Athens Township (part 20 of 21)

The township is thoroughly well watered by the Hockhocking river, Sunday creek, and their tributaries. A portion of its surface is rather rough, but the hills are of moderate elevation, and admirably adapted to the growth of wheat and fruits, and to sheep raising; while in other parts of the township are broad and fertile plains. The mineral resources of the township are extensive and valuable. In the southern portion are the salt regions, near the junction of Sunday creek with the Hockhocking, about Chauncey and Salina. There are two extensive deposits of coal - a vein four feet thick mined from the surface, and another six feet thick reached by shafting about a hun-

There are three villages in Dover, viz: Millfield, on Sunday creek, in the northern part of the township, with a population of about two hundred; Salina, a thriving village on the Hockhocking, where the salt works of M. M. Greene & Co. are situated, .and Chauncey, on the opposite side of the river from Salina. Chauncey was laid out in 1839. About 1831 Resolved Fuller bored a salt well on the upper portion of his fine farm (including the present site of Chauncey), obtained good salt water, and prepared to manufacture salt on a small scale. In 1833, however, he sold his works and about four hundred acres of land to Calvary Morris and Norman Root, of Athens, who built an enlarged furnace and so extended the business, that in 1837 they sold it to Messrs. Ewing and Vinton for six thousand five hundred dollars. In 1838 Messrs. Ewing and Vinton, together with Elihu Chauncey and Nicholas Biddle, capitalists of Philadelphia, bought Resolved Fuller's farm, on which Chauncey is located, for twelve thousand five hundred dollars, and the next year laid off the town. They invested largely in surrounding lands, bored other salt wells, built a brick hotel and several houses, and expected to establish a thriving town. But the place has never prospered greatly, and has at present a population of only one hundred and fifty.

The total population of Dover in 1820 was 607; in 1830 it was 550 (its territory having been curtailed) ; in 1840 it was 1290; in 1850 it was 1232; in 1860 it was 1423. > at Mt. Auburn in the northern part of the township, is one of the best educational establishments in the county. It was founded in 1861 entirely through the efforts of the Rev. J. P. Weethee,

The early settlers of Dover were sterling men and not behind any others in the country in their desire for knowledge and progress. Part of the credit of forming the old ''Coonskin library " justly belongs to them. Many shares were taken by persons living in those parts which afterward became Dover, and by the men who were in later years the fathers of the township. In January, 1816, at a meeting of the shareholders of the

* Resolved, That one of the directors of the association be hereafter chosen from among the shareholders belonging to the township of Dover, and the said director shall have the care of as many books belonging to the library as the shareholders in Dover are entitled to draw, and shall deliver out, receive in and mark the damages on said books agreeably to the rules and regulations of the society ; and once in six months he shall deliver over to the society all the books in his care, and meet the other

Eventually a division of the library was made, and by an act of the legislature passed December 21, 1830, the * Dover library association" was incorporated, with Daniel Weethee, Alanson Hibbard, Azariah Pratt, Josiah True, John B. Johnson, William Hyde, and John Pugsley as the original incorporators, and Daniel Weethee, Alanson Hibbard, and Azariah Pratt as directors for the first year.

We have not been able to procure the records of the township previous to 1825; they have been lost or destroyed. The following are the township trustees since that time.

Daniel W eethee was born in New Hampshire in 1779. He was a cooper by trade, and saved money enough, during his youth, to buy a tract of land in what is now Dover township. At the age of nineteen he set out for the northwestern territory, made the tedious journey on foot and alone, and reached Marietta about the middle of December, 1798. The next spring he and another young man, Josiah True, came out to Dover, traveling through the woods by the aid of a compass. Arrived here they built a log cabin for their joint occupancy (they were both unmarried), and lived together about three years. Mr. True managed, by hard work and by selling skins, furs, etc., to secure means enough to purchase a piece of land, and bought part of the farm now owned by his son, Austin True, where he lived during the rest of his life. Thus they lived for about three years in this truly pioneer fashion, with no companions but the forest trees, and no neighbors but the wild game of all sorts which abounded near their cabin.

In 1802 Mr. Weethee married Lucy Wilkins, daughter of John Wilkins, one of the early settlers of Athens township, and the next year Mr. True married Almira, a daughter of Solomon Tuttle, then living on the creek a few miles above, in what is now Trimble township.

In 1804 Abraham Pugsley came in with his family, and settled on the section south of Mr. Weethee and Mr. True. Mr. Pugsley, who was a good citizen and excellent man, reared a large and respectable family here. He was drowned during the winter of the **cold plague" in 1814, while crossing the creek on the ice to visit a sick family. His oldest son, John, died several years since. The youngest son, James, is living, though very old.

One of the daughters of Abraham Pugsley had a singular adventure in early life. She was married, when only thirteen years of age, to a man named Neal. Her husband enlisted in the army in 1812, and, after he had left home with his company, on a keel boat, from the mouth of the Hockhocking (where they then lived), for Newport, Kentucky, the rendezvous, his wife determined to follow him and share his fortunes, whatever they might be. She started down the river alone in a canoe, and passed the first night in the little craft on the water; but the next day overtook her husband, and proceeded with him to St. Louis. Thence his company was ordered to some point further west. While going up the river the boat was landed for some purpose, when Indians fired from an ambush and killed her husband and the infant in her arms, wounding her at the same time. The company, with Mrs. Neal, returned to St. Louis, from whence she rode on a pony all the way back to her father's in Dover township.

In 1800 the Sweat family came to Dover, and settled near the present site of Millfield. In 1802 John Sweat built a rude mill there for grinding corn, which was greatly prized by the settlement. Even persons from Athens made use of this mill till the Gregory mill was built, about four years later.

In 1802 Azel Johnson, with his family, settled in Dover, on the creek and joining the Weethee farm. Many of his descendants are still living in the township. Azel and Benjamin Johnson are sons of his.

The Nye family, consisting of Ebenezer, the father (a native of Tolland, Connecticut, who came to the territory in 1790), and four sons, viz: George, Neal, Nathan, and Theodorus, came out from Marietta in 1814, and settled in Dover about a mile north of Chauncey. The eldest son died in 1825, leaving a widow, Mrs. Lydia Nye, now living at an advanced age with her son, George Nye, on the place first occupied by his father. The other brothers removed to Meigs county, where their descendants are numerous and respectable.

In 1820 the Nyes and some others formed a company to bore a salt well, on the place where Jeremiah Morris now lives, but, after boring to a considerable depth, abandoned the undertaking. Ten or twelve boring a little deeper, struck a vein of good salt water. This was the first successful salt well bored in the Hockhocking valley. About this time (1820) came the Cass, the Chadwell, the Nesmith, and the Pratt families, who have lived in Dover nearly fifty years, and are all excellent people.

Three sons of Daniel Weethee, the pioneer, are now living. Daniel W. Weethee lives on a fine farm in Trimble township; Lorentius Weethee owns and occupies the old homestead in Dover; and Jonathan P. Weethee, who graduated at the Ohio university in 1832, and has been actively engaged during his life in the ministry and in teaching in this and other states, is now the president of Weethee college at Mt. Auburn, in Dover.

Josiah True, the companion and friend of Daniel Weethee, was born in New Hampshire, October 25, 1776, came to Marietta in 1793, and to Dover township in 1800. He held the office of justice of the peace in Dover, from 1815 till 1851, and was respected and popular. He died September 16, 1855. Mr. True was one of the founders of the ''Coonskin library," of Ames, and always a leader in pioneer improvements. One of the first spinning wheels introduced into Dover was bought by him in 1803. Having accumulated a few bear and deer skins he carried purchased the wheel with the proceeds of the skins, brought it home on his back (walking all the way), and made the round trip of eighty miles im two days.

Most of the early settlers engaged more or less in hunting, depending mainly on the forests for fresh meat. On one occasion Josiah True and Cyrus Tuttle, his brother-in-law, drove a bear into a cave on the farm now owned by Mr. Austin True, in Dover. They succeeded in shooting the animal in a narrow passage of the cave, and, having fastened a hickory withe to his nose, were about to drag it to the open air. Mr. True entered the cave, and got behind the dead bear to assist Tuttle in shoving it out, when another bear, hitherto unobserved, came rushing from the rear end of the cave, directly on and over True's back, crushing him down on his face with great violence, and : so made its escape out of the cave.

Mr. True, at a very early day, bought some choice apples at Marietta, and sowed the seed from them, from which he established the first nursery attempted in the county. Most of the old orchards on Sunday and Monday creeks were planted from this nursery, and some of the trees are still bearing.

Nehemiah Davis, ** Elder Davis," a native of Maine, came to Marietta in November, 1797, lived in Washington county several years, and removed to Dover township in 1808. While living in Washington county

Elder Davis organized a Baptist church, believed to be the first Baptist church in Ohio. He died August 23, 1823. Some of his descendants are living in the county, and a granddaughter married Colonel James H. Goodman, present state auditor of Ohio.

Chapter Xiv

was separately orgainzed in November, 1819. Among the earliest settlers here were Capt. John Martin, a revolutionary soldier, Philip Smith, Henry Cassel, Ziba McVey, Daniel Knowlton, George Canny, John Holdren, William Brown, William Graham, Jacob Lentner, James McGonnegal, Francis Thomas, Samuel Luckey, Hiram Howlett, and John Doughty.

The population of the township in 1820 was 342; in 1830 it was 418; in 1840 it was 848; in 1850 it was 961; in 1860 it was 1,301. The inhabitants of . Lee are principally engaged in agriculture, and her farmers rank among the best. Latterly they have given especial attention to the growing of fine stock.

The center of population in the township is Albany, a neat village and handsomely located. No community in the county has attended more earnestly to the cause of education than the citizens of Albany, and wood institute," originally founded, and for a few years conducted, as a ''manual labor school," is now controlled by the Free-will Baptists, and, under the management of the Rev. Mr. Chase, is proving a successful and useful school. It has at present three teachers - two male and one female - and about eighty scholars. All the branches usually taught in academies of this class are taught here. The colored people have a good school in Albany, conducted by capable teachers, and attended by young colored persons of both sexes from distant parts of the state. They have a handsome school building, conspicuously located, which has been built mainly by the contributions of colored people, and the good management and complete success, thus far, of their enterprise, are highly creditable. The "district school," divided into an upper and lower department - the former superintended by Mr. J. C. Woodyard, and the latter by Miss Mary L. Kerr - is also a well-managed and useful school. And, finally, there is a good public school for colored children. Albany also possesses an excellent public library, called the "Wells library." It was founded by Mr. Henry Wells, who, dying in 1860, bequeathed one thousand dollars for that purpose as a perpetual fund, the interest to be expended in books, and the further sum of two hundred and fifty dollars for an immediate by Mr. E. H. Moore, of Athens, whom Mr. Wells made his trustee for this purpose, and about seven hundred dollars worth of books have already been purchased by Mr. Leonard Brown, the purchasing committee. For some time the library was kept in a room gratuitously furnished by the Free Masons of Albany, but in March, 1868, Mrs. Mary Weethee, mother of the founder of the library, bequeathed a frame building to be used as a library room, provided the town should keep it in repair and pay the taxes. The library, consisting now of about four hundred volumes, is a settled and very creditable institution. By the rules of the library any family, living within the corporation, may, for one dollar a year, draw out two volumes at a time for not more than four weeks, and the library is open two hours every Thursday for members. An interesting instance is thus afforded, of the great and perpetual good that may be accomplished by a very small sum well directed. Possibly the excellent example will incite others to similar action, and so its usefulness be indefinitely multiplied. Mr. Wells was a grandson of Hiram Howlett, one of the early settlers of Lee. The village of Albany is located on sections two and three, and was laid out into lots by William Graham, in 1832 or 1833. The first house in the village was built by Lucius R. Beckley, on the ground now owned by Atkins & Stanly, and known as the old Brown store. In 1840 John Brown purchased this property and commenced selling goods here. Albany has a population of about six hundred, with the usual complement of business men and mechanics. The Free Masons and Sons of Temperance have each a hall in the village. No liquor is sold within the corporation. '

The town was incorporated in 1844. At the first election for town officers John V. Brown was chosen mayor, and J. M. Gorsline recorder. For a number of years afterward there was no election, but since 1855

1862. - Mayor, James M. Gorsline; Recorder, A. Palmer ; Treasurer, A. D. Jaynes; Councilmen, John Brown, John Dewing, Almus Lindley, John Vorhes, and Leonard Brown.

1863. - Mayor, James M. Gorsline ; Recorder, A. Palmer ; Treasurer, A. D. Jaynes; Councilmen, John Vorhes, John Q. Mitchell, John Dewing, W. W. Kurtz, and T. D. Garvin.

1864. - Mayor, James M. Gorsline ; Recorder, Ira Graham ; Treasurer, T. D. McGrath; Councilmen, Leonard Brown, John Vorhes, T. D. Garvin, John Dewing, and A. D. Jaynes.

1865. - Mayor, James M. Gorsline ; Recorder, Ira Graham ; Treasurer, T. D. McGrath ; Councilmen, Leonard Brown, John Vorhes, A. Palmer, John Dewing, and A. D. Jaynes.

1866. - Mayor, James M. Gorsline; Recorder, Daniel N. Brown; Treasurer, John Brown; Councilmen, John Dewing, A. Vorhes, Wm. C. Lindley, Isaac Stanly, Jun., and A. Palmer.

John Holdren, now living in Lee township, was born in Bucks county, Pennsylvania, October 15, 1777, and came to Athens county in 1798 accompanied by another young man named John Konker. Soon after reaching Athens they took up land in the south part of Alexander township and made a temporary settlement on the waters of Margaret's creek. Their neighbors, at intervals of several miles, were the Hanings, the Brooks

Cassel. Mr. Cassel built a grist mill soon afterward in Lee township on the place now owned by William Minear. Mr. Holdren was engaged during six or seven years working at the Scioto salt works at the site of the present town of Jackson, and 'could then cut his six cords of wood in a day and help load it." He went out there the second year after salt was discovered by the whites. Previous to this the Indians had produced scanty supplies of salt by drilling holes into the rocks fifteen or eighteen inches deep, when the cavity would gradually fill up with the brinish water which, - evaporated by the heat of the sun, would produce salt. The whites bored wells to some depth, built furnaces, and for many years furnished salt for the surrounding settlements to the distance of seventy-five or eighty miles. Mr. Holdren settled permanently in Lee township in 1820. His nearest neighbors were James McGonnegal, Israel Bobo, and George Canney, and soon afterward came David Doughty, James Luckey, Thomas Jones, John Havner, John and Ephraim Martin, Daniel Knowlton, Jacob Lentner, and the Robinetts. When a young man Mr. Holdren was a successful hunter. He and John Jones (a brother-inlaw of Judge Isaac Barker), killed forty-six bears in six weeks' hunting on the head waters of Sunday, Monday, and Rush creeks. They sometimes killed in a fall season forty to fifty deer for their winter's stock of provisions and turkeys beyond count. Mr. Holdren once killed four deer in one day, and he and two of his boys in a hunt of two weeks killed thirty. On one hunting expedition, having shot and wounded a large black bear, his dog ran in to seize the animal, but bruin, though hurt, was full of life, and was making quick work of the dog when Holdren rushed in, knife in hand, to finish him. The bear released the dog and sprang on the man, at the first dash tearing his large blanket entirely from his body; Holdren plunged his knife hilt deep into the animal and then turned torun. He made his escape, but says it was the narrowest he ever had. The bear got away. At that time the skins of bears brought from three to five dollars each, and good hunters often made it profitable. Mr. Holdren served in the war of 1812. Among those who entered the army at that time he remembers Barnet Brice, John . Wood, Reuben Reeves, David Vaughn, Ira Foster, Joel Stroud, Jehiel Gregory, Nehemiah Gregory, and William McNichol. Mr. Holdren is the oldest person in the county, being now ninety-one years old. He and his aged wife live with a married daughter on a comfortable farm about two miles from Albany, and the old man, aided by a staff in each hand, sometimes walks to the village.

Chapter Xv

The eastern half of Lodi was included in Carthage when that township was organized in 1819, and was not detached till 1826. Lodi was separately organized in April of that year, and, according to the records, only fourteen votes were cast at the first township election held in the spring of 1827. The population of the township in 1830 was 276; in 1840 it was 7543 in Poco if Was 1,336; in 1860 it was 1,598. Joseph Thompson was one of the earliest settlers in Lodi. He lived on the farm now owned by Cyrus Blazer, and built the first flouring mill about 1815. Some of his descendants still reside here. Before he built his mill (which has long since disappeared), the inhabitants of this region used to get their milling done at Coolville, more than fifteen miles off. "The second mill was built in 1825 by Ezra Miller; it was very small and has also disappeared. At present there is an excellent steam flouring mill in the township of ample capacity. The first religious society formed in Lodi was by the Methodists in 1820 under the supervision of the Rev. Goddard Curtis. They worshiped for many years in a small school house on Shade river. At present the Methodists have a flourishing society that worships in : ** Morse chapel," an excellent frame church building, and another large class meet in what is called '' Cremer's" or Wesley Chapel. The Cumberland Presbyterians organized a society here about 1843 and built a good frame church, but it was destroyed by fire soon afterward. About 1840 the Christians (or Campbellites) formed a society and built a church which, soon after its completion, was demolished by a large forest tree falling on it. They have recently erected a good frame building in the township. There is a very creditable school at Pleasant Valley (Shade post office), in the township, called the ** Pleasant Valley seminary." The building, a two-story frame forty by thirty feet, with a cupola and bell, was erected in 1867 by the voluntary contributions of the citizens. It cost $2,000 - Mr. Joseph Cremer's donation of $500 was the largest individual subscription. The school opened in December, 1867, under the superintendence of Mr. Daniel D. Clark, a 'graduate of the Ohio university, who is still the teacher. The trustees are Dr. E. M. Bean, Cyrus Blazer, Asbury Cremer, John Buck, William Angell, John Burson, and W. S. Williams.

Narrative Of Joseph Bobo, Of Lodi

My father, Henry Bobo, was born and reared in Prince William county, Virginia, and my mother, whose maiden name was Sarah Black, in Loudoun county, in the same state. They came to Athens county in 1798, and settled on Margaret's creek, two miles from Athens. I was born here October 24, 1802. In 1810 my father removed to what is now Lodi township. I was eight years old, and can remember a little about the removal. Lodi was all wilderness then. I think there was but one man living in the (present) township when we moved in, and that was Joseph Thompson. He lived on the farm now owned by Cyrus Blazer. After I was thirteen years old I used to go to mill at Coolville, about fifteen miles distant, and there was but one house on the road, called the "brick house," about eight miles west of Coolville. I once went to mill more than seventy miles, thus: from Athens to the mouth of Hockhocking (by water), forty miles; then up the Ohio to Marietta, thirty miles; then up the Muskingum to the horse mill, two miles, making altogether about seventy-two miles. Sometimes three or four men would form a party, go down the Hockhocking, and up the Ohio to Belpre, in a canoe. There they would get their grain and go on to the horse mill above Marietta, where they had to give one-fourth for grinding, then home again with the canoe. When they reached Athens (which was called *the point" when I was a little boy), each man would shoulder his sack and pack it home. My father and a few others had hand mills, with

So far as meat was concerned we had plenty by killing it in the woods. Deer, bears, and turkeys were very plenty, and I have seen a good many elk when I was a boy, and some buffaloes. My father was considerable of a hunter, and killed a great many deer and bears. I remember an adventure he had with a bear when I was about fifteen years old. In the forepart of winter the fat bears would go into a hollow tree or cave, and stay there till spring. They were always fat when they came out in the spring. Frequently, they went into pretty rough caves or holes in the rocks. Father would go in, with a pine torch in one hand and his gun in the other, and crawl as close as he could, and then shoot. The time I am speaking of, he and George Shidler found a hole in the rocks they had never been in before, so father lighted his torch and started in to explore as usual. He had gone about twenty-five feet, looking all the time to see if there was any thing, when suddenly the bear struck the torch with his paw, and put out the light. Father got out of that as quickly as possible, and told Shidler what had happened, and that the bear was lying in a very difficult place to shoot, for it was around the corner of a rock which he could not pass, and the hole was very small. But father determined to go in again, and told George to stand at the mouth of the hole, and, if the bear came out, to shoot it. He lighted his torch again, and got as near the bear as he could, and fired, but only wounded. him. The bear started for the mouth of the hole, right toward father, who just had time to lie down flat on his belly, when the bear rushed over him, tearing his clothes pretty badly, and leaving marks of claws on his back that he carried to his grave. Shidler was ready at the mouth of the hole, and, when the bear came out, gave him an ounce of lead that settled him» They dressed the bear and it weighed three hundred and ninety pounds. My father killed as many as seven deer in one day, and that often. He also killed elk and a few buffaloes after we came here, but the buffaloes left very soon.

I think the last one seen in this region, was in Bedford township, Meigs county, in 1815, where it was wounded. When I was a young man I have stood in one spot, behind a large tree, in Lodi township, and killed three deer as fast as I could load and shoot. My brother, Thomas Bobo, killed twelve deer the year he was twelve years old.

Chapter Xvi

OME was formed from a portion of the township of Troy in 1811. The first entry on the subject, in the records of the county commissioners, is as follows:

«Thursday, April 4, 1811. - Ordered by the commissioners, That so much of the township of Troy as is contained in the original surveyed townships, numbered 5 and 6, in the 11th range, and 6 in the rath range, be erected into a new township by the name of Rome.

« Ordered by the commissioners, That thee clerk So 'fe inhabitants of the township of Rome to meet at the house of Amos Crippen, in said township, on Saturday the 20th instant, for the purpose of electing township officers."

** Ordered, That the boundaries of the township of Rome be as follows, to wit: beginning at the southwest corner of township No. 6 in the rath range, thence east on the township line until it intersects the river Hockhocking, thence up said river until it intersects the range line between the rrth and rath ranges, thence on said range line (being the line between the counties of Athens and Washington) to the south boundary of Ames township, thence west on said township line to the township of Athens, thence south to the place of beginning, and that the remainder of the township of Rome be and is hereby attached to the township of Troy. [This refers to the previous order of April 4th.]

** Ordered by the commissioners, That their clerk notify, by advertisement, the inhabitants of the township of Rome to meet at the house of Daniel Stewart, on Saturday, the rsth instant, for the purpose of electing township officers."

The only change that has since been made in these boundaries, was by an act of the legislature, passed February 10, 1814, which detached sections 3I and 42, township 6, range 11, from Washington county, and added them to Rome, thus taking in the strip east of the Hockhocking, and causing the offset at the southeast corner of the township.

The Methodist church was planted in this township at a very early day. Daniel and Archelaus Stewart were the first to move in the matter of forming a society here. They settled here in 1802. About two years later Daniel Stewart rode twenty miles to meet the Rev. Jacob Young, who was then on the Marietta circuit, and engaged him to visit Rome township. Mr. Young came according to promise. In his autobiography, published a few years since, in narrating the events of 1855, Mr. Young speaks of Daniel Stewart:

* Under whose hospitable roof I have spent many a happy night, and from whose hand I had received many a dollar, when I stood in great need of money. I first lodged with this good man in 1804, preached and organized a church in his house. He was then in the vigor of manhood, and was one of most active and enterprising men in Ohio."

William Pilcher, Job Ruter, Eliphalet Case, Elijah Rowell, and their wives, were among the earliest members of the society thus formed by "Father Young." The Methodists now have three neat and substantial church buildings in the township, where services are held regularly. One of the first ministers who preached | in the township, was the Rev. Cyrus Paulk, jr., who preached in 1803, and, thereafter, regularly for many years. He was a "Calvinist Baptist." There is one Baptist and one United Brethren church in Rome.

The first school house in the township, a log structure sixteen feet square, was built in 1804, on the east bank of Federal creek, about two hundred yards below the bridge and near the mouth of the creek. Abraham Richards was the first teacher, and Mrs. Polly Driggs, a daughter of Ebenezer Barrows, was the next. The school was supported by subscription, and was the

The "Miller seminary," owned and managed by the Rev. Amos Miller, is pleasantly located on his farm, about one mile east of Savannah, near the Hockhocking river, and three miles from the Marietta & Cincinnati railroad. When first established, in 1841, Prof. Miller used a large room in his dwelling house as a school room. As the school increased a separate building on his farm was made use of, and, in 1859, Prof. Miller erected a handsome and convenient two-story building, in which the school has since been kept. Neat cottages have been built close at hand, for the use of pupils who desire to board themselves.

The seminary will accommodate one hundred pupils. Some hundreds of youths of both sexes have been taught here, and the institution is a credit to the founder and to the county. Professor Miller has taught in Athens county at intervals, and most of the time for the last forty-two years.

At Savannah is located the '' Savannah academy." This school, the management and success of which have been highly creditable to all concerned, was founded in the spring of 1867 through the efforts of some public spirited citizens of the township. Frederic Finsterwald, Peter Boyles, Vincent Caldwell, Harvey Pierce, and John Caldwell were elected the first board of trustees of the academy and have been its steady patrons and supporters. They employed Mr. George W. Boyce as principal teacher, and the school has been well patronized from the beginning. More than one hundred and forty scholars, in the aggregate, attended during the first year. The active interest in education thus manifested, and the liberal support accorded to this enterprise by the leading citizens of the neighborhood, are worthy of the highest commendation.

There is also a good school at Big Run, founded in 1866 through the voluntary contributions of the citizens. A neat and convenient school building has been erected, and the school is useful and prosperous. It is under the management at present of Miss Elizabeth Monahan.

In 1808 the first bridge in the township was built over Federal creek, near its mouth, by Elijah Hatch, and in 1818 a second one was built at the same place. Both were clumsy structures, and neither of them very permanent. In 1842 a greatly superior bridge was erected by Peter Beebe, Isaac Jackson being the architect; it was at first a toll bridge but is now free. About the year 1851 or 1852, a bridge was built over Federal creek near the mouth of Big Run but was soon swept away ; another has since been erected on the same site. The bridge at Savannah was built about ten years ago, the funds being supplied partly by the county and partly by subscription. Another has been built over the Hockhocking about two

The first grist and saw mill in the township was built in 1802 by George, Henry, and James Barrows on Federal creek, about a mile from its mouth. The mill was a log building with only one run of stones, which were made of the ** Laurel hill granite " and run by a large undershot wheel. This enterprise was hailed with delight by some half dozen infant settlements, some of them distant fifteen or twenty miles. Before this the nearest mill, where wheat could be ground, was Devol's, on the Muskingum, at least forty miles distant. Many families, however, possessed that great desideratum of pioneer life, the primitive hand mill and the s hominy block." There were also a few horse mills in the county, but they were only used for grinding or, as it was called, "cracking" corn. In 1818 Reuben Farnsworth built the first mill on the Hockhocking river, within the township limits. "This was one of the most solid and substantial mill structures ever erected in the county. Farnsworth failed, and the mill passed into the hands of Peter Beebe, who afterward sold it to Thomas Welch. It was sold by Mr. Welch to Cook, Crippen & Co., who are the present owners.

In 1820 the Savannah mill (grist and saw mill) was built by Ezra Stewart and his brother Charles, sons of Esquire Daniel Stewart. It has three run of stones and does a great amount of custom work. It is situated on the Hockhocking river, in the village of Savannah, about three miles from the west line of Rome township. About 1834 Alexander Stewart and George Warren built the Stewart mill (a saw mill), near Savannah; but it was soon destroyed by fire, and a large three-story grist and saw mill was erected on the site by Daniel B. Stewart. In 1844 Mr. Stewart connected a woolen factory with the establishment, which is now owned by Captain Charles Byron, late of the 3d regiment O. V. I. It runs four hundred and seventy spindles, has four looms, four carding machines, two spinning jacks, and a full set of fulling and dressing machinery. During the season of 1867 the mill manufactured eight thousand pounds of rolls, ten thousand pounds of yarn, and,six thousand pounds of wool into cloth. The grist and saw mill are still in active operation. Two miles above Savannah are the Kincade mills built in 1842 by John and Allen Kincade, and now being rebuilt by John Kincade on an enlarged plan and in a more substantial manner. About 1854 Heman Frost - son of Abram Frost, one of the pioneers of Carthage township - built a grist and saw mill three miles below Cook & Crippen's mill; it was subsequently replaced by a saw mill, which was swept off by a high ** freshet"' in the spring of 1867.

John Thompson, Robert Calvert, and Jonathan Simmons, from Virginia, and Richard, George, and James Simmons from Pennsylvania. They were all good citizens. In 1810 or 1811 Christopher Herrold, one of the pioneers of Ames township, settled in Rome. He was a Pennsylvania German and a man of enterprise and thrift. He afterward removed to Dover.

A singular evidence of the enterprising spirit of the early settlers is afforded by the fact that in 1811 a seagoing vessel was built in Rome township, a mile below the mouth of Federal creek on the south bank of the Hockhocking. She was launched and taken to New Orleans in the spring of 1812. The vessel was built by Captain Caleb Barstow, from Providence, Rhode Island, and was called The Enterprise.

Elections, musters, and house raisings were in early times events of special interest. Plenty of good cheer abounded on such occasions, and boisterous frolicking, with the roughest sort of practical jokes, was the order of the day. Colonel Wm. Stewart, an early resident of the county, furnishes the following account of a house

* As early as the spring of 1804 father built what was then called a double log barn, about eighteen feet high, all of white oak timber. It required nearly all the settlers of Rome, Carthage, Troy, Ames, and Canaan townships to raise it. In those days, , however, no one thought of not responding to such a call, and on this occasion they were all present. As early as sunrise there were about fifty men on hand. As was the universal custom in those days father furnished a copious supply of oid rye whisky, and by breakfast time - about 7 o'clock - many of the men felt its effects. The building went on, however, with a will, and the heavy logs were rushed up on large skids with a strength and daring that were surprising, the men cheering and laughing all the while. Dinner came on. According to custom three large chicken pies were placed on the table, one in the center and one at each end. A large decanter of whisky stood by the center one. The crowd being seated grace was said by father, and all being hungry were ready to fallto vigorously when James Crippen (he and his brother Amos were the leading spirits of the day), having made an excavation in the center of the chicken pie, seized the decanter and said, 'Gentlemen, it has all got to go one way at last, so here goes, and with that he poured the whisky, more than a quart, into the smoking pie. It produced a great laugh; some ate heartily of the pie, some cautiously, and some declined the new sauce, yet all in great glee. After dinner all hands went to work again, and by dark the barn was completed - the greatest day's work, I suspect, ever performed in the county. The work over, father thanked them all for their kindness. James Crippen responded, saying, * No thanks, Daniel, what we've done to-day we owe to every one that makes a like call; but before we part we desire to have a social dance, and especially do we wish to dance with the good old lady Mrs, Wickham and her husband,' and walking up to the old lady he immediately led her out for a jig. In less than a minute they were dancing with all their might, the men singing and beating time. At least twenty of the men danced a jig in turn with Mrs. Wickham till she was tired out, and then they danced with old Mr. Wickham till he was exhausted. But they were not through yet. Mr. Wickham being tired out it was proposed in great glee to bury him. An old ox sled was immediately procured, two boards laid on it, and Mr. Wickham laid on the boards. Numbers of the men seized the sled and prepared to drag it over the ground, while others with cowbells and sleighbells led the procession. The sled was drawn several times around the yard amid great noise and laughter, and then the old man was released. It was nearly midnight before the scene closed and all left. During the whole day and evening there was no profanity nor any hard words used. All was cheerful labor, and innocent, though boisterous, mirth."

* When I first settled here the nearest post office was at Athens, sixteen or seventeen miles distant, and I have frequently gone that distance for a single expected letter; now there are four post offices in the township. Then we went thirty miles to obtain our necessary dry goods, groceries, hardware, etc. ; now there are seven or eight good country stores in the township. While musing on the times and people of fifty-five years ago, the whole scene for thirty miles up and down the valley seems photographed on my memory - the men and women, their costumes, the log cabins and the cleared patches. The men all dressed in homespun during summer, and during winter a great part of the clothing consisted of buckskin ; the females, both matron and lass, for every day in homespun, except in later years, now and then began to appear in a * factory dress,' and all had for Sunday and holidays the more costly and gayer calico and cambric dresses. "Those were the days of warm friendships and close attachments. Common hardships and labors begot a fellow feeling. If there was a cabin to raise, every man for miles around turned out with alacrity to help raise it and put on the last clapboard, If there was any job too heavy for one man to do, all assisted. When a hunter or any one else was belated, be he a stranger or acquaintance, he found a home and a welcome in any log cabin he might chance to find."

Between 1800 and 1810 the township received a number of good settlers. John Johnson and father on the Hockhocking opposite Federal creek ; Job Ruter, with his sons Martin and Calvin, on the river about two miles above Federal creek; and about the same time came Nathan Conner, Rev. Moses Osborn, the Calverts, the Thompsons, the Selbys, and the Mitchells, all of whom settled on the river. Most of these came from Virginia. Also prominent among the early settlers were Abraham Sharp, who gave his name to Sharp's run and Sharp's fork of Federal creek; Francis Munn, a revolutionary soldier, Archibald Dorough, Thomas Richardson, Dr. Seth Driggs, the Hewitts, Jeremiah Conant, Wm. Pilcher, Aaron Orm, Thomas Swan, Aaron Butts, Eli Catlin, Daniel Anderson, a lieutenant in the revolutionary army, David Chapman, and Enos Thompson, a Methodist preacher.

When war was declared in 1812 Athens county was called on for a company of infantry to consist of fifty men. To raise these the militia regiment, then commanded by Colonel Edmund Dorr, was summoned together and volunteers called for. The quota was filled in a few minutes by volunteering, and of the fifty men, nearly one-fifth were from Rome township, and all of these from the school district of which the old school house was the center. Their names were James Crippen, Peter Beebe, Thaddeus Crippen, Ebenezer Hatch, Charles Stewart, William Starr, Andrew Stewart, John more volunteer, George Driggs, and he is the only survivor of the whole number. In 1813, when the governor of Ohio called for forty days mounted riflemen, George Barrows, Montgomery Perry, and a young man named Swann, went from Rome.

William T. Hatch, son of Elijah Hatch, was the first male child born in the township, and his sister Harriet, the late Mrs. Hill, is said to have been the Mrs. Elijah Hatch, mother of Judge

The first township treasurer in Rome was Amos Crippen, elected in 1811. Then followed in succession George Barrows, Daniel Stewart, Hopson Beebe, David Chapman, Charles Beebe, John Johnson, John M. Perry, Peter Beebe, Sydney S. Beebe, Guy Barrows, James Starr, Hiram Stewart, Daniel B. Stewart and B. F. Johnson.

The first person who settled in what is now Rome township was David Dailey, a veteran soldier of the revolution, and decidedly ''a character." Born in Vermont in 1750, he removed to western New York after his discharge from the army, and thence to Cannonsburg, Pennsylvania, whence he migrated in the year 1797 to the northwestern territory. With his family, consisting of two daughters and five sons, of whom Benonah H. Dailey, of Carthage township (the youngest son), is now the sole survivor, he came down the Ohio river in a pirogue to the mouth of the Hockhocking, and up that stream to the mouth of Federal creek, where he at once opened up a farm. The place on which he settled is now known as the Beebe farm.

Around him was an unbroken wilderness. The nearest neighbors were at the settlement at Athens, about twelve miles distant. Parties of Indians were frequently seen on hunting excursions, or on their way to Wheeling to barter their furs. Having lived about three years on the farm first settled by him, he sold it to Judge Elijah Hatch, and, with his family, removed to Carthage township. Dailey was a famous hunter, fond of the exciting sports of pioneer life, and cultivated a sort of contempt for the comforts and conveniences of civilization. With his dogs and hunting homeward bound, he was as happy as a king. The story of his many rencounters with wolves, bears, and panthers, after settling in Athens county, would form an interesting narrative, and graphically illustrate the excitements of pioneer life. Our informant says:

«I exceedingly regret that some of these stories, which I have heard him relate, are so.blurred in memory that I find it impossible to reproduce them. And, then, the old man told them with such a peculiar zest that much would unavoidably be lost in a repetition. His imperturbable gravity, the immobility of his countenance, even when uttering a dry joke or relating an amusing anecdote, at which the bystanders were in a perfect roar of laughter, were wonderful. Yet I have often seen his eyes fill with tears at a tale of suffering. Even in relating the death of a favorite dog - Piper - belonging to a fellow huntsman, the tears would start. He assisted in burying the dog with 'military honors,' on the bank of a branch now bearing the dog's name."

Captain Chittenden, afterward governor of Vermont, commanded the company in which Dailey served during the revolutionary war. Several years after he came to Ohio to live, Dailey applied for a pension, and walked all the way to Vermont to obtain, from his old captain, the necessary certificate and vouchers. After his return to the west he would often relate, with much gusto, the hearty greetings and warm welcome he received from the governor, and, during his stay of several days, remembered to have particularly relished the governor's

The old man was exceedingly severe in his criticisms on St. Clair's disastrous campaign against the Indians, - in 1791. It so happened, on one occasion, that St. Clair, while governor of the northwestern territory, in passing across the country, called at Dailey's cabin in Rome, to obtain refreshments for himself and horse. Dailey's larder, however, was exhausted, and, though full of hospitality, he could do little or nothing for the hungry governor, who was compelled to press on to Athens, where he arrived very much exhausted and very angry. The incident worked on his mind to such a degree, vexing him more the more he dwelt upon it, that he threatened to send Dailey out of the territory - declaring that he would not have such a shiftless man within his jurisdiction. This, Dailey pretty soon heard of. Not long afterward the governor met Dailey in "Southtown" (Alexander), and thought it a good opportunity to at least administer a sound reprimand for his delinquency as an agriculturist, and commenced with, ** Well, Mr. Dailey, how do you succeed in farming at the mouth of Federal creek?" Dailey, assuming an unusual amount of solemn gravity, replied: "Pretty d d poorly, as you did fighting the Indians; but I think the difference, if any, is on my side, for, being born without a shirt, I have made out to hold my own til the present time, which is an almighty sight better than you did." The governor let Dailey alone after that.

c Elijah Hatch (Judge Hatch) migrated from the eastern part of the state of New York to the northwestern territory, and settled in Rome township in the year

Elijah Hatch, Sen., and his mother, with their family, to this township - the former being seventy-two, and the latter seventy-one years old at that time. They came in wagons to the Youghiogheny, in Pennsylvania, where, in connection with others, they procured a flat boat, twenty-five feet long by twelve feet wide, which they loaded with seven horses, one wagon, one carriage, a quantity of hardware and farming utensils, and fifteen persons - men, women, and children. "Thus they proceeded down the Youghiogheny, Monongahela, and Ohio rivers, to the Ohio Company's purchase. Judge Hatch was the first man who ever drove a team, with a wagon, through the woods, from the mouth of little Hocking to the big Hockhocking. He struck the latter stream two and a half miles below the mouth of Federal creek, about half a mile below where the present ridge road now joins the Hocking road.

Judge Hatch possessed talents above mediocrity, a sound judgment in public affairs, and was an active and influential man in the early settlement of the county. He was appointed judge of the court of common pleas by Governor Tiffin, in 1805, and was afterward appointed or elected several times to that position. He served nine terms in the state legislature, being first elected in 1804, and was appointed by that body one of the: first board of trustees of the Ohio university, which - position he held for the remainder of his life. He was a man of affable and courteous demeanor, possessing a large fund of anecdote and social qualities, that made him always a welcome guest at pioneer gatherings. He died January 19, 1849, aged eighty-one years.

Roswell Culver and Foel Spenser settled, with their families, in Rome about 1801. They were brothersin-law of Judge Hatch, having married sisters. The "widow Comfort Crippen," another of Judge Hatch's sisters, settled in 1804 on the river, about a mile and a half below the mouth of Federal creek. She brought with her six sons and three daughters. One of the sons was Amos Crippen, long a leading citizen of the county, and the memory of one of the daughters, who was married to A. G. Brown, of Athens, is still fondly cherished by her relatives and friends. Of this large family, brought into Rome in 1804, only one now survives, viz: Mrs. Orinda Branch, of Middleport, Meigs county. One of the sisters, the late Mrs. Olive Currier, relict of Judge Ebenezer Currier, died at her residence in Athens, January 7, 1868, aged eighty-two . years.

Massachusetts, in the year 1793, of excellent parentage, the family on both sides of the house being noted for their sterling honesty, intelligence, and patriotism. In 1811 his father, Elijah Rowell, migrated with his little family to the then **far west," and settled in Rome township, where Mr. Rowell has passed nearly the whole of his peaceful and useful life, and where he continues to reside, respected and beloved by all who know him. In the year 1812 young Rowell, then only nineteen years old, began to teach school, and continued teaching during the winter season for many years. He had eminent fitness for educating the young, and his unwearying fidelity and philosophic methods of instruction gained for him a deserved popularity. In 1815 he married Esther Culver, daughter of Roswell Culver, who is still living. To them were born six children, of which only three survive, viz: Ohiolus, born in Rome township in 1816, now a farmer in the same township, Mrs. Theresa P. Dorr, wife of Edmund Dorr, and William Wirt Rowell. Esquire Rowell has been a farmer during the most of his life. He has always taken a lively interest in the welfare of the community where he dwells, and has filled, at different times, all the township offices and farm on which Professor Miller now lives. Case married a daughter of Job Ruter, and was an influential | citizen during the early days of the county.

Joseph Wickham settled in Rome in 1805. He was a native of England, and serving on an English vessel when the revolutionary war broke out. He deserted, joined the American army, and served till the close of hostilities. After the war he lived for a time in Vermont. Having married there he set out, in the winter of 1804, for the new state of Ohio, but the roads getting very bad he disposed of his horses and wagon, bought a yoke of cattle and a s/ed, and came on to "Olean point." Here he procured a white pine raft, and floated down to the mouth of Hockhocking, and thence came up that river to Rome township, where he lived till his death, May 3, 1833, aged seventy-four years. One of his grandsons, Killian V. Whaley, was a member of the 38th and 39th congress from West Virginia. Another of them, William Reed, is known as one of the enterprising business men of the township.

Timothy Tones, a native of Rhode Island, was born of wealthy parents, graduated at Brown university, became a lawyer and also a graduate in medicine, and held a high social position in Providence, Rhode Island, where he lived. In 1805, when near fifty years old, his wife having died, he relinquished the comforts of settled life and removed to Ohio. He arrived in Rome township in that year and buried himself in the forests of Federal creek. He was a man of considerable scientific research. During the revolutionary war he obtained the first premium, offered by the legislature of Massachusetts, for the manufacture of saltpeter. His descendants possess the certificate of his admission to the bar in Providence, in 1786. Dressed in the garb of a pioneer working on his farm on Federal creek, he presented to those who knew his history and character an interesting study. Some time after coming here he married a second wife - the widow Polly Hewitt, a daughter of Ebenezer Barrows. The Rev. T. F. Jones isa son of theirs. An aged citizen of Rome, who knew Dr. Jones, says, ''in the forest he was a hunter - in the

Leonard Jewett in 1804 or 1805 settled at the mouth of Federal creek on a fine tract of land which lay chiefly on the south side of the Hockhocking. He sold out very soon to Mr. John Johnson and removed to Athens.. Mr. Johnson married Miss Sarah Wyatt, a daughter of Deacon Joshua Wyatt, of Ames, and a woman of rare excellence. By their industry and good management they in a few years opened. up one of the best farms in the county. Mr. Johnson was a "close dealer," and so tenacious of his rights as to be thought by some a hard man ; but he was benevolent at heart, and would rather give away a dollar than be cheated of a cent. Many a destitute emigrant or needy family has - had timely relief at his hands. He was the father of Dr. Wm. P. Johnson, the present representative of the county in the state legislature, and whose character as a man, as a physician and a public officer is too well known in his native county to require comment. Mrs. John Johnson, who was born in Beverly, Massachusetts, in 1786, and came to Athens county with her father's family when she was fourteen years old, died December 26, 1859.

Daniel Stewart was born in Litchfield, Connecticut, November 18, 1762. When fifteen years old he enlisted as a soldier in the revolutionary army, and served till the close of the war. He then removed to Sussex county, New Jersey, where he engaged successfully in business for several years and accumulated some means. In 1801 he exchanged his property in New Jersey for two shares in the Ohio Company's purchase and closed out his business with a view to moving west. Colonel William Stewart, a son who accompanied his father to Ohio, says:

* [n October, 1802, father returned to the old farm to rig out a team for emigration to the northwestern territory. The preparations having been completed, a day and hour were set for starting. At the appointed time, 8 o'clock A. M., about a hundred friends and neighbors from all quarters came flocking in to bid us farewell, and I shall never forget the scene that followed. They all thought we were going so far beyond the world's boundary that we should never be heard of again. The hubbub lasted till 5 o'clock in the afternoon before father could say good bye with a strong voice, and then we started. Went three miles and camped for the night. The next morning we moved on. The teams were heavily loaded and the roads tolerable till we approached the Alleghany mountains when they became terribly rough and dangerous. Crossing the mountains the family were afraid to ride in the wagons and, therefore, walked this part of the way. At the very steep descents father would cut saplings, fasten them top foremost to the tail of the wagon and then go down, depending on the saplings as a brake. The journey was a long, wearisome and dangerous one, but we finally reached the Hockhocking in safety."

This was in the winter. Mr. Stewart settled on a fine tract of land on the river about a mile above the mouth of Federal creek. Possessing considerable means, great energy, and uncommon business talent, he soon had the best farm in the county. As early as 1810 he had an orchard of three thousand bearing fruit trees - two thousand peach, and one thousand apple trees - at that time probably the largest orchard in the state. As his means increased so did his benevolence and public spirit. In business he left no points unguarded, and no man could defraud or overreach him with impunity; but if he husbanded closely he gave liberally, and was always accessible to the claims of the really needy, and of educational and religious movements. He was one of the first two justices of the peace in the county commissioner for many years, and was appointed by the legislature one of the early appraisers of the college lands, Captain Joshua Wyatt and John Brown being the other two. Few men have left more decided marks on the history of the county, in its social and business affairs, than Mr. Stewart. An active member of the Methodist church for sixty years of his life he always contributed liberally to the support of its ministers and the erection of churches. He died February 20, 1858. nata ^ Erg

Mr. Stewart had fourteen children, viz: Andrew, William, Charles, John, Ezra, George, Lois, Sarah, Mary, Lucinda, Harriet, Alexander, Daniel B., and Hiram. One of these, the Rev. John Stewart, has been a traveling preacher in the Methodist church for fifty years. Another, Ezra Stewart, married Harriet, daughter of Esquire Henry Bartlett, in 1826, and spent his life in the mercantile business in Athens. He was a man of wonderful energy and endurance, and his unusual capacity for business is well remembered. He died in Athens, November 28, 1858. William. Stewart came to this county with his father's family in 1802, and lived here nearly forty years. When seventeen years old he was elected a lieutenant in the militia, and was captain of a company raised here in 1812, which expected to be but was not called into the service.

Some years later he was appointed a colonel. The contract for erecting the Ohio university building was awarded to him in 1817, and several years later the contract for building the county jail. In 1840 he removed to Lee county, Iowa. In 1847 he was elected superintendent of the common schools in that state, and during that and the next year organized one hundred and five school districts. He has held other

Daniel B. Stewart, son of Daniel, was born on the old Stewart farm in Rome township, September 26, 1812. The first school he remembers and which he attended was kept by Jabez Bowman, on the hill about a quarter of a mile below the old homestead. This school was supported by contributions of its patrons. As he grew up Mr. Stewart developed a great fondness for machinery, and was never happier than when managing or handling it. He finally obtained his father's consent that he should go into the mill at Savannah as manager. Here he succeeded admirably, and without any instruction. After he had run this mill about two years he bought it of his father, run it two years more and then sold it to James E. and William T. Hatch. The next two years he lived in Meigs county, engaging in the mercantile business at Rutland with his brother Alexander. Returning to this county he started a store two miles below Savannah. This was in 1836. In 1837 the mill was burned. Mr. Stewart rebuilt it in 1838, putting in at that time the first patent Parker wheel used on the Hockhocking. In 1842 he added a grist mill, and in 1844 a woolen factory to the property. In 1864 he sold these mills, and in 1867 removed to the town of Athens, where he owns the old Miles or Gregory mill, and has added to it a woolen factory. Though not among the largest this factory is one of the best arranged and most complete in the country, and may challenge comparison with any of its size to be found east or west. It is capable of carding and spinning three hundred pounds of wool daily, and when the looms are all in, can make six hundred yards of cloth a day.

Mr. Stewart has been one of the most energetic and useful business men in the county. At one time he was the owner of four mills on the Hockhocking, and part of the time also cultivated five farms in Rome township, raising as high as four thousand five hundred bushels of wheat in one year. He served as justice of the peace twenty-one years, and in 1860 was chosen presidential elector for this district.

Alexander Stedman, a native of Vermont, and by profession an architect, settled in Rome township in 1804, having previously lived for nearly two years at Athens. In 1805 he was appointed one of the judges of the court of common pleas for Athens county and held the position for several years. Soon after coming here he married the widow Comfort Crippen. One of his sons, Eli Stedman, was a minister and somewhat celebrated as a pulpit orator. Another, Levi Stedman, was for many years a prominent citizen of this county, serving as county commissioner, etc. On the organization of Meigs county, in 1819, he moved thither, and was one the first common pleas judges in that county. Another son, Bial, was an associate judge of Washington county. Judge Stedman was a man of excellent judgment and of commanding influence among the pioneers. Some of his descendants are still living in the county. A grandson, Frederic Stedman, was elected sheriff of the county in 1861, but left his office and entered the Union

Amos Miller, only son of Judge Abel Miller, was born in Athens county, July 27, 1807. The early years of his life were passed on his father's farm in Canaan. At the age of sixteen he entered the Ohio university, and graduated in the class of 1830. In 1831 he was elected sheriff of the county, which office he held for two terms. In 1832 he was elected by the legislature a member of the board of trustees of the Ohio university, which position he has held continuously ever since.

previously purchased the Case farm), where, in 1841, he established the Miller seminary, which, from a very small beginning, has become one of the most prosperous and useful academies in this section of country. Professor Miller, though not an aged man, may be

Captain Hopson Beebe was born in Connecticut, February 17, 1749, was a soldier of the revolutionary war, and settled in Rome township in 1804, where he resided till his death in 1836. One of his sons, the venerable Mr. Charles Beebe, now in his eighty-third year, resided on the "old farm" until quite recently. He now lives with Mrs. J. W. Johnson in this township. Doctor Wm. Beebe, another son, was an assistant surgeon in General Tupper's brigade in the war of 1812. After the war he settled in Belpre, and practiced medicine there for the rest of his life. His son, Dr. Wm. Beebe (grandson of Captain Hopson Beebe), is now a practicing physician in Barlow, Washington county.

remained here several years, living part of the time at the mills and part of the time on the ** Case farm," which he bought and cultivated. About 1828 he sold the mills to his two sons, Thomas and John Welch, the latter of whom is further noticed in connection with Athens township.

Peter Grosvenor, born at Pomfret, Windham county, Connecticut, January 25, 1794, removed to Athens county and settled in Rome township in May, 1838. His father, Colonel Thomas Grosvenor, served with distinction through the revolutionary war, part of the time on the staff of General Warren and of General Washington, and was wounded at the battle of Bunker Hill. Peter Grosvenor served in the war of 1812. He was among the first to clear up and make an improvement on the present road from the Canaan line to Federal creek, the northwestern part of Rome, where he settled, being at that time very sparsely populated. He died September 29, 1859, on the farm where he first settled. Mr. Grosvenor was a man of uncompromising integrity and an excellent citizen. Four of his sons served in the Union army during the war of the rebellion. Edward Grosvenor entered as a private, and for good conduct was commissioned a captain in the 92d regiment O. V. I. He died while on the march with Sherman's army **to the sea." Daniel A. Grosvenor served as a private in the 3d Ohio regiment, and John M. served in the quartermaster's department.

Thomas Grosvenor, a brother of Peter, settled near him in 1839. He lived in Rome about twenty years and then removed to Washington county, where he died April 9, 1867, aged eighty-one years. All of his sons, five in number, enlisted in the Union army at the beginning of the war of the rebellion. Of the nine sons of the two Grosvenor families who volunteered only four

William $. Doan came from New England to Washington county in 1806, to Athens county in 1813, and settled in Rome about 1820. He was an industrious farmer and a good citizen. Several of his descendants now live in the township. Mr. Charles Doan is a grandson of his.

Ames, from which it was stricken off and separately organized in April, 1827. It lies at the extreme northern limit of the county, on the waters of Sunday creek, the main branch of which runs, somewhat centrally, from north to south, through the township. It was named after Governor Allen Trimble, one of the early governors of Ohio.

The first settlement made in this township was by Solomon Tuttle, Sen., in 1802. He, with his son, Cyrus Tuttle, and his brother, Nial Tuttle, all from Vermont, settled on the main creek. Soon after them came Joseph McDaniel and William Morrow. Mr. Bagley, with several sons, came from Vermont and settled in 1820, on the west fork of the creek, below what is now called Hartleyville. One of his sons, William Bagley, being a clothier by trade, established a pioneer factory mill, the flour being bolted by hand. This was the first mill in the township, and has been kept up, with various improvements, ever since. It is now owned by Mr. Perry Zimmerman. Samuel Bagley, a tanner by trade, established the first tan yard in the township, about the year 1820.

In 1822 a school was taught by Nancy Bagley, a native of Vermont, near the forks of the creek. About 1824 a few families established a school of eight or ten scholars, which was taught by John Morrow, in a log school house without any floor. His compensation was one dollar and fifty cents a week. The school house was located on the creek between Solomon Tuttles and James Dew's. Among the few scholars in this pioneer school was Mr. E. H. Moore, now president of the First National bank in Athens, who also taught a district school in the same place in 1832.

The Baptists, Methodists, and Christians, were the first religious societies formed in the township, and continue to be the leading organizations.

William Bagley's mill on the west fork of Sunday creek was, as before stated, the first in the township. In 1825 Jonathan Watkins built a mill at the village first known as Oxford, but since called Trimble. It was at first only a saw mill, but, after two or three years, a grist mill was connected with it. This mill continued to be the principal one in the township till 1865, when -it was destroyed by fire,

The people of this township are chiefly engaged in agriculture, and the lands are being rapidly improved. Considerable attention is given to stock growing and to the culture of tobacco. Coal of excellent quality, both bituminous and cannel, exists here in large deposits, which, as soon as it becomes accessible by branch railroads, now projected, will command the attention of capitalists. Iron ore of good quality is also found in various parts of the township, and near to large deposits of good limestone. Salt water of great strength, and thought by competent judges to be equal to any in the Hockhocking valley, has recently been found in abundance in a well bored for oil by Mr. R. J. Arnold. This well is on the Zanesville road near the northern line of the county. It is a little over one thousand feet in depth. About twenty-five years ago the Eggleston salt works on Green's run, near the south line of the township, were operated successfully. At that time this was esteemed a valuable well, but for many years past it has not been used.

The center of population in the township is the village of Trimble, situated on section 8. It has a post office, two stores, three physicians, the requisite number of mechanics, and a population of about two hundred.

At the first election for township officers in 1827, which was held at the house of William Bagley, James Price, James Bosworth, and Jeremiah Cass were judges of the election, and Samuel B. Johnson and Cyrus

Successive Justices of the Peace. 1827 - William Bagley. 1830 - James Price and Jeremiah Cass. 1833 - Daniel Frazer and Samuel Mills. 1834 - Emory Newton. 1836 - Seth Pratt and Samuel Mills. 1838 - Solomon Newton. 1839 - Samuel Mills. 1840 - David Allen. 1841 - John Ivers. 1842 - Morris Bryson. 1844 - John Ivers. 1845 - Morris Bryson. 1847 - Isaac N. Joseph. 1848 - George W. Roberts. 1850 - Aquilla Norris and Benjamin Norris. 1851- - Benjamin Norris and George W. Roberts. 1853 - Alexander McClellan. 1854 - William Biddison. 1856 - Isaac N. Joseph. 1857 - ]ohn M. Johnson (resigned February 3, 1858). 1858 - Morris Bryson. 1859 - William H. Peugh. 1861 - Morris Bryson. 1862 - L. Bethel. 1864 - William Biddison. 1865 - William Koons. 1867 - ]. S. Dew. 1868 - Samuel Banks.

Fonathan Watkins, Sen., came from Athens township in 1803, and settled in the lower part of Trimble, and soon after Eliphalet Wheeler settled near him. Mr.

Watkins was a blacksmith, but, like most of the early settlers, occasionally engaged in hunting. He shot a buffalo soon after settling in Trimble, and broke its fore leg. He pursued the animal, thus crippled, from Green's run in Trimble township, across Wolf plains, and over the Hockhocking some distance, but failed to capture it.

Solomon Newton, a native of Worcester, Massachusetts, came to Athens county in 1821, and settled in Trimble in 1822. His place was on the creek about three miles below James Dew's, and, being situated on the main road between Athens and Zanesville, was

Fohn B. Johnson, son of Azel Johnson, one of the early settlers of Dover township, settled in Trimble as a farmer in 1820. He was the father of Mr. J. M. Johnson, recently sheriff of the county.

Chapter Xviii

the Ohio Company in the year 1798 - about a year after the settlement of Athens and Ames. Some events connected with its history can, however, be traced back to a period nearly twenty-five years prior to that date. We have referred elsewhere to ** Dunmore's war" and to the building of a fort at the mouth of the Hockhocking in 1774. When the first settlers came into Troy in 1798, the outlines of Dunmore's camping ground were plainly discernible. Over a tract containing about twenty acres young saplings and underbrush had grown up, and it had the appearance of an old clearing. For many years after this the settlers used to find, in plowing their fields, mementoes of Dunmore's army, such as hatchets, gun barrels, bullets, etc. A rusty, but tolerably well preserved sword is still to be seen (or was recently), in the college museum at Athens, which was found on the west side of the Hock- hocking near the roots of a fallen tree. Possibly in that campaign across Athens county, made nearly a century ago, it adorned the person of some young English nobleman whom love of adventure or of fame induced to accompany Lord Dunmore in his arduous march ; or, perhaps, it was wielded by the strong arm of some native son of Virginia, who, a few months later, was striking swift and manful blows for his country's independence. Whatever its history, it has lo-g rested in silence and rust. Though it may once have * spoken for itself," it is never likely to find tongue again, and every observer is at liberty to imagine for himself who its owner was and what its history may have been.

From its position at the mouth of one river and on the banks of another, both of which were more or less frequented by the Indians, this section of country must have been very familiar to them. Perhaps for hundreds of years before the white man came hither, the light canoe of the Indian used to glide down the Hockhocking, and from its narrow channel out upon the smooth flowing waters of the Ohio.

In 1798 a company of about forty persons, including men, women and children, started from near Springfield, Massachusetts, for the west. They landed at Belpre, and from thence came in 1799 to what is now Troy township and settled on the Hockhocking about

Eleazur Washburn, Noah, Cyrus, and Xerxes Paulk, Horace Parsons, and Ephraim Frost with their families. Xerxes Paulk and Horace Parsons were Baptist preachers; the latter was pastor of the first Baptist church in the township for about thirty years.

Troy, as its boundaries were originally defined by the county commissioners at their first meeting,* comprised the territory which now constitutes the townships of Orange and Olive in Meigs county, and Rome, Carthage, and Troy in Athens county. At that time the Hockhocking river was the dividing line between Athens and Washington counties, but by an act of the legislature passed February 18, 1807, the portion of township No. 5, range 11 (now Troy), lying east of the river, was detached from Washington and added to Athens county. The formation of Carthage township in 1810 and of Rome in 1811, and the erection of Meigs county in 1819, taking off two townships, reduced Troy to its present limits... The population of the township in 1820 was 541; in 1830 it was 459; in 1840 it was 1,056; in 1850 it was 1,421; in 1860 it was 1,747. The first election for township officers was held in 1805 at the house of Ebenezer Buckingham. Stephen Buckingham was township lister for that year. These men were the founders of the Buckingham family which, removing subsequently to Muskingum county, became celebrated for wealth and social influence.

Rome township being stricken off from Troy in 1811 took with it many of the prominent early settlers, some of whom are noticed in Chapter XVI, as Asahel Cooley, Levi Stedman, Daniel Stewart, and others. Kingman Dutton, father of Mr. Samuel Dutton, still living in Troy, settled at the mouth of Hockhocking with his family in 1806. At that time there were only two roads in the township - one passed through the center, running from Belpre to Chillicothe, the ferry of which was kept about two anda half miles above the present site of Coolville by Xerxes Paulk ; and another from Belpre down the Ohio to the mouth of Hockhocking, thence by the ridge (through Carthage township), to Athens. About 1815 a road was laid out from the mouth of Hockhocking up the eastern bank of the river to Federal creek, where it intersected the Federal creek road from the Ames settlement. . At this early period the great majority of the emigrants to Athens county used to come down the Ohio to the mouth of Hockhocking and then ascend that river in pirogues or canoes. Kingman Dutton kept a number of these craft, and he and his son carried on the business of conveying emigrants and their goods up the Hockhocking. Abram Brookhart settled in Troy in 1811, and was township trustee for several years ; Jonas Smith, who came in 1810, was township trustee for several terms; Silas Blizzard and Martin Griffin came

Among the justices of the peace prior to 1837 were Charles Devol, W. S. Cockrell, Luther Hopkins, Aaron Butts, Jacob S. Miller, Nathan Cole, Jedediah Fuller, Marcus L. Bestow, and Ferdinand Paulk.

The present population of the township, owing to the losses in war, drainage by emigration and other natural causes, is but slightly greater than it was in 1860. Hockingport, at the mouth of the Hockhocking river, one of the earliest settlements in the county, gives no signs of future growth. Formerly, when the merchants of Athens, Amesville, Coolville, and other places had their goods landed at Hockingport and hauled thence to various parts of the county, the place had some activity. But since the construction of the

Marietta & Cincinnati railroad, Hockingport has been deprived of its principal source of business. A much more interesting and thriving village is Coolville, on the west bank of the Hockhocking five miles from its mouth, the settlement of which was begun in 1814 by Simeon W. Cooley and his son Heman, who built a mill there. The town was laid out in 1818, incorporated in 1855, and its present population is about three hundred. Surrounded with a good agricultural region and an industrious population, Coolville is likely to continue one of the most pleasant villages in the county. It has three churches, two district schools, a prosperous seminary, a town hall, masonic hall, etc.

Among the earliest settlers in Troy were Benajah Hoyt, Xerxes Paulk, Joseph Guthrie, Daniel Stewart, the Barrows family, William Pilcher, Asahel Cooley, John Torrence, Oliver Rice, Cummins Porter, Stephen Buckingham, Abram Richardson, Truman Hickox, and the Frost family. Some of these are noticed in connection with Rome and Carthage. Benajah Hoyt was probably the first white settler in Troy. He came from Nova Scotia to the mouth of the Hockhocking with his family in 1797. E. H. Williams, a grandson of his, owns and resides on the lot in Hockingport on which Hoyt first built a cabin. One of Mr. Hoyt's daughters, Sarah, married Captain Charles

Devol, of Washington county. They had two sons and two daughters. Frank Devol, the oldest son, is a wealthy farmer in one of the western states. The youngest son, Prescott H. Devol, is noticed elsewhere. The eldest daughter of Mrs. Devol married Benjamin Dana of Washington county (both now deceased) ; and the youngest, Henrietta, is the wife of Mr. Samuel S. Knowles, late member of the state senate, and a well known lawyer of Marietta. Mrs. Devol 1s still living in Mr. Knowles' family. Among the early settlers at Coolville were the Cooleys, Jacob S. Miller and Alfred Hobby. Mr. John Frame settled here in 1833, and in 1840 commenced merchandizing and dealing in wool, grain, and country produce. Though over sixty years of age he still engages actively in business, having associated his sons with him. Dr. John Pratt, a native of Schuyler county, New York, settled in Coolville in 1835. He is now sixty-eight years of age, hale and healthy, and has practiced his profession in this community for a third of a century.

Chapter Xix

township, and was not separately organized till April, 1826. Joseph Hewitt and William Lowry were principally instrumental in securing the township organization. The name of Waterloo was suggested by General John Brown, of Athens. The first election for township officers was held April 3, 1826, at the house of Joseph Hewitt. Joseph Bullard, Abram Fee, and Silas Bingham were judges of the election, and Andrew Glass and Pardon C. Hewitt clerks. The following persons voted, viz: William Lowry, James Lowry, Joseph Hewitt, P. C. Hewitt, Ezekiel Robinett, Lemuel Robinett, Nathan Robinett, Wm. Young, Wm. Young, Jun., Silas Bingham, Andrew Glass, Joseph C. Martin, Horace Martin, Abram Fee, Joseph Bullard, John Bullard, Samuel Lowry, Jun., Abram Gabriel, Elias Gabriel, and Elias Young. The election results were as follows: William Lowry and Joseph Hewitt were elected justices of the peace; Alexander Young, Elias Gabriel, and Silas Bingham trustees; Andrew Glass clerk; Horace Martin treasurer; William Young and Ezekiel Robinett overseers of the poor ; Joseph Lowry and Samuel Lowry fence-viewers ; William Young, Nathan Robinett, and John Bullard supervisors; William Lowry and Joseph Hewitt constables. At this time William Lowry and Joseph

We have not the early records of justices of the peace. The following have served since 1953; VIZ Robert McNeal, Pardon C. Hewitt, Hugh Boden, Elijah Lowry, and Lafayette Hawk.

The population of Waterloo has steadily increased since its organization; in 1830 it was 216; in 1840 it was 741; in 1850 it was 1,016; in 1860 it was 1,483. The surface of the township is rough, but the soil is well adapted for agriculture, and the annual yield of cereals and of hay, and increase of live stock, afford sufficient evidence of the enterprise and thrift of the farmers of Waterloo. The township is also very rich in coal, which is already taken out in large quantities, and which will eventually be a great source of wealth. Marshfield, a thriving business station on the Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad, seven miles from Athens, is the center of population. The village has about two hundred and fifty inhabitants, and does quite a business in the shipping of country produce. The Methodists have a good church here. There is the usual proportion of stores, a drug store, an excellent tannery, etc. About 1836 several families settled in Waterloo from Morgan and Muskingum counties and parts contiguous. Among these were the families of James Mayhugh, Samuel Allison, Lewis Davis, Hugh Boden, William and Joseph Johnson, Robert Cotton, Daniel McCoy, and others - all good citizens. Some of these have left the county, but descendants of most of them are still living here.

Moses Hewitt was the first white settler within the present limits of Waterloo. He settled in this township with his family about 1806, and there was not at that time another family within many miles of him. The second family was Abram Fee's, who settled on the place now owned by Mr. Warren Foster, son of Mr. Hull Foster, of Athens. The third family was that of Ezekiel Robinett, Sen., and the fourth that of Colonel William Lowry. Col. Lowry was born November 15, 1779, in Berkeley county, Virginia, and was taken when an infant with his father's family to Green county, Virginia. He says: " That country was then a dense wilderness, infested with Indians. The settlers had to fight every summer for four years after my father moved there. At one time, my father's was the frontier house but one, and the inmates of that one were all killed by the Indians except one boy twelve years old, who made his escape. When I was eighteen years old (1797) my father removed to the northwestern territory and settled in what is now Athens county, and near the town of Athens. We came down the Ohio river to the mouth of Hockhocking, in flat-boats, and up the Hockhocking in canoes. At that time we had to bring our breadstuff from the Ohio river, the nearest mill being a floating one at Vienna, eight miles above the mouth of

Kanawha river, on the Virginia shore. The second year after we came here, we pounded our corn on a hominy-block, took the finer part for bread and made the coarse into hominy. For meat we depended on the woods and our rifles, and always had plenty of bear, deer, andturkey meat. The first mill that I remember was built by Capt. John Hewitt, on Margaret's creek, within a mile of the mouth. It went into operation in the year 1801. I came to Waterloo, from Athens, in February, 1820. This region was all a wilderness then, there being only three families besides mine in the township. Joseph Brookson started the first grist and saw mill in Waterloo, where Newton Hewitt's saw mill now stands. There were a gréat many bears and deer here at that time, and wolves and panthers were also pretty numerous and very annoying." Col. Lowry is still living in Waterloo, in his seventy-ninth year. Prominent among the citizens of Waterloo, are Mr. Jesse Jones, a native of Virginia, who settled on Little Raccoon at an early day; Mr. Hugh Boden, a native of Ireland, who settled here in 1839, and now lives in Marshfield; Mr. James Mayhugh, a native of Maryland, who settled here as a farmer in 1836, and now engaged in business in Marshfield; all of whom have

Samuel Allison, a native of Maryland, settled here in 1836, as a farmer. He reared a large family, some of whom have been well known in the county. Mr. W. H. Allison, a son of his, now lives in Chillicothe, but and then, on the organization of Dover, became a part of the latter township. York was separately organized in June, 1818, and the first election for township officers was held at the house of Ebenezer Blackstone.

The township is traversed by the Hocking Valley canal, which crosses it from northeast to southwest, and has heretofore furnished an excellent outlet for the coal which is mined at and near Nelsonville in great quantities. In the vast deposits of this mineral which underlie a large part of the township, York possesses an undeveloped wealth that will reward the labor and enterprise of many generations yet to come. An active coal trade has existed at Nelsonville for several years past, which will be greatly increased by the opening of the Hocking Valley railroad, and there can be no doubt that this township will, at some future day, be the seat of great wealth and manufacturing life.

The town of Nelsonville, near the northern limit of the township, is a thrifty village, with a population of 1,700 and steadily increasing. It was laid out in June, 1818, and named after Mr. Daniel Nelson, who owned the land on which the town is situated. The town was incorporated by act of the legislature passed in 1838. The first election for town officers was held April 27, 1839, when Charles Cable was elected mayor; A. J. Bond recorder; John Coe, 5. ME Sheppard, John Hull, W. W. Poston, and James Rusk trustees. Luther Burt was appointed marshal of the village, and Robert Miller treasurer. James Rusk declining to serve as trustee, Thomas L. Mintun was appointed in his place. Since then the following persons have been elected mayor.

1840 - William Burlingame. 1841 - Ebenezer Fenimore. 1842 - Solomon Roberts. 1843-44 - James Deaver. 1845 - R. G. McLean. 1846-47 - No record. 1848-49 - Lewis Steenrod. [ Mr. Steenrod having resigned, A. J. Guitteau was appointed for his unexpired term. |

Justices of the Peace since 1844. 1844 - William E. Brown. 1845 - Noah Wilder. 1846 - Christian Harmon. 1848 - B. F. Harper. 1849 - Noah Wilder. 1850 - Thomas L. Mintun. 1851 - Alvin Baker. 1853 - Joseph Britt. 1854 - 60 - Joshua Sheffield and Thomas L. Mintun. 1861 - Robert R. Patterson. 1862 - Joseph Britt. 1863 - 66 - Ashford Porter and Robert Patterson. 1867 - Thomas L. Mintun.

Prominent among the early citizens of York was Mr. James Knight. He was born in Pulborough, England, and emigrated to the United States when thirty-two years old, came immediately to York township, and settled here in July, 1821. He became at once thoroughly identified with the interests of the township, and especially of Nelsonville, and during his residence here was one of the most active and influential citizens, participating earnestly in the local improvements and social movements of the day, such as the building of bridges, school and meeting houses, the establishment of Sunday and day schools, etc. He kept public house in Nelsonville for many years, and was very assiduous in imparting information about the Hockhocking valley to travelers. He aided largely in the construction of the first bridge over the Hockhocking, at Nelsonville, in 1827, and also in the erection of a second one in 1832, and of the bridge across Monday creek, three miles below Nelsonville, in 1832. These bridges were mainly built on individual subscriptions, paid, in many instances, in grain and labor, and the original subscription papers, with the plans of the work and the written contracts therefor, were found in complete order among Mr. Knight's papers after his death.

In 1832 he prepared, by request, a circular calling attention to the importance of an immediate improvement of the Hockhocking valley by a canal from Lancaster to the Ohio river, which was sent to leading men throughout southern Ohio, and which contributed much toward the chartering of the "Hocking Valley canal" in the spring of 1839 and its construction soon after. Mr. Knight died August 26, 1836, aged fortyseven years. The following memoranda are in his handwriting : |

* Captain Hale, with Samuel Older, wife and eight children ; Thomas Older, William Thaire, wife and children; James Smart, wife and two children ; William Saunders, wife and four children; Barberry, wife and children; George Tribe and wife ; George Hook and Ned Smithers arrived at Nelsonville July 30th, 1832, at 11 o'clock in the forenoon.

« Peter Smithers and wife and children at Pittsburg. Charles Southerton, wife and children at Sunday creek. Howick, ditto. Captain Hale stayed fifteen days at Nelsonville. Grafham and family arrived August 21st, 1832. Miss Courtauld arrived November 20, 1834."

L. D. Poston was born in Hampshire county, Virginia, March 29, 1812, and came to Athens county in September, 1830. For about two years after coming here he worked out by the month, then engaged in buying and selling cattle till October, 1835, when he settled in Nelsonville in the mercantile business. The letter of credit, on which he purchased his first stock of goods, was given him by J. N. and J. H. Norton, and Ezra and William Stewart of Athens. In 1852 Mr. Poston began extensive coal operations which he still continues, owning some of the most valuable coal lands and mines in the township. He is a man of strict integrity, fine business capacity, and an excellent citizen. By his own efforts and attention to business he has

Samuel Robbins was one of the early settlers of York. He was born in Massachusetts in 1771, came to Athens county in 1819, and to Nelsonville in 1822, where he lived the rest of his life. He built and carried on the first tannery in this part of the county. He died September 21, 1832. His descendants are mostly living in York.

Solomon Roberts, a native of New York, came to Athens county in 1819 and settled in Nelsonville in March, 1821. He found here less than half a dozen cabins and one frame house. Coal was not known to exist about Nelsonville for several years after this date. Mr. Roberts being a blacksmith got his coal from Minker's run and Monday creek, for some time after he came here. Prior to the opening of the canal, samples of the Nelsonville coal were sent in wagons to Lancaster, Circleville, and other towns for blacksmithing, and its quality fully tested and approved. Mr. Roberts and his son, Mr. W. P. Roberts, are well known in Nelsonville.

Lewis Steenrod was born in a block house at Wheeling, Virginia, in June, 1791, came to Ohio in 1805, | and resided in Muskingum county about eight miles east of Zanesville for over forty years. In 1850 he removed with his family to Nelsonville where he died December 10, 1860. '' Father" Steenrod, as he was called, was a man of benevolent heart and gentle life. He was a member of the Baptist church, having united with that organization in 1812. Some of his descendants remain in the county.

Fuly 23, 1787. - The report of a committee, consisting of Mr. Carrington, Mr. King, Mr. Dane, Mr. Madison and Mr. Benson, amended to read as follows, viz :