Pittsfield Township

History

BouNBED upon the iiortli by Russia, east by La Grange, soiitb by Wellington, and west by Camden, lies Pittsfield, township number four, in range eighteen. Its surface, except in the northwestern part, where it is almost a perfect level, varies from the gently undulating to the moderately uneven. The soil is jirincipally a soft clay, though a clay loam is found in many places, and occasionally, in the northwestern quarter particularly, there a]ipears sandy and gravely loam. A very good article of sandstone appears in the Ited of a small creek, half a mile west of the center, and the same geological formation is observable in lot twenty-one, in the northeastern portion of the township. The stoue comes to the surface in tiie latter place, rendering quarrying practicable. This industry, by the way, has been for some time carried on in a small way, though large enough to meet all demands, by V. McRoberts.

The principal stream within the limits of the township is the west branch of Black river, which, entering the territory at the southern line, midway between tiie eastern and western boundaries, winds a tortuous course toward the extreme eastern corner. Wellington creek flows from south to north along the eastern boundary of the township, and several small brooks diversify the western half of the town.

Original Owners

The original owners of Pittsfield, with the number of lots they possessed, were the following: Elisha Tracey, seventy-five lots; Lewis Devotion, twenty lots; Joseph Barnham, nine lots; Richard MeCurdy, twenty-one lots; Samuel Dorrence, twelve lots, Wm. Perkins, thirteen lots; John McClellan, four lots; and J. Ward, six lots - whole number of lots in the township, one hundred and sixty.

J. Ward probably sold out to Simon Perkins, and Perkins sold or gave the tract to the Western Reserve College. Milton Whitney bought the Dorrance tract of one Keeler.

Settlement

The first white men ever known to have been inhabitants of this township were a man by the name of Baker, and his two sons. As early as 1812 or 181.3, they cleared a small spot of ground on the northeast corner of lot ninety-six, and built a log cabin. They )emained here for some time, but fear of the Indians and the British soldiers, who were at that time scouring the country, induced them to leave. The father is known to have gone into the army of the United States, and whether his sons also entered the militai-y service is a matter of conjecture. They remained in the vicinity some time after his departure. It is not improbable that these men made the original survey of tiie township. A fact pointing to this conclusion was the discovery of a lot of surveyor's instruments in their cabin a number of years after they left. Their names were also mt'ntioned as surveyors in some of the deeds given the first settlers.

In 1819, when the townshi]) was surveyed into lots and divided between the purciiasers, Milton Whitney became a large owner. He came from the east in the following year, made an examination of his land, and induced a couple of enterprising young men to settle upon it. Tiiomas Waite, of New York State, originally settled in Amherst township, but, after a short sta}', removed into Russia. His sons, Jerry and Thomas, were the first men who went into Pittsfield with the intention of permanent residence. Milton Whitnev gave each of them fifty acres of land in lot one hundred and seven, and they took up their abode upon it in the spring of 1821. Jerry Waite died iu early life. Thomas Waite is in his seventy-eiglith year, and resides upon almost the exact site of the rude log cabin which he erected half a century ago.

Henry and Chauncey Remington came into the township from Soutiiwick, Massaeimsetts, in the fall of 1833, each receiving from Mr. AVhitney a farm of fifty acres, as remuneration for cutting twenty acres of timber. Both removed from the township before 1830. Chauncey died in Henrietta in 18(J0. His widow married Lucius Washburn, of Henrietta, with whom she is now living, aged seventy-five years. Henry is in Amherst. About the same time, in all probability, though possibly before, came a man named Smith, and his sons, Charles and Joel, from New York. Joel settled on lot twenty-four with his father, and Charles took up a farm in lot forty-four.

Following tiie Smiths came John Norton, who settled on lot one hundred and twenty-eight, and who, it is said, built the first frame bara in the townsiiip. Norton died some time previous to 1830.

L. D. Boynton, father of Judge W. W. Boynton, became a temporary resident of the township soon after the Smiths and Norton came in. He built a cabin upon lot one hundred and thirty, but made no purchase of land and remained but a short time.

Samuel Ratliburn and two sons, Daniel and George, came from New York State in 1838, the father and younger son settling upon lot sixty-four and Daniel upon lot fifty-seven.

Aljout the year 1830, ^\'nl. I'liillrr and live sons from the Em[iire State, settled on lot thirty-seven, and, in the same year, came Samuel Wightman, who located on lot seventeen, and Petcu- Beam and his son Joseph, who took up their residence on hit twonty-five.

William Mat.cham and his son-in-law, Levi L. WowcU, came to the township in 1831. Sullivan h'dwcll a,nil his sons, .lohu fj., James, C. B. and Levi, came later from Granville, Massachusetts, and settled on lot one hundred and nine. 'I'lie Matchams were fi-iim I'ittsfleld, in the same State. Edward came the year before his fatlier, and settled njion lot one hundred and twenty-tive, on the old State road, about one mile south di the center, where he still resides. He married Abigail 'I'inker, of Rochester townsliip, April 8, 1835.

Teter McRoberts was the first arrival after the organization of the town. About this time settlers came in quite fiist, and it is impossible even to name them all. There arc in Pittsfield three families of Whitneys, and a circumstance that seems somewhat singular, is that they bear no relationslii[) to each other. Milton Whitney came from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in 18"^(t, the year after the survey had been made, and, after making arrangements for the Waites to settle, as has previously been related, returned to his home in tiie east, lie took uj) his permanent residence in this townshiji in 1834. He had five sons, S. D., Oliver W., Asa W., Jlenry and Frederick, and two daughters; the first-named son now lives upon lot one hundred and sixteen. Josepii Whitney, the head of another distinct family, came about the year 1833. His sons, Ira E., Cepha, Mark and Augustine, live in Pittsfield, and Loren and Aaron T. in Oberlin, and Norman iu Florida. Nathan Whitney, the third original settler bearing the same name, but no relation to the other two, came into the township about the same time, and is represented by his son Ira, who lives upon lot seventy-two; another son, Abram, is in Olierlin.

(Cornelius Gilford and sons, John Nye, Cornelius F. and Sidney, came about the year 183.5. .John Nye had one son and three daughters by his wife, Roxy Messenger, of Windham. Cornelius Gitford had also foui- (laughtei's, the youngest of whom is the wife of JMark Whitney. Daniel and Sally Wilder came in 1835 from Vermont. Jesse Bradley came about the same time, and settled upon the center road toward the southern part of the township, afterwards selling out to Bethuel Phelps who is the oldest man in the township at this writing, (1878) being in his ninety-second year. William Lucas and sons, William, Ira and David, and his son-in-law, Hiram Welch, came about the same time as the above. David W. Davis came in about the year 1834, and in the following year John Ives moved from Portage county, where he had emigrated in 1815, and settled upon lot fiftyeight. James R. Ward came iu 183G from Vermont, and settled upon a farm of one hundred acres in lot one hundred and three. His wife is Lucinda, daughter of Ira Smith. The Worcestors, Samuel, his sons .John, James, Frank, Joseph, David and Emerson, were early settlers. Henry is now living on lot seventy-eight, and Horace II., a son of John, on lot seventy-seven. Samuel A. Root came in 1837 with liis father, mother and one brother from Massachusetts. He settled upon lot seventy-nine where he still resides, but owns land, also, in lots eighty-two and eighty-three. Jared Watkins and wife came from Morristown, St. Lawrence county. New York, in 1835, and settled on the State road north of the center. In 1843 came R. S. Sheffield. He lived in Camden a number of years, but has been longest and most prominently identified with Pittsfield township. He married Delia II., a daughter of Jared Watkins. Denis Horton and wife, F. S. Horton, settled, several years later, upon lot ninety-one. Thej' were from Rutland, Vermont. Gaylord Ferris came in 1834. Orlando Hall came in 1835 from Vermont, and settled in the northeastern part of the township. His wife. Lucetta Hall, is still living. The Proberts, James and Sarah, were from England. Their descendants were Eliza, .lohn, George W., James W., David G., Albert B. find Sarah A. (Mrs. Wat-kins, of Pittsfield). (feorge W. Probert also lives in this town ship, lot seventy-three, and owns a farm of about two hundred acres. .James W. is dead, and the other descendants of Jamcj and Sarah live in Oberlin. Lewis Shaw came into the township in 1847, and settled on lot one hundred and fifty-two or one hundred and fifty-three, but now resides near the center. Edward Rogers, a native of England, sixty-two years of age, settled first (1845), in the eastern part of the town, on lot fifty-nine, but removed, several years since, to a comfortable home near the junction of the north and south center and State roads. In 1845 came, also, Joshua West and his sons, Oliver, Washington and Amasa, from Massachusetts. They settled jn Wellington in 1833, but did not remove to Pittsfield until the year first mentioned. Oliver West lives at the center; Mrs. Polly, the widow of Washington, with her son, W. West, on the center road, half a mile west of the center, and Amasa is in Henrietta. Carlos Avery came in 1843, and settled on the State niad (lot one hundred and forty five) soutli of the center. Ephraim K. Avery, a Methodist minister, came from Connecticut in 1851, and from the time of his settlement uj) to his death had much to do with the Methodist church of Pittsfield. His son, Edwin K., and a daughter, Mrs. R. T. Worden, now live in the township, the former upon lot ninety-five, on the north and south road, a short distance south of the center. E. R. Bement, sou of Nathaniel Bement, of

LaGrange, came into the township about 1840. Wm. Billings came in 183G: also L. D. Glynn and F. E. Parsons. Erastus Campbell settled on lot one hundred and eleven, the old Remington farm, in 1857, and though not as old a resident as many others, is deserving of mention, because a representative man of the township.

Of the settlers who may properly be called pioneers, those who came into the township before its organization, only two remain to relate the incidents of their early days - Thomas Waite and Edward Matcham. Death has been, for the past few years, fast thinning the ranks, and a very large number have moved away. Mr. Edward Matcham counts upwards of a hundred and fifty heads of families who were in Pittsfield prior to 18-10, and who are now either dead or removed to other parts of the country.

Early Ixcidents

"The annals of a 'quiet neighborhood' would not be an inappropriate title for the history of Pittsfield township. It has been said that 'all of history, which is not biography, is the recital of deeds of violence and wrong doing, of rapine and ruin, of bloodshed and of war.' Pittsfield truly has no such history as this. He who asks the oldest inhabitant for thrilling anecdotes of adventure with wild man or wild beast, asks in vain. No romance but the everywhere existing romance of live and love, no tragedy but the oft and ever recurring tragedy of death, has been the cause of sensation or of horror. The dramatic is not here. The history savors only of the honest homespun, of simple, sincere, strong characters, who began bravely in the heart of the forest a hard fight for the comforts and conveniences of life. How well the fight was fought is shown by the condition of the community to-day. One has only to think for a moment, to see that a really vast victory has been won wherever city or village has been made, or where the earth has been dotted with human habitations. Every such place has a history which cannot be put into words - the history of man's efl^orts and achievements, and more than all, of his joys and sorrows, glad realizations and bitter disajjpointments - the hidden history of heart and soul.

We have already given the names of those early settlers who bore the brunt of the struggle against the stubborn obstacles to progress which a new country always presents. The duty now remaining to the historian is the presentation of whatever he has been able to glean in regard to early occurrences, and the building up of the social fabric. The pioneers of Pittsfield had but little experience with the Indians, and industrious interviewing fails to elicit description of bear hunt or tale of dangerous adventure with fierce animals.

A few Wyandot and Seneca Indians roamed through the woods, but they had no extensive encampment in the vicinity, and seldom appeared in bands of more than half a dozen.

Mrs. George Rathburn had quite a scare soon after she became a resident of this small community. She was all alone in the cabin, one day, when suddenly the doorway was darkened by the form of an Indian who demanded bread, brandishing a large knife fiercely as he did so, and pointing to the bake-kettle which was upon the fire. The woman made her unwelcome visitor understand that he could have some bread as soon as was it done, and he waited in stoical silence until the steaming loaf was turned oixt; then cutting off a large portion, he gave utterance to the customary grunt of satisfaction, and strode away into the forest as silently as he came.

Thomas Waite once killed a full-grown elk upon the farm of Edward Matcham, which, so far as can be learned, was the only animal of the kind that ever fell victim to an early settler's rifle. He shot the stag several times before he brought him down, and finally drove him into the bed of a small creek, where a well-directed shot finished his life. Mr. Waite, otherwise known as' "Uncle Tommy," had the antlers in his possession many years, and was very fond of the trophy.

Fike Axd Water

The great ordinance of earth and heaven that makes man and woman one, was first celebrated in the year 1823 or 1824. The bridegroom was Jeremiah Waite, and the bride Clara Smith. The ofliciating clergyman was the bride's father, the Rev. Nathan Smith. A hapi^y party assembled upon this occasion and a feast was served, of which potatoes are said to have formed the leading luxury. The wedded life began by this couple, was not of the character that fond lovers are wont to picture as their future, for if popular report is to be accredited, the young wife, when the blissful honeymoon had become only a recollection, applied verbal blister to the soul of Jeremiah. He sought advice and consolation from his father-in-law, who briefly and quietly replied to the husband's complaint: "When your wife throws fire, you must throw water." It was not very long before the practical minded man had an opportunity to act upon the suggestion given him, and as he had interpreted it literally, the result was somewhat startling to the wife. She began one day to pour forth "thoughts that breathe, and words that burn," and the husband immediately seizing two buckets, started for the brook, back of the house, and filled them. As soon as he returned to the cabin, he dashed the ice cold contents of one i^ail over the astonished woman, and then explaining that her father told him he must throw water whenever she threw fire, applied the second bucketful to thoroughly quench the eml^ers of her wrath. Cotemporary chroniclers have failed to note, carefully, the result of this phase of the water cure treatment, and so the value of the experiment is, in a measure, lost to the world.

The first life given, and the first life taken away, must in any household, be incidents fraught with the fullest intensity of joy and grief, respectiveh", that the humiin heart cau appreciate. And these events occuring in tlie midst of a small community, newly grown, in a strange and lonely forest country, where iiulividual lines are more closely knit together by the chords of sympathy, than they are in the bustling, selfish, sordid city, Ining hapi)iness and sorrow to all, friend, neighbor and kindred. When we mention hero the date of the first death tiiat occured in Pittsfield, we place our finger upon a day in a calender more than lialf a century old, which brought a vast burden of sad and solemn feeling to every person then in tlie scattered little settlement. Mary, wife of Chauncey Remington, died August 18, 182-2. Her remains were laid in lot one hundred and eleven, the second farm cleared in the townshiii, and had their resting place there for many years, but were finally removed.

The first log house was the cabin built by the Bakers, - father and sons, - spoken of as the first white men ever known to have come into the township. Thomas Waite built the second. The first framed house was built by a man named Terry, in 1833, on lot ninety-five, and is still standing. The present residence of Edward Matcham is the second framed house still remaining. The first brick house was built in 1851, by Harris R. Sheldon.

The first tavern was presided over by John Sibley. It was upon lot forty-four, upon the old State road. The date of its erection was probably 1832. Horatio Harmon built a tavern not long after, on lot thirtyseven. David H. Ranney kept the first store, in connection with a hotel, south of the center.

Lewis Barnard received the first postmaster's commission, and kept the post office half a mile east of the center. The present postmistress is Mrs. Olimena Kingsbury.

The first cemetery laid out is now the resting ]ilace of many of the early settlers of tlie township. It is a well fenced and well kept enclosure, about a quarter of a mile east of the center, and belongs to tlie town. There is a small cemetery at the junction of the north and south center and State roads, owned by a private corporation, and still another in the northeast corner of the townsjiiji.

There was a branch of the underground railroad " through Pittsfield. Here, as elsewhere, obstructions were occasionally placed upon the track, for the purpose of stopping trains. We liave not the date, and it makes but little difference in the relation of the incident, but any way, during the days when the road was doing its largest business, two fugitive slaves, - a man and a woman, - were arrested in Pittsfield, by persons of pro-slavery feelings, and bronght before the bar of justice, which, in this case, was the bar of Squire Asa W. Whitney, and also, it may be said, the bar of Harmon's small but quite popular tavern. A question arose as to whether a justice court was :t court of record, the squire having no right to hold the fugitives, if it was not. Squire Clark, an eccentric character, desiring to have the runaway slaves held, and at the same time to have a little amusement, said in answer to Justice Whitney's anxious; query, "Is my court a court of record?" "Why, Squire, you keep a record, don't you? What more da you want to make a court of record? "' But the proof that he had power to hold the fugitives was not strong; enough to thoroughly convince the justice, and the captives were finally, after considerable discussion, sent to Elyria, where they were placed in the jail, from which they soon after made their escape, much to the joy of their abolition friends, and discomfiture of the sympathizers with slavery. There were in Pittsfield (piite a nunil)cr who held stock in the "underground railroad."

Kaisixgs Axd Whisky

About the only thing that the earlv settlers of the Western Reserve regarded as impossible, was raising^ a barn or building of any kind without whisky enough to more or less stimulate the muscles that managed to do all other kinds of work without its aid. So general was the belief that a man must drink liquor when engaged in a "rasin' bee," and sonearly universal was the custom of providing it on such occasions that it was almost a literal impossibility to get a building erected without conforming to the popular prejudice and throwing away principle for policy's sake. There was only one among fifty men, perhaps, upon the average, who had any decided aversion to whisky thirty or forty years ago, but when the majority tried te bend down that man's will, they generally found it too stiff to yield a hair's breadth, though the refusal might cause him a large inconvenience. Edward Matcham was, and is a strong temperance man, and when he built his barn, there were not enough temperance or total absistence men in the crowd which assembled, to raise the frame. He refused to furnish the necessary spirits, and finding him resolute in his refusal, the men dispersed, after partaking of other refreslunents. Soon after a neighbor - Ebenezer Parsons - had a raising, the liquor being duly brought forth. The building went up quickly, and then the owner standing upon a beam, made a brief address to his assistants, of which (as the newspapers say) the following is a verbatim report: "Men, I tell you what it is; we all acted like a lot of fools over at Matcham's the other day, and now I'm going over there for one, and I want all of you that's willing to raise that barn whisky or no whisky to follow me." He started, and one by one the good-natuved farmers followed after, strung out in a procession ten rods long. They started slowly, then walked faster to keep up witli their leader, and arrived at Mr. Matcham's upon a double-ijuick, took hold of the work with a will, tugged and i)ushed, and pulled and lifted with all of their

Just here it is not inaiiju-oiu-iate to say that I'ittstiekl is to-day the equal of any of its sister to\vnshii)s in point of tenii)erance and general morality. U'here is not at present, nor has there been for the past thirty years any saloon or place for the sale of lifjunrs. ale or beer within the town limits.

The town was early annexed to Wellington for townsiiip purposes, and later to other townships for military purposes. In 1831 it was detached upon the petition of its inhabitants, and incorporated as a separate and independent township, the name of Pittsfield being bestowed by Asa Whitney, who, with many other settlers, was from the town of Pittstield, Massachusetts.

Judges and clerks were appointed or chosen m December, 1831 - so the record states - and in April. 1833, the organization of the township was completed by the election of officers. Thirteen ballots were cast, and ten officers elected. Neither of the clerks was qualified for his position. One was a legal nonresident of the State ; the other not arrived at his majority. Their names were Asa W. Whitney and Edward Matcham. The Judges were George Rathburn, Lewis Barnard and Charles Smith. Following are the officers elected : clerk, George Rathburn : trustees, Joseph Terry, Samuel Wightman, John Sibley; supervisors, Charles Smith, Thomas Waite: overseer of the poor, Charles Smith; constable, Isaac Butler; fence viewer, George Rathburn; treasurer, Peter Beam. The officers elected in 1878 are the following: clerk, C. A. West; treasurer, Lewis Shaw; trustees, Mark Whitney, E. Campbell, Delos Sanders; assessor, James C. Clarke; justices of the peace, Richard Mills, Henry McRoberts ; constables, Adam Hanmer, William J. Rogers.

Religious Development

A Methodist class was formed in Pittsfield as early as 182-1 or the succeeding year, through the efforts of the Rev. Nathan Smith. Meetings were held regularly and irregularly, and the interest so increased that in the winter of 1831 two services were held once a month by a circuit preacher - the Rev. William Runnels. Rev. Mr. Smith left property, which, upon certain prescribed conditions, was to aid in the erection of a church edifice, but the society did not comply with the conditions, and so lost the benefit of the funds. It was not until many years afterward that this denomination had a house of worship in the town of Pittsfield, and in fact it was not until 184.5 that the present Methodist church was ushered into organic being and entered the arena as a part of the sacramental host of God. To the Congregationalists belongs the credit of founding the first of the two churches at present existing.

was organized April 25, 1830, under the name of the Evangelical Union Church of Christ. This church owes its being to Deacon William Lucas, a goodly and godly man, who, from the first, was unsparing in his efforts to promote the interests of morality and religion, lie rode tljrough the then sparsely settled township and personally interviewed the j)eople, to discover how many were favorable to the establishment of the church, and influenced, at one time and another, many men and women to identify themselves with the organization after it had been completed. The Rev. John J. Shi])herd, the founder of Oberlin, officiated at the organization of this church, assisted by the Rev. John Ingersoll. There were only nine constituent members, as follows: William Lucas, William W. Lucas, Sarah Lucas, Ann Lucas, Daniel Wilder, Sally Wilder, Joel Wilder, Mary Matcham and Mary Welch. William Lucas was the first deacon of the church, and Joel Wilder was clerk. The Eev. Ira Smith became pastor in 1842 or 1843, and three or four years after the present church building was erected. Previous to that time the society worshipped in various private houses, in school houses and in new barns. Barns were preferred to dwellings or school houses, because larger, and nearly every barn built in the township, prior to cne construction of the first church, has, at some time, sheltered a devout but small congregation, and echoed the earnest voice of the itinerant preacher as it rose in praise or was lowered in supplication. During most of the years intervening between the organization and the time when the first pastor was settled, there was stated preaching, and though the roads were often in an almost impassable condition, and the farmers had a long distance to come, the congregations were almost alw'ays larger in proportion to the population than those that now-a-days assemble to hear popular preaching. The Congregational church has, at this writing, a membership of sixtyeight persons. The pastor is Rev. C. C. Baldwin; the deacons, Oliver West and R. T. Werden; Miss Franc E. Y'oung is the clerk and treasurer. Of the nine original members of this church, only three or four are now living, and only one resides in the township - Miss Sally Wilder, nearly ninety-nine years old, but still retaining her faculties to a remarkable degree - as bright and cheerful an old lady as can be found in the county, or, for that matter, in the State.

About the same time that the Congregational chm'ch was organized, the close-communion Baptist and the free-will Baptist churches came into being. The former had a very small membership, and the latter numbered nearly as many members as the Congregational church. Both are now e.xtinct. The U^niversalists also had, for some time, a considerable

The present Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 1845, Rev. Hugh L. Parrish officiating. The original members were R. Mills. Edward Rogers, Ann Rogers, John Wilton, Eunice Staples, Cynthia Sheldon, Susanna Stone, Abigail Avery, Eliza McRoberts, Mary Brandyburg, J. Whetan, Jo]in Wright. Ann Wilton and Mary A. McClelland. R. ilills was class leader. The first four mentioned in the foregoing list, and also Cynthia Sheldon, are still living and members of the church. The church received several accessions in 1820, and there was a general revival in the winter of 1859, under the preaching of Rev. G. A. Reeder, the then pastor. Many young people, together with the heads of families, were converted. Over sixty persons united with the churcli at one time, upon a beautiful Sunday morning, the service being held in the maple grove upon the farm of R. T. Werden. Of the old members, some ha\'e removed to distant states, some lost their lives in the service of their country, and some - man}' - have died in the service of their chosen Master, and gone to receive the promised welcome, " Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.'" At present the church has fifty-four members. Following is a list of the officers of 18T8: trustees of the church, R. Mills, E. Rogers, H. A. Cole. G. D. Matcham, Wm. Daniels, J. Newcomb, S. Jordan; class leaders, R. Mills, H. A. Cole; stewards, D. G. Matcham (recording steward). J. Jordan, E. Rogers.

The first school in Pittsfield was located ou lot one hundred and thirteen, and was held in a small log cabin built for tke purpose. Miss Minerva Lovelaud was the first teacher. Edward Matcham began teaching in 1831 or 1832 and continued ten seasons, passing at thi.<! vocation, as he says, some of the most pleasant and profitable years of his life. His wife, Abigail Tinker, taught in 1833, receiving for her services, the then very fair sum of one dollar per week. Mr. Matcham had ten dollars per month.

There are at present eighi regular school districts, and a special district at the center. A handsome brick house was built here in the fall of 1878, and furnished with the latest and most approved styles of desks and seats. The directors who constitute the board in this special district, are David W. Davis. ]\Iark Whitney, and Bradford Blackmer. Mark Whitney is president: David W. Davis, clerk: and Richard ^lills, treasurer. The teacher emjiloyed in 1878 was Miss Mary Whitney.

Physici.Vxs

Dr. Daniel Howard was the pioneer physician of Pittsfield. He came into the township in the year 1835, and remained for a number of years, having quite a large practice. Previous to his taking up his residence here, the people made Dr. Eber W. Hubbard, of La Grange, their main reliance, in case the services of a physician were needed. Dr. Evans had a short experience of practice in the township, and was followed by Dr. D. M. Young, wlio commenced practice in 1845, and continued until his death, in 1870, winning the very general esteem of the peoi)le, alike by professional good qualities and his fine traits as a man and citizen.

Dr. C. H. Beech, the resident physician in 1878, was born in New Jersey, in 1812, and came to Ohio in 183(5, having graduated at the Jefferson medical college of Philadelphia. He first located in Wellington, where he remained until 1860, when he left, and spent ten years in various parts of the L^nited States, as widely removed as New Orleans and Long Island. In 1870 he returned to Ohio, and began to practice in Pittsfield, which has been very satisfactory both to people and physician. Nothing further need he said.

Industrial Pursuits

The cheese factory and creamery now owned by William Crozier, was built in 18fi9. by J. W. Worcester. It is located upon lot number eighty-three, about one and one-third miles east of the center. It was first operated by E. L. Tucker, and afterward by W. D. Fuller, of whom Mr. Crosier purchased in the latter part of July 1877. The factory has taken, most of the time, the milk of about four hundred cows, and has turned out from five to thirty cheeses per diem, beside a large quantity of butter. The amount of milk received per day has varied from fifteen hundred to ten thousand pounds. The cheese is manufactured for the farmers who furnish the milk, and is sold for them by Crosier & Sheldon, of Wellington.

Saw Mills

The first saw mill was built by Parsons & Whitney, on lot number one hnndred and thirty-five, as early as 1835 or 183C, and continued in operation for some time. su]iplying the neighborhood with lumber. There are at present two mills: one, the property of Ira Whitney, on the center road, two miles west, and the other, owned by Ebenezer Parsons, on lot one hundred and twenty-four. Whitney's mill has been running for about twenty-five years.

According to the statement of an old resident, the earliest roads in the township were railroads. It should be explained that by railroad is here meant the old fashioned necessary evil of corduroy road, made of split rails and small logs laid side by side, like the ties of a railway, but close together. These roadways were anything but pleasant to travel over, but were made because travel in any kind of vehicle would have been almost, if not cjuite, an absolute impossil)ility without them. In 1832, there were but three roads in the township. The State road, from Elyria to Wellington, crossed the township almost directly from north to south, and was the road most iu use. There was a rude, rough road from Russia township, down through Pittsfield, al)out jialf a mile from the western boundary: and a roadway was eho]iped out, but unfinished, from this to the State road, about a mile south of the center. It was upon this road that most of the early comers to the township toiled, to j)ay their property and poll taxes.