HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS OF OHIO; CONTAINING A COLLECTION OF THE MOST INTERESTING FACTS, TRADITIONS, BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES, ANECDOTES, ETC. RELATING TO ITS GENERAL AND LOCAL HISTORY: WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF ITS COUNTIES, CITIES, TOWNS, AND VILLAGES, ILL USTRAL TED BY 180 EXGRAFI NGS, GIVING VIEWS OF THE CHIEF TOWNS, PUBLIC BUILDINGS, RELICS OF ANTIQUITY, HISTORIC LOCALITIES, NATURAL SCENERY, ETC. BY HENRY HOWE. CINCINNATI: ROBERT CLARKE & COMPANY. I875. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1847, BY J. W. BARBER & H. HOWE, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court, for the District of Conn. Copyrighted by F. A. HOWE, iS75. PRE F ACE. INTRODUCTORY to this work, we state some facts of private history. In the year 1831, Mr. John W. Barber of New Haven, Ct., prepared a work upon that our native city, which combined history, biography and description, and was illustrated br engravings connected with its rise, progress and present condition. Its success suggested to him the preparation of one, on a similar plan, relative to the Slate. For this object he travelled through it, frorn town to town, collecting the materials and taking sketches. After two years of industrious application in this, and in writing the volume, the Historical Collections of Connecticut was issued, a work which, like its successors, was derived from a thou sand different sources, oral and published. As in the ordinary mode, the circulation of books through "the trade," is so slow in progress and limited in sale, that no merely local work, however meritorious, involving such an unlisually heavy outlay of time and expense as that, will pay even the mechanical labor, it, as well as its successors, was circulated by travelling agents solely, who thoroughly canvassed the state, until it found its way into thousands of families in all ranks and conditions,-in the retired farm-house equally vith the more accessible city mansion. That book, so novel in its character, was received with great favor, and highly commended by the public press and the leading minds of the state. It is true, it did not aspire to high literary merit:-the dignified style,-the generalization of facts,-the philosophical deductions of regular history were not there. On the' contrary, not the least of its merits was its simplicity of style, its fullness of detil, introducing minor, but interesting incidents, the other, in "its stately mtrch," could not step aside to notice, and in avoiding that philosophy which only the scholastic can comprehend. It seemed, in its variety, to have something adapted to all ages, classes and tastes, and the unlearned reader, if he did not stop to peruse the volume, at least, in many instances could derive gratification from the pictorial representation of his native village,-of perhaps the very dwelling in which he first drew breath, and around which entwined early and cherished associations. The book, therefore, reached MORE MIND:, and has been more extensively read, than any regular state history ever is.;ued; thus adding another to the many examples often seen, of the productions of industry and tact, proving of a more extended Wuility than those enmnating from profound scholastic acquirements. This publica*ir.p bec.me.the pioneer of others: a complete list of all, with t!,p dates of tbe r issue. 1ollows: 36. THE JII s''. CorI.. OF CoxxN N.c UT; by John WV. Barber. 1 39. " " MASSAJ' U8ETTS; John TV. Barber. 1 41. ":' NEW YrRK; " J. W. Barber and H. Howe. 1q43.' E' P:?r;?sYLfvAN'A; " Sherman Day. 1844' " Niw: J ERSEY; "J. W. Barber and H. Howe. 1845.' " VIRGIc.IA; " Henry Howe. 1847. 4 " 20;' " Henry Howe. 4 PREFACE. From this list it will be perceived that OHIO makes the SEVENTH state work published on the original plan of Mr. Bar)ber, all of which thus far circulated, were alike favorably received in the statcs to which each respectively related. Early in January, 1846, we, with some previous time spent in preparation, commenced our tour over Ohio, being the FOURTn state through which we have travelled for such an object. We thus passed more than a year, in the course of which we were in seventy-nine of its eighty-three counties, took sketches of objects of interest, and every where obtained information by conversation with early settlers and men of intelligence. Beside this, we have availed ourselves of all published sources of information, and have received about four hundred manuscript pages in communications from gentlemen in all parts of the state. In this way, we are enabled to present a larger and more varied amount of materials respecting Ohio, than was ever before embodied; the whole giving a view of its present condition and prospects, with a history of its settlement, and incidents illustrating the customs, the fortitude, the bravery, and the privations of its early settlers. That such a work, depicting the rise and lunexampled pr6gress of a powerflul state, destined to a controlling influence over the well-being of the whole nation, will be looked upon with intereit, we believe: and fuirthernmoe expect, that it will be received in the generou; spirit which is gratified with honest endeavors to please, rather than in the captious one, that is dissatisfied short of an unattainable perfection. Whoever expects to find the volumte entirely fi-ee from defects, has but little acquaintance with the difficulties ever attendant upon procuring such materials. In all of the many historical and descriptive works whose fidelity we have had occasion to test, some misstatements were found. Although we have taken the best available means to insure accuracy, yet fiom a variety of causes unnecessary here to specify, some errors nay have occurred. If anv thing materially wrong is discovered, iany one will confer a favor by addressing a letter to the publishers, and it shall be corrected. Our task has been a pleasant one. As we successiveiy entered the various counties, we were greeted with the frank welcome, characteristic of the west. And an evidence of interest in the enterprize has been variously shown, not the least of which, has been by the reception of a mass of valrua ble communications, unprecedented by us in the course of the seven years we have been engaged in these pursuits. To all who have aided us,-to our correspondents especially, some of whom have spent much time and research, we feel under lasting obligations, and are enabled by their assistance to present to the public a far better work, than could otherwise have been produced. H. H. OH IO. OUTLINE HISTORY * TrHE territory now comprised within the limits of Ohio was for. merly a part of that vast region claimed by France, between the Alleghany and the Rocky Mountains, first known by the general name of Louisiana. In 1673, Marquette, a zealous French Missionary, accompanied with Monsieur Joliet, from Quebec, with five boatmen, set out on a mission from Mackinac to the unexplored regions lying south of that station. They passed down the lake to Green Bay, thence from Fox River crossed over to the Wisconsin, which they followed down to its junction with the Mississippi. They descended this mighty stream a thousand miles to its confluence with the Arkansas. On their return to Canada, they did not fail to urge, in strong terms, the immediate occupation of the vast and fertile regions watered by the Mississippi and its branches. On'the 7th of August, 1679, M. de la Salle, the French commandant of Fort Frontenac, on Lake Ontario, launched, upon Lake Erie, the Griffin, a bark of about 60 tons, with which he proceeded through the Lakes to the Straits of Michillimackinac. Leaving his bark at this place, he proceeded up Lake Michigan, and from thence to the south west, till he arrived at Peoria Lake, in Illinois. At this place he erected a fort, and after having sent Father Lewis Helnnepin on an exploring expedition, La Salle returned to Canada. In 1683, La Salle went to France, and, by the representations which he made, induced the French Government to fit out an expedition foi the purpose of planting a colony at the mouth of the Mississippi. This expedition failed, La Salle being murdered by his own men. This disaster did not abate the ardor of the French in their great plan of obtaining possession of the vast region westward of the English colonies. A second expedition sailed from France, under the command of M. D'Iberville. This officer entered the mouth of the Mississippi, and explored the river for several hundred miles * The principal sources fiom which this outline is derived, are the MSS. of Hon. Thomas Scott, of Chillicothe, Secretary of the Convention which framed the constitution of Ohio the historical sketch prefixed to Chase's Statutes, and Perkins' Annals of the West. 6 OVTLINE HISTORY. Permanent establishments were made at different points; and froit this time the French colony west of the Alleghanies steadily increased in numbers and strength. Previous to the year 1725; the colony had been divided into quarters, each having its local governor, or commandant, and judge, but all subject to the superior authority of the council general of Louisiana. One of these quarters was established north west of the Ohio. At this period, the French had erected forts on the Mississippi, on the Illinois, on the Maumee, and on the lakes. Still, however, the communication with Canada was through Lake Michigan. Before 1750, a French post had been fortified at the mouth of the Wabash and a communication was established through that river and the Maumee with Canada. About the same time, and for the purpose of checking the progress of the French, the Ohio Company was formed, and made some attempts to establish trading houses among the Indians. The French, however, established a chain of fortifica: tions back of the English settlements, and thus, in a measure, had the entire control of the great Mississippi valley. The English government became alarmed at the encroachments of the French, and attempted to settle boundaries by negotiations. These availed nothing, and both parties were determined to settle their differences by the force of arms. The claims of the different European monarchs to large portions of the western continent were based upon the first discoveries made by their subjects. In 1609, the English monarch granted to the London Company, all the territories extending along the coast for two hundred miles north and south from Point Comfort, and " up into the land, throughout, from s'za to sea, west and north-west." In 1662, Charles II. granted to certain settlers upon the Connecticut all the territory between the parallels of latitude which include the present State of Connecticut, from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean. The claims which Massachusetts advanced, during the revolution, to an interest in the western lands, were founded upon a similar charter, granted thirty years afterwards. When the king of France had dominions in North America, the whole of the late territory of the United States, north-west of tile river Ohio, was included in the province of Louisiana, the north boundary of which, by the treaty of Utrecht, concluded between France and England in 1713, was fixed at the 49th parallel of latitude north of the Equator. After the conquest of the French possessions in North America by Great Britain, this tract was ceded by France to Great Britain, by the treaty of Paris, in 1763. The principal ground whereon the English claimed dominion beyond the Alleghanies was, that the Six Nations owned the Ohio valley, and had placed it with their other lands under the protection of England. Some of the western lands were also claimed by the British as having been actually purchased, at Lancaster, Penn., in 1744, at a treaty between the colonists and the Six Nations at that place. In 1748. the "Ohio Company," for the purpose of securing OUTLINE HISTORY.' the Indian trade, was formed. In 1749, it appears that the English built a trading house upon the Great Miami, at a spot since called Loramie's Store. In 1751, Christopher Gist, an agent of the Ohic Company, who was appointed to examine the western lands, made a visit to the Twigtwees, who lived upon the Miami river, about one hundred miles from its mouth. Early in 1752, the French having heard of the trading house oln the Miami, sent a party of soldiers to the Twigtwees and demanded the traders as intruders upon French lands. The Twigtwees refused to deliver up their friends. The French, assisted by the Ottawas and Chippewas, then attacked the trading house, which was probably a block house, and after a severe battle, in which fourteen of the natives were killed and others wounded, took and destroyed it. carrying away the traders to Canada. This fort, or trading house, was called, by the English, Pickawillany. Such was the first British settlement in the Ohio valley, of which we have any record. A fter Braddock's defeat, in 1755, the Indians pushed their excursions as far east as the Blue Ridge. In order to repel them, Major Lewis, in Jan., 1756, was sent with a party of troops on an expedition against the Indian towns on the Ohio. The point apparently aimed at was the upper Shawanese town, situated on the Ohio, three miles above the mouth of the Great Kanawha. The attempt proved a failure, in consequence, it is said, of the swollen state of the streams, and the treachery of the guides. In 1764, Gen. Bradstreet, having dispersed the Indian forces besieging Detroit, passed into the Wyandot country by way of Sandusky Bay. He ascended the bay and river as far as it was navigable for boats, and there made a. camp. A treaty of peace was signed by the Chiefs and head men. The Shawnees of the Scioto river, and the Delawares of the Muskingum, however, still continued hostile. Col. Boquet, in 1764, with a body of troops, marched from Fort Pitt into the heart of the Ohio country on the Muskingum river. This expedition was conducted with great prudence and skill, and without scarcely any loss of life, as treaty of peace was effected with the Indians, who restored the prisoners they had captured from the white settlements. The next war with the Indians was in 1774, generally known as Lord Dunmore's. In the summer of that year, an expedition, under Col. M'Donald, was assembled at Wheeling, marched into the Muskingum country and destroyed the Indian town of Wapatomica, a few miles above the site of Zanesville. In the fall, the Indians were defeated after a hard fought battle at Ioint Pleasant, on the Virginia side of the Ohio. Shortly after this event, Lord Dunmore made peace with the Indians at Camp Charlotte, in what is now Pickaway country. During the revolutionary war, most of the western Indians were niore or less united against the Americans. In the fall of 1778, an expedition against Detroit was projected. As a preliminary step, it was'resolved that the forces in the west, under Gen. M'Intosh, should move up and attack the Sandusky Indians. Preliminary to this, i8 OUTLINE HISTORY. Fort Laurens, so called in honor of the President of Congress, wAs built upon the Tuscarawas, a short distance below the site of Bolivar, Tuscarawas county. The expedition to Detroit was abandoned and the garrison of Fort Laurens, after suffering much fiom the Indians and from famine, were recalled in August, 1779. A month or two previous to the evacuation of this fort, Col. Bowman headed an ex. pedition against the Shawanees. Their village, Chillicothe, three miles north of the site of Xenia, on the Little Miami, was burnt. The warriors showed an undaunted front, and the whites were orcced to retreat. In the summer of 1780, an expedition directed against the Indian towns, in the forks of the Muskingum, moved from Wheeling, under Gen. Broadhead. This expedition, known as "the Coshocton campaign," was unimportant in its results. In the same summer, Gen. Clark led a body of Kentuckians against the Shawnees. Chillicothe, on the Little Miami, was burnt on their approach, but at.Piqua, their town on the Mad River, six miles below the site of Springfield, they gave battle to the whites and were defeated. In September, 1782, this officer led a second expedition against the Shawanese. Their towns, Upper and Lower Piqua, on the Miami, within what is now Miami county, were destroyed, together with the store of a trader. There were other expeditions into the Indian country from Kentucky, which, although of later date, we mention in this connection. In 1786, Col. Logan conducted a successful expedition against the Mackachack towns, on the head waters of Mad River, in what is now Logan county. Edwards, in 1787, led an expedition to the head waters of the Big Miami, and, in 1788, Todd led one into the Scioto valley. There were also several minor expeditions, at various times, into the present limits of Ohio. The Moravian missionaries, prior to the war of the revolution, had a number of missionary stations within the limits of Ohio. The missionaries, Heckewelder and Post, were on the Muskingum as early as 1762.'In March, 1782, a party of Americans, under Col. Williamson, murdered, in cold blood, ninety-four of the defenceless Moravian Indians, within the present limits of Tuscarawas county. In the June following, Col. Crawford, at the head of about 500 men, was defeated by the Indians, three miles north of the site of Upper Sandusky, in Wyandot county. Col. Crawford was taken prisoner in the retreat, and burnt at the stake with horrible tortures. By an act of the Parliament of Great Britain, passed in 1774, the whole of the late north-western Territory was annexed to, and made a part of, the province of Quebec, as created and established by the royal proclamation of the 7th of October, 1763. But nothing therein contained, relative to the boundary of the said province of Quebec, was in any wise to affect the boundaries of any other colony. The colonies having, in 1776, renounced their allegiance to the British king, and assumed rank as free, sovereign and independent States, each State claimed the right of soil and jurisdiclion over the district of country embraced within its charter Ths c^!'i.~-s of OUTLINE HISTORY.. several of the States embraced large portions of western unappro. priated lands. Those States which had no such charters, insisted that these lands ought to be appropriated for the benefit of all the States, according to their population, as the title to them, if secured at all, would be by the blood and treasure of all the States. Congress repeatedly urged upon those States owning western unappropriated lands, to make liberal cessions of them for the common benefit of all. The claim of the English monarch to the late north-western Territory was ceded to the United States, by the treaty of peace, signed at Paris, September 3d, 1783. The provisional articles which formed the basis of that treaty, more especially as related to the boundary, were signed at Paris, November 30th, 1782. During the pendency of the negociation relative to these preliminary articles, Mr. Oswald, the British commissioner, proposed the river Ohio as the western boundary of the United States, and but for the indomitable perseverance of the revolutionary patriot, John Adams, one of the American commissioners, who opposed the proposition, and insisted upon the Mississippi as the boundary, the probability is, that the proposition of Mr. Oswald would have been acceded to by the United States commissioners. Tle States who owned western unappropriated lands, with a single exception, redeemed their respective pledges by ceding them to the United States. The State of Virginia, in March, 1784, ceded the right of soil and jurisdiction to the district of country embraced in her charter, situated to the north-west of the river Ohio. In September, 1786, the State of Connecticut also ceded her claim of soil and jurisdiction to the district of country within the limits of her charter, situated west of a line beginning at the completion of the forty-first point degree of north latitude, one hundred and twenty miles west of the western boundary of Pennsylvania; and from thence by a line drawn north parallel to, and one hundred and twenty miles west of said line of Pennsylvania, and to continue north until it came to forty-two degrees and two minutes north latitude. The State of Connecticut, on the 30th of May, 1801, also ceded her jurisdictional claims to all that territory called the " Western Reserve of Connecticut." The States of New York and Massachusetts also ceded all their claims. The above were not the only claims which had to be made prior to the commencement of settlements within the limits of Ohio. Numerous tribes of Indian savages, by virtue of prior possession, asserted their respective claims, which also had to be extinguished. A treaty for this purpose was accordingiy made at Fort Stanwix, October 27th, 1784, with the Sachems and warriors of the Mohawks. Onondagas, Senecas, Cayugas, Oneidas, and Tuscaroras; by the third article of which treaty, the said Six Nations ceded to the United States all claims to the country west of a line extending along the west boundary of Pennsylvania, from the mouth of the Oyounayeai to the river Ohio 10 OUTLINE HISTORY. A treaty was also concluded at Fort McIntosh, January 21st, 1$85, with the Wyandot, Delaware, Chippewa, and Ottawa nations, by which the boundary line between the United States and the Wyandot and Delaware nations was declared to begin " at the mouth of the river Cuyahoga, and to extend up said river to the Portage, between that and the Tuscaroras branch of the Muskingum, thence down that branch to the crossing place above Fort Laurens, then westerly to the Portage of the Big Miami, which runs into the Ohio. at the mouth of which branch the fort stood which was taken bv the French, in 1752; then along said Portage to the Great Miami, oi Omee river, and down the south side of the same to its mouth; then along the south shore of Lake Erie to the mouth of the Cuyahoga river, where it began." The United States allotted all the lands contained within said lines to the Wyandot and Delaware nations to live and hunt on, and to such of the Ottawa nation as lived thereon; saving and reserving for the establishment of trading posts, six miles square at the mouth of the Miami, or Omee river, and the same at the Portage, on that branch of the Big Miami which runs into the Ohio, and the same on the Lake of Sandusky where the fort formerly stood, and also two miles square on each side of the Lower Rapids of Sandusky river. The Indian title to a large part of the territory within the limits of Ohio having been extinguished, legislative action on the part of Congress became necessary before settlements were commenced; as in the treaties made with the Indians, and in the acts of Congress, all citizens of the United States were prohibited settling on the lands of the Indians, as well as on those of the United States. Ordinances were accordingly made by Congress for the government of the North-western Territory, and for the survey and sale of portions of lands to which the Indian title had been extinguished. In May, 1785, Congress passed an ordinance for ascertaining the mode of disposing of these lands. Under that ordinance, the first seven ranges, bounded on the east by Pennsylvania, and on the south by the Ohio river, were surveyed. Sales of parts of these were made at New York, in 1787, the avails of which amounted to $72,974, and sales of other parts of said range were made at Pittsburg and Philadelphia, in 1796. The avails of sales made at the former place amounted to $43,446, and at the latter, $5,120. A portion of these lands were located under United States military land warrants. No further sales were made in that district until the Land Office was opened at Steubenville, July 1st, 1801. On the 27th of October, 1787, a contract in writing was entered into between the Board of Treasury for the United, States of America, of the one part, and Manassah Cutler and Winthrop Sargeant, as agents for the directors of the New England Ohio Company of associates, of the other part, for the purchase of the tract of land,bounded by the Ohio, from the mouth of the Scioto to the intersection of the western boundary of the seventh range of townships then surveying; thence by said boundary to the northern boundary of OUTLINE HISTORY. 1 the tenth township fiom the Ohio; thence by a due west line tc Scioto; thence by the Scioto to the beginning. The bounds of that contract were afterwards altered in 1792. The settlement of this purchase commenced at Marietta, at the mouth of the Muskingum river, in the spring of 1788, and was the first settlement formed within the limits of Ohio. An attempt at settlement within the bounds of Ohio had been made in April, 1785, at the mouth of the Scioto, on the site of Portsmouth, by four families from Redstone, Pa.; but difficulties with the Indians compelled its abandonment. The same year in which Marietta was first settled, Congress appointed Gen. Arthur St. Clair, an officer of the revolution, Governor; Winthrop Sargeant, Secretary; and the Hon. Samuel Holden Parsons, James Mitchell Varnum, and John Cleves Symmes, Judges; in, and over the Territory. The territorial government was organized, and sundry laws were made, or adopted, by the Governor and Judges Parsons and Varnum. The county of Washington, having its limits extended westward to the Scioto, and northward to Lake rie, embracing about half the territory within the present limits of the State, was established by the proclamation of the Governor. On the 15th of October, 1788, John Cleves Symmes, in behalf of himself and his associates, contracted with the Board of Treasury for the purchase of a large tract of land situated between the Great and Little Miami river, and the first settlement within the limits of that purchase, and second in Ohio, was commenced in November of that year, at Columbia, at the mouth of the Little Miami, five miles above the site of Cincinnati. "A short time after the settlement at Marietta had commenced, 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 included in the Ohio Company's purchases. Plats and descriptions of the land contracted for, were, however, made out, and Joel Barlow was sent as an agent to Europe to make sales of the lands for the benefit of the company; and sales were effected of parts thereof to companies and individuals in France. On February 19th, 1791. two hundred and eighteen of these purchasers left Havre de Grace, in France, and arrived in Alexandria, D. C., on the 3d of May following. During their passage, two were added to their number. On their arrival, they were told that the Scioto Company owned no land. The agent insisted that they did, and promised to secure to them good titles thereto, which he did, at Winchester, Brownsville, and Charleston (now Wellsburg). When they arrived at Marietta, about fifty of them landed. The rest of the company proceeded to Gal polis, which was laid out about that time, and were assured by the agent that the place lay within their purchase. Every effort to secure titles to the lands they had purchase hhaving failed, an application was made to Congress, and in June, 1798, a grant was made to them of a tract of land on the Ohio, above the mouth of the Scioto river, which is called the' French Grant."' 12 OUTLINE HISTORY. The Legislaltre of Connecticut, in May, 1795, appointed a committee'to receive proposals and make sale of the lands she had reserved in Ohio. This committee sold the lands to sundry citizens of Connecticut and other States, and, in September of the same year, executed to several purchasers deeds of conveyance therefor. The purchasers proceeded to survey into townships of five miles square the whole of said tract lying east of the Cuyahoga; they made divisions thereof according to their respective proportions, and commenced settlements in many of the townships, and there were actually settled therein, by the 21st of March, 1800, about one thousand inhabitants. A number of mills had been built, and roads cut in valious directions to the extent of about 700 miles. The location of the lands appropriate for satisfying military land bounty warrants in the district appropriated for that purpose, granted for services in the revolutionary war, commenced on March 13th, 1800; and the location of the lands granted to the Canadian and Nova Scotia refugees commenced February 13th, 1802. The lands east of the Scioto, south of the military bounty lands, and west of ithe fifteenth range of townships, were first brought into market, and offered for sale by the United States on the first'Monday of May, 1801. The State of Virginia, at an early period of the revolutionary war, raised two description of troops, State and Continental, to each of which bounties in land were promised. The lands within the limits of her charter, situate to the north-west of Ohio river, were withdrawn fiomn appropriation on treasury warrants, and the lands on Cumberland river, and between the Green and Tennessee rivers on the south-easterly side of the Ohio, were appropriated for these mlrlitary bounties. Upon the recommendation of Congress, Virginia ceded her lands north of the Ohio, upon certain conditions; one of which was, that in case the lands south of Ohio should be insufficient for their legal bounties to their troops, the deficiency should be made up from lands north of the Ohio, between the rivers Scioto and Little Miami. In 1783, the Legislature of Virginia authorized the officers of their respective lines to appoint superintendants to regulate the survey of the bounty lands promised. Richard C. Anderson was appointed principal surveyor of the lands of the troops of the continental establishment. An office for the reception of locations and surveys was opened at Louisville, Kentucky, August 1st, 1784, and on the 1st of August, 1787, the said office was open for the reception of surveys and locations on the north side of the Ohio. In the year 1789, January 9th, a treaty was made at Fort Harmei, between Gov. St. Clair and the Sachems and warriors of the Wyandot, Chippewa, Potawatomie, and Sac nations, in which the treaty at Fort McIntosh was renewed and confirmed. It did not, however, produce the favorable results anticipated. The Indians, the same year, assuming a hostile appearance, were sien hovering round the infant settlements near the mouth of the Muskinrumr and between OUTLINE HISTORY. 13 fhe Miamies, and nine persons were killed within the bounds of Symmes' purchase. The new settlers became alarmed and erected block-houses in each of the new settlements. In June, 1789, Major Doughty, with 140 men, fiom Fort Harmar, commenced the building of Fort Washington, on a spot now within the present limits of Cincinnati. A few months afterwards, Gen. Harmar arrived, with 300 nen, and took command of the fort. Negociations with the Indians proving unavailing, Gell. Harmar was directed to attack their towns. In pursuance of his instructions, he marched from Cincinnati, in September, 1790, with 1,300 men, of whom less than one-fourth were regulars. When near the Indian villages, on the Miami of the lake in the vicinity of what is now Fort Wayne, an advanced detachment of 210, consisting chiefly of militia, fell into an ambush and was defeated with severe loss. Gen. Harmar, however, succeeded in burning the Indian villages, and in destroying their standing corn, and having effected this service, the army commenced its march homeward. They had not proceeded far when Harmar received intelligence that the Indians had returned to their ruined towns. He immediately detached about one-third of his remaining force, under the command of Col. Hardin, with orders to bring them to an engagement. He succeeded in this early the next morning; the Indians fought with great fury, and the militia and the regulars alike behaved with gallantry. More than one hundred of the militia, and all the regulars except nine, were killed, and the rest were driven back to the main body. Dispirited by this severe misfortune, Harmar immediately marched to Cincinnati, and the object of the expedition in intimidating the Indians was entirely unsuccessful. As the Indians continued hostile, a new army, superior to the former, was assembled at Cincinnati, under the command of Gov. St. Clair. The regular force amounted to 2,300 men; the militia numbered about 600. With this army, St. Clair commenced his march towards the Indian towns on the Maumee. Two forts, Hamilton and Jefferson, were established and garrisoned on the route, about forty miles from each other. Misfortune attended the expedition almost from its commencement. Soon after leaving Fort Jefferson, a considerable party of the militia deserted in a body. The first regiment, under Major Hamtramck, was ordered to pursue them and to secure the advancing convoys of provisions, which it was feared they designed to plunder. Thus weakened by desertion and division, St. Clair approached the Indian villages. On the third of November, 1791, when at what is now the line of Darke and Mercer counties, he halted, intending to throw up some slight fortification for the protection of baggage, and to await the return of the absent regiment. On the following morning, however, about half an hour before sun rise, the American army was attacked with great fury, as there is good reason to believe, by the whole disposable force of the north-west tribes. The Americans were totally (lefeated. Gen. Butler and upwards of six hundred men were killed. 14 OUTLINE HISTORY. Indian outrages of every kind were now multiplied, and emigration was almost entirely suspended. President Washington now urged forward the vigorous prosecution of the war for the protection of the North-west Territory; but various obstacles retarded the enlistment and organization of a new army. In the spring of 1794, the American army assembled at Greenville, in Darke county, under the command of Gen. Anthony Wayne, a bold, energetic and experienced officer of the revolution. His force consisted of about twc thousand regular troops, and fifteen hundred mounted volunteers fiom Kentucky. The Indians had collected their whole force, amounting to about two thousand men, near a British fort, erected since the treaty of 1783, in violation of its obligations, at the foot of the rapids of the Maumee. On the 20th of August, 1794, Gen. Wayne encountered the enemy, and after a short and deadly conflict, the Indians fled in the greatest confusion, and were pursued under the guns of the British fort. After destroying all the houses and corn fields above and below the British fort, on the Maumee, the victorious army returned to the mouth of Au Glaize, where Wayne erected Fort Defiance. Previous to this action, various fruitless attempts had been made to bring the Indians to peace. Some of the messengers sent among the Indians for that object were murdered. The victory of Wayne did not at first reduce the savages to submission. Their country was laid waste, and forts were erected in the heart of their territory before they could be entirely subdued. At length, however, they became thoroughly convinced of their inability to resist the American arms and sued for peace. A grand council was held at Greenville, where eleven of the most powerful north-western tribes were represented, to whom Gen. Wayne dictated the terms of pacification. The boundary established by the treaty at Fort McIntosh was confirmed and extended westward fiom Loramie's to Fort Recovery, and thence south-west to the mouth of Kentucky river. The Indians agreed to acknowledge the United States as their sole protector, and never to sell their lands to any tther power. Upon these and other conditions, the United States eceived the Indian nations into their protection. A large quantity,- goods was delivered to them on the spot, and perpetual annuities. payable in merchandise, &c., were promised to each tribe who became a party to the treaty. While the war with the Indians continued, of course, but little progress was made in the settlement in the west. The next county that was established after that of Washington, in 1788, was HIamilton, erected in 1790. Its bounds included the country between the tiamies, extending northward from the Ohio river, to a line drawn due east from the standing stone forks of the Great Miami. The name of the settlement opposite the Licking was, at this time, called Cincinnati. At this period, there was no fixed seat of government. The laws were passed whenever they seemed to be needed, and promulgated OUTLINE HISTORY. 15 at any place where the territorial legislators happened to be assembled. In 1789, the first Congress passed an act recognizing the binding force of the ordinance of 1787, and adapting its provisions to the federal constitution. At this period, the judges appointed by the national executive constituted the supreme court of the territory. Inferior to this court, were the county court, courts of common pleas, and the general quarter sessions of the peace. Single judges of the common pleas, and single justices of the quarter sessions, were also clothed with certain civil and criminal powers to he exercised out of court. In 1795, the governor and judges undertook to revise the territorial laws, and to establish a system of statutory jurisprudence, by adoptions from the laws of the original States, in conformity to the ordinance. For this purpose they assembled in Cincinnati, in June, and continued in session until the latter part of August. The general court was fixed at Cincinnati and Marietta; other courts were established, and laws and regulations were adopted for various purposes. The population of the territory now continued to increase and extend. From Marietta, settlers spread into the adjoining country. The Virginia military reservation drew a considerable number of revolutionary veterans, and others, from that State. The region between the Miamies, from the Ohio far up toward the sources of Mad river, became chequered with farms, and abounded in indications of the presence of an active and prosperous population. The neighborhood of Detroit became populous, and Connecticut, by grants of land within the tract, reserved in her deed of cession, induced many of her hardy citizens to seek a home on the borders of Lake Erie. In 1796, Wayne county was established, including all the north-western part of Ohio, a large tract in the north-eastern part of Indiana, and the whole territory of Michigan. In July, 1797, Adams county was erected, comprehending a large tract lying on both sides of Scioto, and extending northward to Wayne. Other counties were afterwards formed out of those already established. Before the end of the year 1798, the North-west Territory contained a population of five thousand free male inhabitants, of full age, and eight organized counties. The people were now entitled, under the ordinance of 1787, to a change in their form of government. That instrument provided that whenever there were five thousand fiee males, of full age, in the territory, the people should he authorized to elect representatives to a territorial legislature. These, when closen, were to nominate ten freeholders of 500 acres, of whom the president was to appoint five, who were to constitute the legislative council. Representatives were to serve two, and councilmen five years. The first meeting of the territorial legislature was appointed on the 16th of September, 1799, but it was not till the 24th of the same month that the two nouses were organized for business; at which time they were addressed by Gov. St. Clair. An act was passed to confirm and give IC OUTLINE HISTORY. force to those laws enacted by the governor and judges, whose validity had been doubted. This act, as well as every other which originated in the council, was prepared and brought forward by Jacob Burnet, afterwards a distinguished judge and senator, to whose labors, at this session, the territory was indebted for some of its most beneficial laws. The whole number of acts passed and approved by the governor was thirty-sever. William H. Harrison, then secretary of the territory, was elected as delegate to Congress, having eleven of twenty-one votes. " Within a few months after the close of this session, Connecticut ceded to the United States her claim of jurisdiction over the northeastern part of the territory; upon which the president conveyed, by patent, the fee of the soil to the governor of the State, for the use of grantees and purchasers claiming under her. This tract, in the summer of the same year, was erected into a new county by the name of Trumbull. The same congress which made a final arrangement with Connecticut, passed an act dividing the North-western Territory into two governments, by a line drawn from the mouth of the Kentucky to Fort Recovery, and thence northward to the territorial line. East of this line, the government, already established, was continued; while west of it another, substantially similar, was established. This act fixed the seat of the eastern government at Chillicothe; subject, however, to be removed at the pleasure of the'egislature." On the 30th of April, 1802, Congress passed an act authorizing the call of a convention to form a State constitution. This convention assembled at Chillicothe, November 1st, and, on the 29th of the same month, a constitution of State government was ratified and signed by the members of the convention. It was never referred to the people for their approbation, but became the fundamental law of the State by the act of the convention alone; and, by this act, Ohio became one of the States of the Federal Union. "Besides framing the constitution, the convention had another duty to perform. The act of congress, providing for the admission of the'new State into the Union, offered certain propositions to the people. These were, first, that section sixteen in each township, or. where that section had been disposed of, other contiguous and equivalent lands, should be granted to the inhabitants for the use of schools; second, that thirty-eight sections of land, where salt-springs had been found, of which one township was situated on the Scioto,,ine section on the Muskingum, and one section in the United States military tract, should be granted to the State, never, however, to be sold or leased for a longer term than ten years; and third, that onetwentieth of the proceeds of public lands sold within the State, should be applied to the construction of roads from the Atlantic, to and through the same. These propositions were offered on the condition that the convention should provide, by ordinance, that all lands sold by the United States after the thirtieth day of June, 1802, should be exempt from taxation, by the State, for five years after sale OUTIINE lISTORY. 17 "The ordinance of 1785, had already provided for the appropriation of section sixteen to the support of schools in every township sold by the United States; and this appropriation thus became a condition of the sale and settlement of the western country. It was a consideration offered to induce purchases of public lands, at a time when the treasury was well-nigh empty, and this source of revenue was much relied upon. It extended to every township of land within the territory, except those in the Virginia military reservation and wherever the reserved section had been disposed of, alter the passage of the ordinance, Congress was bound to make other equivalent provision for the same object. The reservation of section sixteen, therefore, could not, in 1802, be properly made the object of a new bargain between the United States and the State: and many thought that the salt reservations and the twentieth of the proceeds of the public lands were very inadequate equivalents for the proposed surrender of the right to tax. The convention, how ever, determined to accept the propositions of Congress, on their being so far enlarged and modified as to vest in the State, for the use of schools, section sixteen in each township sold by the United States, and three other tracts ot land, equal in quantity, respectively, to:one thirty-sixth of the Virginia reservation, of the United States military tract, and of the Connecticut reserve, and to give three pei centum of the proceeds of the public lands sold within the State, tc be applied under the direction of the legislature, to roads in Ohio. Congress assented to the proposed modifications, and thus completed the compact." The first General Assembly under the State constitution met at Chilicothe, Mlarch 1st, 1803. The legislature enacted such laws as were deemed necessary for the new order of things, and created eight new counties, namely: Gallia, Scioto, Franklin, Columbiana, Butler, Warren, Green, and Montgomery. The first State officers elected by the assembly were as follows, viz.: Michael Baldwin, Speaker of the House of Representatives; Nathaniel Massife, Speaker of the Senate; W/illiam Creighton, Jr., Secretary of State; Col. Thomas Gibson, Auditor; Willianm lIcFarland, Treasurer; Return J. M'lis, Jr., Samuel Huntington, and IVilliam Sprigg, Judges of the Supreme Court; Francis Dunlavy, Wyllys Silliman, and Calvin IPease, Judges of the District Courts. The secnd General Assembly convened in December, 1803. At this session, the militia law was thoroughly revised and a law was passed to enable aliens to enjoy the same proprietary rirghts in (Ohio as native citizens. At this session, also, the revenue system of the State was simplified and improved. Acts were passed providing foi the incorporation of townships, and for the establishment of boards of colnmissioners of counties. In 1805, by a treaty with the Indians at Fort Industry, the United States acquired, for the use of the grantees of Connecticut, all that part of the western reserve which lies west of the Cuyahoga. By subsequent treaties, all the country watered by the Maumee and the i8 OUTLINE HISTORY. Sandusky have been acquired, and the Indian title to lands in Ohio is now extinct. In the course of the year 1805, the conspiracy of Aaron Burr began to agitate the western country. The precise scope of the conspiracy does not distinctly appear. "The immediate object probably, was to seize on New Orleans and invade Mexico. The ulterior purpose may have been to detach the west from the Aierican Union. In December, 1806, in consequence of a confidential message from the governor, founded on the representations of an agent of the general government deputed to watch the motions of Burr, the legislature passed an act authorizing the arrest of persons engaged in an unlawful enterprise, and the seizure of their goods. Under this act, ten boats, with a considerable quantity of arms, ammunition, and provisions, belonging to Burr's expedition, were seized. This was a fatal blow to the project." The Indians, who since the treaty at Greenville had been at peace, about the year 1810, began to commit aggressions upcn the inhabitants of the west. The celebrated Tecumseh was conspicuously active in his efforts to unite the native tribes against the Americans, and to arrest the farther extension of the settlements. His proceedings, and those of his brother,'the Prophet,' soon made it evident that the west was about to suffer the calamities of another Indian war, and it was resolved to anticipate their movements. In 1811, Gen. Harrison, then governor of Indiana Territorvy marched against the town of the'Prophet,' upon the Wabash. The battle of Tippecanoe ensued, in what is now Cass county, Indiana, in which the Indians were totally defeated. This year was also distinguished by an occurrence of immense importance to the whole west. This was the voyage, from Pittsburg to New Orleans, of the first steamboat ever launched upon the western watels. "In June, 1812, the United States declared war against Great Britain. Of this war the west was a principal theatre. Defeat, disaster, and disgrace marked its opening scenes; but the latter events of the contest were a series of splendid achievements. Croghan's gallant defence of Fort Stephenson; Perry's victory upon 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 lustre upon the American arms. In every vicissitude of this contest, the conduct of Ohio was eminently patriotic and honorable. When the necessities of the national government 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 bettei service. Hardly a battle was fought in the north-west, in which some of these brave citizen soldiers did not seal their devotion to their country with their blood. "In 1816, the seat of the State government was removed to Co. OUTLINE HISTORY. 19.uinbus, the proprietors of the town having, pursuant to an agreement entered into, in good faith, erected the State-house and other public buildings, for the accommodation of the legislature and the officers of state. "In January, 1817, the first resolution relating to a canal, connecting the Ohio river with Lake Erie, was introduced into the legislature. In 1819, the subject was again agitated. In 1820, on tle recommendation of Gov. Brown, an act was passed, providing for the appointment of three canal commissioners, who were to employ a competent engineer and, assistants, for the purpose of surveying the route of the canal. The action of the commissioners, however, was made to depend on the acceptance by congress of a proposition on behalf of the State, for a donation and sale of the public lands, lying upon and near the route of the proposed canal. In consequence of this restriction, nothing was accomplished for two years. In 1822, the subject was referred to a committee of the house of representatives. This committee recommended the employment of an engineer, and submitted various estimates and observations to, illustrate the importance and feasibility of the work. Under this act, James Geddes, of New York; an experienced and skillful engineer, was employed to make the necessary examinations and surveys. Finally, after all the routes had been surveyed, and estimates made of the expense had been laid before the legislature at several sessions, an act was passed in Feb., 1825, " To provide for the internal improvement of the State by navigable canals," and thereupon the State embarked in good earnest in the prosecution of the great works of internal improvement." The construction of these and other works of internal improvement, has been of immense advantage in developing the resources of Ohio, which, in little more than half a century, has changedl from a wilderness to one of the most powerfu States of the Union. COUNTIES. ADAMS. ADAMS lies on the Ohio river, about fifty miles east of Cincinnati, and derives its name fiom John Adams, second President of the United States. It was formed, July 10th, 1797, by proclamation ol Gov. St. Clair. and covered a large tract of country, being then one ol the four counties into which the N. W. Territory was divided. The land is generally hilly and broken, and, in the eastern part, not fertile. The staples are wheat, corn, pork and oats. Many of the first settlers were from Virginia, Kentucky and Ireland. The following is a list of its townships in 1840, with their population: Franklin, 1,358 Meigs, 1,071 Tiffin, 1,533 Green, 1,081 Monroe, 828 Wayne, 858 Jefferson, 938 Scott, 916 Winchester, 1,112 Liberty, 1,096 Sprigg, 1,984 The population of Adams, in 1820, was 10,406; in 1830, 12,278 and in 1840, 13,271, or 24 persons to a square mile. The first settlement within the Virginia military tract, and the only one between the Scioto and Little Miami until after the treaty of Greenville, in 1795, was made in this county, at Manchester, by the then Col., late Gen. Nathaniel Massie. McDonald, in his unpretending, but excellent little volume, says: Massie, in the winter of the year, 1790, determined to make a settlement in it, that he might be in the midst of his surveying operations and secure his party tromt danger and exposure. In order to effect this, he gave general notice in Kentucky of his intention, and offered each of the first twenty-five families, as a donation, one in-lot, one out-lot, and one hundred acres of land, provided they would settle in a town he intended to lay off at his settlement. His proffered terms were soon closed in with, and upwards of thirty families joined 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, he fixed his station, and laid off into lots a town, now called Manchester; at this time a small place, about twelve miles above Maysville, (formerly Limestone,) Kentucky. This little confederacy, with Massie at tne helm, (who was the soul of it,) went to work with spirit. Cabins were raised, and by the middle of March, 1791, the whole town was enclosed witstrong pickets, firmly fixed in the ground, with block houses at each angle for defence. Thus was the first settlement in the Virginia military district, and the fourth settlement' in the bounds of the State of Ohio, effected. Although this settlement was commenced in the hottest Indian war, it suffered less from depredation, and even interruptions, from tile Indians, than any settlement previously made on the Ohio river. This was no doubt o" ing to the watchful band of brave spirits who guarded the place-men who were reared ill the midst of danger and inured to perils, and as watchful as hawks. Here were the Beasleys. 22 ADAMS COUNTY. the Stouts, the Washburns, the Ledoms, the Edgingtons, the Denings, the Ellisons. the Utts, the McKenzies, the Wades, and others, who were equal to the Indians in all the arts and stratagems of border war. As soon as Massie had completely prepared his station for defence, the whole population went to work, and cleared the lower of the Three Islands, and planted it in corn. The island was very rich, and produced heavy crops. The woods, with a little industry, slpplied a choice variety of game. Deer, elk, buffalo, bears, and turkeys, were abunldalt, while the river furnished a variety of excellent fish. The wants of the inhabitants, under these circumstances, were few and easily gratified. When this station was made, the nearest neighbors north-west of the Ohio, were tle inhabitants at Columbia, a settlement below the mouth of the Little Miami, five miles above Cincinnati, and at Gallipolis, a French settlement, near the mouth of the Great Kenhawa. The station being established, Massie continued to make locations and surveys. Great precautions were necessary to avoid the Indians, and even these did not always avail, as is shown by the following incidents, the first of which is derived from the narrative of Israel Donalson, in the American Pioneer, and the others from McDonald's sketches. I am not sure whether i: was the last of March or first of April I came to the territory to reside; but on the night of the 21st of April, 1791, Mr. Massie and myself we-re sleeping together on our blankets, (for beds we had none,) on the loft of our cabin, to get out of the way o tini fleas and gnats. Soon after lying down, I began dreaming of Indians, and continued r.t: o so through the night. Sometime in the night, however, whether Mr. Massie waked of himself, or whether I wakened him, I cannot now say, but I observed to him I did not k-ow what was to be the consequence, for i had dreamed more about Indians that night than in all the time I had been in the western country before. As is commnon, he made light of it, and we dropped again to sleep. He asked me next morning if I would go with him up the river, about four or five miles, to make a survey, and that William Lytle, who was then at the fort, was going along. We were both young surveyors, and were glad of the opportunity to practice. Accordingly we three, and a James Tittle, from Kentucky, who was about buying the land, got on board of a canoe, and was a long time going up, the river being very high at the time. We commenced at the mouth of a creek, which fromn that day has been called Donalson creek. We meandered up the river; Mr Massie had the compass, Mr. Lytle and myself carried the chain. We had progressed per. haps one hundred and forty, or one hundred and fifty poles, when our chain broke or parted, but with the aid of the tomahawk we soon repaired it. We were then close to a large mound, and were standing in a triangle, and Lytle and myself were amusing ourselves pointing out to Tittle the great convenience he would have by building his house on that mound, when the one standing with his face up the river, spoke and said, boys, there are. Indians; no, replied the other, they are Frenchmen. By this time I had caught a glimpse of them; I said they were Indians, I begged them to fire. I had no gun, and from the advantage we had, did not think of running until they started. The Indians were in; two small baik canoes, and were close into shore and discovered us just at the instant we saw them; and before I started to run I saw one jump on shore. We took out through the bottom, ant before getting to the hill, came to a spring branch. I was in the rear, and as I went to jump, something caught my foot, and I fell on the opposite side. They were then so close, I saw there was no chance of escape, and did not offer to rise. Three warriors first came up, presented their guns all ready to fire, but as I made no resistance they took them down, and one of them gave me his hand to help me up. At this time Mr. Lytle was about a chain's length before me, and threw away his hat; one of the Indians went forward and picked it up. They then took me back to the bank of the river, and sel me down while they put up their stuff, and prepared for a march. While setting on the bank of the river, I could see the men walking about the block-house on the Kentucky shore, but they heard nothing of it. They went on rapidly that evening, and camped, 1 think, on tlie waters of Eagle creek, started next morning early, it raining hard, and( ole of theml saw my hat was somewhat convenient to keep off the rain, came up and took it off my head, and put it on his own. By this time I had discovered some fiiendship in a very lusty Indian, I think the one that first came up to me; I imade signs to hiil that one had takein iny hat, he went and took it off the other Indian's head, and placed it again or. Iine, but had not gone far before they took it again. I complained as before, but my fiend shook his head, to,,k down and opened his budget, and took out a sort of blallket ADAMS COUNTY. 23 cap, and put it on my head. We went on; it still rained hard and the wateis were very much swollen, and when my friend discovered that I was timoruus, he would lock his arm in mine, and lead me through, and frequently in open woods when I would get tired, I would do the same thing with him, and walk for miles. They did not make me carry any thing until Sunday or Monday. They got into a thicket of game, and killed, I think, two bears and some deer; they then halted and jerked their meat, eat a large portion, peeled some bark, made a kind of box, filled it, and put it on me to carry. I soon got tired of it and thiew it down: they raised a great laugi, examined my back, applied some bear's oil to it, and then put on the box again. I we; t on some distance and threw it down again; my friend then took it up, threw it over his head, and carried it. It weighed, I thought, at.east fifty pounds. While resting one day, one of the Indians broke up little sticks and laid them up in the form of a fence, then took out a grain of corn, as carefully wrapped up as people used to wrap up guineas in olden times; this they plante( and called out squaw, signifying to me that that would be my employment with the squaws. But, notwithstanding my situation at the time, I thought they would not eat much corn of my raising. On Tuesday, as we were traveling along, there came to us a white man and an Indian on horseback; they had a long talk, and when they rode off, the Ind(ians I was with seemed considerably alarmed; they immediately forined in Indian file, placed mle in the centre, and shook a war club over my head, and showed me by these gestuies that if I attempted to run away they wouild kill mle. We soon after arrived at the Shawanee calmp, where we continued until late in the afternoon of the next day. During our stay theie they trained my hair to their own fashioa, put a jewel of tin in my nose, &c., &c. The Indians met with great formality when we came to thle camp, which was very spacious. One si:le was entirely cleared out for our use, and the party I was with passed thie camp to nly gre.t mortification, I thiniking they were going on; but on getting to the further end they wleeled short round, came into the camp, sat down-not a whisper. In a few minlutes two of the oldest got up, went round, shook hands, came and sat down again; then the Shawanees rising simultaneously, came and shook hands with them. A few of the first took me by the hand; but one refused, and I did not offer them my hand again, not considering it any great honor. Soon after a kettle of bear's oil and some craclins were set before us, and we began eating, they first chewing the meat, then dipping it into the bear's oil, which I tried to be excused from, but they compelled me to it, which tried my stomach, although by this time hunger had colnpelled me to eat many a dirty morsel. Early in the afternoon, an Indian came to the camp, and was met by his party just outside, when they formed a circle and he spoke, I thought, near an hour, and so profound was the silence, that had they been on a board floor, I thought the fall of a pin might have been heard. I rightly judged of the disaster, for the day before I was taken I was at Limestone, and was solicited to join a party that was going down to the mIouth of Snag creek, where some Indian canoes were discovered hid in the willows. The party went and divided, some came over to the Indian shore, and some remained in Kentucky, and they succeeded in killing nearly the whole party. Thlere was at tlis camp two white men; one of them could swear in English, but very imperfectly, having I suppose been taken young; the othtr, who could speak good English, told m e he was from South Carolina. He then told me different names which I have forgot, except that of Ward; asked if I knew the Wards that lived near Washinaton, Kentucky. 1 told hili I did, and wanted him to leave the Indians and go to his brother's, and take me with him. He told me he preferred staying with the Indians, that he migl-it nab the whites. He and I had a great deal of chat, and disagreed in almost every thing. He told me they had taken a prisoner by the name of Towns, that had lived near Washington, Kentucky, and that he had attempted to run away, and they killed him. But the truth was, they had taken Timothy Downing the day before I was taken, in the neigllborholod oI Blue Licks, and had got within four or five miles of that camp, and night comlling on, and it hein, very rainly, tley concluded to canmp. There were but two Indians, an oldl cliie and his son; Downinlg watched his opportunity, got hold of a squaw-axe and gave the fatal blow. His object was to bring the young Ii dian in a prisoner; lie said he had been so kind to him he could lnot think of killing him. But the instant he struck his father, the yo:un man sprung pllon his back and confined him so that it was with difficulty he extricated himself from his grasp. Downing made then for his horse, anl the Indian for the camp. The horse he calghlt and mounted; but not being a woodsman, struck the Ohio a little telow Scioto, just as a boat was passing. They would not land for him until he rode several imiles and convinced them that he was no decoy, and so close was the pursuit, that the boat had otily gained the stream when the enemy appeared on the shore. He liad severely wounm'-d tlhe a oung Indian ii. the scuffle, but did not know it until I told hint. Bua 24 ADAMS COUNTY. to return to my own narrative: two of the party, viz., my friend and another Indian, tuT.ed back from ihis camp to do other mischief. and never before had I parted with a frieni wi:h the same regret. We left the Shawanee camp about the middle of the afternoown, thne under great excitement. What detained them I know not, for they had a number of their horses up, and their packs on, fiom eaily in the morning. I think they had at least one hundred of the best horses that at that time Kentucky could affbrd. They calculated on Leing pursued, and they were right, for the next day, viz., the 28th of April, Major Kenton, with iboolt ninety men, were at the camp before the fires were extinguished; and I )have always viewed it as a providential circumstance that the enemy had departed, as a delf at on the part of the Kentuckians would have been inevitable. I never could get the In.ia.ns in a 1position to ascertain their precise number, but concluded there were sixty or upward, as sprightly looking men as I ever saw together, and well equipped as they could wish for. The Major himself agreed with me that it was a happy circumstance that they were gone. We tiaveled that evening, I thou ght, seven miles, and encamped in the edge of a plailie, the water a short distance off. Oar supper that night consisted of a raccoon roasted undressed. After this meal I became thilsty, and an old warrior, to whom my fiJend had giveln me in charge, directed another to go with me to the water, which made hin angry; lie struck me, and my nose bled. I had a great mind to return the stroke, but did not. I then detellmined, be the result what it might, that I would go no farther with them. They tied me and laid me down as usual, one of them lying on the rope on each side of m e; they went to sleep, and I to wolk gnawing and picking the rope (made of baik) to pieces, but did not get loose until day was bleaking. I crawled off on my hands and feet until I got into the edge of the prairie, and sat down on a trussuck to put on nly moccasis, and had put on one and was preparing to put on the other, when they raised the yell and took the back track, and I believe they made as much noise as twenty whi'e men could do. Had they been still they might have heard me, as I was not more than two chains' length fi-omi them at the time. But I started and ran, carrying one moccasin in my hand; and in order to evade them, chose the poorest ridges I could find; and when coming to tree-logs lying crosswise, would run along one and then along the other. I continued on that way until about ten o'clock, then ascending a very poor ridge, crept in between two logs, and being very weary scon dropped to sleep, and did not waken until the sun was nalmost down; I traveled on a short distance further and took lodging for the night in a hollow tree. i think it was on Saturday that I got to the Miami. I collected somte logs, niade a raft by peeling bark and tying them together; but I soon found that too tedious and abandoned it. I found a turkey's nest with two eggs in it, each one having a double yelk they made two delicious nmeals for different days. I followed down the Miami, until I struck Halnlia's trace, made the previous fall, and continued on it until I came to Fort Washington, now Cincinnati. I think it was on Sabbath, the first day of May; I caught a holse, tied a piece of baik around his under jaw, on which there was a large tumror like a wart. The bark rubbed that, and he became restless and threw me, not hurting me much, however; I caught him again, and he again threw me, hurting me badly. How long I lay insensible I don't know; but when I revived he was a considerable distance from me. I then traveled on very slow, mny feet entirely bare and full of thorns and briars. Onl Wednesday, the day that I got in, I was so far gone that I thought it entirely useless to make any further exertion, not knowing whatt distance I was from the river; and I took Ily station at the robt of a tree, but soon got into a state of,ileeping, and either dreamt, or thought that I should not be loitering away my time, that I should get in that day; which, on reflection, I had not the most distant idea. However, the impression was so strong that I got up and walked on some distance. I then took my station again as before, and the same thoughts occupied my mind. 1 got up and walked on. I had not traveled far before I thought I could see an opening for the river; and getting a little further on, I heard the sound oi a bell. I then started and ran, (at a slow speed undoubtedly;) a little fugther on, I began to perceive that I was conling to the river hill; and having got about half way down, I heard the sounrd of an axe, which was the sweetest music I had heard for many a day. It wal in the extrelne out-lot; when I got to the lot I crawled over the fence with difficulty, i being very high. I approached the person very cautiously till within about a chain's lengtk undiscovered, I then stopped and spoke; the person I spoke to was Mr. William AV-.d ward, (the founder of the Woodward High School.) Mr. Woodward looked up, LaStil. cast his eyes round, and saw that I had no deadly weapon; he then spoke. " In'l-;anmi of God," said he, "who are you l" I told him I had been a prisoner and had:nr.de nml escape fiom the Indians. After a few more questions he told me to comle t?.mrn. I die so. Seej!ig my situation, his fears soon subsided; he told me to sit down 7". og and hF would go and catch a horse he had in the lot, and take me in. Hle caugtr his horse, rt5 ADAMS COUNTY. 25 me on him, but kept the bridle in his own hand. When we got into the road, people began to inquire of Mr. Woodward, "who is he-an Indian " I was not surprised nor offended at the inquiries, for I was still inIndian uniform, bare headed, my hair cut off close, except the scalp and foretop, which they had put up in a piece of tin, with a bunch of turkey feathers, which I could not undo. They had also stripped off the feathers of about two turkeys and hung them to the hair of the scalp; these I had taken off the day I left them. Mr. Woodward took me to his house, where every kindness was shown me. They soon gave me other clothing; coming from different persons, they (lid not fit mle very neatly; but there could not be a pair of shoes got in the place that I could get on, my feet were so much swollen. In the spring of the year 1793, the settlers at Manchester commenced clearing the out-lots uf the town; and while so engaged, an incident of much interest and excitement occurred. Mr. Andrew Ellison, one of the settlers, cleared a 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, a short tinie 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 this job, a number of the heaps blazedl up brightly, and as he was passing from one to the other, he observed, by the light of the fires, three men walking briskly towards him. This did not alarm him ill the least, although, he said, they were daik skinned fellows; yet he concluded they were the Wades, whose complexions were very dark, going early to hunt. He continued to riglit his log-heaps, until one of the fellows seized hint by the arms, and called out in broken English, " How do? how do I" He instantly looked in their faces, and to his sarprise and horror, found himnself in the clutches of three Indians. To resist was useless. He therefore submitted to his fate. without any resistance or an attempt to escape. The Indians quickly moved off with him in the direction of Paint creek. Wilen breakfast was ready, Mrs. Ellison sent one of her children to ask their father homie; burt he could not be found at the log-henps. His absence created no immediate alarm, as it was thought he night have started to hunt after the completion of his work. Dinner time arrived, and Ellisonl not returning, the Lfanily became uneasy, and began to suspect sotle accident had happened to hinm. His gun-rack was examined, and there hung his rife atnd Ihs pouchl in their usual place. Massie raised a party, and made a circuit around the place, and found, after some search, the trails of four men, one of whom had on shoes; and as Ellison had shoes on, the truth, that the Indians had made himn a prisoner, was unfolded. As it was almost night at the time the trail was discovered, the party returned to their station. Next morning, early preparations were made by Massie and his party to pursue the Indians. In doing this they found great difficulty, as it was so early in the spring that the vegetation was not of sufficient growth to show plainly the trail of the Indians, who took the precaution to keep on lard and high land, where their feet could make little or no impression. Massie and his party, however, were as unerring as a pack of well-trained hounds, and followed the trail to Paint creek, when they found the Indians gained so fist on them, that pursuit was vain. They therefore abandoned it, and returned to the station. The Indians took their prisoner to Upper Sandusky, and compelled him to run the gauntlet. As Ellison was a large man and not very active, he received a severe flogging as he passed along the line. From this place he was taken to Lower Sandusky, and was again compelled to run the gauntlet, and was then taken to Detroit, where he was generously ransomed by a British officer for one hundred dollars. He was shortly afterwards sent by his friend, the officer, to Montreal, fiom whence he returned home before the close of the summer of the samle year. Anolther incident connected with the station at Manchester occurred shortly after this time, which, although somewhat out of order as to time, I will take the liberty to relate in this place. John Edgington, Asahel Edgington, and another man, started out on a hunting expedition towards Brush creek. They camped out six miles in a north-east direction from where West Union now stands, and near where Treber's tavern is now situate-l, on the road fiom Chillicothe to Maysville. The Edgingtons had good success in hanlin^i having killed a number of deer and bears. Of the deer killed, they saved the skins and hams alone. The bears, they fleeced; that is, they cut off all the meat which adhered to the hide without skinning, and left the bones as a skeleton. They hung up the p oceeds o. their hunt on a scaffold, out of the reach of the wolves and other wild animals, and returned home for pack horses. No one returned to the camp with the two Edgingtons. As it was late in December, no one apprehended danger, as the winter season was usually a time of repose from Indian incursions. When the Edgingtons arrived at their old hlnting camp, they alighted fiom their horses and were preparing to strike a fire, when a platoon of In lians fired upon them, at the distance of not more than twenty paces, Asahtel Ed.l, 26 ADAMS COUNTY. ington flTi to rise no mo:c. John was more fortunate. The sharp crack of the rifles, and the horrid yells of the Indians, as they leaped from their place of ambush, frigltened the horses, who took the track towards home at full speed. John Edgington was very active on foot, and now an occasioi offered which required his utmost speed. The moment the Indians leaped from their hiding place, they threw down their guns and took after him. They pursued him screaming and yelling in the most horrid manner. Edgington did not run a booty race. For about a mile the Indians stepped in his tracks almost before the bending grass could rise. The uplifted tomahawk was frequently so near his head, that he thought lie felt its edge. Every effort was made to save his life, and every exertion of the Indians was nmade to arrest him in his flight. Edgington, who had the greatest stake in the race, at lengh began to gain on his pursuers, and after a long race, he distanced them, made his escape, and safely reached home. This, truly, was a most fearful and well contested race. The big Shawnee chief, Captain John, who headed the Indians on this occasion, after peace was made and Chillicothe settled, frequently told the writer of this sketch fjf the race. Captain John said, that " the white man who ran away was a smart fellow, that the white man run and I run, he run and run, at last, the white man run clear ofl front me." The first court in this county was held in Manchester. Winthrop Sargent, the secretary of the territory, acting in the absence of the governor, appointed commissioners, who located the county seat at an out of the way place, a few miles above the mouth of Brush creek, which they called Adamsville. The lccality was soon named, in derision, Scant. At the next session of the court, its members became divided, and part sat in Manchester and part at Adamsville. The governor, on his return to the territory, finding the l)eople in great confusion, and much bickering between them, removed the seat of justice to the mouth of Brush creek, where the first court was held in 1798. Here a town was laid out bv Noble Grimes, under the name of Washington. A large log court house was built, with a jail in the lower story, and the governor appointed two more of the Scant party judges, which gave them a majority. In 1800, Charles Willing Byrd, secretary of the territory, in the absence of the governor, appointed two more of the Manchester party judges, which balanced the parties, and the contest was maintained until West Union became the county seat. Joseph Darlinton~ and Israel Donalson, were among the first judges of the Common Pleas. These gentlemen, now living in this county, were also members of the convention for forming the constitution of the State, there being, in 1847, only three others of that body living. WAEST UNION, the county seat, is on the Maysville and Zai:esville turnpike, 8 miles from the Ohio at Manchester, and 106 sottr erly from Columbus. The name was given to it by Hon. Tholnas Kirker,,ine of the commissioners who laid it out in 1804, and one of its -:.arliest settlers. It stands on the summit of a high ridge, many nundtedt feet above the level of the Ohio. As early as 1815, a -;,awspaper was established here by James Finlay, entitled tle Political Censor. The annexed view shows, on the left, the jail and market, and in the centre, the court house and county offices. These last stand in a pleasant area, shaded by locusts. Tlhe court nouse is a substantial stone building, and bears good testimony to the * In 180.3, Gen. Darlinton was appointed Clerk of Common Pleas and Clerk of the Su preme Court The first office he left a few months since, and the last he still retains. ADAMS COUNTY. 21 skill of its builder, ex-Governor Metcalf, of Kentucky, who, commencing life as a mason, has acquired the sobriquet of "Stone Hammer." The first court house here was of logs. West Union contains 4 churches: 1 Associate Reformed, 1 Presbyterian, 1 MIethodist and 1 Baptist; 2 newspapers, a classical school, and 9 mercan tile stores. It had, in 1820, a population of 406; in 1850, 462. SIR 1 I Public Buildings, West Union. In the eastern part of this county are considerable beds of iron ore, that have been in use many years; it is a mineral region, and large hills are composed of aluminous slate. Some years since, a singular phenomenon occurred in this section, described by Dr. Hildreth, in the 29th volume of Silliman's Journal: A part of the summer of the year 1830 was excessively dry in the south-west portion o Ohio. During the drought, the water all disappeared from Brush creek, which heads among some slaty hills, leaving its bed entirely dry for several weeks. Towards the close of this period, loud and frequent explosions took place from the slate at the bottom of the creek, throwing up large fragments of rock and shaking the earth violently for some distance. The inhabitants living near its borders became much alarmed, thinking a volcano was breaking out. On examining the spot, large pieces of iron pyrites were found mixed with the slate-stone. The water, w hich had heretofore protected the pyrites fro the atmnosphere, being all evaporated, the oxygen fdund its way through the crevices of the slate to these beds, and acting chemically upon them, new combinations took place, forcing up the superincumbent strata with great violence and noise. When the water again covered he bed of the creek, the explosions ceased. The barren hills in this part of the countx,.nd of some of the olher river counties, remain, in many cases, the property of the General Government. They afford, however, a fine range for the cattle and hogs of the scattered inhabitants, and no small quantity of lumber, such as staves, hoop poles and tanner's bark, which are unscrupulously taken from the public lands. Dr. John Locke, from whose Geological Report these facts are derived, says: Indeed, there is a vagrant class who are supported by this kind of business. They erece a cabin towards the head of some ravine, collect the chestnut-oak bark fiom the neighboring hill tops, drag it on sleds to points accessible by wagons, where they sell it for perhaps $2 per cord to the wagoner. The last sells it at the river to the flat boat shipper, at $6 per cord, and he again to the consumer at Cincinnati, for 11. Besides this conmmnon.respass, the squatter helps himself out by hunting deer and coons, and, it is said, occasionally 28 ALLEN COUNTY. by taking a sheep or a hog, the loss of which may very reasonably be charged to the wolves. The poor families of the bark cutters oftern exhibit the very picture of improvidelce. There begins to be a fear among the inhabitants that speculators may be tempted to purchase up these waste lands and deprive them of their present' range' and limtber. The speculator must still be a non-lresident, and could hardly protect his purchase. Tile inhabitants have a hard, rough region to deal with, and need all of the advantages which their mountain tract can afford. Winchester, 12 miles NW. of the county seat, is a thriving town, with 7 stores and about 400 people; Manchester, 8 sw., has 4 stores and about 250 population; Jacksonville, 10 NE., has a population of about 200. ALLEN. ALLEN was formed April 1st, 1820, from Indian territory, and named in honor of a colonel of that name in the war of 1812: it was temporarily attached to Mercer county for judicial purposes. The population is of a mixed character, and the southern part has many Germans. The following is a list of its townships in 1850, with their population: Amanda, 282; Auglaise, 1344; Bath, 1512; German, 856; Jackson, 1176; Marion, i72; Perry, 923; Shawanee. 756. The population of Allen, in 1850, was 12,116. - -_ —-------- Lima. Lima, the county seat, is 95 miles WNW. from Columbus, and was laid off as the seat of justice for the county in the spring of 1831. The annexed view was taken near the residence of Col. Jas. Cunningham, on the Wapakonetta road. The stream shown in the view is the Ottawa river, usually called Hog river-a name derived from the following circumstance: McKee, the British Indian agent, who resided at the Machachac towns, on Mad river, during the incursion of General Logan, in 1786, was obliged to flee with his effects. He had his swine driven on to the borders of this stream; the Indians thereafter called it Koshko sepe, which signifies Hog river. AUGLAIZE COUNTY. 29 AUGLAIZE. AUGLAIZE was formed in February 14, 1848, from Allen and Mercer counties. Its surface is level and its soil fertile. By the census of 1850, its population was 11,341, and its different townships as follows: Goshen, 336; Wayne, 672; Union, 1008; Clay, 840; Pusheta, 1008; Duchouquet, 905; Logan, 336; German, 1470; Saint Mary's, 693; Washington, 688; Noble, 309; Salem, 400; Moulton, 450. St. Mary's is a beautifully situated village, in the west part of the county, having, by the census of 1850, 874 inhabitants. Wapakonetta. the county seat, had, in 1850, 504 inhabitants. After the remnant of this powerful and noble tribe of Shawnee Indians were driven from Piqua, by Gen. Clark, they settled a town here, which they called 1FV[paghkonetta.* By the treaty at the Maumee rapids, in 1817, the Shawnees were given a reservation of ten miles square in this county, within which, was their councilhouse at Wapakonetta, and also a tract of twenty-five square miles, which included their settlement on Hog Creek; by the treaty of the succeeding year, made at St. Mary's, 12,800 acres adjoining the east line of the Wapakonetta Reserve were added. At the village there is a fine orchard, at least sixty years of ige, and from its being planted in regular order, it is supposed to have been done by Frenchmen settled among the Indians. The society of Friends, for a number of years, had a mission at Wapakonetta. From the year 1796 till the formation of the state constitution, Judge Burnet, of Cincinnati, attended court regularly at that place, Marietta and Detroit, the last of which was then the seat of justice for Wayne county. The jaunts between these remote places, through a wilderness, were attended with exposure, fatigue and hazard, and were usually performed on horseback, in parties of two or three or more. On one of these occasions, while halting at Wapakonetta, he witnessed a game of ball among the people, of which he has given an interesting narration in his letters. Blue Jacket, the war-chief, who commanded the Shawanees in the battle of 1794, at Maumee, resided in the village, but was absent. We were, however, received with kindness, by the old village chief, Buckingelas. * John Johnston says "Wapaqh-ko-netta: this is the true Indian orthography. It was named after an Ildian chief lonl since dead, but, who survived years after my intercourse commenced with the Shawmanoese. The chief was somewlhat cluh-fooled, and the word has reference, I lhilnk, to that circumstance, altholllgh its full import I never could discover. For many years prior to 1829, 1 had my Indian head-quarters at Wapa(gh-ko-netta. The business of the agency of the Shawanoese, Wyandotts, Senecas and Delawares was transacted there." 30 AUGLAIZE COUNTY. When we went to his lodge, he was giving audience to a deputa tion of chiefs from some western tribes. We took seats at his request, till the conference was finished, and the strings of wampum were disposed of. He gave us no intimation of the subject matter of the conference, and of course we could not, with propriety, ask for it. In a little time he called in some of his young men, and requested them to get up a game of football for our amusement. A purse of trinkets was soon made up, and the whole village, male and female, were on the lawn. At these games the men played against the women, and it was a rule, that the former were not to touch the ball with'their hands on penalty of forfeiting the purse; while the latter had the privilege of picking it up, running with, and throwing it as far as they could. When a squaw had the ball, the men were allowed'o catch and shake her, and even throw her on the ground, if necessary, to extricate the ball from her hand, but they were not allowed to touch, or move it, except by their feet. At the opposite extremes of the lawn, which was a beautiful plain, thickly set with blue grass, stakes were erected, about six feet apart-the contending parties arrayed themselves in front of these stakes; the nen on the one side, and the women on the ot other. The party which succeeded in driving the ball through the stakes, at the goal of their opponents, were proclaimed victors, and received the purse. All things being ready, the old chief went to the centre of the lawn, and threw up the ball, making an exclamation, in the Shawanee language, which we did not understand. He immediately retired, and the contest began. The parties seemed to be fairly natched, as to numlbers, having about a hundred on a side. The game lasted more than an hour, with great animation, but was finally decided in favor of the ladies, by the power of an herculean squaw, who got the ball and in spite of the men who seized her to shake it fiom her uplifted hand, held it firmly dragging then along, till she was sufficiently near the goal to throw it through the stakes. The young squaws were the most active of their party, and, of course, mIost frequently caught the ball. When they did so, it was amusing to see the strife between them and the young Indians, who imnediately seized them, and always succeeded in rescuing the ball, though sometimes they could not effect their object till their female competitors were thrown on the grass. When the contending parties had retired from the field of strife, it was pleasant to see the feelings of exultation depicted in the faces of the victors; whose joy was manifestly enhanced by the fact, that their victory was won in the presence of white men, whom they supposed to be highly distinguished, and of great power in their nation. This was a natural conclusion for them to draw, as they knew we were journeying to Detroit for the purpose of holding the general court; which, they supposed, controled and governed the nation. We soent the night very pleasantly among them, and in the morning resumed our journey. In August, 1831, treaties were negotiated with the Senecas of Lewiston and the Shawnees of Wapakonetta, by James Gardiner. Esq., and Col. John M'Elvain, special commissioners appointed for this purpose. The terms offered were so liberal that the Indians consented to give up their land and remove beyond the Mississippi. The Shawnees had at this time about 66,000 acres in this county, and in conjunction with the Senecas about 40,300 acres at Lewiston. The Indians were removed to the Indian territory on Kanzas river, in the Far West, in September, 1832, D. M. Workman and David Robb being the agents for their removal. The latter, Mr. Robb, in a communication respecting the Indians, has given the following interesting facts. Intemperance to a great extent prevailed among the Indians; there was, however, as wide a contrast in this respect as with the whites, and some of the more virtuous refused to associate with the others. This class also cultivated their little farms with a degree ol taste and judgment some of these could cook a comfortable meal, and I have eaten both AUGLAIZE COUNTY. 31 butter and a kind of cheese made by them. Many of them were quite ingenious and naturai mechanics, with a considerable knowledge of, and an inclination to use tools. ()n chief hal an assortment of carpenters' tools which he kept in neat order. He made plows, harrows, wagons, bedsteads, tables, bureaus, &c. He was frank, liberal and conscientious. On my asking him who taught him the use of tools, he replied, no one; then pointing up to the sky, he said, " the Great Spirit taught me." With all their foibles and vices, there is something fascinating in the Indian character, and one cannot long associate with them without having a perceptible growing attacihment. The Indian is emphatically the natural man, and it is an easy thing to make an Inlian out of a white person, but very difficult to civilize or christianize an Indian. I have known a nulmber of whites who had been taken prisoners by the Indians when young, and withlllt exception, they foried such attachments that, af.er being with them some time, they could not be induced to return to their own people. Tnere was a woman among the Shawnees, supposed to be near an hundred years of age, who was taken prisoner, when young, in eastern Pennsylvania. Some years after, her friends, through the agency of traders, endeavored to induce her to return, but in vain. She became, if possible, mnore of a squaw in her habits and appearance than any female in the nation. As a sample of their punctuality in performing their contracts, I would state that I have often loaned them money, which was always returned in due season, with a single exception. This was a loan to a young man who promised to pay me when they received their annuity. After the appointed time he shunned me, and the matter remained unsettled until just prior to our departure for their new homes. I then stated the circumstance to one of the chiefs, more fiomn curiosity to see how he would receive the intelligence than with the expectation of its being the means of bringing the money. He, thereupon, talked with the lad upon the subject, but, being unsuccessful, he called a council of is brother chiefs, who formed a circle, with the young man in the centre. After talking to him a while in a low tone, they broke out and vociferously reprimanded- him for his dishonest conduct; but all proved unavailing. Finally, the chiefs, in a most generous and noble spirit, made up the amount fronm their own purses, and pleasantly tendered it to me. The Indians being firm believers in witchcraft, generally attributed sickness and other misfortunes to this cause, and were in the habit of murdering those whom they suspected of practising it. They have been known to travel all the way fiomn the Mississiippi to Wapakonetta, and shoot down a person in his cabin merely on suspicion of his being a wizzard, and return unmolested. When a person became so sick as to lead them to think he was in danger of death, it was usual for them to place hin in the woods alone, with no one to attend except a nurse or doctor, who generally acted as an agent in hlurrying on their dissolution. It was distressing to see one in this situation. I have been permitted to do this only through the courtesy of relatives, it being contrary to rule for any to visit them except such as had medical care of them. The whole nation are at libc:et to attend the lunerals, at which there is generally great lamentation. A chief, who die l jiit previous to their removal, was burie l in the following manner. They bored holes in tlhe lid of his coffin-as is their custom-over his eyes and mouth, to let the Good Spirit p lss in and out. Over the grave they laid presents, &c., with provisions, which they affirmed the Good Spirit would take him in the night. Sure enough I-these articles had all d(isappearedl in the morniing, by the hand of an evil spirit clothed in a human body. There were miany funerals among the Indians, and their numbers rapidly decreased: intemperance, and pulmonary, and scrofillous diseases, made up a large share of their bills of mortality, and the number of deaths to the births were as one to three. A few anecdotes will illustrate the wit and dishonesty of some, and the tragical encounters of others of the Indians. Col. M'Pherson, the former sub-agent, kept goods for sale, for which they often got in debt. Some were slow in making payments, and one in particular was so tardy that M'Pherson earnestly urged him to pay up. Knowiig that he was in the habit of taking hides fiom the tanners, the Indian inquired if he would take hides for the debt. Being answered in the affirmative, he promised to bring them in about four days. The Indian, knowing that M'Pherson had at this time a flock of cattle ranging in the torest, went in pursuit, shot several, from which he took off the hides, and delivered theum punctually accolding to promise. While we were encamped, waiting for the Indians to finish their ceremonies prior to emigration, we were nmuch annoyed by an unprincipled band of whites who caime to trade, particularly in the article of whiskey, which they secreted fiom us in the woods. The Indians all knew of this depot, and were continually going, like bees from the hive, day and night, and it was difficult to tell whether some who lead in the worship passed most of the lime in that employment ol in drinking whiskey. While this state of things lasted, the 32 AUGLAIZE COUNTY. officers could do nothing satisfactorily with them, nor were they sensible of the conseqlence of continuing in such a course The government was bound by treaty stipulations to maintain them one year only, which was passing away, aMd winter was fast approaching, when they could not well travel, and if they could not arrive until spring, they would be unable to raise a crop, and consequently would be out of bread. We finally assenibled the chiefs and other influential men, and presenting these facts vividly before them, they became alarmed and promised to reform. We then authorized them to tomahawk every barrel, keg, jug, or bottle of whiskey that they could find, under the promise to pay for all and protect them from harm in so doing. They all agreed to this, and went to work that night to accomplish the task. Having lain down at a late hour to sleep, I was awakened by one who said he had found and brought me a jug of whiskey: I handed him a quarter of a dollar, set the whiskey down, and fell asleep again. The same fellow then came, stole jug and all, and sold the contents that night to the Indians at a shilling a dram-a pretty good speculation on a half gallon of " whisk." as the Indians call it. I suspected him of the trick, but he would not confess it until I was about to part with them at the end of the journey, when he came to me and related the circumstances, saying that it was too good a story to keep. One df our interpreters, who was part Indian and had lived with them a long time, relayed the following tragical occurrence. A company of Shawnees met some time previous ) my coming among them, had a drunken frolic and quarrelled. One vicious fellow who had an old grudge against several of the others, and stabbed two of the gonipany successively until they fell dead, was making for the third, when his arm was arrested by a large athletic Indian, who, snatching the knife from him, plunged it into him until lie fell. He attempted to rise and got on his knees, when the other straddled him, seized him by the hair, lifted up his head with one hand, while with the other he drew his knife ac;-'o.s his throat, exclaiming-" lie there, my friend! I guess you not eat any Inore hlommony." After we had rendezvoused, preparatory to moving, we were detained several weeks waiting until they had got over their tedious round of religious ceremonies, some of which were public and others kept private from us. One of their first acts was to take away the fencing fiom the graves of their fathers, level them to the surrounding surface, and cover them so neatly with green sod, that not a trace of the graves could be seen. Subsequently, a few of the chiefs and others visited their friends at a distance, gave and received presents from chiefs of other nations, at their head quarters. Among the ceremonies above alluded to was a dance, in which none participated but the warriors. They threw off all their clothing but their britchclouts, painted their faces and naked bodies in a fantastical manner, covering them with the pictlures of snakes and disagreeable insects and anilmals, and then armed with war clubs, conmmenced danci'ng, yelling and frightfully distorting their countenances: the scene was truly terrific. This was followedt by the dance they usually have on returning from a victorious battle, in which both sexes participated. It was a pleasing contrast to the other, anid was perforilel in the nlight, in a ring. around a large fire. In this they sang and marched, nlales and fni:;lIles promliscuously, in single file, around the blaze. The leader of the band commenced singing, while all the rest were silent until he had sung a certain number of words, then the next in the row commnenced with the same, and the leader began with a new set, and so on to the end of their chanting. All were singing at once, but no two the s:ime words. I was told that part of the words they used were halle!ujah! It was pleasing to witness the native modesty and graceful movements of those young females in this dance. When their ceremonies were over, they informed us they were now ready to leave They then mounted their horses, and such as went in wagons seated themselves, and sei out with their " high priest" in front, bearing on his shoulders " the ark of the covenant,' which consisted of a large gourd and the bones of a deer's leg tied to its neck. Just pre xious to starting, the priest gave a blast of his trumpet, then moved slowly and solemnly ^hile the others followed in like manner, until they were ordered to halt iln the evening for encampment, when the priest gave another blast as a signal to ston, erect their tentte and cook suppel The same course was observed through the whole of the journey. When they arrived near St. Louis, they lost some of their number by cholera. The Shawnees who emigrated numbered about 700 souls, and the Senecas about 350. Among them was also a detachment of Ottawas, who were conducted by Capt. Hollister froii the MIauimee country. The principal speaker among the Shawnees at the period of their removal, was Wiwelipea. He vas an eloquent orator-either grave or gay, humorous or severe, as the occasion required. At times AUGLAIZE COUNTY. 33 his manner was so fascinating, his countenance so full of varied expression, and his voice so musical, that surveyors and other strangers passing through the country, listened to him with delight, although the words fell upon their ears in an unknown language. He removed out west with his tribe. The chief Catahecassa, or Black Hoof, died at Wapakonetta, shortly previous to their removal, at the age of 110 years. The sketches annexed of Black Hoof and Blue Jacket, are derived from Drake's Tecumseh. Among the celebrated chiefs of the Shawanoes, Black Hoof is entitled to a high rank. He was born in Florida, and at the period of the removal of a portion of that tribe to Ohio and Pennsylvania, was old enough to recollect having bathed in the salt water. He was present, with others of his tribe, at the defeat of Braddock, near Pittsburg, in 1755, and was engaged in all the wars in Ohio from that time until the treaty of Greenville, in 1795. Such was the sagaciy of Black Hoof in planning his military expeditions, and such the energy with which he executed them, that he won the confidence of his whole nation, and was never at a loss for braves to fight under his banner. " He was known far and wide as the great Shawanoe warrior, whose cunning, sagacity, and experience, were only equalled by the fierce and desperate bravery with which he carried into operation his military plans. Like the other Shawanoe chiefs, he was the inveterate foe of the white man, and held that no peace should be made, nor any negociation attempted, except on the condition that the whites should repass the mountains, and leave the great plains of the west to the sole occupancy of the native tribes. " He was the orator of his tribe during the greater part of his long life, and was an excellent speaker. The venerable Colonel Johnston, of Piqua, to whom we are indebted for much valuable information, describes him as the most graceful Indian he had ever seen, and as possessing the most natural and happy faculty of expressing his ideas. He was well versed in the traditions of his people; no one understood better their peculiar relations to the whites, whose settlements were gradually encroaching on them, or could detail with more minuteness the wrongs with which his nation was afflicted. But although a stern and uncompromising opposition to the whites had marked his policy through a series of forty years, and nerved his arm in a hundred battles, he became at length convinced of the madness of an ineffectual struggle against a vastly superior and hourly increasing foe. No sooner had he satisfied himself of this truth, than he acted upon it with the decision which formed a prominent trait in his character. The temporary success of the Indians in several engagements previous to the campaign of General Wayne, had kept alive their expiring hopes; but their signal defeat by that gallant officer convinced the more reflecting of theil leaders of the desperate character of the conflict. Black Hoof was among those who decided upon making terms with the victorious American commander; and having signed the treaty of 1795, at Greenville, he continued faithful to his stipulations during the remainder of his life. From that day, he ceased to be the enemy of the white man; and as he was not one who could act a negative part, he became the firm ally and friend of those against whom his tomahawk had been so long raised in vindictive animosity. He was their friend, not from sympathy or conviction, but in obedience to a necessity which left no middle course, and under a belief that submission alone could save his tribe from destruction; and having adopted this policy, his sagacity and sense of honor, alike forbade a recurrence either to open war or secret hostility. He was the principal chief of the Shawanoe nation, and possessed all the influence and authority which are usually attached to that office at the period when Tecumseh and his brother the Prophet commenced their hostile operations against the United States." When Tecumseh and the Prophet embarked in their scheme for the recovery of the lands as far south as the Ohio river, it became their interest as well as policy to enlist Black Hoof in the enterprise; and every effort which the genius of the one, and the cunning of the other, could devise, was brought to bear upon him. But Black Hoof continued faithful to the treaty which he had signed at Greenville, in 1795, and by prudence and influence kept the greater part of his tribe from joining the standard of Tecumseh or engaging on the side of the British in the late war with England. In that contest he became the ally of the United States, and although he took no active part in it, he exerted a very salutary influence over his tribe. In January, 1813, he visited Gen. Tupper's camp, at Fort McArthur, and while there, about ten o'clock one night, when sitting by the fire in company with the General and several other officers, some one fired a pistol through a hole in the wall of the 3 34 AUGLAIZE COUNTY.,nut, and shot Black Ioof in the face: the ball entered the cheek, glanced against tie bone, and finally lodged in his neck: he fell, and for some time was supposed to be dead, but revived, and afterwards recovered from this severe wouna. The most prompt and diligent inquiry as to the author of this oruel and dastardly act, failed to lead to his detection. No doubt was entertained that this attempt at assassination was made by a white man, stimulated perhaps by no better excuse than the memory of some actual or ideal wrong, inflicted on some of his own race by an unknown hand of kindred color with that of his intended victim. Black Hoof was opposed to polygamy, and to -the practice of burning prisoners. He is reported to have lived forty years with one wife, and to have reared a numerous familv of children, who both loved and esteemed him. His disposition was cheerfu., and his conversation sprightly and agreeable. In stature he was snall, being not more than five feet eight inches'in height. He was favored with good health, and unimpaired eye sight to the period of his death. BLUE JACKET, OR WEYAPIERSENWAH.-In the campaign of General Harmar, in the year 1790, Blue Jacket was associated with the Miami chief, Little Turtle, in the command of the Indians. In the battle of the 20th of August, 1794, when the combined army of the Indians was defeated by General Wayne, Blue Jacket had the chief control. The night previous to the battle, while the Indians were posted at Presque Isle, a council was held, comuosed of chiefs from the Miamis, Potawatimies, Delawares, Shawanoes, Chippewas, Ittawas and Senecas-the seven nations engaged in the action. They decided against the proposition to attack General Wayne that night in his encampment. The expediency of meeting hint the next day then came up for consideration. Little Turtle was opposed to this measure, but being warmly supported by Blue Jacket, it was finally agreed upon. The former was strongly inclined to peace, and decidedly opposed to risking a battle under the circumstances in which the Indians were then placed. " We have beaten the enemy," said he, " twice, under separate commanders. We cannot expect the same good fortune always to attend us. The Americans are now led by a chief who never sleeps The night and the day are alike to him; and, during all the time that he has been marching upon our villages, notwithstanding the watchfulness of our young men, we have never been able to surprise him. Think well of it. There is sonrething whispers me, it would be prudent to listen to his offers of peace." The councils of Blue Jacket, however, prevailed over the better judgment of Little Turtle. The battle was fought and the Indians defeated. In the month of October following this defeat, Blue Jacket concurred in the expediency of sueing for peace, and at the head of a deputation of chiefs, was about to bear a flag to General Wayne, then at Greenville, when the mission was arrested by foreign influence. Governor Sinicoe, Colonel McKee and the Mohawk chief, Captain John Brant, having in charge one hundred and fifty Mohawks and Messasagoes, arrived at the rapids of the Maumee, and invited the chiefs of the combined army to meet them at the mouth of the Detroit river, on the 10th of October. To this Blue Jacket assented, for the purpose of hearing what the British officers had to propose. Governor Simcoe urged the Indians to retain their hostile attitude towards the United States. In referring to the encroachments of the people of this country on the Indian lands, he said, " Children: I am still of the opinion that the Ohio is your right and title. I have given orders to the commandant of Fort Miami to fire on the Americans whenever they make their appearance again. I will go down to Quebec, and lay your grievances before the great man. From thence they will be forwarded to the king your father. Next spring you will know the result of every thing what you and I will do." He urged the Indians to obtain a cessation of hostilities, until the following spring, when the English would be ready to attack the Americans, and by driving them back across the Ohio, restore their lands to the Indians. These councils delayed the conclusion of peace until the following summer. Blue Jacket was present at the treaty of Greenville, in 1795, and conducted himself with moderation and dignity. ASHLAND COUNTY. 35 ASHLAND. ASHLAND was formed February 26th, 1846. The surface on the south is hilly, the remainder of the county rolling. The soil of the upland is a sandy loam; of the valleys-which comprise a large part of the county-a rich sandy and gravelly loam, and very productive. The principal crop is wheat, of which probably no portion of the state, of equal extent, produces more. A great quantity of oats, corn, potatoes, &c., is raised, and grass and fruit in abundance. A majority of the population are of Pennsylvania origin. Its present territory originally comprised the townships of Vermillion, Montgomery, Orange, Green and Hanover, with parts of Monroe, Miffin, Milton and Clear Creek, of Richland county; also the principal part of the townships of Jackson, Perry, Mohecan and Lake, of Wayne county; of Sullivan and Troy, Lorain county; and Ruggles, of Huron county. This tract, in 1840, contained a population of about 20,000, or 50 inhabitants to a square mile. -. __. ___ _ _ _ _ - --- Public Buildings in Ashland. Ashland, the county seat, was laid out in 1816, by William Mon.gomery, and bore, for many years, the name of Uniontown; it was changed to its present name in compliment to Henry Clay, whose seat near Lexington, Ky., bears that name. Daniel Carter, from Butler co., Pa., raised the first cabin in the county, about the year 1811, which stood where the store of Wm. Granger now is, in Ashland Robert Newell, 3 miles east, and Mr. Fry, 1- miles north of the village, raised cabins about the same time. In 1817, the first store was opened by Joseph Sheets, in a frame building now kept as a store by the widow Yonker. Joseph Sheets, David Markley, Samuel Ury, Nicholas Shaeffer, Alanson Andrews, Elias Slocum and George W. Palmer were among the first settlers of the place. Ashland is a flourishing village, 89 miles NW. of Columbus, and 14 from Mansfield. It contains 5 churches, viz: 2 Presbyterian, 1 Episcopal Methodist, 1 Lutheran, and 1 Disciples, 9 dry goods, 4 grocery, 1 book, and 2 drug stores, 2 newspaper printing offices, a flourishing 36 ASHLAND COUNTY. classical academy, numbering over 100 pupils of both sexes, and a population estimated at 1300. The above view was taken in front of the site selected for the erection of a court house, the Methodist church building-seen on the left-being now used for that purpose: the structures with steeples, commencing on the right, are the 1st Presbyterian church, the academy, and the 2d Presbyterian church. At the organization of the first court of common pleas for this county, at Ashland, an old gentleman, by the name of David Burns, was one of the grand jurors, who, as a remarkable fact, it is said, was also a member of the first grand jury ever empaneled in Ohio. The court met near the mouth of Wegee creek, in Belmont county, in 1795: the country being sparsely settled, he was compelled to travel forty miles to the place of holding court. Jeromeville, 8 miles SE. of Ashland, on Lake Fork of Mohiccan, contains 6 stores and about 500 people. In the late war, it was the only settlement within the present limits of the county, and consisted of a few families, who erected pickets for their safety. There was at that time a Frenchman, named Jerome, who resided there and gave name to the locality. He had been an Indian trader, and had taken a squaw for a wife. The people of that nation always became more easily domesticated among the Aborigines than the English. From very early times it was the policy of the French government not to allow their soldiers to take wives with them into the wilderness. Hence the soldiers and traders frequently married among the Indians, and were enabled to sustain themselves with far less difficulty. The Delaware Indians had a settlement at or near Jeromeville, which they left at the beginning of the war. Their chief was old Captain Pipe, who resided near the road to Mansfield, one mile south of Jeromeville. When young he was a great warrior, and the implacable foe of the whites. He was in St. Clair's defeat, where, according to his own account, he distinguished himself and slaughtered white men until his arm was weary with the work. He had a daughter of great beauty. A young chief, of noble mien, became in love with her, and on his suit being rejected, mortally poisoned himself with the May apple. A Captain Pipe, whose Indian name was Tauhangecaupouye, removed to the small Delaware Reserve, in the upper part of Marion county, and when his tribe sold out, about 20 years since, accompanied them to the far west, where he has since died. Loudonville 18 s., Rowsburg 9 E., Savannah 7 NW., Orange 4 E., and Haysville 8 s. of Ashland, are villages having each from 50 to 60 dwellings. At the last is the Haysville Literary Institute: the building is a substantial brick edifice. Sullivan 14 NE., and Perrysville 18 sw., have each but a few dwellings. ASHTABULA COUNTY. 37 ASHTABULA. ASLHTABULA was formed June 7, 1807, from Trumbull and Geauga and organized January 22, 1811. The name of the county was derived from Ashtabula river, which signifies, in the Indian language, Fish river. For a few miles parallel with the lake shore it is level, the remainder of the surface slightly undulating, and the soil generally clay. Butter and cheese are the principal articles ol export. Generally, not sufficient wheat is raised for home consumption, but the soil is quite productive in corn and oats. The following is a list of its townships, in 1840, with their population. Andover, 881 Kingsville, 1420 Richmond, 384 Ashtabula, 1711 Lenox, 550 Rome, 765 Austinburg, 1048 Milford, 173 Saybrook, 934 Cherry Valley, 689 Monroe, 1326 Sheffield, 683 Conneaut, 2650 Morgan, 643 Trumbull, 439 Denmark, 176 New Lyme, 527 Wayne, 767 Geneva, 1215 Orwell, 458 Williamsfield, 892 Harpersfield, 1399 Phelps, 530 Windsor, 875 Hartsgrove, 553 Pierpont. 639 Jefferson, 710 Plymouth, 706 The population of the county, in 1820, was 7,369; in 1830, 14,584; in 1840, 23,724, or 34 inhabitants to a square mile. This county is memorable from being not only the first settled on the Western Reserve, but the earliest in the whole of northern Ohio. The incidents connected with its early history, although unmarked by scenes of military adventure, are of an interesting nature. They have been well collected and preserved by the Ashtabula Historical Society. This association, with a praiseworthy industry, have collected nearly a thousand folio pages of manuscript, relating principally to this county. Some of the articles are finely written, and as a whole, give a better idea of the toils, privations, customs and mode of pioneer life than any work that has ever met our notice. From this collection we have extracted nearly all the historical materials embodied under the head of this county. On the 4th of July, 1796, the first surveying party of the Western Reserve landed at the mouth of Conneaut creek. Of this event, John Barr, Esq., in his sketch of the Western Reserve, in the National Magazine for December, 1845, has given a narration. The sons of revolutionary sires, some of them sharers of themselves in the great baptism of the republic, they made the anniversary of their country's freedom a day of ceremonial and rejoicing. They felt that they had arrived at the place of their labors, the-to many of them —sites of home, as little alluring, almost as crowded with dangers, as were the levels of Jamestown, or the rocks of Plymouth to the ancestors who had preceded them in the conquest of the seacoast wilderness of this continent. From old homes and friendly and social associations, they were almost as completely exiled as were the cavaliers who debarked upon the shores of Virginia, or the Puritans who sought the strand of Massachusetts. Far away as they were from the villages of their birth and boyhood; before them the trackless forest, or the untraversed lake, yet did they resolve to cast fatigue and privation and 38 ASHTABULA COUNTY. peril from their thoughts for the time being, and give to the day its due, to patriotism its awards. Mustering their numbers, they sat them down on the eastward shore of the stream now known as Conneaut, and, dipping fiom the lake the liquor in which they pledged their country-their goblets some tin cups of no rare woi;kmanship, yet every wa y answerable, with the ordnance accompaniment of two or three fowling pieces dischargilng the required national salute-the first settlers of the Reserve spent their landing-day as became the sons of the Pilgrim Fathers-as the advance pioneers of a population that has J -E~- ~ --------- Conneaut,* the Plymouth of the Reserve, in July, 1796. since made the then wilderness of northern Ohio to "blossom as the rose," and prove the homes of a people as remarkable for integrity, industry, love of country, moral truth and enlightened legislation, as any to be found within the territorial limits of their ancestral New England. The whole party numbered, on this occasion, fifty-two persons, of whom two were fe. males, (Mrs. Stiles and Mrs. Gunn, and a child.) As these individuals were the advance of after millions of population, their names become worthy of record, and are therefore given, viz.: Moses Cleveland, agent of the company; Augustus Porter, principal surveyor; Seth Pease, Moses Warren, Amos Spafford, Milton Hawley, Richard M. Stoddard, surveyors; Joshua Stowe, commissary; Theodore Shepard, physician; Joseph Tinker, principal boatman; Joseph Mcintyre, George Proudfoot, Francis Gay, Samuel Forbes, Elijah Gunn, wife and child, Amos Sawten, Stephen Benton, Amos Barber, Samuel Hungerford, William B. Hall, Samuel Davenport, Asa Mason, Amzi Atwater, Michael Coffin, Eli-sha Ayres, Thomas Harris, Norman Wilcox, Timothy Dunham, George Goodwin, Shadrach Benhar, Samuel Agnew, Warham Shepard, David Beard, John Briant, Titus V. Munson, Joseph Landon, Job V. Stiles and wife, Charles Parker, Ezekiel Hawley, Nathaniel Doan Luke Hanchet, James Hasket, James Hamilton, Olney F. Rice, John Lock, and four others whose names are not mentioned. On the 5th of July, the workmen of the expedition were employed in the erection of a large, awkwardly constructed log bulding; locating it on the sandy beach on the east shore of the stream, and naming it " Stow Castle," after one of the party. This became the storehouse of the provisions, &c., and the dwelling-place of the families. The spot where the above described scene took place, has much altered in the lapse of half a century. One of the party, Amzi Atwater, Esq., now living in Portage county, in a communication before us, says: * The view was constructed from a sketch as the place is now, altered to represent its ancient appearance. The word Conneaut, in the Seneca language, signif..s " manq fish," and was applied originally to the river. ASHTABULA COUNTY. 39 It was then a mere alnd beach overgrown with timber, some of it of considerable size, which we cut to build the house and for other purposes. The mouth of the creek, like others of the lake streams in those days, was frequently choked up with a sand bar so that no visible harbor appeared for several days. This would only happen when the streams were low and after a high wind either down the lake or directly on shore for several days. I have passed over all the lake streams of this state east of the Cuyahoga and most oi those in New York on hard, dry sand bars, and I have been told that the Cuyahoga has been so. They would not long continue, for as soon as the wind had subsided and the water in the streams had sufficiently risen, they would often cut their way through the bar in a different place and form new channels. Thus the mouths of the streams were continually shifting until the artificial harbors were built. Those blessed improvements have in a great measure remedied those evils and made the mouths of the streams far more healthy. Judge James Kingsbury, who arrived at Conneaut shortly aftei the surveying party, wintered with his family at this place in a cabin which stood on a spot now covered by the waters of the lake. This was about the first family that wintered on the Reserve. The story of the sufferings of this family has often been told, but in the midst of plenty where want is unknown, can with difficulty be appreciated. The surveyors, in the prosecution of their labors westwardly, had principally removed their stores to Cleveland, while the family of Judge Kingsbury remained at Conneaut. Being compelled by business to leave in the fall for the state of New York, with the hope of a speedy return to his famnily, the Judge was attacked by a severe fit of sickness confining him to his bed until the setting in of winter. As soon as able he proceeded on his return as far as Buffalo, where he hired an Indian to guide him through the wilderness. At Presque Isle, anticipating the wants of his family, he purchased twenty pounds of flour. In crossing Elk Creek on the ice, he disabled his horse, left him in the snow, and mounting his flour on his own back, pursued his way filled with gloomy forebodings in relation to the fate of his family. On his arrival late one evening, his worst apprehensions were more than realized in a scene agonizing to the husband and father. Stretched on her cot lay the partner of his cares, who had followed him through all the dangers and hardships of the wilderness without repining, pale and emaciated, reduced by meagre famine to the last stages in which life can be supported, and near the mother, on a little pallet, were the remains of his youngest child, born in his absence, who had just expired for the want of that nourishment which the mother, deprived of sustenance, was unable to give. Shut up by a gloomy wilderness, she was far distant alike from the aid or sympathy of friends, filled with anxiety for an absent husband, suffering with want and destitute of necessary assistance, and her children expiring around her with hunger. Such is the picture presented, by which the wives and daughters of the present day may form some estimate of the hardships endured by the pioneers of this beautiful country. It appears that Judge Kingsbury, in order to supply the wants of his family, was under the necessity of transporting his provisions from Cleveland on a hand sled, and that himself and hired man drew a barrel of beef the whole distance at a single load. Mr. Kingsbury has since held several important judicial and legislative trusts, and is yet living in Newberg, about four miles distant fiom Cleveland. He was the first who thrust a sickle into the first wheat field planted on the soil of the Reserve. His wife was interred at Cleveland, about the year 1843. The fate of her childthe first white child born on the Reserve, starved to death for want of nourishment-will not soon be forgotten. The harbor of Conneaut is now an important point of transhipment. It has a pier, with a lighthouse upon it, 2 forwarding houses, and 11 dwellings. Several vessels ply from here, and it is a frequent stopping place for steamers. Two miles south of the harbor, 22 from Jefferson, 28 from Erie, Pa., is the borough of Conneaut, or Salem, on the west bank of Conneaut creek. It contains 1 Baptist, 1 Presbyterian, 1 Methodist, and I Christian church. 11 mercantile 40 ASHTABULA COUNTY. stores, 1 newspaper printing office, a fine classical academy, Mr. L W. Savage and Miss Mary Booth, Principals, and about 1000 inhab. itants. East and West Conneaut and South Ridge are small places in this, the township of Conneaut, which once bore the name of Salem. The first permanent settlement in Conneaut was in 1799. Thomas Montgomery and Aron Wright settled here in the spring of 1798. Robert Montgomery and family, Levi and John Montgomery, Nathan and John King, and Samuel Bemus and family came the same season. When the settlers arrived, some twenty or thirty Indian cabins were still standing, which were said to present an appearance of neatness and comfort not usual with this race. The Massauga tribe, which inhabited the spot, were obliged to leave in consequence of the murder of a white man named Williams. Two young men taken at the defeat of St. Clair, were said to have been prisoners for a considerable time among the Indians of this village. On their arrival at Conneaut they were made to run the gauntlet, and received the orthodox number of blows and kicks usual on such occasions. In solemn council it was resolved that the life of Fitz Gibbon should be saved, but the otner, whose name is not recollected, was condemned to be burned. He was bound to a tree, a large quantity of hickory barks tied into faggots and piled around him. But from the horrors of the most painful of deaths he was saved by the interposition of a young squaw belonging to the tribe. Touched by sympathy she interceded in his behalf, and by her expostulations, backed by several packages of fur and a small sum of money, succeeded in effecting his deliverance: an act in the lowly Indian maid which entitles her name to be honorably recorded with that of Pocahontas, among the good and virtuous of every age. There were mounds situated in the eastern part of the village of Conneaut and an extensive burying ground near the Presbyterian church, which appear to have had no connection with the burying places of the Indians. Among the human bones found in the mounds were some belonging to men of gigantic structure. Some of the skulls* were of sufficient capacity to admit the head of an ordinary man, and jaw bones that might have been fitted on over the face with equal facility: the other bones were proportionably large. The burying ground referred to contained about four acres, and with the exception of a slight angle in conformity with the natural contour of the ground, was in the form of an oblong square. It appeared to have been accurately surveyed into lots running from north to south, and exhibited all the order and propriety of arrangement deemed necessary to constitute Christian burial. On the first examination of the ground by the settlers, they found it covered with the ordinary forest trees, with an opening near the centre containing a single butternut. The graves were distinguished by slight depressions disposed in straight rows, and were estimated to number from two to three thousand. On examination in 1800, they were found to contain human bones, invariably blackened by time, which on exposure to the air, soon crumbled to dust. Traces of ancient cultivation observed by the first settlers on the lands of the vicinity, although covered with forest, exhibited signs of having once been thrown up into squares and terraces, and laid out into gardens. There is a fragment or chip of a tree in the possession of the Historical Society, which is a curiosity. The tree of which that was a chip, was chopped down and butted off for a saw log, about three feet from the ground, some thirty rods SE. of Fort Hill, in Conneaut, in 1829, by Silas A. Davis, on land owned by B. H. King. Some marks were found upon it near the heart of the tree. The Hon Nehemiah King, with a magnifying glass, counted 350 annualel rings in that part of the stump, outside of these marks. Deducting * In the spring of 1815, a mound on Harbor street, Conneaut, was cut through for a road. One morning succeeding a heavy rain, a Mr. Walker, who was up very early, picked up a jaw bone together with an artificial tooth which lay near. He brought tlhern forthwith to Mr. P. R. Spencer, at present the Secretary of the Ashtabula Historical Society, who fitted the tooth in a cavity from which it had evidently fallen. The tooth was metallic, probably silver, but little was then thought of the circumstance. ASHTABULA COUNTY. 41 350 from 1829, leaves 1479, which must have been the year when these cuts were made. This was 13 years before the discovery of America, by Columbus. It perhaps was done by the race of the mounds, with an axe of copper, as that people had the art of hardening that metal so as to cut like steel. The adventure of Mr. Salmon Sweatland, of Conneaut, who crossed Lake Erie in an open canoe, in September, 1817, is one of unusual interest. He had been accustomed, with the aid of a neighbor, Mr. Cozzens, and a few hounds, to drive the deer into the lake, where, pursuing them in a canoe, he shot them with but little difficulty. The circumstances which took place at this time, are vividly given in the annexed extract from the records of the Historical Society. It was a lovely morning in early autumn, and Sweatland, in anticipation of his favorite sport, had risen at the first dawn of light, and without putting on his coat or waistcoat left his cabin, listening in the mean time in expectation of the approach of the dogs. His patience was not put to a severe trial ere his ears were saluted by the deep baying of the hounds, and on arriving at the beach he perceived that the deer had already taken to the lake, and was moving at some distance from the shore. In the enthusiasm of the moment he threw his hat upon the beach, his canoe was put in requisition, and shoving from the shore he was soon engaged in a rapid and animated pursuit. The wind, which had been fresh from the south during the night and gradually increasing, was now blowing nearly a gale, but intent on securing his prize, Sweatland was not in a situation to yield to the dictates of prudence. The deer, which was a vigorous animal of its kind, hoisted its flag of defiance, and breasting the waves stoutly showed that in a race with a log canoe and a single paddle, he was not easily outdone. Sweatland had attained a considerable distance from the shore and encountered a heavy sea before overtaking the animal, but was not apprized of the eminent peril of his situation until shooting past him the deer turned towards the shore. He was however brought to a full appreciation of his danger when, on tacking his frail vessel and heading towards the land, he found that with his utmost exertions he could make no progress in the desired direction, but was continually drifting farther to sea. He had been observed in his outward progress by Mr. Cousins, who had arrived immediately after the hounds, and by his own family, and as he disappeared from sight, considerable apprehensions were entertained for his safety. The alarm was soon given in the neighborhood, and it was decided by those competent to judge that his return would be impossible, and that unless help could be afforded he was doomed to peiish at sea. Actuated by those generous impulses that often induce men to peril their own lives to preserve those of others, Messrs. Gilbert, Cousins and Belden took a light boat at the mouth of the creel and proceeded in search of the wanderer, with the determination to make every effort for his relief. They met the deer returning towards the shore nearly exhausted, but the man who was the object of their solicitude was no where to be seen. They made stretches off shore within probable range of the fugitive for some hours, until they had gained a distance of five or six miles from land, when meeting with a sea in which they judged it impossible for a canoe to live, they abandoned the search, returned with difficulty to the shore, and Sweatland was given up for lost. The canoe in which he was embarked was dug from a large whitewood log, by Major James Brookes, for a fishing boat: it was about fourteen feet in length and rather wide in proportion, and was considered a superior one of the kind. Sweatland still continued to lie off, still heading towards the land, with the faint hope that the wind might abate, or that aid might reach him from the shore. One or two schooners were in sight in course of the day, and he made every signal in his power to attract their attention, but without success. The shore continued in sight, and in tracing its distant outline he could distinguish the spot where his cabin stood, within whose holy precincts were contained the cherished objects of his affections, now doubly endeared from the prospect of losing them forever. As these familiar objects receded from view, and the shores appeared to sink beneath the troubled waters, the last tie which united him in companionship to his fellow-men seemed dissolved, and the busy world, with all its interests, forever hidden from his sight. Fortunately Sweatland possessed a cool head and a stout heart, which, united with. 42 ASHTABULA COUNTY. tolerable share of physical strength and power of endurance, eminently qualified him foi the part he was to act in this emergency. He was a good sailor, and as such would not yield to despondency until the last expedient had been exhausted. One only expedient renained, that of putting before the wind and endeavoring to reach the Canada shore, a distance of about fifty niles. This he resolved to embrace as his forlorn hope. It was now blowing a gale, and the sea was evidently increasing as he proceeded from the shore, and yet he was borne onwards over the dizzy waters by a power that no humlan agency could control. He was obliged to stand erect, moving cautiously from one extremity to the other, in order to trim his vessel to the waves, well aware that a single lost stroke of the paddle, or a tottering movement, would swamp his frail bark and bring his adventure to a final close. Much of his attention was likewise required in bailing his canoe froin the water, an operation which he was obliged to perform by making use of his shoes, a substantial pair of stoggies, that happened fortunately to be upon his feet. Hitherto he had been blessed with the cheerful light of heaven, and amidst all his perils could say, "The light is sweet, and it is a pleasant thing for the eyes to behold the sun," but to add to his distress, the shades of night were now gathering around him, and lie was soon enveloped in darkness. The sky was overcast, and the light of a few stars that twinkled through the haze alone remained to guide his path over the dark and troubled waters. In this fearful condition, destitute of food and the necessary clothing, his log canoe was rocked upon the billows during that long and terrible night. When morning appeared he was in sight of land, and found he had made Long Point, on the Canada shore. Here he was met by an adverse wind and a cross sea, but the same providential aid which had guided him thus far still sustained and protected him; and after being buffeted by the winds and waves for nearly thirty hours, he succeeded in reaching the land in safety. What were the emotions he experienced on treading once more "the green and solid earth," we shall not attempt to inquire, but his trials were not yet ended. He found hilmself faint with hunger and exhaus.ed witlh fatigue, at the distance of forty miles froml any human habitation, whilst the country that intervened was a desert filled with marshes and tangled thickets, fiom which nothing could be obtained to supply his wants. These difliculties, together with the reduced state of his strength, rendered his progress towards the settlements slow and toilsome. On his way he found a quantity of goods, supposed to have been driven on shore from the wreck of sone vessel, which, although they afforded himn no immediate relief, were afterwards of material service. He ultimately arrived at the settlement, and was received and treated with great kindness and hospitality by the people. After his strength was sufficiently recruited, he returned with a boat, accompanied by sone of the inhabitants, and brought off the goods. From this place he proceeded by land to Buffalo, where, with the avails of his treasure, he furnished himself in the garb of a gentleman, and finding the Traveler, Capt. Chas. Brown, from Conneaut, in the harbor, he shipped on board and was soon on his way to rejoin his family. When the packet arrived off his dwelling, they fired guns from the deck and the crew gave three loud cheers. On landing, he found his funeral sermon had been preached, and had the rare privilege of seeing his own widow clothed in the habiliments of mourning. The first regular settlement made within the present limits of the county was at Harpersfield, on the 7th of March, 1798. Alexander Harper, Wm. M'Farland and Ezra Gregory, with their families, started from Harpersfield, Delaware county, New York, and after a long and fatiguing journey arrived on the last of June, at their new homes in the wilderness. This little colony of about twenty persons, endured much privation in the first few months of their residence. The whole population of the Reserve amounted to less than 150 souls, viz: ten families at Youngstown, three at Cleveland, and two at Mentor. In the same summer three families came to Burton, and Judge Hudson settled at Hudson. Cut short of their expected supplies of provision for the winter, by the loss of a vessel they had chartered for that purpose, the little colony came near perishing by famine, having at one time been reduced to six kernels of parched corn to each person; hut they were saved by the intrepidity of the sons of Col. Harper, James and William. These young men made frequent jou.ruics to Elk Creek, Pa., from which they packed on their backs bags of corn, which was about all the provision the settlers had to sustain life during a long and tedious wfinter. Some few of their journies were performed on the ice of Lake Erie, whenever it ASHTIA ULA COUNTY. 43 was sufficiently strong to bear them, which was seldom. On the first occasion of this kind they were progressing finely on the ice,when their sled broke through into the water. A third person who happened to be with them at this time exclaimed, " What shall we do?" " Iet it go," James replied. "No!" exclaimed William, who was of a different temperament, you go into the woods and strike a fire while I get the grain." He then with great difficulty secured the grain, by which operation he got completely wet through, and a cutting wild soon converted his clothing into a sheet of ice. He then went in search of his companions and was disappointed in finding they had not built a fire. The truth was, they had grown so sleeply with the intense cold as to be unable to strike fire. He soon had a cheerful blaze, and then converted himself into a nurse for the other two, who on getting warm were deadly sick.... 711 County Buildings at Jefferson. Jefferson the county seat, is 56 miles from Cleveland and 204 NE. of Columbus. It is an incorporated borough, laid out regularly on a level plat of ground, and contains 3 stores, 1 Pres., 1 Bap., 1'Episcopal, and I Methodist Church, and 73 dwellings. The township of the same name in which it is situated, was originally owned by Gideon Granger of Conn. In the spring of 1804 he sent out Mr. Eldad Smith from Suffield in that state, who first opened a bridle path to Austinburg, and sowed and fenced ten acres of wheat. In the summer of the next year, Michael Webster, Jr., and family, and Jonathan Warner, made a permanent settlement. In the fall following, the family of James Wilson built a cabin on the site of the tavern shown in th'e view. The court house was finished in 1810 or'11, and the first court held in 1811; Timothy R. Hawley, Clerk, Quintus F. Atkins, Sheriff. Ashtabula is on Ashtabula river, on the Buffalo and Cleveland road, 8 miles from Jefferson. It is a pleasant village, adorned with neat dwellings and shrubbery. The borough contains 1 Presbyterian, 1 Episcopal, 1 Methodist, and 1 Baptist church, 10 mercantile stores, and a population estimated at 1200. The harbor of Ashtabula is 21 miles from the village at the mouth of the river. It has several forwarding establishments, 20 or 30 houses, the lake steamers stop there, and considerable business is carried on; about a dozen vessels are owned at this port. The c m. 44 ASHTABULA COUNTY. mercial business of this and Lake county has been much injured by the internal improvement system of the state, which has diverted Ilie })ack country trade into other channels. When the Erie canal North Public Square, Ashtabula. was finished, Northern Ohio felt its invigorating effects, for from the depression of the times after the late war, until the opening of that canal and the commencement of steam navigation on the lake, business languished and made but little progress. The invigorating effects of that work prompted a spirit in Ohio for similar enterprises. The representatives of this vicinity in the legislature drank deeply of the general enthusiasm, although aware that.in any event their constituents would receive but a, general benefit. The prosperity of Ashtabula received a severe shock in the loss of the steamer Washington, destroyed by fire on Lake Erie, off Silver Creek, in June, 1838, by which misfortune about 40 lives were lost. This boat was built at Ashtabula harbor, and most of her stock was owned by persons of moderate circumstances in this place. She was commanded by Capt. N. W. Brown. A passenger who was on board published, a few days after, the following account of this disastrous event. The W. left Cleveland on her passage down from Detroit, June 14th, at 8 A. M., proceeded on her way until Saturday 2 o'clock, A. M., when she arrived in the vicinity of Silver Creek, about 33 miles from Buffalo. The boat was discovered to be on fire, which proceeded from beneath the boilers. The passengers were alarmed, and aroused from their slumbers; such a scene of confusion and distress ensued as those only of my readers can imagine who have been in similar circumstances. Despair did not however completely possess the mass, until it became evident that the progress of the flames could not be arrested. From that moment the scene beggars all description. Suffice it to say, that numbers precipitated themselves fiom the burning mass into the water; some of them with a shriek of despair, and others silently sunk beneath the waves; others momentarily more fortunate swam a short distance and drowned: others still, on pieces of boards and wood, arrived on the beach; yet some even of them, sank into a watery grave. The small boat had by this time put off loaded with about 25 souls for the shore. Those arrived safe, picking up one or two by the way. The writer of this article was one of the number. Other small boats came to our assistance, which, together with the Washington's boat, saved perhaps a majority of the passengers on board. There is reason to believe that as many as 40 perished. It is impossible to compute the precise number. Many remained on the boat till it was wrapped in one sheet of flame. Of those there is reason to believe that numbers perished in the confla-,gration; whil