Putnam County, Ohio - Chapter 4: Early Settlers of Putnam County^ 1824-1834, 1915

Chapter 4: Early Settlers of Putnam County^ 1824-1834

The first white family in Putnam county was that of Henry Leaf, who built a cabin on the south side of the Blanchard river, on section lo, Greensburg township, where he remained some time. He removed from that point and built another cabin on the Auglaize river, at the junction of the Blanchard with the Auglaize, where he was living in 1824. This man could hardly be considered a resident of the county, as he lived with the Indians, moved when they did, and when they were removed to the West, he went with them, and ended his days there.

In 1824, David Murphy, with his family, came down the Blanchard river in a canoe from Fort Findlay, landed at the mouth of the Blanchard, built a cabin of poles, and became the first permanent white settler in the county. His wife was the first person buried in the cemetery at Kalida, and at her side the remains of her husband were deposited. During the year 1824, Silas McClish, Thomas McClish and Jack McChsh settled a mile below Murphy on the west side of the Auglaize. William Bowen settled three miles south, and William Patton fourteen miles south.

1826 - John Ridenour and his sons, Michael, Daniel and Jacob; Demmitt Mackerel, Frederick and William Stevens, William H. Harris and Samuel Washburne.

The German-Swiss Settlement

It is now nearly eighty-two years since the Germans, or rather S\\iss and French, commenced what has become well known as the "German settlement" and a short history of it, and a few incidents of pioneer life may not be uninteresting. In the spring of 1838, ^Michael Neuenschwander (a native of Alsace, who came to this country in 1823 and settled in Wayne county) and his eldest son, John B., a young man of twenty-three, came west to seek a new home. Their object was to find an unoccupied place, that could be developed into a rich country, where land could be bought cheap. Having heard of such a place in Putnam county (Richland township was then a part of Putnam county), they came directly here and, being pleased with it, picked out two quarter sections. They then went down to Piqua, where- the government land office was located, and entered the land. One of these pieces was cleared up and occupied by Daniel Neuenschwander until his death, which occurred on August 2, 1893. They then went back home to Wayne county, this state, and made preparation to leave for the west - the new home in the wilderness. They started on the last Friday in August, 1833, and arrived at their destination in eleven days, which was doing well, as it took some who came after them fourteen days. The family was composed of the parents and three sons, John B., aged twenty-three, Daniel, twenty-one, and Michael, ten years. They came in a covered wagon, with a team of horses and a yoke of oxen before it. It was very dry when they arrived and, as there was no water on their land, they sought another quarter section where water was plentiful and found one. This was afterward occupied by the family and the youngest son, Michael, until their deaths, that of the mother occurring on February 13, 1846, in her sixtyseventh year; that of the father on March 10, 1854, aged seventy-four years and one day, and that of the son, Michael, on July 22, 1893. Again the father and eldest son went to Piqua to secure that land, and while they were gone the mother and the other two boys camped on an island in Riley creek, near Abraham Basinger's, during which time Daniel watched the horses and cattle, and also made a pair of shoes. When the father and son returned, they moved on the last-entered land, on which they had a spring and creek, and commenced putting up a cabin and preparing for winter. That winter was so mild that the ground never froze hard enough to bear up a loaded wagon. Their neighbors were Thomas Gray, on the farm now occupied by Abraham Bixel ; John Sigafoose, on the one now occupied by Jacob Lugibill; Christopher Miller, west of Rockport, and John Stout, near Pandora, then called Pendleton.

They were here a year before others followed, but in the fall of 1834 there came an addition of four families, that of Christian Suter, afterward minister and bishop of the congregation; Dorse Amstutz; Christian Bucher, who died at the advanced age of one hundred years, seven months and twenty-two days, and John Moser, who subsequently moved to Lucas county. A good many came here that year to secure land and moved on it later. In 1853, and later on, people flocked in from Switzerland, Alsace, and Wayne and Holmes counties, Ohio, Virginia, etc., among whom were the Steiners, Schumachers, Basingers, Lugibills, Geigers and others.

Hardships Of The Pioneers

The hardships of the pioneers can be better imagined than expressed. Think of going to Piqua without more of a road than a cow path, or hardly that. The land office was afterward moved to Wapakoneta. The first flour that Mr. Neuenschwander bought was at Sidney, but they soon commenced to keep it at Lima, and then it was considered so handy to get that Mr. Neuenschwander thought he would lay in a supply. He needed a good deal, as all who came to look at land stayed with him, so he bought eleven barrels at one time, at eleven dollars per barrel. His son Daniel packed it all home on one horse. He said there was no hour in the night that he was not on his way between here and Lima. He had a big horse, would throw a sack or two on his back, get on himself and start for home, it made no difference whether it was day or night, as the horse would keep the path. One evening he started from Lima after dark, in company with two other men. Alternately one rode and the other two walked behind; when about two miles from home the hat of the rider was caught by a limb and dropped, and they had to search about half an hour before they found it, as it was very dark and they had no means of making a light. Once or twice they went to Maumee City to mill, and when good mills were put up at Delphos and the canal was built, that place became a good market, which was considered very handy. The first year that Mr. Neuenschwander was here the two eldest boys went to Eagle Creek, Hancock county, for a load of corn. They started home from there one morning after breakfast, and it took them till noon the next day to get home, during which time they had nothing to eat but raw corn. At another time, when they had wheat to sell, the same two started, each with a load of thirty-two bushels and a double team. They went to Findlay, where they were offered fifty cents a bushel for their wheat, but refused to take it, and went on to Sandusky where they got sixty-two cents. It took them thirteen days to make the trip, during which time they had no warm meals and slept in no bed.

Daniel also hauled wheat for neighbors to Tiffin; the wheat was sold for from sixty to seventy cents per bushel, he getting twenty cents a bushel for hauling. Other settlers had the same experiences, but it seems that they were all able to meet the severest hardships of those times without a murmur of discontent and always looked at the brightest side. But few of the first settlers are still living, John F. Steiner and Henry Shank, both over ninety years of age, Mrs. John S. Steiner, Peter Bucher and wife. Peter and Mrs. Chr. Suter, Barbara Basinger, Barbara Schumacher and probably a tew others. B. Lugibill, who was born in 1836, is the oldest voter born in Richland township.

Pioneer Honeymoons

A year after Mr. Neuenschwander moved here his two eldest sons, John B. and Daniel, went back to Wayne county and were both married on August II, 1834. They soon returned with their young and happy wives. They had one horse and the women might have ridden him alternately, but Daniel's wife was not used to riding horseback and preferred to walk; they made the trip, so they claimed, in three days. A year later, September 15, a daughter was born to John B. and wife, who died several years ago in Kansas; and two months later a daughter was also born to Daniel and wife. This one became the wife of the writer of this sketch and never lived over a mile from where she was born. Now in the eightieth year of her age she is still hearty, though she had rather more than her share of the hardships and privations of that pioneer life. Mrs. Peter Bixel (nee Suter) was the first person born here who grew up. These pioneers can truly say that they first beheld the country a wilderness and saw it changed into a garden; and out of a comparatively sickly country (there being malaria at times) made one conducive to health and long life.

The Mennonites

The Wyandot Indians were still at Upper Sandusky and often passed through here on their way to Defiance and return, but the settlers were never molested by them. The "settlement" has continually widened and its borders almost reach Beaverdam, Rockport, Columbus Grove, and Gilboa. Bluffton and Pandora are about it. The prevailing religion is the Mennonite, but they are unhappily divided into four denominations; however, the original congregation is keeping the lead and has about nine hundred and fifty members. The preaching is mostly in German language and the schools are still taught in the English and German languages. We said above that the original congregation has nine hundred and fifty members ; the American Mennonites have upward of twenty families; the New Mennonites about twenty, and the Egly congregation is quite small, many of its former adherents having joined the Alliance and the Dowie faith.

The people, as a rule, are generous, industrious, economical and pious, and the settlement stands second to no other place, probably in the whole United States, in regard to good roads, good buildings and beautiful farms.

Most of the Mennonites are strong adherents of the creed laid down by their founder and subsequent teachers. A few adhere to a peculiar garb and other antique practices, but in the main they are moving along with the stream of time, though guarding diligently against all innovations that might be a serious injury to their good name, their homes and their church. They are greatly opposed to secret societies, and have been very successful so far in keeping their members out of them. The old and the Zion congregation have elected most all their preachers so far by lot and they generally have from two to four ; they have even elected their deacons the same way, all for life, whether they prove to be competent or not, but we venture the prediction that this practice will soon die out and that they will choose and treat their ministers the same as other churches do. The New Mennonites and the Egly's choose their ministers from their own members and put them on probation. These different churches have five Sunday schools, four young people's societies and two women's sewing circles.