediately after marriage, his official career 
 began by being elected for a term of five years 
 as Justice of the Peace in Snyder County, at 
 the expiration of which he was re-elected for a 
 second term, but after having served two years, 
 he was called upon by the people of his county 
 to serve a term of three years as second Sheriff 
 of the county after its organization. In the 
 spring of 1865, he came with his family to 
 Akron, having purchased, the preceding sum- 
 mer, the grist and saw mill now owned by 
 Brewster & Sons, which he run successfully for 
 ten years ; he served as Assessor of the Fifth 
 Ward, a term of three years as Infirmary 
 Director, and, in the year 1875, was elected 
 Mayor of the city of Akron ; after having filled 
 successfully the last-named office until the 
 expiration of his terra, he retired to a quiet life 
 and the superintendenc}' of his farm in Spring- 
 field Township. He was married Aug. 2, 1842, 
 to Lydia Motz, daughter of John and Barbara 
 (Moyer) Motz, who were Union County people. 
 They had eight children — four sons and four 
 daughters — Mary M., born Sept. 9, 1843 ; 
 George I., April 26, 1845 ; Alfred, Jan. 21, 
 1847 ; John S., Sept. 6, 1850; Henry S., Dec. 
 
l^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 715 
 
 12, 1853 ; Ada B., April 24, 1856 ; Martha A., 
 Aug. 4, 1858 ; Ida, Oct. 3, 1865. Mary M. 
 married Capt. H. Harrison in the fall of 1863, 
 and died Oct. 18, 1867, of hemorrhage of the 
 lungs, in the depot at Cleveland, on her return 
 home with her husband, having gone there for 
 medical aid. She left one child, Mai'v Ida, born 
 Aug. 23, 1865. George died Feb." 26, 1859; 
 Alfred, April 9, 1847 f Henry, Dec. 20, 1853 ; 
 Ada B., Feb. 9, 1859 ; Ida, May 9, 1867. John 
 was married to Mar}^ Cook, daughter of Louis 
 Cook, of Akron ; she d3ing in the spring of 
 1875, leaving one child, Lilly May, born Sept. 
 26, 1872. Both grandchildren are living with 
 the subject of this sketch. 
 
 J. H. HOWER, of Hower & Co., manufactur- 
 ers of oat meal, Akron, is a native of Stark Co., 
 Ohio, and was born Feb. 22, 1822. His father, 
 Jesse Hower, was a native of Center Co., Penn., 
 and came to Ohio with his parents about the 
 year 1815. His father, Jacob Hower, was a 
 native of Penns3dvania, and a shoemaker by 
 trade. He moved to Stark County, whei*e he 
 settled and improved a farm. Jesse moved to 
 Clinton about the year 1823, and bought a farm 
 of his father, upon which he built a saw-mill, 
 but died soon after completing same. Mrs. 
 Hower then moved to her folks', near New 
 Berlin, where she lived some five or six years, 
 when she married Mr. John Snyder, and located 
 near Doylestown, where she died about the 
 year 1855 or 1856. J. H. (the subject) lived 
 at home until he was 30 years old, receiving a 
 common-school education, working on the farm 
 and teaching school during the winters from 
 the time he was 18 years of age. At the age 
 of 28, he bought an interest in a general store 
 at Doylestown (firm Graham & Hower), and con- 
 tinued for five years, when he sold out and 
 bought a pottery, which he operated for two 
 years, and then sold out and organized the 
 Excelsior Reaper and Mower Works of Doyles- 
 town, now conducted by Seiberling, Miller & 
 Co. Mr. H. was connected with the works 
 until 1875, though he came to Akron in 1866, 
 and was one of the organizers of the Excelsior 
 Reaper Works, as above, of which he was Vice 
 President, and continued for some ten years. 
 In 1879, he bought an intei'est in the Turner 
 Mills of Akron, and, in 1881, his sons, Harvey 
 Y. and M. Otis, bought out the interest of Mr. 
 Turner, and formed the present firm of Hower 
 & Co. He was married in 1852, to Miss Susan 
 
 Youngker, daughter of J. Youngker, of Doyles- 
 town. By this marriage there have been three 
 children — Harve}^ Y., M. Otis and Charles H. 
 Mr. H. and his wife are members of the En- 
 glish Lutheran Church, in which he has always 
 taken an active interest, being one of its organ- 
 izers, and a Trustee since. He was originally a 
 Democrat, but a Republican since the organi- 
 zation of that party. 
 
 JACOB D. HOLLINGER, druggist, Akron, 
 junior member of the wholesale and retail drug 
 firm of Warner & Hollinger ; was born in 1844, 
 and is a native of Summit Co. His people 
 were among the earl}' pioneers of Franklin 
 Township. The early life of J. D. was spent 
 on a farm. He was educated at the Evangel- 
 ical College of Greensburg, and is a graduate of 
 the Pittsburgh Commercial College. This latter 
 attainment led to his accepting the situation of 
 book-keeper for Mr. George Weimer, who, for 
 many years, was one of the leading druggists 
 of Akron. During Mr. HoUinger's connection 
 with the firm as book-keeper, Mr. Warner was 
 employed as prescription clerk. Though both 
 3'oung men, they now compose a firm that 
 ranks among the leading druggists of the cit3^ 
 Their house was established in 1852, and the 
 dimensions of their present house. No. 213 and 
 215 East Market street, is 33 feet frontage by 
 80 feet in depth, two floors and double basement 
 cellar. Polilicall}', Mr. Hollinger has taken no 
 active part, he choosing rather to devote his 
 time and energies to the building up of a good 
 business. He is a member of Akron Lodge, 
 No. 547, I. 0. 0. F. During the war of the 
 rebellion, he served as a volunteer in Co. G, 
 19th 0. V. I., three months' service, and also in 
 the 104th 0. V. I., three years' service. 
 
 H. B. HOUSEL, millwright, Akron ; was born 
 April 9, 1821, in Stark Co., Ohio. When he 
 was about 1 year old, his parents moved to 
 Brewster's Corners, Summit Co. He was the 
 oldest of a fiimily of sixteen children, ten of 
 whom are still living, and, at that earh^ day in 
 the settlement of Summit Co., but little oppor- 
 tunity was afforded him for getting an etluca- 
 tion. At the age of 19, he began learning the 
 trade of a millwright with one John Gilcrist, 
 with whom he served an apprenticeship of two 
 3'ears, which included six months of schooling 
 given him by Mr. Gilcrist. The first summer 
 after completing his trade, he worked at the 
 carpenter's trade ; and, in the following winter, 
 
 'f 
 
 ^ 
 
(16 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 he came to Akron, and helped to build the city 
 mills. He followed "jour" work for about 
 eight 3'ears, and since that time he has been 
 contracting and building mills in Ohio and ad- 
 joining States. In 1847, he bought the old 
 homestead farm, which was the home of his 
 family until 1865, when he removed to Akron. 
 In 1877, when the co-operative store was organ- 
 ized, he became interested in it ; and, in 1880, 
 he was made one of the directors ; and, at 
 present, when not otherwise engaged, he spends 
 his time at the store. Jan. 24, 1844, he was 
 married to Miss Eunice Meach, a native of 
 Connecticut, but who came to Wayne Co., 
 Ohio, with her people, when she was a child. 
 Six children have been born to them, of whom 
 but one son and two daughters are living. 
 George, the son, has a decided talent for music, 
 and, at present, he is connected with the schools 
 of Muscatine, Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Housel are 
 both members of the First M. E. Church of 
 Akron. He is well known throughout the count}', 
 and is a man whose name and reputation stand 
 above reproach. 
 
 D. W. HOLLOWAY, merchant, Akron ; is a 
 native of Center Co., Penn., and is the son of 
 Daniel C. and Sarah M. (Speaker) Hollowaj^ both 
 of whom lie buried at Aaronsburg, Penn., the 
 former home of the subject of this sketch, and 
 the place where most of his early life was 
 spent ; there he also received a fair education, 
 and, though he was left an orphan at the early 
 age of 14 years (he is now 24), and principall} 
 dependent upon his own resources, he has suc- 
 ceeded not only in establishing himself in a good 
 business, but has, by carefuU}' associating witli 
 that class of people who are possessed of a self- 
 respect, built for himself a worthy name and 
 reputation. His mercantile life began in 
 Aaronsburg when he was 14 years old, and, 
 though a part of his boyhood days were spent 
 on a farm, he soon became partial to the life of 
 a merchant, and how great his talent in that di- 
 rection lay is evidenced by his present position 
 and success. Nov. 1, 1879, he and Mr. Harri- 
 son became the successors of Mr. E. P. Hollo- 
 way, under the firm name of Harrison & Hol- 
 loway ; their place of business is located on the 
 corner of Main and Exchange streets, South 
 Akron ; it is a large storeroom, 27 feet front- 
 age by 78 feet in depth, stocked with every- 
 thing pertaining to the dry goods business. 
 Mr. Holloway began first as a salesman for E. 
 
 P. Holloway, and, the better to enable him to 
 do business successfully and accui'atelj', he at- 
 tended the night school of the Commercial 
 College of Akron, from which he graduated ; 
 he now keeps the firm's books, and, though still 
 a young man, he stands upon an equal footing 
 with many of his competitors who are double 
 his age. 
 
 H. HARRISON, merchant, Akron ; senior 
 member of the dry goods firm of Harrison & 
 Holloway ; has been a resident of Summit Co. 
 since 18(35 ; he is a man now 42 years of age, 
 and a native of Snyder (formerly Union) Co., 
 Penn. His boyhood was spent on a farm, and 
 the most of his early life in his native State. 
 Sept. IG, 1861, he entered the Federal army, 
 and gave his services to his country to aid in 
 the suppression of the war of the rebellion ; he 
 was made Captain of Co. F, of the 172d Penn. 
 V. M., and remained in the service until Aug. 
 1, 1862. In 1865, he came to Summit Co., and 
 for about one and a half years he was in the 
 employ of E. P. Holloway ; subsequently he 
 engaged in milling ; he and ex-Mayor Herrold, 
 under the firm name of Herrold & Harrison, 
 were proprietors of the South Akron Mills. 
 For about one year he resided in the country 
 and was interested in farming ; again he be- 
 came a resident of Akron, and, after having 
 spent some time as a clerk for Mr. E. P. Hol- 
 loway, he and W. H. Holloway bought the es- 
 tablishment on Nov. 1, 1879. He is a member 
 of Aetolia Lodge, No. 24, K. of P., and a man 
 in ever}' way worthy to be identified with the 
 business and social interests of Akron. 
 
 DR. ELIZUR HITCHCOCK, physician, 
 Akron ; is a native of Summit County. He 
 was born on his father's farm in Tallmadge, 
 Aug. 15, 1832, and is the fourth of seven chil- 
 dren born to Lucius W. and Eleanor (Wolcott) 
 Hitchcock. His parents were natives of Con- 
 necticut, his father coming on foot in 1822, to 
 Tallmadge, where he bought a farm, married 
 and raised his famil}'. In 1873, he lost his 
 wife, and left the farm, coming lo Akron, where 
 he now resides. Dr. Hitchcock remained at 
 home until the spring of 1850, working on the 
 farm and gaining such education as the schools 
 of the neighborhood aftbrded. At 18, he en- 
 tered the Western Reserve College at Hudson, 
 where he studied two 3'ears, and then entered 
 the Junior Class in Yale College, graduating 
 there in 1854. During the next four years, he 
 
ik 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 m 
 
 taught select schools in Tallmadge and Grus- 
 tavus, dividing the time between them. In 
 1857, he began reading medicine with Dr. 
 Dudley Allen, at Kinsman, Ohio, and in 1860, 
 graduated at the Medical Department of the 
 Western Reserve College, at Cleveland, having 
 taken a course previously at Ann Arbor, Mich. 
 He began his practice at Mecca, but in the fol- 
 lowing spring located at Orwell, where he re- 
 mained two years. He then went into the 
 armv as Sui'geon of the 7th 0. V. I., and resigned 
 after serving about six months. In the fall of 
 1868, he located in West Williamsfield, Ohio, 
 where he remained until 1869, when he sold 
 out his business and attended the Bellevue 
 Hospital. In 1870, he came to Akron and has 
 since practiced his profession here. He is a 
 member and President of the Summit County 
 Medical Societ}', and also a member of the 
 Union Medical Association of Northeastern 
 Ohio. On Nov. 24, 1861, he married Miss 
 Hattie Reed, a native of Mecca, Trumbull Co., 
 Ohio, by whom he had one child, Gertrude R. 
 His wife died in May, 186-1. In November, 
 186-t, he married Miss Lucretia Kellogg, a na- 
 tive of West Andover, Ashtabula Co., Ohio, by 
 whom he has two children — Halbert K. and 
 Lucius W. 
 
 H. P. HITCHCOCK, general insurancic and 
 local and special adjusting agent, Akron ; is 
 a native of Summit Co., Ohio. He was born 
 on his father's farm in this county, July 18, 
 1841, and lived there until he was 16 years of 
 age. He then engaged as clerk in the general 
 merchandising business of Starr Bros. & Co., 
 in Elyria, Ohio, where he remained one 3'ear, 
 when he returned to his parents' home and re- 
 mained until, at the age of 20, he entered the 
 emplo}' of the A. & G. W. R. R., now known as 
 the N. Y., P. & 0. Railway Company. He con- 
 tinued in this employ some seven and a half 
 years, serving in all the suboi'dinate positions up 
 to that of conductor. During the construction 
 of the road from Marion to Dayton, he had 
 charge of the construction train with from fifty 
 to sevent3'-five men, for about a year. Upon 
 leaving the railroad compan}', he began work- 
 ing for the Continental Life Insurance Com- 
 pany of New York, as solicitor. During the 
 year he was engaged with this compau}*, he 
 took $360,000 worth of lisks. At the expira- 
 tion of this time, he engaged with the Enter- 
 prise Fire Insurance Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio. 
 
 This was about 1870, since which time he has 
 been constantl}' engaged in the insurance busi- 
 ness, adding to his agency various companies 
 until now the combined assets of the compa- 
 nies which he represents reaches the immense 
 sum of $100,000,000. His list of companies 
 includes some of the oldest and most reliable 
 in this and the old countries. In 1876, he took 
 the field as an adjuster, and has served with 
 distinguished ability in this department since. 
 For the past three ^-ears, Mr. Hitchcock has 
 served as a special agent and adjuster for the 
 Meridian, Fanieul Hall and Fairfield Companies, 
 and is now acting in the same capacity for the 
 Niagara of New York. He married Miss 
 Elizabeth C. Upson, a native of Summit Co., 
 Ohio. By this marriage there have been two 
 children — one. Eva, living. 
 
 JOSEPH HUGILL, contractor and builder 
 in stone and brick, Akron ; was born in York- 
 shire, England, September 1, 1834. His father, 
 George Hugill, was a railroad contractor. Jo- 
 seph was apprenticed at the age of 14 to the 
 stone mason's trade and served three years, 
 when he came to the United States and settled 
 in Cleveland, where he lived with a married 
 sister. Remaining in that vicinity several 
 years, he went to Canada, where he worked at 
 his trade on the Grand Trunk R. R., for two 
 3'ears, after which he contracted stone work on 
 the Bufl^alo & Lake Huron R. R. He went to 
 California via New York and Panama during 
 the Frazer River excitement in 1858. He 
 went to El Dorado Co., and worked at his trade 
 in Placerville one year ; the next 3'ear, he fol- 
 lowed mining, and, in 1860. imbued with tlie 
 excitement which then prevailed, he went to 
 Nevada, working at his trade in Carson Cit3-, 
 where he built the county buildings. He next 
 went to Virginia Cit3', where he did the stone 
 work on the Gould & Curr3- Quartz Mills. He 
 returned to Cleveland in 1864 cia Panama and 
 New York, and thence to Canada, where, on 
 September 28 of the same 3'ear, he married 
 Miss Sarah Wells, at Hamilton. She was a 
 native of South Dumfries, Brant Co., Canada. 
 In the spring of 1866, the3' came to Akron 
 where he has since conducted the business of 
 contractor and builder in stone and brick. In 
 1872. he purchased some land upon which he 
 has developed a stone quarry* which furnishes 
 an inexhaustible supply of building material. 
 B3' their marriage there have been four chil- 
 
 :(^ 
 
J^'. 
 
 zfku 
 
 718 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 dren, of whom three are still living, viz , Willie 
 E., Franklin W. and Daisy. 
 
 A. J. HUSE, cabinet-maker, is a native of 
 Vermont ; he was born in Windsor County, 
 June 7, 1804. His father, Robert Huse, was a 
 shoemaker b}' trade, but followed farming ; he 
 was a native of Massachusetts. His father was 
 a sea captain, and lost his life in a storm 
 at sea. Robert moved to Rochester, A^t., about 
 the year 1797, of which place he was one of 
 the pioneers. Our subject was born and raised 
 on the farm. At the age of 22 he was ap- 
 prenticed to the cabinet trade, and on Sept. 
 6, 1829, he married Miss Louisa W. Austin, 
 a native of Vermont. The following year the}" 
 moved to Cayuga County, New York, where 
 he worked at his trade until 183(3, when he 
 took the water route to Ohio and settled in 
 Middlebury, where he worked at his trade until 
 1844 ; he then worked in a woolen machinery 
 manufactory until 1872, since which time he 
 has done general business pertaining to his 
 trade. By his marriage there were five chil- 
 dren, of whom but one lives, viz., Charles W., 
 of Akron, Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Huse have been 
 connected with the Universalist Church for the 
 past forty years. September 6, 1879, thej^ 
 celebrated their golden wedding, on which occa- 
 sion friends to the number of 300 joined in the 
 ceremonies. 
 
 WILLIAM FOSTER HOPE, manager of 
 Aki'on Malleable Iron Works, Middlebury (Sixth 
 Ward of Akron), is a native of Pittsburgh, Penn.; 
 was born Aug. 4, 1838 ; his father, Richard 
 Hope, was a contractor and builder, in which 
 capacity he is well known in Pittsburgh, where 
 he built man}^ of the leading buildings of that 
 city. William F. (subject) lived in his native 
 city until September, 1880, receiving his educa- 
 tion in the city schools, and also a course 
 at Jefferson College. At the age of 18, he 
 engaged as a book-keeper with Holmes & Co., 
 edge tool manufacturers, where he remained 
 two years ; he then engaged in the grain com- 
 mission business for himself, continuing for 
 four years, when he took a position as general 
 ticket agent for the Allegheny Valle}' R. R. for 
 seven years. Next, he engaged as book-keeper 
 for a wholesale grocery house for two years, 
 after which he became book-keeper in the 
 Second National Bank of Pittsburgh, remaining 
 two years, and then went into the Auditor's 
 Department of the Allegheny Valley R. R., and 
 
 remained there until July, 1880, when he came 
 to Akron, Ohio, in September following, having 
 formed a partnership, in August previous, with 
 John F. Greer, under style of Akron Malleable 
 Iron works, which is spoken of elsewhere in 
 this Work. He was married in February, 1864, 
 to Miss Lizzie E. Greer, a native of Pittsburgh. 
 They have three children, viz. : Mary E., Annie 
 W. and Nellie M. 
 
 A. M. HEATHMAN, groceries, provisions, 
 flour and feed, 432 Centre street, Akron, is a na- 
 tive of Coventry Township, Summit Co., and 
 was born July 28, 1832 ; is the eldest of seven 
 children born to Elijah and Melintha (West- 
 phall) Heatliman, natives of Springfield and 
 Coventr}' Townships. Elijah was the third son 
 of Bennett Heathraan, a native of Maryland, 
 who came to Coventry in the early pioneer 
 days, and followed farming there until his death. 
 He was brought up on a farm, and worked 
 also at carpenter's trade ; also woi-ked on Ohio 
 Canal. Mrs. Heathman died at the residence 
 of her daughter, in Copley Township, in the 
 summer of 1880. A. M. (subject) lived at 
 home until twenty years of age, brought up on 
 the farm ; also worked at carpentering, and 
 visited Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin 
 and Iowa. He was married Nov. 28, 1861. to 
 Miss Agnes R. Kidder, a native of Akron, a 
 daughter of John and Phoebe (Savage) Kidder, 
 who were old residents of the place. In 1872, 
 he engaged in the grocery business, the firm, 
 Breniger & Heathman, continuing seven years; 
 he then sold out and engaged in his present 
 place. Five children have been born to him, 
 four of whom are living, viz. : Melintha, George, 
 Etha and Alexander — Ida, deceased. 
 
 DAVID E. HILL, President of the Hill Sew- 
 er Pipe Co., Akron , was born in Cattaraugus 
 Co., N. Y., May 25, 1825, and is the youngest 
 of four children born to David and Avis (Mc- 
 Millan) Hill, natives of Rhode Island, and who 
 removed to New York in an earl}'^ day. He 
 was a carpenter b}' trade, and died in Cattarau- 
 gus Co. at the age of 77 years ; she died at the 
 age of 79 j-ears. David E. (the subject) lived 
 at home eighteen years ; his brother was a cab- 
 inet-maker, and he learned the same trade with 
 him. His education was received at the dis- 
 trict schools. In 1843, he came to Middlebury, 
 Akron, and worked for his uncle, Reuben Mc- 
 Millan, manufacturer of woolen machinerv, un- 
 til 1849, when the firm of Hill, Foster & Co., for 
 
 ■^ 
 
■i^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 719 
 
 the manufacture of stoneware, was formed. The}' 
 occupied the old " Black Mills," and continued 
 in business until about 1851, when Mr. McMillan 
 sold his interest to Hill & Foster. Mr. Hill 
 was identified with the business until 1855, and 
 retired for one year, at the end of which time 
 he came back, and the firm became Hill & Pow- 
 ers, and later, Hill & Adams, which continued 
 until 1868, when it was merged into a stock 
 company, known as the " Hill & Adams Sewer 
 Pipe Co.," Mr. Hill being President. He retired 
 from the business in 1871. The old firm of 
 Hill, Merrill & Co. made the first machine for 
 the manufacture of sewer pipe in America. 
 About the year 1866, Mr. Hill became one of a 
 company of five men, who bought the present 
 building, and engaged in the manufacture of 
 woolen goods — known as the " Middlebury 
 Woolen Mills." The business finally passed 
 into the hands of Mr. Hill and John Townsend, 
 and in the spring of 1873, the machinei-y was 
 sold, the building was fitted for the manufact- 
 ure of sewer pipe, and the Hill Sewer Pipe Co. 
 was formed and incorporated, with Mr. Hill as 
 President ; his son, George R., being Secretary 
 and Treasurer, with James Viall as Superin- 
 tendent. Mr. Hill has always been a public- 
 spirited man, favoring all improvements for the 
 benefit of town or county. He served several 
 years as a member of Middlebury School 
 Board ; also as a member of Cit}' Council of 
 Akron, and as a County Commissioner for six 
 years. He was an Abolitionist until formation 
 of Republican party ; since then he has voted 
 with that party. He was married in June, 
 1848. to Miss Harriet L. McMillan, a daughter 
 of Reuben McMillan. They have had three 
 children, but one of whom is living — George R. 
 DENNIS A. HINE, deceased ; was born in 
 Milford, Conn., in the year 1808. His parents 
 moved West and settled in Tallmadge Town- 
 ship, Summit Co., Ohio, at an early day. Our 
 subject lived on the farm until 1829, when he 
 came to Middlebury, and engaged as clerk in a 
 general merchandise business of John Mc- 
 Millan's, and some years later, in company with 
 Mr. M. L. Sherman, he engaged in the general 
 merchandise business in Middlebury, they con- 
 tinuing a number of years, after which he 
 clerked in Middlebury- and at Tallmadge, and 
 later conducted a butchering business in Mid- 
 dlebury, and next engaged in the fishing busi- 
 ness on Lake Huron, after which, in company 
 
 with Drs. Jewett and Wright, conducted a wa- 
 ter-cure establishment for a number of years 
 in Middlebury ; he then engaged in the nursery 
 business, which he followed many years. He 
 died July 27, 1878. Dec. 29, 1831, he married 
 Miss Lucy A. Smith, a native of Groton, Conn. 
 Of their eleven children, but five are living, viz.: 
 Henry and Lewis C, both married and live in 
 Akron ; Addie, now Mrs. I. L. Bevis, of St. 
 Louis, Mo.; Augusta, now Mrs. B. M. Allison, 
 of Middlebury ; and Jennie, now Mrs. Jacob 
 Replogle, of Middlebury. Mrs. Hine is living 
 on the old homestead. 
 
 DR. E. W. HOWARD, physician, Akron ; is a 
 native of Andover, Windsor Co., Vt., and comes 
 of a family noted for its longevity' ; his father 
 reached the age of 89 ; his father's mother 
 reached 95 ; a great-aunt reached 115, and his 
 great-grandmother the age of 97. Dr. Howard's 
 parents, David and Cynthia (Crossman) Howard, 
 were natives of Massachusetts. His father's 
 family was one of those that contributed all 
 their available male force to the Revolutionary 
 war ; his grandfather David, with his brothers 
 James, Solomon, Joseph and Elias, went as 
 soldiers, the latter being killed in the service 
 of his country. Dr. Howard, the seventh child 
 of a family of ten children, was born April 14, 
 1816 ; his youth was spent upon the farm, ac- 
 quiring the rudiments of an education in the 
 schools of the neighborhood, and more liberal 
 advantages in a course at the Chester Academ}^ 
 At the age of 19, he made a visit to the West, 
 calling on his cousin. Prof R. L. Howard, a 
 physician in Elyria ; was by him persuaded to 
 study medicine, and accordingly began reading 
 with him ; this was in 1835. He subsequently 
 attended lectures at Pittsfield, Mass., going later 
 to Windsor Co., Vt., to read with L. G. Whiting, 
 with whom he read for two years. In 1838, he 
 graduated at the Berkshire Medical College, at 
 Pittsfield, Mass., when he formed a partnership 
 with Prof R. L. Howard, in Elyria, Ohio. He 
 practiced at Elyria only a year when he came to 
 Akron, where he has remained in the practice of 
 his profession up to the present. During the late 
 war, he was sent by Gov. Tod to assist in car- 
 ing for the wounded after the battle of Antie- 
 tam. He was assigned to the hospital at 
 Frederick City, Md., where he served about a 
 month. In the following winter, the Governor 
 again sent him to assist in caring for the troops, 
 this time spending several months in hospital 
 
 >1^ 
 
IX" 
 
 rso 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 work at Nashville, Tenn. Dr. Howard has 
 been a member of the Summit Countj Medical 
 Society since its organization, of which be has 
 also been President. He is also a member of 
 the Union Medical Association of Northeastern 
 Ohio, which he has served two terms as Presi- 
 dent ; of the Ohio State Medical Association, 
 and of the American Medical Association. In 
 1876, he was a delegate to the International 
 Medical Congress, held at Philadelphia. June 
 16, 1840, he married Miss Elizabeth Chittenden, 
 a daughter of Henry and Elizabeth (Sprague) 
 Chittenden, who were natives of Connecticut, 
 and pioneers in Springfield Township. There are 
 two children — Henry C, for the past seven years 
 practicing in partnership with his father ; and 
 Frank D., engaged in the foundry business. 
 
 B. C. HERRICK, of Herrick & Cannon, 
 wholesale and retail china, ci'ocker}" and glass 
 goods, Akron ; is a native of Twinsburg Town- 
 ship, in this county, and is the eldest of five 
 children, born to J. E. and Philo (Clark) Her- 
 rick ; his parents were natives of New England ; 
 his father came when a 3'oung man from Massa- 
 chusetts to Ohio, settling, in 1825, in Twins- 
 burg, where he met and married his wife, a 
 native of Connecticut ; she came there with 
 her parents in 1826. The older members of 
 the famil}'. including herself, walked a greater 
 part of the way, while an ox team transported 
 the household effects. After marriage they 
 settled on a piece of land, cleared it, and are 
 still living there, at the advanced age of over 
 75. In 1878, they celebrated their golden 
 wedding. B. C. Herrick was born Oct. 25, 1829, 
 and lived at home on the farm until 25 j-ears 
 of age, gaining the foundation of his education 
 at the district schools, and later graduated at 
 the Twinsburg Institute ; at the age of 18 he 
 began teaching winter school, continuing 
 through ten seasons. In 1854, he went to New- 
 bury, Gi-eauga Co., Ohio, and, with his brother 
 Earle, bought the business of E. Stone, Esq., 
 and continued dealing in general merchandise, 
 butter and cheese, for some two years, under 
 the firm name of Herrick & Bros. He then 
 sold his interest and bought a farm in Twins- 
 burg, where he resided until 1867, traveling, 
 however in the meanwhile, as a commercial 
 ti-aveler for four years. At this time he came 
 to Akron, and in compan}- with his brother-in- 
 law, W. B. Cannon, formed the present business 
 partnership. Mr. Herrick is a Trustee and 
 
 Steward of the Methodist Church, and takes 
 an active interest in church matters. Feb. 4, 
 1858, he married Miss H. C. Cannon, a native 
 of Aurora. B3' this marriage he has three 
 children, Oakle}' C, Winnie C. and Victor M. 
 DAVID HANSCOM (deceased) ; was born 
 Oct. 18, 1814, on his father's farm, near Port- 
 land, Maine ; at the age of 6 years, his parents re- 
 moved to Monroe Co., N. Y.; at the age of 18, he 
 began learning the cooper's trade, and, when of 
 age, he came to Ohio, stopping at Middlebury, 
 where he remained one year, working at his 
 trade ; he then went to Lake Co., and pursued 
 the same business there for three years. In 
 1840, his father's family* came to Summit Co. 
 and settled on a farm in Portage Township 
 which the bo3's bought, the parents living with 
 them. Our subject worked at Cuyahoga Falls 
 some two years, then went to Ravenna, where 
 he kept a hotel ; also kept a hotel (half-way 
 house) between Bedford and Twinsburg ; he 
 afterward came to Akron, where he con- 
 ducted a cooper shop for two years : he then 
 kept grocery until 1850, when he sold out to 
 James Gardner, his partner ; he then became 
 one of a party of about one hundred and fifty 
 going to California ; he went to Pittsburgh and 
 chartered a steamboat for the party, the}- em- 
 barking at Wellsville ; they went direct to St. 
 Joseph and thence overland to California, being 
 three months on the way. Our subject en- 
 gaged in the grocer}' business, and, after aj'ear's 
 stay in the land of gold, returned home b}' way 
 of Panama and New York. Soon after his re- 
 turn, he and his brother Charles (the firm D. & 
 C. Hanscom) engaged in the grocery business, 
 and, some five or six years later, built on the 
 northeast corner of Howard and Market streets, 
 also taking their brother George in as a partner, 
 under the firm name of Hanscom Brothers ; 
 they continued until about 1862, when they 
 sold out, and, about a year later, engaged in 
 the business again and continued about three 
 years, when he again sold out ; one year later, 
 one of his rooms ])ecoming vacant, he put in a 
 stock of groceries and once more engaged in 
 the business, continuing about seven years, 
 since which time he lived retired until his 
 death, March 26, 1881. The deceased was 
 twice married — first, to Miss Sarah Pemberton, 
 of Lake Co., Ohio; she died Oct. 21, 1844; 
 they had three children, viz., Mrs. Thayer, of 
 Westville, Ohio, and John and Coi'nelia. 
 
ik^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 721 
 
 March 17, 1845, he married Miss Sarah Stim- 
 son, a native of New York, and came with her 
 parents to Ohio about 1840 ; there are two 
 children — Mrs. Jennings, of Al^ron, and Frank. 
 COL. JOHN C. HART, deceased, was born 
 in Cornwall, Litchfield Co., Conn., April 17, 
 1798. In 1802, his father, Rufus Hart, moved 
 to Genesee Co., N. Y., where he lived until 
 1815, when he moved to Ohio. In the war of 
 1812, his father was a Lieutenant in a company 
 commanded by Capt. Mallison, and was in the 
 battles of Chippewa and Lundy's Lane and 
 the burning of Buffalo. Between the age of 
 14 and 15, John C. enlisted in a company of 
 cavahy at Rocnester, N. Y., under Capt. Stone, 
 and was with his father at Newark, Fort George 
 and other contested points. He was at Black 
 Rock as a bearer of dispatches when the Brit- 
 ish attacked Fort Erie in 1814. After the war, 
 he and his father returned to Genesee Co., and, 
 in 1815, they removed to Ohio, and settled at 
 IMiddlebur}-, now the Sixth Ward of Akron. 
 At the Jige of 21, John C. started south, going 
 on foot to Steubenville, thence by raft down the 
 Ohio. His raft lodging, he went on foot to 
 Cincinnati, thence by canoe or skiff to Shaw- 
 neetown. 111., thence on foot to St. Louis, where, 
 for a time, he worked in a mill, and. later, made 
 bricks at Milton. The June following, he re- 
 turned home and bought 50 acres of land just 
 south of Middleburv, which he improved. He 
 was married, Feb. 24, 1831, to Miss Margaret 
 A. Sterling, by which marriage he had six 
 children — four sons and two daughters. She 
 died March 7, 1869, and, Dec. 22, 1870, he 
 married IMrs. Mary A. Sterling, formerl}' Miss 
 Todd, a daughter of Stephen Todd, of Beaver 
 Co., Penn. She was born May 1. 1828, 
 and, when 16 3'ears of age, her parents removed 
 to Wooster, Ohio, and, two years later, to Canal 
 Dover, where she married John Sterling, a mer- 
 chant of that place. He was born June 16, 1818, 
 and died Dec. 14, 1854. By this marriage 
 there were two children — John S., of Cleveland, 
 and Flora E., now Mrs. Beardsle\', of Cleveland. 
 After her husband's death, she moved to New 
 Lisbon, thence to Cleveland, where she lived 
 until her marriage with Col. Hart, Dec. 22, 
 1870. Col. Hart obtained his military title by 
 raising a regiment of cavalry at Middlebur3' 
 under the old militia law of the State, and of 
 which he was commander at the time it was 
 disbanded. 
 
 HIRAM HART, retired, Akron ; was born 
 in Batavia, Genesee Co., N. Y., June 19, 1804, 
 and is the fourth child in a family of seven 
 children born to Rufus and Esther (Cotter) 
 Hart, who were natives of Goshen, Conn. 
 They were married in that State, and moved to 
 New York about the 3ear 1798, where they 
 farmed until 1815, when he moved to Ohio. 
 Two of his sons had come out the preceding 
 spring. He settled on 100 acres of land in 
 what is now Coventry Township, which he had 
 bought before coming to the State, and which 
 had been partly improved by a man named 
 John Collins. Mr. Hart lived in this vicinit}' 
 until his death, which occuiTed in 1840, his 
 wife's death also occurring about that time. 
 Hiram Hart (our subject) lived at home until 
 he was 25 years of age. His educational ad- 
 vantages were limited, and confined to the dis- 
 trict schools in New York, and a short period 
 in Ohio. He was married, Jul\' 18, 1830, to 
 ^liss Sarah Smith, daughter of Moses and 
 Sarah (Haley) Smith, who were natives of 
 Massachusetts, and came to Ohio about the 
 year 1825. After his marriage, he occupied a 
 piece of land containing 50 acres, and continued 
 upon it until 1844, when he bought the old 
 homestead. In October, 1863, his wife died, 
 leaving seven children, three of whom are liv- 
 ing — Delos, a farmer in Springfield Township ; 
 Milton, cigar manufacturer, Akron, and Louisa, 
 now Mrs. Thos. F. Cleveland, of Akron. Soon 
 after the death of his wife, Mr. Hart moved to 
 Akron, where he has since resided. He was 
 married to Mrs. Pratt, formerly Miss Sophia 
 M. Packer, a native of New York, who came 
 to Ohio with her parents about 1832. They 
 settled in Portage C!o., where he died ; she died 
 in Akron, where she was living with her daugh- 
 ter. He was a prosperous farmer, and was 
 widely known as a leading dairjnnan. 
 
 0. W. HALE, Deputy County Clerk; 
 Akron ; was born in Bath Township, Summit 
 Co., Ohio, April 1, 1841, and is the third of 
 five children born to William and Harriet 
 (Carlton) Hale. They were natives of Connecti- 
 cut and Ohio. She was the daughter of John 
 Carlton, who died from wounds receiA-ed in the 
 war of 1812. William Hale came to Ohio with 
 his parents in the year 1810, they being among 
 the first permanent settlers in Bath Township. 
 He was raised on the farm where he lived until 
 1857, when he located in Hudson, and in 1861 
 
 
722 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 he moved on his farm, where he died the year 
 following. He was three times married. His 
 first wife, Miss Sallie C. Upson, of Tallmadge, 
 died about six months after marriage. His 
 second wife, who was Miss Harriet Carlton, 
 died in 1853. His third wife, Miss Adaline 
 Thompson, survives him, and is now the 
 Matron of the Deaf and Dumb Asylum, at 
 Fairbault, Minn. Our subject lived at home 
 on the farm until 1861, when he enlisted 
 in the 29th 0. V. I., but, owing to his father's 
 illness, received his discharge and returned 
 home. Sept. 23, 1862, he married Miss Eliza- 
 beth Hanson, a native of England, who came 
 with her parents to Summit Co. at the age 
 of 13. By the marriage there were two chil- 
 dren, one, H. C. now living. In 1868, Mr. 
 Hale moved to Portage Co.. where he lived 
 two years. He then went to Corry, Penn., 
 and engaged in the lumber business, and 
 two years later he removed to Huntingdon, 
 W. Va. where he also engaged in the lum- 
 ber business. While at the latter place, he 
 lost his wife, in 1874. He next moved to 
 Akron and engaged as book-keeper in an 
 agricultural implement store. In 1879, he took 
 the position of Deputy County Clerk in the 
 office under Sumner Nash, and has filled the 
 position since. Nov. 26, 1876, he married 
 at East Cleveland, Mrs. Cozad, formerly Miss 
 L. E. Hine. She has one child by her former 
 marriage, viz., Henry Irving Cozad. 
 
 LEVERETT JOSEPH IVES was born 
 in Westfield, Mass., on the 19th day of Sep- 
 tember, 1806. He was a son of Joseph 
 Ives and Sarah Bishop, both natives of New 
 Haven, Conn. His paternal ancestor, William 
 Ives, likewise recorded " Eves," came, it is 
 supposed, from England, previous to 1639. 
 He settled in New Haven, and was one of the 
 sixty-three original free planters, who, upon 
 the 4th day of June, 1639, signed the "Funda- 
 mental Agreement of Quinnipiack " in, as tra- 
 dition states, the barn of Mr. Robert Newman. 
 Joseph Ives, son of William, married Jan. 2, 
 1672 or 1673, Mary Yale, born April 16, 1650, 
 daughter of Thomas Yale, Esq., and Mary 
 Turner, of New Haven. Mary Turner was a 
 daughter of Capt. Nathaniel Turner ; he, with 
 Mr. Thomas Gregson, of New Haven, were of 
 that " Godly company " who perished in the 
 Phantom Ship, and both were direct ancestors 
 of Leverett Joseph Ives. Gov. Elihu Yale, 
 
 in honor of whom, through his munificent 
 donations, Yale College received its name, was 
 likewise a son of Thomas Yale, Esq., and 
 brother to Mary (Yale) Ives. Ensign and Dea- 
 con Samuel Ives, son of Joseph Ives and Mary 
 Yale, was born in New Haven, Nov. 6, 1677 ; 
 he died there Nov. 24, 1726, aged 49 years ; he 
 was one of the first two Deacons of the First 
 Society Church of New Haven. He married 
 Jan. 3, 1706, Ruth Atwater, born Dec. 31, 1688, 
 daughter of Jonathan Atwater and Ruth Peck, 
 of New Haven. Ruth Peck was a grand 
 daughter of the Rev. Jeremiah Peck, who, " in 
 1660, was established, according to an act of 
 court, in the Hopkins Collegiate Grammar 
 School, of New Haven, and there taught the 
 languages and sciences." Capt. Jonathan Ives, 
 son of Deacon Samuel Ives and Ruth Atwater, 
 was born March 14, 1716, ''which perhaps is 
 1716-17." He married Feb. 19, 1737-38, 
 Thankful Cooper, daughter of Joseph Cooper, 
 of New Haven ; she was born, probably, April 
 11, 1721. Capt. Jonathan Ives had four sons, 
 all of whom served faithfully in the Revolu- 
 tionary war. Jeremiah Ives, son of Capt. 
 Jonathan Ives and Thankful Cooper, was born 
 in New Haven, Nov. 19, 1738 ; he married June 
 7, 1768, Hannah Bassett, born Dec. 26, 1739, 
 daughter of Abraham Bassett, of New Haven, 
 and Mehitable Street, of Wallingford. Joseph 
 Ives, son of Jeremiah Ives and Hannah Bas- 
 sett, was born in New Haven, Feb. 2, 1771 ; he 
 married Sarah Bishop, born Feb. 3, 1777 ; she 
 was a daughter of Isaac Bishop and Sarah 
 Macomber, of New Haven. Joseph Ives and 
 Sarah Bishop, as already stated, were the 
 parents of Leverett Joseph Ives. On the 25th 
 of April, 1832, he married in Perry sburg, Cat- 
 taraugus Co., N. Y., Fidelia Elvira Field, born 
 April 31, 1805, at Grass Hill, Gill, Mass. ; they 
 settled in the adjoining town of Lodi. About 
 1833, Mr. Ives removed to Hamilton, Canada, 
 West. In the spring of 1837, owing to the 
 occurrence of the Canada rebellion, being un- 
 willing to swear allegiance to the British Crown, 
 he removed to Cleveland, Ohio, and in the 
 following autumn, became a resident of Akron, 
 Ohio, where he lived twenty-three years, ac- 
 quiring there prominence as a druggist ; he 
 identified himself largely in the interests of the 
 town ; was energetic in promoting its early 
 growth, and may be truly styled one of its 
 pioneers. In 1860, he removed to Chicago, 
 
 *^ 
 
K. 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 723 
 
 111. After remaining in the "West a number of 
 years, he returned East, and died at his resi- 
 dence, in East Orange, N. J., on the 20th of Sep- 
 tember, 1876, aged 70 years and 1 da}-. He was 
 honest and upright in his dealings with men, a 
 good citizen, a kindl}' friend and neighbor ; his 
 manners were pleasing, and full of hospitality ; 
 in politics, he originally belonged to the school 
 of Whigs ; in 1848, he voted the Republican 
 ticket, and adhered thereafter firmly to the 
 Anti-Slavery party. He gave to "Old John 
 Brown, the martNT," the rifle he took to Kan- 
 sas. Prominent in the early histor}' of Akron, 
 was the wife of the subject of this sketch. 
 Fidelia Elvira Ives, daughter of Rodolphus 
 Wright Field and Hannah Dwight Hollister, of 
 Grass Hill, Grill, Mass. She traces her lineage 
 through a number of the original settlers of 
 New England, among whom may be mentioned 
 Samuel Wright, of Springfield, Mass. ; Elder 
 John Strong, of Northampton, Mass. ; Thomas 
 Ford, of Dorchester, Mass. ; Lieut. John Hollis- 
 ter and Richard Treat, both of Wethersfield, 
 Conn. ; and Zachariah Field, of Northampton, 
 Mass., grandson of John Field, of England, the 
 astronomer, who, in 1556, wrote the first astro- 
 nomical work ever published, based upon the 
 tables of the Copernican system ; through it 
 he has become known to history as the " Proto 
 Copernican " of England. Like her ancestors, 
 Fidelia E. Ives possesses energ}^, activity and 
 strength of character ; through all the years 
 of her residence in Akron, her gentleness of 
 spirit and large benevolence secured her many 
 friends. 
 
 HENRY WARD INGERSOLL, Akron, 
 Ohio. Lemi IngersoU was born in Lee, Berk- 
 shire Co., Mass., and was raised on a 
 farm. Theodosia S. Humphrey, whom he mar- 
 ried, was born at Goshen, Conn. They 
 both came, when young, with their re- 
 spective families, to this county. Six sons and 
 two daughters were the fruit of their marriage. 
 The subject of this sketch was born to them 
 Oct. 23, 1833, in Richfield Township, Sum- 
 mit Co., Ohio. When he was 2 years old, 
 his family moved to Hudson. In 1857, he 
 graduated from the Western Reserve College, 
 and at once entered upon the study of law 
 with Van R. Humphrey, of Hudson, then with 
 Wolcott and Upson, of Akron, being admitted 
 to the bar at the Supreme Court of Columbus, 
 on March 29, 1859, after which he located in 
 
 Akron, where he has practiced ever since, ex- 
 cept during the period passed in the army. He 
 enlisted in September, 1861, in the 2d 0. V. C, 
 as a member of the regimental band, serv- 
 ing in the Western campaign in the division of 
 Gen. Blount. During that and the follow- 
 ing years the regiment made an excellent rec- 
 ord. After the band was discharged by order 
 from the War Department, he enlisted at the 
 call of Gov. Brough, in 1864, in 164th Regiment, 
 Company A., 0. N. G., and served on the Po- 
 tomac, where they were garrisoned in six forts. 
 In 1862, he was commissioned by Gov. Tod, 
 Captain in the 124th 0. V. I., but owing to the 
 consolidation of the companies, he was mustered 
 out. He came again to Akron in the fall of 
 1864, and has been in continuous practice since. 
 For several years he has been a member of the 
 Council, and Recorder and Attorney for the 
 corporation. In 1863, he was a member of the 
 Council and took the census and prepared the 
 necessary papers and obtained from the Secre- 
 tary- of State, the present charter as a city 
 of the second class. For many years he has 
 been chorister of the Congregational Church. 
 June 6, 1866, he married Miss Sarah H. Board- 
 man, of Newton Falls ; there are two children 
 living. 
 
 JAMES IRVIN, deceased ; was born in 
 Center Co., Penn., May 29, 1806. His father was 
 a farmer, and he was raised to the same busi- 
 ness. He came to Ohio about the year 1 838, and 
 located in Middlebury, at that time one of the 
 most energetic business places on the Reserve. 
 He here formed a partnership with Mr. John 
 Johnson, and did a general merchandise busi- 
 ness for a number of years, when Mr. Irvin re- 
 tired, and so lived until his death, Sept. 4, 1863. 
 He married Nov. 2, 1842, to Miss Martha Clark, 
 a native of Springfield Township, Summit Co., 
 and a daughter of Wm. L. and Sarah (De 
 Haven) Clark. Mrs. Irvin is living still on the 
 old homestead, in Middlebury, where so many 
 years of her life have been passed ; she has no 
 children. Her father, William L. Clark, was a 
 native of Union Co., Penn. 
 
 DANIEL A. JAMES, Akron ; youngest 
 son of Daniel and Mary (Pells) James, was born 
 in Paris Township, Portage Co., Ohio, Oct. 13, 
 1846. His father was a native of Wales, and 
 died in Portage Co., Ohio, in 1846 ; his mother 
 was a native of New York State. He learned 
 cabinet-making in Ravenna, Ohio ; in 1866, he 
 
 :r^ 
 
Mi 
 
 734 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 came to Akron, and worked for Miller, Thomas 
 & Co., until 1875, when he started a manufact- 
 ory of office and churcli furniture and interior 
 decorations, which business he has carried on 
 since with fair success ; in 1876, he located at 
 218 West Market street, employing five skilled 
 workmen constantl}' ; he experiences a stead}' 
 growth of business. He is the youngest of 
 sixteen children, of whom but five are living. 
 In February, 1879, he married Louisa Thomas, 
 daughter of George Thomas, of Akron. 
 
 M. JP]WETT, physician, Middlebury ; is a 
 native of Massachusetts ; he was born in Grreen- 
 wich, Sept. 4, 1815. He came to Ohio in the 
 year 1836, and located at Hudson, where he 
 read medicine with Drs. Noble and Town ; in 
 1839, he began practice at Mogadore, and the 
 years 1850 and 1851 he spent in California, 
 after which he returned to Ohio, and during the 
 winters of 1855-56 and 1856-57, he represented 
 Summit County in the State Legislature. In 
 1858, he removed to Middlebury, where he has 
 since practiced his profession. The Doctor 
 attended lectures at Willoughby, Ohio, and 
 graduated from that college after its re- 
 moval to Cleveland. Now 66 years of age, 
 he is one of the oldest practitioners in the 
 county ; he has been associated in practice 
 with Dr. Ferguson (a former student), of Moga- 
 dore, Drs. L. S. Esbright and S. T. OdelCof 
 Akron, and at the present time with Drs. C. C. 
 Davison and F. W. Reed. Having a great love 
 for horticultural matters, he has given his leis- 
 ure moments to the management of a small 
 farm, and has now in bearing the largest peach 
 orchard in the count}-, besides a great variety 
 of other fruits, the care of which afford an ap- 
 preciated recreation. 
 
 DR. W. C. JACOBS, 605 High street, 
 Akron, is a native of Lima, Ohio, where he 
 was born Feb. 26, 1840. His parents, T. K. 
 and Ann (Elder) Jacobs, were natives of Juni- 
 ata Co., Penn., whence they came, in 1836, 
 to Ashland, moving two years later to Ijima, 
 where they have since lived. His father was 
 a tailor by trade, though turning his atten- 
 tion to farming in the « new country, and was 
 one of the early pioneers of the latter place. 
 Dr. Jacobs, the fourth in a family of nine chil- 
 dren, spent his early years on the farm and in 
 the village until the age of 16. when he received 
 an appointment to the National Naval School 
 at Annapolis, Md. He resigned in 1859, and 
 
 began the study of medicine in Cincinnati with 
 Dr. William Carson, graduating in 1862, at the 
 Ohio Medical College in that city. In April, 
 1862, he was appointed Assistant Surgeon in 
 the 4th 0. V. C, and served with the regiment 
 until December, 1862, when he was promoted 
 to the position of Surgeon and assigned to the 
 81st 0. V. I., with which he served until the end 
 of the war. During the Atlanta campaign, he 
 served on the Operating Board of the Second 
 Division, Sixteenth Army Corps. October, 
 1865, he came to Akron, where he has since 
 practiced his profession. He is a member of 
 the Summit County Medical Societv, of the 
 Union Medical Society of Northeastern Ohio, 
 of the State Medical Society, and of the Ameri- 
 can Medical Association. Of the second named 
 societ}' Dr. Jacobs was the first Secretary, and 
 has held offices in other of the societies. Sep- 
 tember 10, 1863, he married Miss Huldah M. 
 Hill, a native of Knox Co., Ohio. Her father, 
 Luther Hill, was a native of New York, and 
 settled with his parents in Richland Co., Ohio, 
 in 1811. Dr. Jacobs has one child — Herald L. 
 
 TIMOTHY S. JONES, of the firm of Jones, 
 Wait & Co.. potters, Middlebury, was born in 
 Venango Co., Penn., April 22, 1829. His father, 
 Alpheus Jones, was a blacksmith. At the age 
 of 16, our subject began the potter's trade, and 
 worked at same for five years. He then went 
 to Tionesta, Penn.. where he was lumbering 
 until 1855. In this year he came to Ohio and 
 settled in Middlebury', working for three 3'ears 
 in the Sewer Pipe Company. He then worked 
 as a potter one year, when, in company with 
 Harvey Baldwin, he opened a pottery, which 
 they coiiducted a number of years, when he sold 
 his interest and worked at his trade as a hand. 
 In November, 1880, the present company of 
 Jones, Wait & Co. was formed. They have 
 liberal facilities for making all kinds of stone- 
 ware, and will add double their present capacity 
 during Uie summer. April 25, 1842, he mar- 
 ried Miss Martha H. Watson, a native of Ve- 
 nango Co., Penn. Of their seven children, four 
 are living, viz., Sarah, now Mrs. D. C. Allen, of 
 Middlebury ; Onna, now Mrs. C. M. Wait ; Ada 
 H., now Mrs. H. Akers ; and Wilburn L., the 
 latter and Mr. Wait Akers and T. S. Jones 
 forming the company. 
 
 PARK B. JOHNSTON, Akron, is a native 
 of Middlebury (now Sixth Ward of Akron). He 
 was born Sept. 23, 1846, and is fifth in a family 
 
 :^" 
 
iL. 
 
 CITT OF AKROX. 
 
 725 
 
 of ten children born to John and Elizabeth R. 
 (Newton) Johnston. Our subject lived at home 
 until the year 18G5, when he took a position as 
 clerk in the Post Office Department at Wash- 
 ington, D. C, where he remained until 1871. 
 He then returned to Akron and took the posi-. 
 tion of Deputy Auditor, which office he held 
 until November, 1880. Oct. 16, 1878, he mar- 
 ried Miss Lois Caruthers, a daughter of Perry 
 C and Cj'nthia Clark Caruthers, of Tallmadge 
 Township. By the marriage there is one child, 
 viz., Ethel Lois Johnston. 
 
 MRS. ELIZA KENT, Middleoury (Sixth 
 Ward), is the widow of Roswell Kent. He was 
 born in Leyden, Mass., May 18, 1798, and was 
 a son of Zenas and Ann (Plumb) Kent, who 
 were natives of Massachusetts. They removed 
 to Ohio about the year 1812, and settled in 
 Hudson, where he followed his trade of carpenter 
 and joiner. He soon after settled on a farm in 
 Portage Co., and lived in that vicinity until his 
 death, which occurred in 1824. Mrs. Kent 
 lived with her son Roswell until her death, 
 which occurred in Middlebury about the 3'ear 
 1838. Roswell Kent lived at home until some 
 time after attaining his majority. His educa- 
 tional advantages were limited. When he be- 
 came of age, he went to Ravenna, where he 
 clerked in his brother's store. About 1820, he 
 came to Middlebury to establish a business for 
 his brother and 3Ir. Oviatt, and about the j-ear 
 1826 he bought the establishment, continuing 
 in the business for a number of years. He then 
 engaged in the manufacture of woolen machin- 
 ery and later in the manufacture of sewer-pipe, 
 which he followed until his death, which occurred 
 July 19, 1871. He was married to Miss Eliza 
 Hart, who was born August 6, 1808, in Middle- 
 bury, and was the first white child born there, 
 and the third in Tallmadge Township. She was 
 the seventh child in a family of eight children 
 of Joseph and Annie (Hotchkiss) Hart. He 
 was a native of Nova Scotia, and at the age of 
 12 years went to sea, being a sailor for a num- 
 ber of years, and finally became captain of a 
 vessel. His wife was a native of New Haven, 
 Conn. In 1804-5, they came to Ohio and 
 stopped at Deerfield, and in April, 1808, came 
 to Tallmadge Township, where the same year 
 they erected a saw and griet mill. He died 
 about the year 1830. Mrs. Hart lived in this 
 vicinit}' with her son William until her death. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Kent had seven children, of whom 
 
 but three are living — Ella K., now Mrs. Finley 
 McNaughton, of Akron ; Russell H., of the Ak- 
 ron Stone Ware Company, of Middlebur}', and 
 Flora K., now Mrs. T. S. Paige. 
 
 DAVID L. KING, manufacturer, Akron ; 
 was born in Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, Dec. 
 24, 1825. He was the third son of a family of 
 eight children born to Leicester and Julia Ann 
 (Huntington) King, both natives of New En 
 gland. Mr. King's father commenced business 
 as a merchant in Westfield, Mass., but, in 1817, 
 desiring to establish himself in business at 
 Natchez, Miss., he came West, spending some 
 weeks in Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio. He pro- 
 ceeded to his destination, where, although the 
 prospect of success was ver}" bright, he could 
 not reconcile himself to the thought of rearing 
 his famil}' under the degrading influences of 
 slaver}'. He finall}^ abandoned his scheme, and 
 returned to New York b}- vessel, narrowly 
 escaping death from the 3'ellow fever on the 
 voyage. The same year, he removed to War- 
 ren, Ohio, and engaged in a successful mercan- 
 tile business until 1833, when he became inter- 
 ested in the land upon which Akron is built. 
 He served one term as Associate Judge, and 
 subsequent!}' represented the Trumbull County 
 District in the State Senate for two terms, from 
 1835 to 1839. He became an ardent opponent 
 of the institution of slaverj, and afterward 
 allied himself with the Liberty party, refusing 
 the most flattering offers of advancement from 
 the Whigs, in obedience to his convictions upon 
 the question of slavery. He was the nominee 
 of this party for Governor in 1844, and of the 
 Free-Soil party for Vice President in 1847. 
 though he subsequently declined, and gave his 
 support to Mai'tin Van Buren. He died Sept. 
 19, 1856, just as the principles for which he 
 had labored were made the foundation of that 
 great political party which has carried them on 
 to such glorious fruition. The subject of this 
 sketch, David L. King, graduated at an early 
 age at Harvard College, and removed to Akron 
 in 1846, where he at once entered upon the 
 study of law in the office of King & Taylor. 
 He was admitted to the bar in Cleveland in 
 1848, and, in 1851, established his residence 
 there, practicing his profession with success 
 until 1856, when he returned to Akron. 
 Here, in 1867, he abandoned his profession and 
 accepting the offices of Secretary and Treas- 
 urer in the Akron Sewer Pipe Co., the largest 
 
 \ 
 
^'. 
 
 726 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 institution of the kind in the world, he engaged 
 in the manufacture of " vitrified sewer pipe." 
 Since that time, this constantl}' increasing busi- 
 ness has absorbed his wliole attention, liapid 
 success followed his management of this com- 
 pany, the product of which in the past year 
 reached the amount of $400,000. The com- 
 pletion of the Atlantic & Great Western Rail- 
 way, in 1864, gave a great impetus to the 
 manufacturing interests of Akron, and to Mr. 
 King's intelligent activity and financial ability 
 is largely due the advanced position as a manu- 
 facturing point of which Akron is justly proud. 
 All enterprises for the promotion of the city's 
 growth have found in Mr. King a liberal sup- 
 porter and a capable worker. He was promi- 
 nent in securing the extension of the Baltimore 
 & Ohio Railroad, and, in 1871, was elected Pres- 
 ident of the Valley Railroad, the establishing 
 of which he did so much to secure. At 
 the death of his father, Mr. King assumed 
 the management of the large landed estate 
 which his father owned in company with Gen. 
 Simon Perkins, pursuing a policy in the dis- 
 posal of these lands which materially aided the 
 interests of the growing city. A member of 
 St. Paul's Episcopal Church, and for fourteen 
 years an active Superintendent of its Sunday 
 school, he has ever been found a prominent 
 worker in all charitable and benevolent enter- 
 prises. He is known throughout the com- 
 munity as an indefatigable worker, and is highly 
 esteemed. He was married, May 1, 1849, to 
 Miss Bettie Washington Steele, of Charleston, 
 Va., a grand-neice of Gen. Washington. Of this 
 union were born Ellen Lewis, Bettie Steele, 
 Howell Steele, Susan Huntington and Martha 
 Perkins King, all of whom are living except 
 Ellen Lewis, who was married, Jan. 19, 1870, to 
 David R. Paige, of Akron, and died Dec. 20, 
 1878, leaving two sons, Charles Cutler, born 
 Nov. 25, 1870, and David King, born May 20, 
 1872. The second daughter, Bettie Steele, was 
 married, Dec. 10, 1873, to John Gilbert Ray- 
 mond, of Akron, and has one child, Harrv 
 King, born April 29, 1877. 
 
 FRANK J. KNAPP, manufacturer of stone- 
 ware, Akron, is a native of Baden, Germany. 
 His parents, John and Barbara (Schneider) 
 Knapp, came to Amei'ica in 1847 and settled at 
 Pittsburgh, going thence to Minnesota, and, in 
 1850, to Akron. His father was a stone-mason 
 and followed the trade in this country ; he died 
 
 about 1867 ; his wife died three years previous. 
 Frank J. was born in Germany June 4, 1840 ; 
 he came to this country with his parents, with 
 whom he lived until he was about 22 3'ears of 
 age. At the age of 13, he was apprenticed to 
 the potter's trade, and six jears later, he was 
 conducting his own shop ; entering his wares 
 at an agricultural fair, he secured the first 
 premium over five competitors. He has been 
 conducting the business here ever since, save 
 for eight years, during three of which he was 
 engaged at the business in Stark County, and 
 later, worked five years with Johnson & Bald- 
 win, in the Sixth Ward. He started his pres- 
 ent business in 1868 or 1869, which has grown 
 until he now employs about thirty hands and 
 from four to six teams, turning out from 12,000 
 to 15,000 gallons per week. His business is 
 done entirely upon orders, although he employs 
 no agents. In 1862, he married Miss Louisa 
 Hines, of Coventry, Summit Co., Ohio, and by 
 her had three children, two of whom are now 
 living — Mary and Emma. In the fall of 1878, 
 he married Miss Katie Strumk, of Wadsworth, 
 Medina Co., Ohio. 
 
 REUBEN N. KRATZ, book-keeper, Akron ; 
 was born in Milton Township, Wayne Co.. Ohio, 
 July 2, 1845 ; at 18 he began teaching, having 
 received a good high-school education at Smith- 
 ville. Until 1870, he taught in Medina, Sum- 
 mit and Wayne Counties. In 1871, he went to 
 Pentwater. Mich., where, for two years, he had 
 charge of the Union schools. In 1873, he 
 came to Akron, and, in August of the same 
 year, was married to Miss Amanda Miller, 
 daughter of Charles Miller, of Akron ; she 
 bore him two sons ; one is deceased. He en- 
 tered the employ of Mr. Miller, having charge 
 of the shops and lumber yards ; finally, the 
 firm was changed to Miller & Kratz. In 1877, 
 he became a partner with Harvey F. Miller, 
 continuing one year, followed by a year of 
 teaching in the public school, since which time 
 he has been book-keeper for D. W. Thomas. 
 His mother was a native of Bucks Co., Penn., 
 and his father, Jacob Kratz, was of German 
 descent, also a native of Bucks Co., Penn., 
 where he engaged in farming ; he came to 
 Wajaie Co., Ohio, in 1838, and resided on a 
 farm there until his death in 1872, leaving a 
 family of five sons and one daughter, all now 
 living, viz. : Samuel, a farmer in Wayne Count}' ; 
 Maria, wife of J. C. Stiner, of same count}^ ; 
 
 ^ 
 
 vS) 
 
CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 727 
 
 Reuben N. (subject) ; Henry E., of Bucyrus, 
 Ohio ; Jacob L., farmer at Salt River, Mich., 
 and Lee Gr., a student in the Cincinnati Con- 
 servatory of Music. Reuben N. Kratz is a 
 member of the English Lutheran Church, and 
 Superintendent of the Sabbath school. 
 
 J. A. KOHLER, lawyer, Akron, Ohio ; is a 
 son of Henry Kohler, and was born Aug. 15, 
 1835, in Franklin Township, in this county. He 
 received his education at the public schools of 
 the neighborhood, and at 18, went to the Lodi 
 Academy. In 1853, he came to Akron, where 
 he apprenticed himself to one Sanford for four 
 years, and then began the study of law with N. 
 W. Groodhue, and was admitted to the bar in 
 1859 ; elected Prosecuting Attorney two terms, 
 beginning in 1868 and continuing to 1872 ; 
 practiced with Hon. Sidney Edgerton for a num- 
 ber of years, and since 1881, in firm of Kohler 
 & Saddler. He was married in May, 186U, to 
 Miss Frances Coburn, daughter of Dr. Coburn, 
 of Akron. The}' have two children — Burt and 
 George. Subject's grandfather came from Hol- 
 land, and settled in Berks Co., Penn., at begin- 
 ning of 19th century. He was born about 1788, 
 and was a soldier in the war of 1812 ; he came 
 to Franklin Township, this county, about 1836, 
 where he lived until his death in 1843. 
 
 RICHARD H. KNIGHT, publisher of Akron 
 City Times, Akron, Ohio ; is the second son in 
 a family of seven children born to Jonathan 
 and Deborah (Barber) Knight, Connecticut. 
 The father was of English descent, but was 
 born in Norwich, Conn., where he followed 
 farming until 1832, when he came to Ohio and 
 settled at Ridgeville, and resided there until his 
 death. He had three sons and four daughters ; 
 five children still living. Richard H. (subject) 
 was born Nov. 11, 1813, in Litchfield Co., Conn., 
 and came with his father's family to Ridgeville 
 as above (in 1832) and followed farming and 
 stone-cutting in Lorain Co. for fourteen years, 
 and then moved to Dover, Cuyahoga Co., where 
 he lived until 1873. He owned a farm there, 
 on which was a stone quariy, and he worked in 
 the various departments of stone-work at Ely- 
 ria, and on the Cleveland, Columbus & Cin- 
 cinnati R. R. In 1873, he removed to Akron, 
 and purchased the Akron Cif>/ Times, and has 
 devoted himself to the business management of 
 it since. He was married Dec. 31, 1837, to ]Miss 
 Emma Beebe, of Ridgeville, Ohio. They have 
 three children, viz.: Eber H., carpenter, at 
 
 Grand Rapids, Mich. ; Ellen, a teacher at Cu}-- 
 ahoga Falls, Ohio, and Clarence R., editor of 
 the x\kron Citi/ Times, who was born at Dover, 
 Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, Aug. 9, 1850. He (Clar- 
 ence R.) entered Lombard University, at Gales- 
 burg, 111., at the age of 17 years, for four years, 
 and in 1871-72 was in the Ohio Wesleyan 
 University, at Delaware, Ohio. Came to Akron 
 in 1872, and at the opening of Buchtel College, 
 matriculated and finished the course in 1873; 
 when in the December following he took charge 
 of the editorial department of the Times, which 
 position he has since retained. 
 
 ARZA KELLOGG, retired, Akron. The 
 birthplace of our subject was in Addison Co., 
 N. Y. His parents were David and Christiana 
 (Traver) Kellogg. From the date of his birth, 
 which was Feb. 11, 1799. he lived there for 
 thirty-five years, attending school in his boy- 
 hood, and acquiring a thorough common-school 
 education. When he attained his majority, he 
 began to fight his own life-battles, and farmed 
 at that place until 1834, when he discontinued 
 the vocation, and, with a good team, started for 
 Akron, which place he reached in September. 
 For several years he engaged in teaming, but 
 when, in 1848, the "gold fever " reached Akron, 
 he grew discontented, and, in the spring of the 
 following year, he, in company with fifteen oth- 
 ers, driving thi'ee six-horse teams, traversed 
 the overland route, arriving at Sacramento in 
 August, which was five months from the time 
 of his leaving Akron. There he engaged in the 
 dairy and gardening business, within two miles 
 of Sacramento, on the river, all the products 
 selling for high prices ; this he followed with 
 good success for four years, at the end of which 
 time he returned to Akron. It was in the spring 
 of 1854 that he bought his present place, on 
 Maple street, the lot consisting of 5:^ acres. In 
 1856, he was employed as Sexton of the Akron 
 Rural Cemeter3% which place he held for twelve 
 years, since which time he has farmed land 
 which he owned here. In 1874, he was ap- 
 pointed Superintendent of the Akron Cold 
 Spring Co., and is one of its principal stock- 
 holders. In March, 1825, he married Miss 
 Polly Marshall, of Starksboro, Vt., from which 
 union one child was the issue, whom the}' 
 named Julia 0., and who died at Akron in her 
 19th year. His wife, Polly, is a granddaughter 
 of Rev. Joseph Marshall, a noted and eccentric 
 clergyman of Starksboro, Vt. 
 
 -"^ — ©pv ^ 
 
^ 
 
 728 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 SAMUEL A. LANE, Mayor of Akron, and 
 whose portrait appears in this work, was born 
 in Suffleld, Hartford Co., Conn., June 29, 1815. 
 His father, Mr. Comfort Lane, commonly called 
 b}' his townsmen " Judge Lane," beside culti- 
 vating a small farm, carried on quite an exten- 
 sive carriage building establishment, his spe- 
 cialty being the old fashioned, ante-railroad, 
 thorough-brace stage coach ; " Judge " Lane 
 was also something of an inventor, and beside 
 fabricating a number of labor-saving devices 
 for facilitating his own business, was the 
 inventor of a cotton-picking machine called the 
 " Suffield cotton gin," that, when perfected, he 
 expected, would rival if not entirely super- 
 sede the celebrated Whitne}' cotton gin, then 
 and ever since mainly used by the cotton 
 planters of the United States. The letters 
 patent, on parchment, for this machine, bearing 
 the autograph signatures of John Quincy Ad- 
 ams, Pi-esident, Henry Cla}', Secretary of State, 
 and William Wirt. Attorne}- General, and the 
 great seal of the United States, under date of 
 March 24, 1825, are still in the possession of 
 the subject of this sketch. Mr Lane, the father, 
 d3'ing before successfull}' introducing his ma- 
 chine to the public, it was never utilized, and 
 the expenses incurred in its invention, construc- 
 tion, patenting, etc., were of course a dead loss. 
 The boyhood of "Lant," as he was familiarly 
 called, was about equally divided between the 
 district school, the farm, and the painting room 
 of the, carriage-shop, it being the intention of 
 his father to bring him up to the trade of a 
 carriage painter — his next elder brother, Henry 
 Leander, being designed by the provident 
 father to be a wood- workman in the same line 
 of business. The death of the father, however, 
 Sept. 20, 1828, when Alanson was but 13 years 
 old, thwarted this plan so far as he was con- 
 cerned, though the brother, who had already 
 been at work a year or so as an apprentice to 
 the trade, was enabled to secure a situation in 
 the then celebrated establishment of George & 
 Henry Francis, in Hartford, and complete his 
 trade. The condition of the deceased father's 
 affairs was such, on settlement of the estate, 
 that it became necessar}^ for the sons old 
 enough to do so to win their own bi-ead. B}- 
 working for the neighboring farmers in summer 
 and doing chores for his board while attending 
 school winters, Alanson was not only able to 
 provide for himself but also to contribute 
 
 something toward the replenishment of the 
 famil}^ larder until the spring of 1831, when, by 
 an arrangement made for him by his eldest 
 brother. Comfort U. Lane, who had been for sev- 
 eral years a clerk in the store of Owen & Hurl- 
 but, extensive paper manufacturers in the village 
 of South Lee, Berkshire Co., Mass., he entered 
 the adjoining store of Mr. Billings Brown, 
 quite an extensive mill owner in the same vil- 
 lage — the distance from Suffield to South Lee 
 being about fifty miles. Commencing with Mr. 
 Brown May 1, 1831, being then not quite 16 
 years old, the relations of the merchant and his 
 clerk were of the most friendly and confiden- 
 tial character for a year and a half, when Mr. 
 Brown, b}- reason of his other more important 
 interests, substantially abandoned his mercan- 
 tile business, and, in the fall of 1832, 3'oung 
 Lane's clerkship was transferred to the store of 
 Mr. Austin Ha3'den, in the more important vil- 
 lage of Pittsfield, in the same county. Here 
 he remained until the spring of 1833, when, on 
 visiting home (after an absence of just two 
 years, during which time he had outgrown the 
 knowledge of his-most intimate acquaintances), 
 he entered into an arrangement with a Hart- 
 ford book publisher to canvass Merrimack Co., 
 in the State of New Hampshire, for Goodrich's 
 History of the United States. Simultaneously 
 with his arrival at Concord, the count}- seat of 
 Merrimack Co. and the capital of the State, was 
 the arrival of Gen. Andrew" Jackson, President 
 of the LTnited States, who, with his Cabinet, was 
 at that time making a grand triumphal tour 
 through New England. The military and civic 
 display on that occasion was probably greater 
 than was ever witnessed in that State, either be- 
 fore or since, and though the embryo book agent 
 was obliged to sleep for two consecutive nights 
 in a stage coach in the stable yard of the hotel 
 where he had intended to stop, he laughingly 
 remarks that he has always felt gratified at the 
 honors then and there paid to //«'?» and "Old 
 Hickor}-." Though his father had been a stanch 
 Democrat before him, the sight of the old hero 
 and the "pomp and circumstance" of that oc- 
 casion, probably had a tendency to confirm 
 young Lane in his Democratic proclivities, and 
 in making him, for many 3'ears after attaining 
 his majority, an active member of the Demo- 
 cratic partj'. The display' over, the canvassing 
 business was vigorously proceeded with, every 
 family and business establishment in the cit}' 
 
liL 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 729 
 
 and county being visited, and the work so sat- 
 isfactorily done, that on his return to Hartford, 
 thougli then but a little over 17 years old, he 
 was detailed to do similar work in Georgia and 
 South Carolina, with his headquarters at Au- 
 gusta. Arriving at his destination in January, 
 1834, the principal towns in the river counties 
 above that point, in both States, were canvassed 
 during the winter, spring and early summer, 
 and a good portion of the books delivered. A 
 hitch in the receipt of books from the North 
 occurring, in the latter part of the summer, 
 young Lane entered the office of the South- 
 ern Spy, an anti-nullification or radical Union 
 paper, as assistant editor and general helper, in 
 the village of Washington, Wilkes Co., Ga., 
 then and for many years afterward the home of 
 the since notorious Southern politician and 
 rebel General, " Bob " Toombs. At the close 
 of the election campaign, in October, 18.34, in 
 which the Unionists of Wilkes Co. were tri- 
 umphant over the Nullifiers for the first time in 
 several years, and having closed his canvassing 
 matters, young Lane, with a view of resuming 
 mercantile operations somewhere in the South, 
 visited Mobile and New Orleans, in both of 
 which cities, in January, 1835, he made a dili- 
 gent effort to obtain a clerkship, but being a 
 stranger, and there being at least twenty appli- 
 cants to each vacancy, he was unsuccessful, and 
 concluded to return North. Leaving New Or- 
 leans by steamer, and making short stops — 
 at Louisville, Cincinnati and Columbus — he 
 reached Cleveland about the 1st of March, 
 whence he proceeded directly to Aurora, in 
 Portage Co., where an aunt and other ac- 
 quaintances from Connecticut resided. After a 
 somewhat prolonged visit among his Aurora 
 friends, and a short time spent at Ravenna, the 
 county seat of Portage Co., he wended his way 
 to the then new village of " Cascade," now the 
 busiest portion of the city of Akron, taking 
 up his abode at the "Pavillion House," kept b}' 
 Mr. Charles B. Cobb, now residing on his mag- 
 nificent farm just west of the city limits. This 
 hotel stood on the northwest corner of Howard 
 and Market streets, where the fine brick block 
 of Dr. E. W. Howard and Edward Oviatt, Esq., 
 now stands. Being now rather short in funds — 
 in fact, substantially "dead broke " — our young 
 adventurer was glad to avail himself of Mr. 
 Cobb's offer to let him work for his board — 
 clerking, tending bar, waiting on guests, etc. — 
 
 until something more favorable should " turn 
 up." This was on the 10th day of June, 1835, 
 and nineteen days before he had attained his 
 20th birthday. Mercantile clerkships being 
 less plenty than aspirants therefor, and no eli- 
 gible situation presenting itself, our impecunious 
 young friend continued to mix whisk}' toddies 
 and perform the multifarious duties of a village 
 hotel tapster for about two months, when he 
 was offered and accepted a temporary situation 
 in the shop of a house and sign painter by the 
 name of Burt, as a sort of half-apprentice, half- 
 journeyman, at ver}' low wages, and to board 
 in the family of his employer — the very first 
 jobs assigned to him being some ornamental 
 work be3'ond the skill and capacity of his em- 
 ployer and so-called instructor. Applying him- 
 self diligentl}' to the business in hand, with his 
 natural taste for designing, lettering, etc., and 
 his youthful experience in and about his 
 father's carriage-shop, he was in three months 
 the peer of his employer in all branches of the 
 business carried on, and, in some, his superior. 
 This arrangement continued until about the 1st 
 of December, 1835, when work substantial!}^ 
 closing down for the winter, our young " artist " 
 returned to his old quarters at the Pavilion. 
 Shortly afterward, however, he was offered and 
 accepted the position of " pedagogue," in 
 School District No. 7, Portage Township, about 
 a mile and a half west of Akron, on the Medina 
 road. Though not liberally educated, having 
 graduated from the district school of his native 
 town at the age of 15 years, and though several 
 of his scholars were older than himself, and 
 one or two in some branches greatly his supe- 
 riors, he managed to get creditably through 
 his term of three months, or at all events to 
 draw, if not earn, the munificent salar}' which 
 the Trustees had stipulated to pay him, to wit : 
 %11 a month and hoard 'round. In tlie spring 
 of 1836, yielding to his natural tastes in that 
 direction, his dire necessities, and the encour- 
 agement of his friends, Mr. Lane, then not 
 quite of age, rented a shop and started in busi- 
 ness on his "own hook," as a full-fledged 
 " house, sign and ornamental painter," soon at- 
 taining, and for many years maintaining, a fair 
 standing in that profession. 
 
 In Septembei-, 1837, while successfully pursu- 
 ing his chosen avocation as a painter, availing 
 himself of the slight knowledge of the printing 
 business and journalism acquired in the office 
 
 ^ 
 
730 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 of the Southern Spy, and taking an active interest 
 in the reformatory measures then being inau- 
 gurated for ridding the village of certain profes- 
 sional gamblers and other disreputable charac- 
 ters, Mr. Lane commenced, and for a year and 
 half maintained, the publication of a small 
 semi-monthly paper, under the unique title of 
 the Akron Buzzard, a more extended history 
 of which will be found under the head of the 
 " Press of Summit County," Mr. L., however, 
 continuing his painting business without inter- 
 ruption. November, 11, 1838, Mr. Lane then 
 23 years old, was married to Miss Paulina Pot- 
 ter, of Castleton, Ontario Co., N. Y., the foster- 
 sister of Mr. Paris Tallman, now living in 
 happy retirement from active business, at No. 
 803 East Market street. A few days later, Mr. 
 Henry L. Lane, the carriage builder heretofore 
 spoken of, arrived in Akron from Connecticut, 
 with the view of establishing himself in busi- 
 ness here, and at the earnest solicitation of the 
 brother, and to alla}^ the fears of his young 
 wife for his personal safet}^, by reason of his 
 fearlessly exposing the disreputable charac- 
 ters and practices of the village, combined 
 with other causes, in March, 1839, the Buz- 
 zard was discontinued, and a copartnership 
 was formed between the two brothers, under 
 the firm name of H. L. & S. A. Lane, for the 
 purpose of carrying on a general carriage mak- 
 ing and painting business. Shops were erected 
 on the site now occupied by the brick black- 
 smith-shop of James A. Moody, on South Main 
 street. Though quite limited in means, every- 
 thing in those days having to be done on the 
 " truck and dicker " principle, a fair business 
 was being done, when, on the 20th day of July, 
 1841, the elder brother, Henry L. Lane, sud- 
 denly died, about two months, only, after his 
 marriage to Miss Sarah Hovey, of Granville, 
 Ohio. The surviving junior partner continued 
 the business, though to great disadvantage, by 
 reason of his non-acquaintance with the main 
 branches thereof, until the close of that year, 
 when he associated with himself an old gradu- 
 ate of his father's establishment, lately arrived 
 from Connecticut, Mr. Jonathan Remington, 
 the father of Mr. 0. H. Remington, the jeweler 
 now doing business on Howard street. The 
 new firm of Lane & Remington continued in 
 operation about two years, when the concern 
 was sold to other parties. Too close applica- 
 tion to his own branch of the business (paint- 
 
 ing) having by this time very materially im- 
 paired Mr. Lane's health, and having meantime 
 also become deeply interested in the success of 
 the Washingtonian Temperance Reform, then 
 agitating the country, in the spring of 1844, 
 Mr. Lane again embarked in the newspaper 
 business, in connection with Mr. William T. 
 Coggeshall, as detailed elsewhere, reviving the 
 Buzzard as a temperance organ, but soon 
 changing its name to the Cascade Roarer, which 
 was continued with a fair degree of success for 
 something over two years, Mr. Lane leaving 
 to his partner the general conduct of the office, 
 and devoting most of his own time to lecturing, 
 canvassing for subscribers to the paper, corres- 
 pondence, etc. One novel feature adopted by 
 Mr. Lane, as a lecturer, was to take the other 
 side, i. e., traveling in connection with another 
 lecturer, and discussing the question pro and 
 con, Mr. Lane using the same arguments in favor 
 of drinking, selling, etc., usually urged by 
 drinkers and venders, and by carrying them out 
 to their legitimate results, with the introduction 
 of ludicrous illustrations to show that the use 
 of intoxicating liquors, instead of shortening, 
 prolongs life ; instead of poverty, brings riches ; 
 instead of sorrow, happiness, etc., often produ- 
 cing a greater impression upon the minds of 
 those addicted to their cups, and those engaged 
 in the traffic, than the most eloquent straight- 
 forward lecturing could possibly do, the " dis- 
 cussions," unlike the regulation temperance lect- 
 ure, calling out the very classes sought to be 
 reformed and benefited. On the discontinuance 
 of the Cascade Roarer, in the fall of 1846. Mr 
 Lane continued to occupy the lecture field, for 
 the most part, until the fall of 1847, when, with 
 improved health, he again embarked in the 
 painting business, assiduously devoting himself 
 thereto until the spring of 1850, so closely, in 
 fact, that during the previous j-ear a serious re- 
 lapse of his old malady — a sort of paralysis of 
 the stomach, or an aggravated form of dyspepsia 
 — had substantially unfitted him for that or any 
 other active business. With the view of bet- 
 tering his physical as well as his financial con- 
 dition, with some 200 other Summit Co. men, 
 he started overland for California on the 14th 
 day of March, 1850, and though many of his 
 friends believed that, in the pi'ecarious condi- 
 tion of his health, he would never live to reach 
 the Pacific Coast ; and though the journey was 
 very hazardous and fatiguing, he not only got 
 
 
•k* 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 731 
 
 safely through, but heavier by thirt3'-two 
 pounds than when he left Akron, and six pounds 
 heavier than ever before in his life ; a condition 
 of things — thanks to the pure air, vigorous ex- 
 ercise and coarse food of the plains and mount- 
 ains, and the salubrious climate of California — 
 more than maintained during his entii-e two 
 years sojourn upon the Pacific Coast. Arriving 
 at Placerville, the first town entered in Califor- 
 nia, August 4, ] 850, after a day or two spent 
 among the mines, and a stop of one day at Sac- 
 ramento, Mr. Lane proceeded immediately to San 
 Francisco, where he remained during his stay in 
 California, making his rooms the general head- 
 quarters of Summit Co. gold-seekers visiting 
 the city, whether en route for home or on their 
 wa}' to the mines via the Isthmus route ; also 
 acting as the regular semi-monthly correspond- 
 ent of both the Beacon and the Democratic 
 Standard, in keeping the " loved ones at home " 
 posted as to the movements of their friends in 
 the mines and other portions of California — a 
 service very greatly appreciated by the people 
 of Akron and Summit Co. 
 
 On reaching San Francisco, a few days were 
 spent in " prospecting," and finding nothing bet- 
 ter suited to his tastes or his finances, Mr. Lane, 
 having thoroughly regained his health and 
 3'outhful vigor, then being 35 j-ears of age, 
 again embarked in the painting business, rent- 
 ing a small second floor room for a shop, and 
 earning with his own hand over and above his 
 board and expenses, about $200 per month. At 
 that time, Mr. James G. Dow, a former Akron 
 merchant, one of the " Forty-niners," was en- 
 gaged in the retail auction business, which was 
 netting him about $3,000 per month. In Octo- 
 ber, Mr. Dow disposed of his stock of goods, 
 with the view of spending the winter with his 
 family in Massachusetts. Before leaving, Mr. 
 Dow advised Mr. Lane and Mr. Charles G. Cald- 
 well, also a " Forty-niner," and an Akron boy, 
 then operating a small " ranch " — growing milk, 
 butter, eggs, etc. — at Sacramento, to embark in 
 the auction business, in which he had done so 
 well, offering to lease to them for six months a 
 building owned b}- him, on the corner of Jack- 
 son and Montgomery streets, for which he was 
 then receiving $800 per month in rents, for 
 $600 per month, $350 of which was to be paid 
 monthly in advance to the land-owner, the re- 
 maining $250 to remain in their hands until 
 his return in the spring. The plan appearing 
 
 perfectly feasible, Mr. Lane added his little 
 " pile " of about $600 to the Mr. Caldwell's cash 
 surplus of about $1,400. the firm of Lane & 
 Caldwell borrowing $1,000 from a mutual 
 friend, and with a cash capital of a little over 
 $3,000, " sailed in," Mr. Dow aiding them in 
 the purchase of their goods and in getting 
 started. The " grand opening " took place Dec. 
 1 , 1 850, and for a time gave promise of abundant 
 success. Within three weeks, however, and al- 
 most before Mr. Dow had got outside the har- 
 bor, one of those sudden and disastrous com- 
 mercial revulsions then peculiar to the Pacific 
 Coast — a regular panic and stagnation in al- 
 most every branch of trade — occurred, in con- 
 sequence of which not only was it almost im- 
 possible to sell anything, at any price, but 
 affecting the wholesale trade to such an extent 
 that they could go into the market and dupli- 
 cate the ver}' goods the}' had in stock at less 
 than one-half the prices they had paid for them. 
 This condition of things continued for several 
 months, the result being, that though thev 
 struggled hard, and held on in hopes of better 
 times, they sunk every dollar invested (though 
 managing finally to refund their borrowed mon- 
 ey), besides coming out, at the end of the six 
 months, nearly $1,500 in debt to their generous- 
 hearted landlord ; the building, however, having 
 been destroyed in the big fire of Ma}- 4, 1851, 
 about one month before the expiration of the 
 lease. Before this, however, Mr. Lane had re- 
 turned to his paint-pots and brushes, and Mr. 
 Caldwell to his cows and chickens, which, in 
 the mean time, had been in chai-ge of Mr. Will- 
 iam H. White, also an Akronian, and now the 
 head miller in the Allen Mills of Akron. On 
 his return, about the 1st of June, 1851, Mr. 
 Dow, after listening to the lugubi'ious story of 
 the broken-down merchants, philosophically re- 
 marked : " Well, boys, you've had a pretty 
 rough time of it, but it's all in a life-time ; and 
 there's one consolation about it, the more you 
 have of it the shorter'll be the life-time. But," 
 he continued, " I'll not be hard on you, boys, 
 for I know how it feels to be a ' busted- up com- 
 munity' myself and if you'll make me up 50 
 cents on the dollar. 111 call it square." This offer 
 was of course gladly accepted, each contributing 
 his equal share, Mr. Lane at this time earning 
 at his trade about $300 per month, net. Soon 
 after this, Mr. Dow and IMr. Charles W. Tap- 
 pan, a lately-arrived Akronian, embarked in the 
 
732 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 same business which had proved so disastrous 
 to Messrs. Lane & Caldwell, in which, the panic 
 being over, they made money very rapidly, 
 their net pi-ofits averaging over $150 per day 
 for a year or more thereafter. Mr. Lane con- 
 tinued to wield the brush with varied success 
 all the time, however, earning good wages, un- 
 til about the middle of September, 1851, when 
 he entered the service of Messrs. Dow & Tap- 
 pan, as an auctioneer, on a salary of $275 per 
 month. About the 1st of November, the firm 
 established a branch store on the same street, 
 with Mr. Lane and a young Massachusetts 
 Yankee by the name of Humphre}' Sawyer, as 
 salesman. Dec. 1, Messrs. Lane and Sawyer, 
 and Hallett Kilbourn, another Akron boy, 
 (now a well-known operator in Washington 
 City), each bought a one-fourth interest in the 
 " branch," Messrs. Dow & Tappan retaining the 
 other one-fourth, Mr. Dow doing the purchas- 
 ing, and the junior partners running the " che- 
 bang." Feb. 1, 1852, Mr. Kilbourne withdrew, 
 Messrs. Lane & Sawyer, then, with the old firm 
 of Dow & Tappan, becoming each one-third 
 owners. March 1, Messrs. Lane & Sawyer 
 bought of Dow & Tappan the remaining one- 
 third interest, thus becoming the sole owners of 
 the concern, Mr. Dow still doing their purchas- 
 ing on a small commission. The plan was to 
 buy at auction from wholesale houses, by cata- 
 logue, goods that would I'etail readily, such as 
 clothing, boots and shoes, hats, blankets, 
 watches, jewelry, revolvers, notions, etc., and 
 sell them either at auction or private sale, al- 
 ways, of course, aiming to obtain a good liberal 
 margin over and above the original cost of the 
 goods, but very often selling them at less than 
 one-half the original cost of production. Busi- 
 ness slowing up somewhat during the months 
 of March and April, Mr. Sawyer became dis- 
 heartened, and insisted on closing the concern 
 out, which was accordingly done on the 1st day 
 of June, 1852, Mr. Lane not having sufficient 
 capital to purchase his partner's interest and 
 run it alone. Dividing their goods, Mr. Saw- 
 yer immediately disposed of his share at a 
 loss, through a wholesale auction house, while 
 Mr. Lane packed and stored his share to await 
 the " logic of events." While " waiting and 
 watching" for something else to "turn up," 
 Mr. Lane something more than paid his current 
 expenses by doing occasional jobs of lettering 
 for an established house and sign painting firm, 
 
 until the latter part of August, when, yielding 
 to a strong desire to see his wife and children, 
 from whom he had then been absent about two 
 years and a half, and the rather urgent so- 
 licitations of several Akron boys just in from 
 the mines, en route for home, he sold his goods 
 at a slight margin above cost, closed up 
 his affairs, and on the 1st day of September, 
 1852, on the new and stanch steamer "Win- 
 field Scott," set sail for Panama, by no means 
 rich, but still with quite a fair showing for his 
 thirty months' time and labor, considering the 
 utter failure of the first half thereof; and with 
 what was far better than gold, good health. 
 
 In the spring of 1853, Mr. Lane invested his 
 California savings in a clothing and merchant 
 tailoring establishment in Akron, which busi- 
 ness he conducted with reasonable success until 
 the spring of 1855, when ever}' dollar was swept 
 away by fire. In the fall of 1853, the Temper- 
 ance Reform party of Summit Co. put Mr. 
 Lane forward as an Independent candidate for 
 Representative to the State Legislature, in com- 
 petition with the regular nominees of the Whig 
 Democratic and Free-Soil parties. Afterward, 
 an arrangement was made between the friends 
 of Mr. Lane and the Whig and Free-Soil leaders, 
 by which all three candidates should submit 
 their claims to a union mass convention, which 
 was accordingly done, the contest being between 
 Mr. Lane and Dr. Porter G. Somers, of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls. Union Hall was completely packed, 
 and the vote was taken by passing around the 
 hat, with no check whatever as to the number of 
 ballots cast, or the right of any person to vote. 
 The count resulted in a small majority' for the 
 Doctor, who was triumphantly elected over the 
 pro-slavery, pro-whisky. Democratic candidate; 
 though it was more than suspected at the time 
 that the honest sentiment of that mass conven- 
 tion was defeated by partisan " strategy'," and 
 that Mr. Lane should have been, by right, de- 
 clared its nominee. In January, 1854, Mr. 
 Lane was appointed by the Town Council of 
 Akron to fill the vacancy in the Board of Edu- 
 cation of the incorporated village, occasioned 
 by the death of Mr. Horace Canfield. On the 
 re-organization of the board in the following 
 April, Mr. Lane was elected Treasurer of the 
 Board, holding the position until the expiration 
 of his term in 1856. In the fall of 1855, Mr. 
 Lane having been thrown out of business by the 
 fire above spoken of, and having naturally allied 
 
 ■7- 
 
i?v 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 733 
 
 himself with the newly organized Republican 
 party, presented himself before the Republican 
 County Nominating Convention as a candidate 
 for State Representative ; but the honors were 
 fairl}' won by that then stanch Republican, Dr. 
 Mendall Jewett, of Mogadore, now an equally 
 stanch Prohibitionist of the Sixth Ward in Ak- 
 ron. On the accession of Salmon P. Chase to 
 the Grubernatorial Chair of Ohio, in January, 
 1856, Mr. Lane, backed by a majority of the 
 business men of Akron, both Republicans and 
 Democrats, applied for the position of Canal 
 Collector for the port of Akron ; but his genial 
 and rotund friend, Nathaniel W. Goodhue, Esq., 
 carried too many political guns for him, and 
 won the prize for himself Thus far, though 
 doing his best to establish and maintain Re- 
 formatory and Republican principles, Mr. Lane's 
 political aspirations had proved such utter fail- 
 ures that, though still working both on the 
 rostrum and with the pen and the paint-brush, 
 in the fabrication of pai'ty banners and mottoes, 
 he had concluded to make no further efforts in 
 the office line, when, in the fall of 1856, during 
 the celebrated Fremont-Buchanan campaign, 
 the Republicans in different parts of Summit 
 Co. spontaneousl}' fixed upon him as their can- 
 didate for Sheriff, and in their Nominating Con- 
 vention nominated him for that position on the 
 first ballot, by the ver}' handsome majority of 
 17 over all competitors, some six or seven in 
 number. Though bitterly opposed, on account 
 of his radical temperance proclivities, he was 
 triumphantly elected, and in 1858, was renomi- 
 nated by acclamation, and re-elected by a 
 greatly increased majorit}'. On the expiration 
 of his second term, Januarj^ 1, 1861, Mr. Lane 
 became the editor-in-chief of the Summit County 
 Beacon, then, as now, the sole Republican organ 
 of Summit Co. Some three months after as- 
 suming his editorial duties, he was appointed 
 by Gov. William Dennison, without solicitation 
 on his part, or on the part of his friends. Pro- 
 bate Judge of Summit Co., to fill the vacancy 
 occasioned by the death of Judge William M. 
 Dodge. The honor, however, was respectfully' 
 declined, his editorial duties not permitting him 
 to fill both positions, and as the appointment 
 was only until the ensuing October election, 
 about three months, and as he had but just re- 
 tired from the office of Sheriff, he did not feel 
 like asking the people for another county office 
 so soon. Mr. Lane continued to devote the 
 
 best energies of his mind and body to the 
 building-up of the Weekly Beacon^ and its later 
 adjunct, the Akron Daily Beacon, as detailed 
 elsewhere in this volume, for nearly fifteen 
 years, meantime becoming the one-third owner 
 thereof, when, from causes entirely beyond his 
 control, he was obliged to retire therefrom in 
 the fall of 1875, without a dollar. At this 
 crisis in his affairs, he again, in the fall of 1876, 
 asked the people of Summit Count}- for his old 
 position of Sheriff, which, notwithstanding the 
 objections urged against him that he was too 
 old (being then 61 years of age); that he had 
 already held the office two terms, and that he 
 was too radical in his temperance and other 
 reform notions, was generously given to him b}' 
 a handsome majority of the voters of the 
 count}' ; as was also another term, by a still 
 larger majority at the October elections in 1878. 
 Notwithstanding his " advanced " age, his ad- 
 ministration of the office was so successful and 
 satisfactory to the people, that still another 
 term would undoubtedly have been tendered to 
 him, but for the constitutional provision that no 
 incumbent of that office shall serve more than 
 four years in any consecutive six years. Trans- 
 ferring his office to his successor, William Mc- 
 Kinney, Esq., on the 3d day of January, 1881, 
 Mr. Lane continued to make himself generally 
 useful about the court house, as Mr. McKin- 
 ney's Chief Deputy, some three months, when, 
 on the 1st day of April, 1881, the Republican 
 Convention of the City of Akron placed him in 
 nomination for Mayor, by the very decisive 
 vote of 36 to 12. At the election, April 5, 
 almost superhuman efforts were made to com- 
 pass his defeat, not only by his old-time bitter 
 enemy. Democracy, but by the entire " bummer " 
 and '' hoodlum " element of the city, and though 
 in no way seeking or working for the office 
 himself. Republicanism and Law and Order 
 prin«3iples so far prevailed as to secure the 
 election of Mr. Lane by a small majority, to be 
 the Mayor of the city of Akron for the period 
 of two years. 
 
 In thus presenting the merest outlines of the 
 varied and somewhat eventful history of Mr. 
 Lane, compiled mainly from data furnished by 
 himself, we have, at his request, omitted a large 
 number of interesting, thrilling, as well as ludi- 
 crous reminiscences of his life — his youthful 
 exploits as a " Gay Lothario " among the girls, 
 and otherwise ; his rich experiences as clerk 
 
M^ 
 
 734 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and book agent ; his getting lost in tlie woods 
 and spending a night among the untamed Creels: 
 Indians in Alabama ; his frequent personal ren- 
 contres with blacklegs and other desperate 
 characters, while publishing the Buzzard and 
 Cascade Roarer; the numberless egg-peltings 
 and other indignities received while preaching 
 the gospel of temperance ; the hazards and 
 hardships of his overland journey to Califor- 
 nia ; scenes, tragical and comical, including the 
 excitements of the vigilance committee period, 
 in San Francisco ; his " hair breadth 'scapes by 
 land and sea," from shipwreck and pestilence 
 upon the journey home ; the successful system 
 of criminal detection pursued by himself and 
 others, while filling the office of Sheriff from 
 1856 to 1861 ; his man}- encounters with both 
 male and female desperadoes in and about the 
 jail during his eight years of official service ; 
 his experiences with the fire-fiend by which he 
 was twice reduced from compai'ative affluence 
 to substantial beggary ; his struggles with pov- 
 erty, with disease and with domestic afflictions ; 
 all possess an interest of no ordinary type, but 
 which Mr. Lane thinks would occup}' more 
 space in this volume than their importance 
 to the public would justify. But a few words 
 more regarding the family matters of Mr. Lane 
 should not be omitted. With the wife of his 
 youth, Mr. Lane lived harmoniousl}' and hap- 
 pil}- for almost a third of a century, her death 
 occurring on the 2d day of July, 1871. To them 
 were born eight children, four of whom, three 
 sons and one daughter, were taken from them 
 by death, in infanc}' and early childhood. Of 
 the survivors, the eldest, Julius Sherman Lane, 
 now in the 40th year of his age, is an honored 
 citizen of Akron, a machinist by trade, and is 
 one of the proprietors and the superintendent 
 of one of Akron's most successful manufactur- 
 ing establishments — The Webster, Camp & 
 Lane Machine Company. The next son, Fred- 
 erick Alanson Lane, now in his 32d year, is an 
 engineer and pressman ; at present, after about 
 ten years' acceptable service in the extensive 
 newspaper and job press rooms of the Beacon 
 Publishing Company, in Akron, is in charge of 
 the presses and machiner}' of the Ohio Farmer 
 in the city of Cleveland. The third son, Arthur 
 Malcolm Lane, now 25 years old, is under the 
 training of his elder brother, both a practical 
 machinist and an experienced draughtsman, 
 and, after about three years' service in the 
 
 draughting room of the celebrated Baldwin 
 Locomotive Works, in Philadelphia, is now fill- 
 ing a similar position in the Rhode Island Lo- 
 comotive Works, in the city of Providence. 
 The youngest, a daughter, Carrie Maria Lane, 
 now 23 years of age, was married, Sept. 11. 
 1878, to Mr. Albert J. Pitkin, also a graduate 
 from the works of the Webster, Camp & Lane 
 Machine Company, in Akron, who, after four 
 3'ears experience in the draughting rooms of 
 the Baldwin Locomotive Works, at Philadel- 
 phia, is now the superintendent of the draught- 
 ing department of the Rhode Island Locomotive 
 Works, above alluded to, at Providence. And 
 now, in summing up this brief sketch of his 
 famil}', Mr. Lane bids us say that each and all 
 of his living children are in every respect the 
 superior of their paternal ancestor, a circum- 
 stance which he attributes entirely to the care- 
 ful early training bestowed upon them by their 
 sainted mother. Nov. 11, 1872, Mr. Lane mar- 
 ried, for his second wife, Mrs. Emeline Manning, 
 a sister of the former Mrs. Lane, with whom he 
 has since lived in perfect harmony and happi- 
 ness. Thus, in the 66th year of his life, though 
 not rich in this world's goods, Mr. Lane is com- 
 fortably situated, and, in the companionship of 
 his most excellent wife, the society of his chil- 
 dren and grandchildren, and surrounded by 
 kind friends and neighbors, he is happy in the 
 thought that during his nearly half a century's 
 residence among them, he has so largely attained 
 and retained the respect and confidence of his 
 fellow-citizens of the city of Akron and of Sum- 
 mit Co. 
 
 CARSON LAKE was born March 17, 1852, 
 at Fredonia, N. Y., being descended on his fath- 
 ers side from stock of Gen. Warren, of Bunker 
 Hill fame, and on his mother's side from the 
 family which numbered among its branches the 
 noted scout Kit Carson, and the Hills of South- 
 ern fame. He was the sole survivor of a family 
 of six children. His father died when he was 
 quite young, and in 1861, his mother going 
 into the hospitals of Alexandria, Va., he spent 
 some two years amid the thrilling surroundings 
 of Washington and Alexandria at that period, 
 a portion of the time serving as a Government 
 messenger. Returning North, after some time 
 in the Akron schools, he was sent for a year to 
 the well-known Academy at Madison, Ohio, and 
 then entered the office of the Weekly Beacon as 
 an apprentice. His first newspaper work was 
 
-4* 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 735 
 
 done about this time as local correspondent for 
 the Cleveland Herald. He was finally promot- 
 ed to the position of reporter, after the start- 
 ing of the Daily Beacon. For some months, 
 although not yet 18 years of age, during an 
 unsettled condition of the office affairs, he had 
 entire editorial charge of the paper. Resign- 
 ing to enter college, he was for a year a student 
 at Dennison University, Granville, Ohio, and a 
 year at Buchtel College, leaving the latter just 
 before graduating, to accept a position on the 
 Tri- Weekly and Weekly Times, which was re- 
 signed a year later, the Tri- Weekly having sus- 
 pended, and the Times changed hands, to accept 
 the position of managing editor of the Toledo 
 Democrat and Herald, the organ of northwestern 
 Ohio Democracy. He occupied this position 
 for a year and a half, when he was for a year 
 business manager of the Toledo Daily Commer- 
 cial. In December, 1876, he purchased the Akron 
 Daily and Semi- Weekly Argus, which he sold in 
 Jul}', 1879, to Messrs. Weiner & Nelson, in 
 order to accept the position of corresponding 
 secretary of the Democratic State Executive 
 Committee. This position kept him in Colum- 
 bus for a year, during which time he was man- 
 aging editor of the Times and Statesman, and 
 State correspondent of the Cleveland Plain 
 Dealer. In September, 1878, he became editor 
 and manager for the Gazette Co. of the Sunday 
 Gazette. In 1878, he was appointed an aide on 
 the staff of Gov. Bishop, with rank of Colonel, 
 but resigned the following year. He has a wide 
 acquaintance throughout the State, and has 
 several times been prominently mentioned in 
 connection with State offices. He has, how- 
 ever, never desired such mention. Being 
 warmly attached to Gen. Ewing's cause, it is 
 probable he would have been given a promi- 
 nent position, had that gentleman been elected 
 Governor. He was married in 1873 to Olie E. 
 Heifer, by whom he has four children. 
 
 DENNIS J. LONG, Agent Union Express 
 Company, Akron ; was born in Alban}', N. Y., 
 Nov. 28, 1844, where he lived until he was 15 
 years of age, when he came to Akron with his 
 brother, J. A. Long. In 1859, he became an 
 apprentice in the Beacon office, where he served 
 about four years. In August, 1862, he enlisted 
 in Company H, 104th 0. V. I., serving the 
 first two years as private soldier. In February, 
 1864, he was appointed to a clerkship in the 
 office of Gen. Schofield, where he remained in 
 
 the Department of Ohio until the close of the 
 war. June 28, 1865, he was mustered out at 
 Greensboro, N. C. On his return, with A. L. 
 Paine, he started a new weekly paper entitled, 
 the Summit County Journal, in 1865, with 
 Judge Carpenter as editor ; this they conducted 
 with good success two years, when Mr. Long 
 sold out his interest and bought a one-third in- 
 terest in the Beacon, being connected with that 
 paper as stockholder and proprietor until 1875, 
 when he became book-keeper in the office of 
 the Akron Iron Company-, continuing for two 
 years. March 1, 1877, he was appointed agent 
 of the Union Express Company ; he is now 
 agent of the Union, American and Adams Ex- 
 press Companies. In May, 1870, he was mar- 
 ried to Miss Eliza A. Potter, of Akron. 
 
 CHARLES LIEBMAN, Akron; was born 
 at Dayton, Ohio, June 30, 1854 ; when very 
 young, his family removed to Cincinnati, Ohio, 
 that he might have better opportunities for 
 studying music. His father, Rev. L. Liebman, 
 was a Rabbi at Dayton, Cincinnati, Columbus 
 and Cleveland ; also twelve years at Youngs- 
 town, Ohio. At each of these places the sub- 
 ject of this sketch studied music, for which he 
 had early formed a great love. From 1874 to 
 1876, he attended the New England Conserva- 
 tory of Music, at Boston, Mass., studying the 
 piano and violin. In 1876, he went to New 
 York Cit}' where he was under Prof Mills and 
 other noted teachers. In 1877, he became 
 director of the Youngstown Maennerchor, where 
 he remained two years ; in June, 1879, he came 
 to Akron, and, at the solicitation of the Akron 
 Harmonic Society, he became the leader, also 
 engaged in teaching piano, organ, violin and 
 theory ; he is a director of the society. Oct. 
 26, 1877, he married Miss Emma Ritter, of 
 Youngstown, Ohio. 
 
 REV. W. LOTHMAN, Akron; oldest son 
 of Ernest Lothman, was born in the village of 
 Buer, situated in the southreu part of the King- 
 dom of Hanover, Jan. 31, 1845. He was but 
 2\ years old when his parents came to Cleve- 
 land, Ohio, where his mother still lives, and 
 where his father was in the employ of Morgan, 
 Root & Co., having charge of their grocery un- 
 til his death in 1861. The subject of this 
 sketch attended the Cleveland Public Schools 
 until he was confirmed in 1858, when he en- 
 tered Concordia College at Fort Wayne, Ind., 
 and graduated from the gymnasium of that 
 
 
736 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 school iu 1862. He then entered the Concordia 
 University at St. Louis, Mo., from which he 
 graduated in June, 1866, when he entered the 
 ministry, serving the German Lutheran Church 
 at Elyria and the St. Paul's Church at Liver- 
 pool, Medina Co., on alternate Sabbaths for six 
 years, during which period, the membership of 
 the Elyria Church largely increased, a new 
 building was erected and a school established. 
 In 1872. he received a call from Zion's Lu- 
 theran Church of Akron, and became its Pastor 
 in August, having since continued. On June 
 20, 1867, he married Miss Betty Hu.smann, 
 daughter of Rev. F. W. Husmann, Pastor of 
 the German Lutheran Church of Euclid, Ohio. 
 She bore him five children, and all are living. 
 
 J. A. LONG, Secretary and Treasurer 
 of Akron Iron Co., Akron ; is a son of John 
 and Margaret (Reilley) Long, and was born 
 April 10^ 1837, at Albany, N. Y., where he 
 lived until 18 years of age, when he left school 
 and took the position of clerk in a lumber yard. 
 In 1855, he came to Akron, Ohio, and became 
 teacher in the public schools of Summit Co. for 
 eleven terms, and working during vacation at 
 various eraplo3'ments. In 1864, he became 
 book-keeper for Aultman, Miller & Co., remain- 
 ing with them for five years, when he was ap- 
 pointed Secretary and Treasurer of the Akron 
 Iron Co., which position he still holds. Since 
 his connection with the establishment, its busi- 
 ness has inci'eased threefold. He was married, 
 Nov. 10, 1859, to Miss Mary A. Falor, daugh- 
 ter of Geo. A. Falor, one of the pioneers of 
 Coventry Township. Twelve children have 
 been born of this marriage, seven of whom are 
 living — Ludie B., Celia R., Bennie A., John H., 
 George A., Mary A. and Lloyd G. Mr. L. is 
 Republican in politics ; is a member of the 
 Central Committee. Was first City Clerk, and 
 held the office from 1865 to 1867, and Council- 
 man from 1867 to 1869. 
 
 FRANK F. LOOMIS, an engineer in fire 
 department, Akron ; is a son of Joseph and 
 Elizabeth (Taylor) Loomis ; was born in Akron 
 April 2, 1854, where he attended public schools 
 until his father died, when he lived with an 
 uncle at Wadsworth for some time. In 1869, 
 he went into a potterj', working in it for one 
 year; then learned the blacksmith's trade, and, in 
 1870, he became a minute man in Steamer No. 
 1, and served as fireman and blacksmith in the 
 city fire department. At the death of James 
 
 H. Stanford, he was made engineer of steamer 
 in January, 1881. He was married, July 10, 
 1879, to Miss Barbara Grad, of Akron. His 
 father was born in Medina Co., and lived there 
 till he was 14, and then went to Lake Co. 
 When grown, he came to Akron, and became 
 captain of a canal-boat for the Navigation Co. 
 He followed this business until the war broke 
 out, when he enlisted in the 29th 0. V. I., and 
 after a hard campaign with the Army 
 of the Cumberland, he caught cold from 
 fording a river, and died at Cumberland, Md., 
 in January, 1862. Subject is the oldest son ; 
 one brother, Charles H., is a farmer, near Sears, 
 Mich. Mother still lives in Akron. 
 
 DR. THOMAS M. LEIGHT, physician, Ak- 
 ron ; was born on his father's farm in Perr}' 
 Township, Snyder Co., Penn. (then included in 
 Union Co.), on the 8th of August, 1827, and 
 resided in the vicinity until 1857. He was 
 married, Feb. 8, 1853, to Miss Bella R. Bobst, 
 of Milton, Penn. They have no children. He 
 commenced the study of medicine in the office 
 of Drs. Wilson & Bibighouse, of Selin's Grove, 
 then Union Co., Penn. (now Snyder Co.) He 
 read with them some four or five years, and 
 then began practice at McKee's Falls, in Snyder 
 Co., where he remained about nine years, dur- 
 ing which time he attended lectures at Phila- 
 delphia (Jefferson Medical College); also the 
 University of Pennsylvania, attending a month 
 or two each year, graduating at the Jefferson 
 Medical College in July, 1857. From McKee's 
 Half-Falls, he removed to Mifflin, Juniata Co., 
 Penn., where he practiced in partnership with Dr. 
 E. D. Crawford about seven years, during which 
 time they served as surgeons of the Pennsyl- 
 vania R. R. Co. He then came to Akron, Ohio, 
 where he has since practiced. He is a member 
 of the Summit County Medical Society, of 
 which he is now (1881) Vice President, and is 
 also a member of the Union Medical Society of 
 Northeastern Ohio. 
 
 HON. SAMUEL W. McCLURE, son of 
 Jairus McClure and Amma Hobbs, was born 
 Nov. 8, 1812, at Alstead, Cheshire Co., N. H. 
 His parents, when he was about 3 years old, 
 returned to the place of their nativit}^ Brook- 
 field, Worcester Co., Mass., with their children, 
 two in number, consisting of the subject of this 
 sketch and an elder sister. There they remained 
 until he was about 7 years old, when they emi- 
 grated to Western New York, ultimately 
 
 ^ 
 
CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 737 
 
 ^ 
 
 settling in Monroe County, near what is now 
 the city of Rochester. There they remained 
 until the spring of 1828, when they removed to 
 Medina, Medina Co., Ohio, where both died — 
 the father in 1865, in the 89th year of his age, 
 and the mother several years earlier, at the age 
 of 71. His parents were of Scotch ancestrj-, 
 though, on the paternal side, the}' had lived in 
 the North of Ireland for two generations or 
 more before emigrating to the United States, or 
 rather to the British colonies of America, for 
 such the}' then were. The mother, inheriting the 
 fervent religious sentiments of her Scotch an- 
 cestry, intended to devote her son to the Chris- 
 tian ministr}^ and molded his youthful efforts 
 and education in that direction ; and, she was 
 so far gratified that she saw him enter into 
 full membership with the Congregational 
 Church at the age of 15. With the ministry in 
 view, he pursued his academical studies while 
 he lived in New York, and until he was near 
 16 years old. At the age of 18, he commenced 
 teaching in the public schools of Medina 
 County during two or three years ensuing, 
 when he entered Allegheny College, Meadville, 
 Penn., and where he prosecuted his colle- 
 giate studies with great zeal, embracing in 
 them other branches as well as the prescribed 
 course. At about the expiration of three 
 3'ears, he retired from the institution and took 
 private instruction for nearly one year of Rev. 
 Lee, who was then Pastor of the church to 
 which he belonged. He was in advance of his 
 class when he left college. In 1837, he opened 
 a select school in Medina, taught the same two 
 terms, and at the same time entered the law 
 office of Canfield & Camp as a student, with 
 the view of entering the legal profession. In 
 1838, he went to Ashland, then in Richland 
 County, and organized a select school there, 
 which was afterward called the Ashland Acad- 
 emy when transferred to a new building erected 
 b}' the citizens expi'essly for its accommoda- 
 tion. In this school he was employed less than 
 two years, successfully managing the same, and 
 also prosecuting his legal studies, a portion of 
 the time in the office of Silas Robbins, Esq., 
 and the residue in the office of the late North- 
 ern District Judge, Hon. Charles S. Sherman. 
 During a part of the above time, he also edited 
 the Ashland Phoenix, a non-partisan paper, and 
 made of it a first-class literary and racy paper for 
 his readers. In 1840, he returned to Medina, and 
 
 took charge of the editorial department of the 
 Medina Constitutionalist, its former editor, then 
 James S. Carpenter, Esq., having been elected 
 to the State Senate for the Medina district. All 
 through the exciting campaign which resulted 
 in the election of William H. Harrison to the 
 Presidency, both through the columns of his 
 paper and upon the stump, he advocated, with 
 much success, the cause of the Whig party, 
 whose candidate Harrison was. Soon after his 
 return to Medina County, he formed a law 
 partnership with Senator Carpenter, and in the 
 organization of the new county of Summit, 
 Grant B. Turner, of Cuyahoga Falls, was added 
 to the firm — Carpenter and McClure residing 
 in Medina County, and Turner in Summit. In 
 January, 1842, he married Miss Matilda E. 
 Deming, of Ashland, and, in the spring of the 
 same 3'ear, settled in Cuyahoga Falls, where 
 he continued to live until 1865, when he re- 
 moved to Akron, where he now resides. Grant 
 B. Turner did not remain long in the practice 
 of the law, and, retiring from the firm, it was 
 left as originally formed, until 1850, when it 
 was dissolved. He was elected Prosecuting 
 Attorne}' of his county in 1847, but the next 
 year, and before his term as Prosecutor had 
 expired, he was nominated and elected to a 
 seat in the Ohio Legislature, which office he 
 held for one term only. From 1850 to 1864, 
 he had associated with him, as law partner, the 
 Hon. Henry McKinney, late State Senator 
 from Summit and Portage District, and now 
 Common Pleas Judge of the Cleveland sub- 
 division. 
 
 In 1865, he associated with himself as law 
 partner, Edward Oviatt, Esq., and that firm 
 continued until the spring of 1871, when he was 
 elected to the Common Pleas Bench, for the 
 subdivision composed of Summit, Medina and 
 Lorain Counties, serving in that capacitj' five 
 3'ears ; and, not desiring a re-election, he re- 
 tired to private life, and measurably fx'om the 
 practice of his profession. Possessed of an 
 ample fortune, it was not necessary for him to 
 endure the drudgery and fatigue of active 
 practice. Still he is largely called upon for 
 counsel in important business matters and suits, 
 and occasionally engages in the trial of causes, 
 especially in the District Court. In the mean 
 time, he has visited Europe with his younger 
 daughter ; and with his wife and same daughter 
 he visited California, making thorough tours 
 
 
738 
 
 BIOGKAPPirCAL SKETCHES: 
 
 in each of those great sight-seeing portions of 
 the globe. 
 
 He had by his marriage two daughters : Julia 
 E., who became the wife of Mr. Henry G. 
 Mathews, with whom she lived fourteen years, 
 and died in Februar}', 1881 ; and Ida M., who 
 continues to live in her father's family. Judge 
 McClure possessed elements of strength which 
 gave him extraordinary power as a lawyer. 
 He was an incessant and tireless worker, in- 
 tensely enthusiastic in whatever he undertook 
 to accomplish ; had great courage, and was 
 wonderfully quick in his perceptions. These 
 qualities, combined as they were with a remark- 
 able grasp for business atfairs, rendered him n 
 most dangerous adversary, and, for many years, 
 made him one of the very foremost lawyers of 
 the State. Probably no law3'er in Ohio tried 
 more causes during the twenty-five years of 
 his life between 1846 and 1871, than he, or was 
 more successful. He more than made the 
 cause of his client his own. With all his zeal, 
 however, he never forgot the courtesy due from 
 one gentleman to another ; and while dealing 
 the hardest kind of blows, in an\^ given pro- 
 fessional contest, he always left opposing 
 counsel feeling kindly toward him personally, 
 and to young men especially he was considerate 
 and encouraging. Naturally he possessed a very 
 quick, fiery temper, which required for its con- 
 trol constant watchfulness and a strong will, and 
 this, as a general rule, he succeederl well in ac- 
 complishing, under all the varjang changes of 
 practice at the bar. For ready wit, vigorous 
 thought and thrilling eloquence, he had no 
 superior among his associates at the bar. He 
 was always systematic, logical and ready in his 
 public addresses ; a fact somewhat surprising, 
 since, at the commencement of his career, he 
 dared not venture an attempt at speaking ex- 
 temporaneously, and until he was 30 years old 
 he had always carefully to write and commit to 
 memory all his public addresses, being too timid 
 and nervous to trust himself before an audience 
 without such preparation. 
 
 He never was a politician, in the popular ac- 
 ceptation of the term, though he always took 
 an earnest interest in public aflfairs, and occa- 
 sionally took an ctive part in political contests ; 
 not so much from a partisan standpoint as from 
 his thorough convictions of what, in the given 
 contest, was the better public policy ; that is, 
 what was right. From his first appearance be- 
 
 fore the public until the close of the war of the 
 rebellion, he was a most earnest anti-slavery 
 man, and took a resolute and pronounced posi- 
 tion against the system of slavery and its ag- 
 gressions ; and on all proper occasions sought 
 to educate public sentiment in harmony with 
 his own convictions. He was, as already stated, 
 elected to represent Summit County in the 
 General Assembly, in 1848, and as a Whig, and 
 was a candidate for re-election in the fall of 
 1849, but was beaten by the united votes of the 
 Democrats and Free-Soilers, by a majority of 
 less than one hundred, while the balance of the 
 ticket was beaten by about four hundred votes. 
 He occupied a more flattering position in the 
 Legislature, being universally recognized as 
 one of its ablest and most useful members. 
 His nomination for legislative position both 
 times was much against his wishes, and he only 
 consented to accept as a matter of public duty, 
 on account of the peculiar attitude of the two 
 leading political parties upon the slavery ques- 
 tion, that then being the all absorbing question 
 with the electors of Northern Ohio. 
 
 Judge McClure's industry and painstaking 
 preparation of his cases when a practitioner, 
 made him exceedingly restive when he was on 
 the bench, at the heedless and dilatory modes 
 of lawyers who came into court unprepared to 
 tr}' their causes ; and, occasionally, provoked 
 him into sharp reminders, that the public inter- 
 ests before him should not be sacrificed to the 
 indolence of attorneys, and occasionally caused 
 the summar}' disposition of their cases. But, 
 as his modes and motives became understood 
 and appreciated, the lawyers ascertained that 
 their true interests were best subserved by will- 
 ing co-operation with the court. He disposed 
 of his judicial business with great dispatch, and 
 to the general satisfaction of the bar. His 
 sense of justice and fair pla}', always acute, led 
 him first to find where justice lay, and then, he 
 was almost sure to find some rule of law by 
 which justice could be upheld. His great ex- 
 perience as a lawyer made him a ver}' able tryer 
 of causes, and his general knowledge of the law 
 and the practice of the courts, made him a very 
 first-class Judge, when exercising the jurisdic- 
 tion of an appellate court, sitting as he did, 
 during his entire term, mainly in Cleveland and 
 Toledo. 
 
 In the early years of his practice, he was 
 appointed United States Commissioner because 
 
-4v 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 739 
 
 of his strict stand-up to his convictions, es- 
 pecially to cope with a band of counterfeiters, 
 who, for years, had been preying upon the coin 
 and currency of the country, headed by the no- 
 torious Jim Brown. While acting as such Com- 
 missioner, a singular incident occurred, in which 
 he was a prominent actor, and it illustrates a 
 peculiar social condition in the community 
 where it occurred. Brown, for years, had de- 
 fied the State authorities in his raids upon the 
 currency, and thus far had been singularly suc- 
 cessful in eluding the vigilance of the General 
 Government. Though notoriously recognized as 
 the leader of these law-breakers, he was elected 
 and served term after term as Justice of the 
 Peace of Northampton Township ; and, to his 
 credit it may be said, that he performed the 
 duties of the office well. Complaint had been 
 made before Commissioner McClure, and he 
 had issued his warrant for the apprehension of 
 Brown upon a charge of counterfeiting, and, 
 while this warrant was out, standing in the 
 hands of the Sheriff and unexecuted, Judge 
 McClure appeared before Brown for one of two 
 parties litigant. The trial being concluded, the 
 Justice took the case under advisement, but 
 was arrested and lodged in jail before he de- 
 cided the case. He then rendered his judgment 
 in favor of McClure's client, remarking, as he 
 did so, that he hoped the Commissioner would 
 take a similar favorable view of his case, and 
 in his favor, whenever the same came up for 
 hearing. Judge McClui-e did so, by holding 
 Brown under $20,000 bond for his appearance 
 before the United States Court at Columbus, 
 which, however, was afterward reduced to $5,000 
 by the Federal Judge. 
 
 There is no telling how much the pulpit lost 
 by the making of so able a lawyer. There is 
 no question, however, that he would have won 
 distinction as a divine. But his logical and 
 independent cast of mind, on reaching full 
 maturity, led him to distrust, and, in fact, to 
 despise dogmatism, and to demand demonstra- 
 tion ; or, at least, that every pi'oposition and 
 doctrine should challenge the approval of right, 
 reason and common sense before his continued 
 assent could be secured for the toleration of 
 any given tenet, theory or system, whether in 
 ethics, philosophy or religion. Consequently, 
 at an early period of his life he abandoned, or, 
 rather, never fully fell into the ways that had 
 been with the very best motives marked out 
 
 for him. He may be classed with those who 
 are popularl}' known as Free-thinkers or Lib- 
 eralists : who believe in being good, and doing 
 good for goodness' sake, irrespective of relig- 
 ious creeds, beliefs or sanctions, for they are 
 legion ; who advocate a greater degree of 
 religious influence in the world than even sec- 
 tarians, but it is the religion of humanity — the 
 only genuine human ideal. It consists in lov- 
 ing human beings and other deserving objects, 
 such as we know and can benefit, and not in 
 loving a God or gods about whom we know 
 nothing, and who, if they exist at all, are infi- 
 nitely beyond the reach of the adoration of 
 mortals. 
 
 LEWIS MILLER, manufacturer and inven- 
 tor, Akron, the youngest of three sons of John 
 and Elizabeth (York) Miller, was born in 
 Greentown, Lake Township, Stark Co., Ohio, 
 Aug. 24, 1829. His parents were respectable 
 and industrious people. His father, a cabinet- 
 maker, house-builder and farmer, originally 
 came from Marj^land, removing to the West in 
 1812. He was a man of sterling integrity, and 
 universally esteemed, holding a prominent po- 
 sition in his community. Lewis, the subject of 
 this article, spent his boyhood on a farm, until 
 about 17, attending school in one of the old- 
 time schoolhouses built of logs, having slab 
 benches, etc. In 1846, he learned the plastering 
 trade, serving two years with a man named 
 Wm. Essig ; he worked at this trade for five 
 years, also attending acadamies in Illinois dur- 
 ing winter seasons and teaching in Stark Co., 
 Ohio, two terms, in that time having moved to 
 Plainfield, 111, near Chicago, in the meanwhile. 
 In 1851, he returned to Greentown, where he 
 connected himself as a partner with the manu- 
 facturing firm of Ball, Aultman & Co. (after- 
 ward of Canton) and by patience, determina- 
 tion and energ}', soon mastered the machinist's 
 trade, serving for but 50 cents per day at first 
 while learning. In the fall of 1851, the company 
 with $6,000 capital in all, removed to Canton. 
 The partners were six in number, viz : E. Ball, 
 C. Aultman, David Fouser, Lewis Miller, Geo. 
 Cook and Jacob Miller. They first manufact- 
 ured threshing machines, stoves and plows, 
 and old Obed Ilussey reapers, and did repair- 
 ing. They had no competition in reapers ex- 
 cept one shop on the Ohio River. During 1849, 
 our subject worked on the old "Hussey" reaper, 
 and ever since that time he has been experi- 
 
740 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 meriting on reapers, every season, in harvest 
 field. His remarkable aptitude for the ma- 
 chinist's trade, manifested itself so plainh', that, 
 in a short time after his apprenticeship he was 
 advanced to the superintendency of the works, 
 and while in this position he invented the 
 world-renowned "Buckeye Mower and Reaper" 
 — known in the market as the double-hinged 
 floating-bar — a distinctive feature from which 
 all two-wheeled floating-bar machines are pat- 
 terned. To this great and valuable invention 
 he afterward added others of scarcely less 
 utility, chief among which is his table rake 
 (a self-rake), which he invented in 1865, and 
 which attained a wonderful popularity, within 
 a few years. With the manufacture of the 
 "Buckeye" the business of the Canton house 
 became so largely increased that, in 1863, it 
 was found necessary to establish a branch con- 
 cern at Akron, under the incorporated name of 
 Aultraan, Miller & Co., and in the following 
 year he removed to Akron to take charge of 
 the works here, since which time he has been 
 superintendent and had full charge of the same. 
 In this position he has lived to see the once 
 insignificant shop expanded into wider halls, 
 wherein is executed a business which, of its 
 kind, is one of the most extensive in the coun- 
 try, which grand success is due, no doubt, to 
 each partner giving all his time and attention 
 to active work, wearing, so to speak, when the 
 business was first commenced at Canton, the 
 work apron himself, instead of hiring other 
 men to do it. No dividends were declared un- 
 til 1 866. They attained success thi'ough hard 
 labor, and some disappointments. On May 5, 
 1855, while they were all filled with machines 
 ready for market, their entire establishment 
 burned to the ground, with a loss of $50,000, 
 there being only $7,000 insurance. It was in 
 June, 1856, that the first patents were granted 
 for the "Buckeye," and at various times over 
 one hundred patents were granted to the firm, 
 one of which was for "Miller's Binder," which 
 machine is the result of Mr. Miller's study. 
 The business has increased from six threshers 
 and ten or twelve reapers per year, to twelve 
 hundred threshers and about twenty thousand 
 reapers and mowers per year, or one complete 
 machine to every four and one-half minutes 
 during working hours. They began building 
 the traction engine in 1877, the capacity now 
 being five hundred engines per year. At the 
 
 present time, he is President of the Canton 
 manufactory, and of the Akron Iron Co.; also 
 Superintendent of the Akron manufactory, and 
 member of Board of Directors of the Weary, 
 Snyder Manufacturing Co., of Akron. He is a 
 Director of the Bank of Akron, and a stockholder 
 in the First National Bank of Canton. He is a 
 member of the Board of Education and was 
 twice President of the same. He has taken a 
 deep interest in politics, and worked in the Re- 
 publican party, being an anti-slavery man, he is 
 now connected with the National party. He 
 became a member of theM. E. Church in 1843, 
 has held all positions in the church, and been 
 Sunday School Superintendent for twenty -eight 
 3'ears. He was three times a lay delegate to the 
 General Conference of the church, and has been 
 honored from time to time with other promi- 
 nent positions of trust. He was President of 
 the Ohio Sundaj^ School Association ; and of 
 the Chautauqua Association, having been the 
 originator of the Chautauqua scheme, and, as co- 
 worker with Dr. J. H. Vincent, has infused new 
 life into the methods of Sabbath school work, 
 always the President. In educational matters he 
 has taken a great interest, especially so in the 
 case of Mt. Union College. He is President of 
 Mt. Union College Board of Trustees, and is a 
 Trustee of the Ohio Wesleyan University, and 
 of Allegheny College. On Sept. 16, 1853, he 
 married Mary D. Alexander, of Plainfield, 111., 
 who bore him eleven children, ten of whom are 
 living, and are viz., Jennie, Ira M., Edward B., 
 Robert A., Lewis A., Mina, Mamie, Grace, John 
 V. and Theodore W. Eva died when 16. 
 
 JOHN McGregor, Secretary and Treas- 
 urer of the Akron Steam Forge Company ; he 
 was born in Columbiana County, near Wells- 
 ville, June 14, 1836 ; his parents, John and 
 Margaret (McBean) McGregor, are natives of 
 Scotland ; they emigrated to America in 1828, 
 and settled in Columbiana County, where they 
 now reside. The subject of this sketch was 
 raised on his father's farm, and, in 1861, en- 
 tered Jefferson College at Cannonsburg. Penn., 
 from which institution he graduated in 1863, 
 standing sixth in a class of thirt3'-nine ; he 
 then entered Ohio Law College, at Cleveland, 
 Ohio, where he remained one year. In 1864, 
 he entered upon the practice of his profession 
 at Akron, continuing at this for seven years, 
 during which time he was elected City Solic- 
 itor, filling this position two years, from 1869 
 
 t 
 
-^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 741 
 
 to 1871 ; he then purchased an interest in the 
 Akron Steam Forge Works, and when the es- 
 tablishment was re-organized in 1872, under 
 the control of a joint-stock company, he was 
 elected Secretary and Treasurer of the associa- 
 tion, which position he has faithfully filled ever 
 since. Mr. McGrregor is, at the present time, 
 Treasurer of Portage Township ; he was first 
 chosen for this office in 1877, and has been re- 
 elected each succeeding spring since then. He 
 was married Nov. 11, 1868, to Miss Hattie E. 
 Folger, daughter of William M. and Julia A. 
 (Hayden) Folger ; they are the parents of three 
 children — Julia F., John and Mary. 
 
 CHARLES MERRIMAN, Akron ; youngest 
 child of Jesse and Rhoda (Fox) Merriman ; 
 was born July 1, 1800, in Berkshire Co., Mass., 
 where he lived on a farm. When he was 10 
 years of age his mother died, leaving two sons 
 besides our subject, and one daughter, viz.: 
 Andrews, a physician, who settled in Madison, 
 Lake Co., Ohio, in 1816, and practiced in that 
 place forty-nine years and ten months ; Clarissa, 
 oldest of the children, who married Justin 
 Cole, now one of the pioneers of Lake Co., and 
 Alvin, who was a tanner by trade, going to 
 Parkersburg, W. Va., in about 1840, where he 
 lived a few years, then went to Centralia, 
 Southern Illinois, and lastly to Bloomington, 
 111., where he died. Mr. Merriman received, in 
 his boyhood, a good common school education. 
 Soon after his mother's death the other children 
 married, and left home, but he remained and 
 farmed there until 1835, taking care of his 
 father, who was quite aged, and who afterward 
 came here, and died in his 89th year. In 1834, 
 accompanied by his father, he came, by canal 
 and lakes, to visit friends in Lake Co., and in 
 March, 1835, bought 272 acres of wild land in 
 Portage Township, on the canal, two and a half 
 miles from Akron, for which he paid $1,200. 
 On May 5 they started, with a team, to Madison, 
 Ohio, completing the trip in fifteen days ; they 
 remained, improving some property there, until 
 August, when they came on to their wild land. 
 There they lived in a small cooper-shop with 
 Charles Webster and famil}' for two weeks. 
 They could only with great difficult}' obtain 
 lumber ; he built a house of round logs hewn 
 down inside, and having unplaned boards for 
 the floor, living there for seven years, when he 
 built a large frame house, in which he lived 
 until 1869, when he moved to Akron. He 
 
 owned 125 acres in Lorain County, which he 
 exchanged for 95 acres near New Portage. He 
 was a successful stock farmer, and a natural 
 mechanic, putting up his own buildings. On 
 Dec. 1, 1824, he married Miss Harriet Allis, of 
 Dalton, Mass., who bore him four children, 
 viz., Rhoda F. (who died in her seventh ^ear, 
 and was buried at Dalton), Charles Rector 
 (now a physician of Akron, Ohio), Wells E. (a 
 machinist of Akron, being a pattern-maker), 
 and Louisa E. (who died in her second year). 
 In politics he is a Republican, and has held 
 several offices of trust in that party ; he was 
 formerly a Whig. He and his wife are mem- 
 bers of the Congregational Church, he having 
 joined it at the age of 17. 
 
 ANDREWS MAY, retired, Akron. The par- 
 ents of the subject of this article were Dexter 
 and Sarah (Andrews) May. He was born at 
 Royalston, Hampshire, Co., Mass., on Aug. 6, 
 1792. When 6 years old his parents moved to 
 Concord, Vt., where the}' lived about six years, 
 then moved to Montpelier ; when he was 12 
 years old, he went to district school, and con- 
 tinued to attend about three months per year, 
 until 16 years of age, when he learned painting, 
 and helped to paint the first State House ever 
 constructed in Vermont. Finding that the 
 poisonous preparation of lead used in paint was 
 not conducive to his health, he abandoned the 
 trade, and commenced the carpentering, mill- 
 wrighting and joiner trades, which he followed 
 in Vermont until 1816. On July 1, 1818, he 
 came to Ohio, sending his tools by wagon, hav- 
 ing been employed for four years previous at 
 Champlain, N. Y., by William H. Price in build- 
 ing mills. In the spring of 1812, he volun- 
 teered in the service, and three companies were 
 drilled three months, and assigned to the com- 
 mand of Gren. Dearborn. The regiment to 
 which our subject belonged, all volunteered to 
 the expedition against Montreal, but were or- 
 dered back to Swanton Falls, in winter quarters 
 to guard the frontier against the encroachments 
 of Gen. Mayo with 1,000 hostile Indians. These 
 three companies remained until spring, when 
 they were mustered out. Subject again par- 
 ticipated in the battle of Plattsburg ; he rode 
 on horseback through the neighborhood, rally- 
 ing the men, who marched in good spirits to 
 the battle. His employer, William H. Price, 
 bought a tract of land at Kent, of 700 acres 
 (Kent was called- Franklin Mills post office). 
 
 
742 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Subject then built a large flouring-mill at Kent, 
 supposed to be, at that time (1818), the largest 
 in the State. Remaining in that vicinity, he 
 built a large house for Judge Whitmore, in 
 Stow, in 1820 and 1821. This place is now 
 called Cuj-ahoga Falls. In 1821, he went to 
 Thornd^'ke, and there went into partnership 
 with Israel Thornd3'ke ; started a nail factor}^, 
 bringing good machiner}' from Massachusetts, 
 grind stone from Nova Scotia, and nail plate 
 from Albany, N. Y., the freightage on all of 
 which being over $6 per hundred. Although 
 they made excellent nails, they failed to collect 
 their pay for goods, and were, therefore, obliged 
 to abandon the business. In 1823, he went in- 
 to the plow business, employing Dr. L. Croby, 
 of Middlebur}', to mold over two hundred cast 
 plows. The}' were called " Jethro Woods, No. 
 4." This was befoi-e the canal was put through, 
 and he had five counties to work in, viz. : Port- 
 age, Medina, Cuyahoga, Wayne and Stark, and 
 being obliged to travel on horseback to collect 
 bills, he could not make it successful, even fail- 
 ing to collect enough to pay traveling expenses. 
 At Franklin, he established a cupola furnace, 
 using charcoal to cast plows. This he con- 
 tinued some four years, when he let it drop be- 
 cause of some infringements on the patent, 
 which Wood did not litigate. In Dec. 31, 1824, 
 he married Miss Ann L. Uttey, of Hartford, 
 Conn., which marriage was blessed with five 
 children, two of whom, Horace U. and Horace 
 IT. second, died, the former at Akron in his 
 sixth year, and the latter (his namesake), at 
 Akron in his 22d year. Those living are 
 Albert D., of Yosemite Valley, Cal. ; Helen M., 
 at home, and Frank H., fruit dealer at Chicago, 
 111. After leaving the plow business, he farmed 
 in Franklin about one year, sending sixtj- bar- 
 rels of flour to New York, this was in 1833. 
 In about 1834, he built a house for Ithiel Mills, 
 of Akron, which is still standing. In 1835, he 
 moved to Akron, and in that year built the 
 " Summit House," which is also standing. This 
 place becoming then so unhealthy, he moved to 
 Wadsworth, Ohio, where he lived five years 
 employed in building. He returned in 1840 to 
 Akron, and, having a carriage then, he drove 
 in that year to all the meetings with the Dem- 
 ocrats. After moving here he engaged in team- 
 ing and building until about 1875, when he was 
 atliicted with paralysis. In belief, he is a Uni- 
 versalist, but belongs to no society, and is 
 
 thoroughl}^ a cosmopolitan. He is a Republi- 
 can and a Whig, and voted his first Presiden- 
 tial ticket for James Madison. 
 
 GEN. GKORGE W. McNEIL, miller, Akron, 
 son of Samuel and Martha (Coakley) McNeil ; 
 was born Sept. 16, 1813. in Montgomery Co., 
 N. Y. At the age of 1 0, with his father's fam- 
 ily, he moved to a spot near Syracuse, N. Y. 
 His father was a boat-builder, and George be- 
 gan to assist him when a boy, continuing to do 
 so until 1837, when he came to Massillon, 
 Ohio, where, in the fall and winter of the same 
 year, he worked at carpentering and boat- 
 building. In the spring of 1838, he entered 
 the employ of Beach & Co., in the stone mills 
 at Akron, acting as clerk, which position he 
 retained until 1840, in the fall of which year he 
 was made captain of the canal-boat " Cornelia," 
 of Akron, which he ran to Cleveland, Buffalo 
 and Albany, a distance of 900 miles, it being 
 the longest run of an}- boat previous to that 
 time. In the spring of 1841, he and Nicholas 
 Rector put a run of stone in the old Center 
 Mills, conducting it about one 3'ear, when they 
 sold out, purchased the site for and built the 
 City Mills, of which they sold a part interest 
 to Philo Chamberlain, in 1843. Subject re- 
 mained in that mill until 1874, when he took 
 charge of the manufacturing department of the 
 firm of Chamberlain & Co., which firm pur- 
 chased the ^Etna Mills, in 1862, both mills 
 continuing under the control of Chamberlain, 
 up to 1880. In July, 1874, Mr. McNeil with- 
 drew from the company, and engaged in the 
 manufacture of grain-cleaning machinery, which 
 occupation he followed until 1878, five years 
 previous to which date he invented the " Mc- 
 Neil Grain Scourer," which is still manufact- 
 ured by G. W. McNeil & Sons, of this place. 
 In December, 1877, the firm of McNeil & Bald- 
 win was formed, and they rented the ^Etna 
 Mills of Chamberlain & Co! In 1879-80, they 
 repaired it, and arranged for the new process 
 of making flour. He was elected Brigadier 
 General of the Eighteenth Division Ohio Mi- 
 litia in 1858-59. In 1858, he was elected on 
 the People's Ticket Mayor of Akron. He was 
 raised in the Whig school, and became a Pro- 
 hibitionist in 1872. For twelve years, he has 
 been connected with the Sons of Temperance 
 as a prominent worker. Nov. 4, 1842, he mar- 
 ried Miss Eleanor C. Martin, of Akron, who 
 bore him one daughter and two sons, viz., Em- 
 
 ^ 
 
ik^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 r43 
 
 ma (wife of A. E. Angier, of Columbus, Ohio), 
 Charles A., of Akron, and George W., Jr., of 
 New York. 
 
 REV. THOMAS E. MOxNROE, minister, Ak- 
 ron. Rev. Thomas E. Monroe, the able Pastor 
 of the First Congregational Church of Akron, 
 Ohio, is of Scotch descent, and one of four 
 children of Job and Phebe (Collins) Monroe, 
 being born at Plainfield, Conn., on April 28, 
 1829. His father was born in Massachusetts, 
 and, in his early manhood, studied law ; but, 
 his health failing, he engaged in farming. In 
 the war of 1812, he was Captain. He died in 
 Oberlin, Ohio, in 1872, being in his 87th year. 
 His three sons and one daughter, excepting the 
 subject of these lines, are Abel, a banker of 
 Woonsocket, R. I. ; Prof. James Monroe, of 
 Oberlin College, and Mary, who is deceased. 
 The subject spent his youth on a farm, attend- 
 ing to farm duties, and receiving such an edu- 
 cation as the New England schools afforded, in- 
 cluding Latin. At 17, he began teaching in 
 the public schools of Rhode Island, continuing 
 for three years, when he entered a preparatory 
 school at Providence, R. I. The year following, 
 he entered Oberlin College, taking a classical 
 course, in which he graduated in 1856 ; and, in 
 two years after, graduated in a theological 
 course. In the summer of 1859, he was or- 
 dained by the Cleveland Conference a minister 
 of the Gospel. For one year, he was located 
 at Amherst, Lorain Co., Ohio, becoming Pastor 
 of the First Congregational Church of Mt. Ver- 
 non, Ohio, in 1860, which place he filled until 
 1873, in the meantime having increased the 
 membership from 150 to 437. During his stay 
 with that people, they built a church costing 
 $38,000. On April 1, 1873, he came to Akron, 
 and became Pastor of its First Congregational 
 Church, which position he holds, having now 
 650 members, exclusive of 122 absent ones, 
 being an increase of 504 over the membership 
 when he took charge of it. In June, 1859, he 
 married IMiss Mary Bernard, of Philadelphia, 
 who bore him one child. 
 
 JAMES MATHEWS, insurance, Akron, is 
 a son of James and Jane (Archer) Mathews, 
 and was born April 23, 1803, in Washington 
 Co., N. Y. When he was 8 years of age, his 
 parents moved to Crown Point, and, a few 3'ears 
 later, to Vermont. He was brought up on a 
 farm, and, at the age of 22 years, commenced 
 learning the cabinet-making business and paint- 
 
 ing, giving special attention to ornamental paint- 
 ing. His health failing, he discontinued the 
 business, and was appointed Constable of Orange 
 Co., Vt., and was thus employed until 1839, 
 when he came to Akron, Ohio. He first com- 
 menced the manufacturing of grain shovels, and 
 then engaged in building ; and, in 1840, in 
 working on Perkins & Co.'s Woolen Factor}', 
 now used as a mill. He next embarked in the 
 grocery business, which he continued until 1845, 
 when he built the Mathews residence, corner of 
 East Market and Broadway, which was the 
 second brick building in that part of the city. 
 In the spring of 1849, he went into the insur- 
 ance business, as agent of five of the leading 
 companies, viz., ^Etna, Phoenix, Springfield, 
 Home of New York, and Hartfoi'd, continuing 
 fii'e insurance, until, in 1873, when he gave it 
 over to his son, Henry G. In January, 1857, 
 he became agent of the Mutual Life of New 
 York, and has retained it ever since, a period 
 of twenty-four years. He is now the oldest 
 agent of that company in the State, and has 
 the best ratio of business, and has insured to the 
 amount of over $12,000,000. He was married 
 in Januaiy, 1833, at Wells River, Vt, to Miss 
 Agnes Grant, of that place. Three children 
 were born of that marriage— George H. (died 
 in December, 1872, in his 33d year) ; Henry, of 
 Akron, and Charles H., book-keeper of Booth's 
 Theater, New York. His wife died in April, 
 
 1870. Mr. Mathews was a Jackson Democrat ; 
 but, after the campaign of Gen. Cass, in 1848, 
 he became a Whig ; and, upon the organization 
 of the Republican party, adopted its principles. 
 In 1865, he was elected Mayor of the city of 
 Akron for two years by a unanimous vote, and 
 during his term of ofiSce made man}' needed im- 
 pi'ovements in streets, etc. He was a member 
 of the first Board of Education of Akron, which 
 was elected in 1847. He was a second time 
 married, on the 23d of November, 1871, to Mrs. 
 Isabella Tayler, widow of the late James D. 
 Tayler, and a daughter of Alonzo Howard, one 
 of the pioneer merchants of Middlebury, where 
 she was born. Mr. M. built the Mathews Block 
 on Howard street, in 1850, and rebuilt it in 
 
 1871. He is a writer of considerable merit ; 
 is of Scotch descent, and has a warm admira- 
 tion for the ballads and verses of Scotia's im- 
 mortal bard. During the residence in Vermont, 
 he was thrown among the Scotch people of 
 Caledonia Co., where he acquired a taste and 
 
 ^ 
 
744 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 aptness for the Scotch dialect, which he speaks 
 " Hke a native " — if occasion requires it. He 
 was a member of the Town Council in 1842-43, 
 and is now the only survivor of those bodies. 
 
 CHARLES MILLER, manufacturer, Akron; 
 was born in Upper Nazareth Township, North- 
 ampton Co., Penn., Nov. 29, 1815 (a more com- 
 plete history of whose family appears under 
 the head of Norton Township). The first nine- 
 teen years of his life were spent on the farm 
 and in receiving a verj^ meager education ; the 
 following spring, he went to learn the car- 
 penter and joiner's trade with one Charles 
 Glass, hiring for two years, which he served 
 with the exception of about three months ; his 
 salary was board, washing and mending, with a 
 few tools at the expiration of his apprentice- 
 ship ; the cause of his not serving the full time 
 was on account of a hard master, and being 
 compelled to do a great deal of work after 
 night. During the time of his apprenticeship, 
 he was engaged on the Beaver Meadow & Haz- 
 leton Branch Railroad, from Beaver Meadow 
 to Mauch Chunk, which was at that time one 
 the first railroads in the State. In the spring 
 of 1838, he came to Guilford Township, Medina 
 Co., where he followed his trade until late in the 
 fall, when he returned to Pennsylvania, and 
 worked at White Haven, which was at the head 
 of the Lehigh Canal; later he returned to North- 
 ampton Co., remaining there until in 1843, 
 when he again came to Ohio, stopping for a 
 time in Wayne Co. He worked at his trade 
 and engaged in farming until in 1857, when he 
 entered into a partnership with Abraham Krotz 
 in the sale of farming implements for C. M. 
 Russell & Co., of Massillon, in which they con- 
 tinued two years; the partner appropriating the 
 money obtained from sales and dying on his 
 way home from Illinois where they had been 
 operating, left Mr. Miller in almost destitute 
 circumstances when the indebtedness was paid 
 up. In 1861, after John F. Seiberling began the 
 manufacture of the Excelsior, at Doylestown, 
 Mr. Miller acted as general agent, operating in 
 a large territory and selling, himself, nearly 
 half of the machines manufactured by that 
 company. In 1863, he purchased a quarter 
 interest in the Seiberling patents, and subse- 
 quently was compelled to expend hundreds of 
 dollars in the purchase of other prior inven- 
 tions to make their patents valid. In 1865, he 
 having prior to that time formed a partnership 
 
 of several of Akron's prominent business men 
 and purchased the ground for the manufacture 
 of the Excelsior Mower and Reaper, they built 
 the works of that company on Broad street in 
 the city of Akron. John F. Seiberling after- 
 ward became connected with the firm which 
 stood until in 1875, when they made an assign- 
 ment, at which time Mr. Miller was the owner 
 of $65,500 in stock, besides having loaned the 
 firm several thousand dollars, which has been 
 almost a total loss. In 1879, he, in connec- 
 tion with his sons, purchased the chain works 
 of a Mr. Matherson, at Cuyahoga Falls, and 
 moved the same to Akron, having purchased 
 the Schevere works where they are now exten- 
 sively engaged in the manufacture of all kinds 
 of chains and running from sixty to eighty men. 
 He was married in February, 1843, to Hannah 
 Bechtel, daughter of Abraham Bechtel ; b}- this 
 marriage there have been four sons and three 
 daughters — Emma Elizabeth, Henry D., Aman- 
 da Ann, Harvey F., Levin J., S. Samuel, Cora 
 0.; four are married and residents of Akron — 
 Emma E., now Mrs. Frank Reifsnider, he a 
 traveling salesman for the rubber works in 
 Cleveland ; Henry, married to Miss Minnie 
 Sigley ; Amanda, now wife of Mr. Kratz, su- 
 perintendent at the Thomas Planing Mill ; 
 Harvey, married to Miss Mary Hayes. Levin 
 J. is engaged in business in the West. Mr. 
 Miller has been a man of great energ}^ and 
 business ability, and the manner in which he 
 has adjusted the great losses which he has suf- 
 fered has made him many warm friends in his 
 declining age. 
 
 JUDGE ULYSSES L. MARVIN, lawyer, 
 Akron ; is a son of Ulysses and Elizabeth 
 (Bradley) Marvin, and was born March 14, 
 1839, in Stow Township, this count}^, where his 
 youth was spent until the age of 15, when he 
 began painting with his father during the sum- 
 mer. His education was received, in addition 
 to the public schools, in Twinsburg Institute, 
 and Franklin Institute, at Kent, teaching in the 
 meantime from the time he was 16 years of 
 age. In 1858, he entered the law office of H. 
 R. Foster, at Hudson, and the next spring came 
 to Akron and completed his studies with Hon. 
 Sidney Edgerton, and was admitted to the bar 
 May 2, 1860. In 1861, he became Principal of 
 the Union School of Kent, where he married 
 Miss Dorena, only daughter of Hon. David 
 Rockwell, of that place, Nov. 27, 1861. In 
 
 ^ (3 W 
 
-^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 745 
 
 August, 1862, he enlisted as a private in the 
 the 115th 0. V. I., and served as a clerk 
 in the office of Judge Advocate, at Cincin- 
 nati, until August, 1863, when he was com- 
 missioned as 1st Lieutenant in the 5th U. S. 
 Colored Infantry, and as a part of the 18th 
 Army Corps pai'ticipated in the Peninsular 
 campaign of 1864. In the attack on Peters- 
 burg and that campaign, he commanded the 
 skirmish line at the Burnside mine explosion. 
 During the siege of Richmond, he was pro- 
 moted to Captain, and was wounded while 
 leading his company at New Market Heights, 
 Sept. 29, 1864, which disabled him for two 
 months, when he returned to his command and 
 was assigned to duty as Adjutant General on 
 Gren. Shurtliff's staff, was sent to Ft. Fisher, 
 then to Raleigh, N. C, and was at the sur- 
 render. He was brevetted Major at the close 
 of the war for gallant and meritorious serv- 
 ice, and made Judge Advocate on the staff 
 of Gen. Paine, serving as such until mustered 
 out of the service in October, 1865. He then 
 returned to Kent and opened a law office, and 
 two years later removed to Akron, forming a 
 partnership with J. J. Hall for eighteen months. 
 In the fall of 1869, he was elected Probate 
 Judge, serving until February, 1876 ; since 
 then he has been in practice of law first as the 
 firm of Foster, Marvin & Grant, now the firm of 
 Marvin, Grant & Foote. 
 
 EDWIN H. MERRILL, of E. H. Merrill & 
 Co., manufacturers of stoneware, Akron, is a 
 son of Abijah and Abigail (Scott) Merrill, and 
 was born Feb. 9, 1808, in Painesville, Ohio, 
 where he went to school in winter, and began 
 his trade of potter with his father when but a 
 boy, growing up with the business. In 1830, 
 when he was 22 years old, he came to Spring- 
 field Township, working successively for Fisk 
 and for Purdy, when he bought out Fisk. (The 
 pottery and sewer-pipe business is one of the 
 most extensive of Akron and Summit County, 
 and receives full notice in the chapter devoted 
 to the industries of the city.) After he bought 
 out Fisk, his father's family came on (about 
 1835), and they began the manufacture of beer 
 bottles, b}' machinery invented by subject, and 
 upon which he had secured a patent. They 
 remained in Springfield until 1847, and had in 
 the meantime began the manufactory of to- 
 bacco pipes b}- machinery. They then moved 
 to Middlebury, and made priucipall}' beer 
 
 bottles, tobacco and water pipes — making 
 300,000 bottles per year. They also invented 
 a machine for making stone pumps, which they 
 manufactured for a time. In 1854, they (Mer- 
 rill Brothers), invented a machine for making 
 sewer-pipe, and began their manufacture, under 
 firm of Merrill, Powers & Co., the brothers 
 owning one-half interest. They did well until 
 1857, when the panic came, and their principal 
 buj-ers of Chicago could not sell, and having 
 a large amount on hand, were forced to sell at 
 reduced prices. About the same time, subject 
 bought his brother's interest in the bottle fac- 
 tory, which he continued until 1860, when it 
 was destroyed by fire, with total loss. He 
 then came to his present place, 404 South 
 Main street, and purchased the building now 
 in use, where he has done a good business. 
 The firm was Merrill & Sons, and they em- 
 ployed a force of some thirty men and boys. 
 He was married, in 1838, to Miss Emily Glea- 
 son, of Bedford, Ohio. They have two sous 
 and one daughter living. Henry E. is a mem- 
 ber of the firm ; William G. is in the pottery 
 business in Virginia ; Grace, now Mrs. F. W. 
 Butler, who is a member of the present 
 firm. In Februar}', 1880, William G. re- 
 retired from the firm of Merrill & Sons, and F. 
 W. Butler became a partner, and the firm was 
 changed to E. H. Merrill & Co. 
 
 CYRUS MILLER, merchant, Akron, Ohio ; 
 was born in 1831, in Allegheny Co., Penn. At 
 an eai'ly age he was left an orphan, and that 
 portion of his life was spent in the homes of 
 different families, as chance might offer and 
 as his services were counted as compensa- 
 tion. He had no opportunities of gaining an 
 education, and at the age of 14 he began as a 
 driver in the coal mines at Chippewa, Ohio, 
 he having for some years previous to this been 
 a resident of the State. He continued at driv- 
 ing in the mines for about five ^'ears, and then 
 he spent three years in mining. He then ac- 
 cepted the position of shipper for ]Mr. David 
 Morris, who was engaged in the shipment of 
 coal from Girard, Trumbull Co., to Cleveland. 
 For about nine years he was engaged in ship- 
 ping, when he purchased a hotel in Girard, of 
 which he spent the following eight years as 
 landlord and proprietor. His last change, little 
 ovev ten years ago, was to come to Akron, and 
 with a capital of $500, engage in the grocery 
 trade. With this small amount as a beginning, 
 
 V 
 
746 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 lie has built up a business that ranks among 
 the leading mercantile houses of the city, as, in 
 the year 1880, the aggregate sum of his sales 
 was $80,000. His place of business is located 
 at No. 142 South Howard street. Mr. Miller is 
 a quiet, unassuming man, who has given his 
 whole attention to his business, and though he 
 began a poor boy, and was left dependent upon 
 his own resources, he holds a position among 
 the business men of Alcron of which he may 
 justly be proud. In 1849, he was married to 
 Miss Delilah, daughter of John Wilson, of 
 Starli Co., Ohio. 
 
 GEORGE S. MAY, lawyer, Akron, Ohio ; 
 was born Jan. 31, 1851, and is a son of Horace 
 and Eleanor (Stow) May, the latter of the same 
 family of Mr. Stow, the founder of Stow Town- 
 ship. His (subject's) father was born in Caz- 
 enovia, N. Y., July 6, 1811, and came to Akron 
 in 1837, where he engaged in general mercantile 
 business ; having stores at Lock 1, one in 
 North Akron, and a branch at " Slankertown." 
 By prudence, economy, and a general adapta- 
 tion to the business, he was successful, and 
 retired on account of failing health in 1856, 
 having accumulated a competency, which he 
 managed with care until his death, in August, 
 1867. Mr. M. was alwaj^s at the front in all 
 enterprises of a public nature, and did much to 
 establish the commercial and political impor- 
 tance of the town. A man of sterling worth, 
 and with the reputation of being an excellent 
 business man, he had the respect and confidence 
 of all who knew him. Those who have listened 
 with interest to his stories of business experi- 
 ences of Akron in the early times, will remem- 
 ber with what pride he would boast of never 
 having paid a debt a day after it was due in 
 his life. His social qualities drew about him a 
 host of friends and intimate acquaintances, and 
 his home was always filled with company. 
 Among others, Hon. B. F. Wade, R. P. Ranuey, 
 Judge V. R. Humphrey, were life-long friends, 
 and always found a welcome with Mr. May. 
 Subject was but 16 years old when his father 
 died, and at the solicitation of Mr. Wade, took 
 up the study of the law in the office of Edger- 
 ton & Kohler, where he remained until his ad- 
 mission to the bar, Sept. 2, 1872. In October 
 following, he made a trip to the Old World, 
 visiting the larger portions of Continental 
 Europe and Great Britain, spending one year in 
 the Law Department of the University of 
 
 Heidelberg, Germany. He returned home in 
 1874, and began the practice of law in Akron, 
 where he has since remained. He was mar- 
 ried Sept. 30, 1875, to Miss Elizabeth S. Rogers, 
 of Boston, Mass. She died June 10, 1877, 
 leaving two daughters. 
 
 REV. HENRY F. MILLER, Akron ; a son 
 of John S. and Ann (Forer) Miller ; was born 
 in Athens Co., Ohio, Aug. 22, 1829. His youth 
 was spent on a farm, and, at the age of 18, he 
 entered the Ohio University at Athens, and 
 graduated in the class of 1853. He then be- 
 came Principal of Transylvania University at 
 Lexington, Ky., remaining one year. He taught 
 in Meigs Co., Ohio, two years, and in Pome- 
 roy two years. In 1859, he entered the minis- 
 tr}' of the Universalist Church, and removed 
 the next year to Madison, Ind., where he became 
 Pastor of a church until 1863. He was then 
 sent as general army agent to look after the 
 sick and wounded soldiers in the Southwest, 
 and distribute sanitary stores and attend to 
 other charitable work, under the auspices of 
 his church, with headquarters at Louisville, 
 Ky. In July, 1865, he returned to Madison 
 and was appointed b}^ the Northwestern Con- 
 ference of the Universalist Church General 
 Financial Secretary to raise an endowment 
 fund for Lombard University at Galesburg, 111., 
 and succeeded in raising $100,000 in two years, 
 He was appointed to a like work for the build- 
 ing and equipment of Smithson College at 
 Logansport, Ind. He resigned the position in 
 1869, and was elected general agent of the Ohio 
 State Convention, Universalists, for the found- 
 ing of an institution of learning in Ohio, and 
 in pursuance of this object, during same year, 
 he made the acquaintance of John R. Buchtel, 
 of Akron, and enlisted him in behalf of the 
 enterprise. The result was the founding of 
 Buchtel College, a history of which is given 
 elsewhere. He continued in management of its 
 finances until the building was erected and 
 opened for the admission of students. He con- 
 ceived and carried to success the idea of hav- 
 ing Hon. Horace Greeley deliver an address at 
 the laying of the corner-stone, which gave 
 the college considerable prestige. Since 1871, 
 with somewhat broken health, Mr. M. has 
 divided his time between the work of the min- 
 istr}' and business pursuits. He was married, 
 in 1853, to Miss Apphia Brown Cable, of Athens, 
 Ohio. Of this marriage thex-e were seven chil- 
 
 
l^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 747 
 
 dren, five of whom are living — Henry E. was edu- 
 cated in the Akron schools, and is now farming 
 in Medina Co.; Clinton D. is proprietor of the 
 "99-cent" store of Akron ; Paul R., a student 
 of the Class of 1881, in Buchtel College ; Mattie 
 C. and Ernest still reside at home. Subject's 
 parents were born in New Jerse3\ and settled 
 in the woods of Athens Co., Ohio, in the early 
 part of 1829. 
 
 C. H. MYERS, boots and shoes, Akron ; is 
 a good representative of the boot and shoe 
 trade of South Akron, and, in fact, one of the 
 leading dealers in the city. In speaking per- 
 sonally of some of the promoters of Akron's 
 business industries, his name is worthy of more 
 than a passing mention. He was born Dec. 6, 
 1 852, in Middlebur}', or what is now known as 
 East Akron, and is the son of Charles F. and 
 Elizabeth (Swope) Myers, the former a native 
 of France, and a carpenter and architect by 
 trade. When C. H. was about 10 years old, his 
 father moved to the country and engaged in 
 farming. About seven years of the life of C. 
 H. wa5 spent at hard work on the farm, when 
 his people removed to Akron again, which 
 move gave him a better opportunit}' of getting 
 an education, both of a commercial and literary 
 nature. After leaving school he spent about 
 one year in the gearing department of the 
 Buckeye Reaper Works. With the money 
 earned by himself in this way he took a thor- 
 ough course and graduated at the commercial 
 college of Akron. After leaving college, he 
 spent one 3-ear on the road as traveling sales- 
 man for a hardware house. He then began 
 clerking for Mr. E. P. Holloway, with whom he 
 remained till the spring of 1876, when he and 
 C. A. Holloway, also an employe of E. P., 
 engaged in the boot and shoe trade under the 
 firm name of Holloway & Myers, and so con- 
 tinued to do a very prosperous business until 
 the spring of 1881, when he purchased the 
 interest of Mr. Holloway, and is now conduct 
 ing the business alone in the old successful 
 way. In the spring of 1877, he was married 
 to Miss Catharine, daughter of Albert and 
 Mary (Braenton) Corne}'. She was born May 
 11, 1854, in Bridgeport, Conn., and, when a 
 child, came to Cu^-ahoga Falls with her parents. 
 She lived there about twelve years, when her 
 people removed to Akron. They were married 
 b}' the Rev. Henry Baker. They are both 
 members of the First M. E. Church of Akron ; 
 
 he has been a member for the past fourteen 
 years. One child has been born to them — 
 Gracie, who was born on March 30, 1878, and 
 died on March 4, 1880. 
 
 J. A. MYERS, foreman of the shipping de- 
 partment at Aultman, Miller & Co.'s, Akron ; 
 is a son of David B. and Elizabeth (Moller) 
 Myers — she a native of Wayne Co., Ohio, he of 
 Germany, but he came to Ohio with his wid- 
 owed mother when about 6 months old ; she 
 married, in Cleveland, a Mr. Green, and moved 
 to Independence, where she still lives, at the 
 advanced age of 83 years. David, the father 
 of our subject, moved from Wayne Co. to La- 
 Porte Co., Ind., where he lived thirteen 3'ears, 
 when he returned to Ohio in 1864, and resided 
 at Canal Fulton and Clinton until 1868, when 
 he came to Akron, where he now resides. He 
 had three children — J. A., the eldest, born Jan. 
 15, 1847 ; Nancy, a Mrs. Henninger, and Etta, 
 a maiden. The subject of this sketch received 
 a ver}^ limited education, and, at twelve years 
 of age, went into a drug store, in which busi- 
 ness he continued until 1866, making rapid ad- 
 vancement in the knowledge of the business. 
 He then worked with his father, who was a car- 
 penter by trade, until Oct. 27, 1867, when he 
 accepted the second position in the shipping 
 department, where he is now employed, serving 
 nine 3ears in that capacity, after which he ac- 
 cepted his present position. He was married;, 
 Sept. 12, 1869, to Emma Clark, born Dec. 29, 
 1848, in Sheffield, England, but came when 1 
 3-ear old to this countr3' with her parents, Sam- 
 uel and Sarah Clark, who were farmers in 
 Springfield Township, both of whom are now 
 deceased. B3' this marriage there are five 
 children — Clarence Arthur, born Jul3- 1, 1870 ; 
 Edna May, July 9, 1872 ; Daisy Emma, April 
 3, 1875 ; Myrtle Grace, Oct. 27, 1877 ; Ches- 
 ter Albert, April 6, 1881. 31 r. Myers is a 
 stanch Republican, greatly interested in educa- 
 tion, a liberal supporter of churches, and he, 
 with his family, are members of the Evangel- 
 ical Association. 
 
 FATHER THOMAS F. MAHAR, Akron ; 
 was born in Scranton, Penn., Sept. 28, 1851. In 
 1866, he entered St. Louis College at Louisville, 
 Stark Co., Ohio, and remained three years, 
 having been for four years previous a student 
 in St. Mary's College. In 1869, he went 
 to Rome, Italy, where he began his eccle- 
 siastical studies in the American College, con- 
 
 ^1®" 
 I 
 
748 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 tinuing until 1875, when he came to Cleveland, 
 Ohio, and was made Assistant Pastor in St. 
 John's Cathedral, serving until Aug. 1, 1880, 
 when he was sent to the pastorate of St. Vin- 
 cent's Church of Akron. He received the 
 degrees of Ph. D. and D. D. at Rome, Italy. 
 He is the oldest son living born to Thomas and 
 Ann (Hart) Mahar, both of whom were born in 
 the United States and are now residents of 
 Cleveland, where the husband superintends a 
 rolling-mill. 
 
 RUDOLPH A. MAY, of the firm of May & 
 Fiebeger, Akron, dealers in stoves and tinware, 
 also galvanized iron cornices, etc. Mr. May, of 
 this firm, was born in Bohemia, Austria, April 3, 
 1847, and is the fourth of six children born to 
 Anthon}- and Rosialia (Drey thaler) May, natives 
 of Bohemia, Austria. Anthon}- May came to 
 the United States m 1848. and in 1850, his wife 
 and one child, (the three other children having 
 died), came also to Akron, where he had been 
 working. Mr. Ma}' first worked in the woolen fac- 
 tory, and in 1851, he engaged in the grocery busi- 
 ness, which he followed until his death in 1855. 
 Mrs. Ma}^ soon after married Mr. Joseph Fiebe- 
 ger, who was also a native of Austria. They 
 live now in Akron. Rudolph A., the subject. 
 lived at home until he was 14 j-ears old, when 
 he went to Columbus, where he worked at 
 silver-plating. Some months after he appren- 
 ticed to the tinning trade, receiving wages after 
 the first year ; he lived in Columbus two years, 
 and then returned to Akron, and a year after- 
 ward formed a partnership with J. B. Cramer 
 (firm Cramer & May), continuing until 1880, 
 when the firm dissolved and was succeeded by 
 the present one of May & Fiebeger. He was 
 married Sept. 9, 1874, to Miss Susan R. Rhodes, 
 a native of Portage Co., Ohio. They have three 
 children — Mary M., Lewis R. and Nellie L. 
 
 DR. THOMAS McEBRIGHT, physician, 
 Akron ; was born April 14, 1824, at Carlisle, 
 Penn. He is the youngest of eight cliildren 
 born to George and Barbara (Brunner) Mc- 
 Ebright. His parents were natives of Penns}'!- 
 vania ; moved in 1833 to Wayne Co., Ohio, 
 where his father, though a tanner b}' trade, de- 
 voted his attention to farming. Here both lived 
 until their death, living to an advanced age. 
 Dr. McEbright lived on the farm until the age 
 of 16 3-ears, when he entered the Ohio Wesle}'- 
 an University, continuing his studies at inter- 
 vals until 1848, teachino; district and select 
 
 schools in the meantime to support him in col- 
 lege. He finall}' abandoned his college course, 
 before completion, on account of his health. 
 He at one began reading medicine at Wooster, 
 Ohio, with Dr. T. H. Baker, and graduated at 
 the Starling Medical College, of Columbus, 
 Ohio. He began practice at Nashville, Ohio, 
 where he remained seven 3'ears, going from 
 there to Millersburg. In 1861, he went from 
 the latter place to the army as Surgeon of the 
 8th 0. V. I., remaining with the regiment two 
 years. Resigning, he returned to Millersburg, 
 and soon after raised the 59th Battalion, con- 
 sisting of five companies, which, upon the call 
 for 100 days' men, was attached to the 166th 
 Regiment. Dr. McEbright was made Colonel, 
 but preferring to act as Surgeon, at his request. 
 Gov. Tod appointed Col. Blake to succeed him, 
 and commissioned Dr. McEbright as Surgeon. 
 He soon after rose to the position of Brigade 
 Surgeon, and in this position was detailed as 
 Chief of the Operative Board at the battles of 
 Antietam, Winchester, Wilderness seven days' 
 fight, Rich Mountain, and the other engagements 
 up to Gettysburg. In the fall of 1864, he was 
 mustered out with his regiment and returned, 
 coming to .\kron to resume his practice, where 
 he has since been engaged. Dr. McEbright is 
 an active societ}^ man ; a member of the Sum- 
 mit County Medical Society ; was one of its 
 founders, and among its earliest Presidents. 
 He is a member also of the Union Medical So- 
 ciety of Northeastern Ohio, the State Medical 
 Society, and the American Medical Association, 
 serving in different official capacities in the two 
 former. In June, 1853, he married Miss Nancy, 
 daughter of Judge Thomas Liggett, of Millei's- 
 burg, Ohio. The}^ have had five children, only 
 two of whom are now living : " Kit," who re- 
 ceived the degree of Bachelor of Arts, at the 
 Cornell University, at the age of 19 ; she has 
 also received the same degree at the Buchtel, 
 and is now completing a French coui'se at St. 
 Marie De Monoir, Canada. Carrie, the younger 
 daughter, is attending school in her native cit}', 
 Akron. 
 
 WILLIAM McKINNEY, Sheriff, Akron; 
 was born in Franklin County, Ohio, Dec. 39, 
 1833, and is the youngest of five children born 
 to Cineum and Abigail (Patterson) McKinney ; 
 he was butcher by trade, and dealt largely in 
 stock ; he died in 1834. Mrs. McKinney after- 
 ward married Mr. Luther R. Prentiss, a farmer 
 
 -?[< 
 
CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 749 
 
 of Cuyahoga County, where she lived until her 
 death, about the year 1855. Mr. Prentiss is 
 yet living in Cuyahoga County, aged 78 years. 
 Our subject lived with his mother until he was 
 16 years of age, when he was apprenticed to 
 shoemaking and served three vears, after which 
 he followed his trade in Twinsburg, and in 
 Iowa and Kansas for three or four years. In j 
 1860, he returned to Twinsburg and opened a 
 shop ; in 1862, he left his shop in his broiher- 
 in-law's care, and enlisted in Co. G, 115th O.V. I., 
 serving until the close of the war ; he was first 
 appointed Corporal and afterward promoted to 
 2d Sergeant; in 1863, he was detailed with 
 Lieut. Nash to take charge of a block-house at 
 Luverne, near Nashville, and, upon the transfer 
 of Lieut. Nash^ the Sergeant was left in com- 
 mand, and so remained until Dec. 5, 1864, 
 when the place was captured by Forest ; they 
 were held prisoners, and, in March following, 
 were moved to Black River, near Vicksburg ; 
 here the Sergeant escaped the guard and went 
 to Vicksburg, where he took a hospital boat to 
 St. Louis, and, from there, returned home, his 
 weight being eighty pounds ; after remaining 
 home about a month, he went to Camp Chase, 
 where he received his discharge, and returned 
 to Twinsburg, where he resumed shoemaking, 
 which he continued there until 1871, when he 
 was appointed Postmaster by President Grant, 
 and held the office until Jan. 1, 1881. In the 
 fall of 1880, he was elected Sheriff on the 
 Republican ticket, and entered upon the duties 
 of his office in January following. Feb. 8, 
 1853, he married Miss Sarah A. Carver, a na- 
 tive of Twinsburg, and a daughter of George 
 W. Carver, whose father was one of the pioneers 
 of that Township ; by the marriage, there has 
 been born six children, of whom three are liv- 
 ing, viz. : Clara, Perry and Paul. 
 
 JAMES C. McNEIL, proprietor of Akron 
 Boiler Works, Akron, Ohio ; was born in Onon- 
 daga County, N. Y., May 8, 1836, and is a 
 son of Samuel and Nancy (Cokely) McNeil, 
 who were natives of New York, and emigrated 
 to Ohio about the year 1838, and settled in 
 Coshocton County ; they carried on farming 
 there until his death in 1847, when his widow 
 continued same until 1859, when she came to 
 Akron, to live with James C, and died in 1867. 
 The subject came to Akron in the year 1847, 
 to live with his brother, and attended the pub- 
 lic schools; at the age of 18, he apprenticed 
 
 to the machinist trade, with Webster & Taplin, 
 of Akron, and served until he became of age ; 
 he followed the trade about six years in Cleve- 
 land, with the Cleveland & Mahoning R. R. 
 Co. — three and a half 3'ears foreman of shops 
 and two and a half years engineer on railroad — 
 and then returned to Akron, and took charge 
 of the machinery in the Akron Barrel Factor}', 
 where he continued for two and a half years. 
 In 1866, the firm of Moffatt & McNeil was 
 formed, and engaged in the manufacture of 
 boilers and boiler plate-work ; they continued 
 four years, when Mr. McNeil became sole pro- 
 prietor and has continued ever since. In 1880, 
 Mr. McNeil built the present brick shop, 64x96 
 feet ; he does a large business, and is a practi- 
 cal man ; employs from twenty-five to thirty 
 hands. He was married, in 1859, to Miss Mary 
 Gale, a daughter and youngest child of Justus 
 and Sarah (Hyde) Gale, a prominent famil}', 
 and a native of Akron ; they have two children, 
 viz. : Grant C. and Sarah G. He has been a 
 Republican since organization of the part}-, 
 and from 1866 to 1869. was Chief of the City 
 Fire Department. 
 
 J. C. McMILLEN, of Baker, Merriman & Co., 
 Akron ; was born in Clarion County, Penn., 
 March 8, 1827, and is the second of a famil}- 
 of four children born to John and Sallie (Max- 
 well) McMillen. Mr. McMillen's parents were 
 natives of Westmoreland County, Penn. ; his 
 father was a farmer, and subsequently, in 1862, 
 moved with his family to Iowa, where the 
 mother died, July 4, 1876. The family then 
 moved to Michigan, where he is now living 
 with a son. J. C. McMillen lived with his 
 parents, assisting on the farm, until he was 18 
 years of age, when he was apprenticed to a 
 cabinet manufacturer, with whom he remained 
 until he attained his majority ; he continued 
 about three years longer as a journeyman, 
 when he came to Akron and engaged in his trade. 
 Some four years later, he united with others in 
 establishing the Melodeon Company, and has 
 been in company with Baker ever since. Nov. 
 29, 1853, he married Miss Evaline Reed, a na- 
 tive of Sharon Township, Medina Co., Ohio ; 
 she died Feb. 21, 1858, leaving one child, 
 Laura, now Mrs. Brush, of Michigan. Sept. 
 19, 1861, Mr. McMillen married Mrs. Fulton, 
 formerly Miss Catharine Schley, a native of 
 Chambersburg, Penn. ; three children have 
 blessed this union — Guy, Mar}- and Emma. 
 
 :^ 
 
M' 
 
 750 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 A. J. McNEIL, boots and shoes, Akron ; is 
 the 3'oungest son of William and Sarah (Pur- 
 sell) McNeil, of Peninsula, and was born Dec. 
 23, 1850. He lived at Peninsula until 18G4, 
 when he came to Akron as clerk in the employ 
 of David Snyder, in the grain and produce busi- 
 ness, continuing for two years. In May, 1866, 
 he became a clerk for Cutter & Howe, of Akron, 
 where he remained until January, 1870. He 
 then went to Indianapolis and clerked in a 
 shoe store, but returned to Akron the next 
 year and entered the emplo}' of his old firm, 
 Cutter & Howe. In company with A. L. Bow- 
 man, he, in 1873, bought the shoe establish- 
 ment of C. R. Howe, and, under the firm of 
 Bowman & McNeil, did business four years. 
 In 1878, was engaged as traveling salesman for 
 Childs, Groff & Co., wholesale boot and shoe 
 dealers, of Cleveland, and continued with them 
 two years. In 1880, was employed by M. T. 
 Cutter as salesman for one year, and in March, 
 1881, associated himself with his brother, S. C. 
 McNeil, at 121 S. Howard street. He was 
 married, in Jul}', 1873, to Miss Emma E. Ladd, 
 of Akron. They have one daughter. 
 
 S. C. McNEIL, boots and shoes, Akron ; is 
 a son of William and Sarah (Pursell) McNeil, 
 and was born at Sharon, June 28, 1843. He 
 was ten j-ears old when the family moved to 
 Peninsula, Summit Co., where he grew up. He 
 clerked here for some time, and, in 1862, be- 
 came the partner of Frederick Wood in general 
 store, continuing until about the year 1865, 
 under the firm name of Wood &• McNeil. In 
 1865, he went to Denver, Colo., remaining six 
 months ; then returned to Peninsula, and, in 
 the fall of 1866, purchased a canal-i)oat, and 
 ran from Peninsula to Cleveland, with stone, 
 lumber, etc., until the fall of 1870, when, in 
 company with Thomas Wood, he engaged in 
 the lumber business under the firm of Wood & 
 McNeil. In March, 1881, he opened a shoe 
 store at 121 South Howard street, with a large 
 stock of new goods, embracing every variety of 
 boots and shoes, and a shop for custom-work. 
 The entire stock was bought at the most favor- 
 able season, direct from the manufacturers for 
 cash, also including the largest stock of trunks 
 and valises in the city. Mr. McNeil has se- 
 cured the services of his brother, A. J. McNeil, 
 who has had fifteen years' experience in the 
 shoe business. He was married, April 24, 
 1872, to Miss Jennie Beers, daughter of L. 
 
 Beers, a pioneer of Boston Township. The}^ 
 have one son and one daughter. 
 
 CAPT. THOMAS W. NASH, Recording 
 Clerk, Akron ; is a native of Williamsburg, 
 Hampshire Co., Mass. ; he was born Dec. 7, 
 1832, and is the fourth of five children born to 
 Hophni and Lovisa (King) Nash. They were 
 natives of Massachusetts ; he was born Jan. 
 10, 1797 ; his father was a farmer, and he was 
 raised to the same pursuit ; in the fall of 1817, 
 he came to Ohio in compan}' with his cousin, 
 John A. Nash ; he settled in Richfield Town- 
 ship, where he was burned out, after which he 
 moved to Bath Township, of which locality he 
 was one of the pioneers ; he lived in Bath 
 Township, except a few years in his native 
 State, until the fall of 1880, when he retired to 
 Akron, where he now lives. Our subject lived 
 at home on the farm until the year 1861 ; he 
 received a common school course of study, and 
 taught at home and in Indiana, where he was 
 visiting. Oct. 3, 1861, he enlisted in Co. H, 
 29th 0. V. I., and served throughout the war, 
 during which time he was several times pro- 
 moted, ranging from Orderly Sergeant to (Jap- 
 tain (see record of regiment in this work) ; he 
 was taken prisoner at the battle of Port Repub- 
 lic, and held three months in Libby and Sauls- 
 bury Prisons, after which he was paroled. He 
 returned home in July, 1865, and soon after 
 visited in Livingston Co., 111., where he pur- 
 chased a farm. Feb. 14, 1866, he married Miss 
 Nettie Culver, a native of Richfield Township, 
 Summit Co., Ohio, and the following month 
 occupied his farm in Illinois, and farmed until 
 the spring of 1873 ; he then moved to Chats- 
 worth, 111., and became agent for Howe's sew- 
 ing machines, and also taught school. In 1879, 
 he returned to Akron, and has resided there 
 since, and has followed his present business. 
 By the marriage there has been two children, 
 viz., EflSe M. and Clyde C. 
 
 SUMNER NASH, County Clerk, Akron ; 
 was born in Bath Township, Summit Co., Ohio, 
 May 10, 1836, and is the youngest of five chil- 
 dren born to Hophni and Lovisa (King) Nash, 
 who are spoken of elsewhere in this work. Our 
 subject remained on the farm until he was 20 
 years of age, receiving a common school and 
 academic course of study ; he then went to 
 Wisconsin, where he took a contract to clear 
 a way through the forest near Pl3'mouth for the 
 Sheboj'gan & Fond du Lac Railroad, making 
 
 
k. 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 751 
 
 ties and cording the timber. He next drove 
 stage between Oshkosh and New London. In 
 the Spring of 1857, he took charge of a hard- 
 ware store in Oshkosh, for E. H. Barber, and 
 the following summer he returned home and 
 took charge of the farm which he managed and 
 taught school during the winters until 1862. 
 Aug. 6, of that year, he enlisted in the serv- 
 ice, and was assigned to the 115th 0. V. I., 
 and served three years ; he enlisted as a pri- 
 vate and was successivel}' promoted to the ra nk 
 of 1st Lieutenant. In 1863, he was detailed to 
 relieve Lieut. John Eadie, in command of the 
 military forces at Dayton during the election. 
 In 1864, he was placed under Maj. Willet, and 
 served as Assistant Inspector of Railroad De- 
 fenses, which position he held until the close of 
 the war. In July, 1865, he returned home, and 
 in September following bought a farm in Liv- 
 ingston Co., 111. March 8, 1866, he married 
 Miss Rebecca M., daughter of John A. Means, 
 of Summit Co., Ohio ; after the marriage, he 
 occupied his farm in Illinois, and lived there 
 until 1868, when he returned to Summit Co., 
 where his wife died July 18, 1869. They had 
 one child, M. Maud. He managed his father- 
 in-law's farm for two years ; in the spring of 
 1872, he engaged as agent for G. G. Baker & 
 Co., manufacturers of lightning rods, etc., and 
 traveled for them in Illinois until the following 
 winter, when he returned to Summit Co., and 
 was appointed Deputy County Clerk by John 
 A. Means, which office he held until the term ex- 
 pired ; he then served as Deputy for George 
 W. Weeks, and in the fall of 1878 he was elected 
 County Clerk on the Republican ticket, and 
 entered the duties of the office Feb. 10 follow- 
 ing. June 23, 1874, he married Miss Linnie 
 A. Cross, of Columbus, Ohio. 
 
 THOMAS NORTON, retired, Middlebury ; 
 was born in Oneida Co., N. Y., April 16, 1806, 
 and is a son of Peter and Elethina (Thompson) 
 Norton, natives of Farmington, Conn. There 
 is a record of the Norton family running back 
 through nineteen generations, and the Ameri- 
 can branch of the family trace their ancestry 
 through the same line. The earliest of the 
 name— Lord Norville, of France — was an officer 
 under William the Conqueror, and went into 
 England in 1066. A genealogical chart of the 
 family is kept at Cambridge, Mass.: " Norville 
 is a corruption of the French term Nordville, 
 North-ville, or North town, and Nor-ton or 
 
 Norton was subsequently adopted." Peter 
 Norton, the father of our subject, was a farmer, 
 and, in 1806, moved to Smithfield, Trumbull 
 Co., Ohio, where he worked for his uncle, 
 Luther Thompson, who settled there four years 
 previous. In 1809, Mr. Norton moved to Tall- 
 madge. Summit Co., and purchased fifty acres 
 of timber land, on which he settled and lived 
 for several years. In 1812, he was drafted, 
 but, owing to family affairs, his son Almeron 
 went in his place, serving a short term. In 
 1813, the family settled on the place where 
 Thomas (subject) now lives, Mr. N. having 
 bought 200 acres of wild land, upon which he 
 lived until his death, Aug. 23, 1822. He was 
 Treasurer of Tallmadge Township for many 
 years. Mrs. Norton afterward married Elisha 
 Farnam, and died Nov. 24, 1844. The subject 
 lived with his mother until her death, and 
 remained on the place, which now belonged to 
 his brother Almeron. In 1851, his brother 
 died, and subject bought out his brother's 
 heirs, thus becoming the owner of the old 
 homestead. He has always followed farming. 
 He was married, Jan. 10, 1847, to Miss Hannah 
 M. Coney, a native of Stark Co., Ohio, who was 
 born April 13, 1812, and is a daughter of 
 James and Nancy (Hamlin) Coney, he a native 
 of Pennsylvania, who came to Stark Co. a 
 young man, and she a native of Virginia, who 
 came to the same county with her parents. 
 Subject has one child — Martha M. (now Mrs. 
 Theodore Johns, boot and shoe dealer, Des 
 Moines, Iowa). Theodore Johns was born in 
 Middlebury, Summit Co., Ohio, March 23, 1845, 
 and is a son of John and Nancy (Grant) Johns, 
 he having been born on the line between Dela- 
 ware and Maryland, and she in New Jersey. 
 They were married in Philadelphia, and lived 
 in New Jersey until about the 3'ear 1832, when 
 they came to Middleburj', where he carried on 
 shoemaking. About the year 1852 he moved to 
 Akron, and, in 1855, to Des Moines, Iowa. He 
 there opened the shoe business, which he con- 
 ducted until 1874, when he retired, and his son 
 Theodore took his place, continuing with the 
 old firm name. He (Theodore) was married to 
 Martha M. Norton (daughter of Thomas Nor- 
 ton) June 2, 1873. They have had two chil- 
 dren, one of whom is living, viz., Nettie. 
 
 WILLIAM ACER NOBLE, foreman C.-B. 
 Dep't, Akron ; a son of Theron and Lydia Dow 
 (Acer) Noble ; was born Dec. 1, 1851, and is a 
 
 
^t 
 
 753 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 native of Pittsburgh, Peiin. Wlien a j-ear old, 
 famih' removed to Aliron, wliere his father had 
 lived before. Subject was educated in Akron 
 in the public schools, and, at 16, was appren- 
 ticed to the trade of machinist, in Taplin, 
 Rice & Co.'s foundry, where he remained three 
 years. He then went to Florida, where he re- 
 mained two 3'ears, and, in 1873, returned and 
 entered the employ of Taplin, Rice & Co., un- 
 til the spring of 1876, and, in December of that 
 3'ear, engaged with Aultman, Miller & Co. as a 
 mechanic, and, Sept. 1, 1877, was made fore- 
 man in cutter-bar department, which embraces 
 three rooms and employs fifty men. He was 
 married, in October, 1877, to Miss Kate Big- 
 elow, of Mansfield, Ohio ; one daughter living. 
 Mr. N. and wife are members of the Episcopal 
 Church ; is Republican in politics. His father 
 was born in New York, and came to Akron 
 about 1835, and was one of the first Auditors 
 of this count}'. He was a tanner, but followed 
 milling, and ran the old Black Mill in Middle- 
 bury several years. Afterward, he owned the 
 Cascade Mills ; died Sept. 20, 1877, aged 73 
 
 EDWARD OVIATT, Akron. Edward Ovi- 
 att, son of Marvin and Mary (Foot) Oviatt ; 
 was born on May 19, 1822, at Hudson, Summit 
 Co., Ohio. He spent a part of his time on a 
 farm during his 3'outh, and attended school at 
 the Richfield Academy at Granville, and 
 Western Reserve College, during a portion of 
 his minority. In Ma}', 1842, he came to Akron, 
 entering the Hon. D. K. Cartter, now the Pres- 
 ident Judge of the District of Columbia, for 
 purpose of studying law, where he remained 
 four 3-ears, and until Cartter removed to Mas- 
 sillon. In September, 1844, he was admitted 
 at Medina as a practitioner at the bar in the 
 State Courts, and, in November, 1856, at Cleve- 
 land, as a practitioner in the courts of the 
 United States. He practiced law alone until 
 Jul}', 1865, when he formed a partnership with 
 Hon. S. W. McClure, which lasted until May, 
 1870, the latter having been elected as one of 
 the Judges of the Coui't of Common Pleas. He 
 continued the practice alone till September, 
 1876, when he formed a partnership with 
 George G. Allen, who had, a short time before 
 that, been admitted to the bar, and with whom 
 he still continues, under the firm name of 
 Oviatt & Allen. He was one of the members 
 of the Briard of Education of the cit3' for sev- 
 
 eral 3'ears ; was City Attorney from 1854 to 
 1862, and Prosecuting Attorney for this county 
 from 1865 to 1869 inclusive, having been 
 almost unanimously nominated b3' the Repub- 
 lican part3' earl3' in September, 1864, and, on 
 the da3' of his return from the 100 days' serv- 
 ice, leaving Akron as a member of Co. A, 54th 
 Battalion 0. N. G., but, on arriving in camp at 
 Cleveland, in the organization of the 164th 
 Regiment 0. V. I., Col. John C. Lee command- 
 ing, he was appointed and served as Color 
 Bearer of the regiment until his return home, 
 the regiment having been located on Arlington 
 Heights, Va., during the entire summer. He 
 started in life without capital, and, for whatever 
 of success in business he ma3' have acquired, it 
 was gained b}' industr}- and econom3'. On 
 Sept. 8, 1847, he married Anna M. Wads- 
 worth, daughter of Frederick Wadsworth, 
 who bore him one daughter — Emma, now the 
 wife of Calvin Edgerton, a lawyer residing in 
 San Francisco, Cal. His wife died Aug. 9, 
 1854. Dec. 5, 1855, he mai'ded Frances A. 
 Lansing, of Saratoga Co., N. Y., who bore him 
 two children — Olivia F., wife of George G. 
 Allen, and Edward Ailing, the three above 
 named being his onl}' children. An ardent 
 Republican, but not ambitious for oflflce or po- 
 litical preferment, he has devoted his time and 
 energies to his profession, seeking a reputation 
 for fidelit3' and trustworthiness in business, 
 rather than political honors. He adopted the 
 rule early in life to owe no man anything pecu- 
 niarily, and if a debt was contracted in the 
 purchase of real estate or otherwise, he lost no 
 time or opportunity in meeting the obligation, 
 and to this principle he gives the credit for 
 much of his success in business. 
 
 HERBERT A. PRUNER, Palmer & Pruner, 
 artificial stone, Akron ; is a native of Dundas 
 Co., Ontario, and was born July 5, 1849, receiv- 
 ing a common-school education. At the age 
 of 16 years, he came to Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., 
 where he worked on a farm for two years, when 
 he returned to Canada, remaining there one 
 year, and then went back to New York. For 
 two 3'ears he was employed in a cheese factor}' 
 in Chautauqua Co., and then returned to his 
 old employment in Cattaraugus Co., where he 
 remained two years. About the year 1873, he 
 went into the shops of the N. Y., P. & 0. R. R. 
 at Randolph, in the blacksmithing department, 
 but again returned to the farm. In April, 
 
 ^ S" 
 
CITY OF AKRON^. 
 
 753 
 
 1878, he came to Akron, and was employed by 
 S. Matherson, in chain works at Cuyahoga 
 Falls for one 3'ear, when he returned to New 
 York. In October, 1879, he came back to 
 Akron, and, in January, 1880, became a mem- 
 ber of the firm of Palmer & Pruner, manufact- 
 urers of artificial stone. (See Mr. Palmer's 
 sketch.) He was married, March 24, 1880, to 
 Miss Belle Le Vere, of Akron. He started 
 without capital, and, until the age of 21 years, 
 gave his earnings into the hands of the family. 
 HARRY A. PALMER, Palmer & Pruner, 
 artificial stone, Akron, Ohio, is a son of William 
 and Sophia (Brock) Palmer, and was born July 
 16, 1851, in Somersetshire, England. The fam- 
 ily came to the United States in 1852, when he 
 was but 8 months old, and settled in Tallmadge 
 Township on a farm, where he was brought up 
 until he was 15, when he went to work in a 
 paper mill at Cu3-ahoga Falls, remaining about 
 one year, and then became engineer for his 
 brother-in-law at Mansfield, in Richland Flour- 
 ing Mills. Two years later, mills were burned 
 down and firm removed to Ashland, and he 
 was again emplo^'ed as engineer. In 1870, he 
 went to Shelb}' and ran an engine about one 
 year and then returned to Tallmadge in 1872, 
 and took charge of a farm. In the fall of 1873, 
 he went to Onarga, 111., and Jan. 1, 1873, was 
 married to Miss Mary C. Risser, of Ashland, 
 Ohio. He bought a fruit farm near Onarga, 111., 
 and did well for two years, and in 1876, bought 
 a farm in Edinburg Township, Portage Count}', 
 where he farmed two years. In 1878, he went 
 to Ashland, as engineer in the mills, until Sep- 
 tember 1 879, when he came to Akron and bought 
 the right of manufacture and sale of artificial 
 stone in Summit Count}'. Jan. 10, 1880, he formed 
 a partnership with Herbert A. Pruner, and 
 opened a manufactory at 203 North Howard 
 street. The following is given as a matter of 
 scientific interest: Artificial stone has been in 
 use probably as long as any other building ma- 
 terial, and is unquestionably one of the lost 
 arts. In conformation of this, history informs 
 us that the Moors long ago manufactured a 
 durable artificial stone, specimens of which 
 may yet be found at Gibralter, which have with- 
 stood successfull}' the storms of ten centuries. 
 The Coliseum at Rome is a sample of artificial 
 work by the ancients. The Cisterns of Solo- 
 mon, near the city of Tyre, are of still more 
 ancient origin, yet these immense stuctures are 
 
 almost complete in their preservation. The 
 noted Small Cob, together with a large number 
 of scientific men, is of the opinion that the 
 Pyramids were built of artificial blocks, manu- 
 IVictured upon the ground from the sands of 
 the surrounding plains, by some cunning proc- 
 ess that perished with the builders. Some of 
 the largest and most permanent harbors and 
 government works in the European countries, 
 the great aqueducts of Central Europe, together 
 with the Seagirt railroad station, and piers of 
 the great bridge at New York, are instances 
 where artificial stone is used almost entirely 
 and with the best of success. Business blocks 
 that are not surpassed in beauty and grandeur 
 in New York, Chicago, San Francisco and many 
 of the principal cities of the United States, are 
 constructed entirely of this material. The 
 great advocates of this building material are 
 the eminent chemists and engineers of English 
 fame, together with Maj. Gen. Gilmore, corps of 
 engineers United States Army, whose engineer- 
 ing skill has given him a world-wide fame. 
 Many different processes have been invented, 
 ^•et all have met with more or less difficulty in 
 trying to obtain a solid, durable stone. Under 
 the patent process which Messrs. Palmer & 
 Pruner now control in this county, these diffi- 
 culties have been overcome, and the}^ are now 
 manufacturing a quality of artificial stone, per- 
 fect in appearance and adapted to all classes of 
 work where natural stone or any other building 
 material is used. Being of a hydraulic natui'e, 
 it will harden and improve in solidit}' under 
 water, it resists the action of steam, acids, and 
 other disintegrating influences as well as our 
 best building stone. The Boston Journal of 
 Chemistry says that artificial stone is as safe 
 and durable as natural stone, that its chemical 
 nature is such that it becomes almost as hard 
 as granite, and that there cannot be a doubt 
 that it will subsei-ve all the desirable purposes 
 for which that material is employed. In some 
 of our larger cities this stone is fast supersed- 
 ing the use of other building material, and is 
 being extensiveh' used for walks, trimming 
 brick buildings, lawn vases, fountains and or- 
 namental work of all descriptions. The sand in 
 this location is particularly adapted to making 
 this stone, it being coarse, sharp and siliceous. 
 Ornamental work can be furnished at about 
 one-half the cost of natural stone and will 
 stand fire much better. 
 
 :Rr 
 
^t. 
 
 754 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 GEORGE K. PARDEE, lawyer, Akron: is 
 a son of Hon. Aaron and Evaline (Eyles) Par- 
 dee, and was born March 1, 1839, in Wads- 
 worth, Ohio, where he was brought up, and 
 where he lived until 1862, when he enlisted as 
 a private in Co. K, 42d 0. V. I., Gen. Gar- 
 field's regiment. He took part in the battle of 
 Chickasaw Bluffs, where he was wounded by a 
 musket ball. He was Second Lieutenant, and 
 for gallant services was promoted to Adjutant 
 of the regiment. He was also at Young's 
 Point, Grand Gulf, Thompson's Hill, Champion 
 Hill, Black River Bridge, siege of Vicksburg, 
 Jackson, Miss., and in the Red River cam- 
 paign and other engagements of his regiment ; 
 finally promoted to Captain of Co. D. He re- 
 turned to Wadsworth, and kept a dry goods 
 store for three years, during which time he com- 
 pleted his study of the law under his father, 
 and was admitted to the bar in 1866. He 
 commenced practice in the courts of Medina 
 until 1875, when he removed to Akron, where 
 he has been in active practice since. He was 
 admitted to practice in the United States Court 
 in 1878. He was married, in December, 1860, 
 to Miss Caroline C. Hard, daughter of Cyrus 
 Hard, of Wadsworth. Four children have been 
 born to them, viz., Karl A., Lionel S., Julia and 
 William E. His father's family consisted of 
 five sons and three daughters — William E. was 
 an attorney, and died April 6, 1866 ; Henr}' C, 
 attorney, at Medina ; Almira S., wife of John G. 
 Houston, of New Orleans ; Judge Don A., attor- 
 ney and United States Circuit Court Judge at 
 New Orleans ; George K. (subject); Fanny, de- 
 ceased, was wife of P. B. Wilkins ; Ella N., 
 wife of Dr. Wallace A. Briggs, of Sacramento, 
 Cal., and Sutliff E., attorney at Wadsworth, 
 Ohio. 
 
 CHARLES E. PERKINS, Akron ; sixth son 
 of Col. Simon Perkins ; was born in Akron, 
 May 7, 1 850 ; attended public school, and made 
 further preparations at Hudson College ; and, 
 in about 1868, he entered the Tro}' Polytechnic 
 Institute, where he pursued the engineer's course 
 for three years, taking both a civil and mining 
 course. On his return to Akron, he was elected 
 City Engineer of Akron, continuing six years, 
 the first year acting as assistant, and the last 
 five being in the West. In the spring of 1878, 
 he opened an agricultural warehouse on Canal 
 street, where he has since conducted business 
 with good success. He handles all kinds of 
 
 agricultural implements, carriages, wagons, 
 scales and feed. In January, 1880, he married 
 Miss May Adams, daughter of Frank Adams, 
 of Akron. 
 
 COL. GEORGE T. PERKINS, banker, Ak- 
 ron, son of Col. Simon Perkins, was born in 
 Akron May 5, 1836. His education was ac- 
 quired in the schools of Akron and at Marietta 
 College. In April, 1861, he enlisted as private 
 soldier in the 19th 0. V. I., and at the organi- 
 zation of Co. B was elected its Second Lieut- 
 enant, and participated in the West Virginia 
 campaign. In August, 1862, he rc-enlisted in 
 the 105th 0. V. I., and was promoted to the 
 rank of Major. He was with the army of Gen. 
 Sherman and Gen. Thomas in the Atlanta cam- 
 paign. In 1864, he was made Colonel of the 
 gallant 105th Regiment, and was its com- 
 mander until the close of the war, being mus- 
 tered out at Washington in June, 1865. On 
 his return to Akron, he became Secretary of 
 Taplin, Rice & Co., and held that position until 
 July, 1870, when, at the organization of the 
 Bank of Akron, he became its President, con- 
 tinuing in that office until 1876, when, at the 
 demise of Mr. Alden Gage, Mr. Perkins became 
 Cashier. He is also Seci'ctary of B. F. Good- 
 rich & Co., of the Akron Rubber Works. 
 
 COL. SIMON PERKINS, of Akron, son of 
 the late Gen. Simon Perkins, of Warren, Ohio, 
 was born at the latter place Feb. 6, 1805, where 
 he remained until 1834, when he came to Akron 
 and settled upon a tract of wild land contain- 
 ing some 5,000 or 6,000 acres, which he pur- 
 chased in 1827. For a number of years prior 
 to his removal to Akron, he assisted his father 
 in the management of various land agencies, 
 and in earlier years had experience in clearing 
 up the wild lands of his native town. His ed- 
 ucation was at the common schools of Warren. 
 In September, 1832, he married Miss Grace I. 
 Tod, daughter of Judge Tod, and sister of the 
 late Gov. David Tod, of Youngstown, by whom 
 he had eleven children ; eight of them are still 
 living. Col. Perkins came of good Pui'itan and 
 Revolutionary ancestry, being the descendant 
 of John Perkins, who came to America with 
 Roger Williams in 1661. His grandfather was 
 Captain in the war of the Revolution, and his 
 father commanded the forces raised in North- 
 ern Ohio for the defence of the frontier in 
 the war of 1812. His mother was a Doug- 
 lass, descendant of William Douglass, one of a 
 
 ^\ 
 
:l^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 755 
 
 Boston coloii}^ which founded New London, 
 Conn. After settling in Akron, Col. Perkins 
 devoted himself to the improvement of his 
 property, selling farms to settlers as they were 
 wanted ; raising improved breeds of stock and 
 sheep, employing for a series of years, as Su- 
 perintendent of these farming and stock opera- 
 tions, John Brown, afterward famous in the 
 anti -slaver}' annals of the country. An event- 
 ful period, financially, in the life of Col. Per- 
 kins was that in which the Cleveland, Zanes- 
 ville & Cincinnati Railroad was constructed to 
 Millersburg. He was President of the road 
 from the first organization of the company un- 
 til it passed into other hands, and in the con- 
 struction and equipment of the same, embarked 
 his private fortune as well as all his energy and 
 weight of character, and ultimately sank in the 
 enterprise his own accumulations and what he 
 had inherited from the estate of his father. In 
 the later years of Col. Perkins' life, he has 
 found congenial employment in superintending 
 the improvement of the grounds of the " Akron 
 Cemetery Association," and whatever of beauty 
 and attraction those grounds now possess be- 
 j-ond their natural wildness and suitableness are 
 due mainly to the Colonel's good judgment and 
 love of the picturesque. Col. Perkins was 
 never an office-seeker, always feeling probabl}- 
 that the man was more than any office, and that 
 office should seek the man to fill it. Grace 
 Park will always witness to his magnificent lib- 
 erality. It was a gift to Akron before Akron 
 had thought of being a cit}', and bears the name 
 of his wife. There is no flaw in Col. Perkins' 
 character. It is sterling throughout, and sound 
 to the very core. His business integrity and 
 the purity of his private life have always been 
 above suspicion. 
 
 JUDGE STEPHEN H. PITKIN, lawyer, 
 Akron ; is a son of Rev. Caleb and Anna (Hen- 
 derson) Pitkin, and was born Oct. 5, 1810, in 
 Old Milford, Conn. When he was 7 years old, 
 his father removed to Ohio, and settled in 
 Charleston Township, Portage Co., where he 
 preached to the church at Charleston Center 
 until 1827, when he went to Hudson, and was 
 one of the founders of Western Reserve Col- 
 lege, its Vice President and financial manager — 
 was its Vice President until his death, which 
 occurred about 1864. Subject worked on a 
 farm in Charleston Township until he was 17 
 years of age, when he entered Western Reserve 
 
 College, from which he graduated in June, 
 1834. In the following October, he went to 
 Fulton Co., 111., where he engaged in teaching, 
 and at the same time entered upon the study 
 of the law, and was admitted to the bar in the 
 spring of 1836. He entered upon the practice 
 of his profession at Lewiston, the count}' seat 
 of Fulton Co., 111., and practiced under Stephen 
 A. Douglas, who was his personal friend. He 
 was elected County Surveyor of Fulton Co., 
 and Probate Judge of that county in 1838 ; 
 served two terms — four years. He remained 
 there until 1852, in active practice, when he re- 
 turned to Hudson and took charge of the home- 
 stead, and assumed the care of his aged parents ; 
 his mother is still living, aged 97 years. In 
 1862, he was elected Probate Judge of Summit 
 Co., to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death 
 of Judge Dodge ; was re-elected, serving until 
 February, 1870. About the year 1872, he 
 resumed his profession, and has been in ac- 
 tive practice ever since. In January, 1871, 
 he was elected Secretary of the Summit Co. 
 Agricultural Society, holding same nine years, 
 and was President of the society for 1880. He 
 was married in October, 1854, to Miss Julia 
 Lusk, of this county, who was sister of the 
 wife of " Old John Brown." She died Oct. 7, 
 1873. They had five children, two of whom 
 are living — Julian H., Superintendent of C. 
 Aultman & Co.'s Works, Canton ; Mary, wife 
 of Abner Caldwell, of this township. He was 
 married a second time, Sept. 24, 1879, to Miss 
 Helen B. Bell, of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 S. E. PHINNEY, merchant, Akron ; is a son 
 of Calvin and Emeline (Martin) Phinney ; his 
 father was born in Massachusetts, and his 
 mother in Vermont. His father came, when a 
 boy, to Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, where he lived 
 until his death in about 1870. He was for 
 many years a merchant at Dover, meeting with 
 fair success. S. E. is the oldest of five chil- 
 dren, and was born at Dover, Ohio, Oct. 25, 
 1838. He employed his time until 20 in ac- 
 quiring a good common school education and 
 assisting in his father's store. He was for two 
 years clerk in the store of Edwin Phinney, of 
 Bath, this county. In September, 1860, he 
 came to Akron and was employed as clerk with 
 F. McNaughton & Co., in the dry goods busi- 
 ness, four years. In 1865, he was employed by 
 the Government as clerk for the Superintendent 
 of Railroad Repairs, and traveled throughout 
 
 
© Jk>- 
 
 .i2£: 
 
 756 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 the South and West. He returned to Akron in 
 1867, and became the partner of S. G. Bardorf 
 in the shoe business, continuing in that house 
 until a year after the death of his partner, 
 when he sold out, and was in the employ of 
 Cutter & Howe for three and a half 3'ears. In 
 1870, he opened a shoe store in Hanscom's 
 Block, and has been in that business ever since 
 in the corner room, No. 101 Howard and Mar- 
 ket streets. His store includes a full stock of 
 all goods in his line, and a repair shop. Oct. 
 30, 1868, he married Miss Nellie G. Abbey, of 
 Akron, daughter of H. S. Abbe3^ They have 
 two children. 
 
 HENRY PERKINS, Akron ; son of Simon 
 Perkins, was born in Akron, on the old home- 
 stead, April 8, 1842. He attended the public 
 schools until he attained his 20th year, when 
 he became clerk in the Quartermaster's Depart- 
 ment, under his brother, Simon, Jr., who ranked 
 as Captain and Assistant Quartermaster for the 
 Army of the Cumberland, and followed the 
 fortunes of the army until the close of the war. 
 On his return, he accepted a clerkship with the 
 Cleveland Rolling Mill Co., having charge of 
 the Lake Shore mill office for a period of five 
 years. In 1870, he became Secretary for Tap- 
 lin. Rice & Co., and has had charge of the 
 business department of the office ever since. 
 Oct. 20, 1868, he married Miss Emma White, 
 of Cleveland, Ohio ; one daughter is the result 
 of the union. He is Superintendent of the 
 Congregational Sabbath School, and Deacon in 
 the church. 
 
 AUGUSTUS D. POWER, foreman black- 
 smith department in Aultman, Miller & Co , 
 Akron ; a son of Hiram and Hester (Parker) 
 Power; was born at Augusta, Ky., April 14, 
 1831. When about 2 years old, the fam- 
 ily removed to Cincinnati, Ohio, where his 
 father died in 1834, and the mother, with fam- 
 ily, removed to Norwalk, Ohio. Here subject 
 grew up, and, at the age of 20, entered upon 
 the blacksmith's trade at Norwalk, at which he 
 worked, except two years, until 1864. He then 
 went to Meadville, Penn., and, in the employ 
 of the A. & G. W. R. R., was made foreman 
 of the blacksmith department in 1865 in the 
 company's shops at Kent, Ohio. In 1870, he 
 came to Akron, and at once entered the employ 
 of Aultman, Miller & Co. as foreman of the 
 blacksmith department, consisting of three shops 
 employing sixty men. He was married, March 
 
 21, 1855, to Miss Jane L. Rule, of Norwalk, 
 Ohio. The}' have two daughters. He is a 
 member of the M. E. Church, of which he was 
 chorister until 1877. He studied vocal music, 
 and was leader of the choir at the several 
 places where he has lived. 
 
 J. H. PETERSON, dentist, Akron, Ohio; 
 who began the practice of dentistry in Akron 
 in 1854, and who now ranks as a pioneer mem- 
 ber of the profession of Summit County, was 
 born July 9, 1830, in St. Johns, New Bruns- 
 wick. He is the second son and fourth child of 
 a family of eight children born to John and 
 Elizabeth (Laidley) Peterson, the latter of 
 Scotch ancestry, and the daughter of Robert 
 Laidley, a Captain in the British service in 1784. 
 John Peterson was a native of Bath, Me., and, 
 during the war of 1812, he entered the service 
 of the United States, sailing from Boston in his 
 own ship. He subsequently became a resident 
 of St. Johns, N. B., where he was obliged to 
 take an oath to become a loyal citizen, so long 
 as he might remain a resident of the place. He 
 afterward removed to Buffalo, N. Y., where he 
 engaged in land speculations, by which means he 
 lost his fortune. He then removed to Portage 
 County, Ohio, where his family grew to their 
 majority, and chose for themselves a business 
 or profession. The Doctor first tried the study 
 of medicine, but gave it up, and completed a 
 course in the study of dentistry with Dr. B. T. 
 Spellman, of Ravenna, Ohio, after which he 
 spent one year in Cleveland in practice, and 
 then at the date above stated removed to Ak- 
 ron. In his residence of almost thirty years, 
 the Doctor has progressed step by step as the 
 science of dentistry has advanced to an impor- 
 tant place among the sciences. While he has 
 held a position among the first professional 
 men of Akron, he has also devoted much of his 
 time to other duties and social affairs. Polit- 
 ically he was first a Democrat,then a Free-Soiler, 
 and finally a Republican ; with the latter party 
 he has been identified for man}' years. During 
 the war of the rebellion, he was Secretary of 
 the Republican Central Committee of Summit 
 County. He is a member of Akron Lodge, No. 
 83, and of Washington Chapter, No. 25, of the 
 order of A., F. & A. M. He is also a member 
 of the Masonic Relief Association. Nov. 29, 
 1856, he married Miss Caroline Van Evera, a 
 native of Cherry Valley, N. Y., but a resident of 
 Akron at the time of their marriage. Three 
 
 •? « 
 
 :t^ 
 
^^ 
 
 'k.. 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 757 
 
 children have been born to them, two girls and 
 one boy. Of the Doctor's three brothers, the 
 youngest, William, entered the service of his 
 countr}' during the war of the rebellion. He 
 was wounded at the battle of Gettysburg, from 
 the effects of which he died, and his body now 
 lies in the National Cemetery, with a Govern- 
 ment tombstone marking his last resting-place. 
 George K., the brother next older than the 
 Doctor, was a civil engineer of some note, and 
 was with John C. Fremont on his exploring 
 trip to California. The eldest brother, Daniel 
 C., went in an early day to the gold regions of 
 California, and was one of the first company of 
 miners that ever located at Sutler's Fork. 
 
 ROBERT S. PAUL, surveyor, Akron ; is a 
 native of Summit Co., Ohio ; was born in Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls Oct. 3, 1842, and is the fourth of 
 seven children born to Hosea and -Ellen (Gam- 
 ble) Paul. His parents were natives of North- 
 field, Vt., and County Down, Ireland. His 
 mother came to this country when a child with 
 her parents to Colebrook, N. H., subsequently 
 moving to Canaan, Vt., where she married Mr. 
 Paul, who was then Postmaster there. In 1834, 
 they came to Wadsworth, Medina Co. Mr. 
 Paul had earl}' studied and worked at survey- 
 ing, and at Wadsworth taught school. In 1835, 
 he moved to Cuyahoga Falls, where he lived 
 until his death, May 29, 1870. Mrs. Paul is 
 still living on the old homestead in Cuyahoga 
 Falls. Robert lived at home until he was 20 
 years old, completing in the meanwhile a course 
 in the high schools of Cuyahoga Falls, and 
 teaching in Stow and New Portage. He worked 
 at times with his father at civil and mining 
 engineering. In 1862, he surveyed the narrow 
 guage road for the Brewster Coal Company. 
 In August, 18C2, he was assigned for d\ity 
 with the Topographical Engineer Corps under 
 Col. J. H. Simpson, in the Army of the Cum- 
 berland, where he served until 1865. Upon 
 his retui'n from the arm}-, he attended the col- 
 lege at Lebanon, Ohio, for a year. He then 
 went to the oil regions and followed his pro- 
 fession there about eighteen months. He also 
 followed his profession in Cleveland for two 
 years, where he spent a year in the Pennsyl- 
 vania Pol3'technic College. He then came to 
 Akron, and soon after was appointed County 
 Surve3'or, to fill out the unexpired term of his 
 father. He has since filled the position save 
 one term, during which time he was emplo^'ed 
 
 as Chief Engineer of the Ohio & Toledo Rail- 
 road. July 25, 1872, he married Miss Sarah 
 M. Romig, a native of Indiana. By this mar- 
 riage, there have been six children, five of whom 
 are living, Ellen, Ada, Laura, Martha (deceased). 
 Mar}' and Edward. Mr. Paul is President of 
 the Count}' Surveyors' Association, and is serv- 
 ing his second term. He was elected in 1881, 
 as Secretary and Treasurer of the Ohio Insti- 
 tute of Mining Engineers, making him a recog- 
 nized authority on these matters. 
 
 W. H. PAYNE, boat-builder, Lock No. 2, 
 Ohio Canal, Akron ; was born in Columbia, 
 Lorain Co., Ohio, Aug. 10, 1822, and is the 
 youngest of three children born to Willis and 
 Rhoda (Bronson) Payne. He was a native of 
 Connecticut, and emigrated to Lorain County 
 when a young man, about the year 1816 ; while 
 there he married Rhoda Bronson, a daughter 
 of Herman Bronson, one of the pioneers of 
 Boston Township. After his marriage, he came 
 to Akron, where he died in 1836 ; she died in 
 Boston Township in 1879. W. H., the subject, 
 lived with his grandfather, Herman Bronson, 
 from childhood until he was 20 years old, and 
 received a common-school education. He was 
 married Feb. 22, 1845, to Miss Julia Jaynes, a 
 native of Vermont, who came here with her 
 parents when young. After his marriage, he 
 worked with his step-father, Jacob Barnhart, 
 in his boat-yard in Boston Township, and in 
 other similar establishments until 1864, when 
 he came to Akron and bought out W. B. 
 Storer's boat-yard, located at Lock No. 3, and 
 continued the business for six years. He then 
 sold out, and in 1873 established his present 
 yard and has followed the business of boat- 
 building ever since. During the six years he 
 was in Akron, he built forty-two boats, and 
 since beginning the business, he has built about 
 one hundred and twenty-five boats. By his 
 marriage, four children were boi'n to him, of 
 whom three are living, viz., Martha E., now 
 Mrs. George Scott, of Akron ; Anna L., at home; 
 Charles H., who married Miss Martha Storm, 
 of Knox Co., Ohio. He lives at home and 
 conducts the business originally established by 
 his father. 
 
 J. H. PENDLETON, Vice President, Second 
 National Bank, Akron City ; was born in Litch- 
 field Co., Conn.. Feb. 1, 1810, and was the eldest 
 of eleven children born to Ward and Sallie (Cook) 
 Pendleton, who were natives of Connecticut, and 
 
 i "V 
 
^< 
 
 bL 
 
 758 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 came to Ohio in 1819, in a covered wagon. They 
 settled in Stow Township, Portage Co., now Sum- 
 mit Co., where they bought wild land, upon which 
 they built a cabin, and proceeded otherwise to 
 improve their purchase. His death occurred here 
 March 5, 1865 ; his wife died a few years pre- 
 vious, June 6. 1860. J. H. lived at home until 
 he was about 20 years of age, with limited op- 
 portunities for receiving an education. At the 
 age of 20, he engaged as a clerk in a general 
 store owned bj' Stowe & Wetmore at Cuyahoga 
 Falls. He continued with them until about 
 1835, and traveled for them through Northern 
 Ohio selling goods. He then, in company' with 
 his brother, opened a general store at Bruns- 
 wick, Medina Co., and, after one season, re- 
 moved the business to Franklin Mills, in this 
 count}', where he remained until about 1840, 
 when the business was sold, and he engaged in 
 business with B. F. Hopkins, conducting flour 
 and saw mill, also woolen factor}- (as Center 
 Manufacturing Company) and general merchan- 
 dise store. About 1847, the business was dis- 
 solved ; and, in 1850, Mr. P. went to Cincinnati, 
 where he was engaged in the construction of 
 railroads until 1860, with headquarters at Cin- 
 cinnati and Dayton. He then returned to Ak- 
 ron, and, in 1863, upon the organization of the 
 Second National Bank, he became Vice Presi- 
 dent of it, a position he has held ever since. 
 He has served as Trustee of Buchtel College 
 several terms. He is a member of the Episco- 
 pal Church, in the aflfairs of which he has taken 
 an active interest. Mr. P. has been three times 
 married — first in 1832, to Miss Julia Corp ; 
 she died July 5, 1833 ; second, in November, 
 1834, to Miss Sybil Fletcher ; she died May 29, 
 1841 ; third, Sept. 13, 1842, to Miss Eunice M. 
 Post, a native of Summit Co. They have one 
 child, viz., Nellie A. 
 
 LOUIS J. PROEHL, physician, Akron, Ohio ; 
 is a native of Akron, Ohio ; he was born Jul}' 
 18, 1850, and is the eldest of seven children, 
 born to George and Mary Louisa (Loose) Proehl ; 
 they were natives of Saxon-Altenburg, Ger- 
 many, and were born near Leipsic, the famous 
 battle-ground of Napoleon. He came to the 
 United States in the fall of 1848, and settled in 
 Akron the same year. In the spring of 1849, 
 Miss Loose came to Akron (she was acquainted 
 with Mr. Proehl in the old country). They 
 were married July 1, 1849. He first employed 
 himself at chopping wood, and then became a 
 
 helper at the Empire House. In the spring of 
 1849, he began work at his trade (stonemason), 
 and continued at the same until 1858, when he 
 bought a farm in Coventry Township, and occu- 
 pied the same the following spring, where he 
 has lived since, working at his trade in the 
 summer. B}^ the marriage there have been 
 seven children, viz., Louis J., George A., William 
 F., Tillie M., John F., Emma and Ida. Our 
 subject lived at home until the spring of 1864. 
 He then apprenticed with his father, working 
 during summers and attending school during the 
 winters, until he was 20 years of age, when he 
 began teaching during the winters, and contin- 
 ued until the spring of 1873. He then entered the 
 National Normal School at Lebanon, Ohio, 
 graduating from the same in August, 1876, 
 after which, he entered the Ohio Medical Col- 
 lege at Cincinnati, attending.one course of lect- 
 ures, and read with Dr. W. C. Jacobs, of Ak- 
 ron, until the fall of 1878, when he returned to 
 the college, and graduated from the same in the 
 spring of 1879. He then came to Akron, and 
 has practiced his profession there since, occu- 
 pying an office with Dr. W. J. Underwood. He 
 is a member of the Summit County Medical 
 Society, and the Union Medical Association of 
 Northeastern Ohio. 
 
 C. H. PALMER, Superintendent of the Bar 
 ber Match Company, Akron ; began to work 
 for this company in 1864, at printing labels on 
 a hand press and making the boxes, the Com- 
 pany being at that time located at Middlebury. 
 In 1866, he took charge of the shipping depart- 
 ment — printing the labels, making the boxes, 
 covering the cases and doing the billing ; and 
 now on account of his faithfulness and gen- 
 eral knowledge of all the different departments, 
 he has been called upon to fill the high and re- 
 sponsible position which he now occupies. His 
 father was Albert Palmer, son of Stephen M., 
 who were natives of Lyons, Wa3'ne Co., N. Y. 
 They came to Middlebury in 1836, at which 
 time the father of our subject was but 11 3'ears 
 of age. His grandfather started the first fan- 
 ning-mill manufactory in this part of the coun- 
 try, under the firm name of Palmer & Stafford, 
 the latter a brother-in-law ; the}' did an exten- 
 sive business for a few years when they dis- 
 solved partnership, the latter subsequently be- 
 coming extensively engaged in a stencil manu- 
 factory in the city of New York. The father 
 of our subject after the death of Stephen M., in 
 
 
'^ 
 
 CITY OF AKKOK 
 
 759 
 
 1849, in connection with his brothers Charles 
 and Henry, carried on the business for several 
 3'ears, when they moved to Groodlettsville, Tenn., 
 where the}- remained until near the outbreak 
 of the Rebellion, when they dissolved partner- 
 ship and returned to the North. The mother 
 was Ann Hoy, daughter of James and Shedrick 
 (Furgeson) Hoy, who is still living. The sub- 
 ject of this sketch was married, Oct. 4. 1876, to 
 Mary Ann Peckham, daughter of Thomas Peck- 
 ham, a former partner in the firm of Barber & 
 Co.; he is now one of the traveling agents. 
 Mr. Palmer by his marriage has one child, 
 Thomas Albert, born July 4, 1877. He is a 
 stanch Republican politically ; a member of 
 the K. of P., Ro^'al Arcanum and of the K. of 
 H. He and wife are members of the Disciples' 
 Church, greatly respected and loved by all 
 who know them. 
 
 CHARLES PARISETTE, merchant, Akron. 
 There are probably few, if any, of the business 
 men of Akron whose life has been so full of ad- 
 venture as that of the subject of this sketch. 
 He was born November 19, 1836, in Wesel 
 on the Rhine, Rhine Province, Prussia. Until 
 he was 14 years of age his life was spent most 
 of the time in school. He was then appren- 
 ticed by his father to learn the grocery busi- 
 ness, the terms being that he must serve three 
 years' time and pay $100. The old gentleman 
 was for 49 years in the civil and militarj' service 
 of his countr3^ Is at present living in New 
 York City, though he and his wife, who was a 
 Miss Mary Banhaus, and a native of Prussia, 
 were at one time for about three years, resi- 
 dents of Akron. When our subject had finished 
 his term of apprenticeship, he entered the em- 
 ploy of the firm whom he had served, at a 
 salary of $50 for his first year's service. He 
 remained there until he was 21 years old, and 
 then emigrated to America. He remained in 
 New York for about 13 months, engaged as a 
 groceiy clerk, and then sailed for California. 
 Once landed there, however, it was not long un- 
 til he thought of the mines, and the wealth 
 that possibl}' awaited him. Joining a company 
 he was soon in what has since proved the 
 richest mining district in the world, as he was 
 one of the first seventy-six men who pitched 
 their camp and began prospecting on the site of 
 Virginia City. The cabin built and occupied 
 by himself and partners was erected only al)out 
 200 yards from the mouth of the great Corn- 
 
 stock lode. He remained in Virginia City 
 about three months, when the Indian war broke 
 out between the miners and Piute Indians. 
 The organization of miners was under the com- 
 mand of Maj. Orsbr3\ The Piutes soon made 
 it so warm for them that mining was out of the 
 question. July 3, 1860, the terrible and deci- 
 sive battle was fought at Pyramier Lake. Maj. 
 Orsbry and his son were killed, with man}' 
 others. Probably none would have escaped, 
 had not the Indians been anxious to capture the 
 horses, and therefore were careful not to shoot 
 them. This desire on their part was the means 
 of Mr. Parisette's escape. He had a splendid 
 horse, and though surrounded by the yelling 
 painted demons, he watched his opportunity, 
 and broke through them and gained the Carson 
 River, across which he swam his horse and rode 
 for the mountains. He did not escape, how- 
 ever, without some severe arrow wounds, one 
 of which was in the right hand and proved to 
 be very painful. His only course now was to 
 work his wa}^ to San Francisco, which he did, 
 via the Hanes pass. Arriving at San Francisco 
 he remained quiet until the recovery of his 
 hand, when he again started for the mines. 
 This time, however, he took good care to keep 
 as far away from the Piutes as possible. He 
 spent some time in the gold mines of what was 
 known as Dry Town, where he made some 
 money. Winter coming on, he and his partners 
 went to San Francisco, and not caring to lie 
 idle, they enlisted in the First Cal. V. I. 
 for three years, thinking about three months 
 would wind up the war of the rebellion. In- 
 stead of this, he found himself booked for three 
 years of hardships and privations. Their regi- 
 ment numbered 1 ,600 men, and was known as 
 the First Column of California. It was placed 
 on dut}^ most of the time in the West, and 
 served its country in that mode of warfare 
 known as bush-whacking, or fighting the Indi- 
 ans. At one time Mr. Parisette's bunk-mate 
 was so careless as to fall somewhat in the rear 
 of the command, and when found, he was com- 
 pletely skinned, a deed that had been done by 
 the Apaches. Mr. Parisette was an excellent 
 shot and at one time wore the company badge 
 for two 3"ears in succession. At last he was 
 discharged at Las Cruces, New Mexico, on 
 August 31, 1864. He was one of a compan}' 
 made up to cross the plains on their wa}- to 
 New York Cit}^, which thev did, making the 
 
 TZ 
 
760 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 journey in two months and fourteen days, 
 though this included a few days' time spent at 
 Ft. Larned, Kansas, to join in a buffalo hunt. 
 In this hunt he used a Springfield rifle, and 
 killed a number of buffalo. Arriving in New 
 York, he stopped for a time with his brother, 
 and then came to Akron in the fall of 1864. On 
 December 25, of 1864, he began as salesman for 
 N. Wagnor, groceryman, with whom he re- 
 mained for about one year and three months, 
 when he entered the employ of the old grocery- 
 man, John Cook, with whom he remained until 
 1870. He then bought the property where he 
 now does business corner Main and Exchange 
 streets. South Akron, and engaged in the 
 grocery business on his own account. His 
 business has been growing 3'ear by year, till now 
 his aggregate sales per annum are about 
 $40,000. He is a live, energetic business man 
 and has established this extensive business by 
 his own energy and good financiering. He is a 
 member of Granite Lodge, I. 0. 0. F., No. 522. 
 In 1867, he was married to Miss Susan Selzer, 
 a native of Bavaria. Five children have been 
 born to them, all of whom are girls. 
 
 MARTIN QUIGLEY, late of Middlebury, in 
 this county, was a member of the ancient and no- 
 ble family of O'Coigley, now written Quigley, or- 
 iginally from the neighborhood of the Giant's 
 Causewa}', in Ireland, later of Queen's Count}', 
 near Dublin. The Rev. Dr. Quigley, who was 
 honored with a state prosecution by the British 
 Government in the memorable rebellion of '98, 
 and whose intimac}' with Lord Cloncurry 
 caused the imprisonment of the latter in the 
 Tower of London the same 3'ear. was a member 
 of this famil}'. Dr. Quigle}^ was one of the 
 first victims of '98, having been executed at 
 Penendeu Heath on the 7th of May of that 
 year. The ancient arms of the family, on 
 which is cantoned the celebrated '-Red Hand 
 of Ulster," still borne by the members here, 
 attest their illustrious station in Irish history. 
 In early times, individual names were indica- 
 tive of personal qualities. Quigley^ in Irish, 
 signifies tall hero, and the four young men of 
 the family here, all of whom are over six feet 
 in heighth, and each of whom has fought his way 
 to honorable distinction, show that they are in 
 every sense worth}' of their ancient name. 
 
 Martin Quigley, the subject of this article, 
 was born in Timahoe, Queen's County, Ireland, 
 Nov. 11, 1805. His father was a prosperous 
 
 gentleman farmer, with fourteen children — 
 seven sons and seven daughters, Martin being 
 the thirteenth child. The children were edu- 
 cated partly in the parochial school, partly by 
 private tutors. The eldest son, Cornelius, was 
 a distinguished graduate of Dublin University. 
 His brother Patrick was a Magistrate of 
 Queen's County, and died there a few years 
 ago at the age of 84. He founded the Leinster 
 Independent, the leading paper of the county ; 
 owned more than a hundred houses in Mary- 
 boro, the county seat of the county ; farmed 
 over five hundred acres of land, and was one 
 of the most popular men in the country, not 
 only for his dignity and ability as a magis- 
 trate, his enterprise and public spirit as a citi- 
 zen, but for his unfailing fund of wit and 
 humor which delighted all with whom he came 
 ' in contact. The writer of this notice had the 
 pleasure of being entertained by him at his 
 hospitable mansion near Maryboro, during quite 
 a little visit there some years ago, and thus 
 had personal knowledge of these facts. 
 
 Martin Quigley, subject of this notice, mar- 
 ried there, in 1839, Miss Mary Ann Moore, of 
 the old famil}' of the O'Moore's, once Princes 
 of Leix and Offaly, and formerly Kings of 
 Leinster. Her brother, the Hon. James Moore, 
 who had, in part, represented the city of Boston 
 for four terms in the Legislature of the State 
 of Massachusetts, prevailed on Mr. Quigley to 
 come to this country, which he did with his 
 family in 1848. It was expected that Mr. 
 Quigley would settle in Boston, but he had his 
 eye on the broader fields of the West. Mr. 
 John Dunne, well known forty years ago in 
 Summit County, was a cousin of Mrs. Quigley, 
 and his reports of the prospects of Summit 
 County induced them to locate here. They 
 came in July, 1848, and, in illustration of the 
 rapidity with which Mr. Quigley acted in busi- 
 ness matters, it may be mentioned that in 
 three days' time from his arrival in x\kron, he 
 had purchased a tract of land in Springfield 
 Township, and had his family settled on it. He 
 afterward bought the Landis farm, within half 
 a mile of ^liddlebury ; later, another farm in 
 Copley Township, and, finally, a residence 
 property on High street in Middlebury, which 
 is still the family homestead. 
 
 One of the chief industries of this county 
 now is the manufacture of stoneware, but when 
 jNh-. Quigley came here thirty-three years ago. 
 
L^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 761 
 
 this industry was almost unknown. Witli rare 
 sagacity Mr. Quigley saw from the start that 
 something could be done in this matter. He 
 had bought land immediately on his arrival 
 with the intention of engaging in farming, but 
 he soon began studying the stoneware business. 
 There were then but two small potteries in 
 Middlebury doing a trifling business. Mr. 
 Quigley prospected around, found a bed of good 
 cla}', bought it and began to push things. He 
 soon furnished the Middlebury potteries better 
 clay and at lower rates than the}' had been able 
 to get before. They could not take an3^thing 
 like all his output, so he looked abroad for a 
 market, and was the first man to ship this clay 
 out of the State. He sent it first by canal, and 
 later, by rail to Cleveland, and thence by boats 
 to Michigan, Wisconsin and other neighboring 
 States. He became an enthusiast on the sub- 
 ject. Unable to persuade the timid owners in 
 Middlebury to enlarge their works, he bought 
 into the business himself and began to spread 
 it. Clay, until his time, had been ground here 
 in the old horse-power mill. This was too 
 slow for his quick, Celtic blood. He went to 
 Cleveland, bought a twenty horse-power engine 
 and began grinding clay by steam. His part- 
 ners got frightened ; he bought them out and 
 ran the business alone until 1862, when his two 
 eldest sons, Thomas and William (twins, b}' 
 the way), came on the scene. Having now 
 reared and educated men to run the business 
 according to his own ideas, he turned the manu- 
 factory over to them. Thomas and William 
 were soon re-enforced b}' Hugh, and they, un- 
 der the name of the Quigley Brothers, have 
 pushed the business until the}' have warehouses 
 now of a storage capacity of nearly three 
 million gallons of ware. They send their goods 
 by rail and water all over the United States, 
 doing a business of over a $150,000 a 3'ear. 
 Though Ml'. Quigley turned the business over 
 to " the boys," he still watched over it fondly 
 to the day of his death, and much of its suc- 
 cess is, doubtless, due to his continued super- 
 vision. He found the business in Middlebury' 
 a small affair, employing only a few men. He 
 lived to see it grow to be one of the leading 
 enterprises of the State, with millions of dollars 
 invested, and thousands of men employed in it. 
 He was always proud of his connection with it. 
 He loved to sit on the broad, shady porch of 
 his house on High street and look out on the 
 
 blaze everywhere rising from the stoneware 
 kilns ; on the volumes of white smoke caused 
 by " salting off" the ware ; to hear the, to him, 
 sweet music of the factory whistles while the 
 smoke rose in clouds from the stacks of the 
 steam cla^^-raills he had been the first to intro- 
 duce, all telling of triumphs of industry, skill, 
 patience and intelligence — triumphs which to 
 him, probabl}', more than to any other man, the 
 country was indebted. These triumphs would, 
 doubtless, have come in time without him, but, 
 how long the claj^ lay there, comparatively un- 
 touched until his arrival ! How quick the 
 whole countr}' heard of it when he put his 
 hand to the work ! His sons still carr}' on the 
 business, but they exert themselves in the 
 larger field of handling the manufectured ware. 
 
 William married in November, 1864, Miss 
 Theresa Smith, eldest daughter of Mi\ John 
 Smith, of Cleveland, one of the " solid " men of 
 that city. Hugh married, May 2, 1876, Miss 
 Helena Daly, eldest daughter of Mr. Peter 
 Daly, likewise a prominent citizen of Cleveland. 
 " Tom," being still a Benedict, does the travel- 
 ing for the concern. William, on his marriage, 
 withdrew from the firm, but carries on the same 
 business on his own account. 
 
 Patrick, the youngest son, now known as Dr. 
 Quigley, showed from his youth an inclination 
 for the church. He made his college course in 
 Cleveland, and, later, also his theological course, 
 and was ordained a priest in the Catholic Church 
 in 1869. Having shown unusual talents, the 
 Bishop encouraged his going to Rome to profit 
 by the higher instruction there. He spent four 
 years in the Eternal City, attending the cele- 
 brated CoUegio Romano^ and came back with 
 the proud distinction of being the only Ameri- 
 can student who ever won the title of Doctor 
 from that institution. He has acquired con- 
 siderable celebrity in this countr}' as an author- 
 ity on Canon law, having given to the public 
 the result of some of his studies on some 
 recondite branches of that subject, and being at 
 this present writing attending Court in Pitts- 
 burgh as an expert in a case there in which a 
 question of Canon law is involved. He has 
 been for eight or nine years a professor in tiie 
 Diocesan Seminary at Cleveland, in this State. 
 He has the fine personal appearance character- 
 istic of his family and, rare thing for a thorough 
 student, is possessed of fine oratorical powers. 
 His services arc in sreat demand for addresses 
 
 KV 
 ^ 
 
±1 
 
 762 
 
 BIOGRxVPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 on special occasions, and he has taken a ver}' 
 prominent part lately in the public discussion 
 of the land league question, attracting now so 
 much attention in this country as well as in 
 Ireland. He learned German while a youth in 
 this country, and French and Italian in Rome, 
 so that he preaches in English, German, French 
 or Italian, as occasion requires. 
 
 To return to the subject of this memoir. Mr. 
 Quigley died in Akron, Oct. 8, 1878, being then 
 73 years of age. 
 
 The Akron Daily Beacon, the oldest news- 
 paper, we believe, published in Summit County, 
 had the following notice of his death, from which, 
 as furnishing a cotemporaneous account from a 
 public print, we copy the concluding portion, 
 as follows : 
 
 " Mr. Quigley's earnest religious convictions 
 and his uniform readiness to discuss, amicably, 
 and defend the tenets of his church — the Ro- 
 man Catholic — have, for years, been greatly 
 respected by the whole community. His regu- 
 larity and vigor in attending the services of 
 his church ' in season and out of season ' have 
 for long years been praised and admired b}' 
 members of all denominations. And more — 
 his religion gave him a rule of conscience in 
 all his business transactions. Mr. Quigley's 
 wonderful devotion to his most estimable wife, 
 as well as to all his sons' interests, have often 
 been commented upon as a beautiful example 
 of a most affectionate and large-hearted hus- 
 band and father. His obsequies were held yes- 
 terday, the 10th inst. The procession from 
 the family home in the Sixth Ward, to St. Vin- 
 cent de Paul's Church was one of the largest 
 our prosperous city ever witnessed. The serv- 
 ices at the church were solemn and impressive 
 and the spacious and magnificent edifice was 
 filled with the friends of the deceased. The 
 remains were met in the vestibule of the church 
 by clergy in cope or surplice and with solemn 
 chant escorted to the altar railing. The Rev. 
 Dr. Quigley, of Cleveland, youngest son of the 
 deceased, celebrated a Solemn Requiem Mass, 
 assisted by Revs. John Brown, of this city, and 
 A. R. Sidley, Pastor of the Immaculate Con- 
 ception Church, Cleveland, as deacon and sub- 
 deacon. The pall-bearers were Messrs. P. Smith, 
 of Cleveland ; E. Rowley, H. Baldwin, T. 
 Johnston, John Cooke, Sr., and James McCal- 
 ister, Sr., of this cit3^ Amongst the clergy in 
 the sanctuary, besides those above mentioned, 
 
 were Rev. N. A. Moes, Rector of the Catholic 
 Seminary, Cleveland ; Rev. William McMahon, 
 Pastor of St. Bridget's Church, Cleveland ; 
 Rev. Dr. Maliar, of the Cathedral, Cleveland ; 
 Rev. M. Murphy, of Warren ; Rev. P. O'Mara, 
 of Hudson ; Rev. William Finucan, of Massil- 
 lon ; Rev. P. O'Neil, of Kent, and Rev. Father 
 Mahony, Pastor of the deceased. After the 
 Solemn Mass, Rev. Father Mahony delivered 
 an able funeral oration in which he paid a high 
 tribute of respect to the deceased as a most 
 devoted husband, a good father, and a prac- 
 tical, fervent Catholic, and stated that he had 
 a golden record on the parish books, and was 
 equal, if not superior, to any other member of 
 the congregation in supporting the interests of 
 religion, and in contributing to the erection of 
 St. Vincent de Paul's splendid church. The 
 preacher even described the generosity of the 
 deceased as ' princely ' and applied to him 
 the words of the Apostle Paul : ' I have 
 fought the good fight, I have finished my course, 
 I have kept the faith.' After the funeral ser- 
 mon, some excellent chanting was done by the 
 clergy in the Sanctuary, and Rev. Dr. Quigley 
 pronounced the last absolutions. The funeral 
 procession was formed again and proceeded to 
 the vault of the Soldiers' Monument, accom- 
 panied by all the above mentioned clergy, where 
 the remains, were deposited temporarilj'. Later 
 they are to be interred in the family burial lot 
 in the Catholic Cemetery on West Hill." 
 
 Mr. Quigley was a most agreeable companion, 
 always overflowing with wit and humor, and 
 had the full measure of characteristic Celtic 
 vivacity. A small book could easily be filled 
 with most interesting accounts of his humorous 
 and numerous controversial contests, political 
 and religious, with various celebrities of the 
 county, but lack of space forbids further mention 
 of them here. 
 
 His beloved wife, a lady of well-known in- 
 tellectual powers and womanly virtues, now 
 past her 80th year, sorrowing, survives him. 
 She is of a long-lived family, her great-grand- 
 father having attained the patriarchal age of 
 132 years. She resides with her son, Hugh, in 
 Akron, and will long be most affectionately re- 
 membered by all who have enjoyed the pleas- 
 ure of her acquaintance. 
 
 Mr. Quigley was one of the few of whom it 
 may be truly said, not only that he was with- 
 out fear and without reproach, but that, by 
 
A 
 
 rs 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 763 
 
 reason of his skill in opening up new avenues 
 of trade, his energy in developing new sources 
 of wealth and his success in furnishing new 
 fields for emplo^-ment, he ranks as a public 
 benefactor, one who has deserved well of his 
 country. He is a man whose memory this 
 communit}' will always delight to honor. 
 
 THOMAS CRAIGHP]AD REYNOLDS, A. 
 M., editor of the Akron Beacon, was born Sun- 
 day, June 18, 1848, at Reynolds' Mill, just 
 south of Canton, Ohio. He was the foui'th 
 child of his father, Mr. George Rej-nolds, old- 
 est son of Mr. William Re3'nolds, first Clerk 
 of Stark Co., Ohio. He was the oldest son 
 of Mr. R.'s second wife, Jane (Lamb) Rey- 
 nolds, oldest daughter of Thomas Craighead, 
 of Cumberland Co., Penn., where men of that 
 name were the earliest settlers of the Scotch- 
 Irish, and the first Presb3'terian preachers west 
 of the Susquehanna River. Mr. George Rey- 
 nolds' paternal ancestors were Virginians, his 
 mother being a daughter of a Newport (R. I.) 
 sea captain, and both of English stock. T. C. 
 Reynolds spent his boyhood with his maternal 
 grandparents in Canton, attending private 
 school, and in Akron with his parents, who 
 owned and kept the Empire House, attending 
 the public schools. Thence, in April, 1863, he 
 went to the Western Reserve College Prepara- 
 tory School, and remained there through his 
 freshman j-ear. His college studies were com- 
 pleted at the University of Michigan, graduat- 
 ing from the classical course June 24, 1868, at 
 20, the youngest of his class, except Mark W. 
 Harrington, since Professor of Astronomy at 
 the University. His long vacations were spent 
 upon the United States Survey of the Northern 
 and Northwestern Lakes, that work being then 
 under the superintendence of his uncle. Gen. W. 
 F. Reynolds, of the LTnited States Engineers, 
 to whom Mr. R. also owes the liberal advances 
 of money that secured his education and his 
 interest in the Beacon Publishing Co. After 
 graduating, and while upon duty with a longi- 
 tude part}' of the Lake Surve}- at Oswego, N. 
 Y., Mr. Reynolds was offered a reporter's place 
 upon the Detroit Fast, and began journalistic 
 work July 14, 1868. Six months later, he 
 went home to Akron as the Beacon's first re- 
 portei", soon being offered and declining a recall 
 to Detroit with a better position and salary, 
 and in January, 1869, he began work upon the 
 Beacon, and on Dec. 6, 1869, the daily edition 
 
 was begun. Six months later, he left the paper 
 because of an attempt to divide his pay with 
 another, and, July 14, 1870, began work upon 
 the Pittsburgh Commercial, next under C. D. 
 Brigham, as paragraph writer and associate, 
 succeeding Bartley Campbell, the dramatist, 
 and being succeeded by Col. Richard Realf, the 
 brilliant poet. In March, 1871, he visited St. 
 Louis, Mo., with a view to starting an evening 
 paper there with H. H. Byram, relinquishing 
 his Pittsburgh situation. This was not practica- 
 ble, and finally he got a place in Cincinnati upon 
 an insurance and manufacturing journal, owned 
 by one Tillinghast, Mr. R. being associated with 
 Levi E. Thorne, since editor of the Daily Amer- 
 ican Exchange, at New York. Thanksgiving Day, 
 1871, he returned to Akron as editor of the 
 Beacon, the internal trouble being terminated 
 by the purchase of the interest of the trouble- 
 makers by a number of business men as a 
 stock company, with Mr. S. A. Lane, as busi- 
 ness manager. Nov. 1, 1873, Mr. Reynolds 
 left Akron, ]Mr. W. Scott Robison having offered 
 him nearly a double salary to edit the Cleve- 
 land Sunday Voice 2iwA the Trade Revieic. Dur- 
 ing this time, he also wrote upon the Leader s 
 editorial page. In June, 1874, Mr. R. went to 
 Toledo as Clark Waggoner's associate editor of 
 the Morning Commercied, remaining until Jan- 
 uar}', 1875, when a re-organization of the Beacon 
 Company brought him back to Akron to sta}'. 
 This had been Mr. R.'s fixed purpose in all his 
 changes, and he was joined in accomplishing it 
 by Mr. Frank J. Staral and John H. Auble. 
 Two years later, Mr. Auble's interest was 
 bought by Re3-nolds & Staral, the latter since 
 being business manager. When Mr. Rej^nolds 
 first went to the Beacon in January', 1869, Mr. 
 Staral, then a Bohemian boy, had just entered 
 the office as the onl}' bindery workman. He 
 began then to board with Mr. R.'s parents, 
 making that his home until his marriage in 
 Jul}', 1877, the two being associated as broth- 
 ers since. In June, 1873, Mr. Reynolds united 
 with the Congregational Church of Akron, and 
 Jan. 3, 1878. he married Lillian Alice, 
 only daughter of John H. and Laura A. Wag- 
 goner, of Akron. In December, 1878, a son 
 was born to them — William Waggoner Rey- 
 nolds. Mr. R. has held no office, and seeks 
 none. 
 
 GEORGE T. RANKIN, carpenter, Akron 
 City ; born in the City of Hudson, N. Y., Feb. 
 
 r 
 
i 
 
 ^ 
 
 764 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 21, 1843 ; he was the son of Matthew and 
 Mary (Linn) Rankin, who were the parents of 
 nine children, as follows : Ellen, now Mrs. 
 Amos Mac}' ; Charles, died in 1880 ; Matthew, 
 now of Cleveland ; Mary, now Mrs. Peter 
 Decker ; Esther, now Mrs. B. F. Harris ; George 
 T., of Akron ; Joseph, of Hudson, N. Y. ; 
 Elizabeth, now Mrs. Cornelius Shaw ; John, of 
 Cleveland. Mrs. Rankin was a lad}' of fine 
 mental attainments, but died in 1849, while 
 most of her children were quite small. Her 
 husband died Jan. 15, 1871, in the 61st year of 
 his age. The subject of this sketch, when 12 
 years of age, moved to Waterloo Township, 
 Jefferson Co., Wis., where he remained about 
 four years. In the fall of 1859, he returned to 
 Hudson, N. Y., where he learned the carpenter 
 and joiner's trade, serving an apprenticeship of 
 three years ; he then removed to New York 
 City and worked at ship joinering, pattern 
 making and general carpenter work, from the 
 year 1862 to 1871. He was married, Sept. 8, 
 1870, to Mrs. Mary C. Weimer, who was born 
 Jan. 21, 1847 ; in May, 1871, they settled in 
 Akron, and since then have resided in the city. 
 Mr. Rankin has frequently been employed 
 at fine designs, which required much skill, and 
 his workmanship on these tasks is a lasting 
 proof that he is a master mechanic at his trade ; 
 he was employed for several years at mill- 
 wright work since settling in Akron, and was 
 agent, for some five years, for the Cleveland 
 Electric Supply Company. At the present 
 time, Mr. Rankin is a general carpenter and 
 builder, employing, at times, six and eight 
 hands. Mr. and Mrs. Rankin are members of 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, of Akron ; they 
 are the parents of two childi^en — Irving Cor- 
 nelius and George Thomas. By her former 
 husband, Mrs. Rankin had one daughter, Jennie 
 T. Weimer. 
 
 W. G. ROBINSON, stationer, Akron, was 
 born in Middlebury, now included in the city 
 of Akron, March 20, 1838, and is the eldest of 
 six children born to John C. and Margaret 
 (Kelly) Robinson. His parents were natives of 
 Union County, Penn., and en me to Middlebui-y 
 in the Spring of 1836. Mr. John C. Robinson 
 was a farmer and followed this business in 
 Ohio until his death in 1875. His wife's death 
 preceded his some four years, occurring in 1871. 
 Both were active members of the Presbyterian 
 Church and were highly respected in the com- 
 
 munity in which they lived. W. G. Robinson 
 was brought up on the farm, gaining his educa- 
 tion in the select schools in the neighborhood 
 and in the High School of Akron. In 1857, he 
 began as a clerk with Mr. A. Sawyer, in his 
 book and stationery establishment, where he 
 continued for four years. He then bought the 
 business of Mr. Sawyer and has since conducted 
 it with signal success. In August of 1879, he 
 associated himself with other gentlemen in the 
 formation of stock company, known as the 
 Akron Telephone Company, for operating 
 Bell's telephone in the cities of Akron, Canton, 
 Massillon, Youngstown and Springfield, of 
 which he was made President, a position he 
 still occupies. He is also Manager of the 
 Akron Academy of Music, which has been 
 under his direction ever since its erection in 
 1869. Mr. Robinson made his home with his 
 parents until his marriage in 1861. On the 
 1st of January in that year he was united in 
 marriage with Miss Mary E. Buckingham, a 
 native of Watertown, Conn. 
 
 ENOCH ROWLEY, retired, Middlebury, is 
 a native of Stafljordshire, England, and was born 
 Dec. 22, 1814. His father, William Rowley, was 
 a potter and Enoch was taught the trade. In 
 February, 1849, he landed in New York, pre- 
 pared to try his fortune in the new country. 
 He came to Cuyahoga Falls, having heard of 
 that place in England. He worked at farming 
 and gardening for about eight months, and in the 
 fall of the same year, he came to Middlebury 
 and bought his present place, where he has 
 since resided. In the Spring of 1850, he and 
 his two brothers-in-law, Edwin and Herbert 
 Baker, began the manufacture of yellow and 
 rockingham ware ; it was the first made in 
 the county, and was represented at the county 
 fair in 1851. In 1853, he erected a stoneware 
 manufactory and has been identified with the 
 same ever since. He married Miss Eliza Baker 
 April 21, 1834. She is a native of England. 
 Of their eleven children but one is living, viz., 
 William ; of the deceased but two were mar- 
 ried, one of whom leaves a family, viz., Ann J., 
 married Mr. F. Manton, a native of England, 
 who came to America about the year 1 852, and 
 is now a farmer located near Cuyahoga Falls, 
 Ohio. By their marriage there were three 
 children, viz., Charles F., Francis C. and Eva E. 
 Mr. Rowley, though coming a stranger to a new 
 country has by industry and econom} been 
 
 
'i^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 765 
 
 successful in business, securing for himself and 
 wife an ample competency for their old age. 
 Both have spent over one-half a century as 
 members of the Metliodist Episcopal Church, in 
 which he has taken an active interest, and has 
 served in its several offices, being a class, 
 leader for the past twent3"-two 3'ears. In poli- 
 tics, he has taken his stand in the ranks of the 
 Republican party. 
 
 WM. ROWLEY, stoneware manufacturer, 
 Middlebury, Ohio ; is a native of England, and 
 was born in Staffordshire, Dec. 17, 1837. At 
 the age of 12, he came with his parents to 
 America, and settled in Middlebury, now Sixth 
 Ward of Akron, where he has since lived. He 
 began to work in a pottery, and, at the age of 
 18, established a business of his own, erecting a 
 shop where his present establishment is. Since 
 the destruction of his shop by fire, the building 
 has been rebuilt of brick and he is now enlarg- 
 ing it so as to double its present capacity, 
 which will emplo}' from twent^'-five to thirty 
 hands. Mr. Rowley was one of the incorpora- 
 tors of the Middlebury Clay Company, and 
 since the first year he has held the office of 
 Secretary and Superintendent of the same. May 
 10, 1864, he married Miss Mary Jane Wills, a 
 native of England. She came to the United 
 States with her parents, and was living with 
 them at Cuyahoga Falls at the time of her mar- 
 riage. Of their four children, three are living, 
 viz.: Arthur J., Maud L., and an infant. 
 
 WILLIAM H. RAGG, Marshal, Akron, 
 Ohio. Wm. Ragg. Sr., was born in Aberdeen, 
 Scotland, and came to the United States when 
 18 3^ears of age, pursuing here the calling of 
 baker and confectioner. He was prominently 
 connected with the bakery of Queen Victoria, 
 in England. He died in Cleveland, Ohio, in 
 1854, in his 43d year. Jane (Farquer) Ragg, 
 (his wife), died at Paterson, N. J., in 1840 ; 
 she was of French parentage. The only son of 
 their marriage is the subject of this sketch, who 
 was born in Paterson, N. J., Dec. 6, 1840. 
 When 8 yeai's old, he went with his father to 
 Syracuse, N. Y., afterward living in Water- 
 town, N. Y., until 1853, when they came to 
 Cleveland, Ohio, where subject lived until 1871. 
 At 16, he was apprenticed to H. P. Hopkins, 
 where he served nine years at sign painting — 
 the last six as journeyman. Then he opened a 
 paint-shop in Cleveland, and carried on busi- 
 ness until 1871, when he removed to Oil Cit}', 
 
 Penn., and there engaged at his trade four 
 3'ears. In April, 1875, he moved to Akron, 
 Ohio, and entered the employ of Charles E. 
 Kidney, as painter, continuing six months, 
 when he again established a paint-shop and 
 successfully carried on business until 1878, 
 when he was elected on the Republican ticket 
 to fill the unexpired term of Jacob Koplin, 
 (Marshal), and was re-elected in the spring of 
 1879 for two years, and in April, 1881, was 
 again re-elected Marshal, on the Republican 
 ticket by a large majorit}-. Sept. 10, 1861, he 
 married Miss Mary Pauline, daughter of Prof 
 Pierre A. Gollier, of Cleveland, Ohio. They 
 have three sons living and one daughter de- 
 ceased. 
 
 REV. JOHN F. ROWE, minister and jour- 
 nalist, Akron, son of Martin and Mary M. (Als- 
 house) Rowe, was born at Greensburg, West- 
 moreland Co., Penn., March 23, 1827. In his 
 3'outh. he worked for several years at brick- 
 laying, being master of the trade. In 1839, his 
 father moved to Wooster, Ohio, where our 
 subject prepared for college at Parrott's Acad- 
 emy, Wooster ; and he entered Bethany College 
 in 1850, graduating four years later, receiving 
 B. A. degree. He was editor of the college 
 paper. At 24, he entered the ministry, being 
 ordained by Wooster Church in 1851. In 
 1855, he went to Springfield, 111., where he 
 became associate editor of the Christian Sen- 
 tinel, continuing two years, preaching at the 
 same time. In 1857, he went to Oskaloosa, 
 Iowa, where he became associate editor of the 
 Christian Evangelist, being at the same time 
 solicitor for Oskaloosa College for two years, 
 when he came to Wadsworth, Ohio, and was 
 Pastor of the Church of Christ for several 
 years. In 1865, he went to Corry, Penn., and 
 organized a church ; under his administration 
 a church and parsonage were built ; he labored 
 there two years, and then came to Akron, 
 where he has since remained. When his labors 
 closed in Corry, he became associate editor of 
 the American Christian Review, at Cincinnati, 
 Ohio, for seven years. In April, 1874, the 
 Akron Argus, a non-partisan and independent 
 newspaper, was started in Akron, and he was 
 editor-in-chief for a period of about two yeai'S ; 
 severing that relation, he was elected editor-in- 
 chief of the American Christian Review, a posi- 
 tion he still retains. It is one of the oldest 
 papers extant devoted to the interest of the 
 
 f 
 
:^i 
 
 706 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Church of Christ. In the last twenty 3'ears, he 
 has visited the churches of about twenty 
 States and of Canada, being engaged in an 
 evangelical work ; he has been throughout the 
 West as far as Salt Lake City, and South and 
 East. He has brought many hundred persons 
 into the Church. He has written several works 
 on evangelical subjects, and is a public debater 
 of ability. Sept. 28, 1852, he was married to 
 Miss Editha 3L Pardee, daughter of Judge 
 Allen Pardee, of Wadsworth, Ohio. He has 
 five children, all at home, viz., Eugene P., local 
 editor of the Beacon ; Kittle F. L., Ada .E., 
 Frank E. and Louis F. 
 
 THOMAS RHODES, retired, Akron ; is a 
 son of Thomas and Miriam (Garside) Rhodes, 
 and was bom April 18, 1826, in Lancashire, 
 England, seven miles from Manchester. When 
 7 years of age, his parents came to America, 
 landing at New York on tlie 10th of April, 
 1833. Soon after, they came to Massillon, Ohio, 
 where they stopped for a short time, and then 
 settled in Sharon Township, in Medina Co., 
 where his youth was spent. His education was 
 limited to the district schools, and to instruction 
 received from an older brother. About the 
 year 185-4, he and his brothers bought a tract 
 of land on " Chuckery Plains," which they 
 farmed until 1859, when they sold out and re- 
 moved to Portage Township, and bought 546 
 acres of land, which they cleared, improved 
 and drained ; he still owns 280 acres. In 1867, 
 he purchased his present place, consisting of 11 
 acres, where he has since lived. He has been 
 a careful student, and has gathered a valuable 
 collection of books. In 1865, subject and 
 his brother Samuel went to Panama, to exam- 
 ine there specimens of natural history. Sam- 
 uel was taken sick, and, three days after leaving, 
 died on board the steamship, Jan. 4, 1866, on 
 the way to New York. In 1862, his brother 
 Samuel was drafted, when he took his place, 
 serving about ten months in Co. A, 72d O. V. 
 I., during which time he took part in the siege 
 of Vicksburg. Subject was married Dec. 21, 
 1876, to Miss Sarah B. Garside, of Wisconsin. 
 He was a Republican from 1860 to 1872, when 
 he joined the Prohibition party, and is now 
 Financial Secretary of the Ohio Anti-Liquor 
 Alliance, and a thorough temperance worker. 
 
 N. B. STONE, Secretary and Treasurer of 
 the Weary Snyder Wilcox Manufixcturing Com- 
 pany, Akron ; is not only a pioneer of Akron, 
 
 but he has for many years been prominently 
 identified with the lumbering interests of Sum- 
 mit Co., and, as a representative and promoter 
 of this branch of the county's industries, his 
 portrait appears in this work. Having for 
 many ^-ears acted in concert with those citizens 
 who are first looked to in the forwarding of any 
 local enterprise resulting in the general welfare 
 of the citizens of Akron, his name is worthy of 
 more than a passing mention. A tracement of 
 the genealogy of the fomily proves the name 
 of that branch of the ancestry of which Mr. 
 Stone is a descendant to be of English origin. 
 He was born Sept. 18, 1816, in Mahoning Co.. 
 Ohio, and was the third child of a family of 
 four children born to Milo and Sarah (Beards- 
 ley) Stone, both of whom were natives of Con- 
 necticut, and who, in the year 1815, quitted 
 their native State, and, with an ox team, made 
 their way westward to the much-talked-of 
 Western or Connecticut Reserve ; they settled 
 in that part of Trumbull now known as 
 Mahoning Co., and subsequently removed to 
 Tallmadge Township, Summit Co. ; this, also, 
 at that date, was a pai't of Portage Co. Their 
 settlement in Tallmadge was in 1817, which at 
 that date was a tract of almost unbroken for- 
 est. By trade, Mr. Stone was a carpenter and 
 joiner, but in that early day there was but little 
 demand for mechanics of any kind ; he there- 
 fore purchased and began the clearing up of a 
 farm, though he devoted a portion of his time 
 to working at his trade. The early settlers of 
 Tallmadge Township being almost exclusively 
 Connecticut people, it was not long before the^^ 
 established educational facilities far surpassing 
 those of the surrounding new settlements ; the 
 result of their efforts in this direction, was the 
 establishing at the Center of Tallmadge an 
 academy of more than the ordinary standard. 
 E. T. Sturtevant, a graduate of Yale College, 
 was for many years their principal instructor, 
 and to him many of the now prosperous and 
 influential men of the Western Reserve owe 
 the foundation of their success, N. B. Stone 
 among the number. To Milo Stone is due 
 a fair share of the credit of thus early paving 
 a wa}' for the education of his children ; the 
 church, however, received his greatest encour- 
 agement and most liberal support ; by his early 
 and persistent efforts, he succeeded in organiz- 
 ing the first M. E. Church of Tallmadge. Such 
 offices as he would accept were given him, and. 
 
 -^rv 
 
CITY OF AKEON. 
 
 767 
 
 upon the organization of Summit Co., he was 
 appointed one of the Real Estate Appraisers. 
 His death occurred in April, 1856, and that of 
 his wife on Feb. 8, 1861. Nelson B. Stone, 
 after having received a fair education at the 
 Tallmadge Academy, began in earnest the bat- 
 tle of life on his own account ; he spent sev- 
 eral years in West Bloomfield, N. Y., Ravenna, 
 Ohio, and Wheeling, W. Va. ; in the latter 
 place he spent two and a half years at book- 
 keeping ; in December of 1 840, he came to Ak- 
 ron, and, a short time after his arrival, he ac- 
 cepted the Deputy Clerkship of Summit Co.; 
 he continued to discharge the duties of Deputy 
 until 1851, when he was elected to the office of 
 County Clerk for a term of three years ; he 
 discharged the duties and increased responsi- 
 bilities devolving upon him to the satisfaction 
 of all interested, and, at the close of his term 
 of office, he accepted the position of Deputy 
 County Clerk of Cuyahoga Co., though he con- 
 tinued his residence in Akron ; returning from 
 Cleveland, or rather severing his connection 
 with the official management of Cuyahoga's af- 
 fairs, he became for a time connected with the 
 firm of Aultman, Miller & Co. In 1865, he be- 
 came a partner in the firm with which he is 
 now connected, and in which he has since held 
 the offices of Secretary and Treasurer. Mr. 
 Stone has given liberally toward supplying 
 Akron with the different railroads that are and 
 have been so largely conducive to her success, 
 and, in the building-up of churches and schools, 
 he has been an earnest worker. Both he and 
 Mrs. Stone are members of the First M. E. 
 Church ; in 1843, when the present Sabbath 
 school of the First M. E. Church was organized, 
 with an attendance of thirty-three pupils, Mr. 
 Stone was elected Librarian, and has been of- 
 ficially connected with the school almost con- 
 tinuousl}^ to the present date, quite a period of 
 time as Superintendent. He is an earnest, 
 zealous worker in the Sabbath school, and at 
 present is Secretary of the organization. In 
 May of 1852, he was married to Miss Mary H. 
 Clark, a native of North Springfield, Summit 
 Co.; her death occurred in April of 1853 ; the 
 issue of this marriage was one son — Nelson C. 
 — who is now book-keeper for the Weary Sny- 
 der Wilcox Manufacturing Co. In August of 
 1854, Mr. Stone married Miss Elizabeth H. 
 Beardsley, who was born within the incorporate 
 limits of Akron, and whose people were among 
 
 Summit County's early and prominent pioneers. 
 Two children have been born to them — Philo 
 C, who died in 1872, and Dwight M., living at 
 home. 
 
 INCREASE SUMNER (deceased); was 
 born in Townsend, Vt., Feb. 25, 1800, and was 
 a son of Thomas and Elizabeth Sumner. He 
 lived in Vermont about sixteen years, and then 
 came to Ohio and settled in Middlebury, where 
 his brother Charles was living, and where he 
 lived until his death, Nov. 18, 1868. He was 
 quite a prominent man, was connected with 
 the milling business, was also one of the early 
 merchants of Middlebury, and also a stone con- 
 tractor, and built many of the bridges of the 
 county, and dams in Akron, besides doing 
 much stone work on the canal. * In 1849, he 
 fitted up an ox-team, and with a party of six- 
 teen or eighteen men, of whom he was Captain 
 and Treasurer, went to California, arriving in 
 safety. Throughout the trip, he disdained to 
 carry firearms, feeling confident in his own 
 natural powers. Arriving in California, he 
 opened a store in a mining district and con- 
 tinued it for nearly three years, when he re- 
 turned to Middlebury. When he left, he said 
 he would return in three years to prevent his 
 wife getting a bill of divorce. On his return, 
 the first question he asked his wife was, if the 
 bill had been obtained, and was answered 
 in the negative. This was one of the jokes 
 peculiar to himself On his return, he devoted 
 his attention to farming, but finally sold his 
 farm and bought a piece of land upon which 
 he opened a stone-quarry, and contracted stone 
 work. He continued in this until his death. 
 He was married March 29, 1837, to Mrs. Miller, 
 formerly Miss Elizabeth Hammel, they have no 
 children. The first marriage of Mrs. S. to 
 Arthur Miller occurred Jan. 29, 1827 ; she 
 was a native of Ithaca, N. Y., and was born 
 Sept. 21, 1812. Mr. Miller died July 16, 1830, 
 leaving two children, both of whom have since 
 died. In September, 1836, Mrs. Miller came 
 to Ohio and lived in Norton Township with 
 friends of Mr. Miller until the February follow- 
 ing, when she came to Middlebury, and in 
 March was married to Mr. Sumner. 
 
 COL. JULIUS A. SUMNER, retired, Akron, 
 whose portrait appears in this histor}' as a 
 representative of that class of the pioneers of 
 Summit Count}' who have been identified with 
 the progress of almost every improvement that 
 
 -^r 
 
 
J^l 
 
 768 
 
 B I OG R A PII IC AI. SKETCHES : 
 
 has placed Akron and Summit Co. among the 
 leading cities and counties of Ohio, is a de- 
 scendant of one of the old and prominent 
 families of the United States. The name of 
 Sumner is familiar to the people from the fact 
 of different members of the fiimil}- having from 
 time to time held prominent positions in civil 
 and military life. Theirs has been a remark- 
 ablv robust, large of stature, and long-lived 
 n.ce of people. An examination of the records 
 traces the genealogy of the family back to 1634, 
 when one George Sumner, who was of the third 
 generation by the name, emigrated from Bices- 
 ter, England, to the United States, and settled 
 at Freeman, Mass. He removed from there to 
 Milton, of the same State, where he was Deputy 
 to the General Court in 1693, 1703, 1708-09. 
 He was ordained Deacon, July 30, 1699, and 
 died at Milton, in 1715. Edward Sumner, of 
 the fourth generation, and son of George, was 
 born at Milton, Mass., Aug. 29, 1676. He lived 
 and died a resident of Massachusetts. John 
 Sumner, of the fifth generation, son of Edwaixl 
 and the grandfather of our subject, was born 
 August 1. 1705. He graduated at Harvard 
 College, in 1723. Nov. 20, 1729, he married 
 Susanna, daughter of Samuel Stevens, of Rox- 
 bury. She died Feb. 2, 1733. In 1737-38 he 
 was Representative from Roxbury. He settled 
 on Martha's Vine3'ard, where, on Sept. 22, 1738, 
 he married Jedidah Smith. He was Judge of 
 the Court of Common Pleas for Duke's Co., 
 from 1761 to 1774, when he removed to Spen- 
 cer, where he died in 1787. Thomas Sumner, 
 of the sixth generation, and father of Julius A., 
 was a son by the second marriage of John 
 Sumner. He was born June 2, 1757, and was 
 married at Brookfield, March 9, 1780, to Miss 
 Elizabeth Holland, of the same place. They 
 lived for a time at Spencer, and then went to 
 Townshend, Vt., and in 1817 they removed from 
 there to Middlebury, Ohio, where he died April 
 19, 1825, and his wife Oct. 10, 1842. Col. 
 Julius A. Sumner, the subject of this brief 
 memoir, was born Jan. 2, 1802. at Townshend, 
 Vt, and from the time of his 14th year he has 
 been almost wholly dependent upon his own 
 resources. At the age of 14 years he went to 
 Boston, and from there across the country on 
 foot to Tyrone, Huntingdon Co., Penn. He 
 remained there for a time, and then started 
 again on foot a distance of 130 miles, across 
 the Alleghany Mountains to Pittsburgh. There 
 
 he began work in a nail factory, in the manu- 
 facture of hand-made nails. He remained there 
 until 16 years of age, and then went to the 
 country and engaged in teaching school, which 
 he followed for one 3'ear. It may seem im- 
 probable that a boy of this age, and with the 
 meager opportunities for attaining an education 
 that were afforded him, should be able to teach 
 a common school, but it may be as well to state 
 here, that Col. Sumner was a boy of more than 
 ordinary ability, energy and determination, all 
 of which traits of character have in later life 
 placed him in a position far beyond the average 
 pioneer of Summit Co. In the spring of 1818, 
 he began his journey on foot and alone to 
 Middlebury. He arrived there in February, 
 and began in compau}' with his father and 
 brothers the erection of the first rolling-mill 
 in what was then Portage Co. This was for 
 the purpose of rolling strap and bar iron from 
 which to manufacture nails, and to them must 
 be given the credit of making the first market 
 nails ever made in Ohio. In 1824, he married 
 Miss Margaret, daughter of Rev. Obadiah New- 
 comb, of Wadsworth, Ohio. She was a native 
 of Nova Scotia, and was the mother of his 
 children. 
 
 About the time of his marriage, the Colonel 
 engaged in the mercantile trade, in which 
 he has since been interested, and stands 
 to-day as the oldest or pioneer merchant of 
 Akron, as he is still interested in business as a 
 member of the firm of Clark & Sumner, grocery- 
 men. When he began business, freights from 
 New York to Middlebury were $12 per 100 
 pounds. He sometimes ran as many as three 
 stores at a time, but when freights came down 
 to $5 per 100, he found so much competition 
 springing up, that he gave up a part of his 
 mercantile business and opened a woolen-mill. 
 In 1832, his health being somewhat impaired 
 by confinement, he sold his mill and store and 
 moved to the country. He purchased a tract 
 of land, of which he cleared 175 acres the first 
 year. He began farming as he did everything 
 else, on a scale that surprised some of his 
 neighbors. In a short time he owned 1,200 
 acres, most of which he soon put in a state of 
 cultivation. At this same time, he built a dis- 
 tillery at Lock 17, on the canal, which (the 
 latter) was finished Aug. 25, 1828. He also 
 ran a pottery on his farm, and was engaged ex- 
 tensively at merchandising. As an evidence 
 
 1^ 
 
-^ — ^^ ^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 769 
 
 of his executive ability-, he was at one time 
 running a fixrm of 1,200 acres, a potter}', two 
 distilleries and three stoi'es, and at the same 
 time he was Colonel of one of the finest militia 
 regiments in Ohio. He has built many costly 
 buildings in Akron, among which is the Sum- 
 ner House, erected in 1868 and burned in 1876, 
 and immediately rebuilt and enlarged. This 
 fire was a loss to him of !|50,000 ; this, with 
 his previous losses of $75,000, was a fort- 
 une of itself, especiall}' as it was accumulated 
 from a start of $1, and yet to-day he is counted 
 one of the wealthy men of Summit Co. During 
 his earl}' career, the Colonel made eight differ- 
 ent trips East with cattle, and crossed the Alle- 
 ghany Mountains on horseback as many times. 
 He and a brother also were the first shippers 
 of cattle from the Western Reserve to Phila- 
 delphia. Col. Sumner's first wife died in 1849. 
 In 1853, he married the widow of H. Bradley, 
 wlio was one of the early settlers of the County. 
 They lived together for twenty-seven years, when 
 her death occurred, Oct. 18, 1880. His children 
 are, Charles A., now a prominent merchant of 
 Baraboo, Wis. ; Mary, wife of C. Ferguson ; 
 Nellie, wife of J. B. Haughton ; Eliza, wife of 
 E. Stilwell, and Vick, wife of Geo. S. Clark, the 
 Colonel's associate in business. He is still a 
 hale, vigorous man, of commanding appearance, 
 extensive knowledge, and in his matured age 
 enjo3ang the rich possessions of the fruits of his 
 varied efforts. 
 
 EDAVARD SUMNER, Akron, a brother of 
 Charles Sumner, was born at Townshend, Vt., 
 June 27, 1796 ; came to Middlebury about 
 1817, and in 1818, in connection Avith his broth- 
 ers Julius and Joseph, built the first rolling 
 mill and rail factory in the State, with which 
 establishment he continued a number of 3'ears. 
 He was married at 2 o'clock A. M., Jan. 1, 1822, 
 to Miss Lucinda Hart, a sister to the wife of his 
 brother Charles. He subsequently engaged in 
 merchantile business until his departure, in 
 1848, for Baraboo, Wis., where he built a 
 large hotel ; also the court house for that 
 county ; he served one term in the Wisconsin 
 Legislature, and, about the close of the war, 
 went to a place near San Francisco, Cal., where 
 he engaged in the hotel business and mining. 
 At an early date he was Colonel of the 5th 
 Ohio Militia, at that time the finest in the State ; 
 he has always taken an active part in Masonry, 
 joining, as soon as age would permit, in the 
 
 State of New York, and soon after his settle- 
 ment in Middlebury he organized the lodge by 
 that name, fitting up a hall in his own house, 
 which was used for several 3'ears, subsequently', 
 with Judge Spaulding, organized the Akron 
 Lodge. 
 
 MISS LOUISE SUMNER, stock-raiser and 
 farmer, P. O. Akron ; the only child of Charles 
 Sumner and Clarrissa Hart, daughter of Rufus 
 and Esther (Cutter) Hart, who were natives of 
 Cornwall, Conn., and migrated to Middlebury 
 about 1815, after a residence of eleven years in 
 the State of New York. She was born May 6, 1 796, 
 and died March 30, 1877, after a long and useful 
 life. The Sumners moved to Vei'mont about 
 1800 from Roxbury, Mass., where the father of 
 our subject was born, June 6, 1794 ; he resided 
 in Vermont until the fall of 1816, when he 
 came to Middlebury, arriving in the spring of 
 1817, and was married the June following ; his 
 parents, Thomas and Elizabeth (Holland) Sum- 
 ner, arrived in the fall of 1817. During the 
 early part of his life in Ohio he worked at the 
 clothiers' trade and served the people as a minis- 
 ter of the Gospel ; he built the first frame 
 dwelling house in the village of Middlebury, 
 hauling the lumber for the same from Wooster 
 and Cleveland, and raising the frame on the day 
 of his marriage ; he also, in connection with 
 Pcleg Mason, kept the first store in the village, 
 and about the same time he built the first card- 
 ing mill, making subsequent extensive additions 
 to the business ; his congregation, until the 
 time of the building of the canal, had grown 
 quite extensive, but was almost totally broken 
 up on account of the ravages of disease at that 
 time, there being only four of his flock left to 
 tell the story which had been so fluently im- 
 parted from the lips of their earnest and ener- 
 getic leader, who rendered great assistance 
 during that dark time to the widows and or- 
 phans, in providing for them — raising and 
 finding homes for the orphan children, and 
 building houses upon his own farm for the 
 shelter of the poor and sick. He was a very 
 enterprising, energetic, successful and liberal 
 man, having, a few years after his removal to 
 this State, purchased a large tract of land in 
 Springfield Township, upon which he kept a 
 large amount of stock of all kinds, and engaged 
 in the business of drover, in which he was very 
 successful, although at many times meeting with 
 several narrow escapes in crossing the mount- 
 
w 
 
 t« — »- 
 
 770 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 ains ; his stock consisted of liorses, cattle and 
 mules. He moved to the farm, upon which his 
 daughter now lives, in 1834. He was for nine 
 years Associate Judge of Portage County, 
 and was instrumental in the organization of 
 Summit Co., in which he served as Associate 
 Judge from its organization until his death. 
 His death occurred June 22, 1845, his daughter 
 acting as administratrix of the large estate, in 
 connection with John Hart, and, being the onlj- 
 child, became heir to the liirge amount of prop- 
 erty-, which she has managed with great tact 
 and skill since her 20th 3'ear. She is a lady of 
 rare ability and business tact, which was un- 
 doubtedly inherited from the father, and by her 
 great love and superior knowledge of all kinds 
 of stock, in which business she has been very 
 successful ; having no little playmates she, in 
 her attention to the pets of the farm and the 
 care of the herds with her father, acquired that 
 great love for the brute creation which she has. 
 She has owned the finest flocks of Spanish 
 Merino sheep in Northern Ohio, having imported 
 some of the finest thoi'oughbred sheep in the 
 country ; the stock of her horses can be de- 
 termined from the prices sold at, ranging from 
 $500 to $2,000 singly ; she is now dealing in 
 cattle principall}'. Her coal interests have 
 been very extensive for several years, she 
 realizing from $3,000 to $5,000 annually in 
 royalty from the Middlebury Shaft and the 
 Sumner Bank. 
 
 JAMES H. STANFORD (deceased), Akron, 
 Ohio, is a son of William and Jane (Stevenson) 
 Stanford, and was born at Rochester, N. Y., 
 Aug. 29, 1843. When a boy he came with his 
 parents to Akron, where he attended the pub- 
 lic schools and learned the trade of machinist, 
 beginning in a Cleveland shop and finishing in 
 the shops of Taplin, Rice & Co., where he 
 worked until 1868, when he became engineer of 
 steamer in the Fire Department ; he had been a 
 fireman for some time. He filled the position 
 with ability until his death, which occurred 
 Jan. 3, 1881, an event that was deeplj^ felt by 
 the city. He had b}' close attention brought 
 the appointments of the engine house to great 
 perfection. He was a competent electrician, 
 and was one of the oldest firemen of the serv- 
 ice, having been a member since the organiza- 
 tion of the department in 1866. He served in 
 the late war in Shields' Battery for three years. 
 He was a member of the Buckeye Post, G. A. 
 
 R. The following is an eulogy by his old 
 friend and teacher, J. Park Alexander: 
 
 To the Past and Present Member.s of the Akron 
 Fire Department, this eulogy of our dead friend 
 and comrade is respectfully dedicated by his for- 
 mer teacher and constant friend throughout a 
 period of twenty-five years: 
 
 On the 1st of April, A. D. 1856, upon promotion, 
 there appeared in the Grammer Department of the 
 Akron Higli School, a boy small of stature, rugged in 
 appearance, fair in complexion with round visage 
 and rounder head, covered with intensely curled 
 auburn hair, which boy entered into all the labors 
 and tasks of the schoolroom with the same vigor, 
 courage and determination that marked him in after 
 years, in our estimation, as a man. The writer se- 
 lected for him as a declamation in our school exer- 
 cises at that time, "Cutter's Ode," to the sentiment 
 uttered b}' Henry Clay at the dedication of a monu- 
 ment at Lexington, Ky., erected over the remains 
 of those who had fallen in the battle of Buena Vista, 
 among whom were those of his son: 
 
 "And I would coverall its height 
 
 And breiidth before that hour of shame, 
 
 Till space should fail whereon to write, 
 Even the initial of anarae. 
 
 " Dissolve the Union, mar, remove 
 
 The last iisylum that is known, 
 Where patriots ijud a brother's love 
 
 And truth may shelter from a throne. 
 
 " Give up the hopes of high renown, 
 
 The legacy our fathers willed, 
 Tear our victorious eagles down. 
 
 Before their mission is lulflUed. 
 
 " Dissolve the Union, while the earth 
 
 Has yet a tyrant to be slain. 
 Destroy our freedom in its birth 
 
 And give the world to bonds again. 
 
 "Dissolve the Ui^ion, God of Heaven, 
 We know too well how much it cost; 
 
 A million bosoms shall be riven 
 Before one golden link is lost." 
 
 Many times during the years 1856 and 1857, our 
 boy patriot was called out before school and visitors 
 to recite this ode, a portion of which is here given 
 — recite it because he did it so well he rejoiced in 
 its grand national sentiments — his heart beat in 
 unison with its expressed patriotism, the brightness 
 of his eye and tlie color upon his boyhood cheek, 
 told how enthusiastically he drank at these foun- 
 tains of national existence. And now that his spirit 
 has fled, who is there to doubt but that with this 
 banner in his heart he was found in 1863, enrolled 
 among tlie magnificent army of patriots who fought 
 at Knoxville, Keuesaw, Resaca and in the siege of 
 Atlanta. Three years of service in the 19th Ohio 
 Batterjr in the great war of the Rebellion, christened 
 the boy into manhood, unobtrusive of its merits, 
 but nevertheless recognized. Before the war, in 
 the year 1859, he entered the Mahoning Railroad 
 shops as an apprentice macliinist, under his subse- 
 quent Chief in the Fire Department, James McNeil, 
 as foreman. He served in these shops until August 
 1862, the date of his enlistment. After his discharge 
 from the army, which occurred June 20, 1865, he 
 
l\±^ 
 
 CITY or AKRON. 
 
 771 
 
 was engaged for a short time in the railroad shops 
 here and with Taplin, Rice & Co. until in 1868, 
 when he entered the employ of the city. He died 
 with his armor on in the thirteenth year of his serv- 
 ice for the cit}', faithful to the last, his life stands 
 a shining example of his abilit3% his integrity, his 
 worth. A silent captain among men — he led, they 
 followed. An indefatigable student, he was at 
 the same time an accomplished mechanic. Theory 
 enticed him along her intricate path.s, yet he never 
 lost sight of the real, the practicable, and to-day all 
 over our city and all through this department, are 
 to be seen examples of his handiwork. Like a great 
 balance wheel in motion, he moved steadily forward, 
 stopping not at trifles nor moving more rapidly 
 from mere imagination and without cause. Thirty- 
 seven year from the cradle to the grave. Thirty- 
 seven years onward, upward ! Thirty-seven years 
 and this star has risen to its zenith, blotted out in 
 its pathway at midday, it hath fallen into the grave 
 beneath oiu- feet, and now, as the shadows of life 
 point toward the east, with joined hands around 
 this open tomb, we pledge anew our faith, our love, 
 our hope in all that makes man immortal, as found 
 in the remembrances of the life and character of 
 our dead brother. We bow our heads in sorrow at 
 tlie taking-away of our friend, and as we turn our 
 footsteps awa}' from this tomb, we exclaim in one 
 voice, surely the ways of Providence are inscrutable 
 and beyond finding out. James Stanford, as at the 
 rising of the sun, we bid thee a glad welcome, as 
 through the journey of life we stood near thee, 
 loved and admired you, so now we, in our constan- 
 cy of friendship, although with broken hearts, 
 stand around thy grave at this final separation, and 
 bid thee, noble hearted, grandly gifted, true hero, 
 all hail and farewell. 
 
 FERDINAND SCHUMACHER, manufact- 
 urer, Akron. Ferdinand Schumacker was born 
 in Celle, Hanover, on March 30, 1822, where 
 he attended school until he was 15 years old, at 
 which age he had completed the High School 
 course ; he then went to Harburg, where he 
 worked five yeai's as an apprentice in a whole- 
 sale and retail grocer3^ receiving no remunera- 
 tion during that time. In 1842. he commenced 
 clerking with his lather, and continued for two 
 3ears, when he went to Hanover, and clerked 
 in the extensive sugar refinery of Egestorf & 
 Hurtzig, for about six 3'ears, his salary at first 
 being $150, and finally $200 per year. In 
 1850, in company with his brother Otto, he emi- 
 grated to the United States. He bought 46 
 acres of land in Euclid, twelve miles from 
 Cleveland, where he farmed for a year and a 
 half, at the end of which time he left the farm 
 in charge of his brother, and came to Akron, 
 where he at once formed a partnership with 
 Theodore Weibesahn, and, in company with 
 him, kept a fancy goods, toy and notion store 
 
 in the basement of P. D. Hall's store. After 
 eight months he retired from this, and started 
 for himself a small grocery store in the site of 
 the First National Bank ; this was attended 
 with success, and he continued with it until 
 1863. In 1856, he rented water-power on the 
 Ohio Canal, on North Howard St., and put in the 
 necessary machinery for inaugurating a branch 
 of manufacture, which steadily grew in value, 
 and which was the manufacture of oat-meal ac- 
 cording to ideas received by him as to the 
 proper method of making palatable food out of 
 the grain of the oat, while learning the grocer}^ 
 business in his native country. Into this, his 
 adopted country, he introduced excellent oat- 
 meal, by substituting machinery, driven by 
 power, for the hand-mill he had been accus- 
 tomed to see used by his employer in Germany. 
 His experiment was successful, and the next 
 year apparatus for pearling barley was added 
 to what were appropriately called " German " 
 mills, and the year following that, greater ca- 
 pacit}^ was given to the mill itself, by increasing 
 the water power. In 1863 the Empire Barley 
 Mills were built, which were enlarged in 1876. 
 He built, in 1879, an elevator for the storage 
 of grain. In 1872, the first mill burned, but 
 within thirty days after the fire, a new struct- 
 ure, known as the present German Mills was 
 begun, and quite finished earl}^ in 1873. He 
 bought the Cascade Flouring Mills in 1868, en- 
 larged and supplied it with modern machiner}'. 
 The capacity of the Barley Mills is 1,000 bush- 
 els per day; of the Cascade Mills, 250 barrels of 
 flour; of the German Mills, 250 barrels oat-meal, 
 consuming about 3,000 bushels of oats, in ad- 
 dition to which large quantities of pearl cracked 
 wheat and feed are turned out. His three 
 mills give employment to about 120 men and 
 women, and the business amounts to $1,000,- 
 000, or more, annually, extending to all 
 parts of the country, all of it being under his 
 personal direction, and with but one traveling 
 solicitor. When he began, all the oat-meal in 
 this country was imported from Canada and 
 Europe, but at present the importations of this 
 valuable food are trifling in amount. The 
 secret of his success is perseverance, energ\', 
 and his determination to excel in the quality of 
 his goods, being quite dissatisfied with any- 
 thing short of excellence in the way of machin- 
 er}'. On Oct. 7, 1851, he was married, ' at 
 Cleveland, Ohio, to his cousin. Miss Hermine 
 
 "1^ 
 
^1 
 
 772 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Schumacher, of Bevern, Brunswick, Grermany, 
 by whom he had seven children, five of whom 
 are deceased. Louis and Adolph are living. 
 He has been a Prohibitionist since 1870, has 
 given support to the various churches, and has 
 been a member of the City Council. 
 
 AVERY SPICER, Akron, Ohio. Avery, 
 oldest son of Miner and Cynthia (Allen) Spicer, 
 began life's voyage on Oct. 26, 1799, at Gro- 
 ton, New London Co., Conn., since which time 
 he has rowed steadily and carefully up-stream. 
 He attended school but little in Connecticut, 
 his family moving from there to this site when 
 he was only 12 years old, at which time they 
 were the only white settlers where Akron now 
 stands, although there were three white families 
 at Middlebury. Here he started to school, in 
 company with six sisters, the schoolhouse 
 being a frame building, at Middlebury. built by 
 his father ; his first teacher there was named 
 Skinner, whom Mr. Spicer remembered as a 
 very severe man, priding himself more on being 
 a "master" than a teacher. On arriving here, 
 his father bought 260 acres on the present site, 
 none of which, at that time, was cleared. The 
 three white families then in Middlebury were 
 Aaron Norton, Rial McArthur and Capt. Hart. 
 Mr. Spicer's father lived in McArthur's house 
 for about four days, when he moved into a 
 cabin, built of round logs, with no chinking ; 
 there was timber all around the house. Deer 
 came in sight of the house frequently, and it 
 was not an unusual occurrence to see bears. 
 Mr. Spicer recalls one occasion when, on going 
 to a neighbor's, he saw what he had at first 
 supposed to be a hog standing on his hind 
 feet, but which he soon discovered to be a 
 bear; his dog, which accompanied him, ad- 
 vanced and received the " hug," in which affec- 
 tionate embrace he left him, while he soon 
 lengthened the distance between them and 
 himself It was about a month after this occur- 
 rence, that a dog's prolonged barking attracted 
 his attention, and on investigation he found 
 the disturbance to be at a hog-pen. Securing 
 a candle and a gun, he and his father followed 
 the dog, and discovered a bear, at which he 
 took aim and fired, but it escaped. He re- 
 turned, and, on finding the hog dead, hastened 
 to build a fire to protect it, but the bear suc- 
 ceeded in stealing it away before he accom- 
 plished his purpose. The next morning, he 
 sought and found them, killing the bear with 
 
 gun-shot. They had great diflflculty in obtain- 
 ing salt here at that time, and, after being here 
 two years, he, a boy of 14, led a horse to Cleve- 
 land, and returned on foot with a bag of salt, 
 having been gone four days. The year follow- 
 ing he took a horse, loaded with three bags of 
 flour, to the Liverpool Salt Works, at Rock}' 
 River ; for about fifteen miles of the way he 
 had no guide but blazed trees, and when in 
 the woods night came on, he tied the horse 
 and went to sleep on the bags. Before morn- 
 ing the wolves began to howl, and he slept no 
 more that night. One morning, as he was just 
 about to start a fire in his father's house, blow- 
 ing the embers, he saw a rattlesnake coiled up 
 about one foot from his hand, and to escape he 
 threw himself backward, and when the light 
 shone up struck the snake with the shovel, and 
 then sprang on the bed in the dark, the fire 
 having gone out ; the snake was not killed, but 
 badly hurt ; it was but one of the man}^ 
 which were then existent. When they settled 
 here, Indians were plenty. After Hull's sur- 
 render, Mr. Spicer's father enlisted and went to 
 Cleveland, from which place he was sent back 
 as Captain, with about 100 men in his com- 
 mand ; he established a guard line from old 
 Portage to new Portage, and part way to Cleve- 
 land. Subject was at Hudson when Perry won 
 his memorable victor}', and he distinctly heard 
 the guns. He reverences greatly his name. 
 While his father was in Cleveland, during the 
 war of ""12," his mother went each night, 
 taking her family with her, to lodge in the 
 home of Amos Spicer, who had settled in Cov- 
 entry Township ; and one morning, on return- 
 ing home with subject and his cousin, Pierpont 
 Spicer, she discovered that the door had been 
 opened, and supposing it had been done by 
 Indians, they made cautious reconnaissance. 
 Pierpont, on going to the loft, sprang down and 
 said he saw Indians in bed. All three ran 
 from the house, but Mrs. Spicer, being unable 
 to go swiftly, found a treasure in her boy, who 
 slacked his gait to accommodate hers. On 
 reflection, they all returned, and subject cau- 
 tiously and tremblingly started up the ladder 
 leading to the loft, followed very closely by 
 her whose mothei'-heart bade her now urge 
 him on, and now restrain him, which she did by 
 gentle pushing or pulling at his coat, according 
 as she grew brave or fearful. On reaching the 
 loft, however, they found no one, although 
 
 
^t^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 773 
 
 there was evidence of some two or three per- 
 sons having occupied their bed, who, no doubt, 
 were some of Hull's men, and not the looked- 
 for Indians. At the age of 21, he began earn- 
 ing his own living, working for his father two 
 years at " truck and dicker," which emplo3'ment 
 brought him but $7 per month. Later, he be- 
 came foreman of a large number of hands on 
 the Ohio canal, furnishing stone for its locks. 
 In this he engaged for one season, and, in 
 1824 or 1825, he and his uncle rented a saw- 
 mill and sawed lumber for the locks for a period 
 of two years. He was boss of the hands who 
 built the log bridge across the Cuyahoga, east 
 of Mustle's, being paid the same amount they 
 received, which was 31 cents per day. He 
 married, on Sept. 3, 1826, Miss Harriet King, 
 daughter of Joshua King, who settled on the 
 Cuyahoga in 1810. Harriet was born on Sept. 
 27, 1810, and is said to have been the first 
 white child born on the Cuyahoga from Portage 
 to Cleveland. After his marriage, he bought 
 forty acres of land at $8 per acre, on the south- 
 ern part of his father's farm, to which he made 
 additions until he owned seventy-tive acres, 
 which he farmed until 1837. The first wheat 
 he raised sold for 30 cents per bushel. In 
 1837, he bought 150 acres of land in Coventry 
 Township, making additions thereto until he 
 owned 366 acres, which he farmed with good 
 success, keeping a dair}^ for several years. He 
 was Trustee of Coventry Township for many 
 years. In 1857, he moved to his present 
 place, corner of Spicer and Carroll streets, 
 Akron, where his father formerly lived. He 
 was Infirmary Director of this count}- for fif- 
 teen years, serving during the construction of 
 the present building. He has five children 
 living, viz., Cynthia, wife of Greorge Cogshall, 
 of Akron ; Austin A. (see sketch in Coventry 
 Township), of Coventry ; Harriet, wife of 
 James T. Trowbridge, of Akron ; Harrison M., 
 farmer in Coventr}^ ; and Ella C, wife of 
 Charles Parmenter, of Waltham, Mass. Four 
 children are deceased, viz., Isaac A., who died 
 in California in his 23d year ; Sarah C, who 
 was the wife of John Newton and died in Mich- 
 igan, and Olive and Oliver, twins, who died 
 when 5 months old. 
 
 JOHN F. SEIBERLING, Akron ; oldest son 
 of Nathan and Catharine (Peters) Seiberling, 
 was born March 10, 1834, in Norton Township, 
 this county, where he spent his youth, having 
 
 common and high-school advantages. In 1856, 
 he came to Akron, and for two years engaged 
 in the drug business. He returned in 1858 to 
 Norton Township, and there ran a saw-mill for 
 some two years, and, while working in the mill, 
 became interested in the improvements of mow- 
 ing and reaping machines, and, lacking favora- 
 ble opportunities, constructed a machine which 
 he brought out in 1859. In 1860, he experi- 
 mented with this machine and named it the 
 "Excelsior." In 1861, he took out his first 
 patent — the main feature being the " dropper," 
 which was the first made or conceived. From 
 1861, he gave his whole time and attention to 
 the business, going to Doyleston, Ohio, where 
 he established a manufactory which is still in 
 operation. He experimented every season, and, 
 in 1861, he invented the side-brace bar coupling, 
 and, in 1862, the horizontal folding fingei'-beam. 
 He was the first to discover the adjustable 
 reel, which he did in 1870, or thereabouts. In 
 1875, he brought out the empire table rake, 
 and in 1880, the single- wheel reaper. * * * 
 He worked at Doylestown, until 1864, when he 
 went to Massillon, where he established a manu- 
 factory, remaining one year. In October, 1865, 
 he came to Akron and organized the firm of J. 
 F. Seiberling & Co., for the manufacture of the 
 " Excelsior," from which firm he withdrew in 
 1869. In 1871, he organized the Akron Straw 
 Board Company, located at Middlebur}-, of 
 which he is still a member, now being the 
 President and Treasurer of the same ; to this, 
 by means of his own inventions, he has added 
 several new improvements. In 1875, he com- 
 menced the building of the "Empire," a new 
 machine with new features, which was invented 
 by him during the time not engaged in manu- 
 facturing. The commendable features of the 
 "Empire" are numerous, but it is especially 
 valuable because of its strength and durability 
 (the gears being inclosed, and all the parts 
 made of iron), and the new principle making 
 light draft and little noise. The present ca- 
 pacity is 5,000 machines per year, which meet 
 a ready sale. In 1880, he purchased the old 
 "Excelsior" works, and the business is con- 
 trolled by himself, he being President and gen- 
 eral manager. In September, 1859, he married 
 Miss Catharine L. Miller, of Norton Township, 
 and of this union there were nine children, all 
 of whom are living, their names being as fol- 
 lows : Anna E., Frank A., Charles W., Cora D., 
 
 f 
 
 ^ 
 
774 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Hattie M., Grace I., Kittle G., Mary B. and 
 Ruth. The subject of this sketch has been a 
 member of the School Board ; he is a member 
 of the English Lutheran Church, and is now 
 Trustee. 
 
 ROLIN W. SADLER, lawyer, Akron ; was 
 born to James J. Sadler, July 7, 1856, in Cen- 
 terville, St. Joseph Co., Mich.; eleven years 
 later, moving to Bryan, Ohio, where he re- 
 mained two years, followed by a two 3'ears' 
 stay in Wauseon, at both of which places he 
 attended school. In 1871, he entered Baldwin 
 University, and remained one year, when he 
 entered Mt. Union College, from which he grad- 
 uated in 1874, after which date he engaged in 
 teaching for some time. In the summer of 
 1876, he came to Akron, entering the law office 
 of Edgerton & Kohler, as student, and was ad- 
 mitted to the bar in 1878, since which time he 
 has been in active practice. Although 3'oung, 
 he is a competent lawyer, and owes his success 
 mainly to his own efforts, as, indeed, do nearly 
 all truly successful men. On Sept. 15, 1880, 
 he married Miss Cai'rie M. Comstock, of Bed- 
 ford, at which place he was engaged a few 
 years ago as Principal of the schools, previously 
 having sei'ved in like capacity in the Reading, 
 Mich., schools. The old firm name, Edgerton 
 & Kohler, is changed to Kohler & Sadler. His 
 father, James J. Sadler, was born in New York 
 City, and moved thence to Pennsylvania, after 
 which he came to Stow Township, where he 
 grew to manhood, receiving his education in 
 Twinsburg Institute. He began teaching at 
 the age of 17, engaging in that vocation in dif- 
 ferent parts of Summit Co., and at Middlebury. 
 He is now Superintendent of the public schools 
 of Stanton, Mich. He has six children, of 
 whom Rolin is the second son. 
 
 LOUIS B. SCHNEIDER, hardware mer- 
 chant, Akron. Frederick A. Schneider was 
 born in Altona, near Hamburg, Germany, and 
 immigrated to Pennsylvania at an earl}' day, 
 where, when quite a youth, he became engaged 
 in mercantile pursuits. His ftither was a Cap- 
 tain in the regular German army, and gave him 
 a good education in German, French and En- 
 glish. In Pennsylvania, he engaged in book- 
 keeping for a large house in Philadelphia, and 
 teaching school ; subsequently kept a liardware 
 store at Chambersburg, where he met and mar- 
 ried Miss Rebecca Faber, who bore him nine 
 children, viz., Mrs. Chas. Cranz, and Mrs. 
 
 Judge G. W. Raflt", of Canton, Ohio ; Anton G., 
 of Akron ; F. A., of Omaha ; Louis B.; Edward 
 F. (deceased), who was an Adjutant under 
 Gov. Hayes ; Mrs. Henrietta R. Wallace, of 
 Canton, Ohio; Mrs. W. .J. Broatch, of Omaha, 
 and Emma S. (deceased). In 1828, the father of 
 subject moved to Canton, Ohio, where he en- 
 gaged in the hardware business, and was ver}' 
 successful. Positions of trust were given him, 
 among others, that of Mayor of Canton. He 
 died in 1867. His fifth child and third son, 
 Louis B., was born in Canton, Ohio, Nov. 
 15, 1834, where he lived until he was 16 years 
 of age, at which period he came to Akron, 
 where he engaged his services as clerk in the 
 hardware store of C. Cranz & Co., retaining 
 his position seven years. In 1858, he went to 
 Omaha, Neb., where, for two years, he con- 
 ducted a hardware store for his father, and 
 then returned to Summit County, where he 
 established a store of his own at Mogadore, 
 which he managed for three years, at the end 
 of which time, he established and conducted 
 another at New Portage, which continued in 
 operation but two years, both adventures being- 
 successful. In 1865, he came to Akron, and 
 re-entered the store of Charles Cranz, this time 
 as a partner, which for ten years he continued 
 to be, and in 1875, he bought out the store, 
 having since done a good business. In June, 
 1859, he married Miss Emma L. Welch, of 
 Mogadore, and they have two children — Flora 
 M. and Faber E. 
 
 JAMES B. STORER, Postmaster, Akron; 
 son of W. B. Storer ; was born in Akron Jan. 
 22, 1839, where, until he was 17 years of age. 
 he attended the public schools, after which he 
 learned the jeweler's trade, serving with W. H. 
 Fallmon, and for a short time with H. S. Ab- 
 bey. He was subsequently engaged in an iron 
 store for a year, when the war broke out, and 
 he enlisted as soon as the news reached Akron, 
 being among the first on the x'oll of Co. G, 19th 
 0. V. I., and was in service three months, rising, 
 in the meanwhile, to the rank of Sergeant. He 
 re-enlisted in Co. H, of the 29th O. V. I., en- 
 gaging in the battles of Winchester, Port Re- 
 public, Cedar Creek, South Mountain, Antietam, 
 Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Lookout Mount- 
 ain and Mission Ridge. He was appointed Ad- 
 jutant and recruiting officer, and recruited al- 
 most ever}' man present with the regiment in 
 December, 1863, as veterans. In May, 1864, 
 
 "^ ^j; 
 
>> 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 775 
 
 on the Atlanta Campaign, in the first engage- 
 ment at Rocky Race or Dug Gap, he was 
 wounded by a minie ritle-ball, which struck his 
 spinal column, which resulted in paralysis of 
 his legs. He was carried from the field, and 
 lay in the hospital at Nashville for three months. 
 He was discharged in November, 1864, and aft- 
 er almost a year he was able to walk with the 
 aid of crutches. Then he purchased a jewelry 
 store at 116 Howard street, in which he still 
 retains an interest, the firm name being J. B. 
 Storer & Co. In June, 1870, he was appointed, 
 by President Grant, Postmaster of Akron, for 
 a term of four years ; re-appointed in 1874, 
 and again in 1878, by President Hayes. On 
 Jan. 11, 1864, he married Miss Lucy M., daugh- 
 ter of Gibbons J. Ackley, of Akron. She bore 
 him one child, a daughter. He is a member of 
 the G. A. K 
 
 EDWARD W. STUART, lawyer, Akron; 
 son of Sylvanus and Caroline M. (Whittlesey) 
 Stuart, who were natives of Connecticut, was 
 born in Washington Township, Litchfield Co., 
 Conn., on May 9, 1840, and two years later 
 came with his father's family to Erie Co., Ohio, 
 where they still reside. He is the oldest of 
 their two children, his sister being now Mrs. 
 Helen M. Gibbs, of Salina, Kan. Until he was 
 18 years of age, he farmed during vacations 
 from school, and in 1858, he entered Western 
 Reserve College, from which he graduated in 
 October of 1862, the graduation of the class 
 having been postponed because of their enlisting 
 in the service. About seventy students formed 
 Co. B, 85th 0. V. I., and served, doing guard 
 duty, four months, after which, for a period of 
 four years, he was engaged in teaching. He 
 was two years the Principal of Shaw Academy, 
 of Collamer, Ohio. In 1866, he was admitted 
 to the bar at Cleveland, having made law a 
 study for four years. He commenced practice 
 at Kent, Ohio, with S. P. Wolcott, Esq.. con- 
 tinuing there until May, 1870, when he came 
 to Akron, there forming a partnership with C. 
 P. Humphrey, which continues. In April, 1871, 
 he was elected City Solicitor, which office he 
 held until January, 1877. In October, 1876, 
 he w.as elected Prosecuting Attorne}' of Summit 
 Co., and acted in that capacity two terms. In 
 Ma3% 1864, he married Miss Harriet Whedon, 
 of Hudson. 
 
 LOUIS SEYBOLD, editor Germania ; born 
 on Sept. 22, 1854, in Hohenschwangan, Bavaria. 
 
 Attended the Gymnasium at Ellwangen, Wur- 
 temberg, Germany. Came to America in 
 1873, and lives in Akron since 1875. Has 
 been musical director of the Akron Harmonic, 
 from 1876 to 1879, and accepted the editor- 
 ship of the Akron Germania in 1878. Married 
 in 1879, to Louisa Doppstatter, of Akron ; has 
 wife and one child. 
 
 FRANK J. STARAL, business manager of 
 the Beacon, Akron. The subject of this sketch is 
 a son of John and Julia (Podstatny) Staral. He 
 was born Feb. 25, 1847, in the town of Beroun, 
 Bohemia, where at the age of 12 he learned 
 book-binding. He pursued this calling in his 
 native town until 1865, when he came to the 
 United States of America and erelong found 
 employment in Cleveland, Ohio. Here he 
 worked at book-binding about four 3'ears. He 
 came to Akron Jan. 1, 1869, to assume the 
 duties of foreman in the bindery of Lane, Can- 
 field & Co. Mr. Staral held the same position 
 in the Beacon Publishing Co., organized in 
 1871, until 1875. By his thrift and energy he 
 became a stockholder in 1871. When the 
 stock passed into present hands in 1875, Mr. 
 Staral, with a larger share of stock, became its 
 book-keeper, and succeeded Mr. J. H. Auble as 
 business manager in 1877 ; a position he has 
 since ably filled. July 10, 1877, he married 
 Miss Bertha Weisenberger, of Cincinnati, Ohio. 
 Of this union there is one son. 
 
 ALOIS STRAUB, musical instruments, Ak- 
 ron, Ohio ; is a sou of Alois and Magdalena 
 (Gudfried) Straub, and was born Sept. 11, 1826, 
 in Baden, Germany. He learned cabinet-mak- 
 ing at 14 years of age, and after working two 
 3-ears, he began to work on musical instruments 
 in Fernbach, which he continued for four years, 
 when he entered the German Army. After 
 leaving the army, became to the United States, 
 arriving at New York in the latter part of the 
 summer of 1849 ; he went to Philadelphia ; 
 and remaining in different parts of Pennsyl- 
 vania until October 1851, he came to Akron, 
 Ohio, and worked a short time in a cabinet- 
 shop. He commenced the manufacture of 
 musical insti'uments for Horton & Rose, which 
 he continued about five years, when his health 
 failed, and, in the spring of 1857, he was em- 
 ployed as a traveling salesman for the company. 
 About the year 1861, he began dealing in in- 
 struments on his own account, it being the first 
 music store in the city, and about 1870-71, 
 
 
776 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 commenced this manufacture, which he con- 
 tinued some five j-ears, at the same time keep- 
 ing a music store, which he has continued ever 
 since. He sells the celebrated Weber Pianos 
 and the Mason & Hamlin organs, also the Bur- 
 dette organs. He was married Jan. 5, 1857, to 
 Miss Elizabeth Eisenhauer, of Akron. Mr. 
 Straub is a member of St. Bernard's Catholic 
 Church. 
 
 H. C. SANFORD, lawyer, Akron; a na- 
 tive of Portland, Me., was born Sept. 11. 
 1833, and is a son of John Q. and 
 
 (De Lano) Sanford, who were natives, 
 
 the former of Brunswick, Me., and the latter of 
 Plymouth, Mass. His father was an extensive 
 lumber dealer, and suffered heavy losses from 
 the embargo laid b}' the General Government, 
 from the effects of which he never fully recov- 
 ered. He died when subject was but 8 3^ears 
 of age, and, being anxious to do something for 
 himself, he left home at the age of 9, and 
 went to Manchester, N. H., where an older 
 brother resided. He worked in the locomotive 
 shops there, and attended the public schools, 
 and spent one year, also, in Kendall Academy, 
 of that cit3^ At the age of 18, he came to 
 Ohio, and was engaged successively' on the 
 Sandusky, Mansfield & Newark, and the Cleve- 
 land & Toledo R. R. He commenced as fire- 
 man, but was soon promoted to Engineer, and 
 ran a passenger train before he was 21 years 
 old. He continued on the C. & T. R. R. until 
 1855, when he went to Quincy, 111., and at once 
 began running on the " Northern Cross Road," 
 now the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, and, 
 when the road was completed, he took the first 
 passenger train over it from Quincy to Gales- 
 burg. He remained on this road about six 
 3'ears, and then gave up his position for a train 
 at Augusta, 111., that he might be at home, and 
 also to have an opportunity for the stud}- of 
 law, which he had resolved upon. He procured 
 some law books, and read them on the foot- 
 board of his locomotive, at the rate of thirty- 
 miles an hour. While running on this road, 
 he saved a passenger train of cars from run- 
 ning into a river near Plymouth Station, whei'e 
 a bridge had been washed away, by running 
 his locomotive into the train. At the time, he 
 was bringing out the construction train in the 
 morning, and taking it back in the evening. 
 The passenger trains transferred their passen- 
 gers at the river, and, to facilitate matters, 
 
 the locomotive was put behind the train at 
 the last station, to push it to the river, and, 
 coming down grade one day. at a rate of speed 
 they were unable to stop before arriving at the 
 broken bridge, where the water was about 
 twenty feet deep, and to prevent the train go- 
 ing into the river, Mr. S. started his engine un- 
 der a full head of steam, and struck the bag- 
 gage car, which was in front. When the trains 
 stopped, his engine was within a few feet of the 
 end of the rails over the 3'awning river, and he 
 still standing' at his post. The train was 
 crowded with pasengers, and, but for this act 
 of heroism of his, doubtless many would have 
 lost their lives. The engineer of the passenger 
 train was at once discharged. Mr. S. left Illi- 
 nois in 1861, and came to Amherst, Ohio, where 
 he engaged in the dr}^ goods business, but soon 
 after went to the oil regions of Pennsylvania, 
 but was unsuccessful in " striking ile," and he 
 found employment on the A. & G. W. R. R. 
 He did not sta3' long with this road, but went 
 to FoT't Wa3'ne, Ind., and took an engine on the 
 Wabash Railwa3' ; returned to Meadville, and 
 ran between that place and Akron, until the 
 shops were put in operation at Kent, when he 
 took charge of the engineers and men at that 
 place, and also of an eating-house for the rail- 
 road compan3' at $175 per month. He left 
 their emplo3- in the summer of 1867, and went 
 to Ann Arbor, Mich., and attended the law 
 school one college year, and was admitted to 
 the bar at Ravenna, Ohio, April 24, 1868. He 
 then formed a partnership with Hon. N. W. 
 Goodhue, of Akron, for one 3'ear, at the end of 
 which time he went to Kent, but returned to 
 Akron in 1870, where he has since practiced. 
 He was elected Prosecuting Attorne}' on the 
 Republican ticket, and served one term ; was 
 elected City Solicitor in 1877, served one term, 
 when he declined further honor. He was mar- 
 ried on the 19th of January, 1857, to Miss Em- 
 ily J. Fairchild, of Amherst, Lorain Co., Ohio, 
 a dauo'hter of Elam and Lydia Fairchild. 
 
 ERHARD STEINBACHER, merchant and 
 banker, Akron ; is a son of John and Catharine 
 Steinbacher, and was born March 30, 1825, in 
 Bavaria, German3'. He attended the common 
 schools until 14 years of age, and spent two 
 years at Heidelberg. In 1844, he came to the 
 United States, remaining two 3'ears, a portion 
 of the time as clerk in a hotel (Cobb's Ex- 
 change, of Akron) at $8 per month ; then went 
 
^ © 
 
 ly^ 
 
 CITY OF x\KRON. 
 
 777 
 
 to Cleveland, Ohio, and, in the fall of 1846, 
 went back to Europe. He stayed there five or 
 six mouths, and then returned to the United 
 States, and came to Akron in 1847. In 1849, 
 in company with fifteen others, went to Califor- 
 nia by the overland route, arriving in the land 
 of gold in the latter part of July. He was suc- 
 cessful, and returned to Akron, leaving Califor- 
 nia in December, 1850, via Panama, reaching 
 Akron in February, 1851. He now opened a 
 drug and grocer}^ store (firm of Weimer & 
 Steinbacher — Weimer retired in 1865), and has 
 been an enterprising business man of Akron 
 ever since. He has been President of " Citi- 
 zens' Saving and Loan Association," ever since 
 its organization in May, 1872 ; he has also been 
 a stockholder in the First National Bank for 
 fifteen years, and a stockholder and director in 
 the Akron Iron Co., from its beginning. He 
 was married, in April, 1853, to Miss Phoebe 
 Potter, of Suffleld, Ohio ; they have three 
 children, viz., Kate L., Edward E. and Georgia 
 Belle. 
 
 CHARLES E. SHELDON, Superintendent 
 of Whitman and Miles Manufacturing Com- 
 pany, Akron. Is a son of Samuel D. and 
 Augusta (Smith) Sheldon, and was born July 
 18, 1850, in Fitchburg, Mass., where he attend- 
 ed school until 16 years of age. He then 
 spent two years in the office of City Engineer 
 of Fitchburg. In 1867, he became a clerk in 
 the office of the Whitman & Miles Manufactur- 
 ing Co., at Fitchburg, Mass., of which establish- 
 ment his father was foreman previous to that 
 time. He was made Superintendent at Fitch- 
 burg, which position he held until 1876, and 
 the next j-ear he came to Akron, and has since 
 been Superintendent of the Whitman & Miles 
 works here. He was married in November, 
 1870, to Miss Ruth L. Gifford of Fitchburg, 
 Mass. 
 
 HARRY J. SHREFFLER, Akron, son of 
 Frederick and Marj- A. (Auble) Shreffier was 
 born in Center Co., Penn., March 26, 1847. At 
 18, he worked on a farm near Wadsworth, 
 Ohio, one summer. In 1866, he went into part- 
 nership with his father at West Salem, engag- 
 ing in the manufacture of carriages, and con- 
 tinuing two years, when the}' removed to Bur- 
 bank, Wayne Co., Ohio, where they continued in 
 the same business. In July, 1871, became to 
 Akron and clerked two years in the post office, 
 he was made Assistant Postmaster in April, 
 
 1874, and has held that position ever since. 
 He is superintendent of carriers and registry, 
 and has general charge in the absence of 
 the Postmaster. Oct. 29, 1872, he married 
 Miss Eva Cubbison, of Akron ; she died Oct. 
 31, 1873. Aug. 6, 1878, he married Miss 
 Fannie I. Fouser, of Akron, who bore him one 
 daughter. 
 
 LOREN N. SMITH, Akron. Moses Smith 
 was born at Stonington, Conn., Nov. 30, 1783, 
 and died at Akron in his 83d year, Feb. 4, 
 1866. His wife, nee Miss Sarah Haley, was 
 born Nov. 2, 1792, at Groton, Conn.; she was 
 married to him on June 19, 1807, being only 
 15 years of age. They moved to Akron in 
 1826, and the following year he purchased a 
 tract of land containing about 100 acres ; hei'e 
 he farmed and engaged at the cooper's trade, 
 having erected a shop for the purpose. He 
 was an excellent marksman, and, as game was 
 plentiful, he had many opportunities to display 
 his skill. He regarded his word and was very 
 exact in dealing. He was a stanch Democrat. 
 Six children were born to him, viz., Sarah, wife 
 of Hii'am Hart, of Coventry ; she died in 1862; 
 Warren IL, who died in 1865, on the Atlantic 
 Ocean, in which he was buried, while on his 
 return from California, being in his 53d year ; 
 Lucy A., wife of the late D. A. Hine, now living 
 in the Sixth Ward ; Henry, who died in his 6th 
 year ; Harriet H., who was the wife of J. B. 
 Curtis, and died at Kent, in 1853, in her 35th 
 3'ear ; Caroline S., widow of the late Alvin 
 Austin, now residing in Akron ; William H., 
 the onlj' one of the family born in Ohio, died 
 in Chili, South America, in 1872, in his 45th 
 3'ear ; and Loren N., the subject of these lines 
 who was born in Dalton, August 16, 1823, 
 being 3 v'ears old when his familj' moved 
 to Akron ; he remembers seeing the first tree 
 cut where his present residence stands. He 
 went to school about six mouths per 3'ear until 
 he was 17, learning the cooper's trade and to do 
 farm work, from his father. In 1841, he be- 
 came a clerk for the firm of James Sawyer & 
 Co., remaining in their store until 1844, in the 
 summer of which 3ear he became proprietor of 
 a confectioner3' and grocer3' store, it being the 
 first one established on North Howard street. 
 He was afterward engaged in the same busi- 
 ness on the site of the First National Bank ; 
 from which place he removed to South How- 
 ard street until 1851, thence to Xenia, where, 
 
 K 
 
778 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 *7T; 
 
 under the firm name of Austin & Smith, he 
 did a large business in confectionery ; thence 
 he removed to Cincinnati, in 1858, where he 
 met with great success, I'emaining until 1878. 
 While there he was President of the Phoenix 
 Insurance Company ; and a member of ' the 
 City Council for several years. On account of 
 failing health he relinquished his business in 
 Cincinnati and located in Akron, taking charge 
 of the old homestead. Nov. 6, 1845, he mar- 
 ried Miss Sarah J. Adams of Akron ; she 
 was born in Cavendish, Vt., and came to 
 Akron in 1837. They have three sons and one 
 daughter, viz., Henry N., of Cleveland ; Fred. 
 A., of Cincinnati ; Frank E., of Cincinnati ; 
 and Ida M., wife of R. S. Kirtley, of Cincinnati. 
 
 PROF. GUSTAV SIGEL, musician, Ak- 
 ron ; was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, Jan. 
 30, 1848. He studied music in the conserva- 
 tories of German}' until 1868, when he came to 
 the United States, and for four years taught in 
 Milwaukee, Wis. In 1872, he came to Akron, 
 Ohio, at the call of the Liedertafel Society, and 
 has since been its Director. From 1872 to 
 1878, he was teacher of instrumental music in 
 Buchtel College. He is now teacher of piano 
 and stringed instruments. He was Director of 
 the Saengerfest held in June, 1880, at Akron, 
 and through his efforts it was a success. He 
 owns some valuable stringed instruments. 
 
 GEORGE G. SCHAFFER, Akron, son of 
 John and Mar}'^ (Good) Schaffer, was born in 
 Alsace (then a province of France), March 13, 
 1846. He learned weaving from his father, and 
 engaged in that until he was 18 years of age, 
 when, alone and with but a few doUai's, he came 
 to the United States, where he entered the em- 
 ploy of John T. Good, in whose oil refinery he 
 worked for three years, followed by one year's 
 employ at Oil City, after which he clerked for 
 some time for Jacob Good, and six years was 
 with Cook & Sons In 1878, he opened a gro- 
 cery on West Hill, where he did a good busi- 
 ness. In 1880, he built the present two-story 
 building, following out his own ideas and im- 
 proving on the failures of others. As a matter 
 of interest, we give the following from the 
 Daily Beacon, descriptive of this establishment : 
 
 The grocery room is 22x60 feet in the clear; it has 
 counters on either side with a cross counter in the 
 rear end of the room; the side counters contain one 
 of the new features in the way of glass front cases 
 12 inches high and 10 inches wide. These cases are 
 about 14 inches long and are directly on the front 
 
 margin of the counter, leaving about 23 inches of 
 counter room in the rear. There are some 60 of 
 these cases which will at once be seen serve to dis- 
 play a large amount of goods, doing away with hav- 
 ing boxes standing around witli the lids half off. 
 Sugar, crackers, etc., are kept in barrels incased in 
 separable apartments behind the counters, and di- 
 rectly above them are all kinds of packages and 
 canned goods on shelves, protected from dust by 
 glass doors. The old style of drawers is superseded 
 with permanent Ijoxes with glass door covers, show- 
 ing tlie goods without exposure. Beneatli the coun- 
 ters on three-inch-liigh platforms is large space for 
 apples, potatoes, etc., in full sight but not under 
 foot as is the case in so many places, and all this 
 class of matter being on platforms is free from the 
 dust tliat naturally accumulates on any floor in a 
 public place. All classes of goods are classified and 
 all articles of a greasy nature are separated entirely 
 from other goods, occupying the space behind the 
 j rear counter. The entrance to the cellar is from the 
 I warehouse which is conveniently reached by a parti- 
 i tion door. By this arrangement no odors from the 
 cellar can reach the grocery proper and fm-nishes 
 every precaution against anything objectionable in 
 the grocer}' department. The warehouse is arranged 
 just as sj'stematically as the grocery. In one depart- 
 ment is a tier of shelves with the name of streets. 
 When an order is filled, tlie goods are put in a bas- 
 ket and placed on the proper shelf. A drive-way 
 leading through the warehouse, the deliverying man 
 can drive directly to his place, load his goods and be 
 off, doing away with carrying loads of goods through 
 the store. Tackling is provided so that all heav}' 
 articles do not have to be lifted. Molasses, cider, 
 oil, etc., are kept in a department in the wareroom; 
 in fact, there will be nothing on which to tear or 
 grease yoiu- clothes as you walk about in the store- 
 room, and everything will be open to inspection, 
 and yet protected against dust or soiling by evapora- 
 tion. 
 
 Jan. 29, 1874, he married Miss Caroline 
 Buchman, of Wayne Co., Ohio, and have one 
 daughter and two sons. 
 
 HIRAM J. SPICER, Akron, son of Maj. 
 Miner Spicer, was born in Akron, Oct. 24, 
 1816, near the springs, about forty rods from 
 his present residence, that being the spot where 
 his father first built his cabin. He worked on 
 the farm until he was 19 years old ; he went to 
 school at Middlebur}^ his first teacher being 
 one Squire Brown, a very severe man, who re- 
 sorted to the " gad " upon the slightest misde- 
 meanor, real or imaginary, of the pupils. These 
 'gads" were first roasted and then twisted to 
 make them tough in order that they might hurt 
 more, and some were notched for the same pur- 
 pose. Subject shared the same lot with other 
 school children in those days for three months 
 per year, until he was 19. When he was but 
 9 years old, he carried the mail once a week 
 
i^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 779 
 
 from Akron to Bolivar, a distance of forty 
 miles, traveling on horseback, and continuing 
 four years, except during tlie winter seasons. 
 At the age of 19, he learned the carpenter's 
 trade with one Gideon Gardner, serving for 
 board and clothing two 3'ears ; he soon after 
 began taking contracts, working with his brother 
 Miner, who was a millwright, on several of the 
 early mills of this vicinit}'. He worked for 
 ten years on the Austin Powder Mills, and for 
 several j'ears on residences. Feb. 31, 1839, he 
 married Miss Marilla A. King, daughter of 
 Joshua King, who was one of the pioneers of 
 Northampton Township. Their children are 
 Avery King, of Akron, and Alice M., wife of 
 Sevillian Payne, of Davis Co., Mo. Three died 
 when young. Our subject entered the employ 
 of Aultman, Miller & Co., in 1865, and has 
 since continued. He has worked in woodwork, 
 and had charge of the repairs of the shop-ma- 
 chinery for the last nine years. He was a 
 Whig and cast his first Presidential vote for 
 Gen. Harrison ; became a Free-Soiler in the days 
 of Van Buren, and a Republican at the organi- 
 zation of the party. He has been a member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church since 1872. 
 His wife died Jan. 19, 1861, and, in August of 
 the same yea,Y, he married Mrs. Cerenia L. 
 Barnett, of Akron. Ohio. 
 
 JOSEPH S. SMITH, druggist, Akron ; son 
 of Christian Smith, was born in Warren, Warren 
 Co., Penn., Dec. 4, 1855 ; at 14, he entered a 
 drug store in Warren, where he remained 
 four and a half years as clerk, after which he 
 entered the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, 
 from which he graduated in the spring of 1877, 
 being engaged as clerk in a Philadelphia house 
 at the same time. In the fall of 1877, he and 
 his brother bought a drug store at Wilkesbarre, 
 Penn., continuing until 1878, when thej' sold 
 out and bought the present store in September, 
 1878, of Sisler & Sorrick, located the first door 
 north of the post office ; the}' have a full stock 
 of pure drugs, chemicals and sundries ; the}^ 
 have a laboratory' for the manufacture of fluid 
 and solid extracts, gelatine-coated pills, elixirs 
 and pharmaceutical preparations in general ; 
 they are doing a prosperous wholesale and re- 
 tail business. 
 
 SIMON C. SMITH, druggist, Akron ; was 
 born in AVarren Co.. Penn., May 25, 1850 ; he 
 attended the public schools of Warren until he 
 was 1 5, when he clerked in the post office under 
 
 his father for five years ; in 1868, he clerked 
 for his father in a shoe store, and, the following 
 year, became his partner, continuing as such 
 until January, 1877, when he became a partner 
 with his brother, Joseph S., at Wilkesbarre, 
 Penn., in a drug store, remaining a year, when 
 they sold out, and, under tlie firm name of 
 Smith Bros., purchased their present drug store 
 at 193 South Howard street; the business 
 rooms are 80x22, with elegant modern appoint- 
 ments. He was married at Indianapolis Sep- 
 tember, 1873, to Miss Mary E. Cale, of that 
 place ; they have one son and one daughter. 
 
 EDWARD C. SIMPSON, Chief Engineer of 
 Fire Department, Akron ; is a son of Thomas C. 
 and Mary J. (Hildreth) Simpson, and was born 
 in New Haven, Conn., Feb. 18, 1836 ; in his 
 17th year, he came to Cincinnati, Ohio, with his 
 father's family, and, in 1854, came to Cuyahoga 
 Falls, where he served an apprenticeship with 
 Bill Bros., at the machinist's trade, for about 
 three and a half years ; he worked at different 
 points in Ohio until 24, when he went to Hart- 
 ford, Conn., where he worked two years at his 
 trade ; in November, 1864, he came to Akron 
 and entered the employ of the A. & G. W. R. R. 
 Co. as mechanic until June, 1865, when he went 
 to Kent in the employ of the same company 
 until 1873, when he came back to Akron, and 
 was employed in the C, Mt. V. & C. R. R. shops ; 
 in 1875, he became foreman of the finishing de- 
 partment of Aultman, Miller & Co.'s shops, 
 emplo3'ing a force at present of ninety men ; 
 he entered the fire department in 1876, and w^as 
 appointed Assistant Engineer, which he held 
 until June, 1878, when he was appointed Chief 
 Engineer, a position he still holds. He was 
 married June 3. 1862, to Miss Abbie Wilson, of 
 Warrensville, Ohio ; the}' have three children. 
 
 WILLIAM SHUTT, \-etired farmer; P. 0. 
 Akron ; is a son of George, the son of Jacob 
 Shutt, who came to America from Zweibrecben, 
 Germany, before the war of the Revolution, 
 and was sold by the ship's captain to pay his 
 pa.?sage ; after his marriage, he took up a large 
 tract of land at Pittsburgh, where lie resided at 
 the time of Gen. Braddock's defeat, and, on ac- 
 count of the troublesome Indians, thej' returned 
 to Maryland, to a farm near Boonesboro, Wash- 
 ington Co., two miles northeast of the battle- 
 ground of Antietam. He had seven sons and 
 one daughter^ Jacob, born Aug. 15, 1764; 
 John, born Ma}' 20, 1766, died at the age of 96, 
 
»^ ! 
 
 .^::-=- 
 
 780 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 in Stark Co., Ohio ; Peter, born Jan. 18, 1768 ; 
 Philip, born Dec. 1, 1770 ; George (the father 
 of the subject of this sketch), and Henry, his 
 twin bi'other, born Jan. 10, 1772 (George died 
 Sept. 17, 1847) ; Adam, born March 15, 1774 ; 
 Catharine, born Jan 16, 1776 ; all are dead. 
 The father of our subject married Mary Mag- 
 dalena Kreitzer, who was also a native of the 
 State of Maryland ; they had seven sons and 
 two daughters — Henr3', Elias, John, Susannah, 
 Jacob, George, Abraham, William (our subject, 
 born July 16, 1822), and Margaret; William 
 and George are the only two living. The parents 
 sold the old homestead formerly owned by the 
 grandfather, and moved in 1836 to Paint Town- 
 ship, Holmes Co., Ohio, where they resided until 
 their death ; in 1852, William moved to Tus- 
 carawas Township, Stark Co., where he resided 
 fifteen years, and, in 1867, removed to Coventry 
 Township, where he remained until in Decem- 
 ber, 1877, when he came to the city of Akron, 
 where he has since resided. He was married 
 Nov. 7, 1844, to Catharine Moyer, who died 
 about five years later, leaving one daughter, 
 who died May 2, 1873 ; he was re- married Oct. 
 24, 1850, to Amanda Cook, daughter of Adam 
 and Regine (Harmon) Cook, natives of Frank- 
 lin Co., Penn ; the}' had two children — Samau- 
 tha, born May 6, 1852, now Mrs. W. M. Van- 
 dersall, residing near East Liberty ; and Uriah, 
 born Nov. 29, 1856, died May 9, 1873. He is 
 a stanch Republican. He received a liberal 
 education, and began teaching school in 1844, 
 which he followed for several terms. He and 
 family are members of the Evangelical Asso- 
 ciation. 
 
 COL. DUDLEY SEWARD, Justice of the 
 Peace, Akron ; was born in Utica, N. Y., Jan. 
 14, 1819. He is a son of T. G. and Elizabeth 
 Seward, and the fifth of a family of nine chil- 
 dren. His parents, in 1812, removed to Water- 
 town, N. Y. In 1835, Dudley went to Man- 
 chester (same State), where he clerked in a gen- 
 eral store some four years, after which he taught 
 school in winter, and worked on the farm in 
 summer, until 1842, when he came to Ohio, and 
 first located in Middlebury, but went to Wads- 
 worth, then to Tallmadge, and finall}' to Akron. 
 In the fall of 1847, he was appointed Deputy 
 Sheriff, and served five years, when he was 
 elected Sheriff, and served two terms. In April, 
 1861, he enlisted in the 19th 0. V. I., Co. G, 
 of which he was Sergeant. At the end of his 
 
 term of three months' service, he, in company 
 with George A. Purington (now Captain in the 
 9th U. S. C), recruited Co. A, for the 2d 0. C, 
 Purington being Captain, and Mr. Seward First 
 Lieutenant. He remained in the service until 
 October, 1865, and was promoted successively, 
 by regular gradation, to Colonel of the legi- 
 ment, which position he held when mustered 
 out. He was in the battles of the Wilderness, 
 Rich Mountain, etc., on the Morgan raid, the 
 Wilson raid and in other hard service. Upon 
 his return from the war, he remained two years 
 in Akron, and was assistant clerk in Ohio Senate 
 one term. He was then appointed Captain in 
 8th U S. Cavalry, and served in California, 
 Oregon and the Territories ; in the regular 
 army four years. In 1871, he returned home, 
 and in 1873, he was elected Justice of the Peace, 
 which office he has held ever since. He was 
 married, Nov. 2, 1848, to Miss Lois Clark, a na- 
 tive of this count}'. Three children were the 
 fruit of this marriage ; two living, Louis D. 
 and Mary C. 
 
 DAVID A. SCOTT, machine forger, Akron ; 
 was born in Springfield Township, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, Nov. 21, 1812, and is a son of Josiah and 
 Mary J. (Ii'vin) Scott, who were natives of Penn- 
 sylvania and Virginia, and were married in 
 Pennsylvania. In 1811, they moved to Ohio, 
 by team, and settled in Stark Co., in the fall of 
 the same year moving to Springfield, now Sum- 
 mit Co. He was a blacksmith, and followed 
 his trade, in connection with a small farm, on 
 which he located, near Mogadore, where he 
 lived until his death in 1824 ; she died in 1820. 
 David A. (the subject), lived at home until he 
 was 9 years old, and was then apprenticed to 
 the blacksmith trade, with Mr. Abraham De 
 Haven, of Springfield, and served with him un- 
 til he became of age. He then went to Mid- 
 dlebury, where he worked at his trade until 
 the fall of 1836. After some time spent at 
 Madison, he went into business for himself, and 
 in 1845 removed to Tallmadge, Summit Co. 
 Four years later, he removed to x\kron, and 
 has worked at his trade since, except a few 
 years, when he served as Constable, later as 
 Deputy Sheriff, and, during the war, as Deputy 
 United States Marshal. He held the office of 
 Deputy Sheriff eight years. He was married, 
 Nov. 21, 1838, to Miss Mary Ann Burton, a 
 native of Montgomery Co., N. Y., and a daughter 
 of Smith and Elizabeth (Wilcox) Burton, who 
 
 ^c 
 
l^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 781 
 
 came to Middlebury, Ohio, in 1831. He con- 
 ducted a sash and blind factory there, it being 
 the first of the kind in the county. Four chil- 
 dren were born to him, two of whom are living, 
 viz., George S., merchant in Akron ; Lois E., 
 at home. Of the two deceased, William I. was 
 telegraph operator, and died in 1866, and Walter 
 B. was Captain of Co. H, 104th 0. V. I., and 
 died in Cincinnati, April 23, 186 '•. Mr. Scott 
 was an earl}' resident of the count}^, and often 
 has shot deer and turkeys where Akron now 
 stands. 
 
 M. SEIBP]RLING, Secretary and Superin- 
 tendent of the Akron Straw Board Company, 
 Middlebury (Sixth Ward), Akron ; is a native 
 of Norton Township, Summit Co., Ohio, and 
 was born on his father's farm Jan. 16, 1839, 
 and lived at home until he was 25 years of age. 
 He is the fourth in a family of twelve children, 
 born to Nathan and Catharine (Peters) Seiber- 
 ling, and received a common-school education. 
 In the spring of 1844, he took the management 
 of a farm and saw-mill he and his l)rother J. F. 
 had previousl}' purchased, and conducted the 
 business for five years, when he sold to his 
 brother and moved to Canton, where he en- 
 gaged in the lumber business for three years. 
 He then sold out and came to Akron, and pur- 
 chased an interest in the Akron Straw Board 
 Company, and was made the Superintendent, 
 and the following year he also took the office 
 of Secretary ; both offices he has held since. 
 He was married in the fall of 1863 to Miss 
 Sarah L. INIiller, a native of Pennsylvania, and 
 a daughter of John Miller, who came to this 
 county about 1843. B}- this marriage, there 
 have been nine children, seven of whom are liv- 
 ing, viz., Emma, Alton, Katie, Ella, Frederick, 
 Laird and George. Mr. S. has always been a 
 Republican in politics. He is a member of the 
 English Lutheran Church, in the affairs of which 
 he takes an active interest, and has been both 
 Deacon and Elder. In the spring of 1880, he 
 bought a farm of 100 acres, located in Norton 
 Township, about eight miles southwest of the 
 city, which joins the old homestead, and which 
 he operates, hiring the labor. 
 
 FRANKLIN G. STIPE, painter, Akron, 
 eldest son of Harrison and Anna (Neutchen) 
 Stipe, of Green Township. He was born at 
 Greentown, Stark Co., April 23, 1846, and 
 when quite small his parents removed to Green 
 Township, Summit Co., where Franklin was 
 
 raised and educated. He attended the common 
 schools, and at the age of 14, entered the Semi- 
 nary at Greensburg, in which institution he re- 
 ceived instructions for three or four terms. 
 During the next few years he taught school in 
 various districts of Summit County, teaching 
 during the winter and assisting his father on 
 the farm in the summer. He was a member of 
 the Ohio National Guards during the rebellion, 
 and as such was called into active military 
 duty in 1864, serving from May to September 
 in Co. H, 164th 0. V. I. About the year 1866, 
 he removed to Akron, and since that time has 
 been engaged in that city at painting. He was 
 married Sept. 7, 1865, to Soviah Koontz, who 
 was born Nov. 17, 1843. She is the daughter 
 of Jonas and Sarah (France) Koontz. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Stipe ai'e members of the First Methodist 
 Church of Akron. They have four children, 
 — Nora Elnor, Harry Jonas, Mable Lonely and 
 Mattie Maria. 
 
 JACOB SNYDER, President of W. S. & Co., 
 and architect, Akron ; was born in Columbia 
 Co., Penn., March 12, 1823, and is a son of 
 Jacob and Elizabeth (Miller) Sn^'der, natives of 
 Eastern Penns3'lvania. He was a contractor 
 and builder, and died in Columbia Countj-, in 
 1849. She died there about 1854. Jacob, the 
 subject, lived at home until 1845, during which 
 time he learned the trade of carpenter and 
 builder, and also received an academic educa- 
 tion. In 1845, he entered Dickinson College, at 
 Carlisle, Penn., and remained there three years, 
 taking a genei'al college course, also a theoret- 
 ical course in architecture. He returned home 
 and for two years engaged in contracting and 
 building and practical ai'chitecture. He was 
 married May 21, 1849, to Miss Mary A. Rine- 
 hart, a native of Cumberland Co., Penn. He 
 came to Ohio in 1853, and settled in Akron, 
 where he was for a time connected with the 
 grocery trade. About 1855, he engaged in his 
 business of contracting and building and archi- 
 tecture, which he followed until 1870, since 
 which time he has devoted most of his time to 
 architecture. In 1863, he formed a partner- 
 ship in the lumber manufacturing business, 
 with Messrs. Weary, Wilcox & Jackson; and 
 still continues his interest in the business, most 
 of the time having been President. He has 
 served as a member of Board of Education and 
 as Trustee of Portage Township. Of his mar- 
 riage there were four children, one of whom is 
 
 -^ 
 
 if^ 
 
13 i 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 living, Mrs. B. L. Dodge, of Akron. He was 
 raisetl a Democrat and adhered to tliat party 
 until tlie second election of President Lincoln, 
 since which time he has been a Republican. He 
 has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church since 1842, and taken an active part in 
 its affairs. He was Superintendent of the Sab- 
 bath school a number of years, and is now a 
 teacher and historian of the same. Mr. S. 
 stands among the first in having contributed 
 to the modern and advanced idea of Sabbath 
 scliool architecture, and at present his practice 
 in this kind of design extends throughout the 
 State. 
 
 HUGO SCHUMACHER, book-keeper, etc., 
 Akron, Ohio ; the oldest son of William Schu- 
 macher, was born in Saxonj-, German}^ Jan. 14, 
 1853 ; lie was 6 3'ears old when he came with 
 his parents to the United States and to Akron ; 
 from 1 865 to 1868, he attended a private school 
 at Braunschweig, and returned to Akron in the 
 latter \'ear, and entered the mills as packer, 
 until 1871, when he became head book-keeper 
 and cashier for F. Schumacher, a position he has 
 ever since held. In May, 1875, he was married 
 to Miss Amelia Mills, of Akron ; they have one 
 son. 
 
 DR. WILLIAM SISLER, Akron, is a native 
 of Lycoming Co., Penn., and was born Sept. 12, 
 1819. He is the sixth child in a family often 
 children born to Lewis and IMargaret (Marsh) 
 Sisler. They were natives of Pennsylvania, 
 and moved to Erie Co., N. Y., in 1826, and en- 
 gaged in farming, where he died. Mrs. Sisler 
 continued her residence there until 1850, when 
 she came to Manchester, Ohio, and lived with 
 her children until her death, in 1872. At the 
 age of 21 our subject came to Manchester, Ohio, 
 where he followed teaching and fYirming. In 1843 
 he began reading medicine with Dr. Fernando 
 Dalwick, of Canal Fulton, and in 1846 or 1847, 
 he moved to Manchester, Summit Co., Ohio, and 
 began to practice, his graduation at the Med- 
 ical Department of Western Reserve College 
 having been delayed because of his limited 
 means. Upon the graduation of his brother, in 
 1852, they formed a partnership which con- 
 tinued until 1873. During the war, he responded 
 to the call of Gov. Tod, and served in the hos- 
 pitals after the battles of South Mountain and 
 Antietam. In the fall of 1867, he was elected 
 on the Republican ticket Representative from 
 this County, to the State Legislature, and served 
 
 one year. Upon coming to Akron, he, in com- 
 pany with his brother-in-law, John F. Hoy, 
 opened a drug store, which was continued until 
 the fall of 1879. During his residence in Akron, 
 the Doctor has not practiced medicine, ex- 
 cept to accommodate some of his friends. In 
 the fall of 1875, he was elected Count}^ Com- 
 missioner, and was re-elected in the fall of 1878. 
 On July 23, 1846, he married Miss L. R. Hoy, 
 a native of Manchester, Summit Co., Ohio, of 
 which place her parents are pioneers. Six 
 children were born, of whom three are living, 
 viz., Mary I., now Mrs. Diehl ; Emma, now Mrs. 
 Neiburg, and Henry. 
 
 JUDGE NEWELL D. TIBBALS, Akron. 
 Alfred M. Tibbals was born in Granville, Mass., 
 Aug. 4, 1797 ; he came to Ohio with his father 
 in 1804, and settled at Deerfield, Portage Co., 
 on wild land ; here he followed farming until 
 his death, in 1858, being 61 3'ears old ; he was 
 a successful farmer, and one of the early and 
 influential members of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church ; he never sought public office. 
 He married, in 1821, Miss Martha Swein, a 
 native of New Jerse}^, and one among the 
 early settlers of Salem. She was born in 1800, 
 and is still living ; she was the mother of 
 five sons, one of whom died at the age of 
 13 ; those living are J. Lincoln, a farmer near 
 Kent ; Frederick D., a farmer on the old home- 
 stead ; Curtice S., a farmer in Deerfield, and 
 Newell D., the subject of this sketch, who was 
 born in Deerfield, Portage Co., Ohio, on Sept. 18, 
 1833, where he remained until he was 17, at 
 which age he entered the IMcLain's Academy, at 
 Salem, Ohio, from which he graduated in the 
 spring of 1853. In September of that year he 
 came to Akron and entered the law office of 
 Otis & Walcott, where he studied until Sep- 
 tember, 1855, when he was admitted to the bar 
 at Akron, and at once opened an office, engag- 
 ing in active practice until 1875, when he was 
 elected Judge of the Court of Common Pleas 
 of the Second Subdivision of the Fourth Ju- 
 dicial District — -Summit, Medina and Lorain 
 Counties. To this position he was re-elected in 
 1880, for five years, to date from Ma}-, 1881. 
 In the spring of 1865, he was elected City 
 Solicitor (first), and filled that office two terms, 
 having been influential in securing the present 
 charter for the city of Akron, being emplo3'ed 
 by the Council to assist Mr. H. W. IngersoU, 
 Recorder of the incorporated village of Akron 
 
 If 
 
'>> 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 783 
 
 under old charter. la the fall of 1865, he was 
 elected to the State Senate from Summit and 
 Portage Counties ; in 1860, he was elected 
 Prosecuting Attorney, and re-elected two years 
 later ; in 1870, he participated in the prepara- 
 tion of the charter and other papers for the 
 organization of Buchtel College, and has been 
 a member of its Board of Trustees ever since 
 its organization. He was a member of the 
 City Board of Education, and served as a mem- 
 ber of the Ohio National Guards. Oct. 22, 
 1856, he married Miss Lucy A. Morse, of 
 Akron, Ohio ; she bore him three daughters 
 and two sons. 
 
 COL. DAVID W. THOMAS, lumber and 
 planiug-mill, Akron ; a native of Millersburg, 
 Ohio ; was born March 9, 1841, and is a son of 
 George and Jane (Wilson) Thomas. His father 
 was mostly brought up in Columbiana Co., Ohio, 
 and at the age of 20 went to Holmes Co., where 
 he was married in about 1840. His wife died 
 in 1842, leaving an only child, David W., the 
 subject, but an infant. In 1845, Mr. Thomas 
 came to Akron, and about the year 1847, 
 married. Miss Mary Caldwell, of Akron, who 
 survives him, and had six children. He died 
 in 1873. Only two of the last family of chil- 
 dren are now living — Louisa J., wife of D. A. 
 James, of Akron ; Eva, wife of William Picton, 
 of Akron. For some years, Mr. T. did a large 
 contracting business, and added lumber, finally 
 establishing planing-mills on Market street. 
 He built many of the public buildings of Akron ; 
 was a member of the Council for several years, 
 and prominently connected with the interests 
 of the city. He was a Free-Soiler and one of 
 the first Republicans ; was a member of the 
 Baptist Church and a devoted Christian. David 
 W., the subject, was 4 3'ears of age when his 
 father came to Akron. He here attended 
 school until he was 16 years old, when he went 
 to Tallmadge to learn carriage-making with 
 Oviatt & Sperry, serving an apprenticeship of 
 four 3ears, returning to Akron in February, 
 1861. In April following, he enlisted in Co. G, 
 of the ''old 19th," 0. V. I., for three months, 
 under Capt. Lewis P. Buckley, afterward Colonel 
 of the 29th 0. V. I. The 19th served in 
 West Virginia until its term expired, and was 
 in the battle of Rich Mountain. In October, 
 1861, Mr. T. enlisted in Co. H, of the 29th 0. 
 V. I. Their first engagement was at Winchester 
 in which they were commanded by Gen. Shields. 
 
 He was also at Port Republic, in which his com- 
 pany came out with but fifty men ; at Cedar 
 Mountain ; Chancellersville, where he was 
 slightly wounded by a fragment of shell, and at 
 Gettysburg. They were next sent to New York 
 to quell the riot there, consequent upon the 
 draft. Upon their return the}' were sent to the 
 department of the southwest, and were at Wau- 
 hatchie and Lookout Mountain. Dec. 10, 1863, 
 the almost entire regiment re-enlisted, and at 
 the expiration of veteran furlough, joined Gen. 
 Sherman in the Atlanta campaign. Mr. T. par- 
 ticipated in all the engagements of that stirring 
 period. He was made Sergeant Major, and for 
 a time commanded Co. H, as Orderly Sergeant. 
 At Atlanta he was commissioned First Lieu- 
 tenant ; went with Sherman in his •' march to 
 the sea," and, reaching Savanah, he was pro- 
 moted to Captain, and assigned to Co. A, the 
 post of honor. He was mustered out of the 
 service at Louisville, Ky., June 22, 1865. On 
 his return to Akron he engaged in the lumber 
 and planing-mill business with his father, until 
 1873, when, upon the death of his father, Charles 
 Miller and son became partners with him, re- 
 maining so until 1877, when subject sold out 
 his interest to R. N. Kratz. The firm of Mil- 
 ler & Kratz closed up in 1878, and subject 
 leased the planing-mill and lumber-yard, and 
 conducted the business two years, when he 
 bought it and has since done well in it, employ- 
 ing in the building season from sixty to one 
 hundred men. In 1876, subject was elected 
 Colonel of the 9th 0. N. G., which was after- 
 ward consolidated with the 8th Regiment, and he 
 was assigned ten full companies ; it is one of 
 the best-drilled and appointed regiments in the 
 State. He has been an active member of the G. 
 A. R. since its organization, and at the annual 
 Encampment in 1880, he was elected Depart- 
 ment Commander. He was married Sept. 1 1, 
 1868, to Miss Alice Hale, a daughter of J. M. 
 Hale, of Akron. They had four children, viz.: 
 George H., James A., Frank and Elizabeth. 
 His wife died Jan. 11, 1880. 
 
 ALBERT B. TINKER, Financial Secretary 
 of Buchtel College, Akron ; was born Jan. 
 28. 1852, and is a son of Horace and So- 
 phronia (Skinner) Tinker. He is a native of 
 Portage Co., and was brought up on a farm 
 until 18, when he entered (in 1870) Hiram Col- 
 lege, teaching during the winters. In the fall 
 of 1873, he entered Buchtel College, and gradu- 
 
 e'fV 
 
784 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 ated in June, 1876, when he retired to the farm, 
 his health being impaired. He taught during the 
 winter until 1878, when he came to Akron, and 
 entered the law office of Green & Marvin, where 
 he studied until 1879, when he was elected 
 Financial Secretary of Buchtel College, a posi- 
 tion he has since filled. He was married Dec. 
 25, 187(i, to Miss Georgie Olin, of Windsor, 
 Ashtabula Co., Ohio. 
 
 JAMES B. TAPLIN, Akron. In Clermont, 
 N. H., on Aug. 12, 1812, was born to John and 
 Abigail (Sperry) Taplin. the subject of this 
 sketch, whose poi'trait appears in this work. 
 At the age of 5 years, his parents moved to 
 New Haven, Vt, where he lived three years, at 
 the end of which time, he was taken with them 
 to Franklin Co., N. Y., in which region he lived 
 until about 22 yeai's of age. His 3-outh-time 
 was employed in farming and attending school; 
 the last six months of his school life were 
 passed in the Franklin Academy, at Malone, 
 N. Y. When 20 years of age, he began to learn 
 carpentering, but only worked at that a short 
 time, when he began mill vvrigh ting, and followed 
 that in New Yo\-k State until 1 834. In the 
 fall of 1834, he came to Akron, Ohio, partly by 
 canal, and partly on foot ; he then worked at 
 carpentering for a short time, but followed mill- 
 wrighting until 1848, during which time he 
 worked on most of the earl}' mills. In October, 
 1839, he married Miss Rachel Grandy, of Port 
 Byron, N. Y., who had taught for some time in 
 Akron. In 1840-41, he built a large mill in 
 Constantine, Mich., returning to Akron in July, 
 1841. In compan}'^ with G. D. Bates and Chas. 
 Webster, under the firm of G. D. Bates & Co., 
 he started the Globe Foundry at Akron, in 1848, 
 in a small building, and on a small scale. In 
 some two or three years, Bates retired, and the 
 business was continued l\y the firm of Webster 
 & Taplin, which continued with some changes 
 until 1860, when fire destro3'ed a portion of the 
 work, and the subject retired ; in 1861, the 
 present foundry was built, the firm being Taplin, 
 Rice & Ford, as partnership until 1867, when a 
 stock company was formed, and the business 
 incorporated under the name of Taplin, Rice & 
 Co., which t;ontinues. Of his marriage, there 
 are two sons and a daughter, viz., John L., 
 superintendent of machinery department; Chas. 
 G., book-keeper for Standard Oil Co., Cleve- 
 land, Ohio, and Ella, who is still at home. In 
 addition to these, there were three children, 
 
 two of whom died in infanc}'. and one son, Jas. 
 F., died at 7. The subject is a member of the 
 Congregational Church, and was a member of 
 the Council. 
 
 WILLIAM H. UPSON, attorney, Akron, 
 son of Daniel and Polly (Wright) Upson, was 
 born Jan. 11, 1823, at Worthington, Franklin 
 Co., Ohio, where he lived until his 10th 3'ear, 
 when, with his father's family, he moved to 
 Tallmadge Township, this county. At the age 
 of 15, he entered Western Reserve College, 
 Hudson, as a member of the Freshman Class, 
 and graduated from that institution in July, 
 1842, standing second in his class in scholar- 
 ship, and delivering the salutatory at its com- 
 mencement exercises. Directly on leaving col- 
 lege, he began the study of law under the 
 direction of Judge Reuben Hitchcock, of 
 Painesville, Ohio, with whom he remained for 
 the period of two years, when he entered the 
 Law Department of Yale College, where he at- 
 tended one year. In September, 1845, he was 
 admitted to the bar at Cleveland, and, in Jan- 
 uary of the following year, began his profession 
 at Akron, where he has continued in successful 
 practice ever since. As general attorney for 
 the Atlantic & Great Western Railwa}' Com- 
 pany (now the N. Y., P. & O. R. R. Co.), and, 
 later, as counsel for its Receiver, his attention 
 for years has been especially directed to rail- 
 way matters, in the important litigations of 
 which he has been called much into other 
 States, and twice to Europe. In politics he is 
 a Republican. He was elected Prosecuting 
 Attorney of this county in 1848, and served in 
 that capacity two 3'ears. He was elected to 
 the State Senate in 1853 ; to the Forty-first 
 Congress from the Eighteenth District, com- 
 prising the counties of Cuyahoga, Summit and 
 Lake (usualh' called the Cleveland District), in 
 1868, by a majority of over 6,000, and was re- 
 elected in 1870. He was a member of the 
 Committee on Reconstruction in the Forty-first 
 Congress ; Chairman of the Committee on Pri- 
 vate Land Claims, in the Fortj'-second, and a 
 member of the Committees on Elections and 
 Manufactures, in both. He was one of the 
 leaders of the opposition to the measure giving 
 back-pay to members, from its inception. When 
 under cover of a general appropriation bill it 
 was brought before the House for adoption, his 
 moral sense was keen enough to discover at 
 once the wrong sought to be perpetrated, and 
 
 -^ 
 
'k* 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 785 
 
 securing, by persistent effort, a recognition from 
 the Cliair, be denounced it in no uncertain 
 words, and made the motion to strike out the 
 objectionable clause. This was the key-note of 
 opposition to what is known as the " salary- 
 grab ; " others, recognizing the justice of his 
 position, joined him in that strenuous fight 
 against the measure, that gained for him and 
 them the hearty approval and thanks of an un- 
 divided country. The old Eighteenth (Cleve- 
 land) District was recognized as one of the 
 most important and influential in the nation. 
 Its wealth, its growing and diversified interests 
 and industries, the character of its people, all 
 combined to make the office of its representa- 
 tive one of peculiar honor, responsibility and 
 influence. The trust reposed in him was so 
 well performed that when, upon the close of his 
 second term, he withdrew from political life, 
 its press and people, without regard to* party,' 
 gave him the warmest and most gratifying ap- 
 proval. He was a delegate to the National 
 Convention, at Baltimore, which renominated 
 Abraham Lincoln in 1864, and was a delegate 
 at lai'ge from Ohio to the Convention at Cin- 
 cinnati, which nominated Rutherford B. Hayes. 
 He is a member of the Board of Trustees of 
 Western Reserve and Oberlin Colleges, and also 
 of Lake Erie Female Seminary, at Painesville, 
 Ohio. He was first President of the Summit 
 Co. Bar Association, and is now a member of 
 the Executive Committee of the State Bar As- ' 
 sociation. On May 20, 1856, he married Miss I 
 Julia A. Ford, of Akron. The}' have two sons 
 and two daughters. 
 
 P. UPTNGTON, harness-maker, Akron ; the 
 leading dealer in South Akron in harness, sad- 
 dles, etc. Came to Akron in 1848, and began 
 at "jour" work ; he followed his trade in this 
 way for about one year, and then began business 
 on his own account. He was born March 3, 1821 , 
 in County Cork, Ireland ; he learned his trade 
 with his father, and received a fair education in 
 his native land. In 1847 — the 3'ear of the great 
 famine in Ireland — he was one of a committee 
 whose business it was to distribute the dona- 
 tions. In 1848, as before stated, he came to 
 Akron, where, after engaging in business on his 
 own account, he continued it without interrup- 
 tion, except during the war, when he spent a 
 time in the trimming department of Mr. Col- 
 lins' carriage factory. In 1876, he built the 
 store he now occupies, which is 24 feet frontage 
 
 b}- 55 feet deep, three stories and basement, 
 and located near the corner of Main and Ex- 
 change streets ; he also owns considerable real 
 estate in diff^erent parts of the city. He is a 
 member of the order of A., F. & A. M.. and of 
 the following Lodges : Akron Lodge, No. 83 ; 
 Washington Chapter. No. 25 ; Akron Council, 
 Nq. 42 ; and Akron Commandery, No. 25. He 
 was formerly a member of Massillon Command- 
 ery No. 4, and, upon the organization of Akron 
 Commandery, he became one of the charter 
 members. 
 
 W. R. UPHAM, boot and shoemaker. Middle- 
 bury ; was born in Windsor Co., Vt., in 1810, and 
 was brought up on the farm. At the age of 17, 
 he was appi'enticed to his trade, and, after com- 
 pleting same, went to Burlington, Yt., where he 
 worked for one 3'ear, thence to Rochester, N.. 
 Y.', remaining there one year, and, in the fall of 
 1833, came to Akron. In the spring of 1844, 
 he moved to Middlebury, where he has since 
 resided. He worked at shoe-making until 
 1850, when he went to keeping hotel in the 
 Temperance House ; also conducted a livery 
 and feed stable until 1856. He then sold 
 matches for six or seven years, traveling in 
 Ohio, Pennsjdvania and Virginia, after which 
 he resumed his trade, and has worked at it ever 
 since. He served as Constable in 1848 ; was 
 elected Justice of the Peace in 1870, but did 
 not qualif}' or serve. He was a Whig in poli- 
 tics, and, upon the organization of the Repub- 
 lican party, adopted its principles. He was 
 married, in 1834, to Miss Susan E. Burns, a 
 native of Albany, N. Y., and ten children have 
 been born to them, seven of whom are living — 
 William Potter (lives at Red Wing, Minn.), 
 Almira (Mrs. Robert Yance, also lives at Red 
 Wing), Elizabeth (now Mrs. George Capell, 
 lives in Detroit, Mich.), Ella (Mrs. James Cur- 
 rans, lives in Middlebury), George (Red Wing, 
 Minn.), Charles (lives in Iowa), Walter Potter 
 (lives at home) ; all are married except George 
 and Walter. 
 
 DR. W. J. UNDERWOOD, physician, Akron ; 
 was born in Dillsburg, York Co., Penn., 3Iarch 
 20, 1840, and is the fourth of five children born 
 to Joseph and Hannah (Wells) Underwood. His 
 parents were natives of Penns^dvania, his father 
 being of Quaker descent and his mother of 
 German. His father was a whip-maker, and 
 followed his trade in Dillsburg until his death 
 in 1842. Mrs. Underwood was subsequently 
 
 1^ 
 
786 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 married again, but is now a widow and living 
 at Wooster, Ohio. Dr. Underwood lived at 
 home until 1860, acquiring such education as 
 the schools of the neighborhood afforded, at 
 the same time teaching during the winters up 
 to the time of his beginning the study of medi- 
 cine. In 1860, he began reading with Dr. Ira 
 Day, of Mechanicsburg, Penn., and graduated 
 from the Jefferson Medical College iu Philadel- 
 phia in 1864. In 1862, he went out with the 
 19th Penn. V. M. as medical officer, and after a 
 short period, the regiment being disbanded, he 
 was assigned to the hospital at Chambersburg 
 as Assistant Surgeon. A month later he was 
 transferred to the hospital at Camp Curtin, 
 where he served about two months, being 
 assigned at the expiration of that time to the 
 J 51 St Penn. V. I., with which he served as Assist- 
 ant Surgeon during the term of that regiment's 
 enlistment. Returning from the army, he com- 
 pleted his studies, graduating as noted above. 
 In the spring of 1864, he came to Ohio and 
 began practice in company with Dr. A. Houtz, 
 in Canal Fulton. This partnership was contin- 
 ued for two years, when it was dissolved. After 
 practicing a year b}' himself, he came to Akron 
 in August, 1867, where he has since been 
 activel}' engaged in the practice of his profes- 
 sion. Dr. Underwood is a member of the Sum- 
 mit Count}^ Medical Society, of the Union 
 Medical Association of Northeastern Ohio, of 
 the Ohio State Medical Society, and of the 
 American Medical Association. In the two 
 first he has served in various official capacities. 
 In December, 1864, he married Miss Harriet, 
 daughter of John J. Shoemaker, Esq., of Har- 
 risburg, Penn. ; she died Dec. 9, 1873 ; three 
 children were born, of whom two only are liv- 
 ing—Edward S. and Alfred C. Feb. 28, 1877, 
 he married Mrs. Francis C. Pizzala, of Brook- 
 l3^n, N. Y. In 1878, Dr. Underwood was 
 appointed Examining Surgeon for Pensions, 
 an office he now holds. He has also served 
 the city of Akron as Councilman. 
 
 ALVIN C. VORIS, Brevet Major General 
 United States Volunteers, whose portrait ap- 
 pears in this work, was born in Stark County, 
 Ohio, on the 27th of April, 1827, the eldest of 
 nine brothers and four sisters, children of Peter 
 Voris and Julia (Coe) Voris, all of whom lived 
 to attain manhood and womanhood ; the first 
 death among them occurred in the summer of 
 1864, from starvation, in the Andersonville 
 
 rebel prison pen ; five of these brothers served 
 in the Union Army in the war of the Great 
 rebellion, three of whom lost their lives by 
 reason of that service, and the other two were 
 badly wounded and will carrj^ to their graves 
 broken down and painful bodies in consequence 
 of these wounds. His father was a Pennsyl- 
 vanian by birth, and, at the age of 16, with his 
 parents, settled in Stark Co., where he con- 
 tinued to live till the spring of 1834, when he 
 moved into what is now Summit Co., then Por- 
 tage Co. Peter Voris represented Summit Co. 
 in the General Assembly in 1847—18, was the 
 \Vhig candidate for the State Senate for the 
 Summit and Portage District in the fall of 
 1848, but was defeated bj' a combination of 
 Democrats and Free-Soilers ; in 1850, was ap- 
 pointed one of the Associate Judges for his 
 count}", and served in that capacity till the 
 office was abolished by the present Constitu- 
 tion. In 1857, he removed to Illinois, where 
 he died in January, 1880, at the age ol 81 years. 
 Judge Voris always had the confidence of all 
 who knew him, possessed rare intelligence and 
 purity of character, was public spirited, fearless 
 and outspoken with his convictions, and a most 
 sturdy hater of all kinds of meanness. Gen. 
 Voris says of his fatlier that he never heard 
 him utter an oath or obscene expression, that, 
 not only in manners, but in essense, was he an 
 every-day Christian gentleman. Julia (Coe) 
 Voris was a Connecticut Yankee by birth and 
 education, and possessed great force of charac- 
 ter, intelligence and grace of manners, was 
 richlj' endowed with those womanly qualities 
 that eminently fitted her for society, and the 
 nurture and moral development of her chil- 
 dren; she was a most devoted Christian and was 
 universally respected and beloved. The sub- 
 ject of this sketch says of himself that there 
 was nothing remarkable about his birth or 
 early life, except that he was the first baby in 
 the family, but supposes that he was as good and 
 bothersome, as studious and frolicsome, and 
 heedless and playful as boys in general ; that he 
 was a good scholar and took his juvenile switch- 
 ings as complacently as any other of the boys, 
 is not denied. He lived with his parents till 
 after he was 18 years old, when he went from 
 home to school, one year at Twinsburg Insti- 
 tute, and the two following years at Oberlin 
 College, Ohio, taking an elective course, teach- 
 public school, in the winter months, and working 
 
,\^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 787 
 
 for a couple of hours each day at the shoe 
 bench, iu the meantime, to pay for books, 
 tuition and board, for all which he paid as he 
 went along, without being a burden to any one 
 for a cent. In February, 1850, he came to 
 Akron, where he has since resided, and was 
 employed by Auditor Goodhue, in his office, 
 for a few weeks, when he went into the Clerk's 
 (office, under L. S. Peck, Esq., where he serv^ed 
 for two years as one of his deputies. On the 
 new Constitution going into effect, in February, 
 1852, Charles G. Ladd, an attorney of the Sum- 
 mit Count}' bar, who had been elected Probate 
 Judge, but b}' reason of sickness, of which he 
 died in August following, was never able to get 
 to his office personally, appointed young Voris 
 his Deputy Clerk, which place he filled till the 
 decease of Judge Ladd ; the entire business of 
 the office was thus thrown upon him ; that he 
 opened the office well, and devised proper 
 modes for doing its business and keeping the 
 records, is attested b}^ the fact that they have 
 l)een since followed, and that he correctly and 
 faithfull}' acted for some six mouths as de facto 
 Probate Judge is also attested by the fact that 
 his acts in that behalf have never been legalh- 
 questioned. During all this time, since he 
 came to x\kron, he was a close student of the 
 law, with reference to entering upon its prac- 
 tice, was admitted to the bar in June, 1853, 
 and at once formed a partnership with the late 
 Gen. L. V. Bierce, his law preceptor ; this ar- 
 rangement continued till 1857. As a young 
 lawyer, he was singularly successful, both in 
 getting business to do and in his manner of 
 handling it ; with the next term after his ad- 
 mission till the outbreak of the rebellion, he 
 was constantly pitted against the strongest law- 
 yers of the Ohio bar ; his great energy, cease- 
 less industry, courage and thorough preparation 
 of his cases, gave him a recognized standing 
 with the best of them. 
 
 Sept. 25, 1853, he married Lydia All3-n, 
 daughter of Israel Allyn, Esq., then residing 
 near Akron, with whom he lived till March 1 6, 
 1876, when Mrs. Voris died, after a most pain- 
 ful illness of over four years. She was a most 
 devoted wife and mother, and left three chil- 
 dren, Edwin^ F., who is an attorney and prac- 
 ticing with his father, and two daughters, Lucy 
 A. and Bessie Coe. Edwin has settled down in 
 life, married a wife, and like his father, is zeal- 
 oush'^ engaged in raising a family of children. 
 
 In 1859, A. C. Voris was elected to repre- 
 sent his count}' iu the General Assembly, which 
 office he held for two years. In which, as a 
 member of the Judiciary Committee, Chair- 
 man of Penitentiary Committee, and sev- 
 eral important select committees, he was dis- 
 tinguished for his great industry and practical 
 knowledge, which was also true of every mat- 
 ter iu which he engaged. Instead of being a 
 society man, or employing his efforts in mere 
 partisan contests, he directed his attention to 
 the practical business matters before the Leg- 
 islature, and in which he at once took rank as 
 a leader. He was regarded as one of the ablest 
 men on the floor of the House. He was apt 
 and convincing as a debater, and always ready 
 as a parliamentarian. He was selected Chair- 
 man of the Committee of the Whole House 
 when the general appropriation bills were 
 under consideration, because of his sleight at 
 dispatching business, and was complimented 
 with having managed so as to get through in 
 half the time expected to be consumed. Before 
 his legislative term expired, the war of the 
 rebellion broke out. All through the long 
 session of 1861, he took a most decided stand 
 against backing down to the demands of the 
 South, and fearlessly urged resistance to and 
 no compromising with treason or traitors, and 
 fought with all his might, all efforts from what- 
 ever source they came, aiming to prostitute 
 the Legislature of the State in the interests of 
 slavery, or the treasonable demands of State 
 Rights as interpreted by the planter States. 
 
 In September, 1861, the demand for men be- 
 came so urgent for the army that he felt it his 
 duty to go to the war himself, and enrolled 
 himself as an enlisted man in the 29th O. V. I., 
 but, without solicitation on his part, Gov. Den- 
 nison appointed him a Second Lieutenant for 
 the recruiting service, under which he was mus- 
 tered into the United States volunteer service 
 on the 2d of October ensuing, for the organiza- 
 tion of a regiment, to which he applied himself 
 with such zeal and effect that, in the organiza- 
 tion of the 67th Ohio, to which his men were 
 assigned, he was entitled to a Lieutenant 
 Colonelcy of the regiment, and would have gone 
 into the field as its Colonel, if he had said so ; 
 but having had no previous military training, he 
 chose to go as its Lieutenant Colonel. His 
 regiment went into the field in Western Vir- 
 ginia, Jan. 19, 1862. He was its chief instruct- 
 
 :^ 
 
788 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 or from the date of its organization, Dec. 18, 
 1861, drilling and teaching men and officers, at 
 such intervals as active service in the field per- 
 mitted. On the 16th of March following, he 
 became its commanding officer. On the even- 
 ing of the 22d of the same month, he took his 
 regiment into its first fight, against a reconnais- 
 sance of Stonewall Jackson, before Winchester, 
 Va.. which was, in fact, the opening of the first 
 battle of Winchester, one of the most obsti- 
 natel}' fought infantry' battles of the war. the 
 brigade to which the 67th Ohio was attached 
 being ordered out to repel this attack, which 
 was on our picket lines, to the south of Win- 
 chester. Lieut. Col. Voris turned out his com- 
 mand so rapidl}' that he took the lead of all our 
 troops, and, in one hour from the time he got 
 his orders, was four miles from camp, and 
 pushing the enem}', his being the first Union 
 troops in the fight. He, with his men, held the 
 front the entire night, and kept the advanced 
 position toward the enemy next morning till 
 ordered to support a battery of artillery', which 
 he did under a brisk fire from the enemy's bat- 
 teries, till the infantr}' battle opened, when he 
 was directed " to pitch in ; " not very definite 
 orders, as the enemy were' then three-fourths of 
 a mile off, and extended over a wide front, and 
 mainly obscured by woodland and hills. He 
 led his men at a double-quick, against a terrible 
 fire of shot and shell directU' in his front, and 
 right for the point where the infantry fighting 
 appeared to be fiercest, and formed his men 
 immediately to the left of Col. Tyler's brigade, 
 which was lying on the gi'ound in front of a 
 rebel brigade, within point-blank range, the 
 latter being thoroughly protected by a stone- 
 wall fence. Both sides kept up an incessant 
 fusilade of small arms, neither daring to ad- 
 vance on the other, with the advantage all on 
 the side of the enemy. The 67th formed ob- 
 liquel}' on the head and from of the wall, and 
 not more than 150 feet from the right flank of 
 the rebel brigade, from which it got a deadly 
 fire, without being able to do much execution 
 in return. He held this position but for a short 
 time, and, not securing the desired results, un- 
 dertook to place his men so as to deliver an en- 
 filading fire from behind the stone wall. While 
 making this movement, he was shot in the right 
 thigh, getting a very painful though not dan- 
 gerous wound. The Color Sergeant hesitating, 
 Lieut. Col. Voris seized the colors, and, sup- 
 
 ported by two men, under each shoulder, not- 
 withstanding his wound, called on his men to 
 follow him, and, placing them in such position 
 that this wall afforded no protection to the en- 
 emy, they opened a most destructive fire upon 
 them. Two or three volleys caused the rebels 
 to waver, when he ordered a charge upon them, 
 which was executed with such impetuosit}' that 
 the enemy broke in great disorder, and the 
 67th dashed through their lines with a yell that 
 was plainly heard above the din of the battle. 
 Tyler's brigade soon followed suit, and the 
 whole left wing of Jackson's army was thrown 
 into a disordered retreat. Gen. Voris deserv- 
 edly thinks this one of the very best public 
 acts of his life. Seeing that the stone wall was 
 as good as a fort for the enem}-, and that no 
 decisive movement could be made against them 
 till they were dislodged from it, he, of his own 
 motion, pitched into them on their flank, a 
 movement that was decisive of the onl}^ Union 
 victor}^ ever gained over Stonewall Jackson. 
 He was promoted to the colonelc}' of his regi- 
 ment July 18, 1862, and served with it in the 
 most arduous enterprises in Eastern and South- 
 eastern Virginia, till the end of that year. 
 Among the thrilling incidents of the year, he 
 had the ill luck to be shipwrecked, with six 
 companies of the 67th Regiment, off Fortress 
 Monroe, Va.. en route to re-enforce Gen. McClel- 
 lan on the Peninsula. This was described by 
 an eye-witness as follows : " In the middle of 
 the night, the waves tumbled the old barge at 
 a fearful rate, and soon all hands were aroused 
 by the startling cry that the line towing the 
 barge had parted, and that she was going to 
 the bottom. To us on the steamer this was 
 terrible intelligence for half our regiment. Its 
 Lieut. Colonel, Adjt. Girty and several line 
 officers were on the wreck. As the barge 
 broke from the steamer, its rudder was crushed 
 to atoms, leaving the craz}' craft entirely at the 
 mercy of the waves. We could see, through 
 the darkness, that the upper deck had broken 
 down, and every indication showed that the 
 craft was really going to pieces. The steamer 
 was swung round as rapidly as possible, to give 
 help. As we passed round, we could see frag- 
 ments of the wreck floating by. Xhe shrieks 
 of the frightened ones on the barge were truly 
 distressing to us. For a long time, we could 
 get no intelligence that gave us any hope, it 
 being impossible to get near the vessel. Fi- 
 
 *^- 
 
,^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 789 
 
 nail}', we heard the clear voice of Col. Voris, 
 giving orders and urging the men to be quiet. 
 He tried to soothe them by saying that ' all 
 would end well, if they would let him boss the 
 concern.' By the wa}', the Colonel says that 
 bossing that ricket}' old barge in a storm is 
 worse than fighting Stonewall Jackson. By 
 great exertion, the boys were able to cast the 
 anchor of the barge, and in a little, time a haw- 
 ser was fastened to the wreck, and the steamer 
 came to the rescue. Such a scramble to get 
 otf never was seen on dry land. One poor boy, 
 in his over haste, jumped overboard and was 
 drowned, and five others were severely wound- 
 ed. Col. V. was the last man to leave the 
 wreck, directing the delivery of his men till all 
 were safe, before he thought of himself. He 
 came on board the steamer in rather an un-offi- 
 cerlike plight, bare-headed, in shirt sleeves, 
 with naught but shirt, pants, vest and shoes in 
 the line of dress ; all his other fixens went with 
 the barge ; " and in that undress he reported 
 to Gen. J. A. Dix, the next morning, for new 
 supplies for his men. 
 
 In January, 1863, he was transferred with his 
 command to the Department of the South, 
 where he participated in the siege operations 
 befoi'e Charleston, S. C, till the close of that 
 3'ear. He commanded his regiment in the disas- 
 trous assault on Ft. Wagner, the night of the 
 18th of July, in which he was very severely 
 wounded, and was sent north in a few days aft- 
 er to nurse his wound. In less than sixty days 
 after he got this wound, he reported back to his 
 command for duty, and shortly after was in the 
 trenches before Charleston. 
 
 When the expedition was about to start from 
 Hilton Head to attack Charleston, Col. Voris, 
 with his regiment, was ordered to report for 
 duty to Grov. Saxton, at Beaufort, S. C, to aid 
 him in his civil administration. He did not 
 relish Provost Marshal and other fancy work 
 while a great enterprise was on foot, and went 
 at once to Gen. Hunter, who had command of 
 the department, and inquired of him if he 
 really intended to capture Charleston. Being 
 answered in the affirmative, he told Gen. Hun- 
 ter that he was making a fatal mistake in leav- 
 ing his (Voris') regiment out ; that there was 
 not a man in tlie ranks of the 67th Regiment 
 whose pockets were not full of locofoco matches 
 with which to burn the cursed rebel city. Col. 
 Voris carried back in his pockets an order to 
 
 join the expedition. The 67th did not go to 
 Beaufort. 
 
 In the spring of 1864, he was assigned to 
 duty with his regiment in the movement up 
 James lliver, Va., against Richmond, under 
 Gen. Butler, and thenceforth was identified with 
 the Army of the James till the close of the 
 war. On the 9th and 10th of May, 186-1, with 
 less than 2,000 rifles and eight pieces of artil- 
 lery, he successfully fought and repulsed con- 
 federate Gen. Ransom with four times as large 
 a force, some ten miles below Richmond. In 
 this engagement, he was specially conspicuous 
 for gallantry and ability, and gained a brilliant 
 victory, the first success for Gen. Butler in his 
 advance on the confederate capital. On the 
 night of the 9th, when it became apparent that 
 there would be a renewal of the fight the next 
 morning, and (Col. Voris had sent for re-enforce- 
 ments) Gen. Gilmore, to whom Col. Voris had 
 sent for re-enforcements, directed his Adjutant 
 General to send him assistance, but not to send 
 them under command of an officer senior in 
 rank to Col. Voris, that he wanted the way left 
 clear for him to fight with the enemy without 
 interference from a superior officer. Gen. A. 
 H. Terry said of this engagement, that if he 
 had 10,000 such men as Col. Voris and the 67th 
 0. V. I., he could take Richmond with them. 
 For this fight Col. Voris was recommended for 
 promotion as Brigadier General of Volunteers ; 
 but political reasons in his Congressional dis- 
 trict prevented so well-earned ad\'ancement. He 
 was then suffering from his Ft. Wagner wound, 
 and was so prostrated by the fatigue and anxi- 
 ety of the day, that he had to be helped to 
 camp. Again, on the 20th of the same month, 
 he fought the enemy at the V>^in Bottom Church, 
 on the Bermuda Hundred front, re-taking our 
 picket line, from which our troops had been 
 forced ; at the same time taking confederate 
 Gen. Walker prisoner. He still keeps Gen. 
 Walker's sword as a trophy of that affair. The 
 16th of June following, while in command of 
 the picket line, as general officer of the day, he 
 took the line of rebel works, by which Gen. 
 Butler had been bottled up on the Bermuda 
 Hundred, taking quite a number of prisoners, 
 and several heavy guns in the enterprise. 
 
 At Deep Run, on the left bank of the James, 
 below Richmond, in August next, he led the 
 skirmish line in an attack on the enemv's lines, 
 protected by temporary field works, which 
 
 nv 
 
^1 
 
 r90 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 were carried with so much impetuosity that 
 the rebels could fire but one volley, but so de- 
 structive was it, that one-third of the attacking 
 force was killed and wounded ; before they 
 could re-load their pieces, our boys were club- 
 bing them over their heads with the butts of 
 their rifles. In an engagement on the 13th of 
 October ensuing, he commanded a brigade of 
 colored troops ; also below Richmond, where 
 he urged his dusky soldiers to remember that 
 now was their time to wipe out many an old 
 score. If what the boys say is true, he told 
 the contrabands to give their old oppressers 
 h— 1. Again, on the 27th and 28th of October 
 following, he commanded a brigade of white 
 troops on the Charles City road, in an attack 
 upon the outworks for the protection of Rich- 
 mond ; and in the latter pai't of the next No- 
 vember, he commanded a division against an 
 attempt of the enem}- to turn our flauk on the 
 north side of the James. On the 2d of April, 
 1865, he led the charge on Fort Gregg, Peters- 
 burg, Va., and after having been in the ditch of 
 the fort up to his neck in mud and water for 
 nearl}' half an hour, he climbed up on its walls 
 by the aid of a ladder made by the boys with 
 their guns with bayonets fixed, and thrust into 
 the walls one above the other, being the first 
 Union officer on the fort. This was the last 
 fort taken by storm of the confederate works 
 surrounding Richmond and Petersburg, after 
 being most tenaciously defended, at a loss of 
 full}' one-fourth of the garrison in killed. At 
 Appomattox he was in the fight at the last 
 ditch, and got a receipt for that day's work 
 from a fragment of a shell on the left arm. He 
 was breveted a Brigadier General in 1864, and 
 a Major General of Volunteers in the year fol- 
 lowing, " for distinguished services in the field," 
 as the order appointing him recites. 
 
 Upon the close of hostilities, he was assigned 
 to command the politico-military district of 
 South Anna, Va., embracing a territory of tri- 
 angular form, one angle at Richmond, the other 
 two in the crown of the Blue Ridge, extending 
 each way more than a hundred miles ; the du- 
 ties of which were both of a political and mili- 
 tary sort, including the supervision of all that 
 relates to civil and militarj' administration. 
 He was for more than six months as absolute 
 a satrap as ever governed, there being no other 
 governing power except by and through the 
 military, not a single civil, police or political 
 
 officer being recognized except by and under 
 the military authorities. The colored people 
 just emancipated had to be especiall}- cai-ed 
 for and protected, all the interests of societ}- 
 looked after and conserved, the prejudices and 
 cruelties of the sj'stem of slaver}- resisted and 
 eradicated, a new system of labor organized, 
 the mutual distrusts of the whites and negroes 
 allayed, and confidence created between the 
 late slave-owners and the freedmen. 
 
 He called together both white and colored 
 people at their county seats, and publicl}' and 
 together kindly tried to instruct them as to 
 their new relations, urging fair dealing, justice 
 and humanit}' in their future intercourse, and 
 upon terms of impartial equal rights. To pro- 
 tect the late slaves, and especially the infirm, 
 old and little ones from ill-treatment and want, 
 he found it necessary to make and publish 
 orders prohil)iting all sorts of personal violence, 
 and turning off" such infirm and helpless ones 
 without adequate provision for their present 
 support ; and, in default of which provision, he 
 directed adequate assessment to be made and 
 collected by military power. He absolutely 
 put a stop to the devilish practice of flogging 
 colored people, and permitted no penalties to 
 be inflicted on them that were not visited upon 
 white people for like grade of offenses. So con- 
 siderate was he in the administration of his 
 public duties, that he never had a matter ap- 
 pealed from his orders or decrees to depart 
 ment headquarters during the whole time he 
 was in command of this district, though every 
 class of disputed right came before him, com- 
 mon to community from murder down. His 
 Department Commander said of him that his 
 was the only district in the State that did not 
 make him trouble. Gen. Robert E. Lee was a 
 resident of his district, and under his command 
 for several months after the surrender. The 
 Charlottesville Datl>j Chronicle wrote concerning 
 his administration, when he left the district, 
 that " Gen. Voris has conducted himself in com- 
 mand here in the kindest and most considerate 
 manner, and has shown himself an energetic, 
 faithful and just otlicer. He leaves with the 
 best wishes of our people." The colored people 
 found in him a most valued friend and pro- 
 tector. 
 
 As illustrative of his wa}' of putting things, 
 we narrate the following incidents : When he 
 went first to Charlottesville, Va., to organize for 
 
fc* 
 
 CITY OF AKKON. 
 
 791 
 
 the civil administration of Albemarle Co., and 
 parol and amnesty those who had been in open 
 rebellion against the United States, he was in- 
 terviewed b}' a delegation of citizens as to what 
 relations the freedmen would thenceforth sus- 
 tain. To whom he replied, that the freed men 
 were citizens of the United States, and, as such, 
 possessed equal rights with all other Virginians ; 
 that the Greneral Government would protect 
 them as such ; that he would do all in his power 
 to reconcile and harmonize any antagonisms 
 and distresses existing between the two races ; 
 but that they would be required to adjust their 
 intercourse with them on terms of reciprocal 
 equality of rights. A fier}' planter, not relish- 
 ing this equalit}^ doctrine, spoke up, " I tell ye 
 what it is, if mj' niggers don't do as I say, I 
 will flog them." Gen. Voris instantly replied, 
 " In that case, if I was your nigger, I would 
 take your life, Sir." The Episcopalian Rector 
 of the same place, and afterward a high digni- 
 tary in his church, came to him to get indul- 
 gence from the military authorities to omit from 
 the prayer of their church service, the President 
 of the United States and all others in authority, 
 etc., alleging, as a reason, that such prayer 
 would be insincere, and that his congregation 
 could not, with their present feeling, join hon- 
 estly in it. " Let us see," said the General, 
 " Is it because they look upon the President 
 and those in authority as still being enemies ?" 
 It being admitted that this was substantialh' 
 their feeling, he replied, " I am not much of a 
 Christian, and ma}' not appreciate the gravity 
 of the situation, nor do I know how your church 
 people regard the New Testament Scriptures ; 
 but if you mean to set them a truly Christian 
 example, I would advise you to do as Christ 
 commanded, ' Love your enemies, and pray for 
 them which despitefull}' use you and persecute 
 you,' instead of coming to the military authori- 
 ties to get excused from obeying the commands 
 of Almighty God." 
 
 As a soldier he never shirked dut}- or ex- 
 posure. He always shared with his men their 
 hardships, dangers and privations, and never 
 asked of them what he would not do himself 
 So prompt was he in the execution of what- 
 ever he had to do that the boys called him 
 '' Old Promptly," a name certainh' not inappro- 
 priatel}' applied. All through the war, in case 
 of sudden danger, he was always first in place 
 for action with his men. His watchfulness 
 
 and strict attention to business, caused him to 
 be assigned to the command of his brigade 
 when he was junior colonel in it. 
 
 He was greatl}- beloved by his men, who, at 
 the close of the war, gave him one of the finest 
 presents given to any officer during the war, a 
 magnificent sword, belt and sash, costing near- 
 ly a thousand dollars ; evei'y man of his old 
 regiment contributing toward its purchase. A 
 leading Ohio daily paper in referring to this 
 present, said : " A worthy gift from one of the 
 best regiments ever mustered into the service 
 to one of the best soldiers that has entered the 
 field." He always saw to it that his men had 
 every thiiig the commissariat and quartermas- 
 ter's departments could furnish, and ever stood 
 up for the just rights of every enlisted man ; 
 was a strict disciplinarian, requiring exact and 
 prompt performance of duty from men and 
 officers alike. He looked most carefuU}' after 
 the honorable character and standing of ever}' 
 man and officer in his command, not onh' as 
 soldiers, but as men and American citizens. 
 Not a man under him but felt alwa5S free to 
 approach him at all proper times, on terms of 
 pleasant intimacy, nor ever felt that any griev- 
 ance would be slighted by him, merel}' because 
 he was a private soldier. He was proud of his 
 men. We quote from his report for the War 
 Department regarding the meritorious part the 
 67th 0. V. I. had taken in the war. After 
 having given the various campaigns and actions 
 in which it had participated, he says : '■ The 
 good order always observed b}' the 67th, the 
 fidelity with which it discharged all its duties, 
 and the fortitude with which it met all its vicis- 
 situdes, amid shipwreck on the sea, heat, cold 
 and storm by land, and hate in an enemy's 
 country, are worthy of as high place in the 
 archives of the country as its most glorious 
 deeds on the battle-field, than which no regi- 
 ment can claim more glorious. I cannot close 
 without saying I am proud, proid, PROUD of 
 the glorious, triumphant, bully 67th." 
 
 We quote the following from the editorial 
 columns of a leading Ohio paper, as showing 
 in what estimation he was held by his superior 
 officers as a soldier : " Every General under 
 whom ^''oris has served has esteemed him 
 highly as brave and discreet. Gen. Teny, one 
 of his corps commanders. sa3-s Col. Voris, in 
 every action in which he has been engaged, has 
 exhibited fine (lualities as a soldier, and on sev- 
 
 -J 9 
 
 r 
 
793 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 eral occasions has been conspicuous for capacity 
 and courage." The editorial notice of him b}' 
 the leading Ohio papers are fairly represented 
 by what George A. Benedict, editor of the 
 Cleveland Herald, published concerning iiis 
 record : " Among civilians appointed to the 
 service, not a recipient has proved himself more 
 worthy the trust than Gen. Voris. He has 
 sliown industry, perseverance, discretion, talent, 
 and an utter fearlessness of danger." His 
 regiment won a great reputation in the war, 
 much of which was due to the efforts and lead- 
 ership of Gen. Voris. He is not onl3' a brave 
 man in danger, but possesses tliat higher order 
 of courage in an eminent degree — the courage 
 of his convictions. He thoroughly believes in 
 the policy of frank, honorable, fair dealing in 
 all things. He was mustered out of the serv- 
 ice in December, 18G5, after having served in 
 the arm\' fifty and a half months, and then re- 
 turned to Akron and engaged in the active la- 
 bors of his profession, but under great diffi- 
 culties, owing to the disability occasioned by 
 his Fort Wagner wound. 
 
 In November, 1873, he submitted to one of 
 the most remarkable surgical operations in the 
 annals of surgery. His wound had apparently 
 healed. The bullet which caused it was cut in 
 two parts on his sword-belt ring, the smaller 
 part lodging in the circular abdominal muscle, 
 and was removed by the surgeon at the time of 
 the injury ; the other part passed downward 
 and backward in the abdominal cavity, and 
 lodged on the crown of his bladder and became 
 impacted in the walls of that organ until the 
 fall of 1872, when it penetrated them and be- 
 came loose within. Up to this time it had been 
 a source of great annoyance and bodily infirm- 
 it}', the cause not being suspected even by Gen. 
 Voris. Nov it became most torturing, giving 
 constant and almost unendurable pain, so 
 much so that his friends supposed he must 
 speedily die. His physicians did not suspect 
 the nature of his disorder till early in the sum- 
 mer of 1873, too late in the season for a de- 
 sirable operation. He waited, under the advice 
 of liis surgeon, until the ensuing fall, when he 
 underwent the lateral operation in lithotom}^, 
 by which three-fourths of an Enfield rifle shot 
 was extracted, weighing one and one-eighth 
 ounces. The great wonder is that he ever sur- 
 vived the first effects of this shot, and then 
 that he siiould carry it over ten years and have 
 
 his bladder perforated by it, endure the torture 
 and systematic derangement it caused and not 
 die, to say nothing of the surgical operation. 
 Nothing but pluck and an extraordinary con- 
 stitution saved him. His surgeons say that he 
 was the coolest and most self-possessed subject 
 they ever witnessed at the opei'ating table. All 
 the years of his life since the 18th of July, 
 1863, have been weighed down by this injury, 
 the pangs of which are still borne in nerves 
 which never cease to ache. 
 
 In the spring of 1873, he was elected a dele- 
 gate to the late Constitutional Convention, and, 
 though suffering terrible agon}- from his army 
 wound, much of the time of its session, he took 
 a leading part in its deliberations and was one 
 of its most efficient and influential members. 
 He is an ardent Republican, politically, without 
 being partisan, eitber in feeling or action, and a 
 distinguished champion of protection to Ameri- 
 can industry. His late campaign speeches on 
 the protective policy were conceded to !je mas- 
 terly efforts and were widely circulated. As a 
 public speaker he is frank, candid, earnest, elo- 
 quent, never abuses, and always addresses his 
 hearers as if they were intelligent and self-re- 
 specting. He is invariably listened to with in- 
 terested attention. 
 
 As a law3'er, though his education was not 
 what is strictly denominated liberal, was ample 
 for all the requirements of his chosen profes- 
 sion, especially when it is considered that he 
 was endowed by nature with a most vigorous 
 and exceedingly wiry constitution, and a mind 
 whose vigor, tenacity and comprehensiveness 
 compared admirably with his phj'sical organi- 
 zation. What he lacked of ancient classical eru- 
 dition was more than compensated by the care- 
 fulness and thoroughness with which he had 
 mastered the special science that covered the 
 field of his future professional eflforts. It was 
 not long after he came to the bar till he took 
 his position permanentl}- in the foremost rank, 
 composed though it was, of the ablest competi- 
 tors. Whatever he undertook to do, he did 
 with all his might, mind and strength, utterly 
 [ fearless, though by no means regardless of the 
 I degree and character of the opposition to be 
 encountered. In his arguments to the court 
 upon questions of law, he was always clear, 
 logical and concise. In his addresses to the 
 jury, he was equally clear, S3'stematic, and 
 ! cogent in his statements of facts deduced from 
 
 & 
 
-*rr^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 793 
 
 the evidence, and his own inferences and con- 
 clusions therefrom ; and in such efforts he 
 often rose to the ver}^ highest plane of exalted 
 and refined forensic eloquence. At the com- 
 mencement of his professional career, he occa- 
 sionally fell into a style of orator}- somewhat 
 too verbose and ornate, and also into action 
 and gesticulation too continuous and violent ; 
 but increasing years and experience soon ena- 
 bled him to excide such objectionable superflu- 
 ities. In practice, and in his social intercourse 
 with his brethren of the bar, he was alwaj^s 
 courteous and considerate in regard to the feel- 
 ings of others, however much heated in debate. 
 He was truthful insomuch that arguments 
 made with him orally could be relied upon as 
 implicitly as if reduced to writing. In his de- 
 meanor toward the court, he always recogaized 
 its assumed dignity, and accorded correspond- 
 ing treatment. As to deception, chicanery, and 
 tricker}'' of all sorts, he simply despised them, 
 and he equally despised and condemned every 
 professional shyster who practiced or attempted 
 to practice such arts, with a view to thwart the 
 ends of justice. 
 
 EDWIN F. VORIS, Akron, only son of Gen. 
 A. C. Voris, was born in Akron, July 31, 1855. 
 He graduated from the High School in 1872, 
 and entered Buchtel College at its opening, 
 graduating June 30, 1875. In the fall of the 
 same year, he entered the Harvard Law School, 
 and graduated in June, 1877, being admitted to 
 the bar at Cleveland, Ohio, in Oct. 8, of that 
 year. June 8, 1878, he went to St. Louis, and 
 the following month was admitted to the bar 
 in Missouri. He practiced and studied with J. 
 M. & C. H. Krum, of St. Louis, until February 
 1879, when he returned to Akron, and there 
 associated himself with his ftither, since which 
 time he has continued to practice under the 
 firm name of Voris & Voris. October, 1879, 
 he married Miss Lizzie U. Slade, of Columbus, 
 Ohio. 
 
 NICHOLAS EMMONS VANSICKLE, to- 
 bacco merchant, Akron ; one of seven chil- 
 dren, was born in Germantown, N. J., No- 
 vember 10, 1816, to Hemy and Mary (Em- 
 mons) Vansickle, both of whom were na- 
 tives of New Jersey. In 1825, they moved 
 to Ithaca, Tompkins Co., N. Y., where the sub- 
 ject of this sketch engaged in farm labor and 
 blacksmithing with his father, walking two 
 miles to school three months per year. In May, 
 
 Valley Railroad, 
 present tobacco 
 He has taken 
 
 1837, by canal, they moved to Ohio, settling in 
 Bath Township on a farm. After settling in 
 this State, our subject learned to make cloth, 
 and from 1838 to about 1845, with his brother- 
 in-law, Jacob Allen, was engaged in the cloth 
 business, during that period being one of the 
 proprietors of the City Woolen Factory, now 
 occupied as the City Mills. In September, 
 1844, he married Miss Margaret Mathew, of 
 Akron. Of this union there are two children, 
 Ella (now Mrs. E. R. Grant, of Norton) and 
 Dora (now Mrs. N. H. Bassett, of Cleveland). 
 In 1848, he removed to Bedford, Ohio, where 
 he kept a hotel on the old stage line from Cleve- 
 land to Pittsburgh, for a short time, after which 
 he engaged in the railroad business, at which 
 he has been very successful, having built con- 
 siderable portions of several roads. In 1861, 
 he returned to Akron, and for some years fol- 
 lowing, was emploj'ed in the public works 
 of this place. In 1871, he built twenty 
 miles of the Tuscarawas 
 In 1875, he bought his 
 store on Market street. 
 an active part in the Agricultural Society of 
 Summit Count}', having been a member of the 
 Executive Committee and of the Board of Di- 
 rectors of the same. He was formerl}^ a mem- 
 ber of the City Council. He is a stanch 
 Republican, because of which fact he was several 
 times burnt out during the three j-ears he was 
 in Hannibal, Mo. (from 1857 to 1860), the last 
 time at a loss of $30,000, in railroad contracts 
 and buildings. 
 
 H. C. VIELE, County Treasurer, Akron ; 
 was born in Washington Co., N. Y., Oct. 29, 
 1841, and is the second in a family of five 
 children born to Hiram and Abbie M. (McFar- 
 land) Viele. He was a native of Pittstown, 
 Renssalaer Co., N. Y., and was born Sept. 5, 1813. 
 His father was a farmer and he was brought 
 up on a farm until he was 20 years old, when 
 he engaged as a clerk in the stove trade busi- 
 ness at Rochester, Monroe Co., and two years 
 later he became a partner in the business, in 
 which he continued for five yeai's ; he then 
 lived a year in Washington Co., when the family 
 came to Akron (1842), he engaged as a clerk and 
 book-keeper in the Stone Mills and continued 
 there until 1868, when he opened a flour and 
 feed store, in which business he remained un- 
 til his death, July 25, 1874. He was married 
 to Miss Abbie M. McFarland Oct. 17, 1838. 
 
 
794 
 
 BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCIlES: 
 
 She is a native of Salem, Washington Co., N. 
 Y. Of their five children, three are living, viz., 
 H. C, Mary I. and Fannie G. Mrs. Viele is 
 living on the old homestead. Our subject re- 
 ceived his education in the schools of Akron, 
 and at the age of 16, began clerking in the Stone 
 Mills with his ftither for eight or nine years. He 
 then became the agent for the Merchants Union 
 Express Co., and after one year he entered the 
 office of the C, Z. & C, now C, Mt. V. & C. R. 
 R., and served two or three years, when he be- 
 came a pai'tner with his father in the flour and 
 feed business, and after one year he was ap- 
 pointed County Recorder to fill the vacancy of 
 Granville Thorp, deceased. He next served as 
 a clerk in the County Treasurer's office, and 
 continued as such until 1878, when he was 
 elected on the Republican ticket as County 
 Clerk, and was re-elected to the office in 1880. 
 Oct. 16, 1873, he married Miss Libbie F. Mack, 
 a native of New York. They were married at 
 her home, at Flat Bush, Long Island. By the 
 marriage there is one child, viz., Fannie Mack. 
 GEORGE VIALL, Treasurer Middlebury 
 Clay Co., Akron (Sixth Ward); is a native of 
 Middlebury (Sixth Ward of Akron), and was 
 born March 12, 1834 ; is the only child of 
 Thomas C. and Mahala (Atwood) Viall, who 
 were natives of Vermont and Connecticut, and 
 when young came to Ohio with their parents. 
 He built a woolen and saw mill in Middlebury 
 which he conducted until his death in 1834. 
 She settled with her parents in Springfield 
 Township, where her father owned 1,000 acres 
 of land. They were married in 1832. After 
 the death of her husband in 1834, she was again 
 married in 1840, to Nathaniel Munson, and in 
 1845, they moved to New York, but returned 
 about 1850. He was a tanner by trade, and 
 followed the business in Middlebury. He died 
 in New York while on a visit to his relatives 
 about the year 1865. She is still living, and 
 makes h^r home with her son, Leroy Munson, 
 in Tallmadge Township. George Viall lived 
 at home with his mother until he was 1 9 years 
 of age, receiving a common-school education. 
 At the age of 19 he engaged in the grocery 
 business at the old forge north of Middlebury. 
 He followed the business some eighteen months, 
 and then sold out and bought a canal-boat, 
 following boating for three summers, when he 
 again embarked in the grocery business in Mid- 
 dlebury, which he continued for three years, 
 
 then sold out and opened business in Akron, 
 where he did business three years longer. He 
 then sold out and commenced the manu- 
 facture of stoneware in Middlebury, continuing 
 for eight years. He sold out and went into 
 general merchandise in Middlebury, and after 
 nine years again sold out. He was one of the 
 incorporators of the Middlebury Clay Co., of 
 which he is Treasurer, and has also served as 
 Secretary. He has served two terms in the 
 Middlebury Council. He was married Aug. 
 24, 1857, to Miss Maria Reepsomer, a native 
 of Trumbull Co., Ohio. They have had three 
 children, one of whom is living, viz., Nannie L., 
 also an adopted child, Edward Carl. 
 
 JOHN F. VIALL, undertaker, corner Water 
 and River street, Akron ; is a native of Chau- 
 tauqua Co., N. Y. ; was born April 30, 1825, 
 and is the fourth of a family of nine children 
 born to Bennett and Wealthy (Arnold) Viall. 
 They were natives of Vermont and Connecticut, 
 and were married in New York, whither he had 
 gone when a young man, and she with her 
 parents. He farmed there until 1832, when he 
 came to Ohio, and settled in Springfield Town- 
 ship, farming there some two years. He then 
 came to Middlebury and took an active interest 
 in a saw and woolen mill, built by himself and 
 brother Thomas, continuing until the latter's 
 death, after which he continued some three 
 years longer. He then went to Wisconsin, 
 where he remained for two 3'ears, and then 
 returned to Middlebury, and soon after went to 
 Granger Township, in Medina Co., where he 
 followed farming until his death in 1877, aged 
 84 years. She died in 1845. He married a 
 second time to Mrs. S. Hinckley, who died 
 about four years after her marriage. A third 
 marriage was to Mrs. Rhoda Baker ; she sur- 
 vived him about one month. John F. (the 
 subject) lived at home until he was 22. He 
 learned the cabinet-maker's trade with his 
 brother in Middlebury. After three years his 
 brother died, and himself and brother Eli en- 
 gaged in the furniture business under the firm 
 of Viall Brothei's, and continued about ten 
 years. Subject then sold out and worked for 
 G. W. Barber & Co. twelve years, then worked 
 for Kent & Baldwin, woolen machinery manu- 
 facturers, for two 3'ears. He then bought an 
 interest in his brother's cabinet-making busi- 
 ness, continuing three years, when the firm 
 became Viall & Replogle, the latter succeeding 
 
 -Ttl 
 
t^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 795 
 
 Eli Viall, and three years later he sold to Mr. 
 Dewe}', and about three years after John F. 
 Viall became sole proprietor, and quit the fur- 
 niture business and followed the undertaking 
 business since. He was married, Nov. 4, 1847, 
 to Miss Cornelia C. Wheeler, a native of Tall- 
 madge Township. They had seven children, 
 five of whom are living — Francis (now Mrs. 
 Obendorf, of Middlebury), Edwin W. (married, 
 and lives in Middlebury), Laura C. (now Mrs. 
 Charles B. Macey, of Middlebury), Arthur G. 
 and Otis live at home. 
 
 C. VOGT, carriages, Akron. Though identi- 
 fied with the manufacturing interests of Akron 
 for but a few 3-ears, he has already established 
 quite an extensive business. He is the son of 
 John and Susan M. (Seltzer) Vogt, and was 
 born in Rhine Province, Germany, in 1846. In 
 1852, his people emigrated to the United States 
 and settled in Springfield Township, Summit 
 County. There he worked on his father's farm 
 until he was 15 years old, and then he spent 
 one 3'ear in the mines. He began to learn his 
 trade in 1865, after which he spent three 3'ears 
 with E. A. Collins as finisher for him. He then 
 spent one year in Tallmadge. In 1874, he be- 
 gan business in Akron on his own account ; his 
 capital was small, and competition lively, but 
 with a determination to succeed he pushed 
 along, and in 1880 built this present manufact- 
 uring establishment, which is located on the 
 corner of Main and Middlebur}- streets. South 
 Akron, and is of the following dimensions : 22 
 feet front by 136 feet deep, three floors, and 
 blacksmithing and trimming-shop in the rear. 
 The ground floor is the wood-working room, 
 the second is used as a repository and office, 
 and the third is devoted to painting and finish- 
 ing. Mi\ Vogt has taken quite an intei'est in 
 political affairs, though he has been no office- 
 seeker ; however, he was pressed into the service 
 so far as to have served four years as a mem- 
 ber of the City Council from the Fifth Ward. 
 This was b}' the courtesy of his Democratic 
 friends. He was married in 1869 to Miss Mar}' 
 E. McDonald. 
 
 JAMES VIALL, Superintendent Hill Sewer 
 Pipe Co., Akron (Sixth Ward) ; is a native of 
 Akron, Summit Co., Ohio. Was born Jan. 15, 
 1828, and is the sixth of nine children born to 
 James and Sarah (Hubbard) Viall, natives of 
 Vermont, where the}' were married, after which 
 they came to Ohio (about 1822) and settled in 
 
 Summit Co. Here he followed for a time char- 
 coal burning, and later he became a contractor 
 on the canal. After its completion, he engaged 
 as bridge-builder, and built many of the bridges 
 in this county. He died in February, 1837 ; 
 his wife lived in the vicinity until her death, 
 in the summer of 1880, at the age of 84 years. 
 James (the subject), lived at home until 22 
 years of age, receiving but a limited education 
 at the district schools. In 1841, he went on the 
 canal, following the same until 1865, the first two 
 years as driver, and in 1843 — then but 15 ^ears 
 old — -began as steersman, continuing as such as 
 long as he remained on the canal, running be- 
 tween Pittsburgh and Cleveland. He embarked, 
 in 1865, in the manufacturing of stoneware, 
 buying the business of Wm. Owens, which was 
 located in Springfield Township, and has con- 
 ducted the same ever since. About the year 
 1876, he sold a half-interest to George Markle, 
 under the firm name of Viall & Markle. He 
 also became interested, in 1865, with J. B. 
 Woods, in the mining and manufacturing of 
 clay, which he has since continued, and which 
 has been incorporated into the Middlebury Clay 
 Co. In March, 1873, lie, in company with Mr. 
 Hill and others, incorporated the Hill Sewer 
 Pipe Co., of which he is Superintendent. He 
 was also engaged for several 3'ears, with Moses 
 J. Huggins, in the grocery business in Middle- 
 bury, and for a time were the only representa- 
 tives in that line in the place. He was married, 
 Jan. 29, 1850, to Miss Mary Davis, a native of 
 Middlebur}', and daughter of Benjamin and 
 Mary Davis — the former deceased, Mrs. Davis 
 still living with her daughter, aged 86 years. 
 Mr. Viall served as Councilman several terms 
 in Middlebury before its incorporation. He 
 has always been Republican in politics. 
 
 W. W.^ WARNER, abstracter of titles, etc., 
 Akron ; was born in Springfleld Township, in 
 this count}-, Feb. 28, 1848, and is tlie eighth of 
 nine children born to John and Mary (Ettie) 
 Warner. His parents were natives of Connec- 
 ticut, and came to Oliio about 1839 and settled 
 in Portage Township, Summit Co., Ohio. His 
 father was a worker in iron, and was principally 
 engaged as forgeman after coming to Ohio. 
 Aug. 6, 1863, he was drowned in the Cuyahoga 
 River at Cuyahoga Falls. His mother died 
 Dec. 3, 1859. Mr. Warner lived at home until 
 the death of his father, when he went to live 
 with Mr. Charles Curtiss, working on his farm 
 
 Is 
 
796 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 for a 3'ear, when, Mr. Curtiss selling out, 3^oung 
 Warner remained with the purchaser of the 
 farm. After a year, he went East, finishing the 
 education begun in the district schools and 
 those at the " Falls," in the Quaker Citj^ Busi- 
 ness College of Philadelphia. After an absence 
 of two yeai'S, he returned to Cuyahoga Falls 
 and engaged as book-keeper for Hanford & 
 Yeamans, and Hanford Brothers, who succeeded 
 the former. The following year, he came to 
 Akron and served as Deputy Recorder for 
 James A. Lantz, and later, for Mr. Thorp, con- 
 tinuing some two years in all. In 1871, he be- 
 gan the business of preparing abstracts of 
 titles. In 1874, he added the feature of real 
 estate and loan agency to his business, forming 
 a partnership with E. C. Ruggles, under the 
 firm name of Ruggles & Warner. Two years 
 later, the partnership was dissolved, Mr. War- 
 ner continuing the business alone to the pres- 
 ent. April 15, 1869, he married Miss Annie 
 M. Yeamans, a native of Philadelphia ; she 
 died Oct. 27, 18 — , leaving two children — Ar- 
 thur Lee and Harry Albert, who were twins. 
 Oct. 25, 1877, he married Miss Alice G. Little- 
 ton, a native of Cleveland. There is one child 
 b}' this marriage — (xeorge Littleton. 
 
 AARON WAdONBR, Auditor, Akron ; was 
 born on his father's farm in Franklin Township, 
 Sept. 19, 184:4. His early years were spent on 
 the farm, and in the schools of the neighbor- 
 hood, until the fall of 1862, when he enlisted in 
 the army, joining Company B, 6th 0. V. C. 
 Soon after his enlistment, he was appointed 
 Corporal, and later, a Sergeant, finally reaching 
 the rank of Second Lieutenant in command of 
 the company. He was mustered out as Second 
 Lieutenant in 1865. This regiment was with 
 Sheridan in the Potomac Army, took part in 
 the battle of the Wilderness, on the raid to 
 Richmond, at Appomattox Court House, and 
 all the engagements of the army. At Aldie he 
 was wounded, and for several months was dis- 
 abled for active service. Returning from the 
 army, he came to Akron and engaged as sales- 
 man in the dry goods establishment of Over- 
 holser, Keller & Co. After serving in this ca- 
 pacity for some eighteen months, he engaged as 
 their book-keeper, continuing for four and a 
 half years, when the firm dissolved. In 1872, 
 he entered the City Bank as Teller, continuing 
 there until 1880. In the fall of this year, he 
 was elected on the Republican ticket as Auditor, 
 
 entering upon his duties in the following No- 
 vember. April 30, 1868, he married Miss 
 Amanda Smith, a native of Summit County ; 
 by the marriage there have been born two chil- 
 dren, viz. : Mabel Blanche and George Edward. 
 
 DR. JOHN WEIMER, physician, Akron ; is 
 a native of Alsace, France, and was born Aug. 
 23, 1813. His father was a farmer. Our sub- 
 ject received an academic course of study, and 
 at the age of 19 set out for America. On his 
 arrival he felt the necessity of being able to 
 speak the language of the new land. He en- 
 gaged his services to a Yankee family, with 
 whom he remained several months ; then en- 
 tered a store in Buflfalo, N. Y., as clerk, and 
 after about three months, while in Ohio on bus- 
 iness, he met Dr. Underwood, of Baltimore, 
 Stark Co., and arranged with him to read med- 
 icine, under his instructions, which he began to 
 do in the latter part of the year 1832 ; two 
 years later, he read one year at Canton with Dr. 
 Breisacher, and in April of 1836, he began to 
 practice at Uniontown. In 1847, he removed 
 to Akron, where he has practiced since. The 
 Doctor is a member of the Summit Count}- Med- 
 ical Society. In September, 1839, he married 
 Miss Catharine Christy, a native of Springfield 
 Township, Summit Co., Ohio. She died in Jan- 
 uary, 1875. There were four children and but 
 one is living, viz., Mrs Valentine Hay, of Som- 
 erset Co., Penn. Dec. 25, 1879, he married 
 Miss Mary C. Miller, a native of Stark Co., 
 Ohio. 
 
 CHARLES WEBSTER, President of the 
 Webster, Camp & Lane Machine Company, 
 Akron, was born in Litchfield, Connecticut, 
 Sept. 3, 1810, and is a son of Samuel H. and 
 Elizabeth (Knowles) Webster, natives of Hart- 
 ford, Conn. When Charles was 3 years old 
 his parents removed to Hartford, where they 
 lived some twenty-three 3'ears. His education 
 was confined to a limited attendance at the dis- 
 trict schools. At the age of 16, he (subject) 
 was bound to the carpenter's trade until of age. 
 After this he worked one year in a manufactorj'^ 
 of window blinds. He then followed his trade 
 until 1835, having established his residence in 
 Massachusetts. He was married, April 30, 
 1833. to Miss Martha A. Atherton, a descend- 
 ant of the Rev. Hope Atherton, who came 
 over in the Mayflower. The fruit of this mar- 
 riage was eight children, but one of whom is 
 now living — Isabella, Mrs. Gage, of Akron. In 
 
 "Tic 
 

 CITY OF AKROK. 
 
 797 
 
 1835, Mr. W. came to Ohio with his family in 
 a one-horse wagon, in company with Charles 
 Merriman and famih'. The}' left Dalton, Mass., 
 May 5, 1835. and were fifteen days on the 
 journe}', arriving at Matteson on the 20th. He 
 worked for a time on a hotel for Mr. Merriman, 
 after which he visited Akron, settling on a 
 tract of land belonging to Merriman. He built 
 a cabin on it, but the following spring he moved 
 to the then village of Akron, where he has ever 
 since resided. He worked at his trade, and at 
 millwrighting until 1848, when on the 15th of 
 May, in company with Gr. D. Bates and James 
 Taplin, he formed a partnership under the firm 
 name of Gr. D. Bates & Co., which continued 
 until 1869, when a stock company was formed, of 
 which Mr. Webster is President. Their business 
 is the building of stationary engines and boilers, 
 and mining, milling and pottery machinery, 
 also of general machine work. Mr. Webster 
 has been identified with this business ever 
 since its establishment in 1848. When he came 
 to Ohio, he was in veiy limited circumstances, 
 and has accumulated his means by his own in- 
 dustry. 
 
 T. a. WILLIAMS, of Williams & Ab- 
 bott, stoves, tinware, etc., Middlebury (Sixth 
 Ward) ; was born in Durham, England, May 2, 
 1843. In 1846, his parents, Rev. Michael and 
 Mary (Wilkinson) Williams, came to America, 
 and resided successively in New York City, 
 Paterson. N. J., Johnstown, Penn., Alexan- 
 dria, Ind., Pittsburgh, Penn., New Castle, Penn., 
 when they remained at the latter place several 
 years. While there the subject went to Johns- 
 town and learned the tinner's trade, and, at the 
 beginning of the late war, enlisted in Co. K, 
 (Johnstown Zouaves) 3d Penn.V. I. ; served three 
 months, when the command re-enlisted for three 
 years, and again, at the close of the term, as 
 veterans. In the first enlistment for three 
 years, his command became Co. A, 54th Penn. V. 
 I. In the re-enlistment as veterans, Mr. Will- 
 iams was commissioned as First Lieutenant of 
 his company. He participated in the battles 
 of the first Bull Run, Petersburg, New Mar- 
 ket, Lynchburg, Winchester, Antietam, Cedar 
 Creek, Fishei''s Hill, at Appomattox, and all 
 other engagements of his command. He was 
 in the army from the first battle of Bull Run 
 to the surrender at Appomattox ; was wounded 
 twice in the battle of Lynchburg, and was con- 
 fined some two weeks in hospital, when he re- 
 
 joined his regiment ; was again wounded at 
 Winchester, but kept with his command leather 
 than go into a hospital. His regiment was 
 taken prisoners a few days before the surren- 
 der, and were afterward paroled. They were 
 in full view when the surrender took place. He 
 was discharged at Harrisburg, and afterward 
 came to Ohio, his father being on a circuit at 
 the time in Twinsburg Township, Summit Co. 
 T. Gr. (subject), lived in Twinsburg, and, about 
 1866, went to Cleveland and worked at his 
 trade, serving as foreman of Parrish & Knight's 
 shop for four years. He then engaged in busi- 
 ness for himself at Atwater, Portage Co., and 
 one year later came to Middlebury, where he 
 engaged in business and has since liA'ed. He 
 was married, in 1878, to Miss Julia A. Koon, a 
 native of Springfield Township. By this mar- 
 riage they have three children, viz., Maud D., 
 May and Archibald. His parents came to 
 Ohio from Pennsylvania, and his father has 
 preached in Ohio since, until recently. He and 
 his wife now live at New Philadelphia, Ohio, 
 retired. 
 
 S. C. WILLIAMSON, Probate Judge, Ak- 
 ron ; was born in Randolph, Portage Co., Ohio, 
 Aug. 18, 1837, and resided there until 1854, 
 when he entered the preparator}^ school at 
 Hudson, Ohio, and, in 1860, graduated from 
 the Western Reserve College. In the spring of 
 1861, he enlisted in Co. G., 19th 0. V. I., and 
 served three months, when he re- enlisted (Octo- 
 ber, 1861) in the 18th U. S. I. He was ap- 
 pointed Sergeant, and served in this capacity 
 until the battle of Stone River, where he was 
 wounded and was confined to the hospital for 
 three months. After a leave of absence of 
 several months, having been promoted to the 
 rank of Second Lieutenant, he was assigned to 
 duty at Detroit and Grrand Rapids as muster- 
 ing and disbursing officer, and subsequently 
 was promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant, 
 and, in 1864, he was ordered before the Retir- 
 ing Board at Wilmington, Del., and retired 
 with the rank of First Lieutenant, and was next 
 ordered to Missouri on duty in the Provost 
 Marshal General's Department, serving as as- 
 sistant until the closing of the office ; he was 
 then assigned to duty as Post Adjutant and 
 Inspecting Officer at Benton Barracks, and 
 later, at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., as Assistant 
 Commissioner of Musters, where he served 
 until January, 1867, when he was commis- 
 
 ^F 
 
\1 
 
 798 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 sioned Captain of the 42d U. S. I., and was 
 stationed with the regiment at Hart's Ishmd 
 and Madison Barracks, N. Y., until the consoli- 
 dation of his regiment with the 6th at Fort 
 Gibson, Indian Territory, where he was placed 
 on waiting orders, and resumed the reading of 
 law with Tibbals & McKinne\', completing a 
 course interrupted by the war, and was ad- 
 mitted to the bar in 1870, and began practice 
 in company with F. S. Hanford, and after a year 
 or two practiced alone. In the fall of 1875, he 
 was elected Probate Judge on the Republican 
 ticket, and was re-elected in 1878. 
 
 J. H. WISE, deceased, was a native of 
 Green Township, Summit Co., Ohio. Ho was 
 born March 24, 1821. His father, George H. 
 Wise, was a merchant of Greentown. Our sub- 
 ject was raised in his native township Dec. 14, 
 1853. He married Miss Catharine Middlekauff, 
 a native of Hagerstown, Washington Co., Md. 
 At the time of the marriage, and for five years 
 thereafter, he was engaged in the mercantile 
 business in Greentown, with his brother-in-law. 
 In 1858, he sold out his interest in the busi- 
 ness and came to Akron, superintending the 
 farm he had bought just north of the city. In 
 18G1, he engaged as agent for the United 
 States Express Company at Akron, and con- 
 tinued in that employ for four years, and next 
 clerked in the Buckeye Works; he was in- 
 terested in and became Secretary and Treas- 
 urer of the Akron Straw Board Company, but 
 sold his interest after one year, after which he 
 served as assignee for a number of concerns. 
 By the marriage, there were three children, all 
 since deceased. Their son, W. W., was Quar- 
 termaster of Co. L, 2d 0. V. I., and died in the 
 service of his country at Ft. Scott, Kan. Mr. 
 Wise died March 30, 1877. Mrs. Wise has con- 
 continued her residence in the old homestead 
 in Akron. 
 
 ANDREW WILSON,* a descendant of a 
 family of martyrs. The late Andrew Wilson, 
 of Stow Corners, was a man of sterling worth 
 and integrity, withal a just man in all his rela- 
 tions. He was born Oct. 23, 1799, at Acworth, 
 N. H., and as he was known to state, he lived 
 during the life-time of Washington, Washington 
 dying^the 14th of December, 1799. Mr. Wil- 
 son, with his father's family, moved from Ac- 
 worth, N. H., to Guernsey Co., Ohio, in 1815, in 
 an ox-wagon, driving their stock before them. 
 
 *Akron Beacon. 
 
 Their nearest neighbor was three miles distant, 
 and they were obliged, on one occasion, to car- 
 ry a fire-brand the three miles to start a fire. 
 He left his father's home in the wilderness, 
 bought his time until he became of age, and 
 came to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1819, and was em- 
 ployed with Judge Kingsl)ury in the grading of 
 the streets around the public square, and in 
 clearing the forests in the county roads, when 
 Cleveland was but a hamlet with but a score of 
 houses. On two occasions he returned to New 
 Hampshire, walking all the way there and back 
 again to Cleveland in mid-winter. He consid- 
 ered the soil of no consequence, which he could 
 have purchased at $3 per acre, in the heart of 
 the town, but instead purchased a large farm 
 a few miles east, in Warrensville, paying more 
 for it — believing it to be the best investment — 
 where he resided for forty-two years, cleared 
 olf the native forest, built buildings, and made 
 a beautiful home. He held many offices of 
 trust and honor. He married in 1829, Miss 
 Lurancy Thomas, of Hudson, formerly from 
 York State, and reared a family of eleven chil- 
 dren, of whom eight survive him. In 1866, he 
 sold his farm, and located at Stow Corners, Sum- 
 mit Co., where he resided to the time of his 
 death. His was a famih^ of noble lineage. As 
 far back as 1606, the family of John Wilson 
 and many others in Scotland were Presbyterians 
 and come-outers from the Church of England, 
 and were subjected to many mart3Tdoms and 
 persecutions for religion's sake. It is related 
 of the family that there was a grandmother and 
 granddaughter, both by the name of Margaret 
 Wilson, who were bound to stakes at low water 
 tide in the sea, and were permitted to perish at 
 high tide with others who would not recant, and 
 thus died in their faith. The name Margaret 
 has been perpetuated, in commemoration, in 
 each generation down to the present. The fam- 
 ilj' subsequently emigrated to Londonderry, 
 Ireland, and from there to this country, in 1718, 
 and located with others in New Hampshire, and 
 named the town Londonderry, after the city of 
 their adoption in Ireland. In William Cullen 
 Bryant's recent history of the United States, 
 page 138, Vol. Ill, we quote the narrative of 
 their history. He sa^^s : 
 
 "The emigration of some Scotch Presbyterians 
 to New Hampshire, in 1718, while Shute was Gov- 
 ernor, w^as of much importance. The people who 
 undertook tobetter their condition in America, were 
 
-^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 799 
 
 descendants of the colonists who had been trans- 
 ferred by James the First to the North of Ireland, 
 where their condition, from penal laws against Prot- 
 estants and from local taxation, had become intol- 
 erable. Arrived first in Boston, they dispersed in 
 various directions; but sixteen of the families hold- 
 ing together, settled upon lands a few miles north- 
 east of Haverhill, in New Hampshire. The disputed 
 title of the land gave them some trouble, but under 
 the Governor'' s protection they remained upon the 
 spot of their choice, and, being joined from time to 
 time by other families, they called their place Lon- 
 donderry in 1723. Their minister, MacGrregor, in- 
 formed Gov. Shute how offensive it was to them to 
 be confounded with the Irish, against whom they 
 had fought always in the defense of Protestantism; 
 but the New Hampshire people were jealous of the 
 new-comers, who went into quiet possession of the 
 soil at a time when their own lauds were threatened 
 with litigation. The Presbyterians did the province 
 the good service of introducing the manufacture of 
 linen by the .spinning-wheel and the cultivation of 
 the potato. The vegetable was first planted at And- 
 over, whose inhabitants began by boiling the balls 
 instead of the bulbs, wondering when the result was 
 served up at their simple tables, that a potato was 
 considered an esculent. The prosperity attending 
 the new colonists led other people to petition for 
 grants of land." 
 
 Andrew Wilson's grandfathers, for six gen- 
 erations in direct descent, were named John 
 Wilson. His own grandfather, John Wilson, 
 was an original settler at Londonderry, N. H., 
 and his own father was a triplet, and was so 
 small that he was placed in a quart cup at 
 birth, but subsequently grew to be a very large 
 man, and was known as "Big John Wilson," 
 to distinguish him from another family, who 
 were known as "Little Wilsons.'" "Big John 
 Wilson's '' family consisted of twenty-one chil- 
 dren, all living to grow up and meet together 
 at one time. Andrew Wilson was one of the 
 oldest sons. The family descendants are now 
 numbered by the hundreds, and are scattered 
 from New Hampshire to Oregon. He lived a 
 serene and happy life, and died at the ripe old 
 age of 81 years and 2 months, Dec. 23, 1880. 
 He was a stanch Whig and Kepublican in pol- 
 itics during life. In later ^^ears a member of 
 the Disciples' Church where he resided. His 
 wife passed on before him in 1856 to the re- 
 ward of a faithful life. Some years later, Mr 
 Wilson married for the second time, Mrs. Nan- 
 cy Lindse}', a sister of his first wife, who sur- 
 vives him." Andrew Wilson's children were : 
 first, Harriet, who married Austin B. Burdick, 
 and resides at Grand Rapids, Mich.; Nancy W., 
 married Lansford W. Perry, of the lumber firm 
 
 of Woods, Perry & Co., Cleveland, Ohio ; the 
 first son, Emery, died in infancy ; Julie E., 
 married William H. Hower, junior partner of 
 the firm of Hower & Son, dry goods, Cleveland, 
 Ohio ; died Aug. 25, 1871, aged 37 years, leav- 
 ing one child, a daughter. Birdie E. Hower ; 
 Andrew J., farmer and blacksmith, a soldier 
 for three years, on the Union side in the great 
 rebellion ; married Miss Laurie Lindsay, and re- 
 sides on his farm in Stow. Hiram Y. resides in 
 Cleveland, and is a member of the lumber firm 
 of Fisher, Wilson & Co. ; married Miss Alma 
 Fisher. Abbie A., married E. C. Simpson. Chief 
 of the Akron Fire Department (see biography) ; 
 also connected as foreman of the machine de- 
 partment of the Buckeye Mower & Reaper 
 Works, and resides in Akron. John W. was ac- 
 cidentall}' killed by the fall of a tree at his 
 home, then in Warrensville, Ohio, at the age of 
 15 years ; Solon N., lumber dealer at Akron, 
 where he resides (see biography) ; Mary Z., 
 married Daniel Tuttle, and resides at Grass Val- 
 ley, Cal.; Mattie L., married Harpin A. Bots- 
 ford, a brother of Solon N. Wilson's first wife ; 
 resides at Cleveland, Ohio. 
 
 JOHN J. WAGONER, President Wadsworth, 
 and Manager Franklin Coal Companj-, Akron ; 
 was born in Franklin Township, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, Dec. 17, 1832, and is the fifth child in a 
 family of nine children, born to George and his 
 second wife Rebecca (Sowers) Wagoner. They 
 were natives of Cumberland and Lancaster 
 Counties, Penn. George Wagoner was a farmer. 
 He came to Ohio in 1812, and settled near Canal 
 Fulton, in Stark Co.. where he lived about four 
 years, during which time he lost his first wife. 
 Her maiden name was Sarah Rhodes. By the 
 marriage, there were four children. In 1816, 
 he came to Franklin Township, where he bought 
 some wild land, which he improved, and lived 
 upon until his death, on April 23, 1873. The 
 deceased was a member of the Lutheran Church, 
 in the affairs of which he took an active interest. 
 He served his township as Treasurer for sixteen 
 consecutive 3'ears ; was well known and re- 
 spected by all. Mrs. Wagoner, his second wife, 
 survives him. She is living on the old home- 
 stead, and is now (1881) past 77. She is a daugh- 
 ter of Henry Sowers, Sr., who settled in Frank 
 lin Township about the year 1814. He was a 
 blacksmith, and followed his trade in Man- 
 chester. John J. Wagoner received a common- 
 school course of study. At the age of 19, he 
 
 rp* 
 
800 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL .SKETCHES: 
 
 began teaching in East Liberty, and tlie follow- 
 ing spring he came to Akron, where be engaged 
 as a clerk with J. D. & J. M. Edson, with whom 
 he remained until 1855, when he formed a part- 
 nership with John Sisler, and conducted a gen- 
 eral merchandise business at Manchester, this 
 county, until 1862, when he sold his interest 
 and returned to Akron, where, in the following 
 October, he engaged in the mercantile business 
 with iMr. Jacob Wise, and later became first a 
 partner, and, upon the formation of a stock 
 company, the Secretary and Treasurer of the 
 J. F. Seiberling Company, of Akron, manufact- 
 urers of the Excelsior Reapers and Mowers, 
 which position he held until 1874, when he 
 withdrew, and purchased an interest in the 
 Wadsworth Coal Company, of which he became 
 President. In February, 1880, his son, C. F. 
 Wagoner, purchased the Franklin Coal Mine, 
 of which his father is General Manager. Nov. 
 8, 1855, he married Miss Catharine Weaver, a 
 native of Fi'anklin Township. By the marriage, 
 there are two children, viz., Charles F. and 
 Carrie May. 
 
 S. N. WILSON, lumber dealer and contractor, 
 Akron ; was born in Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, Oct. 
 19, 1843, and is the sixth of eight children born 
 to Andrew and Lurancy (Thomas) Wilson. Our 
 subject was brought up on the farm. He re- 
 ceived an academic course of study ; also at- 
 tended one year at Oberlin, which place he left 
 to enlist in the 150th 0. V. I., in which com- 
 mand he served about four months, and was at 
 Washington, D. C, when attacked by the rebel 
 Gen. Early. He returned home from the army, 
 and took the management of the home farm, 
 owning a place on becoming of age, when he 
 went to Kent, and conducted the lumber busi- 
 ness three years. He then came to Akron, 
 where he has conducted the business since. 
 Jan. 15, 1868, he married Miss Alice E. Bot- 
 sord, a native of Middlebury, now Akron, Ohio. 
 She died Jan. 14, 1870. June 20, 1872, he 
 married Miss Nannie C. Albertson, a native of 
 Millersburg, Ohio. They have three children, 
 viz., Lena L., Ralph B. and Ross A. 
 
 B. F. WHEELER, grain buyer, Akron; 
 was born in Salem, Mass., June 9, 1808, and 
 is a son of Oliver and Hannah (Ashby) Wheel- 
 er, who were natives of New Hampshire and 
 Massachusetts, and were married in Salem. He 
 removed to Rochester, N. Y., about the year 
 1817, and, some ten years later, to Cattaraugus 
 
 Co., where he engaged in cabinet manufacture, in 
 connection with his trade of millwright, and 
 lived there until his death, in about 1856. Mrs. 
 Wheeler then removed to Akron, Ohio, and 
 lived with her son, B. F. Wheeler, until her 
 death, in 1865. Our subject lived at home 
 eleven years ; he then went into a drug store 
 for two years, after which he went to Rochester 
 and clerked in a dry goods store for six years. 
 He then returned to Cattaraugus Co., and 
 worked at the cabinet business for a time. He 
 was married, July 11, 1829, to Miss Eliza Miles, 
 a native of Vermont, and, in 1836, he 
 moved with his family to Ohio, and settled at 
 Franklin Mills, now Kent, Portage Co. In the 
 spring of 1840, he moved to Akron, and 
 worked at painting several years, and then en- 
 gaged in the grocery business, being the second 
 in that line in the place. He was located where 
 the Empire House now stands, and followed 
 the business some ten 3'ears. After clerking 
 for his son-in-law a few years, he went into the 
 grain trade. During the war, he bought and 
 shipped grain, and, after its close, he engaged 
 as buyer for Mr. F. Schumacher, and has con- 
 tinued in that capacity ever since. Mr. 
 Wheeler was formerl}' a Democrat, and. upon 
 the enactment of the Fugitive Slave Law, he 
 became a Free-Soiler, then a Whig, and finally 
 a Republican, upon the organization of that 
 party. His wife died in 1844 ; she was the 
 mother of five children, three of whom are now 
 living — Sarah, Mrs. John Starr, of Akron ; 
 Julia, Mrs. M. Simpson, of Michigan, and Henry 
 F. Mr. W. was again married, October 30, 
 1845, to Miss Catharine F. Butts, a native of 
 Columbiana Co., Ohio. Three children is the 
 result of this marriage — OUie L., now Mrs. W. 
 H. Thompson, of Meadville, Penn.; Minnie E., 
 now Mrs. M. R. Hayne, of Akron, and Harry 
 E., of Akron. In 1851, Mr. W. joined Summit 
 Lodge, No. 50, I. 0. 0. F., and has been an 
 active member ever since ; has been Perma- 
 nent Secretary of his Lodge for the past fif- 
 teen years. He is a Past Grand and a Past 
 Patriarch, and was Representative to Grand 
 Encampment three times. He has been an 
 active worker in the temperance cause for over 
 half a centur}' , and was the first man in " old 
 Cattaraugus " to attempt to raise a house with- 
 out the use of liquor. 
 
 JOHN WILLSON, livery, feed and sale sta- 
 ble, Middlebury; is a native of Staffordshire, En- 
 
 ^ 
 
'-^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON, 
 
 801 
 
 gland, and was born Nov. 15, 1834. He lived 
 at home, engaged in different kinds of labor, 
 until he was 23 years of age. His education 
 was wholly' original, never having attended 
 school a da}' in his life, except Sabbath school. 
 At 23, he began, in a small way, trading in 
 green grocei'ies at his house, and also using a 
 wagon in same business, which he continued 
 several years, when he went to work in a brick- 
 yard, and, in 1862, he came to America, to ac- 
 complish which he borrowed one-half of his 
 passage money. He landed in Quebec, Can- 
 ada, and soon located in Toronto, where, for a 
 time, he worked as a hostler. He then went 
 to Meadville, Penn.. and worked on the Broad 
 Gauge Railroad, and, in the summer of 1863, 
 came to Akron, where he has since lived. 
 He first commenced work in the potteries by 
 the day, and afterward began teaming ; next 
 ran an omnibus for awhile, and finally engaged 
 in his present business. In the summer of 
 1880, his stable was burned, and, the following 
 fall, he erected his present brick stable, 1125 
 Market street, which is 35x100 feet, and two 
 stories high. He keeps from nine to twelve 
 horses in livery, and six at teaming and job- 
 bing. In the summer of 1849, he was married 
 to Miss Esther M. Cooper, a native of Stafford- 
 shire, England. There have been nine chil- 
 dren, six of whom are living — Henry, Eliza- 
 beth (now Mrs. James White, of Akron,) 
 Greorge, Albert Edward and Francis. Mr. 
 Wilson has always been Republican in poli- 
 tics. 
 
 ALANSON WORK, Vice President of Ak- 
 ron Rubber Works, Akron. Alanson Work, 
 Sr., was a native of Connecticut, and moved to 
 Illinois. He was one among the first of the 
 Anti-slavery men. He was imprisoned, in 1841, 
 for helping slaves to escape, the sentence being 
 for twelve years, l)ut he was pardoned out after 
 three years, and with one George Thompson, 
 went as a missionary to Africa. Alanson Work, 
 Jr., was born at Quincy, 111. on March 1, 1842, 
 and when he was about 5 years old his par- 
 ents moved to Middletown, Conn., thence to 
 Hartford, where he attended public schools 
 until he was 17, spending one year in Trinity 
 College. When 19, he was employed in the 
 Metropolitan Bank of New York, and continued 
 seven years. In 1868, he moved to Cincin- 
 nati, Ohio, and, as partner in the firm of Cham- 
 berlain, Gibbs & Co., engaged in building rail- 
 
 road bridges and railroads, for two years, and 
 when he went to Rhode Island and took a con- 
 tract to rebuild the bridges on the Providence 
 & Wooster Railroad, putting up fourteen double 
 track bridges in about one year. Next he took 
 charge of a fire engine manufactory, at Provi- 
 dence, R. I. He was Superintendent of the 
 Allen Fire Department Supply Co. for five 
 years, and during that time took out several 
 patents on fire engine supplies, one now adopted 
 by tiiC United States, being Work's Patent 
 Coupling. Januaiy 1, 1879, he became Vice 
 President and Superintendent of the Akron 
 Rubber Works, where he has since been em- 
 ployed. He was married, in 1865, to Miss 
 Henrietta Lane, of Brooklyn, L. I. She bore 
 him seven children. 
 
 JOHN WOLF, merchant, Akron. Christo- 
 pher Wolf, physician, a native of Bavaria, was 
 the father of John Wolf, and died thi'ee 3-ears 
 after the birth of our subject, leaving him with 
 no means other than sucli as his own ingenuity 
 might invent. John was born in Town Selb, 
 Bavaria, Jan. 25, 1837. He attended German 
 schools until he was 14 years of age. In 1851, 
 he came to the United States, reaching Aurora, 
 Ind., in December ; at this place he clerked in 
 a store until 1853, in September of which 3'ear 
 he came to Akron, and here clerked nine years, 
 two of them with G. T. McCurdy, and seven for 
 M. W. Henry. In 1862, he became a partner 
 in the firm of M. W. Henrj' & Co., which part- 
 nership continued seven years ; he sold out in 
 1869. In the spring of 1 870, he became a mem- 
 ber of the firm of Wolf, Church & Beck, in the 
 Academy of Music building, remaining there 
 five years, when they moved to their present 
 place, and have since done a large wholesale 
 and retail dry goods and notion business. Oct. 
 25, 1864, he married Miss Anna Howe, of Ak- 
 ron, daughter of Richard Howe, one of the pio- 
 neers of Akron. He is a Director of the Sav- 
 ings & Loan Association, and was one of the 
 members of the firm of Taplin, Rice & Co., and 
 a director and stock-holder in the same. 
 
 WILLIAM WATERS, foreman puddling 
 department Akron rolling-mill, Akron ; son of 
 John and Ann (William) Waters ; was born in 
 Monmouthshire, South Wales, Dec. 27, 1823. 
 At 14, he entered a rolling-mill as helper in the 
 British Iron Works of Monmouthshire, and 
 worked at different places as puddler. In 
 1846, he came to the United States, and located 
 
 
jvj: 
 
 ■A> 
 
 802 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 at Troj-, N. Y., where he worked in a rolling- 
 mill some three 3'ears, and then came to Porae- 
 roy. Meigs Co., Ohio, and was employed in the 
 same manner four years. He then moved to 
 New Castle, Penn., remaining until 1860, and 
 moved thence to Niles, Trumbull Co., Ohio, 
 until 1864, returning to New Castle, remaining 
 until 1867, in each of these places being em- 
 ployed in rolling mills. In April, 1867, he 
 came to Akron, and, at the opening of the 
 mills here engaged as puddler, until December, 
 1869, when he was made foreman of that 
 department, a position he still retains, having 
 now about ninety men in his department. Oct. 
 3, 1843, he married Miss Ann Rodrick, of Mon- 
 mouthshire, South Wales. He has eight chil- 
 dren living, viz., Eliza, Thomas, Lewis, Ann, 
 Mary, Kate, John and James. He has been a 
 member of the M. E. Church for twenty years. 
 
 LORENZO D. WATTERS, lawyer, Akron, 
 son of Hiram and Elizabeth (Croninger) Wat- 
 ters, was born Oct. 4, 1855, in Carroll, Fairfield 
 Co., Ohio. When he was 14 3'ears old, his par- 
 ents came to Akron, where he attended public 
 schools until 1872, when he entered Buchtel 
 College, at its opening, remaining until 1875, 
 when he spent one year with his father in the 
 construction of a mill. In the spring of 1877, 
 he entered the law office of J. J. Hall, for the 
 purpose of studying the profession, and was 
 admitted to the bar March 17, 1879, when he 
 at once formed a partnership with Mr. Hall, 
 and has since been in active practice under the 
 firm name of Hall & Watters. He is one of 
 Akron's best lawyers. 
 
 JAMES WILDES, Akron ; son of Patrick 
 and Mar^' (Grough) Wildes was born in Kin- 
 derhook, N. Y., Dec. 25, 1838. His parents 
 were born near Dublin, Ireland ; when James 
 was but a child they came to Portage Co., near 
 Ravenna. Patrick was Superintendent of the 
 Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal from Breakneck to 
 the junction of the Ohio Canal at Lock 1, and 
 for about four 3'ears James assisted him, after 
 which he went to California by the Panama 
 route, and remained about four 3'ears. He 
 worked in the gold mines for some time, and 
 afterward in the copper mines of Calaveras 
 Co. He returned b3' water route in July, 1864, 
 and located with his father on a fruit farm in 
 Berrien Co., Mich., near St. Joseph, remaining 
 a year, after which he came to Kent and entered 
 the employ of the Atlantic & Great Western 
 
 Railroad Compan3' as fireman and mechanic. 
 In 1868, he left that position and came to 
 Akron, where he laid the track of the Brewster 
 Railroad, reaching from Main street to the 
 mines of Coventr3' Township, a distance of 
 some five miles. He remained in the employ of 
 Brewster & Sons as manager and engineer for 
 ten 3'ears. In 1878, he opened a coal office on 
 Mill street, where he was located until 1879, 
 when he became the agent for 0. S. Jacobs, 
 dealer in coal, and has since continued, doing a 
 large business. November, 1864, he married 
 Miss Lizzie Callahan, of Tallmadge, Ohio, and 
 there are two sons and two daughters of their 
 mai'riage. He was elected Street Commis- 
 sioner of Akron in April, 1881, b^^ a large 
 majoritv. 
 
 GEOKGE I. WRIGHT, lawyer, Akron, is a 
 son of James Wright and was born Aug. 29, 1849 
 in Suffield Township, Portage Co. His father 
 was a native of England, and in 1821, when 9 
 3^ears old, came with his parents to the United 
 States, and in 1832 the3^ settled in Springfield 
 Township ; he was a Justice of the Peace, and 
 was successivel3^ farmer, saw-miller, etc., in Lucas 
 Co., Ohio. He bought a place on North Hill 
 in about 1865, where the famil3' now reside, on 
 Tallmadge avenue. He died in November, 
 1876 and was an enthusiastic Republican. In 
 the winter of 1870, subject entered Alleghan3' 
 College, at Meadville, Penn., from which he grad- 
 uated in 1874, with the first honors of his class. 
 He was three 3'ears Superintendent of Cliagrin 
 Falls schools, when he removed to Meadville, 
 1?enn., remaining there until the summer of 1880, 
 when he returned and became the law student 
 of N. Hodge. In August, 1875, he was mar- 
 ried to Miss M. A. Williams, daughter of Prof. 
 S. D. Williams, of Meadville, Penn. The3' have 
 two sons. 
 
 GEORGE W. WEEKS, of the firm of Bald- 
 win & Weeks, Akron, a son of Leavitt and Celes- 
 tia (Ta3ior) Weeks, was born Nov. 24, 1831, 
 in Wadsworth Township, Medina Co., Ohio. 
 In June, 1832, the family removed to a farm in 
 Copley Township of this count3^, where his 
 3'outh was spent, and where he attended the 
 common and select schools of the time. His 
 mother died when he was 17, and the famil3' 
 was broken up. At 18, subject went to Iowa 
 and worked on a farm near Burlington until 
 1854, when he went to the "gold diggings" 
 near Georgetown, Cal., by way of Panama. 
 
.1^- 
 
 CITY or AKRON. 
 
 803 
 
 He returned the next year, by the same route, 
 to Copley Township, and engaged in farming. 
 In 1864, he moved to the village of Copley 
 Center and taught school for a time. In 1866, 
 he leased a farm in the vicinity, and operated it 
 until 1873, when he came to Akron and as- 
 sumed the office of County Clerk, to which he 
 had been elected the 3-ear previous. He filled 
 the office six \'ears. Feb. 4, 1880, he became a 
 partner in the firm of Baldwin & Weeks, doing 
 a large business in furniture, undertaking and 
 upholstery. He was married in February, 1856, 
 to Miss Mary A. Coon, of Copley Township. 
 They have six children living — ViraE., G-eorge 
 W., Jr., Leavitt A.. Olie M., Irving H. and 
 John L. Mr. W.'s father, Leavitt Weeks, was 
 born in 1792, and when a child, the family re- 
 moved to Vermont, where they followed farm- 
 ing until about 181i), when he came to Wads- 
 worth Township. There were three brothers — 
 Moody, Peter and Leavitt ; the two latter were 
 carpenters. Leavitt married Celestia Taylor, a 
 native of Connecticut, and died in Michigan in 
 1866. They had ten children — Darius died at 
 Middlebui'y in 1879 ; Cyrus, a farmer near 
 Des Moines, Iowa ; Maudred F., is sheep-raiser 
 in Sandwich Islands ; our subject ; Rossney 
 M., oil producer at Bradford, Penn.; Martha, 
 wife of late Mr. Ford, at Santa Barbara, Cal.; 
 Mary, wife of M. L. Warner, of Cuyahoga Co.; 
 Harrison, a farmer in Copley ; Peter, a grain 
 merchant at Beason, 111.; Henry, at same 
 place. 
 
 HORTON WRIGHT, Akron. Hortou, son of 
 Chester and Abigail (Davis) Wright, was born' 
 at Elyria. Ohio, Sept. 22, 1825. The greater 
 portion of his youth was passed in Cleveland, 
 to which city the family removed in 1836, 
 Peninsula, Summit Co. and Ft. Wayne, Ind., 
 having in the meantime, been places of resi- 
 dence. Remaining here for a period of thirteen 
 3'ears, occupied for the most part in attending 
 school, working at the printer's trade, and in 
 the grocery business. He removed, in 1849, to 
 Columbus, and in 1850, accepted a position at 
 Cincinnati as tuner in a musical instrument 
 factory. In this business he remained until 
 1875, being emplo\'ed successively by H. B. 
 Horton & Co, Akron; Child & Bishop, Cleve- 
 land, and the successors of the firm of II. B. 
 Horton & Co., of Akron, and as a general piano 
 tuner. At the last-named date (1875), he be- 
 came Librarian of the Akron Public Library, 
 
 which position he now holds. With the excep- 
 tion of two years' residence in the West he has 
 lived in Akron continuously since 1862. In 
 November 1856, he was married in Columbus to 
 Miss Susan W. Baker, daughter of Edward Baker, 
 of Akron, and has two sons, John B. and 
 Chai'les B., both of whom reside at home. 
 
 GEN. TH031AS F. WILDES, Lawyer, Ak- 
 ron ; son of Patrick and Mary (Gough) Wildes, 
 both of whom were natives of Balbriggan, 
 near Dublin, Ireland, where they were mar- 
 ried. They came to Montreal, Canada, in 
 1832, where they lived until 1839, when they 
 removed to Ohio and settled on a farm near 
 Ravenna. Mr. Wildes died there in January 
 1877, and his wife in November, 1875. Three 
 sons were born to them, viz., Thomas F. (the sub- 
 ject), John C, who enlisted in Co. A., 4th Michi- 
 gan Cavalry, and died in Murfreesboro Hospital, 
 April 2, 1863 from wounds and typhoid fever; 
 and James, a coal dealer of Akron. Thomas F. 
 Wildes, the subject of these notes, was born 
 near Montreal, Canada West, June 1, 1834. He 
 came with his father's famil}' to Portage Co., 
 Ohio, in 1839, and remained there on a farm until 
 he was 1 7 years of age, when he left home with 
 an education limited to reading and writing, 
 and for several years worked for farmers near 
 RaA'enna during the summer, and went to 
 school in the winter time. He attended the Twins- 
 burg Academy, and also an Academy at Marl- 
 boro, Stark Co., Ohio, and still later, 1857 and 
 1858, spent two years at Wittenburg College, 
 Springfield. He became Superintendent of the 
 Wooster G^raded School during the years 1859 
 and 1860. He purchased the Athens, Ohio, 
 Messenger, of which he became editor and 
 owner on the 1st of January, 1861, and re- 
 mained in charge of it until August 1862, when 
 he I'elinquished it to become Lieutenant Colonel 
 of the 116th 0. V. I. He was almost constantly 
 in command of this regiment or its brigade, 
 until February, 1865, when he was promoted to 
 Colonel of the 186th 0. V. I. The 116th was 
 in twenty-eight l)attles, and according to the 
 report of the War Department made in 1855, 
 it stood fourth among Ohio regiments in point 
 of number of men and officers killed in action, 
 and sixth in these regards and number of men 
 who died of disease. In all these engagements, 
 Gen. Wildes was in command of the regiment 
 or of the brigade to which it was attached. He 
 was wounded several times during the war ; 
 
 
804 
 
 BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 some of these wouuds were so serious, that he 
 has not yet recovered from their effects. One 
 of these wounds was received at the battle of 
 Cedar Creek, when " Sheridan was twent}' miles 
 awa}^" and in whicli Gen. Wildes commanded 
 his brigade. He got off his horse, bound up 
 the wound, which was in the thigh, with 
 his handkerchief, and then i^eturned to 
 his saddle and there remained until the 
 battle ended. His brigade was the only 
 one of Crook's corps which remained unbroken 
 when the Confederate Gen. Gordon struck and 
 flanked it that memorable morning. This bri- 
 gade was composed of the 116th, 123d Ohio, 
 34th Massachusetts and battalion of the 5tli 
 New York heavy ai'tillery — the battalion being 
 captured on the picket line. The three regi- 
 ments stuck together through that awful flank- 
 fire, made four separate charges during the day, 
 and at night camped in their old quarters. 
 This was the only brigade in the corps that 
 saved its camp equipage and stores from the 
 disaster of the early morning, and it was done 
 by hai'd fighting. For his gallant conduct in 
 this battle, Col. Wildes was commissioned Bre- 
 vet Brigadier General. In February preceed- 
 ing this promotion, he was made Colonel of the 
 186th, as already stated, and was sent with it 
 to Chattanooga, whei'e, in command of a brigade 
 he served until the close of the war. Septem- 
 ber 18, 1865, he was mustered out, having 
 been in the service over three years, the larger 
 portion of the time as Brigade Commander 
 in the Army of West Virginia, the Army of the 
 James and the Army of the Tennessee. Upon 
 leaving the ai'my, he turned his attention to 
 the law, and on the 2d of April, 1866, he grad- 
 uated from the Law Department of the Cincin- 
 nati University, and was simultaneously admit- 
 ted to the bar. He entered upon the practice of 
 his profession at Athens, Ohio, where he resid- 
 ed until 1872, when he removed to Akron, and 
 has been an active practitioner in the courts of 
 Summit and surrounding counties ever since. 
 In 1866, he was a candidate before the Republi- 
 can State Convention, and lacked but three votes 
 of a nomination for Seeretax\y of State. He was 
 also prominently mentioned for the same office 
 in 1880, but declined the candidacy. He is an 
 able lawyer, a pleasing speaker, an enthusiastic 
 advocate and an energetic worker in political 
 campaigns. 
 
 RICHARD B. WALKER, Akron. Aaron 
 
 W^alker was born in Belchertown, Hampshire 
 Co., Mass., as was also Miss Submit Clark, 
 whom he married. They were the parents of 
 ten children, of whom but one was a daughter. 
 In 1850, they removed to Illinois, where they 
 died. Richard B. was born to them in Belcher- 
 town, Mass., Aug. 11, 1825 ; he was the seventh 
 of their nine sons. In January, 1852, he mar- 
 ried and came to Akron, previous to which 
 time he had been engaged in mercantile pur- 
 suits. After his arrival here he purchased a 
 stock of agricultural implements which he sold 
 at retail, it being the first store of the kind in 
 Akron. Connecting this with hardware he did 
 a thriving business until 1862, in which year 
 he was employed by Aultman, Miller, & Co., as 
 traveling salesman for Northern Ohio. As at 
 that time there were but few of the now popu- 
 lar " Buckeye " machines in his assigned terri- 
 tory, he was successful in effecting great sales. 
 Owing to their superiority over the mowers 
 and reapers he had previously sold, he devoted 
 his time exclusively to them from 1858. It re- 
 quired a great deal of labor to introduce the 
 first machines ; when set up ready for action, 
 there was alwaj's a great crowd of spectators, 
 anxiously awaiting its movements. In the 
 winter of 1858-59 he purchased one hundi'ed of 
 them, and, in spite of the frost, sold ninet}^- 
 seven. From that time the business has been 
 constantly and rapidly increasing. At one 
 time there were many competitors, but the 
 number is lessened now ; each year he has con- 
 ducted numerous field trials and has done the 
 active outside work. In 1859, the " Buckeye " 
 won a $10-prize offered to the machine 
 among the best then made that would most 
 quickly mow a half-acre of land. In Januar}', 
 1852, our subject married Miss Mary E. Jen- 
 nie, of Ware, Mass. ; they have four sons, viz., 
 William, a book-keeper at Cleveland, Ohio ; 
 George R., a law3'er at Chicago ; Charles, also 
 a book-keeper at Cleveland, and Arthur H., a 
 student at Williams College. He is a member 
 of the Congregational Church. 
 
 ADAM E. WALKLTP, painter and grainer, 
 Akron ; born in Van Buren Co., Iowa, June 28, 
 1847, to David and Elizabeth (Brower) Walkup. 
 The Browers are of old Holland Dutch extrac- 
 tion and heirs of the famous Anneke-Jans-Bo- 
 gardus estate now in litigation. The subject of 
 this brief sketch is the 3'oungest of three sons ; 
 four daughters younger composing the family. 
 
 ^ a 
 
L^ 
 
 CITY OF AKRON. 
 
 805 
 
 At the death of his mother in 1856, he went to 
 live with a man by the name of John Clark, 
 who resided in Decatur Co., Iowa, with whom 
 he lived until his 19th yeai", learning carding 
 and spinning, which he subsequently followed 
 in different parts of Iowa and Illinois, until in 
 the year 1869. In the year 1868, while work- 
 ing at the mills in Warsaw, 111., he was caught 
 in a pair of steel cog-wheels, which tore the 
 flesh from the bone of his right leg, from the 
 knee to the ankle, making a ver}' painful wound, 
 which laid him up for a considerable time ; also 
 at Burlington, Iowa, he narrowly escaped death 
 b}^ being accidently caught in machinery. 
 His father, with the two oldest sons, fought 
 nobly in the late war, and, after a second mar- 
 riage, moved to Nebraska, where he is now liv- 
 ing. In 1870, the subject of this sketch came 
 to Millersburg, Ohio, where he engaged in his 
 present occupation, and in the spring of 1871, 
 came to Akron, where he was married the fol- 
 lowing November to Susie Henry, daughter of 
 William and Susan (Evans) Henry, residents of 
 Green Township, this county. By this marriage 
 there have been born three sons — William Ed- 
 mond, born Jan. 2, 1874 ; Royal Andrew, Jan. 3, 
 1876 ; Orvil Stephen, June 22, 1878. They are 
 members of the Evangelical Association, and 
 he is a stanch Republican. 
 
 HENRY YOUNG, son of Daniel and Anna 
 M. Young, was born in Wiltshire, England, Feb. 
 22, 1831, and was but a babe when the family 
 came to the United States, settling in Wayne 
 Co., Ohio. There the father had preceded 
 them, and had rented a mill three miles from 
 Wooster. He operated several mills in Wayne 
 and Richland Cos. until his death in 1845. 
 The subject of this sketch worked on a farm 
 until he was 18 years old, when he learned the 
 
 cabinet trade at Millersburg, Ohio, with one 
 Isaac Harpster, serving thi'ee years. He worked 
 at La Grange, South Bend and Logansport, Ind., 
 returning to Millersburg in 1854, where he 
 opened a cabinet-shop, and carried on business 
 until 1864. He then came to Akron, and at 
 the opening of the Buckeye works entered as 
 a wood machinist. In October, 1867, he was 
 made foreman of the wood-work department, 
 which position he still retains, having over a 
 hundred men under his supervision. 31r. 
 Young is a member of the Congregational 
 Church, is a Democrat in politics, and has been 
 in past years, and and is now, a member of the 
 School Board for the Second Ward. On the 
 30th of May, 1854, he married Miss Elizabeth 
 C. Justice, of Millei'sburg, Ohio. Their only 
 child is Robert J., of Akron. 
 
 ROBERT J. YOUNG was born at Millers- 
 burg, Ohio, on the 1st day of 1855, and came 
 to Akron with his parents at the age of 10. He 
 graduated from the Akron High School in the 
 summer of 1871 ; entered Western Reserve Col- 
 lege in the fall of 1872, where he remained two 
 years, and completed his collegiate course at 
 the University of Michigan, being a member 
 of the class of 1876, of which he was class- 
 day orator. Having studied law for a time in 
 the office of Hon. Wm. H. Upson, he went to 
 Toledo where he served as cit}^ editor of the 
 Daily Commercial until the summer of 1878. 
 Returning then to Akron, he resumed his law 
 reading, and was admitted to the bar in June, 
 1879. Since that date, he has practiced in the 
 city, first as junior member of the firm of Hodge 
 & Young, afterward alone. On the 2Sth of 
 June, 1877, he was married to Miss Ida Mount, 
 of Ann Arbor. Mich., who died at Akron on 
 Jan. 30, 1881. 
 
 ;v 
 
'^. 
 
 !" 
 
 ?> 
 
 806 
 
 BIOGRAPPIICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 PORTAGE TOWf^SHIP. 
 
 JOSEPH BABB, farmer ; P. O. Akron ; was 
 born May 4, 1820, in Berks Co., Penn. His 
 fatlier's name was David Babb ; bis mother's, 
 Susan (Marks) Babb. The grandfather's name 
 was Mathias; he was a native of Germany. He 
 had thi-ee sons, David, Samuel and John ; he 
 had also three daughters. The eldest son was 
 the father of the subject of this sketch. The 
 mother of Joseph Babb had eleven children. 
 Joseph came to Osnaburg, Stark Co., Ohio, 
 about 1825, and stayed two or three years, and 
 then came to Springfield Township where he 
 resided until 1859, when he moved to Portage 
 Township where he still lives. The father of 
 Joseph was a cabinet-maker. He had eleven 
 children born, seven of whom reached matu- 
 rity — Catharine, Sarah, Polly, Susan, David, 
 Samuel, Joseph. The last mentioned started 
 out in life at the age of 14, binding himself to 
 H. G. Weaver (subsequently a Representative 
 from Summit Co.) for three years. The terms 
 of the bond were six months' schooling, boaixl 
 and clothing, and 80 acres of Government 
 land. At the expiration of the three years, 
 Joseph took the value of the land in cash, pre- 
 ferring it to the real estate. He continued in 
 the employment of Mr. Weaver for two years 
 at $180 a year, and one summer at $12 a month. 
 He then went to Stark Co., and worked for his 
 brother David three years, at an average of 
 $128 a year. After this, he rented the farm of 
 Mr. Weaver and purchased a threshing machine 
 at the same time, the two he ran for three years. 
 His was the first cleaning machine in Summit 
 Co. Mr. Babb subsequently went into the pot- 
 tery business in Springfield, in tlie Purdy Pot- 
 tery, which he managed for two years. He 
 then hired the Purd}' farm in Mogadore, work- 
 ing it for four years. After the expiration of 
 that time, he returned to Stark Co., Lake 
 Township, and purchased a farm and saw-mill, 
 which he owned for four years, when he dis- 
 posed of it and came to Portage Township, this 
 count}', where he finally settled down, having 
 bought 260 acres in the extreme northeast cor- 
 ner of the township upon which he continues 
 
 to reside. The land cost him $28 an acre and 
 is now worth $100. Mr. Babb was married 
 March 25, 1847, to Elizabeth Wise. His wife 
 was born July 80, 1822, in Stark Co. She was 
 the eldest child of George H. Wise. The fam- 
 ily of Mr. Babb consists of five sons and one 
 daughter, their names are Jacob M., George 
 W., Amelia M., the wife of Horace Camp ; Wra. 
 W., Frank N. and Edwin. The father began in 
 Portage comparatively poor, but by thrift and 
 economy has acquired a competence. In pol- 
 itics, he is a Republican ; in religion, he is 
 skeptical. 
 
 HARRISON BAUCHMAN, faft-mer and 
 dairyman ; P. 0. Akron ; was born in Lehigli 
 Co., Penn., Oct. 15, 1888 ; the son of Theobold 
 and Mary Ann (Wilhelm) Bauchman, who 
 moved to Norton Township during the spring 
 of 1835 and settled upon a farm of 160 acres 
 which they purchased from a Mr. Pardy ; the 
 Bauchman family afterward removed to Spring- 
 field Township, and finally into Coventry, 
 where Theobold died in February, 1866 ; Mrs. 
 Bauchman died in August, 1872. At the age 
 of 14, Harrison was employed by his elder 
 brother, who farmed their father's land in Nor- 
 ton Township, and continued with him until he 
 attained his majority ; he then worked for other 
 parties some twelve months ; when about 22 
 years of age, he purchased a threshing ma- 
 chine, which he ran for several seasons ; for the 
 next seven years, he was employed by John R. 
 Buchtel on the farm now owned by Mr. Bauch- 
 man, which he purchased from his emplo^-er 
 some sixteen years ago ; he bought 75 acres of 
 Buchtel and 15 of another man, sold 84 acres, 
 and has at the present time 56 acres. Mr. 
 Bauchman has been engaged in the dair}^ bus- 
 iness for many years ; his establishment, which 
 stands second to none of its kind in the county, 
 is conducted upon a system adopted b}' the pro- 
 prietor after years of experience ; at the pres- 
 ent time, he keeps over forty cows, and these 
 are mostly of the Jersey grade. June 6, 1867, 
 he was married to Miss Amanda Richards, 
 daughter of William Richards, of Akron ; their 
 
__J) 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 807 
 
 present residence, built during the summer of 
 1875, is one of'the largest farmliouses in Sum- 
 mit Co., and so neat and tasty in appearance 
 that it would be an ornament to the city if lo- 
 cated in the finest quarter of Akron. 
 
 CHARLES W. BAUER, farmer; P. O. 
 Akron ; the subject of this sketch was born in 
 Northampton Co., Penn., Nov. 22, 1836 ; he was 
 the son of Charles and Saloma (Miller) Bauer, 
 who moved to Summit Co. in 1842, and 
 purchased in Norton Township 140 acres of 
 land, which tract was occupied by the Bauer 
 liimil}- for over twenty-five 3'ears, and owned 
 by Mr. Bauer at the time of his death, in Oc- 
 tober, 1876 ; his wife is still living in Norton 
 Township. Charles W. Bauer was educated in 
 the common schools of Norton, and, for two 
 terms, he attended the Western Star Normal 
 School ; he worked for his father until 23 years 
 of age; was married May 26, 1860, to Miss 
 Mary Serfass, daughter of Andrew and Sarah 
 (Hawk) Serfass ; then worked for his father-in- 
 law for two years. In 1862, he removed to 
 Berrien Co., Mich., and resided there nine 
 months ; then returned to Norton Center, and 
 for about three years, worked at coopering ; 
 the next five years he farmed in Norton Town- 
 ship, first renting 100 acres of land belonging 
 to Jacob Wise, and then 160 acres of David 
 Baughman ; about the year 1873, he rented the 
 Dodge farm in Portage Township, continuing 
 on this land four years ; then purchased 73 
 acres some three miles west of Akron, which he 
 occupied three years. In the spring of 1880, 
 he returned to the Dodge farm, upon which he 
 is now located, managing at the present time 
 this tract of 380 acres and his own farm. For 
 the past six years he has been engaged in the 
 dairy business, which he conducts very success- 
 fully on an extensive scale. He has always 
 been a Democrat and voted the ticket '" straight " 
 at State elections ; at other times supports the 
 best men. Mr. and Mrs. Bauer are members of 
 the Lutheran Church, at Loyal Oak. They are 
 the parents of five children, all living — Hiram 
 Elmore, Albert Franklin, Erving Wellington, 
 Artie Monroe and Viola Jane. 
 
 EDWARD A. BARBER, farmer ; P. 0. Ak- 
 ron ; was born in Genesee Co. (now Wyoming) 
 N. Y., Dec. 30, 1826; son of JaredB..and 
 Electia (Turner) Barber, who were both born in 
 Connecticut, Jared B. on Feb. 1, 1793, and 
 Electia June 29, 1799 ; they were married at 
 
 Wales, Erie Co., N. Y., Dec. 25, 1815. Electia 
 Turner was the daughter of Jacob and Phoebe 
 (Spencei') Turner, early settlers of what is now 
 Buffiilo, N. Y. ; Phffibe died Oct. 11, 1811, and 
 was buried in the woods, and the site of her 
 grave is now in the heart of Buflfalo ; Jacob 
 died Nov. 3, 1820. Jared B. Barber was a sol- 
 dier for a short time during the war of 1812, 
 and his wife drew a pension from the Govern- 
 ment for several years previous to her death. 
 They removed to Ohio in July, 1831, and set- 
 tled in Norton Township, then Medina County ; 
 after two years, the Barber family removed to 
 Copley and purchased GQ acres of land from 
 Gad Bronson ; they remained here some fifteen 
 years, then returned to Norton Township for a 
 short time, and, finally, settled on a small piece 
 of land in Portage Township, where Jared B. 
 died April 17, 1854; Electia his wife died 
 March 29, 1881. They were the parents of 
 three children — Jane, now Mrs. Dennison Pet- 
 tibone, a resident of Akron ; Spencer T. en- 
 listed in the 13th Mich., V. I., during the 
 rebellion and died in the service ; Edward A., 
 the youngest child and subject of this sketch, 
 was four years of age when his parents removed 
 to Ohio ; he received a common-school educa- 
 tion and worked on his father's farm until 22 
 3'ears of age ; then removed to Indiana where 
 he remained some six months. He returned to 
 Ohio and purchased, with his brother Spencer, 
 the 66 acres in Copley belonging to their father; 
 this tract was too small for both to farm and 
 Edward A. sold his interest to Spencer, and 
 shortly afterwai'd bought a small piece of land 
 in Portage, to which he has added since then 
 other I'eal estate, and now owns about 40 acres. 
 After returning from Indiana, Edward A. worked 
 at the stonemason's trade for five years ; then 
 learned the carpenter's trade and foUowetl this 
 for over twenty years in Akron, working both 
 in the city and in the country' ; he is at the 
 present time engaged in farming; was married 
 May 17, 1851, to Miss Caroline Derthick, daugh- 
 ter of Corydon and Fannie (Judd) Derthick, of 
 Copley Township ; she was born Oct. 6, 1831 ; 
 they have one daughter, Florence, who was mar- 
 ried Sept. 4, 1871, to Levi Monosmith. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Barber and daughter are members of 
 the Disciples' Church of Akron. Mr. Barber 
 has served for two terms as Assessor of Port- 
 age Township. 
 
 SOLOMON BARE, retired farmer and gar- 
 
 \-^» 
 ^ 
 
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES; 
 
 dener ; P. 0. Akron ; born in Berks Co., Penn., 
 May 28, 1814; son of John Adam and Susan 
 (Knoehr) Bare, who resided in Berks Countx-, 
 some eighteen miles from Reading, until the 
 year 1833, when they removed to Niagara 
 Co., N. Y. John Adam was always a farmer ; 
 he afterward returned to Pennsylvania, and 
 died in Mercer County about the year 1863 ; 
 his wife died many 3^ears previous. Solo- 
 mon received a knowledge of the common 
 branches in the schools of Berks County ; he 
 worked at farming until about 32 3'ears of age, 
 then learned the trade of a boat-builder, and 
 was employed by Lyman A. Spaulding, of Lock- 
 port, for several years, after which he followed 
 this trade a short time in Erie, Penn., and 
 Cleveland, Ohio. About the year 1853, he re- 
 moved to Summit County, and for some three 
 years worked at the carpenter's trade ; then 
 worked at Wadsworth, Medina Co., for six 
 months, then removed to Norton Township, 
 where he continued in the hotel business many 
 years ; was located first at Bates' Corners, then 
 at Johnson's Corners and removing to Bates' 
 Corners. While in Norton Township he pur- 
 chased his present propert}' near Akron, pay- 
 ing $100 per acre for 20 acres, and removed to 
 this land in October, 1864, where he has since 
 resided. He was engaged for many ^^ears rais- 
 ing small vegetables for the Akron market, 
 which proved a very lucrative business. In 
 later years, he laid out upon his laud two addi- 
 tions to the city of Akron, and a street between 
 them has been named Bare street in his honor ; 
 this land has been much improved by the pro- 
 prietor, who has erected several houses upon 
 various lots, but a portion has been sold b}" 
 him at the rate of |1,200 an acre. Mr. Bare 
 started out in life as a poor boy, but, by industr}' 
 and good management, he has secured a com- 
 petencj'. He was married first to Miss Eliza 
 Lindsey, daughter of George W. Lindsey ; by 
 her he had two children — Thomas J., the eldest 
 enlisted in the 29th 0. V. L, during the rebell- 
 ion, and was killed at Rocky Face ; the young- 
 est, Frances Louisa, is now Mrs. Thomas Raw- 
 lins, of Akron ; Mr. Bare's first wife died, and 
 he was married to Mrs. Mar}' Baughman, daugh- 
 ter of Abraham Burgey ; by her Mr. Bare had 
 three children — Isabella and Ida, who now re- 
 side with their father, and William Henry, who 
 died aged 4. Some two 3'ears since, he was 
 married a third time to Miss Caroline Hartman, 
 
 daughter of Peter Hartman. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Bare are members of Grace Reformed Church 
 of Akron. Mr. Bare has always been a Demo- 
 crat, but, during the war, gave his support to 
 the Union party, voting for Brough in 1863, 
 and Lincoln in 1864. 
 
 SMITH BUNKER, farmer; P. O. Akron ; is 
 a native of the Green Mountain State. His 
 parents were Dodavah and Rebecca (Hall) Bun- 
 ker. Dodavah was born in Barnstead Co., N. 
 H., and Rebecca, at old Hartford, Conn. The}' 
 were married at the latter place, and moved to 
 Huntingdon, Chittenden Co., Vt., where Smith 
 was born, Marcii 9, 1818. The Bunker family 
 settled in Norton Township in 1834, where they 
 remained one year ; then removed to the Dodge 
 farm, in Portage Township, and after five years, 
 to Bates' Corners, Norton Township, where Mrs. 
 Bunker died. Her husband then moved to 
 Berrien Co., Mich., and died there about 1845, 
 at the age of 83. Smith was educated in the 
 common schools of Vermont, receiving in- 
 struction at a school three miles from his home. 
 When about 18 years of age, he purchased a 
 threshing-machine, in partnership with his 
 brother Abraham. This was an old style ma- 
 chine, being only a thresher, and it was neces- 
 sary to separate the wheat from the straw with 
 a rake. After one year, Abraham removed to 
 Michigan, and Smith continued the business 
 alone for nearly ten years. He then worked at 
 Gale's furnace, in Akron, for twelve months, 
 and was employed on the farm owned by Mr. 
 Gale's heirs for two years ; then for several 
 3'ears worked for various parties in Copley and 
 Portage Townships. About the year 1856, he 
 purchased from Horace May 26 acres of the 
 farm he now occupies, trading for it 40 acres 
 near Loudonville, Ohio. He afterwaz'd bought 
 31 acres from James Lyon, and now owns 57 
 acres. When the Bunker famil}' first settled on 
 this land, in 1856, the country in the immediate 
 vicinity was very wild, in consequence of the 
 condition of Copley Swamp, whicli has since 
 been drained ; at that time, Mr. Banker could 
 from his door-step shoot wild turke3's, and he 
 reports that once he killed four at one shot. 
 The swamp was in those days a favorite " roost " 
 for wild pigeons, and several settlers in the im- 
 mediate vicinity state that occasional I3' the 
 pigeons would fly so thickly to and from the 
 swamp that they could not see the sun for an 
 hour. Mr. Bunker was married, April 21, 
 
 ■Tfi 
 
Oi, 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 809 
 
 1849, to Miss Mary Ann, daughter of John and 
 Rpsannah (Ritchie) Sherboudy. She was born 
 Jan. 23, 1832 ; they are the parents of ten chil- 
 dren — Alfred T., now of Keokuk, Iowa, and 
 married to Ella Tremble; Rosa, now Mrs. Jason 
 Bunker ; Sarah, died, aged nearly 3 ; Lu- 
 rinda, died, aged nearl}' 2 ; Ophelia, Ella, 
 Oscar, Elmer, William and Homer. 
 
 ROYAL BROCKWAY, farmer; P. 0. Akron. 
 This gentleman is a native of Broome Co., N.Y., 
 where he was born Feb. 1, 1815 ; when about 
 4 3'ears of age, his parents moved to Tioga 
 Co., remaining there some ten 3'ears. In the 
 fall of 1830, they settled in Medina Co., Ohio, 
 residing in Wadsworth Township for three 
 years, and after 1833, in Norton Township. 
 Royal's parents were William and Rhoda 
 (Taylor) Brockway ; they had four sons, who 
 removed to Medina Co. with them — Almeron, 
 died while a resident of Sharon; Royal, of Port- 
 age Township; William, now of Sharon; Lesley, 
 died in 1855 ; the father died in 1860, aged 84, 
 and Rhoda, his wife, 1867. Royal was educated 
 in the schools of New York State and Medina 
 Co. ; worked on his father's farm until he at- 
 tained his majority ; removed to Indiana, where 
 he was married, July 3, 1838, to Miss Susan E. 
 Hall, who was born and raised in Perry Co., 
 Ind. ; she was the daughter of Presley and 
 Nancy (Anderson) Hall. Royal remained in 
 Indiana some twelve months, working at the 
 carpenter's trade ; then farmed his father's land 
 in Norton Township one year ; he returned to 
 Indiana, and remained three years. In 1845, 
 he bought 80 acres of land in Copley Town- 
 ship, which he occupied until 1853, when he 
 left for California, remaining there three 3'ears, 
 during which time he mined, kept boarding- 
 house and worked as a carpenter and joiner ; 
 his wife was with him in California. They re- 
 turned to Ohio in 1856, and two years after- 
 ward, on April 11, 1858, he left for Pike's Peak ; 
 while crossing the plains to Denver, he had 
 charge of the company to which he was at- 
 tached. Mr. Brockway relates many interest- 
 ing incidents which occurred during his life on 
 the border, and of which he had a personal 
 knowledge. After six months, he returned to 
 Summit Co., where he has since resided. He 
 farmed in Copley- Township until November, 
 1864, when he removed to Portage, having sold 
 his land in Cople}'. Mr. Brockway owns at the 
 present time, 247 acres in Portage, which he 
 
 purchased in 1860. For some years he has 
 been engaged in the dair}^ business, and was for 
 three years connected with a cheese factory, 
 during which time he kept from 45 to 75 cows ; 
 he afterward made cheese on his own farm for 
 a short time. Royal has served as Trustee of 
 Copley Township ; was chosen Captain of a 
 " squirrel-hunter " company during the rebell- 
 ion. Mr. and Mrs. Brockway are members of 
 the Universalist Church, of Akron ; the\^ are 
 the parents of two children — Rice W.,"^born 
 Dec. 18, 1842, and Royal, born April 1, 1856. 
 Rice was a member of the 104th Regiment 0. 
 V. I., and served during the war ; he was mar- 
 ried, March 30, 1865, to Adeline S. Thompson, 
 and they have one child — Linus. Royal, Jr., is a 
 boiler-maker, and resides in Akron ; he was 
 married, Jan. 3, 1875, to Caroline P. Stoskopf, 
 and they have one son — Lyle. 
 
 ROYAL BAIRD, farmer ; P. 0. Akron ; is a 
 native of New England, born at Grafton, 
 Windham Co., Vt, Sept. 17, 1806, the son of 
 Abijah and Abigail (Stickney) Baird. The 
 Stickneyshavebeena prominent and influential 
 family of New England and the United States 
 for many years ; the following descent is taken 
 from a printed genealogy, now in 3Ir. Baird's 
 possession : William Stickney, of Frampton, 
 England, was baptized Dec. 30, 1558 ; his son 
 William was baptized Sept. 6, 1592 ; Samuel, 
 his son, was born in England 1633, and shortly 
 afterward they emigrated to America ; William, 
 son of Samuel, was born Jan. 27, 1674 ; his 
 son William, Oct. 14, 1704 or 1705 ; his son 
 William, April 3, 1743, and his daughter Abi- 
 gail, March 6, 1770 ; she was married, June 25, 
 1793, to Abijah Baird, who was born, June 25, 
 1767 ; they were the parents of ten children, 
 as follows : Abijah, Franklin, Ebenezer, Abi- 
 gail, Esther, Ira, Royal. Louisa, Celia Arvilla 
 and Josiah Dana. Abijah died at Bridgewater 
 in 1844 ; his wife, April 28, 1847. Royal, sub- 
 ject of this sketch, came to Ohio in the fall of 
 1833; a short time afterward, purchased 113 
 acres in Copley Township ; he returned to 
 Boston, where he engaged in business until 
 1836, when he settled on his farm, but for some 
 seven years he remained in Philadelphia the 
 greater portion of each 3'ear, where he was em- 
 ployed. In the spring of 1850, he left for 
 California, and stayed in the gold regions two 
 j-ears ; since then he has been a farmer and 
 stock-dealer ; he owns at the present time 161 
 
 r^ 
 
810 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 acres in Cople}' and 68 in Portage Township ; 
 was married May 9, 1836 ; he is the father of 
 one child, Gusta Minerva ; she was born Feb. 
 8, 1837, and married Zachariah R. Prentice, of 
 Portage Township ; they have two childi-en, 
 Burton C, born Feb. 5, 1874, and Hubert 
 Hayes, born Aug. 22, 1876. Mrs. Baird was 
 born June 12, 1820 ; she is a grand-daughter 
 of Mrs. Elizabeth Wiuslow, who married Joseph 
 Hawkins, May 20, 1784 ; they settled in Ver- 
 mont when that State was comparatively new, 
 and suffered many hardships. Joseph was 
 born in Providence, R. I., Nov. 3, 1760 ; 
 was a soldier during the Revolutionary war, 
 and a captive for three years in a British prison ; 
 removed with his two sons and three daughters 
 to Ohio, in 1833, and died Nov. 17, 1848 ; his 
 wife died May 6, 1829 ; their daughter Susan 
 married Caleb Casewell, who died in 1826 ; 
 Susan died February, 1862 ; they were the 
 parents of Mrs. Royal Baird. 
 
 SIMON BONFIRE, farmer ; P. 0. Akron ; was 
 born in Germany in 1842, the son of John Bon- 
 fire, who came to this country when Simon was 6 
 months old, and settled in Portage Township, in 
 what is styled " Chuckery," where he engaged 
 at his trade of shoemaker. August, 1861, Si- 
 mon enlisted in Co. E, 115th 0. V. I., and served 
 three years as a soldier, earning an honorable 
 discharge. On Jan. 17, 1866, he married Maria 
 Wise, who was born March 4, 1840. For six 
 years he worked in the Buckej-e shops, but 
 since has been engaged in farming ; he has 
 good property in the township ; he had one 
 child, Ermie E., who died at the age of 7, of 
 diphtheria. Mr. Bonfire votes the Republican 
 ticket. 
 
 A. L. CALDWELL, farmer ; P. 0. Akron ; 
 was born Jan. 13, 1838, near Logansport, Ind. 
 His parents were Tarleton and Julia (Vrooman) 
 Caldwell. Tarleton Caldwell was born in Vir- 
 ginia, near Clarksburg, about the year 1816. 
 His ancestors were natives of Ireland, who, 
 coming to America, settled in Virginia. Tarle- 
 ton came West with his parents when a mere 
 youth, settling in Indiana, where he was mar- 
 ried to Miss Vrooman, who was born in Scho- 
 harie Co., N. Y. The Vroomans are of German 
 stock. Our subject moved with his parents to 
 Missouri ; stayed nine years, then went to Cali- 
 fornia, in 1849, and engaged in mining, where 
 the elder Caldwell still resides (Lower Califor- 
 nia). Ten children were born them, who were 
 
 Abner, William, Marion, George, Charles, John, 
 Jerome, Hugh, Ida and Dora, five of whom are 
 now living. Abner engaged in mining with his 
 father. In 1860, he returned to the Buckeye 
 State. April 2, married Mary Pitkin, who was 
 born in 1843, in Fulton Co., 111., daughter of 
 Judge Stephen Pitkin, who married Julia Lusk, 
 daughter of Amos Lusk, one of the early pio- 
 neers in the county. After his marriage, Mr. 
 Caldwell returned to California, where he re- 
 mained until 1865. He has since been a resi- 
 dent of the township, and has been engaged in 
 farming. He was for some time employed as 
 clerk previous to the time he located on his 
 farm, consisting of 70 acres, on Tract 3. 
 
 JAMES COURTNEY (deceased) ; was born 
 in 1816, in County Kerry, Ireland; son of Patrick 
 and Mary McCarthy Gallee, who had eleven chil- 
 dren born them — Daniel, John, James, Francis, 
 Jerr}', Thomas, Patrick, Mary, Abigail, Margaret 
 and James. James was married in Ireland to 
 Mar}- Harrit}', and by her had one son — James, 
 who was killed in the late war, having served 
 all through the rebellion. He was a member 
 of Co. A, 1st Regiment, and was in the artil- 
 ler}' — a true and valiant soldier, and was killed 
 while manning his gun, in 1864. Mr. Courtney 
 emigrated to this country in 1840. He came 
 to Akron, where he worked for several years 
 as a common laborer. Having no means when 
 he came to this country, was glad to get work 
 for any price, 50 cents per day being the price 
 paid at first, yet he succeeded in saving suf- 
 ficient means to enable him to purchase 30 
 acres of unimproved land, which he cleared up. 
 In 1864, he moved to the north part of the 
 township, purchasing 100 acres. His wife died 
 in 1853. In September, 1861, he married Mrs. 
 Julia Hogan, who was born Feb. 2, 1825, in 
 Kilkenny, Ireland, daughter of Stephen and 
 Mary (Welch) Bergen. Mr. Courtney died Feb. 
 19, 1878. He was esteemed by all who knew 
 him as a good neighbor and an upright citizen. 
 He was a successful business man, having se- 
 cured all his property by his own industry. 
 Mrs. Courtney was first married to Patrick Ho- 
 gan, in April, 1845, and came to America the 
 same year of their marriage, landing in New 
 York. Mr. Hogan died in 1857. She came West 
 the following year. By Mr. Hogan she had six 
 children, but three living — Nora, who married 
 Frank Courtney, son of James Courtney, by his 
 first wife. Mary, Mrs. James McGuire, and 
 
PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 811 
 
 
 Stephen, now in Colorado. By last wife, Mr. 
 C. had two children — Joseph and Julia. 
 
 A. CURTISS, fanner ; P. 0. Akron ; was born 
 in 1836, in Boston Township ; son of Giles and 
 Fannie (Carter) Curtiss. Augustus left home be- 
 fore his majority. He was raised to farming. 
 In 1855, he went to California, where he re- 
 mained four years, returning home after a suc- 
 cessful experience, being engaged in mining, 
 and at one time in the grocery trade. In Au- 
 gust, 1861, he enlisted in Co. A.". 2d 0. V. C, and 
 served until June the following year, when he 
 was discharged on account of disability, caused 
 from a heavy fall from his horse. He was 
 then engaged in the dairy business in Stow 
 Township with his brother. In 1864, he en- 
 gaged in the lumber business. Nov. 25, 1865, 
 he was married to Helen Barniiart, born July 
 27, 1845, in Boston, daughter of William and 
 Laura (Chaffee) Barnhai't, to whom were born 
 Laura, William H., Mary and Helen. In the 
 fall of 1868, Mr. Curtiss was elected Sheriflf of 
 the county, and re-elected in 1870. He after- 
 ward served as a Deputy four years, and dur- 
 ing the whole time served the people in a man- 
 ner creditable to himself and with satisfaction 
 to the people. He has since been engaged in 
 tarming, having 158 acres of land. He has no 
 children. Mr. Curtiss' father was born in Con- 
 necticut in January. 1808 ; son of Ethan ; his 
 wife in 1807, in Ireland. They came to this 
 country and settled in Boston Township in 1815. 
 Ethan, the father of Giles Curtiss, had three sons 
 — Lewis. Nelson and Giles, the latter the only 
 surviving member of the famil}-. Ethan finally 
 located in Trumbull Co., Ohio. Giles located 
 in the southeast part of Northfield, about the 
 year 1840, where he cleared up that farm, and 
 is yet living with his worthy companion. They 
 have had seven children, six of whom grevv 
 up — William A., George S., Augustus, Mills, 
 Lewis and Eliza, who married Sylvester Hone}', 
 and lives on the homestead. 
 
 HENRY FREDERICK, farmer ; P. 0. Ak- 
 ron ; born in Wayne Co., March 20, 1834 ; 
 his great-grandfather, Thomas Frederick, was 
 born near Lancaster. Penn., about 1745, and, 
 when some 7 years of age, his father, Noah, 
 was killed by the Indians, and Thomas taken 
 prisoner. He was adopted as one of the tribe, 
 and remained with them seven years, but, after 
 the treaty with the French and Indians, he, in 
 connection with all other captives, was deliv- 
 
 ered to the English at Fort Du Quesne. He 
 afterward settled in Northumberland Co., 
 Penn., from which section he removed to Ohio 
 with his family in the year 1804, and died 
 May 3, 1808, while a resident of Center Town- 
 ship, Columbiana Co. His wife, Anna Marga- 
 ret Frederick, died Feb. 28, 1826. Their son 
 Thomas was born near Lancaster, Penn., Dec. 
 1, 1778 ; emigrated to Columbiana Co., with his 
 father, in 1804 ; was married. May 2. 1804, to 
 Elizabeth Schock, who was born March 8, 
 1785. He was a soldier during the war of 
 1812 ; removed to Wayne Co., and settled in 
 Chippewa Township during the year 1813. He 
 died July, 1871 ; was the father of fourteen 
 children. His eldest son, Jacob, was born in 
 Columbiana Co., February, 1805, and removed 
 to Wayne Co. in 1813 ; was married to Marga- 
 ret Rasor, and removed with his wife and fam- 
 ily to Copley Township about 1843, where he 
 now resides. Jacob had seven chiklren. as fol- 
 lows : Samuel, Thomas, Henr}-, Eli, Benjamin. 
 William and Christopher. Henry, the subject 
 of this sketch, was educated in the common 
 schools of Do^'lestown and Coplej' Townships ; 
 worked for his father until May 20, 1858, when 
 he married Miss Ellen Viei's, daughter of 
 James McClintock and Eliza (Allen) Tiers'. 
 During the summer of 1858, he worked out b}' 
 the day. In October, 1858, he rented John C. 
 Stearns' farm of ninety-seven acres, and farmed 
 this three years ; then the farm owned by the 
 heirs of Jonathan Spafford ; after about eighteen 
 months, he purchased this land, which he after- 
 ward sold. In the fall of 1 865, he removed to 
 Norton Township, and, after eiglit months, re- 
 turned to Coplev and rented 240 acres of Peter 
 Wicks, which land he farmed for one year. In 
 1867, he purchased 546 acres, in connection 
 with Royal Brockway, from the Rhodes l)roth- 
 ers. This land was divided between Messrs. 
 Frederick and Brockway. The former sold a 
 portion of his, and bought other tracts, and now 
 has 233 acres. Mr. Frederick is, at the pres- 
 ent time, engaged in raising stock and farming. 
 He is a member of the Disciples' Cluirch of 
 Akron. His wife is connected with the same 
 congregation. The}' are the parents of three 
 children — Charlotte Eliza, now ^Irs. Harry N. 
 Sherbondy ; James McHenry. and Grant. Mr. 
 Frederick was elected Trustee of Portage Town- 
 ship in 1874, and served for three years ; was 
 chosen Infirmar}- Director of Summit Co. in the 
 
 
fK 
 
 812 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 fall of 1876, and re-elected in 1879. At both 
 elections, he ran ahead of his ticket. 
 
 FREDERICK FOUSE, farmer ; P. 0. Akron ; 
 was born March 17, 1825, in Lake Township, 
 Stark Co. ; son of John and Christina (Miller) 
 Fouse. John Fouse was born in 1794, in Blair 
 Co., Penn. ; his wife in 1801. John Fouse was 
 a son of Nicodemus. The father of Christina 
 was Abram Miller, whose family came to Ohio 
 shortly after the war of 1812, locating in Stark 
 Co. Tlie Fouse famil}' were among the early 
 settlers in the county. Abram Miller settled 
 in Plain Township ; John Fouse in Lake Town- 
 ship, where he died, when his son Frederick 
 was a babe. Four children were born them — 
 Savilla, Nicholas, Priscilla, and Frederick, who 
 is the youngest and only surviving member of 
 the family. Frederick stayed at home until 22 
 years of age. May 4, 1848, married Elizabeth 
 Gaite, who was born Nov. 25, 1827, in Cumber- 
 land Co., Penn., daughter of Jacob and Mary 
 (Keiper) Gaite. Jacob was a native of Ger- 
 many. The Gaite family came West about the 
 year 1829, locating in Stark Co., and raised a 
 family of nine children ; of the number living 
 are Jacob, Levi, Joseph and Elizabeth. After 
 Mr. Fouse was married he lived on the home- 
 stead twenty-seven years. In January, 1873, 
 purchased 107^i^2_^ acres, where he now resides, 
 adjoining Akron on the northeast, costing $118 
 per acre. Of eleven children born, nine are 
 living, viz., Melinda, John, Reuben, Jacob, 
 Edwin, Menodes, Fernando, William and Ira. 
 He and wile are members of the Reformed 
 Church. 
 
 BENJAMIN G ARM AN, farmer ; P. 0. Ak- 
 ron ; was boi'n June 20, 1819, in Lehigh Co., 
 Penn. ; son of Abram and Elizabeth (Naffe) 
 Garman, to whom were born Phillip, Conrad, 
 David, John, Adam, Jacob, Henry, Abram and 
 three daughters. Abram Garman's father was 
 a native of German}", and came to Pennsylva- 
 nia, settling in Lehigh Co. when the country- 
 was new. Elizabeth Naffe was a daughter of 
 Barnhart, who had three sons and one daughter. 
 Benjamin, whose name heads this page, was but 
 12 years of age when his father died. In 
 1836, he came to Ohio with his mother and 
 brother Eli, who located in Homer Township, 
 Medina Co. Eli purchased eighty acres of 
 land, and was for several years the head of the 
 family, who, besides himself, were Josiah, Re- 
 becca, Jai'ed, Benjamin, Abram, Levi, Eliza- 
 
 beth and Mary. Benjamin worked three years 
 for his brother, then worked one summer in 
 Norton Township, and chopped the following 
 winter. Returning to Lehigh Co., Penn., the 
 spring of 1840, he married Esther Clouse, who 
 was born in same county Dec. 19, 1823, daugh- 
 ter of Phillip Clouse, whose wife's maiden 
 name was Elizabeth Evart. both natives of 
 Lehigh. Their offspring were Eliza, Sophia, 
 Esther, Hannah, Nathan, David and Uriah. 
 After Mr. Garman's marriage he returned to 
 Homer Township, where he purchased forty 
 acres of unimproved land for $250, and subse- 
 quently added to the same until he had 120 
 acres, when he came to this county, which was 
 in March, 1863, when he purchased 151 acres 
 at $34 per acre ; has since been a constant resi- 
 dent of Portage Township, and among its val- 
 ued citizens. Seven children have been born 
 to him — Alfred, Rosa A. (who married Louis 
 Esselburn, a resident of Homer), Elizabeth 
 (married Frank Weygandt, and resides in Ma- 
 con Co., 111.), Sarah (the wife of Leuis Andrews, 
 and reside in Harrisville, Medina Co.), Irene 
 (the wife of Mandus Baughman, of Wadsworth, 
 Medina Co.), Uriah, and Alfred are residents of 
 this township. Mary married Charles Starks, 
 of Akron, Ohio. 
 
 JOHN GLENNAN, farmer ; P. 0. Akron ; 
 was born 1828, in Kilkenny, Ireland; son of 
 James and Bridget (Killfoil) Glennan, the 
 grandfather of John was Darby Glennan. John 
 left the land of Eiin at the age of 22, to trj' 
 his fortunes in America, lauding in New York, 
 where he remained about one 3'ear and a half, 
 and in 1852 came to Ohio, and began work in 
 Akron and vicinity, working much o f the time 
 in the stone quarries. Afterward purchased 
 land, where he now lives, which was unimproved, 
 costing him $40 per acre ; working in the 
 quarries in the da}' time, and, upon his return- 
 ing home, spent a portion of the night in clear- 
 ing up his land. Oct. 19, 1852. married x\nn 
 Bergen, born June 24, 1824, in Kilkenny, Ire- 
 land. Her pai'ent3 were Stephen and Mar}- 
 ( Welch) Bergen, to whom were born thirteen 
 children. jNIarch 11, 1878, after a short and 
 sevei'e illness, Mrs. Glennan died, leaving a 
 husband and five children to mourn her demise. 
 She was a faithful wife, a loving mother, and a 
 valuable helpmeet to her husband. The chil- 
 dren are Katie, Bridget, James, Anna and 
 Julia ; two deceased — Mary, aged 10, and 
 
 71 
 
^k^ 
 
 PORTAGE T0W:NSIIIP. 
 
 813 
 
 Stephen, a babe of 4 months. Mr. Glennan 
 has a snug farm of thirty-six acres, upon which 
 he has excellent buildings, all which have been 
 the outgrowth of his own hard labor, assisted 
 b}' his deceased worthy companion. With the 
 exception of his brother James, in Tallmadge, 
 he is the only representative of the family in 
 the count}' or State. 
 
 GEORGE W. GLINES (deceased), for many 
 years Superintendent of the Summit County 
 Infirmary, was born in Vermont Oct. 10, 1832, 
 and died March 4, 1878 ; he was the son of Asa 
 and Roxana (Sinclair) Glines. who removed to 
 Lake Co. and settled near Painesville when their 
 son was quite small ; Asa afterward settled in 
 Cleveland ; his wife died in 1849, and, shortly 
 afterward, while keeping a store on the West 
 Side, he suddenly disappeared, and his relatives 
 never heard from him. George W. was married 
 June 4, 1856, to Miss Julia Ferguson, who was 
 born in Willoughby, Lake Co., Dec. 24, 1832 ; 
 she was the daughter of Finley and Julia 
 (Judd) Ferguson ; Finley was born in August, 
 1801 ; was the son of John and Mary Fergu- 
 son, who were born in Scotland ; he died Dec. 
 8, 1878 ; his wife died nearly fifty years since. 
 The Judds were Yankees, and removed to Ohio 
 from Boston, Mass.; shortly after, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Glines were married the}' removed to Mayfield, 
 Cuyahoga Co., where they farmed for nearly ten 
 years. In 1864, Mr. Glines enlisted in an artil- 
 lery regiment, and served until the civil war 
 closed. He held several minor offices in Cuya- 
 hoga Co., and, in 1868, received the appoint- 
 ment of Superintendent of the Summit County 
 Infirmary, and was employed by the Infirmary 
 Directors to fill this responsible position from 
 April 1, 1868, until he died. His widow, Mrs. 
 Julia Glines, having demonstrated, during the 
 ten years her husband was Superintendent, that 
 she was eminently qualified for the position 
 made vacant by his death, was appointed to 
 succeed him, and the best evidence that she has 
 successfully managed the institution is the fact 
 that she has been continued in the same posi- 
 tion ever since, and was, in January, 1881, re- 
 appointed for the term commencing April 1, 
 1881. Mr. Glines was during his life a member 
 of the M. E. Church, and his widow is connected 
 with the same denomination. Two children 
 were the result of their marriage — Julia and 
 Charles ; the latter died in infancy ; Julia was 
 born Dec. 14, 1858, was married Nov. 27, 1877, 
 
 to Worth Davis, and they have two children — 
 Worth, born July 5, 1879, and James Finlev 
 Davis, born Aug.' 12, 1880. 
 
 JUSTUS GALE (deceased), was an enter- 
 prising and successful business man in Akron 
 during the early history of the place ; he was 
 the son of Ephraim and Mollie Gale, who were 
 residents of Guilford, Windham Co., Vt., at the 
 time of his birth, Jan. 14. 1798 ; was educated 
 in the schools of his native State, and married, 
 June 8, 1823, Sarah Hyde, who was born at 
 Guilford, April 26, 1802 ; she was the daughter 
 of Dr. Dana Hyde, a prominent physician in 
 Guilford for many years, and died July 18, 
 1827 ; her mother's maiden name was Lucy 
 Fitch. For some ten years after their marriage, 
 Mr. and Mrs. Justus Gale remained in Ver- 
 mont ; for five years, he was in the mercantile 
 business at Dover ; then kept a hotel at Wells 
 River for about the same length of time. In 
 1833, they moved to Ohio and settled at Akron 
 in July, embarking in the mercantile business 
 with Edward Pulsipher and Alvin Austin, who 
 were also natives of Vermont ; the firm was 
 styled Pulsipher, Gale & Austin, and their es- 
 tablishment was at what is now South Akron. 
 At this time there were very few houses at Ak- 
 ron, and the country between the village and 
 Middlebury was a wilderness. After continuing 
 in the mercantile business for some five years 
 with Messrs. Pulsipher and Austin, they dis- 
 solved business relations, and then Mr. Gale for 
 some ten years ran a tin store ; for a short time 
 he was a partner with Lyman Cobb ; in con- 
 nection with Paris Tallman, they engaged in 
 the raanuf!\cture of stoves, kettles and castings ; 
 their furnace was situated on the site now oc- 
 cupied by C. A. Collins' carriage establish- 
 ment. Mr. Gale died June 28, 1847 ; previous 
 to his death, he sold his interest in the furnace, 
 and also purchased the 40 acres now occupied 
 by his widow and her son ; in 1849. the Gale 
 family removed to this land. Mr. and Mrs. 
 were the parents of six children — Lucy Jane, 
 now Mrs. Alexander Brewster, of Akron ; 
 Sarah, married Frank Adams, now a resident 
 of Middlebury — she died Jan. 11, 1863, leav- 
 ing two daughters — May, now Mrs. Charles Per- 
 kins, and Julia, now IMrs. Arthur Latham ; 
 Francis Gale, died in 1845, aged 16 ; Ann, now 
 Mrs. Theodrick Balch, of Akron ; Henry, was 
 married Dec. 3, 1857, to Miss Mary Pettibone, 
 daughter of Norman and Susan (Whitmore) 
 
J^ 
 
 814 
 
 B rOGPt APHIC AI . SKETCHES : 
 
 Pettibone — they have two children, Jennie 
 Adams and Susie Hjde ; Maiy, the 3'oungest 
 daughter, married James C. McNeal, of Akron ; 
 tliey have two children. Grant and Sarah. 
 Mr. Gale served for several years as a Justice 
 of the Peace in Vermont. His wife is now a 
 member of the Episcopal Church of Akron. 
 
 ENOS HAWKINS, farmer ; P. 0. Akron. 
 Among the early settlers of Portage Township 
 were the Hawkins family, who were natives of 
 New JEngland. Enos was the son of John Em- 
 erson and Jemima (Pratt) Hawkins ; the former 
 was the son of John and Sarah Hawkins, and 
 was born Aug. 18, 1780, in Woodstock, Wind- 
 sor Co., Vt. ; Jemima, who was the daughter 
 of Asa and Betsy Pratt, was born Oct. 20, 1785. j 
 They were married in 1803, and nine children [ 
 were the result of their union : Enos, subject 
 of this sketch ; Ira, who died man3-3'ears since, 
 while a resident of Portage Township ; Lucy, 
 married Ansil Miller, and died at Akron ; Mary, 
 married Luman Mills, and died while a resident 
 of Wadsworth Township ; John Wesley died I 
 at the age of 16 ; Asenath married Wm. Ellis, 
 a resident of Boston Towhship, and died about 
 1843 ; Horace, and Nelson, the 3'oungest child, j 
 are now residents of Portage Township ; Al- I 
 raira, the youngest daughter, married Zachariah 
 Prentice, of Portage Township, and died man3' 
 3'ears since. Six of the above children moved 
 from Veimont with their parents, in 1816. 
 The3' reached Portage Township, October 28 of 
 that year, and shortl3' afterward Mr. Hawkins 
 purchased 100 acres of land. At that time no 
 other families were residing in the southwestern 
 portion of Portage Township, but Josh King 
 lived near where Simon Perkins does now. 
 Enos Hawkins, subject of this sketch, was born 
 near the Green Mountains, Bridgewater Town- 
 ship, Windsor Co., Vt, Dec. 5, 1803, and was 
 nearl3' 13 3'ears of age when his parents moved 
 to Ohio. He received a knowledge of the com- 
 mon branches in the schools of Vermont and 
 Ohio. In 1825, he was a member of the locating 
 party employed to survey the route of the Ohio 
 Canal, and continued at this business for two 
 3'ears. When the canal was opened, he was ap- 
 pointed Superintendent of Repairs, and had 
 charge of the section from Cleveland to Short 
 Pinery Level ; this division was some eighteen 
 miles in length, and he continued at this for 
 man3^ years, until removed by the Democratic 
 Administration at Columbus, Mr. Hawkins be- 
 
 ing too much of a Whig to suit the ruling 
 part3'. He then farmed in Independence Town- 
 ship Cuyahoga Count3', until about the 3-ear 
 1872, when he removed to his present farm. 
 In 1830, he purchased nearl3' 100 acres of land 
 in Portage Township ; since then he has sold a 
 portion of this, and now has 49 acres. He was 
 married in 1836 to Miss Mar3' Parker, daughter 
 of Cardy and Mary x\nn (Lee) Parker. They 
 were the parents of four children : Emil3', died 
 in infanc3' ; Emma, died aged 16 ; Minerva, 
 now Mrs. A. W. Gillett, of Portage Township ; 
 J]lla, now Mrs. Charles Green, of Independence, 
 Cu3'ahoga Co. Mrs. Enos Hawkins died Jan. 
 11, 1854. 
 
 JOSEPH HILL, farmer, Akron ; was born 
 Nov. 30, 1825, in Guilford, Windham Co., Vt. 
 His parents were T3'Ier and Sallie (Fish) Hill. 
 Tyler was born in New Hampshire in 1793, 
 son of Fisher Hill, whose wife's maiden name 
 was Chase. T3'ler Hill emigrated West with 
 his family in 1836, coming by canal from Troy 
 to Buffalo, thence b3' water to Cleveland. At 
 Brookl3'n, he secured an ox team, conve3'ing 
 his family to this count3', making his settle- 
 ment in the northeast part of Twinsburg, 
 where he purchased 144 acres of land. Having 
 at the time of his arrival $1,300 in money, 
 which was expended for land and such neces- 
 saries as circumstances required ; here he re- 
 mained until his death ; he was a good citizen 
 and a Christian, who adhered to the tenets of 
 of the Baptist Church. Six children were 
 born them, whose names were Delight, Han- 
 nah, Ambrose, Jane, Joseph and Sarah. 
 Joseph was married March 14, 1854, to Mehita- 
 ble Drake, born Feb. 29, 1836, in Boston Town- 
 ship, daughter of Nathan and Lizzie (Bowker) 
 Drake. He was born in New Hampshire, Dec. 
 1, 1786 ; she, in same State, Ma3' 30, 1792. 
 To this couple were born the numerous family 
 of fifteen, whose names were, David, Silas, 
 
 Mary, Amy, A , Jasper B., James N., 
 
 Emily, John D., Elizabeth, Joseph, Benjamin, 
 Nathan, Mehitable and Mariamne. After Mr. 
 Hill was married he moved to Solon Township, 
 where he lived five years, then moved to Twins- 
 burg and stayed two 3'ears, returning to Solon 
 and lived three 3'ears. Located on the farm he 
 now owns, in 1864 ; since remained. Has now 
 over 300 acres of land situated in the extreme 
 north part of the township. Of eleven chil- 
 dren born him, Charles G., Jessie, Ira M., Joit- 
 
 
:l^ 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 815 
 
 ajuba, Aquilla, Schuyler J. and George M. 
 are living ; Lillie L. died at 7, Leander at 5, 
 Lizzie and Viva when young. Farming is the 
 business in which he has been engaged. Not 
 a member of an}' orthodox church. Father 
 was Democratic ; Joseph, llepublican. The 
 parents of Mr. Hill were Baptists. Her father 
 died in 1852, mother about seven years later. 
 Were early settlers. 
 
 CHAUNCEY HART, deceased. This pio- 
 neer was born in Oneida Co., N. Y., Sept. 10, 
 1797 ; son of Reuben Hart, who was a native 
 of Connecticut. Chauncey moved to Tallmadge 
 in 1816. Oct. 10, 1819, he married Rosella 
 Hard, who was born in 1798. in Berkshire, in 
 North Vermont. She was a daughter of Abram 
 and Rebecca (Flagg) Hard, whose children 
 were Cyrus, xlbram, Nelson, Moses K., Orilla, 
 Sophia, Rosella, Laura and Julia A. In 1821, 
 Mr. Hart moved to Wads worth, Medina Co., 
 where he purchased some unimproved land, 
 which he improved. Li 1853, he located in 
 Akron, where he lived several years ; then he 
 located on his farm, where he died, March 20, 
 1877. His wife died the year following, March 
 26. To them were born four children ; but two 
 are now living, Mrs. Cunningham and Mrs. 
 Beardsley. For more than one-half a century, 
 he was a member of the M. E. Church. From 
 that time forward he never wavered from his 
 course, but attested the genuineness of his pro- 
 fession by an upright and blameless life. For 
 the last seven years, he was an invalid, and 
 suffered greatl}', yet through all his affliction he 
 waited with Christian resignation for his Mas- 
 ter's call, and was ready to pass over to the 
 shining shore. His remains now rest in the 
 cemetery, near by his last home. Amanda, his 
 j-oungest daughter, was born in October, 1840, 
 in Wadsworth. Oct. 17, 1861, she married 
 Avery S. Beardsley, who was born in Coventry, 
 this county, Oct. 26, 1838, son of T. and Tem- 
 perance (Spicer) Beardsley. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Beardsley have one son, Chauncey Hart ; they 
 reside on the homestead farm. 
 
 WILLIAM H. JONES, farmer ; P. 0. Ak- 
 ron ; was born July 17, 1833, in Oneida Co., 
 N. Y. Son of John H. and Sarah (Simpson) 
 Jones. The former was born August, 1806, in 
 Albany, N. Y., son of Samuel and Betsey (Ham- 
 ilton) Jones. Samuel was boi'n at Schenec- 
 tady, N. Y., in the " Mohawk Dutch " settlement. 
 Betsey Hamilton was born in Dublin, Ireland, 
 
 where she lived until 11 years of age. Sarah 
 Simpson was a daughter of John. John H. 
 Jones came west in 1834 to Ohio, remained 
 some time, and then moved to Indiana. They 
 had six children who grew up to maturity — - 
 Louisa, William, James, Mary E., Charlotte 
 and Sebra. William H., was raised to farming. 
 On Aug. 25, 1862, he enlisted in Battery B, 
 and served one year, when he was discharged 
 on account of (lisability. He returned home, 
 remaining until February, 1864, when he re-en- 
 listed in Co. B, 188th 0. V. I., and remained 
 until the close of the war. March 14, 1855, he 
 married Susannah Best, a daughter of John 
 Best, who was born in Mercer Co., Penn., in 
 1796 ; son of John Best, who came from Ger- 
 many and settled in Mei'cer Co., when the coun- 
 try was new. John Best married Rebecca 
 Watson, a daughter of Galiriel Watson, who 
 had fourteen children born to him. John Best 
 came to Northampton in 1832, where he pur- 
 chased unimproved land at the center of the 
 township, which he cleared up, and lived on 
 the same as long as he lived. His death oc- 
 curred March 18, 1861 ; his wife is yet living. 
 They wei'e members of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church. They had ten children. Mrs. Jones 
 being the eldest of the family. To Mr. and 
 Mrs. Jones haA^e been born ten children, eight 
 of whom are living. They have 100 acres of 
 land. Mr. Jones' father was killed in August, 
 1868. His wife died Jan. 14, 1877. 
 
 GEORGE MILLER, retired farmer, Akron, 
 whose portrait will be found in this work, has been 
 a resident of the State since 1810 ; was born Dec. 
 14, 1807, in Perry Co., Penn., eldest child of Ja- 
 cob and Sarah (Lutman) Miller. The Millers 
 are of German stock, and were among the better 
 class of that nationality who left the " Fader- 
 land " to cast their lots with America and its 
 varied interests. At the age of 3, our subject 
 " came West " with his parents, who made their 
 first settlement in Can field Township, Trum- 
 bull Co. He was a carpenter b}- trade, but his 
 worldly possessions were very limited indeed. 
 His first purchase of land was 60 acres, which 
 he partially cleared. The country at this time 
 was a dreary wilderness, the inhabitants were 
 very few and much scattered. He immediately 
 began the arduous task of clearing a spot for 
 cultivation, and soon had a cabin erected in 
 which he resided until 1816, when he moved to 
 what is now Wadsworth Township, Medina Co. 
 
^1 
 
 816 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 (then Portage), where he purchased 120 acres 
 of Gen. Wadsworth at $3 per acre. Here he 
 found as uninhabitable a place of settlement 
 as in Trumbull Co. The nearest settlement on 
 the east was that of Joseph Harris, of Harris- 
 ville Township, sixteen miles distant. Upon 
 this place he spent the remainder of his life, 
 dying in 1859 ; his wife preceded him nearl}' a 
 score of years. Of the family born to this 
 couple were George and his twin, who died 
 young ; Samuel, who died aged 1 year, Petsey, 
 who died at 14 ; David was killed at Akron 
 while in the discharge of his duties as fireman 
 at a fire ; John ; Aaron died while on his wa^- to 
 California in 1851 ; Catharine married Reuben 
 Baughman ; Mary now Mrs. Alexander Beck ; 
 Harriet, now Mrs. Shaflfer ; and Susan married 
 Henry Parmelee. George was raised to hard 
 labor ; what schooling he obtained was the plain- 
 est rudiments of the cabin schools, but was in- 
 ci'eased by careful study at his father's fireside. 
 His father being a carpenter and cabinet-maker, 
 George soon learned the use of tools and as- 
 sisted his father in his labors as a house-builder, 
 and manufacturing such articles as were re- 
 quired by the early settlers who came to their 
 western homes without tables, (chairs, or scarce- 
 ly any furniture. Coffins were manufactured 
 for the unfortunate ones, which were split out 
 of logs, then hewn out to encase the mortal 
 remains of the lone pioneer. Mr. Miller left 
 home at the age of 23, made his first purchase 
 of land in Sharon of 60 acres of unimproved 
 land, which cost him $4 per acre ; he afterward 
 added 1 5 acres, and then 27. After a residence 
 of three years, he returned to Wadsworth, where 
 he purchased 100 acres, which he cleared up, 
 remaining on the same until 1853, when he 
 moved to his present place on Tract 4, which 
 has ever since been his place of living. In 
 1831, he married Rebecca Baughman, daugh- 
 ter of Paul Baughman. Upon Mr. Miller's ar- 
 rival here he purchased of Gov. Tod 240 acres 
 at $25 per acre. He has now 231 here, and 120 
 in Wadsworth. His faithful wife was taken 
 from him in the j'ear 1868, leaving him four 
 children — Paul, now in California ; Sarah, who 
 married S. Coplin, and has five children — 
 Charles, George, RoUin, Homer and Oscar ; 
 Martha married Frank Springer, now of Medina, 
 having one child, Fred, by her first husband ; 
 John F., at home, he married Charity Brouse, 
 daughter of William Brouse, of Wadsworth ; 
 
 John F. has one child, Elton. Paul married 
 Matilda Horn, and b}' her has two sons. Mr. 
 Miller has already passed the limit allotted to 
 mankind and is now spending the eve of his 
 life in the sweet quiet of his home. He is held 
 in high esteem by all who know him. Polit- 
 ically he has been Democratic, and always true 
 to the principles embraced by his part}-. Re- 
 ligiously, he was reai'ed a Lutheran, but later in 
 life he has become impressed with the doctrine 
 of universal salvation. He has been a man of 
 industrious habits, and been prospered in all 
 of his business undertakings ; he has taken an 
 active part in whatever was calculated to ad- 
 vance the interests of the people at large ; has 
 been a substantial member of the comniunit}', 
 and liberal in his contributions to charitable 
 and educational purposes. He has devoted his 
 life to agricultural pursuits, never seeking the 
 publicit}- of office, yet, at the solicitations of 
 friends, has filled several offices of trust in the 
 community. While in Medina Co., he served as 
 Justice of the Peace, Township Trustee, Treas- 
 urer and Assessor. Acting independently of 
 sect or denomination, yet has favored every- 
 thing known to be right and opposed to wrong ; 
 honestly and openh* laboring to promote good 
 morals and advance the common interests 
 of all good citizens. By his frugality and in- 
 dustry he has acquired a handsome property', 
 and is one of the self-made men of the county. 
 JOHN McCAUSLAND, farmer and brick 
 manufacturer ; P. 0. Akron; was born June 
 26, 1824, in County Antrim, Ireland, and is a 
 son of James and Jane (Drain) McCausland. 
 James was born in Februar}', 1799, the 
 only son of James, his father, who bore the 
 same name. Jane was a daughter of Hugh 
 Drain. John emigrated to Ohio in 1849, hav- 
 ing sei'ved his father several years after his 
 majorit}-, and came here poor. He began work 
 in this county as a common laborer, receiving 
 at first $8.50 per month ; afterward, by the year, 
 receiving $120, then $150 annually. In 1853, 
 he married Mary McQuillan, who was born in 
 Count}' Antrim, Ireland, in April, 1827 ; 
 daughter of Charles and Mary (Mulheren) Mc- 
 Quillan. After Mr. McCausland acquired suffi- 
 cient means, he bought a team and the neces- 
 sary implements, and engaged in farming, rent- 
 ing land about six years on the Phelps farm. 
 In 1859, he purchased where he now lives, first 
 bu3'ing 76 acres, for which he paid $28 per 
 
 •^ ( 
 
lI^ 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 817 
 
 acre. He has since added to the same, having 
 now 112^ acres. In 1871, he engaged in the 
 manufacture of brick, and has been every year 
 increasing his facilities until he has now pro- 
 ductive capacity of 2,000,000 per 3'ear, there 
 ha\ing been such a demand that he has not 
 been able to fill the orders that have been given 
 liira. He has four children living — James, 
 John, Margaret and Mary. Mr. McCausland 
 is one of the substantial men of the township. 
 Coming here a poor man, he has, by diligence 
 and economy, acquired for himself a honie and 
 a sufficient competence, and built up a manu- 
 facturing establishment in his line which is the 
 largest in the township ; a man of intelligence 
 and a liberal patron of the public journals. 
 
 AARON OYIATT, retired farmer; P. 0. 
 Akron ; a member of a numerous, important 
 and. influential family of Summit County. He 
 is a grandson of Benjamin Oviatt. who was 
 born Feb. 27, 1755 ; Benjamin was a soldier 
 during the Revolutionary war ; was married 
 Dec. 8, 1774, and died Sept. 24, 1832 ; Eliz- 
 abeth, his wife, was born Aug. 29, 1754, and 
 died Dec. 5, 1832 ; they had eleven children — 
 Heman, Luman, Benjamin, Olive, Salmon, 
 Betsy, Clarissa, Nathaniel, Huldah, Mary 
 and Anna. Many of these settled in 
 what is now Summit County, at an early 
 day, and became active and energetic citi- 
 zens in their respective communities. Ben- 
 jamin, and his sons Luman and Heman, 
 bought the northwest quarter of the township 
 of Richfield, paying $4,000 for 4,000 acres. 
 Luman never lived in Summit County, but 
 Heman settled at Hudson and was one of the 
 founders of Hudson College ; Benjamin, his 
 brother, also settled in Hudson ; Salmon and 
 Nathaniel settled in Richfield ; Betsy man'ied 
 Elisha Ellsworth, of Hudson ; Clarissa married 
 Elijah Ellsworth, of Richfield ; Huldah mar- 
 ried a Mrs. Thompson, of Hudson ; Mary mar- 
 ried the gentleman after whom Hudson Village 
 was named, and when he died, Darius Lyman, 
 of Ravenna. Luman Oviatt, father of Aaron, 
 was born Sept. 6, 1777 ; married May 10, 1796, 
 to Rhoda Norton, born Oct. 9, 1777. They re- 
 sided in Goshen Township, Litchfield Co., 
 Conn.; were the parents of ten children, many 
 of whom moved to Summit County, as follows : 
 Birdsey, at Hudson ; Nelson, at Richfield ; Ke- 
 siah died at Groshen ; Rhoda, formerl}' Mrs. 
 Julia Humphrey, of Richfield ; Heman, at 
 
 Richfield ; Marcus died in Connecticut ; Aaron, 
 subject of this sketch ; Moses, of Cuyahoga 
 County ; Harriet, formerl}' Mrs. Washington 
 B. Bigelow, of Richfield ; Laura, formerly Mrs. 
 Jonathan Spafford, of Copley. These are all 
 dead except Aaron and Moses ; their mother 
 died Jan. 10, 1821 ; Luman married a second 
 time and had three children — Sarah Lucretia, 
 Lyman B. and Samuel — but they never re- 
 moved to Summit County ; their father died 
 Dec. 7, 1838. Aaron was born August 4, 1810, 
 in Goshen Township, Conn., where he was 
 raised and educated. He was married Jan. 9, 
 1833, to Electa, daughter of Reuben Brown, of 
 Noi'folk, Conn.; they had three children — 
 Orestus died aged 9, Heman died in California, 
 Huldah married More Briggs and removed to 
 Iowa. Aaron's wife died and he came to Sum- 
 mit County, where he was married Oct. 11, 
 1846, to Miss Marion B., daughter of Salmon 
 and Mary B. (Hawkins) Hoisington. He then 
 returned to Connecticut, resided there two 
 years, and removed to Copley and purchased 
 123 acres, which land he farmed until about 
 seven years since, when he removed to Akron 
 City. Mr. and Mrs. Oviatt are the parents of 
 eight children, as follows : Orestus Aaron, de- 
 ceased ; Quincy G., deceased ; Ella, now Mrs. 
 Hugh Mussleman ; Truman, deceased ; Clara 
 E., now living in Cu3^ahoga County ; Jennie 
 M., now Mrs. Fred. Tarble, of Akron ; Phila D. 
 and Edward. 
 
 FRIEDRICH PFEIFFER, farmer; P. 0. 
 Akron ; was born Jan. 17, 1829, in Hagenstein 
 Kirchenfeld, Oldenburg, in Northwest Bavaria ; 
 son of George and Catherina (Bank) Pfeiffer. 
 George was the only son of his father, who 
 was a manufacturer of woolen cloth, and who 
 was accidentally killed in his mill. Catherina 
 was a daughter of John Bank, whose wife was 
 Caroline Haas. John Bank had eight children 
 born him, of whom John, Charles, Catherina, 
 Derothe and Caroline grew to maturity. John 
 Bank was a man of wealth and influence ; was 
 largely interested in the manufacturing inter- 
 ests of the place, ran a distillery, an oil mill, a 
 blacksmith-shop, and owned several farms be- 
 sides. He had sons whose names were John, 
 Charles and John, two of whom are prominent 
 ministers — Charles, in New York, John in Buf- 
 falo. To George and Catherina were born 
 Frederick, George (who died in California after 
 a residence of twenty-two years), Catherina 
 
 nv 
 
u- 
 
 818 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 (married Rev. George Rettig, of Iowa), Jacob 
 (now in Wadsworth), Louisa (now Mrs. Mono 
 Smith). Charles (in Akron). Frederick came to 
 Ohio in 1848 ; he came to Akron poor, but was 
 not afraid to labor ; worked at farming, ran an 
 engine two years, and worked in a store and 
 mill. March 19, 1854, he married Catherina 
 Grohe, who was born April 23, 1829, in Baden ; 
 eldest daughter of xldam and Catherina (Ret- 
 tig) Grrohe. Adam Grohe was a son of John 
 and Eva (Shaeffer) Grohe, whose children were 
 Adam, Michael, Eva, Jacob, John, Phillip and 
 George. Mrs. Pfeiffer came to this State in 
 1852. After Mr. Pfeiffer was married he lived 
 six months in Defiance Co., then one year in 
 Madison Co., Ind., and then came to Akron, 
 where he worked a farm on shares. He worked 
 three 3'ears in Wadsworth on George IMiller's 
 farm, rented a farm in Clinton one year, then 
 bought a farm in Sharon Township, Medina 
 Co., which he sold eight years afterward. After 
 making several changes, purchased where he 
 now owns, having eighty-five acres at a cost of 
 $7,000. Has one child — George Frederick, 
 born Nov. 3, 1860. 
 
 WEBSTER B. STORER, horticulturist ; P. 0. 
 Akron. The subject of this sketch was for thirty 
 years an enterprising and energetic business 
 man of Akron ; born in Portland, Me., Jan. 24, 
 1809 ; son of Joseph and Charlotte (Knight) 
 Storer. Joseph was a ship-carpenter and joiner 
 in Maine until 1818, when he moved to Zanes- 
 ville, Ohio, with his family ; assisted b}- John 
 Wilson, his partner, he built the first forked 
 bridge over the Muskingum River at Zanes- 
 ville ; in 1828, he removed to Cleveland, where 
 he was engaged for many 3 ears building ves- 
 sels, steamboats, canal boats, and other water 
 craft. Joseph died in the spring of 1868 at 
 the advanced age of 92 ; he was the father of 
 six children ; all are living, the youngest being 
 70, the eldest 80, and the aggregate of their 
 ages is 450 years ; they are Eliza (now Mrs. 
 Joel Chapman, of Erie Co.), George K. and 
 Joseph (of Brooklyn, Cuyahoga Co.), Samuel 
 (of Clyde, Ohio), Webster B., and Hester (now 
 Mrs. Harris Brainard, of Parma, Cuyahoga 
 Co.). Webster was educated in the schools of 
 Portland and Zanesville. He served an appren- 
 ticeship with his father, and at the age of 21 
 commenced business for himself in Cleveland ; 
 for four 3'ears he was employed at ship-joiner- 
 ing ; he then farmed in Cuyahoga Co. for one 
 
 3^ear ; in 1836, he removed to Akron, and, for 
 three years, was engaged building houses ; dur- 
 ing this time he erected the first house ever 
 built on Mill street, upon the lot now occupied 
 b}' the Universalist Church ; during the next 
 quarter of a centurj^ he followed canal-boat 
 building for some eighteen years, employing at 
 times over twent}^ hands to assist him, con- 
 structing one year twelve boats ; he built the 
 first boat which had a capacity of 2,600 bushels 
 of wheat ; he was in partnership at this busi- 
 ness for two years with Jacob Barnhart, and for 
 ten years with Ansel Miller. About the year 
 1856, he was engaged in the wholesale and 
 retail grocer}' trade, continuing at this some 
 two years. In 1863, he sold his interest at 
 canal-boat building to William H. Payne, and 
 then ran an iron store for five years in partner- 
 ship with his son-in-law, J. L. Noble. In 1868, 
 having traded his city property for 208 acres of 
 land, he removed to this tract, where he has 
 resided ever since with his son-in-law. For 
 some twelve years he has been raising small 
 fruit, and is a member of the State Horticult- 
 ural Society', and an honorary' member in a 
 similar association of Franklin Co. He served 
 as Trustee of Portage Township several terms ; 
 was Infirmary Director of Summit Co. for three 
 3'ears ; was a member of the Board of Educa 
 tion in 1850, when the Central High School 
 building was erected. Mr. Storer was originally 
 a Democrat casting his first Presidential vote 
 for Gen. Jackson. He supported Van Buren 
 in 1836 and 1840 ; then being an ardent sym- 
 pathizer of the anti-slavery movement, he 
 united with the old " Liberty " party ; since 
 the formation of the Republican party he has 
 voted that ticket ; was connected with the 
 underground railroad and the men who con- 
 ducted its passengers through Summit Co. ; 
 was chosen President of the meeting at Akron 
 called to express the indignation of the citizens 
 when John Brown was hung. July 24, 1832, 
 he was married to Miss Mary A. Bangs, daugh- 
 ter of James and Martha (Nash) Bangs. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Storer are members of the Disciples' 
 Church of Akron ; they wei'e among those 
 who organized the congregation in 1840; he 
 has served as Deacon and Overseer in the 
 church for man}' years. They are the parents 
 of five children, one died in infanc}' ; the 
 others are Daniel W. (now of Shelby) ; Hatt}' 
 I. (now Mrs. J. L. Noble ; she was married 
 
PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 819 
 
 Dec. 3, 1855, and is the mother of two daugh- 
 ters—Mary and Lucj- M. Noble), James B. 
 (now Postmaster of Akron), George S. (now of 
 New York City). 
 
 JACOB SHAKE, farmer; P. 0. Akron; 
 was born Jan. 19, 1827, in Wurteraberg, Ger- 
 many. His parents were Jolin and Kate (Rip- 
 le}') Shake ; he was a son of Jacob. Our sub- 
 ject was the 3'oungest of a family of eight chil- 
 dren. In March, 1854, he married Frederica 
 Richards, who was born Aug. 27, 1882, in Wur- 
 temberg; daughter of Davis and Catharine 
 (Kutz) Richards. Davis Richards' father was 
 John Richards ; Catharine Richards was a daugh- 
 ter of George Kutz. In the same year in which 
 he was married, Mr. Shake came to this country ; 
 coming west to Ohio, he stopped in Liverpool 
 Township, Medina Co., where he worked by the 
 month. After saving some mone}', went to 
 Northampton, where he bought 25 acres of land 
 unimproved, costing $2 per acre. This place 
 he cleared up ; he then moved to this township, 
 where he purchased and has since resided. He 
 has now 100 acres of land, which he has cleared 
 up, and erected suitable buildings thereon. He 
 has been a hard-working man, a careful man- 
 ager, and has been successful and secured a 
 good home. He has ten children — Christian, 
 who resides on her father's farm ; Catharina, 
 now the wife of Henry Schumacher ; Mary, the 
 wife of Martin Dice ; Helen, Rosa, Charles, 
 Eliza, Willie, John and Ida. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Shake are members of the German Reformed 
 Church. 
 
 C. M. SMITH, farmer; P. O. Akron; was 
 born in Lake Township, Stark Co., Ohio, Nov. 
 14, 1818, of a family of seven children born 
 to James and Sarah (Houser) Smith. James 
 was born in Pennsylvania Jan. 16, 1790 ; son 
 of John, who was a native of New Jersey, and 
 had born to him five sons and three daughters. 
 James Smith married Sarah Houser, who was 
 born in Lancaster Co., Penn., Jan. 11, 1792. 
 She was a daughter of Peter, who was a son of 
 John Houser, a native of Germany ; his wife 
 was Marj' Fisher, by whom he had thirteen 
 children. Of those who grew up were Mar}^ 
 Catharine, Margaret, Amelia, Julia, Margaret, 
 2d, Peter, Tunis and William. The parents of 
 our subject were married in Pennsylvania, and 
 emigrated to Stark Co. about the year 1813. 
 The^' entered 160 acres in Lake Township ; in 
 1823, he moved to Springfield, remaining there 
 
 until his death, Nov. 15, 1858. To this couple 
 were born Peter, now in Michigan ; John, in 
 Elkhart, Ind.; C. M., Catharine, now Mrs. M. 
 Hagenbaugh, in Tallmadge ; James, died at the 
 age of 50, in this county ; Housel, in Bath 
 Township ; Amelia, Mrs. Hiram Allen, in Ne- 
 braska. C. M. left home at 20, learned the 
 cabinet-maker's trade, and worked at the same 
 thirteen 3'ears. He was first married to Re- 
 becca Monroe, who died one year afterward, 
 leaving one child, since deceased. His second 
 wife was Catharine Fulkerson, who died two 
 3'ears afterward, leaving one child, Sylvester. 
 On Jan. 28, 1849, he married Grazella Ruckel, 
 who was born in Pennsylvania, April 18, 1826 ; 
 daughter of Peter and Mary (Hagenbaugh) 
 Ruckel. Mr. Ruckel came to this country 
 about 1832, and settled in Sharon Township, 
 Medina Co. His wife died when Mrs. Smith 
 was 1 year old. Mr. Smith moved to his farm 
 April, 1858, bought 111 acres of unimproved 
 land, and cleared it up ; he is a self-made man. 
 He has had four children, three living — Eliza- 
 beth, Mrs. Joseph M. Byerley ; Allen J. and 
 Sarah. Mr. Smith has the best of farm build- 
 ings, and is a successful farmer. 
 
 EPHRAIM SHERBONDY, farmer; P. 0. 
 Akron ; one of the earliest settlers of Portage 
 Township, born in East Huntington Township, 
 Westmoreland Co., Penn., Jan. 25, 1612 ; the 
 eldest son of John and Rosannah (Ritchey) 
 Sherbondy, who settled in Portage Township, 
 with their family, in the spring of 1817. George, 
 a brother of John, came at the same time with 
 his family, and they traveled from Pennsylvania 
 with only one large wagon for the two house- 
 holds. At that time, there were only nine 
 other families living in the township these 
 were Avery Spicer, Paul Williams, Samuel 
 
 Newton, Phelps, John Hawkins, 
 
 Ayi-es, Samuel Nash, King and George 
 
 Sholls. Of these nine families only three per- 
 sons are now living, Avery Spicer, his wife and 
 Enos, son of John Hawkins. Several years 
 afterward, Melkiah Sherbondy, father of John 
 and George, moved to Portage and his son 
 Peter also settled in Summit Co., with his 
 family at an early day. From these families 
 were descended numerous offspring, who are at 
 the present time occupying most of the land 
 originally purchased by their ancestors. John 
 Sherbondy was elected Trustee of Portage 
 Township fifteen years in succession ; he was 
 
 IW 
 
820 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 also Assessor for many years ; he died March 
 22, 1866, at the age of 76 ; Rosannah his wife 
 died Aug. 12, 1852; they were the parents of 
 fourteen children, six died before raaturit}', 
 eight raised ftimilies as follows : Ephraim, 
 Uriah and Levi, now of Portage Township ; 
 Sarah, now Mrs. Jacob Smith, of Copley ; Reu- 
 ben and John, now of Portage Township ; 
 Ann, now Mrs. Smith Bunker, of Portage ; 
 Homer, now of Nebraska. Ephraim, subject 
 of this sketch received a very meager educa- 
 tion in his youth. He worked on his father's 
 farm until 20 ; then at the carpenter's trade for 
 fifteen years, during which time he was em- 
 ployed repairing the canal for the State. He 
 was married Aug. 10, 184-6, to Miss Elizabeth 
 Edwards, who was born in Logan County, De- 
 cember 29, 1824 ; she is the daughter of Justus 
 and Margaret (Smith) Edwards ; Justus died 
 in October, 1852. Mr. and Mrs. Sherbondy 
 are the parents of nine children, as follows : 
 Amanda, now Mrs. Thomas Farell, of Cleve- 
 land ; Wallace, of Copley Townshij) and mar- 
 ried to Maggie Porter; Justus died aged 10 
 months ; Ada, now Mrs. Benjamin Frederick, of 
 Copley ; Eunice, now at home ; Rosa, died aged 
 13 in June, 1873 ; John, Giney and Lydia at 
 home. Mr. Sherbond}- owns at the present 
 time some 24 acres of land, and has been a 
 farmer since he left the Ohio Canal. 
 
 A. A. TINKHAM, former ; P. 0. Akron ; 
 was born in Windsor Co., Vt., Jan. 24, 1824, 
 the only son born to his parents, Allen and 
 Mary Ann Tinkham. Mary x\nn was a daughter 
 of Robert Cain, who came from England and 
 settled in Dedham, Mass., where his children 
 Esther, Harriet, Mary Ann and Robert were 
 born. Amos was 4 years of age when his 
 father died ; his motlier afterward married 
 Mr. Washburn. The family came West in 
 1832, first to Wayne Co., Canaan Township, 
 where the}' lived until 1837, when they moved 
 to Wooster, remaining one year ; then to Seville 
 in Medina Co.. and remained there until 1839. 
 Amos remained with his step-father until he 
 was 13 3'ears of age, and, subsequently, hired 
 out to Philo Chamberlain, in Akron, to drive 
 team, and do general outside work until the 
 spring of 1842, when he entered the mill and 
 learned the miller's art, following the same un- 
 til 1849 ; then engaged in the livery business 
 at Franklin, now Kent, remaining nearly one 
 year, then returned to Akron, and continued in 
 
 the business until 1862, when he went into the 
 army, and served two years in the Quarter- 
 master's Department ; returning home, lived 
 one 3'ear in the city ; then moved to the farm 
 where he has since lived ; his farm consists of 
 of 150 acres. May 1, 1853, he married Mar}' 
 Bangs, born May 24, 1828, in Richfield Town- 
 ship, daughter of E. N. Bangs, who was born 
 April 10, 1800, in Stanstead, Lower Canada; 
 his father was James, who moved some four 
 months previous from HaiBpshire Co., Mass., 
 to that place, in 1819, with his entire famih', 
 which consisted of Hortensia, Theodore, Har- 
 riet, Elisha, Martha, Samuel, Clarissa, Henry, 
 Mary Ann and James. The family moved to 
 Norwalk, Ohio, 1821, where he was married to 
 Abigail Wallace, of Petersham, Mass., by 
 whom he had two sons and four daughters — 
 Henr}-, Adeline A. Barnard, of Chicago ; Mary 
 Tinkham, of Akron ; Louise Simmons, of Chi- 
 cago ; Celestia, Mrs. P. J. Moersch, of Akron. 
 Li 1821, Mr. Bangs moved to Milan, Ohio ; in 
 1825, removed to Richfield, Summit Co. ; in 
 1836, to Akron, where he lived until his death, 
 Nov. 17, 1878. Abigail Wallace was a daughter 
 of Daniel, whose children were Abigail, Simeon, 
 Lewis, Miranda, Harriet (deceased), Sarah L. 
 (deceased), and Adeline. Mr. Tinkham has 
 two children — Clara. Mrs. I. R. Miller, of this 
 township, and Fred at home. 
 
 A. TEEPLE, farmer; P. 0. Akron; was 
 born in December, 1841, in Franklin Township ; 
 son of John and Dorothe (Miller) Teeple. He 
 was born Oct. 5, 1795, in New Jerse}- ; son of 
 Andrew Teeple, who came from Holland. He 
 had three sons — Andrew, George and John. 
 The Teeple family came West to Ohio, settling 
 first in Jefferson Co., at Steubenville, where An- 
 drew died in 1810. To him were born Jacob, 
 George, William, Pitney, John, Mary, Sophia 
 and Ann. At the age of 18, John Teeple. the 
 father of the above, came to Canton, where he 
 hired out as a common laborer. Being indus- 
 trious and economical, he succeeded in saving 
 means to enable him to engage in business for 
 himself He worked for some time at contract- 
 ing. He made his first purchase of land in 
 Franklin, where he cleared up a farm of 160 
 acres, which cost at first $3 per acre. Upon 
 this farm he died Sept. 13, 1864 ; wife Nov. 26, 
 1806. She was a member of the Disciples' 
 Church. He believed in Universal salvation. 
 Their children were Catharine, George, Isaac 
 
 ^Is- 
 
Ul 
 
 PORTAGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 831 
 
 who was killed in the late war at Champion 
 Hills, May 16, 1863 ; member of Co. A, 42d 
 0. V. I. ; Simon, David, Aaron and John P. 
 Aaron was raised to farming, receiving the ad- 
 vantages of the common district schools, and 
 finally attended two years at Hiram College, 
 having James A. Garfield as preceptor. At the 
 age of 19, enlisted in September, 1861, in Co. 
 A, 42d 0. V. I., and served three years, partici- 
 pating in the principal battles in which the regi- 
 ment was engaged. In the fall of 1865, he was 
 married to Rachel Hiser, born Dec. 16, 1843, in 
 Sandusk}' Co., daughter of Daniel and Elisabeth 
 (Richard) Hiser, who had the numerous family 
 of sixteen children, twelve grew up. Mr. Teeple 
 moved to this township in 1869, and has 100 
 acres of good land. He has two children — 
 John Frank and Nellie E. Mr. and Mrs. Teeple 
 are members of the Disciples' Church. 
 
 SAMUEL UNDERHILL, farmer; P. 0. 
 Akron ; was born April 9, 1804, in Hyde Park, 
 Dutchess Co., N. Y.; son of James and Clara 
 (Quinby) Underbill, both of whom were born in 
 Westchester Co., N. Y. ; he in 1870 ; his wife two 
 3-ears later. The Underbills were of Quaker 
 belief. James Underbill was a son of Nathan- 
 iel, whose ancestors came from England. Clara 
 Quinb}' was a daughter of Samuel, whose wife 
 was a Powell. To them were born seven children 
 — Moses, Obadiah, Edward, Mary, Jane Catha- 
 rine, Ann and Clara. The children of Nathan- 
 iel were James and Clara. Nathaniel was a 
 lover of horses, and during the time of the 
 Revolution purchased horses for the army. 
 The children of James were Nathaniel, Samuel, 
 Mary, Abram, Philo, Abel, James, Ann, Sarah 
 and Catharine. In 1810, James Underbill 
 moved to Coxsackie, N. Y., where he lived until 
 1813, when he died of pneumonia. Our subject 
 was early in life left without a home. At the 
 age of 20, he began the stud}' of medicine, re- 
 ceived his first diploma at Saratoga, N. Y.; 
 afterward took lectures at New York Cit}', and 
 then came west to Ohio, first locating in Stark 
 Co., in 1830, and began the practice of medi- 
 cine. Although educated an allopath, he after- 
 ward changed to hydropathy. After becoming 
 well-read in phrenology and studying scientific 
 works, his views in regard to religion became 
 changed, and has since been a Spiritualist. He 
 has practiced medicine thirty years, also having 
 two brothers, Abram and Abel, who have been 
 engaged in the practice of medicine. He came 
 
 to this township in 1863. In June, 1868, he 
 married Electa Sanford, who was born in Hud- 
 ton Township, daughter of Garry and Emily 
 (Richardson) Sanford, who were early settlers. 
 The former died in 1843 ; the latter in 1873 ; 
 they had ten children. Since the Doctor's loca- 
 tion here, he has been engaged mostly in farm- 
 ing. He has one son. 
 
 DANIEL B. WASHBURN, farmer; P.O. Ak- 
 ron ; born at Kingston, Plymouth Co., Mass., 
 Dec. 15, 1818 ; the son of Abiel and Rebecca 
 (Adams) Washburn ; when about thirteen years 
 of age his parents removed to Summit Co., 
 after stopping one winter in New Yoi'k State ; 
 and for some two years Abiel followed the 
 shoemaker's trade until he died, Aug. 25, 1834. 
 A short time previous he purchased from Sam- 
 uel Nash, one of the early settlers of Summit 
 County, 122 acres of land, and most of this is 
 still owned by his decendants. When the 
 Washburn family removed to this land, there 
 were only two log houses and a frame building 
 between their farm and Akron : what is now 
 Wooster avenue was laid out but not fenced. 
 Abiel and Rebecca Washburn were professors 
 of the Swedenborgian faith ; she died Aug. 9, 
 1865 ; they were the parents of six children — 
 Cornelia G., now Mrs. Albert G. J^allison, of 
 Akron ; Lorinda, a resident of Sacramento. 
 Cal.; Leander, of Galesburg, 111.; Keziah, mar- 
 ried Charles Mallison, and died about seven 
 years since ; Rebecca, now Mrs. John Wilbur, 
 of California ; Daniel B., of Portage Township, 
 subject of this sketch, who has resided upon 
 his present farm since 1834 ; he received a 
 knowledge of the common branches in the 
 schools of Massachusetts and "York" State, 
 and finally "graduated" at a log cabin school- 
 house in Portage Township. He was married 
 December 10, 1849, to Mrs. Anna M. Adams, 
 daughter of Robert and Betsey (Viers) Adams. 
 She was born Sept. 15, 1818, in Richmond, 
 Va.; her parents died when she was young and 
 she removed to Massachusetts and was mar- 
 ried to Daniel Adams, and by him had four 
 children — Louisa Q., now Mrs. William T. 
 Babcock, of Akron ; Delia J., now Mrs. 
 Thomas Thomas, of Sonoma Co., Cal.; Helen 
 F., now Mrs. George Bunker, of Portage 
 Township ; Francis B., now of Akron, 
 Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Daniel B. Washburn 
 are the parents of five children — Winslow, 
 now at home ; Alice, now Mrs. Lycurgus 
 
822 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Force, of Middlebury ; Julia, now Mrs. Frank 
 Sherbondy, of Portage Township ; Addie A. 
 and Anna A., now at home. Mr. Washburn 
 has always voted the Republican ticket since 
 the formation of that part^', previous to that 
 time he was a Whig, casting his vote for Will- 
 iam Henry Harrison in 1840. 
 
 GEORGE H. WISE (deceased); born Nov. 
 10, 1800, in Longstown, Union Co., Penn., a 
 son of Henry and Elizabeth (Seibald) Wise, 
 whose children were John, Jacob, Henry, Will- 
 iam, George, Christopher, Daniel, Mary and 
 Abram. Henrj' Wise came West about the 
 year 1812 ; John, his son, served in the war of 
 1812 ; Henry Wise settled in Lake Township 
 when the country was new, remaining upon the 
 place of his settlement until his death, which 
 took place in 1839. George H. was raised a 
 farmer; about the year 1820, was married to 
 Catharine Wise, who was born May 11, about 
 the year 1803, daughter of David and Catharine 
 (Denious) Wise ; he was a son of Frederick and 
 Catharine, who came from Germany and were 
 sold to pa}' their passage. The parents of 
 3L-S. Wise came West when she was but 9 
 years of age, settling in Stark Co., where they 
 remained until their death. To them were 
 born Betsy, Poll}-, Catharine, Barbara, John, 
 Sarah, Nanc}' and David ; of those living are 
 David, John and Mrs. Wise. For a time after 
 the marriage of Mr. Wise, he located in Green- 
 town, where he kept tavern and carried on the 
 butchering business ; was a carpenter by trade 
 at which he worked in the early part of his 
 life. In 1860. came to the township and pur- 
 chased 349 acres of land, upon which he lived 
 until his death which occurred Aug. 22, 1880 ; 
 was ftither of thirteen children who wei-e Jacob, 
 Elizabeth, Sarah, Harriet. Lydia, Eliza, Wash- 
 ington, Jefferson, Wesley, Emma J., Melissa J., 
 Washington and Nettie D. Wesley was born 
 Nov. 1, 1838, died Dec. 25, 1862; married Cla- 
 rissa Pryor, born in October, 1843. in North- 
 ampton, daughter of Samuel S., and Anra 
 Everet. The Pryors were from Vermont, and 
 
 the Everets from Germany. Mr. Wise has 
 three children — Mary, Addie and Freddie ; 
 there are 312 acres in the estate. 
 
 WILLIAM ZELLER, larmer; P. O. Akron ; 
 was born in Lake Township, Stark Co., Ohio, 
 Nov. 4, 1824 ; son of Adam and Elizabeth 
 (Hoover) Zeller ; Adam was born about the 
 year 1789, in Union Co., Penn. The Zeller fam- 
 ily' came West to Stark Co. about the j-ear 181"), 
 and settled in Lake Township ; he first bought 
 80 acres, upon which he settled ; he then 
 moved to a place adjoining, and, finaljy. located 
 in Greentown, where he died in 1853 ; he was 
 highly esteemed in the community, a good 
 Democrat and a quiet citizen ; his wife survived 
 him but four days. Twelve children were born 
 to them — Polly, Joseph, Daniel, Benjamin, 
 Sarah, Anna, Betsey, Susan, William, Aaron, 
 Robert and Jeremiah — ten of whom came to 
 maturity ; those living are Daniel, in Brimfield 
 Township, Portage Co.; William, in this town- 
 ship ; Benjamin, in Cass Co., Mich ; Elizabeth, 
 married Absalom Shubert ; Jeremiah, in same 
 county and State. Our subject remained at 
 home until 1842 ; he learned the harness- 
 maker's trade, at which he worked about ten 
 years. On Sept 2, 1847, he married Sarah 
 Wise, who was born May 16. 1825, in Stark Co., 
 daughter of George H. Wise, who was an early 
 resident of Stark Co; after Mr. Zeller was mar- 
 ried, he lived several years in Greentown, after- 
 ward removing to Uniontown, where he carried 
 on his trade and was engaged in butchering ; in 
 1855, he moved to the country, where he farmed 
 five years ; in 1860, he moved to Portage Town- 
 ship and located where he now I'esides, pur- 
 chasing 70 acres of land (but 6 acres improved), 
 paying $50 per acre ; he has since cleared up 
 his farm and has excellent buildings thereon ; 
 his farm is situated in close proximity to the 
 city of Akron. They have three children — Al- 
 mira (Mrs. B. F. Huffman), Joseph H. and 
 George. Mr. Zeller is a Republican in senti- 
 ment. His brother Aaron served as a soldier 
 in the late war, doing his duty manfully. 
 
:/L 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 823 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 JOHN BUSS (deceased) ; was born in Smar- 
 den, Kent Co., England, Sept. 28, 1811. His 
 father's family emigrated to the United States 
 in 1825, and settled in Sherman, N. Y. Mr. 
 Buss resided with his jDarents until his 18th 
 3'ear, when he entered the Mayville Academ}^, 
 afterward "attending school at Dunkirk, N. Y. 
 In 1833, he came to Hudson, intending to take 
 a full college course, with the object of prepar- 
 ing himself for the ministry. He remained in 
 the preparatory department for two years, and 
 entered the Freshman class, but was finally 
 compelled to abandon his studies on account of 
 failing health. In July, 1836, he entered the 
 store of Kent & Brewster as clerk, remaining 
 with them until November, 1839, when he went 
 to Columbia, Mo., and engaged as private tutor 
 in the family of a Mr. Allen for about one year, 
 thence to Lake Providence, La., where he taught 
 school until May, 1841, when he returned to 
 Hudson, Ohio. In September of that year, he 
 formed a partnership with E. B. Ellsworth, in 
 the dry goods business, in which he continued 
 about three years, when he retired, and entered 
 into partnership with T. M. Bond, in the store 
 now occupied by his son. About three years 
 afterward, Mr. Bond retired, the business being 
 continued by Mr. Buss, until the stock was 
 bought by Morrell & Ingersoll, in 1856. They 
 were in business about two 3'ears, when Mr. 
 Buss necessarily resumed control of the busi- 
 ness again, and continued until 1867. Mr. Buss 
 has served the people of Hudson in almost their 
 every office. He held the office of Mayor two 
 terms, being elected in 1858, and again in 1871. 
 He was Corporation Treasurer four terms ; vvas 
 member of the Council and Trustee for many 
 years, and served as Justice of the Peace twelve 
 years. He was married to Miss Eliza Goodman, 
 Jan. 1, 1845. The}' had eight children, four of 
 whom survive — Charles H. and Mary J., who 
 reside here ; Mrs. C. R. Seymour, of Winchester, 
 Mass., and Fred B., of Chicago, 111. Mr. Buss 
 eujoyed the confidence and esteem of his fellow 
 citizens, which was won b}' his strict honesty 
 and unswerving integrity. His remains were 
 laid in '• God's acre," on Dec. 1, 1880. On the 
 
 I evening of his death, a meeting of citizens 
 adopted resolutions expressive of the esteem in 
 which Mr. Buss was held, and their sorrow at 
 ' his demise. All places of public business were 
 closed as the funei'al procession passed through 
 the village. Charles H. Buss became familiar 
 with mercantile business bv assisting in his 
 father's store. He attended school at Western 
 Reserve College, not completing a full college 
 course. In 1876, he and Sebastian Miller pur- 
 chased, in partnership, the stock of his father 
 (John Buss), and conducted the business under 
 the firm name of Buss & Miller. Subsequently, 
 Mr. Miller withdrew, and Mr. Buss has since 
 been conducting the business alone. He was 
 married to Miss Mary Squire, Jan. 1, 1872. 
 They have two children, viz., Augusta M. and 
 John C. Mr. Buss was elected Corporation 
 Treasurer, which office he has held two years. 
 
 HARVEY BALDWIN, deceased, son'of Ste- 
 phen Baldwin, was born in Goshen, Conn., Sept. 
 17, 1798. He came here from the old home 
 when 16 years of age, in 1814, and accepted a 
 clerkship in the store of his brother, where he 
 remained about three years. On Oct. 6, 1817, 
 he married Miss Anne IMar^'" Hudson, daughter 
 of David Hudson, who is frequentl}- mentioned 
 elsewhere in the history. Mrs. Baldwin was 
 born Oct. 28, 1800, and was the first white child 
 born within the limits of Summit Co. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Baldwin turned their attention to farming 
 and preparing for themselves a home, and to 
 that end the}' moved to a farm some few miles 
 from the site of Hudson, where the}' remained 
 about three years. Mr. Hudson was desirous 
 to have them reside near him, and therefore he 
 made preparations to have them move, which 
 the}' did, coming to the farm where Mrs. Bald- 
 win now resides. Of their four children, the 
 wife of Prof Edwin S. Gregory is the onl}' sur- 
 vivor ; those deceased are Anna N., who died 
 when about 7 years old ; Harriet M., and Lucj' 
 S., the youngest, who died at 17. Mr. Baldwin 
 vvas identified with the general improvement of 
 the vicinity from the time he began to do busi- 
 ness. He was one of the Trustees of the 
 Western Reserve College for over forty years. 
 
 K* 
 
824 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 He remained in full possession of his faculties 
 to the last, and passed awa}' peacefully June 12, 
 1880. Mrs. Baldwin resides on tlie old home- 
 stead, in probably the oldest residence in the 
 county ; it was built by her father in 1806. 
 She is possessed of extraordinary vitality for 
 one of her age, and, although she is in her 81st 
 year, she is as attentive to the duties of house- 
 keeping as ever. She is the onl}' survivor of a 
 family of seven sons and two daughters. 
 
 F. W. BUNNELL (deceased) ; was born in 
 Waterbury, Conn., July 6, 1820. He learned 
 the carpenter's trade in his native place, 
 and when about 21 years of age, he came to 
 Ohio, locating at Hudson, where he established 
 himself in the business of contracting and 
 building. Among the buildings erected under 
 his direction may be mentioned the Pentagon, 
 the M. E. Church, and some of the best resi- 
 dences in this place, two churches in Twins- 
 burg, and one church at Ravenna. These, in 
 addition to many good residences throughout 
 the countr}^ are monuments of his workman- 
 ship. He married Marie Mansur Jan. 12, 1845. 
 She was born in Hudson March 9, 1825, and 
 the only daughter of Perley and Phylene 
 (Bearss) Mansur. Mr. Bunnell died here April 
 24, 1875, leaving a widow, but no children. 
 Mrs. Bunnell's father, Perley Mansur, was born 
 in New Hampshire, in 1800. He learned the 
 blacksmith's trade in Boston, Mass., and, in 
 1823, he came to Ohio and stopped with his 
 brother who had located in Delaware, Ohio. 
 On account of malarial affections, which were 
 then prevalent in Delaware and vicinity, Mr. 
 Mansur disliked the locality, and he and his 
 wife started with a horse and wagon for the 
 North, hoping to find a more desirable location. 
 On their wa}^ they stopped overnight at Hud- 
 son with David Hudson, who, on learning that 
 Mr. Mansur was a mechanic, insisted upon his 
 making this his future home, as there was much 
 demand for the labor in which he was skilled in 
 the then gi'owing town. The citizens, being in- 
 terested, were anxious for him to remain here, 
 and, to assure him of their zeal in the matter, 
 they set to work and built him a shop on Main 
 street, near where Mr. Wadsworth's present 
 shop is located. He worked at his trade about 
 nine years, when he moved to a farm which he 
 had purchased in this township. He engaged 
 extensively in buying and soiling cattle. This 
 business he followed about twenty j'ears, when 
 
 he retired from business, and moved to Hud- 
 son, where he died, in 1858, in his 58th 3'ear. 
 His widow survived him until 1880, when she 
 died at this place in her 78th year. They had 
 two sons—George, of Cumberland Co., 111., and 
 James, in the real-estate business at Cleveland. 
 
 THOMAS BLACKBURN, farmer; P. 0. 
 Hudson ; was born in Lincolnshire, England, 
 Oct. 9, 1833. When about 25 years of age, he 
 emigrated to the United States, and came direct 
 to Summit Co., Ohio ; he resided in Pennsyl- 
 vania about three years. He enlisted in the 
 1st Ohio Light Artillery Sept. 10, 1861, and 
 served almost four years. At various engage- 
 ments he had two horses shot on which he was 
 riding, and three others wounded, but fortu- 
 nately escaped witliout being injured in the 
 least. With the exception of two weeks, he 
 was never off of duty during almost four years 
 of continuous service. The regiment in which 
 he was, opened the fight and closed it in the 
 battle of Murfreesboro, which lasted seven 
 days, and participated two days in the contest 
 at Chickamauga ; also at Shiloh, Franklin, 
 second battle of Nashville and Perryville, 
 Tenn. In the latter, their regiment lost heavily 
 — 18 men killed, 42 wounded, 68 horses were 
 killed, and 7 guns were taken by the rebels. 
 He returned to Summit County after his dis- 
 charge, and April 10, 1866, he married Han- 
 nah Cowley, daughter of Joseph Cowley, of 
 Tallmadge. They have three children, viz., 
 Florence J., Henry J. and Lottie H. Mrs. 
 Blackburn was born in England and came to 
 the United States with her parents when she 
 was 4 3'ears old. Mr. Blackburn's father died 
 in England ; since tlien his mother emigrated 
 to this country, and is now passing her declin- 
 ing 3'ears under the filial care of her son's 
 famil3\ She is in her 90th year and is very 
 feeble. 
 
 CHARLES BOUTON, hotel and livery, 
 Hudson ; was born in Lake Co., Ohio, Jan. 3, 
 1829. His father, Seth Bouton, came at an 
 early date from New York, and settled in Lake 
 County, Ohio. They moved to Peninsula in 
 1836 ; they built a log cabin, a Mr. Beeres 
 also building one at the same time ; these con- 
 stituted all the buildings or settlements at that 
 time between Peninsula and Hudson. Here 
 the Bouton famil}' lived about twelve years, 
 when they moved to Illinois, and where Seth 
 Bouton now lives in his 82d year. When our 
 
 *?t; 
 
HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 825 
 
 subject (Charles) was about 14 years old, he 
 went to learn the boat-building trade with one 
 Waterman, in Peninsula, where many canal- 
 boats were built. When he was 19 years of 
 age, he took charge of the boat-building busi- 
 ness for Waterman, and remained until 21 
 3'ears of age, when he concluded to go to Cali- 
 fornia during the rush to the gold mines of that 
 State, where he worked at mining for about two 
 years, and met with reasonable success during 
 his sta^'. Returning to Ohio, he resumed his 
 trade at Peninsula, and in the winter would 
 build a boat and run it during the summer, 
 then dispose of all in the fall of the year ; this 
 he followed for about five years. In 1859, he, 
 in companj^ with Henry Johnson, purchased a 
 yard and dry-dock and conducted the boat-build- 
 ing business until 1873, when he sold out. To 
 Mr. Bouton belongs the credit of building the 
 first round-stern propeller canal-boat ever in 
 use, and, up to this date, he built the last boat 
 that has been built in Peninsula in 1872. 
 When he sold out in 1873, he came to Hudson, 
 and purchased the Mansion House property in 
 1874, and has been in the hotel and livery bus- 
 iness since. He has been twice married, first 
 in April, 1854, to Helen A. Johnson, daughter 
 of Henr}^ Johnson, of Boston Township ; she 
 died Ma}^ 29, 1872. leaving three children : Lillie 
 B., now wife of R. K. Pelton, of Cleveland ; 
 Lawson and Clarence. His second marriage 
 was celebrated with Ada D. Crosley, of Cleve- 
 land, in April. 1874. 
 
 WILLIAM CHAMBERLAIN, deceased. 
 With his wife and several children (viz., Joseph, 
 William, Amos, Reuben, Samuel, Philemon, 
 Asahel, Hiram, Lucy, Lydia and Mary) emi- 
 grated from Connecticut to Ohio, and settled in 
 Hudson Township, in 1809. One daughter, 
 Ann, married a Mr. Case, and located at Gran- 
 ville, Ohio. They were among the earl_y pio- 
 neers of the county, and applied themselves to 
 clearing the land and making general improve- 
 ments ; bearing the many privations with a 
 determined resolution to overcome every ob- 
 stacle. Being industrious, the}' laid the foun- 
 dation of material prosperity. All except 
 Hiram have long since mingled their dust with 
 that of mother earth. The representatives of 
 the family still in this vicinity are the lineal 
 descendants of Amos, the third son of William. 
 He (Amos), was a youth of about IG 3'ears 
 when his parents came here ; he took jobs of 
 
 chopping by the acre, and chopped much of the 
 timber in this vicinity, and thereby procured 
 some means to buy a piece of land for himself. 
 He married Jerusha Crane, who came to Ohio 
 from Connecticut, at an early date, with her 
 parents. They had ten children, nine of whom 
 grew up to maturity, viz., Horace A., Harris B., 
 Schuyler M., Laura M., Jerusha A., Catharine 
 R., Orville W., Cordelia M. and Henry H. Both 
 Amos and his wife died here, at an advanced 
 age. 
 
 HARRIS B. CHAMBERLAIN ; P. 0. Hud- 
 son ; was born May 20, 1819, on the old home- 
 stead, in this township. Having been reared 
 to farm life, he began in the same pursuits, and 
 has followed the same all his lifetime. His 
 course of education was that received at the 
 common schools. In October, 1850, he married 
 Miss Maria Henry, daughter of James Henry, 
 of Aurora, Ohio. The}' located on a farm in 
 the vicinity of his early home, which was for- 
 merly the home of John Brown, of Harper's 
 Ferry fame, where they have resided ever since. 
 Their union was blessed with three children, 
 viz., Eliza, now Mrs. D. C. Bentley ; Ella, now 
 widow of Henry Ellsworth, and Clara. Mrs. 
 Chamberlain was born May 4, 1820, in Aurora; 
 is the youngest of nine children born to James 
 and Sarah (Cochrane) Henry. He was a native 
 of Connecticut, but moved to Harpersfield, N. 
 Y. ; thence with his wife and three children to 
 Aurora, Ohio, in 1804. They were the third 
 family to settle in that place ; there Mr. Henry 
 officiated as Justice of the Peace for many 
 years. At a very early date in the history of 
 Ohio, his wife's father, John Cochrane, located 
 about 1,400 acres, and when on his way out 
 with his family, he took sick, and died at Buflalo, 
 N. Y., and was said to be the first white man 
 to die at that place. Of James Henry's family, 
 those surviving are the widow of F. Booth, of 
 Twinsburg ; Harvey H., of Iowa ; Gilbert H., of 
 Emporia, Kan. ; Mrs. Blanchard, of Lyons, 
 Mich., and Mrs. Chamberlin. 
 
 SCHUYLER M. CHAMBERLIN, farmer; 
 P. 0. Hudson ; was the third son born to Amos 
 Chamberlin, which occurred Nov. 3, 1821. He 
 received a fair education in the common schools 
 and turned his attention to farming, and by 
 care and industry has been quite successful. 
 When about 22 years of age, he married ]\Iiss 
 Jane E. Bliss. They began on a farm almost 
 all in woods, which his father gave him, and 
 
 
826 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 which he improved, making a comfortable and 
 pleasant home. They have three children, viz., 
 R. R., in Hudson ; Geo. S., in Streetsboro Cor- 
 ners, and Julia B., now Mrs. Robert White. 
 Mrs. Chamberlin's parents were Josiah and 
 Sarah (Cooley) Bliss, natives of Springfield, 
 Mass. Mr. Bliss died in Massachussetts, leav- 
 ing a widow and four children. (3ne of them — 
 Sarah A. — remained in Massachussetts ; the 
 three other children — William B., George J., 
 and Jane P]., now Mrs. Chamberlin — with their 
 mother, emigrated to Ohio in 1830. Mrs. 
 Bliss died in x\urora. Portage Co. Her son, 
 Geo. J., is a minister of the Gospel in the 
 Methodist Church in Cleveland ; William B. 
 enlisted during the war of the late rebellion, 
 and was seriously wounded at the second battle 
 of Bull Run, and after lying eight days on 
 the field in a disabled condition, he was found 
 alive ; he died soon afterward of exhaustion. 
 
 CARROLL CUTLER, President of the West- 
 ern Reserve College, Hudson ; was born Jan. 
 3L 1829, in Windham, N. H. He was the 
 third child born to Rev. Calvin and Rhoda 
 (Little) Cutler. The Rev. Calvin Cutler was a 
 native of Vermont, and a graduate of Dart- 
 mouth College. In 1822, he entered the min- 
 istry under the auspices of the Presbj^terian 
 Church in New Hampshire. He was energetic 
 in establishing schools, and liberal in their sup- 
 port whenever dependent on private subscrip- 
 tion, thereby providing the best possible 
 school facilities for his large famil}-. President 
 Cutler began to teach school when about 17 
 years of age ; and at 18 years he entered the 
 Phillips Academy, at Andover, Mass. In 1850, 
 he entered Yale College, and graduated in 
 1854. At the close of his collegiate course he 
 taught in Bloomfield. N. J., one ^'ear ; then en- 
 tered the Union Theological Seminary at New 
 York. He was appointed tutor in Yale College 
 in 1856, where he remained two years. Aug. 
 10, 1858, he married Miss Francis E. Gallagher ; 
 they went to Europe, where Mr. Cutler spent a 
 year in study, and traveling, returning to New 
 Jersey in 1859, and in April of the following 
 year he was appointed Professor of Mental 
 Philosophy and Rhetoric, in the Western Re- 
 serve College. In 1871, he was elected Presi- 
 dent of the College. They have one child, Su- 
 san Rhoda. Mrs. Cutler was born at Sackett's 
 Harbor, N. Y. in 1828. She was the daughter 
 of Capt. J. H. Gallagher, of the U. S. A. He 
 
 resigned his commission in the army, and en- 
 tered the ministry in 1838, His religious views 
 accorded with Presbyterianism and in that 
 faith he was ordained, and preached thirteen 
 years ; when on account of failing health he 
 was obliged to withdraw from pastoral duties. 
 
 SIDNEY COLLAR, farmer ; P. 0. Hudson ; 
 was born in Warren Co., Vt., Aug. 2, 1808. His 
 father (David Collar) was a carpenter and mill- 
 wright by trade, and when our subject was 
 about 5 years old, the family moved from Ver- 
 mont to New York. In 1820, they moved to 
 Ohio with a family of fourteen children, and in 
 1826 they located in Hudson ; but his father 
 removed to Lorain County, where he died 
 many years ago. Sidney was the second child 
 and eldest son of fifteen children (one died be- 
 fore they came to Ohio) in all eight boys and 
 seven girls ; he began on his own account when 
 about 19 3'ears old. He married Carolina 
 Stone Dec. 23, 1830 ; she was the daughter of 
 Nathaniel Stone who came here in 1810. Mrs. 
 Collar was a babe onl}^ 6 weeks old when her 
 parents left Connecticut. Soon after his mar- 
 riage, Mr. Collar bought 33^^ acres where he 
 made a comfortable home, which he finally' 
 sold and removed to the farm where he now 
 lives in 1835 ; and on which he has lived ever 
 since. It was all heavy timber at that time, 
 through which the deer fearlessly ranged. Mr. 
 and ^Irs. Collar had three children — Carolina 
 L., who was married to Mr. Draper, and is de- 
 ceased ; Emeline E. was wife of x\lph. Stone, 
 and died in 3Iichigan ; and Sarah, who is Mrs. 
 S. Griest, who resides with Mr. Collar and has 
 charge of the farm. Mr. Griest was a volunteer 
 in the late rebellion, serving in Co. E. 88th 
 Ind. V. I.; at the close of the war he returned 
 to Ft. Wa3'ne. Ind., from which place his 
 regiment came. But soon after the close 
 of the war he returned to his native place 
 (Summit Co., Ohio) where he was married and 
 resided ever since. 
 
 M. CHAPMAN, farmer, P. 0. Hudson, was 
 born in this township, west edge of Lot 84, 
 Dec. 18, 1821, son of John and Eliza (Bassett) 
 Chapman. Mathew was the eldest of a family 
 of seven children, who were, Harriet, Mary, El- 
 len. John, Henry and Rufus. Our subject was 
 raised to farming pursuits. In April 1849, he 
 was married to Sarah B. Waite, born Sept. 25, 
 1828, in Boston Township, daughter of Benja- 
 min and Sarah Chapman, whose maiden name 
 
 *7t 
 
 <S r- 
 
:i£ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 827 
 
 was Kent. The above were earl}- settlers in 
 Boston Township. With the exception of a 
 few years of his early married life, which was 
 spent in Boston Township, he has been a con- 
 stant resident of this township, and engaged in 
 farming and stock trading ; lias 280 acres of 
 land, and is a neat and successful farmer ; has 
 two children — Emily E., now Mrs. W. Morse, 
 of Cleveland, and one son, William H., on home 
 farm. John Chapman, the father of Mathew, 
 was born in England, about the year 1788 ; .at 
 age of 18 was pressed into the British Nav}-, 
 and during the war of 1812, served on the Hag- 
 ship Queen Charlotte. At the time of Perry's 
 victoi-y he was captured by the Americans, 
 taken to Chillocothe, where he spent one win- 
 ter, then taken to Cleveland and exchanged. 
 Shorth' after, he came to this locality and en- 
 gaged as a farm laborer; saving some means, he 
 made his first purchase into Wadsworth Town- 
 ship, Medina County ; afterward, traded his 
 farm for land in the northwest part of this 
 township, locating there about the 3-ear 1829, 
 where he died Jan. 15, 18G6, having at the time 
 150 acres of land. He and wife were meml)ers 
 of the Congregationalist Church ; was Demo- 
 cratic in sentiment and a worthy citizen of the 
 community. 
 
 LORA CASE, retired farmer ; P. 0. Hudson ; 
 was born in Grranby, Conn., Nov. 17, 1811. 
 He is the fifth child and second son born to 
 Chaunce}' and Cleopatra (Hayes) Case, who 
 were natives of Connecticut. The\- emigrated 
 to Ohio with their five children, viz., Laura, 
 Chauncey. Clariuda, Parintha and Lora. They 
 located on the farm, now owned by Henry, on 
 July 4, 1814. In company with the Case fam- 
 ily was Gideon Mills and wife (the latter was a 
 sister of Mrs. Case), drove through, one with an 
 ox team, and Mr. Case with a team of horses. 
 For the nourishment of their children on the 
 journey, the}- drove along a milch cow ; it took 
 them six weeks to drive from Connecticut to 
 Hudson. Mills and his wife died many years 
 ago in Hudson. Suggestive of the inconven- 
 ience and almost impossibility to procure some 
 of the necessaries in pioneer days, we refer to 
 a trip made by Mr. Chauncey Case and his ox 
 team to Cleveland for a barrel of salt for him- 
 self and Dr. Moses Thompson, and for which he 
 paid in cash S22. and occupied four days to go 
 and return. There were five other children 
 born to Mr. and Mrs. Case after their removal 
 
 to Ohio, viz., p]dward, Lucian, Henry, Amelia 
 and Maria. The ten children all lived to ma- 
 turitA'. Laura died when about 21 years of 
 age. Chauncey and Lucian reside in Macomb, 
 111.; Clarinda was the Avife of Alvin Loomis ; 
 she died in Hudson : Parintha married Amos 
 E. Wood, of Wood Co., Ohio, both deceased ; 
 Edward moved to Troy, Kan., where he died ; 
 Amelia is wife of Charles Hunt, of Cuyahoga ■ 
 Falls ; Maria is widow of John Gross, of Hud- 
 son. When Lora was about 25 years old, he 
 began for himself. He married Sarah A., 
 daughter of Thomas Wright, who came liere 
 from Connecticut at an early date. May 10, 
 1837. They located in Streetsboro. Port- 
 age Co.. and in 1864, they removed to Hudson 
 Township. They had five children, three lived 
 to maturity — Chauncey, George (deceased), 
 Mary E.. Julian W. (deceased) and Wilber L. 
 Mary E. is now Mrs. S. E. Scott formerly of 
 Mentor, Lake Co., and who has entire charge of 
 the farm. Mr. and Mrs. Case reside with Mr. 
 Scott in their ripening years. 
 
 HENRY CASE, farmer ; P. 0. Hud.son , was 
 the son of Chauncey and Cleopatra (Hayes) 
 Case, and was born Oct. 30. 1817. He was 
 brought up to farm life, and received a fair ed- 
 ucation in the primitive schools of his time. 
 Oct. 29, 1847, he married Mary L. Goodman. She 
 was born in New Hartford, Conn.. Sept. 7. 1828. 
 They have eight children living, viz.. Nelson, 
 Eugene, Franklin (deceased), Eliza (deceased), 
 John. Edmond, Hattie, Frederick, Mary and 
 Clara. His father is mentioned in the sketch 
 of Lora Case, and date of emigration to this 
 State. They succeeded admirably, considering 
 the man}- privations and wants of a numerous 
 famil}' of helpless children in the primitive 
 forest. They erected their commodious brick 
 residence about 1832, and was one of the first 
 if not the only brick residence in the county at 
 that date. The old folks died here on the old 
 homeste.^d ; he in 1864, in his 85th year, aud 
 she in 1867. in her 87th year. 
 
 DARROW FAMILIES, Hudson, of this 
 vicinity are the lineal descendants of Joseph 
 and Geoi-ge Darrow. who were natives of the 
 State of ^e\Y York : had moved into Connecti- 
 cut, and thence to the AVesterri Reserve, with 
 the emigrating party under the direction of 
 David Hudson, in 1800. They were .yoiuig 
 men. respectively about 25 and 23 years of 
 
 They located about 
 
 ^i' 
 
 V 
 
M 
 
 828 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 two miles south of Hudson Center, where they 
 built and made general improvements, and 
 soon their settlement showed signs of thrift 
 and prosperity. And, as their tamilies multi- 
 plied, they generally settled in the same vicinity, 
 hence the name " Darrow street,'' was given to 
 the road leading south from Hudson through 
 their settlement. A younger brother, James, 
 came here a few years subsequent to the first 
 settlement, but remained only a short time, 
 when he removed to the vicinity of Lebanon, 
 and joined the sect known as the '' Shakers," 
 where he died several years ago. Joseph, mar- 
 ried Sarah, daughter of Simeon Prior, in 1803 ; 
 they had thirteen children ; two died in child- 
 hood, four in youth, and seven lived to maturity, 
 viz.: Polly, Lyman, Abbey, Sophia, Julia, 
 Sarah A. and Charles. Of these only three sur- 
 vive — Lyman in Missouri ; Julia, at Lebanon, 
 Ohio, and Mrs. Hial Danforth, of this place. 
 Abbey married Ransom Miller ; they moved to 
 Missouri, where she died ; Polly, was widow of 
 John Walker and died here (Sarah A. is the 
 deceased wife of Dr. H. Danforth). The wife 
 of Joseph Darrow died May 30, 1847 ; he sur- 
 vived until Nov. 13, 1856, when he died in his 
 82d year, 
 
 GrEORGE Darrow was married to Olive, 
 daughter of Joel G-aylord — date indefinite — 
 but not later than 1801 or 1802, and are said 
 to be the first couple married in Hudson. They 
 reared eight children to maturity — four boys 
 and four girls ; several died in childhood. 
 Eliza was married three times ; first to Seth 
 Fifield, next to D. Bates and last to Orin Mc- 
 Neal. They moved to Iowa where she died in 
 1878. David was twice married, his fii'st wife 
 being Sophia Hawkins, and after her death he 
 married Chloe Hayden. While digging a well 
 on his premises in 1850, he met with a sad fate ; 
 he had begun to '' wall" it up when the banks 
 caved in and killed him. Amanda was wife of 
 David O'Brien ; they are both deceased. Char- 
 lotte was wife of Homer Oviatt, and died in 
 Hudson. George was a blacksmith by trade 
 and worked on the old homestead for some 
 time. He moved to Texas, thence to Iowa, 
 where he enlisted and served as Drum Major. 
 He died in hospital of disease contracted in 
 the service. 
 
 Daniel Darrow was born Oct. 15, 1816, on 
 the old homestead where William resides. He 
 got a fair education studying for a term in the 
 
 Preparatory^ Department of Western Eeserve 
 College, and one term at Tallmadge. When 18 
 years of age, he began teaching school, and 
 taught nine winter terms, working on the farm 
 during the summer. He married Elizabeth A., 
 daughter of William Norton, March 22, 1849. 
 (She was born near Harrisburg, Penn., Feb. 22, 
 1828, and came to Ohio with her parents when 
 quite young.) They reared four children, three 
 of whom are living, viz. : Celia, wife of J. A. 
 Conaro ; Julia, wife of Luther B. Wetmore ; and 
 Irwin D. ; he married Lottie Moore. 
 
 William Darrow was born where he re- 
 sides, Oct. 12, 1818 ; he was reared to farm 
 life, and always followed the pursuits of a farmer. 
 He married Harriet E. Deacon, Dec. 15, 1842. 
 (She was born June 26, 1823, in Hudson. Her 
 father, Henry Deacon, settled here in 1806.) 
 They had eight children, four of whom are liv- 
 ing — George H.. La Fayette, William M., and 
 Mary, now wife of J. Morris ; Emma (deceased) 
 was wife of H. D. Nickerson ; Olive went to 
 Iowa and there married Thomas McNeal. Dur- 
 ing the war of 1812, George Darrow volun- 
 teered his services and rose to the rank of 
 Colonel. In the early settlement of the coun- 
 tr}', his residence was turned into a hotel, where 
 he entertained the weary travelers and teams- 
 ters who were ever passing and in need of I'e- 
 freshments. His wife was called away Aug. 
 9. 1845, but he survived until 1860, when he 
 died at a good old age, being upward of 80 
 years. 
 
 DANFORTH FAMILY ; although this fam- 
 ily cannot be considered among the pioneers 
 of the count}', yet they were early settlers, and 
 those who remained became influential and re- 
 spected citizens in the community. The pro- 
 genitor of those bearing the name in this 
 vicinity was Enoch Danforth, a native of New 
 Hampshire, who in due time married Hannah 
 Haines. They moved from their native place 
 to St. Albans, Vt., where they resided several 
 years, when they resolved to emigrate to the 
 west. In the autumn of 1821, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Danforth, with their seven children, set out for 
 Ohio, and in November of that year they 
 arrived in this county, and located on what is 
 now Darrow Street, in Hudson Township. The}' 
 had been here less than two years, when Mr. 
 Danforth concluded to remove to Illinois ; in 
 the meantime their eldest daughter, Sabrina, 
 had been married to Hiram Thompson, and 
 
 
HUDSOj!^ township. 
 
 829 
 
 ^ 
 
 located here. Mr. and Mrs. Danforth, with 
 seven children, as their family was increased by 
 one while residing here, started for Illinois, and 
 got as far as Sandusky, where they were winter- 
 bound ; there they made provision foe spending 
 the winter, expecting to resume their journey 
 as early as possible in the spring. But in this 
 their hopes were blighted, as sickness assailed 
 the family, and death removed their babe ; next 
 the grim messenger summoned the devoted 
 husband and father, leaving a widow and six 
 helpless children, viz. : Hial, Mary, Lovina, 
 Harrison, William and Judy, who were but 
 meagerly provided for, as traveling and sick- 
 ness had exhausted much of their means. Af- 
 ter Mr. Danforth's death, his widow and 
 children retraced their steps to Hudson. To 
 procure the means of support, the three boys, 
 though mere youths, began to work in this 
 vicinit\ — Hial, with one John Sawyer ; Har- 
 rison, with Capt. Oviatt ; William, with Horace 
 Metcalf; and in these places they remained 
 until they arrived at manhood and began to do 
 for themselves. Mrs. Danforth and three daugh- 
 ters returned to Vermont. With the expecta- 
 tion of recuperating his failing health, William 
 sailed from Boston on a whaling vessel when 
 about 22 3'ears of age ; but died in the Sand- 
 wich Islands, where the vessel called. Hial 
 was the second child and eldest son of Enoch 
 and Hannah Danforth ; he was born in New 
 Hampshire, June 8, 1808 ; by the time he had 
 arrived at manhood he had learned the art of 
 boot and shoe making, with Mr. Sawyer, with 
 whom he resided ; he opened a shop on Darrow 
 street and began business on his own account 
 when about 23 years of age, and was soon 
 afterward joined by his brother : they conducted 
 the business about ten years, when Hial pur- 
 chased a small farm, to which he has added 
 until he owns 120 acres of good land, which 
 constitutes a good home, where his advanced 
 years are passing in a quiet, retired manner. 
 He married Sophia, daughter of Joseph Dar- 
 row, May 4, 1831 ; they had five children — 
 Mary, Milton C, Helen (who is wife of Virgil 
 T. Miller), Charles and Edmond E. Milton C. 
 and Helen are the only survivers of their 
 children. Mrs. Hial Danforth was born March 
 31, 1810; she was the fourth of thirteen chil- 
 dren born to Joseph and Sarah (Prior) Darrow. 
 DR. HARRISON DANFORTH, physician, 
 Hudson ; was the fifth child and second son 
 
 born to Enoch and Hannah (Haines) Danforth, 
 in New Hampshire, April 15, 1814. As already 
 stated in the sketch of the Danforth famil}', the 
 Doctor was early left to do for himself, on ac- 
 count of his father's death. When about 21 
 years of age, after associating himself in busi- 
 ness with his brother Hial, his ambition was 
 unassuaged. Having a decided inclination for 
 the study of materia medica, he entered upon 
 the stud}' of medicine with a zeal worthy of the 
 profession, and became an ardent student under 
 Israel K. Town, M. D., of Hudson. After some 
 years of study and experience, Dr. Danforth 
 diverged to some extent from the allopathic 
 system of practice. He adopted the views of 
 the electic school, and has practised his pro- 
 fession for a period of more than thirty years, 
 in this vicinity, with more than ordinar}- suc- 
 cess. The first ten 3'ears were divided between 
 the duties of his business and profession. But 
 about the date of the outbreak of the rebellion, 
 he sold his farm and has since given his whole 
 attention to the practice of medicine, and en- 
 joys the confidence as well as much of the pat- 
 ronage of the communit}' in which he has 
 resided for the last sixty years. Space forbids 
 us enlarging on the struggles and temptations 
 intervening between the condition of the poor 
 boy, without even parental advice and the de- 
 sirable sphere which he now enjo3's. He married 
 Sarah A., daughter of Joseph Darrow, Septem- 
 ber, 1836 ; to them were born six children 
 viz., Francisco L., Lovina A.. Mortimer W., 
 Theodore C, Edwin H. and Clarence E. Mrs. 
 Danforth died in September, 1869. The Doc- 
 tor married a second wife, Martha Holton, 
 Feb. 28, 1874. In 1861, Francisco and Mor- 
 timer responded to the first call for soldiers, 
 but were discharged, the requisite number 
 being enrolled. Mortimer W. re-enlisted at 
 the second call in Co. Gr, 115th 0. V. I., and 
 served until the close of the war. He was 
 taken prisoner at Nashville, Tenn., on Dec. 4, 
 1864 ; stripped of all his valuable effects, in- 
 cluding a pair of good boots, and marched 
 barefoot to Meridian, 3Iiss., and suffered ter- 
 ribly from exposure, his feet and legs, to the 
 knees being seriously frozen. He was trans- 
 ferred to Anderson vi He in March, where he was 
 imprisoned when the war closed. Was dis- 
 charged at Jacksonville. ^la., in June, 1865, and 
 returned home, studied medicine with his father, 
 and graduated at Philadelphia Medical College, 
 
3:,50 
 
 BlOGRArillCAL SKETCHES: 
 
 aud is now practicing in Kent Co., Midi. 
 Clarence E. is a graduate of the Columbus 
 Medical College, Columbus, Ohio, and also 
 practicing his profession in Kent Co.. Mich. 
 
 HENRY DEACON (deceased) ; was a na- 
 tive of Lancaster, Penn., born about the year 
 1795 ; son of Marmaduke and Mary (Car- 
 ter) Deacon, whose offspring were Robert, Bet- 
 sy, William, Henry and Jolin. Marmaduke 
 was a native of Ireland, son of Robert Deacon. 
 jMarmaduke settled in Pennsylvania, where he 
 remained until his removal to Ohio, locating in 
 Hudson Township in 1805, where he purchased 
 about 210 acres, in the southwest part of the 
 tov/nship, where he lived until his death, which 
 occurred in 1832 — -that of his wife in 180G, one 
 ^•ear after their arrival in this county. Her 
 death was occasioned from the effects of a 
 scare. The Indians made a raid upon her, 
 while her husband was gone to mill, threatening 
 to scalp her if she did not reveal the supposed 
 place of her husband's money. Henry, his 
 son, succeeded him, and occupied the farm. He 
 was maiTied to Elizabeth Carter, Feb. 14, 1821, 
 and by her had seven children, whose names 
 were: Mar}- A., born Dec. 25, 1821; Harriet 
 E., born June 26, 1823; William C, born Jan. 
 1(5, 1825 ; Fannie, born Dec. 5, 1828 ; Elizabeth, 
 born Oct. 9, 1830 ; James, born June 14, 1833 ; 
 Henry H., born June 17, 1839 ; the latter be- 
 ing the sole surviving member of the family. 
 Henrj- Deacon, the father of the above, died 
 Feb. 12, 1877, his wife two days later, after a 
 life companionship of fifty-six 3-ears. They 
 were both buried in one grave. Mr. Deacon 
 was an industrious and successful farmer, a 
 man of quiet and unpretentious disposition, 
 who always remained at home and attended to 
 his own personal affairs ; was always vigorous 
 and health}-, and, up to the time of his sickness, 
 was never sick a day in his life. Although liv- 
 ing man}- years near a railroad, never was in a 
 coach or rode in one. His son, Henry H., now 
 owns and runs the farm ; has never married. 
 
 JOHN DEACON, retired farmer ; P. 0. Hud- 
 son. One among the oldest living pioneers of 
 this township is the above, who was born in 
 Lancaster, Penn., Nov. 28, 1802, and came out 
 with his father, Marmaduke, in 1805, and for 
 three-quarters of a century has remained con- 
 stantly on the farm his father located on. April 
 5, 1832, was wedded to Julia Ann E. Law- 
 rence, who was born May 23, 1813, in Cin- 
 
 cinnati. Her parents were Martin C. and Sub- 
 rait (GriflSn) Lawrence. He was born in Dutch- 
 ess Co., N. Y., March 20, 1793. He was a son 
 of Chauncey and Sallie H. (Clark) Lawrence, 
 who were borh Sept. 25, 1767, and Sept. 19, 
 1769, respectively, and were blessed with fifteen 
 children. Chauncey's father was Uriah, who 
 was born Dec. 25, 1720 ; married Aug. 13, 1743, 
 to Mary Clark, who was born Jan. 15, 1725. 
 The Lawrence family trace their ancestry to 
 one Robert Lawrence, of Lancastershire. En- 
 gland, born in Rome. 1150. He was an officer 
 attending his sovereign, Richard I, and for 
 meritorious conduct was knighted Sir Robert 
 Lawrence. There is an estate now of over $100.- 
 000,000, consisting of real estate and money 
 in the Bank of England, now awaiting the proof 
 of title to ownership, of which Mrs. Deacon is 
 an heir. John Lawrence (the great-great- 
 grandfather of Mrs. Deacon) married Mary 
 Townly, daughter of Lord Richard, whose wife 
 was Mary Widrington. Both of the above had 
 estates which were willed to their heirs, of 
 which heirs are those of Mary (Townly) Law- 
 rence. Mrs. Deacon came West to Ohio with 
 her parents in 1818, who located in this town- 
 ship. To Mr. and Mrs. Deacon have been l)orn 
 eleven childi'en, ten living : Horace, John W., 
 David, Emily, Cyrus B., Edmond W., Lucinda 
 E., Lewis, Frederick B., Louisa M., Caroline M., 
 deceased. Mrs. Deacon has been a member of 
 the church since 15 years of age. On account 
 of the feeble health of Mr. Deacon, the care 
 and management of the farm has fallen upon 
 his wife, who conducts it successfully. 
 
 EDWIN DEWEY, retired farmer; P. 0. 
 Hudson; was the son of Stephen and Percy 
 (Mosley) Dewey, of Westfield, Mass., where he 
 was born Sept. 17, 1795 ; he moved into the 
 State of New York, and, when about 22 years 
 of age, he, with several others, moved to Ohio 
 and settled in Portage Co., where he farmed 
 for several years alone, then returned to Mas- 
 sachusetts and brought his parents and several 
 younger children along with him to Ohio. Hav- 
 ing learned the shoemaker's trade in Massachu- 
 chusetts, he applied himself to the same for 
 several years in Portage Co., in connection with 
 his- farming. He has been married three times 
 — -first, to Eva Haymaker, May 7, 1820 ; she 
 died in April, 1825, leaving three children — 
 Charles, Electa (wife of John Beckwith) and 
 Eva (widow- of A. Hackett) ; his second mar- 
 
-^ 
 
 HUDSON TOAVNSHIP. 
 
 831 
 
 riage was celebrated Sept. 11, 1826, with Ann 
 Spears ; she died Jan. 3, 1868, leaving one 
 child — Isaac ; his present wife was Eliza, a 
 daughter of Ehsha Perkins, foi-merl}- of New 
 York, but moved to this county and settled in 
 Northampton Township at an early date. Mr. 
 Dewe}' removed from his farm in Portage Co. 
 to Darrow Sti-eet in Hudson, in 1864, where 
 he spends his advanced years in the enjoyment 
 of a pleasant home. 
 
 JAMES DITTY, tinner and hardware mer- 
 chant, Hudson ; was born in Toronto, Canada, 
 Feb. 2, 1849 ; his parents were Sanderson and 
 Ann (Foster) Ditt}^ who emigrated from the 
 north of Ireland to Canada in 1841 ; his father 
 died when James was about 5 3-ears old, leav- 
 ing a widow and a large family. When about 
 15 years of age, he was apprenticed to the tin- 
 ner's trade, in Toronto, continuing for five 
 years ; he worked at journej'-work there for 
 some time, and, in the spring of 1868, he came 
 to Cleveland, where he worked two years ; in 
 1870, he came to Hudson and worked for J. L. 
 Chapman two years, and afterward eight years 
 for John N. Farrar ; in January, 1881, he pur- 
 chased the tin and hardware stock of J. L. 
 Chapman, and, from a business point of view, is 
 beginning a new era in his affairs. He married 
 Sarah A. Hussey, of Toronto, Canada, January, 
 1867 ; they have five children — Lillian, Walter, 
 Annie M., Ralph and James S. Mr. Ditty is 
 establishing a good trade, and carries an assort- 
 ment of general hardware and stoves. 
 
 PHILLIP FILLIUS (deceased); was born 
 in Bavaria, Germany, April 6, 1806. He 
 emigrated to the United States in 1833, and 
 located at Cleveland, where he iv.mained 
 four years. He married Anna Barbara Keis, 
 in 1837, and soon after moved to a farm 
 in Hudson Township. Summit Co. Here they 
 resided, and reared a family of nine children, 
 viz., Catharine, wife of James Corbett, of 
 Missouri ; Lizzie, wife of John Thomas, of In- 
 diana ; John, Phillip and Jacob are residing in 
 Georgetown, Colo., the latter a member of the 
 bar of that town, John, being interested in 
 mines there. Josephine is wife of x\lexander 
 Nesbitt, of Northfield Township ; Ella, wife of 
 Perry Sherman, of Michigan ; (jharles, member 
 of the bar at Cuyahoga Falls, and Ernest, who 
 resides on the farm. Mrs. Fillius was born in 
 Wurtemberg, German}', Aug. 15, 1817, and 
 came here with her parents, who emigrated 
 
 early in April, 1831, and arrived in Cleveland 
 in August of the same year, after four months' 
 traveling, almost weary of life itself. Her fa- 
 ther's name was Frederick Keis. There were 
 of them six children, five girls and one boy. 
 Mr. Fillius died on his farm, where he first lo- 
 cated in Hudson, June 14, 1878. Ernest was 
 born May 20, 1856. He married Irene Carson, 
 daughter of David Carson, formerly of Penn- 
 sylvania, now of Michigan, Aug. 17, 1880. They 
 reside with his widowed mother, and is the only 
 one of the family now with her. 
 
 PROF. E. S. GREGORY, retired, Hudson ; 
 was bori? in Fleming, N. Y., April 20, 1828. 
 His father, William Gregory', was a native of 
 Connecticut, and was twice married. His first 
 wife died, leaving four children, viz., William, 
 Eben, Munson and Marie. In 1 829, Mr. William 
 Gregory walked to this State on a prospecting 
 tour, traveling to Cleveland, which was then a 
 mere hamlet ; thence to Hudson ; thence west- 
 ward about seventy-five miles, where he pur- 
 chased, of a settler, 204 acres of land, having 
 some trifling improvements and a log cabin, for 
 the sum of $1,100. He returned to New York 
 for his family, which consisted of his four eldest 
 children, second wife and two babies, E. S. and 
 Lydia. They came by canal to Buffalo, thence 
 by lake to Huron, thence by wagon to their 
 new home in the almost unbroken forest, in 1830. 
 Harmon, the youngest of the family, was born 
 after they came to this State. Mr. Gregory 
 prospered in his new home, and, by dint of in- 
 dustry, made the forest give place to the fields 
 of grain. Both himself and wife are now de- 
 ceased, he dying in 1868, and she in 1879. Prof 
 E. S. Gregory was the eldest child of his father's 
 second marriage, and was only about 2 years 
 old when brought here by his parents. His 
 early life was that customary to farmer boys, 
 until he was about 16 years of age, when he 
 began teaching school. A year later, he entered 
 Baldwin University, near Cleveland, remaining 
 for some time. He entered the Preparatory 
 Department of the Western Reserve College in 
 the spring and fall terms of 1847, and taught 
 school during the winter months. He entered 
 the Western Reserve College in 1848, remain- 
 ing three years, when he entered Harvard Col- 
 lege, where he graduated in 1852. He accepted 
 the superintendency of the public schools of 
 Monroeville for one year ; thence to the Western 
 Reserve College at Hudson as Principal of 
 
 "IV 
 
832 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Preparatory Department, which position he held 
 seven years. He was appointed Assistant Pro- 
 fessor of Latin, and served as such in the West- 
 ern Reserve College from 1860 until he resigned 
 six years later. He moved to Youngs town, 
 and was appointed First Principal of the Payen 
 High School, which position he retained for 
 thirteen years. While there, he spent much 
 labor and time in analytical chemistry, which 
 has been his stud}- for some time. He married 
 Clara M. Baldwin, July 28, 1852, she being the 
 only surviving daughter of Harvey Baldwin. 
 They have two children — Hattie M. and Anna. 
 
 CHARLES a. CxUILFORD, editor and pro- 
 prietor of the Hudson Enterprise, was born in 
 Lanesboro, Berkshire Co., Mass., in October, 
 1834. Served an apprenticeship to the print- 
 ing business in the office of the Berkshire 
 County Eagle^ in Pittsfield, Mass., from 1848 to 
 1852. In the fall of the latter year came to 
 Ohio, and entered the employ of the Cleveland 
 Herald. In 1854, went to Waterbur}^, Conn., 
 where for six months was one of the publishers 
 of the Ncmgatuclx Valley Democrat (a semi- weekly 
 paper.) Disposing of his interest in the Bemejcra't, 
 Mr. Guilford returned to Ohio and again entered 
 the employ of the Cleveland Herald, remaining 
 therein various capacities until the breaking-out 
 of the war, when he enlisted in Battery B, 1st 
 0. V. L. A., Capt. Stondart, serving during the 
 entire war, at the close of which he resumed 
 his position on the Heredd. In April, 1875, he 
 removed with his family to Hudson, and two 
 years later, May 1, 1876, he purchased the 
 Hudson Enterprise, at that time a little ama- 
 teur sheet, unknown outside of the village 
 where published. Entering with his whole 
 heart into the work of building up the paper, 
 Mr. Guilford has succeeded in making the En- 
 terprise a journal suitable to Hudson and the 
 county. He has a pleasant little farm of 20 
 acres about a mile east of the village where he 
 resides. It is located on a ridge, said to be the 
 highest point of land in the county, and from 
 which can be obtained a view of four of the 
 surrounding villages. 
 
 REV. HENRY B. HOSFORD, retired min- 
 ister, Hudson ; was born in Williamstown, 
 Mass., Dec. 17, 1817. He was the son of 
 Stephen and Annie (Brown) Hosford, who were 
 natives of Massachusetts. His father was a 
 merchant and manufacturer in Williamstown. 
 Our subject entered Williams College in 1839, 
 
 and graduated in 1843. When his collegiate 
 course was finished, he taught in the Hopkins 
 Academy for one year, and then returned to 
 Williams College, where he taught four years. 
 During these four years, he studied theology 
 privately, and, in 1839, he was ordained a minis- 
 ter of the Congregational Church, at Jordan, 
 New York. He returned to Massachusetts in 
 1850, and had charge of the congregation at 
 Sunderland until 1853 ; that summer he filled 
 the place in Williams College left vacant by 
 the Professor of Mathematics, who had taken a 
 vacation. In January, 1854, he was appointed 
 Professor of Intellectual Philosophy and Rhet- 
 oric in the Western Reserve College at Hudson, 
 which position he resigned six years afterward. 
 He was engaged in the Sanitary Commission 
 at Chattanooga and Nashville, Tenn., during the 
 two last years of the war. On his return from 
 the South, he resumed his ministerial labors in 
 the neighboring churches which extended to 
 Akron, Cuyahoga Falls, Hudson, Kent, Roots- 
 town, Atwater, Twinsburg and Streetsboro ; 
 and frequently preached at other places. He 
 married Miss Mar}' E., daughter of Benjamin 
 Plant, of New Hartford, N. Y., Sept. 3, 1850. 
 Mrs. Hosford was born June 17, 1824. They 
 have seven children viz., Sarah A., wife of Rev. 
 John P. Jones, now a missionary in South 
 India ; Frances J., ^lary E., Harriet M., wife 
 of Chas. W. Foote, of Akron ; Henry H., Helen 
 P. and Daniel M. Mr. Hosford conducted the 
 Female Seminar}^ in Hudson during the school 
 term of 1874-75. Since failing health has 
 compelled his I'etirement from active life, he 
 attends to insurance at his home, representing 
 five substantial companies. 
 
 S. E. JUDD, real estate and insurance, Hud- 
 son ; was born in Watertown, Conn., June 13, 
 1813. His ancestors were a people of remark- 
 able longevity, and were early settlers of that 
 State. His great-grandfather purchased from 
 some Indians the title to some property in the 
 early settlement of the colony, which is owned 
 by representatives of the family to this day. 
 His father's parents were the first settlers of 
 Watertown, Conn., his grandmother being the 
 first child baptized b}- the first resident minister, 
 in 1739. She died at the advanced age of 100 
 years. Mr. S. E. Judd was the son of Eleazer 
 and Lj'dia (Brownsou) Judd. He was engaged 
 extensively in the manufacture and sale of 
 clocks for several years. He was married 
 
.3 
 
 l2L 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 833 
 
 April 6, 1830, to Mar}- L. Strong, who was born 
 April 19, 1811, in Connecticut. In Jul}^, 1851, 
 they emigrated to Hudson, Ohio, where he en- 
 tei'ed into the real estate and insurance busi- 
 ness, and, although not an earl}' pioneer of the 
 place, he has been identified with some of its 
 public improvements. He has been twice elect- 
 ed Ma3or of Hudson. In 1871, they removed 
 to St. Paul, Minn., but returned to Hudson in 
 1873. Their only child. Jennie S., is the wife 
 of Dr. F. Hodge. Mr. Judd visited his native 
 town, and participated in the one hundredth an- 
 niversary of its incorportion on June 17, 1880. 
 The insurance companies represented by him are 
 the ^Etna, North American, Manhattan of New 
 York, Niagara of New York, Watertown of Wa- 
 tertown, N. Y., Lancashire Insurance Co. of 
 England, Ashland County Mutual, of Ashland, 
 Ohio, and the ^I<]tna Life of Hartford, Conn. 
 
 LTTTHER F. KILBOURNE, farmer ; P. 0. 
 Hudson ; is the second son of Justin E. and 
 Mar}' A. (Fitch) Kilbourne, and the only survi- 
 vor of the family. He was born where he re- 
 sides, March 20, 1842. His business has 
 always been that of a farmer, except four years, 
 when he was appointed Guard at the Ohio State 
 Penitentiary, at Columbus. He returned to 
 Hudson and took charge of the farm. He mar- 
 ried Mary A. Briggaman July 2, 1873. They 
 have two children living, Francis H. and Cor- 
 nelia E. His grandfather, George Kilbourne, 
 was born in Berlin, Conn., Nov. 19, 1769. 
 When 26 years old. he married Almira "Wilcox, 
 of Simsbury. After residing in Farmington 
 and Goshen for about ten years, he joined the 
 emigrant party which was induced to come 
 hither by David Hudson. Mr. Kilbourne traded 
 his property in Goshen to Birdsey Norton, and 
 in part payment took land in Hudson Town- 
 ship. The party left Goshen, Conn., Sept. 1, 
 1801, their teams being all ox teams except 
 one. Mr. Kilbourne was obliged to buy a horse 
 by the way to assist his oxen, in consequence of 
 the warm weather and hilly country. They 
 proceeded nicely, their course being thi'ough 
 Beading to Womelsdoi'f, thence via Lebanon, 
 Harrisburg. Carlisle. Shippensburg and Stras- 
 burg, where they came to the mountain called 
 the " Three Brothers," a part of the Allghanies ; 
 after three days hard work they got over ; but 
 two days later they began climbing the hills 
 again, when their horse tired out. and they sold 
 him to a widow who lived there for one loaf of 
 
 bread. They pushed on with a single yoke of 
 oxen until they were almost exhausted, when a 
 stranger passed with an ox team which he 
 offered for sale. Mr. Kilbourne bought them, 
 paying in part some boots and shoes which was 
 part of his load. They came on through Bed- 
 ford, Somerset, and so on to Pittsburgh. They 
 crossed the Ohio about ten miles below Beaver ; 
 from there they proceeded to Griersburg, and 
 so on until they struck the southeast township 
 of the Western Reserve, where they found many 
 old acquaintances from Connecticut who lent 
 them a helping hand as they passed through. 
 When they came to Ravenna, Mr. Kilbourne sold 
 his wagon for a cow^ and some grain to support 
 him through the winter, and on the sixtieth 
 day of their journey they an*ived in Hudson. 
 Mr. Kilbourne stopped with Mr. Bishop until he 
 got a cabin built. In the course of two years, 
 Mr. Kilbourne had cleared about 25 or 30 acres 
 of land, when, in the spring of 1803, unfortu- 
 nately, he got his thigh broken by a piece of 
 timber falling on him while assisting to raise a 
 building. This together with ague disabled 
 him from doing any farm work for two years. 
 With the help of the oldest boy, who was 7 
 years old, his wife was obliged to cultivate the 
 land and attend to domestic affairs as well. By 
 her untiring energy, she succeed in supporting 
 the family until 1805. when he found it neces- 
 sary to sell the farm and resume his trade, 
 which was tanning and shoemaking. To this 
 end he moved to Newburg, it being an old 
 settlement. Remained there three and a half 
 years, when, by the persuasion of Rev. David 
 Beacon, he moved to Tallmadge, where he re- 
 sided nine years, cleared a farm, and was pre- 
 pared to live comfortable during the remainder 
 of his life. His son-in-law, Capt. Oviatt, in- 
 duced him to return to Hudson, where he died 
 March 14, 1865, in his 97th year. His noble 
 wife had preceded him in death Dec. 19, 1859, 
 in her 8Sth year. They reared six children — 
 Sophia, Asahel, George, Timothy E., Eliza and 
 Justin E. Justin E. married 3Iary Amanda, 
 daughter of Col. Fitch. They were the parents 
 of Luther L. Mrs. Justin Kilbourne died 3Iarch 
 20, 1876, and he in Nov. 16, 1880. 
 
 M. A. LLTSK, retired farmer ; P. 0. Hudson ; 
 born June 2, 1803, on Lot 77, in this township, 
 having been a resident of the township well- 
 nigh fourscore years, and is the oldest living 
 resident. His father was Capt. Amos Lusk, 
 
^ 
 
 834 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 who commanded a company during the war of 
 
 1812, and died the year following, May 24, 
 
 1813, aged 40 years. He came to this town- 
 ship in 1801, when it was an unbroken wilder- 
 ness. His wife was Mary Adams, who was 
 born in Stockbridge, Conn., May 15, 1768, a 
 daughter of John Adams, who was a cousin of 
 John Quincy Adams, who graced the Presiden- 
 tial chair. Mar}' (Adams) Lusk, the mother of 
 our subject, died Jan. 20, 1843. She was the 
 mother of nine children, among whom was Di- 
 anthe, who was born June 12, 1801. June 21, 
 1820, she married John Brown, of Osawato- 
 mie, Kansas, and Harper's Ferry fame, and by 
 him had live children, viz., John, Jason, Ruth, 
 Owen and Frederic. Our subject was left 
 fatherless at the age of 10. Learning the hat- 
 ter's trade, he followed this vocation for several 
 3'ears. At the age of 23. he married Dcnc}- 
 Preston, born in Canton, Mass.; she died of con- 
 sumption ; by her he had Henry, Loring, 
 Charles, Lucy and Amos. Loring was killed 
 b\" cars running over him — was a brakeman. 
 March 31, 1843, married Mrs. Sallie Secoy, 
 whose maiden name was Post. She was born 
 Sept. 14, 1815, in Westbrook, Conn., daughter 
 of Joshua and MoUie (Dee) Post, to whom 
 were born thirteen children, Mrs. Lusk being 
 the eleventh daughter. All of the children 
 lived to be over CO years of age, with one ex- 
 ception. Mr. and Mrs. Lusk have one daughter 
 only, Dency, who married Henry Pettengill. 
 Mr. Lusk has an adopted daughter, Eva, who 
 has lived with them since 2 years of age. Mrs. 
 Lusk's first husband was Chester Secoy ^ by 
 whom she had four children — Lester, Julitte, 
 Mary and Pickney. Charles served four years 
 in the late war, member of 2d 0. V. C. He 
 had two horses killed under him. Amos and 
 Charles Lusk also wore the "blue." Mr. Lusk 
 has not been a member of a church since 1835. 
 Mr. Lusk has for several years been retired 
 from farming. 
 
 M. MESSFR (retired) Hudson ; was born in 
 Orwell, Vt., June 25, 1803. He was taught in 
 youth the advantages of farm life, and, with 
 a view to locating on Western land, he set out 
 on a prospecting tour through Ohio, in May, 
 1828. He traveled over the territory now em- 
 braced in Trumbull, Portage and Summit Cos.; 
 thence to Cleveland, which he remembers as a 
 then mere hamlet with onl}- about four two- 
 story buildings in the place. He finally se- 
 
 lected and purchased 225 acres on which there 
 were some trifling improvements, a small por- 
 tion being cleared, on which was built a log 
 cabin. He returned to Vermont, thence to 
 Nottingham, Mass., where he was married to 
 Almira C. Bates, March 15, 1829, moving the 
 same year to the farm, where they occupied the 
 cabin, which was on the premises, for eight 
 years, when they erected a comfortable resi- 
 dence. Finding his health failini£ he sold his 
 farm, and moved to Hudson in 1850. He was 
 appointed Treasurer of the proposed Clinton 
 Air-Line II. R., and having loaned the company 
 about $16,000, he suffered a heavy pecuniary 
 loss on account of the failure of the company. 
 He was appointed Postmaster in 1861, and held 
 the office for seventeen 3'ears. He has been 
 identified in official capacity in the Presb^'terian 
 Church as Deacon upward of fifty 3'ears, and 
 fort3' 3'ears of that time he has officiated as 
 Treasurer. Their two children are Orelia, who 
 was the wife of Mr. Marvin, of Atwater, and 
 who died leaving !bur children, two of whom 
 survive, and Adelle, wife of G-eorge W. Stowe, 
 who has one child, Charles M. Mrs. Messer 
 was born in (Iranville, Mass., Sept. J23, 1805. 
 
 EDWARD W. MORLEY, Professor in 
 Western Reserve College ; P. 0. Hudson ; was 
 born in Newark, N. J., Jan. 29, 1838. He is 
 the son of Rev. S. B. and Anna ('. (Treat) 
 Morley. The Rev. S. B. Morle3' was a native 
 of Massachussetts ; he graduated at Williams 
 College, and was a student of Yale Theological 
 Seminar3'. Our subject, Prof Edward W. 
 Morley, began the study of chemistr3' when 
 about 11 years of age. At the age of 18, he 
 entered Williams College, and graduated in 
 1860. During the late war, he was appointed 
 Agent for the Sanitar}- Committee at Ft. Mon- 
 roe, in 1864 and 1865. At the close of the war, 
 he returned and accepted a position as teacher 
 in South Berkshire Institute, Massachusetts. 
 In 1869, he was appointed Professor of Chem- 
 istr3' in the Western Reserve College, at Hudson, 
 and in 1873 he also accepted the Professorship 
 of Toxicology in the Medical College of Cleve- 
 land. He married Miss Isabella E. Birdsall, 
 daughter of James Birdsall, Esq., of Hillsdale, 
 Columbia Co., N. Y., on Dec. 24, 1868. 
 
 B. F. MELOY, blacksmith ; Hudson ; was 
 born in Juniata Co., Penn, x\pril 27, 1827. 
 His father moved with his family to Portage 
 Co., Ohio, in 1834 ; there the parents of Mr. 
 
 
d>L 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 835 
 
 Melo^- died. In 1843, our subject went to Mid- 
 dlebury to learn the blacksmith's trade with 
 the Belden Bros., where he served a year. At 
 the expiration of his apprenticeship, he came 
 to Darrow Street, in 1846, where he woi'ked 
 about a year, then purchased the business in- 
 terest of William Darrow, Sr. — who had taken it 
 from one Fitield — and here he has continued 
 ever since. He marri-d A. E. Canfield, of 
 Litchfield, Medina Co., Ohio, April 15, 1847. 
 She was born in Connecticut, and came with 
 her parents to Ohio when quite young. The}^ 
 had no children, e.Kcept one adopted daughter — 
 Julia, now wife of Wm. Hartel. 
 
 S. E. OVIATT, manufacturer ; Hudson ; 
 was born in Richland Township, this 
 county, Aug. 2, 1832. He is the son of Russell 
 and Julia (Curtis) Oviatt. Russell was the son 
 of Salmon Oviatt, who was one of three 
 brothers (viz., Salmon, Heman and Nathaniel) 
 who emigrated from Connecticut, and were 
 among the first pioneers of this count}'. Rus- 
 sell Oviatt was a well-to-do farmer ; hence the 
 first efforts of his son (S. E.) were also in that 
 direction. Mr. S. E. Oviatt had charge of the 
 farm when quite 3^oung, as his father sustained 
 injuries from which he never recovered, caused 
 by jumping from a buggy. Of their five chil- 
 dren, three lived to maturity, viz., Mariam, S. 
 E., and Russelline ; Chloe and Adrian died in 
 childhood. Mr. Oviatt received a good com- 
 mon-school education. He attended the Rich- 
 field Academy two terms, but his assistance 
 being required at home, he was not aflforded the 
 opportunity of further advancement. He evi- 
 dently conducted his agricultural pursuits with 
 a thoroughness seldom attained by young men, 
 as diplomas in his possession attest, which he 
 received after entering in competition with 
 quite a number of townships in Summit and 
 adjoining counties, for the best acre of wheat, 
 beans, oats and corn, in 1853 ; also, a diploma 
 for the best three-year-old horse at the same 
 time. Having a taste for mechanics, and being 
 naturally an inventive genius, he has produced 
 several valuable patents, viz.: " The Oviatt 
 grain thresher " ; also, the farm wagon known as 
 the " Common-sense Wagon," said to be more 
 convenient and more durable than the ordinary 
 ones ; and a sled, known as the " Independent 
 runner," Oviatt patent ; this latter improve- 
 ment has experienced a large demand. He 
 moved into the village of Richfield, purchased 
 
 and built a residence worth about $3,000, on 
 part of what was his grandfather's old home- 
 stead, reserving 7 acres, which he retains. He 
 endeavored to build up manufacturing indus- 
 tries at Riclifield, and for a time was actively 
 engaged with the Richfield Agricultural Works, 
 which were operated by a "stock" company. 
 He established a spoke factory, which he con- 
 ducted for two years, when he closed out. He 
 moved to Akron in 1874, where he engaged in 
 the agricultural implement trade for about three 
 years, at the same time contemplating an es- 
 tablishment for the manufacture of his special 
 patents. He made an eflSort to organize a 
 stock compan}^ in January, 1878, at Hudson, 
 and, so for as the organization was concerned, 
 his efforts were successful. It was on the co- 
 operative plan, and the members were mechanics 
 without means, but were men to whom Mr. 
 Oviatt was willing to give an opportunity to 
 progress with the enterprise ; four of the mem- 
 bers became dissatisfied, and those remaining 
 purchased the stock of the outgoing members. 
 Although the business, for some time past, has 
 not been in a thriving condition, the prospects 
 of the institution at present are encouraging. 
 It is known as the " Oviatt Manufticturing Co." 
 Mr. Oviatt was married, Feb. 14, 1856, to Fan- 
 nie E. Watkins, of Plainfield, Will Co., 111. She 
 was born in Wyoming, N. Y., May 24, 1836 ; 
 her parents, with their family, moved from New 
 York to Illinois when she was small. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Oviatt are parents of five children, viz., 
 Julia A., Russell L., Edward P., Fannie E. and 
 Maud. 
 
 L. D. OSBORNE, M. D., physician, Hudson ; 
 was born in Onondaga, N. Y., Aug. 16, 1820 ; 
 he was the son of Levi Osborne, a cloth- 
 dresser. While the subject of this sketch was 
 yet in infancy his mother died, leaving three 
 children, two of whom lived to maturity, but 
 are now deceased ; his father married a second 
 time, by which union there were three children, 
 two of whom reside in Allegany Co., N. Y., 
 and one in Cleveland, Ohio. The family came 
 to Ohio in 1833, and located in Willoughby, 
 Lake Co., where Mr. Osborne died several years 
 ago. Our subject. Dr. Osborne, entered a pri- 
 vate school conducted by Mr. A. D. Lord, of 
 Lake Co., and was also a student of Senator 
 Allen, thus obtaining the preliminary course of 
 his education ; he entered the Lake Erie Medi- 
 cal College, since merged into the Starling 
 
 
836 
 
 BIOGEAPPIICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Medical College of Columbus, and graduated 
 in 1845 ; during his collegiate course, he read 
 medicine privately with Dr. John Delamater, 
 who was a pi'ofessor in the college ; he began 
 the practice of his profession with his pre- 
 ceptor in Willoughb}-, in 1843, where he re- 
 mained about five 3'ears, when he moved to 
 Warsaw, Wyoming Co., N. Y., thei'e remaining 
 about three years ; on account of failing health, 
 he resolved to return to Ohio, and accordingl}' 
 did so, locating in Portage Co.. where he prac- 
 ticed about four years. In the fall of 1854, he 
 established himself in Hudson, where he has 
 practiced the healing art ever since. He mar- 
 ried Miss Mary Elenora Johnson Aug. 22, 
 1848. Mrs. Osborne was the daughter of Enoch 
 Johnson, of Charlestown, Portage Co., where 
 she was born, October. 1828. They have three 
 children, viz. : Mary E., Hattie E. (wife of Rev. 
 T. S. Scott, of Rocidbrd, 111.), and Lulu. 
 
 NEWTON PECK (deceased) ; was born in 
 Brockfield, Vt., July 25, 1808 ; he was the 
 sixth of a family of ten children, two of 
 whom survive — Reuben and a sister, Mrs. T. S. 
 Paine, of Vermont. When quite young Prof. 
 Peck evinced a strong desire for knowledge, 
 and when the work of his father's farm pre- 
 vented him from attending school he would 
 eagerly improve every opportunity with his 
 books ; when quite a small boy and driving his 
 father's oxen at the plow, he would carry his 
 Latin Reader. " Liber Primus," which he studied 
 at intervals while the animals were resting, 
 thereby getting some knowledge of Latin ; at 
 17 years of age, he began teaching school in 
 Vermont ; he spent one year a student in a 
 university there, and, by ardent study, he soon 
 mastered Latin and Greek ; he became a good 
 Hebrew scholar, and was said to be one of the 
 best readers of Sanscrit in the United States. 
 He conversed in French, could read Grerman, 
 Spanish and Italian. Considering his ability 
 as scholar and teacher, he was one of the 
 most unassuming of men ; he was thorough in 
 the higher branches of mathematics, and ac- 
 quired some knowledge of astronomy ; while 
 teaching in West Virginia, he calculated ac- 
 curatel}'^ the details of the solar eclipse of 
 1837 ; he was a careful student in the natural 
 sciences, and particularly fond of botany and 
 geology. In 1837, he founded the Marshall 
 Academ}' at Guyandotte, West Virginia, which 
 has since developed into a college ; he came to 
 
 Ohio in 1832, and spent the first year in study 
 at Western Reserve College, Hudson ; but 
 graduated from Augusta College, Kentucky, in 
 1837. His limited means compelled him to 
 teach at intervals to procure the necessaries of 
 life during his collegiate course ; he was ap- 
 pointed tutor in Kenyon College at Gambler, 
 in 1834. He married Aurelia K. Brewster, of 
 Ravenna, Oct. 16, 1834 ; she was a sister of 
 Anson A. Brewster, one of the pioneer mer- 
 chants of Hudson. After a few years residence 
 at Ravenna, he went South, but returned to Ohio 
 and located permanently at Hudson in 1858. 
 He taught for a period about forty years in the 
 States of Vermont, Ohio, West Virginia, Ken- 
 tucky and Tennessee ; and among his pupils, 
 who have gone into official public life, we men- 
 tion the late Henry A. Smith, of Minnesota ; 
 Gen. E. B, Tyler ; S. D. Harris, of the Ravenna 
 Press ; and D. Lyman, Chief of the Division of 
 Navigation at Washington, D. C. Mr. Peck 
 was a member of the Protestant Episcopal 
 Church, being confirmed in Vermont when 22 
 years old. He passed away July 6, 1880, 
 leaving a widow and two children, viz. : Thos. 
 K. Peck, of Wa Keeney, Kan., and Eleanor A., 
 who resides here with her aged mother. 
 
 M. C. READ, attorney at law, Hudson, was 
 born in Williamsfield, Ashtabula Co., Ohio, 
 Aug. 21, 1825. His parents, Ira and Mary 
 (Smith) Read, were natives of Massachusetts ; 
 they moved to Ohio in 1813 ; Mrs. Read car- 
 ried their onl}' child on horseback the entire 
 distance from Massachusetts to Ohio. They 
 here turned their attention to farming, and suc- 
 ceeded in hewing out a comfortable home in the 
 forest, where they reared their children, viz.: 
 Albert N., Daniel W. (deceased,) Newton S., 
 Matthew C. and Mar}' C. — twins — she the 
 widow of Selby Bemen, and Emeline R., wife 
 of J. J. Gray, of Ashtabula. Mr. and Mrs. Read 
 finall}' removed to Trumbull Co., Ohio, where 
 the}' passed their later yeai'S, being spared to 
 see and know that their earl}- efforts to pro- 
 cure a good home, and fit each member of their 
 family for his separate place in society were 
 not in vain. He died in 1861, in his 72d year, 
 and she in 1869, in her 79th year. Mr. M. C. 
 Read was engaged until 18 years of age, like 
 most young men who are reared on the farm. 
 About that time he entered the Western Re- 
 serve Academy at Farmington ; later the Grand 
 River Institute at Austinsburg, Ohio. In 1844 
 
 ^\ 
 
 X 
 
■^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 837 
 
 he entered the Western Reserve College at Hud- 
 son, from which he graduated in 1848. He 
 taught a select school in tbe city of Columbus, 
 Ohio, which was well patronized by the best 
 citizens of the place, but was broken up by 
 cholera, which was then prevailing in the com- 
 munity. Mr. Read was taken seriously ill 
 with the disease, and returned to his home, 
 placing himself under the care of his brother, 
 a ph3'sician in Ashtabula, where he remained 
 about one year. Having regained his health, 
 he taught the Academy- at Gustavus, Trumbull 
 Co., for one term. He read law in the office of 
 Chaffee & Woodberry, of Jefferson. When his 
 study of law was completed, he was called to 
 Hudson to edit the FamiJij Visitor, a journal 
 which was published here at that time. While 
 connected with the Family Visitor he taught I 
 the Grr^mmar School in Western Reserve Col- 
 lege for one year. He then began the practice 
 of law and continued until the outbreak of the 
 war, when he was called with the Sanitary Com- 
 mission, and was with the Army of the Cum- 
 berland until they reached Chattanooga, Tenn., 
 where he was stationed until the war closed. 
 On his return he was appointed Deputy Rev- 
 enue Collector, during President Johnson's ad- 
 ministration. In 1869, he was appointed on 
 the State Geological Sarve3ing Corps, and con- 
 tinued a member in field work until the surve}^ 
 was completed. He was appointed to lecture 
 on zoology and practical geology in Western 
 Reserve College. His time is now occupied in 
 the practice of his profession and special 
 geological surveys. He married Orissa E. 
 Andrews, daughter of Wm. Andrews, an attor- 
 ney of Homer, N. Y., Aug. 28, 1851. Their 
 eldest son, William H., is a graduate of the 
 Western Reserve College, and now a member 
 of the Toledo bar. The other children are 
 Chas. P., Mary O. and Susan J. 
 
 N. P. SEYMOUR, LL. D., professor in the 
 Western Reserve College, Hudson; born in Hart- 
 ford, Conn., Dec. 24, 1813, was the fifth child and 
 second son born to Charles and Catharina 
 (Perkins) Seymour. In 1830. at the age of 16 
 he entered Yale College, graduating four years 
 later. After spending two years in the Hart- 
 ford Grammar School, he was appointed Tutor 
 in Yale College. In 1840, he accepted the 
 professorship of Latin and Greek, in the West- 
 ern Reserve College, a position he filled for 
 thirty 3'ears. On the occasion of his resigna- 
 
 tion in 1870, the committee of the Board of 
 Trustees appointed to prepare a minute in rela- 
 tion to his resignation reported the following, 
 which was adopted by the board : " Prof N. P. 
 Seymour having at a previous meeting ten- 
 dered to the board his resignation of the pro- 
 fessorship of Greek and Latin, and the same 
 having been reluctantly accepted, the board 
 cannot permit a connection so long continued, 
 and which has been so highly advantageous to 
 the college to terminate without recording their 
 high sense of the great value of his services, 
 and their conviction that by his wise counsel, 
 his eminent attainments as a scholar, and his 
 self-denying devotion to the best interests of 
 the institution for thirty 3-ears, he has largely 
 contributed to its usefulness and pi-osperity, 
 and to the high standard of scolarship and thor- 
 ough course of instruction for which it has been 
 distinguished. And in the liope that the college 
 may still to some extent enjoy the benefit of his 
 counsel and labors, he has been appointed Eme- 
 ritus Professor of Greek and Latin, and is invited 
 to give lectures from time to time, as may be 
 agreeable to him upon subjects connected with 
 his late department of instruction." Prof 
 Seymour has thus retained his connection with 
 the college, and lectures at times upon the same 
 subject in other institutions. In 1867, he re- 
 ceived the degree of Doctor of Laws, conferred 
 bj' Kenyon College. In 1841, he married Miss 
 Elizabeth Day, daughter of Hon. Thomas Day, 
 of Hartford. Conn. Of their union, three chil- 
 dren was the issue, their eldest son Charles, is 
 a member of the bar in Knoxville, Tenn., where 
 he established himself soon after the late war ; 
 Sarah is now the wife of Wm. C. Parsons, of 
 Akron ; Thomas, the youngest, was appointed 
 professor of Greek language in Yale College in 
 Julv, 1880. 
 
 CHARLES STONE, farmer; Streetsboro 
 Township, Portage County ; P. 0. Hudson ; 
 was born one mile east of Hudson, January 12, 
 1812. His father, Nathaniel, and mother, 
 Sally (Holenbeck) Stone, were natives of Con- 
 necticut. They removed to Ohio in 1810. 
 Mrs. Sidney Collar was their only child, at that 
 time, a mere babe. Mr. Holenheck, the father 
 of Mrs. Stone, came from Connecticut at the 
 same time ; the}' drove through with two ox 
 teams and a single horse, spending two months 
 on the journey. They arrived at Hudson in 
 November, 1810, and, purchasing some land, 
 
 \ 
 
838 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 began to prepare a home thereon. They reared 
 twelve children, ten of whom lived to maturity, 
 viz., Carolina, Charles, Sidne}' J., Eroeline (de- 
 ceased wife of R. Cobb), Randolph, Helen, Be- 
 linda, Roswell, Orlando and Clelsey. The family- 
 removed from their first location to their pur- 
 chase in the east of Hudson Township and 
 across the line into Portage County, where the 
 old folks died, he in 1861, and his wife about 
 four years later. Charles married Sabrina 
 Draper, April 18, 1837. They began farming 
 on about 60 acres which he got of his father, 
 and built a log cabin. To this land he added 
 by purchase, until he owned 200 acres. They 
 had seven children, viz., Harriet E., Frederick, 
 Salina, David, Moses, Mary L. (died when 
 about 3 3'ears old), and Clarinda S. Frederick 
 enlisted in the 9th Ohio Battery, September, 
 1861, and served until March, 1862, when he 
 died in hospital at Somerset, Ky., after a short 
 illness. Salina is wife of Charles Cash, of Hud- 
 son ; David married Annie, daughter of Wil- 
 liam Wilson, of Medina County — he and his 
 brother Moses have control of the farm ; Har- 
 riet E. and Clarinda S. are also at home with 
 their parents. Mrs. Charles Stone was the only 
 child of Moses Draper by his first wife. She 
 was born in Washington County, N. Y., June 
 3, 1818. Her mother died when she was a 
 mere infant, and her father married a second 
 wife, by whom he reared several children ; the}' 
 all emigrated to Ohio in 1831, and the following 
 year Mrs. Stone came to her Other's with a 
 family who were coming here at that time. 
 They have been A^er}- successful, and look 
 back on pioneer life with much satisfaction. 
 On the night of the 5th of February, 1847, a 
 sad calamity happened in the burning of his 
 father's residence, in which Belinda, a young- 
 lady about 21 years of age. pei'ished in the 
 tlames ; the other members of the family barely 
 escaped with their lives. It was one of the 
 primitive log-cabins, and stood a little south of 
 where Carles' residence is located. The acci- 
 dent is supposed to have occurred by the re- 
 newal of the fire when the last ones retired, for 
 tlie purpose of keeping the house warm through 
 the night. 
 
 CHARLES J. SMITH, Professor in West- 
 ern Reserve College, Hudson, was born in 
 Clarendon, Ohio, Oct. 16, 1844. He is the 
 second son born to Josiah and jMartha (Has- 
 kell) Smith, w^ho were natives of Connecticut, 
 
 but came to Ohio with their respective fami- 
 lies in the earl}- settlement of the State, and 
 located in Geauga County. At from 16 to 19 
 years of age, Prof Smith began teaching a dis- 
 trict school in the winter months, during the 
 summer season his time being occupied on his 
 father's farm. He then accepted a position as 
 teacher in the Bloomfield Academy, where he 
 remained one and a half years. He entei'ed the 
 Western Reserve College in 1866, and gradu- 
 ated therefrom in 1870, in the fall of the same 
 year, being appointed Professor of Natural 
 Philosoph}'. He married Miss Julia E. King 
 Aug. 23, 1871. Their children are as follows : 
 Esther K., Charles K. and Charlotte P. Mrs. 
 Smith was born in Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, 
 Aug. 20. 1845. She was the daughter of Lester 
 King, who was the son of Judge King, of 
 Warren. 
 
 SYLVESTER H. THOMPSON, retired; 
 Hudson, more familiarly known as Judge 
 Thompson, was born in Hudson, Ohio. July 
 28, 1808. He was the fifth child born to Dr. 
 Moses Thompson (who is mentioned in the 
 township histor}', as being the first physician 
 of Summit County). Dr. Thompson was mar- 
 ried to Elizabeth Mills in Connecticut, in 1795; 
 they moved into the State of New York imme- 
 diately after their marriage, where they lived 
 until 1800, when he came to Ohio and selected 
 land in the vicinity of Hudson ; then returned 
 to New York for his famil}-, which con- 
 sisted of wife and one child ; the}' arrived 
 here and settled permanently in 1801. They 
 were blessed with eleven children, viz., Eliza 
 L. (deceased) was wife of Horace Metcalf; 
 Susan, (deceased) was wife of Horace Hol- 
 brook ; Mills, now deceased was a prominent 
 farmer : Erailv (deceased) was wife of Samuel 
 Woods ; Sylvester H.; Virgil M., of Stow 
 Township ; Ruth, wife of Leander Starr, of 
 Hudson ; Maiy, widow' of John Flazeltine, who 
 with her daughter resides west of Hudson ; Sa- 
 rah A. (deceased), w^ho was the wife of Chas. 
 Aikin ; Martha, died in youth, and Elizabeth, 
 who is unmarried. Over half a century of 
 Mrs. Thompson's life and labors were well 
 spent in this community. Besides the cai'e in- 
 cident to rearing of her own numerous family, 
 it would require a volume to do justice to her 
 memory, as respecting her humane and benev- 
 olent characteristics and acts toward the sick 
 or needy, during the days of meager supplies. 
 
f.k^ 
 
 HUDSON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 839 
 
 with the pioneei" settlers ; her life work closed 
 on Nov. 20, 1851. Dr. Thompson survived his 
 wife until Nov. 17, 1858. There was nothing 
 remarkable in the earh^ life of Judge Thomp- 
 son ; he attended school in boyhood, and got a 
 fair education in the old primitive schools of 
 his earl}- life. His brain was spared the con- 
 fusion of college classics, but was possessed of 
 an abundance of practical good, hard sense, 
 which with strict integrity, eventuall}' placed 
 him in the front rank of honored citizens. 
 When he was about 22 years of age, he began 
 farming, on his own account, on 80 acres for 
 which his father paid $420. He was married 
 to Carolina D. Peck, May 14, 1833. She was 
 born in Connecticut, Dec. 6, 1808, and came 
 here from Waterbury, Conn., on a visit to her 
 brothers, who were contractors and builders, 
 and who built the Congregational Church in 
 Hudson. Seven children were born to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Thompson, viz., Charles S. (deceased); 
 Sherman P., Martha E. (now Mrs. P. Gr. Clark, 
 of East Cleveland) ; Theodore F. and Albert 
 S., and two who died in childhood. Mr. 
 Thompson was the first xlssessor in Hud- 
 son Township, and has held other offices 
 which were the gift of the people of the town- 
 ship. He was elected Justice of the Peace, and 
 after serving one year he resigned, to accept 
 the appointment of Associate Judge, in 1845, 
 which office he held until the new State Consti- 
 tution was adopted, with provisions which 
 abolished the office of Associate Judge, in 
 1851. In 1864, he was appointed . Commis- 
 sioner for this county on the Cleveland & Pitts- 
 burgh Railroad. He was connected with the 
 City Bank of Akron, Ohio, of which he was 
 President for thirteen years. The first apples 
 which were grown in this vicinity, were prob- 
 ably' those on Dr. Thompson's premises, trees 
 produced from seeds taken from a piece of 
 pomace, which the Doctor picked up where 
 he stopped to feed his ox team when coming 
 here through Pennsylvania, in 1801, formed 
 nucleus of an orchard. Judge Thompson re- 
 members distinctly the first apple which was 
 borne thereon, in 1813. That was the /^?•.s•^ and 
 only one produced on their trees that year, and 
 as it increased in size and reddened with the 
 sun, like the "apple" of old, it was the source 
 of considerable temptation to the children to 
 taste it and not " transgress." so they devised a 
 means : two pulled the slender tree against the 
 
 house, to which it stood close, a third one 
 would climb, scrape a hole in the apple with 
 his finger nail and carry the scrapings down to 
 those doing service at the stem until all would 
 have a taste. Although in advanced years, the 
 Judge is in robust health and enjoys in a re- 
 tired manner, the fruits of his early indu.Htry, 
 as well as the high esteem of his fellow citi- 
 zens. His wife, who was his great helper in 
 his much varied life, died Nov. 23, 1876. 
 
 STEPHEN THOMPSON, deceased : was 
 born in Groshen, Conn.; he married Abigail 
 Hutchinson. They, with three children, Will- 
 iam, Hiram and Elijah, emigrated to this town- 
 ship in the fall of 1801. They reared a family 
 of eleven children in all — William. Hiram, Eli- 
 jah, Serena, Lucretia, Alonzo, ITriah, Premila, 
 Amos, Alonzo 2d, and Abigail. The old folks 
 (Stephen and his wife), died many years since, 
 in the east of Hudson Village. Hiram was 
 born in Goshen, Conn., Aug. 30, 1797. When 
 he was about 17 years of age, he began to work 
 for himself, and paid for 50 acres of land where 
 he now lives. He married Sabrina Danforth, 
 Jan. 23, 1823. She was the eldest daughter of 
 Enoch Danfoi'th ; she was born in New Hamp- 
 shire, Jan. 26, 1806. They reared nine chil- 
 dren, viz.: Lorenzo, now in Kent Co., Mich.; 
 Amelia, wife of Dr. E. Me^^ers, of Uniontown ; 
 Harriet, deceased, wife of Henry Sandford ; 
 Jeremiah, now in Le Mai's, Iowa ; Laura L. 
 is wife of William Bell ; Mar}', deceased, wife 
 of Charles Case ; Louisa, wife of Orrin Rey- 
 nolds, of Chicago, 111.; William was killed by 
 the cars when thrown from the track, near Hud- 
 son, in 1864 ; Emma, wife of E. Cartwright. 
 Mr. Hiram Thompson added to his first pui'- 
 chase until he owned 161 acres of good land. 
 He never worked a team of horses on farm 
 work, but used oxen instead all his time. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Thompson have retired from the act- 
 ive duties of the farm, and left the same to the 
 care of their daughter and son-in-law, WMlliam 
 C. Bell. He was born in Pennsylvania in 
 March, 1841, and came here in 1859 ; he en- 
 listed in the late rebellion, in August, 1861, Co. 
 A, 0. V. C. lie got his discharge Dec. 31, 
 1863, and re-enlisted as veteran in same com- 
 pau}' and regiment, and served until the close 
 of the war, and got liis final discharge Sept. 11, 
 1865. He had two horses shot from under 
 him, one of which fell on him and disabled 
 him, in September, 1864, near Charlestown. On 
 
^1 
 
 840 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 his return, he married Laura L. Thompson. 
 The}' have three children, viz., Willie L., Emma 
 A. and Frederick W. At the time Stephen 
 Thompson and his family came, they brought 
 several cows and about eighteen sheep, which 
 the}' drove all the way from Connecticut. They 
 had hard work in protecting their sheep from 
 the ravages of wolves in those daN's, as lambs 
 and pigs were frequentl}' carried off Wild tur- 
 keys were plentiful, and Hiram has shot several 
 at their barn, substituting corn for shot when 
 the latter could not be procured. 
 
 HARRY C. THOMPSON, deceased. He 
 was born in Berkshire Co., Conn., Nov. 24, 
 1801. He was the son of Isaac and Poll}' 
 (Campbell) Thompson, who moved, with their 
 ftimily of eight children, from Connecticut to 
 Ohio, in 1814, locating at Ravenna. Their chil- 
 dren were Eliza, now widow of Dr. Swift, living 
 at Ravenna ; Harry C, deceased; Charles B., 
 deceased ; Orrin C. T., now a Presbyterian 
 Minister in Detroit, Mich.; Robert W., deceased ; 
 he and Richard J., who resides on the old home- 
 stead at Ravenna, were twins ; Mary, in Ra- 
 venna ; Charlotte, deceased. When Harry C. 
 was about 21 years of age, he discontinued 
 farming, and apprenticed himself to a tailor in 
 Ravenna. When his apprenticeship expired, 
 he went to New York, and there worked at 
 journeywork until he became perfectly ac- 
 quainted with the business. In about two 
 years, he returned to Ravenna, and opened a 
 tailoring establishment — the only one of the 
 kind in the place. His trade increased until 
 he employed eight hands and conducted a very 
 successful business. In 1836, his health failed, 
 from too close application to his business, ne- 
 cessitating a withdrawal therefrom. He was 
 married to Harriet A. Ellsworth, Jan. 7, 1830. 
 She was the daughter of Elisha and Elizabeth 
 (Oviatt) Ellsworth, who came here from Con- 
 necticut in 1811. Mrs. Thompson was then a 
 child about 2 years of age. She was born in 
 Connecticut Nov. 23, 1809. When Mr. Thomp- 
 son closed out his tailoring establishment, they 
 opened a boarding-house in Ravenna, which 
 they conducted with success for many years ; 
 this he afterward sold out, and purchased a 
 farm north of Hudson, where they resided twelve 
 years. In 1 868, they moved into Hudson, where 
 they anticipated a life of rest in their lives' 
 evening-time, apart from the bustle and toil of 
 the world. Mr. Thompson was elected Justice 
 
 of the Peace after coming to Hudson, and 
 served eight years. He has been appointed 
 administrator of twenty-four different estates. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Thompson were parents of two 
 children, viz.: Robert W., who resides on the 
 farm; and Elisha, who died at the age of 12. 
 Mr. Thompson's worldly cares ceased in death 
 Dec. 19, 1877. Mrs. Thompson is one of the 
 few who came here in pioneer days, and, al- 
 though well advanced in her 72d year, has a 
 good memory and a vigorous constitution. 
 
 AMOS THOMPSON, farmer; P. 0. Hudson, 
 is the son of Stephen Thompson, who came 
 from Goshen, Conn., with his wife and three 
 children, settling here in 1802. Amos was 
 born in this tov/nship, Sept. 13, 181 2. Through- 
 out his whole life he has been a well-to-do 
 farmer without any desire for notoriety in pub- 
 lic life. He has been twice married ; first in 
 1836, to Miss Laura Smith, of Randolph. By 
 this union there were six children, three de- 
 ceased and three living. Those surviving are 
 Henry 0., Ada A. and Arthur N. Their mother 
 was a native of the State of New York, and 
 came here with her parents about two years 
 previous to her marriage; she died Sept. 13, 
 1874. Mr. Thompson's second marriage was 
 with Mrs. Lavina Sandford, widow of the late 
 Peter Sandford, of Kent. The present Mrs. 
 Thompson was twice married prior to her 
 union with Mr. Thompson ; she has one child, 
 Emma Arrow, by her first husband, John 
 Arrow. 
 
 S. E. TOWNSEND, farmer ; P. O. Hudson ; 
 was born on Oct. 8, 1825, in New York, from 
 which place his parents, Eli and Sarah (Kenyon) 
 Townsend emigrated to Ohio with two children, 
 viz. : Cynthia and himself, in 1833. They lo- 
 cated in Richfield, and, after our subject had 
 passed his majority, he learned the carpenter 
 and joiner trades which he engaged in suc- 
 cessfully. He has been twice married ; first to 
 Miss Vanilla Smith, who died leaving four chil- 
 dren, three of whom survive, viz. : Charles E.. 
 Mary E. (now wife of Clifford Axtell) and 
 Lewis S. ; his second marriage was with Mrs. 
 Sarah Farnum, Oct. 18, 1863; they have one 
 child — iMyron E. Mrs. Townsend was born in 
 Massachusetts in 1827, and came to Ohio with 
 her parents in 1842. Her first marriage was 
 with Darwin Farnum, of Richfield, in 1851 ; 
 died May 18, 1859. In December, 1879, Mr. 
 Townsend purchased and moved to his present 
 

 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOAVNSHIP. 
 
 841 
 
 home, which consists of 90 acres of excellent 
 agricultural land, lying immediately west of 
 the corporation limits of Hudson. With its 
 
 advantages and improvements, besides the 
 natural beautiful location, it is all that could 
 be desired. 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWr^SHiP. 
 
 EPHRAIM BLOOD, retired, Cuyahoga 
 Falls; was born in Saratoga Co., N. Y., May 
 27, 182L His father, David Blood, was a 
 farmer by pursuit, and married a lady by the 
 name of Maiy Hewitt. When scarcely of age, 
 the subject of this sketch went to the trade of 
 carpenter and joiner, which he followed 
 steadily until 1852. He then engaged in 
 millwi'ighting, which he continued to work at 
 until 1876, at which time the firm of Snyder 
 & Blood, builders and contractors, was 
 formed. Both being practical carpenters, and 
 possessing a thorough knowledge of their bus- 
 iness, they immediately assumed a prominent 
 position, and their trade annually increased. 
 In January, 1881, Mr. Blood withdrew from 
 business entirely, and is now leading a retired 
 life. His marriage was celebrated Aug. 18, 
 
 1847, Miss Mary A. Reece becoming his wife. 
 She, too, is a native of the Empire State, and 
 was born March 18, 1822. 
 
 O. B. BEEBE, diy goods, Cuyahoga Falls; 
 is a son of Oliver D. and Phoebe (Holt) Beebe, 
 and was born Oct. 17, 1807, in New London, 
 Conn. His father was a carpenter and joiner 
 by trade, and moved to Middletown, Conn., 
 when the subject of this article was in his 
 childhood, and there he grew to matiu"ity. 
 "While yet in his youth, he learned the trade 
 of book-binder, and did "jour" work until he 
 came to this cou.nty, with the exception of one 
 year that he conducted business for himself. 
 In December, 1831, he came to Cuyahoga 
 Falls, and continued to work at his trade until 
 
 1848, when he engaged in mercantile pur- 
 suits, which he has since followed, keeping at 
 present a large and complete stock of dry 
 goods. His marriage was celebrated Sept. 80, 
 1832, at Middletown, Conn., Miss Sarah A. 
 Babcock becoming his wife. Their union has 
 been fruitful of four children — Jane, Mary, 
 William O. and Robert. The elder son is the 
 
 only one living, he being his father's partner 
 in business. Mr. and Mrs. Beebe are mem- 
 bers of the Episcopal ClAirch. He was Post- 
 master of Cuyahoga Falls during the adminis- 
 tration of James K. Polk; has been Mayor. 
 He is a Republican. 
 
 J. H. BYRNE, grocer, Cuyahoga Falls ; was 
 born in Ireland, April 14, 1822, and is the 
 youngest of a family of twelve children born 
 to Thomas and Catharine (Halleck) Byrne. 
 The father died when the subject of this 
 sketch was only 3 months old, and the 
 family soon after emigrated to America, set- 
 tling in Clinton Co., N. Y In 1833, they 
 moved to what is now Summit Co., Ohio, and 
 located in Tallmadge Township. J. H. re- 
 ceived but a limited amount of schooling, and 
 his first effort at earning money was perform- 
 ing light work during the surveying for the 
 Ohio Canal. He learned the trade of car- 
 riage-maker with Oviatt & Avery, at Tall- 
 madge, Ohio, and, in 1838, came to Cuyahoga 
 Falls and entered the machine-shop, where he 
 worked for several years. He conducted a 
 saw-mill in Lucas Co. two years, and the 
 rest of his life has been passed here, clerking 
 until 1871, when he and S. W. Hei-rington 
 engaged in business, keeping a store of gene- 
 ral merchandise for three years. In June, 
 1879, he commenced his present business, 
 keeping a grocery and provision store. He 
 was married, Aug. 28, 1845, to Catharine 
 Malone. She was born in Wood Co., Va., 
 May 7, 1825, and has crowned their union 
 with two children, who grew to maturity — 
 William P. and Thomas C. The younger died 
 when in his 15th year. The elder studied 
 dentistry, and died Nov. 29, 1879, having 
 been a practitioner for ten years. Mrs. Byi'ne 
 is a member of the Episcopal Church. He is 
 a member of the I. O. O. F., and is independ- 
 ent in his political views. 
 
842 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 L. W. BOYS, barber, Cuyahoga Falls. L. 
 W. Boys was born in Bennington, Vi, Nov. 
 20, 1843. His parents were G. L. and Sally 
 (Davis) Boys. The father was also a native 
 of the same place, and, by trade, a machinery - 
 molder. The subject of this sketch is the only 
 child of his parents. In about 184(), the fam- 
 ily came to Aki'on, Ohio, where they remained 
 two years, and then came to Cuyahoga Falls, 
 Here they have ever since resided. Previous 
 to the civil war, the son served an apprentice- 
 ship under his father as a machinery-molder. 
 He ran away fi-om home at the age of 19 
 and enlisted in the United States Navy, under 
 Commander J. C. Carter, of the United States 
 steamer Michigan. After he had served about 
 a year, he was taken sick with typhoid pneu- 
 monia, and was discharged for disability. 
 He returned home, and started to learn the 
 cabinet-maker's trade, but his lungs were so 
 delicate because of his previous illness that he 
 gave up the trade, and a second time ran 
 away from home. At Cleveland he again en- 
 listed, this time in the Volunteer Navy, Elev- 
 enth District, Mississippi Squadron, and was 
 stationed under Acting Commander M. For- 
 rest, a nephew of the rebel Gen. Forrest. He 
 participated in three engagements at and near 
 Decatur. He was also on the first gunboat 
 that reached Knoxville, Tenn. He served to 
 the close of the war, and was honorably dis- 
 charged. After his I'eturn, he again engaged 
 in the machine- molding business in Cuyahoga 
 Falls, but, not being able to continue the busi- 
 ness because of his previous illness, he went 
 into the barbering business. He has contin- 
 ued in that line to the present time; mean- 
 while, he has invented an improved barber 
 and dental chair. Mr. Boys was married, 
 Sept. 20, 1866, to Phoebe E., daughter of G. 
 W. Hobart, Esq., of Medina, Ohio. He has 
 had two children, both of whom have died. 
 Mrs. Boys was born June 1 5, 1850. Mr. Boys 
 is a Republican in politics, and is of a race 
 of Old-Line Whigs. He is a young man of 
 push and energy, and is destined to make his 
 mark as a business man. 
 
 J. C. CASTLE, attorney, Cuyahoga Falls; 
 was born at Elkhart, Ind., Sept. 11, 1842, and 
 is a son of Levi B. and Elizabeth (Cranson) 
 Castle. His father was an itinerant minister 
 
 in the M. E. Church, and passed many years 
 a resident of the western part of the State of 
 New York. He moved to Ohio in 1855, and, 
 in 1861, became a resident of Summit Co., 
 where he passed the rest of his life, dying in 
 Febriiary, 1875, when in his 84th year. The 
 subject of this sketch commenced doing for 
 himself when young, his first venture, being as 
 a newsboy on the C, C, C. & I. R. R., during 
 which he saved enough money to enter the 
 Baldwin University at Berea, Ohio. Before 
 the expiration of his second year, the liber- 
 ties of his country were imperiled by armed 
 secession, and he laid aside his studies to 
 become a soldier. He entered the 9th Ohio 
 Batter}^ and served over one year, when he 
 was discharged for physical disabilities. In 
 1864, he became a minister in the M. E. 
 Church, and was thus employed for fifteen 
 years, when he commenced the practice of law, 
 which he had studied in the meantime, having 
 been admitted in September, 1878. He 
 opened his office at Cuyahoga Falls in Febru- 
 ary, 1880. He has earned quite a reputation 
 throughoiit the county as a lectiirer, and is 
 widely and favorably known as the " sensible 
 humorist." He was married at New Philadel 
 phia, Ohio, June 15, 1869, Miss Anna Camp- 
 bell becoming his wife. Their union has been 
 blessed with four children. Those living are 
 William A., Olin C. and John H. Mr. Castle 
 is a member of the I. O. O. F., an-i of the G. 
 A. R. He is a Republican. 
 
 ROWLAND CLAPP, Cuyahoga Falls; was 
 born April 1(3, 1804, in Franklin Co., Vt., and 
 is a son of Reuben and Hepzibah (Gates) 
 Clapp, both of whom were natives of Worces- 
 ter Co., Mass. His father was a farmer by 
 pursiiit, and passed the greater part of his life 
 a resident of the Green Mountain State. The 
 subject of this sketch received a good common - 
 school education, and. when in his 21st year, 
 commenced teaching school. In 1826, he 
 left his native State and started for the Far 
 West, walking most of the way to the home of 
 a ]:)rother at New Albany, Ind. He taught school 
 there a short time, and then came to Ohio, 
 where he finally made his home, near the town 
 of Cuyahoga Falls. He has followed various 
 callings and occupations, and has borne an 
 upright and honorable character throughout 
 
.^ ?) 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 843 
 
 his long residence in this community. His 
 marriage was celebrated Nov. 9, 1834, Miss 
 Martha Gaylord becoming his wife. She was 
 born in what is now Stow Township, Sum- 
 mit Co., Ohio, Sept. 28, 1813, a daughter of 
 Jonathan and Martha (Thomas) Gaylord, who 
 moved there from Middletown, Conn., in 1809. 
 Mr. Clapp lost his companion the (3th day of 
 June, 1873, their union having been crowned 
 with three childi'en, named, respectively, Eliz- 
 abeth, Ashael and Emily. The oldest is the 
 wife of M. H. Barber, and the son married a 
 lady by the name of Maria Loomis. Mr. 
 Clapp was a communicant of the St. John's 
 Episcopal Church at Cuyahoga Falls when 
 organized, over fifty years ago, and is the only 
 one now living who was then a member. His 
 connection with the chm-ch has been exempli- 
 fied by a worthy and consistent life, and he 
 has for many years been one of the most influ- 
 ential and prominent members. During the 
 progress of the war, he was appointed a mem- 
 ber of the Ohio Relief Agency by Gov. Brough, 
 and stationed at Annapolis. He is a Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 JAMES H. COOKE (deceased), .sewer 
 pipe works, Cuyahoga Falls; was born in 
 Hartford, Conn., in 1834, and is a son of Hen- 
 ry and Laura Cooke. When 1 year old, he 
 was brought to Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and 
 here grew to maturity. His father was a 
 man of entei'].:)rise, and was endowed with busi- 
 ness qualifications that placed him among the 
 foremost men of his time. James .was in his 
 father's employ for some time, biit, Avishing to 
 engage in business that would be of a more 
 permanent and pleasing character, he became 
 interested in the sewer pipe works of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, and eventually attained the posi- 
 tion of sole proprietor. His business was con- 
 ducted on a large scale, and ranks among the 
 leading industries of the enterprising town of 
 Cuyahoga Falls. He was manned, Sept. 11, 
 1 855, at Galena, 111., to a daughter of Prof. 
 Germain. She was born at Catskill, N. Y., 
 Nov. 12, 1837, and, a few years later, her 
 father became Professor of Mathematics at 
 Burlington. N. J., in Biu'lington College and 
 St. Mary's Hall. In 1 849. he went to Galena, 
 111., and engaged in civil engineering. He 
 now resides at Cuvahosra Falls. Mr. Cooke 
 
 died Sept. 21, 1880, leaving a family of five 
 children, named, respectively, George, Laiu'a, 
 Kate, Alice and Edward. Mrs. Cooke is a 
 consistent member of the Congregational 
 Church. 
 
 HORACE B. CAMF, manufacturer of tile, 
 etc., Cu.yahoga Falls; is one of the enterpris- 
 ing and energetic business men of Cuyahoga 
 Falls, in which he has resided since 1864. 
 He was born in Tuscarawas Co., Ohio, Nov. 9, 
 1 838, and is a son of Hezekiah and Abigail 
 (Fosdick) Camp. His father came to Ohio 
 from Greene Co., N. "Y., in 1827, and for some 
 time taught school, being a single man at the 
 time. He was an ingenious and enterprising 
 man, and, in the year 1840, opened a coal- 
 bank in Springfield Township, Smnmit Co., 
 Ohio, and commenced shipping to Cleveland. 
 The following year, he moved to that city to 
 superintend his rapidly growing business, and 
 remained there until 1852, when he again 
 returned to Summit Co. He was engaged in 
 the manufacture of water-pipe at Middlebury 
 until 1861, when he retired to a farm. He 
 died at Cuyahoga Falls in August, 1872. 
 Horace commenced doing for himself when 
 of age, and for one year was in the employ of 
 the Barber Match Company, of Ala-on, with 
 headquarters at Lima, Ohio. He then con- 
 ducted the farm until 1 864 when he came to 
 Cuyahoga Falls and engaged in the manufact- 
 ure of sewer-pipe. In 1876, he engaged in 
 his present business, with G. W. Babb for 
 partner, and the following year withchew fi'om 
 the sewer pipe works, and has since devoted 
 his attention to the perfection of his rapidly 
 growing business. He has recently become 
 sole proprietor. His marriage was celebrated 
 in April, 1873, Miss Amelia M. Babb becoming 
 his wife. She is a daughter of Jose])h and 
 Elizabeth Babb, and was born in Summit Co.. 
 Ohio, August 7, 1852. Tlii-ee children have 
 blesged their union, viz. : Grace, Henry H. 
 and Louis. Mr. Camp has served as Mayor 
 of Cuyahoga Falls, and is identified with the 
 Republican party. 
 
 JOHN DOUDS, farmer; P. O. Cuyahoga 
 Falls; was born in County Antrim, Ireland, 
 March 17, 1825, and is a son of William and 
 Ellen ( McEllenhatten ) Douds. John left his 
 native land in 1843. and landed on the shores 
 
844 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 of America on the 9th day of Jime. For one 
 year, he lived near Ottawa, Canada, and then 
 came to Summit Co., Ohio, where he has since 
 resided. He settled in Boston Township, 
 where he cleared a farm, and has paid his 
 whole attention to farming and dairying. He 
 was married, September 2,1845, to Mrs. Mary 
 A. Cooke, her maiden name being Drake; she 
 died October 3, 1878, having borne him five 
 children, three of whom are living, viz. : Will- 
 iam J., who married Margaret J. Shields; 
 Carrie E., wife of Albert C. Viers, and Anna 
 M., wife of John E. Whaley. He has also an 
 adopted son, named Joseph J. Douds. He 
 was again married, Nov. 27, 1879, to Mrs. 
 Anna Duncan, widow of Col. James F. Dun- 
 can, of Cuyahoga Falls. She has three chil- 
 di*en living by her first union — George A., 
 Carrie D. and Thomas D. Mrs. Douds is a 
 member of the Episcopal Chiu-ch. He has 
 served as Trustee for many years; is a mem- 
 ber of the Masonic fraternity. He is a Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 JOSIAH GAYLORD, Cuyahoga Falls; was 
 born in Stow Township, Summit Co., Ohio, in 
 September, 1824; he is a son of Steward and 
 Mary A. (Creamer) Gaylord, and grandson of 
 Steward Gaylord. Josiah's father was a 
 ship-carpenter in Middletown, Conn. Hav- 
 ing a large family of children, Mr. Gaylord 
 determined to come West to Ohio, that they 
 might, in the then new country, build homes 
 of their own. In 1809, he and a number of 
 others of Middletown, with their families and 
 ox teams, started to Ohio, arriving, after a 
 long and eventful trip of forty- four days, in 
 Stow Township, where JVIr. Gaylord had pre- 
 viously purchased a tract of land of Judge 
 Stow, the proprietor. Knowing biit very little 
 about pioneer life, he employed a man to con- 
 duct the place, while he went to Cleveland to 
 work at his trade. His children were Mary, 
 John, Steward, Almira, George, William, 
 Josiah, Hiram and Robert. Mr. Gaylord died 
 October 6, 1840, after having lived to see 
 many of the mighty forests of Stow Township 
 leveled by the pioneer's ax. The subject of 
 this biography was reared on a farm, where 
 he received the rudiments of a good education. 
 After his father's death, he gradually assumed 
 control of the old homestead, buying out the 
 
 heirs and adding to the place, until he now 
 owns a fine faim of 108 acres, 18 being in 
 Cuyahoga Falls, and the rest in Stow Town- 
 ship. On the former, he has cleaa'ed one of 
 the most beautiful places in the whole neigh- 
 borhood for pleasure parties, picnics, etc. The 
 grounds are admirably situated on the banks 
 of the Cuyahoga, and a more convenient place 
 for svich purposes can hardly be found. In 
 1860, Mr. Gaylord married Laura Beckley, 
 daughter of Noel Beckley; she bore him fom* 
 childi'en, viz.: Mary, Noel, Willis W. and 
 Norman J . The pioneer Gay lords were old- 
 fashioned Presbyterians in religion, and Whigs 
 (latterly Republicans) in politics. 
 
 W. M. GRIS WOLD, ticket agent, Cuyahoga 
 Falls; was born July 21, 1835, in Middletown, 
 Conn., and is a son of Martin and Mary (Post) 
 Griswold, both of whom were natives of Con- 
 necticut. His father moved to Ohio in 1843, 
 and seciu'ed a farm in Summit Co., Stow 
 Township, on which he lived a number of 
 years before he retired to Cuyahoga Falls, 
 where he now resides. When 19 years old, 
 W. M. commenced working in the railroad 
 o£fice at Cuyahoga Falls, where he has since 
 remained, an efficient and polite official. In 
 1875, he became the telegraph operator for 
 the company, and combines the two duties in 
 one. He was manied, in 1855, t(- Charlotte 
 E. Deming, of Summit Co. She died Oct. 30, 
 1865, leaving two chiildi'en, Carrie May and 
 Charlotte E. In 1868, he was iinited to Mrs. 
 Lavina Stillwell of Portage Co. Two chil- 
 dren have crowned this union — Clarence W. 
 and Ellen M. Both Mi: and Mrs. Griswold 
 are members of the Disciples' Cluu'ch. He is a 
 members of the I. O. O. F. and Royal Arca- 
 num. He has served as Treasiu-er of the 
 Township, and also of the School Board, since 
 1877. He is a Republican. 
 
 J. B. HARRISON, farmer; P. O. Cuyahoga 
 Falls; was born in Madison Co., N. Y., July 
 16, 1808, and is a son of Joseph P. and 
 Eleanor Harrison, who came to that county 
 fi-om Litchfield Co., Conn., about the year 
 1804. His father was a farmer by pm'suit, 
 and served in the war of 1812. While at 
 Sackett's Harbor, he contracted a disease 
 from which he died in December, 1814, leav- 
 ing a family of small children to the mother's 
 
 ■^1 
 
CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 845 
 
 care. Before he was yet 10 years old, the 
 subject of this sketch went to live with a 
 neisfhbor, receiving; his "board and clothes" 
 for the labor he could perform, and, while 
 thus engaged, he no doubt laid the foundation 
 of industry and perseverance that has been 
 among the marked characteristics of his life. 
 He remained with him nearly five years, and 
 then, with an elder brother, conducted the 
 homestead left by the father. When 19 years 
 old, he commenced working out by the month, 
 and for foiir years was thus employed, during 
 which his hard-earned money was carefully 
 saved, and he then commenced farming for 
 himself. In 1836, he moved to Geauga Co., 
 Ohio, and engaged in mercantile pursuits, and, 
 in 1848, came to Cuyahoga Falls, where he 
 followed the same business, being associated 
 with gentlemen engaged in the paper-mills at 
 this point, the firm being J. B. Harrison & Co. 
 In 1856, he withdrew fi'om the store, but re- 
 tained an interest in the paper-mills until 
 1865, when he quit, and engaged in farming, 
 owning a farm near the town. He was mar- 
 ried, Feb. 13, 1832, to Miss Caroline Nichols; 
 she was born in Litchfield Co., Conn., June U, 
 1813, and accompanied her parents to Madi- 
 son Co., N. Y., in 1823. She died Jan. 4, 
 1879, having blessed their union with thi'ee 
 children, viz.: Olive, Helen A. and Joseph B. 
 The eldest was married to William C. Hitch- 
 cock, and died Sept. 10, 1857, leaving two 
 small children — Ida M. and Charles F., who 
 have been since members of Mr. Harrison's 
 family, having been adopted, and reared with 
 the same care as his own childi-en. They 
 both attended the University at Syracuse, N. 
 Y., and the elder is now a teacher in the pub- 
 lic schools at Cuyahoga Falls, and the 
 yovmger has recently engaged in the manuf act- 
 m'e of pot-rivets, being associated with two 
 other gentlemen. Mr. Harrison's son, Joseph 
 B., was married when young, to Louise Patter- 
 son, and is now engaged in the mercantile 
 business at Drakesburg, in Portage Co., where 
 he has resided since 1874. He has one child 
 — CaiTie. Mr. Harrison and family are mem- 
 bers of the Congregational Church. 
 
 F. S. HEATH & CO., di-uggists, Cuyahoga 
 Falls. Among the reliable business firms of 
 the pleasant town of Cuyahoga Falls, none 
 
 stand before the public in a more enviable 
 position than the one above named, who con- 
 duct one of the best stores in Summit Co, 
 The proprietors, F. S. and T. F. Heath, are 
 sons of Stephen and Hannah (Chamberlain) 
 Heath, and were born in Litchfield Co., Conn. 
 In 1835, their father removed to Western New 
 York, where the sons gi"ew to matm'ity and 
 passed their early life on the farm. In July, 
 1851, T. F. Heath came to Cuyahoga Falls, 
 having graduated, the previous March, fi'om 
 the College of Physicians and Sm'geons at 
 New York City. He engaged in the di'ug 
 trade, and, in the latter part of the same year, 
 was joined by his brother, who has since been 
 his partner, and conducted the telegraph bus- 
 iness since 1858. The Doctor has had a 
 lucrative practice since coming here, and stands 
 high in the medical profession of the county. 
 He was married, in 1854, to Emily A. Bruce; 
 their union has been fi'uitful of thi-ee children 
 —Frank T., Arthm- T. and Gracie E. The 
 eldest attended the College of Pharmacy at 
 Chicago, and carefully fitted himself for the 
 business of druggist. Dr. Heath has for 
 many years been agent for the Charter Oak 
 Life Insiirance Company. 
 
 H. E. HOWARD, clothing store, Cuyahoga 
 Falls; was born at Worthington, Ohio, Jan. 
 2, 1823. His father, C. Howard, was an en- 
 terprising- and industrious business man, and 
 for many years resided at Delaware, Ohio. 
 He moved to Cuyahoga Falls to engage in the 
 manufacture of paper, and. after remaining 
 hei'e a number of years, went to Newark, Ohio, 
 where he conducted the Park Hotel. One 
 year later, he went to Zanesville and engaged 
 in the coal business, which he followed the 
 rest of his life. The subject of this sketch 
 attended Kenyon College two yeai's, and made 
 his first venture in the business world as a 
 merchant at Delaware. Ohio. In 1855, he 
 came to Cuyahoga Falls, where he has since 
 resided, being associated for awhile with oth- 
 ers in a paper-mill. In 18()1, he entered the 
 army as Chief Musician of the 12th 111. V. I., 
 and, when his services were no longer needed 
 in that capacity, he was employed in the Pay- 
 mastei"'s depjuiment until near the close of 
 the war. He then traveled for a large paper 
 fii-m of New York for fourteen years, and only 
 
846 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 recently settled down to his present business. 
 His marriage was celebrated Nov. (>, 1851, 
 IVIiss Cathariue A. Thompson, of Delaware, 
 Ohio, becoming his wife. Their union has 
 been fruitful of seven children — Mary, Kate, 
 Julia, Fannie, Jessie (deceased), Charles and 
 Bessie. Mrs. Howard and the foui* eldest 
 daughters are members of the Episcopal 
 Church. He is a Republican. 
 
 W. A. HL4NF0RD. Mayor and Justice, 
 Cuyahoga Falls; was born in Noi'walk, Conn., 
 July 11, 181 U, and is a son of Charles and 
 Ruth Hanford. His father was a farmer by 
 pursuit, and died in that State in 1828. The 
 subject of this sketch, although only V) years 
 old at the time, came to Ohio to an uncle, who 
 lived at Hudson, in what is now Summit Co., 
 and, for three years, he lived in that town. 
 After buffeting around for several years, he 
 finally settled down in Tallmadge Township, 
 and remained until 1850, when he moved to 
 Cuyahoga Falls. Engaging in the manufac- 
 ture of paper, the business prospered and 
 largely increased while he was an interested 
 party, but the enterprise was marred by vari- 
 ous misfortunes that occurred, and, in 1868, 
 he withdrew, and has since been engaged in 
 business more suited to his taste and inclina- 
 tions. He is engaged in the insm-ance busi- 
 ness, and holds the office of Justice of the 
 Peace. He was the first Mayor of Cuyahoga 
 Falls, and is now filling the office for the third 
 tiiije. Mr. Hanford is well known throughoiit 
 Summit Co., and has endeared himself to 
 many of her citizens by his courteous manners 
 and business integrity. He was married, 
 March 16, 1840, to Mary T. Sackett, who was 
 born in Warren, Litchfield Co., Conn., June 5, 
 181V), and accompanied her parents when they 
 removed to Ohio. This union has been 
 crowned with seven children, only three of 
 whom are now living, viz.: Charles, Lewis M. 
 and Henry E. Mr. Hanford was one of the 
 leading spirits in the organization of the 
 Summit County Agricultm'al Society, and held 
 the office of Secretary dm'ing the early part of 
 its existence. 
 
 W. S. HOUGH, physician and surgeon, 
 Cuyahoga Falls; is a son of Joel I. Hough, 
 and was born April 3, 1844, in Atwater, Port- 
 age Co., Ohio. In September, 1 861 , he enlisted 
 
 in Battery D, 1st Ohio Light Artillery, and 
 served for one and a half years, and then as 
 Hospital Steward until October, 1864. Re- 
 turning home, he entered the Charity Hospital 
 College at Cleveland, Ohio, fi'om which he 
 graduated in the spring of 1866. For ten 
 years he practiced with i)r. J. C. Ferguson, at 
 Mogadore, in this county, and then located at 
 Cuyahoga Falls, where he has a lucrative 
 practice. His marriage was celebrated in 
 June, 1867, Miss Anna Golby, of Cleveland, 
 Ohio, becoming his wife. Their union has 
 been blessed with one child — William Condie. 
 Dr. Hough is a member of the Masonic frater- 
 nity and of the I. O. O. F. 
 
 JOSEPH JONES, horseshoeing, Cuyahoga 
 Falls; was born in Yorkshire, England, Nov. 
 12, 1840, and is a son of Joseph and Mary 
 (Acroyd) Jones. His father was a blacksmith 
 by trade, and, in the summer of 1847, emi- 
 gi'ated to America with his family and settled 
 at Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. He was in humble 
 circumstances, but, by industry and frugality, 
 not only sustained his family, but became the 
 possessor of a good shop and had a flourishing 
 trade. He died Feb. 24, 1879, having been 
 on the retired list for a nmnber of years. 
 Joseph was the eldest son, and, when 10 years 
 old, went to work in the shop with his father, 
 and, when 15, made a full hand at the trade. 
 He was married, December 31, 1862, to Miss 
 Eveline M. Newburgh, of Cuyahoga Falls, 
 Ohio, her birth being recorded May 8, 1847. 
 The next day after his marriage, he assumed 
 control of the shop, which he has condiicted 
 successfally ever since, and has a large and 
 flourishing trade. His marriage has been 
 fruitftil of seven children, viz.: Carrie Ida, 
 Frank E., Minnie E., Lulu, Charles W., 
 Maude and Birdie. Mr. Jones is a man of 
 industrious habits, and is esteemed by the 
 citizens as one of the most honorable and up- 
 right men. He is a member of the I. O. O. 
 F., and of the Town Council. He is a Repub- 
 
 JOSHUA L'HOMMEDIEU, grocer, Cuya- 
 hoga Falls; was born in Middletown, Conn., 
 March 16, 1821, and is a son of Joseph and 
 Betsey (Gridley) L'Hommedieu. His father 
 was a rope-maker by trade, and passed his life 
 a resident of Connecticut, dying in 1837. 
 
4i 
 
 ii 
 
 CUYAHOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 847 
 
 Joshua commenced clerking in a store in 
 Hartford when 16 years old, and, two years 
 later, accepted s similar position at Amherst, 
 Mass., where he remained until 1842, when 
 he came to Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. He en- 
 gaged in business with two brothers who had 
 preceded him, and paid his first attention to 
 the manufacture of stai'ch, and, a few years 
 later, ran a large ashery and gi'ocery store as 
 well. He subsequently enlarged his business, 
 and kept a store of general merchandise, and 
 at the same time conducted business of a sim- 
 ilar nature at Northampton, and at Akron; 
 was also in this kind of business in the oil re- 
 gions of Pennsylvania during the height of 
 the excitement, but, since 18f>i, he has kept a 
 grocery and provision store only at Cuyahoga 
 Falls. He was Postmaster of Cuyahoga Falls 
 from 1858 to 1861, and has served as Mayor 
 of the town. He is now serving hie fourth 
 term as Justice of the Peace, and a third 
 term as a Director of Summit County Agri- 
 cultui'al Society. He was maiTied, in March, 
 1852, to Julia, daughter of Sylvester and 
 Emma Pease. She was born in Summit Co., 
 Ohio, in April, 1834, and has crowned their 
 union with six chiidi-en, four of whom are liv- 
 ing, viz.: Townsend P., Mary F., Arthm' and 
 Joshua H. Mrs. L'Hommedieu is a member 
 of the Congregational Church. He has always 
 acted with the Democratic party. 
 
 L. W. LOOMIS, dealer in stoves, tin, glass 
 and wooden ware, etc., Cuyahoga Falls. 
 Among the prominent business men of this 
 place, in which the varied industries have 
 drawn together a large number, none, perhaps, 
 exercise more tact or display better judgment 
 in the management of their business than this 
 gentleman, who conducts one of the leading 
 houses of Northern Ohio. He was born in 
 Madison Co., N. Y., Jan. 11, 1836, and is a 
 son of William and Emeline (Thomas) Loomis. 
 His early life was passed on his father's farm, 
 and, when of age, he commenced the battle of 
 life, with no capital save his natural business 
 qualifications and a determination to succeed. 
 For foiu' years he was a "tin peddler" for 
 Smith & Herrington, of Waterloo, N .Y., and 
 then entered the service of his country as a 
 private soldier in Co. G, 13th New Yoi-k V. 
 I. At the expiration of his enlistment, which 
 
 was for two years, he once more entered the 
 service of his old employers, and, in February, 
 
 1864, accompanied by his brother, H. E. 
 Loomis, he came to Cuyahoga Falls and 
 founded the present business. Smith & Herr- 
 ington, owning a half interest. In March, 
 
 1865, he bought out his brother, and, in 1867, 
 became sole proprietor. He has a large num- 
 ber of wagons on the road, that are supplied 
 with wares manuf actiu'ed at his shop, and by 
 this means he is enabled to do an immense 
 business. He has also a large branch store at 
 Canton, Ohio. Mr. Loomis is associated with 
 Mr. H. E. Parks in the proprietorship of the 
 " High Bridge Glens and Caves,"one of the 
 most pictm-esque and lovely resorts in North- 
 ern Ohio, the scenery being undoubtedly the 
 finest in the State. It is annually visited by 
 thousands of pleasure- seekers, and Mr. Loomis 
 can justly be proud of his connection with the 
 enterprise. He was man'ied, June 3, 1863, to 
 Jane Curtiss, of Canandaigua, N. Y. This 
 union has been blessed with five children — 
 Lilian M., Byron H., Irving L., Melvin C. and 
 Arthur N. Arthur died Oct. 30, and Melvin 
 Nov. 4, 1880. 
 
 JAMES J. MOORE, Superintendent of the 
 Falls Wire Manufacturing Company, Cuya- 
 hoga Falls; was born in Pittsburgh, Perm., 
 Feb. 14, 1830, and is a son of William and 
 Margaret Moore. About the year 1835, they 
 moved to Cuyahoga Falls, where they lived 
 some fifteen years, and then went to Williams 
 Co., Ohio. James clerked in a store for 
 awhile, and then secui-ed a position on the 
 railroad as express and mail agent. In 1861, 
 he entered the service of the Government, in 
 the Paymaster's Department, and was thus em- 
 ployed until the close of the war. In 1870, 
 he entered the employ of Camp, Cooke & Co., 
 with whom he remained until the organization 
 of the Falls Wire Company, when he became 
 its Secretary, and, at the re-organization in 
 1 879, under the name of the Falls Wire Man- 
 ufacturing Company, he was retained as 
 Superintendent. ^h\ Moore is a genial gen- 
 tleman, and spends much of his time in trav- 
 eling in the interests of his firm. 
 
 GEORGE PAUL, civil engineer, Cuyahoga 
 Falls; is one of the prominent and widely 
 known citizens of this county, in which he has 
 
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCPIES: 
 
 always lived, being born at Cuyahoga Falls 
 Sept. 8, 1S87. His father, Hosea Paul, was 
 born at Braintree, Vt., and reared at Danville. 
 He passed the early part of his life in a drug 
 store, and studied surveying and engineering. 
 He married a lady by the name of Ellen Gam- 
 ble, who came to America from County Down, 
 Ireland, when in her youth. In 1834, he 
 moved to Ohio, and for one year lived at 
 Wadsworth, in Medina Co., when he came to 
 Cuyahoga Falls, where he passed the rest of 
 his life. He first engaged in the flouring 
 business, in which he was unfortunate, and 
 then followed engineering and surveying, be- 
 ing Surveyor of Summit Co. from 1857 until 
 his death, in May, 1870. George is the eld- 
 est but one of a family of seven children, and 
 learned surveying and engineering in the best 
 of all schools — experience. In 1857, he went 
 to the machinist's trade and served three 
 years at this place, and has the honor of plan- 
 ning the first steam canal-boat that plied on 
 the Ohio Canal. In 1860, he went East, and 
 for two years was employed in various shops. 
 Passing the required examination for an en- 
 gineer in 1862, he entered the regular service 
 of the United States Navy, being under 
 Admiral Dupont, of the South Atlantic Squad- 
 ron, three years, and then retiu-ned to his sur- 
 veying and engineering, which he has since 
 followed, with the exception of a short time 
 he owned a machine-shop at this place, buying 
 it in 1867. In 1878, he was elected member 
 of the State Board of Public Works, an office 
 he has filled with credit to himself and State. 
 He was married, May 10, 1871, to Olive A., 
 daughter of Austin and Eliza (Taylor) Bab- 
 cock. She was born May 21 , 1 842, at Cuyhoga 
 Falls, Ohio, her parents coming here fi'om 
 Massachusetts. Mrs. Paul is a member of 
 the Congregational Church. Politically, Mr. 
 Paul is a Re]iulDlican. 
 
 E. C. RUGGLES, attorney, Cuyahoga Falls; 
 was born at Canfield, Ohio, May 14, 1840, and 
 is a son of Charles and Lucy (Peck) Ruggles. 
 His father adopted the legal profession in 
 early life, and has always resided at Canfield, 
 where he is now passing a retired and quiet 
 life. He has been an energetic and enter- 
 prising man, and is held in high estimation 
 by the members of the bar, with whom he has 
 
 been associated for many years. The subject 
 of this sketch did not enjoy the usual facili- 
 ties for acquiring an education, and for some 
 time performed light duties about the court 
 house. In the s})ring of 1863, he was ap- 
 pointed Recorder of Claims against the Gov- 
 ernment, with headquarters at Nashville, 
 Tenn., and filled that office until the close of 
 the war. He then passed two years in Illi- 
 nois, and returned to Canfield and commenced 
 the study of law. He was admitted to the bar 
 in 1869, and, in the summer of 1873, came to 
 Cuyahoga Falls from Kent, where he had 
 located some two years previous. He now en- 
 joys a lucrative and growing practice, and 
 finds this a pleasant place for one of his pro- 
 fession. He was manried in April, 1859, to 
 Catharine, daughter of William and Amanda 
 (Mygatt) McFarlane. This happy union has 
 been blessed with one child — Ellen M. Mrs. 
 Rugfofles and daughter are members of the 
 Congregational Church. He is a Republican. 
 DR. C. W. RICE (deceased); was born at 
 Middlefield, Otsego Co., N. Y., April 15, 1803, 
 and was a son of William and Sarah (Bel- 
 knap) Rice, he being the third of a family of 
 ten children. He passed his early life on a 
 farm, and, when 17 years old, went to the 
 trade of book-binder, which he worked at until 
 he was 25, and then commenced the study of 
 medicine with Dr. Ariel Spaford, of Coopers- 
 tovni, N. Y. He remained with him about 
 three years as a student, and graduated from 
 Fairfield College, Herkimer Co., N. Y., in 
 January, 1829. He practiced with his old 
 preceptor for one year, and then came to Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls, Ohio, where he soon had a large 
 practice. He stood the acknowledged head of 
 the profession for many years, and died Oct. 
 7, 1861, leaving many friends to mourn his 
 loss. He was married, Nov. 6, 1834, to Lucy 
 W. Wetmore, daughter of Josiah and Nancy 
 (Willard) Wetmore. She was born in Mid- 
 dletown. Conn., July 13, 1812, and accompa- 
 nied her parents to Ohio in 1818. They se- 
 cured a farm in what is now Siammit Co., 
 Stow Township. Dr. Rice was throughout 
 life a man of integi'ity, and bore an upright 
 character in every department of life. He 
 united with the Episcopal Church soon after 
 coming to this place, and was an upright and 
 
 -^ <5" 
 
'k^ 
 
 CUYAHOG.l FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 849 
 
 cousistent Christian, devoting much of his time 
 to objects of charity. His marriage was 
 blessed with three children — Sarah F., Will- 
 iam C. and George W. 
 
 WILLIAM SOUTH^IAYD, insurance, Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls; was born May 16, 1880; he is a 
 son of Erastus and Clarissa (Rice) South- 
 mayd, who were parents of four sons — Walter, 
 William, and Horace and Henry (twins). 
 William is the only one living of this family. 
 William's father, Erastus, was born in Mid- 
 dletown. Conn., March 29, 1847. When a 
 young man, he left home and went to ISTew 
 York City to take charge of a mercantile busi- 
 ness there for his brother. His brother failed, 
 and, in the fall of 1818, Mr. Southmayd came 
 to Ashtabula Co., Ohio, and that winter taught 
 school there. In the spring of 1819, he came 
 to Stow Township, Summit Co., Ohio. He 
 taught school in that county, the winters of 
 1819 and 1820, and then went back to Con- 
 necticut, where he remained but one year, 
 when he again came to Stow Township, and, 
 April 18, 1822, married Anna, daughter of 
 Caleb Wetmore. By her he had thi'ee chil- 
 dren — Lucy, Charles and Leonard. Lucy is 
 now dead. Charles was born Feb. 4, 1825. 
 He married Helen A. Wilson, an adopted 
 daughter of Darius AVilson, and is now a resi- 
 dent of Stow Township. A biographical sketch 
 of Leonard will be found in another part of 
 this work. Mr. Southmavd's wife died Dec. 
 19, 1826, and, March 21, 1827, he married Clar- 
 issa Rice, the mother of the subject of this 
 sketch. Clarissa Rice was born Feb. 6, 1805, 
 and was the second white child born in Stow 
 Township. To this union were born four 
 children, as stated above. Mr. Southmayd 
 died Oct. 10, 1866, and his second wife March 
 14, 1879. William Soiithmayd was reared on 
 the old hom estead in Stow. He was married 
 Nov. 4, 1852, to Martha, daughter of Darius 
 Wilson. This union was blessed with two 
 children — Lucy, born May 13, 1855, married 
 Charles N. Gay lord, and resides at Monroe 
 Falls; George M., born Jan. 12, 1863. Mrs. 
 Southmayd was born Dec. 27, 1831, and is 
 one in a family of seven. Mr. Southmayd 
 started in life with scarcely anything. He 
 now owns the old homestead in Stow— 48 
 acres — which has been in the Southmayd fam- 
 
 ily fifty-three years. He owns a house and 
 lot in Cuyahoga Falls, where he resides. Mr. 
 Southmayd represents the Citizens" Mutual 
 Relief Association, one of the best and most 
 reliable insiu-ance firms in the State of Ohio. 
 After his marriage, Mr. Southmayd taught 
 school considerably. He is a teacher of ten 
 winters' experience. He and wife have been 
 members of the Church of Christ thirty-one 
 years, in which he has held positions of honor 
 and trust. He is a Republican in politics, and 
 has been Township Clerk of Stow twenty 
 years. In October, 1879, he was elected to 
 till a vacancy as one of the Directors of the 
 County Infirmary, and re-elected in 1880, for 
 three years. Horace Southmayd, brother of 
 the subject of this sketch, was in the 42d O. 
 V. I., under Col. (now President) Garfield, and 
 was in the engagement at Middle Creek, Ky., 
 where the Union forces met the rebels under 
 Humphrey Marshall, and, as it was said, " let 
 daylight shine for the first time in Kentucky." 
 Horace was wounded here, but did not leave 
 the service until he was afterward taken ill. 
 His folks went after him and brought him 
 home, where he died in May, 1862. 
 
 P. H. STANDISH, chain works, Cuyahoga 
 Falls; was born at Sing Sing, N. Y., May 5, 
 1835, and is a son of John and Relief (Hay- 
 den) Standish. His father was a native of 
 the State of Rhode Island, and comes of a 
 family who were noted for their ingenuity 
 and mechanical skill. He was connected with 
 one of the first cotton-mills in that State, and 
 his whole life was one continued round of 
 enterprise and industry. He conducted dif- 
 ferent kinds of business during his life-time, 
 and resided in various parts of the Union. In 
 1850, he came to Cuyahoga Falls, where he 
 remained some seven years, and then went to 
 California, where he passed the rest of his life. 
 When the siibject of this sketch was of age, he 
 crossed the mountains to the Golden State, 
 where his ingenuity and mechanical skill were 
 in ready demand, and there he engaged in 
 business. The manufactui'e of agricultural 
 implements received his attention, and he in- 
 vented the celebrated Standish Steam Plow, 
 that is covered by letters patent in several 
 countries of Europe, as well as in the United 
 States. He was also quite largely interested 
 
 
850 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 in the milling industry. He returned to- 
 Missouri in 1871, and resided in that State 
 until 1878, for two years being master me- 
 chanic in the penitentiary at Jefferson City. 
 He was engaged in manufacturing in St. Louis 
 quite extensively, and then came to Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, where ' he is conducting a large 
 business, that adds materially to the growth 
 and prosperity of the town. He was married, 
 in 1857, to Marie Gorham, of California, 
 Wisconsin being the place of her birth. This 
 union has been blessed with one child, a 
 daughter, named Almira. 
 
 GEOROE SACKETT, farmer; P. O. Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls; is a son of Aaron and Huldah 
 (Tanner) Sackett, both of whom were natives 
 of Litchfield Co., Conn., and was born Jan. 
 6, 1821, in that county. His father was a 
 farmer by pursuit, and in 1838, moved to what 
 is now Summit Co., Ohio, and secured a farm 
 in Tallmadge Township. His companion died 
 in April, 1855, and he in June, 1873, at the 
 residence of a son in Copley Township, where 
 he had been living a few years. George was 
 reared to farming, and, by industry and econ- 
 omy, at length secured a tract of Ifind in the 
 township of Cuyahoga Falls. It was all for- 
 est, and was cleared mostly by himself, and 
 has since been partly laid out and sold as 
 town lots. Mr. Sackett was married, iu Sep- 
 tember, 1848, to Helen Williams; she died in 
 1851, and he was then united to Fanny V. 
 Grant, on the 9th day of February, 1854. 
 This union has been blessed with one child — 
 Mary P. Mi-. Sackett has a pleasant and re- 
 fined home, and can now enjoy the fruits of 
 his early labors with the satisfaction of know- 
 ing that industry and integrity are sure to 
 have iheir reward. He has held different 
 ofiices, at the solicitation of the citizens of the 
 county, and, in 1880, was Real Estate Ap- 
 praiser of the township of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 The same year, he was chosen a member of 
 the State Board of Equalization, to represent 
 the counties of Summit and Portage. Both 
 he and wife are members of the Congrega- 
 tional Church. He is a Republican. 
 
 E. N. SILL, bank, Cuyahoga Falls; was 
 bom in Windsor, Conn., Jan. 6, 1801, and is 
 a son of Elisha N. and Chloe (Allyn) Sill. His 
 father was a physician, and devoted the active 
 
 part of his life to the practice of his profes- 
 sion in the State of Connecticut. The subject 
 of this sketch is the third of a family of nine 
 children, and graduated from Yale College in 
 1820. For several years he engaged in teach- 
 ing, and, in 1829, came to Cuyahoga Falls, 
 where he has since resided. For a short time 
 he was engaged iu manuf actm'ing, and, having 
 been instrumental in the organization of the 
 Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Portage 
 Co., was chosen Secretary — an office he held 
 until the expiration of its charter. The Sum- 
 mit Co. Branch of the Ohio State Bank was 
 located at this point, and Mr. Sill became its 
 President soon after. He has ever since held 
 that position in the bank at Cuyahoga Falls — 
 first, in the National Bank, which he organized, 
 and at present in the Inter-National Bank. 
 He has also been Director in the First National 
 Bank since its organization. Mr. Sill served 
 one term as State Senator, and, for the seven 
 years following that service, was Frmd Com- 
 missioner of the State. He is a member of 
 the Congregational Church and a well-known 
 and highly respected citizen of the town of 
 Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 R. J. THOMAS, manufacturer of stone- 
 ware, Cuyahoga Falls; was born in Wales, 
 Aug. 24, 1831, and is a son of John and Anna 
 (Rees) Thomas. His father was a blacksmith 
 by trade, and, in 1835, emigrated to the 
 United States and settled in Palmyra Town- 
 ship, Portage Co., Ohio, where he ever after 
 lived. Here he secured a farm, and, although 
 he worked at his trade some at first, he may be 
 said to have been a farmer after coming to 
 America. Five children accompanied the par- 
 ents to this country, and four were born to 
 them after their arrival. Both Mr. and Mrs. 
 Thomas were consistent members of the Uni- 
 tarian Church, and their industrious habits 
 crowned them with a competency before their 
 death. She died in February, 1867, and he 
 in December, 1868. The subject of this 
 sketch received a good education, and for sev- 
 eral years taught school during the winter sea- 
 son. In the spring of 1857, he entered the 
 employ of William H. Harris, of this county, 
 who owned and operated a large coal-mine, 
 and, in July, 1859, he leased the mines and 
 conducted them until the spring of 1867, with 
 
 ^ 
 
 i y 
 
CLTYAIIOGA FALLS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 851 
 
 tlie exception of two years that he passed in 
 Trnmbull Co. He engaged in the manufact- 
 ure of stoneware at that time, and has a 
 younger brother for a partner. Their busi- 
 ness is conducted on an extensive scale, but 
 fails to meet the demands of their numerous 
 })atrons, and they therefore buy largely from 
 other manufacturers. Mr. Thomas was mar- 
 ried, March 31, 1860, to Aim, a daughter of 
 David S. and Hannah Davis. She was born 
 in Wales in February, 1838, and accompanied 
 her parents to Portage Co., Ohio, when in her 
 childhood. Their union has been fruitful of 
 six children, fom* of whom are living, viz.: 
 Edwin D., Irving Seward, Hattie and Franklin 
 W. Mr. Thomas and wife are members of the 
 First Congregational Church. 
 
 GRANT B. TURNER, Variety Iron Works, 
 Cuyahoga Falls; is a son of William and 
 Rosanna (Owen) Turner, and was born Oct. 
 17, 1810, in Blooming Grove, Orange Co., N. 
 Y. His father was a cooper by trade, and, in 
 1818, moved to Trumbull Co., Ohio, where he 
 remained ten j^ears, and then came to Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, where he passed the rest of his 
 life. Grant B. is the eldest of a family of 
 four children, and, when 19 years old, went to 
 the printer's trade, in the office of the Western 
 Intelligencer, at Hudson, Ohio. After five years 
 application, he left the business, and has since 
 devoted his attention to other pursuits. For 
 four years, he was Deputy Sheriff of Portage 
 Co. He studied law, and, after his admission 
 to the bar, practiced the profession for sev- 
 eral years. In 1850, he, in company with sev- 
 eral other gentlemen, founded the Variety Iron 
 Works, the firm being Turner, Parks & Co 
 Mr. Turner is the only one of the original 
 firm connected with the business at the present 
 time, his partners being Messrs. J. A. Vaughn 
 and W. A. Taylor, two well-known business 
 men. Their facilities for manufacturing are 
 excellent, and their reputation, earned by 
 years of careful attention to the wants of their 
 patrons, places them in an enviable position 
 in the business world. Among the many 
 things manufactured at their shops are steam 
 engines, grain- cleaning machinery, mill 
 gearing, wire- working machinery, and clay- 
 grinding machines — a part of which are cov- 
 ered by patents taken out by this firm. The 
 
 demand for their products is not confined to 
 the United States, but includes considerable 
 trade with several European countries. Mr. 
 Turner was married, April 30, 1835, to Ada 
 Morley, of Cunandaigua, N. Y. They have 
 three children — Aiigusta, Hattie and Alice, all 
 of whom are married. 
 
 D. J. THOMAS, manufacturer of stoneware, 
 Cuyahoga Falls; is a son of John and Anna 
 (Rees) Thomas, and was born in Palmyra Town- 
 ship, Portage Co., Ohio, April 14, 1841. When 
 19 years old, he came to Tallmadge Township, 
 in Summit Co., and went to work in the coal- 
 banks. Aug. 24, 1862, he was married to 
 Maria Thomas, of Poi'tage Co., whex-e she was 
 born April 15, 1841. Two days after this 
 iiniou, Sir. Thomas went into camp at Massil- 
 lon, having enlisted, previous to his marriage, 
 in Co. C, 115th O. V. I. He served thi-ee 
 years, and was captured at Laverne, Tenn., 
 but escaped ten days later, while at Coliunbia, 
 being then on his way to the prison pens of 
 the South. He returned to Cuyahoga Falls, 
 and engaged in the grocery and provision 
 business with John I. Jones, with whom he 
 remained about one year, when he withdi-ew 
 and engaged in his present business. His 
 companion died May 31, 1863, and he was 
 again united in the bonds of marriage the 
 13th day of July, 1867, Ruth Williams, of Tall- 
 madge, becoming his wife. This union has 
 been fniitful of six children, viz.: Ella D., 
 Delbert J. (deceased), Lizzie A., Walter 
 (deceased), Sarah Josephine, and Mabel Carrie 
 (deceased). Mrs. Thomas is a member of the 
 Congregational Church. 
 
 MAJ. CHARLES WRIGHT WETMORE 
 (deceased), was born in St. Albans, Vt., Sept. 
 8, 1803, where he passed his boyhood and 
 early manhood. He was man'ied to Miss 
 Hazeltine in 1825. They, with their thi-ee 
 children, moved to Chillicothe, Ohio, in 1830, 
 where Mr. Wetmore established himself in 
 business. In 1832, they removed to Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, where the remaining years of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Wtemore's life were spent. During 
 these years, Mr. Wetmore has repeatedly oc- 
 cupied high public trusts at the solicitation of 
 his fellow-citizens. He held the office of 
 Mayor several successive tenns, and was so 
 generally popular throughout the Reserve that, 
 
 ;f7 
 
M'. 
 
 853 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 had tie aspired to political honors, he would 
 undoubtedly have received the highest offices 
 within the gift of the people of the State. 
 His domestic tastes, however, induced him to 
 seek a more quiet life, and the circle of his 
 usefulness and civil duties were circumscribed 
 by his own choice. Mr. Wetmore was one of, 
 and for, the people; distinguished for his sym- 
 pathy and benevolence. It was his delight, 
 during his active life, to assist young men 
 starting out in their career — professional or 
 business. For a number of years previous to 
 his death, Mr. Wetmore was quite infirm, but, 
 throughoiit the time, a cheerful, uncomplain- 
 ing invalid, always glad to see the fi-iends who 
 remembered the Major with affection. His 
 life work ended Sept. 29, 1880. Funeral serv- 
 ices were conducted at the house by the Rev. 
 E. V. H. Danner, and at the grave by the 
 Masonic fraternity, of which the deceased had 
 been a member during the greater part of his 
 life. His wife was born in the year 1800; 
 she was, on her mother's side, a descendant of 
 the Worcesters, who were early settlers at 
 Worcester, Mass., and from whom it is said 
 the town took its name. For some time pre- 
 vious to their marriage, Mrs. Wetmore had been 
 living with her sister, Mrs. Judge Bridges, in 
 St. Albans, Vt., and had enjoyed the privilege 
 of a good education and intelligent society; 
 it was hard for her to think of locating in a 
 Western hamlet, without schools, churches or 
 anything which makes society worth living for. 
 Cuyahoga Falls, at that time, had a store, a 
 hotel, a few dwellings, several mills, and a 
 schoolhouse; in the latter, religious services 
 were held once in two weeks. Full of the 
 spirit of enterprise, added to earnest religious 
 zeal, Mrs. Wetmore determined to awaken 
 interest, if possible, in the formation of a 
 Sabbath school. She met with many discoui*- 
 agements, but finally the influential family of 
 Mrs. H. Newberry pledged their assistance, 
 and the work progressed without opposition. 
 Mrs. Wetmore, with the aid of the Misses 
 Mary and Fanny Newberry, founded the first 
 Sabbath school in Cuyahoga Falls in the 
 spring of 1888, and continued one of its 
 teachers until advancing years and growing 
 cares caused her to retire. So remarkable was 
 her modesty, and so unmindful was she of her 
 
 charitable deeds, that not till within the past 
 few years did she relate to her family the 
 early history of the school, and her relation to 
 it. She was one of the few who were instru- 
 mental in organizing the first Foreign Mis- 
 sionary Society of the town. The Maternal 
 Association, which was organized a few years 
 later, she was a leading member of. It was 
 a society composed of praying mothers, who 
 often met to consult in regard to the religious 
 training of their children. Mrs. Wetmore 
 was one of the few who composed the Congre- 
 gational Church at its organization. She was 
 ever a consistent and devoted member of that 
 church, her position being aggi'essive against 
 anything that tended to lower its orthodoxy or 
 to enfeeble its spirituality. She was pledged 
 to its benevolent enterprises. Her highest 
 ambition for her children was that they might 
 be intelligent and Christian laborers in the 
 church so dear to her. Her cheerful disposi- 
 tion added to her faith in the wisdom of the 
 providences of God, enabled her to rise above 
 sorrow, and ever minister to those of less faith 
 and fortitude. She was a generous friend to 
 the home missionary. One of these, in 
 acknowledging the receipt of a religious news- 
 paper, on which she annually paid the sub- 
 scription for him, begged the privilege of call- 
 ing her "mother." A lady in Boston writes: 
 "She was the only mother I ever knew." 
 And many others, especially orphans, or those 
 whose circumstances would place them in 
 reach of her care or benevolence, think they 
 also have the right to claim her as a " mother " 
 indeed. She possessed an inexhaustible fund 
 of knowledge, from which she could draw with 
 adaptability, as occasion demanded. Much of 
 the Bible she could repeat; one had only to 
 commence a verse, when she would continue to 
 repeat, from memory, the rest of the chapter. 
 Her mind was a storehouse of history, both 
 sacred and profane. Possessing rare execu- 
 tive ability, excellent judgment, and that val- 
 uable gift, common sense, we can justly say 
 she was a j^erson of uncommon character and 
 endowments; and at her demise — which oc- 
 curred Christmas night, 1877, aged 77 years 
 and 8 months —the loss was severely felt in 
 many directions, but fell especially severe on 
 her own family. The self-sacrificing mother 
 
 [yi: 
 
ik* 
 
 NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 was the idol almost worshiped by her children, 
 who delighted in her brilliant, cultured intel- 
 lect, her ready wit and her finely drawn con- 
 clusions; they rejoiced in her independence of 
 thovight and action, and her pitying scorn for 
 what was wrong, and that she dared to live a 
 life of non- conformity to the vain customs of 
 the world. Of herself she seldom spoke or 
 thought; for herself she seemed not to have 
 ever lived. It was love and ministry unceas- 
 ing for husband, children and grandchildren, 
 that made her appear like an angel of light in 
 her own household. She was calculated to 
 lead each member of her family in thought 
 and action; even the strongest were leaning 
 upon her comparatively unimpaired faculties, 
 when she was suddenly called away. The 
 siu'viving members of the family are Miss 
 Salome S. Wetmore, who is a resident of the 
 village; Mrs. Louise, wife of Capt. H. S. Wet- 
 more, of South America; and William Shep- 
 ard Wetmore, of the firm of Frazer & Co., 
 merchants, of Hong Kong and Shanghai, 
 China. 
 
 J. F. WEIDNER, cooper, Cuyahoga Falls; 
 was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, Jan. 18, 
 1827. His father, Michael Weidner, was a 
 farmer, and passed his life in his native land. 
 The subject of this sketch was only 8 days old 
 when his mother died, and, as is usual in such 
 
 cases, he grew to maturity without that kind 
 and watchful care that none but mothers know 
 how to bestow. He learned the trade of 
 cooper, and, in 1849, emigrated to America 
 for the purpose of acquiring a position in the 
 world that he considered was beyond his reach 
 while in the " Fatherland." Coming to Ohio, 
 he passed one year at Cleveland, and, in March, 
 1850. became a citizen of Cuyahoga Falls, 
 where he has since resided and worked at his 
 trade. His industrious habits, coupled with 
 his business integrity, has given him a com- 
 petency, and here he has, as it were, realized 
 the dreams of his youth. He was married at 
 Vermillion, Ohio, Aug. 9, 1853, to Miss Cath- 
 arine Hess. She was born in Hessen, Ger- 
 many, July 18, 1832, and came to America 
 when 4 years old. Their happy and prosper- 
 ous union has been blessed with five children 
 — Elizabeth C, Charles A., Mary C, George 
 F. and Nellie G. The eldest married Mr. E. 
 E. Pierce, and resides at New Brighton, Penn. ; 
 Charles married Miss Elsie Smith, and resides 
 at Cuyahoga Falls, where he is interested in 
 the manufacture of pot-rivets. Mi*. Weidner, 
 wife and two eldest daughters ai'e members 
 of the M. E. Church, of which he is Treasurer, 
 and takes an active part in its prosperity, hav- 
 ing been connected therewith over twenty 
 years. He is a Republican. 
 
 NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 JOHN A. BOTZUM, Buckeye. John George 
 Botzum, father of this gentleman, was born in 
 German}' in 179G. He was the son of John 
 Botzum, who was a native of German\% and the 
 parents of one son (John G.), and two daughters. 
 John G. was married to Miss Catharine Draga- 
 ser, in 1819. She was a native of the village 
 of Urmmerspach, Germany, where she was born 
 in 1796. Her parents moved to Poland when 
 she was 7 years of age, leaving her with her 
 mother's brother in Germany. She never saw 
 her parents afterward, and continued to reside 
 with her relatives until her marriage with Mr. 
 Botzum. They were the parents of the follow- 
 ing family of children : Michael, born in 1820 ; 
 Catharine, in 1821. and died in 1825 ; Susan. 
 
 born in 1823 ; Nicholas, in 1825 ; George, in 
 1827 ; John, in 1829, and died in 1834 ; Adam, 
 born in 1830 ; Catharine, in 1832 ; John A., in 
 1834, and Conrad in 183G. All of these chil- 
 dren were born in German}-, except Conrad. 
 In 1836, Mr. Botzum and family left their na- 
 tive village, and went b}' ox team to the sea- 
 board, where thej' took passage on the vessel 
 Princeosa for the United States, arriving at 
 New York on the 17th of July of the same year. 
 Here they met an agent, who, after some talk, 
 persuaded Mr. Botzum to go to South America, 
 where he was told a fortune awaited him. Be- 
 fore they had completed arrangements for the 
 voyage, however, Mr. Botzum learned from the 
 authorities that it was a plan to get himself and 
 
854 
 
 lilOGK A PII I C A J . SKETCHES : 
 
 lamil}' to that far-off country, where they would 
 be sold into slavery This decided him in his 
 course, and, in a short time, we find the family 
 aboard a fiat-boat on their way to Albany. 
 From there they went by canal to Buffalo ; 
 thence by the lake to Cleveland, Ohio. Here 
 the family were compelled to stop for a time, 
 owing to sickness in the family. After a short 
 time, they took passage on an open flat-boat on 
 the canal for Niles. From there they went to 
 (Ihent, in Bath Township. Here Mr. Botzum 
 obtained work at 50 cents per day, digging a 
 mill race. The}' remained at this place two 
 3'ears, and, while the father was at work so hard, 
 his good wife found time to go into the wheat 
 fields of the farmers of that neighborhood, and 
 glean, as did Ruth of old. The first season her 
 gleanings, when threshed, amounted to eight 
 husheh of nice wheat. x\fter a sta^' of tw'o 3'ears 
 at Grhent, thej' removed to Niles, and, after four 
 years, purchased a farm, upon which the}' ever 
 afterward resided. Mr. and Mrs. Botzum were 
 members of the Catholic Church, and would 
 often walk great distances to attend church. In 
 1839. the}' walked to Canton, Ohio, to attend 
 church at that place. They were frugal, indus- 
 trious people, and respected by all who knew 
 them. John A. Botzum was raised upon a 
 farm, receiving but a limited education. When 
 about 18 years of age, he went to Cleveland, 
 and, for about a year, was engaged as clerk in 
 a mercantile house. He then returned home, 
 and. until 1858, was variously employed. He 
 then engaged in mercantile pursuits at Botzum 
 Station, where he has since remained, and, dur- 
 ing tiiat time, has been prominently identified 
 with the growth and prosperity of that place. 
 He has been quite an extensive dealer in lum- 
 ber, live stock and real estate, and, when the 
 Valley Railroad was building, took the contract 
 for grading one and a half miles of the road, 
 near Botzinn Station. The man he contracted 
 with proved worthless, and Mr. Botzum lost, in 
 this undertaking, over $5,000. Mr. Botzum was 
 married to a Miss Stout, a native of Northampton 
 Township, this county. She is the daughter of 
 George and P]liza (Woolford) Stout, appropriate 
 j mention of whom is made in another part of 
 I this work. Mr. and Mrs. Botzum are the parents 
 j of two sons, to whom they have given superior 
 I advantages for obtaining educations. Mr. Bot- 
 zum is a self-made man, in the fullest sense of 
 I the word. He is a good and useful citizen, and 
 
 has the respect and confidence of the entire 
 community. 
 
 A. (1. BILLMAN, fiirmer and stock-raiser ; 
 P. 0. Akron ; was born near Wooster, Wayne 
 Co., Ohio, Dec. 18, 1838. He is a son of Henry 
 and Maria (Best) Billman, and grandson of 
 David and Mary (McDonald) Billman. and 
 great-grandson of John and Julia (De Caveren) 
 Billman. The last tvvo were natives of Prussia, 
 and John was one of the regular soldiers there. 
 Becoming tired of the service, he ran away and 
 shipped on board a vessel bound for the United 
 States, where he arrived in safety. Soon aft(n- 
 his arrival the war between the colonies and 
 Great Britain broke out, and Mr. Billman 
 immediately offered his services in behalf of 
 the colonies to Gen. Washington. Owing to his 
 previous experience he was commissioned Cap- 
 tain, but by bravery was promoted to Colonel. 
 He served through the whole eight years, 
 participating in the battle of Lexingt(jn, the 
 campaign of Virginia, and was with Gen. 
 Washington at Valley F rge, where, in connec- 
 tion with the rest of the troops, passed one of 
 the most severe winters of suffering ever known 
 in the history of war. He was wounded three 
 times, but never quit the service. After the 
 close of the war, he married Julia De Caveren, 
 and was made overseer of ' Hamilton's Planta- 
 tion" in Virginia, four miles from Gen. Wash- 
 ington's. At the end of four years he had 
 saA'ed sufficient money to purchase a large 
 farm of unimproved land, but, in time, turned 
 it into a plantation. In 1818, he sold this 
 property and purchased a large farm near Bal- 
 timore, Md.. and, in 1819, his death occurred. 
 His eldest son David moved to Lancaster Co., 
 Penn., soon after his father's death, and lived 
 there until about 1825, when he was induced l)y 
 Gen. Bell, whom he had served under as pri- 
 vate in the war of 1812, to remove to Wayne 
 Co., Ohio. He purchased a large tract of land 
 near Wooster. He died here in 1860. His 
 third child was Henry Billman. who is the 
 father of the subject of this sketch. He was 
 born in Lancaster Co.. Penn., and married his 
 wife, Maria Best, in Allegheny Co. He came 
 with his parents to Ohio in 1825, and, in 1845, 
 came with his family to Northampton Town- 
 ship, Summit Co., and purchased the fiirm on 
 which his son Alexander now resides. He was 
 one of the few men who commanded the respect 
 and esteem of every one, and of him could be 
 
-k- 
 
 NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 855 
 
 trul}' said he was one of nature's noblemen. 
 At the time of his death he was a member of 
 the M. E. Church. Alexander G. Billman was 
 reared principall}' on the farm, and in 3'outh he 
 received a good education. He was married, 
 Feb. 21, 1861, to Eliza Hartman, daughter of 
 the Rev. Peter Hartman, of Wayne Co., Ohio, 
 and to this union there were born the following 
 family — George, Frank, Arthur, one that died 
 in infjmcy, and Blanche G. Mrs. Billman was 
 born Feb. 11, 1839. Mr. and Mrs. Billman are 
 members of the M. E. Church, and Mr. Billman 
 is a Republican in politics. He owns 207 
 acres of well-improved land, which has been in 
 his famil}' ever since it was a forest. 
 
 MARY A. BUTLER, the daughter of Joseph 
 VVallace, was born in Franklin Township, Port- 
 age Co., Ohio, Feb. 22, 1841. On the 22d of 
 February. 1841, she was united in marriage 
 with Jackson Bean, son of Henry Bean, and 
 by him had three children ; Charles A., Frank 
 W. and Alanson J. Mr. Bean was a widower 
 with two children at the time of his marriage 
 with Miss Wallace. His occupation was auc- 
 tioneering. He died July 10. 18G1), and Feb. 
 6. 1874, his widow married Heniy Butler, who 
 was a widower with four children. To this 
 union there were born three ciiildren ; Fronie, 
 Byron E. and Maud L. B}' the death of her 
 first husband Mrs. Butler and her children were 
 left 78 acres near Old Portage. At present 
 she lives on a farm of 56 acres which was given 
 her b}' her father. Mr. Butler is a Democrat, 
 and his wife is a member of the Baptist Church. 
 
 L. H. COX, proprietor of stone quarry, 
 Cuyahoga Falls ; was born in Northampton 
 Township, Summit Co., Ohio, Sept. 24, 1837. He 
 is one of the following children born to Leon- 
 ard and Lydia (Thompson) Cox : Lyman H., 
 Lenora M.. Frances, deceased, and LeRo3\ 
 Mr. Cox died July 7, 1862. Lyman H. Cox 
 passed his ^-outh and earl}' manhood on the 
 farm, receiving a good common-school educa- 
 tion. When he was 21 years and 11 days 
 old he commenced life on his own responsibility. 
 He was married Aug. 6, 1861, to Ann M. Fitts, 
 daughter of Roswell Fitts, and by her has one 
 son, Fred, born Dec. 8, 1865. Mrs. Cox was 
 born April 8, 1836. In 1866, Mr. Cox came to 
 his present place and purchased 4 acres. This 
 tract of land is underlaid with the best quality 
 of building rock in Summit Co. For a better 
 description of this rock see the historv of 
 
 Northampton Township in another part of this 
 work. This quarry- is undoubtedly one of the 
 best in the county. Besides this property', Mr. 
 Cox owns a half interest in the old homestead 
 which consists of 100 acres in the western part 
 of the township. Mr. Cox is a member of 
 Lodge No. 187, A., F. and A.M., and he is a 
 Greenbacker in politics. 
 
 WILLIAM CARTER, farmer ; P. 0. Cuya- 
 hoga Falls ; is a son of William and Jane (Car- 
 ter) Carter and grandson of Jared Carter. His 
 father was a native of Middletown, Conn., and 
 was born Feb. 13. 1792. June 16, 1814, he 
 married Chloe Wadsworth, and by her had fi\-e 
 children as follows : Maria E., born Maj' 30. 
 1815; Sarah, born June 7, 1818; Mar}', born 
 Jan. 7, 1820 ; Emily, born Oct. 31. 1822, and 
 Amelia, born Jan. 31, 1835. The mother was 
 born March 10, 1794; she died Oct. 17, 1826. 
 Mr. Carter was a bricklayer by trade ; he came 
 to Northampton Township at a very early time, 
 and, being a master of his trade, received plenty 
 of employment. The first brick building in 
 the village of Cu\'ahoga Falls was built by 
 him. as was also the jail at Akron, and many 
 other of the best buildings in the count}'. His 
 second wife was Jane Carter, to whom he was 
 married in Northampton Township, Oct. 17, 
 1834, and b}' her had the following family : 
 William (the subject of this biograph}^, born 
 Sept. 26, 1836; Patty, born July 25, 1838; 
 Mahala, l)orn Oct. 11, 1842. and Helen, born 
 April 27, 1845; Patty married Wallace Har- 
 rington, and Mahala married Fred Harrington, 
 brothers. Mr. Carter died April 24, 1876. 
 William Carter, Jr., passed his 3'outh and early 
 manhood on the farm ; he was married Nov. 
 19, 1863, to Martha Pardee, daughter of Harr}' 
 and Fanny (Benedict) Pardee, and to this union 
 were born two children — Eleanor F. born in 
 1864, and Harry, born in 1865. Mrs. Carter 
 was born Sept. 16, 1838. Our subject's mother 
 is yet living on the old Carter homestead, which 
 consists of 72 acres. The Carters are among 
 the old pioneers of Summit Qounty, and are 
 also among the leading citizens. 
 
 SIMEON DICKERMAN, farmer and dairy- 
 man ; P. 0. Cuyahoga Falls ; was born in Nor- 
 ton Township, Summit Co. (then Medina Co.) 
 Ohio. June 22, 1824. He was one in a famiU' 
 of six children, born to Clement C. and Almira 
 M. (Ormsby) Dickerman. The names of these 
 children are Gilbert C, dead ; Simeon, Orlando, 
 
856 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Henry, Asenath and Chloe, dead ; Henry mar- 
 ried a Mrs. Renn, of Pennsylvania ; Asenath is 
 the wife of Charles P. Gardner, and lives in 
 Minnesota ; Orlando married Elizabeth Pear- 
 son, sister of our subject's wife, and lives in 
 Medina Co., Ohio. The parents were married 
 in Norton Township, Jan. 11, 1821. Clement 
 C. Dickerman came to Medina Co., Ohio, at the 
 early period of 1816, and his first location was 
 in Norton Township, now in Summit Count}-. 
 Mr. Dickerman was a poor, but hard working 
 citizen. His death occurred March 21, 184-, 
 leaving a widow and family to mourn his loss. 
 His widow is yet living with her son Simeon, 
 at the advanced age of 81 years. Simeon 
 Dickerman passed his early career on the farm 
 assisting his mother in the care of the family, 
 receiving but a limited chance for an education. 
 On the 9th of Octobei", 1850, he was united in 
 marriage with Miss Mary A. Pearson, daughter 
 of Arza and Achsah Pearson, old settlers in 
 York Township, Medina Co., Ohio. After his 
 marriage, Mr. Dickerman still continued to re- 
 side on the old place in Norton Township, until 
 the spring of 1852, when he moved to Akron, 
 and for one year engaged in teaming. The 
 next year he engaged in the grocery business 
 in that city and so continued for about four 
 3'ears. In 1858, he came to his present place 
 and engaged in farming and sheep-raising. He 
 soon discontinued this and engaged in his pres- 
 ent pursuit, in which he has ever since been 
 engaged. Mr. Dickerman owns 300 acres of 
 excellent land, 192 acres of which are in North- 
 ampton, and the balance in Boston Township. 
 To his union with Miss Pearson, there were 
 born the following family : Henry A., born 
 Nov. 23, 1856, died Nov. 16, 1865 ; Lydia A., 
 born Aug. 26, 1863, and Charles E., born Dec. 
 20, 1866, died Sept. 5, 1874. Mrs. Dickerman 
 was born in Rutland Co., Vt., April 18, 1831. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Dickerman are among the best 
 connected families in the township, and are 
 good and hospitable people. Mr. Dickerman 
 is a stanch Republican in politics, and he and 
 wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 EDWIN FOLK, farmer ; P. 0. Cuyahoga 
 Falls ; is a son of John and Mary (Fulwiler) 
 Folk, who were natives of Pennsylvania. John 
 Folk was born in 1796, and Mary his wife was 
 born in 1798. This couple were the parents of 
 ten children — Catharine, Mary, Sally, Jesse, 
 
 Edwin, Hannah, John, Daniel, Polly and David. 
 The three last were born in Ohio. All these 
 children are living. In 1833, this famil}- came 
 to Mahoning Co., Ohio, where he commenced 
 farming and weaving, the latter being a trade 
 he had learned years before. Mrs. Folk died 
 July 20, 1865. Mr. Folk is still living making 
 his home with relatives in Trumbull Co. Ed- 
 win Folk was born in Pennsylvania, Feb. 25, 
 1826. He came with his parents to Ohio in 
 1833, and, in his j'outh, received a common- 
 school education. His people were very poor 
 on their arrival in Ohio, like a good many other 
 pioneer families. An incident in their life is 
 here worthy of mention, and one that shows 
 what people were sometimes compelled to do 
 to keep from starving. At one time they 
 cleared one acre of timher-land for three bushels 
 of shelled corn. When 19 years of age, Edwin, 
 like the rest of his brothers, was given his time, 
 and for a number of years farmed and followed 
 the carpenter's trade. He was married, Aug. 
 26, 1849, to Rebecca J. Hart, daughter of 
 Samuel Hart, and by her had four children — 
 Minnie S., born June 17, 1851, and who is now 
 the wife of Rev. 0. 0. Osboi'n, and resides in 
 Michigan ; Ida J., born Jan. 16, 1855, now the 
 wife of Griffith G. Roberts, farmer, and resides 
 in Northampton ; Charles E., born June 17, 
 1860, died Sept. 29, 1861 ; and Ella M., born 
 May 3, 1 863. Mrs. Folk was born May 1,1 829. 
 Mr. Folk is a hard-working, industrious man. 
 His wife is a member of the Baptist Church, 
 and he is a member of the Lutheran Church. 
 
 MARVIN GIBBS, farmer ; P. 0. Buckeye ; 
 was born in Tuscarawas Co., Ohio, July 13, 
 1832. He is a son of Charles and Isabelle 
 (Steele) Gibbs, who were parents of the follow- 
 ing family : Margaret, James (dead). Mar}- A., 
 Marvin, John S. (dead), Warren (dead), and one 
 that died in infancy unnamed. The father was 
 a native of Virginia, and was born in about 
 1799. He was a farmer, and was I'eared on a 
 farm. He married Isabelle Steele in 1825 ; she 
 was born in 1801. Mr. Gibbs came to Tus- 
 carawas Co., Ohio, in about 1825, and after a 
 residence there of eleven years, came to North- 
 ampton Township, Summit Co., Ohio, and 
 settled on the farm now owned by our subject. 
 At the time of their settlement in Northampton, 
 there was no clearing whatever on their place, 
 and being a man of very little means, Mr. 
 Gibbs was compelled to go in debt for it. He 
 
 t 
 
NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 857 
 
 was a hard workei", and an honest, upright man 
 in his dealings with men ; and, at the time of 
 his death, the place was cleared of all incum- 
 brances. Mr. Gibbs died July 28, 1869. His 
 widow still survives him, and resides with her 
 son, Marvin, on the old homestead. Marvin 
 passed his j'outh and early manhood on the 
 farm. Was married Feb. 19, 1861, to Amanda 
 E. Burgan, and her parents were among the 
 pioneers of Sharon Township, Medina Co., Ohio. 
 To this union there was born one son, Charles 
 N., born in 1865. Mr. Gribbs is a Democrat in 
 politics, and his mother is a member of the M. 
 E. Church. The homestead consists of 85 
 acres of well-improved land. 
 
 HARRINGTON FAMILY. Job Harring- 
 ton was born in Bennington, Vt, March 9, 
 1792. He was a son of Richard Harrington, 
 who was of English descent. During the fall 
 of 1814, Job Harrington and Susan Hartle, who 
 was born in Georgetown, Penu., Jan. 27, 1796, 
 were married. To this union there were born 
 the following : John, born Feb. 2, 1818 ; George, 
 born Aug. 20, 1819 ; Seth W., born June 13, 
 1821 ; James, born Nov. 17, 1823; Clarissa, born 
 June 8, 1827 ; Warren A., born July 18, 1829 ; 
 Alvin. born July 17, 1831 ; William, born July 
 11, 1833 ; Fred L., born Oct. 14, 1835 ; Wallace, 
 born April 27, 1837, and Newton S., born May 
 22, 1840. John married Calista Prior and lives 
 in Iowa ; George married Clarissa Turner, but 
 has since moved to Michigan and died ; Cla- 
 rissa married Alvin A. Wheeler ; Warren has 
 never married ; he went to California in 1853, 
 and has never returned ; Alvin died in child- 
 hood ; William married Chloe Carr ; Wallace 
 married Patty Carter, a sister of Fred L.'s wife ; 
 Newton served in the late war and died from 
 diseases contracted while in his c'ountr3''s serv- 
 ice ; Seth W. married Freelove Jones, daughter 
 of Rees and Jane (Wright) Jones, on the 12th 
 of November, 1846, and by her had the follow- 
 ing family : Ethelbert S., born April 17, 1848, 
 died March 3. 1852 ; Robert W., born Oct. 25, 
 1857 ; J. Athaliah, Oct. 7, 1853 ; Delbert R., 
 born Feb. 7, 1857 ; Grace N., born Nov. 30, 
 1865, and J. May, born April 2, 1868. The 
 mother of these was born in Northampton 
 Township, Sept. 6, 1824. Seth Harrington died 
 Oct. 23, 1 876. He joined the M. E. Church when 
 16 years old, and alwa3's remained in it. He was 
 active in his duties for the advancement of edu- 
 cation and religion. He taught school quite a 
 
 number of terms, and also held various township 
 offices. He left a large circle of friends to mourn 
 his loss. James Harrington married Lydia 
 M. Hawley, daughter of Richard and Esther 
 (Gorman) Hawley, on the 7th of March, 1850. 
 To this union there were born the following : 
 Amoret A., born Dec. 30, 1850, died Feb. 21, 
 1864 ; Ezra J., born Dec. 10, 1854 ; Wilfred J., 
 born May 11, 1858, and Cora M., born Aug. 6, 
 1861. The mother was born Feb. 28, 1832. 
 Mr. Harrington owns 70 acres of land, on which 
 he resides in Northampton. Fred L. Harrington 
 married Mahala Carter, Oct. 10, 1866. She is 
 a daughter of William Carter, a sketch of whom 
 accompanies this work, and was born Oct. 11, 
 1842. This union was blessed with four chil- 
 dren—Charlie E., born Feb. 24. 1869 ; Burt C, 
 born April 19, 1872 ; Frank L., born Dec. 13, 
 1874, and Myron E., born May 22, 1877. This 
 family resides on the old Harrington home- 
 stead, which consists of over 100 acres. Job 
 Harrington, the father and grandfather of the 
 foregoing named individuals, in 1812, started 
 on foot from Bennington, Vt., to Tallmadge 
 Township. Summit Co., Ohio, where he arrived 
 the same year, having traveled all the distance 
 on foot. On his arrival, he purchased a farm 
 for his parents, and the next year, 1813, his 
 parents came there, and, building them a log 
 cabin in the heart of the wilderness, commenced 
 life there. In 1815, Job and his wife purchased 
 and moved on the farm now owned by Fred L., 
 in Northampton, and there remained until their 
 respective deaths. Mrs. Harrington died Nov. 
 9, 1849. Mr. Harrington's second wife was 
 Mary M. Paige, to whom he was married Nov. 
 30, 1851. She is j-et living and resides in Cu}'- 
 ahoga Falls. Mr. Harrington died March 24, 
 1869. He earl}- became identified in the his- 
 tory of Northampton Township, by the active 
 part he took in advancing the best interests of 
 his township and county. B}' his generous dis- 
 position and kind actions toward the Indians, 
 he made life-long friends of them, and they re- 
 garded their white friend as a most good and 
 noble chief The first four years after his 
 arrival in Northampton, Mr. Ilarrington was 
 unable to work, owing to ill-health. His whole 
 life in Ohio was one filled with the stern real- 
 ities of a pioneer's life, in which innumerable 
 hardships presented themselves. B3' the time 
 he had begun to realize the comforts he had 
 secured by his hardships, his life labors ceased, 
 
 
^1 
 
 858 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and he was laid away at rest in the grave ; a 
 rest that he had denied himself in life. Mr. 
 Harrington was regarded as among the best 
 citizens Northampton ever had, and his descend- 
 ants are among the first families in the town- 
 ship. 
 
 JOHN HOVEY, farmer ; P. O. Buckeye. 
 Among the old and time honored residents of 
 Northampton Township, is the subject of this 
 biography. He was born in the District of 
 Montreal, in the Province of Lower Canada, 
 June 1, 1814. He is the son of Abiel and 
 Martha (Hardy) Hove}', who were parents of 
 the following family : Amos, Ira, Aurelia, Mar}-, 
 Abiel, James, John, Martha, Silas and Paulina. 
 Of these, only James. John and Silas are now 
 living. The parents were natives of Massa- 
 chusetts. The}' came to what is now known as 
 Boston Township, Summit Co., Ohio, in 1819. 
 and settled first on the farm now owned by 
 Thomas Woods. After living here and endur- 
 ing the hardships of a pioneer's life two years, 
 Mrs. Hovey died. His widow survived him 
 until 1837, when she too died. John Hovey 
 was reared on a farm, and not having the school 
 advantages in those early days that we of the 
 present have, his education was limited. He 
 was married, June 18, 1835, to Maria Chamber- 
 lain, daughter of Ephraim and Deborah (Schoon- 
 over) Chamberlain, who emigrated to North- 
 ampton Township, Summit Co., Ohio, from New 
 York, in 1820. To this union there were born 
 five children — Nelson A., Simeon E., Aurelia, 
 Harvey T. and Ephraim C. Of these, only the 
 oldest and youngest are living. Nelson mar- 
 ried Mary Howland, and lives in Old Portage. 
 Ephraim married Lovisa Allen, and lives in 
 Northampton Township. Mrs. Hovey was born 
 in September, 1813, and is one in a family of 
 six. Mr. Hovey's wliole life has been passed 
 in farming and lumbering. He now owns a 
 farm of 76 acres of w^ell-im proved land, and is 
 a stanch and unflinching Republican in politics. 
 
 ISRAEL JAMES, Cuyahoga Falls ; was 
 bom in Berkshire Co.. Mass., Mai'ch 13, 1814. 
 He is a son of Moses and Polly (Vining) James 
 who were parents of three children — Israel, 
 Orln and Joseph, all of whom are living. Mrs. 
 James died in 1824, and Mr. James' second 
 wife was Catharine Williams, and by her had 
 one daughter, Lucretia. Mr. James came to 
 Portage Co., Ohio, from Massachusetts in 1818, 
 drivina; overland with an ox team. After a 
 
 journey of six weeks they reached their desti- 
 nation, where Mr. James' parents had pre- 
 ceeded him one year, and where he had pur- 
 chased a tract of land containing 1,000 acres. 
 Here Moses James and family lived for a num- 
 ber of years, undergoing innumerable hardships 
 incident to the pioneer's life. In about 1858, 
 he moved to Geauga Co., Ohio, where he lived 
 until his death, which occurred in his 78th 
 year. Israel James remained at home until he 
 was fifteen years of age. He then appren- 
 ticed himself to learn the blacksmithing trade. 
 In 1832, he came to Cuyahoga Falls and has 
 remained there ever since. For the first fifteen 
 years following his arrival he followed black- 
 smithing, and at the end of that time started a 
 forge, which finally turned into one of the best 
 manufacturing houses in the town. Soon after 
 his starting this enterprise, Mr. James gave 
 $12,000 for the property on which his mill was 
 situated. He then, in connection with two 
 other men. began the building of the 'sJames 
 Block," the largest building in Cuyahoga Falls, 
 init his two partners failed before the work was 
 accomplished, throwing the whole cost on Mr. 
 James. He also built the building in which 
 the Schumway drug store is situated, but the 
 building has since been sold. In his enter- 
 prises, Mr. James has been most unfortunate. 
 In 1866. he built a saw-mill on the site of 
 where the Heath & Thompson mill now stands. 
 In 1869. this mill took fire, and all in it, in- 
 cluding his lath, shingle and latheing machines 
 were burned to the ground. In six weeks time 
 b} the enterprise of Mr. James, a new mill was 
 erected at a cost of about $4,000. In 1871, the 
 mill-dam gave way and was destroyed. This 
 was replaced at a cost of $4,000. Mr. James 
 has done more to build up the town of Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, than perhaps any other man. He 
 and wife are members of the M. E. Church. 
 He first married Hannah T. Steel, Sept. 25, 
 1 835, and by her, there were born two children 
 — Henry and Israel. This wife died Nov. 9, 
 
 1847, and Mr. James, for his second and pres- 
 ent wife married Mary E. Randall, March 11. 
 
 1848. To this union there were born three 
 childi-en — Laurel E., Frank, dead ; and Minnie, 
 who is the wife of E. J. Squire. Mrs. James 
 was born Sept. 15, 1821. 
 
 DAVID Ct. MYERS, farmer and stock-raiser ; 
 P. O. Cuyahoga* Falls, was born m Stark 
 Co., Ohio, Aug. 30, 1819. His parents, George 
 
W\ 
 
 NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 85y 
 
 J. and Anne (Welty) Myers, were both natives 
 of IMaryland. The father was born in 1786, ! 
 and mother in 1788. They came to Stark 
 Co.. Ohio, in 1810, and Mr. Myers, besides 
 iarming, carried on the mercantile business for i 
 a time. He owned th^ first dry goods store in 
 Uniontown. Mr. Myers died Dec. 2, 1853, and 
 Mrs. Myers died March 2G, 1858. They were i 
 the parents of nine children, only four of whom 
 are yet living. David G. Myers was reared 
 principally on the farm. In 1839, he came to 
 Akron, and for ten years was captain of a boat 
 on the Ohio Canal. Sept. 11, 1841, he was 
 united in marriage with Matilda P. Corp, 
 daughter of Elias and Sarah (Pratt) Corp, and 
 b}' her had the following family : Francis A., 
 born Aug. 10, 1842, now the wife of Cyrus 
 Shoemaker ; Adrian, born Mav 9, 1845, died ! 
 March 21, 1847 ; Ellen I., born' Sept. 15, 1847 ; ' 
 Alma L., born April 6, 1850, now the wife of 
 L. N. Foust; George E., born March 1, 1852 ; 
 Mary A., born June 8, 1854, now wife of , 
 Lewis Keck ; Rena Y., born May 26, 1856, now ! 
 wife of J. A. Johnson, and Milton J., born Sept. 
 13, 1858. The mother of these was born April ! 
 27, 1819, in Saratoga Co., N. Y. In 1849, Mr. | 
 Myers retired from canal life and settled upon 
 a farm in Boston Township. He remained there 
 until March. 1857, when he moved to his pres- 
 ent place in Northampton Township, and where i 
 he has ever since resided. During his farming- 
 experience in Northamptctn, Mr. M3'ers has 
 done more, perhaps, to build up the stock in- 
 terest than any other man. He owns 86 acres 
 of land, is Independent in politics, and is a gen- 
 tleman in ever}' respect. 
 
 WILLIAM' NORTON (deceased) ; was a 
 native of York Co., Penn., and was born in 
 June, 1803. His early years were passed on a 
 farm, and during that time he received a good 
 practical education. In 1827, he married 
 Selah Deniston, and in 1829, he and two 
 brothers, with their families, moved to Wayne 
 Co., Ohio Mr. Norton's first location was on 
 a farm two miles south of Wooster, where they 
 resided two years. At the conclusion of that 
 time, they purchased a farm of 80 acres, four 
 miles north of Wooster, whex'e the}- resided four 
 years. At the time of Mr. Norton's settlement 
 in Wayne Co., it was but thinly populated, and 
 the citizens of the township often made his 
 house their place of voting at the regular town- 
 ship elections. In 1835, Mr. Norton moved 
 
 from Wayne Co. to Northampton Township, 
 Summit Co., Ohio, where his widow yet lives. 
 To his union with Miss Deniston there were 
 born nine children — Elizabeth, now the wife of 
 Daniel Darrow ; James, who died when 19 }ears 
 of age ; Mary J., widow of Abner Cannier ; 
 Amanda, widow of Wesley Appleton, and pres- 
 ent wife of Josiah Starr; Charity A., wife of 
 Miles Oviatt ; Rebecca, who died when 14 years 
 old ; William H., married Mary Smith, resides 
 in Northampton ; Josiah. married Mary Hart, 
 and lives in Michigan, and Cyrus L., who is 
 single and lives with his mother on the old 
 homestead, which consists of 70 acres. Mrs. 
 Norton was born in York Co., Penn.. in 1808. 
 During the latter end of Mr. Norton's life, he 
 began suffering from a cancer in the stomach, 
 and after a very long period of uncomplaining 
 sufferings, he died as he had always lived — an 
 upright man and a devoted Christian. The date 
 of his death is July 29, 1866. Mr. Norton was 
 a man of considerable ability and self-reliance. 
 He proved an invaluable assistant in his neigh- 
 borhood, in making shingles for himself and 
 neighbors. In his political views, he was a 
 Whig, until the Republican party was organized, 
 when he became identified with the latter, and, 
 for his honest and fair dealings, held various 
 positions of honor and trust in the gift of that 
 party. In conclusion, it can be said that Mr. 
 Norton was a gentleman in eveiy sense of the 
 word. 
 
 WILLIAM PRIOR, Cuyahoga Falls. There 
 is not a more appropriate biography for the 
 history of Summit Co., Ohio, than is the 
 history of the Prior family, who are so in- 
 timately connected with the early history of 
 Northampton Township ; the earliest records 
 of this family are traced back to Joseph Prior, 
 who was a native of the Highlands of Scot- 
 land. The next, in the order of descent, is 
 Joshua, son of Joseph Prior, who was born in 
 Northern England. Of Joshua Prior, not much 
 is known, nor is the exact date of this lamily's 
 coming to America known. Simeon Prior, son 
 of Joshua Prior, was born in Hampshire Co., 
 Mass., 3Iay 16, 1754. On the 1st day of 
 January, 1781. Simeon Prior and Katharine 
 Wight were united in marriage. The history 
 of the Wight family is of considerable im- 
 portance and interest ; Katharine (Wight) I'rior 
 was a daughter of one of the proprietc^rs of the 
 Isle of Wiaht, after whom the island received 
 
 K 
 
860 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 its name ; in their religious belief, this family 
 was Protestant, and during the church dis- 
 turbances, the property was confiscated by the 
 Catholic Church (jovernment, and the Wights 
 were compelled to flee to the Netherlands for 
 safety ; after the Restoration, the family re- 
 turned to England to reclaim their property ; 
 they were successful in their petitions, but the 
 papers made out that gave them the property 
 were destroyed in the Great London Fire, and 
 the estate was lost. To the union of Simeon 
 Prior and Katharine Wight there were born 
 fifteen children, only one of whom, Gurden, is 
 yet living. At the time of the breaking out of 
 the Revolutionary war, Simeon enlisted in the 
 cause of the colonies and was under the com- 
 mand of Col. Derby ; he participated in the 
 battles of Princeton, Trenton and others, and 
 was one of the men who piloted Gen. Washing- 
 ton across the Delaware River at Trenton. In 
 the year 1802, he and family moved westward ; 
 they started with an ox team and afterward 
 took a boat, landing at the mouth of the Cuya- 
 hoga River, where Cleveland now is situated. 
 At this early time there was not a frame build- 
 ing in the village, and only a few log huts 
 marked the place ; the Priors abandoned their 
 boat at this point, and started toward the 
 interior ; after some indecision, they finally lo- 
 cated on what is now known as Lot No. 15, 
 Northampton Township, Summit Co., Ohio, and 
 to them can be accredited the first settlement 
 in that township. In the family born to 
 Simeon and Katharine Prior, there was one 
 son, William, who was born April 6, 1 783 ; this 
 son was married twice ; first to Sarah Wharton, 
 by whom he had seven children ; his second 
 wife was Polly Culver, by whom he had two 
 children — William and George ; George served 
 in the late war, and was killed in the battle of 
 the Wilderness. William was born in North- 
 ampton Township, April 20, 1825 ; he received 
 a good common-school education in youth, and 
 on the 20th of April, 1847, married Ruth 
 Woodrow. daughter of Henry Woodrow, E-sq., 
 and to this union were born two children — 
 Matilda, who died in infanc}-, and Minnie, who 
 is now the wife of L. E. James. Mrs. Prior 
 was born June 17, 1826. Mr. Prior is a gentle- 
 man who takes quite an interest in the advance- 
 ment of education, and is a teacher of thirty- 
 three terms of successive school teaching. The 
 political complexion of the present generation 
 
 of Priors is Republican, and they are among 
 the best families of Summit Co. 
 
 SAMUELS. PRIOR, farmer; P. 0. Cuya- 
 hoga Falls ; was born in Northampton Town- 
 ship, Summit Co., Ohio, Dec. -4, 1815. He is a 
 son of Elisha and Harriet (Stiles) Prior, and 
 grandson of Simeon and Kathai'ine (Wight) 
 Prior, of whom appropriate mention is made in 
 the biography of William Prior. Samuel Prior 
 is one in a family of seven children : Laura, 
 Delia, Samuel, Amanda, L. R., Benjamin and 
 Harriet. He was reared on the farm, and re- 
 ceived a good common-school education. He 
 has passed his whole life on the homestead of 
 his father, with the exception of five years, 
 from 1835 to 1840, while he was at Cuyahoga 
 Falls, having charge of an oil mill there. Dec. 
 12, 1839, he was united in marriage with Miss 
 Ann Everett, daughter of John Evex-ett, and by 
 her had a family of nine children, as follows : 
 Harriet, born Slarch 4, 1841; Stiles S., born 
 Sept. 16, 1842 ; Clarissa, born Oct. 4., 1843 ; B. 
 H., born June 23, 1845 ; F. S., born Jan. 23, 
 1847 ; Amanda, born April 15, 1851 ; died 
 Sept. 15, 1853 ; Florence A., born May 25, 
 1854; Olive M., born May 1, 1857; and Delia 
 K.. born April 12, 1863. Mr. Prior owns a nice 
 farm near the beautiful city of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 He is a Republican in politics, and is an intelli- 
 gent and enterprising citizen. 
 
 AMOS L. RICE,'^farmer ; P. 0. Cuyahoga 
 Falls. Dr. Lewis Rice was a native of Massa- 
 chusetts, and was born about 1782. He prac- 
 ticed medicine when quite a young man, and 
 during the war of 1812, served in the capacity 
 of Assistant Surgeon. At the close of the war, 
 Dr. Rice began looking for a congenial place in 
 which to practice his profession. The young 
 and popular State of Ohio was, at this time, 
 attracting considerable attention, and this State 
 suiting his fancy. Dr. Rice, in 1814, emigrated 
 westward, and located in what is now known 
 as Stow Township, Summit Co., Ohio. There 
 being no other physician in the whole neighbor- 
 hood, Dr. Rice immediately received a xevy 
 large practice, being quite often called ten and 
 fifteen miles distant. He continued his practice 
 there until 1835, when he moved to Northamp- 
 ton Township, and settled on a farm of 108 
 acres. He did not discontinue his practice on 
 his removal, but still pursued it up to a short 
 time before his death. Di'. Rice was twice mar- 
 ried, his first wife being Lucy Rice, by whom 
 
 TT 
 
 — ® 
 
NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 861 
 
 he had three children — Orlo, Lucy A. and Are- 
 thusa. These children are all living. His 
 second wife was Chloe Pratt, to whom he was 
 married Jan. 5, 1823. To his second marriage 
 there was born one son, Amos L., the subject 
 of this biography. Dr. Rice's second wife died 
 Oct. 28, 1845. After a long life of usefulness, 
 Dr. Rice died March 25, 1861. His journey to 
 Stow Township from Say brook, Conn., in 1814, 
 was a very eventful one, coming with two yoke 
 of oxen ; he was fifty-two days on the road. 
 Amos L. Rice was born in Stow Township, 
 Summit Co., Ohio, July 13, 1824. He received 
 a common-school education, and on the 21st of 
 October, 1856, was united in marriage with 
 Phoebe 0. Jaqua3's, daughter of John and Ag- 
 nes (Osborn) Jaquays, and by her has two 
 children — Chloe A., born July 19, 1863 ; and 
 Lewis P., born June 23, 1874. Besides these 
 two. Mr. and Mrs. Rice have one child by 
 adoption— Martin H., born May 27, 1857. Mrs. 
 Rice was born May 3, 1836. Mr. Rice is one 
 of the prosperous farmers of Northampton 
 Township. He is nicely situated near Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, and he and family are highly re- 
 spected citizens. 
 
 ISAAC SCOTT, farmer ; was born in Mus- 
 kingum Co., Ohio. March 31, 1817. He is a son 
 of Banfield and Lydia (Norris) Scott, who were 
 parents of two children, Isaac and Sarah. 
 The father was a native of the " Ba}- State," 
 while Mrs. Scott was a native of Connecticut. 
 Prior to her marriage with Mr. Scott, Mrs. 
 Scott had married Stephen Lamon3-on, and by 
 him had three children — Charles, Cornelius 
 and Stephen. After the death of Mr. Lamon- 
 3'On, his widow married Mr. Scott, who died 
 during the fall of 1832, in Sharon Township, 
 Medina Co., Ohio. Mrs. Scott's third and last 
 husband was Joseph Dean, and b}' this gentle- 
 man bore one son, James. Our subject, Isaac, 
 at the age of 15 commenced the battle of 
 life on his own responsibility, and from then 
 until he became 22, worked at different 
 employments in Summit and neighboring 
 counties. He was married Dec. 28, 1837, to 
 Fannie Wallace, daughter of Henry and Clar- 
 issa (Strong) Wallace, and to this union were 
 born three children — Henry, born Dec. 28. 
 1840 ; Wallace, born Sept. 15, 1843, and Wal- 
 ter, born Jan. 23, 1852, who died Dec. 9, 1864, 
 of cerebro sjfinal meningitis. Henr}", who mar- 
 ried Miss Ida Bishop, is a farmer and resides 
 
 in Northampton. In 1861, he enlisted in Co. H, 
 29th 0. V. I., Capt. Schoonover, and was dis- 
 charged for ill health in 1862. He re-enlisted 
 the next year in Co. H, 177th 0. V. I., and 
 served until the close of the war. He was 
 First Corporal, but was promoted to Sergeant. 
 Wallace is a farmer, married Mary Best and 
 also resides in Northampton. Mrs. Scott was 
 born in Stow Township, April 14, 1822. Mr. 
 Scott has the most part of his life lived in 
 Northampton. In 1852, he purchased 160 
 acres on lot No. 51, but has since sold 7 acres 
 of it. He started in life a poor boy, with no 
 one to depend upon, but by hard labor and 
 economy, has secured a pleasant home. He is 
 a Democrat in politics, but favors a strong 
 anti-license law, and he and wife have been 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 for almost half a century. Mr. Scott's father 
 was a soldier in the war of 1812, as was also 
 his mother's first husband. Mrs. Scott's grand- 
 father, Theodore Strong, was Captain of a 
 man-of-war, under the command of Admiral 
 Porter. Mr. Scott has been a hard working 
 man, knowing comparatively' little of the ease 
 and comforts of life until later years. He is 
 an excellent farmer and an honorable, upright 
 gentleman. 
 
 WILLIAM VIALL, dairyman and farmer ; 
 P. O. Cu3'ahoga Falls ; son of Burrill Viall who 
 came from Chautauqua Co., N. Y. during the 
 winter of 1831, on a sled to Middlebur}- in what 
 is now known as Summit Co., Ohio. He is of 
 English descent on his father's side, but his 
 mother, Sarah (Ferguson) Viall was of Scotch 
 descent. At the lime of their removal from 
 New York to Ohio, JMr. and Mrs. Viall were 
 the parents of six children, and after their ar- 
 rival, there were born to them six more, mak 
 ing a total of six sons and six daughters. Eleven 
 of these grew to be adults. There are now liv- 
 ing in this family of children only nine. The 
 Vialls were in ver}- poor circumstances at the 
 time of their arrival, and Mr. Viall had to labor 
 early and late to keep his family decently sup- 
 ported. He first settled on the farm now owned 
 by Uriah Horner. In 1850, he and famih' em- 
 igrated to Jackson Co., Iowa, where they lived 
 until the death of their parents. The father's 
 death occurred Dec. 23, 1862, of heart disease. 
 He was buried on Christmas Day, 1862, in 
 Sterling Cemeter}-, Jackson Co., Iowa, aged 69 
 years 8 months and 25 da3-s. His wife never 
 
 Fv 
 
863 
 
 BIOGRAnilCAL SKETCHES: 
 
 survived the shock of her husband's death, and 
 she died Jan. 4, 18G3, aged G2 years G months 
 and 15 tlays, and was also buried in Sterling 
 Cemetery. The father was a Republican in 
 politics, and he and wife were consistent and 
 devoted members of the M. E. Church. The 
 names of the children are Eliza, Burrill, Elzi- 
 na, dead ; Sullivan. John N., William, Mary, 
 Julia, dead ; Adaline, Clark, dead ; Amelia 
 and Lafayette. William, the subject of this 
 biograph}', passed his 3'outh and early man- 
 hood on the farm, receiving a common-school 
 education. He was married Oct. 17, 1849, to 
 Sabina, daughter of James and Mary (Dicker- 
 son) McPherson, and by her had four children 
 — Charles W.. born Aug. 9, 1852, died April 
 24, 1853 ; Martha T., born April 19, 1854, now 
 wife of George W. Hanson, and resides in Me- 
 dina Co., Ohio ; Mary D., born April 4, 1856, 
 and is now the wife of Fred S. Prior, and resides 
 in Northampton, and James F., born April 25, 
 1860. Mrs. Viall was born Oct. 16, 1832, in 
 Utica, N. Y., and Mr. Viall was born Aug. 20, 
 1828, in Chautauqua Co., N. Y. After fifteen 
 years of farming on the prairies of Iowa, our 
 subject returned to Ohio, and for the first year 
 lived on the Lindsey farm, in Stow Township, 
 Summit Co., Ohio. He sold that soon after- 
 ward, and the following year purchased the old 
 " Lewis farm ' in Northampton Township, where 
 he has ever since resided. He now owns 134 
 acres of well-improved land. Is a Republican 
 in politics, and has held the office of Justice of 
 the Peace for twelve years. He and wife are 
 members of the Disciples' Church, and are 
 among the fi;rst citizens of Northampton Town 
 ship. 
 
 ARIEL L. WAITE, farmer and stock-raiser ; 
 P. 0. Everett. Walter Waite, father of Abiel 
 Waite, was a native of Massachusetts, and was 
 born in 1789. Oct. 10, 1811. he married Eliza- 
 beth Blackford, who was born April 18, 1789. 
 In 1811. Mr. and Mrs. Waite started westward 
 overland with one horse and a wagon, and in 
 this wagon was conveyed all of Mr. Waite's 
 possessions, which consisted principally' of the 
 following ; His wife, a skillet, a gun and an 
 ax. They arrived in Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, the 
 same 3'ear they started, and, tlius equipped, 
 commenced life in the wilderness. In about 
 1820, they moved into Richfield Township, Sum- 
 mit Co., Ohio. It was here, April 14, 1829, 
 that the mother of six children, and the wife of 
 
 Walter Waite died. Of the six children, only 
 two are now living — Frederick and Rufus. In 
 October, 1829, Mr. Waite married Mary Hovey, 
 sister of John Hovey, whose biography will be 
 found in another part of this work. To Mr. 
 W^aite's second marriage, there was born the 
 following family : Abiel L., John M., Martha 
 E., Walter S., Mary V., Alfred C. and Lucetta 
 M. Joim and Mary are dead. Abiel was reared 
 on a farm, and received a common-school edu- 
 cation. He was married, Jan. G, 1853, to Mary 
 McLoney, daughter of William and Mary (Ste- 
 phens) McLoncy, and to this union were born 
 seven children — James E.,born Sept. 28, 1853 ; 
 Walter F., born Sept. 29, 1856 ; Mary V., born 
 Aug. 22, 1859 ; Scott, born Dec. 22, 1861, die<l 
 Jan. 7, 1863 ; Ezra Mc, born May 20, 1864 ; 
 Sherman A., born May 30, 1871, and Elnora, 
 born Oct. 1, 1874. Mrs. Waite was born in 
 Northampton, Dec. 29, 1833. Mr. Waite's father 
 died Sept. 2, 1869, and his mother Oct. 29, 1868. 
 In our subject's family, there is one child — 
 Mary V., who is married. Her husband is 
 Eugene Hancock. In about 1829, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Waite, Sr.. came to Northampton Township, and 
 settled on the farm now owned by Abiel L. 
 This place consists of 187 acres, on which our 
 subject has always lived, with the exception of 
 five years in Wisconsin. Mr. Waite is a stanch 
 Republican, and an influential citizen. 
 
 JOSEPH WALLACE, farmer ; P. 0. Buck- 
 eye ; was born on the Holland Purchase, in New 
 York, Dec. 18, 1813. He is a son of Joseph 
 and Ruth (Robinson) Wallace, who were parents 
 of nine children, only the following named being 
 alive : Ruth (Baldwin), Sophronia (Crawford), 
 Sobrina (Butler) and Joseph. Joseph Wallace, 
 Sr., was a native of Vermont, and, in the war 
 of Independence, he was one of the " Green 
 Mountain Boys," under the command of Col. 
 Ethan Allen. He served six years in this 
 war. His death occurred in 1828. His widow 
 survived him until 1840, when she too died. 
 Joseph, Jr., was reared on a farm, receiving a 
 good education. In 1840, he purchased land 
 in Northampton Township, Summit Co., Ohio, 
 whei'e he now lives, and the same year moved 
 to and located on it. He was married, in 1836, 
 to Amanda Wolford, daughter of Peter and 
 Elizabeth (Worthinger) Wolfoi'd, and by her 
 had six children — Alexander ; Mary A., now 
 wife of Henry Butler ; James E., dead ; Lewis 
 B., dead ; Sophronia, now wife of James Smith, 
 
 -r: 
 
5) 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 863 
 
 and Byrou E. Mrs. Wallace was born Feb. 27, 
 1814, at Portage Co., Ohio. Her son, Alexander, 
 served in the late war, in Co. H, 29th 0. V. I., 
 for nine months, and then was discharged for 
 disabilities. In his time, Mr. Wallace has taught 
 eighteen terms of school. He is Independent 
 in his political views, voting in all cases for the 
 man instead of the party. He has held various 
 township offices, among which might be men- 
 tioned Township Treasurer, which office he held 
 eleven years. He and wife are members of the 
 Baptist Church, and they are excellent citizens 
 in every respect. Mr. Wallace owns a fine farm 
 of 210 acres, nicely situated near church, school 
 and railroad. 
 
 WILLIAxM H. WILLIAMSON, farmer and 
 dairyman ; P. 0. Akron ; was born in Orange 
 Co., N. Y., Aug. 7, 1829. He is a son of 
 Palmer and Amy (Horton) Williamson, natives 
 of New York, who were parents of the follow- 
 ing family : Mary F., William H., Bradner, 
 Susan, Jane, Alveretta and Julius 0. Bradner, 
 Jane and Alveretta are dead. The father was 
 a farmer. In 1831, he emigrated Westward, 
 where he had friends, and to better his circum- 
 
 stances. He first located in Tallmadge Town- 
 ship, Summit Co., Ohio, on the Demmick farm, 
 renting that two years. He then purchased the 
 Isaac Gaylord farm. In 1835, he sold that 
 place an€l went to Stow, where he has ever 
 since resided. His wife died Sept. 27, 1879. 
 William H. lived on the old place and worked 
 his father's farm, excepting three years, until 
 he was 31 years of age. He was married Nov. 
 15, 1860, to Mariette, daughter of Benjamin 
 and Hannah (Chapman) Stark, and to this 
 union were born the following family : George 
 B., born Aug. 18, 18G1 ; Amy H., Feb. 20, 
 1863; Emily, born Nov. 13, 1865, and Frank 
 P., born Dec. L 1872, died Oct. 18, 1878. Mrs. 
 Williamson was born in Stow Township June 
 7, 1838. After his marriage, Mr. Williamson 
 farmed in Stow Township eight years and Hud- 
 son Township one year. He then came to 
 Northampton and located on his present place, 
 where he has since remained. He owns a fine 
 farm of 166 acres. Is a stanch Republican in 
 politics, and his wife is a member of the Disci- 
 ples' Church. 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 GEORGE W. BAILEY, farming and dairy- 
 ing ; P. 0. Cuyahoga Falls ; was born Feb. 11, 
 1836, in Stow Township ; he is a son of Warren 
 Bailey, who was born in Middletown, Conn., 
 Sept. 26, 1796 ; the father was a ship-joiner by 
 trade, which business he steadily followed until 
 he came to Ohio. While at Middletown, he 
 married Sail}- Thayer, who was born Sept. 3, 
 1798, the marriage date being Sept. 18, 1821. 
 From this union the following family was the 
 issue, viz.: Mary, born Oct. 16, 1822, died July 
 27, 1847 ; Lamira, born May 14, 1825, died 
 Aug. 2, 1860 ; John C, born Jan. 2, 1828 ; 
 Hannah M., born March 31, 1830, died June 5, 
 1868; George W., born Feb. 11, 1836; and 
 Francis M., born Oct. 16, 1838, died March 11, 
 1868. Being a poor man, Mr. Bailey concluded 
 to come West to Ohio to better his own cir- 
 cumstances and give his children opportuni- 
 ties to build homes for themselves ; in 1832, 
 they came to Stow Township, Summit (then 
 Portage) Co., Ohio, via the ocean to New York ; 
 
 thence to Buffalo by canal ; thence to Cleve- 
 land by Lake Erie ; and thence to Old Portage 
 by canal. For the first few years after his ar- 
 rival, Mr. Bailey worked at his trade in Cleve- 
 land, and also at the carpenter's trade during 
 the fall season at home. He arrived in the fall 
 of 1832, and that winter lived with Nelson 
 Sears, the next spring purchasing his home- 
 stead, and continued to reside there. Mr. 
 Bailey died March 1, 1867, aged 70 years; his 
 death was caused by jumping from a buggy 
 while his horse was running awa}', I'esulting in 
 so serious a fracture of his limb as to necessi- 
 tate its amputation, which operation he did not 
 survive, and died June 2, 1873, aged 75 years. 
 Of this family only two — John C. and George 
 W. — are living ; the former married Mary 
 Cartwright, is a farmer and fruit-grower, and 
 lives in Tennessee. George W. was married 
 March 25, 1867, to Elizabeth Brown, of Her- 
 kimer Co., N. Y., and by her had three children 
 — Millie M., born April 6, 1869, died June 20, 
 
 ^|v 
 
J. 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 1869 ; Bertha E., born Oct. G, 1870, and one 
 that died in infancy. Mrs. Bailey was born in 
 New York July 1, 1843. Mr. Bailey enlisted, 
 Aug. 12, 1862, in Co. C, 115th (3. V. I., and was 
 assigned to the Twentieth Corps ; he was dis- 
 charged July 5, 1865. He is a Democrat in his 
 political views, and is liberal in his religious 
 views. He owns 154 acres of good land, and is 
 a self-reliant, intelligent gentleman. 
 
 JOHN J. BRADLEY, farming and dairying ; 
 P. 0. Kent. Arba Bradley, the father of the 
 subject of this sketch was a native of the State 
 of Connecticut. By trade he was a blacksmith, 
 but he soon changed his vocation to silver- 
 smithing. iVt the time of his marriage, he was 
 foreman in Starr's gun factory in Middletown, 
 but preceding his coming to Ohio a short time, 
 he was proprietor of a brass foundry. His 
 wife was Esther Chamberlain, by whom he had 
 the following famil}- : Elizabeth, C^'rus, Samuel, 
 Jacob, Chloe, Jacob, Arba, John, Robert and 
 Ransom, twins, and Esther. John J. Bradley 
 was born in Middletown, Conn., April 21, 1815. 
 When he was between 14 and 15 j-ears of age, 
 he came with his sister, Mrs. Marvin, to Stow 
 Township, Portage Co. (now Summit Co.), Ohio, 
 where his father had previously purchased a 
 tract of land of 160 acres. He lived with his 
 sister during the fall and winter of 1829, while 
 he was engaged clearing the underbrush and 
 timber off as much of his father's land that he 
 possibly could. In June, 1830, his father came 
 out, and bringing with him a suppl}^ of lemons 
 and Santa Cruz rum, instituted a " logging 
 bee," and with the help (?) of his sour punch 
 and the neighbors, cleared a sufficient place to 
 plant an orchard and erect his log cabin. He 
 then went back to Connecticut, and the same 
 tall returned bringing his family-. They built 
 their house on the place they had cleared, Lot 
 50, and he and wife lived here the rest of their 
 lives, clearing and improving the place with the 
 aid of their children, and taking part in all the 
 pioneer industries of that earl}' day. John J. 
 Bradle}' and Ruth C. Brewster were united in 
 wedlock, Dec. 19, 1839, and their home was 
 ever afterward in Summit Count}'. To this 
 union were born a family of three — Julia Ann, 
 born Nov. 12, 1840, died in infancy ; Samuel, 
 born March 26, 1843, died Oct. 19, 1862, at 
 Camp Dennison from disease contracted while 
 in his country's service. Mary Esther, born 
 Sept. 6, 1847, died Oct. 3, 1847. Mrs. Bradley 
 
 died March 10, 1879, very suddenly from neu- 
 ralgia of the heart. Mr. Bradley's whole life 
 has been passed on his own place. He is a 
 prominent Democrat in politics, having held 
 various positions of honor and trust in that 
 party. He is a man of considerable mechanical 
 ability, and is among the enterprising men of 
 Summit County. 
 
 MRS. FANNY COCHRAN, farming and 
 dairying ; P. 0. Cuyahoga Falls ; was born in 
 Washington Co., Penn., June 15, 1814. She is 
 the daughter of John Bird, and sister of James 
 Bird, who was shot on Lake Erie. When but 
 a child she, together with her parents, moved 
 to Steubenville, Ohio, where she remained until 
 her marriage with Robert Cochran, which took 
 place in 1830. In about 1834, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Cochran came to Stow Township. Summit Co., 
 Ohio, where Mrs. Cochran has lived ever since. 
 This couple were parents of the following 
 family : Joseph (deceased), John, Jane (de- 
 ceased), William, Norman, Robert, Maria, Fan- 
 ny, Elraira (deceased), James and Martha. 
 John married Miss L. Carrier ; William mar- 
 ried Maria Carley ; Norman married Carrie 
 Black, and these three families live in Michi- 
 gan. Robert married Martha Hall, and lives in 
 Tallmadge Township. Maria is the widow of 
 John Fannigan, and resides in Boston Town- 
 ship. Fanny is the wife of H. G. Moon, and is 
 a resident of Stow Township. Jane was the 
 wife of Richard Williams ; James married Ra- 
 chel Best, and is a resident of Northampton 
 Township ; Martha married William B. Gallo- 
 way ; Elmira was the wife of P. Galloway, 
 and Joseph died at the age of 18, being un- 
 married. Mr. and Mrs. Cochran settled on Lot 
 No. 72, in Stow, and, at the time of their set- 
 tlement, it was a dense forest. They cleared 
 land on which they built a log cabin, starting 
 in a truly pioneer manner to build them a 
 home. Mrs. Cochran has been a lady of more 
 than ordinary powers, as the following will 
 show : After working hard and enduring in- 
 numerable privations, Mr. Cochran took the 
 gold fever at the time of the gold excitement 
 in California, and bidding his family adieu, set 
 forth on the long trip to the gold mines. On 
 his arrival there he opened a grocery and ex- 
 change store at a mining town called Placer- 
 ville, and, after remaining here some time, sold 
 out and started for Sacramento for the purpose 
 
 On the 
 
 -^ 
 
_® ^ 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 865 
 
 wa}, he and his companion, bj' the name of 
 Morris, were attacked and murdered by the 
 Indians. Mr. Cochran's remains were recovered 
 and interred at a place then called Haintown, 
 on Doolittle Ranehe. This left Mrs. Cochran 
 with a large family dependent on her for sup- 
 port, and with 80 acres of land that was encum- 
 bered by a mortgage of .f 1,100. By the hard- 
 est labor she has cleared the place of all in- 
 debtedness, and added to.it 20 acres more, 
 making in all now 100 acres. In 1872, her two 
 sons, Norman and Robert, enlisted in the cause 
 of their country's defense, the former being 
 in Company D., 29th O. V. I., and the latter 
 in the 115th 0. V. I. Norman was in quite 
 a number of engagements and was twice 
 wounded ; owing to ill health he was trans- 
 ferred to the Commissar^' Department. Mrs. 
 Cochran lives alone with hired help on the old 
 place, living the life of an humble Christian. 
 M. D. CALL, farming and dairying ; P. 0. 
 Hudson ; is eldest in the following family born 
 to Jerry and Lavina (Danforth) Call : Moses 
 D., William D., Jerry C. and Hanson 0. Mr. 
 Call's grandfather, Moses Call, was a native of 
 England, and on his coming to the United 
 States, fii'st settled in Massachusetts. From 
 this State the}' moved to Merrimac Co., N. H., 
 where the parents of our subject were married. 
 Mr. Call, the father of Moses D., owned a farm, 
 and on this farm Moses lived until 1838, when 
 he left home and went to Boston, where he en- 
 gaged in the bakery business. After remain- 
 ing three years in Boston, he disposed of his 
 property there and started for Peoria, III, but 
 on the way stopped and visited friends in Sum- 
 mit Co., Ohio. While here he was taken ill, 
 and when he recovered, instead of continuing 
 on to Illinois, as was his intention, he decided 
 to remain in Ohio. For four 3'ears after his 
 arrival, Mr. Call carried on the cooper's trade 
 in summers and taught school during winters. 
 In November, 1842, he married Hai-riet ^L Starr, 
 daughter of the old pioneer, Josiah Starr, who 
 came to Stow Township in 1804. In 1859, Mr. 
 Call obtained possession of his present place, 
 where he has ever since resided. To his union 
 with Miss Starr there were born four children — 
 Mary, Emma A., Ellen J. and Charles A. Mary 
 married G. H. O'Brien, who is engaged in the 
 agricultural business in Akron. Emma is the 
 wife of E. A. Seasons. Ellen is the wife of La- 
 fayette Darrow, and Charles A. niarried Olive 
 
 A. Prior, the daughter of S. S. Prior, whose 
 family history accompanies this work. Mr. 
 Call was born Jul}' 12, 1815, and his career 
 through life is one of honor and uprightness. 
 He is a stanch Republican in politics, and has 
 held the office of Justice of the Peace in Stow 
 Township for thirty-four years, besides holding 
 various other township offices. During the fall 
 of 1877, he was elected County Commissioner, 
 and re-elected during the fall of 1880. He 
 owns a fine farm of 188 acres on Lots 77 and 
 67. His wife was born in Stow Township on the 
 farm now owned by Mr. Call, Sept. 25, 1818. 
 
 VOLNEY CHAMBERLAIN, farmer ; P. 0. 
 Kent ; was born in Oswego Co., N. Y., in De- 
 cember, 1804. He is descended from English 
 ancestors, whose family history entitles them to 
 an old and honorable name. He is a son of 
 Ebenezer and Susanna (Jones) Chamberlain, 
 who were natives of Middletown, Conn. These 
 parents, at a very early day, emigrated from 
 Middletown to Redfield, Hei-kimer Co. (now 
 Oswego Co.). N. Y., the latter part of their 
 journey being through a dense forest by 
 " blazed " trees. Volney remained with his 
 parents in New York until he was 6 years old, 
 and then with his parents moved back to Mid- 
 dletown, where they resided until 1814 ; again 
 removing to New York, where the father died 
 in 1829, and the mother in 1864. The subject 
 of this sketch is one in a family of thirteen 
 children, eleven of whom lived to become 
 almost men and women. He was married, Jan. 
 18, 1832, to Mary, daughter of Willet Ranney, 
 and from this union were born the following 
 family : Orville L., Marian Gr., Leora E., James 
 W., (jharles L. and Edgar V. Orville married 
 Maria Grogan, and lives in Shreveport, La. 
 Leora married John Deuble. James married 
 Emma Fay (is a machinist and lives in Akron); 
 Charles married Loretta Woodward, and lives 
 in Minnesota ; Edgar married Mary Bradley, 
 and lives at home, as does Marian, who is un- 
 married. In 1853. the subject of these lines 
 left New York, and came directly to his pres- 
 ent farm in Stow Township, which consists of 
 94^ acres situated on Lots 39 and 40. Mr. 
 Chamberlain is a Republican in politics, and 
 has served the various townships in which he 
 has lived in almost their every office. Mr. 
 Chamberlain is a well-informed, genial, intelli- 
 gent gentleman, and he and family command 
 the respect of a large circle of friends. 
 
 -^ 
 
^ 
 
 866 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 "CLIFF HOUSE," C. E. KIDNEY, Pro- 
 prietor, Stow Corners. One of the most beau- 
 tiful resorts for pleasure parties and private 
 individuals, is situated near the famous glens 
 and eaves on the Cuyahoga River, in Stow 
 Township. During the fall of 1880, Mr. Kid- 
 ne}' purehased the " Clifl' House" of Gen. Gross, 
 and since that time has been remodelling and 
 changing the appearance of the property, until 
 it is now recognized as one of the leading re- 
 sorts for pleasure seekers. This property' con- 
 sists of 10 acres, through which a beautiful 
 gorge extends, and within this gorge are glens, 
 caves and grottoes, while half a mile distant is 
 the beautiful Silver Lake. Cuyahoga Falls is 
 near the '■ Clifl" House," but yet far enough 
 distant to relieve the pleasure- seeker of the 
 continual turmoil and bustle of the city. 
 Around the hotel, Mr. K. is laying out walks, 
 drives, croquet grounds, swings, dancing halls, 
 and in tact has everything beautiful that will 
 make the " Cliff House" a continuation of what 
 it has been since coming into Mr. Kidney's 
 hands, — a grand success. Mr. Kidne^^ was 
 formerly a resident of Akron. He is a painter 
 by trade, but owing to ill health he has retired 
 from that business and engaged in his present 
 occupation. 
 
 HARVEY DAVIS, farmer and fruit-grower ; 
 P. 0. Hudson ; was born in Genesee Co., N. Y., 
 in 18L3. His parents, Nathaniel and Electa 
 (Palmer) Davis, were natives of Middletown, 
 Conn., and from their native village they went 
 to New York, in 1807. From New York they 
 came to Summit Co., Ohio, in 1818, where the}' 
 remained for a short time. F'rora this point 
 they went to Copley Township, buying 320 
 acres of woodland, on which they soon erected a 
 comfortable log cabin, and they then commenced 
 clearing and improving the place. Here Mr. 
 and Mrs. Davis brought up a family of nine 
 children, of whom only our subject and two 
 others are living. Mr. and Mrs. Davis alwa3S 
 made this place their home, from the time of 
 their arrival there to their deaths. Harvey was 
 raised and educated in Copley Township. He 
 began in life with nothing but a strong consti- 
 tution and willing hands. He was married, in 
 1842, to Clarissa Bos worth, and by her had a 
 family of six — Francis, Nathaniel (deceased). 
 May and Fay. Francis was a soldief in the 
 war of secession, and was a member of Com- 
 pany G., 115th Regiment, 0. V. I. Since the 
 
 war, he married Hattie Nighman, and lives in 
 Mt. Vernon, Ohio. Warner married Annie 
 Grubb, and lives in Stow Township. In 1855, 
 Mr. and Mrs. Davis went to Tennessee, and 
 farmed there until 1859, when they came back 
 to Ohio. After living one year in Copley Town- 
 ship, they came to their present place, which 
 consists of -to acres on lot 68, in Stow Town- 
 ship. Mr. Davis deals quite extensively in fruit, 
 and he has one of the finest vineyards in the 
 county. Mrs. Davis is a member of the Church 
 of Christ. Mr. Davis is an intelligent and en- 
 terprising citizen. 
 
 W. H. FERRY, farmer; P. 0. Kent; was 
 born in Belcher, Mass., Aug. 20, 1823. He 
 is one in a family of eleven children born to 
 Aaron and Elizabeth (Gilbert) Ferry. x\aron 
 Feriey was twice married, his second wife be- 
 ing Mary Person, by whom he had two children. 
 In 1833, this family came from Massachusetts 
 to Ohio, making their home near the northwest 
 corner of Franklin township. Portage County. 
 B}' trade, Mr. Ferry was a brick-maker, a busi- 
 ness he followed to a considerable extent in 
 connection with farming. When a \^oung man, 
 he was swindled out of almost all his property 
 by a land speculator, and on his arrival in Ohio 
 only had about $400. When the subject of 
 this sketch was about 4 ^-ears old, he was taken 
 sick and by injudicious doctoring, was made a 
 cripple for life. When his father married the 
 second time, he started out in life for himself 
 He commenced by working b}' the month for 
 those who would have him in his crippled con- 
 dition. Through all his hardships in seeking a 
 home, Mr. Ferry displayed great determina- 
 tion and energy. Where many others would 
 have given up in despair, he still continued the 
 struggle, saving all his hard-earned pennies in 
 the hope he might secure enough in time with 
 which to commence a home. At one time he 
 was on board a steamboat on Lake Erie, and 
 during a terrific storm the boat was wrecked, 
 but Mr. Ferry, with the rest of the passengers, 
 were rescued by the timely arrival of a steam 
 tug, "The Arrow." Mr. Ferry, however, lost 
 all his property on the boat. Sept. 5, 1855, he 
 was united in marriage with Miss B. R. A. 
 Loomis, daughter of II. A. Loomis, of Portage 
 County, and to this union were born the follow- 
 ing family: Laura E., born July 16, 1857; 
 Mary H, born Sept. 5, 1861 ; Phebe P., born 
 March 7, 1865. and Hannah N. A., born Aug. 
 
 
4 
 
 1^ 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 867 
 
 18, 1868. Mrs. Ferry was born April 18, 1832, 
 and died Feb. 25, 1877. Mr. Ferry came to 
 his present place in 1859, where he has ever 
 since remained. He run in debt $2,700 for his 
 place, and for the first four years did not make 
 enough to pay the interest on the debt, besides 
 his actual household expenses. The farm con- 
 sists of 80 acres, and in 1863 Mr. Ferrj' tried 
 to find a purchaser for the place for the same 
 amount he gave for it, but without success. 
 He then determined to keep and pa}^ for it 
 himself or break up altogether. By the hardest 
 of labor, and with close econom}-, he in time 
 began to improve his land and gradually pa^' 
 off the debt. At present he is entirel}' out of 
 debt, and with one of the finest farms in Stow 
 Township. This he has acquired by his own 
 exertions, working most of the time at a disad- 
 vantage. Mr. Ferrj', however, has a stout 
 heart, and now after he has accomplished his 
 object, can look back and be merry over his 
 hard life in the past. 
 
 F. M. GREEN, Kent. F. M. Green and wife 
 represent two of the old and time-honored set- 
 tlers of Summit Co., Ohio. Mr. Green was 
 born Sept. 28, 1836. He is one of two chil- 
 dren born to Philander and Tarissa (Root) 
 Green. His brother, Albert W., lives in Alli- 
 ance, and is mail agent of the Pittsburgh, Fort 
 Wayne & Chicago Railroad. Philander Green 
 was born in Mahoning Co., Ohio, in 1811. He 
 is a son of Samuel and Lucy (Baily) Green, and 
 grandson of Samuel Green, who was a near 
 relative of Gen. Nathaniel Green, of Revolu- 
 tionary war fame. In about 1817, Philander, 
 with his parents, came to Coventry Township, 
 removing thence to Bath Township, and from 
 there to Norton Township, in about 1818. 
 Philanders father was twice married, the first 
 time to Tarissa Root on Nov. 15, 1835. This 
 lady died Jan. 8, 1839. He afterward mar- 
 ried his second and present wife, Lestina 
 Briggs. Mr. Green early became identified 
 with the Church of Christ, and, in 1842, com- 
 menced exhorting and preaching the doctrine 
 advocated by that church. March 11, 1862, 
 his son Frances married Ellen E. Stow, whose 
 father. Albert C. Stow, was born in Stow Town- 
 ship, at Monroe Falls, July 5, 1810. He was a 
 son of Capt. William Stow and Margaret Gay- 
 lord, who were natives of Middletown, Conn., 
 the father being a sea captain. The Stows are 
 of English descent, and they trace the family 
 
 lineage back to a lordship, and an old and hon- 
 ored family. Early in 1809, Mr. Stows father 
 changed from " a life on the ocean wave " to 
 one on " terra firma," and having previously 
 purchased land of Judge Stow, the proprietor 
 of Stow Township, who was a relative, he and 
 his famil}' started overland with ox teams, and, 
 after a long and eventful journey, arrived at 
 their possessions — 300 acres — at Monroe Falls. 
 William Stow, in 1812. built a boat for the pur- 
 pose of assisting the Government during the 
 war of 1812, and this boat was the first one 
 that sailed out of Cleveland. At the close of 
 the war, Mr. Stow returned to his family at 
 Monroe Falls, and recommenced life in the 
 wilderness. Albert C. Stow was married, Nov. 
 22, 1835, in Jackson, Mich., to x\lmira Barrett, 
 and by her had two daughters — Ellen E. and 
 Emma A. As stated above, the former mar- 
 ried F. M. Green. Mr. Stow resides on a good 
 farm of 83 acres, while opposite to him lives 
 his daughter and son-in-law, who, with their 
 family, cheer and comfort Mr. and Mrs. Stow 
 and Mr. and Mrs. Green in their old age. To 
 the union of Mi*. Green and Miss Stow there 
 were born six children, viz.. Lurie A., Fannie 
 M., Mary T. (deceased), Frank A., Daisy A., and 
 one that died in infancy'. Both families, the 
 Greens and Stows, are active workers of the 
 Church of Christ, and thev are Republicans in 
 politics. F. M. Green became a member of 
 that church Sept. 9, 1852. He preached his 
 first regular sermon Sept. 13, 1863. He has 
 held various positions in the church. His 
 present employment is Corresponding Secretary 
 of the General Church Missionarj' Society of 
 the Christian Church denomination. 
 
 H. B. GAYLORD ; P. 0. Cuyahoga Falls ; 
 was born in Stow Township March 15, 1818. 
 He is a son of Thomas and Betsey (Butler) 
 Gaylord, and grandson of Jonathan and Patty 
 Gaylord, who were natives of Middletown, 
 Conn. In 1809, Jonathan Gaylord and famil}- 
 started to Middletown with ox teams, and, trav- 
 eling overland through the unbroken forests of 
 the West, arrived in the same year in what is 
 now known as Stow Township, Summit Co., 
 Ohio. Seeing in the surrounding country that 
 which would eventually be valuable land, he 
 located on Lots 15 and 16, and this property 
 has ever since remained in the Ga3dord famil}'. 
 At the time of his settlement, there was not a 
 particle of clearing on the lots he had selected. 
 
 
868 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 After clearing a place large enough, Mr. Ga^^- 
 lord erected a rude log cabin, and in this man- 
 ner lived through the early history of Stow 
 Township, becoming more or less identified 
 with its rise and progress. At the time of his 
 death his property was divided among his three 
 sons — Jonathan, William and Thomas. The 
 latter being 5'oungest, received the home place. 
 To Thomas Gaylord and Betsey Butler's union 
 there were born the following family : Sylvanus, 
 Henry B., Charlotte, Lewis, Elizabeth, and two 
 that died in infancy. Sylvanus, Lewis and the 
 mother are dead ; and Mr. Gaylord's second wife 
 was Isabell Speers, b}^ whom he had two daugh- 
 ters — Jane and Polly. The parents are now 
 both dead. Henry B. Gay lord was reared on 
 the home farm, receiving a common-school edu- 
 cation. His wife is Elizabeth, daughter of 
 Jeremiah Banning, of Goshen, Lid. 5lr. Gay- 
 lord is a Republican in politics, and owns a fine 
 farm of 112|^ acres of excellent farming and 
 grazing land. In their religious belief the 
 family were of the Old School Presbyterian 
 stock. As citizens they were quiet and unob- 
 trusive. 
 
 A. L. GILBERT, farmer; P. 0. Cuyahoga 
 Falls ; was born July 29, 1809. Is a son of 
 Orin and Mary (Barber) Gilbert, who were na- 
 tives of Litchfield Co., Conn. The father was a 
 farmer after moving to Ohio, but formerl}' car- 
 ried on the shoemaking and tanning trade. In 
 the ftiU of 1828, he came to Stow Township, 
 Summit Co., having exchanged GO acres of land 
 there for over 200 acres in Stow Township. 
 He settled on Lots 31, 32 and 41, which are now 
 owned by his two sons. Mr. Gilbert was an in- 
 fluential and enterprising citizen, taking an 
 active part in all the improvements and enter- 
 prises of his neighborhood, either morally or 
 intellectuall}'. He did as much as, if not more, 
 for the erection of the Episcopal Church at 
 Cu3ahoga Falls, of which he was a member, 
 than any other one man. He died Jul}' 13, 
 1846, and his wife March 13, 1874. They were 
 parents of the following family : Lemiry, Lewis, 
 Mary, Henry, Harriet, Wallace, Maria, Edwin, 
 Lyman and Louisa, and one that died in in- 
 fanc}'. A. L. Gilbert has been twice married. 
 His first wife was Almira Gaylord, by whom he 
 had two children — Mary and Emily, both of 
 whom are dead. His second and present wife 
 was Mary Tuttle, by whom he had six children 
 — Sarah, Lydia (dead), Orin, Albert, Frederick 
 
 and Arthur. Mr. Gilbert owns 180 acres of ex- 
 cellent land, and he and wife are members of 
 the Episcopal Church. Is a Republican in 
 
 I politics, and an honest and influential citizen. 
 GEORGE W. HART. Col. John C. Hart, 
 
 I the father of the subject of this sketch, was 
 born in Cornwall, Litchfield Co., Conn., April 
 
 I 17, 1798. He was a son of Rufus Hart, who 
 
 j was born in Goshen, Conn., in 1771, and Esther 
 Cotter to whom he was married in 1795. In 
 1802, Rufus Hart and family moved from Con- 
 necticut to Genesee Co., N. Y., when he again 
 moved to Ohio. In the war of 1812, Mr. Hart 
 served in the capacity of Lieutenant in a com- 
 pany commanded b}' Capt. Mallison. He was 
 an active participant in the battles of Chippewa, 
 Lundy's Lane and at the burning of Buffalo. 
 When between 14 and 15 years of age, John 
 C. Hart enlisted in a cavalry company com- 
 pany commanded by Capt. Stone, and was with 
 his father at Newark, Ft. George and other con- 
 tested points. On their evacuation of Ft. 
 George, they suffered incredible hai'dships, 
 their tents and clothing being such as were 
 brought from their homes. Here 3'oung Hart 
 learned a lesson of enduring hardships that he 
 retained through after life. After the close of 
 the war, he and his father returned to Genesee 
 Co., where they remained but a short time, and 
 in May, 1815, the}- removed to Ohio, locating 
 at Middlebury, now the Sixth Ward of Akron. 
 There were then but three or four log cabins 
 in what is now that city, and the surrounding 
 country was an almost unbroken forest. When 
 21 years of age, John C. left home for the 
 South in search of employment. He traveled 
 on foot to Steubenville, where he got on board 
 a lumber raft and floated down the Ohio River 
 until the raft lodged on an island, he then made 
 his way on foot to Cincinnati. From this 
 point he went to St. Louis, where he engaged 
 to work in a mill for a man living near the city. 
 After about two months at this business, he 
 left and went to a small town called Milton, 
 where he engaged in the manufacture of brick, 
 but was soon after taken ill with fever and ague, 
 and the following June returned home. He 
 then purchased 50 acres of land just south of 
 Middlebur}-, on which he soon erected a house 
 and barn. Feb. 24, 1831, he was united in 
 marriage with Mrs. Margaret A. Sterling, and 
 to this union were born George W., John S., 
 Charles S., Hiram J., Elizabeth and Fanny A. 
 
>L^ 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 869 
 
 All of these are living except Hiram and Eliza- 
 beth. Hiram served his countr}' faithfully in 
 the war of secession, and died from diseases 
 contracted while in the service. The father, 
 John C, was naturally of a military turn of 
 mind, which only required opportunity for de- 
 velopment. When advanced in life, he raised 
 a regiment of cavalry of which he was elected 
 Colonel. Mr. Hart died Aug. 20, 1880. Of 
 his children that are yet living, John S. married 
 Zilpha Tinker, of Peoria, 111., but that lady has 
 since died. Chas. S. married Mrs. Molly Ferney, 
 and lives in Middlebury. Fanny is the wife of 
 Clinton Ruggles, and resides in Aliron. George 
 W. was born in Middlebury, July 12, 1832, 
 and in youth received the advantages of the 
 common schools of his native village. He was 
 married Aug. 18, 1853, to Miss AnnaH. Beards- 
 ley, daughter of Talmon and Temperance (Spi- 
 cer) Beardsle}'. Talmon Beardsley was born 
 in Delhi, Delaware Co., N. Y., Dec. 15, 1799. 
 He removed with his fathers famil}' to Licking 
 Co., Ohio, in 1810, and from there came to Mid- 
 dlebury- in 1818. He has since purchased and 
 sold a farm in Springfield Township, and also 
 a farm in Coventry Township, at the latter 
 place living about thirty years. In 1831, he 
 married Temperance Spicer, daughter of Maj. 
 Miner Spicer, who was one of Middlebury's 
 earliest pioneers. To this union were born 
 seven children, of whom the living ones are 
 Mills H., Avery S., Anna H., Hattie D. and 
 Louisa J. Mills married Prudence Spicer, and 
 is a resident of Ogden Junction, Utah. Avery 
 married Amanda Hart, and lives in xlkron. 
 Hattie is the wife of dates Babcock, and they 
 are residents of Akron. Louisa married George 
 Stover, and lives in Stark Co., Ohio. The two 
 deceased are Emily A. and Avery T. The chil- 
 dren of George W. Hart, the subject of this 
 sketch, and his wife, are Freddie, born July 1, 
 1855, died Sept. 26, 1855 ; Lizzie, born April 
 22, 1857, died April 29, 1862 ; Emily F., born 
 Jan. 13, 1859 ; Georgie Anna, born Dec. 
 ■1, 1861, died Dec. 28, 1873; Clarissie A., 
 born July 25, 1865, and Maggie, born Ma}- 5, 
 1871, died Aug. 16, 1871. Mrs. Hart was born 
 in Middlebury, July 18, 1832. The death of 
 Georgie Anna was accidental, caused by the 
 kick of a horse. She was driving a team of 
 horses for her father while he was loading the 
 sled with corn. In some way she slipped from 
 the load, and fell beneath one of the horses feet. 
 
 The animal became frightened and commenced 
 to kick, one foot striking her face disfig- 
 uring it frightfully, one of the corks pene- 
 trating the skull. She was sensible when taken 
 up and continued so until the next Sunday, 
 when life became extinct, and the spirit of 
 Georgie Hart forsook its cla}- tenement and 
 returned to God who gave it. She was a bright, 
 winsome child, the pride of her friends and 
 pla3'mates. Of an active and cheerful disposi- 
 tion, she was always willing and ready to assist 
 in whatever was required of her. Her faith 
 was firmly fixed in God. After the accident, 
 she asked her mother if she thought she would 
 die ; she was told that they did not know, but 
 were fearful she would. She answered that 
 she was willing, and seemed not to fear death 
 to the last. Her untimely fate was a sad blow 
 to her parents, and the deplorable accident 
 cast a gloom over the entire community. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Hart have been singularly unfort- 
 unate. Of a family of six children, onl}- two 
 are now living. Ever since their marriage, 
 they have lived on their place in Stow Town- 
 ship. The farm consists of 150 acres of well- 
 improved land. Mr. Hart is a stanch Repub- 
 lican in politics, and he and wife are members 
 of the J^piscopal Church. There is no family 
 better known, or more highly esteemed than 
 that of George W. Hart. 
 
 SIMPSON HIBBARD, farming and dairy- 
 ing ; P. 0. Hudson ; among the early settlers of 
 Stow Township were William and Catharine 
 (Sadler) Hibbard, who were natives of Ireland. 
 Mr. Hibbard was a poor boy, and, often hearing 
 of the beauties of America from friends who 
 had come here previoush^-, he determined to 
 brave the perils of a long voyage and cast his 
 lot among the pioneers of Ohio ; in 1833, he 
 left his native countr}', and, after a long voyage, 
 arrived in the United States in safety ; he came 
 directly to Stow Township, Summit Co., Ohio, 
 and subsequent!}- married the mother of our 
 subject — Catharine Sadler, who bore to him the 
 following famil}' : Simpson, Eliza J. and Mary 
 E. Eliza married S. P. Donaldson, and lives 
 in Geauga Co., and Mary lives in Peninsula. 
 Mr. Hibbard first began life by farming on 40 
 acres, which he had purchased on his arrival 
 in Stow ; by hard lal)or and econom}- this has 
 been so increased as to make one of the finest 
 farms in Stow Township. Mr. Hibbard's wife 
 is dead, but he is yel living with his son, at 
 
 
870 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 the advanced age of 75 years. Simpson was 
 born in Stow Township, June 5, 1844 ; he was 
 reared on the farm, assisting his father in 
 clearing and improving the place ; he was 
 married May 18, 1864, to Sarah J., daughter of 
 John Senter, and b}' her had a family of fixe 
 children, as follows : Pkldie A., Fred, John S., 
 Garret F. and Rollon. Mr. Hibbard owns a 
 farm of 200 acres, which has about 1,000 rods 
 of tileing on it ; he is Democratic in his politi- 
 cal views, and is a quiet, unassuming gentle- 
 man, having the friendship and good will of a 
 large cii'cle of acquaintance. 
 
 W. L. HANDFORD ; Cu3'ahoga Falls ; was 
 born in Otsego Co., N. Y., April 13, 1811 ; 
 he is a son of Uriah and Rhoda (Boalt) Han- 
 ford, and grandson of Charles Hanford, of 
 Norwalk, Conn. Our subject's father was a 
 sea- faring man, and his son remained at home 
 during his father's voyages ; in his youthful days 
 he learned the hatter's trade ; in 1826, he came 
 to Ohio, and his home ever since has been in 
 Summit Co. In 1844, he married Mary San- 
 ford, daughter of Frederick and Clarissa (Par- 
 melee) Sanford. who came from Litchfield, 
 Conn., to Ohio, in 1834. During 1837, the 
 cyclone, that passed through Stow Township, 
 struck Mr. Sanford's house, completely demol- 
 ishing it, killing Mr. Sanford and his aged 
 father and two sons. Mrs. Sanford and the 
 present Mrs. Hanford were the onh' ones saved 
 of the family. Mr. and Mrs. Hanford have had 
 born to them one child that died in infancy. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hanford are members of the Epis- 
 copal Church ; they own a farm of 100 acres, on 
 which they are pleasantly located. 
 
 GEORGE NORTH, farmer ; P. O. Cuyahoga 
 Falls ; was born in Middletown Conn., Dec. 6, 
 1819. He is a son of Selah and Anna (Newell) 
 North, and grandson of Simeon North, who 
 was the inventor of the breech-loading carbine. 
 Simeon North was a man of more than ordi- 
 nar}' ability, and as a master mechanic was 
 known far and near. About the time of the 
 breaking-out of the war of 1812, the Secretary 
 of War came to Mr. North and made the prop- 
 osition, that if Mr. North would build a fac- 
 tory for the manufacture of guns for the United 
 States x\rmy, he would give him $52,000. This 
 proposition was accepted. Mr. North erected 
 a large brick factory (which is yet standing) in 
 Middletown, and employed a large force of 
 men in the manufacture of his improved car- 
 
 bine. Mr. North remained in the employ of 
 the Government fiftv-two ^-ears. Our subject's 
 father learned the gunsmith's trade in his 
 father's factory. To his union with Anna 
 Newell there were born the following family : 
 Nancy, Julia. Egbert, (reorge, John, Philly, 
 Charles. Sarah and Newell. The mother of 
 these died in Connecticut, and Mr. North then 
 married Sarah Duran, a widow lady, and by 
 her had six children — Charlotte, Ellen, Bessie, 
 Selah (dead), Selah and one that died in in- 
 fancy. In 1834, Mr. North and family came to 
 Stow Township, Summit Co., Ohio, and first 
 located on Lot 8. After living here a number 
 of years, they sold out and moved near Monroe 
 Falls. Mr. North had just built a house there, 
 when one day during a heavy thunder shower 
 the house was struck by lightning and Mr. 
 North was killed. The date of his death is 
 Aug. 13, 1850. He was a member of the M. 
 E. Church and an excellent citizen. In 1841, 
 George North went back to Middletown. trav- 
 eling the entire distance on horseback. For 
 the first few years he farmed there, and then 
 bought a large flouring-mill which he ran three 
 years, doing an extensive business. He was 
 married March 10, 1847, to Catharine Wright, 
 daughter of Daniel and Patience Wright, of 
 North Stonington, Conn. To this union there 
 were born four children — Charlotte, Wallace 
 N., Linus and George. Charlotte is the wife 
 of Benjamin Brown, and lives in Michigan ; 
 Wallace and Linus are dead ; (reorge is single 
 and lives with his parents on the home farm in 
 Stow. Mr. North returned to Stow in 1853. 
 He now owns a fine farm of 100 acres on which 
 he resides, besides two lots and a house in 
 Cuyahoga Falls. Mrs. North was born in 
 Rhode Island June 27. 1820, but moved to 
 Connecticut when 9 weeks old. 
 
 HIRAM REED, farming and dairying ; P. O. 
 Hudson ; was born in Columbiana Co., Ohio, 
 Jan. 13, 1825 ; he is one in a family of twelve 
 children born to John and Rebecca Reed. Mr. 
 Reed's father was b}- trade a weaver, but he dis- 
 continued weaving when Hiram was 6 years 
 old, and moved to Portage Co., where he went 
 to farming. At the age of 1 8, Hiram appren- 
 ticed himself to a boss carpenter to learn the 
 trade ; after three years' servitude, he com- 
 menced plying his trade in his neighborhood, 
 continuing for a number of 3-ears. In October, 
 1851, he was united in marriage with Phebe 
 
 Vl 
 
b^ 
 
 STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 871 
 
 Sadler, daughter of Arthur Sadler, and the 
 three succeeding years he and his wife lived 
 with her father. At the time of Mr. Reed's 
 marriage, his total possessions was only $10, 
 but for three years he worked at his trade 
 faithfully until he had acquired some capital 
 with which to commence housekeeping ; his 
 father-in-law then gave to Phebe 20 acres of 
 land, which was increased to 83 acres in 1861, by 
 Mr. Reed ; in 18GG, he sold all his possessions 
 at this place, and purchased the original Fred- 
 erick Wolcott farm of 127 acres, at Monroe 
 Falls ; after three 3^ears, he purchased 63 acres 
 more adjoining him, and, in 1871, sold out and 
 went to Hudson ; he purchased a farm at the 
 latter place, but, after two years, sold out and 
 moved where he now resides ; he now owns a 
 farm of 300 acres, delightfully located, half of 
 which lies in Hudson and half in Stow Township ; 
 during the year 1880, this farm yielded 1,762 
 bushels of wheat from 63 acres of land. Not 
 being content with farming alone, Mr. Reed 
 erected a cheese factor}' in 1877, in which he 
 manufactured the American cheese ; in 1878. 
 altandoning that, and in its stead manufactured 
 Swiss cheese. In this last venture, Mr. Reed 
 has been reasonabl}' successful ; during the 
 season of 1880, this factor}' turned out over 
 fifty-three and two-fiftlis tons of an excellent 
 qualit}- of Swiss cheese. By his judicious 
 management and honorable dealings, Mr. Reed 
 has proven to be one of the best business men 
 in Stow Township : he has also proven that in 
 order to be successful one must not necessarily 
 be born wealthy. His wife bore him the follow- 
 ing family : Angeline, Elizabeth. H.. Kilen, 
 Harriet, Arthur and one that died in infancy ; 
 the mother of these died Feb. 7, 1871, and, 
 March 20. 1873, Mr. Reed married Mrs. Sophia 
 Galloway, widow of Henry Gralloway and daugh- 
 ter of Broady McKenzie. Mr. Reed is a Re- 
 publican in politics. 
 
 REV. L. SOUTHMAYD, minister, Cuya- 
 hoga Falls; was born December 19, 1826, in 
 Stow Township, Summit Co., Ohio. He is a 
 son of Erastus and Anna (Wetmore) South- 
 ma3'd, and grandson of Partridge and Hannah 
 (Fanning) Southmayd. Erastus Southmayd 
 was a native of Middletown, Conn., and was 
 born March 29, 1787. He was the sixth child 
 in a famil}' of nine children. When a young 
 man he left home and went to New York Cit}-, 
 engaging in the mercantile business. He failed 
 
 at this in 1812, and seven years later, emigrated 
 westward, locating in Stow Township, Summit 
 Co., Ohio, where he remained until his death. 
 On his arrival in Stow, Mr. Southma\'d began 
 teaching school, which vocation he followed for 
 some time. April 18, 1822, he was united in 
 marriage with Anna Wetmore, daughter of 
 Caleb Wetmore, and of this union were born 
 three children — Lucy, Charles and Leonard — 
 the mother dying after giving birth to the last- 
 named. Soon after his marriage Mr. South- 
 mayd moved to Stow Corners, where he opened 
 a tavern. He afterward married Clarissa Rice, 
 who became his wife March 21, 1827 ; this lad}' 
 was born Feb. 6, 1805, and she is the second 
 white child born in the township of Stow ; to 
 his second marriage four sons were born, viz. : 
 Walter, William, and Horace and Henry — 
 twins ; of these William alone is living. Mr. 
 Southmayd's services, as agent, were secured 
 and retained for a number of years by Joshua 
 Stow, the proprietor of the township, before it 
 was sold to the settlers. He finally died Oct. 
 10, 1866, and his wife March 14, 1879. In his 
 political views, Mr. Southmayd was a Re- 
 publican, and a strong temperance man : he 
 was identified with the Disciples' Church, and 
 his descendants are members of the same. 
 Leonard Southmayd received a good education 
 in youth, and, in 1850, married Elizabeth A. 
 Stark, daughter of the old pioneer, Benjamin 
 Stark ; their union there was without issue ; but 
 Mr. and Mrs. Southmayd have raised three of 
 their neighbor's children — Charles H. (who died 
 in the army). Fredrick W. and Jessie R. — the last 
 named being the only one that received the 
 name of their foster parents. Mrs. Southmayd 
 was born Jan. 14, 1826. At the close of the 
 war, Mr. Southmayd was ordained a minister 
 of the Disciples' Church, in which capacity he 
 has served ever since. He owns the undivided 
 two-thirds of the old Stark homestead, which 
 consists of 144 acres. Of the Southmayds, 
 there are but two others in the State of Ohio ; 
 these are Charles and William ; the former a 
 farmer in Stow Township, and the latter an 
 insurance agent, located at Cuyahoga Falls. 
 
 NELSON SEARS, retired farmer, Cuyahoga 
 Falls. This gentleman, one of the old land- 
 marks of Stow Township, is one in a family of 
 ten children, born to Daniel and Betsey (Thomas) 
 Sears, and was born in Middletown. Conn., in 
 1802. When 3 years of age, Mr. Sears, together 
 
 
872 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 with his parents, moved to New York. At the 
 age of 14, Nelson determined to accompany liis 
 father, who was at that time preparing to go to 
 Randolph, Portage Co., Ohio, and, with well- 
 tilled knapsacks, they began their walk of nearly 
 500 miles through the forests of New York, 
 Pennsylvania and Ohio. Mr. Sears' father only 
 remained in Portage Co. that winter, and the 
 next spring he built a sleigh, and, loading it 
 with deer skins, went back to Lewis Co., N. Y. 
 Nelson, however, remained, working for his 
 grandfather at Randolph for three years. Be- 
 coming liomesick, he concluded to go back to 
 his friends in York State, and, in due time, 
 reached home in safety. On Jan. 17, 1828, he 
 married Lucy Roberts, of Middletown, Conn., 
 and from that place removed to New York, 
 where he continued to reside until the fall of 
 1831, when he came to Stow Township, Summit 
 Co., Ohio, locating on Lot No. 11. He has ever 
 since resided in Stow, helping to clear and im- 
 prove the township, and build up the town. By 
 legitimate farming alone, Mr. Sears has earned 
 valuable property. He only had $1.50 on his 
 arrival in Stow. Until recently, he possessed 
 225 acres of land ; but gave his two living chil- 
 dren 100 acres apiece, reserving for himself 
 and wife about $10,000 worth of property. This 
 couple were parents of the following children : 
 Sarah A. (deceased), Robert, Angeliue, Julia A. 
 (deceased), Harris (deceased), Ellen M. (de- 
 ceased) and Horace (deceased). Robert and 
 Angeline are both married, and they are the 
 only children living. Robert married Elsie Haz- 
 zard, and Angeline became the wife of B. R. 
 Bucklin. Robert served his country in the war 
 of the rebellion. Mr. Sears is a Republican in 
 politics, and he has at times held various town- 
 ship offices. He is regarded as one of Stow 
 Township's best citizens. 
 
 ROBERT STEWART, farmer ; P. 0. Hud- 
 son ; son of Joshua and Margaret (Walker) 
 Stewart was born in Stow Township April 8, 
 1805. He is the first white male child born in 
 Stow Township. His father, Joshua, was a 
 native of Virginia, and his grandfather, Thomas 
 Stewart, was an old Revolutionary soldier. 
 Joshua Stewart came from Virginia to Ohio in 
 1803, walking the entire distance. His total 
 possessions at this time was only an ax. He 
 married Margaret Walker soon after his arrival, 
 and then, in 1803, came to Stow Township, and 
 located on Lots 88 and 89. His family were 
 
 the second white settlers in the township. 
 Here they passed through a long period of suf- 
 fering, clearing the land, making their own 
 clothing and enduring the hardships incident to 
 a pioneer's life. 'I'here were born to his mar- 
 riage with Miss Walker eight children — Robert, 
 Betse}', Thomas, George, Margaret, James, 
 Sally and Joshua. James and Joshua are 
 dead. Robert Stewart, as well as his brothers 
 and sisters, were raised in the woods of Stow 
 Township. He remained at home, working and 
 assisting his father in clearing the home place 
 until he was 25 years of age. He then started 
 out in life for himself He was married, Sept. 
 11, 1858, to Nancy Tracy, daughter of William 
 and Nancy (Ish) Tracy, of Wayne Co., Ohio, 
 and to this union were born Franklin F., Will- 
 iam, Margaret J., Jeanette, Sherling P., Nancy 
 E. and George I. (twins). Mr. Stewart started 
 in life a poor boy with but $5 he could call his 
 own. By hard labor and economy he has made 
 for himself and familj-, with the aid of his wife, 
 a fine home. They now have 54 acres in Stow 
 Township, and 155 in Hudson Township. Mr. 
 Stewart's father and mother were the first 
 couple married in Hudson Township. Much 
 more of the Stewarts will be found in the his- 
 tory of Hudson and Stow Townships. 
 
 LEVI SWINEH ART, farmer ; P. 0. Kent ; 
 was born in Springfield Township, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, Jan. 20, 183G. He is a son of Benjamin 
 and Catharine (Garl) Swinehart, and grandson 
 of Christian Swinehart, who was one of the 
 brave men that freed the colonies in America 
 from the tyrannical rule of Great Britain. 
 Benjamin Swinehart was born in Northumber- 
 land Co., Penn., Jan. 30, 1811. He came to 
 Uuiontown, Stark Co., Ohio, in 1829, where he 
 worked at his trade — shoemaking — for a time. 
 March 10, 1835, he married Catharine Garl, and 
 had the following children — Levi, Samuel, Sarah, 
 Lucinda, Harriet and Daniel. Lucinda lived 
 to become the wife of Jacob Brumbaugh, but 
 has since died. Samuel married Elizabeth 
 Brumbaugh, Sarah married Isaac Sausaman, 
 Harriet married Frank Ewell, and all three li\'e 
 in Portage Co., Ohio. Daniel married Catha- 
 rine Nittle, and is a resident of Sandusky Co., 
 Ohio. The father came to Ohio a poor boy, 
 but, by industry and economy, amassed a good 
 fortune by the time of his death. Mr. Swine- 
 hart was well known by a large circile of neigh- 
 bors, and his death, which occurred Feb. 11, 
 
 <^ <s 
 
STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 873 
 
 1878, was deeply deplored b}^ a large concourse 
 of friends who followed his remains to their 
 last resting-place. His widow never fully 
 recovered from the shock occasioned by the 
 death of her husband ; she died June 28, 1878. 
 Levi Swiuehart was raised in every sense of the 
 word a farmer boy. His early life was filled 
 with hard work and privations. He carefully 
 saved his hard-earned money until he could 
 place it to a good advantage. On the -Ith of 
 March, 1859, his wedding with Sarah Myers 
 was celebrated. To their union were born 
 Almeda E., Celestia C, Eldora C. and Nelson 
 E. (deceased). Mrs. Swinehart is adaugliterof 
 Daniel and Esther M3'ers, and she was born in 
 Green Township, Summit Co., Ohio, Feb. 9, 
 1835. In 1875, Mr. Swinehart purchased his 
 present farm in Stow Township. This place 
 consists of 96 acres of tlie best land in the 
 township. Mr. and Mrs. Swinehart are mem- 
 bers of the Darrow Street Grange. 
 
 VIRGTL M. THOMPSON, son of Dr. Moses 
 and Elizabeth (Mills) Thompson, was born in 
 Hudson Township, Summit Co., Ohio, March 
 1-1, 1810. Dr. Thompson was a native of 
 Goshen, Conn., and being one in a large family, 
 his father gave him his time as his own when 
 he was 17. With no mone}' to his name to 
 speak of, and a small bundle of patched clothes 
 on his back in a pack, Moses determined to hew 
 his wa}', and become a phj'sician, and, being a 
 young man of spirit, in time accomplished his 
 desires. In 1800, he started on foot, and trav- 
 eling the miles of unbroken forest, arrived in 
 what is now known as Hudson, Ohio, whither 
 friends had gone the preceding year. Arriving 
 in Hudson in x\pril, he immediately purchased 
 a large tract of land (600 acres), for friends 
 back East, and 160 acres for himself He at 
 once commenced clearing the land he had se- 
 lected for himself, and in July went back to 
 Goshen, married Elizabeth Mills, and in 1802, 
 removed to Hudson, where they remained un- 
 til their respective deaths. To his marriage 
 with Miss Mills there were born thirteen chil- 
 dren : Eliza M., Susan, Mills, Emily, Sylvester, 
 Virgil, Ruthy, Sarah A., Mary, Martha, Eliza- 
 beth and two that died in infanc}'. All that 
 are now living (five in number) reside in Sum- 
 mit Co. Virgil was reared on the old home- 
 stead in Hudson. In 1836, he married Maria 
 Smith, who died about two years after their 
 marriage. Mr. Thompson's second wife was 
 
 Marie Antoinette Turner, to whom he was mar- 
 ried in May, 1842, and by whom he had three 
 daughters — Celia M., married to H. H. Cham- 
 berlain, but has since died ; Mary A., and 
 Emma P. Mary is the wife of her dead sis- 
 ter's husband, H. H. Chamberlain, and Emma 
 married E. D. Ellsworth, by whom she had 
 two children — Fred and Mamie. Mr. Thomp- 
 son purchased his present place in 1836. He 
 owns 355 acres of good land, and is a stanch 
 Republican. 
 
 H. E. TALCOTT, farmer; P. 0. Kent; 
 is a native of Lewis County, N. Y., and was 
 born May 9, 1809. He is a son of Joel and 
 Zilpah (Kelse}') Talcott, who were parents of 
 four children — Electa, Lucy, Laura and Heze- 
 kiah E. When but four years old, Hezekiah's 
 father died, leaving the widow and four children 
 to struggle through life as best they might. 
 Hezekiah remained with his mother until he 
 began doing for himself, and afterward the 
 mother made her home with her son. In 1830, 
 he came to Ohio, and having relatives in Stow 
 Township, Summit Co., he selected a place 
 there on Lot 1 9, which was at that time an al- 
 most unbroken forest. The fall succeeding his 
 coming, his mother and family came out, and 
 together they started life in the wilderness. 
 Dec. 29, 1833, Hezekiah married Betsey Bur- 
 dick, daughter of John Burdick, and by her 
 had a family of ten, as follows : Henry L., 
 Asher M., Charles G., Myra V., Zilpah A., Ellen 
 J., Emma E., Lorenzo A., Ethe W. and Electa 
 M. ; all these are living, and all are married ex- 
 cepting the two youngest. Mrs. Talcott was born 
 in Stow Township, in 1816, and her parents 
 came to the township from Massachusetts, in 
 1812. Mr. and Mrs. Talcott had three sons in 
 the late war-^-Charles, Asher and Lorenzo ; 
 Charles passed about four years in actual serv- 
 ice, participating in some of the most hotly- 
 contested engagements. He was with Sherman 
 on his memorable march to the sea, but during 
 all his army career he never received a wound. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Talcott's children are married as 
 follows : Henr}' L. married Mary Anthony, and 
 lives in Michigan; Asher married Sarah Thomas, 
 and lives in Kansas ; Charles G. married Mary 
 Evans, and is an em^Dloj-e at the Buckeye Works, 
 at Akron, Ohio ; Myra is the wife of Edward 
 Peck, and lives in Hudson ; Zilpah married 
 Orson E. Mooi'e, of Bath Township ; Ellen 
 married D. Barnard, and is a resident of Stow ; 
 
 ?F 
 
 ^ 
 
^i 
 
 874 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Emma married Martin Holdridge, and lives in 
 Kent. Ohio ; Lorenzo is an artist in St. Paul, 
 Minn., and he married Mary Peck. Mr. Taleott 
 is a Republican in politics, and he and liis wife 
 are hospitable, kind and courteous people. 
 
 WETMORE FAMILY. The Wetmores, of 
 Stow Township, were originally from Wales. It 
 was some time during the sixteenth century that 
 three Wetmore brotliers, Seth, Chauncey and 
 one whose name is forgotten, emigrated from 
 Wales to the United States, and all the Wet- 
 mores in America are said to be the descendants 
 of these three brothers. One of them settled 
 in Connecticut, one in Massachusetts, and one 
 in New York. The Wetmores of Stow Town- 
 ship are the descendants of Seth, who settled 
 in Connecticut. William and Titus were the 
 sons of Seth. In 1804, William and Titus— 
 the former with his family — started for what 
 is now known as Stow Township, Summit Co.. 
 Ohio, where they arrived in June, the same 
 year, locating on Lots 36, 25 and 35. William's 
 wife's maiden name was Anne Ogden, and the}' 
 were parents of the following family : William, 
 Edwin, Clarissa and Henry. William Wetmore. 
 Sr., was a man very decided in his views, and 
 of great energy of character. Before the count}' 
 in which he resided was divided, he was selected 
 as Judge of the Common Pleas Court, of 
 Portage Co., and in that capacity served with 
 general satisfaction. Of his sons, William and 
 Edwin imbibed some of the political attributes 
 of their father, William at one time serving as 
 State Senator and Edwin as County Commis- 
 sioner. Of the children of Judge Wetmore. 
 only one son, Henry, is yet living. Edwin 
 Wetmore was twice married ; first to Polly Wet- 
 more, by whom he had three sons — Silas, Luther 
 and Charles. His second wife was was Polly 
 Bell, by whom he had two daughters — Clara 
 and Hattie. The three sons are dead, but the 
 two daughters, with their mother, are j^et living. 
 Silas Wetmore was born July 4, 1821. He 
 married Mary Birge, Aug. 27, 1846. and to this 
 union were i)orntwo sons — Chai'les B. and Ed- 
 win S.; the latter is single. Charles married 
 Adaline Kelly, and by her has thi'ee children — 
 Arthur, Ida and Jennie B. Silas Wetmore died 
 March 12, 1871. He was an excellent citizen, 
 and his death was gi'eatly deplored 1)y a large 
 circle of friends. His widow, with her two 
 sons, resides on the farm left b}- the husband 
 and father in Stow Township. In 1807, William 
 
 Wetmore's brother, Titus, who came with him 
 to Stow Township in 1804, married Sarah Wet- 
 more, daughter of Caleb Wetmore, and by her 
 had three children — Seth, VVillard and Josiah. 
 Of these, Willard died in 1831, and Seth in 
 1832. Josiah was born in Stow Township, in 
 1816. His youth and early manhood was 
 passed on the farm, during which time he re- 
 ceived the education the common schools of 
 that early day afforded. In 1839, he married 
 Elizabeth R. Brainard, daughter of Enoch S. 
 and Abbey Brainard, and by her had two sous 
 — Willard W., born in 1843, and Luther B., born 
 in 1847. The former married Julia Gaylord, 
 and the latter Julia Darrow. To the first union 
 there is born one daughter, Jessie, and to the 
 last, four children — Burt D., Harry J.. Leona 
 and Celia. Josiah Wetmore's wife died in 
 August. 1879, and his second and present wife 
 was Velonia Le Moin, daughter of Noah and 
 Hannah Le Moin. In their political faith, the 
 Wetmores early espoused the cause of the 
 Whigs, but when the Republican party was ci-e- 
 ated, the}' joined its ranks, and have since been 
 among its most powerful supporters in Stow 
 Township. On their arrival here, they settled 
 on land devoid of a particle of clearing, and 
 commencing at the foot of the ladder, have, by 
 their honorable, upright dealings, become among 
 Summit Co.'s best and most respected citizens. 
 L. H. WILLCOX, retired farmer ; P. 0. Cuya- 
 hoga Falls ; was born in Berlin, near Middle- 
 town, Conn., Aug. 3, 1804 ; he is a son of Isaac 
 and Lucy (North) Willcox, who were parents of 
 a family of ten children. The father of Mr, 
 Willcox was twice married, his second wife 
 being Mary Randall, by whom he had six 
 children, making a total of sixteen children in 
 this one family. In 1809, Mr. Willcox and fam- 
 ily, with a Mr. Kelsey and family, started with 
 ox teams for the West, in which to seek homes 
 for themselves and children ; after a journey of 
 forty-two days through an unsettled country, 
 and passing through almost innumerable hard- 
 ships, they arrived, Oct. 26, 1809, in what is now 
 known as Stow Township, Summit Co., Ohio ; on 
 their arrival, they were met by Indians, who 
 showed every demonstration of joy on their 
 coming. Mr. Willcox cleared a place on which 
 to erect a cabin, and, after he had cut and 
 hewed the logs, by the help of the Indians, 
 raised him a comfortable double log cabin ; this 
 place was situated on Lots 3 and 4 ; Mr. and 
 
 ^-, 
 
STOW TOWNSHIP. 
 
 875 
 
 Mrs. Willcox remained here all the rest of their 
 lives, clearing and improving their place by the 
 help of their children, and assisting in building 
 up a country from a dense forest to what is now 
 a beautiful farming country, dotted over b}- fine 
 Airms and elegant homes. Through all their 
 earlj- experiences, the Willcoxes were regarded 
 by the Indians as firm friends ; the}' were al- 
 ways faithful and honest in their dealings with 
 the savages, and the Indians were not back- 
 ward in showing their gratitude. Leverett H. 
 Willcox was raised in the woods of Stow Town- 
 ship. He was married, July 15, 1829, to Han- 
 nah Porter, daughter of William and Mary 
 Porter, and to this union were born the follow- 
 ing familj- : Orpha, Louisa, Lydia. Elizabeth. 
 Sophronia. Mary, Lemuel, Clarence, William, 
 Henry and two that died in infanc}' ; there are 
 now five daughters and two sons living, and all 
 are married ; Mr. Willcox has had twenty-five 
 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. 
 Mrs. Willcox died March 4, 1881 : she was an 
 exemplary Christian, a kind wife and an affec- 
 tionate mother. Mr. and Mrs. Willcox had lived 
 together as husband and wife fifty years seven 
 months and seventeen days. Mr. Willcox, in 
 earl}' years, did not receive any of the benefits 
 of school whatever, but has since acquired an 
 excellent practical education. With perhaps 
 but one exception, he is the only one of the 
 old pioneers of Stow Township yet living. 
 
 JOHN WELLS (deceased). This gentleman 
 was born in New Lisbon, (3hio. Aug. 23, 1803 ; 
 he was of English descent, and one in a ftimily 
 of ten children born to John and Polly 
 (Walker) Wells, all of whom are now dead : his 
 youth and early manhood was passed on a 
 farm, but when he arrived at manhood he 
 learned the carpenter's trade, which occupation 
 he steadily followed until he purchased his farm 
 in Stow Township. From New Lisbon he 
 moved to Jefferson Co., Ohio, when it was all 
 woods, there being at that time but few white 
 settlers in that locality ; he settled at what is 
 now Wellsville, which was afterward named 
 after him ; from this point they came to Little 
 Ireland, in Stow Township. Summit Co., Ohio, 
 locating on a farm entirely devoid of clearing. 
 He was married, July 15, 1830, to Miss Emily 
 Oilbert. daughter of Orin Gilbert, a sketch of 
 whom will be found in the biography of A. L. 
 Gilbert ; to this union were born one son and 
 three daughters — Henry, who died when about 
 
 9 years old ; Harriet (who died), the wife of 
 William Perkins ; Frances and Alice. Mr. 
 Wells died March 2, 1875; he was an honor- 
 able man in every respect, and was one well 
 calculated to hold the position he did in the 
 hearts of his fellow-townsmen. He and wife 
 had removed to Cuyahoga Falls soon after 
 their marriage, and, after a residence there of 
 about two years, purchased a farm of 94 acres 
 on Lot 32 in Stow Township, where his family 
 are yet living. Mrs. Wells was born Oct. 27, 
 1807, and her two daughters — ^Frances and 
 Alice — and grand-daughter — Lillie — are living 
 with her ; the only other grandchild — Hattie — - 
 is living with her father in Kent, Ohio. Mr. 
 Hart was a resident of Summit Co. over forty 
 years, and his life was one of usefulness and 
 hard labor. John Wells, the father of the sub- 
 ject of this biography, was a native of Virginia, 
 of English descent, and was a brave and ef- 
 ficient soldier in the war of 1812 ; he was a 
 man loved and respected, and was an upright 
 and honorable gentleman : his ancestors came 
 over in the Mayflower. 
 
 J. O. WILLIAMSON, farmer ; P. O. Hudson ; 
 was born in Stow Township March 14, 1845. 
 He is a son of Palmer and Amy (Horton) 
 Williamson, and a grandson of William and 
 Mary (Palmer) Williamson. The father, Palmer 
 Williamson, was born in Westchester Co., N. 
 Y., Oct. 9, 1802. When he was IC years of 
 age, he was sent to live with a merchant in 
 Salisbury. After residing here two years, he 
 went to Hyde Park to work on the dock and 
 sell lumber, remaining at this place three years. 
 In 1823, he obtained a position in Pougiikeep- 
 sie as shipping clerk and dock hand ; and, three 
 years later, on Feb. 22. 1827, he married Amy 
 Horton, when he began farming, which has 
 since been his vocation, save one year, during 
 which he kept tavern in Goshen, N. Y. During 
 the spring of 1831, he and his family came to 
 Ohio, first locating in Tallmadge Township, 
 Summit Co., where they remained three years, 
 ^Yhen they moved to his present place in Stow 
 Township, where he has since resided. His 
 wife bore him children, viz.. Mary, Horton, 
 Bradner (deceased). Susan, Jane (deceased), 
 Aldrette (deceased) and Julius O. When he 
 came to Ohio, Mr. Williamstni was probably 
 worth about $300. but, nothing daunted by Ids 
 poverty, with the hel|) of a loving and brave 
 wife, he walked from the poverty of early pio- 
 
 ^* e) 
 
 
^ S) 
 
 876 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 neer life to the comforts of a later da_y. Mrs. 
 Williamson died Sept. 27, 1880. Mr. William- 
 son survives her death, and he and his son, 
 Julius 0., live together on the old homestead in 
 Stow. Feb. 24, 1875, Julius married llosetta 
 Z. White, daughter of Henry and Almira White, 
 
 and by her has three children — Henry J., Ho- 
 mer E., and John P. Julius and his father 
 own a large farm of over 250 acres, which is 
 nicel}- situated, being four miles from Kent, 
 four from Hudson, five from Cuyahoga Falls, 
 and nine from Akron. 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 WILLIAM ALLEN, fai-mer; P. O. Akron; 
 son of Jonah Allen, was born Oct. 14, 1798; 
 died May 15, 1874; he of Jesse Allen. His 
 mother was Cynthia Spicer ( for further history 
 of Spicer family, see Avery Spicer); she was 
 born May 21, 1803, and died Sept. 11, 
 1860. The family of Jonah and Cynthia were 
 Catharine, born Nov. 5, 1822; Mrs. Beckwith, 
 who died Jan. 23, 1855; Edward, born Aug. 
 18, 1824, died July 9, 1841; William, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch, bom Feb. 18, 1827; John, 
 whose history appears in another place in this 
 woi'k; and Cynthia, who died in infancy. 
 William received but a meager district-school 
 education, being employed upon the farm until 
 about 17 years of age, when he began work at 
 the Akron City Woolen Mill, his father being 
 a heavy stockholder, where he learned the 
 various branches of the business, such as cai'd- 
 ing, coloring, finishing, etc.; subsequently 
 returning to the old farm south of the city, 
 "where he and his brother John farmed together 
 for a time; then returned to the city, where 
 he kept for one year the boai'diug department 
 for the Perkins Company, to whom the former 
 company had sold. At the expiration of that 
 year, the factoiy being converted into a floui'- 
 ing-mill, he again returned to the farm, where 
 he has since resided. He was married Nov. 
 11, 1847, to Amy Amanda Beckwith, daughter 
 of Chauncy and Susannah (Barnes) Beckwith, 
 who came to Norton Township, about 1820, 
 from Hartford, Conn. Mrs. Allen was the 
 second daughter of a family of six childi'en, 
 three sons and three daughters; she was born 
 Sept. 16, 1830, and by her marriage has two 
 children — Newton W,. born April 2, 1857; and 
 Cynthia Anna, Sept. 11, 1860. Newton was 
 married, April 28, 1880, to Mary E. Grove, 
 daughter of David Grove, a prominent farmer 
 
 of Franklin Township. Mr. Allen has held 
 the most prominent positions in the township, 
 such as Trustee, Township Clerk and Presi- 
 dent of the School Board; a man of good 
 business tact, which has been conducive to his 
 success, and of a Christian spirit, he and fam- 
 ily being members of the Disciples' Church, 
 to which he is a liberal giver as vfell as to all 
 other societies j^romoting the cause of Chris- 
 tianity. 
 
 LEVI ALLEN, Jr., farmer; P. O. Aki'on; 
 was born July 28, 1824, on the farm where he 
 now lives; his education was sufficient to ena- 
 ble him to teach. He I'emained with his father 
 until the spring of 1850, when he started from 
 Aki'on to Sacramento City, Cal., going most 
 of the way on foot in company with Edwin 
 Allen, Isaac Spicer, Sterns SpaiTowhawk and 
 Ephraim Bellows; they endm'ed a great deal 
 of hai-dship and suffering on account of lack 
 of provision and water; he lived in the princi- 
 pal cities, and engaged in mining in the 
 mountains. The latter years of his stay there 
 were spent on a ranch in the stock business 
 and the raising of grain. At one time while 
 retm-ning on horseback to Sacramento City 
 from his mining interests in the mountains, 
 he was chased by two desperadoes (there being 
 a great number in that country), for eighteen 
 miles, and only escaped by the superiority of 
 his steed and the approach upon civilization; 
 many more incidents of the experience of 
 about sixteen years of frontier life might be 
 related, but space will not permit. On the 
 24th day of December, 1856, he was married 
 to Mary E. Ware, a native of Amherst 
 Co., Va., by whom he has had tlu-ee chikh-en 
 — a pair of twin boys who were buried there 
 with their mother, and Mary E. P., born Aug. 
 16, 18-58. His second marriage occurred in 
 
 -r|s- 
 
COVENTKY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 877 
 
 1868, to Cornelia Adelaide Knapp, daughter 
 of William H. ard Deborah (Wightman) 
 Knapp, who are prominent in the history of 
 Cuyahoga Co., where they resided, and where 
 Mr. Kiiapp served the county for nine years as 
 County Surveyor, he being a man of influence, 
 and one of the oldest settlers in that comity, 
 their settlement being made in about 1810. 
 Mr. Allen has two children by his second 
 marriage, viz., Cornelia Cynthia Adelia, born 
 June 18, 1871; Albertina May Deborah, May 
 14, 1872. He returned to Aki'on in December, 
 1866, from the Pacific coast, and subse(|uently 
 engaging in a general farm life and the im- 
 provement of stock. Is a member of the Dis- 
 ciples' Church, and a man of prominence in 
 his township. 
 
 JOHN ALLEN, farmer; P. O. Akron; was 
 born Oct. 20, 1829, to Jonah Allen, whose his- 
 tory appears in another place in this work, 
 under the head of William Allen. The sub- 
 ject of this sketch spent his early life in assist- 
 ing in the farm work, and in securing as good 
 an education as the common schools of his 
 time would admit of. On the Dth of Decem- 
 ber, 1857, he was married to Ann Morgan, 
 daughter of Isham and Juliette (Meech) Mor- 
 gan, who came to Newburg, Cuyahoga Co., 
 Ohio, in 1811, from Groton, Conn. The Mor- 
 gan family was among the oldest and most 
 prominent families of Cuyahoga Co. Mr. 
 Allen by his marriage has four children — Em- 
 ma C, born Nov. 2, 1858, and married June 2, 
 1880, to Henry B. Sisler, one of the coal mer- 
 chants of Akron; Jesse M., born April 6, 1864; 
 Isham F., Jan. 2, 1868: John R., March 23, 
 1871. The Aliens are a quiet and unassmn- 
 ing people, not aspiring to office, but paying 
 strict attention to the most improved methods 
 of agriculture, in which they are engaged, and 
 very successful. They are members of the 
 Disciples' Church, and have at heart the im- 
 provement of the morals of the people, and 
 the advancement of education and religion. 
 
 ISRAEL ALL YN. deceased; was born Dec. 
 24, 1790, in Groton, New London Co., Conn., 
 and died May 7, 1873. He moved to the farm 
 upon which his two daughters, Lucy and Han- 
 nah now live, and to whom we are indebted 
 for this sketch, in March, 18 19, with a f tunily 
 consisting; of wife and two children. The 
 
 wife was Lucy Gallup, born March 22, 1789, 
 and married Aug. 1, 1813; daughter of Jacob 
 and Rebecca (Morgan) Gallup, who were mar- 
 ried in 1766, and were natives of the State of 
 Connecticut. Israel's parents were Ephraim, 
 born in 1748, died Dec. 28, 1816, and Tem- 
 perance (Morgan) Allen, who died Oct. 3, 
 1799, having been born May 4, 1752, and mar- 
 ried Nov. 15, 1770. The wife of Israel died 
 July 2, 1850. Ephraim was the father of sev- 
 enteen children, twelve by his first wife, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch being one of a pair of twins, 
 the eleventh child and seventh son, the foiu" 
 oldest being daughters. His second marriage 
 was to Mrs. Rebecca (Morgan) Gallup, a sister 
 to first wife; she was born April 9, 1766, 
 died July 3, 1834. By this union five chil- 
 dren were born, two of whom are now living 
 — Erastus and Edward, prominent men in the 
 State of Connecticut, and Austin, who died at 
 Canaan, Conn., in 1878. Israel's family con- 
 sisted of seven cliildren — George H., born Oct. 
 31, 1814; Israel M., June 20, 1818; Abel G., 
 Oct. 4, 1820; Lucy R., Sept. 15, 1822; Austin, 
 Aug. 20, 1828; Lydia, June 16, 1831; Han- 
 nah S., Aug. 15, 1833. Three are deceased — 
 Lydia, Mrs. Gen. Voris, died March 16, 1876, 
 leaving three children — George H., married a 
 Miss Altay A. Hall, also leaving three childi-eu, 
 two sons in Aki'on and one daughter in Sun 
 City, Kan., with whom the mother is living. 
 Austin was married in August, 1 854, to Huldah 
 Voris, a sister to Gen. Voris, by whom ho had 
 six daughters, all living in Ottawa Co., Mo., 
 except the oldest, who is teaching in the high 
 school at Akron. He died April 15, 1871. 
 Israel M. resides near Eaton Rajiids, Mich.; 
 was three times married, first, to Hannah 
 Mather: second to Mrs. Caroline Ludlow, by 
 whom he had two sons and one daughter; 
 third marriage to Elmira Nichols. The sub- 
 ject of this sketch was in the war of 1812; a 
 carpenter by trade, but engaged in farming 
 after coming to this State. He is a man of 
 rare abilities, of remarkable force of character, 
 honest and industrious, a very prominent man 
 among the people, and neai'ly worshiped for 
 his kindness and assistance rendered the poor. 
 He held the most prominent offices in the 
 township of Coventry, and received the honor 
 and praises of all the people. 
 
878 
 
 BIOGllAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 ABEL G. ALLYN, fcumer; P. O. Akron; 
 is the third sou of Israel Allyn, whose history 
 appeal's in another part of the biogi'aphical 
 department of Coventry Township; was born 
 Oct. 4, 1820, in the vicinity of Akron, and 
 received a common district-school education 
 such as could be secured at that early day. 
 He assisted in the management of the old 
 homestead until 1847, when he purchased the 
 farm on which he now resides, where his life 
 has since been spent in a general farm and 
 dairy business. His marriage occurred Oct. 
 10, 1847, to Adeline Capron, daughter of Ara 
 and Eliza (Sweet) Capron, who came from 
 Susquehanna Co., Penn., about 1825, making 
 their settlement on the line between Copley 
 and Bath Townships, this county, where they 
 engaged in farming. They have six childi-en, 
 viz., Addie. born July 23. f848; Charles, May 
 25, 1851; Ida, Feb. 15. 1854; Leora, Mav 14, 
 1800; Ettie, Jan. 28, 1863, and Oertie, Nov. 24, 
 1869. The three oldest are married — Addie, 
 to Preston Barber, who is engaged at the Buck- 
 eye Works; Charles, to Ada Viall, and now 
 residing in Summit, Greeley Co., Neb., where 
 he is farming, and is also Postmaster at Smn- 
 mit, which he named after his native county; 
 Ida, the wife of States A. McCoy, a former resi- 
 dent of this county, now of St. Joseph, Mich. 
 Mr. Allyn has held the most responsible offices 
 of his township, and is now serving his fifth 
 term as Director of the agricultural society of 
 this county. 
 
 JOHN BEESE, Superintendent Summit 
 Mine; P. O. Aki'on; son of Samuel, who was 
 a son of Sampson, a native of Somersetshire, 
 England, bu.t moved to Monmouthshire, South 
 Wales, when his son Samuel was 4 years of 
 age, which was about the year 1800, there 
 living and dying and raising a family, by his 
 first marriage, of eleven childi'en, of which our 
 subject is one, having been born March 1, 1 82U. 
 By his second marriage he had twelve childi-en, 
 foiu' of whom are still living in their native 
 country. Five of the childi'en by the first 
 marriage living in this country. His mother 
 was Esther Jones, who, at a very tender age, 
 on account of the loss of her mother, was 
 taken hj a family named Roberts, with whom 
 she lived until her marriage. Mr. Beese spent 
 his life with his father, who was encraered in 
 
 mining, until the fall of 1850, when he came 
 to Youngstown, working in the Mahoning 
 Valley until the fall of 1868, when he came 
 to Coventry, accepting at that time the super- 
 intendency of the Middlebuiy Shaft, which 
 position he held for about eight years; then 
 that of the Summit mine, formerly the old 
 Steese bank, which position he now holds. He 
 was for some time Superintendent of both 
 mines, which re<iuired a great amount of 
 business tact and ability. He has been en- 
 gaged in his present business for about twen- 
 ty-foTU' years. He was married. No. 4, 1853, 
 to Agnes Thornton, who was born Jan. 31, 
 1836, daughter of Alexander and Mary(Meak) 
 Thornton, all natives of Scotland, who came to 
 America and settled in Sharon, Penn., in 
 August, 1849, where her parents still reside. 
 The father being one of the most prominent 
 farmers and stock- raisers in Mercer County, and 
 both hale and hearty at an advanced age. 
 Their family, which consisted of ten childi-en, 
 nine of whom are living in dilferent parts of 
 the cou.nty, are all of considerable prominence. 
 Ml'. Beese has eight children — Alfred, born 
 Aug. 18, 1854; Charles, June 10, 1856; Eliza, 
 June 2, 1859; Mary, Nov. 4, 1861; Belle, May 
 26, 1864; Samuel, 'Nov. 18, 1866; John, Oct. 
 16, 1869; Agnes Caroline, June 19, 1873. 
 Charles was married, Jan. 8, 1878, to Mary 
 Hausman, residing in Sharon Township, Me- 
 dina Co., Ohio, and is mining the Ebbert coal, 
 which belong-s to his father. The mine being 
 situ.ated on township county lines, they are 
 mining for two counties and four different 
 townships. Eliza is the wife of Henry Stro- 
 mal!, who is engineer at the Brewster Coal 
 Company's mine in Springfield Township. 
 
 GEOROE BURONER, farmer; P. O. New 
 Portage. Jacob Harter, the father-in-law of 
 the subject of this sketch, was born Jan. 10, 
 1793, in Dauphin Co., Penn.; he a son of 
 Greorge, who was born about 1757, and died 
 about 1833; he a son of Mathias, who came 
 from Germany very early in 1700. His mother 
 was Elizabeth Bauman, who died in her 95th 
 year; she a daughter of Abraham Bauman, 
 natives of Dauphin Co. also. Jacob came 
 with his father to Stark Co. in 1805, settling 
 near Canton. In the spring after arriving at 
 the age of 18 years, was " taken in the first 
 
4* 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 879 
 
 draft, first class," for the war of 1812. They 
 were first sent to Wooster under Gen. Bell, 
 where they built a block-house; no danger 
 being anticipated, they were sent still further 
 west to Mansfield, where they camped for a 
 short time, and being put under the command 
 of Gen. Simon Perkins, they were sent to his 
 camp about forty miles north, afterward going 
 to Lower Sandusky. The war ending in a 
 short time, he retui-ned home. In 1815, he 
 was married to Catharine Souers, daughter of 
 Heni-y and Catharine (Harter) Souers, from 
 Lancaster Co., Penn., and early settlers in 
 Stark Covmty. In the spring of 1831, Mr. 
 Harter with his wife and seven children came 
 to Coventry Township from Franklin. His 
 family were ten in number, seven of whom 
 still survive — one son in Iowa, two in Indiana, 
 and one in Norton Township, this county; two 
 daughters reside in Stark County, the other, 
 a Mrs. George Burgner, with whom the old 
 gentleman resides. Mr. Burgner is the son of 
 Jacob, a son of Peter Biu-gner, who came from 
 Berne, Switzerland, when but 15 years old. The 
 record of the Btu'gner family is contained in a 
 German Bible, printed in 1573, and a testa- 
 ment printed in 1545, the two books now being 
 the property of Jacob Burgner, who resides 
 at Fremont, Ohio. The father of Jacob Burg- 
 ner arrived in Canton July 4, 181'2. He en- 
 gaged in farming in Jackson Township, and, 
 in 1815, came to Franklin Township, being 
 among the first in that township. His wife 
 was Mary Com*ad. George received a very 
 limited education, in an old log schoolhouse, 
 which was built upon his father's farm, and 
 afterward taught in same place in the winters 
 of 1835 and 1836; from that time until 1852, 
 he worked at the carpenter's trade, and the 
 warehouses at New Portage. May 2, 1852, 
 he was married to Anna Harter, and settled 
 upon the farm where they now live. They 
 have had four daughters, of whom three are 
 now living — Amanda, born Jan. 9, 1855 ; Mary, 
 Jan. 23, 1859, and Clara, March 10, 1870. 
 Amanda is the wife of George A. Proehl, by 
 whom she has two childi'en — Clara Bertha, 
 bom Feb. 26, 1877; and Vincent, Sept. 15, 
 1880. Ml*. Proehl is a farmer and stone ma- 
 son in Coventry Township. Mr. Burgner held 
 the ofl&ce of Township Trustee four terms, and 
 
 was elected Township Treasurer, but declined 
 the office. 
 
 BREWSTER BROS. Coal Company, Mid- 
 dlebury, is composed of Stephen, born Oct. 2, 
 1832; Jonathan H., Jan. 11, 1834; James G., 
 Jr., and Hiram, June 8, 1835; and George 
 W., March 21, 1837; sons of James G., bom 
 in Groton, Conn., Jan. 9, 1797; and Martha 
 (Hassen) Brewster, who is a daughter of Jon- 
 athan and Mary Jirown, who were residents 
 of the State of Pennsylvania. James G., Sr., 
 was a son of Stephen, bom March 4, 1770, 
 and Lydia (Bellows) Brewster, born May 14, 
 1771. ■ They were married May 1, 1796. ' The 
 Brewster Coal Company is well known through- 
 out Simmiit Coimty, and the north ])art of 
 Ohio; the biography of James G. apears in 
 the biograj)hical department of Springfield 
 Township. Jonathan H. and Hiram are bach- 
 elors, and the family histories of Stephen and 
 George W. appear below^ Stephen, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch, is living in the foiu^th 
 house built upon the same location where his 
 grandfather settled in 1811, being one of the 
 first settlers in Coventry Township. He was 
 man'ied, April 2, 1874, to Charlotte H. Meach, 
 daughter of John A. and Lydia Ann ( Housel) 
 Meach, early residents of this township. They 
 have four children — Ephraim H, born Dec. 
 25, 1874; Hayes Wheeler, June 25, 1876; Ste- 
 phen M., March 5, 1878; and Sir Walter, 
 April 1, 1880. George W. was married, Oct. 
 19, 1876, to Marie L. Kent, who was born 
 June 1, 1843, to Josiah and Lucia (Miller) 
 Kent, who were among the first settlers in Suf- 
 field Township, Portage Co., Ohio, where the 
 father has resided for about sixty-five years on 
 one farm. They have tlu'ee children — Georgia 
 Marie, born Sept. 20. 1877; Hiram Wallace, 
 Sept. 24, 1879; Ai-thur Kent, Dec. 20, 1880. 
 
 HENRY J. BELLOWS, farmer; P. O. 
 Aki'on; is the youngest son of Ithamar, whose 
 history appears with that of John H. Bellows. 
 He received a conmion district-school educa- 
 tion, attending until about 20 years of age, 
 the intervening time being spent upon the 
 farm. He was married, July 4, 1856, to Lou- 
 isa Weston, born Dec. 24, 1837, and daughter 
 of Francis and Amanda (Hinman) Weston, 
 who were among the earliest settlers in Spring- 
 field Township. They have one child — Mary — 
 
 >^ 
 

 880 
 
 lUOGRAPIIICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 born July 16, 1857, and married Sept. 6, 1875, 
 to Frank Rabenstine, son of Ephraim Raben- 
 stine, who was one of tlie early settlers of 
 Stark Co. They reside with Mr. Bellows, and 
 have one son — Dwight. The subject of this 
 sketch was for seven years engaged in the dai- 
 rying business, four years on his present farm, 
 and three years on the Sumner estate, south 
 of Middlebury, where he lived from the fall 
 of 1878 to 1870. He is a stanch Republican, 
 and he and his family are members of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. He is a liberal 
 giver to the cause of religion, and the advance- 
 ment of missions and schools; is prominently 
 engaged in all the enterprises of the township, 
 Init not an office seeker. 
 
 BENJAMIN S. COOKE, machinist, with 
 Webster, Camp & Lane, and farmer; P. O. Ak- 
 ron. The father of the subject of this sketch, 
 Charles Cooke, son of Benjamin S., a native 
 of Brooklyn, N. Y., was a harness-maker by 
 trade, and engaged in business in Baltimore, 
 Md., and in Camden, N. J., where his son, 
 Benjamin S., was born March 22, 1833. 
 Charles was born in Brooklyn Feb. 18, 1810, 
 and died June 25, 1849. He was married, 
 July 12, 1831, to Sarah Stout, daughter of 
 James and Rebecca (Stiles) Stout, natives of 
 Salem Co. , N. J. ; he was the possessor of the 
 famous " apple orchard farm " opjjosite Fort 
 Delaware. The Stouts and Stileses were of the 
 original Quakers, who settled before the Revo- 
 lution in Burlington and Camden Cos., N. J. 
 The family names possess considerable wealth 
 and influence in England. The parents of 
 our subject are both deceased, leaving a fam- 
 ily of fom- children — Benjamin S., Rebecca, 
 Abigail, now deceased, and Sallie, wife of 
 Charles Peck, a business man of Pittsburgh. 
 Rebecca, wife of Henry Carles, residing in 
 Camden. Benjamin S. received the advan- 
 tages of education until the age of 1 (5 years. 
 At 1 8, he began learning the trade of a ma- 
 chinist, at which he is now engaged with 
 Webster, Camp & Lane. He has worked at 
 his trade in a great many difterent cities and 
 States, and was, at 22 years of age, steamboat 
 engineer upon the Delaware River, and dur- 
 ing the war, engineer in Admiral Farragut's 
 squadron of the navy, and at the taking of 
 Fort Morgan, at the mouth of the Mobile. 
 
 His travels have been extensive, taking in 
 twenty-six Sates, Mexico and Cviba; he came 
 to the farm which he now owns, about two 
 miles from Akron, in the spring of 1868, from 
 Mifflin, Penn. In 1878, he built a portable 
 engine, giving it by his great inventive talent, 
 many new points, which make it superior to 
 all others of like design. On his farm he has 
 a very profitable pebble quarry, with all the 
 machinery for separating the pebble from the 
 sand, for fire brick manufacturing, making 
 a superior quality of brick. He was married, 
 June 27, 1862, to Ermina K. Frank, daughter 
 of Jacob and Sarah Frank, natives of Juniata 
 Co., Penn. They have had three children, 
 one of whom died in infancy; those living are 
 Sallie, born Sept. 18, 1866; and Rebecca, 
 April 22, 1873. 
 
 HIRAM S. FALOR, Akron; born in Coven- 
 try Township, at the farm upon which he now 
 resides, March 22, 1829; the son of George 
 A. and Nancy (McCoy) Falor, who were early 
 settlers of Summit Co. ; he received a knowl- 
 edge of the common branches in the schools of 
 his native township; when 19 years of age, 
 became an apprentice in the harness-shop of 
 On-in Beckwith, of Akron, remaining thi-ee 
 years ; then started a shop of his own, and car- 
 ried on business some ten years. In the 
 spring of 1860, he went to California; for a 
 short time clerked in a wholesale store at San 
 Francisco; then went to Humboldt Bay, 
 crossed over the mountains to Salmon River 
 and mined for fo;ir months. During the lat- 
 ter part of 1860, he removed to Virginia City, 
 Nev., then a Territory, and opened the first 
 harness-shop ever started in that place; his 
 establishment was called the " Pioneer Har- 
 ness-Shop." He served as a petit jiu-or in the 
 first court ever held in Storey Co. During 
 the early part of 1861, he organized the Vir- 
 ginia City Grays, and was elected Captain of 
 the company; when the rebellion was inaugu- 
 rated the company tendered their services to 
 the Government, but were declined by the 
 national authorities who, at the time early in 
 the war, did not wish to pay the expense of 
 transporting the company to the seat of hos- 
 tilities. In September, 1863, Falor returned 
 to Akron, remaining for some five years in the 
 city. In 1868, having purchased 30 acres 
 
 g - 
 
-^ 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 881 
 
 from his father, he removed to Coventry 
 Township, erected a residence on this land, a 
 part of the old homestead, where his family 
 now resides. In January, 1880, he was ap 
 pointed by Hon. Joseph Torney, Ti'easurer of 
 Ohio, to be Messenger in the office at Colum- 
 bus; he also had charge of the Attorney 
 General's office and the Mine Inspector's 
 rooms in the Capitol. Mr. Falor was, on 
 April 28, 1858, elected by the Council of Ak- 
 ron to be Deputy Marshal of the place, and 
 served for two years. He was Secretary of 
 the Summit County Agricultural Society for 
 four years, and Assistant nearly ever since its 
 organization; has been a member of the I. O. 
 O. F. for over twenty vears, and, as early as 
 1854, filled the office of Noble Grand in that 
 order; has also been a Mason since 1852. 
 He was married, July 1, 1854, to Miss Bertia 
 E., daiighter of Benjamin aud Bertia E. Agard, 
 and by her had four children — Benjamin 
 Stanton, died aged 8; Claude Emerson, now 
 a member of Co. G, 10th Regiment of the 
 regular army; Nancy Honora, died aged 7; 
 Minnie Florence, now at home. His first wife 
 died Jan. 2, 1872, and he was married a sec- 
 ond time to Mrs. Phoebe A. Lutz; two children 
 being the result of this onion — Hiram, Garce- 
 lon and Phebe. Mrs. Falor, by her former 
 husband, is the mother of two childi-en — Min- 
 nie C, now Mrs. Harry Flower; and Sylvester 
 E. Lutz. Mr. Falor is now at the age of 52, 
 in reasonalile good health and circumstances. 
 MOSES FALOR, farmer; P. O. Akron; 
 was born in the city of Akron ¥eh. 8, 1827, to 
 Abraham and Polly (Osborn) Falor; his 
 grandparents were Adam and Elizabeth Falor, 
 who came from Pennsylvania among the first 
 settlers of Stark Co., Ohio. The Osborns 
 were from the State of Connecticut. There 
 were ten children in his father's family, seven 
 sons and three daughters, of which the subject 
 of this sketch is the fifth son, and has lived 
 near the city of Akron his whole life, noting 
 the rapid progress of that place, in the build- 
 ing-up of the great manufacturing interests 
 of which she can now boast. Mr. Falor 
 received but a limited education, his time 
 being spent on the farm with his father in the 
 performance of the various duties connected 
 with farm life. His marriage occurred Feb. 
 
 10, 1858, to Hannah H. Wilson, born 1827, 
 Oct. 20, and daughter of Moses D. and Jane 
 (McCoy) Willson, who were among the first 
 settlers in Coventry Township. They have 
 had eight children, four sons and four daugh- 
 ters — Albert, born Feb. 22, 1854; Ida Jane, 
 Feb. y, 1856: Clinton, Oct. 10, 1857; Rollin 
 J., Dec. 18, 1859; Clara L., Sept. 12, 1868; 
 Grace N., Oct. 11, 1866; Cora May, Dec. 18, 
 1869; Jasper M., May 26, 1874. All are liv- 
 ing except Clara, who died Oct. 20, 1866. 
 Clinton was married July 18, 1880, to Isabel 
 Kintz, daughter of Samuel Kintz, and is 
 engaged in the molding-room at the Buckeye 
 Works. They are engaged quite extensively 
 in farming and dairying. They are members 
 of the Disciples' Church, respected and 
 esteemed as citizens. 
 
 ADAM GREEN WALT, grocer and farmer; 
 P. O. Akron; son of Michael and Henrietta 
 (Brehm) Greenwalt, who were natives of Ger- 
 many, but emigrated to America in 1841, and 
 settled in York State, where he worked at farm 
 work until 1848, when he came to Massillon 
 and worked in a warehouse for eight years; 
 then purchased a farm two and a half miles 
 north of that place, where he died Jan. 13, 
 1873, in his 54th year. His wife survives 
 him at the old homestead in her 60th year, 
 she coming to Massillon in 1889. Adam was 
 born Sept. 18, 1845; received a limited educa- 
 tion and enlisted Oct. 18, 1862, in Co. C, 13th 
 O. V. I., lander Capt. William B. Lamberts, at 
 Mansfield, and sworn in to service at Colum- 
 bus; thence to Cincinnati, Louisville and 
 Cave City, where he joined his regiment and 
 began the hard life of active soldiering, which 
 lasted for more than three years, during which 
 time he participated in all the hotly contested 
 battles and skirmishes engaged in by the 
 Southern army. At Murfreesboro, the regi- 
 ment was badly cut to pieces, siiflering great 
 loss; also at Mission Ridge, engaging in the 
 gi-eat charge at that place, with Grant the 
 great leader, by his side; thence to Knoxville, 
 Chattanooga and the seven months Georgia 
 campaign; then back to Chattanooga, Hunts- 
 ville, Franklin and Nashville, engaging in 
 the battle at that place; thence to Texas, 
 landing at Indianola; afterward to San Anto- 
 nio, where he was discharged by Capt. D. A. 
 
 Tv 
 
^ ^ 
 
 882 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Geiger, on the 26th day of October, 1865, after 
 having displayed great bravery and discharged 
 nobly the duties of a soldier. He is one of 
 the six or seven members of the original com- 
 pany, who returned home. He came to this 
 county about 1867, from Stark Co., and about 
 seven years later in company with his brother- 
 in-law, pui'chased the farm of 82 acres upon 
 which he now lives. He was married, Oct. 
 10, 1867, to Catharine Koontz, daughter of 
 Frederick and Charlotte (Dippey) Koontz, 
 who were natives of Grermany, but emigi-ated 
 to America about forty- live years ago. They 
 have three childi'en living — William Henry, 
 John and George Adam. 
 
 MATHIAS HARTEE, farmer; P. O. Ak- 
 ron. The Harter families in our county and 
 country have become quite numerous. The 
 original stock emigi-ated fi'om Wurtemberg, 
 Germany, in the year 1748. Three brothers 
 landed in that year in the city of Philadel- 
 phia. The colonial laws then allowed the 
 owners of ships to sell all emigrants for a 
 stated time, so as to pay their indebtedness to 
 the ihip. The voyage having been both tedi- 
 ous and perilous, all the emigrants had to be 
 sold for debts. One of the brothers being 
 lame he didn't bring anything on the block, 
 so the mother of the family, who was a stout 
 woman, was sold and worked out the indebt- 
 edness. Two of the brothers moved into the 
 interior of Pennsylvania, and one went to the 
 colony of New York and settled in the valley 
 of the Mohawk. The name was originally 
 Herder, similar to the Herder who was one 
 of Germany's most distinguished authors, the- 
 ologians and teachers. The names of some of 
 the Harters who were among the first settlers 
 in the southern jjart of this county are An- 
 di'ew, who settled near the village of Man- 
 chester, and Jac Harter, who lives now in 
 Coventry Township. These Harters are first 
 cousins. Andrew came to Franklin Township 
 in 1814. But John Harter, the father of Jac, 
 moved to Stark Co. previoiis to the war of 
 1812. The Harter family to which Andrew 
 and Jac belong, is noted for its longevity. 
 The former is past 87 years, while the latter 
 has rounded up his 88th year. Andrew has 
 now a brother living in Center Co., Penn., 
 who is 90 years old, and two sisters who are 
 
 past 80. The name of the original gi'and- 
 father who came fi'om Germany was Mathias. 
 It was he who was lame and did not bring 
 an^^thing. Andi'ew Harter's father's name 
 was John, who was born and raised in Leb- 
 anon Co., Penn. The family of Andrew Hai*- 
 ter consisted of five sons and one daughter, 
 who was the wife of Mi-. Daniel Diehl, of 
 Franklin Township. Two of the sons are 
 dead — Andrew and Isaac. George resides at 
 Independence, Iowa; Daniel and Mathias 
 reside in Coventry Township. The latter 
 lived in the State of Missouri when the Wcu* 
 of the rebellion broke out. And as he resided 
 in one of the hottest hot-beds of secession, he 
 had great opportunities to learn the real spirit 
 of the Southei'ners. After the fall of Fort 
 Sumter, he took his wife and two children 
 and started for Iowa, where he formerly re- 
 sided, and after locating them as comforta- 
 bly as he could, he enlisted in the Uth Regi- 
 ment of O. V. I. After the battles of Look- 
 out Mountain and Mission Ridge in the fall 
 of 1868, he re-enlisted for three years more, or 
 during the war. He was with Gen. Sherman 
 on his great march from Atlanta to the sea, 
 and thi-ough the Carolinas and Vii'ginia to 
 Washington, and was mustered out at Louis- 
 ville, Ky., in the month of Jrme, I860. After 
 the war was over, he moved with his family 
 to the city of Aki-on, where he started the 
 "Akron File Works," in the fall of 1868. 
 Mathias Harter was married, in 1855, to Miss 
 Sallie M. Hall, the youngest daughter of 
 John Hall, second of Springfield Township, 
 who was one of its earliest pioneers. The 
 family of Mathias Harter consists of three 
 sons — Edwin C, Sigel F. and James Hall; 
 and two daughters — Jennie Winona and Sal- 
 lie Belle. The two first sons and the first 
 daughter were born at Independence, Iowa; 
 of the remaining two, the daughter was born 
 in Aki'on, and the son in the township of Cov- 
 entry. 
 
 JOHN HEINTZ, farmer; P. O. Aki'on; 
 came to New York in August, 1884, from 
 Hesse, Hamburg, on the west side of the 
 Rhine, near Franlcfort-on-the-Main, which 
 country now belongs to Prussia. He was born 
 Oct. 24, 1812, to Peter and Louisa (Bauers) 
 Heintz; she was a daughter of George and 
 
COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 883 
 
 ^Margaret Bauers. His father was a promi- 
 nent farmer in his native country: his family 
 consisting of three sons and three daughters, 
 John being the only son now living: his old- 
 est sister living in Germany, the second, Loii- 
 isa, wife of Urias Whitner, of Coventry: and 
 Mary, wife of Joseph Slager. now residing near 
 Aurora, 111. John was married, March 20, 
 1886. in Cleveland, to Sophia Kech. daughter 
 of Conrad Kech, a prominent farmer of Trum- 
 l)ull Co.. Ohio: by her he had seven childi'eu, 
 two of whom died in infancy. Tohn F. in his 
 29th year, after having been married some 
 time to Susannah Renninger, who is also 
 deceased, leaving three children — Charles and 
 Edward, living in Bath Township, and Jo- 
 seph living with relatives in East Libei*ty. 
 There are four children living, one son and 
 tluve daughters — Louisa, wife of Louis Moore, 
 residing in Pine Bluffs, Ark. ; Sarah, wife of 
 Joseph Arnold, a farmer in Sharon Township, 
 Medina Co. : Amelia, widow of Hemy Bolin- 
 ger. she residing in Clarke Co.. Ind. : and 
 George, married to Sarah A. HaiTis, a farmer 
 in Bath Township. The fii'st wife of John 
 Heintz died in 1849: his second mamage 
 occurring May 20, 1851, to Margai'et (Rost) 
 Bollen, a daughter of Jacob and Agnes (Boll 
 inger) Bollen, who were natives of Schaff- 
 hausen, Switzerland, came to New Yoi'k in 
 1848; subsequently moving to Norton Town- 
 ship. Mr. Heintz after complying with the 
 requirements of the compulsory education 
 law, learned the painter's trade. After com- 
 ing to America he sought for work at his 
 trade, and not being able to speak the English 
 language, was unable to secure a position. 
 He then ti'aveled in search of work, a part of 
 his time being spent in Holmes Co., Ohio, 
 and in Cleveland, where he learned the butch- 
 er's trade, which he followed in the latter 
 place, and in Alo-on, subsequently learning the 
 cooper's trade which he followed until 1858, 
 when he moved to the farm which he now 
 occupies. He has held the various township 
 offices of trust, and with his family, are con- 
 nected with the Gennan Reformed Chiu'ch of 
 Akron. 
 
 GEORGE HEINTZ, farmer; P. O. Aki'on; 
 son of Philip, whose history appears in that of 
 John Heintz, in another place, was born Jan. 
 
 28, 18 7. Philip came from Germany in the 
 spring of 1845, to the farm on which our 
 subject now lives, with his wife, two sons and 
 two daughters — seven more, two sons and live 
 daughters being born after their emigi-ation 
 to Coventry Township, he dying Dec. 29, 187<), 
 in his f)7th year; of the whole number of 
 children eight are now living — two brothers, 
 Philip and John, in Bath Township, this 
 county, engaged in farming; one sister, for- 
 merly Mrs. Jacob Glass, who died in Kansas, 
 she afterward marrying Elias Gaskanbach, a 
 farmer in Miami Co., Kan., where they now 
 reside; the others are Mrs. Matilda Sherbondy, 
 whose husband is Superintendent in rubber 
 works: Mary, Mrs. Urias Kramer, also engaged 
 in rubber works ; Magdalena, a Mi-s. Eli Petrti, 
 engaged at the sewer-pipe works; Catharine, 
 formerly a Mrs. Philij^ Biu-gy, now a Mrs. 
 Philip Laubert, working at the Seiberling 
 Company Works; all residing in Akron. 
 George, the subject of this sketch, was mar- 
 ried to Mary M. Beck, bom Sept. 1, 1853, 
 and daughter of George Beck. They have 
 one child — George Philip, born Aug. 21, 
 1878. The mother of our subject is Mary 
 (Baird) Heintz, born Sept. 29, 1814. George 
 learned the potter's trade, at which he worked 
 eight years, the rest of his life being spent in 
 a general farm avocation. They are members 
 of the Trinity Lutheran Church, living Chi'is- 
 tian lives and commanding the respect of the 
 people. 
 
 ALEM HIGH, farmer; P. O. New Portage; 
 son of William High, who was born Feb. 18, 
 1796; he of Josiah High, a native of Berks 
 Co., Penn. William was mari'ied to Elizabeth 
 Reninger Sept. 10, 1822; she was boi-n Jan. 
 6, 1801, and died Sept. 3, 1872; they had 
 thi-ee childi-en — Alem, the subject of this 
 sketch, born June 1, 1823; Isaac, June 21, 
 1825; Anna Eliza, Dec. 18, 1828; all of whom 
 are living, the latter the wife of Rev. L. C. 
 Edmonds, married Feb. 1, 1850, and located 
 in Adamsburg, Snyder Co., Penn.; Isaac was 
 married to Mary Jane Ludwig; the second 
 marriage, to Jane Moore, with whom he is still 
 living in Medina; he engaged in the hardware 
 and gi'ocery business at that place. Alem was 
 married to Leah Wildi'oudt May 30, 1850, she 
 dying April 6, 1851 ; second marriage, to Mary 
 
 l9 
 
884 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Weirick, Aug. 29, 1854; expired July 21, 
 1868; third marriage, to Elizabeth Daily, 
 Nov. 2, 1805. By all maiTiages, he has had 
 teu children: By first wife, one, who died in 
 infancy; second, four children, two of whom 
 died in infancy; those living are Amasa Mil 
 ton, born Oct. 10, 1859; Sarah E., Sept. 26, 
 1861; third marriage, five — Leora, born Sept. 
 4, 1866; U. G., July 9, 1868; Milo, Feb. 26, 
 1870: Lvdia A., Oct. 23, 1871, died May 10, 
 1875: and Joshua, Jan. 8, 1875. William 
 High came to Springfield Township in the 
 spring of 1882, where he lived and worked at 
 the car})enter and joiner's trade for aliout 
 eleven years, then came to the farm upon 
 which his son now lives, and upon which he 
 has carried on a general farm life since, secur- 
 ing a district- school education. Our subject 
 has held the various township offices of trust; 
 is a liberal supporter of all the enterprises of 
 the township, and watchful in the advantages 
 of education for his family. 
 
 ELMER HOUSEL, Weighmaster at Sweit- 
 zer Shaft, Akron; is a son of Martin, born 
 Nov. 20, 1794, in Westmoreland Co., Penn., 
 and died Sept. 30, 1856, in his 63d year; he 
 is a son of Jacob Housel. Martin was one of 
 the first settlers in Coventry Township; his 
 first wife was Charlotte Brewster, a sister to 
 Alexander Brewster, whose sketch appears in 
 another place in this work. By this marriage 
 there were thi'ee children — Hiram, Jacob and 
 Lydia; second marriage, to Margaret Viers, 
 by whom he had twelve children, eight of 
 whom are living; they were as follows: Char- 
 lotte, Sarah, Martin, Liverton, Harrison, 
 Nancy, Martha, James, Alice, Elmer (the sub- 
 ject of this sketch), Benjamin and Oscar. All 
 are maiTied — Charlotte, wife of C. L. Good- 
 win, engaged in prospecting coal; residence, 
 Girard, Trumbull Co.. Ohio; Martin, a mill- 
 wright in Middlebury; Harrison, mail agent 
 on the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Rail- 
 road; Martha, wife of James Kilfoyle, who is 
 connected with the railroad at Niles, Ohio; 
 James, foreman in sewer-pipe company at 
 Middlebmy; Benjamin, a carpenter in North- 
 field, Cuyahoga Co., Ohio; Oscar, car[)enter 
 in Galesburg, 111. Our subject was born Feb. 
 25, 1846; attended school and worked on a 
 farm until 1 6 years of age, when he went to 
 
 Girard, Ohio, where he worked in a flouring- 
 mill eleven years, then engaged in the coal 
 business in difl:erent ptu'ts of the Mahoning 
 Valley, continuing in the same business, prin- 
 cipally, until the present time. He was mar- 
 ried, Oct. 3, 1871, to Rachael A. McCartney, 
 daughter of A. W. and Mary A. (Dunlap) 
 McCtu'tney, of Girard, Ohio. They have 
 three childi'en — Guy, born June 16, 1873; 
 Mary, Feb. 28, 1876; Elizabeth, Jan. 17, 
 1879. In November, 1880, after the opening 
 the new shaft of an extensive coal-mine on 
 the Sweitzer farm, he accepted his present 
 position — that of Weiglunaster. 
 
 HOUSTON KEPLER, faiTaer; P. O. New 
 Portage; is a son of Jacob Kepler, who was 
 born about 1797, in Center Co., Penn. His 
 father was John, a native of Bucks Co., Penn., 
 but moved with his family to Green Town- 
 ship, in 1802. The early ancestry were fi'om 
 Switzerland. John and a valuable horse were 
 instantly killed at a cider-press by being 
 struck with a heavy lever which became de- 
 tached. Jacob remained with his father until 
 18 years of age, when he began woi'king for 
 himself, returning, however, at harvest time, 
 to assist his father. At about 25 years of age, 
 he was man-ied to Susan Marsh, daughter of 
 Adam Marsh, an eai-ly -settler of Franklin 
 Township. Jacob was always a hard-working 
 man, with a gi-eat desire for the acquisition of 
 wealth, which he afterwju'd possessed. In 
 1822, he settled on the fann where his son 
 Houston now lives, which at that time was a 
 vast wilderness, bu.t, by clearing and gi'ubbing, 
 he became the possessor of more than 1,100 
 acres of land in Coventry Township. They 
 had thirteen children — foiu- sons and nine 
 daughters; six are living — two sons, both rep- 
 resented in this work; and foiu" daughters — 
 Mrs. Thomas Baughman, Mrs. Hemy Wise, 
 IVIi-s. Andi-ew Oberlin and Mrs. Solomon Ren- 
 inger. Huston was born Aug. 25, 1889; he 
 stayed with his father on the fann until his 
 marriage, which occvirred April 2, 1868, to 
 Catharine Foust, daughter of Abraham and 
 Elizabeth (Mauery ), daughter of Frederic and 
 Catharine (Hillygoss) Mauery, natives of 
 Pennsylvania. In 1850, the Fousts came 
 from near the southern line of the State of 
 Wisconsin, whither they had gone, a short 
 
 
I>^ 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 885 
 
 time before, from their native State, to Green 
 Township, where they purchased the place 
 known as the " Old Foust Farm." The old 
 people there died — the father on his birthday, 
 Oct. 20, 1875, aged ()G years; the mother, 
 Aug. 18, 1872, aged 5(5 years. Houston has 
 four children — Clara Alice, born Feb. 24, 
 1864: Lam-a Jane, Aug. 11, 1867; Maggie 
 Elizabeth, Oct. 18, 1872; and Nelson Eugene, 
 May 16, 1877. He was elected Clerk of the 
 township in the spring of 1864, which posi- 
 tion he held for six successive terms, and two 
 terms thereafter was .Treasiu'er one year, and 
 for the last fifteen years has held the office of 
 Justice of the Peace, and eleven years member 
 of the School Board, taking an active interest 
 in the progress of education. His life upon 
 the farm is more especially devoted to the rais- 
 ing of grain, the products of his farm being 
 from twelve to fifteen hundi'ed bushels of 
 wheat alone. He and family ai'e members of 
 the Refonned Chm'ch, and liberal givers to 
 the cause of religion and the building of 
 chm'ches. 
 
 SAMUEL KEPLER, fai-mer: P. O. New 
 Portage ; is a son of Jacob Kepler, a brief his- 
 tory of whom appears with that of Houston 
 Kepler, in this work. Samuel was born April 
 17, 1830, and received the educational advan- 
 tages of the old log schoolhouse of those pio- 
 neer days, with its puncheon floor and Con- 
 gress stove, with holes bored in the logs of the 
 building, and wooden pins driven in to support 
 their writing-desks, etc. At 21 years of age, 
 he engaged in farming on his present location, 
 which was a part of the land owned by his 
 father. He was married, Sept. 12, 1851, to 
 Suannah Swigait, daughter of George and 
 Elizabeth (Daily) Swigart, she a daughter of 
 John Daily, who was supposed to have been 
 the first settler in Franklin Township They 
 were natives of Bucks Co., Penn. By this 
 union there were seven children, five of whom 
 are living — Uriah A., born in 1852; Anna, 
 in 1855; Jacob, July 19, 1859; Samuel, Dec. 
 9, 1865; Minnie May, Dec. 5, 1871. Uriah 
 A. married Mary Lamb, daxighter of Nathan 
 Lamb, formerly a prominent business man of 
 this county. They are farming at Chanute, 
 Kan.; Anna, wife of Hon. Hugo C. Preyer, 
 formerly of the Ohio Staats Zritnng, at Canton, 
 
 now editor of the Great West, an independent 
 paper published at Denver, Colo. He is also 
 President of the Stonewall Mining Company. 
 The mines of this company, four in number, 
 are situated near Crosson, on the line of the 
 Denver & South Park Railroad, about forty- 
 eight miles from Denver. The camp is con- 
 sidered one of the best in the State, with a 
 capital of $1,000,000. He is also Secretary 
 of three other mines. Jacob, second son of 
 Samuel Kepler, has advanced to a considera- 
 ble degree of prominence as a township pol- 
 tician and a business man. He received a 
 district-school education, with the additional 
 advantages, for a short time, of the high 
 schools and College of Canton, Ohio, where he 
 was also engaged for a time as solicitor upon 
 the Ohio Staats Zeitung. When a lad of but 
 16 years, he became very much interested in 
 public matters, and, at 21 years of age, was 
 appointed by the Trustees to canvass the town- 
 ship for election purposes, on account of the 
 great niunber of transient men. He has 
 been for a considerable time a regular corre- 
 spondent of the Aki'on City Times, and is at 
 present living upon the farm with his father. 
 The subject of this sketch has held the various 
 township offices of trust since his marriage — 
 those of Trustee, Treasurer, and, in 1880, was 
 Assessor of real fistate. 
 
 JOHN P. KEPLER, Aki'on; projn-ietor of 
 the Farmers' Coal Bank, Coventry Township 
 Ohio, which was started in 1874, opening a 
 mine of coal of a superior quality, with a vein 
 averaging about four and a half feet, and em- 
 ploying at one time neai4y forty men. His 
 machinery consists of two engines, one of 
 •4ghty-five-horse power, the other of twenty- 
 horse power; being a practical engineer, he is 
 able to run his own power, as well as the gen- 
 eral superintendency of his mine. In 1878, 
 he began utilizing his power by engaging in 
 wood-tm-ning of all kinds, and light sawing; 
 but, on the 18th of February, 1880, his build- 
 ing, 86x46, was destroyed by fire, entailing 
 upon him a heavy loss. He was born March 
 5, 1849, to John A., the son of Andi-ew and 
 ^Iaria Kintz, the latter a daughter of John 
 Kintz, of Chippewa Township, Wayne Co., 
 Ohio. His boyhood was spent in Green Town- 
 ship, where he was born, working on a farm 
 
 t) ^ 
 
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and at the carpenter's trade. He afterward 
 went to Alu'on, where he learned the machin- 
 ist's trade, having before had some experience 
 in that branch of machinery, so that he is now 
 able to biiild an engine complete. Afterward, 
 for abont a year, he kept a meat market, and, 
 since being engaged in the business of mining, 
 has devoted some time to prospecting for coal 
 and the stxidy of geology. He was married, 
 Jnly 27, 1865, to Lovina Stroman, daughter 
 of John Stroman, of Springfield Township. 
 They have two children — Clara M., born Jnne 
 9, 18r5<l: and Hem'v Edgar, Feb. 4, 187U. 
 
 JOHN KITTINGER, retired farmer; P. O. 
 Akron; was born east of the city of Lancaster. 
 Perm., Aug. 28, 1809. His father was Abra- 
 ham, son of Casper, whose father came from 
 Germany abont one hundred years ago. His 
 mother, Elizabeth Hunsicker, a native of 
 Switzerland, came to this coiuitry in about the 
 year 1800. The subject of this sketch has 
 spent his life in farming and fancy- coverlet 
 weaving, being at present engaged, to a lim- 
 ited extent, in the latter occupation, his ap- 
 j)renticeship being completed when not quite 
 21 years of age, so that, for more than half a 
 century, he has plied his trade. In the year 
 183H,he came from the land of his nativity to 
 New Portage, where he resided for about two 
 years, then returned to the East to pxu'chase 
 machinery for weaving purposes. He was 
 married, in the spring of 1885, to Soj)hia 
 Babb, daughter of George Babb, one of the 
 early settlers of Springfield Townshij^; five 
 childi'en blessed this union, three of whom are 
 still living — Jacob, born Feb. 19, 1887; 
 George, Sept. 23, 1888, died in infancy; 
 David, Oct. 25, 1840; Levi, May 26, 1842; 
 and Amanda, Sept. 28, 1850. All thi-ee of his 
 sons served in the cause of their country — 
 Levi in the 14th Ohio Battery, under Ca})t. 
 BiuTows, (lying April 15. 1852, of a fever 
 which he contracted at Pittsbm-g Landing: 
 David served three years in the 29th O. V. I., 
 imder Col. Buckley, and was discharged after 
 the battle of Atlanta; retm-ning home, he en- 
 gaged in work at the wagon-maker's trade at 
 Hammond's Corners, Bath Township, this 
 county, where he still resides; Jacob resided 
 in Randolph Co., Ill,, with his family, where 
 he joined a regiment and entered the service; 
 
 being taken prisoner soon after, he lay at 
 Richmond until that city was taken by the 
 Union forces; he is now residing at Pmis 
 Landing, engaged in coopering and carpenter- 
 ing. Mr. Kittinger's wife died March 2(5, 
 1870. He is a stanch old Republican, and 
 has been a member of the Gennan Reformed 
 Church f(jr nearly fifty years. 
 
 CHARLES F^ KOHLER, Akion; the old- 
 est of a family of five sons and one daughter; 
 born Sept. 6, 1855, to Andrew; he of Andi-ew 
 and Sarah Fisher, daughter of John Fisher. 
 He is of German- English descent. Charles' 
 father was for many years engaged in gene- 
 ral merchandising at Richfield and Jersey 
 Shore, in the State of Pennsylvania, where, in 
 Jtmiata Co., Charles was born, and received 
 all the educational advantages of his commu- 
 nity; then, after moving to Akron, in the 
 spring of 1870, he completed the high school 
 term and took a coiu'se at the Ol^erlin Commer- 
 cial School, where he received a diploma for 
 proficiency. On the 1st of January, 1879, 
 he accepted the position of Weighmaster and 
 book-keeper at the Sunnnit Mine, formerly 
 the old Steese Mine. He was married, April 
 10, 1879, to Alice Brittain, daiighter of John 
 T. Brittain whose history appears in the bio- 
 grai)hical department of Springfield Township, 
 of this work. They have one child — Burt B., 
 born Feb. 4, 1 880. Charles' only sister, Mrs. 
 Ferdinand Diebold, residing in Cleveland; his 
 oldest brother, John, stiidying medicine with 
 Dr. Leight; the others ai'e attending school, 
 the father being careful that his children im- 
 prove their educational advantages. 
 
 SIMON P. MARSH, teacher and farmer: 
 P. O. Akron. The ancestors of this estimable 
 gentleman were natives of the State of Penn- 
 sylvania, near Williamsport: his father, George 
 L., was born Feb. 7, 1808, and died April 18, 
 1870, the son of Atlam, a car]>euter by trade, 
 who came to Franklin Townshi}), this county, 
 about 1819, and died in 1862 or 18(58, aged 
 about 82 years. George L. received a very 
 limited education on account of the early re- 
 moval of his father to the above-named town- 
 ship, and the prevailing idea of those early 
 times that work was more necessary than edu- 
 cation; his services were, at a tender age, 
 demanded ui)on the fann. He was married 
 
^w 
 
 COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 887 
 
 to Elizabeth Hane. Dec. 1, 1881 : she was born 
 July 20, IcSll, and died Nov. 2, 1867. By 
 this union there were six sons and six daugh- 
 ters — George Adam, born Dec. 8, 1882; John 
 Jacob, Dec. 80, 1883; Samuel Christian. Aug. 
 25, 1885; Nancy, April 4, 1887; Lovina, Jan. 
 8, 1889; Elizabeth, April 8, 1840; Sarah, 
 April 7. 1842; the two last are dead — the lat- 
 ter, wife of John Myers, by whom she had 
 one child Ida Elizabeth, born June 22, 
 1862; William Henry, Jan. 22, 1844; Hiram 
 Franklin, Nov. 28, 1845; Simon Peter, April 
 5, 1848: Harriet, May 8, 1850; and Amanda, 
 Sept. 16, 1852. Mr. Marsh, before his mar- 
 riage, entered 160 acres of land, which he 
 afterward cleared up, and raised the large 
 family mentioned above, ten of whom are still 
 living, all the sons having been teachers, 
 George teaching and farming in Marshall Co., 
 Ind. ; William teaching and carpentering in 
 Tallmadge Township; John farming in Stark 
 Co. ; the others are residents of Franklin 
 Township ; the daughters are wives of the sons 
 of the earliest and most prominent early set- 
 tlers of that township. Simon P. began teach- 
 ing at 16 years of age, having received h s 
 certificate to teach when but 1 5 years of age; 
 he has now taught his twentieth term of dis- 
 trict school. He was married, Oct. 15, 1872, 
 to Sophia E. Young, born July 21, 1848, in 
 Franklin Township, daughter of Samuel, the 
 son of Abraham Yoiuig; her mother was Sarah 
 Shook, daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Ven- 
 sall) Shook, natives of Pennsylvania, but early 
 settlers of Franklin Township. They have 
 had four childi-en, one dying in infancy : those 
 living are Ellery Leroy, born Aug. 1, 1874; 
 Charles Gilbert,' March 1, 1877; and Etta 
 Elizabeth, March 26, 1 879. He pui-chased the 
 beautiful farm upon which he now lives in 
 March, 1 874, and, in the spring following, his 
 removal to the township, was elected to the 
 office of TowTiship Clerk, which position he 
 has held to the present time, except the year 
 1879. He and family are members of the 
 Reformed Church ; a prominent Democrat, and 
 an enterprising yoimg man. 
 
 SAMUEL W.' MILLER (deceased); was 
 bom in Westmoreland Co., Penn., Dec. 6, 
 1812, and died Jan. 28, 1881, suddenly, of 
 heart disease; his parents were Jesse and 
 
 Elizabeth (Weaster) Miller, both of whom 
 lived to a great age — she about 106 years. 
 They came from Venango Co., Penn., to the 
 farm on which the widow now lives, in Janu- 
 ary, 1865, after having resided in many difier- 
 ent places in ttieir native State, he being a 
 stone-mason by trade, but afterward engaging 
 in farming; his father, Jesse, was a miller by 
 trade, and a school-teacher of considerable 
 prominence. Samuel married Elizabeth Seger 
 June 11, 1888, daughter of John, he of John 
 and Ann (Rhodenbush), she of Jacob and Ann 
 Rhodenbush. They had eleven children, 
 fom- of whom died in childhood; those living 
 are William J. M., born March 8, 1884; 
 Mary Caroline, Dec. 12, 1886; John H., May 
 12, 1889; Sarah Ann, Nov. 80, 1841; Eunice 
 C, July 2, 1847; Hannah M., Jvme 4, 1856; 
 and George W., April 28, 1859. William 
 married Elizalieth Honn, who was born in 
 Philadelphia; they have two children — John 
 L. and Sarah A., who, at this wi-iting, reside 
 in Venango Co., Penn. William, being called 
 here by the death of his father, is contem- 
 plating a removal to this State to assist his 
 mother in the management of the farm; the 
 second is Mrs. James Graham, living in Wood 
 Co., Ohio; the third, to Amanda Gregg; they 
 reside in Aki'on; the fourth, a Mrs. Samuel 
 Foster, who is a mechanic in the knife-works 
 at Akron: the fifth, a Mrs. Earnest B. Teits, a 
 tailor at Akron. The two youngest are at 
 home. Mr. Miller was a man respected by 
 the ]ieo|)le of his commianity, and, with his 
 wife, members of the chmx-h, and gave liber- 
 ally of their means for the support of the 
 cause of religion and the advancement of the 
 people. 
 
 SAMPSON MOORE, Jr., farmer; P. O. 
 Akron; the youngest of six childi-en — four 
 sous and tAVO daughters — of Sampson Moore, 
 who came from the County Antrim, near Bal- 
 lymena, Ireland, in May 1822, landing at 
 Fairport, Ohio, and going fi'om there to 
 Painesville. Lake Co., Ohio. Sampson, Sr., 
 died nine days after landing at Fairport, and 
 his widow afterward married one James Hall, 
 and, in March, 1826, moved to the farm upon 
 which the subject of this sketch now lives. 
 The ste})-father died about two years later, 
 and the mother Sept 7, 1855, at about 68 
 
 <s~ 
 
 ■ v^ 
 
M'. 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 years of age. She was Jane Kerr, a native of 
 Ireland, and daughter of Robert and Mar- 
 garet (Boyd) Kerr, who was a sister of Gen. 
 Boyd, of Revolutionary fame, who died in 
 New York City. The Kerr family was form- 
 erly of Scotland, but moved into Ireland, and, 
 like the Boyd family, became very wealthy 
 and of considerable prominence. Mr. Moore 
 was married, Jan. 10, 1864, to Mary E. Shutt, 
 daughter of Abraham and Catharine (Gregg) 
 Shutt, who were natives of Maryland — the 
 Greggs of Pennnsylvania. They have four 
 children — Jane C, born Feb. 21, 1865; Emma 
 T., Nov. 26. 1869; Louisa M., Oct. 17, 1871; 
 and James S., May 26, 1875. The Moores 
 were of English descent, Sampson's grand- 
 father being sent from England to Ireland as 
 legal agent for an estate. James Moore, a 
 brother to Sampson, is probably responsible 
 for the p appearing in that name; he was a 
 jeweler at No. 68 High street, Belfast, and, 
 upon the face of an "old bull's-eye" watch, 
 which he presented to his brother, he used the 
 letters of the name to mark the hour, instead 
 of figiu-es or other characters, and supj)lying 
 the deficiency in the number of letters. Mr. 
 Moore is a member of the Disciples' Church, 
 a stanch Republican, and a man of considera- 
 ble prominence in the township in which he 
 lives. 
 
 GEORGE PROEHL, farmer; P. O. Aki-on; 
 was born April 9, 1822, to George and Chris- 
 tine (Boedchel) Proehl, who were natives of 
 Saxe Altenburg, Germany; his father was 
 a grain-dealer in that country, dying when 
 the subject of this sketch was at a very tender 
 age, probably about 1825, at about 50 years 
 of age. George is the youngest of six chil 
 dren, all of whom are dead except an older 
 sister, who still resides in their native coun- 
 try. He received his education under the 
 compulsory laws of the country, was a soldier 
 from 1842 to 1846, serving the required time 
 as a regular; then went on the reserve force 
 for two years, after which he received his 
 freedom. In the fall of 1848, he came to 
 America, shipping from Bremen to New York, 
 where he landed after a forty-three days' voy- 
 age; he immediately came to Akron, where he 
 worked the first ten years at his trade, that of 
 stone-cutting and masonry. In 1858, he pur- 
 
 chased the farm upon which he now lives, 
 moving to the same in the spring of 1859, and 
 has been working at his trade and farming 
 since that time. He was married, July 1, 
 1849, to Louisa Loose, who was born May 21, 
 1825. to Gottfried and Elizabeth Loose, who 
 were also natives of Saxe Altenburg, Ger- 
 many. She came to America without her par- 
 ents in the year of her marriage. They have 
 had eight children; one died in infancy; the 
 oldest, Louis J., born July 18, 1850; George, 
 March 8, 1852; William, May 14, 1854; 
 Maria Matilda, April 18, 1856; John Frank- 
 lin, Aug. 8, 1861; Emma, Aug. 17, 1864, and 
 Sarah Ida, Jan. 29, 1867. Loiiis is a grad- 
 uate of the college at Lebanon, Ohio; also, .n 
 1879, graduated from the Ohio Medical Col- 
 lege at Cincinnati, and is now practicing with 
 Dr. Underwood, in the city of Akron. George, 
 Jr., married Amanda Burgner; William mar- 
 ried Allie S. Vandersall Dec. 7, 1879, by 
 whom he has one child — John Martin, bom 
 Sept. 6, 1880; he is engaged in farming in 
 Coventry. Maria M. is the wife of John R. 
 Davis, who is teacher of a graded school 
 started by himself at Brecksville; he is also a 
 graduate of Lebanon, Ohio. They were mar- 
 ried April 18, 1880. Mr. Proehl and family 
 are members of church, and he a liberal sup- 
 porter of religious and educational privileges. 
 ISAAC ROMIG, farmer; P. O. New Por- 
 tage; is a son of Jesse Romig, a native of Le- 
 high Co., Penn., who died in 1867, in his 85th 
 year; he was the youngest of five children — 
 four sons and one daughter, all of whom are 
 dead. Isaac was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, 
 March 14, 1827. Jesse came from his native 
 county to Wooster in the fall of 1826, where 
 he lived four years, then removed to Thomp- 
 son Township, Seneca Co., where he died. 
 He was the father of thirteen children, all of 
 whom lived until after 21 years of age; there 
 are at present two sons and five daughters livr 
 ing, our subject next to the youngest. Their 
 residences are as follows: John, a farmer in 
 Marshall Co., Ind. ; Susannah, widow of 
 Michael Kern, Thompson Township, Seneca 
 Co. ; Polly, widow of Samuel Shirk, living in 
 the State of Michigan; Juliana, a maiden liv- 
 ing with the last- mentioned; Catharine, wife 
 of John Good, a farmer of some official ])rom- 
 
COVENTRY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 'lU 
 
 inence in Stark Co., Ind. ; Martha, wife of 
 George Collier, a farmer in York Township, 
 Sandusky Co., Ohio. Our subject received a 
 very limited education, attending the district 
 school about six months, his time being occu- 
 pied upon the farm with his father until 20 
 years of age, after which he worked by the 
 month for a time. In February 1850, he was 
 married to Lucy Ann Good, daughter of Ad- 
 am Good. By her he had two children, she 
 dying in June, 1855, in Stark Co., Ind., 
 whither they had gone shortly after marrige. 
 His second marriage was to Mary Good, in 
 December, 1856, a cousin to his tirst wife; by 
 the latter marriage there were eight children, 
 two of whom died in childhood; those living 
 are Sarah Matilda, born March 21, 1851, now 
 the wife of Robert Paul, the present County 
 Sui'veyor, living in Akron; Mary Magdalene, 
 born Oct. 23, 1853, the wife of Moses Werley, 
 a carpenter and cabinet-maker in Wadsworth, 
 Ohio. Emma L., born Aug. 28, 1862; Hiram 
 F., Aug. 31, 1865; George W., July 4, 1868; 
 Clara A., Oct. 6, 1871; Charles N., Sept. 12, 
 1875; Archie H., Aug. 16, 1878. Mr. Romig 
 has been a member of the School Board of 
 his township, taking an active interest in the 
 education of his family; his business is grain 
 and stock raising. He and family are mem- 
 bers of the Grace Reformed Church. After 
 ten years' life in Indiana, and meeting with 
 many reverses in trying to secure a home, he 
 sought a new field in Siunmit Co., Ohio, were, 
 after many trials and hardships, he has, by 
 diligence and perseverance, secured one of the 
 most beautiful homes in Coventry Township. 
 RILEY ROOT, farmer; P. O. New Portage; 
 is the youngest of eight sons, one daughter 
 being younger; he was born June 30, 1807, 
 his parents being Reuben and Sarah (McMil 
 lin) Root, natives' of Canaan, Conn., but came 
 to Coventry Township in the winter of 1818, 
 and engaged in farming, at time when the 
 city of Akron consisted of only three log cab- 
 ins, Cleveland and Canton being the nearest 
 markets. The subject of this sketch received 
 a very limited education, his time being em- 
 ployed in farming and at odd jobs of clearing. 
 He was married, Sept. 27, 1827, to Lucinda 
 Manning, who was born Jan. 29, 1812, to John 
 and Sophia (Cogswell) Manning. They have 
 
 had five children — Fannie, born Jan. 11, 1828, 
 married Jan. 24, 1847, to Orson Moore, and 
 died Jan. 19, 1875; Orpha, born Dec. 27, 
 1829, married, July 1, 1852, to John Meredith, 
 a resident of Bath; Harriet, born Sept. 21, 
 1833, married Sept. 2, 1852, to N. C. Minor, 
 a resident of Johnson's Corners; William, 
 born Dec. 27, 1835, married, Oct. 6, 1859, to 
 Rosetta Bunker, who died Oct. 23, 1872; he 
 re-married March 20, 1873, to Mary Ann 
 Smith (McCune); Olive, born Sept. 1, 1839, 
 married, Nov. 10, 1859, to Charles Ingersoll. 
 They have lived on their preseent homestead 
 for forty- four years, clearing up all the land 
 and making progress with the times. Mr. 
 Root was, in his you.nger days, an expert with 
 the rifle, having at one shot killed two deer, 
 and on several occasions two tmrkeys; he has 
 been an honest and industrious farmer all his 
 days, and, with his noble wife, is a member of 
 the M. E. Chui-ch. 
 
 FRANKLIN E. RENINGER, farmer; P. 
 O. Akron; is a son of Solomon Reninger, 
 deceased, born Sept. 26, 1830, in the State of 
 Pennsylvania, and came to Coventry in the 
 spring of 1831, he a son of John and Mary 
 (Spotts) Reninger. Mr. Reninger was a man 
 of many pleasing characteristics, and his 
 death, which occm'red April 1, 1870, after 
 nearly fifty years of life among the people of 
 Coventry, was greatly lamented by the people 
 of many years' acquaintance. His wife, who 
 is still living, is Lovina Kepler (see sketch of 
 Kepler family). Franklin was born July 10, 
 1855; being second son of a large family, 
 his educational advantages were limited ; how- 
 ever, he has taken an active part in the differ- 
 ent enterprises of the township. He was mar- 
 ried, June 22, 1874, to Catharine Ries, born 
 May 25, 1858, to Henry, a son of Nicholas 
 Ries, who were natives of Hesse-Cassel, near 
 Unter-Haun, Germany; he came to America 
 in 1845, in his 17th year. Her mother was 
 Elizabeth Brehm, daughter of Conrad and 
 Elizabeth (Karr) Brehm, natives of Bavaria, 
 Germany; she came to this country in 1846, 
 in her 14th year. By this mamage there 
 were three childi*en born — Lizzie, Dec. 18, 
 1875; Clara, Oct. 5, 1879; and one who died 
 in infancy. IVIr. Reninger carries on gene- 
 ral farming and stock-raising ; is a member of 
 
 "r>" 
 
890 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 the Coventry Center Cornet Band, and Clerk 
 of School Board, taking a lively interest in 
 the advancement of education. 
 
 SAMUEL STEFFEE, farmer; P. O. Sum- 
 mit: was born Jan. 2, 1819, to Adam, a son of 
 Leonard Steftee who were natives of Hunting- 
 don Co., Penn., where they resided, and were 
 engaged as tillers of the soil. The father of 
 oTir subject died in 1878, in his 84th year. 
 Samuel's mother was Sally Stroup, daughter 
 of Adam and Eve Stroup, who were also 
 natives of the State of Pennsylvania. He ob- 
 tained his education, which is moderate, by 
 carefully utilizing the spare moments which 
 he had from labor, the whole time that he 
 spent in school being but one-half day, his 
 father having moved into Venango Co. as one 
 among the first settlers, and when the schools 
 were more than five miles distant. He as- 
 sisted his father on the farm until about 21 
 years of age, when he engaged at the charcoal 
 works, at which employment he was engaged 
 nearly thirty years. He was married about 
 1844, to Margery Allen, daughter of Gen. 
 George Allen, who was one of seven brothers 
 engaged in the war of 1812, but returned 
 home at the close of the war, having 
 passed safely through many hair- breadth 
 escapes with the Indians. By this mar- 
 riage there were seven children, four of 
 whom are living — Thomas, Louisa, Narcissa 
 and Samuel. The three oldest are married 
 and living — Thomas, in Coventry Town- 
 ship; Louisa, wife of Charles Carpenter, 
 in Portage Township; Narcissa, wife of John 
 Nichols, a farmer in Copley; Samuel, at 
 home. His second marriage was to Sarah 
 Jane Manross (Manson), daughter of George 
 and Sarah (Burdick) Manross, who were 
 natives of York State; she, by her first mar- 
 riage, had five children — Louis, Robert, Eu 
 phemia, Mary T. and George Washington, all 
 living, the four oldest married; by her mar- 
 riage to Mr. Steffee she has two children — 
 Jesse and Elmira. Jesse Manross, who was a 
 relative or Mrs. Steffee's, was also engaged in 
 the war or 1812, and captured by the Indians, 
 with whom he lived a short time, sharing the 
 life of a prisoner with other comrades among 
 the Indians, but finally made a very narrow 
 escape. Mr. Steffee came to Coventry in the 
 
 spring of 1865, where he has since been a 
 prominent Kepublican and grain-raiser, also 
 taking part in all the different enterprises of 
 his township. 
 
 AUSTIN A. SPICER, fcU-mer and coal- 
 dealer; P. O. Akt'on; son of Avery Spicer, 
 whose history appears in the part devoted to 
 the city of Akron; was bom Feb. 27, 1834, 
 and spent his early years in securing a good 
 common-school education sufficient to qualify 
 him for teaching, which he engaged in while 
 traveling tlu"0Ugh the States of Michigan and 
 Illinois in the year 1855, and a part of 1856. 
 In the year 1857, March 19, he was married 
 to Julia A. Lantz, born Nov. 22, 1835, to 
 Jacob and Elizabeth (Albert) Lantz, the 
 mother being a native of Hagerstown, Md., 
 the father of the State of New Jersey, but 
 among the early settlers in the southern part 
 of Springfield Township, this county. They 
 have foTir children — Julia Mav, born July 5, 
 
 1859, and died Sept. 15, 1860; ' Ernest, Albert 
 K., Lizzie Beatrice. Mr. Spicer, in the year 
 
 1860, went to California, where he intended 
 making his futm'e home, and engaged in min- 
 ing for a time, but, on account of the death of 
 his daughter, he returned to Coventry and 
 engaged in the stock business and farming. 
 Since 1875, he has been engaged in the coal 
 business, mining fi'om his own fann, and in 
 running a coal- dock in the city of Akron, where 
 he is now doing business. Mrs. Spicer has 
 an old German Bible, printed in 1727, and 
 handed down to her fi'om her great-grand- 
 mother; also several other relics of antiquity. 
 
 ELIAS L. THORNTON, farmer; P. O. 
 Akron; son of David Thornton, who came 
 from the land of his nativity, Snyder Co., 
 Penn., to Coventry Township in 1836, his 
 father, Jolin Thornton, following in 1839. 
 Elias, the subject of this sketch, was born 
 April 25, 1850, on the fai'm where he now re- 
 sides, receiving, in his eai'lier life, a very lim- 
 ited education, on account of not being able 
 to iinderstand the English language, so that 
 the success with which he has met is due to 
 his own energy and business tact. In about 
 the year 1 870, he began ranning a restaurant, 
 belonging to his father, in the city of Aki-on, 
 in which business he continued about two 
 years, the latter half of the second yeai" for 
 
 ^ (■ 
 
hL 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 891 
 
 himself, having purchased the business of 
 his father, who died April 23, 1874, since 
 which time Elias has had charge of the large 
 farm contained in the old homestead, in addi- 
 tion to a 53-acre lot adjoining, which he pur- 
 chased a few years ago. He has, also, in con- 
 nection with his large farming interests, em- 
 ployed men as blacksmiths and harness-mak- 
 ers in shops on his own farm, and extensively 
 engaged in the lumber business, furnishing 
 from his own land timbers fc-r the different 
 coal mines in Coventry Township, and, in 
 partnership with the Swartz brothers, pur- 
 chased several acres of timber land near Man- 
 chester, Franklin Township, which was fur- 
 nished in ties to the railroad company. In 
 the early part of the centennial decade, he en- 
 tered into partnership with the Motz brothers, 
 at Uniontown, in the tannery business, which 
 
 they continued for about two years, when they 
 sold the stock and retired from the business, 
 retaining the real estate, which they hold 
 jointly at the present time. He has charge, 
 on the old homestead, of one of the finest 
 pleasure-grounds in Summit Co., it being 
 finely located on the reservoir, where can be 
 found the best of boating and fishing, and 
 having every modern convenience, makes it a 
 most popular summer resort. He is now 
 building a store-room on his farm adjoining 
 the mines, for the pvu'pose of supplying the 
 farmers and mining trade. He was married, 
 Sept. 7, 1S75, to Alice Stahl, daughter of 
 Benjamin and Catharine (Sholley) Stahl, 
 formerly of the city of Akron. They had 
 three children; two are living — Dora Belle 
 and Grace Leona. 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 HIEAM Y. BRONSON ; Peninsula ; is a 
 son of Harmon and Molly (Hickox) Bron- 
 &on, who were natives of Wateibury. Conn. 
 Harmon was born Dec. 18, 1774 ; his wife Dec. 
 
 17, 1777. They were united in marriage Dee. 
 
 18, 1795, and, with his father's famil}-, came to 
 Ohio in 1809. Harmon settled in Cleveland 
 with his famil}', wbile his father went on to 
 Cohimbia, Lorain Co., where he resided until 
 his death in 1816. Harmon Bronson was by 
 trade a carpenter, and was occupied in this 
 business during his residence in Cleveland, the 
 place at that time scarcely meriting the name 
 of village. Upon the breaking-out of the war 
 of 1812, he sent his wife and family to Connec- 
 ticut, but the}' only reached a town in New 
 York State, however, when their money was 
 exhausted, and she remained there all winter, 
 working in a hotel ; and, at the close of the war, 
 she took a presented opportunity to ride back 
 to Cleveland in a lumber wagon. In 1815, 
 Harmon removed to Lorain County, where he 
 engaged in farming, remaining there until 1821, 
 and then returned to Cleveland. He remained 
 there but a short time, however, moving to 
 Boston Township and locating at Peninsula, 
 where the remainder of his days were passed. 
 He became a large land-owner, and was largely 
 
 interested in developing the business interests 
 of the township. He erected the first saw and 
 grist mill at that place, which he successfully 
 conducted for some 3'ears. His death occurred 
 upon the anniversary^ of his birth and mar- 
 riage, Dec. 18, 1853. His wife died Feb. 18. 
 1858. Hiram Y. Bronson was born in Cleve- 
 land in 1811, and came with his parents to 
 Peninsula in 1824, where he has since resided. 
 Upon the death of his father, he succeeded him 
 in his milling and various enterprises. He has 
 been an active participant in all public enter- 
 prises ; has striven to promote all measures 
 conducing to the best interests of the com- 
 munit}', and has been instrumental in securing 
 for Peninsula such advantages as will last as 
 long as does the community. He has served 
 as Justice of the Peace, and as Assistant T'nited 
 States Internal Revenue Collector for four years, 
 and as Postmaster for eight years. He is now 
 pleasantly situated, retired from active life, but 
 alwa3s finds time to lend a helping hand to 
 an}' enterprise which tends to promote the wel- 
 fare of the community with which he has been 
 so long identified. To the fund of reminis- 
 cences and historical facts which he has gath- 
 ered during his life of nearly 7(1 3'ears, the 
 historian of Boston Township is chiefly in- 
 
 j^ 
 
Al, 
 
 892 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 debted for the material of his sketch. Mr. 
 Bronson was united in marriage, in 1835, to 
 Miss Ruth L. Ranney, a native of Ohio, and 
 daughter to Comfort and Betsey (Hubbard) 
 Ranney, pioneers of Boston Township, a more 
 complete sketch of whom will be found else- 
 where in this department. Of the children 
 born to Mr. and Mrs. Bronson, Lucy, born May 
 1, 1838, married P. H. Dudley, C. E., Dec. 12, 
 1871. Mr. Dudley is the inventor of the " dyna- 
 graph " — a car so constructed that by passing 
 over a road he can give an accurate chart, 
 showing its exact condition as to the rail, road- 
 bed, natui-al resistance, speed, amount of coal 
 and water used by engine, grade, etc. This is 
 one of the most intricate and valuable inven- 
 tions of modern times. Mr. Dudley's first car 
 was constructed for the Victorian Grovernment 
 for the railways of Australia. He is now con- 
 stantly employed in examining the railroads of 
 this country, and can be found most of the 
 time with his family in his car, which is fitted 
 out with elegant appointments. Mr. Dudley is 
 also the inventor of an electric clock, which is 
 making a sensation in scientific circles. Emily 
 v., born May 7, 1843. was married to Hon. A. 
 L. Conger, of Akron, Nov. 1, 1864. Mr. Conger 
 is one of Akron's most prominent citizens, of 
 whom an extended sketch will be found else- 
 where in this work. Harmon, born Aug. 15, 
 1846, has traveled extensively, and is a prom- 
 ising young business man, at present living in 
 Philadelphia, engaged in business connected 
 with the electric clock of Mr. Dudley's inven- 
 tion. 
 
 FREDERICK. N BOIES, retired farmer, 
 Peninsula. Perhaps none of the older settlers 
 of the township have passed through such a 
 varied and interesting career as the subject of 
 this sketch. He was born in New Hampshire 
 in 1800, and remained with his father, who was 
 a farmer, until he was 17 years of age, when he 
 engaged in lumbering upon the St. Croix River 
 for three years. He then returned home, and 
 for a year engaged in the mercantile trade, after- 
 ward in the stock business, and finally in lum- 
 bering, which he continued for four years, and 
 then, after a few months, devoted to various 
 occupations, he went to Portland, Conn., and 
 farmed three years. While there, he was mar- 
 ried to Miss Elizabeth Lewis, who was born in 
 1805. They were married Jan. 5, 1830. After 
 his marriage, Mr. B. was boss teamster in the 
 
 famous freestone quarries of Portland for three 
 years. In the fall of 1834, he removed with his 
 family to Ohio, and bought a piece of land in 
 Northampton Township, remaining there three 
 years, when he removed to Stow Township, and 
 started a blacksmith-shop, which he conducted 
 for some time, bis family enjoying the superior 
 school advantages of that township. He traded 
 his shop, after a time, for 80 acres of land, upon 
 which he remained one year, and then bought 
 and located upon 110 acres of land in Boston 
 Township. In 1849, he went to California, l)ut 
 returned in about one year, and resumed farm- 
 ing and dairying. One day, while milking, he 
 was stricken with paralysis, from which be par- 
 tially recovered, and, exposing himself, caught 
 cold, which resulted in the loss of bis eyesight. 
 Since June, 1876. he has not been able to see a 
 ray of light. Mentally, Mr. Boies is as vigorous 
 as he was in his prime, and relates, with minute 
 dates, interesting reminiscences of the former 
 days of his busy life. Himself and wife are 
 members of the Episcopal Church, in which be 
 is Senior Warden. They are now living in Pe- 
 ninsula, and enjoj^ the satisfaction of having 
 raised a worth}- family of children, viz., Mrs. 
 Ann L. Cole, Peninsula, Ohio ; Mrs. Mary Wor- 
 thington, who died in Connecticut ; Chai'les E., 
 Fred W., Mrs. Effie A. Worthington, of Portland, 
 Conn., and Helen, who died at the age of 14, in 
 Boston Township. 
 
 CHARLES E. BOIES is a young and promis- 
 ing business man of Peninsula. He was born in 
 Stow Township, in 1840. At about the age of 
 15, he went to Connecticut, from which place he 
 took passage upon a coasting vessel. In Au- 
 gust, 1862, be enlisted in the 20th Conn. V. I., 
 and was in active service during all the rebellion, 
 after wliich he again went to sea for a year. In 
 the fall of 1867, he came to Peninsula, and 
 started a meat market, after which he engaged 
 upon the canal a year ; and, in 1872, went into 
 partnership with bis brother, F. W. Boies, who 
 was engaged in milling at Peninsula, which 
 business they operated together until January, 
 1880, when be sold out to bis brother, who 
 afterward disposed of the business to George 
 Thomas & Son, with whom Mr. Boies is now 
 engaged. He was married, in 1868, to Miss 
 Alice A. Warburton, of Northampton Townsbip. 
 They have two children — Edith M. and E. Rice. 
 Charles is now serving as Township Trustee, 
 and as a member of the Council, and has served 
 
 "7]< 
 
-^ 
 
 BOSTOI^ TOWNSHIP. 
 
 893 
 
 as Constable two terms. He is a member of 
 Meridian Sun Lodge, No. 266, A., F. & A. M. of 
 Richfield. 
 
 FRED W. BOIES was born in Stow Township, 
 Sept. 17, 1842, and, until 21 years of age, was 
 an assistant upon his father's farm. In 1862, 
 he enlisted in the 115th 0. V. I., and served for 
 three years in all the engagements of his regi- 
 ment. Upon his return to his home, he engaged 
 in business upon the canal, and followed boat- 
 ing for himself six j-ears, at the expiration of 
 which time he engaged at farming for two years, 
 and then, with his brother Charles, followed 
 milling, at which he devoted his time exclusively 
 up to February, 1881, when he sold out to 
 George Thomas & Son. He is a young man, 
 possessing good business qualifications, and 
 will succeed at whatever he undertakes. 
 
 FRANK BUTLER, farmer ; P. 0. Penin- 
 sula ; is a young and extensive farmer of the 
 township. His parents are Thomas and Catha- 
 rine (Brennan) Butler, both of whom are natives 
 of Ireland. The}' emigrated to America, and 
 subsequently settled, in 1849, upon the farm 
 which Frank now owns. Frank was born in 
 Northampton Township, in 1851, but has re 
 sided in Boston Township since the removal of 
 his parents there, being engaged in farming and 
 lumbering. He now owns 280 acres of land, 
 which he previously shared in partnership with 
 his brother John. He has improved the place 
 with buildings, and has the farm under good 
 cultivation. He is an industrious and deserv- 
 ing yonng man, and is highly respected by his 
 fellow townsmen. John Butler was born in 
 Northampton, in 1848, and has been farming 
 for the greater portion of his life. His health 
 is such that he goes to the Southern States to 
 spend the winter months, but tlie remainder of 
 the time is identified with Boston Township as 
 one of its most respected inhabitants. 
 
 EDWARD BLAKESLEY, retired farmer; 
 Peninsula ; is a son of Edward and Rhoda (Dag- 
 gett) Blakesley. His father was a native of 
 Hartford, Conn.; his mother, of Schenectady, N. 
 Y., where they were married. They emigrated 
 to Ohio, in 1835, locating in Richfield Town- 
 ship, where they resided for many years. His 
 father was an extensive land-owner, owning 
 land in Hinckley, Granger, Royalton and Brecks- 
 ville Townships. He died, Jan. 14, 1876, in 
 Ro3'alton. His mother died at his home in 
 Peninsula, Feb. 11, 1879, at the advanced age 
 
 of 92 years. The subject of this sketch was 
 born in Onondaga town and count}', Jan. 11, 
 1815, and has been engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits his entire life. He commenced farm- 
 ing for himself in Richfield Township, remain- 
 ing there nearl}' nine 3'ears ; from there he re- 
 moved to Boston Township, where he has since 
 resided. He has now disposed of his land, and 
 is living in retirement in Peninsula. He is 
 naturall}' endowed with a genial and liberal 
 spirit, and is a respected and progressive citizen. 
 Mr. Blakesley was married to Miss Ellen Robin- 
 son, of Richfield, in 1844 ; they had three 
 children, but one of whom is now living — Ellen 
 Tate. His wife died Feb. 14, 1857. July 5, 
 1879, he was married to a second wife, Mrs. 
 Betsev McBride, widow of John McBride. 
 
 JOHN CONGER (deceased). Job and Roby 
 (Potter) Conger, were married in Vermont, and 
 settled upon his father's farm, at St. Albans. 
 He was one of eleven children, all of whom 
 were Methodists and took a great interest in 
 the church. His father is believed to have 
 been the progenitor of all of the name in the 
 LTnited States. He was a native of New York, 
 and she of Vermont. To them was born, at 
 St. Albans, Vt., the subject of this sketch — 
 John Conger — in September, 1805, who, as 
 soon as he became old enough, worked upon 
 the farm at home, and, they having a brick- 
 yard, he learned to manufacture brick. He was 
 married to Hannah Reals, a daughter of Enoch 
 and Hannah (Hurlburt) Beals, she being a na- 
 tive of Massachusetts. Her father was a farmer, 
 and lived a mile and a half from St. xilbans, at 
 which place he and his wife lived and died. Of 
 their daughters, but one other than Mrs. Con- 
 ger survives ; her name is Mar}' Ann Beals, 
 and her home near Avon, in Wisconsin. Mrs. 
 John Conger was born in Massachusetts, in 
 1805. After her marriage with Mr. Conger, 
 they remained in St. Albans five years, where 
 he was employed on the farm and in the brick- 
 yard. In 1833, he came to Ohio, and for one 
 season clerked at Cleveland for one Ira Jewell, 
 when he was' joined by his family, wliich then 
 consisted of his wife and two children — Sidney 
 P. and George S., an infant, who died when 
 3 years of age. Subsequently, they moved to 
 Boston, Ohio, where, in company with one Silas 
 Eaton, he established a yard for the manufacture 
 of brick, at which occupation they continued 
 for some time. In 1844, Mr. Conger went into 
 
 :^ 
 
3 L>^ 
 
 804 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 partnership with one Erastus Jackson, with 
 whom he was associated until the time of his 
 deatli, and wiio was, from tlie date of their co- 
 partnersliip, his fast friend. Seven children 
 were born to him, viz., Sidney P., Sandford L., 
 George S., John C., Arthur L., and Lucy Cole, 
 wife of Dr. A. M. Cole, of Peninsula. He was 
 Postmaster under Polk and Pierce ; was also 
 Constable. Trustee, and frequently called upon 
 in settlement of estates and arbitration of dif- 
 ferences between parties. He was Captain of 
 Artiller3', in Vermont, and was deeply interested 
 in the militia service in his adopted State. He 
 died Nov. 30, 1 853. 
 
 SIDNEY P. CONGER, deceased ; was born 
 in Vermont in 1829, and came with his parents 
 when the}' removed to Boston Township, where 
 his early life was passed. He was married 
 Nov. 6, 1853, to Miss Bridget I. Codey, of Bos- 
 ton Township ; she died in Januarv 1861, leav- 
 ing two children — Lucy Jeanette Warburton, 
 living in Peninsula, and Sidney John, a resi- 
 dent of Akron. He married a second wife,. 
 Miss Rose Mcllwain, of Boston Townsliip, 
 April 10, 1862. Mr. Conger was a prominent 
 business man of the township, engaged in vari- 
 ous enterprises. He was engaged in the man- 
 ufacture of brick for a number of years, and 
 also owned 180 acres of land which he operat- 
 ed, making a specialty of dairying. He served 
 one term as County Commissioner, and held 
 various township offices of trust. He was a 
 member of Meridian Sun Lodge, No. 266, A., F. 
 & A. M. His death occurred in August, 1874, 
 in his life's prime, and was a severe blow to 
 the business interests of Boston. Mrs. Conger 
 is living in Boston Village ; she has three chil- 
 dren living — George C, Mary Belle and Allie 
 Blanche. 
 
 JOHN C. CONGER, farmer ; P. O. Penin- 
 sula ; was born in Boston Township in 1835. 
 His early days were passed engaged in home 
 duties, receiving a good district-school educa- 
 tion. He first left home and was gone one 
 season with Lieut. Reynolds upon a topo- 
 graphical surve}' of the lakes. Returning to 
 Boston Township, he engaged at farming and 
 brick-making until the breaking-out of the 
 war, when he enlisted Aug. 16, 1861, in Co. A. 
 2d 0. V. C, and was in active service until 
 April 8, 1863. He returned to Boston Town- 
 ship and engaged in farming, at which he has 
 continued up to the present time. He has 135 
 
 acres of land, commandingl}- located a short 
 distance from Peninsula, and well improved. 
 As a citizen, Mr. Conger ranks as one of the 
 most intelligent and honorable. He was mar- 
 ried in September 1867, to Miss Eunice M. 
 Stillman, who was born in Rhode Island in 
 1844. The}' have been blessed with five chil- 
 dren—Fanny S., Luen J., Elmer B., Pamela 
 P. and Mary G. Mr. Conger has served as 
 Township Clerk and is a member of Meridian 
 Sun Lodge, No. 266, and of Summit Chapter of 
 Twinsburg A., F. '& A. M. 
 
 A. M. COLE, merchant. Peninsula ; is 
 a son of Edmund H. and Ann L. (Boies) 
 Cole. Edmund H. Cole was born in Niagara 
 Co., N. Y., in 1824, and came with his parents 
 to Ohio at the age of 8 years. His ventures 
 for himself commenced at an early age, first 
 engaging in school-teaching, and then buying 
 and shipping stock. In 1856, he commenced 
 his mercantile career, at which he continued 
 until his death. He first associated himself 
 with F. & T. Wood, under the firm name of 
 Wood, Cole & Co., continuing until 1863, when 
 he bought out his partners and continued in 
 business alone in the same localit}', which he 
 carried on until his death, Jan. 11, 1876. He 
 was a man prominent in all objects of charity, 
 enterprising in all movements tending to the 
 growth, the advantages and welfare of the com- 
 munity, foremost in educational and township 
 affairs, and taking a leading interest in agri- 
 cultural fairs, serving as Marshal at the fairs 
 in Akron each year. Throughout the excite- 
 ment prevalent during the war, he was found 
 most loyal and patriotic, aiding with all the 
 means within his power to protect and save 
 the Union. He opened in 1868, the stone 
 quarry south of the town to give employment 
 to laboring men, and was one of the incor- 
 porators of the Put-in-Bay Grape and Wine 
 Co., which he was successfully connected with 
 for several years. His death was a severe loss 
 to the business interests of Peninsula and vi- 
 cinity. He was married in 1848, to Miss Ann 
 L. Boies, daughter of Frederick N. Boies, of 
 Peninsula. Mrs. Cole is living in Peninsula, 
 educating her younger children. Four chil- 
 dren now living were the result of this mar- 
 riage—A. M., H. W., Nellie and Fred. 
 
 Dr. a. M. Cole was born in Everett, July 6, 
 1850. His education was common school and 
 Commercial College. For several years he was 
 
 *:^. 
 
'K. 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 895 
 
 assistant in his father's store. He then entered 
 upon the study and practice of medicine. He 
 commenced his studies in the office of Dr. 
 Morton, of Peninsula, and finished with Dr. 
 Pixley, who was at that time in practice 
 at Cleveland. He graduated in the IMed- 
 ical Department of Wooster University, of 
 Cleveland, in 1873-74 ; attended two courses 
 of lectures in Cleveland, and one course at the 
 College of Physicians and Surgeons of New 
 York. He then returned to Peninsula and was 
 urged to remain there by his father, who was 
 in ill health. He practiced there two years, 
 the last year in company with Dr. Pixley. 
 Upon the death of his father, he entered upon 
 a mercantile career, at which he is now engaged. 
 In 1879, in company with his brother, H. W. 
 Cole, who conducted the business there^ he 
 opened a store in Deerfield, Portage Co., which 
 was carried on to a successful termination, by 
 the disposal of the stock. His brother then 
 came to Peninsula and entered into partner- 
 ship with him under the firm name of Dr. A. 
 M. Cole & Bro. They carry a large and well- 
 selected stock of dry goods, groceries, drugs, 
 medicines, etc., and have built up a large and 
 still increasing trade. Dr. Cole, although not 
 in active practice, has an office in his store, and 
 does a good office business. He is a prominent 
 Mason, and takes a leading interest in all the 
 political issues of the day. He has served as 
 School Director two years, and has been Treas- 
 urer of the School Fund for three years. He 
 is an advocate of temperance, and is ready to 
 aid any movement for the advancement of the 
 business, social and intellectual good of the 
 community. He is a director and one of the 
 principal ownei's of the ■' Tri-Union Telegraph 
 Co.," which runs from Chagrin Falls to Medina, 
 and which is a good paying investment. Mr. 
 Cole was united in marriage in 1876, to Mrs. 
 Luc}' J. Truscott, of Cleveland, a widow with 
 two children — Harr}' and Jessie. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Cole have one child — Sam. 
 
 H. W. Cole was born in Peninsula in 1857, 
 received a good education, and for some time 
 acted as a commercial traveler from Cleveland. 
 He is now the junior partner of the firm, and 
 brings to the business good commercial at- 
 tributes. 
 
 H. H. CASSIDY, grocer. Peninsula ; was 
 born in Boston Township in 1850. His par- 
 ents are Patrick and Margaret Cassid}^, who 
 
 located in the township in 1820, where they 
 still reside. Our subject started out in life for 
 himself at the age of 18 ; he sold osage- 
 orange hedge for two years, and then engaged 
 in the lightning-rod business for five years. 
 He next engaged at farming for two years, and 
 still owns, with his brother James, a farm of 
 170 acres in the township. In December, 1880, 
 he in connection with John Ilusseil opened a 
 grocery store in Peninsula, and are now en- 
 gaged in trade there under the firm name of 
 Cassidy & Russell. Mr. Cassidy also owns 
 and is operating a saw-mill in the village. He 
 is now serving the third year as Township 
 Trustee, and is a pushing and enterprising 
 business man. He was married in 1877, to 
 Miss Anna Cody, of Boston Township. They 
 have one child — Archimedes. 
 
 ANDREW R. CASSIDY, hotel. Peninsula; 
 was born in Boston Township in 1844, and is a 
 sou of Patrick and Margaret Cassidy ; he at- 
 tended school until he became 16 years of age, 
 after which he engaged for several years in 
 teaching — in all about eighteen terms — in dif- 
 ferent portions of the county ; in 1866, he 
 started for the West and was gone about eight 
 months, visiting many different localities ; upon 
 his return home, he taught school one term in 
 Hudson ; he then engaged in farming in Boston 
 Township, at which he continued about seven 
 years, still owning the farm ; in 1875, he rented 
 the hotel where he is now living, in Peninsula, 
 and, in 1878, bought the property, which he has 
 carried on up to the present time, but devoting 
 most of his time to cheese and butter making, 
 at which he has been largely engaged for the 
 past five years ; he owns one factory and rents 
 two others, and, during the season of about 
 eight months yearly, makes upon an average 
 1,700 pounds of cheese and 250 pounds of but- 
 ter daily ; two of these factories are located in 
 Boston, and one in Richfield Township. Mr 
 Cassidy has served the township as Assessor 
 for seven years, as Township Clerk for three 
 years, and the past year as Real Estate Asses- 
 sor. He was married in 1869, to Miss Agnes 
 Doherty, of Cleveland ; they have three chil- 
 dren — Grace E., Helen M. and Andrew H. 
 
 CHARLES FISH, farmer; P. 0. Boston. 
 The Fish brothers, Charles and Buel, own 362 
 acres of land in Boston Township, which they 
 are rapidly clearing and improving ; at the 
 time of its purchase, a few years ago, it was 
 
 ^ ^ 
 
 TT^ 
 
896 
 
 BJOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 covered with underbrush and timber ; now they 
 have over 50 acres in a good state of cultiva- 
 tion, and, being young and industrious men, 
 they will in a few years have a large portion in 
 cleared and fertile fields. Charles was born 
 in Cuyahoga Co. in 1842 ; he was married to 
 Miss Mary Campbell in 1865 ; they have two 
 children — Willis and Millie. Charles has asso- 
 ciated with him in his farming enterprise, a 
 cousin — Deming B. Pish — who was born in Cuy- 
 ahoga Co. in 1846, and is an enterprising and 
 industrious 3'oung man. Buel Fish was born 
 in Cuyahoga Co. in 1847 ; he was united in 
 marriage, in 1868, to Miss Lela HoUister, of 
 Cu3-ahoga Co.; they have two children — Nellie 
 and Lida. Charles and Deming were both vol- 
 unteers in the late war, serving long and faith- 
 fully in the defense of their country ; Charles was 
 a member of the 7th Ky. V. C, and served over 
 three years ; Deming was a member of the 52d 
 0. V. I., and also served three years, during 
 which time he was once a prisoner for five 
 
 WGGks 
 
 A. W. HANCOCK, farmer ; P. (3. Peninsula ; 
 was born in Massachusetts in 1832, and came 
 to Ohio with his parents, who settled in Rich- 
 field Township, their sketch appearing in that 
 township history. He passed his early days 
 upon the farm until he became 20 years old, 
 when he engaged in various occupations — 
 farming, droving, etc., until 1857, when he was 
 married to Miss L^dia M. Humphrey, who 
 is a daughter of Isaiah and Almira (Waite) 
 Humphrey ; her father was born in Connecticut 
 in 1807 ; her mother in Massachusetts in 1809. 
 Her father came with his parents to Twinsburg 
 at an early day. He was a lawyer bj' profes- 
 sion, and, after his mari'iage, resided a number 
 of years in Twinsburg, engaged at his profes- 
 sion, subsequently removing to Boston Town- 
 ship, where he bought a farm, dividing his time 
 between the two vocations. He died in 1877 ; 
 her mother is still living in the township, upon 
 her fiirm. After his marriage, Mr. H. worked 
 upon his father-in-law's farm for two years, and 
 then enlisted in the 64th 0. V. I., Co. G. He 
 was in active service all through the war, and 
 rose from a private, through all the different 
 grades of merit, to that of Major, as which he 
 was mustered out in 1865 ; his regiment par- 
 ticipated in a great many severe battles — Stone 
 River, Chickamauga, Pittsburg Landing, Nash- 
 ville, and the siege of Atlanta being the most 
 
 memorable. Through them all he passed, and 
 only received a slight wound in the leg at 
 Chickamauga. Our space forbids an extended 
 notice of his military career, and suffice it to 
 say that his duty to his country was performed 
 most honorably. After his return home he 
 removed to Cleveland, where, for four years, he 
 was engaged in training horses upon the Cleve- 
 land Driving Park. He then entered the em- 
 ploy of the American Express Company as 
 messenger, and had the route from Cleveland 
 j to Erie for a short time, after which he acted as 
 their agent at Vernon, Ohio ; from there going 
 to Mansfield, being the messenger from thereto 
 Toledo for two years, and from Cleveland to 
 Columbus four years. In 1877, he returned to 
 Boston Township, where he has since resided, 
 engaging in farming. Mr. and Mrs. Hancock 
 have two children — Sylvia E. and Harry H. 
 
 ERASTUS JACKSON ; James Jackson, 
 a native of New York, was born near 
 King's Bridge, now New York City, and, in A. 
 D. 1800, he went to (then) Hollwell, C. W., 
 where, eight ^^ears after, he married one Celia 
 Whitney, who was visiting her sister, a Mrs. 
 Palmer, at that place. Miss Whitney was a 
 native of Litchfield Co., Conn. Her mother 
 was a near neighbor and acquaintance of Israel 
 Putnam, and, previous to her death, could re- 
 member many events which have since become 
 matter of history. Two years after the mar- 
 riage of Mr. Jackson and Miss Whitney, they 
 moved to New York State, settling where 
 Brockpoi't, N. Y., now is. The same year, 1810, 
 the subject of these lines was born to them. 
 Mrs. Whitney Jackson died in 1827, leaving 
 eight children, of whom Mrs. Milina McBride, 
 of Summit Co., Ohio, is the only one living ex- 
 cept our subject. James Jackson, of Kalama- 
 zoo, Mich., Mrs. E. Gardner and Willett Jackson, 
 Brockport, N. Y., are now living. Mr. E. Jack- 
 son passed his minority on the farm. In 1832, 
 he started Westward for the purpose of paying 
 a visit to his aunt, Mrs. Palmer, who had moved 
 to Marietta, Ohio, stopping on his way at Bos- 
 ton, Ohio, where he clerked in a grocer}^ one 
 summer ; the ravages of cholei'a, and the con- 
 sequent stagnation of business, inducing him to 
 discontinue the clerkship, when he made the 
 visit to jNIarietta, and returned to his native 
 State, where, the following winter, he began 
 school-teaching, which, in connection with other 
 vocations, he followed until 1837, when he re- 
 
^ 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 897 
 
 turned to Boston. At the '' Lock " in Boston, 
 be clerked in a grocery, teaching school the 
 first winter, and the following spring he went 
 into business at that place for himself, continu- 
 ing for four years, when he started a furnace at 
 the same place, which now is existent at Hinck- 
 le}' ; he conducted its business about two 3'ears, 
 when, in 1844, in partnership with Mr. John 
 Conger, he went into the brick business. They 
 manufactured the bricks for all the first brick 
 buildings of Akron, man}' of which are stand- 
 ing, and among which may be mentioned 
 the Empire House, P. D. Hall's, Baldwin's, 
 Exchange, Gardner & Hanscome's, M. W. 
 Haney, William Upson's, and Perkins & 
 Cumming's Block. During their partnership, 
 they invested their mone}' in land — some of 
 their purchases being 169 acres, for which they 
 paid in bricks, which the}' sent to Cleveland, 
 134 acres of Sheldon C. Leavitt, where the Con- 
 ger homestead now is ; McBride's farm of 150 
 acres, and 409 acres from the C, C, C. & I. R. R. 
 Co., west of Boston Village, Ohio. By putting 
 their money directly into land they made a sure, 
 steady progress toward affluence. His partner, 
 Mr. Conger, died on Nov. 30, 1853, and, for two 
 years, he conducted the business in partnership 
 with the sons of the deceased, at the end of 
 which time he withdrew and commenced farm- 
 ing, which occupation he has since followed. 
 Commencing in life as a poor clerk he has 
 grown to be one of the wealthiest land-owners 
 in the township, and his success is due to his 
 own energy, and perseverance. He has served 
 as Justice of the Peace for about twelve years, 
 as Township Clerk five years, and, for some time, 
 as Township Treasurer. He was Postmaster of 
 Boston from 1848 to 1852, and is present Post- 
 master of Peninsula, having held the position 
 since Hayes' administration. On June, 1854, 
 he was married to Mrs. Conger, widow of his 
 former partner. 
 
 HENRY KERST, coal dealer, Peninsula; 
 was born in Germany in 1840 ; his parents 
 emigrated to x\merica in 1854, and first settled 
 in Cleveland, remaining their one 3'ear, and in 
 1855, removed to Boston Township, remaining 
 there until their deaths. Henry began life as 
 a boatman upon the canal, and finally, in 
 partnership with another gentleman, bought a 
 boat and began business for himself; he sub- 
 sequently disposed of his share of the boat 
 and bought one alone, continuing in that 
 
 business for a number of years ; he began his 
 coal operations b}' bringing up a boat load in 
 the fall and selling it during the winter : in 
 1880, he disposed of his boat, and started a 
 coal-yard in Peninsula, at which he is now en- 
 gaged. He was married Dec. 25, 1879, to Mrs. 
 Esther Noah, of Boston ; she has two children 
 — Andrew and George. Mr. Kerst is a popular 
 and deserving citizen with progi'essive business 
 habits ; he is a member of Hudson Lodge, No. 
 510, A., F. & A. M. 
 
 LEWIS LEMOIN, station agent Valley 
 R. R., Peninsula ; is a son of Benjamin and 
 Priscilla (Pray) Lemoin ; his father was a na- 
 tive of Massachusetts, and his mother of Con- 
 necticut. The}' were married in Pittsfield, 
 Mass., in 1821, and in 1827, they emigrated to 
 Ohio, locating first in Medina Co., but only re- 
 mained there one year, when the}' removed to 
 Massillon, where for ten years he was engaged 
 in the tailor and clothier business with Charles 
 Skinner ; about 1838, he reihoved to Akron, 
 and worked at the trade, for Jacob Allen, for 
 two years, when he removed to Brandywine, 
 Northfield Township, when for eight years he 
 was employed in a woolen-mill ; he has served 
 as Justice of the Peace, as Township Trustee, 
 and has always been prominent in educational 
 affairs, and in all movements toward the ad- 
 vancement of humanity. He is now living 
 with his son at Macedonia, and is in the 87th 
 year of his age. His wife died in the summer 
 of 1876. Lewis was born in Pittsfield, Mass., 
 Dec. 24, 1822 ; when 18 years old, he com- 
 menced driving on the canal, and passed 
 through the several gradations from driver to 
 packet Captain, his experience in that line 
 covering about twelve years ; he next became 
 connected with the railroad business, and com- 
 mencing at Cuyahoga Falls with the C. & Mt. 
 V. R. R. Co. as switchman, going thence to 
 Clinton as station agent, where he remained 
 two years, and thence to Macedonia, where, 
 with the C. & P. R. R. Co., he served seventeen 
 years as station agent ; he was next employed 
 two years at Columbus, as night watchman of 
 tiie Treasury ; he is at present in the employ 
 of the V. R. R. Co. as station agent for Boston 
 and Peninsula. Mr. Lemoin was united in 
 marriage, Feb. 28, 1853, to Miss Lucinda Post, 
 daughter of Henry and Mary A. (Clark) Post, 
 who were natives of Connecticut and pioneers 
 of Boston Township. Mr. Post came to the 
 
 
<a_ 
 
 898 
 
 BIOGR APHICAI. SKETCHE.S : 
 
 township in 1804, but shortly afterward re- 
 turned to Connecticut and was married ; return- 
 ing with his wife, he built the ftrst log cabin in 
 the township, and cleared the first 10 acres of 
 land ; he served through the war of 1812, his 
 wife remaining in the township alone, sur- 
 rounded by dangers of almost every description, 
 as Indians and wild beasts were numerous ; 
 however, she passed safel}' through all, and, 
 with her husband, lived through the various 
 changes of pioneer life to the days of modern 
 improvements ; she died in October, 1859 ; her 
 husband survived her several years ; he served 
 as Justice of the Peace, and was a progi'essive 
 and respected citizen ; he was finally killed by 
 the cars, Jul}- 4, 1865, at Macedonia, while on 
 a visit to his daughter. Mrs. Lemoin was born 
 in Boston Township, Jan. 11, 1827. They have 
 four children, viz. : Theodore, now station agent 
 at Macedonia ; Lew D., S3dvia E. and Dollie 0. 
 Mr. Lemoin served Northfield Township four 
 years as clerk ; he is a prominent Mason, being 
 a member of Hudson Lodge, No. 510, and 
 Akron Commandery, No. 25 ; he is P. H. P. of 
 Summit Chapter, and P. M. of Hudson Lodge. 
 
 HIRAM LEE, farmer ; P. 0. Peninsula ; is 
 a son of Hiram and Ann Lee, who came to 
 Boston Township in 1861. Hiram has fol- 
 lowed the occupation of a farmer from the age 
 of 16 years up to the present writing, and is 
 considered one of the best, most practical and 
 most industrious farmers of the township. He 
 was united in marriage in December, 1865, to 
 Miss Elizabeth A. Gillsou, who is a daughter 
 of John H. and Hannah (Schofield) Gillson. 
 He was a native of England, his wife of New 
 York. They were married in Ohio, and came 
 to Boston Township in 1841. Mr. Gillson set- 
 tled in the southern portion of the township, 
 where he resided until his death, which oc- 
 curred Feb. 1, 1877. His wife still resides 
 upon the farm, which consists of 116 acres of 
 finely located and well drained land, and is one 
 of the best cultivated and improved farms in 
 the township, being conducted by Mr. Lee. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Lee have four children — Herbert 
 G., Parker A., Corda 31. and Edwin H. He is 
 one of the enterprising and progi'essive spirits 
 of the township, and is a deserving and re- 
 spectable citizen. 
 
 VOLNEY MILLER, farmer; P. O. Hud- 
 son ; is a son of Samuel and Sally (Ozmun) 
 Miller. Samuel Miller was born in Orange 
 
 Co., N. Y., and his wife in Tompkins Co., where 
 they were married. Thej' were pioneers of 
 Boston Township, locating there in 1810, upon 
 the State road, where he purchased 150 acres 
 of unimproved land, and where for some 3'ears 
 the}' resided, their lives being replete with the 
 toil and hardships to which the " advance 
 guards " of the army of civilization are sub- 
 ject. They next removed to Hudson Town- 
 ship, disposing of part of his farming interests 
 in Boston. Here he resided for twenty-five 
 years, engaged in farming, and then removed 
 to Michigan, where he died at the age of 77, 
 his wife having died in Summit County many 
 years previous. Volney is the only child of 
 this union living. He was born in Boston 
 Township July 20, 1811, and has been engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits for the most of his 
 life. He has, with the exception of three 
 3^ears' residence in Hudson, lived at the old 
 homestead, where his parents first settled. 
 His property now consists of 314 acres of 
 land, a good portion of which is improved. 
 He has improved the farm since it came into 
 his possession with a fine brick residence and 
 in commodious outbuildings until it is a most 
 desirable home. Mr. Miller has served the 
 township as Trustee and Constable. In educa- 
 tion and its interests, he has always been for- 
 ward, and as a citizen is respected and trusted. 
 He was united in marriage, June 4, 1835, to 
 Miss Susan Thompson, a daughter of Abram 
 Thompson, one of Hudson's first settlers, 
 where she was born June 3, 1813. They have 
 had two children — Louisa S., who died at 
 home, and Virgil T., who resides with his par- 
 ents upon the old homestead. He was mar- 
 ried, July 3, 1862, to Miss Helen S. Danforth, 
 of Hudson Township. She has borne him 
 three children, viz., Millie L., Minnie M. and 
 Ora V. 
 
 D. McBRIDE, butcher. Peninsula ; is a son 
 of James A. McBride. who was born in 
 Youngstown, Ohio, in 1816. He came with 
 his parents to Boston Township at an early 
 day, and has been a resident there since. He 
 began life by working out by the month, as the 
 death of his father left a large family. He 
 then worked on the canal about two 3'ears, and 
 then started a groceiy at Boston with one Mr. 
 E. Jackson, which they run for several years. 
 He married, in 1842, Miss Melina Jackson, sis- 
 ter of his partner. She was born in Brock- 
 
BOSTON TOWNSHIP 
 
 fki^ 
 
 port, N. Y., in 1818. Thej- are now living in 
 Peninsula, where Mr. McBride is engaged in 
 boat-building. D. McBride was born in Bos- 
 ton Township in IS-IG. He first began life for 
 himself as a butcher, in 1872, at Peninsula, 
 where he has since successfully conducted the 
 business. He runs a wagon through the coun- 
 tr}' during the summer months. He erected a 
 building in 1875, in Peninsula, which is one of 
 the finest business buildings in the town. A 
 lower storeroom he now rents to W. W. Whit- 
 ing for stoves, hardware, etc, and occupies the 
 upper room himself, which is admirably fur- 
 nished, for his business. Mr. McBride has a fine 
 commencement for a young man, all the result 
 of his energy and business qualifications. He 
 has been Corporation Marshal, and is at pres- 
 ent serving as Councilman. He was united in 
 marriage, in 1872, to Miss Lucy Fitts, daugh- 
 ter of Roswell Fitts, an old and respectable 
 citizen of the township. They have one child 
 — Chrissie. 
 
 JAMES A. McBRlDE, boat-builder, Penin- 
 sula ; was born in Youngstown, Ohio, in 1816. 
 He is a son of William and Agnes (Duncan) 
 McBride, who were early residents of Boston 
 Township, coming there about 1822. His 
 father was by trade a millwright, and built, 
 for the Wallace famil}', the Brandvwine grist 
 and flouring mill, one of the pioneer industries 
 of Summit Co. Wm. McBride died in Boston 
 Township, about 1829 ; his wife lived to be 
 about 65 years of age. James A. McBride has 
 been a resident of Boston Township the greater 
 part of his life, engaged in different occupa- 
 tions, but has devoted the major part to boat- 
 building and repairing. For several years, he 
 was in partnership with Erastus Jackson, Esq., 
 in the grocery trade, at Boston, and also em- 
 barked in an edge-tool manufactor3", at Boston, 
 for several years. He removed to Peninsula in 
 1861, where he has since resided, and has been 
 working at his trade. He was married to Miss 
 Melina Jackson, sister of E. Jackson ; she is a 
 native of Brockport, N. Y. The members of 
 this family now living are Harriet, Mott, 
 Duncan, James and John, all living in Boston 
 Township. Mr. McBride has served as a mem- 
 ber of the Corporation Council for two or three 
 3'ears. His gi-andfather, James Duncan, a 
 Presb3'terian clergyman, was one of the earliest 
 writers against slavery, and was the author of a 
 book which was published many years before 
 
 the war, and awakened a great interest for the 
 
 cause. 
 
 O.J. MOTT, blacksmith. Peninsula; was born 
 in Franklin, Portage Co., Ohio, in 1841. He 
 commenced to learn the blacksmith's trade with 
 L. Beei-s, at Peninsula, Ohio, when he was 16 
 3ears of age. He remained with him for four 
 years, at the expiration of which time he en- 
 listed in the 2d 0. V. C, and was in the 
 service for more than three years. Upon his 
 return to Peninsula, he entered into partner- 
 ship with his former employer, L. Beers, which 
 continued for ten years. In 1875, he erected 
 the large and commodious shop where he is 
 now located, and where he is doing a lucrative 
 and leading business. Mr. Mott is a skilled 
 workman, and one of Peninsula's representative 
 and honored men. He has served the town- 
 ship as Treasurer for four years, and has been 
 a member of the Corporation Council several 
 times. He was married in 1868, to Miss Phoebe 
 McArthur, who died in June, 1879, leaving 
 four children — Arthur, Sylvia, Jessie and Le 
 G-rand. He was united to a second wife. Miss 
 Marv Lightfoot, in June, 1880. 
 
 FRANKLIN OZMUN, farmer ; P. 0. Hud- 
 son ; is a son of Isaac and Maria (Neumau) 
 Ozmun. His father was born in Orange Co., 
 N. Y., in 1785, and his mother in Pennsylvania, 
 in 1787. They were married in Tompkins Co., 
 N. Y., where they settled upon a farm, remain- 
 ing four years, during which time Franklin was 
 born, in 1807. In 1811, they emigrated to 
 Ohio, and in October of that year located upon 
 59 acres of timbered land (where subject now 
 resides), and possessing, like most pioneers, in- 
 dustrious habits, they became large land-own- 
 ers, adding to their land until they possessed 
 about 400 acres, which they divided among 
 their children. He served the township as Trus- 
 tee and as Justice of the Peace for twenty-one 
 years, as Township Treasurer, and held various 
 offices of trust and honor. He was also greatly 
 interested in the militia, in which he ranked as 
 Captain and Major. He died May 26, 1866. 
 His wife, aged 94 years, still lives upon the old 
 farm with her son Franklin (our subject). The 
 children of this worthy couple are as follows : 
 Margaret Grossman, of Michigan ; Hector, who 
 died in Boston Township ; Polly M. Carter, of 
 Richfield ; Catharine Ashley, of Strongsville ; 
 Abram N., who was born Jan. 26, 1827, and 
 married, on July 3, 1862, Miss Eliza Veers. 
 
 i 'V 
 
900 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 He commenced life farming in Nortlifield Town- 
 ship, but returned to Boston in 1866, where he 
 has since resided ; he lias three children — Laura 
 A., Mary M. and Charles V. Franklin has re- 
 sided upon the farm where his parents settled, 
 during his entire life ; he has alwa3's followed 
 farming, and now owns about 170 acres of im- 
 proved land. He is considered one of the solid, 
 substantial citizens of the township. 
 
 HECTOR OZMUN, deceased; was born 
 Feb. 19, 1815, in Boston Township ; was a son 
 of Isaac and Maria (Neuman) Osmun, pioneers 
 of Boston Township. He married Aug. 24, 
 1840, Miss Nancy Long, who was a daughter 
 of Christian Long, an early settler of Summit 
 County, and a resident of the county until his 
 death. Nancy was born in Northumberland 
 Co., Penn., Jan. 1, 1822. After their marriage, 
 they removed to the western part of Boston 
 Township, where she still resides. He was a 
 farmer and interested in dairying ; he died May 
 19, 1879. Mrs. Ozmun still resides upon the 
 farm of 236 acres of improved land, which is 
 cultivated by her sons. The children are as 
 follows : Isaac and Andrew, both married and 
 farming in Michigan ; Mary Viall, of Boston 
 Township ; Margaret and Lucius, at home ; 
 Augusta Peach, living in Boston Township ; 
 Edward, a resident of Hudson ; Sarah, at 
 home ; Henry, in Michigan ; and Lincoln, at 
 home. Mrs. Ozmun has a sister living in Bath 
 Township, Mrs. Elizabeth Huntlej^ ; and two 
 brothers in Indiana, Andrew and Christian 
 Long. 
 
 DR. SUMNER PIXLEY, Peninsula; is a 
 son of Stephen Pixley, one of the pioneers of 
 Richfield Township. Dr. Pixley was born in 
 Massachusetts in 1816, and was not quite 1 
 year old at the time of his parents' settlement 
 in Richfield. His early days were passed upon 
 the farm there. After deciding to make the 
 medical profession his life-work, he entered 
 the office of Drs. Trask & Leonard, of Strongs- 
 ville, remaining with them about two years, 
 also studying in the office of Dr. Munson, of 
 Richfield, one and a half years. He then at- 
 tended the Western Reserve College, graduat- 
 ing in the medical department in 1846 and 
 1847. He also took a full course of lectures 
 at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, 
 New York, and at the Jefferson Medical Col- 
 lege of Philadelphia. He began the practice 
 of his profession at Wooster, Ohio, where he 
 
 continued ten years. He then removed to 
 California, where he practiced in Marysville 
 about eighteen months. In 1854, he returned 
 to Richfield, where he remained until 1869, 
 when he removed to Cleveland, where he prac- 
 ticed until 1876, at which time he I'emoved to 
 Peninsula, where he has since resided. Dr. 
 Pixley has an extended practice, and occupies 
 an elevated rank among his professional 
 brothers. He is a member of the State Medi- 
 cal Association and of the Northeast Medical 
 Association. He also served as Surgeon of the 
 110th 0. V. I., and was in field and hospital 
 service nearly two years. He was married in 
 April, 1847, to Elmira A. Tupper, who is a 
 daughter of Charles and Julia H. (Briggs) Tup- 
 per, natives of Vermont, and early settlers in 
 Strongsville, Cuyahoga Co., where they resided 
 up to the time of their deaths. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Pixley have two sons — Chelius S., who gradu- 
 ated from the Cleveland Medical College in 
 1873, and is now engaged in practice in Elkhart, 
 Ind.; Will H., a promising young law student, 
 now in the office of Gen. Wildes, of Akron. He 
 was elected Justice of the Peace of Peninsula 
 when 21 years old, and is now serving as such. 
 JORGEN PETERSEN, painter, Peninsula ; 
 was born at Elsinore, Denmark, within a short 
 distance from the castle, made celebrated by 
 Shakespeare in his " Hamlet." His father was 
 a sailor, and served in the Danish navy many 
 years. He afterwaixl engaged in fishing, at 
 which occupation our subject passed his earlier 
 years. At the age of 15 he served on an 
 English collier, remaining upon it four 3'ears as 
 a sailor. Next upon an English vessel for four 
 years, and, in 1842, shipped upon the American 
 bark " Richmond," of Plymouth, and landed 
 in New Orleans. After serving as a sailor for 
 six years, sailing from American ports, he 
 engaged with a firm in New York and learned 
 the painter's trade, remaining with them five 
 years. He then worked at his trade three years 
 there, and, in 1855, emigrated to Ohio. He locat- 
 ed in Peninsula in 1864, and was first engaged 
 as a painter of canal-boats, afterward building 
 the boat " Scandinavia," which he conducted 
 for fifteen years, since which time he has been 
 following his trade. He was married, in 1849, 
 to Miss Marie Y. Miller. The}- have seven 
 children living — Chai'les M., Emma C, Francis 
 E., Albert, Ada M., Lizzie and Edith. Mr. 
 Petersen has always been an industrious and 
 
 ^ 
 
:k* 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 901 
 
 respected citizen, and has been Township and 
 Corporation Clerks. He has a most entertain- 
 ing fund of reminiscences of his varied life, 
 which makes him an interesting companion. 
 He is also familiar with several languages. 
 
 LYMAN C. POST, former ; P. 0. Hudson ; 
 is a son of Henry Post, Jr., and Lucy A. 
 (Curtis) Post. His father was the first white 
 male child born in Boston Township. His 
 mother was born in Hudson. After their mar- 
 riage they lived in the northeast corner of the 
 township the most of the time until their 
 deaths. He died in September, 1879, and she 
 in November of the same year. The grand- 
 parents of our sulyject were the first settlers in 
 the township, and an extended sketch of their 
 lives and pioneer experiences will be found in 
 another portion of this work. Lyman is the 
 youngest of a family of six children — Minerva 
 Hine (of Twinsburg), Lydia Warrell (of North- 
 field Township), Mary A. Clisby (Trumbull 
 Co.), George H. (of Michigan), Sophronia John- 
 son (a resident of Macedonia), and the subject 
 of this sketch, who is a native of Boston 
 Township, born in 1850, a resident of the 
 township and of the old homestead up to the 
 present time. He has followed farming for the 
 most of his life, and, in connection with his 
 farm, he erected, in November, 1879, a steam 
 saw-mill, to the operation of which he devotes 
 a part of his time, and which is proving a 
 profitable enterprise. He was married in 1873, 
 to Miss Ella Johnson, of Geauga Co., who died 
 May 22, 1875. 
 
 ANTON PFAUS, shoemaker, Peninsula ; is 
 a native of Germany, where he was born in 
 1847. His parents emigrated to America when 
 our subject was only 5 years of age, they 
 locating in Cleveland, where they remained 
 until the}' died. Anton learned his trade in 
 Cleveland, serving an apprenticeship of nearl}' 
 three j^ears, after which he worked at the trade 
 there about one 3'ear. In 1867, he came to 
 Peninsula, after a few months in Hudsun, 
 where he located, and has since followed his 
 chosen trade. It is now his intention to add to 
 his business b}' placing upon sale a line of 
 boots, shoes, etc., and carry on a first-class 
 boot and shoe store. Mr. Pfaus was married 
 to Miss Laura McClure, of Peninsula, in 1870. 
 The}' have one child — Herman. 
 
 LUTHER B. BANNEY. farmer ; P. 0. Hud- 
 son ; is a son of Comfort and Betsey (Hubbard) 
 
 Banney, both natives of Connecticut. Comfort 
 was born March 20, 1788, and Betsey April 2, 
 1790; they were married in Connecticut, Dec. 
 25, 1808, and came immediately to Hudson. 
 The same year, accompanied "by his father and 
 brother Jacob, they started from Connecticut 
 and his father died upon the way, and Jacob fol- 
 lowed him soon after reaching Hudson. Com- 
 fort Ranney's father was a soldier in the Revo- 
 lution, and owned, at the time of his death, a 
 tract of land in Richfield. Comfort located in 
 Hudson ; he was a ship-carpenter by trade, and 
 soon after moved to Cleveland and followed his 
 calling there. But, because of poor health, his 
 stay there was brief and he soon after returned 
 to Hudson and engaged in running a saw-mill, 
 which was finally burned, when he removed to 
 Boston Township about 1820, and purchased a 
 piece of land where he resided only a few years, 
 when he died July 14, 1823. His wife sur- 
 vived him until Jan. 4, 1868, when she died, 
 aged 78. Of the children born to them the 
 following are now living : Luther B. ; Julia 
 A. Shields, residing in Kansas, and Eliza S. 
 Shields, of Boston Township ; Ruth L. Bron- 
 son, of Peninsula , Betsey J. Hurlburt, living 
 in Cleveland, and Moses, of Northfield Town- 
 ship. Mrs. Ranney was subsequently married 
 to Mr. Colliei', by whom she had two children 
 — Capt. M. J. Collier, of Cleveland, and Fred 
 M. Collier, of Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Ranney 
 were both members of the Methodist Church. 
 Luther B. Ranney was born in Hudson Nov. 
 28, 1809. After the death of his father in 
 1823, their farm was sold and our subject, with 
 the laudable ambition to regain it, worked by 
 the month for Deacon Hudson at $5 per month, 
 and was, by industry and perseverance, finally 
 the happy owner ; the farm is located upon the 
 State road, and now consists of well-cultivated 
 fields and is improved with good buildings and 
 all modern comforts. Mr. Ranney is, essen- 
 tially, a self-made man, having begun life un- 
 der many difficulties. He is a most intelligent 
 and well-informed man. Mr. Ranney has served 
 in various offices of township trust, and ranks 
 as one of the citizens par excellence. Mr. Ran- 
 ney was married in 1833, to Miss Sally M. Car- 
 ter, who died July 29, 1846, leaving five chil- 
 dren, three now living — Comfort, of Michigan; 
 Harriet S. Leach, of Michigan, and Sarah M., 
 living in Akron ; he was married April 6, 1847, 
 to a second wife, Miss Caroline Clapp, daughter 
 
 rv 
 
902 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 of Richard and Anna (Alvord) Clapp, natives 
 of Massacluisetts, and early settlers of Brecks- 
 ville ; she was born in Massacluisetts Ma}' 3, 
 1821. Their children are three in number — 
 Julia Ann Criss, of Akron; Luther K., and 
 Carrie M. Evans, also a resident of Akron. Mr. 
 and Mrs. llanney resided in Akron three 3'ears 
 to secure for their children superior school ad- 
 vantages. Luther K. entered for a classical 
 course at Buchtel College, of Akron, but on 
 account of ill health was forced to leave ; he is 
 now studying at home where he has a well-se- 
 lected library of books. Mr. Ranney, during 
 the gold excitement of 1 850, went to California, 
 where he remained for four years, mining with 
 good success. He relates many stories and 
 reminiscences of the pioneer days of his par- 
 ents ; he has, in his possession, a wooden bottle, 
 which was carried by his great grandfather, and 
 by his grandfather through the Revolution, and 
 which descended through his father to himself 
 
 W. W. RICHARDSON, merchant, Everett ; 
 is the principal representative of the mercan- 
 tile business of Everett, and was born in Lick- 
 ing Co., Ohio, in 1840. His parent^ were Will- 
 iam and Jane Richardson, his father being a 
 native of New York and his mother of Ver- 
 mont. They first settled in Licking County, 
 where his father followed the carpenter and 
 joiner's trade. He died while living in Illinois 
 where he was practicing medicine. His mother 
 is still living in Delaware Co., Ohio. Our sub- 
 ject began his business ventures upon the 
 canal being the owner of a boat, and was en- 
 gaged for three years in the transportation of 
 stone to Cleveland, the most of which was used 
 by the A. & G. W. Railroad. He next turned 
 his attention to fiirming, following that occupa- 
 tion in Boston Township for three years, and 
 for the next ten years in Bath Township. In 
 March, 1879, he removed to Everett Station, 
 where he has since devoted his attention to 
 the mercantile business. His store is located 
 upon the banks of the canal, and his stock con- 
 sists of groceries, dry goods and a general line 
 of boat supplies. He was married Feb. 25, 
 1863, to Miss Sylvia Myers, who was born in 
 Portage County in 1840. They have three 
 children — Margaret A., Dora B. and Eva P. 
 Mr. Richardson is the owner of the celebrated 
 chestnut stallion "Sunshine." 
 
 WILLIAM RICHARDSON, farmer ; P. O. 
 Boston ; was born in Bucks Co., Penn.. in 1814. 
 
 His father was a mechanic, but subsequently 
 became a farmer, and our subject's early life 
 and experience was in the care and cultivation 
 of his father's land. He remained at home un- 
 til he was 27 3'ears of age, and then engaged 
 in farming in Bucks County for himself, con- 
 tinuing there three years, and one year in 
 Philadelphia County ; he then rented another 
 farm which he cultivated for two years, at the 
 expiration of which time, he was engaged as a 
 drover for a 3'ear. In 185(J, he removed to 
 Brooklyn. Cuyahoga County, and engaged in 
 milling there for a few years, after which he 
 again resumed farming, continuing until 1864, 
 when he removed to Boston Township, where 
 he has since resided. His farm consists of 200 
 acres, about two-thirds of which is in cultiva- 
 tion. He has improved the place in buildings 
 and erected a neat and desirable residence. 
 Like the most of his neighbors, he is making 
 the dair}' business a specialty. Mr. Richard- 
 son was united in marriage, in 1840, to Miss 
 Mary M. Hagstoz in Philadelphia. They have 
 an adopted son — Franklin E. 
 
 LEWIS B. ROSWELL, Marshal. Peninsula ; 
 was born in Lake Co., Ohio, in 1832. His 
 parents were Ambrose and Elizabeth (Van 
 Looven) Roswell ; his father was a native of 
 New York and his mother of Pennsylvania. 
 The}' were married in Canada, and subse- 
 quently removed to the States, locating in Lake 
 County, v?here they remained about three 
 years, then removing to Hudson where they 
 were residents for the remainder of their days. 
 Lewis started out in life for himself at the age 
 of 15, working upon a farm for over a year. 
 He then learned the shoemaker's trade at 
 Twinsburg, and followed that trade in ditt'erent 
 localities, chieil}' Hudson and Peninsula, for 
 many 3'ears, since which time he has engaged 
 in various occupations. He is at present serv- 
 ing the corporation of Peninsula as JNIarshal. 
 He was married in 1873 to 3Iiss Nettie Wilson. 
 
 GEORGE STANFORD, farmer ; P. 0. B s- 
 ton ; is one of the oldest settlers now living in 
 Boston Township. He was born in Beaver Co., 
 Penn., Oct. 9. 1800. His parents were James 
 and Polly (Johnston) Stanford. His father 
 was a native of Ireland ; his mother of Pennsyl- 
 vania. They emigrated to Ohio and settled in 
 Warren, Trumbull Co., about 1802, where they 
 remained about three years, moving thence to 
 Bristol, remaining one year. His father then 
 
 ^ 
 
:^ 
 
 BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 903 
 
 joined a survejing party to locate and survey 
 Boston Township, and lie removed his family in 
 March, 1806, taking 169 acres upon the west 
 bank of the Cuyahoga River, near Boston. 
 Here they resided for the remainder of their 
 lives. Many of their pioneer incidents and ad- 
 ventures appear in the township histor}'. She 
 died in July. 1814, and James in January, 1827, 
 leaving nine children — George being the only 
 one now living — who has been engaged in agri- 
 culture, and has resided upon the old homestead 
 farm since his parents' death. He furnishes 
 many of the dates and reminiscences of pioneer 
 days, found in the township histor}'. The farm 
 (which now consists of 284 acres) has been 
 greatly improved b}' him. He has served in 
 various offices of township trust, having been 
 Justice of the Peace for six years. He is a 
 consistent member of the Methodist Church. 
 He was united in marriage, Jan. 17, 1828, to 
 Catharine Carter, a daughter of Thomas and 
 Elizabeth Carter, early settlers of the town- 
 ship, locating there about 1819, and remaining 
 there during their lives. Catharine was boi'n 
 in Ireland, in 1804 ; she departed this life Dec. 
 20, 1872. Eight children were the result of 
 this marriage — Emily, who died an infant ; 
 James M. and Ellen, both of whom died at 20 
 years of age ; William Irwin (deceased) ; Per- 
 kins W. Stanford, who enlisted as a private in 
 the 2d 0. V. C, Co. A ; he was subsequently 
 promoted to Sergeant ; was finall}- captured a 
 prisoner in 1864, and died in Andersonville 
 Prison ; Eliza, who died at the age of 3 years, 
 and Greorge C, born April 18, 1839. He was 
 married to Miss Lida Wetmore, Dec. 23, 1869. 
 They have three children — Ellen, Perkins W. 
 and Clayton J. George is now serving as 
 Postmaster of Boston. 
 
 ANDREW STUART, grocer. Peninsula ; was 
 born in Ireland in 1850. In 1852, his parents 
 emigrated to America and settled in Norton 
 Township, Summit Co. His father was a farmer, 
 and our subject remained at home until lie be- 
 came 14 years of age. He then went out to 
 work upon a farm, at which he continued nearly 
 four years, and then went to work upon the 
 canal, boating about four years ; and then upon 
 a farm again two years, at the end of which 
 time he was engaged upon public works at Ak- 
 ron one season. In 1871, he began clerking in 
 a grocery at Everett's Station, working there 
 about a jear, and from there to Peninsula, and 
 
 engaged in the same occupation for D. Peck, 
 with whom he remained some three years or 
 more ; after which, for a few years, he engaged 
 in different occupations. In 1879, he returned 
 to Peninsula and purchased the stock of his old 
 employer, D. Peck, where he is now engaged in 
 trade for himself He keeps a general line of 
 groceries and boat supplies, and is doing a 
 flourishing business. Mr. Stuart has by indus- 
 try and hard work effected a good business 
 commencement, and will doubtless become one 
 of the successful business men of Peninsula. 
 
 DANIEL TILDEN, farmer ; P. 0. Peninsula ; 
 was born in Vermont in 1790. His parents 
 were natives of Connecticut, where they were 
 married ; the}' then removed to Vermont, where 
 they resided for some years, moving from there 
 to Massachusetts, where the remainder of their 
 lives were spent. Daniel, at the age of 16, left 
 home: and, in 1817, came to Ohio, settling in 
 Hiram, Portage Co., w^here he bought a piece of 
 land and began the task of clearing it. He re- 
 mained there about two years, and, after dis- 
 posing of his land, returned to ^lassachusetts, 
 where he remained about six ^-ears farming. 
 In 1824, he returned to Hiram, and, after one 
 year, came to Boston Township, where he ac- 
 cepted a job upon the canal. He was also en- 
 gaged several years at milling. He then entered 
 upon his farming operations, locating upon the 
 McBride farm, where he remained four years ; 
 after which, he liought 160 acres of land, located 
 in the western part of the township, where 
 he has lived since, 1837. He was married in 
 1832 to Nancy Mather, who was born in Ver- 
 mont in 1792. and died in Boston Township in 
 1849. Thej' had two children — Nanc}^ who 
 died when an infant, and Daniel W. Mr. Tilden 
 commenced life with no pecuniary assistance, 
 and has accumulated .a handsome propert}'. 
 He has served as Townsliip Trustee, and was 
 elected Justice of Peace, but did not serve. 
 Daniel W. Tilden was born in March. 1836. in 
 Boston Township, of which place he has since 
 been a resident. He has always followed farm- 
 ing and lived upon the old homestead since his 
 father removed there. Tiiey have 450 acres of 
 land, whicli is of good quality and under good 
 cultivation ; and they have also been consider- 
 ably interested in dairying and cheese-making. 
 Daniel W. was married, in 1857. to Miss Harriet 
 Hall, who was born in New York in 1839. Her 
 parents subsequently removed to Summit Co., 
 
 "5) ^ 
 
Ml 
 
 901 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 where they passed the remainder of their days. 
 They have but one child living — Pearlie M. 
 Daniel W. has served the township as Trustee 
 for many years, and is one of the leading citi- 
 zens. His ftither is past 90 3'ears of age, but 
 still retains vivid recollections of his early 
 struggles, and relates many reminiscences of 
 pioneer life. 
 
 BURRILL VIALL, farmer; P. 0. Penin- 
 sula ; was born in Hanover Township, Chau- 
 tauqua Co., N. Y., in 1821. He is a son of 
 Burrill Viall, who was born in Bennington Co., 
 Yt., in 1793, and removed to New York in 1814, 
 settling in Chautauqua Co., where he soon after 
 married Sarah Ferguson, who was born in 
 Cooperstown, N. Y. They removed to Ohio, 
 and first settled in Middlebury in 1831, remov- 
 ing from there to Northampton, and residing 
 there until 1850, when the}- removed to Jack- 
 son Co., Iowa, where they resided until their 
 deaths, his occurring Dec. 23, 1862, and hers 
 Jan. 4, 1864. They were both members of the 
 Methodist Church. The}" had twelve children, 
 six boys and six girls. Burrill, Jr., has always 
 followed farming. He remained with his pa- 
 rents until 20 years of age, and, in 1841, bought 
 50 acres of land, which is a part of the farm 
 where he now resides. He is a self-made man, 
 having commenced the struggle of life with 
 small means, and, by industry and practical 
 ability, accumulated a large farm, which is or- 
 namented by an elegant residence, finely ap- 
 pointed. His is one of the model farms of the 
 township, and his system consists in dairying 
 and general farming. He ranks as one of the 
 township's most valuable citizens, having served 
 as Trustee, and taken an active interest in its 
 educational matters. He was married, Dec. 24, 
 1843, to Miss Jane White, who was born in 
 Cleveland, Ohio, Feb. 7, 1823. Her father, 
 Solomon White, was a native of Vermont ; her 
 mother, Hannah (Bronson) White, of Connecti- 
 cut, he served as baggage boy in the war of 
 1812, at the age of 14, under Gen. Harrison. 
 Her mother was taken to Connecticut by her 
 mother, to avoid the danger of warfare. Her 
 parents remained at Cleveland until she was 10 
 years of age, when they removed to Brooklyn, 
 living there four yeai's. He was the Cuyahoga 
 Co. Pork Inspector. They subsequently re- 
 moved to Boston Township, and finally emi- 
 grated to Jackson Co., Iowa, where they both 
 died ; his death occurred Jan. 24, 1864 ; his 
 
 wife died March 15, of the same year. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Viall's family are as follows : Sarah 
 J., deceased ; Mattie J. Humphrey, living in 
 Richfield ; Mary A. Carr, of Cuyahoga Falls ; 
 Julia F. Oviatt, Boston Township ; Lucy K. 
 Clark, residing in Middlebury ; Kittie E. and 
 Jennie M., at home. 
 
 B. J. VIERS, farmer ; P. 0. Hudson ; is a 
 son of Charles and Laura (Patterson) Viers. 
 Charles Viers was born in Jeft'erson Co., N. Y., 
 in 1806, and was married to Laura Patterson 
 in 1827. She was born in Vermont in 1810. 
 He was the son of a farmer and pioneer of 
 Jefferson Co., and subject to the toil and pri- 
 vation of that life from his childhood. After 
 his marriage, he farmed in that county for 
 some years, and then emigrated to Ohio, set- 
 tling in Northfield Township in 1831, where he 
 still resides. His wife died in October, 1877. 
 Their children are as follows : Bazzel J.; 
 Theda E. Holt, of Northfield ; Eliza J., the 
 widow of George Lamb, now the wife of A. N. 
 Ozmun, of Boston Township ; Samantha, de- 
 ceased ; Charles Albert, of Hudson, and Laura 
 M., deceased. Our subject was born in Jefler- 
 son Co., N. Y., in 1829 ; he remained with his 
 parents until 20 years of age, receiving a com- 
 mon-school education. He taught school one 
 winter, at the age of 19. His occupation for 
 many years subsequently was that of a laborer. 
 About 1864, he began farming operations for 
 himself, purchasing a piece of wild land, which 
 he cleared and worked for two years, when he 
 disposed of it and bought land in Norton 
 Township, farming there about seven years. 
 In 1874, he purchased a tract of land where he 
 now resides, in Boston Township. His farm 
 consists of 218 acres of improved land, located 
 upon the " State road." Mr. Viers is a practi- 
 cal and industrious farmer, and stands high in 
 his township and county. He was married, in 
 November, 1856, to Miss Lovena Ford, daugh- 
 ter of Marvin Ford, of Northampton. She was 
 born in Northampton in 1839. They have 
 eight children living, and one deceased (Clara 
 A., died at 6 years of age) — Laura E., Marvin 
 F„ Charles E.,'^Lydia A., Albert B., Linda M., 
 Rose I. and Lillie I. (twins). 
 
 FREDERICK B. WADHAMS, ftirmer ; P. 0. 
 Hudson ; was born in Litchfield Co., Conn., in 
 1804. He is a son of Seth and Lucy (Davis) 
 Wadhams. His mother died when he was about 
 2 3'ears old, and his father subsequently' mar- 
 
BOSTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 905 
 
 ried her sister. His fatiier died, leaving five 
 sons and one daughter. Frederick, who was 
 but 4 years of age, lived with his step-mother 
 until he was IG years old, and then went to live 
 with Gen. Abernethy, at Torrington, Conn., with 
 whom he remained until he attained his major- 
 ity, working in the mercantile business. In the 
 fall of 1825, he went to South Carolina, and 
 was in the eraplo}' of Wadkins & Birge for six 
 years, in the mercantile trade, having charge of 
 one of their stores, located at Lawrence. After 
 severing Ids connection with them, he engaged 
 in business for himself there, peddling dry 
 goods and notions, at which he continued for 
 five years, meeting with good success. He then 
 returned to Connecticut, where he was married, 
 September, 1830, to Miss Cornelia Phelps. He 
 then bought the Mansion House, of Litchfield, 
 which he owned for several years, but which 
 proved an unfortunate investment, and in 1835, 
 he started for Ohio, with but little mone}', but 
 rich in hope, perseverance, industrious habits 
 and good business qualifications. He located 
 in Boston Township, purchasing 150 acres of 
 timbered land at $16 per acre, borrowing most 
 of the money to pay for it. Mr. Wadhams has 
 resided in the township from that day to the 
 present time, and has been so largely engaged 
 in various enterprises that our space will hardly 
 afford a complete history. His farm at present 
 comprises about 400 acres of as fine land as 
 there is in the township, with superior improve- 
 ments in buildings, and with a location un- 
 equaled for a commanding view of the land- 
 scape for miles around, together with good 
 drainage, and a stone quarry of superior grade ; 
 he has also engaged in dairying. His business 
 transactions for many years were extensive. 
 He interested himself largely in the lumber 
 trade, during which he ran saw-mills, cooper- 
 shops, canal-boats, etc.; he also owned at one 
 time about 1,400 acres of laud, and has done 
 much to promote the prosperity of the town- 
 ship. Beginning life as he did, without money, 
 it is a great source of satisfaction for him to 
 review his past life, and reflect that to his per- 
 severance, honesty of purpose, and industry 
 alone, is due all of his well-deserved prosperit}' . 
 He was married again, Sept. 16, 1846, to Miss 
 Jane Jones, who was born in New York in 1816, 
 and is a daughter of Bees and Jane (Wright) 
 Jones, early settlers of Northampton, in which 
 township history a sketch of them appears. 
 
 Her grandfather Wright was also one of North- 
 ampton's pioneers. Mr. and Mrs. Wadhams 
 have three children — George, Ellen and Charles, 
 all at home. Mr. Wadhams has a son, Frede- 
 rick B., by his former wife, living in Cleveland. 
 The Wadhams family are of English descent, 
 tracing the line back to 1680, and were the 
 founders of Wadhams College, in England. 
 
 F. WOOD, merchant, Peninsula. Prominent 
 among the business interests of Peninsula is 
 the general mercantile store of F. Wood. Mr. 
 Wood was born in County Wicklow, Ireland, in 
 1828. His parents were Nesbitt and Eliza (Mor- 
 ton) Wood. His father resigned a commission in 
 the English army, and, with his family, emi- 
 grated to America in 1835, locating in Michigan. 
 In 1838, they removed to Boston Township, 
 where they resided for the remainder of their 
 lives. His father's death occurred in 1863, and 
 his mother's in 1868. The subject of this sketch 
 began his mercantile career at the age of 18, 
 when he entered the store of Arthur Layton, at 
 Boston Village, with whom he continued about 
 three years, and, in the same store, with his 
 successor, J. D. Edson, for over four years. In 
 1853, he came to Peninsula, and started in busi- 
 ness for himself, purchasing the stock of Charles 
 Curtis. In 1863, he removed to his present 
 location, where he has since been successfully 
 engaged in trade, with a general stock of dry 
 goods, groceries, etc., and also a line of drugs 
 and medicines. He has also devoted consider- 
 able attention to other business interests and 
 enterprises, for many years being the principal 
 owner of the stone quarr}^, south of the village ; 
 and, in 1872, when it became a stock concern, 
 he retained an interest until 1879, when he dis- 
 posed of his stock to F. Schumacher, of Akron. 
 He held the office of Deputy Postmaster, and 
 that of Postmaster for twent3--one years. He 
 has also served in various township offices of 
 trust. He is a member of Richfield Lodge, 
 Meridian Sun, No. 266, A., F. & A. M. Mr. Wood 
 was married, Feb. 16, 1854, to Miss Charlotte 
 M. Barnhart, who was born in Peninsula, June 
 19, 1836, and is the daughter of Jacob Barn- 
 hart and Rhoda (Bronson) Barnhart. Jacob 
 Barnhart was born in New York, in 1804, and 
 emigrated to Cleveland in 1832, and from there 
 to Peninsula, in the following j^ear, when he 
 became engaged in the boat-building business, 
 in which he was a pioneer in that section. He 
 was a respected and enterprising citizen during 
 
 V 
 
906 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 his entire life, taking a prominent position and 
 active interest in tlie enrollment of volunteers 
 during our late war ; his patriotism being so 
 sincere that, although nearl}- 60 years of age, 
 he enlisted in the 2d 0. V. C, but was not 
 allowed to serve. He died Jan. 26, 1874. His 
 wife, Rhoda Bronson, was born in Middlebury, 
 Conn., Oct. 9, 1800. She was a daughter of 
 Hermon and Molly (Hickox) Bronson, a more 
 extended sketch of whom is given elsewhere. 
 She w'as married, in March, 1816, to Willis 
 Payne, who died in Akron in 1828, leaving two 
 sons — H. B. Payne, lawyer at Richmond, Ind., 
 and William H., a boat-builder at Akron. She 
 was married to Jacob Barnhart, in March, 1833, 
 and survived him nearl}' six years. She died 
 in September, 1879, Charlotte M. being the only 
 child. Mr. and Mrs. Wood have had four chil- 
 dren — Annie C, who died at the age of 20 
 months ; Stella A., the wife of H. L. Cross, of 
 Cleveland, who have a son Charles Wood ; 
 Minnie E., who died in infancy, and Fred C. 
 The}- have an adopted daughter — Miss Julia E. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Wood, together with their family, 
 ai'e members of the Episcopal Church, in which 
 they have been prominently identified for many 
 years. Mr. Wood is the superintendent of the 
 Sabbath school, and his wife, for many years, 
 was the organist and leader of the choir. 
 
 F. C. WETMORE, farmer ; P. 0. Peninsula. 
 The Wetmore family in America are descend- 
 ants from Thomas Whitmore, who came from 
 the West of England to Boston, Mass., in 1635. 
 Judge William Wetmore was born in Middle- 
 town, Conn., in 1771, and came to Ohio in 
 June, 1804, with his family, as agent of the 
 Western Reserve Land Company, for the sale 
 of their lands. He located in Stow Township 
 and built the second house in that township. 
 He was a general counselor of law, and served 
 during the war of 1812, acting as Commissary 
 of Supplies. In 1825, with his sons Henry 
 and William, he made the first survey of Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls, and commenced the improvements 
 and laying- out of the town. They also started 
 saw, flouring and oil mills in company with 
 John Stow. He was a prime mover in giving 
 life and impetus to business interests there. 
 He died Oct. 9, 1827. William 0. Wetmore 
 was born Sept. 5, 1796. Married, Oct. 2, 1822, 
 Miss Elizabeth Wallace. He resided for a 
 number of 3'ears at Cuyahoga Falls, where he 
 was extensively engaged in manufacturing. 
 
 He built the first paper-mill in Ohio, on the 
 wet-felt plan. He removed to Boston Town- 
 ship in 1850, and bought a large tract of land 
 and was beginning extensive business opera- 
 tions there, when he was taken suddenly ill 
 through exposure, and died Jan. 12, 1852. He 
 represented the counties of Portage and Sum- 
 mit in the State Legislature in 1844-45. His 
 wife died Oct. 9, 1875. Children as follows : 
 Henry, now living in Boston Township ; Ed- 
 win, of Northampton ; Mary Collier, in Indi- 
 ana ; Frederick C.; Julia Wood, of Boston 
 Township, and Eliza Stanford, of Boston 
 Township. Frederick C. Wetmore was born in 
 Stow Township March 6, 1835. Upon the 
 death of his father, he engaged in various oc- 
 cupations until the spring of 1866, when he 
 bought the saw-mill at Peninsula, which his 
 father had built, since which time he has been 
 engaged in farming and lumbering in Boston 
 Township. He has 160 acres of valuable im- 
 proved land, and gives the dairying business 
 considerable attention. Mr. Wetmore has 
 served the township in man}' offices of trust, 
 as Trustee, Town Clerk, Constable, Mayor and 
 Councilman of the corporation, and as Justice 
 of the Peace one year, at the expiration of 
 which he resigned. He was united in mar- 
 riage, Oct. 23, 1860, to Miss Emily Wetmore, a 
 descendant of the same family as himself 
 Her father was Nathaniel D. Wetmore, a native 
 of Connecticut, who embarked earl}' in life in 
 business, which led him to reside severally in 
 Canada, Dover and Rochester, N. H., and Cuy- 
 ahoga Falls and Cleveland, where he is now in 
 business in connection with Brainard's Sons. 
 He was a member of the General Assembly of 
 New Hampshire in 1846-47-48, and is a cor- 
 rect an extensive business man. His wife was 
 Lydia Mcintosh, who died in Cuyahoga Falls 
 in 1865. Mr. and Mrs. Wetmore have two 
 children — Ethelbert and Lida. A daughter, 
 Mildred, died at 4 years of age. 
 
 ALFRED WOLCOTT, fai^mer ; P. 0. Hud- 
 son ; is a son of Alfred and Margaret (Craig) 
 Wolcott, pioneers of the township ; Alfred 
 Wolcott was born in Connecticut, his wife in 
 Wheeling, Va. He was a surveyor and was 
 employed by Perkins to survey most of the 
 land of the Western Reserve ; he was mar- 
 ried in Youngstown, Ohio, about 1806, and in 
 the fall of that year bought the land where 
 Gen. Sanford now resides ; but thinking it 
 
BOSTOX TOWNSHIP. 
 
 907 
 
 would be unhealthy on account of the river, 
 sold to Stanford, and purchased a tract of land 
 where Alfred Jr., now resides. He bought 115 
 acres and built a cabin upon it and began the 
 clearing of the land. He raised a large family 
 of children, three girls and six boys — Melinda, 
 the eldest, was the first white female child 
 born in the township ; only three of the chil- 
 dren are now living — Alfred, Ji*.; Darius, a res- 
 ident of Geauga Countv, and Mrs. ]Mary Gay- 
 lord, of Stow Township. He followed his occu- 
 pation of surve3'or man}' years, la3'ing out 
 many of the township roads, and most of the 
 land adjacent. He served as Justice of the 
 Peace for eighteen 3'ears, and in other minor 
 offices, taking a deep interest in educational 
 matters, teaching school man}' terms. He 
 died in 1835 ; his wife in February 1863. Al- 
 fred Woleott, Jr., was born Jan. 28, 1812, in 
 Boston Township, and remained at home, as- 
 sisting in clearing land, as most bo^'S of that 
 period did, until he became of age. He was 
 married, April 18, 1836, to Miss Mary Scovill, 
 who was born in Connecticut, in 1821 ; her 
 father died in Connecticut and her mother sub- 
 sequently married Thomas McCauley, and in 
 1832, they removed to Summit County ; they 
 now reside in Hudson. After his marriage he 
 bought a farm in Northfield Township, which 
 he soon afterward traded for the old home- 
 stead from his brother. Here he has resided 
 up to the present time, making many improve- 
 ments and adding to his possessions, until he 
 now owns 257 acres, the major portion of which 
 is under cultivation. He has made a specialty 
 of the dairj'ing business. He was elected a 
 State Representative from his district and 
 served two years ; has also served as Assessor 
 and interests himself generally in all enter- 
 prises and improvements of merit. ^Ir. and 
 Mrs. Woleott have five children living — Simon 
 P., a graduate of Western Reserve College, and 
 now practicing law in Kent, Ohio ; John, of 
 Grand Rapids, Mich., who is a graduate of the 
 Mercantile College of Hiram ; Anna A. Bis- 
 sell, living in Michigan, a graduate of Paines- 
 ville Female Seminary ; Alfred, Jr.. also a 
 graduate of Western Reserve College, soon to 
 go to Cincinnati to stud}- Law ; Fremont, at 
 home ; Andrew A. enlisted in 29th 0. V. I. 
 and died in service. 
 
 ALLEN WELTON (deceased) ; was born in 
 Vermont, July 18, 1809. He was for many years 
 
 a prominent farmer and dair^-man of Boston 
 Township. At the time of his death he was the 
 owner of two cheese factories in the township, and 
 was for man\' 3'ears a prominent member of the 
 Ohio Dairymen's As.sociation, in which he was a 
 leader. He was one of the pioneer dair3'men of 
 the Western Reserve, starting the second factor}' 
 within its limits. He was a man of extraordi- 
 nary energy and possessed great executive 
 ability. Commencing life a poor bo3', one of 
 his first enterprises proved a disaster ; he had 
 chopped 400 cords of wood in New York State, 
 which, b3' a sudden uprising of the stream, was 
 all swept away. He was of very industrious 
 habits, which, coupled with good judgment, 
 made his later enterprises successful, and at 
 the time of his death he left a handsome prop- 
 ert3^ He was a popular citizen and was ver3- 
 patriotic, taking a leading interest in all efforts 
 to carry on the late war. He was married in 
 New York State to Miss Sarah Striker, by 
 whom he had five children — Francis (deceased), 
 George W., now a resident of Bradford, Penn., 
 who was in the service nearly three years ; 
 William H. H., of Akron, who served in the 
 "Squirrel Hunters ;" John A., of Bath Town- 
 ship, who was in the service over three years, 
 and Ellen E. Ozmun, who is living in Michi- 
 gan. He was married to a second wife. Louise 
 Thompson, March 17, 1852. She was born in 
 Hudson, in 1831, and is a daughter of Mills 
 and Catharine (Allen) Thompson, who were 
 early settlers in the county. Five children 
 were the result of this marriage — Cora A., Em- 
 ma C, Hattio J., Iva J. and the eldest, a son, 
 Frank E. Mr. Welton died in Boston Town- 
 ship, April 3, 1878. and in his death the com- 
 munity lost a A'^aluable citizen and one of its 
 progressive business men. Mrs. Welton is liv- 
 ing upon the homestead, which consists of 180 
 acres of valuable land, finely located and im- 
 proved. 
 
 W. W. WHITNEY, hardware, Peninsula : is 
 a young and promising business man of Penin- 
 sula. He was born in Akron in 1856; com- 
 menced to learn his trade as tinsmith at the 
 age of 19, with D. E. Sheppard, of Richfield, 
 with whom he remained four years ; he then 
 worked a short time for Green Lease, at Penin- 
 sula, thence to Hudson, whore he worked four 
 months for G. H. Grimm. In November, 1879, 
 he returned to Peninsula, and, in July, 1880, 
 commenced his present business venture. He 
 
908 
 
 BIOGKAPHTCAL SKETCHES: 
 
 purchased a new and complete line of hard- 
 ware, stoves, tinware, agricultural implements, 
 etc., and is doing a promising and growing 
 trade. He is a skillful and experienced work- 
 man in tinware, in which line he does general 
 repairing. His business location is centi'al, and, 
 as he is a popular and deserving young man, 
 will, doubtless, grow into a fine trade. 
 
 C. S. WHITNEY, shocTnaker ; Peninsula ; 
 is a native of New York Slate, having been 
 born in Oswego Co., in 1829. His father died 
 in New York State, and his mother sub- 
 sequently removed to Ohio, locating about 
 1835, in Parma. Cuyahoga Co. Our subject 
 commenced to learn his trade at the age of 20 
 years, in West Cleveland, and has followed that 
 calling all his life. He came to Peninsula 
 
 about 1860, where he has since remained. He 
 was united in marriage in 1854 to Miss Melissa 
 Washburn ; they have three children — William 
 W., Daniel L. and Nellie V. Mr. Whitney is 
 considered one of the best citizens of Peninsula, 
 and is an industrious and proficient workman. 
 FRANK B. WELTON, farmer and dairying ; 
 P. 0. Peninsula ; is a son of Allen and Louise 
 (Thompson) Welton. He was born in Boston 
 Township Dec. 9, 1853. He is, by occupation, 
 a farmer, and is a rising young dairyman. He 
 has been interested in cheese- making for the 
 past eight years, and is carrying on the factor}' 
 located upon their farm. He was married Dec. 
 28. 1875. to Miss Ella Hancock, daughter of E. 
 D.' Hancock, Esq., of Richfield Township. They 
 have one child — Park E. 
 
 SPRIS^CFIELD TOWNSHflP. 
 
 ROBERT L. ATCHISON, merchant, Mog- 
 adore, Ohio. This gentleman was born in 
 Washington Co., Penn., April 15, 1813, being 
 the son of Humphrey and Betsey (Loury) 
 Atchison, who were natives of Washington 
 Co., where he (Humphrey) was engaged in 
 farming. In 1816, he moved to Steubenville, 
 Ohio, where for a short time he was proprietor 
 of a hotel. Becoming dissatisfied, he moved 
 to Yellow Creek, where he became interested 
 in procuring and selling salt, at which busi 
 ness he was very successful, and had contracts 
 in many parts of Ohio and West Virginia. 
 He died in March, 1876. The subject of these 
 lines lived at home imtil he was 14 years of 
 age; he was then engaged to drive a stage, 
 the route being from Wheeling to Janesville, 
 which occupation he followed for seven years. 
 In 1884, he came to Akron and engaged in 
 the manufacture of stoneware, at first as jour- 
 neyman, and subsequently as proprietor, which 
 business he has carried on up to the present 
 time. He engaged in the mercantile business 
 in 1855, with a small capital, which business 
 also he successfully controls. He was united 
 in marriage to Fannie Purdy on Jan. 10, 1841, 
 from which marriage three children were born 
 to them, viz.: Alfred P., Charles C, and 
 Emma, wife of Norton Atwood (deceased). A 
 
 son of the last named lives with him, and is a 
 musician of considerable note. Mr. Atchison 
 is an active Republican. 
 
 ABRAM BRUMBAUGH, farmer and stock- 
 raiser; P. O. North Springfield; is a son 
 of Jacob and Susan (Ditch) Brumbaugh. 
 Jacob was a native of Pennsylvania, and came 
 to Stark Co., Ohio, in 1810, where he was mar- 
 ried to Susan Ditch in 1828 ; she was a native 
 of Germany, and came to Summit Co. with her 
 parents at an early day. There were nine 
 children in the family. They were members 
 of the German Baptist Church. The subject 
 was born in Stark Co., Ohio, April 21, 1835. 
 He lived at home until he was of age, attend- 
 ing the district schools. In 1857, he was 
 united in marriage to Sarah Shoner, daughter 
 of P. H. and Dorothy Shoner, who were natives 
 of Germany, and early settled in Springfield 
 Township. The result of that marriage is an 
 interesting family of six children, viz. : Emma 
 J., Monroe A, Caroline, Amanda, Minerva 
 and Laura. In 1860, he took charge of his 
 father's farm and threshing. He jiurchased a 
 farm of 100 acres in Lake Township, where 
 he remained for two years, afterward exchang- 
 ing it for a grist-mill in Springfield Township, 
 known as the Tritt Mill. He settled on a 
 farm of 146 acres in Springfield Township, 
 
 IZ 
 
:^i 
 
 SPlUNGriP:LD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 909 
 
 where he now resides. He has engaged ex- 
 tensively in buying and shipping stock. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Brumbaugh are active members of 
 the Lutheran Church. Mi'. Brumbaugh has 
 always voted the Democratic ticket, and has 
 held many offices of trust, and is one of the 
 most successful business men in Springfield 
 township. 
 
 JOHN T. BRITTAIN, farmer; P. O. Brit- 
 tain. This gentleman was born on his fa- 
 ther's farm in Colmnbia Co., Penn., Aug. 
 16, 1823. His parents moved to Springfield 
 Township in 1832, and settled on the farm 
 he now occupies. His early days were spent 
 on the farm. At the age of 21 years, he mar- 
 ried Hannah Rogers, daughter of Gerdon and 
 Sarah Rogers, of Geauga Co., Ohio, and the 
 following-named children were born, viz.: 
 Amanda, wife of Wesley Corp, of Northamp- 
 ton Township; John; Sarah, wife of Herman 
 Newbower; and Hannah, wife of Thomas Gil- 
 crest, of Springfield Township. Mrs. Brittain 
 died in March, 1852, aged 24 years. His sec- 
 ond wife was Catharine Potts, of Suffield 
 Township; eight children were born to them, 
 six of whom are living, viz. : Olive, Lemuel, 
 Alice, Cora, Grace and Edith. Mr. Brittain 
 is comfortably situ.ated on a fine farm of 200 
 acres, which is valuable because of the amount 
 of ore it contains. He takes an active part in 
 the welfare of the township, and, when the 
 people of Springfield petitioned for a post 
 ofiice to be located where Brittain is, it was 
 their desire to have it given his name. Mr. 
 Brittain has always voted the Republican 
 ticket, and has held many township ofiices. 
 
 EDWARD BERRY, Postmaster and mer- 
 chant, Brittain; son of Henry and Elizabeth 
 Berry; was born in Union Co., Penn., April 4, 
 1832. At an early age, he left home and 
 commenced to drive mules on a canal, run- 
 ning between Pittston, Penn., and Baltimore, 
 Md., and followed that occupation for four 
 years. He then engaged with the Captain of 
 a schooner, for whom he worked four years, 
 sailing principally along the coast. He ar- 
 ranged to take passage on a vessel that was to 
 sail around the world, but, before leaving, 
 returned home for the purjiose of bidding his 
 parents farewell, and was taken suddenly ill, 
 being sick for about three months; abandon- 
 
 ing his sailor's life, he was apprenticed to a 
 shoe-maker to learn the trade; at the expira- 
 tion of his apprenticeship, he began as jour- 
 neyman, working and traveling extensively 
 for three years. In 1853, in Stark Co., Ohio, 
 he started a boot and shoe store and custom 
 shop, doing business until 1856, when he 
 began to sell other articles. In 1869, he pur- 
 chased the property now occupied b him and 
 started a general store, conducting the busi- 
 ness ever since. In February, 1880, he was 
 appointed Postmaster at Brittain. On April 
 23, 1853, he married Maria Leib, daughter of 
 John Leib, of Stark Co. ; four children were 
 born to them, three of whom are living — 
 Sarah E., Martha A. and Henry L. He is a 
 Democrat in principle, and has held many 
 township offices. 
 
 JAMES BREWSTER, coal operator, Mid- 
 dlebury; is the son of James G. and Mar- 
 tha Brewster, and was born in Coventry, this 
 county, Jan. 11, 1834. He lived on the farm 
 with his father until he was 21 years of age, 
 when he went to California, where he remained 
 twelve years, engaged in mining. In 18(37, 
 he returned home and began farming. Then, 
 in company with his brothers, he began oper- 
 ating the coal mine which was located on 
 their farm, and has been in that business up 
 to the present time. They also own an inter- 
 est in the Buckeye Sewer-Pipe Works of Mid- 
 dlebiuy, and a gi'ist-mill in Coventry Town- 
 ship, and other property. In May, 1870, he 
 was married to Mary Davies, daughter of Rev. 
 David Davies, of Portage Co. ; they have six 
 children, viz.: Albert, Martha. Mary, Laura, 
 Rose and Modena. Mrs. Brewster is a mem- 
 ber of the Congregational Church of Akron. 
 Mr. Brewster is a stanch Republican, always 
 having voted with that party, and is consid- 
 ered one of the stalwarts. 
 
 BENJAMIN COLDREN, miller. Lake, 
 Stark Co. The subject was born on his fa- 
 thers' farm in Lancaster Co., Penn., May 5, 
 1821. His parents, Abram and Mar}- Coldi'en, 
 wei'e natives of Lancaster Co., Penn., where 
 they were engaged in farming up to the time 
 of their death; he died in 1866, aged 75 
 years, and she in 1845, aged 40. The subject 
 assisted his father on the farm imtil he ar- 
 rived at the age of 18, when he left home 
 
4. 
 
 ly- 
 
 910 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and worked on another farm for two _years; 
 biit, being dissatisfied with this work, and 
 having a desire to become a miller, he ap})ren- 
 ticed himself, two years later, to a miller in 
 Lancaster Co., Penn., serving three years. 
 He then took charge of a mill and followed 
 that business three years. In 1847, he rented 
 another mill, where he successfully carried on 
 business for thirteen years. In ISGO, he 
 moved to Springfield and purchased the mill 
 property known as the Phoenix Mill, where he 
 has continued in business up to the present 
 time. He has made many improvements, and 
 it is now one of he first- class mills of Spring- 
 field Townshi]). In connection with that 
 property, he owns a farm in Springfield. 
 In 1858, he was married to Ann Sheets, 
 daughter of John and Elizabeth Sheets, of 
 Lancaster Co., Penn. Their children were 
 Mary, wife of John Myers; Samuel, deceased; 
 Caroline E., wife of Adam Swinehart; and 
 Pansy. Mr. Coldren is Democratic in princi- 
 ple, and has voted with that party since its 
 organization. 
 
 CIEORGE CARPER, farmer; P. O. Mid- 
 dlebury ; is the son of Samuel and Ester Young, 
 who came to Stark Co. from Pennsylvania at an 
 early day, where they settled on a farm of 160 
 acres, where they lived until their death, 
 the mother dying in 1864, and the father in 
 1868. The subject's early life was spent in 
 assisting his father on the farm. At the age 
 of 21, he left home and worked on a farm for 
 three years. On Dec. 22, 1861, he was united 
 in marriage to Elizabeth, the only child of 
 Henry and Elizabeth Young. Five children 
 were born to them, as follows: Amanda, Mar- 
 garet, Samuel, Ruben and Henry (deceased). 
 Mr. Carper settled on a farm after his mar- 
 riage, and has continued in that calling up to 
 the present time, in addition to which, having 
 been licensed to preach in 1872, he has accept- 
 ably tilled the pulpit of the German Baptist 
 Church. He owns 250 acres of valuable land, 
 and also has an interest in a clay bank. 
 He lives with his father-in-law, Mr. Young, 
 who was a native of Lancaster Co., Penn., 
 where he was born in 1819, and came to 
 Springfield at an early day. Being a cooper 
 by trade, he followed that calling for several 
 years, until about 1842, when he engaged in 
 
 farming, and, by his industry and economy, 
 has become one of Springfield's wealthiest 
 men. He and his wife are members of the 
 GFerman Baptist Church. 
 
 HENRY CRAMER, farmer; P. O. Moga- 
 dore; is the son of Daniel and Catharine 
 (Myers) Cramer, and was born in Uniontown, 
 Summit Co., Ohio, Oct. 15, 1822. In his early 
 life, he assisted his father on the farm. At 
 the age of 21, he left home and purchased 80 
 acres of land in Green T(3wnsliip, and worked 
 at chojjping and clearing for three years, when 
 he discontinued the same. He was married to 
 Elmira Stall, daughter of Simon and Deb- 
 orah Stall, May 6, 1846, and six children were 
 born to them, viz.: Calviii, Melancthon, Sy- 
 bella (deceased), William H. (deceased), Mar- 
 tha E. and Cora A. After his marriage, he 
 settled on 208 acres of land in Springfield 
 Township, where he labored diligently, until 
 he has one of the best- improved farms in the 
 township. Subsequent to the death of his 
 first wife, he married Isabella Jones, daughter 
 of William and Jane Jones, and she bore him 
 two children — Jennie B. and Arthur H (de- 
 ceased). His wife died March 1, 1880, and 
 her loss was keenly felt by neighbors and 
 friends, who greatly esteemed her. 
 
 WILLIAM F. CROTZER, retired farmer; 
 P. O. Mogadore. Among the early settlers of 
 Summit Co. is the subject, who was born on 
 his father's farm Oct. 30, 1799. His father, 
 John Crotzer, came to Springfield in 1816, 
 the subject accompanying him. In his youth, 
 he assisted in clearing the farm, obtaining 
 such education as the early schools afforded. 
 On Dec. 28, 1820, he was married to Margaret 
 Diuibar, daughter of Alexander Dmibar, of 
 Pemisylvania. They had no children, and his 
 wife died on June 5, 1872. He settled on his 
 present farm at an early day, and did the first 
 plowing done at Brittain. He was united in 
 marriage to Mrs. George Rehard, formerly 
 from Peimsylvania; her maiden name was 
 Sarah A. Degarmo. They are both active 
 members of the Presbyterian Church, he hav- 
 ing been a member for a number of years. In 
 politics, he is a Democrat. 
 
 JOHNW. CHAMBERLIN, farmer; P. O. 
 Krumroy; son of Joseph and Agnes (Deal) 
 Chamberlin; was born in Springfield Town- 
 
 "x: 
 
SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 911 
 
 ship March 22, 1845. He remained at home 
 until, and for several years after, his marriage, 
 which occurred Oct. 21, 1869, the lady being 
 Elizabeth Wise, daughter of Samuel Wise, of 
 Stark Co. ; there were three children. In 
 1877, he purchased of the heirs 83 acres of 
 the homestead farm. He has made many im- 
 provements, and his is considered one of the 
 pleasantest homes in the neighborhood. Mx. 
 and Mrs. Chamberlin are members of the 
 M. E. Chvu-ch. Joseph Chamberlin, his 
 father, soon after settling in Springfield 
 Township, built the grist-mill known as the 
 Chamberlin Mill, and conducted business 
 therein for several years, when he again fol- 
 lowed farming. He died in 1873, aged 64. 
 
 DAVID ELLET, school-teacher, Akron. 
 This gentleman is the son of David and Sarah 
 (Fite) Ellet, and was born in Springfield, 
 Smnmit Co., Ohio, Feb. 7, 1827. His parents 
 died when he was young, and he lived with 
 his grandparents. At the age of 11, he went 
 to Findlay and lived there a year, when he 
 retm-ned to Springfield Township and lived 
 with Jehu Ellet until he was 17, when he 
 attended school at Middlebury ; from there he 
 went to Wadsworth, where he entered Wads- 
 worth Academy, subsequently attending the 
 institute at Twinsburg, where he remained for 
 some time. In order to acquire a more com- 
 plete education, he attended Franklin College, 
 where he remained until his health began to 
 fail. He was considered one of the best- 
 infonned students in the college, and was 
 especially noted for his proficiency in the 
 Latin language. On June 14, 1849, he was 
 united in marriage to Keziah Ellet, daughter 
 of Jehu Ellet, of Springfield Township. 
 There were three childi'en, viz. : Lucinda E., 
 Minnie J., Ai'thiu* L. ; Sarah E., is deceased. 
 Since his marriage, he has been engaged in 
 fanning and teaching. He is a member of the 
 Board of School Examiners of Summit Co. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Ellet are devout members of the 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 K. J. ELLET, farmer; P. O. Middlebury; is 
 a son of Jehu and Elizabeth Ellet. His 
 father was from Hartford Co., Md., and came 
 to Tnunbull Co., Ohio, in 1802 with his par- 
 ents, where they remained until 1810, when 
 they came to Springfield and settled a f ai'm of 
 
 640 acres. His mother's parents were from 
 Pennsylvania, and settled in Trumbull Co., 
 Ohio, in 1820. After their marriage, they 
 lived on a farm up to the time of their death; 
 he died March 23, 1860, aged 66 years, and 
 she in September, 1865, aged 73 years. The 
 subject was born in Springfield Dec. 27, 1831. 
 He lived at home, doing farm work and at- 
 tending district school, until March 16, 1854, 
 when he was married to Lu.cinda E. Norton, 
 daughter of Lester Norton, who came to 
 Springfield from New York State in 1808. 
 Three children were born to them, viz. : Mat- 
 tie, wife of Milo White, of Springfield; Cora 
 J., wife of Frank Weston; and King Fred. 
 Mr. Ellet lives on the homestead farm, consist- 
 ing of 132 acres of valuable land. He is a 
 stanch Republican, and has held many town- 
 ship olfices. 
 
 ROBERT GILCREST, miller, Brittain. 
 The subjcet of this sketch was born in Wash- 
 ington Co., Penn., Feb. 28, 18 lO. He lived 
 at home until he was 22 years of age, working 
 on the farm during siimmers and attending 
 school in winters. At the age of 22, he left 
 home and went to Wellsburg, Va., where he 
 began working in a boat-yard, remaining for 
 four years. In 1838, he came to Stark Co., 
 Ohio, where he became engaged in the mill- 
 wright's trade, which he continued eight years 
 in different parts of Ohio. In 1849, he came 
 to Springfield and purchased the mill prop- 
 erty known as the Western Reserve Mill, in 
 which business he has been engaged ever 
 since. In 1832, he was married to Mary Mar- 
 tin, daughter of Robert Martin, of Brooke Co., 
 Va. Mrs. Gilcrest died in 1838. His second 
 wife was Rebecca Myers, of Springfield. 
 They have five childi-en — Caroline, wife of 
 Frederick Schnee; Thomas; Matilda, wife of 
 Benton Adams, of Aki-on; Mary A. and Anson. 
 IVIi-. Gilcrest is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 A. W. HALL, stoneware manufacturer, 
 Mogadore; is the son of Robert and Mary 
 (Warner) Hall; born in Portage Co., Ohio, 
 Aug. 15, 1843, on his father's farm, where 
 his boyhood days were spent. At the age of 
 7, he came to Mogadore with his mother, at- 
 tending school imtil he was 14 yeai-s old, when 
 he began to work on a farm in Portage Co., 
 continuing for two years, when he went to 
 
912 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Oshkosh, Wis., remaining but one year, dur- 
 ing which time he was working on a farm. 
 Returning to Ohio, he went to Tallmadge, 
 where he again attended school, remaining 
 until the breaking-out of the war, when he 
 enlisted in Co. F, 7th O. V. I., remaining in 
 that company but three months, when he 
 enlisted in Co. G, 29th O. V. I. He was 
 taken prisoner at Chancellorsville May 3, 1868, 
 being released on the 1 st of June of the same 
 year. He served through many battles, and 
 was with Sherman while on his march to the 
 sea. He returned home in 1866 and engaged 
 in the pottery business, the firm name being 
 Martin & Hall. Their works were destroyed 
 by tire in 1868, and he then bought more 
 extensive works. The tirm is now Myers & 
 Hall, and are doing a flourishing business. 
 In March, 1867, he was married to Helen 
 Warren, daughter of William H. and Phcebe 
 Warren. From their union two children were 
 the issue — Harry R. and Eva. Mr. Hall is an 
 active Republican, and enjoys the confidence 
 of all. 
 
 HARLIN HILL, farmer; P. O. Mogadore; 
 is a son of John and Eunice Crane Hill. 
 John, the father, was born in Rhode Island, 
 but removed to Clarence, N. Y., where he was 
 engaged in farming; he remained there but a 
 short time when he removed to Allegany Co., 
 N. Y., and settled on a farm, where he lived 
 for several years. At the breaking-out of the 
 war of 1812, he volunteered his services and 
 was engaged in the battle in which Gen. Brock 
 lost his life, and after the war he moved to 
 Canada, where he remained until the time of 
 his death. The subject of this sketch was 
 born on his father's farm in Clarence, N. Y., 
 in the year 1810, and his early life was spent 
 on his father's farm. At the age of 18 years, 
 he learned to manufacture woolen goods in 
 Canada, and was engaged in the same for ten 
 years, when he sold out. In 1 844, he came to 
 Summit Co., settling in Tallmadge Township, 
 remaining there eight years. He then pur- 
 chased the farm he now lives on, consisting of 
 300 acres of land. In May, 1835, he was 
 married to Mary M. Church, daughter of John 
 K. and Mary Chxirch, who were natives of 
 Vermont, and settled in Summit Co. at an 
 early day. From that marriage there were 
 
 six children born, as follows: John H., Hiram 
 C, both killed in the late war; Franklin F., 
 William E., Eugene H., and Edith P., wife of 
 Albert Kent, of Mogadore. Mr. Hill has 
 always been identified with the Republican 
 party. 
 
 JOHN S. HART, contractor, Middlebury; 
 was born in Middlebiuy, Summit Co., Ohio, 
 Dec. 5, 1833, to John C. and Margaret A. 
 (Sterling) Hart, and lived on his father's farm 
 imtil he was 16 years of age, when he entered 
 the high school at Abingdon, Mass., where he 
 remained one year, and then attended the high 
 school at Winchester, Mass. , where he remained 
 for a short time, and then returned home and 
 assisted his father at farming and other busi- 
 ness. On March 12, 1856, he was united in 
 marriage to Zilpha M. Tinker, daughter of 
 Daniel Tinker, of Rochester, N. Y. Two 
 children were born to them, viz.: Louise 
 Sumner and Hiram S. (deceased). In Sep- 
 tember, 1873, his wife died, and on the 19th 
 of July, 1874, he married Rose Henry, daugh- 
 ter of Jacob Henry, of Pittsburgh. They have 
 no childien. In 1856, he engaged in farm- 
 ing, which business he followed imtil 1861, 
 when he adopted the stoneware business, in 
 company with William E. Smith, at which he 
 continued until 1873. In July, 1875, he was 
 engaged by the Akron Strawboard Company 
 — the lai'gest establishment of its kind in the 
 State — as contractor, which business he is now 
 engaged in. In addition to this, he carries 
 on the old homestead farm. Mr. Hart is a 
 stanch Republican, always having A'oted with 
 that party. 
 
 AUSTIN M. HALE, farmer and nursery- 
 man; P. O. Mogadore. Among the first set- 
 tlers of Portage Co. was the subject's father, 
 Thomas Hale, who, in 1806, left his home in 
 Suffield Co., Conn., for the State of Ohio. 
 Uj)on his arrival in the new country, he was 
 engaged to teach school, which business he 
 can-ied on for several yeai's. In 1810, he was 
 united in mandage to Laura Moore, who was 
 a native of Vermont. The subject has in his 
 possession a letter written by his father to 
 Mr. Moore, asking his approval of their mar- 
 riage. Thomas Hale came into possession of 
 1,800 acres of land in Portage and Medina 
 Cos. at the death of his father. He served as 
 
 . yg 
 
-=# © 
 
 ^ 
 
 SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 913 
 
 Justice of the Peace for upward of forty years. 
 His death occuired in June, 1841. The sub- 
 ject's early life was spent on his father's farm. 
 At the age of 17, he moved on the farm which 
 he now occupies. On Jan. I, 1838, he was 
 married to Samantha Bellows; four children 
 wei'e born to them — Thomas, Albert, Laura 
 and Mary. His wife died in 1870. He mar- 
 ried his second wife, Laura Brown, on Feb. 6, 
 1871, and of that marriage there is one child 
 —Nellie May. 
 
 PETER HILE, farmer; P. O. Mogadore: 
 is the son of Henry and Maria Hile, and was 
 born Nov. 11, »824. When but 5 days old, 
 his mother died and left him in charge of a 
 brother, where he lived until he was 10 years 
 of age, when he commenced to work on a farm 
 in the summers and attending school during 
 the winters, which life he led for seven years. 
 He then learned the blacksmith's trade, serv- 
 ing three years as an apprentice; he worked 
 in company with his brother for two years, 
 when they dissolved partnership and he con- 
 ducted the business alone for a time. On Feb. 
 25, 1846, he was married to Olive L. Boyd, 
 who bore him two childi"en, viz.: Emily R., 
 wife of Quinn Monroe, of Texas; and Sarah 
 L., wife of Henry Weimer, of Springfield, 
 Mr. Hile began life a poor boy, but, by his 
 industry and economy, has acquired a fine 
 property. Mr. and Mrs. Hile are members of 
 the Disciples' Church. 
 
 GEORGE W. HART, farmer; P. O. Mid- 
 dlebury; is the son of John and Sarah (Dun- 
 bar) Hart, who were natives of Penosylvania, 
 where they were engaged in farming. In 
 1819, they came to Springfield and settled on 
 a farm. In 1889, they bought and settled on 
 the farm now owned by George, where they 
 lived until their death. The father was a sol- 
 dier of the war of 1812, and died at the ripe 
 age of 82; and the mother, at the age of 66. 
 The subject was born on his father's farm in 
 Springfield, March 17, 1833, and is the young- 
 est of a family of feven children. His younger 
 days were spent on the fai'm and attending 
 school. In 1864, he enlisted in Co. H, 4th 
 Battalion O. V. I., and served 100 days. On 
 Nov. 23, 1856, he was married to Rebecca 
 Myers, daughter of John D. Myers. There 
 were three children, as follows: Arilda J., 
 
 wife of Oren Swinehart; Ira L. and Luther 
 E. Mr. Hart's gi'andfather was a soldier 
 imder La Favette, serving seven yeai'a. 
 
 JONATHAN HOOVER, farmer; P. O. 
 Lake; is the yoimgest of a family of eight 
 children born to Samuel and Susan Hoover, 
 who were natives of Huntington Co., Penn., 
 where they followed farming until their death. 
 The subject was born in Himtingdon Co., 
 Penn., Feb. 8, 1818, and lived at home imtil 
 he was 10 years of age, when he came to 
 Stark Co., Ohio, with John Harley. When 
 he reached his 18th yeai% he began to learn 
 the shoemaker's trade; served thi*ee years as 
 an apprentice, and then started in business for 
 himself in Lake Township, where he contin- 
 ued for twelve years. In 1851, he bought and 
 settled on a farm of 113 acres, where he lived 
 until 1867, when he sold his farm and bought 
 the one he now lives on, consisting of 155 
 acres of valuable land. In 1843, he mairied 
 Catharine Fouse; nine children were bom to 
 them, viz.: Franklin, William, Elizabeth, 
 Priscilla, Sarah, Ellen, Daniel, Wilson and Ida. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hoover are members of the Ger- 
 man Baptist Chiu-ch. Mr. Hoover is a stanch 
 Republican. 
 
 SAWYER M. miSH, farmer; P. O. Mid- 
 dlebmy; is the third of a family of six chil- 
 dren born to Jonas and Sallie (Sawyer) Ii'ish. 
 They were natives of Rutland, Yt., and moved 
 to New York State in 1810, settling on a farm, 
 and afterwai'd moving to Knox Co., Tenn., in 
 1866, where he engaged in fanning, which he 
 continued until his death, which occiuTed in 
 1873, his age being 73. His companion died 
 in New York State in 1860, her age being 65. 
 The subject of this sketch was born on his 
 father's farm in Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., July 
 12, 1820. Here he assisted his father at fann- 
 ing imtil he attained his majority, when he 
 left home and worked on another farm. In 
 1 842, he came to Siunmit Co. and began farm- 
 ing in Springfield Township, where he re- 
 mained for some years. He afterwai'd pur- 
 chased 40 acres of land, where he has since 
 resided. In 1842, he was imited in mam age 
 to Julia Decker, daughter of John Decker, of 
 Orange Co.,N. Y.; foiu- childi-en were born to 
 them, viz.: Melvin, Elizabeth (wife of H. 
 Crosier, of Portage,) CaiTie (wife of H. Neli, 
 
 ^3* 
 
..s> 
 
 914 
 
 BIOGUAPIIICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 of Springfield), and Hattie (wife of J. K. 
 Kimes, of Portage Co.). Mr. Irish lias been 
 successful in his pursuits. His wife has been 
 a member of. the M. E. Church for several 
 years. Mr. Irish is a stanch Republican, 
 and has voted the Repiiblican ticket for sev- 
 eral years. 
 
 WILLIAM H. JONES, farmer; P. O. Brit- 
 tain; son of John and Lucy C. Jones, was 
 born in Lodi, Medina Co., Ohio, Aug. 3, 1841. 
 His father died when he was young, and he 
 lived with his grandparents until he was 
 twelve years of age, when he left them and 
 worked in different parts of the county. In 
 1858, he began working at the carpenter's 
 trade, serving his apprenticeship, afterward 
 continuing at the trade until 1862, when he 
 enlisted in the 120th O. V. I., and served 
 three yeai's. He was with his company in 
 Texas the greater part of the time. At the 
 close of the war he returned home, and, in 
 1866, came to Akron where he again worked 
 at his trade and at contracting. In Septem- 
 ber, 1862, he was married to Sarah A. Sum- 
 merton, of Wayne County, Ohio, she bore him 
 five children, viz., Ora A., Beiiies E., Frank 
 E. (deceased), John V. and Lucy E. J. In 
 1878, he purchased a farm of 90 acres on which 
 he now lives. In politics he is a Republican, 
 and is among the stalwarts of the township. 
 
 ALFRED KREIGHBAUM, farmer; P. O. 
 Lake; is the oldest of a family of fom-teen 
 childi-en born to William and Sarah Kreigh- 
 baum, who were natives of Lancaster Co., 
 Penn., and came to Stark Co. at an early day, 
 where they settled on a farm of 235 acres. 
 The father was engaged in farming until his 
 death, which occuiTed in 1869. His wife sur- 
 vives him and lives in Greentown, Stark Co., 
 at the present time. The subje.ct was born in 
 Stark Co., Ohio, April 14, 1835, on the farm, 
 where he remained until 1858, where he was 
 married to Mary A. Pontius, daughter of Sam. 
 uel and Catharine Pontius, of Stark Co. From 
 that mai-riage there were three children — Sa- 
 die C, Emma L. and Louise D. (deceased). 
 Soon after his marriage he bought a farm of 
 45 acres, where he resided for five years, and, 
 in 1870, bought and settled on the present 
 farm, consisting of 154 acres of valuable and 
 well improved land. Mr. and Mrs. Kreigh- 
 
 baum are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. Mr. K. is Democratic in principle, 
 and has always voted that ticket. 
 
 ELIAS KURTZ, farmer; P. O. Lake; Is 
 one of eleven childi-en born to Jacob and Cath- 
 arine (Gibble) Kurtz, who settled in Portage 
 Co., Ohio, in 1856, on a farm where he still 
 lives, his wife having died in 1873. They 
 were natives of Lebanon Co., Penn., where 
 the subject was born in May, 1833. He lived 
 at home until he was 18 years of age, when he 
 began to learn the carpenter trade, serving two 
 years as an apprentice, and working at it in 
 Pennsylvania until 1856, when he came to 
 Portage Co. with his parents, where he con- 
 tinued at his trade for several years. He was 
 also engaged in contracting. In 1854, he 
 married Catharine Kunse, daughter of John 
 Kunse, of Dauphin Co., Penn. There were 
 twelve children, nine of whom are living. In 
 1868, he bought and settled on a farm of 140 
 acres, where he lived three years, and then 
 bought 1 02 acres of valuable and well-improved 
 land where he now resides. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Kurtz are members of the German Baptist 
 Church of Springfield, which they have at- 
 tended for many years. He is one of the most 
 successful farmers in Springfield Township. 
 
 SIMON LAUDENSLAGER, retired mer- 
 chant, Mogadore. The subject of this sketch 
 was born in Snyder Co., Penn., Oct. 18, 1819. 
 His father, John Laudeuslager, owned a farm, 
 and Simon spent his youthful days thereon. 
 In the month of September, 1839, he in com- 
 pany with his family left his native home to 
 seek a more desirable one in Ohio. They jour- 
 neyed in wagons and reached here after twen- 
 ty-tlu-ee days of driving, settling in Magadore, 
 where our subject worked at the tailor's trade 
 for fifteen /ears, first as a journe man, and 
 subsequently carried on the business for him- 
 self. In 1854, he engaged in the mercantile 
 business with R. L. Atchison (whose sketch 
 appears in this work), and continued in the 
 business for eight years, when he sold his 
 interest to his partner. His ambition would 
 not allow him to remain idle, and, in 1868, he 
 again started a general store, and caiTied on 
 business until 1874, when he sold his interest, 
 since which time he has lived a retired life. 
 He was married to Elizabeth Green, daughter 
 
 -® \ 
 
<2 
 
 ^ 
 
 SPRIXGFIELD TOWXSHIP. 
 
 915 
 
 of Benjamin and Lucy Green, May 30, 1844. 
 There were no children; his wife died in 
 1878, aged 54 years. He has since his retire- 
 ment fi'om business traveled extensively 
 through the United States, and takes an act- 
 ive part in the erection of the Connotton Val- 
 ley Railroad. He has been a member of 
 the Disciples* Church since 1848, and Elder 
 in the same since 1854. In politics he is a 
 Republican, and has held many offices in his 
 township,which is Democratic. 
 
 PETER LEPPER, farmer; P. O. Middle- 
 bury. The subject of this sketch was born 
 Oct. 6, 182G, in Mahoning Co., Ohio. He 
 lived with his parents, Adam J. and Mary 
 tStine) Lepper until he was 12 years old, 
 when he began life as a mule driver on the Ohio 
 & Pennsylvania Canal, his route being from 
 Cleveland to Youngstown, which employ- 
 ment he followed for three seasons. At the 
 age of 15, he was engaged by a stage route 
 company to drive a stage from Erie to Con- 
 neaut, which he did for one year. He then 
 engaged as steamboat hand on board a steam- 
 er running between Cincinnati and Nachez; 
 gi'owing tired of that life he returned home, 
 soon afterward coming to Akron, where, for 
 three years, he worked by the day. By his 
 economy he saved money enough to purchase 
 a team and wagon, which he did and began 
 peddling, dealing principally in cigars and 
 notions, which he carried on successfully for 
 two years. In 1850, he purchased and settled 
 on 60 acres of land in Suffield Township, 
 Portage Co., where he remained for several 
 years. In 1869, he bought and settled on his 
 residence farm which consists of 254 acres 
 of well-improved land; he also owns a farm 
 of 140 acres in Brimfield Township, Portage 
 Co. In 1880, he started the Bohemian oat 
 meal mill at Middlebury, where he is 
 doing a thriving business. In connection 
 with this business he is extensively engaged 
 in the sale of farming implements, and is con- 
 sidered one of the best and most successful 
 business men in Springfield Township. In 
 1850, he was man-ied to Catharine Sausaman, 
 daughter of John Sausaman, of Portage Co., 
 Ohio. Seven children were born to them as 
 follows: J. H., T. F., Louisa, Maggie, Liz- 
 zie, Catharine and Jefferson. Mr. and Mrs. 
 
 Lepper are members of the German Baptist 
 Church of Aki'on. 
 
 JACOB IVnSHLER, farmer and civil engi- 
 neer; P. O. Mogadore. This gentleman was 
 born on his father's farm in Pemisylvania Feb. 
 24, 1828. His father, Samuel, and mother, 
 Elizabeth (Beecher) Mishler, had nine chil- 
 dren, the subject being the eighth. In 1883, 
 his father came to Springfield Township, 
 where he settled on 140 acres of land. Here 
 the subject spent his boyhood days, and 
 obtained such education as the common 
 schools afforded. At the age of 1 9, he taught 
 and continued teaching for ten years. About 
 this time he saw in the New York Trib- 
 une an advertisement of the sale of sui'veyor's 
 instrmnents. He procured a set, and, un- 
 aided, set to work, the result being consid- 
 erable notoriety as a surveyor. In Suffield 
 Township he owns 103 acres of land, upon 
 which he is to erect some buildings on the 
 Connotton Valley Railroad, and in the deeds 
 of conveyance are the articles prohibiting the 
 sale of intoxicating drink to any person. In 
 1851, he was married to Louise, daughter of 
 Joseph and Susan Myers. There are six chil- 
 dren — Menno S., Milton B., Maria, wife of J. 
 W. Wise: Lizzie, Frank J. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Mishler are devout members of the German 
 Baptist Church, with which they iinited twen- 
 ty-six years ago. His first voting was with 
 the Frfee-Soilers. He was elected by the Re- 
 publicans to the office of County Surveyor, 
 which office he held for several years. 
 
 PHILIP MYERS, retired fai-mer; P. O. 
 Lake, Stark Co. Is the son of Michael and 
 Agnes Myers, who were among the fii'st set 
 tiers in Green Township, settling there in 1812. 
 They were natives of Center Co.,Penn., where 
 Michael was engaged in blacksmithing, which 
 business he had followed for several years. 
 Owing to the newness of the neighborhood in 
 which he settled, he was obliged to abandon his 
 trade for some time, and tm'ned his attention 
 to farming; he purchased 100 acres of land, 
 cleared it, and i-esided upon it to the time of 
 his death, which occurred in 1847; his wife 
 died in 1852. The siibject was born in Cen- 
 ter Co., Penn., February, 1809, when but 3 
 years of age he was brought to Green Town- 
 ship, Summit Co. He remained on the farm 
 
 :^ 
 
/, K 
 
 i^ 
 
 916 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 assisting his father until he was 21 years of 
 age, when he settled on 88 acres of land, which 
 he now owns in connection with another valua- 
 ble farm and some town property, all in Spring- 
 field Township. In 1831, he was united in 
 marriage to Rosana Buchtel, daughter of Pe- 
 ter Buchtel. There were ten children, seven 
 of whom are living — Urias, Rebecca, Thomas 
 Jefferson, James M., Malinda, Susan and Jen- 
 ning. Mrs. Myers died Nov. 27, 1880, aged 
 70 years. Mr. Myers has voted with the 
 Democratic party since its organization. 
 
 GEORGE MARKLE, potter and grocer, 
 Brittain; sou of Adam and Barbara Markle, 
 was boni in Springfield Township Sept. 11, 
 1846. He attended school until he was 17 
 years of age. In 1864, he entered Co. D, 1st 
 Ohio Light Ai-tillery, and remained for eight- 
 een months. In 1865, he was engaged by 
 Whitmore, Roberson & Co., of Aki'on, as sales- 
 man. In 1866, he began learning the potter's 
 trade, working as an apprentice until 1868, 
 when he removed to Manchester, Iowa, where 
 he engaged in that business for two years, 
 when he returned to Summit Co., and, in com- 
 pany with James Viall, of Middlebury, engaged 
 in the manufactiu'e of stoneware. They are 
 now doing a thriving business. He is engaged 
 with his brother, Lewis E., in the grocery 
 business. In 1867, he was man-ied to Carrie 
 Swartz, and two childi'en were liom to them, 
 viz., Archie and Grace. In politics, he is a 
 Democrat. 
 
 D. W. MARTIN, farmer; P. O. Akron; is 
 one of a f.imily of eleven children born to 
 Andrew and Rebecca (Way) Martin. He was 
 born in Springfield Township, Ohio, February, 
 1841. During his early life he assisted his 
 father on the farm, and attended common 
 schools and the seminary at Greensburg, 
 remaining at home until he was 21 years of 
 age. In November, 1861, he was married to 
 Rebecca J. Henderson, daughter of William 
 and Jane Henderson, of Springfield, who were 
 formerly fi'om Pennsylvania. Six children 
 were born to them as follows: Luella, wife 
 of William Yerrick, of Springfield Township; 
 Ida C, Florence, Herman H, William A. and 
 Jennie. In 1860, he settled on a farm in 
 Springfield. He now owns and resides on a 
 farm of 117 acres of valuable land. He was 
 
 a Colonel in the late war. He is a Democrat 
 in politics, and has held many offices of trust. 
 He is a member of the Masonic Order, Lodge 
 No. 83, Aki'on. Rebecca (Way) Martin, mother 
 of the subject, was born in Suffield Town- 
 ship, Portage County, Ohio, April 29, 1804, 
 and was the first white child born in that 
 township. Her parents, David and Rebecca 
 (Baldwin) Way, were natives of Connecticut, 
 and came to Portage Co. in 1802. Mrs. Mar- 
 tin's early days were spent at her home in the 
 woods, where she remained until she was 18 
 years of age, when she married Andrew Mar- 
 tin, who was a native of Pennsylvania, and 
 settled in Springfield at an early day. Eleven 
 children were born to them, five of whom are 
 living. Mr. Martin died June 11, 1878, at 
 the ripe age of 83 years. Mrs. Martin still 
 lives on the old homestead, and is highly es- 
 teemed by her neighbors and friends. She 
 is a devout member of the Refoimed Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 JACOB METZGER, farmer; P. O. Mid- 
 dlebui-y; was born on his father's farm in 
 Lancaster Co.,Penn., Jan. 2, 1841. His par- 
 ents, Henry and Mary (Geibe) Metzger, were 
 natives of that place. In the year 1855, they 
 came to Lake Township, where they settled 
 on 100 acres of land, and farmed until 1872, 
 when, selling the farm, they moved to Union- 
 town. IVIrs. Metzger died in 1875 at the age 
 of 65. In 1879, he mai'ried again. After 
 coming to Ohio, om* subject learned the carpen- 
 ter's trade, serving two years as an apprentice, 
 and afterward working at the trade. At the 
 breaking-out of the war, he enlisted in Co. E, 
 115th O. V. I., serving until its close. He 
 assisted in building the block-houses at Mur- 
 freesboro, and was one of the thirty men 
 closed in by the rebels for seventeen days. At 
 the close of the war he retiu-ned to Stark Co., 
 and began working at his trade. In February, 
 1868, he was married to Leah Wise, daughter 
 of George and Barbara Wise, of Stark Co. 
 Thi-ee childi'en were born to them, as follows: 
 Aerman H., Mark E. and Floyd J. In April, 
 1878, he bought and settled on a farm of 146 
 acres where he now resides, and is orle of the 
 most successful farmers in Springfield Town- 
 ship. Ml-. Metzger is a Republican in poli- 
 tics. 
 
IK 
 
 SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 917 
 
 WILLIAM McCLELLAN, f aimer; P. O. 
 Mogadore. The subject of this sketch was 
 born on his father's farm in Trumbull Co., 
 Ohio, July 4, 1807. His parents, Robert and 
 Rosana McClellan, were among the first set- 
 tlers there. The subject's early life was spent 
 in assisting his father on the farm and attend- 
 ing school. In 1818, he came with his father 
 to Summit Co., where they settled on 100 acres 
 of land. Here it was that William worked 
 and spent his younger days. At the age of 
 26, in 1833, he was united in marriage to 
 Jane Cmnmins, of Trumbull Co. ; from that 
 union three children were the issue — Robert 
 A., Jane E. (wife of Urias Cramer, of New 
 Philadelphia); and William A. He now owns 
 65 acres of valuable land. He has been a 
 member of the United Presbyterian Chiu-ch 
 for several years. He has discontinued farm- 
 ing, and is paying his attention to sheep-rais- 
 ing. His son, R. A., is carrying on business 
 on the farm, making it his home. He has 
 gained the respect of all who know him. 
 
 LEWIS E. MARKLE, grocer, Brittain; 
 the son of Adam and Barbara Markle, was 
 born at Brittain May 10, 1855, where he at- 
 tended both district and high schools. At the 
 age of 17, he was engaged by one of Akron's 
 merchants as clerk, where he remained one 
 year, and then engaged with J. Park Alexan- 
 der as foreman and collector of his fire-brick 
 works. He afterward withdrew and clerked 
 for Viall & Markle, where he remained one 
 year. In 1876, he traveled through the East- 
 ern and Western States. In 1877, he pui'- 
 chased IMr. Vi all's interest in the grocery busi- 
 ness, and engaged in the same in company 
 with his brother. Although a young man, he 
 has rare business qualifications. He is a 
 Democrat in politics. His father was a native 
 of Wurtemberg. Germany, and came to Amer- 
 ica at an early day, settling in Medina Co. 
 He came to Brittain and engaged in the gro- 
 cery business, which he conducted until his 
 death, in 1858. 
 
 F. W. MYERS, stonewai'e manufactm'er, 
 Mogadore; is the son of Joseph and Susan 
 (Winger) Myers, who were natives of Lancas- 
 ter Co., Penn., where they were engaged in 
 farming. In 1838, they removed to Wayne 
 Co., Ohio, settling on a fai'm; in 1876, remov- 
 
 ing to Mogadore. The subject was bom Dec. 
 4, 1830, in Lancaster Co., Penn. He at- 
 tended district schools, and, at the age of 1 5, 
 left home for the pm-pose of obtaining a bet- 
 ter education. At the age of 18, he was ap- 
 prenticed to the potter's trade; after serving 
 his apprenticeship, he continued at the trade 
 for several years. In 1864, he began 
 business at Mogadore, on a small scale, pm-- 
 chasing a shop which he afterward enlarged 
 to those now standing. He, in company with 
 A. W. Hall, are doing an extensive business, 
 employing from forty-five to fifty men. The 
 pay-roll amounts to $1,600 per month. In 
 1852, he was married to Lydia Mishler, daugh- 
 ter of Joseph Mishler. There were five chil- 
 dren, two of whom are living, viz., Maria L., 
 wife of Dr. Steele, of Mogadore; and Grace 
 Eugenia. Mr. and Mrs. Myers are members 
 of the Disciples' Church. Mr. Myers is a 
 Republican. 
 
 LEVI H. RHODES, contractor. North 
 Springfield; is the oldest of seven children 
 born to Joseph and Rosana (Housley) Rhodes, 
 natives of Stark Co., where his father engaged 
 in fai'ming. The subject was born in Summit 
 Co., Ohio, May 14, 1847. He lived at home 
 on the farm until his marriage, which oc- 
 cm'red at the age of 18, to Mai'tha E. England, 
 daughter of George England, of Medina Co. 
 From that marriage three children were bom 
 to them, viz., Minnie V., Martha A. and George 
 E. After his marriage he learned the miller's 
 trade in Wayne Co., at which he worked for 
 some time, when he was obliged to discontinue 
 it on account of his health. Then he farmed 
 in Medina Co. for two years, at the end of 
 which time he came to Springfield Township 
 and engaged as contractor for the Middlebmy 
 Clay Company. In 1872 and 1873, he was 
 engaged in the stoneware business. He after- 
 ward re-commenced contracting, which busi- 
 ness he has been engaged in up to the pi'es- 
 ent time. He invented what is known as the 
 miner's drilling machine, which is valuable. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Rhodes are both members of 
 the Presbyterian Church. IVIi-. Rhodes has 
 always voted the Democratic ticket, and has 
 held manv township offices. 
 
 HENRY RITTER, farmer; P. O. Krumrov; 
 son of John S. and Elizabeth (Hendricks) Rit- 
 
 
918 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 ter; was born in Union Co., Penn., March 11, 
 1834. When he was 1 year old, his parents 
 came to Ohio and settled on a farm in Snm- 
 mit Co., where the subject spent his younger 
 days. He lived at home until he was 26 years 
 of age, and obtained such education as the 
 district schools afforded. In February, 1859, 
 he married Louisa Kepler, who were for- 
 merly from Pennsylvania. They have seven 
 children, viz., William, John, Charles, Nor- 
 man, Elsie, Harry and Earnest. In 1861, he 
 purchased and settled on 80 acres of land, and, 
 by his industry and economy, has accmnulated 
 a handsome property, also owning a valuable 
 farm in Green Township. He commands the 
 respect and esteem of all. In politics, he is a 
 Republican, and is ranked among the stal- 
 warts. 
 
 ABRAHAM SNYDER, farmer; P. O. Lake. 
 The subject is the fourteenth child of a fam- 
 ily of lifteen children born to Jost and Sa- 
 loma Snyder, who were natives of Pennsylva- 
 nia. Jost Snyder was a weaver by trade, and 
 followed the business until 1819, when he 
 came to Summit Co., settling in Green Tojvn- 
 ship on a fann of 68 acres. It was on this 
 fai-m the subject was born May 4, 1888, and 
 where his early days were spent. He obtained 
 such education as the district schools afforded, 
 and, at the age of 18, he left home and woi'ked 
 on a farm for two years; followed threshing 
 for twenty-two years in Summit and Stark 
 Cos., where he gained a notable reputation. 
 In 1858, he man-ied Catharine Cranable, of 
 Portage Co., who bore him live childi'en as 
 follows: William, Stephen D., Sarah S., Eli as 
 A. and George P. He now owns 140 acres of 
 well improved lands, and a comfortable prop- 
 erty in Portage Co. Mr. Snyder has always 
 voted the Democratic ticket, and has held 
 many offices of trust. He was 1 st Lieutenant 
 of a company diu-iug the war, l)ut was never 
 called out. 
 
 WILLIAM J. SCHROP, potter, Krumi-oy; 
 was born in Berks Co., Penn., April 19, 1838. 
 His parents, Michael and Maria (Giesler) 
 Schrop, were natives of the same place, and 
 came to Summit Co., settling in Springfield 
 Township in 1839. The father was a tailor 
 by trade, and continued the business up to the 
 time of his death. The subject of this sketch 
 
 lived at home until he was 17 years of age, 
 gaining his education at such schools as the 
 neighborhood afforded. At the age of 18, he 
 was apprenticed to the potter's trade with F. 
 & G. Purdee, of Mogadore, serving two years, 
 and continued with the company as journey- 
 man for some time. Subsequently he was 
 engaged by J. Ebberling as foreman of the 
 pot-shops, and, in company with his brother, 
 E. G. Schrop, bought the Brown pottery, which 
 they rebuilt in 1871. They are now engaged 
 in the manufacture of stoneware. They also 
 own an interest in the clay-mill at Mogadore. 
 He is a first-class workman, and Mobile serving 
 his apprenticeship made the smallest perfect 
 jug ever turned on a wheel, its dimensions not 
 exceeding the size of a kernel of corn. He is 
 the oldest correspondent on the Beacon^ con- 
 tinuing through all its changes of ovpnership. 
 On Dec. 25, 1854, he married Louisa Hender- 
 son, daughter of William and Jane Henderson, 
 of Springfield. They have three boys — Ed- 
 ward H., who is in business with his father, 
 and a music teacher of considerable note; 
 William G. and Perry. Mr. and Mrs. Schrop 
 are members of the Presbyterian Chiu'ch. 
 
 HENRY STEIN, retired farmer; P. O. 
 Brittian; was born in Baden, Germany, Aug. 
 10, 1818, and is one of the eight childi'en born 
 to Daniel and Catharine Stein, who came to 
 Coventry To'svnship from Germany in 1832, 
 where they lived on a farm for many years. 
 In 1845, our subject left home to earn a liveli- 
 hood, and, being industrious and economical, 
 he was enabled in 1856, to piu'chase a farm of 
 100 acres in Green Township, where he resided 
 until 1878. He i3urchased a pottery known 
 as the Bm-n's pottery, but did not conduct the 
 business. In July, 1844, he was married to 
 Mary Kramer, daughter of Henry Kramer, of 
 Dauphin Co., Penn. Six childi'en were born 
 to them, viz., Lavina, wife of John Sell, of 
 Alo-oii; Mary E., wife of Benjamin Holland, 
 of Indiana; William H. ; Amanda A., wife of 
 E. Killinger, of Green To^vnship; and Daniel 
 P. Mr. and Mr,~. Stein are members of the 
 German Reformed Church. In politics, he is 
 a Democrat, and has held many offices of 
 trust. 
 
 J. B. SWITZER, farmer; P. O. Brittain; is 
 the son of Charles and Mary R. Switzer, who 
 
 — ?l\ 
 
 t 
 
Ll^ 
 
 SPEINGFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 919 
 
 settled in Coventry Township and engaged in 
 farming, the father also working at the carpen- 
 ter's trade. Mr. Switzer was a native of Peun 
 sylvania, and his wife of Connecticut. He has 
 an interest in a very valuable coal mine in Cov- 
 entry. The subject was born on his father's 
 farm, in Coventry Township, Siunmit Co., Ohio, 
 Aug. 8, 1848, where he remained until he was 
 21 years of age, when, with others, he was 
 engaged prospecting for coal. He afterward 
 took charge of his father's farm for foiir 
 years. In July, 1874, he was married to 
 Rebecca, daughter of Adam and Catharine 
 Yerrick, of Springfield. Three children were 
 born to them, two of whom are living. In 
 1875, he pxu'chased and settled on the farm 
 where he now resides, which consists oi 105 
 acres of well improved land. For ten years 
 he taught singing school in different parts of 
 Summit Co. In politics, he is a Republican. 
 
 JAMES A. STETLER, farmer; P. O. 
 North Spring-field; is the only child of Will- 
 iam and Sarah (Reichely ) Stetler, and was born 
 in Union Co., Penn., May, 1840. At the age 
 of 10 years, his parents moved to Green 
 Township, Summit Co., Ohio, where they set- 
 tled on a farm. He remained at home doing 
 farm work and attending school, until Sep- 
 tember, 1860, when he was married to Lavina 
 Koons, daughter of Henry and Esther Koons. 
 Four children were born to them, viz., Will- 
 iam H, Charles E., Marion T. and Clarence 
 O. In 1879, he purchased 120 acres of valu- 
 able and well improved land, where he now 
 resides. Mr. and Mrs. Stetler are members 
 of the Evangelical Association. Mr. Stetler 
 is Democratic in principle. His father and 
 mother are comfortably settled on one of the 
 best farms in Green Township. 
 
 FRANCIS WESTON, retired farmer; P. 
 O. Middlebury; is the son of John and Mar- 
 garet Weston, who were natives of Litchfield 
 Co., Conn., and who came to Springfield in 
 March, 1814, where they settled on a farm of 
 260 acres, and lived there until the father's 
 death, which occurred in September, 1887, at 
 the age of 82. The mother died in 1864, 
 at the advanced age of 93 years. The subject 
 was born in Litchfield Co., Conn., April 20, 
 1790. In 1814, he came with his parents to 
 Springfield, and, in company with his father. 
 
 purchased the farm where he now lives. In 
 1817, he was married to Amanda Hinman, 
 daughter of Caleb Hinman, formerly from 
 New York State. There were five childi-en as 
 follows: Celestia, wife of Mathias Rhodes, 
 of DeKalb Co., Ind. ; Margaret, wife of Ly- 
 man Brown, of Springfield; Louisa, wife of 
 Henry Bellows; Lydia, wife of Martin Bick, 
 of Michigan; and Salmon, who married 
 Mary J. Fox, of Springfield, and is settled on 
 a farm near the old homestead. Mrs. Weston 
 died Oct. 17, 1859, aged 57. Mr. Weston 
 married in October, I860, Elizabeth McGowti, 
 daughter of Dr. John McGowi^, of Orange Co., 
 N. Y. She was the widow of John Decker, to 
 whom she was married in 1807. Mr. Weston 
 owns 160 acres of well-improved land, and is 
 the oldest man in Springfield Township. 
 Mrs. Weston is a lady of high cultui-e, and 
 has now reached the ripe age of 91. They 
 are both active members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Chiu'ch. Mi-. Weston has voted the 
 Republican ticket, since that party was organ- 
 ized. 
 
 ABIA WHITE, farmer; P. O. Mogadore; 
 son of Jacob and Rachel (Brittain) AVhite, 
 was born in Luzerne Co., Penn., Oct. 18, 1816. 
 His father and mother were natives of New 
 England, and settled in Luzerne Co. in an 
 early day. In 1824, his father moved to 
 Summit Co., and settled on a farm, afterward 
 moving on another of 150 acres near North 
 Springfield. He died on May, 25, 1858, and 
 his wife on April 8, 1855, aged 76. At 
 the age of 21, otu- subject learned the car- 
 penter's trade, at which he worked a few years, 
 and then turned his attention to farming, 
 which business he still engages in. On Feb. 
 21, 1844, he was married to Martha Hagen- 
 baiTgh, daughter of Christian Hagenbaugli, of 
 Medina Co., of which marriage there were 
 five childi-eu, fom- deceased. The only child, 
 Milo, is living on his father's farm. Mr. and 
 Mrs. White are members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. Mr. Wliite has always 
 voted the Republican ticket. 
 
 JOEL F. WEBB, farmer; P. O. Mogadore. 
 Among the wealthy farmers of Springfield 
 Township ranks the subject, who is the son 
 of John and Elizabeth (McDermoth) Webb. 
 The father was a native of York Co., Penn., 
 
920 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 where the subject was born Nov. 10, 1823, 
 where his early life was spent, and whence he, 
 in company with his father's family, came to 
 Portage Co., where they settled on a farm of 
 125 acres, which the subject now owns. In 
 1863, he was iinited in marriage to Marion 
 Anderson, daughter of Benjamin and Sarah 
 
 Anderson. She bore him four children, three 
 of whom are living — Mary Grace, Martha L., 
 John F. (deceased) and Joel William. He 
 owns 184 acres of valuable and well-improved 
 land, and in addition considerable town prop- 
 erty. He has been a life-long Democrat, 
 and an admirer of Democratic principles. 
 
 TALLMADCE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 WILLTSTON ALLING, architect and build- 
 er, Tallmadge ; is a son of Jonathan and Maria 
 (Clark) Ailing, who were natives of Connecticut, 
 and came to Trumbull Co. in 1807, where the}' 
 settled on a farm ; he was engaged in farming 
 until his death, which occurred in 1878, at the 
 age of 86 years ; his widow died in 1880, 
 at the age of 80 years ; they were the parents 
 of five children, the subject being the young- 
 est. Our subject was born in Trumbull Co., 
 Ohio, Oct. 26, 1842 ; at the age of 12 3'ears, 
 he left home and worked in a saw-mill for four 
 years ; he came to Tallmadge in 1858, and began 
 working at the carpenter's trade ; he has been 
 engaged in building and working at his trade 
 up to the present time. He entered the office 
 of Mr. Snyder, the architect of Akron, where 
 he remained about four years. He is consid- 
 ered an architect of considerable note. In 
 1868, he married Emily Carter, daughter of 
 Horatio L. Carter, of Brimtield, Portage Co.; 
 there are three children of that marriage — 
 Julia, Walter and Ruth. Mr. and Mrs. Ailing 
 are members of the Congregational Church. 
 He is a strong Republican, and has held many 
 offices of trust. 
 
 SYLVESTER BARNES, farmer; P. 0. 
 Tallmadge ; is the third of a family of twelve 
 children born to Phineas and Abigail Barnes, 
 his birth occurring Feb. 28, 1805, in Granville, 
 Mass. His parents came to Ohio in 1815, set- 
 tling in Trumbull Co.; after remaining there 
 for several years, they removed to Norton 
 Township, Summit Co., where they lived until 
 removed by death. Our subject's early life was 
 spent on the farm of his father, where he re- 
 mained until he was 21 years old ; he obtained 
 his education in the common schools of his 
 neighborhood, and learned the carpenter's 
 trade, working at the same for several vears ; 
 
 in 1831, he bought a farm east of the center of 
 Tallmadge, where he lived until he removed to 
 the present farm. Oct. 27, 1831, he was united 
 in marriage to Esther, daughter of Maj. John 
 Treat, of TaUmadge, who still lives to share his 
 happiness ; from that marriage there have 
 been six children, four of whom are living, 
 viz., Sidne}- C, Sylvester E., Francis N. and 
 Clark B. Mr. Barnes united with the M. E. 
 Church tift3'-six years ago, and is one of its 
 most proficient members ; Mrs. Barnes is a 
 member of the Congregational Church, uniting 
 with the same when a girl. 
 
 J. E. BiVLDWIN, carriage manufticturer, 
 Tallmadge ; is a son of John and Mary Bald- 
 win ; they were natives of Milford. Conn.; Mr. 
 John Baldwin, while young, was apprenticed to 
 a carriage-maker in New Haven, Conn., working 
 for a Mr. James Brewster, who built tue first 
 carriages in the United States ; after serving 
 his apprenticeship, he soon after began busi- 
 ness for himself, which he carried on for twenty- 
 five years ; he died in 1867 ; his widow sur- 
 vived him and still lives in Milford. There 
 were ten children in their family, the subject 
 being the oldest. J. E. was born in Milford, 
 Conn, Oct. 24, 1827 ; he attended school until 
 he was 17 years of age, when he entered his 
 father's factory to learn the trade of a carriage- 
 maker ; after working in his father's shop for 
 four years, he went to New Haven, where he 
 worked for one 3-ear in order to get a thorough 
 understanding of his trade ; he came to Tall- 
 madge in 1848, and worked for Oviatt & 
 Sperry for ten years as a wheelwright ; he then 
 contracted to furnish wheels for their work, and 
 furnished, while in connection with them, 1,950 
 sets of wheels ; in 1859, he engaged in business 
 for himself on the northeast corner of tiie pub- 
 lic square in Tallmadge, where he carried on 
 
 ^1 
 
TAl.LMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 921 
 
 business extensively, at one time employing 
 thirty men ; his works were destroyed by fire 
 soon afterward, from which he suffered a loss 
 of $3,000 ; he rebuilt, and carried on business 
 until 1871, when he suffered the second loss by 
 fire ; in 1872, he built the works he now occu- 
 pies. In September, 1852, he was united in 
 marriage to Harriet S. Wright, daughter of 
 Francis H. Wright, of Tallmadge ; from that 
 marriage there were six children, all of whom 
 are living. 
 
 C. C. BRONSON, Tallmadge; the eldest 
 child of Jarius and Irena (Mallory) Bronson ; 
 was born in Woodbury, Litchfield Co., Conn., 
 July 5, 1804. Soon after, his father moved to 
 Middlebury, New Haven Co., his native place, 
 where young Bronson spent the first fifteen 
 years of his life. In February, 1819, the 
 father, in company with a brother, Augustus 
 Bi'onson, and Ebenezer Richardson, with one 
 horse and wagon, left for the West, arriving in 
 Tallmadge the following March. Here the 
 father selected Lot 1, in Tract 4, and his brother 
 Lot 2. Going immediately to work, they 
 cleared and planted six acres, and in June 
 Jarius returned for his family, leaving his 
 brother to build a log house and care for the 
 crops. On the 25th day of August, with his 
 family, consisting of his wife and seven chil- 
 dren, together with the wife of Augustus and 
 Dan Saxton, Jr., left with two yoke of oxen 
 and a wagon for their new home on the Western 
 Reserve. On the road they were attacked with 
 dysentery, resulting in the death of two of the 
 children, a boy of 5 years, in Oneida Co., and 
 one of 3 3'ears, in Livingston Co., N. Y. On 
 the 3d of October, they arrived in Tallmadge. 
 Jan. 21, 1820, the family moved into their 
 newly constructed log house, which was with- 
 out fire-place or chimney. Thus, at the age of 
 15, was C. C. Bronson brought face to face 
 with the stern realities of pioneer life. Their 
 lot had been cast in the midst of a dense forest, 
 out of which they had undertaken the task of 
 making a home. But with that sturd}^ will 
 possessed b}' most of pioneers, the}^ pressed 
 forward, and, in time, became surrounded with 
 comfort and plenty, and Mr. Bronson's father 
 and mother lived to enjoy the fruits of their 
 toil. The former died April 7, 1857, and the 
 latter April 7, 1863, each at the age of 78 
 years. The farm which Mr. Bronson assisted 
 his father to carve from the forest has been his 
 
 home until this day, where he still lives in 
 comparative health and comfort a respected 
 citizen. 
 
 JOHN CHAPMAN (deceased); was born 
 in Cornwall, Eng., in the year 1812. He lived 
 at home until he was 19 years of age, when he 
 came to America, settling in Oswego, N. Y. 
 He had worked in a flouring-mill before leaving 
 home, and had a good knowledge of his trade. 
 He was engaged in one of the mills in Oswego, 
 where he remained until 1832. He then came 
 to xikron for the purpose of putting the stone 
 mill in operation which was being built. The 
 owners not being pi'epared, he went to Middle- 
 bury and worked for McNorton & Noble, where 
 he remained for some time. He then returned 
 to iVkron and finished the stone mill, and in 
 June, 1832, he made the first fiour ever made 
 in Akron proper ; he continued to run the mill 
 for about a year. In 1833, he went to Rochester 
 and worked at his ti'ade for about a year. He 
 returned to Akron and took charge of the 
 stone mill, where he remained for a short time. 
 He was a practical mechanic and miller, and 
 many of the earl}' mills built in Summit 
 Co. were erected under his supervision. He 
 purchased a farm adjoining Akron, where he 
 lived several years, then bought the farm his 
 widow now lives on. In 1857, he married 
 Phebe Budd, daughter of Solomon Budd, of 
 Akron, who bore him four children — John L., 
 Nellie, Caroline and Cora. Mr. Chapman died 
 in April, 1881, after a short illness, at the age 
 of 69 years. He was respected by all who 
 knew him for his integrity and gentlemanly 
 qualities. His widow and son John L. conduct 
 the farming on the farm where Mr. Chapman 
 had made man}' improvements. 
 
 H. S. CARTER, retired merchant, Tall- 
 madge ; is a son of Adoniram and Arilla 
 (Sackett) Carter. They were natives of Litch- 
 field Co., Conn., where Adoniram, the father, 
 was engaged in farming. He was connected 
 with the company who had the contract to dig 
 the race from Cuyahoga Falls to Akron. He 
 furnished part of the capital, and sent his son. 
 H. S., to look after his interests. He never 
 moved from his home in Connecticut, and died 
 in 1842, while on a visit to some friends living 
 in Illinois. After his death, his widow came 
 came to Tallmadge, where she died in 1848. 
 H. S. Carter, the subject of our sketch, was 
 born in Litchfield Co., Conn., in the year 1817. 
 
 TT 
 
922 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 He lived on the farm until he was 21 years of 
 age, and attended the seminary at Warren, 
 Conn., and was about to enter Yale College, 
 when his classmate, to whom he was much at- 
 tached, died. He then abandoned the idea. He 
 was then sent by his father to look after his 
 interests in the company of which he was a 
 member. H. S. was to bring considerable 
 mone}^ with him to put into the enterprise, but 
 upon his arrival, he not being satisfied with the 
 manner in which the business was conducted, 
 refused to furnish the mone3\ He engaged in 
 mercantile pursuits in Tallmadge, in company 
 with W. A. Hanford, which firm did business 
 for three j'ears, when E. V. Carter purchased 
 Mr. Hanford's interest. This partnership con- 
 tinued until 1846. He then took in as part- 
 ners C. and B. D. Wright, with whom he con- 
 tinued in business until 1872. He owns con- 
 siderable real estate, including a small farm. 
 In 1846, he was united in marriage to Martha 
 Wright, daughter of Alpha Wright, of Summit 
 Co. From that marriage seven children were 
 born, five of whom are living — H. W., a prac- 
 ticing physician of Fond du Lac, Wis.; Mar}^ A., 
 at home ; H. H., studying music in Leipzig, 
 Germany ; Starr V. V. and Charles. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Carter are members of the Congregational 
 Church. In 1846, was appointed Postmaster 
 at Tallmadge, holding the office until 1872. 
 
 JAMES CHAMBERLAIN, farmer ; P. 0. 
 Tallmadge ; is a son of Luther and Caroline 
 (Davenport) Chamberlain, who were natives of 
 Litchfield Co., Conn. The father was a car- 
 penter by trade, and worked at the same for 
 several years. In 1811, he came to Ohio, set- 
 tling in Tallmadge, where he settled on a farm 
 north of the center of the town. After remain- 
 ing there two years, he purchased a farm east 
 of the center, and worked at his trade in con- 
 nection with farming. He was called out in 
 the war of 1812, but, owing to ill health, was 
 dismissed from the service. He died in 1870. 
 at the I'ipe age of 89 years ; his wife died in 
 1839, at the age of 57 years. Our subject was 
 born in Tallmadge, May 10. 1817. He re- 
 mained at home until he was of age, and then 
 worked his father's farm, which he inherited 
 and lived on until 1867. He purchased forty 
 acres of well-improved land, where he now re- 
 sides. In 1844, he was married to Harriet 
 Heath, of Livingston Co., N. Y. They had no 
 children, but took George H. Chapman to raise, 
 
 to whom they gave a good education, and 
 cared for him as if he were their own child. He 
 is now a practicing ph^^sician at Grand Cross- 
 ing, 111. Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlain are de- 
 vout members of the Congregational Church 
 of Tallmadge. 
 
 P. C. CARUTHERS, farmer, P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; is the eighth of a famih' of ten chil- 
 dren boi'n to John and Nancy (Allen) Caruthers. 
 John Caruthers was born in Carlisle, Penn., 
 where he lived until 1811, when he came to 
 Ohio, settling in Tallmadge Township. He 
 was a tanner and shoemaker by trade, and 
 worked for several years at the same. Upon 
 his arrival in Tallmadge, he purchased a farm 
 in the southeast corner of the township, where 
 he lived until he died. He was in the war of 
 1812, for a short time, and died Dec. 14, 1853. 
 Our subject was born in Tallmadge, Ma}' 1, 
 1818. His childhood was spent on the farm, 
 obtaining his education in the schools of his 
 neighborhood. At the age of 21, he began 
 farming the homestead, which he afterward 
 purchased, where he lived until 1870 ; he then 
 sold it and purchased the farm he now occu- 
 pies, consisting of 83 acres of well-improved 
 land. Oct. 21, 1840, he was united in marriage 
 to Cynthia N. Clark, daughter of William L. 
 Clark, of Akron. From that marriage there 
 were three children, as follows : Elmer P., 
 Charles Clark and Lois N., wife of Pai'k John- 
 ston, of Akron. Elmer was a graduate of the 
 Western Reserve (vollege, of the class of 1865, 
 and was employed as Principal of the Deaf 
 and Dumb Asylum, at Little Rock, Ark., where 
 he remained for seven years. He was con- 
 sidered one of the most successful teachers in 
 the country. After remaining there for seven 
 years, he took a trip across the plains for his 
 health, but received no benefit therefrom, and 
 died Sept. 3, 1876, at the age of 37 years. 
 Charles, the younger son, was a graduate of the 
 Western Reserve College, studied medicine 
 and attended lectures at the Starling Medical 
 College. He enlisted in a company attatched 
 to the 60th 0. V. I. He was with Grant until 
 the close of the war, being wounded in the bat- 
 tle of Petersburg, and was oflfered a discharge, 
 but would not accept it. He returned home, 
 and after three months again joined his com- 
 pany. After his return at the close of the war. 
 he lived at home until his death, which oc- 
 curred May 10, 1871, at the age of 24 years. 
 
 rrx: 
 
!.£ 
 
 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 923 
 
 NEWTON DUNBAR, farmer ; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; was born in Springfield Township, 
 Summit Co., Nov. 10, 1853. His parents, John 
 and Fanny (Hostler) Dunbar, were natives of 
 Summit Co., and lived there several years. 
 John Dunbar was a plasterer b}' trade, and 
 worked at the same until 1856, when he engaged 
 in the stock business, in Iowa. He was very 
 successful, and was considered a thorough stock- 
 man. He removed to Springfield, where he 
 died in 1859 ; Mrs. Dunbar died in 1856. Our 
 subject's early life was spent on the farm and 
 attending the schools of his neighborhood. At 
 the time of his father's death, he being then but 
 6 3'ears old, he went to live with Sherman Pet- 
 tibone (whose sketch appears in this work), 
 where he remained on the farm until 1877. In 
 1877, he was married to Mary E. Pero, daugh- 
 ter of Jasper and Elizabeth Pero, of Tallmadge. 
 From that marriage there have been two chil- 
 dren, one of whom is living. Although a young 
 man, Mr. Dunbar has accumulated considerable 
 property. Upon the death of Mrs. Dunbar's 
 father, she inherited the homestead, consisting 
 of 156 acres of well-improved land. 
 
 DR. D. E. FENN. dentist and farmer ; P. 0. 
 Tallmadge ; is the eldest of a famil}' of twelve 
 children born to Wyllys and Hannah (Root) 
 Fenn. The}' were natives of Connecticut. The 
 father was from Milford, and came to Ohio in 
 1819, settling in Tallmadge ; he was a carpen- 
 ter, and worked at his trade for several years 
 after his arrival. He built many buildings in 
 the Sixth Ward of Akron. In 1838, he bought 
 a farm, and settled on the same, where he lived 
 until he died, his death occurring in 1880, at 
 the age of 78 years. Hannah (Root) Fenn was 
 a native of Waterbur}', Conn.; she died in 1870, 
 at the age of 62 years. Dr. D. E. Fenn, the 
 subject of this sketch, was born in Tallm.adge 
 March 16, 1828. His early life was spent at 
 home, where he lived until he was 34 j'ears of 
 age. He obtained his education in the schools 
 of his neighborhood. In 1852, he purchased 
 the farm he still occupies. In 1861, he began 
 the stud}' of dentistry. He was an apprentice 
 but a short time, when he opened an office, and 
 has since been engaged in the profession. He 
 is a skillful workman, and has gained a repu- 
 tation which is a credit to any one. He owns 
 215 acres of well-improved land well stocked 
 with cattle and horses of excellent pedigree. 
 Oct. 12, 1851, he was united in marriage to 
 
 Charlotte A. Wolcott, daughter of Guy and An- 
 nis Walcott, of Connecticut, formerly. From 
 that marriage there were three children, as fol- 
 lows : Wilbur W., associated with his father in 
 business ; Annis E. and Harriet W., both at 
 home. Mr. and Mrs. Fenn are devout members 
 of the Congregational Church, of Tallmadge; 
 the two oldest children are members also. 
 
 T. H. FENTON, pipe and stoneware manu- 
 facturer ; Tallmadge ; was born in Mogadore 
 Oct. 22, 1847. His early life was spent in at- 
 tending the school of his native town. At the 
 age of 18, he began learning the potter's trade 
 in his father's works at 3Iogadoi-e. After work- 
 ing in his father's shop five years, he started 
 the works he now manages, in compain' with 
 H. H. Stahl. At the close of one year, he pur- 
 chased Mr. Stahl's interest, and conducted the 
 business alone until 1876, when he took in 
 as partner his brother, Curtis Fenton, who is 
 still connected with him. The shop's capacity 
 is about 6,000 gallons per week, and about 
 150,000 pipes. In 1870, he was united in mar- 
 riage to Mary Stahl, daughter of A. M. and 
 Laura Stahl, of Trumbull Co., who bore him two 
 children. His brother Curtis married Katie, 
 daughter of Dr. James Ferguson, of Mogadore. 
 
 C. GUISE, farmer ; P. 6. Munroe Falls ; is 
 a son of Elias and Christiana (Marsh) Guise, 
 and was born in Manchester, Summit Co., Ohio, 
 Jan. 28, 1849 ; he attended the schools in his 
 native town until 1865, when he entered the 
 grammar school at Akron, and, one year later, 
 the high school of the same city, where he re- 
 mained for twelve consecutive terms. After 
 completing his education, he retui'ned to his 
 father's farm and remained one year. In Jan- 
 uar}-, 1871, he was united in marriage to Viana, 
 daughter of Samuel Thornton, of Akron, Oliio. 
 and from whom he received 117 acres of well- 
 improved land. There are two children from 
 that marriage — Nellie Bell and Newton H. 
 Elias Guise, the father of our subject, was born 
 in Snyder Co., Penn., where he lived until 
 1835. He learned the tailor's trade while 
 young, and upon his arrival in Summit County 
 in 1 835, he opened a shop in East Liberty and 
 one at Johnston's Corners, and conducted the 
 business successfully until 1845. He then 
 disposed of it and settled on a small farm in 
 Franklin Township, where he lived five years. 
 He then moved on his father-in-law's farm and 
 remained nine years, and, in 1865. purchased 
 
924 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and settled on 65 acres of land, where he still 
 resides. There were five children in his family, 
 two of whom are living. Mr. and Mrs. Guise 
 are members of the Evangelical Church of 
 Akron, Ohio. 
 
 ALVAN A. HINE, farmer ; P. 0. Tallmadge ; 
 son of William and Phila (Root) Hine, whose 
 sketch appears in this work, was born in Tall- 
 madge in September, 1831. His youth was 
 spent on his fathei's farm. He obtained his 
 education in the common schools, and the 
 academy at Tallmadge. After leaving school 
 he returned to the farm, where he lived until he 
 was 22 years old. In 1853, he went to Knox 
 Co., 111., and engaged in the clothing business 
 in compan}^ with Mr. Atwood. They were en- 
 gaged in business for eighteen months, when he 
 returned to Portage Co., and lived there but a 
 short time. He then removed to Mogadore, 
 where he remained one year, and while there he 
 was engaged by J. Welsh as clerk in a general 
 store. In 1859, he removed on his father's 
 farm where he has since resided. In 1852, he 
 was married to Sarah J., daughter of Philo At- 
 wood, of Springfield Township. From that mar- 
 riage there has been five children — Elton, 
 Arthur, Frank, Leora and William. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hine are members of the Congregational 
 Church. 
 
 WILLIAM HINE, farmer ; P. 0. Tallmadge. 
 This gentleman was born in New Haven Co., 
 Conn., his birth occurring July 22, 1801. He 
 lived at home until he was 9 3'ears old, and 
 then went to work for a farmer in the neighbor- 
 hood, where he remained five j^ears, and then 
 returned home where, for about two ,years, he 
 attended school during the winter season, and 
 worked on the farm in the summer. In 1820, 
 his father's family came to Ohio, and with them 
 came our subject, who worked for his father 
 until 1823. when he began clearing a piece of 
 land of 50 acres, a part of the farm he now lives 
 on. He now owns about 235 acres of well- 
 improved land. Dec. 24, 1823, he was united 
 in marriage to Melia Root, who was a native of 
 Waterbury, Conn. From that marriage there 
 were three children — William E., of Livingston 
 Co., 111.; Alvin A., of Tallmadge ; and Melia A., 
 wife of T. F. Metlin, of Akron. Dec. 24, 1873, 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hine celebrated the fiftieth anni- 
 versary of their wedded life ; about seventy of 
 their friends assembled at the home of Mr. 
 Hine, where thev showed the love and esteem 
 
 they cherished for the pioneer couple. Jan. 25, 
 1881, Mrs. Hine departed this life at the age of 
 75 years. She was a Christian lady, a kind 
 mother, and a loving wife. Mr. and Mrs. Hine 
 were members of the Congregational Church. 
 
 DANIEL HINE, farmer ; P. 0. Tallmadge ; 
 was born in New Haven Co., Conn, May 23, 
 1806. At the age of 14 3^ears his parents came 
 to Ohio, settling in Tallmadge, Daniel assist- 
 ing in clearing and working the farm until he 
 was 27 years of age, when he purchased a piece 
 of new land, which he cleared and occupied 
 until 1837 ; then selling his farm, he went to 
 Kentucky, where he remained the winter of 
 1838-39 ; when he returned to Tallmadge and 
 settled on the farm he now occupies. Soon 
 after he settled, he started a vineyard, carrying 
 on the same successfully for several 3'ears. In 
 1830, he was married to Sally Caruthers, of 
 Tallmadge, with whom he lived happily until 
 1869, when she died, at the age of 62 years. 
 He married for his second wife, Sarah, widow 
 of Caleb S. Clevis, of Yarmouth, Me. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hine are members of the Congi'egational 
 Church, of Tallmadge. In politics, he is a 
 Republican, and has always been identified 
 with that party. He served as Coroner, and 
 was appointed Deputy Sheriff. His father, 
 Abraham, was a native of New Haven Co., 
 Conn., where he was engaged in farming. In 
 1820, he came to Ohio, settling on a farm in 
 Tallmadge ; he lived on the farm up to the 
 time of his death, which occurred in 1856, at 
 the age of 81 years. Mrs. Abraham Hine was 
 born in Hartford Co., Conn., and lived until 
 1864 ; she was 88 years of age. 
 
 MICHAEL HAWK, farmer ; P. 0. Middle- 
 bury ; son of Philip and Margaret Hawk. They 
 were natives of Germany, where thej^ were en- 
 gaged in farming. In 1839, they came to Ohio, 
 settling in Portage Co., on a farm ; they lived 
 on the farm up to the time of their death. The 
 father died in 1862 ; the mother, in 1874. 
 There were five children in the family, our sub- 
 ject being the youngest who was born in Ger- 
 many, Sept. 27, 1835, and came to Portage Co., 
 Ohio, with his parents, in 1839. At the age of 
 21 3'ears he began farming, first working the 
 homestead. In 1870, he bought the farm he 
 now lives on. He began life a poor boy, but, 
 b}' industr}' and economy, has accumulated a 
 nice property, owning 144 acres of well-improved 
 land in the southern part of the township. He 
 
 V <s ^r- 
 
TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 935 
 
 was married to Albertenia Bletcler, daughter 
 of Michael Bletcler, of Randolph, Portage Co. 
 They have two children — x\lbert and L3'dia. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hawk are members of the Grace 
 Church, of Akron. 
 
 C. A. JOHNSTON, farmer; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; son of William and Elizabeth John- 
 ston, whose sketch appears in this work. The 
 subject was born in Green Township, Summit 
 Co., July 16, 1842. His earl}^ life was spent 
 on the farm and attending school. In 1860, he 
 entered Mt. Union College, when he remained 
 three years. After leaving college, he engaged 
 in the oil business, in Pennsylvania and Medina 
 Co.. where he conducted business successfully 
 for two years. He then engaged in the coal 
 business, in company with W. G. Johnston, 
 which they carried on for six years. He then 
 carried on the milling business, in the State 
 mill, for one year. In 1876, he bought the 
 farm he now lives on, of 104 acres of well- 
 improved land. In 1870, he was married to 
 Sarah A. Swartz, of Franklin Township ; from 
 that marriage there were three children, two of 
 whom are living — Lizzie M. and Clara B. 
 
 CAPT. J. A. MEANS, Ex-County Clerk, 
 Tallmadge; was born in Allegheny Co., Penn., 
 in February, 1811. He obtained his education 
 in the common district schools, and, at an early 
 age, was apprenticed to the tanner's trade, at 
 which he worked until he was 22 years old. 
 In 1833, he came to Summit County, settling in 
 Northfleld Township on a farm of unimproved 
 land, and by hard work and econom}' , accumu- 
 lated a fine propert}^ In 1836, he was ap- 
 pointed Deputy County Survej'or. He remained 
 on the farm until about 1860, when he was 
 elected Clei'k of the county. After serving 
 part of his term, he organized Company C, 
 115th 0. V. I., of which he was made Captain, 
 serving his countr}' three 3^eai's ; at the close of 
 the war, he returned home and again engaged 
 in farming. In 1870, he was re-elected Count}- 
 Clerk, holding the office for three years, and. at 
 the expii-ation of his term of office, he was 
 elected Clerk of the cit}- of Akron, serving 
 three years. In 1877, he pui'chased 12 acres of 
 land adjoining Tallmadge Center, upon which 
 he has made some very fine improvements. In 
 1835, he was united in marriage to Eliza Cha- 
 pin, daughter, of A. Chapin, of Northfield. 
 From that marriage there were six children, 
 two of whom are living — Nathan A., of Akron, 
 
 and E. A., wife of W. B. Marsh, of Tallmadge. 
 In September, 1879, his wife died at the age of 
 68 years. In October, 1880, he married Mrs. 
 M. V. Walton, widow of Dr. L. C. Walton, of 
 Tallmadge. Mr and Mrs. Means are members 
 of the Congregational Church of Tallmadge. 
 
 C. B. MAURER, barrel manufacturer, Tall- 
 madge ; is a son of John J. and Sophia Maurer, 
 who were natives of Prussia ; they came to 
 Rochester, N. Y., in 1833. John J. was a barrel- 
 maker, and worked at his trade previous to 
 his coming to Rochester, where he was one of 
 the largest manufacturers, doing business there 
 for several years. He died from the effects of 
 a wound caused b}' the explosion of a sky 
 rocket, while celebrating the da}- the Atlantic 
 cable was first laid. After his death, his oldest 
 son carried on the business. C. B. was born in 
 Rochester, N. Y., May 14, 1842, and obtained 
 his education in the public schools of that city. 
 At an early age, he entered his father's shop 
 and worked there until he was of age. In 
 1864, he went to California and worked at his 
 trade for about one j'ear, when he returned 
 home, where he remained but a short time, 
 when he went to Sandusky, Ohio, and thence 
 to Da3'ton, where he was engaged as leader of 
 an orchestra in a concert troupe. He traveled 
 about six months, when he abandoned the 
 troupe and came to Akron, where he has since 
 been engaged in business, at first working at 
 his trade. In 1868, he built a factory which 
 has" since been enlarged. He employs about 
 fift}^ men and manufactures about 180,000 bar- 
 rels per year. In 1873, he, in company with 
 Commins & Allen, built a large stave factory in 
 Union City, Penn. In 1870, he was married to 
 Miss Mai-y A. Dunnigan, of Akron, Ohio, who 
 bore him four children. He purchased the 
 property known as the Francis H. Upson prop- 
 erty, in' 1880, where he still lives. By his in- 
 dustry and econom}-, he has accumulated con- 
 siderable property. 
 
 MORRISS SISTERS, farmers ; P. 0. Middle- 
 bui-y ; are the daughters of Aaron and Sarah 
 (Tsbell) Morriss. Mr. Morriss was a native of 
 Winstead, Conn., where he lived until he reached 
 manhood, in the meantime learning the carpen- 
 ter's trade, and, at the age of 21, left home, 
 and in company with l*eter Hepburn went to 
 Georgia. Mr. Hepburn returned home soon 
 after, leaving Mr. Morriss in a strange city among 
 strangers. He was not among strangers but a 
 
« 
 .^^ 
 
 926 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 short time, for his gentlemaiil}' bearing and con- 
 duct made him many friends. He was engaged 
 in contracting and Imilding. and contributed 
 $50 toward the erection of every church being- 
 built in the vicinity in which he lived. After 
 an absence of thirteen years, he returned to 
 New Haven, Conn., where he married Sarah 
 Isbell, widow of Capt. Fregift Coggeshall. From 
 that marriage, there were two daughters — 
 America and Corene. After his marriage, he 
 came to Tallmadge, settling on a farm, where 
 he lived until he died in 1871, aged 74. He 
 was one of the best workman in the country, 
 and made part of the furniture in Yale College 
 and other pul)lic buildings. Mrs. Morriss lived 
 on the farm until she died, her death occurring 
 in 1879, at the age of 78 years. America was 
 born in Tallmadge, in 1835, and Corene in 1836. 
 The}' attended school at Hudson for some time, 
 and then entered the Ontario Female Seminary 
 at Canandaigua, N. Y., where they remained 
 until they were about to graduate. Tiiej' have 
 lived on the farm ever since. 
 
 L. B. PIERCE, nursery-man and florist ; P. 0. 
 Tallmadge ; is a son of Nathaniel and Minerva 
 (Sanford) Pierce, whose father was a native of 
 Litchfield Co., Conn., and came to Ohio in 1839. 
 The mother was born near Burlington, Vt. Our 
 sul)ject was born in Tallmadge Township, April 
 30, 1840. He lived at home until he was 20 
 years of age. He received his education in the 
 common schools and the academy at Tallmadge, 
 and, when 18 3-ears of age, was prepared to enter 
 college. After completing his education, he 
 returned to the farm, and there remained until 
 1864, when he enlisted in Co. D, 164th 0. N. G. 
 At the close of the war, he returned home, and, 
 in 1866, purchased 40 acres of the old home- 
 stead, and began improving it. He soon after 
 turned his attention to fruit growing and nur- 
 sery business, and has been engaged in the same 
 pursuit up to the present time. For ^ears, he 
 had been carefully reading works on landscape 
 gardening, and, in 1880, he put his knowledge 
 on the subject into practical use. He is con- 
 sidered a proficient landscape gardener, and, in 
 1881, opened an office in Cleveland, where he 
 still visits. In 1873, he was married to Miss 
 E. M. Bradley, of Kent. From that marriage, 
 there is one child. In 1857, he united with the 
 Congregational Church at Tallmadge. 
 
 MRS. JASPER PERO, Tallmadge, is the 
 youngest of a family of five daughters born to 
 
 John and Susan Gareheart, who were natives 
 of Pennsylvania, and settled in Middlebury in 
 1836. The subject's father was a stonemason 
 by trade, and worked at the same for several 
 years. He moved to Portage Co., remained 
 there a short time, then moved to Indiana, 
 Mdiere he died. Our subject lived at home 
 until 1849, when she married Jasper Pero, who 
 was a native of France, and came to Ohio in 
 1832, settling in Springfield Township, where 
 he was engaged in farming. He learned the 
 potter's trade and worked at the same for sev- 
 eral years in connection with farming. By his 
 industr}' and economy he accumulated consid- 
 erable money, and with it purchased a farm in 
 Portage Co., which he afterward exchanged for 
 the one now owned by Newton Dunbar, where 
 he lived until his death, which occurred under 
 very distressing circumstances. He was a 
 great lover of horses, and every opportunity 
 afforded him he would be found around them. 
 March 16, 1877, while working about them, 
 was kicked and instantly killed by one of his 
 horses. He was the father of two children — 
 Mary E., wife of Newton Dunbar, and Flora, 
 wife of Daniel Beal, both of Tallmadge. 
 
 HERBERT A. PECK, farmer ; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; is a son of Anthony and Harriet 
 (Clark) Peck, who were natives of Milford, 
 Conn., and came to Summit County in 1822, 
 settling on a farm of 200 acres in Tallmadge 
 Township, where he lived until he died. His 
 death occurred in 1845. His widow survives 
 him, and lives with her son Herbert. The 
 subject of this sketch was born in Tallmadge 
 Township Nov. 13, 1842. His childhood was 
 spent on his father's farm. He attended the 
 schools of his neighborhood and the academy 
 at Tallmadge, where he procured a good edu- 
 cation. He then turned his attention to farm- 
 ing, which business he is still engaged in. He 
 owns 310 acres of valuable land, situated in 
 the southern part of the township. He has 
 always been identified with the Republican 
 party, and has been Treasurer of the Summit 
 County Agricultural Association for several 
 years. 
 
 SHERMAN PETTIBONE, farmer; P. O. 
 Middlebury ; is a son of Norman and Amelia 
 Wetmore Pettibone. They were natives of 
 Connecticut, where they were engaged in farm- 
 ing. Norman died in 1814, at the age of 45 
 3'ears. His widow married for her second hus- 
 

 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 927 
 
 band Simeon Hart, of Burlington, Conn. There 
 were six children from her first marriage and 
 two from the latter. She died about the year 
 1860, at the age of 84 years. Our subject was 
 born in Burlington, Conn., in 1809. His child- 
 hood was spent on the farm and attending the 
 schools of his neighborhood and the academy 
 at Burlington. After leaving school, he worked 
 on a farm, and, at the age of 18, was employed 
 by a New York merchant as clerk, for whom 
 he worked two years. In 1830, he was em- 
 ployed by Jerome & Darrow, clock manufact- 
 urers, of Bristol, Conn., as salesman, traveling 
 for that firm five j'ears through the Southern 
 States. In 1835, he came to Ohio, settling in 
 Tallmadge Township, where he has since re- 
 sided. He owns 150 acres of valuable land, 
 situated in the southern part of the township. 
 Ma}' 20, 1835, he was united in marriage to 
 Sarah B. Lambert, who was born in Orange, 
 New Haven Co., Conn. From their union there 
 were three children, as follows : Fanny E., 
 widow of Philo Wright, of Detroit, Mich ; 
 Sarah V., deceased, and Sherman B., who is 
 associated with his father on the farm. He is 
 a member of the Congregational Church of 
 Tallmadge. Mr. Pettibone is a stanch Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 J. B. RICHARDSON, farmer ; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; was born in Tallmadge April 5, 1834. 
 His childhood was spent at home on the farm, 
 his education being obtained in the common 
 schools and the Academy of Tallmadge. When 
 21 years of age he began life for himself, first 
 working for his father on the farm. In 1856, 
 he went to Iowa and Illinois, where he remained 
 for a short time, but returned in 1858 and pur- 
 chased the farm he now occupies, 80 acres of 
 well-improved land. In 1860, he was united 
 in marriage to Miss Frances Evans, daughter 
 of D. N. Evans, of Portage Co. The subject's 
 father, E. Richardson, was born in Middlebury, 
 Conn. In 1799, he lived at home on the farm 
 until 1817, when he started across the country 
 on foot, arriving in Tallmadge Township, where 
 he worked at chopping for one year. Before 
 leaving home he promised his parents to return 
 in one year : he did so, walking the whole dis- 
 tance. He returned to Tallmadge and worked 
 for Squire Whittlesey for two years, he then 
 settled on 50 acres of land, where he remained 
 the greater part of his life. In 1822. he was 
 married to Elizabeth Porter, who was from 
 
 Waterbur}^, Conn. From that marriage there 
 were three children — Mary, wife of S. H. 
 Cooley, of Oneida, 111. ; Charles P. and J. B. 
 Mrs. Richardson died in 1858, at the age of 55 
 years. In 1862, J. B., our subject, married 
 Lauretta, widow of Amos Parker, of Geauga 
 Co. Mr. and Mrs. Richardson are members of 
 the Congregational Church, of Tallmadge. 
 
 GEORGE RIPLEY, farmer ; P. 0. Middle- 
 bury ; is a son of William and Elizabeth Rip- 
 ley, of Yorkshire, England, and was born in 
 Yorkshire in September, 1822. His father died 
 when he was young, and he was obliged to 
 work in a mine, serving until he was 21 years 
 of age as an apprentice, for which he received 
 his board and clothes. In 1850, he came to 
 Ohio, settling in Clinton, where he worked a 
 short time. He then removed to Coventry 
 Township, where he worked for about two 
 years. In 1852, he operated a coal bank, which 
 he was engaged in for ten years, meeting with 
 good success. In 1861, he purchased the farm 
 he now lives on, consisting of 160 acres of 
 well-improved land. In 1844, he was married 
 to Martha Marsden, who was a native of York- 
 shire, England. From that marriage there 
 were eight children, four of whom are living, 
 viz. : William, Charles, John and Eli. Mr. 
 Ripley is a stalwart Republican, and b}' his 
 industry and economy, has, from a poor bo}-, 
 become a wealthv man. 
 
 C. A. SACKETT, farmer ; P. 0. Tallmadge ; 
 is the seventh of a family of nine children 
 born to Clark and Laura M. (Akin) Sackett, his 
 birth occurring May 15, 1837, in Tallmadge 
 Township. His father was a native of War- 
 ren, Conn. He remained at home until he was 
 21 years old, working on the farm and in his 
 father's distillery. In 1814, he left home for 
 the purpose of making a new home in the 
 West ; he made the journey on foot, and, after a 
 wearisome tramp, reached Tallmadge, and 
 bought the farm now owned and occupied by 
 our subject. He lived on this farm until a few 
 years before he died. He united with the Con- 
 gregational Church, at Tallmadge, while young, 
 and was a devout and faithful member, and 
 was also Deacon of the above-named Church 
 for several years. He was twice married ; first 
 to Cynthia Preston, who lived but about six 
 weeks after their marriage. He married for 
 his second wife, Laura M. Akin, who bore him 
 nine children. She was a Christian ladv, and 
 
d=^ 
 
 928 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 by her death the Congregational Church lost a 
 proficient member. She died March 30, 1846. 
 Mr. Sackett died May 14, 1862. Our subject's 
 early life was spent on the farm, and he ob- 
 tained his education in the common schools and 
 the Academy of Tallmadge. After completing 
 his education, he returned to the farm, where 
 he remained until 1864, when he enlisted in 
 Co. B, 164th 0. N. G. He was gone but about 
 100 days, and upon being released, he returned 
 to the farm, where he has since lived. At the 
 time of his father's death, he purchased the 
 farm where he now resides. In 1861, June 25, 
 he was married to Catharine Ashman, daughter 
 of Russell and Marcia Ashman, of Tallmadge. 
 
 B. W. SKINNER, farmer ; P. 0. Tallmadge ; 
 is a son of Solomon and Caroline (Waldo) 
 Skinner, who were natives of Hartford, Conn. 
 At the age of 18, the father of our subject en- 
 listed in the war of 1812, and served his coun- 
 try in such a manner as becomes a true soldier. 
 Soon after the war he came to Ohio, and, set- 
 tling in Bath Township, he bought a farm of 
 unimproved land, and, after many months of 
 wearisome labor, he converted it into a pleas- 
 ant home. He remained there until 1860, 
 when he removed to Milan, Ohio, and there he 
 died July 22, 1880, at the advanced age of 91 
 years. The subject of this sketch was born in 
 Bath Township, April 6, 1835, his youth being 
 spent on the farm, where he obtained his edu- 
 cation in the common schools of his neighbor- 
 hood. He worked on the farm until he was 18 
 years of age, and then came to Tallmadge 
 Township, and worked at the same business 
 for several years, at the expiration of which 
 time he had accumulated considerable monej^ ; 
 he then rented a farm, and soon after bought 
 33 acres of land, where he now resides, now in- 
 ci'eased to 97 acres. In 1864, he enlisted in 
 Co. D., 164th 0. N. G. At the close of the 
 war, he returned to the farm, and has remained 
 there ever since. In 1856, he was married to 
 Laura Dickinson, of Northampton Township, 
 who bore him five children, as follows — Laura 
 E., Carlton B., Olive A., Lucy R. and Minnie 
 M. Rev. 0. S. Skinner, brother of our subject, 
 was a 3' oung man of bright prospects. He was 
 much attached to him, and b}' his death the 
 Church lost a proficient and active worker. 
 
 WILLARD S PERRY, stock-dealer and 
 farmer ; P. 0. Tallmadge ; is a son of Adna 
 and Julia (Wilcox) Sperry. The father of our 
 
 subject was a prominent man, and came to 
 Tallmadge about the year 1808, and engaged in 
 farming, settling on the farm now owned by 
 Willard. He was extensively engaged in buy- 
 ing and shipping stock, and carried on the 
 same successfully up to the time of his death. 
 Our subject was born in Tallmadge Township, 
 Oct. 4, 1851. He remained on the farm until 
 he was 14 3'ears of age. He then went to live 
 with his uncle. Dr. Sperr^^, of Tallmadge, with 
 whom he lived until he was 20 3'ears of age, 
 when he went to Colorado and remained one 
 3^ear. He then returned to Pennsylvania, re- 
 maining there for some time. While there, he 
 acted as superintendent of a large lumber es- 
 tablishment. In 1877, he settled on the farm 
 he now lives on. He has been engaged in the 
 stock business extensivel3'. In 1874, he was 
 mai'ried to Flora A., daughter of Weems Caru- 
 thers, of Tallmadge Township. 
 
 J. S. STROMAN, farmer ; P. 0. Munroe 
 Fal!s ; is a son of Henr3' and Catharine (Stine) 
 Stroman ; was born in Springfield Township, 
 Summit Co., JUI3' 30, 1845. His youth was 
 spent on the farm of his father, obtaining his 
 education in the meantime in the schools of his 
 neighborhood. In 1876, he settled on a farm 
 of 117 acres of valuable land in the northeast 
 corner of the township, where he has since re- 
 sided. In 1872, he was united in marriage to 
 Maggie, daughter of Thomas and Mary Ellis, of 
 Thomastown, formerl3' of Wales. From Mr. 
 Stroman's marriage, there has been one child. 
 Mr. Stroman, although a 3^oung man, has accu- 
 mulated a handsome property. He has always 
 been identified with the Democratic party. 
 Henr3' Stroman, the father of our subject, was 
 boim in Union Co., Penn., in 1818, and came to 
 Ohio with his parents in 1824. He remained 
 at home until he was 25 3^ears of age, when he 
 settled on a farm ; he then, worked at day's 
 work for about three 3'ears. In 1850, he 
 bought and settled on a farm of 40 acres, which 
 he increased to 160. He has been an industri- 
 ous man, and for his industr3^ he has been 
 rewarded. He is now a well-to do farmer. 
 There have been born two children in his fam- 
 ily, J. P. and W. H. 
 
 H. H. STAHL, stoneware manufacturer, 
 Tallmadge ; was born in Trumbull Co., Ohio, 
 May 9, 1847, his parents, A. M. and Laura 
 Stahl. being natives of Ohio, the father of Co- 
 lumbiana Co., and the mother of Trumbull Co. 
 
^L. 
 
 TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 929 
 
 The father of our subject was a farmer, and 
 conducted the business successfully. In 1880, 
 he removed to Ashtabula Co., where he still 
 resides. His wife died in 1852, at the age of 
 35 years. Our subject's early life was spent 
 on his father's farm and in attending the 
 schools of the neighborhood. At the age of 15, 
 he enlisted in Co. M. 2d Heavy Artillery, serv- 
 ing until the close of the war. At the close of 
 the war, he returned to Ashtabula Co., and at- 
 tended school for about one 3'ear, and finished 
 his education in his native town. In 1866, he 
 came to Mogadore, this count}^, and began to 
 learn the potter's trade, serving as an appren- 
 tice one year. He then worked as journeyman 
 for one 3'ear, and, in 1868, in company with J. 
 Lee, operated a shop in Mogadore. This com- 
 pan}' lasted about two and a half 3'ears. He 
 then worked as journeyman for about one and 
 a half years, and, in 1870, he, in company with 
 T. H. Fenton, began the manufacture of stone- 
 ware in Tallmadge, the}' making man}- improve- 
 ments, and carrying on the business success- 
 fully for about one year. In 1876, he pur- 
 chased the works he now manages, and, having 
 made man\' improvements, has now one of the 
 best shops in town. In 1869, he was married 
 to Laura Hale, daughter of A. M. Hale, of 
 Springfield, whose sketch appears in this work. 
 From that marriage there has been one child — 
 Howard Austin. Mr. and Mrs. Stahl are mem- 
 bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church of 
 Tallmadge. 
 
 IRA P. SPERRY, sewer-pipe manufacturer. 
 Tallmadge ; is a son of Lyman and Lydia 
 (Peck) Sperry, the father being a native of New 
 Haven Co., Conn., where he was engaged in 
 farming. In 1819, he came to Tallmadge Town- 
 ship, settling on a farm in the northeastern part 
 of the township, where he lived until he died, 
 his death occurring in 1858, aged 86 years. 
 Mrs. Sperr}' died in 1836, at the age of 52 years. 
 Our subject was born in Waterbmy, Conn., in 
 the year 1818. He came to Ohio with his 
 parents in 1819, and lived on his father's farm 
 until he was 14 3'ears of age, when he was ap- 
 prenticed to a blacksmith to learn the trade, 
 serving three and one-half years ; he then 
 learned the carriage-ironing trade, which occu- 
 pied three years ; he worked at the latter for one 
 year. At the age of 21, attended school at 
 Cu^'ahoga Falls for about one vear. Then en- 
 gaged with William C. Oviatt, of Tallmadge, as 
 
 a carriage-ironer, working for him for two years. 
 In 1844, he purchased an interest in the works 
 of William C. Oviatt, of Tallmadge, where they 
 did a successful business. Their work was in 
 use in ever^' section of the State and many 
 other States. They had a carriage depository 
 in Cincinnati for fourteen years, where they 
 did business to the amount of $300,000, but 
 sold his interest in 1871. In 1870, he engaged 
 in sewer-pipe manufacturing, in company with 
 S. J. Ritchie and Dr. Sperry, of Tallmadge. 
 They did an extensive business until 1879, 
 when their shops were destroyed b}' fire, which 
 proved disastrous to the village of Tallmadge. 
 The works were valued at $150,000, and were 
 the best of the kind in the State. Sept. 27, 
 1841, he was united in marriage to Clarissa 
 Carlton, daughter of Peter Carlton, of Portage 
 Co., and from that marriage, the}- had six 
 children, four of whom are living ; their names 
 are as follows : Willis C, George P., Francis 
 L. and Henry B. The first named is a practic- 
 ing physician in York Co., Neb. Mr. Sperry is 
 a stalwart in the Republican party. In 1858, 
 was elected by the Free-Soil party as their 
 Representative in the Ohio Legislature. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Sperry are active members of the 
 Congregational Church. 
 
 JESSE SPRAGUE, farmer; P. 0. Middle- 
 bury ; is the eighth of a family of eleven chil- 
 dren born to Jonathan and Sarah Sprague ; 
 they were natives of Sharon, Conn., where thej' 
 were engaged in farming ; the father was a tan- 
 ner and currier by trade, but worked very little 
 at it, learning the shoemaker's trade, which he 
 followed for several years ; in 1805, he came to 
 Ohio, first stopping in Canfield, Mahoning Co., 
 where he remained three years ; in 1808, he 
 came to Tallmadge Township, settling on a 
 farm ; this family was the fourth family in the 
 township. Mr. Sprague died in 1837, at the 
 age of 70, his widow dying in 1843 at the age 
 of 64. Our subject was born in Tallmadge, 
 Oct. 13, 1809, and lived at home until he was 
 21 years of age ; he then took charge of the 
 farm, where he lived fifteen years ; in 1851, he 
 purchased the farm he now occupies. In 1836, 
 he married Sallie Y. Lane ; from that marriage 
 there were two children — Rhoda, wife of David 
 Foote, of Portage Co.. and Heman,''who is as- 
 sociated with his father on the farm. Mr. 
 Sprague has alwaj'S voted with the Republican 
 party. 
 
'k. 
 
 930 
 
 BIOGKAPPIICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 DENNIS TREAT, farmer ; P. 0. Tallmadge ; 
 sou of Samuel aud Alice (Westou) Treat, whose 
 sketch appears in this work, was boru in Tall- 
 madge May 28, 1831 ; his youthful daj's were 
 spent on the farm ; he obtained his education 
 in the common schools and the academy of 
 Tallmadge ; he lived on the farm until he was of 
 age ; at the time of his father's death he pur- 
 chased the old homestead, where he has since 
 resided. In 1864, he enlisted in Co. D, 164th 
 0. N. Gr., aud, while in service, was stationed at 
 Arlington Heights ; after his release from the 
 service he returned to the farm, where he has 
 since resided ; he owns 200 acres of valuable 
 land, which he has farmed successfully. In 
 1874, he was elected President of the Summit 
 Co. Agricultural Society ; he had previous to 
 this date acted as Vice President of the same 
 society. In 1857, he was united in marriage to 
 Rhoda H., daughter of Dr. Philo Wright, of 
 Tallmadge ; from that marriage there have been 
 four children, viz., Alice W., Florence S., Hiram 
 B. and Henry W. Mr. and Mrs. Treat are 
 members of the Congregational Church of Tall- 
 madge. 
 
 HARRIET E. TREAT, fiirmer ; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; is the widow of Lemuel P. Walcott, 
 who was born in Tallmadge Aug. 18, 1831; his 
 childhood was passed on the farm, where he re- 
 mained until he had grown to manhood ; he ob- 
 tained his education in the common schools, 
 the Windom Academy and the Nelson High 
 School ; after completing his education, he re- 
 turned to the farm, and there lived until it was 
 divided between himself and brothers. In 
 November, 1856, he married Harriet E., daugh- 
 ter of Richard and Amoret Treat, who shared 
 his happiness until death separated them ; he 
 died Nov. 10, 1876, at the age of 45 years ; he 
 was a man much missed in the surrounding- 
 community in which he lived, for his amiable 
 disposition, gentlemanly bearing and devotion 
 to his church. He was the father of three 
 children — Mary E., Flora I. and Bryan T. — all 
 at home. Mrs. Wolcott still lives on the farm, 
 is comfortabl}' situated, with hosts of sympa- 
 thizing friends, who with her share the loss of a 
 kind husband and loving father. 
 
 PHILIP THOMAS, coal operator, Tall- 
 madge ; is a son of John and Rachel Thomas, 
 both of whom were natives of Wales, where the 
 subject was born in 1825, in the shire of Mon- 
 mouth. AYhen 8 years old, Philip went to work 
 
 in a coal-mine and was thus employed until 
 1851, when he emigrated to America. Coming 
 direct to Ohio, he settled in Summit County, 
 Tallmadge Township, where he has since re- 
 sided, with the exception of two years he 
 passed in the township of Coventry. For a 
 short time he worked in the coal-bank of W. 
 H. Harris, and then came to the Upson banks 
 which he and Wm. T. Owen leased in 1868. 
 Four years later he secured his partner's inter- 
 est and is doing a good business, employing 
 some forty men, and mines about 15,000 tons 
 annuall}'. Mr. Thomas has b}^ industry and 
 econom}' secured a position in life that reflects 
 credit on himself and shows what can be ac- 
 complished, even under adverse circumstances 
 by a determined will. His marriage was cele- 
 brated in 1849, Miss Sarah Williams becoming 
 his wife. Their union has been crowned with 
 twelve children, eight of whom are living, viz., 
 John, Mary, Philip, Llewellyn, Henry, Mor- 
 gan, Frank and Willie. Mrs. Thomas is a con- 
 sistent member of the Welsh Congregational 
 Church. He is a Republican. 
 • ANDREW TREAT, farmer; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; was born iu New Haven Co., Conn., 
 Dec. 22, 1799. He spent his youthful days on 
 the farm ; he obtained his education in the 
 common schools and the academ}' of his native 
 town. In 1823, he came to Tallmadge Town- 
 ship, and settled on a farm of 109 acres of 
 partly cleared land, where he has since resided. 
 He now owns about 525 acres of well-improved 
 land. He has given his attention to farming 
 exclusively, and by his industrious and eco- 
 nomical habits has become the wealthiest man 
 of his township. April 24, 1823, he was mar- 
 ried to Marrietta N. Treat, who was born in 
 New Haven Co., Conn. From that marriage 
 there has been two children — Joseph A., of 
 Cleveland, and Julia E., wife of F. F. Fenn, of 
 Tallmadge. Mr. and Mrs. Treat are members 
 of the Congregational Church of Tallmadge, 
 uniting with the same over sixty years ago. 
 April 24, 1823, they celebrated the fiftieth an- 
 niversary of their marriage day. 
 
 S. C. TAYLOR, farmer ; P. 0. Middlebury ; 
 was born in Tallmadge Oct. 29, 1837, and is 
 the only child living of a family born to Elijah 
 and Betsey (Clinton) Taylor. Elijah Taylor 
 was a native of Massachusetts, his birth occur- 
 ring in 1796. He lived on the farm until 
 1816, when he came to Ohio, settling in Portage 
 
 -©K 
 
TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 931 
 
 Co., where he remained ten ^ears, and while 
 there was engaged in farming. In 1826, he 
 I'emoved to Tallmadge and settled on a farm. 
 He was a thrifty farmer, and b}- his industry 
 and economy accumulated a large amount of 
 property. He died Feb. 10, 1872, at the age of 
 76. His wife was a native of Trumbull Co., 
 Ohio, her parents settling there at an early da}'. 
 She bore him two children — S. C. being the 
 only surviving one. His early life was spent 
 on the farm. He obtained his education in the 
 schools of his neighborhood. He has always 
 been engaged in farming on the farm on which 
 he was raised. In 1860, he was married to 
 Sarah Hagenbaugh, of Tallmadge, who bore 
 him one child, viz., Albert VV. She died Dec. 
 7, 1864. He married for his second wife Sarah 
 3IcNeal, daughter of James and Sarah McNeal, 
 who are residents of Pennsylvania. From the 
 last union there has been three children, viz., 
 Minnie E., Charles C. and Howard H. 
 
 STANLEY TREAT, farmer; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; is the third of a family of six chil- 
 dren born to Samuel and Alice (Weston) Treat, 
 who were natives of Connecticut, and came to 
 Tallmadge in 1818. Samuel Treat obtained 
 his education in the common schools of New 
 Haven Co., where he remained until he came to 
 Ohio. In 1818, he walked across the country, 
 reaching Tallmadge after a long and tiresome 
 tramp. He purchased 300 acres of land in the 
 southeast corner of the township, upon which 
 he settled the year following. In 1820, he was 
 married to the above-named lady, who bore 
 him six children, five sons and one daughter. 
 Three of the sons died after reaching manhood. 
 Samuel, Jr., was a prominent law^^er of Will- 
 iams Co., and by his death the county lost one 
 of its most enterprising men. Henry was a 
 farmer of Northampton Township, and H. B., 
 a graduate of the Western Reserve College 
 and a proficient scholar, died in Mississippi 
 after a short illness. While there he was 
 engaged in school-teaching. The father of our 
 subject lived on the farm up to the time of his 
 death he was a leading man in church and 
 societ}- circles*^ The subject of this sketch was 
 born on his father's farm in Tallmadge June 6, 
 1826. He obtained his education in the com- 
 mon schools and at the Tallmadge Academy. 
 After completing his education he returned to 
 the farm, where he remained until he was 25 
 years of age. He then bought a farm of 160 
 
 acres in Northampton Township, where he 
 remained four j-ears. He then returned to the 
 homestead and lived there a short time. In 
 1868, he bought the farm he now lives on of 
 155 acres of valuable land. In 1852, he mar- 
 ried Eliza Stilwell, of Portage Co., who bore 
 him one child — Arabella. Mrs. Treat died in 
 1861. He married for his second wife Charity 
 M. Kent, daughter of Martin Kent, of Moga- 
 dore. From that marriage there are two daugh- 
 ters, both at home. 
 
 D. B. TREAT, farmer ; P. 0. Tallmadge ; 
 is a son of Calvin and Jane Treat. The father 
 was a native of Orange, Conn. ; he came to 
 Ohio in 1824, settling in Tallmadge Township, 
 on a farm of 300 acres. He cleared the farm, 
 and sold about 90 acres ; the remainder he kept 
 and occupied until 1864. Mrs. Treat died, and 
 he married for his second wife Elizabeth, widow 
 of Harvey Hinman. After they left the farm, 
 they took up their residence at Tallmadge Cen- 
 ter. Our subject was born in Tallmadge, in 
 December, 1836, and attended the schools of 
 his neighborhood, the academy at Tallmadge, 
 and the college at Hudson. After leaving col- 
 lege, he began teaching school, being engaged 
 in that occupation for several years. In 1863, 
 he enlisted in the 5th Independent Company of 
 0. V. S. S., and was with Sherman through 
 Georgia. He was gone two years, and after he 
 returned engaged in farming, being engaged in 
 the same up to the present. In 1861, was mar- 
 ried to Catharine Price, daughter of Cyrus and 
 Jane Price. They have four children — Calvin, 
 Fannie, Edward and Elizur. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Treat are members of the Congi'egational Church 
 of Tallmadge. 
 
 DANIEL A. UPSON, farmer ; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge. This gentleman was born in Worth- 
 ington, Franklin Co., Ohio, Feb. 17, 1821, where 
 his youth was spent. His parents moved to 
 Tallmadge while he was 3'oung, and there en- 
 tered the Academy, and at that institution he 
 received the greater part of his education. 
 After leaving school, he attended to the farm 
 duties, and there remained for several 3'ears 
 preceding the death of his father, and at the 
 time of his father's death he inherited the old 
 homestead, where he still resides. In addition 
 to his farming interests, he has a large in- 
 terest in the coal-banks known as the Upson 
 banks. In 1859, he conducted a fair in Cuya- 
 hoga Falls, the fii'st one of the kind ever held 
 
 "e) \> 
 
^ — ^t^ 
 
 932 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 there, and spared neither time or funds to make 
 it a success. He had the fleetest horses of his 
 day on the grounds, such as Flora Temple and 
 other horses of like pedigree. He has many 
 interests in Akron, among them are the oat- 
 meal mills, etc. Mr. Upson never married, but 
 is living on his farm, and is one of the most 
 active men in church or society circles. Feb. 
 17, 1881, he was surprised b}- over 100 of his 
 many friends, who assembled at his house for 
 the purpose of showing the friendship they 
 cherished for him. The parents of our subject, 
 Dr. Daniel and Polly (Wright) Upson, were 
 natives of Connecticut, and came to Ohio in an 
 early day. Dr. Upson's youth was spent on 
 the farm and in attending the schools of his 
 neighborhood, where he received a liberal edu- 
 cation. He was engaged in teaching school 
 for several years, and at the same time study- 
 ing medicine. He graduated in medicine, and 
 then sought a home in Ohio ; he first located 
 in Trumbull Co., where he remained several 
 years, and, in 1818, he removed to Franklin 
 Co., settling in Worthington, and there remained 
 until 1832, when he removed to Tallmadge. 
 He was elected Representative, b}' the people 
 of Franklin Co., several times. After his re- 
 moval to Tallmadge, he discontinued his prac- 
 tice, paying special attention to his coal banks. 
 He married Polly, daughter of Deacon Elizur 
 Wright, of Tallmadge, but formerly of Connecti- 
 cut. She was a Christian ladj', an amiable 
 wife and kind mother. 
 
 WILLIAM UPTON, farmer; P. 0. Tall- 
 madge ; was born in the County of Kerry, Ire- 
 land, June 24, 1814. At the age of 16 j-ears, 
 he took passage on a vessel bound for Quebec. 
 When out about sixteen da}' s, and off the coast 
 of Nova Scotia, the vessel was wrecked, having 
 on board 303 passengers, men, women and chil- 
 dren. The captain ordered the women and 
 children to be taken ashore (which was two miles 
 distant) first, then the older men. and by that 
 time the vessel was fast going to pieces. Our 
 subject, with eleven other young men, was ad- 
 vised by the captain to swim the distance. They 
 undertook it, and eleven of them reached shore 
 in an exhausted condition. He saved nothing 
 from the wreck, and went three days without 
 food. He started off in search of food or a 
 settlement, and, after traveling for some time, 
 saw a small boat belonging to a fishing smack. 
 He told the occupants of the disaster, who took 
 
 them aboard of the smack, and brought them 
 to Louisburg, N. S. The passengers of the ill- 
 fated vessel, with the exception of our subject, 
 were taken to Quebec. He remained in Louis- 
 burg for three months. He then worked his 
 way to Boston, on board a coal vessel. From 
 there he went to Albany and Schenectady, N. 
 Y., where he remained a short time. In 1833, 
 he came to Ohio, settling in Summit Co., and 
 engaging in shoemaking for six ^^ears at Tall- 
 madge Center. He then settled on a farm of 
 220 acres, where he has since resided. In 1836, 
 he married Maria Sprague, daughter of Jonathan 
 Sprague, of Tallmadge. From that marriage, 
 there were six children, one of whom is living — • 
 Rev. J. S. Upton, of Bridgewater, N. Y. Mrs. 
 Upton died in 1873. He married, for his second 
 wife, Mrs. Kate Murphy, of Akron. The father 
 of our subject, Capt. John Upton, had, from a 
 boy, followed the seas. His mother was Mary 
 Fuller, who was a consistent and earnest mem- 
 ber of the Church of England. 
 
 A. A. VIALL, farmer; P. 0. Tallmadge; 
 was born in Harrisburg, Penn., Nov. 29, 1848. 
 He remained at home until he was 16 years of 
 age, receiving his education in the common 
 schools of his neighborhood. In 1864, he en- 
 listed in 184th 0. V. I., where he remained un- 
 til the close of the war. After his return home, 
 he was engaged as engineer on a steamboat. 
 He then worked on the Pittsburgh & Cleveland 
 Railroad, where he fired a locomotive. He was 
 then engaged by J. A. Caruthers to take charge 
 of machinery in his mill. In 1878, he purchased, 
 in company with C. D. Caruthers, the mill he 
 now operates. In 1879, he was united in mar- 
 I'iage to Helen Caruthers, daughter of J. A. 
 Caruthers, of Tallmadge, whose family settled 
 there in an early day from Connecticut. Mr. 
 Viall is a strong Republican, and has always 
 been identified with that part}'. 
 
 DR. AMOS WRIGHT, physician, Tallmadge ; 
 the first white male child born in Tallmadge 
 Township, and his birth occurred Oct. 5, 1808 ; 
 his parents. Dr. Amos and Lydia (Kinne}') 
 Wright, were natives of Connecticut, he coming 
 to Trumbull County in 1801, where he remained 
 until 1802, when he returned to Connecticut 
 and married the above-named lad}', who was 
 the daughter of Rev. Aaron Kinney. After 
 his marriage, he came to Trumbull County, 
 where he remained until 1808 ; he then came 
 to Tallmadge where he remained until he died. 
 
 (a" 
 
NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 933 
 
 He was the first practicing ptiysician in this 
 section of the State, and his practice was ex- 
 tensive. Our subject attended the academy in 
 Tallmadge until he was 14 years old, and then 
 went on the farm where he remained until he 
 was 19 years of age. Tn 1827, he began the 
 study of medicine in his father's office, where 
 he remained two years ; he then went to Cin- 
 cinnati and attended lectures in; 1829 and 1830. 
 In 1831 and 1832, he attended lectures at Yale 
 College. He returned to Tallmadge in 1833, 
 and opened a drug store in Middlebury, con- 
 ducting the business for one year, then re- 
 moved to Trumbull County and practiced medi- 
 cine for two years. He returned to Tallmadge 
 in 1836, and has remained there ever since. 
 He has an extensive circuit of practice, visiting 
 
 patients in Portage, Stark and Summit Coun- 
 ties. On the 31st day of March, 1831, he was 
 united in marriage to Clemence C. Fenn, who 
 bore to him nine childi'en, six of whom are liv- 
 ing — Stella, Celia, Ellen M., Julia I., Darwin 
 E. ; Samuel St. John associated with his father 
 in his practice ; H. M., Sarah E. and Alice are 
 the names of those deceased. Alice was well 
 and widely known in social and musical circles, 
 and had distinguished herself as a singer of 
 more than ordinary ability ; she died in 1874, 
 at the age of 23 years. March 31, 1881, Dr. 
 and Mrs. Wright celebrated the fiftieth anni- 
 versary of their wedded life by a golden wed- 
 ding, given by them at their home, and enter- 
 tained a host of conoratulatina: friends. 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWI'^SHiP. 
 
 J. G. ALEXANDER, merchant, Northfield ; 
 is one of the rising young merchants of Summit 
 County ; born in Cleveland, May 6, 1848 ; son 
 of Hamill and Martha (Nesbit) Alexander. The 
 father of our subject was born Aug. 6, 1818, in 
 West Pennsylvania ; son of James Alexander, 
 whose ancestors hail from " Bonnie Scotland." 
 He came West with his son Hamill in 1838, 
 locating in Cuyahoga County, and engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits, bringing his son up to 
 this calling, whose marriage with Miss Nesbit 
 occurred Nov. 17, 1842, whose birth is recorded 
 April 7, 1822, born in Wheatfield Township, 
 Indiana Co., Penn., daughter of John and Ann 
 (Matthews) Nesbit, who came West from Penn- 
 sylvania, locating in the township in 1831. 
 After the marriage of Hamill Alexander, he 
 remained one year on the farm ; then removed 
 to Cleveland, where he lived nine years, being 
 engaged in the mercantile business. From 
 there he moved to Macedonia, this township, 
 engaging in the lumber business, where he 
 remained until his death, which took place 
 July 4, 1854. To him were born a family of 
 three children, viz., John N., now residing in 
 Lansing, Mich.; James Gr. and Martha J. (now 
 the wife of Dr. J. C. Bryson, of La C3'gne, L}- nn 
 Co., Kan.). James Gr., at the deatli of his father, 
 was but a lad of 6 years ; being then thrown 
 upon his own resources, he has since that time 
 
 rowed his own craft. When a mere lad, he 
 hired out by the week, receiving $5 per mouth, 
 and continued on in this wa}' until he accumu- 
 lated means to enable him to engage in busi- 
 ness for himself In 18G9, he moved with his 
 mother and sisfer to Johnson Co., Mo., and 
 farmed four years, which gave him more exper- 
 ience than profit. Returning, in November, 
 1872, to this town, he engaged as a clerk for 
 Lyons, Logan & McClellan, remaining with 
 them one year and a half, and then engaged 
 one year with E. A. Palmer & Brother as trav- 
 eling salesman. April 13, 1876, he married 
 Ellen F. Love, daughter of John and Jane 
 Love, of Coshocton County. The May follow- 
 ing, he succeeded J. D. Lyon & Co., and has 
 since been engaged in general merchandising, 
 and is doing a safe and lucrative business. His 
 business has increased to double its first di- 
 mensions. He is now handling all kinds of 
 farm machinery, engines and threshers. He is 
 energetic and an excellent business man. 
 March 20, 1878, his lovely wife passed to the 
 land " beyond the river," leaving him compan- 
 ionless. She bore him one child — Jennie — who 
 sleeps in the cemetcr}- beside her. Since the death 
 of his wife, his mother has been his comforter 
 and housekeeper. Mr. Alexander and mother 
 are members of the U. P. Church, as also was 
 her father. 
 
 vi; 
 
 :rx: 
 
934 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 MRS. JANE W. BACON, retired, Northfield ; 
 was born Nov. 16, 1811, in Jetferson Co., this 
 State, to James and Sarah (McClintick) Pritch- 
 ard. Her father was ijorn in Maryhiud, son of 
 William Pritchard, to whom was born three 
 children. The father of Sarah McClintick was 
 James, whose wife was Mar}' Williamson ; they 
 raised a family of six children, whose names 
 were Mary, Rachel, Nancy, Sarah, James and 
 Samuel. James, the father of the above, was 
 a Commissary during the war of the Revolu- 
 tion, and was pi'esent at the battle of Bunker 
 Hill. To James and Sarah Pritchard were 
 born two children — Jane W. (Mrs. Bacon) and 
 Sarah. His first marriage was with Tabitha 
 White, by whom he had eight children ; two of 
 the number, Hezekiah and William, were sol- 
 diers in the war of 1812 ; William was Captain, 
 his brother Hezekiah dying in the service. 
 Mrs. Bacon's father removed West to Jefferson 
 Co. in the latter part of the last century, locat- 
 ing in Steubenville ; he was a man of superior 
 ability and talent, was a Judge of the Court of 
 Steubenville, and was one of the framers of 
 the State Constitution and a member of the 
 State Legislature, when they met at Chillicothe ; 
 here he died Feb. 6, 1813. His wife survived 
 him until 1856 ; she was for sixty years a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 Mrs. Bacon was married June 22, 1828, to 
 David C. Bacon, who was born in Genesee 
 Co., N. Y.. July 18, 1803 ; he was a son of 
 Isaac and Nancy (Cranmer) Bacon. Isaac Ba- 
 con came to Ohio, locating in this township, on 
 Lot C3, in 1807, where he cut down a few trees 
 and erected a cabin ; while this was in pro- 
 gress, parties who were cutting the road leading 
 from Hudson to Cleveland, hearing the sound 
 of his ax, knowing the country to be unin- 
 habited, started in quest of the unknown woods- 
 man, and there found the frontiersman busy at 
 his work ; and, in honor to him, and for his 
 accommodation, changed the direction of the 
 road and run it past his domicile ; hence the 
 crook in the road which has since existed as a 
 landmark in the township. This pioneer of 
 Northfield Township died November, 1812 ; his 
 son, David C, succeeded him in the ownership 
 of the farm, and remained in the townsliip until 
 his death, which occurred Oct. 22, 1880. Five 
 children were born to him, of whom but two 
 are living, viz. : Sarah J. (now the wife of Dr. 
 B. F. Roy, of Geauga Co., this State) and Miles 
 
 P., who is a resident of this township. Reason 
 P. died June G, 1859, at the age of 31, leaving 
 no issue. Mrs. Bacon has been a member of 
 Methodist Episcopal Church over fifty years, 
 and was the first to experience religion in the 
 township, and for one 3'ear was the onl}^ pro- 
 fessor of religion in the township ; she resides 
 on her farm of 130 acres, which was settled by 
 the elder Bacon, her house being the first frame 
 built in the township. 
 
 NOEL BECK, farmer ; P. 0. Northfield ; 
 was born Feb. 17, 1818, near Salem, Colum- 
 biana Co.; son of Paul and Mary (Dickinson) 
 Beck ; Paul was born in Loudoun Co.,Va., son of 
 Preston Beck, to whom was born Edward, Paul, 
 John, Richard, Mary, Esther, Phebe Ann and 
 Rachel ; Mary Dickinson was born in Redstone, 
 in New Jersey ; her mother's maiden name was 
 Martha Hatfield ; the father of Mary Dickinson 
 was named Jesse Dickinson, whose mother's 
 name was Sarah Richardson before marriage ; 
 the family on both sides were of Quaker fam- 
 ilies. Preston Beck came out to Columbiana 
 Co. with his famil}' before the commencement 
 of the present century, being one of the pioneers 
 of that count}'. Paul Beck was twice mar- 
 ried — first, to Mary Dickinson, who bore him 
 eight children ; those who grew up, were Ma- 
 tilda, Jesse, Joseph, Noel and Martha ; his 
 second marriage was to Rachel Foster, b}' 
 whom he had eight children. Noel came to 
 Bedford in 1834. June 1, 1840, he was mar- 
 ried to Maria Sheets, born March 28, 1819, in 
 Columbiana Co.; her parents were George and 
 Sarah (McConners) Sheets ; he was born Nov. 
 30, 1783, she March 5, 1787 ; he was a sailor 
 when young . they were born and married in 
 New Jerse}' ; their nuptials are recorded as 
 taking place in the 3'ear 1808 ; to them were 
 born ten children, nine of whom grew up. 
 George Sheets and wife, with two other fam- 
 ilies, composed of Father McConners and wife, 
 and Robert Thomas and his wife, all came out 
 in 1812 together, in a two-horse wagon contain- 
 ing what little of this world's goods the}' pos- 
 sessed. Soon after Mr. Sheets' arrival in the 
 State, he was drafted into the war of 1812. 
 His father's name was Yose}', who married 
 Elizabeth Kuntz, and by her he had seven 
 children — John, Joseph, William, Samuel, 
 George, Adam and Betsey. Mr. Beck, at the 
 time of his marriage, had notiiing l)ut his 
 hands and his worthy wife to begin with ; not 
 
:l^ 
 
 NOETHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 935 
 
 having the money to buy any furniture, he 
 turned in and made his own table, chairs, and 
 such articles as they were obliged to have, 
 which served them until they could afford 
 " store " furniture ; he bought 40 acres " in the 
 woods," of his father, costing $400, 3'et in four 
 3'ears had it paid for ; after living on this farm 
 ten years, he sold it for $700 and moved to 
 this township, purchasing 93 acres on Lot 13 
 for $1,400, but afterward cost him $300 more, 
 in consequence of a dower lien coming to 
 light which he had to square off ; he lived on 
 this place three years and located where he 
 now resides, where he has 101 acres. Four 
 children liave been born to him — Mary (Mrs. 
 Charles Pell), Clarkson and Alice (Mrs. John 
 A. EUett), all of this township. Mrs. Beck is a 
 member of the Disciples' Church. Mr. B. is not 
 a member of any denomination, but is a good 
 Republican. 
 
 CLARKSON BECK, farmer ; P. 0. Bedford ; 
 was born in Bedford Township, Cuvahoga Co., 
 March 20, 1847, the fourth of the family, and 
 the third of the number who grew up. He re- 
 moved with his parents to this township when 
 about 3 years of age, his father first locating 
 on the " ledge." Clarkson remained with his 
 parents until he was 25 j-ears of age. Jan. 14, 
 1872, he married Rebecca J. Stanley, who was 
 born 1851, in Columbiana Co., this State, daugh- 
 ter of Waddj' and Lydia (Mather) Stanley. 
 Her father was born in Virginia, Sept. 4, 1816, 
 and her mother on Feb. 2, 1822, in Pennsvlva- 
 nia. Waddy was a son of Waddy, Sr., who was 
 the parent of ten children, viz., Joel, Samuel, 
 Thomas, Waddy, Precilla, Luc}', Nanc}^, Re- 
 becca, Anna and Deborah. Lydia was a daugh- 
 ter of John and Catharine (Smith) Mather, to 
 whom were born ten children — Samuel, Thomas, 
 Sarah, Daniel, Jessie, Ann, William, James, 
 Lydia and John. To Mrs. Beck's parents were 
 born Catharine A., Joshua L., Rebecca J. and 
 Thomas, who died at 4 years of age ; Edgar 
 W. died when 16 months' old. The Stanleys 
 and Mathers are Quakers. The Mathers were 
 Hicksites ; the Stanleys were Guernseys. The 
 old gentleman died March 31, 1871, and his 
 wife "March 30, 1861. Since Mr. Beck's mar- 
 riage, he has been a resident of the snug farm 
 of 82 acres, which he now owns. He has three 
 children, viz., Bertha May, Mattie Jane and 
 (reorge D. Mr. Beck is among the enterprising 
 3'oung men of the count}'. He has a pleasant 
 
 home and family, and is a representative young 
 agriculturist and business man. 
 
 GEORGE L. BISHOP, farmer ; P. 0. North- 
 field ; born Jan. 23, 1842, at the center of 
 Nortiifield ; is the youngest of a family of 
 three children of Orin and' Celina (Lilley) 
 Bishop. George was 3 3'ears of age when his 
 father died, and was then raised by Mr. Seidell, 
 his step-father, who taught him the wagon- 
 maker's trade. In August, 1861, he enlisted 
 in Co. K, 19th 0. V. I., for three years, and 
 after the expiration of his time, re-enlisted and 
 served until the close of the war, receiving his 
 discharge in November, 1865. He served in 
 seventeen battles ; his first was Shiloh or Pitts- 
 burg Landing, then ^Mission Ridge, Chickamauga 
 and winding up with the battle at Nashville, 
 when Hood attempted to match W. T. Sherman 
 — to invade the enemj-'s countr}-. It can be said 
 of Mr. Bishop that he was a true and valiant 
 soldier dui'ing all his time of service, aijd was 
 always with his command, with the exception of 
 five months, when he was in the hospital in 
 consequence of wounds received at Stone River, 
 and during this time the regiment were not 
 in any engagement. Upon his return home 
 from service, he resumed his trade at the Cen- 
 ter with Mr. Seidell, remaining with him two 
 years. He then engaged with a New York firm, 
 and for six years was their general agent, hav- 
 ing the State to canvass in the interests of 
 patent medicine. After which, he and his 
 brother Clark purchased a farm together, which 
 they carried on some time, when he sold his 
 share to his brother. Dec. 31, 1819, he mar- 
 ried Martha Way, who was born May 4, 1850, 
 in England, daughter of Charles Wav, who 
 came to the country in 1859. Since his mar- 
 riage he has resided at Brandywine. Both he 
 and his wife are members of the M. E. Church. 
 He is also a member of A.. F. & A. M., and a 
 103'al Republican. 
 
 SIDNEY BEANEY. farmer; P. 0. Mace- 
 donia ; he is the son of John and Jane (Weston) 
 Beaney ; was born March 1, 1819, in Sussex 
 Co.. England. John Beane}' was born March 
 28, 1776, and his wife April 11, 1780. To them 
 were boi'n twelve children — Mary, born in 1799 ; 
 Susanna, in 1802 ; James, in 1804 ; Alfred, in 
 1806; William, in 1809: Walter, in 1811; 
 Jesse, in 1814 ; Jane, in 1815 ; John, in 1816 ; 
 Sidney, in 1819; Ann. in 1820; Joshua, in 
 1823. Sidney left England when a young man. 
 
 5 '>y 
 
J^- 
 
 k. 
 
 936 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and came with Alfred and Jesse to New Hart- 
 ford, Litchfield Co., Conn., where his brother j 
 Walter was engaged as foreman in a cotton [ 
 factor}'. Here Sidney found employment for 
 two years, and then went to Stockbridge, Berk- 
 shire Co., where he engaged for two years more 
 in a factory at that place. In company with 
 two others, he started West in May, 1841, and, 
 after a long, tedious journey of adventures, they 
 came to Hudson, where he engaged in brick-yard 
 shoveling, at $7 per month. Here he sta^-ed 
 six months, and then worked three years in a i 
 hat store, for Mr. Strong, after which he went | 
 back to England, and brought out his parents, 
 and after staying one year with them in York 
 State, he came back to Hudson, where he pur- 1 
 chased GO acres of land where he now resides, 
 there being then a small clearing on the same. 
 Here Mr. Beaney has since lived, and though 
 poor when he commenced life, he has at length 
 become prosperous, having now 180 acres of 
 land, with excellent buildings thereon. His 
 father died suddenly of heart disease in March, 
 1864, and his mother died the following Septem- 
 ber. June 28, 1858, Mr. Beaney was married 
 to Mary Roughton, born March 19, 1836, in 
 Cambridgeshire (March Parish). She was the 
 daughter of Benjamin and Sarah (Thompson) 
 Houghton. To Benjamin and Sarah Boughton 
 were born twelve children, of whom seven grew 
 up : Alice, Rachel, John, Rebecca, John and 
 John R., twins ; Mary and Sarah (also twins) ; 
 Keziah, Thomas, Jemima and James. The 
 father of Mrs. Beaney died when she was 8 
 years of age. She came to America with her 
 mother in 1847, and located in Strongsville. 
 Her mother died November, 1873. She was a 
 Free- Will Baptist, and her husband a Calvinist, 
 in belief Mr. and Mrs. Beaney are members 
 of the Baptist Church. They have three chil- 
 dren, viz., Walter, Sidney and Sarah J. 
 
 AMBROSE W. BLISS, farmer; P.O. North- 
 field. The Bliss family trace their origin to 
 one Thomas Bliss, who was born in England 
 about the year 1550, the name having been 
 traced from the Norman-French Blois through 
 the forms Bloys, Blyse, Blysse and Blisse to 
 the American Bliss. The family is supposed 
 to be of Norman descent, having come to En- 
 gland with Wilham the Conqueror, and it is 
 thought b}' some to have been connected with 
 the Norman kinga. The history of the Ameri- 
 can family begins with the Puritan brothers 
 
 George Bliss and Thomas Bliss, Jr., who came 
 to America to escape religious persecution, 
 landing in Boston in 1635. Thomas Bliss 
 died at Hartford in 1640. Four of his five 
 sons came to Springfield, Mass., in 1643, and 
 their mother, Margaret Bliss, soon followed, 
 making the journey in five days through the 
 forests to Hartford. She bought a tract of 
 land on the Connecticut River, through which 
 now extends Margaret and Bliss streets, named 
 for them. From her comes the " Springfield 
 famil}'," which is now scattered over the world, 
 having three of its members missionaries in 
 Turkey, while others have been traced to Asia, 
 Africa and Australia. Among the famous 
 members and descendants of the family are 
 Ralph Waldo Emerson and the late P. P. Bliss, 
 the singer, who was a descendant of the orig- 
 inal Thomas Bliss. Ambrose W. Bliss is a 
 native of Vermont, born in Jericho Township, 
 Chittendon Co., Dec. 6, 1806, and the eighth 
 child of a family of eleven children, viz.: Jul- 
 ius, Cynthia, Fannie, Hosea, Timoth}', Laura, 
 Lucia, Ambrose W., Lavina, George, and one 
 deceased, born to Timothy and Anna (Camp- 
 bell) Bliss, both of whom were natives of Con- 
 necticut. Timotlw was born Feb. 16, 1769, 
 Anna Feb. 2, 1769. Ambrose was brought up 
 on a farm. At the age of 18, he left home 
 and learned the carpenter and millwright's 
 trade. In the fall of 1833, he came to this 
 State, working on the public works in the har- 
 bor at Cleveland and Black River, where he 
 had charge of a force of men for some time. 
 May 9, 1839, he married Emehne Palmer, born 
 April 5, 1815, in Windsor, Conn., daughter of 
 Hezekiah H. and Abigail (Taylor) Palmer. 
 Mrs. Bliss was the second of a famil}- of six 
 who grew to maturity. Since Mr. Bliss was 
 married he has been a constant resident of the 
 township. When he first came, he and his 
 brother Hosea purchased 148 acres (Lot 76) in 
 partnership, upon which Hosea built a log- 
 cabin. Ambrose in the meantime located one- 
 half mile south of the Center on a tract of 30 
 acres, upon which he lived about three years 
 and a half He then purchased 165 acres at 
 the Center, where he has since resided. While 
 he has carried on farming since his coming, 
 yet he has in the meantime been engaged at 
 his trade, having built nearly all the aqueducts 
 and lock-gates on the canal between Brecks- 
 ville and Cleveland. Being an excellent work 
 
I>> 
 
 NORTHFIELU TOWNSHIP. 
 
 937 
 
 man, his services have been brought into 
 requisition by the public. Mr. Bliss is one of 
 the self-made men of this township. He has 
 been industrious, prudent and economical, and 
 has now 240 acres of good land. Since the 
 dissolution of the Whig party, he has been a 
 Republican, and has filled several offices of 
 trust in the township and served two years as 
 Commissioner of the county. He is not a 
 member of any orthodox church, yet is a sup- 
 porter of the Gospel and a friend to all relig- 
 ious orders and enterprises that are calculated 
 to advance the interests of the community at 
 large. He is a life member of the American 
 Bible Society. He and his family patronize 
 liberally the newspapers and monthly period- 
 icals. Of four children born three are living 
 — Ellen, Lorin and George. Horace was a 
 member of Co. C, 115th 0. V. I.; enlisted 
 August, 1862, and died Feb. 20, 1863, of dis- 
 ease contracted in the army. All the Bliss 
 family are Republicans with the exception of 
 George Bliss, who was a Democrat. He repre- 
 sented this county in the State Legislature. 
 
 C. J. CHAFFEE, farmer and stock-raiser ; 
 son of Comfort and Perses (Skinner) Chaffee, 
 was boi'n in Hampden Co., Mass., April 14, 
 1817. Comfort's father bore the same name ; 
 he was a son of Asa, who was the son of Asa, 
 Sr., which makes Comfort J., whose name 
 heads this sketch, of the fifth generation from 
 Asa Chaffee, Sr. The Chaflfee family were 
 among the stanch families in the Colonial 
 times ; nine of the family were represented in 
 the war of the Revolution. Comfort, Sr., mar- 
 ried Mary Bliss ; their children were Comfort, 
 Joel and Bliss. To Comfort and Perses were 
 born ten children, of whom Polly (Mrs. G. 
 Smith), settled in Springfield, Mass.; Rodolphus 
 died in Michigan ; John M. died in Spring- 
 field, Mass. ; Jonathan S. died in Grand Haven, 
 Mich. ; Perses married S. Hunt, and raised four 
 children ; William P. lives in Wilberham, on 
 his grandfather's place, and Electa settled in 
 Hampden. Mr. Chaflfee's great-uncle, Isaiah 
 Ephraim, was among the number who chased 
 the wolf in the den, which Maj. Putnam captured. 
 Isaiah and William were at Braddock's de- 
 feat. Isaiah was in command of the wagon- 
 train, and was attacked b}' the Indians ; Isaac 
 fought with desperation, and was finally shot, 
 but had slain nine of the dusk}' warriors ere 
 he received his death wound. Subject, being 
 
 of a mechanical turn of mind, worked in ma- 
 chine-shops, and was engaged for some time 
 in the armory at Millberry — engaged in the 
 manufacture of pistols and spring-bow callipers; 
 also, at Chickopee Falls, on slide wrenches. 
 He came West in 1840, and worked at Brecks- 
 ville a short time ; then went to Elyria, and 
 assisted in building the first machinery used in 
 the. mills by Herrick & Palmer; with this firm 
 he remained nearl}' three years. June 24, 1845, 
 he was married to Asenath Ward Ferry, born 
 Nov. 13, 1819, in Massachusetts, a daughter of 
 Noah Ferry and Rebecca Ward. Noah was 
 born in Palmer, Mass., 1783 ; he had two sons 
 and four daughters, whose names were James 
 A., Asenath W., Sophia J., Rebecca, Maria and 
 Noah F. Noah was a son of Judah and Han- 
 nah (Cooley) Ferry. Rebecca Ward was a 
 daughter of Reuben Ward, whose wife was 
 Rebecca (Firbush) Wood, a daughter of Dr. 
 Wood. Reuben was a son of Lieut. Urijah 
 Ward, and a brother of Sheriff's Asa, Calvin and 
 Dr. John Ward. Perses, the mother of C. J., 
 was a daughter of Jonathan V. and Drusilla 
 (Perrin) Skinner, to whom were born five chil- 
 dren — Aaron, who was a noted lawyer, George, 
 Frank, Orin and Jonathan, who was a manu- 
 facturer. The Skinners were from England, 
 and were among the first settlers in America. 
 Mr. Chaffee has been a z-esident of this town- 
 ship for many ^-ears ; he has been a successful 
 farmer and has 375 acres of land, situate in 
 the west part of the township ; said farm is 
 well adapted to farming and pasturage. The 
 spars of Commodore Perry's boat were cut off 
 this land, also the timber of which the vessel 
 "Sardis" was built. Mr. Chaffee has been in 
 the past quite extensively engaged in the dairy 
 business, running 70 cows, but more recently 
 is engaged in stock-raising. He has two chil- 
 dren — Lucian M. and Anna M., now Mrs. Dr. 
 Franklin M. Coates, in Berea, Cuyahoga Co. 
 
 Z. F. CHAMBERLIN, farmer; P. 0. 
 Macedonia. The Chamberlin famil}- of this 
 county, originated from William Chamberlin, 
 who came from England to Connecticut, in 
 1780 ; his wife was Jemima Skinner. Amos, 
 his son, married Jerusha Crane, bj' whom he 
 had five sons and four daughters, viz., Horace 
 A., Harris B., Schuyler M., Orville W., Henr\' 
 H., Laura, Jerusha, Catharine and Cordelia. 
 Horace A., was born in Hudson Township, 
 March 24. 1819 ; Sept. 24, 1839, he married 
 
 
938 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Anna Post, who was born Nov. 28, 1820, in 
 Hudson Township, daughter of Zina and Marena 
 (Kellogg) Post. Zina was born in Saybrook, 
 Conn., son of Joshua, who died in Connecticut. 
 Marena was a daughter of Bradford Kellogg, a 
 native of Vermont, who entered the Revolu- 
 tionary war when young, and who being under- 
 size, stood on a log at the time of inspection 
 to raise him him to regulution height. Zina 
 Post was a soldier in the war of 1812, and at 
 one time 250 of Hull's soldiers encamped one 
 night on his premises and partook of his hos- 
 pitalit3^ To Horace and Anna (Post) Cham- 
 ijerlin were born six children — Zina F. and 
 Francis A., now in Newburg in the wire works; 
 Edward A., at Cuyahoga Falls, in rivet manu- 
 facturing ; Horace A. and Willie E., on the 
 homestead ; Delos (deceased) ; Horace A., died 
 Oct. 30, 1876 ; his wife is yet living. Zina F. 
 and his father were born on the same farm. 
 March 20, 1862 ; he married Sarah A. Paxson, 
 born in Stark Co., Lexington Township, Ohio, 
 April 20, 1841, daughter of Heston C. and Ra- 
 chel (Ingledue) Paxson, her father was born Feb. 
 17, 1794, in Lancaster Co., Penn., son of Will- 
 iam, whose ancestors came from England. 
 Rachel Ingledue was a daughter of Blackstone 
 and Nellie (Wheat) Ingledue, to whom were 
 born, seven chikh'en — Reason, Eber, William 
 Rachel, Parmelia and Ellen. To Heston and 
 Rachel Paxson were born four children whose 
 names are Ezra W., now in Stark Count}' ; Lu- 
 cinda, now in Marshall Co., Iowa, the wife of 
 R. Strang ; Melinda (Mrs. Joseph Sheets), Stark 
 Co., Ohio, and Sarah A. (Mrs. Chamberlin). 
 Since the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Chamber- 
 lin they have been constant residents of this 
 township, with the exception of one year spent 
 in Cleveland and a short time in Hudson 
 Township. He is now located on the farm his 
 father (Horace) owned, situated on Lot 8, 
 which is one of the finest locations (inclusive 
 of house and farm buildings) in the township. 
 His farm consists of 150 acres. He has but 
 one child — Hanmer E., born July 14, 1866. 
 The Chamberlin and Post families are Repub- 
 
 MRS. GEORGE DARLING, Northfield ; was 
 born in Putnam, Washington Co., N. Y., March 
 11, 1821. Her parents were Robert Sheill, who 
 was born in Scotland, Oct. 28. 1784, and died 
 Oct. 11, 1834, and Mary (Easton) Sheill born 
 Aug. 13, 1789, and died March 7, 1828. Rob- 
 
 ert Sheill was a son of William Sheill who was 
 born in 1760, and died in June, 1844. Mary 
 Easton was a daughter of George Easton and 
 Margaret (Hutton) Easton, who was a daughter 
 of William Hutton, of Scotland. To Robert 
 Sheill and wife were born nine children — Mar- 
 garet, Elizabeth, Jane, Janette, Agnes, Mary, 
 Bathsheba (Mrs. Darling), William and Robert. 
 Jane, Agnes, Mary, Bathsheba and Robert are 
 the surviving members at this date (1881). 
 Robert Sheill was a weaver in his native home 
 (Scotland). George Easton was a soldier in 
 the Revolutionary war. Adam Darling was 
 born in Scotland about the 3'ear 1778, and was 
 married to f:]lizabeth Porteous Dec. 18, 1812. 
 In the year 1816, they emigrated to America, 
 landing at Baltimore, where the}' remained for 
 about a 3'ear, and from there the}- removed to 
 Putnam, Washington Co., N. Y. To Adam and 
 Elizabeth were born ten children — George, born 
 Jan. 8, 1814, at Dunbar, Scotland; John, Hel- 
 en, James, Margaret, Thomas, William, Jan- 
 ette, Elizabeth and Mary. Those living are 
 James, of Sac Co., Iowa ; Margaret, Mrs. Daniel 
 Boyd, of Pocahontas Co., Iowa ; Janette, Mrs. 
 Adam Kuhn, of Houston Co., Minn. ; Thomas, 
 of Oakland Co., Mich., and Mar\', Mrs. Isaac 
 Thompson, of Houston Co., Minn. George Dar- 
 ling and Bathsheba Sheill were married in Put- 
 nam, Washington Co., N. Y., June 13. 1843. 
 In the 3'ear 1845, they removed to Noi'thfield, 
 and located one-fourth mile north of the Cen- 
 ter. Mr. Darling was a carpenter by trade, as 
 was his father, and, during his life, he pursued 
 his trade industriousl3^ He died June 24, 
 1880, at the age of 66 3'ears. He was a mem- 
 ber of the United Presbyterian Church for up- 
 ward of fort3' 3'ears, and was highl3' respected 
 by all who knew him. His wife and four 
 children remain on the homestead with their 
 mother. Mar}- E. is one of the most success- 
 ful teachers of the count3', having an experi- 
 ence of twenty-eight terms of teaching. Mar- 
 garet A., relict of Thomas McArthur, of Put- 
 nam, Washington Co., N. Y., who died Sept. 6, 
 1876, leaving one child — Ida Marion. Robert 
 A. and Georgiana are at home. 
 
 J. C. DEISMAN, farmer ; P. O. Northfield : 
 born Ma3' 12, 1831, in Salem, Columbiana Co., 
 Ohio, the second child born to Henry L. and 
 Letitia (Coulson) Deisman. He was born Feb. 
 27,1807, in Warrington Township, in York Co., 
 Penn., whose father bore the same name (H. L.). 
 
— ^ 
 
 k^ 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 939 
 
 Was a native of German}' ; came to America 
 prior to the war of the Revolution, when he 
 was 14 years of age, and was sold to pa}' his 
 passage money. He settled in Pennsylvania, 
 and raised a family of seven children, who 
 were Rebecca, Rachel, Susan, Elizabeth, Mary, 
 Henry L. and John. The father of James C., 
 our subject, was a weaver by trade, which vo- 
 cation he followed for many years. In 1828, 
 was married to Letitia Coulson, whose birth 
 was Nov. 5, 1809, in same county as her hus- 
 band ; she was a daughter of Charles and 
 Elizabeth (Glass) Coulson ; he was a son of 
 David, whose wife was Jane Clark. Mrs. Deis- 
 man was the only child born to her parents 
 that lived to be grown. Elizabeth Glass Avas a 
 daughter of Daniel and Letta (Gray) Glass, both 
 natives of Ireland ; they had children as fol- 
 lows : William, Daniel and John. The chil- 
 dren of David Coulson were William and 
 Charles. Mr. and Mrs. Deisman came West to 
 Columbiana County, about the year 1830, and, 
 about seven years afterward, came to this 
 township with $160, purchasing 35 acres on 
 Lot 41. costing him $6.25 per acre, with no im- 
 provements , here they settled, when he got his 
 cabin built had 50 cents left, he working at his 
 trade when not engaged at his home on the 
 farm, and paid for his land, remaining on the 
 same until his death, Oct. 8, 1867, having been 
 for many years a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. His wife yet survives him ; 
 has been a member of the same church since 
 16 years of age. James C. left home soon after 
 21 ; Nov. 15, 1858, was married to Elizabeth 
 Patterson, born Jan. 15, 1835, daughter of 
 Thomas and Jane McNeelen, born December, 
 1799; he was born in Pennsylvania Jan. 22, 
 1797, son of Andrew, who was a Virginian. 
 The mother of Thomas Patterson was Mary 
 Bell. The children of xVndrew, were Andrew, 
 Nathaniel. Thomas, Belsey and Polly. Jane 
 McNeelen's parents were William and Mary 
 (Ray) McNeelen, whose offspring were Ellen, 
 Jane, Peggy, Eliza, Nancy, William and Samuel. 
 The parents of Mrs. Deisman came West in 
 1857, to Bedford Township, Cuyahoga Co. ; 
 they had six children — William, James, Thomas, 
 Ellen, Mary and Lizzie ; parents died, he 1878, 
 she 1844. After Mr. and Mrs. Deisman was 
 married, they located in Bedford Township, 
 remaining there until 1870, when he moved to 
 the township, purchasing 103 acres on Lot 61, 
 
 where he has since resided ; has one daughter — 
 Emma, born 1 860. Mrs. Deisman is a member 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He is a 
 member of Bedford Lodge, No. 375, A., F. & 
 A. M., also of the Chapter of R. A. Masons. 
 
 JOHN DOSENBURY, farmer; P. 0. North- 
 field; was born Dec. 1, 1800, in Hunterdon 
 Co., N. J., to Cornelius and Mary (Stillwell) 
 Dosenbury. Cornelius was a son of Abram, 
 who was a soldier in the war of the Revolution ; 
 he and all his brothers served under Gen. 
 Washington in the battles of Trenton, Prince- 
 ton, etc. Abram Dosenbury was a native of 
 Holland, and emigrated to the United States 
 about the middle of the seventeenth century. 
 Mary was a daughter of John Stillwell, whose 
 wife was Sarah Stevenson, whose family was 
 from Germany. Cornelius had ten children 
 born him, viz.. Sarah, Ann, John, Hannah, 
 Elizabeth, Charity, Rebecca, Phineas, Cornelius, 
 and Phebe (deceased). John left home at 21, 
 and moved about from place to place for several 
 years before he settled down ; then, in 1829, he 
 came West and stayed one year in Michigan ; 
 also some length of time near Zanesville. Nov. 
 14, 1835, he married Ruth Duncan, born Dec. 
 6, 1816, in Beaver Co., Penn. ; she was the 
 daughter of John and Elizabeth (McLean) 
 Duncan. John Duncan's parents came from 
 Ireland, and he was born on the sea while his 
 parents were coming to this country. Thirteen 
 children were born them ; eleven grew up, 
 whose names were Robert, John, Hannah. Ruth, 
 McLean, William, Elizabeth, Mary, James, 
 Simeon and Perry. The Duncan family settled 
 in this township about the year 1821. To 
 Mr. Dosenbury nine children were born ; those 
 living are William (in Montcalm Co.. Mich.), 
 John (in Pierson, same State), Sarah (this 
 county), George, Cornelius, Frank, Harriet (at 
 home) and Jane (died at 31). John built the 
 first house in Pierson. Mrs. Dosenbury is a 
 member of the M. E. Church. He is not a 
 member of any denomination, but is a believer 
 in Spiritualism. 
 
 L. R. FOSTER, farmer ; P. 0. Macedonia ; 
 was born in Warrensburg, Warren Co., N. Y., 
 Aug. 7, 1831, to Lyman and Minerva (Everest) 
 Foster. His father was born Feb. 28, 1805, 
 near Augusta, Maine ; he was a son of Eli and 
 Amy (Carpenter) Foster. The Fosters are of 
 Irish ancestry. The tradition is, that four 
 brothers came from Ireland and settled in the 
 
 -<r. 
 
940 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Eastern States ; from them have descended 
 the existhig tamilies of the name. To Eli and 
 Amy were born Fannie, Lyman, Eli and Eliza. 
 Minerva Everest was born in Essex Co., N. Y., 
 June 17, 1806, daughter of William Everest, 
 who was born Sept. 24, 1771, in Addison Co., 
 Vt., son of Zadock Everest, whose ancestors 
 came from England, and are in direct line of 
 connection with the Dudley familj-. Zadock 
 Everest was one of the early settlers in Ad- 
 dison Co., Vt. The first session of court in 
 that county was held in his house, and at the 
 time of the Revolution his house was head- 
 quarters for the officers of the troops, who were 
 encamped on the farm. To Zadock were born 
 thirteen children. William Everest married 
 Mina Holcomb, by whom he had thirteen chil- 
 dren, nine of whom grew to maturity — William 
 B., Harvey, Almina, Clarissa, Minerva, Amanda, 
 Miranda, Zadock and Marshall. Eli Foster 
 and wife, after marriage, moved to Maine, 
 where Lyman (the father of L. R.) was born, 
 and when 10 years of age, removed with his 
 parents to Warren Co., N. Y. The parents of 
 our subject were married March 10, 1829 ; to 
 them were born eight children, viz. : Orlando, 
 Le Roy R., Andrew J., Amanda E., Alonzo L., 
 Sarah J., Rada M. and Amelia M. The parents 
 of the above came West in 1841, and located 
 in Macedonia, with a famil}^ of six children and 
 $52 in money, and a scanty amount of house- 
 hold goods ; though poor, being industrious 
 and handy with tools, by working at the car- 
 penter's trade and whatever labor was the most 
 remunerative, he was successful and acquired a 
 good home and a competence. He died Sept. 
 24, 1875. He was one of the founders of the 
 Baptist Church, and was for many years a 
 regularly ordained Deacon of the same ; was a 
 free and outspoken man in whatever he deemed 
 was right ; was a friend of the bondman, who 
 were fleeing for libert}', ever found in him a 
 true friend, and was a man who never aspired 
 after political preferment. William Everest 
 and wife came West to this State in 1841, where 
 they lived until their death. llis decease took 
 place Jan. 23, 1856 ; his wife's in April, 1861. 
 Our subject was raised to farming, and at the 
 age of 19, began teaching in the public schools ; 
 he taught singing classes during the winter ; 
 music is a talent that has always predominated 
 in the family. Jul}' 1, 1859, he married Maria 
 Stevens, born in Princeville, Peoria Co., 111., 
 
 daughter of William and Maria (Blood) Stevens. 
 Mr. Stevens is now an extensive land owner in 
 Quiver Township, Mason Co., 111. Mrs. Foster 
 died Nov. 1, 1862, leaving one child — -Ora M. 
 Mr. Foster has 175 acres of land, and, though 
 not a member of any church, is a friend to and 
 supporter of Christianity, and an active worker 
 and superintendent of the Sunday school. He 
 is a true Republican, and a strong temperance 
 man. 
 
 GEORGE FORBES, stock-trader, Macedonia. 
 Esquire Forbes was born April 27, 1840, in 
 Aberdeen Co., Scotland, and was the youngest 
 of a family' of nine children born to Nathaniel 
 and Margaret Souder. His father was born 
 about the 3'ear 1794, son of William Forbes. 
 Margaret was a daughter of Robert Souder, to 
 whom were born two children — Margaret and 
 Mary, both living. The family emigrated to 
 this State, locating in Cuyahoga Co., Solon 
 Township, in 1852. Nine children were born to 
 them, eight living — Mary (now in Solon, the 
 wife of George Cowan), Robert (in Bedford 
 Township), Margaret and Isabella (same town- 
 ship), also John and James (of this township), 
 and Alexander (a teacher of Cleveland). After 
 several years' residence, Nathaniel purchased 
 land and located in this township in 1 862. His 
 death occurred May, 1875 ; his wife, still living, 
 is a resident of Bedford Township. George 
 was raised to farming pursuits ; receiving the 
 advantages afforded at the common district 
 school and at Hiram, he launched out as a 
 teacher, and was successfully engaged for sev- 
 eral years. Since 1864, he has been engaged 
 in stock- trading. In June, 1875, he formed a 
 matrimonial alliance with Fannie Bliss. Since 
 April, 1876, he has served as Justice of the 
 Peace. His good judgment, aided by his 
 studied acquaintance with common law, con- 
 spire to make him an able and satisfactory 
 officer. Although not a member of any church, 
 he contributes to the support of the Gospel. 
 
 ELIHU GRISWOLD, retired farmer ; P. 0. 
 Macedonia ; born in Schroon, Essex Co., N. Y., 
 Sept. 2, 1807 ; was raised in Essex Co., where 
 his father, Elihu, died. Mr. Griswold came 
 West to this township 3Iay 19, 1832, and pur- 
 chased 164 acres on Lot 7. from Henry M. 
 Boardman, upon which there were no improve- 
 ments whatever. Building him a small cabin 
 a short distance north of his present residence ; 
 he then cut off" about ten acres and sowed the 
 
liL 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 941 
 
 same in wheat ; the following j'ear, while this 
 was maturing, he returned East to his native 
 county, and was married to Betsy Potter, and 
 returned with her the same week ; he started, 
 driving the entire distance, in a buggy borrowed 
 from Col. Arthur, of Northfield Center. Since 
 Mr. Griswold came, he has resided on his fii'st 
 purchase. In 1843, he built his present resi- 
 dence. His wife died Dec. 30, 1862, leaving 
 no issue. June 14, 1863, he was married to 
 Louisa, born, 1841, in this township, daughter 
 of William and Sarah (Baum) Powell. Mr. 
 Grriswold has been seriously injured b}- a fall 
 occasioned by a horse running away ; his health 
 and mental faculties are impaired to such an 
 extent as to render him incompetent to attend 
 to his own business affairs, of which Mrs. Grris- 
 wold has taken charge, and, in the management 
 of the same, she has displayed a spirit of en- 
 terprise and business tact not seen in the aver- 
 age woman. She has been a member of the 
 M. E. Church for over a score of years. Mr. 
 Griswold is not a member of an}" church, yet 
 has alwaj^s been an honorable man, upright and 
 straight in his business transactions, and has 
 been highly respected in the community. They 
 have one son — Elihu W., born Nov. 8, 1865. 
 He owns 186 acres of land. 
 
 MRS. ALMIRA HERBERT, retired ; P. 0. 
 Macedonia ; third daughter of Elisha and Sarah 
 (Simms) Hyde ; was born Sept. 28, 1812, in 
 Hartwick, Otsego Co., N. Y. Elisha was raised 
 in Vermont ; Sarah Simms was born in Rhode 
 Island, and was the daughter of a sea-faring 
 man, who was the captain of a merchantman ; 
 the family ai-e supposed to be of English de- 
 scent. To Elisha was born G-race, who married 
 Truman Chaffee, who settled in Trumbull Co., 
 this State, and raised a large family ; they 
 finally located in Orwell, Ashtabula Co.; Sarah 
 also settled in Trumbull Co. after becoming 
 the wife of Horace Mansfield ; they raised 
 no family. Elisha Hyde was a soldier in the 
 war of 1812 ; he died Oct. 8, 1862, his wife in 
 1827 ; both were members of the M. E. Church. 
 Mrs. Herbert came West to Trumbull Co. in 
 1824, with her parents, who settled in Farming- 
 ton, where they died, as per above statement. 
 Sept. 9, 1845, she was married to James Her- 
 bert, who was born in Leitram Co., Ireland ; 
 his parents were William and Jane (Saddler) 
 Herbert. Mr. John Senters was a boon com- 
 panion to Mr. Herbert, and came with him from 
 
 the same county in Ireland to this State, and 
 together they worked on the public works at 
 Cleveland and at Akron ; after saving some 
 mone}-, they made their first purchase in partner- 
 ship, one taking the south part of the lot and 
 the other the north. Mr. Herbert died in 1865. 
 Mrs. Herbert is a member of the M. E. Church. 
 
 J. A. HERBERT, farmer ; P. 0. Macedonia. 
 John A. Herbert was born on the farm where 
 he now lives June 21, 1852 ; he is the third 
 child of four born to James and Almira 
 (Hyde) Herbert ; Hattie is an experienced and 
 successful teacher, and Sarah is the wife of 0. 
 T. Holbrook, of this township. John A. was 
 married to Mary Means, born Oct. 24, 1857 ; 
 she is a daughter of Andrew S. Means, one of 
 the prominent farmers and pioneers of this 
 township ; they have one child, Ouida. John 
 A. now resides on the homestead farm,- which 
 contains 206f acres ; his mother and sister 
 Hattie reside in Macedonia. 
 
 HORACE HOLBROOK, retired farmer ; P. 
 0. Macedonia ; third child of John and Susan- 
 nah (Towne) Holbrook, was born in Essex Co., 
 Vt., June 19, 1803. He was one of ten chil- 
 dren — eight of whom lived to be grown, whose 
 names were Rebecca, Horace, Salem, Adaline, 
 Alanson, Irena, William H. and Nelson M. 
 The boys are yet living — Salem in Wisconsin. 
 Alanson in Michigan, William in New York, 
 Nelson in Iowa, Horace in this township. 
 Irena ?s not married, and resides in Michigan. 
 Job was the grandfather of Horace, and mar- 
 ried Naomi Stebbins. Jonathan and William 
 Towne served in the war of the Revolution, and 
 Alanson Holbrook in that of 1812. The Towne 
 family trace their origin to William Towne, an 
 Anglo-American, born about the year 1600, 
 who came to Salem, Mass., in 1640, and after- 
 ward removed to Topsfield in 1852, where he 
 died, aged 72. His son Jacob was born in 
 1631, and in 1657, married Catharine Symonds, 
 and by her had six children. John, his son, 
 was born April 2, 1658. Feb. 2, 1680, he mar- 
 ried Mary Smith, and settled in Oxford in 1712. 
 Ten children were born him. The next gene- 
 ration was Israel, born Nov. 18, 1684 — mar- 
 ried Susan Haven, who bore him ten children. 
 Israel, the next in order, was born Feb. 12, 
 1727, purchased a farm in Belchertown in 
 1749, married Naomi Stebbins in 1754. She 
 was born Nov. 9, 1735. He died Dec. 10, 1805, 
 in his 78th year, and she on Feb. 12, 1827, in 
 
g) 
 
 x^l 
 
 942 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 her 92d year. All of the children, ten in num- 
 ber, were born and brought up in Belchertown. 
 Next was Salem Towne, born March 5, 1779, 
 married Abigail King, March 26, 1807, and 
 lived in Granville, N. Y., until 1829, when he 
 moved to Aurora. Abigail was born Oct. 12, 
 1781 ; she died while on a visit to Grallipolis, 
 Ohio, Dec. 7, 1840, in her 60th year. The chil- 
 dren, seven in number, were all born in Grran- 
 ville, N. Y. Horace was raised a farmer ; leav- 
 ing home at 21, he embarked for himself, and 
 worked out by the month. In the spring of 
 1834, he came West, purchasing, where he now 
 lives, 80 acres. Returning in 1835, he married 
 Mary G-utherie, born in 1809 ; a daughter of 
 James Gutherie, whose wife was a Munson. 
 His wife died fourteen months after their mar- 
 riage, leaving no issue. April 11, 1839, he 
 married Susan Thompson, born in Hudson 
 Township, Oct. 2, 1802 ; daughter of Moses 
 and Elizabeth (Mills) Thompson. She died in 
 January, 1879 ; bj- her he had one son, Ossian 
 T., who now resides with Mr. Hoi brook on the 
 homestead. His present wife was a daughter 
 of James Herbert, one of the old settlers of 
 the township. Mr. Holbrook began in life 
 poor, and has now 175 acres, situated a short 
 distance north of Macedonia. He is a member 
 of the Presbyterian Church, and one of the 
 solid and substantial representatives of the 
 communit}'. 
 
 C. HUNT, farmer ; P. 0. Northfield. -Calvin 
 Hunt is the j'oungest of a family of eleven 
 children, whose parents were Abner and Betsy 
 (Johnson) Hunt. The names of the children 
 born them were Lovina, Almira, Nancy, Abner, 
 William, Norman, Russel, Marshall, Hannah 
 and Calvin, all of whom lived to be men and 
 women. Abner Hunt was born in Massachu- 
 setts Aug. 18, 1791 ; wife born in same State 
 in 1788. Abner was a son of Jacob Hunt, who 
 was a soldier in the war of 1 8 1 2. To him were born 
 children as follows: Jacob, Thomas, John, Sallie 
 and Hannah. Abner Hunt came West in 1817, 
 remaining one year on Tinker's Creek, in Cuy- 
 ahoga Co. ; the year following, came to this 
 township, where he rented land several years ; 
 coming here poor, had but little means to do 
 with. March, 1825, located in the north part 
 of the township on Lot 72, purchasing 38 acres 
 of Dorsey Viers ; no improvements at the time 
 of purchase. Ten jears afterward, he added 
 14 acres more, which was the date of Calvin's 
 
 birth, which occurred Oct. 13, 1835, on the 
 same farm where he now resides, which his father 
 first purchased, and remained on the same un- 
 til his death, which took place Jan. 17, 1876 ; 
 his wife "passed over" Oct. 1, just two years 
 previously. Both of them were members of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church ere the}- came to 
 this State, and were among the first members 
 who united with the church at the Center at 
 the time of its organization. Mr. Hunt was an 
 Old-Line Whig, and one of the esteemed citi- 
 zens of his township. Calvin, being the young- 
 est of the famil}', has never left the homestead. 
 March 24:, 1865, married A'ictoria Waite, daugh- 
 ter of Walter and Polly (Hopkins) Waite, who 
 were natives of Maine, and came to Richfield 
 Township, this county, when the country was 
 comparatively new. Mrs. Hunt was born in 
 Northampton, June 4, 1829, and bore him two 
 children — Edwin Odell and Mary Blanche. 
 Aug. 27, 1880, after a short illness, Mrs. Hunt 
 closed her eyes in death, and joined the " in- 
 numerable throng," leaving her husband and 
 two children to mOurn her demise. She was a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in 
 which she was a great worker, in the Sunday 
 school a valued worker, and was a lady of su- 
 perior mental worth, and, possessing many per- 
 sonal attractions, was a bright light in societ3% 
 a kind associate, a true wife and devoted 
 mother. Mr. Hunt is also a member of the 
 church of his parents' choice, and class-leader. 
 Mr. Hunt, the father of Calvin, had, at the 
 time of his death, fifty- four grandchildren and 
 forty-six great grandchildren. Mr. Hunt has 
 104 acres of land, and is among the well-to-do 
 farmers in the township. 
 
 WILLIAM HURST, farmer ; P. 0. Bedford; 
 this worthy gentleman is a native of Ireland, 
 born March 26, 1815, in Count}- Leitrim. His 
 parents were William and Catharine (Senters) 
 Hurst. William was a son of Robert whose 
 wife was Jane McLean, to whom were born 
 Joshua, James, Thomas and William. Catha- 
 rine was a daughter of Charles, whose wife was 
 a Stinson before marriage. They had children 
 as follows — Charles, William, Catharine and 
 Mary. By his second marriage he had one 
 child only, named Margaret. To the parents 
 of Mr. Hurst were born ten children, seven 
 sons and three daughters ; but four grew to 
 maturity, viz., John, William, Mar}^ and Jane; 
 Mary never came to this country ; she married 
 
 "^ 
 
NORTHFIELD TOW:NSHir. 
 
 943 
 
 William McDei'mot ; Jane died in Ireland at 
 the age of 22 ; John settled in Canada. The 
 religion of the family was of the Episcopal 
 order. The father of William was a weaver b}' 
 trade ; he died when William was a lad of 10 
 years ; he was raised by his mother until he 
 was 19 years of age ; two years after he set 
 sail for America, landing in Quebec ; after a 
 short staj' he came to this county, in 1836. 
 Stow Township was his first home in America. 
 Here he " hired out " by the month. Oct. 27, 
 1846, he married Fanny O'Brien, who was born 
 Jul}' 9, 1818, in Hudson Township, daughter 
 of Henry and Sarah (Walker) O'Brien, who 
 were both natives of Ireland, and located in 
 Hudson Township in 1802. To them were 
 born David, William, Martin, Moses, Mary, 
 Harriet, Fannie and Sarah. After Mr. Hurst's 
 marriage he moved to Michigan (Kalamazoo), 
 where he purchased 123 acres of land ; after 
 keeping the same four years and a half, he sold 
 it at a gain. Upon his return from Michigan 
 he located on his father-in law O'Brien's farm, 
 where he stayed two years and then bought 165 
 acres one mile and a half northeast of Hudson, 
 where he remained from 1853 to 1863. Then 
 he purchased 194 acres in Twinsburg Town- 
 ship. In March, 1869, he moved to his pres- 
 ent place, where he has 53 acres ; his house 
 and 5 acres stand in Bedford Township, the 
 remainder (245 acres) is in Summit County. 
 January, 1856, his wife died, leaving no issue. 
 He was married May 27, 1858, to Mary Spaf- 
 ford, born in this township May 7, 1838, 
 daughter of Nathan B. and Mar}' Morrison. 
 Her mother was born in New Hampshire in 
 1800, her father in Chittenden, Vermont, in 
 1791. He was a soldier in the war of 1812, as 
 was also John Morrison (Mrs. Hurst's grand- 
 father). Mr. and Mrs. H. are members of the 
 Episcopal Church. 
 
 J. W. HYNTON, farmer ; P. 0. Northfield ; 
 son of John and Elizabeth (Halpenneg) Hyn- 
 ton ; was born in this township in 1850. Mr. 
 John Hynton was born in Wicklow Co., Ire- 
 land, June, 1810 ; he was a son of John Hyn- 
 ton. Elizabeth was born March 5, 1822, in 
 the same county ; her father's name was John 
 Halpenneg, and he married Mary Tumma. 
 John Hynton, the father of our subject, 
 was a man of education and culture ; he 
 came to America about the year 1840. Soon 
 after his marriage, he and his brother Edward 
 
 made a purchase of 147 acres in the northwest 
 corner of the township, where they engaged in 
 business together ; uniting their energies, they 
 were successful in accumulating property. He 
 remained on the farm until 1860, when he 
 moved across the line into Cuyahoga County, 
 where he died Sept. 15. His brother Edward 
 died in 1879. They were men of honor, and 
 commanded the respect of all who came in 
 contact with them, either in a business or social 
 way. To John Hynton were born four children, 
 viz., Mary (Mrs. H. Dubler, of Newburg. 
 Catharine (Mrs. T. Walsh, of Cleveland), John 
 W. and Elizabeth (now Mrs. James Cassidy, of 
 Boston Township). May 23, 1876, subject was 
 married to Anna Cassidy, born in Boston, 
 daughter of Patrick Cassidy, to whom were 
 born seven children. In April, 1872, J. W. 
 settled on the farm he now owns, which con- 
 sists of 95 acres. He has three children, viz., 
 Lucy M., Agnes B., and Frances E. The 
 mother of J. W. lives on the farm, where her 
 husband resided at the time of his death. 
 
 W. H. KUHN, farmer ; P. 0. Bedford ; was 
 born March 22, 1813, in Allegheny Co., Penn., 
 to Archibald and Martha (Stotlar) Kuhn. 
 Archibald was a son of Michael, to whom 
 were born five sons and three daughters, whose 
 names were Eve, Archibald, Adam, Samuel, 
 John, Mary, David and Nancy. Michael's 
 father was a native of Holland ; so also were 
 the Stotlars. Our subject was the youngest of 
 a family of eight children — Michael, Jacob, 
 Nancy, Archie, David, Catharine, John and 
 William H. The great-grandfather of W. H. 
 was Adam Kuhn, whose wife was Eve, to whom 
 were born Michael, Nicholas and Samuel. 
 Archibald was a Federalist, and took an active 
 part in the affairs of his county. He repre- 
 sented his county in the State Legislature ; was 
 a commissioned officer during the war of 1812. 
 xirchibald Kuhn and wife died before W. H. 
 was grown, yet he remained on the homestead 
 until his marriage, March 7, 1843 ; he married 
 Mary Elder, born Feb. 28, 1824, in Indiana 
 Co., Penn., daughter of Rev. Robert and Jane 
 (McConaughy) Elder. Robert was born near 
 Harrisburg ; son of John Elder, who had six 
 children — Joseph, Thomas, James, Robert, 
 Belle and Betsey. Robert Elder's mother's 
 name was Polly Caruthers. The Elders left 
 the north part of Ireland for Scotland at the 
 time of its insurrection, or religious persecu- 
 
944 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 tion. To Robert McConaughy were born nine 
 children ; of the bo3's, Simon and James came 
 West and settled in Ashland County. Robert 
 Elder, the father of Mrs. Kuhn, was a soldier 
 in the war of 1812 ; also Samuel Kuhn, the 
 uncle of William H. While Mr. Kuhn (W. H.) 
 was yet a young man, he was elected Major of 
 the Seventh Battalion of Alleghany County 
 Volunteers, being the youngest officer in the 
 battalion. In June, 1843, he came to this 
 township, where he purchased 107 aci'es on 
 Lots 31 and 41. He has now 204 acres. To 
 him have been born ten cliildren ; of those liv- 
 ing are Margaret J., the wife of John Shirk, of 
 Muscatine, Iowa ; Luther, in same county ; 
 Robert, now a practitioner of materia medica in 
 Shelby Co., Iowa ; Mary, Willie and Frankie, 
 at home ; Luie, at school preparing for the 
 ministry. Since Mr. Kuhn was 16 years of 
 age, he has been a member of the church of his 
 parent's choice (Presb^'terian), and is now an 
 official member of the same. Mr. Kuhn is one 
 of the successful farmers of the township, as 
 well as one of its valued citizens. He is a lib- 
 eral supporter of the leading journals and peri- 
 odicals of the day. 
 
 A. J. KELTY, farmer; P. 0. Macedonia; 
 born May 24, 1841, in Columbiana Co.; is the 
 son of Owen H. and Ruth Hinksman. His father 
 was born in 1812, in Salem Co., N. J.; he was 
 a son of William Kelty who was in the war of 
 the Revolution, with two of his brothers, of 
 whom nothing was heard after the war's termi- 
 nation. The Keltys are of Dutch descent. To 
 Owen and wife were born William, Aaron, Sam- 
 uel, Sarah, Andrew and Henry. The family 
 came first to Columbiana Co., where Owen set- 
 tled on a squatter's claim ; subsequently moved 
 to Bedford Township, in Cuyahoga Co.; here 
 he died, in November, 1869. A. J. was raised 
 at home until 20 years of age, when he began 
 for himself Sept. 16, 1866, he married Harriet 
 Powell, born Jan. 16, 1845, in this township, 
 daughter of William and Sarah Powell. Mr. 
 Kelt}' moved on this farm in March, 1869. hav- 
 ing then 88 acres. Mr. Kelt}- is a hard-work- 
 ing man, and is making financial success. He 
 has five children, viz., Henr}', George, Harriet, 
 Anna M. and Charlie A. Mr. Kelty had three 
 brothers in the late war. Aai'on was in the 90th 
 Regiment and 5th Cavalry, and served about 
 four years ; he was nine months in Libby Prison, 
 and, when he was released, weighed only eighty- 
 
 six pounds. Samuel did duty on Johnson's 
 Island two years. Henry served four years in 
 Co. K, 9th Ohio Battery. Mrs. Kelty has been 
 a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 since 14 years of age. Mr. Kelty's family are 
 '' DiscidIgs 
 
 H. LANFORD, farmer ; P. 0. Northfield ; 
 born Jan. 2, 1804, in the Town of Schroon, Es- 
 sex Co., N. Y. ; is a son of Daniel, who was 
 born in Connecticut, and served in the Conti- 
 nental Arm}', participating in the battle of 
 Bunker Hill. His wife was Jemima Hotchkiss, 
 who was born in Clarendon, Vt. To this couple 
 were born fifteen children, and fourteen of the 
 number grew to maturity. Elias, Daniel and Lu- 
 ther were among the sons, all of whom partici- 
 pated in the war of 1812 ; Elias was killed at 
 Plattsburg. The Lanfords are of Irish descent ; 
 Daniel's father emigrated from Ireland to the 
 Middle States several years prior to the Revo- 
 lutionary war. Hezekiah left home at 10 years 
 of age, and was raised by one Mr. Lockwood. 
 At the age of 22, Aug. 3, 1825, he married 
 Roba Scriptures, born March 21, 1811, in 
 Chesterfield, Essex Co., N. Y., a daughter of 
 John and Betsey (Chamberlain) Scriptures ; 
 her father was born in Concord, N. H., about 
 the year 1770 ; his parents were Samuel and 
 Hannah (Barrett) Scriptures. Samuel came 
 from England, when he was 17 years of age ; 
 Hannah was a native of Holland, and quite 
 young when she came with her parents to 
 America. To Samuel and Hannah were born 
 twelve children. Betsey Chamberlain was a 
 daughter of John and Betsey (Bowman) Cham- 
 berlain ; the latter family came from Goffstown, 
 N. H. Betsey Bowman's parents died when 
 she was quite young ; her father's name was 
 Charles. John and Betsey had five children 
 born to them. John Scriptures was twice mar- 
 ried ; first to Polly Saunders, and by her had 
 nine children ; his second marriage was to Mrs. 
 Betsey Mace, who had nine children by her 
 first husband ; by the last union five were 
 born — Jermia, Ezra, Wesley, Sallie and Roba. 
 These twenty-three children were raised to- 
 gether, and their relations were of the most 
 harmonious character. After Mr. Lanford's 
 marriage, he worked severl years at Schroon, in 
 a saw-mill. In August, 1833, he came West 
 to Franklin Township, Portage Co., where he 
 engaged to work for Zeno Kent, at general 
 farm and mill work ; while here, he took up 
 
[^ 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 945 
 
 carpenter and joiner work, and did consider- 
 able in tliis line. March, 1841, he came to this 
 township, and bought 5 acres on Lot 3, in 
 this township, which he kept about seven 
 years, and sold to Charles West ; then 
 removed to the northeastern part of the 
 township, purchasing about 40 acres, where he 
 remained until 1861, when he came to his pres- 
 ent place (on Lot 86), purchasing 86 acres. Mr. 
 Lantbrd came to this country' a poor man; when 
 he arrived at Franklin Township, he had $7, a 
 sick wife, and two children, and with the aid of 
 his wife earned what they have by hard labor 
 and economy. They have six children — three 
 living — Harriet (Mrs. Berry), Lorenzo and Milo 
 at home. Aug. 3, 1875, Mr. and Mrs. Lanford 
 celebrated their golden wedding. 
 
 REV. JAMES W. LOGUE,^minister, North- 
 field, was born July 17, 1812, in York Co., 
 Penn., to James and Jennette ((xibson) Logue. 
 The grandfather of our subject was James, 
 whose birthplace was Ireland, and he emigrated 
 to America prior to the war of the Revolution, 
 in which he was a participant, serving through 
 the entire struggle. He married Ann Gabby, 
 and by her had two children — James and Ann. 
 Jeanette Gibson was a daughter of James, a 
 native of Scotland, but married his wife after 
 his arrival to this countr}', and b}' her had 
 twelve children. To James and Jeanette Logue 
 were born quite a numerous family, but four of 
 the number grew to man's estate, viz., Ann 
 John, Elizabeth and James W. Our subject 
 remained under the guardianship of his par- 
 ents until he was 20 years of age, when he 
 entered Jefferson College, thence to Union Col- 
 lege, New York State, where he received his 
 graduation honors, after which he entered the 
 theological school at Canuonsburg, where he 
 remained four ^ears, and began his ministerial 
 labors in 1841. June 6, 1843, he formed a 
 matrimonial alliance with Mary J. Cooper, who 
 was boi'n in the cit}' of Baltimore, Md.. Dec. 3, 
 1820, daughter of Samuel and Jane (Campbell) 
 Cooper. Her father was born in County Derry, 
 Ireland, and Jane, his wife, was a native of 
 Carlisle, Penn. To them were born twelve 
 children, Mrs. Logue being the youngest. Im- 
 mediately after the marriage of Rev. Logue, 
 he moved West to this State, locating in this 
 township, where he was installed as Pastor of 
 the United Presbj'terian Church, and since 
 that time has administered to the spiritual 
 
 interests of his charge without intermission, 
 and through his instrumentality many have 
 been called from darkness to the marvelous 
 light. To Mr. Logue have been born five chil- 
 dren, of whom three are living, viz., Jennie C, 
 now Lady Principal in Monmouth College, Illi- 
 nois (she entered the arena as teacher at the 
 age of 14) ; Joseph T., now attorne}^ at law at 
 Cleveland, and James R., now attending theo- 
 logical school in iVllegheny Co., Penn. Nettie, 
 now deceased, was the wife of Mr. J. C. Alex- 
 ander. She died Feb. 15, 1874, aged 22. 
 
 WILLIAM M. LEMMON, farmer; P. 0. 
 Northfield ; was born Oct. 27, 1822, in West- 
 moreland Co., Penn., to William M. and Jane 
 (Matthews) Lemmon. The grandfather of our 
 subject was named William also, and was a 
 native of the Emerald Isle. The Matthews are 
 of Scotch ancestry, and afterward settled in the 
 North of Ireland. Mr. Lemmon came West 
 with his father in the spring of 1832, when he 
 was a lad of 10 ; he well remembers the long 
 ride in the feed trough, the family coming 
 through by covered wagon. His father previ- 
 ously purchased 160 acres on Lot 44, and 
 coming out, found a "squatter" on the land, 
 and gave him $107 to vacate. There was a 
 cabin built, and about twenty acres under- 
 brushed and pai'tially " slashed ;" the remainder 
 was as nature produced it. The old log cabin 
 stood in the road, about twenty rods north of 
 Mr. Lemmon's present residence. When his 
 father came he labored arduously, and, b} 
 much self-denial and good management, he 
 succeeded in paying for his land. Eight chil- 
 dren were born them ; seven grew up — Samuel, 
 Martha, William, Jane, John, Archibald, Robert 
 and James. William L. and John now only 
 are left. His grandfather Lemmon was the 
 father of James, Thomas and William, and was 
 a soldier in the war of the Revolution. James 
 Lemmon was in the 1812 war. The parents of 
 William M. remained on the place where first 
 they settled up to the time of their death ; his 
 death occurred May 13, 1858 ; his wife's June, 
 1857. He was one of the first Elders in the 
 United Presbyterian Church at this place, and 
 alwaj^s bore a prominent part in the affairs of 
 the church, ever ready to do his duty and to 
 advance the cause of his Master. William M. 
 was 22 years of age, when he began for him- 
 self ; he made his commencement b^' working 
 outf by the day and month for such remunera. 
 
 y: 
 
 'K 
 
946 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 tion as the times and circumstances afforded. 
 He worlved sixtj' days for a 2-year-old colt, and 
 tlie same time for a 3'olie of young steers. His 
 first purchase was twent}' acres of land, when 
 he was 26 years of age, for which he paid 
 $425. He shortly afterward sold it at an 
 advance of $200, and, in 1851, he went to Alle- 
 gan Co., Mich., where he purchased 100 acres, 
 which he farmed for five years, and then sold it, 
 and, with the price it and its productions 
 brought him, he returned to this township in 
 the spring of 1858, and purchased the home- 
 stead farm, on which he has since been a resi- 
 dent. His marriage took place March 1, 1854, 
 with Ellen Kerr, who was born in Columbiana 
 Co., Ohio, Oct. 14, 1825, daughter of James 
 and Mary (McClellan) Kerr. Her father was 
 born in Adams Co., Penn., Aug. 1, 1788, and 
 her mother in Chester Co., Penn., Feb. 14, 
 1789. They came to Salem, Columbiana Co., 
 this State, in 1807, were married in 1819, and 
 had seven children, who grew to man's estate. 
 The Kerrs and McClellans are of Scotch ances- 
 try. Mary McClellan's father's name was 
 James, and he was a Revolutionary soldier. His 
 wife was Hannah Withrow. To them were born 
 Samuel, William, Robert, John, Lindsey, Mary, 
 Thomas, Rebecca, Anna and Elizabeth. To 
 James Kerr were born Hannah, William, James, 
 Ellen J., John, Rebecca A. and David. The 
 father died Dec. 5, 1869 ; his wife now lives in 
 Columbiana Co., and is 92 years of age Both 
 were members of the Old School Presbyterian 
 Church. The father of James Kerr, above 
 mentioned, was likewise named James, and a 
 native of Ireland. His wife was Jane Mc- 
 Adams. Mr. Lemmon was bereft of his wife 
 Aug. 19, 1872. She left him four children, 
 viz., Mary J., Harvey K., Lizzie H. and Mattie 
 A. Mr. Lemmon and wife have long been 
 associated with the church. His father was in 
 early times Democratic in his political views, 
 but later in life he was en rapjwrt with princi- 
 ples which favored the abolition of the sj'stem 
 of slavery. Mr. Lemmon has now 193 acres of 
 land, and is one of the most affluent agricult- 
 urists of the township. 
 
 ALEXANDER McCONNELL, farmer ; P. 
 0. Northfleld ; is a native of the Emerald Isle, 
 and was born July 22, 1824, to John and Sarah 
 (Rogers) McConnell, being one of ten children. 
 Emigrating to this State in June, 1834, Jphn 
 located in Coshocton Co.. where Alexander 
 
 was raised to farming, and lived with his par- 
 ents until his marriage, which occurred Maj- 15, 
 1850. His wife's maiden name was Ann Whaley, 
 a native of this county. B3' her he had one 
 child — Greorge A., who died at the age of 2 
 years and 4 days. Mr. McConnell had the mis- 
 fortune to lose his wife after three years of 
 married life. April 24, 1856, he was married 
 to Mary J. Nesbit, born in this township Oct. 
 20, 1832, daughter of John and Ann (Matthews) 
 Nesbit. After Mr. McConnell's first marriage, 
 he located on 200 acres of land in Coshocton 
 Co., upon which he lived until his advent to 
 this county, when he disposed of his farm, 
 and located in this township, April, 1859, on 
 Lot 56, at the Center, where he has since re- 
 sided. His original purchase consisted of 104 
 acres ; ten years later, he purchased 25 acres 
 adjoining him, on Lot 46. Mr. McConnell has 
 had four children ; three are living, viz., Hettie 
 Ann, John N. and Emma J.; James L. died 
 when 20 months old. Mr. McConnell and wife 
 are members of the United Presbyterian Church ; 
 he has been associated with this denomination 
 for over thirty j^ears. Farming has been the 
 business of his life ; in the discharge of his du- 
 ties as such he merits the name of being a 
 snug and economical farmer, his farm and sur- 
 roundings giving proof of the good manage- 
 ment and taste of its proprietor. 
 
 JAMES M. McELROY, cheese manufactory, 
 Northfield ; was born in Westmoreland Co., 
 Penn., March 20, 1826, the third of a familj- of 
 fourteen children, ten of whom grew to matur- 
 ity, whose parents were James and Ruth (Nes- 
 bit) McElro}'. James was born in same county 
 as son, in the year 1799, in May ; she, in the 
 same county and State, six weeks later, the 
 same year as her husband. The grandfather of 
 our subject was James, whose place of birth 
 was Ireland. He came to Pennsylvania when 
 a lad, where he afterward married Pets}' Doug- 
 lass ; the children were born as indicated, John, 
 Alexander, Mary and James. James, the 
 father of James M., married Ruth Nesbit, and 
 by her had Alexander, James M., William, 
 John, Mary, Ann, Esther, David, Samuel and 
 Elizabeth. Ruth Nesbit was a daughter of 
 William and Esther (Robinson) Nesbit. James 
 M. came West with his father to the north part 
 of this township in June, 1838, where our sub- 
 ject was raised to farming. Since leaving the 
 homestead, he has made many changes, and trav- 
 
 
NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 947 
 
 eled about considerably, but for the most pai't 
 has been a resident of the township. In 1863, 
 enlisted in Co. (t, 115th 0. V. I., and served 
 twenty-three months, when he was discharged 
 on account of disability from impaired eyesight, 
 or " moon blindness." July 5, 1866, was mar- 
 ried to Sarah McElroy, born in Westmoreland 
 Co., Penn., Aug. 8, 1827 ; daughter of John 
 and Sarah (Menoher) McElro}- ; she daughter 
 of John and Jane (Clifford) Menoher. Mrs. 
 McElroy came West the same year she was 
 married. Mr. McElroy is proprietor and owner 
 of " Spring G-rove Cheese Factor}^," which he 
 has run for several years. Has one son, Frank 
 A., born in June, 1868. Mr. McElroy and wife 
 are both members of the United Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 MRS. ELIZA McKISSON, farmer; P. 0. 
 Northfield ; was born Sept. 13, 1812, in Onon- 
 daga Co., N. Y., to Abel and Betsy (Hill) Ha- 
 A'ens. Abel was 3'oung when his father died, 
 leaving two children, himself and Cyrus. Betsy 
 was a daughter of George and Esther (Cran- 
 mer) Hill, to whom were born Jeremiah, Thomas, 
 Bets}', Sallie, Mercy, Hannah and Nancy, all 
 of whom lived to raise families. To Abel and 
 Betsy Havens were born eight children, who 
 were Eliza (Mrs. McK.), Harriet (now in Iowa 
 Co., Iowa, the wife of A. Doty), G-eorge (who 
 settled in Delaware Co., this State), William, 
 Silas, Maria, Mahala and Clark. But three are 
 living, Silas, in Delaware, Harriet and Mrs. Doty. 
 Mr. Abel Havens and wife came to this town- 
 ship in 1818, when Mrs. McKisson was but 6 
 years of age. Her father settled in the east 
 part of the township, where James Wallace now 
 resides. Mr. Havens lived here man}" years, 
 then moved to Twinsburg, where he lived until 
 his removal to Delaware Co., Ohio, where his 
 wife died in 1859. In 1866, he moved to Iowa, 
 and lived with his daughter Harriet until his 
 death, which event occurred July 24, 1874. 
 Both he and his wife, for many years, had been 
 members of the Methodist Church. In 1839, 
 March 13, Eliza Havens became the wife of 
 James McKisson, who was born in Harrison 
 Co., Ohio, in 1811, and came to this township 
 when it was comparatively new ; he purchased 
 this farm, and was among the first settlers. Af- 
 ter Mr. and Mrs. McKisson were married, they 
 moved into a log house, which is yet standing ; 
 in this they lived until the present brick struct- 
 ure was erected. Mr. McKisson died Aug. 19, 
 
 1866. He was a successful man in business. 
 Since his death she has remained on the farm, 
 where she has a nice residence and 71^ acres, 
 having no children. 
 
 R. M. J. McKISSON, farmer ; P. 0. North- 
 field ; was born on the farm he now owns, June 
 25, 1838 ; son of Robert and Rebecca (Viers) 
 McKisson. Robert was a son of Samuel, who 
 was among the early settlers in the township. 
 R. M. J. was raised on the farm, and. at the 
 age of 20, he left home ; his first work was in 
 the powder-mills ; afterward he worked by the 
 month and was engaged for three years in the 
 lumber business ; subsequently he purchased a 
 canal-boat, and for three years and a half he 
 boated, running from Cleveland to Portsmouth, 
 dealing mostly in coal transportation ; subse- 
 quently he engaged in the lumber business until 
 1871 ; has also been engaged on contracts for 
 railroad companies ; finally, he returned to the 
 homestead, where he farmed the place until De- 
 cember, 1880, when he purchased the same ; 
 the farm consists of 160^ acres. In 1860, he 
 was married to Ellen Burns, born in 1844, in 
 Bedford Township, Cuyahoga Co., daughter of 
 Hugh and Margaret (Boyle) Burns, both natives 
 of Ireland. Mr. McKisson has three children 
 — Daniel, PJlla A. and Margaret. 
 
 LEONARD McNIECE, farmer ; P. 0. North- 
 field ; was born Dec. 29, 1818, in County An- 
 trim, twelve miles from Belfast, and is a repre- 
 sentative of one of the prominent families in 
 the North of Ireland ; his parents were Isaac 
 and Jane (McKinstry) McNiece; Isaac was a 
 son of Isaac, whose famil}- consisted of six 
 children — Isaac, Leonard. John, Rebecca, Maria 
 and Ruth ; Jane McKinstry was a daughter of 
 Henry and Mary (McNitt) McKinstry, to whom 
 were born a family of eleven children, viz., 
 Henry, William, Robert, Ann, Charlotte, Sarah, 
 Mary, Margaret, Eliza, Hannah and Rebecca. 
 To Isaac and Jane McNiece were born Isaac 
 Mc, Leonard, William H., Robert, Mary Jane. 
 Eliza and Sarah. The religion of the family 
 on both sides was Episcopalian, and all were 
 members of the p]stablished Church. Isaac, 
 the father of the subject of our sketch, was a 
 farmer and linen draper, but raised his sons to 
 agricultural pursuits. Leonard left home at 
 his majority, May 29, 1847. He married Ann 
 Bell, who was born April, 1819, in Antrim Co.; 
 her parents were Jonathan and ]\Iary (Tipping) 
 Bell, whose children were Nelson, Thomas, Jon- 
 
']£. 
 
 948 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 athan, William, Mary J., Ann and Sarah ; 
 July 4, of the same year of their marriage, 
 Mr. McNiece and wife started from Liverpool, 
 and, after a vogage of fifty days, landed at 
 Philadelphia, where they remained three 
 months, then came direct to this township ; 
 upon his arrival he was poor, and for three 
 years he worked as a common laborer, and 
 saved means sufficient to enable him to make 
 a payment on a piece of land on Lot 59, pur- 
 chasing at first 31^ acres of Homer Oviatt, for 
 which he agreed to pay $756 ; this he soon was 
 enabled to call his own, and then added more 
 at diflerent times, until he acquired 120 acres, 
 which, with the assistance of his worthy wife, 
 he has earned by hard labor, much self-denial 
 and constant savings, and is now among the 
 substantial and opulent husbandmen of the 
 township ; he has improved his slender oppor- 
 tunities, and. in point of intelligence and gen- 
 eral information, is well versed ; his mind is 
 well stored with historical events that are con- 
 nected with the history of the old countries. 
 Since his advent to this country, he has acted 
 independent of sects and is a free and liberal 
 thinker, and in matters of political nature is a 
 sound Democrat, and still adheres to the prin- 
 ciples and traditions inculcated in the old 
 Jacksonian part\'. He is a worthy member of 
 the community in which he resides. He has 
 two children — Jonathan B. and Anna. 
 
 ANDREW S. MEANS, Macedonia; born 
 Feb. 17, 1814, in Allegheny Co., Penn.; is the 
 third of a family of seven children, all of whom 
 raised families of their own. The parents of 
 the above are Nathan and Elizabeth (Coch- 
 rane) Means. He was born July 20, 1784 ; son 
 of John Means, of Irish descent, who had borne 
 him Nathan, John, James, Joseph, Jane and 
 Nancy Means. To Nathan was born John A., 
 Samuel C, Andrew S., Elvira A. (Mrs. John F. 
 Curry, in Alleghenj' Co., Penn.), Martha (Mrs. 
 William Wood, same place), James (on the 
 homestead), Robert S. (also in same place, on 
 farm adjoining homestead). Nathan, the father 
 of Andrew S., is yet living on the homestead, 
 at the ripe age of 97. Elizabeth, his wife, was 
 a daughter of Samuel Cochrane, to whom was 
 born Polly, Sallie, Elizabeth, Ann, Margaret, 
 Robert, Samuel, John and William, all dead. 
 Nathan Means moved to Allegheny Co., Penn., 
 in 1799, and was among the early settlers of 
 that place. He was a tanner by occupation. 
 
 In 1810, he purchased and located on his pres- 
 ent farm in Allegheny Co., Penn. Andrew S. 
 was raised on the farm, and assisted his father 
 in the tannery, remaining with him until 26 
 years of age. In March, 1840, he came to this 
 township and purchased 160 acres of land, 
 where he now resides. He had been out three 
 years previously, and, liking the country, he 
 returned and made the purchase as above men- 
 tioned. There were no improvements whatever 
 on this land. He built a light cabin shortly 
 after his arrival. January, 1842, he was mar- 
 ried to Mar}' J. Wilson, born in Pittsburgh, 
 Penn., June 8, 1820, daughter of John and 
 Elizabeth (Morrow) Wilson, who were old set- 
 tlers in Pennsylvania. Mrs. Means died May 
 6, 1872. They have had nine children — Eliza- 
 beth (now deceased), John W., Nathan A., Jo- 
 seph M., James H., William R., Mary H. (Mrs. 
 John A. Hibbard), Robert F. and Lillie. Mr. 
 Means has 220 acres of land. He and his wife 
 have been members of the Presbyterian Church 
 for many years. He has now been a constant 
 resident of this township for forty years, which 
 long acquaintance has endeai-ed him to his 
 neighbors and friends. 
 
 MUNN BROS., Macedonia, sons of Hiram 
 and Esther (Cranmer) Munn. Hiram Munn 
 was born August 10, 1800, in Trenton, N. J., 
 son of Nathan and Esther (Warner) Munn, who 
 had nine children, viz., Warner, Mj'ron, Oscar, 
 Eri, Archie and Hiram, Ruth, Bets}' Ann, Irene 
 and Lydia. Myron and Warner were in the 
 war of 1812. Hiram emigrated to this State 
 with his father about the year 1817. Hiram 
 was a carpenter and cabinet-maker ; he settled 
 on Tinker's Creek, in Cuyahoga Co., where he 
 engaged at his trade. Feb. 6, 1844, he became 
 the husband of Esther Cranmer, who was born 
 July 14, 1814, in this township, daughter of 
 Abram and Nancy Voster. Abram was born 
 in New Jersey Aug. 10, 1787 ; Nancy in Am- 
 sterdam, Holland, Dec. 20, 1777 ; she was of a 
 family of thirteen children ; her father. Adri- 
 anas, died when she was young. Mrs. Munn 
 came to this county with her parents about the 
 3'ear 1813, located on Lot 72, in this township, 
 where they lived six years, then moved to Lot 
 54 ; about the 3'ear 1824, they moved to Mace- 
 donia, where Mr. Cranmer purchased 90 acres ; 
 it was a dense growth of timber ; on the East 
 the nearest neighbor was three miles. To them 
 were born five children — Nancy (Mrs. Rev. L. 
 
NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 949 
 
 itil. 
 
 E. Beardsley), Esther (Mrs. Munn), Elizabeth 
 (Mrs. W. Storrs), Isaac W. and Jeremiah. 
 Shortl}- after the marriage of Mr. aud Mrs. 
 Munn, they located at Macedonia. Mr. Munn 
 died suddenly March 29, 1880 ; for fiftj^ years 
 of his life he was a member of the M. E. 
 Church, and was a licensed minister. His life 
 was adorned by an upright Christian walk. 
 To him were born eleven childi'en ; eight living 
 — Irene (Mrs. Julius Brittan, of Portage Co.), 
 Frances A. (Mrs. J. W. Caldwell, this township), 
 Isaac W., Abram C. and Amos R. (twins), 
 Zarada E. (wife of H. Bromley, general freight 
 and ticket agent on the L. & S. R. R.), Ferdinand 
 and Lillie (at home). Abram C. and Amos R., 
 engaged in the mercantile business, in 1865, at 
 Macedonia, and have since been doing a thriv- 
 ing and prosperous trade. They are 3'oung 
 men of enterprise — keeping a general stock of 
 such goods as are in demand b}' the people — 
 drj' goods, groceries, Yankee notions, etc., etc. 
 Abram C. was commissioned Postmaster, and 
 also expi'ess agent since that time. He is a 
 member of Twinsburg Lodge No. 375, A., F. & 
 A. M., and of Summit Chapter, R. A. M., No. 
 74. In 1874, he married Mary McLaughlin, has 
 one child, Gracie A. 
 
 ALEX. NESBTT, farmer ; was born on the 
 farm he now owns, 1843, March 10, son of 
 William and Lucinda Nesbit. William Nesbit 
 was born March 24, 1794, in Westmoreland 
 Co., Penn., and came to Ohio, settling in the 
 township during its early settlement. He was 
 a participant in the war of 1812, entering the 
 war before he attained his manhood. His 
 wife Lucinda was born Oct. 27, 1806, in Herki- 
 mer County, New York. She was a daughter 
 of Asa and Phebe (Wood) Hungerford, to 
 whom were born Lucinda, Asa and Horace. 
 Horace, now in Portage County, Asa, in Allen 
 County, both of this State. Phebe Wood was 
 a daughter of Samuel and Petsej- (Stewart) 
 Wood, to whom was born Phebe, Henry, Bet- 
 sey, Samuel, Silas, Lucy, Jonathan and Julia. 
 Mrs. Nesbit removed west to Cuyahoga County 
 with her parents when she was 3 years of age ; 
 both of them died shortly after their arrival to 
 the State. She was raised by her grandfather 
 Samuel Wood. She was first married to 
 Thomas Johnson and by him had six children, 
 four living ; he died in 1837. Her second mar- 
 riage was with Mr. Nesbit, and b}' him had 
 seven children, of the number living, are Alex- 
 
 ander, David G., Emily L. and Caroline E. 
 Mr. Nesbit was for many 3'ears a member of 
 the U. P. Church. He died in October 1873. 
 Dec. 16, 1874, Alexander was married to Jo- 
 sephine Fillius, born Nov. 15, 1843, in Hud^n 
 Township, daughter of Phillip and Barbara 
 (Keis) Fillius ; both were natives of the Old 
 World ; he was born in Bavaria, April 12, 
 1806, she in the Kingdom of Wurtemberg at 
 Stuttgart in 1817. He was a son of Phillip. 
 The family came to America, and to Cleveland 
 in 1836, the year following located in Hudson 
 Township. To them were born nine children, 
 who were Catharine, Elizabeth, John, Joseph- 
 ine, Phillip, Jacob, Ella, Charles and Ernest. 
 Mr. Nesbit has one child — Grace E., born Nov. 
 1, 1877. Her father (Mr. Nesbit) died 1 878, her 
 mother living. 
 
 JOHN NESBIT, farmer ; P. 0. Northfield ; 
 is a native of the Keystone State, born Oct. 22, 
 1830, and came West with his parents when he 
 was a babe. His parents were John and Ann 
 (Mathews) Nesbit who were natives of Penn- 
 sylvania. John Nesbit traded land in Penn- 
 sylvania for 160 acres on lot 83 in this 
 township, upon which he settled, afterward 
 purchasing 56 acres on Lot 73. There were 
 no improvements upon lot traded for, a small 
 cabin and 3 acres on Lot 73. Upon this farm 
 our subject was raised ard has since passed 
 his life, remaining with his father on the home- 
 stead until he was 36 3'ears, and, but for the 
 timel}' meeting of Florilla J. Nesbit he "might 
 have been" a bachelor during the remainder of 
 his life. Oct. 11, 1866, he became the husband 
 of the lady who now bears his name. Her 
 father's name was Joseph Patterson, who mar- 
 ried soon after the death of her mother. She 
 was then raised b}' Dr. Allen Nesbit, and ever 
 after bore the maiden name of her mother 
 who was Florilla Nesbit, who had two children 
 b}' Mr. Patterson — Anna and Florilla. Mrs. 
 Nesbit was born in Lawrence, Penn., March 
 20, 1842, her parents she knows but little of 
 They have five children — Anna W., James, 
 John C, Ambrose and babe ; one named Will- 
 iam died when three 3'ears of age. Since Mr. 
 Nesbit has married has remained on the farm, 
 he having 120 acres. He and wife are mem- 
 bers of the U. P. Church and is one of the val- 
 uable members of the communit3'. 
 
 JOHN PACKARD, farmer ; P. 0. North- 
 field ; son of Isaac and " Polly " (Smith) Pack- 
 
 w 
 
'Ml 
 
 950 
 
 BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 ard, was born Feb. 7, 1823, in Massachusetts. 
 Isaac was born in Massachusetts, April 14, 1788. 
 He was the son of Ichabod, who was born 
 March 29, 1763, and Lorania Tower, born 
 June 20, 1763. To this couple were born 
 Isaac, Jonathan, Orick, Sylvester, Hart, Emily, 
 Emery H., Hart 2d, and Sylvester 2d. Polly 
 Smith was a daughter of Andrew and Margaret 
 (Gagg) Smith, to whom were born Jeanette, 
 John. Mary, Harriet, Sarah, Minerva, David, 
 Anna, Roxana and Levi. Andrew Smith was 
 born Sept. 14, 1764; Margaret Gagg, March 
 19, 1762. Ichabod Packard was a soldier in 
 the war of the Revolution ; Sylvester, his son, 
 was Fife Major in the war of 1812. John, our 
 subject, came West with his father, Isaac, in 
 in June, 1823, when a baby. His father lo- 
 cated at Brecksville, where he kept the first 
 tavern of that place ; his occupation was that 
 of clothier, which business he carried on at 
 Brecksville, Hinckle}- and Strongsville. He 
 died at Independence, in September, 1854, and 
 his wife on Feb. 12, 1865 ; he was a Baptist in 
 belief, and she a Presbyterian. John began for 
 himself at the age of 21 ; he left home with an 
 empty pocket, and an ax on his shoulder, re- 
 solving to hew his way through life, and to ob- 
 tain a home at some future day and become a 
 business man. He commenced cutting timber 
 in a small way, and sold his products, which 
 were borne off on the canal ; this he continued 
 for several years. The panic came on, which 
 destroyed the sale of his timber, and he aban- 
 doned the business and purchased 50 acres of 
 land in Brecksville Township, and began farm- 
 ing ; several years after, he purchased 35 acres 
 more. In 18(38, he sold his first purchase, and 
 bought 81^ acres in Independence, and moved 
 on the same ; this he retained five 3^ears, when 
 he sold it. About this time he caught the " Iowa 
 fever," and bought 640 acres in Shelby and 
 Carroll Counties, and went out to see his pur- 
 chase. Being unfavorably impressed with the 
 outlook, he returned home, after having an 
 interesting and eventful trip. He afterward 
 traded this land with his brother Ichabod, for 
 other in Michigan, and yet retains 160 acres of 
 it. Jan. 9, 1871, he married Sarah E. Bramley, 
 born March 1, 1845, in Lorain County ; she 
 was the daughter of Matthew and Sarah E. 
 (Oldershaw) Bramley ; they were natives of 
 Derbyshire, England, and came to this country 
 in 1840 ; they had a family of thirteen children. 
 
 Mr. Packard removed from Independence to 
 this township in 1872, locating on Lot 92, 
 where he owns 185 acres. He also owns 49 
 acres in Brecksville, 250 acres in White Co., 
 Tenn.. 100 acres in Van Buren Co., Mich., be- 
 sides land in Iowa. Matthew Bramley was 
 born Jan. 9, 1802. The children born to him 
 were John P., Anna, Hannah, Martha, Marian 
 J., Mira, Frank M., Matthew, Rebecca, Julia, 
 Sarah E., George and Elias. Parents of the 
 above live in Lorain Co., where the}' settled in 
 1840. Mr. Packard's' children are Mary M., 
 Myra A., Julia E., Sadie B., and an infant. Mr. 
 Packard is one of the most successful business 
 men and safest financiers in the township. 
 
 WILLIAM L. PALMER, farmer; P. 0. 
 Northfield ; was born Nov. 4, 1820, in Wind- 
 sor, Hartford Co.. Conn., to Hezekiah H. and 
 Abigail (Taylor) Palmer. His father was born 
 Jan. 19, 1781 ; his mother in Buckland, Mass., 
 Jan. 12, 1792. They were married May 29, 
 1811. To them were born a family of eight 
 children — Julia A., Eraeline, Abigail T., Will- 
 iam L., Horace H., Henry T., and two de- 
 ceased. The Palmers are of old Connecticut 
 stock, who came over in the Mayflower. Some 
 of our subject's ancestors were soldiers in the 
 war of the Revolution. The father of our 
 subject first came West to this State, locating 
 in AVilloughby, in 1822, where he lived a shoit 
 time, but, because of the prevaleney of ague, 
 he returned with his family and lived on the 
 Holland Purchase in New York for some time, 
 and then returned to his native county and 
 State. In 1831, he came out and selected 160 
 acres at the Center of this township. Return- 
 ing, he brought out his family in June, 1832, 
 by canal from Albany, N. Y., and with the 
 family settled in the woods, which in a short 
 time was transformed to productive fields. 
 Upon this tract the elder Palmer lived until 
 his death Oct. 7, 1863 ; that of his wife oc- 
 curred Dec. 10, 1875. He was a man of hardy 
 constitution, a worthy citizen and a Jacksonian 
 Democrat. William L. was reared among the 
 early pioneer surroundings of the township ; 
 deer and wild game were plentiful. His first 
 ideas of the fundamental principles of " book 
 learning '' was obtained in a log school which 
 stood on the site where the town pump now 
 stands. Nov. 15, 1849, he was married to 
 Amelia Whitney, born in Uniontown, Stark 
 Co., Oct. 6, 1827, daughter of William and 
 
NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 951 
 
 Hannah (McNaughton) Whitney, both natives 
 of Vermont. Her father was born Feb. 22, 
 1795 ; her mother in Rutland Aug. 25, 1795. 
 He was a son of William Whitne}', and she a 
 daughter of Daniel McNaughton. Mrs. Palmer 
 was of a family of eight children, five living — • 
 Louisa, Helen, Harriet, Parmelia and Mrs. 
 Palmer. Since Mr. Palmer came to the town- 
 ship he has been a constant resident. Has 
 served several terms as Justice of the Peace, 
 and is at present fulfilling the duties of that 
 office. He was seven years Postmaster, and 
 bore well his part as a citizen and a neighbor. 
 He has but one child, Helen, still at home. 
 His nephew, William Palmer, has resided with 
 him since a mere child, and recognizes no 
 other place as home. 
 
 HENRY T. PALMP]R, carpenter, North- 
 field ; was born in Windsor, Hartford Co., 
 Conn., Dec. 12, 1829, and came West with his 
 parents when 2 years of age. Raised to farm- 
 ing, he, in his earl}- manhood, learned his trade 
 and worked for his brother-in-law, A. W. Bliss. 
 March 2, 1854, he married Mar}' J. Hillman, 
 who was born in 1836, daughter of David and 
 Mary (Derrick) Hillman, to whom three chil- 
 dren were born, Mrs. Palmer being the youngest ; 
 her mother died when she was very young, and 
 she was raised by Mrs. Hollister, and saw her 
 father but little afterward. She learned but 
 little of her parents farther than that her 
 mother was born in Canada, and was of Scotch 
 parentage. She has a brother, Benjamin B., in 
 Salamanca, N. Y., and one sister, Eliza (Mrs. 
 Lyman Allen). After Mr. Palmer was married 
 he resided fourteen years at the Center, and, in 
 1873. moved to the place he now owns, where 
 he has erected new buildings throughout, and 
 has a very pleasant and desirable residence 
 situated a short distance north of the Center. 
 They have had one child — Freddie, born March 
 20, 1864, who died Feb. 5, 1877, of spinal dis- 
 ease. He was beloved by all who knew him, 
 both by his companions and those of riper 
 years, being kind-hearted to his associates and 
 obedient to his parents. Henry T. was a son 
 of Hezekiah H. and Abigail (Taylor) Palmer, 
 who were among the first settlers at the center 
 of Northfield, where they lived as its honored 
 citizens, and in all the relations of life they 
 were universally esteemed and beloved. Mrs. 
 Palmer, at the age of 16, made a profession of 
 religion and united with the Baptist Church, 
 
 and for sixty-eight years she ever remained 
 true to her allegiance, and never faltered in her 
 Christian course, ever adhering with tenacity 
 to the church of her early choice. Mr. Palmer 
 never united with any church, yet he was not 
 opposed to religion, but always acted inde- 
 pendent of sects and denominations, yet favor- 
 ing everything known to be right. In his daily 
 intercourse with others he was unassuming, 
 obliging and courteous ; was scrupulously up- 
 right in all his dealings, ever diligently prose- 
 cuting his own legitimate business, and never 
 meddled with the aflairs of others ; } et he was 
 a man of decided opinions, which he rarely 
 failed to express at the ballot-box ; he died as 
 he lived, an honored and substantial member 
 of the community. Henry T. is an official 
 member of the Presbyterian Church, is a man 
 of few words and of a retiring nature, shun- 
 ning publicity and preferment, and is a worthy 
 citizen. " Aunt Mary," as she is familiarly 
 called, is, like the good Samaritan, ever ready 
 to do good, both in sickness and in health. 
 
 HENRY PHILE, farmer; P. 0. Macedo- 
 nia ; born May 30, 1804, in Bucks Co., 
 Penn., to Henry and Mary Gr. (Allshouse) Phile. 
 His father was born in Germany. Mary Gr. 
 was a daughter of (xabriel, to whom were born 
 five children, three sons and two daughters. 
 Henry Phile, Sr., was a wagon-maker by trade. 
 He came to Pennsylvania in 1795. Twelve 
 children were born him, viz., Mary, Betsy, 
 Katie, Rebecca, Priscilla, Eliza, Sarah, Hannah, 
 Lydia, John, Joseph and Henry. Henry moved 
 with his father to Columbiana Co., the last day 
 of 1808 ; afterward to Green Township (now 
 Mahoning Co.). Here his father settled on land 
 purchased from the Government, his death oc- 
 curring in 1833, at the age of 77. His wife 
 died seven years later. At the age of 18. our 
 subject left home, learned the cabinet-maker's 
 trade in Trumbull Co., and afterward estab- 
 lished business with a partner at Ellsworth ; 
 this association lasted two years, the partner 
 walking off with the mone}-, leaving Mr. Phile 
 with the experience. He then came to Frank- 
 lin, where he engaged in the carpenter and 
 cabinet work. In April, 1830, he came to this 
 township. Dec. 16, same year, he was married 
 to Roxie Cranmer, the second child born in 
 this township, which birth is recorded March 
 22, 1812, on Lot 72 ; she was a daughter of 
 Jeremiah and Hannah (Cole) Peck. Jeremiah 
 
u^ 
 
 953 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 was born in New Jersey in 1762, and served 
 all through the war of the Revolution. He 
 was a son of Jeremiah, who was a native of 
 Scotland. Hannah Cole was a daughter of 
 Joshua and Eunice (Bennett) Cole, both being 
 natives of New York. Mrs. Phile was one of 
 ten children. The famil}- came first to Cha- 
 grin Falls, and, in 1811, they located in this 
 township. Mr. Phile located on the farm he 
 now owns, in April, 1837. There were but few 
 improvements on the place. He came here 
 with ver}' limited means. His first location 
 was a short distance west of Macedonia, where 
 he worked at his trade. When he located on 
 his present farm, he engaged in both farming 
 and practicing his trade. Corn was $1.50 per 
 bushel, wheat $2, and other things in propor- 
 tion ; meat was out of the question ; wages very 
 low and money hard to get ; yet, by the aid of 
 his rifle, he obtained venison and wild turkeys, 
 then plentiful. Though Mr. Phile was twice 
 bankrupted by bailing and by a dishonest part- 
 ner, 3'et he has been successful, having now a 
 good home and 118 acres of land. Of nine 
 children boi-n, five are living — Eunice (Mrs. A. 
 E. Salsburg, of Ottawa Co.) ; also Henry and 
 George, in same place ; Mary, at home ; Ava 
 G. (Mrs. James Wolcott, of this township). 
 Mr. Phile has always been a true Republican. 
 JOHN POPE, deceased ; born in Aberdeen- 
 shire, Scotland, in 1793 ; was son of John, to 
 whom were born two children, Barbara and 
 John. John Pope, whose name heads this 
 page, married Isabella Centers, daughter of 
 William and Isabella, whose children were 
 Alexander and Isabella, all natives of Scotland. 
 John Pope emigrated to the county in 1837, 
 lived three years in Twinsburg, and then located 
 on Lot 27, this township, purchasing 80 acres, 
 on which a log cabin and a small patch was all 
 the improvements made' at the time of his 
 arrival. Here he remained until his death, 
 which occurred Dec. 14, 1859. His life was 
 characterized by a sincere devotion to the prin- 
 ciples of Christianity. For many years prior 
 to his death, he was a devoted member of the 
 U. P. Church, having been a member before his 
 departure from Scotland. He was brought up 
 under the ministrations of the good old Bun- 
 yan, of Whitehill, and united with the church 
 at the age of 16 ; he afterward was chosen 
 Ruling Elder, and became identified with the 
 Sabbath-school interests in his native countr}'. 
 
 Upon his arrival here he cast his lot with the 
 U. P. Church at Northfield Center, where he 
 served as Ruling Elder for twenty years, and, 
 as in Scotland, he was much interested in the 
 Sabbath-school cause, and was ever an able and 
 enthusiastic worker in the same. He was a 
 man possessed of a good mind, a great reader 
 as well as a sober thinker. He loved to read 
 and comment on the Word of God, and the in- 
 spiration and light which he derived from its 
 careful study was ever demonstrated in his 
 every-day life and association with his fellow- 
 men. When in the discharge of his duties as 
 a Christian, his true character manifested itself 
 His disease was exhaustion of the nerves of 
 the brain, occasioned b}' a partial sunstroke. 
 His last words were, '' I die, trusting in Jesus." 
 His worthy companion united with the Seces- 
 sion Church in Scotland, at the age of 17, and 
 was a professor for sixty years ; her father was 
 also a member for many years. Mrs. Pope was 
 a ver^' exemplary woman in her family, ever 
 striving to impress upon their minds that God- 
 liness was more to be esteemed than riches, and 
 to live with an ever-ready preparation for the 
 mansions above ; though not a lad}^ of strong 
 constitution, yet her accustomed seat in the 
 sanctuary was rarel}' ever vacant on the Sab- 
 bath. To them were born ten children, six liv- 
 ing — Isabella (now in Portage, the wife of 
 James Sterling), William (in Cleveland), Mar- 
 garet (Mrs. Thomas Macke}), Alexander (in 
 Indiana), Ellen and George L. (on the home- 
 stead, unmarried). The farm is situated im- 
 mediately south of the town of Macedonia, 
 and consists of 200 acres of land. All of the 
 children are members of the church of their 
 parent's choice. 
 
 MRS. S. POWELL, farming ; P. 0. Mace- 
 donia ; was born June 1, 1824, in Salem, Co- 
 lumbiana Co., this State ; daughter of Thomas 
 and Mary (Perkey) Baum. Her fiither was 
 born June 20, 1798 ; her mother June 28, 1797. 
 Thomas was a son of John George Baum, who 
 was a native of Germany. To him were born 
 George, Joel, John, Sarah, Ann, Betsey and 
 Thomas. Mary Perkey's father's name was 
 Daniel ; he too, came from Germany. Mrs. 
 Powell removed with her parents to this coun- 
 ty, locating on Lot 34, where there were some 
 improvements. Thomas Baum died Dec. 24, 
 1860 ; his wife died June 28, 1855, of cancer. 
 To them were born John, Sarah, Mary, Martha. 
 
 ^ 
 
NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 953 
 
 Elizabeth, George, Madison and Emeline ; but 
 five are living. Mrs. Powell was married Jan. 
 30, 1840, to William Powell, who was born 
 Sept. 10, 1814, in New Jersey ; son of Henry, 
 whose father was George, who was a native of 
 Germany, and was among the number who re- 
 sisted the tyranny imposed upon the people at 
 that time, and wore placards in their hats, 
 " Liberty or death." His son Henry was sold 
 to pay his mother's passage money to this coun- 
 try. From New Jerse}', he came to Salem, in 
 Columbiana Co., where he took a lease for five 
 3'ears, but sold it soon afterward, and the money 
 he invested in land iu Mahoning Co., upon 
 which he settled, and afterward became a man 
 of wealth. His son William remained in Ma- 
 honing until a young man, when he went to 
 Michigan, where he lived a short time, and, re- 
 turning to this State, came to this township — 
 three years afterward, he formed the alliance as 
 above recorded — locating on the farm, where he 
 died Oct. 26, 1869. Five children were born to 
 him, four living — Maria L., now the wife of 
 Elihu Griswold, of this township ; Harriet E., 
 Mrs. A. J. Kelty, also of Northfield ; Mary R. 
 and William J., at home. The farm consists of 
 122 acres (Lot 33). Mrs. Powell has been a 
 member of the church of her parents' choice 
 (Methodist Episcopal) since 14 years of age. 
 At the age of 8 3'ears, she heard a sermon 
 preached by Rev. Ghee, which carried convic- 
 tion to her heart, and was then impressed with 
 the importance of becoming a Christian. This 
 discourse was delivered in a log cabin, the 
 speaker's desk was a rude bench. Her first 
 union with the church bod}^ was at Macedonia, 
 under the ministration of Rev. Whorlon. Mr. 
 Walker never took an active part in religious 
 matters ; having been raised among the Society' 
 of Friends, or Quakers, he was ever afterward 
 imbued with the doctrines of that sect, and never 
 affiliated with any church afterward, yet was a 
 consistent and upright member of society, and 
 highly esteemed for his good qualities. 
 
 A. K. RICHEY, farmer ; P. O. Northfield ; 
 born Jan. 31, 1828, in Wayne Co., Ohio ; son of 
 Thomas and Mary M. (Koplin) Richey. Thomas 
 was born in the north of Ireland Jan. 31, 1790, 
 of Scotch Irish ancestry- ; he was a son of 
 Thomas, whose father likewise bore the same 
 name. The grandfather of A. K. had five 
 children born him — Charles, Thomas, George, 
 John and Margaret. Mary Koplin was born 
 
 Jan. 1, 1799, in Huntingdon, Penn., daughter 
 of Matthias Koplin, whose children were 
 Christopher, William, Abram, Matthias, David, 
 George, Mary M., Catharine, Rachel and Bar- 
 bara. Thomas Richey emigrated to America 
 in 1812, and was enrolled as a soldier, after- 
 ward receiving a land warrant. When he came 
 to this country he was poor ; had neither 
 education or friends ; his first work was 
 in New York City at the fisheries, afterward 
 worked in Capt. Dupont's powder works on 
 Brandywine Creek, where he worked con- 
 tinuously for several years. In the meantime, 
 he purchased 160 acres of unimproved land in 
 Chippewa Township, Wayne Co. ; this was 
 about the year 1821 ; he remained at the pow- 
 der works until he had saved sufficient to en- 
 able him to liquidate his purchase, paying for 
 the same in three annual installments. AiDril 
 4, 1826, he married, having moved to his land 
 two years previous. His family consisted of 
 twelve children, eight of whom grew up, four 
 dying in infancy. Those who attained man- 
 hood's years wei'e A. K. ; Matthias, near Doyles- 
 town, Wayne Co. ; George, in this township ; 
 Thomas, in Michigan (Palo, Ionia Co.) ; Jane, 
 Mrs. J. W. Cook, of Cooksville, Allen Co., Kan. ; 
 Margaret, who married a Dehaven ; Catharine, 
 Mrs. Nathaniel Tilton, of Ogle Co., 111. ; Mary 
 A., who never married. In 1852, Thomas 
 Richey sold his farm in Wayne Co., and bought 
 211 acres on Lots 84 and 74, and remained on 
 the same until his death, which is recorded 
 Aug. 27, 1867. She survived him until June 
 22, 1880. They were both members of the 
 Old School Presb^^terian, and though he could 
 not read, jet he knew the Psalms and shorter 
 catechism to the letter, and required his family 
 to repeat them verbatim ; was a man of mirth- 
 ful and sunny disposition, of strong constitu- 
 tion ; a man of energy, industrious habits, and 
 devoted his life to agricultural pursuits ; was 
 successful in his business undertakings, and 
 enjoj'ed the esteem of the communit\- in which 
 he lived. A. K. was 22 when he launched out 
 for himself; had the advantages afforded at the 
 common district school, and attended three 
 terms at the High School at Tallmadge ; began 
 teaching at the age of 18, and wielded the 
 ferule for about eight terms. Nov. 6, 1856, 
 married Elizabeth Bain, born Sept. 19, 1836, in 
 Greenwich, Washington Co., N. Y.; her parents 
 were Jacob and Catharine McNaughton. He 
 
 1^ 
 

 954 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 :2L 
 
 was born in Argyle, Washington Co., N. Y., 
 April 30, 1807 ; she in same place April 14, 
 1806. He was a son of James C, whose wife 
 was Marietta Dings. James C. was a son of 
 Casper Bain, whose wife was Maria Clump ; to 
 them were born Phillip, James, Peter. John, 
 Catharine, Margaret, Casper and Elizabeth. 
 He was married second time, to Mary Gillespie. 
 The Bains are from Scotland ; the first one that 
 came to this country was sold to pay his 
 passage. To Jacob and Catharine were born 
 five children, viz., Finley, Elizabeth, Marietta, 
 Katie M. and James McN. Catharine Mc- 
 Naughton's father was named Finley, his wife 
 was Elizabeth Murray ; to them were born 
 Duncan, Catharine, William, Malcomb, James, 
 Archibald and John. Mrs. Richey came West 
 with her parents in 1855, who located in this 
 township, remaining until their death : he died 
 May 5, 1877 ; she May 9, 1880. The first year 
 after Mr. Richey was married he lived on his 
 father's farm. In April, 1858, moved to his 
 present place of living, where he purchased 
 114 acres on Lot 81, which was settled b}' Mr. 
 Cronizer ; has since added to his original pur- 
 chase, having 230 acres. Since April, 1856, both 
 Mr. Riche}' and wife have been members of the 
 United Presbyterian Church. The Richey fam- 
 ily are possessed of considerable versatility of 
 talent, and more than ordinary ingenuity, that 
 has enabled them to turn their hands readily 
 to almost anything in the trades or mechanics. 
 Mr. Richey and famil}- are great readers, he 
 being a liberal patron of the current and his- 
 torical literature of the day, Mrs. R. being 
 tolerably well read up in the theory and prac- 
 tice of medicine, of which she keeps a quantit}' 
 on hand for family and neighborhood use ; has 
 six children — Margaret Z., Jacob F. T., Thomas 
 T., Andrew F., Elmer R. and Ella Kate. 
 Elmer, born Jan. 31 (his grand-father and 
 father having the same birthdays), has as large 
 a quantity of Indian relics as can be found in 
 the country. 
 
 GEORGE RICHEY, farmer; P. 0. North- 
 field ; was born Oct. 12, 1834, in Chippewa 
 Township, Wayne Co., Ohio, and is the third 
 son and fifth child born (who grew to maturity) 
 to Thomas and Mar^^ M. (Coplin) Richey. 
 George came to this township with his parents, 
 who reared him to agricultural pursuits, but 
 George, being of a mechanical turn of mind, 
 soon learned the carpenter and joiners trade. 
 
 at which he worked, until, at his father's re- 
 quest, he took charge of the farm. Jan. 29, 
 1868, he married Sarah J. Love, born at 
 Coshocton Co., Ohio, Dec. 28, 1838, daugh- 
 ter of John and Jane M. (McConnell) Love. 
 Both were natives of North Ireland, and 
 emigrated direct to the Buckeye State, spend- 
 ing the first winter at Millersburg, Holmes 
 Co., then came to Coshocton Co. Mr. Love, 
 the father of Mrs. Richey, was married in 
 Coshocton. To him were born eight chil- 
 dren — Sarah J. (Mrs. Richey), Mary A. (maid, 
 who never married, died at 24), Catharine (Mrs. 
 James Overholt), Samuel (on the homestead), 
 Ellen (now deceased, who was the wife of J. G. 
 Alexander, of this township), Emma, John M. 
 and Miranda, at home. Her mother died May 8, 
 1876 ; her father is yet living on the homestead 
 in Coshocton. Both he and wife members of 
 the Presbyterian Church. Since the marriage 
 of Mr. Richey he has remained on the home- 
 stead farm, he having 149 acres. Of five chil- 
 dren born him but three are living — Anna E., 
 Emma L. and Maro 0. Maggie died of diph- 
 theria at the age of 7 ; John T. died when 8 
 months old. For twenty years Mr. Richey has 
 been a member of the Presbyterian Church, 
 and is the present Ruling Elder of that body, 
 and Church Clerk. 
 
 A. RICHARDSON, farmer ; P. O. North- 
 field ; son of Amos and Betsy (Barber) Rich- 
 ardson ; was born Dec. 14, 1810, in Hampshire 
 Co., Mass. His father was born in Massachu- 
 setts, about the year 1775, and was a son of 
 Thomas Richardson, who came from England. 
 The Barbers are of Welsh ancestry. To Amos 
 and Betsy Richardson were boi'n ten chil- 
 dren, eight of whom grew to maturity, viz.: 
 Beman, Eliza, Hollon, Austin, John, Mary, 
 Amos, Lyman, Lucy and Hannah. Amos moved 
 with his parents to Sherburne, Vt., in 1818, and 
 the year following came West to Cuyahoga Co., 
 locating in Independence a short time, then 
 came to this township, locating on Lot 43, 
 where John Wilson now resides. He died 
 about the year 1826. Amos remained with his 
 mother and eldest brother until he began bus- 
 iness for himself Nov. 7, 1832, Amos married 
 Phebe Wood, born June 3, 1814, in Bedford 
 Township, daughter of Henry and Esther (Cran- 
 mer) Wood. Henry Wood was born in Con- 
 necticut Aug. 9, 1790 ; he was a son of Sam- 
 uel, who was a son of Jonathan. Samuel Wood 
 
 
 r^ 
 
.^^ 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 955 
 
 was born June 30, 1767 ; he was married to 
 Betsy Stewart, born Aug. 22, 1768; to them 
 were born ten children, viz.: Phebe, Henry, 
 Samuel, Betsy, Silas, Lucy, Jonathan, Charlotte, 
 Julia and Esther. Jonathan Wood was born 
 in Connecticut Dec. 14, 1724, and married Abiel 
 Bailey. The Woods are of English descent, 
 the Stewarts of Irish. Betsy's father died in the 
 Revolutionary war. Henry Wood was a sol- 
 dier of the war of 1812, and, at this writing, is 
 the oldest man in the township. Nine children 
 have been born him, viz.: Phebe, Samuel, Mar- 
 tin, Maria, Henry C, Charlotte, Roxie, Henry 
 J. and Esther. After Mr. Richardson was mar- 
 ried he located in Freedom, Portage Co., where 
 he bought 40 acres, but lived there one jear 
 only, and then came to the place he now owns. 
 In August, 1834, he bought 83 acres and built 
 him a cabin where he has since I'esided. Four 
 children were born to him, viz., Ira (now in To- 
 ledo, life and fire insurance agent), Maria (Mrs. 
 A. Gr. Shields, of Hudson Township), Ellen (the 
 wife of Harlow Bissell, of Ness Co., Kan.), 
 Olive (Mrs. Fred W. Stark). Mrs. Richardson 
 is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 Mr. R. has 86 acres of land. 
 
 A. R. RINEAR, farmer ; P. 0. Northfield ; 
 is a native of this State ; was born Jan. 5, 1826, 
 in Columbiana Co. ; son of John and Mary 
 Jobs. The former was born, April 23, 1782, in 
 Burlington Co., N. J. ; the latter, June 27, 1794. 
 John Rinear was a son of Joseph, whose father 
 was a Frenchman. To Joseph was born John, 
 William, Warden, Rebecca, Jane and Amy. To 
 John and Mary (Jobs) Rinear were born Au- 
 gustus, Albert R. and Sylvester. The father 
 of A. R. came to Bedford Township, Cuyahoga 
 Co., in 1834. where he located a piece of land, 
 and returned, bringing out his famil}- in the 
 spring of 1835 ; here he remained until his 
 death, March 26, 1850, that of his wife, same 
 month, 1864 ; both of them were consistent 
 members of the M. E. Church, and adorned 
 their profession by a Christian life. Albert R. 
 was married Sept. 21, 1847, to Esther Nesbit, 
 who was born Oct. 7, 1823, in Westmoreland 
 Co., Penn., daughter of John and Ann (Mathews) 
 Nesbit. After marriage, he located on a farm 
 adjoining his father, just across the line adjoin- 
 ing Northfield, where he lived until 1850, when 
 he moved to this township, purchasing 60 acres 
 on Lot 72, where he lived until 1867, in March, 
 when he purchased 110 acres where he now re- 
 
 sides, having a good farm and under good im- 
 provements. Four children have crowned his 
 marriage, whose names are Mary, who is now 
 the wife of M. E. Van Horn ; Sylvester, now a 
 traveling salesman ; Martha and Charlotte A. 
 Mr. Rinear and entire famil}', with the exception 
 of Sylvester, are members of the U. P. Church ; 
 Sylvester is a Methodist ; Mr. Rinear has been 
 a member of his church nearl}- thirty years. 
 Mr. R. and family are readers of the leading 
 journals and prominent newspapers of the day. 
 G. M. SEIDEL, wagon-maker and undei'- 
 taker, Northfield ; was born Aug. 13, 1821, in 
 Selp, Kingdom of Bavaria, to J. M. and Eliza- 
 beth (Krautheim) Seidel. Our subject early in 
 life learned the wagon-maker's trade, and 
 worked three years at the same in Bohemia. 
 Having heard glowing accounts of America, he 
 bade good-bye to his early associations, and, in 
 the spring of 1841, set sail for our country, ar- 
 riving in Baltimore in June, soon turning his 
 steps westward to this State, crossing the Alle- 
 ghany Mountains on the inclined railroad. 
 Reaching this part of Ohio, he engaged to work 
 in Tallmadge for S. A. Lane, and afterward 
 worked two years in Akron ; then went to 
 Hudson, where he worked five 3'ears, and after 
 a limited sojourn in Twinsburg, he came to this 
 township, Feb. 23, 1848, and engaged at his 
 trade at the Center, and has since been the 
 resident wheel-wright and wagon-maker of the 
 place. Sept. 27, 1850, he married Mrs. Sa- 
 linda Bishop, whose maiden name was Lillie, 
 born in Windsor Co., Vt., March 3, 1812 ; she 
 was a daughter of Benjamin and Hannah 
 (Young) Lillie, both natives of Hebron, Conn. 
 Hannah Young is a descendant of Miles Stan- 
 dish. Mi'S. Seidel is of a family of thirteen 
 children ; seven of the number grew to matur- 
 ity, and but two of them are living — herself 
 and Mrs. Bliss. Her father died in Jericho, Vt., 
 1821. Mrs. Seidel came West with her mother 
 and her brother Cieorge, who was for twenty-one 
 years Justice of the Peace of the township, in 
 1833, locating in this township. She was married 
 to Orin A. Bishop, in October. 1845. Mr. Bish- 
 op's father was Benjamin, who married Poll}' 
 Whitcomb, of Connecticut. Orin Bishop was 
 born in Richmond, Vt., Aug. 3. 1805. and was of 
 English descent. The mother of Mrs. Seidel died 
 in August, 1864. By Mr. Bishop she had tliree 
 sons — Clark B.. Orin A. and George L., who 
 served throusjh the late war and was a member 
 
 yr. 
 
956 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 of Company K., 19th Regiment 0. V. I. ; he 
 was a true and valiant soldier, was once 
 wounded, causing a five months' absence 
 from his regiment, which in the meantime was 
 not in active service. Orin A. served three 
 months in the 115th Ohio, and was discharged 
 on account of disability. For twenty-five years 
 Mr. Seidel has been a member of the U. P. 
 Church, and is one of the Polders of that body. 
 His parents were members of the Lutheran 
 Church. Mrs. Seidel is a member of the M. E. 
 Church. Since Mr. Seidel's residence, he has 
 been engaged at his trade ; for the past five 
 years he has taken up the undertaking busi- 
 ness, and met with reasonable patronage. For 
 nearly a year past his health has become seri- 
 ously impaired, the result of a fall from the 
 scaffolding of a building, upon which he was at 
 work. 
 
 JOHN SENTER, farmer ; P. 0. Bedford. 
 To William and Jennie (Hurst) Senter were 
 born Robert, Catharine, Margaret. John and 
 Jane. Of these, John, the subject, was born 
 Dec. 23, 1805, in Lochton, County Leitram, Ire- 
 land. His parents died when he was young ; 
 all but Robert and John died of fever when 
 young. At the age of 18, Mr. Senter left his 
 native land for America, landing in New York ; 
 he soon after made his way to Cleveland, 
 where he worked on the public works for some 
 time, also at Akron, being employed at both 
 places about ten ^^ears, in which time he had 
 saved enough means to purchase some land. 
 He and James Hibbard purchased a lot to- 
 gether, situated in the northeast part of the 
 township, Mr. H. taking the south half, and 
 Mr. Senter the north, the land costing $3 per 
 acre, and was purchased two or three years 
 ere they settled on it. Dec. 31, 1843, he 
 married Jane Boyle, born June 26, 1824, in 
 Londonderry, Ireland, daughter of Edward and 
 Catharine (Alexander) Boyle. Edward was a 
 son of James ; mother's name was Rose. 
 Catharine was a daughter of John and Jen- 
 nie (Woodburn) Alexander. The Alexanders 
 and Boyles were among the prominent fam- 
 ilies in the north of Ireland ; were educated 
 and people of high respectability. Mrs. Sen- 
 ter came to this country with her parents 
 when she was but a child of 5 years. Her 
 parents settled first at Willoughby ; afterward 
 at Dayton, in Lake County, where they lived 
 until 1855, and finally moved to Dayton, Mich. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Senter have been born ten 
 chikh-en, seven of whom are living — Sarah 
 Jane (Mrs. Simpson Hibbard, of Hudson 
 Township) ; William H., of this township ; 
 Edward B., in Cuyahoga County, near by ; 
 James B., on Lot 35, west of Macedonia ; Delia 
 v., Fred B. and Carrie. Ella J., Robert and 
 John A. died when young. Mr. Senter was 
 raised a member of the Established Church, 
 and is now a member of the Baptist Church, as 
 are nearly all the famil}', Mrs. Senter having 
 been a member since she was 14 3'ears of age. 
 Mr. Senter has acquired a good property' ; be- 
 fore dividing his land he had 258 acres, all of 
 which has been the outgrowth of small begin- 
 nings. For several years he has been engaged 
 in running a dairy ; from a start of ten cows, 
 he increased the number to fox'ty-two, manu- 
 facturing their own cheese. They have raised 
 an intelligent family. Three of the eldest chil- 
 dren have taught school. Mr. Senter has now 
 141 acres of land, and still pushes ahead to 
 accumulate for his family. 
 
 A. J. SHIELDS, farmer; P. 0. Northfield; was 
 born Oct. 3, 1838, in Mahoning Co., Ohio, to Arch- 
 ibald and Sumantha (Rainey) Shields. Archibald 
 was born Oct. 16, 1808, in Mahoning Co., Ohio, 
 and Sumantha in Hudson Township July, 1812. 
 Archibald's father and two brothers came to 
 this State about the year 1810, and were in the 
 war of 1812. To Archibald's fether were born 
 William, Archibald and Andrew (twins), Betsey 
 and James. Sumantha was a daughter of 
 Comfort and Betsey (Hubbard) Rainey, to whom 
 were born seven children — Luther, Julia, Su- 
 mantha, Elizabeth, Ruth, Moses and Sarah. 
 The Raineys came West from Connecticut to 
 Hudson Township about the year 1808. Archi- 
 bald Shields was a millwright, and built the 
 mills at Little Fork. The family are of Scotch 
 ancestry, and are of good stock. To Archi- 
 bald were born ten children, all of whom lived 
 to manhood and womanhood, viz., Comfort, 
 Allen and Albert (twins), Betsey A., Angelina, 
 Cordelia, Margai-et, Elmer and Elsie. Mr. 
 Shields died Nov. 2, 1880, and enjoyed the 
 esteem and confidence of the communit}' in 
 which he lived. A. J. was reared to farming, 
 and remained with his parents until he attained 
 his 26th year. Oct. 8, 1863, he was maoried to 
 Clarissa Ford, born in this township Jan. 12, 
 1842, daughter of Marvin and Lydia (Cornell) 
 Ford ; her father was born in Hudson Town- 
 
 ^1 
 
 ns^ 
 
NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 957 
 
 ship Feb. 20, 1818 ; her mother in Rensselaer 
 Co., N. Y., Dec. 16, 1815 ; he was a son of 
 William, born in Herkimer Co., N. Y., in 1771. 
 The mother of Marvin Ford was Sallie Gray- 
 lord, who was born in Goshen, Conn., Nov. 16, 
 1783; his grandfather was Joel Gaj'lord, and 
 was a Drum Major in the war of the Revolu- 
 tion, and was with Washington at the battle of 
 Monmouth. He came to Hudson Township in 
 1800, and purchased one mile square ; his wife 
 came in 1801. She was married in Connecticut 
 to William Leach, and came out with an ox 
 team. William Ford came to Hudson in 1815, 
 and for many years was a Methodist class- 
 leader. For several 3-ears past Mr. Shields has 
 been engaged in the lumber business, and buys 
 and sells in large quantities. He has a saw- 
 mill at Macedonia ; also 150 acres of land in 
 Hudson Township. His children are — Lydia 
 S., born Sept. 3, 1864 ; Eva and Ella M. (twins), 
 Jan. 27, 1867 ; Agie D., March 16, 1870 ; Alice, 
 July 13, 1876, and Effle M. The last two men- 
 tioned died when young. The mother of Mrs. 
 Shields died May 3, 1873. She and her hus- 
 band came to this township in the year 1836. 
 
 Z. P. SORTER, farmer ; P. 0.' Northfield ; 
 son of Elijah and Margaret (Middaugh) Sorter ; 
 was born May 26, 1827, in Allegany Co., N. Y. 
 His father was born in Essex Co., N. J., Sept. 
 5, 1782 ; he was in the war of 1812. The Sor- 
 ters are of English and the Middaughs of 
 Scotch descent. Henr\" Sorter was the grand- 
 father of Z. P. To him were born nine chil- 
 dren, viz.: Elijah, Nathaniel S., Zebulon, Henry, 
 Jonathan, Rebecca, Anna, Mary and Charity. 
 Abram Middaugh was the father of John, 
 Abram, Elijah, Alvin, William. Polly and 
 Betsey. Elijah came West in March, 1831. To 
 him were born eleven children, viz.: Charles 
 (near the old homestead), Harry (who is a rep- 
 resentative to the Legislature), Isaac (in Sew- 
 ard Co., Nebraska, in the lumber business), 
 Zebulon, James M. (in Kansas, Nemaha Co.), 
 Sarah (Mrs. J. Jones, of Mayfield Township, in 
 Cuyahoga Co.), Catharine (of Missouri), Asa, 
 Gurney, Arvilla (Mrs. M. Fields, in Lake Co., 
 Ohio), and Margaret A. (Mrs. Evans, of Mis- 
 souri). The father died March 13, 1869, and 
 the mother Feb. 18. 1880. Mr. Sorter was for 
 many years a member of the M. E. Church. 
 He celebrated his golden wedding in 1861. His 
 house was the home and rendezvous of the 
 ministry. Z. P. had good school advantages, 
 
 and was a classmate of James A. Garfield at 
 the Geauga Seminary. Mr. Sorter taught school 
 twent3^-one terms, afterward engaged in farm- 
 ing ; he first bought 25 acres, then 225 in 
 Geauga Co., then 300 in Lake Co., 600 in Kan- 
 sas, and afterward 380 where he now lives. He 
 came to the township in 1871, and has since 
 remained ; he is now engaged in farming pur- 
 suits in this township. 
 
 JASON M. SPAFFORD (deceased) ; was 
 born Sept. 18, 1831, in Twinsburg Township ; 
 he was the son of Nathan and Polly (Morrison) 
 Spafford. Jason lived in Twinsburg until he 
 became a young man, then he came to North- 
 field Township with his father, where he lived 
 until March 4, 1854, when he married Philena 
 Cranson, who was born April 5, 1829, in the 
 town of Lenox, N. Y., and came West with her 
 parents (when she was 1 _year old), who located 
 in Chester, Geauga Co. Mrs. Spafford's par- 
 ents were Gershom and Philena (Fosdick) Cran- 
 son. Philena was a daughter of John and 
 Philena (Robbins) Fosdick. Gershom was born 
 in New York State, and was the son of Abner 
 Cranson. To John and Philena were born 
 fourteen children. To Gershom and Philena 
 Cranson were born nine children. The Cran- 
 sons are of French descent and the Fosdicks of 
 English. After the marriage of Mr. Spafford 
 he located on the farm now owned by his 
 widow. Mr. Spafford died May 25, 1876. He 
 was one of the substantial members of the com- 
 munity and a libei'al supporter of the Gospel ; 
 for many years he was a stanch member of the 
 Baptist Church ; he was a man highly respected 
 in the township for his man}- virtues ; he was 
 a good farmer and a successful financier, hav- 
 ing, at the time of his death, 275 acres of good 
 land. Since his death, Mrs. Spafford has re- 
 mained on the farm, which now consists of 165 
 acres, she having given 110 acres to her daugh- 
 ter Armarilla, who is the wife of Joseph Car- 
 ter, and resides in Twinsburg. Mrs. Spafford 
 has been a member of the Baptist Church for 
 many years. 
 
 ROBERT VAN HORN, farmer; P. 0. 
 Northfield ; was born Jan. 20, 1812, in Harri- 
 son Co., Ohio : son of Edward and Margaret 
 (Hamilton) Van Horn. The Van Horns are 
 origiuall}' from Holland, the early ancestors 
 emigrating to the United States in 1623, locat- 
 ing on the Holland Purchase in New York — 
 some of them owning land where Trinit}' 
 
-« s K>> 
 
 K 
 
 958 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Church now stands, in the city of New Yorlc. 
 Kobert Van Horn, whose name heads the nar- 
 rative, is of the eighth generation of the family 
 from which they trace their ancestors. Ed- 
 ward Van Horn, when a lad of 5 years, moved 
 with his father, Daniel Van Horn, to Mifflin 
 Co., Penn., where they settled in 1783 ; finall}' 
 moved to Tuscarawas Co. Daniel Van Horn's 
 wife was Anna Barteman, born 1749, daughter 
 of p]dward Barteman, whose wife was Anna 
 Debaen. They were married 1735. To them 
 were born ten children. Daniel Van Horn 
 died in Tuscarawas Co. in 1822, being 93 years 
 of age. His son Edward, the father of the 
 above, was born in New York March 10, 1778. 
 Was married, in 1803, to Margaret Hamilton, 
 who was born in Chester Co., Penn., 1776 ; 
 daughter of Robert Hamilton, of Irish descent. 
 His family consisted of four children, three 
 daughters and one son. Edward Van Horn 
 removed West to Harrison Co., this State, in 
 1807, where he purchased land, and remained 
 on the same until his death, which took place 
 1855 ; that of his wife was in 1839. To them 
 were born five children, viz., Anna, who died 
 at 12 ; Martha, never married ; Jemima, Mrs. 
 M. Downey, of Noble Co., this State ; Robert, 
 and Jane, who never married. Our subject 
 was brought up on the ftirm. Dec. 26, 1833, 
 was married to Catharine Kuhn, born Aug. 29, 
 1809, in Allegheny Co., Penn.; daughter of 
 Archibald and Martha (Stotlar) Kuhn. Mr. 
 Van Horn came to this township in April, 
 1837, purchasing 86 acres on Lot 62, for which 
 he paid $12 per acre, paying the money down. 
 There were about 25 acres partially cleared at 
 the time of his purchase. Upon this plat of 
 ground he has since remained a constant occu- 
 pant. To him have been born three children 
 — Archibald K., now a physician in Stephenson 
 Co., 111.; Ann J., now the relict of Joseph 
 Boyd, who died Aug. 31, 1875, leaving no 
 issue ; Milton A., now on farm adjoining. Mr. 
 Van Horn's family have been Presbyterians in 
 religious belief. His father, Edward, for fifty 
 years was an Elder in the Church. Mr. Van 
 Horn is a member of the U. P. Church, and is 
 Clerk of the Sessions. Edward Van Horn was 
 a soldier in the war of 1812. His brother 
 Jacob was Paymaster of the same regiment. 
 
 M. A. VAN HORN, farmer ; P. 0. Northfleld. 
 Milton A. was born on the farm where he now 
 resides, March 27, 1843, being the youngest of 
 
 a family of three children born to his parents, 
 Robert and Catharine (Kuhn) Van Horn, who 
 raised their son to agricultural pursuits. De- 
 cember, 1864, he became the husband of Har- 
 riet Thompson, who was born in Parkman, 
 Greauga Co., Ohio, daughter of Graham and 
 Harriet (Pearce) Thompson, to whom were born 
 Henry, William, Alfred, James, Robert, Mary, 
 Maria and Harriet. March 25, 1872, Mrs. Van 
 Horn, after an illness of ten days, died of dipthe- 
 ria, leaving two children— prances J., born Oct. 
 18. 1865 ; and Jennie Maria, June 19, 1870. 
 July 30, 1873, he was married to Mary A. 
 Rinear, born in Bedford Township, Cuyahoga 
 Co., and eldest daughter of Albert R. Rinear, 
 whose wife was a Nesbit. Mr. Van Horn and 
 wife are members of the U. P. Church. Aside 
 from his farming, he is engaged in trading ; lian- 
 dles agricultural implements ; handles the Eu- 
 reka Mower, of sis feet cut ; has also the agency 
 for the Cooley Creamer ; is a 3'oung man of 
 good business habits, straightforwai-d and en- 
 terprising ; and is a progressive man, open and 
 outspoken in everything that does not bear 
 upon its face the semblance of right. He is a 
 warm friend to education, and ever ready to 
 contribute to local enterprises wherein are in- 
 volved advantages that will redound to the 
 interest of the communit}' at large, but not in 
 sympathy with any institution that is working 
 under a rule of secrecy. 
 
 F. M. WAITE, farmer and contractor; P. 
 0. Northfield ; first saw the light of day Jan. 
 26, 1830, on the farm he now owns. His par- 
 ents were Benjamin and Loretta (Bacon) 
 Waite. Benjamin was born in Hatfield, Buck- 
 land Co., Mass., in the 3'ear 1796 ; his father 
 was named Benjamin, also, whose ancestors 
 were from England. The last-mentioned gen- 
 tleman's grandfather was in the French and 
 Indian wars, and was an Indian fighter ; he at 
 one time had a son captured by the Indians, 
 but the father, pursuing them to Canada, res- 
 cued him from their hands. His valor and 
 long-range rifle were well known among the 
 Indians, who, after the war terminated, made 
 several attempts to capture the rifle. At 
 one time, when plowing in the field, an In- 
 dian crept up near where he was at work, 
 and shot Mr. Waite through both arms. Know- 
 ing his gun was near at hand, and seeing the 
 owner shot, he yelled in a taunting way in 
 broken English : " You shoot no more Indian. 
 
 ^V 
 
'A 
 
 NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 959 
 
 I get long gun now." But not so ; our hero 
 succeeded in getting his gun across both fore- 
 arms, and carried it to the house ; the Indian 
 gave up the chase. Loretta, the mother of Mr. 
 Waite, was a daughter of Isaac and Nanc}' 
 (Cranmer) Bacon, who came to this township 
 as early as 1807 or 1808. Benjamin Waite. 
 the father of F. M., first came to Brecksville 
 about the 3'ear 1810 ; returning to Massachu- 
 setts, he came out again in 1814, or there- 
 abouts. In 1829, he was married, and located 
 on the farm F. M. now owns. To him was 
 born eleven children ; nine grew to maturity. 
 By his first marriage, he had Benjamin, Nelson, 
 Obadiah and Sarah ; by his second wife, Loretta 
 Bacon, were F. M., Loretta, Olive, Emily, Adah 
 and Maude. His parents were both members 
 of the M. E. Church. His father died in 1864 ; 
 his mother in 1858. During Mr. Waite's so- 
 journ in this township, he killed 300 deer, 7 
 bears, and quite a number of gray wolves. 
 Francis M., at the age of 18, bought his time ; 
 the price was $200. He then worked out one 
 year by the month, saving $100, which he in- 
 vested in a joint-stock company, and went to 
 California in 1849, where he engaged in mining, 
 remaining two years and a half, in a short 
 time returning to his father the $200, plus the 
 interest, as the price of his freedom. After 
 having an extended and varied life of change 
 and interesting incidents, he returned to this 
 township with $2,000 in gold. He was mar- 
 ried, in 1853, to Ellen Chapman, born in Hud- 
 son Aug. 12, 1828, daughter of John and Eliza 
 (Basset) Chapman. John Chapman was born 
 in England in 1792, and came to this country 
 at the age of 20, and was the first gunner on 
 board the Queen Charlotte at the battle of 
 Lake Erie. Mr. Waite has two children — 
 Bird and Laura. For several years Mr. W^te 
 has been engaged as foreman and contractor 
 on the public works at Cleveland, and else- 
 where, on sewerage and railroad building. He 
 is a member of Twinsburg Chapter, No. 74, R. 
 A. M., and Bedford Lodge, No. 375, A., F. & 
 A. M. 
 
 MRS. H. A. WALKER, farming; P. O. 
 Northfield ; was born July 11, 1808, in Lancas- 
 ter Co., Penn., to Stewart and Martha (Beard) 
 Miller. Mr. Miller died very suddenly, falling 
 from his chair while waiting for dinner. He 
 was a son of Joseph, who was of Irish ancestry, 
 as were the Beard family. Joseph Miller was 
 
 a (xcneral during the war of the Revolution, 
 and did effective service as a soldier and com- 
 missioned officer. To him were born fourteen 
 children. Stewart was blessed with seven chil- 
 dren, four are living, viz., Harriet, Mary, Re- 
 becca and Augustus, who resides in Lancaster 
 Co., Penn.; Mary, also, and the wife of William 
 Pickell ; Rebecca, now the wife of George 
 Pickell, of Caldwell Co., Mo. By the death of 
 her father and mother, Mrs. Walker, when a 
 mere child, was left alone in the world, but in 
 the person of her uncle Rev. John Banks,, who 
 married her Aunt Mary, she found protection, 
 who gave her a home and educated her. He 
 was the Pastor of the first Seceder Church in 
 Philadelphia, and was a man of superior talents 
 and great moral worth. She resided in Schenec- 
 tady at the time of her marriage, which occurred 
 Feb. 20, 1834 ; the gentleman was John Walker, 
 born in Princeton, N. Y., 1806, son of Oeorge 
 and Jane McMicken, the latter being from the 
 Highlands of Scotland. Mr. Walker was a car- 
 penter by trade, and, in 1836, came West, lo- 
 cating in this township, where Mrs. Walker now 
 resides. He first purchased 45 acres, only four 
 or five of which were cleared ; he subsequently 
 added to it, at different times, until he owned 
 the entire lot. His death occurred Sept. 3, 1866. 
 Since 1834, he had been a consistent member 
 of the U. P. Church. He was a man highly 
 esteemed in the community in which he lived. 
 Though not an over-zealous man, yet, in his at- 
 tachments to the principles which early he pro- 
 fessed, he was firm and uncompromising. For 
 several years prior to his death, he was in poor 
 health, and though enduring at times intense 
 bodily pain, yet he bore it with Christian forti- 
 tude and patient resignation. His noble and ami- 
 able companion still survives him and resides on 
 the farm, and is a firm believer in the doctrines 
 embodied in the creed of her church, having 
 been a member of the same since 1824. Her 
 farm consists of 160 acres, which she rents and 
 resides upon, having it under her own manage- 
 ment and supervision. Mrs. Walker has long 
 been esteemed in the community as an upright 
 Christian lady, and for her benevolence and 
 goodness of heart. 
 
 JAMES W. WALLACE, retired; Macedo- 
 nia. The Wallace family came from Scotland. 
 The first one of whom there is any record of 
 came from Scotland during the reign of Queen 
 Anne of England, locating in Londonderry, Ire- 
 
960 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 land. His son was John, who emigrated in 
 1716 to LondondeiT}-, New Hampshire, with his 
 father, above described his first name not 
 known. The next in regular descent was 
 James, the fourteenth child of his parents, who 
 settled in Ackwith, New Hampshire, about the 
 year 1775. He married Margai'et Archibald, 
 and by her raised ten children, viz., George, 
 Robert, Jane (married Noah Page), John, Ann 
 (married Hezekiah King), James, William, 
 Margaret (married Robert Finley), Nancy (Mrs. 
 Stephen Tharton) and Jonathan. George 
 Wallace, eldest son of James, was born March 
 6, 1776, and in 1798 came to the Western Re- 
 serve to Youngstown. June 29, 1802, he 
 married Harriet Menough, born in Maryland, 
 Feb. 25, 1784, eldest daughter of Samuel and 
 Isabella (Waugh) Menough, who emigrated 
 from Chester County, Penn., in 1790 ; eight 
 years later they came West to Youngstown 
 where they settled. To George and Harriet 
 Wallace were born James W., George Y., Per- 
 kins and Emeline. James was the only one 
 born in Trumbull County. The family after a 
 short time moved to Geauga, afterward to 
 Cleveland in 1810, and where Mr. Wallace, 
 (George) engaged in the hotel business ; was 
 here during the war of 1812. Gen. Harrison 
 and other prominent officials were many times 
 among the guests at his house. While here, 
 Mr. Wallace issued supplies to the soldiers at 
 the time of Hull's surrender under the direc- 
 tion of Gen. Jessup; afterward, entered Gen. 
 Harrison's camp where he remained until ap- 
 pointed Commissary before he could draw 
 his pay for the services rendered. While here 
 in Cleveland, Mr. Wallace built a vessel and 
 was engaged in the commission business. In 
 1814, he began building the saw-mill and dam 
 at Brandy wine. In the summer of 1815, built 
 the grist-mill, and the distillery in the fall of 
 1816 ; he put in a small stock of goods in the 
 upper room in the mill. In November, 1818, 
 he moved his family to Brandywine. In the 
 fall of 1820, commenced building the factory 
 which began operations the 3^ear following spin- 
 ning and carding ; 1822, began manufacturing, 
 the products of which supplied the wants in 
 this line for forty miles each vfay, and was for 
 several years one of the prominent manufact- 
 uring points in the State. In 1843, the mill 
 was swept off by high water. George Wallace 
 died April 4, 1849, Mrs. W. Jan. 4, 1848. The 
 
 subject of these lines was born Nov. 27, 1803, 
 in Youngstown, the eldest son of George and 
 Harriet (Menough) Wallace, was raised to 
 active business pursuits under the training and 
 guardianship of his father. In 1825, began 
 business on his own account ; about his first 
 adventure in business was taking two-mile con- 
 tract building canal ; afterward, in compau}^ 
 with his father and another party, took four 
 miles near Massillon, subsequently built five 
 miles and aqueduct at Roscoe ; afterward 
 boated two years. Then engaged in the em- 
 ploy of Giddings, Baldwin, Pease & Co., con- 
 tinuing in their employ' five years ; firm name 
 was afterward changed to S. A. Andrews, 
 Baldwin & Co.; he remained with this firm in 
 the capacity of purchasing agent during the 
 winter, taking charge of the water craft during 
 boating season; was then known on the line as 
 Capt. Wallace. Subsequentlj' went to Boston, 
 where he was agent for the Boston Land Com- 
 pany for some time, where he remained until 
 spring of 1838. He and his brother George 
 carried on the business at Brandy wine after their 
 father retired. After Mr. Wallace abandoned 
 the agency for the firms above mentioned, he 
 returned to Brandywine, where he remained 
 permanenth', being mostly afterward engaged 
 in farming. Sept. 8, 1835, he was married to 
 Adaline Hanchett, who was born near River 
 Raisin, Wisconsin, June 17, 1817, daughter of 
 Hiram and Mary (Smith) Hanchett ; he was 
 born in New York, she in Massachusetts ; they 
 had three children. Hiram Hanchett was a 
 surve3'or ; previous to 1814, he built the "Lady 
 of the Lake," the first good vessel that was 
 built on Lake Erie. In 1871, Mr. Wallace 
 moved to his present place where he has since 
 resided. Mr. Wallace is now in a measure re- 
 tired from active buiness ; has been successful 
 in his business relations and now ranks among 
 the affluent and solid financial men of the 
 county. His excellent business qualifications 
 have been called into requisition at different 
 times as a public officer, serving at one time as 
 Trustee on the Clinton Railroad, and in all the 
 different and various phases of his business 
 life he has ever sustained himself as an upright 
 man and worthy citizen. He and wife are 
 members of the Presbyterian Church, and in all 
 the various relations in societ}' have merited the 
 esteem with which he is held in the commu- 
 nity. Has five children living — Hiram H., 
 
 fv" 
 
J^ 
 
 NOETHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 961 
 
 Warren W., Leonard C, Mar}- C. the wife of 
 Lorain Bliss, and Margie S. 
 
 H. H. WALLACE, fanning; P. 0. North- 
 field ; was born Feb. 18, 1843, in Boston 
 Township, being the second child born to James 
 Wallace ; remained at home until he was sev- 
 eral years past his majority. Dec. 5, 1867, 
 was married to Mary A. Mearns, born in Cecil 
 Co., Northeast Maryland, Feb. 15, 1843, daugh- 
 ter of John and Mary (Waugh) Mearns ; she 
 was a daughter of Esquire Robert Waugh, who 
 obtained his land from William Penn, the deed 
 bearing his seal upon it ; this land remained in 
 the Waugh family for 103 years. The Mearns 
 and Waughs are of Scotch-Irish descent. Mrs. 
 Wallace was of a famil}' of five children — 
 William R., Martha J., Mary A., Stephen J. and 
 Charles F. Her father died 1869, at the ripe 
 age of 80 3'ears. Since Mr. Wallace was mar- 
 ried he has been a constant resident of the 
 township with the exception of nine years spent 
 in Pocahontas Co., Iowa, where he has 640 
 acres of land ; he went in 1871, and returned 
 to this county in 1880. Jan. 8, 1880, he pur- 
 chased the farm he now owns, situated on Lot 
 64, where he has 86:^ acres with good brick 
 house thereon. Has six children — Adda, Belle 
 M., Anna W., Margie S., George H., Schuyler 
 H., Mary L. died young, aged 2 years. Both 
 Mr. Wallace and wife are members of the 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 CHARLES WEST, farmer ; P. 0. Macedonia ; 
 was born April 17, 1803, in Hebron, Washing- 
 ton Co., N. Y. ; his parents were Charles and 
 Patience (Lee) West. Charles West's grand- 
 father was named Levi. Charles and Patience 
 had three children — Ira, Egbert and Charles. 
 The latter never saw his father, his birth occur- 
 ring about two months after his death ; his moth- 
 er, the same 3'ear of his birth, moved to Dover, 
 Dutchess Co., N. Y., where she again married, 
 and he lived with them until he was about 19 
 3'ears of age, at which time his brother Egbert 
 came and took him back to his native count3^ 
 Mr. West engaged that winter with Titus 
 Foster to board him in lieu of services rendered 
 night and morning while attending school ; soon 
 after he hired to work for Mr. Foster, and con- 
 tinued to work by the month until his mar- 
 riage, which occurred Jan. 17, 1833. The lady, 
 Mary B. Nelson was born Feb. 15, 1802, to 
 John and Martha (Baldi'idge) Nelson. After 
 his marriage, Mr. West worked land on shares 
 
 until, in 1835. he came West, direct to this 
 township and purchased 50 acres of land, 
 which, b}' means of industry and economy, he 
 has increased to about 90 acres of good land 
 all paid for, situated a short distance east of 
 Macedonia, where he lives enjo3'ing the quiet 
 of his home ; his first wife died, leaving three 
 children — Martha B., Fannie N. and Patience 
 A., who married Anson Hollister, and moved 
 to White Co., 111. She has since died, leaving 
 one son — Frank C. ; Martha and Fannie reside 
 with their father. Mr. West was married to 
 Nanc}' Johnson, who was also a native of 
 Hebron, Washington Co., N. Y. ; she died Feb. 
 4, 1879, leaving no issue. For many 3'ears 
 Mr. West has been a consistent member of the 
 Baptist Church, in close communion. In poli- 
 tics, he has always been a Democrat of the 
 Andrew Jackson type, and is as honest in his 
 sentiments politicall3' as in his religious tenets. 
 JOHN WILSON, farmer ; P. 0. Northfield ; 
 was born Sept. 6, 1816, in Allegheny Co., Penn., 
 to John and Mar}' S. (Kiddoo) Wilson. John 
 was a son of John and Jean Renshaw, to whom 
 were born a famil3^ of twelve children, viz., 
 James, Andrew, Mary, John, Eliza, Agnes, Will- 
 iam, Samuel, Susan, Joseph, Mary and Benja- 
 min. To John Wilson was born John, Mary, 
 James, Samuel, Margaret and Sarah T. To 
 James Kiddoo, the father of Mar}', were born 
 Thomas, John, David, Samuel, Joseph, Mary, 
 Jane, Isabella, Fannie and Betsey. John Wil- 
 son, the father of our subject, was born on Mon- 
 day Sept. 20, 1789, in Allegheny Co., Penn.; his 
 wife, same place. May 27, 1790. To them were 
 born eight children ; six grew to maturity — 
 James, John, David M., Mary J., Joseph F., 
 William R. After Mr. Wilson left home, he 
 lived with his uncle, Samuel Kiddoo, and was 
 raised to agricultural pursuits. He came West 
 to this township in the fall of 1843, and pur- 
 chased 84 acres on Lot 43 ; returning East, 
 came back in the spring of 1844. June 6, 
 same year, was married to Hannah Chapin, 
 who was born in Westmoreland Co., Penn., Oct. 
 9, 1819, daughter of Amzi and Hannah (Power) 
 Chapin. Amzi was a son of Edward Chapin. 
 The Chapin family have all descended from 
 Deacon Samuel Chapin, who came from En- 
 gland and settled in Springfield, Mass., in 1642. 
 From this reverend gentlemen have sprung the 
 numerous progeny of Chapins. Hannah 
 Powers was a daughter of Rev. James Powers, 
 
 IT' 
 
k 
 
 962 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 whose wife was a Miss Tanner. Arazi was born 
 in Springfield, Mass., Marcli 2, 1768. Married 
 to Hannati Powers, Oct. 10, 1800. She was 
 born June 17, 1781. To tliem were born eight 
 children — Mary. Eunice L., James P., Jane S., 
 Eliza, Amzi, Hannah and Rebecca M. Of this 
 number Mrs. Wilson is the sole surviving mem- 
 ber of the family. Edward Chapin, the father 
 of Arazi, was born Feb. 16, 1 724. Eunice Col ton, 
 his wife, was born Jul}' 19, 1728. To this ven- 
 erable twain were born Aaron, Edward, Lu- 
 cretia. Lucius, Calvin, Alpheus, Amzi and 
 Eunice L. This couple died Jan. 6, 1800, and 
 April 8, 1806, respectively. The religion of the 
 family has been Presbyterian on both sides. 
 Since 1844, Mr. Wilson has been a constant 
 resident of the farm he located upon at the time 
 of his arrival. His farm is under excellent im- 
 provement, with neat buildings. He has two 
 sons. Amzi, born June 17, 1845 ; William J., 
 born Aug. 9, 1847. Amzi has been licensed to 
 preach, and is now at the seminary (theological) 
 preparing for the ministry. William J. is in 
 the piano trade at Cleveland. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Wilson are members of the Presbyterian Church, 
 of which her father, Amzi was one of the found- 
 ers. He came West in 1831, locating on Lot 
 81, where he purchased 160 acres. He died 
 Feb. 19, 1835 ; she, June 15, 1855. 
 
 THKODOSIUS WOOD, Macedonia; was 
 born Jan. 14, 1801, in Buckland, Franklin Co., 
 Mass. His parents were Amos and Lovica 
 (Temple) Wood. Amos was a son of Forbes 
 Wood, whose ancestors came from England. 
 The mother of Lovica Temple was Lucretia 
 Butler ; her grandfather was one of two 
 brothers who settled in Boston during the early 
 history, and built several blocks of buildings on 
 their land in that city. Both the Butlers and 
 Woods are noted for their longevity ; two of 
 his grandmothers lived to be 87 each ; two 
 aunts lived to be 100 and 104 respectively. 
 
 Forbes Wood and Amos, his son, were both in 
 the war of the Revolution. They were among 
 the earh^ settlers in Buckland. Amos was 
 twice married, having by both wives fifteen 
 children. Mr. Wood was married to Betsey 
 Johnson in May, 1831; she was born April 12, 
 1812, in Buckland, Franklin Co., Mass. Her 
 parents were Josiah and Betsey (Elmore) John- 
 son. Forbes Wood married a lady by the name 
 of Gauze, of Scotch descent, and by her had 
 John, Amos, Lovica and Sallie. Both Forbes 
 and son Amos were stanch old " Feds," and 
 stood by the colonists in their efforts for free- 
 dom. Forbes was a soldier in the old French 
 and Indian war, and when the time came for 
 him to take his stand he did it, both he and son 
 casting their lots with the lo3'al New England 
 people. Theodosius came West in 1832, reach- 
 ing this State in September of the same year ; 
 he first purchased 96 acres at Strongsville, 
 Cu3'ahoga Co. After one year's ownership he 
 sold out and moved to Calhoun Co., Mich., 
 where he purchased 150 acres. After a short 
 residence there, he sold it at a gain of $1,600, 
 and came to this town, where he bought 72^ 
 acres. Subsequentlj' he moved to Wisconsin, 
 near Milwaukee, where he invested in land, 
 remaining there two 3'ears ; he then sold it at a 
 marked advance, and returned to this township, 
 where he has since lived. He has a comfortable 
 home, and is in the possession of a reasonable 
 competence to provide for all his wants. He 
 has no children. Mr. Wood has already passed 
 the limit of time alloted to the race, and is now 
 spending the eve of his life in the enjoyment of 
 his home. He has always acted independent 
 of sects or denominations, 3'et alwa3'S favored 
 everything known to be right, and is not in 
 sympathy with an3' scheme or enterprise that 
 will not augment the interests of the people at 
 large. He is no partisan, but a firm and solid 
 Republican. 
 
 r 
 
2^; 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 963 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 DANIEL ANDREW, retired farmer; P. O. 
 Sherman; was born in Northampton Co., 
 Penn., near Nazareth, July 7, 1796, and is a 
 son of Jonathan, he of Nicholas; his mother 
 was Elizabeth (Myer) Andrews, daughter of 
 Martin Myer, who are all natives of Penn- 
 sylvania. The limit of Daniel's education 
 was about four terms' attendance upon sub- 
 scription school, his earlier life being spent 
 in making spools, for his father was a weaver 
 by trade. He afterward engaged in an agri- 
 cultural life until about 30 years of age, when 
 he learned the trade of millwright, at which 
 he worked several years. In aljout 1850, he 
 settled at Ri%er Styx, where he resided one 
 year, then moved to the farm on which he now 
 lives, and where there is now being mined, by 
 a Cleveland firm, a superior quality of coal, 
 from a four-and-a-half-foot vein, yielding him 
 a handsome I'oyalty. He was married to 
 Anna Friede, by whom he had nine children, 
 six of whom are living, viz. : Stephen, Daniel, 
 James, Josiah, Melinda and Catharine; all are 
 married; Joseph, Cyrus and Edward are de- 
 ceased, the two latter leaving families in good 
 circumstances in the West. His wife dying, 
 he was married to a Mrs. Clay, the widow 'A 
 Henry Clay; her maiden name was Peggy 
 Pontius. Mr. Andrews is a member of the 
 Reformed Church, and has been for about fif- 
 ty-five years, and is a gentleman commanding 
 the respect of all the peuple of his community. 
 
 CHARLES H. BAUER, retired farmer; P. 
 O. Loyal Oak; is a son of Daniel, who was 
 born in Bethlehem, Northampton Co., Penn., 
 April 10, 1801, the son of Jacob, he the son 
 of Charles, who was born in G-ennany early 
 in 1700. The mother of Daniel was G-erti'ude 
 Shott, the daughter of Elizabeth (Maudan 
 Shott. Daniel received a very meager educa- 
 tion, his tinje being spent on the farm with 
 his father. On Nov. 22, 1822, he was mar- 
 ried to Elizabeth Miller, sister to John Miller, 
 whose history appears in this work. By this 
 union there were three sons and three daugh- 
 
 ters — Susannah Maria, born March 22, 1824; 
 John J., March 12, 1825; Charles H., Sept. 7, 
 1826; Catharine L., Dec. 30, 1828; Joseph D., 
 Mai-ch 30, 1832; Elvina E., Aug. 15, 1839. 
 Mr. Bauer's was one of the six families who 
 came to Ohio in 1843, of whom mention is 
 made in another part of the work. He is a 
 very sprightly old gentleman for one having 
 passed fourscore years. His son Charles was 
 given as good educational advantages as could 
 be obtained in the district schools of an early 
 date, remaining w^th his father upon the 
 home farm, which was piu'chased upon arriv- 
 ing in this country, until his marriage, Aug. 
 27, 1853, to Sarah Everhard, who was born 
 Nov. 11, 1832, to Jonathan and Catharine 
 (Wall) Everhard. They were natives, the 
 former of Armstrong Co., the latter from Sun- 
 bury, on the Susquehanna, in the State of 
 Pennsylvania. Jonathan Everhard was the 
 third settler in Sharon Township, Medina Co., 
 where he went from Wadsworth with a few 
 men and built a house in one day, returning 
 at night. By his marriage with Sarah Ever- 
 hard there were two children born; one died 
 in infancy, and Leora C, born Feb. 10, 1864, 
 is now attending school in Pennsylvania. Mr. 
 Bauer is now holding the office of Township 
 Treasurer; is an enterprising man in all the 
 affairs of the township; a member, with his 
 family, of the Lutheran Church, and a liberal 
 giver to the cause of Christianity. 
 
 JOHN J. BAUER, tanner; Loyal Oak; 
 is a son of Daniel Bauer, whose hiotory ap- 
 pears with that of Charles Bauer in this work. 
 He received but a limited education, yet, from 
 his earliest years, has shown a remai'kable apt- 
 ness for mathematics. He lived with his fa- 
 ther in a Moravian settlement in Pennsylva- 
 nia, on a farm which had been leased by the 
 gi'andfather, and where his father had resided 
 for thirty-one years, up to 1843, when he 
 sought a home in Norton. At 22 years of 
 age, he began learning the mason's trade with 
 his uncle, but abandoned it after two years 
 
lL^ 
 
 964 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 on account of sickness. He then learned dis- 
 tilling, working five years at that without 
 drinking one drop. He then engaged in 
 farming with his brother Charles, pm-chasing 
 the farm in partnership now owned by the lat- 
 ter. For several years, he engaged in cooper- 
 ing at the Corners. In ISB-t, after disposing 
 of his farming and coopering interests, he pur- 
 chased the tannery now owned and carried on 
 by himself and son Byron. He was married, 
 Jan. 17, 1850, to Catharine Everhard, daugh- 
 ter of Jonathan and Mary (Wall) Everhard, 
 she a sister to Catharine Wall, mother of 
 Charles Bauer's wife. They have had, by this 
 marriage, seven children — six sons and one 
 daughter — five of whom are living, two having 
 died in infancy; they are Milton M., born 
 June 4, 1853; Byron B., June 24, 1850; Jon- 
 athan M., June 25, 1861; Cora O., Jan. 9, 
 1864; Albert A., Dec. 22, 1865. Milton, a 
 graduate of the National Normal School at 
 Lebanon, Ohio, also a graduate of the Long 
 Island Medical College at Brooklyn, N. Y., 
 now practicing at Uniontown, Stark Co. ; By- 
 ron, married to Fannie Jennings, daughter of 
 Joseph and Elizabeth (Wall) Jennings; they 
 have one child, born Jan. 21, 1881. making 
 the fiftieth heir of Daniel Bauer in this 
 State; J. M. is engaged with HaiTison & Hol- 
 loway, dry goods merchants, South Aki'on; the 
 two younger are at home. Mr. Bauer has been 
 nine years Justice of the Peace, three years 
 Township Clerk, one year Treasurer of Town- 
 ship, and for more than ten years a member 
 of the School Board. He and family are 
 members of the Lutheran Church, he being 
 one of the most ]>rominent supporters of 
 chm'ches and schools in the township. He 
 has been a leader of singing in the clmrch 
 since 1851, and his daughter organist since 
 her 12 th year. 
 
 JOSEPH D. BAUER, farmer; P. O. Loyal 
 Oak; a member of one of the oldest and most 
 prominent families in Norton Township; was 
 born March 30, 1832. His father was Daniel 
 Bauer, whose history appears in another place 
 in this work. Aboitt twenty years of his early 
 life were spent on the farm wi^^^h his father, 
 and in receiving his education ; after that age, 
 he learned the wagon- maker's trade at Loyal 
 Oak, with his brother-in-law, William Sweit- 
 
 zer. He was married, Sept. 30, 1854, to 
 Sarah Serfass, daughter of Andrew and Sarah 
 (Hawk) Serfass; her grandparents were Law- 
 rence and Barbara Serfass, and John and 
 Susannah (Hahn) Hawk, all natives of the 
 eastern part of Pennsylvania, principally Car- 
 bon Co. They have had four children, two of 
 whom are living — Lorinda L., born Dec. 1, 
 1855, died July 10, 1862; Ann Adelia. Sept. 
 2, 1859, died July 4, 1862, of that dreadful 
 disease, diphtheria; William D., June 4, 
 1863; Fietta E., Dec. 25, 1865. Joseph has 
 resided in Norton Township since 11 years of 
 age, and held the most responsible offices — 
 that of Treasurer, Trustee, and, in 1880, was 
 Ileal Estate Assessor, giving satisfaction to 
 the landholders and receiving the sanction of 
 the County Board. He is a liberal sup- 
 porter of religion and education; is a member 
 of the School Board, and he and family are 
 members of the Lutheran Churck and Sabbath 
 school. 
 
 JOHN C. BAUGHMAN, farmer; P. O. 
 Johnson's Corners; was born in Lancaster Co., 
 Penn., March 2, 1827, and came with his par- 
 ents, John and Agnes (Com-ad) Baughman, an 
 older brother and one sister, to Chippewa 
 Township, Wayne Co., where they resided four- 
 teen years, the father working at cabinet-mak- 
 ing, the two sons clearing and tending a small 
 piece of land which they had purchased. In 
 the fall of 1844, they moved to the now Stein- 
 bring farm, which he purchased and farmed 
 vmtil 1856, afterward selling the same to his 
 son, John C, and returned to Wayne Co., 
 where his wife died; he then lived alone be- 
 tween four and five years, when he left his 
 home and lived with his childi-en until his 
 death, which occurred in 1872, at the home of 
 our subject. By close application, Mr. 
 Baughman has acquired a good education, 
 although attending school bttt a short time; 
 at 20 years of age, he began working at the 
 carpenter and joiner's trade, having, previous 
 to that time, acquired some knowledge of the 
 the trade. He is now, in connection with his 
 farming, engaged in contracting and building, 
 and is quite extensively engaged in the liun- 
 ber business. He was married, July 29, 1849, 
 to Elizabeth Barkhamer, daughter of John 
 and Dorothy (Flickinger) Barkhamer, natives 
 
 f 
 
41 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 965 
 
 of Pennsylvania, the father settling in Frank- 
 lin Township about 1815. They have had 
 eight children, live of whom are living — 
 Ruben B., born July 12, 1850; Isaac J., Oct. 
 10, 1851; Arvilla, April 1, 1855; Callista, Jan. 
 21, 1863; Clara E., Aug. 21, 1875; those de- 
 ceased are Amanda E., born Nov. 2, 1856, died 
 Oct. 29, 1860; Emma, born April 3, 1861, 
 died March 27, 1863; Cora, born June 11, 
 1865, died Sept. 24, 1870. Ruben B., married 
 to a Miss Wise, farming east of Johnson's 
 Corners; Isaac J., to Mary Minor, he a medi- 
 cal student with Dr. Rockwell; Arvilla, a Mrs. 
 William H. Nice, residing in Wadsworth, he 
 a teacher. Mr. Baughman has held the offices 
 of Township Treasui'er and Trustee; was a 
 candidate for Infirmary Director, and received 
 the nomination for County Treasurer by the 
 Democratic party, but declined the nomination. 
 They are members of the Reformed Church. 
 JOSEPH BURGESS, farmer and coal 
 miner; P. O. Johnson's Corners; was born in 
 Lancashire, England, about forty miles from 
 Liverpool, and six miles from Manchester, 
 Dec. 10, 1820. He is a son of Samuel, who 
 died at 49 years of age; he of John Burgess. 
 Joseph received three months' schooling, for 
 which he paid a tuition of 6 cents per week. At 
 7^ years, he began learning, with his father, 
 the trade of weaving silk, cotton and fancy 
 flower work, by which he was able to earn his 
 father about $3 per week. His mother was 
 Ann Simpson, a daughter of Robert Simp- 
 son, who lived to 94 years of age, and 
 a brother to James Simpson, noted in the 
 manufactiu'ing circles of England. The par- 
 ents of oui' subject died — the mother when he 
 was but 10 years of age, the father when he 
 was 14. At 19 years of age, he was made a 
 member of the organization of Odd Fellows; 
 at the same age, after working twelve hours 
 a day, would attend the night school. He 
 gained valuable inf oimation in the business of 
 mining in England, among other practical 
 points which have been conducive to his suc- 
 cess. In the spring of 1848, he came to 
 America; worked in the States of Pennsylva- 
 nia and Rhode Island until in the spring of 
 1849, when he came to the farm upon which 
 he now lives, and began opening the coal-bank 
 known as the Bartsfess bank, which he rented 
 
 for seven years, then bought, subsequently 
 selling to Mr. Bartgess. He has now just 
 completed, with his brother-in-law, the open- 
 ing of a valuable bank of coal two miles west 
 of Massillon, having leased 60 acres, 40 of 
 which, after prospecting, proves a vein aver- 
 aging from foui* to four and a half feet of 
 superior quality. The firm name is Sonn- 
 halter & Burgess. He was married to Catha- 
 rine SonnJialter Jan. 29, 1856, by whom he 
 has three living childi'en — Thomas, Samuel 
 and George, all Iving at home; a little girl 
 was drowned in infancy. Mi\ Burgess has 
 for the last thirty-three years been a subscriber 
 to the Boston Investigator — being a man of lib- 
 eral views, bu.t of strict honesty and integrity 
 in all business transactions, and having the 
 confidence of the people who know him. 
 
 ALVIN D. BETZ, farmer; P. O. Norton 
 Center; was born in Hu.ntingdon Co., Penn., 
 July 19, 1826; son of Abraham, he of John 
 Betz; his mother was Sarah Beyer, daughter 
 of David Beyer. Alvin received a limited 
 education, assisting his father on the farm 
 until 16 years of age, then engaged exclusively 
 in farming; was married May 20, 1846. In 
 the fall of 1849, he moved to Pacific, Colum- 
 bia Co., Wis., where he pui'chased land and 
 resided about twelve years in the State of 
 Wisconsin and one year in Minnesota, he 
 holding a claim on the Winnebago Reserva- 
 tion; having disposed of his property in the 
 West, he purchased the old homestead upon 
 which he now lives. Twelve childi'en were 
 born to them, ten of whom are living — Sarah 
 J., Jerusha C, Mary S., John Charles Fre- 
 mont, Clara E., Ira David, Archie Oliver, 
 Hazwell Abraham, Alvin E. and Lam-a E. 
 Jerusha C, now Mrs. Charles Seiberling; 
 Clara E., Mrs. Joseph May, both living in 
 Iowa; Sarah J., Mrs. John L. Serf ass; Charles, 
 married Susan Cassell; both are living in 
 Summit Co. Mr. Betz is a prominent man 
 and office-holder in the Summit Grange, No. 
 1283, of which he is the founder, and very 
 proud of it, as it is the most flom-ishing 
 grange in the county. Mr. Betz is an enthu- 
 siastic supporter of all religious denomina- 
 tions, and all entei-prises for the advancement 
 of education, and a good moral atmosphere 
 throughout the county. He is engaged in the 
 
 (^ 
 
966 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 breeding of thoroughbred cattle and hogs, a 
 general farming, and bee culture. He and 
 wife are connected with the Mutual Protec- 
 tion Association of Columbus, Ohio. The fa- 
 ther of our subject settled in Wadsworth 
 Township, Medina Co., from the State of 
 Pennsylvania, in about 1822, where they lived 
 until in 1847, when they moved to the farm 
 now occupied by the son. 
 
 AARON BETZ, farmer; P. O. Loyal Oak; 
 is the second son of a family of live sons and 
 two daughters, and was bom June 2, 1835. 
 His father was John, born in March, 1808, 
 died Feb. 1, 1863; he of John, born in 1773, 
 and died in 1852. They settled in Chippewa 
 Township, Wayne Co., Ohio, from Pennsylva- 
 nia, about 1821. His mother, who is still liv- 
 ing, was Rebecca Beyer, born Jan. 27, 1807, 
 daughter of David, born Sept. 7, 1763, and 
 Sarah (Crum) Beyer; her grandfather was 
 William Crum, born April 5, 1731, died Oct. 
 10, 1790; her grandmother was Mary (Crum) 
 Cnun, born Dec. 5, 1746, died June 26, 1798. 
 They had four children — Maiy, Sarah, Abra- 
 ham, William. Aaron remained on the farm 
 until his enlistment, in 1861, in Co. C, Akron 
 B. L. I., P. C. Haid, Captain, but was the 
 same year honorably discharged on account of 
 disability. He re-enlisted, however, in 1862, 
 and served in Quartermaster's Department, 7th 
 Division, Army of the Ohio, at Cumberland 
 Ford, Ky., when he was again honorably dis- 
 charged. He theii remained at home in 
 charge of the farm, his parents being aged, and 
 three other sons being in the army, and his 
 oldest brother in Wisconsin. He was married, 
 Aug. 20, 1863, to Catharine Baughman, born 
 Oct. 24, 1835, and daughter of David and 
 Elizabeth (Blocker) Baughman. They have 
 ten children — Bertha R., Mary E,. George 
 W., Florence L., Susan C, JohnD., Sarah E., 
 Charles O., Fred E., Rocse Ellen. Mr. Betz 
 is engaged in grain-raising and feeding stock ; 
 has held the office of Township Trustee two 
 terms, and a member of the School Board. 
 He is also a member of the Norton 'Subordi- 
 nate Grange, of which he is a prominent 
 office-holder. 
 
 NORMAN BLOCKER, farmer; P. O. Loyal 
 Oak; was born March 8, 1835, to Eli and Mary 
 (Myers) Blocker, who were natives of the State 
 
 of Maryland; his father, Eli, was born in 
 1807, and died in 1845. Although his death 
 occurred in early life, he had suffered all the 
 trials of an early pioneer life, in clearing up 
 the farm where his son now resides. His first 
 settlement in this State was in Wadsworth 
 Township, Medina Co., but, subsequent to his 
 marriage, he moved to Norton Township, 
 where there were five children born unto them, 
 two of whom are living. Norman, the second 
 of the family of children, received but a lim- 
 ited education in the district school, his help 
 being required, at 10 years of age, by his wid- 
 owed mother in supporting the family and 
 tending the farm, where he has been engaged 
 since. His mother is still living, in her 75th 
 year, as hale and hearty as twenty years ago. 
 Norman was married. Nov. 9, 18(51-, to Mary 
 Elizabeth Betz, daughter of John and Rebecca 
 (Byers) Betz, natives of Pennsylvania. Mrs. 
 Blocker was born July 5, 1839. They have 
 had four children, three of whom are living — 
 David E., born March 21, 1863; Lillian G., 
 June 8, 1864, died Sept. 18, 1864; Ermina 
 Amelia, Sept. 2, 1865; and Samuel Allen, 
 Nov. 13, 1875. Mr. Blocker has at heart the 
 furtherance of all good enterprises and prin- 
 ciples, the improvement of stock and agricult- 
 ure, and the promotion of the principles of 
 the Republican party. 
 
 DAVID L. CARTMILL, telegraph oper- 
 ator. New Portage; born at Annapolis, Parke 
 Co., Ind., Feb. 12, 1845, to Jacob and Eliza 
 (Atchinson) Cartmill, and was the third of 
 four children. The father died when David 
 was but 5 years of age. At about 10 years 
 of age, he came to New Portage and began 
 working to educate himself, which, by his 
 energy, he succeeded in doing. He began 
 working, in 1860, in the pottery, where he 
 continued for about eight years, and at 
 the expiration of that time, on account of 
 the injury to his health, he abandoned the 
 business, having, in the meantime, devoted his 
 evenings to the study of telegraphy, which he 
 subsequently adopted as a business, and, after 
 working at several different places, was given 
 charge of the office at New Portage, on the N. 
 Y., P. & O. R. R., formerly the A. & G. W., 
 where he has been for the last thirteen years. 
 He was married, March 4, 1872, to Miss Hattie 
 
 -^1^ 
 
.2^ 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 967 
 
 Hettrick, who was boru March 20, 1850, to 
 John and Mary Jane Hettrick. They have 
 one child — Harley Edwin, born March 28, 
 3874; they are also raising a little niece, 
 Mary May, bom June 10, 1874. He is a 
 member of the Masonic fraternity at Wads- 
 worth, member of the School Board, and, with 
 his wife, a member of the M. E. Church, in 
 which he is one of the Trustees. The follow- 
 ing is a brief account of the tragic death of 
 his uncle: In the year 1825, on the 9th of 
 September, a civil, qiiiet man named Johnston 
 fell in with yoiuig Cartmill (an uncle of the 
 subject of this sketch) as he was carrying the 
 mail from Freeport to Coshocton, and, when 
 night came on, the two stopped at a tavern 
 kept by Mrs. Sarah Booth, which was on the 
 Coshocton road. The next day, they contin- 
 ued their joiu-ney together, and, after going 
 about three miles, came to a spring of cold, 
 clear water, where Johnston paused to get a 
 drink, while Cartmill went on up the hill. 
 The sharp report of a gun and a scream of 
 teiTor burst simultaneously upon the ear of 
 Johnston, who hastily ran on and found the 
 poor boy weltering in his own blood and so 
 near dead that he could not speak. Circum- 
 stantial evidence appeared against Cartmill's 
 companion; consequently, he was confined in 
 the New Philadelphia Jail, which was a log 
 building standing on the ground now occu- 
 pied by the public offices. He was finally 
 proven innocent, and the miu-derer of the boy, 
 a young man by the name of Funston, proven 
 guilty by the identification of a $10 bill known 
 to have been in the possession of the mail -boy. 
 He was tried, convicted, and, on the 80th day 
 of December, was taken to the place of execu- 
 tion, where he paid the penalty of the law for 
 the commission of one of the most dastardly 
 deeds ever chi'onicled. 
 
 DR. M. M. DICKSON, Johnson's Corners; 
 a son of Robert Dickson, who was a native of 
 Dumfrieshire, Scotland, emigrating to this 
 country at 21 years of age, and locating in 
 York Co., Penn., in 1819, died in 1800. His 
 mother was Susanna McCall, who died in 1849, 
 at 40 year* of age; she a daughter of Matthew 
 and Ann (Logue) McCall. The great-grand- 
 father of our subject. Matthew McCall, came 
 from Ireland to this country in about 1 770, and 
 
 engaged in the war of the Revolution during 
 the whole time. The Doctor was born near 
 York, Penn., March 23, 1828; his parents 
 soon after (probably in 1829) settled near 
 Zanesville, where they engaged in farming, 
 our subject residing in that vicinity until 
 about 24 years of age, when he located in New 
 Portage, where he remained, completing .his 
 studies and practicing for two years, when he 
 settled permanently in the village of his pres- 
 ent location. In his early youth, he learned 
 the potter's trade while at home, which served 
 him in educating himself in after life, he re- 
 ceiving a diploma from the Cleveland Medi- 
 cal College in the month of February, 1855. 
 He enlisted in the 74th O. V. I. as Assistant 
 Surgeon, which position he held two years, 
 then was made Surgeon of the regiment until 
 the close of the war; he joined the army at 
 Stone River, being present subsequently at 
 the battles of Chickamauga and Chattanooga, 
 where the regiment remained all winter, being 
 exposed to great suffering; then at Lookout 
 Mountain and Mission Ridge. After the re- 
 enlistment of the regiment, they started from 
 Ringgold, being present at Buzzard's Roost, 
 Resaca, and many other battles and skirmishes 
 in their march of 150 miles, which occupied 
 twenty-one days. They were in the 14th 
 Corps, imder Gen. Thomas; also in Sherman's 
 march to the sea. After remaining in Savamiah 
 for a time, they crossed the Savannah River and 
 marched up through South and North Caro- 
 lina to Martha's Vineyard, where Johnston's 
 army surrendered to Sherman, which ended 
 that campaign. They then participated in the 
 review of " Sherman's bummers," at Washing- 
 ton; they were then sent to Louisville, with 
 the intention of going into Texas to look after 
 Kirby Smith, but returned to Cincinnati, where 
 they were mustered out of service and retiu'ned 
 home about the 1st of August, 1865. He was 
 married, June 14, 1854, to Sylvina Irviu, 
 daughter of John and Clara (Merton) Irvin, 
 who were residents of Zanesville. By this 
 marriage there were seven children, three of 
 whom are living — Chalmers M.. born April 
 25, 1855; Gertrude C, July 28, 1800; Robert 
 Theodore, June 25, 1871; the remaining four 
 died in infancy. Chalmei's M. is a graduate 
 of the Michigan University at Ann Arbor, and 
 
 ^ 
 
'H. 
 
 968 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 is now practicing medicine at Port Clinton, 
 Ohio, and building tip a successful practice. 
 The Doctor is thoroughly interested in the 
 education of his family, and has been success- 
 fully engaged in mercantile pursuits at the 
 village in which he now lives. 
 
 URIAH EBBERT, farmer; P. O. Western 
 Star; was born June 10, 1823; son of Isaac, 
 who was born Jan. 30, 1800, and still living 
 in Sharon Township, Medina Co.; he of 
 John. His mother was Maria (Lamb) Ebbert. 
 Isaac moved, with his wife and two children, 
 to Lawrence Township, Stark Co., in the 
 spring of 1823, where they lived more than 
 thirty years, then moved to Sharon Township 
 in the spring of 1859. The subject of this 
 sketch says that he got his education riding 
 horses around the barn floor tramping out 
 grain, hauling saw- logs, chopping timber, 
 grubbing, and in all manner of hard work on 
 his father's farm, where he remained until his 
 marriage, Nov. 14, 1847, to Catharine Kel- 
 ler, born Feb. 15, 1826, daughter of Philip and 
 Catharine (Shook) Keller, who were natives of 
 Center Co., Penn., but settled in Jackson Town- 
 ship, Stark Co., about 1815. They had one 
 child — George, born July 21, 1848, and died 
 Aug. 6, same year. They moved to their present 
 home in the spring of 1860, where he has fol- 
 lowed farming and stock-raising. In the fall 
 of 1870, the John Beese Coal Company opened 
 up a mine on his farm, where there were sev- 
 eral acres of coal, the vein averaging about 
 four and a half feet, of fine quality, and where 
 they mine several thousand tons annually. 
 He and wife are members of the Reformed 
 Church, in which he has served as Deacon for 
 many years, and worked in the Sunday school ; 
 is a liberal patron of all charitable enterprises. 
 
 JOHN HARTER, farmer; P. O. Johnson's 
 Corners; is a son of Jacob Harter, who was a 
 soldier of 1812, and whose history appears in 
 this work under the head of Coventry Town- 
 ship. He was born Aug. 28, 1822, in Frank- 
 lin Township, near Manchester. His educa- 
 tional advantages were such as could be ac- 
 quired in those early pioneer days, in a 
 wooded country, his father settling at a very 
 early date, and piu-chasing 100 acres of heavy 
 timber land at $4 per acre, in what was then 
 known as the Hinckley Tract. In 1844, our 
 
 subject left the home of his father and worked 
 at different places until in 1845, when he 
 started to Galena, 111., performing most of the 
 journey on foot; after stopping for a time in 
 Galena, he went to Dubuque, Iowa, where he 
 attended a mill for a few months, then went 
 up the river to the pineries in Wisconsin, re- 
 turning in the fall of 1847, on a raft, from 
 Black River, Wis., down the Mississippi to St. 
 Louis, then to his home in Summit Co. He was 
 married, Sept. 20, 1848, to Elizabeth Baugh- 
 man, daughter of Theobald and Mary (Will- 
 helm) Baughman. He engaged immediately 
 in farming, living the first five years on the 
 old Bartgess farm in southern Norton; then 
 moved to the farm which he now occupies, 
 pm'chasing the same fi"om his father-in-law, 
 about 1857. By his marriage with Elizabeth 
 Baughman, eight children were born unto 
 them — George, Oliver, William (who died 
 after arriving at maturity), Theobold, Eli, 
 Otis, Melvina and Mary. Tlu'ee sons and one 
 daughter are married, Theobold now living 
 near Millersburg, Holmes Co., Ohio; George 
 and Oliver now residing in Fayette Co., 111.; 
 Melvina, the wife of Wilson Waltz, residing 
 on the Harter farm. Mr. Harter is a promi- 
 nent man in Norton Township, having held 
 the various offices of trust, both in the town- 
 ship and in the German Reformed Church, of 
 which he and family are members. 
 
 MRS. E. W HARTZELL, farmer; P. O. 
 Norton Center; is the widow of the late 
 Aaron Hartzell, who was born April 23, 1827, 
 to Isaac and Anne Maria (George) Hartzell, 
 who were natives of Northampton Co., Penn. 
 His gi-andfather, John Hartzell, a son of 
 Philip Hartzell, and of English descent, settled 
 in Northampton Co. about 1740, where their 
 posterity resided for more than a century. 
 John was an officer in the Revolution, and was 
 appointed an Esquire at 21 years of age, in 
 which capacity he served fifty-three years. 
 The subject of this sketch was born Feb 25, 
 1843. She is a daughter of Thomas Wood- 
 land, who was born May 15, 1803, in Kent, 
 England, to Richard and Sarah (Umpage) 
 Woodland. The Woodland family are heirs 
 to several millions of a legacy left by the 
 Umpage family. Her mother was Martha 
 Woodward, born March 27, 1807, in London, 
 
NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 969 
 
 England, and is still living; tlie father died 
 a few years ago at his home in Wooster, Ohio, 
 where he was a very prominent man during 
 his many years' residence at that place, as the 
 history of the family appears in a more com- 
 plete form in the Wayne Co. work. Mrs. 
 Hartzell was married, Dec. 6, 1866, to Aaron 
 Hartzell, at her home in Wooster; the follow- 
 ing March, they moved to Akron, where he 
 engaged as general manager and traveling 
 agent for the J. F. Seiberling Manufacturing 
 Company for three years; afterward, in con- 
 nection with Charles Cranz, John J. Wagnor 
 and Mr. Perkins, purchased the mine now 
 owned by the Wadsworth Coal Company, he 
 acting as Secretary and Treasurer. He soon 
 after disposed of his coal interests, and, in 
 May, 1871, built the storeroom at Norton 
 Center, and engaged in general merchandising 
 with Dr. Dickson until December, 1873, when 
 they purchased the store building at Johnson's 
 Corners of the Barnes brothers, where they 
 carried on business until December, 1874, 
 when he returned to Akron on account of the 
 death of their little son, he assisting in the 
 settlement of the business of the J. F. Seiber- 
 ling Company after their assignment, and, 
 after the formation of the new company in the 
 works formerly occupied by rake company, he 
 was book-keeper and traveling agent. At St. 
 Louis, while representing the company on a 
 Western trip, he was stricken down with 
 paralysis Jan. 10, 1877, and died Sept. 8, 
 1878, after having received every attention 
 that money and friends could give. They 
 moved on the farm where the widow now lives 
 March 7, 1877. Two children were born to 
 them — Charles Woodland, born Nov. 34, 
 1868, died April 15, 1874; and Bessie, boi'n 
 Oct. 18, 1876. Mr. Hartzell was a prominent 
 member of the I. O. O. F. Lodge, No. 51, of 
 the city of Akron; a member of the Reformed 
 Church, to which he was a liberal giver, as 
 well as to the college of that denomination at 
 Tiffin, Ohio, where he received a liberal edu- 
 cation. 
 
 DR. JOHN HILL, farmer; P. O. Western 
 Star ; whose portrait appears in this work, was 
 born Oct. 26, 1828, in Sussex, England. His 
 father was named John, as was his grandfa- 
 ther also. The mother, Harriet Wickham, 
 
 was a native of the County of Kent, England. 
 They emigrated to America in the year 1828, 
 fi'om the now sunken port of Rye, in the 
 English Channel, landing in New York after 
 a wearisome voyage of six weeks. They en- 
 gaged in farming near Utica, N. Y., where 
 they remained until in the spring of 1832, 
 when they removed to Orange Township, 
 Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, purchased a farm and 
 resided there until about 1843, when he sold 
 his purchase and set out for Tazewell Co., 111., 
 where he re-engaged in agricultural pursuits 
 until his death. The subject of this sketch 
 left home when but 15 years of age, and 
 worked at odd jobs for the five years follow- 
 ing, giving his earnings to his father, who, at 
 the expiration of that time, removed to the 
 West. John then began attending school, re- 
 ceiving a limited education; however, he en- 
 gaged in teaching a few terms. In the fall of 
 1847, he began the study of medicine with Dr. 
 Alexander Fisher, at Western Star, and, in 
 the fall of 1848 and 1849, he attended lectures 
 at the Cleveland Medical College. In 1850, 
 he started upon a traveling expedition, first to 
 California, where he lay sick for six months 
 in the city of Sacramento. He remained in 
 that State until in May, 1853, when he took 
 passage for Australia, being seventy days on 
 the voyage. In May following, he left that 
 country for London, England, arriving there 
 in September of the same year. After stop- 
 ping for a short time there, he shipped for 
 New York, landing late in October following. 
 Early in December, he went to Cleveland, 
 where he again entered the medical college 
 for the years 1854 and 1855. Although 
 urgently requested by the Faculty of that 
 institution to accept a diploma, he objected 
 upon sufficient reasons, and, in the fall of 
 1855, entered the Jefi"erson Medical College 
 at Philadelphia, receiving a diploma fi'om 
 that institution in March, 1856; returned to 
 Western Star, stopped a short time, then en- 
 gaged in tiie practice of medicine in Sharon 
 Township, Medina Co., where he remainea 
 nearly a year; was then, in March, 1857, 
 married to Catharine Pardee, daughter of 
 Ebenezer and Almira (Brace) Pardee. By this 
 union there have been six childi'en born — 
 Harriet Almira, born June 22, 1858, died Oct. 
 
 w 
 
•Ml 
 
 970 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 30, 1878; John. E., born Aug. 2, 1859, now 
 engaged in business in the city of Akron; 
 Mai-tha B., born Jan. 2, 1861; Brace P., Aug. 
 12, 1865; Josephine Elizabeth, March 28, 
 1875; and an infant son, Jan. 4, 1881. Mr. 
 Hill was elected County Commissioner in 
 1870, jmd, having so faithfully discharged the 
 duties of that office for nearly nine years, he 
 was elected, by the voters of Summit Co., in 
 1879, to a term in the Legislature of Ohio. 
 He is a man of great natural ability and force 
 of character, honest and pure in his biisiness 
 and social relations, commanding, by the pur- 
 ity of his principles, the respect and honor of 
 all the people with whom he is connected. 
 
 WILLIAM H. LAHR, farmer; P. O. Nor- 
 ton Center; is an interesting and prominent 
 young man of Norton Center, and son of John 
 and Mary Margaret (Miller) Lahr, natives of 
 Pennsylvania, and was bom April 16, 1850. 
 The fii'st twenty years of his life were spent in 
 attending school and assisting his father in 
 agricultural piu-suits. He was married, Dec. 
 1, 1870, to Sarah J. Lerch, who was bom in 
 Copley Township, and daughter of Peter and 
 Rebecca (Schweitzer) Lerch, natives of North" 
 ampton Co., Perm. Mrs. S arah Lahr was 
 born April 15, 1850, there being one day's 
 difference in the ages of husband and wife. 
 They have two children — Charles Horner, 
 born April 18, 1873; and Aletta Pearl, Jan. 
 21, 1880. Mr. Lahr served a term of three 
 years as member of the School Board of the 
 Norton Center Village School, and was re- 
 elected in the spring of 1880; he shows a 
 great interest in the improvement of the 
 schools and the advancement of the educa- 
 tional interests of his township. He is a Re- 
 publican politically, and, with his estimable 
 wife, members of the chnrch. His father, 
 John Lahr, was bom June 19, 1823; his fa- 
 ther was John, grandfather Jacob, all natives 
 of Pennsylvania; his gi'eat- grandfather Lahr 
 came from Germany early in 1700; his mother, 
 Susan Knecht, her father, Leonard Knecht, 
 her mother, Maria Steckchel, natives of Penn- 
 sylvania. John learned the carpenter's trade 
 at a very early age, with his father, at which 
 he worked for thirty-five years, in connection 
 with agricultural pursuits. He was married, 
 Jan. 8, 1845, to a Miss Miller, daughter of 
 
 John and Susan (Bower) Miller, Keystoneites, 
 by whom he had three children — Lucinda 
 Elizabeth, William H. and his twin brother, 
 Jonas Franklin; all are deceased except the 
 subject of our sketch. John has been a resi- 
 dent of Norton Center since the spring of 1844, 
 and closely identified with the interests of the 
 township, the improvement of its industries, 
 and the affairs of church. 
 
 JOHN LOUTZENHISER, farmer; P. O. 
 Sherman; is a native of Northampton Town- 
 ship, Westmoreland Co., Penn., and son of 
 David and Catharine (Long) Loutzenhiser, 
 who were also natives of Pennsylvania. He 
 was born May 23, 1802; he received but a 
 very meager education, attending subscrip- 
 tion school two or three miles distant, and 
 comjileting his education in about seven 
 months, the remainder of the time being 
 spent in assisting his father with the farm 
 work. In September, 1829, he, with his fa- 
 ther and family, came to Norton Township, 
 and, on the 23d of November, 1830, he was 
 married to Miss Lydia Baughman, whose 
 parents lived on the farm known now as the 
 Dr. Simmons' place, in Wadsworth Township, 
 Medina Co. His wife was born in Triunbull 
 Co., Ohio, Aug. 4, 1812, daughter of Law- 
 rence and Anne Maria (Creitz) Baughman, 
 whose parents were Simon and Anne Maria 
 Creitz, natives of Northampton Co., Penn. 
 John, after marriage, more than fifty years 
 ago, moved to the farm on which they now 
 live, it being then a perfect wilderness, but, 
 by their industry, good management and fru- 
 gal habits, have made for themselves a beau- 
 tiful home, raised and educated a large fam- 
 ily, and saved a surplus for their old age. 
 They have had fifteen children, eleven of 
 whom are living — Lawrence, born Dec. 30, 
 1832; John B., Feb. 26, 1835; Jonas W., 
 Sept. 19, 1839; Anna M., Jan. 22, 1837; Paul 
 d, April 8, 1841; Moses, Feb. 15, 1843; 
 Rachel, Dec. 2, 1844: Susan, Aug. 16, 1848; 
 Lydia, July 25, 1850; Florinda, Sept. 23, 
 1852; Katie, March 25, 1854. The family 
 are members of the Grerman Reformed Church 
 in Wayne Co., and give liberally to the sup- 
 port of religious institiitions and schools; also 
 lend a helping hand toward the advancement 
 of the people of their community. They have 
 
 "Tt; 
 
0^ 
 
 NOETON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 971 
 
 four childi'en married — Jonas, to Susan C. 
 Bauer, and working at the mason's trade and 
 farming in Summit Co.; John, to Jane E. 
 Keppel, is a farmer, and resides in Seneca 
 Co., Ohio; Rachel, to George W. Braden, a 
 farmer in Morrow Co., Ohio; Susan, to Fred 
 Sclineider, a shoe-maker in Hametown, Ohio. 
 
 ALEXANDER MENTZER, fanner; P. O. 
 Loyal Oak; was born in Canton Township, 
 Stark Co., Ohio, Nov. 2, 1835, to John Ment- 
 zer, born Feb. 2, 1800, he of George "William, 
 natives of the State of Maryland. They 
 moved to Lancaster Co., Penn., thence to 
 Columbiana Co., Ohio, where they settled in 
 1812. About fifty-one years ago, they settled 
 in Stark Co., where the subject of this sketch 
 was born, as stated above. His mother's peo- 
 ple came from Somerset Co., Penn., to 
 Stark Co., in 1814. Her maiden name was 
 Mary Ann Smith, daughter of Jacob, who died 
 in 1864, in his 83d year, and Elizabeth 
 (Rhoades) Smith. Alexander, with the re- 
 maining children — two older sisters — received 
 a limited education, but afterward taught 
 their parents to read and write, and assisted 
 them with farm work. They moved to the 
 farm on which Mr. Mentzer now lives in 1853, 
 and where he was man'ied, Feb. 24, 1864, to 
 Amelia Blocker (see sketch of Norman 
 Blocker). They have had five children- — John 
 Frederick, born Sept. 7, 1865; Charles Oscar, 
 Nov. 22, 1867; Sarah E., Sept. 2, 1870; Har- 
 vey Allen, Nov. 17, 1872; Frank Elmer, Feb. 
 20, 1876: Mr. Mentzer has held the office of 
 Township Trustee, and has been prominently 
 engaged in the enterprises of the township. 
 He is a liberal giver to the support of 
 churches and the promotion of educational 
 advantages; is engaged in a mixed industry — 
 stock and grain raising. 
 
 STEPHEN D. MILLER, farmer; P. O. 
 Sherman; is a son of John Miller, born the 
 15th of November, 1802, in Northampton Co., 
 Penn. ; he a son of Jacob, i^orn in April, 1777, 
 died Jan. 12, 1836; he of David, born in 1756, 
 died 1831; he of Walter, born in 1716, died 
 in 1808; he cjmie from Germany; John is in 
 possession of a fine old leather pocket-book, 
 brought from Germany by the last-named 
 ancestor nearly 150 years ago; also, an old- 
 fashioned clock, which is still keeping time 
 
 faithfully, brought by a branch of his mother's 
 family by the name of Bair. His mother was 
 Margaret Serfass, her father William Serfass. 
 They have followed farming throughout their 
 lives. John was married, Oct. 14, 1823, to 
 Su.sannah Bauer, sister of Daniel Bauer, 
 whose history appears in another place in this 
 work. They had twelve children, eight of 
 whom are living; they were among the early 
 settlers of Norton Tovmship, coming in with 
 the large number who came fi*om Pennsylva- 
 nia in 1843. Stephen was born July 19, 1827, 
 in Nazareth Township, near Easton, North- 
 ampton Co., Penn, where he resided, attending 
 school and assisting on farm, until in 1843, 
 when he came to Ohio with his parents, with 
 whom he remained until 24 years of age, when 
 he was married, Nov 6, 1851, to Mary Ann 
 Musser, born Sept 15, 1831, in Trumbull Co., 
 where her parents settled about the year 1812, 
 and resided until 1840, when they moved to the 
 farm on which Stephen now lives; she is a 
 daughter of David and Mary Ann (Read) Mus- 
 ser, natives of Pennsylvania. They have six 
 children— Sarah Jane, born July 1, 1852; 
 Albert, May 21, 1859; Norman F., Oct. 26, 
 1861; Harriet O., March 13, 1863; Charles 
 O., Nov. 11, 1866; Mary Susannah, Aug. 23, 
 1870. Sarah Jane, a Mrs. Columbus Seiber- 
 ling, whose sketch appears in another place in 
 this work. Mi'. Miller, at the beginning of 
 the war, held for two years the position of 
 Deputy Revenue Assessor for a part of the 
 18th Congressional District; he has also held 
 the most responsible township offices, and, for 
 about eight years, acbed as agent, on his own 
 accoimt, for the Doylestown Machine Com- 
 pany, then traveled seven years longer as gen- 
 eral agent throughout the different States, for 
 same company. He is a man having at heart 
 the improvement of all the affairs pertaining 
 to the good of his community, and with his 
 family are members of the Lutheran Church. 
 AMOS AV. MILLER, merchant, and Post- 
 master at the village or cross-roads kno-mi as 
 Johnson's Cox'ners; was born Nov. 3, 1850, at 
 Norton Center, in a well-preserved house be- 
 longing to the Aaron Hartzell farm; his par 
 ents, Joseph B. and Caroline (Steckel) Miller, 
 were natives of the State of Pennsylvania, but 
 located in Norton TowTiship in the spring of 
 
 Iv 
 
,!, 
 
 972 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 1847; his gi-andfather Miller was Daniel; his 
 grandfather Steckel, Daniel, he of Solomon, 
 who lived more than one hundred years. 
 Amos assisted with the work on the farm and 
 attended to the very limited education he re- 
 ceived until 16 years of age, when he began 
 clerking in a general store kept by E. P. Hol- 
 loway at Loyal Oak, where he remained a few 
 months, then engaged with J. E. Wesener, a 
 dry goods merchant of Akron, with whom he 
 remained but a few months, then traveled 
 tln-ough different parts of the West, whertj he 
 engaged in farming; returning, subsequently, 
 to the dry goods business in the city of Aki'on, 
 with Sabin & Rudesill, was sent by them to 
 Canal Fulton to take charge of a branch store; 
 in 1871, he, under the firm name of A. W. 
 Miller & Co., purchased the branch store at 
 that place, where they continued with success 
 until the fall of 1879, when the firm dissolved 
 partnership, Mr. Miller retiring. In the 
 spring of 1880, he started the general store 
 where he is at present located and doing a 
 good business. Was married, May 21, 1871, 
 to Emma Walzer, daughter of Louis and Cath- 
 arine (Ehrett) Walzer, who were natives of 
 Alsace, France, now a portion of Germany. 
 They have three children — Tnza, born Feb. 
 17, 1875; Roland, June 9, 1877; Bertha, Oct. 
 5, 1879. 
 
 JACOB J. MILLER, farmer; P. O. Loyal 
 Oak; was the only child of Joseph and Julia 
 Ann (Hahn) Miller, daughter of Peter and 
 Margaret (Kostenbader) Hahn, who were 
 natives of Northampton Co., Perm. Joseph 
 was the first of the large Miller family to 
 migrate to the West, where he died after 
 about one year's residence in Wadsworth 
 Township, where they made their settlement, 
 the mother returning to her native State after 
 his death, and a few years later married a 
 Mr. John Knecht, with whom she lived until 
 his death, she then returning to Norton Town- 
 ship, where she is now living, in the village 
 of Loyal Oak. Jacob received a very limited 
 education, leaving home at 15 years of age, 
 and coming to Ohio, where he engaged in 
 farm work until in his 28d year, when he was 
 married, March 19, 1861, to Theresa Resh, 
 born May 11, 1813, and daughter of John and 
 Rebecca (Hartzell) Resh, who were all natives 
 
 of Pennsylvania. They have had four chil- 
 di-en — Edgar M., born July 18, 1862, in Nor- 
 ton Township; Cora A., April 19, 1865, in 
 Wadsworth Township; Eugene L., July 11, 
 1871, in Copley Tovniship; Gertrude O., at 
 Johnson's Corners, May 28, 1878. Mr. Mil- 
 ler is one of the enterprising men of his town- 
 ship, and one of the foremost stock men, hav- 
 ing brought from Canada his French stallion, 
 "Montreal Lion;" is also breeding Durham 
 cattle and Cotswold sheep. He and wife are 
 members of the Summit Co. Society of Patrons 
 of Husbandry, members of the Lu.theran 
 Church, and earnest advocates of the cause of 
 temperance and improvement of society. 
 
 JONAS FRANKLIN MILLER, farmer; 
 P. O. Loyal Oak; is a son of " Uncle John 
 Miller," whose history appears in another 
 place in this work; was born Nov. 3, 1S32. 
 His education was limited, the principal part 
 of it being practical, such as could be acquired 
 by spending most of his time clearing in the 
 woods and in general farm work upon the 
 place where he now lives, and upon which his 
 father settled in 1 841. He was married, Jan. 
 17, 1856, to Marietta Schlabach, daughter of 
 George and Esther Ami (Lichtenwalner) 
 Schlabach; her father is still living, in his 
 82d year, he a son of Jacob Schlabach, who 
 came fi-om Germany about 1799, and settled 
 in Northampton Co., Perm. Her gi'andpar- 
 ents on her mother's side were Peter and 
 Susan (Oswold) Lichtenwalner, residents of 
 Northampton Co. There have been nine 
 childi'en born unto them — Uriah A., born Jan. 
 7, 1857; Alice M., April 17, 1858; Milton 
 Henry, Dec. 4, 1860; Ida M., died in 6th 
 year; Harry E., Jan. 21, 1868; John G., July 
 29, 1870; Ella S., Sept. 17, 1873; Freddie 
 Allen, died in infancy; Lizzie Catharine, Feb. 
 8, 1877. Uriah A. was married, June 5, 1877, 
 to Addie Koplin, by whom he has two children. 
 He is engaged in farming in noi'thern part of 
 Norton; Alice M., now the wife of Harvey A. 
 Myers, a farmer in Copley Township. Mr. 
 Miller has been Trustee of his township, and 
 held other ofiices of trust. He and wife are 
 members of the Lutheran Church. He is one 
 of the prominent stock men of the township, 
 dealing: in graded and thorouo^hbreds, as well 
 as being engaged in general farming. 
 
n* 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 973 
 
 DANIEL MILLEE, farmer; P. O. Loyal 
 Oak; son of David, who was born June 17, 
 1796, and died in 1856; he also of David; 
 his mother was Mary, daughter of Jacob and 
 Gertrude (Schodt) Bauer. Daniel came from 
 near Nazareth, Northampton Co., where he 
 was born Dec. 30, 1821, to Norton Township 
 in the spring of 1848, with Dani*el Bauer and 
 family, with whom he had lived since 14 years 
 of age. When about 18 years of age, he 
 began learning the carpenter and joiner's 
 trade, at which he worked for about ten years 
 in this township, then engaged in the butcher 
 business about eight years longer, since which 
 time he has followed farming, being very suc- 
 cessful, in consequence of his industrious and 
 frugal habits. He was married, Aug. 24, 1852, 
 to Amelia Boerstler, born Feb. 20, 1833, 
 daughter of John and Mary (Esch) Boerstler, 
 who were natives of Northampton Co., Penn., 
 but came to this State in 1846, with a family 
 of five children, Amelia being the oldest 
 daughter, and by whom Daniel has had one 
 child — Franklin Harrison, born March 30, 
 1856, and has followed farming with his fa- 
 ther, where he is now living with his family, 
 having married Sarah Ann Moser in May, 
 1876, by whom he has two children — Mattie 
 May, born Jan. 14, 1878; and Elsie Pearl, 
 Feb. 7, 1880. They devote their time to the 
 improvement of stock and the best method of 
 agriculture. He and family are members of 
 the Lutheran Church, and highly respected 
 by the people of his community. 
 
 PARMELEE FAMILY, New Portage. The 
 history of this family, in a very complete form, 
 can be found in the possession of Eliza A. 
 Parmelee, from whom this sketch was obtained, 
 and who is very careful in the preservation of 
 the old family record, which is too volumi- 
 nous for publication ; therefore, only the differ- 
 ent heads of the family will be mentioned in 
 this work. John Parmelee landed in this 
 country June 1, 1639, from Guilford, En- 
 gland, and, with twenty-four other families 
 making up a church, they were the first set- 
 tlers of Guilford, Conn., which place they 
 named after their former home. After arriv- 
 ing in this coimtry, they all signed a covenant 
 never to depart fi'om one another, etc. John 
 PaiTQelee, tii'st, born in England, date of birth 
 
 not given; John, Jr., second, date of birth 
 not given, but very probably in England; 
 Isaac, third generation, born in Guilford Nov. 
 21, 1665; Abraham, fourth, in Guilford, May 
 18, 1692; Abraham, Jr., fifth, in Guilford, 
 April 28, 1717; Theodore, sixth, born April 3, 
 1751; Theodoi'e Hudson, seventh, Jan. 25, 
 1792, and came to this State in November, 
 1812, settling on the farm now known as the 
 Swartz place, retm'ning to his native place to 
 teach school during the winter ; in the fall, Nov. 
 3, 1813, was married, and started, on the morn- 
 ing of the 4th, to their home in the wilder- 
 ness, where they endured every hardship of an 
 early pioneer life; they had nine children, six 
 of whom are living — Mrs. Caroline K. Earl, 
 born Oct. 30, 1814, of the eighth generation; 
 Maria, Eleza A., Mrs. Clarinda Chapman; 
 Charles, living in Tallmadge Township; and 
 Martha, a Mrs. Rose, her husband an ex-Mayor 
 of Cleveland; Theodore H. Earl, of the ninth 
 generation, eldest son of IVIrs. Caroline H. 
 Earl, born April 18, 1836, in Newton Falls, 
 Trmnbull Co., Ohio; his child, Leafy, of the 
 tenth generation, born Oct. 29, 1868, in New 
 London, Wis. ; the father of the eighth gener- 
 ation was a man of gi'eat ability, holding many 
 of the prominent positions in the county, a 
 man of sterling integi'ity and honor, a mem- 
 ber of the church during the greater part of 
 his life. Eliza began attending Oberlin Col- 
 lege in 1842, and graduated in 1844, being 
 one of five of the family who graduated from 
 that college, Charles taking the collegiate 
 course, and six of the family attended the 
 same institution; she taught for more than 
 thirteen years in different academies in the 
 State of Pennsylvania; during the college 
 years of 1856 and 1857, she held the position 
 of Professor of Natural Sciences in the col- 
 lege at Iberia, Morrow Co., Ohio; this posi- 
 tion she resigned, and retm-ned home to take 
 care of her mother and grandmother who were 
 aged and feeble; she is now superintending 
 her farm of more than 100 acres of choice 
 land, in the eastern part of Norton Township. 
 DR. W. T. PARMELE, physician. New 
 Portage; was born in Southington, Conn., 
 Feb. 19, 1830, to N. L. and Eximena (Horton) 
 Parmele; his father, who was also a physi- 
 cian, removed to Delhi Co., N. Y., where he 
 
974 
 
 ]5I0GRAPinCAL SKETCHES: 
 
 resided three years; then to Baker, Brown 
 Co.; then, in 1851, he moved to Binghamp- 
 ton, where he died March 4, 1880, after a 
 practice of about fifty years. W. T. received 
 a common- school education, and, after study- 
 ing with his father until about 22 years of 
 age, attended lectures at Geneva, N. Y. He 
 has practiced medicine for about twenty-nine 
 years, in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland 
 and Ohio; also on board the Government ships 
 as Assistant Physician for five years, from 
 Norfolk, Va., to Palestine, and in Suixmiit Co. 
 for the last seven years, now located at New 
 Portage; was married, Oct. 14, 1851, to Sarah 
 Slaight, a native of York State, and daughter 
 of David and Catharine Slaight, by whom he 
 had one child — Gertrude, born Oct. 3, 1854, 
 now the wife of William Creque, residing at 
 Trumansburg, N. Y. ; his first wife died in the 
 year 1801; his second marriage, to Mary Jane 
 Porter, daughter of William C. and Mary 
 Jane (Graves) Porter. The Doctor is a stanch 
 Republican, a member of the I. O. O. F. and 
 Sons of Temperance, in which cause he is an 
 earnest worker. He was Independent Assist- 
 ant Physician at the battle of Gettysburg; is 
 a member of the Evangelical Association, 
 Superintendent of two Sabbath schools for two 
 years, and teacher of Bible-class for four 
 years. 
 
 M. LOUIS SHOOK, painter, Norton Center. 
 The subject of this sketch was born in 
 Chatham Township, Medina Co., Ohio, his 
 father, a prominent farmer, residing on the 
 old homestead. Louis received a common- 
 school education, attending, after his 9th 
 year, in winters only, his services being re- 
 quired upon the farm during the summer sea- 
 son; he, however, being an apt scholar, soon 
 mastered all that was then taught in the com- 
 mon schools, and, at the age of 17 years, hav- 
 ing overcome great opposition, received the 
 benefit of one term at a select school at 
 Chatham Center; the second winter follow- 
 ing, he taught a district school in his native 
 township with good success; the autumn fol- 
 lowing, he again attended school at Chatham 
 Center; the next winter, he taught school in 
 Homer Township, where he continued dm-ing 
 the winter seasons until his 23d year; prior 
 to this time, however, he had turned his atten- 
 
 tion to painting, which he ultimately adopted 
 as a profession, after attaining his majority. 
 During his early career as a teacher, he be- 
 came acquainted with the lady who afterward 
 became his wife — Miss Minnie Messinger; 
 they were married Oct. 17, 1875, since which 
 time he has resided at his present location. 
 In the summer of 1876, he engaged to teach 
 the Center District School for nine months in 
 succession; this so impaired his health that 
 he abandoned teaching and engaged in the 
 mercantile bu.siness with Adam G. Seas, at 
 Norton Center, during which time his father- 
 in-law died. May, 1878; subsequently, on ac- 
 count of light trade, they closed out the busi- 
 ness, and he again, in 1879, resumed the 
 brush, which he has continued with success 
 until the present time. Dm'ing the coiu'se of 
 his mercantile career, he was instrumental in 
 restoring the post office at Norton Center, at 
 which place he is Postmaster, also holding the 
 position of Township Clerk by appointment. 
 Of his ancestry, one branch can be traced to 
 Germany, his great-great-grandfather, Ack- 
 erman by name, emigrating from that coun- 
 try to Philadelphia near the time of the Rev- 
 olution, and from that city to Bucks Co. ; he 
 had a family of six sons, viz. : John, Jacob, 
 Daniel, George, Henry and Abraham; from 
 Bucks Co. they moved to Lower Mt. Bethel 
 Township, Northampton Co., Perm., where 
 they purchased a large tract of land on the 
 Little Martin's Creek, where he soon erected 
 a saw and grist mill; at the death of the elder 
 Ackerman, his son Jacob, who is the direct 
 ancestry of the Shook family, became the mil- 
 ler; the property was divided among the sons, 
 who, having settled upon different parts of the 
 estate, formed quite a settlement, which was 
 called Ackermanville, and now known by that 
 name. In 1823 or 1824, Jacob rebuilt the 
 mill, which he owned until his death. He 
 was married to Rebecca Kulb, by whom he 
 had three sons and eight daughters, respect- 
 ively: John, Isaac, Catharine, Elizabeth, Bar- 
 bara, Rebecca, Mary, Susan, Magdaline, Lydia 
 and Jacob, who fell heir to the mill property, 
 and who is still living on the old homestead. 
 Hem-y Shook, grandfather of the subject of 
 this sketch, was born in 1799, in Plainfield 
 Township, Northampton Co. , Penn. ; he mar- 
 
NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 975 
 
 ried Catharine Ackerman in the year 1820, 
 and worked his father's farm for about seven- 
 teen years ; from there he moved to Tunkhan- 
 nock, Wyoming Co., Penn., in the year 1837; 
 he was the father of nine children, as follows: 
 Jacob, George, Rebecca, Susan, Isaac, John 
 E., Catharine, Aaron and Helen; their eldest 
 son, Jacob, was born in Plainfield Township, 
 Northampton Co., July 18, 1821; he lived 
 with his parents until their removal to Wy- 
 oming Co., when he returned to his uncle at 
 Ackermanville to learn the miller's trade, at 
 which he worked until in the winter of 1843; 
 he was married, in the fall of 1842, to Rebecca 
 Berkey, who was bom Aug. 11, 1818, near Ban- 
 gor, Penn. ; in the spring of 1843, he mi- 
 grated to Ohio with his father-in-law, Chris- 
 tian Berkey; they came in wagons, making 
 the trip in twenty- four days, landing in Ches- 
 ter Township, Wayne Co., Ohio, on the 16th 
 day of May, 1843; here he remained working 
 in several different mills for a few years, 
 finally renting a mill near Ashland, Ohio, 
 where he remained until the year 1851, when, 
 on account of ill health, he abandoned his 
 trade and purchased a farm of 56 acres in 
 Chatham Township, Medina Co., where he 
 moved on the 2d of April of that year; a few 
 years later, 40 acres more were added to their 
 home, where they are now surrounded with 
 every comfort necessary for the enjoyment of 
 life. They have been blessed with foiu- chil- 
 dren — Mary A., born in Chester Township, 
 Wayjie Co., June 20, 1843, was married in 
 January, 1864, to John Hange; Susan was 
 born near Ashland, June 7, 1846; married 
 Irwin Reimel in October, 1869; resides in 
 Upper Mt. Bethel Township, Northampton 
 Co., Penn.; M. Louis, born June 1, 1853; 
 Katie, Dec. 25, 1857, in Chatham, the young- 
 est still remaining at home. Of the mother's 
 family, the great-grandfather. Christian 
 Berkey, was born in 1759; he was a native of 
 Pennsylvania, and was married to Gertrude 
 Kulp; they had ten childi-en. Christian 
 Berkey, Sr., died in 1829; his wife, in 1840. 
 Their home was in Lower Mt. Bethel Town- 
 ship, Northampton Co. , where their son Chris- 
 tian was born, and married Barbara Shaum in 
 1817. IVIi's. Minnie Shook, wife of our sub- 
 ject, was a daughter of Jacob Messinger, who 
 
 was fi'om Forks Township, Northampton Co., 
 where his brothers and sisters still reside; he 
 came to Ohio about 1854, and was married to 
 Mrs. Mary A. Johnson, by whom he had two 
 children — Minnie and La Fayette, the latter 
 dying when about 4 years of age, and the fa- 
 ther May 8, 1878. 
 
 The SEIBERLING-MILLER COMPANY, 
 Doylestown, Wayne Co., Ohio. This company, 
 in the year 1861, began business at their pres- 
 ent location, under the firm name of Cline, Seib- 
 erling & Hower, in the manufacture of the now 
 famous Excelsior Mower and Reaper, then an 
 entirely new machine, invented by John F. 
 Seiberling, a young farmer of Norton Town- 
 ship, who has, by his numerous inventions, 
 been of great service to the agi'icultui-al inter- 
 ests of the United States; a more complete 
 history of his various enterprises will be 
 found under the head of the City of Akron, 
 where he has been engaged in the extensive 
 manufacture of machinery since 1865, still re- 
 taining one-third interest in the Doylestown 
 company, with his brother, James H. Seiber- 
 ling, and S. H. Miller, a brother-in-law, super- 
 seding the other three partners, J. H. and J. 
 J. Hower, and Peter Cline. The firm have 
 rapidly increased their business from the 
 manufacture of twenty-five machines in the 
 year 1861, to about 1,500 the past year, at 
 their shops in Doylestown. This energetic 
 firm, though not being able to supply the de- 
 mand for their now popular machines, have 
 greatly increased their machinery and facility 
 for work, so that they are now able to manu- 
 facture, with the same work, fi-om three to fom* 
 hundred more machines than formerly. In 
 connection with the Excelsior, which they be- 
 gan manufacturing more than twenty years 
 ago, with all the dilferent improvements and 
 attachments which time and expense could 
 suggest to an inventive mind, they are also 
 constructing the Empire Mower and Reaper, 
 an invention of Mr. Seiberling's about six 
 years ago; and, in 1880, he brought out the 
 new single-wheel reaper, which was thor- 
 oughly tested, and will be quite extensively 
 manufactui'ed this year. They are building 
 the following difi'erent machines: Two styles 
 of sweep-rake, table-rake, di'opper, self-binder, 
 single-wheel reaper, etc. James H. Seiber- 
 
 '-v 
 
 ^jv 
 
976 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 ling, the head of this firm, is a son of Nathan 
 Seiberling, whose history appears in another 
 part of this work; he was born Nov. 25, 1835, 
 and received a very ordinary education, re- 
 maining with his father until his marriage, 
 which occurred Oct. 9, 18C0, to Elizabeth 
 Baughman, who was born in Norton Township 
 Aug. 28, 1838, to David and Elizabeth (Block- 
 er) Baughman. They have four children — 
 Mattie Jane, born Feb. 17, 1864; Albert 
 Franklin, May 1(3, 18()6; Olive May, Dec. 14, 
 1868; Robert Walter, Dec. 21. 187-1; two died 
 — Allen Byron, born March 6, 1862, died 
 Sept. 15, 1866; George Willard, March 19, 
 1873, died Sept. 24, 1874. After marriage, 
 Mr. Seiberling engaged in farming on the 
 Harter farm one year, then purchased a farm 
 in Copley, where he resided one year, 
 then sold his farm for the purpose of 
 engaging in his present business; he now 
 owns one of the finest farms, of 196 acres, 
 in Norton Township. Samuel H. Miller, 
 the junior partner, was born May 28, 1839, 
 in Northampton Co., Penn., son of John 
 Miller, whose history also appears in this 
 work. Mr. S. H. Miller is in possession of 
 some old relics, owned first by Walder Miller, 
 a native of Germany, who died in 1806, aged 
 92 years; next, by David Miller, who died in 
 1831, aged 75 years; third, by Jacob Miller, 
 died in 1836, aged 57 years; fourth, by John 
 Miller, father of our subject, who is still liv- 
 ing. Samuel H. remained in school until 12 
 years of age; went to Akron, where he clerked 
 about six years in the store of M. W. Heniy: 
 he afterward attended school and remained on 
 the farm until December 15, 1863, when he be- 
 gan cleiking for Cline, Seiberling & Co., at 
 Doylestown, where he remained until in 1865, 
 when he was made a partner in the firm. He 
 was married, Aug. 29, 1867, to Ella L. 
 Schneider, daughter of Alfred and Clarissa 
 (Clewell) Schneider, who were natives of 
 Pennsylvania. They have had six childi-en, 
 three of whom are living — Alfred -J., born 
 Dec. 8, 1868; William R., March 6, 1875; 
 Carrie E., Jan. 24, 1877. His wife was born 
 Jan. 27, 1847. Willard H., Robert, and an 
 infant son, died in infancy. 
 
 NATHAN SEIBERLING, farmer; P. O. 
 Western Star. More than fifty years ago. 
 
 there came among the " Yankees " of Norton 
 Township one of the first of that industrious 
 and thriving German population which now 
 inhabit' the township, and who became the 
 successors to the first "Yankee" settlers in 
 that part of the Western Reserve. Mr. Sei- 
 berling, to whom the writer alludes, was born 
 April 14, 1810, in Lynn Township, Northamp- 
 ton Co., Penn. ; he is a son of John F. and Cath- 
 arine (Bear) Seiberling; his grandfather was 
 Frederick, his gi'eat- grandfather Christian, all 
 natives of Pennsylvania. The Seiberling fam- 
 ily are noted for longevity, all the ancestry 
 mentioned living in the early remembrance of 
 our subject. The father of Nathan was a 
 shoemaker and farmer, and, at the time of 
 his death, which occiuTed in his 93d year, was 
 the oldest office-holder in the United States 
 Government, having held the office of Post- 
 master in his native county for more than 
 sixty years. Our subject worked on the farm 
 and learned the trade of shoe- making in the 
 shop with his father; his school-days were of 
 less than one year's dirration, he obtaining his 
 education by closely economizing the spare 
 moments. He was mamed, Dec. 6. 1829, to 
 Catharine Peter, born June 27, 1811, a daugh- 
 ter of Jacob and Margaret (Moser) Peter, 
 natives of Northampton Co.; in June, 1831, 
 he came to his present home, where he pur- 
 chased 96 acres in the woods, and began life 
 with a determination which won for him wealth 
 and honor in after years; after working hard 
 all day in the woods, he would return at night 
 with a light heart to his hiimble home and 
 faithful wife, where, after the fiaigal meal, 
 he would work until 12 o'clock at night, his 
 wife beside him, whittling out pegs, at shoe- 
 making, for the few neighbors, that he might 
 earn bread for his family's support; but, by 
 industry and frugal living, he became very 
 prosperous, owning, at one time, several hun- 
 dred acres of valuable land, besides invest- 
 ments in stocks and bonds, all of which he has 
 shared liberally with his large family, fifteen 
 in number, eleven of whom are living, one 
 having died in infancy; two sons and one 
 daughter after arriving at maturity. His sons 
 have become very prominent as inventors and 
 manufacturers of machinerj^, their farming 
 implements being used throughout the differ- 
 
 rV 
 
^ 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 977 
 
 ent States and Territories ; six sons are repre- 
 sented in this work, with their farming and 
 manufacturing interests. Mr, Seiberling is 
 a stanch Republican; has the office of Justice 
 of the Peace, and, with his family, are mem- 
 bers of the Lutheran Church, he and wife 
 having been members of that organization for 
 about fifty-five years. 
 
 COLUMBUS SEIBEKLING, farmer; P. 
 O. Western Star. Columbus Seiberling, a 
 promising young farmer and stock-dealer, was 
 born to Nathan Seiberling on the 14th day of 
 November, 1848, near where he now resides. 
 His education, as far as the prosecution of his 
 studies at school, was very limited, but, by 
 close application to study during his spare 
 moments, he has thoroughly informed himself 
 upon all the general topics of the day. He, 
 as a dutiful son, assisted his father with the 
 numerous cares of his extensive business until 
 attaining his majority. In the early winter 
 of 1869, he went to the State of Iowa,where 
 he engaged in farming, principally, for a time, 
 then traveled through difierent parts of the 
 West, viewing the country, retui'ning in the 
 winter of 1870. March 14, 1871, he was mar- 
 ried to Sarah J. Miller, daughter of Stephen 
 D. and Mary A. (Musser) Miller, who were 
 natives of the State of Pennsylvania, and 
 among the early settlers of this county; by 
 her he has had six children, five of whom are 
 living — Mary C, born Nov. 3, 1872; Mattie 
 May, Nov. 3, 1873, died at 10 months of age; 
 Corman E., Feb. 4, 1875; Carrie E., Jan. 1, 
 1877; Sadie May, Dec. 4, 1878; Lohman 
 Arthur, July 29, 1880. Mr. Seiberling is 
 always interested in the advancement of edu- 
 cation and the improvement of society; also, 
 in the improvement of farm and agriculture 
 generally. He and family are members of 
 the Lutheran Church, and have the esteem 
 and respect of all their neighbors. 
 
 MILTON A. SEIBERLING, farmer; P. O. 
 Sherman; son of Nathan Seiberling, whose 
 interesting history appears in another place in 
 this work, was born Nov. 20, 1850, and re- 
 ceived a common school education, at the same 
 time rendering his father valuable assistance 
 in his business until his marriage, Nov. 30, 
 1871, to Fyetta E. Johnson, daughter of 
 Joseph and Mary Ann (Hartzell,) afterward a 
 
 Mrs. Messinger. Mrs. Seiberling was born 
 in Norton Township, but her parents were 
 natives of Pennyslvania. They have two chil- 
 dren — Minnie Letitia, born April 15, 1873; 
 Mattie May, Jan. 28, 1875. Mr. Seiberling 
 is an enterprising young man, industrious 
 and frugal in his habits, pleasing and cour- 
 teous in his manners, and highly esteemed by 
 the people of the community in which he 
 lives. He and wife are members of the 
 Lutheran Church. 
 
 CHARLES STUVER, Western Star, who 
 was born Jan. 9, 1808, is a son of John, he of 
 Philip Stuver, who was a native of Germany, 
 a comb-maker by trade, emigrated to this 
 country about the middle of the eighteenth 
 century and settled in Pennsylvania, where 
 our sul3Ject and his father were born. Charles 
 received his education in Geiman by attend- 
 ing subscription school a short time, and, in 
 his earlier years, rendering his father what 
 assistance he was able on the farm. At about 
 17 years of age, he began learning the wheel- 
 wright's trade, at which he worked until in 
 the spring of 1849, when he moved to Wads- 
 worth Township, where he lived two years, 
 then moved to the farm on which he now lives. 
 His mother was Elizabeth Bauer, daughter of 
 Daniel and Margaret (Shutt), natives of 
 Pennsylvania. Charles was married, July 3, 
 1831, to Mary Ann San tee, daughter of Joseph 
 and Margaret (Ritter) Santee, natives of Penn- 
 sylvania, but of French origin. They had 
 twelve children, all living, viz.: Marietta 
 Salinda, James Dillworth, Annaminda Eliza- 
 beth, Henry William, Emma Caroline, Aaron 
 Simon, Adeline Rebecca, Jonas Franklin, 
 Sarah Ann Clarissa, Sevilla Louisa, Eliza 
 Adelia, Florenda Catharine — all man'ied ex- 
 cept Sevilla Louisa, who is living at home 
 with her father, the mother being deceased 
 since March, 1878; Adaline, married to 
 Joseph Kulp, a dentist in Muscatine, Iowa; 
 Aaron married a Miss Josephine Hufi", and is 
 now a member of the bar at Newton, Iowa; 
 Henry, to Susannah Miller, of this township, 
 is now farming near Brookfield, Mo. ; Mari- 
 etta, Mrs. John Santee, who is farming in 
 Wadsworth Township, Medina Co"; Annamin- 
 da, Mrs. John Hoch, a farmer in Center Nor- 
 ton; James, married to Miss Kate Hoch; he 
 
 ifv 
 
978 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 it now farming in Wadsworth Township; 
 Jonas, to Kate Hodge; is book-keeper in the 
 Woods bank at Arkon; Emma, Mrs. William 
 Santee, a mechanic at the Empire shops, 
 Akron, Ohio; Sarah, Mrs. Greorge Wise, who 
 is engaged in the rubber works at Akron; 
 Eliza, ]VIi-s. Chai'les Holloway, of the firm of 
 Holloway & Myers, boots and shoes, Akron; 
 Florenda, a Mrs. Durbin Holloway, of the firm 
 of Harrison & Holloway, dry goods, Akron. 
 In 1876, the Brewster Coal Company of Aki'on 
 opened a mine of several acres of superior 
 coal, the vein averaging about four and a half 
 feet, which afi'ords him a large income. He 
 and his interesting family are members of the 
 Lutheran Church, and greatly respected by 
 the people of their township. 
 
 HEJ^RY TIPPERY, farmer; P. O. Loyal 
 Oak; is the son of Abraham Tippery, a native 
 of Williamsport, Md., who died in the spring 
 of 1872, aged 81 years; his mother is still liv- 
 ing, in her 85th year, in Clarion Co., Penn., 
 but a native of Berks Co., Penn.; her maiden 
 name was Elizabeth Harpst, daughter of 
 Andi'ew and Barbara Harpst. Heniy was 
 born July 2(3, 1827, and received his educa- 
 tion by attending about two months in each 
 year, fi'om 13 years until about 20; he ren- 
 dered what assistance he was able on the farm 
 until about 24 years of age, when he engaged 
 as farm hand for two years to one Samuel 
 Fox; was married June 9, 1853, and worked 
 with Ml". Fox thirteen years longer; his wife 
 was Elizabeth Goodman, daughter of Jacob 
 and Mary (Alshouse) Goodman, her parents 
 being natives of Pennsylvania. In Septem- 
 ber, 1868, they moved from Clarion Co. to the 
 farm on which they now live; they have had 
 four children, three of whom died in infancy; 
 the one living is Mary C, born July 9, 1854, 
 living at home. Mr. Tippery and family are 
 members of the Reformed Church, and a lib- 
 eral donor to the support of religious and 
 educational piu-poses ; he has served a number 
 of years as Township Trustee, and as Clerk of 
 the township two terms; is a public-spirited 
 man, and connected with the society of Pat- 
 rons of Husbandry, in which he has held the 
 higiiest offices. 
 
 SYLVESTER VAN HYNING, farmer; P. 
 O. New Portage; was born in Mahoning Co.,- 
 
 Ohio, Nov. 22, 1805, to Henry and Hannah 
 (Brauer) Van Hyning, who were natives of 
 the State to New York, but came to North- 
 ampton Township, Summit Co., through Ma- 
 honing, in the fall of 1805 ; after a residence 
 of about ten year's in Northampton, they 
 moved to the farm upon which the subject of 
 this sketch now resides, they being among the 
 first settlers in Norton Township, and Mr. Van 
 Hyning the oldest settler now living in the 
 township. He received about three months' 
 schooling in a log schoolhouse; his services 
 being required upon the farm, he was de- 
 prived of the advantages which would have 
 better qualified him, and made his subsequent 
 active life more satisfactory to himself. The 
 farm of 150 acres upon which he now lives was 
 purchased by his father about sixty-five years 
 ago, of a Mr. Robinson, at |3-^- per acre. He 
 was married to Melissa Hollister, born Oct. 
 24, 1821, by whom he had eight children, 
 seven of whom are living — Hannah, born 
 March 22, 1838; Heniy, July 16, 1840; 
 Peny, Jan. 29, 1845; Sylvester, Sept. 5, 
 1848; Norman, Nov. 15, 1851; Homer, Oct. 
 14, 1856; Giles, Jan. 24, 1859; Chai-les, Aug. 
 24, 1862; died Oct. 24, 1865. Mi-. Van Hyn- 
 ing, the father of om* subject, died at 102 
 years of age, after a long and wearisome pio- 
 neer life. Sylvester is a careful farmer, giv- 
 ing attention to the most improved methods of 
 agriculture and stock-raising. Although not 
 a member of a chui'ch, he is a liberal giver 
 to the cause of religion and the building of 
 churches, his wife being a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal denomination. 
 
 ISRAEL WARE, deceased; born in Ells- 
 worth Township, Trumbull Co., Ohio, May 23, 
 1808, to Daniel and Magdalene (Bitter) Ware, 
 who were natives of the State of Pennsylvania, 
 and came to Summit Co. among its early set- 
 tlers, where they engaged in clearing up the 
 country. After a residence of about one year 
 in this new country, Daniel, the father, died, 
 leaving his wife, Magdalene, with four small 
 children, who, for support, were thrown upon 
 their o'wti resources; his was the first grave 
 made in the old burying- ground belonging to 
 the German Reformed Chm'ch, situated in the 
 edge of Wayne Co., adjoining the corners of 
 Simnnit and Medina Cos. Israel was married 
 
Ml 
 
 NORTON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 979 
 
 to Mary A. Loutzenhiser, by whom this 
 sketch was related, June 10, 1831; she was 
 born Jan, 13, 1809, in North Huntington, 
 Westmoreland Co., Penn., and daughter of 
 David and Catharine (Long) Loutzenhiser, 
 who moved from the East to Norton Township 
 in 1829, more than fifty years ago. By her 
 he had eight children, six of whom are living, 
 all in this vicinity; those living are Josiah, 
 boiTi July 3, 1832; Louisa, March 15, 1834; 
 Carlos, Feb. 6, 1836; Mary A., Jan. 21, 1838; 
 Norman, Feb. 24, 1840; Isabel, March 24, 
 1842; Catharine, Jan. 28, 1844; Daniel L, 
 Aug. 3, 1846. Carlos was killed at the battle 
 of Jackson, Miss., while nobly bearing the col- 
 ors; Catharine died in her 19th year; and 
 Israel, the father, July 18, 1861. Mrs. Ware 
 and all her children are members of the Ger- 
 man RefoiTiied Chui'ch. 
 
 JOHN WALTENBERGER, farmer; P. O. 
 Loyal Oak; born in Franklin Township, Stark 
 Co. then, now Summit, March 11, 1825; son 
 of Daniel, he of Daniel, natives of Pennsylva- 
 nia, but settled in said county about 1814, 
 among the pioneers. His mother, Mary 
 Whitesalt, daughter of Conrad W., who set- 
 tled near Union town. Stark Co., about the same 
 time that the Waltenbergers settled in Franklin 
 Township. The father, Daniel, was among 
 the number who cleared the land of its heavy 
 growth of timber and shared all the trials of 
 early pioneer life; raised a family of five chil- 
 dren, two of whom are living — John, and 
 Sarah, Mi's. William Belts, of Franklin Town- 
 ship. The father died in January, 1872, in 
 his 79th year; his mother, in 1872, in her 
 72d year. John received an ordinary educa- 
 tion, and worked with his father on the farm 
 until his man'iage, which occurred Feb. 21, 
 1850, to Susan Baughman, born March 25, 
 1824, daughter of John and Agatha (Conrad) 
 Bauglmaan, whose grandfather and grand- 
 mother were Leonard and Agatha (Redich) 
 Conrad. They have had three children, two of 
 whom are living — Amanda Viola, born Aug. 
 19, 1851; and Frank M., Sept 1, 1855; the 
 youngest died in infancy; Amanda V. married, 
 March 12, 1872, to William H. Young, a 
 farmer and mechanic, by whom she had two 
 children — Clara May, born May 9, 1874; and 
 Carmon Walter, Nov. 17, 1878; the husband 
 
 died July 31, 1880, in Copley Township, 
 where they resided. Mi-. Waltenberger is a 
 successful farmer ; has been Township Trustee 
 and member of School Board. They are 
 members of church, and liberal givers to all 
 worthy enterprises, and those conducive to 
 good, and the advancement of the people. 
 
 WILLIAM WUCHTER, retired fai-mer; 
 P. O. Johnson's Corners; bom in Lehigh Co., 
 Pemi., May 15, 1819; is a son of John and 
 Maria B. (Sammel) Wuchter. William is 
 about eight years older than his brother Eli, 
 who is also represented in this work, and in 
 whose sketch a more complete history of the 
 family will be found. William received but a 
 meager education, his time being occupied in 
 assisting his father on farm and in general 
 work until his marriage, which occurred 
 March 26, 1846, to Aurilla A. Cahon, daugh- 
 ter of James and Miranda (Holmes ) Cahon, 
 he a native of Maryland, she of Sheffield, 
 Mass.; her parents Joseph and Charlotte 
 Holmes, came to Norton Township in 1816, 
 being one of the first families in the township. 
 William and his wife have had a family of 
 thirteen childi-en, seven of whom are living — 
 George Wallace, Mary L., Am-illa V., Helen, 
 Eli H., Lottie M. and Sarah Lydia; fom- are 
 married — George W. to Sarah Hines, living 
 in Tallmadge Township, this coimty; Mary 
 S., Mrs. Ephraim Marsh, living in Osceola 
 Co., Mich.; Am-illa V., JVIrs. Joseph D. 
 Knecht, living in Akron; Helen, IVIrs. Thomas 
 B. Dillworth, also resides in Akron; the thi-ee 
 yoimger ones are at home. Mr. Wuchter has 
 always been engaged in agricultm-e since 
 coming to this State, in Coventry and Noi-ton 
 Townships; is a stanch Republican, and he 
 and wife are members of the Lutheran 
 Church. 
 
 ELI WUCHTER, farmer; P. O. Johnson's 
 Comers; was born in Lehigh Co., Penn., Jan. 
 12, 1827, and is a son of John, born Jan. 9, 
 1792; he of Martin. His mother, Maria Bar- 
 bara (Sammel), born Sept. 24, 1789; she of 
 John and Anna Maria (Schneck), who were 
 residents of the State of Pennsylvania. The 
 Wuchter family moved to Norton Township 
 in the spring of 1834, from the East, and en- 
 gaged in agricultm-al piu-suits, with the father 
 working a part of each year at the stone-ma- 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^V 
 
:t£ 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 son's trade, until the latter years of this life, 
 which were spent in coopering. After the 
 death of his wife, in 1849, Feb. 20, he was 
 remarried, and lived until the Ist day of Sep- 
 tember, 1863. Eli spent the earlier years of 
 his life, or until the death of his mother work- 
 ing on the farm and obtaining the meager ed- 
 ucation which he received; he then worked 
 for about tlu-ee years in the States of New 
 York, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois; was mar- 
 ried, May 13, 1852, to Susan Betz, born Aug. 
 
 17, 1833, and daughter of John and Rebecca 
 (Beyer) Betz, who were also natives of Penn- 
 sylvania, but moved to this part of Ohio about 
 1832. The family consists of thi-ee childi'en 
 — Rebecca Catharine, born March 29, 1853; 
 died Aug. 23, 1854; Mai-tha Amelia, Aug. 18, 
 1855; and John Harvey, April 1, 1860, living 
 at home. Mr. Wuchter is a stanch Repub- 
 lican, and, with his family, members of the 
 Lutheran Church, and respected by all the 
 neighborhood. 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 ELKANAH BENDER, farmer and school 
 teacher; P. O. Inland; son of Daniel and 
 Levina (Wadsworth) Bender, born in Grreens- 
 burg March 24, 1853. His grandfather, Jacob 
 Bender, removed from Lancaster Co., Penn., 
 about the year 1821, and settled in Springfield 
 Township. Jacob was a millwright for many 
 years, and worked at what is now called the 
 Chamberlain Mill. He was married, first to 
 Miss Catharine May, who was by him the 
 mother of Daniel Bender, born May 25, 1820, 
 in Lancaster Co., Penn. After his first wife 
 died, Jacob married Rebecca Kreighbaum, 
 and settled in Green Township. Daniel, the 
 father of Elkanah Bender, removed with his 
 parents to Siunmit Co. when he was about 1 
 year old. He was educated in the common 
 schools of Springfield Township, and, when 
 about 13 years of age, was apprenticed to 
 learn the harness-maker's trade. He worked 
 one year at Uniontown, and then finished his 
 apprenticeship at Canton; he afterward 
 worked at Massillon, Greentown, Greensburg 
 and other places. When about 21 years of 
 age, he started a shop in Greensburg, where 
 he continued in business until he died. He 
 was married, first to Catharine France — she 
 died about six months after their marriage, 
 and, about two years afterward, in February, 
 1846, he "led to the altar" Miss Levina 
 Wadsworth, daughter of Samuel and Catha- 
 rine (Runk) Wadsworth, who were married 
 in Westmoreland Co.. Penn., where Samuel 
 Wadsworth died. Shortly after his decease, 
 
 Mrs. Wadsworth removed to Ohio with her 
 daughter Levina, who was born March 2, 
 1822, and they settled in Stark Co. for one 
 year; then removed to Green Township and 
 resided south of Greensburg two years, and 
 after Mrs. Wadsworth married Jonathan Gra- 
 ble she removed to the village, where she died, 
 July 10, 1876, in the 80th year of her age. 
 In February, 1853, Daniel Bender bought the 
 farm of 36^ acres, now occupied by his wife 
 and children, who erected their present resi- 
 dence in the summer of 1878. Previous to 
 occupying this house, they resided in Greens- 
 burg for many years. Daniel Bender served 
 as Township Treasurer many years, and was 
 elected Township Trustee several terms. He 
 died July 2, 1861, leaving three children — 
 Marietta, born August 6, 1848, now married 
 to Alkiah Koontz, of Stow Township, and the 
 mother of three children — Alice, Russell and 
 Katie; Alice A. Bender, was born Nov. 18. 
 1850; and Elkanah, March 24, 1853. Their 
 mother is a member of the Church of Christ 
 at Greensburg. Elkanah has been a teacher 
 for the past ten years; at the age of 17, he 
 took charge of the school in the Grable Dis- 
 trict ; he then taught one term in the Johnson 
 District; then one term in the Frank District, 
 and, for the next five, was employed in Greens- 
 bm*g. During the winter of 1880-81, he had 
 charge of the school in King District. 
 
 ELIAS CRAMER, farmer; P. O. Inland; 
 the only son of Daniel and Elizabeth (Thorn- 
 ton) Cramer; born in Green Township Sept. 
 
GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 981 
 
 14, 1834. Daniel was the youngest son of 
 Solomon Cramer, who removed with his fam- 
 ily from Center Co., Penn., and settled in 
 Green Township during the year 1812, when 
 Daniel was quite young; owing to the poor 
 facilities for acquiring an education in those 
 days, Daniel did not secure in his youth a 
 ver}' extended knowledge of the common 
 branches, but, by his own efforts in later years, 
 he gained a fair education; he was early 
 apprenticed to learn the carpenter's trade with 
 Peter Buchtel, which occupation he followed 
 until his decease; he was married, in March, 
 1833, to Miss Elizabeth Thornton, whose only 
 child is the subject of this sketch; a short 
 time after his marriage, he purchased of 
 William Benn 45 acres of land lying south- 
 west of Greensburg, and, in 1850, 17 acres 
 belonging to the estate of Louis Spotts. 
 Daniel was a member of the Evangelical 
 Association of Greensburg, of which congre- 
 gation he was an active, influential and con- 
 sistent member, holding for many years the 
 offices of Class-leader, Exhorter and Trustee. 
 He died April 26, 1863. Elias Cramer, his 
 son, was educated in the schools of Green 
 Township, and attended Greensbui'g Semi- 
 nary; he worked on his father's farm until his 
 death; was a member of the 164th Regiment 
 O. N. G., and during the civil war was called 
 into the service for some four months; is 
 owner at the present time of about 52 acres 
 of land; was married, Aug. 16, 1860, to Miss 
 Rebecca Staver, daughter of Rev. Elias and 
 Mary (Yerrick) Sta>er; eight children are the 
 fruit of this union — Oliver J., Daniel, Sarah 
 J., Emma, Elizabeth, Mary Anna and Etta. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Cramer are connected with the 
 Evangelical Association of Greensburg, of 
 which church he is an active and consistent 
 member, having held in the past years the 
 oifices of Class-leader, Exhorter, Trustee and 
 Steward; is Superintendent of the Sunday 
 school at the present time. In politics, he 
 has always been a Republican. 
 
 ABRAHAM CRAMER, farmer; P. O. Un- 
 iontown; was born Oct. 26, 1827, in Green 
 Township, and has been a resident ever since ; 
 he is thfi only living child of Solomon and 
 Elizabeth (Myers) Cramer. Solomon was 
 born in Center Co., Penn., May 6, 1796, and, 
 
 when about 16 years of age, his father, Abra- 
 ham Cramer, removed to Summit Co. with his 
 family, and settled in Green Township in 
 1812, purchasing fi'om the Government the 
 quarter- section now owned by William Stett- 
 ler and John Snyder. Abraham was by his 
 tii'st wife the father of five children — Solomon, 
 Elizabeth, John, Daniel, and one whose name 
 we have been unable to ascertain; Elizabeth 
 married Michael Wise, and died many years 
 ago; John worked on the Ohio Canal for some 
 time, and afterward died at Greentown; Dan- 
 iel died at Greensburg in April, 1863. Solo- 
 mon, the father of the subject of this sketch, 
 was married, about 1825, to Miss Myers, who 
 died some live years later in 1830; he started 
 in life as a poor man, and worked hard in 
 order to secm^e a competency for his only 
 child; about the year 1832, he purchased 
 70 acres of Jacob Cline; nearly twenty 
 years later he bought another piece of 40 
 acres, and, again in 1860, another tract con- 
 sisting of 41 acres, making a total of 151 
 acres, which is now owned by his son. Solo- 
 mon died March 8, 1874, nearly 78 years, 
 while residing with his son Abraham. The 
 subject of this sketch was educated in the 
 schools of Green Township, and married, 
 April 3, 1856, to Miss Sarah J. Wiley, daugh- 
 ter of John and Ruah (Gaff) Wiley. They 
 are the parents of seven childi-en — John Wes- 
 ley, died in infancy; Ruah, married Daniel 
 Vandersoll Dec. 9, 1880; Mary Ella, Walter 
 Grant, Sarah M., Nellie died aged 2, and 
 Harley Forrest. The present residence of 
 the family was erected during the summer of 
 1878. Mr. Cramer has always been a Repub- 
 lican. He is a member of the Reformed 
 Church, and formerly connected with the con- 
 gi'egation at Millheim. 
 
 JACOB FOLTZ, farmer; P. O. Nimisila; 
 son of Abraham and Elizabeth (Lausche) 
 Foltz, born in Lancaster Co., Penn., June 21, 
 1822. Abraham was a tailor by trade, and 
 also followed farming; he died in August, 
 1831, at the age of 53; during his life he was 
 married twice, and the father of eight children 
 — John, George and Barbara by his first wife ; 
 and Samuel, Jacob, Abraham, Elizabeth and 
 Hemy by the second. Hemy Lausch, gi-and- 
 father of Jacob Foltz, was a soldier during 
 
 ^ < 
 

 982 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 the Revolutionary war, and wounded at the 
 battle of Brandywine; he served thi-ee years 
 during the struggle for American independ- 
 ence. Jacob Foltz was educated in the com- 
 mon schools of Pennsylvania, and, at the age 
 of 14, he was apprenticed to learn the tailor's 
 trade with Jonas Renningei', of East Earl; 
 after remaining with him for five years, he 
 worked for Benjamin Swartz, of East Cocal- 
 ico, and, after some twelve months, opened a 
 shop on his own account in Brecknock Town- 
 ship, Lancaster Co., where he made custom 
 work for many years. He discontinued this 
 business about April, 1857, and some twelve 
 months later removed to Franklin Township, 
 Summit Co., where for thi'ee years he fol- 
 lowed butchering, residing near Manchester; 
 for the next five years he kept the Mansion 
 House, at that village; in March, 1866, he 
 removed to Green Township, having pur- 
 chased 84 acres of land from James Serf ass; 
 some four years later, he bought 26 acres 
 from John Kaler; he sold a small tract of 5^ 
 acres, and bought 15 more from Messrs. Her- 
 ring and Rohrer, having at the present time 
 about 70 acres. His residence was jnit up in 
 the summer of 1876. Mi-. Foltz was married, 
 Sept. 29, 1841, to Catharine Baker, daughter 
 of Peter and Madgalena Baker, of Lancaster 
 Co., and they are the parents of the follow- 
 ing eight children: Lucetta, now Mrs. Da- 
 vid Hotelling, of Ionia Co., Mich.; Susan, 
 now Mrs. Hiram Haring, of Montcalm Co., 
 Mich.; Elizabeth, now Mrs. David Stump, of 
 Manchester, Franklin Township; Catharine, 
 now Mrs. Frank Slaybaugh, of Williams Co., 
 Ohio; Barbara, now Mrs. Reuben Clark, of 
 Gratiot Co., Mich.; Isaac, now a resident of 
 Manchester, Franklin Township; Maria, died 
 aged about 20 while visiting in Michigan ; Caro- 
 line, now Mrs. Benjamin Loeihr, of Wilson's 
 Comers, Medina Co., Ohio. The first wife of 
 Mr. Foltz died Nov. 21, 1868, and he was 
 married the second time, to Mrs. Catharine 
 Kauffman, daughter of John and Elizabeth 
 (Grove) Stump. The resiilt of this union is 
 one child — William Henry Foltz. By her 
 first husband Mrs. Kauffman (now Mrs. 
 Foltz), had six children; two died in infancy, 
 four are living, viz.. Rev. J. C. Kauffman, 
 now Pastor of the Lutheran Church, at Orr- 
 
 ville; Levi M., now a resident of Franklin 
 Township; S. Ellen, now at home; and Sam- 
 uel S., now a student in the Junior Class of 
 Wittenberg College, at Springfield, Ohio. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Foltz are members of the New 
 School Lutheran Church at Manchester, in 
 which congregation Mr. Foltz has served as 
 Deacon, Elder and Treasurer. He has also 
 been elected Assessor of Green Township for 
 one term, and of Franklin for two; was Land 
 Appraiser for Green in 1870, of which town- 
 ship he has also been chosen as Trustee. 
 
 DANIEL FOUST, farmer; P. O. Inland; 
 is the youngest son of John and Catharine 
 (Schaber) Foust, was born at the farm upon 
 which he now resides, Sept. 25, 1842. John 
 was born in Union Co., Penn., May 2, 1795; 
 he was the son of Philip and Magdalena 
 (Long) Foust; when about 24, he removed to 
 Green Township and purchased from the Gov- 
 ernment the northeast quarter of Section 21 . 
 (This land is now occupied by his widow and 
 her son Daniel — it is the only tract in the 
 township which has not passed from the 
 hands of the original family that purchased 
 it.) In 1820, this land was covered with a 
 heavy growth of timber, but by hard work he 
 succeeded in clearing this to a great extent; 
 for many years he followed shoemaking and 
 weaving at night and during the winter; he 
 united with the Reformed Chm'ch dm-ing his 
 youth, and was connected with the congrega- 
 tion at East Liberty, of which he was an act- 
 ive member, serving as Deacon and Elder for 
 many years. John was mamed, Dec. 29, 
 1822, to Catharine Schaber, who was born 
 July 10, 1800; she was a daughter of Philip 
 and Elizabeth (Bickle) Schaber. They were 
 the parents of nine children, viz., Mary, born 
 in 1828, married Samuel Foust and died many 
 years ago; Elizabeth and Abraham, died in 
 infancy; John, Dec. 19, 1829, and died about 
 1854; Samuel, born June 6, 1881, and now a 
 resident of Iowa City; Michael, Nov. 12, 1885, 
 and died aged 14; George, Aug. 80, 1887; he 
 enlisted in the 29th Regiment O. V. I., under 
 Col. Buckley, and, after serving three years, 
 was killed at Buzzard's Roost; Catharine, 
 Nov. 16, 1840, now living with her mother; 
 Daniel, the subject of this sketch. John died 
 May 25, 1874, after living on his farm in 
 
GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 983 
 
 Green Township over half a century. Daniel 
 was educated in the schools of Green Town- 
 ship; he has been a farmer and stock-raiser 
 all his life; was a member of the 164th Reg- 
 iment O. N. G., and was in active service for 
 four months during 1864. For several years 
 he owned a half interest in a threshing ma- 
 chine with his cousin Abraham Foust. He 
 recently purchased the full-blooded Durham 
 Bull "Leo," and also other cattle of this 
 grade; the Foust homestead was erected in 
 1847; the barn was built in 1834, and re- 
 fitted and painted in 1879. Daniel was mar- 
 ried, Oct. 24, 1861, to Mary Ann Dreese, 
 daughter of Isaac and Nancy ( Yerrick ) Dreese. 
 They are the parents of seven children, all 
 girls, of whom six are living — Minerva Ellen, 
 Nancy Cora, Lorena Alice (deceased). Bertha 
 May, Mary Abbi, Sarah Saloma and Celia 
 Catharine. Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Foust are 
 members of the German Reformed Church at 
 East Liberty. 
 
 ISAAC FRANKS, farmer; P. O. Inland; 
 was born Feb. 21, 1817, in that portion of 
 Trumbull which is now within the limits of 
 Mahoning Co. ; he was the son of Jacob and 
 Elizabeth (Dice) Franks, who were natives of 
 Washington Co., Penn., and removed with 
 their parents to Trumbull Co., Ohio, where 
 they were married; ten children were the 
 result of their union, nine reached maturity 
 — Samuel, now of Portage Co. ; Andrew, for- 
 merly of Green Township, now deceased; 
 John, a former resident of Green, but died 
 some thirty years ago, his only son Joel was 
 killed in the army; Henry, now of Eaton Co., 
 Mich.; George, died in April, 1876, while 
 residing north of Akron; Isaac, subject of 
 this sketch; Jacob, died some seven years 
 since in Iowa; Elizabeth, now Mrs. Peter 
 Gates, of Muscatine, Iowa; Jonas, n'^w a res- 
 ident of Michigan. Jacob Franks was a sol- 
 dier during the war of 1812; he was wounded 
 in the arm at a battle near Lake Erie, and 
 carried the ball in his flesh for six months; 
 dxu'ing the later years of his life, drew a pen- 
 sion from the Government; he died about 
 1847, aged 64 years; in April, 1850, his wife 
 removed to Green Township and purchased 
 103 acres of land, which was farmed by her 
 son Andrew until his death; and then resided 
 
 with her son Isaac until she died Oct. 27, 
 1877, aged 97 years and 3 months. The sub- 
 ject of this sketch removed to Green Town- 
 ship about the year 1841, in the fall; he was 
 then a poor man, and for ' some two years 
 worked at days work and by the month, mak- 
 ing rails, chopping wood and at the carpen- 
 ter's trade, imtil he saved enough to warrant 
 him in purchasing 64 acres of land, which 
 tract he owns at the present time; he after- 
 ward bought other land from various parties, 
 and now owns about 280 acres ; having during 
 the past twoscore years gained a competency 
 by habits of industry and good business man- 
 agement; he purchased the first threshing- 
 machine ever brought to Summit (Jo., and, for 
 six seasons, followed this business; in 1873, 
 he erected his present residence which is the 
 largest frame dwelling in the township. For 
 some years Mr. Franks has been engaged in 
 breeding thoroughbred stock. In 1868, he 
 purchased the first two Jersey calves ever im- 
 ported into Green Township, paying |205 for 
 the animals; since then the Franks family 
 have always had pure blooded cattle of this 
 grade, which are as well bred for dairy pur- 
 poses as any other stock of Jersey cows in 
 Siunmit Co. In 1878, they paid $600 for 
 three yearlings and three calves; they have 
 also the most extensive stock of Italian bees 
 in Green Township. Isaac Franks was mar- 
 ried, June 13, 1850, to Miss Sai-ah Cathai'ine 
 Miller, who was bom March 5, 1833; she was 
 the daughter of John and Susan (Stambaugh) 
 Miller; was born and raised in what is now 
 Mahoning Co., where her father died in the 
 fall o£ 1879, aged 90 years. Mr. and 'Mxs. 
 Franks are members of the Evangelical Asso- 
 ciation at Greensburg, of which denomination 
 they have been earnest and consistent mem- 
 bers for many years. They are the parents 
 of two children — Emanuel and Mary E., now 
 Mrs. Madison Kepler. Emanuel was born 
 July 23, 1851; he was educated in the com- 
 mon schools of his native township, and after- 
 ward attended Greensbm-g Seminary for six 
 terms. Was married, Nov. 21, 1876, to Ella 
 Francis Cox, daughter of Henry and Char- 
 lotte (Horner) Cox; they have one child — 
 Lloyd Mondella, who was born June 25, 
 1879. 
 
 i >y 
 
984 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 JOSEPH GRABLE (deceased), formerly 
 of Green Township, was born in Washington 
 Co., Penn., Dec. 8, 1812; son of Jonathan 
 and Catharine (Barkhammer) Grable, and 
 married, in 1832, Susanna Cox, daughter of 
 Jacob and Elizabeth (Hartsoph) Cox, who 
 was also born in Washington Co., Oct. 18, 
 1815, where they resided until 1884, and then 
 removed to Green Township, settling upon 
 the farm now occupied by Jacob Grable, 
 which land Jonathan Grable, father of Joseph, 
 had purchased fi'om the Government; they 
 remained there for some twenty years, then 
 removed to the farm now occupied by IVIrs. 
 Susanna Grable, which Joseph purchased of 
 Frederick Pontius about 1864; Joseph was 
 always a farmer, but for many years cried 
 sales for those desiring the services of an 
 auctioneer; was chosen Land Appraiser by 
 the citizens of Green Township, at one De- 
 cennial Appraisment; he died March 9, 1867. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Grable were members of the 
 Disciples' Church; they were the parents of 
 ten children; record of these is as follows: 
 Sarah, born May 7, 1833, married Conrad 
 Ream, and died aged about 24, leaving one son, 
 Adam — now a resident of Caldwell Co., Mo. ; 
 Mary Ann, May 8, 1835, and died in Iowa 
 aged about 22; Jacob, born Sept. 6, 1886, 
 now a resident of Green Township; he mar- 
 ried Miss Ajinelia Stauffer Jan. 1, 1857 ; they 
 have five children — Marion, Effie, Florence, 
 Harry and Bessie; Elizabeth, March 9, 1888, 
 married Willi am Col e, they reside near Belmont, 
 111., having six children — Ellsworth, Clyde, 
 Joseph, Hatty, Eddie and Samuel; Jonathan, 
 April 5, 1889, died some three years since at 
 Osceola, Iowa, leaving one child, named Anna ; 
 Samuel, Aug. 19, 1840, resides in Green Town- 
 ship with his mother; Catharine, November 
 10, 1842, married Daniel Shutt, and died Oct. 
 30, 1864; Jerome, Jan. 11, 1844, enlisted in 
 the army for three years during the rebellion, 
 and died about 1870; Levina, April 9, 1846, 
 and died March 13, 1865; Minerva, Jan. 81, 
 1848, married Alfred Yerrick, who died May 
 16, 1879, leaving six children — Omsby, Lois 
 Lovina (now living with her grandmother), 
 Susan, Stella, Bessie, Johnny and Ida. Jon- 
 athan Grable moved to Green Township a 
 short time after his son Joseph did, and set- 
 
 tled in the southern portion; he removed to 
 Greensburg where he died many years since, 
 and was bui'ied on his farm some two miles 
 south of the village. 
 
 REV. P. W. HAHN, Inland; was born in 
 Columbiana Co., Ohio; the oldest son of Peter 
 and Mary (Stump) Hahn; Peter was born in 
 Baltimore Co., Md., and Mary Stump in York 
 Co., Penn. They were married, in 1811, by 
 Rev. Mr. Stauch, of the German Reformed 
 Church. Dui'ing the year 1800, George 
 Adam Hahn, father of Peter, left his Eastern 
 home, with a family of six sons and daughters, 
 and removed to Ohio, settling in Coliunbiana 
 Co. The same year George Adam Stump, 
 with his four sons and six daughters, left York 
 Co., Penn., and occupied land in the same 
 district in Ohio. Both of these pioneers had 
 served in the American army dm-ing the Rev- 
 olutionary war, and their grandson, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch states: " I remember dis- 
 tinctly of hearing them relate incidents of 
 the war and of the gTeat and good man Wash- 
 ington." These two families, with another by 
 the name of Sumner, foi-med the nucleus of a 
 new community; both of the sturdy patriots 
 died in Springfield Township. Peter and 
 Mary Hahn had nine children — Sarah, mar- 
 ried Dr. Sowers, of Columbiana Co., and now 
 deceased; Mary, now the wife of Rev. J. 
 Crouse, of Tifiin, Ohio; Libbie, married J. H. 
 Donald, and now deceased; Rev. P. W., now 
 of Green Township; Rachael, now Mrs. J. 
 Frankfort, of Rockford, 111.; J. W., now of 
 Texas; J. D., now of Plainfield, 111.; George, 
 died in California; Jeremiah, died in Illinois. 
 The subject of this sketch was educated in 
 the schools of Columbiana Co., and remained 
 on his father's farm imtil 22 years of age; he 
 then entered the ministry of the Evangel- 
 ical Association, of which denomination he 
 has been an active minister for thirty- 
 seven years; during this period he has 
 preached throughout Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, 
 Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York and New 
 Jersey ; he preached for two years at Kelly s 
 Island in Lake Erie, crossing and re-crossing 
 on the ice during the winter; for some twelve 
 months he was collector of funds to aid the 
 Evangelical Printing House now located at 
 Cleveland. Mi'. Hahn was married, April 30, 
 
GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 985 
 
 1846, to Mary A. Mottinger, daughter of John 
 and Barbai'a (Long) Mottinger. They are 
 the parents of four living children — Flora 
 Almeda, Jennie Cornelia, Charles Beecher 
 and Henry Ward. Rev. Hahn has charge at 
 the present time (February, 1881), of Wil- 
 mot Circuit of Stark Co. ; he owns a fine 
 house and some 23 acres of land, which lies 
 just south of Greensburg Village. 
 
 CYRUS HARTONG, farmer; P. O. Inland; 
 was born Sept. 25, 1816; the son of Jacob 
 and Elizabeth (Tritch) Hartong, who were 
 born on the same day, April 21, 1796, and 
 married about the year 1815. Jacob was the 
 son of Christian and Barbara Hartong, who 
 were residents of Lancaster Co., Penn., at the 
 time of his birth. Jacob remained in that 
 State until the year 1824, when he removed 
 with his wife and family to Green Township; 
 he purchased some 200 acres of land, which 
 is now owned by the Widow Thui'sby. Jacob 
 was a weaver by trade, and followed this 
 business in connection with farming for some 
 fifteen years after he removed to Green Town- 
 ship. He was a member of the Evangelical 
 Chm-ch of Greensburg, and died in November, 
 1869; his wife died in 1842; they were the 
 parents of twelve children, and these are all 
 living, the youngest being over 40 years of 
 age. These children are located at the pres- 
 ent time as follows: Cyi'us, in Green Town- 
 ship; Elias, near Joliet, 111.; Allen, Green 
 Township ; Mary Ann, now Mrs. John Swartz, 
 of Coventry Township; Harriet, now Mrs. 
 George W. Craig, of Coventry Township; 
 Eliza, now Mrs. Andi'ew Kiblinger, of Frank- 
 lin Township; Catharine, now Mi-s. John 
 Miller, of Green Township; Jacob, near Jol- 
 iet, 111. ; Lydia, now Mrs. Elias Thornton, of 
 Elkhart, Ind. ; Jonathan, Levi and Franklin, 
 near Joliet, 111. Cyrus Hartong, the subject 
 of this sketch, removed with his parents to 
 Green Township in 1824. He attended school 
 for a short time in Pennsylvania; and also 
 the schools of Green Township, and since his 
 youth he has acquired by reading a very fair 
 education. Assisted by his younger brothers, 
 he cleared his father's farm. By a long life 
 of toil at farming and habits of economy, he 
 has acquired a competency and owns at the 
 present time a fine farm of nearly 150 acres 
 
 in Green Township, 160 acres of land in Iowa, 
 and his pi-esent residence just south of Greens- 
 burg. Cyrus Hai-tong was married, in Janu- 
 ary, 1841, to Miss Elizabeth Wetzel, who was 
 born at what is now Greensbm-g Aug. 17, 
 1821. They were the parents of thirteen chil- 
 dren, four died in infancy, nine are living as 
 follows: Louis, in Jackson Township, Stark 
 Co. ; Margaret, now Mrs. Hemy Swigart, of 
 Portage Township; Levi, Green Township; 
 Catharine, now Mrs. Eli Smith, of Jackson 
 Township, Stark Co. ; Maiy, at home with her 
 parents; Hannah, now Mrs. Levi Bach man, 
 of Green Township; Cp-us Wilson, Green 
 Township; Emma, now Mrs. David Heckman, 
 of Green Township; John Lincoln, at home 
 with his parents. Mr. Hartong has served 
 twice as Trustee of Green Township, and has 
 also been elected to other minor ofiices of 
 honor and trust. He is a member of the 
 Evangelical Chiu'ch of Greensbm'g; his wife 
 is also a member, and they have brought all 
 the children up in that faith. 
 
 WILLIAM HENRY, farmer; P. O. Smn- 
 mit; son of Peter and Susannah (Mongold) 
 Henry; born in Germany April 16, 1816. 
 Peter was a farmer in one of the Rhine Prov- 
 inces of Germany, living about thirty miles 
 from the River Rhine. He was the father of 
 four sons who were coming of age, and not 
 wishing to give one up each year to the Ger- 
 man Government, he determined to emigrate. 
 He received about $1,500 for his small fai'm 
 of some 25 acres in different patches, and, 
 about the year 1835, embarked with his wife 
 and four childi'en for America. His fii'st wife, 
 the mother of Henry, had died about foui' 
 years previous ; Peter settled in Coventry 
 Township where he resided some twelve years, 
 he then removed to Marshall Co., Ind., and 
 died nearly thirty years ago. Peter was, by 
 two wives, the father of nine childi-en, as fol- 
 lows: Henry, who died while a i-esident of 
 Marshall Co., Ind.; William, the subject of 
 this sketch; Martha, man'ied John Dice and 
 resided east of Akron near the old forge; Ja- 
 cob, now of Marshall Co., Ind.; John, died 
 while a resident of Green Township about 
 1855; Susannah, married William Bitman, 
 and afterward his brother Charles; they re- 
 moved to Dubuque, Iowa, where she died;. 
 
 ■V" 
 
_^. 
 
 986 
 
 BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Frederick, died while a resident of Marshall 
 Co., Ind. ; Charlotte, is now Mrs. Andrew 
 Warner, of Marshall Co. ; Katie, married Will- 
 iam Logan, after removing to Indiana. Will- 
 iam Henry was ediicated in the schools of 
 Germany, and worked on his father's farm 
 both in Germany and America until he be- 
 came of age. He was maiTied, Oct. 17, 1844, 
 to Susannah Evans, daughter of Abraham and 
 Susannah (Shade) Evans, who were married 
 in Lancaster Co., where Mrs. Henrv was born 
 Sept. 27, 1821; Mrs. Evans died Feb. 15, 
 1872, aged 84 years 2 months and 15 days; 
 her husband died many years previous. Will- 
 iam Henry and wife are the parents of eleven 
 children as follows: John, born Sept. 13, 
 1845, married Catharine Weyrich, and now 
 a resident of Tallmadge Township (during 
 the war he was a member of Co. A, 104th O. 
 V. L); Susannah, born July 13, 1847, and now 
 Mrs. Andrew Walkup, of Akron; Henry, born 
 Jan. 27, 1849, and died April 16, 1855; Katie, 
 born Jan. 1, 1851, and now Mrs. Samuel War- 
 ley; Kebecca, born Dec. 31, 1852, now at 
 home; Mary, born Sept. 24, 1854, now Mrs. 
 Aaron Ritter, of Green Township; and Sarah, 
 her twin sister, who died Mai'ch 18, 1855; 
 Hiram, born Sept. 11, 1856, married Hattie 
 McCummings, and now a resident of Tall- 
 madge; Amanda, born Sept. 28, 1858, now 
 Mrs. Andrew Switzer, of East Liberty, Will- 
 iam, born June 18, 1861, married Jennie 
 Semler, and now a resident of Coventry; 
 Louis Ellsworth, born June 10, 1864, and now 
 at home. Mr. Henry started in life a poor 
 man; previous to his marriage and for several 
 years afterward, he worked out by the day 
 and month for various farmers; he then 
 farmed several of Adam Yen-ick's tracts of 
 land on the shares for some ten years ; then 
 removed to Franklin Township and rented the 
 Rex farm for eleven years. He then pm'- 
 chased 70 acres of Matthias Battey in Frank- 
 lin Township, and, after about six years, sold 
 this and bought, in 1871, of Samuel Long, 
 the farm upon which he now resides, which 
 consists at the present time of 64 acres. His 
 residence was put up in the summer of 1878. 
 Mr. Henry is a member of the Evangelical 
 Association of East Liberty; his wife is a 
 member of the same denomination. 
 
 D. F. HUNSBERGER, merchant, Inland; 
 one of the most enterprising and ener- 
 getic business men of Summit Co.; born 
 March 5, 1835; the eldest son of John and 
 Cynthia (Triplet) Hunsberger; he received a 
 knowledge of the common branches in the 
 schools of Green Township, and afterward 
 attended Greensburg Seminary and at Marl- 
 boro, Stark Co. He entered his father's store 
 when quite young; was so small that it was 
 necessary for him to stand on a store box to 
 sell goods, and in fact " grew up behind the 
 coimter." In October, 1863, John Hunsber- 
 ger transferred the establishment to his two 
 sons, D. F. and C. F., who c6nducted the 
 business luitil July 1, 1868, imder the firm of 
 Hunsberger Brothers. Since then D. F. has 
 managed the establishment; he has at the 
 present time a branch store at Uniontown, 
 and runs the warehouse at Uniontown Station, 
 where he is engaged buying grain. He was a 
 member of the O. N. G. diu-ing the rebellion, 
 and was in active service from May to Sep- 
 tember, 1864; was chosen Cnptain of Co. H, 
 164th Regiment. He has been a member of 
 the Township Board of Educat'on since 1868, 
 and is Postmaster of Greensburg at the pres- 
 ent time, which business is attended by his 
 son Arthur F. It is worthy of note that he 
 was the first young man from this section of 
 the county who visited New York City, having 
 been sent by his father to pm'chase goods 
 when he was about 18 years of age. Mr. 
 Hunsberger was married, Nov. 25, 1858, to 
 Miss A. C. Henkle, of Ashland Co., and they 
 have six childi'en — Sheridan G., now a student 
 at Oberlin College; Arthur F., Deputy Post- 
 master; Homer E., Lottie C, Ai-lin E. and 
 John H. John Hunsberger, for many years 
 a merchant at Greensburg, was born in Lan- 
 caster Co., Perm., Aug. 14, 1808; he was the 
 son of John and Mary (Bender) Hunsberger, 
 who moved to Ohio in 1822, with nine chil- 
 di'en, and settled in Green Township, pm-chas- 
 ing 400 acres of land. These children were: 
 Abram, of Green Township ; Fannie married 
 John Harter, and died near Joliet, 111. ; John, 
 of Greensbiu-g; Mary, now Mrs. Peter Buch- 
 tel, of South Aki-on; Samuel, of Green Town- 
 ship; Elizabeth, now Mrs. Jacob Garmon, of 
 Greensburg; Levi, went to California during 
 
 & I - 
 
Ml 
 
 GREEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 987 
 
 gold excitement and never returned; Catlia- 
 rine, unmarried; Isaac, near New Portage, 
 Summit Co. John remained on his father's 
 farm until he was 22, when he entered Hart 
 & McMillen's store at Middleburg, and clerked 
 there about four years; then started a store 
 in Uniontown, Stark Co., and after three years 
 removed to Greensburg, at which village he 
 was engaged in the mercantile business until 
 he transferred the store to his sons; thi'ough 
 his efforts a post office was established at 
 Greensburg, and he was appointed first Post- 
 master by President Van Buren; holding this 
 position for some ten years. He was married 
 to Cynthia Triplet, daughter of William Trip- 
 let, the first settler of Green Township, and 
 they have three children^ — D. F., of Greens- 
 burg; Celia, now Mrs. Beehtel, of Jackson 
 Township, Stark Co. ; and Clinton F., of Akron, 
 Ohio. 
 
 ALEXANDEK JOHNSTON, farmer; P. 
 O. Greentown, Stark Co. "You just go to 
 Alexander Johnston and he will tell you all 
 about it." This was the language of many 
 old settlers when asked by the historian in 
 regard to facts of the early days in Green 
 Township. The general opinion seemed to 
 be that the proper source for reliable infor- 
 mation would be one, who, during a residence 
 in the township of nearly threescore and ten 
 years, had occupied such positions in the com- 
 munity which proved him to be superior in 
 intellect to the great majority who now reside 
 or have lived in Green Township. Alexander 
 Johnston was born in Center Co.. Penn., Nov. 
 7, 1808, the eldest son of Cornelius and Eliz- 
 abeth (Wilhelm) Johnston. Cornelius was of 
 Scotch-Irish descent, and born in Center Co. 
 Feb. 17, 1782; married to Elizabeth Wilhelm 
 March 25, 1806; she was born Jan. 8, 1787, 
 and the daughter of Abraham Wilhelm, who 
 settled in Green Township in 1814, and en- 
 tered from the Government 820 acres of land, 
 upon which the village of Greensburg is now 
 located. Cornelius and his wife came to 
 Green Township at the same time and pur- 
 chased 160 acres, upon which he resided for 
 over half a century. He was always a farmer, 
 but chosen frequently to offices of honor and 
 trust by the citizens of the township; he died 
 June 3, 1870; his wife died Aug. 23, 1854. 
 
 They were the parents of eight children, five 
 sons and three daughters, as follows: Mary, 
 born March 3, 1807, resides with Mrs. Good- 
 hue, of Akron; Alexander, subject of this 
 sketch; Abraham W., whose sketch appears 
 in this work; John, born Feb. 11, 1813, mar- 
 ried Elizabeth R. Newton, Feb. 4, 1840, and 
 died while a resident of Middlebiu-y, Jan. 26, 
 1879; William, Aug. 3, 1815, married Eliza- 
 beth G. Moore, April 22, 1841, and now a 
 resident of Copley; Cornelius, Feb. 8, 1819, 
 married Mary McNaughton Sept. 10, 1851, 
 and now resides at Akron; Nancy, Aug, 22, 
 1822, now Mrs. N. W. Goodhue, of Aki-on; 
 they were married Dec. 20, 1841; Eliza Ann, 
 March 5, 1827, and married Lot M. Watson, 
 of Copley, Dec. 27, 1865. During his youth, 
 Alexander received instruction at the pioneer 
 schools of Green Township, but most of his 
 education he acquired in the later years of his 
 life by h's own efforts ; he worked on his father's 
 farm in the summer and taught school 
 during the winter; he had charge of the school 
 at Greentown for six winters in succession, 
 and taught many terms in Green; was chosen 
 Township School Examiner, and continued in 
 this position imtil the office was abolished by 
 the Legislature. Was elected Clerk of the 
 township for two terms, and served as Justice 
 of the Peace for six years. When Summit 
 Co. was formed in 1840, he was elected County 
 Recorder, serving first for six months; in the 
 fall of 1840, he was re-elected for a full term. 
 During the winter of 1846-47, he represented 
 Summit Co. m the Legislature; he has also 
 been elected to many other minor offices of 
 trust and honor by the citizens. Alexander 
 was married, March 14, 1850, to Miss Lovina 
 (Thornton) Thursby, she was born Nov. 8, 
 1821; they are the parents of three children 
 — Horace Greeley, a surveyor and engineer; 
 Newton and Anna Maria. Mr. Johnston 
 owns at the present time 125 acres of land, 
 upon which is a fine residence situated one- 
 half mile from GreentowTQ Station. He was 
 originally a W'hig, but has voted the Repub- 
 lican ticket since the formation of that paiiv. 
 ABRAHAM W. JOHNSTON (deceased); 
 an early settler and for over half a centiuy a 
 resident of Green Township; bom Oct. 25, 
 1810, in Center Co., Penn.; the second son 
 
^ 
 
 988 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 of Cornelius and Elizabeth (Willielm) John- 
 ston. He came with his parents to Green 
 Township in 1814; attended school very little 
 in his youth, owing to the limited facilities 
 offered for obtaining an education at that 
 early day, but in after years he acquired by 
 his own efforts and constant reading a more 
 extended knowledge than most citizens of 
 Green Township ever had. In early life, he 
 was apprenticed to a Mr. Danner, of Canton, 
 and learned a trade ; after his term of service, 
 he opened a shop at Greentown, where he 
 remained for nine years. Then retiu'ned to 
 his father's farm, and, after five years, pur- 
 chased the homestead, residing there until he 
 died. He was chosen by his neighbors to 
 occupy many offices of honor and trust in the 
 township; was married. May 25, 1835, by 
 Rev. O. T. Plympton, to Miss Catharine 
 Moore, who was born Feb. 27, 1814, in North- 
 umberland Co., Penn. She was che daughter 
 of John and Margaret (White) Moore, who 
 were both natives of Northiunberland Co.; 
 they moved to Ohio in 1823, with their family, 
 and settled on a farm in Springfield Town- 
 ship, now Summit Co., where they resided 
 until they died. Mr. Abraham Johnston died 
 Aug. 28, 1877; his widow is still living on 
 the farm with their daughter Maggie. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Johnston were the parents of five 
 children — Washington G., born Feb. 18, 1836, 
 now farming the homestead; Cornelius, March 
 4, 1839, and died in early childhood; Mary 
 E., Jan. 9, 1842, married Jan. 4, 1866, to S. 
 H. Hunsberger, and now living at Ottawa, 
 111.; Maggie J., April 4, 1849, and resides 
 with her mother; Isabella, June 16, 1852, 
 mai'ried Oct. 23, 1878, to Corbin Dillman; 
 they now reside at Joliet, 111. The three 
 daughters were educated at Greensburg Sem- 
 inary. Washington G. attended Oberlin 
 College for two years, and was also a student 
 at Mt. Union; when about 20, he entered his 
 uncle's dry goods store at Akron, remaining 
 here two years; then commenced prospecting 
 for coal in connection with his cousin, Cornel- 
 ius A Johnston; they opened the Johnston 
 shaft in Franklin Township, working that for 
 four or five years; they also manufactured 
 oil at Akron for some eighteen months; Wash- 
 ington then removed to Rochester, N. Y., and 
 
 for four years was engaged manufacturing 
 boots and shoes; he returned to Summit Co., 
 and, after his father's death, purchased the 
 homestead, now 153 acres, which he farms at 
 the present time. He was maiTied, Oct. 1, 
 1863, to Miss Anna Irvin, and they have four 
 children — James Irvin, Katie May, ^ Grace 
 and Mattie. 
 
 JACOB KING, farmer and stock-buyer; P. 
 O. Inland; the son of William and Margaret 
 (Stroup) King; born in Coshocton Co., Ohio, 
 Jan. 20, 1838. He received a common-school 
 education in the district schools of Mill Creek 
 Township, Coshocton Co., and previous to 
 attaining his majority he engaged in the mer- 
 cantile business at Warsaw, a small village of 
 his native county, forming a partnership with 
 Christian Strome; after about two years he 
 sold his interest in this establishment, and 
 entered the seminary at Greensburg, where 
 he remained for some eighteen months; he 
 then attended Spring Mountain College, of 
 Coshocton Co., for about six months, and, 
 after teaching school for one term in Whitley 
 Co., Ind., re-entered Greensburg Seminary. 
 He was married, Feb. 27, 1862, to Miss Eliz- 
 abeth Gougler, daughter of John and Mary 
 (Thornton) Gougler. Mr. Gougler was born 
 in Union Co., Perm., June 16, 1807; was mar- 
 ried to Miss Thornton March 28, 1833, and 
 they were the parents of four childi'en — 
 George and Samuel, residents of Green Town- 
 ship; Elizabeth, wife of our subject; and 
 Elias, now a resident of Coventry Township. 
 The Gouglers removed fi"om Pennsylvania to 
 Green Township about the year 1838. Mr. 
 and Mi's. King are the parents of fou.r chil- 
 di'en — Mary Martha, Samantha Jane, Ama 
 Maranda and John William. For three years 
 after his marriage, Mr. King farmed his fath- 
 er-in-law's farm upon the shares; he then set- 
 tled on his present farm in the spring of 
 1865. He is an active member of the Evan- 
 gelical Association of Greensburg, having 
 been a member of this denomination for some 
 twenty-two years. His wife has been con- 
 nected with the church about the same length 
 of time. In the spring of 1870, Mr. King 
 received a license to preach from the Pitts- 
 burgh Conference of the Evangelical Associa- 
 tion, and was for two years assigned to Stark 
 
 f 
 
 :fr 
 
GKEEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 989 
 
 Cii'cuit; for the next two years tie was located 
 on Austintown Circuit, in Mahoning Co., and 
 afterward to Erie Circuit, in Pennsylvania, 
 for the same length of time. He was a very 
 efficient worker in the cause of religion, and 
 during his ministiy in Stark Co. two new 
 churches were erected on his circuit, one at 
 Homeworth and the other at Louisville; two 
 new church edifices were also -erected while 
 he was engaged on Austintown Circuit, one 
 in Berlin and the other on Green Township, 
 Mahoning Co. These four new church build- 
 ings in as many years, were in a great measure 
 the direct result of his skill at financiering for 
 the congregations, of which he was then Pas- 
 tor, and he received credit for his efforts in a 
 lengthy article published in one of the organs 
 of the association. Mr. King is at the present 
 time a local minister; he is a member of the 
 I. O. O. F. Lodge, of Greensburg, and is un- 
 doubtedly the largest stock- dealer of Green 
 Township. 
 
 L. M. KEPLEE, farmer; P. O. Inland; 
 youngest son of Andrew and Sarah Ann 
 (Kintz) Kepler; born at his father's farm just 
 south of East Liberty May 15, 1852; was 
 educated in the common school of that village, 
 and attended Greensburg Seminary for two 
 terms. At the age of 20, he taught school in 
 District No. 12, Coventry Township, for one 
 term, and afterward in District No. 12, 
 Springfield Township, for two terms, and 
 District No. 3, in Green Township, for two 
 terms. He was married, Nov. 26, 1876, to 
 Miss Mary E., only daughter of Isaac and 
 Sarah Catharine (Miller) Franks. They have 
 one child — Earnest, who was born June 15, 
 1878. Andrew Kepler, father of the subject 
 of this sketch, was born in Green Township 
 March 16, 1815; he was the son of Andrew 
 and Mary (Cramer) Kepler, who settled in 
 Green Township with their family during the 
 spring of 1810. Andrew, Jr., received a very 
 limited education, owing to the poor facilities 
 offered in the early days; he worked for his 
 father until he was 21; then farmed for sev- 
 eral years; in 1841, he erected a hotel in the 
 village of East Liberty, and, after keeping 
 tavern for two years, traded the establishment 
 to John Castetter for his present farm ; he has 
 served as Trustee several terms, and is Treas- 
 
 urer of Green Township at the present time. 
 He was man-ied, April 28, 1886, to Sarah Ann 
 Kintz, who was born June 20, 1817; they are 
 the parents of seven children — Maria, now 
 Mrs. Daniel Stam, of Greeusbm-g; Hiram, 
 proprietor of a laundry at Akron; Isabella, 
 now at home; John Perry, of Tallmadge; 
 Sylvester, a resident of East Liberty, and 
 Justice of the Peace of Green Township; 
 Oliver C, died in infancy; and L. M., subject 
 of this sketch. 
 
 EEV. ADAM KLINEFELTER (deceased); 
 a pioneer minister of the Evangelical Associ- 
 ation, and for many years a prominent and 
 influential member of the congregation at 
 Greensburg. He was born May 1, 1796, in 
 Shrewsbury Township, York Co. , Penn. , where 
 he lived until he became of age. He united 
 with the Evangelical Association at 19, and, 
 at the Tenth Annual Conference held at New 
 Berlin, Penn., in June, 1817, was received 
 into the itineracy as a preacher on probation, 
 and sent to the Lancaster Circuit in Ohio. 
 The Evangelical Association then niunbered 
 only twenty-one itinerant ministers, and 1,493 
 members; Father Klinefelter sui-vived them 
 all, and was, previous to his death, the oldest 
 living minister of this denomination. In the 
 year 1818, he traveled Schuylkill Circuit, 
 Penn.; in 1819, Somerset; in 1820, Union; in 
 1821, Lancaster, Ohio; in 1822, York, Penn. 
 In 1823, was elected Presiding Elder and 
 stationed on Ohio District, which field he 
 occupied as Elder for foiu* years; in 1827, he 
 was sent to Sandusky, Ohio; 1828, Schuylkill, 
 Penn.; and 1829, to Canton Circuit, Ohio. 
 In consequence of the hardships he suiTered 
 during this active ministry of thirteen years, 
 his health was undermined, and he was com- 
 pelled to locate, in 1830, on account of bodily 
 infirmities, but, for nearly fifty years after- 
 ward as a local preacher, he did good service 
 for the cause he loved. He was married, Aug. 
 2, 1825, to Margaret Dillman, born May 26, 
 1805; a daughter of Conrad Dillman, one of 
 the early settlers of Green Township. For 
 several years Rev. Klinefelter resided on his 
 father-in-law's farm, but, about the year 1843, 
 he purchased from a man named Yohe the 
 160 acres in Green Township, and resided 
 upon this land until he died, March 22, 1878. 
 
 Co — 
 
990 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 It was then written of him : " As a man and 
 associate he was always straightforward, open- 
 hearted, sociable and communicative. In his 
 company no one would be likely to become 
 sad or gloomy, for he was always cheerful, 
 and the influence of his friendly spirit was 
 almost irresistible. He was strongly attached 
 to the church of his choice, without being 
 uncharitable toward others, and, although he 
 attached great importance to the early cus 
 toms, manners and spirit of our church, he 
 was more progressive than many whose best 
 years belong to this progressive age. As a 
 Christian, he was sincere and firm in his 
 belief and principles, constant in his devo- 
 tions, and exemplary in conduct. He liber- 
 ally supported every good enterprise of the 
 chtu-ch." Margaret, his wife, was thrown 
 from a wagon June 1, 1879, and suffered in- 
 stantaneous death. They were the parents of 
 ten children — Joel and Amelia, died in infan- 
 cy; Joseph, died in 1846, aged 11; Catharine, 
 who resides on the farm, is a frequent contrib- 
 utor of the Evangdical^ Messenger; Amos, now 
 a resident of Joliet, 111., married, May 12, 
 1859, to Mary E. Hammer, they have six chil- 
 dren — Emma, Clara, Charles, Lena, Susan 
 and George. Mary, died in 1816, aged 6; 
 Simon, resides at the old homestead; Will- 
 iam, now a minister in Des Moines, Iowa Con- 
 ference; married. May 10, 1870, to Ellen Holl, 
 and has live children — Herbert, Maggie, Mary, 
 Edgar and Alice. Elizabeth, married Nov. 
 19, 1868, to Jacob J. Long, they reside in 
 Cerro Gordo Co., Iowa, with four children — 
 William E., Jesse, Gertrude and Ruth. Levi, 
 now County Superintendent of Cerro Gordo 
 Co., Iowa; he was married, Oct. 14, 1879, to 
 Miss Carrie E. Brown. 
 
 SATVIUEL B. LONG, farmer; P. O. Union- 
 town; born Nov. 15, 1830, in Center Co., 
 Penn. ; the son of Samuel and Eva (Hersber- 
 ger) Long. Johannes Hersberger, his grand- 
 father, was born Oct. 3, 1770, and Miss Chris- 
 tina Elizabeth Fehler, daughter of John 
 Jacob Fehler, was born in 1773; they were 
 married in 1795, and became the parents 
 of ten children — George, Eva, Leonard, Su- 
 sanna, Catharine, Thomas, Johannes, John 
 Henrich, Christina and Maria Hersberger; 
 only two of these are living. Eva, the oldest 
 
 daughter, was born Dec. 9, 1798, and, oq Dec. 
 17, 1822, married Samuel Long, who was also 
 born in Center Co. Feb. 22, 1792; the result 
 of this union was nine children, viz., Mary, 
 married Michael Laney, and died while a res- 
 ident of Copley Tovpnship; Rachel, now Mrs. 
 Simon McLean, of Grundy Co , 111. ; Leah, 
 now Mrs. Samuel Baum, of Venango Co., 
 Penn.; Rebecca, now Mrs. Joseph Weikeal, 
 of Ashland Co., Ohio; Samuel B., subject of 
 this sketch; Reuben, died aged 3; Johnson, 
 now of Meadville, Penn. ; Elias, now of Akron, 
 Ohio; Daniel N., of Copley Township. Sam- 
 uel B. Long was educated in the schools of 
 Venango Co., Penn., where his parents removed 
 when he was about 6 years of age. After 
 leaving school he worked at painting steadily 
 for about fifteen years, and then at different 
 times for some five years, following this busi- 
 ness at Venango, Oil City, Petroleum and 
 other places in Pennsylvania. In 1854, he 
 removed to South Bend, Ind., and remained 
 there about twelve months, then returned to the 
 Keystone State. During the oil excitement, 
 he was engaged for a short time in buying 
 and selling oil lands, and his operations at 
 this were generally successful. He has also 
 worked at cabinet-making for several years; 
 March 28, 1867, he removed to Green Town- 
 ship and settled upon the farm now owned by 
 William Henry, near East Liberty ; after eight 
 years he sold this to Henry, and purchased of 
 Andrew Shanafelt the 118 acres upon which 
 he now resides. During the suixmaer of 1880, 
 he erected upon this a very neat dwelling 
 house. Mr. Long was married, Feb. 21, 1854, 
 to Miss Louisa Thomas, daughter of Samuel 
 and Elizabeth (Rhodes) Thomas, who was 
 born July 1, 1839; they are the parents of 
 the following children: Thomas, Newton, 
 Sylveen, Frank M., Etta, Eva, Byr-on S., 
 Ernest, Ervin, Jennie, Addie, Delia and Em- 
 ma. They are all living; the oldest daugh- 
 ter, Sylveen, was married, Oct. 18, 1878, to 
 Charles Schnee, of Springfield Township, and 
 is the mother of two children — Nellis and 
 Matilda. Mr. and Mrs. Long are members of 
 the Methodist Chiu'ch at Uniontown. 
 
 DANIEL MOTTINGER, farmer; P. O. 
 Inland; the son of John and Barbara (Long) 
 Mottinger, born in Green Township March 
 
 a) 
 
 TT 
 
GEEEN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 991 
 
 29, 1841. His grandfather was of Scotch 
 descent, and one of the early settlers of 
 Columbiana Co., who entered at the Govern- 
 ment office the land upon which the village of 
 New Lisbon now stands. The nearest white 
 neighbor was at that time some eighteen miles 
 distant. Dimng the war of 1812, this early 
 pioneer of Cohmabiana Co. enlisted in the 
 American army, and through exposure in the 
 service he contracted disease from which he 
 eventually died. His son John was bom May 
 8, 1799, and removed from New Lisbon about 
 1830, and settled in Green Township, pur- 
 chasing 135 acres of land. He was married to 
 Miss Barbara Long, and they were the parents 
 of ten childi'en, three sons and seven daugh- 
 ters, viz., Susan, now IVIi's. Jacob Burkett, of 
 Green Township; Elizabeth, now Mrs. Henry 
 Stroh, of Elkhart, Ind. ; Mary, now Mrs. P. 
 W. Hahn, of Green Township; Joseph, now 
 of Jackson Township, Stark Co.; Leah, now 
 Mrs. John L. Bender, of Akron; Sarah, now 
 Mrs. Elias Baughman, of Green Township; 
 Maggie, now Mrs. Wesley Harold, of Sugar 
 Creek Township, Stark Co.; Rebecca, now 
 ]\Irs. Elias Hartong, of Akron; Samuel, now 
 a resident of Plainfield, 111.; and Daniel, of 
 Green Township. John Mottinger was a car 
 penter by trade, and assisted by Peter Buch- 
 tel he built the Evangelical Church edifice at 
 Greensburg. He was a prominent and influ- 
 ential member of that congregation, and, in 
 the year 1865, having resided in Green Town- 
 ship for thirty-five years, he sold his farm to 
 Thomas Shoemaker and removed to Will Co., 
 111., where he is now living at the advanced 
 age of 82 years. Daniel, his youngest child, 
 the subject of this sketch, was educated in the 
 schools of Green Township and also the Sem- 
 inary at Greensburg. He taught school in 
 various districts of the township for some eight 
 terms. Was a member of the Ohio National 
 Guards during the civil war, and as such 
 was called into active service and coramis- 
 sioned 2d Lieutenant in Co. H, 164th O. V. 
 I. He was married, December 25, 1862, 
 to Miss Lizzie J. Shoemaker, daughter of 
 Thomas and Sarah (Beatty) Shoemaker. They 
 are the parents of the following childi'en: 
 Lily J., Charles C, Arthur S. and Byron T. 
 Mr. Mottinger has been Superintendent of the 
 
 Union Sunday school at Greensburg, during 
 the past eight years, and is a very active, 
 earnest and faithful worker in the temperance 
 cause, which reform movement has been 
 greatly aided of late years by his elforts in 
 Green Township. 
 
 MICHAEL MYERS, farmer; P. O. Union- 
 town; born in Center Co., Penn., Nov. 11, 
 1811; the oldest son of Hemy and Elizabeth 
 (Bushong) Myers, who removed to Green 
 Township when Michael was about 18 months 
 old. They settled on the farm now owned by 
 him, and resided there until they died. When 
 the subject of this sketch was young, the facil- 
 ities for acquiring an education were very 
 limited; he never went to school in his life, 
 being compelled to labor early and late upon 
 the farm. May 26, 1840, he was married to 
 Miss Rebecca Ann Grotz, who was born Sept. 
 5, 1817; she was the daughter of Abraham 
 and Mary (Kuhn) Grotz; her grandfather, 
 John Kuhn, was a soldier in the American 
 army during the Revolutionary war, and died 
 July 3, 1845, while a resident of Green 
 Township, at the advanced age of 88 years. 
 Abraham Grotz was married to Mary Kuhn 
 while they were both residents of Pennsylva- 
 nia; he followed his trade as a hatter in 
 Bloomsburg for many years, but removed to 
 Green Township about the year 1834. He 
 was the father of eleven childi-en — Eliza, 
 married William Coggeshall, and died in 1853; 
 Julia Ann, married James Lacoth; David, 
 died while a resident of Green Township; 
 Rachael, now Mrs. George Bidleman, of 
 Green Township; John, now a resident of 
 Pennsylvania; Maria, now Mrs. Norris Coif- 
 man, of Ashland; Abraham, died in 1858; 
 Rebecca Ann, now Mrs. Michael Myers; Ma- 
 tilda, died in 1842; Louisa, now IVIrs. John 
 B. Myers, of Green Township; and Eroeline, 
 died in 1842. Abraham Grotz died Aug. 4, 
 1848, aged 72 years and 8 months; his wife 
 died March 22, 1856, aged 73 years and 9 
 months. Michael Myers and wife are both 
 members of the Reformed Chm-ch at Mill- 
 heim; he owns 129 acres at the present time; 
 they were the pai'ents of two children; 
 Byron, their only son, born March 7, 1843, 
 died Jan. 10, 1859, aged nearly 16; and Mary 
 Lovina, their only daughter. 
 
992 
 
 BIOGEAPHICxVL SKETCHES: 
 
 JOHN B. MYERS, farmer, P. 0. Union- 
 town; born in Green Township Jan. 18, 1818; 
 the son of Henry and Elizabeth (Bushong) 
 Mjers. The Myers family were of Germanic 
 extraction, but probably from Switzerland. 
 The grandfather of Michael was Isaac, who 
 lived in Union Co., Penn., near Straubstown ; 
 Isaac had a son named Jacob, who married a 
 Miss Ream, she was an exemplary Clu-istian; 
 they had eight children — Phillip, Jacob, 
 George, Henry, Christopher, Michael, Barbara 
 and Catharine. Michael was born March 1, 
 1765, and resided on his father's farm until 
 19 years of age, and then, in 1784, married 
 Agnes Buchtel, who was born Dec. 1, 1765. 
 About the year 1805, Michael removed from 
 Union Co. with his wife and family to Center 
 Co., Penn., where they remained about seven 
 years. Michael followed his trade as a wea- 
 ver for many years, but found this occupation 
 injured his health, and commenced getting 
 out mill- stones which was a very remunerative 
 business, but one day a small piece of the 
 stone flew into his eye; he was obliged to dis- 
 continue work for six months; meeting with 
 a second accident of this kind some time after- 
 ward, he abandoned the business and com- 
 menced blacksmithing in a small way, learn- 
 ing the trade as he went along, until finally he 
 was a master mechanic as some of his pieces 
 of handiwork will testify to-day. He excelled 
 in whatever he undertook. His love for 
 music was manifested in the variety of instru- 
 ments he was able to play, such as the flute, 
 cornet, drum and fife. About the year 1813, 
 he removed with his family to Ohio and set- 
 tled in Green Township. Michael was the 
 father of eight sons and five daughters, viz., 
 Henry, Michael, Jacob, Christopher, Joseph, 
 John, Philip, George, Sophia, Elizabeth, Bar- 
 bara, Mary and Susan; only three are now 
 living; they are residents of Springfield Town- 
 ship — Phillip, George, and Mary, now Mrs. 
 Spade. Henry, Michael, Joseph and John 
 died near their father's Ohio home; Jacob and 
 Christopher removed to Indiana and died 
 there; Susan, died at 16; Sophia, died in 
 early life after marrying Benjamin Pontius; 
 Barbara, married a Mr. Bowers and died in 
 Uniontown; Elizabeth, married a Mr. Buch- 
 tel, and died in Wood Co., Ohio. Michael 
 
 seemed always to have the welfare of his 
 children at heart; and in precept and exam- 
 ple he was a Chi'istian. He died Aug. 5, 1841, 
 at the residence of his son George in Spring- 
 field Township; his wife died at the home of 
 her son Michael. It is related by John B. 
 Myers that some two weeks previous to the 
 death of his grandfather, the aged pioneer 
 entered the shop of his grandson, who was 
 working at the forge and affirmed that he had 
 just seen a spirit which brought the tidings 
 that he would soon pass to another world. 
 Henry Myers, father of John B., was born in 
 Pennsylvania about the year 1788; Elizabeth 
 Bushong, his wife, was born the same year 
 and they were married several years previous 
 to the time the Myers family removed to 
 Green Township. Five of Henry's children 
 reached matin-ity, viz., Michael, born in 1811, 
 now a resident of Green Township; Henry, 
 born in 1815, and died in 1857, while a resi- 
 dent of Akron: John B., subject of this sketch, 
 born Jan. 18, 1818; Elizabeth, born Jan. 9, 
 1822, and married John Hammill; Jonathan, 
 born Nov. 12, 1825, now a resident of Green 
 Township. Hem-y was a blacksmith by trade, 
 and lived on the farm now occupied by his 
 son Michael; he was a member of the Re- 
 formed Church, as was also his wife; she died 
 June 10, 1864, and he survived her over ten 
 years imtil Dec. 6, 1874. John B., his son, 
 was when a mere boy apprenticed to learn his 
 father's trade, and worked at the forge early 
 and late; consequently he had no time left to 
 acquire an education; he never went to school 
 in his life; at the age of 15 he had the entire 
 control of his father's shop, in which he 
 worked until 25 years of age; he then pur- 
 chased 72 acres of land, and has since then 
 been a farmer, owning at the present time 
 over 100 acres, upon which the village of My- 
 ersville is located. He was married, Nov. 16, 
 1843, to Louisa Catharine Grotz, daiighter of 
 Abraham and Mary (Kuhn) Grotz; she was 
 born Dec. 9, 1824; they are both members of 
 the Reformed Church at Uniontown. The 
 Myers family held their first annual re-union 
 and picnic Satmxlay, Sept. 6, 1879, and the 
 second one on Sept. 4, 1880. 
 
 PETER MYERS, farmer; P. O. Nimisila; 
 born in Union Co., Penn., March 20, 1820; 
 
GREEX TOWNSHIP. 
 
 993 
 
 the son of Daniel and Esther (Kauffman) My- 
 ers; Daniel was born in 1782, and resided in 
 Pennsylvania until 1825, when he settled with 
 his family in Stark Co., Ohio; he was a finely- 
 proportioned man, six feet and two inches in 
 height, and weighing during the last twenty 
 years of his life aboiit 325 pounds; he died in 
 1845, while a resident of Stark Co.; his wife 
 is still living at the advanced age of 87 years; 
 they were the }>arents of ten children as 
 follows: David, now of Franklin; Elizabeth, 
 died aged 50; Mary, now a resident of Union 
 Co., Penn. ; Peter and Elias of Green Town- 
 ship; Hannah, now Mrs. Daniel Diehl, of 
 Franklin; Catharine, of Green Township; 
 Margaret, now Mrs. Peter Warner, of Branch 
 Co., Mich.; Sarah, now Mrs. Levi Swinehart, 
 of Portage Co. ; William, now of Akron. Peter 
 Myers was educated in the public schools 
 where he was raised; in 1860, he moved on 
 to a purchase of 100 acres of land in Green 
 Township, to which he added some eight 
 years later 32 acres more. He was married, 
 Oct. 8, 1861, to Mrs. Mary Lancaster, a 
 daughter of John and Elizabeth (Grove) 
 Stump; the result of this union was three 
 children, one died in infancy, two are living 
 • — Isaac S. and Sarah Catharine, or "Kittie." 
 By her first husband Mrs. Myers was the 
 mother of three children — Theodore Lancas- 
 ter, now of North Hampton Township; Ce- 
 celia, man-ied Charles Heisa, and died aged 
 24 leaving one child — Ida A. ; Levi A. Lan- 
 caster, now a resident of Aki'on. Mi-, and 
 Mrs. Myers are members of the Reformed 
 Chui'ch at Manchester. Their present home 
 was built in 1862. Mr. Myers has frequently 
 been elected Trustee of Green Township; the 
 number of times he has been chosen to serve 
 in this position of trust, is the best proof 
 which can be given to show how he is esteemed 
 by his neighbors ; while serving in this position 
 during the war, he was greatly instrumental 
 upon several occasions in clearing the town- 
 ship from the draft. 
 
 WILLIAM D. SWEETEN, merchant, In- 
 land or Summit; was born in Chester Co., 
 Penn., March 11, 1841; the son of John H. 
 and Henrietta E. Sweeten. His ancestors 
 came from Sweden, and settled in Pennsyl- 
 vania and New Jersey. John H. was born 
 
 March 18, 1818, and married about the year 
 1840, six children being the result of this 
 union — William D., the subject of this sketch; 
 Henrietta, now Mrs. Louis Bowling, of Balti- 
 more, Md. ; James M., now of Akron; Eliza- 
 beth, now Mrs. Cyras Keiser, of Montgomery 
 Co., Md. ; Catharine, now Mrs. Marshall Mar- 
 tin, of Suffield Township, Portage Co.; and 
 John, now a resident of Greensburg. Will- 
 iam D. Sweeten was educated in the common 
 schools of Pennsylvania. In 1857, he re- 
 moved with his parents to Alcron, where they 
 remained for some two years, when they set- 
 tled in Lake Township, Stark Co., in 1859. 
 Mr. Sweeten is a painter by trade; he was 
 engaged at this occupation in 1861, when the 
 great rebellion broke out, and considering it 
 the duty of all loyal citizens to aid in suppress- 
 ing this revolt against national supremacy, he 
 tendered his services to the Government. On 
 Sept. 1., 1861, he enlisted in the 2d O. V. C, 
 under Col. Doubleday, and served imtil Oct. 1, 
 1865, and during over four years our subject 
 followed the fortunes of this regiment, of which 
 it isalfirmed that it traveled a gi'eater distance 
 than any other cavalry regiment in the service. 
 For the fii'st eighteen months they were sta- 
 tioned in Kansas and Indian Territory; then 
 transferred to the Army of the East Tennessee 
 under Gen. Burnside; they were at the sur- 
 render of Ciunberland Gap and sent to capt- 
 ure Morgan, the rebel raider. When Gen. 
 Grant assmned command of the armies, and 
 the cavalry corps was formed under the gal- 
 lant Phil Sheridan, Mr. Sweeten was trans- 
 ferred along with his regiment, which had in 
 the meantime (Jan. 1, 1864), enlisted as vet- 
 erans for the war, to the Army of the Potomac. 
 They served in the valley of the Shenandoah, 
 taking part in the battles of Winchester and 
 Cedar Creek, all of the conflicts in the Wil- 
 derness campaign, and on the raid south of 
 Richmond under Gen. Wilson. After the 
 grand review in 1865, this regiment was sta- 
 tioned at St. Louis and Springfield, Mo. 
 When Mr. Sweeten returned to civil life, he 
 followed his trade as a painter until the spring 
 of 1880, when he purchased a stock of dry 
 goods and groceries, and embai'ked in the mer- 
 cantile business at Myersville. He continued 
 there until February, 1881, when, having 
 
994 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 fitted up a room at East Liberty, he removed 
 his establishment to that village, where he will 
 undoubtedly succeed in building up a fine trade. 
 Mr. Sweeten was man'ied, Oct. 1, 1868, to Miss 
 Lucetta J., daughter of Abraham and Nancy A. 
 (Gerst) Hmisberger. The result of this union 
 has been thi'ee chikh-en — Lula May, Winfred 
 Claude and Edwin Roy. In the spring of 
 1870, Mr. Sweeten was chosen Justice of the 
 Peace by the citizens of Green Township; he 
 was re-elected in 1873; and again in 1879, 
 but, after serving some twenty months on his 
 third tenn he resigned, Dec. 1, 1880. Mi\ 
 Sweeten is an active member of the Disci- 
 ples' Chiu'ch at Greensbuj'g, of which religious 
 denomination he has been an Elder during 
 the past eight years. He has also served as 
 Superintendent and Assistant of the Union 
 Sunday School at Greensbiu-g. 
 
 HARRISON STIPE, farmer; P. O. Inland; 
 was born in Lancaster Co., Penn., Dec. 6, 1824; 
 the only son of Peter and Elizabeth (Gaetz) 
 Stipe. Peter, the father, died in 1824, before 
 his only child was born; after several years 
 Harrison's mother married Henry Stroll, and 
 they i-emoved to Stark Co. and settled in 
 Greentown; Mrs. Stroll is living in that vil- 
 lage (Febraary, 1881), and will be 80 years of 
 age April 3, 1881. Stroll was a hatter by 
 trade, but never followed that business in 
 Greentown — he worked out by the day and 
 month. Han'ison did not possess in his 
 younger days many of the comforts and luxu- 
 ries which are bestowed lavishly upon more 
 fortunate children of this generation. He 
 was early apprenticed to learn the cooper's 
 trade, and served at this for nine years; occa- 
 sionally he followed the occupation of a com- 
 mon laborer, but, desiring to provide a home 
 for himself and family, he rented of John 
 Gougler the fann now owned by his son Sam- 
 uel, situated southwest of Greensburg; after 
 tilling this tract of 129 acres for about eight 
 years. Stipe removed to the 140 acres also 
 owned and now occupied by Samuel Gougler; 
 he remained there for five years. In 1865, he 
 pm-chased of David Coleman his present f ai'm, 
 paying $50 an acre for 80 acres; in 1866, he 
 bought ten acres of wood-land of Henry Heiss; 
 Stipe removed to this farm in 1867, and it has 
 been greatly improved by him dming the few 
 
 years it has been in his possession; his pres- 
 ent fine brick residence was erected in 1874, 
 and the neat and well-arranged barn in 1867; 
 he also owns a house and lot in the city of 
 Akron. Mr. Stipe started in life as a poor man; 
 when he first rented a farm it w^as necessary 
 for him to boiTow 1 150 in order to pm'chase 
 a team with which to farm on shares; at that 
 time he had only 15 cents tax to pay, but, by 
 industry and economy, he has at the present 
 time a mu^h larger income and declares it is 
 now just as easy for him to raise his present 
 tax of about $60, as he could the 15 cents 
 not many years since. Harrison Stipe was 
 maiTied, June 22, 1845, to Miss Anna Neutch- 
 en, daughter of Daniel and Mary (Mottinger) 
 Neutchen, who had six children — Anna, the 
 oldest, was born Dec. 9, 1825; Elizabeth, now 
 Mrs. Frederick Houser, of Springfield Town- 
 ship; Lavina, now Mrs. Samuel Ream, of 
 Springfield Township ; Mary, now Mrs. Chris 
 tian Spitler, of Greensbiu'g; Catharine, mar- 
 ried Jacob Hildenbrand, and they removed to 
 Iowa, then to Illinois; Daniel, the youngest, 
 died May, 1849, in the 18th yeai" of his age. 
 Daniel Neutchen, Sr., died about August, 
 1831, and his wife in May, 1837. Mi-, and 
 Mrs. Harrison Stipe were the parents of thi-ee 
 children — FrankUn, Washington and one that 
 died in infancy. Franklin, the oldest son, 
 whose sketch appears among those of Aki'on 
 City. Washington, the youngest son of Har- 
 rison Stipe, assists his father in managing 
 the farm. Washington was maiTied, on Jan. 
 2, 1879, to Miss Lydia Baker, and they have 
 one child — Irvin Franklin, who was born 
 June 30, 1880. Mr. and Mi's. Harrison Stipe 
 are members of the Evangelical Association of 
 Greensburg, of which congregation Mr. Stipe 
 is an active member; he has served as Class- 
 leader for six or eight years, and has been an 
 Exhorter about the same period. He has also 
 served for twelve years on the Township Board 
 of Education. 
 
 THOMAS SHOEMAKER (deceased); was 
 for many years a leading spirit in all the 
 movements established by philanthropists, for 
 the pm-pose of improving the moral and spirit- 
 ual condition of mankind; he was born in 
 Lehigh Co., Penn., Sept. 18, 1815, and died 
 in Green Township Nov. 11, 1879; Thomas 
 
J^ 
 
 GREEX TOWNSHIP. 
 
 995 
 
 was the son of Peter Shoemaker, who was the 
 father of seven children, viz., Moses, died 
 some thirty years since in Mercer Co., Penn. ; 
 Thomas, the subject of this sketch; Levi, now 
 a resident of Bartholemew Co., Ind. ; Gideon, 
 died about twenty years ago near Salem, Ohio; 
 Ama, now Mrs. Charles Beil, of Hamburg, 
 Penn. ; Leah, now Mrs. Harmony, and a resi- 
 dent of Indiana; Lavina, now Mrs. David 
 Boyer, of Michigan. In his youth the subject 
 of this sketch received very little instruction 
 in consequence of the poor facilities for ob- 
 taining knowledge, but he was naturally 
 bright, and in after years acquired by reading 
 and study a good education. He was married 
 in Mercer Co., Penn., June 4, 1844, to Miss 
 Sarah Ann Beatty; Robert Beatty, her fathei*, 
 Avas of Irish descent, and married Miss Anna 
 McMillen, a "Scotch lassie;" both were born 
 in this country. Robert and Anna were the 
 parents of six children — Amelia, died aged 2; 
 William, died aged 14 ; Sai*ah Ann, now Mrs. 
 Shoemaker; Samuel, now a resident of Ashta- 
 bula; Eliza, now Mrs. Weld N. Alden, of 
 Meadville, Penn.; Isabella, who died at 42. 
 IVii's. Shoemaker was born Sept. 1, 1809, and 
 when about 7 years of age her mother died; at 
 the age of 18, she went to live with her uncle 
 and aunt, William and Elizabeth Beatty, 
 remaining with them until they died; Will- 
 iam, in April, 1847, and Elizabeth, in August, 
 1862. Robert, their brother, died December, 
 1860. Mr. and Mrs. Shoemaker sold the farm 
 in Mercer Co., Penn., about 1865, and removed 
 to Summit Co., purchasing the 50 acres upon 
 which Mr. Shoemaker lived at the time of his 
 death, and also the old Mottinger farm. 
 They are the parents of three children- — Eliz- 
 abeth J., born March 26, 1845, now Mrs. 
 Daniel Mottinger; Mary C, bom Jan. 21, 
 1847, and married in 1864, to Oliver Weimer; 
 he was the son of Gabriel and Elizabeth 
 (Dunbold) Weimer; was a music teacher, and 
 served in the army for two years; he died in 
 1867, at the age of 24, leaving one daughter 
 — Jennie Trueanna. Mrs. Mary Weimer was 
 afterward married to George T. Rankin, 
 whose sketch appears among those of Aliron 
 City. William B., only son of Thomas Shoe- 
 maker, was born Feb. 14, 1849; he is a 
 thresher by trade, having worked at this busi- 
 
 ness dm'ing the sunmier season for ten years, 
 owning for a time the half interest in a ma- 
 chine. He was married, July 4, 1872, to Miss 
 Sadie J. Fasnacht; they have "two children — 
 Gordon Gilbert and Thomas G., and reside 
 at the homestead with Mi's. Shoemaker. In 
 the year 1843, Thomas Shoemaker was con- 
 verted under the ministry of the Evangelical 
 Association, with which he united, and was 
 always an active and worthy member of the 
 church, and at the time of his death held the 
 offices of Class-leader, Trustee, Assistant 
 Superintendent of the Sabbath school, and 
 teacher of the Bible class. By his decease the 
 Sunday school, prayer meeting and public 
 congregation lost one of their most active 
 members; he was a firm believer and advocate 
 of the doctrine and experience of Bible holi- 
 ness; a liberal supporter of the Missionary 
 cause, and the church in general. He was a 
 man of principle, dicision and moral worth, 
 who took great interest in the leading ques- 
 tions of the day; was a stanch temperance 
 man, radical in his views, and during the later 
 years of his life always voted the Prohibition 
 ticket. 
 
 CORNELIUS E. TRASTER, teacher. Sum- 
 mit; is one of the finest educated young men 
 of Green Township; he was born in Spring- 
 field Township, Summit Co., April 3, 1853; 
 the son of Daniel and Margaret (Ki-eighbaimi) 
 Traster. Daniel was born in Union Co., 
 Penn., and moved to Summit Co. about the 
 year 1832; he is at the present time living in 
 Springfield Township; is the father of eight 
 children as follows: Hester Ann, Sarah J., 
 now Mrs. Samuel Ritsman, of Springfield 
 Township; Jacob W., of Whitley Co., Ind.; 
 Rebecca M. ; John, of Suffield Township, Port- 
 age Co.; Hiram, of Springfield; Cornelius E., 
 subject of this sketch; and Mary M. IVIi-s. 
 Daniel Traster is a member of the Lutheran 
 Chm-ch at Uniontown. Cornelius attended 
 the common schools of Springfield Township 
 during his youth; he was raised on the fai'm 
 and I'emained with his parents until about 17 
 years of age; then worked by the month for 
 some three years; he entered Greensburg 
 Seminary which he attended foiu- terms, and 
 was also a pupil in Warner's Normal Institute 
 at Aki'on, and the Northwestern Ohio Normal 
 
 ■) "V 
 
996 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 School at Fostoria. He has taught school for 
 seventeen terms as follows : First in Springfield, 
 and then one term in District No. 11, Green; 
 tlnree in Springfield; one in East Liberty Dis- 
 trict; one in Springfield; foiu" in District No. 
 2, Green; two in District No. 4, Green; two in 
 District No. 3, Green; and two in the East 
 Liberty District. In April, 1881, he was elected 
 Clerk of Green Township. He was married, 
 Sept. 13, 1877, to Miss Lovina A., daughter of 
 Henry and Sarah Elizabeth (Benner) Raber. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Traster are members of the Re- 
 formed Church of East Liberty. Hemy Raber, 
 father of Mrs. C. E. Traster, was born June 14, 
 1831, at the farm upon which he now resides. 
 He was the son of Hemy and Rossanah (Suder) 
 Raber; Hemy, Sr., was born in Germany 
 about 1792, and, when 6 years of age, his 
 father Com*ad emigrated to America, and set- 
 tled near Reading, Penn., and about twelve 
 years later removed to Stark Co., Ohio. Hen- 
 ry, Sr., married Sarah Huyerd; and after she 
 died, Rosannah Suder; he died in October,. 
 1859; his second wife in November, 1871; 
 Henry Raber, Jr., was the father of six chil- 
 dren — Mary Alice, died aged 3 ; Lovina Alma, 
 now Mrs. C. E. Traster; William Madison, 
 Anna Eliza, Minnie Levora and Norman 
 Dayton. Henry has served as Township 
 Trustee three terms, and as School Director 
 nine years. Mr. and Mrs. Raber are members 
 of the Reformed Church at East Libertv. 
 
 SAlVrUEL WISE, farmer; P. O. Summit; 
 born in Union Co., Penn., July 3, 1818; was 
 the youngest son of Peter and Elizabeth (Vo- 
 nieda) Wise; Samuel received a knowledge of 
 
 the common branches in the schools of Penn- 
 sylvania; he was early apprenticed to learn 
 the blacksmith's trade, which he followed in 
 Union Co.; in 1842, he removed to Green 
 Township, and for six months worked for 
 Phillip Seecht, who kept a shop at Greens- 
 bui'g. He was married, Oct. 22, 1843, to 
 Miss Catharine Raber, daughter of Henry 
 and Rosannah (Suder) Raber; he then farmed 
 his father-in-law's land on shares for several 
 years, until he purchased the farm of Mr. 
 Raber; he also bought some land of Daniel 
 Evans, and owns at the present time 143 
 acres; was the father of nine children, thi*ee 
 died in infancy, six are living — Rosannah, 
 now Mrs. George Hinland, of Akron; Eliza- 
 beth, now Mrs. John Chamberlain, of Spring- 
 field Township; Sarah, now Mrs. Edward Mc- 
 Chesney, of Springfield Township; Aaron, 
 now residing on the farm with his father, and 
 married some five years since to Miss Mary 
 Miller, of Union Co., Penn.; Lovina, now Mrs. 
 Huston Kreighbaum, of Green Township; 
 and Catherine Jane, now at home with her 
 father; Mrs. Wise died Feb. 1, 1867. Sam- 
 uel Wise when a young man united with the 
 Lutheran Chm'ch in Pennsylvania ; since mov- 
 ing to Green Township, he has been connected 
 with the Reformed congregation at East Lib- 
 erty, in which society he was an Elder for some 
 two years. His wife was also a member of 
 this denomination. Samuel has frequently 
 been chosen to serve in several minor offices in 
 the township ; his present brick residence was 
 built abou.t the year 1855 ; a short time previ- 
 ous to this, his home was destroyed by fire. 
 
 vn 
 
 ;r^ 
 
,)^ 
 
 RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 997 
 
 RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 SAMUEL B. AXTELL was the fourth 
 child in a family of twelve children who lived 
 to be men and women — six boys and six girls. 
 His mother is still living, now in her 89th 
 year. His parents emigrated from Morris Co., 
 N. J., to Franklin Co., Ohio, where he was 
 born Oct. 14, 1819. His' parents were poor, 
 and his early life was that of most bo3'S in the 
 West, working on the farm and in the woods, 
 and in the meanwhile picking up a little educa- 
 tion. In his 17th year, he went to Oberlin, 
 because it was a manual-labor school, and he 
 could pay his board b}- work, earning 10 cents 
 an hour at work clearing land, and pacing 
 about $1 per week for board. He finished fit- 
 ting himself for college at the Shaw Academy 
 in Euclid, now East Cleveland, and entered 
 Western Reserve College at Hudson, Ohio. 
 He did not graduate, but has had an honorary 
 degree conferred on him by this college, and is 
 also an honorary member of the Alumni. In 
 1840, he was married to Adeline S. Williams, 
 of Bath, Summit Co., Ohio. They have three 
 children living at this date (1881) and five 
 grandchildren. In 1851, he went from Rich- 
 field to California, and his wife followed and 
 joined him there in 1856. In California, he 
 was a practical miner and laborer, working 
 with all his might at whatever his hand found 
 to do, and continuing the study of law, which 
 he had commenced before leaving Ohio. He 
 was admitted, upon examination, to the Su- 
 preme Court of the State of California in 1854, 
 and commenced the practice of law in Jack- 
 son, Amador Co., in that State. He was three 
 times elected District Attorney. Removing to 
 San Francisco, he was elected, in 1867, to rep- 
 resent that city and district in the Fortieth 
 Congress, and was re-elected to the Forty-first 
 Congress. In politics, he was known as a War 
 or Union Democrat, and was the only man on 
 the Democratic side of the House who voted 
 for the reconstruction acts and the act of 1869 
 to strengthen the public credit. On the tariff, 
 he was also in sympathy- with those who 
 sought to build up by judicious protection the 
 "American system." In January, 1875, he 
 
 was appointed by Gen. Grant Governor of 
 Utah Territory, and in the summer of that 
 year was transferred to New Mexico, where he 
 acted as Governor for three yeai's and a half, 
 assisting during two Territorial Legislatures to 
 obtain much needed and progressive legisla- 
 tion. In 1876, he was chosen by the Execu- 
 tive Committee of the Centennial Exhibition 
 as one of the Judges in the mineral depart- 
 ment, and, in the same year, was a delegate in 
 the Cincinnati National Republican Conven- 
 tion, where he assisted to pass the resolution 
 which sought to restrict the importation of 
 Chinese to this countr}'. He is a firm believer 
 in non-sectarian public free schools, liberally 
 assisted by the General Government, and in 
 the supi'emacy of the general Government as 
 opposed to the doctrine of State sovereignty. 
 His home is now at Richfield. 
 
 P. L. x\LLEN, saddlery and harness. West 
 Richfield. Prominent among the sucessful 
 business men of West Jlichfield, and one that 
 has been long established, is the subject of 
 this sketch. Mr. Allen is a native of New 
 York State, being born in New York City in 
 1826, and where his parents resided until, at 
 the age of 10 ^-ears, when the}' removed to 
 Hinckley Township, where they resided for 
 several years. His father, Peter Allen, subse- 
 quently removed to Cleveland, where he con- 
 tinued a resident until his decease. Our sub- 
 ject came to West Richfield at the age of 17, 
 and began to learn his trade with Jonathan 
 Page. After perfecting himself in all the 
 various branches of his chosen occupation, he 
 engaged in business for himself, and in which 
 he has continued up to the present time. His 
 stock consists of saddles, harness and trunks, 
 which he manufactures, and which he has con- 
 stantly on hand in large assortments of finished 
 work, and is also a dealer in buffalo robes, 
 blankets, whips, etc., together with a depart- 
 ment devoted to repairing of all kinds, making 
 in all a complete and reliable establishment. 
 
 JAMES E. BUCK, farmer; P. 0. West 
 Richfield ; is a son of Heman Buck, who, 
 together with his father, Denton Buck, were 
 
^>^ 
 
 998 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES : 
 
 pioneers of Richfield, locating in 1811, one- 
 half mile south of the Center, but soon after- 
 ward removed to the farm, which is now known 
 as the " Buck Homestead." Heman was born 
 in Massachusetts Dec. IG, 1792, and came to 
 Richfield with his father in 1811, but he did 
 not locate permanentl}' until 1813. He con- 
 tinued a resident of the old homestead until 
 his death. He married the Widow Worden, 
 her maiden name being Polly Mace, who was 
 born in Schoharie Co., N. Y., April 14, 1795. 
 He died Oct. 11, 1852, aged 62 3'ears ; she died 
 April 16, 1874; aged 79 years. Their children 
 now living are as follows : Mrs. Arvilla Prick- 
 ett, in Richfield Township ; Mrs. Mary Wheat- 
 ley, living in Virginia ; Mrs. Martha Chandler, 
 Mrs. Julia Hart, and James E., residents of 
 Richfield Township ; Orson H., a son, deceased. 
 He enlisted in the 177th 0. V. I., and died in 
 1865, at Goldsboro, N. C, from disease con- 
 tracted while in service. James was born in 
 Richfield Township, in June. 1830, upon the 
 old homestead where he has resided for the 
 whole of his life, following in the profession of 
 his ancestors, and to which he gives his whole 
 time and attention. His farm consists of 160 
 acres of land. He was married in March, 
 1859, to Miss Josephine Watkins ; she was 
 born in New York State, in 1839. They have 
 five children — Charles E., Martha Gr., Luella 
 F., Orson H. and Lois E. 
 
 J. A. CHANDLER, Justice of the Peace, 
 West Richfield, is a son of Capt. Joel and So- 
 phia (Smith) Chandler, natives of New Hamp- 
 shire. Capt. Chandler was born in 1789, his 
 wife in 1798 ; they were married in the town of 
 Alstead, Cheshire Co., in 1820, whei-e they lived 
 until 1835, when they immigrated to Ohio and 
 settled in Richfield Township upon a farm in 
 the western portion of the township, where they 
 resided for the rest of their lives. He died in 
 March, 1874, and she in April, 1854. Sophia 
 M., a daughter, married Judson Culver, an old 
 resident of the township ; she died in 1873. 
 Mary J., and the subject of this sketch are the 
 descendants. J. A. Chandler was born in 
 Alstead, N. H., in 1824, and worked upon the 
 fai-m in Richfield, after their removal there, un- 
 til he attained the age of 28. lie taught school 
 winters for sixteen years, and has always been 
 interested in educational affairs. From 1863 
 to 1865, he was engaged in the book trade at 
 Alliance, Ohio, and for nearly six years was in 
 
 the mercantile business in Richfield. He has 
 served the township as Clerk, Assessor, Trustee, 
 and is at present serving his fifth term as 
 Justice of the Peace. He was married, May 
 17, 184S, to Miss Martha M. Buck, a daughter 
 of Heman and Polly (Mace) Buck, whose his- 
 tories appear in other portions of this work. 
 Martha was born in Richfield Township in 1825. 
 They have three ciiildren — Francis M., living in 
 Cleveland, where he is serving as Deputy Coun- 
 ty Clerk ; Jennie A. and G-eorge L. 
 
 DR. M. S. CHAMBERLIN, West Richfield, 
 was born in Trumbull Co., Ohio, in 1843, his 
 father was a fjirmer by occupation and our sub- 
 ject's early life was passed upon the farm until, 
 at the age of 18, he went to California, where 
 he remained for five years. He then returned 
 to Ohio locating in (jarretsville, where he en- 
 gaged in the drug trade and the study of medi- 
 cine. Dr. Chamberlin is a graduate of the 
 Philadelphia Medical College in medicine and 
 surgery, and of the Meadville (Penn.) College 
 of Pharmacy ; he is also a member of the 
 National Eclectic Medical Association. He 
 removed to West Richfield in 1876, where he 
 has since been a resident engaged in the han- 
 dling of drugs and the practice of his profession. 
 He was united in marriage, in 1866, to Miss 
 Corlin J. Stone in Garrettsville ; they have three 
 children — Norris D., Irving R. and Preston. 
 Mr. Chamberlin is a member of Richfield Lodge, 
 No. 266, A., F. & A. M., and of the Port Clin- 
 ton Lodge, I. 0. 0. F. With his wife he is a 
 member of the Baptist Church. 
 
 SAMUEL S. CLARK, farmer ; P. 0. West 
 Richfield ; is a prominent citizen, and a son of 
 Samuel and Lucy (Sheldon) Clark, early settlers 
 in Richfield Township. His lather was a native 
 of Massachusetts, and his mother, of New York 
 State ; the_y were married in New York State, 
 and immediately removed to Hampshire Co., 
 where they resided about eighteen years. In 
 May, 1833, they moved to Richfield Township, 
 taking up some 200 acres of land and resided 
 upon it until their deaths. His father was a 
 prominent and respected citizen, and. in the 
 early ^-ears of his residence in the township, 
 taught school and served in various township 
 offices. He and wife were members of the 
 Presbyterian Church, in which, for a number of 
 years, he was Deacon ; he died May 1, 1876, 
 and his wife followed him in March, 1877. 
 They were parents of eleven children, nine of 
 
^k 
 
 EICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 999 
 
 whom grew up. Those who are now living are 
 as follows : Lorinda Hills, living in Medina ; 
 Mary Payne, Samuel S., and Eliza Swan, resi- 
 dents of Richfield Township ; and Alfred A., a 
 resident of Cleveland. Samuel S., our subject, 
 was born in Hampshire Co., Mass., in December, 
 
 1823, and was in his 10th year when his parents 
 removed to the township. He remained upon 
 the farm, at home, until about 19 years of age, 
 and, after a year's residence in Granger Town- 
 ship, Medina Co., went to West Richfield and 
 engaged in the drug and jewelry trade, at which 
 he continued for nearl}' fifteen years ; he then 
 disposed of his business in town, and soon aiter 
 bought the old homestead farm, where he lias 
 since resided, engaging his attention in agricult- 
 ural pursuits. He has always interested him- 
 self in educational mattei'S, and is one of 
 Richfield's most progressive citizens. He was 
 married in September, 1846, to Miss Caroline 
 Prickitt, a daughter of Samuel and Hannah 
 Prickitt, old residents of the township, whose 
 biographies appear in another sketch. Caro- 
 line was born in New Jersej^ in September, 
 
 1824. The}' have but two children living — 
 Mary C. and S. Earl, living in Akron ; two are 
 deceased — Ellen A. and Eva A. Mr. Clark has 
 110 acres of improved land, conveniently locat- 
 ed, about two miles south of town. 
 
 GEORGE B. CLARKE, farmer; P. 0. 
 Richfield ; was born in Litchfield Co., Conn., in 
 1835. His parents were William and Harriet 
 Clarke ; his father was a native of Connecticut ; 
 his mother of New York ; they removed to 
 Twinsburg, where they continued to reside up 
 to his death ; he was a carpenter and joiner 
 by trade, and built many of the houses and 
 churches of that township ; his mother is still 
 living, residing with her oldest son, H. J). 
 Clarke, in Michigan. George has passed most 
 of his life in mercantile pursuits and book-keep- 
 ing. He came to Richfield in 1863, and was in 
 the employ of Weld & Farnum for fifteen 
 years — a year at Medina at book-keeping, and 
 a year in the produce commission business. In 
 1880, he returned to Richfield and purchased 
 from the heirs the old Wilcox farm, where he is 
 now engaged in farming. He was married, 
 in December, 1865, to Miss Amelia Wilcox. 
 They have three children — Archie B., Anna G. 
 and Louie. Mr. Clarke has served tlie town- 
 ship as Trustee two terms, and ranks as one of 
 the leading progressive men of the community. 
 
 He is a member of Meridian Sun Lodge, No. 
 266, A., F. & A. M. 
 
 FRANK I. DUNBAR, druggist, West Rich- 
 field ; is a young and enterprising business 
 man of West Richfield. He was born in 
 Brighton, Lorain Co., Ohio, in 1856. His 
 father, Simeon T. Dunbar, is a native of New 
 York, and his mother, whose maiden name was 
 Ellen E. Ackley, was born in Connecticut ; 
 they are now residents of Richfield, his father 
 being Pastor of the M. E. Church. Frank has 
 had the advantages of a classical course of 
 education at Berea, where he graduated. In 
 1879, he came to West Richfield to reside, and, 
 in 1880, bought out a stock of drugs, medi- 
 cines, etc., and is now permanently located 
 there engaged in that business. His stock is 
 large and complete, and, as it is his intention to 
 keep all the sundries of a first-class drug store, 
 is a great and welcome addition to the business 
 interests of West Richfield. 
 
 THOMAS E. ELLSWORTH, retired. West 
 Richfield ; was born in Litchfield Co., Conn., 
 March 7, 1797. and is a son of John and Anna 
 (Birge) Ellsworth ; also natives of Connecticut. 
 Our subject's earl}' life was passed in Connec- 
 ticut, where he learned the cabinet-maker's 
 trade. He came to Ohio on a visit in 1821, 
 but did not locate permanently until January, 
 1822, when he came to Richfield Township. 
 He now resides in West Richfield, which is 
 indebted to him for most of its buildings, and 
 for the start and impetus given to it b}' his acts 
 of enterprise, a more extended account of 
 which appears in the township history'. He 
 now carries on a cabinet-shop, which is operated 
 by his son Ransom. He was married, June 15, 
 1825, to Miss Mary Bigelow, daughter of John 
 and Lydia (Benedict) Bigelow, pioneers of 
 Richfield Township, locating in 1814, and 
 residents of tlie township up to their deaths. 
 He died June 17, 1841 ; she died March 24, 
 1866. Mr. Ellsworth lost liis first wife Jan. 14, 
 1864. They had five children— Elisha T. (died 
 March 2, 1879, in Cleveland, leaving a wife and 
 five children), Ursline (died May 1, 1853), Ran- 
 som C. (living in West Richfield, where he is 
 engaged in the cabinet- making trade ; he is 
 married to 3Iiss Cora Humphrey, a daughter of 
 Norris Humphrey, Esq. ; they have three chil- 
 dren) ; James W. (a resident of Cleveland), 
 Mary C. (died Aug. 20, 1853). Mr. Ellsworth 
 was married to his second wife, Louisa Waite, 
 
 \ 
 
4 
 
 5) L> 
 
 1000 
 
 BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 widow of Benjamin Waite, Nov. 16, 1865. He 
 is a member of the Congregational Church, 
 and has been a Deacon in the church for over 
 fift}' years. He is a useful and respected mem- 
 ber of society, an honored citizen, and univer- 
 sally respected and beloved. Mr. Ellsworth 
 has a brother Ransom residing in Hudson. A 
 sister, Polly Lewis, also resides there ; she is 
 90 years of age, all that are left of a family of 
 nine children. 
 
 A. E. EWING, was born Oct. 25, 1816, near 
 Cobourg, Upper Canada, on the north shore of 
 Lake Ontario, his father having been a native 
 of Greenwich, Mass., and his mother of Dorset, 
 Vt. Till the beginning of 1836, he resided in 
 Canada ; in March of that 3'ear, he entered the 
 Medical School at Castleton, Vt., and in the 
 fall of same year to school at Hanover, N. H. 
 (Medical Department of Dartmouth College), 
 where he graduated in 1839. Early in 1840, 
 commenced practice in Granger, Medina Co., 
 Ohio. He spent three years in that town and 
 Sharon, and then went to Medina, where he 
 practiced till 1837, when he was married to 
 Miss E. N. Oviatt, of Richfield, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, and soon thereafter removed to Hillsdale, 
 Mich., where he practiced his profession and 
 edited a Whig newspaper during the Cass and 
 Ta^'lor campaign, and for a year or so after- 
 ward. In the latter part of 1849, he returned 
 to Ohio, and, in the spring of 1850, settled in 
 Richfield, where he has resided up to the 
 present time (1881), except from 1856 to 1863, 
 during which he lived in Wisconsin, and from 
 May, 1876, to May, 1878, during which he 
 lived in Berea, Ohio. He has two living chil- 
 dren — daughters, and has lost two sons, one in 
 early infancy, and the other, George M. Ewing, 
 who was born in Cleveland, Jan. 31, 1850, and 
 died in Berea, Aug. 6, 1876. 
 
 GEORGE M. EWING, son of Dr. A. E. 
 Ewing : was born in Cleveland, Ohio, 1850, 
 and died in Berea, 1876 ; he spent much of his 
 life in Richfield, and had there a large circle of 
 friends, who mourned his early death. He 
 studied law, and had been admitted to practice 
 at Cleveland ; he was regaixled as a 3'oung man 
 of brilliant promise, both as a speaker and 
 writer. Gay and genial in manner, 3'et possess- 
 ing a read}^ sj^mpathy for all forms of suffering, 
 without effort, he attracted friends to his side 
 wherever he was known ; but with all his J03'- 
 ousness, a certain seriousness pervaded much 
 
 that he has written ; there was a tendenc3' in 
 him to ponder the great problems of our exist- 
 ence, which found expression in the lines below, 
 written not long before his death, but not pub- 
 lished while he lived : 
 
 THE MYSTERY OF LIFE. 
 
 This world is but a resting place — 
 A pause upon the rising plain — 
 
 A second of time, then on we move, 
 And our swift march commence again. 
 
 Tlie whole of life is but a step — 
 A round in the ladder we climb — 
 
 We stop to breathe, then start once more 
 To the swift-winged music of time. 
 
 For what great end were we begun, 
 B3' the powers that phiced us here ? 
 
 AVe maj' ask, but we ask in vain — 
 No answer greets the aching ear. 
 
 If we ask the dead on the hillside. 
 They but speak of tlie past alone. 
 
 Thej-'ve lived and breathed and passed away. 
 But their lips are mute as the stone 
 
 That marks where their ashes lie — 
 All alone in death's quiet sleep : 
 
 They have solved the mystery we feel, 
 Yet God's holy secret they keep. 
 
 If next to old Nature we turn, 
 And seek for our answer there. 
 
 We hear but tlie murmuring night-breeze ; 
 She heeds not our frantic prayer. 
 
 Rebuk'd by the silence that greeteth 
 These queries propounded by man, 
 
 We question no longer the workings 
 Of Heaven's deep fathomless plan. 
 
 So the question of life still remaineth 
 The strangest of miracles wrought. 
 
 The powers of all mind transcending. 
 And the widest conception of thought. 
 
 This passing tribute is perhaps due to one who 
 alwa3's cheerfull3' accorded the kindest apprecia- 
 tion of all that was good in others. 
 
 LOUIS P. ELLAS, farmer ; P. 0. Richfield ; 
 was born in Tioga Co., N. Y., in 1834. His 
 father, Loren Ellas, was a native of Vermont ; 
 his mother's maiden name was Sarah Hard3% 
 she was born in Connecticut. They were mar- 
 ried in Vermont, and subsequentl3' removed 
 to New York State, where for a number of 
 years his father was engaged in farming and 
 lumbering. In 1837, they removed to North- 
 ampton Township, Summit Co., locating upon 
 a farm, where his father died in 1845 ; his 
 mother was a resident of the count3' until 1867, 
 
RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1001 
 
 when she removed to Steuben Co., Ind., where 
 she departed this life in 1874. Louis learned 
 the trade of boat-building and carpentering, in 
 Boston Township, while in early life, and fol- 
 lowed that trade about thirteen years there; for 
 two 3^ears after he was engaged in keeping a 
 grocery in that township, after which time he 
 removed to Bath Township, where for three years 
 he was engaged in the hotel business. In April, 
 1863, he removed to Richfield Township, where 
 he has since resided ; he first engaged in the 
 hotel business in West Richfield, remaining 
 there one 3'ear, and then removed to the " East 
 Center," where be was proprietor of the hotel 
 there until 1874, during which time he also was 
 engaged in buying and selling stock. He then 
 disposed of his hotel propert3^ and purchased a 
 farm, which he worked for three years, making 
 a specialty- in stock-raising and dealing, then 
 returning to the hotel in Richfield, where he 
 continued until April, 1881. He now intends to 
 devote his time to farming and lumbering. He 
 owns 240 acres of land in the township, finelj- 
 located and mostl}- improved. He was married 
 in April. 1856. to Miss Amanda M. Monday ; 
 she is a native of New York, where she was 
 born, in Tioga Co., in 1831. Their children are 
 Elmer C, married to Miss Nancy J. Fixler, he 
 is farming in Richfield Township, and Misses 
 Emma and Ella. As a landlord, in which so 
 manj' years of Mr. Ellas' life has been passed, 
 he is deservedly popular, being genial, obliging 
 and courteous, and as a citizen he is popular 
 and enterprising. He is a member of Meridian 
 Sun Lodge, No. 266, A., F. & A. M. 
 
 JOSEPH HALLIWILL, farmer ; P.O. West 
 Richfield ; is a son of William and Elizabeth 
 (Cox) Halliwill, natives of Pennsylvania and 
 pioneers of Summit Co., locating in Franklin 
 Township in the spring of 1814. They were 
 the first settlers in that township. Christopher 
 Johnson, whom the couutj^ atlas claims as the 
 first settler, came the day after the Halliwill 
 family. They resided there until 1833, when 
 they removed to Richfield Township, locating 
 in the southern part of the township, where 
 son Joseph now resides. The}- continued resi- 
 dents of the township until their deaths. He 
 died July 25, 1855, and his wife Nov. 18, 1876. 
 Mr. Halliwill was a prominent and respected 
 citizen, and occupied various offices of trust. 
 He was elected one of the first Justices of the 
 Peace while a resident of Franklin Township, 
 
 which office he filled honorably for several 
 years. There are ten children now living, as 
 follows : John, living in Fostoria ; David, a 
 resident of Bucyrus, Ohio ; Thomas, in Medina 
 Co.; Levi, living in Michigan; Andrew R., a 
 resident of Henr^- Co., Iowa ; Joseph, the sub- 
 ject of the sketch ; Absalom 0., residing in 
 Michigan ; Jane Woodruff, in Fulton Co.; 
 Priscilla Bunker, in Henry Co., Ill, and Ke- 
 siah, living in Medina Co. Joseph was born 
 in Franklin Township in 1825, and since the 
 removal of his parents to Richfield, has been a 
 resident of that township and of the old home- 
 stead, following in the profession of his father, 
 in which he has been deservedly successful. 
 He has 200 acres of improved land, and, for 
 the past twenty-five j^ears, has made quite 
 a -specialty of sheep. As a citizen, Mr. 
 Halliwill is progressive and enterprising, and 
 takes a lively interest in matters of education 
 and in township affairs. He has been a Trust- 
 ee of the township. He was united in mar- 
 riage, Jan. 23, 1857, to Miss Elizabeth Battles. 
 She was born in New York State Oct. 23, 1833, 
 and came with her parents to Medina Co., where 
 they were early settlers, and residents of 
 Chatham Township for the remainder of their 
 lives. The}' have two children — Milo, born 
 Aug. 6, 1857 (he was married, Dec. 25, 1880, 
 to Miss Hattie A. Freeman, a daughter of 
 Milton Freeman, an old resident of the town- 
 ship, now living in Michigan ; he is living 
 upon his father-in-law's farm, located one-half 
 mile north of the West Center, which he has 
 charge of, and which he is at present working), 
 and a son at home, Levi. He was born Dec. 
 23, 1860. 
 
 LESTER HALL, farmer ; P. 0. West Rich- 
 field. One of the oldest settlers now living in 
 Richfield Township. He was born in Southern 
 Massachusetts in 1800. At the age of 14, his 
 parents removed to Portage Co., where the}' 
 settled and resided for the remainder of their 
 lives. His father died in 1842, aged 72 ; his 
 mother in 1803, aged 89. Lester came to 
 Richfield in 1823, and took up 163 acres of 
 timbered land located where he now resides, 
 and began the difficult task of clearing. For 
 many years he endured the privations and vex- 
 ations of pioneer life, but has lived to see his 
 farm a cultivated and imjjroved tract, and 
 where once the tall timber stood, through 
 which wild beasts prowled and all manner of 
 
1^ 
 
 1002 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 wild game were at home, he now can see the 
 smiling fields of cultivation and improvement. 
 His wife, who has made the journey of life 
 with him and shared its burdens, was a daugh- 
 ter of Joshua and Clarissa (Clark) Finch, early 
 settlers and pioneei-s of Portage Co. Celestia 
 Finch was born in Massachusetts in 1806, and 
 was married to Lester Hall in 1826. The}' 
 were the first couple married in Freedom 
 Township, Portage Co. Their children are as 
 follows : Manly, born in Richfield Township 
 in 1830. He remained at home until 23 years 
 of age, and then removed to Michigan, where 
 for several years he followed farming, and was 
 married, in 1855, to Miss Henrietta Southwick, 
 who was born in New York State in 1834. In 
 1875, he returned to Richfield Township with 
 his family, where he has since resided, located 
 upon the old farm, which he is operating. The 
 farm consists of 81 acres, and they make a 
 specialt}' in dairying. They have three chil- 
 dren — Edwin L., Franklin N. and Charles A. 
 Milo, another son, is living in Akron, engaged 
 in the grocery trade at No. 289 South Main 
 street, and Melissa Williard, also in Akron. 
 Mr. Hall relates many interesting events of his 
 pioneer life, some of which appear in another 
 portion of this work. Timothy Hall, a brother 
 of Lester, came to Richfield about three y6ars 
 previous to his settlement. He was one of the 
 most wonderful wood-choppers known. He 
 cleared with one ax 140 acres of timber in 
 about two years, and many other extraordinary 
 incidents of him might be related if space 
 permitted. He died in the township Sept. 13, 
 1869, aged 75 years. Mrs. Hall has been a 
 consistent member of the Methodist Church 
 for over half a century. The}' are both re- 
 spected and beloved. 
 
 E. D. HANCOCK, farmer ; P. O. Richfield ; 
 is a son of Alonzo and Azubah (Sheppard) Han- 
 cock, who were natives of Massachusetts. He 
 was born Jan. 11, 1803. She was born Sept. 
 19, 1803. They were married in Massachusetts, 
 and first settled in New York State, and, in 
 1833, located in Richfield Township, where they 
 resided for the remainder of their lives. His 
 father served as Township Trustee for a num- 
 ber of years ; he was one of the most powerful 
 men in the country, with a large physique, weigh- 
 ing 210 pounds, all bone and sinew ; he cleared 
 a gi-eat deal of land, especially that of Dr. Ran- 
 som, and 180 acres of his own ; he could chop 
 
 a cord of wood in 40 minutes ; he was temper- 
 ate in all of his habits, industrious, and uni- 
 versally respected ; he died suddenly with heart 
 disease, in November, 1862. His mother died 
 in 1839. Our subject was born in New York 
 State in 1830 ; he has been a resident of the 
 township since his people first located there, 
 and has been engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
 In 1865, he bought the farm where he now re- 
 sides ; he has 200 acres of land, mostly im- 
 proved, and makes dairying a leading vocation. 
 He has served the township as Trustee for four 
 years and as a Constable two years ; in 1875. 
 upon the organization of Richfield Grange Pat- 
 rons of Husbandry, he was elected the first Mas- 
 ter and served two years, serving again in 1880 
 in the same capacity ; he is now acting as Treas- 
 urer of their society. Mr. Hancock was united 
 in marriage, Dec. 2, 1851, to Elizabeth Lock- 
 ert, of Richfield Township. She was born in 
 Galway, Saratoga Co., N. Y., in 1831. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hancock have the following children : 
 Amelia, Hanson, Eugene, Ella Welton, Julia 
 Powers, Frank F., Cora I., Ralph A. and John 
 P. John Hancock enlisted in the sharpshoot- 
 ers, and was in service nearly a year ; he died 
 at Nashville from disease contracted while on 
 duty. 
 
 HIRAM HART, farmer , P. 0. West Rich- 
 field ; was born in Windham Co., Vt.,in 1833 ; 
 his early life was passed in his native State, 
 where, up to the age of 19, he worked at farm- 
 ing, and for one year worked in a store ; he 
 then went south, remaining one year, and, in 
 the spring of 1855, removed to Ohio, locating 
 in Richfield Township and purchasing the farm 
 where he now resides ; he has 174 acres of land, 
 located about two miles south of Richfield Cen- 
 ter, and where he follows the occupation of gen- 
 eral farming. Mr. Hart was married, in the fall 
 of 1854, to Miss Jeannette L. Stearns. She 
 was also a native of Vermont, and died in Rich- 
 field, leaving two children — Elmer S. and Em- 
 ma E. He was married to a second wife. Miss 
 Arlette A. Clark ; she is a daughter of Pai'k 
 B. and Nancy Clark, early settlers of Twins- 
 burg ; she was born there in 1838. They have 
 five children — Arthur C, Dana H., Roy K., 
 Carroll P. and Gratia C. Mr. Hart has served 
 the township as Trustee, and has always taken 
 an interest in educational affairs. He is at pres- 
 ent serving as a County Commissioner, having 
 been elected in 1879. 
 
RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1003 
 
 HENRY W. HOWE, Richfield ; is a son of 
 Capt. Richard Howe, one of the first set- 
 tlers and leading citizens of Akron, who was 
 born in St. Mary's Co., Md., March 8, 1799. His 
 father died in 1810, leaving a widow and seven 
 children, of whom Richard was the eldest. In 
 1812, his mother removed to Ohio with her 
 family and settled in Franklinton. Lucas Sul- 
 livant, a wealthy land-owner, was so well 
 pleased with the youthful Richard that he 
 adopted him and reared him as one of his own 
 children, giving him the benefits of a good edu- 
 cation, and teaching him civil engineering, which 
 occupation he followed for many years. He 
 surveyed and located a railroad from Columbus 
 to Cincinnati, and upon the organization of the 
 Board of Engineers to survey and locate the 
 Ohio Canal in 1824, he was selected as one of 
 its members, retaining his position until 1850, 
 attaining the rank of President Engineer. He 
 resigned in 1850, and went to California, where 
 he remained three j-ears, during which time he 
 received from Samuel D. King, Surveyor of 
 California, Deputy Surveyorship of the State, 
 and ran the meridian line from the summit of 
 Mt. Dabola to the Bay of Monterey. From 
 1863 to 1865, he was in the employ of the Pan 
 Handle Railroad at Steubenville, superintend- 
 ing the construction of the bridge across the 
 Ohio River at that place. His home was in 
 Akron, where he had settled in 1829. He was 
 always active<in public enterprise, and foremost 
 in any act to promote the growth and prosper- 
 ity of the cit}'. He served in 1834 as one of the 
 building committee that erected the first Pres- 
 byterian Church, and, in 1840, was one of the 
 trustees for building the court house and jail. 
 He was also one of the prime movers in estab- 
 lishing the cemetery. His death occurred in 
 Akron, March 19, 1872. His wife, Roxana 
 Howe, was born in Bristol, Ontario Co., N. Y., 
 Jan. 4, 1805, and died at the age of 70 years. 
 Their children are as follows : Charles R., who 
 was one of the prominent business men of 
 Akron, and enlisted in the 100 days' service, 
 serving his time honorably ; he died in Akron 
 Deo, 7, 1875, bequeathing to the Cemetery Asso- 
 ciation $5,000 ; Nathan J. Howe, who is a res- 
 ident of Chicago, where he occupies the posi- 
 tion of General Freight Agent of the Wabash 
 Railroad ; Mrs. Emil}- B. Ingersoll, of Sterling. 
 111.; Mrs. Anna Wolf residing in Akron, and 
 the subject of this sketch. Henry W. was born 
 
 in Bath Township in 1828, his early life being 
 passed in Akron, where he obtained good edu- 
 cational advantages, graduating at Oberlin, in 
 1849. He decided upon a professional life, and 
 entered the office of Judge Carpenter, of Akron, 
 where he commenced the study of law. He sub- 
 sequently practiced with Judge Carpenter, in 
 partnership, until the election of Carpenter as 
 Judge, when he engaged in the manufacture of 
 agriculture implements in Akron for seven 
 years, and from there removed to Richfield, in 
 1871, where he engaged in manufacturing en- 
 terprises for nine years, and where he is at 
 present residing. While a resident of Akron, 
 he served as a member of the Board of Educa- 
 tion and of the City Council. He has also been 
 a member of the Board of Education of Rich- 
 field, where he served one term as Justice of 
 the Peace. He is now serving 9,s Secretary of 
 the Summit County Patrons of Husbandry. 
 He was united in marriage Dec. 12, 1859, to 
 Miss Isadore C. Bell, who is a native of Con- 
 necticut, and is at present serving as Postmis- 
 tress of Richfield. They have three children — 
 Edwin B., Frank R. and Abbev B. 
 
 NORRIS HUMPHREY, farmer ; P. 0. Pen- 
 insula ; was born in Hartford Co., Conn., in 
 1806 ; his parents were Oliver and Rhoda 
 (Woodford) Humphrey, also natives of Connec- 
 ticut. They emigrated to Ohio in 1816, arriv- 
 ing in the Western Reserve and locating in 
 Trumbull Co. Jul}' 4, where they were residents 
 for the remainder of their lives. His father 
 was a blacksmith by trade, which he followed, 
 together with farming. He was in the war of 
 1812, and served as Orderl}- Sergeant in a light 
 infantry compau}'. He died Aug. 6, 1846, aged 
 63 years. His mother's death occurred Sept. 
 24, 1867, aged 81 years. Their children were 
 as follows : Norris, the eldest ; Elvira Irwin, 
 now living in Portage Co.; Julius, a I'esident 
 of Akron ; Ellen Bolster, living in Cleveland ; 
 Anna Harris, also a resident of Cleveland ; 
 Ezekiel — he learned the printer's trade in War- 
 ren Co., and subsequently moved to the South- 
 ern States, locating first in Natchez ; when the 
 Texas revolution broke out, he volunteered, 
 and joined a cavalry company of 100, fitting 
 and equipping themselves, under Gov. Quit- 
 man ; after serving through the war, he started 
 the Mornittg /Star, the first paper published in 
 Texas after the revolution ; he died in 1836, of 
 yellow fever, contracted while heroicall}- caring 
 
 IV 
 
1004 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 for fever-stricken sufferers ; his brother Norris 
 has now the deeds of 1,280 acres of land given 
 him by the State for his services during the 
 revolution ; George, a physician by profession, 
 died in Cleveland. Our subject's early life was 
 passed in Trumbull Co., where he learned the 
 blacksmith's trade with his father. In 1829, 
 he removed to Richfield Center, where he fol- 
 lowed his trade for two years. He purchased, 
 in 1829, 50 acres of land for $3 per acre. This 
 was the first pui'chase in the " Wilcox Tract." 
 In 1830, he built the first frame house between 
 the Cuyahoga River and Richfield. He mar- 
 ried, Feb. 10, 1831, Miss Julia Case ; she was 
 a native of Trumbull Co., and a daughter of 
 Ira and Ursula (Hyde) Case, natives of Con- 
 necticut and early settlers in Trumbull Co. 
 Her father served in the war of 1812 ; her 
 mother was of English descent — a member of 
 the "Hyde" family. After his marriage, Mr. 
 H. moved upon his land, and has, up to tlie 
 present time, continued to reside where he first 
 purchased. He has now 200 acres, about 50 
 of which is timbered ; his land is finely im- 
 proved and conveniently located. While pros- 
 pecting for minerals upon his land, and in the 
 vicinity, he discovered, at a depth of twenty 
 feet, several veins of water, which now furnish 
 an inexhaustible supply of pure water. Mr. 
 Humphrey helped to organize the first militia 
 company in the township, in 1832, and was 
 appointed Captain in 1834: ; he was appointed 
 Major of the 1st Battalion, Light Infantry ; he 
 still preserves the old commissions appointing 
 him to his positions. While a resident of 
 Trumbull County, he served the Township as 
 Constable, which was at that period an im- 
 portant office. Since he has been a resident of 
 Richfield, he has served in many offices of 
 trust. He was for several years a Township 
 Trustee, and for two terms Assessor of Personal 
 Property. In educational affairs he has always 
 taken a prominent part ; he was one of the Di- 
 rectors of the Richfield Academy for several 
 years. At the breaking-out of the war, he from 
 the first took an active interest in organizing a 
 company and aiding in everj- way for the pi'es- 
 ervation of the Union. He sent four of his boys 
 out in the service, fitting them from his own 
 pocket. Mr. H. lost his wife Jan. 26, 1871, 
 aged 62 j-ears. Their children are as follows : 
 Austin, now a resident of Lincoln, Neb., where 
 he is engaged in the hardware business in part- 
 
 nership with his brother Norris ; Cora Ells- 
 worth, living in Richfield Township ; Oliver 
 N., a resident of Lincoln, Neb. — he was in the 
 service about two years, on the frontier, among 
 the Indians ; Lucien E. enlisted in the 115th 
 0. V. I., and was in the service five years — 
 now a resident of Richfield ; Decius served in 
 the 64th 0. V. I. as Fife Major for five years — 
 he died April 1, 1868, aged 22 years ; Truman, 
 now living on the old homestead — he was mar- 
 ried July 4, 1875, to Miss Lida Hale, a 
 daughter of Andrew Hale, an old resident of 
 Bath Township. 
 
 AGUSTUS J. HUMPHREY, farmer ; P. 0. 
 West Richfield ; is a son of Julius and Rhoda 
 (Oviatt) Humphre}'. Julius was born in Go- 
 shen, Conn., in 1800, and his wife in Goshen in 
 1802. They were married in 1820, and re- 
 moved to Richfield the same year ; he died in 
 the Louisville Hospital in January, 1864, from 
 disease contracted wliile there ; he went South 
 after James Sanborn, of the 64th 0. V. I., who 
 was sick in that hospital, but neither returned, 
 James dying about two weeks after Mr. Humph- 
 re^^ The mother is still living in Richfield with 
 her son Augustus. Their children now living are 
 as follows : Phoebe Cartel", living in Richfield ; 
 Lucia Bennett, living in Akron ; Maria Sanborn, 
 living in Richfield ; Augustus was born in 1833, 
 and has passed his life upon the old home- 
 stead and devoting his whole attention to farm- 
 ing. He has 85 acres of land, finely improved 
 and conveniently located. He was married, 
 October, 1852, to Miss Priscilla Sanborn, a 
 daughter of John and Sibyl (Farwell) Sanborn, 
 both natives of New Hampshire, and early resi- 
 dents of Boston Township, coming there in 
 1834, where they resided twenty years, and 
 subsequently removed to Richfield, where he 
 died in July, 1866, his wife still living with her 
 daughter Priscilla. Mr. Humphrey was born 
 in New Hampshire, in 1833. They have one 
 son, Earnest, who is married to Miss Flora 
 Hart, a daughter of Henry Hart, a resident of 
 Richfield Township. The}' have one child — 
 Clarence. 
 
 HENRY KILLIFEJl, blacksmith,West Rich- 
 field ; was born in Richfield, in 1838. He is 
 a son of Henr}' and Jane (Curtis) Killifer, 
 natives of Connecticut ; the}' came to Rich- 
 field Township at an early day, but subsequently 
 removed to Putnam Co. Henry returned to 
 Richfield and engaged at the blacksmith's trade. 
 
 •^ ©" 
 '' 
 
 "fv" 
 
.JD 
 
 RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1005 
 
 in 1858 ; at the commencement of the war, he 
 enlisted in Battery A, 1st Ohio, and was in the 
 service four years, enlisting in August, 1861, and 
 discharged in August, 1865. He then returned 
 to Richfield, where he has since been working 
 at his trade. He was married to Miss Orvelia 
 Spafford Oct. 17, 1867 ; she was born in Sum- 
 rait Co., in 1842. Her father, Martin C. Spaf- 
 ford, was born in Vermont, in 1808, and came 
 with his father, Jacob Spafford, to Richfield, in 
 1816, where they remained three years and 
 then removed to Coplej', where Jacob lived 
 about forty years, then removing to Bath Town- 
 ship, where he died. Martin passed his early 
 daj's upon his father's farm ; at the age of 21 
 he went to Portage Co., and worked in a distil- 
 lery for three years, and from there removed to 
 Bath, where for twenty 3'ears he worked at 
 shoemaking and milling. He then removed to 
 Richfield, where he now lives, following the oc- 
 cupation of a miller for the most of the time. 
 Martin was married in 1836, to Miss Mary 
 Brown, whose parents were early residents of 
 the county. They have four children — Orline 
 Sheppard, living in Akron ; Orvelia ; Beulah 
 Derr, living in Huron Co., and Willie F., a 
 resident of Hudson. Mr. and Mrs. Killifer 
 have two children — Mary and Henry. Mr. 
 Killifer is a member of Richfield Lodge, No. 
 266, A., F. & A. M., and is a genial and benevo- 
 lent neighbor, a fine mechanic, and an enterpris- 
 ing citizen. 
 
 JAMES LOCKERT, farmer ; P. 0. Rich- 
 field ; was born in Gralwa}', Saratoga Co., N. Y., 
 in 1802. His father was a farmer and our sub- 
 ject remained at home until he attained his 
 majority. He married April 8, 1830, Miss 
 Minerva Moon, of Galway. In June, 1833, he 
 emigrated to Ohio, locating in Richfield Town- 
 ship, and, in the spring of 1834, removed to 
 the northeast corner of the township, where he 
 purchased the land where his residence now is. 
 He has now retired from active life and is now 
 living with his son Lorain. His family is as 
 follows — Elizabeth, wife of E. D. Hancock, of 
 Richfield Township ; Ann ICdgell, living in 
 Richfield ; James W., a prominent farmer of 
 the township ; Lorain, also a leading farmer ; 
 Mary Jane Snow, of Brecksville ; Alexander, 
 of WaiTen Co., Ohio, who is a Baptist minis- 
 ter, and Minerva Reid, wife of Chas. W. Reid, 
 who has purchased the old homestead. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Lockert were members of the Baptist 
 
 Church ; she died April 25, 1879. Mr. Lock- 
 ert has served as Township Trustee and is one 
 of its honored and respected citizens. When 
 he removed to his present location it was a 
 wilderness, and his own individual efforts have 
 done much to hasten the prosperity which now 
 smiles upon the improved and cultivated fields 
 divided among his children. He owned, at 
 one time, nearly 500 acres which was a direct 
 accumulation of his own industry and energy. 
 Lorain was born in 1840, and married in 1870, 
 Miss Helen Andrew, of Boston Township. He 
 served in the 177th 0. V. I., from 1864 to the 
 close of the war. He has 142 acres of land 
 under good cultivation. They have one child 
 — Harley. James W. was born June 29, 1837; 
 he was married Dec. 31, 1863, to Abigail Reid; 
 they have three children — -Willis W., Mina M. 
 and Floyd L. He has 175 acres of land, which 
 is finely improved and cultivated. Minerva, 
 born Sept. 21, 1843, was married to Chas. H. 
 Reid Dec. 31, 1863. They have three children 
 — Lulu L., Jessie L. and Blanche A. Ann 
 Edgell, born in Saratoga Co., N. Y.,in 1832 ; 
 was married March 19, 1856, to Mason Edgell, 
 who died in 1868. She has three children — 
 Minerva, Elizabeth and Lillie. 
 
 0. T. MEADE, farmer ; P. O. Richfield ; son 
 of Abner and Barbara (Klopenstine) Meade. 
 His father was a native of Vermont, and 
 mother of France; they were married in Spring- 
 field Township, Summit Co., and were residents 
 of that township for several years ; his father 
 was engaged in the potter}^ business there, 
 which was about the first business of that kind 
 in the count}-. They next removed to Rich- 
 field Township, locating in the .southeastern 
 portion of the township, where for many ^-ears 
 they were engaged in farming ; here his mother 
 died and his father subsequently moved to Bath 
 Township and farmed there several 3'ears. In 
 1879, he removed to Kansas, where he now re- 
 sides, engaged in farming and stock-raising. 
 Three of their children now reside in Summit 
 Co. — Charles, in Boston Township ; Mary 
 Bomgardner, in Richfield Township, and the 
 subject of this sketch, Trueman, as he is famil- 
 iarly called, was born in Springfield Township, 
 in 1843, and the most of his life has been 
 passed in Richfield Township, where he is now 
 engaged in farming and stock business. He is 
 an energetic and enterprising young man, and 
 will doubtless become one of the solid men of 
 
 
'i^ 
 
 1006 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 the county. He was married Sept. 20, 1871, 
 to Miss Mary Schatfer ; tbey have two children 
 — Noma and Greo. Gr. 
 
 ALFRED T. NEWTON, farmer ; P. 0. Rich- 
 field ; is a son of Marcus Newton and Han- 
 nab (Fletcher) Newton. jMarcus was born in 
 Goshen, Conn., June 12, 1811, and came with 
 his parents to Ohio when they removed thither. 
 He was married to Miss Hannah Fletcher. Jan. 
 1, 1833. He was a local Methodist minister as 
 well as a farmer, and led a conscientious, Chris- 
 tian life ; he died in the township in January, 
 1874. His wife died three years previous, Jan. 
 14, 1871, in Hillsdale, Mich., at the home of her 
 daughter, Mar}' L. Brown, who is the only 
 daughter now living ; she resides at present in 
 Branch Co., Mich. Alfred was born Dec. 21, 
 1836, in Richfield Township, and has always 
 been a resident of the township ; he has de- 
 voted his time entirely to agricultural j)ursuits, 
 and is one of the prominent land-owners of the 
 township. He bought the old Marvin Oviatt 
 farm in 1868, and has made it his home ever 
 since. He was married, Sept. 15, 1864, to Miss 
 Huldah H Swan ; she was born in Boston Town- 
 ship in 1842. Her father, Levi L. Swan, was a 
 native of Connecticut, and an early settler of 
 Boston Township. Mr. and Mrs. Newton have 
 four children living — Eda and Eva (twins) 
 Mary L. and Clara A. Alfred M. died at the 
 age of 5 months. Mr. Newton is a member of 
 Brecksville Lodge, I. 0. 0. F., and is an enter- 
 prising and respected citizen. 
 
 LUCIUS NEWTON, farmer; P. 0. West 
 Richfield ; is a son of John and Laura (Thomp- 
 son) Newton. John Newton was a native of 
 Connecticut, where he was born, Feb. 24, 1787. 
 He first came to Ohio in 1806, locating in 
 Hudson, where he remained a few years, and 
 then returned to Connecticut, when, in 1810, he 
 married Miss Laura Thompson. In 1815, with 
 his wife and two sons, Marcus and Lucius, he 
 returned to Ohio, and after a few years residence 
 in Hudson, he removed to Richfield, where he 
 became a large and successful farmer, and a 
 prominent and infiuential citizen, accumulating 
 a handsome property. He was a member of 
 Assembly and an Associate Judge, under the 
 constitution of Ohio. He died in Richfield 
 Township in March, 1867 ; his wife had died 
 four years previous. The children were as fol- 
 lows : Marcus was a farmer, and local Method- 
 ist minister. He was an earnest and consistent 
 
 Christian ; he died in Januar}', 1874. Lucius, 
 our subject, was the next child. John T., now 
 a prominent lawyer, residing in Toledo, and 
 Rebecca Weld, living in Richfield Township. 
 Lucius was born Dec. 19, 1814. He began the 
 battle of life for himself at the age of 22, lo- 
 cating in Royalton, Cuyahoga Co., where he 
 purchased 640 acres of timbered land, 200 
 acres of which he cleared and fenced. He re- 
 mained there about five 3'ears, then removing 
 to Richfield Township and locating upon the 
 farm where he now resides, and where he has 
 been a continuous resident since. He has ac- 
 cumulated a large tract of land, having at one 
 time nearl}' 1,000 acres, part of which he has 
 divided between his children. He has been 
 strictly engaged at farming and stock-raising 
 all of his life, which he has made a decided 
 success. He was married in May, 1838, to 
 Miss Catharine Brock way ; her parents were 
 natives of Connecticut and pioneers of Trum- 
 bull Co., where she was born in 1818. Their 
 children are as follows : John T., a prominent 
 farmer of Richfield Township ; Homer E. ; he 
 is married to Miss Clara Dale, and is farming 
 in the township ; Minet L., farmer, at home ; 
 Laura McKinstrej', and Virgil L. He is mar- 
 ried to Miss Alice S. Conrad, and also a farmer 
 of Richfield Township. 
 
 JOHN T. NEWTON, farmer ; P. 0. West 
 Richfield ; is a son of Lucius Newton, one of 
 the pioneers of the township ; was born in Rich- 
 field Township Feb. 17, 1839. His life, until 
 he attained his majority, was passed under the 
 guardianship of his parents, upon the farm, for 
 which pursuit his education and inclinations 
 have well fitted him, and which occupation he 
 has always followed. As a jrractical farmer, he 
 is one of the most prominent in the township. 
 He was married, Sept. 3, 1868, to Miss Mary 
 Adams, daughter of Samuel T. Adams, of Me- 
 dina ; she was born in Medina Oct. 11, 1850. 
 They have four children — John Edward, born 
 Oct. 5,1869 ; Jay Thorne, July 23, 1871 ; Earl 
 Brockway, May 'll, 1874; Mary G., March 11, 
 1878. In March, 1872, Mr. Newton removed 
 to his present location, about one and one-half 
 miles north of the West Center, where he has 
 110 acres of fine farming land, which he has 
 improved in buildings, fences, etc. He makes 
 specialties in fancy poultry, hogs, sheep and 
 cattle ; he is also engaged extensively in bee 
 culture, which branch he makes quite a study. 
 
 V 
 
RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1007 
 
 and which has proven most remunerative. He 
 has always been interested in the school inter- 
 ests, and all matters pertaining to the best in- 
 terests of the township. 
 
 aEN. 0. M. OVIATT (deceased) ; was horn 
 at Goshen, Litchfield Co., Conn., Feb. 24, 1799, 
 and removed with his father, Capt. Heman 
 Oviatt, to Hudson, Portage Co. (now Summit 
 Co.), in 1803, Hudson at that time being an 
 unbroken wilderness, with but a few white in- 
 habitants, its principal denizens being the 
 Chippewa tribe of Indians. His father kept a 
 small store, stocked with such goods as met ready 
 sale with the few whites and many Indians then 
 scattered over the Reserve. But the general 
 trade was one of barter with the latter, for their 
 furs, etc., which were the principal currency of 
 that earl}^ period. Gren. 0. was so constantly 
 associated with the Indians in his youth as to 
 render him as proficient in the use of their 
 language as in his own. With the exception of 
 a period which he spent in attending school at 
 the Litchfield Academy, at Litchfield, Conn., 
 (John Brown, Sr., accompanying him), mcst of 
 his youth was passed in Hudson. The friend- 
 ship there formed with old Osawattomie con- 
 tinued through life, Mr. 0., in after years, aid- 
 ing him in some of his public enterprises, 
 especially in his Kansas expedition. In the 
 winter of 1820, with a companion named Tim- 
 othy Hall, and a pair of oxen and a sled, he came 
 to the township of Richfield ; it was at that 
 time almost entirely unsettled, and with only a 
 doubtful trail between the two points. After 
 the erection of a small abode, in the following 
 spring, he was married to Miss Phoebe H. Coe, 
 of Charlestown, Portage Co., Ohio, and with his 
 young wife moved to the new home. The en- 
 suing year he commenced the building of a store 
 near his residence, at the center of the town, 
 cutting down the forest and removing the green 
 stumps from the ground to locate the same. 
 There are one or two individuals still living 
 who assisted in this work — -Mr. John Payne, 
 now aged 83, and Mr. Lester Hall, both now 
 residents of this place. This store was the 
 principal point of trade for the country around 
 for a circle of twenty miles or more, and for 
 over fifty years, or until the year 1876, was con- 
 tinuously open to successful trade. Gren. 0. 
 was noted for his large business capacit}^ pro- 
 bity, and strictly honest dealing. He was also 
 greatly interested in the building-up of the 
 
 town and forwarding its best interests. In the 
 erection of the first Congregational Church, in 
 1830, he bore a large share of the burden, and 
 in the educational interests he was strictly 
 identified and foremost in his endeavors to make 
 the same a success. At this time, a large 
 share of the emigrants to this Western region 
 were poor, and their hardships many, in their 
 endeavors to obtain homes, and there were many 
 who expressed gTeat gratitude for timely assis- 
 tance rendered them by him at that early 
 period. In the year 1836, he met with the 
 great affliction of his life, in the death of his 
 beloved wife, a few of whose characteristics the 
 writer cannot refrain from mentioning. Her 
 special pleasure was in visiting the sick and 
 needy of the then scattered population, whom 
 she would cheer by kind words and supplying 
 their necessities. She was an earnest Christian 
 worker through an active and busy life, and 
 died on March 1, 1836, aged 34, sincerely 
 mourned by all who knew her. Five children 
 were born of this marriage, of whom but two 
 are living, viz., Mrs. Dr. A. E. Ewing, and 0. 
 M. Oviatt, still residents of this town. Gen. 
 0. afterward married Miss Lucretia S. Ward, of 
 Hadley, Mass., a Christian lady of refinement 
 and intelligence, with whom he lived happily 
 until his death. Of this marriage there were 
 born four children, of whom three are living — 
 Mrs. Geo. W. Gardner, of Cleveland ; Mr. Wm. 
 H. Oviatt, and Mr. Louis D. Oviatt, of Long- 
 mont, Colo. Ellen P. Oviatt died May 5, 
 1856, aged 11 years. In the year 1848, Mr. 
 Oviatt removed to the city of Cleveland, where 
 he had property interests, his first residence 
 there being the present Catholic nunneiy on 
 Euclid Avenue, which he sold to them osten- 
 sibly for a school building, but which they 
 since have transformed into a nunnery and 
 school against a strict stipulation with him at 
 the time of its purchase, that it should never 
 be used for that purpose, he being always a 
 strong anti-Catholic. After a few years spent 
 in the commission business, he engaged very 
 extensively in the packing business with D. J. 
 P. Robinson, now of Mentor, which partner- 
 ship was continued very successfully some 
 eighteen or twenty years. In politics he was 
 at first an ardent Whig, but after the formation 
 of the Republican party he fully indorsed 
 its principles, and adhered to them until his 
 death. He was often urged to become a candi- 
 
 ?r 
 
1008 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 date for office, but generally refused, l)elieving 
 the office should seek the man ; still he was 
 called to many positions of trust, among others 
 in an early day, that of Associate Judge of 
 Medina Co., one of his Associates being Judge 
 Pardee, of Wadsworth. He was member of 
 the City Council of Cleveland many successive 
 terms, several times elected its presiding officer, 
 member and Chairman of its Finance Committee, 
 and held other positions of trust, the duties of 
 which were conscientiously executed and to 
 the satisfaction of his friends who had placed 
 him in office. In the year 1868, he retired from 
 active business, and after an absence of nearly 
 twenty years from his early home, having a 
 desire to spend his remaining years near his 
 children, he returned thither ; but his residence 
 there was of short duration, for after one year 
 of pleasurable intercourse with his children, 
 old friends and neighbors, he was suddenly 
 attacked by a disease (which had troubled him 
 for many years) and died after three days ill- 
 ness. His remains were removed to Cleveland 
 and interred in his own private vault in Wood- 
 land Cemetery. 
 
 0. M. OVIATT, son of Gen. 0. M. and 
 Pha?be H. Oviatt, was born in Richfield, July 1 2, 
 1825, and has lived in this town continuously 
 up to the present time. He received his early 
 education at tlie old Richfield Academy, Rev. 
 Harvey Lyon being his instructor. After at- 
 tending school in later 3'ears at Gambier, Ohio, 
 Granville, Ohio, and Hudson College (English 
 Department). He was married, Aug. 2, 1848, 
 to Miss Frances C. Hammond, daughter of 
 Nathaniel and Lucy Hammond, both residents 
 of Richfield. After his marriage he resided 
 for some time on the old homestead near the 
 center (his father having removed to Cleveland, 
 Ohio). In June. 1857, he removed to his pres- 
 ent residence previously occupied by his grand- 
 father, Capt. Heman Oviatt. He held the po- 
 sition of County Commissioner two terms (six 
 vears). He has given much attention to the 
 educational interests of the town, and took a 
 leading part in the founding of the pi'esent 
 Richfield Central High School, overcoming 
 strong opposition from its non-supporters. He 
 has also been a member of the Board of Edu- 
 cation the past twelve 3'ears. 
 
 SCHUYLER R. OVIATT, P. 0. Richfield ; 
 is a son of Marvin and Mary (Foote) Oviatt, 
 who were both natives of Connecticut. Mar- 
 
 vin was born in Goshen Oct. 1, 1797, and his 
 wife in Norfolk Feb. 2, 1795. They were uni' 
 ted in marriage in 1818. The fiither of Marvin, 
 Capt. Heman Oviatt, was born in Goshen, 
 Conn., Sept. 20, 1775 ; he was married Jan. 
 10, 1796, to Miss Eunice Newton, she was born 
 Nov. 15, 1777. Capt. Heman Oviatt was one 
 of the pioneers of Summit County, coming 
 with David Hudson, to Hudson Township, in 
 1800, returning in the fall of the year to Con- 
 necticut, and returning in the spring of 1801, 
 with his family. He located in Hudson Town- 
 ship where he resided for a number of years, 
 taking a prominent position in all acts of pub- 
 lic importance and improvements. He en- 
 dowed Hudson College, while a resident there, 
 with a fund of $12,000. His first wife, Eunice, 
 was a woman universally beloved, and pos- 
 sessed much influence over the Indians. She 
 died Sept. 17, 1813, leaving three children — 
 Marvin, Orson and Harriet. Heman married 
 for a second wife Sophia E. Kilbourne, by 
 whom he had two children— Heman, now a 
 resident of Cleveland, and Elizabeth, living in 
 Richfield Township ; she lived about twenty 
 years, and after her death he married the Widow 
 Curtis, of Akron, who survived him several 
 3'ears. In 1839, Heman removed to Richfield 
 Township, were he resided up to his death, 
 which occurred Dec. 5, 1854. A more extend- 
 ed narrative of his business enterprises, and 
 connection with the township and count3', will 
 appear in another portion of this work. Marvin 
 was married in Hudson in 1818, and engaged 
 in farming for a short period in that township, 
 and then connected himself with his brother 
 Orson, in Richfield. In 1825, he went to 
 Cleveland, and was engaged in the mercantile 
 trade there for a few 3'ears, and then went 
 South, and was in the produce business upon 
 the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers ; after a few 
 3'ears he returned to Richfield, and again went 
 upon a farm. At the breaking-out of the gold 
 excitement in California, in 1850, he started 
 for the Pacific Coast, and after remaining there 
 three 3'ears, started to return home, but fell 
 from the steamer, upon which he had taken 
 passage upon the San Juan River, and was 
 drowned, August 1853. His bod3' was never 
 recovered nor any of his effects. His wife died 
 in Richfield, May 31, 1876. Their children 
 now living are as follows : Schu3'ler R., Trac3' 
 M., a Presb3'terian Minister now living in Call- 
 
RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1009 
 
 fornia ; Edward, a prominent law_yer of Akron; 
 Celia, now the wife of Baxter H. Wood, of 
 Medina ; Virgil L., a graduate of tlie Western 
 Reserve College (deceased) ; Carlos, died in 
 Corry, Peun., having a wife and son ; Schuyler 
 R., was boi'u in Hudson Township in 1819. 
 His education is academical, graduating at the 
 Richfield Academy at the age of 20. He is by 
 occupation a civil engineer, and has also de- 
 voted considerable attention to horticultural 
 pursuits. At various times he has served the 
 township and county in offices of public trust, 
 prominent among which we mention, as County 
 Surveyor, and also County Treasurer from 
 1871 to 1875. In township affairs he has 
 always taken a leading interest; is now serving 
 as Notary Public. In 1880, he prepared and 
 delivered a historical address, in Richfield, at 
 the pioneer meeting of that year, and also fur- 
 nishes many of the facts and incidents which 
 appear in the township history. He was united 
 in marriage in June, 1842, to Miss Charlotte 
 A. Weld, a daughter of James Weld, Esq., who 
 was before his death one of Richfield's most 
 prominent business men. Thev have two 
 children — James S., a graduate of Western 
 Reserve College, and at present living in Cleve- 
 land, serving as Assistant City Civil Engineer, 
 and Miss Lotta, at home. 
 
 DARIUS L. OVIATT, farmer ; P. 0. West 
 Richfield ; is a son of Nathaniel and Hannah 
 (Deming) Oviatt, natives of Litchfield Co., 
 Conn., and pioneers of Summit Co., locating in 
 Richfield Township in 1812, and residents of 
 the township for the remainder of their lives. 
 His mother died in April, 1831 ; by a subse- 
 quent marriage his father had six children, only 
 one of whom is now living — Ruth Freeman, a 
 resident of Michigan ; two sons, John and 
 Charles, died while in the service. His father's 
 death occurred in March, 1863. Our subject 
 was born in Richfield Township Jan. 22, 1825 ; 
 he remained upon his father's farm until about 
 19 3' ears of age, and then went to Hinckley, 
 Medina Co., where he resided about fifteen 
 years, marrying while there, in August, 1849, 
 Miss Emma Crissy ; she died in May, 1861 ; 
 three children were the result of this marriage 
 — Moseman C., now a resident of Michigan ; 
 Linus W., living in Richfield Township ; and 
 Trueman D., now living in Cuyahoga Co. In 
 September, 1861, he was married to his second 
 wife, Miss Phoebe J. Tuthill ; they have four 
 
 children — Emma J., Charlie C, Hattie E. and 
 Alma I. In October, 1861, Mr. Oviatt returned 
 to Richfield Township and located upon the old 
 homestead, where he has resided up to the pres- 
 ent time ; he has 126 acres of improved land, 
 conveniently located, about one mile north of 
 West Richfield. He has always taken an inter- 
 est in educational and township matters, and is 
 a respected and enterprising citizen. 
 
 STEPHEN C. PIXLEY, farmer ; P. 0. West 
 Richfield. Prominent among the old residents 
 of Richfield Township is Stephen C. Pixley, the 
 subject of this biography. He came with his 
 parents to the township in 1816, from Massa- 
 chusetts, where he was born in Franklin in 1813, 
 and has been a resident of the township, and 
 lived upon the farm, taken up by his father at 
 that time, up to the present time. His father 
 was Stephen Pixley, a native of Massachusetts, 
 where he was born July 9, 1781 ; his mother's 
 maiden name was Orpha Cooley, also a native of 
 Massachusetts ; she was born March 27, 1781 ; 
 they were married in Massachusetts Nov. 25, 
 1804. In 1816, they started from Massachu- 
 setts with a team and two yoke of cattle, and, 
 after a journey of six weeks, reached Richfield ; 
 they located in the northwestern portion of the 
 township, where they lived for the remainder of 
 their lives. His father's death occurred Oct. 
 31, 1829 ; his mother's, Sept. 6, 1840. Their 
 children now living are as follows : Sumner, a 
 resident of Boston Township ; Se3'mour, living 
 in California ; and our subject, Stephen C. ; a 
 son, Alvin C, a prominent resident of Rich- 
 field Township, died in June, 1878, leaving a 
 wife who is still a resident of the township ; 
 they had five children, all of whom are deceased. 
 Owen C, a son, died from disease contracted in 
 the service of his country. Stephen C. was 
 united in marriage, Nov. 13, 1850, to Miss Eliza 
 Buell ; she died in 1855. In March, 1856, he 
 was married to Miss Sarah E. Tupper, who died 
 May 5, 1857. May 17, 1860, he was again mar- 
 ried, to Miss Maria L. Foster ; she is a native 
 of Ohio, born in Cuyahoga Co., April 27, 1834 ; 
 the}' have three children — Frank S., born Nov. 
 21, 1863 ; Orla C. and Chrysie I. (twins), born 
 Oct. 18, 1867. Mr. Pixley has 95 acres of land, 
 all of which is improved except 8 acres of tim- 
 ber located in the northwestern portion of the 
 township, about two miles from West Richfield. 
 He has been prominently identified with the 
 growth and development of the township, and 
 
 w 
 

 1010 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 furnishes some of the incidents and dates given 
 in the township history. As a citizen he is en- 
 terprising and progressive, and is universally 
 respected by his fellow townsmen. 
 
 FRANKLIN PRICKITT, farmer; P. 0. 
 West Richfield. The Prickitt family are prom- 
 inent citizens and extensive land-owners in 
 Richfield Township, and are worthy of espe- 
 cial mention. The parents were Samuel and 
 Hannah (Allen) Prickitt who were natives of 
 New Jersey, and of Quaker descent. He was 
 born Oct. 15, 178L and his wife Aug. 4, 1793. 
 They were united in marriage April 3, 1821, in 
 New Jersey, and first moved to Wayne Co., N. 
 Y., where they resided about seven years. 
 From there they emigrated to Ohio, locating 
 in Richfield Township in 1834, taking up 200 
 acres of land, which was situated where the 
 farms of Franklin and Allen S. now are. 
 There they resided until their labors below 
 were ended, and they " were gathered with 
 their fathers." He died at the ripe age of 88 
 years, and his wife at 85 yeai's of age. Franklin, 
 the eldest son, was born in New Jei'sey in 1823. 
 He remained with his parents until he was 
 married, Jan. 9, 1850, to Miss Sarah Fearnley. 
 She was a native of England. After his mar- 
 riage, he built him a house upon the farm 
 where he now resides, which consists of 70 
 acres of land, which was a part of the old 
 homestead. Although he calls himself a 
 farmer, he has devoted a great share of his 
 time to making rifles and general repairing. 
 He is a natural mechanic, having never learned 
 the machinist's trade. He was the first gun- 
 smith in the township, and has made hundreds 
 of rifies with tools which he manufactured 
 mostly himself, and in his workshop may be 
 found many evidences of his skill. His first 
 wife died in 1867, leaving a daughter, Alice. 
 In June, 1866, he was mari'ied to a second 
 wife, Miss Arvilla Buck, a daughter of Heman 
 and Polly Buck, who were pioneers of the 
 township. She was born in Richfield Township 
 in October, 1828. They have two children — 
 Fi'ancis and Elma. 
 
 SAMUEL H. PRICKITT, farmer; P. 0. 
 West Richfield ; a son of Samuel and Hannah 
 (Allen) Prickitt ; was born in Wa3'ne Co., N. 
 Y., Jan. 6, 1829. He remained with his par- 
 ents in Richfield until 1854, and then started 
 for California, where he remained for ten 
 years, engaged in various occupations. He 
 
 then returned to Richfield and purchased of S. 
 E. Oviatt the farm, consisting of 110 acres, 
 where he now resides, and which he has im- 
 proved generally since his residence upon it 
 until it is one of the most desirable farms in 
 the township. He was united in marriage, 
 Feb. 14, 1866, to Miss Ann A. Garthwait. s1ie 
 is of English descent, her parents, Charles and 
 Ann (Fearnley) Garthwait, being both natives 
 of England, and for many 3'ears residents of 
 Richfield Township. Mrs. Prickitt was born 
 in Richfield Township Dec. 20, 1842. They 
 have one child — -Miss Edith, born Sept. 10, 
 1867. Mr. Prickitt, as a farmer, is practical 
 and prosperous ; as a citizen, he is enterprising 
 and progressive, and, together with his estima- 
 ble wife, are intelligent and esteemed citizens. 
 
 ALLEN S. PRICKITT, farmer ; P. 0. West 
 Richfield ; is a son of Samuel and Hannah 
 (Allen) Prickitt. He was born in Wayne Co., 
 N. Y., Dec. 29, 1833, and since the removal of 
 his parents to the township has lived upon the 
 old homestead, which he now owns. He has 
 125 acres of good land, finely improved and 
 located convenienth'. He has served the town- 
 ship as Trustee, and has taken great interest in 
 educational affairs and all matters of public 
 importance. He was married, March 22, 1859, 
 to Miss Jane Kirby. daughter of John and 
 Elizabeth Kirby, natives of England, and who 
 are old residents of the community. Mrs. 
 Prickitt is also a native of England, where she 
 was born in 1833. They have two children — 
 Mary and Rosa. 
 
 H. C. SEARLES, Postmaster and merchant. 
 West Richfield ; is a prominent merchant and 
 an enterprising citizen ; he is a son of Daniel 
 Searles, an earl}^ settler of Hinckle}^ Township, 
 where he still resides. The subject of this 
 sketch was born in Hinckley Township in 1841, 
 and passed his early life up to the age of 16 
 upon the farm. His education commenced in 
 the district schools ; he then went to Hiram 
 College, where he continued his studies until 
 the breaking-out of the war, when he enlisted 
 in Battery A, 1st Ohio, and served for two 
 years, but was forced to leave the service on 
 account of injuries. Returning to his home, 
 he then engaged in the mercantile business as 
 clerk for B. H. Wood, of West Richfield, with 
 whom he continued for eight years. He then, 
 in 1873, commenced in trade for himself, in 
 which he has been actively engaged up to the 
 
 ■^. 
 
.> 
 
 EICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1011 
 
 present time. In 1878, the store in which he 
 was doing business was burned ; he then erected 
 the large and commodious building where he is 
 at present located ; his stock consists of a large 
 line of general merchandise, and he purchases all 
 kinds of country produce. Mr. Searles has served 
 as Postmaster since 1873, and in matters of 
 public importance has alwa3's taken an active 
 interest. He has served the township as Treas- 
 urer for the past fifteen years, and as a member 
 of the School Board for six years. He was mar- 
 ried, in 1863, to Miss Elizabeth Parker, a 
 daughter of Rev. Sanford Parker, a Methodist 
 minister ; he was killed while a resident of 
 Hinckley ; she was born in Hinckley Township 
 in 1844. They have three children — Harry I., 
 at present attending Hiram College, Lizzie A. 
 and George DeForest. 
 
 DANIEL T. SHELDEN, farmer ; P. O.West 
 Richfield ; is a son of Jonathan and Abiah 
 (Noithrop) Shelden. His father was a native 
 of Rhode Island. When he was 4 years of age, 
 his parents removed to Massachusetts, where 
 he resided until he was manned. They then 
 removed to Schoharie Co., N. Y., where they re- 
 sided about twenty-five years. In 1822, they 
 removed to Ohio, locating in Richfield Town- 
 ship, where they resided for the remainder of 
 their days. Daniel was born in Schoharie Co., 
 N. Y., in 1806, and came with his parents to 
 Richfield when the}' removed there, where he 
 has since been a resident, and by occupation a 
 farmer. He was married, in March, 1836, to 
 Miss Martha Robinson, who died in 1837. In 
 October, 1838, he was married to a sister of his 
 first wife, Miss Mary Robinson. The}^ have 
 four children — William H. (who is a resident of 
 California), Martha A., Dustin and Charles R., 
 living in Richfield Township, and Miss Mary 
 E., at home. Mr. Shelden is living upon the 
 old homestead, about one and a half miles south 
 of the Center, whei'e he has lived over half a 
 century ; he has devoted his time exclusively to 
 the cultivation of his land, which is in a high 
 state of cultivation and well improved. He is 
 a well known and respected citizen in the town- 
 ship where he has lived for so manv years. 
 
 M. LEE SPRANKLE, farmer ;"' P. O. West 
 Richfield ; is a son of John and Susannah (Keck) 
 Sprankle ; his father was a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania, where he was born in 1802 ; his mother, 
 a native of Ohio, Columbiana Co., where she was 
 born in 1816 ; she is still living with her son. 
 
 M. Lee, in Richfield ; his father first located in 
 Columbiana Co., where he resided about three 
 3'ears, and then removed to Wa3me Co., where 
 he remained about nine years, and then, in the 
 spring of 1850, removed to Richfield Township, 
 locating in the southern part of the township, 
 where he resided until his death, which occurred 
 in 1854, aged 52 years. Our subject was born 
 in Wayne Co., in 1839 ; at the death of his 
 father, he started out in life for himself, work- 
 ing by the month about twelve years, and then 
 purchasing from the heirs the old homestead, 
 where he has since resided. He has 96 acres 
 of improved land, with good buildings, and in 
 a high state of cultivation. He was married, 
 in September, 1872, to Miss Lilla Kirk, a 
 daughter of George Kirk, of Bath ; the}- have 
 three children — Gertrude, Jessie and Birdie. 
 Mr. Sprankle has served the township as As- 
 sessor, and is a member of Meridian Sun 
 Lodge, No. 266, A., F. & A. M. He has three 
 brothers and two sisters living — Jeremiah, liv- 
 ing in Michigan ; Daniel, a resident of Mon- 
 tana ; David W., a minister in the United 
 Brethren Church, living in Portage Co.; Lydia 
 Dunn, in Michigan, and Sarah Harris, living in 
 Copley Township ; a brother, William H. , was 
 killed by lightning in Richfield Township, in 
 1867. 
 
 NATHAN SWIG ART, farmer ; P. 0. West 
 Richfield ; was born in Stark Co., Ohio, in 1831 ; 
 his parents, John and Elizabeth (Halliwill) 
 Swigart, were pioneers in Stark Co. In 1832, 
 his father came to Richfield Township and pur- 
 chased a tract of land, located where Nathan 
 now resides, but before he perfected his arrange- 
 ments for removal from Stark Co. he was 
 striken down by death ; his mother subse- 
 quently removed to Richfield and settled upon 
 the farm, bringing with her a daughter, Louisa, 
 and Nathan, our subject. She was afterward 
 married to Oliver Taylor, by whom she had 
 four children ; she continued a resident of the 
 farm until her death, aged 63 years. Nathan 
 has been a resident of the old farm since their 
 first location there, and is now in possession of 
 it ; he has 109 acres, about 40 of which is tim- 
 bered ; he is making quite a specialty in dairy- 
 ing, having ver}^ fine facilities for butter-mak- 
 ing, there being upon his farm fine springs of 
 running water, of even temperature the whole 
 year. He was married in 1860 to Miss Han-iet 
 J. Willey, whose parents were old settlers of 
 
1013 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Medina Co. They have ten children — John, 
 Herbert, Louis, Ada J., Lura A., Otho T., 
 Clara, Samuel G., Clarence and Garfield. Mr. 
 Swigart is a prosperous farmer and respected 
 neighbor ; he has taken an active interest in 
 schools, and is a member of Osborn Corner 
 Grange. 
 
 FAYETTE VIALL, proprietor hotel, Rich- 
 field ; is a son of Burrill and Sarah Viall, who 
 were early settlers in Northampton Township ; 
 the}' have four children now living in Summit 
 Co. — Burrill, a prominent farmer, of Boston 
 Township ; Mary, the wife of Dr. Pope, of West 
 Richfield ; William, now a resident of North- 
 ampton Township ; and Fayette, the subject of 
 this sketch. He was born in Northampton 
 Township in 1845 ; he accompanied his parents 
 to Iowa in 1850, where he remained until 1863, 
 when he enlisted in the 24th Iowa V. I., 
 and was in the service until the close of the 
 war. He then returned to Iowa, where he re- 
 mained about a year, and then came to Boston 
 Township, where he resided for several years 
 with his brother. In November, 1872, he was 
 married to Miss Emma Gilbert, a daughter of 
 Chancey and Sophrona (Carter) Gilbert ; since 
 his marriage he has been a resident of Rich- 
 field Township, where he has been engaged in 
 farming and also in the hotel business, which 
 occupation he resumed in April, 1881, in 
 Richfield Center, where he owns a hotel prop- 
 ert}'. Mr. and Mrs. Viall have two children 
 — Raymond and Willie. 
 
 HENRY C. WADHAMS, retired farmer; 
 P. 0. West Richfield ; was born in Litchfield 
 Co., Goshen, Conn., Jan. 15, 1802. His par- 
 ents, Seth and Lucy (Davis) Wadhams, were 
 both natives of Connecticut ; his father was a 
 merchant in Goshen, and died in 1808 ; his 
 mother departed this life the year previous 
 (1807). After the death of his pai^ents, Henry 
 went to live with an uncle, with whom he re- 
 mained until he attained his majorit}', working 
 upon a farm. He then started for Ohio, com- 
 ing with Frederick Baldwin, in a one-horse 
 wagon ; they reached Hudson, where Baldwin 
 stopped, and our subject came on to Richfield, 
 where his brother, William S., and many old 
 Connecticut acquaintances were located. He 
 reached Richfield in 1823, and bought a farm, 
 upon which he lived until 1844, when he sold 
 out to Schuyler Oviatt, and moved to West 
 Richfield and engaged in the mercantile busi- 
 
 ness with H. B. Pomero}', with whom he con- 
 tinued one year. In 1850, he went to Califor- 
 nia, where he remained five years, engaged in 
 mining and keeping a public house. He then 
 returned to West Richfield, where he has since 
 resided, retired from active life. He was mar- 
 ried, March 23, 1825, to Miss Eunice Lay ton ; 
 she was a daughter of John and Eunice Layton, 
 natives of New York, and residents of Ontario 
 Co. ; she was born in Ontario Co., May 5, 1805. 
 Their children are as follows : Louisa Bigelow, 
 living in Michigan ; Mandana M. Mansur, died 
 in Hudson ; Destine A., was educated at Mt. 
 Holyoke, Mass., and died while teaching at 
 Knoxville, 111. ; Clarentine, died at the age of 
 8 years ; Eunice Carr, living in Cleveland ; 
 Henry P., a resident of Cleveland — he is the 
 senior partner in the firm of H. P. Wadhams 
 & Co., engaged in investments, securities, and 
 brokers in stocks, grain, provisions, etc. Mr. 
 Wadhams, while a resident of Richfield Town- 
 ship, has served as Constable about seventeen 
 years, and as Deputy Treasurer for twenty-five 
 years. He has been identified in many acts 
 for the improvement of the township, and is a 
 respected and progressive citizen. 
 
 WILLIAM WHEATLEY, farmer ; P. 0. 
 West Richfield ; is an extensive land-owner 
 and one of the prominent citizens of Richfield 
 Township. His parents, Joseph and Jane 
 (Teal) Wheatley, were natives of England. 
 They emigrated to America in 1832, and lo- 
 cated in Richfield Township; they purchased 100 
 acres of land of Samuel Snow, who went to 
 Canada and joined in the insurrection, where he 
 was captured and sent to Van Dieman's Land. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Wheatley brought with them eight 
 children from England, only three of whom are 
 now living — Sarah, the widow of Ui'iah Oviatt, 
 residing in Richfield ; F. J., a son, for many 
 years a prominent citizen of Granger Town- 
 ship, Medina Co., now living in Danville, Va., 
 where he has a large plantation. The mother 
 died in March, 1857, and the father in Decem- 
 ber, 1858. William was born in England, in 
 1825, and since the removal of his parents to 
 Richfield, has been a resident of the Township 
 and of the old homestead. In 1852, he was 
 united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Lawrence. 
 She is also a native of England, where she was 
 born in 1 823. They have five children — Martha 
 C, William L., Emma J., George and Charles. 
 Mr. Wheatley has added to the original farm 
 
:£>L 
 
 RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1013 
 
 until he has, at the present time, 420 acres, 
 about 75 of which is timber, and the rest finely 
 improved. This propertj' is located about one 
 mile south of the Center. He is an enterpris- 
 ing and progressive farmer, to which he devotes 
 his time exclusively ; he makes quite a specialty 
 of fine Durham stock, and in superior breeds of 
 sheep. For a number of years he was promi- 
 nently interested in the Agricultural Associa- 
 tion of the county, but of late the cultivation 
 of his land engages his whole time and atten- 
 tion. 
 
 DR. JEREMIAH CULLEN WILCOX (de- 
 ceased) ; was born in Hartford Co., Conn., 
 Dec. 6, 1790. His father, Dr. Jeremiah Wil- 
 cox, having become owner of the " Wilcox 
 Tract," consisting of 16,000 acres on the Western 
 Reserve, resolved to become an emigrant him- 
 self, so, with his famih^, he removed to Vernon, 
 Trumbull Co., which was then a wilderness, and 
 there they located and lived for the remainder 
 of their lives. " CuUen," as he was familiarl}" 
 known, performed the labors incident to a pio- 
 neer life for a few yeai'S, and then resumed his 
 studies, which he had commenced in Connecti- 
 cut, and entered Jefferson College, where he 
 graduated in 1813, in the same class with 
 Thomas H. Benton, who was for so many years 
 the celebrated United States Senator. Having 
 prepared himself for the medical profession, 
 mainly under the instructions of his father, he 
 commenced to practice in the town of Hartford, 
 where he continued for twent}' ^^ears. He mar- 
 ried, in 1816, Miss Lorena Bushnell, who died 
 in 1831, leaving five children, only two of whom 
 are now living — Jeremiah B., living in Deer 
 Lodge, Montana Territory, and Mrs. (xen. Stur- 
 ges, of Louisville. Ky. His health having be- 
 come impaired, he gave up his practice, and for 
 better educational advantages, removed to Hud- 
 son, where he engaged in business, and in 1839 
 removed to Richfield Township, where he 
 owned a large tract of land, and became one of 
 its most honored and respected citizens. He 
 was a devoted and consistent member of the 
 Congregational Church. In 1839, he was mar- 
 ried to Mrs. Julia A. Pettee ; her maiden name 
 was Wilder ; she was born in Johnstown, N. Y., 
 Sept. 19, 1814 ; she was married in New York 
 York State and left a widow when 20 years of 
 age. At the time of her marriage with Dr. 
 Wilcox, she was a teacher in the schools of Ra- 
 venna. She is now living at Glenville, Cuya- 
 
 hoga Co. Dr. Wilcox died Jan. 26, 1873. 
 Their children are as follows : Amelia ; Henry 
 C, living in Kansas ; CuUen, now attending 
 Yale College, fitting himself for the ministry ; 
 Frank A. and Stella H., with their mother at 
 Glenville. 
 
 BAXTER WOOD, retired merchant. West 
 Richfield ; is an old and respected citizen, and 
 at one time a prominent merchant. He was 
 born in Wooster Co., Mass., Jan. 2, 1797. His 
 father, Williard Wood, was a farmer, and upon 
 the farm the first twentj' years of his life was 
 passed. He received a good education, and put 
 it to a practical use by teaching school for four- 
 teen winters. He was engaged in the hotel 
 business in Massachusetts for six years, and in 
 Connecticut for three 3^ears. He then removed 
 to Indiana, where he remained onlj^ one year, 
 engaged in the same business. In 1838, he re- 
 moved to Richfield and first engaged in the 
 hotel business, there continuing six years. He 
 then entered the mercantile business in West 
 Richfield, under the firm name of B. Wood & 
 Son, and for twenty-five years was in active 
 trade. He is now retired from business, and 
 living upon a small farm located between the two 
 Centers. He was married, while living in Massa- 
 chusetts, Nov. 19, 1822, to Miss Eliza Fair- 
 banks. She was born in Hampden Co., Mass., 
 Sept. 24, 1797. They have three children who 
 are a pride and comfort to them — Mrs. Pauline 
 Sheppard, the wife of 0. C. Sheppard, of Me- 
 dina ; Baxter H., one of Medina's most promi- 
 nent business men, and Charles W., one of the 
 old and prominent business men of West Rich- 
 field. He was born in Thompson, Conn., in 
 1835. He commenced his business life at the 
 age of 18, as assistant in his father's store, and 
 has been the mercantile trade ever since. He 
 was for a number of years in partnership with 
 his father, but for the past eight 3-ears has been 
 alone. His stock consists of a general line of 
 merchandise, in which he does a leading busi- 
 ness. He was married in November, 1862, to 
 Miss Elizabeth Okes. She was born in Cuyahoga 
 Co., in 1838. Thev have six children — Frank 
 0., Stella, Weldon C., Edith C, Harry and Ar- 
 thur. He is Secretary and Treasurer of the 
 Ohio Telegraph Co., a short line between Penin- 
 sula and West Richfield, and a member of Mer- 
 idian Sun Lodge, No. 266, A., F. & A. M. 
 
 DEXTER WOOD (deceased) ; was a native 
 of Massachusetts, where he was born in 
 
 ^l^y 
 
1014 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 1801. He was one of the early settlers of 
 Richfield Township, where he located in 1834, 
 in the southern portion of the township, 
 and where he remained a respected citizen 
 for the remainder of his life. He died in 
 March, 1846. His wife is still living upon the 
 old homestead ; her maiden name was Mar^' 
 Keid ; she was born in New York State, in 
 1815 ; her father, Elias Reid, was an earl}' set- 
 tler of Richfield, coming there about 1833. 
 He died in the towaiship in 1857. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Wood were married Nov. 26, 1835. Three 
 children are now livins; — Willard, born in 
 
 November, 1836. He was married in 1861, to 
 Miss Lora Hurlbut ; she died June 21, 1878. 
 Willard now resides upon the old homestead. 
 Dexter, born in November, 1838. He is living 
 on the farm ; he was married in 1861, to Miss 
 Sarah J. Moore. They have five children — 
 Adelpha, Belle, Rosa, Emma and Edward ; 
 and Mary E., born Sept. 24, 1843. The home- 
 stead consists of 94 acres, the most of which 
 is well improved. It is conveniently located 
 about two and one-half miles from the Center. 
 The family are intelligent and enterprising, 
 and are respected citizens of the township. 
 
 BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 JARED BARKER, Bath. Mr. Barker is 
 one of the leading agriculturists and live-stock 
 dealers of Summit Co. He was born in Mon- 
 roe Co., N. Y., Sept. 10, 1819. He is the son 
 of Lanson and Betsey (Phelps) Barker, both of 
 whom were natives of Connecticut. They 
 were married in Pittsford, Monroe Co., N. Y. 
 In 1827, Mr. Barker came to Ohio and pur- 
 chased a tract of land in Holmes Co., and the 
 year following came West with his family and 
 stopped for a few weeks at Massillon, Ohio, 
 and then moved to Granger, Medina Co., Ohio. 
 He lived in Medina Co. some j'ears, and then 
 purchased a place in Royalton, Cuyahoga Co., 
 Ohio, upon which he resided for most part the 
 remainder of his days. In his family were the 
 following children, viz.: Roxie A., William, 
 Jared, John, Lyman, Mary and Frances. He 
 departed this life in 1855, and his wife in 1847. 
 They were intelligent, Christian people, and had 
 the respect of all who knew them. Jared 
 Barker lived at home and assisted in the farm 
 duties until 27 3'ears of age. He was united 
 in marriage to Miss Eleanor Munson Dec. 16, 
 1847. She was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, Nov. 
 25, 1827. By this union there were two chil- 
 dren, viz.: Mary E. and William. Mrs. Barker 
 died Sept. 9, 1856. Soon after his marriage Mr. 
 Barker came to Bath Township, and the year 
 following purchased 300 acres of land, going 
 in debt for nearly the entire amount. By hard 
 work and economy he paid for this land, and 
 has added to it, until he now owns over 500 
 acres. Upon his farm are five large barns 
 
 which are very conveniently arranged, and 
 afford shelter to a large number of live stock. 
 Mr. Barker has made a specialty- of wool-grow- 
 ing, and is one of the most successful and 
 practical stock-growers in the county. He 
 now has upon his place about eighty head of 
 short-horn cattle. A number of these arc 
 thoroughbred, ahd the rest good grade cattle. 
 He also has upon his place some fine Clydes- 
 dale and English coach horses. Perhaps there 
 is not a man in Summit Co. who owns more 
 good stock of all kinds than Mr. Barker. He 
 began as a poor boy, and is in the fullest sense 
 of the word a self-made man. He is of a 
 retiring disposition, and does not meddle much 
 in political affairs, 3'et he is decided in his 
 opinions which he never fails to express at the 
 ballot-box. His donations for educational, 
 religious and other charitable purposes have 
 been very considerable ; nor have the}' been 
 confined to Bath Township alone. ^Many of 
 them are yet unknown in the community in 
 which he resides. 
 
 CONRAD CARVER ; P. 0. Buckeye ; was 
 born in Hesse-Cassel, Germany, Nov. 10, 1810 ; 
 he is the son of John and Margaret (Miller) 
 Carver, who were natives of Germany, and the 
 parents of four sons and two daughters. Con- 
 rad Carver remained at home and attended 
 school until he was 14 years of age ; he then 
 began working for a man at $8 per year ; he 
 continued working in his native country until 
 about 26 years of age, never receiving more 
 than $12 per year for his services ; he had dur- 
 
 C- 
 
 -®r^ 
 
 ^ 
 
BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1015 
 
 f3 
 
 ing this time saved some mone}^, and he now 
 determined to try his fortunes in the New 
 World, so, bidding farewell to home and father- 
 land, he started in 1836 for the new El Dorado, 
 landing in New York in September of the same 
 year ; he at once started for Cincinnati, but, 
 on his arrival at Cleveland, he was compelled 
 to stop, as his means were exhausted ; after 
 some time, mainly spent in tr3'ing to find em- 
 ployment, he took passage on a canal boat, and, 
 on its arrival at Peninsula, he was asked by a 
 farmer of that place if he did not want to 
 work ; Mr. Carver told him that he did, and 
 soon bargained to work for him during the win- 
 ter ; he worked for this man six months ; at the 
 expiration of that time and when they came to 
 settle, the man could not pay him, and Mr. 
 Carver never received one farthing from him ; 
 his clothes were nearly worn out, and, in the 
 early spring, he found employment helping to 
 clear the canal ; he worked on the canal some 
 four years in different capacities, and during 
 that time, by strict econom}', he had saved suf- 
 ficient means to purchase 30 acres of land in 
 Bath Township, paying $6 per acre for it. 
 Perhaps there is not a man in Bath Township 
 who has done more hard work than Mr. Carver ; 
 many and man}- a time, after working all da}' 
 for some of his neighbors, he would return 
 home and spend a great portion of the night 
 clearing up his own farm. His untiring en- 
 ergy has been crowned with success, as he is 
 to-day one of the wealthiest farmers of Bath 
 Township ; his farm of 195 acres is well improved 
 and nicely situated in the eastern part of the 
 township. He was united in marriage to Miss 
 Sarah Lutz Oct. 14, 1838 ; she was born in 
 Cumberland Co., Penn., Dec. 2, 1820 ; from 
 this union there were nine children, viz.. La 
 vina, Mary A., Eliza, Simon P. and Alfred liv- 
 ing ; John, Margaret, Rose A. and Polly de- 
 ceased. Mr. Carver is a Republican and a 
 member of the Evangelical Association. He 
 has been ably seconded in all his undertakings 
 in life by his good wife. It can truly be said 
 of them that there are no better or more re- 
 spected people in the township than they. 
 
 J. W. CLAPPER, Ghent. This gentleman 
 was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, Feb. 12, 1845. 
 He is the son of John and Lydia A. (Biers) 
 Clapper, the former a native of Wayne Co., 
 Ohio, and the latter of Orange Co., N. J. They 
 were the parents of two children — our subject 
 
 and his sister Sarah. She is the wife of R. Y. 
 Robinson, Esq., and resides in Bath Township. 
 John Clapper died when he was but 27 years 
 of age. He was a pi'omising young man, noted 
 for his energy and straight business habits. 
 His widow married again and is still a resident 
 of Wayne Co. J. W. Clapper began life as a 
 poor boy, and, when j^et quite young, began for 
 himself as a farmer. He served his country in 
 the late war in Co. I, 5th 0. V. V. C. He was 
 united in marriage to Miss Mary M. Huston 
 Oct. 23, 1867. She was born in Wayne Co., 
 Ohio, Dec. 12, 1847, and is the daughter of 
 William and Sarah (Van Kirk) Huston, both 
 natives of the Keystone State, and early settlers 
 of Wa3'ne Co. Mr. and Mrs. Clapper are the 
 parents of four children, viz., Emma L., John 
 W., Sadie and Jacob R. Mr. Clapper is a 
 stanch Republican in politics, and interests 
 himself in public improvements of all kinds. 
 He owns 102 acres of land, which is well 
 stocked, and which he farms in a very credit- 
 able manner. 
 
 MRS. CHARLOTTE DOOLITTLE, Bath. 
 Among the old and honored pioneer women of 
 Bath Township, none is more worthy of espe- 
 cial mention than Mrs. Charlotte Doolittle, who 
 was born Feb. 28, 1809, in Bristol, Ontario Co., 
 N. Y. She is the daughter of Stoten and Lydia 
 (Allen) Hale, both of whom were natives of the 
 Empire State, and the pai-ents of five children. 
 Mr. Hale was a wheelwright by trade. He was 
 a soldier during the war of 1812, and served 
 his country with distinction. Both he and wife 
 died when our subject was a small girl. She 
 was united in marriage to Mr. Samuel Shaw in 
 1827. He was born in Bristol, Ontario Co., N. 
 Y., in 1804. From this union there were six 
 children, viz., Samuel A., Samuel H., Charlotte 
 C, Lorenzo, Dency L. and Richmond. In 1829, 
 Mr. and ^Irs. Shaw left their native State for 
 Bath Township, this county. They had pur- 
 chased 145 acres of land, which, on tiieir arrival 
 at Cleveland, they payed for which left them 
 about $60 to begin improvements with. They 
 arrived in Bath Township on Tuesday, and the 
 following Friday they had a building erected, 
 into which they moved. It was a rude struct- 
 ure indeed, aiid built on a side hill with the 
 fire-place in the lower end, and only a rude 
 puncheon floor in a portion of it. When it 
 rained, the water would run in from the upper 
 side and come coursing down through the room 
 
 W 
 
1016 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and put out the fire. This served them as a 
 dwelling by being " patched up " for some time, 
 when they added an upper story to their dwell- 
 ing. This was an unusual proceeding, and the 
 people of the neighborhood thought they were 
 " putting on airs." Mr. Shaw was a carpenter 
 by trade, and a man of energy and great 
 physical powers. His good wife and companion 
 would go with him into the woods and help him 
 get out timbers for buildings. She would take 
 one end of the cross-cut saw and saw with her 
 husband all day long, only stopping long 
 enough to get their meals. They worked on 
 in this way until the death of Mr. Shaw, which 
 occurred in 1836. They had in this time built 
 a large two-story, frame house, had a nice, 
 young, bearing orchard, their place well stocked, 
 and man}' other comforts and conveniences. 
 Mrs. Shaw was married, in 1837, to Mr. Lyman 
 Doolittle, a native of Ontario Co., N. Y., where 
 he was born in 1801. This gentleman died in 
 1862. By this second marriage there were five 
 children, viz., Liza M., Lucy 3L, Orpha 0., 
 Irving and Genevieve. Mrs. Doolittle lives 
 upon the old homestead, surrounded by the 
 comforts and conveniences of a well-earned 
 competency. She is a lady of more than ordi- 
 nary powers of mind and executive abilit}', and 
 is respected by all who know her. 
 
 CHARLES H. HARRIS, Buckeye. Thomas 
 N. Harris, father of this gentleman, was born 
 in Beaver Co., Penn., Oct. 30, 1804. His 
 father, Warren Harris, was a native of the 
 " Old Dominion," and moved to Wayne Co., 
 Ohio, in 1812. Thomas N. was married, in 
 Wayne Co., in 1828, to Miss Eliza Peach. She 
 was born in Frederick Co., Va., Aug. 9, 1808, 
 and is the daughter of Jacob Peach, a native 
 of Virginia, from which State to Pennsylvania 
 he removed with his family in 1809, and two 
 years later, he came to what is now Jackson 
 Township, Stark Co., Ohio. He came to Sum- 
 mit Co. in 1830, and settled in Bath Township, 
 where he passed the remainder of his days. 
 He was twice married, and was the pai'ent of 
 twenty children. In Thomas N. Harris' family 
 were six sons and six daughters, viz., Rachel 
 A., William, Minerva, Louisa, Jacob P., Charles 
 H., John S., Lewis H., (leorge D., Angelina, 
 Sarah and Lodelia. Of these twelve children, 
 only five are now living. On the breaking-out 
 of the rebellion, William, John S., Lewis H. 
 and George D. entered their countrv's service. 
 
 Lewis H. was killed at the battle of Winches- 
 ter, Va. George D., after being captured, and 
 suffering untold privations in Southern prisons, 
 was paroled, and took passage for home on the 
 ill-fated Sultana. How or in what manner he 
 met his death was never known. The other 
 two boys lived to return home. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Harris have been residents of Bath Township 
 since 1832. They have a nice home, and have 
 the respect and esteem of all who know them. 
 Charles H. Harris was born in this count}' Feb. 
 27, 1838. He received a good common-school 
 education, and, when 13 years of age, went to 
 live with Jacob Peach, his grandfather. After 
 reaching his majority, he worked two years for 
 his grandfather, and then rented the farm of 
 him. He has ever since remained upon the 
 farm, and, after the death of his grandfather, 
 he purchased the place of the heirs. He was 
 united in marriage to Miss Caroline Harris 
 July 14, 1860. She was born- in Stark Co., 
 Ohio, Nov. 7, 1840. This lady died Feb. 26, 
 1873. By this marriage there were four chil- 
 dren, viz., Frank E., George R., Eber W. and 
 Eleanor. Mr. Harris was married to Miss 
 Lucinda Spraukle Jan. 22, 1874. She was 
 born in Stark Co., Ohio, Dec. 18, 1836. Mr. 
 Harris owns 106 acres of well-improved land, 
 which he has obtained for the most part by his 
 own endeavors. He is a Republican, a mem- 
 ber of the Evangelical Association, and an 
 enterprising, public-spirited citizen. 
 
 ABRAHAM HARSHEY, Ghent. This gen- 
 tleman was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, Oct. 18, 
 1843. He is the son of Jacob and Sarah 
 (Beltz) Harshey (see biography of John Har- 
 shey). Abraham was raised upon a farm, re- 
 ceiving but a common-school education. He 
 was united in marriage to Miss Mary Baugh- 
 man Feb. 23, 1864. This lady was born in 
 Wayne Co., Ohio, Feb. 10, 1844. Her parents 
 were from the " Keystone " State, and settled 
 in the township in Wayne Co., Ohio, which 
 bears their name, in a very early day. In Mr. 
 Harshey's family are two children, viz., John 
 C. and Jessie M. Since his marriage, Mr. 
 Harshey has followed farming, milling and 
 cheese-making, in all of which he has been 
 quite successful. Although his early education 
 was quite limited, he has, since reaching his 
 majority, surrounded himself with useful and 
 standard books and papers, and by the careful 
 study of them, has acquired quite a store of 
 
BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1017 
 
 useful knowledge, which we find him daily 
 putting into practice. Mr. Harshey is a stanch 
 llepublican in politics, though liberal in his 
 views regarding religion and men. He has 
 held offices of honor and trust in Bath Town- 
 ship, where he is well and favorabl}' known. 
 He owns 1-45 acres of land, upon which are 
 good, substantial farm buildings. Summit Co. 
 would be much better off had it more such 
 young men as Abraham Harshe}'. 
 
 JOHN HARSHEY, Ghent. The father of this 
 gentleman, Jacob Harshey, was born in Leb- 
 anon Co., Penn., July 12, 1812. His wife, Sarah 
 Beltz, was born in the same county Dec. 25, 
 1812. The}' were married in their native State 
 in 1803, and, two ^ears later, removed to Wayne 
 Co., Ohio, where they resided until 1849, when 
 they came to Bath Township, this county, where 
 the}' have since resided. They were the par- 
 ents of the following family of children, viz. : 
 John, Jacob, Abraham, Henr}' and Sarah. Ja- 
 cob and Henr}- are now dead, the others are 
 married and reside in Bath Township. Both 
 the Harsheys and Beltzes were originally from 
 Switzerland, and their coming to America dates 
 back to Colonial times. Jacob Harshey's 
 father was a soldier of the war of 1812, and 
 his grandfather of the war of the Revolution. 
 Jacob Harshey is one of the wealthiest farm- 
 ers in the count}'. He began as a poor boy, 
 and is a self-made man in the fullest sense of 
 the term. He owns 536 acres of good land at 
 the present time. He has given liberally to his 
 children and to religious and educational enter- 
 prises. His eldest son, John, was born in Leb- 
 anon Co., Penn., Feb. 2, 1834 ; he passed his 
 youth and earl}' manhood assisting his father 
 upon the farm. On the 6th of October, 1856, 
 he was united in marriage to Miss Lydia Rice. 
 This lady was born in Fayette Co., Penn., Feb. 
 22, 1836. They are the parents of five chil- 
 dren, viz., Emma A., Sarah F., George W. and 
 Otis R., living ; Leroy, who died in infancy. 
 Mr. Harshey owns 345 acres of land, upon 
 which are good substantial farm buildings ; he 
 raises good stock of all kinds, and is one of the 
 leading and successful agriculturists of the 
 county. He has held a number of positions of 
 honor and trust in Bath Township. Is a Re- 
 publican in politics, and a consistent member 
 of the United Brethren Church. 
 
 EDWARD HELLER ; P. 0. Ghent ; was 
 born in Northampton Co., Penn., May 23. 1826. 
 
 He is the son of Abraham and Elizabeth 
 (Evenrider) Heller, the former a native of Bucks 
 Co., Penn., and the latter of Lehigh Co. The 
 father was a miller by trade, a frugal, industri- 
 ous man, who had the respect and confidence 
 of a large circle of friends. He was the parent 
 of seven children, five of whom are yet living ; 
 he died in 1852. His wife survives him, at an 
 advanced age, and is a resident of the Quaker 
 City. Edward Heller received a common-school 
 education, his youth and early manhood being 
 passed upon his father's farm and in the mill. 
 He was united in marriage to Miss Julia A. 
 Dutt, in 1851. This lady was bojn in North- 
 ampton Co., Penn., in 1827. From this union 
 four children were born, viz., Quintus A., 
 Benjamin F., Amanda E. and Emma D. Mr. 
 Heller remained in his native State until 1852 ; 
 he then came to this county, and purchased a 
 farm in Copley Township, upon which he re- 
 sided until 1870, when he sold out and came to 
 Bath Township, and purchased the Ghent Mills. 
 This is a large, three story steam and water 
 grist and saw-mill, and is the largest and best 
 in the western part of the county. Mr. Heller 
 also owns a grist-mill, one-half mile east of 
 Ghent, and 21 acres of good land in the town- 
 ship. He is a Republican, and a member of the 
 Evangelical Association. He is an upright busi- 
 ness man, a consistent Christian gentleman, and 
 has the respect and confidence of the entire 
 community. 
 
 ROSWELL HOPKINS, Ghent. This gen- 
 tleman was born in Bath Township, this county, 
 April 3, 1825. He is one of a family of eight 
 children born to Isaac and Susan (Harrison) 
 Hopkins. Isaac Hopkins was a native of the 
 " Empire " State, where he resided until reach- 
 ing his majority, when he went to Pennsylva- 
 nia, and while there met the lady who became 
 his wife. She was a native of Connecticut, but 
 had come with her parents to the " Keystone '" 
 State when a child. On the 10th of September, 
 1813 (the day of Perry's victory on Lake Erie), 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins left their home in Penn- 
 sylvania for Bath Township, Summit Co., Ohio. 
 They came in a large wagon drawn by two 
 yoke of oxen, and, after a journey of six weeks, 
 arrived safe and sound at their destination. 
 They located on what is now known as the 
 McMillan farm in the southwestern part of 
 Bath Township. Mr. Hopkins had purchased 
 quite a tract of land, but after the war was 
 
 *^ (i 
 
 TV 
 
\^ 
 
 1018 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 over everything depreciated in value to such an 
 extent and money became so scarce that it was 
 only by the greatest exertions and strictest 
 econom}^ that he was able to keep his property. 
 It took years, however, to accomplish this, and 
 few men would have had the energy and perse- 
 verance to have done as much. He was hon- 
 ored during his lifetime with a number of 
 offices which he filled with much credit to him- 
 self and lasting benefits to those for whom he 
 labored. He was ever ready to advance the 
 public good, and renowned for his strict busi- 
 ness principles and sterling integrity. He 
 departed this life in 1852, followed by his faith- 
 ful wife ten 3'ears later. Roswell Hopkins 
 received but a limited education, as his services 
 wei'e required at home nearly all the time. 
 Whenever he had a spare day, however, he 
 would work for some of the neighbors, and his 
 earnings would go toward clothing him. He 
 was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Lee 
 Oct. 8, 1846. This' lady was born Dec. 18, 
 1828, in New York. From this union there 
 were ten children, viz.: Greorge, Wait, Ira, 
 Burt, Ami, Cecil, Edna, Irene, Grant and 
 Emma. Wait. Ami, Cecil and Emma are the 
 only ones now living. Mr. Hopkins began life 
 as a poor boy, his wedding suit being of 
 '' home-spun," and he now saj's, " I was very 
 glad that I had as good." He followed farm- 
 ing exclusivel}' until 10 years ago, a business 
 he was very successful at. Since that time he 
 has dealt quite extensively in lumber. He 
 owns a saw-mill which is propelled b}' water, 
 and which is supplied with the latest and most 
 approved machinery. He owns 250 acres of 
 land which is nicely improved. He has held 
 positions of honor and trust, and is a Repub- 
 lican in politics, although not a strict party man. 
 His rule is to vote for men and measures and 
 not for part3^ The county would be mu(?h 
 better off did it contain more such men as Mr. 
 Hopkins. 
 
 GEORGE KIRK, Bath. Michael Kirk, the 
 grandfather of this gentleman, removed with 
 his family from the Keystone State to Stark 
 Co., Ohio, in 1817 ; his son William was at this 
 time about 22 years of age, and the year fol- 
 lowing was united in marriage to Miss Maria 
 Miller, a native of Pennsylvania. From this 
 union there were eleven children, viz.. George, 
 Margaret, Rufus, Albert, Bazil, Ezra, Rebecca, 
 Maria, Clara, Lodema and Melissa. Mr. Kirk 
 
 always followed farming and stock-raising, a 
 business he was eminentl}' fitted for, and one 
 he was very successful at. He died Feb. 24, 
 1870. He had been a good and useful man, 
 and a respected and honored citizen ; his wife 
 survives him and resides at Freeport, 111. 
 George Kirk received a common-school educa- 
 tion, and remained at home working for his 
 father until he had reached his majorit}' ; he 
 then, for two years, worked for his father at 
 1100 per annum, and at the expiration of that 
 time he, in company with his father, took a trip 
 throughout Indiana, Illinois and Iowa. While 
 in Iowa, Mr. Kirk purchased 125 acres of land 
 in Cedar Co. After an absence of some months 
 the}^ returned to Stark Co., this State, where 
 for a period of four years George was variously 
 employed. He was united in marriage to Miss 
 Eliza "Shisler, March 26, 1846 ; this lady was 
 born in Lancaster Co., Penn., July 18, 1826 ; 
 they have been blessed with sevfin children, six 
 of whom are yet living, viz., Seth, Lilla, Frank, 
 Ira L., xMiller S. and Cora ; the one deceased 
 was named Ralph. In 1846, Mr. Kirk came to 
 Bath Township and located on the farm he now 
 owns. There were but few improvements on 
 tlie place, and he has by his industry and good 
 taste so improved it that it is second to none 
 in the township. He deals quite extensively 
 in sheep, which he has been very successful in 
 handling; he also has paid considerable at- 
 tention to the raising of Durham cattle, and 
 has at the present time some fine specimens of 
 this valuable breed upon his farm ; it can truly 
 be said of him that he is one of the most 
 practical and successful farmers and stock- 
 raisers in Bath Township. He is a Republican 
 of the stalwart kind, and has filled many offices 
 in the township with much credit to himself 
 and lasting benefits to those for whom he la- 
 bored. He and wife are members of the 
 Evangelical Association, and, though passing 
 into the "sear and yellow leaf," their years sit 
 lightly upon them. They are located in a 
 pleasant and comfortable home in a community 
 where they are respected and and beloved, and 
 where the record of their well-spent lives can 
 never be effaced. 
 
 MORRIS LYON ; Montrose. John Lyon 
 the father of this gentleman, was a native 
 of the " Bay " State ; his father served as a ' 
 soldier in the Revolutionar}' war, and, although 
 a hard-working, energetic man, never succeeded 
 
 f 
 
BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1019 
 
 in accumulating much propert}'. The conse- 
 quence was that John Lyon, when quite 3'oung, 
 was bound out to the miller's trade, and had 
 but few of the advantages boys of the present 
 da}' enjoy in the way of obtaining an education 
 and gaining a knowledge of the world. He 
 was united in marriage, in Rhode Island, to 
 Miss Elizabeth Holden, a native of that State. 
 Some time after his marriage, he removed to 
 Ontario Co., N. Y., and resided there, engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits, until his removal to 
 Copley Township, this county, which was in 
 1834. In his famil}^ were eight children. He 
 died in 1849, and his wife in 1873. Morris 
 Lj'on was born in Bloomfield Township, Ontario 
 Co., N. Y., June 1, 1823. He was brought up 
 on his father's farm, his education being such 
 as the common schools of that day afforded. 
 In 1840, he entered the wagon-shop of S. A. 
 Lane & Co., of Akron, and after remaining with 
 them some time went to Medina, Ohio, where 
 he worked at his trade some two 3'ears. He at 
 length located at Copley Center, where he 
 worked at wagon and carriage making for quite 
 a number of years. He followed farming some 
 3'ears, and three years ago he came to Mont- 
 rose, and engaged in mercantile pursuits, 
 which business he has since followed. He was 
 united in marriage to Miss Laura A. Briggs, 
 Sept. 11, 1848. Tbis lady was born in Copley 
 Township, this county, in 1824 : from this 
 union six children were born to them, viz., 
 Duane C, Irvin E., Julien W., Fremont E., Os- 
 sian G. and Albert. Mrs. Lyon departed this 
 life in J 868. Mr. Lyon has given his sons such 
 advantages as his means would admit of ; Jul- 
 ien W. is a graduate of the Ohio Medical Col- 
 lege of Columbus, and is located at Akron, 
 Ohio ; Fremont E. is a graduate of the Ann 
 Arbor School of Dental Surger}', and is also 
 located in Akron ; Irvin E. is engaged in mer- 
 cantile pursuits in Cleveland ; Albert lives in 
 Adair Co., Iowa, and Duane C. and Ossian G. re- 
 side in Cople}' Township. Mr. Lyon is a stanch 
 Republican in politics, and is well posted on 
 the important issues of the day. He has alwa^'s 
 been a strong advocate of the temperance re- 
 form, and those who have heard him in his quiet 
 way sum up tlie evidence against this great 
 social and moral evil, cannot help agreeing 
 with him that the preponderance of evidence is 
 strongly against it. Both the moral and intel- 
 lectual standing of Summit County would be of 
 
 a much higher order, were there more such men 
 as Mr. Morris L3on. 
 
 MRS. LAURA T. McMILLAN ; Mont- 
 rose ; this lady was born in Bath Township, 
 Summit Co., Ohio, March 17. 1836. She is the 
 daughter of Morris P. and Hettie B. (Looker) 
 Miller, the former a native of Ontario Co., N. 
 Y., and the latter of New Jersey. They wei-e 
 married in the ''Empire" State, where they re- 
 mained until 1817, when they came to this 
 county and located in the northwestern part of 
 Northampton Township. Six years later the}' 
 removed to Copley Township, where they lived 
 some time and then moved to Sharon Township, 
 Medina Co., Ohio, and thence after a few yeai'S 
 to Bath Township, which they ever afterward 
 made their home. They were industrious, in- 
 telligent people and were the parents of seven 
 children (a complete histor}^ of the ]Milier 
 family will be found in another part of this 
 work). Laura T. lived with her parents until 
 her marriage with Mr. G. W. McMillan, which 
 occurred June 11, 1863. This gentleman was 
 born in Bath Township, this county, Oct. 10, 
 1838. He was raised upon the farm he owned 
 at the time of his death, and received the bene- 
 fits of a good common-school education. He 
 was one of the most successful and practical 
 farmers of Bath Township. He dealt quite ex- 
 tensively in live stock, and was noted for 
 his fair dealings and and straight business 
 habits. He died after a short illness, May 
 13, 1878. Thus passed away in the prime 
 and vigor of his manhood, one of the coun- 
 ty's most useful and honored citizens. He 
 was a man of broad and liberal views, en- 
 couraging everything known to be right and 
 promptly rejecting everything known to be 
 wrong. His widow survives him and re- 
 sides upon the old homestead, which consists 
 of 116 acres of nicely improved land. She is 
 a lady of refinement and intelligence, and has 
 the respect of the entire community. 
 
 HARVEY MILLER ; Montrose ; this 
 gentleman was born in Hartford Co., Conn., 
 June 12, 1818. He is the son of Elisha and 
 Sarah F. (Woodford) Miller, both natives of 
 Connecticut, where they were reared, married 
 and resided until 1827, when they moved to 
 this county, arriving in Bath Township. Feb. 
 27. They came the entire distance in a sleigh, 
 but .the latter part of their journey was per- 
 formed on ground that was nearly bare. Mr. 
 
ik 
 
 1020 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Miller had purchased about 800 acres of land 
 in the southwestern part of Bath Township, 
 which he immediately began to improve. In 
 his family were the following children — Lyman 
 K, Anson, Elisha E., Sarah E., Clarinda, Low- 
 ley, Nathaniel 0., George, Harvey and Evelina; 
 all these children were born in Connecticut, 
 and six of them are yet living, attesting to the 
 vigor and vitality of the original stock. Mr. 
 Miller was a man of more than ordinary ability, 
 and was noted for his integrity and straight 
 business habits. He kept a tavern for 
 eighteen years on the home place, and was for 
 years Postmaster. He creditably filled a num- 
 ber of positions of honor and trust, and was 
 respected by all who knew him. This worthy 
 man and pioneer died at his home in Bath 
 Township, Feb. 14, 1854, and his good wife, 
 Aug. 17, four years latter. Harvey Miller was 
 raised upon his father's farm, and receiving 
 such education as the log schoolhouses of that 
 early day afforded. His union with Miss Ann 
 Wagar occurred Oct. 16, 1844. This lady was 
 born in Montgomery Co., N. Y., Feb. 7, 1825. 
 The}' have an adopted daughter — Rosetta, who 
 is the wife of Mr. T. F. Porter. Mr. Miller has 
 always followed farming, and stock raising, a 
 business he is eminently fitted for. He owns 
 88 acres of land which is nicely improved, and 
 under a high state of cultivation. He has al- 
 ways been a strong anti-slavery man, and an 
 earnest advocate of temperance and sobriety. 
 He and wife are members of the M. E. Church, 
 and have contributed largely toward its sup- 
 port. In fact they are ever ready to support 
 any enterprise that has a tendency to build up 
 the community in which they live, or benefit 
 their fellow-man. They are worthy people 
 who enjoy the respect and confidence of all 
 who know them. 
 
 RALSAMON MILLER, Ghent. Ralsamon 
 Miller was born Dec. 7, 1838, in Granger 
 Township, Medina Co., Ohio. He is the son of 
 William and Electa (Crosby) Miller, both of 
 whom were natives of the " Empire " State. 
 The Millers came to this county in 1817, and 
 settled in the northwestern part of Northamp- 
 ton Township. William Miller is one of the 
 wealthy and leading agriculturists of Summit 
 Co. He resides in Copley Township, where he 
 is well and favorably known. Ralsamon Mil- 
 ler was raised to farm labor, receiving the ben- 
 efits of a common-school education. He was 
 
 united in marriage to Miss Sarah Harshey, Oct. 
 21, 1858. She was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, 
 Oct. 12, 1832. From this union there were 
 four children, viz., Elizabeth, Sarah L., Ida M., 
 and Alpha L. In early bo3'hood, Mr. Miller 
 manifested a strong liking for handling and 
 being where live stock were being handled. 
 After reaching man's estate, he embarked in 
 the live-stock trade, and has since that time 
 handled a great deal, 'usually buying and then 
 preparing them for market. He has been uni- 
 formly successful, and his judgment is seldom 
 at fault. He owns a well-improved farm of 
 240 acres, also a grist-mill two miles east of 
 Ghent, and is quite extensively engaged in the 
 manufacture of cheese. He is a stanch Re- 
 publican in politics, and has creditably filled 
 several township offices. 
 
 REV. WILLIAM B. MOODY, Bath. This 
 gentleman was born in Kennebec Co., Me., Feb. 
 17, 1808. He is the son of Joseph and Bridget 
 (Davis) Moody, both of whom were natives of 
 Shapley, Me., where the}- were married and 
 resided until 1806, when they moved to Ken- 
 nebec Co. In 1813, they I'emoved to Ontario 
 Co., N. Y., and from there to Richfield Town- 
 ship, this county, in 1821. They wei-e the 
 parents of nine children, viz., Daniel, Joseph, 
 Davis, Samuel, Ephriam, Rhoda, Priscilla, 
 Bridget and William B. Bridget and William 
 B., are the only ones now living. Mr. Mood}' 
 and wife were intelligent Christian people. He 
 died in 1824, and his wife in 1847. William 
 B. Moody was reared upon a farm, and, during 
 his 3'outh and early manhood, received no edu- 
 cation to speak of After he had reached his 
 majority, he surrounded himself with good and 
 useful books and began a course of self-in- 
 struction, which extended over a period of four 
 years. He was ordained a minister of the M. 
 E. Church by Rev. Robert R. Roberts, at Woos- 
 ter, in 1840. Some j'ears later he withdrew 
 from this church on account of their position 
 on the slavery question, and connected himself 
 with the Protestant Methodist Church. In 
 1850, he became a member of the Wesleyan 
 Methodist Church, with which denomination he 
 has ever since labored. During his life his 
 ministerial labors have not been confined to 
 Summit Co. alone, but has been extended over 
 the counties of Medina, Geauga, Lorain and 
 Cuyahoga. He was united in marriage to Miss 
 Harriet Osborn May 14, 1828. She was born 
 
BATH TOWJifSHIP. 
 
 1021 
 
 in East Cleveland, Ohio, in 1811, and died Aug. 
 20, 1856. From this union there were nine 
 children, viz., William B., Deborah, Joseph, 
 Rhoda, James, Samuel, Ira, Davis, and one that 
 died in infancy without naming. He was mar- 
 ried Oct. 11, 1856, to Mrs. Julia (Adams) Spen- 
 cer, who again brought to his hearthstone the 
 genial influences of a home left desolate by the 
 death of his first wife. Ojie child, John B., has 
 blessed their union, and with this interesting 
 son and most excellent wife, he enjoys in ad- 
 vancing years the pleasure and comforts of a 
 happy home, and an ample competence. In 
 social and public life, Mr. Moody occupies a 
 highly honorable position. From early life a 
 " worker in his Master's vineyard," he exempli- 
 fies in his life the duties and doctrines of a pure 
 Christianity, and has frequently been a repre- 
 sentative in the highest councils of his Church. 
 Such is a brief outline of Rev. William B. 
 Moody's life. May his declining years rest 
 lightly upon him, and Summit Co. long be 
 spared the life of one of her noblest men. 
 
 OLIVER MOORE, West Richfield; this 
 gentleman was born in Hamilton Co., Mass., 
 Jan. 6, 1811 ; he is the son of Roswell and 
 Sarah (Clark) Moore ; the former a native of 
 Connecticut, and the latter of Rhode Island ; 
 after their marriage thej' resided in Massachu- 
 setts until 1819, when they moved to what is 
 now Franklin Township, Portage Co., Ohio, 
 whei'e they ever afterward resided. They were 
 the parents of six children, viz., Roswell, Oliver, 
 Joseph, Sarah, Almeda and Electa ; four of 
 these children are yet living and are the heads 
 of families. Mr. Moore was killed while at 
 work in the woods by a falling tree, in 1831. 
 His wife lived until 1868, when she quietly 
 passed away. Mr. Moore was a farmer, but 
 worked at the stone and brick mason's trades at 
 times ; he was an energetic, public-spirited 
 man, and his untimely death was deepl}' re- 
 gretted by his family and a large circle of 
 friends. Oliver Moore was raised upon a farm, 
 and his education was such as could be ob- 
 tained in the log schoolhouses of that earl}^ 
 da3^ He was united in marriage to Miss Ann 
 Rockwell, July 6, 1835 ; she was born in On- 
 tario Co., N. Y., April 9, 1812. The fruits of 
 this union were three childi'en, viz., Lecester 
 0., Lewis A. and Roswell P. Lecester 0. was 
 born in Portage Co., Aug. 30, 1837 ; he was 
 married to Mary E. Longfellow, Aug. 2, 1868 ; 
 
 she was born in Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, July 28, 
 1842 ; they have one child, viz., Stella L. Ros- 
 well P. was a soldier in the late war, was 
 severely wounded at Gettysburg, and was a 
 brave and gallant soldier; he is now dead. 
 Lewis A. has been a resident of New Mexico 
 some years. Mrs. Oliver Moore departed this 
 life April 6, 1864. Mr. Moore was united in 
 marriage to Miss Emil}^ Hopkins, June 2, 1 868. 
 This lady was born in Fi'anklin Co., Vt., Dec. 
 17, 1808. Mr. Moore has always followed 
 farming and stock-raising, and has owned at 
 different times large quantities of real estate ; 
 he has given liberally to his children, and still 
 owns 93 acres of well-improved land. He was, 
 during the days of slavery, a strong pro-slaver}- 
 man, and has ever advocated temperance in all 
 things. He has been an exemplary member 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church a great 
 many j-ears. and at the building of a church of 
 that denomination in Bath Township, in 1869, 
 Mr. Moore gave $600 of the $2,000 that it cost 
 to build it. The church was named " Moore's 
 Chapel " in honor of him, and will for j'ears to 
 come be a fitting monument to his memory'. 
 Summit Co., would be much better off had it 
 more such men as Oliver Moore. 
 
 ORISON MOORE, Montrose. This gentle- 
 man was born in Brookfield Township, Trum- 
 bull Co., Ohio, Sept. 21, 1822. He is the son 
 of Lester and Ruth (Twining) Moore, both of 
 whom were natives of the Ba}' State. In 1812, 
 Mr. Moore came to Ohio and purchased a tract 
 of land in Trumbull Co., and two years later 
 moved to his property and began its improve- 
 ment. They remained in that county until 
 1*837, and then removed to Norton Township, 
 this county. Mr. Moore was a soldier of the 
 war of 1812, and held a Captain's commis- 
 sion. He was an energetic man, kind of heart, 
 and ever ready to help his fellow-man. This 
 last characteristic proved a detriment to him, as 
 he lost heavily at different times by going secu- 
 rity for those whom he thought to assist. In 
 his famil}' were eight, all of whom are now 
 living, and who are the heads of respectable 
 families. Mr. Moore died in 1859, and his wife 
 in 1851. Orison Moore received such educa- 
 tion as the schools of that early day aflbrded, 
 and remained at home, assisting his father 
 upon the farm until about 25 years of age. He 
 was united in marriage to Miss Fannj Root 
 Jan. 24, 1847. She was born in Summit Co., 
 
 -^ 
 
1022 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Ohio, Jun. 11, 1828, and died Jan. 19, 1875. On 
 the 30th of March, 1876. Mr. Moore was 
 united in marriage to Miss Zilpha Stark, who 
 was born Nov. 15, 1842, in Stow Township, 
 this county. Mr. Moore came to this county in 
 1837, which he has since made his liome, with 
 the exception of ten years that he resided in 
 Portage Co. He has lived in Bath Township 
 since 1864, where he owns a nicely-improved 
 farm of 108 acres. He is a stanch Republican 
 in politics, and one of the most practical and 
 successful farmers and stock-i'aisers in Bath 
 Township. 
 
 HENRY PARDEE, Ghent. This gentleman 
 was born in Skaneateles, N. Y., April 15, 1826. 
 He is the son of Harry and Fanny (Benedict) 
 Pardee, both nativ^es of the " Empire State," 
 where they were married and resided until 1828, 
 when they came to Ohio and settled at Middle- 
 bury, in what is now Summit Co. Mr. Pardee 
 was a chair-maker by trade, and, soon after lo- 
 cating in Middlebury, began working at his 
 trade. It was not long ere his facilities for 
 manufacturing were inadequate for his rapidly 
 increasing trade. He, therefore, erected suit- 
 able buildings, and, in a few 3'ears, he found 
 that he had the largest business of the kind in 
 Northern Ohio. Besides manufacturing all 
 kinds of cabinet-ware, he made pails, tubs, etc., 
 etc. In 1849, he moved to Akron, and, for 
 some years, was actively engaged in business 
 in that place. He owned a saw-mill in North- 
 ampton, where the greater portion of the mate- 
 rial used by him was gotten out. He employed 
 a great many men, and was one of the most 
 active business men the county ever had. A 
 number of years previous to his death, he 
 moved to Northampton Township, where, on 
 tlie 6th of February, 1879, he quietly sank to 
 rest. He was the parent of the following fam- 
 ily of children : Margaret, Henry, James, Hor- 
 ace, Mary, Edward, Luther, Elijah, Albert and 
 Martha. Horace and Albert were soldiers dur- 
 ing the late war, and well and faithfully served 
 their country. Mr. Pardee was one of the first 
 men in the county to engage largely in the man- 
 ufacturing business in an}' manner, and to him 
 more than any other does Middlebury and 
 Akron owe their large and extensive manufact- 
 ories and the thrift and enterprise that charac- 
 terize them. He possessed several qualities of 
 a high order, and was noted for his nobility of 
 soul and his scrupulous honest}'. In early life 
 
 Mr. Pardee was admitted a member of the Ma- 
 sonic Order, and was greatly delighted with its 
 principles and teachings, availing himself of 
 every opportunity to acquire a knowledge of 
 the work and to comprehend the sublime prin- 
 ciples of the Order. His widow survives him 
 at the advanced age of 80 years, though she is 
 as smart and active as many ladies at 50. 
 Henry Pardee received the benefits of a com- 
 mon-school education, and, until he was 33 
 3'ears of age. worked with and for his father in 
 different capacities. He was united in marriage 
 to Miss Caroline Prior, in 1846. She was born 
 in G-eauga Co., Ohio, in 1828. From this union 
 there are four children, viz.: Julia, Julius, Har- 
 riet and Enoch. In 1856, Mr. Pardee came to 
 Ghent, but, after a year, returned to Northamp- 
 ton, where he remained some three years and 
 then returned to Ghent, and, in connection with 
 Mr. Alonzo Coffin, rented the woolen-mill of 
 that place, and for four years was engaged in 
 the manufacture of woolen goods. At the ex- 
 piration of that time he sold out to Mr. Coffin, 
 and embarked in mercantile pursuits in the vil- 
 lage. In this business he remained until a short 
 time ago. During this period he was village 
 Postmaster, and was engaged in manufacturing 
 two-horse wagons, chairs, tables, and was one of 
 the founders of a cheese factory at that place. 
 He is now engaged in manufacturing water- 
 proof goods known as the " Hammerstain 
 process." This is a superior way of preparing 
 waterproof goods, and gives universal satisfac- 
 tion wherever it has been tried. By this pro- 
 cess the fabric is. proo/ecZ on both sides, which 
 makes it entirely waterproof, and at the same 
 time impervious to heat or cold. Mr. Pardee 
 also has discovered a process for making one of 
 the cheapest and best fire-kindlers as yet man- 
 ufactured. The manner and rapidity with which 
 he has completed and perfected these two im- 
 portant industries reflects great credit on him, 
 and will be a lasting monument to his memory 
 in time to come. This same energy and thor- 
 oughness have characterized his every walk in 
 life. He has been successful because he has 
 been cautious, thorough and industrious. He 
 is well respected because his conduct has been 
 above reproach. He has held numerous posi- 
 tions of honor and trust, and is a respected and 
 honored citizen. 
 
 RUFUS RANDALL, M. D., Bath. This 
 gentleman and well-known phj'sician and sur- 
 
 
BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1023 
 
 geoU; was born in Sharon Township, Medina 
 Co., Ohio, July 7, 1834. He is the son of 
 Delano P. and Lois (Huntley) Randall, both of 
 whom were natives of the Empire State. They 
 were married in their native State, and were the 
 parents of four children, viz., James, llufus, 
 Marcellus and Harriet. They came to Sharon 
 Township, Medina County, in an eaiiy day, 
 where the father yet resides, the mother being- 
 dead. Mr. Randall was a carpenter b\^ trade, 
 but has for the most part been engaged in farm- 
 ing and mercantile pursuits since he came to 
 Ohio. He is a good man and useful citizen, 
 and has the I'espect and confidence of all who 
 know him. Rufus was raised upon his father's 
 farm, and received the benefits of a good com- 
 mon-school and Academic education. When 
 about 17 years of age, he began the stud}' of 
 medicine with Dr. C. W. Northrop, with whom 
 he remained about a year, and then went 
 to Columbus, Ohio, and entered the oflSce of 
 Dr. John Hamilton, one of the most skillful 
 surgeons and successful practitioners in the 
 West. He remained under Dr. Hamilton's in- 
 structions until he graduated from the Starling 
 Medical College, which was in 1858. Soon 
 after graduating, he located at Hammond's Cor- 
 ners, where he has since resided and where he 
 has built up a large and steadily increasing 
 practice. Always a careful and close student 
 of Pathology, as he found it in his practice, he 
 has become a leader in the use of new and 
 rational remedies, and with surprising and uni- 
 form success. He was united in marriage to 
 Miss Eliza Roberts, in 1863. This lady was 
 born in Cople}' Township, this county, Dec. 3, 
 1841. From this union there were three chil- 
 dren, viz., Effie B. and Cora La Q., living, and 
 Ida M., deceased. Dr. Randall has been a life- 
 long Republican, and an earnest advocate of 
 equal rights and all needed reforms. He is a 
 member of the Masonic order and one of the 
 county's best citizens. 
 
 SYLVESTER SHAW (deceased). This gen- 
 tleman was born in Bristol, Ontario Co., N. Y., 
 March 5, 1806. He was married in his native 
 State Oct. 16, 1828, to Miss Harriet Parsons, a 
 native of Ontario Co., where she was born 
 Aug. 11, 1809. In 1832, they left their native 
 State for Bath Township, this county, arriving 
 at their destination on the 18th of November 
 of the same year. They came the entire dis- 
 tance in a large wagon drawn by oxen, and, on 
 
 their arrival in the township, moved their goods 
 into a small log cabin that had been built on 
 their land. In this they lived until one more 
 comfortable and commodious could be erected. 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Shaw, however, were ener- 
 getic, and it was not many years ere they were 
 surrounded with a great many comforts and 
 conveniences. They were the parents of the 
 following family of children, viz.: Harriet C, 
 Sylvester P., Vashti M., Samuel, Marietta, 
 William, Sibyl B. and Constant. Mr. Shaw 
 was a hard-working man, and accumulated a 
 goodly share of this world's goods. He was a 
 man who paid strict attention to his farm 
 duties, never aspiring to any political promi- 
 nence, although he was decided in his views of 
 right and wrong, which he never failed to 
 express when occasion required. This useful 
 man and much-respected citizen departed this 
 life Nov. 17, 1875. His widow survives him, 
 and resides upon the old homestead. She is 
 an intelligent Christian lady, and has the 
 respect of all who know her. Constant Shaw 
 was born on the old homestead Nov. 20, 1852. 
 He married Miss Cora I. Worden Oct. ISi, 1874. 
 She was born in Richfield Township, this 
 county, Dec. 24, 1852. They have one child, 
 viz., Leon. Samuel Shaw was born Aug. 11, 
 1838. He was married, Sept. 15, 1860, to Miss 
 Lucy Webster. She was born in Ontario Co., 
 N. Y., May 21, 1838. They have two children, 
 viz., Loretta and Berdella. Sylvester P. Shaw 
 was born Aug. 25, 1831. He was united in 
 marriage to Miss Sarah R. Moody March 23, 
 1856. She was born in Richfield Township 
 Nov. 20, 1838. They have four children, viz.: 
 Grilson B., Hattie V., Durward B. and Bertha 
 y. There are other members of the famil}- 
 who are married and are the heads of respecta- 
 ble families. All the Shaw boys are well-to-do 
 farmers and respected citizens. 
 
 CHANCY SALISBURY, Ghent. This gen- 
 tleman was born in Bath Township, this county, 
 March 10, 1830. He is the son of William and 
 Sylva (Atwell) Salisbury, both of whom were 
 natives of Ontario Co., N. Y. They were mar- 
 ried in their native State, and remox-ed from 
 there to this county in 1827. Mr. Salisbury 
 had come to the county the year previous and 
 purchased 75 acres of land in Bath Township. 
 In his family were eight children, five of whom 
 are yet living. He was a newsboy in Buffalo 
 during the last war with England and witnessed 
 
l>t^ 
 
 1024 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 the burning of that place by the British. He 
 always followed farming after his marriage, a 
 business he was very successful at. He was 
 renowned for his sobriety, economy and straight 
 dealings, and it is said b}' those who knew him 
 that " his word was just as good as his bond." 
 He died April 8, 1863, and his wife Feb. 24. 
 1867. Chancy was raised upon a farm receiv- 
 ing a common-school education. After reach- 
 ing his majority, he worked by the month for 
 his father and for men in the neighborhood. 
 He worked some fourteen months in Indiana, 
 and one winter in Wisconsin. He was united 
 in marriage to Miss Maria Hopkins Sept. 28, 
 1870. She was born in Bath Township June 
 25, 1830. Mr. Salisbur^^ has always followed 
 farming and stock-raising. He owns 100 acres 
 of well-improved land, nicely situated, near the 
 center of the township. He is a Republican in 
 politics, and has filled several township offices 
 with great acceptance. He is an enterprising, 
 public-spirited man, and a useful and honored 
 r* 1 1^ 1 7 p n 
 
 HOUSEL SMITH, Montrose. This gentle- 
 man was born in Springfield Township, Summit 
 Co., Ohio, Oct. 14, 1824. He is the sou of 
 James and Sarah (Housel) Smith, both of whom 
 were natives of Lancaster Co., Penn., where 
 they were married and resided until 1812, when 
 they moved to Lake Township, Stark Co., Ohio. 
 After about two years the}' moved into Spring- 
 field Township, it being then a part of Stark 
 Co. They were the parents of seven children, 
 viz., Peter, Catharine, John, Cyrenius, James, 
 Housel and Amelia. Mr. Smith always fol- 
 lowed farming and stock-growing. He was a 
 successful business man, an exemplary member 
 of the M. E. Church, and a useful member of 
 society. He departed this life in 1857. His 
 widow survives him and resides north of the 
 city of Akron. Housel Smith received but a 
 limited education, and, up to the time he was 18 
 years of age, worked for his father. He was 
 then given his time, and began working his 
 father's farm on the shares. After about eight 
 years, he purchased 50 acres of land in Bath 
 Township and began its improvement. In a 
 few years he sold this farm and purchased 104 
 acres where he now lives. He has since added 
 to this until he now owns 140 acres of good 
 land, which he has nicely improved. He was 
 united in marriage to Miss Susanna Moore 
 March 6, 1851. This lad}' was born in Spring- 
 
 field Township, this county. May 6, 1830. From 
 this union there are eight children, viz., Eman- 
 uel C, John N., James A., Robert H., Sarah L., 
 Charles H., George E. and Margaret J. Mr. 
 Smith is a Democrat in politics, and a member 
 of the United Brethren Church. He began life 
 as a poor boy. and is a self-made man in the 
 fullest sense of the word. 
 
 MICHAEL SPRANKLE, Ghent. John 
 Sprankle, the father of this gentleman, was a 
 native of the Keystone State ; when he was 
 quite a child, his parents removed to Stark Co., 
 Ohio, where they entered a large tract of land. 
 Here John Sprankle was married and resided 
 until 1833, when he moved to Summit Co., 
 settling in Bath Township ; he was a miller b}' 
 trade, and that, in connection with farming, he 
 followed during his life-time ; he was the par- 
 ent of two sons and five daughters ; he was a 
 hai'd-working man, and always paid strict at- 
 tention to his own affairs ; he was scrupulously 
 honest, and was esteemed and respected by all 
 who knew him. Michael Sprankle was born in 
 Stark Co., Ohio., March 23, 1821. His ad- 
 vantages for obtaining an education were very 
 limited, and from early boyhood was inured to 
 toil, he remaining at home until about 21 years 
 of age ; he then rented a farm of his father in 
 Stark Co., and began doing for himself He 
 was united in marriage to Miss Eliza McGrew, 
 in 1843 ; this lad}' died in a few years, leaving 
 a son and daughter, viz., Charles and Lucinda. 
 Mr. Sprankle was married June 13, 1848, to 
 Miss Harriet Albertson. a native of Stai'k Co., 
 where she was born Nov. 25, 1828 ; by this 
 union there were eight children, four of whom 
 are yet living, viz., Oliver, Edwin, Collins and 
 Allie A ; those deceased were named — Alonzo, 
 Burton, John A. and Cora E. Mr. Sprankle 
 continued to reside in Stark Co. until 1865, 
 when he moved to Bath Township, this county, 
 which he has since made his home. He began 
 life as a poor boy and has by his. own exertions 
 and the assistance of his good wife secured a 
 goodly share of this world's goods ; he owns 
 363 acres of well-improved land, and is one of 
 the best and most practical farmers in Bath 
 Township ; politically he is a Republican ; he 
 and wife possess social qualities of a high order, 
 and are among the leading citizens of the town- 
 ship. 
 
 J. M. THORP, West Richfield. The parents 
 of this gentleman, Manville B. and Fanny W. 
 
BATH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1025 
 
 (Clark) Thoi'p, are among the earl}- settlers of 
 the county. Manville B. Thorp was born Feb. 
 7, 1808, in the Empire State, and his wife in the 
 Bay State, March 7. 1811. They were married 
 in Bristol, Ontario Co., N. Y., Nov. 3, 1832, and 
 two 3^ears later came to Bath Township, this 
 count}', where the}' have since resided. Jere- 
 miah, father of Manville B., was a soldier of 
 the war of 1812, and his father, Nathan Thorp, 
 served his country in the war of the Revolu- 
 tion. Manville B. Thorp and wife, on first 
 coming to this county, settled on the farm now 
 owned by them in Bath Township, there being 
 no improvements on the land at that time. 
 They are the parents of five children, all of 
 whom are now living. Mr. Thorp has always 
 been a hard-working, enterprising and public- 
 spirited citizen, and has been ver}' successful in 
 all his business undertakings ; he owns over 
 300 acres of good tillable land, which is nicely 
 improved. J. M. Thorp was raised upon a farm 
 and received a good common-school education; 
 he was united in marriage to Miss Vashti M. 
 Shaw, May 24, 1857 ; she was born in Bath 
 Township this count3% Aug. 30, 1834 ; they 
 have four sons, viz., Elwin C, Warren S., Ayers 
 C. and Maynard B. Mr. Thorp was born in 
 Ontario Co.', N. Y., Nov. 25, 1833 ; in 1863, he 
 began the study of dental surgery, and after 
 some years began its practice at Akron, to 
 which place and Richfield, Ohio, his practice 
 has been confined, he always finding enough to 
 do. He has an oflflce at Richfield, and has a 
 good paying practice ; he is a quiet, unassuming 
 man, and possesses the confidence and esteem 
 of all who know him. 
 
 JOSEPH F. WHITCRAFT, Bath; John 
 Whitcraft, the father of this gentleman, was 
 born in Fayette Co., Penn., in 1797. While 
 he was yet a small boy his parents removed to 
 Jefferson Co., Ohio, and from there, after a few 
 years, to Stark County. Here his youth and 
 early manhood was passed, his education being 
 such as the log schoolhouse afforded. He was 
 united in marriage in 1823 to Miss Eleanor 
 Harkins, a native of Westmoreland Co., Penn., 
 where she was born in 1800. Her parents had 
 removed from the Keystone State to Wayne Co., 
 Ohio, in 1813. Soon after their marriage, Mr. 
 
 and Mrs. Whitcraft took up their residence in 
 Stark County, where they resided until their 
 removal to Bath Township, this county, in 
 1832. The ^^ear previous Mr. Whitcraft had 
 come to the township and purchased 82^ acres 
 of land. He did some clearing and erected a 
 log cabin, in which the family moved upon 
 their arrival. The following children were 
 born to Mr. and Mrs. Whitcraft, viz., William, 
 Thomas, Hugh, Samuel, Joseph F., Esther, 
 John, Silas, Nancy and Eleanor, seven of whom 
 are 3'et living. Mr. Whitcraft was a prominent 
 and respected citizen, and held during his life- 
 time many positions of honor and trust. He 
 was renowned for his strict business principles, 
 integrity, and readiness to promote the public 
 good. This good man and pioneer departed 
 this life in 1842. His wife survives him at the 
 advanced age of 81 years. She has a very re- 
 tentive memory and is as smart and active as 
 many ladies at 50. Joseph F. Whitcraft was 
 born Sept. 22, 1830, in Stark Co., Ohio. His 
 earl}' education was limited, being confined to 
 such as could be obtained in the log-cabin 
 schoolhouse. He was but 12 years of age at the 
 time of his father's death, and he remained at 
 home helping to care for the younger members 
 of the family until he was of age. He then 
 took charge of the farm, which he resided upon 
 until four years ago, when he came to Ham- 
 mond's Corners and engaged in mercantile pur- 
 suits. He was united in marriage to IMiss 
 Adaline A. Miller, March 22, 1855. This lady 
 was born in Richfield Township, this county, 
 June 20, 1834, and is the daughter of Moses 
 C. and Anna (Compton) Miller, who were 
 among the first settlers of this county. Six 
 childi'en have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Whit- 
 craft, four of whom are yet living, viz., Clara 
 B., Jennie E., Mariam I. and SigefB. The de- 
 ceased were named Cora E. and Sherman. 
 Mr. Whitcraft is a stanch Republican and is 
 Postmaster at the "Corners." He has held 
 positions of honor and trust, and is highly 
 spoken of as an official. He was a delegate to 
 the Kent Convention in 1855, and voted for 
 James A. Garfield for State Senator. He is a 
 pleasant, courteous gentleman and one of the 
 county's best citizens. 
 
 711 
 
..3 
 
 1026 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 JACOB BflEITENSTEIN, Sr., lawyer, Cliu- 
 ton. He is the oldest and only son living of 
 Jacob Breiteustein, who was married to Barbara 
 Sweithauser, both natives of Ober Bhein Kreis, 
 Grermany. He came to this country with his 
 parents in 1836. They came to Marshal Iville, 
 Wayne Co., Ohio, and remained there one year, 
 when they removed into Chippewa Township in 
 the same county. They remained there fifteen 
 years, when they came to Franklin Township, 
 this county. His education was received in the 
 common schools of Grermany, attending school 
 but six weeks in this country. He worked on 
 his father's farm until 24 years of age, when he 
 married Lydia Keller, a native of Penns3dvania. 
 He worked for six j-ears as a coal miner, after 
 which he bought a small farm of 24 acres with 
 his earnings. He carried on farming very suc- 
 cessfully until 1876, when he retired. He then 
 began practice as a lawyer in the Justice's 
 Courts. By his industry and econom}' he has 
 amassed considerable wealth, and is now owner 
 of five farms, including a valuable and rich coal 
 mine, which yields hnn no small income. He 
 has six children — John, Jacob D., Ellas, Daniel, 
 Andrew and Mary. He has served as Town- 
 ship Trustee for a number of years, and is a 
 Notary Public. He is a member of the Glerman 
 Beformed Church. His parents came to this 
 country very poor, and all he has was acquired 
 by his own exertions. 
 
 MATHIAS DAVIS, retired farmer; P. 0. 
 Johnson's Corners ; was born Sept. 23, 1810, 
 in Pennsylvania. His father, John Davis, with 
 wife and ten children, emigrated from Pennsyl- 
 vania to Ohio, and settled on the farm where 
 Mr. Davis is now residing, in 1817. The par- 
 ents have long since gone the wa}' of all mor- 
 tals, and but four of the children survive, viz., 
 Mathias, Nancy, Christina (now Widow Hassett, 
 living in Hudson Township with her son), and 
 Mary living in Carroll Co. Matthias took 
 charge of the farm when about 19 years of age. 
 He and a brother farmed it together for several 
 years. Their location is one of the most nat- 
 urally picturesque spots in the township, being 
 quite elevated, overlooking the valley of the 
 Cuyahoga River for miles, and immediately 
 
 over the Erie & Ohio Canal. The first wheat 
 raised for market in this vicinity, was that 
 grown by Mr. Davis, which was sold for 50 
 cents per bushel, and one of the first lots ever 
 shipped to Cleveland on the canal was a lot of 
 Mr. Davis' for which he received about 50 cents 
 per bushel. Mr. Mathias Davis never married, 
 and is now well advanced in years ; lives in 
 very comfortable circumstances, and cares for 
 an aged and feeble sister ; he is a man of gen- 
 erous and hospitable impulses, though very un- 
 assuming ; his memory is replete with incidents 
 of early pioneer life and hardships, which both 
 old and young were necessitated to endure dur- 
 ing tht 
 forest. 
 
 ANDREW DONNENWIRTH, saddler, Clin- 
 ton. He is one of the nine children of John 
 Donnenwirth, a native of Alsace, France, who 
 married Margaret Lang. He was born in 
 Canal Fulton, Stark Co., Ohio, Dec. 19, 1845. 
 He received a common-school education, and 
 learned the trade of saddler. He came to Clin- 
 ton in 1865. There he began his career as a bus- 
 iness man, by carrying on a harness and saddle 
 business. In 1868, he opened a general store, 
 doing a good business until 188U, when he again 
 worked at his trade. He was married in 1869 to 
 Mary A. Ingraham, a native of England. They 
 have five children — Ross, Willie, Belle, Lorena 
 and Daisy M. He enjoys the confidence and 
 good-will of his fellow-citizens, and was recent- 
 ly elected Justice of the Peace. He is a mem- 
 ber of the English Lutheran Church. 
 
 DAVID D. DAILEY, farmer; P. 0. Nimisila. 
 He was born in Blair Co., Penn., Nov. 15, 1817. 
 He worked on his father's farm until 1841, when 
 he came to Franklin Township, and has been 
 here ever since. He was married in 1846, to 
 Elizabeth Row ; they had one sou, Adam ; wife 
 died in 1850 ; he was remarried, in 1852, to 
 Anne Holl. They have four children — Andrew, 
 Catharine, Michael and Clara. He is one of 
 the prominent and well-to-do citizens of his 
 township. 
 
 LEWIS EVERHARD, traveling salesman, 
 Nimisila. He was born in Plain, Stark Co., 
 Ohio, Nov. 26, 1829. He was raised on a farm. 
 
^^ — ^ 
 
 M- 
 
 FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1027 
 
 and obtained a common-school education. He 
 came to Manchester, Ohio, in ] 866 ; began his 
 career as a salesman with the Warthorst Stone 
 Co., of Massillon, Ohio, in 1869. He was mar- 
 ried, in 1854, to Anne Hoy. The^^ had two 
 children — Frances E. and John H. She died 
 in 1869. He was remarried, in 1871, to Nancy 
 Williams ; one child, Lottie 0., is the fruit of 
 this marriage. He is a member of the Disciples' 
 Church. 
 
 DAVID GROVE, farmer ; P. 0. Nimisila ; 
 was born in Franklin Co., Penn., July 3, 1822 ; 
 is son of Jacob and Rachel (Dice) Grove, who 
 wei'e also natives of Pennsylvania. They emi- 
 grated to Ohio in 1832, with their five children, 
 viz., David, Poll}^ Solomon, Arabella and Jacob ; 
 tliree others were born to them after their re- 
 moval to this State, viz., Ephraim, Rachel and 
 Hannah ; these are all living. Mr. Grove lo- 
 cated in this township, and spent the remainder 
 of his life here, and died in the 72d year of his 
 age. David was married to Mary Long Oct. 
 12, 1844. They have reared four children, viz., 
 B^^ron F., Eliza, Mary and Emma. Mrs. Grove 
 was born in Westmoreland Co., Penn., and was 
 brought to Wayne Co., Ohio, by her parents 
 when about 2 3'ears old. Both Mr. and Mrs. 
 Grove are familiar with the hardships of pioneer 
 life, but enjoy a competenc}' earned by their 
 own industry and care. 
 
 HENRY A. HOUSMAN, Superintendent 
 Franklin Coal Mine, Clinton. He is the oldest 
 son of Jacob Housman, who was married to 
 Catharine Brougher. He was born in Franklin 
 Township Jul}- 19, 1840. He worked on the 
 farm until he was 20 years old. He was then 
 employed as clerk in a store in Manchester, 
 Oliio. In 1860, he went into business for him- 
 self This he carried on successfulh^ until 
 1870, when he took charge of the Franklin Coal 
 Mine. He came to Clinton in 1875, and has 
 resided here since ; he also taught school here 
 for one and one-half years. He was married 
 in 1862, to Margaret Sisler, a native of Man- 
 chester, Ohio. They have two children — Nellie 
 and Fannie. He is at present Superintendent 
 of the Franklin Coal Mine, an extensive and 
 paying mine. 
 
 JAMES M. KERSTETTER, general store, 
 Nimisila. Among the self-made business men 
 of Manchester is the subject of this sketch ; he 
 was born in Green Township, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, March 17, 1851 ; his parents were old 
 
 settlers of the count}' ; he was the oldest of 
 three children ; he was raised on the farm, and, 
 when 11 years old, he went with his parents to 
 Manchester ; his education was such as the 
 common schools of the village afforded, and his 
 business career was begun with a clerkship 
 with Kerstetter & Housman. He went into 
 business for himself in 1871 ; he is now keep- 
 ing a general store, and all he has he obtained 
 by his tact, industry and economy. He was 
 married in 1868 to Isabel Benner, a native of 
 Franklin Township ; they have one daughter — 
 Olive M. His business career is one of remark- 
 able success, he having comparatively nothing 
 when he started. 
 
 DANIEL SMITH (deceased) ; was born in 
 Pennsylvania x\pril 10, 1811, and came here 
 with his father's family during the construction 
 of the canal. He married Eliza Diehl March 
 15, 1835 ; she was also a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania, and came here with her parents about a 
 year previous to her late husband , her father, 
 Jacob Diehl, settled at Canton, Stark Co., when 
 they came from Pennsylvania, then to Franklin 
 Township. Soon after Mr. Smith was married, 
 they repaired to the farm, where his widow and 
 daughter now live, and, on June 7, 1861, he 
 was called away, leaving a widow and large 
 family to mourn his loss. They were parents 
 of ten children, viz., Judson, Rachel, Amanda, 
 Mary, Ransom, Louisa, x\ngeline, Carolina, Jo- 
 sephus and Ida ; the last named resides with 
 her aged mother. When their eldest boy, Jud- 
 son, was about 4 years old, he met with a sad 
 and fatal accident ; while he, with one of his sis- 
 ters, were endeavoring to cross the mill-race on 
 unsafe footing, he fell in, and, although his 
 father was at work near by, the boy was 
 drowned before it was possible to rescue him. 
 In 1834, Mr. Smith and his father built a saw- 
 mill, which Daniel owned and operated many 
 years ; the mill property he had sold, but 
 owing to non-payment bj' the purchaser, he 
 (Mr. Smith) had to take it back, and the season 
 preceding his death he had refitted the mill. 
 Since his death, Mrs. Smith has managed the 
 affairs of her business with more than ordinary 
 executive ability, and reared her family, and yet 
 lives to see them enjoy their own homes. 
 
 JOHN A. STUMF, farmer ; P. 0. Nimisila ; 
 was born in Franklin Co., Penn., June 2, 1809 ; 
 he is son of 3Iichael and Mary (Ashway) Stumf 
 In 1819, they moved from Pennsylvania— par- 
 
 K' 
 
1028 
 
 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 ents and five children — and settled six miles west 
 of Massillon, in Tuscarawas Township, Stark 
 Co. The}' had in all seven children — Catharine, 
 John A., Jacob, Elizabeth, Poll}', Lydia and 
 Nancy — the two last named were born after 
 their parents came to this State. About nine 
 years after their locating in Stark County, Mr. 
 Stumf was assisting a neighbor in "raising" a 
 log cabin ; during the progress of the work, 
 some feeling of rivalry as to which party should 
 have their end of the log first in position arose ; 
 the result being that one end of a log was car- 
 ried up much quicker than the other, causing 
 a skid to break, and swinging the other out of 
 place and in its descent struck Mr. Stumf on 
 the head and killed him. This sad and fatal 
 accident left the widow with her seven young 
 children, in poor circumstances, in the new and 
 sparsely settled country. Shortly after his 
 father's death, John A. returned to his uncle's 
 in Pennsylvania to learn the carpenter's trade, 
 and remained there three years. In the mean- 
 time he got married to Mary Grove in April 
 1832 ; and the following month came back with 
 his wife to his mother's in Stark Co., Ohio, 
 where they lived one year, and in 1833 he 
 moved to Franklin Township and purchased 80 
 acres, which was partially improved. He worked 
 at his trade for two years after coming here, 
 and then turned his attention principally to 
 farming, which has been his life work, except 
 when he chose to do odd jobs of carpenter 
 work or manfacture anything for his own use, 
 as he was quite handy at any kind of wood- 
 work. He owns a good farm on which he 
 erected a commodious brick residence in 1845. 
 They had five children — Lucinda (who died at 
 5 years old), Alpheus, Eliza (was wife of 
 Eli Stout, who died in the army of the rebell- 
 ion ; she is also deceased, leaving one child, 
 Ida, and was reared by Mr. Stumf), Hiram and 
 
 Mary M. (deceased). Mrs. Stumf died in Sep- 
 tember, 1872. His mother remained on the old 
 homestead in Stark County, until a short time 
 previous to her death, when she removed to 
 Wayne County, when she died September, 1874, 
 in the 92d year of her age. Besides John A., 
 only Catharine (now widow of Sam Davis of 
 Lucas County), and Lydia (now wife of Moses 
 Hingley, of Richland County), survives. 
 
 A. SISLER, M. D., Nimisila ; he was born in 
 Lycoming Co., Penn., Dec. 29, 1823. When 4 
 years old, he went to Erie Co., N. Y., with his 
 parents ; here he remained until 1844, when 
 he came to Nimisila, and has been there ever 
 since. He read medicine with his brother. Dr. 
 William Sisler, who was at that time in active 
 practice there. He attended lectures in the 
 Cleveland Medical College, and began practice 
 in partnership with his brother, in the spring of 
 1848, and is at present practicing in Manches- 
 ter. He was married in 1848 to Amanda E. 
 Hoy, a native of Nimisila. Nine children are 
 now living — Francis E., Charles E., Clara A., 
 Caroline B., Lewis E.. Everett B., John H., 
 Jennie L. and William H. He is a member of 
 the Disciples' Church. 
 
 EPHRAIM STUMF, farmer; Nimisila; is 
 the son of Jacob and Catharine (Sorrick) 
 Stumf, who came from Pennsylvania to Ohio 
 when quite young. They settled in this town- 
 ship, where Ephraim was born May 28, 1842. 
 There were four other children born to Jacob 
 and Catharine Stumf, viz. : Matilda, Nathaniel, 
 Amos (deceased) and William. Ephraim lived 
 with his parents until he was married, which 
 event occurred Nov. 29, 1870, to Louisa Smith, 
 daughter of Daniel Smith. They have two 
 children — Bertha and Clarence. Mr. Stumf is 
 a man of few pretentions, but an industrious 
 citizen who attends to his own affairs in an un- 
 assuming way. 
 
<§ k^ 
 
 ^ s 
 
 \^ 
 
 COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1029 
 
 COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 WILLIAM a. ADAMS (deceased); was 
 the youngest in a family of eight children born 
 to James and Hannah Adams. The names of 
 these children are as follows : John, Alexander, 
 James, Thomas, Charles, C^'rus, Caroline and 
 William G. William was born June 17, 1819, 
 and when quite young his parents moved from 
 his native State — Pennsylvania — and came to 
 Wayne Co., Ohio, where he remained with his 
 parents until he was 26 years old, and then 
 moved to Bath Township, and subsequently to 
 Cuyahoga Co., Ohio. Julj^ 24, 1846, he mar- 
 ried Catharine, daughter of James and Sarah 
 Leonard, and to this union were born a famil}' 
 of six children — James L., born June 4, 1849 ; 
 John, born Dec. 30, 1850 ; Melville, born Sept. 
 10, 1852 ; Charles, born Feb. 20, 1854 ; Pren- 
 tiss, born June 14, 1857, and Sarah, born Sept. 
 2, 1860. Mrs. Adams was born Sept. 2, 1823. 
 In the spring of 1 860, Mr. and Mrs. Adams, 
 with their family, left Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, and 
 came to Copley Township, Summit Co., Ohio. 
 It was here, on May 2, 1868, that Mr. Adams' 
 death occurred, of pneumonia. In his younger 
 days, Mr. Adams taught school to some extent, 
 and his subsequent life was full of enterprise 
 and usefulness. 
 
 ALFRED ADAIR, farmer; P. 0. Copley 
 Center ; was born in Montgomery Township, 
 Northampton Co., Mass., Feb. 6, 1807. He is a 
 grandson of Andrew Adair, who was a native 
 of Ireland, and a son of James L. and Bath- 
 sheba (Griffin) Adair, to whom were born the 
 following family : Theodosia. Sally, Alfred, 
 Ursula, Anna, Elizabeth and Micah. At the 
 age of 10 years, our subject, with his parents, 
 removed to Genesee Co., N. Y., where the}' re- 
 mained until 1824. when Alfred, who was then 
 17 years of age, went to Canada, where he re- 
 mained but one 3'ear, at the end of which time 
 his father died, and he returned home to his 
 widowed mother and took charge of the home- 
 stead, clearing it of a heavy debt then hanging 
 over it. In December, 1835, he married Mar- 
 tha P. Chamberlain, daughter of Moses Cham- 
 berlain, and by her had eight children, viz., 
 James L., who was born Sept. 24, 18o7, and 
 died July 11, 1842; Joseph L., born Nov. 28, 
 
 1839 ; Alfred A., born March 25, 1841 ; Mar- 
 tha A., born April 19, 1843 ; Emily, who was 
 born July 27, 1845, and died Aug. 24, 1848 ; 
 Martha, who was born July 31, 1847, and died 
 Jan. 24, 1881, and Newman and Newell, twins, 
 born July 15, 1850. In 1840, Mr. Adair, fam- 
 ily, and mother, came to Copley Township, 
 Summit Co., Ohio, where the mother died, in 
 January, 1855, and the wife, Jan. 29, 1880. 
 These two had been married about forty -five 
 years, and during that time were always kind 
 and considerate toward each other, and her 
 death leaves an aching void in his heart, as. in 
 those of her relatives and friends. They took 
 great pride in educating their two sous, J. L. 
 and A. A., who valiantly served their country 
 in its time of need, enlisting in the spring of 
 1862 in Co. A, 4th 0. V. I, and serving faith- 
 fully until the close of the war in 1865. Mr. 
 Adair is an old and much respected resi- 
 dent of Copley. He is a Republican, and is 
 one of the township's ablest citizens. 
 
 DELOS BOSWORTH, farming ; P. 0. Cop- 
 ley Center ; was born in Copley Township, 
 Summit Co., Ohio, Jan. 11, 1818. He is a son 
 of Allen and Hannah (Harrington) Bosworth, 
 who were parents of the following family : 
 Polly, Sally, Delos, Norton, Norman and Leo- 
 nard. Allen Bosworth was a native of Rhode 
 Island, while his wife was born in Yermont. 
 In 1815, Mr. and Mrs. Bosworth came to Sum- 
 mit Co., Ohio (then Medina Co.), from Otsego' 
 Co., N. Y., locating at first in Tallmadge Town- 
 ship, but the following year moved to North- 
 ampton Township. In 1817, they moved to 
 Copley Township, locating on Lot 22. This 
 was the first settlement in Copley Township. 
 At the time of his settlement in Cople}', Mi'. 
 Bofeworth's total possessions in mone}' amount- 
 ed to only $1.50, and this he gave for the 
 erection of his log cabin. He purchased 150 
 acres of land on credit, and then started out in 
 the battle of life. Delos remained with his 
 parents on the farm until he was 24 years of 
 age, and March 16, 1841, married (Christina 
 Wagoner, and to this union were born three 
 children— Millard, born Feb. 16, 1845 ; Nor- 
 man, born Feb. 28, 1847, died Dec. 29, 1861, 
 
a v_ 
 
 .^ 
 
 1030 
 
 BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 and Eleonora, born June 26, 1849. Mrs. Bos- 
 worth died Sept. 3, 1855, and on the 8th of 
 April, 1858, Mr. Bosworth married Abbey W. 
 Whinery. and by her had one son — John C, 
 born Dec. 27, 1860. Soon after Mr. Bosworth's 
 first marriage, his father died, and Delos took 
 cliarge of the famil}^ and moved to the north- 
 eastern part of the township, on Lot 14. He 
 now owns 130 acres of fine farming and graz- 
 ing land, which he has made by his own labors. 
 His son Millard, in August, 1862, enlisted in 
 Co. H, 42d 0. V. I., and served gallantly 
 through a number of battles, and during his 
 service, lost his health, which he has never re- 
 gained. Mr. Bosworth is a Republican in 
 politics, and he and wife are members of the 
 Universalist Church. 
 
 TRUMAN BOUGHTON, farmer; P. 0. 
 Copley Center ; was born in Ontario Co., N. 
 Y., Aug. 22, 1814. He was the fifth child in a 
 family of six children born to John and Salh' 
 (Roat) Boughton, and their names, respective!}', 
 are Noble, H. W., S. L., Mary, Truman and 
 Nathaniel. When in his 4th year, Truman's 
 mother died, and soon afterward his father 
 married Polly Stimpson, and by her had the 
 following family : John, George, William, Mor- 
 ris, Sophia, Elmer and Levi. In 1833, this 
 family came to Bath Township, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, where they lived until the father's death, 
 which occurred in 1848. His widow afterward 
 removed to Michigan, where she has since died. 
 Truman lived with his father until he reached 
 his majority, and then began for himself In 
 April, 1833, he was united in marriage with 
 Flora Davis, daughter of William and x\vis 
 (Hopkins) Davis, and to this union were born 
 five children, as follows : B. Franklin, E. D., 
 H. G., Olive I. and M. H. Soon after his mar- 
 riage, Mr. Boughton settled on Lot No. 27, about 
 a mile east of Copley Center, and has resided 
 there ever since. His family are all mai-ried, and 
 are all living in Summit Co. B. F., the eldest 
 son, enlisted in August, 1861, in Co. A, 2d 0. 
 V. C, and served all through the war in the 
 same company, and was finally discharged in 
 September, 1865. Mr. B. started in life with 
 nothing but a stout heart and willing hands, and 
 by the hardest labor has acquired a nice home 
 and fortune. In politics he is a Republican, and 
 is an energetic and enterprising gentleman. 
 
 BYRON CHAPMAN, M. D., Copley Center ; 
 was born in the State of New York Jan. 8, 
 
 1822. He is a son of A. and P. (Lane) Chap- 
 man, who were parents of this family : Orson, 
 Sally, Lovina, Melissa, Orlin, Lucius, Cynthia, 
 William. Harlow. Loretta, Almeron, Byron and 
 Lucinda. In the fall of 1835, this family came 
 to Copley Township, and settled one-half mile 
 south of Cople}- Center, on 154 acres, of Lot 
 No. 28. Byron remained here with his parents 
 until 22 3'ears of age, receiving a good common- 
 school education. At that time, he commenced 
 the study of medicine with his brother William, 
 who was a practicing physician at Copley 
 Center. He attended medical lectures at Cleve- 
 land for two years, and graduated in March, 
 1847. At the time of his graduation, his 
 brother William, the doctor, was taken ill and 
 soon died. Byron took charge of his brother's 
 practice immediatel}', and meeting with excel- 
 lent success he has remained there ever since. 
 Dec. 23, 1847, he w\as united in marriage with 
 Matilda A. Dils, daughter of Abrara Dils, and 
 by her has two children — Willis D., born Oct. 
 3, 1848, and Fann}' P.. who is now the wife of 
 Albert E. Hiestand. Willis married Ella A. 
 Marriner ; he is a civil engineer in Leadville, 
 Colo. Mrs. Chapman is in very poor health. 
 Mr. Chapman is a Republican in politics, and 
 does quite an extensive business in his profes- 
 sion. 
 
 WILLIAM CASKEY, farmer ; P. 0. Copley 
 Center ; was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, Oct. 13, 
 1832. He is a son of Benjamin and Margaret 
 Caske}-, and is one in the following family, all 
 of whom are living : Margaret, Nancv, An- 
 drew, John, James, Jane, Finle}-, William, 
 Mar}-. Benjamhi and Drusilla. The father of 
 these came from Ireland when very small. He 
 was a soldier in the war of 1812, and in 1853, 
 came to Bath Township, and from there to 
 Copley in 1858. The father died from a stroke of 
 palsy in Februar}- 1867. The mother is yet liv- 
 ing in Copley at an advanced age. When about 
 21 years of age, William left his parents and 
 went to Iowa, where he made his home seven 
 years. During his stay there he married 
 Louisa Dodt, and by her had two children — 
 Angeline, who died in infanc}', and P]ldora, 
 born Jan. 16, 1862. Mr. Caskey served three 
 3'ears in the late war in Co. B, 22d Iowa V. I., 
 and while in the service his wife died. At the 
 close of the war he returned to Copley Town- 
 ship, and Dec. 25, 1868, married Caroline Fen- 
 ner. by whom he has one son — Arthur F., born 
 
 iRT 
 
COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1031 
 
 March 14, 1871. Mr. Caske^^'s farm is situated 
 on Lot No. 35, Copley Township, Summit Co., 
 Ohio. 
 
 S. DALES, farmer ; P. 0. Montrose ; was 
 born in Cartxight Township, Delaware Co., N. 
 Y., March 25, 1802. He is one in the follow- 
 ing famil}', born to William and Susanna 
 (Hunt) Dales, viz., Stephen, William, Peter, 
 Samuel. James and Hannah, of whom but 
 Stephen and James are living. In 1812, this 
 famil}^ came to the neighborhood of Cuyahoga 
 Falls, near which place the father rented a farm 
 for his family, and then enlisted as teamster in 
 the war of that year. Since their arrival in 
 Summit County, the Dales have resided there. 
 The father died an honored and respected 
 citizen at the advanced age of 76. The date of 
 the mother's death is Jan. 20, 1841. In De- 
 cember, 1826, Stephen was mai'ried to Miss 
 Marcia Richardson, daughter of Elkanah Rich- 
 ardson, and to this union was born a family of 
 seven children as follows : Olive, Alvira, Mary 
 (deceased), George (deceased). Grcorge S., 
 William and Angeline. After his marriage 
 Mr. Dales removed to Bath Township where 
 he and family remained two j'cars, at the 
 expiration of which time they moved to 
 Copley Township, locating on Lot No. 4, 
 where they have since made their home. 
 For them life was filled with the privations and 
 hard labor common to pioneers. The wife and 
 mother died May 26, 1865, and for his second 
 and present wife Mr. Dales married Mary 
 Viall, widow of Sullivan Viall and daughter of 
 George Freely. Mr. Dales has a fine home and 
 property, which he and his family have earned 
 by hard and honest labor. 
 
 ' HENRY FRANCISCO (deceased) ; he was 
 born near Morristown, N. J., May 20. 1802 ; 
 he was a son of John and Jane (Pier) Fran- 
 cisco, and they were the parents of the fol- 
 lowing family : Maria, David, Anna. Betsey, 
 John, Henry, Caroline, Samuel and Barney. 
 Our subject remained with his parents on the 
 farm until he arrived at manhood. In July, 
 1823, he married Lovina Chapman, and by her 
 had a family of nine children — Paulina, Mar}- 
 A., Catharine, Maria, William J., A. C, John 
 H., Charles E. and Ellen J. He remained in 
 New York until 1830, and then went to Chau- 
 tauqua Co., -same State, and kept a hotel there 
 for two years ; in 1835, he came to the north 
 part of Cople}' Township, Summit Co., Ohio, 
 
 and after a short time, moved to the southwest- 
 ern part. At the time of his death, which oc- 
 curred March 27, 1869, he was living on Lot 
 38, one mile south of the Center. He came to 
 Copley with scarcely an^-thing, but b}- hard 
 labor left to his heirs over a hundred aci'es of 
 good land. His sons William and John served 
 faithfully in the late war in the defense of their 
 country. 
 
 DAVID FRANK ; Copley Center ; was born 
 in Waytie Co., Ohio, Nov. 14, 1828, and is 
 a son of Peter and Nancy (Ball) Frank ; his 
 father was of German and his mother of En- 
 glish descent ; he is one in a family of eight 
 children. When our subject was 3 years old, 
 his parents removed to Stark Co., Ohio, where 
 they remained seven years, and, at the end of 
 that time, came to Copley Township, Summit 
 Co., Ohio, where he remained, and where his 
 pai'ents afterward both died ; David received a 
 good common-school education, and, on Oct. 
 15, 1857, was married to Melissa Witner, 
 daughter of Daniel and Susan Witner, and by 
 her had four children — Jennie, born Feb. 12, 
 1860 ; Grant H., born March 16, 1864; Zedel- 
 lia Z., born Feb. 6, 1869 ; and F. F., born Dec. 
 10, 1871. At the time of his marriage, Mr. 
 Frank located on a farm one mile west of Cop- 
 ley Center, and he has remained there ever 
 since ; he and his estimable wife have labored 
 hard, and now, b}' their hard labor and self-de- 
 nial, have a nice farm of 85 acres of excellent 
 land. Mrs. Frank was born Feb. 3, 1838. 3Ir. 
 Frank is a Republican in politics, and he and 
 wife are members of the Reformed Church, of 
 Copley Center. 
 
 SAMUEL FREDERICK, farmer; P. 0. 
 Cople}' Center ; was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, 
 Feb. 27, 1831. He is a son of Jacob and Mar- 
 garet (Razor) Frederick, who were parents of 
 the following family : Samuel, Thomas, Henry, 
 Eli, Benjamin F., William and Christopher C. 
 In 1840, the subject of this sketch and his par- 
 ents moved to Copley Township. At the age 
 of 19, Samuel commenced learning the shoe- 
 making trade in Wadsworth ; he has since fol- 
 lowed the business seven 3'ears in Copley. Nov. 
 7, 1850, he married Sarah Fryman, daughter of 
 Daniel Fr^-man, and by her had a family of 
 eight children — Susan. Benjamin F., John H., 
 Jacob. Eliza J., Ella E., Daniel and George B. 
 Since his marriage, Mr. Frederick has lived in 
 different parts of Copley. His present place 
 
y- 
 
 1032 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 is situated on part of Lots Nos. 27 and 34, one 
 mile east of the Center. To some extent since 
 his marriage, Mr. Frederick has also followed 
 the cooper's trade. For sixteen seasons, Mr. 
 Frederick has followed threshing, but his pres- 
 ent occupation is farming. He and wife are 
 excellent citizens, and both are members of the 
 Lutheran Church. 
 
 C. C. FREDERICK, school-teacher and farm- 
 er ; P. 0. Coplej' Center ; is a native of the 
 township in which he resides, and was born 
 Oct. 24, 1844. He is a son of Jacob and Mar- 
 garet (Razor) Frederick, who were parents of 
 seven sons, of whom all but our subject were 
 born in Chippewa Township, Wayne Co., Ohio. 
 At the age of 20, our subject began on his own 
 responsibilit}', by farming summers and teach- 
 ing winters, and this business he has followed 
 up to the present time. His marriage with 
 Miss Ella M. Ta3^1or was solemnized Nov. 11, 
 1869. Mrs. Frederick is a daughter of Theo- 
 dore and Matilda (Hoyt) Taylor, and was born 
 March 26, 1853. To her union with Mr. Fred- 
 erick there were born five children — Homer, 
 born June 30, 1870, died May 23, 1876 ; Her- 
 man E., born Jan. 12, 1872 ; Alena Bell, born 
 March 5, 1874, died May 12, 1876 ; Aleta M., 
 born Nov. 14, 1876 ; and Ernest L., born Aug. 
 24, 1 879. Homer and x\.lena Bell were attacked 
 with scarlet fever, and, after a short illness, 
 were carried away from their home on earth to 
 a happier one above. After his marriage, Mr. 
 Frederick worked his father's farm for three 
 years, and then moved to Cople}' Center, and 
 taught school eighteen months. He then pur- 
 chased and settled on the farm he now lives 
 upon, which is located on Lot No. 24. Mr. 
 Frederick has held different township offices. 
 In politics, he is a radical Republican, and a 
 member of the Lutheran Church of Norton. 
 
 A. C. FRANCISCO, Copley Center ; was born 
 in the State of New York Aug. 12, 1836. He 
 is a son of Henr}- and Lovina (Chapman) 
 Francisco, who were the parents of nine chil- 
 dren. When our subject was but a year old 
 his parents came from New York to Summit 
 Co., Ohio, locating in Copley Township, where 
 our subject has lived up to the present time ; 
 he remained with his parents on the farm until 
 he reached his 20th year, and he then com- 
 menced farming for himself In September, 
 1860, he married Iraogene Scudder, daughter 
 of Walter and Catharine Scudder, and by her 
 
 had the following family : Carrie, Hattie, 
 Arthur, Olive and Charles. In August, 1862, 
 our subject enlisted in Co. H 104th 0. V. I., 
 and was discharged for disabilities in June, 
 1863. Mr. Francisco has never since regained 
 his health ; he has, with the exception of one' 
 or two years, always lived in Copley Township ; 
 he is a Republican in politics and a good and 
 enterprising citizen. 
 
 ANSEL S. GARDNER (deceased), was a 
 native of Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, his birth occur- 
 ring July 1, 1839. His parents were Warren 
 and Caroline (Perry) Gardner, of Germanic de- 
 scent, both being natives of the Empire State, 
 and both coming to Ohio when the country was 
 3'et a wilderness, filled with various species of 
 wild animals. He was one in a family of four 
 children, and when 7 years of age his mother 
 died, and his father married Harriet Aver}', by 
 whom he had one child. Ansel was reared on 
 a farm, securing in the meantime a fair educa- 
 tion from the common schools. After the age 
 of 19, and previous to his marriage, he worked 
 at farming during the summer months, and in 
 the ship-yards at Cleveland during the winter 
 months. On the 31st of December, 1861, his 
 marriage with Miss Elisabeth Crosier was cele- 
 brated. Her parents were Paul and Barbara 
 (Husong) Crosier, of Euclid Township, Cuya- 
 hoga Co., Ohio. To Mr. and Mrs. Gardner were 
 born four children, as follows ; Alice, born 
 Sept. 14, 1863, died Sept. 21, 1864; Alfred E., 
 Oct. 20, 1865 ; Hattie, April 4, 1868, died Dec. 
 9, 1870 ; Franklin J., Dec. 31, 1873. Mrs. 
 Gardner's birth occurred March 9, 1840. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Gardner remained at Cleveland until 
 the 28th of May, 1861, when they moved to 
 Grand Traverse, Mich, settling on a tract of 
 land devoid of clearing and with no neighbor 
 nearer than a mile, and with a vast forest of 
 pine stretching away for miles in all directions. 
 Reservations of Indians were near, and many 
 wild, fierce animals lurked in the heavy pine 
 forests. Here they remained five years, during 
 which time Mr. Gardner and three other men 
 from Traverse City went by canoe down the 
 bay to Northport, thirty miles distant, where 
 the}^ organized Leelenaw County. In July, 
 1866, Mr. Gardner and family returned to Ohio, 
 making their home first in Portage Township, 
 Summit Co. In December, 1872, they removed 
 to Copley Center, where the family has since 
 resided. Mr. Gardner worked industriously at 
 
 9 \ 
 
l^ 
 
 COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1033 
 
 his trade — carpenter and joiner — until Febru- 
 ary, 1880, when he was taken down with a severe 
 attack of rheumatism ; at the end of two 
 weeks he seemed to rally, but soon afterward 
 was taken with ague, from which he never fully 
 recovered. Spinal troubles increased his afflic- 
 tion, until at last he died on the 1st of April, 
 1880. He was a kind father, a loving husband 
 and an exemplar}' citizen ; no unkind word was 
 ever spoken to his family by him, and his death 
 was mourned bitterly bv his devoted wife and 
 children. He was laid to rest in the village 
 cemeter}', and over his lonely grave the sweet 
 flowers of loving remembrance are strewed, and 
 tears of affection fall upon the silent earth. 
 The neighborhood mourned his untimely death, 
 and revere his name as among their most hon- 
 ored dead. Thus dear friends are returned to 
 dust, but their names become living jewels in 
 the bright casket of memory. 
 
 JOHN GOULDIN, farmer and merchant ; 
 Copley Center ; was born in New Lisbon, 
 Columbiana Co., Ohio, Sept. 30, 1815. He is a 
 son of John and Esther (Chandler) Gouldin. 
 When John was 9 years old, his father moved 
 near Cleveland, engaging in agricultural pur- 
 suits. John remained with his father until his 
 marriage with Miss Betse}^ Hendershot, which 
 event occurred May 3, 1835. To this union 
 was born the following famil}' : Charles F., born 
 March 1, 1848,died Oct. 1, 1855; Mariam, born 
 May 20, 1840 ; Albert, born Aug. 30, 1842; 
 Lucy E., born May 3, 1849, and Bina, born Oct. 
 24, 1852. After his marriage, Mr. Gouldin had 
 charge of a saw-mill for four years, and in the 
 fall of 1839, purchased a piece of land in Copley 
 Township, Summit Co., Ohio, and has retained 
 the ownership of that land ever since. In 1873. 
 he commenced in the agricultural implement 
 business in Akron, and his work there met with 
 excellent success. In 1876, he took in two 
 partners, and the firm name then became Kra- 
 mer, May & Gouldin, and this remained un- 
 changed until 1878. when the partnership was 
 dissolved, Messrs Kramer and May retiring. 
 Mr. Gouldin still carries on the business at No. 
 114 North Howard street. Politicall}-, Mr. 
 Gouldin is a stanch Republican. He divides 
 his residence between his home and business 
 in Akron, and his country seat in Copley Town- 
 ship. 
 
 V. G. HARRIS, farmer ; P. 0. Copley Cen- 
 ter ; was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, Feb. 7, 1826 ; 
 
 is one in the following family born to Aaron 
 and Eleanor (White) Harris ; Francis M., Eliz- 
 abeth M., Hamilton, Vincent G., William W., 
 Cordelia, Ellen and Caroline. The subject of 
 this biography remained with his parents until 
 he was 23 years of age. In September, 1849, 
 he was united in marriage with Martha Long, 
 daughter of Jacob Long, and to this union was 
 born a family of nine children, as follows : Re- 
 becca B., born June 20, 1850 ; Mary, Sept. 28, 
 1851 ; Joseph J., Feb. 18, 1853 ; John, Feb. 15, 
 1855, died in infancy ; Elizabeth, born Feb. 10, 
 1856 ; Eliza, May 28, 1857; Charles F., June 
 12, 1859 ; Sarah, Dec. 26, 1852, and Andrew J., 
 Feb. 24, 1865. Mr. Harris started in life with 
 little to depend on but his own exertions. He 
 came to Copley Township in 1850, purchasing 
 50 acres of land. He advanced on his farm 
 first $450, with a balance of 1750 to pay. Since 
 that time he has added by degrees, until he now 
 owns a fine farm of 200 acres of well-improved 
 land, besides other property. Mr. Harris is one 
 of the leading men of his township, and is well 
 respected by all his acquaintances. 
 
 JAMES HAMMOND, retired farmer ; P. 0. 
 Copley Center ; is a native of Yorkshire, En- 
 gland, and was born April 6, 1811 ; he is a son 
 of Thomas and Ann (Barton) Hammond, who 
 were parents of the following family : Mar}-, 
 George, Joseph, John, Edward, Elizabeth, 
 James, Thomas and Charles ; James remained 
 in England, working at different emplo3'ments, 
 until 1848, when he arrived in New York June 
 20. He was married June 30, 1838, to Eliza- 
 beth, daughter of James and Nanc}^ Spenslev, 
 and by her had the following famil}' : Anna, 
 born x\pril 1,1839; Spensle}', born April 10, 
 1841; George, born Oct. 18, 1843; James 
 E., born Aug. 20, 1846, born in P]ngland ; and 
 William A., born July 4, 1849 ; Lizzie, born 
 Dec. 5, 1854 ; Joseph E., born 3Iarch 14, 1851, 
 died in infancy ; Frank P., born April 15, 1857 ; 
 Charles, born Sept. 27, 1860 ; and Alice D., 
 born Feb. 21, 1864, born in America. At the 
 time of his arrival, Mr. Hammond had $26 ; he 
 and family came to Medina Co., where the}' re- 
 mained one 3'ear, and from there went to 
 Akron ; on his arrival in Copley Township, 
 Summit Co.. Ohio, he purchased a small farm 
 that is now owned b}' William Wagoner, and 
 remained there five 3'ears ; he then purchased a 
 larger farm in the southern part of the town- 
 ship, and has by degrees made himself inde- 
 
^ 
 
 1034 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 pendent ; he started in the United States with 
 scarcely anything, but by degrees, econom}' 
 and close attention to business, he has pur- 
 chased and paid for a fine farm of 332 acres. 
 In the politics of this township Mr. Hammond 
 has figured quite prominently, having identified 
 himself with the Republican party. He is one 
 of Copley's best and most respected citizens, 
 and in the hearts of his fellow-townsmen has a 
 warm place. 
 
 LEVI D. HOLLINGER, farmer ; P. 0. Ak- 
 ron ; was born April 6, 1846, in Franklin 
 Township ; he is a son of Jacob and Barbara 
 (Daily) Hollinger, who were parents of the fol- 
 lowing : Joseph, Michael, David, Jacob, Levi D., 
 Amand,a, Harriet, and Josiah and Uriah (twins) ; 
 the mother of these children died in 1860, and 
 Mr. Hollinger married his second wife, Mary 
 Underholt, and by her had two children — War- 
 ren and Minnie. Levi remained with his 
 parents until during the war, when, being a lad 
 of onl}^ 17, he enlisted in the cause of his 
 country in Co. E, 13th O. V. I., and was after- 
 ward transferred to Co. D ; he participated in 
 some of the most noted engagements of the 
 war, among them being Stone River, Chicka- 
 mauga, Mission Bidge, Buzzard's Roost, Resaca, 
 Peach Tree Creek. Atlanta, Franklin, Nashville, 
 Kenesaw Mountain and man}' others ; Mr. 
 Hollinger was one of the few who escaped 
 drowning from the sinking of the steamer 
 Matagorda, below Memphis. He was married 
 in February, 1868, to Minerva Wylie, daughter 
 of John Wylie. whose biography appears in 
 this work ; to this union were born two chil- 
 dren — Myrven J., born Oct. 23, 1868, and 
 D wight, born July 5, 1876. Mrs. Hollinger 
 was born Feb. 8, 1843. Soon after their mar- 
 riage, Mr. and Mrs. Hollinger moved to Benton 
 Co., Iowa, where they remained farming for six 
 years ; at the end of that time they returned to 
 Franklin Township, Summit Co., Ohio, where 
 they lived until about 1878, when they came to 
 Copley Township, where he has since resided. 
 
 SAMUEL HENKEY, farmer ; Copley Cen- 
 ter ; was born in Lancaster Co., Penn., in Octo- 
 ber, 1828. He is a son of Louis and Catharine 
 (Less) Henkey, who were parents of seven chil- 
 dren ; when our subject was but an infant his 
 parents moved from his native State to Stark 
 Co., Ohio. Our subject received a common- 
 school education in youth, and he remained 
 with his parents until he became a man. In 
 
 October, 1849, he married Mary Witmer, daugh- 
 ter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Gougler) Witmer, 
 who was born Aug. 21, 1827. To this union 
 were born five children — David, born Oct. 8, 
 1850 ; Mary E., born Feb. 4, 1854 ; Catharine, 
 Nov. 14, 1863 ; John H., May 24, 1855, and 
 Elizabeth, born July 14, 1858. In 1851, Samuel, 
 together with his parents, moved from Stark 
 Co., to Wa^'ne Co., Ohio, and, after four year's 
 stay there, moved to Summit Co., Ohio. They 
 lived in the latter county in different localities, 
 until about 1860, when they came to Copley 
 Township, Summit Co., Ohio, where our subject 
 and famil}' have ever since resided. Mr. Hen- 
 ke}' is a Republican in politics, and he and wife 
 are members of the Evangelical Association of 
 Bath Township. 
 
 G. W. HAWKINS, farmer; P. 0. Copley 
 Center; in 1814, Cople}' Township received its 
 first settlers, and among them were the parents 
 of the subject of this sketch. Much of their 
 early experiences in the woods of Copley will 
 be found in the history of this township in 
 another part of this volume, (x. W. Hawkins 
 was the first white child bora in the town- 
 ship, that date being Dec. 29, 1815. At the 
 age of 10 years Mr. Hawkin's father died of 
 fever, and at the age of 14, took charge 
 of the old homestead, 100 acres, and re- 
 mained in charge until 1834, when his mother 
 married again, and his step-father bought 
 out the heirs. In Januaxy, 1840, he was united 
 in marriage with Miss Matilda Hubbard, 
 daughter of Reuben Hubbard, and to this 
 union there were born five children — Adelia, 
 died in infancy ; Eliza, born June 4, 1845, died 
 Nov. 18, 1871; Alice C, born Sept. 14, 1847 ; 
 George W., born Sept. 2, 1851, died Nov. 13, 
 1876 ; Eugene R., born June 28, 1854. Five 
 years after his marriage, Mr. Hawkins moved 
 on to the eastern part of Lot 1, where he has 
 ever since resided. Mrs. Hawkins is a mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church, while 
 Mr. Hawkins is a Democrat in politics. This 
 family are among the leading ones of Copley 
 Township. 
 
 WILLIAM JOHNSTON, farmer ; P. 0. Ak- 
 ron ; was born in Green Township, Summit Co., 
 Ohio, Aug. 3, 1815, and his birth was the 
 second or third in the township. Mr. Johnston 
 is a son of Cornelius and Elizabeth (Willhelm) 
 Johnston, who were parents of the following 
 family : Mary, Alexander, Abram (deceased), 
 
 B > 
 
-^ 
 
 COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1035 
 
 John (deceased), William, Cornelius, Nancy 
 and Eliza. The father was born Feb. 17, 1782, 
 in New Jersey. When a young man he moved 
 to Center Co., Penn., where he remained until 
 he came to Ohio. He died in June, 1871, at 
 the advanced age of 89. Of the children, 
 Alexander still resides in Green Township. 
 He was the first Recorder of Summit Co., and 
 afterward served as member of the Legislature. 
 John was also a member of the State Legisla- 
 ture, serving at one time in the ver}' distin- 
 guished position of Speaker of the House. 
 Cornelius is a retired merchant of Akron. 
 Nancy is the wife of Hon. N. W. Goodhue. 
 William, the subject of this sketch, has held 
 various township offices, and at one time was 
 Director of the County Infirmarj'. This fam- 
 ily came to Green Township from Center Co., 
 Penn., in 1814. The first few years after their 
 arrival they had difficult}- in earning the where- 
 withal to supply their wants. The children re- 
 ceived the most of their education b}' the light 
 of the hickorj' bark blazing in the great fire- 
 place. William Johnston remained with his 
 parents until he was 29 years of age. He mar- 
 ried Elizabeth G. Moore, daughter of John 
 Moore, April 22, 1841, and by her had two 
 sons — Cornelius A., born Jul}- 16, 1842, and 
 John M., born Aug. 1.3, 1844, the former of 
 whom married Sarah Swartz. John married 
 Miss A. Dales, who bore him two children, viz., 
 Jessie and jNIarcia. In April, 1844, Mr. John- 
 ston came to Copley Township, locating on Lot 
 15, where he has ever since resided. He is a 
 Republican in politics, and has been a sub- 
 scriber for and read the New York TriJmne for 
 forty years. 
 
 CHARLES C. MILLER, farming and gar- 
 dening ; P. 0. Akron ; was born in Akron, 
 Ohio, Dec. 11, 1832. He is the eldest child 
 born to Ansel and Lucy A. (Hawkins) Miller, 
 who were parents of two sons — Charles C. and 
 James N. Mr. Miller, the father, was a native 
 of Bridgewater. Yt. When a young man, he 
 left home and went to Boston, Mass., where he 
 worked at his trade, carpenter and joiner. 
 While here, he assisted in building the Quincy 
 Market House, on which he worked, scarcely 
 missing a day, for 466 days. From Boston, 
 Mr. Miller went to Rochester, N. Y., living there 
 one year. In 1828, he started West on a 
 "prospecting" tour, and coming to Akron, he 
 was so well pleased with the then village and 
 
 surroundings, that he returned to Rochester, 
 and the next year, 1829, came to Akron for the 
 purpose of qiaking that his permanent home. 
 Nov. 22, 1831, he married the mother of Charles 
 C. and James N. From the time of his arrival 
 in Akron, until 1840, Mr. Miller steadily fol- 
 lowed his trade. About this time, he purchased 
 an interest in a boat-yard there, and engaged in 
 the manufacturing of boats. During the win- 
 ter of 1859-60, he sold out, and then went to 
 live with his son Charles, with whom he resided 
 until his death, Dec. 16, 1879, aged over 81 
 years. Charles C. Miller was reared and edu- 
 cated in Akron principally. He was married 
 in August, 1860, to Mary A. Philbrick, daugh- 
 ter of Daniel Philbrick. of Michigan,' and by 
 her had a family of five children, as follows : 
 Frank E. (deceased), Lottie A., x\nsel P., 
 Lute H. and Carl E. Mrs. Miller was born in 
 Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., Jan. 12, 1843. Im- 
 mediately after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Miller came to their present place of residence, 
 in Copley, where they have since resided. Mr. 
 Miller is a Republican in politics, and an intel- 
 ligent gentleman. 
 
 WILLIAM MARTENES, farmer; P. O. 
 Akron ; was born in Harmony, Butler Co., 
 Penn., Dec. 25, 1844. He is a son of Cornelius 
 and Mary (Flowers) Martenes, and they were 
 parents of the following family : Abraham, 
 dead ; Maria, William, Sarah, dead ; Angeline, 
 Austin, Rosa A., dead ; and Nancy A. In 
 1865, this family came to Copley Township, 
 Summit Co., Ohio, where the parents remained 
 until their respective deaths. Our subject was 
 married in June, 1868, to Eliza Squires, and 
 by her had one child, Charles G.. w'ho was born 
 in March, 1869. Mrs. Martenes died Nov. 29, 
 1875. Dec. 31, 1876, Mr. Martenes married 
 Jennie Squires, a niece of his former wife's and 
 a daughter of Chester Squires. Mr. Martenes 
 has always been a farmer, and as such is among 
 the best in his locality. He is a Republican in 
 politics, and he and wife belong to the Church 
 of God. 
 
 CHESTER ORCUTT, Copley Center : is a 
 native of Copley Township, and was born 
 March 8, 1839. He is a son of Chester and 
 Jerusha (Chamberlin) Orcutt, who were parents 
 of two children — Chester and Elmira. These 
 children are half-brother and sister to Parnel, 
 Olive, Elizabeth and George Orcutt. Our sub- 
 ject was raised on the farm by his parents. In 
 
1036 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 December, 1871, he made a visit to California, 
 and was gone three months, the longest he was 
 ever away from Copley' Township. May 5, 
 1876, he was united in marriage with Melissa 
 Simmons, daughter of Dr. and Margaret Sim- 
 mons, and by her had one child, Elmira E., 
 born Feb. 11, 1877. His wife died Dec. 25, 
 1878, and at the time of her death was a mem- 
 ber of the Disciples' Church. 
 
 G. H. RITCHIE ; I'. 0. Akron ; was born in 
 Portage Township, Summit Co., Ohio, Oct. 21, 
 1851. He is a son of Melchiah and Margaret 
 (Squires) Ritchie who were parents of the fol- 
 lowing family : George H., Sarah, Henry 
 (dead), Hiram, Robert, Jennie, Leonard, Mel- 
 chiah and William. In 1852, this family 
 moved into Copley Township and this has 
 always been our subject's home. George H. 
 remained with his parents in 3^outh, receiving 
 a good education. In November, 1872, he 
 married Mary A. Klingaman, only child of 
 Jacob and Hannah Klingaman who was born 
 Feb. 2, 1855. To this union one daughter — 
 Lettie May, born June 13, 1873. After his 
 marriage, Mr. Ritchie located on a farm of 65 
 acres, two miles east of the center on Lots 35 
 and 26, and this has since been his home. In 
 1875, Mr. Ritchie experienced religion, and 
 he joined the religious sect known as the 
 Church of God. In 1 878, he commenced ex- 
 horting and preaching, and has since that time 
 been assistant circuit minister of the circuit in 
 which he I'esides. His whole family belong to 
 this church. 
 
 SAMUEL ROTHROCK, (deceased), was a 
 native of Philadelphia, Penn., and was born 
 Oct. 20, 1820. He was one in a family of eight 
 children, of whom Samuel and Rebecca (Esh- 
 bauch) Rothrock were the parents. In 1834, 
 Samuel, together with his parents, came to 
 Stark Co., Ohio, and here he resided until 
 1846. On the 25th of December, 1845, he was 
 united in marriage with Catharine, daughter of 
 Christian Stauffer ; and to this union were 
 born the following famil}' : Samuel, Christian, 
 David, Amos, Levi, Susan, Mary, Maggie, 
 Anna and Jacob. These children are all living 
 and all reside in Summit County. After his 
 marriage, Mr. Rothrock commenced farming, 
 and such was his occupation through life. In 
 the spring of 1853, he and family came to Copley 
 Township, Summit Co., Ohio, and settled on Lot 
 No. 12. In 1871, he commenced suffering with 
 
 dropsy, and after about six months' intense suf- 
 ering, his death occurred. That event was Dec. 
 29, 1871. He and wife were members of church, 
 and Mr. Rothrock was a most estimable citizen. 
 WILLIAM C. SACKETT, farmer; P. 0. 
 Akron ; born in Litchfield Co., Conn., Oct. 29, 
 1827, the son of Aaron and Huldah C. (Tan- 
 ner) Sackett ; Aaron was born Jan. 7, 1791, 
 and Huldah Aug. 10, 1793 ; they were married 
 May 15, 1816, and the parents of ten children 
 as follows : Theodosia, now Mrs. Seth B. Hall, 
 of Huston, Texas ; Harriet, now Mrs. W. A. 
 Hanford, of Cuyahoga Falls ; George, now of 
 Cuyahoga Falls ; Sarah, died, aged 14 ; Eme- 
 line, died in 1867, aged 42 ; William C, of 
 Copley ; Seth, now of Colorado ; Maria C, now 
 Mrs. Cornelius Kellogg, of Freedom, Portage 
 Co.; Frances A., married Bruice Baldwin and 
 moved to Missouri, where she died ; Sarah M., 
 now Mrs. H. C. Grant, of Cuyahoga Falls. 
 Aaron was always a farmer ; he died at the 
 residence of his son William, June 8, 1872. 
 The father of Huldah C. Tanner served in the 
 Revolutionar}' war, and his widow drew a pen- 
 sion for many years previous to her death ; 
 Huldah was a member of the Congregational 
 Church at Tallmadge ; she died April 24, 1855. 
 When the subject of this sketch was about 10 
 3'ears of age, his parents removed to Ohio and 
 settled in Tallmadge Township ; William was 
 educated mostl>' in the schools of Tallmadge ; 
 he attended the High School of Aki'on during 
 the winter of 1848-49, when M. D. Leggett, 
 formerly U. S. Commissioner of Patents, was 
 Principal ; then farmed land on Chuckery Plains 
 north of Akron for about two summers. In 
 the fall of 1851, he left Summit Count}' for 
 California and Oregon, where he remained four 
 years. During most of this time he was en- 
 gaged in mining, at first near Shasta Cit}', which 
 was then at the head of wagon navigation, and 
 then for about one year in the neighborhood 
 of Jacksonville, Oregon, situated at the head 
 of Rogue River Valley. Mr. Sackett returned 
 to Ohio in the summer of 1855, and in the fall 
 purchased from George Sackett, his brother, 
 the farm upon which he now resides ; the land 
 was then known as the Isaac C. Isbel propertj-, 
 and familiar to most people as the "Copley 
 Swamp." Mr. Sackett was married in the year 
 1857, to Miss Hatty L-., daughter of Henry 
 Galbraith, of Akron ; he is the father of four 
 children — Clarence, died, aged 18 ; Hattie, 
 
^w 
 
 COPLEY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1037 
 
 died, aged G ; Ina, died, aged 4 ; William A., 
 his only living child, is now a student of the 
 Akron High Schools ; he was born in March, 
 1866. 
 
 J. _W. SWIGAllT, farmer ; P. O. Copley 
 Center ; was born in Lawrence Township, 
 Stark Co., Ohio, Oct. 16, 1836. He is the son 
 of Jacob and Abigail Swigart, who were parents 
 of four children — John W., George S., Alfred J. 
 and Maggie C. In 1847, the Swigart famil}' 
 moved to Summit Co., Bath Tow'nship, and the 
 family home has been there ever since. John 
 W. lived with his parents until he was 21 years 
 of age, and, June 10, 1858, he was united in 
 marriage with Sarah J. Stump, who was born 
 Aug. 24, 1837. To this union there were born 
 seven children — Alfred, born April 10, 1859 ; 
 Charles E., Dec. 10, 1861 ; Clara J., Oct. 7, 
 1864 ; Mary E., June 13, 1867 ; William W., 
 Oct. 4, 1870 ; John C, Oct. 15, 1873, and Stella 
 M., Aug. 23, 1879. When Mr. Swigart arrived 
 at his majority, he purchased a farm in Bath 
 Township, where he remained six 3'ears, farm- 
 ing during the summer and teaching school 
 during the winter. In the spring of 1864, he 
 came to Copley Township, and has remained in 
 different localities ever since. Mr. Swigart is 
 a Democrat in politics, and an earnest advocate 
 of the advancement of education. He and wife 
 are members of the Reformed Church at Cop- 
 ley Center. 
 
 CHARLES TAYLOR, farmer ; P. 0. Copley 
 Center ; was born in Copley Township, Sum- 
 mit Co., Ohio, Feb. 27, 1834. He is a son of 
 Theodore and Matilda (Hoyt) Taylor, who were 
 parents of thirteen children, of whom the fol- 
 lowing only are living: Daniel, Charles, Ophelia, 
 Joseph and Ellen. The fathei', Theodore, was 
 born in Connecticut, in 1801. In 1818, in 
 company' with his parents, he came to Norton 
 Township, and two years after their arrival his 
 father died. In 1827, he was married to Miss 
 Hoyt, and soon after this event moved to Cop- 
 ley, where they remained until their respective 
 deaths. The father died Aug. 11, 1862, and 
 the mother Dec. 23, 1880. Charles Taylor re- 
 mained with his parents, assisting them on the 
 farm, until 20 years of age. In October, 1855, 
 he was united in marriage with Sophronia Cook, 
 daughter of Edmund Cook, after which he re- 
 moved to St. Joseph Co., Mich. He remained 
 here about a year and then returned to Cople}-, 
 where he has ever since made his home. To 
 
 Mr. Taylor's union there was born the following 
 family : Charles M., Emma, Lewis C, Fietta 
 and Mary. He has a nice home, on part of 
 Lots 27 and 34. He is an intelligent gentle- 
 man, and a Republican in politics. 
 
 PETER WEEKS (deceased), was born in 
 Gilmantou, N. H., Jan. 29, 1793. He was one 
 in the following famil}- born to John and Han- 
 nah (Mood}') Weeks — Levitt, Peter, Abigail, 
 Dorothea, Mood}', Celestia, Matthias and Mary, 
 the 3'oungest being the onl}' surviving member 
 of the family. Peter remained with his parents 
 at the place of his birth until about the age of 
 25, and then, in compan}' with Abel Bennett, 
 moved westward, locating in Wadsworth, Me- 
 dina Co., Ohio. They were among the earliest 
 settlers of that neighborhood, and coming as 
 they did, with their knowledge of the carpenter 
 ancl joiner business, they proved a valuable 
 addition to the settlement. Two years after 
 his arrival in Wadsworth, Mr. Weeks' two 
 brothers, Levitt and Mood}', arrived, and the 
 three brothers then formed a partnership in the 
 carpentering business, the firm taking the name 
 of Weeks Bros., and this firm erected nearly all 
 the buildings of Wadsworth prior to 1832. In 
 November, 1821, Peter Weeks and Alathea 
 Taylor w-ere united in marriage. This lady 
 died, and his second wife was Catharine Fran- 
 cisco, daughter of Henry Francisco, and by her 
 had three children, as follows — Alathea, born 
 Nov. 1, 1863, died in infancy ; Martha L., June 
 1, 1866, died June 16, 1878. and Charles P., 
 born Sept. 1, 1870. Besides his own family, Mr. 
 Weeks reared three of Levitt's children, who 
 were left motherless when quite small, and two 
 of Moody's children, who were left orphans in 
 childhood. Mr. AYeeks came to Copley Town- 
 ship in 1832, locating on Lot No. 23. He was 
 a hard-working, industrious man. He was 
 kind and sympathetic in his family duties, and 
 always gentlemanly and courteous in his inter- 
 course with neighbors. He early in life identi- 
 fied himself with the Disciples" Church, and. in 
 his religious duties, was always prompt. He 
 came to Ohio with no property, but by honest 
 and upright dealings left 500 acres of excellent 
 land at "his death. In 1872, he commenced 
 suffering with heart disease, which finally 
 terminated in his death Nov. 2, 1873. On his 
 80th birthday, friends to the number of one 
 hundred gathered in to celebrate the event, 
 and, in his latter hours, Mr. Weeks recalled 
 
 ■fv" 
 
1038 
 
 BIOGllAPrilCAL SKETCHES: 
 
 this scene with a happy heart to think he had 
 so many friends who were so much interested 
 in his welfare. But thus it is, one by one 
 the old landmarks are fast fading awa}-, but 
 the hope of the present generation is to record 
 the events of these old pioneers that in years 
 to come their names and deeds will not be for- 
 gotten, but treasured up, and, in after years, 
 prove an honor to their families. 
 
 WILLIAM WAGGONER, farmer; P. 0. 
 Copley Center; was born in Schoharie Co., N. 
 Y., Nov. 13, 1829, and is one of the following 
 family born to William and Catharine (Spahr) 
 Waggoner : Andrew (dead), John (dead), Chris- 
 tina (dead), Anna, Almira, Peter (dead), and 
 Amanda and Matilda, twins (dead). In 1835, 
 our subject and parents came to Copley Town- 
 ship, Summit Co., Ohio, and their first settle- 
 ment was on Pigeon Creek. They remained 
 here in a log cabin one year and then removed 
 to Lot 38, about a mile south of the Center. 
 Mr. Waggoner has at different times served in 
 the capacity of stone-mason, but at the time of 
 his second removal in Copiej- Township, up to 
 the time of his death, his chosen occupation 
 was coopering. Our subject lived with his 
 parents until he was 20 years of age, and then 
 went to Akron and learned the bricklayer's 
 trade, which he has followed to a considerable 
 extent since during the summer seasons and 
 teaching school during the winter. In April, 
 1857, he married Ann B. Stearn, and he and 
 wife went to Iowa, where they remained seven 
 years, he working at his trade. In 18G4, they 
 returned to Copley Township, where our sub- 
 ject has made his home ever since. Mrs. Wag- 
 goner died Nov. 15, 1863. In December, 1863, 
 he enlisted his services in his country's behalf, 
 and served until the close of the war, partici- 
 pating in the battles of Franklin, Nashville and 
 many others. At the close of the war he went 
 to Akron to work at his trade until he married 
 Lydia A. Randolph. This event took place 
 March 4, 1869. They then moved to Copley. 
 Mr. Waggoner owns 96 acres of land ; is a Re- 
 publican in politics, and is highly esteemed by 
 those who know him. 
 
 , JOHN WYLIE, farmer; P. 0. x\kron ; was 
 born in Washington Co., Penn., Dec. 25, 1809, 
 and is the only child of John and Sarah (Hewitt) 
 Wylie. When 3 5'ears of age, John's parents 
 died and he then went to live in Stark Co., 
 Ohio, with his uncle, Henry Everhard, who was 
 
 appointed his guardian. His uncle was the 
 owner of a mill, and young Wylie was reared 
 to the milling trade ; he received a good com- 
 mon-school education, and when he became of 
 age, commenced milling, which business he fol- 
 lowed many 3'ears afterward. In September, 
 1833, he married Ruemma Gaff, daughter of 
 James Gaff, and l)y her had six children — 
 Amanda, died in infancy ; Sarah J. ; Elizabeth, 
 died in childhood ; Paul, dead ; Theron G. and 
 Minerva, xifter his marriage, Mr. Wylie car- 
 ried on the milling business in Springfield and 
 Coventry Townships, in Summit Co., Ohio,* un- 
 til 1855. He then discontinued milling and 
 removed to Lot 16, in Copley Township, same 
 county, and has made that his home ever since. 
 His son Paul served with distinction in the 
 late war as Color Bearer in Company H, 104th 
 0. V. I. He served three years and was in a 
 number of engagements. Mrs. Wj'lie died April 
 14, 1859 ; Mr. Wylie's second wife is Jane 
 A3^ers, widow of Orin H. Ayers, who had one 
 son, Mervin, by Mr. Ayers. This son was one 
 of the brave bo3's in the 6th Ohio Battery that 
 gave such efficient service. He finally died of 
 disease at Chattanooga Tenn. Mr. W^die is a 
 stanch Republican in his political views, and is 
 an honorable, upright man in ever}- respect. 
 
 GEORGE W. WISE (deceased). A native 
 of Summit County, and a prominent and in- 
 fluential citizen of Wadsworth, Medina Count}-, 
 for many years ; born in Green Township 
 November 17, 1828, and died December 28, 
 1879. He moved to Medina County when a 
 young man, and purchased a farm near Wads- 
 worth ; was also engaged in business at that 
 place. He erected a number of buildings in 
 the village, among which were the schoolhouse 
 and Odd Fellows' Block. He served as Town- 
 ship Trustee, was chosen to other minor offices, 
 and elected Commissioner of Medina County ; 
 was connected with various societies, among 
 which were the Masons, Odd Fellows, Good 
 Templars and Knights of Honor. In April, 
 1871, he moved to Michigan with his family, 
 and located in Isabella Co., being one of the pio- 
 neer settlers of Wise Township, which was 
 named in his honor. He served there as Jus- 
 tice of the Peace and Tax Collector ; was en- 
 gaged in the lumber business and kept a store. 
 For about twenty years, he was a partner with 
 E. G. Loomis, both at Wadsworth and in Michi- 
 gan. Mr. Wise was married, June 1, 1861, to 
 
 ^^ 
 
TWINSBURG TOWXSHIP. 
 
 1039 
 
 Miss Electa M. Pettibone ; they were the par- 
 ents of three children — George Grant, born Dec. 
 16, 1865 ; Nettie P., born Aug. 18, 1868, and 
 William Dennison, born June 4, 1870. After 
 Mr. Wise's death, the family returned to Summit 
 Co., and now reside in Copley Township. Mrs. 
 Wise is the daughter of Dennison and Jane (Bar- 
 ber) Pettibone. The Pettibones are of French 
 descent, their ancestors having left France during 
 the Revolution, and after staying in England a 
 few years removed to xlmerica. Dennison was 
 born Oct. 22, 1807, in Hartford, Conn.; the son of 
 Norman and Amelia (Whitmore) Pettibone ; he 
 was married Feb. 26, 1834, to Jane Barber, 
 who was born Nov. 6, 1816. After residing in 
 Norton Township over thirty years, Dennison 
 died, Jan. 18, 1872, leaving four children — 
 Pamelia, now Mrs. Colbetzor, of Copley ; Electa 
 M., now Mrs. G. W. Wise ; Phebe Ellen, now 
 now Mrs. Albert Beach, and Jared B., of Akron. 
 CHARLES F. ZIEGLER, miller, Copley 
 Center ; sole owner and proprieter of Copley 
 Mill. This gentleman was born in Germany in 
 1831. When but a small lad he came to the 
 United States, which has since been his home. 
 He was raised and educated in Philadelphia, 
 and when a young man removed to New Jer- 
 
 sey, and in 1862 came to Ohio, locating in 
 Wadsworth, Medina Co. In 1866, Mr. Ziegler 
 purchased the Copley Mill, paying for the same 
 $3,300. The mill at this time was in a very poor 
 condition. Mr. Ziegler immediately commenced 
 renovating and improving the property, making 
 additions as his means increased, placing in an 
 almost new engine, until he now owns one of 
 the best mills in western Summit Co. Under 
 Mr. Ziegler's management, this mill turns out a 
 brand of the best quality of Hour, and the mill 
 has quite an extensive run of custom grinding. 
 Since coming to Copley, Mr. Ziegler has pur- 
 chased, besitles his mill property, a nice lot of 
 land of 7 acres, on which he has erected a fine 
 house at a cost of $1,500. While living in 
 Wadsworth he married Lovina Yoder, and this 
 couple have one son, Charles, who lives with 
 his parents. Mr. Ziegler started in life a poor 
 bo}'. At about the age of 14 he commenced 
 learning his trade, which he has ever since fol- 
 lowed, giving him an experience that entitles 
 him to the name of being one of the best mil- 
 lers in this count}-. By industr}- and econom}' 
 he has arisen from povert}' to one of ease and 
 comfort. He is an intelligent and enterprising 
 citizen. 
 
 TWINSBURC TOWNSHIP. 
 
 ETHAN ALLING, deceased, whose por- 
 trait appears in this work, was bora in North 
 Milford, Conn., Aug. 13, 1800, and was a son 
 of Lewis and Elizabeth (Clark) Ailing. His 
 education was received by a limited attend- 
 ance at the schools of his neighborhood. In 
 1814, he entered tho gi'oceiy store of Loomis 
 & Johnson, in New Haven, where he remained 
 two years, when the firm failed. In March, 
 1817, he came to Ohio with three hired men 
 for the purpose of improving some land his 
 father had bought in Twinsburg Township, 
 and in Tract 3. They at once commenced 
 preparations for building, IVIr. Ailing thus be- 
 coming the first actual white settler in the 
 town. In July, his father and mother arrived 
 and became settlers. They both died in Sep- 
 tember, 1823. The subject was maiTied, 
 April 24, 1824, to Miss Eliza Blackman, of 
 
 Bridgeport, Conn., who is yet living, and is 
 now (1881) in her 80th year. ]Mr. Ailing 
 opened a tavern in Twinsburg in December', 
 1826, a business he continued for a number 
 of years. He was appointed Postmaster in 
 October, 1827, and, in 1831, he commenced 
 the mercantile business, and, in 1835, built a 
 storehouse, in which he long did a good 
 business, and was finally succeeded by his two 
 eldest sons, Francis and Hoadly, who caiTied 
 on the business imtil their death. 'Sh: Ailing 
 retired from business, and, diu'ing the latter 
 years of his life, lived upon the old home- 
 stead; he died April 22, 1867. He was an 
 active and energetic business man, liberal in 
 his support of chiu'ches and charitable objects, 
 and in public enterprises a leader. By his 
 mairiage there were five childi*en, birt one of 
 whom is now living, viz., E. L. IVIi's. Ailing 
 
-vK 
 
 1040 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES; 
 
 has lived ou the old homestead since her hus- 
 band's death. 
 
 MES. SAEAH C. BENNETT, farming; P. 
 O. Twinsbiu'g; was born in Orange Township, 
 Cuyahoga Co., May 14, 1838, to Almon and 
 Henrietta (Squires) Smith, natives of Connec- 
 ticut, to whom were also born -Almon S., Asher 
 v., Susan H., Orange V., Orville and L^/man. 
 Henrietta was a daughter of Morehouse, whose 
 wife was a Mead. Henrietta came to Mahon- 
 ing Co. about the year 1820, and moved to 
 Orange, Cuyahoga Co., in 1822; her husband 
 died in Orange in 1849. Mrs. Bennett was 
 married, Jan. 27, 1858, to Elam Bennett, whose 
 name she now bears ; he was born in this town- 
 ship, on the farm which she now owns; his par- 
 ents were Henry and Fannie (Streeter) Bennett, 
 natives of the Eastern States. Henry Bennett 
 was one of the early settlers in this township ; 
 he had three sons — Cyrus, Henry S. and Elam. 
 Mr. Bennett's life was spent on the farm on 
 which he settled. He was held in high es- 
 teem by all who knew him. He and his wife 
 were members of the M. E. Church. He died 
 Oct. 14, 1873, and she in May, 1878. Mrs. 
 Sarah Bemiett lived happily with her husband 
 until his death, which occurred Sept. 8, 1871. 
 Since his demise, she has remained on their 
 farm of 175 acres, with her thi'ee sons, Almon 
 C.,Delos H. and Otis. 
 
 Eev. SAMUEL BISSELL, educator. Twins- 
 burg. The ancestors of the above were of 
 English descent, and the family trace them to 
 one John Bissell, who left Somersetshire in 
 ]628, landing in Plymouth in the same year, 
 and, in company with others, went overland 
 to Windsor, on the Connecticut Eiver, where 
 he settled, and from him have sprmig a 
 numerous family. Here was born Israel Bis- 
 sell, who was the grandfather of our subject; 
 he entered the Colonial army, and died of 
 camp distemper, at the age of 45; the same 
 fate came to the grandfather on Samuel's 
 mother's side. Israel Bissell had three sons 
 and towr daughters, viz.: Israel, Justus and 
 Eobert; Eiuiice, Eoxana, Prudence and Anna. 
 Eobert had three sons and two daughters,viz. : 
 Samuel, Eoswell and David; Laura and 
 Bianca. Samuel was born April 28, 1797, in 
 Middlefield, Mass.; he came West with his 
 parents to Ohio in 1806, and settled in Au- 
 
 rora, now Portage Co., which was at that 
 time on the verge of the " Far West." Here 
 his father settled and raised his family amid 
 the wild scenes of that period. .No schools 
 existed here at this time, except those of pri- 
 vation and haixl labor. Up to the year 1816, 
 Samuel assisted his father in clearing up their 
 forest home. Having a burning desire for an 
 education, and, in the absence of proper 
 schools, he began a systematic coiu'se of study, 
 including the classical, and fitted himself for 
 college, and graduated in Yale in 1823 ; two 
 years later, in New Preston, Conn., he was 
 licensed to preach, and retiu-ned to Am-ora, 
 where he engaged in teaching a select school, 
 and, shortly afterward, took charge of a small 
 Congregational Chiu'ch society at Twinsburg, 
 then in a weak and feeble condition, and min- 
 istered to their spiritual wants for about fom*- 
 teen years; the society, in the meantime, grew 
 and prospered. About this time, he gave up 
 his pastorate and resumed teaching, and es- 
 tablished the well-known Twinsburg Institute, 
 a description of which the reader will find in 
 the history of the township in this volume. 
 Since that time, he devoted himself to teach- 
 ing, having had chaj'ge of this institute for 
 fifty-two years, during which time more than 
 6.000 students of both sexes have been under 
 his instruction; among this number were 200 
 Indians, fi'om five different tribes, some of 
 whom have surpassed in scholarship any of 
 the white youth in the institution. It may 
 truthfully be said of Mr. Bissell that, in his 
 labors, he has been unselfish m his ends, not 
 too highly esteeming worldly wealth or hon- 
 ors, but has given his life and labors to bene- 
 fit his fellow-man. Mi-. Bissell was twice 
 married — first, to Fannie A. Gay lord, who 
 died leaving no children ; his present wife was 
 Amelia C. Sikes, born Nov. 28, 1823, in Sum- 
 mers, Tolland Co., Conn.; her parents were 
 Chauncey and Cynthia (Hancock) Sikes ; 
 Chauncey was a son of Abel Sikes, and Cyn- 
 thia was a daughter of Gribson and Eunice 
 (Green) Hancock, all of South Wilbraham. 
 The childi-en of Chauncey and Cynthia were 
 Amelia C, Henry C, Francis, George M., 
 Ealph F., Julia A. and Elizabeth M. Mi-s. 
 Bissell gradviated, June 30, 1850, in the Wes- 
 leyan Academy at Wilbraham, Conn., and for 
 
 *<^ <5" 
 
4 
 
 TWINSBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1041 
 
 many years has been a successful teacher. 
 Ml', and Mrs. Bissell have one daughter — 
 Fannie A. 
 
 H. A. BISSELL, farmer; P. O. Twinsbiu-g; 
 was born March 8, 1847, on the farm where he 
 now lives ; his parents were Cephas and Isabel 
 (Crawford) Bissell; his father was born in 
 Middlefield, Mass., June ^5, 1800, and was the 
 son of Justus, who was a son of Israel Bissell, 
 who was a native of Connecticut. Cephas 
 came West with his parents to what is now 
 Portage Co. in 1806, and settled in Aurora. 
 Feb. 28, 1829, he was married, by Rev. John 
 Seward, to Isabel Crawford, who was born in 
 Orange Co., N. Y., May 20, 1806, to Solomon 
 and Anna Crawford, whose other children were 
 Alexander and Cadwalder. Solomon was 
 bom Feb. 14, 1772, and Anna, his wife, 
 Feb. 24, 1783; they were married March 13, 
 1800. Cephas Bissell spent the early part of 
 his life in Aurora, and removed to the east- 
 em part of Twinsburg To'wnship in 1832, 
 where he lived until his death, which occurred 
 May 18, 1867; his wife still survives him. 
 Their children were Cephas, born in Aurora 
 April 19, 1830, died Sept. 28, 1873, leaving 
 one son, Freddie; Isabel, who was born in 
 Aurora Sept. 20, 1831, and died Dec. 27, 
 1833; Anna, born in Twinsburg Dec. 25, 1840, 
 married Nelson Dodge, and died Jan. 30, 1862. 
 Henry A. was married, Dec. 18, to Anna 
 Nichols, born in this township Feb. 25, 1859; 
 she was the daughter of Oscar A. and Ellen 
 (Hutchinson) Nichols; she bore him one son 
 —Roy H., Sept. 22, 1880. Cephas Bissell, 
 the father of our subject, was regarded in the 
 community as an upright man and worthy 
 citizen; he and wife were both members of 
 the Congregational Church. Henry A. is the 
 only child living; he is engaged in farming 
 and daiiying, and is doing a good business; 
 his farm consists of 415 acres. 
 
 JAIHES BROWN, farmer; P. O. Twins- 
 burg; was born Dec. 1, 1806, in Hampden 
 Co., Mass, to James Brown, whose father's 
 name also was James. The mother of our 
 subject was Orvilla Phelps, of Connecticut; his 
 father, being a poor man, he left home at the 
 tender age of 7, and was buffeted aboiit from 
 place to place until he was 11 years of age, 
 when he was bound out until his majority, 
 
 after which he worked out by the day and 
 month, receiving small compensation for his 
 labor. In his 27th year, he maiTied Eme- 
 line Waterman, daughter of Zebedee, a soldier 
 in the war of the Revolution. Mr. Brown 
 came West in the spring of 1839, to Twins- 
 burg, where he manufactured shoes, which 
 business he had followed to some extent be- 
 fore he came West. In 1841, he purchased 
 the land where he now resides, which then 
 was mostly unimproved. April 14, 1843, his 
 wife died, leaving one daughter — Caroline, 
 now Mi's. John W. Barge, who is a resident 
 of Cleveland. Jan. 10 of the following year, 
 he maiTied Maranda Hanchett, born July 1 , 
 1825, in Yates Co., N. Y., daughter of Seth 
 and Patty Remington Hanchett, who were 
 natives of Connecticut, and removed to Yates 
 Co., N. Y., prior to the war of 1812. To 
 them were born nine childi'en. The family 
 came West to this township in 1833, locating 
 in the southeastern part. 'Mr. Brown, by 
 his last marriage, has one child only — Al- 
 mon James, who perpetuates the family name. 
 To James, the grandfather of our subject, 
 were born James, William, Nicholas, Daniel, 
 Thomas, Lewis, Israel, Petsey and Jennie. 
 To James and Orvilla Phelps were born Hcin- 
 nah, Orvilla, James, Roswell and Almon. 
 Almon James was born Feb. 16, 1846, and, 
 on March 5, 1868, married Miss Danchee, 
 who was bom Dec. 18, 1848, to Harrison and 
 Sylphinia (Nye) Dunchee. Almon J. has one 
 son — James H, bom Dec. 27, 1877. The 
 farm consists of 300 acres, the result of hard 
 labor and rigid economv. 
 
 H. W. CANNON, farmer; P. O. Twinbsurg; 
 born in Blanford Township, Hampden Co., 
 State of Massachusetts, March 5, 1830; was 
 the only child of his parents, Nathan and 
 Elizabeth (Waterman) Cannon, and came 
 West with them to Portage Co. in 1833, and 
 thence to this townshi]i in the following year, 
 where his father pm'chased 80 acres of land 
 on Lots 41 and 42. U])on this place our sub- 
 ject has since resided. His early youth was 
 sjient on the farm and attending school, his 
 education, in his later school-days, being re- 
 ceived under the guai'dianship of Rev. Samuel 
 Bissell, of the Twinsbm-g Institute, where he 
 attended several terms. Since he has grown 
 
 ■oil 
 
 
1042 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 to manliood, lie has conducted the farm, and 
 has been identified with the interests of the 
 township. He has always been a stalwart 
 Republican, and has repeatedly filled impor- 
 tant offices of the township. He has been 
 twice married — first, to Violetta Hamilton, 
 Feb. 1, 1856, daughter of John Hamilton, of 
 Nelson, Madison Co., N. Y. ; she died in May, 
 1862, leaving two children — Clayton and Hat- 
 tie. Jan. 1, 1869, he married Delia Harmon, 
 born in Aurora, Portage Co., Oct. 28, 1838, 
 daughter of Israel and Maria (Benjamin) Har- 
 mon. IVIr. and Mi-s. Cannon are members of 
 the Congregational Chm-ch. They have one 
 child, Julia May. Israel Harmon was born 
 Dec 25, 1808, and died at the age of 72; his 
 wife was born Dec. 2-4, 1814; to them were 
 born five childi'en. Nathan Cannon was a son 
 of Nathan, of English ancestry, his childi'en 
 were Israel, Sylvester, Tryphenia, Ai'tamissa 
 and Salomi. Zebedee Waterman, the gi'and- 
 father of our subject on his mother's side, en- 
 tered the Continental army at the age of 14, 
 and served as teamster. Nathan Camion died 
 Aug. 17, 1869, and his wife Nov. 20, 1879. 
 
 ALBERT CHAPMAN, retired farmer; P. 
 O. Twinsburg; was born April 12, 1812, in 
 Hampden Co., Mass., being the fifth of a fam- 
 ily of nine children of Nathan and Eunice 
 (Parks) Chapman. Nathan was born in Gro- 
 ton, Comi., and was the son of Isaac Chap- 
 man, who was a soldier in the Revolution, and 
 to whom were born Elislia, Abner, Nathan, 
 Isaac, Bradford, Susan, Mary and Thankful. 
 To Nathan and Eunice were born Polly, Bet- 
 sey, Oriel, Albert, Vinson, Norman, Aldin, 
 Carlos and Laura. Albert's father was a first- 
 rate farmer, and raised his sons to become til- 
 lers of the soil. Albert, leaving the parental 
 home about the time he became of age, en- 
 gaged his services by the month, and labored 
 industriously. In 1887, he came West to this 
 State, spending the first year at Kent, Portage 
 Co. ; he afterward went to Clay Co., Ind., 
 where he bought 1()0 acres from the Govern- 
 ment, and, shortly after, purchased 40 more. 
 After nearly six years of pioneer labor, he 
 traded his land for 65 acres in this township, 
 where he removed in 1845. Here he has 
 since resided. He formed a matrimonial 
 alliance with Sarah Eno, born May 15, 1815, 
 
 at East Granby, Hartford Co., Conn., daugh- 
 ter of Gay lord and Azubah (Phelps) Eno; her 
 father was born in East Granby, and was a 
 son of David, who was wounded while a sol- 
 dier in the war of the Revolution; Azubah 
 was a daughter of Azariah, of Welsh descent. 
 Gaylord and Azubah had a family composed 
 of David, Delia, Sarah, Lorenzo, Gaylord, 
 Azubah, Charles, Lydia and Virgil. The 
 worldly result of the labors of Mr. Chapman, 
 assisted by his faithful helpmeet, is 250 acres 
 of land, situated in the northern part of the 
 townshi[), mostly on Lots 5 and 6; they have 
 also valuable property in Cleveland. Since 
 1868, he has been retired from active business, 
 and resides at the Center. They have two 
 children — Nathan A., who married Grace 
 How, having two children, Jennie G. and 
 Albert C; Lydia, who married Ed Johnson, 
 and has also two children — Albert E. and 
 Arthur G. IVIi'. Chapman is a Jiaptist, and 
 his wife a Methodist. 
 
 MRS. MARGARET COCHRANE, farming; 
 P. O. Twinsbm-g; was born Aug. 14, 1824, in 
 Edinbm-gh, Scotland, to William and Isabella 
 (Shaw) Baxter; Mr. Baxter was a tanner by 
 trade, having in charge a tannery in Scotland, 
 the proprietor of which became bankrupt, 
 which threw IVIi-. Baxter oat of employment, 
 when he decided to come to America. Mrs. 
 Cochrane emigrated to this country with her 
 parents when she was 9 years of age; the ship 
 was the Royal Blackbm-n, which was three 
 months in coming across. They came near be- 
 ing wrecked, and at one time were out of pro- 
 visions. The family located at Ravenna, Port- 
 age Co., where he followed his trade two 
 years, and then engaged in farming, which 
 business he followed mitil his death; his first 
 pm-chase was 50 acres at Shalersville, for 
 which he paid $4 per acre; he afterward added 
 64 acres, remaining upon it mitil removed by 
 death, on Feb. 6, 1874; his wife died sud- 
 denly, Aug. 6), 187(5; they were members of 
 the Established Church; they had fom- chil- 
 dren — James, in Ravenna; Isabel, now the 
 wife of John Moore, of Kent; Mrs. Cochrane, 
 and David (deceased). June 10, 1845, oxu* 
 subject married David Cochrane, whose name 
 she bears: he was born in Scotland, to John 
 and Mary (Brodie) Cochrane. David came to 
 
 \ 
 
-vi 
 
 TWIXSBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1043 
 
 this country with his parents when it was new, 
 the family locating on what is now Liberty 
 street, this township. INIi'. Cochrane was a 
 farmer, a kind man, and good citizen; he 
 died Nov. 17, 1878, of consumption, having 
 been in poor health for twenty years; the 
 childi'en born to him are ten, viz.: James, 
 Robert, Margaret, Willie, David, Isabella, 
 Maiy and Martha (twins), Almina and John. 
 Mrs. Cochrane still remains on the homestead, 
 owning land in Ravenna and in this township, 
 amounting to nearly 300 acres in all. 
 
 ELMORE TV. CLARK, hotel, Twinsbui-g; 
 was born April 10, 1816, in Watertown, Conn. ; 
 he was one of nine children born to Leverett 
 and Amy (Warner) Clark, their names being 
 Ann, John, William, Burk, Phila, Park B., 
 Mabel, Elmore W. and Leverett. In 1823, 
 Elmore came West with his father, who lo- 
 cated on the south side of the square, pm'chas- 
 ing 10(^ acres of land, paying for it at the 
 time of the pm'chase; when he came, he had 
 $1,000 in money, which was considered a very 
 large amou.nt at that time, its possessor being 
 looked upon as a rich man. At the age of 17, 
 iVIi'. Clark engaged as clerk to Ethan Ailing 
 at this place, I'emaining with him three years ; 
 he afterward spent some time in the South, 
 engaged in the mauTifacture of lumber, boat- 
 ing the same to New Orleans; next, he went 
 to Willoughby, where he clerked thi-ee years, 
 after which, for a period of thi-ee years, he 
 was engaged in the mercantile business at 
 Drakesbm'g, Portage Co.; Oct. 12, 1842, he 
 was married to Ai-villa Carver, who was born 
 at Whitehall, Washington Co., N. Y. ; Oct. 6, 
 1823, to Bernice and Rachel (Collier) Carver. 
 Since 1855, Mr. Clark has been engaged in 
 the hotel business at this place, and is an effi- 
 cient and popular landlord. Of five children 
 born to him, three are living, viz.: Bela B., 
 Stella (the wife of O. P. Nicholds, of this 
 township) and Etta M. Bela B. was married 
 to Alice Pratt, born in this county to M. D. 
 and Amanda (Hull) Pratt, who were early set- 
 tlers in Copley Township. Elmore W. was 
 elected Justice of the Peace in 1876, serving 
 one term. Bela B. was his successor, which 
 position he yet retains. For many years, Mr. 
 Clark has been a member of the JMasonic fi'a- 
 ternity. Bela B. is a member of Summit 
 
 Lodge, No. 213, and Summit Chapter, R. A. 
 M., No. 74. 
 
 EZRA CLARK, retired farmer; P. O. 
 Twinsburg; son of Ezra and Naomi Williams; 
 was born March 25, 1807, in Saybrook, Mid- 
 dlesex Co., Conn.; his father was a son of 
 Paul, whose father was William, who, with 
 two brothers, came from England and settled 
 in Saybrook. Sarah Wheeler was the wife 
 of Paul, who served in the war of the Revo- 
 lution; their children were Sarah, Jesse, Asa, 
 Betsey, Irene, Eliza and John (twins), Benja- 
 min and Adah. Bemen, George, Peter and 
 Paul were the offspring of William. To Ezra 
 and Naomi were born Ezra, Gilbert, Fannie, 
 Rufus, Dianah, Mary, Norman and Hem-y. 
 Ezra came West with his mother and step- 
 father in 1821; they made the journey with 
 two yoke of oxen, and by one horse, and were 
 thirty days in coming; they located on the 
 Wilcox Tract, Lot No. 10, for which he had 
 traded his land in Connecticut. In Septem- 
 ber, 1831, Ezra was married to Lucy Web- 
 ster, who was born in Washington Co., Ohio; 
 she died Feb. 19, 1874, leaving four children, 
 viz.: Celia, Mrs. Seymour S. Fowler, of 
 Franklin Co., Penn.; Clarissa N., INIrs. Edwin 
 Betts, in Hamden, Geauga Co.; Harrison L., 
 same county; Emma M., Mrs. Edgar Betts, 
 Hamden, Geauga Co., Ohio. Mr. Clai'k was 
 married, Dec. 6, 1874., to Maiy C. Wright, 
 who was born March 20, 1821, in Saybrook; 
 she was the daughter of Joseph and Ii'ene 
 (Clark) Dennison; Irene was a daughter of 
 Paul and Sarah (Wheeler) Clark. To Joseph 
 and Irene were born Louisa, Charles, Sylvia 
 and Maiy; Joseph died in 1838, and his wife 
 in 1835. Mr. Clark's fii'st purchase of land 
 was in the northern part of the township; this 
 he sold soon after, and made his permanent 
 settlement on Lots \) and 16; he and wife are 
 members of the M. E. Church, and he is a 
 consistent Republican. 
 
 ERASTUS DANIELS, farmer; P. O. 
 Twinsburg; son of Lemuel C. and Eunice 
 (Young) Daniels; was born in August, 1824, 
 in Middlesex Co., Conn.; he was raised to 
 farming in his early boyhood, which business 
 proved distasteful to him, and he learned the 
 wagon-maker's trade. Of the children born 
 to Lemuel and Eunice Daniels, were Aristar- 
 
 :r^ 
 
4^ 
 
 _2) i> 
 
 1044 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 chus, Setb, Levi, Amasa, Edmund, Harriet, 
 Rosetta, Esther A. and Euncie. In 1S4U, 
 Erastus came West, to this township with h.s 
 brother Levi, piu'chasing 105 acres of E. Car- 
 ver, on Lot 14, for which they paid $3,000; 
 for about fifteen years they followed their 
 trade, in connection with farming. Jan. 9, 
 1800, he married Wealthy Matthews, who 
 came West in 1853; she was born June 20, 
 1830, in St. Lavn'ence Co., N. Y., and was the 
 daughter of Jolm Matthews, who was born in 
 January, 1807, in Hamilton Co., Vt.; her fa- 
 ther was a son of Joseph, who was born on 
 Cape Cod Aug. 10, 1772, and was a Sea Cap- 
 tain; he died Dec. 0, 1845; his wife was a 
 Hall. The mother of Mrs. Daniels, prior to 
 her marriage was Delulia Thompson; their 
 marriage was solemnized Jan. 1, 1827, and 
 her death occurred Sept. 20, 1840; the Mat- 
 thews family are of English ancestry; the 
 children born to John and Delulia Matthews 
 were as follows: Louisa, Mary, Martha, Ame- 
 lia, George, Wealthy, Harriet and Alma. To 
 Mr. and IVIi's. Daniels have been born one 
 child- -Minnie G. ; they are members of the 
 Congregational Church; in politics, he is Re- 
 publican, yet no politician; his farm, consist- 
 ing of 105 acres, is situated nearly one mile 
 south of the Center; his brother Levi died in 
 February, 1805, and was unmarried. 
 
 S. FREEIVIAN, physician, Twinsburg. 
 Among the successful practitioners of materia 
 medica in this county who are self-made, and 
 who have justly merited the success gained, is 
 Dr. Freeman, who was born in Painesville Oct. 
 1, 1880, to Jeduthan and Sally (Edison) 
 Freeman; Jeduthan's father bore the same 
 name as himself, and was of piu-e English 
 stock; his children were Jesse R., Calvin, 
 Russell, Moody, Jeduthan, Lucy and Keziah; 
 Jeduthan was a soldier in the war of 1812; 
 was a blacksmith by trade, which vocation the 
 Doctor became thoroughly versed in during 
 his minority; having a love for the science of 
 medicine, he began a course of reading while 
 at work at his trade; he took his first 
 course of lectures in the school of homoeo- 
 pathy in Cleveland, and his last in Chicago; 
 he began practice in 1858 in this township, 
 and has since continued, having a large 
 practice. 
 
 Dr. L. G. GRISTE, physician, Twinsburg. 
 The Griste family descended from John Griste, 
 the great-great-grandfather of our subject, 
 who came from England to America in 1720, 
 and settled in Norwich, Conn. ; he had three 
 children, among whom was John, Jr., born 
 July 31, 1734, married Delight Lathrop, had 
 the following childi'en: George, Charlotte, 
 John and Eunice. George was born Aug. 
 14, 1772, and married Lois Bradner; had 
 thirteen children, among whom was John B. 
 Griste, the father of our subject, born Nov. 
 13, 1811; married Louisa Hale Aug. 31, 1837; 
 was born April 3, 1813. The fruits of this 
 union was two children — Perry O. and Luman 
 G. Obed Hale, the grandfather of L. G.,was 
 born in Enfield, Conn., Oct. 29, 1740. His 
 wife was a Mindevell by name, born in Mass- 
 achusetts May 10, 1741. The Hales are de- 
 scendents of Sir Matthew Hale, the Jurist. 
 John B. Griste came to Ohio in 1833; was a 
 carpenter by ti-ade, he died Aug. 11, 1807; 
 his wife yet survives him. The Doctor was 
 raised to farming, but, at the age of 19, began 
 reading medicine Aug. 7, 1 802. Enlisted in 
 Co. E, 105th O. V. I. ; after serving in several 
 hotly-contested battles was wounded in the 
 hand, losing his third finger by gunshot. 
 Was discharged Feb. 24, 1804, on account of 
 disability. In November, 1807, married Zil- 
 pha Freeman, born April 0, 1840, in Chagrin 
 Falls; daughter of Jeduthan and Sarah (Edi- 
 son) Freeman. He was born June 9, 1808, 
 in New York; son of Jeduthan of English 
 stock. Sarah Edison was a daughter of Levi 
 and Clarrisa (Moulton) Edison; he was a son 
 of Levi, born in Tolland Co., Conn. His 
 wife was Mary Blodgett; Levi was in the 
 war of 1812, and the father of seven childi-en. 
 To Levi and Clarissa were born twelve chil- 
 dren. In 1809, the Doctor graduated at East- 
 man's College at Poughkeepsie. Served as 
 Town Clerk six years, when he resigned and 
 attended lectures at the College of Homoeop- 
 athy at Cleveland. In 1874, began the prac- 
 tice of medicine in Twinsburg, where he has 
 a lucrative practice. Has two children — Le- 
 Mars and Ethel L. 
 
 MRS. LUCIA HAWKINS, farming; is 
 the relict of Joseph A. Hawkins, who was 
 born March 7, 1805, in Litchfield Co., Conn.; 
 
\hL 
 
 TWINSBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1045 
 
 his father was a native of England, and upon 
 his arrival in America, settled in East Wind- 
 sor, Conn. His children were named Joseph, 
 Hannah and Grant. At the outbreak of the 
 war of 1812, he went out to battle; he died 
 about the year 1817, leaving his wife with 
 seven children, and in straitened circum- 
 stances. Joseph came West about the year 
 1829 to Hudson Township. Dec. 15, 1831, 
 he married Lucia Pond, who was born March 
 5, 1815, in Winchester, Conn. Preston and 
 Esther (Whedon) Pond, both natives of Con- 
 necticut. The family came West in 1818, 
 with their ox team, and her father's first loca- 
 tion was on Lot 14, in Twinsbm'g Township; 
 he was among the first, aii'ivals, there being 
 but about five families in the township at that 
 time. Lucia was one of eight children, viz., 
 Lucia, Harriet, Mary, Sarah, Laura, Julius, 
 Julia and Lewis. Mr. Pond remained in this 
 township but a few years, and then removed 
 to Hudson, where he died about the year 1833. 
 His companion reached the ripe age of 85. 
 He was a good man, upright and conscien- 
 tious in his dealings, and although not a 
 member of any ecclesiastical order, yet he 
 lived a Christian life. After the marriage of 
 Mr. and IVIrs. Hawkins; they lived in Hudson 
 until 1837, when they moved to the southeast- 
 em part of this township, and engaged in 
 farming. In his early life, he served as Cap- 
 tain in the militia, afterward as Colonel. He 
 was the fii'st to introduce the stock of Devon- 
 shire cattle in this township. Mi\ Hawkins 
 died Aug. 12, 1873, having at the time of his 
 death -lOO acres of land. The farm was first 
 settled by Lewis Ailing. IVIi-. Hawkins was a 
 member of the Congi'egational Church, of 
 which his wife is an active representative. 
 There are two sons — Albert W. and Alfred; 
 A. W. resides on homestead. 
 
 CHAUNCEY LANE, farmer; P. O. Twins- 
 biu-g; was born Aug. 31, 1803, in Middlesex 
 Co., Conn., and was the son of Phillip Lane, 
 who was born in Killingworth Jan. 9, 1766, 
 and was mairied, November, 1795, to Rebina, 
 who was bom Nov. 26, 1770, in the same 
 county. To them were born Luman, Hemy 
 and Harry, Lovina, Chauncey, Julius, Abner, 
 Harriet, Nathan and Polly. The parents of 
 the above died in Killingworth Jan. 11, 1851, 
 
 and June 2, 1850, respectively. Phillip was 
 a son of Joseph, whose father was John, the 
 son of Robert, who emigi-ated from England 
 about the year 1670. Chauncey remained at 
 home until he passed his majority, when he 
 came West in November, 1828. In Februaiy 
 of the following year, he purchased 1 00 acres 
 of land for $300, on Lot 12. May 31, 1837, 
 he married Phebe Bailey, born Jan, 20, 1811, 
 in Groton, New London Co., Conn., to Asher 
 and Abigail (Smith) Bailey, her father having 
 been born in the same place in December, 
 1775. He was a son of John, who was one of 
 three brothers, who came from England and 
 settled in Connecticut. Abigail was a daugh- 
 ter of Samuel Smith, who was 16 years of age 
 at the time of the battle of Fort Griswold in 
 Revolutionary times. The Baileys were 
 Congregationalists, and the Smiths Baptists. 
 Mrs. Lane came West to Geauga Co. with her 
 brother in 1836; her parents followed soon 
 after, and settled in Munson, same coimty. 
 Two childi-en Chauncey P. and Caroline, were 
 born to Mr. and Mrs. Lane. C. P. now re- 
 sides on the fai'm where he was born Jan. 14, 
 1844. He married Mary E. Ames, a native 
 of Vermont, and has three children — Carrie, 
 Frank and Eddie, who is now serving as 
 Justice of the Peace. Caroline resides in 
 Minnesota, the wife of Hon. William Fowler. 
 INIr. Lane has a good fai'm of nearly 100 
 acres. 
 
 ORRIS LEACH, farmer; P. O. Twinsburg; 
 son of Daniel and Anna R. (Bissell) Leach; 
 was born Oct. 18, 1818, among the hills of 
 Hampshire Co., Mass. His father wi^s a son 
 of Daniel, Sr., whose sons were Daniel, Ii-a, 
 Joseph and Isaiah. Anna Bissell was a 
 daughter of Justus, who served in the war of 
 the Revolution. The Bissell family have all 
 descended from one John, who came from 
 Somersetshire, England, to America in 1628. 
 The parents of Orris died when he was in his 
 minority. His father was a farmer, and was 
 also engaged in the milling business. At the 
 age of 23, Orris came West to Am-ora, where 
 he engaged at fm-m labor. April 28, 1850, he 
 man-ied Sallie M. Blair, who was born A.ng. 
 21, 1819, in Aurora; she was a daughter of 
 Isaac and Rebecca (Taylor) Blair, who were 
 among the eai-ly pioneers of that county. Isaac 
 
 ^ r. 
 
1046 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 Blair was a son of Isaac and Bathsheba 
 (Frost) Blair, to whom were born ten children 
 —Matthew, Elijah, Elam and Eli (twins), 
 Isaac, Bohan, Mollie, Julia, Anna and Ke- 
 becca. To Isaac and Eebecca Taylor Blair 
 were born Maiy A., Milton, Emily, Sallie, 
 Carroll, Jane, Louisa, Emeline and Annilla. 
 Isaac served in the war of 1812. Mr. Leach 
 came to Twinsbm'g in 1851, and for several 
 years was engaged in trading. He moved to 
 his present home in 1870, and has over 100 
 acres of land where he resides; he also owns 
 05 acres in Michigan. Mrs. Leach was for 
 twenty-three years a teacher, and taught 
 eleven years in one place. Their children are 
 — Addie, Mrs. L. Hawkins; Bride, Mrs F. L. 
 Haggett; and Manly. 
 
 HENRY LIVINGSTON, cheese manufact- 
 urer, Twinsburg; son of Hemy and Nancy 
 (Lacore) Livingston; was born April 20, 1830, 
 in Watertown, Jefferson Co., N. Y. His 
 father was a son of Henry Livingston, Sr., 
 who was born in Ai'magh on the Emerald Isle. 
 Nathaniel was the father of Nancy, he had 
 born to him Nancy, Margaret, Luke, Cleantha, 
 Champion and Jerusha. Henry, the father of 
 oiu- subject, was born about the year 178(), in 
 Ireland, and emigrated to New York in the 
 early part of the present century. He was an 
 Irishman, born of a highly respected family 
 who were among the intelligent class, ranking 
 high in social position. He was identified 
 prominently with the interests both of a local 
 and general character. As a Freemason he 
 ranked high, having advanced fi'om the Blue 
 Lodge to the orders of Knighthood. To him 
 were born seven children, viz., Margaret, 
 Sarah, Henry, J. A., John W., Jane and Will- 
 iam. The family came West to Cleveland 
 Sept. 10, 1837, where the father died soon 
 after. At the age of 10, Hemy learned the 
 shoemaker's trade at this place. Dec. 25, 
 1850, he was married to Laiu-a Done, born in 
 this township May 23, 1832, and the daughter 
 of A. B. and Maria Done, who were from 
 Connecticut, and came West about 1820. 
 Aiig. 29, 1804, he enlisted in Co. E, 177th O. 
 V. I., and served until the close of the war. 
 Fpon his return home, he resumed his former , 
 occu])ation. About the year 1808, he engaged 
 in the manufactiu-e of cheese at this place. 
 
 He has but one child — Ella M., who is now 
 the wife of George L. Fuller, of this town- 
 ship. Two others died — Russell H., at 17; 
 and Laura A., 2 years of age. Mr. L. is a 
 member of Summit Lodge, A., F. & A. M., 
 No. 213, and Siimmit Chapter, R. A. M., No. 
 74. He is in politics a Democrat. 
 
 J. W. McINTOSH, retired farmer; P. O. 
 Twinsburg; is one of the early settlers on 
 Liberty street; he was born Feb. 4, 1805, in 
 Trumbull Co., this State; son of Pascal and 
 Abi (Clark) Mcintosh. He was a son of 
 Ebenezer, whose birth j)lace was Scotland, 
 and emigrated to the Eastern States prior to 
 the Revolutionary war, in which he was an act- 
 ive participant. To him were born Betsey, 
 Pascal, Moses, John and Daniel. Ebenezer's 
 wife was a Marvel prior to her marriage. 
 Pascal was born in New Hampshire, received 
 a collegiate education at Yale, and was a man 
 of superior ability. He came W^est about the 
 year 1799; first to the mouth of Chagrin 
 River, where he lived about two years; then 
 moved to Mantua, where he kept bachelor's 
 hall for some time. Abi was a daughter of 
 Ephraim, whose children were Isaac. Eph- 
 raim, Acenath, Rachel, Abi, Polly, Hannah, 
 Pascal. The father of the above died in 
 Mantua Townshij) ; for many }^ears he has been 
 a substantial member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church. His superior education made 
 him a useful member of the society in which 
 he lived, and of which he was ever a loved and 
 honored member. John W. left home at 22, 
 and learned the carpenter and joiner's trade, 
 at which he worked for several years. At the 
 age of 24, he married Olive Fends, who was 
 born March 11, 1814, in Suffield, Portage Co., 
 to Granderson and Mary (Card) Ferris. Her 
 mother was born in Portage Co., and her 
 father in Virginia; he was a son of John, 
 who married Jerusha Lockwood. Mary Card 
 was a daughter of Silas Card. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Mcintosh came to this township in September, 
 1831. He built his cabin about forty rods 
 south of his present residence, " all woods " at 
 this time, and game very abundant ; he killed, 
 one afternoon, three deer and two turkeys. 
 They had several children, all of whom are 
 deceased; biat two lived to be grown, viz., 
 Mary, who married David Riley, and died 
 
 ¥ 
 
TWINSBURG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 10-47 
 
 leaving two children — Randolph and Mary. 
 Alexander, who died at the age of 19, was a 
 young man of miich promise. He was a stu- 
 dent imder James A. Garfield at Hiram, and 
 before his death prophesied that Garfield 
 would be President. 
 
 A. L. NELSON, merchant, Twinsbm-g; only 
 son of Salmon C. and Mary (Thompson) Nel- 
 son, was born Dec. 8, 1827, in Hebron, Wash- 
 ington Co., N. Y. Salmon was born June 11, 
 1804, in Washington Co., and was the son of 
 Moses, whose father was John Nelson. Moses 
 Nelson married Chloe Carver, who bore him 
 Salmon, Mary, Silas, Fannie, Harley, Daniel, 
 Almira and Eliza J. Mary Thompson, the 
 mother of A. L., was born Nov. 2, 1807, in 
 North Granville, N. Y., to James and Catha- 
 rine (Kelleyham) Thompson. Her father was 
 born in England, her mother in Ireland. 
 They died when she was quite young, hence 
 she knew but little concerning their history 
 or origin. Mrs. Nelson was married to Sal- 
 mon C. Dec. 30, 1826. They came West in 
 1833, locating in this township and engaged 
 in farming, remaining until he was removed 
 by death. April 7, 1866. He was a man 
 highly respected in the community, and pos- 
 sessed kind and generous impulses. She still 
 survives him. A. L. was married, June 12, 
 1853, to Belvia A. Smith, a native of the 
 Empire State, daughter of George B. Smith, 
 who married Clara Everest. In 1853, Mr. 
 Nelson engaged in biTsiness at this place, and 
 has since continued. He is a successful and 
 reliable business man. He was for several 
 years Postmaster. He keeps a general store, 
 composed of such things as are I'equired in 
 the farming community. Although not a 
 member of any chiu'ch society, he is not un- 
 kindly disposed toward any ecclesiastical order, 
 and in bestowing charity where it is needed, 
 he is not found wanting. 
 
 JUNIA NORTH, retired, Twinsbiu-g; was 
 born in Litchfield Co., Conn., April 30, 1796. 
 He was the son of Junia and grandson of 
 Noah North, whose ancestors came fi'om 
 Fai-mington, England. Noah North's wife, 
 whose maiden name was Looms, bore him three 
 sons and two daughters. To the father of 
 om- subject were born Roxania. Tryphenia, 
 Ariel, Ruba, Willard, Sabrina, Junia, Lm-a, 
 
 Lorain, and Frederick and Philomelia (twins). 
 Mr. North who was laised a farmer, came 
 West in the spring of 1823, and lived in 
 Braceville the first year; the year following 
 he piu-chased with $1,500 100 acres on Lot 24, 
 in this townshif). April, 1824, he married 
 Lovina Meriam, who taught the fii*st school 
 in the township. She came West with her 
 uncle, who settled in Hudson as early as 
 1802. Mr. North remained on his farm from 
 the time of his marriage until about the year 
 1862. His wife died leaving seven children. 
 Mr. North's present wife was Mrs. Mary 
 Knapp, whose maiden name was Wolcott. 
 His home and chui'ch, to which he was greatly 
 devoted, are at the Center. For sixty-five 
 years he has been a member and one of the 
 pillars of the Regular Baptist Chm-ch, and 
 was one of the six who formed the church 
 body at the time of its organization in the 
 township, and has filled the office of Deacon 
 for many years. Far advanced in yeai's, he 
 is nevei-theless remarkably well preserved, 
 and, like a shock of gi'ain fully ripe and fit 
 for its master's use, he stands ready awaiting 
 His call. 
 
 HORACE NORTON, retired farmer; P. O. 
 Twinsbui'g; youngest son of Aaron Norton, 
 was born June 10, 1808, in Otsego Co., N. Y. 
 His father was born July 3, 1751, in Killings 
 worth, Conn., and served as a soldier in the Rev- 
 olution. He was twice manied — first to Eunice 
 Rutty, and moved to Pittsfield, Mass. ; thence 
 to New York, where he mai'ried Lydia Hutch- 
 inson. He has ten children, viz., Uriah, Sel- 
 den, Eber, Lebbeus, Simon, Joseph (by the 
 first marriage); Lydia, Sawyer, William A. 
 and Horace (by last maiTiage). The parents 
 of Horace died suddenly of an epidemic dis- 
 ease, and were bm'ied in one gi'ave. Horace 
 came West to Am-ora, Portage Co.. in the 
 year 1814, with his brother Selden. with 
 whom he lived for several years. "WTien a lad 
 of 8 years, he was sent to mill with oxen and 
 cart to Northamjjton, seventeen miles distant, 
 which jom'ney occupied three days; the first 
 day he reached the mill, sleeping on his sacks : 
 the following day he had his gi-ist gi'ouud, 
 and started home in the afternoon; night 
 coming on he sought lodging of George Pow- 
 ers, and, in the absence of money, pi-offered 
 
 If 
 
1048 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 a portion of his gi'ist, which was not required 
 nor taken; on the following day he reached 
 home. His early life was spent in the woods 
 battling with the monarchs of the forest. 
 For several years he took jobs of clearing, 
 and, at the age of 21, he in one year, chopped 
 25 acres ready for logging, and cleared 10 
 acres ready for wheat. May 14, 1838, he 
 married Miranda Fisk, who was born April 
 13, 1816, at Batavia, N. Y., to Benjamin and 
 Beulah (Lamberton) Fisk. Her father was 
 born in York State Dec. 22, 1787, and her 
 mother in the same State Aug. 22, 1794. He 
 was a son of Benjamin, who served in the war 
 of 181 2, and was sent to Canada as a spy and 
 was poisoned by eating food given him by a 
 woman. The Fisk family came West to 
 Chester, Geauga Co., in 1818. Benjamin 
 Fisk died October, 1872, his wife Jan. 18, 
 1868. To them were born Meranda, Try- 
 phena, Orin, Sophrona, James, Benjamin and 
 Horace. Mr. Norton purchased land in 
 Geauga Co. before his marriage, and sold it ! 
 soon after; then he piu'chased 123 acres upon i 
 which he lived nine years. In 1842, he 
 removed to this township, where he has since 
 lived. He now has 118 acres of land. Of I 
 a family of ten children, he alone is living. I 
 The others died at the average age of 70 ' 
 years. None of the boys were ever intoxicated 
 or went to law; all were hard-working and 
 industrious men, honest and upright in their 
 dealings. Mr. and Mrs. Norton are members 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Chvu-ch. Their 
 children are Paulina, who married J. M. 
 Baker, of Ashtabula Co., Ohio; Cordelia, Mrs. 
 C. Baldwin; Newton, in Michigan, and Mrs. 
 Samuel Crankshaw. 
 
 S. F. OVIATT, farmer; P. O. Hudson; born 
 Nov. 27, 1827, in Hudson Township; was the 
 son of Benjamin and Rhoda (Kellogg) Oviatt; 
 his father's name was Benjamin, who married 
 a Carter, and by her had the following chil- 
 dren, viz., Luman, Heman, Benjamin, Salmon, 
 Nathaniel, Hulda, Olive, Mary and Betsey. 
 She was captured by the Indians at the age of 
 12, remaining a captive foiu-teen months, when 
 she was ransomed by the British. Her father 
 was an early settler in Connecticut; in his 
 absence to the settlement for provisions, the 
 Indians (^ne. mas^^cr^ the mother, a son 17 
 
 5^cr^ 
 
 years of age, and infant, bm-ned the cabin and 
 took Miss Carter, a sister and her little brother, 
 5 years of age, with them, whom the tribe 
 adopted and he ever after i-emained with 
 them. The Oviatts are said to be of Scotch 
 descent. Benjamin, the father of Salmon F., 
 was born in Litchfield Co., Conn., Febiaiaiy, 
 177U, and emigrated West in 1799, to what is 
 now Hudson Township, locating on the land 
 his father had previously piu'chased. He 
 married Rhoda Kellogg, who was a daughter 
 of Bradford Kellogg, whose wife was a 
 Thompson, to whom were born Alonzo, Al- 
 fred, Rena, Luna, Alvira, Rhoda and Polly. 
 To Benjamin and wife were boi'n eleven chil- 
 dren, of those who gi-ew to be adults were 
 Elizabeth, Olive, Hanford, Julia, Silas, Sal- 
 mon F., Martha and Mary. Benjamin, the 
 father of the above, died in 1849, aged 69, 
 having at the time of his death about 700 
 acres of land. He was for a number of years 
 a member of the Presbyterian Chiurch, and 
 took an active part in religious matters. May 
 9, 1849, Salmon F. married Margaret Cam- 
 eron, who was born in Stark Co. Jan. 31, 
 1831, to Jeremiah and Elizabeth (Andrews) 
 Cameron, to whom were born six sons and 
 three daughters. Since Mr. Oviatt's mar- 
 riage, he has resided in the southeastern part 
 of the township, where he has been prosper- 
 ous and hajjpy. He has no childi-en. His 
 land consists of 575 acres. 
 
 JOEL R. PARMELEE, farmer; P. O. 
 Twinsburg. The Parmelee family originated 
 from three brothers, who came from England 
 to America prior to the Revolution. The 
 family settled in North Killingworth, Conn., 
 one of whom was killed in King Phillip's war. 
 The subject of these lines was born in Fair- 
 mont, N. H., July 14, 1815; son of William 
 Parmeleo, whose wife's maiden name was 
 Fannie Rice. William was a son of Daniel, 
 who was a son of Lemuel, who was born in 
 1700, in Killingworth, Conn. To William 
 Parmelee was born thirteen children. Those 
 who grew up were Lucius, Mary, Fannie, Joel 
 R., Samuel N., Harriet, Daniel S., Emily and 
 Edward (twins). William Parmelee came 
 West in 1828, located in this township, and 
 cleared up his farm; remained in the town- 
 ship until his death; he was a good citizen; a 
 
l^ 
 
 TWINSBUKG TOWNSHIP. 
 
 1049 
 
 Deacon in the Congregational Churcli for sev- 
 eral years. Joel R. i-eceived a liberal educa- 
 tion, fitted for college, taught school some, 
 but finally settled down to agi'icultural pur- 
 suits. Aug. 24, 1844, married Harriet A. 
 Holt, Dec. 7, 1815, in Chester, Conn.; daughter 
 of Benjamin and Lucy (Southworth) Holt. 
 The Holt family emigrated from England to 
 America: descended from one William Holt, 
 born 1010; removed to Wallingworth, Conn., in 
 1675. Had seven children born to him, among 
 whom was Nathan, who was wounded in King 
 Philip's war; he married Rebecca Bel)ee; by 
 her had three childi'en; his son Nathan mar 
 ried Phebe Tomlin; had four children. His 
 son William married Sarah Way, and had 
 seventeen children. Sir John Holt was a 
 Baronet. Joseph Holt was born in Septem- 
 ber, 1709; he was a soldier in the war of the 
 Revolution. Benjamin Holt was born Dec. 
 22, 1700, his wife Jiilia July 2, 1704. Mr. 
 and Mis. Parmelee have four children — How- 
 ard R., now a minister in Edinbui'g, Portage 
 Co.; Mary E., now the wife of Amizi Wil- 
 son; HaiTiet F., who is now a missionary to 
 Kiyata, Japan; William B., a student in col- 
 lege. Mr. Parmelee and all his family are 
 members of the Congregational Chui'ch — he 
 for fifty years. 
 
 GARDINER PARMELEE, farmer; P. O. 
 Twinsburg; born April 2, 1827, in this town- 
 ship; is the eldest child of Zeno and Juliet 
 (Post) Parmelee. His father was boi'n Jan. 
 21, 1801 , in Killingworth, Conn. He was but 
 a small lad when his father died, and, at the 
 age of 7, went to live with one Mr. Wilcox, 
 remaining seven years, when he began learn- 
 ing the blacksmith's trade with him, and, on 
 completing it, he walked from his native State 
 to this township, where he established a busi- 
 ness iu a log shop at the Center as early as 
 1822 or 1828. He was married to Juliet Post, 
 daughter of Joshua and Mollie (Dee) Post, 
 who was born Aug. 29, 1806, in Westbrook, 
 Conn. She was the daughter of Joshua and 
 Mollie (Dee) Post. To them were born five 
 childi'en, viz., Gardiner, Mary, Henry and 
 Juliet. He died in April, 1862; she also is 
 deceased. Both were members of the Con- 
 gregational Church. Gardiner learned the 
 blacksmith's trade with his father; after 
 
 attaining his majority, he conducted the busi- 
 ness for his own benefit for a few years. 
 Nov. 9, 1848, he married Rhoda Roach, who 
 was born Dec. 10, 1829, in Hebron, Washing- 
 ton Co., N. y. She was the daughter of James 
 Roach, whose wife was Mary Nelson. Febru- 
 ary, 1862, Mr. Parmelee purchased 100 acres a 
 little west of the Center, which place has since 
 been his constant residence. On the farm is 
 an excellent stone quany, which is a consid- 
 erable source of revenue to its owner. He has 
 three daughters, viz., Mary, who married F. 
 Dolaishe, residents of Put-In-Bay; Jose B. at 
 home; and Chloe O., now IVIrs. Charles Riley, 
 of this township. He is not a member of any 
 chiu'ch, but favors religion and practices mo- 
 rality. 
 
 PHILO POST, farmer; P. O. Twinsbui-g; 
 was born June 29, 1817, in Saybrook, Conn., 
 to Joshua and Mollie (Dee) Post. His grand- 
 father's name was also Joshua Post. The 
 father of Mollie Dee was Marcus. To Joshua 
 and Mollie (Dee) Post were born thirteen 
 children, viz., Joshua, Polly, Deborah, Emily, 
 Dianah, Jerusha, Mercy, Belinda, Sallie, Het- 
 tie A., Hannah, Juliet and Philo. Philo came 
 to this county with his parents when 4 years 
 of age; the family located in the southern 
 part of the township, near Brandywine. upon 
 land w^hich his father ]>urchased before leav- 
 ing Connecticut. Joshua died about two 
 years after his an-ival. When 14 years of 
 age, Philo moved to Liberty street, this town- 
 ship, with his mother, who pui'chased oO acres. 
 With her he lived until his union with Miss 
 Luna Carpenter, which event took place Jan. 
 1, 1850. She was born Aug. 7, 1828, in Bos- 
 ton Township, and was the daughter of Aaron 
 and Tirzah (Drake) Carpenter, both of Avhom 
 were natives of Connecticut, and were among 
 the early settlers of Boston Townshi]). To 
 them were born a family of [children whose 
 names wore Melinda, Luna, Martha, Mary, 
 Cynthia, Maria, Elijah, Cornelius B., George, 
 Comfort, Elijah. Aaron Carpenter was for 
 many years a member of the Methodist Ejiis- 
 copal Church, and a Class-leader of the same. 
 He was a just and upright man, and worthy 
 citizen. The political status of both sides of 
 the families have l)eeD AMiigs. and more 
 recently Republicans. .Since INJr. ;md Mrs. 
 
^ 
 
 A 
 
 1050 
 
 BTOGKAPHICAL SKETCHES: 
 
 'Tl 
 
 Post have been married, they have resided on 
 the fann where lie first located. He has been 
 an industrious man, and has been successful 
 in accumulating a good share of this world's 
 goods — having 200 acres of land, which is 
 adorned l^y excellent farm and house buildings. 
 Of six childi'en born him, those living are: 
 Emma v., now the wife of L.Bennett; Stella 
 L., Harry E. and Rosa M. Willie died when 
 J 5 months old, and William at o years of age. 
 MOSES N. ROACH, mechanic and farmer; 
 P. O. Twinsburg; was born Oct. 10, 1882, in 
 Hebron, Washington Co.,N. Y.,to James and 
 Mary (Nelson) Roach. His ancestors came 
 from Ii-eland. The Roach family came West 
 in 1836, locating in this township on Lot No. 
 1. AVhen Mr. Roach aiTived here, he had 
 but |5 in money. He was a carpenter and 
 joiner, and worked at his trade, earning 
 enough to pay for his land, which was unim- 
 proved. He worked at his trade diu'ing the 
 day, came home, and by night cut down trees, 
 which the boys would trim up the next day; 
 this was continued until the land was cleared. 
 For nearly a score of years he worked at his 
 trade, and spent the remainder of his life on 
 the farm. He died in February, 187(3; he 
 was an upright man, and a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. To him were 
 born Gilbert, now in Cleveland; Chloe C, 
 Mrs. Horatio Bartlett, in East Cleveland; 
 Rhoda, the wife of Gardiner Parmelee; Moses 
 N. and Martin Y. B. At the age of K), Moses 
 left home and learned the blacksmith's trade. 
 June 11, 1853, he married Minerva Beldin, 
 daughter of Erastus and Betsey (Armstead) 
 Beldin, to whom were born seven childi'en. 
 Since Mr. Roach was maiTied, he has been 
 engaged at his trade and at farming, and, 
 with the exception of three years si)ent in 
 Hudson Township, he has been a resident of 
 this. He rents 180 acres of land in the west 
 part of the township, and carries on his shop 
 at the Center. He has tv/o childi-en — Albert 
 E. and Alonzo N. Both he and wife are 
 members of the Methodist Episcojial Church. 
 He is much interested in the Sunday-school 
 cause; is a Superintendent thereof, and an ex- 
 
 ^,io 
 
 (s- r- 
 
 cellent mechanic. He is a zealous member of 
 the Masonic fraternity: a member of Summit 
 Lodge, A., F. & A. M., and Summit Cha])ter, 
 R. A. M. 
 
 OLIVER RONIGER, farmer; P. O. Twins- 
 burg: he was born June 10, 1807, in Eri, 
 Switzerland; his parents were Mecher and 
 Frances (Miller) Roniger, to whom were born 
 seven children — two sons and five daiighters. 
 Oliver was bereft of his father when 2|^ years 
 old; remained with his mother until a lad of 
 14, when he began to provide for himself. 
 When 21, he went to learn the stone-mason's 
 trade, at which he worked four years, learning 
 the plasterer's art and the laying of brick as 
 well. To better his condition, he set sail for 
 America in November, 1832, coming on direct 
 fi'om New York to this township; arriving 
 here, his worldly possessions amounted to a 
 haversack of old clothes and 75 cents in 
 money, which he afterward loaned to an ac- 
 quaintance to purchase necessaries for his 
 family. When Mi-. Roniger came, he was not 
 familiar with the English language, which 
 was taken advantage of, at times, by uni>rinci- 
 pled men, who endeavored to profit by his 
 native honesty and unsuspecting manner. 
 Two years afterward, by diligence and econ- 
 omy, he purchased 35 acres in the southeast 
 part of the township. In November, same 
 year, he married Jane Burroughs, born April 
 1, 1812, in Mifflin Township, Mifflin Co., 
 Penn. ; her parents were John and Sarah 
 (Dm-st) Burroughs, who emigrated to Palmyra, 
 in Portage Co., when she was about 15 yeai's 
 of age. Since the location of Mr. Bolinger in 
 this township, he has been a constant resident 
 and worthy citizen; he has been industrious 
 and prosperous, having acquired 175 acres of 
 land. He is a member of Summit Lodge. No. 
 213, A., P. & A. M.; has no children, but 
 adopted a son, Morris Dunn, at 2 years of age, 
 who now bears their name; he was born in 
 Boston Township, Oct. 22, 1846, son of John 
 and Martha (Reed) Dunn. Morris married 
 Mary Sabin, born in Ravenna; they have five 
 children —Minnie, Martha. Millie F., Elsie M. 
 and Oliver. 
 
 r^ 
 
^o-r^ -^ 
 
 <^^ 
 'K^. 
 
 •» o 
 
 
 
 
 'J^'v X.^'* :'-^^^'' ^-^ .•^'■ •• 
 
 
 
 '^'^^ 
 
 
 •y!-'V 
 
 ■^.^P;^ ^\ ^^W^ ^^% ^-^0^. .V ^^ 
 
 A. ^ * ^' 
 
 
.0^" 
 
 o '.-^.' /"S. '^^^""^ ^""^ 
 
 
 
 ;^ 
 
 
 ^•^o 
 
 %<• 
 
 ■a? -^