Fulton Township (part 10 of 34)

Mrs. Hibbard's diaries record much of pioneer school history. Entries made in June, 1839, refer to the sending of her two older children to school "for the first time"; and one would infer that there were no school facilities in the western part of Dover (then Clinton) Township earlier than that. It appears that Caroline Seamans was the teacher, and that the school was held in a room in the Ferguson house just north of the site of the present village. Miss Hibbard is of the opinion that "it was the first school in the township of Dover, not then formed, and was probably a subscription school." Under date of December 19, 1840, a diary entry reads: "There is a new schoolhouse built half a mile south of here. Mortimer (Hibbard) commenced teaching today." Describing that schoolhouse, Miss Hibbard writes: "This log schoolhouse was probably the first in of slabs, with pegs for legs, and desks made by driving boards across pegs driven into the wall. The pens were fashioned by the master's pen knife, from goose quills brought by the children. The lead pencils for ruling the writing paper were made by hammering a piece of lead into the required shape. These were usually attached to a string worn about the neck for convenience. The books were a varied assortment, the blue-covered 'Elementary Speller' figuring predominantly."

Tiffany, Andros Canfield, Huldah Howe, Sophronia Deming, Amelia, Randolph and Mortimer Hibbard." Verity, stated, also," that the Hibbards, Canfield, and Handy, "and many others, taught as good common schools as was generally found at that day." Male teachers received a salary of from $10 to $13 a month, and women teachers from $6 to $8 a week. In addition they received free board and lodging, being "boarded around," as was termed the practice of the residents to receive into their homes, for a week or two of free entertainment, the teacher of the district school, who would pass similar periods, as non-paying guest, in other houses until the school term ended. The school term was customarily only for three winter months, the greater number of the male teachers pursuing agriculture during the growing season, when also the older pupils spent part of their time in the fields, assisting in the work of the home farm.

Soon after the organization of Dover Township, in 1843, two school districts were formed, one in the western part, which would be Spring Hill, and the other in the eastern settlement, which was at the Center, or near to where Ottokee eventually developed. In April, 1846, the township trustees divided the township into four school districts: No. 1, at what became Ottokee; No. 2, at Chatfield's Corners, where the "Emery" postoffice was established "at a very early date, with Lucius N. Chatfield, postmaster"; No. 3, in the northwestern corner of the township, later known as Union School District ; and No. 4, at Spring Hill. No. 2 District became the Waid District. It was not long before No. 5 District became necessary, and this being central, was used for township elections for one or two decades. No. 6 District, in the northeastern part of the township was organized in 1864. In 1876, the Spring Hill District, No. 4, by a special act of the State Legislature was set apart as a separate district, and a brick schoolhouse was built. The log schoolhouse at Spring Hill was replaced in 1851 by a frame schoolhouse, which was located at the southwest corner of the village, that house being still occupied, as a residence.' The site was donated by Mortimer D. Hibbard, who also gave the four lots upon which the brick schoolhouse was eventually built. At one time a "large square frame building, originally erected on the farm of William Culbertson, a mile or so south of the village," and used by the Christian Church society for many years, was eventually adapted to the requirements of a high school.

Dover Township has not since increased the number of school districts, but it has of course progressed, in the same ratio as has been the advancement in education, in length of session and extent of curricula, in other like schools of Fulton county. As at present constituted, the school facilities of Dover Township consist of five one-room elementary schools. Tedrow (or Spring Hill) is a separate rural district, serving about fifty pupils, and having a two-room schoolhouse. The other five schoolhouses, with furnishings and equipment, are valued at $8,950, and have an enrollment of about 160 scholars.

The 1920 Board of Education of Dover Township is: William Windisch, president: J. H. Bailey, clerk; Fred Clark, Frank Bowers, V. S. Spring, and C. F. Bell, directors. The Board of Education of the Tedrow Special District is: H. .J. Grimes, president; Dr. Evers, clerk; 0. M. Eldredge and M. L. Ernst, directors.

of its settlement, or as soon as 1838." Ottokee Cemetery comes next, having been laid out in 1846. Betsy Knapp, wife of Archie W. Knapp, was buried in it in June, 1846, and in 1853 it was organized as the Ottokee Cemetery. Spring Hill Cemetery was organized in, about, 1860; and it is believed that Oscar A. Hibbard, son -of Mortimer D. Hibbard, was the first person interred in it.

The early settlers of Dover Township, and for that matter of Fulton county, were fundamentally religious; and undoubtedly as settlements grew, religious gatherings formed in the log cabin of one of the settlers who were of the same sect. Because William Jones was the first settler in that part of York, later Clinton Township, which came within the bounds of Dover eventually, and because it is on record that he sometimes preached "for the Disciples, there then being a few of that faith in Clinton Township on the south," we may perhaps give the Disciples of Christ society the distinction of having been the first to form an organization in Dover Township, although the United Brethren, under Alonzo H. Butler and John Bowser, formed an organization "at a very early date" ; and the Methodist Episcopal society at Spring Hill dates back to 1842, in which year also services conducted by members of the New Church, or Swedenborgian society, were held in Dover.

The Disciples, or the Church of Christ society, in Dover, beginning with the activities of William Jones, were brought to a concrete state of definite church organization in 1841, through the efforts of Moses Ayers, as has been stated earlier in this chapter. The Rev. Benjamin Alton, of DeKalb county, Indiana, came at his invitation, and preached to settlers gathered in the home of Moses Ayers. It resulted in the formation of the Disciples at "Brush Creek, Lucas county, now Spring Hill, Fulton county," on March 1, 1841, that society having at organization seventeen members. Miss Hibbard writes: "Services were held regularly, though they had no settled pastor for some years. In the spring of 1853, they erected a frame building on the farm of William Culbertson, in Clinton Township. In the spring of 1855, that building was removed to a lot- given them by M. D. Hibbard, in the northern part of Spring Hill, being the first church building in that village, and, as I believe, the first in Dover Township. The wooden building removed to Spring Hill in 1855 had, as its first settled incumbent, Reverend Topliffe, who was followed later by Rev. L. L. Carpenter, Zephaniah W. Shepherd, L. B. Smith, and others. In the winter of 1881-82, the old church gave place to a new one .of brick, Rev. E. T. Hayes being pastor at that time. In both Christian and Methodist churches of Spring Hill, regular services and Sunday schools are now held." Miss Hibbard, wrote in 1916, of Spring Hill churches and Sunday schools, stating that "Spring Hill was favored with many fine teachers in its early days. Tradition will keep alive the names of Thomas Williams, Gavari Burtch, David Ayers, Sarah Guilford, John

R. Derning, Joseph I). Aldrich, and many others." Of them, Miss Hibbard wrote: "Did they realize the influence they were exerting on the lives of some of their pupils? Faithful, competent, conscientious teachers! May the sod rest lightly over their true hearts."

Verity records that, in 1847, Elder Hosea Day organized a Christian church at Ottokee, "with a fair membership, which in later years, for want of pastoral sendee, lost their identity, and finally consolidated with the Disciples, who were quite prominent over the whole township." Verity adds that "in 1858, the Disciples, under the labors of Elder L. L. Carpenter, formed an organization at Ottokee, which in after years, like the Christian denomination, became disintegrated and was merged into the Wauseon and Spring Hill societies." The Disciples churches at V auseon and Spring Hill are now known as Churches of Christ, or Christian churches. What difference there was between the original Christian society of Ottokee and the Disciples organization headed by L. L. Carpenter has not been defined. L. L. Carpenter was, perhaps, one of the most powerful and effective pioneer ministers of the Disciple, or Christian, church in Fulton county. Miss Olive Roos, formerly of Chesterfield Township, and now of Wauseon, wrote a review of the Christian churches some years ago, and regarding L. L. Carpenter she stated : he preached nearly every Sunday, and as he kept no horse, he was obliged to walk to all his appointments. The country was very new and the roads afforded better walking than driving over the logs and swales, although he sometimes went on horseback. On one Lord's Day he had three appointments (morning, afternoon, and night, in far distant meeting houses). As the roads -were very rough, he started on foot at 6 o'clock, in the morning, and walked to the first place, a distance of twelve miles ; after preaching there, he walked to his second appointment, a distance of two miles, and after preaching there he walked a distance of six miles, preaching at 7 o'clock in the evening (in Chesterfield), and walking home the next morning, reaching his office at Ottokee by 9 o'clock."

The lot of the pioneer preacher was perhaps even more arduous than that of the pioneer teacher; but they both lived in a time, and district, when and where life in general was arduous, mode of living simple, and money scarce.

Zephaniah W. Shepherd, came with his parents to Spring Hill in 1852, being then fourteen years old. In 1858, when twenty years old, he was preaching the gospel, and had mastered the German language so that he was able to teach and preach in German in German Township. He eventually went into Chesterfield Township, and from there to Michigan, organizing many churches.

At one time, there was a prospect of a new church, or Swedenborgian, society being organized in Dover. Rev. Elisha Hibbard, and his son, John Randolph Hibbard, D. D., were of that sect. Mrs. Hibbard, in her diary, records having attended one such meeting on August 22,

1841. The meeting place was in the home of her father-in-law, Rev. Elisha Hibbard, one mile east of Spring Hill. The sermon was preached by her brother-in-law, J. R. Hibbard. Mrs. Hibbard wrote: "Heard a sermon by brother Randolph, the first New Chuch sermon I ever heard." Dr. Hibbard later removed to Chicago, where for many years he was pastor of the. Swedenborgian Church Society. Miss Hibbard writes: "I do not know that any New Church society was organized in Fulton county, though there were a number of that faith, and both John Randolph Hibbard and his father, Rev. Elisha Hibbard, officiated at marriages, christenings, and funerals, and frequently held services in the homes of different families."

The activities of the United Brethren Church seems to have begun, so far as Dover Township territory is concerned, in the endeavors of .John Bowser and Alonzo H. Butler. Miss Hibbard, by research in her mother's diaries, has been enabled to state that "The members of the United Brethren Church, of Dover, first held their services in schoolhouses, as did also the Methodists and Baptists. In the spring of 1861, the Brethren had a frame building erected on a lot given them for that purpose, in the northeastern part of the village of Spring Hill. M. D. Hibbard gave this lot. The church was used by the Methodists, as well as by the Brethren, after its dedication by Rev. C. Briggs, June 30, 1861." She adds : "That old frame church long since was destroyed, and there is now one Brethren church in the township, that of North Dover, some miles northeast of the village. Among the residents who had charge of the old Spring Flill church were Rev. John Fiske and Rev. T. Osmun." The United Brethren Society at North Dover was organized in, about, 1882, by the Reverend Bartlett, and during his period in charge a small church building was erected, which presumably is the one still used for worship.

The Methodist Episcopal Society, at Spring Hill had its inception, probably, in 1842, and for a while held meetings in the log schoolhouse just east of Spring Hill. Prominent early members were James Gay, Mr. and Mrs. Newell Warren, Mr. and Mrs. Ebenezer Fuller, Mr. and Mrs. Newell Newton, Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Tedrow, Mr. and Mrs. Peter Lott. In the '60s, the Methodists used the U. B. church for most of their services. In 1887, a frame church building was erected at Spring Hill, the dedicatory services being held on August 7th, by Reverends Belt, Fitzwater, and Gordon.

The Methodist Episcopal Society in the Ottokee neighborhood wras organized in 1857. Tn 1863, it had only eight members. In 1868, the membership was twenty-seven; yet, soon afterwards the members considered the erection of a church building. On April 24, 1875, the following trustees were elected "to hold the church property at Ottokee" : John Hoffman, T. Todd, Joseph Sliadle, J. M. Gillett, Joseph Shaffer, S. Eldridge, A. Lathrop, and C. F. Handy. It is understood that the church was opened in 1876, and that at the dedicatory services the presiding elder made the announcement that, although at all times the Methodist Episcopal society would reserve for itself priority of title to use the church building, when it was needed for their own services, the church might be used at other times by other church societies and denominations of Ottokee, it being, recognized that all residents of Ottokee, irrespective of church affiliations, had subscribed to the building fund with that object in view. There should have been good public need of such a building, yet, in May, 1882, it was decided to give the trustees of the Ottokee church authority to enter into negotiations to sell the church building "as they might deem advisable, just and right" ; and three months later, the church records show that the trustees had filed report stating that they wished the amounts assumed by them to be refunded "provided the church property at Ottokee shall ever be sold" ; all of which pointed to an undercurrent of religious differences in Ottokee. This was more evident two years later when the trustees were instructed "to take such action as they deemed necessary to prevent the use of the M. E. church at Ottokee by the Spiritualists, or anything that is detrimental to Christianity." There were quite a few Spiritualists living in and near Ottokee at that time, and bearing in mind the circumstances attending the building of the M. E. church, to which they had subscribed, they had claimed the right to hold services in it. The church building has never been sold, and, as a matter of fact, it has since been used by most of the denominations of the Ottokee district, although it is recognized in this day as the Methodist Episcopal Church, the present pastor of which is L. D. Burgoon.

The most prominent church workers of the Methodist societv in Dover Township during the latter half of the nineteenth century were probably Milton Spring, and his son, Cornelius M. Spring. Their noteworthy connection with the church has elsewhere in this chapter been referred to. Others prominent during the same period, as stewards, class-leaders, local preachers, trustees, superintendents, and the like, in the district covered by the Ottokee circuit of the M. E. Church, which circuit included societies at Ottokee, Spring Hill, Pettisville, McCaskey's, Chesterfield, Etna, Ai, Archbold, Pike's Center, and Burlington, were: Michael Handy, Amos Hill, R. C. Ely, Stephen Eldridge, M. Caskey, Moses Jay, Orville Disbrow, J. N. Marsh, I. Jones, Wesley Denison, Joshua Shaffer. Wm. H. Stevens, J. Murphy, Jaimes Birch, John Van Arsdale, Stillman Colman, A. Lathrop, J. Hoffman, J. Shadle, T. Todd, O. B. Verity, J. M. Gillett, C. F. Handy, Griffin Cole, Curtis Stoddard, C. Norton, Hiram Clark, J. Johnson, Robert Fowler. Wm. Conklin, Benjamin Skeeles, Jacob Bartlett, Lyman Cook, II. I.. Aldrich, Philander Crane, James Howard, Jeff Cole, Wm. Skeels, Geo. Ivesler, James Bayes, S. C. Brainard, John Wise, and J. M. Morrison. Preachers in charge were: Revs. W. H. Taylor, V. Pond. Charles Haag, II. Vangurdy, A. M. Corv, M. E. Blizzard, E. A. Berry, D. Bowers, A. D. Newell. A. S. Van Buskirk, II. C. Gavitt, T. H. Hines, W. G. AVaters, AT. F. Maltbie, E. LI Snow, A. Barker, B. T. Gordon. Presiding elders: Elnathan C. Gavitt, Samuel Lynch, T. H. AVilson, T. N. Barkdull, L. A. Belt, P. S. Donaldson, AV. G. Waters, and S. L. Roberts. These names are extracted from the official circuit records of the period, 1863-87. Rev. Elnathan Gavitt agreed, at the first conference, in 1863, "to accept the public collection for his support on this circuit," after the meeting of delegates from Spring Hill, Chesterfield, North Chesterfield, Ottokee, McCaskey's, Etna, and Ai, had resolved "that the brethren will try and support preaching among us." Air. Gavitt was presiding elder, and the preacher-in-charge was to be AVm. IJ. Taylor, who for serving those small and scattered societies was to receive $230 a year. On September 10, 1864, it was reported that "There is no Sabbath school within the limits of the Ottokee

Circuit, but such as are in a union connection with other denominations." In 1867 there were four union schools. In 1867, a Methodist Sunday school was formed at Ottokee, and a report shortly afterwards noted that there were seven teachers and forty scholars, and that "the school is in a prosperous condition, with a good degree of punctuality of teachers and scholars. The latter do well in reciting Scripture committed to memory." In 1868, the strength of the societies of the circuit were: Spring Hill, 43 members; Chesterfield, 20 members; Morey's Corners, 8 members ; Ai, 8 members ; Ottokee, 27 members ; Etna, 6 members. In 1869 the preaoher-in-charge received $375 salary; and the presiding elder, $60. In 1872, the pastor's report to the conference read :

"We found the charge in a very discouraging state; everywhere on the work the conversation was of a discouraging nature. The heart becomes sick. AAre have been exhorting the friends to trust in God, and expect better times ; that the Great Head of the Church would hear and answer the cries of the people."

Despite discouragements, the Methodist Church went forward, built churches at Spring Hill, Ottokee. and other places after that. C. M. Spring was recording secretary of the Ottokee Circuit for many years.

There appears to be only one fraternal organization at present in Dover Township, namely, the Ottokee Lodge, No. 851, of the Ancient Order of Gleaners of the World. It was organized on August 22, 1904, with barely enough members to fill the chairs, the first chief gleaner being Alfred Savage. Its present strength is about 180, and Roland Frazier is chief gleaner. The Gleaners own their own substantial concrete building at Ottokee. The charter members were Alfred Savage, Frank Shadle, AVm. A. AVentz, William C. Tew, Royal Sturdevant, Elizabeth Savage, Francis A. Mock, Ervin F. Pennington.

The first Justice of the Peace elected after the organization of Dover Township, in 1843 (a special election being held for that purpose on August 16th) was Alonzo Knapp, who "entered upon the duties of his office at this place, which was afterwards called Ottokee."

Pottery was made by Eben French, at Chatfield's Corners, in the '40s. He peddled his pottery through the county, and is claimed to have made the first tile manufactured in Fulton county. Joseph Shadle later burned brick, supplying all the brick for the last Ottokee Court House.

Chapter Xvii

Pike Township was one of the first to be settled, notwithstanding that it was not organized under the present township name until 1841. As a matter of fact it was the first township in which white men settled, if one can consider the residence within it, from 1824 to 1833, of John Grey, the Indian trader, legitimate settlement. Still, long before white men came to other parts of the land now within' file present bounds of Fulton county, members of the Howard family, which became one of the most prominent in the county, were in the territory trading with the Indians. And in Indian associations, Pike is probably the most historic of the townships of Fulton county.

"Pioneer days in Pike Township" was the subject of an authentic historical review written some years ago by Mrs. Agnes Howard Mc- Clarren, of Winameg, daughter of the late Colonel Dresden W. H. Howard. Her sources were so original and the research so carefully undertaken that the review should have place in this chapter, in full. It begins:

"The present limits of Pike Township were, until 1833, north of the Pulton line, under the jurisdiction of the Territory of Michigan. The surveys were made by the authority of Michigan, as early as 1819 or 1820. The county seat was established at Adrian, Lenawee county, Michigan, in December, 1826.

"By a compromise, brought about by the Ohio and Michigan war, which at one time looked serious, but was accompanied by so much of the ludicrous as to lose its seriousness.

"When Michigan became a territory, the people living between the two lines of Michigan and Ohio, known as the Fulton and Harris lines, found it more convenient to be attached to Michigan. The territorial lines were extended over the disputed territory.

"In 1833, it become important that the boundary lines be settled The matter was brought before the legislature, which passed a resolution asking Congress to act upon the subject. In 1835, the matter came before Congress, and J. Q. Adams made an elaborate report against the claims of Ohio, through a committee consisting of A. Palmer, I. W. Comstock, and others. Mr. Palmer was despatched to Columbus with a petition, signed by most of the inhabitants, asking the extension of the laws of Ohio over the disputed territory. An act was soon passed, and the territory was attached to the counties of Wood, Henry, and Williams. This aroused the ire of Michigan, a double set of officers were created, troops were organized under the Monroe county sheriff, and would-be citizens of Ohio were carried off as prisoners of war. Ohio then levied troops, under Governor Lucas.

marched into Toledo, overran the melon patches, devasted the poultry yards, burst in the door of Major Stickney's residence, and carried him off in triumph, a prisoner of war, to Monroe, Michigan. At that time arrived from Washington two ambassadors, with power to negotiate between the belligerents. These were Richard Rush, of Pennsylvani, and Col. Howard, of Maryland. They were successful in their mission, chiefly because Michigan was satisfied with her laurels won, and Ohio was willing to stand on her dignity.

"At the next session of Congress the matter was taken up, and Michigan received as her portion the large peninsular between lakes Huron, Michigan and Superior, now so well known for its rich deposits of copper and other minerals. Ohio received the harbor at Toledo, and a narrow strip of land, extending westward. The importance of this harbor is well-known, for Toledo has become the largest and most prosperous commercial center in northwestern Ohio.

"The existing territory then became the property of Ohio. Lucas county, which adjoined a large portion of the land transferred, was by an act of the Legislature of Ohio, June, 1836, given jurisdiction of same on north limit, and organized the township of Royalton from South Fairfield Township to northern line. All the territory south of Fulton Line included in Pike Township was of Ohio survey, and was for a long time included in the township of York.

"Erection of Pike Township. In March, 1841, the township of Pike was officially organized, by taking from Royalton all of T. 10 south, range 3 east, of Michigan survey, and all of fractional T. 8 north, range 7 east, and one tier of sections off of the north side T. 7 north, range 7 east, and so remained until 1846, when an addition was made by taking from Royalton the south tier of sections of T. 9 south, range 3 east.

"Pike Township, as it now exists, contains about 28 full sections of land, or an area of 17,839 acres. The township's average elevation is 200 feet above Lake Erie. Much of it is an elevated plateau, portions of which are prairie.

"There are no rivers in the township, but a system of ditching and tiling began in 1859, and today about a hundred miles of ditching is done every year, thus converting the soil into a garden susceptible of a high state of cultivation. The soil is well adapted to agriculture, producing wheat, corn, oats, potatoes, and clover in abundance, raising horses, cattle, sheep, hogs, especially cattle for dairy purposes. There need not be a foot of waste land in Pike Township. The real and personal value of property in 1904 was $294,840 and $61,430, respectively. The number of horses 404; cattle, 1350; sheep, 809; hogs, 1352.

"The eastern portion of the township wTas originally covered with a heavy growth of timber, including white and burr oak, elm, hickory, black walnut, cotton wood, and ocassionally a buckeye may be found along the watercourses. In the western portion, upon which is known in geology as the second beach, has grown, since the land was underdrained, an immense forest of oaks, so that if the present generation will allow it to grow, the oncoming race will not suffer for timber, as in many other localities where the timber has been cut to the last tree.

Indians, and presumably their more ancient brethren, the mound builders, whose camping ground was on the bank of Bad Creek, near what is known as Aetna, or Winameg, on the home farm of the late Dresden \Y. H. Howard. Its fine springs furnished an abundance of pure water, in its mellow soil they could raise their corn; to its creek banks came the beautiful deer and other game; and upon the high ridge was a suitable place for their dead to rest. Here, it might be mentioned that, Chief Winameg, the last of the Pottawatomies, was buried, in this historic soil, near the gigantic Council Oak, at the foot of the hill.

"Archseologically, this locality is of much interest, as the researches by Judge Wm. Handy, in 1892, proved beyond a doubt. There are mounds located on the farm containing the house, orchard, and immediate grounds of Dresden W. H. Howard, in extent about five acres; and these mounds when opened showed evidences in their construction .and material of a race long since passed out of existence. The Indians told mv, father: 'No man knew when they were built, or by

"The First Trading Post. The first trading post was built for the protection of the fur trader, and his goods, against drunken Indians, for even then whisky was used as an element of destruction by renegade whites, or half-breed outlaws. These posts were usually built very strongly, of hewn logs of large size, with puncheon floors and roof and heavy doors. This one was built in 1831, or 1832, by Edwin Howard, father of Dresden W. H. Howard, and was located near the Indian village of Winameg. It was furnished with a stock of goods of British manufacture, consisting of red and green blankets, with black stripes across the ends, Turkey red calico, with merrimac blues, large cotton handkerchiefs of gay colors, 'guns, tomahawks, butcher knives, powder, shot, lead balls, brass trinkets, rings, wampum, beads, silver brooches, nose and ear rings, Turkish vermilion, to paint their faces, fine saddles, and silver ornamented bridles. These were the chief articles of exchange for the beautiful furs of deer, bear, wolf, otter, muskrat, raccoon, red and silver-gray fox and an ocassional beaver, these lastnamed having nearly all disappeared, the last one being caught by a Pottawatomie chief, on the banks of the little St. Joseph, in 1837, and for which he was paid twenty dollars in goods.

"For several years the post carried on a flourishing business, but when the government began to agitate the removal of the Indians westward, trade fell off, and the old house became a tavern, for the accommodation of the traveller on his westward journey, and was one of the best-known land-marks of northwestern Ohio until it was destroyed by fire, in 1879.

"Another store was kept at the home of Robert A. Howard, by one Jennings, in 1835, afterwards sold to 'Jack' Hobart, and run in connection with an ashery. This was abandoned in 1850. Dan Knowles also had a store and ashery at an early date. A store was established at Winameg in 1861, and has continued until the present time (1904), although run by different parties, viz : Hinkle and Downer, of Lyons ; Frank Knosco, who at one time had a stock valued at $7,000 ; W. L. Campbell ; and LaSalle Brothers.

"The First Settlers. The first settlers were Valentine Winslow, Eli Phillips, and David Hobart, who came in the spring and summer of 1833. Valentine Winslow located on what was known as the Chet Herrick farm, later owned by Fred. Knapp, where he lived about two years. He then moved about two miles farther east, where his son, Valentine, still lives. He died in 1858. Valentine is supposed to have built the first log house, located on the Chet Herrick farm. It was a double log house with roofed driveway between, and was afterwards used a short time as a schoolhouse.

"In conversation with an old settler, I find there is quite a difference of opinion as to name and date of first white settler, in what is now Pike Township. The first white man who settled in the, then, wilderness was John Grey, who came in 1824, and built a log cabin on what is now the Herman Tappan farm. It is not known whether he had a family, but he built the cabin, and traded whisky to the Indians for their furs as is usual in such cases, and it brought about it own punishment. lie got into trouble with the Indians, who threatened his life, and he left the country in 1833. It is doubtful if he was anything more than an adventurer, who in order to live in disregard to all law and order, wandered into the, then, wilderness, without any desire to make a home, or becoming a law-abiding citizen. A drawing of the log cabin is owned by Jacob II. Tappan, of Toledo, and is quite picturesque as being the first log cabin in Pike Township.

"David Hobart is said to be the next settler, coming in the fall of 1833, or the spring of 1834. In 1834 came A. Knight, Nathan Wilson, Daniel Knowles, John Sindel, George Wiers, and Whitefield Tappan.

"In 1837 came a still larger immigration, Alva Wilson, Henry Slagle, Joseph Walters, Emery and Martin Wilson, Peola Allwood, Ephraim K. and Joseph Allwood, Thomas Cole, George Megarah, Andrew Faylor, George and Jacob McQuillin, David and Joseph Salsbury, James Yiers, Adam Klein, Wm. Cox, Samuel Allen, one Graham and one Thompson, with quite large families. This addition soon began to take interest in the welfare of the young township, by establishing churches, schools, and roads.

"From 1837 to 1840 came David McQuilling, George Gallagher, David Zimmerman, John Miller, Lucius Taylor, Chester Herrick. William Fewless, Thomas Iloxie, David Pelton, Bovd and Robert Dunbar, Michael Handy, Moses Tappan, Andrew and Samuel Dennis.

"In 1843 came Dr. William Holland, the first physician, Simeon Elliott, first Protestant Methodist minister, William Mullen, Joseph Shaffer, and John Whittaker.

"These are among the principal pioneers who endured dangers and privations and made for themselves and families homes of comfort and luxury.

"The Court Llouse in Pike. In 1850, the county was organized, with the seat of justice at Robert A. Howard's. Many were the ludicrous and pathetic scenes enacted there until 1851, when the county seat was established in Ottokee. Robert A. Howard was the first justice of the peace, holding the office for fifteen years.

"Township Records. The township was organized in 1841, but the first record of officers of which we can get a list is as follows: The annual election of Pike Township was held at the house of William Mullen, April 4, 1853. The judges of election were Andrew Faylor, Valentine Winslow, and Whitefield Tappan. Election clerks were A. A. Howard and Wm. Graham. Township trustees were Andrew Fay- lor, Whitefield Tappan, and Erastus Cowles. William Critz was elected clerk; Daniel Knowles, treasurer; David Salsbury, assessor; David Fairchilds and .Tames Viers, constables.

"The First Frame House. The first frame house in the township was built by Dr. Holland in 1837, or 1838. It is still standing, although it has been somewhat remodelled. The second and third frame houses were built in 1840 by J. Sindel and Dresden Howard, respectively, also the house on the Isbell farm, by Jacob Cox.

"Church History. In the third farm house built were held the first religious gatherings in the township, conducted by the Rev. Johnson, a Presbyterian. These meetings were held in different houses of the neighborhood, as most convenient, the homes of Thomas Silsby and of Widow Graham being oftenest used. Primitive indeed were these meetings, but true Christian hearts beat beneath the coarse homespun; surely, 'where a few are gathered together in My name, there will I be also.' Ministerial work in those early days was pursued , under much difficulty and small salary, if any. They were circuit ministers, at a salary of perhaps a hundred dollars a year, travelling on horseback under all conditions of weather, blinding storms, and fording swollen streams, without road or guide but they 'blazed trees' through an unbroken wilderness. They preached in the log cabins, often carrying a package of quinine or other medicine, and a log salt, to relieve the 'ague-shaking' sufferers on their journey.

"As new settlers came, the need of a church grew greater, so the first church in the township was built in 1846, on the farm of William Mullen, near Winameg, now owned by Estell L. Sindel. It was a neat frame structure, quite commodious, only without seats, except as boards were laid across poles. Later, Dresden Howard furnished the lumber, Jesse Taylor the paint; and Theodore Johnson, a carpenter of early date, was employed to construct good high-backed seats, much more comfortable than the first. All through the winter, I can well remember, as a little girl, searching in vain for a soft spot in which to go to sleep during the long preaching hours. This church, dedicated as a Presbyterian, was for many years used as a Union church until it was destroyed by fire in 1868, or 1869. Many were those weary with life's long journey, or those whose tiny feet grew tired by the wayside, carried through its wellworn doorway. There was but one wedding which ever gladdened the hearts in the old church. This was the marriage of Edward Sindel and Miss Nancy Tappan, January 17, 1864, Elder L. L. Carpenter performing, in his impressive manner, the solemn ceremony.

"The first trustees of the church were James Dickson and Whitefield Tappan, long since passed away, and Lucius Taylor still living, although quite aged.

"School History. The schoolhouse and church go hand in hand, The first school was taught in 1835, in the log hut located on the Thomas Silsby farm, by Elizabeth Trowbridge, who afterwards became the wife of William Fewless. She is remembered as a woman of strong character. She believed in social advancement, and the influence of religious living. The schoolhouse was later removed to where the Salsbury cemetery now is, afterwards returned to Thomas Silsby's Corners, where it now remains, under the name of the Pike Center school.

"The first winter school was taught by Michael Handy, young and rising attorney. He had been admitted to the bar in 1850, and was a lawyer of good standing until his death, in 1886. He was at one time prosecuting attorney of the county.

"The first frame schoolhouse in Pike Township was built in 1850, by Jacob Tappan. It was situated a quarter of a mile east of Winameg, and many of the grey-haired men of today remember it as the place where they first imbibed the 'rule of three' and 'hickory oil,' within its ink-stained and whittle-marked precincts. It was destroyed by fire sometime in the 70's.

"The schoolhouses of today are neat and commodious, fitted with every convenience for the instruction of the descendants of those hardy pioneers. But there is still room for advancement. There are six schoolhouses in the township, but it is to be hoped that the enactment of new laws, and the development of the county will bring within the next five years to the the youth of the country schools, the advantages of the graded school.

"Transportation. The oldest established roads in the county were the Toledo and Angola, the Maumee and Angola, each running westward. They were the most direct emigrant roads leading to the undeveloped country farther west. The automobilist who glides through our beautiful country in his electric machine, over roads smooth as a floor, little thinks that not many years ago these delightful highways were miles upon miles of impassable roads, over which the pioneer wended his weary way with white-covered wagons which sank with every turn of the wheel to the hubs. Then, years afterwards, came the improvement known as the 'Corduroy' road, formed of logs laid side by side, which soon left their alignment, and sank into the mud, in places making the road as uneven as before, although somewhat more passable. Afterwards came the improved 'plank road,' which for a number of years was considered sufficient. As the country improved, and the demand for better roads became necessary, it was thought best to call a meeting in the court house, at Wauseon (about 1877 or 1882), for the discussion of the subject. The call was answered by a large and enthusiastic gathering of the best and most influential farmers in the county. The discussion was very long, heated, and many-sided. At last, one of the active farmers, and one who always held the best interests of the county at heart, arose quietly, and said: 'Gentlemen, you may not live to see it; I may not live to see it; but your children and .your children's children will live to see in Fulton county, every roadway and every b}rway gravelled, from north to south, and east to Avest.' Like many others, he \A7as only a feAV years in advance of his time. We of today know the results of the prophesy. Pike Township is not behind the rest; within her borders are fine gravel pits, and as a result her roads are smooth and solid, suitable for the finest phaeton, or rushing automobile.

"Early Taverns of Pike. There are no taverns in Pike, nor never as yet a saloon ; but the necessity in those early days for a stopping place for the weary emigrant, in his long and tirasome journey westward, was supplied by the genial and warmhearted Robert A. Howard, and his ever-willing Avife, some time in the 'thirties. At times, it was necessary for the traveller to spend several days resting and repairing. The 'latch string' AATas ever out, and a bountiful table and needed rest were ever to be found beneath that hospitable roof. Later, George Wier kept 'open house', followed by Michael Handy in 1840, who fed the hungry and thirsty until about 1851. After the trading post at Winameg was abandoned as a store, William Mullen opened it as a hotel ; then necessity ceased, and it was abandoned in 1853 or '54.

"Early Postoffices. As the township became settled, the demand for a postoffice and mail route became more necessary. The first office was established at Lyman Parcher's, known as 'Parcher's Corners' (about 1837), but was later removed to the Shute farm, where it remained some years. The mail route was from Toledo to Angola, by horseback over almost impassable roads, and through an unbroken wilderness, of miles upon miles, without a cabin, through storm and flood, freezing cold and blinding snow.

"Another office was established at Robert Howard's called Essex. It was abandoned in 1851, when the county seat was established at Ottokee. This office was on the line from Maumee to Angola, and accommodated Ottokee, Spring Hill, West Unity and other settlements. When not prevented by storm or flood, the mail was delivered weekly.

"In 1848 an office was established at Daniel Knowles' house and named by Dresden W. H. Howard 'Winameg', in memory of an Indian chief of the Ottawa tribe, whose village was near the place. In 1861 it was removed about three-fourths of a mile north, where it remained until abolished, in 1902, in favor of the system of rural delivery. In all these years, which included the exciting period of the war and events following, the office only had two postmasters, namely Edward Sindel, appointed by Abraham Lincoln, in 1861, serving till only lacking one month of thirty years, the longest period of any postmaster in the United States. He was succeeded by Frank Knoseo, who served until the office was abolished in 1902.

"The mail, from being weekly, was changed to a tri-weekly, and in 1861 a new route was established, from Adrian to Wauseon. But the old stage coach, which brought the mail daily, is gone, and in its place is the new and shiny mail wagon of Uncle Sam's, which daily deposits the mail at our door. Thus are the foreign news, or the happenings in our nearby towns, brought to the farmers nearly as soon as it is flashed from city to city, over the telegraph wire.

"The First Fourth of July Celebration in Pike. Another circumstance of interest to the lover of historical events in Pike is how the first Fourth of July was celebrated by our grandfathers, and greatgrandfathers. The first Fourth of July ever celebrated in Pike Township was held under the massive white oak at the foot of the hill near the homestead of the late Dresden W. H. Howard. Could this old monarch of the forest open its silent lips to our listening ears what bits of history it could relate, of years when, perhaps, the mound builder lived his uneventful life within sound of its waving branches, or, later, the redman, in his wild carefree life, hunting and feasting, and performing his war-dance upon the hilltop ; or how they carved upon its trunk the figure of a human being, then fastening their unwilling victim to its body, stood on the hilltop and shot their arrows and bullets around their defenceless heads. Again, of that eventful Independence Day, so many moons ago (probably 1848 or 1849) -when the patriotic spirits of the new settlement gathered together under its spreading branches, and ate the first Fourth of July dinner. There could not have been more than forty or fifty people, all told, but their hearts were filled with the spirit of the day. There were no grand speeches, or cannonading; but it is recorded that Lucius Taylor read the Declaration of Independence, and one large firecracker, brought from some unknown region, was exploded. The best and largest part of the day was the dinner. Should we ask of what it consisted? An abundance of deer, bear, or wild turkey, corn bread and wild fruits prepared by careful hands. Lemonade? Iced tea? Oh, no! Plenty of clear cool sparkling water, from the nearby springs. This accompanied by a cordiality and hospitality growing less as the years pass by. All" were neighbors; all were friends, although living twenty miles, perhaps, apart. We cannot help but feel that the, then, large tree waved its branches and rustled its leaves in happiness, upon so peaceful a gathering, that strife and contention were in its past, and that the 'paleface' was enjoying a happy laughter beneath its boughs. It has locked the events of the day within its giant

"An Indian Reminiscence. Another interesting incident, recently related by a pioneer resident, was the burial of the last Indian of this section. After the removal of the Indians westward, a few stragglers, who had hidden away at the time in the vain hope of being allowed to die in peace in their beloved haunts, gathered together in a small camp in the woods, near Winameg. Among the number was Wyoxie, Pottawatomie chief, the last successor of Chief Winameg,

"He died in 1840, and a rough hewn box (sawmills were unknown) was made by John Sindel and Moses Tappan, in which the chief with his blanket, gun, ammunition, and hunting acquirements, with a little gourd, to aid him in his journey to the 'happy hunting grounds.' By the request of the Indians, no nails were used in the cover lest, according to their belief, when he came forth from the grave to continue his journey, he would have great difficulty in getting out, if the cover were nailed fast. He was carried in an ox cart, driven by oxen, to the grave, and buried in what is now Aetna cemetery. For many years his grave was visible to residents of the locality.

"The Telephone. It does not seem inappropriate to mention the coming of the telephone, as one of the great elements of change and civilization. It is one of the inventions that write pages of history very rapidly, and one whose influence is felt by a community; and its introduction into Pike Township came with its advancement into other localities, bringing with it attendant changes.

"The first lines were placed in position by the Northwestern Telephone Company, of Wauseon, Ohio, in the summer of 1897. The line was run north from Wauseon to Ottokee, thence east to Winameg, following the principal highways. This was called a "toll" line. These lines were carried all over the county and state. The following year, the 'party' line, as it is called, was established. Today, all the principal homes in Pike Township are connected with Wauseon, Delta, and other towns by telephone.

postage, letters once or twice a year. The writers of those letters have been long years in dust, but their children, and children's children, can step across the room to a neat little 'phone, and in a twinkling of an eye can talk to bis neighbor a mile away, or converse with a friend in New York, or Chicago, as easily as if in the same room.

"Early Marriages, Births and Deaths. The first marriage occurring in the township was that of a nephew of Lyman Parcher to ec daughter of Aretus Knight, Daniel Knowles, justice of the peace, officiating.

"Joseph Salsbury and Magdalena Schlappi were married in 1836, Winfield Tappan and Amanda Woodford were married in Royalton Township in 1835.

"The first male child born in Pike Township was Will D., son of John Sindel, October, 1834. The first female was to John Hobert, September, 1835.

"The first death occurring in the township was that of a child of Joseph Sals'bury's, November 16, 1837, and buried in the Salsbury cemetery. The first burial in the Aetna cemetery was Catherine, a sister of Martin and Emery Wilson, 1837.

"The Pioneer Physician. Dr. William Holland was the first physician in Pike Township, a Christian gentleman of refinement and education. He studied medicine at Oakham, Mass., and at the age. of twenty-six years began the practice of medicine. He came to Pike Township in 1837 or 1838, and for years rode from one part of the country, to another, a ministering angel to suffering humanity. He died in 1857, at the advanced age of ninety-one years.

"The 'Prairie Schooner' Befits its Name. Sewell Gunn was the first white man to traverse the mysterious bottomless windings of the Black Swamp. He came with his family, in a heavy-moving wagon, travelling for days with scarcely a sight of dry land.

Shortly after the publication in the Wauseon newspaper of the above-quoted article by Mrs. McLaren, it prompted Judge Wm. IT. Handy, a worthy former resident of Pike Township, to set down for publication his recollections of early days in Pike Township. He wrote :

"The names in McClarren's article carry me back, and I can see very many of these persons as plainly as if'they were before me now. D. W. IT. Howard, Whit Tappan, Dan Knowles, David Salsbury, Dave Fairchild, Jennie Viers, Robt. A. Howard, Chet Herrick, Vai Winslow, Wm. Mullen, the Sindels, Fewless, Alwoods, McQuillens, Peltons, Dunbars, Dennis's. What a flood of recollections they bring to one! Hearty pioneers, good citizens all of them, men - the memory of them is a delight. They were the making of old Pike, and they builded well

"The old schoolhouse, just two miles east of Ottokee. How many remember it now? It was on the corner of the road running north, from the east line of what is known as the Harvey Aldrich place. It was of logs, and the benches were made of logs split in two, and stakes for legs, in auger holes bored in the logs. It was a long way for us little fellows to walk - a full mile from any home - but I rather think we enjoyed it, after all.

"This wTas in the days before even the tallow candle was known to us, for I well remember the light at home was made by lard in a saucer, with a wick immersed in the lard, one end exposed just enough to burn.

Gracious ! What a country for snakes, rattle-snakes, racers, and copperheads. They were so plentiful that we cared very little for them ; and I remember of but one man ever having been bitten by a rattlesnake in Pike. He was our next door neighbor, Aaron Ayers, who, while standing on a log chopping in front of his house, was bitten ; but it did not good counselor, and a good trial lawyer, and lie eventually was advanced to the judiciary of the court of common pleas; and, as a judge, he "presided with becoming dignity." His 'brother, Charles F., who died in Ottokee, January 15, 1917, was resident in Fulton county for more than seventy years, and was a justice of the peace for nearly a generation. Both William H. and Charles F. had meritorious service records during the Civil War, being veterans. Their father, the Hon. Michael Handy was a conspicuous figure in early Pike, and in Ottokee, when that was the county seat. Michael Handy was undoubtedly a man of strong character. He was wrell educated, and capable as an educator ; was a teacher for twenty-one winters ; yet, did not hesitate to work industriously as a cobbler, or shoemaker and mender, recorded Verity, during the decade 1840-50. He had an increasing family, and the small stipend he received for teaching covered the needs of only three months. He was also justice of the peace, but his services as such were rare in that law-abiding community. He eked out something toward the family need by hotel-keeping, on his farm, but the revenue from that cannot have been very much, for he charged a man only six cents for a bed, and only 12 cents (one shilling) for a meal, while whisky retailed at three cents a portion. Yet, Michael Handy reared his family well, and while engaged in the diversified occupations of teacher, hotel-keeper, farmer, justice of the peace, he found time to study law, and eventually became a member of the legal bar of Fulton county. He typified the capable pioneer, a man of initiative and capability, one who was able to go into the profitless places, and "carry on" until he had turned it into a place of plentiful yield. As he himself stated, in a letter, headed "Pioneer Reminiscences," to the editor of the Wauseon "Republican" in 1884, most of the pioneers of Pike Township "came here young, strong, and ambitious, able and willing to face the hardships of a new country, to make homes for ourselves and children." Continuing, he explained that they "must go about 20 miles or more to mill, and as the conditions of the roads and prairies were thin, it would take two or three days to go, and must stop in the wagon or mill all night, and carry our provisions." Nowadays, a farmer would begrudge the spending of a day, in taking a load of hay to market.

"In 1841 Pike Township was made, and towmship officers had to be elected ; and as I wras willing to serve the dear people I was taken up and elected township clerk for the nevT township. As such clerk it became my duty to take the enumeration of all the scholars of the township, of school age. Hence, I went at it as a township officer should. When completed, I must return the same to the county seat, which was Toledo, about thirty miles distant with good roads. The only way I could make the trip was on foot. Now, the question of vast importance to me was: wdiere can I stay overnight? No money, and township clerk at that. But good luck seemed to be on my side, for I remembered that the young lady who was then teaching our school resided on the prairie a little this side of Toledo. Hence, I called on her, informing her I was going into the neighborhood of her folks. She was quite anxious that I should call on them that night, and I, being township clerk and school examiner for this part of the county of Lucas, seemed to her all right. So I went to Toledo, made my report; came back, and stayed overnight; next day returning home all right. Tt had not cost me a cent, for the reason that I had not one; but T made up my mind that on the first Monday in March, when I settled with the trustees, I should be allowed for my time and all expenses out; and I looked forward to that time with great interest. The first Monday in March came around, and I, with my township record under my arm, went to the place of holding elections, to meet the trustees, and settle with all township officers. After we had completed all, we concluded we had a new township now out of debt, and that we would keep it so; we passed a resolution that no township officer should charge, or receive, anything for the year's work. I said: Amen! but I thought how vain are all things here below; how false, and yet how fair."

<-Tn the fall of 1841, I was employed to teach school in the district in which Mr. Cheadle resided. The schoolhouse was near his house. 1 finished my school ; they paid me the public money, which amount was small; the balance they collected promptly on a Rate Bill made, and paid me; and old Father Wright made me a present of a nice set of chairs of his own make."

While upon Pike Township school history, reference must be made to the notable service of William P. Cowan. He began to teach school in Pike Township in 1854. He died in 1913, but his school record embraced fifty-four winter terms, a record only exceeded by James F. Burroughs, of Royal ton, who taught for fifty-nine terms. "Bill" Cowan, however, probably did more to improve the standard of education in Fulton county than did any other man. For many years he conducted, in Pike Township, a private training school for teachers, and for those studying to enter that profession. One hundred and eighty-seven teachers passed through his normal school, and some of them became conspicuously capable as teachers. A further review of Mr. Cowan's school activities is embodied in the schools chapter of this work. He also took some part in public administration, being a director of the County Infirmary for some years.

Tt seems well-nigh incredible that, of the men who were in Pike Township during the first years of its existence, there should still be one living representative. Lucius P. Taylor settled in Pike Township seventy-seven years ago, and he was then twenty-five years old. He is now one hundred and three years old, and although of course not now vigorous, he is at times remarkably alert in remembrance of pioneer days and incidents. As befits the record of the man who has lived longest in the township, and also in the county, his life story is fully reviewed in the biographical section of this current historical work; but some matter not embodied in that sketch may be written here. Lucius P. Taylor came in 1843, and settled on 240 acres of wild timber land. He erected his log cabin, and made provision for the coining of bis parents and brothers and sisters, who settled just east of him. He and his family for some years were twenty miles away from the nearest doctor, and thus depended almost wholly upon homebrewed herb medicines, except in cases of grave sickness. The mill where they took their grain and corn for grinding was at Maumee, twenty miles away; and generally, the roads were in such a state of muddiness, being practically a morass, that the journeys to the mill had, in most years, to be deferred until the winter season, when the ground was frozen. Lucius P. Taylor raised a large family, and gave two sons to the nation during the Civil war.

J. II. Tappan, of the pioneer Pike family of that name, wrote in the "Toledo Times," of October 9, 1905, regarding "Winameg and the Council Tree," and of a visit he paid to the Howard family. He wrote:

"Fulton County, like the Maumee Valley, is full -of historical interest. Perhaps one of the most interesting is the farm and house of the late IX W. II. Howard, who was the first white man to come into that part of Fulton county. His name, for over half a century, has been a household word in the homes of the great Maumee Valley. No one of the pioneers of northwestern Ohio had a larger personal experience with the different Indian tribes than he. Being appointed Indian interpreter by President Jackson, he often held councils with the Indians under the famous Council tree that stands near his house in Winameg.

shade trees, planted by Mr. Howard's own hand many years ago. On entering the room, the visitor faces the old-time brick fireplace, and the andirons so common in those early days for holding the wood fires. In this room, the visitor will notice a picfiire of Peter Navarre, General Harrison's Indian scout, mounted on horseback, dressed in Indian garb. Navarre was a personal friend of Mr. Howard. . . .

at the base we stood in front of the tomb of the late D. W. II. Howard, erected in solid stone and concrete masonry, as per order by himself, prior to his death.

"Near the same place is the large oak Council tree, a monarch of the forest, and one hundred feet high. It was under this tree that Mr. Howard held a council with the Indians in 1832, the time of the Black Hawk war, and he did more in that council* to prevent the Indian war than any other man in northwestern Ohio. Under this tree the noted Indian chief, Winameg, is buried.

"Mr. Howard's daughter informed me one of the Indians would lean against this tree while the others would shoot, to determine who could come the nearest to his head without hitting him. She pointed to bullet holes that were yet visible "

That giant oak becomes historic, if only for the fact -that at some time during each day its shadow would probably rest upon the burial place, or the sacrificial altars, of the ancient people, called the Mound Builders, of Fulton county ; and it surely each day casts its shade over the last resting place of two worthy men, of like thought; both true lovers of nature; both of like nobility of character; and both men of commanding influence in their respective circles. These two men, Winameg and Howard, noble chiefs, both of them, one of red skin, the other with white (while still seeking to secure fair treatment for the red), lie almost side by side. A visit to the spot prompted Frank

S. Flam, who had a profound respect for the late Col. D. W. H. Howard, to write the following verses, which are entitled: "At the Tomb of Winameg's Friend":

The Council Oak is historic also as the scene of an important council between white men and red; between the representative of the Federal Government, through young Dresden W. H. Howard, as interpreter, and Chief Winameg. That, according to Colonel Howard's own version, took place "in the spring of 1827, or 1828." That being so, it is probably erroneous to connect the .council with the Black Hawk war, for it was at another camp, that of Kin-jo-i-no, on the south bank of the Maumee, at the Rapids, and in the year 1832, that young Howard, then only fifteen years old, was so useful to the United States Government, in circumventing the machinations of the Sac chief, Black Hawk, who sought to disaffect, and stir to warlike action, the Ottawa and other tribes of northwestern Ohio. The council at Winameg presumably had as its purpose the honest purchase from the Indians of their priority rights to Fulton county territory; and Indian Agent Jackson, a near relative of President Jackson, in a letter written in 1832 to Edward Howard, father of D. W. H., referred to the boy, Dresden, who "speaks the dialects of the Indians, as I was pleased to learn on a former occasion," which presumably was that occasion in 1 827 or 1828 when the boy interpreted the treaty between Chief Winameg and the Government. Colonel Howard, in the last year of his life waited calmly for the end, and deliberately planned the order his obsequies should follow. Regarding the place of burial, he wrote:

"I was an interpreter for the Government at a council held under the Council Oak, by the aged Sachem (Chief) Winameg, who lies buried in the hill.

"And may we, too, when the drum beats the last roll call, be permitted to pitch Eternity's Bivouac on the hillside, in the shade of the beautiful trees planted by our own hands, and so bountifully watered by his loving kindness. So may it be."

"When I first saw this spot, the old Council Oak was pointed out to me. Upon its trunk were places cut where a prisoner had been tied by the Indians. Thousands of bullets were to be seen embedded about the spot where the unfortunate victim had come to his death. They had stood on the hill above, and, evidently from what we could learn, shot not to kill, but to see how near they could strike his body without inflicting death. The marks were plainly discernible for many years." "The oak tree will always be historic, perhaps, indeed, chiefly historic to Fulton county, because it was under its shade that the Fourth of July celebration was held by the pioneers of the township in 1848, or 1849, as has been described in the narrative by Mrs. MoClarren.

"Winameg, and that vicinity, also will be full of historic interest to the people of the county, because of its Indian history. Its Indian name was Neshe-naw-ba, although it had another French-Indian name, and "at a still earlier day" was called De-Mutre, meaning "the beaver," that name haying been applied to it because "the many ponds in the immediate vicinity were numerously inhabited by this sagacious little animal."

"Leaving the Council tree, we proceeded to the large woods, and followed the old Indian trail that still exists. At the east end of the woods, and north of the trail, the Indian camp Yoxey (Wyoxie) was located. In the winter of 1841, here Chief Yoxey (Wyoxie) died. The writer, and three others, including my father, made a rude box in which to lay the dead chief ; also his gun and tomahawk, and some powder. When the lid was being nailed fast, that part of the program was stopped by the Indians. They claimed the chief would get out at a better hunting ground some day."

By This Sagacious Little Animal

Mrs. McClarren's article has covered most of the essential history of Pike Township. Verity records that the Poplar Grove church was built about 1848, by United Brethren members, and the Bueler Church, in 1881, by the same church sect; that the 'St. Paul's Church, of the Evangelical faith, was built in 1881, in which year also a church of the Disciples was "rigged up for worship," in the Trowbridge school district; and that a church of the Seventh Day Adventists was built in 1881, in the Whitcomb school district, under the labors of A. Bigelow. The two present churches are moderately strong in membership, there being about one hundred members of the Disciples 'Church, and about seventy-five of the United Brethren.

The present schools of Pike Township are about equal to those of similar townships. There are no high schools, but the excellent school of Delta is within easy access to those elder scholars of Pike Township people who seek high school education. There are seven one-room schoolhouses, of rural class, in the township. These are valued at

The following are the present members of the Pike Township Board of Education: Frank Waldeck, president; W. B. Denius, clerk; 0. S. Geer, W. L. Campbell, D. B. Cook, Harry Double, directors.

It is obvious, therefore, that, as a purely agricultural community, Pike Township was fully settled in the '70s; and as a railroad does not touch any part of the township it has had little opportunity of developing in other industrial lines. It is, in places, however, beautiful country in which to live.

Chapter Xviii

York is the oldest of all the townships of Fulton county; in fact, the greater part of the land embraced in all the other townships of the county was at one time within the bounds of York. Prior to the establishment of Lucas county, the land was within the jurisdiction of Wood and Henry counties. Lucas county was created in 1835, and the whole of the present area of Fulton county, with the exception of a strip taken from Williams county on the west and from Henry county on the south when Fulton county was erected in 1850, was organized into one large township, called York. Subdivisions, however, came quickly. York Township was formed on June 0, 1836, but in the same year the organization of Swan Creek Township took a big slice off the eastern side of York. Chesterfield, Royalton, and Amboy were all formed in 1837, and possibly very few of the settlers within that northern strip (for the possession of which there was such a serious contention in 1835 between Ohio and Michigan), took the trouble to vote in the first York Township election, held in 1836. The organization of Clinton Township, in 1838, restricted York on the west. Pike Township was organized in 1841, and Dover in 1843, and York Township boundaries have been the same ever since, save that in 1850, a strip two miles wide was added to York, and other southern townships of Fulton county, that strip being ceded by Henry county.

York Township is generally level; its soil is inclined to be heavy, the greater part of York being in the Black Swamp area, and the soil is very near to clay. Yet, there is a dearth of water in dry summers, the watercourses being apt to dry completely. In the northern part of the township the soil is sandy, and there is much gravel. Bad Creek runs through the township in a southerly direction.

There is some doubt as to who was the pioneer settler of York Town ship. William Jones is said, and is generally supposed, to have been the first settler, coming in May, 1834; yet, it is recorded that William, John, and James King came into the township also in May, of that year, and, by their testimony, William Jones was not then, to their knowledge, "in the woods."

John S. Trowbridge, the pioneer of Delta, was also in York in 1834, as were Cornelius and Alanson Trowbridge, and the Hampton family. The King record also refers to Elisha Trowbridge and a Swiss family, named Schlappi, as being "in the woods" in 1834, early. Of course, most of the pioneers of York Township, may strictly bie considered to be pioneers of York Township, as that township, when organized in 1836, embraced almost all of present Fulton county; but the endeavor of the compiler of this work is to place the records in the history of the township of which the land entered by the respective settlers ultimately became a part.

Settlers during the next five or six years included: 1835, Abram Cole, and family; 1835, or 1836, Peter Wise, Gilman Cheedle, William Fowler, David Childs, Bethuel Gould, Jefferson Van Fleet, Martin Butler, Charles Gray, Thomas Wardley ; 1836, Robert MeClarrcn, Gardner Tremain, and his wife Elizabeth; 1837, James Trowbridge and family; 1838, Moyer family; Henry Flubart, H. Whitney, James McQuilling, and G. B. Lewis were also early settlers, but the year of their coming is not known.

During the '40s, the settlers included: John Batdorf, Samuel and Elizabeth 'Biddle, Alfred B. Gunn, Elijah Smith, S. R, Stebbms, George Wright, William Markle, Calvin Biddle, Mark Berry; Abner P. Brainard, John Harrison, S. B. Skeels, McLasky family, Adam Zedaker, Geoge Wood, and many others.

William King, with his wife, three sons and one daughter, and also his father and mother, were truly emigrants, for they came direct from Londonderry, Ireland. They intended going on to Defiance, but were persuaded by Peter Manor, a hotelkeeper at Providence, with whom they stayed for a night while en route in their wagon, to first go twelve miles north, to what was then known as Six Mile Woods. Accompanied by Manor they went. On the edge of Six Mile Woods they came to the cabin of William Meeker, who had settled in what is now 'Swan Creek Township, in the previous year, 1833. They hired him to guide them over the land, which the U. S. Government was prepared to sell for $1.50 an acre. They went due west to where Delta now stands; thence to York Center where they turned and went one mile south, thence east to the "oak openings," finally selecting land on section twenty-four. Then they returned to Providence, and King made a journey, on foot, to the land office at Waupakonetta. The road was so slushy that it took him three days, the route being along a "blazed" trail. Upon his return, he took his family onto the land he had entered, and erected his cabin, the family meanwhile living in the wagon. Within a month, they experienced one of the terrifying tornadoes which periodically leave a trail of devastation in Fulton county. That visitation left a track "two miles wide and thirty miles long" through the dense forest. "Its duration was about twenty minutes, and almost destroyed the forest; everything was a wreck in its path," and "everything" could have meant only the standing timber, for there was nothing else in its way, there being no habitations, save the "shanty" of Mr. King, which seems to have been almost miraculously "saved, amid the falling and crashing of timber," but "it required of the settlers eight days of steady work to cut their way out of this windfall."

John S. Trowbridge settled nearly a mile west of the present village of Delta, and eventually became a merchant in Delta. The Trowbridge family has good place in the records of York Township and Delta, and were good members of the Presbyterian Church of Delta. They were formerly from Saratoga, New York. He and his wife, Hannah Compton, became the parents of nine children, all of whom were born in Ohio. His wife's father, came into Fulton county at the same time, and purchased from William King an entry of eighty acres the latter had made in that year. James Trowbridge, who came with his wife and two children from Saratoga, landed at Perrysburgh on July 17, 1837, having made the trip from Albany, New York State to Toledo, and perhaps on to Perrysburgh, wholly by water, taking the canal route from Albany to Buffalo, then on Lake Erie to Toledo. At the time of their arrival at Maumee, the Trowbridge family found a great gathering of Indians had centered there, preparatory to being removed further west. On July 20, 1837, the Trowbridge family had reached the section in York Township upon which they were destined to live for very many years. James Trowbridge is stated to have been the first settler to conduct a store within what became the limits of the village of Delta. It appeal's, however, that Eli Kitts, of Maumee City, was the first storekeeper, James Trowbridge being second.

The Fowlers were from Pennsylvania, and later from Fairfield County, Ohio. It is believed that they came into the county of Lucas in August, 1835, settling in York. There were three sons, William, Thomas, and Robert, in the family at that time, and they all lived to establish worthy branches and to take good part in the development of Fulton county. William E. Fowler, son of Thomas, became a leading resident of Delta. He was twice mayor of Delta, being re-elected in 1902.

until 1870, when Mr. Clieadle retired to Wauseon. Ten children were born to them, and as a family they were much respected. Gilman Cheadle was postmaster for fourteen years, having been appointed by President Jackson.

Martin H. Butler was in the township certainly in 1836, and probably in 1835. He was the first township clerk of York and was one' of the first school examiners. Also he was one of the pioneer teachers.

Charles Gray headed a family of good record. He was of English birth, emigrating as a young man. He married Marilla Donaldson, who died in 1850. Charles Gray was married four times, and lived to a good old age. He cleared 120 acres in York Township. James Gray, his son, by his first wife, enlisted as a drummer-bov in the Union Army, when only fifteen years old, and saw some of the hardest war service with the Thirty-eighth Regiment, 0. V. I. He died in 1909. George was a successful builder and contractor in Lyons, and also had a good Civil war record. Edward Gray, who died in 1913, as the result of a fall from a scaffold at his home, near Wauseon, was at that time one of the olderi of the early residents of York Township. He was eighty-two years old, and he only lived for three days after the fall. He also was a soldier during the years of stress, 1861-65.

The MeClarren family, originally from Scotland, has been associated with Fulton county since 1836. Robert MeClarren, the progenitor, in Fulton county, of the family married Catherine Jones, sister of William Jones, the first settler in York.

William MeClarren, a worthy soldier of more than three years of Civil war service, was "well-known to a large circle of friends in Fulton county." He probably was the first born of the children of William and Catherine ( Jones) MeClarren. He was born in York Township on December 13, 1837, and died September 16, 1912, in Sandusky. To him, by his wife, Rebecca Alwood, were born seven children, including William B. MeClarren, of Winameg, and Judson MeClarren, of Wauseon.

Peter and Elizabeth (Monasmith) Zimmerman came from Wayne County, Ohio, in 1845, and located at Delta, where they died. They had nine children, including Martin, who was a drummer boy during the Civil war. Mart Zimmerman will be remembered by many for his activity in organizing, or being one of the principal organizers of the Grand Army Drum Corps, and the Fulton County Martial Band, which eventually took the place of the G. A. R. Drum Corps. For more than a generation he was prominent in such connection, the last occasion being that of the appearance of the band at the Grand Review of the G. A. R., at the Toledo Encampment, in 1908. He died in 1910. For thirty years he was a member of the U. B. Church. Simon Zimmerman, his brother, was throughout his life a prominent resident of Delta. For fifty-seven years he was a carriage and wagon builder in Delta, and was eighty -seven years old in the year of his death, 1911. He was one of the thirty-eight men who voted at the pioneer election of the village of Delia ; and he held several official connections with the local administration in later years. For eleven years he was township trustee, and was thrice elected mayor of Delta.

John and Elizabeth Batdorf settled on section 21 in 1842, where they raised a large family, including Aley M., "one of the pioneer teachers of the county," and for many years a deputy surveyor of Fulton county, and Aaron B., who became an active and useful citizen of Wauseon. He died in December, 1918, and his brother, Aley M., not long afterwards. The latter was a teacher in Fulton county schools for thirty-seven winters.

Henry Fluhart located on section seven, and was one of the most hospitable of the invariably hospitable and openhearted pioneers. His son, James, is referred to in the Press chapter, he being among the pioneer newspaper editors of the county.

The Rev. Uriah Spencer was one of the settlers in 1835, located on section 17. He was at one time auditor of Lucas county, and was one of the pioneer Methodist preachers of the neighborhood, although he came into the region to settle, and not to take clerical charge, his health having broken down. There are many references to his work elsewhere in this volume. Uriah Spencer married into the Mikesell family, and his son William married Emma Donaldson, who bore her husband eleven children, among them Frank, who still has the homestead in York Township, and is a successful farmer.

James Donaldson, who came into York Township in 1835, or 1836, was a veteran of the W ar of 1812 ; and although there is no record of it, it is believed that he was buried in Fulton county.

'Stephen R. Stebbins settled in York Township in 1844, entering land in section seven. His wife, whom he married in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, in 1840, was Sarah Abbott. Mr. Stebbins was early a justice of the peace in York Township, and also held other minor offices. He retired to Wauseon in 1883.

The Biddle family has been prominent in Fulton county history, especially in Wauseon. Samuel Biddle and his wife, Elizabeth, settled in York Township in 1842, on section seventeen. They allowed their cabin to be used as a school building, in the early '40s, some of the pupils being their own children. One of them, Stillman C., was for twenty-one years a justice of the peace in York Township, and for a period was township clerk. He later took up residence in Wauseon, and was long a member of the Baptist Church of that place. He died in 1916, aged eighty-two years. Many other men of worthy record in Fulton county are of the same patrvonymie, but are not of the family of Samuel. George D. Biddle settled in York Township in 1855, coming from Richland County, Ohio; and he also had a son named Stillman, and one named Samuel A. They were both successful farmers in York. Another of his sons was John L., who developed a fine farm in York Township, and later retired to Delta. Another Biddle family was that headed by Jacob Biddle, who settled in Clinton Township in 1855, buying a farm from Elisha Williams, the pioneer settler of that township.

Mark Berry came from Holmes County, Ohio, in 1842. His son, Mark AY. Berry, who died in 1913, aged seventy-seven years, was wellknown in AArauseon. For forty years he was a member of the Christian Church.

John Harrison is supposed to have come into York Township in 1840, or in about that year, and settled on section seventeen. For many years after locating in the township, he conducted a blacksmithing business on his farm. He married Elizabeth Wardley. Their son, Alfred D. Harrison, for the greater part of .his life was a successful farmer in York.

Benjamin Skeels was a stalwart pioneer. He and his wife and family came in 1840, and suffered many hardships during the first few years; in fact, Mrs. Skeels died three years after coming to Lucas county. An incident connected with her burial will give an indication of some of the handicaps under which the pioneers labored. It appears that the day of the funeral was a wet one, and owing to the state of the roads only the male members of the family accompanied the body to the graveside. The coffin, a roughly hewn one, was placed into an ox- wagon, and as the wagon with attendants passed what is now known as the Segrist farm, the state of the road at that point was so bad that the water almost ran into the wagon box. Upon another occasion, Benjamin Skeels worked for George Wright for twenty-two days, in order to earn sufficient to purchase a barrel of flour (worth at that time about fifty cents a bushel, at the mill). And in order to get the flour be had to go to Maumee, the journey both ways talcing five days. Thus he labored for practically four weeks for a barrel of flour. Later, Benjamin Skeels carried the United States mail, from Waterville to Fort Wayne, passing over the old plank road, which went through Delta. His daughter' Sarah Skeels, recollected that her father once stated that at Emerling's Corners, east of Delta, there was a toll gate during the days of the plank road. The mail route passed through West Barre and Ridgeville.

R. C. Skeels, now of Wauseon and in his eighty-fourth year, narrated some of his pioneer experiences in 1918. He is now practically confined to his couch, bv paralysis, but his recollection of early days in York Township is vivid. Tie was, in 1918, somewhat amused at the complaints made at that time by people who felt the "hard times" brought to the country by prosecution of the World War. He said:

"With all the restrictions that the government is placing upon us that we might win the war, we scarcely know what poverty, or hard times, means. I was born in Seneca county, this state, and when three and a half years old came to this county, April 20, 1840. My parents located on the farm now owned by A. T. Skeels, in York Township. There was not a foot of it cleared, and for miles and miles it was a dense forest.

"Within one week after our arrival, we were in our own home, a log shanty built without the use of a nail. This new home had a door and two windows.

"We had to go to Waterville for mail and flour, and it took us from two to four days to make the trip. The roads in York Township were trails, which wound over the ridges. Two of these old trails, from Providence and Waterville, met near where the Raker Church now stands in Swan Creek Township. Over these trails we used to drive with our oxen and lumber wagons, and we were just as happy as the boys and girls of today, as they go gliding along over the fine roads in their autos. I am glad they have things better than we had it, though I doubt if they have any more real pleasures than we. The gasless Sunday, and the two pounds of sugar, did not bother us in those days. Gasoline was unknown, and to have had two pounds of sugar would have been a luxury.

"There were only twelve voters in the township when we first located in York. There were no schoolhouses, but a little later Mrs. Pray taught in a log house

"When we came here the Indians had gone, but a number of their log, or pole, houses with pole roofs, still stood. There were plenty of wolves here in those days, but they did not molest the people, but bothered the sheep and poultry.

"I was married to Elizabeth Frederick, January 13, 1859, and we started housekeeping in a log house, on what is now Jonah Seymour's farm. We hauled all our household goods in a wagon, in one load

"Of that (Skeels) pioneer family, one brother was killed at Atlanta in the Civil war; another brother, A. T., lives on the old home farm; and two half-sisters, Sarah and Callie Skeels, reside in Wauseon.

"The pioneers who lived in the county (York Township) when we first came here, and whom I remember, were: John Wise, who lived on the Jas. Schamp farm; Garner and Warren Tremain, who lived where Jud Smith now lives; William Cheadle owned the Jacob Segrist farm; John Miller lived across the road from us, in what was then Ilenrv county ; Nate Wright, father of N. C. Wright, of this city, owned the George Myers farm."

The Segrist family is one of long residence in York Township, although it can hardly be termed one of the pioneer families, excepting insofar as it has participated in pioneer clearing of wild land. Jacob Segrist bought the William Cheadle farm. The first of the Segrist family to come into York Township was John B., who came in 1853 from Stark County, Ohio. He developed a valuable farm of 240 acres, and built a fine farm home. The Segrist family record is extensively referred to in the second volume of this work, and further reference is unnecessary here, unless one gives a personal reminiscence of Jacob Segrist, who remembered "pounding stakes for the Lake Shore

Railroad in 1853 ; and at that time, at Wauseon, "there were two swamps where the railroad park is now situated," he stated; also saying that "a north and south Indian trail traversed what is now Ottokee Street, Wauseon, from the north, and passed near the alleyway of the present Ham Block, on Depot Street; and from there it went south, near the Omler Building, and on to the southeast near Barber's old residence, on East Leggett Street." Jacob Segrist, in 1915, was eighty-seven years old, and "looked spry and walked more like a man of fifty," commented a local newspaper. Mr. Segrist asserted that he had only been sick "one or two times in his life," and had "only had the doctor once."

Of the early residents in York Township, probably one of the most widely-known in that part was Dr. William Ramsay, who for more than fifty years practiced in the county. He died in October, 1909, aged eighty-two years, fifty-seven of which had been spent in Fulton county. After he had graduated from the Reserve Medical College, at Cleveland, he returned to his home in Bolivar, Ohio, to resume school teaching and to practice medicine, but "the Great West beckoned to him, and he obeyed," states an obituary, which continues: "Taking his horse and pill bags, he started across the country to find a location, and after several days travelling arrived at Napoleon, where he expected to locate. The evening of his arrival he met a contractor, who said: "Young man! This is no place for you. Go to Delta. It's a prosperous settlement, and with the building of a railroad it will be a good location." The next morning "found Dr. Ramsay seated in his two-wheeled gig, with his horse headed for Delta. While crossing the creek, just north of Napoleon, he lost his saddlebags and medicine. He arrived in Delta with his horse, gig, and seven dollars in money. In the forests which spread over Fulton county in 1852, Dr. Ramsay found his gig of very little use to him, as most of his trips were made over cow-paths, or Indian trails. Only the physician of the pioneer days can tell of the hardships which were endured by them, as they were enroute to some settlers' cabin to offer relief, or how they became lost in the woods and were compelled to sleep out-of-doors all night. Dr. Ramsay knew what this meant, as he had endured it all." For many years Dr. Ramsay was the principal owner, latterly sole owner, of a banking business in Delta. The Bank of Delta was founded by him, and by David C. Teeple, in 1868, and it was successfully operated until the death of Dr. Ramsay, in 1909.

Valentine Emerling settled in York Township in the '50s, and lived there until 1911, when he died at the age of ninety-one years. He was a man of strong character, and fine personality, and was widelyknown as "Grandpa" Emerling.

A reviewing of the lives of worthy York Township residents could take up many more pages of this chapter, but as many of the prominent families will be given extensive review in the second volume, the remainder of this chapter will be chiefly confined to township and town history, thus avoiding unnecessary double recording.

was the township clerk elected at the first election in 1836, there is nothing on record until the year 1866, when the township officers were: Simon Zimmerman, William Struble, and J. H. Williams, trustees; Matthew Sutton, clerk; A. H. Smith, treasurer; Emanuel Batdorf, assessor; E. W. Cleveland, and Isaac Pontius, constables; Samuel Gertgey, John McQuilling, S. B. Brown, Charles Wright, Calvin Biddle, B. B. Biddle, Daniel Saulpaugh, John Gee, Andrew Biddle, A. H. Smith, S. G. Aumend, Samuel Pontius, R. C. Skeels, William Struble, John Elton, E. Batdorf, J. B. Segrist, and Eli Timbers, supervisors. From that time forward the record of trustees is complete. The succession is as follows :

Addison Thompson for a generation was one of the successful business men of Delta. He was the head of a large cheese manufacturing plant established by his father in 1869. A. S. Thompson was one of the founders of the Farmers National Bank of Delta, in 1900. He was at one time county commissioner.

Allen S. Trowbridge, who was a township trustee for eight years, died in 1911, aged eighty-six years. He was a Presbyterian, and was well-known throughout the county.

of strict integrity, of high moral principle and of a sunny, genial disposition." He owned a large farm in York and Swan Creek townships, until he retired to Delta, where he died.

Andrew J. Fraker, trustee for five years, is known to most of the agriculturalists of Fulton county, in his capacity of president of the Fulton County Agricultural Society. He is a successful retired business man, and banker. For some years he was township treasurer.

At the outset, the settlers in York Township had to go from twelve to twenty miles to the river for their mail, the delivery passing up the river weekly. Later, Benjamin Skeels carried the mail 'between the river and Fort Wayne, over the Plank Road, and then probably there

Delta, west to West Unity, in 1838, running upon the state road, which was opened in September, 1834, after a survey carried through in that year by Judge Ambrose Rice, who some years later settled in Dover Township, but only for a few years, as he died of consumption in the early '40s.

York Center was the first postoffiee established in York Township, that office being two and a half miles west and one mile south of Delta, There was a postoffice named Delta established by William Meeker, on the farm of S. H. Cately, in Swan Creek Township in 1838, and it became the postoffiee for York Township residents. In 1842, however, the postoffice was removed to Delta. Thus, the village which developed near the Trowbridge settlement received a name. Another postoffice, on the south, was that of Beta, which strictly was in Henry county until 1850. it being within the two mile strip then ceded from Henry county to Fulton.

The village of Delta for many years was a keen rival of Wauseon, and it is still the second in importance of the incorporated places of Fulton county. It is probably the oldest village in the county, its beginning dating back to 1834, when the Trowbridge family settled nearly a mile west of the present village. In 1838 there were two families living on the banks of the creek: that of James McQuilling, on the south side of the state road ; and that of G. B. Lewis on the north side. McQuilling ran a saw and water mill, and Lewis seems to have catered to travelers. He opened what probably was the first temperance hotel in the county ; and he conducted a certain amount of trading in tea and tobacco, and maybe in other stores; although he is not considered to have been the first merchant of Delta. That honor seems to have been allotted to Eli Kitts, or James Trowbridge. James Trowbridge's store was on his farm, but Eli Kitts came from Maumee City, in 1841, and opened a store on, or near, the present site of Delta, in the next year he died, and at that time the families of Delta numbered four, the McQuilling, McKaskev, Zedaker, and Woods; and in that year, by the removal to it of the Delta postoffice, before-mentioned, the little hamlet became recognized under that name. The next storekeeper, after Kitts, was a man named Griswold. Next came Dan Cummings.