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ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
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//Iciultjj /QuyiJci^ 6^64xiJE^
A HISTORY
Jackson County, Ohio
D. A^^. A\^II.I.IAMS
Volume I.
THE SCIOTO Salt Springs
JACKSON, OHIO
1900
1217096
PREFACE.
The preparation of this work has been a labor of love. It was
undertaken not for profit, but for the pleasure which I derive from
the study of the past. I have been urged to write a complete his-
tory of Jackson county. The material for such a work has been
collected, but its publication will depend upon the reception ac-
corded to this volume, which is devoted to the period from the
advent of man to the sale of the Scioto Salt Springs.
Jackson, O., May 22, 1900.
INTRODUCTION — Jackson is the seat of justice of an Ohio
county of the same name. It is situated on an eastern branch of
the Scioto river, in latitude 39 degrees, 15 minutes, north, and
longitude 82 degrees, 41 minutes and 48 seconds, west. It was laid
out in 1817, on the north half of Section 29, in the Scioto Salt
Reserve. This township had been set aside by Congress May 18,
1796, on account of the salt springs within its limits. These springs
or licks, are as old as the hills, for that erosion which carved out
the valleys between, exposed the strata from which they flow.
They were discovered by the wild animals of the forest, and became
one of their most favored resorts long before man appeared upon
the earth. No better evidence of this is needed than the great
quantity of fossil remains of extinct animals, which have been
discovered from time to time in the neighborhood of the licks.
FOSSIL BONES— The story of the bones found imbedded in
the valley of Salt creek forms an important chapter in the history
of these licks. Fragments have been found in nearly all the wells,
cisterns, miueshafts and railroad excavations in the lowland
adjoining them. The greater number had decayed, but many of
the larger bones were so well preserved that some of them were
easily identified as having belonged to the mammoth, the mas-
todon, the megatherium and other large animals of the prehistoric
period. According to Hildreth, the Scioto Saline may be ranked
with the Big Bone and Blue Licks in Kentucky for antiquity, from
the fact of the fossil bones of the mastodon and elephant being
found at the depth of thirty feet, imbedded in mud and clay. The
remains of several of these extinct animals were discovered in
digging wells for salt water, along the margin of the creek, consist-
ing of tusks, grinders, ribs and vertebrae, showing this creek to
have been a noted resort for these huge mammalia. The bones
of the mammoth predominated in the deposits discovered.
THE MAMMOTH — This name was probably borrowed from
the Russian, although some claim that it is a corruption of the
Arabic word, behemoth. In modern usage it is applied to an ex-
5
History of Jackson County.
tinct form of elephant. It dillered greatly from the elephant of
today, for it had a thick coat of hair, or wool, which enabled it
to withstand the great cold of the Ice Age. The Scioto Licks were
situated south of the Glacier, and a remnant of the mammoth
may have survived in their neighborhood until after the close of the
Glacial Period. There is a local tradition related by an old Indian
chief to some of the early salt boilers, which confirms this belief.
It is the story of the death of the "Big Buffalo.'' Seeing a pile of
bones which had been thrown out of a salt well, he explained that
they belonged to the Big Buffalo. The whites questioned him
further, and he gladly told the whole story, as follows: '
''Long before the Shawanese came into this land to hunt the
buffalo, deer, elk and bear, there was a great water, which filled
all the valleys and covered all the low ground and even the tops of
the low hills. The water had come slowly from everywhere and
flowed in where it had never been before. It drowned all the
beaver houses, and was deep over the salt springs and licks. The
game was all driven out of the low ground and roamed on the
hills. The animals were fearful, for the 'Big Buffalo' were on the
hills and killed everything before them. The Indians were forced
to fly to the highest rocks, where they looked down upon the great
water rising all around and threatening to drown the land. The
animals did not fear them, but came near them to escape from the
Big Buffalo. At last only the toi)S of the hills and ridges appeared
above the waters, and it was very cold. The Indians lived in the
rocks and the Big Buffalo could not reach them, but they could
shoot their arrows and throw their spears at them, and some of
them they killed. At last the water began to fall, but there was
a lake left, which reached north and south. But the water would
not stay. It broke out to the north, and also to the south, with
great roaring, making a way through the hills until the water was
all gone except a small lake where the salt springs are. The Big
Buffalo went into this lake to drink and became fast in the mud
and died there, and their bones are deep in the ground. When
the Big Buffalo were all gone, the animals which had fled before
them, came back, and the Shawanese came here to hunt them, until
the white man forced them to make their home near the Big Lakes."^
History of Jackson County.
A JACKSON COUNTY MAMMOTH— No perfect specimen of
this animal has been found in the immediate neighborhood of the
iicks, but the last resting place of one was found in 1835, on a
branch of Salt creek, not many miles away. An examination of
the remains was made by Caleb Briggs in 1837. His report has
been preserved and is as follows: About two years ago, some
bones so large as to attract the attention of the inhabitants became
exposed in the bank of one of the branches of Salt creek, in the
northwest part of Jackson county. They were dug out by indi-
viduals in the vicinity, from whom we obtained a tooth, a part of
the lower jaw, and some ribs. In the examinations at this place
during the past season it was concluded to make further explora-
tions, not only with the hope of finding other bones, but with
a view to ascertaining the situation and the nature of the materials
in which they were found. The explorations were successful.
There were found some mutilated and decayed fragments of the
skull, two grinders, two patellae, seven or eight ribs, as many
vertebrae and a tusk. Most of these are nearly perfect, except the
bones of the head. The tusk, though it retained its natural shape
as it lay in the' ground, yet being very frail, it was necessary to saw
it into four pieces, in order to remove it. The following are the
dimensions of the tusk, taken before it was removed from the place
in which it was found:
Length on the outer curve, 10 feet 9 inches; on the inner curve,
8 feet 9 inches; circumstances at base, 1 foot 9 inches; 2 feet from
base^ 1 foot 10 inches; 4 feet from base, 1 foot 11 inches; iVz feet
from base, 1 foot 7^/^ inches. This tusk weighed, when taken from
the earth, 180 pounds. The weight of the largest tooth is 8 1-4
pounds.
These bones were dug from the bank of a creek near the water,
where they were found under a superincumbent mass of stratified
materials 15 to 18 feet in thickness. The section carefully taken on
the ground will give a correct idea of the arrangement of the
materials, and the relative position in which these interesting
fossils were found.
No. 1 is a yellowish clay, or loam, which now forms the surface
of a swamp about one mile in length, and one-fourth to half a mile
History of Jackson County.
in breadth; it is covered with large forest trees, many of which
from their size must have been growing some centuries — 5 1-2 feet.
No. 2. This laj^er is a yellowish sandy clay — 7 1-2 feet.
No. 3 is an irregular layer of ferruginous sand, tinged with
shades of red and yellow, and partially cemented with iron — 4 to
8 inches.
No. 4 is a chocolate colored clay or mud, the inferior part of
which contains the remains of a few gramineous plants, very much
decayed — 2 feet.
No. 5. Sandy clay, colored like No. 4, but a little lighter—
1 1-2 feet.
No. 6 is the stratum containing the bones. It consists, judg-
ing from external characters, of sand and clay, containing a large
proportion of animal and vegetable matter — 1 to 1 1-2 feet.
Those bones, from their position, had evidently been subjected
to some violence before they were covered with the stratified de-
posits which have been described. The jaw and grinders, with the
other bones which we have thus slightly noticed, evidently belong
to an extinct species of the elephant, now found in a fossil state.
As the teeth differ from any which are figured and described in
the books to which I have access at the present time, it is possible
they may belong to an undescribed species.
THE MASTODON— The last important find of fossil bones
near the licks w^as made July 8, 1888. According to the Journal,
"workmen, while employed in digging a well near the electric light
plant last Friday, discovered jjarts of the skeleton of an animal
that are supposed to be the remains of a mastodon. When about
17 feet below the bed of Salt creek they first found some ribs that
measured 48 inches from tip to tip, and one and three-fourths
inches in width; further down a large bone that weighed eleven
pounds, measured eleven and one-half inches in circumference in
the center, seventeen and one-third inches at one end, twenty inches
in length, and is supposed to be one of the bones of the foreleg.
Dr. B. F. Kitchen had some excavating done on Saturday and
found a large tooth about four inches in length." Further excavat-
ing might have unearthed the whole skeleton, but the city had no
History of Jackson County.
time or money to speud on scientific investigations. The mastodon
was closely allied to the elephant, and was given its name on
account of the conical projections on its molar teeth.
The Megatherium — The following statement is from the pen
of Caleb Briggs, who visited the licks in 1837: "Some of the salt
wells in Jackson county were dug in a deposit of clay, sand and
gravel, occupying a basin shaped cavity in the superior part of the
conglomerate. In nearly all these wells were found fossil bones
consisting of jaw teeth, tusks, vertebrae, ribs, etc., which from the
descriptions given by Mr. Crookham belong to extinct species of
animals. From his descriptions, remains of the Megatherium and
of the fossil elephant were among the number." Crookham was a
born naturalist, and his statements are entitled to credence, but
it is rather remarkable that the bones of this gigantic animal,
allied to the anteaters and the sloths of the tropics, should have
been found in such close proximity to the bones of the mammoth
of the arctic circle. This fact goes to prove the great antiquity
of the licks, for the megatherium must have visited them long
before the Ice Age began. But he had the same apjjetite for salt
shared by his fellow victims of later ages. Attracted by the water
oozing from the salt marsh above the licks, he ventured in too far
a,nd was mired, and his bones marked the spot of his last strug-
gles. In time, they were covered b}' the bones of other victims of
the same appetite, and lay commingled until man came to disturb
them, and learn the fate of their owners.
WILD GAME — All the animals of the forest resorted to these
licks. Many were attracted by the saline waters, while others
came to prey upon the former. Great herds of buffalo and elk,
a,nd thousands of deer roamed in the valley and upon the hills at
certain seasons, and bears, panthers, wolves and wildcats followed
in their tiain. The smaller animals, lynxes, foxes, raccoons, wild
turkeys and man}' others could not remain away. The presence of so
many animals must have been a part of the attraction for the
mammalia of the prehistoric period. The region must have been
a rich game preserve for primeval man. It is known that it was
one of the favorite hunting grounds of the Ohio Indians. The
10 History of Jackson County.
early settlers were attracted to the neigliborbood of the licks for
the same reason. Indeed, according to Finle}', the first settlers,
could not have sustained themselves had it not been for the wild
game that was in the country. This was their principal subsist-
ence; and this they took at the peril of their lives, and often
many of them came near starving to death. Wild meat without
bread, or salt, was often their food for weeks together. Jf they
obtained bread, the meal was pounded in a mortar, or ground in
a handraill. Hominy was a good substitute for bread, or parched
corn pounded and sifted, then mixed with a little sugar and eaten
dry; or mixed with water as a good beverage. On this coarse fare
the people were remarkably healthy and cheerful. No comi)laints
were heard of dyspepsia; I never heard of this fashionable com-
plaint till I was more than thirty years old; and if the emigrants
had come to these backwoods with dyspepsia, the}- would not
have been troubled long with it, for a few months' living on
buffalo, venison and good fat bear meat, with the oil of the rac-
coon and opossum mixed up with plenty of hominy would soon,
have effected a cure. A more hardy race of men and women grew
up in this wilderness than has ever been produced since. Almost
every man and boy were hunters, and some of the women of those
times were expert in the chase. The game which Avas considered
the most profitable and useful was the buffalo, the elk, the bear
and the deer. The smaller game consisted of raccoon, turkey,
opossum and ground hog. The panther was sometimes used for
food, and considered by some as good. The flesh of the wolf and
wild cat was only used when nothing else could be obtained.
The licks removed much of the danger of the hunt, for the
hunter found it necessary only to wait under cover until the game
he sought should appear. In a few minutes his sure rifle brought
down enough meat to last him a month. All the old hunters have
passed away to the happy hunting ground. James H. Darling,
now dead, knew some of them, and on his last visit to Ohio he
related the following meager details of the days of wild game:
"I have seen bears, wolves, panthers, wild cats and deer in this^
county. I have seen as many as 20 deer together. I once saw a
wild cat in a tree, when I was very young, and I thought it was a
History of Jackson County. 11
fox. I climbed the tree and it jumped at me aud knocli;ed me
off to the ground. The dogs got after it and Mr. ^Yinfough shot
it. We had to pen up the sheep at night to keej) the wolves from
liilling them. I have Idlled wild cats and have caught many wild
turkeys. ^A'e caught them in rail pens. T^'e would build a square
pen and would then dig a trench from the outside to the middle
of the pen, covering the part of the trench inside of the pen with
boards, all except an opening at the end. \\e then spread corn
in the woods and along the bottom of the trench. The wild tur-
keys would discover the corn and would follow it until they came
out at the end of the trench inside of the pen. They would then
continue to look up and would never find the hole at which they
came in. We would sometimes catch 15 to 20 turkeys at a time.
The woods were then full, of wild hogs also, and we killed them to
eat. We always skinned them. Their meat was not very good.
There was a beai; killed where Coalton now is about 1823. It had
broken into the hog pen of a man named Alltire and had almost
eaten up one hog when it was discovered. Levi Davis, who lived
near Berlin, was a great deer hunter. He would hunt at night,
and would carry a pan of coals on his shoulder. The light would
attract the attention of the deer, and he would then be able to
see its reflection in their eyes and be able to take aim."
THE BUFFALO— Few people ever stop to think that count-
less herds of buffaloes once roamed in the valleys of the Ohio and
its tributaries. They visited the Scioto Licks so regularly and in
such numbers that their paths looked like great roads. One of
these, which used to run down the middle branch of Salt creek,
was visited in 1837 by Charles Whittlesey, who wrote the following
description of it: "Down the valley of this branch passes the
great 'buffalo path/ leading from the licks at Jackson to licks
upon the north fork, about thirty miles distant. It is at present
distinctly traceable throughout, over hills and across valleys, and
pursues the most direct practicable route. The appearance is
that of a gully, cut in the soil from one to four feet deep by a
sudden torrent, and partially filled again by the effects of time.
There are occasional cavities, called buffalo wallows, where it is
said the animal amused himself in his travels bv rolline; and
12 HisToKY OF Jackson County.
pawing in the dust like cattle. It appears by a statement of Mr.
Edward Byers, of Jackson county, that individuals of the bulfalo
race have been killed on the Raccoon, Symmes' and Salt creeks
within thirty years."
Many have wondered how the huge wallows were formed.
Catlin, who was an eye witness of the making of some such
wallows on the western plains, furnishes the following descrip-
tion: "In the heat of summer these huge animals, which, no doubt,
suffer very much with the great profusion of their long and shaggy
hair or fur often graze on the low grounds in the prairies, where
there is a little stagnant water lying among the grass, and the
ground underneath being saturated with it, is soft, into which
the enormous bull, lowered dow^n upon one knee, will plunge his
horns, and at last his head, driving up the earth, and soon making
An excavation in the ground, into which the water filters from
amongst the grass, forming for him in a few moments, a cool and
comfortable bath, into which he plunges like a hog in his mire.
In this delectable laver he throws himself flat upon his side, and
forcing himself violently around, with his horns and his huge
hump on his shoulders presented to the sides he ploughs up the
ground by his rotary motion, sinking himself deeper and deeper
in the ground, continually enlarging his pool, in which he at
length becomes nearly immersed, and the water and mud about
liim mixed into a complete mortar, which changes his color, and
drips in streams from every part of him as he rises up on his feet,
R hideous monster of mud and ugliness, too frightful and too
eccentric to be described. It is generally the leader of the herd
that takes upon himself to make this excavation, and if not (but
another one opens the ground), the leader (who is conqueror),
marches forward, and driving the other from it, plunges himself
into it; and, having cooled his sides and changed himself to a
walking mass of mud and mortar, he stands in the pool until
inclination induces him to step out and give place to the next in
command, who stands ready, and another and another, who ad-
vance forward in their turns to enjoy the luxury of a wallow, until
the whole band (sometimes a hundred or more) will pass through
it in turn; each one throwing his body around in a similar manner
History of Jackson County. 13-
and each one adding a little to the dimensions of the pool, while
he carries away in his hair an equal share of the clay, which dries
to a grey or whitish color, and gradually falls off. By this opera-
tion, which is done perhaps in the space of half an hour, a circular
excavation of fifteen or twenty feet in diameter, and two feet in
depth, is completed and left for the water to run into, which soon
fills it to the level of the ground. To these sinks the water lying
on the surface of the prairies are continually draining, and in
them lodging their vegetable deposits, which after a lapse of years
fill them up to the surface with rich soil, which throws up an
unusual growth of grass and herbage, forming conspicuous circles,
which arrest the eye of the traveler and are calculated to excite
his surprise for ages to come." While the buffalo remainded in the
county, they served the settlers as their most common food. Finley
says that their wool was often spun and woven into cloth by the
women, and sometimes it was mixed with raccoon fur and knit into
stockings, which were very warm and serviceable. After the wool
was taken off, the hide answered a valuable purpose. Being cut
into strips and twisted, it made strong tugs, which were used for
plowing. When dressed, it was made into shoe packs, or a kind of
half shoe and half moccasin. The manner of hunting the buffalo
was as follows: A compan^^ was formed, well supplied
with dogs and guns. Being mounted on horses, they started for
the woods. When a herd was found, one of the company would
creep up softly and fire into their midst; then the whole company
would rush in upon them with their dogs, which would throw them
into confusion. After all had discharged their pieces, the dogs
would attack them; and while they were engaged in fighting with
the dogs, the hunters would have time to reload and pursue the
chase. After the conflict was over, they would return and collect
the spoil. To enable the horses to carry them, they would take out
the entrails, and split them in two, and then throw them over the
packsaddles, and carry them home. The coming of the settlers soon
made the Ohio Valley a dangerous range for these animals, but a
few lingered on until the end of the last century. It was only nat-
ural that they should have lingered longest in the neighborhood of
the Scioto licks, which had been their favorite resort for countless
14 History of Jackson County.
centuries. The last biili'aloes in Ohio were killed in Jackson county.
Hiklreth wrote in 1837: "Two were killed in the sandy forks of
Synimes creek near the southeastern corner of Jackson county in
1800." A letter writer in the Western Agriculturist for October,
1851, corrects and closes the record of the Ohio buffalo, as follows;
^'In 1843, an old hunter of Jackson county, Mr. George Willis, told
us that he saw the last buffalo killed within the limits of the state.
He was shot by a hunter named Keenes near the headwaters of
Symmes creek, in the year 1802. It is, therefore, less than fifty
years since the wild ox was finally exterminated in Ohio. The
paths made by buffalo in traveling to and from the salt licks in
Jackson county are still visible, and look like old and deeply worn
wagon roads."
THE ELK — The elk go in droves like the buffaloes, but take
alarm more readily and escape faster. They bound away, says
Finlej^ with the velocity almost of lightning and run three or four
miles in a straight line without stopping. Their antlers are some-
times very large, and this handicaps them in their efforts to escape,
when found in the timber. The^^ lingered in Jackson county until
about 1805, but after that the hunters became too numerous, and
the}' moved on toward the setting sun.
SOME BEAR STORIES— The black bear was common in
Jackson county for several years after its organization, and one
was killed in Jefferson township as late as 1831. Accortting to
Finley, the flesh .of the bear is the most delicious, as Avell as the
most nutritious, of any food. The bear seems to be an awkward,
clumsy, inactive animal; but they can climb the highest trees with
great facility. When lean, they can run with great rapidity and
fight with tremendous fury. They will become immensely fat on
good mast, so much so that it is sometimes difficult for them to
move very quickly. When rendered thus unwieldy, they will, by
a, peculiar instinct, seek some cave in a rock, or hollow tree, where
they will hibernate, and about the latter part of March, waking
from their winter's sleep, they will come forth to greet the opening
^jiring. They prefer the beech nut 1o any other food. Should there
History of Jackson County. 15
be no beech mast, then they must go to the chestnut, and if these
fail, to the white and black oak woods. These animals become verj
poor in summer, and live on lesser animals, if they can take them,
or upon the wild honey, which they take from the yellow jacket
or bumblebee. They will turn over large logs in quest of this food.
At this season of the year they attack the swine, and have Deen
known to carry off large hogs. They were also very troublesome
in cornfields about roasting-ear time. These animals, in the fall,
before the time of mast, climb up trees, pull in the limbs, and
gather the fruit, which is called lopping. The hunter or back-
woodsman, for all backwoodsmen were hunters, made his summer
bacon out of bear meat. He would take out the fat and salt it, if
he had salt, and then hang it up to smoke. The fat was rendered
into oil, which was put away in deer skins, neatly and cleanly
dressed for the purpose. This oil served many valuable purposes
to the hunter, supplying the place of butter and hog's lard. He
could fr} his venison and turkey in it, and if he had neither of these,
it was admirable sop for corn dodger; and when mixed with his
jerk (dried venison) and parched corn, was regarded as one of the
greatest delicacies of a hunter's larder.
Perhaps the largest bear ever killed in Jackson county was
the one that gave John Farney such a fight near the site of Jackson
Furnace, then a part of Scioto county. It was in the year 1813.
Farney was out hunting and discovered the bear about the same
time that it discovered Farney. He drew up his gun to shoot, but
it missed fire, and he had to drop it, for the bear was rushing upon
him. He then threw his tomahawk at bruin, but it glanced without
injuring him. The bear then closed with him, and Farney was
compelled to fight with his hunting knife. He did so to good effect,
and lived to be Commissioner of Jackson county. But he never
sought another bear fight.
The following account of a bear killed near (^lay was written
by ('. W. Brady: "I have been tracing up lately the following
story: There is a poplar tree about three and one-half feet in
diameter, standing in a patch of timber owned by Aaron Henson,
about one-half mile northwest of Cross Roads. The tree is a mere
shell and broken off at the top. In this tree was killed what is said
16 History of Jackson County.
to have been the last bear killed in this county. The date was-
January 17, 1821. James, Samuel and Smith Stephenson Aveie-
workini;' some distance away when two well-trained hunting dogs,
which had been brought from Virginia, bayed something in the
woods. The boys all ran to, the dogs immediately. Samuel, being
fond of such sport, was first to this poplar tree, but, unlike the
Apostle John, he put his head in the hole, thinking it w'as an
opossum or some other small animal, but he discovered that the
animal was too large to be dragged out b}' main strength. Smith
was sent for a gun. The dogs were encouraged by the other two
boys, and one of them took hold of the bear. In order to catch the
dogs, bruin jumped out of the hole far enough to be recognized.
James, being equal to the occasion, grasped a pole ax and struck the
bear over the head, but the blow w^as not sufficient to kill it. It
jumped back and the dogs after it. Being infuriated, it instantly
stuck its head out again and James struck it a second blow, which
proved fatal. After considerable effort it was delivered from the
tree. A horse of medium size was brought and the bear throw-n
across his back. The bear was so long that it touched the ground on
both sides of the horse. When they got it home they weighed it, and
it weighed 400 pounds. It was dressed and many of the neighbors
were furnished a mess of bear meat. The parents of Mrs. Henry
Hunsinger of Jackson and Dr. Newell of South Webster were mar-
ried the following day and had bear steak for dinner. The bear was
very fat and had made but one trip from its winter lair. William
Buckley, of Camba, father of the AYilliam Buckley who now resides
there, found its track and followed it almost to its den, but the
snow had partly disa]»peared and he could not follow it any fai-ther.
Four bears came through here afterwards, but none of them were
killed." One pleasant afternoon in October, 1892, I walked out to
the old Kessinger homestead east of Jackson to visit William Kes-
singer, who was then the oldest man living in the county. When 1
turned in at the gate, he was at the woodpile splitting kindling,
although he was almost 95 years old. He greeted me cordially and
invited me into the house, where he talked to me for an hour about
the olden times. His wife, only two years younger than he, w-as
present and participated in the conversation. William Kessinger
History of Jackson County. 17
was born November 1, 1797. His wife, Sarah Miller, was born
August '24:, 1709. Tliey were married May 27, 1819, and they re-
moved from Virginia to this county in 1820. The most interesting
incident related by Mr. Kessinger was the following account of the
killing of a bear: "I once helped to kill a bear. This was in Feb-
ruary, 1821. Reuben Dickason, near whom I lived then, had a dog
that used to hunt alone at night. When it had treed a raccoon,
Dickason would go out and kill it. One night, when it had treed
an animal of some kind, Dickason asked me to go with him to see
what we would find. When we drew near the spot, which was on
laud now (1892) owned by H. P. McGhee, we discovered that the
dog had treed larger game than usual. He was barking at the foot
of a hollow tree, and it did not take us long to discover that there
was a bear inside. We had only our axes for weapons, so I kept
watch while Dickason went after his gun. It was an old flintlock
and would not shoot. He brought it, however, and after loading it
and aiming it at the hole in the tree, I touched it otf with a coal
of fire. The charge took effect, but we reloaded the gun and
touched the old thing off a second time. This put an end to the
bear and we dragged it out. Both charges had taken effect. After
dragging it out, we found three cubs also in the hollow rrt-e." The
last bear killed in the county was shot by William Whitt. at the
head of Cub Run, in Jefferson township, in the winter of 1831. It
had been discovered earlier in the day neai: Gallia Furnace's site
by the Massie boys, who fired at it, but failed to bring it down. They
[uirsued it in the snow for several hours, but were disappointed at
last, for toward evening they came upon William Whitt in the act
of hanging it up. Although he had killed it, they claimed it on the
ground that they had wounded it in the morning, a fact that was
not clearly established. Whitt was alone and surrendered, the bear
to them, but sued them afterwards. The result of the lawsuit has
not been ascertained, but the Massies ate the bear meat. The animal
was young, and the run on which it was killed has been known as
Cub Run ever since.
DEER — Finley remark.-^ that the deer is the most beautiful
wild animal that roams in American forests. Thev change their
18 History of Jackson County.
color three times a year, and every winter they cast their horns.
The color they assume in the spring is red, in the fall it is blue, and
in the winter it is gray. Their skins are most valuable when
in the red or blue. The meat of the deer is the sweetest and most
easily digested of all animal food. The skin was manufactured
into almost all kinds of clothing, such as hunting shirts, waist-
coats, pantaloons, leggins, petticoats, moccasins, sieves, wallets
and sometimes shirts. It was perhaps to the backwoods families
the most useful of all animals. The dressing of the deer skins did
not require a long process. They generally cut out the garment
with a butcher knife, and used an awl insteal of a needle, and the
sinews of the deer instead of thread.
Deer were common in this county until 1845. Many now living
have seen herds of them as late as the years of the war. A few
lingered until 1870, visiting the old deer licks at certain periods.
Two deei' were killed in 1867, between this city and Raysville, and
their skins brought to Jackson for sale. They brought |5 each.
These are the last known to have been killed in the county. The
hams when salted and dried were known as "jerk." Deer were
usually found in the winter time near laurel, on which they fed
without any inconvenience to themselves.
PANTHERS — The panther when hungry would attack man
himself, and was the most dreaded inhabitant of the forest. Its
favorite mode of attack was to leap from a tree upon its victim,
and the hunters that visited deer licks to lie in wait for deer,
would often find a panther doing the same. This animal left the
county early, but a pair were killed near the house of Joshua
Evans, in Hewitt's Fork, in the winter of 1837. They had been
hunted with dogs from the hills of Scioto county, and were the last
seen in this count}'.
WOLVES — Finley well says that the wolf is the most sneakingl
and thievish of all animals. He is seldom seen in the daytime, but
prowls about and howls all night. He is remarkably cowardly, and
will never attack unless he has greatly the advantage. Their skins
are worth but little and their flesh is never eaten, except by those
who ma}^ be in a starving condition. Wolves were regarded as such
History of Jackson County. 19
pests, that the Legislature passed a law allowing County Commis-
sioners to pay a premium for wolf scalps. On July 3, 1816, the
following entry was made in the Journal of the Commissioners of
Jackson county: "It is ordered that the premium on wolf scalps
be as follows: On wolves under six months, |1; all over the age
of six months, |2." The first premium paid under this order was al-
lowed November 25, 1816, to Adam Altire, who had produced the
scalps of two young wolves. Jonathan Delay was allowed $2 on
April 8, 1817, for the scalp of a grown wolf. With the introduction
of sheep into the county, the wolves became such a terror that the
Commissioners found it necessary for the public good to increase
the premium, and on June 3, 1822, it was ordered that a premium
of $1.50 be paid on all wolves under six months, and $3 for the
pcalps of all others. This made wolf hunting profitable, and many
farmers that raised sheep and young cattle bought wolf traps.
Davis Mackley described one of these traps as follows: Wolves
were the terror of the early settlers. Sometimes they were caught
in large traps. They often killed my father's young cattle, and 1
remember once he borrowed Dr. McNeal's wolf trap, and had it
set several nights, but he never caught a wolf in it. One morning
he went to the trap and found a very large wildcat in it. He killed
it with a club and came home with it on his shoulders. It was a
yellowish color, and was as large as he could well carry. These
wolf traps were a very powerful thing. A man's weight on the
spring was not sufficient to bend the spring so as to set it, and the
spring had to be pressed down with a lever. When the trap was
sprung, the great jaws, which had teeth fitting between each other,
came together with a clash that could be heard a long distance, and
the trap would almost jump from the ground.
By the year 1830, wolves had become scarcer, and the premiums
were reduced. An occasional pack would be found, however, for
several years afterward. Cary Boyd killed a wolf on Black Fork
in 1834, which some claim to have been the last killed in the county.
The Commissioners' Journal shows, however, that George Byers
was allowed |3, May 9, 1838, for the scalps of six wolves under six
months.
20 History of Jackson County.
BEAVER — The Indians and the earliest trappers in this coun-
ty regarded the several branches of Bymmes and Salt creeks as
the richest beaver resorts of the western country. There were
quite a number of beaver ponds on Grassy Fork, some half dozen
ponds on Salt Creek south of Jackson, and the Black Fork Avas a
beaver hive from Gallia Furnace to its headwaters. The Indians
secured all the beaver fur they wanted without any wanton de-
struction of the dams, and the beaver remained in the county until
the salt boilers came. Then began a ruthless slaughter. The dams
were broken, and the jjonds drained, and the beaver soon disap-
peared. The last were killed at the pond near the big sul])hur
spring on the land now owned by D. W. Davis, of Jefferson town-
ship. The agency of the beaver in changing the course of several
of the creeks should be mentioned.
THE RACCOOX — This animal was found in such numbers in
this section of the state that the name was given to one of its
largest streams. It is mentioned here, because its skin was used as
a circulating medium among the backwoodsmen. Coin was very
scarce, and much of the paper was of no more value than the rags
out of which it had been made. But the coon skin was always
worth a (juarter of a dollar, and passed for such when coin was
not procurable, until after the organization of the county.
THE LAST OTTER— Otters were very numerous in this
county in early days, especially near the beaver ponds on the sev-
eral branches of Symmes Creek. They lived in holes in the rocks
near the ponds. One of their peculiar habits was sliding down the
steep bank into a creek or pond. It was on account of this habit
of theirs that smooth slopes were compared to otter slides. Once
the otter entered the water, the hunter found it almost impossible
to shoot it with the old fashioned flint-lock gun, for the otter could
see the flash and dodge the bullet. After the breaking up of the
beaver dams, the otters gradually disappeared, but a few remained
on Grassy Fork of Symmes until 1857, three being killed in Madi-
son township that year. The last pair seen in the county were
killed in 1874, on Black Fork. The male was discovered one morn-
History of Jackson County. 21
ing by William Jenkins, on tlie farm of his father, Kealva Jenkins,
some distance from the creek. He chased it with his dogs, avnd
killed it with a club. Some two weeks later, he and his brother
John were passing a beaver pond on the land of Mary Uavis
further down the creek. T. J. Morgan and his brother S. J. Morgan
called to them and informed them that a strange animal was run-
ning in the water. The dogs were set on it, and Jenkins soon dis-
patched it with a club. It was a female, and the supposition is
that it was the mate of the one killed two weeks before. The skin
of the male measured eight feet and that of the female six feet.
They were sold for $8 and |5 respectively.
PRIMEVAL MAN — It is claimed that man appeared upon the
earth before the close of the Ice Age. The question is indetermin-
able, but even the Bible hints that the climate became colder after
the creation of Adam, for it says: Unto Adam also, and to his
wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them. Per-^
sons accustomed to wear only figleaves would not have needed
-clothes of skin, unless there had been a change of climate. At any
rate it was a cold day when our first parents were turned out ot
the Garden of Eden. It will never be known Avhen man appeared
in Ohio, but if he came before the close of the Glacial period, there
are reasons for believing that he must have lived near the Scioto
licks. Geologists tell us that during the floods of that period.
Southern Ohio was converted into a lake by the waters backed up
by the Cincinnati ice dam. During the existence of that lake, only
three of the highest ridges remained above the waters, and they
became islands for the time. Two of those ridges were in Jackson
county. It is not too violent a presumption to suggest that the
men of that period must have sought refuge on these highlands. If
this theory be accepted, it will have to be conceded that some of
the mounds on the high hills of Jefferson and Hamilton townships
may be the oldest human relics in the Ohio valley. Little is known
of primeval man. His life was a fierce struggle with the elements
and the gigantic animals of his day. He has left no record save
his ball of flint and a few rude tools. Carlyle thus describes his
lot: Miserable, indeed, was the condition of the aboriginal savage.
22 History of Jackson County.
glaring fiercely from under his lleece of hair, which, with the beard
reached down to his loins and hung round him like a matted cloak;,
the rest of his body sheeted in its thick natural fell. He loitered
in the sunny glades of the forest, living on wild fruits; or, as the
ancient Caledonian, squatted himself in morasses, lurking for his
bestial or human prey; without implements, without arms, save
the ball of heavy hint, to which, that his sole possession and de-
fense might not be lost, he had attached a long cord of plaited
thongs; thereby recovering as w^ell as hurling it with deadly un-
erring skill." A relic was found by Prof. J. W. Hank, in August,.
1894, which may have been one of those very balls. It was found
in digging a grave in Fairmount cemetery. It lay at a depth of three
feet under the sod, between the clay and the sandy slate. Its pres-
ence at such a depth on a hilltop, indicates that it must have lain
in the same spot for scores of centuries, and it may have been em-
ployed by an aboriginal savage in one of his conflicts with the
mastodon or other animal of that period.
THE MOUND BUILDERS— There are at least five hundred
earthworks within twenty miles of the licks, which belong to the
age of the Mound Builders. It has not been clearly established
who they were or when they lived in this region, but we know that
they loved to live near the licks. Their works consist of mounds
of all sizes, circles, rectangles, and half enclosed areas. The larger
structures in this county are always situated on elevated ground.
Their use is not known. Whittlesey, who visited them in 1837,.
advanced the theory that they could not have been used in war.
He said: "The principal enclosures are rectangles or circles, weak
figures, without ditches, made weaker by numerous openings, not
onlv in the sides, but at the corners. The subordinate parts of
large works, and the small isolated ones, sometimes have ditches,,
but always, as far as I have seen, on the inside, though cases of ex-
tensive fossa are said to exist. The main figure always occupies
ground accessible on all sides, and no spring or receptacle of water
is found within the walls. Other equally good reasons might be
advanced why these structures are not adapted, and were not de-
signed, either for attack or defense under any supposable mode ot
History of Jackson County. 23
human warfare." The most important of their works in this county
is located near the licks and is known, locally, as the Old Fort.
THK OLD FORT— This is the name by which the ancient
earthwork on McKitterick's hill, northwest of Jackson, is generally
known. There were two of these works on the McKitterick farm
in early days, but the eastern one, inside of which the house was
erected, has been almost obliterated. They were visited by Charles
Whittlesey in 1837, when he was engaged upon the first geological
survey of Ohio and described as follows: "No. 1 is situated in Lick
township, Jackson county, Ohio, on the west half of the northeast
quarter of section 19, Township 7, Kange 18, on high ground, about
one-fourth of a mile northwest of Salt Creek. The soil is clayey,
the work slight, with only one opening, which is on the east, and
to my knowledge, without running water in the vicinity. The ditch
being interior, indicates that the work was built for some other
purpose than defence, probably for ceremonial uses. No. 2 is on the
same quarter section on the east half, and lies near the road from
Jackson to Richmond, on the left hand. The prospect from the
mound is extended and delightful. On the west between this and
No. 1, is a ravine and a small stream. As the soil is sandy, it is
certain that the mound attached to the rectangle on the southwest
was somewhat higher at first that it is at present. Neither of these
works are perfectly square or rectangular, but irregular in form,
approaching a square. No. 2 is clearly not a work of defence, and
was probably intended as a high place, for superstitious rites. A
more charming spot for such observances could not be chosen, if
we admit that external circumstances and scenery had any connect
tion with the sentiments of the worshipers, and we must allow
that the Mound Builders were alive to the beauty of the scenery.'*
The writer had a survey of the Old Fort made in July, 1894. The
dimensions were found to be as follows: Length 110 feet, width
100 feet. From bottom of ditch to top of embankment at south-
west corner is three feet and four inches; height of embankment
six inches. From bottom of ditch at southeast corner to top ot
embankment is five feet and six inches; the embankment is two
feet high. Distance from inside ditch across to outside of embank-
24 History of Jackson County.
ment is fifty feet. The inclosure is level, and the entrance is on
the east side. The inclosui-e is almost rectangular, but the em-
bankment is more irregular. An oak seven feet in circumference
stands on the embankment near the southeast corner. There are
a number of smaller trees growing on the embankment, and a few
in the inclosure, but there are none in the ditch. The Old Fort
stands on level ground, overlooked by several higher elevations,
which proves conclusively that it could not have been intended
for defence. There is no great quantity of water nearer than Salt
Creek, a quarter of a mile away, which argues that it was not the
long house of a village. AYhittlesey failed to find any running water
in the vicinity, but since the ground has been cleared, a number of
coal springs have been discovered neai-. In short, there is a coaJ
spring at the head of each branch of the several ravines adjacent.
In the summer of 1896, one of these springs, located a few hundred
feet southeast of the Old Fort, dried up and Milton Cameron, who
was clearing the land, cleaned it out in hopes of finding water. At
a depth of about three feet, he came upon a pan scooped out in the
sandrock where the stream had welled forth. There was nothing
to show that the spring had ever been cleaned out by whites, and
it is evident that this pan was the work of the fort builders. Its
discovery justifies the belief that there may have been other springs
nearer the Fort which were stopped up by its users, and have not
yet been rediscovered. Only a few relics have been discovered near
the Old Fort. The only specimen found inside the inclosure was
a fine spear head, about four inches long. It was found accidentally
by John F. Motz, when a lad. Samuel McKitterick, the i)resent
owner of the land, found a steel bladed ax May 5, 1890, when ])low-
ing in the field about one hundred yards south of the Fort. The ax
weighs one and one-half pounds, is seven inches long, has a three
inch blade and the eye measures 1 1-8 in. x 1 1-2 in. The ax Is now
owned by J. H. Cochran. Another iron relic was found a few years
ago by Howe, at a charcoal ])it about one hundred yards
west of Ihe Fort. It is a ball perhaps intended for a small cannon.
It may have been placed long ago in the fork of a tree, and the
wood grew over it, imbedding it, where it remained until burned
out in the charcoal pit. These two relics, tomahawk and cannon
History of Jackson County. 25
ball, point to a visit from whites at an early day. It is known that
Oenei-al' Lewis led an army of Virginians through this country in
1774, and they may have camped over night at the Old Fort, and
left these relics. The mound attached to Fort No. 2 was opened by
McKitterick, who found a number of flints and the layer of ashes
commonly found in the mounds in this county. The opening was
utilized for a milk house.
AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIND— A volume could be written
about the remains of the Mound Builders in the neighborhood of
the licks, their works and implements. One mound on the land of
Joseph Watson, east of the licks, was opened a few years ago and
evidences were found indicating that it had been a house mound,
similar to those of the Mandans on the Missouri. Perhaps the most
important find in the county was the collection of flints discovered
in April, 1898, near the Catholic cemetery. The following account
was written at the time by F. E. Bingman, a local archaeologist:
A discovery that is of more than usual interest to those who are
archaeologically inclined, was made by Mr. George Goddard, one
day last week. While engaged in plowing a piece of ground belong-
ing to P. O'Malley, just south of the new Catholic cemetery, he
noticed in the dead furrow several implements of flint. His curios-
ity being excited, he made a further and careful examination, with
the result of finding carefully stowed away the large number of 314
implements.
As near as could be determined by an examination made after-
ward, the flints were placed in a hole about fifteen inches across,
and eighteen inches deep, the hole slightly narrowing toward the
bottom. The top of the pile was about ten inches beneath the
surface.
The flints are all of one pattern, triangular in shape, with
straight sides and convex base. In length they vary from one and
three-ciuartei'S to three inches. The material of which they are made
is foreign to this country, coming from the famous Flint Ridge
quarries in Licking county, is fine grained and chipped much more
readily than our coarser flint. The color ranges from nearly pure
white, through reddish, to dark gray. The reddish colored are al-
most translucent.
26 History of Jackson County.
Similar deposits have heretofore been found in this county^
notably one in the city cemetery, but none nearly so large as this.
Within a few hundred yards of where this cache was found are
five mounds, two of which are of unusual form, being surrounded
by a ditch and low embankment. None of the five have been ex-
plored, but would doubtless repay examination. The collection
referred to is now in the possession of the writer.
SAIjT — According to W. Robertson Smith, salt must have
been quite unattainable to primitive man in many parts of the
world. Many inland peoples regarded a salt spring as a special
gift of the gods. The Germans waged war for saline streams. At a
very early stage of progress, salt became a necessary of life to most
nations, and it had been conjectured that the oldest trade routes
were created for traffic in that commodity. Cakes of salt have been
used as money in more than one part of the world, and it has been
used as a medium of exchange in the markets of Shan down to our
own time. From this it can be readily understood why the Mound
Builders chose to dwell near the licks, in a country rough and
barren compared with the rich valley of the Scioto. The absence
of earthworks intended for protection, indicates that the licks were
in a zone of peace. Perhaps a traffic was carried on with distant
tribfs. They lived here, at least, and the theory offered is the most
plausible explanation for their choice of home.
ROCK SHELTERS— The first topographical survey of Jack-
son county was made by Charles Whittlesey in the summer of 1837.
In his report to W. W. Mather, the State Geologist, he makes spe-
cial mention of the sand rock bluffs with mural fronts, rising alter-
nately on each bank of Salt Creek between Strong's Mill and
Jackson. These bluffs add a wild and romantic feature to the
scenery and are visited by thousands of people every year. Some
of them rise to the height of one hundred feet. The fronts of many
remain comparatively unbroken, but in others, the lower strata
have worn away faster than the upper, which now overhang and
form rock shelters. In a few instances, the lower strata have re-
ceded thirty to forty feet, and such shelters are spoken of locally
History of Jackson County. 2T
as "caves." There are fifty or more of these rock shelters in the
county. The first white visitors, who were hunters or trappers^
discovered that the floors of these shelters are a mixture of sand
and ashes. The makers of saltpetre who came later, disturbed the
ashes and unearthed many bone fragments, shells, potsherds, and
flints, granite and stone implements, but they were untutored, and
these discoveries failed to whet their curiosity. The relics were
saved for the moment, perhaps, but were soon cast aside. In some
instances, perversity or ignorance led the finders to break the
largest stone hammers and axes and to throw smaller ones into
the waters of the creek. The extent of this vandalism will never
be known. If any human skeletons were found by the saltpetre
men, the fact has not been recorded. A few of the early pioneers
were educated men, but none of them seem to have attached any
special significance to these discoveries, although some of them
made collections of the relics. In later years, boys learned to dig
in these ash floors whenever they wanted "Indian" relics, and tons
of them have been discovered. Many were lost in time, visiting
collectors have taken many others out of the county, but there yet
remain a great number in private collections, which, if combined,
would make a respectable showing.
HUMAN SKELETONS— About thirty years ago a skull and
other parts of a human skeleton were found in the ashes in a rock
shelter on the land of Captain Samuel White in Liberty township.
A similar find was made in a cave in Madison township. A third
skeleton was found in 1883 by F. E. Bingman in a shelter on Salt
Creek, and a fourth was found at the north end of McKitterick's
sand bank. Bingman was digging for relics, but the other discov-
eries were made by accident. Saturday, March 16, 1900, Strawder
J. Swyers and Charles Faught were digging for relics in the ashes
at the Tea Rocks and discovered a fifth skeleton. They came upon
it unexpectedly and did not observe its position carefully. The
skull was shattered in digging and the bones were brittle and broke
in handling. The teeth were in good condition, indicating that
they had belonged to a young person. The sex could not be deter-
mined, but the finding of an arrowhead lying among the ribs in-
28 History of Jackson County.
dicate that the skeleton was that of a yoimg brave who came to
an untimel}' death. A number of arrowheads, a bone awl, and a
piece of deer horn were found with it. This discovery started others
to digging. Gray Halterman found two skeletons, and two young
men named McGowan and Hoover found a fourth near by. These
boys found also, a number of arrowheads, bone awls, potsherds,
shells, bone fragments and broken stone or flint instruments.
Wednesday, April 11, I visited the place and began to dig at ran-
dom. \\ithin five minutes, I shoveled up a fragment, which looked
like a bit of pottery, but my son picked it up, and discovered that
it was a piece of human skull. Digging more carefully, I uncovered
the skull. It was that of a full grown man, and the condition of
the teeth indicated that he had reached middle age. The upper
part of the skull was intact. When first exposed, it was brown, but
a fragment which I preserved is now whiter. The lower part of
the skull had practically decomposed, but the teeth and one side
of the lower jaw were in fair condition. The skull rested upright
on a mass of bones, all of which were badly decomposed, but they
were so arranged that it was easy to see that the dead man had
been buried in a sitting posture. The skull was found about five
feet below the level of the old floor, but my digging was made on
the face of an excavation made by sand diggers. I shoveled uj) a
number of potsherds, shells and bone fragments, and I dug through
a, layer of fine charcoal, which lay about six inches above the skull.
The charcoal had not been disturbed since the fire went out in it,
until my shovel struck it. Its presence suggests a theory which
will be mentioned later. The bones which I discovered had decom-
posed more than the bones found by Swyer, but the latter lay under
shelter and only three feet deep. Altogether, nine human skeletons
Lave now been found in Jackson county rock shelters. The skele-
ton found in Madison township may have been that of a white
hunter, trapper or hermit, who died of disease or from the effects
of injuries received in falling, or from a wild beast, but the other
eight belonged, no doubt, to Indians. They must have been the
skeletons of men killed in battle or skirmish, and buried hurriedly
by comrades before they retreated from the neighborhood. The
Indians always gave their dead decent burial, except in extremity.
History of Jackson County. 29-
A brave has been known to carry the body of his boy home from
a distance of one hundred miles, in order to bury him with his
kindred. The burials were never made near camps or inside of
shelters used as houses; therefore, the skeletons unearthed at the
Tea Rocks were not buried in time of peace, or by the occupants
of the shelter. The layer of charcoal under which I found skeleton
Ko. 9 sujigests the circumstances. The Indian dreads the loss of
his scalp in war, and skeleton Xo. 9 was buried by his comrades in
the most unlikely place, and a fire kindled over his grave to con-
ceal it, in order to prevent the enemy from scalping the corpse.
STORY OF THE ASHES— The relics found in the rock shel-
ters are prized by collectors, and the skeletons unearthed excite the
curiosity of a few, but the ashes themselves have been regarded
as of no consequence. And yet they tell a story as interesting and
as old as that of all low lying mounds. The earliest rock shelters
were formed soon after the close of the Glacial period, but the
oldest have disappeared, for the overhanging strata break off from
time to time and roll down into the valleys. This seems to occur
oftenest in shelters with a northern or western exposure, while
those with a southern exposure last longer. Nearly all the rock
shelters in the county have had their inhabitants. Their first oc-
cupants must have been the primeval men, who had not learned to
kindle a fire. They were followed in turn by men who knew the use
of fire, but had not learned to build houses. The Mound Builders
succeeded these, who in turn were succeeded by the Indians. The
favorite shelter with all of them seems to have been the slight one
at the Tea Rocks, selected on account of its proximit3" To The salt
pans at the ritfie in Salt Creek. The bluff at this place rose only to-
the height of about forty feet, and the overhanging shelf was rela-
tively slight, but it had a southern exposure, which compensated
for several feet of shelf. The ash heap at this point is the largest
in the county. It is over one hundred feet long, and was fully eight
feet deep in one place. It slopes down to the creek, W'hich at one
time flowed toward the bluff in a sweep from the opposite side of
the valley. Hundreds of tons of ashes have been hauled away as
fertilizer, and scattered on lawns, gardens and fields, but thousands
30 History of Jackson County.
of tons, i)erhaps, lie yet where they have lain for centuries. The
skeletons discovered in March and April, lUOO, were found here.
A great number of flint and bone implements have been found in
it. Muscle shells are numerous and tons of bone fragments are
mingled with its ashes. All the bones have been split for the mar-
row. The animals represented are the butfalo, bear, deer, elk, fox,
raccoon, ground hog, oppossum, beaver, wild turkey and others,
which roved or lived in the neighborhood of the licks. Hundreds
•of potsherds may be found. One specimen in my possession was a
part of a pot which had a rim diameter of five inches. It was reg-
ularly formed and the outside bears the impression of a fabric. The
greater part of the heap has not yet been examined. It is useless
to conjecture how long the shelter was occupied, but the quantity
of ashes indicates that the first man kindled a fire in it long before
Columbus discovered America. The men who built the mounds in
Jamestown may have occupied it. Arrowheads were found in the
lower i)art of the heap that may have been fashioned by a man
who lived two or three thousand years ago. The pottery broken
here may have been brought carefully from the gulf coast, for the
fabric marks on some fragments are almost identical with those
on specimens which I picked up on an old Indian village site on
the banks of the Koxubee river in Mississi])pi. The Mound Builders
remained long enough in Jackson county to dot its hills and valleys
with earthworks and to leave scattered on its surface tons of flint
or stone implements, and must have oceui)ied this shelter. Their
fate is a mystery. The claim has been advanced that they were
the ancestors of the Indians, while others claim that the Indians
drove them out of the country. Some Indians built mounds and it
is known also that the Indians dearly loved the hills surrounding
the Scioto licks, where the Mound Builders had once been so nu-
merous. The salt si)rings attracted all manner of game, and they
came here to hunt, while the squaws made salt.
THE SALT PANS — Jams L. Swj^ers is now engaged in blast-
ing the sand stone in the riffle near Old Paiup Diamond. The blast-
ing has removed the last vestiges of the old Indian salt pans. There
were quite a number of them in the sand lock in (lie bc^d of the
History of Jackson County. 31
creek, where it flowed across the valley to the Tea Rocks, but when
a ditch was cut through the neck, shortening the loop, the majority
of them were covered up. Three remained until a few years ago,
but Swyers blasted out the last one in 1899. The Indians were too
lazy to dig wells for salt water, preferring to wait until the Fall of
the year, when the water would be lowest in the creek, and corre-
spondingly saltier.
THE SHAWANESE— There is no record of the coming of the
Indians, but it is known that the Shaw^anese owned and occupied
Jackson county when it was discovered by the whites. It appears,
however, that all the Ohio tribes were allowed to visit the salt
springs and to make salt. Situated as they were on the great In-
dian trail from the mouth of the Kanawha to the head of the
Maumee, they were visited by hundreds, and sometimes, thousands
of Indians, during the summer months. These gatherings resem-
bled the Russian markets of the last century. Many of the visit-
ing Indians bought their salt, giving in exchange flint implements,
tobacco, beads, pipestone and other articles of aboriginal com-
merce. It is told that tribes at war with each other would observe
a truce during these visits. The squaws performed all the work,
chopjDing the saplings for fuel, drawing the water and watching
the fires day and night, while the men spent their time hunting,
fishing, playing ball, gaming and telling yarns. In later years, they
tortured white captives in the presence of the assembled tribes.
Even after the whites had taken possession of the licks, the Indians
used to revisit them every summer until about 1815. These bands
came ostensibly for salt, but it is claimed that they knew of a lead
deposit in the county, to which they resorted secretly for many
years.
THE HISTORIC PERIOD— John Cabot, a native of Venice,
but a subject of England, being ambitious to rival Columbus, ap-
plied to the English monarch for a commission. The throne was
then occupied by Henry VII, the grandson of a Welshman. He
listened to Cabot's plans with interest and granted his request
March 5, 1496. The commission authorized Cabot, or any of his
32 History of Jackson County.
three sous, to sail into the easteru, uoitheiii or western seas, with
a fleet of five ships, to search for islands or regions inhabited by
infidels, and hitherto unknown to Christendom; to take possession
in the name of the king of England, and as his vassals, to con-
quer, possess and occupy; enjoying for themselves, their heirs and
assi^^ns forever the sole right of trading thither; paying to the king,
in lieu of all customs and imposts, a fifth of all net profits. Cabot
acted promptly and sailed away into the unknown region, where
Madoc had disappeared three centuries before. He reached the
end of his voyage sooner than had been expected, for he sighted land
June 24,lS9T,abounding according to his account with white bt»irs
and deer of unusual size and inhabited by savage men, clothed in
skins and armed with bows, spears and clubs. Thus was discov-
ered the continent of North America.
ANNEXED TO VIRGINIA— One hundred and ten years
rolled away before the English effected a permanent settlement
upon this continent. This was accomplished by the London Com-
pany, which was chartered by James I, April 10, 1G06, and granted
a strip of the American coast lying between the thirty-fourth and
forty-fir^t parallels north latitude, and extending one hundred miles
inland. Its first colony was established on the James river, May 13,
1007, and named Jamestown. The company' met with many reverses,
and on May 23, 1609, it was reorganized and rechartered. The new
charter defined the boundaries of Virginia as embracing a terri-
tory two hundred miles north and south from Old Point Comfort,
and reaching up into the land from sea to sea. This grant included
the Scioto salt licks, and was the first historical art that concei'ned
them.
CAPTAIN BATTS' EXPEDITION— The story of Virginia's
dominion in the Ohio Valley during the next c(Milury and a half is
soon told. All there is of it, are the meager details of an exjiedition
that failed. Rufus King's account is as follows: Cai)tain Thomas
Batts, with a party of English and Indians, was sent by Governor
Boi'keley in Sejjtember, 1C71, ''to ex])lore and find out the ebbing
and flowing of the water behind the mountains, in order to the
discovery of the South Sea." After a march of thirteen days from
History of Jackson County. 3J
"Appomatok," through the forests and over steep mountains, they
came down upon waters running west of northwest, through pleas-
ant hills and rich meadows. They encountered a river "like the
Thames at Chelsea," and following its course, came, on the six-
teenth day, to "a fall that made a great noise," probably the falls
of Kanawha. Here the journey ended, the Indians refusing to go
further, under the pretense that they could catch no game on ac-
count of the dryness of the ground and the sticks; but really from
dread of the tribes down that river, from whom, as they reported,
travelers never returned. In the country below, they also reported,
there was a great abundance of salt. — This is the earliest historical •
allusion to the salt licks of the Ohio Valley, and, inasmuch as one
of the most noted Indian trails ran from the mouth of the Kanawha
to the northwest, by way of the Scioto licks, it is possible that they
may have been referred to.
LA SALLE — There is something in a name after all. Captain
Batts, true to his name, was blind to his opportunity and missed
immortality by not pushing on and discovering the Ohio river. It
is true that La Salle is said to have discovered the beautiful river
a year before Captain Batts' expedition set out, but the news had
not reached Europe, and even to this day the fact has not been
clearly established. Robert Cavalier was born in 1643 on the La
Salle estate near Rouen in France. He came to Montreal in 1666,
and entered soon afterward upon his career as explorer. Parkman
believes that he discovered the Ohio river in the early months of
1670, and descended it as far as the rapids at Louisville. At any
rate, the French laid claim to the Ohio Valley, and annexed it to
Louisiana in 1713.
FIRST WHITE VISITORS— The name of the first white man
to visit the Scioto licks will never be known, but there is every
reason for believing that he was a Frenchman, of that class known
as Bushrangers, whom King describes as follows: They were a mix-
ture of the smuggler and trapper, deemed outlaws because they
would not purchase licenses under the rigid monopoly in the fur
trade as farmed out in Canada. In this way, thousands of French-
34 History of Jackson County.
men disappeared, who had been sent over to the colony at much
expense; the king and his ministers constantly complaining of the
loss of their subjects. Far out in the forests of the west, safe from
the king's reach, they were living with the savages, marrying and
hunting, fiddling, drinking and smoking, in entire independence.
Of such were many of the earliest settlers of Ohio. Living thus,
they must have accompanied some bands of Indians, sooner or later,
on a salt-making expedition to these licks. It is probable that
many such visitors had learned of their existence before 1725, for
the licensed fur traders of Canada began to visit the Southern Ohio
country about that time.
FIRST ENGLISH VISITORS— A state of war existed at all
times between the French and English borderers. The French
found willing allies in the Indians, for the two races understood
each other better and mingled more readily. Nearly all the French
Bushrangers had Indian wives, and in time their half breed pro-
geny became numerous in the Ohio country. The latter class
hated the English with the combined hatred of Frenchman and
Indian, and they spared no effort to stir up their savage kindred
against the English borderers of Pennsylvania and Virginia. As
early as 17.35 they began to make raids into the Alleghenies to
destroy isolated and outlying settlements. The border warfare
thus instituted was conducted with the greatest ferocity and
cruelty, and lasted sixty years. During that period no English
settler in the mountains felt himself safe for a day from an attack
by the Indians. They went armed at all times, whether at work,
or on pleasure bent. When they left their homes in the morning
they were never sure that they would live to come back, or that
the cabin, which held all that was dear to them, would be standing
when they came. From 1735 to 1795, the Indians went on these
manhunting excursions just as regularly as Ohio men now go into
the mountains of Virginia after game. As a rule they killed every
person, man, woman or child; but there were times when a brave
chose a handsome lad for adoption, or a half-breed saved an attrac-
tive girl or woman for a wife, or some courageous man was
spared, that the Indians might have the pleasure and gratification
History of Jackson County. 35
of torturing him at the stake. All the expeditions up the Kanawha
returned by way of the Scioto licks, and it is probable that the first
English visitors to them, belonged to one or the other of the
classes of captives mentioned. The Indians told the early salt
boilers that it was the custom to burn white prisoners at the stake
during the Indian gatherings at the licks in the summer and fall,
and that the stake stood on the point overlooking the Crossin
sulphur spring, near the site of the town well. Scores of English
captives were tortured at this point between the years 1735
and 1794. 1^^170136
DE CELORON'S EXPEDITION— Notwithstanding the alli-
ance between the French and Indians, daring English traders
entered the Ohio country during the first quarter of the Eighteenth
century, and by 1731 they had penetrated as far as the Wabash.
During the next 1.5 years English traders came in such numbers
that the French became alarmed and sent to Canada for a force
to drive out the invaders. The government acted promptly and
sent out an expedition of 250 French and Indians, under the com-
mand of De Celoron. They left Montreal June 15, 1749, moved on
by way of Lakes Erie and Chautauqua, down the Allegheny and
the Ohio, as far as the Big Miami, and back to the Maumee. They
reached the mouth of the Big Miami August 30, 1749. De Celeron
everywhere proclaimed the dominion of France and drove out the
English traders. The French were now supreme in the valley, and
although Gist, an Englishman, succeeded in stirring up some
trouble in 1750, their traders had a monopoly of the trade until
1762. During that period they visited the licks regularly.
APPEARANCE OF THE LICKS— The earliest description of
an Ohio lick is to be found in the narrative of Colonel James
Smith, published in 1799. Smith was captured by the Indians
just before the battle in which Braddock met his defeat and death,
and was brought to Ohio and adopted by his captors. In August
of the same year he accompanied them on a salt making expedi-
tion to the "Buffalo Lick," as he calls it, which he describes aa
follows: "We then moved to the Buffalo lick, where we killed
36 History of Jackson County.
several buffaloes, and in their small brass kettles they made about
half a bushel of salt. I suppose this lick was about thirty op
forty miles from the aforesaid town, and somewhere between the
Muskingum, Ohio and Scioto. About the lick were clear, open
woods, and thin white oak land, and at that time there were large
roads leading to the lick, like wagon roads." The town referred to
by Smith was on the upper Muskingum, more than 40 miles away
from the Scioto licks, but his language is rather indefinite, and
the visit may have been made to these very licks. If this theory
be accepted, Smith's visit is the first recorded in their history.
THE FIRST MAP— As already indicated, the Indians did not
murder all their captives, and a certain proportion of those spared
escaped from time to time and returned to their homes in Virginia.
It was through the latter that the English learned definitely of
the existence of the Scioto licks. A fairly accurate knowledge ot
their location was known in Virginia as early as 1755. Lewis
Evans, the Welsh geographer, was born in 1700. Adopting a sur-
veyor's career, he came out to the colonies, and he is entitled to
the honor of having published the first satisfactory map of the
English possessions in America. The first edition appeared in
1749. A second edition, more complete and including Virginia
and the Ohio valley, was published in 1755, and the Scioto salt
licks are marked upon it. Unfortunately for the cause of science,
Evans died in June, 1756, but his fame is secure.
THE HALTERMAN BOYS— Three young boys, the sons of
Christopher Halterman of Virginia, were brought to the licks in
1759 as captives of the Shawanese. This tribe, who roamed over
the hills of Southern Ohio, and cultivated corn and tobacco patches
in its fertile valleys, were the most daring of the Ohio Indians,
and their war parties were constantly hovering on the borders of
the English settlements. Among the pioneers was one Christopher
Halterman, who, with his family, crossed the mountains and settled
on the headwaters of one of the tributaries of the Ohio. He built a
cabin and cleared an acre or two of rich bottom, and all seemed
favorable, when he sickened suddenly and died. The widow was
History of Jackson County. 37
a heroine, and instead of abandoning the claim and clearing,
as many would have done, she determined to remain in the wilder-
ness. Her oldest sons were already able to help her, and they
might have prospered. Remote from all Indian trails, they had
never seen a native of the forest, and lived in security. But the
end came unexpectedly. A band of Shawanese passed through
the region in the fall of 1759, and one of their scouts discovered
the smoke from the widow's cabin. Creeping stealthily forward
while the family was at breakfast, the Indians entered the cabin
before their presence was discovered. Their yells over the easy
victory did not daunt the mother, and she seized an ax to defend
herself and children, but before she could deliver a blow an Indian
sank a tomahawk in her head. Three little girls were killed in a
like manner. The baby was picked up by the feet, and its head
dashed against the wall of the cabin. Three likely lads remained.
Their sturdy defense with their fists amused the Indians and they
spared them. After scalping the dead and looting the cabin they
kindled a fire on the floor and left the neighborhood at once.
Setting out for the Ohio, they were joined by a number of other
bands, who were engaged likewise. In a few days all arrived at
the Scioto licks, where they remained for a few weeks. It was now
October, and they set out for old Chillicothe, where the three
Halterman boys, Christopher, Jacob and Gabriel, were adopted
into the Shawanese tribe. The adoption ceremony was very im-
pressive. The best description of it in existence is that written by
Colonel James Smith, who was adopted by the Indians four years
before the Halterman brothers. His narrative is as follows: "A
number of Indians collected about me, and one of them began to
pull the hair out of my head. He had some ashes on a piece ot
bark, in which he frequently dipped his fingers in order to take
the firmer hold, and so he went on, as if he had been plucking
a turkey, until he had all the hair clean out of my head, except a
small spot about three or four inches square on my crown. This
they cut off with a pair of scissors, excepting three locks, which
they dressed up in their own mode. Two of these they wrapped
round with a narrow beaded garter, made by themselves for that
purpose, and the other they plaited at full length, and then stuck
38 History of Jackson County.
it full of silver bruorlies. After this they bored my nose and
ears, and fixed me off with earrings and nose jewels; then they
ordered me to strip off my clothes and put on a breechclout, which
I did. They then painted my head, face and body in various
colors. They put a large belt of wampum on my neck, and silver
bands on my hands and right arm; and so an old chief led me out
in the street, and gave the alarm halloo, "coowigh," several times,.
repeated quick; and on this all that were in the town came running
and stood round the old chief, who held me by the hand in the
midst. As I at that time knew nothing of their mode of adoption^
and had seen them put to death all they had taken, and as I never
could find that they saved a man alive at Braddock's defeat, I
made no doubt but they were about putting me to death in some
cruel manner. The old chief, holding me by the hand,, made a long
speech, very loud, and when he had done, he handed me to three
young squaws, who led me by the hand down the bank into the
river, until the water was up to our middle. The squaws then
made signs for me to plunge myself into the water, but I did not
understand them. I thought that the result of the council wa»
that I should be drowned, and that these young ladies were to be
the executioners. They all three laid violent hold of me, and I for
some time opposed them with all my might, which occasioned loud
laughter by the multitude that were on the bank of the river. At
length one of the squaws made out to speak a little English (for
I believe they began to be afraid of me), and said 'No hurt you.*"
On this I gave myself up to their ladyships, who were as good as
their word, for though they plunged me under water, and washed
and rubbed me severely, yet I could not say they hurt me much.
These young women then led me up to the council house, where
some of the tribe were ready with new clothes for me. They gave
me a new ruffled shirt, which I put on, also a pair of leggins done
off with ribbons and beads, likewise a pair of moccasins and gar-
ters dressed with beads, porcupine quills and red hair; also a tinsel
laced cappo. They again painted my head and face with various
colors, and tied a bunch of red feathers to one of those locks they
had left on the crown of my head, which stood up five or six inches.
They seated me on a bearskin and gave me a jiipe, tomahawk, and
History of Jackson County. 39
polecat skin pouch, which had been skinned pocket fashion, and
contained tobacco, killegenico, or dry sumach leaves, which they
mix with their tobacco; also spunk, flint and steel. When I was
thus seated the Indians came in, dressed and painted in their
grandest manner. As they came in they took their seats, and for
a considerable time there was a profound silence; eyeryone was
smoking, but not a word was spoken among them. At length one
of the chiefs made a speech, which was delivered to me by an
interpreter, and was as follows: 'My son, you are now flesh of our
flesh, and bone of our bone. By the ceremony which was per-
formed this day, every drop of w^hite blood was washed out of
your veins. You are taken into the Caughnewago nation, and
initiated into a warlike tribe; you are adopted into a great family,
and now received with great seriousness and solemnity in the room
and jilace of a great man. After what has passed this day you
are now one of us by an old strong law and custom. My son, you
have now nothing to fear; we are now under the same obligation
to love, support and defend you, that we are to love and to defend
one another; therefore you are to consider yourself as one of our
people.' "
After the ceremony, each of the boys was introduced to his
new kin and feasted by them. Gabriel, the youngest, did not fare
well, and died the first winter. Christopher and Jacob were older
and better able to withstand the privations of life with the Indians.
They were not entirely without the companionship of whites, for
more than a hundred prisoners were in the hands of the Shawanese
at that time. It is probable that the majority of these prisoners
were taken to the licks to make salt every summer, as Daniel
Boone was later. The Halterman boys remained with the Indians
until they were surrendered to Colonel Bouquet and his army at
the forks of the Muskingum November 9, 1764, with 204 other
white prisoners. The scene at this surrender was indescribable.
According to one writer, many of the prisoners were old enough to
remember their kindred, and they w^ere only too glad to exchange
the wilderness for civilization. But there were a few, especially
women, who had been captured so young, and had lived so long
with the Indians, that they were loath to leave, and were removed
40 History of Jackson County.
only by force. Some women, parted from their Indian husbands
and children, escaped from the army and returned into the wilder^
ness. The Ilaltermans remembered the murder of their mother
only too well, and they were delighted to return to the whites.
Christopher was now a young man, and had become an Indian
hater. He became conspicuous in later life as an Indian fighter.
He has descendants living in this county, one of whom is his
grandson, Gabriel Evans, named after the Tittle lad that died in
captivity.
END OF FRENCH DOMINION— France set up its claim to
the Ohio valley in 1C70, by right of discovery an'd first occupation.
It was annexed to Louisiana in 1713, and ruled from New Orleans.
De Celoron's expedition in 1749 was intended to establish the
claims of France beyond dispute, but, instead, and most fortunately
for us, it led to the French and Indian war, by which France lost
all her possessions on this continent. The cession was made by
the treaty of Fontainebleau, in 1762, and the Ohio valley passed
into the undisputed possession of the English.
ANNEXED TO QUEBEC— Colonel Bouquet's expedition in
1764 brought the Ohio valley to the attention of Parliament, and,
according to some writers, an act was passed in 1766 making the
Ohio river the southwestern boundary of Canada, and placing the
region north and northwest of it under the local administration
of the Province of Quebec. Later writers claim that this act was
not passed until 1774, and King refers to it as follows: "Another
event had occurred earlier in the year (1774), unknown to Lord
Dunmore, which totally changed the political status and relations
of the country, which he had been invading. Parliament on June
22 had passed an act, 'making more efl'ectual provision for the
government of the Province of Quebec,' hence known as the Que-
bec Act. By this, the whole country bounded by the Ohio, the
Mississippi and the lakes, west of the west line of Pennsylvania,
was annexed and made a part of that province. The declared
object of this measure was to extend the boundaries and govern-
ment of Quebec, so as to secure and satisfy the French inhabitants
History of Jackson County. 41
at Kaskaskias, the Wabash and Detroit. The Quebec act extended
to all inhabitants of the province the free exercise and enjoyment
of the religion of the Church of Rome, subject, nevertheless, to the
king's supremacy. The clergy of that church were to have their
accustomed dues and rights with respect to such persons only as
professed that religion; provision being reserved also for the main-
tenance of the Protestant clergy, as the king should deem expedi-
■ent and necessary. This act was denounced in and out of Parlia-
ment, as arbitrary and dangerous, and yet, though debated by the
most eminent men in both houses, was suffered to pass by the
insignificant vote of fifty-six against seven in the House of Lords.
One of these seven was Lord Chatham, who assailed it as "a child
of inordinate power." The Continental Congress also viewed it in
that light; not quite the spirit of tolerance which might have been
•expected of the Sons of Liberty, animated in some degree perhaps
with the temper of sour grapes. This new government, like that
which was temporarily imposed by the Ordinance of 1787, was
well adapted to an immense country with no population. Such
an unexampled concession of religious liberty placed Par-
liament at an advantage. Ohio was now transferred back to its
old connection with Canada, and so remained until the treaty of
independence." This act was passed, no doubt, to divide the French
and English colonies in the struggle with England, then about to
begin. It succeeded admirably, if that was its purpose. But it
also laid down a precedent that had much more to do with shaping
the Ordinance of 1787 than our historians are willing to admit.
BOTETOURT COUNTY— The Quebec act was passed without
any regard to the claims of Virginia based upon the Charter of
1609, notwithstanding the fact that that colony had reasserted its
claims in 1769, when its House of Burgesses erected the County of
Botetourt, to include all the western part of Virginia as far as
the Mississippi river, a territory embracing the Scioto licks. The
new county was given that name in honor of Norborne Berkeley,
Lord of Botetourt, who was then governor of the colony. His
term began in 1768, and he at once became very popular, because
•of his action in siding with the colonies against the mother coun-
42 History of Jackson County.
try. But before he had accomplished much for the colony he
sickened and died in October, 1770. He was succeeded by John
Murray, Earl of Dunmore, who was not so popular.
LORD DUNMORE'S WAR— The successful issue of Colonel
Bouquet's expedition caused a partial lull in the border warfare
with the Indians, and for ten years there was a period of compara-
tive jpeace. But in 1774 hostilities were renewed on a most bloody
scale, both whites and Indians being guilty of the blackest treach-
ery. Among the slain in the spring of that year was the family
of Logan, the famous chief, and up to that time a friend of the
whites. This was the inception of what is known as Lord Dun-
more's War. The Virginia governor began his preparations to
penetrate into the heart of the Indian county before the passage of
the Quebec act, but there are reasons for believing that he knew
of the intentions of the Home government, and that the Indian
raids furnished a jjretext for entering the Ohio valley to negotiate
with the savages, in furtherance of the plan of Parliament to set
Canada and her Indian allies against the Thirteen Colonies. At
any rate Dunmore's operations northwest of the Ohio directly con-
cern the history of the Scioto licks.
BATTLE OF POINT PLEASANT— The great event of this
war was the battle of Point Pleasant, in which the ancestors of
many of the present inhabitants of Jackson county participated.
It appears that the Virginia troops entered the Indian country in
two columns, a plan of operations inviting defeat. Very singu-
larly, the fighting fell to the lot of the pioneers, led by General
Lewis. This and other incidents of the war place Governor Dun-
more in an unpleasant light. The story of the battle and the
operations leading up to it is graphically told by Atwater, as fol-
lows : "General Andrew Lewis was ordered to raise a military force
and rendezvous at Fort Union, now in Greenbrier county, and from
thence descend the Great Kanawha to its mouth on the Ohio river.
The Earl of Dunmore intended to raise troops in Lower Virginia,
and marching up the Potomac to Cumberland, in Maryland, cross
the Alleghanies, until he struck the Monongahela, thence follow-
History of Jacksok County. 4S
ing the stream downwards, reach Pittsburg, and from Fort Pitt to
descend the Ohio to Point Pleasant (as we now call it), and form
a junction with Lewis. This was the original plan of operations,
and in accordance with it, General Lewis raised troops in Bote-
tourt and Augusta counties, on the high grounds, near the head-
waters of the Shenandoah, James river and the Great Kanawha.
These counties were then on the very frontiers of the colonial
government of Virginia, in which so many celebrated springs exist,
such as the White Sulphur, the Warm, the Sweet Spring, etc., and
in a country, too, then occupied by sharpshooters, hunters and
riflemen. Collecting from all parts of this country two regiments
of volunteers at Camp Union, now in Greenbrier county. General
Lewis, on the 11th day of September, 1774, marched forward
towards the point of his destination. His route lay wholly through
a trackless forest, a distance of one hundred and sixty miles. This
march was more painful and difficult than HannibaFs over the
Alps. On the first day of October, 1774, Lewis reached the place
of his destination, but no Earl Dunmore was there. ' Dispatching
two messengers in quest of Governor Dunmore, Lewis and his
Virginians continued at Point*Pleasant. On the 9th of October
three messengers from the Earl arrived at Lewis' camp and
informed him that the Governor had changed his whole plan —
that the Earl would not meet Lewis at Point Pleasant, but would
descend the Ohio to the mouth of the Hockhocking river, ascend
that to the Falls, and then strike off to the Pickaway towns, along
the Scioto, whither Dunmore ordered Lewis to repair and meet
him as soon as possible, there to end this campaign. On the 10th
of October two of Lewis' soldiers were up the Ohio river hunting
some two miles above the army, when a large party of Indians
attacked them. One hunter soldier was instantly killed, but the
other fled and safely arrived in the camp and gave notice of the
near approach of the enemy. General Lewis instantly gave orders
for two detachments to meet and repel the enemy. Colonel Charles
Lewis commanded the detachment of Botetourt militia and Col-
onel Fleming commanded the other detachment of Augusta militia.
Rushing out of their camp, they met the enemy about four hundred
yards from it. The enemy instantly fired upon our men a whole
44 History of Jackson County.
volley of rifles, and furiously commenced the battle. At the first
onset our men faltered a moment and began to retreat, but the
reserve came up from the camp, and the enemy in turn gave way
apparently, but in doing so extended his line of battle from the
Ohio to the Kenawha, and by that means completely hemmed in
our men in the angle formed by the junction of these rivers.
There the enemy posted his warriors behind old logs, trees and
driftwood and fought with desperation and without cessation
from the rising of the sun, when the battle commenced, until the
sun sank below the horizon, when the enemy drew off his forces
and retired from the field of battle. In this desperate action we
lost two colonels, viz: Charles Lewis, of the Botetourt volunteers,
who was mortally wounded in the first fire of the enemy. He waa
enabled to just reach his tent, where he immediately expired. And
Colonel Fields was also killed in battle. We lost in killed five
captains, viz: Buford, Murray, Ward, Wilson and McClenehan;
three lieutenants, Allen, Goldsby and Dillon and many subalterns,
besides seventy-five private soldiers, who were killed in this hardly
fought battle. The wounded amounted to one hundred and forty
ofticers and soldiers, many of theni severely, who afterwards died
of their wounds. The loss of the enemy was never certainly
known, but thirty-three of their dead bodies were found on or near
the battleground, and it was not doubted that the enemy had
thrown many of his dead into the rivers, on both of which his
warriors were posted, as we have seen. From the character of our
troops, being all sharpshooters and backwoodsmen, it is probable
that the loss in killed and wounded was about equal on both sides.
The numbers of the armies were probably about the same, judging
from their extended line of battle and the constant firing all day
along that line from river to river. The next day after the battle
Lewis fortified his encampment (he should have done so before the
action, as soon as he arrived there) with logs on the outside of it,
and by digging an entrenchment."
GENERAL LEWIS AT THE LICKS— The borderers buried
their dead, left their wounded in charge of a strong guard and set
out to join Lord Dunmore. According to the best authorities, their
History of Jackson County. 45
line of march was by way of the Scioto licks. The author of ''In
Colonial Days" says: General Lewis fought the battle of Point
Pleasant Oct. 10, 1774, compelling the Indians to retreat, and then^
contrary to Lord Dunmore's order, to make a halt at Salt Licks,,
pressed on to Chillicothe, where he joined his superior oflScer."
They remained at the licks one night, but their desire to avenge
their fallen comrades led them to ignore the positive orders of
Dunmore, and they pushed on toward the Indian towns. Their
action angered Dunmore greatly, and he went out to meet them
and ordered them back to Point Pleasant. Lewis obeyed the orderB-
and he and his men returned home. The majority of them partici-
pated in the Revolution, but they never forgot that game preserve
in the neighborhood of the licks, and in later years many of them
returned to Ohio and settled in this county. So many of the
Greenbrier folk came, that their settlement near the licks was
given that name.
A BAND OF HUNTERS— There is a tradition that a band of
twenty Virginians, most of whom had been with Lewis, came on
a hunting exi^edition to the licks a year or two later. They were
very successful, and were on the point of starting home, when
they were attacked by Indians and all killed with the exception
of two men, who had deserted their companions at the first fire
and fled. The latter returned home, but they were killed in the
Revolution, and even their names have been lost.
BOONE'S VISIT— The most distinguished captive brought to
the licks by the Indians was Daniel Boone. This occurred during
his second captivity. Boone and some thirty companions went to
the Blue Licks in Kentucky in the winter of 1777-78 for the pur-
pose of making salt, and while there, they were captured by the-
Indians and brought to Ohio. They were taken first to the Shaw-
anese village on the Miami, where they were kept for several
weeks. Later Boone and ten companions were taken to Detroit,,
where all but Boone were surrendered to the English. The In-
dians refused to deliver or sell him, and after a short stay brought
him to Old Chillicothe, in the Scioto valley. Here he was formally
46 History of Jackson Counuy.
adopted into the Indian tribe, the ceremony, according to the
description of Peck, being virtually the same as in the case
of James Smith. Ellis tells the story of Boone's escape as follows:
"In the month of June, 1778, a company of Shawanese went to the
Scioto Licks to make salt, taking Boone with them. He thought
the chance promised to be a good one for getting awa}' and he was
■on the alert. But the Indians were equally so, and they kept him
so busy over the kettles that he dared not make the attemj^t.
Finally, having secured all they wished of salt, they started home-
ward again, and, reaching Old Chillicothe, Boone's heart w'as filled
with consternation at the sight of 450 warriors in their paint, fully
armed and ready to march upon Boonesborough. This was a
forni,idable force, indeed, more than double that against which the
garrison had ever been forced to defend themselves, and it seemed
to the pioneer as if the settlement, his family and all friends were
doomed to destruction. It w^as now or never with Boone. If hia
escape was to prove of any benefit to others than himself, it would
not do to delay any longer. The settlers were unaw^are of their
danger, and unless duly wai'ued were likely to fall victims to
Shawanese cunning and atrocity. Boone determined to leave
within the succeeding twenty-four hours, no matter how desperate
the chance. Before he closed his eyes in snatches of fitful slum-
ber he had decided on the course to pursue. He rose early the next
morning and started out for a short hunt, as he had frequently
done, for such a strategem promised to give him more time for
a chance of getting a good start of his pursuers. The pioneer was
160 miles from Boonesborough, but he w^as scarcely out of sight
of the Indians wiien he headed straight for the settlement, and
ran like a man who realized it to be a case of life and death. He
did not spare himself. He had concealed enough for one meal
about his pei-son before starting, and this was all ht- ate while
making the long journey, occupying five days. He did not dare
to stop long enough to shoot any game for feai- his ])nrsuers would
be uj)on him. At the close of the fifth day, tired, hungry and worn,
he made his appearance in front of the Boonesboi'ough stockade,
and was admitted with amazement and delight by his friends, who
believed he had been killed long before. So general. Indeed, was
History of Jackson County. 47
this belief in his death that his wife and family had moved back
to their home in North Carolina some time before." There is a
local tradition around Jackson that Boone made his escape while
at the licks. It is also told that he made a wonderful leap in mak-
ing his escape, from one side of a ravine to the rocks on the other.
These traditions have no foundation in fact. The name of Boone
has been found carved in a rock near a spring in the northern part
of Jackson county, but this was no doubt the work of some wag
of early days.
ILLINOIS COUNTY ORGANIZED— The year of Boone's
escape saw the organization of a new county, which included the
land surrounding the Scioto licks. The war with England was in
progress, and some far-seeing member of the Virginia House ol
Burgesses felt that the time had come for Virginia to reassert her
claim to the Ohio country. The simplest way of doing this was
to carve a new county out of the western part of the old county of
Botetourt, already mentioned. It was bounded on the north by
the great lakes, on the east by Pennsylvania, on the south by the
Ohio river, and on the west by the Mississippi river, and was named
Illinois. John Todd was appointed its first lieutenant and civil
commandant. He served until his death, which occurred at the
battle of Blue Licks in 1782. This was a shrewd move on the part
of Virginia, for, when the Revolution ended, England surrendered
its claim to the Ohio valley, leaving Virginia in undisputed posses-
sion of the greater part of it.
JONATHAN ALDER— The wars and revolutions of the
whites, however, great in results, affected the Indian inhabitants
of Ohio but slightly at the time. They still roamed at will through
its forests, hunted the buffalo, made salt at the Scioto licks, went
on their regular manhunts into the mountains and brought back
white captives. Among the latter was Jonathan Alder, who was
captured in 1782, when a lad of nine years. He was out in the
woods in company with an older brother, David, looking for a mare
and colt that had strayed away, when the Indians surprised them,
killed his brother and took him prisoner. The same band had
48 History of Jackson County.
captured other prisouers in the same neighborhood, among whom
were a Mrs. Martin and her four-year-old daughter. The latter
failed to keep up with her captors in their rapid march down to>
the Ohio, and they killed and scalped her. Alder remained with
the Indians until 1795, but it was ten years later before he returned
to his kindred in Virginia. In after life he wrote an account of
hie sojourn among the Indians, in which may be found the fol-
lowing reference to a visit to the Scioto licks: It was now better
than a year after I was taken prisoner, when the Indians started
off to the Scioto salt springs, near Chillicothe, to make salt, and
took me along with them. Here I got to see Mrs. Martin, who was
taken prisoner at the same time I was, and this was the first time
I had seen her since we were separated at the council house. When
she saw me she came smiling, and asked if it was me. I told her
it was. She asked me how I had been. I told her I had been very
unwell, for I had the fever and ague for a long time. So she took
me off to a log, and there we sat down, and she combed my head
and asked me a great many questions about how I lived, and if I
did not want to see my mother and little brothers. I told her
that I should be glad to see them, but never expected to again. She
then pulled out some pieces of her daughter's scalp that she said
were some trimmings they had trimmed off the night after she
was killed, and that she meant to keep them as long as she lived.
She then talked and cried about her family, that was all destroyed
and gone, except the remaining bits of her daughter's scalp. We
stayed here a considerable time, and meanwhile took many a cry
together, and when we parted again took our last and final fare-
well; for I never saw her again.
CEDED TO THE UNITED STATES— When the Articles of
Confederation were referred to the several colonies in 177S, New
Jersey, Delaware and Maryland refused to ratify on account of
the territorial claims of Virginia and other colonies. The first two
eventually concurred, but Maryland remained firm. The Virginia
leaders, realizing that sacrifices had to be made to establish the
Union, followed the example of representatives of other colonies,
and ]»roposed a cession to the general government of all its unoccu-
History of Jackson County. 49
» ■
pied territory. After long negotiations, the cession of Illinois was
made March 1, 1784, and the territory of Jackson county passed
under the dominion of the United States. By that time the region
north and northwest of the Ohio had come to be regarded as a
veritable paradise, and traders, trappers, hunters, hermits and
squatters were quietly entering it by hundreds, notwithstanding
the hostility of the Indians, and the necessit.y for establishing a
government in the territory northwest of the Ohio became imjjera-
tive. Accordingly, the famous Ordinance, whose provisions are
known to all, was approved July 13, 1787. Events now began to
crowd. The contract with the Ohio Company was formally' signed
October 27, 1787. The first settlers sent out by this company
lauded at the mouth of the Muskingum April 7, 178'8, and estab-
lished Marietta. The chief executive of the Northwest Territory,
Governor Arthur St. Clair, arrived soon after, and the territorial
government wfts installed July 17, 1788. The first law passed, "an
act to establish and regulate the militia," was published at Mari-
etta July 25, 1788. Another important event was the erection of
the County of Washington, July 26, 1788, to include all the ter-
ritory east of the Scioto and Cuyahoga rivers. It was while Jack-
son county was included in Washington county that the first
known settler took up his abode in it.
WILLIAM HEWITT, THE HERMIT— In the fall of 1797
the Postofiflce Department established a new office in Jackson
county, Ohio, and named it Hewit. Although established simply
for the convenience of the inhabitants of the valley of Hewitt's
Fork, its name will serve as a fitting memorial of the gentle hermit
who was the first permanent settler of the county, and was one of
the earliest pioneers to make a home in the forest primeval of the
Northwest Territory.
The life story of William Hewitt, the hermit, reads like
romance. Much has already been written about the last fourteen
years of his life, which were spent in Pike county, and about the
several resurrections of his bones, but the story of his youth in
Virginia, his early love and its disappointment, his thirty-three
years' hermitage among the hills of Jackson county, his varied ex-
so History of Jackson County.
peiieuces with the fierce Shawanese, and his scout life during the
War of 1812, is yet a mine of virgin ore, untouched by historian or
novelist.
He was born near Staunton, Virginia, in 1764, and the tirst
twenty-two years of his life were spent in the Old Dominion. It
was the life of a backwoods boy on the margin of the wilderness,
full of hardships and perils from wild animals, and wilder men.
But nature had amply equipped him for the struggle, and when he
reached manhood's estate he was stalwart of frame, measuring
six feet and two inches, and weighing nearly two hundred pounds.
Shortly after reaching his majority he left his home and kin-
dred and disappeared into the wilderness to the west. The time
and cause of his departure are in dispute, and some of the writers
that have discussed the subject have even tampered with his
reputation. Colonel John McDonald's version is to the effect that
he fled from home, red-handed; that, ''returning one night from a
journey, he had ocular proof of the infidelity of his wife, killed her
paramour, and instantly fled to the woods." McDonald states
that this account was related by Hewitt to his father, but the
fact that Hewitt related an entirely different account to James
Emmitt naturally throws suspicion on both.
Emmitt states that "just after Hewitt had merged into man-
hood his father died, and, as is customary to this day, a row
occurred over the division of the old gentleman's property, which
was quite considerable. Some of the children were disposed to
exhibit swinishness, and tried to gobble the old man's estate, to
the exclusion of the interests of less aggressive membens of the
family. The performances of this little knot of family banditti
utterly disgusted Hewitt, and he disappeared."
These conflicting versions prove that Hewitt's ready wit never
failed him when the curious sought his secret. His disappoint-
ment in love was too painful a subject to discuss w4th every crony,
and, besides, few of the prosaic natured pioneers would have
believed his romantic tale, although they readilj' accepted his
stories of murder or covetousness.
The truth is that Hewitt loved and lost. Another won for his
bride the girl that had won his heart, and the world turned black
History of Jackson County. 51
to him. As sometimes happens to shy, gentle hearted, great
hearted men, he could not endure his fate, and he fled from it. In
Europe he would have entered a monastery, but living in colonial
Virginia, he entered the forest, and left behind home, kindred,
friends, love and all but life. Some writers claim that this hap-
pened in 1790, but the most probable date is 1787.
As already indicated, the Virginians who followed General
Lewis into the hills of Southern Ohio in 1774 carried back glowing
accounts of the wonderful game resort which they had discovered
on one of the smaller branches of the Scioto, where they had
seen herds of buffalo, deer, elk and smaller game in great numbers.
Hither Hewitt pursued his course. Although tired of the world,
he had no intention of throwing his life away, and he had come
equipped with rifle, hunting knife and backwoodsman's ax. When
he arrived in the neighborhood of Salt creek he found game, as
had been described. But he found Indians also. They were
engaged in salt boiling. This was not a misfortune, however, and
he soon determined upon a course of action. Watching his oppor-
tunity, he entered their circle, and they beheld in their power, a
pale-faced giant, w^hose peaceful overtures soon disarmed all sus-
picion.
His melancholy mien, which was not assumed, his shyness,
reserve and aimless wanderings, impressed the Indians, and ere
long they came to regard him as partially demented. Such per-
sons were considered by the Indians as under the direct protection
of the Great Spirit, and Hewitt soon found himself as secure from
hostile attack as if he had been inside a fortress. Permitted to
wander at will, he began his hermit career of some forty-seven
years, thirty-three years of which were spent in Jackson county,
and fourteen years in Pike county.
After flowing past the licks, Salt creek turns suddenly to the
northward and flows through a gorge which it cut for itself dur-
ing the last glacial period. Along this gorge, which is several
miles in length, there are many cave shelters, and in one of them
Hewitt made his first permanent home in Ohio. During the sum-
mer months he would leave his cave for weeks at a time, tramping
hither and thither, camping where night found him, hunting, fish-
52 History of Jackson County.
ing:, trapping. With game abundant, the Indians always friendly,
and life all serenity, Hewitt lived down his sorrow, but did not
tire of his solitude. One is almost tempted to envy this hunter
hermit, his return to a primeval existence. Clad in buckskin fi-ora
head to foot, living on venison, fish and bear meat, pawpaws, wild
plums and berries, drinking the delicious waters of the conglom-
erate springs, and breathing the pure air of the hills, he needed
nothing but love to make his life complete, and that he had lost.
The first white salt boilers settled in Jackson county in 1795,
and before the end of the century there was a large camp at the
Scioto salt licks. Many of these salt boilers had been Revolu-
tionary soldiers, who had afterward become rovers, and not a few
of them were reckless. In short, this early mining camp much
resembled the later camps in the mining regions of the wild west.
The proximity of such neighbors did not please Hewitt, and he
followed the departing game into the fastnesses of the hills. He
established his camp on the headwaters of the creek which now
bears his name, and built his house, half dugout, half cabin, on land
now owned by Dan D. Davis of Jefferson township. Here he lived
for about ten years. Scioto county, which was erected May 1, 180.3,
took in Hewitt's Fork valley. The coming of homesteaders into
the rich bottom lands of the Ohio drove the squatters back into
the hills, and Hewitt soon had neighbors more undesirable than
the salt boilers, from whose presence he had fled. Many of these
early squatters in the hills of Southern Ohio were noted for their
thieving propensities, and this brought trouble to Hewitt. In 1808
the sheriff of Scioto county determined to make a raid into Hewitt's
Fork after some bold hog thieves. He arrested Hewitt and his
nearest neighbor, one William Peterson, took them to Portsmouth
and lodged them in jail. Peterson was identified and convicted,
and punished at the stake with seventeen stripes. Hewitt declined
to defend himself, but as no evidence against him was offered, the
sheriff finally dismissed him with an apology. The hermit felt
humiliated, and on returning to the hills he determined to abandon
his camp, and moved to a cave shelter below the Scioto salt licks,
where he spent twelve years.
The War of 1812 was now at hand, and Hewitt deserted the
History of Jackson County. S3
paths of peace to serve bis country as a soldier. His long life in
the woods had prepared him for the duties of scout, and his aver-
sion to carrying a gun in the ranks caused him to ask to be assigned
to that work. During nearly two years of life as a scout he ren-
dered valuable service. He had thrilling experiences and hair-
breadth escapes too numerous to describe in this work. In July,
1812, he joined the expedition of General Tupper into Northern
Ohio. Tupper had raised about one thousand men in Gallia, Jack-
son and Lawrence counties for six months' service, and Hewitt
deserves much of the credit for the success of this campaign. On
July 29, 1813, he joined Captain Jared Strong's company, as a
private, and marched with it into the Indian country for the relief
of Fort Meigs, which was then besieged. During his career aa
scout he remembered the many kindnesses received at the hands
of the Indians, and although he captured many of them single-
handed, he never shed a drop of Indian blood, and for his treat-
ment of them the Indians called him the "mad" scout.
Jackson county was organized March 1, 1816, and Hewitt cast
the first vote of his life at the spring election held April 1, 1816.
But he did not take kindly to the growth of the Salt Lick settle-
ment, for that drove away the game on which he lived. He lin-
gered on for a few years, but about 1820 he bade farewell to the
licks, in whose proximity he had lived for a generation, and trampea
down into the Scioto valley. Finding a suitable cave shelter at
the base of Dividing Ridge, in Pike county, he pitched his camp.
Enclosing the open front with a stone wall, he soon had a rock
house, in which he spent the rest of his life. He had learned one
bad habit with age, the love of liquor, and his visits to the towns
became more frequent. One day, in 1834, he went to Waverly,
and while there was taken ill with pneumonia, which caused his
death.
And now begins a chapter in his history like those of the
mummy kings of Egypt, or the bones of Columbus. His body was
interred in the old Waverly graveyard, but it was not allowed to
rest in peace. Dr. Willam Blackstone gave it an immediate resur-
rection. After selecting a part of the skeleton for mounting, he
buried the other bones in his lot. There they were found in 1852,
54 History of Jackson Countv.
by Edward Vester, a cellar digger. He carefully reinterred them
in another part of the lot, and soon forgot all about them.
But in 3888, thirty-one years later, they were disturbed again.
Vester was engaged in digging a cellar way, and suddenly came
ui)on them a second time. Emmitt had them gathered
and shipped to Dr. T. Blackstone of Circleville, who owns the
skeleton, and who has kindly furnished me the following descrip-
ton of it:
Circleville, O., Feb. 20th, 1897.
Mr. D. W. Williams, Jackson, O.:
Dear Sir — All the bones of Hewitt, the hermit, that I now have
in my possession are the three bones of the right arm, humerus,
radius, ulna, and the entire skull w'ithout the lower jaw. The
skull has been sawed in two just above the brows. The bones sent
me by Mr. Emmitt were crumbling when received from him, and
continued to do so till they were in powder. The other bones that
I now have are perfect, solid and well preserved. Five teeth and
a piece of one remain in the upper jaw, none of them showing^
signs of decay. One has a large cavit}', which has never been
filled. The skull is of good size, of sj^mmetrical shape, and is
thicker and heavier than the average. It show^s, with the teeth,,
that it belonged to a strong man, past the prime of life.
Yours respectfully, T. BLACKSTONE.
Such is a brief outline of the life of William Hewitt, who took
U]) his abode in the Northwest Territory in 1787, one year before
the coming of the Marietta pioneers, who lived a hermit for forty-
seven years, never shed blood, never willfully harmed man or
beast, and yet did not find love in life, or rest in the grave.
ESCAPE OF SAMUEL DAVIS— The last noted prisoner
brought to the licks by the Indians was Samuel Davis, the spy
employed by the Governor of Kentucky to watch, together with
others, the movements of the Indians along the border. In the
fall of 1792 the spies were discharged, and Davis and William
Campbell went up Big Sandy on a winter's hunt. On
their return, they slept one night on a small island, where, before
History of Jackson County. 55
morning, thev were found bj- Indians, who made them prisoners,
and at once started for their towns in Ohio. After they had reached
the Licks, they camped for the night, securing their prisoners in the
following manner. They took a strong tug made from the raw hide
of the buffalo or elk. This tug they tied tight around the prison-
er's waist. Each end of the tug was fastened around an Indian's
waist. Thus with the same tug fastened to two Indians, he could
not turn to the one side or the other without drawing an Indian
with him. Notwithstanding all their precautions, Davis finally es-
caped. The story of his escape, as told by McDonald, is as follows:
One morning, just before day began to appear, as Davis lay in
his uncomfortable situation, he hunched one of the Indians to
whom he was fastened, and requested to be untied. The Indian
raised up his head and looked round, and found it w^as still dark,
and no Iiidiaus up about the fires. He gave Davis a severe dig with
his fist, and bade him lie still. Davis' mind was now in a state of
desperation. Fire and fagot, sleeping or awake were constantly
floating before his mind's eye. This torturing suspense would chill
his soul with horror. After some time a number of Indians rose
up and made their fires. It was growing light, but not light enough
to draw a bead. Davis again jogged one of the Indians to whom
he was fastened, and said the tug hurt his middle, and again re-
quested the Indian to untie him. The Indian raised up his head,
and looked round, and saw it was getting light and a number of
Indians about the fires. He untied him. Davis rose to his feet,
and was determined, as soon as he could look around and see the
most probable direction of making his escape, to make the attempt
at all hazards. He screwed his courage to the sticking point. It
was a most desperate undertaking. Should he fail to effect his
escape, death, instant, cruel death, was his doom. He rose to
his feet, stood a minute, between the two Indians, to whom he had
been fastened, and took a quick glance at the Indians who were
standing around him. In the evening the Indians had cut two
forks, which were stuck into the ground; a pole was laid across
these forks, and all their rifles were leaned against the pole. If he
made his start back from the Indian camp, the rifles of the Indians,
56 History of Jackson County.
who >vere standing round the fiies, and who, he knew, would pursue
him. would be before them, and as they started after him, they
would have nothing to do, but pick up a rifle as they ran. On the
contrary, if he made his plunge through the midst of them, they
would have to run back for their guns, and by that time, as it was
only twilight in the morning, he could be so far from them that
their aim would be very uncertain. The success of his daring enter-
prise depended on the swiftness of his heels. He knew his bottom
was good. A large active Indian was standing between Davis and
the fire. Pie drew back his fist and struck that Indian with all his
force, and dropping him into the fire; and with the agility of a buck
he sprang over his body and took to the woods with all the speed
that was in his power. The Indians pursued, yelling and screaming
lik(^ demons. But as Davis anticipated, not a gun was fired at him.
Several Indians pursued him some distance, and for some time it
was a doubtful race. The foremost Indian was so close to him that
he sometimes fancied that he felt his clutch. However at length
Davis began to gain ground upon his pursuers, the breaking and
rustling of brush was still farther and farther off. He took up a
long sloping ridge. When he reached the top, he for the first time
looked back, and to his infinite pleasure saw no person in pursuit.
After many privations for several days, he reached Manchester.
WAYNE'S CAMPAIGN— The sixty years' war with the Ohio
Indians v\as now drawing to a close. Congress had been awakened
to a sense of the situation by the defeats of Harmar and St. Clair.
General Anthonj- Wayne was sent across the mountains with an
army like himself. His mission was to subdue the Indians and ex-
tend the domain of the United States to the boundaries defined by
the treaty with England. He took every step with care, fortified
posts of advantage, advanced further and further into the Indian
country, and on the morning of August 20, 1794, he found the
Indian army and forced the fighting. By nightfall the victory of
Fallon 1 imbers had been won, and the power of the Ohio Indians
broken foT-ever. Peace was secured and the border warfare was
virtiiall;^ over.
History of Jackson County. 57
GREEN'S EXPEDITION— When the news of the victory
reached the settlements an expedition was at once organized to go
in the Scioto Licks before winter set in. This expedition was the
first ol the kind that proved a success. Others had sought the
licks, but as long as the Indians remained in possession none suc-
ceeded in making salt and escaping with their lives. We are in-
debted to Hildreth, the Ohio valley historian, for the following
graphic account of the visit of Green's expedition to the licks:
Among the other privations and trials of the early settlers in
the Ohio company's lands, was the dearness and scarcity of marine
salt. From 1788 to some j^ears after the close of the war, their
salt was all brought over the mountains on pack horses at an
expense to the consumer of from six to ten dollars a bushel. The
salt was of the coarse. Isle of May variety, of an excellent quality
and measured instead of weighed as it now is. A bushel of this
salt weighs about eighty pounds, while one of our present bushels
weighs only fifty pounds. It was as late as the year 1806 when the
change took place in the mode of vending this article, aftet salt
w^as made in considerable quantities at the new salines on the Big
Kanawha.
Its great scarcity was a serious drawback on the prosperity of
the country, and a source of annoyance to the people. The domestic
animals suffered from its want, as well as man; and when ranging
in the woods, visited the clay banks that some times contained
saline particles, licking and gnawing them into large holes. The
deerlicks so common at that day were seldom anything more than
holes made in the clay by wild animals and filled with water,
sometimes of a brackish quality. Nearly all the salines, since
worked, were pointed out to man by the deer and the buft'alo. This
was the fact at Salt Creek and Kanawha. It was hoped that as
the country was opened and cultivated, salt springs would be found
sufficient for the wants of the inhabitants; but it was a dark and
doubtful feature in the future prosperity of the country.
In the autumn of the year 1794, Griffin Green, esq., whose fer-
tile mind was always full of projects for the benefit of the country,
had heard from the report of some white man, who had been a
58 History of Jackson County.
prisoner with the Indians, that Avhile he was with them, they had
made salt from a spring on a tributary branch of the Scioto river,,
afterward li:nown as Salt Creek. He described the spot as some-
where near the present location of the town of Jackson, and
although it was in the midst of the Indian war, and in the vicinity
of their towns, so great was the anxiety to ascertain its truth that
a company was formed to visit and search out the spring.
Mr. Green associated with him in the enterprise Major Robert
Bradford and Joel Oaks, he paying one-half the expense and his
two partners the other. A large pirogue was provided with provis-
ions for twelve men, for ten or twelve days, the period supposed
necessary to accomplish the journey. They hired some of the most
experienced woodsmen and hunters from Bellville as guides and
guards. Among them were Peter Anderson, Joshua Dewey and
John Coleman, all noted for their bravery and knowledge of the
woods.
They left Farmer's Castle in the fall of the year, at a time
when the water in the Ohio was quite high; accompanied with the
good wishes of their neighbors for their success, but damped with
many fears and evil forebodings from the dangers that attended
the enterprise. The Indians had for many years kept with jealous
care the knowledge of the locality from the whites, viewing the
spring as a valuable gift from the Great Spirit to the Red men, and
with the game and fish, as perquisites to which the pale faces had
no right. It was not known that any white man had ever been at
the salines, except when visited by some prisoner in company witb
the Indians, and who even then did not let him actually see the
sgot, but only the salt made by them at the time of the visit.
At the mouth of Leading creek the adventurers landed their
boat, secreting it among the trees and bushes as well as they could.
This point is about forty miles from Jackson, and probably about
thirty miles from the heads of the south branch of Salt creek, but
of the actual distance they were ignorant, only knowing that it
lay some distance beyond the west boundary line of the Ohio com-
pany lands. After several days travel and making examinations,,
they fell upon a stream which led in the right dii-ection, and fol-
History of Jackson County. 59-
lowing it down, soon met with paths leading as they supposed to
the spring. They soon discovered where fires had recently been
made, and searching carefully in the bed of the creek found a hole
which had been scooped out by the Indians in the sandrock and
filled with brackish water. A small brass kettle which they had
with them for cooking, when filled with water and boiled away^
made about a tablespoonful of salt.
Although the water was weak, yet it proved that they had dis-
covered the long talked of and desirable fountain, whose waters-
afforded the precious article of salt. It was like the discovery of
the philosopher's stone to the alchemist, for every ounce of it could
be turned into gold. After spending one night and part of a day
at the place, they commenced their homeward journey, well pleased
with the success of their search. They dare not stay longer and
make a larger quantity, lest some straggling Indians should dis-
cover them and give notice to the village at Chillicothe, distant
about twenty-five miles. They were too numerous to fear any small
hunting party.
Their return to the mouth of Leading creek was accomplished
in a much shorter period than in going out. The night after they
left Salt creek, while all were buried in sleep by their camp fire^
they were awakened by a terrific scream. All sprang to their feet,,
seized their arms, and extinguished the fire, expecting every
moment to hear the shot and shouts of the savages. After listen-
ing a minute or two, and no enemy appearing, they began to inquire
into the cause of the alarm, and found that one of the party had
been seized with cramp in his sleep and made this terrible outcry.
They were rejoiced that it was from no worse a cause, and lay
down quietly until morning. When they reached the mouth of
Leading creek the water had fallen ten or twelve feet, and had left
the pirogue high and dry on land. It required half an hour or more
to launch the boat and get under way.
By the time they had reached the middle of the Ohio, proposing
to cross over and go up on the Virginia shore, a party of Indians
appeared on the bank at the spot they had just left, in hot pursuit.
Fortunately, they were out of reach of their shot. The adventurers
^ History of Jackson County,
felt very tliankful for their providential escape, for bad their pur-
suers reached the river a few minutes sooner, while all hands were
■enjiaj^c'd in getting the boat into the water, they would in all
probability have fallen a sacrifice to the Indians. At the treaty
two years after, an Indian who was with the pursuing party, told
€olonel Lewis, of Kanawha, that the whites had been discovered
while at the creek boiling salt by two Indians, who were then on
a hunt, and had seen the smoke of their fire. They were too weak
to attack so large a party and hastened back to their town for
assistance. Twenty Indians immediately went in pursuit, but
greatly to their disappointment, did not overtake them until they
had left the shore and were out of danger. They reached the gar-
rison unmolested and relieved the fears of their families and
friends, as to their safety, it having been in fact a very dangerous
enterprise.
So desirable a discovery w^as considered to be very valuable,
and Esquire Green, in a visit he made to Philadelphia soon after,
sold the right of his discovery for the benefit of himself and part-
ners, to John Nicholson, a merchant of that city, for |1,500, who
was to come into possession of the spring by purchasing the land
on which it was situated as soon as it was surveyed by the United
States and offered for sale.
THE JAMES FOEAY— In the month of February, 1795, Jonas
Davis, one of the Ohio company's settlers, was killed by Indians
near the mouth of Crooked creek. Major John James and three
friends determined that they would avenge the murder, and started
in pursuit. Following is an account of their experience as written
by Hildreth: "The day after the death of Davis, a party of four
youiig men, headed by John James, one of the most active and
resolute of the borderers, proceeded down the Ohio in a canoe in
pursuit of the murderers of Davis. The rangers at Gallipolis had
ascertained that a party of Indians were hunting on the head of
Symmes creek, and from the direction j)ursned by the war party
in their retreat, they were led to think they belonged to the band.
With all diligence they hastened on to the mouth of the Big
History of Jackson County. 62-
Kanawha, in expectation of being joined there by volunteers from=
the garrison; but none turned out, declining to do so on account
of the armistice made with the Indians after their defeat by Gen-
eral Wayne. Proceeding on to Gallipolis and making known the
object of their pursuit, four men volunteered their aid and joined
them. From this place they hastened onward to Raccoon creek,
and ranged up that stream one day, without making any discovery
of the Indians. Here one of their men fell sick and turned back,
while another had to accompany him, leaving only six to continue
on the pursuit. The following day they reached the heads of
Symmes creek, where is a large pond, about a mile long and a
quarter of a mile wide, a famous place for trapping beaver. They
soon fell upon signs of the Indians and on a bush by the edge
of the pond found an Indian's cap made of beaver skin, which he
had left lo mark the spot where his trap was set. Mr. James took
this into his own keeping. As it was near sunset, the party secreted
themselves behind a large fallen tree, waiting for night, when they
intended to attack the Indians in their camp, make one fire, and
rnsh on with their tomahawks, not thinking the hunting party
could number more than eight or ten men, but they subsequently
found ihey amounted to near forty, divided into two camps, one
on each f'u^e of the ])ond. They had lain concealed but a short time
when an Indian who had been out hunting came in sight, and was
closely examining the trail made by the whites, knowing that it
was that of strangers. When he came within forty or fifty yards,
one of the party, Joseph Miller, fired, and the Indian fell. As Mr.
James rushed up with his tomahawk, he raised the war cry, and
was instantly answered by his comrades from their camp, distant
not more than two or three hundred yards, for they directly came-
rushing up in force, before James could accomplish his purpose,
and with his party he was obliged rapidly to retreat, as the
Indians far outnumbered them. Seeing the whites likely to escape
they set their dogs on their trail, who came yelping and barking at
their heels, like hounds in pursuit of a fox. Fortunately, it soon
came so dark that their enemies could not see their trail, and fol-
lowed only by the barking of the dogs. For a day or two preceding,
^2 History of Jackson County.
it had rained heavily and when thej reached the east fork of the
creek, it was too high for fording. They hastily made a raft of dry
logs, but it became entangled in the bushes in the creek bottom,
which was all overflowed, so that Ihcy had to abandon it. Their
■escape this way being cut olT, they were forced to return to the
ridge between the two branches, and travel up nntil they could
<3ross by fording. A little before morning they halted and rested
themselves until daylight, the dogs for some time having ceased to
pursue them, or by barking to give notice of their position. Soon
after this, they found a fordable place in the creek and crossed over.
Here they lay an hour or two, waiting for the Indians, expecting
them to pursue the trail with daylight, and intending to fire upon
them in the water; but they did not come, having probably crossed
higher up the stream. When they reached Raccoon creek, that was
Also full, and had to be crossed on a raft. The party reached Galli-
polis the next day at evening. Colonel Robert Safford, of Gallipolis,
then acting as a ranger, went out the next morning and found the
trail of the Indians pursuing the whites to within a short distance
of the town. The pond of Symmes creek is distant about one hun-
dred miles from Belpre, and shows this to have been one of the
most hazardous, daring and long continued pursuits after a depre-
dating band of Indians which occurred during the war; reflecting
great credit on the spirited men who conducted it. It was the
last warfare with the savages from this part of the territory. The
pond referred to above was located on the Black Fork of Symmes
•creek.
TREATY OF GREENVILLE— General Wayne remained in
the Indian country until he had accomplished all that he had been
sent to do. It was not enough to subdue the Indians. They could
not be exterminated nor removed from the territory, but it was
necessary that they be induced to bury the tomahawk. He worked
to secure a treaty that all the tribes would recognize. After much
conciliatory work the Great Council assembled at Greenville on
June 10, 1795. During its sessions the chiefs were won over one
by one, and on August 3, 1795, the treaty of Greenville was signed
History of Jackson County. 63
by General Wayne and ninety chiefs and delegates of twelve tribes.
By this treaty all the territory south of the Greenville line was
ceded by the Indians to the whites, for a consideration. The ceded
territory included what is now Jackson county, and the date above
saw the Indian dominion over it ended forever.
THE FIRST SALT BOILER— The time had now come for a
permanent settlement at the Scioto licks. Their location was com-
mon property and only fear of the Indians had kept out squatters.
The honor of being the first salt boiler to settle at the licks be-
longs to Joseph Conklin. When the Great Council at Greenville
was in session, he was living in Mason county, Kentucky. He had
his thoughts on the rich licks in the woods, however, and when the
news of the treaty reached him, lie at once gathered together his
effects, and taking his family with him, he set out into the wilder-
ness. A companion or two joined him. They crossed the Ohio and
took the Guyan trace. One evening they reached the sulphur
spring that wells out at the foot of Broadway. There they rested
and camped for the night, and the history of Poplar Row began.
Conklin at once set to work to build a cabin. Its location is not
known, but judging from the circumstances and the condition of
the surface surrounding the licks, it is believed that he built near
the sulphur spring already mentioned. This done, the work of
making salt was hastily undertaken to secure a supply before the
fall rains set in. He used the salt water basins that the Indians
had cut in the sandstone at the riffle just below the mouth of
Oivens' run and built his first furnace on the bank near by. This
furnace was a very simple affair, being little more than a kettle or
two^ something like a niolasses camp. All hands worked hard at
salt making. It was not long until a few persons came in from the
Ohio company's lands to make some salt before winter. There
also came other visitors, not as desirable, viz, the Indians. After
the treaty of Greenville, several bands came to the licks, little
thinking that the white man was already there. They were peace-
able, however, and soon discovered that the white man was a
convenience after all. The Indian warriors disliked the drudgery
64 History of Jackson County-
of salt making, and they were well pleased when they found tbat
Conklin, and his companions were willing and anxious to barter
salt for game and other necessaries. Thus commenced a trade
with the Indians that continued for several years, some of them
visiting the salt works even after the organization of the county.
Among them were Shawanese, Senecas, Dela wares and represen-
tatives of many other tribes.
Conklin i)rospered at the licks, but he was only a squatter,,
and he foresaw that conditions would change before many years
had passed. In 1801 he had a fine furnace and one of the richest
wells, and when William Givens proposed to buy them, he sold
out and moved away, settling near Wheeler's Mills, in Scioto
county.
CONGKESS ACTS — John Nicholson never came into posses-
sion of the springs. Their discovery and location soon became
known to the General Government, and they were set aside for
the use of the whole people. This action was taken May 18, 1796,
when an act of Congress was approved, providing for the sale of
lands in the territory northwest of the Ohio. The reference to
the licks is found in the third section of that act, which is as
follows:
Section 3. Be it further enacted. That a salt spring lying
upon a creek which empties in the Scioto river, on the east side,
together with as many contiguous sections as shall be equal to
one township, and every other salt spring which may be discov-
ered, together with the section of one mile square, which include*
it, also four sections at the center of every township, containing
each one mile square, shall be reserved for the future disposal of
the United States; but there shall be no reservations except for
salt springs, in fractional townships, where the fraction is less
than three fourths of a township.
THE SECOND SALT BOILER— John Martin, who came ta
the Scioto licks in 1796, was the second salt boiler of whom there
is record, ajul the first to remain in the neighborhood. He thus-
became the founder of the oldest familv in the countv. The first
History of Jackson County. 65
ancestor of whom there is record was James Martin, who was
born in Ireland in the early part of the last century. Like many
another young Irishman, he emigrated, and settled in Pennsyl-
vania. He found his wife there. In a few years he went south
to Maryland. Little is known of their family. A son was born
to them in 1772, whom they named John. Two other sons were
named Hugh and James, but our story concerns John only. His
youth covered the stormy years of the Revolution, when he could
enjoy only few advantages, but he developed that sturdy manhood
which made America free. Nothing is known of his Maryland life
except that he acted as teamster for a time and hauled flour from
the Ellicott mills to Baltimore.
When the news came of the successful issue of the Indian war
in rihio, Martin was one of many whose thoughts turned toward
the west. In 1796 he started through the wilderness for the new
born Buckeye state, and did not stop until he reached the Scioto
Salt Works, now known as Jackson. Here he found employment
at the salt works, which occupation he followed for many years.
He worked for the firm of Ross & Nelson, and afterward for John
Johnson and others. Other members of his family came here,
including his father. The latter left in later years and went to
Tennessee, where he died in 1816, after marrying a second time.
The manufacture of salt became less profitable with the discovery
of stronger brine in other parts of the state, and John Martin then
turned his thoughts to farming. He entered a large tract of land
in what is now Franklin township, and removed there to live,
where he spent the rest of his life until 1856, when he returned
to this city to live with his son Courtney. He died December 15,
1858, aged 86 years, 11 months and 6 days. He had been
a member of the M. E. Church here for 45 years. His remains
were interred in the old cemetery, but w^ere removed to Fairmount
in 1900. His wife survived him and lived with her son Court-
ney until her death, which occurred December 26, 1866. She was
born in Maryland December 25, 1786, her maiden name being
Margaret Shoup. Her family came to the salt works at an early
day where she was married to John Martin in 1805. Another
66 History of Jackson County.
sister, Mrs. Sylvester, lived here until recent years. Both united
with the M. E. Church in 1801, and Mrs. Martin was a member
for 05 years. The Methodist meetings were held for many years
at her home on Poplar Row, long before Jackson was laid out.
John and Hugh Martin joined the Tupper expedition to San-
dusky in the War of 1812. Hugh was taken ill on the way and
was left behind, but John served throughout the campaign, which
was short but severe.
John and Margaret Martin had a family of five children, who
grew to maturity. They were Courtney M., John M., Elizabeth,
Nancy and Eliza.
Courtney Mclntyre Martin was born in Lick township, in this
county, September 14, 1806. Nancy Stephenson was born in
Tacy's Valley, Cabell county, Virginia, August 22, 1806. They
were married October 16, 1831, Rev. Truit officiating. Both died
July 2, 1894. Their funeral was held July 4, at 9 a. m., and both
were buried in the same grave side by side. Born within 2.3 days
of each other, dying the same day, and buried in the same grave,
their lot may be said to have been peculiarly happy.
The second son, John M., was born in Franklin township in
1808. He came to Jackson and went into business at an early
period. He was elected Treasurer of the county in 1834, and
served until 1841. He was elected Recorder in 1861 and served
until 1867. He was afterward postmaster of Jackson. He died
January 20, 1884, aged 75 years.
Elizabeth was married to Harmon Lowry. They removed to
Vinton county in the fifties, and she died at McArthur several
years ago from the effects of burns.
Nancy was born January 29, 1820. She was married to Daniel
Stewart and became the mother of eight children. She died
August 4, 1892, aged 72 years, 6 months and 5 days.
Eliza was the youngest and she survives.
SQUATTER SOVEREIGNTY— The growth of the settlement
at the licks was very slow until after Ohio was admitted into the
Union. The cause is not far to seek. As already mentioned,
History of Jackson County. 67
Congress by the Act of 1796 reserved a township of land sur-
rounding the licks for the use of the Government. This made it
an impossibility for any one to enter land in the township. At
the same time Congress neglected to make any arrangements for
leasing the salt wells, and this left them at the mercy of the
squatters. The period of Squatter Soverignty lasted from 1795
till the spring of 1803. Little of the history of this i)eriod has
survived. The squatters did not feel justified in making improve-
ments, for only the common law of the camp would secure their
title, and that did not hold if they absented themselves from
the licks. The majority of the salt boilers of this period were
thus forced to be transients. They came here in the summer, made
salt for a few months, and when the waters rose in the fall, flood-
ing the bottoms, they returned to their homes, in the territory of
the Ohio Company, Virginia or Kentucky, as the case might be.
A very large proportion of the early settlers of Southern Ohio
visited the licks during this period. Felix Renick, Joseph Har-
ness and Leonard Stump of Virginia were among the visitors in
1798, and Colonel Return J. Meigs and Paul Fearing of Marietta
passed through in 1799, when on their way to Cincinnati. Joseph
Vance, afterward Governor of Ohio, worked here as a salt boiler,
and William Salter, afterward a citizen of Portsmouth, spent a
few years here. The pioneers came from all parts of the state to
get salt. Judge Silvanus Ames of Athens county came here in
1802 by way of Chillicothe. Many others might be mentioned.
GEORGE L. CROOKHAM— Occasionally young men would
secure employment here and remain permanently. Of the num-
ber were John Kight and George L. Crookham, who came to the
licks in 1799. The latter became one of the leading men of the
settlement and lived in the county until his death. He was born
at Carlisle, Pennsylvania, November 18, 1779. He had a taste for
learning and soon qualified himself to teach. When only twenty
years of age he came to the licks and went to work at a salt
furnace. But he kept up his studies. Even at night, while watch-
ing the kettles, he pursued his studies, and John Farney is au-
68 History of Jackson County.
thorit}' for the statement that he included astronomy among them.
Mathematics engaged his attention the oftenest, but he was a
student of Nature and her worlds, even down to insects. In 1812
he volunteered for the war, and rendered his country valuable
service, for which he received in later years a land warrant.
He was a great lover of freedom, and when the slavery question
began to attract attention in 183G he became an Abolitionist.
This made him A'ery obnoxious to many of his neighbors, and that
led to an act of incendiarism, which disgraced the county and lost
to posterity a very valuable book. He had a school house on his
farm, two miles west of Jackson, where he taught the children
of the neighborhood. In this little house he kept his library, his
collection of curiosities and relics, and a manuscript history of
the salt works from the earliest da.ys. One night the building was
fired by some pro-slavery people, and it was destroyed with all its
contents. Mr. Crookham was the father of sixteen children, four-
teen of whom survived him. He died February 28, 1857, at the
home of his son-in-law, J. W. Hanna, east of Jackson, the most
learned man in the county, and respected by all. The bells of the
town were tolled on the dav of his funeral.
OTHER PIONEERS— Little is known of John Kight, and
nothing is known of Shoup, except his name, and the date of his
arrival, viz: 1800. Daniel F. Dean came here before the end of
the eighteenth century, and was the first man to lose his life at
the licks by accident. He met his death at a rolling, a heavy log
crushing him to the earth. His grave may be found on McKit-
terick's Hill, and a stone marked the place when I came to Jackson
in 1889. Davis Mackley, who became editor of The Standard before
the pioneers had all passed away, published a number of notes,
from which the following extracts are quoted: I had frequent con-
versations during their life time with John Farney, John Kight,
John Martin, Vincent Southard and Mother Sylvester. John Kight
informed me that he came to the salt licks in 1799, and there were
then a few persons settled around the salt wells. These salt wells
were located around the western outcrop of the conglomerate, or
History of Jackson County. 69
salt rock, and the salt water to this day comes to the surface.
The western edge of the salt rock comes up in the bed of Salt
creek, near Diamond Furnace, and the water dashing over it has
cut quite a hole below the rock and causes a fall of nearly four feet.
The water was drawn from the salt wells in wooden buckets with
a balance pole, or sweep pole, as it was called. The water was
boiled in the common sugar kettles. The first w^hite man who
made salt here as a regular business was Mr. Conklin. His fur-
nace was in the bottom, nearly north of where Globe Furnace is
now located. The different wells and furnaces received such
names as were suggested by the character of the persons by which
they were surrounded. There was a well and furnace near the
railroad bridge, between Star Furnace and town, which was one
of the most extensive establishments. The persons operating this
establishment lived in cabins on the high bluff, where is now
the residence of James Chesnut, and where the Presbyterian
Church stands. This was called Purgatory. The wells and fur-
naces near the Infirmary were called Paradise, and the next group,
beyond the residence of H. C Bunn, were named New Jerusalem.
The salt water or brine was weak, and it took several hundred
gallons of it to make a bushel of salt. It was boiled down with
wood, which was cut from the surrounding hills. When the wood
became scarce near the furnaces and wells, other furnaces were
erected nearer the timber, and the water was taken from the wells
to the timber in logs, bored through and spliced together. It was
sometimes taken nearly a mile from the wells to these furnaces.
The salt boilers were utterly ignorant of the nature and use of
stone coal, and although these salt wells were located in the
vicinity of the best coal in the world, yet they never used a bushel
of it. There is a tradition that an owner of a salt well who needed
stone to erect a furnace, used blocks of coal, which soon burned
down and dropped his kettles to the ground. (This was up near
Petrea. — Ed.) The pioneers related many anecdotes about the
licks: The story about being shot with a packsaddle at the licks
has gone into history. Some of the men above named were pres-
ent and told me how it occurred. But I must first tell what a pack-
70 History of Jackson County.
saddle is. It was made by taking- two pieces of w^ood, so crooked
that they would fit on a horse's back. On the under- side was fast-
ened on each side boards some eighteen inches long. These boards
were fastened to the crooked pieces with wooden pins, and the
under side was padded with linen, and between the padding and
the boards it was stuffed with straw, chaff or hair. On these pack-
saddles our fathers transported salt as far as Pomeroy, and West
Columbia, West Virginia. I must go back to the shooting with
a packsaddle. One of the kettle tenders at a salt furnace out of
pure ''cnssedness" threw a packsaddle into the furnace. It belonged
to a man who had come some distance for salt. The owner said
but little and went home. He procured another packsaddle, and
put a quantity of gunpowder in the pad, and returned to the same
furnace. Some time in the night this was also thrown into the
furnace. The furnace was destroyed, but fortunately no one w^as.
hurt.
VETERANS OF THE REVOLUTION— Many of the first set-
tlers were veterans of the Revolutionary War, but no complete
list of them is in existence. A few old pension papers are on file
at the Court House, and the declarations in them are given a place
here:
George Whaley declared Jan. 27, 1821, that he was enlisted
for one year at Lew^sburg, Greenbrier county, Virginia, on or
about the 15th day of November, 1776, and served in the company
of Captain Matthew Arbuckle of the Twelfth regiment of Virginia^
and that he continued to serve in said comi)any in the service of
the United States, in the Continental army, against the common
enemy until about the 15th day of November, 1777. He was again
enlisted at Lewisburg in state and county aforesaid, in the com-
pany of Captain Matthew Arbuckle of the Twelfth regiment of
Virginia, commanded by Colonel John Newel of General Hand's
brigade; that he continued to serve in said corps, or in the service
of the United States, in the Continental army, against the common
enemy, until about the 15th day of November, 1779, when he wa»
honorably discharged at Fort Randall, at the mouth of Big Kan-
awha, and that he was in service three years in the whole time.
Was at Fort Randall when attacked bv the Indians in 1778.
History of Jackson County. 71
Henry Hughes declared June 26, 1821, that he enlisted in the
year 1779 for eighteen months, in a company commanded by Cap-
tain John Andrews, which said company belonged to a regiment
commanded by Colonel Hawes of the North Carolina line, on the
Continental establishment; was in the battles of Guilford Court
House, Camden, Eutaw Springs, and in several other skirmishes;
was wounded at the battle of Camden, and that he was discharged
from the service in the year 1781, by Major Snead, at Salisbury,
North Carolina. A grandson of this man now lives in Frank-
lin township.
James Dawson declared October 6, 1820, that he served three
years and seven months in the Thirteenth Virginia regiment of
regulars, and was in battle against the Indians at the town of
Coshocton, on the Muskingum river, in the state of Ohio; also in
battle against the Indians at the mouth of White Woman's Creek;
also in battle on Big Beaver, and many others. He has many
descendants in the county.
William Darby declared June 26, 1821, that he served in the
Revolutionary War as follows: That he served as drummer in
Captain Davis' company until he. Captain Davis, was killed; then
in Captain Carbery's company, that Colonel Hoobly commanded;
when he was discharged he belonged to General Wagner's divi-
sion, and that he served five years and ten months during the
Revolutionary War in the Pennsylvania line on Continental estab-
lishment.
Thomas Craig declared October 17, 1820, that he served in the
Revolutionary War as follows: In the First regiment, under Col-
onel Rollins, Second company, commanded by Captain Richard
Davis, of the Maryland line, and that he has received a pension,
and that the certificate is No. 10780; that he enlisted in the year
1776, and was taken prisoner at Fort Washington, and was not
discharged till 1784.
Seth Larrabee declared June 29, 1821, that he served in the
Revolutionary W^ar as follows, to-wit: That he was enlisted for
three years at Windham, in the state of Connecticut, on or about
the month of January, 1777, under Captain Nino Elderkin, belong-
72 History of Jackson County.
ing to a regiment commauded b.v Colonel Herman Swift, and that
he continued to serve in said company in the service of the United
States in the Continental army, against the common enemy, until
about January, 1780, when he was honorably discharged at Mor-
ristown. New Jersey, about the month of December, in the year
1781. He was again enlisted at the town of Windham, in the
state of Connecticut, for three years, under Captain Joseph Thong,
belonging to Colonel Thomas Swift's regiment. He continued in
said regiment to serve against the common enemy for the term
of three years, when he was honorably discharged at West Point.
He served in the whole six years on Continental establishment
against the common enemy; was in the battles of Germantown and
Monmouth.
James Hulse declared June 26, 1821, that he served in the
Revolutionary War in the Virginia Continental line, for the term
of three j'ears, for which he received a bounty in land from that
state; that he enlisted at Shepherdstown, Virginia, in the com-
pany commanded by Captain Abraham Shepherd, and served under
him in the Twelfth Virginia regiment.
William Clarke declared October 16, 1820, that he served in
the Revolutionary War as follows: In the First Virginia state
regiment of artillery three years; was in a battle against the
British at Hampton, the regiment commanded by Thomas Mar-
shall; was in North Carolina when Colonel Bluford was defeated.
John Exline declared May 19, 1825, that he served as a private
soldier in the Revolutionary War, in the Virginia Continental line,
for the term of eighteen months; that he was enlisted in Hamp-
shire county, Virginia, in the year 1781, by Captain Thomas Wai-
man, in whose company he served until after the surrender of
Cornwall is at Yorktown, at which he was engaged as a oesieger
in said company. After the surrender to Washington by Corn-
wallis, at Yorktown, this deponent and the company, with a de-
tachment of about 800, he thinks, moved off and pressed on to
Cumberland Court House, where they remained during the winter
succeeding said surrender. In the spring they were marched to
Savannah, in Georgia, or near the same, at a place called
History of Jackson County.
Widow Givens. He was marched to Georgia in a company
commanded by Captain Beverly Roy, the whole detachment under
Colonel Posey; a stop for a time at a place called Eleenegantown,
after which he came to Charleston, South Carolina, where he
remained until he was marched to Cumberland Court House, again,
when at the expiration of his eighteen months he received an hon-
orable discharge under Gen. Charles Scott and Colonel Posey. The
discharge was signed b}' said Scott. He states he does not now
remember the number of the compam- and the regiment, but be-
lieves the Colonel's name was Gist.
THOMAS OLIVER— The last survivor of this band of heroes
was Thomas Oliver, whose remains lie buried in Mt. Zion cem-
etery. The people of Jackson held a celebration July 4th, 1843,
and two old veterans were brought to town and placed on the stage
during the exercises. They were James Dawson and Thomas
Oliver. The latter lived until February 2.3, 1844, and was 80 years
old at the time of his death. His son by his second wife, Hiram
Oliver, has furnished us the following data concerning him: "My
father, Thomas Oliver, was a native of Maryland. He was born
May 10, 1763, on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay. His father
died when he was 14 years old, and he then went to live with his
Uncle David Loffland in Loudon county, Virginia. He remained
with him about three years, when he enlisted in the Revolutionary
army. He joined the Sixth Virginia regiment, commanded by
Colonel Muhlenberg. This was in 1779. He enlisted for seven
years, or for the war, and when the war was ended he was dis-
charged, having served three years and seven months. For this
service he was pensioned in 1834, getting a pension of |80 a year.
He was married three times. His first wife was Sarah Edwards,
daughter of Joseph Edwards, a Welshman. This marriage occurred
when he was 27 years of age. Eight children were born to them,
all of whom grew to maturity. They were William, Thomas,
Charles, Wesley, Xancy, Rebecca, Elizabeth and Sarah. His wife
died in Mason county, Virginia. In 1816 he came to Ohio and set-
tled on Symmes creek, in this county, leasing a part of the school
land.
74 History of Jackson County,
HARRISON'S RECOMMENDATION — The condition of
alVairs at the Scioto licks during this period was not what Congress
had contemplated when it passed the act of 179G, reserving a town-
ship of land for the use of the Government, but four years were
allowed to elapse before the next action was taken. On February
19, 1800, W. H. Harrison, the Ohio delegate in Congress, com-
municated the following recommendation to the Lower House:
That, upon inquiring into the situation of the salt springs and
licks, the property of the United States, they have been informed
from respectable authorities, that those on the east side of the
Scioto, on the east of the Muskingum, and one or two near the
Great Miami, are now in the occupancy of a number of persons,
who are engaged in the making of salt to a verj^ considerable
extent, and that these persons, by a destructive waste of the tim-
ber in the neighborhood of the springs, are daily diminishing their
value. The committee therefore think it advisable that measures
should be immediately taken to secure to the United States the
benefits arising from these springs, and therefore submit to the
House the following resolution:
Resolved, That all the salt springs and licks, the property
of the United States, in the territory northwest of the Ohio, ought
to be leased for a term not less than . . , nor more than . . years.
GALLATIN'S SUGGESTION— The Harrison resolution was
never carried into effect by Congress, for the people in the eastern
part of the Northwest Territory were already thinking of state-
hood, and the leasing of the licks was allowed to wait until the
state should get possession of them. When the question of pass-
ing the Ohio Enabling Act came before Congress, Mr. Giles, Chair-
man of the committee having the matter in hand, solicited Hon.
Albert Gallatin for some observations on the disposal of the licks.
The latter submitted the following on February 13, 1802: The
grant of the Scioto salt springs will at present be considered as
the most valuable, and alone would most probably induce a com-
pliance on the part of the new state with the conditions proposed
by Congress; and, if it be considered that at least one-half of the
History of Jackson County. 7S
future population of that district will draw their salt from that
source, the propriety of preventing the monopoly of that article
falling into the hands of any private individual can hardly be
disputed.
Acting on this suggestion, the committee recommended to
the House on March 4, 1S02, that the following be one of the
propositions made to the Convention of the Eastern State of the
Northwest Territory:
2. That the Six Miles Reservation, including the salt springs,
commonly called the Scioto salt springs, shall be granted to the
State of when formed, for the use of the people thereof;
the same to be used under such terms, conditions and regulations
as the Legislature of the said state shall direct; provided, the
said Legislature shall never sell nor lease the same for a longer
term than .... years.
LEASING THE LICKS— The Ohio Enabling Act was passed
April 30, 1802, and the limit of the salt leases was fixed at ten
years. The first Constitutional Convention met November 1, 1802,
at Chillicothe, which had been made the capital by the act of
Congress of May 7, 1800. The convention accepted the salt re-
serve proposition of Congress, formulated a Constitution, and ad-
journed November 29, 1802, all its labors over. On February 19,
1803, Congress passed an act recognizing Ohio's statehood, and
the First General Assembly met at Chillicothe March 1, 1803.
One of the first matters that came up for consideration was the
leasing of the Scioto salt licks. This coming to the knowledge
of the squatters at the licks, they secured the services of Major
John James to go to Chillicothe to present a petition to the Legis-
lature. The Journal record is to this effect: On March 25, 1803,
James ''presented a petition from sundry inhabitants of the Scioto
Salt Lick township, praying for privilege of continuing their busi-
ness as formerly for the present season," The petition was read
and referred to the committee in charge of the matter. It was
presented too late, however, for the following resolutions had been,
reported by the Committee of the Whole to the House on March
23, 1803, two days before Major James' arrival:
History of Jackson County.
Resolved, That it is inexpedient at this time for the Legisla-
ture to make anj- provisions for renting the salt springs for any
longer period than the 1st day of April, 1804.
Resolved, That an agent, or agents, be appointed, who shall
procure and keep a book or books of entries, for the purpose of
entering all the kettles or other vessels used in boiling salt water
at the different salt works, specifying the size, and that all persons
shall make entry with such agent, and shall pay to him the sum of
.... cents per annum, on each gallon his kettle or other vessel
may contain, which money shall be paid by said agent into the
treasury of the state.
Resolved, That it shall be the duty of said agent to ascertain
by experiment or otherwise, before the next session of the Legis-
lature, what quantity of water will produce one bushel of salt,
the expense attending the reduction of said water, to explore the
township and sections containing the salt springs, ascertaining the
quality of the land, state of the timber, etc.; to enquire whether
in the neighborhood of either of the salt springs any quantity of
stone coal can be found, also of what quality it may be, and
whether it will answer as a substitute for wood in boiling the
water; to ascertain the extent and situation of the springs; what
number of wells may be dug, or what number of furnaces may be
erected, and the value of the present improvements, and to make
report thereof to the next Legislature.
Ordered, That Mr. Patton and Mr. Silliman prepare and bring
in a bill, pursuant to the said report.
William Patton and Wyllis Silliman, appointed to draft the
bill, made all due haste, and it was reported to the House and
read the first time April 6. It passed April 9, and went to the
Senate. It i)assed the Senate April 12, and became a law April
13, 1808. Following is a copy of it:
AN ACT REGULATING THE PUBLIC SALT WORKS—
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of
Ohio, That an agent be appointed by a joint ballot of both Houses
for one year, to commence from and after the 1st of May next, who
shall, previous to entering on the duties of his office, enter into a
History of Jackson County. 77
bond with good freehold security, to the governor and his suc-
cessors, for the use of the state, in the penal sum of two thousand
dollars, conditioned for the faithful performance of the duties
required by this act.
Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty
of said agent to provide a book or books, and open an office at
the Scioto salt works, on the 1st day of June next, of which he
shall give twenty days' notice, by advertisement in the Scioto Ga-
zette, and also at some public place at the said works, and keep
said office open to all jjersons having business to transact therein.
Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That if any of the occu-
piers of the furnaces or wells, which may be erected or sunk before
the said 1st day of June, shall choose to continue in the occupancy
thereof, they shall, on the day last mentioned, make application
to the agent for a license for that purpose, who is hereby required
to grant the same for any period not exceeding one year, such
applicant first producing to said agent a written list, signed with
his name, containing a true account of the furnaces and wells he
may then be in possession of, together with the number and
capacity of the kettles he intends to use in making salt at said
works, which list shall be carefully filed in said office, and a fair
entry thereof made by said agent in a book to be fjrovided, as
aforesaid, for that purpose; but if any of the occupiers, as afore-
said, shall refuse or neglect to make application on the day above
mentioned, then it shall be the duty of the said agent to rent such
furnaces and wells to any person who may apply therefor, such
person first producing a like list as is required of the occupiers
aforesaid, whereupon the agent shall grant a license to such appli-
cant in the same manner as is required in the case of occupiers;
provided, always, that the occupiers shall have a reasonable time
to remove their kettles and other movable property from such fur-
naces and wells; and, provided also, that no person or company
shall, under any pretense whatever, be permitted to use, at any
time, a greater number of kettles than one hundred and twenty,
nor less number in any one furnace than twenty kettles.
Sec. 4. And be it further enacted. That upon application
78 History of Jackson County.
made to the said agent by any person for the privilege to erect
furnaces or sink wells at the said salt works, the said agent is
hereby required to assign to such applicant a convenient lot or
lots for that purpose, taking care that the erection of such fur-
naces or sinking such wells shall not injure those already erected
or sunk; and such new furnaces and wells shall be under the same
regulations and the kettles therein subject to the same rent, as is
provided in the case of those already erected or sunk.
Sec. 5. And be it further enacted, That every person obtain-
ing a license as aforesaid shall pay, or cause to be paid to the said
agent, quarter yearly, the sum of three cents per gallon, according
to the capacity of the kettles or other vessels used in making salt
as aforesaid; and for the better securing of said rent, the kettles
of each person so renting shall be considered to stand pledged to
the state until all arrears of rent are satisfied and paid, and any
sale thereof made while such rent remains unpaid shall be deemed
void and of no effect.
Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That when any person or
company, who may own or occupy any furnace or furnaces agree-
able to the provisions of this act, shall fail to pay the sum or sums
which may be due the state, agreeable to law, the agent shall be
^nd is hereby authorized and required to make distress on and
sale of the property of any such person or company so failing to
make payment; provided, always, that the said agent shall in all
cases give fifteen days previous notice, in writing, at five of the
most public places within the township where the works lie, of
any such sale.
Sec. 7. And be it further enacted. That if any person shall,
after the said 1st da}" of June, make, or cause to be made, any
salt at the said salt works, without first obtaining a license there-
for, agreeable to the requisitions of this act, such person shall
upon conviction thereof before any court having cognizance of the
same, forfeit and pay the sum of five dollars for every such oftense,
with costs of suit, to the said agent for the use of the state, for
•each kettle he, she or they may use in making salt, contrary to
the intent and meaning of this act.
History of Jackson County. 79
Sec. 8. And be it further enacted, That the said agent shall
pay to the Treasurer of this state quarter yearly all monies which
he may receive by virtue of this act; and the Treasurer is required
to give his receipt for the same, which shall be countersigned
by the Auditor.
Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty
of the agent aforesaid to ascertain as near as may be the quantity
of salt water requisite to make fifty pounds of salt, and the neces-
sary expenses attending the same, and also to ascertain whether
or not there is contiguous to said works any considerable quantity
of stone coal, and whether it can be used to advantage in boiling
said water. Also to examine how far the salt water may extend
in said township; likewise to examine the quality of the different
sections of land, and whether they are well timbered or otherwise;
also to ascertain the number and quality of the dwelling houses
and the other improvements made in said township, and make
a fair and accurate report thereof to the next General Assembly,
together with the state of the furnaces and number of kettles
entered in his office.
Sec. 10. And be it further enacted, That the agent aforesaid
shall receive as a compensation for the duties and services required
of him by this act the sum of one hundred and fifty dollars yearly,
to be audited by the Auditor of Public Accounts and paid by the
Treasurer of the state, out of any public monies not otherwise
appropriated. And the said agent shall moreover be allowed such
compensation for performing the duties required by the ninth
section of this act as the next Legislature may think proper.
THE FIRST AGENT— Immediately after this bill became a
law the following resolution was introduced in the House:
Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives, That
the two houses will on tomorrow (being Thursday, April 14) meet
in the Representatives' chamber, at 10 o'clock, and proceed to elect
an agent agreeably to the provisions of "An act to regulate the
public salt works."
This resolution was passed at once and sent to the Senate,
80 History of Jackson County.
which concurred the next morning. At the appointed hour both
houses assembled and proceed to elect the agent by ballot. A
count of the ballots showed that James Denn}' had been elected.
The rule of the squatters was now over. Denny came to the salt
works and at once proceeded to regulate the business in the inter-
est of the state. He also went to work to explore the township,
this being the initial geological survey in this state. He made his
report to the Legislature December 3, 1803. Unfortunately the
report was not preserved, or it was burned at the burning of the
State House at Chillicothe. Denny was paid |82 for exploring
Salt Lick township.
THE FIRST ROAD— The Ohio Legislature appropriated the
sum of |8()0 on February 18, 1804, "for the purpose of opening and
making a road from Gallipolis, in the county of Gallia, to Chilli-
cothe.-' On the same day, Samuel S. Spencer, Esq., was selected
by joint resolution as a commissioner to lay it out. He selected
the route now known as the Gallipolis and Chillicothe road, passing
through Jackson. This was the first road established in the ter-
ritory now including Jackson count}'.
THE LAST ROAD APPROPRLVTIOXS— The Ohio Legisla-
ture passed a law on February 26, 1820, making appropriations of
the three per cent, fund granted by the United States for laying
out, opening and improving roads in this state. One section of
this law relates to Jackson county and reads as follows:
Section 28. Be it further enacted. That there shall be appro-
priated in the county of Jackson the sum of one thousand dollars,
to be applied on roads as follows: On the road leading from Jack-
son towards Burlington and Little Sandy, the sum of one hundred
and fifty dollars; on the road towards Gallipolis, the sum of two
hundred dollars; on the road towards Wilkesville, the sum of one
hundred dollars; on the road towards Athens, the sum of one hun-
dred dollars; on the road towards Adelphi, the sum of one hundred
dollars; on the road towards Portsmouth, the sum of fifty dollars;
on the road towards Chillicothe, the sum of two hundred dollars,
for the purpose of securing and repairing the bridges on the Chil-
History of Jackson County. 81
licotbe road, to be drawn and appropriated by a special order of
the Commissioners of Jackson county.
On the same day Commissioners were selected by joint reso-
lution to lay out or improve the roads designated, as follows: For
the County of Jackson: — On the road from Jackson towards Bur-
lington and Little Sandy, George Bo wen, to lay out and open;
second, on the road towards Adelphi, Timothy Darling, to lay
out and open; third, on the road towards Gallipolis, Hugh Poor;
fourth, on the road towards Wilkesville, Jeremiah Brown; fifth,
on the road towards Athens, Patrick Shearer; sixth, on the road
towards Portsmouth, Alexander Anderson; and on the road to-
wards Chillicothe, John Kunkle.
TIFFIN'S MESSAGE— The Scioto salt works were now con-
sidered of such importance that Governor Edward Tiflfln, in his
annual message to the General Assembly December 5, 1803, re-
ferred to them as follows: The "act regulating the public salt
works," expiring of itself, will demand your attention, and as it
is required of the agent in that department to make an accurate
report to the General Assembly of the productiveness and state
of the public salt works, you will be enabled to make such dis-
positions, and provide for working those yet unoccupied in such
way as may appear most conducive to the public good. As nature
has placed this valuable article of salt, so necessary to the sus-
tenance of man, in the bosom of our state, and as monopolies of
that article have been effected in a neighboring state, would it
not be advisable, if it can be effected, to prevent its exportation
from the state, that our own citizens may reap all the benefits
accruing from its use at home, or in salting, their surplus provi-
sions for exportation at as moderate a price as possible.
Acting upon the Governor's recommendation, the Legislature
passed on January 27, 1804, a second act to regulate the salt works.
It provided that the agent's bond should be fixed at 14,000; that
the agent should lay off 800 acres in 20-acre lots, for leasing for
cultivation; that a space of four poles in width be left along the
creek for a road; that a space of at least thirty feet be left fronting
82 History of Jackson County.
works; that each salt boiler or mechanic be allowed to rent one or
two lots for cultivation; that salt making be licensed at four cents
a gallon; and that the agent should inspect each barrel of salt
and mark it "inspected."
The provisions of this act indicate that the Legislature was
beginning to appreciate the necessities of the case. Attention
may be called to the fact that this law was the first in this state
to provide for the inspection of a product.
A POSTOFFICE ESTABLISHED— The Government estab-
lished a postofiice at the works on October 1, 1804. It was named
Salt Lick, and Roger Seldon was appointed the first postmaster.
On July 1, 1817, the name of the oflSce was changed to Jackson,
and Dr. Nathaniel W. Andrews appointed postmaster. It re-
mained the only office in the county, until Oak Hill was established,
March 11, 1837, with Levi Massie as postmaster. Berlin X Roads
was established June 28, 1850, with Levi W. Salmans as post-
master.
OTHER SALT LICK LEGISLATION— The second act was
amended February 20, 1805, to reduce the rent to two cents a gal-
lon, and to place the furnace capacity of each company at from 3,000
to 4,000 gallons. A fourth act was passed January 24, 1807, ordering
the agent to have a map of the Scioto salt works made annually,
showing wells, timber, etc., and directing him to lay off 100 acres
about two and one-half miles from the center of the township into
10-acre lots, for renting for cultivation. "An act to amend the sev-
eral acts regulating the public salt works was passed February 13,
1808, which reduced the rent to one cent a gallon, gave permission
to use aqueducts or tubes, and gave authority to condemn right
of way for the same. This was perhaps the first time in the his-
tory of the state that condemnation of right of way was provided
for. As a reason for such legislation the General Assembly had
adopted a resolution January 20, 1808, showing that salt was very
scarce in the state.
"An act to regulate the Scioto salt works" was passed Feb-
ruary 19, 1810, repealing all former acts relating to them, and
History of Jackson County. 83
providing among other things that the agent should be appointed
for three years,; that the limit of licenses should be January 1,
1813; that the rent should be reduced to five mills a gallon, and
that whoever, leasing lot for salt making, finds water, of which
250 gallons will make one bushel of salt, to supply 40 kettles, shall
get a lease of ten years from the discovery. This provision was
intended to encourage boring for stronger brine.
An act was passed January 30, 1811, requiring owners and
occupiers of salt works and wells to enclose the same with fencing.
This act was occasioned by the finding of a body of a dead man
in one of the salt water vats. Murder was suspected, but not
proven. Salt was becoming very scarce, and the next Legislature
passed the following law February 17, 1812:
AN ACT TO ENCOURAGE EXPERIMENTS AT THE
SCIOTO SALT WORKS— Section 1. Be it enacted by the
General Assembly of the state of Ohio, That the
Governor of this state be authorized to appoint a
suitable person or persons to perforate the rock at
the Scioto salt works, for the purpose of obtaining salt water of
a superior quality, by descending two hundred feet into
said rock, unless such water in strength and quantity as is pro-
vided for in the fourth section of the law to regulate the Scioto
salt works, passed nineteenth of February, one thousand and eight
hundred and ten, should sooner be obtained; and such person or
persons so appointed shall receive for such service an adequate
«um, not exceeding three hundred dollars, to be paid out of the
treasury of the state, upon satisfactory evidence being made to
the Governor of this state within eighteen months from and after
the taking effect of this act that such service has been duly and
faithfully performed; and it is hereby provided that the place
w^here such experiment shall be made shall not interfere with the
right of any other persons.
Section 2. Be it further enacted. That the person appointed
by the governor, agreeably to this act to perforate the rock at
Scioto Salt works, shall, if successful in the experiment, have the
84 History of Jackson County.
right to lease and occupy the water so discovered, free from rent,
for the term of five years, as an additional compensation, and for
that purpose, the agent at the said salt works, shall on application,
execute to such person, a lease for the term of five years, for the
well containing the salt water as aforesaid, and such lot of land
as will be necessary to carry on the manufacture of salt. This
act shall take effect and be in force from and after the first day
of May next.
It appears that no experiments were made under this act, for
on February 5, 1813, there was passed "An act to authorize exper-
iments to be made at the Scioto Salt works." This act designated
Abraham Claypool as an agent to contract for the perforating
of the rock, at two places, "provided the first trial is unsuccessful,'^
and to report his proceedings to the next session of the legisla-
ture. A sum not exceeding |1,500 was appropriated for his ex-
penses.
Claypool did not succeed, and on February 7, 1814, an act
was passed to encourage the manufacturing of salt at the Scioto
Salt works. William Givens, Joseph Armstrong, John Johnston,
Ross Nelson, John W. Sargent, John Prather and Asa Lake had
petitioned for assistance to dig each a salt well, they to bear
incidental expense, and in return to have exclusive use for five
years. In this connection it may be mentioned that John Nelson
did -sink a well to the depth of 240 feet, John Wilson to the
depth of 260 feet, and Henry Harmon to the depth of 276 feet.
But no stronger brine was discovered.
An act to make further experiments, passed February 15, 1815,
directed William Givens to sink a well to the depth of 350 feet and
to be two and a quarter inches in diameter at the bottom, for
which he was to be paid |700. Givens found many difiiculties in
the way, and on February 24, 1816, an act was passed extending
his time to April 1, 1816, to finish and tube his well.
HILDKETH'S NOTES— The number and character of the acts
relating to the Salt works indicate their great importance in
the eyes of the pioneer statesmen of Ohio. Hildreth's notes on the
Scioto saline written in 1837 deserve a place here:
History of Jackson County. 85
Muriate of soda, or common salt, is so intimately connected
with the economy and comforts of civilized man, that a short
sketch of its early history (although in a manner foreign to a geo-
logical report), and of its manufacture in Ohio, can hardly fail
to be interesting, and worthy of our notice. As a branch of the
geology of the State, there is no portion of it more vitally con-
nected with the welfare of the people, than those deposits which
furnish the materials for our salt wells. From the period of
our first organization as a member of the Union, the "Salt Springs"
arrested the attention, and received the fostering care of our legis-
latures. Even before we had become a State, and were yet a ter-
ritory, the great value of the salines had attracted the notice ot
our most sage and prudent citizens, and, in the compact made
with congress, distinct and express stipulations were entered into
for setting apart the most noted salt springs, and a considerable
territory around them, for the benefit of the State; they being
considered as too valuable to fall into the hands of individuals,
who might create a monopoly. At the present period, when cul-
inary salt is so cheap an article, it may seem strange to us that
our fathers should have been so careful to preserve salines, the
waters of which were so weak as to require six hundred gallons to
make fifty pounds of salt. But when we remember that at the
period referred to, before this territory became a State, the price
of salt varied from four to six dollars a bushel, and that the
larger portion of it was brought across the Allegheny ranges of
mountains on the backs of pack-horses, we need not wonder at
the high value placed upon these saline waters. At that time
they were the only ones known in Ohio, and it was not even sus-
pected or imagined, that at a depth of a few hundred feet, many
portions of the valley were based on a rock whose interstices were
filled with exhaustless quantities of brine, of such strength that
one-twelfth part of the quantity would make a bushel of salt. This
article so valuable and so scarce in those early days as to be looked
upon almost as a luxury, has since been so abundant as to sell for
half a cent a pound. The ancient and noted Scioto saline lies near
the center of Jackson county, on an eastern branch of Salt creek,
86 History of Jackson County.
a tributary stream of the Scioto river. Many of the old furnaces
and wells may be said to liave been seated within the boundaries
of the present town of Jackson. It is among the earliest known
salt springs in the w-estern country, and may be ranked with the
Big Bone and Blue Licks in Kentucky, for antiquity, from the
fact of the fossil bones of the mastodon and elephant being found
at the depth of thirty feet, imbedded in mud and clay. The re-
mains of several of these extinct animals were discovered in
digging wells for salt water along the margin of the creek, con-
sisting of tusks, grinders, ribs and vertebrae; showing this creek
to have been a noted resort for these huge mammalia at very
remote periods. When the white hunters and traders first came
into this country, it was visited by thousands of buffalo or bisons,,
deer, bear and nearly all the wild animals of the forest, who
found the saline waters agreeable to their tastes, or perhaps
needful to their health. So numerous and so constant were the
animal visitors to these springs, that at certain seasons of the year
the country adjacent was the most valuable and profitable hunting
ground which the savages possessed. They were also in the prac-
tice of making salt here from very remote times, as has been
ascertained from several of their white captives who had visited
them in company with the Indians. The first attempt at its man-
ufacture by the whites was after the close of the Indian war, in
the year 1795. At that time, and for several years after, the
stumps of small trees cut by the squaws, and the charcoal and
ashes of their fires where the salt water had been boiled were
plainly to be seen. The Indian women, upon whom all the servile
employments fell, collected the salt water by cutting holes in the
soft sandstone in the bed of the creek, in the summer and autumn
when the stream was low. These were generally not more than
a foot or two deep, and the same in width. Into these rude cavities
the salt water slowly collected, and was dipped out with a large
shell into their kettles and boiled down into salt. The hunters
and first salt makers jjursued the same course, only they sunk
their excavations to the depth of six or eight feet, and finally to
twenty feet into the sandrock, and excluded the fresh water by
History of Jackson Co"unty. 87
means of a "gum"' or section of a hollow tree, sunk into the cavity.
After a few years they commenced digging wells a little higher
up the stream, in the alluvion or bottom lands, near the creek, and
to their surprise, found they could dig to the depth of thirty feet
before they came to the sandrock, which a few rods below filled
the whole bed of the stream.
The greatest quantity of salt made at the Scioto licks, was
from the year 1806 to 1808, when there were twenty furnaces in
operation, making on an average, from fifty to seventy bushels
per week. During this period, it was worth |2.50 per bushel, or
five cents a pound. These furnaces were located along the borders
of the creek for the distance of four miles. At one time there were
fourteen furnaces in operation near the town of Jackson. At that
early day the roads were generally mere bridle paths through the
woods, and nearly the whole amount of salt made was transported
in bags on pack-horses, and distributed through the middle and
western portions of the State. That we may understand the high
value placed on the salines both by congress and the people of
Ohio, it will be proper to revert to the legislative acts on this
subject, and to know that the grant was made with the express
stipulations that the State should never sell them, nor lease them
for a longer period than ten years at any one time. In the year
1803, amongst the earliest proceedings of our legislators, we find
an act regulating the leasing and the managing of the "Public
Salt Works." An agent was appointed to take charge of the lands,
to lease small lots for digging wells and erecting furnaces, and to
see that no individual or company monopolized the manufacture
of salt. To fjrevent which, it was expressly enacted that no one
person, or company, should work more than 120 kettles, nor less
than 30. For this privilege the lessee paid a rent to the State of
twelve cents a gallon, on the amount of capacity of his kettles,
annually. A fine of |5 per kettle was laid on every person who
made salt without a license. The agent himself was forbidden
to engage in any way in the manufacture of the article. In the
year 1804 the rent was reduced to four cents per gallon, and the
amount limited to 4,000 gallons of capacity. In 1805 the rent was.
88 History of Jackson County.
again reduced to two cents, and in 1810 to five mills. At this time,
a much stronger water had been obtained on the Kenawha, by
boring into the rock strata to the depth of one hundred feet. In
February, 1812, the legislature appropriated |300 to defray the
expense of boring two hundred feet, and in 1813 they appropriated
$1,500 for the same purpose, which does not appear to have been
expended. In 1815, the State ordered $750 to pay the expense of
boring to the depth of 350 feet, under the direction of TVilliam
Givens, with a proviso that the water procured must be of such
strength as to make 50 pounds of salt from 250 gallons of brine.
It seems that Mr. Givens executed the work faithfully, and then
added another 100 feet to the depth at his own expense, as I am
informed by Mr. Crookham, who was amongst the earliest of the
salt makers, and from whom much of the history of the first pro-
ceedings in digging wells was obtained. At this depth, viz: 450
feetj the boring ceased. A stronger water was procured, but it
was in small quantity and did not rise to the top of the well;
probably from a deficiency of carburetted hydrogen gas, which, at
several other works, rises in great volume, and forces the water
for many feet above the surface. Forcing pumps for raising water
were not then in use, as they now are, at the various salines. No
less than 15 acts were passed on the subject of the Scioto Salt
works.
BRIGGS' NOTES— The following statement was written by
Caleb Briggs, of the Ohio geological survey, in the same year:
Brine has been obtained in the Waverly standstone series, by sink-
ing through the conglomerate at the licks in Jackson county, and
good water obtained, but not in quantity sufficient to be profitably
used in comi)etition with the Kenawha salt wells in Virginia. The
salines at Jackson ea,v\y attracted the attention of the western
pioneers, and from them alone, was obtained most of the salt used
in the early settlement of the State. They were finally abandoned,
in consequence of much stronger brine having been obtained in
Virginia. These wells with the exception of those called "mud
wells," were commenced in the superior part of the conglomerate,
History of Jackson County. 89
which on this account was denominated the "salt rock." Thej-
varied in depth from 10 to 450 feet, with no sensible improvement
in the strength of the brine, except in the deepest, which was bored
at the expense of the State; and in this no difference was observed
in the saturation of the water, till the strata had been penetrated
350 feet, when it continued to improve till the work ceased. Mr.
George Crookham, by whom the information in regard to these
wells was communicated, says he thinks the brine at the depth
of 350 feet was equal in strength to that used on the Kenawha,
but the quantity was comparatively small. The ''mud wells" (re-
ferred to above), were dug to the depth of 24 to 30 feet, in clay,
sand and gravel, which occupy a basin-shaped cavity in the
sui)erior part of the "salt rock" at Jackson. The brine without
doubt was produced by the percolation of water through the rock
into this reservoir. The wells at Jackson in addition to the dis-
advantage of having been commenced too low in the series, were
situated on a stream, the waters of which run in a direction oppo-
site to the dip, through deep valleys and ravines, which so inter-
rupt the continuity of the strata that a considerable portion of
the saline matter finds its way into the water courses, and flows
off in a westerly direction.
SUEVEY OF JACKSON COUNTY— The history of the Salt
works is so interwoven with the early history of Jackson county
that they can not be separated. It was the presence of the salt
boilers that attracted the first settlers into the lands adjoining
the licks. The earliest came as squatters, but the Indians having
ceded, by the treaty of Greenville, all their claims to southern Ohio,
Congress began preparations for throwing the land open to settle-
ment. Accordingly, on May 18, 1796, it enacted: That a surveyor
general shall be appointed, whose duty it shall be to engage a
suflflcient number of skillful surveyors, as his deputies; whom he
shall cause, without delay, to survey and mark the unascertained
outlines of the lands lying northwest of the river Ohio, and above
the mouth of the river Kentucky, in which the titles of the Indian
tribes have been extinguished, and to divide the same in the man-
ner herein after directed. Two years elapsed before the surveyors
90 History of Jackson County.
began their work in Jaclcson county. When they entered the dis-
trict between the Ohio company and the Scioto river, they found
it necessary, according to the statement of Whittlesey, to run a
correctional meridian, because of the excess in the sections abut-
ting on the west line of the company at range fifteen. The cor-
rection was made by establishing a true meridian between ranges
seventeen and eighteen, with sections of an exact mile square. Be-
tween the Ohio river and Hamden, in Vinton county, the correction
north and south, amounted to a mile. The errors from the
variation of the needle were such that quarter sections abutting
on the true meridian on the east were nearly as large as full sec-
tions on the west. Three townships, Milton, Bloomfield and Madi-
son are in rage seventeen and east of this true meridian. This ex-
plains the jogging of the sections along this line, a circumstance
that has puzzled many. It ma}^ be mentioned here as a coincidence
that Oak Hill, Berlin and Wellston are located on this meridian.
The first surveying in Jackson county was done in May, 1798, under
the direction of Elias Langdon. During this month, township six
of range eighteen, now known as Franklin, township seven in
range nineteen, now included in Liberty, and that part of township
five, range twenty, now included in Scioto, were surveyed. The
next month Levi Whipple surveyed township nine, range seven-
teen, now included in Milton township, and in July following he
surveyed township seven, range seventeen, which is now a part of
Madison. Elias Langdon returned to the county in April, 1799,,
and surveyed Hamilton township. The next surveying was done in
August, 1799, by Thomas Worthington, assisted by J. B. Finley,
who afterward became a noted Methodist divine. They surveyed
township eight, range eighteen, now known as Washington, and
that part of te»>vnship seven, range twenty, now included in Jack-
son township. Worthington was a native of Virginia who settled
in Chillicothe in 1798. He took an active interest in politics from
the first, and in 180.3 he was elected the first United States senator
from Ohio, serving until 1807. He w^as elected a second time to the
same office in 1810, but resigned in 1814 to accept the governorship^
which office he filled for four vears. Few men of today would be
History of Jackson County. 91
willing to make this exchauge, but the service of the State was
considered the most honorable in those early days. Worthingtoa
died in 1827. There was no surveying done in 1800, and the next
work done was in March, 1801, by Jesse Spencer, who surveyed
township eight, range nineteen, now included in Jackson township.
Jefferson township was surveyed in June, 1801, by John G. Macon.
He surveyed that part of township six, range seventeen, included
in Madison in the same year. Bloomfield was surveyed in October^
1801, by Benjamin F. Stone. The same person surveyed that part
of township ten, range seventeen, now included in Milton, in the
following November. Elias Langdon surveyed township six, range
nineteen, now included in Scioto, and township six, range twenty,
included in Liberty, in June, 1801. He completed the survey of
the county in December, 1801, with the survey of Lick township.
The law of 1796 provided that the lands now included in Jackson
county should be offered for sale at the Pittsburg land office, but
there is no record that any land was entered until after the Chilli-
cothe land office was established.
BOSS COUNTY— The licks remained a part of Washington
county for the first ten years after the founding of Marietta. In
the summer of 1796, Colonel Nathaniel Massie laid out the town
of Chillicothe, and the population increased so rapidly that Gov-
ernor St. Clair established the new county of Ross. This occurred
on August 20, 1798. Nearly all the territory now included in
Jackson county was placed for the time in Ross. When Sciota
county was organized. May 1, 1803, a portion of it was cut off and
placed in the new county. The part remaining in Ross was erected
into a separate township.
LICK TOWNSHIP — The newly organized territory was named
Lick township, and it held its first election in April, 1809. Follow-
ing is the roster of officers elected: Trustees, Roger Seldon, David
Mitchell and Robert Patrick; treasurer, Levi Patrick; clerk, John
Brander; lister, Samuel Niblack; overseers of the poor, John James
and Olney Hawkins; constables, Samuel Niblack and Phillip
Strother; justices of the peace, David Mitchell and William
•92 History of Jackson Countv.
Niblack. Hawkins refused to serve as overseer of the poor and
was fined. The vacancy was filled by the appointment of Stephen
Radeliff, sr. Olney Haw^kins served as grand juror at Chillicothe
in 1800, and Robert Patrick and AYilliam Niblack as petit jurors.
The Niblacks seem to have been among the most influential fam-
ilies at the works at that time,
THE WAR OF 1812— When the second war with England began
in 1812, the salt boilers proved themselves true Americans Gen-
eral Tupper, of Gallia county, came to the works looking for vol-
unteers, and almost the entire male population enlisted under him.
The following account of his campaign is from Atwater's history:
In July, 1812, General Edward W. Tupper, of Gallia county, had
raised about one thousand men for six months duty. They were
mostly volunteers and infantry, but they were accompanied by
Womeldorf's troop of cavalry, of Gallia county. This force was
mostly raised in what are now Gallia, Lawrence and Jackson coun-
ties. They marched under the orders of General Winchester
through Chillicothe and Urbana and on to the Maumee river.
Having reached the Maumee in August, w^e believe, of that year,
an Indian or two had been discovered about their camp. General
Winchester ordered Tupper to follow the enemy and discover his
eamp, if one was near. For this purpose Tupper ordered out a
small party to reconnoitre the country. This party pursued the
Indians some six miles or more, and returned without finding the
enemy. Winchester was offended, and ordered Tupper to send out
a larger force, but the troops with their half-starved horses and
without a suflflciency of ammunition, refused to go. Winchester, in
a rage, ordered Tupper himself to go with all his mounted men.
Obeying this order, as he was just about to march, a Kentucky
officer came to him and offered to join the party in any situation
which Tupper should assign him. Tupper appointed him his aide,
but soon afterwards, taking Tupper aside, he showed him Winches-
ter's orders, appointing this Kentuckian to command the recon-
noitering party. This conduct so irritated Tupper and his troops
that they applied to the commander-in-chief to be allowed to serve
History of Jackson County. ' 9S
under him. This was some time afterwards, as soon as General
Harrison had assumed the command of all the northwestern army.
Tupper moved down the Maumee near to the lower end of the
rapids, where they usually crossed at a fording place. The Indians
in large numbers showed themselves on the side of the river oppo-
site Tupper's camp. He attempted to cross the river with his
troops in the night. The current was rapid, his horses and men
were feeble, being half starved, and the rocky bottom was slippery.
The current swept away some of the horses and infantry into the
deep water. Seeing this, disheartened those who were left behind
on the eastern bank of the river, so that only a small number of men
crossed over the Maumee. Those who had crossed had wetted their
ammunition, and finally all returned back into their camp before
day. The Indians were hovering about the camp and a few were
killed on both sides. Finally, all the British Indians along the
river, anyw^here near by, collected all their forces, and attacked
Tupper and his troops on all sides. The enemy had from one
thousand to twelve hundred men, whereas, from sickness and
various casualties, our force amounted to only about eight hundred
men, and they were badly supplied with provisions and ammuni-
tion. However, they fought bravely, drove oif the enemy, and
killed and wounded a large number of his warriors. Their own
loss was trifling, losing only twenty or thirty in all in the action.
The enemy acknowledged the loss of upwards of fifty killed, one
hundred and fifty wounded. It is highly probable that their loss-
was at least three hundred. Our troops were all sharpshooters,
and real backwoodsmen, who were well accustomed to the use of
the rifle in the woods, where they dwelt when at home. The fate
of the enemy would have been much more disastrous had not our
new recruits, half starved as they were, while pursuing the flying,
enemy, fallen in with a drove of fat hogs in a cornfield. Leaving
the pursuit of the enemy, they kille'd many hogs until attacked by
the Indians, and losing four men killed, they turned on the enem^
and drove him over the river. The British returned to Detroit and
our troops returned to Fort McArthur.
94 History of Jackson County.
CAMP ROCK — In this connection mention sbould be made of
the sandstone boulder standing by the roadside near the old Stin-
son tavern on Salt creek, in Jackson township, which is known
as the ''camp rock." I visited this rock in 18*J5 and Avrote the fol-
lowing notes at the time:
This is an immense boulder that broke oft' from the hill some
centuries ago and rolled down to the creek, lodging just on the
rocky bank. It is now about fifty feet long, fifteen feet thick and
twenty feet in height. It was longer until a year or two ago, when
a blast was taken out of its east end to secure stone for the abut-
ments of a bridge some half a mile above. The road passes between
the rock and the hill and always has done so. It has received the
name Camp Rock from the words cut deep in the surface facing
the road. Most prominent is the following legend:
CAMP OP
1812.
General Tupper and his army are supposed to have camped one
night near this rock. The creek is fordable here, and a spring used
to bubble forth nearby. Old citizens claim that there were many
names of soldiers carved in the rock, but they have now disap-
peared.
CAPTAIN STRONG'S COMPANY— Another band of salt
boilers marched into the Indian country in 181-3, with the command
of Major Ben Daniels. This expedition was for the relief of Fort
Mei|;s, and the men served from July 29 to August 19. The salt
boilers were organized as a company with the following roster:
Captain Jared Strong, First Lieutenant John Gillaspie, Ensign
William Howe, Sergeants William Given, John Lake, David
Mitchell, Phillip Strother; Corporals Salmon Goodenough, Alexan-
der Hill, Joseph Lake, William lligginbotham; Drummer Harris
Penny, Fifer James Markey, Privates William Hewitt, Thomas M.
Caretall, Jesse Watson, Joseph Robbins, William Ellefton, James
Philli])s, Samuel Aldridge, John Sergeant, Samuel Huun. Ste]'hen
History of Jackson County, 95
Bailey, Henry Rout, Joseph Clemens, Joseph Schellenger, John Ogg,
James Higginbotham, William Black, Some of the most promi-
nent men at the works were in this company. The captain was
afterward the first representative of the county. Given will be
spoken of at length later, Mitchell, Howe, Bunu, the Lakes and
Schellenger have many descendants in the count}', Hewitt was the
noted hermit already spoken of.
JACKSON COUNTY ERECTED,— The organization of the
Lick township government gave the inhabitants at the works a feel-
ing of importance. Quite a village had sprung up on the slope facing
Salt creek, east of the site of the court house, and it had exchanged
the name of Purgatory for Poplar Row. The influx of settlers into
the surrounding territory caused the inhabitants of Poplar Row
to indulge the fond hope that its towuhouse would ere long give
way to a court house, the seat of justice of a new county. The
matter was talked of as early as 1810, Settlers were now rapidly
■entering land in that part of Gallia county bordering on Lick town-
ship. The first of whom there is record, was Lewis Adkins, who
•entered his land in 1810, Jeremiah Roach became his neighbor in
1811, and Hugh Poor settled farther north in what is now Bloom-
field township in the same year, John Smith, Gabriel McNea!,
Benjamin, Amos and Nimrod Arthur, George Burris and perhaps
others entered land in the country east or south of the licks in 1812.
Samuel McClure entered land in 1813, and John Stephenson, Moses
Hale and others followed in 1811, These settlers had a number of
squatters for neighbors, whom they did not like, on account of their
thieving propensities. Their peace was disturbed too frequently
also by the lawless element among the salt boilers at the licks.
This state of affairs led them to think favorably of the propositon
to erect a new county, with a court house at the Salt works. This
was what the leaders at the licks wished for, and the new county
movement at once assumed respectable proportions, A delegation
was sent to Chillicothe, the capital of the State, in the winter of
1815, to bring the matter before the legislature. The petition was
placed in the hands of Senator Robert Lucas, and the following
96 History of Jackson County.
entry appears in the senate journal for December 22, 1815: Robert
Lucas, senator from Gallia and Scioto counties, presented a petition
of certain inhabitants of Ross, Gallia, Scioto and Athens counties
praying that a new county may be set off in such a manner that
the seat of justice may be established at the Scioto Salt works.
The petition was referred to a committee of three, of whom Lucas
was made chairman, to report thereon by bill or otherwise. The
committee saw its way clear to report favorably, and a bill to
erect the county of Jackson was introduced by Senator Lucas on
Tuesday, December 26, 1815, and read the first time. It was read
the second time December 27, and passed the senate December 29.
It was introduced in the house the same day, read the second time
December 30, and passed January 10, 1816. It was signed up Jan-
uary 12, 1816, and became a law. Following is a copy of it:
AN ACT TO ERECT THE COUNTY OF JACKSON.
Section 1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of the State
of Ohio, That all that part of the counties of Scioto, Gallia,
Athens and Ross, included within the following limits, to-wit:
Beginning at the northwest corner of township number ten, range
number seventeen, and running thence east to the northeast corner
of said township ; thence south to the southeast corner of township
number eight in said range; thence west to the southwest corner of
section number thirty-five in said township; thence south to the
southeast corner of section number thirty-four, in township number
seven in said range; thence west to the southwest corner of said
township; thence south to the southeast corner of township number
five, in range number eighteen; thence west to the southwest corner
of section number thirty-three in township number five, in range
number nineteen; thence north to the northwest corner of section
number four in said township; thence west to the southeast corner
of Pike county; thence with Pike county line to the northeast
corner of said county; thence north to the northwest corner of
township number eight, in range number nineteen; thence east to
the range line between the seventeenth and eighteenth ranges-,
History of Jackson County. 97
tlionce nortli with the same to the place of beginning, shall be a
separate and distinct county by the name of Jackson.
Section 2. Be it fui'ther enacted, That all suits or actions,
whether of a civil or criminal nature, which shall be pending, and
all crimes which shall have been committed within said counties of
Scioto, Gallia, Athens and Ross, previous to the organization of the
said county of Jackson, shall be j)rosecuted to final judgment and
execution within the counties in which such suits shall be pending,
or such crimes shall have been committed, in the same manner they
would have been, if no division had taken place; and the sheriff,
coroner and constables of the counties of Scioto, Gallia, Athens
and Ross shall execute, within such parts of the county of Jackson,
as belonged to their respective counties previous to the taking
effect of this act, such process as shall be necessary to carry in
effect such suits, ijrosecutions and judgments; and the collectors
of taxes for the counties of Scioto, Gallia, Athens and Ross shall
collect all such taxes as shall have been levied and imposed within
such parts of the county of Jackson as belonged to their respective
counties previous to the taking effect of this act.
Section 3. Be it further enacted. That all justices of the peace
and constables, within those parts of the counties of Scito, Gallia,
Athens and Ross, which by this act are erected into a new county,
shall continue to exercise the duties of their offices until their term
of service expires in the same manner as if no division of said
counties had taken place.
Section 4. Be it further enacted, That on the first Monday
in April next, the legal voters residing within said county of Jack-
son, shall assemble in their respective townships at the usual place
of holdings township elections, and elect their several county
officers, who shall hold their offices until the next annual election;
provided that where any township 'shall be divided in consequence
of establishing the county of Jackson, in such manner that the
place of holding township elections, shall fall within the counties
of Scioto, Gallia, Athens or Ross, then and in that case, the electors
98 History of Jackson County.
of such fractional townships shall elect in the next adjoining town-
shij) or townships in said county of Jackson.
Section 5. And be it further enacted, That the courts of said
county of Jackson, shall be holden at the house of William Givens,
within the reserved township, at the Scioto Salt works, until the
permanent seat of justice for said county shall be established.
This act shall take effect and be in force from and after the first
day of March next.
FIRST COMMISSIONERS— The legislature appointed Eman-
uel Traxler, John Stephenson and John Brown as Commissioners
to organize the new county. Traxler was a German by descent ancn
a Pennsylvanian by birth. When he arrived at manhood's estate
he came west. His first stop was on the bank of the Ohio at the
mouth of the Scioto. There he determined to make his home, and
his cabin was the first erected by white men on the site of Ports-
mouth. This was in the early part of the year 1796. Other settlers
came, but Traxler continued to be the leading citizen in the com-
munity, and in 1798 Governor St. Clair appointed him as the first
justice of the peace in the settlement. Traxler neglected one im-
portant matter, however, and had to pay the penalty. In the year
1801, he discovered that Henry Massie had secured the patent from
the government for the land on which his cabin and improvements
stood, and he was dispossessed. He moved inland, and there built
the first watermill in Scioto county. In 1813 he came to the Scioto
salt w^orks, and sunk a salt well, but it proved a duster. Later he
settled on a farm in Franklin township, on Fourmile, and in 1816
he built the first watermill on that creek. John Stei)henson was a
native of South Carolina. After his marriage he moved to Cabell
county, Virginia, and in 1814 he entered land in what is now
Bloomfield township, in this county. He was the father of a large
family, and his descendants in the county are more numerous than
any other family. His son James became Sheriff of the county a
few years after its organization, and Associate Judge in 1827,
His son John held a number of ofQces of honor and trust, and died
History of Jackson County, 99
while Recorder of the county. His grandson, John S. Stephenson,
held the office of Commissioner for several terms. The son of the
latter, and his great grandson, was Commissioner of Pike
-county, while another great grandson, Hiram Stephenson, was
Treasurer of Jackson county for four years. The act erecting the
county went into effect March 1, 1816, and on that day these three
Commissioners met at the house of William Givens, the temporary
seat of justice, to organize the new county. The object of the
meeting was to call an election for the purpose of choosing county
officers to serve until the fall election. For convenience at this
election, they divided the county into five townships, named as
follows: Bloomfield, Franklin, Lick, Madison and Milton. They
also appointed judges and clerks for each voting precinct. The
record of this meeting is not on file at the Court House, and it has
been either destroyed, or purloined by some relic hunter of the
early days.
THE FIRST ELECTION— Jackson county held its first elec-
tion Monday, April 1, 1816, for the purpose of electing a Sheriff,
Coroner and three Commissioners. The names of all the men that
voted at this election have been deemed worthy of preservation
for the benefit of posterity. The old poll books, which had been
supposed lost for eighty years, were found by the writer in going
through old papers in the Court House attic. The names are
given by townships.
BLOOMFIELD— The election in this township was held at the
house of Judge Hugh Poor, which stood in a central location. The
officers were Samuel McClure, Moses Gillespie and Theophilus
Blake, Judges, and Robert G. Hanna and Allen Rice, Clerks.
Thirty-seven electors cast their ballots, the name of Reuben Long
being the first registered. The others were: Theophilus Blake,
Henry Humphreys, John Hale, James Hale, William Keeton,
Morris Humphreys, Ellis Long, Benjamin Long, Azariah Jenkins,
Joshua Stephenson, Thomas Barton, John R. Corn, John Scurlock,
John Dickerson, Sharp Barton, George Campbell, Hugh Poor, Hugh
100 History of Jackson County.
Scurlock, Moses Hale, Arthur Callison, Christopher Long, Ben-
jamin Hale, Robert Irwin, Moses Gillespie, David Stoker, Nimrod
Arthur, Allen Rice, Michael Stoker, James Lackey, Martin Poor,
John Stephenson, Sr., Samuel McClure, Andrew Donnally, John
Stephenson, Jr., Robert G. Hanna and Alexander Poor. There was
considerable excitement at this voting place, occasioned by a num-
ber of free fights, growing out of a feud between members of the
Long and Hale families. The origin of the trouble is unknown, but
at some time in the day Joel Long and John Hale started the ball
rolling by agreeing to ''box and fight each other at fisticuffs." The
well known code of the backwoods was no doubt followed to the let-
ter in this fistic duel, but the result did not give satisfaction. Blood
was up, and some words led Christopher Long to assault Moses
Hale, and, according to the indictment, did "strike, beat, wound
and illtreat, to the great damage of the said Moses Hale." John R.
Corn interferred in behalf of the latter, and Long promptly gave
him a dose of the same medicine. At this point James Lackey got
mixed up ia the affair, and Benjamin Long then took a hand and
assaulted him. These contests furnished some of the grist for the
first term of court in the following August, John Hale and Joel
Long being fined |12 each, and Christopher Long |6 under each
indictment. Benjamin Long's affair with Lackey was not adjusted
until the November term, when Long i)lead guilty and was fined
$10 and the costs.
FRANKLIN — The officers in this township were Judges John
Rook, John Farney and Abraham Baker, and Clerks Isaac Baker
and William Stephenson. Teter Null was the first of the sixty-one
electors to cast his vote. The others were: Jacob Wishon, J'eter
McCain, Basil Johnson, John Wallace, Lewis Howard, John Clem-
mons, Isaiah Sheward, Jesse Martin, Peter Seel, Samuel Stephen-
son, Isaac Kilcoderic, Hugh Malin, Nathan Kirby, John Graham,
John Peters, William Lyons, Eli Dixon, Thomas Crabtree, James
Graham, James Higginbotham, Jonathan R. Nelson, John Dixon,
Abraham Dixon, Thomas Craig, Ralph Nelson, James Johnson,
John Martin, John Duncan, Ross Nelson, Emanuel Traxler, Richard
History of Jackson County. loi
Johnson, William Martin, Hugh Gilliland, John Burnsides, Alex-
ander TMlson, Alexander Anderson, Nathan Dixon, John George,
AVilliam Holland, Francis Holland, Nottingham Mercer, Samuel
Craig, Levi Mercer, John Traxler, Benjamin Ellison, Samuel Trax
ler, Jonathan Traxler, Nathan Sheward, Thomas Scott, John Far
nev, John Rook, Abraham Baker, John Webb, James Martin, Wil-
liam Stephenson, Isaac Baker, Joseph Graham, Isaac Hartley,
James Pennelton, Henry Dixon. An election to choose Justices
was held the same day, but by a different set of officers. They
were Teter Null, Samuel Traxler and Hugh Gilliland, Judges, and
John Martin and Francis Holland, Clerks. Sixty votes were cast,
of which John George had 32, Thomas Scott 29, Isaac Baker 28,
Nottingham Mercer 26; George and Scott were winners.
LICK — The officers were James Weeks, John Ogg and Asa
Lake, Judges, and Joseph W. Ross and George L. Crookham,
Clerks. The first of the flfiy-nine voters was Major John James,
grandfather of ex- Warden C. C. James. The others were : Abraham
Dehaven, William White, Horam Denny, JohnW. Sargeant, Joseph
Clemmens, Philip Stother, Samuel Bunn, John Gillaspie, Asa Lake,
James Weeks, George Bowen, Jacob Gulp, Matthew Rider, Absa-
lom Wells, Hugh Sharp, Valentine Pancake, William Givens, John
Stockham, Joseph Armstrong, James Adams, John Brander,
George L. Crookham, David Mitchell, Jacob Schellenger, William
Brown, Salmon Goodenough, John Crago, John Armstrong, John
Ogg, John O. Kelly, John Higginbotham, Charles Higginbotham,
David Watson, Samuel A. Hall, John Henry Grant, Peter Mar-
shall, Daniel Comber, John Praether, John Stewart, Henry Routt,
Joseph W. Ross, Francis O'Ray, John Lake, John McGhee, Jared
Strong, Daniel Harris, Daniel Clark, Samuel Aldridge, A. J. Hig-
gins, Isaac Newell, Jesse Watson, Alexander Hill, Abraham Welch,
Elk Bramlett, William Higginbotham, William Howe, John Allen,
William Hewitt.
It will be noticed that Franklin had two more electors than
Lick. Lick at that time included a tract of six miles square,
belonging to the State Government, and all its inhabitants were
102 History of Jackson County.
lessees. Many of them had purchased lands in Franklin in order
to be freeholders, and claimed their residence there. This is the
only explanation that can be offered for the action of so many
Lick men voting in Franklin.
MADISON — The election of this township was held at the-
house of Jacob Moler, which stood near the site of Madison Fur-
nace. The officers were: Judges, Jacob Moler, William H. C. Jen-
kins and John Atkinson and Clerks, John Horton and Jeremiah
Callahan.
Twenty-one electors participated, Samuel Radabaugh being
the first to vote. The others were: George Radabaugh, John Cal-
lahan, Sr., Henry Radabaugh, William Comer, Robert Taylor, Ben-
jamin Arthur, Lewis Adkins, Sr., Joel Arthur, Amos Arthur, John
Horton, Jacob Moler, John Atkinson, William H. C. Jenkins, Elijah
Delano, John Shoemaker, Joseph Pauley, Jeremiah Callahan, Jere~
miah Roach, Lewis Adkins, Jr., Jesse Radabaugh.
The returns were taken to Jackson by Jacob Moler. This
gentleman was for years the leading citizen of Madison, and the
family of Aaron McLaughlin are connected with him. William
H. C. Jenkins was another of the leading men. Cyrus Jenkins of
Bloomfield is one of his sons. The Radabaughs are all gone from
Madison, but William, of that name, is living in the old Arthur
schoolhouse, which stands on ground formerly a part of Madison.
Some of the descendants of Jeremiah Roach still live in the town-
ship, and a namesake lives in Wellston. John Horton's descend-
ants are numerous in Jeft'erson.
MILTON — The officers were George Martin, John Baccus and
George Burris, Judges, and Joshua Scurlock and John Crouch,
Clerks. There were forty-two votes cast, the first by Austin Palmer,.
The others were cast by Andrew Frasure, I'eleg Potter, Charles-
Ratcliff, Joseph Crouch, John Phillips, Thomas Phillips, William
Crow, John Baccus, George Martin, George Burris, Patrick Shearer,
Joshua Scurlock, John Crouch, James Stephenson, W^illiam Burris,.
Reuben Rickabaugh, Drury Bondurant, William Delay, William
History of Jackson County. 103
Bass, Jonathan Delay, William Craig, Cuthbert Vinson, John
Snuke, Robert Howard, James Dempsej, Joshua Rhodes, John
Kite, Robert Ward, Jeremiah Brown, Zephaniah Brown, David
Paine, Charles Robbins, Adam Althar, Daniel Hollinshead, John
Hollinshead, John Delay, Joseph Howard, Jacob Delay, Joseph
Crouch, Jr., John Brown and Nathan Brown. The majority, if not
all of these men had been citizens of Athens county. Several of
them have descendants living in the township and in other parts of
this county. Rev. Jacob Delay was perhaps the most widely known
The peculiar spelling throughout is that of the poll book.
COUNTING THE VOTES— The returns were all taken to
Poplar Row and placed in charge of Judge William Givens. Hugh
Poor, David Paine and William Givens had been commissioned
by Governor Thomas Worthington, who, it will be remembered,
was one of the men that had surveyed Jackson county, as Associate
Judges for the new county. Their first meeting, of which there is
record, was held at Givens' house on April 6, 1816, to open the
election returns and declare the result. The house of Givens stood
a little west of the site of Fulton Furnace. This has been disputed,
but I make the statement on the authority of James H. Darling
and A. F. McCarley. The house was built of logs, but was better
than the ordinary log house of the early days, in that it had two
stories. This accounts for its selection as the temporary seat of
justice. The lower floor consisted of two rooms, while the upper
story consisted of one large room, unceiled. All the Judges being
present, the votes were counted. Following is the official abstract:
Sheriff — Abraham Welch 119, John Lake 93, Samuel Traxler
1; Welch declared elected.
Commissioner — John Stephenson 114, Emanuel Traxler 108,
John Brown 100, Samuel McClure 94, Francis Holland 36, Reuben
Long 84, Jesse Watson 21, John Delay 46; Stephenson, Traxler and
Brown were the winners.
Coroner — John Gillaspie 84, William Howe 54, Samuel A. Hall
39, David Mitchell 4, Jacob Delay 2; Gillaspie won.
The vote by townships was as follows: Bloomfield 37, Frank-
104 History of Jackson County.
lin Gl, Lick 59, Madison 21, Milton 42; total 220. It is probable
that almost the entire vote in the county was cast at this election.
The total vote cast at the presidential election in 1896, eighty
years afterward, amounted to 8,362. This shows a healthy growth.
The record of this meeting of the Associate Judges has been
lost, but it is evident that the new officials appeared before the
court, gave bond and took the oath of office. The Commissioners
appointed by the Legislature were elected by the people foi' the
short term until the Fall election. Welch, the Sheriff-elect, had
been at the salt works for some eight years. He was a tavern
keeper, and his acquaintances were so numerous that he won his
election easily over a popular opponent. Welch's record was not
what it might have been, however, and certain passages in it will
be referred to later.
And now a word about Judge Givens, the wealthiest and most
influential man in the county at that time. The following sketch
was written after the death of his son, of the same name, and may
contain a few repetitions:
A NOTED SALT BOILER— The following special, which ap-
peared in a Cincinnati paper Sunday morning, was sent from
Buena Vista, in Scioto count}^, July 30, 1898: "William Givens, a
pioneer farmer of Southern Ohio, died on his farm near here this
morning. He would have been 87 years old tomorrow, and had
lived all his life on the farm on which he died." The death of Mr.
Givens deserves more than a passing notice, for he was the oldest
son of Judge William Givens, the most noted salt boiler in the
early history of Jackson county. He was really 87 years old on
the day of his death, for he was born July 31, 1811, at Poplar Row,
the village of the salt boilers. William Givens, Sr., was born in
Pennsylvania in 1782. After his father's death his mother removed
with her family to Kentucky. William was then ten years old. In
early manhood he came to Ohio and settled in Scioto county. Later
he came to the Scioto salt works, then located in Ross county, but
now included within the limits of Jackson. He was married
October 23, 1810, to Rachel, daughter of William and Susan (Paine)
History of Jackson County. io5
Stockham, and went to housekeeping on Poplar Eow. There Wil-
liam, the oldest of eleven children, was born as stated. Mr. Givens
prospered at the salt works, and to maintain his standing in the
community he erected a two-story log mansion, which was for years
the finest residence in all Jackson county. This house stood near
the site of Fulton Furnace. When Jackson county was erected in
ISIG, this house was designated as the first seat of justice in Jack-
son county, Section 5 of the law reading as follows: That the
courts of said county of Jackson shall be holden at the house of
William Givens, within the reserved township, at the Scioto salt
works, until the permanent seat of justice for said county shall
be established — A large oak tree stood in front of the house, and
an interesting and authenticated tradition is connected therewith.
The first term of court for Jackson county convened August 12,
1816. The entire male population of the county, salt boilers,
planters, hunters, trappers, hermits and squatters, were in attend-
ance. The house was too small to hold the crowd. The weather
being warm, Judge John Thompson ordered Sheriff Abraham
Welch to open court under the spreading branches of this primeval
white oak, and the sessions of the first day were held there. When
the grand jury was organized, the Court Constables led it away
some distance to another tree, where it carried on its deliberations,
the crowd being kept out of hearing by the Constables. It was a
memorable day in the history of the new county. Under the old
Constitution, three Associate Judges sat on the bench with the
Presiding Judge, and William Givens, whose activity, energy and
influence had been largely instrumental in securing the organiza-
tion of Jackson county, was elected by the Ohio Legislature on
February 24, 1816, as one of the first three Associate Judges of this
county. The others were Hon. David Paine, father-in-law in later
years of Hon. H. S. Bundy and Hon. Hugh Poore, founder of the
Poore family in this county. Givens was thus head and judge in
his own house, much like the Patriarchs of old. In 1818 he waa
honored by his fellow-citizens with an election to the Legislature,
but he served only one term. In 1823 he was again elected Asso-
ciate Judge, and served until 1826, when he left the county, and
106 History of Jackson County.
moved to Nile township, in Scioto count}'. He lived there 37 years,
and died June 26, 18G3, aged 80 years, 9 months and 8 daj'S. His-
wife survived until February 18, 1865, dying at the age of 70 years-
9 months and 15 days. Mr. Givens was a Whig in politics, and a
member of the M. E. Church. It was as a manufacturer of salt
that he first acquired prominence in this county, and he was closely
identified with most of the later salt works legislation. It appears-
that the expense of salt boiling at the Scioto licks was always-
heavy, and about 1812 it became so excessive that the Legislature
appropriated $300 to pay for boring 200 feet, in hopes of finding
stronger brine. No one undertook this work, and the Legislature
found it necessary to increase the appropriation. Accordingly^
$1,500 was appropriated February 5, 1813,and Abraham Claypool
was authorized to sink two wells to a depth of 200 feet. This-
money does not seem to have been spent, and AVilliam Givens^
Joseph Armstrong, John Johnson, Ross Nelson, John W. Sargent,.
John Prather and Asa Lake petitioned for assistance to dig a salt
well each, they to bear incidental expenses, and to have exclusive
use of wells for five years. In 1815 the Legislature appropriated
$700 to pay William Givens for sinking a well 350 feet, to be two-
and one-quarter inches in diameter at the bottom. It appears that
Givens proceed imI to sink the well, and by December 23, 1815, he
had reached a depth of 275 feet, and was paid $375. On February
24, 181 1), he was gi\fm until April 1, 1816, to finish and tube the-
well. There is no record that Givens was paid any more money by
the State, but he continued the work on the well until he reached
the depth of 450 feet. The last 175 feet were sunk at his own ex-
pense. Hildreth says that Givens procured a stronger water, but
it was in small quantity, and did not rise to the top of the well,,
probably from a deficiency of carburetted hydrogen gas, which at
several other works, rises in great volume, and forces the water
for many feet above the surface. Givens' experiment demonstrated
that a brine strong enough to compete with that of other salines-
could not be secured at Jackson, and the legislature passed a
resolution January 3, 1818, favoring the sale of the Scioto Salt
reserve. Givens' salt well is still open. It is a few hundred feet
History of Jackson County. 107"
above the Baler building, and the water stands the year round
in the well pipe. Givens' furnace stood on the knoll near by to
the south, and its remains may be seen whenever the ground is
ploughed. The small creek emptying into Salt creek, a few hundred
feet below, bears the name Givens' run. Thus the name survives
here, although the family has been forgotten. William Givens,
jr., was 15 years old when the family left the county. The other
children were Allen, David, James H., Thomas J., John, Samuel,.
George, Cynthia, Jane and Mary. The descendants of the family
are scattered in many states.
COMMISSIONERS' PEOCEEDINGS— The record of the first
meeting of the Commissioners of Jackson county has been lost. At
the second meeting held. Dr. Nathaniel W. Andrews was ap-
pointed clerk of the board, and he kept a very faithful record,
although many acts of the board were not recorded, for reasons
not now known. Some of the entries were quaintly worded, and
others refer to conditions which have long ago ceased to exist.
The following extracts can not fail to interest:
April 25, 1816 — Be it remembered that at a special meeting of
the honorable commissioners of Jackson county, held in the house
of Jared Strong in Lick township, present Emanuel Traxler, John
Stephenson and John Brown; ordered that Nathaniel W. Andrews
be appointed clerk to this body, he having been qualified accord-
ing to law.
A petition was handed in by the hands of Daniel Harris pray-
ing for a new township; deferred until the next meeting.
Orders were issued to the listers of Lick township, Milton
township and Franklin to attach the fractional parts adjoining
the different townships to each of them.
The meeting adjourned until the first Monday of June next.
June .3, 1816 — Proceedings of the honorable Board of Commis-
sioners at their annual meeting on the first Monday of June, 1816,.
held at the house of Nathaniel W. Andrews in Lick township,.
108 History of Jackson County.
present John Stephenson, Emanuel Traxler and John Brown. For
want of the statute law, adjourned until tomorrow at 9 o'clock.
June 4, 1816 — According to yesterday's adjournment the Com-
missioners met, present John Stephenson, Emanuel Traxler and
John Brown.
Abraham Welch was appointed collector to this county, he
having given bond and security according to law.
John James was also appointed treasurer to this county, he
having given bond and security according to law.
Ordered that the price of license for retailing merchandise
shall be Fifteen Dollars per annum, also that the price of tavern
license throughout this county shall be Six Dollars per annum.
Nathaniel W. Andrews was appointed keeper of the county
seal and sworn into ofiSce according to law.
This meeting is adjourned until the first of July next by order
of Commissioners, this 4th day of June, 181G.
July 1, 181G — Pursuant to the adjournment June 4, the hon-
orable Board of Commissioners this day met, eTuly 1, 1810, present
John Stephenson, John Brown and Emanuel Traxler.
Jackson — It is ordered that in compliance with the prayer of
the inhabitants of the following boundaries, that they shall be
incorporated in a new township and be called Jackson; beginning
at the northwest corner of this county and running east to the
seventeenth range line; thence south along the same line to the
corner between the Seventh and Eighth townships; thence w^est
to the southwest corner of the Eighth township in the Eighteenth
range; thence south one mile to the corner between section Nos.
1 and 12 in the Seventh township in the Nineteenth range; thence
west along the section lines to the line between Nineteen and
Twenty; thence north along the same line to the place of beginning.
Clinton — It is also ordered that in compliance with the prayer
of the inhabitants of Township No. 10 in range Seventeen, that the
said township be incorporated according to its original surveyed
boundaries by name of Clinton.
History of Jackson County. 109-
Milton — It is also ordered that in compliance with the prayer
of the inhabitants of township Xo. 9, in range Seventeen, that the
said township remain incorporated according to its orignal sur-
yeyed boundaries by the name of Milton.
July 21, 1816 — Pursuant to the adjournment, the honorable
Board of Commissioners met according to appointment the second
day of the term July 2, 181G.
Bloomfield — It is ordered that in compliance with the prayer
of the inhabitants of township No. 8 in range Seventeen, that the
said township remain incorporated according to its original sur-
veyed boundaries, by the name of Bloomfield.
Madison — It is also ordered that in compliance with the
prayer of the inhabitants of the following boundaries, that they
be incorporated in a new township by the name of Madison; be-
ginning at the northeast corner of section No. 3 in range 17 and
township 7; thence running south to the county line to the south-
east corner of section 34, range 17 and township 7; thence west
to the southwest corner of section 31, range and township afore-
said; thence south to the county line to the southeast corner of
section 36 in the 18th range and 5th township; thence west to the
southwest corner of section 35, township and range aforesaid;
thence north along the section line to the northwest corner of sec-
tion No. 2, range and township aforesaid; thence east to the range
line between 18 and 17; thence along the same line north to the
northwest corner of section No. 6, township 5 and range 17; thence
east to the place of beginning.
Franklin — It is also ordered that in compliance with the
prayer of the inhabitants of the following boundaries, that the
same remain incorporated according to its original name of
Franklin; beginning at the northeast corner of section No. 1^
township 6 in range IS and running south along the said range
line to the southeast corner of section No. 36 in township 6 and
range 18; then west to the northeast corner of section No. 3; thence
south with section line to the county line; thence west along said
line to the southwest corner of section 36 in township 5 and range
110 History of Jackson County.
19; thence north along the section line to the northwest corner of
section No. 1, township 6 and range 19; thence east to the place ol
beginning.
Scioto — It is also ordered that in compliance with the prayer
of the inhabitants of the following boundaries that they be incor-
porated in a new township by the name of Scioto; beginning as
follows: At the northeast corner of section No. 2, township G and
range 19, and running south along the section line to the county
line, to the southeast corner of section 35, in township 5, range 19 ;
thence west to the southwest corner of the county; thence north
along the county line to the old Ross county line; thence east to
the place of beginning.
Lick — It is ordered that Lick township have the following
boundaries: Beginning at section No. 1, the northeast corner of,
running south to the southeast corner of section No. 36, township
7, range 18; thence west to the county line, southwest corner of
section 31, range 19, township 7; thence along the county line north
to the northwest corner of section No. 7, township 7, range 19;
thence east to the northeast corner of section No. 12, range 19,
tow^nship 7; north to the northwest corner of section No. 6, range
18, township 7; thence east to the place of beginning.
Hamilton — This township was not erected until December 6,
1825. The commissioners' entry in the journal is as follows: ''Or-
dered that in compliance with the prayer of the inhabitants in the
following boundaries, that the}' be incorporated in a new township
by the name of Hamilton, bounded as follows, to-wit: Beginning
at the northeast corner of section 1, township 5, range 19; thence
south along the township line to section 36, township 5, range 19;
thence west along the Scioto county line to section 33, toAvuship
5, range 19; thence north to the northwest corner of section 4;
thence east to the place of beginning. And ordered that Scioto
township be hereafter designated by the following boundaries, to-
wit: Beginning at the northeast corner of section 2, in township
6, range 19; thence west to the northwest corner of section 6, range
19 and township 6; thence south to the northeast corner of section
12, township 5, range 20; thence west to the northwest corner of
History of Jackson County. Ill
section 11, township 5, range 20; thence south to the southwest
corner of section 35; thence east to the southeast corner of section
35, township 6, range 19 ; thence north to the place of beginning.
THE FIRST ROAD PETITION— A petition was this day
•(July 3, 1816) handed by the hands of Isaac Baker, praying for a
road to be opened; beginning at the fork of the creek two miles
a-nd a half above Lewis Mercer's, on the new county road leading
from Portsmouth to the Scioto Salt works; thence running the
nearest and best way to Hugh Gilliland's on the waters of Simm's
■creek; thence to Abraham Baker's; thence the nearest and best way
to intersect the new road that leads from the Salt works to Galli-
polis at or near Mr. Radebouth's on the most suitable place. Or-
•dered that the above road be reviewed and the following persons
are appointed as reviewers, they having agreed to do it without
•charge; reviewers, Levi Mercer, John Horton, Lewis Adkins; sur-
veyor, Gabriel McNeal. — These reviewers made a favorable report
January 8, 1817. The report was considered June 2, 1817, and the
road was established as proposed, as "one of the public highways
•of the county." This road was nine and three-quarters miles long.
It began at a white oak in the forks of Little Scioto, ran by a
beaver pond and intersected the Gallipois road near Henry Rada-
baugh's.
FIRST YEAR'S TAXES— The Commissioners met on the 29th
of July, 1816, present Emanuel Traxler, John Stephenson and John
Brown, and proceeded to make out the alphabetical duplicates of
the property tax, and finished them ready for delivery, the total
amount being |301.20. The following persons served as township
listers in 1816: Lick, Joseph Armstrong; Madison, John Atkinson;
Franklin, Richard Johnson; Milton, Joshua Scurlock; Bloomfield,
John Stephenson. June 6, 1817 — It appears from all statements,
the total amount of expenditures for this year up to the fifth of
this month, and up to order 176, amounts to |547.18. "The receipts
were |363.874. Thus the county was in debt |183.306 at the end of
its first fiscal year. The total amount of taxes to collect for the
112 History of Jackson County.
year 1817 was .f354:.85, distributed as follows: Clinton, $29.G0;
Milton, !b;39.50; Bloomfield, $48.55; Madison, $48.90; Franklin, |53;
Lick, 167.60; Jackson, |35.70; Scioto, $32."
FIRST TERM OF COURT— The new county was in the second
judicial circuit, of which Judge John Thompson was president.
He set the opening day of its first term of court for August 12,
1816. He arrived at the Springs on horseback, riding up from
Chillicothe, accompanied b^^ a number of attorneys, and sightseers
who came to see the noted Salt works. Judge Thompson became
the guest of his associate, Hon. William Givens, whose residence
was the temporary seat of justice. The attorneys were quartered'
with Nathaniel W. Andrews and Sheriff Abraham Welch. When
the hour came for opening court, it was found that no room in the
Givens' residence would hold the crowd. This, together with the
great heat, led Judge Thompson to order that chairs and tables
be taken out and set under the wide spreading branches of a white
oak tree, standing near the home. It w^as a motley crowd that
gathered there. Three classes were largely represented and deserve
mention. The salt boilers with their rough exterior, much resem-
bling the denizens of the more modern mining camps, were the
most numerous. Second in number, but first in influence, were the
sturdy yeomen planters, clad in homespun. Trappers, hunters and
half hermits, silent men, with coonskin caj^s and clothes of deer-
skiUj formed a third class. There w^as beside a small sprinkling of
the better dressed, which included the Methodist circuit rider, two
or three tavern keejjers, a few salt well lessees and furnace owners^
some small merchants, and a bakers' dozen of visitors from Chilli-
cothe and Portsmouth. The hour having arrived. Judge Thomjjson
and the associate judges, William Givens, Hugh Poor and David
Paine, took their seats, and Sheriff Welch was ordered to open
court. Following is the record of the first proceedings, as they
stand approved:
August Term, 1816, Jackson County, State of Ohio — Pleas held
before the Honorable John Thompson, president of the court of
common pleas for the second circuit, Hugh Poor, David Paine andS
History of Jackson County. 113
William Givens, esquires, associate judges for the county of Jack-
son, at the house of William Givens, temporary seat of justice, on
the 12th day of August, Anno Domini, one thousand eight hundred
and sixteen, of the independence of the United States, the 41st, and
of our State, the 14th. Present, Nathaniel W. Andrews, clerk pro
tempore, and Abraham Welch, sheriff. The sheriff", to whom the
venire facias was directed, this day here returned the same, and
the names being called, appeared, to-wit: James McDaniel, George
Gamble, Samuel Traxler, John McBride, Gabriel McNeal, Robert
Erwin, James Higginbotham, William Martin, William Stephen-
sou. And the other named presous not appearing, ordered that the
sheriff summon sufficient number of the bystanders to complete the
panel of 15. Whereupon the following persons were summoned
as talesmen: Joseph W. Ross, Joseph Crouch, Joshua \\ inks, An-
drew Donnally, Moses Hale and Jared Strong. Whereupon Jared
Strong was appointed foreman, who with his fellows having taken
the oath prescribed by statute, and having received their charge,
retired to consult. The court appointed Joseph Sill, Esq., prose-
cutor. This day, on motion, ordered that the electors of Scioto
township have leave to elect a wise, sensible, prudent and discrete
person a justice of the peace, in addition to the one at present
acting in that capacity, and that certificate issue to trustees. Judge
Thompson, in issuing this order, must have had in mind Jethro's
advice to Moses: "Moreover, thou shalt provide out of all the
people, able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetous-
ness; and place such over them, to be rulers." The first case called
at this term was styled, "Brown & McCort vs. Peleg Potter; debt."
Hon. Richard Douglass appeared as attorney for the plaintiffs. The
case was called, for Potter to get an opportunity to give bond, and
John George was accepted as his surety. The next business to
engage the attention of the court was the appointment of the first
administrator to serve in the county, viz: Joseph Crouch appointed
to administer the ''goods and chattels, rights and credits" of his
father, Joseph Crouch, Sr. Jacob Delay, James Stephenson and
John Brown, all of Milton township, were appointed as appraisers
of the personal estate of decedent. The first business transacted
114 History of Jackson County.
August 13, 1816, the second day of the term, was the considering
of the petition of Andrew Donnally for a license to keep a tavern,
which was as follows:
A PETITION FOR A LICENSE TO KEEP A TAVERN—
July 10, 1816 — To the honorable judges of the court of common
pleas of Jackson county: The petition of the undersigners, free-
holders of Bloomfield township, humbly represent to your honours
that we conceive a publick house of entertainment in Bloomfield
would conduse to the publick convenience, therefore we recom-
mend Andrew Donally, one of the sitizens, as a man of a good
carricter and ever}^ way calculated to acomodate the publick, we
therefore pray your honours would grant him a licens for the
purpose and your petitioners as in duty bound will ever pray. — An-
drew Donnally.
The other signers were Hugh Poor, Elijah Long, Moses Hale,
Andrew Boggs, Samuel McClure, William Stephenson, James
Stephenson, Samuel Allison, Reuben Long, Alexander Poor, Joel
Long, Christopher Long, Gabriel McNeal, Robert Irwin, John
Stephenson, Robert G. Hanna, Benjamin Long, Azariah Jenkins,
George Burris, George Campbell, Anthony Boggs. The text of the
petiton was written by Donnally himself, and, like Shakespeare,
he exercised the right of spelling his name in more than one way.
This fact may explain why the spelling in the petition is out of
the ordinary. He may have felt that inability to spell was no bar,
but rather a recommendation, with the backwoodsmen. He could
spell, but did not want to. Be that as it may, his license was
promptly granted.
FIRST CRIMINAL CASE— The criminal docket for the term
was then taken up. John Hale and Joel Long had been indicted
because, '*on the first day of April, in the year of our Lord, one
thousand eight hundred and sixteen, with force and arms, in
Bloomfield, etc., they did agree to box and fight each other at fisti-
cuffs, etc." This fight occurred on election day and has been men-
History of Jackson County. 115
tioned before. The boys were arrested, both plead guilty, and each
was fined $12 and the costs.
FIRST PETIT JURY— A petit jury was empaneled on the
same day, in the case of Elkanah Bramlet, "otherwise called" El-
cano Bramlet. He had been indicted for assaulting William Mc-
Oonnell in Lick township on July 10, 1816, and the case was tried
to the following jury: Basil Johnson, Moses Gillespie, John Ogg,
David Mitchel, John Corn, Salmon Goodenough, Allen Rice, Austin
Palmer, Samuel Stephenson, James Weeks, William Alden and
John George. The witnesses for the State were, Joseph Arm-
strong and Andrew Donnally. The verdict was "guilty" and Bram-
let was fined |6 and the costs. Singulary enough, one of the
jurors, Austin Palmer, had settled a little affair of his own with
the court, just before taking his seat in the jury box. He had been
indicted for assaulting Andrew Frazee, of Milton township, on
August 10, 1816, entered his plea of "guilty" and had been fined $12
and the costs. These affairs of honor were very common among
the sturdy backwoodsmen, who brooked no insult.
OTHER BUSINESS— The only other transaction of interest
at this term was the appointment of Dr. Gabriel McNeal as sur-
veyor of Jackson county for the term of five years. There were
no resident attorneys in Jackson at that time, and a foreign attor-
ney had to be apjDointed prosecutor. The attorneys in attendance
at this term of court, according to the records, were Joseph Sill,
Richard Douglass and N. K. Clough, all of Chillicothe. It was the
custom then, for the attorneys to travel the circuit with the court.
This term closed August 14, 1816.
THE FIRST FALL ELECTION— The voters of Jackson
■county were called upon in October, 1816, to vote for State and dis-
trict officers, and for county officers for the long terms. The
county had been divided by this time into eight townships, viz:
Bloomfield, Clinton, Franklin, Jackson, Lick, Madison, Milton and
Scioto. Two hundred and fiftv-two votes were cast. The eandi-
116 History of Jackson County.
dates for governor were Thomas Worthington and James Dunlap.
Wortliington received 120 votes and Dunlap 132, but the former
was elected. The vote for congressman stood as follows: Joseph
Kerr, 72; Levi Barber, 125; John A. Fulton, 12; Samuel Monett, 17;
Henry Brush, 41. Jackson county was then in the Third con-
gressional district, and Levi Barber was elected from the district.
Two years afterward. Brush, mentioned above, was elected, but
in 1820, Barber again regained his seat for this district. For State
senator, Robert Lucas received 107 votes and David Ridgeway 150
votes. The senatorial district was then composed of the counties
of Gallia, Jackson, Pike and Scioto. Ridgeway was from Gallia.
Lucas was from Pike and he was elected. The vote for representa'
tive stood: Jared Strong, 171; George L. Crookham, 89; Guthrie^
5. The legislative district consisted of Pike and Jackson, and
Strong was elected. He thus became the first representative of
Jackson county. He was a citizen of the county. His early
history is unknown, but it is said that he moved to the Salt works
from what is now Vinton county. He early built a mill on Salt
creek below Jackson, which was known by his name for many
years. He was the statesman of the county, for he was re-elected
in 1817, and again in 1819, 1822 and 1823. At the first term of court
he was appointed foreman of the grand jury. He became one of
the contractors for building the first jail, and he was interested
in building the first court house. He was thus foremost in all
public affairs. He died early, else he might have become much
more prominent in county affairs and might have represented the
county in congress. His tombstone stands in the old graveyard
near the new school building and the inscription is as follows:
"Sacred to the memory of Jared Strong, who departed this life
December 20, 1827, aged forty-five years, seven months and ten
days." Crookham, his opponent at the first election, has been
already spoken of at some length. There was a hot contest for
sheriff. Joseph Armstrong, a jolly, good-natured citizen, with con-
siderable executive ability, was pushed by friends in order to try
to secure the defeat of Welch, whose record was not of the best.
The vote stood Welch, 144; Armstrong, 127. Welch's triumph was
History of Jackson County. 117
of short duration, for he was compelled by circumstances, to leave
the county a short while afterward. The vote for coroner stood
as follows: John Stockham, 94; Peleg Potter, 49; John Gillespie,
31; William Jolly, 24; John Kite, 1. Gillaspie was thus defeated
for re-election. There was a spirited contest for commissioner, the
vote standing as follows: John Stephenson, 185; Emanuel Traxler,
165; R. G. Hanna, 153; John Brown, 112; John Delay, 24; Samuel
Hall, 27; John Scott, 21. Stephenson and Traxler were re-elected,
but Brown was defeated by R. G. Hanna. The Commissioners held
their first meeting November 11, 1816. The first official act of the
Board was to determine by lot who should get the long terms.
Traxler was the luckiest, and drew the three-year term; Stephen-
son drew the two-year term. Hanna was re-elected in 1817, and in
1820 he was elected to the Legislature for the counties of Jackson
and Pike. He continued one of the most prominent citizens of
the county while he lived.
EARLY CRIMINAL RECORD.— The first settlers at the
Licks being squatters, many of them were lawless men. Davis
Mackley, who knew something of the early times, wrote as fol-
lows: There was no law administered nearer than Portsmouth or
Chillicothe, and as many of the men around the salt furnaces
were the worst type of adventurers, and as whisky was used in
large quantities, it is not strange that fighting was common, and
that murder was committed occasionally. In the year 1803 a man
named Fitzgerald was murdered by one Jack Brandon, and about
the same time a man named Squires was murdered by one Pleasant
Webb, a notorious and dangerous character. He had been a Tory
during the Revolutionary war, and was the terror of the early set-
tlers. He was known by the nickname of Pompey. I could not
learn that either of these murderers was brought to justice or pun-
ishment. All that part of Jackson from Pearl street to and beyond
the fair ground was originally a wet and marshy place, with large
maple, elms, birch and other trees, with an undergrowth of alder,
wild rose and other bushes. After a time it was cleared and the
timber cut, except one of the original maple trees, which yet stands
118 History of Jackson County.
on the i-ear of Samuel Stevenson's lot, a short distance north of
the schoolhouse. After thjs portion of the present town had been
cleared, it was enclosed with a worm fence, and was an old pasture
field seventy years ago. This field w^as the place where the fighters
usually went to settle their drunken quarrels. Judge Salter, of
Portsmouth, worked at the licks when he was a boy, and he once
told me that a day scarcely passed without one or more fights in
this field, and that blood could be seen almost any time either on.
the battle ground or where the ougilists had crossed the low rail
fence when retiring from the field of battle. Whisky and peach
brandy were always in great demand about the licks. A man once
came with a yoke of oxen and a small wagon, and a keg of whisky^
which he desired to barter for salt. There happened to be no salt
on hand at the time, but the inhabitants of Purgatory were bound
to have some whisky. They proposed to barter anything they had,,
but the owner of the whisky wanted nothing but salt. They pro-
posed among other things to trade him a calf, but he still refused
and was preparing to leave earl}' next morning. During the night
they caught the calf, tied it and put it into the wagon, which was-
a covered one, and the owner drove off before daylight next morn-
ing. After he had got some two miles from the licks, several men,
followed him and pretended they had a search warrant, and ac-
cused him of stealing the calf. Of course he denied it, and told
them to search his wagon. One of the partj' raised the cover, when,
sure enough there was the calf. The pretended officer then com-
pelled the man to haul the calf back to Purgatory, and treat the
crowd to all the whisky they desired before they would release him
from the pretended prosecution. Even after the county was-
organized, drinking whisky and fighting continued to be the prin-
cipal diversions of many of the settlers. All the criminal prose-
cutions at the August and November terms of court in 1S16 were
for fighting. The men indicted plead guilty in nearly all cases,
for such a plea established his record as a fighter. Many of the
fights were fistic duels, both parties having agreed to fight at
fisticuffs, but it not infrequently happened that a ruffian would
seek to whip every man that came in his way, in order to win a
History of Jackson County. 119
reputation as a bully. At the April term, 1817, prosecutions for
violations of the liquor law began. The first indictment was
found against William Howe. It was charged that he did, on
January 10, 1817, barter, sell, retail and deliver, for money, cer-
tain spiritual liquors or strong drink, not cider or beer, by less
quantity than one quart, to-wit: One-half pint of whisky to James
Mail, without having first obtained a license therefor. He plead
guilty, and was fined |2 and the costs. This kind of a conviction
was then considered as not in the least reflecting upon the man
convicted. Even the very best men in the community were occa-
sionally indicted for such an offense, and they invariably plead
guilty. A study of the Court Record almost convinces one that
such convictions were regarded as good jokes, for even the court
officers were indicted in turn. At the July term, 1817, Abraham
Welch was indicted for three sales of half-pints of whisky, and
one of the sales had been made to the foreman of the grand jury.
Welch was always in trouble with the courts, although he was
the sheriff. At the July term, 1817, he was indicted for assault-
ing one Valentine Pancake on January 10, 1817. He plead guilty,
of course, and was fined |30 and the costs. He was also required
to give a peace bond in the sum of $250. A riot that occurred at
the Jackson township spring election in 1817 furnished almost as
much grist as that at the Bloomfield town house the year before.
It began with a fistic duel between Robert Darling and Joseph
Hartley. Hartley was so badly vanquished that his brother Philip
went to his rescue, only to be pummeled in turn. Darling was
indicted for both offenses, the wording in the latter case being as
follows: ''Robert Darling, unlawfully, riotously and routously, did
beat and wound and illtreat, and other wounds, to the said Philip
Hartley in Jackson township."
THE FIRST CONVICT— The first person sent from this
county to the penitentiary was Burgess Squires, convicted at the
May term, 1817, of issuing counterfeit money. There was a great
scarcity of the circulating medium at the licks at all times, and
this led some adventurous souls to increase the circulation by
120 History of Jackson County.
issuing counterfeit bank money to a considerable amount. There
was no bank here, and no persons handling money in sufficient
quantities to become familiar with the currency of the country.
This made the passing of counterfeit money that much the easier,
for the victimized merchant, tavernkeeper or official would not
learn of the imposition that had been practiced upon him, until
he tried to pass the money at Chillicothe or elsewhere. But ex-
perience is a dear school, and the business men of Jackson began
to be on the lookout for bad money. Andrew Uonnally, the tavern-
keeper, was the first person to cause an arrest. It seems that one
Nimrod Kirk gave him six notes, signed by I. Ross and N. Mercer,
and each payable for 50 cents in specie or bank currency at Browns-
ville. He received these notes March 1, 1817, and a few days
later he learned that they were forged. When the grand jury
met at the July term he laid the case before them, and Kirk was
indicted. He plead not guilty, and the case came on for trial.
Kirk was ably defended and was acquitted July 2-3, 1817. The
next day the trial of Burgess Squires began. The indictment
charged that Burgess Squires, on March 10, 1817, did unlawfully
utter and publish as true and genuine a false, forged and counter-
feit bank note, purporting to be drawn and payable for |10 by
the Bank of Pennsylvania; also one false, forged and counterfeit
bank note payable for |1 by the Bank of New Lisbon. It appears
that he had paid these notes to Abraham Welch, the sheriff of
the county, who, together with Dr. N. W. Andrews, Francis Hol-
land and Levi Mercer, was a witness against him. Burgess was
represented by Hon. N. K. Clough, of Chillicothe, while Hon.
Joseph Sill, of the same place, acted as prosecutor. Burgess plead
not guilty, and a jury was empaneled. The jurors were Cornelius
Culp, Anthony Howard, James Dempsey, William Reed, Joseph
Armstrong, Jared Strong, Moses Gillespie, Alexander Poor, Peter
Williams, William Grove, Daniel Harris and Reuben Long. Some
prominent men were on this jury. Armstrong was direc-
tor of the town of Jackson and Strong was the representative in
the Ohio Legislature. The jury returned the verdict "guilty." All
of Clough's efforts to save his client were unavailing, and Squires
History of Jackson County. 121
was sentenced to five years in the penitentiary, twenty-four hours
of that time to be in a solitary cell. The conviction of Squires led
to some very ugly talk about others, even Welch, the prosecuting
witness against him, and another county officer, still more prom-
inent. Welch was finally indicted for counterfeiting, and gave
bond in the sum of $500, with J. W. Ross, Francis Holland and
John Graham as securities. At the next term of court Welch's
case. was called, but he did not appear, and his bond was declared
forfeited, but it was respited one more term. On Monday, March
23, 1818, the case was called the last time, but no Welch appeared,
and the bond was forfeited. Welch had left the county and never
returned here. The conviction of Squires and the departure of
Welch put an end to the circulation of counterfeit money in
Jackson.
THE COUNTY SEAT— The organization of a new county in-
volved the establishment of a county seat. The largest village
in the county was Poplar Row, and its central location made it
suitable for the seat of justice. But the land on which it stood
belonged to the National Government, and all that the Legisla*
ture could do at the time of the organization of the county was
to establish the house of Judge William Givens as the temporary
seat of justice. The matter of securing the consent of the General
Government to lay out a town in the Scioto Sale Reserve, and to
sell lots to raise funds to erect county buildings was pushed at
once after the erection of the new county, and Congress passed
a law April 16, 1816, which authorized the state to sell one section
of the reserve for that purpose. But while these matters were in
progress a county building was a necessity at each term of court
and at each session of the commissioners. The house of William
Givens was used by the courts during 1816, but the commissioners
met at other houses to suit their convenience. At the April term,
1817, court was held at the house of Dr. N. W. Andrews, the clerk.
No reason is known for the removal from Givens' house. At the
July and October terms court was held at the house of Andrew
Donnally, the tavernkeeper. It happened once or twice that broils
122 History of Jackson County.
would occur in tlie barroom while court was in session in the
parlor, and the oiienders were brought belore the court red-handed.
These interruptions drove the court from Donnally's house, and
after that it held its sessions at the houses of Joseph W. Ross^
Charles O'Xeil, the Widow Richmond and perhaps others, until
the new court house was ready for occupancy, which did not occur
for several years. When the Legislature met in the winter of
ISIG-ISIT Representative Jared Strong worked hard to get the
General Assembly to take action in accordance with the law
passed by Congress, authorizing the sale of a section of the Re-
serve, and on January 14, 1817, the following law was passed:
Whereas, It is provided by an act of Congress approved April
10, 181G, that the Legislature of the State of Ohio is authorized
and empowered to cause to be selected and sold in such manner
and on such terms and conditions as they may by law direct, any
one section not exceeding the quantity of six hundred and forty
acres, of the tract of land of six miles square reserved for the
benefit of this state, at the Scioto salt springs, in said county of
Jackson; provided, that the section so selected shall not include
the said salt springs, and that the money accruing from the sale
of the aforesaid section shall be applied to the erection of a court
house or other public buildings thereon, for the use of the county
of Jackson, in this state; and whenever the selection and sale of
the said section of land shall have been made, and the same shall
be duly certified to the commissioner of the general land office, a
patent shall be granted by the President of the United States for
the said section in trust to such person or persons as the Legisla-
ture shall appoint and authorize to sell and execute titles to the
purchasers of the land aforesaid; therefore,
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the
State of Ohio, That commissioners shall be appointed to fix the
seat of justice in the county of Jackson as is pointed out in the
act entitled, "An act establishing seats of justice," passed the
28th day of March, 1803, and the said commissioners, when met in
the county of Jackson for the purpose of fixing the seat of justice
History of Jackson County. 123;
for said county, shall select any one section, not exceeding the
quantity of six hundred and forty acres, of the six miles square
reserved by congress for the use of this state at the Scioto salt
springs; which section shall not include the said salt springs, and
shall not be on either boundary of said township or tract of land,,
and when selected it shall be the duty of the commissioners to
point out thereon such spot as in their opinion will be most eligible
for the seat of justice in said county, and shall make report
thereof to the next Court of Common Pleas, to be held in said
county agreeably to the provisions of the before recited act.
Section 2. Be it further enacted, That there shall be a town,
laid off on such section, to be known by the name of Jackson, and
a director appointed by joint resolution of both houses of the Gen-
eral Assembly and commissioned by the Governor, who shall hold
his office until the duties required by this act shall be performed,,
if so long he behaves well, and jjrevious to entering on the duties
of his office he shall take an oath or affirmation faithfully to dis-
charge the duty assigned to him by this act, and also shall enter
into bond, with one or more securities in such sum as the Court of
Common Pleas in said county may direct, made payable to the-
Treasurer of Jackson county and his successors in office, condi-
tioned for the faithful paying over and accounting for all moneys
that may come into his hands by virtue of his office as director.
Section 3. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty
of the director, on being duly notified by the Clerk of the Court
of Common Pleas of Jackson county, that the commissioners have
selected a section and pointed out thereon the seat of justice, to
proceed to lay off one-half of said section into a suitable number
of in and out lots at the places selected by said commissioners, of
such a size as he may think most advantageous, no one of which
shall exceed ten acres, and make out an accurate plat of the
same, and cause it to be recorded in the Eecorder's office of Jack-
son county, and shall proceed to sell the said town lots at public
sale, giving at least thirty days' notice of the time of such sale
in the newspaper printed at Gallipolis and one of the papers
124 History of Jackson County.
printed at Chillicotlie, which sale when commenced shall continue
from day to day until all the lots are* sold, which shall be on the
following conditions: One-fourth part of the purchase money to be
paid at the time of sale, one-fourth part in twelve months, and
the. balance in two annual payments, the purchaser or purchasers
giving his or their bond with good and sufficient security to the
director thereof, and if not punctually paid at the time the money
shall become due, to bear interest from the time of sale; the
•director shall give each purchaser of a lot or lots a certificate of
purchase, specifying therein the number of the lots by him pur-
chased, and that a conveyance will be made when the last install-
ment shall be paid, and when the lots are all sold the director
shall deposit in the office of the Secretary of State an accurate
plat of said town, designating the section on which the same is
laid off, accompanied with a list of the sale, which shall be filed
in said office, and the Governor thereupon shall certify the same
to the commissioner of the general land office of the United States,
and procure a patent for such section in the name of the director,
and his successors in office, in trust, who shall make conveyances
to the purchasers of lots on their complying with the terms of sale.
Section 4. Be it further enacted. That the half of the sec-
tion of land so, 'as aforesaid, selected, as shall not be laid off into
town lots, agreeably to the provisions of the third section of this
act, shall be and remain under the direction of the Court of Com-
mon Pleas of said county of Jackson, and the director of said
town shall make sale thereof at such time and under such regula-
tions as said court may direct.
Section 5. Be it further enacted, That the director shall be
entitled to receive $2 per day for each day he may be necessarily
employed in the discharge of his duty as director, to be allowed
by the commissioners of Jackson county, and to be paid out of the
county treasury.
Section 6. Be it further enacted, That all moneys for the
sale of lots in said town shall be collected by the director and paid
History of Jackson County. 125-
into the county treasury of the county of Jackson; and the com-
missioners of said county, after defraying the expense incurred
by the director and his fees, shall apply the balance to erecting a
court house and other public buildings for the said county, and
for no other purpose.
Section 7. And be it further enacted. That if any person or
persons having heretofore settled on said section of land so as
aforesaid selected by the commissioners to be sold under the law
of the United States, for the purposes aforesaid, having leased
the lot or lots upon which they may reside of this state, and whose
lease will expire on the 1st day of March, 1817, if on the sale of
the aforesaid lots by the director of said town the lesees do not
become the purchasers, then in that case the purchasers of such
lots shall pay to such lessee of such lot the price of the building*
erected on said lot, to be valued by the commissioners of said
county, or any two of them.
COMMISSIONEKS AND DIRECTOR " APPOINTED— The-
selection of the commissioners to fix the seat of justice under this
act, and of the director, was made by joint resolutions, which are
as follows:
Resolved, by the General Assembh' of the State of Ohio, That
Samuel Reed of Pike county, Lewis Newsom of Gallia county and
Henry Bartlett of Athens county be, and they are, hereby ap-
pointed to fix the seat of justice in the county of Jackson.
January 24, 1817.
Resolved, by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, That
Joseph Armstrong of Jackson county be, and he is, hereby ap-
pointed director of the town of Jackson, in said county.
Januarv 27, 1817.
SELECTING THE SITE— The commissioners had a notice
posted at the Salt Reserve February 9, 1817, announcing that they
126 History of Jackson County.
would attend March 18, 1817, for the selection of a town site. On
the appointed day a large assemblage of salt boilers, planters,
hunters and trappers greeted them at Donnally's tavern. They
found their duty a very simple affair. Nature had long before
prepared a most beautiful town site, and all that it needed was
the official sanction of Ohio's agents. The report of the com-
missioners was laid before Judge John Thompson on Monday,
April 7, 1817, the opening day of the April term of Court of Com-
mon Pleas, and was as follows:
The commissioners appointed by joint resolution of the Legis-
lature of Ohio for fixing the seat of justice in the county of
Jackson, after being notified of their appointment, and the inhab-
itants having due notice of the time and place of their meeting,
entered on the duty assigned them by the Legislature, and after
•examining different sections of land in the six miles square re"
served by Congress for the use of this, state, do report that they
are unanimously of opinion that section numbered 29 is the section
thej' have chosen for the use of said county of Jackson, and that
they are unanimously of opinion that the north end of said section,
south from Salt creek and immediately back of the houses occu-
pied by N. W. Andrews, Mr. George and Mr. A. Welsh, upon the
highland, is the most eligible place for the seat of justice in said
•county of Jackson. All of which is respectfully submitted. Given
under our hands at Poplar Row, Lick township, the 18th day of
March, 1817.
HENRY BARTLETT,
SAMUEL REED,
LEWIS NEWSOM, Commissioners.
NEW TOWN LAID OUT— This report was approved by the
court and ordered filed. The clerk was then directed to notify
the director to give bond and qualify. Joseph Armstrong came
into court April 8, 1817, presented his bond in the sum of .flO,000
with John Stephenson, Emanuel Traxler, Robert G. Hanna and
Andrew Boggs as securities, which was approved, and he was
History of Jackson County. 127
thereupon authorized -to proceed to the execution of his duties as
director. His first duty was to lay out the new town. Surveyor
McNeal did not care to undertake the work, and the services of
Judge Joseph Fletcher of Gallipolis were secured. He was assisted
by N. W. Andrews and David Radcliff. Joseph W. Ross, Francis
Ory and George Riley acted as chain carriers, and the stakes were
made by James Chapman and a son of Sheriff Welch. The stone
for the corners of the public square were furnished by Major John
James. The public square was surveyed first, and was laid out
with reference to the houses designated by the state commis-
sioners. The house of John George stood on the lot facing the
Ruf tannery, and that of A. Welch on the site of the residence of
Jacob W. Beyron. The sides of the square determined the bearing
-of the streets. The remainder of the half section was divided into
137 inlots, 36 outlots, a common and the necessary streets and
alleys. The survey occupied eight days, during which the survey-
ing party was boarded with John George, whose account was
.62 1-2. Judge Fletcher was jjaid |60 for his services.
SALE OF LOTS — Next came the lot sale. It began June 2,
1817^ and continued ten days. J. W. Ross was auctioneer, and N.
W. Andrews and Richard Johnson served as clerks. A large num-
ber of land speculators from Ross, Pike, Scioto and Gallia counties
were in attendance, and the bidding on desirable lots was lively.
Inlot 1, the southeast corner of Main and Portsmouth streets,
w^as bid in by Elisha Fitch of Ross county, who also secured the
Commercial bank corner, paying |107 for the first, and $79 for the
other. The four lots facing the public square brought |390. Inlot
5, the Martin corner, was bought by Robert Lucas for $100. Daniel
Hoffman bid in the Gibson corner, paying $141 for inlot 52, and
■$102 for inlot 51 adjoining. Inlot 35, the Isham corner, was run
up to $145, and fell to Reason Darby. The liveliest bidding was
on the improved lots on Poplar Row, but the majority of them
fell to the lessees. Inlot 110, the McKitterick corner, was bought
by Major John James for $140. John George paid $120 for the lot
facing the tannerv. Daniel Hoffman bid $165 for inlot 116, the
128 History of Jackson County.
Methodist corner, on Portsmouth and Wat^r streets. The south-
west corner on the same street was run up by speculators to $200,
in order to secure the tavern standing upon it. Andrew Donnally
was the winner. Abraham Welch was forced to pay |102 for the
Beyron lot, where his house then stood. The highest bidding was
on inlot 120, the northeast corner of Portsmouth and Water streets.
Benjamin Kiger finally offered |225 and became the purchaser.
Outlot 1 was bought by Samuel W. Blagg, who bid |200. Eleven
inlots and one outlot failed to sell. The sum realized from the
sale of lots was $7,196.75. Whisky was free during the sale, and
was furnished for the county by Andrew Donnally. His bill
amounted to |25.75. The expense account of the survey and sale
amounted to |.349.95. The balance was to be devoted to the erec-
tion of public buildings for the use of the county. And now a
word about Joseph Armstrong:
JACKSON'S FIRST DIRECTOR— The most noted personage
buried in Mt. Zion cemetery was Joseph Armstrong, who died Feb-
ruary 4, 1857, aged 77 years and 4 days. He came to the Scioto
salt works when a young man, and was at once recognized as a
leading spirit. In 1817 he was honored by being appointed the
first director of the town of Jackson. Under his supervision, the
new town was surveyed and the lots sold, as already related. In
1819 he had the south half of the town laid off and the lots sold.
He then secured a patent from the General Government for the
whole section, No. 29, which was issued February 16, 1820, and
signed by James Monroe. Armstrong and the Commissioners had
a difference about certain affairs connected with his office, and he
resigned July 3, 1822. Daniel Hoffman was appointed in his place^
and he served until November 22, 1826, when he resigned, and
Alexander Miller was appointed. When Armstrong resigned the
directorship, he did not go out of oflSce. In the fall of 1816 he had
been a prominent candidate for sheriff, and was beaten by Abra-
ham Welch by a few votes onl3\ The latter got into trouble soon
after and left the count}', and in the fall of 1817 Armstrong was
elected sheriff over a number of opponents. He was re-elected
History of Jackson County. 129
and served until 1823. He was elected again in 1828
and served two terms. John Duncan, a friend, was
elected next, but after his incumbency Armstrong was elected for
a third period. Altogether he served more years as sheriff than
any of his successors. When out of office he was frequently
deputy, so that he may be said to have been in virtual charge of
the sheriff"s office for about twenty years. He served as tax col-
lector many years, and as road commissioner more than once. He
was the executive head of the county during the years of its
organization, and knew, and was known to all the citizens of the
county. He had three sous, Stephen, James and Joseph, but none
of his descendants live in the county now.
THE FIRST JAHj — The Commissioners were in session dur-
ing the first week of the sale, and when they found the lots selling
lively, they determined to make arrangements for building a jail.
Accordingly, they ordered, on June 4, 1817, that notices be posted,
"advertising the letting of the building of a jail for this county,
on the 4th day of July next." Other business occupied the time of
the Commissioners on the glorious Fourth, and the matter was
deferred to July 5. Joseph W. Ross was appointed to cry the sale.
There was only one bid, and the contract was let for $3,000. John
George was the nominal bidder, but the jail w^as built by Ashley
Gibbs, who, together with Jared Strong and Levi Mercer, became
security for George, The work was pushed rapidly, and the com-
pleted jail was received by the commissioners February 7, 1818.
It was a log building, "thirty feet front and twenty feet deep."
It was two stories high, with four rooms and a hall on each floor.
The walls of the prison part consisted of two tiers of oak logs, each
a foot square. The walls were painted white, the roof and shutters
Sjmnish brown, and the casings lead color. No prisoner ever
escaped from it. The Associate Judges, at a special court held
February 25, 1818, ordered that "the jail bounds for this county
extend four hundred yards each way from the jail of said county."
The completion of the jail relieved the county of the heavy ex-
pense of guarding prisoners. Up to that time all prisoners bad
130 History of Jackson County.
been fed at Andrew Donnally's ordinary, and guarded by deputy
sheriffs. John George, the contractor for the building of the jail,
was in trouble with the courts all the time, and the expense of
guarding him in the fall of 1817 amounted to |33.75. The guard-
ing of Peter Marshall for a few days in August, 1817, cost $39.75,
and he escaped after all. The further sum of $25 was paid as a
reward to William Jolly for his recapture. The following extracts
from the Commissioners' Journal relating to the lot sale and the
letting of the contract for building the jail throw additional light
on the business methods of the early days. It will be noticed
that the sale was worked for all that was in it by the inhabitants
of Poplar Row:
JULY 4, 1817 — This day, according to appointment, the Com-
missioners of Jackson county met for the purpose of selling out
the building of a jail for the county of Jackson, legal notice hav-
ing been given by advertisement at our annual meeting in June,
and also for settling and receiving a statement of the sale of one-
half section of land belonging to the county of Jackson of Joseph
Armstrong, director. This meeting was held at the seat of justice
in Jackson county, in the house of Andrew Donnally; present,
Emanuel Traxler, John Stephenson and Robert G. Hanna, Com-
missioners, and Kathaniel ^^^ Andrews, clerk.
This day Joseph Armstrong presented a statement of the sale
with the number of lots belonging to the town of Jacksoai, to-wit:
Inlots 137 and outlots 36, one outlet, No. 36, out of which number
was reserved for the use of this county until next sale, being a
fraction. Eleven inlots were also reserved until the next sale,
to-wit: Nos. 64, 66, 74, 78, 85, 92, 95, 96, 98, 99, 136.
The balance of the lots sold, the first installment of which
amounted to $1,799.31 1-4, the total amount $7,196.75.
The director, Joseph Armstrong, then presented the follow-
ing accounts as expenses of the survey, and the expenses of the
sale, and also his own account of the number of days employed
up to the present time.
History of Jackson County. 131
Ordered, that Judge Fletcher be allowed for surveying the
town of Jackson, etc., |60, and that an order issue for the same
payable to Joseph Armstrong,
Ordered, also, that the following accounts be allowed, and an
order issue for the same, payable to Joseph Armstrong.
Three days taken up by the director in employing a sur-
veyor, |(5.
Four days taken up in getting hand bills and advertisements
printed by the director in Gallipolis and Chillicothe, $8.
The printing of the hand bills and advertisements, |3.25.
William Ransom, for going to Chillicothe to surveyor gen-
eral's office, for the field notes of the section, |3.
Abraham Welch, for the use of a horse in going for said field
notes, and a boy one-half day making stakes, |1.
Nathaniel W. Andrews, for two days and a half assisting sur-
veyor, 12.50.
John George's account for boarding in the time of the survey,
119.62 1-2.
Hugh Poor, for two hands employed seven days, making
stakes, etc., and hauling plank for a shed for clerks, $11.50.
John James, for the use of a boy and one-horse wagon for
hauling stakes and stone for the corners of the public square, and
a hand one day in making stakes, |6.50.
Joseph W. Ross, for carrying chain three days, |2.25.
Francis Ory, do. six days, |4.50.
George Riley, do. four days, |3.
David Radcliff, assisting surveyor, |2.75.
James Chapman, two days making stakes, |1.5().
Joseph Armstrong, for two days taken up in employing
hands, $4.
Do, do, to eight days attendance on surveying the town, |16.
132 History of Jackson County.
Kichard Johnson, employed to go to Chillicothe for blank
notes and certificates, $3.
J. Nashe, for printing blank bonds and certificates, $10.25.
Absalom Wells, for going to Gallipolis for the plat of the
town, 13.
J. Armstrong, for ten days attendance on the sale of lots, |20.
Richard Johnson, for acting in the time of the sale 10 days
as clerk, |10.
Nath'l W. Andrews, do. do., |10.
Do. do. do., five days after the sale, |5.
Joseph Armstrong, for five days employed in settling sale
business, |10.
Andrew Donnally's account for whisky in time of sale, |25.75.
John James' account for boarding hands time of sale |14.12 1-2.
Joseph W. Ross, for crying sale ten days, |17.75.
Joseph Armstrong, to two days employed in getting hand bills
and advertisements printed, |4.
To one-half paper of pins, 20 cents.
For one quart whisky for hands erecting shed for clerks in
time of sale 37 1-2 cents.
To writing paper, three quires, |11.12 1-2.
Being the total amount of this order, |289.95.
THE FIRST COURT HOUSE— After the completion of the
jail the Commissioners found themselves without enough money
to build a Court House at once, but on November 5, 1819, they
gave notice that the sale of the contract for building would be
made December 4, 1819. The proceedings of that date as they
appear on the old Journal are as follows: December 4, 1819. — The
Court House in the town of Jackson was let according to law,
and Elisha Fitch, of the county of Ross, became the purchaser
History of Jackson County. 133
at |4,061, he being the lowest bidder; wtereupon, the said Elisha
Fitch, together with Levi Mercer, William Givens, Hooper Hurst
and Jared Strong, his securities, entered into bond conditioned for
the faithful performance of the work. The building of the Court
House occupied several years. There was trouble with the con-
tractors, and as late as June 4, 1821, the roof had not been put
on, for an order of that date reads as follows: "The roof to be
what is called a hipped roof, and the cupalow to be in proportion
with that in Piketon and finished in the same manner; likewise
the octagon to be of the same size and form of that of Piketon."
The finishing of the interior took several years more, for one of
the contracts for that part of the work was not let until July
16, 1825. The building never was entirely finished. A bell was
put on in the Fifties, and in 186D the old structure burned to the
ground.
THE FIRST MERCHANTS— French and English traders vis-
ited the licks during the Indian occupation, and after the salt
boilers took possession, traders became expected and regular vis-
itors. The memory of these pioneer agents of commerce has passed
away. The first merchant at the licks of whom there is a record
was Daniel Hoffman, to whom a license was issued November 5,
1816, by the Court of Common Pleas, ''to vend merchandise other
than the growth and manufacture of the United States." The
tax on a merchant's license was |15 per annum. In order to give
an idea of the scale upon which this pioneer merchant did business
the following entry from the Commissioners' Journal is inserted
here :
June 27, 1818 : — This day the Commissioners of Jackson county
met for the purpose of valuing the house in which Daniel Hoffman
now lives and at present keeps store; present, John Stephenson
and Robert G. Hanna. Having carefully examined the said house,
with all the loose plank on the lot, counter and other work for the
store, with all its appurtenances, we do appraise the whole to be
worth |175. The house referred to was newly built and stood on
the Gibson House corner. The second store at the licks was
134 History of Jackson County.
started after the county seat bad been located. It was owned by
Teter Apple & Company, and was licensed April 8, 1817. Daniel
Burley, the third merchant, took out a license May 12, 1818. George
Dovenet took out a peddler's license June 27 of the same year.
The firm of Hugh l*oor c^ Company, consisting of Hugh Poor,
Horace Wilcox and Edmund Kicliiuoiid. was licensed July 15,
1818, and the firm of Strong & Givcns, consisting of Jared Strong
and William Givens, was licensed September 20, following. The
next year, James & Hiirst started a store, and the little town was
well supplied with merchants.
THE FIRST BANKRUPT— The Court Journal shows that
Walter Murdock was the first bankrupt in the county. He peti-
tioned the Court of Common Pleas on June 30, 1818, for "benefit
of act relieving insolvent debtors." The court ordered that notice
be published in a Chillicothe paper named The Supporter.
TEACHERS' EXAMINERS— Little attention was paid in the
early days of Jackson county to schools and education. The strug-
gle for life was too hard, the farmers w^ere scattered too far apart
in the woods to organize school districts, and the population at
Jackson, the only village in the count}, was not of a character
that appreciated the advantages of an education. The village
w^as much like the mining camp of later days, a large proportion
of the inhabitants being single and transients. The first teacher
we hear of w-as William Wilds, who taught a school about 1820
in a log house built for the purpose on the Adam Sell place, near
Coalton. James H. Darling, who was the last survivor of the
pupils of that school, furnished me the following particulars con-
cerning it: The school house was a low log building, with puncheon
floor, a large fireplace at one end and a wiudow on each side. The
windows had been constructed by cutting out the lower half of
one log and the ui»i.ei- half of the log under it for a distance of
several feet, thus making a nan-ow slit, over which greased paper
was pasted. Hoisting was a matter of impossibility in the case
of these windows, but the securing of ventilation w^as an easy
History of Jackson County. 135
matter, for paper was cheaper than even the cheap glass of today,
and a diamond was not needed to cut an artistic looking hole in it.
The only furniture in this school house were the benches for the
scholars to sit on, which had been constructed by setting slabs on
legs, and a stool constructed in a like manner, which was used by
the teacher. The latter was always equipped with a bundle of
switches cut from a hickory thicket nearby, and Mr. Wilds had
the reputation of never sparing the rod. The oldest scholars read
the Bible and studied arithmetic and writing. The smaller pupils
studied the spelling book, and mischief. At Christmas time the
big boys and girls locked the teacher out, and he capitulated
gracefully by agreeing to treat. This old custom, which prevailed
from time immemorial in the western country, survived in this
county until 1877. The last case I can recall occurred at the Oak
Hill school, in Madison township, just before the holidays of that
yearj when Hon. T. J. Harrison was barred out on a certain noon
intermission. He had gone for a walk, as was his custom, and
when he returned and found the door locked, he stepped back into
the play ground, picked up a fence rail, which had been used as a
base in playing "blackman," jjlaced it on his shoulder, and then
made a run for the door. The rail battering ram crushed in the
door, and Harrison was master of the situation. He taught out
the term and then resigned. But he put an end to the custom
of '^locking out." After the county had been organized some ten
years, there came an educational awakening. The cause is not
known. The departure of the salt boilers may have had some-
thing to do with it. Be that as it may, one of the results was
the appointment of a committee by the Court of Common Pleas
to examine applicants for certificates to teach. The appointment
was made June 8, 182G. This first Board of Examiners consisted
of the three best informed men in the county, viz: George L.
Crookham, Daniel Hoffman and Alexander Miller. This was the
initiative of the common school system in the county.
AUTUMNAL FEVERS— Nearly all writers neglect to men-
tion perhaps the greatest trial of the pioneers. Every family that
136 History of Jackson County.
moved into the woods knew that the move meant death to one or
more of its members. Finley says: The new settlements were
regularly visited with autumnal fevers. They were of the bilious
type, and sometimes the symptoms resembled those of yellow
fever. Billious intermittents, or fever and ague, prevailed to a great
extent. They were supposed to have been caused by the effluvia
arising from the decomposition of the luxuriant vegetation which
grew so abundantly everywhere. These fevers were attended with
great mortality, and the sufferings occasioned by them were
intense. Often there was not one member of the family able to
hel£ the others, and instances occurred in which the dead lay
unburied for days, because no one could report. The extensive
prevalence of sickness, however, did not deter immigration. A
desire to possess the rich lands overcame all fears of sickness, and
the living tide rolled on heedless of death. In the summer of 1798
the bloody flux raged as an epidemic with great violence, and for
a while threatened to depopulate the town of Chillicothe and its
vicinity. Medical skill was exerted to its utmost, but all to no
purpose, as but very few who were attacked recovered. From
eight to ten were buried per day. The Scioto salt works, located
in a low swampy valley, was perhaj^s the sickliest place in South-
ern Ohio, and the death rate was very high. Even visitors who
came here after salt in 1798 sickened and died. There was hardly
any hope for any one attacked, for there were no physicians
located here until 1810, when Dr. Gabriel McNeal came from Vir-
ginia. For eight years after the epidemic of 1798 there was a
comparative respite, but according to Atwater, in the autumn of
1806 a fever of the remittent type made its appearance, extending
from the Ohio river to Lake Erie. Its symptoms were chills in the
forenoon, between 10 and 11 o'clock, which were succeeded by
violent fever, afterwards, in an hour and a half. The fever con-
tinued to rage till about 6 o'clock in the evening. During the
exacerbation great pain or oppression was felt in the brain, liver,
spleen or stomach, and frequently in all these organs. The sweat-
ing stage took place about midnight. By daylight there was a
respite, but not a total exemption from the urgency of these symp-
History of Jackson County. 137
toms. The first cases mentioned afforded no opportunity for inter-
posing tonics. From information given us by many in the circle
around Chillicothe, one-sixth part of the inhabitants were swept
off by death. In 1813 and 1814 there were like epidemics. But
perhaps the worst of all was that of 1823. Heavy and long con-
tinued rains commenced about the 14th of November, 1822, and
continued almost daily until the 1st of the ensuing June. It is
computed by some persons that the country lying between the
Scioto and Miami rivers had the twentieth part of its surface cov-
ered during the months of March, April and May with water. A
fever commenced its ravages and continued its course during the
months of June, July, August, September and during the early
part of October. It was of the remittent type, affecting more or
less, many, perhaps nineteen-twentieths of the people. In 1824
there was a repetition of the epidemic on a smaller scale. The
families living in the valley of Salt creek were visited by another,
but lighter epidemic, again in 1827. This was the last epidemic,
but for nearly 40 years after the settlement of the county many
suffered and died from autumnal fevers. To this cause may be
ascribed the early death of so many of the pioneers. Those
afflicted with any chronic ailment succumbed to these fevers.
THE FIRST DEATHS.— The earliest settlers at the Scioto
salt licks found many charred tree trunks still standing in the
cleared ground on the ridge which is now occupied by the business
part of Jackson. They were so many monuments to white pris-
oners who had died at the stake. The exact number of those un-
fortunates will never be known, but any one that has studied the
history of the sixty years' war between the Ohio Indians and the
white pioneers of the Alleghenies will readily concede that fully
one hundred persons may have perished thus within the present
limits of the city. The large number is thus accounted for. Bands
of Shawanese, Ottawas, Wyandots, Delawares and other Indian
tribes came to the licks every summer to make salt. The drudg-
ery at the kettles was squaw's work, and while the women toiled
and the old warriors smoked, gambled or hunted, parties of young
138 History of Jackson County.
braves made incursions into the Virginia mountains, and brought
back many "scalps, and not a few white prisoners. The boys were
often spared for adoption and tlie women for drudges, but the
majority of the men, in fact, all who failed to win favor with
their captors, were tortured at the stake. These barbarous execu-
tions generally occurred on the high ground on or near the site
of the Public Square. The Indians cut oft" the top of a small
tree, leaving the trunk for a stake, to which the victim was tied.
The torture then began, and did not cease until life was extinct.
These executions were regarded by the Indians as entertainments,
and the tribes expected every returning war party to furnish at
least one victim, especially if the party had lost a man on the
foray. Inasmuch as the licks were the first safe stopping place
after crossing the Ohio, a number of whites must have been tor-
tured here each year, particularly between 1755 and 1785, when
the border warfare was most bitter. It was the Indian custom
to gather the remains of such victims and give them burial, but
the spot has not yet been discovered.
THE OLD GRAVEYARD— The first white settlers that died
at the licks were buried on the hill afterward known as the Ford
hill, not far from the Lutheran church. Later a number of salt
boilers w^ere buried on the hill, which is a part of the McKitterick
farm. The graveyard lies east of the old Indian trail from the
licks to Chillicothe. The place was selected by the whites because
it had been used as a burial ground by the Indians. There is no
record of the names of those buried there, but the number must
have exceeded fifty. The graves were marked with native sand-
stone, many of which crumbled in time, while others were carried
away by collectors. Names and dates were cut on a. few, but the
great majority bore only initials. A visiting collector asked ]»er-
mission years ago to take away the stone bearing the oldest in-
scription, but Mr. John McKitterick, Sr., refused. A few days
afterward, it was discovered that the stone had disappeared, and
it was suspected that the stranger had stolen it. For half a cen-
tury the graveyard remained uncultivated, but after the giound
History of Jackson County. 139
was cleared the stones disappeared rapidly. Ten years ago, when
I tirst visited the place, only two were left. One of them bore the
following inscription: "D. F. D., Sept. 23, 1802." Daniel F. Dean
was killed at a log rolling. He was a large and powerful man, but
on that unlucky September day he lost his hold while raising a
heavy log, and it rolled back and crushed him, killing him in-
stantly. Many of those buried here were men w^ho were murdered
at the salt works. Some of the earliest salt boilers were lawless
men, and the morals of the community were at a par with those
of the wildest mining camps of the early gold days. It was a com-
mon occurrence from 1795 to 1803 to find the corpse of some one
murdered overnight floating in a salt w^ater tank, and to discover
later that one or two others had departed between two suns with-
out leaving their addresses. The last of these murders was com-
mitted by a negro. He was caught and lynched, the lynching
taking place near the Mitchell rocks. His remains were interred
in the old graveyard, which caused it to fall into disrepute. Many
of the earliest burials were made without coflSns, but they came
into use later. They were made of good old oak, and one of them
lasted over sixty years, for Mr. G. C. McKitterick remembers when
the grave fell in. I have been informed that members of a family
named Hill, living in Liberty township, have been buried here, but
the information has not been verified.
A FOKGOTTEN GRAVEYARD— The salt furnaces were built
in the valley from James A. Lackey's farm up to the infirmary.
Pieces of the old salt kettles used at the furnace on Lackey's
farm were plowed up in the spring of 1900. The salt boilers at
the upper furnaces found it incom^enient to bring their dead to
the "Old Graveyard," and they began to bury in a spot near
Smith's lane, where it crosses the railroad, on land now owned
by W. H. and M. K. Steele. There are forty to fifty graves at this
place, but none of them are marked. Peter Bunn, who is now in
his eightieth year, says that two of his infant brothers and another
little boy named Walden were buried there. Mrs. Sophia Mitchell
remembers that she attended the burial of a little daughter of
140 History of Jackson County.
John Kadcliff at this place, when she was a mere child, about
seventy years ago.
THE BUNN GRAVEYARD— This old burial ground occupies
the greater part of outlot 26, and a part of outlot 27 in the south
half of the original town of Jackson. The lots were laid out by Ga-
briel McNeel, the county surveyor, on May 25,1819 but the spot had
been selected for a town cemetery before that date, for Charles
O'Neil was buried there May 17, 1819. Mrs Sophia Mitchell states
that her mother, Mrs. Tacy Bunn, attended his funeral, and that
this burial was the first in the cemetery. The spot was selected
on account of its location and the character of the soil. It lay
a quarter of a mile from the new town of that day, but it could
be reached without crossing low or wet ground. The high ground
selected forms a little hummock, which was more than half sur-
rounded by water at that time, and therefore unsuitable for build-
ing purposes. The soil was sandy, free from slate or rock, and
thoroughly drained, considerations that appealed to the pioneers.
The sale of the lots in the south half of Jackson occurred in June,
1819. Outlots 26 and 27 were purchased by Peter Bunn, the first
for |31 and the second for |25.25. The title remains in the family
to this day. The Bunns came originally from Germany and set-
tled near Baltimore. Peter Bunn, Sr., born in Maryland, moved
with his family to Ross county, in this state, about the beginning
of this century. Four of his children, Peter, Jr., Samuel, Hannah
and Polly, settled in this county. Peter Bunn, Jr., was born near
Baltimore, .January 1, 1780. He married Tacy Howe in this county
February 29, 1824. Five daughters were born to them. Mary
Ann died an infant. Sophia, who became the wife of Dr. D. H.
Mitchell, was born May 29, 1826; Elizabeth, who became the wife
of John Ratcliffe, was born February 4, 1828; Eunice, who mar-
ried John Smith, was born October 16, 1829, and Tacy, who mar-
ried Henry C. Hale, was born July 27, 1836. Elizabeth is dead,
but two of her children, Mr. Peter Ratcliffe and Mrs. W. H. Steele,
survive. The other three daughters are still living, Mrs. Mitchell
and Mrs. Smith in this city, and Mrs. Hale at Warrensburg, Mo.
History of Jackson County. 141
Their father died July 19, 1853, aged 72 years, 6 months and 19
days. His wife survived until January 4, 1881, dying at the age
of 78 years, 8 months and 29 days. Both now lie side by side in
the burial ground bought by Mr. Bunn in 1819. The oldest tomb-
stone in it is that of Charles O'Neil. It is a flagstone, and the
inscription reads as follows: "In memory of Charles O'Neil,
who departed this life May 16, 1819, aged 26 years.'' O'Neil was
county treasurer at the time of his death. Although' a young
man, he became a victim of the insalubrious climatic conditions
at the licks. A number of other county officers suffered a like
fate, as the following inscriptions indicate: "Sacred to the mem-
ory of Jared Strong, who departed this life December 20, 1827,
aged 43 years, 7 months, 10 days." "Sacred to the memory of
William Eausom; born September 20, A. D. 1794, died December
8, 1832; aged 38 years, 2 months, 19 days. 'For me to live is
Christ, and to die is gain.' " "In memory of Absalom M. Faulkner,
who departed this life September 18, 1829, aged 31 years, 7 months,
10 days."
Strong was the first representative of this county, and held
many other positions of trust. Ransom was treasurer of the
county for about 12 years, dying in office. Faulkner, who was a
Free Mason, was clerk of courts for about six years and died in
office. Henry May Faulkner, his little son, died the same day, and
his infant son, Jacob . Ofifnere, died December 13, 1829. The fatal-
ity among county officers was great in those days, for the records
show that in addition to those named above. Sheriff William
White died in 1824. Other prominent people in early Jackson who
died in the twenties where Edmund Richmond, who died Feb-
ruary 16, 1820, aged 55 years, 5 months and 6 days, and Huldah,
his wife, who died August 21, 1823, aged 59 years, 3 months and
18 days. The Richmonds were an influential family here for jears.
There were four brothers in all, named Seth, Nathaniel, David and
Edmund. I have not been able to learn what became of the other
three. A woman that deserves to be mentioned was the wife of
Thomas Scott, who was prosecuting attorney in 1830-2. The in-
scription on her tombstone reads as follows: "In memory of Eliz'
142 History of Jackson County.
abetli Scott, consort of Thomas Scott, who departed this life De»
cember 13, 1822, aged 43 years." A large, wide spreading elm tree
now grows near her grave. It sprouted after her burial, but it
now shades a space sixty feet in diameter. It should be cared for
and preserved. Not far away lie the remains of the first wife ol
Daniel Perry, who was sheriff of this county two terms. The in-
scription reads thus: "In memory of Jane, consort of Daniel Perry,
who died February 1, 1833, in the 29th year of her age."
The graves of two children of Daniel and Susan Perry, named
Cornelia and Isham, are on the same lot, also that of Perry's
brother, Simeon, who died February 28, 1825, in the 32nd year of
his age. The majority of those buried here before the fifties died
before reaching old age, which goes to show that the climate was
fatal to whites until Salt Creek valley was cleared and drained.
More than 700 persons have been interred in this cemetery,
but the graves of the great majority were left unmarked, and even
the names of many of them have been forgotten. For instance,
217 bodies were removed in March, 1000, to Fairmount, of whom
only 64 were known. The unknown removed and left included
some men and women who were once prominent in this county.
Mr. Peter Bunn remembers that he helped to dig the grave of one
of them way back about 1835, viz: Joseph Schellenger, uncle of
ex-Auditor William Schellenger and brothers. Schellenger had
served with Samuel Bunn, the father of Peter Bunn, in the war
of 1812.
SOME RECOLLECTIONS— A letter written by :Michael Mc-
Coy and an interview with James H. Darling throw additional
light on life at the salt works. Michael McCoy, who spent the last
fifty years of his life in this county, furnished his recollections for
The Standard a few years before his death, and they are worth
preserving. He was born in Lawrence county, O., January 22,
1800. He removed with his parents to this county in 181G, and
lived in Hamilton townshi]) until his death, November 8, 18G9.
Following are the most interesting jiassages from his letters: We
came to this county in the spring of 1816. We landed on the 17th
History of Jackson County. 143
of April and settled near where Jacob Brown now (1866) lives.
At that time there w^ere but two houses where the town of Jack-
son now stands, and they were taverns. One was down below
where the Isham House stable now stands, and the other was down
towards where Steel's (Ruf's) tanyard now is. These taverns were
kept by Abraham Welch and Jared Strong. There were five salt
furnaces in operation at that time, run by Ross Nelson, John John-
son, John W. Sargent, Asa Lake and William Givens.
I suppose there were some five or six hundred voters In Jack-
son county. Abraham Welch was the first sheriff of Jackson
county, and Nathaniel W. Andrew's was the first clerk of courts.
Welch and a man named Wilson,^ and another named Squires,
and another, whose name I will not give, as he has some relatives
jet living in this county, got to making counterfeit money, and
they all left the county except Squires, and he was sent to the
penitentiary. For some cause Andrews resigned as clerk, or was
removed, and a man named Charles O'Neil was the next clerk. He
afterward died of consumption. O'Neil's widow married Vincent
Southard. Dr. Andrews was again appointed clerk, and held the
ofiice until he removed to Portsmouth. Absalom M. Faulkner was
clerk and held the ofBce until he died.
Colonel Strong had the contract for building the old Court
House for |7,000 (|4,061). This much I know: The brick was made
in 1820, not far from where Pearl street and Broadway cross. I
do not think the wall of the Court House was built until 1821.
What makes me think so is, that the Elias Long house was built
in 1820 by a man named Gibbs. I made and carried the mortar
for more than two-thirds of that house; Nathan Sheward carried
the brick. We worked for 50 cents a day, or at least the promise
of it. I never got over half my pay. The same year that little
checkered brick by Noel's tanyard was built by a man named
Puffenbarger. I made and carried the mortar foi' that building
from foundation to the top; same wages and same pay. Both men
broke up, and I had to take just what I could get. There were two
wells of salt water near Jackson in 1816, one owned by Asa Lake,
144 History of Jackson County.
not far from where the bridge crosses Salt creek on the Chillicothe
road. The furnace was out on the road not far from where George
L. Crookham built some years afterward. There was another well
not far from where Diamond Furnace is now located, belonging
to William Givens. The furnace was on Givens' Run, in a south-
west direction from town. The courts continued to be held in
private houses until 1824 or 1825, maybe as late as 1826, when the
old Court House was taken possession of by Ezra Osborne, presi-
dent judge of this circuit. I was at the first day's sale of the lots
in the town of Jackson. A shed made of plank was put up on the
public square. Joseph Armstrong was director of the town of
Jackson. Joseph W. Ross was the crier, or auctioneer, and Rich-
ard Johnson was the clerk of the sale. The highest priced lot wa»
bought by Daniel Hoffman, where he afterwards lived and died.
The next highest lot sold was where Noel's tanyard was located.
It was sold to a man named Henry Kiger. Robert Lucas and
Elisha Fitch, from Piketon, were prominent bidders for lots at
that sale. Now, I will give you a sketch of the wild aspect of
things about Jackson when the first lots were sold. True, there
was a great deal of timber cut for the salt furnaces, and in some
places the young growth had started considerably. There were
three or four public roads that led to Jackson, the Gallipolis and
Chillicothe road, the Athens road and the Piketon road. The
latter was made for the purpose of hauling corn from the Big
Scioto to the salt works. Then there was a track that was called
the Guyan trace, along which hundreds of bushels of salt were
packed to the Ohio river. That trace left town where Nelson's
Furnace was located. It ran a south course and crossed the divide
near where Irwin's station now is. It then ran southward to the
Adkins place, from there to old Joseph Price's, crossed the Black
Fork of Symmes creek, then crossed Dirty Face near Philip Lam-
bert's mill, then up Sweet Bit, crossed the Dry Ridge road, went
down a run and crossed Symmes creek near where old Henry Mc-
Daniel lived, then up Long creek, and crossing Greasy Ridge ran
down Trace Fork to the forks of Indian Guyan, now Scott town;
thence south or nearly so to Guyandotte. Many a Red Man of the
History of Jackson County. 145
Forest has traversed that path." Some of the above statements
are inaccurate. The description of the old Guyan trace is the only
one that I have been able to find. This wsis the famous Indian
highway from Virginia to the Shawanese towns on the Scioto, and
it had been in use for centuries when the whites entered the coun-
try. Many a white captive has toiled along this trail, every step
taking him farther from home and kindred, and, in many instances,
taking him nearer to the spot where he was to die at the stake.
Many a young child, unable to keep up with its captors, was slain
on this trail and left for wild beasts to feed upon, as iu the case of
the little daughter of Mrs. Martin already mentioned.
DARLING'S INTERVIEW— James H. Darling, then living
in the west, visited this county a few years before his death, and
while here he called upon me and furnished the following facts
about the pioneers: "My father's name was Timothy Darling. He
came to Ohio in 1815 from Wood county, Virginia, and settled on
Pigeon creek, where Coalton now is. Jackson county had noi been
organized then. My mother's maiden name was Elizabeth Cook,
and she was a sister of Nancy Cook, who married John James,
after whom Jamestown was named. I had two brothers and three
sisters, viz: William, Derrick, Barsheba, Elizabeth C. and Aurora.
Barsheba married Isaac Brown, son of Nathan Brown. Aurora
married Charles Love. Elizabeth C. died unmarried, and was the
first person buried in the Jamestown cemetery. 1 was born De-
cember 30, 1813, and was only two years old when my family
moved to Ohio. My father soon purchased the property now known
as the Hippel place, and there is where I grew up. I used to come
to Jackson to Sunday school in the old Court House. There were
two salt wells here that I remember. A man by the name of Ald-
ridge had a salt well near the old Horse creek bridge, and Givens'
salt well was on Givens' Run. There were only four houses of any
size in Jackson then. There was the old Miller house on Main
street, a brick house. The house of Richmond stood where the
Orange Furnace property was afterward. Richmond was killed
146 History of Jackson County.
by a falling tree in a storm near Runkle's bridge. There was the
Hooper Hurst house. It stood on the point on Main street, not far
from where the Ruf property is now. The Donnally House was the
first hotel here and stood on Water street, opposite the Hatton
residence. This hotel was afterward called the Warren House.
There were a great many log cabins here and nearly all of them
were strung along Salt creek below Water street, and were called
Poplar Row. The salt boilers lived in them. I remember that the
old Givens' house stood near Fulton Furnace. I used to go to a
horse mill near Berlin, owned by Zephaniah Brown. It stood near
the Cross Roads. We would take our own horses to work the mill.
I also went sometimes to Jared Strong's mill, on Salt creek. It
stood near where Bierly lived afterward. I think Jared Strong
came to Jackson from the neighborhood where Wilkesville is now.
Jared Strong was the first representative of this county. He had
three sons that I remember, Jared, Stephen and Jehiel. Jehiel
was killed when his father was in Columbus attending the Legis-
lature. He was riding horseback, going to the house of McKinniss
to a frolic. It was winter time and the creek was out and the
water frozen. When near Jacob Sell's house, his horse fell and
injured him, and he died. His father did not reach home until
after his death. I remember going after salt once to Judge Givens'
salt works on Givens' Run. Salt was measured and not weighed
then. They stopped making salt on account of the scarcity of
wood and the failure of the salt wells. The salt that I got was
white. My father, Timothy Darling, died in 1830. I was married
in 1833 to Rachel Howe. She died last winter in Kansas. She
was a sister of Tacy Howe, the wife of Peter Bunn, the pioneer.
He owned the old cemetery south of Jackson. They began bury-
ing in it at a very early day. Charles O'Neil is buried there. 1
remember when he died. He was county treasurer then. He had
one child that I remember, Mary O'Neil, and my wife used to
play with her when they were little girls. O'Neil's widow mar-
ried Vincent Southard afterward. One of the old citizens buried
in the old cemetery was Dr. Mussett. I knew Daniel Perry, the
ex-sheriff. He was a carpenter, and died in Jackson township. I
History of Jackson County. 147
knew George W. Hale, Stephen Vaughn and Joseph W. Ross.
Rev. David C. Bolles was a preacher, and I remember his death.
He has a box vault in the old cemetery. (Rev. David Bolles died
April 20, 1840, aged 47 years. — Ed.) I have heard of Jonathan
Oilkeson and John Runkle, but never saw them. The stars fell
in 1833, the year I was married. The stars fell all night, like drops
of rain. The great flood occurred in Jackson December 10, 1847.
There was a stranger drowned on the Athens road, near where
Tropic Furnace is. I knew James Hughes, the man who started
The Standard, well. He married a sister of William Mather and
went west. Henry Rout was an old settler, and lived on Salt
creek. John James was my uncle. He came here from James
Island, in the Ohio river, near Marietta. John D. James was his
only son. Daniel Hoffman married my cousin, Julia James. He
lived where the Gibson House stands now, and had his store where
the Sternberger Building stands. He sold out the Salt Lick Re-
serve for the state. Mrs. Elihu Johnson, Mrs. Alexander Miller
and Mrs. Andrew Long were three other cousins. Muster Day
was an important event in early times. Jared Strong, Captain
Kincaid, George W. Hale and others used to be officers. General
muster was held usually about the middle of September.
THE END— In 1817 the State, with the consent of the General
Government, donated Section 29, of the Scioto Salt Reserve, for
the site of the new^ county seat, the town of Jackson. A joint
resolution of the Ohio General Assembly adopted January 3, 1818,
declared that experiments at the Scioto salt works, had failed to
find water of a sufficient quality to render it an object to the State
to retain lands reserved at said works, and asked permission of
the General Government to sell the lands. Congress was slow to
act, and the Legislature on February 18, 1820, authorized the agent
to lease lands for cultivation or pasture. An act of January 25,
1823, fixed the agent's salary at $60 a year. Congress acted at
last, and on December 28, 1824, it passed a law permitting the state
to sell its salt lands, and directing that the proceeds be applied
148 History of Jackson County.
to such literary purposes as said Legislature may hereafter direct.
On February 7, 1825, the Legislature passed a law providing for
the survey of the salt lands, and for making two maps of the same,
a report of all to be made by December 25, 1825. The agent em-
ployed Hon. Joseph Fletcher, of Gallipolis, to make the survey,
and the w^hole tract was laid out in eighty acre lots. The Legisla-
ture on February 7, 1826, passed a law providing for the sale of
the Scioto Salt Reserve in June of that year, the sale to be held
for three days, and the lots remaining unsold to be disposed of
at private sale. There was no further use for the oflSce of agent
of the Scioto salt works, and it was abolished, and all laws relat-
ing to leasing salt lands repealed, by an act passed January 26,
1827, the disposal of the lands being placed in the hands of Daniel
Hoffman, the agent for selling lands. Thus ends the history ot
the Scioto salt works as state property.
History of Jackson County, 149
MISCELLANY.
A SOUTHERN TERM— The term plantation was common in
the early history of the county, and was an importation from
the South. Some of the Virginians retained southern words and
expressions as long as they lived. The Virginians brought many
things with them that revealed their origin. They settled, as a
rule, near a spring, and planted calamus in the swale where its
waters ran. These calamus patches were the drugstores of the
pioneers, and they yet remain in places to mark the site of the
pioneer's settlement. One of the largest tracts, that the writer
remembers, is on the north end of the William H. Howell farm,
in Jefferson township.
TOWNSHIP NAMES — Jackson county was named in honor
of General Andrew Jackson, who had made himself famous by
winning the battle of New Orleans. The county was at first
divided into five townships, viz: Bloomfield, Franklin, Lick, Mad-
ison aud Milton. The last was named for the great poet, two others
for two American statesmen, and Lick on account of the salt
springs within its bounds. Other townships organized the same
year, 1816, were Scioto, Jackson, Hamilton and Clinton. The first
was named after the river of that name, and the others in honor
of three distinguished Americans. A few years later two other
townships were organized, and named for the first and third Presi-
dents. The journal entries relating to them are as follows:
WASHINGTON — On application by petition in writing of
sundry citizens, within the following boundaries, to me, auditor
of Jackson county, be it therefore hereby known that Washington
township shall be bounded as follows, to-wit: Beginning ac the
northeast corner of the reserve for the Scioto salt works and run-
ning on the north line of the reserve to the southeast corner of
Section No. 7, in Lick township; thence northwest so as to include
150 History of Jackson County.
the coal bank in Section No. 5, Lick township; thence to continue
northwesterly so as to intersect with the old coal road at or near
the top of a hill known by the name of Bunker's hill, at or near the
head of Mooney's run, including all settlers at or on said coal
road; thence east to the range line between the seventeenth and
eighteenth ranges in said county, so as to include William Ray^
in Section No. 7, in Jackson township; thence south with said
range line to the place of beginning.
Sept. 10, 1821. DANIEL HOFFMAN.
JEFFERSON — On application by petition in writing of sun-
dry' citizens within the following boundaries to me, auditor of
Jackson county, be it therefore hereby known that Jefferson town-
ship shall be bounded as follows, to-wit, within the eighteenth
range, beginning at the northeast corner of said township and
running so as to include the original surveyed Township No. 5.
Jan. 25, 1822. DAN'L HOFFMAN.
In 1850, Richland and Harrison townships, which had been
annexed from Ross county, and Clinton township, were cut off
and put in Vinton county. Two new townships have been organ-
ized in recent years, Coal and Wellston. The latter was named
in honor of Harvey Wells.
PATENT FOR SECTION 29— Following is a copy of the
original patent granted to Director Joseph Armstrong, who laid
out the City of Jackson:
To All To Whom These Presents Shall Come, Greeting:
Know ye, that there has been deposited in the general laud
oflSce a certificate of His Excellency, Ethan A. Brown, Governor
of the State of Ohio, stating that in pursuance of an act of Con-
gress, passed on the 16th of April, 1816, entitled, "An Act to
authorize the State of Ohio to sell a certain part of a tract of
land reserved for the use of that State," the Legislature of the said
State did, by an act passed on the 14th of January, 1817, authorize
and empower certain Commissioners to select, and a Director ta
History of Jackson County, 151
sell, a section of land in said reserved tract, and that the said
Commissioners had selected, and Joseph Armstrong, the Director
appointed by said State, had sold the section so selected, to-wit:
Section 29 of Township 7, in Range 18, being part of the six miles
square reserved for the benefit of the State of Ohio, at the Scioto
salt springs.
There is, therefore, granted by the United States the section
of land above described unto the said Joseph Armstrong, and his
successors in office, in trust, to execute titles to the purchasers ot
the land aforesaid.
In testimony whereof, I have caused the letters to be made
patent and the seal of the general land office to be hereunto
affixed.
Given under my hand at the City of Washington, the 16th day
of February, in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hun-
dred and twenty, and of the Independence of the United States
of America the forty-fourth. By the President,
JAMES MONROE.
AN OLD-TIME WILL — The following will, emancipating a
slave, is perhaps the only instrument of the kind ever drawn in
Jackson county. Hugh Poor, mentioned as executor, was one of
the leading men of the county for a generation. He settle* in what
is now Jackson county, in 1811. In 1816, when the county was
organized, he became one of the three Associate Judges, and served
in that capacity for several years. He was one of the first mer-
chants of Jackson, and in many other ways assisted in its develop-
ment. He died in 1827. Edward Poor, living in this city, is one
of his grandsons.
LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF HANNAH THOMPSON.
In the name of God, Amen.
I, Hannah Thompson, of the County of Jackson and State of
Ohio, being far advanced in years and aware of the uncertainty of
life and certainty of death, and being in my right mind and under-
152 History of Jackson County.
standing, blessed be God for the same, do make, constitute and
ordain this, my last will and testament, in manner and form fol-
lowing:
In the first place, commit my body to the grave and my soul
to God, who gave it.
And as to what property 1 may be in possession of at the time
of ray decease, it is my will and desire that all my just debts be
speedily and punctually paid, and
That my Negro man, Stephen, as a just reward for his faith-
ful service to me and his late master, be emancipated, and
All the balance of my property, both real and personal, I will
to my said Negro, Stephen, except only so much as will pay my
funeral expenses and physicians, if any, and it is my desire and
will that my executors dispose of it to the best advantage, and
appropriate the proceeds thereof to my Negro man, Stephen.
I do hereby appoint Hugh Poor ray sole executor of this, my
last will and testament.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto set ray hand and seal,
revoking all former will and testaments by me made, and declare
this to be ray last will and testament, this 9th day of July, 1827.
her
HANNAH (X) THOMPSON.
(Seal.) mark
IMPORTING CARDS— Ohio had her Blue Laws in early days,
and one of the most singular trials in the history of this county
was that of John McGhee, indicted for violating one of them.
The grand jury of the July term, 1817, indicted him because he
"did import and bring into the county of Jackson aforesaid, and
township of Lick aforesaid, a pack of playing cards." McGhee
pleaded not guilty, but the jury found otherwise, and he was fined
five dollars and the costs. The jurors were: Grand, David Mitchell,
foreman; John Graham, John Backus, John Bennett, Peter
Brown, Moses Hale, Joseph Gray, Jacob Westfall, William Burris,
History of Jackson County. 153
James Winks, Allen Rice, James Lackey, Joseph Crouch, (ieorge
Campbell and Jeremiah Brown; petit, John McBride, Theophilus
Blake, Daniel Harris, John Delay, John Frazee, Edward Story,
James Stephenson, Levi Howell, Reuben Long;, Asa Lake, Patrick
Shearer, Drury Bondurant. With such men all agreeing, it must
be conceded that it seems very probable that McGhee did import
the cards. Perhaps, the losses of some of the jurors at gaming
may have had something to do with this conviction. This is the
first pack of cards mentioned in the records, but after that, indict-
ments for gaming followed in quick succession. It appears that
John George was one of the settlers that permitted gaming in
his house. At least, the record shows that some very prominent
men played at his house, although their own dwellings were only
a few hundred yards away. All that has been mentioned goes to
show that the pioneers were not any better, and perhaps no worse, '
than the people of today. The laws seem to have been better
enforced, however. Even two women, living in Jefferson town-
ship, who had settled a little difference by fighting, were indicted
and found guilty, and a young man arrested in a bastardy case
pleaded guilty and was mulcted.
LEAD LEGENDS — Caleb Briggs made geological investiga-
tions in Jackson county in 1837, and in his report he said: There
are rumors in the southern jjortion of the state, in reference to
lead mines, but as yet no veins have been discovered. Small quan-
tities of lead have, however, been found in loose masses on the
surface. A small piece of this description was recently sent to
me from Jefferson township, Jackson county. Lead must exist in
small quantities in either the iron ores or limestone of Lawrence
and Scioto counties, as several pounds are not infrequently taken
from the crevices in a furnace hearth at the close of a blast. This
information was communicated by Mr. Smith, of Jackson Furnace.
A find of lead was made in Liborty township, near Rock Hill
church, as late as 18G0. The following notes were taken at the
place in 1895:
On the south side of the breakthrough stands Lead Rock. It
154 History of Jackson County.
is low compared with Rock Hill, but it is nothing but rock, naked
on three sides. On the south, a neck connects it with the main hill.
It is called Lead Rock because a lump of lead was found in the
creek bottom at its base about thirty-five years ago by William,
son of Daniel Yerian. The lead was brought to Jackson and
examined, and was found to be of good quality. The father,
Daniel Yerian, found another lump near by. There is a tradition
that the Indians used to dig lead on Rock run, but this may be
taken for what it is worth. The presence of the lead found by the
Yerians has never been explained. There is a tradition that the
Indians had a lead mine near Keystone Furnace. The following
letter gives all the known facts:
Rocky Hill,0.,March 13,1897.
Editor Standard- Journal : Dear Sir — Herein is noted the tradi-
tion which I have received from my people, who settled here in
the year 180G, in regard to the lead mine somewhere m Bloom-
field township. The Indians found and utilized a lead mine in
what is known as Jimmy Adams' hollow, which at its beginning
trends through the old Lackey homestead and terminates at the
John Ware bridge, near Keystone Furnace. According to the
tradition, it ma}' be in some of the ravines or hollows leading
into said valley. A certain person (whose name I can not state,
as my informant is dead), was captured by the Indians and taken
''blindfolded" to the mine, in order that it could not be located.
I am also informed that this captive stated, that at said lead mine
there were many beech trees, on which were engraven or cut
figures of turkeys, turtles, deer, etc. But let this tradition be as
it may, I can state this fact, that my grandfather in the early
1800's, selected this homestead among the many situations in the
forests for its fine flowing springs, one of which is called the Silver
spring on account of its water.
Very respectfully,
CHAS. A. LACKEY.
History of Jackson County. 155,
THE LACKEY TAVERN— In this connection, the following
petition of James Lackey, asking the Commissioners for license
to keep a tavern, may prove of some interest:
September 4th, 1818.
To the Honorable Judges of the Court of Common Pleas of Jack-
son County:
The petition of the undersigned freeholders of Bloomfield
township represent to your honors that we conceive a house of
entertainment in Bloomfield township would be to the public's
convenience. We therefore recommend James Lackey, one of our
citizens, to be a suitable person to accommodate the public. We
therefore pray your honor would grant him license for that pur-
pose.
Hugh Poor, Andrew Boggs, John Stephenson, Joel Long,
Robert Ervin, George Campbell, Samuel McClure, Alexander Poor,
George Corn, Moses Hale, Elicha Long, Stephen Martin, Robert
G. Hanna, Martin Poor, William Scurlock, Stephen Martin, George
W. Hale, Christopher Long, Peter Williams, Wm. Ware, John
McNutt, John Dickerson, Joshua Perry, William J. Stephenson,
James Ward, Benjamin Long.
JAMESTOWN CEMETERY— This cemetery derives its name
from Major John James, on whose land it was laid out. He lies
buried in it, his grave being on the Indian mound in the cemetery.
There were three of these mounds originally, the three marking the
angles of a triangle. The one in the cemetery is but little changed.
The other, standing near William Warnecke's barn, is about the
same size. The third stood in Joseph Watson's lot, and was re-
moved by him about twenty years ago. He found in it a number
of darts and arrow heads, some bones, ashes, and a piece of charred
wood. It is very appropriate that the remains of Major James,
who was a famous Indian scout, should have been interred in an
Indian mound. The inscription on his monument is as follows:
"John James departed this life May 31, 1854, aged 81 years,
156 History of Jackson Countv.
11 months, 17 days. The deceased was born in Connecticut June
14, 1772, came to Point Harmar, Ohio, 1788, and to this county
in 1807; was a member of the Methodist church 40 years, and died
the Christian's death."
He was the grandfather of Warden James, and a number of
other prominent citizens of the county.
The fii'st person buried in this cemetery was Elizabeth C.
Darling, a daughter of Timothy Darling and his wife. The latter
was Elizabeth Cook, and was a sister of Nancy Cook, the wife
of Major John James.
THE MARTIN MOUND— This mound was perhaps the most
peculiar in the county in one respect. After Jefferson Furnace
was built, some parties dug into it and discovered that it had been
built of blocks of ore and covered with earth. The ore was taken
out and hauled to the Furnace. There were some 15 tons of it. It
is much to be regretted, that no effort was made to open the mound
scientifica]ly. Valuable remains or relics might have been found in
it, but I have failed to learn that any were found. The presence
of the blocks of iron ore and flint in the mound would indicate that
the structure belonged to the house mound class. It is probable
that others of the kind exist in the township, and when they are
discovered, the owner should have them opened according to the
plan laid down by archaeologists.
BURNING OF THE COURT HOUSE— The first court house
burned down September 20, 1860, and the following account of the
fire appeared in The Standard:
On last Friday, at 1 o'clock, a fire broke out in that part of
the Franklin House, occupied as a residence by John Rapp. It
is supposed that the fire caught from the stove flue. The Franklin
house was in a sheet of flame in a few minutes. Great exertions
were made to save the next building, the residence of Abraham
French, but all in vain. The fire swept on, taking in its course the
store room and residence of B. F. Thompson, the grocery store of
History of Jackson County. 157
Henry Barlow, the saddler shop of D. W. Winfough, the residence
of John Stephenson, the grocery store of Meacham & Gibson, the
residence of E. D. Meacham, and the book store of R. Harding.
The goods and furniture were mostly removed and saved, although
some were taken into the street and took fire from the flying cin-
ders, and were consumed. The flames were arrested at Broadway
stree, by pulling down the corner building, occupied by Meacham
& Gibson.
About the time that the flames reached the corner, it was dis-
covered that the cupola of the court house was on fire. The roof
of the building soon caught, and all the wood work was consumed.
The books and papers were removed from the public offices, and
the roof of the clerk's office was at one time in flames. This build-
ing was at this time abandoned; but the heated and wearied men
again rallied, and by the most daring efforts, the building was
saved.
It has been thought by some, that the court house might have
been saved; but it must be recollected that the fire caught in a
place that could not be reached with the means at hand, and
that every one, men and women, had fought the flames ^until ex-
hausted. If we had been in possession of a short ladder, and the
means of securing the foot of it on the slanting roof, we might
have reached the fire; but we were destitute of these; and in the
excitement the loss of a very few minutes was fatal to the old
court house.
The whole of that part of Main street from Portsmouth to
Broadway, is swept clean. The buildings were old frames, and
not worth much. The entire loss will probably not exceed $10,000.
There was no insurance except on Mr. Winfough's saddler shop,
which was insured in the Aetna, for $400. Those who owned the
buildings destroyed, were John Burnsides, A. French, John L.
Long, I). W. Winfough, John Stephenson and S. G. Montgomery.
MACKLEY'S RECOLLECTIONS— The following extracts
from Davis Mackley's "Random Notes" deserve a place here.
I found the first records of the county commissioners in two
158 History of Jackson County.
old books, one indexed, and the other not. Tliey are almost iden-
tical, and contain a plain and simple history of the transactions
AS they occurred, without any reference to the forms of book-
keeping. These records commence in the spring of 1816, and the
commissioners had frequent meetings. Nathaniel W. Andrews
was their clerk.
The amount of taxes collected in Jackson county yearly, for
a number of years, was less than $1,000. The principal items of
■expense consisted of jury and election expenses, and the cost of
laying out and establishing roads. During the first year the com-
missioners passed an order paying one dollar for each wolf scalp,
where the wolf was under six months old, and two dollars where
the wolf was over that age. This was subsequently raised to $1.50
and $3.00. The records show considerable sums paid out for wolf
scalps during the ten or twelve years subsequent to the year
1810. This may sound strangely to the people of this day; but
I can ion ember of hearing wolves howl at night, in Jefferson
township, as late as the year 1834. They destroyed large numbers
of sleep and young cattle, and it became a public benefit to de-
stroy them; hence the premium paid by the public for their
destruction.
The affairs of the county in the early days were conducted
upon very economical principles, but honesty among the public
officers was remarkable. True, there was but little to steal, and
of course the temptation was small. Few officers were then
elected by the people. The theory of the early officers of this
county appeared to be, that when an officer was found capable
and faithful, he was kept in office. Hence such men as Daniel
Hoffman, Alexander Miller, Joseph Armstrong, Samuel Carrick,
and a few others, have their names upon the records as public
officers during a long space of time, and their accounts always
Appear correct. I wish I could say as much for some of the officers
whose names appear at a later period. But let that pass. * * *
A family named Darling came from the state of New York,
•Cattaraugus county, about this time, and settled in the vicinity
<)f Oak Hill. They were Baptists. Isaac Darling brought the
History of Jackson County. 159
first cast iron plow that was ever seen in that region. Before
that time the old bar shear plow, with the wooden mould board
was the only one, save the shovel plow. My father borrowed
Darling's plow, and he liked it so well that he bought it, giving
^6 for it. The neighbors borrowed it all around. Matt Farley,
who resided three miles from where we did, and near where
Monroe Furnace is now located, borrowed it, and he carried it
on his shoulder all the way without laying it down, although it
weighed 80 pounds.
This was a pretty hard way of getting along, but there were
greater hardships and privations than this. I knew a boy who
attended the first Sabbath school, with whom I was quite in-
timate. The hat he wore to this Sabbath school was the first
one he ever had that was bought at a store, and he earned the
money paid for it by cutting cord-wood at 25 cents per cord. The
hat was a common wool hat, and cost $1.25. He kept it and had
it look well, from 1830 to 1834, when he worked at the furnace and
got money to buy his first fur hat. He killed squirrels and tanned
their skins and of these made his own shoes. He took the insoles
of his winter shoes for soles. He dug a trough in a poplar log,
cut up black oak bark, and thus was his own tanner, as well as
shoemaker. Squirrel skins, when tanned, and then blacked with
copperas, made fine, nice leather. This boy became so careful of
his hats, thus acquired by so great an effort, that to this day he
never wears out a hat, but has it looking neat when it goes out
of fashion. He once showed me a lot of hats of all styles, from
the bell crown to the sugar loaf, which had become unfashion-
able by lapse of time. * * *
I stopped under a great oak tree in the creek bottom to rest.
In this creek, I saw Levi McDaniel baptize several persons, in the
summer of 1833. On the bank grew a bush that leaned over the
creek. A boy climbed upon this bush, in order the better to see
the baptizing. His weight loosened the roots, and he fell on his
back in the middle of the stream. The bush was across his breast,
tind he held on to it, kicking and splashing the water. A little
girl came to these baptizings whose name was Darling. She wore
160 History of Jackson County.
a "calash" or bellows bonnet. She would throw it back on her
shoulders.
Levi McDaniel's father, James McDaniel, was one of the first
justices of the peace in Jackson county. When I was a small
boy, he taught school in a little log house in the woods, just north
of where Gallia and Washington stations are now located. Mr.
McDaniel was an old man, with long white hair, and he was stoop-
shouldered with age. He thought a great deal of me, and bor-
rowed the life of George Buchanan, the King's Fool, for me to
read. Mr. McDaniel would go to sleep in school, and we boys
would have our pockets full of buckeyes, and when our old
teacher ^^as asleep we would cover them in the hot embers. When
they became heated they would burst, with a report half as loud
as a pistol.
Just above where I now w'rite. once stood the old log school
house where I went to school to John McKenzie, Willis C. Wil-
more, James Kelly and John Shumate. At Christmas the large
boys and young men would "bar out" the teacher, and make him
treat. My parents would not let me go, as I was too small. One
winter I cried and begged to be permitted to go. At last my
father took me up on his horse and went with me. There was
a great crowd around the house, and the teacher had procured
a jug of whisky at a little distillery kept by George Crump, a
short distance below the school house. All were drinking and
having a good time generally.
All the men who lived 35 years ago along the route of my
walk of to-day, are gone. Not one remains. Then there were
John and Matt Farley, Robert Massie, George Crump, Moses
Massie, Jesse Kelly, Levi McDaniel, Solomon Mackley, my uncle,
William and John Walton, James Kelly, etc. But I mistake. One
man remains. Joseph Phillips then lived here, and 1 saw him
to-day. Speaking of my uncle, reminds me of the horse mill he
had on the hill between Portland and Jefferson Furnace. Here
we boys would come to mill, and we had to stay and keep our
horses there, or lose our turn. I have stayed there two days and
History of Jackson County. 161
one night before my turn came. I have seen as many as 30 horses
there at one time. « ♦ *
I do not know how fast a tame turkey can run in the night;
but I know a wild turkey can outrun a man in daylight. I have
often started up a flock of wild turkeys when hunting. I would
run after them to try to get a shot at them. If I did not shoot
at once, they would soon be out of sight, so much could they out-
run me.
When I was a boy, wild turkeys were quite plenty in this
county. They were nice and fat in the winter. We had as many
as we wanted. We caught them in pens made of fence rails. A
trench some 15 feet long was dug, sloping gradually down from
both ends. Then a rail pen was built about three feet high, and
covered on the top with rails. One side of the pen was built
directly across the middle of the trench. On the inside a few
boards were laid across the trench, next the rails of the pen.
Then corn would be scattered about the fields, and a trail of corn
leading to the pen. Corn 'was thickly scattered in the trench
and in the pen. The turkeys, finding the corn, would follow the
same to the i)en, and picking up the corn in thi- trench, would walk
right through it, into the \pen. When they wanted out, they al-
ways looked up, running their heads between the rails. They
never once thought of looking down for the li-ench.
When I was a small boy I went one morning with my father
to a turkey pen, some half a mile from the house, in an old field.
It had six large turkeys in it. He took one out for me to carry
home. When he went to wring its neck, I begged to carry it alive.
I found that it was all I wanted to carry when dead, and if I had
undertaken to carry it alive, it would have got away from me at
the first effort it made.
I was very fond of hunting pheasants when a boy. They are
good eating, especially the breast. If I heard a pheasant drum-
ming I was almost sure of it. They are a strange fowl. When
drumming, they get upon an old log, in a thicket of bushes. They
strike their wings against their sides three times in rapid sue-
162 History of Jackson County.
cession, then make a short pause, when they commence striking
slowly, getting faster until it ends in a roar. The whole opera-
tion does not last over half a minute. I have often heard the
drumming of a pheasant one mile. It sounds almost exactly like
distant thunder. It was always a mystery to me how the light
wings and soft feathery sides of this little fowl, less than the
common hen, could make so tremendous a sound.
When I heard a pheasant drumming, I would go towards it
until nearly in sight. They drum about once in five minutes. 1
would listen, and get the exact locality, then commence a circle
around it. As long as you go around a pheasant, it will sit still
and watch you; but to go towards it, it will fly at once. No
matter how much noise is made in the brush, while going fast
around it, there is no danger of its flying. I would go on until
within 20 or 30 feet, and having my gun ready, would snoot its
head off. Some times I would miss. The pheasant would gen-
erally sit still, and I would commence circling around it, reload-
ing my gun as I went. This may seem small sport to the old
hunter, who has been in the habit of killing bears, and wolves,
and panthers, and deer; but turkeys and pheasants were the best
game we had. True, there were a good many deer, but they were
so wild that only the experienced hunters could kill them. * * •
Opossums were very plenty in this county in early days,
and were very troublesome to the farmers, stealing and killing
their chickens whenever they could get an opportunity. For this
they were hunted and killed. The best way to kill them was to
cut their heads off with an ax. There may be a few of this animal
yet remaining in this county; but like the Avild turkeys and pig-
eons, they will soon be all gone.
Raccoons were formerly very plenty in this county, and a few
yet remain. They did a great deal of mischief to the corn in the
summer, eating it, and breaking it down. We often hunted them
of nights. They would come into the corn fields soon after dark.
Then we would send in our trained dogs. The raccoon Avould seek
refuge on the largest tree it could find. A trained raccoon dog
has a peculiar kind of bark when he trees the animal, which the
History of Jackson County . 163
hunter at olice recognizes. If the tree was not too large, we at
once cut it down. The dogs would be ready near where it would
fall, and rarely missed catching and killing the raccoon at once.
If the tree was very large, we would build a fire, roast the green
corn, tell stories, and thus amuse ourselves until daylight, when
we would shoot the raccoon, and thus save the labor of cutting
the tree down.
PRICE'S RECOLLECTIONS— The following reminiscences
of P. P. Price, the last Whig postmaster of Jackson, tell the story
of the company of volunteers organized in this city for the Mex-
ican war: i ^
"I was born at Louisburg, in Greenbrier county, Virginia, on
July 20, 1820. My father's name was Isaac Price and my grand-
father was named Jacob Price. He was a soldier in the Revo-
lutionary war, for which services he received a pension in later
years. He died in Pike county in this state. My father, Isaac
Price, was a soldier in the War of 1812. About 1825 he left
Virginia and came to Ohio. He came down the Kanawha and
then to Gallipolis. He stopped first near Beavertown in Pike
county, having passed through this town. Later he settled at
Piketon. I b^gan to learn the trade of hatter at Piketon, but
when I was 17, I went to Chillicothe where I finished. 1 remem-
ber my experiences at Chillicothe very distinctly. One night in
1838, I went to a political meeting at a little brick school house
on Bank alley, running from Second street to Water street. There
I heard Allen G. Thurman make a speech and I was told that it
was his first effort. I remember the Harrison meeting in 1840.
The people came by thousands and the parade was very long.
Tom Corwin spoke. Another time, I went to hear Thomas L.
Hamer, who was afterward killed in the Mexican war. I once
heard Richard M. Johnson, who was vice president under Van
Buren, and who was a candidate with him again in 1840. I came
to Jackson in January, 1842, and started a hatter's shop. My
shop stood just across the alley west of .the Pickrel building
Joseph Throckmorton had a shoe shop in the same building. I
164 History of Jackson County.
soon began to keep a supply of boots and shoes in addition to my
stock of hats and caps. About 1841, I turned my store into a gen-
eral store. Throckmorton left and Moses Sternberger moved in,
he occupying one side of the room and I the other. 1 was single
then and boarded at the McQuality house. Levi Dungan was one
of my fellow boarders. The room now occupied by N. Downey
was then the parlor, McQuality was county treasurer. He also,
had a little store. He kept his store in a little frame house east
of his hotel. It stood where the brick house adjoining the old hotel
now stands. I remember some of McQuality's family distinctly.
Three of the girls were Mary Ann, Eliza and Electa. Mary Ann
became the wife of James Cadot, of Scioto county. I think Mc-
Quality had two sons, James and William. I was a Whig. In
1844, when Clay and Freylinghuysen ran, I was a member of the
Whig central committee. The other members were William
Cissna and William McKinuiss. There was no paper published
then in Jacksn county. I was a member of the M. E. church here.
Rev. Jacob Westfall was pastor in charge and Rev. C. H. Warren
was junior pastor. I remember making a hat for him. He was-
a gentleman well liked by all on account of his amiability. School
had been taught here before I came, in a little school house built
of poles. It stood on the triangle near where the Lutheran
church is now. Levi Dungan taught there. A man" by the name
of Thornton taught there also before I came here. We called
that part of town Ford's hill then. It was so called because a
preacher named Ford lived on the road that passed over the hill.
There was a s(;hool taught after that in a little building standing
near where the National bank is now. It was taught by a lady.
The Isham house had not been built then. A small brick build-
ing stood on its site owned by Chapman Isham and he had a store
in it. I think a part of the walls of this brick were used when
the Isham house was built. I was a member of a company raised
for the Mexican war. William Cissna and myself had been aides
of General Hamilton of this military district in the old militia,
and we tried to organize a company here. We secured only a
part of one however. Gabriel Andrews was one of the men.
Another that I remember was Sam Pike, who did a little ;|ob print-
History of Jackson County. 165
ing. From here we went to Piketon, where we made up the com-
pany. William Cissna was elected captain and I was chosen one
of the lieutenants. We went from Piketon to Portsmouth in an
old corn boat, traveling on the canal. It rained nearly all the
way and we had a disagreeable time. The boys got to playing
once and one of them slipped off into the canal just in front ot
the boat, but he was rescued before the boat passed over him. We
had to stay several weeks at Portsmouth while General Hamil-
ton went to Cincinnati to get us accepted. He got his company
accepted, but our company was discharged and we had to get
back fo Jackson the best we could. I think this company was
raised here in 1847. Martin Stalliugs, of this county, had gone
out before. He was wounded in the war. Shortly after our re-
turn, Cai)tain Cissna was married to a daughter of David Mitchel.
I was at the wedding. I think Mitchel's house stood on the Chil-
licothe road. I remember that the boys got to shooting after the
wedding, and several horses got scared and broke loose, creating
considerable excitement.
The campaign of 1848 was an exciting one. I j'emember we
had a great meeting here, one of the features of which was a
parade. In the parade we had a large mechanics' wagon. Kiding
on it were several juechanics all at work. I was working on a
hat. After Taylor was elected in 1848, I was appointed postmas^
ter of Jackson. I think I entered upon my duties about July 1,
1849. I kept the otiice at my store at the corner just across the
alley from the Pickrel building. About 1852 I built a part of
what is now 'Rat Row' and moved my store and the postoffice
there. My partner's name was John S. Taylor and our store was
the fourth door from the (corner. There was no fence around the
Public square then and the public used to drive down between
the old court house and the log jail. I soon grew tired of the
postoffice because it required me to keep a clerk. When Pierce
was elected I resigned. My first letter of resignation was not
accepted and I had to write a second. Finally Steele was ap-
l)ointed and he removed the office to the parlor of the old Mc-
Quality house, which 'Steele had purchased. Later, I sold out to
my partnei', Taylor, and purchased the stock of James Dyer, who
166 History of Jackson County.
had his store in a small building standing at the Commercial Bank
corner. Afterward I moved to a building where Hugh Crossin's
building now stands. I remember that father used to catch wild
turkeys in rail pens when we lived at Beavertown. The country
was then full of deer and all game. The salt wells were not used
when I came to Jackson. They were thick on the Salt creek
bottom from Lackey's farm to the Bunns, but were beginning to
lili up. Walker Bennett, the banker, used to bathe in a well near
where the Baler works are. Coal had been discovered here before
I came. It was found in a well which was put down near where
the Crescent Opera House is now. Powell, a Welshman, had
a tailor shop there, and the well was near the shop. The exist-
ence of coal under the town was well known in 1842. I remem-
ber the big flood in 1847, and I saw the man drowned on the
Athens road near the Tropic furnace. George L. Crookham, I
knew well. He used to sit down to read in the postoflBce. He
took many papers, one of which was the National Era. I remem-
ber the great fire in 1860. Fire caught in the cupola of the old
court house from a building standing near where the Iron bank
is now.
I remember of going with a party to a place about one mile
west of Jackson to a pigeon roost. We had pine torches. There
were so many pigeons at the roost that limbs of trees would
break down under their weight. We climbed them and knocked
them down in great numbers. What a fluttering there was. The
roost covered about four acres. We would knock down the birds
with poles, put them in sacks and bring them to Jackson. If
we could have sold them we would have been made rich, but the
buyers were few and they had no money. I remember that an
old man from Fairfield county told me that he once hauled a bar-
rel of salt from Jackson to his home in Fairfield county on a sled.
The distance is from 65 to 70 miles.
THE FIRST RAILROAD— Jackson county is largely what
the railroads have made it, for its mineral wealth would never
have been developed without them. Only Jackson, Keystone and
History of Jackson County 167
Buckeye furnaces had been built before the railroad. The first
was not far from the Little Scoto, while the others were on the
Little Eaccoon and could ship their product bj water direct. It
is doubtful whether they would have been built, had it not been
proposed to establish slack water navigation on the Eaccoon. The
''Eaccoon Navigation company," consisting of James Riggs, -Nich-
olas Thevenin, Alexander Williams, James Lewis, Charles Giles,
Joseph S. Coombs, A. Bentley and Moses E. Matthews, w^as in-
corporated for that purpose, February 4, 1848, with a capital
stock of |100,000. The commissioners of Gallia, Jackson and
Athens counties were authorized to subscribe to said stock "any
amount not exceeding |20,000 each." A survey was made, but
the probability of the early building of the Iron railroad killed
the enterprise.
One of the most important events in the history of the
county was the coming of Professor William Williams Mather in
1838. To him must be given the credit for bringing to the atten-
tion of capitalists, its great mineral wealth, and for taking the
first important step toward its development. Mather was a de-
scendant of Cotton Mather and was born at Brooklyn. Ct., May
4, 1804. He graduated from West Point and remained in the
army until 1836, when he resigned to come to Ohio to take charge
of the first Geological survey. He began the work in June, 1837,
assisted by Caleb Briggs, Jr. The w^ork was suspended in a few
months, but not until Mather had made a practical survey of
Athens, Hocking, Jackson, Scioto, Lawrence and Gallia counties.
Frances Mather, a sister of the geologist, was the wife of Eev.
David C. Bolles, of Licking county. Bolles invested largely in
Jackson county mineral lands in the early part of 1838, and soon
moved his family here. Mather bought a tract of land from
Bolles, February 22, 1838, and moved his family here from Co-
lumbus later in the year. Mather and Caleb Briggs, jr., assistant
on the survey, bought a second tract from Bolles, which included
a coal mine. While living in this county Mather discovered the
great possibilities of this mineral region, and began to devise a
plan for developing it. He associated himself with a number of
168 History of Jackson County.
capitalists and organized the "Ohio Iron Manufacturing Com-
pany" to manufacture iron, glass, pottery and fire brick, make
salt and saw marble. The company was incorporated March 6,
1845, with a capital of |300,00U. It was to begin operations within
three years and to build a furnace in Jackson county within six
years. It was authorized to build a railroad from said furnace to
the Ohio river, the Ohio canal, the Hocking canal or all of them.
It was empowered also to build furnaces in Athens, Gallia, Law-
rence and Scioto counties. This brilliant scheme never material-
ized, although Mather and a company built the Oak Ridge fur-
nace in Lawrence county; but it called the attention of capitalists
to our resources. Mather was more a student than a business
man, and he succeeded better as professor at Marietta and the
Ohio university, than in building furnaces. He died of heart
disease at Columbus, February 26, 1859. Rev. Bolles, his brother-
in-law, had died within two years of his removal to this county.
His monument stood in the old Presbyterian cemetery and bore
the following inscription only:
"Sacred to the memory of Rev. David C. Bolles, who died
April 20, 1840, aged 47 years.''
Briggs, mentioned above, settled in Lawrence county and be-
came a member of the "Ohio Iron & Coal company," w^hich laid
out Ironton. He was a native of North Rochester, Massachusetts,
where he was born May 24, 1S12. He died at Ironton, September
24, 1884.
The example of Mather in organizing the ''Ohio Iron Manu-
facturing Company" was followed with better success, by the
promoters of the ''Ohio Iron & Coal company," incorporated March
23, 1849. It consisted of John Campbell, Joseph W. Dempsey,
Henry Blake, James O. Williams, Caleb Briggs, James W. Means,
John Ellison, George Steece and James A. Richey, and was or-
ganized to develop the resources of Lawrence county. Its incor-
porators contemplated the building of a railroad beginning at the
Ohio river in Upper township, Lawrence county, and penetrating
the iion region to the north, but the building of this railroad was
History of Jackson County. 169
left to another company organized under the following act, passed
JdarchT, 1849.
AN ACT TO INCORPORATE THE IRON RAILROAD
COMPANY.
Sec. 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State
of Ohio, That James Rogers, Robert B. Hamilton, Hiram Camp-
bell, Henry Blake, John Peters, J. Culbertson, William D. Kelley,
Anderson Dempsey and John E. Clark, of the county of Law-
rence; and Daniel Hoffman, George P. Rogers and John Adair, of
the county of Jackson, are hereby created a body corporate, with
perpetual succession, by the name of the Iron Railroad company,
with power to construct a railroad from the Ohio river, in Upper
township, in Lawrence county, to the south line of Jackson
county, with the right at their discretion of continuing it in a
northerly direction, to the line of the Belpre & Cincinnati Rail-
road company.
Sec. 2. The capital stock of said company may be an amount
not exceeding |500,000.
Sec. 3. The said company shall have all the power, and be sub-
ject to all the restrictions and provisions of the act regulating
railroad companies, passed February 11, 1848.
An act was passed March 7, 1850, authorizing the commis-
sioners of Jackson county to subscribe |1()<),()00 to the capital
stock of this railroad, and the matter was submitted to a popular
vote at the spring election, held April 1, 1850, with the follow-
ing result:
For subscription, 1,128; against subscrii)tion, 37G. The strong-
<^st opposition was in Bloomfleld, where the vote stood 114 to
106. The citizens of Bloomfleld have nearly always taken a similar
stand on other questions, especially that of pike building.
The promoters of the Iron railroad failed to push their enter-
prise and their procrastination proved fatal, as far as Jackson
county was concerned. It happened in this way. The boom in
Lawrence county had aroused the people of Portsmouth. The re-
170 History of Jackson County.
suit was the incorporation of the ''Scioto & Hocking Valley Rail-
road company," February 20, 1849, with a capital stock of
1200,000, The Portsmouth promoters were B. F. Conway, Joshua
V. Hobinson, C. A. M. Damarin, Peter Kinney and John Mc-
Dowell. The proposed road was to run from Portsmouth to New-
ark by the way of Piketon, Chillicothe, Circleville and Lancaster.
Unfortunately for the enterprise, Scioto and Pike counties refused
to subscribe to its capital stock, and the proposed route had to be
abandoned. Portsmouth was too anxious for a railroad to let the
matter drop, and its capitalists began to covet the |100,000 sub-
scription by Jackson county to the Iron railroad. The Scioto &
Hocking Valley officials went to work and secured $128,000 from
Portsmouth. They then proposed to build the railroad through
Jackson, if the county would transfer to them the money sub-
scribed to the Iron railroad. The proposition was favorably re-
ceived. Portsmouth w^as already a town of importance, and im-
mediate communication with it, was more to be desired than de-
ferred communication with Ironton, the terminus of the Iron
railroad, a mere hamlet at that time. Before the transfer could
be made, Jackson county had to be relieved of liability to the
Iron railroad. This relief was secured March 20, 1851, by the
repeal of the act, authorizing the commissioners to subscribe to
that road. The commissioners were assured of the result and had
alreadj^ made the subscription. The following journal entry tells
the story:
March 18, 1851. — The Honorable John Callaghan, John S.
Stephenson, and Moses Hays, commissioners of Jackson county
present, met for the purpose of a subscription of |100,UOO to the
Hocking & Scioto railroad, to be raised by the taxpayers of Jack-
son county to pay the interest on the loan for 15 years, when the
county pays the principal and interest, if any there be. To which
a borrow of that was negotiated.
The transfer of this subscription had a vital bearing on the
after history of Jackson county. It built Oak Hill mostly in Jef-
ferson township instead of in the "flatwoods" of Madison. It
gave birth to Berlin and Wellston and deferred the development
History of Jackson County. i7t
of Jackson and Washington townships 30 years. It knit a bond
political as well as commercial, between Jackson and Scioto, in-
stead of Jackson and Lawrence.
The first work on the road was done in Scioto county in 1850,
but operations did not begin in earnest until Jackson county had
made its subscription. The contract for building the flrst five
miles south of Jackson was awarded immediately afterward, the
contractors being Henry and Lawrence Myers. They came here
from Maine. Henry was married here to Electa McQuality, a
daughter of James McQuality, who lived so many years on Main
street. The first load of ties was delivered on this section April
1, 1851, and occasioned this local:
The work on the railroad near this place has commenced in
real earnest. The merry sons of the Emerald Isle are pouring
in in goodly numbers and the digging has actually commenced.
—Standard, May 22, 1851.
Work at the Scioto end of the road had already been con-
tracted for to within two miles of Webster. There was left a link
of nineteen miles to connect with the section of the Myers Bros.
The contract for this link was awarded June 1, 1851. The greater
part of the grading of the road was completed by August, 1852,
and tracklaying began at Portsmouth. Fourteen miles of track
were laid before December 1, 1852. The track into Jackson county
was laid shortly afterward, and the new era began.
THE FIEST BANK— The breath of coming prosperity
reached Jackson in 1851. Laborers came to build the railroad,
merchants came to share the increased business, and the natives
awakened from a lethargy of half a century. These causes gave
birth to a bank. The necessity for it had become apparent, and
its organization was hastened by the following editorial:
There is perhaps no place in Ohio where there is greater need
of a bank than in our own county. We have heard a good deal of
talk about making an effort to organize a bank here. We pre-
sume there will be but little difficulty in raising the requisite
172 History of Jackson County.
amount of capital. Nothing but a want of concert of action on the
part of those interested prevents the speedy organization of a
bank in this place. Will not the friends of the measure meet
together and consult about the matter — Standard, May 22, 1851.
The ''friends of the measure" got together, and before long
the following card appeared in the Standard:
CITIZENS' BANK— Bennett & Co. have established a bank
in Jackson, and are prepared to loan money on short time, in
large or small sums, upon approved security, and also purchase
good negotiable paper and county orders on favorable terms.
Office for the present over the auditor's office. Bank open from
10 o'clock a. m. to 12 m.
August 7, 1851. J. \V. LAIRD, Cashier.
Bennett & Co. consisted of Walker Bennett, T. R. Stanley, J.
M. Steele, James Farrar and J. W. Laird. T. R. Stanley had been
prosecuting attorney, and the bank opened for business in his
office. The building ,stood on the east side of the Court House
and belonged to the county. It was two stories high, with two
rooms and a hall on each, floor.
THE MATHER CEMETERY— Prof. W^ W. Mather was ap-
pointed to begin the geological survey of Ohio in 1837. This work
brought him to Jackson county, and after the work on the survey
was discontinued in 1838, he settled in Jackson. The family
boarded at first with Mr. Jacob Westfall. Mather soon purchased
the land of Rev. David C. Bolles on Salt creek, and erected a fine
residence for those times. The mansion stood on a slope over-
looking Salt Creek valley, and not far from the top of the hill
where the cemetery is now. It was a picturesque spot then, when
the virgin forest had not yet been touched, but it must have been
a very lonesome place for a family that had lived in cities. The
liouse was removed years ago by W. W. Pierce, who purchased the
land from Prof. Mather, but the cellar and well still remain. The
cellar seems to have been under the whole house. The well is
History of Jackson County. 173;
about one hundred feet deep and no water was found. Later,
water gathered in it, and now stands at about sixtj feet. The
survivors of the old orchard are scattered about, and all goes to-
show that Prof. Mather endeavored to secure for his family all
the comforts of the times.
Here the family lived for about ten years. Then death came,
and Mrs. Mather was taken. Upon her death Prof. Mather laid
out a cemetery upon the point overlooking the mansion and deeded
it to the township. In a year or two afterward, he removed to
live in Columbus, where he died in 1859 of heart disease. The
inscription on Mrs. Mather's tombstone is as follows:
"Here lie the earthly remains of Emily Maria Mather, wife
of William W. Mather, who died November 19, 1850, aged 40 years.
A triumphant death in the firm unwavering faith and Christian
hope of eternal life in heaven. She was a good wife, a kind neigh-
for, a tender mother and a faithful Christian."
On the north side of her grave lie the remains of her infants.
The inscriptions on the stones are as follows:
"Cotton Mather, infant son of W. W. and E. M. Mather,
died 1849."
"Increase Mather, infant son of \V. W. and E. M. Mather,
died 1840."
Among the other graves is that of Jonathan Walden, who
died January 13, 1857, aged 51 years, 1 month and 25 days; that
of Mrs. Jane Mil liken, who died November 23, 1868, aged 80 yea,r8,
4 months and 20 days, and that of John Finn, who died October
13, 1864.
MT. ZION CEMETERY— This cemetery was deeded to the
M. E. church by James R. Meacham in 1843. He was born in Mont-
gomery county, Virginia, January 17, 1800, and came to this
county in 1834. He was the son of Elijah Meacham, who was
born and died in Virginia, dying at the age of 102 years, of heart
disease, never having been ill an hour all his life.
174 History of Jackson County.
The first person buried in this cemetery was Thomas Oliver,
a revolutionary' soldier. He died February' 23, 1844, aged 80 years,
9 months and 13 days. Hiram Oliver, of the Ninety-first Ohio
Volunteer Infantry, is his only surviving son. Following is a list
of other veterans buried in it: James M, son of B. and C. Arthur,
died April 21, 1891, aged 56 years and 13 days. James Walker,
died September 1, 1881, aged 65 years, 9 months and 12 days;
member of Company K, Fifty-sixth Ohio volunteer infantry.
The following are the inscriptions on the monuments of six
pioneers buried here: ''Benjamin Branscomb, died January 7,
1862, aged 69 years and 26 days." "Mother Tabitha, wife of B.
Branscomb, died December 10, 1891, aged 95 years." "Joseph Wil-
son, died May 26, 1871, aged 86 years, 1 month, 9 days." "Jane,
wife of J. Wilson, died June 10, 1873, aged 82 years, 4 months and
16 days." "Mary Hunsinger, died December 12, 1863, aged 61
years." "Samuel Hunsinger, died January 12, 1869, aged 72 years,
2 months and 23 days."
AN OLD TIME WEDDING— The following account of a
wedding in the backwoods was written by Davis Mackley, in 1873:
It was perhaps as early as 1826 that old George Corn settled
on the hill about a mile south of the place where Jefferson Furnace
is now located. He came from Old Virginia, and he had been a
soldier in the war of the Revolution. He had been married twice,
and he had a large family. I have often heard him remark that he
was the father of twenty children. He was a small man, but his
sons were all remarkably stout, healthy men. William Corn, one
of his sons, married Polly Massie, a daughter of Bobbin Massie, and
Peter Corn married Rebecca, another daughter, while Big Jep, their
brother, married Lucy Corn.
It had been known in the neighborhood for some time that Big
Jep and Lucy were going to be married, and as our family and the
Corns and Massies were on very friendly terms, we were all in-
vited to the wedding. We went soon after breakfast, and found
the women busily engaged in making arrangements for dinner.
History of Jackson County. 175
It was about a mile from George Corn's residence to that of Robbin
Massie, the path running along the top of a ridge the most of the
way. About eleven o'clock we heard a shout a distance of half a
mile down the ridge, and soon we heard the clatter of horses' feet,
and here came two men, their horses at full speed. The men had
red spotted cotton handkerchiefs bound around their heads, and
thej were leaning forward, their faces nearly on the necks of the
horses. As there was only a narrow path through the woods, the
man who got before had much the advantage, as it was somewhat
difficult lor one horse to pass the other; but about a hundred yards
from the fence, the hindmost man struck through the woods, and
his horse jumped over a large log, and he struck in ahead of the
other, and secured the bottle in much triumph. The people at the
house were all standing out waiting and watching. One of them
held out the bottle to the successful horseman, who took it and
both trotted their horses back until they met the wedding party,
consisting of about forty persons, men and women, Big Jep and his
" attendance " being in front. The bottle passed all the way back
along the people, each taking a taste of the whisky it contained.
The bottle was what is called a decanter, holding about a quart,
and having flanges around the neck and mouth. It was dressed off
with red, white and blue ribbon. The wedding party then rode up
to the house. The fence was torn down, and they all rode around
the house three times, when they alighted and went in. Big Jep
shook hands with Lucy and took a seat by her side, and in a short
time they were married. Big Jep was a fine looking man. lie must
have been six feet, three or four inches high, straight and well
made. He was a very quiet man, and an inoffensive, good citizen.
I will not describe the manner in which the parties were
dressed, nor the dinner. The afternoon and night were enjoyed by
all. Everybody appeared to be in a good humor. The old men sat
out on logs near the house, and told stories about Indian wars, bear
hunts, etc. The young folks as now, said and did many things that
were not the most wise; but young folks will have their ways. I
remember one performance which interested me, and the other
little boys immensely. Pete Corn went through a performance
176 History of Jackson County.
which he called " Pattin' Juber." He slapped both hands on his
thighs in rapid succession, patted his feet, whistled and groaned
all at once, and in regular time, while a lot of young folks danced
to this original music.
WELLSTON'S BEGINNING— The following graphic letter
from the pen of Coates Kinney appeared in the Cincinnati Commer-
cial, and is too good to be forgotten:
Wellston, Jackson Co., O., Dec. 20, 1873.
Wellston is as yet a mere geographical expression. There is
no town of that name. The place is at this writing only a town-site.
But, in view of the prospective certainty that before the close of
1874 there will be at least three or four hundred houses here, I
think I may be allowed the (geographical) expression to date a
letter from it, giving your readers some facts about the region
whose soil is to evolve this sudden town, with yet greater wonders
of wealth, from its bosom.
The Portsmouth branch of the Marietta and Cincinnati rail-
road, which extends from Hamden, a little village in the edge of
Vinton County, to Portsmouth on the Ohio River, passes through
what appears to be one of the poorest, but is actually one of the
richest districts of its extent in this country. The land is rough and
uninviting, but beneath its surface there is incalculable treasure.
Jackson county, hitherto figuring as one of the most miserable
little tracts in the State turns out to be the princij)al storehouse of
this treasure. Inexhaustible veins of iron underlie its surface in all
directions — which alone is wealth — and the woods here have been
almost all cut off for charcoal to render it into iron with. But one
day it was discovered that below the seams of stone coal which the
natives had long been digging from the hills for domestic use, and
thus saving their wood for the charcoal pits, there lay another
seam, so similar to charcoal in appearance and behavior in the fire,
that it was at once tried in the furnaces. The result was, it made
iron but a small ])er cent, inferior to that made with charcoal.
Here were riches incredible. The whole countrv bottomed
History of Jackson County. 177
with a layer of the finest smelting coal some four feet thick, ac-
cessible in the valleys by shafts of from twenty-five to seventy-five
feet deep; great veins of iron cropping out everywhere along the
hills, and inexhaustible quantities of limestone on every hand. It
was too immense a windfall for the wild little county to realize
all of a sudden. The staid old inhabitants knew that the rugged
surface of their land was worth a little something, even after all
its timber had been done into charcoal; for it still pastured sheep
and yielded them wagon-loads of ore that they could barter for
groceries and dry goods at the furnace stores; but they were slow
to comprehend that the mighty genii of God lay darkling under
their sheep pastures. The few home iron men who were in the
secret were not fanatical about proselyting outsiders, but went
noiselessly to work handling the good thing among themselves.
The little old paralyzed town of Jackson suddenly sprang up and
spread out into busy population and business in a surprisingly
brief space of time. Then some of the owners of the surface up the
country began to see it. It leaked out a little, and prospectors
from abroad came in and made them see it more. The price of land
started upward, and gentle speculation set in.
That is the point reached at the present writing. Land has
but just started into speculative figures, and shrewd calculators are
beginning to take it in. Prominent among these calculators is the
celebrated "Lightning-Calculator,'' Hon. Harvey Wells. Wells is
Hon. because he is a member of the Constitutional Convention. He
has also the distinction in that body of being the youngest member
thereof, and of having been elected as a Kepublican to represent a
Democratic constituency. Vinton county is Demcicratic by some
four hundred majority; and yet, by about that majority, he carried
it against the regular Democratic nominee. He did this by light-
ning calculation and extravagant energy, as well as by great
personal popularity. With the same calculation and energy he has
been gobbling coal and iron lands here. Such gobbling is technic-
ally termed optioning, so called because, the land owner being tied
up to a certain price for a certain period, *'the party of the second
178 HisTOKV OF Jackson County.
part" ha^ bis option for that period to take the land or not, at the
stipulated price.
Well, this Wellston is one of the results of Well's optioning.
Hon. H. S. Buudy, member of Congress from this District, has a
thousand acre farm that lies here like the hollow of your hand —
scooping down close to the precious coal seam, and catching the
ore veins and limestone ledges as they slope up to the horizon on
all sides. The Portsmouth branch of the Marietta and Cincinnati
railroad cuts it in two. A finer site for a town it is difficult to
imagine. With a mere bagatelle of capital, but with a good deal
of home credit for a " visionary " young -man, AVells put the Bundy
farm in a parenthesis at |105 an acre. By the co-operation of
Colonel S. N. Yeoman, of Fayette county, a keen and nervy antici-
pator of values, this farm, with the appurtenances of coal shaft and
furnaces, has just been stocked at about a quarter of a million.
The plat of Wellston occujues the most eligible portion of the
farm, on both sides of the railroad, its main street running parallel
with the track, and its Broadway crossing it and terminating both
ways on the hilltops. Two largest sized furnaces will oe put in
process of building immediately, and simultaneously a hundred
and fifty dw^elling houses.
This movement will be the fii'st fair opening of the region, and
will be the beginning of enthusiasm. There must be a rush of
speculators here; for "where the carcass is, there will the eagles be
gathered together." There can be no doubt about the presence
of the carcass in this case. The wonder is that the eagles have not
found it before. AVhere good and abundant iron ore, and the best
of c6al for smelting it, and the limestone for fluxing it all lie
together in the same ground, and that ground only a hundred and
thii'ly miles from a great city by raili'oad, the conjunction of ad-
vantages is so rare that it can be calculated upon to attract capital
and labor largely, because it can be depended upon for large
returns to the same. This is not an experiment any longer. * *
THE HUGHES CAVE SKELETON— Mr. John J. Cunning
h;im discoveied a human skeh^ion in a cave on the lands of Mrs. •
HisTOKY OF Jackson Countv. 179
Hughes, in Madison township, some two miles from Centreville,
in January, 1875. He was fox hunting, when the fox ran under
the rocks, and he going in after it, saw something which he took
to be a gourd. Picking it up he found it to be a human skull. He
then found in a depression in the rocks the entire skeleton. It was
lying face downwards, and the bones w^ere cramped as if the body
had been doubled and crowded into the depression in the rocks.
JACKSON'S REPRESEXTATIVEvS— The first period in the
history of Jackson County's Representatives extended from 1803
to 1816. During this period nearly all the settled -territory of Jack-
son County was included within the limits of Ross, and its Repre-
sentatives can thus be claimed b}- Jaclvson. The members from
Ross in the First Ohio House were Michael Baldwin, Robert Cul-
bertson, Thomas Worthington and William Patton. The latter was
one of the two men that drafted the first bill to regulate the Scioto
Salt Works. The members in the Second House were James
Dunlap, John Evans and Elias Langham. The name of Duncan
McArthur appears in 1804. David Shelby and Abraham J.
Williams were new men in 1805. Nathaniel Massie was elected in
180B, and Thomas Wonthington and Jeremiah McLean in 1807.
W^orthington was one of the men that made the first survey of
Jackson County. Jessuj) X. Couch, Joseph Kerr and Samuel ]\Ion-
nett were new men in 1808, and Edward Tiffin, already mentioned,
in 1809. Henry Brush, Abraham Claypool, James Manary and
William Creighton, Jr.. were elected in 1810, William Sterrett and
Thomas Renick in 1811, Samuel Swearingen in 1812, John Mc-
Dougall, James Barnes and Isaac Dawson in 1813, and Thomas
Scott in 1815. Thf' names are given in the order in which the men
were elected. Many of them served several terms. Several of
them were Governors of the State, and the list includes a number
of Congressmen. Jackson's early settlers were well rei)resented
before the organization of the county. That event (xcnrred in 1810,
and the first election for representative was held in October of
that year.
The second period began in 1810 and lasted four years. The
180 HisTOK\ oi- Jackson County.
two new counties, Pike and Jackson were erected into a Legislative
District until the census of 1820 was taken. At the first election
there were only two candidates voted for in Jackson County, viz,
Jared Strong and George L. Crookham. Strong carried the county
by a vote of 171 to 89 for Crookham, and carried Pike County, also,
and was elected. Crookham was the grandfather of the McKit-
terick brothers of Jackson and was a man of great ability.
Strong's wider acquaintance secured him the election, however.
He was re-elected in 1817 with hardly any opposition. In 1818, Wil-
liam Givens, of Jackson, was elected. Strong was not a candi-
date and his only opponent was William Collins who received a
light vote. Judge Givens served only one year, and was succeeded
by Strong, who was elected for the third term, and by an over-
whelming vote.
The third period began in 1820, and extended to 1828. During
this period the counties of Meigs, Gallia and Jackson formed one
Legislative District and were entitled to two Representatives.
There were six candidates at the election in 1820. Robert G.
Hanna received almost the entire vote of his county and was
elected. His associate was George House. House and David
Boggs, of Gallia, were elected for the district in 1821, Jackson
County was left out in the cold, but in 1822, evened up by electing
two of its sons, Jared Strong and Joseph W. Ross. This occurred
on account of the multiplicity of candidates in the other two
counties. Strong was elected for the fifth time in 1823, his asso-
ciate being Fuller Elliott. Jared Strong, the first Jackson County
man elected to the Ohio House, had a service record which has
never been broken, in number of terms or years. He was elected
five times and served five years, the term being one year, under the
old Constitution from 1803 to 1851. In 1824, Jackson secured the
two Representatives a second time, electing J. W. Ross and David
Mitchell. Ross was re-elected in 1825, and had Samuel Holcomb
for his associate. In 182G, Daniel Hoffman, of Jackson, and
Stephen Strong were elected. Some claim that this Strong was the
son of Hon. Jared Strong, while others assert that he was a Meigs
History of Jackson County. 181
County man. In 1827, George Burris, of Jackson, and Andrew
Donnally, of Meigs, were elected.
In 1828, Jackson and Pike were put together again and given
one Representative. Alexander Miller, of Jackson, was given the
first term. John Barnes, of Pike, was elected in 1820 and 1830,
Robert Lucas, of Pike, in 1831, Geoge Burris, of Jackson, in 1832,
Barnes again in 1833, John Burnside, of Jackson, in 1834, and
David Mitchell, of Jackson, in 1835.
A new district consisting of Ross, Pike and Jackson was
formed in 1836, which was entitled to two members, and to one
floater the first year. James Hughes, of Jackson, was elected
as one of the members in 1836, 1837 and 1838, and Elihu Johnson,
in 1839. Daniel Ott was Hughes' associate jn 1830 and 1837 and
Abraham Hegler in 1838. Samuel Reed was the other member in
1839. The floater in 1836 was John I. Vanmeter, of Pike.
Hocking was added to the district in 1840, and the new district
was given three members. Jackson had a Representative during
the four years, viz, John Stinson in 1840, John James in 1841, Elihu
Johnson in 1842, and Asa R. Cassidy in 1843. The other members
were Joseph Kaylor and James T. Worthington in 1840, David
Karshner and Le Grand Byington in 1841, William Nelson and
Byington in 1842, and Kaylor end Wesley Claypool in 1843. Hon. Le
Grand Byington moved to Iowa in later years, and was alive very
recently. If he is still living, he is the oldest surviving Representa-
tive of this county. He stumped this county during his canvass,
and he spoke once at old Oak Hill in front of the residence of James
Reed, where Evan I Evans now resides.
During the next period of four years Jackson and Gallia were
put together with one representative. Gallia was given Jose])h J.
Combs in 1844, Jackson, Martin Owens in 1845, and Alexander
Poor in 1846, and Gallia A. T. Holcomb in 1847. Owens was the
father of ex-Marshal William Owens. Holcomb is dead, but a
namesake and relative is now a leading Republican of Scioto
County.
In 1848, Athens and Meigs were added to the district, and it
182 HiSTOKV OK Jackson County.
was given a tloater in addition lo Che regular member. Tlie mem-
ber in 1848 was Hon. H. S. liundy and the floater A. T. Holcomb.
Jose})h W. Koss was the member in 1841) and iloh-omb the floater.
Penell Cherrington, of Gallia, was the member in 1850 and Bundy
the floater.
During the decade following the census of 1850, Jackson and
Vinton counties formed one Legislative District, which was repre-
sented by six dirterent men, viz, Daniel D. T. Hard elected in 1851,
William J. Evans in 1853, Edward F. Bingham in 1855, Robert B.
Stevenson in 1857, and Alexander Pierce in 1851). Stevenson re-
signed before the end of his term, and was succeeded by William
L. Edminston. All of these except W. J. Evans were from Vinton
County. Evans was elected as a AMiig. He is still living and
resides near Oak Hill. He is the oldest surviving Legislator in
the county. The two year term began with this period.
The county now forms a single Legislative District, and has
enjoyed that privilege since 1801, a period of thirty-nine years.
During that time the county has had fourteen Representatives, of
whom eight are still living, viz, James Tripp, Bernard Kahn,
Thomas J. Harrison, R. H. Jones, B. F. Kitchen, Samuel Llewellyn
M. T. Vanpelt and Lot Da vies. Hon. Isaac Roberts, the first of the
fourteen was the father of Mrs. H. C. Miller. He was elected in 18(>1
and served one term. His successor was Hon. James Tripp, elected
in 18G.3, who served two terniy. In 1867, the Republican candidate
was defeated by Hon. Levi Dungan, who served one term. Dr.
William S. Williams, of Oak Hill, was nominated by the Repub-
licans in 1809, and elected, but he died :March 0, 1871, while at
Columbus. His remains were brought to Oak Hill for interment.
The writer was at the funeral. The day was rainy and gloomy and
the funeral was one of the largest in the history of that village.
An election to choose a successor was held March 23, 1871. Hon
T. L. Hughes was elected. In October, 1871, the Republican candi-
date was defeated by Hon. Beinard Kahn, who served one term.
He is now living in Cincinnati. There was no contest in the Repub-
lican convention of 1873, and Hon. T. J. Harrison, of Jefferson
township, was nominated by acclamation. This was the first ])olit-
History of Jackson County. 183
ical convention attended by the writer, and it left a most vivid im-
pression. After Harrison was nominated, he was called before the
convention and delivered a short address. He was elected, but
served only one term. In later years, he moved to Missouri, where
he now resides. In 1875, Dr. A. B. Monahan was elected, and he
was re-elected in 1877, but died before the end of his term. Pie
belonged to a family of legislators. His brother, Hon. I. T. Mona-
han, was Senator from this district during his first term. A
brother and a doctor represented Vinton for two terms in recent
years, and other brothers served in western Legislatures. Mona-
han was succeeded by Hon. James B. Paine, who was re-elected in
1879. Hon. R. H. Jones, then of Oak Hill, succeeded him. He
served two terms, and as " Jones of Jackson " acquired a State
reputation. Hon. B. F. Kitchen was elected in 1885 and served two
terms. Hon. Samuel Llewellyn was elected in 1889 and served two
terms, and Hon. M. T. Vanpelt was elected in 1893 and served two
terms. He was succeeded by Hon. Lot Davis, who is now serving
out his second term.
Jackson County has had fifty-nine Representatives since its
organization. Of those who were its owm citizens H. S. Bundy
became the most distinguished. Robert Lucas, of Pike, who rep-
resented it in 1831, became Governor of Ohio the next year, and
was, re-elected in 1834. John I. Vanmeter, who represented it in
1836, was elected to the Twenty-eighth Congress. Byington was a
candidate for Congress in Iowa in the early years of the war.
Others liave held manypositions of honor and trust. JamesHughes,
who served from 1836 to 1839, established the Jackson Stand-
ard. Martin Owens established the Jackson Union, but it did not
survive long. John James was the grandfather of ex-Warden C. C.
James. Personal popularity had much to do with the success of
the men elected under the old Constitution. It was only after Jack-
son became a single district that political lines were tightly drawn.
Roberts was elected in 1861 as a Republican, and that party has
controlled the connty ever since, Levi Dungan and Bernard Kahn
being the only Democrats to break the lines.
184 History of Jackson Countv
WITCHES — The south part of Jackson County, and the ad-
joining parts of Scioto and Lawrence, were settled early in the
present century by the poorer classes of persons from Western Vir-
ginia. They possessed many good traits of character, and some
which were not so good. From the amount of ceremony attending
the marriages among them, as I have already described, one would
suppose that the marriage relation among them would be highly
esteemed; but such was not always the case. On one occasion a
man conceived that he had been worsted in his marriage contract,
and traded his wife to another man for a penknife, worth 50 cents.
The purchaser took possession, and the parties lived together quite
happily until they left the county, and for aught I know, they are
living together yet.
Occasionally an old bachelor was found among these early
settlers. There was Jesse Rees, the tailor, who made my first coat
for me. He built a cabin away back across the Black Fork of
Symmes' creek, miles from any other settler. It w^as at the foot of
a steep hill, which is known to this day as "Rees' Ridge." This
place is about a mile from Jefferson Furnace. There Rees lived all
alone. He was an inoffensive man, but terribly addicted to drink-
ing whisky. When partially intoxicated, he was in the habit of
boasting of a large amount of property in which he had some in-
terest at King's Salt Works, near Charleston, Virginia.
Witches were very troublesome in the days of the first settle-
ments in this county. The cows would become bewitched, and kick
over the milk pail. The butter would not come with any amount
of churning. The only remedy was to cut a small piece from the
end of the cow's tail, take that and a few drops of her blood, and a
little of her milk, and cover them in the hottest part of the fire,
and the witch would be rendered very uncomfortable, and would
very likely relieve the cow. Hogs were often bewitched. A farmer
told me once that he had lost many fine hogs at the hands of the
witches. The hogs would commence running around, fall down in
a kind of convulsive fit, and scon die. He and his brother were out
one day burning brush, when a witch seized one of his hogs, and
it fell near the burning brush heap. He told his brother to pick it
History of Jackson County. 185
up and throw it into the fire. It was apparently dying, but as his
brother stooped to take hold of it, it jumped up as well as ever, and
ran off. The witch having so narrow an escape, did not trouble his
hogs any further.
But the witches often attacked persons. I know a young
woman once who was sorely troubled for years by , a witch,
living in the neighborhood. I have seen this young woman seized
in time of religious meetings, and it was a fearful sight. No one
could hold her but , her beau. Great terror would seize the
congregation when these attacks were made. It was the subject of
gossip for miles around. The aid of witch doctors was invoked.
They made a profile of Mrs. , the witch, and shot it with a bul-
let made of silver. They resorted to other means, too mysterious to
be made known, and finally Mrs. was rendered so uncomfort-
able that her husband was compelled to sell his little farm and
leave the county. A most horrid case of witchcraft occurred in
this county since my recollection. A young girl near the town of
was bewitched. The witch would cause the dishes to move
from the cupboard to the table, and back again, without any hu-
man agency. Nearly all the clothes about the house were cut to
pieces by the witches. Persons went many miles to see these
strange sights. The whole county was excited, and scarcely any-
thing else was talked about for many months.
Witches often played strange pranks. They would often at-
tack persons who happened to be caught out alone at nights, and
throw a bridle over their heads, force the bit into their mouths,
mount them and ride them over hill and hollow, through brush and
briars, until the poor wretches were completely exhausted, and
would return early in the morning looking more than half dead.
Witches would often appear of rainy nights, especially in low,
swampy places, as "Jack with the lantern." The witch would com-
mence as a torch light, and the traveler, too glad to have a light t»
show him his way, would follow. The light would move, and com-
mence dancing, and then the party was in for it, and was compelled
to follow it whithersoever it went. It would lead him into the worst
mud and mire, and then it would stop and laugh at his calamity,
186 History of Jackson County.
and mock when his fear came. I cannot give the sound of this
laugh in print, but is was something like ''heuck. heuck, heuck." An
old man from Old Virginia told me that he had often and often
been thus led by witches. Once he became coinpletely exhausted
and crei>t into a hollow log as far as he could get, but his hips and
legs were exposed. The witches came and battered him over the
hips until he was glad to get out of the log and pursue his way. His
hips were bruised until they 'were black and b'ue for many days.
The only way to get this witch spell broken, was to turn some por-
tion of vour garments wrong side out, when the light would in-
stantly disappear and you were free.
Witches would often kill sheep and cattle by shooting them
with balls made of hair, very closely and mysteriously wound to-
gether. These balls never made any external opening in the skin,
but were often cut out of the dead animals, in various parts of the
body. — Standard.
SYJMMES CREEK — John Cleves Symmes was born on Long
Island in 1742, removed to New Jersey, was colonel of militia in the
Revolution, served in the Continental congress, and on the supreme
bench of Xew Jersey, received a patent for a tract of more than
three hundred thousand acres on the Miami, was married three
times, and died at Cincinnati, in 1814. His memory has almost
been forgotten but the tortuous creek which drains the upland flats
of Jackson county, and flows south forever, fed by strong springs
welling forth from lime and coal strata, will preserve his name.
Symmes creek is a i)ost glacial stream. It was formed by the
pent up waters of a lost river whose mouth was choked by the gla-
cier, seeking an outlet into the deeply eroded bed of the Ohio. The
old valley of the lost river can be traced easily through this county
from Beaver to Centreville. The closing of its mouth by the ice
converted that part of it now included in this county into a long
but narrow lake. The floods at the close of the glacial period caus-
ed this lake to overflow at three or more points. These overflows
cut gorges which in course of time emi)tied the lake, and, that duty
done, continued to be regular water courses. Erosion is still in
History of JacKvSOn County. 187'
progress, and their valleys are widening year by year. The Salt
Creek gorge is nearest to Jackson. The South Fork of this creek
occupies Ihe old river bed from Camba to a point about a mile be-
low Jackson. It then flows through a narrow gorge of its own mak-
ing, which is easily accessible to every Jackson boy or girl who
caies to study it. The two forks which join to form Symmes creek
down in Gallia county, flow through gorges of the same general
character, but they are older, the work of erosion has continued
longer, and the hills have been rounded out more, and the exposed
strata covered. It should be noted, that while these gorges were
emptying the glacial lake, many small streams were carrjang in
sand and mud, and gradually filling the deeper parts of the lake
bed. With the subsidence of the waters, the force of the current in
each gorge was lessened, and there came a time when the cutting
practically ceased. But the washing in of material continued un-
abated until all the low places were filled. The lake bottom then
became a marsh, and such was the condition of the lowlands in this
county, when the white man came. Drainage has converted those
marshes into meadows, and the flats on the head waters of Symnn^s
are now the best land in the county.
FRANKLIN VALLEY— The flat south of Camba goes by the
name of Franklin Valley. It is irregular in shape but broadens to-
ward the south and has an area of about one thousand acres. It is
hemmed in by low crowned hills, but a low gap connects it with
Salt Creek valley on the north, and two valleys drain its waters to
the east and south. The first stream flows on by easy stages until
it loses itself in Cackley swamp on the Grassy Fork of Symmes. It
b(nirs no name. The second stream is the Black Fork of Symmes.
Its bed drains the lowest lands of the flat. The waters of the gla-
cial lake lingered longest at the jioint where it enters the gorge
through the hills to the south. Nature was thwarted in her effort
to drain this marsh, by the skilful engineering of the beaver. The
valley of Black Fork was one of their favorite haunts, for its tor
tuous course furnished so many suitable sites for dams. These
dams held back the waters in ponds, the largest of which occupied
188 History of Jackson County.
the lowest level of Franklin valley, and bore the name of Beaver
pond. This name given by the Indians, was retained by the whites
and still designates the spot, although the water has been drained
away. The presence of the beaver, and of the buffalo which were
attracted by the sweet grasses of the marshes, made this a favorite
hunting ground of the Indians. The buffalo lingered on the head-
waters of Symmes until the beginning of this century. Two were
killed on Grassy Fork in the neighborhood of Emory church in
1800, others of the herd were killed near Winchester in 1801, and
the last survivor was shot by an old hunter named Keenes in the
Franklin valley neighborhood in 1802. The beaver remained until
their dams were broken down by the ruthless salt boilers. This let
out the waters, and the clearing of the timber and the straighten
ing of the creeks drained all the smaller ponds at an early day.
Beaver pond held its own for half a century more, but the deepen-
ing of the Black Fork channel within the last seven years, has end-
ued its history.
iisroE::x:.
A Postoffice Established 82
A Band of Hunters 45
A Jackson County Mammoth ... 7
A Petition for a License to Keep
a Tavern 114
A Forg-otten Graveyard 139
Annexed to Virginia. . .... 32
An Act Regulating the Public
Salt Works 76
An Act to Encourage Experi-
ments at the Scioto Salt Works 83
An Act to Erect the County of
Jackson 96
An Archaeological Find . . 25
Annexed to Quebec 40
Appearance of the Licks 35
Autumnal Fevers 135
Battle of Point Pleasant 42
Beaver 20
Bloomfield 99
Botetourt County 41
Boone's Visit 45
Briggs' Notes 88
Camp Rock 94
Camp of 1812 94
Captain Batts' Expedition 32
Captain Strong's Company 94
Ceded to the United States 48
Commissioners and Director
Appointed 125
Commissioners' Proceedings. . . .Hi7
Congress Acts 64
Counting the Votes 103
Darling's Interview 145
De Celoron's Expedition 35
Deer 17
Early Criminal Record 117
End of French Dominion 40
Escape of Samuel Davis 54
First White Visitors 33
First English Visitors 34
First Commissioners 98
First Year's Taxes Ill
First Term of Court 112
First Criminal Case 114
First Petit Jury 115
Fossil Bones 5
Franklin 100
Gallatin's Suggestion 74
General Lewis at the Licks 44
Georere L. Crookham 67
Green's Exnedition 57
Harrison's Recommendation .... 74
Hildreth's Notes 84
Human Skeletons 27
Illinois County Organized 47
Introduction 5
Jackson's First Director 128
Jackson County Erected 95
Jonathan Alder 47
July 4. 1817 130
La Salle 33
Leasing the Licks 75
Lick Township 91
Lick 101
Lord Dunmore's War 42
Madison 102
Milton I(i2
Note d Salt Boiler 104
New Town Laid Out 126
Other Pioneers 68
Other Salt Lick Legislation ... 82
Other Business 115
Panthers 18
Primeval Man 21
Ross County 91
Rock Shelters 26
Salt 26
Sale of Lots 127
Selecting the Site 125
Some Bear Stories 14
Some Recollections 142
Squatter Sovereiernty 66
Story of the Ashes 29
Survey of Jackson County 89
Teachers' Examiners 134
The Fir.st Agent 79
The Mammoth 5
The M astodon 8
The Megatherium 9
The Buifalo 11
The Elk 14
The Raccoon 20
The Last Otter 20
The Mound Builders 22
The Old Fort 23
The Salt Pans 30
The Shawanese . ... 31
The Historic Period 31
The First Map 36
The Halterman Boys 36
The James Forav 60
The Second Salt" Boiler 64
The First Salt Boiler 63
The First Road 80
The Last Road Appropriations.. 80
Thomas Oliver 73
The War of 1812 92
The First Election 99
The First Road Petition Ill
The First Fall Election 115
The First Convict 119
The County Seat
121
129
. ...:32
The End
. 147
The First jail
The First Court House
Titfin's Messag-e
Treaty ot Lirccnville
\'<terans of tlie Revolution , .
\\'a\ne's <"ampai}^n
William Hewitt, the Hermit .
Wild Game
.. 81
()2
The First Merchants
The First Bankrupt
The First Deaths
The Old Gravey. rd
.... 133
134
1-7
138
1411
. . 70
.. .'6
.. 49
9
The Bunn Graveyard
\\'olves
.. 18
NIISOI^^I
A Southern Term 149
An Old-lime Will 151
An Old Tine Wedding- 174
An Act to Incorporate the Iron
Railroad Company 16'>
Biirninj;- of the Court House 1~6
Cit zens' Bajik 172
Franklin Valley 187
Importing^ Cards 1.^2
Jackson's Representatives 17^*
Jamestown Cemetery . . . .1 .S
-Jefferson 150
Last Wi 1 and Testament of
Hannah Thompson 151
Lead Legends 153
Macklcy's Recollections 1.57
JVlt. Zion Cemetery 173
Patent for Section 29 150
Price'.-> Recollections 163
Syimiies Creek 1S6
The Huf(^hes Cave Skeleton .... 178
The Lickey Tavern 155
T e Martin Mound 156
The First Railroad 166
The First Bank 171
The Mather Cemetery 172
Town.vhip Names 149
Washing-ton 149
\\'ell.->ton"& Beginning 176
V ^Itches 184
^
