Cuyahoga County, Ohio - Chapter 45: The Village from 1800 to 1815, 1870

Chapter 45: The Village from 1800 to 1815

Population mm 1800 - Civil Organizations - City Lots too High - Good Crops - The First Distillery - An Indian Play-ground - A White Dog Feast - Samuel Huntington - Spafford's Map - Changes of Streets - The First School - A Lawyer Among Wolves - First Hotel Keepers - Huntington's Advanccement - First Framed House - Its Destruction - One Family a Year - Price of Freight - First Militia Company - Purchase of the West Side from the Indians - The First Post Office - Newburg Families - Samuel Dodge--The Two Omics-- Young Omic's Violence - Carter threatens to Hang Him - The Story of '"Ben"' - A Curious Ending - John Walworth - The First Collector - A Framed House on the Ridge - A New Religion - Hard Customers in Cleveland - Slaughtering Hogs on Sunday - A Would-be Runaway - Forcing a Man back to take his Pay - Another Major - A Cleveland Governor and Senator - Fanny Hawley's Adventure with an Indian - His Freaks at Hawley's House - The Last Division of Reserve Lands - Cleveland made the County-Seat - Elias Cozad - Samuel and Matthew Williamson - Levi Johnson - The Residents of 1810 - The Two Stores - The First Court of Record - Another Warehouse - George Wallace - The First Execution- - The War of 1812 - Residents at the Beginning of the War - Location of Houses - The Farming Lands - A Few Incidents of the War - Taking Potatoes to Perry - The First Brick ljuilding - A Schooner built in the Woods - The Village incorporated - Close of the War.

In 1800 the population of the tract laid out asa city still consisted only of the families of Carter, Spafford and Clark, Stephen Gilbert and perhaps Joseph Landon; making a total of about twenty persons. In the whole territory now included in the city, however, there must have been between sixty and seventy persons.

In July Cleveland became a part of the' county of Trumbull, which embraced the whole Western Reserve. James Kingsbury was appointed one of the first justices of the peace '' of the quorum," thereby becoming a member of the court of quarter sessions of the new county; and Amos Spafford was appointed one of the first justices not '' of the quorom."

At the first court of quarter sessions, held at Warren on the fourth Monday of August, 1800, the civil township of Cleveland was organized, together with seven others, in the new county. It embraced not only the survey township of that name but all of the present Cuyahoga county east of the river, three townships of Geauga county, and nominaily the whole Reserve west of the Cuyahoga, though this tract was still in possession of the Indians. Lorenzo Carter and Stephen Gilbert were at the same time

Mr. Turhand Kirtland, the agent of the land company, who visited Cleveland this year, stated that Carter, Spafford and Clark were very much dissatisfied with the price of city lots, (twenty-five dollars per acre), and determined not to remain. It seems they had not up to this time purchased any land, except perhapsa lot apiece. They had been encouraged by members of the company to expect lots at ten or twelve dollars per acre, and they all declared they would leave the place rather than pay the price demanded. Mr. Kirtland persuaded them to wait until he could consult the directors, and earnestly urged that the price should be lowered. As those persons all remained, and as emigration continued very light for a long time, it is presumed that their wishes were acceded to.

Mr. Kirtland also mentioned the extreme scarcity of money, and said inhabitants were very desirous that the company should receive cattle, provisions, etc., in payment for their land. This course, however, was not followed, so far as the tracts owned by the company at large was concerned, though it may have been by individual owners of the divided lands. Mr. Kirtland also reported the crops as good and the settlers healthy. The latter expression doubtless applied principally to those in the country, for the vicinity of the mouth of the Cuyahoga was long celebrated as the favorite residence of King Ague.- Probably, however, the few families who were there in 1800 had had nearly all the shakes shaken out of them, or in other words had become partially acclimated to the surrounding miasma.

In the fall of 1800, David Bryant-and his son Gilman, brought a still from Virginia, built a distillery twenty feet by twenty-six, out of hewed logs, on the river flat, near the foot of Superior lane, brought water from a side-hill spring in a trough into the upper story, and began the manufacture of whisky. This the country, wnd the opening of a distillery was hailed with joy by the inhabitants of the vicinity, not only because it promised a cheap supply of their favorite beverage, but because their wheat, when turned into whisky, could be sent to market without costing all it would bring for transportation.

The Indians now crossed oftener than ever from their own land on the west side, to the place where whisky was not only sold but made. 'They had a kind of ferry, opposite the foot of St. Clair street, where they always kept canoes in which te pass over the river. Their well-worn trail from the eastward "there crossed the Cuyahoga, ran across the marshy ground, past the old log storehouse, which, as before stated, stood near the corner of Main and Center streets, and thence to a small opening in the woods, near the present crossing of Detroit and Pearl streets. 'here the Indians were ascustomed to assemble, play their games, hold councils, etc.

There, were often heard the sounds of glee from squaws, children and the old men as the young warriors engaged in athletic games, or tossed the ball to and fro with a skiil hardly surpassed by the pitchers, catchers and left fielders of the present day. 'There, too, the woods re-echoed with the sonorous speeches of their orators, as they recounted the great deeds of their fathers, ere the white man had come to grasp their fair domain, and occasional shouts of applause from the excited auditors reached the ears of the few settlers across the river. It is admitted, however, by all the early emigrants that the Indians were uniformly peaceable, and even friendly, in their intercourse with the whites.

As was stated in the general history, they were accustomed to come to the mouth of the Cuyahoga in the fall, haul their canoes ashore, scatter out up the river in small parties, hunt and trap during the winter, return in the spring, and go thence to their cornfields on the Sandusky and Maumee. 'There were usually a few, however, around the mouth of the river at all seasons of the year. At these fall and spring reunions, especially the latter, feasting and drunkenness were the order of the day.

Gilman Bryant described one of the feasts to which he was hospitably invited. The piece de resistance was a white dog. (We don't generally varnish cur writing with scraps of French, but in this case the Gallic expression is too appropriate to be omitted.) All Indians, so far as we know, consider that there is something peculiarly sacred about a white dog. Among the Siz Nations one or more are every year strangled and burned entire as a sacrifice. In the present instance, however, Chippewas and Ottawas managed to unite religion and high living.

Having killed the dog, they singed part of the hair off, chopped him up and made a large kettle of soup. They placed a large wooden bowlful of it on a scaffold as a sacrifice to their ''Manitou," or Great Spirit; the rest they appropriated to worldly uses. When making the sacrifice they prayed to Manitou for a safe voyage on the lake, good crops of corn when they arrived at home, and other similar blessings. As they began eating themselves they offered young Bryant a dish of soup with a fore paw in it, with some of the hair still between the toes. He declined the proffered morsel, whereupon they disposed of it themselves, saying that a good soldier could easily eat that.

During the winter of 1800 and 1801, young Bryant and his father cleared five acres on the bank of the river just above the town-plat. In the spring of 1801, Timothy Doan, a brother of Nathaniel, came to Cleveland, but removed to Enclid in the antumn.

A somewhat distinguished arrival of this season was Samuel Huntington, a lawyer about thirty-five years old, nephew of the governor of Connecticut of that name, who, after traveling though a large part of Ohio, had determined to make his future residence at Cleveland. He built a large, hewed log-house, the most aristocratic residence in the place, on the south side of Superior street near the top of the bluff, and to this in the fall he moved his family. He also, during the same season, caused the erection of the first frame building in the city - a barn built by Mr. Samuel Dodge. Elisha Norton, a trader, made his home in Cleveland with his family this year.

city, about the same as the one formerly made by Pease, with two or three exceptions. shown as occupying the old line of Miami strect from Huron street southward, and then turning at a right angle into the present Ohio. 'This was probably an inadvertence on the part of Mr. Spafford. The short street, at first called Federal street, cast of Erie, was shown on this map, but no name was given it, and, in fact, the name of Federal has never been known since. Probably the rapidly rising fortunes of the Democratic party in Ohio made the name of ''Federal" given by the magnates of Connecticut too unpopular for continuance. Superior lane was also shown on the new map and Maiden lane omitted; the latter evidently by direction, as it has never been replaced.

In 1802, the flrst school was kept on the city plat in Carter's house by Anna Spafford. There could hardly have been over a dozen scholars. If the younger ones strayed far on their schoolward or homeward route they were in danger of meeting the fate of Klisha's scorners. Alonzo Carter, eldest son of Lorenzo, notes in his published reminiscences that a man killed a bear that year with a hoe, on Water street, near the light-house.

The same season, as the future Governor Huntington was floundering one evening on horseback along the swampy road from Painesville, a pack of wolves came out of the forest near the present corner of Euclid and Willson avenues, and attempted to seize him. He had no weapon but an umbrella. His frightened horse did its best to escape, but the mud was so deep that the wolves had decidedly the advantage. Iluntington beat them back as well as he could with his umbrella, the horse made renewed efforts, a little firmer ground was reached, a rousing gallop left the assailants behind, and steed and rider, coyered with mud, quickly dashed in among the cabins of the city.

Carter and Spafford had both been entertaining strangers ever since their arrival, but at the court of quarter sessions, held in August, 1802, they both applied for and received regular licenses as hotel keepers. It did not require much to 'keep a hotel" in those days. Almost everybody had plenty of bread and meat, and if a man had an extra bed or two and could procure a barrel of whisky, he was apt to put up a sign and announce himself as a tavern-keeper.

In the ensuing winter Ohio was admitted as aState into the Union, and Mr. Huntington was elected one of the new Ifouse of Representatives. On-his arriyal at Chillicothe, the capital, he was elected the speaker of the House, and scarcely had he taken this position when, in 1803, he was appointed one of the judges of the Supreme Court of the State. He still retained his residence at Cleveland, making long journeys on horseback through the forest from his log house on the Cuyahoga to take his seat on tise Supreme Bench.

That year the first frame house was erected in the city, nearly seven years after the first settlement, the builder being the indefatigable Carter. It was situated near the foot of Superior street. Unfortunately, just as the house was finished and the family could move in, the shavings caught fire and the building was totally consumed. Mr. C. built again the same year, but was obliged to confine himself to a hewed log house, and it was seven or eight years more - near fifteen years from the survey aud settlement - before Cleveland could boast of a single frame residence.

About one family a year seems to have been the increase of Cleveland for several years at this period. In 1804, Oliver Culver, one of the party who surveyed the Western Reserve, brought out some goods (salt, calico, liquor and tobacco,) to trade with the Indians but after one season's experience returned east and did not repeat the experiment. The freight from Black Rock - now a part of Buffalo, was three dollars per barrel.

Another event of the year was the organization of the first militia company in the vicinity. The district appears to have embraced the whole civil township of Cleveland, containing several hundred square miles, but the officers, Captain Lorenzo Carter, Lieutenant Nathaniel Doan, and Ensign Samuel Jones all resided within the present limits of the city. The same scason Captain Carter was chosen major of the "' second battalion, first regiment, second brigade and fourth division of the Ohio;" Doan and Jones being respectively promoted to captain and lieutenant.

The event of 1805 was the purchase from the Indians of that part of the Western Reserve west of the Cuyahoga. The facts regarding the treaty and the survey are given in Part One. 'The result was to open to settlement all that part of the present city lying west of the river. No haste was manifested, however, to take advantage of the opportunity, and for a long time the western bluffs were as densely covered as ever with the frowning forest.

The same year a post office was established at Cleveland, and on the 22d day of October, Elisha Norton was appointed the first postmaster. Judge Huntington, who had bought an interest in the mills on Mill creek, removed thither this year. Owing to the existence of the mills and the healthiness of the surroundings this was a much more flourishing place It had apparently not yet received the name of Newburg, as it was spoken of in letters as ''the mills near Cleveland." Besides Judge Huntington's, there: were the families of W. W. Williams, James Hamilton, Mr. Plumb and one or two others.

falling back two," for the struggling, sickly little village. Samuel Dodge, who had married a daughter of Timothy Doan, established himself on the Euclid road, built a log house between the sites of the residences of Messrs. Henry and G. C. Dodge, and dug the first well in Cleveland. It was walled up with stone, brought by the Indians into the neighborhood for backs to the fire places of their wigwams.

Notwithstanding the sale of the lands on the west side, many Indians continued to reside more or less of the time on their old ground. Among others was an old man named Omic, and his son Omic, sometimes called John Omie by the whites, to distinguish him from his father. John Omie was afterwards tragically celebrated in the history of the county, as being the subject of the first execution within its borders. Ie scems to have been from boyhood a youth of eyvil-disposition and reckless temper. About the period in question, 1805, when he was a strapping fellow of fifteen or sixteen, he one day entered Major Carter's garden (as related by the major's niece, Mrs. Miles,) and began gathering some vegetables. Mrs. Carter came out and ordered him away, whereupon he drew his knife and chased her three times around the house, and did not desist till aw young man in, the vicinity came up and drove him away. Perhaps his only intention was to scare her, but it was certainly not a very pleasant experience.

When Major Carter came home and heard his wife's story, he was naturally greatly enraged. Putting a rope in his pocket, he started for the cabin of old Omic on the other side of the river. Arriving there, he told the old man what his son had done, and declared that he was going to hunt up the young rascal and hang him - at the same time producing the rope to give emphasis to his words. Carter was renowned as a fighting man among the whites, and had acquired a great influence over the Indians, whose language he spoke fluently. They believed he could and would accomplish almost anything he took a fancy to do, and old Omic was terribly frightened. He begged and implored Carter not to hang his boy, but for a time the major was inexorable. At length yielded he so far as to promise that if the seamp would stay on the west side of the river, and never under any circumstances cross the stream, his life should be spared. The old man promised zealously that the condition should be faithfully observed.

""Now remember," said Carter, as he flourished his rope, 'if I ever catch him on that side again, I'll hang him up to the first tree in five minutes,

And sure enough, the danger of getting within the grasp of the irate major was so strongly placed before the reprobate by his father, and perhaps by others of the older Indians, that young Omie kept his own side of the stream, and according to Mrs. Miles' recollection

We have mentioned in the general history of the county the loss of the boat which started from Cleveland in the spring of 1806, containing a Mr. Hunter, his family, and two colored persons, and was wrecked a little east of Rocky river; a colored man called Ben The incident had a curious sequence, related by A. W. Walworth in. his sketch of Major Carter, published in Col. Whittesley's work.

When Ben was brought back to Cleveland, half starved and nearly frozen to death, he was taken to Carter's tavern, which was the gencral rendezvous, especially for the used-up part of the community, who had no other home. Rheumatism drew Ben's limbs ont of shape, some of his toes were so badly frozen that they came off, and he was unable to do any work, but the free-hearted major kept him throughout the summer. In October two Kentuckiwns came to Cleveland, one of whom declared that he was the owner of Ben, who' was an escaped slave. The major told them what a hard time Ben had had, and how he, the major, had kept him, gratis, on account of his misfortunes.

The owner declared that he had always used Ben well, that he had overpersuaded to run away by others, and that he would probably be willing to go back to his old home. He wanted to have a talk with Ben, but the major would not consent to this, unless the negro desired it. Finally, after consulting Ben, it was agreed among all the parties that a parley should take place in the following manner: The owner was to take his station on the east bank of the Cuyahoga, near the end of Huron street, while Ben was to take his post on the opposite side, and the conversation was to be carried on across the stream. Certainly the major guarded pretty effectually against treachery. This program was faithfully carried out. After salutations back and forth, the master said:

** Yes, massa;" rephed Ben. The conversation was carried on for some time, many inquiries being made by Ben. regarding old acquaintances, and by the Kentuckian regarding the adventures of his servant.: Great good feeling seemed to be manifested on both sides, though no definite arrangement was made. This, howeyer, was consummated by future negotiations, and the next morning, but one, young Walworth saw the Kentuckians starting southward on the river

But the most curious part of the affair was still to come. Eight or nine miles from the village a couple of white men, who had been hanging around Carter's tavern all summer, getting their living principally off from the good-natured major, suddenly appeared by

This was long before the days of revolvers, and the owner's big horse-pistols were in the holsters on the horse that Ben. was riding. Besides, both the Kentuckians were too much surprised to make resistance on the instant. Ben. jumped off the horse and ran off into the woods; the two riflemen immediately followed, and the Kentuckians were left 10 digest their disappointment as best they might. They probably thought that the game was not worth any more hunting and did not return to Cleveland, nor make any further attempts to recover their troublesome property.

The next winter Major Spafford's son and another young Clevelander were hunting on the west side of the river, when they came across a rude hut in the forest, near the line of the present townships of Independence and Brecksville, where Ben. had domiciled himself. It was supposed that he went from there to Canada. It was never known whether the 'rescue " was the result of any settled plan or merely arose from a sudden freak on the part of the two men before mentioned. There seems to have been no reason why a rescue should have been planned, as it would have been impossible, in this forest-covered country, to take the negro in the first. place without his own consent.

Mr. A. W. Walworth, from whom the above anecdote is derived, was then a youth of about sixteen, and was the son of Mr. John Walworth, who had moved to Cleveland in April, 1806. The latter was a near relative of Hon. R. Hyde Walworth, the celebrated chancellor of New York. He was appointed collector of the district of Erie on the 17th day of January, 1806. In June previous he had been appointed inspector of the port of Cuyahoga, but had continued to reside at Painesville, making occasional visits to the scene of his few official duties. Previous to this there had been practically nothing to prevent the smuggling from Canada of whatever any one desired. The loss to the United States government was not probably very large, however, as three years later the amount of imports from Canada, for a year, was only fifty dollars. Mr. Walworth was also appointed associate judge of Geauga county just before his coming to Cleveland and postmaster of that place in May after his arrival, the*latter appointment being in place of Elisha Norton, who removed from the village. After a short residence on Superior street he removed toa farm he had purchased, about two miles up the Pittsburg road, now Broadway, embracing what was commonly known as Walworth point.

house. At this time the ridge-road from the mills to Doan's Corners was lined with fields almost all the way from the mills to Kingsbury's, and much of the distance from there to the corners. 'he fields, however, contained many dry, girdled trees, presenting an unsightly appearance to any one 'yesh from the highly cultivated farms of New England. Several orchards were rapidly approaching maturity, and Mr. Kingsbury's bore a few apples that year.

Mr. Kingsbury's farm being in a prosperous condition, he determined to havea framed house. IIe put up' the frame that year, 1806, depending on obtaining his lumber from Williams and IIuntington's sawmill. But the dam went off in the spring and the frame remained uncovered for over a year. Unwilling to be so dependent on others and having a pretty good millprivilege on Kingsbury run, the energetic judge went to work and erected a sawmill. The next year, 1807, he covered his house; making the brick for the immense stack of chimneys from clay close by. Ilis son still possesses the last brick made, marked with the date, ''June 22, 1807."

The house was a large two-story frame, and is still standing in good repair, occupied by a son, James Kingsbury, then unborn, but now an aged man. It is probably the oldest building standing within the limits of the city. Part of the upper story was finished off in a large room, in which dances were held, and also masonic communications, the judge being a zealous member of the mystic order.

One of the visitors to Cleveland mentions attending a meeting at Doan's Corners, where a preacher named Daniel Parker attempted to introduce a new religious sect called the Halcyonites, but apparently with little success, as we hear no more of that sweetly named denomination. The preachers who sometimes visited Cleveland bore pretty general testimony to the wickedness of the inhabitants, but it appears to have related more to matters of opinion and of language than to more violent offenses. Crime of every kind seems to have been very rare, and the settlers werc nearly allindustrious, honest and enterprising. Probably they drank a good deal of whisky, -but that was a common fault in those days and is not yet entirely overcome.

But the reverend gentlemen accused them of gross infidelity, of terrific profanity, and what was worse of making a practice of slaughtering their hogs on Sunday. This was certainly a most objectionable procceding, in taste as well as in morals. Newburg, or "the Mills," was considered a little better, but not much.

An incident of 1807 shows the off-hand way in which things were done in those days. One morning a man who had worked for the Major two or three | months suddenly disappeared. He had taken nothing and the major owed him a few dollars; so that his running away was quite inexplicable. Spafford went to his brother major, Carter, and told him about the affair. Carter at once said that no one should run away from Cleveland, shouldered his rifle and started

The City Of Cleveland

'All right," replied the Major; and accordingly the fellow continued to labor for his former employer two or three months longer. We have heard of a great many cases of men being brought back by force to pay their debts, but this is the first instance, with which our historical researches have made us acquainted, of a man's being compelled in that manner to receive money which was due him.

In 1807 the fourth draft of the lands of the Western Reserve was made. Samuel P. Lord and others drew the township of Brooklyn, which then came to the river at its mouth.

Another major, Nathan Perry, became a resident of Cleveland in the summer of 1807. His son Horace preceded him a few months, and another son, Nathan, Jr., followed in the autumn.

Several incidents occurring at and near Cleveland we have mentioned in the general history of the county. As we have also stated there, Judge Huntington moved to Painesville and. was elected governor of the State. While in office (in 1809) he appointed Hon. Stanley Griswold, United States senator to fill out a few months of an unexpired term. Senator Griswold then lived at ''Doan's Corners" (now in the east part of the city). A visitor mentions attending a spirited militia election there while the senator was at Washington; at which the late Allen Gaylord, of Newburg, was elected ensign. Senator Griswold remained a resident there but a short time after the expiration of his term in congress.

Mrs. Miles relates an incident of this period (about 1809) when she was the youthful Fanny Hawley of some sixteen summers, which gives an idea of the alarms to which the damsels of that day were subject. They were not so terrible as on some frontiers, where the tomahawk and scalping-kiife were in frequent use, but were sufficiently startling to seriously try the nerves of our modern belles. She was riding to Cleveland on horseback, on a man's saddle improvised into a side-saddle, over the road from the Kingsbury settlement, which ran near the line of the present Kinsman street. When in the midst of the woods, about half way to town, her horse suddenly stopped. An Indian came out of the woods, put his hand upon her, and in harsh, broken English, said:

At this moment the young lady's horse, which had been fretting at the presence of the red man (for white men's horses were usually much afraid of Indians), suddenly dashed off through the woods at high speed. Miss Fanny was entirely unable to hold him, and clung to the pommel and crupper as best she could. The animal soon came near the house of a Mr. Dille, lately settled in that locality, who ran out and stopped him, and the young lady received no injury. The runaway was not pleasant, but it at least cleared her of the Indian.

She went on to town, and on returning found that the same Indian had been at her father's house during her absence in company with his squaw. He was considerably intoxicated, and soon began to make a disturbance. Mrs. Hawley gave him a push which toppled him over on to the fire. He got up, very angry, but did not commit any personal violence. His squaw told Mrs. Hawley to carry out of doors everything with which he could hurt any one. Mrs. Hawley and the squaw accordingly slipped out and hid a butcher knife and one or two similar articles. As they were doing so the Indian snatched a loaf of bread from the bake-oven and started. Mrs. Hawley met him at the door. He put his hand to his breast as if to draw a knife. Mrs. Hawley dodged, and he ran off into the woods with his loaf of bread. The whole proceeding may not have been dangerous, but it was not at all amusing.

In 1807, (January 5,) the fifth and last division of the lands of the Western Reserve was made at Hartford, including the unsold lots at Cleveland. The. same year Brooklyn, including the present west part of Cleveland, was surveyed into lots and offered for sale. That year also, the brothers Levi, Samuel and Jonathan Johnson became' residents of the still diminutive city.

By far the most important event of the year connected with Cleveland was the establishment of the county-seat at, that place. Cuyahoga county had been set off from Geauga in 1807, but had not been organized, nor had a county-seat been designated. In the spring of 1809 acommission was appointed by the State authorities for that purpose. There was quite a sharp contest between Cleveland and Newburg for the location. The latter place was full as large as the former and even more thriving, on account of its superior health. Cleveland, however, which had evidently a good commercial location, with large prospects of becoming an important port, succeeded in the contest.

In 1809 Judge Walworth, then postmaster, employed Levi Johnson to build a small framed office on Superior street. This is said to have been the first framed building erected in the "' city," except barns,

Major Carter, however, built a warehouse on Union lane in 1809 and '10, showing that there was certainly some business at the mouth of the Cuyahoga.

In the spring ef 1810 Elias Cozad, a young man of twenty-one, settled at ''Doan's Corners," where he still resides. He had come to that locality with his father, Samuel Cozad, in 1808, but had returned east to finish learning his trade, that of a tanner. Immediately after coming to the corners for the second time, he built and began operating the first tannery in the township of Oleveland. Mr. Cozad was afterwards an officer of the militia in the war of 1812. He has been an active citizen throughout the greater part of his life, and, notwithstanding his great age, is a person of marked intelligence. We had the pleasure of most interesting conversation with him during the past year on the events of early times. No male resideut has spent so long a period of his adult life in whit is now the city of Cleveland as Mr. Cozad, though there may be some still surviving who were born here before he came, or who came here as boys before he did.

Samuel and Matthew Williamson set up a tannery in Cleveland proper, that is in the then village of Cleveland, soon after Mr. Cozad started his at Doan's Corners, in the latter part of 1810 or forepart of 1811. Alfred Kelley the first practising lawyer, and David Lang, the first physician, both also made their home in Cleveland in 1810,

Mr. Levi Johnson has left a record of 'the inhabitants of Cleveland in 1810, which we copy entire. According to it the population of the youthful city was then as follows; the figures after each family representing the total number of its members: Abram Hickox and family (5); Dr. David Long; Mrs. .Coit; Alfred Kelley; Levi Johnson; Lorenzo Carter and family (7); Elias and Harvey Murray and family (4); Major Perry and wife (2); Benoni Carter; Bold Mc- Conkey and family (3); Jacob Wilkinson and family (5); Samuel Johnson; Charles Gun and two brothers (3); John Walworth and family (7); Samuel Williamson and family (5); Matthew Williamson; Mr. Humiston and family (4); Mr. Simpson and family (5). This made a total of fifty-seven persons then resident in the village of Cleveland, fourteen years after it was first laid out; certainly not a very hopeful indication of future greatness,

Elias and Harvey Murray, above mentioned, owned a store, as did also Major Perry, these being the only storekeepers in the place. These were something like real stores, having taken the place of the cabins partly filled with Indian goods which wev2 called stores a few years earlier. Not, indeed, that these later ones were at all splendid; they were merely rude depositories of the coarse goods of all kinds generally used by farmers and mechanies in a new country.

It was May of this year (1810) that the first Court of record in the county was organized in the store of Ei'& H. Murray. Mr. Elias Cozad attended it, and mentions the fact that the presiding judge, Hon. Benjamin Ruggles, wore a queue - evidently a gentleman of the old school - for queues had generally gone out of fashion, 'There were very few suits, the principal business being the trying of indictments for selling liquor to the Indians.

The next year the Messrs. Murray built a log warehouse near the river, which indicates two things: In connection with the erection of Major Carter's warehouse a year or two before it shows that quite a little business was done at this port, and it also shows that the place was still in a very backward state and profits small, or the merchants mentioned would have put up a framed warehouse.

The next year saw the first execution in Cleveland and the breaking out of the conflict with Great Britain, commonly called the war of 1812. Both these events have been spoken of at considerable length; the former having been under the control of the county authorities, and the latter a matter of national importance. The war did not affect this place very seriously, though the people were kept in a continuous state of alarm for a large portion of the time, for fear lest an invading force should reach them either by sea or land.

All the events of a warlike character which occurred here during the war of 1812, were necessarily narrated in the general history of the county, and few events not of a warlike character occurred here until after the close of the war.

There is extant a list of the families living in Cleveland at the beginning of the war. - These were those of George Wallace, Samuel Williamson, Hezekiah King, Elias Murray, Richard Bailey, Amasa Bailey, Hiram Hanchett, Harvey Murray, Abraham Hickox, Levi Johnson, Samuel Jones, David Hickox and Dr. Long. The list of two years before comprised eleven families - that of the present year, thirteen - a gain of one family per year. Besides those named, there were James Root, Alfred Kelley and Matthew Williamson, who were without families, and probably some others.

All the places of business were on Superior street below the present location of the Weddell House, . while most of the residences were also on some part of Superior street below the Public Square. A few only were on side streets leading off from it. Nearly all the rest of what now constitutes the city was forest or swamp until one reached the extreme outer portion. At Doan's Corners was a thriving farming settlement, consisting of Mr. Doan, Mr. Cozad and one or two others, and the farming tract before mentioned, which extended south along the ridge, now known as Woodland Hights, to Newburg, was by this time pretty thoroughly cleared up. Rudolphus Edwards had a hundred and fifty acres under cultivation, Judge Kingsbury had another large farm, and similar, though perhaps smaller ones were located all salong the route.

Newburg was a thriving little place, but from there to Cleveland village about the only clearing of any consequence was the Walworth place, about two miles up the river, where Mr. John Walworth died during the first year of the war. The large tract between the farms on the Hights, the road to Newburg and the Euclid road, and thence north to the lake, was substantially in the same condition that it was in when Moses Cleaveland first came to the mouth of the Cuyahoga.

As has been stated, all the warlike movements of that period have been narrated in the general history, as has also the erection of the first-court house by Levi Johnson. A few minor incidents of that exciting time may, however, be worth mentioning. Two days after Perry's victory, Mr. Levi Johnson and a man named Rumage found a large flat boat which had been abandoned by Quartermaster (afterwards General) Jessup. They loaded this with two hundred bushels of potatoes, took them to Put-in-Bay and sold them to the fleet and army, easily quadrupling their money. Jessup kept the boatto aid the movement of Harrison's army into Canada, while Johnson returned to Cleveland as pilot of the sloop '' Somers," ene of Perry's victorious fleet. Soon after, Rumage returned with the flat boat, and with news of the victory of the Thames. Johnson resumed command

There was but little progress during the war, yet the first brick building in Cleveland was a store built in 1814, by J. R. and Irad Kelley. In that year Spafford's old map was copied. by Alfred Kelley, and marks added showing all the buildings in existence in the village when the copy was made. There were thirty-four in all.

In 1814, Levi Johnson built the schooner '' Pilot." The curiosity concerning it is that for convenience in obtaining timber he built it in the woods, near the site of St. Paul's church, on Euclid avenue, half a mile from the water. When it was finished, the enterprising builder made a "' bee." The farmers came in with twenty-eight yoke of cattle, and the "< Pilot " was put on wheels and dragged to the foot of Superior street, where it was launched in the river, with resounding cheers.

This was the last event of especial consequence affecting that place before the close of the war of 1812, which occurred the same winter. The succeeding era of peace may properly be begun with a new chapter. Before entering on the new era, however, we will append a description of the jollification which took place when the news of peace arrived here, in nearly the same words in which the event is recorded in a manuscript preserved in the Historical Society.

When the news was received, the citizens assembled by a common impulse to celebrate so momentous an event. The depression, the sacrifices and the alarms of three tedious years were terminated. There was no formal meeting with speeches and resolutions, but a spontaneous and most exuberant expression of joy. Every one was in a mood to do something extravagant. It is reported that one of the citizens, by way of an impromptu few de joie, set fire to a load of hay, which a farmer was bringing to market.

A government gun was brought out. Abram Hickox, the principal blacksmith of the village, carried the powder in a pail; throwing it into the piece by the handfull. Another gunner had a fire-brand with which to 'touch off" the gun, a spark from which found its way into '"' Uncle Abram's" pail. He was seen to rise instantly from the earth as high as the eaves of an adjacent house (so runs the record), coming down half stripped of his clothing. In this plight he ran down Superior street, screaming vehemently that he. was killed. ILe was not, however, and, after doing the blacksmithing for one generation, he survived to become the sexton of the next.

Whisky was regarded as common property on that day, performing an important part in their patriotic rejoicings. Before night not afew found it desirable to lean against a friendly stump, or recline comfortably in a convenient fence-corner. But they soon recovered, and went to work at their respective vocations with great hopes of the prosperity which was to follow the return of peace.