Clark County, Indiana - Chapter 5: The Second Decade - 1811-1820, 1909

Chapter 5: The Second Decade - 1811-1820

With the increase in her population by the ad\-ent of new settlers, Clark county began to dwindle in area by the organization of new counties from her territory. Jefferson county was cut off and organized in 1810; Washington in 18 14: Floyd in 18 19, and Scott in 1820. One of the signs of a coming population was the opening up of new roads between the settlements. Perhaps the most useful as well as the earliest road in the county was the Jefi'ersonville and Charleston road, laid out in the year 1810. It passed through the Fry settlement and on to Charlestown b_\' way of Spring\-ille. Before the township of Utica was organized there were three roads leading from Charlestown to Jeffersonville, all of which passed through the township as it now is. They were designated as the W^estern, Middle and Eastern roads. The Fry settlement road was and is still known as the Middle road : the Eastern road ran over to Utica and thence down the river to Jeffersonville. It is now known as the Utica pike. That which led to Springville cut ofif a small slip of the northwest corner of the township. It has long been discontinued.

The danger of the Falls gave the ferry at Utica the advantage over tlie Jeffersonville ferry. The latter place had long been considered dangerous b}' those who knew it best. Many boats with their cargoes had gone to the bottom on the Falls as the result of inexperience and lack of care. Between the years 1800 and 1825 the fen-j^ at Utica did an immense business. Emigrants were streaming into the interior counties like bees, and the white covered wagons were as familiar as steamboats are now. These emigrants took the Charlestown road, passed b)' way of New Washington on to the W'abash or beyond, through the dense forests which then covered the land. In 181 1 a ferry was established at Bethlehem which has continued to this day with various degrees of success.

In 181 2 Aaron Hoagland kept a ferry about one mile below Bethlehem. In 1815 there were ten ferries in Clark county. W'ith the establishment of ferries, roads were opened up and in 18 18 a road was built from Bethlehem to Madison. This was the first road in this township. It ran over the best and highest land between the two places, and at Bethlehem it descends to the town from the top of a bluff nearby, two hundred feet above the river. The approach and view of Bethlehem from this road presents an interesting picture with the fertile valley spread out below and the majestic river with

Steamboats and other water craft in the distance. It was not long before roads were built to Charlestown and to New \^'ashington. Charlestown being the early county seat there were roads leading into the town from all parts of the county. One road which led to Charlestown landing is in use yet. but not of much consequence. At the latter place existed a feny wliich was established about 1796 by a Peter McDonald. IniSij there were two roads leading from Charlestown to Salem, called the upper and lower Salem roads. A later road was built to the mouth of Bull creek, where a ferry had been kept from early times by the Pettitt family. The ferries at Jeffersonville had been running since 1802, when ]\Iarston G. Clark was granted a license. In 1807. Joseph Bowman was granted a ferry license. The ten ferries in existence in 181 5 were owned by Marston G. Clark. William Clark, Joseph Bowman, Peter McDonald, John Pettitt, Richard Astor, Robert Patterson, X. Scriljner. James Noble \A'ood and \\'illiam Plaskett.

The second decade of the century still found Clark county A^-ild, primitive and sparsely settled. Emigrants were attracted to the locality, and during this period settlements began to appear here and there and the small patches of cultivated land relieved the weary stretch of forest and cane brakes. The Yarborough family came to Jeffersonville in 1810. At this time the village had only a few log houses and -very little else to recommend it as a place of residence. In ^^'ood township Samuel Packwood emigrated from Virginia in 181 1, and Carr and Herrod in 1810, from Pennsylvania. Herrod had two sons, William and Henry. William became a miller, and for manv years owned a notable mill on Silver creek. Henrv was a politician and for several years was Clerk of the Clark County Circuit Court. In 181 3 came James McKinle^', a brother of John ]\IcKinley, mentioned before. In 1819 came William Packwood. a brother of Samuel, and at various times during this period came Charles Robertson, James and Jesse Baker, Mica Burns, Thompson Little, Amos Little, ^^'illiam Kelley, Michael Borders, Christopher Morris, A^'iliam Gibson, James Johnson. James Brown. John Bell. George Brock, Isaac Bagerly. Cyrus Bradford, George Goss, David Goss, John Goss. Mathew West and Thomas Harlowe. These emigrants were mostly from the south. The settlement in ^^'ood township was made within easj^ distance of Wood's blockhouse. The Indians often visited these new settlements in the county, and generally appeared friendly, but they were treacherous to the core, and the settlers were never safe so long as the savages were with them. The visitors loved whisky, and the owners of the still houses were friolish enough to sell to them. Their love for strong drink would prompt them to declare the most undying affection for the white man. On one occasion a gallon of whisky brought a man out of captivity, and to receive it the Indians brought tlieir prisoner to Clarksville from the far north.

Indians were particularly fond of. and when the pale faces were beaten in the contest, which was often purposely permitted, the joy of the red skins was unbounded. This condition of affairs existed throughout the county until 1812, and up to the time of Harrison's victory at Tippecanoe. It was not long after this that the Indian began to take up his march to find less civilized but more congenial homes and hunting grounds far to the west. With this ever present sword of Damocles removed from over their heads the pioneers breathed their first free air and went forth unarmed to their labors.

Dow purchased land : so also did John Borden. Dow returned to his home in Connecticut. Borden having laid out the town of New Providence, naming it after Providence, Rhode Island, returned home also. In i8t8. leaving his children, two or three in number, with relatives in his old state, accompanied by his wife and Joseph Cook - a young man of influence and respectability, and by trade a blacksmith - he removed to this so-called land of promise. Dow came in 1819. bringing with him John Fowler, a son-in-law, and an unmarried daughter, also two sons unmaried, and HeniT, a son who was married - altogether about si.xteen men, women, and children. William, Brannan, a man of wealth and respectability, with a large family, came soon after Dow, from New York. Bannannel Shaw and family from Rhode Island, soon followed Brannan. Then came Thomas Bellows. His family was composed of his mother, then a widow ; two sisters. Lydia and Laura : a brother, David, and of course his wife and children. The company in which the Bellowses came was composed of Samuel Hallett and Silas Standish, with their families: Joseph Durfy and Peleg Lewis, without families, all from New London county, Connecticut.

The Bordens took the lead in affairs at New Providence, John being the first storekeeper. He engaged in blacksmithing. farming and sheep raising, and kept an inn, and his wife continued the business from the time of her husband's death in 1824, until 185 1.

The first school taught in Wood township was in 181 1 by Closes Wood, a brother of George. Samuel Packwood started the first tannery in Wood township in 1812. The first saw mill was erected in 1820 by Henry Dow, Sr. On the opposite side of the county Willis Brown established the first store at Bethlehem in 181 5. Abram Kimberlain established possibly the earliest tannery in the county near Knobbs Station. It was in operation in 1812.

The establishment of mills and tanneries was continued eyen in the face of Indian troubles. After the battle of Tippecanoe the commercial and agricultural life of the county grew apace, and as conditions permitted new settlements were made and schools, churches, mills and tanneries followed as a

In 1812 the village of Bethlehem was platted. W. C. Greenup was the surveyor, and the town was laid out with streets parallel to the river, and a reservation was made for a public square in the center. Much of the land upon which Bethlehem is built was owned by John Armstrong of Revolutionary fame. In the original plat there were one hundred and tw-enty-fottr lots.

Jefifersonville in 1812 was a sleepy little town of possibly five hundred people. In this year the question of the removal of the county seat to Charlestown came up and was settled ; and the next year the first and original courthouse was built at Charlestown. In September of 1812, the people of the county were thrown into a panic of fear by the Pigeon Roost Massacre (see Military Annals). Many people crossed the river to Kentucky for safety, but after a few weeks regained courage. Several block-houses w^ere built as a result of this scare, but it had little or no efifect on the new settlers who continued to come in. In Washington towaiship several block-houses were built Jesse Henly erected one on wdiat is now the Charlestown and New Washington road, two miles and a half south of New Washington village in 1812. The house stood near the mouth of Henly's cave from which a plentiful supply of water was furnished. After the excitement went down the block-house was abandoned. It has entirely disappeared.

On Frederic Fisher's farm, one mile north of New Washington, a blockhouse was erected in 1812. There was one also in a little settlement called Hookertown, but which has entirely disappeared.

Colonel Adams himself put up a private block-house. In it the family lived for a year or two, and then returned to their old but more comfortable, log cabin.

The Indians seldom gave the white settlers in \\'ashington township any trouble, except a few petty thefts which they committed, and which, fortunately, the settlers were always able to bear. In 181 1 the Adams family removed to Clark county from Terre Haute.

General Harrison was engaged at that time in trying to conciliate the Indians on the frontier. It was on this account that the family mo\-ed to Washington township. In the spring of 1813, Col. Martin Adams enlisted as a ranger to fight the Indians on the borders, and made several campaigns. On the i8th of August, 1825, he married ]\Iiss Jane H. Davis. The Davises came from Kentucky and settled in Jefferson county, Indiana. The title of colonel he recei\-ed from his service with the Rangers.

Henry and William Robinson came from Nelson county, Kentucky, in 1814, in compan}- with father, mother. fi\'e brothers and three sisters. The former was born December 31. 1803: the latter February 9, 1806. The family settled on the road leading from Xew Washington to Bethlehem on their arrival.

Jesse Henly was one of the wealthiest men in the township in 181 1. He bought his land in most instances from the government. At the time of his death he owned twent}--one hu.ndred acres.

William Montgomery, a man who took much interest in all township questions, was the father of ten sons and three daughters. A large number of his descendants are now living in this county.

In 181 1 the Willey family took up their residence on a farm near where Memphis is now located. Barzillai Willey. the father, became a Incal preacher and was engaged in the milling business for se\-eral years. He left a family of eleven children, all of whom, except one son. John Fletcher Willey, emigrated farther west. John Fletcher \\'illey is the head of the numerous Willey family in Clark county.

Governor Posey did not like Corydon as a place of residence. On December 2']. 181 3, he sent a communication to the legislative council stating that he had gone to JefTersonville. where he could be near his physician, who lived in Louis\-ille. He added that if the Legislature had any business with him it could be sent on to the former city. This communication evidently ' did not please the Legislature, for on January 6, 1814. a preamble and resolution was adopted criticising Governor Posey for leaving the seat of government. The resolution in part reads : "Whereas, the expense of near fifty dollars a day doth arise to the people of the territory by reason of the Legislature being kept in session, all of which evil and inconvenience doth arise from the Governor leaving the seat of government and going to Jeffersonville." etc., it w-as resolved to adjourn sine die. that the people might not be put to the extraordinary expense of fifty dollars a day by the members remaining at Coiydon.

In 1812 the first Presb3-terian church in the county was established in Charlestown. In 1814 Silver Creek township was organized. This township is the smallest in the countv and takes its name from Silver Creek, the in the cniint}'. In early days Siher Creek township was covered witli a magnificent growth of oak, liickory, beecli and poplar trees of immense size. Tliese forest trees furnished great sources of income to the early settlers, and ga\-e employment to many hands, and to tlie farmers during the winter season in cutting and hauling it to market. Much of this early timber was hauled to the creek and taken to the river on freshets. A great deal of the lumber from this timber was used in steamboat building, a rising industry at that time.

In 1816 the County Commissioners met at Charlestown and proceeded to separate the northeastern part of the grant and that portion of territory which had been annexed to it into four townships, one of which was Washington. This same year the town of Utica was laid out. August gth. marking the culmination of a long anticipated hope. In the original sun'ey there were two hundred and twenty lots, one hundred feet square. Lot number one was in the southwest corner, from which all the rest were numbered. Five lots were given for public purposes by those having the matter in charge - James Noble Wood. Samuel Bleight and John Miller. The shape of the town is that of a rectangle and the streets run parallel to the river. Front street is seventy feet wide: Walnut street is fort\'-three feet: Mercer and \\"arren thirty: and all others are sixtv feet in width.

1816. to build one hundred log cabins with clapboard roofs at twenty-five dollars each. In 1817. when Samuel Morrison arrived in Utica, he found all of these cabins built and some of them occupied. The original plan of Jefifersonville, in which every other lot was lost for business purposes, was changed in

1 81 7. An act of the Legislature in that year authorized the town board to replat all that part north of Market street, and J. K. Graham platted that part of the city as it is now laid out. New deeds of conveyance were given to all the property holders, who held property under the original deeds of 1802. The new plan had in lots numbered from one to two hundred and forty-six, and out lots numbered from two hundred and forty-se\'en to two hundred and fifty-three.

Originally JNIulberry street was Front street : Pearl street was First ; Spring street was Second ; ^^'all street was Third, etc. This is the plan of that part of the original town at the present day with the exception of the names of the streets. Charlestown. the county seat, had meanwhile been pushing ahead and the industry and ambitions of her citizens received favorable comment from travelers.

Mr. Palmer, the Englishman who journeyed through the Ohio valley in 1817. has this to sav in his subsequent book of travels in the United States:

"Charlestown, the seat of justice for Clark county, is situated in the center of a rich and thriving settlement, thirtv-two miles southwest from ]\Iadison.

two miles from the Ohio river, and fourteen from the Falls. This village, like many others in the ^\'estern countiy. has sprung up suddenly by the magical influence of American enterprise, excited into action by a concurrence of favorable circumstances."

"Charlestown, the county seat of Clark, is situated two miles from the Ohio, twenty miles south of -west from Madison, and fourteen miles above the Falls. It is one of the most flourishing and neatly built towns in the state; contains about one hundred and sixty houses, chiefly of bi'ick, a handsome court-house, and is inhabited by an industrious class of citizens. There are numerous plantations around this town, consisting of good land, and better cultivated, perhaps, than any in the state. This tract is within the grant made by the state of Virginia to the brave soldiers, etc., etc. Charlestown's first postmaster was Peter G. Taylor, of New York."

Down to 1849 the mail came three times a week by way of Louisville, from Cincinnati. The steamboats brought the mail in most cases down the river. From the villages along the Ohio mail routes led off to the county seats and little post-offices in the townships. Mails were carried to all the villages of any importance in the county, on horseback, in a pair of saddle-bags. A mail-carrier was a person whom all persons delighted to see. Letters then, more than now, were precious articles.

On February 26, 1819, the County Commissioners advertised for bids to build a jail at Charlestown. Daniel P. Faulkner erected tlie building, and all necessary out buildings. The jail was of logs.

In the spring of 1813 a party of Lidians came to within nine miles of Charlestown on a raid, and concealed themselves near the house of a Mr. Hofifman. on the banks of Silver creek. They fired upon and killed Hoffman and then shot his wife, inflicting a wound supposed to be fatal, but from which she finally recovered. They took his grandson, aged nine years, a prisoner, and kept him about nine years until the Federal Government was prevailed upon to take the matter of his return up and redeem him. During this time he had become almost savage and it was with some difficulty that he could be prevailed upon to leave the savage tribes and return home to his friends. At this time there were soldiers camped within a short distance of Hoffman's, but it being Sunday, they were visiting a family some distance away. From the number of horses stolen by these savages, and from other signs it was evident that they had visited several different parts of the county, but they were never caught, as their skill in retreating down rivulets and streams made this difficult to do.

This was the last of tlie Indian atrocities in Clark county, with a few minor exceptions of the abductions of children and the theft of horses and cattle. The braves who at earlier times roamed their hunting grounds with lordly mien, had now become thieving, begging vannints and their hegira to newer and wilder lands in the boundless ^^'est called forth no tears nor resolutions of regret from the settlers on the creeks and runs of Clark county.

In Washington township there w-as no regularly laid out village at this time. Its isolated situation seemed to preclude any idea of future greatness. But there naturally sprang up a desire to have a township center, a place where people could vote, where ammunition and groceries could be bought, and where Christmas shooting-matches could be held. David Copple, Bala Johnson and Adam Keller, who owned land in the vicinity of New Washington, w'ere the first persons who made a successful attempt to found a village. New Washington is admirably situated. It was laid out in 1815 by the three persons above-mentioned. There were one hundred and' twenty-eight lots. each ninety by one hundred and fifty feet. Eight lots w-ere given for public purposes, and the proceeds of their sale turned into a fund for chtuxhes, schools and the grading of streets. They were located on the first square northeast of the center of the town - for it was a town of size which they had planned. In i8ig Johnson made an addition on the w'est side of nine lots of the same size as those sunxyed at first. Mr. Todd made an addition of thirty-three inlots and twelve outlots, in 1879, on the south side, the former ninety by one hundred feet.

Adam Keller, who came from Wales, with his wife and a part of his family, was one of the first citizens of New A\'ashington. He afterwards moved to Shelby count}', Indiana, where he died.

David Copple was a farmer. He came from one of the Carolinas. Absolom Frazier. another early citizen, a wheelwright and edge-tool-maker, was here before 1820. He erected a steam grist mill eighty odd years ago in the village, to which he afterwards attached a saw-mill. He was a man of considerable ability, and aided much in the impro^-ements of New ^^'ashington.

In a few years after the village had been laid out it became a thriving place. This resulted mainly from its location on the great thoroughfares which led to Madison and Lexington, over which hundreds of emigrants passed yearly.

In 1817. two years after New Washington was laid out, the town of New Providence was laid out in Wood township by Stephen, John and Asa Borden. In the center of the village is a public square, which lies at right angles with the ?^Iuddy fork of Silver creek. It is situated on the Monon Railroad about eighteen miles from New Albanv. In 1816 Bethlehem townyO BAIRD S HISTORY OF CLARK CO.j IXU.

ship was organized. It lays wholly outside the famous Clark grant in the extreme northeastern part of the county. Like Washington township it derived its name from a village which had b.een laid out within it before there was a separate organization and township lines were fixed definitely. That village was Bethlehem, platted in 1812, and situated on the Ohio river. The township is bounded on the north by Jefiferson county ; on the east by tlie Ohio ; on the south by the Ohio river, Owen and Washington townships.

On February loth, 1817, Jeffersonville township was organized. At that time it included much more territory than it does at present. The first election was ordered for the second Monday of March of that year, at the house of Charles Fuller on Front street. James Lemon was appointed inspector of the election, and three Justices of the Peace were elected. On Mav 1 2th of the same year the township was reduced in size by the formation of a new township as follows :

Ordered; That all that part of said township I Jeffersonville) west of Silver creek, lying and being between the said creek and Greenville township, do constitute and form one new township, and that the same be called and known as New Albany township.

The organization of new townships and the lading out of towns during this decade would argue prosperity and growth, but not so with the old town of Clarksville. John Palmer, in his Journal of Travels in the United States, recording his journeyings of 1817, said:

Clarksville lies at the lower end of the Falls, and, although commenced as earlv as 1783, does not contain above forty houses, most of them old and decayed. It has a safe, capacious harbor for boats.

"Although this was one of the earliest settled places in the state of Indiana being established in 1783 by the Legislature of Virginia, as part of the Illinois grant, yet it is at the present moment far behind them all in every possible respect. A few log houses of one story comprise the list of its dwellings, and from their number and appearance I should suppose that they do not contain altogether one hundred inhabitants. It is, however, pleasantly situated at the foot of the Indiana Chute, and immediately opposite Shippingport. It is said to be very unhealthy, which is more than probable, from the number of marshes that are in the vicinity."

This condition, however, did not prevail elsewhere in the county. Mc- Murtrie seemed to be soured on the territory across from Louisville, particularly on the canal project as revived again in 18 18.

A Mr. Palmer, who was in Jefifersonville in 1817, said: "Jefliersonville stands on the banks of the Ohio, nearly opposite Louisville and a little above the Falls. It contains about one hundred and thirtv houses of brick, frame and hewn logs. The bank of the river is high, which affords a fine view of Louisville, the Falls and the opposite hills. Just below the town is a fine eddy for boats. A post-office and a land-office for the sale of United States lands, are established and it promises to become a place of wealth, elegance and extensive business. The most eligible boat channel is on the Indiana side of the Ohio."

The year 1814 is noteworthy as the date of the commencement of the tunnel on Fourteen ]\Iile creek for the tunnel mill. John \\'ork owned a mill on the creek, but he conceixed the idea that instead of repairing the old one he would build a new mill. A tunnel was to be made through a spur of a hill, around which the creek ran, to act as a mill race, and therefore always gave a good supply of water. Xature had fitted Work peculiarly for the work of his life. His natural mathematical and mechanical talents were great, and to these natural accomplishments he added an indomitable will and a tireless mind.

Fourteen ilile makes a long curve in the form of a pear, leaving a body of land resembling a peninsula, which included, perhaps, twenty acres. The distance through at the narrowest point was a little over three hundred feet. But the obstacles were of mammoth proportions. The hill, for such it was. rose to one hundred feet from the bed of the creek. It was made up of solid rock. After mature deliberation and a few surveys, he began the work. From the old mill-site he began tuimeling, and also at the same time on the opposite side, or where the new mill was to stand. His implements were rude : his experience in blasting and making powder limited. The work began in 1 8 14 and lasted three years. During this time three men were constantly engaged. Six hundred and fifty pounds of powder were used, and the cost of the work is estimated at three thousand, three hundred dollars. The race was six feet deep and fi\-e wide, and was ninety-four feet below the summit.

The work which he performed in driving the tunnel, and the calculations necessarv to its successful completion seem almost incredible. The two ends of the tunnel met accurately when the work was finished. The ilay of completion was a gala day for the surrounding country. John Work invited all his customers to partake of his hospitalities. A great dinner was provided. A man who weighed over two hundred pounds rode through the tunnel on horseback. At each end was a barrel of prime whiskey, with the head knocked out. Speeches were made and a glorification had which to this day is remembered with man)- aft'ectionate regards.

Henceforward this was called the Tunnel mill. .\t the end of the race an overshot wheel was put up. The two Ijuhrs ran by a never-failing water supply, with a fall of twenty-four feet. The mill is frame, and is fifty by thirty-five feet. The wheel is twenty feet in diameter, though twenty-six feet could be used, if necessary. There were originally two wheels. John Rose

The first bank in Clark count}- was started in JetTersonville in 1817 by Beach and Bigelow. The currency which it issued was a great convenience to people of the town and surrounding country at that time. This institution continued in business until after the failure of the canal project.

An important event in the second decade of Clark county's history was the project inaugurated in 1818 to build a canal around the Falls of the Ohio on the Indiana side of the river. The Jeffersonville Ohio Canal Company was incorporated in January, 1818, with a capital stock of one million dollars, and the articles of incorporation permitted the officials to raise one hundred thousand dollars by a lottery. The charter was to nui to 1899, but the canal was to be completed and in use by 1824. The maps of Jeffersonville at this time have the line of the canal marked plainly upon them. By May, 18 IQ, sun'eys had been made of the line of the proposed work and some contracts had been let for the excavation. Work was commenced and a ditch dug the entire length. The upper end of the canal was at the south end of Meigs avenue (Canal street then) and ran northwestwardly across Market street at the intersection of Walnut street. The remains of the old ox pond, a great skating place for the boys before the levee was built in the eighties, was one of the scars left by the canal seventy-odd years before.

The route cut through the block under the present location of St. Paul's church, and left it at the mouth of the alley on Locust street, between Market street and Chestnut street. It ran from here to the intersection of Chestnut street and Wall street, and thence to Spring street. It crossed Spring street at No. 437 and 438, and ran thence to Court avenue, where it struck the street about one hundred feet east of Pearl street. From here the route was across Court avenue to the intersection of Kentucky avenue and sixth street : thence to Michigan avenue and Seventh street : thence to Ohio avenue and alx)ut one hundred and fifty feet south of Eighth street ; thence to Broadway, about one hundred feet north of Eighth street ; thence to Ninth street about half way between Broadway and Illinois avenue ; thence to Missouri avenue about one hundred feet south of Tenth street : thence diagonally through out lots 21 and 22 of Clarksville, to Cane Run creek, striking the Ohio river at the upper end of General's Point. It was to empty into the whirlpool through the ravine about one mile below the Pennsylvania bridge. At a point about where the junction is located a lock was to be constructed and another set of locks was to be located at the lower end of the canal wdiere it emptied into the river. It was to be two and one-half miles long, one hundred feet wide at the top and fifty feet wide at the bottom. It was to have an average depth of forty-five feet and a fall of twenty-three feet. The upper one-fourth of the excavation was to be made in earth, but in the lower three-fourths ten or twelve feet of solid rock would have had to have been Ijlasted out. entailing an enormous expenditure of time and money. The great fall through two and one-half miles of the canal was to furnish unlimited power to drive machinery for shops and factories along the line. It was the idea of the projectors that the ditch if started would soon wash itself out. and a rise in the river was expected to demonstrate the far sightedness of the engineers. A large log did travel almost tlie entire length of the ditch during high water, but as it came up from the lower end where the water backed up in the "canal" the scheme stood somewhat discredited. Unfortunately also, the water failed to wash out the ditch to the required depth, but left a la)-er of mud in it which had ne\-er been there before.

Finances ran low, the proper backing could not be found and more progressive people of Louisville and Philadelphia formed a compan\- to dig a canal on the Kentucky side of the river. The Jeffersonville canal project was fought with vigor and the scheme died a natural deatli. For many vears afterward the route of this canal could be easih- traced but the marks have all been obliterated at the present day. ^^'hile the idea of a canal was occupying the mind of Jefferson\-ille. Bethlehem thought of roads, and in 1818 the road leading to ]\Iadison was established.

The old cemetery at Charlestown. where so many of the men of prominence in our affairs sleep, was laid out in 1818. In the early part of the centur}" it was used by the public generally and was the most noted of any in that part of the county. Here Jonathan Jennings was buried, and here nearly every early family of the county is represented.

In 1819 the first steamboat was built in Jeffersonville. Her name was the "United States," and she was owned by Hart and others. In a succeeding chapter, the boat building industn,' of Jeffersonville and Clark county will be treated separately and fully.

In 1820 the first brick house was built in Charlestown which was somewhat pretentious for those days. On June 26, 1819, Clark county was honored by a \"isit of the president. James Monroe, at Jeffersonville. James Flint, a traveler here at that time, wrote: "On the 26th (June) the President arrived. A tall pole with the striped flag was displayed on the bank of the river, a salute was fired and a large body of citizens awaited his coming on shore. To be introduced to the President was a wish almost universal, and he was subjected to a laborious shaking of hands with the multitude. A public dinner was given and this, too, was an object of ambition.

"Grocers left their goods and mechanics their work-shops to be present at the gratifying repast. The first magistrate appears to be about sixty years of age. His deportment is dignified, and at the same time aft'able. His countenance is placid and cheerful. His chariot is not of iron, nor is he attended by horse-guards or drawn swords. His protection is the affection of a free and a represented people."

In io20 Jefifersonville was remarked in Gilleland's Geography of the States and Territories west and south of the Alleghany mountains, appended to the Ohio and Mississippi Pilot, published at Pittsburg, as "the largest town in the State and irom the advantages of its situation, will prcAably co'.ilinue to be so."

An incident A\hich occurred in Charlestown about iSjo. recalls a case of Indian brutality. Alathias Hester, one of the pioneers of Clark county, while in Kentucky in 1793. was employed in teaming between Louisville and Shelbvville. with a man named Leathennan. On one trip when they had passed "Benney Hughes' '" Station on the way to Shelbyville. they were hred upon by a part)' of Indians. Leatherman managed to escape, but Hester was shot with a rifle ball from a distance of four paces, the ball striking him above the left eye, breaking his skull. He fell from his horse, but started to escape by running. He was prostrated three times in running one hundred and seventy yards by the pain and being blinded by the blood, his last fall happening when his pursuers were so close behind him that he decided to feign death and submit to their torture. The first Indian struck him a glancing stroke on the head with his tomahawk and the second saluted him likewise. They scalped him and during the performance of this horrible act repeatedly speared him in the back as he lay upon the ground. After their butchery they took the horses and rode away. Hester, wonderful to say, recovered, and in the fall of 1799 he removed to the Illinois grant and took up his residence beyond Spring\-ille. at what is now Charlestown.

The Indians were accustomed to stop at his house and ask for lodging, when returning north from trading at the French store at "Tullytown". On one night two Indians applied for and received quarters for the night, and as they had a jug of whiskey, it was not long before Hester was obliged to send his little son to a neighbor's house for help, meanwhile secreting one of their large butcher knives in a crack in the wall. After the arrival of the neighbor, who had asked to smoke with the tomahawk of one of the Indians, the savage became suspicious and when he missed his knife immediately wrenched the tomahawk from the neighbor's hand and assaulted Hester with it. The Indians were finally prevailed upon to desist by kind expressions and signs and peace prevailed in the Hester household. Such incidents as these did not create a great love for the Indians in the breast of the elder Hester.

About 1820 a sale or gathering of some sort was held near Charlestown, and Hester, with most of the inhabitants of the town was in attendance. Some Indians were as usual in attendance ami one old buck approached Hester, and looking at the scalp wound on the top of his head solemnly remarked, "^le thought me kill you." It was the wretch who had scalped him years before in Kentucky, and it is said that the victim of that operation became so violent towards the savage that it required the united persuasion of all of his friends to prevent his shooting him on the spot.

Baird S History Of Clark Co., Ixd

One of the most noted institutions in Clark CDUnty at this time was "The Jeffersonviile Springs". This resort was located beyond Eleventh street and to the north of Spring street, including about thirteen acres in the grounds. In 1819 Doctor McMurtrie, of Louisville, in his history of that city, speaks as follows of these wonderful springs :

"About a mile from this town are several valuable springs, mineralized by sulphur and iron, where a large and commodious building has lately been erected by the proprietor, for the reception of those who seek relief either from physical indisposition, their own thoughts, or the disagreeable atmosphere of cities during the summer season. In a word, he is pi'eparing it for a fashionable watering place, to which there is nothing objectionable but its proximity to Louisville ; its being so near requires neither equipage nor the expense of a journey to arrive there, things absolutly required to render every place of the kind perfectly a la mode. It is, however, one of the most powerful natural chalybeate waters I have ever seen or tasted, and will no doubt prove very serviceable in many complaints, particularly in that debility attended with profuse cold sweats, which are constantly experienced by the convalescent victim of a biliotts fever, so common to the inhabitants of this neighborhood."

The land where this resort was located was owned by a Swiss, named John Fischli. He discovered the wonderful properties of the water in the springs and conceived the idea of making it a health and pleasure resort. He improved and cultivated the ground, laid out roads and walks, made a puzzle garden, etc.

Fountains were arranged, bath-houses were erected, bowling alleys were established and all the attractions possible were made to catch the public. Cottages were built at various places in the grounds, where visitors and their families could spend the season and enjoy the brilliancy and attractiveness of the society which repaired to this mecca from all over the South. In the summer season it was the gayest place in this part of the wurld. The manager of the "Springs" in 1820 was one Gutsel and his reputation as an entertainer was wide spread. He had provided all sorts of amusement devices, and the gambling here became in after years very heavy. There were rooms for faro, poker and every other conceivable sort of game except bridge whist. All of these games were public and visitors were welcome to view or participate as they chose. The great men of the South in those days and until 1850 were wont to repair here for rest and pleasure. R. AI. Johnson, Yke President under Van Buren : Henry Clay, Thomas Marshall, Humjihrey Marshall, Ben Hardin, General Jackson and many other celebrities of the day besides the lesser lights, added to the gaity of the resort.

In 1838 the owners built a big hotel at the foot of Broadway, near the river bank, and it was the finest hotel in Indiana or Kentucky when completed. A good wharf was built and Broadway was graded out to the Springs.

Carriages were always waiting to transport the seeker for healtli or pleasure to his goal, and many a dollar did the lucky owner of a rig gather in during a season. The end of the second decade of Clark county history found a healthy growth and substantial condition of affairs.

The Indian question had been settled for all time. The outlaying parts of the county were being taken up and cultivated. The territory had become a sovereign state. The population in 1820 was eight thousand, seven hundred and nine.