Crawford County, Ohio - Chapter with an unread heading (no. 23 of those read), 1881

POLK TOWNSHIP - ITS ORGANIZATION - FIRST ELECTION - TOPOGRAPHY, ETC. - THE PIONEERSEARLY INDUSTRIES - INDIAN AND OTHER INCIDENTS - THE FIRST CHURCHES - SCHOOLS.

SANDUSKY TOWNSHIP was surveyed by Maxfield Ludlow in 1807. Like all towBships of the Government smwey, it was six miles square, and formed one of the western townships of Richland County. There were very few settlers before 1S17. It remained up to this time in an almost primitive condition, many of the Delaware and "Wyandot Indians yet lingering, and little inclined to leave one of the finest hunting-grounds they had ever kno-mi. Long and stubbornly had they contended for their homes against the white settlers and their encroachments. Here was game in the greatest profusion, and meat could be obtained in abundance, with such ease that hunting was always a pastime and not an arduous toil. The foi'ests were heavily timbered with every variety of stately tree; streams of sparkling brightness flowed fi-om innumerable springs; the plains and prairies on the west were the abode of large herds of deer. This was the home of Wigenuud, and within this territory Col. Crawford had been captured. Bloody tragedies had been enacted all over this ground, and through a thousand associations of fierce war and of gentle peace was this beautifiil land endeared to these savages. Many maple gi-oves were distributed throughout the township, and sugar was an article manufactiu-ed by whites and Indians. In 1812, the soldiers cut a road through the township, which passed north of the Olentangy, near the present site of Galion. Another road further south had been cut out by

On the 12th day of February, 1818, the township was organized - twelve miles long by six wide - and called Sanduskj-. The name is derived from " Sandusquet " of the old French ti-aders and voyageurs; the Sah-un-dus-kee, clear water, or San-doos-tee, at the cold water of the Wyandots, from the clear, cold water of the springs near the south shore of Sandusky Bay, or it may have been derived fi'om the Sa-uu-dustee - water within " water-pools " - also a AVyandot word.

At the time of the organization of Sandusky, it included within its limits the present townships of Vernon, Jackson and Polk: the former, with the remnant of Sandusky, remaining in Richland Countj'. It remained in that shape until March 5, 1845, when the north half was taken fi'om it and called Vernon Township. This left Sandusky six miles square again. About this time there was a mania for manufacturing new counties, to\vnships and, esj)ecially, new county seats. This was a queer sjieculation, and outgerrvmandered anything ever known of the kind before or since. The originally sm-veyed townships were divided and cut up and rejoined until they almost lost their former identity. Four tiers of sections were taken fi'om the west side of Sanduskv^ To\vnshii>, Richland County, and passed into the possession of Crawford County, on the 3d of Febiiiary, 1845. To the west side of this tier of foiu- sections was added what was known as the "three-mile strip." On the south was added a strip one mile wide from Marion County. From all this aggregation of pieces of townships, a strip of land three miles wide and seven miles long was taken from the south side, and named Polk Township. It is at present bounded on the north by Jackson and Jefferson, on the east by Eichland County, on the south by Morrow County, and on the west by Whetstone Township. Polk was unfortunately situated as regards an outlet to market. After the Sandusky, Mansfield & Newark Railroad was built, a majority of the farmers of Polk were trading in a county seat not their own. There was much dissatisfaction among the people on the eastern side of Polk; they had been pulled about in a ruthless manner, against their will; Crawford County was poor; many of her public buildings were yet unpaid for, and they thought their taxes would be increased to an enormous extent; especially was this the case with those who had formerly been within the limits of Richland County. This county was comparatively rich. The public buildings were mostly erected and paid for; the people felt as though they had been taxed to em-ich the old county, and now that prosperity was dawning upon them, they were compelled to pay taxes in a poor county and assist in bringing them out of debt. Much excitement followed the act, loud protestations were made, violence and bloodshed were thi'eateued. Nothing serious, however, ocoiuTed, and the people did the most reasonable thing under the circumstances that could be done. They sent Mr. Asa Hosford to the State capital as a lobby representative, and enjoined him to take care of their interests. He worked with fidelity, but failed in part of his mission. That portion of the new township which had been in Richland County, through their Representative, induced the Legislatm-e to pass an enactment whereby they were released fi'om the payment of taxes upon the county buildings of Crawford. The Representative was Mr. Hettrick. He presented the facts of the case, and earnestly demanded the enactment. This was ajsparently so easily done and with so little opposition, that Mr. Hosford asked that the same favor be shown to the strip coming from the south, in Marion County; Mr. Hettrick offered the resolution, but Mr. Cary, representing the citizens of this southern strip, objected on tlie ground that his constituents did not ask for it. This ended the matter.

Previous to the formation of Polk Township, the elections were held south of Crestline nearly two miles, on Section 16, at the house of Mr. Fate. It was here that Maj. Robinson cast his maiden vote for Daniel Riblet, who was a candidate for Justice of the Peace. The Major was not quite twentyone years of age; but this election, like all others, was of vast importance, and politics ran high. Gallon was the center of interest in the new township, and for many miles around. The nan'owness of the township placed Gallon so near the line that, in many cases, those who did much for her prosperity and were interested in her grovrth, resided outside of Polk Township.*

In an old book in the County Clerk's Ofiice at Bucyrus, there was one allusion to Polk Township, which is given as a resolution by the County Comissioners :

March 6, 1845. - Board met pursuant to adjournment. Present, full Board. Resolution. - This day it was resolved, by the Commissioners of Crawford County, that the following fractional townships, taken from the counties of Richland and Marion, anJ those lying on the west side of said county of Crawford, according to an act of the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, passed February third (3d), 1845, to erect the new county of Wyandot, and alter the boundaries of Crawford, was organized into separate townships, to wit : All that part taken from the county of Richland, and being in Township twenty (20) north^ Range twenty (20) west, and all that part taken from Township nineteen (19), with Range (20), and all that part taken from the county of Marion, and being in Township fifteen (15) with Range twenty-one (21) be, and the same is hereby, organized into a separate township by the name of Polk, and that the County Auditor be and is hereby authorized to cause notice to be given to the said township of the foregoing organization and alteration, according to the statute of Ohio in such case made and provided. John Clements,

In selecting a name for this township, the first choice was for Jackson; it was Daniel Hoover's desire to so name it; but it was discovered in time that one of the new townships on the north had preceded them in the selection of the name Jackson. 111-. Polk being President at this time, his name was proposed and accepted. According to the resolution and orders of the Supervisor, Mr. James Eobiuson was ordered to post, in three conspicuous places within the township, notices, setting forth a list of offices then vacant, and ordering the time and place of election. The ofificers for Sandusky Township had already been elected, and when the election in Polk took place, soon after, it was only to fill vacancies caused by the separation, those having been elected in Sandusky and residing in Polk were to hold over till the next annual election. A. Underwood was one of them, having been elected Justice of the Peace. The record of the first election is in the possession of F. A. Keen, and is as follows:

At an election held in the Township of Polk, in the county of Crawford, State of Ohio, on the 7th day of April, in the year of our Lord 184-5, Isaac Criley, Joshua Canon and Pharas Jackson, Judges, and Solomon P. Nave and Samuel R. Canon, Clerks. The following officers were duly elected and qualified :

At a meeting of the Trustees of Polk Township, held on the 26th day of April, 18 J5, among other business transacted was the sale of James Sutton, a town pauper. He was sold to the lowest bidder for his keeping for one year from above date. lie was taken by Jacob Steinbaugh, at §100, clothing and doctor bills excepted. They proceeded also to levy a tax, for poor purposes, of 2 mills on the dollar, and J of a mill for Township purposes. At a meeting held on the 0th day of September, 1845, present, Aga Hosford and Bartholomew Reed, they appointed the place of holding elections to be at the schoolhouse, in the borough of Gallon, in said township. Peter Cress, Township Clerk.

To those who do not understand what is meant by the sale of paupers, we give in full a copy of a handbill found among the records. It must be remembered no county house existed at the time, and it was necessary to i^rovide in some way for the poor; hence they were sold:

Sale of Paupers. - There will be sold, on Wednesday, May 16, 1866, Mary Houk and Delia Hengst, paupers of Polk Township, Crawford County, Ohio, to the lowest responsible bidders, for one year. Terms of pay for keeping said paupers, half in six months from day of sale, and the remainder at the expiration of the year. Proposals will be received from 1 to 4 o'clock, P. M. Samuel Shunk,

There are twenty-one sections in Polk Township, of as fine land as exists in Northern Ohio. The timber was veiy heavy, and consisted mostly of beech, maple, oak, hickory, elm, black walnut and ash. The land, before dealing, has the appearance of being swampy and wet. This is caused by the high and generally level condition, there be- ing no general slope to the land by which the water can run off at once. All over the township, there is evidence of immense deposits of di'ift; gravel-beds, mixed with iron and clay, with strata above or below it of fine and coarse sand, are abundant. The geological formation is such that, in the primeval days, the land in this vicinity formed shoals, and one can easily conceive that the great mountain glaciers coming from the icy North, freiglited with their load of stone, gravel and clay, were wrecked in the shallow sea over this township, grinding and pulverizing the primitive rock that formed this rich soil.

The Olentangy River meanders throughout the whole length of the township. It enters in the northeast portion, winds round in broad sweeps toward the south and passes out on the west side, on the farm of J. K. Sherer. All along its valley there are outcroppings of sandstone, of the Waverly gi'oup. There are at present, as far as we know, but two quarries in operation - ^those of John Flowers, and Dr. Coyle and James Green. The Olentangy waters the bottom lands of the whole township, and springs abound in profusion; this might seem contrary to the genei'al expectation, or to any one not a practical geologist, when it is remembered that Polk Township occupies a part of the dividing ridge or crest that separates the slope to the lakes on the noi^th, and the valley of the Ohio tliat slopes to the south; but so it is. Within the township are two springs but a few rods apart; the one on the north contributes its mite to Lake Erie, thimders with its waters over the ponderous Niagara, and wends its romantic way around and among the " Thousand Isles," and thence to the sea. The spring on the south side lingers slowly, clinging gently to its birthplace, as if in doubt as to which course it shall take. It finally takes its com-se toward simny lands, and on through populous countries, rich meadows, gradually down to the " Father of waters," and thence to the Gulf of Mexico. Thus it can be seen that we are high upon a billow of land, and upon the very summit of the crest.

"When the fii-st settlers came to Polk or Sandusky Township, the Olentangy was a beautiful stream; luxuriant groves existed on each side of it, and its banks were lined with a jjrofusion of flowers and grasses ; countless herds of deer drank of its sweet waters, and the red man loved and venei-ated the stream. Before the land was cleared up, the banks were tolerably full, and the stream never shrunk to its jaresent proportions; year by year, niunerous mills were erected upon its banks, and the falling waters turned the wheel of induetiy to the owners' profit and the great convenience of the settlers.

Probably the first men who cleared any land within the present limits of Polk wore Benjamin Leveredge and his two sons, James and Nathaniel. Most of the early settlers were from New York and Pennsylvania. No biography of this iirst family can be obtained, and very little is known of them previous to their arrival in this vicinity. They came in the year 1817, cutting their way to their land. The father built his cabin near the springs on Atwood street, Gallon, on the quarter-section he had entered. James Leveredge erected his cabin on the ground now occupied by David Mackey's residence, and Nathaniel built his primitive dwelling near the center of the public square in Gallon. The two former had water in abundance fifom the numerous springs in their vicinity, but Nathaniel dug a well near his cabin door. This was the well that was filled up about ten years ago, and traces of which were found within the present year (1880) by workmen while engaged in grading the square. In the year 1818, George Wood and David Gill arrived; they settled north of the 01eutann;y, near tlie old military real, cut out by sokliers in 1812. These two families were from Pennsylvania, Wood and Gill being brothers-in-law; Wood was a cai'penter, and Gill followed schoolteaching, mostly; he was well educated for the time, and the general business man in the community. James Gill was a son of David, and his widow still lives on the site of the farm owned by the former. Mrs. Fanny Biyfogle, 5Ii-s. Catharine Monnett, Mrs. Nelson Casey and the wife of Samuel ^Mosher were daughters of David Gill. George Wood had one son, George, Jr.; the two families removed to Jlissouri, where the older members died, and some of the younger retiu-ued to Gallon. It was also in the year 1818 that Benjamin ShaiTock came to Polk Township ; he erected a temporaiy shelter neai- the Reisinger Comers for his family, while ho made progress with his ax and saw on the farm south.

On Satm-day, Sexstember 19, 1819, Mi-. Asa Hosford ti-udged afoot into Polk Townshiji; he stopped over Sunday with Benjamin Leveredge. From the date of his arrival, jSIi'. Hosford became a leading citizen and was interested fi-om that time on with the concerns of the township requiring tact and abilit}'. In 1820 came Nathaniel Story and Father Kitteridge, the latter living with the former, who was by occupation a himter and trapper. Mi-. Story erected his cabin near the crossing of Main street and the Olentangj', west of town. In the year 1822 came the Rev. James Dunlap, who went to farming, but afterward entered the ministry and taught school. In 1824 came Nathan Men-imau, who, in the year following his arrival, erected a whisky distilleiy at the springs, near where the Leveredges lived. This was the first distillery in the township, and was known far and wide, and familiarly designated as " the still."

and the order of their coming of all that are known. There were others taking up land and settling thi-oughout the township, but those above named formed the nucleus around which clustered the new settlement.

The first grist-mill in Polk Township was erected by Mr. Hibner, on the banks of the Olentangy, near the railroad bridge, on the farm now owned by Mr. Bm-gener. A sawmill was built north of Gallon ; Hosford's and Park's grist-mills and Sharrock's gi'ist and saw mill were all within a few miles of each other, and run by the waters of the Olentangy, which is not now a romantic-looking stream. The lands which it drained have been cleared, and many of the springs which fed it have become di-y. Immense ditches, with the modern system of di-aining, with its miles of tiling, have all tended toward the destruction of the stream, and its banks are full only after the heavy rains or melting of accumulated snow; but a small rivulet carries the water fi-om pool to pool ; the waters are dark, filthy and putrid. The wash from the city of Gallon, with the washes of gas-making and dyeing, together with slaughter-houses, have contributed to the general nastiness.

In some portions of the township, there is an approach to the formation of plains, but not extensively so ; the soil is generally a gravelly loam; at a slight depth there is foimd a clean-washed gravel, and under the gravel a dense hard-pan. This gravel is saturated with healthy water, and is the cause of the numerous springs where this gi-avel crops out to the surface.

Among the topographical features of the township, there is one thing that desei-ves especial notice. About sixty years ago, a ten-ibly severe wind-storm swept over the northwest poi-tion : the atorm entered the western portion of the township on what is now known as the Belts farm, passing in a northeast di- rection, and ant of the township near the farm of Hon. James Eobinson. Its track was about one mile in width; every tree, almost without exception, was uprooted or twisted oS, and prostrated in the most unimaginable confusion. The trees went clown like grass before the sickle. Peter Snyder, now of Crestline, was at the time a boy, plowing in the field. Hearing the roar of the approaching storm, he made haste to find security; he entered an old-fashioned Pennsylvania log barn, set on a cobble-stone foundation; he repaired to the mow for safety, biit hardly had he amved there when the whole structure was raised three or fom* feet from the foundation. While siisj^ended in the air, the roof gave way and flew across the field, and the barn settled back to its foundation. Debris of all kinds was scattered over the ground, and among them were found numerous boughs and twigs of pine, which must have been brought from great distances. Deer and wild tui'keys were killed and crushed and fearfully mangled, as were also many cattle belonging to the settlers. Disberry Johnson had five head of cattle in the woods that were penned in by the fallen timber, but, strange to say, niiinjured. It required five days of chopj)iug and clearing to release them from their strange captivity. The year following this storm, fire broke out among the dried leaves and twigs in this windfall, and swept the whole length of it. The crops and buildings within close proximity were destroyed; for days the smoke was so dense that one could not see ten feet before him. Many times people would be obliged to prostrate themselves upon the ground to prevent suffocation. The settlers desjsaired of retrieving anything from the general wreck; many of them became despondent, and had they possessed the means, or any facilities, would have moved away from the blackened and charred ruins. The track of this windfall can at this day be traced in its course; where the trees were allowed to grow again, they are generally smaller; the trees going down and burning in the manner they did saved much logging and clearing; but on some farms it took every acre of timber from them.

The soil of Polk Township is eminently adapted to the raising of corn, although excellent wheat crops are harvested. The farther west in the township the more it is adapted to grazing and crops of grasses; stock can be kept better nowhere than on the plains and prairies which commence in Polk Township and extend for miles westward.

In the yeai- 1822, William MmTay, Maj. Jeffrey and James Duulap rigged up a onehorse wagon with a pole in it for two horses. This was in what was called Ohio County, and is now in Western Virginia. They had rifles, ammunition, cross-cut saw, axes and several old quilts. They covered the wagon with a linen cover and started for the West. They crossed the Ohio at the mouth of Short Creek, above Wheeling, passed thi'ough New Philadelphia, in Tusewawas County, thi'ough Wooster, on to Mansfield, a town then having thi-ee stores, two taverns and a blacksmithshop. On, west, they continued to a place they heard of as " Spangtown," "Moccasin," or " Goshen." There were five families between Gallon and Mansfield, as follows : Judge Patterson, Alfred Atwood's mother, a widow lady, old John Edgington, John Marshall and John Hibner. Just as they came to where the Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati Railroad crosses Main street, Mr. Dunlap told his companions that he thought they were coming to a settlement, as he discovered sheep tracks. They laughed at him and said they were deer tracks, which they proved to be. They came on through the woods up to the square where there were two log oabims, in one of which lived Mr. Leveredge. At the foot of the hill, where Mrs. J. Gill now lives, was a cabin, where J. Dickerson then lived. Farther west, where J. E. Clymer's brick hoiase now is, tliere was a double log cabin, owned by Willi;un Hosford, Asa Hosford's father; Horace Hosford had a blacksmith-shop on the Reisinger Corners, where he lived; Grandfather Kitteridge lived on the other corner. They went southwest to Benjamin ShiUTock's house. They were twelve days making the trip of 150 miles; sometimes the mud was up to the wagon-bed. The next day, Sirs. ShaiTock baked them some bread, and they went to their land to erect a cabin. On the land were twelve or foui'teen Indians, who had been on a big drunk the day before; one of them had been stabbed through the left side with a scalping-knif e. The Indian bragged over it and said, "Me ben-y stout Injun - stick big knife through - no kill - wooh!" The emigrants were much annoyed through the night by the howling of wolves. In a few days, they finished their cabin and returned for their families. This Mr. Dunlap afterward entered the ministry, and, within ten years, has wi'itten a number of papers entitled, "Recollections of Crawford County."

The settlers would espy a covered wagon coming, and cry out, "There comes another settler; " and start to meet him, and give him a hearty welcome, take axes and help to cut out a trail to his land and help him to select a good site for his cabin; all being agreed upon, they would chop and roll two logs together, kindle a fire between for the good woman to cook and provide something to eat, while they went to work clearing off a spot on which to erect a cabin. In two or thi-ee days, sufiicient logs would be cut, and the cabin erected, and a hole cut in one side for a door. Then the household furniture would be unloaded, consisting, generally, of two beds and bedding, a table, bureau, some chairs and kitchen fumiture, piling them with the family, in the cabin, on the ground floor. A young man-ied couple generally started in the same way, being assisted by their parents. A necessary piece of fiu-nitiu-e in the pioneer's cabin was a hominyblock, which was made by taking a log twenty inches thick and three feet long, chopping it in from each end and shaping it like a goblet; then setting it on end, kindle a fire under it and bm-n it out like a ckuggist's mortar; then they take a small pole, with an iron ring on one end, j)ut an iron wedge into it to pound the corn, put the corn in, pour on hot water to loosen the hulls, and pound with the wedge until cracked into hominy. While the husband is pounding his hominy at night, the wife is spinning flax-tow or wool for clothing for the family. The following pioneer reminiscence is pertinent to the subject:

" I have seen a whole family, consisting of father, mother, childi-en, pet pigs, young ducks and chickens, all occupying the same room at the same time, truly equal to Barnum's happy family. Although some endured hardships almost beyond endurance - having large families to support and no money - meat could be obtained fi-om the woods. The writer of these lines has seen the times when he has brought home a sack of meal and did not know whei-e the next was to come from; yet, trusting in God, and working day and night, has at length obtained a competency for himself and family, as many others have done. When I look back fifty years and see this country a howling wildorness, thronged with wild beasts of various kinds, hardly a white inhabitant from here to the Rockj' Mountains, I am struck with wonder and surprise at the progress of our nation. In 1825, we had a manufacturing establishment in Gallon, Polk Township, erected, I think, by old Nathan or Bishop Merriman, of Bucyi-us, to make whisky of our spare com and rye. About the same time, there was a horse-mill put up by old Mr. Snyder (I think his given name was Christopher), at Middletown, north of Gallon two or three miles, where we could get grinding done. The fanners for miles around would put a bag of corn or wheat on a horse with harness on, take another, if he had it, and go to mill. If his tiu-n came before night, all right; if not, he would hitch up in the night and keep himself awake by traveling aroimd aft'^r his horse. If it was wheat, he could turn a crank attached to a bolting cloth, and get his flour bolted by hand, and when his flour was ground would come home whistling and singing as happy as a lark. Perhaps his wife would tell him they were out of meat; taking his gun and dog, he would go out and shoot down a fat deer, as a farmer now goes out to his field to kill a fat sheep."

Soon after the war of 1812 James Nail, Esq., was in Richland County ; his father's was the seventh family in the county. Mr. Nail was bom in Somerset County, Penn., November 9, 1797; he left his father in 1819 and came to Sandusky Township, and bought 160 acres of land (called Congress land), two miles north of Gallon. In 1821, he mamed and settled on his land. When he first came, he knew of no neighbors but the Leveredges and his brother-in-law, Lewis Leiberger, with whom he lived till maiTied. The next year, Leiberger moved away. Bee-trees were plenty at this time, and Mr. Nail and his brother-in-law started one morning on a bee hunt, taking a southwest coiurse. They camped the first night on Sandusky Plains, half-way between Gallon and Bucyrus, at a small stream; the next day they hunted till evening, and camped on Sandusky Eiver, two miles west of Bucyrus; they saw many deer and turkeys, many bee-trees, but not a human being or a settlement. By the year 1821, John Brown, Benjamin Sharrock, Nathaniel Story and Mr. Hosford had moved into the neighborhood. For a long time, the Indians had been in the habit of taking large quantities of cranberries to Richland County; they would sometimes be seen with eight or ten horses loaded down with bark boxes filled with cranbemes ; these boxes were slung over the backs of the horses, and each one led by an Indian, single file. They traded the cranberries for meal, etc. ; the Indians kept secret the place of theii- growth, but Mr. Nail, his father-in-law, Samuel Brown, Michael Brown and Jacob Miller, determined to find the place where they were procured. They went southwest till they struck the Pennsylvania army road, and followed it for several miles, which was easily distinguished; after going some distance, they thought they had better go farther north ; this they did till they sti-uck the Sandusky Eiver, east of Bucyi-us. As they came to the stream, they heard a man chopping a little above; Mr. Nail told his companions that Indians were around, or else some white man had got in; they rode up and foimd Ml-. Daniel McMichael, a man they had never seen before; he seemed much alarmed, but was re-assm-ed when ]Mi\ Nail rode up close to him. This man gave them directions, and went with them a distance, showing them the Indian trail that led to the cranbeiTy marsh. They camped out that night, and saw the camp-fii'es of several parties of Indians, but were not molested. The nest morning, they gathered as many cranbeiTies as their horses could carry. They reached home that evening ; in passing over the military road, the weeds were as high as their horses' heads. They saw but one man during the trip. Mi-. Nail states that their food, when he was young, consisted of bear's meat, venison, tm-key, corn-meal, potatoes and hominy. Their clothing was generally buckskin and linsej-woolsey; the children mostly went bareheaded and barefooted nearly all the year. They made some kind of linen from the nettles. Some time after Sir Nail and his brother-in-law had hunted and marked their bee-trees, they went after the honey. After it was all collected, they lacked a little of two barrels; Mr. Christian Snyder had moved to the neighborhood a little while before, and was about going back for his goods; he offered to take the honey to Jefferson County for nothing, saying it would there sell for $1 a gallon.

In 1822, jNIr. Nail sold his land and bought eighty acres on a branch of the AVhetstone, or Olentangy, southwest of Galion. Michael Brown, 'John Dnnmeier and James Leveredge assisted him in putting up his cabin; about this time, he had occasion to go to Mansfield on foot, which was twenty-two miles the way he was obliged to go; he got back at 10 at night; but as he reached the house his dog barked violently. The wife di-ew the blanket that covered the door to one side, when the dog ran in the cabin followed by a wolf, who, seeing a large fire, ran back. Mi\ Nail found his wife prepared for emergencies, sitting near the fire, the dog at her feet and the ax in her hand. About this time, Mr. Alexander McGrew came to Mr. Nail's, fi-om Tuscarawas County, and solicited the conti-act for erecting a mill which 'Mr. Nail contemplated erecting. A dam was made, and in six weeks' time, the frame and iiinning gear were in order. The farai and mill were sold that fall to Mr. John Hauck, who was looking for a site for a carding-machine and fulling-mill. The settlers were too sparse, and the project was given up. Mr. Nail reserved the right to live in the cabin and use the mill for one year, which he did, fui-nishing liunber to the settlers. In 1822, he moved one-half mile below his saw-mill and in 1824 erected a gi-istmill. The mill-stones were made of " niggerheads " by Mr. Buckland, of Bucyrus. The market prices at this time were as follows: Coffee, 50 cents a pound; salt, 0 cents a pound; powder $2 a jiound; lead, 50 cents a pound; chewing tobacco, 50 cents a pound; whiskj' 50 cents a gallon ; and the two latter articles, ili-. Nail says, no family could get along without. ]\Ir. Nathaniel Story was a native of Oxford County, Me., and came with his father's family to Ohio in 1818. They stopped a short time at the Williamson settlement, east of Galion; they intended to buy some of the Virginia military school lands, but failed in their object, and passed the winter of 1818-19 in a cabin of John Leveredge, situated southeast of the public square of Galion. Mr. Leveredge had been killed but a short time previous to this, by a log falling upon him at the raising of John AVilliamson's new hewed-log cabin. ^Vhen they came into the settlement, that hewed-log cabin stood up near the square without a roof, and exactly as it was left when Leveredge was killed. In the spring of 1819, they moved into the house of Mi-. Stm-ges, situated northwest of Galion, on the brow of the hill across from John G. Kraft's brewerj-, and where the residence of Jesse Pm*key now stands. They lived there for four years. Mr. Story wi-ites of the Indians as follows: "I was acqiiainted with most of the Wyandots and Delawares, among them the Walkers, Williams, Armstrongs, Dowdys, Johnny Cake, etc. Johimy Cake was a full-blooded Indian of much note. Ho was a well-develoj^ed man, of fine physical proportions, supple, athletic, and he possessed in an unusual degree the respect and confidence of all the white settlers of that day. His wife was tliree-fom-ths white, and an excellent woman for the oi^portimities that she had. There is a bit of romance comiectod with her history, which may be interesting to readers, as it has never been pulilished exeoi>t in the Bucjtus Forum. The mother of Johnny Cake's wife had been captured fi-om her whit«s parents, somewhere in the eastern part of Ohio, by the Indians, probably during the war with Great Britain in 1812-15, and adopted into one of the Indian families on the Sandusky. Here she was com-ted and man-led in Indian fashion, by Abraham "Williams, a half-breed Indian. The fruit of the union between this half-breed and white girl, was a beautiful daughter, who was coui-ted and married by Johnny Cake. Johnny went with an exploring expedition in 1S23, or thereabout, to the Great West beyond the Mississippi. He was a marked man in council or coui-age, and so regarded by all who came in contact with him. When his tribe removed from the Wyandot reservation in 18-46, he and his wife went with them, and, when last heard from, in"1874:, were living in wealth and good position among the Walkers, to whom he is related." The last time that Mr. Story saw Johnny Cake was in 1845 or 1846. His father, Nehemiah Story, and himself, were working on the frame of a house where the widow of James W. Gill, Esq., now lives, on Main street, west side of Gallon. He stopped and talked with them a long time as he was passing through; he said that the Indians' hunting-grounds had been sadly interfered with by the white settlers, who killed or drove away the game, and for that reason he seldom came that way of late years. He seemed overjoyed to see and talk with them and revived many reminiscences of the past that had for years slumbered in their memories. At this time he weighed nearly two hundi-ed pounds, and was a splendid specimen of a wild Indian of the woods, who was keenly alive to the great facts of " manifest destiny." Clearly foreseeing the future, he spoke in rapturous terms of the white man, who brought with him the all-conquering forces of a superior and higher civilization, but grievously mourned, in broken accents, the decay of his own Indian race, whose doom was "written in the setting sim of the West." Says Mr. Story: "We shall never forget the appearance and expression of this man - this thoughtful but untutored child of the forest - as he affectionately and tearfully bade us good-bye. He wheeled the head of his pony toward the Sandusky Plains, and was soon lost to our gaze forever." Mi-. Story remembers the exciting attempt of Tom Dowdy, a keen, small but sharp Indian, to mvirder a Canadian Indian. They were both in liquor, obtained at a tavern near- where Gallon now stands. A quarrel ensued over the whisky bottle (as it does now sometimes among white people), and Tom took out his scalping-knife and stabbed his Indian companion, with a terrible stroke, in the side. The two Indians were afterward seen at an encampment on Shaw's Creek, south of Iberia. The whisky was gone, and the two Indians sat on opjiosite sides of the fire, smoking in peace. Dowdy once brought information to the Storys, that there was a certain white-oak tree that had in it five raccoons and a porcupine. This was business for Story, and exactly in his line. They went with Dowdy and his squaw, who was an excellent chopper, and soon had the tree down and the game secm-ed. Dowdy and his wife took three of the coons, and the Storys took two. The skins were pui-chased by James Nail. This Indian, Dowdy, died at Pipetown some time afterward, in the severity of winter, and, in accordance with the custom of the Indians, his body, with his clothing and hunting implements, was laid upon a scaffold, at a safe height from the ground. Here it remained until the warm sun in the spring had softened the soil, when his remains were deposited in the earth.

The Indians had a bui-ying-ground just north of where the Gill farm is, on the banks of the Olentangy. Here the dead from the Indian village were buried. The graves were generally quite shallow; they made some dis- tinction in the graves, according to the social status of the pei-son; some of the graves had forks erected at each end, with a pole across; on this were laid strips of bark and twigs, but it soon gave way and was not renewed. How long this spot had been consecrated by the Indians, is not known, but they continued to use it up to their departui'e fi-om this vicinity. In an early day, young men opened the graves, with the vain hope of obtaining treasures. Some of the early doctors secured furnitiire from this ground for their offices. The graveyard had little reverence shown it, and it was only when the field was cultivated, and the graves plowed level, that it became safe from molestation.

In the year 1825, Mr. Nail added a distillery to his grist-mill and continued grinding and distilling till the year 1835. Before mills were built in Polk Township the settlers went long distances to get grinding done. In 1822, they were going to Spring Mill, southeast of Ontario ; and, even after mills were built along the Olentangy, some were obliged to go below Belleville, by reason of the scarcity of water in Polk Township. Corn-meal was more plentiful than flour. It was generally cooked in fom- difTei-ent ways: A very common way of using it was to make mush and eat it with milk ; when it was baked in a Dutch oven, it was called pone; when baked on a board, it was called johnny-cake: and when made into roiind balls and baked in the oven, it was called corn-dodgers. ]Mi-. Nail relates that a family lived tlu-ee miles southeast of Gallon, by the name of Jackson; a little fellow of this family would often come to mill with a bag of com to be ground; after the com was gi-ound, he would lift the little fellow on top of the bag, of meal on the horse and start him for home. He generally had meal in one end of the bag, and a jug of whiskj' in the other end. IVIi-. Nail had no thought at that time that little Abner M. Jackson woidd be the porfy man he afterward became, much less that he would become the Presiding Juilgo of oxm coui-t. In 1835, Mr. Nail sold his grist-mill and distillery to Mr. Parks, who came fi-om Beaver County, Penn.

Mr. Dunlap stated that after he returned firom Virginia, where he had been for his family, the settlers had increased in numbers from twelve to twenty-five. About the time of his return, there was a double log cabin one mile southwest of Gallon, in which lived two families, one by the name of Erysmau, and one Ijy the name of Dun, or Doormise, who had a little daughter about fom* years of age. The mother was boiling sugar-water in the woods near by, and had the little girl by her. Thinking it time the little one was in the house, she went with her to the fence, lifted hor over the inclosm-e and told her to amuse herself until the mother arrived. Nothing was ever seen of the little girl after that day. A number of strange Indians (called Canadians, because they belonged near the lakes where the settlers were French), had been roving aroimd the settlements, and but a few hours before the child was missed. A party of four or five had been to Mr. Hosford's to purchase some whisky. But a few days before a party of Indians, sujiposed to be the same, had been to the house of Benjamin Sharrock, and attempted to negotiate for a yoimg girl which they wanted to raise in their tribe, and be adopted as one of them. When the poor motluir came in from her work and foimd that the little daughter had not come in the house, she knew almost intuitively that the little one was lost. She was fi-enzied with hoiTor, and a strange terror crept over her; in a fi-antic manner, she roved up and down thi'ough the woods, one moment calling in endearing accents the name of her little child, and the next the woods would ring with her piercing shiieks, her cries and appeals to heaven. Word had been sent to Mr. Asa Hosf ord, and he came with men as promptly as possible; for thi-ee days and nights the woods were searched; parties of men were sent with information in every direction, but all of no use. The frantic mother suffered so much, that all the good-hearted old pioneers tried to think of some new expedient; finally, they ceased their search in the woods and began to drag the creek. Men, women and childi'eu, with poles, rakes, grapnels, and every implement that coidd possibly be of use, were brought out for the piu-pose. But hopes of the lost one died within them, and the search was gradually given up, and the bright little one was lost forever. The strange Indians were never seen in the vicinity thereafter. It was the theoiy of those most thoroughly versed in Indian affairs that some chief was desirous of bringing up in his tribe a white squaw that should in time be the wife of one of his favorite sons, or his legitimate successor. The only mitigation of this horrible destiny was the fact that nearly all i-emembranee of her parents and her innocent childhood joys woidd be obliterated fi-om her memory. Near the same j^lace, a family by the name of Bashford had taken a little girl to raise. She went out to find the cows, which, by the ringing of a bell, she soon discovered; but she was confused about the route to be taken for the house; she kejit cool, and determined to stay with the cows, knowing that when they were found she would be all right. She followed them around until- they lay down; she crawled up and laid as near the back of an old cow as she could, for the sake of the warmth. In the morning, she was found rambling around with the cattle and her feet somewhat fi'ost-bitten. She was much alarmed by the howling of the wolves through the night. There were hardly any roads, except Indian trails, and women and childi-en were often lost in passing fi-om place to place, and in some instances men were lost. A man by the name of Samuel Dany went into the woods to shoot a deer; he soon became lost, and wandered round and round until he was perfectly confused. At last he came in sight of a cabin, and a woman standing in the door; he walked up to the fence, and inquired of her where Samuel Dany lived. She laughingly told him he might come in and see. He was overjoyed to discover that it was his own wife and his own home. Mr. Dunlap, Owen Tuttle and James Aiiten went to the southeast corner of Polk one time, and in less than two hovu-s killed five deer on two acres of ground. In an early day, a gentleman traveling on his way west, passed through Gallon on a fine gi-ay Canadian stallion. Some days after, the horse was found tied to a sapling on the Beltz farm; he had the appearance of having been there for several days, but no owner was ever found for horse, saddle or bridle ; the traveler coidd never be traced beyond that place. A few years ago, while the roads were being worked, some human bones were turned up by a scraper on the hill at the end of the bridge over Whetstone Creek, just below ]Mr. Hosford's mill. This spot was not far from the trail traveled between Bucynis and Gallon at tlie time of the supposed murder.

In connection with this supposed murder, we will give an account of one that did occm-, and one that chilled the hearts of early settlers with hoiTor. With all the hardihood of the white men in Polk Townshijj, miu-der never entered their thoughts, and this occurrence cast a gloom over the settlement that was evident for years after. Mr. John Hammer and his brother-in-law. Bender, walked fi'om Greensbm-g, Westmoreland Co., Penn., across the Alleghany Mountains, and joiu-neyed on foot to Wooster, Ohio, which, at that day (1S36), was considered near the border. Ham- mer had with him $200 to buy land, besides spending-money. Bender had from $30 to $-tO also, but no money for land, as he went along only for company and to see the West. They went to the bank in Wooster and had the cashier examine their money, to see if it was all good; here they were discovered by two robbers, who followed them at a distance and unobserved. At Gallon, they entered a grocery store, where Hammer and Bender were, and made their acquaintance; they casually asked them where they wei-e bound for, when the men, suspecting nothing, replied that they were out looking over the Western countiy for some land to buy for a farm. The strangers stated that they were going that way, too, and could bear them company. They went on west together, till near- the western boundaiy of Polk : one of the robbers secured a stout stick, and soon after they all sat on a lo<^' and talked awhile; when they arose. Bender and Hammer took sepai'ate j)aths, running parallel, and the robbers each followed one of the men. One then placed his pistol to the back of Bender's head and shot him; Hammer heard the crack of the pistol, but, before he could turn, he was struck over the head by a heavy green stick. He was teiTibly bruised and beaten, and but for the splintered condition of the club, would certainly have been killed. While Hammer was being pounded so unmercifully, his comrade was having hi'^ pockets rifled ; his handkerchief was torn from his neck and his watch taken, but his money was seciu-ely liid in his vest. Col. Sweeny was at that time very near, getting out logs for a saw-mill. Just after the crack of the pistol, one of the men emjiloyed yelled in a loud manner to the oxen. This frightened the robbers and they fled through the woods. Nothing reliable was ever heard from them after.

lying on his back in the mud, and yelled at the top of his voice for help. Mr. Sweeny and his men heard him, and immediately came up to the scene of the murder. Hammer was teiTified, and ran in a southwesterly direction, until he came upon a man jilowing in a field, whose name was Goodale; Hammer could speak no English, but the farmer saw plainly that the man had been badly injm'ed. He begged to have his brother-in-law brought to him before biu'ial, which was done. An inquest was held in the woods where the murder was committed. Abraham Hahn was the Coroner. The next day the body was bm-ied in the Campbell graveyard. Mr. Hammer recovered, and in a couple of months, bought a farm near Bucyrus, and paid down his §200. He returned to Pennsylvania, sold out his interests there, and, in two years' time, moved on to his farm. Many years after, the papers had an account of the execution of a miu-derer, who at the last moment confessed that he had killed Bender near the Olentangy, in Crawford County, Ohio, and also a man in the Sherer neighborhood.

While searching the records in the different offices in Bucyrus, we came across a book, in which were recorded a great many descriptions of "marks." Mr. Asa Hosford informed us that these books were kept in each township by the Clerk, and that each owner of stock was obliged to lay claim to some mark for his cattle, and have it recorded in this book. The cattle were mai-ked in accordance with the record, and was prima facie evidence of his property. There were left crops, right crops, long crops and short crojjs, whole crops and half crops, and dumb-bells in profusion and confusion. Besides the natural game in the woods, many hogs had a proclivity for going deep into the woods for mast, on which they fattened readily. Eventually they would Iireed in the forest, and the woods became full of wild hogs without a mark upon them. In many places, the hunters would shoot these dowu with impunity, and without fear of being called to account. The great number of hogs in the forest was always a temptation to bears. These animals have a special liking for honey and pork. As bee-trees and wild hogs were generally to be found in the vicinity of settlers, so the bear was seen, perhaps, more often about settlements than deeper in the forest. Bruin would sometimes make bold to attack a pig in his own domicile; the peculiar cry made by the hog was generally recognized by the settlers, and they rushed out at once to "save their bacon." Sometimes men would steal to the woods and mark young cattle before the owner had an opportunity, and these were the pests of settlers. It was in these times that those who had no need of wholesome laws and legal restrictions, were necessarily often annoyed by lawless and disorderly persons. There was no absolute secm-ity for persons and property; personal com-age and independent action were the greatest safeguards, and the moral law was predominant in its sway over the masses. The plea of selfdefense was more often heard than would be consistent in these times with a law-abiding people.

As the settlers cleared up the lands, they began to sow some wheat. They had no near market, and there was not much inducement to raise more than was needed for home consiunjation. Up to 1825, there was much of the produce hauled to Mansfield; for wheat at this time, they generally received 25 cents per bushel, in goods. Common sheeting or calico, was worth by the yard a bushel of wheat. The women would often go to market with a crock of butter in each end of a bag, thrown across a horse, and a basket of eggs on her lap. There they received 6 cents a pound for the butter, and 3 cents a dozen for the eggs.

Hearing that a better market existed at the lake, some of the settlers made the venture of hauling some grain there. The neighbors, hearing of the retiu'n of the adventurers, flocked in to inquire about the facilities of trading at Sandusky, market prices, roads, etc. At the new market they received 55 cents per bushel for their wheat, purchased salt for $5 a baiTel, and other articles in proportion. The news soon spread, and the market was turned to the north. Asa Hosford was influential in getting the Columbus and Portland road to pass through Gallon, which became the highway for all traffic to the lake for many years after. He came into Polk Township on the 19th day of September, 1819, on foot, in company with his brother Horace. This was on Saturday, and Mr. Hosford determined to pass the Sabbath in quiet, and rest himself from his weary journey. He stopped with Benjamin Leveredge, for there was no hotel in all that country, and the settlers were glad to receive any one who could bring them news and talk to them of the outside world. On Sunday forenoon, Mr. Hosford observed the an-ival at the cabin of ten or twelve men and a few women ; they took seats in the cabin, and he conversed with them concerning the land and such topics as bore upon the times and place; finally a tall, rawboned man appeared, di'essed in linsey-woolsey shirt, wamus and pantaloons, moccasins on his feet, over his shoulder powder-horn and bullet-pouch, and around his waist a belt with a large knife suspended by his side. On his arm he carried a long rifle. ]\Ir. Hosford was passing his first Sabbath in a fi'ontier town; he had no conception of what would happen; he asked no questions and quietly awaited developments. The tall man deposited his accouterments in a corner and took a seat; all was hushed for a few moments, when Benjamin ShaiTock, for he it was, arose, and sung an old hymn; then he knelt and prayed, after which he stood up and exhorted after the Methodist fashion. Mi'. Hosford was agreeably siu'prised, and this meeting made a lasting impression upon his mind. Mi-. Sh;uTOck had bought out the Mr. Hauck who had come fi-om Cineimiati to stai't a mill, in 1822. He erected a saw and gi-ist mill on the Oleutaugy. Many of his old accoutermeuts are in the possession of his descendants, who value them highly, and prize them as worthy of preservation among the ai-- chives of the family. Mr. Shan-ock remained on his fai-m for many years, until his death, within the present year (ISbO). This remarkable man was as old, if not older, than our republic, for he believed himself to be one huncked and five years old at the time of his death. He has numerous descendants throughout the county, and his name will ever he prominent among the pioneers of Polk To\vnship and vicinity.

When the first settlers came to Polk, they found a ^'illage of Wyandot Indians on the south side of the Olentangy, on ground that now forms the northern part of Gallon. They were peaceful and well disposed toward the white settlers, and rendered them valuable assistance in the erection of their cabins, and at log-rollings. At one time, ^Mi-. Hosford had emjiloyed a number of them to assist in a log-rolling; in the evening, when the day's work was done, they all assembled in Mr. Hosford's kitchen; being slightly intoxicated, they were in humor for some demonstration of their pent-up spirits. Mr. Hosford, thinking to amuse all present, and desiring to witness some of their ceremonies, proposed that the Indians should give an exhibition of their war-dance. They readily acceded to his request, and immediately placed one of their number, by name "Buckwheat," in the center of the room, and commenced a horrible dance around him. Hideous as they were of themselves, they added to their repulsivoness contortions of body and countenance. They whooped and yelled and grew fiercer in their actions, till finally they di-agg(*d Buckwheat roughly from his seat and thi-ew him violently upon the floor. One of the braves placed his foot upon Buckwheat's neck and went thi-ough the pantomime of scalping him; while others represented themselves as plunging their knives into the quivering victim. Buckwheat played his part well; he was personifying a white man in captivity; so realistic was this tableau, that a white man present became enraged at the apparent fear and ti-embling of Buckwheat, and it almost required the personal restraint of Mr. Hosford to prevent Buckwheat being killed. Mr. Hosford had reason to congratulate himself that before the exhibition commenced all arms and weapons had been concealed. This mimic dance and death of a white man at this period, made a lasting impression on those who saw it, and it. brought vividly to their memories the hon-ible atrocities peqietrated in this near neighborhood but a comparatively few years before.

As we have before stated, from IMr. Hosford's first appearance in the township, new life and energy were infused into the settlement. He at once became the leading spirit of progress and advancement; he was inti-usted with many positions of responsibility, and engaged in many projects that were of j)6r manent benefit to both Polk Township and Gallon; he circulated petitions for, and was influential in, obtaining the two roads that cross at the Reisinger Corners. The importance of these roads, in the development of the township at that time, can hardly be estimated; comparatively it could only be equaled by the crossing of railroads in modem times. The first road opened was from Mansfield to L'pper Sanduskj- ; Main street in Gallon was formed of that portion which passes through the cor- poration. The road has been changed somewhat from its former cotirse; originally, it angled northeast at the intersection of Main and Columbus streets, and followed the meanderings of the Whetstone. This change was made over fifty years ago, which gives to Main street a due east^and-west bearing. This road was a stage route, and hotels soon lined the wayside. After this came the road fi'om Columbus to Sandusky; this road was sm-veyed by Col. Kilborne, of Bucynis, and was originally known as the Cohimbus and Portland road, and many old deeds of land whose boiindaries touched this road will be found to bear the above name.

The tendency of a market on the lake was to make this road one of importance. The trip could be made in from five to seven days. Unless loaded coming back, the retiu-n trip was shortened. The farmers fi-om the south, one hundred miles from the lake, all about Delaware and siu-rounding coimtry, used this road as a highway for their produce. Hotels sprang up every three or four miles along the route, and some of them have kejst a himdred and fifty teams and men over night. A tavern, on the farm of Hon. James Robinson, frequently kept forty, and yet a majority of the farmers carried along their bread and food for themselves and horses, sleeping in their wagons. When they had passed over half the journey, they would hang up in a tree a portion of the horse-feed to be consumed on their return. Wheat was seldom more than 50 cents a bushel, and they were obliged to economize, or their produce would be absorbed by their expenses. We know of two men in Polk Township who marketed their grain in Sandusky and retm-ned home at an expense of 6 cents each. These 6 cents pm-chased whisky, which was 3 cents a drink. Besides the trafiic on these roads, the county began to be full of strangers; many men were hunting up lands, some for the purpose of settling and some for the purpose of speculation. So numerous were these travelers that hotel-keeping became one of the most honorable and lucrative occupations that one could engage in. So great was this spirit of speculation, so wild and reckless were the people, that it was almost univers ally indulged in by those who were capable. Poverty was all that debarred any one from the privileges. Polk Township being comparatively poor, but few were caught in the ruins of the crash; many plunged deeply in debt for land, supposing that the great number of broad acres they carried could, in the near futiu'e, be unloaded with immense profit. With 1837 came the inevitable ruin that follows speculation and high prices ; business of all kinds was stagnated, manufacturing ceased, and markets were almost closed. The Ohio Legislatm-e went promptly at work, enacted measiu-es of relief and stay-laws; the United States had a surplus of money idle in the Treasury; this was divided among the States and subdivided in the counties according to population; it was then loaned out to farmers and others in sums of $100, taking as security a mortgage on real estate for five or ten years, with 8 per cent interest. This humane act was the means of averting hardship and suffering from many homes, and was of the utmost good to those who were really poor.

Mr. Hosford, seeing the travel that was likely to exist on the two roads that crossed west of Gallon - one road of which was a stage route, and the other a highway to the nearest market - opened a double log tavern at the Corners. The settlement had never been regularly christened, but was known as " Moccasion," " Hardscrabble, " " Spangtown," " Goshen," etc. In 1824, in answer to a petition by the citizens, for a post oiSce by the name of Goshen, the Postmaster General replied that there already existed more than one town

James Nail says that he never heard any preaching in his life till long after his arrival in Polk Township. The fii'st sermon he heard was preached south of liis mill, in a house belonging to a Mi-. Straw, by Elder Jackson, the grandfather of Judge Jackson. There was a gi-eat tiu-n-out of the settlers for miles in every direction.

In 1826, the Methodists formed a circuit through the neighborhood, and Russel Bigelow appeared to preach the word of life, without money or without price. He was a good speaker, an eloquent man, and mighty in the Scriptiu-es. He was large and muscular, had a voice like a lion, sharp, piercing eyes that when they became excited, seemed almost to burn like fire. All things combined to make him a verj' siiccessful preacher; he was also a veiy exemplary Chi-istian in his deportment, and had great influence witli the people generally. An old minister preached in the neighborhood of Polk Township many years ago. His name was John Rhinehart, and was born in the glades of Pennsylvania : he moved to Ohio when it was a Territory; his home was in what is now Jefferson County; it is not known at exactly what j^eriod he was here, but it is stated that John Rhinehart, of Blooming Grove, and his twin sister, the widow Winn, of Cleveland, were born while he was preaching in this vicinity in the log cabins of the settlers. He entered, at the land office in Wooster, the land now owned by Thomas Rhinehart and Peter Zimmerman. This early pioneer is the father of INIrs. Dr. Coyle, of Galion. Many of his descendants are living in this vicinity.

may yet be seen jutting out from the bank at the railroad bridge on John Biu-gener's farm. Ml-. Hibner had entiired considerable land in the neighborhood. The buhi--stone of to-day was not prociu-able, and "nigger-heads" were substituted. It may easily be conceived that these primitive mills had no great capacity, and yet the settlers were very thankful to have their grain gi-oimd for domestic use. There is a story, handed down by the Hibuers, of an occm-rence that took place while this family was living on the farm upon which the mill was located. Their log cabin was like all others at the time, and had the usual wall of stones back of the fire-place, with the huge chimney occupying one end of the cabin. Mr. Hibner was away fi-om the cabin, attending his work, and Mi-s. Hibner was quietly attending to her household duties; but a short time before, she had placed the baby on a blanket on the floor, near the fire-place. Some time before, one of the stones forming the back wall of the fire-place, had been loosened, and jostled fi-om its place. Hearing some unusual noise, she looked up hastily and saw with horror that a great black bear had thrust his paw through the crevice, and was making desperate efforts to reach the baby. Hajipily, the bear could not reach the child, and the mother quickly removed the little one fi'om the \'icinity of the fire-place, when the bear hastily betook himself to the woods.

Among those who should not be forgotten was Mrs. Brown, the wife of Samuel Brown, who had owned the northeast quarter of land that Mr. Ruhl had bought, and which now forms the northeast portion of Galion. The land was entered by Mr. Cracraft and sold to Samuel Bro\vn. Mi-s. Brown was known and beloved by all the families in the settlement. She spun and wove, and helj)ed many families with their supplies of cloths, linen and yarn; many families never wove any, nor even pos- sessed the machinery. Mrs. Brown generally took in such work for many miles around, and had an enviable reputation for good, clean work. She is reputed to have done the first weaving in Polk Township, and for many years the only weaving. Buckskin was a common article of wear; wool was very scarce, and cotton high. It was very difficult to keep sheep, on account of the wolves, and in many old accounts the article of wolves' scalps appears, for which the State paid a generous bounty. This bounty figm-es in accounts up to near the year 1840.

Many other old settlers than we have named cleared land in Polk, and labored to conquer the wilderness, but we have given something of each one, as far as we could learn, and shall finish with Disbeny Johnson. He was from Virginia, and was born about the year 1764:. He was twelve years old at the breaking-out of the war of the Revolution, and remembered many incidents connected therewith that he was fond of relating dm-ing his latter days. He started with his family to Kentucky, about the year 1812, but was obliged to take refuge near Fort Pitt, now Pittsburgh. During the year, he went down the Ohio Eiver, and took refuge in the block-house at Booneville till the war was over and peace declared. As soon as he was safe in doing so, he removed to Harrison County, Ohio; here his first wife died, and he married a widow lady by the name by CooiJer. Mr. Johnson had six children by his first wife, the widow had six by her fii-st- husband, and the couple were blessed by six more. As near as can be ascertained, Mr. Johnson removed to Polk Township in the year 1817. He took up the northwest quarter of Section 26, where he lived for many years. He was a Justice of the Peace in early days, and was held in high esteem by all who knew him. His second wife was the grandmother of James P. Throckmorton, of Gallon, and a numerous progeny have descended from their children. The old windfall, already spoken of, destroyed all the timber on their farm, and it was upon Johnson's land that five head of cattle were imprisoned among the fallen timbers. Ml-. Johnson had two brothers captured by the Indians while lads, but by their own bravery they made their escape by quietly arising at night and tomahawking their two captors. Mr. Johnson died in the year 1868, and was buried in the cemetery at Gallon. Many families throughout the country are descended fi-om this old Virginia stock.

A large bear was caught in a trap by Samuel Johnson; he found the trap down, and pieces of hair and fur attached to splinters of the trap, as also such evidence of scratching and clawing as only a bear could do. It was a mystery as to what had become of the bear, until one day soon after, while Asa Hosford, Mr. Johnson, Nat Story, James Nail and some others were working at a building, the subject was brought up. Mr. Hosford at once told the men present that, for several days, some Indians had been carrying bears' meat along a trail near his house. He had noticed that they had a bear's head, but no pelt. It was proposed that the whole party should start from the Corners that night, follow the trail till they came to where the Indians were encamped, and secm-e the bear's pelt. James Nail was elected Captain of the sqiiad, and they agreed to stand by his orders. The first adventure that they met with was just east of the Corners, where the water from the springs crossed Main street. In the center of the road the water was three feet deep, and Nail exclaimed that, as he had been elected captain, they must follow and obey him. He plunged through the water, while the rest followed after. It was quite dark, and they were wet on the fii-st start, but this did not dampen their ardor, as they had already taken an antidote against the dew. They suspected that the Indians were encamped a few miles east of Galion. They fired off their guns, and as they approached the Indian camp, they heard a general scrambling and also heard the dogs barking from the bushes in the woods, whither the Indians had fled in their fear and consternation. The party entered the cabin and discovered by the crackling of the coals that the Indians had taken the precaution to pom- water over their fii-e before they took flight, hoping thereby that the intruders might think the cabin unoccupied and pass it by unmolested. Some of the men thought that the Indians might have taken the pelt with them; INIi-. Hosford, however, took down a pole which hung across the cabin, covered with nmnerous deer hides, coon-skins, mink, etc., and, rapidly throwing them aside, he soon came to a fresh bear-skin, which he knew by the long shaggy hair; they took the bear-skin and retm-ned home in triumph. They shot several volleys, whooped and yelled much after the Indian fashion, thereby creating considerable alarm along the route. They disposed of the pelt for about |5 worth of whisky; this beverage cost, generally, 25 cents per gallon.

Just north of Galion, where David Gill and George "Wood settled, there can be seen the remains of their orchard; the young trees for this orchard were taken fa-om one of Johnny Appleseed's nurseries. The west orchard, on the Clymer land, was raised from seedlings planted by the same man, as was also the orchard on the ShaiTock homestead. Many more such instances could be made known of settlers availing- themselves of these fruittrees, but enough have been mentioned to show the usefulness of this strange man. He brought with him numerous varieties of seeds (to be so^vn through the settlements), mostly of a medicinal character; altogether, he was a strange, simple, good man, and worthy of all the praise that has been given in his memory. Asa Hosford came from Richfield, Mass. At the age of twenty-one, he loft New York (where his father had emigrated) with his brother Horace ; they aiTived at Cleveland in the fii'st boat that ever sailed on Lake Erie. They started afoot for the interior, and an-ivod at Galion September 19, 1S19, on Satmxiay evening ; they rested over Sabbath at the house of Benjamin Leveredge; they passed the winter in Huron County, and in the spring were met by their father's family; who were on their way to Galion; near the Corners, before any road was opened, and before any general travel was expected, the father erected a double log cabin. As settlers came in and travelers became numerous, ]Mi'. Hosford, like all other settlers, was importimed for meals and lodging. All this while Asa Hosford was single, and working wherever he could find emj^lojinent ; he worked for some time with his brother Horace, who had a blacksmith-shop near his father's dwelling. He worked along several years before he had saved $100, with which to procure a piece of land; the father never kept a hotel, but merely entertained those who could not find accommodation elsewhere, or had not facilities for camping out. Finally, Mr. Hosford sold the property to his son-in-law, but he never occupied it or used it for any purpose. In 1824, Asa Hosford opened a tavern in the double log house which he had bought from his brother-in-law; he was not yet married and he contracted with his sister to act as landlady ; these duties she performed with success. Mr. Hosford was a year finding a landlady that would promise to remain with him for all time; he married Miss Alta Kent, of Bucyrus. He prospered in this tavern for eight years, at which time they sold out to John Ruhl; they have three chikbon living- Rebecca, Eri and Stephen. In the year 1824, the Comers was known as Galion; it had a commodious hotel. Here two roads crossed, one of which was a stage route, and the other was a highway to market for a hundi-ed miles south of the lake. The settlement of Gallon had a post office, a store with assorted goods, a blacksmith-shop, a schoolhouse, and a gristmill in the vicinity. George Wood was a carpenter and ready to put up such work as was wanted. Soon followed the distillery at the springs on Atwood street, which consumed some of the grain, and enabled the people to enjoy their whisky at 18 to 25 cents a gallon.

Nathaniel Story was hunting and working "time-about;" hunters abounded all over the country, and some trapping was done. Three or four old beaver dams exist in the vicinity of Gallon, but have never been inhabited since white men settled in the vicinity. It is quite probable that some of the old British fur companies had their trappers at work here years before; they certainly got large quantities of fur; these fm's were, doubtless, traded to China for the very tea for which the Americans were taxed before the Revolution.

Many persons at an early date engaged in bee-hunting. A Mr. Schauber sold enough honey to secure the purchase money on what is known as the Schauber farm. The beautiful forests abounded in bee-trees ; it is siu'prising to see the countless swarms that spread over the "West. The Indians considered them the harbinger of the white man, as the whites do buffalo and deer of the Indian, and note that as the larger game retires the bee advances. The Indians with surprise found the moldering trees of their forests suddenly teeming with ambrosial sweets, and nothing can exceed the greedy relish with which they banquet for the fii-st time upon this unbought luxury of the wilderness. The honey-bee swarms in mjrriads in the noble groves and forests that skirt and intersect the prairies, and along the alluvial bottoms of the creeks and rivers. The hunters generally place a piece of comb on a tree, and await the arrival of workers. As soon as the bees have loaded themselves with honey, they take their flight straight for their own tree with their load. The hunters run after them with head erect and eyes aloft, frequently stumbling over obstacles at their feet; in this manner they track the bees to their individual colonies, mark the trees, and seek for more. They dare not cut down the trees until fully prepared to take away the honey, for the bears, skunks, raccoons and possums have sweet teeth and would soon devour any honey within their reach. The bear will gnaw for days together until they make a hole in the trunk, big enough to insert their paws, and then draw oiit honey, bees and all. Mr. Story states that in an early day, Doudy, an Indian, with his squaw, cut down a bee-tree. The gi-andf ather of Story was along; the honey was very fine, and the Indian, who was very fond of Mr. Story, sent him a large piece of comb on a piece of shellbai-k. Story was quite overcome by the generosity of the Indian, who, he says, was gentle in peace, while desperate and brave in war.

Altogether, this was a prosperous community. Farms were being cleared in eveiy direction, and there were no more doubts about the prosperity of the coimtry.

We have spoken somewhat of the attention the settlers paid to religion, and will now devote some space to education. Mi-. Phous Jackson is credited by Mr. Dunlap as the fii-st teacher in the township of Polk. This may be tnie, outside of Gallon, but David Gill was certainly the lii-st teacher in Gallon. However, we give Mr. Dunlap's statement, and when we vn'ite of Gallon we will give the school histoiy fi'om beginning to end. He says that Phous Jackson, a cousin of Judge Jackson, had taught two months in the winter of 1825, in a private house, the fii'st and only school that had ever been taught in the township. In the fall of the next year, 5Ir. Diinlap concluded to teach ; lie held school for thi-ee months, at ?1.25 per pupil. The peojile soon put up a log cabin, 12x14, seven logs high to the eaves, for a schoolhouse ; they split some slabs or puncheons for a floor, spread some clapboards overhead for a loft, had foolscap paper greased for windows, had slabs for seats, and a board for wi-iting desk. Among the first scholars who attended that school now living, ai-e Dr. Story, of Iowa, a Free- Will Baptist minister; James Eeeves, a preacher, and Gen. George Kow, of Marion, a lawj'er. We cannot find the date of organization of school districts in the county, nor of subdistricts in Sandusky Township ; at the first division, Gallon formed Subdistrict No. 9, and it remained so some time. Gallon was advanced to a borough in 1840, and elected her first Mayor, Joel Todd, but the school remained in the same order. The law imder which school districts are formed is siich that opportunities are ever present for making new districts or changing their form, adding to or taking from. Not even an attempt can be made to give the boundaries of old or new disti'icts and their changes ; their outline might present a geometrical figure, whose area a Newton would be puzzled to compute. The township was not settled in its different portions with the same rapidity, and while a " disti-ict " would be imperative in one part, perhaps the same area would have but a few families in some other portion of the township. However, they got along with their primitive schools and primitive teachers, and at this time have seven school districts and seven good brick schoolhouses. Nothing could be more prosjjerous than this conditon of things. The reports of these schools show prosperity, and a full and realizing sense of the importance of education. The names of the schoolhouses in the several districts are as follows: Dice's, Khinehart's, Hillgrove

Klopfeustoin, Jackson's, Williams', Bergner's. These schoolhouses have each good fm'uitiu'e, and in every respect are models of neatness and comfoi-t, and each district is sti-enuous in its efforts to secure good and efficient teachers. Certainly the youth of Polk Township have no reason to comjjlain of a lack of educational facilities, as they will compare favorably with those of any other State. The earliest record of the schools of the township are dated 1843. There were at that time nine districts, Gallon forming Subdistrict No. 9. The whole niunber of school children for the year was 897. The following is the annual report of the enumeration of youth between the ages of five and twenty-one years in Polk Township, Crawford County, taken and retiu-ned to the luidersigned township Clerk of said township, by the Local Directors, between the fu-st and third Mondays in September, 1863 :

The trade of Polk continued for many years along the Columbus and Sandusky City road. Small lots of goods were brought back by tlie farmers, such as salt, groceries, etc. ; but many of the stores throughout the county brought their stock fi-om Philadelphia and Baltimore, over the mountains. This was expensive and tedious, but paid better than to buy goods at the lake that had passed through so many hands. In the year 1840, a strajs railroad was built from Sandusky to Monroevillo; the cai-s were drawn by horses. After this, the farmers of Polk and vicinity took their produce to Monroeville, thereby saving thi-ee or four days of time, this trip consuming on an average not more than three days. Eventually the Sandusky, Mansfield & Newark road was built; as soon as it was finished to Mansfield and Shelby, the latter place became the market for Polk Township, as Mansfield had been in the beginning. There it continued until the Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati road was brought to Gallon. Then the era of taverns and long roads to market was ended forever in Polk Township. The reason that the Columbus & Sandusky road was not a stage route, was the fact that a north-and-south road, east and west of it, passed through the county seats, and those routes were selected for stage travel.

The building of the railroad was an era in the growth and development of Polk Township as well as that of Gallon; she took rapid strides in growth; for many years, the population of Polk and Gallon was far behind Bucyrus and its township, but ere many years Gallon and Polk led their rivals by a large majority.

The census of 1880 gives to Polk Township, outside of Gallon, a population of 883. This is a gain of only 37 during the last decade. We can hardly expect the population of Polk Township to ever rise to a very high figui'e. From the present geographical location of Polk, it is evident that no other town will ever exist within its limits other than Gallon. The whole township is given to agriculture, with almost no waste of untillable land, and no great interest can exist here. At the time the lands were mostly taken up, there was peace throughout the territory, and everybody felt seciure in making large purchases and investing all their means. The natural result of this method of buying has been to create large fai-ms. Thus, from year to year, the forests have been cut away, swampy and wet land has been di-ained, and nearly all of what was once considered poor land has been reclaimed. Year by year the acreage has increased; each farmer has widened out his domain of tillable land, while labor-saving machinery has lessened the demand for working hands. The gain of thirty-seven inhabitants in the last decade, bears no relation whatever to the increase of productiveness and large gains of marketable produce.

Two miles east of Gallon are the tile works of Messrs. Weaver & Eeed. This factory was started in May, 1879; they have a dry-kiln, 1-48 feet in length, with a commodious enginehouse; there is a capacity for biu-ning 2,500 tile at one time. They have five men constantly employed, who average 7,000 tile per day. There is a large and increasing demand for tile throughout this and adjoining townships ; the draining of lands, by means of a system of tiling, has passed fi-om the domain of experiment to that of an assured and valued success. There are on the Infii-mary grounds, or county farm of Crawford County, about two and onehalf miles of tiling. Nearly every farmer in the township is acquainted with the system, and is well informed as to its value, where needed. There is no doubt but that a permanent demand will be made for these tile, that will insure their constant manufactiu-e. The convenience of the factory to the farmers of Polk is a matter of congratulation, as it always is when the requirements of the farm can be produced in the near vicinity of their consumption.

A short trip through Polk Township in the spring of the year will reveal the fact that most of the wheat has been di-illed in, and not sown broadcast. Good fences inclose all the farms, and the buildings are models of beauty and utility. When the grass is cut, you do not hear the continual whet, whet, of the backbreaking scythe; but you do hear the rattle of machinery, and see the farmer comfortably seated on his mowing machine, driving his sleek and well-conditioned horses across the meadows; and, when the hay is cured and being collected for housing away, you see the horse-rake gathering in the scattered hay in a rapid and cleanly manner. Then, at the barn or stack comes in the horse-fork, which performs the work that has always been laborious and tedious to the farmer. This same fork, in combination with an improved hay-knife, enables the farmer to load his ricks with ease, and haul to market with a great saving of time and labor. Then comes the grain. It was thought to be the acme of perfection, a few years ago, when wheat and grain were cut down rapidly enough to keep two rakers and binders busy behind a machine. Now, with the di-iver comfortably seated on the machine the gi-ain is rapidly swept down, gathered up in bundles and tied, and when a sufficient number are accumulated can be di'opped in one spot for putting up in shocks; and, suppose, under unavoidable circumstances, the grain be too diy to cut in this manner. They have only to take another machine, called the header, that will cut oif the heads only from the straw, and the gi-ain can be taken to the barn in tight wagon boxes. During the early days, wheat was threshed with a flail, or by tramping of horses and cattle; men went from farm to farm and contracted to do their threshing for them, generally at the price of one-tenth of the yield. The horse-power threshing machine involved considerable work and many hands and teams, yet it was a great advance over hand-flailing and tramping. Now, after hai-vest, can be seen all over the country, wreaths of smoke curling upward, which mark the spot where some little engine, run by steam, threshes the grain much more perfectly than was ever done by hand All hands are not obliged to stop and give the horses a rest; the motive power in a steamthresher never gets tired. What a comparison! The farmers of Polk ride in carriages every week, that, sixty years ago, would have stamped them at onco as aristocratic in the extreme.

Polk Township as it now exists (1S80) is a model of what may be accomplished by patience and well-direotel industry. The early pioneers who have labored over sixty years to make of this a vineyard, to transmute the howling wilderness into a blooming garden, are worthy of praise, honor and emulation. They have received the reward of their daring enterprise, as far as material interests are concerned. The heavy timber and thick undergrowth have been cleared away; their orchards are abundant, and they blossom and bear fruit; broad acres of ripening grain redeem the promises of a full yield; an abundance of line horses, cattle and sheep, with all kinds of stock, show well the luxuriousness of their rich meadows; the large and well-filled barns, the beautiful country homes, with a thousand comforts and luxuries, above all attest that a bountiful harvest has succeeded from the fii-st sowings of civilization sixty years ago.

The experiences and necessities of successive generations have brought their legitimate results. From the first inide log cabin and barn, we can now see many beautiful mansions of frame and of brick, with spacious bams and outbuildings of the finest work. From the fu-st iiide schoolhouse, that was a wonder when it was built, we can now see seven wellappointed brick schoolhouses. Not only these opportunities are ever present, but it is rapidly becoming a custom for the farmers to send their sons and daughters to a higher grade of schools I when they have done with their own, and the i barrier between the country and city bred, is