977.101
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1204341
M.U
@feM^Al-C>©V eOL.IL.E:OT10H
G^IVJ
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
3 1833 02399 2461
PIOxNEEKS OF LOG.AN AND CHAMPAIGN GOUiNriES. |^^^^
1. F.lder Georo-e McCi.!!..
'.>. Hon. Judge Lawrence
:t. James Mcroiiald.
•). lU". B. S. 7; low 11.
5. N. Z. McCoUoPli.
(■>. K.\-Giivcrii()i- Vance.
7. K. E. Runkle.
8. M. Anowsiniih.
.1 M. GloMT.
Mis. Sarali M. Mw r>'
.Mr<. Mary Maild.'M.
N'eUdii .lohusiMi.
Dr. 'riiniiias Cowgill.
Oden Ha\e«.
Jiidj;;' Patriolv.
K.. 1,. .M;>rjran.
4
I
4
$
1
6i>
V. M. SMEAU, Photograi)!ier.
THE HISTORY
OF
JihEmpaigii mi^l^M.
.COTJJSTTIES.
FROM THEIR FIRST SETTLEMENT:
BY
JOSHUA ANTRIM.
BELLEFONT^INE, OHIO.
PRESS PRINTING CO.
1872.
CERTIFICATE OP AUTHORITY.
At the Yearly Meeting of the "Western Pioneer Association"
held at Ballefonlaine, Septeinbar 7, 1871, Dr. B. S. Rrown, Joshua
Antrim atitl Dr. Thomas Cowgill were appointed a Publishing
Committee, to collate, arrange and prepare the material for our
Pioneer History. Subsequently the Committee appointed Joshua
Antrim to arrange the work. We have examined his proceedings
in regard to tlie arrangement thereof and entirely approve the
same, and advise that the work be published in book form.
BENJAMIN S. BROWN, Chairman, ) ewmi/tefl
THOMAS COWGILL. ( ^<^^'^*'^-
Entereclaocorcllng to Act ot Congress, in tho year 1872, by Jobwha Antkim, in the office •f
(.he Libraiiau o! <;ongres?i at WHBliiinj(o«.
1204341
PREFACE. -^'^^ ^^^x
TfVv THE Readbr :
I have now completed the task assigned me by the Comontteft
«n Publications, appoinled by the Western Ohio Pioneer Asso-
«ation. The entire labor of collecting material for this work waa
gpiaced on me by this Committee, and when completed, to be pre-
.isented to them for their approval or rejection.
In this work I have not satisfie<J myself in many respects, for
I have reason to think I have failed in obtaining a great deal of
interesting matter that should have a place in this volume, and in
what I have obtained 1 know there are many unpleasant but unin-
*tentionnl mLsUkes, especially in some of the names and dates of
'ihe fiiNf settlers. Though I obtained the most ot thsm from the
•snidest inhabitants, yet I found they could not tell exactly the year
K!.f their immigration to this country, (or some of them, at least,)
feence they are responsible for what inac-curacies may appear in
these pages. I have done all I could to arrive at the exact facts.
AU I, or any one else could expect under the circumstances waa
»Q approximation to accura<^y.
To thote gentlemen who have kindly favored me with their
«s>ntribution3 for this work I tender my sincere thanks for their
ilraely aid in furnishing so much valuable matter tor this work.
Your article's, gentlemen, will appear in these pages and they will
i?l>eak for themselves, and will present a better tribute to the mem-
*fy of their authors than anything I could say ; so, wishing each of
ijft>a A long and happy life, I bid you good bye.
JOSHUA ANTRIM.
OF
CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.
Champaiofii County was foiiiied from Green and Franklin,
March 1, 1805, and originally comprised the Counties of Clark and
Logan. The Seat of Justice was originally fixed at Springfield, in
Clark County, and the first Courts were hold in the house of George
Fithian. It is said it was named from its appearance, it being a
level, open country. Urbana, the Seat of Justice, was laid out in
the year 1805, by Col. Wm. Ward, formerly of Greenbrier County,
Virgini-s. It is said by some that Mr. Ward named the town from
the word Urbanity, but I think it is quite likely he named it from
an old Roman custom of dividing their people into different
classes— one class, the Plebeians, and this again divided into two
classes— Pfefe RusHca and Plebs Urbana. The Plebs Bustica lived
in the rural districts and were farmers, while the Plebs Urbana
lived in villages and were mechanics and artisans.
George Fithian opened the first tavern in a log cabin on South
Main street, formerly the residence of Wm. Thomas; but I think
it is now owned by the Methodist Episcopal Church, and they in-
tend to improve it and make a parsonage of it.
Samuel McCord opened a Dry Goods and Grocery Store in the
same cabin in the same year, (March, 1806.)
The first house covered with shingles was a house occupied by
McDoiialfl as a store room, on the north corner of Public Square,
west of North Main street.
For a full and satisfactory description of Urbana and its sur-
« CHAMPAIGN AND
Toundipgp, see Judge Patrick's able, minute and satisfactory hS'*-
tory,' found in the body of this work, in which he has placed mi*-
under many obligations, and also done himself credit, and the eiljr
of Urbana, of which he writes.
I find in Howe's History of Ohio the names of a few of the flrsSr
settlers in Urbana and also in the rural districts, and althougSssi
most of the names found in his history will be found in the bodj
of this work, for fearsome valuable names may be overlooked fi
here transcribe them. But let the reader be assured that most oC
those honored and venerated names will appear in these page8.-
But before I proceed to record those names I wish to make m
remark or two in regard to the first settlers of this county. In vaisB
have 1 mad3 inquiry of the oldest living pioneers as to the firs^
white man that Settled here. Likewise the public records hav*-
been searched with the same unsatisfactory results. It may eeeijst.
to some a matter of very little consequence who first settled a couaiw-
try, but we find people in all ages disposed to attach very greafc
importance to so apparently trifling a circumstance. The Cartha-
ginians have their Dido, the Greeks their Cecrops, and the RomaiK*
their Romulus : so in our own country William Penn settled Pen®-
eylvania; Boone, Kentucky, Ac; and in mostof ihe counties of tbi»
State the first settlers are known, and the date of their settlemeni-
I find in a very able and interesting document, furnished me for
this work by an old and resptcted pioneer, Mr. Arrowsmith, the-
name of Wm. Owens, who, he says, came to this county in th*
year 1797 or 1798. I think it not unlikely that he was the fiisS,
white man that made this county his home.
I now commence the list of names: Joseph C. Vance, Thos. a»#
Ed. W. Pearce, George Fithian, Sam'l McCord, Zeph. Luse, BenJ.
Doolittle, George and Andrew Ward, Wm. H. Fyffe, Wm, aiJ^i'
John Glenn, Frederick Ambrose, John Reynolds and Sam'l Oibla..
Those living in the country — Jacob Minturn, Henry and Jaco%r
Vanmetre, Nathaniel Cartmell, Justice Jones, Felix Rock, Thomas*
Anderson, Abner Barret, Thomas Pearce, Benj. and Wm. Chenefv
Matthew and Charles Stuart, Parker Sullivan, John Logan, Jobae
Thomas, John Runyjn, John Lafforty, John Owens, John Tayloir;.
John Guttridge, John Cartmell, John Dawson, John Pence, Jonar-
than Long, Bennet Taber, Nathan Fitch, Robert Nowce, Jaco&>
Pence and Arthur Thomas.
Joseph C. Vance wa^ the father of Ex-Governor Vance, and w»»
LOGAN COUNTIES. 7
the first Clerk of the Court in thi-; "^ ninty. Capt. Arthur Thomas,
whose name is in theabovelist, Hvr'ion Kinj^'s Creole, about three
miles North ofUrbana. He wr~ -dorccl to Fort Findlay with
his Company, to guard thepublic stores at th it place, and on their
return they encamped at the Bi^- "^piins: near an old Indian town
called Solomon's Town, about arvcn miles north of Bellefontaine.
Their horses havinpf strayed a voy in the night, he and his son
went in pursuit of them. When tbcy had got some distance from
the encampment they werediscovc r :d by the Indians, who attacked
them with an overpowering fore • and they were killed and scalped
and left dead on the spot.
Urbana was a frontier town dn^'.^Mhe war 1812, Hull's army
was quartered here the sitme year, ')i,-fore taking: up their lino of
march for Detroit. In fact, it wr. : '^ place of general rendezvous
for the troops stfrting for the dr'^Li-e of our northern frontier.
They were encamped in the east :"? part of the city, and here lie
the bodies of many brave soldier^ rr ing'ed with their mother dust,
and no monument to mark the r ' : where they rest, nor to tell
the story of their sufferings ; evr- *' cir names liave perished with
them. All we can do now is to f^:"'.) a tear over Ihelr sleeping
dust and say, "Here lie in peace'' ' lumbers the brave defenders
of our once frontier homes."
In penning these sketches, I finr! fuyr:'elf very much in the con-
dition of the early pioneer who hi to blaze his way through a
dense forest to find his way from on ijlaceto another. Fortunately
for me, however, others have pv oO me and blazed the way to
some extent for me. And to none, perhaps, am I under more obli-
gations than to Mr. Howe, in hi "'^tory of Ohio; and he is not
entirely reliable, for I have been ' "ged to makcsome corrections
in hisstatements of facts in the hif:"ory of this conr.try. For in-
stance, the time of settlement o" • ;;an County, putting it in the
year 1806, when in fact it was seW ; in the year 1801. Also, the
names of the first settlers. Ofc . he had to rely <>n others for
information, and they did not I ; but in the main, however, I
believe he is correct.
I now resume my sketch of U •^^'^n i : On the corner of Public
Square and North Main street— r-->"' McDonald's Cornf^r, but in
the war of 1812 called Doollttle's T>''ern— were the headquarters
of Governor Meigs. On the opposite corner— now Armstrong's
Bank— stood a Iwo-storv brick ' ' ■• -^ and on the end fronting the
8 CHAMPAIGN AND
Square, could bo seen the date of its erection— 1811. This was oc-
cupied for many years by D. & T. M. Gwynneas a store-room. All
the old settlers of Cliainpaign now living, will call to mind the
once familiar face of Robert Murdock, with his obliging and gen-
tlemanly manners, who was then a partner in the firm.
The above described building was the place where the commis-
sary's office was kept during the war of 1812, and is the one to
which Richard M. Johnson was brought wounded after his per-
sonal and deadly conflict with the renowned Tecumseh at the bat-
tle of the Thames.
Urbana was visited by a dreadful tornado on the 22d ot March,
1830. Passing- from th.e South-west to the North-east, it leveled
the Presbyterian Church with the ground, and unroofed the M. E.
Church, throwing it down to within a few feet of its foundation.
Both of these buildings were substantial brick ■bd iflces ; also, a
grent many private residences were either unroofed or wholly de-
molished, killing three children and crippling others. For a more
satisfactory account, see Judge Patrick's history of Urbana in this
work.
I can not leave Urbana without giving a short account of the old
Court House, built in 1817. I have never seen adescription of this
then imposing structure. It stood in the center of the Public
Square, now called, I believe. Monument Square, fronting North
and South, built of brick, two stories high, the roof having four
sides, coming to a point In the center, surmounted by a cupola and
spire on wliich was a globe and a fish that turned with the wind.
The main entrance was on the South. This, for the time in which
it was built, wns an elegant and couimodious pul lie building.
How many ple;tsiuit and interesting m(>mories cluster around
this, to the old pioneer, almost hallowed spot! Here, too, or near
this spot, many a soldier breathed his last and bd<le adieu to all
earthly conflii-ts. And the soldier riiounted on the pedestal on the
spot where the old Court House stood, surveying with down-cast
eyes and in solemn and im|)ressive silence the battle-fields of Get-
tysburg and Shiloh, uiHy drop a tear over the graves of those
heroes that freely shed their blood in thedefense of our country in
the war of 1812.
U)GAN COUNTIES.
SIMON KENTON.
Simon Kenton, whose name will appear frequently in these pages,
was an early settler in Urbana. I quote from Judge Burnet's let-
ters as found in Howe's History. In his letters he says that when
the troops were stationed at Urbana, a mutinous plan was formed
by part of them to attack and destroy a settlement of friendly In-
dians, who had removed with their families within the settle-
ment under assurance of protection, Kenton remonstrated against
the measure as being not only mutinous but treacherous and cow-
ardly. He contrasted his knowledge and experience of the Indian
character with their ignorance of it. He vindicated them against
the charge of treachery which was alleged against them as a justifi-
cation of the act which they were about to perpetrate, and remind-
ed them of tiie infamy they wouM incur by destroying a defense-
less band of men, womt;n and children, who had placed them-
selves in their power relying on a solemn promise of protection.
He appealed to their humanity, their honor and their duty as sol-
diers. Having exhausted all the means of persuasion in his power,
and finding them resolved to execute their purpos<-\ he took a rifle
and declared with great firmness that he would accompany them
to the Indian encampment and shoot down the first man that dared
to molest them ; that if they entered their camp they should do it
by passing over hi? corpse. Knowing that the old veteran would
redeem his pledge they abandoned their purpose and the poor In-
dians were saved. Though he was brave as Csesar and reckless
of danger when it was his duty to expose his person, yet he was
mild, even tempered and had a heart that could bleed at the dis-
tress of others.
General Kenton lived many years in Logan county, on what
was called the old Sandusky road, about four miles north of Zanes-
field on his farm, where he died April 29th, 1836, aged 81 years
and 26 days. His remains were removed to Urbana by a deputa-
tion of citizens from that place I think in 1865, and buried in the
cemetery about three-quarters of a mile east of the city in a lot of
10 OHAMPAIGN AND
ground appropriated by the city for that purpose containing about
scventy-tive or one hundred feet in a circular form with a view of
erectinti: a monument at some future day. The only thing that
now mari^s his grave is the same plain stone slab that stood at the
head of his grave in Logan county, with this inscription: "In
memory of Gen. Simon Kenton, who was born April 3d, 1755, in
Culpepper County, Va., and died April 29th, 1836, aged 81 yearsand
26 days."
His fellow citizens of the west will long remember him as the
skillful pioneer of early times, the brave soldier and honest man.
TECUMSEH.
There were several Indian councils in Urbana at a very early day.
They were held in a grove on or near where the old grave yard
is north -east of town, Distinguished chiefs from various tribes
took part in these councils.
Mr. Howesays in his history that Tecumseh in the spring of
1795, took up his quarters on Deercreek near the site of Urbana,
where he was engaged in his favorite amuseusent, hunting, and
remained until the following Spring. There never was any creek
by the name of Deercreek near the site of Urbana. I think there
is a creek by that name in Madison county but I do not think it
reaches Champaign. I find Tecumseh's biographer makes the
same mistake. I now quote from his biography:
"While residing on Deercreek an incident occurred which
greatly enhanced his reputation as a hunter. One of his brothers,
and several other Shawnees of his own age proposed to bet with
him that they could each kill as many deer in the space of three
days as ho Tecumseh promptly accepted the overture. The par-
ties took to the woods and at the end of the time stipulated re-
turned with the evidences of theirsuccess. None ofthe party except
Tecumseh had more than twelve deer-skins, and he brought in
upward of thirty, near three times as many as any of his competi-
tors. From this time he was generally conceded to be the greatest
hunter in the Shawnee nation.
I/)GAN 0OUNTIE8. 11
In 1799 there was a councH held about six miles north of the
place where Urbana now stands, between the Indians and some of
the principle settlers on Mad lliver, for the adjustment of difficul-
ties which had grown up between those parties. Tecumseh,
with other Shawnee Chiefs, attended the council. He appears to
have been the most conspicuous orator of the conference, and made
a speech on the occasion which was much admired tor its force and
eloquence. The interpreter, Dechauset, said that he found it very
difficult to translate the lofty tli;?hts of Tecumseh, although he
was as well acquainted with the Shawnee language as with the
French which was his mother tongue.
Sometime during the year 1803, a. stout Kentuckian came to Ohio
for the purpose of exploring the lands on Mad River, and lodged
one night at the house of Capt. Abner Barret, residing on the head-
waters of Buck Creek. In the course of the evening he learned,
with apparent alarm, that there were some Indians encamped
within a short distance of the house. Shortly after hearing this
unwelcome intelligence, the door of Capt. Barret's dwelling was
suddenly opened and Tecumseh entered with his usual stately air;
he paused in silence and looked around until at length his eye
was fixed upon the stranger who was manifesting symptoms of
alarm, and did not venture to look the stern savage in the face.
Tecumseh turned to his host and pointing to the agitated Ken-
tuckian, exclaimed— "A big baby, a big baby." He then stepped
up to him and gently slapping him on the shoulder several tiraea,
repeated with a contemptuous manner, the phrase, *^Big baby,
big baby P'' to the great alarm of the astonished man, and to the
amusement of all present.
CHARACTER AND HARDSHIPS
PIONEEES OF OHIO.
CHAPTER I.
Thomas Cowgill, M. D.— Dear i)octor.-— Mr. Antrim, of Logan
County, called on me a few weeks ago with an urgent request that,
as I was an old pioneer of Ohio, I should prepare and send to your
address in some readable form, some scraps ofearly pioneer history,
connecting with them such incidents and facts as came within my
own knowledge, embracing the times up to about 1820, for the
purpose of incorporating them with a proposed history of the early
settlements, and more particularly within my own early localities.
This seemed to me at the time, more than my physical strength,
owing to a general nervous prostration of my system, would war-
rant, and I excused myself with a partial promise to comply, if
sufficient strength permitted, and will therefore, inpencil sketches,
make the effort, hoping you will, in their transcri}>tion, so mould
and remodel as to make them presentable to your readers.
My first acquaintance with men and things in this State com-
menced in 1806. My father, Anthony Patrick, having emigrated
when I was ten years old from New Jersey to Trumbull County,
purchased and improved a small tract of wild land in Brookfield
township, two miles west of the line bet ween Ohio and Pennsyl-
vania, and two and one-half miles west from Sharon, which is now
one of the most distinguished CENTERS for Wxemanufactureof Iron
in this country. I could here delineate the hardships and i»riva-
tions of that early day among the few settlers in that vicinity, but
LOGAN COUNTIES. 13
it would be traveling out of the objects you seek in your circular.
I will, however, as a common specimen of pioneer life, state that
from 1806 to 1808 the settlers there hibored under many discourage-
ments, even after openings for cultivation were made ; such as
want of teams and farming implements, and the want of means to
procure them. Oxen and cows were with few exceptions the only
teams used ; horses were rare; rough sleds were the vehicles of
travel and transit, rough ploughs with wooden mould boards, with
iron nosings attached for coulters, barrows all of wood even to the
teeth, were their best implements, and the man that had these
with a yoke of oxen or even cows was called rich. The man that
had even ^ne cow to harness foriarming purposes was considered
fortunate ; and those that had none of these advantages, but had
to put in their crops with manual toil, were the poor, which indeed
was very common in that day. Yet with all these conflicts in the
start, about 1808 they began to realize relief in return for their toils
in products from the rich soil.
But up to this time they had to endure in many cases much suf-
fering ; flour and meal commanded fabulous prices, and could not
be procured nearer than Pittsburg, and for want of means many
families had to resort to roots and wild game entirely for subsis-
tence, using spice- wood and sassafras for teas, and when they could
procure it, rye was their coffee, sweetened with sugar of their own
make. Salt was also very scarce and dear, so much so, that many
families who had pork had to let it remain without salting all
winter, using it by cutting from the whole hog as they needed it
for cooking during the cold winters. The above are some of the
facts connected with pioneer life moi-e than three scores of years
ago in the upper end of this State. In this connection it should
be stated tliat there was one characteristic trait plainly prominent
in that early day among the people. When it was made known
that any one was in need of help, they for miles around would con-
gregate, and if it was a cabin to be raised it was done. If assistance
to roll logs was needed in a new clearing it was bestowed.
And in many instances under my own observation when any
one from age, bad health or i)overty was unable to open his clearing^
or provide shelter for himself and family, they would on a given
day for miles around come together, bringing with them thoir
own provisions at an early hour, with axes, cross-cut saws, team*
t4 CHAMPAIGN AND
such as they had, and such other implements as were necessary
forthe occjision. If the object was to open up a small clearing, a
leader was appointed who gave general directions; some were
assigned to cutting up the large down timber into logs, others to
hauling them together, others to rolling them into heaps ready for
burning, others to cut or grub out the under-growth, and either
carry it to the edge of the ground and pile it in rows for a fence, or
in heaps for consumption by fire, others to felling timber and split-
ting it into rails, and building fences where tliere was no brush
fence, especially in front of the cabin, with a slip-gap for egress or
ingress. And in some instances after the ground was cleared from
debris, they would break patches and plant such vegetables as
would come early aud afford relief to the occupants; and indeed it
was frequently the case that a dense forest in the morning, would
by night-fall, present quite a little field, with the standing timber
girdled, eurrouaded with the uncouth fences already described.
LOO A N OOUNTI F58. 15
CHAPTER II.
BUIliDING THE LOG CABIN.
If a cabin waa to be built from the forest, as in the ease before
intimated, the leader, as aforesaid, who was always a man of
experience, and dubbed Cai)tain, would, as an initiatory step,
classify the congregated masses, andassigrn to ejich their respective
dutie,"?, about in this order :
1st. He would select fourof tlie most expert axe-men as corner-
men, whose duty it was to tirst clear offthe site, square it, and place
a boulder at each corner to build upon after being duly leveled,
then saddle and notch down the logs in good, workman-like order.
2d. He would assign a sufficient number of suitable men to select
na near the site as possible, the best large-growth, straight-grained
white-oak tree for clap-boards, whose further duty it was to fell it,
and cross-cut it into suitable lengths, split the cuts into square
bolts, and with a fro rive them. Another branch of this classifica-
tion was required in like manner to prepare puncheons for floors,
doors, windows and chimney-corner jambs, out of such timber as
was be^t adapted for the purposes, such as oak, chestnut or ash, as
all these abounded in that part of the State, and were, when
properly selected straight-grained timber, and could be made of
sufficient length and width to make a good solid floor, when spot-
ted on the under side at the ends out of wind ; and to rest upon
sleepers placed at proper distances apart, with dressed, straight
upper surfaces, and which, when top-dressed by a skillful adz-man,
made a good substitute for plank, which at that early day could
not be procured for want of saw-mills.
3d. He would then select and detail such a number as seemed
necessary to cull out as near the site as possible, straight, suitably
sized standing trees, and fell them and chop them off at suitable
lengths for the proposed structure, with teamsters to haul them in
»s they were logged off, in the then usual way of dragging them
on the ground hitched by a chain with a hook at one end of the
log. To this force were added other teamsters, provided with
rough wood sleds to haul in the clap-boarde, puncheons, and such
16 CHAMPAIGN AND
other materials, as would be necessary in the coni[>le'ion of the
caliin. These preliminaries being all successfully arranj^ed and
being carried into effect, the leader would take his station and make
proclamation to the balance of the forces, directing them to forth-
with prepare smooth skids, the necessary number of forks with
grape-vine or hickory withes around the prongs, and two or three
strong cross sticks inserted through holes bored in the lower ends
to give hand hold to push by ; and also provide a sufficient num-
ber of hand-spikes, of tough, small, round hickory, dog-wood or
iron-woorl, some four feet long, with ends shaved smooth to be
used by the men to bear up the logs while in transit to the corner-
men, or to the foot of the skids, as the case might be. Then the
order would be promulgated that no one but the Captain should
give any direction in the further progress of the enterprise ; and
as the logs would be hauled to the spot, he, with a glance of the
eye would make the necessary directions; and which would by
his order be conveyed to, the corner-men upon hand-spikes with
sturdy men at the ends walking abreast on both sides of the log,
bearing it up to its destination ; then the second log was borne in
like manner, each being placed after being spotted flat on the under
side, so as to rest level upon the corner-stones, as the end logs of
the structure equi-distant apart between the ends, then the ends
would be prepared by the corner-men with what was familiarly
known as the saddle, which consisted in this: The expert corner-
men would chamfer or bevel off at an angle of say forty-five de-
grees each side of the ends of the log, the two chamfers meeting at
a point on the top-center of the log, presenting an end view of
the upper half of the log. This preparation is to receive the
transverse logs notched at each end so as to nicely fit over the
saddles. The two end logs having been placed and fitted as above
desciibed, the leader would select the two largest logs being
straight for the front and rear bottom logs; being sills, these two
logs when in the hands of the corner-men would be notched
deeper than the other logs of the building, so as not to throw the
floor too liigh from the ground. The corner-men at each end of
the log would cut their notches so exactly at the same angle, and
at the same time so as to exactly fit their respective saddles, that
when put to the proper place would make a solid fit and out of
wind . This dexterity in corner-men no doubt gave rise to the old
aphorism, "iTe cuts his notches close.^^
' r^OQAN COUNTIES, 17
The four foundation logs having all been properly notched and
saddled and in their places, and upon the usual tests being found
equare; the next thing to be done was to cut in the sills the slots,
or gains to receive the sleepers, which If on the ground and pre-
pared as already intimated by being scotched straight on upper
sides, vere cut to right lengths and fitted at the ends, so as to rest
solidly upon said slots, and put in their places; though thi^i was
frequently done after the building was raised.
All things prepared for the superstructure, the, leader still at
his post, with a shrill emphntic voice selects a log, and his forces
bear it to the corner- nten asalready intimated, resting one end of
the handspikes on the top tog already placed, rolling it upon the
two saddled logs ; it was then fitted and prepared in proper manner
and placed plumb on the wall by the practiced eye, aided by the
pendulous axe held loos<;?ly at tip of helve, between the thumb and
forefingers ofthe experts. This routine being continued, until the
building was too high to reach and rest the handspikes as hereto-
fore described upon the wall ; then, the skids resting on the ground
at the but-ends would be reared up to the corners on the front
eide and one end of the building, nearest the collection of the
hauled-in timber; the logs one by one selected as aforesaid, would
be carried as before to the foot of the appropriate skids, and placed
on them, and rolled up as far as the men could conveniently reach ;
and being stanchioned and held, the necessary number of forks
were placed under each end of the log inside of the skids, with
lower ends held firmly down to the ground, were by the order of
the leader manned at the cross-handles already .described at each
end of the log, which was at a given word of said leader, slid up
the skids by the uniform motive power thus api)lied, to the top,
where, by the leverage of handspikes in the hands of the corner-
men, it would be thrown on top ofthe already saddled lugs, and by
them rolled to the back wall ; then the next log in like manner
would be shoved up and received by the corner-men tor the wall
Bpon which the skids rested : these being fitted as indicated, the
two logs intended as transverse would in like manner be placed on
the ends of the last two logs, all being done with exact uniforsnity
and celerity, and vrith dispatch and tif^atness fitted to their reepec-
tive places in the wall. And if the contemplated cabin was intended
to bv aiore tbau one story, at the proper height from the top of
18 CHAMPAIGN AND
the Blcei)crs for lower floor, slots wculfl bo piciJurod lor the joisls,;
and if they were on the ground would l^e tilled in like mnnnps
with the sleepers. Then the building would in the loutir e already
described be carried up to the square; when ui)on the two ends of
the building would be raised the eave-bearers, projecting sonae
twenty inches beyond tlie wall, and would be notched down and
saddled back far enough to receive the timbers lier< after described;
when the two ends iu front of the building were notched at the
upper tips hi the form of the large capital V to rest the upp(^r ends
of the skids; then the butting pole for the back side ot the cabhs
would be shoved up to the front corner-men, and rolled to th»
back eave and notched down upon the saddles projecting some fif-
teen inches, beyond the outside i>lurnb of *,he wall ; then the first
rib would be sent up to corner-men in same manner, and rolled
back to proper distance inside of said butting pole, and notches
down, so as to give the ))itch of i oof from center of butting pole tu
toj) surface of said rib; then the front rib and butting ])0le w-ould
in like manner be sent up and placed in same order as tliose iis
the rear, then tlie first two gable logs would be placed in notches
out into the ribs and chamfered at the ends to suit the pitch of tb :.
roof. The other ribs and gable logs being placed, so as to preserve-
the intended pitch of the loof, the upper and central one being:
called the ridge pole ts in like manner notched down in such posi-
tion, as that a straight edge would from the centers of the butting:
poles upward, touch the upper surfaces of all the ribs and ridge pole
resijcctively at the indicated angles. Thus the cabin is ready for
the clapboards, which are laid down upon the ribs with the lower
ends resting against the butting poles, with small spaces between,,
which are top-covered in like mnnner, so as to break joints, and th&
eave courses on cjich side being fo laid down; knees out of tihe'
hearts of clapboard bolts, of proper lengths are prejiared at eaefe
end, resting endwise against the butting pcjles to hold up the weight
poles, which are placed upon the two eave courses of clapboards as
nearly over the ribs respectively as possible ; and in like manner
another course of clapboards is on each side laid down abutting tbs
weight-poles, and being kneed as described, another weight-pole is
put in its place to hold down the boards, and so on until the wholfr
oabiu ia roofed and weighed down as per programme.
In this coimection it may be stattMl, that tfiose force* t fiat wtTe
liOGAN COUNTIES. 19
detailed to prepare m\te rial in theearly partof theday, woaldlong
before tho cabin wai raised and covered have finished their several
allotments of labor, and reporttlieniselvesready for further service,
and would a^ain bo subdivided and their respective duties under
the direction of the leader allotted ; some to cutting out the open-
ings, such as doors, windows, and fire-places, and jambin«r tlieni up
•srith the material prepared for that purpose ; others to laying? down
the floor as already described; others to building up the chimney,
back and side jambs for outside fire-olace ; others to preparing "cat
atnd clay" witlj which to top out the chimney and put in stone back
wall and fire-|)ijce jambs; othere to making door or doors as the
case might bo, out of long clap-boards prepared for such purpose,
and hanging them with wooden hinges and fixing wooden latches;
others to scutc'liin^ rlown slightly with a broad-axe inside walls;
others t*; ch* !;iug and daubing the cabin and filling up the hearth
even with the. floor and flagging it with flat stones, if such ma-
terial was on hands, and putting cros-s sticks in windows \ipon
■which greased paper would be pasted tvs a substitute for glass. And
indeeii '.[ may be said the whole would i"»e completed, so thata gen-
en-, /irai'ng, its it was called — in the shape of a country
da ■ u; wiiier ill nocent am'tsements— would be the prelude to the
fauiily occupancy the same night after the completion.
This characteristic kindness was mutual — all felt it, all mauifest-
cd it toward each other. All intercourse was social; no one felt
that he had a right to domineer over his poor neighbor, but the
disposition was to aid and encourage.
These settlers, as soon as they had furnished themselves and
fcimilies with shelters and provided for their wants, directed their
attention to the moral and religious culture of the community, and
schools and churches were organized and sustained, and from year
to year the facilities of the people were gradually improved, and
their condition began to assume prosperity and happiness.
But before this amelioration, notwithstanding all tried to a.ssi!^
•each other as far as means to do so permitted ; yet there were
.some distressing hardships endured. One family by the name of
Knight wiis reduced almost to starvation, and had to subsist upon
«aeh resources as a wilderness aflorded, Mr. Knight had to labor
without nourishment enough to give him strength. He was one
iQf those who had no kind of team, and had to earry his rails on
20 CHAMPAIGN ANB
his shoulder out of his clearing to his fencii-row, and was actually
so reduced for want of food, as to have to stop and rest with his
rail one end on the ground, several times before reaching the
fence-row. Another family had no other subsistence than that
afforded from the milk of a cow, and such wild game and esculent
roots as they could procure, and this same cow Wiia kept in gear
for hauling, plowing, &c., as their only team ; these privations
lasted from early spring into the summer of 1807, when their toils
were blessed with the products of the soil in the shape of early
potatoes, green corn, &c. These are given as samples for many
more puch cases.
In this connection it may be well to anticipate the que.stiou that
may be asked: "Could not these extre'iiities have be^n obviated
by the wild game that always abounded in a new country ?" 1%
is easier to ask than ansvv^er questions, but there were good reasons
M'hy a sufBcient supply couid not always be had. Many of these
persons had neither guns nor ammunition with which to hunt;
and most of them were not skilled in the use Of fire-arms. They
had emigrated from old settle tn en ts, and those who had the means
at hand had to itractlce; and as an incident the writer of these
sketches will state that his father, cm his way from New Jersey,
when at Lancaster, Pennsylvania, {)urchased a nev/ rifle, a kind of
fire-arms he had never used, but during his first winter in his new-
home, when there would come a fall of snow he would take his
rifle and practice hunting, and succeeded in killing a turkey or a
rabbit now and then, but from that nervousness and anxiety called
buck-fever, could not for a long time succeed in killing a deer. But
one morning after a fall of ligiit snow he tied a white handker-
chief over his head and dressed in light-colored clothing, assim-
ilating as near as possible to the color of the snow, put out, gun in
hand into the forest immediately back of his cabin, and was not
gone more than ten minutes until the family were saluted with
the shrill crack of his rifle, and looking in the direction of the re-
port he was seen running at full speed toward the cabin, with his
gun held horizontally in both hands, in a perfect fever of excite-
ment, out of breath, and entirely speech ie^-^s, thrusting the cock of
his gun almost in the faces of his family, to l^t them know he had
kille<l a deer ; he had to be even reminded that he must stick it,
which he had forgotten under the frenzy of his buck-fever; ho
ViOflAN COUNTIES. a
went immediately b;»ck rtncl stuck a fine fat doe lyhich had
dropped dead from his Bhot, after which he was more deliberate
and cool, and beciimort tolerably good hunter both In the chaso
and at deer-licks, which abounded at that time in that part of tbo
State.
A few mornings after the above occurrence his brother Johnson
Patrick, who afterwards lived in Lojjan County, borrowed the gun
and was gone but a little while until he came across two cubs and
killed them both, but found himself in an almost inextricablo
dilemma ; for as soon as he was about to bring- away his game\ the
old dam made her appearance, and he not having been a skillful
hunter, had not reloaded, and had no opportunity to do it; but
with the aid of a good dog that happened to be on the spot made
good ills escape with the trophies of his luck, and this incident
made him a wiser man, and better hunter afterward. These frag-
ments are intended as specimens; many such might be enumerated
but would only vary in the personages and not in character. As I
have undertaken to give the reasons why an abundant supply to
relieve suffering could not be had, I will as another reason state
the fact that the din ':^f improvement in so many places at one time,
added to the discharge of fire-arms to a considerable extent, with
other causes, frightened all wild animals and made them extremely
wild ; and even caused them to retire to more undisturbed places
in the forests. I will here intimate a mode of capturing wild
turkeys, which was very successfully practiced without the use of
powder and lead. It consisted in building of common fence rails a
square pen, say three feet high covered with fence rails on top,
with interstices between of some lour inches, making an opening on
on side at the bottom of the pen largo enough for a turkey to pass
through it, then throw into the pen shelled corn or other cereals,
tr?il said seed outside some distance, and very frequently a whole
flock would begin on the outside trail and clean it up to the pen,
and one at a time follow the leading turkey through the opening
until the whole flock, large or small, would be crowded inside, and
when once in they became bewildered, and had neither sense nor
instinct to go out as as they went in, but only attempted to escape
by flying up, and were knocked back by the fence rail covering;
and would either be secureti in the trap until needed for use, or
taken out and put into another pen and fed; and leave the trap for.
22 CHAMPAIGN AND
a new haul. The writer of this has practiced upon this same prin-
ciple, and caught as many as u dozen ;it one time, but that mode
would not iaat long- in the Bume neighborhood, for it would seem
that the poor silly creatures would ie;irn caution and instinctively
avoid the traps.
While upon this su'oject, it might be appropriate to notice other
modes of capturing game which were flevised, such as snares, dead
falls, &c.; even wolves were ensnared in this way when properly
set and baited. For want of steel or iron traps the resert was sim-
ply to select a suitably sized tough, elastic under growth sapling,
cuttiifg off the top and tying to the upper end a small strong cord,
so adjusted as to presentan open slipping noose, then bending down
the sai)Iing near to the giound and fastening it to such fixtures as
would upon slight contact spring suddenly, being careful to so ad-
just the noose that (he animal must reach through it to obtain the
bait already attached to the springing fixtures. These prelimin-
aries having all been so arranged, trie unsuspecting victim would
approach, thrusting its head through the fatal noose, seizing the
bait, which would spring the hole suddenly and draw the noose
tight, holding it up in a dangling attitude, until loosened by the
owner of the snare. And the dead fall was either h heavy slab of
timber, or a small square pen built of poles and covered over with
such material as would weigh it down after it had been sprung;
the latter mode was the most humane, as it inflicted no torture
upon the captured game : to this class may be added the common
quail trap, which was built of ssnall light split sticks, fastened at
the corners with small twine and drawn in, so as to form what
might for want of a bettor term be called a square cone at the top ;
this v^eighted down with a stone on top completed the trap. All
these were set upon what was familiarly known as a figure four
trigger, baited to suit the kind of game desired.
Before dismissing these fragmentary ruses to decoy wild game,
it would not be asniss to notice the practice of watching deer-liclis.
Then, were here and there certain brackish springs, to which deer
in the summer and fall seasons of evenings would resort, and were
denominated deer-licks. And the hunter who would avail him-
self of this opportunity, would prepare himself in the branches of
•ome suitable standing tree near by, a kind of booth, or screen
of green limbs with their foliage; and in which he would fix a
LOGAJ^ COUNTIJilS. 23
Reat, and at about six o'clock P. M., would seat himself, gun
in hand, prepared with a Sinali piece of spunk into which he
would with steel and flint strike a spark of fire, which would make
smoke without a blaze to keep ofl' the gnats, &c. , which were very nu-
merous and annoyinj?. He w-ould sit there without daring to make
the least rusde or other noise, for fear of friglitening the expected
visitors ; he would some tim&s '^o away disappointed, but frequent-
ly they would come and one at least would remain as a trophy to
the happj'- huntsman; but this rande <>f hunting was anathematized
by professional hunters, for the reason that it was calculated to drive
away the deer from their winter haunts, and because neither the
hide nor the venison was so good as when killed in proper seasons.
SpeakinsT of deer hides, they were highly prized at that day for
the reason that when properly dressed in the Indian mode, they
became yery useful material for clothing, such as pants and hunt-
ing shirts, and were of common use among the male population.
I will here break the thread of these fragmentary sketches by
remarking that I have attempted to show that the early pioneers
^f the State were noble minded, generous hearted, and social men;
full of the milk of human kindness, ready at all times, to aid the
needy, relieve tl^.e distressed, and J'old back nothing that would
promote the happiness of their fellows. Indeed we never had bet- "
ter communities of men and women, than were constituted out of
the first settlers of Ohio. They were always ready to do good deeds,
but added to these noble qualities they had the muscular power to
perform. It may be said, "There vvere Giants in those days."
I have lived too long to make rash statements of facts, but I am
about to make one, that I feel almost afraid to make, fearing it
iTi&y seem to assail my veracity. Here it is : I knew a man of that
day by the nan.ie of'Collins, who between sun rise and sun set,
with only his axe and wooden wedges split o?2e thousand rails of
full size, the cuts having been logged off. It Avas chestnut timber,
and he being a large boned alethic axe-man, would v/ield his pon-
derous axe with such certainty as to clieek the cut, so as to drive
in a small wedi^^e, then following it with a tou^h glut, would so
burst it open as to sever it with a few well directed blows of his axe,
then quarter it in like manner, and then his axe alone was sufficient
to she'll the quarters into rails.
As these fragmentary and desultory scraps of (he early times in
Ohio are intended to perpetuate facts and incidents, connected
with the lives of those who have "Gone to t!i;>t bourne whence no
traveler returns," it may be well to hand ;h{ m down to t-^ie
24 CHAMPAIGN AND
generations to corae, that they may compare notes, and realize the
contrast. And in lliat view of the subject, it may not be amiss to
bring up in review nome of the annoyances to which the people
were exposed. Wolves were very numerous and ravenous and
consequently it was with difficulty that sheep could be introduced,
and indeed other domestic animals had to be kept in safe quarters,
near the family residences, in order to save them. It was no un-
common thing in the night season to be saluted with the dismal
howJ of these nocturnal prowlers, in close proxmiity to the cabin
homes of the settlers; and which if not scared away, would make
a raid before morning upon the sheep fold or other stock within
their reach. The most efl[\^ctual way of riddance, was to keep on
hands a good supply of outer, jaggy flakes of the shell-bark
hickory, and make a sally at them with blazing torches, which
would be sure to make a sudden retreating stampede. Blazing
fire-brands from the hearth had the same effect; the sight of fire
seemed to strike them with teiror; indeed it was necessary at
some seasons of the year for persons who were out at night to
carry a torch or lantern for self preservation, as attacks upon per-
sons were sometimes made. In some instances persons were not
secure even in daylight, and, as one proof of it, I will bring up
an instance. The Hon. Samuel Huntington, one of the first
Governors of this State, lived in the Western Reserve. He had
occasion about the j'ear 1807 or 1808, to travel on horse- back from
Cleveland to Warren, which was then almost an entire wilderness,
on a v?ry rainyday in the early part of winter; and was suddenly,
without notice, beset by a large pack of hungry wolves. They
pitched at both horse and rider; the horse was completely fright-
ened into timid docility, and could not be urged to move; nothing
was left for the Governor to do but to fight it out, with the only
weapon he had, a folded umbrella, with which he punched them
off, but was nearly being captured when fortunately it flew open,
and the sudden change in its aspect frightened the ferocious ani-
mals, so that i hey fled, and he was miraculously relieved from a
terrible dilemma. The probability is that it w;is the horse they
desired to capture in this case, but persons were not safe if they
were ravenously hungry.
The writer of this on one otn-asion hud good cause to believe that
Lt' esc^a peti provid»»nt!nlly from being dfvousvd. The eircumstan-
«WK, siS uearly a* now recollected, wert? abwut th«-*e: The ftist
LOGAN COUNTIES. 25
school in the neighborhood had been opened, and he being then
about eleven years old was sent to it, and not being willing to lose
time had to use eveningsto attend to other matters. The only pair
of shoes he had needed half-soling, and it was arranged that after
school was dismissed he should go to Wm. Cunningham's, the shoe-
maker, on a public road, about one mile north from the school
house, and his father's residence being abouta half mile east from
the school-house, on a public road, making his whole distance from
home by the road about one and one-half miles. To describe with-
out a diagram, it may be stated that a short distance on the way
home from the residence of Mr. Cunningham, a small by-path for
pedestrians took off from the north road and led to his father's
cabin on the east road, and shortened the distance so that it was
only a little over a mile by the path to his iiome. He remained
until near 10 o'clock; it was a bright moonlight night, Avith a little
fall of snow' on the ground; his shoes being mended, he prepared to
start home, when the family of Mr. Cuningham advised him to
take the road for safety ; but when he came to where the path took
off he failed to take the advice, and at a rapid pace, plunged into
the dense forest, and when about two-thirds of the way home be-
gan to flatter himself that all would be well, and that in a shn't
time the family welcome would greet him. when suddenly he re-
alized the fact that he was in the midst of danger; he heard the
brush cracking some distance in the rear, and his rash folly in at-
tempting to go the short route in the night season without ^orae
mode of defense was apparent; but boy as he was he knew his
only chance of escape was in a foot race, and being swift of foot for
his age, he put forth his energies, still keeping ahead of his pursu-
ers, although they were nearing him; but he sped on and soon
reached his father's clearing and bounded over the fence, when the
glare of a bright light from the cabin and a faithful hous3-dog met
his enraptured vision, and he was safe. It was supposed that they
had sniffed the new, fresh sole leather which caused the pur-wit.
(-1)
28 CHAMPAIGN AND
CHAPTER III.
LOG CABIN CONTINUED.
In this coiijipction might be luirnert ono other past to the new
settlements. Yellow rattle snakes largely abounded to the great
ssmnoyanee and peril of the people. T!ie country in many portions
was underlaid with a strata of shelly rock.s, which upon abrupt ac-
clivities of the surface and at heads of springs would crop out, and
tliese cropping points afforded these pestiferous reptiles cominodi-
ous caverns or dens, in which, in son»e localities, vast numbers
would collect for winter quarters, iind in the early spring would
Heave the caverns to bask in the spring sunshine in the vicinity of
(their head-fjuarters, and snake hunts were common in some neigh-
bor)K)ods. I remember to have heard of a raid being made upon
some <)f these dens a short distance west of Warre", which resulted
kn the destruction of immense numbers counted by the hundreds
JB one day. But as I do not design to tell a long snake story, I
will give a few facts, which may seem at this day to partake of the
Muhchaufen type. My father built his cal)in near a very fine spring,
which neadefi in a depression bounded on three sides by an oval
c'iKyilar rock bcrnch, some four or five leet higher than the surface
of the spring; his cabin had not been furnished when he moved
into it in the early Spring, and was not fully chinked; necessity
twmpelled the occupancy of it in that condition, intending soon to
finish it, and in the mean time to furnish it temporarily in the most
primitive mode of that day; his bedsteads were in this style — one
crotch or post of proper height, fastened upright, to rest the ends
of transverse straight suitably sized poles upon, inserting the (»ther
ends into the interstices between the logs of the cabin, putting in
«a*her cross sticks, upon which to rest clapboards, to hold up the
bed and bedding. Upon these rustic bedsteads, with appropriate
couches, the family enjoyed that sweet repose which they needed
after their daily toils; all went on charmingly, until one ]m)rning
my mother, in making uptlie bed in whicli she and my father had
slept, in drawing otf the feather bed in order to shake up the straw-
LOGAN COUNTIES. 27
tick, diseovereil to he>r constertiarion dnt\ terror ii large rattlesnake
gliJing away between tlte logs, which was supposed to have en-
sconced itself between the two ticks the day before ; and during
the night had remained so quietly still as not to have disturbed its
bed fellows. 1 rememberanother incident that occurredafterward in
the same locality. My now oidy sister Mrs. Jonas Curniningsof
Illinois was an infant, l>eginning to sit alone, and my mother
having some work to do in the house yard, to pacify the child
l)laced it upon the grass plot with play things lo amuse il. While at>-
tending to her domesti- dutie.-* she observed that the chiM mani-
fested most ecstatic, glee, and looking in that direction, siie wtis
horrified upon seeing thecldld about to clutch a huge yellow rattle
snake. She ran and jerked away the child, and her excitement
emboldened her to hunt a club with which she suddenly dispatched
Ids snakeship.
There were many mttle snake adventures of varied types .ind
phases, but let the above suffice. It may however be said that
many persons became reckless and were the victims to their own
folly; others were unavoidably bitten, but as a general rule the
Indian remedies were resorted to, and generally were effectual in
their cure. In some few cases however the bite proved fatal ; one
instance can be given that was a sad one ; and by W'ay of introduc-
tion to the sequel, the remark may be made that there were per-
sons and not a few, who seemed to lose their terror of the reptiles
from their familiarity with the abundance and it wa.«t a very common
practice to be provided with a stick two or three leet long with a
prong at one end, which they would use when an opportunity
offered, by throwing the fork or prong upon the neck of tlie
snake, and pinning it down to the ground for the purpose of teas-
ing it, as young kittens will a mouse before killing it, and when
they have satisfied themselves with this amusement, they seize
the serpent by the tail, lift off the yoke, and give a sudden
backward jerk and breakMts neck. Avery fine young man in
the neighborhood who was greatly esteemed, by the name of Mc-
Mahan, who was about to be married to a daughter of Judge
Hughs, (who was uncle to Mrs. William Ward of Urbana) espied
a large rattle snake, and attempted to capture it in the mode above
described, but it slipped aw ay from him and glided into a smaU
hole in a stump, and before it had drawn in its whole length hn
seized it by the tail to draw it back with a sudden jerk and break
28 CHAMPAIGN AND
its neck, but unfortunately the aperture was laro-e enoujjrh for the
snake to coil itself back, which it did, and bit him among the
blood vessels of his wrist, which to the universal regret of the com-
munity caused almost immediate death. The introduction of
swine into the country, relieved the people in a great degree of
this pest in a few years. It is averred, though I will not avouch
its truth, that even the timid deer was a great snake killer, that
when it came in confoict, it would with its fore feetstarai^the reptile
to death. This branch of the subject here closes with this one
remark — the rattle snake has one redeeming trait, when letaloueit
will never attempt to bite without giving notice by the rattles.
This settlement continued toprogressin tliedirection of improve-
ment. Log cabin churches, school-houses, mills and other indis-
pensable utilities were erected, and furnished the people with the
usual facilities of society, their granaries and larders were replen-
ished, and they began to realize all the comforts that persevering
industry always brings in its wake. All were ha ppy and contented
up to about 1810, when that mania among the first settlers of a new
country, in the shape of new adventures broke out in all its mast
virulent types. The most glowing descriptions of new localities
westward in theState were circulated, the new counties of Waj-ne,
Stark, and especially a i)lace still further west under the general
term of the Mad River Country, attracted the deepest interest as a
land "flowing with milk and honey," interlarded with game and
wild hogs in great abundance, about which the most extravagant
hyperbolical declarations in jest were made, such as that roasted
pigs were running at large with knives and forks stuck in their
backs, squealing out, "Come and eat."
This agitation in the end, culminated in the exodus of about
forty families, more at that time than two-thirds of all the old set-
tlers of Brookfieid township, who in their frenzy, sacrificed to new
comers, the results of their toils for years; not then, even dream-
ing of the hidden treasures under their feet, i'l the shape of inex-
haustible coal fields and rich mines of iron ore, that have since
been the source of unbounded wealth to that community, making
improved lands then sold for three or four dollars an acre, worth,
upon an average, one hundred dollars an acre at this time.
As I have elsewhere said not less than forty families began to
prepare themselves for this movement, and strange as it may now
UMJAX COUNTIES. 29
-appear, tiot les,s than thirty of them selected the Mad River Val-
ley, and within a year or two all of them settled in what at that
time was Champaio^n County, and my being so mixed up in these
scenes, must be niy excuse for connecting my pioneer life in C'ham-
paign County, with its incipient stages in Trumbull County. It
seems to me from my stand -point, I could not separate them so as
to confine myself alone to this my pre-Sent locality, for the reason
that my old associates in a large degree were my new comrades in
early pioneer life in this part of the State. And the scenes from
]80(>to ISll are now endeared to me, and can not be eradicated or
separated from the scenes of pioneer life in C'hampaign (bunty,
but must by me be treated as one of the parts of my early life in
Ohio. I can well adopt the language of Tupper in his veneration
of old haunts; his portraiture in the following lines vibrates upon
every chord of my early reminiscences, and vividly renews all
those early recollections which I have attempted to delineate in
varied sketches. In view of all these surrounding circumstances
-am I not Justified in their connection?
01(1 §ninttfi.
"i love to linger on my track.
Wlierever I liave dwelt
In after yosirs to loiter back.
« And lee! as once I felt;
My foot falls lightly on the .^w- ni.
Yet ieave.s u deathless dint;
With tenderness I still regard
Its un forgotten print.
Old places have a charm for nie.
The new can ne'er attain —
Old taces ntiw I long to see,
Their kindly looks again.
Yet these are gone — while all aiourui
Is changeable as air.
All anchor in the solid ground.
A.nd root inv memories there'
30 CHAMPAIGN AND
The )*pnti mentality of these lines after a lapse of more than a half
century, ha.s on two or three ooca-'ions induced rue to revisit the
locality of these scenes of my boy-hood. The spring near my fath-
er's cabin; the site of the old log school-house; the place where stood
the old church to which my father and mother led me, all claimed
my first attention. The '■'■deatMe-''s dinf^ was there, but the ^'oid
faces'" were not ihere; tliene were "gone," I shall never see '■Hheir
kindly looka again." A deep veneration for these sacred spots can
never be erased. Memory cherishes them, and^the judgment
endorses the declaration that all is vanity.
I-have already stated that ageneral stampede among thesettlers
was about to take place, and which ended in its consummation.
My father and his brothers Samuel and .Johnson Patrick caught
the contagion, the two latter moving in the fall of 1810 and set-
tled on Beaver Creek, in what is now Clarke County, and afterward
moved into what is now Logan County.
But my father reaiained in Brookfield until the next spring,
and during the winter entered into an arrangement by which five
of his neighbors united with him and built a boat, about two miles
above Sharon on the Shenango River, of sufficient capacity to con-
tain six families with their goods, and was made ready to be
launched. It was no doubt the first, if not the last, enterprise of
the kind so far up from the confluence of the river into l^ig Beaver.
The boat being ready, it was after the first sufficient rise floated
over three mw mill-dams down to the mouth of Big Yankee creek
and moored, and side o.ir.s and rudder b^iug attached, was ready
for the embarkation of the families of Richard K^rainer, Jacob Ueed-
er, William Woods, Josiah Whitaker, Isaac Loyd and Anthony
Patrick, with their goods, wht'n ;dtpr a sudden spri'ig rise in the
river were all on boar 1 in due orler as above indicated, when the
cable was loosed, and this hand of itnmigrant- numbering about
twenty souls set sail and were gently watted with the current
down the Shenango to Big Beaver, and down falls of the latter,
when tiie boat was again iii<:ored and the crew and tlieir elfects
were by wagons en. ployed, (0^vey^•d to the foot of the rapids.
The boat was put into the hands of u pilot to navigate it over the
falls which was done with great speed, but through the unskillful-
ness of pilot, was greatly injured upon the rocks and had to be re-
fitted at some expense, and madesea-wortliy, after which she was
•gain duly laden, and the voyag(^ ivneued l-y rujining with the
LOGAN COUNTIES. SI
current from the fells to the confluence with the beautiful Ohio Riv-
er, and thence clown to Cincinnati without noting the daily stop-
pajjes and delays after about a three weeks voyage, interspersed
with many Incidents which will he now passed.
Cincinnati was then a little town under the hill. Here these
old family wayfarers seeking new homes separated, after selling
their boat for about twenty dollars and dividing the proceeds, in-
tending to meet again in the Mad River Valley, which was
ultimately realized, as all of them became settlers in old Cham-
paign County 'IS bounded in 1811, embracing what is now Clarke,
Champaign, Logan, Hardin, etc., ttc, n )ith lo the Michigan
Territory line.
My Father moved his family to Lebanon, Warren County, arriv-
ing there on the evening Moses B. Corwin was married, remain-
ing there and working as a journey-man cabinet maker until
August, when he moved to Url>aua, arriving there the 9tb day'of
August, 1811.
Note: I have attempted to describe a log cabin raising, in its
multiform delineations from the standing forest to the completed
structure. And indoing so have committed myself to the criticism
of many yet living, who would be more capable of the task I have
assumed. I am aware that my attempt has many defects in point
of accuracy of <U'.-^fription, that will likely be pointed out as need-
ing amendment. But my niotive was not the enlightenment of
the present generation, but was attempted from a desire to hand
down to posterity the primitive structures up to 1820, believing^
that before the year 1920, this mode of building will have become
obsolete, and unknown. As the new settlers of this day do nol
re.sort to the log Ciibin, but to the frame house or hovel, the idea of
the original log cabin as already said will be unknown, hence the
reason of n)y feeble attempt.
8l' CHAMPAKIN and
CHAPTER IV.
LOG ('ABIN CONTINUED.
In the presentation of the frat^mentary sketches contained i« the
preceding- chapters, I owe it to niypelf to make some additional ex-
planations of the motives that actuated me, in a seeming departure
from the pt(<grairime of the " Western Ohio Pioneer Association,^'' in
loCiXting- scenes of pioneer life in sections of the State outside of
Ch;iinpai}j:n and jjf)gan Counties. And they in part consist — be-
cause aiy most early experience aotecede-^, and as els«!\vhere inti-
mated, connects itself with the scenes which followed my early
settlement in Champait?n County in the year 1811. Pioneer life in
all its general relationships is so uniformly the same, that all its
general features are hs applicable to one locality as another ; and
therefore all those generalities of which I have treated, such as
hardships endured, dangers encountered, difticuUies met and over-
come, including all those manifestations of generosity, equality,
and sympathetic mutual kindnesses, that have been portrayed as
traits of character in the early settlement of the Eastern part of the
State, are to the letter, applicable to the lirst settlers ot Champaign
and Logan Counties, and as a beginning point may be transferred
to the latter locality.
As already said, my father arrived in Crbana, Augu^^t !)th, 1811,
and rented of Benjamin Doolittle a double cabin, then standing on
lot No. 17;'), on what is now East Court St., oj)posite the First Bap-
tist Church, and near the present residence of Mrs. Keller^
At this point I will attempt a pencil sketch of all the habitations
of the old settlers at the date here indicated, and in order to do so
more understandingly will promise the remark, that tlie -triginal
plat of Urbana at that day, consisted of 212, in lots 6 rods in front,
abutting streets running back ten rods ; four fractional lots around-
the Public Square six rods sfpiare ; and two tiers t)l out lots on the
western border, and ohe tier on the southern border of the town,
aggregating twenty-two lots, varying in <ize from about one and
one-half acres to three acres ; for all further general descriptions I
L(>GAN COUNTIEvS. 83
will rofer to the rf'conl^^. And as a further prelude will remark, as
the streets now nearly all have new nanie.s, that I will adont them
with reference to my localities, and I will take luy standpoint in
the Public Square, and briefly dot the several localities of the first
'■settlers of tliat day, as fully as my recollections will enable me.
PUBLIC SqUARK,
On the southeast corner of fractional lot No. 1. Benjamin Dooiittle
occupied a two-story log- house, with a back building attaclied to
west rear for dining room and kitchen, as a tavern stand, and being
the same lot now owned and occupied liy M«'Donalds and others.
Joseph Hedges occui>ied a small frame with shed roof, called the
knife-box, little west of northeast corner of fractional lot No. 4,
as a store room of Hedges & Neville, with small family residence
in the west end, and being tlie same lot now owned and oc^-upied
by Glenns and othei*s.
John Reynolds owned and o"Cupied a neat white two-story
building on northeast cor»»er of in lot No. 48, fronting east on the
Public Square, and used in part as a store room ; the bah^nce being
his family residence. The store room being on the corner was
also by him used as the Post-office, he being the first Postmaster of
the I lace. The very same spot is now used for the Post-office in
the Weaver House. This whole lot is now owned by Henry
Weaver, and as already intimated, is the site of the^ AVeaver
House.
Widow Fitch, the mother of Mrs. Blanchard, owned and occu-
pied in lot No. i, opposite the Weaver House, and had a small log
building on it, which was occupied as a family residence, to which
she added in front facing east on the Public Square, a respectable
two-story hewed log house, using the same soon after as a tavern
stand for several years. This site is now known as the Donaldson
corner, &c.
Dr. Davidson occupied a small frame, fronting the Square on lot
No. 154, on pait of the site of L. Weaver's block.
SOUTH MAIK STREET,
From the Public Square, south. Alexander Doke owned and
occujiied in-lot No, 104, and liad on it a little south of the pres-
ent tavern stand of Samuel Taylor, a double cabin residence of
34 CHAMPAIGN AND
his family, and beino: a blacksmith, he had on the same lot a
smith sho}). This lot embraces all the ground south of S. W.
Hitt's store to the corner on market space, and owned now by
several individuals. All this ground during the war of 1812, was
used as an artificer yard.
W. H. Tyffe owned the south half of in lot No. 55, &c., and occu-
pied the southeast corner of it, as Ids family residence; it being
the same budding now on said corner, having since been weather-
boarded, and is now owned by his descendants.
George Fithian, the grandfather of Milton Fithian, owned and
occupied as a tavern stand, the same building now standing on in
lot No. G8; it has undergone but little improvement in outside ap-
pearance, excepting the weatherboarding of the log part of it. This
same tavern vt'as afterward owned and occupied by John Enoch,
the father of John Enoch, .Jr., and is now owned by the Second
M. B, Church as a proposed future site for a Church edifice.
George Hite, on the next abutting lot on west side of South
Main St., being No. 71, erected a two-story log house for his
family, and being a vvheel-wright, had a shop near it. The present
residence of Mr. Bennett occupies the site of the old dwelling.
Job Gard, the father of Gershom Gard, owned in-lot No. 87, the
corner of South Main and Reynolds streets, and lived in a hewed
log house near the jjresent residence of Col. Candy. This lot is
now owned by the New .Jerusalem Church ani others.
Alexander McComsy, father of Matthias McComsy, owned and
had a cabin for his family on s;)utti-east corner of South Main and
Reynolds streets, on out-lot No. 18, now vacant and owned by
William Ross.
William and John Glenn owned in-lots No. 124, 125, 126 and 127,
on which they had sunk a tjin-yard, with a rough log shoi) for fin-
ishing; this is now what is called Iho lower tannery, in the present
occupancy of Smith, Bryan &. Co. William Glenn then owned
and had a cabin-residence on lots No. 134 and 135, now owned by
.Tohn Clark, George (-ollins and others.
NORTH MAIN STREET,
from Public Square, north. John Shyach owned In-lol No. 163,
upon which his family lived in a respectable two-story, hewed log
house, near the drug store of Fisler & Chanc(^ (Years afterward
LOGAN COUNTIES. :?.5
was burned.) This property embraces the row of business build-
ino^s now occupied from the corner of North Main and East Court
streets, to .1. H. Patrick's ha nhvare store.
Randal Largent occupied a small rough cabin on lot No. 24, on
the north-west border of a pond, between it and what is known as
the " HaraUton Uouse,^' on the ground now occupied and owned
by J. li. Patrick as his residence.
Samuel ^fcCord had nearly opposite to last mentioned place,
his family residence on lot No. 178, being a story and half hewed
log house, which was many years after burned down.
N. Carpenter lived in a small one-story log ca])}n on the corner
of in-lot No. 32, near the present residence of .John Smith, corner
of North Main and West Church streets.
.Joiin Frizzle occupied a large double two-story log cabin as a
tavern-stand, fronting oast on North Main street, on in-lot No. 40.
near present residence of O. T. Cundiff.
12G434i
K.\ST MAIN OK .SCIOTO S'lHiKKT,
from Public Square, east. Joseph Vance owned lot No. 15o, and
was erecting in the fall of 1811 the present two-story frame and
part of th(> back building in which his son, .Judge Vance, now
dwells, as owner of the premises described.
Frederic Gump occui)ied a small one-s(ory cabin on east half of
in-lot No. 160, near the ]»resent site of the Episcopal ('hurch.
David Vance owned lot No. 97, and liad on it a small story and
half hewed log. house, occupied by Solomr>n Vail, and being the
same lunise, with some additions, now owned aiul occupied by
.Joseph S. K^iyfer. '
WKST M.\r\ <»i: MIAMI STUKF/r,
From Public Square, west. David Parkison owned and occupied a
two-story log house, and had a smiti'. sh<>[) near it, bolli fronting
thestreet on in-lot No. 2, now opposite the Weaver House, near
the livery-stable and Fisher's rooms.
Zephaniah Luce owned in-lot No. o(», and occupied it by his
family in a douliie log house, standing on (he ground now occupied
by Doctor Mosgrove's largo briek nsidence. Mr. Luce was also
the owner of in-lots No. ;")i, .^2, hii and 54, and on the two first sunk
86 CHAMPA KJN AND
a tan-yard, and hafl tinisliins-shop on same, which he used during
the war of 1812, a.s Issuing- Cormnissary Office, lie liolding that
post.
Lawrence Niles (hatter) occupied a hewed log house on east part
of in-lot No. o, being the same property no v owned and occupied
by WiTi. iSampson, having been repaired in such a manner as to
present a neat two-story house. His family, like nuiny new set-
tlers, after living here a few years, became dissatisfied, and with-
out waiting to dispose of their property moved west, seeking new
adventures, and were never heard of afterward. It was supposed
they were either all drownnd, or murdered by the savages.
EAST >[AKKK'r SI'HF-PM',
East from South Main. .James Fitliian occupied a two-story hewed
log house, with an addition of a one-story on west side of it, (the
latter being used in the war of 1S12, as a Quartermaster's offlee)
on in-Iot No. 10-5, being the present premises of Mrs. Dr. Stans-
berry ; tiie log buildings abov(; described were moved east on to
lot No. 109, property of estate of Samuel McCord, and very re-
cently torn down.
Simon Kenton, as Jailor of Champaign County, occupied one
family room below and the rooms above in the old Jail l)uilding,
on lot No. 107, as his family rasidence. Here two of his daughters,
Sarah, afterward Mrs. Jno. McCord, and Matilda, afterward Mrs.
Jno. G. Parkison, were married. This lot is now owned l)y two of
the Lawsons.
P^'rederic Ambrose, by trade a potter, afterward Sheriff and
County Treasurer, owned and occui)ied in-lot No. Ill, and lived in
a cabin on southeast corner, with a sliop near it; this lot is now
owned by Ha very Stump.
Wilson Thomas, colored, right south on the op}*osite side of the
street on in-lot No. 121, owned and occupied a small cabin, near the
present residence of Mrs. Jacob Fisher.
Toney, a colored man, whose full name I have forgotten,
but who was somewhat distinguished in the war of 1812, according
to his own statements, occupied an old cabin in the Northeast cor-
ner of E. B. Patrick's in-lot No. 112, fronting East Market Street.
Peter Carter, colored, husband of old Fannie, owned in-lot No.
LOGAN COUNTIES. HI
118, and had a cabin in the rear, which i^tood on the ground now
occupied by the present African M. E. Church building.
WKST MARKET STREET,
West from South Main. Edward W. Pierce, a very highly educa-
ted lawyer, without family, had a hewed log office near the
present residence of Mrs. E. P. Tyffe, on in-Iot No. 61. Repos-
sessed sterling talents, but from some cause had much mental
affliction, and in the winter of 1816, was found dead in the woods
between here and Springfield, much torn by wolves as then sup-
posed. Persons of that day who professed to know the fact, said
that in his very early life he had the misfortune to exchange shots
in a duel, and killed his adversary, which was the secret of his
mental malady. This I give as a matter of information only.
EAST W^ATER STREET,
From South Main, East. Daniel Helmick owned in-lots No. 136
and 137 ; on the latter he had a double cabin as the residence of his
family, and on the corner of the former in front of the Second M.
E. Church, was his hewed log cabinet shop; he afterward built
the brick house now owned by J. C. Jones.
Nathaniel Pickard owned and occupied lots No. 142 and 143, and
erected for his family residence a hewed log cabin, standing imme-
diately West of Moses B. Corwin's present brick residence.
WEST WATER STREET,
West from South Main. William Ward, Sr., t)ie old proprietor of
the town, then lived in a double log calkin standing near the pres-
ent residence of Mr. Smith, southeast corner of West Water and
High Streets, on a block of lots, No.'s 83, 84, 85, 86, 91, 92, 93, 94,
and now the property of Messrs. Smith, Donaldson and others.
EAST REYNOLDS STREPiT,
East from South Main Street. Joseph C. Vance owned and occu-
pied in-lots No.'s 152 and 153, and erected on the premises a two-
story log house as a family re'^idence ; he also erected a small
hewed log office, he being the first Clerk of the Court of Common
Pleas, and Surveyor, &c.
38 CHAMPAIGN AND
WEST REYNOLDS STREET,
West from South Main Street. Isaac Kobinson, a brick mason,
occupied a cabin on one of out-lots on south side of the street, but
r am now unable to locate it.
John Gilmore, a brick mason, occupied a cabin on out lot No. 8,
now enclosed in the private park grounds of Col. John H. Jones,
in which his superb family mansion is situated.
EAST (^OURT STRP^ET,
East from North Main Street. Anthony Patrick, as already sta-ed,
occupied a double cabin nearly opposite the Baptist Church on in-
lot No. 17o, owned then by Benjamin Doolitlle.
Jacob Tharp occupied a cabin on lot No. 165, near the site of the
prasent Baptist Church.
WEST COURT STREET,
West from North Main Street. Capt. Wm. Powell occupied a
small frame tenement on West side of in-lot No. 14, being the pres-
ent premises of Duncan McDonald.
Stout occupied a small rouo-hly budt frame, which stood
near the present residence of Miss Nancy Jennings on in-lot
No. 22.
EAST CHURCH STREET,
East from North Main Street. Samuel Trewett the grandfather of
Nathan Reece occupied in-lot No. 194, and lived in a hewed log
one story cabin near the present residence of Robert Bell. He was
a local M. E. preacher.
WEST CHURCH STREET,
West from North Main Street. John Huston a rough carpenter,
built a story and a half hewed log cabin and occupied it on in-lot
No. 26, being the present premises of William Scorah.
Daniel Harr the father of Newton Harr, was here with his thea
small family, and as I have no other building in my eye for a fami-
ly residence, lam inclined to the opinion that he occupied asmall
cabin on in-lot No. 27, the present premises of W. H. Colwell; if he
did so occupy, it was only temporarily, for I remember soon after,
he improved the north half of in-lots No. 65, 66, and erected the
LOGAN COUNTIP]S. 39
two story frame now owned by W. L. Study bak^r on South Main
Street and occupied the upper part and rear huildinjjs as his family
residence, and front as a store room of Harran<l Rhodes — the latter
beinjj^ the father of Nelson Rhodes, Esq.
Henry Bacon if memory serves me, ownedandoccrupied a small
frame buildins on the ground now owned by Mr. Osborn onin-lots
No. 38, 89; he afterward erected the brick buikliny known as th«
Insurance Office on in-h)t No. 8, and occupied itas adwellinjif.
Here are thrown hastily together a pen sketch of Ihe pojiulation
in Urbana in 1811, comprising 45 fandles, describing from memorj
tlie kind of tenements witii their h)calities as nearly as possible;
there may be some errors, but it is believed they are few. Ono
sad reflection presents its self wow ; all these tiave gone the way of
all the earth. There may possibly be an exception, but the writer
of this is not aware of any.
It may be proper here to |)oint out the public buildings of the
town. The jail has already been noticed. The Court-house was u
large log building on lot No. 174 on East Court Street, which has
undergone a change, and is now the property of Duncan McDonald,
and is used as a family residence. During the war of 1812-15, it
was converted into an army hospital, and in it ni.iuy deatiis oc-
curred from a prevalent epidemic malady of that day denominated
"cold plague," and the bones of the victims now rest in the old
town grave-yard. And may God in his merciful Providence avert
that unhallowed cupidity, that is now Instigating municipal dese-
cration upon their silent abode. This building having been ap-
propriated to the use above indicated, the upper part oi the jail
was fitted up for the purpose of holding the courts, and was so
dsed until the new court house in the public square was finished,
in about the end of the year 1817, and this latter temple of justice
remained as county court house, until the clamorous raids of the
populace culminated in the erection of our present one, standing;
on in-lots No. 16 and 17, about the year 1839.
In the earlier settlement of the town, the practice in the winter
seasons, was to convert the larger class residences, for the time
being, into Bethels for public worship, and in the warm summer
months, to congregate near the present Public Square, under the
shade of the spreadinji branches of the large oak trees then in that
vicinity. And as soon as the Court House first alluded to was fin-
ished, it became a place of public worship, and the same will ap-
40 CHAMPAICiN AND
ply to all it« .successors. But, I started out with the intention of
informing the public th it when I first came to Urbana, a large
hewed log M. E. Churcii had recently been erected on in-Jot No.
207, and under the itinerant mode of that denomination, was regu-
larly supplied by many sterling pioneer preachers, during the years
up to about 1816, when the brick church now part of the Ganson
livery establishment was erected. The pulpit in the oM log iiouse
was sui^plied something in this order during the years indie ited,
by Kev. .John Meek, Clingman, Samuel Brockanier, John
Collins, and perhaps some others. About 1816 as already stated,
the brick eiifice situated on east half of in-lot No. 176, was duly
dedicated and supplied in the manner named above, by the higher
order of talent in the persons of Rev. David Shafer, Henry B. Bas-
eom, Crume, Cummings, John Strange, Westlake,
&c. It may also be remarked that they were fortunate in the
years here embraced, say up to 1825, in having a first-class order of
local ministrations, and the interests of the Church were fully sus-
tained under Rev. Samuel Hitt and others like him, who were
ornaments to their profession, and she added to hei- luimher daily
such as gave evidence that they had passed from denth unto life.
Many incidents might be recorded of the thrilling scenes con-
necte<l with the spiritual labors of that old church, before it put on
its new dress, in the exchange of the old houses of worship for its
present new temple, situated on north half of in-lots No. 24 and
25. This denomination has always been in the lead in this lo-
cality, owing perhaps to the indomitable zeal manifested by both
ministry and laity, in the propagation of their popular tenets.
The only other religious interest in this town for the first thirty
years after its first settlement, was Presbyterianism, but its growth
was greatly behind that of the Church described. It however was
the instrument in disseminating much wholesome religious in-
struction, and exerted an influence for good, upon the morals of
the community. It had to encounter difficulties, and inconven-
iences for want of a house of worship; the Court House was substi-
tuted, and not till about 1829 had it any house of its own for the
congregation, and before it was finished, the tornado of 1830 en-
tirely demolished it, and another was er'^'cted on a new site or. lot
No. 18, on the same site of the j>resent imposing structure, this be-
ing the third within less than thirty years.
LOGAN (JOUNTIES. 41
But to come back to the point sought in the programme of the
Pioneer Association, I will say that the Presbyterian Church had
no organization as a Town Church for many years, but the mem-
bership was attached to country organizations on Buck Creek and
Stony Creek, according to their several preferences. This state of
things continued until about 1814, when the Rev. James Hughs,
the father of Mrs. William Ward, came and settled in Urbana,
and was very efficient in building up an interest in the denomina-
tion which soon resulted inachurch organization, and this worthy
divine was called under the rules and regulations of that branch of
the Christian Church, and was duly installed as its pastor, and con-
tinued in the Gospel labor many years, blessed with many addi-
tions to his charge.
Before dismissing this branch of the subject it may be said, that
bofore Mr. Hughs had located here. Rev. McMillin, Purdy,
and some others officiated, and after he resigned the pastoral rela-
tionship, the pulpit was supplied by Rev. Brich, Joseph
Stephenson, Dickey, David Mirrill and others. And as a con-
cluding remark it may be noted upon this subject matter, chat al-
though there were no other denominational organizations here
than the two above indicated for many long years, yet there were
some few belonging to other persuasions. Baptists, Newlights, &c.,
who attached themselves to country organizations, and were oc-
casionally supplied with preaching in this place. The Baptists,
by Rev. John Thomas, and John Guttridge, and the Newlights by
Rev. Vickers, all of them as a general rule using the School
house mentioned hereafter on in-lot No. 102. Notwithstanding
the small beginnings heretofore indicated, the City of Urbana
at this day may boast her three M. E. Church, two Baptist, two
Presbyterian including Associate Reform, one Lutheran, one New-
Jerusalem, one Episcopal, and one Catholic organizations, each
having a comfortable and capacious house for public worship; and
all of them, supplied in the ministry with talent'; of a resppctable
order. -^
42 CHAMPAIGN AND
CHAPTER V.
SCHOOLS.
The next subject in its proper order, would be to say a word in
reference to school houses and schools. My first recollection is,
♦^hat a school was taught by old Nathaniel Pinckard in the old log
Court House already described. I remember too, that afterwards
a school was taught in the old log church, by William Nicholson
and perhaps others. A school was taught in the old tavern stand,
wbich is heretofore referred to as the old George Fithian and John
Enoch stand on lot No. 6B, somewhere about 1816, by Hiram M.
Curry, afterward State Treasurer.
About the year 1811 however, a small school house was erected
on lot No. 102, near the present residence of E. B. Patrick, and a
school was made up by subscriptions which was then the only
mode of supply, and a teacher employed. I do not destinctly re-
member the first teacher, but a?B inclined to think it was William
Stephens, Esq.; afterward John C. Pearson, Henry Drake, George
Bell and others were teachers, but forget the order of their services.
In this venerable house the writer of this received his last touches
of scholastic instruction, and his only surviving schoolmates that
he can now name, are Col. Douglas Luce, Joseph A. Reynolds,
and Mrs. Horace Muzzy.
At that early day the opportunities for instruction were very
different from now. If parents had the ability and inclination to
pay for school instruction, it was given; if not, it was with-held.
In looking hack into the past, and (H)ntrasting it with the present
organized system of public instruction for all conditions of society,
the mind at once is puzzled in the solution of the question, "How
did those early Pioneers of <^hio, hedged in with poverty, sur-
rounded with difficulties, and exposed to all manner of hardships
and privations, manage to so educate, instruct and manipulate the
t/ outhf id iuinds ot their immediate successors, as to develop such
talent as has, in the last generation, gra,ced the pulpit, the bench,
the l)ar, and both branches of the State and National Legislatures ?
IX)GAN a)UNTIP]S. 43
Will such a galaxy ot stars set, at the close of the present genera-
rion ? If so, where are they now shedding their lustrous brilliancy ?
I?ut to return to the subject matter of the early schools of Urbana,
.-say prior to 18:>(). Having referred to the school-houses u.sed, and
tthe teachers, and the mode of supplying them, up to tliat time, it
Alight not be amiss to .-ay something of their capacity to teach and
govern. They were, as a general rule, men of high moral stand-
ing, and qualified to teach all the first rudiments of a common
-BChool education, such as reading, writing, spelling, arithmetic and
fDnglish grammar, and some of them the higher branches of math-
hematics and algebra; but not many clai)ued the latter qualitica-
ftions. But they vvei-e thorough in such branches as they professed
'^to teach, and if they found that any pupils were close upon their
Jieelsin any branch, they became studious themselves, to be pre-
jpared to impart instruction to such. This ftict has come under my
«^>wn observation in more than one instance ; in short, they were
^erseveringly industrious, energetic, and it may be said, ambi-
ifious, and the pupils were like them ; they applied themselves
ssBsiduously to their lessons, and the key to it was, both boys and
twirls at home had to work, the boy.s at mechanical trades or upon
fTarms, the girls at house-keeping, hackling and spinning flax,
<eardiug and spinning wool ; so that when they went into the school-
room, it seemed a recreation to take hold of their books, slates, <&c.
The teachers had an aptitude to teach, and the pupils to receive
feistruction ; the spirit of emulation was infused by the former, and
^€eized and secured by the latter. As already intimated, the teach-
*ers were determined to impart, and the pupils to receive instruc-
ttion. Indeed the invincible determination to learn among the
^§70uth of that day, was a common trait. I will have to give an
janstance as an illustration for many other cases. The writer of
tthis knew an Urbana boy in his teens, whose father in the winter
tef 1814-15, was drafted, and to save the family who were very poor
l!^om the sacrifice of its support in the head, voluntarily left his
-school, offered himself and was received as a substitute; being en-
sgaged in committing the rules of English Grammar, he put up in
Siis knapsack a copy of a small edition containing these rules, and
■when at his destination at Fort Meigs, at all leisure times pursued
t^e committing of them to memory, preparatory to finishing at
■<rhe end of his time in school, his studies upon that branch. He
NT/as kindly assisted and invited by his Captain, John R. Lemen,
44 (CHAMPAIGN AND
t<) use his quarters out of the din of the boys in the service. Bfe
really came home prepared to apply the rules and did so, under tli»'
instruction of the same teacher^he left. That boy had no higher/
aim than a common school education ; he did not aspire to ait;?r
profession, but the same indomitable energy that actuated hi m^-
stimulated hundreds of others in the State that did aim at highefi-
aspirations, and this'^erhaps is the solution to the question aske«JS
in a preceding paragraph;
Before dismissing this branch of the subject, 1 will note the fasti
of the erection about 1820, of what was called the Academy, and ia
which higher branches were professed to be taught, and which sifir-
tracted to our place afterward, a good class of competent instrucfc-
ors. And the greater part of our present business men, who ^msf
the descendants of old settlers of the town, received most of tbeSs
education in it. The building was on the present site of ourseco®dS
ward district school houses on lots No. 179 and 180. Also there wa»^
erected a little later, a female Academy, but it did not prove a ssa®
cess; it was on lot No. 35, West Church Street, being part of ftSc
present residence of William Wiley.
LOGAN (X)UNT1I']S. 46
CHAPTER A^I.
<5IVIL t'Or.ITY — MKDI(!AIi MKN — CAl.AMITIfS AVERTKI), KTC.
As I have given some of the desultory outlines of the first
«4iurches and schools of Urbana, sixty years ago, I will continue
a>y saying a word in regard to the civil, polity. I remember that
Twhen I first came iiere, Nathaniel Pinckard, Ksq., was Justice of
■sHse Peace for Urbana township, and was a great terror to benders
.ii«d boys ; his wife was his counsellor, and was considered the best
fStatute lawyer of the two, and kept him advised* in all dilficult
;»5nid knotty questions of law.
The Court of Common Pletis had on its bench Hon. Francis i)un-
tovy, President, with three Associate Judges — Hon. John Runyon,
-flohn Reynolds, and Joseph Lpyton;and the way justice was meted
<8iutto horse-theives, hog-theives, and all olher violators of the law
"twas a "caution," (as the curt phrase expresses it,) to offenders.
'The Urbana bar, at my first acquaintance, consisted of Henry 15a-
4Son and Edward W. Pierce, lieretofore noticed in another para-
<gr«iph. But very shortly afterward it received many very respect-
inble accessions, in the persons of Moses B. Corwin, (who likewise,
mi 1812 commenced the publication of the Farmers^ Watchfower,
the first newspaper ever publishe I in this place, associating with
iisiim a young printer by the name of Blackburn as co-ediior,) James
*('Jooley, afterward Charge rfe- Affaire.^ to a foreign country; C'aleb
Atwater, the distinguished Antiquarian; Chancy P. Holcomb, af-
ferward of some notoriety, and J. E. Chaplain. I could add to
diiis very cheerfully. Col. John H. James, whose record as a lawyer
sraeeds not the eulogy of my pen, but he located here after 1820,
:imd would be outside of the objects sought by the Pioneer Associ-
sation. I will now say a word in reference to the lawyers within
ttliis then large judicial circuit, embracing Hamilton county, and
iStl^ the organized and unorganized territory within its eastern and
western limits, north to the Michigan territory line, who prac-
Iticed at the Urbana bar prior to 1820--Jacob Burnett, David K.
l^r^^te, Nichols Longworth, Arthur St. Clatr, son of General St. Clair,
Jii>seph H. ('rain, afterward president Judge of this Circuit, John
46 (CHAMPAIGN AND
Alexander, &c. Here was an array of talent tltat has not sine^ •
been surpassed.
These men were frequently pitted ai>ainst each other in th<"
trials of important cases, and nuuiy amusing i)asse,s» of wit anfi»
repartee were evoked. I remember an instance of this kind: Johii.
Alexander, who was a man of hugh dimensions, and Nichola >-
Longworth, who was i)elow medium size, were employed agains'*
each other in the trial of a State case in the court-room at IJrbana.-
and during its progress they both became very much enrage«il
jigainsteach other, when Mr. Alexander stamped his foot, ajid witl:*
excited voice said, " You little thing, hold your tongue or 1 wifl
put you in my pocket," which Mr. Longworth did not deign t(i>
answer, but addressing himself to the Court said, "may it pleas**
your Honors, this mountain of flesh," ])ointing at his antagonisi; ,.
"has threatened to put une in his pocket ; please tell him for me, i^:T
he does, he will have more law in his ))ocket than he ever had Ui
his head."
And sometimes these i)asses of wit occurred between the ("our5
and members of thebar. 1 will give an instance: Mr. St. Clair ha^'if
an unfortunate impedimeat; although a man of more than ordinary
talents he could never give the letter S its proper sound — in othesr
words he lisped, and on one occasion he became very njuch exciters'
at the decision of the Court in some matter of interest to him, an*:i'
indulged in improper language, and still persisted after the Judgv
had coaimandefl him to take his seat. Judge Dunlavy ordered th*-
Sheriff to arrest and imprison him ; the Sheriff feeling that the dis-
charge of that duty would be very unpleasant, hesitated, where-
upon Mr. St Clair, in the most bland tone, addressed the .Judge b>
saying: "May it I'leath your Honor, perhapth The theriff ith wait-
ing the order of the Court." Whereupon Judge Dunlavy iunnedj-
ately consulted the three associate judges, and to his mortilicationi
had to let it pass.
The Supreme Court under the ('onstitution of ls():I was rcquireii^i
to hold an annual session in each county ; my Mrst recollection i:4
that Court in Champaign County is, that between ISll and 1817 iti*.
session-! were oji some occasions in the old log church— why, I d^j
not now remeiriber, and according to my best recollection, Judg(5.>:^
Thomas Scott, Chief Justice, William W. Irwin, and Ethan Aller-s
Brown, the latter of whom afterward was (loveinor of th(> Statc^,,.
LCXIAN COUNTIES. 47
were on the bench ; and soon after the above period Peter Hitch-
cook, John McLean, and othei-s not now remembered, were suc-
cessors of that Court.
As these sketches to be acceptable to future readei*s should em-
brace all the varieties of pioneer life, it might be well at this point
to say a word a.s t<j the gentlemen of the medical profession. And
as a beginning I will say that I do not remember any except Doc-
tor Davidson, a brother-in-law to Judge Reynolds, who was
here when I first came. But very •shortly after verj' respectable
accessions were made in the persons of Doctor Joseph 8. Carter and
Collins, to which may be added prior to 1820, Adam Alcxs-
grove and Obed Hor, and perhaps some othei"s not now recollected.
These gentlemen, it may be safely said, all secured the confidence
of the people, and were very popular and successful practilionei's.
And in the mean time, young gentlemen of the vicinity had quali-
fied themselves, who also in this time became successful in prac-
tic*». I will name a few : E. Banes, Wilson Everett, Hughs,
CXirry, and afterward, E. P. Fyffe and others. Being hedged
in by the 1820 rule, I will dismiss this branch of the subject.
I have already said that ray first acquaintance with Urbana was
on the 9th day of August, 1811, ana I have according to my best
recollection given the names and the location of all the heads of
families at that date. The first settlers here were exposed to many
hardships and difficulties, but banded together in kindly assist-
ir^ o;ich other. From its first settlement in 1806, through all the
succeeding years, embracing those of the war 1812-15, thej' were fre-
quently filarmed at threatene{i Indian raids ; frequent occasions of
the massacre in close proximity, of whole families, added to their
terror--. Mr. Joseph A. Reynolds informs me that on several occa-
sions about 1807 and 1808, the few settlers of t)ie place, repeatedly
alarmed at rumors of the near approach of hostll i 3 j,es, would
congregate in the most strongly built and roomy li)^ nouse, barri-
cade the doors and windows in anticipation of an InJian attack.
He recollects on one occasion that Zephaniah Luce, the father of
Col. Douglass Luce, received information that a body of Indians
were in th" neighborhood prepared to make an attack upon the
place in the night ; and he moved around among the settlers, urg-
ing them to imme<liately repair to the house of George Fithian.
already noticed, and bring with them all their guns and amtnuni-
4S CHAMPAIGN AND
tion, and barricade it as the tnost secure strong-hold of the place,
which was carried into execution, and as I'epresented, the scenes
of that nisrht were very exciting, and have left impressions not to
be forgotten. The attack, however, was not made, and the fortress
was disbanded, and all for the time being returned to their own
cabins. While on this subject it should be mentioned that soon
after the scenes above described, the people erected a block-house
on lot No. 104, and which during the war was used as one of the
army artificer's shops. This must suffice on this branch, though I
could recite some similar scenes within my own knowledge after-
ward. I will, however, in this connection remark, that although
our neigh bctring frontier tribes professed friendship towards the
whites, yet many distrusted them, and were suspicious that
through tlie blandishments of Tecumseh and his brother, the
Prophet, they migh< be induced to join the standard of the Pota-
wataraies and other hostile tribes, which had leagued together, and
ultimated in the celebrated battle of Tiopecanoe, in November,
1811. In this conflict, though Gen. Harrison's forces were greatly
cut to pieces, the Indians under Tecumseh were, after much
slaughter, driven from the ground and put to rout, and this being
late in the fall, no fears were entertained that they could again,
before the next summer, re-organize and renew their depreda-
tions. Things being in this shape, precautionary measures were
immediately taken to secure the settlements from future Indian
raids, and Governor R. J. Meigs came in the spring of 1812 to Ur-
bana, and inaugurated the project of making a call upon all the
Indian tribes, and especially those on our border who professed
friendship for the people of the Unitfxl States, Ui convene at Ur-
bana on a given day, to hold a council with him as Governor of
the State, and as a preliminary step, employed Col. James Mc-
Pherson, one of the Zanes, and perhaps on? of the Walkers, to
bear the proposals of the call to the several tribes over which they
could exf rt a favorable influence, which resulted in a meeting of
the <!hiefs of Shawnees and Wyandots accompanied by their
braves, including s(mie of the leaders of remnant tribes. Taken
all together they presented quite an imposing appearance, and ar-
rangeirients having been made, by the erection of a platform-stand
in a grove -.^ few rods southw^'st from the old grave-yard, about in
the centre of the blo<*k of ir.-lots numbering 197, 198, 199, 200, 207,
20S, 209 and 210, enclosed by East Church, North Locust, East
LOGAN COUNTIES. 49
Ward and North Kenton streets in Urbana. The arrantjenients to
bring about this event had required time, and it must have been
as late as the latter part of June, a little after the declaration of
the war of 1812, before the council met. But its results were very
satisfactory to Governor Meigs, and to the tribes represented, a.n4
ended in the exchange of wampum, and in smoking the pipe of
t)eace. The Indians avowed their determination to take sides
with the United States, and the Governor on his part guarantee*!
protection and support to their families, which \v;is accepted soon
after as a measure of security against hostile tribes. And a block-
house was erected near 5ianesfield for the protection of their wo-
men and children, and they were, at the public expense, furnished
with provision, «fec. I was very young at the time, and have noth
ing but memory to aid rae in these allegations, but believe them
substantially true.
60 CHAMPAIGN AND
CHAPTER VII.
KARI.Y POPUI-ATION.
I will at this point break the thread of these scattered fragmenta-
ry sketches and return to the subject of the early population of the
place. The forty-five families that have been enumerated em-
braced within their numbers many young persons of both sexes,
and frequent intermarriages occurred. And contining myself to
the years between 1811 and J82(», I will aame a few in the best or-
der I can from memory.
(xeorge Hunter intermarried with Ruth Fitch, now Mrs.
Blanchard.
James Robinson intermarried with a Miss Swing, sister to Mrs.
Alex. Doke.
Asel Sweet with Miss Gard, daughter of .Job Gard.
Allen M. Poff, afterward an editor of a paper, with Rebecca
Fithian, daughter of George Fithian.
John Glenn with a Miss Cooper of Kentucky.
William Neil with Miss Swing, also a sister of Mrs. Doke.
Amos J. Yarnall with a Miss Swing, sister to above.
Hugh Gibbs with Elizabeth Pitch, daughter of Nathi>n Fitch,
and sister to Mrs. Blanchard.
Peter R. Colwell with Lavina Fitcli, sister to above.
.John Goddard with ^lary Hull, tatiier and jnother of Doctor
Goddard.
David Vance, Sheriff, ttc, with Miss Wilson.
James Paxton with Miss Luce, sister of Col. D. Luce.
(ieorge Moore with a Miss I^uce, sister to above.
Samuel Miller with l^]lizabeth Dunlap, daughter of Rev. James
]l>unlap. Mrs. Miller survives.
Col. William Ward, Jr. with Miss Hughs, daughter- of Rev.
James Hughes. Mrs. Wai'd survives.
William Chattield with Elizabeth Hull, neicc of Mrs. Goddard.
Doctor William Fithian, now of Illinois, with a Miss Spain, and
after her decease, with Miss Berry, daughter of .Judge fierry.
LOGAN COUNTIES. oT
John A. Ward with Eleanor McBeth, daughter of Judge
McBeth, one of our first Representatives in the State Legisla-
ture.
Benjamin Holden with Lucinda Pennington.
Matthias McOomsey with Phebe Logan.
Joseph S. Carter with Miss Fisher, daughterof Madox Fisher, of
Springfield.
John Downey with a Miss Parkison.
John McCord with Sarah Kenton in 1811, and John G. Parkison
with Matilda Kenton, both daughters of General Simon Kenton,
John Hamilton came here about 1814, and soon after intermar-
ried with Miss Atchison, sister of Mrs. J. H. Patiick.
Doctor Evan Banes with Mis< Ward, daughter of Col. William
Ward, Senior.
John G. Ford with —
Thomas Ford with a Miss McGill, daughter of James McGilL
James Scotton with a Mis-; McGili, sister to above.
Jacob Lyons with Miss Robison.
(V)l. Douglas Luce with Miss Taylor, daughter of Alexander
Taylor.
Daniel Sweet with Miss Thompson.
John Helmiek with Miss Rosey-grant.
\\ illiam Patrick with Rachel Kirkpatrick.
I will close this list heie; and mtroduce the name of Calvin
Fletcher, who came here a poor boy in 1817, without any means,
worked his way a^ best he could until by perseverance in study,
qualified himself for the bar; married a Miss Hill, sister of Col.
Joseph Hill, and soon after, without even money sufficient to take
himself and wife comfortably, tnoved to Indianapolis, where he
applied himself assidiously to bnsine'ss, and at his death in 1866, by
reason of the intimate relatii.nships and early associations of the
writer of this with Mr, Fletcher, his family telegi'aphed him the
sad intelligence, requesting hi-^ attendance at the funeral; which
invitation he promptly accepted, and when at the residence of his
early friend, he learned the fact from those who knew, that his es-
tate approximated tf> near one million of dollars.
It may also be stated that in addition to the foregoing list of early
pioneers a very large number of enterprising young men came tf)
Urbana an«i lotiated theni'^elves as merchants, mechanics, &c. I
52 CHAMPAIGN AND
will name a few, He;^ekiah Wells, Thomas Wells and William Mc-
Donald (who is well known, and came hereatan early day, connected
himself in a mercantile interest, and became afterwards a public
man, he representing this county in the Legislature in after years.)
William Neil, late of Columbus, commenced business here as a
merchant, in a small frame near the stove store of John Helmick.
He was likewise the Cashier of the old Urbana Bank. J. Birdwhis-
tle, about the beginning of the War of 1812, opened n hotel in the
corner building lately torn down by Kauifman and Nelson on cor-
ner of fractional lot No. 2, and will here note that Jtxseph Low,
father of Albert and others, continued the same business after
Birdwhistle, in the same house ; John and Uriah Tabor manufac-
tured hats on the hill west of the square on West Main Street, near
the present residence of E. Kimber. Price had a shoe shop,
location not now recollected. Henry Weaver, a previous old set-
tler of Mad River township, came to Urbana with his small family
about 1813, built the small room noAv standing on the east end ot
Mr. Ganmer's present residence on lot No. 160 Scioto Street and
occupied it as his family residence, in which he also had a shoe-
bench and worked at shoe-making, connecting with it a stall for
the sale of apples. This was the beginning to the vast amount of
wealth which he has acquired and is now enjoying in the eighty-
fourth year of his life. George Bell, who came here at an early day
erected a small nail cutting establishment on lot No. 160, North
Main Street, near the present location of P. R. Bennett's jewelry
shop. Francis Dubois opened a kind of tavern stand in a double
log house on the corner of in-lot No. 24 near the First M. E. Church
building. The Gwynnes located here within the years indicated
in these sketches, and opened what was then a large dry goods
store in a red one-story frame building on lot No. 154, being the
lot now occuj'ied and owned by Mr. L. Weaver; William Downs
wa8 also one of the early settlers here, and carried on blacksmith -
ing. .John Hurd was one of the oldest settlers, and learned the
trade of biacksmithing with Alex. Doke, and carried on the busi-
ness afterward to some considerable extent. .John Wallace and
Elisha C. Berry came here at a very early day as carpenters, and
when Reynolds and Ward had determined to establish a factory,
they were employed to erect the large building now occupied by
Mr. Fox, and in the process qI its erection Mr. Wallace met with
an accident that came near proving fatal ; he was employed about
LOGAN COUNTIES. 5;5
the hip in the roof on the south side, when the scaffolding gave
way and precipitated him to the ground, making a cripple of him
ever after. Mr. Wallace heing a very worthy man with consider-
able culture, was 'elected Sheriff, and held other important public
trusts up to the time of his emigration west, years afterward.
About the end, and at the conclusion of the war, many accession.^
were made to the population from New Jersey, Kentucky and other
places, but as there are some other subjects before that time that
need attention, I will have to bring Ibis to a point, by remarking
that this historical dotting of business men and business places
might be greatly extended in locating tailor, shoemaker, cabinet,
wheelwright, carpenter, chair, saddler, potter and other mechan-
iical shops ; adding to the list other mercantile interests not already
noticed.
M CHAMPAIGN AND
CHAPTER VII I.
Mir.rTARV OPERATIONS IN WAR OF 1S12.
The war of 1812, and its relationship with the population of Ur-
bana may here claim a passing notice. Urbaua was a frontier town
upon the southern border of an almost unbroken wilderness, with-
out any public highways north of it, except a very short distance
in that direction. Its location naturally made it an objective point
as a bi\se for army operations, and as such, it infused a good degree
of business, bustle and animation among its citizens.
His Excellency Return Jonathan Meigs, Governor of Ohio, made
it a strategic point, in concocting measures bearing upon the
then exposed condition of the frontier settlements. He here held
councils with Indian tribes as already intimated, and from his
room in what would now be cailed the Doolittle House, issued and
sent forth his proclamations as Commander-in-Chief. And imme-
diately after the declaration of war, on the 18th of June, he desig-
uated this place as the rendezvous for the troops of the first cam-
paign of the war. Here it was that General Hull was ordered to
bring his forces, being three regiments, under the respective com-
mands of Colonel Duncan McArthur, Colonel Lewis Cass, and
< 'olonel James Findlay, for the purpose of being here organized
with other forces, and they were encamped on the high grounds
ea.st of the town, resting their left on what is now named East
Water Street, on the lands of Kautfmau, Nelson and Berry, ex-
tending north through their lands, and the lands lately called the
Baldwin property, to about East Court Street. They remained
bere some two weeks for the arrival of Col. Miller's regiment,
which had gloriously triumphed under General Harrison at the
battle of Tippecanoe, the previous November. And as a testimo-
nial of the high appreciation of their valor on that occasion, the
citizens of the town united with the troops in making the neces-
sary preparations to receive the gallant Col. Miller and his veteran
regiment, with both civic and military demonstrations, in honor
LOGAN (X)IINTIEIS. 55
of their chivalrous deeds. Two post*, one eaels side of the road,
about twenty feet hi}?h, were planted at what would now be known
as the foot of the Baldwin hill, a little southwest of the present
residence of Mr. Marshall, on Scioto Street, and an arch made of
boards was secured at the top ends of the posts, with this inscrip-
tion in large capital letters, "TIPPFXANOE GLORY," on its
western facade; with the national flajr floating from a staff fast-
ened to each po.><t that supported it.
These preliminaries being all completed, and the time of arrival
being at hand. General Hull with hisstafi', accompanied by a body-
guard, headed l\y martial music, moved from the camp to the
Public Square and halted, to await the approach of the vet<!rans,
who were advancing under tiags and barmers with appropriate
music, at quickstep on South Main Street, and at this juncture (Jol.
Miller called a halt, with the additional orders to deploy into line
and present arms, as a salute to General Hull, under the star
spangled banner which had been by the citizens unfurled upon n
fifty feet pole in the center of the Public Square. Whereupon the
Treneral and his staf!' with suwarrows dotted, rode slowly in review
along the whole line. Then, after the necessary movement to re-
form into a line of march, the (Jeneral, staff and guards formed
themselves at the head of the regiment as an escort, and at the
fommHud, "To the right wheel! Forward, march!" they moved
slowly with martial music and colors flying, between lines of citi-
zens and soldiers, the latter resting right and left respectively at
the posts of the triumphal arch, and the former resting on the
Public Square and extending eastward to the military lines, all
being imder complete civic and military regulations, agreeably to
an arranged programme.
As these veteran United States trooi)s began to move with pre-
cise measured tread upon Scioto street, the civic ovation began to
unfold itself, in the strewing of wild June flowers by young Misses
and Maidens, with which Ihey had been provided, the waving of
handkerchiefs of matrons, and the swinging of hats and caps of the
sterner sex, with continued shouts and huzzas. These excititig
>'lemonstrations continued without abatement until they reached
the lines of the troops as already indicated, when the scene changed
into a sublime military display, such us the din of muskets, the
rattle of drums, and the shrill notes of the bugle, clarionet and fife,
56 CHAMPAIGN AND
until they reached the Arch, and while pa&sing through under it,
a park of artillery btlched forth its thunders in the camp, as the
signal of welcome to the brave boys who had distinguished them-
selves upon the fields of Tippecanoe. After arriving in the camp
they, at the word "Left wheel," displayed to the north-west and
halted upon the high grounds now occupied by Griffith Ellis, Mr.
Boal and others, in front of the right wing of the troops already en-
camped, and there pitched tents. Taken as a whole this civic and
military demonstration presented a pageant never before <>r since
equaled in the new City of Urbana.
This re-enforcement completed the organization of General Hull's
arniy, which was soon ordered to open an army road, which was af-
terwards known as Hull's Trace, through the wilderness, and move
its headquarters from Urbana to Detroit, reaching the latter place
somewhere about the 12th July, 1872. The unfortunate sequel in
the following month is upon the historic page, and does not for the
object of this sketch require further notice. It might however, be
noticed that this array erected while on its march, the McArthur
and Findlay Block House.?, and detailed a small force for their
protection as posts of security for army supplies in transit to the
seat of war, and as a covert in case of Indian raids in their
vicinity.
As these sketches are not intended as a history of the war, but
only as connecting links to the early pioneer scenes of other days,
I need not continue these extended outlines, but mearly remark,
that from the force of circumstances growing out of the fall of
Detroit in Agust 1812, the defeat of Winchester at the River Rasin
in the early part of the year 1813, and other reverses to the North;
Urbana, being as already said a frontier town was made of neces-
sity, a busy objective point.
Soon after the events already recited, troops were here concen-
trated. Governor Shelby of Kentucky for the defense of our ex-
posed frontier settlements, called out and took command in person
of some 5,000 mounted men, and encamped them on the south
border oi the tow^n, resting his right wing about where the upper
pond of the factory now is, extending iis left westward through the
lands now owned and occupied by Henry Weaver and the heirs of
the late John A. Ward to Redmond's mill, and they remained
several days before moving to the front.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 57
It may here be also noticed, that Govenor Meigs immediately
after the surrender of Detroit, made a requisition and designated
Urbiinu as the place of rendezvous for a lar^e Ohio force under the
command of Gr-n.^W. Tupper, and its encampment was on the
high grounds north of the Dugan ravine, bordering on what is
now known as (jaiirel Oak Street.
During tlieseige of Fort Meigs in May 1813, General McArthur,
upt)n request of tlie Governor, came here and sent out runners
throughout all the surrounding country, urging the male inhabit-
ants to immediately assemble themselves at this point, to inaugu-
rate measures of defense to the exposed frontier settlements, and
for the relief of the bcsi'^ged fort, which resulted in a large ma&s
meeting from all points south to the Ohio River, and the greater
part of them being armed, volunteered to immediately march to
the relh.'f of Port Meigs. The late Governor Vance and Simon
Kenton, including m iny other citizens of Urbana were among the
number, and took a prominent part in the movement. This force
bfing officered by acclamation and duly organized, immediiteiy
moved n(n-th, under command of Col. McArthur, with Sanmel
McCoUoch as Aid-dd-Camp. It should be stated that this force was
made up of horsemen and footmen, and were with all possible ce-
lerity rushed forward some four days' march into the wilderness,
until they were met by Col, William Oliver, John McAdams, and
Caj tain Johnny, a celebi'ated Indian of that day, who had been,
sent asspies, with the intelligence that the enemy had abandoned
theseige; whereupon these forces returned to Urbana, and were
honorably discharged.
Other and various concentrations were here made throughout
the war, which need not now be noticed. Permanent artificer
shops were here established, a hospital, commissary and quarter-
master departments were here organized, and located as already
intimated in these sketches; and Urbana had all the paraphernalia
and characteristic appendages of a seat of war, and was to all in-
tents and purposes The Head Quarters of the North Western Army,
bating a secondary claim of Franklinton.
From here troops were ordered to the front, and assigned their
posts of dutv; here army supplies concentrated, and by wagons,
sleds, pack-horses and other modes of transit, were sent to all
points needing them.
58 CHAMPAIGN AND
It has already been intim i^od that Urbana had assumed the dig-
nity of headquarters to t!ie North Western Army ; that the several
departments of military camp and depot of munitions of war, were
here located under appropriate agen'.'ies.
1. Wm. Jordan managed tlie Quartermasters department.
2. Alex. Doke had cliiirj^'e of the artificer yard and siiops.
.3. Zephaniah Luce was issuinji: commissary.
4. Dr. Gould, physician ansl surgeon to the hospital.
5. Jacob Fovvler was a general agent and contractor for Govern-
ment supplies, l)y virtue of his functions as head of the Quarter-
masters department for this point.
6. Major David Gwynne, who exercised the office of a pay-
master, had his headquarters here.
This was also a recruiling i^tation, the late Josiah G. Talbott, the
fatlicr of Decatur and Ricliard C, &c., in his younger days was a
Lieutenant in llie regular Uililed States service, belonging to a
co:npany comm nided by his brother, G.ipt. Richard C. Talbott,
and enlisted at this point quite a numtier of recruits. He married
a Miss Forsythe, near the close of tlie war, and some ye<rs after
located in business as a hatter, and remained here to tlie time of
his decease.
And in this connection one other individual deserves to be
noticed, for the valuable servicer he bestovvod during all tlie war,
in aiding the government by a Iv.incements of money and means
when her treasury was greatly depicted, and waited the re-
turn for such advancements until she was able to refund; he was
actuated in his course entirely through patri')tisni as a private in-
dividual, and not as a. public functionary; njany poor destitute
soldiers would have had to have gone into winterservice destitute
of blankets and other indispensable articles promotive of comfort,
had it not been for the kind interposition of his patriotic soul.
John Reynolds was the mm whox-" acts I have attempte I to de-
scribe. Mr. Reynolds well deserves this tribute, and aside from
those acts, Urbana owes him a debt of gratitado for his devotion
to her interests during a long life of usefainess; lie indeed contrib-
uted greatly in building up the intere.sls of both town and county,
and his name should be cherished in Ui"»vva as a household
souvenir.
Governor Vance, at a very early day, as o- t of those sturdy ath-
LOGAN COUNTIES. 09
letic young men that could endure hardships and face danjjf^r, or-
ganized a volunteer company of riflemen, selected from the sur-
rounding country for several miles, who were like him, fitted for
the times. They were mostly old hunters, well skilled in the use
of the rifle; many of them could make a center shot at a target
seventy-ftve yards ofi". Tiie f()mj)any ixMiig of the material de-
scribed, elected him Captain, Col. Wm. Ward, Jr., Lieutenant, and
Isaac Myers, Ensign. They were denominated minute men and
rangers, and whenever any imminent danger from Indians was
apprehend fd, Captain Vance woukl call Jiis company togcUier and
move it to the point of danger, and if necessary erect a blockhouse
for the settlement. This was done upon several occasions before
and during the war.
And it may be here noted, that during the war Capt. Joim Mc-
Cord and his whole company of Militia were by the Governor or-
dered to Fort McArthur for one month, to protect it and tiie gov-
ernment property from depredation. Tliis latter company fur-
nished all its quotas upon regular drafts ; these facts are given to
show that Urbana did her pait in the defence of the country dur-
ing the war of 1812-15. And the same may be said in reference to
the country organizations of the militia. I will name Captain Bar-
ret's Company, Captain Kizer's Company, and all others within
my knovvledge, promptly responded to calls made upon them.
I will dismiss these rambling generalities, and say a word in re-
lation to Governor Vance as a neighbor and friend ; he came here
at a very eurly day with his father, Joseph ( ■, Vance ; his opportu-
nities for instructions were limited, yet by dint of close application,
attainded to such general knowledge of men and thing, as to after-
ward qualify him for the most important trusts, and becime in-
deed distinguished in public life, of M'hich I, however, will not at-
tempt further to speak, as his official life has become matter of his-
tory. He had all the nobler qualities 'hat adorn the man ; ho had
a heart to sympathize with the distressed, and relieve the wants
of the needy, and all relationships, the fast friend to those who
sought his friendship. Although decided in his politiftd opinions,
he would always concede merit even to his opponents, if Iho occa-
sion required it. This trait made him many friends, even amoug
those who differed with hitiu.
60 CHAMPAIGN AND
CHAPTER IX.
SIMON KENTON.
I will next introduce the name of General Simon Kenton, and
say a few things from personal intercourse with him. I need nol
rehearse the thrilling scenes connected with his early eventful life-„
History informs us of his early departure from his Virginia home^
one hundred years ago with an ullas to his name, his adventures
with the early pioneers of Kentucky, his associations with Daniel
Boone, George Rogers Clarke, and others, his many wilrl adven-
tures and hair breadth escapes, his capture by the Indians, his rela-
tionships with Simon Girty, his running the gauntlet on several
occasions, his riding the wild horse without bridle to guide it
throuyh dense thickets of under brush. I repf^^t I need not speak
of these scenes as they are all on the historic page. But will speak
of him 3S a citizen of XJrbana, as a neighbor, and a friend. I Iiav®-
already stated in these sketches, that he was the Jailor at my fir&i
acquaintance, and as strange as it may now sound, he was a pris-
oner by legal construction to liimself. In his early Kentucky life,,
he engaged in some land speculations which involved him, and
some creditor pursued him with a claim which was unjust as h&
alleged, .md which he was unable to pay. A capias, or full execo-
tion, for want of i)roperty, was levied on his body, and to avoi^
being locked up in his own prison-house, he availed himself of th&
prison-bounds, which at that day were between Reynolds street
and Ward street north and south, and between the east line of the-
town and Russell street east and west, according to my present
re'^oliection. These bounds, by legislative provision, afterward
embraced the whole county. He was soon released, however, froris
this constructive imprisonment. These prison reminiscences arc-
here given to expose some of the barbarisms of the law of that
day, which put it in the power of a shylock creditor to harass hi»
debtor, even to the iiciirceration of his body if so unfortunate tm-
to have no property upon which to make a levy. General Ken-
LOGAN COUNTIES. 61
<}u, as a ueighbor, wa.s kind and obliging, and as a friend, stead-
fast ; he was generous, even to a fault, affable and courteous in all
hi-i relationships, and for a man without scholastic culture was re-
vnarkably chaste in his behavior and conversation. Hr was un-
^^su'uing in his whole deportment toward others, never arrogat-
ing to himseif superiority over tliose with whom his associations
brought him in contact. Although docile and lamb-like in his
general intercourse in life, yet, if occasion prompted it, he could
doff the lamb, and don the Hon. i will give an instance: As has
already been stated, the friendly border tribes of Indians had been
ievited to come into our vicinity for protection, and after they had
accepted the offer, some hostile savages had made their way into
■«one of our settlements and committed an atrocious murder, which
Shad created intense excitement throughout the whole country,
and the spirit of revenge was aroused, and found its way into an
•encampment of soldiers in I his place, and it soon became known
that a conspiracy was about i)eing formed in the camp to move up-
on the friendly tribes above indicated and ma-ssacre the men, wo-
men and children, in retaliation for that murder. Some of the
citizens of Urbana, with General Kenton at the head, renion-
■strated with them ; he being chief speaker expostulated with
them, givinsi his superior experience in regard to the Indian char-
acter; told them that every circumstance connected with the mur-
der clearly removed every vestige of suspicion from those friendly
tribes, and told them the act would disgrace them as soldiers ; and
• would implicate each of them in a charge of willful murder. At
this point General Kenton and the citizens retired, but soon
learned that the nellish purpose vvas determined upon, and prep-
arations made to move upon the Indian camp. When General
Kenton, rifle m hand, accompanied by his few fellow-citizens,
again confronted the malcontents, and told them they were not
fioldiers but cowards, and under a solenm imprecation, with eyes
fliwhing tire, told them that if they went he would go too, and
would shoot down the miscreant who would first attempt to com-
mit the deed, and that if they succeeded, they would have to do
It over his dead body. They found with whom thej' had to deal,
«ad hesitated, and calmed down, and the |)Oor Indians were
il' ill now give an incident to show fh" spirit of forgiveness
t b; J he wouhl manifest tovMird an old enemy. One morning, at
82 CHAMPAIGN AND
the dose of the war of 1812, rnig-ht have been seen on one of our
utreets a tall, well-built npecimen of an Indian, enquiring for the
residenox? of Simon Butler, and soon after, Gt^neral Kenton might
have been Hoen tnovinji on the same street ; the tvk'o personages
met , eyed each other h moment, and immediately were in each
other'8 most affectionate embrace. It seemed that the Indian had
been his adopted brother during his captivity, and as such had
formed strong attachnjcnts. General Kenton took his Indian
brother home, and kept him some days as his visitor.
The writer of this, t!ioui;h very young at his first acquaintance
with General Kenton, seemed to secure liis confidence, and the
<ieneral would take pleasure in rehearsing the scenes through
which he passed; and as som« individuals of this day are trying
to disparage him by calling him an Indian horse thi(^f, I will state
as nearly as poasible General Kenton's own version, and in his
own languag-e : "I never in my life captured horses for my own
use, but would hand them over to those who had lost horses by
Indian thefts, nor did I ever make reprisals upon any but hostile
tribes, who were at war against the white settlers." He disa-
vowed taking from friendly Indians horses or other property,
then why should he be assa!!ed as a horfio thief when he only did
such acts as are of coTomon practice in a slate of war?
I can not extend this notice, but will say that during the war of
1812, he took an active part whenever the settlements were men-
aced with hostile attacks. Although old, he stili had the courage
to face all dangers. My acquaintance with him reached through all
the years from 1811 to his death in 183G, and taken as a whole, his
life was a model in maiiy respects worthy of imitation. He was
one of nature's noblemen, and well deserves the eulogy which
closes the inscription on the slab at his grave in Oak Dale Cemetery:
"His follow citizeiiK of the West, will long ren)ember him as
the skillful pioneer <if ^-nriy times, the brave soldier, and the honest
LOGAN COUNTIES. 63
CHAPTER X.
JOHN HAMILTON.
In p()nnectin<; Urbana with the incidents ot the war of 1812,'
BOine mention siiould be made of one of her citizens who came, as
has been elsewhere intimated, at a very early day, raised a iarfje
family and at one time seemed very prosperous in his affairs, but
reverses can)*», and John Hamilton died in 1868, dependent upon
bis children for the necessary comforts at the close his life.
The writer of this, knowin<^ tiie fiicts that Mr. Hamilton, when
a young man, had volunteered in the service of his country in the
war of 1812, taken a very active part, and been prisoner among
the Indians for one year, thought in view of his dependent condi-
tion, that the Government, u])()n proper showing would make
special provision for him, and he waited upon Mr. Hamilton a
short time before his death, and proposed to prepare a narrative of
his sprvice and wild adventures, coupled with a meinorial of the
old citizens who knew him, asking Congress to grant him a special
pension for life. He being then in his seventy-sixth year, and being
a very modest man rather declined at first, but upon weiijhing the
m-Attor consented. It was drawn up, and through Hon. VVm.
Lawrence, was introduced in the beginning of the year 1868, and a
bill to make such provision passed its second reading in the House,
but before^ it could be finally acted on his death occurred.
Since 1 commenced tliese sketclies, by accident I have found a
rough draft of all hisstitements, which were verified at the time
by him, and that will enable me to do him an i. ; .» justice, and
perpetuate facts that would soon have passed out tf i.iiovvledge. I
shall not attempt to publish his whole narrative ot the events,
but will merely condense in as small a compass as possible the sub-
stance.
He begins by telling that his father about 1793, emigrated to
Kentucky from Maryland before he was a year old, that he contin-
ued with his father until about 1811, having in the meantime learned
the saddlers trade, and went to Winchester, and worked as a jour-
64 CHAMPAIGN AND
neyman with one Robert Griffin until tlie breaking out of the war
of 1812. Theentiiusiasn) tliat animated the young men of that day
reached young Hamilton, and under the call of Governor Scott,
he volunteered and attached himself to Capt. Krasfield's Company
which was attached to the regiment commanded by Col. Lewis, of
Jessamine «;ounty, which moved on to Georgeti)wn the latter part
x>f Jun(?, thence to Newport where they were equipped and ordered
to Fort Wayne via Dayt(m, Piqua, and St. Mary'«. From Fort
Wayne they were ordered westward in the direction of Tippeca-
noe, to drive away and destroy the supplies and burn the village of
a hostile tribe, which was accoinplislietl, and they returned to the
place of their last departure.
FroJi! Fort Wayne, Colonel Lewis' Regiment was ordered by
General Winchester to march to Defiance on short rations about
November 1 ; tiience down the Maumee Riv<'r to Camp, No.
1, 2, and ;3. Here they had no fiour, and very !ittle srieat for
about three weeks. He recites the fact, tltat near this place while
on a scout, Logan being in company with Captain Johnny and
Comstock, was shot through the hotly some seventeen miles from
canif), and rode in behind the latter and died soon after his arrival
in camp. He further says, that about the time they left tiieir
camp, a little port was furnished, but that they were still on short
rat'ons. Great afflictions were here endured from fevers and other
diseases incident to camp life, and many died. On the 25th of De-
ceml)er 1812, they left this encanjpment, and it commenced snow-
ing, continuing all day, and fell two feet deep. They readied a
point on the bank of the river, and pitched their tents witli much
diificulty in the deep snow, and enjoyed themselves that night in
all the sweets* of soldier life. The next day they marched ui a
body to the head of the Rapids, and encamped and remained there
a few days. General Winchester ordered C'olonel Lewis t(^ detach
about six hundred of his regiment, and move tliem imoiediately
to the river Raisin, to dislodge the British and Indian forces there
encamped, and on the 18th of January, 1818, Colonel Lewis com-
menced the assault and drove them from their quarters into the
woods, both i>'l{gerents suffering great loss in theskermish. Col-
onel Lewis returned and occupied the enemy's position within
pickets enclosing a Catholic Church, sutficiently large to contain his
forces, when he Immediately sent a courier to General Winches-
ter reporting the victory, which induced the General to order
LOCiAN COUNTIES. 66
anothor ilctachiiieiit of three hundred to support Col. Lewis, of
whicli Mr. llatnilton was one, and tliese were cotumanded by the
General himself, who arrived'and encamped outside of the pickets.
On thi' suorninu: of the 22d of January, 1818, the British forces
with their Indian allies, were discovered in line of battle; the long
roll was soandcd, and th(^ American lines were formed, the battle
coMinienced, and was foui;-ht with desperation, the enemy having
the vantaj^e ground ; at this juncture Major Graves ordered the
second detachment to retreat, and it retreated into the woods,
U'hen Col. Lewis rode up and requested it to make a stand, that
perhai)s the f<jrc;' of the enemy mijjjht be broken. The request was
complied with ; but before many rounds hail been fire i, he ex-
claiuK^d, "Brother soldiers, we are surrounded; it is useless to
stand any longer; each take care of himself as best he can."
Here was the i)ei?inning of the troubles of John Hamiltorj, and in
fny further extracts, I will let him speak for himself, and he says :
"I immt'diately shaped my course southward, and soon discovered
I hatl been singled out by an Indian ; I kept about sixty yards
ahead of him— so near that we could converse. I was still armed
and held him in check, and when I stopped I would tree, he using
the same precaution. He could use enough English to say with a
beckoning hand, ^^ Come here P^ I responded ^^JVoT' We remained
in this position until I could see an opportunity to make another
effort to escape. Then I would present my gun in shooting posi-
tion as though I would shoot ; this would drive him again to his
iree, when I would spring forward and gain another tree. Spend-
ing some time in this way, I discovered I had another pursuer
who fired upon me from a western {)osition, and I at once was sat-
isfied I could not dodge two — one north and one west — so 1 made
up my mind to surrender to the first to avoid being instantly
killed. I leaned my gun against my covert tree and beckoned to
the first, and gave myself up to him; the other arriving immedi-
ately, demanded a division of spoils, which was settled by No. 2
taking my long knife and overcoat, and he left me the prisoner of
No. 1, after showing me his power to scalp me, by the flourish of
his knife over my head.
My captor then took me to the rear of the British lines, where
we remained by some camp-fires, it being a very cold day, and
while at the fire the same Indian that got my over-coat and knife
made further claim, which was not so easily settled this time. In
66 CHAMPAIGN AND
this controversy between the two. my friend being an Ottawa and
theother a Potawatamie tiiey iiad much difficulty. The Indian No.
t, the Potawatamie, manifested a determination to take my life
by actually cocking his gun and presenting it to shoot, when it
was a^ain settled by an agreement to take my remaining coat and
relinquish all further claim, which was complied with, and I be-
came the undisputed prisoner of No, 1, the Ottawa.
At this point a Canadian Frenchman, who was a camp-suttler,
beckoned me one side and said if I had any money or other valua-
bles that I wished saved he would take charge of them, and at ihe
end of ray csiptivity he would be at Detroit and restore them to
me; and if I did not I would be rlfleil of them; nut knowing
what to do I yielded. I had a small sum of money, and some
other valuables, which I handed to him, but never realized any
return. I could not find him at Detroit after my release.
While we remained at the fire, General Winchester and other
prisoners passed by, stripped of their honors and apparel, which
was the last I saw of ray suffaring comrades-in-arms; and at this
point 1 also discovered the fi.^lit was not over, but the defense
within the pickets was stili continued by Major Matison, under
several repeated charges of the BrKish forces, demanding surren-
der; finally, after consultation, he agreed to surrender on the
terms that the British would treat all as prisoners of war, protect
them froyn their savage allies, and remove our wounded to Am-
herst burg to be properly cared for; but the history of tlse sequel
must supply this part of aiy uarrative.
On the evening of the battle, I as a prisoner with the Indians re-
tired to Stony Crpek, about four ir»iles eastward ; there I was in-
formed by an interpreter tliat I would not be sold or exchanged,
but must go with my adopted father, whd was the natural father
of my captor, to his wigwam, where we arrived after about nine
days' walk in about a northwestern direction, and with whom
1 remained up to the isr day of January, 1814.
In brevity, I would say I lived with them nearly one year, and
endured all the [jrivations and hardships of savage life. And this
is saying a great deal in my case, as all the warriors were absent
preparing for the intended siej^e of Fort Meigs, which left the old
men, women and children, including myself, witJiout the supply
generally provided by hunters, and we were reduced almost to
LOGAN COUNTIES. 67
Btan/ation much of the time I was with them. I became so re-
duced that many times I was almost too weak to walk, by reason
of short supplies. My condition really was worse than that of ray
friends, as I may call them, for they resorted to horse flesh, and
even to dog meat, which I could not eat. I do not desi<:;n to spin
out this narrative, or I could present many diversified incidents,
that mijijht be considered very interesting."
At this point Mr. Hamilton made some statements which were
merely intended as episodes, not intending to add them to this
narrative, which I will, however, from memory, try to give in
his own language, and it was about to this effect:
"Thi- family belonging to our wigwam at a time when starva-
tion stared ( hem in the face was very agreeably surprised one day,
when my old adopted father drew forth from a secret place he had
a small sack, and required his whole family then in camp to form
acircle around him, myself amongthem, when he began by open-
ing his sack to distribute in equal quantities to each a small meas-
ure full of pnrched corn, and i»s small as this relief may seem, it
was received by us all with great tiiankfulness, and seemed to ap-
l>ease our hunger. We appreciated it as a feast of fat things.
"This old Indian Patriarch had traits of moral character that
would adorn our best civiliz«^d and christiinized communities; he
was strictly impartial in distributing favors and in dispensing jus-
tice to those around him, and was in all respects unquestionably
an honest man. His moral sense was of a higiier order: he could
not tolerate in others any willful obliquity in the sha{)e of decep-
tion or prevarication, as I can very readily testify; on one occasion,
I had attenipted to hold back a tact which I knew affected one of
his natural children that he was about to punish for some disobe-
dience, and as soon as he became satisfied of the guilt of the cul-
prit and my prevarication, he procured a hickory and apj)lied it
upon both of us in equal uiensure of stripes. This was character-
istic of that man of nature's mould."
Here his written narrative is resusned: "Some time in the lat-
ter part of November, 1813, the commanding otftcers at Detroit
sent a deputation to our little' Indian town, offering terms of peace
to the Ottawa Nation or tribe, on condition that they would bring
into Detroit their prisoners and horses, which they had captured,
and that if these terms were not accepted and complied with in a
68 CHAMPAIGN AND
reasonable time, measures would be alopted to compel a com-
pliance.
"A council was shortly afterward called an<l convened, and the
terms proposed were accepted, and complied with, and I was de-
livered at Detroit on the first day of JanuaVy, 1814, to the com-
manding officer of the Fort, '.md tliere I met with other prisoners
and we were all provided for."
Here Mr. Hamilton's captivity ended, and in the continuation
of his narrative, he says he found Irlmseif three hundred miles
from home in tiie middle of a cold tiortliern winter, thinly clad,
and without money. He was here fur-iished with an order for ra-
tions to Urbana, to which place he ca-ue ;in i remained a few days
with friends and then left for Winchester, Kentucky; where lie ar-
rived without any further governujent aiil al>out the middle of
February, 1814, after an absence of nearly twenty months. He fur-
ther says, he remained at Winchester a few days, arranged his lit-
tle afifairs and returned to Uri)an i aad m id^ it his home. Mr.
Hamiton's exemplary and re!i;iii)iis life is we^l itnowu to ihlscom-
Jiimnity, and here this narrative ends.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 6&
CHAPTER XI.
ADDITIONAL. PIONEER SETTLERS.
As so muoh has beon said in regard to th^^ Iniians in connection
with early pioneer life, during the war of 1812, it inijjht in contin-
uation he noted, thatsoon after tlie war, our border tribes, theShaw-
nees, Wyandotts and s )in9 other remn mt tribes, inide Urbana a
great trading point. In tlie early Spring, alter their hunting sea-
son, they uij<^ltt be seen with their squaws and pappooses every
few days coming in on North Miin Street in ]arge numbers in
single file, riding ponies laden with the various pelts — deerskins,
both dressed and raw, bear and wolf slcins, nioecasins highly orna-
mented with little beads and porcupine quills; with some times
manle sujiar cakes and other marketable commodities, all of which
they would barter to our merchants for sucii articles of merchan-
dise as they needed for the summ^^r season, or that would please
their fancy. And in the fall months the same scenes would he pre-
sented in bringing in other Cf)mmodities, such as cranberries, and
such other articles as they ii id to dispose of, to barter for powder
and leaf], preparatory for their hunting season; blankets, hand-
kerchiefs, &c., would also be purchased as necessaries for the ap-
proaching winter. It was then a comnon |»raftice to encamp
near town, and as Indians as a general rule were very fond of
whisky, they would some times give trouble, and would have to
be watched closely. Restraints, from selling or giving them
whisky or other intoxicating liquors, were at that day provided
by law, and hnd to be enforced against those who kept them for
sale. In that way the Indians could he kept from overindulgence,
and by that means the citizens were secured from drunken depre-
dations from them.
There might many more pioneer scenes be presented in relation
to Urbana and Champaign county, but it is difficult to weave them
into the narrative of events in the order in which they occurred,
and I will leave them for other pens. The same general remarks
that I have delineated in these sketches, in regard to the disposi-
70 CHAMPAIGN AND
tion to aid each other, may be upplied to the old settlers of this
whole community ; the same wild adventures are also equally ap-
plicable, and older settlers than myself will be more competent to
portray them. I will, however, here state that some other o.d set=
tiers' names should be mentioned in connection with early pioneer
life in Urbaiff . Thomas Pearce, fatlier of Harvey, as I am in-
formed, before Urbana was located, built and occupied a lojr cabin
on what is now known as market space, and opened afield north
of Scioto Street, and cultivated it for some years.
Tlie following- additional names may be noted as very early set-
tlers in t!)is town: William Bridge, James McGill, James fiulae,
Folsom Fori, Joseph Gordon, William Mellon, Suujuel Gibb3,
Hu'jh Gibbs, Benjamin Sweet, Martin Hitt, A. R. Colwell, Will-
iam McColloch, William Parkison, Curtis M. Thompson, George
Moore, Alexander Allen, and others. At this point it may be
noted that Harvey Pearce and Jacob Harris Patrick are believed
to be the oldest male settlers now here who were born in Urbaua,
both of whom are over sixty years old.
Through the kind a^isistance of Col. Douglas Luce, who has
been in Urbana from 1807 to this time, I am enabled to present
the following list of old s"ttlers of the township of Urbana. It is
to be regretted tha>' it will be impossible to extend to tiiem indi-
vidually anytl)ing more than the mere names, which will divest
them of much interest, as each one of them might be made the
vsubject of interesting pioneer experience. It may be here noted
that as other persons who live in the other townships of the
county are engaged in presenting the names of old settlers in
them, it will supercede the necessity of my extending them be-
yond the limits of Urb ma township: S.imuel Powell, Abraham
Powell, John Fitzpatrick, Joseph Knox, James Largent, John
Wiley, J \seph Pence, Jacob Pence, William Rhodes, John
Thomas, Joseph Ford, Ezekiel Thomas, John Trevvitt, George
Sanders, Jessie Johnson, Benjamin Nichols, William Cii mm ings,
John White, Robia-tNoo, Robc'rt liarr, Alexander McBeth, Isaac
Shockey, Major Thomas Moore, Thomas M. Pendleton, Elisha
Tabor, Bennett Tabor, Tiibi;m Eagle, Job Clevenger, James Dal-
las, John Winn, S. T. I^pd^es, Jonas Hedges, Rev. James I>unlap,
John Pearce, John IV - sm, Charles Stuart, Christopher Kenaga,
Minney Voorhaes, J < ;b Arney, John G. and Robert Caldwell,
Richard D. George, Wise, (near the pond bearing his name,)
LOGAN COUNTIES. 71
Thomas Donlin, Isaac Turman, William McR«)berts, Logan,
Andrew Rieliards and Thomas Watt. Many of the above settled
in Urbana Township as early as 1801, and all of them before 1820.
These fragmentary and desultory sketches have almost enDirely
been grouped togethei from memory, and if some errors as to ex-
act dates, ar.i even as to matters of fact, should have crept into
them, they must be imputed to that common frailty that is in-
separable from humanity. It is believed, however, that as a
whole, the statements are all substantially warranted by the fact?
and circumstances from which they are delineateJ.
Many things perhaps miglit have been omitted, and supplied to
advantage by others that have been left out. This would be true
if the Pioneer Association depended upon the pen of only one in-
dividual. But as I understand it, the object is to solicit contribu-
tions detailing i)ioneer life from many writers, and throw them to-
gether in such order as to make one collection of facts and inci-
dents in relation to the whole subject-matter ; the versatility thus
united contributing matters of intereit to all classes of readers.
I need not therefore continue these sketches, but leave to more
proficient pens the task of filling out omissions, and will in that
view make this summary remark, that in the sixty-six years, since
my first acquaintance with Ohio, great changes have taken place.
She had then been recently carved out of a wilderness of limitless
extent, called the North Western Territory, and still more recently
merged into an infant State Government, containing nine counties,
with less population than is now contained in one of our present
towns. It was then a wilderness, with here and there a small set-
tlement, with a few scattered cabins, surrounded by new openings
or clearings, without roads or other conveniences. At a few points
small towns were laid off, and a few rustic cabins built; such was
Ohio in 1802. Seventy years later, and she presents the panorama
now unfurled to our view, and which needs no pen painting sketch,
as it is all before us. What a contrast ! And pursuing the thought,
let us bring it home, and apply it to Urbana and Champaign county,
in 1802, when all the territory from Hamilton county north, to the
Michigan territory line, was a vast, unorganized wilderness,
abounding with wild game, and the hunting grounds of the In-
dians interspersed here and there with small cabins, surrounded
with clearings of white « iventurers. In 1803, Butler, Warren,
Montgomery and Green counties were organized. la 1805 Cham-
72 CHAMPAIGN AND
paign county was lornied, embracing'- the territory uurtli from
Green c-ounty inelu<Ung what are now Clark, Champaign, Logan,
Hardin, &c., and the same year Urbana was located as the seat of
justice. But extending it six years forward to 1811, we find Urbana
as heretofore described containinij forty-live rustic log cabin family
residences, surrounded with a few hardy adveuturcis, widely
scattered upon wild lands, erecting cabins and opening up clear-
ings, and throwing around them brush or pole fences to ward off
stock running at large, as a beginning point to farms witliout any
of the facilities of travel or transit. Sucli was the picture then:
What do we behold now ?
This same Champaign county, subdivided into new organiza-
tions containing populous towns, and all over dotted with large
cultivated farms, upon which fine family residences and commo-
dious barns stand out in bold relief, all over its original iiinits; and
rustic Urbana, advanced from its rude beginning, wititoutany im-
provements upon her streets, to a second class city, with well gra-
ded and ballasted streets, bordered on each side with substantial
pavements, end side w»!ks, and ijeing beiund no town of her pop-
ulation in railroad faciliiit.-;; beine in telegraphic connectiim with
all the outside world ; and in the midst of a, county fully developed
in an agricultural point of view ; with a net-work of free pikes in
all directions, leading to her marts of trade, and traffic, as an in-
land commercial center; such is Urbana in 1872, under her present
extended area, claiming a population of 5,000 iidiabitants, with
her public buildings, churches, school edifices, superb business em-
porium?, palatial family residences, and surrounded as already in-
dicated, by highly cultivated farms, teeming with the products of
the soil, in return for the toil and indomitable industry of her first-
class citizen farmers.
And now, finally, dear Doctor, 1 will close these sketches, pre-
pared by a nervous hand with a pencil, and which were full of
blurs, erasures, and interlineations, abounding in ortliograpbical
and other errors, resulting from hasty prejta ration, by the single n -
mark that they could not have been presented as they are, had not
my grand-daughter. Miss Minnie M., kindly tendered her services
in" transcribing, correcting and revising- them to my acceptance.
Therefore if they have any merit in their f)resent dress, she is en-
titled to her share of the awards. This deserved tribute she deli-
cately declines, and asks to be excused from copying, and for that
reason this closing paragra]>h appears in my own hand writiner.
January 22, 1872. Wii.t.iam Patrick.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 73
HULL'S TRACE.
The following facts in regard to Hull's Trace I obtained from
several pioneers that were here and saw Hull when he passed
-through with his army. I will give the names of some of my in-
formants : .Judge Vance, of Urbana, John Enoch, \Vm. Henry,
and Henry McPherson. It was in the year 1812 he took up his line of
niarch from Urbana. Their route was very near the present road
from Urbana to West Liberty, a few rods east until they reached
King's Creek. About two miles beyond this they crossed the
present road and continued on the west until they arrived at Mac-
a-cheek, crossing that stream at Capt. Black's old farm. Coming
to Mad River, they crossed it about five rods weat of the present
bridge at West Liberty. Passing through Main street, they con-
tinued on the road leading from the latter place to Zanesfield un-
til they reached the farm now owned by Charles Hildebrand.
Here they turned a little to the left, taking up a valley near his
jEarm. Arriving at McKees Creek, they crossed it very near where
the present Ptailroad bridge is; thence to Blue Jacket, crossing it
about one mile west of Bellefontaine on the farm now owned by
Henry Good, They continued their line of march on or near the
present road from Bellefontaine to Huntsville, They halted some
time at .Judge McPherson's farm, now the c6unty infirmary, passing
through what is now Cherokee, on Main street, to an Indian village
called Solomon's Town, where they encamped on the farm now
owned by David Wallace. The trace is yet plain to be seen in
many places. Judge Vance informs me there is no timber grow-
ing in the track in many places in Champaign county.
I forgot to say they encamped at West Liberty. James Black
informs me he saw Gen. Hull's son fall into Mad River near where
Mr. Glovnrs' ^lill now stands, he being so drunk he could not sit
on his horse.
7
CHAMPAIGN AND
PHENOMENAL.
There has been, as the reader will see elsewhere, two dreadful
tornados in these counties ; one at Bellefontaine, the other at Ur-
bana. In addition to these phenomena this country was visited by
several earthquakes. These shocks were distinctly felt in Cham-
paign and Logan counties. They were in the winter of 1811-12.
See Patrick's and ray accounts of tornados elsewhere in this volume.
On the 7th day of February, 1812, at -m hour when men were
generally wrapt in the most profound slumbers, this country gen-
erally, was visited by aV'Othc.r shock of an earthquake. It was of
greater severity and longer duration than any previous one yet.
It occurred about forty-live minutes after three o'clock in the
morning. The motion was from the south-west. A dim light was
seen above the horizon in that direction, a short time previous.
The air, at the time, was clear and very cold, but soon became h&zy.
Two more shocks were felt during the day. Many of the inhabit-
ants, at this time, fled from their houses in great consternation.
The cattle of the fields and the fowls manifested alarm. The usual
noise, as of distant thunder, preceded these last convulsions. The
shock was so severe as t<o crack some of the houses at Troy, in JMi-
ami county. The last shocks seemed to vibrate east and west.
This shock was felt with equal severity in almost every part of
Ohio. Travelers along the Mississippi river at that time were
awfully alarmed. Many islands, containing several hundred
acres, sunk and suddenly disappeared. The banks of the river fell
into the w^ater. The ground cracked open in an alarming manner.
Along the river, as low down as New Orleans, forty shocks Nver*
felt, from the 16th to the 20th. At Savannah, on the 16tii, the
shock was preceded by a noise resembling the motion of the wave*
of the sea. The ground heaved upwai'd. The people were atfwctei
with giddiness and nausea.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 75
TORNADO AT BELLEFONTAINE.
Tornado at Belief onto ine, June24, 1825, as related to me by fhoi^e-
who iritnessed if : About one o'clock, there was a dark mass of
clouds seen looming up in the west and seemed to increase in volume
and in terrific grandeur as it approached the town. The mass of
felack clouds now intermingled with others of a lighter hue of a
vapory appearance, all dashing, rolling and foaming like avast
boiling cauldron, accompanied by thunder and lightning, presen-
ting a scene to the spectator at once most grand, sublime and ap-
ipalling. A few minutes before its approach there seemed to be a
«Seath-like stillness, not a breath of air to move the pendant leaves
on the trees. It seemed as if the storm king, as he rede in awful
imajesty on the infuriated clouds had stopped to take his breath ia
*3rder to gather strength to continue his work of destruction. Man
a«d beast stood and gazed in awful suspense, awaiting to all a p-
^arance, inevitable destruction. This suspense was but for
^i moment; soon the terrible calamity was upon them, sweeping
everything as with the besom of destruction, that lay in its path.
Fortunately this country was then new and almost an unbroken
forest, consequently no one was killed. It passed a little north of
the public square, however within the present limits of the town,
"Struck Mr. Houtz's, two story brick dwelling, throwing it to the
ground, and a log spring-house, carryingit off even to the mud sills ;
it picked up a boulder that was imbedded in the ground, weighing
about three hundred pounds, carrying itsorae distance from where
at lay. Mr. Carter, who was there at that time, informs me it
ss:4>ripped the bark off a walnut tree from top to bottom, leaving it
3ed:anding ; it carried a calf from one lot and dropped it into another.
Mrs. Carter says she saw a goose entirely stripped of its feathers.
Passing through town its course lay in the direction of the Rush-
ereek Lake, passing over that little sheet of water, carrying water,
fish and all out on dry land. The fish were picked up the next day
T. great distance from the Lake; even birds were killed and strijiped
76 CHAMPAIGN AND
of their feathers. The writer of this has followed the track of thit-
storm for thirty miles. Its course was from the south west to
the north east, passing through a dense forest. I don't think it
varied from a straight course in the whol-; distance. Its force
seemed to have been about the same. It did not raise and fall
like the one that passed through Urbana some years after^ Last
summer the writer visited the track of this storm where it crossed
the Scioto near where Eushcreek empties into that stream in Mar-
ion county, where the primitive forest stands as it left it. There'
as elsewhere it is about one-half mile in width. In the out skirt?
of the track there are a few primitive trees standing shorn of their
tops looking like monumental witnesses of the surrounding desola-
tion. But for tivehundred yards in the center of the track there
is not one primitive tree standing, they having fallen like the-
grass before a,;scythe. If such a storm should pass over Bellefon-
taine now, there^would be nothing left of it.
LO(}AN COUNTIES. 77
THE LOST CHILD.
About two miles directly west of Lewii^town, in Logan county,
on the farm now owned by Manasses Huber, was the scene of thi-j
melancholy event. Abraham Hopkins, son of Harrison and
Christiana Hopkins, about five years old, was lost November
13, 1837.
"HeaTcn to all men hides the book of fate,
And blindness to the future has kindly given. '
How cosily this little fellow slept in the arms of his mother the
night before this sad event. The father and mother likewise slept
sweetly, unconscious of the sad calamity that was then at their
very door. They got up in the morning, ate their breakfast as
cheerfully and with as great a relish as they ever did; the father
. goes singing to his daily toil, while the mother attends to the ordin-
ary duties of her house, cheered by the innocent prattle of her
happy boy. Everything passed off pleasantly till about 2 o'clock,
when Mrs. Hopkins started with her little son to visit a neighbor,
about a half mile distant — a Mr. Rogers. She had to pass by a
new house, now being built by Charles Cherry, an uncle to the boy.
When they got there, they stopped for a few moments. The little
boy wished to remain with his uncle; he did so, and the mother
passed on to Mr. Rogers. The little fellow got tired playing
, about the house, and said he would go after his mother, and started.
There was a narrow strip of timber between the new house and
Rogers', and nothing but a dim path through it. Mr. Cherry
cautioned the boy not to get lost. It seems he soon lost the dim
path, for he hollowed back to his uncle, saying, "I can go it now ;
I have found the path." These were the last words he was ever
heard to say, and the last that was ever seen of him. Mrs. Hop-
kins having done her errand, returned to the new house where Mr.
Cherry was still at work, and inquired for her boy; and what was
^er .-Liiprise, when she was told he had followed her and not beea
s«en since! Immediate search was made by the frantic mother and
,.fei-Uer, and Mr. Cherry. They immediately went to Mr. Rogers'
78 CHAMPAIGN AND
and to another neighbor living but a short distance from him, hm\
no tidings could be had of him. It was a pleasant day, and he wa*
barefooted. They could see the tracks of his bare feet in the dust
in a path that led through a field to the house ; it seems he had
gone to the house, and not finding his mother there (for she, fin(S-
iug the family absent had gone to another house) he attempted ia
return to his uncle at the new house, where his mother had lefl
him. Soon the alarm was spread far and near, and people collected
from all parts of the country. There were at times over a thousanti
people hunting him. They continued their search for three weeks.
Every foot of ground for three miles from the house was searched,
even the Miami river was dragged for miles : but all in vain — not
a track could be seen in the yielding alluvial soil of the neighbor-
hood — nothing, save the imprint of his littie feet in the dust <if the
path in the field above-mentioned; not a shred of his clothing was
to be seen any where, and to this day his history is a profound anc3
melancholy mystery It is, however, the opinion of Mr. Cherry„
the uncle of the child, that he was stolen by the Indians. He says-
there was an Indian who, for many years, had been in the habit oA'
trapping in the neighborhood, and suddenly disappeared, and hasf;
never been seen there since. There was a deputation of citizen*
«ent out where the Indian lived, and accused him of the crime,
but he resolutely denied it. Mr. Hopkins has been singularly ui*-
fortunate with his family ; one son died in the army, and another
was crushed by the cars, near Chamimign City, Illinois, where bs?-
Mow resides.
ALIAS
ADAM HORN:
HIS LIFE, CHARACTER AJ^D CRIMES.
JTiji birth — Travels in -Europe — Arrival in (his country — His opinion
of xcoraen — Good character — His courtship and marriage — Jeal-
ousy — Charged with attempting to poison his wife — Sudden death of
hi^ two children — Charged tciih poisoning them — Blurders his wife
— Is committed to prison — Breaks jail and eludes pursuit — Evidence
on his trial for the murder of his i^e.cond wife — Conviction.
In all the list of crimes recorded in the annals of the law, none
ha< ever existed, which, in all its terrible features, displayed a
more ruthless disregard of the laws of instinct, or so utterly vio-
lated and set at defiance the common bond of human nature, as
the bloody acts of Andrew Hellman, alias Adam Horn! The
dreadful enormity of them must not be concealed, for they serve
as a warning, and show us to what a length our bad passions may
lead us, if suffered to master us.
From the most authentic sources we have collected th' following
particulai's of Horn's life, which may be relied upon as correct.
Andrew Hellman, alias Adam Horn, was born on the 24th of
June, in the year 179:2, at the ancient town of Worms, on the river
Rhine, renowned as the place where the German Diet assembled
in the year 1521, before which Luther was summoned to answer to
the charge of heresy, and is a portion of the Hessian State of Hesse
Darmstadt. He is, therefore, a Hessian by birth, and the son of
80 CHAMPAIGN AND
Hessian parents. We have before us a certificate, signed by a
priest, and dated at tlie town of Worms in the year 1792, giving
the names of his parents, and certifying to the day of his birth
and baptism under the name of Andrew Heliman ; there can,
therefore, be no doubt as to this being his true name. His parents
gave him a good education, and at the age of sixteen he was bound
an apprentice to a tailor at Wisupenheim, in Petersheim county,
Germany, where he remained until he became of age, when a de-
sire to roam induced him to start off with only his thimble and
his scissors in his pociiet, with the aid of which, according to his
own representation, he worked his way through all the German
States, as well as various other parts of Europe, returning again to
WisupenheimJn the fall of 1816, after an absence of nearly three
years. He could not long content himself there, however, and
hearing of the golden harvest that was to be reaped in America,
and having a desire to see a country that he had heard so much of,
he took passage for Baltimore, where he arrived in ti:e year 1817,
being then about twenty-five years of age. As far as can be learned
after his arrival, he worked for a merchant tailor of that city, for
nearly three years, when he started for Washington, and passing
through the ancient city of Georgetown, soon found himself in
Loudon county, Virginia.
It may be proper here to remark that during his stay in Balti-
more, he so conducted himself as to secure many friends. He was
then a young man of good personal appearance, sober, steady, and
Industrious, well-behaved, and mild in his demeanor, and withal in-
telligent and well-informed. He seemed, however, to have imbibed
a lasting dislike to the whole female race, looking upon them
as mere slaves to man, whilst he considered man, in the fullest
sense of the term, as the "lord of creation." Woman, accord-
ing to his r)pinion, was only created as a convenience for the
other sex, to serve in the capacity of a hewer of wood and drawer
of water ; to cook his victuals, darn his stockings, never to speak
but when spoken to, and to crouch in servile fear whilst in his
presence. He regarded the scriptural phrase applied to the sex,
as a "helpmeet for man," in its literal sense, whilst he would deny
her all social privileges and rights. That this is still his opinion
may be aptly illustrated by a coitversation held with him a few
days ago, since his conviction, by a gentleman who was starting
for Ohio, who asked him if he had any message to send to his sorr
LOGAN COUNTIES. 81
Henry. He replied, "Ves, tell Henry if he should ever marry, to
ujtirry a reli^icnis woman. ' The gentleman replied that he
thought he ought also to advise him to embrace religion himself,
as it was as necessary on the part of the man as the woman, in
order lo secure permanent hajjpiness. "Xo I no I no I" passion-
ately exclaimed the old reprobate. ''Woman must know how to
hold her tongue and obey. She has nothing to do with man."
He arrived in Loudon county, Virginia, in the fall of the year
lS:iu, and stopped at the farmhouse of Mr. George ]N[. Abel, situa-
ted about four miles from Hillsborough, and about sev«n mile.-i
from Harper's Ferry. ^Ir. Abel was an old and highly respected
German farmer, who had emigrated to this country a number of
years previous; and had reared around him a large family of sons
and daug'hters. The old geutlemtin took a liking to Hellman, and
unfortunately, as the .^equel will prove, allowed him to stop or
board with him, and being a good workman, he soon succeeded in
having plenty of work to do from the farmers of the surrounding:
country. He remained through the winter, and in the spring of
1821 started for Baltimore. He, however, remained in Baltimore
for but a few months, and in July again returned to his old quar-
ters at Mr. Abel's, where he had so eftectually succeeded in con-
cealing his opinion of the sex, or had perhaps been lulled from its
expression by the scenes of liappiuess, contentment, and equality
that prevailed among the ditierent sexes of the household of the
respected old Loudon farmer, that he was alio \ved to engage the
lifeetions of one of his daughters.
^Nlary Abel was at this time in the twentieth year of her age, a
blithe, buxom, and light-hearted country girl, with rosy cheek and
sparkling eye, totally unacquainted with the deceitfulness of the
world, and looking to tlie future to be a counterpart of the past,
which had truly been to her one continued round of innocent
pleasure and happiness. With a kind and affectionate disposition,
and a thorough and practical knowledge of all the varied duties of
housewifery, she was just such a one as would be calculated, if
united to a kind and alfectionate husband, to pass through the
chequered scenes of life with all thesweetsof contentment, and but
few of the bitters of discord. But such was not her lot. Deceived
by his profeisions of love and promises of unceasing constancy, and
AVith the approval of her father and family, in the month of De-
82 CHAMPAIGN AND
cember, 1821, she became the wife of Henry Hellman. They con-
tinued for two years in the family of Mr. Abel, during- only a por-
tion of which time the presence of relations and friends was
sufficient to restrain the fiendishness of his disposition. After the
lapse of a few months he appeared to be gradually losing all affec-
tion for her, though for the first sixteen months, with the excep-
tion of this apparent indifference, everything passed off quietly.
On the 8th of August, 1822, Louisa Hellman, their first daughter,
was born, which, however, lie looked on as a serious misfortune,
and, had they not been under the parental roof, sad would doubt-
less have been the poor mother's fate.
In the month of April 1823, about sixteen months after marriage,
an unfounded and violent jealousy took posession of his very soul,
and all the pent-up ferociousness of his disposition towards her sex
broke forth with renewed violence. He accused her of infidelity
of the basest kind, and on the 17th of the ensuing September, when
Heiiry Hellman, their second child, who is now living in Ohio,
was born, he wholly disowned it, and denounced its mother as a
harlot. From this moment all hopes of peace or happiness were
banished, but like poor Malinda Horn, she clung to him, and
prayed to her God to convert and reform him, hoping that his eyes
would be ultimately opened to reason and common sense. But,
alas ! it was all in vain. In return for every attention and kindness
she received nothing but threats and iaiprecations. Instead of the
endearing name of wife, she was always called "my woman," and
his ideas of the degrading duties nnd dishonorable station of
women fully applied to her. He had, however, never used any
personal violence, and she consequently felt bound for the sake of
her children, not to desert him.
In the spring of 1824, he rented a small place in lioudon, about
•A mile from her father's, where they lived for nearly eight years,,
during which time, in June 1827, John Hellman a third child, was
l)orn, at which time heopenly declared that if she ever had an-
other he svould kill her. This, however, was theirlast child. On
one occasion, whilst living on this place, he left her, in a fit of
passion, and went to Baltimore, leaving wife and children almast
destitute, where he remained about three months, and returned
with promises of reformation.
In the mean time her father, having several sonp grown around
I
LOGAN COUNTIES. 83
him, began to ea&t about forsotne mode of giving them all a start
in the world, and finally sold a portion of his farm, and bought a
section of land for each of them in different counties of Ohio. John
Able and George Able went to Stark county, Ohio, and Helman
received for his wife a section of land in Carroll county, though he
refused to live on the section of ground belonging to his wife, ap-
parently through ill feeling towards her. When he left Loudon
county he disposed of property to the amount of at least $8,000.
How he had accumulated so much in the short space of ten years,
when he had come there penniless, was, and still is regarded as a
mystery. Although possessed of a close and miserly disp'^sition,
denying his family nearly all the comforts of life, with the excep-
ts m of food, of which he could not deprive them with out suffering
himself, it seemed impossible, from the fruits of his needle, so
large an amount could have been accumulated.
The five years he passed over in Carroll county we pass over in
silence, with the exception of the remark that the lot of the poor
wife during the whole of this time, was one of continual unhap-
pinass, whilst the children also regarded him with fear and trem-
bling,- particularly poor Henry, whom he wholly disowned. This
treatment on the part of her brutal husband of course entwined
her heart more closely to that of Henry, who was then in his twelfth
year, and the knowledge of this increased his growing enmity
towards her and him. When he left Carroll county he was in
possession of two fine farms, which he sold for a large amount.
They were located within half a mile of the now thriving city of
Carroll ton.
His removal to Logan county was liailed by his wife with joy
and delight, for there resided her two brot'iers. Gen. .John Abel
and Mr. George Abel, who had emigrated thither some eight
years previously, and were now surrounded by large and happy
familie*. As good fortune would have it, he bought a fine farm,
the dwelling of which was within a hundred yards of Gen. Abel's,
and but a short distance from her brother George ; and now poor
Marj' ex}>ected and did occasionally meet a countenmce that
beamed on her with affection and kindness. She could there,
when an opportunity afforded, seated at the hospitable hearth of
one of her brothers, go over the scenes of enjoyment and happi-
nes-s that they had passed together in old Loudon, and the memo-
HI niAMPAIGX AND
ry of luT fjood and kin<l-h«^arte(l fatherand mother, who were long
since departed, would often call a t'-ar to the eye of the atflicted
mother.
They arrived in Logan county in the spring of 188(), at which
time tlic three children had arrived at an age when they became
useful al)out the farm. Louic^a was in her fourteenth year, Henry
wa.s thirteen, and John was about nine yeans ot age. They were
three tine intcllij;ent children, nuch as a man should have been
proud of, still they appeared to have no share in their father's af-
fi-ctions. Money and i»roperty is the god he worshiped, and al-
thou;,'h in reality he was far better off than many of his surround-
ing? neijrhbors, still he kept all his family dressed in the meanest
nianner, so much so that they were compelled to remain at home
on all occasions. The children were, however, knit into the very
heart of the mother, and she looked on them with all the fond
hopf witli which a mother usually regards her offspring.
Al)out a year after their arrival at Logan, Mrs. Heilman on one
(H'casion had iwured out a bowl of milk with the intention of drink-
ing it, but be'bre she got it to her lips s^he found that the top of it
was completely covered with a iiuantity of white powder, which
hfld at that moment been cast upon it. Immediately suspecting
it to be poison, and having no mode of testing it, she threw it out,
and undoubtedly, from subsequent events, thus preserved hei life.
There was no one at the time in the house but her husband, and
hedcnifd all knowledgt- of it. She was under the impression at
the time that he had attemi)ted to i)oison her, and it is now geno-
ntliy beli»'ved that such was thecaso.
For the year following this event he apparently became more
morose and sullen, but his family had become used to it, and ex-
pected nothing better. In the month of April, 1831), all three ol
the children were suddenly taken sick, and lay in great suffering
for about forty-eight hours, when Louisa, the eldest, aged sev-
enteen years, ani John, the youngest, aged twelve years, died,
and were both buried in one grave, leaving the mother inco'nsoia'
ble for her lews. Her whole attention, however, Mas still required
for poor Henry, who lay several days in great suffering, but he fi-
nally recovered. This was a sad stroke to the heart of the already
grief-stricken mother, which was doubly heavy on her from the
firm belief she entertained that their death had resulted from poi-
LOGAN COUNTIES. 8.5
son, and that that poison had been administered to them by the
hand of th<?ir father— by that hand whicli should have brushed away
from their path every thorn that could harm them. The belief is
-now general throughout the county that their blood is also on the
head of Andrew Hell man, but whether true or false remains to be
decided between him and his GoJ. It would seem, if the charge
be correct, to have been a miraculous intervention of Providence
that poor Henry, the child of Misfortune, the one alone above all
others that his father disliked and ill-treated, was the one that
outlived the effects of the deadly potion. Happy would he doubt-
less now be could he disown such a father, and forever obliterate
from memory his existence. Ho is, however, now loved and re-
.spected by all who are acquainted with him, having fully inherited
ail the good qualities of his unfortunate mother, and fully proving
the saying that a bad man may be the lUther of a worthy son.
Just entering on manhood, he bids fair to reclaim, by a just and
honorable life, a nauie that has been tarnished by the most detes-
table acts of crime and guilt.
It may be stated here, in justice to Hellman, that, since his con-
viction of the murder of Malinda Horn, he has been questioned
with regard to the death of his children, and though he did not
deny the murder of his first wife, he positively asserts that he had
no hand in their death. He, however, will find it difficult to sat-
isfy those who witnessed the heart-rending scene, and his utter
callousness a,s to the result, that he is not also their murderer—
that the blood of his innocent offspring does not rest on his head,
equally with that of the unborn child of his second victim. The
bodies, we learn, were not examined, to discover the cause of
death, the suspicion as to their being poisoned having been kept a
secret in the breasts of the members of the family, for the sake of
the poor mother, whose hard lot might have been embittered in
eiise they should have been unable to sustain the charge. As bad
as they then thought him to be, they could hardly believe him to
be guilty of such a crime, but experience has since taught thera
that he was capable of anything, let it be ever so heinous and
criminal, and not even a denial under the solemnity of a confess-
ion can now clear him of the charge.
The two children, as has already been stated, died in the month
of April, 1839, and on the 26th of September, 1839, five months af-
ter, the poor mother met her terrible fate. The intervening time
86 CHAMPAIGN AND
had been passed in fear and trembling, and she watched over and
guarded her only remaining chilcl with tenfold care and anxiety.
She feared that the blow which she thought had been aimed
mainly at the head of the disowned Henry, wag still reserved for
him, and she therefore followed him with the argus eyes of a
mother, when evil or danger threatens ; she watched his depart-
ure, and longed for his return when absent at his daily labor, and
folded him to her heart as its only solace unuer the heavy weight
of sorrow and affliction she had been called on to endure. Henry
loved his mother equally well, and did much to ease her heart of
its heavy burden.
On the 26th of September, hearing that her brother George was
unwell, she gladly embraced the opportunity of sending Henry to
assist his uncle on the work of the farm for a few days, knowing
that there at least he would be out of harm's way. It was the flrsl
time that he had ever been absent from her, and when she bade
him farewell, and admonished him to take care of himself, Mttle
did she think that it was the last time she ever would see him—
that ere the ensuing dawn of day she would herself be lying a
mangled and mutilated corpse. Such was the melancholy fact, as
the sequel proved.
The events of that night and the two succeeding days are
wrapped in impenetrable darkness, no witness being left but God
and the murderer that can fully describe them, but such a scene as
we are left lo imagine, we will endeavor to narrate.
On Saturday morning, the 28th of September, 1839, Mrs. Rachel
Abel, the wife of Mr. George Abel, came to the house to see her
sister-in-law, and so soon as she entered the door she was surprised
to see Hellman lying in bed in the front room, with his head, face
and clothing covered with blood. With an exclamation of won-
der she asked him what was the matter. He replied, affecting t«
be scarcely able to speak from weakness and loss of blood, that
two nights previous, at a late hour, a loud rap had summoned hint
to the door : on opening it, two robbers had entered, one a large,
dark man, ( meaning a negro ) and a small white man, when he
had immediately been leveled to the floor with a heavy club.
How he had got into bed he said he could not tell, but that he hael
been lying there suffering ever since, unable to get out. On hear-
ing this story, and from his bloody appearance, and apparent faint-
ness, not doubting it, Mrs. Able exclaimed, "Where in the name
LOGAN COUNTIES. 87
of Gocl is your wife?" to which he replied, "I do not know, go
and see." On pushing open the back room door, a scene of blood
met her view that it would be impossible fully to describe. In
the center of the room lay the mangled corpse of the poor wife,
with her blood drenching the floor, whilst the ceiling, walls, and
furniture, were also heavily sprinkled with the streams which had
evidently gushed from the numerous wounds she had received in
the dreadful struggle.
Mrs. Able immediately left the house, and proceeded with all
dispatch to the house of Gen. John Abel, which was but a short
distance off, and on relating to him the story of Heilman and the
condition of his sister, he Immediately pronounced her to hav«
been murdered by her husband. Charging her as well as his own
wife and family, not to go to the house again, until some of thei
neighbors had entered, he proceeded to make the fact known, and
in a short time a large number had assembled. In answer to their
inquiries Heilman told the same story, and with faint voice and
apparent anguish, pointed to the bloody and apparently mutilated
condition of his head, still lying prostrate in his own bed. The
condition of the house also bore evidence of having been ransacked
by robbers, every thing having been emptied out of the drawers
and chests and thrown in confusion on the floor. His story being
credited by the neighbors, he was asked where he had left his
money, and on looking at the designate I place it was found to be
gone. A small amount of money, $16 60, belonging to Henry,
which had been deposited in the heft of his chest, had also been
abstracted. The reader can doubtless imagine the scene, and the
commiseration of the neighbors for the unfortunate victims of the
midnight assassin.
At this moment Gen. Abel entered, and shortly after him a cor-
oner and a physician. I'welve men were immediately selected as
a jury of inquest to examine into the cause of the death of Mrs.
Heilman. The jury being sworn, and having entered on their du-
ty, Gen. Abel openly charged Andrew Heilman with being her
murderer. The jury were struck with astonishment as they looked
at Heilman, lying prostrate in his bed, and demanded of the ac-
cuser what evidence he had to substantiate such a charge. The
afflicted brother in reply stated that he unfortunately had no evi-
dence, but desired that the physician in attendance would exam-
ine Hellman's wounds. The examination was accordingly naad»,
88 CHAMPAIGN AND
and the I'esult was that not n scratch, a cut, or a bruise could be
found on any part of his j^erson. Not only morally but practically
was it thus established, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that "her
blood was on his head." He had evidently taken up a quantity of
her blood and thrown it on his head and shoulders, in order to
give credence to hi.-> story, which act alone served as a positive
evidence of his guilt. On a search being made of the i)reniises, his
axe was found, leaning against the bar post, about fifty yards from
the house, re3king with blool, and hair sufficient sticking* to it to
identify it as that of the deceased — his knife, covered witii blood,
was found concealed on the hearth of the chimney— his tailor
socks were found in the cellar, covered with blood — and the shirt
he had on, as well as his arm, was saturated with blood up to the
elbow. Thepje was, therefore, ncrthing wanting to identify him.
fully and conclusively, as the murderer, and he was forthwith com-
mitted lor trial ; and the remains of his victim, having laid two
days exposed before discovery, were, on the evening of the sa»ie
day followed to the grave by a large concourse of friends and rela-
tives, and deposited by the side of her two children, whom she
had sorrowed over but five months previous.
From the condition of the body, as well as other marks in the
room, there remained no doubt that the murder had been com-
mitted in the most cold-blooded, premeditated and malicious man-
ner. The body was lying on the floor, but from the fact that a
large quantity of blood was found in the center of the bed, it is
supposed she was lying asleep at the time of the attack, wholly un-
conscious otany impending evil. The stains on the pillow indica-
ted that she had partially risen up after the first blow, and had
been again knocked back on the bed. The soles of her feet were
saturated in blood, av hich led to the belief that she had managed
to get out of bed, and had stood erect in her own blood on the floor
before she was finally despatched. Six distinct cuts, apparently
inflicted with the handle of an axe, were discovered on her head.
The hands and arms were dreadfully bruised, as if she had in the
same manner as his second victim, endeavored thus to ward off
the blows aimed at her head, whilst the little finger of the left
hand, and the fore-finger of the right hand were both broken. A
large gash, laying open the flesh to the bone, was visible on the
right thigh, apparently inflicted with an axe, and across the whole
length of the abdomen th( re extended a heavy bruise, in the shape
LOGAN COUNTIES. 89
of the letter X, in the center of which wtis a large mark of bruised
blood, at least six inches square. An attempt had been made with
the axe to sever the head from the body, and three separate gashes
passing nearly through the neck, the edge of the blade entering
the floor, appeared to have been the finishing stroke of the bloody
deed.
The fact ol his having hewn up and dissected the body of Ma-
linda Horn, can no longer therefore be considered a matter of
wonder. It wns only the second act of the bioody drama, and well
did he understand his part. The man who had passed, without
being conscience-stricken, through such a scene of blood as we have
just described, was doubtless capable for any emergency, and he
probably disposed of his second subject with the same ease of mind
that a butcher would quarter a calf.
After he had been some time in prison he confessed he had hid-
den his money himself, and that it was in a tin cup behind two
bricks on the breast of the chimney. A search was there made,
and money to the amount of $176 24 in gold, silver, and bank
notes was found, with promissory notes to the amount of $838, ma-
king in all $1014 ^A. There were also in the cup two certificates
for sections of land in Mercer county, Ohio. The money belonging
to his son Henry, which had been taken out of the chest, was found
stuck into a crack on the jamb of the chimney. His acknowledge-
ment of the concealment of the money was of course looked on as a
full confession of guilt. He of course obtained possession of it, and
it is thought found some means of transmitting it to a friend in
Baltimore, from whose hands he afterwards again obtained pos-
session of it. His farm in Starke county, having three dwellings
on it and considered to be a very valuable piece of property, he
deeded to his son Henry during his confinement, which is in fact
the only worthy act with regard to the man that has yet come
under our notice.
A few months after his arrest a true bill was found against him
by the Grand Jury of Starke county, and he was bi'ought out for
arraignment before the Court of Common Pleas, and there made
known his determination, as he had right to do, to be tried before
the Supreme Court. At length the term of the Supreme Court
commenced, and two days before the close of its session, his case
was called up for trial. Having secured eminent counsel, they
urged on the court that the case would occupy more time than that
8
90 CHAMPAIGN AND
allo>A'ed for the dose of the term, and finally succeedeil in having
it postponed to the next term, which, meeting but once a year,
caused a corresponding delay in the trial. •
He was accordingly remanded back to the jail in Bellefontaine,
Logan county, Ohio, which was a large log building, fi*om whence
on the loth of November, 1840, after being confined nearly four-
teen months, he made his escape. It had been the custom to keep
him confined in the cells only during the night in cold weather,
allowing liini to occupy an upper room durinu' the day, depending
almost entirely for his security on the heavy iron hobbles that
were kept attached to his legs. The means whereby he escaped
have been the subject of much controversy, and several persons
have been implicated as accomplices, either before or after the
fact. Since his arrest he has positively denied having any assist-
ance, and states that, having got the hobble off of one foot, he
started off in that condition, carrying theni in his hand. On the
night of his escape he had been left up stairs later than usual, and
there being no fastenings of any consequence on the door, he
walked off. He was immediately pursued and tracked to the house
of a man named Conrad Harpole, near P^ast Liberty, in Logan
county, in the neighborhood of which, a horse, belonging to one of
hli< attorneuH, was found running loose, and it was ascertained that
he had there purchased a horse, saddle and bridle, and pursued his
journey. He was then traced to Carrollton in Carroll county,
where he had formerly lived, passing through in open day. He
was here spoken to by an old acquaintance, but made no reply.
Some of his pursuers actually arrived in Baltimore before he did,
and although the most dilligent search was made for him, assisted
by High-Constable Mitchell, no further trace could be found of him.
They, however, were under the opinion that he was concealed in
the city, and finally gave up all hope of detecting him. The next
thing that was heard of him was in York, Pennsylvania, where on
the 28th of September, 1841, about ten months after his escape, he
appeared before John A. Wilson, Esq., a Justice of the Peace, and
executed a deed for 640 acres of land in Mercer county, in favor of
Charles Anthony, Esq., one of his attorneys.
We have heard it positively stated, though we cannot vouch for
its correctness, that in the fall of 1841, which is about the time the
deed just mentioned was executed at York, he was a resident of
Baltimore, and kept a small tailor shop on Pennsylvania Aveuuo,
LOGAX ("orXTlKS. 91
near H;uiiliiii-i;- Street, where lie wns l)iirae(! out. If so, In- tlieii
l>assed by ?mother name, and liad not yet assumed the name of
Adam Horn. He made his appearanee in Baltimore county in the
leighborhood otthescene of the last murder early in the year 1842
ind commenced boarding- at the house of Wm. Poist, in the month
of May. On the ensuing 17th day of August, 1842, he wjvs married
to :Malinda llinkle.
The horrible |)articulars of his se -ond wife's murder, we present
our readers in the succinct and satisfactory account of it that we
glean from t lie evidence produced upon the trial. Horn was ar-
raigned before the Baltimore county Oourt, and the case came up
before Judges Magruder and Purviance, on the 2(»th of November,
184:'.. The awful barbarity of the man's crime, and the hardened
indifference he exhibited in regard to it, created a thrilling excite-
ment in the public mind, and at an early hour a crowd had assem-
bled on the pavement oast of the Court-house, in the area above,
and all along the lane. Shortly before the hour, the van drove up
.below, and was instantly surroimded with an eager throng, anx-
ious to catch a glimpse of the [)risoner. The prisoner was taken
out, and, after a considerable struggle with the crowd, brought
into the court room. In five minutes thereafter, the whole sj»ace
allotted to spectators was crammed to every conTer.
Two days were occupied in empanelling a jury, which linally
consisted of the following gentlemen, citizens of Baltimore county,
exclusive of the city: John B. H. Fulton, Foreman ; Alexander J.
Kennard, Stephen Tracy, Melcher Fowble, Hanson Butter, Wm.
Butler, Benjamin Wheeler, senior, Abraham Elliot, Samuel Price,
Henry Leaf, Samuel S. Palmer, James \\'olfington.
J. N. Steele, Esq., Prosecuting Attorney for Baltimore county
t'ourt, opened the case in a lucid and effective manner. He spoke
to the following purport :
" I shall in the prosecution of this case ex}>ect to show to you,
that the prisoner, in the early part of the year 1842, came to reside
in Baltimore county, under the name of Adam Horn ; but that his
real name is Andrew Hellman; that a short time thereafter in the
course of the ensuing summer, he settled in the country, purchased
some land, bought a store, and worked at his trade as a tailor ; he
became acquainted with the deceased, and in August, 1842, mar-
ried her; that some time thereafter their domestic life was dis-
turbed by frequent bickerings and angry dissensions; that Hora
92 CHAMPAIGN AND
was dissatislied, sayiuj^' to his neighbors that she was too young- for
him, that she lovetl other men better than himself, I^^hallshovv
you that this prisoner is a man of deep-seated malignancy of ch'ir-
a«ter, of passionate and violent temper ; and though we know
some facts in relation to their habits of life, we know not what
private feuds and what severity of treatment the deceased may
have been too often exposed to. I shall show you that upon one
occasion she had gone to church, contrary to his desire, and that
upon her return, he threw her clothes out of the window, and put
her violently out of the house, in consequence of which conduct
she remained absent several days. I shall show to you that some
time before that event he had looked upon her and spoken of her,
evidently to tind some cause to be rid of her ; and after she was
gone, he applied to her the most opprobrious epithets, peculiarly
degrading to the character of a woman and of a wife, and openly
threatened that if she returned to his house he would shoot her.
Nor was this a temporary feeliiig raging in his heart at one time
more violently than at another ; not an outbreak of temper for the
moment, but as I shall be able to show you, a malignant, deep-*
settled and insatiate hatred. Thus they continued to live together
until the 22d of March last ; on the evening of that day, she was
seen the last time alive — that evening at sunset, and these two
thus unhappily paired, dwelt in the solitude of this house alone;
not another human soul lived within those walls ; these two alone
on that night were in sole companionship, moved by feelings
which the event can alone explain.
"There was deep snow on the ground that night; there was
also a tremendous tempest ; it was the worst night remembered
during. the winter ; the wind blew a hurricane, and the snow was
banked up in the roads, and at every eminence which offered re-
sistance to the wind, in a manner which rendered it almost im-
possible to move; and on that night he was in the house with his
deceased wife ; the next morning he was seen to go up the road ;
he passed the house of Mr. Poist, his nearest neighbor, with whom
he had been intimate since he first went into the county, hut said
nothing to him about the absence of his wife ; but went on to the
house of a German acquaintance ( who has since committed sui-
cide ), and said to him, as I expect to show — the counsel for the
defence admitting his testimony as given at the jail — that his wife
had left him two hours before day ; that they had had no quarrel,
LOGAN COUNTIES. 93
yet she had irone out on such a night, in the condition she was in ;
he told this German that she had taken $50 in money from a cor-
ner of the store in which she had seen him count it ; hut I sha51
show you, gentlemen of the jury, that he told another persosi that
she took the mon^ty from a trunk up .stairs ; and still ancjther per-
son "I'Jiat she took it from a chetst in the back room, thus
stamping the fabrication with its true character of falsehood. The
snow that had fallen remained upon the ground some ten days, at
the expiration of which period, I shall sh.ow you that Hoi'n went
to the house of Mrs. Gittinjier, ;uid requested her to engage for
him a housekeeper ; that matters continued thus until iSunday,
the IGth of April, when Catharine Hinkle, a sister of the de-
ceased, hearing of the absence of Mrs. Horn, went to the house of
the prisoner ; that although they had previously to that time
been on the most friendly terms, Horn, without refusing to
:-peak to her, spoke with manifest reluctance, seemed confused,
colored in conversation, and otherwise betrayed uneasiness and
guilt; that on being first questioned by Catharine, he said his
wife had left the house, on the evening referred to, about bed-time;
but afterwards, before she went away, apparently recollecting the
contradiction that would exist, he told her that Malinda bad gone
away about two hours before day. I shall then show you, gentle-
men, that Catharine went off with the determination to see Just-
ice Hushey, satisfied that there was something wrong, but first
called at the house of Mrs. Gittinger, who was, however, absent ;
Mrs. Gittinger's little daughter only v/as there, and to her Catha-
rine imparted her suspicions, said she was going to .Justice Bush-
ey's, and would have Horn's house searched iorthwith. On that
day the little girl stated this conversation to her mother; and,
gentlemen, I shall show you that at that time, Horn himself was
at Gittinger's, in an adjoining room, with some neighbors who*
had come to visit a sick person ; that the statement of the little
girl to her n:!other was distinctly overheard in that room, and im-
mediately thereafter Horn got up from his chair and left the house,
I shall show you that at that time he had on his usual Sunday
dress, and that he was seen soon afterwards, in the evening, in his
ordinary working clothes, although there. was no apparent cause
for til. 'S. ange. On the following day, IMonday, he fled — and
with So ijjuch precipitancy ot flight, that he had left his store, con"
tainiii^ $400 or $500 wo-th of goods, without a single person to take
94 CHAMPAIGN AND
care of it; and de:*erted hU farm, and indeed so preeipitatelj ab-
sconded that the doorn of the house had been left unfastened, and
his slioes left out upon the lioor, he was next seen in the office of
the Clerk of Baltimore County ('ourt, on Monday, where he tjot
out a deed of his property, and next heard of in Philadelphia,
where, according' to his own statement, he arrived on the follow -
inj^ (Tuesday) morning. Thus, on the slightest intimation that
active measures would be taken to discover the whereabout of the
<Ieceased, overheard in the conversation of the cliild with her
mother, we find this man — a man of thrift, and careful in his
business — a man of even miserly habits, tn us hurrying away from
his home, leaving all his property exposed. I shall further show
to you, gentlemen, that when the prisoner was arrested in Phila-
delphia, he admitted that he was from Baltimtjre counfy.and that
his name was Horn ; that when passing along the street, in cus-
tody of the officer, he was asked his trade, and he replied ' a shoe-
maker,' his real business being that of a tailor ; he was seen to
throw sometliing away soon afterwards, which was picked up by
another officer, and proved to be a tailor's thimble, the latter say-
ing : ' Did you see him throw this thimble away ? ' the prisoner
offering no denial ; at the officer's house to which he was first
taken, he threw away a pair of scissors ; he also aasured the offi-
cers he had no dee<3, but when further search was proposed, he
either produced, or tliere were found u{)on him, two vieeds, one
conveying the property from another party to himself, and th«*
other drawn in Philadelphia, conveying it from himself to John
Btorech, the German who has since committed .suicide.
"I shall further show you, gentlemen, that by what may be
regarded as remarkable interposition of Providence, on the morn-
ing following the Sunday on which he had fled, some young men,
wliile shootin^j in tlie neighborhood, came on Horn's place, and
crossing a small gutter or gully in the orchard, their attention was
attracted l)y a hole newly dug m it, and close by a circulnr place,
a little sunk, into which they thrust a stick, and soon found it re-
sisted by a substance of a nature whicii cause 1 it to rebound ; that
without further examination these young men went to a person
named Poist, wliom they informed that they had discovered some-
thing strange in the gulley, and they thought it wa,'* probably
Mali.ida Horn. Accompanieti by PoJst, they returned to the spot.
dug up the earth, rtti(i there found the body — no gentlemen, not
LOGAN COUNTIES. Do
the body — but the headless, liinbh'ss, mutilated trunk, sewed up
in H coffee-bag.
"In this remote phice, they also found a spade near by, standing
against a tree, whicli a witness identified by a particular mark as
belonging to the prisoner. On the coffee-bag was seen the name
of Adam Horn, and it will be identified by Mr. Caughy, a mer-
chant of this city, as one in which he sold a quantity of coffee
to Horn, nine or ten months before. In this connection we shall
prove to have been f(»und Horn's spade, and Horn's (;offee-bag, but
it does not stop here ; they went to the house to ])ursue their in-
vestigations, and there in a back room upstairs, they found another
bag containing the legs and arms of a human being, corresponding
with the trunk ; thus in the very house occupied by the prisoner
and his wife, were found these mangled remains; contained too,
in a bag soiled with a quantity of mud, exactly resembling that in
the hole of the gully from which they are supposed to have been
taken ; mud upon the several limbs aLso corresponding with it;
the clothes of the prisoner also found scattered about the house,
soiled in the same way, and his shoes even when found, wet and
moist, and muddy, in every particular indicating the recent visit
<if the wearer to that place ; still furrliei', by way of tracing him to
the very grave of these mutilated remains, his footprint, exactly
corresponding with the shoe, is discovered by the gully. But, un-
fortunately for the prisoner, we do not stoj) here ; I shall produce
evidence to convince you beyond all doubt that this body and
these limbs so discovered were the body and limbs of Maliuda
Horn. I shall show you that there was no other woman missing
from that i)!ace and neighborhood, and I ]ieed not say to you that
a woman is not like a piece of furniture thatct.m !)e destroyed with-
out the knowledge of persons out of the liousehold. I rihall prove
to you, gentlemen, that the body and limbs were fh^ <\r.e of those
of the deceased ; that they were large, she being i . .;^ woman;
that Malinda Horn at the time of her disappearanc;- .\ i- known to
be pregnant; that the body discovered proved to be in this state ;
that a small portion of the hair sticking to the back of the neck
was of the color of the hair of the deceased ; that a peculiarity in
the form of the deceased was the width of her breasts apart ; that
the same peculiarity was r)erceptil)le in the body that has beeji
found ; that the deceased was seen daily in household duties by her
acquaintances, barefoot, and I shall produce testimony to pi'ovc
96 CHAMPA IGN AND
l)ositively that the feet found in tlie prisonei's li(»useare the feet of
Malinda Horn ; a peculiarity in the thumb of one hand, which ha<!
been bent by a felon, also afford;^ positive proof by which the dis-
nieiribered anaos have been identified hs tiiose of IMalinda Horn.
From thi8 evidence, I say there can be no question of the identity
of the body. Yet is there another fact, a startlint^, a marvelous
one; I (h) not know that I shall have occasion to resort to it, but I
shall inentio!) it now; should I, however, find it necessary to in-
troduce it, what I now say y(ju will be at liberty to discard. I am
not familiar, gentlemen, with the wonder-working powers of na-
ture as exhibited in the human foFra, but in what 1 am about to
assert it would seem that Providence has indeed folhnvetl this ter-
rible munler with evidence from the unborn. I have alluded to
th^' state in which the unfortunate woman deceased, and I ouglst
iK^w to ad'i that ;i post nu»rt>-iii exaiiiinntioii was conducted some
tinu- thereafter by a distinguished surj^eon of tliis city ; that in the
course of the operation the womb was removed, and preserved by
that gentleman, and remarkable as it may seem, 1 learn that the
infant, yet four months wanting of the hour of parturition, i-s in-
deed, in every feature, afac simile o/ Adam Horn!
"In addition to what I have stated, and the awful picture pre-
sented to your view, we have a striking fact to be considered; tlie
mangled trunk has been found witli every limb rudely torn frou\
its place ; the limbs have been found, legs and arms, huddled to-
gether in horrible confusion, but the head has never to this hour
been discovered ; there can be no doulit that it has been concealed
or destroy. kI to prevent its identification, and its very absence is
proof that it was the head (tf 3Ia!inda Horn. I shall further show
to you, gentlemen, that the body -Uscovered, jiroved to be that of
a person suddenly deceased, in high and perfect health ; and I
shall show in connection with this fact, thai the deceased, when
last seen, was in that state— perfectly well. I shall be able to show
to you, that great violence had been committed on this tier man-
gled body; that a large bruise was found extending its (-ffects deep
into the muscles on the breast and shoulder; that there was an-
other of four or five inches diameter upon her back, as if inflicted
by somf large instrument, and by a most violent blow; and fur-
ther, that one hand and wrist exhilMts almost a continuous bruise,
as if mashed in apparently fruitle^< efforts to prevent the dreadful
injuries which follo^^e(^.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 97
" Still further must I proceed with the disgusting, revolting
spectacle ; and show you that in the perpetration of the murder,
the after circunistanees were only part of the original plan ; to
sever th<- limbs, to cut off the he-ad, and to salt down the trunk
and limbs, was all necessary to be done, because he could not dis-
pose of them by burial ; the snow was on the ground, and to do so
would expose him to certain detection ; and I shall show you that
on the floor of an np stairs back room, there is a stain occupying u
space about the size of a human body with extended legs; this
stain is moist, and at certain times presents on the surface a white
incrustation, as having been produced by a quantity of salt ; the
murder is believed to have been committed on the 22d of March,
and the body was found on the 17th of April, and when found,
though it had been buried in a damp hole in the ground, in mois-
ture and mud, yet it was in a state of preservation evidently from
the etfects of the salt; it was again buried, and when exhumed
three or four weeks after for the post mortem examination, it was
still found but slightly decomposed. I must call your attention to
the time at which the body could have been disposed of by burial,
after the disappearance of the snow, as agreeing with that when
the prisoner called on Mrs. Gittinger to provide him a house-
keeper until the mangled remains were gone."
EVIDENCE OF WITNESSES.
\V/u. Poisi. su-ori}. — Knows the prisoner at the bar very weli ;
kncjwn him since May 1842; came to witness's house to board;
boarded with him 'till the middle of August, and then got mar-
ried ; witness was his groomsman ; two weeks afterwards they
went to house-keeping ; took a house about three hundred yards
from witness s house ; it is situated about twenty-two miles from
Baltimore, on the Hanover and Reisterstown road ; Horn's
h(nise is this side of witness's house ; Gittinger's honse is about one
hundred and lifty yards this side of Horn's ; Storech's house is
about three hundred yards beyond that of witness; the ''gate
house" is between witness's house and Storech's; when Horn
went to housekeeping, he kept a store and worked at his trade as a
tailor; recollected the time when Malinda Horn disappeared; oa
morning of 23d saw Horn go by his house ; said to a wagoner in
there that he wondered where Horn was going so early ; he said
lie supposed he was going to church ; witness said no, that wa-s not
9S champaKtN and
the way he wont to church ; he wan not a Catholic, but pretended
to be a Lutheran ; soon after, Frank Gittinger came ui and said,
"Horn's wife was gone again hist night ;" witness said, last night
was too bad a night for any one to go out : it was a very stormy,
ugly night ; there had been a heavy snow on the ground about
ten days.
On good Friday the peo})le had been talking a good deal about
the matter, and I went down the road to the fence between Horn's
place and mine, and saw a spade standing against a tree ; thougiit
"My God, what has he been doing with this spade?" could not see
any peach trees that had been planted ; walked round the spade, at
a few feet distance ; recognized it as one that he had seen at Horn's
house; it had a paper on as the outside one of a bundle; it was
about four or five steps from the place where the body was found ;
is positive that it was the same spade that he had seen before at
Horn's house.
On Easter Monday about 9 o'clock, saw Jacob Myers, Henry
Fringer, John Storech, and Isaac Stansbury, go by his house with
guns, down the road ; between 10 and 11 o'clock, while witness
was up in his field, the men came back again ; asked them what
game; they said, "Oh, we found plenty of game down there,"
and allowed they thought they had found Horn's wife ; agreed to
go along, and went around to avoid Horn's house, so that he should
not see them ; went down t(( the place, and pushed a stick down
znd found that it rose u]) again when pressed; witness then threw
the dirt away with a spade, and found a coffee-bag, which he pro-
posed to slit open; there was something in it; some of them
tliought perhaps it was a hog buried there, and did not want to
open the bag for fear they woukl be laughed at ; witness cut the
bag a little, and saw the breast of a wonia" ; they then concluded
to go to Horn's house first ; went up to Horn's house and knocked,
but nobody answered ; Xase said the back door was open ; pushed
it with a stick ; waited till more people came; none would go in
until witness went ; went into the entry and then the store, and
found all right ; went into a slee[)ing room back and found a bed
which looked as if it had been tumbled ; finally one of tlie party
went to the back room up stair-., and there saw the arms and legs
sticking out of a bag; he called to witness, who was on the stairs,
to see them ; all went up and looked at them ; then went down to
■the ulacc where thf- bf)dv w;i<, and lifted it out ; witness then cut
LOGAN (BOUNTIES. ;)i)
it open, and there was the trunk of the body, without head, arms,
i-jrlegs; examined it and found marks of violence on the breast
and the shoulder ; turned the body over and found another wound
on theb>ick; then went and brought down the legs and arms, and
found they corresponded witli the body; then sent lor some wo-
men, and Mrs. Gittinger came; asked her if she knew Mrs. Horn
WAseticienfe; she said she was ; thought that body was in the same
condition; the mud of the gully was a kind of slimy mud, not
exactly yellow, n(5t black ; that upon the limbs was of the same
kind; the liole from which they supposed the limbs were taken
seemed to have been quite fresh opened ; as if opened the night
before; the same kind of mud was upon the clothes ; the field was
a clover-field and orchard ; the soil upon the surface in the tield and
'surrounding country is of a different kind and color from the gully
mud. In the house found Horn's clothing and shoes— same kind
of mud on them ; the shoes were mois^ and muddy; found i)art
in back room, part in front; shoes under the counter; a bucket of
water, discolored with the same sort of mud, was found in the en-
try ; a basin of the same muddy water, as if bands liad been washed
in it, was found in the store; [the bags and clothes spoken of pro-
ducetl ; that in which the liml)s wore found is marked " A. Horn,"
with certain private marks ; the waistcoat exhibited, marked with
mud ;] witness saw Horn wearing it on the Sunday night before
he left; [a piece of striped linsey jjroduced, found between the
bed and sacking, worn by Mrs. Horn as an apron, considerably
stained with blood;] witness found the ])iece of linsey himself;
saw nothing of Horn on the Monday; through his house and
ground ; he was not there; knew Malinda Horn ; the body found
was about the size of that of deceased, as near as witness could
judge; searclied for the heal all about; tort* up a fen«'.e, thinking
it might be in the post holes; dug all al)out t!ie gu-den and other
places ; the hand was marked with a heavy bruise, as if it had de-
fended a blow off; knows of no other woman having disappeared
from the neighborhood ab(tut that time ; found dried apples and
peaches up stairs in back room of the front building ; several bush-
els ;there was a pile of plaster in tlie back room up stairs, where
the limits were found ; they were close to the pile; there was a
mark on the floor, as if the body had l>een laid down there ; sup-
posed it had been cut up there ; this room was at the head of the
back stairs ; this stain was about the size of a human being, -and a
100 CHAMPAIGN AND
body cut up and salted there would likely have made such a stain ;
it was a greasy sort of a mark, such as a pickle or brine always
makes.
The condition of the goods in the store was in the usual form after
Horn had fled; abwut$400 or $oOO worth of goods were there; the en-
try door and the door that leads into the store were open; there was
no one left in charge of the house and store; the house is imme-
diately on the turnpike ; the body was in a good state of preserva-
tion ; looked us if it had been salted ; there was no bh;od visible ;
one of the thighs appeared as if a peice of steak had be -n cut off of
it; witness had a coffin made, sent for her sister and a j)rea('her, and
had the body buried in the burial ground on the next day, the 18th
of April ; the body was again taken up ahout ten or twelve days
after, for a post mortem examination ; when it was dug up it smelt
a little but very little, and was in a good state of preservation ; the
orchard in which the spade was found was not used for any agri-
cultural purpose ; Horn had been at work building fense along the
turnpike, about two-hundred yards distance; witness thinks for
the purpose of preventing easy ingress to the spot where the body
was buried ; the nature of the soil where he was digging for the
fence would not have made the same stain on the clothing found,
as that v/hich was on it. When hes^iw him at the jail in Philadel-
phia, he reached his hand towards him, and said to hin, "My God,
Mr. Horn, must I meet you here! we have found the legs and
arms of Mrs. Horn at the head of the stall's, and the body you, I
suppose, know where ; and you Ought to pray to God to forgive
you of your sins ;"that the prisoner looked at him but did iu)t say
a word, nor did he shed a tear, but seemed to be endeavouring to
smother his feelings.
Cross-examined by Mr. Mayer. — Horn passed my door Isefore
sunrise in the morning ;did not say he iiad gone up to Storech's;
soon after that Mr. Gittinger came an«i told witness that Horn's
wife had left him on the previous evening ; and he replied it was a
bad night for any one to leave home ; it was on the 2yd day of
March that he told witness his wife was missing, and it was about
the 17th day of April that the body was found: saw the spade at
the tree on Good Friday ; Horn went away on Easter Sunday, and
there had been considerable talk in the neighborhood as to his
wife l»eing missing ; when 1 saw the spade 1 wondered if he had
been planting trees; I looked whether he had, and I found that he
LO(JAN^COUNTIIS. 101
had not; Horn was attending: to his business quietly and composedly
all this time ; Horn came on Good~Friday 'evening to his house,
and offered to pay him $10 out of the S50 he owed him ; he replied
that that would do him no good, as he wanted it all to ])ay his
rent ; did not examine his house very closely for stains of blood,
but was looking about for the remainder of the body ; I saw a large
^tain upon the floor up stairs some time after ; some of the neigh-
urs called my attention to it ; I came to the conclusion that it
was salt, and that the body had laid there and salt thrown on it
on account of the weather being too bad to dispose of it at the time
it was killed : the stain on the floor was in the form of a body ; the
stain is still there ; smelt it, and it smelt like brine; it was dry,
I could smell it; there was no fancy about it, as I do not snuff; I
took for granted that the body had not been buried ; when I saw
him in Philadelphia I aslced him if he could pay me what he owed
me ; I asked him in the presence of tne jailor ; I was ordered to
Philadelphia by Squire Bushey to identify the prisoner ; the mark
on the spade by which I knew it, was a label pasted on the handle;
all spades have not that mark ; it was a mark such as is put on by
the maker, a label.
Cross-examined by Mr, Buchanan. — I first became acquainted
with the prisoner in the, month of May, 1842, when he came to my
house to board ; he had been living in the neighborhood before, but
I did not know him; he lived with me until the 16th or 17th of
August, when he got married to Malinda, and he and his wife
stayed with me until the end of August, when they went to live
at the house where hLs store was; Mrs. Horn was missed on the
night of the 22d of" March, and on the morning of the 23d, the
prisoner passed my house before sunrise ; I did not see where he
went ; on the same day about half an hour afterwards I learned
that his wife was missing; did not go to his house or see him that
day ; but saw him the next morning, the 24th ; saw him on the
porch at the house ; I did not speak to him after his wife was mis-
sing until the 3d of April.
[A question was here put to the witness by Mr. Buchanan, as to
the conversation of the prisoner, which was objected to by Mr,
Steele ; but as the objection was afterw ards waived by the prose-
•ution, it is unnecessary to detail it. The cross-examination was
accordingly resumed.]
We met together as stated, for the first time after she was miss-
10:^ CHAMPAIGN AND
ing, 1)11 the 3d of April, in his store; after I had taken my seat I
asked him for the fifty dollars he owed me ; he told me that his
wife had runoflfand taken fifty dollars with her, and consequently
he could not pay me; I then asked him about his wife leaving- him,
and he told me that she got up io the night whilst he was asleep,
alongside ot her, and when she went out of the door he woke up
and went to look after her, but not seeing her, he went to bed
again. I then told him that there was soine rumor or suspicion
afloat among the neighbors, to the effect that he had killed or
made away with his wife. The prisoner, clapping his hands ou
his knees, i-eplied, "My God, you don't say so! How could the
people think so?" I then told iiim if he could prove there was no
foundation in the rumor, that he might still consider me his friend ;
if not, I was done with him. 1 then proposed that he should sub-
mil the house to be searched, in order to satisfy me as well as the
neighbors, to which he expressed himself willing. He then said
tome, "Ah, Mr. Poist, you know much;" to which I replied,
"Why, you do not suppose 1 have had anything to do with, or
know anything about your wife?" He replied, "No ; but another
man is the cause of all this." I then advised him to stop the stage
driver, and question him as to whether he had seen her, shortly
after which I went home. I had not been home long when the
stage came past, and I saw him stop the stage and speak to the
driver. I then returned to his house and asked iiim whether th(^
driver had seen her, and he said that he had not. I di,d not search
the house, however, until the body was found. Storech, who has
since killed himself, was one of the four who were out gunning,
and first discovered the body. He Avent with them to the spot
where they thought the body was, and one of them jjointed out
the print of a shoe to him in the clay, but is certain it was not
Storech ; it was Storech, however, who said that the print of the
shoe was that of Horn's, as he knew the shoe and had made it ; I
then took the spade and threw up some of the dirt, when I discov-
ered a bag, and thinking that some one had buried a sheep there,
and that we would be laughed at, 1 took my knife and cut it open,
and the breast of a female was visible. (Witness then proceeded
again to detail his examination of the premises around Horn's
house, and his gathering the people together.) On going into the
house I found a stain on the stairway, which I thought was stained
by apples, but the others thought it was blood ; did not say that
LOCtAN COl'XTIES. ]();!
the large stain on the floor ia the form of a body was not blood ; I
said nothing about it at the time; I did not come to the eonelu-
sion that the large stain was blood; the apron was found in the
house about ten days after she had been found; does not know
that that part of the house where the apron was found had been
searched before ; found the apron in the front building between
the bed and the sacking-buttoni ; nobody went into the house with
me; did not see any mark that he was certain was blood until the
apron was found ; had never seen the body naked until they had
joined the limbs to it on a plank ; would not know your body or
my own if 1 saw it cut or mangled in that way ; could not recog-
nize the body ; lias no certain persona/ knowledge what became of
Malinda Horn ; she had left her husband once and went up in tlie
neighborhood of liittlestown ; she was gone some six weeks ; sJie
had left some of her clothes up there and had wanted to go again
after them ; that Horn was at my house and saw the st^^ge at hi.s
door, and he ran out and stopped it and took hi^ wife out, and
made her go home ; she never went away again until she went
finally.
In Chief. — I proposed to the prisoner that he snould alhjw the
house to be searched, and he consented ; the snow was then off
the ground ; he did not pro])ose to have a search, but said they
might search if they came ; the spots on the stairs he thought
Mere not blood ; that after the floor had been scrubbed the blood
was visible on the large stairs ; when the deceased left the house
of Horn the first time thinks he said nothing to him about it,
though he might.
Henry Bushey, Esq., was called upon to come to Horn's house
on the 17th of April, by Mr. PoIsl's son, who told him that they
had found the body ; that he went up with two or three neigh-
bors, and went immediately to the lot and saw the trunk of the
body ; that the boy eame to him from the house and told him to
come up, that they had found the rest of the body ; that he went,
and Mr. Poist showed him the bag, and he directed him to cut it
open, and the legs and arms were found in it ; that he then sum-
moned a jury, and brought the body to the house, and after plac-
ing it on a board, joined the artne and legs to it, and they
seemed to correspond ; thinks that it was the body of Malinda
Horn from the size of it ; thought the lady was pregnant ;
saw blood in the house on the next day, on the stei)8, or at least
104 CHAMPAIGN AND
he thought it was blood ; saw the clothes and the mud upon theui,
and the niud on the body and bag correspond in color, as it also
did with the mud in the gully; the dirt about the hole seemed to
have been recently turned up ; the hole would have, contained the
bag with the arms ; a search was then made for the head ; even
the ashes in the fire-place were searched for bones, but none were
found ; on one of the bags the name of A. Horn was written very
legibly ; the body was found, he thinks about three humlred yard-
from the house; the goods were in the store, but no one in charge
of them ; a waistcoat, a sHrt, a roundabout and shoes were found
with the mud upon them; they were in different sections of the
house; a bucket and a pan with water in them were found in the
store, discolored the same as the earth where the body was found
would have discolored it, as if something had been rinsed in tiiem ;
(the witness here identified the two bags in which the parts of the
body had been found, as well as the clothes;) the hands were
bruised as well as the shoulders and back ; he did not discover any
other marks on it.
Benj. Caughy, sioorn. — [Bag produced in which the limbs were
found.] Has seen that bag before ; saw it last on the last day of
May, 1842 ; sold it to Horn ; the marks on the bag I put on ; "A.
Horn," "155," for so many pounds, and "11" for so many cent^
per pound; they are to the best of my opinion my marks; they
correspond with the book and my hand-wiiting.
Mrs. Oittinger, sworn. — Knew Malinda Horn from August, 1842,
till the 23d of March, 1843, the time of her disappearance; had
seen her barefooted every day, from the time she came into the
neighborhood until it was cold weather ; my house is about a hun-
dred yards from Horn's ; Mrs. Horn was, '^t the time of her death,
"in the family way;" she expected to be confined about the hist of
August ; saw the body that was found ; it was in a pregnant
state ; the feet of Malinda were very peculiar ; they tapered off
very much in consequence of the great length of the big toe ; there
was a little knot or lump by the joint of the little toe ; from these
peculiarities I know the feet were thosaof Malinda Horn; she one
time went away and left her husband six weeks ; at that time she
came to my hoase and said she was going away ; I said, "My, la I
Malinda, what are you going away for? — you've got everything
comforhible around you, and a good home ; what Ls the reason you
(an't stay?" "Oh,'^ she said, "you don't know how it is; if I
LOGAN COUNTIES. 106
don't go he'll kill me!" Witness .^said, "How would he look, kill-
ing you?" Malinda said, "If he don't kill me, he'll break my
heart." "Well, then," I said, "you may as well go." Before she
left home that time, some four days, she had been to see a sick old
man ; on going home she stayed a minute or two, and then came
to my house and told her sister that Horn had turned her out ;
could see from my house her clothes thrown out of the window ;
Horn afterwards said to witness that his wife was good for nothing,
and that was the reason she went.
Cross-examined by Mr. Mayer.— Tha time when Mrs. Horn first
went away was a few days before* Christmas, 1842; she came back
after being aw ay six weeks ; came to my house, and I went with
her to Horn's, and said, "Here Horn, I've brought your old wo-
man bade ;" he nL'Vv>r looked up, and as thoy didn't seem U) say
anything, I was going away ; she asked me not to go ; she went up
to the counier and bought kisses and pins ; Storech was there, and
said it was a shame she should i)ay for the things ; she was then
going away with me, when Horn said, "Where are you going to?"
Malinda .said, "I am going where I have been ;" Horn told her t<;
come back ; she said, "I shan't;" I persuaded her to go back t^;
the old man, and she went. It was then about dusk, and she
stayed until 9 o'clock, and then came to my house and slept with
me that night ; next day they made it up between them somehow ;
heard no more of any difficulties between them; but she always
eaid she was afraid Horn would knock her down ; she never said
he had done it, or .struck her at all ; never knew what the difier-
encewas; after .she came back she didn't tell of any particular
quarrel; she was afraid to tell, she said, for fear it should come
out; when she went away she was trembling; he treated her hui-
flshly at the best of times; never hoard him curse her, or threaten
her.
Catherine Hinkle, stvorn.—I am the sister of Malinda Horn. On
Sunday, the 16th ..f April, went to see Mr. Horn on aecnimt of m v
8i.ster ; he was silting on the back porch; I called to him and he
came to the front door; asked him where Malinda was; he did not
answer at first, but api>eared much confused; then said he did !i(;t
know where she was; he said she had left home about bedtime ;
asked him whether she went away before she went to bed ; he re-
• plied that he had gone to bed, but she had not; that she went out
of the front door as he came through the room, having hear. 1 her
y
106 CHAMPAIGN AND
move about ; that he did not see which way she went ; said they
had DO falling out on that ni^ht, hut they had a few days before ;
told him I did not thinlc she could get away on such a bad night
art that was, and he didn't make any reply ; --isked him where her
clothes were, and he said she ha.l taken all but two dresses ; he re-
fused to give them to me, and said she might have them herself if
she would come for them, and I replied that I thought she would
never come for them ; told hiin he had accused her of being inti-
mate with other men, but that it was not so, as he would never
allow her to spealc to any man wiiiiout getting angry ; to which
he made no reply; when I left liim I went to Mr. Gittenger's
house, and his little daughter was' present, and I told them that I
wanted to see Mr. Gittenger, as I thought there wa.s a great <^hange
in him, and that he had made way with my sister, and I was going
to 'Squire Bushey to have a se^^rch made. The change I allude to
is, before that he had been more sociable and friendly, and that
now he would hardly speak to me or look at me. It was about
12 o'clock on Sunday when I ctll d at his house ; did not tfll him
any thing about getting a search warrant. I was at Horn's house
on the 17th of December, before (hirk, and went to church with
Malinda; when we came back, he commenced running her down,
and said she was too young for him, and abused her, and said that
she liked other men better than she did him, and was very angry;
next moD.ing I went to church with her again, and she was con-
firmed ; it was a prolracted meeting ; when she went home I went
to Mrs. Gittinger's, and she came over and said the old man had
thrown her clothes out to her and would not let her in ; I then
went over with her, and he said I might come in, but that she
should not ; she tried to get in, bui he pushed her out, and said she
should never come in his h >usf agai;^; it was about 12 o'clock on
the 18th of Decern ber. When she was at Littlestown Horn came
to me and said if I would send for her he would try and do
better than he had done before ; after a -few weeks I wrote her a
letter and told her what H »rn had said, but did not advise her to
come back to him ; when she camw back she staid at Mr. Gittin-
ger's all night, and said she woul I try and please him. When he
turned her out on the Sundav he s dd she should never cqme back,
as she thought more of other men th m she did of him ; I told hiin
that he rmght not to treat her so, p trticularly while she was attend-
ing meeting.
LOGAN OOUNTIBS. 107
A singfular circumstance, collaterally connected with the murder
of Malinda Horn, is the suicide of Storech, who was the neighbor
and fripnd of the murderer, and wa.sone of the gunning party who
found the body in the hole. To Storech it appears that Horn had
deeded away his property, and we have every reason to believe
that if this man had not made away with his own life previous to
the trial, his evidence would have brought to light some secrets in
regard to the motive.^ of the murder that must now remain forever
buried.
The trial lasted one week— the prisoner was ably defended by
his counsel, Jas. M. Buchanan, Chas. F. Mayer, Chas. Z. Lucas,
and John I. Snyder, Esqrs.; and on Monday, 27th of November,
the arguments closed, and the case was sumitted to the jury, who
were instructed to find the prisoner " guilty," or " not guilty,"
and if " guilty," to find the grade of guilt. A bailiff being sworn,
the jury retired to their room, and after an absence of about ten
minutes, returned into court.
The prisoner was then placed in the bar ; he took a position
merely resting against the seat, standing on the lower step, and a
sort of languor seemed to pervade his frame.
The Clerk then asked, " Gentlemen of the jury, have you agreed
upon your verdict?"
The foreman replied, " We have."
*' Who shall saj^ for you ?"
A juror answered, as usual, "Our foreman."
"How say you; is Adam Horn, the prisoner at the bar, guilty
of the matter whereof he stands indicted, or not guilty ?"
The foreman replied, in a distinct voice, Guilty.
Tne sanctity of the court room was instantly violated bj^ a spon-
taneous outburst of applause, consisting of stamping of the feet
and cheers ; and a constant succession of loud raps from the ivory
hammer of the Judge, and the vigilance of the bailiffs, were in-
sufficient to restore order for several seconds. As soon as silence
again prevailed, his Honor, Judge Magruder, remarked that he
would send any one to prison who should be detected in such a
breach of decorum, and hoped that every one would consider the
solemnity of the occasion.
Mr. Berryman, the clerk, thea demanded the grade of the
.guilt.
108 (CHAMPAIGN AND
MURDER IN TUB FIRST DEWHKB.
The (.•oun^^el for the defence then asked that the jury sho\ild Ik?
polled. The jury were accordingly each caHo'l sepHr«tely,iind rose as
they were called, deliverins,'- their anRwerK standing, in the follow-
intr manner:
J. B. H. Fulton.
Mr. Fulton, who was the foreman of the jury, rose.
" Look upon the prisoner at the bar. How say you, is Ad'»m
Horn guilty of the matter whereof ho stands indicted, or not
guilty?'
"guilty of mukdek in the first derbeb."
And so with the rest.
Tlie prisoner, who had manifested throuj^houtthe whole of these
Holenm proceedings the same stoicistn which characterizf'd Ins gen-
eral denortment, with-the exception of a slight flush which passed
over his cheek at the word " guilty," was then conducted from the
bar by•^fr. Tracy, the Sheriff, and Mr. Sellers, the warden of the
jail, lie was shortly afterwards c<jn<lucted throuj^h the library,
under a large official escort, hut the crowd was so dense witliout
the court room, down the steps, in the lower portion of the build-
ing, and extending down tlie lane to the carriatre, that it was oidy
with great difficulty they could force their passage. They f.nally
succeeded in getting the prisoner into the van ; and it drove off
amidst the hootings, cheers and execi'ations of the surrounding
multitude.
On the 4th of December 1843, the prisoner was brought into
CJourt to receive the awful doom of the law ; and in the midst of a
crowd of witnesses of the solemn scene, the pris(.ner being first
asked whether he had any thing to say why sentence of death
should not be pronounced against him, and 8i<j;nifying that he had
nothing to say, the Honorable Richard B. Mngruder, who presi-
ded alone at the trial pronounced the sentence, that he be taken to
the jail of Baltimore county, from whence he came, and fnin
thence to the place of execution, atsuch time as shall be duly ap-
pointed, and there be hanged by the neck until he be dead.
This unhappy criminal has been ordered for execution on Friday,
liOirAN (X)UNTIKS. 109
tJie I2th of January, beforethe h-air of 12 o'clock nt noon, the death
warrant having been received by Mr. Trac^y, the sheriff on Satur-
day nii^ht, an emendation liuvinsr been made according to the pro-
visions of the act of Assembly of 1809. It was deemed by some of
the tjentienicn of the bar timt tlie orijjfinal warrant was legal, the
law contemplating twenty days between the judgment of the (^ourt
and the day of execution, and the judgment of tlie court beintr al-
ways recorded within four days after tht* verdict, although sentence
may not be delivered at the time. Tiio verdict was rendered on
t.e 27tli of November, ajui tiie judgment ueci'ssarily recorded
according to law, as soon as the 1st Dec< ruber; the 22d instant
would therefore ent brace twenty <!lear days. There is, however, a
difference of opinloi) on the subject, not to be regretted, since, lean-
int; to mercy's side, the Governor hiis added three weeks to the
life of the wretched culprit, which suitably improved, will better
prepare iiim for the awful change he must undergo.
The following is a copy of the death warrant :
^'■Tke State of Maryland to the. Sheriff of Ball'vmore County, greetiiig :
"Whereas Adam Horn, othervvise called Andrew Helittmn, late
of Baltifnore county, was convicted iv the county court of Balti-
more county, at November term, A. I). 1848, of the murder of one
Malinda Horn, and the said court sentenced him to be hung by the
neck until he be dead ;
"Now, therefore, these are to will and re(juire, as also to charge
and command you, that on or before twelve of the clock, on P^iday,
the 12th day of January next, you take the said Adam Horn,
othervvi.se called Andrew Hellinaii, from your prison and safely
convey to the gallows in the county aforesaid, the place of execu-
tion of malefactors, anti there the said Adatn Horn, otherwise called
Andrew Hellman, hang i)y tlie n(!ck until he be dead : For all
whicii this shall be your suflficient power and authority.
"Given under my hand, and the Great Seal of the State of Mary-
- — * — > land, the 6th day of December, in the year of our
1 «W4T I I^*^^*"^' 1843, and of the Independence of the United
( ^^'^^'- 1 States the sixty-eighth.
(Signed) Fhan(Ms Thomas.
By the GjV'rnor:
Jno. C. LKQitAiSD, Secretary of State."
110 CHAMPAIGN AND
The foregoing has been extracted from the columns of the Balti-
more Sun, and the publishers vouch for its correctness. Since the
report of the trial, &c. appeared in the paper, a confession by Horn
has been published, which abounds so much in partial statements
and gross misrepresentations, that in jus- ice to the memory of his
victims, as well as to the public, we have copied from the >Sun the
following review, which fully exposes the unfairness of the Con-
fession.
A REVIEW OF ADAM HORN'S CONFESSION.
SHOWING ITS
Falsehoods, Omissions and Prevarications.
[ BY ONE OF THE PEOPLE. ]
When it was first publicly announced that Adam Horn was
about to make a full confession of his crimes, and that it would be
forthwith published, a suspicion immediately seized the public
m'iifl that tht^ proaiised expose would be unsatisfactory — that the
publication nf it l)efore his death was intended to change the tide
of public opinion that had set against him, and perhaps procure
an amelioration of his lawful punishment. The perusal of the
confession has tended rather to confirm these suspicions, whilst the
tone of enmity and vindictive feeling evinced toward the mem-
ory of his murdered victims, falsely traducing tiji ... ;t;- they lay in
their graves, in an effort for his own vindication, ha^., ii possible,
rendered him more odio^is than before. The keen eye of public
scrutiny has weighed every word that be has uttered, and the mo-
tive can be traced throughout, c early showing it to be a studied
effort to excite a feeling of pity in behalf of the murderer; and,
did not his assertions bear the imjiress of 'alsehood on their face,
such might have been the imjireesion produced. If his story is to
be believed, he has been a mar. of proverbial gocd disposition,
112 CHAMPAIGN AND
proiH' to yield everything for peat-e :5nd nuiet, wliilst his whole
Jife has been embittered by an unfortunate^, union in the tirst place
with an unftuthful and cievilish woman, and in the second with
one equally evil disposed, and prone to violate her marriage vows.
Verily, if such were the case, he would, indeed, be worthy of pub-
lic sympathy, and none would be more willing to yield it to hin>,
with all the benetits liiat might accrue therefrom, than the writer
of this communication. The character of his first wife has, how-
ever, been fully vindicated in the sketch of " his life, character
and crimes," given to the public through the columns of the Sun,
which will live long after her murderer an<l traducer has met his
deserts. Sad, indeed, has bee?i her lot on earth, and she richly de-
serves "Peace to her ashes." After living for eighteen years in
constant. unhappiness, accompmieci by relentless torture and mis-
ery, deprived of all the comforts of social lif«>, she wst^^ hurled
headlong and unprepared into eternity, by that iiand that wa.s
pled).-ed to protect her ; and now, aft(^r the lapse of several years,
we tind him again using his bloodstained hands to record all man-
ner of evil to her memory, and to traduce, vilify, and blacken her
character, as one whose sad fate should be unlamonted. The char-
acter of Malinda Horn has also been fully vindicated from his last
malignant and cruel attack, by your faithful record of the evi-
dence adduced on the trial. From the mouths of a "host of wit-
nea-^et," we there have (he most conclusive proof of the falsity of
his charges, establishing her character for virtue, fidelity, piety,
suf>mission, and kindness of heart, far above the efforts of his vin-
dictive arm to blacken it.
The high character of his legal friends and advisers, to whom
this confession was made, at once clears them from any implica-
tion of joining in the palpable designs of the erinjinal, f)ut that
they did not advise him to a differ.-^nt course and thus save him
from adding perjury to his other crimes, is a matter of general
surprise. The old saying that " a drowning man will catch at a
straw," is fully verified in this confession, and that same cunning
which led him tv) smear the blood of his first victim over his per-
son, in order to substantiate bis story, has undoubtedly led him to
disregard both truth and honor in hi-; abortive effort to palliate his
crimes, and excite the sympathy of the public in his favor.
Whilst the tenor and spirit of the conf-ssion, as well as its earlj
publication, fully sustains this construction :is to the motive of the
LOGAN COUNTIES. HZ
cririiin'ril, the plnin manner in which it is drawn up clearly shows
that iiis intentions were not cortimunioated to, or entert^iined by,
his lejj^-al fri^Mids.
The objector this eom-iumication is not to crush the fallen, or to
strike a blow at the deteaseless, but rather to protect from the foul
toii<?ue of slander and fKisehood those who are mouldering in un-
timely graves. To shield the memory of the dead is the duty of
all who h:ive it in their power, but it is doubly incunibetit in a case
like the present, w!)eti the deceased are of that sex whose charac-
ter is doirer to them than life, and who would d:n>btless, whilst
livintr, ratlier have submitted willingly to their unfortunate fates,
than have surrendered their claims to virtue and purity of life.
Having, therefore, from undoubted sources, become acquainted
witli facts — stubborn and uni-ontroverfcible facts — I feel called oa to
srand forth in tlieir defense, and if,in so doing, falsehood is stanfped
on this confession, and its author be followeci to the gallows with-
out one sympathizing heart m the train, no more than justice will
be done to tiie memory of his helpless victims.
With regard to the first pirt of the confession, as to hi« early life
in Germany, nothing new is detailed— it is only a repetition of his
own representations in former daysj as fully detailed by you in the
tSun two weeks since. Whether it be true or false, rests solely be-
tween him and his God, and the fearful reckoning will shortly be
made. But his iiistory, from thetimeof his arrival in this country,
in the detail of the murder of his two wives, of which suificient
had previously been known to render a confession unnecessary, I
will prove him guilty of so many falsehoods, prevarications, and
omissions to detail so manj important matters, chat the rest of the
confession, whicii cannot bf^ touched for want of information, must
be consi<iered equally void of truth.
From tlie time of his t)irfcij, up to Lis marriage witii Mis.s Mary
Abel, he represenus himself as po33e.';sed of every good quality of
both head and heart; and he would then have U'? believe that he
entered tiie marriaije contract as a lamb goes to the slaughter — that
he was always disposed to do well, andshe to do evil — that he was
industrious and she was lazy — that he was mild and kind in hia
disposition, and she was cross, stubborn and morose; in short, he
w'>uld have us believe that she was a very devil, and that he was
as kind as an angel. He does not, however, tell us h .w he slighted
and neglected her immediately after marriage, which was tho
114 CHAMPAIGN AND
case; he does not tell us that, when she becairie enciente with her
second child, and during the wliole time of laer pregnancy, when
she was in that weakly condition which commands kindness from
the vilest of creation, he continually taunted her with being un-
faithful to him, denied that the child she bore was his, and de-
nounced her in the strongest terras as a harlot. If, as he says, she
ha 1 afterwards been unhappy, sullen, and morose, she had here
cause enough, in all conscience, to make her so. But such was not
the case. Her whole life was one of fear and trembling. So
tyrannizing was his disposition, and bitter his temper, that, like
his second victim, she was afraid to speak aloud in his presence;
whilst those very children, whom he now calls his dear offspring,
were kept in rags, one of them was totallj^ disowned, and all of
tham strangers to kindness or love from their father. The love he
now professes for his "dear son Henry," the disowned, must be a
new-born passion, that has never b«fore been visible, and which
will not now, at this late hour, I should think, be reciprocated. It
is now the son's turn to disown the father, and most thoroughly
should he do it.
Again, he does not tell us that on the birth of his third and last
child, John Hellman, when the poor heart-broken mother wag
Ij'ing, weak and emaciated from her sufferings, that he approached
her bed, and with oaths and imprecations swore that " if she ever
had another child he tcould kill her^ From the day that this Jior-
rid threat was made, the poor mother determined to use the only
means in her power to prevent its consummation, and from that
time to her death she had rjo more children. On the night of her
murder Henry Hellman was absent, they were alone together, for
the first time, and the reader can imagine the scene as well as the
cause which led to the bloody drama th»t ensued.
Had he detailed these facts, It would have spoiled the amiable
and inoffensive character which he had laid out for himself, and
have shown h'.m to the world as he is, in his true character, grasp-
ing, miserly, tyrannical, unfeeling and fiendish in his temper and
passions, consequently they were entirely withheld. There is an
evident desire to justify liimself throughout the confession, to
make it appear that he had suffered and forborne until "forbear-
ance ceased to be a virtue," and had then rid himself of the evil
spirits which had rendered his life so miserable and unhappy.
We can discover no remorse, no sorrow or contrition for his
LOGAN COUNTIES. 115
crimes, no prayer for forgiveness from an offended God, but it is
■all self-justification, and a person on perusin<^ it cannot but imag-
ine that the heart that dictated it must have exclaimed to itself :r.
"Well done I I have served them right? " Not the sli!<:htest in-
dication of regret appears, even when contemplating tho forfeit of
his own lite for his crimes, but he seems, on the contrary, to think
'that this is nothing in comparison with the satisfaction receivecS
from their committal.
His description of the murder of his first wife is glossed over ia
its details, and none of the real horrors of the scene are at all
jnentioned. He speaks of striliino; lier but twice, and then cutting,
her throat, whereas the fact is, her body displayed fourteen di*-
iinct woundg, besides the bruises on her hands, and the forefinger
of the right, and the little fingpr of the left hand being broken..
Accordincr to the appearance of the room and tiie body, the con-
test must have been a fif-ree and determined one. The large quan-
tity of blood in the bed clearly gives the lie to his as%rtion thaS'
she was awake and getting up when he attacked her, whilst thC'
sprinkling of the blood in all sections of the room, and the num-
ber of her wounds plainly indicates that she was not despatched
so quickly as he has "confessed." To inflict so many wound*
lime must have been required, and the suffering of his victiret
must have been intense. He then tells us that he bruised his head;
and back and went to bed, but he says nothing about smearing hm
blood over his head and j)erson, to give credence to his story — an^
instead of giving the true cause which excited him to tho cona-
sjnittal of the murder, he has evidently fabricated another relatives'
io his wife's charging him with beingthefather of his nephew, who,,
it will be remembered, even according' to his own story, had beeu
then long absent front his roof. It heinj.'. tlms evident that he has
disregarded truth, and omitted iiuportant facts in relation to the
first murder, may it not be equally presunicd ihat the array of
" startling facts,''^ which, according to the preface, " illustrates the
soundness of the injunction, that in the infirmity of man's judg-
ment such circumstantial testimony may shed a false light, ancJ
lead into fatal fallacies, and that therefore the most anxious caution
in receiving and weighing it should ever be used." are equally
false and unfounded in the second. There are some things, how-
ever, in his detail of the cjuise and the manner of the murd 'r of
Malinda Horn, which we shall also l>e enabled to stamp with false-
nr, CHAMPAIGN AND
hood, and IhtMi'fore the remainder of th^ confe.ssidn may be con-
sidered equally v<«id of truth. But we are digressing.
He then stat'.s t ) us t!i:\t h'- wis thrown in jail at B?Ilefontaine,
anl having' tiled the hobhieotf one leg, made hi.s escape, carryinsj
Ihem in his hand-; but he <h)es not say who assisted hiin in his
,.^^.;H,e— by whom the hobble was tal<en oflfof the other leg—
who it was that sold him the horse— who visited him in his cell'
prior to his escape. Thes^- matters as he is aware, have br-en much
discussed in IJellefontaine, anil na<nes have been haudie 1 in the
controversy, but he remains wholly silent on the subject. If his
confession were a fall and a true one, this would not be thi- case ;
nothing would be withheld, and those wholly under the foul im-
putation, if innocent, woul<l have been exonerated from the charge.
But he tells usevf-ry thing which is known, and artfully conceals
that which justice requires should be disclosed. On the heads of
those who thus shielded and protected him from the punishment
due his fii^^t offence, rests a fearful responsibility, and they are
equally guilty, in a moral ])oint of view, with him who is con-
dennif-d to suffer death for the murder of his second victim ! Yes,
her blood is on their heads, and on the fearfal day of judgment God
will require them to account for it. If it iia<l not been for their
assistance, she would cloubtlnss yet have been living, surrounded
by relatives and friends, wliilst her murderer would have met the
doom which >/0M' awaits him, two years ago in Ghio. These are
stubl)orn facts, which are recommended to the serious i-eflection
and t'onftideration of those concerned.
With reference to his detail of the murder of his second wife
there are few who will believe, after reading the evidence of the
host of re^spectal -le witnesses, that she, a young and defenceless
female alone and in his power, and acquainted with tlu* violence
of his temper, would have dared to call him a liar, or even to
quarrel with him. Can it be believed that she, who was in constant
dread of her life, and was aiVaid to spesii^ aloud in his presence,
could have mustered sufficient courage, when he wasalmost burst-
ing with rage, to have called him a liar? The asi^ertion is prepos-
tennis, and h.ar.s on it the impress of falsehood. Nor has any one
lieeu found credulous enough tobelieve thatthebruiseson the hands,
the breast, the shoulder and the back, resulted in any other way
than by blows inflicted at the same time that those which caused
her dcatli were given. A man who had gone through such a scene
LOGAN COUNTIES. 117
of horror as he confesses, at a previous day, would not have struck
a blow, and repeated it, without know^ingand contemplating what
would have been its effect. He was, from experience, skilled and
practiced in the force of the blow required on the humm head to
cause death, an 1 still he would have us believe that it was almost
the result of accident, not intended, and unpremeditated.
In order to substantiate the charsie of infidelity, and to palliate
the ofi'ense, he states that he had xmderstood she was in the habit
of clandestinely meeting a young man who resided in the neigh-
borhood in the vicinity of his house. From whom had he under-
Btood this, and why was not the person who had given him the
information brought forward as a witness? Could he hav(^ proved
her infidf^lity, it would doubtless have saved him from the gallows,
by changing the character of his offense to murder in the second
degree. But no such person could be found, as it was doubtless a
creature of his own jealous and evil imagination. Any person
who has the slightest doubt as to her fidelity can be satisfied that
it is utterly without ground in truth by calling at the office of Dr.
Dunbar. There will be found the unimpeachable testimony of
God himself in behalf of this murdered and traduced victim, es-
tablishing her virtue and fidelity to her husband beyond the power
of frail man to controvert it.
With regard to the preservation of the body, tlie writer <;f this, for
one, does not believe him when he says that he can not account
for it. After it had been in the cellar for three or four days he
states that he cut off the limbs, and b'lrnt the head, and two or
three days after deposited the body in the bag, and buried it, leav-
ing the limbs under the oven in ^he yard, and they were not buried
for seven teen days. Can it be believed that he would have thus
left the body lying in and about the house, where persons were
constantly visiting, without using some means to prevent it from
smelling? If, as he says, it was preserved by some mysterious
agency, he must have been aware that it would be thus preserved,
or he would never have kept it so long in the house, where it was
constantly liable to lead to his detection. In the course of nature
it would have become very ofiFensive in a few days, which he must
have known, and without using some means for its preservation,
or knowing that it would bo preserved, his confession of the one
fact proves the falsity of the other. If the truth were known, it
would doubtless be found that the body was cut up for the purpose
118 CHAMPAIGN AND
©f enabiinj? him to pack it up in a barrel of brine, in order to pre-
serve it until the disuppeiirance of the snow would enable him to
bury it. Its appearance, even six weelcs after death, indicated
that salt had been applied to it, and few will be so credulous as to
Relieve his assertions to the contrary, particularly when there is-
sue h an apparent motive throughout to conceal the most horrid
features of both acts of the tragedy, in an effort to palliate the crime
and justify in some measure the murderous deeds which he has
aconfessed.
The lantern which induced his sudden flight, may or may not
have been the imagination of his cowardly heart, dreading that
the forfeit of Ins life would be the result of discovery, but be it
what it may It was a most providential visitation, and at the very
, moment above all others, which sealed the guilt on the murderer.
That the whole of this conf-'ssion is a one-sided, partial affair,
glossed over for effect, I think has already been clearly proved, but
there are yet other portions of it which perhaps demand a notice,
before the subject is dismissed. In speaking of the fact of his last
wife having left his house and gone to Littlestown, he whollyr
omits to mention his threats to kill her, as proved on the trial,
which was the cause that had driven her from his house, as well
as his harsh and abusive treatment of her. The fjict of her going
is only mentioned, and that in such a manner as to leave the reader
to infer that his jealousy was not without grounds — tiiat he had
<'ause not only to suspect her, but was confirmed in his suspicions-.
With regard to his protestations of innocence as to the death of
his children, he has told so many other palpable falsehoods that
this is equally liable to be untrue. The denial of the charge, ia
such a confession as this, even if it should be credited here, will-
find few believer^ beyond the AUeghanies, particularly in the regioB
of country where he was personally known. His language respect-
ing the death of his ''dear offspring," whose death he witnessect
without a tear, will rather tend to confirm the suspicious of those
who witnessed their final moments. Suffice it to say, that their
mother, who knew the feelings he entertained for them, suspectedL
him of poisoning them, which opinion was afterwards, and is now,
the universal beliv.*f of the whole neighborhood.
That he has not yet deserted all hopes of life is evident from tha
perusal of his narative, and is also sustained by a conversation hetdi
.toy him a day or two since with the warden of the jail. Whea»
LOGAN COUNTIES. 119
however, the certainty of death approaches, it will be found that
his assumed indifference will fail him, and then, under the guid-
ance of his spiritual teacher, the public may expect from hira a
true and full confession, that will be free from all exprassions of
malice and attempts at self-justification, and having in view his
forgiveness at the bar of God rather than the bar of public opinion,
to which this has evidently been solely addreased.
120 (jyTAMPATGN AND
ANDREW HELLMAN IN OHIO.
The Logan Gazette, of J3ec. 2JJ, puhliRhei! at Belit-fontaine, Ohio,
where Hellman broke jail, and in the immpdiatf neijjhborhomi of
the scene of the first murder, contains a si<et<'h of the "Life, Char-
acter, and Crimes of Andrew Hellman," covering 17 columns of
that paper. The general tenor and facts of the narrative fully cor-
roborate all the particulars of the Ohio tragedy as pul>Iished in the
8un, whilst the opinions nr^pd by "One of the People" against the
truth of that part of his confession which relates to his treatment of
his first wife, &c., are corroborMted. We have extracted such por-
tions of the narrative as go to justify the feeling evinced in defence
of his first victitn, at the request of "One of the People," to show
that no sinister motive guided his pen :
In this confession, which was doubfiess gotten up to influence
the public mind, and perhaps mduce from the Governor of Mary-
land a commutation of his }(unishment, Hellman seems to labor to
render odious the character of his first victim, — to transform the
faithful, devoted and sulfering wiff, into a lewd and fiendish ter-
magant, whose temper nothing could restrain, and no sacrifice could
soften. But, fortunately for her relatives who survive, his m-alice
has betrayed itself, and involved him in several contradictions.
That she may have spoken in her own defence, and for the sake of
the future character of her oifspring. resisted and resented his vile
imputations and unmanly abuse, is highly j>roi)able — most women
would have done the same. And 8h(! should be respected for it —
for her bravery in defending her character and her children from
the infamy he would have heaped upon them, bespeaks a noble
mind and a strong and ardent love for those whom she had borne.
But that she was the fiend he represents — violent and unyielding in
temper, fretful and discontented, loose in her morals, and always
ready to harass and vex him, without cause, is totally at variance
with her character and conduct while residing in this county. —
Here, she was regarded by her neighbors — those who knew her
best and saw her often — as a mild, inoffensive woman, who bore
LOGAN 00XJNTIE8. 121
th« tyranny of her husbani with greit putienc^— who resi^tpxi not,
but for the «ake of peace, endurei, withoat a murm ir, hiriships
and abase. As a housewifeshe was held a raoiel. Hir h3ma was
always clean and tidy, and every thinjf about her was well taken
care of. It is not true, therefore, th ;t she was th^ vixen H lUm m
would make her appear ; and after inquiry of those who knew her
personally, as well as by reputation, we have no hesitation in pro-
nouncing so much of this confession as contains impu.tationsagiinst
her, malicious, willful^ and deliberate falsehoods.
He reached Bellefontaine with his family, in the spring of 1836,
and took a room in the tavern af Mr. Haines, (now occupied by Mr.
M. Smith,) north of town, where they dwelt until the ensuing fall.
And here we cannot oraii to state, as lie has spared no efforts to
traduce the character o*" hi -^ tlrst wife, ail tnirn h^?r m in>;le I, !n>jl(l-
•ring remains from the silent grave, only to dwell upon the f lults
and errors which she possessed in common with the human race,
that his treatment to her while they resided at the tavern of Mr.
Haines, was cruel in the extreme. So violent was he, that without
any apparent cau3e,he would throw chairs or any thing he could lay
his hands on at her; and the family of his landlord were several
times compelled to rescue her from cruelty. We have this from un-
doubted authority — persons who were cognizant of the facts. And
yet, with all the effrontery of a fiend, he hesitates not in hisconfes-
iion to lie to his Maker, and charge the cause of all their differences
upon his wife. Instead of the terrible being he portrayt<, she pre-
sented the appearance of a heart-broken, miserable woman, and so
she was considered by all her neighbors and acquaintances."
Speaking of his attempt to poison his wife, the narrative says : —
After this circumstance there was a manifest change in his con-
duct for the woi-se. He became morose and sullen, and appeared
to his family the incarnation of all that was vile and wicked. Yet,
with his bosom lacerated with the deepest feelings of malice
against his unoffen ling offspring and his unfortunate wife, and the
strongest desire of revenge urging him on, Hellman, in the e^es
of the world, was a moral, u;;)irlght, inoffensive, quiet citizen. No
man, perhaps, in the same sphere of life, possessed a higher char-
acter for morality and honesty. He was j>unctual to his engage-
ments, and scrupulously honest in his dealings. How little did
the world know of that man. WJth what consummate duplicity
10
122 CHAMPAIGN AND
did he conceal from society liie devilisli passions wliich were raging
in hiis bosom. Did we not know, by appalling experience, the
fearful transformation which jealousy can eflfeet in the human
heart, the conduct of this man would present an inexplicable en-
igma.
His children were all three attacked with the scarlet fever as he
confessed, but speaking of this fact the narrative says: —
The sudden death of his children made little or no impression
upon Hellman — none at least that was visible. Soon the suspi-
cion got abroad that the poison prepared for the wife had been ad-
ministered to her children ; and his subsequent conduct, as well as
the testimony of those who saw the sick children, among them
the attending physician, only increased and strengthened those
suspicions? His poor wife and her relatives - - .a to have enter-
• lined no doubt upon the subject, from tho tavc that in a letter to
iheir friends in Virginia, communicating the demise of Louisa and
John, they unreservedly stated that they believed they died by
the bands ot their inhuman father. That opinion still prevails
here, and the bare word of the monster, though spoken Ironi the
scaffold, cannot remove it. Unfortunately, the bodies were not
submitted to examination, for the purpose of ascertaining the
truth. As if by a miraculous dispensation of an all- wise Provi-
dence, Henry, the hated, disowned child, the one most ill-treated,
recovered from his dangerous illness, and was left to his mother.
Here, the cause of truth compels us again to refer to the published
confession of Hellman, and to what he says upon this point. And
though he declares "solemnly, as with a voice from the grave,
where he is doomed soon to lie," that the " imputation is un-
true," we feel authorized to assert, that his declarations in refer-
ence to his children are not founded in truth. He places their
sickness and death in 1841, when in fact they died in 1839 ; and he
states that Dr. Brown, the attending physician, was "with them
until just before they breathed their last," thereby intimating that
their illness was so severe that the Doctor did not leave them un-
til all hope of saving them was gone. Here is a studied misrepre-
sentation, to say the lease. When Dr. Brown was called in, he
found that the children were severely attacked with scarlet fever ;
he attended them for several days ; they were sick about a week,
as Hellman says, but they had survived the worst attack of the
LCK iAN COUNTIES. 12:5
disease, and were so far convalescent that Dr. Browu disconrinued
his re^lar visits. On the last time but one that he visited the
house for the purpos(! of administering to the patients, Mrs. Hell-
aiian followed him out of the dwelling, and anxiously inquired if
there was any hope of their recovery. He assured her that she
?36ed have no fears on the subject, for he entertained no doubt that
they were beyond all danger, and would soon be restored to
giealth.
Dr. Brown was, therefore, greatly surprised when, a day or two
after, he was sent for in great haste, and heard the children were
*iying ; and it is his impre»ssion that one of them expired before,
«f»T shortly after, he reached Hellman's house. He was the more
surprised at the result, from the fact that the dise;ise under which
they suffered is not usually, if at all, attended with such sudden
changps; and acknowledges that without suspecting the father of
-anything improper, he was led to doubt his own judgment in such
<ea.ses. It is pr(»per here to remark, also, that Hellman adminis-
Sered the medicine to his children, his wife not seeming to have a
knack for it, and thus he had every opportunity to administer the
.filial drug. However feelingly he may speak of his "dear child-
ren, " not even the solemnity of a confession, filled as this is with
iEinunierable falsehoods, can now clear him of this charge.
124 CHAMPAIGN AND
EXECUTION OF ANDREW HELLMAN.
This event, which has been looked to for weeks past, ah the eont.---
auramatioa of the penalty due to the com mission of one of thte-
most atrocious murders that ever blurred the character of humaib-
ity, transpired in accordance with the law, at exactly 22 minutes-
before 12 o'clock, meridian, this day, and was witnessed by no(3
less than fifty thousand people, one-fourth of whom were females -
The 'excitement from ati early hour in the morning until the exe*
cutioa took, place, coiilhiued to grow more and more intense, andf
was only relieved at length by the awful scene which was requiredJ
to be enacted, for the satisfaction of the fearfully violated laws-,.
By Wi o'clock, the various streets leading towards the jail, begaas
lo"pre8ent a very uniform appearance of the tendency of passecs*-
gers that way, and even before that hour hundreds of persons oc-
cupied various positions, or stood grouped in conversation withjia?
the immense circle commanding a view of the jail. The gallow*
was erected in the north- .vest angle of the yard, the upper bearat
being not less than fourteen feet above the level of the top of tfefi-
walL It could be distinctly seen from many points in the centraJl
part of the city, and the whole execution was witnessed from sev-
eral windows of the Court-house. As the hour approached, tb»
ways to the prison became thronged with parties who had quitte<#
their avocations and were hastening to the scene ; and the number
of strange faces, indicative of visitors from the surrounding country^.
drawn hither by curiosity, resistless from the startling character
of the malefactor's crimes, was immensely great. The city poure#
out its thousands, and the merchant, the clerk, the lawyer and dS
vine, the industrious mechanic with the soil of labor upon h^
hand3, the pale-faced and sedentary student, the young, and tb.»
old, the matron, the maid, and the wanton, hoyden boys and girla^
the moralist, and the jester, the serious and profane, swelled v!Kg»
the motley multitude to an oceanic flood. "Such is human nt^
tare," we moralized and paused, for^we ourselves had wended osss?
way to the spot, but fouBd a ready excuse io an imperative duiaf;
LOGAN COUNTIES. 126
<s«quiring as to present the details of the day's doings to the eyes of
the multitudinous mass spread out before our gaze. But are thefe
'flo promptings of a Dionysian curiosity within ourselves? we
.'Esked. We could not analyse the feelings with suflncient care to
-©btsiin a satisfactory response. Human nature, however cultiva-
ted, is human nature still.
The view from the top of the jail wa=i of the most interesting
Ifcind, presenting a dioraniic picture of the mcst diversified charac-
^^r it is possible to conceive. Immediately below, the gauut ob-
ject which lifted its skeleton form into the cold air, stood peering
*over the wall upon the vast concourse beyond, itself the center for
-a myriad eyes. Around and about it, conversina^ in subdued tones
^•ere those wlio had obtained by privilege or solicitation, admis-
«ion within the walls, and the ba^y forms of those immediately en-
gaged and interested in the approaching catastrophe occasionally
passing to and fro. Beyond, the great interjacent plain, which had
i3a the morning been a white field of snow, was now thronged with
;an almost compact mass of people, occupying both the hither and
rohither side of the Falls. The elevations upon the north and the
nanky heights of Howard's woods, opposite upon the west, af-
forded facilities to immense numbers, especially of women and
•children. A great many carriages, chiefly crowded with women,
«3)ccupied the line of Belvid^re Road, and some had drawn up
cearertothe wall. The windows of nearly all the hc'uses com-
manding a view of the death scene— a few exceptions forniing a
(^leasing attraction to the eye of the observer— were densely crowded
%y the occupants, their friends and sicquaintancfs. And an unin-
formed traveller who had pussed that way might have look<d on
ifor an hour, and had the gallows escaped hi^ eye, imagined that a
mational jubilee was about to be celebrated, and that the shrine of
oblation was the jail.
But we revert to the more immediate details connected with the
wiminal and the closing scenes of his life. We vit-it(d tlie jail at
^about 9 o'clock in the morning, and found our friend Sellers, the
v/arden, with anxiety and fatigue in the corner of his eye, he hav-
aTig been up all night with his prisoner.
Morn X r 'ell, 10 o'c^ocA.— We have just been admitt* d to the cell
fl«tf thp-d: nmed malefactor. The officers have this moment kno< ked
HjjKtV-^ iron shackles from his legs, hiving been engaged at it son©
]2« CIHAMPAIGN AND
twenty minutes. Horn thpn turned to the fire, stirred it up, sa^f
down and warmed his boots, which stood at the hearth, and pisft
4hem upon his feet. Horn is now in conversation with the rever-
end gentlemen in attendance, Messrs. Sarniiel and Newman. Ilf/-
is evidently conversing with a freedom and ease of mind and ex-
pression that denotes the most perfect composure.
We learn from Mr. Soliers, who was up with him during the-
greater portion of the night, that he remained engaged in reading:
and prayer until about two o'clock in the morning, when he laid
down for about an hour, and appeared to enjoy repose during that
time. He then rose and re-applied himself to devotional exercises-
during the residue of the night. He declined taking any breakfast-
this Tnorning, the only meal, by the way, he has taken for two (w
three weeks past, and from Friday last until Monday, he mairs'-
tained perfect abstinence. He was, however, persuade<l to resum.*'
his morning meal again, lest he should become too weak to sustain
the trying scene of this day unassisted.
Half past 10 o'clock. — The Rev. S. Tuston, chaplain of the U. Sk
Senate, has entered the cell by consent of -the criminal, and the-
reverend gentlemen attending, of course with no purpose of taking
any part in the religious exercises. Horn has continued in inter-
course with tl.e priests, the conversation being earned on in Ger-
man. A few minutes since, Mr. Tracy, the sheriff, cuine into tb&
cell, he having previously visited the prisoner duringthe morning;.,
At'about 20 minutes before 11 o'clock, Mr. Bcrsch and younj™-
Henry Hellman came into the cell. The prisoner directly took th*^
hand of his son and s;iid "Well, Henry," and the youth replied^,
"Well, father ;" it seemed as much as either could say for the mo^
ment. Horn, after interchanging salutation with Mr. Bersch, beck-
oned his son to the table and took up a variety of papers and pam-
phlets tied in a bundle, which with a carpenter's rule he deliveretS
to him ; the package appearing rather loose, Horn took up some-
books, saying "There was a piece of paper here somewhere," arwS
having found it took the bundle again, carefully wrapped it upj,
and delivered it to his son.
They then retired to a corner of the ceil, and had some conversar-
tion together, which we subsequently understood was in relatioK
to the disposition of the body, Horn expressing a desire that his
son, a.s next of kin, wouhJ make a formal demand of it of the sher-
iff. Mr. Bersch wa^ afterwards called up by Horn, and the three
LOGAN COrNTIES. 127
•ontinued the conversation tog-ether, Horn appearing exceedingly
earnest in hie instructions, which related chiefly to the disposition
of his body.
At the close of this conversation, ]N[r. Laws, sheriff's clerk, Mr.
Wilson, deputy sheriff, and Mr. Cook, deputy high constable, ap-
peared, for the purpose of arraying the criminal. His shroud was
produced, and he put it on as composedly as if it had been his daily
garb, assisted by the officers, after which his arms were pinioned
by a small cord passing from each elbow joint, behind him, having
his hand^ free. This being accomplished, the Rev. Tuston took the
prisoner's hand to bid him farewell, he having called for the pui'-
pose of a few minutes conversation with him and his son. Mr.
Tuston, on parting, said to him: "Keep your eye steadfastly fixed
on the cross of the Lord .Jesus Christ, as the only hope of perishing
mortals, and may God have mercy on your soul." The reverend
gentleman the" shortly withdrew from the cell, and returned into
town. The Rev. Mr. Newman, with the prisoner, then occui>ied a
few minutes in prayer during which the tears came freely from the
eyes of the unhappy man.
The minutes now sped rapidly away. Horn entered into spir-
itual converse with the priests, and remaining standing by their
side, manifesting the most wonderful fortitude, and evidently
marvelously sustained by the consolatory hope of happiness be-
yond the awful noon to which the time was fast hastening. »
At half past eleven Mr. Tracey and ^Ir. Sollers came into the
cell, and intimated to the prisoner that the time had arrived.
He instantly rose, and, preceded by the gentlemen above named,
accompanied by the priests, and followed by Mr. Bersch, Henry
HelJmnn, his son, young Mr. Bersch, and those in the cell present
at the time, walked out through the long line of spectators ox-
tending to the gallows.
Having arrived at its f(jot, Messrs. Tracey and SoHm--, the two
clergymen and the prisoner, ascended the steps without any
pause, on the scaffold, a short prayer was said, farewells were in-
terchanged, Horn thankinj; each for their kindness, and then all
retired. At exactly 22 minutes before 12 o'clock the trigger was
drawn, and the unhai)py criminal launched from the platform.
He struggled for about four minutes, when, to all appearance, he
was dead.
THE LOST OHILl^.
An Account of the Extraordinary bufferings oj J<tkti Our I, xSon oj
James Curl, of Chainpaign County, {now Logan County) Ohio,
Aijed Seven Yeora, who toas Lost Eight I>ap':^ in the IVnods,
BY JOHN GARWOOD.
On the 2d day of thP'Btlh mo-nth, in the year 11816, in Champaign
county, (now Loj>-'-in counifcy,) Ohio, it appears that the feelings of
the ptople were greHtly aroused. Search was made, with the ut-
most diligence, far and near, for a child of James Curl, which had
Wfiiideied si^^ay in tine woods, and was in danger of perisluug with
liungtror falling a prey to S'-'vage beasts. At this the pt-uple in
general appeared areatly affected with somounjful a eircuinstan'v,
as to lie deprived of a precious cLild in such a sorrowlul manner,
and since the neiglibors have manifested such an unwearied dili-
gence for the relief of the child, it ia judged that a narrative of
what the child passed through, as near as circumstances will admit,
from the time it wandered from its father's house, until it returned,
mif-'ht be of some satisfaction to the j'uhlie in general. It appears
that the child was about seven years old. It is said this child with
two of his elder brothers, vvemt into ;hc w<-ud8 and amused them-
selves for a time in hunliou wild gooseberries; but his twobrotlnerii
LOGAN COUNTIES. 129
growing weary of their employment, returned home; he continued
wandering: about until ae mistook his way home, and took the
wrong end of the path ; still hoping that he should soon arrive at
«ouip placH that he knew, he was encouraged to press on Until time
and distuncH conviriced him of his sad mistake; for he found him-
self not only bewildered, but in a wilderness, surrounded by wild
beasts, and destitute of father, mother, or any other human com-
forter. After calling uioud for his brothers and getting no answer,
he endeavored to vent his grief by letting fall a flood of tears; but
what greatly increased his horror, night came on, and he had to
take u[) his lodging in a tree top. Grief and terror prevented him
frotii sleeping for the greater part of the night. When morning
appeared he pursued his lonely travel again — hungry and with a
heavy heart. With weary steps he followed the various windings
of a stream called Mill Creek, bearing for a while a south-east
course; northerly crossing the same several times, supposing it to
be Derby Creek, stil! tioping h** should arrive at some house; but
his hopes centered in disappointments; he continued travelmg un-
til night came on. He found nothing to satisfy his hunger save a
few wild onions and gooseberries. He then took the side of an old
log for his shelter, and laid himself down to rest in the dusk of the
evening; but was soon visited by two wild beasts, supposed to have
been wolves, seemingly with the intention of devouring him.
This terrified him much, as one of them came within a yard of
where he was lying, and grinned at him. He then held up hia
little hand against him, having no other weapon to defend him-
self with— at which it seemed the beast laid himself down near
him I Here we may justly conclude that the God who shut the
Lions' mouths, when Daniel (by the king's decree) was cast into
their den, hath in a like manner shut the mouths of those savage
beasts and preserved this infant. This is certainly a miracle, in
our eyes, and may justly lead us to adore that Almighty hand,
which condescends to preserve the innocent when in the most im-
minent danger! Herewesay with the Apostles: — "Lord, increase
our faith, that we may never distrust thy Providence while we re-
tain our innocency ." Here it seen)s those ravenous beasts had not
power to destroy or even hurt this defenceless infant, which no
doubt was their intent, if an overruling hand had not prevented
them ; so that instead of devouring the child, one of them laid
130 CHAMPAIGN AND
himself down peaceably by the Bide of him, seemingly to guard
him, until the child overcome with fatigue had closed his eyes to
sleep. When he awoke in the morninir, he found to his great joy
that his company had deserted him. From this place he appeals
incapable of rendering any correct account of his further daily
travels. We must make use of suppositions in some cases, and we
think that we may, without violence to the truth, suppose that he
continued his course down Mill Creek until ho came to a house in
the woods, supposed to have been a block-house, as the child states
that it was full of holes; but as this was uninhabited by any hu-
man being it afforded no assistance to his bewildered and grievous
condition. From this place we have a risrht to conclude that he
turned pretty much a northerly course, as his little footsteps were
frequently found in that direction, especially on little Mill Creek.
By this time the generous inhabitants appeared greatly alarmed
for many miles round. They turnpd out in great numbers; en-
deavoring to search every hole and corner of a large body of woods,
in order, if possible, to rescue the distressed infant from perishing
with hunger, or from the jaws of devouring beasts. We have a
just right to conclude, from his situation, that he was daily over-
whelmed with tears. He was frequently terrified by the sight of
wild beasts; especially a large black creature that he saw on a log —
supposed to have been a bear. Thus, through fear, sorrow, grief,
and hunger, the infant passed on, between hope and despair.
Sometimes he was afraid that he would never get out of that
dreadful wilderness, but inevitably perish with hunger,
or fall a prey to wild beasvs. At other times the hope re-
vived his spirits that he should find his own home, or some per-
son's house ; which raised a fresh resolution to press through
grievous thickets of bushes, briers and fallen timber, which not
only rent his clothes, but likewise his skin — sometimes climbing
over, and sometimes <!reeping under the fallen timber, for about
three or four miles — a country almost impassible for man or
beast. Thi.-> laborious travel in his exhausted state, we may well
conclude, requiretl more than manly resolution, yet he performed
it. Not only had he to encounter hunger and fatigue, but cold
and frosty nights, almost naked ; and the best shelter or lodging
that he could obtain was a tree-top or a hollow log; whilst stout
rnen who sought him were well clothed, and had a good fire to lie
LOGAN COUNTIES. 131
down by, were complaining of being disagreeably cold ; a^d in
this deplorable condition, we may well conclude, that being over-
whelmed with fears, and a number of days and nights being past,
and when all hopes seemed gone, and he reduced to the utmost
extremity; then it was that the gracious* Eye that had regard to
poor Ishmael, when cast under the shrub, and procured his relief,
we may justly conclude hath not been wanting in respect to his
fatherly regard, in preserving this infant, not only through hunger
and cold, by day and by night, from savage beasts, as well as poi-
sonous serpents ! Here we may behold the tender mercies of a
gracious God, who begets honor to himself by delivering to the
uttermost those who have no help in themselves. For after he
had permitted almost a multitude of sympathizing people to
search for one whole week, with the utmost diligence, and until
being almost ready to despair of ever finding the child, here the
Lord saw proper to manifest, not only his great power, but his
mercy and loving kindness, by opening a way where there ap-
peared no way, and by his own gracious hand led this infant, not
only out of a wilderness, k^nt likewise into a house, and placed
him in the midst of the floor before he was discovered by any hu-
man eye, where a family dwelt, whose hearts we may justly con-
elude the Lord had before prepared to receive him, and administer
relief in the most tender manne]', ( for such his afflicted state and
condition required.) His clothes were all rent in strings, his skin
severely torn with briers and bushes, his feet and legs much swol-
len, and his body covered with mud. Here he found not cold-
hearted strangers, but a tender-hearted father and mother, who
used ev( ry means in their power for the child's restoration ! Here
we have a plain instance that the Lord can save, though all the
wisdom and power of man fail. We may justly say with one for-
merly, -'What shall we render to the Lord for all his benefits?"
We i)ave likewise witnessed that saying fulfilled : " Though trou-
ble may come over night, joy may spring in the morning." This
we think raay be very aptly suited to the present circumstance —
for, after along night of laborious and fruitless hunting, they found
the lost child in the house-floor. The joyful tidings flew on eagle's
wings — every heart rejoicnd — the people flocked in from everj'
quarter to see the supposed "dead alive, and the lost found."
Justly may we suppose that many had the following language in
their hearts, if not in their mouths : " Great and marvelous are
132 CHAMPAIGN AND
thy works, O Lord J Just and true aie all thy ways, thou King of
Saints I " Here as not only a miracle in bringing the infant safely
through various extremities, hut placing him by his wisdom un-
der the most tender care. After the rapture of joy and loud accla-
mations of the people were a little over, that kind man, Samuel
Tyler, could not rest until he took his horse and conveyed the
joyful news of the infant being found to his parents. We must
now return to the child, when S.Tyler left him in the care of
his tender wife, Margaret, and the other kind people of the neigh-
borhood, who used every means in their power to relieve him
from the weiik state to which hunger and fatigue had reduced
him. His elder brother who had exerted his utmost endeavors,
sparing no pains in seeking after him, returned with Samuel Ty-
ler and partook of a rich feast of joy in having his brother to con-
vey safely home to his disconsolate parents, which he thought
amply coiapensated him for all his toil — and his parents, like the
parable in the Scriptures of the return of the lost sheep, find more
joy in receiving the lost child, than in all the rest that went not
astray : and we have no doubt that the public in general have
been made partakers In a great degree of the same joy ; and es-
pecially those who witnessed the labor of both body and mind
for the relief of the child. The distance that the child was
from its home cannot be correctly ascertained ; but his elder
brother and many others who have been several times across
the wilderness to the place where he arrived, near the mouth of
Bough's Creek, on the Scioto Kiver, in Delaware County, judga
that it is 20 miles on a straight line; but taking the meanderings,
we conclude he must have traveled one hundred miles.
Seeing that good may be brought out of evil, and joy from af-
fliction, who knows but our Heavenly Father has intended the
present instance of this bewildered child for an alarming lesson of
a Jvice to all who may hear of the circumstance. Let them take
into consideration the manner in which this child first rambled
from his fathers house und through a careless indolence what
danger, grief and distress he had brought on himself. The dan-
ger of never seeing his father's house again ; the danger of perish-
ing with hunger; and the danger of being stung by poisonous
serpents. Here we have a lively instance of what grievances we
may bring on ourselves, for want of a more diligent watch over
our stoppings along in a temporal sense, which might terminate
LOGAN COUNTIES. 183
without lives — but if we should take it in a spirtual sense, and ask
ourselves the serious question : Have I not been straying from my
Heavenly leather's house and exposing myself to a greal Spiritual
danger ? The one mistake is only for Time ; but the other for
an endless Eternity. O! then, may the above instance awaken
us into as diligent a search into the state of our souls, as has been
made for the recovery of the lost Infant.
134 CHAMPAIGN A^TD
ghe gast §md.
f'ET old and young regard the hand
Which sways the sceptre o'er the land,
That guards our steps in all our ways,
In childhood and in riper days.
This hand upheld the wandering boy,
So that no foe could him annoy —
When far removed from human aid,
In deserts wild he wandering stray'd.
When friends and parents grieving sought,
The Lord for him deliverance wrought —
And when all search and toil was vain,
He brought him safely home again.
Then let it be our daily prayer.
While objects of his holy care,
That we grow better day by day.
And learn to watch as well as pray.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 135
CONCORD MILLS.
M. ARROWSMITH.
December 4, 1811. — Concord Mills, three miles west of Urbana,
has been the place of my abode for the last forty years. My par-
ents emigrated from Mason Co., Kentucky. They left on the 3d of
December, 1801, seventy years yesterday. They arrived at the
place (four and a half miles west of Urbana) the same mouth, where
they spent tlie balance of their days.
I was born at their homestead January 16, 1806. Have never
lived out the county except on transient business. There are
a few men only that were born in the county and spent their lives
in it that are older than I. About the time of my entrance into
the world (I have been informed) the Indiana manifested a hostile
disposition toward the white people.
When six weelcs old it was rumored that they were collecting iu
large numbers with the intention of massacreing the white people;
consequently the latter became alarmed and for mutual protection,
(or rather as has been expressed to be convenient for the Indians
to do their bloody work without having the trouble of hunting
them at their different homes) collected together. Then Col Ward,
Col. McPherson and Simon Kenton volunteered to go and see the
Indians. They found them on the Miami, at the mouth of Stony
Creek, one mile below 'he village of DeGraflF, Logan county.
There were 700 warriors with Tecumseh at their head, painted
with the war-paint. In miking their business known to them,
Kenton told them that if tliey were for war all that they asked of
them was to say so; "For," said he, "we have a plenty of men to
meet you." The Indians called a council of their chiefs that were
present, and alter consultation r* turned the answer "that they were
for peace."
A little incident oecurre 1 while the y were with the Indians. A
few years prior to that time there was an Indian called at Demint's
136 CHAMPAIGN AND
(now Springftpild. Clark county,) for something t >eit. an I fjr shjbo
unknown cause Mrs. Daraint refused to give liin >iiyfchinjf„
Whereu}>on he abused her. Kenton hearlny: of it hiK)'i nfter, and
having six onea at hand, ordered each one to ijive th(i fn lUn a
certain number of laches with hickory withes, which wer^' well l^id
on. The fellow left and had never been -^-jao by Kenton until
their interview at the time referred to. The fellow Id >kt»,i suiky ;
would notso much as notice them. Kenton observiuj- iiim, invi-
ted his comrades out, stated to them his condition, and ih ii li > hid
nothing to defend him3elf with if lie wa^ aitackad ov th>" wily
fellow. One of them had a dirk and i^avo it to Ivento i. Thay
then returned among the Indians. Kenton (urrying the weipou
in his hand, would strike It into the tree:>f as he walked alone? a'^
though he was willing to eni^'age in mortal combat with a foe.
When the Indian saw that he was prepared in that manner to meet
him, he approached Kenton manifesting much friendship, by pre-
senting hia hand saying, "Me velly good fliend."
I have seen in the Qitizen and Gazette., that you wanted the names
and other items of the early settlers of this part of the country. I
can give some of them, but not the exact time of the settling.
Having heard my parents and contemporaries tell of many, 1 can
therefore name some of them, and after giving the names of a few
that I believe were the first to squat down on the frontier, will
class others as near as I can by half decades.
The bottom-lands of Madriver and creeks were occupied flrat,
which includes the eastern part of Madriver Tp., in which was th©
place of my nativity, and in the northeast part of the township.
I will name \Vm. Owens as the first settler in the township. He
came, I should think, in 1797 or 1798, but am not positive.
Next will commence with those at the lower part of the town-
ship, as they occur to me : Thomas Redman, Joseph Turman, Wm.
Bhodes, Joseph Reynolds, Mr. Clark, Thomas Pierce, Ezekiel Ar-
rowsmith (my father), Elisha Harbour, Henry Pence, Abram
Pence, Abram Shockey, John Wiley, Joseph Diltz, Adam Wise,
Thomas Kenton, Christian Stevens, Wm. Kenton (my grandfather)
and two sons- William and Mark, Thomas Anderson, Henry
Newcomb, Wm. Custor, Hugh McSherry and John Norman, who
built about the first grist mill which was on Nettle creek, where
B.Wyant'B mill is at this time. Norman placed a slight obstruction
in the channel of the creek, where he had a wheel for the water to
LOGAN COUNTIES. 1ST
flow against, and a little primitive gearing set in motion a small
stone that he formed out of a boulder that he picked up on his
land. When he got his mill to running, he would till the hopper
in the morning, start it to work, and then he would leave to en-
gage in other labor imtil noon, when the mill would get his ser-
vices again by replenishing the iiopper with grain, nnd tilling the
s«cks with meal or cracked corn to the same height that they
were with corn, he having made a hole in the sack with a bodkiu
before emptying them.
Will resume with names of early settlers. There are ottier^
perhaps thai came before 1S06, but are included in th^-
first decade. George and John Steinberger, Thomas Ruukk*
(tanner), John Pence, Philip C. Kenton, George FaulUutv.
Wm, Bacom, Henry Bacom, JoJm Taylor, (Nettle Creek,) Arnold
Custar, Abram Custar, Archibald McGrew, Sen., Wm. McGrew.
Matthew McGrew, Archibald McGrew, Jun., Wm. Custar, James
Scott, Christian Hashbarger, Mr. Colbert, Sen., John Colbert, Peter
Smith, Daniel Pence, John Whitmore, Adam Kite, Charles Rec-
tor, Conoway Rector, Samuel Rector, Joseph Reynolds, Jun
R6uben Pence.
I turn to an old record of See. 16 of the Townshij), in fonnecticB
with those who supported the school. John Moody, George Bo*-
well, Thomas Jenkins, Joel Jenkins, George Ward, Ezekiei Bos-
well, John Logan, Wm. Stevens, Ephraim Robison, Wm.
McGinness, Valentine Miller, Curtis M. Thompson, John Haller,.
John Hamilton, Archibald Hosbrook, Abraham Stevens, Caleb
Baggs, Wm. Baggs, James Baggs, Martin Idle, John Idle, Jacob
Idle, Daniel Loudenback, Daniel Snyder, Jacob and Fredericic
Tetsler, Henry Evilsizer, James Stevens, Robert McKibbou, Reubeji
Loudenbacii, William Jenkins, William Harper, (Baptist
minister), Nathan Darnall, Jacob Arney, George Bacom, Levi
Rowz, John Rowz, Luther Wait, Elijah Standiford, Isayc Sliockey,
William Colgan, Frank Stevenson, Henry Phillips, Elijaii Rogers^
Zachariah Putman, John Taylor (tiddlerj, Shadraek D. Northcut,
William Blue, Richard Blue, Andrew Blue, Samuei Blue, Josh an
Darnall, Elijah Beil, Peter Baker, Sen., Robert Under w«»od,_ Wil-
liam Salsbury, William Mitchel (Water Witch), Cornelius Bine.
Lewis Pence, David Loudenback, James Kenton, Abraham (Vtiiip-
beil, George Zimmerman, Daniel Pence, Jun., James Sims, J' i-et);-;
Sims, Benjamin Kite, Emmanuel Kite, Adam Priiu t-. Ti;-
138 CHAMPAIGN AND
many others I have not named. Some have sunk into oblivion.
You will receive information from others and in compiling can
cull from the above if you find anything worthy of a place in your
work.
December 20t h 1811.— Since writing at a former date I have
thought of a thing or two that is known by but few of the present
generation, which I feel like rescuing from oblivion, viz :
A FORTIFICATION IN MAD-RIVER TOW^NSHIP.
I said above that the Indians manifested a hostile disposition
about the year 1806 which continued up to the war of 1812. To
the best of my recollection it was in 1807 that the settlers in the
yalley on the north side of the township, from their exposed con-
ditic>n tv t'le savages, erected a fort by enclosing about one-fourth
of iun fiCre With bniidinff^^and pivk'.'ts. It was erected at the resi-
dence of Thomas Kenton on the s. w. qr. aec. 12. t. 4. r. 11. It was
quadrangular in form. His two cabins stood aljout ten feet apart.
The space between was co be used as an inlet for any needed pur-
pose and protected with a swinging gate made of split timber.
Those pickets were made of split logs planted in the ground and
reaching ten or twelve feet high. These flat sides (for they were
doubled) were placed together, thus shutting the joints completely,
formed the north side. The east and west sides were made with
log buildings, the roofs slanting inwards and high enough
on the inside for a door way into them. On the out side about the
height of the inner eave was a projection suiScient to prevent the
enemy from climbing up, and a space of a few inches was left be-
tween the lower wall and jut that could be used for port holes in
case the Indians were to come to set fire to the buildings or any
other purpose. There was one buildmg about the center of the
south side and the ether spaces were closed with pickets. There
was a well of water within the enclosure. Fortunately, it was,
thatthey never had need of using it for the purpose for which it
was erected.
We little fellows of that day were taught to regard the Indians as
our natural enemies, for the most of our parents had been reared
on the frontiers and many of them had had some experience in the
wars with them, and the minds of those that had not were fully
imbued with the same way of thinking.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 139
In those early days an Indian came to Thomas Kenton to buy a
horse. His horses were out, running: at large, as was the custom
at that time. They went together to hunt them, and when they
found them my father's horses were with them and one-a fine young
horse for that day — took the Indian's eye. He would nnt even
notice any of the others. After enquiring who he belonged to he
came to my father to see if he would sell him, and what was his
price. Father asked $80. He offered $70. After parleying a while
the Indian held up both hands seven times and one hand once,
and on that proposition they traded. He had but $74 to pay down but
promised to be back at a certain time to pay the other, which he
did at the time promised. This is written to show that there was
honor and honesty with the Indians.
About 1818 it was a common thing for the Lewistown Indians
with their families to come to this neighborhood in the summer.
They would make camps covered with bark in some pleasant shady
grove where their squaws and pappooses would stop. The m«n
would hunt deer or lie about their camp. Their squaws were
generally busy making or peddling their baskets among the peo-
ple around about for something to eat. Amongst them on one of
their visits was an old acquaintance of my father's, by the name of
Coldwater. He came to our house to buy some bacon on credit,
and promised to pay at some time in specie, for he said he had
specie at home. At that time the banks, or many of them, had
failed ; so it was necessary in dealing to have it understood what
kind of money was to be used in the trade. They got the bacon,
but unlike the other Indian never paid for it. Those two Indians
exemplified an old gentleman's expression when speaking of the
different religious denominations, "I hope that there are good
and bad amongst all of them."
The first religious meeting in the neighborhood was held at my
father's by a young methodist minister, which was before my time,
James Davison, brother of the late D. D. Davison. He after-
wards settled in Urbana and engaged in the practice of medicine,
and died in 1816.
Amongst the first methodist preachers I can name, were Hector
Sanford, Saul Henkle, M©ses Trader, Moses Crume, H. B. Bascom,
and David Sharp. There were others in the regular work. In the
local work, I remember James Montgomery, Nathaniel Pinckard,
Joseph Tatman, Martin and Samuel Hitt, Robert Miller, Tru-
itt. Baptist, John Thomas, John Guttridge, Moses Frazer, Sen.,
Cotterel. The above named ministers occasionally preached,,
but did not reside here.
140
CHAMPAIGN AND
2ANE TOWNSHIP, LOGAN COUNTY.
Th* following is the vote at the first election in Zane township,
in 1806, copied fronn the Poll Book, now in my possession, spelliog^
as fourtfl there :
Judges, James McPherson, George M. Bennett, Thomas Antrim.
Clerks, Thomas Davis, Henry Shaw.
Certified by William McColloch, J, P.
NAMES OF ELECTORS.
.Jiles Chambers,
Isaac Zane,
John Stephenson,
William McCloud,
Matthew Cavanaugh,
Abner Cox,
Alexander Suter,
John Tucker,
William C. Dagger,
John Fillis, Sen.
George Benn«tt,
Thomas Davis,
Danifl Phillips,
Thomas Antrim,
James McPherson,
John Provolt,
Job Sharp,
Jeremiah Stansbury,
Samael McColloch,
Edward Tatman,
James Frail,
William McColloch,
Isaac Tits worth,
Arthur McWaid,
John Lodwork,
Henry Shaw,
Carlisle Haines,
Samuel Sharp,
John Sharp,
Charles McCIain,
John Tills, Jr
Daniel Tucker.
CANDIDATES VOTED FOR IN 1806 IN ZANE TOWNSHIP, THEN CHAM-
PAIGN COUNTY, NOW LOGAN COUNTY.
James Pritchard, for Congress.
John Starett, for Representative ( Legislature ).
George Harlin, for Senate ( Legislature ).
LOGAN OOUNTIRB. 141
William Ward, for Semite ( Legislaturn ).
Richard Thomas, for Senate ( Le,i>:slii;ujre ).
John Daugherty, for Sherilf.
Daniel McKinnon, for Sheriff.
Joseph Lay ton, for Commissioner.
John Lafferty, for Commissioner.
William Powell, for Coroner.
Solomon McColloch, for Commissioner.
It will be remembered that at this time Zane was included in
Champaign County, and extended to the Lakes.
NAMES OF FIRBT SKTTLERS
Not found in the above list, in Zane Township.
• Job Sharp, came from , 1801.
Joshua Balenger, Sen., came froui New Jersey, 1806.
Daniel Garwood, came from Virginia, 1806.
Abraham Painter, came from , 1809.
Robert Branson, came from , 1809.
Abisha Warner, came from New Jersey, 1809.
Jesse Downs, came from , 1814.
John Warner came 1807, a soldier in Wayne's army.
John Inskeep, Sen., came 1805, from Virginia.
The above gentleman was elected to the Legislature in 1816, and
in conjunction with Gen. Foos, then a member of that body, pro-
cured the division of Champaign into two counties; Logan and
Clark.
I would just say Gen. Foos is the father of Lewis Foos and
grandfather of John Foos, Jr., both of Bellefontaine. He ha.3
three sons in Springfield, Ohii. — William, Gustavus, and John.
Joshua Inskeep, came 1807, Irom Virginia.
Job Inskeep, Sen., came 1816, from Virginia.
Dr. John Elbert, came 1811, rrom Maryland.
Waller Marshall, came 1810, from Kentucky.
Thomas Segar came 1811 from Baltimore.
John Sharp. Sen., came 1803 from Virginia.
Jonathan Haines, came 1808 from New Jersey.
Thomas \'itrim, came 1803 from Virginia.
Robert Pfctiy, sen., came 1806.
Josepl'i I-ayj son of the above, came 1805.
142 CHAMPAIGN AND
Moses Euaris, came 1806, soldier of Revolution.
Joseph and Wm. Euans, sons of the above, came 1806.
John Cowgill, came 1807.
Samuel Balenger, came 1810.
Joshua Balenger, son of the above, came 1810.
John Balenger, brother of Joshua, 1810.
Wm. Asher, came 1808.
John Asher, son of the above, came 1808.
Josiah Outland, came from North Carolina 1806. He had 16
children by one wife; 11 boys and 5 girls. All lived to be men and
women. Boys all farmers and plowed their own land and occupied
a respectable position in society.
Joseph Curl, Sen., came from Virginia, 1809.
Joseph Curl, Jr., came from Virginia, 1809.
Joseph Stratton, Sen., came 1810.
Joseph Stokes, Lieut, in war of 1812, came 1808.
James Stokes, came 1808.
FIRST SETTLERS IN JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP.
Dr. James Crew was one of the first physicians in the country —
he was a member of the Legislature. He will long be remembered
by his fellows-citizens.
Martin, Samuel, Robert, and David Marmon, came 1806.
John Brown, came 1806.
Henry Newsom, colored, (first in the county,) came 1806.
Jeremiah Reams, came 1807, soldier in war of 1812.
For other names in this township see first election, 1806, found
elsewhere in this work.
Monroe Township.
Robert Frakes came from Kentucky 1810.
Nathan Gilliland from Virginia 1810.
Samuel McCoUoch came 1803.
The Rev. George McColIoch, son of the above, came 1803.
Samuel McColloch was the first Representative to the Legisla-
ture from this county— then Champaign county.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 143
Thomas Athy came 1809 ; drummer in the war 1812.
Zabud Randel came from New York 1810.
George Moots came from Pennsylvania 1809.
Conrad Mo; ts came from Pennsylvania 1809.
Charles Moots came from P'^nnsylvania 1809.
George Green came from Kentucky 1810.
Wm. Williams, Henry Williams and Obadiah Williams, came
from Virginia, 1814.
Jacob Johnson, came from Kentucky, 1811.
The above gentleman had 6 sons, 4 of whom are preachers.
Jacob, John and William Paxton, brotlieis, came about 1814.
Nicholas Pickerel, first Sheriff Logan county, came 1813.
Henrj' Pickerel came 1813.
Err Randel came 1810.
Liberty Township.
Sainuel Newel came from Ky., about 1806 or 1807; his brother
came about the same time, and also the Blacks ; Captain Black
wr.:? a Captain in the war of 1812, and in Wayne's army. Hugh
Newel, John Newel and Thomas Newel all came from Ken-
tucky. Samuel Newel was for many years a member of the Legis-
lature of Ohio, and held several county offices ; his son Joseph
likewise filled several import.-int positions, both in the State and
county. Judge McBeth, father of Newton McBeth, of Bellefon-
taine, came in 1811 : .Judge McBeth died while a -.^- iber of the
Legislature of Ohio. The following are also early -j tders : Dr.
John Ordway, Dr. Leonard, .lames Walls, Garrett Walls, John
Cornell, Richard Roberts, Huston Crocket, Cartmel Crocket, Rob-
ert Crocket, Hiram M. White, George White, John M. Smith,
Benjamin Ginn, Thomas Miller, Milton Glover, Ralph E. Run-
kle. Dr. Taylor, Rev. Jeremiah Fuson, Joshua Bufington, George
F. Dunn, Samuel Taylor. All of the above are early settlers in
Champaign and Logan counties.
144 CHAMPAIGN AND
Bokescreek Township.
Simpson Hariman came here at an early day from Pennsylvania,
and taught schooJ twenty years ( or eighty terms). The follow-
ing are early settlers : Alexander IMcCrary, John W. Green, John
Bell, Sen., Je.s^e Fosett, Elijah Fosett, Archibald Wilson. Charles
Thornton, Andrew Roberts, Scranstcn Bates, Ebenezer Hathaway,
Lewis Bates, Gardner Bates, Bliss Danforth, Jacob Keller, James
R. Curl, Levi Lowering, Saul Smith, Henry Bell, Moses Bell,
Jacob Earlv.
Rush Township, Champaign County.
NAMES OF FIR.ST SETTLER.*.
Hezekiah Spain, Jordon Pweams, J. P. Spain, Hurburd Crqwder,
William Spain, Thomas Spain, John Petei-son Spain, Jr., Daniel
iSpain and John Crowder all came from Dinwiddle county, Vir-
$,-mia, 1805.
Joshua, Stephen, Daniel and Edwin Spain came from Virginia
tg07.
Ti)omas Good came from Virginia 1807.
Samuel Black, 1810.
Peter Black, son of the above, 1810.
Most all the following named persons are from the New Eng-
fc*nd States :
Thomas Erwiu, Jacob Fairchilds, Erastus Burnham, Anson
Howard, Pearl Howard, Sylvester Smith, John McDonald, Ste-
pken Cranston, Ephraim Craaston.
The above are the first settlers in the vicinity of Woodstock.
Samuel Calendar came from New V<jrk 1814. He has two sons
BJOW living in North Lewisburg', Oiiio — John and Elisna Calendar.
Me was a soldier in the war of 1^1-.
LO(}AN COUNTIES. 145
Perry Township,
What is now Perry township was tirst settled in 1805, by John
Garwood, who, with his family, emigrated from Culpepper county,
Virginia. His son, John Garwood, was the first Justice of the
Peace, who held the office for uiany years. Levi Garwood was
associate Judge lor Logan county, for three successive terms. His
son James is still living in the township, having been a resident
about sixty-seven years. John Garwood built the tirst mill shortly
after arriving here, prior to which they had to go forty miles down
Darby Creek to mill. Samuel Ballinger, from New Jersey, and
James Cur], l.om Virginia, came here about 1808, of whom a large
number of descendants still remain. Thomas James located here
in 1810, and his son Thomas occupied the same farm until recently.
Many of the family are still here. Christopher Smith moved Lrs
about 1812, and was Justice of the Peace for some time. Many of
the universal Smith family still remain. Anthony Bank, colored,
settled here in 1810. Isaac Hatcher came from Virginia in 1816,
and was noted as being wealthy for those days. Richard Hum-
phreys, frotn Wales, located here about the same time. Josiah
Austin, from New Jersey, settled here in 1820, and his son C. H.
Austin now occupies the same farm. William Skidmore, from
Columbiana county, settled on Millcreek in 1821, and his sons Jo-
seph, Daniel, Joshua and Isaac, still reside in the same neighbor-
hood, with a large retinue of descendants. The first Post-ofiice
established was called Garwood's Mills, Isaiah Garwood being the
first Postmaster. East Liberty is now located on the old farm of
John Garwood, and is noted for its fine fountains or overflowing
wells. Herbert Baird, a Methodist minister from Petersburg, Va.,
came here in 1829. On this farm in 1841 a tragedy occurred, re-
sulting in the death ot Ballard, Baird's son-in-law, who was killed
in a quarrel by a man named Ford, the <mly murder ever being
known to be committed in the township. Ford was tried and ac-
quitted on the grounds of self defense. The first physician in the
township was Dr. J. W. Hamilton, from Pennsylvania, wlio loca-
ted in 1836, and still resides in East Liberty.
Thus from an unbroken wilderness in 1805, has arisen a popu-
lous and highly cultivated region, dotted with School-houses and
Churches, and other evidences of thrift and prosperity.
H6 CHAMPAIGN AND
JOHN ENOCH.
The gentleman whose name is at the head of this article, like
Governor Vance and Henry Weaver, whose names may be found
in these sketches, is identified with the history of Champaign and
LiOfr:\n counties. He was born in Butler County, Ohio, in the
year 1S02. He commenced business in life under rather gloomy
circumstances. Ht; told me he had very little besides a good con-
stitution and a "will to try." He learned early in life to
"paddle his own canoe." I think he told me he had but one
week's schooling.
He was married early in life to Miss Kelly, a sister to Peter Kelly,
now deceased, formerly Sheriff of Logan county. He told me he
had but two dollars in money when he was married, and he gave
that to IJilly Hopkins to marry him. Mr. Enoch is a practical
farmer and stock merchant. Considering the difficulties he had to
overcome, perhaps there are but few who have been more success-
ful in lift' than he has.
There is no business on a farm but what he can make a full hand
at, from cutting cord wood to splitting rails, putting up fence,
plowing, planting, or driving oxen. In the latter employment, it
has been said he is one of the best in the State. He says, however,
very much of his success in business is due to the industry, economy
and prudence of his amiable lady. Like himself, she inherited a
good constitution, and with her early training in all the depart-
ment-* of housekeeping she entered on her duties as a wife and mis-
tres.s of her own house, with confidence and self-reliance. Mr.
Enoch told me ht'r prudence and timely counsel had saved him
from a great deal of trouble. One little circumstance will illustrate
this: Mr. Enoch never allowed any of his hands to "play off" on
him in any business, for, as I have said, he was a good hand at any
work on a farm. All he wanted was an hr)nest day's work, and
thnt he was bound to have. Moreover, he never wanted anv one
todoHnr more in a day than he could. He had a lot of hands
LOGAN COUNTIES. 147
husking corn and he thought they were not doing him justice, and
resolved on discharging them. As usual he consulted Mrs. Enoch.
She remarked that it raightbein the condition of the corn. He said
he would go into the field and husk oae day, and tnen he would
know what the trouble was. He did so, and at night when he re-
turned home, his wife asked about the corn. He said he was per-
fectly satisfied it was the corn, and not the hands, that was at fault.
The husk was unusually close to the ear, and the ear was small.
Mr. Enoch has one of the best farms in the State, in the quality of
the soil, timber and water. It is true it is not as large as some,
there being only about two thousand acres, but in the above qual-
ities, I believe it unsurpassed. His farming land lies on Mad River
and Maekachcek,and is watered by those beautiful streams, and is
about two miles from the village of West Liberty, all under fine
cultivation, with good and substiintial buildings.
JOHN SHELBY
Was an early settler in Logan county. He came here about the
year 1810. He was ten years in the Legislature of Ohio, giving en-
tire satisfaction to hLs constituents. His widow is now living near
Huntsville, and is now eisrhty-live years old. ,
RIDDLE & RUTAN.
Abner Riddle and William Rutan are »^arly settlers in Logan
County. They now live in Bellefontaine, and are engaged in
banking and trading in stock. I have been acquainted with those
gentlemen from their boyhood. Both of them were mechanics,
and poor; but, like others mentioned in these sketches, by dint of
close application to business, fair dealing and promptness in their
buainess engagements, they have accumulated comfortable fortunes.
I might speak of others, who, perhaps, have excelled them in the
accumulation of property ; but, I have named them because I have
known them from their youth, and because they are about a fair
average of the business men of our country, who commenced busi-
ness without capital and have made it a success.
14ft CHAMPAIGN AND
NOAH Z. McCOLLOCH,
Has h»kl several offices in the County of Logan. He has beei
Auditor, and Clerk of the Court of CoiuuQon Pleas, and Clerk of th^
Suj.reine Court, and A.-sociute Judge of the Court of Common Pieis
In all those important trusts, he showed marked abiiity arid th(
strictest integrity.
JOHNNY APPLEStED,
W. D. Haley contributed to Harper's Monthly, for November
1871, an account of this strange and remarkable character, vv^
roamed about the State of Ohio from the opening of the presen
i-entury to his death in 1847. Col. James, of Urbana, who wa
some a(iuainted with him, lie having called on him several timei
at Urbana, thinks Mr. Haly a little extravagant in his descriptio
of his personal appearance.
This strange personage was frequently iu Champaign and LoiJ'ai
counties, an<l had nurseries m each of these counties about 1809
but I have not l>een al)le to And the location of but one of them
His nurseries in Champaign, I think, were in the south-west part
of the county. The location of one naentioned above is in Logan
and on the farm now owned by Aionzo and Allen West, on Mill
Branch about six luuvire I yards west of their residence. Waller Mar
shall and Joshua Bullenger, both inform me they have trees in their
orchard from thw nursery bearing good fruit. Job Inskeep ;'jst
now informs me he heard him say he had another one somewhere
on Stony Creek.
Tlie " far West " is rapidly becoming only a traditional dasigna
tion : railroads have destroyed the romance of frontier life, or have
surrounded it with so many appliances of civilization that the pio
neer character is rapidly becoming mythical. The men and wo
men who obtain their groceries and dry -goods from New York by
rail in a few hours have nothing in oommun with those who, tii'ty
years ago, " packed " salt a hundred miles to make their mush pal-
atable, and could only exchange corn and wheat for molasses a»!<J
LOGAN COUNTIES. 14S
calico by making long and perilous voyages in flat-boat? down the
Ohio and Mississippi river-s to New Orleans. Two generations of
frontier lives have accumulated stores of narrative which, like the
small but beautiful tributaries of great rivers, are forgotten in the
broad sweep of the larger current of history. The march of Titans
sometimes tramples out the wiemory of smaller but more useful
lives, and sensational glare often eclipses more modest but purer
lights. This has been the case in the popular demand for the dime
novel dilutions of Fenimore Cooper's romances of border life,
which have preserved the records of Indian rapine and atrocity as
the only memorials of pioneer history. But the early days of
Western settlement witnessed sublimer heroism than those of hu-
man torture, and nobler victories than those of the tomahawk and
6calping-knife»
Among the heroes of endurance that was voluntary, and of action
that was creative and not sanguinary, there was one man whose
name, seldom m«ntioned now save by some of the few surviving
pioneers, deserves to be perpetuated.
The first reliable trace of our modest hero finds him in the Ter-
ritory of Ohio, in 18Q1, \Tith a horse-load of apple seeds, which he
planted in various piaces on and about the borders of Licking
Creek, the first orchard originated by him being on the farm of
Isaac Stadden, in what is now known as Licking County,
in the State of Ohio. During the five succeeding years, although
he was undoubtedly following the same strange occupation, we
liave no authentic account of his movements until we reach
a pleasant spring day in 1806, when a pioneer settler in Jeft"erson
County, Ohio, noticed a peculiar craft, with a remarkable occupant
and a curious cargo slowly dropping down with the current uf the
Ohio River. It was "Johnny Appleseed," by which name Jona-
than Chapman was afterwards known in every log cabin froin the
Ohio River to the northern lakes, and westward to the prairiei. of
what is now the State of Indiana. With two canoes lashed togeth-
er he was transporting a load of apple seeds to the Western fron-
tier, for the purpose of creating orchards on the farthest verge of
white settlements. With his canoes he passed down the Ohio, ■ to
Marietta, where he entered the Muskingum, ascending the stream
of that river until he reached the mouth of the Walhondin^-, or
White Woman Creek, and still onward, up the Mohican, into the
l.r^, CHAMPAIGN AND
Blftck Fork to the head of navigation, in the region now known
ft^ A^hhuul and Richland counties, on the line of the Pittsburg
and Fort Wayne Railroad, in Ohio. A long and toilsome voyage it
wa-s as H glance at the map will show, and must have occupied a
great deal of time, as the lonely traveler stopped at every inviting
spot to plant the seeds and make his infant nurseries. These are
the tirst well-authenticated facts in the history of Jonathan Chap-
man whose birth, there is good reason for believing, occurred in
Boston, Massachusetts, in 1775. According to this, which was his
own statement in one of his less reticent moods, he was, at the
time of his appearance on Licking Creek, twenty-six years of age,
and whether impelled in his eccentricities by some absolute misery
of the heart which could only find relief in incessant motion, or
governed by a benevolent monomania, his whole after-life was
devoted to the work of planting apple seeds in remote places. The
seeds he gathered from the cider-presses of Western Pennsylvania ;
but his canoe voyage in 1806 appears to have been the only occa-
sion upon which he adopted that method of transporting them, as
all his subsequent journeys were made on foot. Having planted
his stock of seeds, he would return to Pennsylvania for a fresh
supply, and, as sacks made of any less substantial fabric would not en
dure the hard usage of the long trip through forests dense with un-
derbrush and biiers, he provided himself with leathern bags. Se-
curely packed, the seeds were conveyed, sometimes on the back of
ahorse, and not unfrequently on his own shoulders, either over a
part of the old Indian trail that led from Fort Duquesne to Detroit,
by way of Fort Sandusky, or over what is styled in tht^ appendix
to "Hutchins's History of Boguet's Expedition in 1764" the "sec-
ond route through the wilderness of Ohio," which would require
him to traverse a distance of one hundred and sixty-six miles in a
west-northwest direction from Fort Duquesne in order to reach th©
Black Fork of the Mohicau.
This region, although it is now densely populated, still possesses
a romantic beauty that railroads and bustling towns can not oblit-
erate—a country of forest-clad hills and green valleys, through
which numerous bright streams flow on their way to the Ohio ;
but when Johnny Appleseed reached some lonely log cabin he
would find himself in a veritable wilderness. The old settlers say
that the margins of the streams, near which the first settlements
LOGAN COUNTIES. 151
were generally made, were thickly covered with a low, matted
growth of small timber, while nearer to the water was a rank
mass of long grass, interlaced with morning-glory and wild pea
vines, among which funeral willows and clustering alders stood
like sentinels on the outpost of civilization. The hills, that rise
almost to the dignity of mountains, were crowned with forest trees,
and in the coverts were innumerable bears, wolves, deer and
droves of wild hogs, that were as ferocious as any beast of prey. In
the grass the massasauga and other venomous reptiles lurked in
such numbers that a settler named Chandler has left the fact on
record that during the first season of his residence, while mowing
a little prairie which formed part of his land, he killed over two
hundred Mack rattlesnakes in an area thcit would uivolve an av-
erage destruction of one of these reptiles for each rod of land. The
frontiers-man, who felt himself sufficiently protected by his rifle
against wild beasts and hostile Indians, found it necessary to guard
against the attacks of the insidious enemies in the grass by wrap-
ping bandages of dried grass around his buckskin leggings and
moccasins; but Johnny would shoulder his bag of apple seeds, and
with bare feet penetrate to some remote spot that combined pic-
turesqueness and fertilitj' of soil, and there he would plant his
seeds, place a slight enclosure around the place, and leave them to
grow until the trees were large enough to be transplanted by the
settlers, who, in the meantime, would have made their clearings
in the vicinity. The sites chosen by him are, many of them, well
known, and are such as an artist or poet would select — open places
on the loamy lands that border the creeks— rich, secluded spots,
hemmed in by giant trees, picturesque now, but fifty years ago,
with the wild surroundings and the primal silence, they must
have been tenfold more so.
In personal appearance Chapman was a, small, wiry man, full of
restless activity ; he had long, dark hair, a scanty beard that was
never shaved, and keen black eyes that sparkled with a peculiar
brightness. His dress was of the oddest description. Generally,
even in the coldest weather, he went barefooted, but sometimes,
for his long journeys, he would make himself a rude pair of san-
dals ; at other times he would wear any cast-off foot-covering he
chanced to find — a boot on one foot and an old brogan or a
moccasin on the other. It appears to have been a matter of con-
science with him never to purchase shoes, although he was rarely
,r,2 CHAMPAIGN AND
without moiipy fiiough to do so. On one occasion, m an unusually
foM XovenibJr, while he was travelin"- barefooted through mud
and snow, a settler who happened to possess a pair of shoes that
were too small for his own use forced their acceptance upon Johnny
declaring that it was sinful for a human being to travel with
naked feet in such weather. A few days afterward the donor was
in the village tiuU has f^in-v; become the thriving city of Mansfield,
an<l met his beneficiary coatentedly plodding along, with his feet
bare and half frozen. With some degree of anger he inquired for
the cause of such foolish conduct, and received for reply that
Johnny had (overtaken a poor, barefooted family moving west-
ward, and as they appeared to be in much greater need of cloth-
ing than he was, he had given them the shoes. His dress was
generally composed of ca^t off clothing that he had taken in pay-
ment for apple-trees ; and as the pioneers Were far less extrava-
gant than their descendants in such matters, the liomespun and
buckskin garments that they discarded would not be very elegant
or serviceable. In his later years, however, he seems to have
thought that even this kind of second-hand raiment was too luxu-
rious, as his principal garment was made of a coffee-sack, in which
he cut holes for head and arms to pass through, and pronounced it
" a very serviceable cloak, and as good clothing as any man need
wear." In the matter of head-gear his taste was equally unique;
his fii"st experience was with a tin vessel that served to cook his
mush, but this was open to the objection that it did not protect his
eyes from the beams of the sun ; so he constructed a hat of paste-
board, with an immense peak in front, and having thus secured
an article that combined usefulness with economy, it became his
permanent fashion.
Thus strangely clad, he was perpetually wandering through for-
ests and morasses, and suddenly appearing in white settletnents
and Indian villages; but ther*^ must have been some rare force of
gentle goodness dwelling in his looks and breathing in his words,
for it is the testimony of all who knew him that, notwithstanding
his ridiculous attire, he was always treated with the greatest re-
spect by the rudest frontiers- man, and, what is a better test, the
boys of the settlements forbore to jeer at him. With grown-up
people and boys he was usually reticent, but manifested great af-
fection for little girls, always having pieces of ribbon and gay
calico to give to his little favorites. 3Iany a grandmother in Ohio
LOU AN (OrNTII-X.
!.");{
and Iniliaim can reineiuber tke pi-e.sent« nlie received when a child
from poor homeless Johnny Appleseed. When he consented to
eat with any family he w(juM never sit down to the table until he
WHS assured that there was an ample supply for the children ; and
Ins sympathy for their youthful troubles and his kindness toward
them made him friends among all the juveniles of the borders.
The Indians also treated Johnny with the greatest kindness.
By these wild and sanguinary savages he was regarded as a "great
medicine man," on account of his strange appearance, eccentric
actions, and, especially, the fortitude with which he could emlure
pain, in proof of which he would often thrust pins and needles into
his flesh. Hi- norvou< spusibilitios really sor>m to have l)';"! le
acnt<' than those <>f (si-dinary people, for Ins metho'i of treat"! iil;- tiu-
i-ut-; and :*ores that w^■re the eoui^ecjuences of his barefooted wan-
derings through briers and thorns was to sear the wound with a
red-hot iron, and then cure the burn. During the war of isiii,
when the frontier settlers were tortured and slaughtered by the
i^avage allie--' of Great Britain, Johnny Appleseed continued his
wande'-tiig.-, an<l whs never harmed by the roving bands of hostile
Indians, on many occasions the impunity with which he ranged,
the coimtry enabled him to give the settlers warning of approach-
ing <langer in time to allow them to take refuge in their block-
houses before the savages could attack them. Our informant re-
fers to one of these instances, when the news of Hull's surrender
came like a thunder-bolt upon the frontier. Large l)ands of In-
dians and British were destroying everytiiing before them and
murdering defenseless women and children, and even the block-
houses were not always a sufticient protection. At this time
Johnny traveled day and night, warning the people of the ap-
proaching danger. He visited every cabin and delivered this mes-
sage: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, and he hath anointed
me to blow the trumpet i'l the wilderness, and souml an alarm in
the forest ; tor, bfhold, the tribes of the heathen are round aliout
your do(»rs, and a devouring flame followeth after them." The
aged man who narrated tiiis incident said tliat he could f-'^i even
now the thrill tiiat was caused by this prophetic announcement of
rhe wild-looking herald of danger, who annised the family on ;i
right moonlight midnight with his piercin:.' voice, liefu-iiij- all
' tfers of foo 1 nnd -lenying himself a moment's rest, he travcr-ed
]-2
I.-. I CHAMPAIGN AND
the l)()r<l(r«liiy and ni^^lit until he had warned every setter of the
approaching peril.
11 is diet was as meagre as iiis clothing. He believed it to be a
>iii to kill any creature for food, and thought that all that was
netessiiry f( tv human sustenance was produced by the soil . He was
alM» a strenuous opponent of the wa.ste of food, and on one occa-
sion, on approaching a log-cabin, he observed some fi'agments of
Itread Hoatinguj)on thesurface oi a bucket of slops that wa,s intended
for the pigs. He immediately rished theui out, and when the
liouseuife exi»res.sed her sjstonishmenthe told her that it was an
abuse of the gifts of God to allow the smallest quantity of any thing
tliat was designed to supply the wants of mankind to Ua diverted
fntm its i»urpose.
^-^ ih'- instance, as in his whole life, the peculiar religious ideas
ui .III I'll .' 'pleseed were pxen-'>lified. He was a most earnest
rii>.ipl(<"' Ml.' ; liiii uiu.',ht by Emanuel vSvved"-iborg, and himself
el iiioei ' have frequent conversations wiiii angels and spirits;
two of the latter, of the feminine gender, he asserted, had revealed
to him that they were to be his wives in a future state if he ab-
stained from a matrimonial alliance on earth. He entertained a
profound reverence for the revelations of t>ie Hweedish seer, and
always carried a few old volumes with him. These he was very
anxious should be read bj^ every one, and he was probably not only
the first colporteur in the wilderness of Ohio, but as he had no tract
society to furnish him supplies, he certainly devised an original
method of nuiltiplying one u(.tolc into a number. He divided his
l)ooks into severil pieces, leaving a portion at a log-cabin, and on a
snbseriuent visit lurnishing another fragment, and continuing this
process as <liligently as though the w^ork had been published in se-
rial numbers. By this plan he was enabled to furnish reading for
several people at the same time, and out of one book ; but it must
liave been a ditlicult undertaking; for some nearly illiterate back-
woodsnian to endeavor to C()mpr(?heud Swedeuborg by a backward
cotjrse of reading, when his tirel installment happened to be the
last fraction of the volume. Johnny's faith in Swenenborg's works
was so reverential as almost to be superstitious. He was once
asked if, in traveling barefooted through forests abounding with
venomous reptiles, he was not afraid of being bitten. With his pe-
culiarsmile, liedn-w hi . book from his bosom, and said, "This book
is an infallible proteciion against all danger here and hereafter."
LOGAN COUNTIES. l.->j
It was his i-ustoijj, wlien he had l-etn welcomed tusoineliospita-
Ae log-house after a weary day of journeying-, to lie dow! on the
puncheon floor, 9ud, after inquiriug- if his auditors would liear
-™sonie news riglit fresh from heaven," produce his few tattered
fbooks, among which would be a New Testament, aud read and ex-
pound until his uncultivated hearers would catch the spirit and
:^glow of his enthusiasm, while they scarcely comprehended his lan-
,g-uage. A lady who knew him in his later years writes in the fol-
fiowing terms of one of these domiciiary readings of po'or, self-sac-
triflcing Johny Appleseed : "We can hear him read now, just as he
*iid that summer day, when we were busy quilting up stairs, and
■he lay near the door, his voice rising denunciatory and thrilling—
asstrong and loud as the roar of wind and waves, then soft and sooth-
:lng as tiie balmy airs, that quivered the morning-glory leaves about
ikis gray beard. His was a strange eloquence at times, and he was
abandon I )tedly a man of genius.'' ^^'hat a scene is presented toyour
imagination ! The interior of a primitive cabin, the wide, open
^re-place, where a few sticks are burning beneath the iron pot in
<which the evening meal is cooking ; around the fire-place the at-
ifentive group, composed of the sturdy pioneer and his wife and
♦.•children listening with a reverential awe to the "news right fresh
tsrom heaven ;" and reclining on the floor, clad in rags, but with
sihis gray hairs glorified by the beams of the setting sun that flood
Sithrough the open door and the unchinked logs of the Immble build-
i>.iig, this poor wanderer, with the gift of genius and eloquence, who
*believes with the faith of the apostles and martyrs that God has
-.appointed him a mission in the wilderness to preach the Gospel of
/ove, and plant apple seeds that shall produce orchards for the ben-
efit of men and women and little children whom he has never seen.
J f there is a sublimer faith or a more genuine eloquence in richly
lecorated cathedrals and under brocade vestments, it would be
..vorth a long journey to find it.
Next to his advocacy of hi/^Agculiar religious ideas, his enthusi-
asm for the cultivation- of .appl^trees in what he termed "the only
;)roper way" — that is, from the see^— was the absorbing object of
^ns life. Upon this, as upon religion, he was eloquent in his ap-
gaeals. He would describe the growing and ripening fruit as such
I't, rare and beautiful gift of the Almighty with words that became
pictures, until his hearers could almost see its manifold forms of
,;,,; (FiAMPAHiN AND
l.#'itutyi'«--<'Mit l.ffor.'th.MU. To lii^ .'hxiucm-p on this subject, a-
wHI :i- t.) hi"^ !»<-tiial hiltoiv in plaiitiiitr nurseries, tlie country over
whi<-li li'- tnivi-II«"l for o luany years is hiryely indebted for its ni3-
Tiieruus i.nhard-. i5nt lie denounced as absolute wickedness all df--
vic»-< of !.riniin'„' and ^n-aftinjf, and would speak of tlieact of cuttin,«r
■I tr-H a< if it w^re a crnelty intliclod upon a sentient beingf.
Nor Muly i'^ heeiititle.l to til-' lame ot being the earliest eoJ-
|.orte,.r oil the frontiers, but in the work of protecting animate
from :'buse lie preceded, while, in his small sphere, he equaled the*
/eal <;f ^ood Mr. Bergh. Whenever .Johnny saw an animal
abused, oi' li*'ard of it, he would purchase it and give it to so7ii?"
more human*- -^etih-r, on condition that it should be kindly treate<l
an<l properly cared for. It frequently happened that the long jour-
lu'v into the wildernes-; would cause the new settlers to be encuin-
]>er<'d with lame and broken-down horses, that were turned loosfc*
todit'. In the autumn .Johnny would make a diligent search for
all >uch animals, and, gathering' them uj), he would bargain for
their food and shelter until the next spring, when he wouUi
lead them away to some gooil pasture for the summer. Jf they ro-
covennl so as to i)e capable of working, he would never sell them,
but would lend or give them away, stipulating for their good
us;ige. His conception of the absolute sin of inflicting ))ain ox-
death upon any creature was not limited to the higher forms of
animal life, but every thing that had being was to him, in the fact
of it~ life, endowed with so much of the Divine Essence that te»
wound or destroy it was to inflict an injury upon some atom <>i
Divinity. No Brahmin could be more concerned for the preserva-
tion of insect lile, and the only occasion on which he destroyed a
venomous reptile was a source of regret, to which he could ueveT
refer without manifesting sadness. He had selected a suitable
place for planting apple seeds on a small prairie, and in order tr*
prejiare the ground he was mowing the long grass, when he warK
bitten by a rattlesnake. In describing theev^nt he sigheu heavily
and siid, "I'o()r lellow, he only just touched me, when I, in tlM.>
):eat of my iingo<lly |)assion, i)ut the heel of my scythe in hint,,
and went away. Some time afterward I went back; and there lay
♦ he poor fellow dead." Numerous anecdotes bearing upon his re-
hpi'i't for every form of lift' are preserved, and form the staple of
\)ioneerr(><'oll.'<-ti,);i>. On otie occasion, a cool autumnal night, when.
l.odAX ("orXTIES. j-,7
Johnny, \vlii» always ranii»ecl out in prefproiu-e to sleejiini: in a
nousp, had built a tiiv near which he intended to pas^ the nitrht, he
noticed that the blaze attracted larj>e numbers i.f ni(>--(|uitoes, many
of whom tiew too near to his tire and were burned. He immedi-
ately Itrou^ht water and quenched the fire, accouutiny- for his con-
duct afterward by saying-, "God forbid that I should build a tire
t'(U- niy comfort which should be the means of destroying- any of his
creatures!' At another tiiiip h<- removed the tire he Iiad built
near a hollow log, and slept on the snow, bccausp he found that
^he log- contained a bear and iic!- cul^s. whom, he said, he did not
Mish to disturb. And this unwillingness to intiict i»ain or death
\«-a.s equally strong- when he was a sufferer by it, as the following
w\]\ show : Johnny had been assisting- some 8ettiei*s to make a
n)ad throug-li the woods, and in the course of their work they acci-
clently destroyed a hornets' nest. One of the angry insects soon
found a lodgment under Johnny's cottee-sack cloak, but although
it stung him refteatedly he removed it with the greatest gentle-
jsiess. The men who were present laughingly asked him why 'ue
*lid not kill it. To which he gravely replied that ■' It would not
tve right to kill the poor thing, for it did not intend to iiurt nn^.'*
T"'heoretically he was as methodical in matters of business as any
fikerehant. In addition to their picturesqueness, the locations of
Eiis nurseries were all fixed with a view to a probablf- demand foi
the trees by the time they had attained sufficient growth for trans-
planting-. He would give them away to tho^e who could not )>ay
for them. Generally, however, he sold them for old clothing (sr h
s?upply i)f corn meal; but he preferred to receive a note payai>le at
rfome indefinite period. When this w-is accomplished he seemed
to think that the transaction was completed in a business-like way ;
butif th(> g-iver of the note did not attend to its payment, the hold-
er of it never troubled himself about its collection. His exiienses
for food and clothing- were so very limited that, notwithstanding
liis freedom from the auri sacra fcone-s, he was frequently in poses-
i?ion of more money than he cared to keep, audit was quickly dis?
jjosed of for wintering infirm h(»rses, or given to some poor fandiy
iwhoui the ague had prostrated or the accidents (,f bi^rder life im-
jj<n'erished. In a single instance oidy he is known ti • liave invested
Ms surplus . ms in the purchase of land, having rect-ived a doe*!
Ifeom Alexr ter Finley. of Mohican Township. Ashland County
♦^*two. for a part of the southwe-t quarter of section twenty-six;
15S CHA^IPAIGX AND
but with his customary indiliHmiiee to tnaters of value,. Johniv
failed to record the deed, and 1 »<t it. Only a few y^ars a^o tb>s =
property was in litigatioii.
We must not leave the reader under the impression that thi>
man's life, so full of liardshipand perils, was a gloomy or unhappy;.
one. There is an element of human pi'ide in all martyrdom, which ,
if it does not soften the pains, stimulates the power of endurance-
Johnny's life was made serenly happy by the conviction that be
was living like the i)riraitive Christians. Nor v.as he devoid o^
a keen humor, to which he occasionally gave vent, as the follow-
ing will show. Toward the latter part of Johnny's career in Ohi*;-
an itinerant missionary found bis way to the village of Mansfield.,
and preached to an open-air congregation. The disconr^e was-
tediously lengthy and unneces.sarily severe upon the sin oS
extravagance, which was beginning to manifest itself among th<B'
pioneers by an occasional indulgence in the carnal van-
ities of calico and "store tea." There was a good deal of the-
Phari.>*aic leaven in the preacher, who very frequently ein—
\)hii<v/j^d his discourse by the inquiry, "Where istherea man who>
like the primitive Christians, is traveling to heaven barefooted antk
clad in "oarse raiment?" When this interrogation had been re-
peated beyond all reasonable endurance, Johny rose from the log^;
on which he was reclining, and advancing to the s})eaker, he*
placed one of his bare feet upon the stump which served for a pul-
pit, and pointing to his cofTee-sack garment, he quietly saic^A.
•'Here's your primitive Christian!" Thp well-clothed missionarv
hesitated and stammere<l and dismissed the congregation. Hfe
l>et antithesis was destioyed by Johnny's personal a!>pparance,
which was far more primitive thei) t\\:^ preacher cared to copy.
Some of the pioneers were disposed to think that Jolvnny's hu-
mor \vas the cause of an extensive practical joke ; but it is gener-
ally conceded now that a wide-spread annoyance was really tb*'
Kesult <>i' hi ; belief that the ofif nsively-odored weed known in thfft
V\'<^st as the dog-fennel, but more generally styled the May- weed.
posseiised valuable antitnalarial virtues. He procured some seeffc-
of tiie plant in Penu'^ylvania, and sowed them in the vicinity fA
every house in the region nf his travels. The consequence wa?
that successive flourishing crops of the weed spread over the whole'
country, and >*aused aliiKxt as much trouble as the disease it wsff-
LOGAX COUNTIES. • 159
inten<letl to ward off; and to this day the dog-fennel, intro-
duced by Johnny Appleseed, is one of the worst sci'ievances of the
Ohio farmers.
In 1838 — thirty -s^ven years after his appearance on Lickin":
Oreek— .lohnny noticed tliat civilization, wealth, and population
were pressing into the wilderness of Ohio. Hitherto he had easily
kept just in advance of the wave of settlement; but now towns
and churches were making- their appearance, and even, at long*
intervals, the stage-driver's horn broke the silence of the grand
nl.i f.,re<t.-, and lie felt that his work was done in the region in
. hich he had labored so long. He visited every house, and took
a soletiin farewell of all the families. The little girls who had been
delighted with his gifts of tragments of calico and ribbons had be-
come sober matrons, and the l)oys who had wondered at his ability
to bear the pain caused by running needles into his flesh were
heads of families. With parting words of admonition he left them,
and turned his steps steadily toward the setting sun.
During the succeeding nine years he pursued his eccentric avo-
ttion on the western border of Ohio and in Indiana. In the sum-
mer of 1847, when his labor< had literally borne fruit over a hun-
dre<l thousand square miles of territory, at the close of a warm
day, after traveling twenty miles, he entered the house of a settler
in Allen county, Isuliana, and was, as usual, warmly welcomed,
lie declined to eat with the family, but accepted some bread and
milk, which he nartook of sitting on the door-step and gazing on
the setting sun. Later in the evening he delivered his "news
right fresh from lieaven" by reading the 15eatitudes, Declining
other accommodation, he slept, as usual, on tlie floor, and in the
rly morning he was found with his features :dl aglow witii a
Mipernal light, and his body so near death that his tongue refused
its()fti''e. The physician, who was hastily sum mi . > ■', | vonounced
him dying, but addeil that he h;id never seen a m ni \.\ s:) placid a
state at the approacli of death. At seventy-tAVo years of age,
forty-iix of which h■^d been devoted to his self-impose^l mission,
he ripened into death as naturally and beautifully as the seeds of
his own planting had grown into fibre and bud and blossom and
the matured fruit.
Thus died one of the memorable men of pioneer times, who
never inflicted pain or knew an enemy — a man of strange liabits.
W) CHAM I'A KIN AN1>
in w hoiii Ih^'i-c <i\v(>lt H comprehensive love tliat reached with oH'
hand downward to the h> west forms of life, with the other upward
to the very throne of God. A laborinj^, iself-denyin": benefactor of
his race, homeless, solitary, and raj^j^ed, he trod the thorny eartli
with hare and bleedinj^; feet, intent only upon makinj^: the wilder-
ness (rnitful. Now "no inan knoweth of his se{)ulchre;" but his
deeds will live in the fragrance of the apple blossoms he loveiJ si
well, and th<vstory of his life, ho wever crudely narrated, will ht'
a perjK'Uial proof that true heroism, pure benevolence, noble vir-
tues, and deeds that deserve immortality may be found under
meanest apparel, and far from (fildiii^ halls and towerijij^ spires.
i.()(;a\ corxTiEs. lei
LOREtNZO DOW.
HIS VISIT IX is:2t;
111 May, 1S2H, Lorcnzu Dow visited Lojifun and Cliainpaign
(■((Unties, and I think this was th(^ oidy visit lie ever made to tho.se
coiiiities. The tirst that I i\ovf reiueinl>ef of hearing of iiis niovo-
nients on tliis journey was at Sandusky City, tlien called Portland.
The pe(ti)le (jf Portland at that time were almost wholly irrelig-
ious and (\x;tremely wicked. Religious meetintjs were almost un-
known among,st the.'ii. Not lonjj: before Jjorenzo's visit, a Metho-
dist minister had appointed a meetinsj; at Portland, and while en-
gaged in j>rayer, a sailor jumped on his back and kicked him, and
cursed him, and said : " Why don't you pray some f.)r Jack.son ? "
and the .ueetin^ was broken up in much disorder. Lorenzo had
an appointment at Portland early in May, 1S2H, and of course his
name and fame attracted a lar^'^e crowd at the hour of meeting :
the meeting- was held under a large tree near the l)ank of Lake
Erie. At the api)ointed time Lorenzo came walking very fa.st,
dressed in a plain manner, with straw hat and white l)lauket coat.
He rushed into the midst of th(^ company, pulled off his hat and
dashed it on the ground, pulled off his coat and dashed it down
the .same way, as though he was mad, looked very .sternly, and
immediately began to preach ; his text was pretty rough ; he be-
gan with the words : " Hell and damnation ; " he then uttered a
string of catlis enough to frighten the wickedest man in Portland.
He then made a solemn pause, and said : " This is your common
language to God and to one another — such language as the gates
of hell cannot exceed." He then preached a solemn, warning ser-
mon, and was listened to i)y all present with much attention,
witliout interruption.
162 CHAMPAIGN AND
The next account I can give of Lorenzo on this journey, wasai
Tymochtee, 1 believe now within the bounds of Hardin county.
He stopped at the house of Eleazer Hunt, and Phineas Hunt, father
of Eleazer was there with his wagon, and vvas about starting to
his home in Champaign county, and Lorenzo rode in his wagon.
It seemed tliat Lorenzo had sent an appointment to preach at
Bellefontaine, at 11 o'clock, of the day that he expected to arrivt
there. About the appointed time lie arrived at Bellefontaine,
riding in Phineas Hunt's wagon. 1 am informed that the people
were looking earnestly for him. Judge N. Z. McCoIloch and
others met the wagon in which Lorenzo was in, and inquired, "Is
Mr. Dow here?" he said, "Yes, my name is Dow." Judge Mc-
Colioch then kindly invited him to go to his house and eat dinner,
as there was sutKcient time before the hour of meeting. Without
saying a word, Lorenzo directed the driver to go south a little far-
ther, where he alighted from the wagon and laid under the shade
of a small tree, and took some bread and meat from his pocket and
ate his dinner in that way. Soon meeting time came, and there
was of course a large attendance. In the course of his sermon,
Lorenzo pointed to an old lady who sat near him and said, "Old
lady, if you don't quit tattling and slandering your neighbors, the
devil will get you !" Pointing directly at her he said, "I am talking
to you !" TiTere was a young maw in the meeting, that Lorenzo
probably thought needed reproof; he said, "Young man, you esti-
mate yourself a great deal higher than other people estimate you,
and if you don't quit your high not:i(ms and do better, the flevil
will get you too!" Passing out of the meeting he met a young
man and said to him, "Young nihii, the Lord has a work for you
to do. He calls you to lal>or in Ids vineyard." It is said that
young man became a mir.ister o the Gospel. 1 think the meeting
at Bellefontaine, was hnld on seventh day, or Satuaday. After
meeting, became with Phineas Hunt", to his home, —a brick-house
now on tho farm of Willi no Scott, in Salem township. Champaign
County. Lorenzo held a meeting at Phineas Hunt's house, that
evening, at ."> o'clock, P. M., which was not large as no previous
notice was given. My father attended that mt'eting. Lorenzo's
text was : "But the hour cometh, and now i'^ when the true wor-
shippers <hal I worship the Father in spirit and in truth; for the
Father seeketh such to worship him. (iod is a spirit, and they
that worship him must wor-hip him in spirit and in truth."
I
LO(fAN COUNTIES. 163
Next <iay being the Sabbath, Lorenzo had an appointed meeting
at Mt. Tabor, at 10 o'clock, A. 51., which was generally known in
the neighborhood. About 9 o'clock, on Sabbath morning, Lorenzo
saw some people passing by, enquired where they were going ;
was told they were going to his meeting ; without saying another
word he picked up his hat, and started in the direction of the meet-
ing; overtaking some persons on the way, he walked with them
apiece, and took a by way leading from the mai" road, wlien one
of the company said, "this is the road to Mt. Tabor," he said "ye^;
that is your road ; go on." He ]>assed on to N. W. until he came
to the Beliefontaine road, about 4 of a mile north of Tabor, and
walked south to the meeting liouse. The people had assembled in
the grove, west of the meeting house, where seats had been pre-
pared. Lorenzo passed right by the assembly, and went down the
hill into the bushes and timber S. E. of the meeting house, where
he immediately began to preach, the people following him, carry-
"ig benches and chairs, Jcc, but mostly stood on foot during the
►^eting. He was preaching when I arrived at the meeting, and
rhaps hundreds came after he had began to preach.
His manner in pleaching was earnest and impressive, he never
hesitated, but seemed to have words at command that suited the
case. His doctrine apy^eared to be the same as held by the Metho-
dists ; he spoke of a call to the ministry ; he said it must be a di-
vine call, that it would not do to preach as a trade or profession.
He spoke with much severity and keen sarcasm against proud and
deceitful professors of religion. His appearance was remarkable :
he was a spare man, of rather small size; his beard was long,
reaching to his breast, his hair was a little gray, parted in the
.ii>ldle on his head, anrt reached down to his shoulders; his dress
>. as very plain, and appeare<] to be cleanly and neat. He wore a
straw or palm-leaf hat, a l)lack over-coat, wliich appeared to be
;1 the coat he had on ; he rested on a cane while preaching ; his
ye was calm and serene, yet piereitig. Xotwithstanding his ec-
centricities, his whole appearance and manners indicated that he
\ as an extraordinary man — a great and good man. He did )iot
i-iiiii' ar thi-s meetinj;- ; after preaching about one hour and a qiiar-
Ihr, in whii'h beseemed to mention almost everything connected
..ith religious subjects, giving a history of his life, and of the sol-
emn [tarting with his father and mother, brothers and sisters,
wlien he >-tarte'i out — I think at abuut seventeen vears of age —
164 CHAMPAIGN AND
to [)re<u'h the gospel, he knelt and ott'ereil a short nud beautifu!
prayer, auil then dismissed tlie audieiu'e.
As lie was asee tiding- the liill westward tVuiu the phtee of meet-
ing, a venerable Meth(xlist })reacher, on horse-back, met hiui, and
being ver;y anxious to talk to Lorenzo, rather rode before him, and
held out his hand. Lorenzo took his hand, and said : "Don't ride
over lue, it's not good manners."
Wm. H. Fj'ffe had sent a handsome carriage to convey Lorenzo
to Urbana, where he had an appointment to preach that idternoon,
at8o^clock. I have been told he was kindly invited to dinner,
perhaj)s by several persons, but did not accept the invitation, -aivI
laid down to rest on Judge Reynolds' cellar door, taking rtome
bread from out of his pocket, and made his meal. This afternoon
meeting of course was large, and 1 think was held in the Metho-
dist Church. Lorenzo preached in a very earnest manner, became
warmed and animated; swingiiig his hands, the hymn book
*^lipped from his hand and struck a lady on her head ; he paused
and said : " Excuse my energy, for my soul is elated."
I believe lean give no further particulars of the only visit to
this county of this remarkable man. THOMAS COWtJILL.
Kknnakh, (>.. nd Month 18, 1872.
REV, DAViD MERRILL.
The writer of this became acquainted with Mr. Merrill at Urbana
abou* forty years ago, and had the honor of hearing him deliver
his celebrated " Ox " discourse.
"That INIr. Merrill was a man of no ordinary intellectual powers,
is sufficiently evident from what he said and did, and the fact wan
jfelt byall vvho had any considerable acquaintance with him. His
more pi'ominent mental traits were, undoubtedly, such as ro)tip/-f-
hensivenesK, originaliti/, energy, &c. Whatever subjects he investi-
gated, he took hold of them w ith a strong grasp ; he looked at theiu
in their various relations, and in a manner that was peculiarly i^is
own. He ha<l a power ()t originating and combining ideas, an
iJXiAN COrXTlKS. 16;*
bility to elaborate-', as it were, thoughts witliiii hiiin 'If, that re-
minded one of the prolific and vigorous inteller-ts of an earlie;- and
more favored generation. He had, too, a kind of i ntuitive i)ereep-
tion of the pro]»riety and fitness of things — of tiie bearing one action
ha< upon another — of what is adapted to affect men in different
lircunistances.
The history of the "Ox Seriuon," is briefly this. It was writteji
for a teiuperance meeting iu Urbana, and delivered to an audience
if less thah a hundred persons. Its first publication was in the
Urbana weekly paper. A copy of this paper, sent to Samuel Mer-
rill, Esq., of Indianapolis, Ind., fell into the hands of John H.
Farnham, Esq., wiio causetl a pamphlet edition of oOC) copies to be
printed at Salem, Indiana. Rev. 'SI. H. Wilder, a Tract AgcMit,
-ent a copy of this edition to the American Tract Society, by which
it was handed over to the Temperance S(x-iety. It was then pub-
lisht'd as the "Temperance Recorder, extra," for circulation in
very family in thf^ United States. The edition numix^red 2, 200, ()()(»
ipie>. Numerous edition iiave been publisiied sin,-e, — one in
( anada East, of, I think, [0 (lOi) copies. The American Tract Soci-
♦'ty adopted it about lS.4o, a^ Xo. 47o of their series oi' tracts, and
have published 104. 00(» copies. The Tract Society has also pub-
lished 100,000 copies of an abridgement of it, under the title, "Is it
right?" It has been published in many newspapers of extensive
' ireulation. It is undoubtedly safe to say that its circulation has
iieen between two and a half and three millions of copi^-. What
' it her Sermon has ever had a circulation equal to this ?
A pei*son tolerably well informed in regard to the arguments used
by temperance men at the present day, who reads the Ox Sennon
for the first time, will think its positions and illustrations quite
■ommon-plice, and wonder why anybody ever attributed to it any
liginality or shrewdness. But twenty-five years have wrought
great changes in the jxjpular sentiment upon thesubj^ct of temper-
ance, and positions, which are now admitted almost as readily a>
the axioms in mathematics, when broached in that sermon were
regarded as "violently new-school," "dangerously radical," "im-
practicably ultra," Whoever originate an idea which becomes in-
fluential over the belief and actions of men, commences a work
which will go on increasing in etficieney long after his own gener-
ation ^hal! have passed away. The author of the "Ox Sermon,"
166 CHAMPAIGN AND
even during- his own life, had the satisfaction of knowing that
many by reading that discourse were so convicted in their con-
sciences that even at great pecuniary sacrifice they gave up the
traffic in ardent spirits, and that many more from being entanies
or lukewarm friends, became earnest advocates of the temperance
reformation. .
REV. GEORGE WALKER.
The above named gentleman lived in Chami>aign County wheii
he joined the Methodist Ex»iscopai Church under the labors of
Bev. George Gatch. The circumstances of his joining the Church
are briefly these : When Mr. Gatch was on his last round on Mad-
river Circuit, at King's Creek, four miles north of Urbana, after
the sermon, Mr. Gatch gave an invitation to join the Church ; 3Ir.
Walker started toward the i)reacher, and when tibout midway of
the congregation his strength failed him for the first time, and he
sank down on the floor. Mr. Gatch approached him as he arose to
his feet, and he gave his hand to the minister, and his name to the
Church. Mr. Walker married Miss Catharine Elbert, daughter of
Dr. John Elbert, of Logan County. I believe she died but re-
centlj'. The annexed sketch of Mr. Walker's life will be read
with interest by his old comrades. — Ed.
In person he was well formed, but a fraction le.ss than six feet in
hight ; had a powerful frame, yet closely knit together. His habit
was full, his carriage erect and dignified ; his features were regular
but well-defined, and strongly expressive of a generous and noble
nature ; his brow was arched and heavy, his forehead high, broad,
and open, his hair dark, and .somewhat inclined to stiffness. In
his dress he was neat, cleanly, and careful, regarding comfort, but
not disregarding elegance ; never, however, violating professional
propriety, or losing his dignity in ornament or show ; nor did he
ever affect singularity or quaintness.
He was accustomed to finish whatever he undertook, arguing,
and often observing, that " that which was worth doing, was
worth doing well." I have often thought that this idea was car-
ried with him into the pulpit; and when preaching on subjects
LOGAN COUNTIES. 167
peculiarly interesting to him, made hiui consume more time
than would otlierwise have been preferable to him. His custom
was to reason from cause to effect, yet he would often institute
analogies. His mind was mathematical, and he had a love of exact
science. T never new him bevvildered in theories ; and so great
was the original strength of his mind, that he detected the false
or the faulty almost at a glance. He read character well, but never
judged hastily or harshly. He hstd a boundless charity for the
faults of others, and never deemed one, however low he or she
might have sunken, beyond the hope of redemption. He could
well adapt himself to the society he was in, so far as this could
be done witliout compromising his character or principles. This
he was never known to do, nor do I believe he could have been
tempted to do so. He had due respect for the opinions of others,
ukI in many things would take counsel, but he was self-reli-
nt, aiul seemed through life to think it was his duty to bear the
jLirden of others, rather than to place his own upon their shoulders
REV. JOSEPH THOMAS.
Elder Joseph Thomas, or "White Pilgrim," the subject of this
sketch, has frequently preached in Champaign and Logan counties.
The writer heard him once or twice at a camp-meeting, at Muddy
Hun, near West Liberty, about the year '33 or '34. How many
people, young and old, in the United States, and in Europe, that
have read those beautiful and pathetic lines, written by Elder J.
Ellis, and wondered who was the subject of them, and where is "the
;>pot where he lay !" I will say, for the satisfaction of all such, he
is buried in a cemetery at Johnsonsburgh, Warren county, New
Jersey, where a beautiful Italian marble monument marks the
spot where "the White Pilgrim lays." The peculiarity of his white
dress, says a writer, undoubtedly added much to the notoriety
W'hich everywhere greeted him. Though independent of this, his
excellent evangelical gifts rendered his services very acceptable.
In regard to his peculiar dress, he says it was typical of the robes
of the saints in glory ; that he found but very litile inconvenience
in its use, an 1 was contented with his choice. Below will be found
this beautiful pot^m.
168 CHAMPA H4N AND
Wines,
COMifOSKi) WHILK STAXI>JN<i AT i'HK WlilTK I'll.CiKlMS WKAVK
M vamv to the spot where tht^ White IMIj^rim lay,
And pensively .stood by his tomb.
When in alow whisper 1 heard soniethinji' say,
'• How sweetly I sleep here alone.
The tempest may h<twl,and loud thunder roll,
And .uathering storms may arise,
Vet calm are my feeling-s, at rest is my soul.
The tears are all wii>ed tVom my eyes.
The eause of my 8;ivior compelled me to roam,.
I b;ide my eompatiions farewell,
1 left my sweet children, who for me do mourn,
In a far distant i-ei^ion to dwell.
1 wandered tni exile and stranger below,
To i)ublish salvation abroad,
The trump of the (iospel endeavored to blow,
Invitinji' poor sinners to God.
But when among strangers, and far IVom my ]if)m(-,
No kindred or relative nigh,
1 met the contagion, and sank in the tondj,
My sj)irits ascencied on high.
Go! tell my companion and children most dear.
To weep not for Joseph, tho' gonf;
The same hand that led me thro' scenes dark ami drear.
Has kindlv '•oiiduclcd me home."
THE FIB^T CHUECHEK
The King's Creek Baptist Cljurch isprooal*? «j3.e|fr$-fe Church in-
sritut^d in Charapai^ia Coujaty, it being estHMi''<hed>t^e aam^^ yef'af
the c-ountv \v»? ortrjini/pd f I8(>n >
The o3^ . • ■ . • , • , .. ' .
'"3 rales j, • ' ' ■
!-i?s, actiiij, ■ . ..
^V'rhaps he -y '.• . • ^ :,r.
ills owo natne. i; :- ;,'jtu:\j.DiL . . - ^ T^iJi; nu kopt
he never crnee n^itnep hiuiself > . ;^ •• . - . ^ny oth^r one
preai'hed he rt.H*rft- ttle namej ;; eiVu^-^rO a e zaembers living who
testify to the ex-.t-ileiicy of his ]-.i irielitrig. By the foregoing it
will bo seen that Champaign as a County and King^s Creelc as a
Baptist Chcn-eh commenced theix oi«-e^in the same year and both
are holtliug: on their way.
If Benedict's Hi-Jtory of the Eaptiat? is; correct. King's- Creels
must have been the, third Baptist Chureh organized in the State of
13
170 CHAMPAIGN AND
Ohio. Benedict gives the first organization at Columbia, five or
six miles from Cincinnati, in 1790, and second at Pleasant Run,
near Lancaster, in Fairfield County, in 1801. If there was a Bap-
tist Church constituted in Ohio, in the four years that intervened
between Pleasant Run and King's Creek we do not know it, and
until better informed we shall claim King's Creek as the third
Baptist Church in Ohio.
In the early history of the Church, the meetings were held in
the houses of the members which were scattered over a large area
of the County. But "The word <.»f the Lord was precious in those
days" and sacrifice could be made to mp>et with the saints of the
Most High. Dangers even could be encountered, for the red men
of the soil were then numerous and looked on' their pale faced
neighbors as intruders, their hostilities not ceasing till after the
butchery and scalping of Arthur Thomas and son in 1813. Thus
for eleven years our predecessors wound their way by paths and
through difliculties and dangers to meet their Saviour and his dis-
ciples. No one then complained of long sermons, none went to
sleep and nodded unconscious assent to uaheard truths. Their con-
versation was of the Heavenly country whither they were going,
the trials, the difficulties and encouragements of the way. In
these primitive gatherings they were sure to meet the Lord Jesus;
fat things full of marrow and wine on lees were vouchsafed them
while the Lord added to their number "such as should be saved."
This increase made tbe private house, or rather cabin, too strait for
them and they began to think of some sanctuary, some conse-
crated spot whither the elect of God might go up and tread on ho-
ly ground. Thought begat desire and desire prompted to the ac-
tion of building a
MEETING HOUSE.
The same necessity was also here, and has been everywhere that
Abraham found, "A place to bury my dead out of my sight." In
all communities where people really serve God there are outi^idem
who seem to wish them well ; so it was here. Mr. John Taylor
gave an acre of ground for a burial place and, to erect a meeting
house on. The deed is made to Jesse Guttritige and James Temp-
lin, deacons of the church. It is in .the hand writing of Rev. John
Tfiomas, and bears date March 7th, 1816. This spot of ground,
LOGAN COUNTIES. 'iT^
now enlarged, is the silent house and home of most* of the then
fsving, moving generation. The Hon. Edward L. Morgan, fiovv
m his seventy-eighth year, assisted to' open the. first rtarrow h6use
ia this city of the dead. This narrow house is tenanted' by the
aobrtal remains of Sister Ann Turner, one of the constituent mem-
bers of the church. During the year 18*16 a log-house "26 by 20 wa^s
erected for a meeting house. This house had neither chiiiiriey or
6re-plaee, and as stoves could not be had, a wooden box "was tna'de
of thick puncheon. This box was about 12- by 6 feet and partly
filled with clay pounded in so as to form a jconcave for the recep-
tion of charcoal. This standing in the center ot the house w'th its
glowing bed of charcoal afforded the only warmth for winter days.
That the carbonic acid (gas) generated by the burning charcoal,
*iid not send them all over Jordan before they wanted to go m suf-
icient evidence that this house diu not lack ventilation as m^ny
modern ones do. This house became the center for Sunday gather-
ing, for all the regions round. It also afforded accommodation i._
lor the day school and singing schools. It .was in tCis house that
ancle Ed. (Hon. Edward L. Moi:gan) reigned-lord of the bircb and
ferule, and taught the young idea how to shoot. Here sdme of
mxr living fathers and mothers in Israel not only received tbelftrst,
rudiments of an English education, but here they also first learned
m the school of Christ ; apd if they should ever sing "There is a
^ot to me most dear," memory would turn back to the old. log
greeting house of 1816.
What if uncle Ed. does tell us that "everj' cabin contained the
iisaad cards, the spinning wheel and loom, that the entire ward-
rrobe of both male and female were home manufacture, that all
went barefoot in the summer, 'the girls even not indulging in' the
Saxury of shoes and stockings, except when going to meeting or a
wedding, and then the shoes and stockings were carried in the hand
Ifclll arriving near the place of destination— that the appearance of
two new calico dresses produced a sensation," yet wepremi?je that,
©nder the dress of linsey-woolsey as true maidenly hearts' beat as
Stave ever beat beneath the costly fabrics oi fashion's reign, 'rtiey
were as lovely and lovable in the eyes of the young men of that
day as any maidens can be. That they were as well fitted to make
liappy homes, and fulfill the duties of wives and mothers none can
*loubts wh(\^new the few survivors of that age and time. •
172 CffllAMf'AIGN AND
The y^^jig mall's vest of homespun or buck«i^i, coveJfKil -a
no'^il^, b?are apd niatnly he^rt. liete •Atti\chny\ent^ were forreied^
a-ncl ooEisiimuuited at Hymen's alt&r, which Iw^v.e needed nci' d\--
voPCe M^s ol co,uTt(5 to loose th3 boa Is. Jit i.^ indeed ^oubtft*!
Whetb^I' jewel lit fingers, bracelet encircled wrfsts, cram pc<(f feet
and Glisfigiireclldrni ; broadcloth, polished leather and supeKticiai
mariiaioodhas addwd anything to happineH« or godjiness. It ig ci»r-
tain. ttjat unde;' tfjeold regime the people wero huneist, contented
and fi,appy'j and .>»erved Grod in spirit and in truth.
This Ttiotise, with its varied associations, stood f(M fifteen yearTs-
and might have stood much longer had not Providenef^ removed it.
One of those blessings, which often come in th«elorin of a cajamity.
eompJLeH'Ly cleai-^d the ground, by fire, for the: ei?ection of a briek
eiijfiee 28 by M.feet, whieh was^built in 1831 on thu^ same grounds
T?othis sanfftuarY Ihp tribes of the Lord contiriuecl to g« up nntif.
IS^ji'xVh^i U^ })lace began to be t<X5 strait for tliem, v>»lien this^
hor?.se-\s'aBTe.m.oved and the pr<5lent siibstantial churt'h edifice, 4;..
by TSk '^i^^B Ivttil't c'ind nearly on the ^same gfoumi We do not; ex-
iiffjfi'i'aite yv'h^ft we s^y no country ciUurch, within r)ur knowlfetlge,
hs'^ -a bflt"tc-r Iv:)t^se, The 4a"Ii. ^v'tute spire, pointing l-ni&av<?nvvaror
e?>i:!^be «'^^en fvoi*^ thvMp. f(^Uy<.'\ilf^ n->?1le the d^ep, Bilvery to^tC."^ of
?/veoel'. . ' ', ' • *' ir\b(?he4M\^ for m: r
waj; : . . .; • \ - • ■ ''■ ■
V,Q<V..--. ■■•.'' ■ ■ ■ ,' . ' ■
'iroH*"^ •" » " ■. ■ ■* '
thy -.iw • • ■ ■ ■■ : •• ' •■,,.■
neoAiely *'
*■••' Methodist ii^iscopal Church
Was&sr.ivi"^. ■ -.^me year, 1805, in Urbana; the old hjg-.
f'h'-wch refev •. Judge Patrick in his history of Urbana, waar
builfin they. ■ f
tvlount Tabor Church
1^ among the earliest churches in the county. I dor^ know the
pvecise date of its establishment, but I know it was t^erf' in ISlf..
i
^ LOGA.N COUNTIES. 1^^
:uk\ pei-haps Jong before. See Dr. (."owjjill'* interestiag sjk:ete^e•^in
his work ; also Mr. Stalers and 3Ir. T. S. HcFathfud, who Uav?
-:ih(1ty contribute' I tkeir vain able •sketches ijr this vohime,
Quaker Church at Darby,
■n ^ane t^^wnsliip, Login? c6unty. Tiie tir.st nieetini^- Seld by fl'iis
■ • iilefoiL^'orship wa$ in the yeiir ISOi tir ISO)", thay r)6in:g the
aliglousd'enomi nation in the county. The next was by %^'ie
-nit* relij<ious body at Goshen, Jeffer;?oii township, abouf One
:j'i\p- e-^ist. of i^anesfleld, in what is called MAi'inou's -Dottoi^t^Tn tliC
This VV4S established by the Mlasiii Monthly M^etuv^s.
1 - • I . b y ",va>* not repognized t)y die •a.bove-iiS'i-J'.-'l '^'i<>'-'^''j'y
1 • .*•, . yet tjieeting-d were held here aomfi ,veai^ b&l'crri.
... . ■ •• "■'■.r -r^t ?niiiister. "
Fharp's Run Baptist Ohuirch,
^>5.ii*£ituted JL811?, by John (jrUttridge and John T'hOiiKJ,fi. William
':■ the only living constituent member of 'this 'ihurch. It 1*
u' rnile west from Zauesfield. Th^ Rev. Of^Tg,-^ >IeCai^
.och, iiift' wife, and James lvd\va.rcls were all baptized ji ere TheT<ajne
■lay, June "';-I 1 -;7-,?, ?.[r. ^r(*Col'<i<'h vva-< i>i"luini-. ! ;>-v:Vl
Methodist Church
In Zane township, LogaA county. Built on the bank: of Inskeep^iS
old mill dam, in year 1818.
Universalist Church.
Built about the year 1842, at Woodstock. The mi»isters that
preached theie fir.?t were Rev. Mr. Jolly, Truman Strong, George
Messenger, and the Rev. Mr. Emmett.
Spain's Run Methodist Church
Was e.-stablished in C"hampa,jgn County, in 1803. The first rneeting-
-hou^o w;*^ built in 1815, one m-ile- we^t of North Lewisburg.
IV CHAMPAIGN AND
THE FIRST MERCHANT
In Logan County was Robitaille, better known as Robindi. Judge
McCoIloch says his store-room stood near where Bradsraith's resi-
dence now standSj'^in Zanesfield. He represents him to be a very
polite and affable Canadian Frenchman. I think Billy Henry told
me he was buried on the old Gunn farm, on the Ludlow road, on©
norile south of Bellefontaine. He took out license in 1805. Fabian
Eagle-hept a small store at Urbana at the same time.
J-AMES McPHERSON
Took out license to sell goods at the same time with Robindi,
{ 1805, ) as the records, now on the Clerk's book, in Urbana, show-
I think he sold a short time in Champaign County, just below
West Liberty, afterwards in Logan County, where he died in the
year 1837.
JOHN GUNN.
I saw on the same book that John Gunn had taken out license
the same year ( 1805) to keep tavern. He kept tavern at the old
farm spoken of above. He wa^ there in 1812, during the war.
LOGAN COUNTIM5. 175
WILLIAM HUBBARD.
BY HON. WILLIAM LAWRENCE.
>'
Born at the quiet rural village of West Liberty on the southern
border of Logan county, Ohio, on May 17, 1821, William Hubbard
inherited nothing but an honest name, a healthy constitution, and
a vigorous intellect.
Deprived of a father's care at an early age, he grew up under the
guidance of a widowed mother, whose exemplary virtues, strong
good sense and p&tient industi-y, left their impress on the mind and
character of her son. At that early day, the "log School-house"
furnished almost the only means of education ; but with this, and
that home training which every mother should be competent to
afford, William became well versed in all the usual branches of an
English education. Early in the year of 1832 he took his first les-
sons in the "art preservative of arts," the printing business— in the
ofiiee of the Logan Gazette, a newspaper then edited and conducted
in Bellefontaine, by Hiram B. Strother. Here he served with
fidelity, and skill, and industry, for seven years, when, early in
1S89, he became the publisher of the paper, and continued as such
for a period of six months. During all this time, as, indeed, in
the years which followed, he employed his leisure moments in de-
veloping his literary taste, and in the profound study of the best
writers of prose and poetry. In the summer of 1841 he began his
career as a school teacher in a district near his native village, in
one of the ever-memorable, universal "people's colleges" of the
times, the "lof: School-house." In this useful, bu' perplexing and
ill-paid capacity, he continued most of his time until ihe fall of
1S4&. Meantime, in 1841, he had determined to study ^ he profes-
sion of law, and for that parpose became the student of Benjamin
F. Stanton und William Lawrence, attrrneys in Bellefontaine,
His studies were somewhat interrupted by his duties as teacher,
and by his literary pursuits, yet as he had made it a rule of his life
176
es^x.'Urp,Hi?-:i-;sr a;s"T)
Tifivm- to do anything iaiperfeetly. he was uot admitr.j'fJ to th«^ Jwr
ivntil he l^aci bGt»:srjp; ■:■ thc^oiiib'* v>v.!j-vei''i lawyer, in the ye^ir
1846.
In the faljL of 184» .^u*. .■-Livm ;»<>.•; w^-cwum -r-'iii m of the Log:an 6rc?-
zetie, and f)C<*upied tjuit positfon' fi.;i' a numbo'' of years, but is now
the able and at-compilshed ftJIt-^r -Ol' tiie JVorfJi West, published at
Nap()left»), Henry county, Ohio Af .m .u>litical writer he has a
wida and. dei«ervedly highr'epi..
as an vpd.itof , he: was elected Prr-;'
ii: ,l.Skf.S^ and attain in 1850 andj h;. +1v5
end nbriity Tdr four yeai*;:?. wh<>-"' iv*. .
Mr. Hubbard receive;! tr.i- •-..
which he beSongs, a$
hope ti)T' su'Kcess in e
bu'", fhnij^h fiefeateil ' •
baU-^ ?-iiKl a^^lre-<--
tatlr>i■I «s an orato
t^va-ted by study, and by ;
of the Mad rfver, with a ': . .
tributed to ' ' Wake to ees*
into eloquence and poeti'.v
tions we're la January, l§5.f 'V-
mach genius with so nttl<
always shunned uotoriei^ . . .
would make a good sized \o\ve
poem, written by him at the gra
lect as a specimen of liis poeinji.
Poets and Poetrv of the We^t.
' ith>itaudinghasdutiets
■,y.j .^.aorney of Logan county.
H»i>ao;itv served with skilJ
>- rion. In 185S
■ jcal party to
H.e could fecai'oely
•. '-'J ]>ii]itically ;
vary. In do*
a l>'?al repu-
■ . ,- %(inat;ion, cul-
■ rii.-i fertile valley
...y; fj ardor, ail con-
'• aiid tu^riMst|lought•-
i sfced i*oeti<?&J. produc-
^ •■ . ' kuown a writer of so
has nr:;ver sought, bu'-
.., writings, if collected;
j\y will be found a beautiful
V J t' Simon Kenton, which I se-
S^e his other poems in Coggsheil'.s
^t the ^raie of M'^i^'^ ^nfan.
^
Tread lightly, this is halioweii -'.oaud ; ireaci reverently here !
Benuith this sod, in silence sleeps, the brave old Pioneer,
Who never quailed in dark&st hour, whose heart ne'er felt a /ear
Tread lightly, then, and here besiow the tribute of a tear.
Ah ! Can this be the spot where sleeps the bravest of the brave '?
Is this rude slab the only ma-rk of Simon Kenton's grave ?
These faUen palings, ivethey 4.11 hs ingrate country gave
To one who periled life so ott her tiomes and hearths to save?
LOGAN COmS'TIBS. iT
:Mg', k)Ufi; ago, in ina"aho<xi's prime, wiieiiaTl ^'as wild aud ai'^ai",
' '.v i-iMUKl thi^ hero to a ^^talce of savage torment heie —
i.blam']»ed i.\n:l linn, his soul disdained a ,-upplieating tear —
housaiid Uemous eouKi not ti'a.uaj^the WesteTq Pioneer,
oy tied hislia«idi«, Hazeppa-iiiie. and set him on a -^teed,
"•' -1^ the mastanji of the plains\ and ciocking badtijjici ^eed 1
ised.that coarser liTce the wi^nd, of curb and bit all freed,
■ ' iDod and Held, o'er hill and dale, wherever chance might lead.
■ iu in t^'ery trial lioQr, his heart was still the same,
v.ol'V-^'^ ^».-ith 'self-reliance strong, whicli dangt-r wald nAi
# .1 lie :u:gh twin the splendox.^f 'V^^"^'^-
' ■ - long to eorue^hed g-lory on his Tii4n»e.
? loved the land where 4irst he'saw {"he light-^
- o -i soul was true, and idolized the rig]it;
• d*t and thickest of the light,
?ii aud swarthy ibeman felt the terror of his might.
• se his countrjwwen v^jio dwell where long ago Jie t-iiiue ?
■se tlie men who glory in the !?})ieudor of his fame ?
) they net tiJfford to-%'ive a stone to bear hir* nanie ';'
., Liever let them more pre.^uuie the hero's dust to oU^im I
178 CHAMPAIGN AND
>
ABRAM S. PIATT.
Abrim Sanders Piatt is more generally known to the military
and political than the poetical world. The two pursuits, so wid«^
apart as they are, seldom center in one individual. Did Mr? Piatt
seiiously follow either, this would not probably be the fact in this
instance. But the happy possessor of broad acres — and beautiful
acres they are— in the Macacheek valley, Logan county, Ohio, he
dallies with the mus6s, and worries the politicians more for amuse-'
ment than aught else. His serious moments are given to the
care of an interesting family, add the cultivation of his farm. Nf>
one of any refinement could long dwell in the Macacheek valley
and not feel more or less of the poetry that seems to live in its
very atmosphere. So rare a combination of plain, and hill, wood
and meadow, adorned by the deep clear glittering stream that gives
name to the valley, seldom greets the eyes. There, the hawthorn
and hazel gather in clumps upon the sloping hillsides, or upon
fields, while, like gx-eat hosts, the "many tinted forests of burr-oak.
maple and hickory close in on every side the view. Nor is the
Macacheek without its legends and historical associations. Men
yet live, rough old backwoodsmen, with heads whitened by the
snows of eighty winters, who will point out the jtrecise spot where
a poor Indian woman, seen lurking about thesmoking ruins of the
Macacheek towns, only then destroyed by the white invaders, was
shot by a riflieman, who mistook her for a warrior. Near the Piatt
homestead may be seen the spot where Simon Kenton was forced
by his cruel enemies to run the gauntlet, when between lake and
river lay a vast unbroken wilderness. It was near this that he and
Girty, the renegade, recognized each other, and the hard heart of
the murderer was touched at the sight of his old comrade and friend
and he saved his life at a time when this bold act endangered
his own. The family to which Mr. Piatt belongs is one of the
pioneer families of the Mad River Valley, and has prominent
associations with the literature and politics of the west. Don
Piatt, his brother, is well known as a writer and political orator.
LOGAN COUNTIES. 179
Carrie Piatt, a niece has contributed popular articles in both prose
and verse to western Magazines. A. Sanders Piatt's poems have
been published chiefly in the Cincinnati Daily Commercial and in
the Macacheek Press. Below will be found a specimen of his
poems.
The dainty bee 'mid waxen cells
Of golden beauty ever dwells,
And dreams his life away ;
His food a million flowers caught,
From out the sunlight as they wrought,
Through Spring and Summer day.
Slothful bee, the Spring-time's morning
Wakes him from his Winter'S*dream.
Reveler 'mid the pleasures gathered.
From the wild-bloom and the stream.
But the Spring-time's ray of gladness
Calls him to the fields again.
Calls him with the voice of flowers
Flowing 'mid the sunlit rain.
Goes he to the fields of plenty,
Searches 'mid the rare pe||fume,
Gathers honey from their beauty,
While he sings his wanton tune,
Filling 'mid the sweets and fancies
That o'erburthen all the air,
Gathering Dainties from the palace,
That the queenly group may share.
Drunk with treasures, overburdened,
Slow he wings his way along.
Gladdens all the scenes with humming
O'er his dainty little song.
Wanton bee, ah ! busy body,
Drinking from each perfumed cup,
All day straying in the valley,
Gathering sweets to treasure up.
180
CRAMP^^LlGN AJ^B
•Live?5 he in a world of plenty.,
Jnoatiug Oil ite i*Hi'e vfii-iutne,
"Sipping HaytiBi-Pi's airly bloswiiis^
Reveling in the bed .of .Tmvo ?
In the snovvdi, annd the clover,
Dainty mows, h<3\v sweet and shy,
Treaded with the gi'een. of Sunimer,
Perfumed, frosts of mid-July J
Thy home
Nature's
Lit with K
Waken-
See the si'
Liftin;;^
rill the v:
As they .
.\'i(it palace,
♦iornliie.
Scents the.' : ■ , ■ .-_•?■«> bathe in,
Guides titee to the ii-easijres pure ;
Airs that 7 ^ - " . • -t iiiasic,
Forsuci. .re.
Labor wliiie tiie buraiJiis- lingers,
Labor T?v'hile tlieiftoutli wind blows.
Ere the North kii^, marching south vv^rii,
Fills thy garden \vith his '?nows.
I
LOGAN COUNTY,
liOgan County derive* itn iiaiiXe iroin General* Benjamin Logan.
It was struckoff from Champaign, jMarch 1, IR^J^ but jiot oiga-n-
ized until 1S18. The ('ourts were ordered to be heKf in the fown
of Betleville, at the house, of Edwin Matthesv-Jj tvifil ■I'^eravjrrent
- ' of Justice should t>e establisliod.
• 16 tQi:rijt«rj' eompriseci. within the limfts .►, .... .>Ji;i.. ,,.,,5 a
. i-iteiibodeot the 3ha\vam)e'lndla«.if, whoM-l Be vera! village
fci. Ma^-i Hiver, r •:.' ■"■ *"■■•■.:- • .,..'.
sitvon of t!iT.'efi <> « •
t. ^ eaUW , . . • ■
^.,' iate Jur:-.,.v ■,•::''.'.•
about thvr.*«ii raiki/ ■■.•-, . ■
/ - hSK}, -'". .■':.•■*.■-
iita M^K."*-.' . • ' • • • . •.
Iv^atiickiau-'N i-t'i ■*■
|>edivion i»'«i"3m ..-• • _ -• •.
pie ycenes ho tfc^^erib-
'' It, wasin Lheautmnn -i liii- \' ■ ■' ■ -. .?,i uu/
forces of thd Wabasl) expedition. . numerous
eor[>;. C-oI. Lop:aa wa.^ deta^ihod O'O'u thy- j Falls of the
Ohio,, to raise a cpnsldemble force,, with wii,:.- . ,-aceeil against
the Judian villages on the head wat^i'S (rf iVIad 1 ti ver and the Great
Miami, I vras then aged .i^ixteen, and t,oo young to come within
the k-igal requisition; but I offereti mj'self as a voMnteer. Coi.
Logan went on to his desfUiation, anci would have ^urpri?ed the
Indian tcnvns against which he had marched, had' twt one of his
men de.serted to the enemy, not long" before they reached the tbwvi^
who gave notice of their approach. As it- was, he burned eight
182 CHAMPAIGN AND
large towns, and destroyed many fields of corn. He took seventy
or eighty prisoners, and killed twenty warriors, and among then
the head chief of the nation. The last act caused deep regret, hu
miliation and shame to the commander-in-chief and his troops.
We came in view of the first two towns, one of which stood oii
the west bank of Mad river, and the other on the northeast of it.
They were separated by a prairie, half a mile in extent. The town
on the northwest was situated on a high, commanding point of
land, that projected a small distance into the prairie, at the foot of
which eminence brok« out several fine springs. This was the resi-
dence of the famous chief of the nation. His flag was flying at
the time, from the top of a pole sixty feet high. We had ad-
vanced in three lines, the commander with some of the horsemen
inarching at the head of the centre line, and the footmen in the
rear. Col. Robert Patterson commanded thQ left, and I think Col.
Thomas Kennedy the right. When we cavne in sight of the town
the spies of the front guard made a halt, and sent a man back to.
inform the commander of the situation of the two towns. He
ordered Col. Patterson to attack the towns on the left bank of Mad
River. Col. Kennedy was also charged to incline a little to the
right of the town on the east side gf the prairie. He determined
himself to charge, with the centre dj.vision, immediately on the
upper town. I heard the commander give h\s orders, and caution \
the colonels against allowing their men to kill any among the en- i
emy, that they might suppose to be pnsoners. He then ordered
them to advance, and as soon as they should discover the enemy
to charge upon them. I had my doubts touching the propriety of '
some of the arrangement. I was willing, however, to view the
affair with the difiidence of youth and inexperience. At any rate
I was determined to be at hand, to see all that was goin on, and to j
be as near the head of the line as my colonel would permit. I was !
extremely solicitous to try myself in battle. The commander of '
the centre line waved his sword over his head, as a signal for the I
troops to advance. Col. Daniel Boone and Major, since Gen. Ken-
ton, commanded the advance, and Col. Trotter the rear. As we,
approached within half a mile of the town on the left, and about
three-fourths from that on the rfght, we saw the savages retreat-
ing in all directions, making for the thickets, swamps, and high
pf-airie grass, to secure them from th?ir enemy. .1 was animated
with the energy with which the commander conducted th^ head
LOGAN COUNTIES. 183
of his line. He waved his sword, and in a voice of thunder ex-
claimed, " Charge from right to left !'.'
The horses appeared as impatient for the onset as the^rid^rs. As
we came up with tlie flying savages, I was disappointed, discov-
ering that we should have little to do. I heard but on'e^s'avage,
with the exception o^ the chief, cry for quarter. They fought
with desperation as long as they could raise knife, gun or toma-
hawk, after they found they could not screen themselves. We
dispatched all the warriors that we overtook, and sent the women
and children prisoners to the rear. We pushed ahead, still hoping
to overtake a larger body, where we might have soniething like a
general engagement. I was mounted on a very fleet gray horse.
Fifty of my companions followed me. I had not advanced 'more
thafn a mile, before I discovered some of the enemy running along
the edge of a thicket, of hazle and plum bushes. I made si^ns
to the men in Ray r6ar to come on. At the same time, pointing
to the flying ^nemy, I obliqued across the plain, so as to get in ad-
vance of them. When I arrived within fifty yards of them, I
dismouted and raised my gun! I discovered, at this moment,
some men of the right wing coming up on the left. The warrior
I was about to shoot held up his hand in token of surrender, and I
heard him order the other Indians to stop. By this time the men
behind had arrived, and were in the act "of firing-^upon the Indi-
ans. I called to them not to fire, for the'enemy had surrendered.
The warrior that had surrendered to me, ^came walking towards
me, calling to his women and children to follow him. I advancted
to meet him, with my right hand extended : but before I could
reach him, the men of the right wing of our force had surrounded
him. i rushed in among their horses. While he was giving me
his hand, several of^the men wished to tomahawk him. I in-
formed them that they would have to tomahawk me first. We
led him back to the place where his flag had been. 'We had taken
thirteen prisoners. Among them was the chief, his three wives,
one of them a young and handsome woman, another of them the
famous grenadier'squaw, nipward? of six feet high, and two or three
fine young lads. The rest were children. One of these lads w^s a
remarkably interesting youth, about my own age and size. He
clung closely to me', and appeared keenly to notice everything that
was going on. ' ' ' '
When we arrived at the town, a crowd of men pressed around
1S4 GHAlMPAIVi?s' AXD
to see th^ chfrf. I i*tepped aside to fevstwi my h<Trse, mvl sviy pjri-^
i'tier lacl f'.Iuni* elase to my side. A y6ung ijpa'n by tn<^ uaine ■.■.
Oaniev had b^ii to one of the springs to drink-,- He 4^'ovei'e.
the ;wtfcny savage by nay sid&, and eairte' ruimlng t»\vards nir-
Tb« ytfjltns Jndian supfwsed h^ ^ya.«* a-dvanclugr to fctll h,im. As .
tturued around, in the twhtfelfn^ of an eye, h,e let fly an ai'irow a^
Cwnei*. for he vv;is armed" with a bo^v•; I ha<t ju.^t time to ca*c''
iiijg arm, as he disx'harged the art'ow. It pa-^sed thi*ough Curnex'
dress, and «?raZed his stde. The jerk 1 gave his arm andcuhtedi-
pceve't'.tec.ihis killing Ciirner on the spot. I tcx^iz away t^e arrow-
and steAily repilmanded him. I theii led nim back to thg crov'i
whv?h sarr.oLia.^ad the prisoners. At the same niCHXiebl' Colon'
McG-arji, the same, man who had caxtsed the disafrter at the Hki
LiSks, i?ome years before, coming up, Clen. !Logan's e-ye cau^li:
that C'FM'Gary. "Col. M'Gary," said he, "yoiimwst not nioles^
the?0 ^L^'dners.'- " I wiUsee to ttiat,-^ safd IM'G.ary i^i reply.
ft>p<*tl mVf \vay through the erowd to Lije^^chiei wiili my your ,
M'niarv ^Cv^v-i-ed th- p-^-v;"l to oi:.en and 1-
>C vinderstu
WV. •:••;-. ' ,
tho ■ • ■ ' ;
yt-rA- .• . . • . - ■
purj)="w- -•, - ■
arriaeter • .* ■■ - .j.^-... ....,:... ....... ■ > -s
the th v'.: ■ escaped from the cro^•
A d^iCiiiiiO.Ui. •.'. :; ^ tht»a ordered <^ff to two uther towns, U:stat:
six or eiglit miles. Tile men and prisoners were ordered to marci
down to tli.e lower town and encamp. Ah we marched out of the
upper town, we fired it, collecting a large pile of corn for ouy liGr.se;-
and beans, pumpkins, &c., for our own use. T told Capt. Stacker
who messed with me, that I lyid seen several hogs runiiing about
the town, which ap])eared to be in good order, and' that I
thought a piece of fresh pork wouid relish Well with out
stock O'f vegetables. He ren<Illy a>'ioi"»tiu<r to it. we weut it.
C'hvirge
'bv t]»e '
hii'Ji m
. >f-
t5ie • -
Iiv...
iuat '■
* ■ ■
fe-iln . .
vaMy:, :
-r^
otf .,. V
'\'>
LOGAN COUNTIES. 18f)
pursuit of them ; but as orders had been given not to shoot
unless at an enemy, after finding the hogs we had to run them
down on foot, until we got near enough to tomahawk them. Being
engaged at this sometime before we killed one, while Capt. S. was
in the act of striking the hog, I cast my eye along the edge of the
woods that skirted the prairie, and saw an Indian coming along
with a deer on his back. The fellow happened to raise his head at
that moment, and looking acioss the prairie to the upper town, saw
it aH in flames. At the same moment I spoke to Stucker in a low
voice, that here was an Indian coming. In the act of turning my
head round to speak to Stucker, I discovered Hugh Ross, brother-
in-law to Col. Kennedy, at the distance of about 60 or 70 yards, ap-
proaching us. I made a motion with my hand to Ross to squat
down ; then taking a tree between me and the Indian, I slipped
somewhat nearer, to get a fairer shot, when at the instant I raised
my gun past the tree, the Indian being about 100 yards distant,
Ross's ball whistled by me, so close that I felt the wind of it, and
struck the Indian on the calf of one of his legs. The Indian that
moment dropped his deer, and sprang into the high grass of the
prairie. All this occurred so quickly, that I had not time to draw a
sight on him, before he was hid by the grass. I was provoked at
Ross for shooting when I was near enough to have killed
him, and now the consequence would be, that probably some
of our men would lose their lives, as a wounded Indian only
would give up with his life. Capt. Irwin rode up that mo-
ment, with his troop of horse, and asked me where the In-
dian v/as. I pointed as nearly as I could to the spot where I
last saw him in the grass, cautioning the captain, if he missed him
the first charge, to pass on out of his reach before he wheeled to
re-charge, or the Indian would kill some of his men in the act of
wheeling. Wht^ther the captain heard me, I cannot say; at any
rate, the warning was not attended to, for after passing the Indian
a few steps, Captain Irwin ordered his men to wheel and re-charge
across the woods, and in the act of executing the movement, the
Indian raised up and shot the captain dead on the spot — still keeping
below the level of the grass, to deprive us of any opportunity of
putting a bullet through him. The troop charged again; but the
Indian was so active, that he had darted into the grass, some rods
from where he had fired at Irwin, and they again missed him. By
this time several footmen had got up. Capt. Stucker and myself
14
I
186 0HAMPAIGN AND
had each of us taken a tree that stood out in the edge of the prairie,
among the grass, when a Mr. Stafford came up, and put his head
first past one side and then the other of thi^ tree I was behind. I
told him not to expose himself that way or he would get shot in a
moment. I had hardly expressed the last word when the Indian
again raised up out of the grass. His gun, Stuckor's, and my own,
witli four or five behind us, all cracked at the same instant. Staf-
ford fell at my side, while we rushed on the wounded Indian with
our tomahawks. Before we had got him dispatched, he had made
ready the powder in his yun, aad a ball in his mouth, preparing
for a third fire, with bullet holes in his breast that might have all
been covered with a man's open hand. We found with him Capt.
Bea8ley's rifle— the captain having been killed at the Lower Blue
Licks, a few days before the army passed through that place on
their way to the towns.
Next morning. Gen. Logan ordered another detachment to at-
tack a town that lay seven or eight miles to the north or north-
west of where we then were. This town was also burnt, together
with a large block-house that the English had built there, of a
huge size and thickness ; and the detachment returned that eve-
ning to the main body. Mr. Isaac Zane was at that time living
at this last village, he being married to a squaw, and having at the
place his wife and several children at the time.
The name of the Indian chief killed by M'Gary was Moluntha,
the great sachem of the Shawnees. The grenadier squaw was the
sister to Cornstalk, who fell [ basely murdered ] at Point Pleasant.
Jonathan Alder, was at this time living with the Indians.
(See sketcli of his life on another page.)
From his narrative it appears that the news of the approach of
the Kentuckians was communicated to the Indians by a French-
man, a deserter from the former. Nevertheless the whites arrived
sooner than they expected. The surprise was complete; most of the
Indians were at the time absent hunting, and the towns became an
easy conquest to the whites. Early one morning, an Indian run-
ner came into the vill-^ge in which Alder lived, and gave the in-
formation that Maoacheek had been destroyed, and that the whites
were approaching'. Alder, with the people of the village, who
were principally squ iws and children, retreated for two days, until
they arrived snm(^v\'here near the head waters of the Scioto, where
LOGAN COUNTIES. 187
•
they suflfered much for want of food. There was not a man among
them capable of hunting, and they were compelled to subsist on
paw-paws, muscles and craw-fish. In about eight days they re-
turned to Zane's town, tarried a short time, and from thence re-
moved to Hog Creek, where they wintered : their principal liv-
ing at that place was " raccoons, and that with little or no salt,
without a single bite of bread, hominy, or sweet corn." In the
spring they moved back to the site of their village, where nothing
remained but the ashes of their dwellings, and their corn burnt to
charcoal. They remained during the sugar season, and then re-
moved to Blanchard's Fork, where, being obliged to clear the land,
they were enabled to raise but a scanty crop of corn. While this
was growing, they fared hard, and managed to eke out a bare sub-
sistence by eating a kind of wild potato and poor raccoons, that
had been suckled down so poor that dogs would hardly eat them ;
*' for fear of losing a little, they threw them on the fire, singed the
hair off, and ate skin and all."
The Indian lad to whom General Lytle alludes, was taken with
others of the prisoners into Kentucky. The commander of the
expedition was so much pleased with him, that he made him a
member of his own family, in which he resided some years, and
was at length permitted to return. He was ever afterwards known
by the name of Logan, to which the prefix of captain was eventu-
ally attached. His name was Spemica Lawba, i. e. "High Horn."
He subsequently rose to the rank of a civil chief, on account of his
many astimable intellectual and moral qualities. His personal
appearance was commanding, being six feet in height, and weigh-
ing near two hundred pounds. He from that time continued the
unwavering friend of the Americans, and fought on their side with
great constancy. He lost his life in the fall of 1821 under melan-
choly circumstances, which evinced that he was a man of the keen-
est sense of honor. The facts follow from Drake's Teeumseh :
In November of 1812, General Harrison directed Lo*an to take
a small party of his tribe, and reconnoitre the country in the di-
rection of the Rapids of the Maumee. When near this point they
were met by a body of the enemy superior to their own in number,
and compelled to retreat. Logan, Captain Johnny, and Bright-
horn, who comi>osed the party, effected their escape to the left
wing of the army, then under the command of General Winches-
1^8 CHAMPAIGN AND
ter, who was duly informed of the circumstances of their adven-
ture. An officer of the Kentucky troops, General P., the second in
command, without the slightest ground for such a charge, accused
Logan of infidelity to our cause, and of giving intelligence to the
enemy. Indignant at this foul accusation, the noble chief at once
resolved to meet it in a manner that would leave no doubt as to his
faithfulness to the United States. He called on his friend Mr.
Oliver, (now Major Oliver, of Cincinnati,) and having told him of
the imputation that had been east upon his reputation, said that he
would start from the camp next morning, and either leave his
body bleaching in the woods, or return with such trophies from
the enemy, as would relieve his character from the suspicion that
had been wantonly cast upon it by an American officer.
Accordingly, on the morning of the 22d, he started down the
Maumee, attended by histwo faithful companions, Captiin Johnny
and Bright-horn. About no(m, having stopped for the purpose of
taking rest, they were suddenly surprised by a party of Heven of
the enemy, among whom were young Elliott, a half-breed, hold-
ing a commission in the British service, and the celebrated Potta-
watamie chie-'', Winnemac. Logan made no resistance, but with
great presence of mind, extending his hand to Winnemac, who
w'as an old acquaintance, proceeded to inform him that he and his
two companions, tired of the American service, were just leaving
General Winchester's army for the purpose of joining the British.
Winnemac, being familiar with Indian strategy, was not satisfied
with the declaration, but proceeded to disarm Logan and his com-
rades, and placing liis party around them so as to prevent their es-
cape, started for the British camp at the foot of the rapids. In
the course of the afternoon, Logan's address was such as to inspire
confidence in his sincerity, and induce Winnemac to restore to
him and his companions their arms. Logan now formed the plan
of attacking their captors on the first favorable opportunity ; and
while marching along succeeded in communicating the substance
of it to Captain Johnny and Bright-horn. Their guns being already
loaded, they had little further preparation to make than to put
bullets into their mouths, to facilitate the re-loading of their arms.
In carrying on this process. Captain Johnny, as he afterwards re-
lated, fearing that the man marching by his side had observed the
operation, adroitly did away the impression by remarking " me
chaw heap tobac."
LOGAN^ COUNTIES. 189
The evening being now at hand, the British Indians determined
to encamp on the bank of Turkeyfoot creek, about twenty miles
from Fort Winchester. Confiding in tlie idea that Logan had
really deserted the American service, a part of his captors rambled
around the place of their encampment in search of black-haws.
They were no sooner out of sight than Logan gave the signal of at-
tack upon those who remained behind ; they fired, and two of the
enemy fell dead— the third, being only wounded, required a sec-
ond shot to dispatch him ; and in the meantime, the remainder of
the party, who were near by, returned the fire, and all of them
"treed." There being four of the enemy, and only three of Lo-
gan's party, the latter ''ould not watch all the movements of their
antagonists. Thus circumstanced, and during an active fight, the
fourth man of the enemy passed n)und until Logan was uncovered
by his tree, and shot him thr^^ugh the body. By this time, Logan's
party had wounded two of the surviving four, which caused them
to fall back. Taking advantage of this state of 'things. Captain
Johnny mounted Logan, now suffering the pain of a mortal wound,
and Bright-horn, also wounded, on two of the enemy's horses, and
started them for Winchester's camp, which they reached about
midnight. Captain Johnny, having already secured the scalp of
Winnemac, followed immediately on foot, and gained the same
point early on the following morning It was subsequently ascer-
tained that the two Indians of the British party, who were last
wounded, died of their wounds, making in all five out of the seven
who were slain by Logan and his companions.
When the news of this gallant afiair had spread through the
camp, and, especially, after it was known that Logan was mortally
wounded, it created a deep and mournful sensation. No one, it is
believed, more deeply regretted the fatal catastrophe than the
author of the charge upon Logan's integrity, which had led to
this unhapp3' result.
Logan's popularity was very great ; indeed, he was almost uni-
versally esteemed in the army for his fidelity to our cause, his un-
questioned bravery, and the nobleness of his nature. He lived two
or three days after reaching the camp, but in extreme bodily
agony ; he was buried by the officers of the army at Fort Winches-
ter, with the honors of war. Previous to his death, he related the
particulars of this fatal enterprize to his friend Oliver, declaring to
190 CHAMPAIGN AND
him that he prized his honor more than life ; and having: now vin-
dicated his reputation from the imputation cast upon it, he diod
satisfied. In the course of this interview, and while writhing with
pain, he was observed tosmile; upon beina: questioned as to the cause,
he replied, that when ho recalled to his mind the manner in which
Captain Johnny took off the scalp of Winaemac, while at the same
tiaie dexterously watching the movements of the enemy, he could
not refrain from laughing — an incident in savage life, which shoves
the "ruling passion strong in death." It would, perhaps, be diffi-
cult, in the history of savage warfare, to point out an enterprize,
the execution of which reflects higher credit upon the address and
daring conduct of its authors, than this does upon Logan and his
two companions. Indeed, a spirit even less indomitable, a sense of
honor less acute, and a patriotic devotion to a good cause less
active, than wer(^ manifested by this gallant chieftain of the woods,
might, under other circumstances, have well conferred immortality
upon his name.
Col. John Johnson, in speaking of Logan, says :
Logan left a dying request to myself, that his two sons should be
sent to Kentucky, and there educated and brought up under the
care of Major Hardin. As soon as peace and tranquillity were re-
stored among the Indians, I made application to the chiefs to fulfill
the wish of their dead friend to deliver up the boys, that I might
have them conveyed to Frankford, the residence of Major Hardin.
The chiefs were embarrassed, and manifested an unwillingness to
comply, and in this they were warmly supported by the mother of
the children. On no account would they consent to send them so
far away as Kentucky, but agreed that I should take and have them
schooled at Piqua ; it being the best that I could do, in compliance
with the dying words of Logan, they were brought in. I had them
put to school, and boarded in a religious, respectable family. The
mother of the boys, who was a bad woman, thwarted all my plans
for their improvement, frequently taking them off for weeks, giv-
ing tliem bad advice, and even, on one or two occasions, brought
whisky to the school-house and made them drunk. In this way
she continued to annoy me, and finally took them altogether to
raise with herself among the Shawanoese, at Wapakonetta. I
made several other attempts, during my connection with the In-
dians, to educate and train up to civilized life many of their youth,
LOGAN COUNTIES. 191
without any encouraging results — all of them proved failures. The
children of Logan, with their mother, emigrated to the west twenty
years ago, and have there become some of the wildest of their
race.
Logan county continued to be a favorite place of residence with
the Indians for years after the destruction of these towns. Major
Galloway, who was here about the year 1800, gives the following,
from memory, respecting the localities and names of their towns at
that time. Zane's t nvn, now Zanesfleld, was a Wyandot village ;
Wapatomica, three miles below, on Mad River, was then deserted ;
McKee's town, on McKee's creek, about four miles south of Belle-
fontaine, so named from the InfamDUS McKee, and was at that
time a trading station; Read's town, in the vicinity of Bellefon-
taine, which then had a few_ cabins ; Lewistown, on the Great
Miami, and Solomon's town, at which then lived the Wyandot
chief, Tcii'he, "the Crane." From an old settler we learn, also, that
on the site of Bellefontaine, was Blue Jacket's town, and three
miles north, the town of Buckongehelas. Blue Jacket, or Wey-
apiersensaw, and Buckongehelas were noted chiefs, and were at
the treaty of Greenville; the first wns a Shawnee, and the last a
Delaware. At Wayne's victory, Blue .Jacket had the chief control,
and, in opposition to Little Turtle, advocated giving the whites
battle with so much force as to overpower the better counsel of the
other.
By the treaty of September 29, 1817, at the foot of the Maumee
rapids, the Seneca and Shawnees had a reservation around Lewis-
town, in this county ; by a treaty, ratified April 6, 1832, the Indians
vacated their lands and removed to the far west. On this last oc-
casion, James B. Gardiner was commissioner, John McElvain
agent, and David Robb, sub-agent.
The village of Lewistown derived its name from Cantain John
Lewis, a noted Shawnee chief. When the county was tirst settled
there was living with him, to do his drudgery, an ■\^ed white wo-
man, named Polly Keyser. She was taken prisoner i^i early life,
near Lexington, Ky., and adopted by the Indians. She had an
Indian husband, and two half-breed daughters. There were sev-
eral other whites living in the county, who had been adopted by
the Indians. We give below sketches of two of them ; the first is
192 CHAMPAIGN AND
froniN. Z. McColloch, Esq., a grandson of Isaac Zhik^— the lust
from Col. John Johnston.
Isaac Zane was born about the year 1753, on the south brand, c-''
the Potomac, in Virginia, and at the age of about nine years, vva^
taken prisoner by the Wyandots, and carried to Detroit. He r»--
mained with his captors until the age of manhood, wlien, like
most prisoners taken in youth, he refused to return to his home
and friends. He married a Wyandot woman, from Canada, of
half French blood, and took no part in the war of the revolution.
After the treaty of Greenville, in 1795, he bought a tract of 1800
acres, on the site of Zanesfield, where he lived until his death, in
1816.
James McPherson, or Squa-fa-ka-ke, "the red-faced man," was a
native of Carlisle, Cumberland countj , Pa. He was taken pris-
oner by the Indians on the Ohio, at- or near the mouth of the Big
Miami, in Loughry's defeat ; was for many years engaged in the
British Indian department, under Elliott and McKee, married a
fellow-prisoner, came into our service after Wayne's treaty of 179-3,
and continued in charge of the Shawanoese and Senecas of Lewis-
town, until his removal from office in 1730, since which he has
died.
Simon Kenton first came out to Kentucky in the year 1771, at
which time he was a youth of sixteen. He was almost constantly
engaged in conflicts with the Indians from that time until the treaty
of Greenville. He was probably in more expeditions against the
Indians, encountered greater peril, and had more narrow escapes
from death, than any man of his time. The many incidents of his
romantic and eventful life are well detailed by his friend and biog-
rapher. Colonel John M'Donald, from whose work we extract the
thrilling narrative of his captivity and hair-breadth escapes from a
cruel and lingering death.
Kenton lay about Boon's and Logan's stations till ease became
irksome to him. About the first of September of this same year,
1778, we find him preparing for another Indian expedition. Alex-
ander Montgomery and George Clark joined him, and they set off
from Boon's station, for the avowed purpose of obtaining horses from
the Indians. They crossed the Ohio, and proceeded cautiously to
Chillicothe, (now Oldtown, Ross county.) They arrived at the
town without meeting any adventure. In the night they fell in
with a drove of horses that were feeding in the rich prairies. They
LOGAN COUNTIES. 193
were prepared with salt and halters. They had much difficulty to
catch the horses ; however, at length they succeeded, and as soon
as the horses were haltered, they dashed ofif with seven — a pretty
good haul. They traveled with all the speed they could to the
Ohio. They came to the Ohio near the mouth of Eagle creek, now
in Brown county. When they came to tho river, the wind blew
almost a hurricane. The waves ran so high that the horses were
frightened, and could not be induced to take the water. It was
late in the evening. They then rode back into the hills some dis-
tance from the river, hobbled and turned their horses loose to
graze ; while they turned back some distance, and watched the
trail they had come, to discover whether or no they were pursued.
Here they remained till the following day, when the wind sub-
sided. ^Vs soon as the wind fell they caught their horses, and went
again to the river ; but their horses were so frightened with the
waves the day before, that all their eflforts could not induce tkem
to take the water. This was a sore disappointment to our adven-
turers. They were satisfied that they were pursued by the enemy ;
they therefore determined to lose no more time in useless eflforis to
cross the Ohio ; they concluded to select three of the best horses,
and make their way to the falls of the Ohio, where Gen. Clark had
left some men stationed. Each made choice of a horse, and the
other horses were turned loose to shift for themselves. . After the
spare horses had been loosed, and permitted to ramble off, avarice
whispered to them, and why not take ali the horses. The loose
horses had by this time scattered and straggled out of sight. Our
party now separated to hunt up the horses they had turned loose.
Kenton went towards the river, and had not gone far before he
heard a whoop in the direction of where they had been trying to
force the horses into the water. He got off his horse and tied him,
and then crept with the stealthy tread of a cat, to make observa-
tions in the direction he heard the whoop. Just as he reached tho
high bank of the river, he met the Indians on horseback. Being
unperceived by them, but so nigh that it was imoossible for him
to retreat without being discovered, he concluded the boldest course
to be the safest, and very deliberately took aim at the foremost
Indian. His gun flashed in the pan. He then retreated. The In-
dians pursued on horseback. In his retreat he passed through a
piece of land where a storm had torn up a great part of the timber.
The fallen trees afforded him some advantage of the Indians in the
194 CHAMPAIGN AND
race, as they were on horseback and he on foot. The Indian force
divided ; some rode on one side of the fallen timber and some on
the other. Just as he emerc^ed from the fallen timber, at the foot
of the hill, one of the Indians met him on horseback, and boldly
rode up to him, jumped off his horse and rushed at him with his
tomahawk. Kenton concluding a gun barrel as good a weapon of
defense as a tomahawk, drew back his gun to strike the Indian be-
fore him. At that instant another Indian, who unperceived by
Kenton had slipped up behiEd him, clasped him in his arms. Be-
ing now overpowered by numbers, further resistance was useless —
he surrendered. While the Indians were binding Kenton with
tugs, Montgomery came in view, and fired at the Indians, but
missed his mark. Montgomery fled on foot. Some of the Indians
pursued, shot at, and missed him; a second fire was made, and
Montgomery fell. The Indians soon returned to Kenton, shaking
at him Montgomery's bloody scalp. George Clark, Kenton's other
companion, made his escape, crossed the Ohio, and arrived safe at
Logan's station.
The Indians encamped that night on the bank of the Ohio. The
next morning they prepared their horses for a return to their
towns with the unfortunate and unhappy prisoner. Nothing b ut
death in the most appalling form presented itself to his view.
When they were ready to set off, they caught the wildest horse in
the company, and placed Kenton on his back. The horse being
very restive, it took several of them to hold him, while the others
lashed the prisoner on the horse. They first took a tug or rope,
and fastened his legs and feet together under the horse, They took
another and fastened his arms. They took another and tied
around his neck, and fastened one end of it around the horse's
neck ; the other end of the same rope was fastened to the horse's
tail, to answer in place of a crupper. They had a great deal of
amusement to themselves, as they were preparing Kenton and his
horse for fun and frolic. They would yelp and scream around
him, and ask him if he wished to steal more horses. Another rope
was fastened around his thighs, and lashed around the body of his
horse ; a pair of moccasins were drawn over his hands, to prevent
him from defending his face from the brush. Thus accoutred and
fastened, the horse was turned loose to the woods. He reared and
plunged, ran through the woods for some time, to the infinite
amusement of the Indians. After the horse had run about, plung-
LOGAN COUNTIES. 195
ing:, rearing' and kickinpr for some time, and found that he could
not shake off nor kick oflf his rider, he -^ery quietly submitted
himself to his situation, and followed the cavalcade as quiet and
peaceable as his rider. The Indians moved towards Chillicothe,
and in three days reached the town. At night they confined their
prisoner in the followinor manner: He was laid on his back, his
legs extended, drawn apart, and fastened to two saplings or stakes
driven in the ground. His arms were extended, a pole laid across
his breast, and his arms lashed to the pole with cords. A rope was
tied around his neck, and stretched back just tight enough not to
choke him, and fastened to a tree or stake near his head. In this
painful and uncomfortable situation, he spent three miserable
nights, exposed to gnats, and mosquitoes and weather. O, poor
human nature, what miserable wretches we are, thus to punish
and harass each other. (The frontier whites of that day were
but little behind the Indians in wiles, cruelty and revenge.)
When the Indians came within about a mile of the Chillicothe
town, they halted and camped for the night, and fastened the
poor unfortunate prisoner in the usual uncomfortable manner.
The Indians, young and old , came from the town to welcome the re-
turn of their successful warriors, and to visit their prisoner. The
Indian party, young and old, consisting of about ISO, commenced
dancing, singing and yelling around Kenton, stopping occasionally
and kicking and beating him for amusement. In this manner
they tormentftd him for about three hours, when the cavalcade re-
turned to town, and he was left for the rest of the night, ex-
hausted and forlorn, to the tender mercies of the gnats and mos-
quitoes. As soon as it was light in the morning, the Indians be-
gan to collect from the town, and preparations were made for fun
and frolic at the expense of Kenton, as he was now doomed to
run the gauntlet. The Indians were formed in two lines, about
six feet apart, with each a hickory in his hands, and Kenton
placed between the two lines, so that each Indian could beat him
as much as he thought proper, as he ran through the lines. He
had not run far before he discovered an Indian with his knife
drawn to plunge it into him; as soon as Kenton reached that part
of the line where the Indian stood who had the knife drawn, he
broke through the lines, and made with all speed for the town.
Kenton had been previousjy informed by a negro named Caesar
who lived with the Indians and knew their customs, that if he
196 CHAMP AION AND
could break through the Indians' lines, and arrive at the council-
house in the town before he was overtaken, that they would not
force him a second time to run the gauntlet. When he broke
through their lines, he ran at the top of his speed for the coun-
cil-house, pursued by two or three hundred Indians, screaming
like infernal furies. Just as he had entered the town, he was met
by an Indian leisurely walking toward the scene of amusement,
wrapped in a blanket. The Indian threw oflF his blanket; and as
he was fresh, and Kenton nearly exhausted, the Indian soon
caught him and threw him down. In a moment the whole party
who were in pyrsuit came up, and fell to cuffing and kicking him
at a most fearful rate. They tore off his clothes, and left him
naked and exhausted. After he had laid till he had in some de-
gree recovered from his exhausted state, they brought him some
water and something to eat. As soon as his strength was suffi-
cientlj' recovered, they took him to the council-house, to de-
termine upon his fate. The manner of deciding his fate was as
follows : Their warriors were placed in a circle in tUe council-
house ; an old chief was placed in the centre of the circle, with a
knife and a piece of wood in his hands. A number of speeches
were made. Kenton, although he did not understand their lan-
guage, soon discovered by their animated gestures, and fierce
looks at him, that a majority of their speakers were contending
for his destruction. He could perceive that those who plead for
mercy were received coolly ; but few grunts of approbation were
uttered when the orators closed their speeches. After the orators
ceased speaking, the old chief who sat in the midst of the circle
raised up and handed a war-club to the man who sat next the door.
They proceeded to take the decision of their court. All who
were for the death of the prisoner, struck the war-club with vio-
lence against the ground ; those who voted to save the prisoner's
life passed the club to their next neighltor without striking the
ground. Kenton from their expressive gestures could easily dis-
tinguish the object of their vote. The old chief who stood to wit-
ness and record the number that voted for death or mercy, as one
struck the ground with a war-club he made a mark on one side of
his piece of wood ; and when the club was passed without strik-
ing, he made a mark on the other. Kenton discovered that a
large majority were for death. •
Sentence of death now being passed upon the prisoner,
LOGAN COUNTIES. 197
they made the welkin ring with shouts of joy. The sentence of
death being passed, there was another question of considerable dif-
ficulty now presented itself to the consideration of the council ;
that was the time and place, when and where he should be burnt.
The orators again made speeches on the subject, less animated, in-
deed, than on the trial ; but some appeared to be quite vehement
for instant execution, while others appeared to wish to make his
death a solemn national sacrifice. After a long debate, the vote
was taken, when it was resolved that the place of his execution
should be Wapatomika, (now Zanesfield, Logan county.) The
next morning he was hurried away to the place destined for his
execution. From Chilicothe to Wapatomika, they had to pass
through two other Indian towns, to-wit ; Pickaway and Maca-
cheek. At both towns he was compelled to run the gauntlet ; and
severely was he whipped through the course. Nothing worse than
death could follow, and here he made a bold push for life and free-
dom. Being unconflned, he broke and ran, and soon cleared him-
self out ot sight of pursuers. While he distanced his pursuers,
and got about two miles from the town, he accidentally met some
Indians on horseback. They instantly pursued and soon came up
with him, and drove him back again to town. He now, for the
first time, gave up his case as hopeless. Nothing but death stared
him in the face. Fate, it appeared to him, had sealed his doom ;
and in sullen despair he determined to await that doom, that it
was im}»ossible for him to shun. How inscrutable are the ways
of Providence, and how little one man can control his destiny !
When the Indians returned with Kenton to the town, there was a
general rejoicing. He was pinioned, and given over to the young
Indians, who nearly suftocated him with mud and water. In this
way they amused themselves with him till he was nearly drowned.
He now thought himself forsaken by God. Shortly after this his
tormentors moved with him to Wapatomika. As soon as he ar-
rived at this place, the Indians, young and old, male and female,
crowded around the prisoner. Among others who came to see
him was the celebrated and notorious Simon Girty. It will be
recollected that Kenton and Girty were bosom companions at Fort
Pitt, and on the campaign with Lord Dunmore. As it was the
custom of the Indians to black such prisoners as were intended to
be put to death, Girty did not immediately recognize Kenton in
his black disguise. Girty came forward and inquired of Kenton
198 CHAMPAIGN AND
where he had lived, and was answered Kentucky. He next in-
quired how many men there were in Kentucky. He answered he
did not know ; but would give him the names and rank of the
officers, and he, Girty, could judge of the probable number of
men. Kenton then named a great many officers, and their rank,
many of whom had honorary title*, without any command. At
length Qirty asked the prisoner his name, when he was an-
swered, Simon Butler. (It will be recollected that he changed his
name when he fled from his parents and home.) Girty eyed him
for a moment, and immediately recognized the active and bold
youth, who had been his companion in arms about Fort Pitt, and
on the campaign with Lord Dunmore. Girty threw himself into
Kenton's arras, embraced and wept aloud over him — calling him
his dear and esteemed friend. This hardened wretch, who had
been the cause of the death of hundreds, had some of the sparks of
humanity remaining in him, and wept like a child at the tragical
fate which hung over his friend. "Well," said he to Kenton, "you
are condemned to die, but I will use every means in my power to
save your life."
Girty immediately had a council convened, and made a long
speech to the Indians, to save the life of the prisoner. As Girty
was proceeding through his speech, he became very animated ; and
under his powerful eloquence, Kenton could plainly discover the
grim visages of his savage judges relent. When Girty concluded
his powerful and animated speech, the Ijidians rose with one sim-
ultaneous grunt of approbation, saved the prisoner's life, and
placed him under the care and protection of his old companion,
Girty.
The British had a trading establishment then at Wapatomika.
Girly took Kenton with him to the store, and dressed him from
head to foot, as well as he could wish ; he was also provided with a
horse and saddle. Kenton was now free, and roamed about thro'
the country, from Indian town to town, in company with his ben-
efactor. How uncertain is the fate of nations as well as that of
individuals ! How sudden the changes from adversity to prosper-
ity, and from prosperity to adversity! Kenton being a strong,
robust man, wit h an iron frame, with a resolution that never
winced at danger, and fortitude to bear pain with the composure
of a stoic, he soon recovered from his scourges and bruises, and the
LOGAN COUNTIES. 199
other severe treatment he had received. It is thought probable,
that if the Indians had continued to treat him with kindness and
respect, he would eventually have become one of them. He had
but few inducements to return again to the whites. He was then a
fugitive from justice, had changed his name, and he thought it
his interest to keep as far from his former acquaintances as pos-
sible. After Kenton and his benefactor had been roaming about
for some time, a war party of Indians, who had been on an expe-
dition to the neighborhood of Wheeling, returned ; they had been
defeated by the whites, some of their men were killed, and others
wounded. When this defeated party returned they were sullen,
chagrined, and full of revenge, and determined to kill any of the
whites who came within their grasp. Kenton was the only white
man upon wiaom they could satiate their revenge. Kenton and
Girty were then at Solomon's town, a small distance from Wapa-
tomika. A message was immediately sent to Girty to return, and
bring Kenton with him. The two iriends met the messenger on
their way. The messenger shook hands with Girty, but refused
the hand of Kenton. Givty, after talking aside with the messen-
ger some time, said to Kenton, "They have sent for us to attend a
grand council at Wapatomika. They hurried to the town; and
when they arrived there the council-house was crowded. When
Girty went into the house, the Indians all rose up and shook bands
with him ; but when Kenton offered his hand, it was refused with
a scowl of contempt. This alarmed him; he began to admit the
idea that this sudden convention of the council, and their refusing
his hand, bodod him some evil. After the members of the council
were seated in their usual manner, the war chief of the defeated
party rose up and made a most vehement speech, frequently turn-
ing his fiery and revengeful eyes on Kenton during his speech.
Girty was the next to rise and address the council. He told them
that he had lived with them several years ; that he had risked his
lifiB in that time more frequently than any of them ; that they all
knew that he had never spared the life of one of the hated Amer-
icans ; that they well knew that he had never asked a division ot
the spoils ; that he fought alone for the destruction of their ene-
mies ; and he now requested them to spare ihe life of this young
man on his account. The young man, he said, was his early friend,
for whom he felt Ihe tenderness of a parent for a son, and he
hoped, after the many evidences that he had given of his attach-
200 CHAMPAIGN AND
merit to the Indian cause, they would not hesitate to grant his re-
quest. If they would indulge him in granting his request to spare
the life of this young man, he would pledge himself never to ask
them again to spare the life of a hated American.
Several chiefs spoke in succession on this important subject; and
with the most apparent deliberation, the council decided, by an
overwhelming majority, for death. After theiiecision of this great
court was announced, Girty went to Kenton, and embracing him
very tenderly, said that he very sincerely sympathized with him in
his forlorn and and unfortunate situation ; that he had used all the
efforts he was master of to save his life, but it was now decreed
that he must die — that he could do no more for him. Awful doom !
It will be recollected, that this was in 1778, in the midst of the
American revolution. Upper Sandusky was then the place where
the British paid their western Indian allies their annuities ; and as
time might effect what his eloquence could not, Girty, as a last re-
sort, persuaded the Indians to convey their prisoner to Sandusky,
as there they would meet vast numbers to receive their presents ;
that the assembled tribes could there witness the solemn scene of
the death of the prisoner. To this proposition the council agreed ;
and the prisoner was placed in the care of five Indians, who forth-
with set off for Upper Ssndusky. What windings, and twistings,
and turnings, were soon in the fate of our hero.
As the Indians passed from Wapatomika to Upper Sandusky,
they went through a small village on the river Scioto, where then
resided the celebrated chief, Logan, of Jefferson memory. Logan,
unlike the rest of his tribe, was humane as he was brave. At his
wigwam the party who had the CAre of the prisoner, staid over
night. During the evening, Logan entered into conversation with
the pris'nier. The next morning he told Kenton that he would
detain the party that day— that he had sent two of his young men
off the night before to Upper Sandusky, to speak a good word for
hiin. Logan was great and good— the friend of all men. In the
course of the following evening his young men retu.ned, and early
the next morning the guard set off with the prisoner for Upper
Sandusky. When Kenton's party set off from Logan's, Logan
shook hands with the prisoner, but gave no intimation of what
might probably be his fate. The party went on with Kenton till
they came in view of the Upper Sandusky town. The Indians
LOGAN COUNTIES. 201
y(Hing and old, cauiM out to meet and welcome the warriors and
view the prisoner. Here he was not compelled to run the gaunt-
let. A grand council was immediately convened to determine up-
>)n the fate of Kenton. This was the fourth council which was
held to dispose of the life of the prisoner. As soon as this grand
court was organized and ready to proceed to business, .i Canadian
Frenchman, by the name of Peter Druyer, who was a captain in
the British service, and dressed in the gaudy appendages of the
British uniform, made h is appearance in the council. This Druyer
was born and raised in Detroit — he was connected with the British
Indian agent department — was their principal interpreter in set-
tling Indian affairs; this made him a man of great consequence
among the Indians. It was to this influential man, that tlie good
chief Logan, the friend of all the human family, sent his young
men to intercede for the life of Kenton. His judgment and address
were only equaled by his humanity. His foresight in selecting
the agent who it was most probable could save the life of the pris-
oner, proves his judgment and his knowledge of the human heart.
As soon as the grand council was organized, Capt. Druyer i equestetl
permission to address the council. This permission was instantly
granted. He began his speech by stating, "that it was well-known
that it was the wish and iiiterest of the English that not an Amer-
ican should beleftnlive. That the Americans were the caiL«e of
the present bloody and distressing war— that neither peaoe nor
safety could be expected, so long as these intruders were permitted
to live upon the earth." This part of his speech received repeated
grunts <if approbation. He then ex])lained to the Indians, "that
the war to be carried on successfully, requirad cunning as well as
bravery — that the intelligence which might be extorted from a
prisoner, would be of more ad vantage, in conducting the future op-
erations of the war, than would be the life of twenty prisoners.
That he had no doubt but the commanding officer at Detroit could
procure information from the prisoner now before them, that
would be of incalculable advantage to them in the progress of the
present war. Under these circumstances, he hoped they would
defer the death of the prisoner till he was taken to Detroit, and
examined by the commanding g-eneral. After which he could be
brought back, and if thought advisable, upon further consideration,
he might be put to death in any manner they thought proper."
He next noticed, "that they had already a great deal of trouble and
1-3
202 CHAMPAIGN AND
fatigue with the prisoner without being revenged upon him ; but
that they had got back all the horses the piisoner Iiad stolen from
them, and killed one of his comrades; and to insure them some-
thing for their fatigue and trouble, he himself would give $100 in
rum and tobacco, or any other articles they would choose, if they
would let him take the prisoner to Detroit, to be examined by the
British general." The Indians, without hesitation, agreed to Cap-
tain Druyer's proposition, and he paid down the ransom. As soon
as these arrangements were concluded, Druyer and a principal
chief set off with the prisoner for Lower Sandusky. From this
place they proceeded by water to Detroit, where they arrived in a
few days. Here the prisoner was handed over to the commanding-
officer, and lodged in the fort as a prisoner of war. He was now
out of danger from the Indians, and was treated with the usual at-
tention of prisoners of war in civilized countries. The British com-
mander gave the Indians some additional remuneration for the
life of the prisoner, and they returned satisfied to join their country-
men at Wapatomika.
As soon as Kenton's mind was out of suspense, his robust consti-
tution and iron frame in a few days recovered from the severe
treatment they had undergone. Kenton remained at Detroit
until the June following, when he, with other prisoners, escaped,
and after enduring great privations, rejoined their friends.
About the year 1802, he settled in Urbana, where he remained
some years and was elected brigadier-general of militia. In the
war of 1812, he joined the army of Gen. Harri-^on, and was in the
battle of the Moravian town, where he displayed his usual intre-
pidity. About 1 he year 1820, he moved to the head of Mad river.
A few years after, through the exertions of Judge Burnet and Gen-
eral Vance, a pension of $20 per month was granted to him, which
secured his declining age from want. He died in 1836, at which
time he had been a member of the Methodist church about 18
years. The frost of more than eighty winters had fallen on his head
without entirely whitening his locks. His biographer thus de-
scribes his personal appearance and character :
General Kenton was (^f fair complexion, six feet one inch ia
height. He stood and walked very erect ; and, in the prime of
life, weighed about one huu'lred and ninety pounds. He never
was inclined to be corpulent. I'thoujfhof sufficient fullness to form
LOGAN COUNTIES. 203
a graceful person. He had a soft, tremulous voice very pleasing to
♦he hearer. He had laughing gray eyes, which appeared to fasci-
nate the beholder. He was a pleasant, good-humored and obliging
■companion. When excited, or provoked to anger (which was sel-
dom the case,) the fiery glance of his eye would almost curdle the
blood of those with whom he came in contact. His rage when roused
was a tornado. In his dealing he was perfectly honest ; his confi-
dence in man, and his credulity, were such, that the same man
Bfiight cheat him twenty times ; and if he professed friendship, he
anight cheat him still.
204 CHAMPAIGN AND
JONATHAN ALDER.
Jonathan Alder was born in New Jersey, about eight miles from
Philadelphia, September 17, 1773. When at about the age of sev-
en years, his parents removed to Wythe county, Va., and his father
poon after died.
In the succeeding March, (1782,) while out with his brother
David, hunting for a mare and her colt, he was talcen prisoner by a
small party of Indians. His brother, on the first alarm, ran, and
was pursued by some of the party. "At length, says Alder, "I
saw them returning, leadini; my brother, while one was holding
the handle of a spear, that he had thrown at him and run into his
body. As they approached, one ot them stepped up and grasped
him around the body, while another pulled out the spear. I ob-
served some tiesh on the end of it, M^hich looked white, which I
suppop.ed came from his entrails. I moved to him, and inquired
if he was hurt, and he replied that he was. These were the last
word^ that passed between us. At that moment he turned pale
and began to sink, and I was hurried on, and sliortly afterward
saw one of the barbarous wretches coming up with the scalp of my
brother in his hand, shaking off the blood.
The Indians having also taken prisoner a Mrs. Martin, a neigh-
bor to the Alder's, with her young child, aged about four or five
years, retreated towards their towns. Their route lay through the
^oods to the Big vSandy, down that stream to the Ohio, which they
crossed, and from thence went overland to the Scioto, near Chilli-
cothe, and so on to a Mingo village on Madriver.
Finding the child of Mrs. Martin burdensome, they soon killed
and scalped it. The last member of her family was now destroyed,
and she screamed in agony of grief. Upon this, one of the Indians
caught her by the hair, and drawing the edge of his knife across
her forehead cried, "sculp! sculp!" with the hope of stilling her
cries. But, inditferent to life, she continued her screams, when
they procured some switches, and whipped her until she was
LOGAN COLTNTIES. 205
silent. The next day, young Alder havintjf not risen, throu2:h fa-
tigue, from eating, at the moment the word was given, saw, as his
face was to the north, the shadow of a man's arm with an uplifted
tomahawk. He turned, and there stood an Indian, ready for the
fatal blow. Upon this he let down his arm and commenced feel-
ing his head. He afterwards told Alder it had been his intention
to have killed him ; but as he turned he looked so smiling and
pleasant, that he could not strike, and on feeling of his head and
noticing that his hair was very black, the thought struck him, that
if he could only get him to his tribe he would make agood Indian ;
but that all that saved his life was the color of his hair.
After thfy crossed the Ohio they killed a bear, and remained
four days to dry the meat for packing, and to fry out the oil, which
last they put in the intestines, having first turned and cleaned
them.
The village to which Alder was taken, belonged to the Mingo*
tribe, and was on the north side of Mad river, which we should
judge was somewhere within or near the limits of what is now Lo-
gan county. As he entered, he was obliged to run the gauntlet,
formed by young "hildren armed with switches. He passed thro'
this ordf^al with little or no injury, and was adopted info an Indian
family. His Indian mother thoroughly washed him with soap
and warm water with herbs in it, previous to dressing him in the
Indian costume, consisting of a calico shirt, breecli clout, leggins
and moccasins. The family having thus converted him into an
Indian, were much pleased with their new member. But ,Iona-
than Wiis at first very homesick, thinking of his mother and broth-
ers. Everything was strange about him ; he was unable to speak
a word of their languag^^ ; their food disagreed with him ; and,
childlike, he used to go out daily for more than a month, and sit
under a large walnut tree near the village, and cry for houi-s at a
time over his deplorable situation. His Indian father was a chief
of the Mingo tribe, named Succohanos ; his Indian mother was
named Whinecheoh, and their daughters respectively answered to
the good old English names of Mary, Hannah and Sally. Succo-
hanos and Whinecheoh were old people, and had lost a son, in
whose place they had adopted Jonatlian. They took pity on the
•■■I am satisfied this town was on the furni of Alfred Johnson, in Mingo
Valley.
2m CHAMPAIGN AND
little fellow, and did their best to comfort him, telling him that h-f
would one day be restored to his mother and brothers. He sayr
of them, "they could not have used their own son better, for whi
they shall always be held in most grateful remembrance by mc
His Indian sister Sally, however, treated him " like a slave," and
when out of humor, applied to him, in the Indian tongue, the un-
ladylike epithet of "onorary, [mean,] lousy prisoner !" Jonathaii
for a time lived with Mai-y, who had become the wife of the chief.
Col. Lewis. "In the fall of the year," says he, "the Indians would
generally collect at our camp, evenings, to talk over their huntinj;*:
expeditions. I would sit up to listen to their stories, and fre-
quently fell asleep just where I was sitting. After they left, Mary
would fix my bed, and with Col. Lewis, would carefully take m^^-
up and carry me to it. On these occasions they would often say —
supposing me to be asleep— "poor fellow ! We have sat up too lonj^
for him, and he has fallen asleep on the cold ground :" and tiieia
ho r softly would they lay me down and cover me up. Oh ! never
have I, nor can I, express the affection I had for these two per
sons."
Jonathan, with other boys, went iut<^ Mad river to bathe, and
on one occasion came near drowning. He was taken out senseles>».
and some time elapsed ere he recovered. He says, "I remember^
after I got over my strangle, I became very sleepy, and thought I
could draw my breath as well as ever. Being overcome with
drowsiness, I laid down to sleep, which is the last I remember.
The act of drowning is nothing, but the coming to life is distress-
ing. The boys, after they had brought me to, gave me a silve-r
buckle, as an inducement not to tell the old folks of the occurrence,
for fear they would not let me come with them again ; and so the-
affair was kept secret."
When Alder had learned to speak the Indian language, he l>e-
eame more contented. He says, "I would have lived very happy
if I could have had health ; but for three or four years 1 was sufc*-
Ject to very severe attacks of fever and ague. Their diet went
very hard with me for a long time. Their chief living was meat
andhomminy; but we rarely had bread, and very little salt,
which was extremely scarce and dear, as well as milk and butter-
Honey and sugar were plentiful, and used a great deal in their
cooking, as well as on their food."
LOGAN COUNTIES. 207
When he was old enough, he was given an old English musket,
and told that he must go out and learn to hunt. So he used to fol-
low along the water courses, where mud turtles were plenty, and
commenced his first assay upon them. He generally aimed under
them, as they lay basking on the rocks; and when he struck the
stone, they flew sometimes several feet in the air, which afforded
great sport for the youthful marksman. Occasionally he killed a
wild turkey or a raccoon ; and when he returned to the village
with his game, generally received high praise for his skill— the In-
dians telling him he would make "a great hunter one of these
days."
We cannot, within our assis>npi| limits, L'.ive many of the inci-
ilents and anecdotes related by Alder, or anything like a connected
history of his life among the Indians. In the June after he was
taken, occurred Crawford's defeat. He describes the anxiety of
the squaws while the men were gone to the battle, and their joy on
their returning with scalps and other trophies of the victory. He
defends Simon Girty from the charge of being the instigator of the
burning of Crawford, and states that he could not have saved his
life, because he had no influence in the Delaware tribe, whose prifi--
oner Crawford was. Alder was dwelling at the Macacheek towns
when they were destroyed by Logan in 1786 ; was in the attack on
Fort llecovery, in 1794, and went on an expedition into "Kain-
tucky to steal horses" from the settlers.
Alder remained with the Indians until after Wajne's treaty, in
1794. He was urged by them t') be present on the occasion, toobtain
areservation ofland which was to be given to each of the prisoners ;
butignorant of its importance, he neglected going, and lost the
land. Peace having been restored, Alder says, "I could now lie
down with out fear, and rise up and shake hands with both the
Indian and the white man."
The ^ummer after the treaty, while living on Big Darby, Lucas
Sullivant made his appearance in that region, surv -ying land, and
soon became on terras of intimacy with Alder, who relaicd to him
a history of his life, and generously gave him the peice of land on
which he dwelt; but there being some little difficulty about the
title Alder did not consent and so lost it.
When the settlers first made their appearance on Darby, Alder
could scarcely speak a word of English. He was then about 24
2(>8 CHAMPAIGN AND
y^'ars of age, 15 of which had been passed with the rn'li:;ns. Two
of the settlers kindly taught him to converse in Engiisi . He '-M
taken a squaw for a wife some time previous, and iiou bc.ua;!
to farm like the whites. He kept hogs, cows andhorses, sol;! milk
Hii'l butter to the Indians, horses and pork to the whites, and ac-
cumulated property. He soon was able to hire white laborers, aiul
bein^ dissatisfied with hissquaw— a cross, peevish woman— wished
to put her aside, get a wifefnmi among- the settlers, and live like
them. Thoughts too, of his mother and brothers, began to obtrude,
and the more he reflected, his desire strengthened to know if they
were living, and to see then: once rnore. He made inquiries for
them, but was at a loss to know how to begin, being ignorant of
the name of even the State in which they were. When talking
one diy with John Moore, a companion of his, the latter questioned
him where he was from. Alder rep'ied that he was taken prisoner
somewhere near a place called Greenbriar, and that his people lived
by a lead mine, to which he used frequently to go and see the hands
dig ore. Moore then asked him if he could recollect the names of
any of his neighbors. After a little reflection, he replied, "Yes ! a
family of Gulions that lived close by us." Upon this, Moore drop-
ped his head asif lost in thought, and itmtteredto himself, ''Gulion!
Gulion !" and then raising up replied, "My father and my self
were out in that country, and we stopped at their house over one
night, and if your people are living, I can find them."
Mr. Moore after this went to Wythe county, and inquir*^d for
the family of Alder; but without success, as they had removed
from their former residence. He put up advertisements in various
places, stating the facts, and where Alder was to be found, and then
returned. Alder now abandoned all hopes of finding his family,
supposing them to be dead. Some time after, he and Moore were
atFranklinton, when he was informed there was a letter for him
in the post office. It was from his brother Paul, stating that one
of the advertisements was put up witliin six miles of him, and that
he got it the next day. It contained the joyful news, that his
mother and brothers were alive.
Alder, in making preparations to start for Virginia, agreed to
separate from his Indian wife, dividp the property equally, and
take ;ind leave lier with her .-u-n |)e.>[)Ie at Sandusky. But some
ditticulty arose in satisfying her. He ^nve her all th? cows, 14 in
number, worth $20 each, 7 horses, and much other property, reserv-
LOGAN COUNTIES. 209
iuj? to himself only 2 horses and the swine. Beside*: these, was a
small box, about (i inches long, 4 wide and 4 deep, tilled with silver,
amounting probably to about $200, which he intended to take, to
make an equal division. But to this she objected, saying the box
was hers before marriage, and she would not only have it, but all
it contained. Alder says, "I saw I could not get it without making
a fuss, and probably having a fight, and told her if she would prom-
ise never to tr«iuble nor come back to me, she might have it ; to
which she agreed."
Moore accompanied him to his brother's house, as he was unac-
customed to travel among the whites. They arrived there on
hor.seback, at noon, the Sunday after new yeai's. They walked u }>
to the house and requested to have their liorses fed, and pretend-
ing they were entire strangers, inquired who lived there. "I had
concluded," says Alder, "not to snake raj'self known for some time,
and eyed my brother very close, but did not recollect his features.
I had always thought I should have recognized my mother, l>y a
mole on her face. In the corner sat an old lady, who I supposed
was her, allthough I could not tell, for when I was taken by the
Indians her head was as black as a crow, and now it was almost
perfectly white. Two young women were pressent, who eyed me
very close, and I heard one of them whisper to the other, "he looks
very much like Mark," (my brother.) I saw they were about to
discover me, and accordingly turned my chair around to my
brother, and said, "You say your name is Alder?" "Yes," he re-
plied, "my name is Paul Alder." "Well," I rejoined, "my name
is Alder, too." Now it is hardly necessary to describe our feelings
at that time ; but they were very different from those I had when
I w\as taken prisoner, and saw the Indian coming with my brother's
scalp in his hand, shaking off the blood.
"When I told my brother that my name was Alder, he rose to
shake hands with me, so overjoyed he could scarcely utter a word,
and my old mother ran, threw her arms around me, while tears
rolled down her cheeks. The first words she spoke, after she
grasped me in her arms, were, "How you have grov.-n !" and then
she told me of a dream she had. Says she, "I dreamed that you
had come to see me, and that you was a little onorar;/ [mean] look-
ing fellow, and I would not own you for my son ; but now I find I
was mistaken, that it is entirely the reverse, and I am proud to
210 CHAMPAIGN AND
own you for my son." I told her T could remind her of a few cir-
cunislances that she would recollect, that took place before I was
made captive. I then related various things, among which was
that the negroes, on passmg our house on Saturday evenings, to
•^pend Sundays with their wives, wauld beg pumpkins of her, and
get her to roust them for them against their return on Monday
morning. She recollected these circumstances, and said she had
now no doubt of ray being her son. We passed the balance of the
day in agreeable conversation, and I related to them the history of
my captivity, my fears and doubts, of my grief and misery thefirst
year alter I was taken. My brothers at this time were all married,
and Mark and John had moved from there. They were sent for,
and came to see me ; but my half brother John had moved so far,
that I never got to see him at all."
IlEMARKS OF JOSHUA ANTRIM
AT THE pioneers' PIC-NIC AT THE LOGAN COUNTY FAIR (! ROUNDS,
september 10, 1870.
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen:
If I understand the object of the VVestern Ohio Pioneers' Asso-
ciation, or any other association of this character, it is to record
and preserve, and hand down to posterity, a reliable history of all
the important events and incidents that have occurred since the
first settlement of our country. The Western Pioneer Association,
its its name would indicate, has a considerable breadth of territory
to explore, and would cordially invite all those within its bounds
to aid them in their labors. I shall not on this occasion attempt
to explore but a very small part of this domain, but shall confine
my remarks principally to the early settlement of Logman County.
I find in the transactions of kindred associations, and in the
history of Ohio, incidents recorded which in themselves
are apparently of very little importance, yet they are links
in the chain of events that unite the pleasant memories of tha
past with the present. A desire for immortality is an instinct of
our nature, and anything that will secure it is eagerly sought for
by mankind. Individuals and nations have expended millions
of money and hundreds of lives to reach the North Pole, all for
what? Why, if nothing more than this is achieved, the man, as
Professor Son tag says, who first sets foot on the North Pole has
won for himself an imperishable name. Columbus first dis<oven^(l
America, and his name is as fatnilliar to us as our own. Balboa
first h.oked upon the broad expanse of the Pacific Ocean. DeSoto
was the first to see the great Mississippi aud bathe in its turbid
2iJ CHAMPAIGN AND
waters. IVnn .settled PeniisylvHiiia, and Boone Kentucky. Her-
ostratus burned the great Temple of Diana at Ephesu-* for no other
purpose l)ut to immortalize his name. Beyond this, very little i.s
known of many of them, yet they have secured an imperishable
name.
I .say now, as 1 did about one year ago at this place, that the first
settlers of this county did not come here actuated by the spirit of
adventure. They did not come merely for the purpose of hunting
and trapping, like Boone, Kenton and others— not that 1 would
say anything disparagingly of those venerated names— imt they
were a different class of men.
The first white men that set foot on the soil of Logan county,
were reared— the most of them— near Philadelphia, in New Jer-
sey, where they were familiar with the refinements, cpmforts and
conveniences of a highly cultivated people. Bred to agricultural
pursuits, they sought a home in the State of Virginia ; from thence
they came to this county to seek a permanent home. Being Qua-
kers, they were actuated by the noble spirit of the illustrious foun-
dei-s of their sect, Fox and Penn ; nor were they prompted by any
mercenary motives of speculation. Out of the reach of civiliza-
tion, one hundred miles from any markets — Zanesville, Chilli-
cotheand Cincinnati being the nearest — we see them wending
their way through the majestic forests of Ohio, to their new home
in this county, surrounded by an entirely different class of circum-
stances from those tliey had ever seen liefore. They set them-
selves down in the dead of winter, in their little tents, with no one
to greet or welcome them to their new home. Naught was heard
save the sighing of the winter's wind 'as it passed through the
naked tops of the lofty forest trees, that waved for miles around,
to the winter's blast. They soon became familiar to the crack of
the Indian's rifle and the war hoop. Thus defenseless and alone
did they trust to the God of their fathers ; in peace and quietness
did they pa.ss through life.
The first white settler in Logan county was Job Sharp, who came
to what is now Zane township, on Christmas day, 1801, with a four
horse team. His wife Phebe, and three children, Achsah, his old-
est daughter, Joshua his only son, Sarah his youngest daughter,
and Carlisle Haines, his brotlier-i'i-law, composed the little group.
He settled nil tlie faruj now owned by Lucius Cochran, where he
LOGAN COUNTIES. 2i;5
lived until his death, which occurred in January, \h2-2. They
hastily erected a rude shelter to protect them from the winter
blast, from the majestic forest that waved over their defenseless
heads. It was what is called by baekwoodsmen a three-faced
camp. The day they arrived, the ground being covered with snow
they found four bee trees; they discovered these trees by seeing
the bees lying on the snow. In the spring of 18(12, Mr. Sharp set
out the tii*st apple or<?hard, containing about four acres ; most of the
trees are still standing, and bearing fruit sufficient for the family
on the farm, though of an inferior quality. A pear tree now stands
by the door, that was brought from Chillicothe as a riding switch
by his wife the next yetir after they had settled here, which luf<
borne fruit more or less every year since it commenced bearing.
Here, too, in IsOo, was built the first grist mil!. It was run by the
water that came from two tine springs on the premises, which
were united near the headgate. The traces of the ditches are still
visible. Though Mr. Sharp built this little mill for his own ac-
commodation, with no thought of public utility, yet as soon as it
was known people came from a great distance to get their corn and
wheat ground. Here, too, the first respectable hewed log house
was erected, in 1808, with a shingle roof. It is yet a good house,
of two stories, three rooms and cellar, and two bedrooms up stairs
—in all, five rooms. I am told by an old pioneei: that the first roof
was put on with wooden pins, and the lumber was all sawed with
a whip-saw. About the years 1802-:M-5, the relatives and ac-
quaintances of Mr. Sharp settled around him, and like himself,
most of them being Quakers, they built the first meeting-house in
tha county, which was also used for a school-house. It was built
in 1807, near where the present school-house now stands, and hard
by the first regular graveyard laid off in the county, about one
mile north of Middleburg. I would sayjust. here that the Metho-
dists, those indomitable pioneers of religion, were among the early
f^ettlei-s of the county, and they and the Quakers held their meet-
ings alternately in the same log meeting-house. Around this little
nucleus, in a course of time, a great many others gathered, who
settled in various portions of the county, and among the re>*t, our
venerable chaplain, George McCulloch.
Among the Incidents worthy of note, to be recorded and placed
among the archives of this association, is the birth of the hrst
white child in thecounty, which occurred in the year 1^<>4. in /ane
214 CHA3IPAIGN AND
townshii.. This was Daniel Antrim, son of Thomas Antrim and
Ksther iiis wife. Mr. Antrim does not claim any special merit for
his beiuff the first white child born in the county in which you
live, as it is evident he could not well help it.
Another incident occurred, of -i more startling character, that
aroused the sy m pathies of tlie people. It was the fearful announce-
ment on the second day of June, 1816, that the little son of James
Curl, about seven years of age, was lost in the woods. Mr. Curl
then lived in wliat is now Perry township, on the farm now owned
by Joshua Ballinger. For eight days this little fellow wandered
in an unbroken wilderness infested by wolves, panthers and other
voracions animals, unli:irmed, and finally on the evening of the
eighth day he found his way to the house of a Mr. Tyler on the
Scioto river, being between twenty and thirty miles in a direct line
from where he started, having traveled more than one hundred
miles in his wanderings through a trackless forest, naked and al-
most famished ; he was joyfully received and kindly cared for by
Mr. Tyler and his family, and speedily returned to his bereaved
but now happy parents.
Nothing occurred seriously to mar the peace and happiness of
this part of the country until 1812, when th»^ tocsin of war was
again sounded, and public attenti.- n was diverted from the peace-
ful pursuits of domestic life, when the British again attempted to
place the iron heel of despotism on the neck of the American
people, and aroused the slumbering malice of the Indian against
his white brother by offering a price for American scalps. They
then threw down the calumet ol peace they had been smoking, and
grasped the war club and scalping-knife, and flourished them again
over the heads of the defenceless pioneers. It was then that our
young men, always ready to respond to the call of their country,
left the peaceful pursuits of life and buckled on their armor and
rushed to the rescue of their country from British tyranny. It was
then that those rude defences called block-houses were built
in this country, namely, Zanesfield, McPhersonis, Vance's and
Manary's. The one at Zanesfield I have seen. It was here Capt.
Joseph Euans had his men quartered in 1813. Among those now
living that were quartered here are Jose H. Garwood, Caleb Bal-
linger, Isaac Warner, Walter Marshal and John Sharp. All of
them are still living in this county except Mr. Garwood, who now
lives in North LewLsburg, Champaign county.
LOGAN COUNTIES. :>lii
In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, I would say, just fifty-seven
years ago to-day, Oliver Hazard Perry might have been seen in an
open boat leaving the wreck of the Lawrence, his flag ship, and
making his way in the midst of a heavy fire from the enemy, to
the Niagara, where he ran up his flag just as the Lawrence went
down, and before night be was master of the lakes and sent the ever
memorable dispatch to General Harrison : "We have met the
enemy and they are ours."
1 HE NEW COUET-HOUSE.
A ^KKTCII OK THK EAKI-Y CIVll. HISTORY OF LOGAN COUNTY, DE-
I.IVKKKI) BY DR B. S. BROWN, AT TIIP: LAYING OF THE CORNKR
STONE OF THE NEW FOIRT HOUSE.
Logan county was organized in 1818, and its boundaries at that
time extended north to the Maumee river, and included what is
now Hardin, Hancock and Wood counties, and also on the east side
a small part of what is now Union and Wyandotte counties. A
very large proportion of the country included within these bound-
aries, was, however, what was called Indian Territory, it not hav-
ing been ceded to the United States till after that time. All that
part of the present limits of our county north of the (Treenville
Treaty Ijine belonged to the Indian Territory, and cut off' about
one-third of the county. This line was run from the northern
part of Darke county through several counties northeast of Logan.
It passed about four miles north of Bellefontaine, crossed near the
middle of Rushcreek Lake, and was nearly two miles south of the
present village of Huntsville. The present limits of the county
was divided into nearly equal halves by what is called Ludlow's
line, which was to be run from the head of the little Miami to the
head of the Scioto river. This line passes through the eastern part
of our village. The part lying northeast of that line was calletl
Virginia Military Land ; all between the heads of the Little Miami
and the Scioto rivers having been reserved by the State of Virginia
for the payment of her Revolutionary soldiers when she ceded the
N. W. Territory to the United States. This land was not regularly
surveyed into townships, sections, &c., but warrants were issued
by Virginia to each soldier entitled to them, and they might locate
them in whatever place and shape they pleased, so that it had not
LOGAN COUNTIES. 217
been previously located and surveyed. ThLs produced great con-
fusion in the surveys, and often in the titles, and frequent litiga-
tions which greatly enhanced the business ofthe lawyers and oft'he
courts. These individual land warrants were, however, mostly
bought up I »y speculators and land-jobbei-s, at a merely nominal
price— if at any price at all— .so that many could estimate their
lands by tens of thousands, and some by hundreds of thousands of
acres. The first ctnirts of common pleas of Logan county were held
in 1818, in the town of Bellville, a small village of five or six hou-icts
a mile and a half directly south of the public square in Bellefon-
taine. The common pleas courts of those days were compiised of
three Associate .Judges elected by the people of each county, and
one Presiding .Judge for a district composed of several counties.
The first associate judgps of this county were James Mcllvain, Levi
Garwood and Joh:i Shelby, and the first presiding Judge was Orris
Parish ot ColumbiLS.
James Cooly, li^q., of Urbana, was appointed Prosecuting Attor-
ney, Nicholas Pickerel 1 Sheriff, Hful Samuel Newell, Clerk />ro. (ef/t.
The first County Commissioners were Robert Smith, Solomon
McColloch and William McBeth ; they met at Bellville, April 14,
1818 ; on the '2M they appointed Martin Marmon, County Treasurer,
and on the 25th Thomas Thompson, County Recorder. The t'ef^
of County Treasurer for 1819, amounted to the sum of $20,80.
The committee appointed to examine and establish a site for tiie
location of the county-seat of Loiran county, agreed in 1818 to locate
it on Mad river about two miles below Zanesfield, on'Solomon Mc-
Colloch's farm and some adjoining lands, but upon examii:ation
some doubts aro-^p as to the validity of the title to said land, much
prejudice existiuti- at that time against the Virginia Military Land
titles, in consequence of the frefjuent litigation which had grown
out of them. Consequently in 1819 that location wa.s set aside, and
the location permanently fixed on the lands of John Tullis, William
Powell and Leonard Uoutz, on what was called Congress land.
On December 28, 1819, this action was reported to and approved by
the court, and Solomon McColloch appointed Director of the town
of Bellefontaine, the name of the new county-seat.
The propriet(»rs of the hmd agreed to donate to the county ^ very
alternate lot in the town, and also a block of the .size of four lots
"for building a court-house upon, and one of the same size in the
north eastWner of the town, the north half of which was to be
IC
218 CHAMPAIGN AND
UHed for a burying-ground and the south half for the purpose of
building meeting houses upon." In the fore-part of 1820, Solomon
MeColloch, director, surveyed and laid off in lots the town plat ;
there were 248 lots, and he received from the proprietors deeds for
the public square above mentionetl, ani all the even-numbered lots,
according to the agreement. In the summer of the same year these
county lots were advertised for sale, and many of them sold at pub-
lic auction. The two lots which brought the highest price were :
No. 140 immediately north of the public square, for $430, and No.
108 opposite the northwest corner of the square, (now called the
Rutan corner) for $305. In June, 1820, the County Commissioners
— deeming it unadvisable to build a temporary court-house on the
public square appropriated 'iox a permanent one — contracted to have
a frame building put up on lot No. 142, in which to hold the courts
till a proper house could be built on the public square, but for va-
rious causes they failed to get it finished until 1823. It was finished
by Vachel Blaylock in that year. Its size was 36x24 feet, two
stories high, and is the same building which is the north end of the
Union House, now occupied as a hotel by Capt. John B. Miller.
The courts were not held in Bellviile but a few terms, for soon
after the location of the permanent county-seat at Bellefontaine,
they were removed to the private residence of John TuUis, one of
the proprietors of the town,lwho lived in a log house near the south-
west corner of the town, immediately east of the raib'oad engine
house. In this house the courts were held until 1823, when they
were removed to the new frame house above spoken of, where they
remained till the completion of the brick court-house on the public
square, which was recently torn down, demolished and removed
to rriake room for the new and splendid court-house now in course
of erection.
The town of Bellviile has long ceased to exist as a village ; it is
now partly a corn field and partly a pasture, in which are many
forest trees. The first jail in the county was built on the public
square, near the north east corner, on the ground now occupied by
the present stone and brick jail which is shortly to be taken down.
It was built several years previous to the erection of the brick
court-house. Although it was a wooden structure, a prisoner would
perhaps have found it as difficult to break out of as any in the State,
in any other way than by the grated door. The walls were of logs,
hewn about 15 inches square, neatly dove-tailed at the corners.
i LOGAN COUNTIES. 21%
Outside of this was another wall all around, of the same material,
and put up in the same manner, leaving- a >pace between the twe
walls of about 10 or V2 inches which was filled up with loose stone«.
The floors above and below, were of logs of the same size, but of
, only one thickness.
I Some few prisoners were confined in this jail, even before it had
•a roof, except sonve loose plank laid upon poles. The Square
around at that time, was a thicket of brush, undergrowth and
forest trees. The contract for building the brick Court-house was
. made September 9, 1831. The stone and brick was awarded to
I Wm. Bull, for §900, and he received an extra $150 for a few courses
' of cut stone above ground which had not been provided for in the
original contract. The wood work was awarded to John Wheeler
and George Shuffleton for $1,000. All the contractors were citizens
of this town at the time. The house was built in 1832, and fin-
ished in 1S33, in the latter part of which year, the courts were first
held in it. September 11, 1831, the contract to build the two brick
offices north and south of the Court-house, was awarded to Captain
William Watson for $650. They were built in 1833, and torn down
and removed at the same time that the Court-house was; viz : in
1870.
The contracts for building the new Court-house now in the pro-
cess of erection on the site of the old one, were awarded in 1870 a-s
follows, viz : 1. The entire mason work to Eouser, Boren A Co.,
of Dayton, for the sum of §28,168.80. 2. The cut stone work to
Webber & Lehman of Dayton, for $20,000. 3. The entire carpen-
ter work (including tiling, clock and bell) to Harwood A Thomas
of Cincinnati, for $13,600. 4. The galvanized ir jn and tin work to
' W. F. Gebhart of Dayton, for $7,644.60. 5. The entire wrought
and east iron work to D. S. Eankin & Co., of Cincinnati, for $2;>,-
000. 6. Painting ond glazing to Wiseman and Hays of Cleveland,
for $5,132.69. 7. Heating and ventilation to Peter Martin of Cin-
cinnati, for $6,507.80. 8. Plumbing and gas fitting to Thos. A.
Cosby of Cleveland, for $1,419.09. Total on Court-house, Si 05,598.-
08. The contract for building the new Jail on lot No. 159, ea.st of
the Public Square, was awarded to Rouze*- & Rouzer of Dayton,
for$27,8»5.
PIONEER SKETCHES.
1?V WILLIAM HALLEK.
John Haller, my father, was a native of Pennsylvania, but went
to Kentucky about the year 1796, when quite a young man. He
wa-s a spare, active man ; weight, about 185 pounds, auburn hair,
medium complexion, of great energy and ingenuity. My mother
was a Virginian, and was brought to Kentucky in childhood.
Father and mother were married in 1798, but mother died when I
was a youth. About 1796 iny father came to Ohio, in company
with otliers, on foot, to look at the country, then an Indian wilder-
ness, tie was delighted with the rich valleys of Miami and Mad-
river. In 1807 he again explored the Madriver valley. I well re-
member how well pleased he was with the country, and he pro-
posed to emigrate ; but the war cloud was gathering between this
and the mother country, and he with others hesitated, as it was
certain that the savages would unite with the British and resent
the intruding pale-faced emigrants. But, rinally, my father re-
solved to brave the danger, and in October 1812 bade adieu to Ken-
tacky soil and friends, and landed in Urbana, then of but few
inhabitants. Here he followed his trade of blaeksmithing until
1814. He bought land, and settled near the mouth of Nettle Creek,
btill following his tradi^ and was the only smith that tempered
edge toois in these parts. Axes could not then be bought as now.
My lather could make a good ax, an indespensible article in this
timbered country. His tame spread through the Buck Creek coun-
try, up the Miami about Sidney, on Lost Creek, among the Hun-
ter's and Enoch's near West Liberty, and on the west side of the
river, the Kavanaugh's, and Beard's, and Fuson's, and all inter-
LOGAN COUXTIEvS. 221
veninjj: settlements. At about forty-five years of aj^e he joined the
M. E. Church, and was rigid in the ol)servan!'e of discipline. He
opposed 'he use of alcoholic drinlxs, nor would he suffer such in
anythin.s: about the house or on the place. He filled the office of
Justice of the Peace a number of years. He finally sold here, and
settled near Defiance, where he died very triumphantly.
Land was sold in tracts of 160 acres, in payment of $80 at entry,
and payments annually until all paid ; but if not all paid, the land
was forfeited to the Government. This being an Indian country,
very few moneyed men would risk life of self and family among
cru>^l savages. The emigrants were mostly men of no means, and
those were men of wonderful nerve, beyond civilization, among
barbarous savages, a dense forest to hew out, and no means, with
all the liabilities incident to emigration. Let our kid-gloved ladiea
and gentlemen of the present day think what their fathers and
mothers endured I But they had the grit. Don't be ashamed of
them ; they were the highest type of our race.
As early as the first of the present century, some families emigra-
ted to what is now Madriver township, and settled on land>, and
paid the first installment, and commenced building and clearing.
Hnving to clear first, then make the money out of the products of
the soil to pay for the land, is it strange that some failed, as they
did, and lost all the money paid— their improvements and land be-
sides! As great injustice as was ever practiced by any Govern-
ment to her subjects.
Perhaps but few countries were settled under greater dis^idvan-
tages ; but the fine soil and climate were very inviting to home
seekers, and they came. We now call attention to some of thes«
noble families: William Ross, Cha.-les Rector and Christoi)her
Weaver, settled just above Tremont. These were from Kentucky.
Rector and Ross were brothers-in-law, and settled in the rich val-
ley of Madriver. Ross was of medium stature, and had wonderful
strength and endurance. Rector was larger, was also strong and
very hardy. These men and families were fitted for new country
life, and were valuable Christian aien and families. One of Rtv-
tor's sons lives near the old hon)estead, and is a valuable Christian
man. Weaver settled on the banks of Stones Creek, just abova
the Madriver valley ; a man of fine stature, an upright Chri-^tian
man ; and (Mie of his sons lives in Trbana now. very ag"d. ha>< ac-
252 CHAMPAIGN AND
^uiretl jrrcat wealth, and i>^ one of the finest financiers of Urbana.
The above three men, Ross, Rector and Weaver, came here about
the first of the present century, and were silvered with gray when
I tirst knew them. Weaver had camp-meeting on his land many
years.
One Thomas Redman settled just above the falling springs; he
had located, butl>efore the war of 1812, retraced his steps back to
Kentucky.
One Terraan settled just up the valley, but sold to John Pence
at a very early day. Pence built a grist-mill on Nettle Creek, but
finally sold to Louis Pence and went west. He came from Vii'-
ginia ; and so did William Runkle, afterwards Judge Runkle, who
was a tanner by trade, a very kind neighbor, and had an excellent
wife and family, none of whom are in this country now.
William Owens settled on Nettle Creek in 1797 or 1798, and -vas
remarkable for eccentricity, but died in middle life. Abram
8hocky was from Kentucky, settled on Nettle Creek and built a
taw mill, and was the most remarkable man in some respects that
I ever knew. He was sandy complexioned, muscular in form,
about 175 pounds weight, and certainly the greatest pedestrian
that was ever in the State if not in the United States. He was a
near neighbor, and I have seen him start with a company of good
trotting horses and keep ahead. One circumstance will illustrate
his walking abilities. There was a tract of land not far off that
was well timbered with poplar, belonging to Uncle Sam. Shocky
was hauling to his mill. One evening, as he was coming in with
a log, Judgeliunkle met and said to him, "You cannot haul any
more logs from that land, tor I have sent Jo. Sims to Cincinnati
this morning to enter it." The next morning as Sims was going
to Cincinnati, he met Shockey going home. Then Shockey re-
vealed to him that he had entered said land. Circumstances con-
firmed the fact, and Sims and Shockey went home together, one
©n foot, the other on horseback.
This Sims was a Kentuckian, and as stout as any in Madriver
township, thon or since ; a lean, broad-shouldered man of about
220 pounds weight. Henr\ and Abram Pence were among the
parly emigrants from Virginia. They were Baptists, and were
good, consistent men, and were a nucleus around which formed a
flourishing Baptist Church. They were good neighbors, and died
LOGAN OOUNTIHB. 223
full of years, and in death exemplified the power of grace to save
in a dying hour. Abrara was remarkable for honasty. One of his
daughters lives near, and a soe on part of the old homestead, pos-
sessing much of their father's qualities.
Some farther up Nettle Creek there was a neighborhood of Shen-
andoah Valley Virginians. The Wiants, Kites, Loudenlmcks,
Kunkles, Normans, and Jinkenses, many of them valuable citi-
aens and generally the stoutest, hardiest men that settled from any
country. John Wiant was a tanner, and was master of his trade ;
consequently WiVs highly useful in his day. Some of his sons are
lane busineas men, and one is a very talented Baptist Minister.
Thomas Kenton (Simon Kenton's nephew^,) and Ezekiel Arrow-
smith were brothers-in-law. Kenton was a native of Virginia;
Arrowsmith of Maryland, but lived a time in Kentucky; in ISO!
he came to the Madriver valley. Kenton was a good-sized, well-
made man — a man of great endurance and energetic industry.
Perhaps the first election held in the township in 1805 wa.s held in
his house. He lived to a great age. Arrowsmith was slender,
rather tall and active when young. With this family I connec-
ted. There were five boys and four girls living when I became
acquainted with them, and thirty years acquaintance gave rae a
fine opportunity to know them, and when together, I think they
irere as agreeable a family as I ever knew. Arrowsmith's wife
was Simon Kenton's niece; and all that knew her will bear me
witness, that she was among the kindest women that ever lived.
All the Kenton family were remarkable for strength of memory,
and the above-named Thomas Kenton seemed never to forget
anything that he had known. These were valuable citizens, and
the first Metliodist society which was organized in this part of the
township, met at Ezekiel Arrowsmith's, and his house was a place
©f preaching for many years.
Archibald ^tcGrew came from Pennsylvania. :ind settled on a
finetractof land. He was- a well-made, stout, h.ir«!y man, and
lived to a great age, and aided in the improvement of the country.
Christian Stevens came to Ohio from Pennsylvania, and in-
tended to purchase land where Zanesville now stands, but the town
site was fixed on his choice, and he left abruptly and went to Kmi-
tucky, and stayed there about two yeai-s, then came to this part ol
Ohio. He was a Methodist, and he opened his house as a place for
preaching, and there T joined the church fifty-thne years since.
224 CHAMPAIGN AND
p]lisha and Wm. Harbour were Virginians, but cannetoOhio
among the first .settlers. They were valuable citizens. T live.l '>.v
them many years, and more honest men I never knew.
I will now speak of Rev. Robert McFarland, of public noturiety,
who came to Ohio in the year . He was a lean, slen<ier man,
dark complexioned, black hair; weight about 155 pounds when in
middle life. He was called an exhorter, but he preached as did
the Ai'ostles. A Virginian by birth, but was taken to Kentucky
when young, and lastly came to Ohio. He unloaded his goods by
an oak log near where the Union Church now stands, then a dense
orest ; he h.as pointed me to the spot as we rode by. His purse
contained about four dollars, two of which he gave to his teamster
for expense money. What a prospect this! After living some
time on the east side of the river, he i)ought land and settled west
on Anderson's creek, in Concoi'd township. He being a Metho-
dist, gathered around him a flourishing society, and his house be-
came a preaching place. Methodism is indebted more to him, than
any man in that part of the country. His closing hours were truly
exaltic.
I may speak a few words of Simon Kenton, of histori" fame. I
kn(;W him in Urbana in 1814; he vvas then quite old. Afterward,
I saw him at his relatives many times. Though bowed by age,
yet the beholder could see that muscle and mind gave evidence
of former nobleness and strength and generous heart impulses. I
only give this as a passing tribute; western history amplifies his
worth.
I may be permitted to speak of Thomas Grafton, though not of
Madriver township. He grew up, ami married amone- the hills of
Virginia; but could see no site for a living there. I was well ac-
quainted with Grafton, and got these things from him. He packed
up and started towards the northwest, as Jacob of old, not knowing
whither he went; he traveled into Ohio until he reached the dense
beach forest nine miles west of Urbana. There he unloaded and
built a camp for shelter, and soon reared a cabin, and commenced
clearing. He, like others, had to clear and then cultivate and sell
the products to pay for the land on which tbe crop grew. He
raised wheat, and once sold 400 lushels for $100, to pay for his
land ; l)ut salt was hard to get, nid ;(« the surest way was to go to
the factory, so Grafton steered to t lie Srioto salt works, cutting his
way through, a distance of eighty njiles. When he arrived, his
LOGAN CX)UNTIBS. 2-2«
clothes were torn, had no money, but told hi? errand. The propri-
etor samned hiiii, ;ind then said, I suppose you will pay me, and
let him have the salt, after saying, you wear good clothes. He sold
one barrel of that salt for |27. When he became aged, beseemed
to be in his elements, if he could take a four-horse load of his neigh-
bor women to Urbana, on a trading expedition. He lived to a
great age ; he died without regret, regretted by all. In ihosedays,
people manufactured their own wear. There were few sheep in
the eountry, consequently wool was quite an object. My father
sent my oldest brother to Kentucky for fitty pounds of wool, which
he brought out on a horse. Father brought a flock of sheep to Ur-
bana, and sold tliem to the farmers around town ; perhaps all the
sheep in the country in early times descended from them.
One Bassel West bought a cow of my former fiither-in-law on
credit, and after long credit he paid for the cow, saying that he
did not think he could have raised his family without the cow.
But the forest began to be dotted with inhabitants, and as emi-
gration poured in, the hunting grounds of the savages were owned
by the pale-faces, and the bones of their ancestors were plowed over
by strangers. These things outraged the forbearance and former
kindness of the red men of the forest, and depredations were not
uncommon, and at one time after certain misdemeanors, alarm
spread with both parties, and a council was called to meet at
Springfield. The parties met. General William Ward represented
the whites. Tecumseh was advocate for the Indians. An amicable
adjustment was made. Tecumseh's speeches on that occasion wero
never translated, and this I regret ; some of my friends were there
who thought them as fine specimens of eloquence as they ever lis-
tened to. His interpreter said he could not give force to them,
he seemed to surpass Ward greatly in point of force.
I will be pardoned for speaking more at length of this savag«
chieftain. He was born in 1768, in Piqua, an old Indian town of
the Shawnees, on the west bank of Madriver, five miles west of
Springfield, and was one of three at a birth, His father was of tho
Kiscopoke (or Kicapoo) tribe ; his mother of the Shawnees nation .
He was above medium stature ; his personal appearance was dig-
nified and commanding ; as a speaker, he was fiuent and ch-ir,
with a musical tone of voice. His speeches were ortuunentpd l>y
striking illustrations and lofty flights at the council. Atsi-nng-
3»; CHAMPAIGN AND
field, abnvo alluded to, ho evinced great force and dignity. As a
warrior, he wan brave but humane. Ardent in his country's cause,
)ie keenly resented the encroachments of the whites, yet extended
protection to the captive. Early in life he distinguished himself
-in several skirmishes with the whites, but was not promoted to the
chiefship till he was about thirty years of age.
In witnessing the onwari rolling tide of white emigration, he
anticipated the fall of his native land. The thought of the moul-
dering remains of departed kindred, whose resting i)lace would be
disturbed by strangers, prompted feelings of re,sentment ; he con-
ceivfHl the imiwrtance of concentrating all the Indian forces west,
south and north, in one united effort of extermination and opposi-
tion ; he set out on a tour to the south, visiting all the Indian
tribes contiguous to his route, urging the necessity of immediate
action. Meeting one tribe in Louisiana who refused aid, Tecura-
seh stamped his foot on the ground and said, the Great Spirit would
shake the earth, in evidence of His displeasure. The threatened
phenomenon strangely occurred as predicted in the shock of 1811,
to the great alarm of the delinquent nation. But war spread her
wings of blood over the country, and ere the contemplated ar-
rangement could be effected, Harrison had struck the blow on the
Tippecanoe that forever sealed the savage fate. But Tecumseh
was not yet subdued, but traveled north, gathering to his standard
a remnant who, like himself, could be overpowered but not con-
quered, united with the dastardly Proctor, who was greatly infe-
rior in generalship, intelligence, and humanity, and was charged
by Tecumseh with cowardice, and was repeatedly urged b.\ the
savage chief to active duty.
When Perry achieved the victory on the Lake, the British gave
op Lake Erie, and thought of drawing off their land forces, when
Tecumseh addressed them, illustrating their infidelity by keen sar-
casm. This speech was translated and read shortly afterward, and
may be seen in history at this day.
But tiie land forces under Harrison on the one hand, and Proctor
and Tecumseh on the other, were yet pending. Just previous to
the engagemf-nt, the fated chieftain seemed to realize his doom,
and ^^aid to his companions, ^'I shall not survive this conflict; but
if it is the will of the Great Spirit, I wish to deposit my bones
with those ..f my ancestors." He drew his sword and added,
"When I am dead, take this sword; and when my son grows to
LOGAN COUNTIES. 227
manhood, give it to him !" Soon the forces engage in deadly con-
flict. The thundering tones of Tecurnseh rose above the roar of
battle, in the fiercest of the conflict; at the head of his band he deals
death around him, till overpowered by numbers, the mighty chief,
tain sink? in death's cold embrace. On seeing their leader slain,
the remnant of the savage forces retreated in confusion, leaving the
field with the dying and the dead to the victors. When he fell,
Tecurnseh was about forty-five years of age. With the opportuni-
ties of some great men, perhaps this noble son of the forest would
have been second to none that have set foot. on the continent of
any color.
Disheartened and driven back, the poor savage has been com-
pelled to seek a home on the slopes of the Rocky Mountains, near
the coast of the mighty western waters.
The whites again claim their hunting grounds. Like Noah's
dove, they have no place on which to rest the sole of the foot.
Maiiy powerful tribes have become extinct, bearing no trace of
former greatness — perhaps in a few revolving centuries Jiot a ves-
tige of the once powerful tribes will remain to rehearse the sad
story of their fate. In the language of Logan, the lamenting
Mingo chief, not a drop of pure Indian blood will run in the veins
of any living creature.
Hostilities having now ceased, emigrants of all creeds anvl na-
tionalities cam« among us, bringing their predilections with them.
An outgrowth of privilege to worship according to conscientious
views was granted with readiness, and at first it was found expe-
dient to unite irrespective of predilections, and worship harmo-
niously together. Dwellings were freely opened, and those little
bands would worship harmoniousiy together, until each acquired
strength sufficient, then societies were organized ; soon log meeting
houses were built, though of rude construction, yet songs of praise
would reverberate in the forests from those temples. A log house
was built by the Methodists on the land of William Ro^s, mimed
above. The next was a Baptist Churcli on Xettiecreek, also of
logs; and in youth and early manhood I worshiperl there, though
not a member. In 1820 a log church was built by the Methodists,
on the Ian 1 of Christian Stevens. There I worshiped for uiany
years. These buildings were not comfortable. As soon as circum-
stanees would permit,-more commodious houses were ererted. The
228 CHAMPAIGN AND
Metliodists have a brick in Tremont, also in Wastville— the Bap-
tists havo ;i tine brick church on the ^ite of the old log.
llev. Robert McFarland served as class lesider, for the tirst class
organized in this part of the township, and that met at Ezekiel
Arrowsmith's. Next said class met :«t Stevens', and until the log
meeting house was built— Bro. McFarland still serving until a so-
ciety was organized in his neighborhood. His house was opened
for ])reaching and class, until a log house was built partly on his
own land, which gave plac^ to a brick, and lately they have built
one of the finest brick country churches in the county. These
churches stand where the tall trees of the forest once bow<-'d to God
who bade them grow.
The men who used to bring glad tidings of great joy to the dis-
consolate, should have a place in history, and be held in everlast-
ing remembrance. I will give the name of some of them, and first
of the Baptist brethren, to-wit: John Thomas, John Gutridge,
Wm. Harper, Moses Frazee, Willis Hance, Daniel Bryant, Thomas
Price, .J(jhn Norman, Samuel Williams, and some whose names I
do not remember ; all these I have heard preach at Nettlecreek. . 1
will add William Fuson. Now of the Methodist brethren — Henry
1>. Bascora, Moses Trader, Adjet McGuire, Robert, James and John
Findly, John Strange, Russel Bisrlow, John Collins, W. H. Raper,
Augustus Eddy, George Marly, George Walker, Michael Marly,
Leroy Swormsted and Daniel D. Davidson — these are all gone.
It might lie matter of interest to some at least, if the peculiarities
and personal appearance of some of the most remarkable of these
men were given. This I do from memory, and may not be entirely
correct. Yet, in the main, I think I v/iil be nearly so. I may not
give them in the order as they c nne.
I take the Baptist brethren tirst. John Thomas was a small,
light man, dark hair and complexion, deliberate,cautious, not ven-
turesome, great strength and endurance for one of his size. Gut-
ridge was just the opposite; fluent, bold, assuming; would dash
ahead if he did run against a stump, which he sometimes did. Hq
cared for his stomach. In a travel once he stopped with a sister for
dinner, on wash day. It was about dinner time. When seated at
table the lady said they had a plain diune r. Yes, said Gutridge,
it is plain fare, but wholesome diet. The lady replied: "If you are
a good man il is good enough ; if not, a thousand times too good."
Frazee was prized by his brethren for his adherence to his doc-
LOGAN COUNTIES. -^i'j
trines, and had considerable ability to defend them. Willis liance
was acceptable among his brethren. Daniel Bryant is still living'.
I have heard him when young, and since he has become aged, and
feel it just to say that I consider him amons? the talented in any
branch of the Christian church. For originality, is not surpassed
by any of his brethren that I have heard. Thomas Price has been
esteemed by his brethren for his piety; I would say a zeal, but not
according to knowledge. James Dunlap was an old-times preacher.
Was popular in his day. I have spoken of my Baptist brethren
that I had known in youth and early manhood ; I may now speak
of my Methodist brethren, of whom I kno w more,and can say .nore.
Bascora was among the first. 3omew!iat foppish in appearance,
of medium stature. He had great command of language. At the
time, his audiences were spell-bound ; but soon the enchantment
would evaporate, and you had only to fall back on the occasion.
Trader was able, but contentious, and seemed to say I am vatch-
ing you. McGuire was able, benignant, and wished you to see the
purity and appropriateness ot the gospel system. Old R')bert
Findly had great ability, even when aged ; was strict, rigid of law
and order,and drilled his fiock. .John Findly was mild, persuasive,
and logical. James Findly was a large muscular man, bold, deter-
mined, defiant, ready for combat, and was a Boanerges, and would
awe into reverence. You would think he intended to try to shake
creation, and yet sometimes he would toucli the sympathies of his
hearers. Rupel Biglow was quite small, and almost homely to
deformity. When he preached, he would lay his premises as care-
fully as a skillful general would arrange his forces for battle, he
would comprehend the obstacles to be overcome, see that his forces
were sufficient, every officer in his place, men and munitions all
properly arranged, and then the word given, shell and shot, small
and large arms, grape and cannister, tis though the heavens and
earth were coming together, and in the consternation would
charge bayonets, and complete the destruction. Such seenuHl to
be his power over men. .John Collins was spare, light and
sprightly; his method was conversational; with rich, mellow
voice, a heart throbbing with tender emotions —he would com-
mence talking to you; his kindness would win on you, till you
would be in his power, then he would deal out some circumstance
so pathetically given, that the whole audience would weep in per-
fect response to the preacher's wish. After you were heated and
_>.10 CHAMPAIGN AND
had listened awhile you could not leave if you would, nor you
would not if you could. Augustus Eddy was a fine looking man,
and had a clear, strong, musical voice. The intonations seemed t»
have a magic power over you, as he would urge to pause and think,
and you would be likely to promise.
John Strong I had forgotten. He was a slender, tall man, pre-
possessing in appearance ; when speaking he would throw out his
shrill, strong voice, till he would arrast attention, then he would
hold you in a kind of suspense as though some commotion in na-
ture was in expectation. The sinner would be in state of alarm,
then he would summon all his strength and pierce the wicked as
though a well-aimed gun had sent a ball to pierce the heart, and
sometimes sinners would fall as if shot in reality.
William H. Raper was perhaps as line a looking man as I ever
looked on. The attention of the audience would never fail to be
attracted by the noble dignity of the preacher, and the inevitable
conclusion would be, "that you are a finished gentleman and a wise
counsellor," and you would cheerfully take a seat near the speaker ;
his clear logic and profound thought so modestly given, would pre-
possess you in his favor; you would begin to desire his companion-
ship, and thus he (^ould lead you against your preconceived opin-
ions.
George Marly was the most remarkable for native eccentricity of
any in my knowledge. He had good preaching abilities. His
audience would alternate between laughing and crying, just at
Marly's pleasure, and it was perfectly natural— it may have been
unavoidable. He was desired to preach once at each conference.
George Walker was a large, stout man, with a strong voice, ve-
hement in his manner. His assaults were made as by storm ; his
spirit was to kill or be killed ; not compromising, nothing daunt-
ed or impeding, but onward to victory. His mantle has fallen on
but few. Leroy Swarmsted traveled here when a young man, or
rather, a white-headed boy ; he was medium in stature; I only re-
member that he was quite able. Daniel D. Davidson was a
lean, long man, of good size, and very fine voice and good preach-
ing abilities — a faithful pastor, and able divine.
Michael Marly, (the last of a catalogue that I now notice) wa.s a
well made hardy man of good size. His appearance indicated a
man of thought and fixed principles, and seemed to say "Treat m©
and ray views respectfully, for they are sustainable by the highest
LOGAN COUNTIRS. 1^1
authorities," And when put to the test he never failed to muke
good his purpose. I think I have never known the man that could iro
into the depths of theology equal with Michael Marly, and he was
a student to the end of his life. He would remind one of a man
stationed at divergent roads in the wilderness, all unsafe but one,
and a departure would hazard life, and it wa^ his business to set
them in the safe way. He was able to reconcile apparent contlict-
ing passages of scripture, showing their meaning as they stood
connected with other scriptures, thus clearly bringing out and
presenting truth ; and when in his strength he had great ability
to enforce and apply his logical conclusions.
On hearing Alfred Cookmau I thought he might be equal to
Marly in this respect, but I onlj^ heard him twice, and in this he
seemed quite able to bring up those deep thoughts that seemed
beneath the surface, and to apply them ; and I regret that thes^
great men have gone, and that we can hear them no more.
The difference between them as it strikes me, is this ; that C!ook-
man would point to the safe road, all strewn with flowers and
beautified with evergreens, and make the impression that all the
flowery paths were paths of peace, and then he would go out
with that grateful smile and thus win the misguided to that peace-
ful way ; while Marly would describe the safety and security of
his way, and then point to the danger of those divergent roads,
and send out his thrilling warning voice showing the dreadful re-
sults, reaching out through countless ages, so as to alarm the fears
of the guilty.
I could wish to have known some of the valuable Ministers of
other orders or branches of the Church, the Presbyterian, Luther-
an, the Friends (Quakers), and others, but in early life I only knew
the Baptistsand Methodists, as there was no organization of any
other near us. Of late I have become acquainted with some valua-
ble Ministers of whom I could say much of their gentlemanly de-
portment and christian character. I hope however some one will
rescue from forgetfuiness some of those venerable departed spirits
that I did not know. But little more thantfO years since and Ohio
was an unbroken forest, the home of the numerous and p.)wertul
war-like savage tribes. The fine soil and climate presented
unusual inducements to emigration. Some enterprising pioneer^
found homes for t 
