Richland County, Ohio - Chapter 10, 1880

Chapter 10

part of the Northwest Territory included in Ohio, during the decade from 1788 to 1798, despite the Indian war, that the demand for an election of a Territorial Assembly could not be that 5,000 free males resided within the limits of the Territory, issued his proclamation October 29, 1798, directing the electors to elect representatives to a General Assembly. He ordered the election his home with them. He was most active in the war of 1812 against the Americans, and from the time he began his work to unite the tribes, his bistury isso closely identified therewith tbat the reader ia referred to the hietcry of that war in succeeding pages.

It may not be amiee to say that all stories regarding the manner of his death are considered erroneous. He was undoubtedly killed in the outset of the battle of the Thames in Canada in 1814, und his body secretly baried by the Indians.

On the day designated, the representatives * assembled at Cincinnati, nominated ten persons, whose names were sent to the President, who selected five to constitute the Legislative Council,

*Those elected were: from Washington County, Return Jonathan Meigs and Paul Fearing; from Hamilton County, William Gofortb, William McMillan, John Smith, John Ludlow, Robert Benham, Aaron Caidw-ll and Isaac Martin; trom St. Clair County (Illinois), Shadrach Bond; from Knox County (Indiana), Jobn Small; from Randolph County (IItinoie), Jobn Edgar; from Wayne County, Solomon Sibley, Jacvub Visgar and Charles F. Chabart de Joncavie; from Adams County, Joseph Darlington and Nathaniel Massie; from Jefferson Courty, sames Pritchard; from Ross County, Thomas Wo. thington, Eliss Langham, Samnel Windley and Edward Tiffin. The five gentlenien chornen as the Upper House were all from counties afterward included in Ohio.

or Upper House. These five were Jacob Burnet, James Findley, Henry Vanderburgh, Robert Oliver and David Vance. On the 3d of March, the Senate confirmed their nomination, and the Territorial Government of Ohio* - or, more properly, the Northwest - was complete. As this comprised the essential business of this body, it was prorogued by the Governor, and the Assembly directed to meet at the same place September 16, 1799, and proceed to the enactment of laws for the Territory.

organize until the 24th. The House consisted of nineteen members, seven of whom were from Hamilton County, four from Ross, three from Wayne, two from Adams, one from Jefferson, one from Washington and one from Knox. Assembling both branches of the Legislature, Gov. St. Clair addressed them, recommending such measures to their consideration as, in his judgment, were suited to the condition of the country. The Council then organized, electing Henry Vanderburgh, President; William C. Schenck, Secretary; George Howard, Doorkeeper, and Abraham Carey, Scrgeant-at-arms.

The House also organized, electing Edward Tiffin, Speakcr; John Reilly, Clerk; Joshua Rowland, Doorkeeper, and Abraham Carey, Sergeantat-arms.

This was the first legislature elected in the old Northwestern Territory. During its first session, it passed thirty bills, of which the Governor vetoed eleven. They also elected William Henry Harrison, then Secretary of the Territory, delegate to Congress. The Legislature continued in session till December 19, having much to do in forming new laws, when they were prorogucd by the Governor, until the first Monday in November, 1800. The second session was held in Chillicothe, which had been designated as the seat of government by Congress, until a permanent capital should be selected.

before and atter the division of the Northwest Territory, as the "Territory northwest of the Ohio River." Still, as the country comprised in its limits was the principal theater of action, the short resume given here is made necessary in the logical course of events, Ohio, as Ohio, never existed until the creation of the State in March, 1803.

of the eastern, or old part of the Territory, William McMillan and Paul Fearing were elected to the vacancies caused by this act. By the organization of this Territory, the counties of Knox, St. Clair and Randolph, were taken out of the juris-

Before the time for the next Assembly came, a new election had occurred, and a few changes were the result. Robert Oliver, of Marietta, was chosen Speaker in the place of Henry Vanderburgh.

There was considerable business at this session ; several new counties were to be erected ; the country was rapidly filling with people, and where the scruples of the Governor could be overcome, some organization was made. He was very tenacious of his power, and arbitrary in his rulings, affirming that he, alone, had the power to create new counties. This dogmatic exercise of his veto power, his rights as ruler, and his defeat by the Indians, all tended against him, resulting in his displacement by the President. This was done, however, just at the timethe Territory came from the second grade of government, and the State wax created. The third session of the Territorial Legislature continued from November 24, 1801, to January 23, 1802, when it adjourned to meet in Cincinnati, the fourth Monday in November, but owing to reasons made obvious by subsequent events, was never held, and the third session

April 30, 1802, Congress passed an act "to enable the people of the eastern division of the territory northwest of the Ohio River, to form a constitution and State government, and for the admission of such States into the Union on

In pursuance of this act, an election had been held in this part of the Territory, and members of a constitutional convention chosen, who were to meet at Chillicothe, November 1, to perform the duty assigned them.

Legislature, the convention was in session and had evidently about completed its labors. The members of the Legislature (eight of whom were members of the convention) seeing that a speedy termination of the Territorial government was inevitable, wisely concluded it was inexpedient and unnecessary to hold the proposed session.

The convention concluded its labors the 29th of November. The Constitution adopted at that time, though rather crude in some of its details, was an excellent organic instrument, and remained almost entire until 1851, when the present one was adopted. Hither is too long for insertion here, but either will well pay a perusal. The one adopted by the convention in 1802 was never submitted to the people, owing to the circumstances of the times; but it was submitted to Congress February 19, 1803, and by that body accepted, and an act passed admitting Ohio to the Union.

The Territorial government ended March 3, 1803, by the organization, that day, of the State government, which organization defined the present limits of the State.

"We, the people of the Eastern Division of the Territory of the United States. Northwest of the River Ohio, having the right of admission into the General Governmeut as a member of the Union, consistent with the Constitution of the United States, the Ordinance of Congress of one thousand seven hundred and eightyseven, and of the law of Congress, entitled 'An act to enable the people of the Eastern Division of the Territory of the United States Northwest of the River Ohio, to form a Constitution and a State Government, and for the admission of such State into the Union on an equal footing with the original States, and for other purposes;' in order to establish justice, promote the wellfare and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish the following Constitution or form of government; and do mutually agree with each other to form ourselves into a free and independent State, by the name of the State of Ohio.'"'* - Preamble, Constitution of 1802.

When the convention forming the Constitution, completed its labors and presented the results to Congress, and that body passed the act forming

* The name of the State is derived from the river forming its southern boundary. Its origin is somewhat obscure, but is commonly ascribed to the Indians. On this poiut, Col. Johnston says: "The Shawanoese called the Ohio River 'Kis-ke-pt-la, Sepe, i. e., 'Eagle River" The Wyan 'ots were in the conntry generations before the Shawanoese, and, consequently, their name of the river is the primitive one and should stand in preference to all others. Ohio may be called an improvement on the expression, 'O-he-zuh,' and was, no doubt, adopted by the early French voyagers in their boat-songs, and is substantially the same wort as used by the Wyandota: the meaning applied by the French, fair and beantiful 'la belle river,' being the same precisely as that meant by the Indians - ' great,

Washington, July 27, 1788; Hamilton, January 2, 1790; (owing to the Indian war no other counties were erected till peace was restored); Adams, July 10, 1797; Jefferson, July 29, 1797; Ross, August 20, 1798; Clermont, Fairfield and Trumbull, December 9, 1800; Belmont, September 7, 1801. These counties were the thickest settled part of the State, yet many other localities needed organization and were clamoring for it, but owing to St. Clair's views, he refused to grant their requests. One of the first acts on the assembling of the State Legislature, March 1, 1803, was the creation of seven new counties, viz., Gallia, Scioto, Geauga, Butler, Warren, Greene and Montgomery.

Section Sixth of the "Schedule" of the Constitution required an election for the various officers and Representatives necessary under the new government, to be held the second Tuesday of January, 1803, these officers to take their seats and assume their duties March 3. The Second Article provided for the regular elections, to be held on the second Tuesday of October, in each year. The Governor elected at first was to hold his office until the first regular election could be held, and thereafter to continue in office two years.

The January elections placed Edward Tiffin in the Governor's office, sent Jeremiah Morrow to Congress, and chose an Assembly, who met on the day designated, at Chillicothe. Michael Baldwin was chosen Speaker of the House, and Nathaniel Massie, of the Senate. The Assembly appointed William Creighton, Jr., Secretary of State ; Col. Thomas Gibson, Auditor; William McFarland, Treasurer; Return J. Meigs, Jr., Samuel Huntington and William Sprigg, Judges of 'the Supreme Court; Francis Dunlevy, Wyllys Silliman and Calvin Pease, President Judges of the First, Second and Third Districts, and Thomas Worthington and John Smith, United States Senators. Charles Willing Byrd was made the United States District Judge.

The act of Congress forming the State, contained certain requisitions regarding public schools, the "salt springs," public lands, taxation of Government lands, Symmes' purchase, etc., which the grand and fair to look upon.' " - Howe's Collections. Webster's Dictionary gives the word as of Indian origin, and its meaning to be, " Beautiful." to do regarding these various items, and, at once, set themselves to the task. Laws were passed reing all these; new counties created ; officers appointed for the same, until they could be elected, and courts and machinery of government put in motion. President Judges and lawyers traveled their circuits holding courts, often in 'the open air or in a leg shanty; a constable doing duty as guard over a jury, probably seated on a log under a tree, or in the bushes.- The President Judge instructed the officers of new counties in their duties, and though the whole keeping of matters accorded with the times, an honest feeling generally prevailed, inducing each one to perform his part as effeetaally as his knowledge permitted.

The State continually filled with people. New towns arose all over the country. Excepting the occasional sicknesses caused by the new climate and fresh soil, the general health of the people im- | proved as time went on. They were fully in accord with the President, Jefferson, and carefully nurtured those principles of personal liberty engrafted in the fundamental law of 1787, and later; in-the Constitution of the State.

Little.if any change occurred in the natural ceurse of events, following the change of government until Burr's expedition and plan of secession in 1805 and 1806 appeared. What his plans were, have never been definitely ascertained. His action related more to the General Government, yet Ohio was called upon to aid in putting down his insurrection - for such it was thought to be - and defeated his purposes, whatever they were. His plans ended only in ignominious defeat; the breaking-up of one of the finest homes in the Wéstern country, and the expulsion of himself and all those who were actively engaged in his scheme, whatever its imports were.

Again, for a period of four or five years, no exciting events occurred. Settlements continued ; mills and factories increased; towns and cities grew ; counties were created; trade enlarged, and naught save the common course of events transpired to mark the course of time. Other States were made from the old Northwest Territory, all parts of which were rapidly being occupied by settlers. The danger from Indian hostilities was little, and the adventurous whites were rapidly occupying their country. One thing, however, was yet a continual source of annoyance to the Americans, viz., the British interference with the Indians. Their traders did not scruple, nor fail on every opportunity, to aid these sons of. the forest with arms and ammunition as occasion offered, endeavoring to stir them up against the Americans, until events here and on the high seas culminated in a declaration of hostilities, and the war of 1812 was the result. The deluded red men found then, as they found in 1795, that they were made tools by a stronger power, and dropped when the time came that they were no longer needed.

Before the opening of hostilities occurred, however, a series of acts passed the General Assembly, causing considerable excitement. These were the famous "Sweeping Resolutions," passed in 1810. For a few years prior to their passage, considerable discontent prevailed among many of the legislators regarding the rulings of the courts, and by many of these embryo law-makers, the legislative power was considered omnipotent. They could change existing laws and contracts did they desire to, thought many of them, even if such acts conflicted with the State and National Constitutions. The "Sweeping Resolutions" were brought about mainly by the action of the judges in declaring that justices of the peace could, in the collection of debts, hold jurisdiction in amounts hot exceeding fifty dollars without the aid of a jury. The Constitution of the United States gave the jury control in all such cases where the amount did-not exceed twenty dollars. There was a direct contradiction against the organic law of the land - to which every other law and act is subversive, and when the judges declared the legislative act unconstitutional and hence null and void, the Legislature became suddenly inflamed at their independence, and proceeded at once to punish the administrators of justice. The legislature was one of the worst that ever controlled the State, and was composed of many men who were not only ignorant of common law, the necessities of a State, and the dignity and true import of their office, but were demagogues in every respect. Having the power to impeach officers, that body at once did so, having enough to carry a two-thirds majority, and removed several judges. Further maturing their plans, the "Sweepers," as they were known, construed the law appointing certain judges and civil officers for seven years, t@ mean seven years from the organization of the State, whether they had been officers that length of time or not. All officers, whether of new or old counties, weré construed as included in the act, and, utterly ignoring the Constitution, an act was passed in January, 1810, removing every civil officer in the State.

February 10, they proceeded to fill all these vacant offices, from State officers down to the lowest county office, either by appointment or by ordering an election in the manner prescribed by law.

The Constitution provided that the office of judges should continue for seven years, evidently seven years from the time they were elected, and not from the date of the admission of the State, which latter construction this headlong Legislature had construed as the meaning. Many of the counties had been organized but a year or two, others three or four years; hence an indescribable confusion arose as soon as the new set of officers were appointed or elected. The new order of things could not be made to work, and finally, so utterly impossible did the justness of the proceedings beeome, that it was dropped. The decisions of the courts were upheld, and the invidious doctrine of supremacy in State legislation received such a check that it is not likely ever to be repeated.

Another act of the Assembly, during this period, shows its construction. Congress had granted a township of land for the use of a university, and located the township in Symmes' purchase. This Assembly located the university on land outside of this purchase, ignoring the act of Congress, as they had done before, showing not only ignorance of the true scope of law, but a lack of respect un- 'ecoming such bodies.

The seat of government was also moved from Chillicothe to Zanesville, which vainly hoped to be made the permanent State capital, but the next session it was again taken to Chillicothe, and commissioners appointed to locate a permanent capital site.

These commissioners were James Findley, Joseph Darlington, Wyllys Silliman, Reason Beall, and William McFarland. It is stated that they reported at first in favor of Dublin, a small town on the Scioto about fourteen miles above Columbus. At the session of 1812-13,the Assembly accepted the proposals of Col. James Johnston, Alexander McLaughlin, John Kerr, and Lyne Starling, who owned the site of Columbus. The Assembly also decreed that the temporary seat of government should remain at Chillicothe until the buildings necessary for the State officers should be erected, when it would be taken there, forever to remain. This was done in 1816, in December of that year the first meeting of the Assembly being held there.

The site selected for the capital was on the east bank of the Scioto. about a mile below its junction with the Olentangy. Wide streets were laid out, and preparations for a city made. The expecta tions of the founders have been, in this respect, realized. The town wes laid out in the springof 1812, under the direction of Moses Wright. A short time after, the contract for making it the capital was signed. June 18, the same day war was declared against Great Britain, the sale of lots took place. Among the early settlers were George MeCormick, George B. Harvey, John Shields, Michael Patton, Alexander Patton, William Altman, John Collett, William McElvain, Daniel Kooser, Peter Putnam, Jacob Hare, Christian Heyl, Jarvis, George and Benjamin Pike, William Long, and Dr. John M. Edminson. In 1814, a house of worship was built, a school opened,a newspaper - The Western Intelligencer and Columbus (Gazette, now the Ohio State Journal - was started, and the old State House erected. In 1816, the "Borough of Columbus" was ineo ted, and a mail route once a week between Chillicothe and Columbus started. In 1819, the old United States Court House was erected, and the seat of justice removed from Franklinton to Columbus. Until 1826, times were exceedingly "slow " in the new capital, and but little growth experienced. The improvement period revived the capital, and enlivened its trade and growth so that in 1834, a city charter was granted. The city is now about third in size in the State, and contains many of the most prominent publie institutions. The present capitol building, one of the best in the West, is patterned somewhat after the national Capitol at Washington City.

From the close of the agitation of the " Sweeping Resolutions," until the opening of the war of 1812, but a short time elapsed. In fact, scarcely had one subsided, ere the other was upon the country. Though the war was national, its theater of operations was partly in Ohio, that State taking an active part in its operations. Indeed, its liberty depended on the war.

List Of Territorial And State Governors

From the organization of the first civil governmentin the Northwest Territory (1788 to 1802), of which the State of Ohio was a part, until the year 1880.

Name

(a) Arthur St, Clair,of Pennsylvania, was Governor of the Northweet Territory, of which Ohio was a part, from July 13, 1788, when the first civil government was established in the Territory, until about the close of the year 1802, when he was removed by the President.

c) Return Jonathan Meigs was elected Governor on the second Tuesday of October, 1807, over Nathaniel Massie, who contested the election of Meigs, on the ground that "he had not been a resident of the Constitution," and the General Assembly, in joint convention, declared that he was not eligible. The office was not given to Mazasie, nor does it appear, from the records that he claimed it, but Thomas Kirker, acting Governor, continued to discharge the duties of the office until December 12, 1808, when Samuel Huntington was

(g, The result of the election in 1848 was not finally determined in joint convention of the two houses of the General Assembly until January 19,1849, and the inauguration did not take place until the 22d of that month.

80. (j) Elected in October, 1853, for the regular term, to commence on the second Monday of January, 1854. *) Died August 29, 1865. Acting Governor. } Acting Governor, vice Wilson Shannon, resigned. Acting Governor, vice Reuben Wood, resigned. Acting Governor, vice John Brough, deceased. 1) Resigned March 2, 1877, to accept the office of President of the United States. (m) Vice Rutherford B. Hayes, resigned.

N June, 1812, war was declared against Great Britain. Before this, an act was passed by Congress, authorizing the increase of the regular army to thirty-five thousand troops, and a large force of volunteers, to serve twelve months. Under this act, Return J. Meigs, then Governor of Ohio, in April and May, 1812, raised three regiments of troops to serve twelve months. They rendezvoused at Dayton, elected their officers, and prepared for the campaign. These regiments were numbered First, Second and Third. Duncan Mc- Arthur was Colonel of the First ; James Findlay, of the Second, and Lewis Cass, of the Third. Early in June tnese troops marched to Urbana, where they were joined by Boyd's Fourth Regiment of regular troops, under command of Col. Miller, who had been in the battle of Tippecanoe. Near the middle of June, this little army of about twenty-five hundred men, under command of Gov. William Hull, of Michigan, who had been authorized by Congress to raise the troops, started on its northern march. By the end of June, the army had reached the Maumee, after a very severe march, erecting, onthe way, Forts McArthur, Necessity and Findlay. By some carelessness on the part of the American Government, no official word had been sent to the frontiers regarding the war, while the British had taken an early precaution to prepare for the crisis. Gov. Hull was very careful in military etiquette, and refused to march, or do any offensive acts, unless commanded by his superior officers at Washington. While at the Maumee, by a careless move, all his personal effects, including all his plans, number and strength of his army, ete., fell into the hands of the enemy. His campaign ended only in ignominious defeat, and well-nigh paralyzed future efforts. All Michigan fell into the hands of the British. The commander, though a good man, lacked bravery and promptness. Had Gen. Harrison been in command no such results would have been the case, and the war would have probably ended at the outset. Before Hull had surrendered, Charles Scott, Governor of Kentucky, invited Gen. Harrison,

Governor of Indiana Territory, to visit Frankfort, to consult on the subject of defending the Northwest. Goy. Harrison had visited Gov. Scott, and in August, 1812, accepted the appointment of Major General in the Kentucky militia, and, by hasty traveling, on the receipt of the news of the surrender of Detroit, reached Cincinnati on the | morning of the 27th of that month. On the 30th he left Cincinnati, and the next day overtook the army he was to command, on its way to Dayton. After leaving Dayton, he was overtaken by an express, informing him of his appointment by the Government as Commander-in-Chief of the armies of the Indiana and Illinois Territories. The army reached Piqua, September 3. From this place Harrison sent a body of troops to aid in the defense of Fort Wayne, threatened by the enemy. On the 6th he ordered all the troops forward, and while on the march, on September 17, he was informed of his appointment as commander of the entire Northwestern troops. He found the army poorly clothed for a winter campaign, now approaching, and at once issued a stirring address to the people, asking for food and comfortable clothing. The address was not in vain. After his appointment, Gen. Harrison pushed on to Auglaize, where, leaving the army under command of Gen. Winchester, he returned to the interior of the State, and establishing his headquarters at Franklinton, began active measures for the campaign.

Early in March, 1812, Col. John Miller raised, under orders, a regiment of*infantry in Ohio, and in July assembled his enlisted men at Chillicothe, where, placing them - only one hundred and forty in number - under command of Captain Angus Lewis, he sent them on to the frontier. They erected a block-house at Piqua and then went on to Defiance, to the main body of the army.

In July, 1812, Gen. Edward W. Tupper, of Gallia County, raised one thousand men for six months' duty. Under orders from Gen. Winchester, they marched through Chillicothe and Urbana, on to the Maumee, where, near the lower end of the rapids, they made an ineffectual attempt to drive off the enemy. Failing in this, the enemy attacked Tupper and his troops, who, though worn down with the march and not a little disorganized through the jealousies of the officers, withstood the attack, and repulsed the British and their red allies, who returned to Detroit, and the Americans to Fort McArthur.

In the fall of 1812, Gen. Harrison ordered a detachment of six hundred men, mostly mounted, to destroy the Indian towns on the Missisineway River, one of the head-waters of the Wabash. The winter set in early and with unusual severity. At the same time this expedition was carried on, Bonaparte was retreating from Moscow. Theexpedition acéomplished its design, though the troops suffered greatly from the cold, no less than two hundred men being more or less frost bitten.

Gen. Harrison determined at once to retake Michigan and establish a line of defense along the southern shores of the lakes. Winchester was sent to occupy Forts Wayne and Defiance; Perkins' brigade to Lower Sandusky, to fortify an old stockade, and some Pennsylvania troops and artillery sent there at the same time. As soon as Gen. Harrison heard the results of the Missisineway expedition, he went to Chillicothe to consult with Goy. Meigs about further movements, and the best methods to keep the way between the Upper Miami and the Maumee continually open. He also sent Gen. Winchester word to move forward to the rapids of the Maumee and prepare for winter quarters. This Winchester did by the middle of January, 1813, establishing himself on the northern bank of the river, just above Wayne's old battle-ground. He was well fixed here, and wasenabled to give his troops good bread, made from corn gathered in Indian corn-fields in this vicinity.

While here, the inhabitants of Frenchtown, on the Raisin River, about twenty miles from Detroit, sent Winchester word claiming protection from the threatened British and Indian invasion, avowing themselves in sympathy with the Americans. A council of war decided in favor of their request, and Col. Lewis, with 550 men, sent to their relief. Soon after, Col. Allen was sent with more troops, and the enemy easily driven away from about Krenchtown. Word was sent to Gen. Winchester, who determined to march with all the men he could spare to aid in holding the post gained. He left, the 19th of January, with 250 men, and arrived on the evening of the 20th. Failing to take the necessary precaution, from some unexplained reason, the enemy came up in the night, prised and defeated the American Army with a terrible loss. Gen. Winchester was made a prisoner, and, finally, those who were intrenched in the town surrendered, under promise of Proctor, the British commander, of protection from the Indians. This promise was grossly violated the next day. The savages were allowed to enter the town and enact a massacre as cruel and bloody as any in the annals of the war, to the everlasting ignominy of the British General and his troops.

Those of the American Army that escaped, arrived at the rapids on the evening of the 22d of January, and soon the sorrowful news spread throughout the army and nations. Gen. Harrison set about retrieving the disaster at once. Delay could do no good. A fort was built at the rapids, named Fort Meigs, and troops from the south and west hurriedly advanced to the scene of action. The investment and* capture of Detroit was abandoned, that winter, owing to the defeat at Frenchtown, and expiration of the terms of service of many of the troops. Others took their places, all parts of Ohio and bordering States sending men.

'The erection of Fort Meigs was an obstacle in the path of the British they determined to remove, and, on the 28th of February, 1813, a large band of British and Indians, under command of Proctor, Tecumseh, Walk-in-the-water, and other Indian chiefs, appeared in the Maumee in boats, and prepared for the attack. Without entering into details regarding the investment of the fort, it is only necessary to add, that after a prolonged siege, lasting to the early part of May, the British were obliged to abandon the fort, having been severely defeated, and sailed for the Canadian shores.

Next followed the attacks on Fort Stephenson, at Lower Sandusky, and other predatory excursions, by the British. All of these failed of their design; the defense of Maj. Croghan and his men constituting one of the most brilliant actions of the war. For the gallant defense of Fort Stephenson by Maj. Croghan, then a young man, the army merited the highest honors. The ladies of Chillicothe voted the heroic Major a fine sword, while the whole land rejoiced at the exploits of him and his band.

The decisive efforts of the army, the great numbers of men offered - many of whom Gen. Harrison was obliged f send home, much to their disgust - Perry's victory on Lake Erie, September 10, 1813 - all presaged the triumph of the American arms, soon to ensue. As soon as the battle on their stores, and fled, while the Americans, under their gallant commander, followed them in Perry's vessel to the Canada shore, overtaking them on the River Thames, October 5. In the battle that ensued, Tecumseh was slain, and the British Army routed. »

The war was now practically closed in the West. Ohio troops had done nobly in defending their northern frontier, and in regaining the Northwestern country. Gen. Harrison was soon after elected to Congress by the Cincinnati district, and Gen. Duncan McArthur was appointed a Brigadier General in the regular army, and assigned to the command in his place. Gen. McArthur made an expedition into Upper Canada in the spring of 1814, destroying considerable property, and driving the British farther into their own dominions. Peace was declared early in 1815, and that spring, the troops were mustered out of service at Chillicothe, and peace with England reigned supreme.

many people into the State, and opened new portions, before unknown. Many of the soldiers immediately invested their money in lands, and became citizens. The war drove many people from the Atlantic Coast west, and as a result much money, for awhile, circulated. Labor and provisions rose, which enabled both workmen and tradesmen to enter tracts of land, and aided emigration. At the conclusion of Wayne's war in 1795, probably not more than five thousand people dwelt in the limits of the State; at the close of the war of 1812, that number was largely increased, even with the odds of war against them. After the last war, the emigration was constant and gradual, building up the State in a manner that betokened a healthful life.

As soon as the effects of the war had worn off, a period of depression set in, as a result of too free speculation indulged in at its close. Gradually a stagnation of business ensued, and many who found themselves unable to meet contracts made in "flush" times, found no alternative but to fail. To relieve the pressure in all parts of the West, Congress, about 1815, reduced the price of public lands from $2 to $1.25 per acre. This measure worked no little hardship on those who owned large tracts of lands, for portions of which they had not fully paid, and as a consequence, these lands, as well as all others of this class, reverted to the Government. The general market 'was in New

Orleans, whither goods were transported in flatboats built especially for this pupose. This commerce, though small and poorly repaid, was the prosperity prevalent. The few banks in the State found their bills at a discount abroad, and gradually becoming drained of their specie, either closed business or failed, the major part of them adopting the latter course.

The steamboat began to be an mpsfant factor in the river navigation of the West about this period. The first boat to descend the Ohio was the Orleans, built at Pittsburg in 1812, and in December of that year, while the fortunes of war hung over the land, she made her first trip from the Iron City to New Orleans, being just twelve days on the way. The second, built by Samuel Smith, was called the Comet, and made a trip as far south as Louisville, in the summer of 1813. The to New Orleans in 1814. The fourth, built by Daniel French at Brownsville, Penn., made two trips to Louisville in the summer of 1814. The next vessel, the AMtna, was built by Fulton & Company in 1815. So fast did the business increase, that, four years after, more than forty steamers floated on the Western waters:: Improvements in machinery kept pace with the" building, until, in 1838, a competent writer stated there were no less than four hundred steamers in the West. Since then, the erection of railways has greatly retarded ship-building, and it is altogether probable the number has increased but little.

The question of canals began to agitate the Western country during the decade succeeding the war. 'They had been and were being constructed in older countries, and presaged good and prosperous times. If only the waters of the lakes and the Ohio River could be united by a canal running through the midst of the State, thought the people, prosperous, cities and towns would arise on its banks, and commerce flow through the land. One of the firmest friends of such improvements was De Witt Clinton, who had been the chief man in forwarding the 'Clinton Canal," in New York. He was among the first to advocate the feasibility | of a canal connecting Lake Erie and the Ohio River, and, by the success of the New York canals, | did much to bring it about. Popular writers of the | day all urged the scheme, so that when the Assem- | bly met, early in December, 1821, the resolution, offered by Micajah T. Williams, of Cincinnati, for the appointment of a committee of five mambers to take into consideration so much of the Governor's message as related to canals, and see if some feasible plan could not be adopted whereby a beginning could be made, was quickly adopted.

The report of the committee, advising a survey and examination of routes, met with the approval of the Assembly, and commissioners were appointed who were to employ an engineer, examine the country and report on the practicability of a canal between the lakes and the rivers. The commissioners employed James Géddes, of Onondaga County, N. Y., as an engineer. He arrived in Columbus in June, 1822, and, before eight months, the corps of engineers, under his direction, had examined one rovte. During the next two summers, the examinations continued. A number of routes were examined and surveyed, and one, from Cleveland on the lake, to Portsmouth on the Ohio, was recommended. Another canal, from Cincinnati to Dayton, on the Miami, was determined on, and preparations to commence work made. A Board of Canal Fund Commissioners was created, money was borrowed, and the morning of July +, 1825, the first shovelful of earth was dug near Newark, with imposing ceremonies, in the presence of De Witt Clinton, Governor of New York, and a mighty concourse of people assembled to witness the auspicious event.

Gov. Clinton was escorted all over the State to aid in developing the energy everywhere apparent. The events were important ones in the history of the State, and, though they led to the creation of a vast debt, yet, in the end, the canals were a benefit.

The main canal - the Ohio and Erie Canal - was not completed till 1832. The Maumee Canal, from Dayton to Cincinnati, was finished in 1834. They cost the State about $6,000,000. Each of the main canals had branches leading to important towns, where their construction could be made without too much expense. The Miamiand Maumee Canal, from Cincinnati northward along the Miami River to Piqua, thence to the Maumee and on to the lake, was the largest canal made, and, for many years, was one of the most important in the State. It joined the Wabash Canal on the eastern boundary of Indiana, and thereby saved the construction of many miles by joining this great canal from Toledo to Evansville.

The largest artificial lake in the world, it is said, was built to supply water to the Miami Canal. It exists yet, though the canal is not much used. It is in the eastern part of Mercer County, and is about nine miles long by from two to four wide. Tt was formed by raising two walls of earth from ten to thirty feet high, called respectively the east and west embankments; the first of which is about twomilesin length ; the second, about four. These walls, with the elevation of the ground to the north and south, formed a luge basin, to retain the water. The reservoir was commenced in 1837, and finished in 1845, at an expense of several hundred thousand dollars. When first built, during the accumulation of water, much malarial disease prevailed in the surrounding country, owing to the stagnant condition of the water. The citizens, enraged at what they considered an innovation of their rights, met, and, during a dark night, tore out a portion of the lower wall, letting the water flow out. The damage cost thousands of dollars to repair. 'All who participated in the proceedings were liable to a severe imprisonment, but the state of feeling was such, in Mercer County, where the offense was committed, that no jury could be found that would try them, and the affair gradually died out.

he canals, so efficacious in their day, were, however, superseded by the railroads rapidly finding their way into the West. From England, where they were early used in the collieries, the transition to America was easy.

The first railroad in the United States was built in the summer of 1826, from the granite quarry belonging to the Bunker Hill Monument Association to the wharf landing, three miles distant. The road was a slight decline from the quarry to the wharf, hence the loaded cars were pro. pelled by their own gravity. On their return, when empty, they were drawn up by a single horse. Other roads, or tramways, quickly followed this. They were built at the Pennsylvania coal mines, in South Carolina, at New Orleans, and at Baltimore. Steam motive power was used in 1831 or 1832, first in America on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and in Charlestown, on a railroad there.

To transfer these highways to the West was the question of but a few years' time. The prairies of Illinois and Indiana offered superior inducements to such enterprises, and, early in 1835, they began to be agitated there. In 1838, the first rail was laid in [linois, at Meredosia, a little town on the Illinois River, on what is now the Wabash Railway.

"The first railroad made in Ohio," writes Caleb Atwater, in his "History of Ohio," in 1838, "was finished in 1836 by the people of Toledo, a town some two years old then, situated near the mouth of Maumee River. The road extends westward into Michigan and is some thirty miles in length. There is a road about to be made from Cincinnati to Springfield. This road follows the Ohio River | up to the Little Miami River, and there turns | northwardly up its valley to Xenia, and, passing | the Yellow Springs, reaches Springfield. Its length must be about ninety miles. The State will own one-half of the road, individuals and the city of Cincinnati the other half. This road will, no doubt, be extended to Lake Erie, at Sandusky City, within a few short years."

Mr. Atwater notes also, the various turnpikes as well as the famous National road from Baltimore westward, then completed only to the mountains. This latter did as much as any enterprise ever enacted in building up and populating the West. It gave a national thoroughfare, which, for many years, was the principal wagon-way from the Atlantic to the Mississippi Valley.

The railroad to which Mr. Atwater refers as about to be built from Cincinnati to Springfield, was what was known as the Mad River Railroad. It is commonly conceded to be the first one built in Ohio.* Its history shows that it was chartered March 11, 1836, that work began in 1837; that it was completed and opened for business from Cincinnati to Milford, in December, 1842; to Xenia, in August, 1845, and to Springfield, in August, 1846. It was laid with strap rails until about 1848, when the present form of rail was adopted.

One of the earliest roads in Ohio was what was known as the Sandusky, Mansfield & Newark Railroad. It was chartered at first as the Monroeville & Sandusky City Railroad, March 9, 1835. March 12, 1836, the Mansfield & New Haven road was chartered; the Columbus & Lake Erie, March 12, 1845, and the Huron & Oxford, February 27, 1846. At first it ran only from Sandusky to Monroeville, then from Mansfield to Huron. These

* Hon. E. D. Mansfield states, in 1873, that the "first actual piece of railroad laid in Ohio, was made on the Cincinnati & Sandusky Railroad; but, about the same time we have the Little Miami Railroad, which was surveyed in 1836 and 1837. If this, the generally accepted opinion, is correct, then Mr. Atwater's statement as given, is wrong. His history is, however, generally conceded to be correct. Written in 1838, he surely ought to know whereof he was writing, as the railroads were then only in construction ; but few, if any, in operation.

Of Ohio

It is unnecessary to follow closely the history of these improvements through the years succeeding their introduction. At first the State owned a | share in nearly all railroads and canals, but finally | finding itself in debt about $15,000,000 for such improvements, and learning by its own and _neighbors' experiences, that such policy was detrimental to the best interests of the people, abandoned the | plan, and allowed private parties entire control of all such works. After the close of the Mexican war, and the return to solid values in 1854 or thereabouts, the increase of railroads in all parts of Ohio, as well as all parts of the West, was simply marvelous. At this date there are more than ten thou- ' sand miles of railroads in Ohio, alongside of which stretch innumerable lines of telegraph, a system of swift messages invented by Prof. Morse, and adopted in the United States about 1851.

About the time railroad building began to assume a tangible shape, in 1840, occurred the celebrated political campaign known in history as the " Hard Cider Campaign." The gradual encroachments of the slave power in the West, its arrogant attitude in the Congress of the United States and in several State legislatures : its forcible seizure of slaves in the free States, and the enactment and attempted enforcement of the " fugitive slave" law all tended to awaken in the minds of the Northern people an antagonism, terminating only in the late war and the abolishment of that hideous system in the United States.

strenuously urged the abridgment or confinement of slavery in the Southern States, and in the contest the party took a most active part, and elected William Henry

Harrison President of the United States. As he had been one of the foremost leaders in the war of 1812, a resident of Ohio, and one of its most pop- _ular citizens, a log cabin and a barrel of cider were adopted as his exponents of popular opinion, as expressive of the rule of the common people represented in the cabin and cider, in turn representing their primitive and simple habits of life. Though a rugged man when elected, he lived but thirty days after his inauguration, dying April 9, 1841. John Tyler, the Vice President, succeeded him in the office.

as they do now, preceded by " flush" times, when | ruining many people, but seemingly teaching few speculation ran rife, the people all infatuated with , lessons.