Stokes Township

Stokes Township

Stokes township is located in the extreme southwest corner of Madison county, being bounded on the north by Clark county and Paint township; on the east by Range township; on the south by Fayette county and on the west by Greene county. It was one of the original townships of the county and the commissioners' records have the following to say about its erection:

"April 30. 1810, ordered that all that tract of country contained in the following boundaries be and the same is hereby laid out unto a separate township, to be known by the name of Stokes, and is bounded as follows, viz. : Beginning at the southeast corner of Champaign county, and running in a southeast direction, on the north side of Big Prairie, east of John Moxer's, to the head of the East fork of Paint creek, and with the said East fork, including the inhabitants on each side of said fork, to the Fayette county line ; thence west to the corner of Greene county ; thence with the Greene county line to Champaign county line; thence with said line to the place of beginning, by order of the board."

The township election in 1810 was held, by order of the associate judges of Madison county, at the house of P. Cutright. There are no records available from which to find who were chosen to fill the various offices. All the township records before the year of 1833 have disappeared.

In the erection of Clark county in 1817, some of the territory of the township went to form that county. Again, in 1853, Paint township was erected and a part of the above-described territory embraced in Stokes township was taken t6 form a part of that township.

It is believed that Isaac Hudson, who located in this township in 1802, was the first white settler within the precincts of Stokes township. It was at his house that the commissioners and surveyors met preparatory to establishing permanently the boundary line between Greene and Madison counties, in September, 1810. He did not remain a resident of the township for a very long period of time afterward, but moved to Indiana and settled at Vincennes, where he was killed in the war that followed soon after.

Isaac Hudson was a son of Skinner Hudson, who was a native of England, but who, while quite young, left his native land, emigrated to America, settled in Kentucky, and in 1804 removed to Madison county, Ohio, settling near his son, Isaac. John K. and Austin, two sons of Skinner Hudson, were reared and grew to manhood in this township. John K. Hudson was born in Kentucky in 1799 and came to Ohio with his father. He married Hannah Mahaffey and they became the parents of twelve children. Mr. Hudson was a man of undoubted character and an active and useful citizen. He died in 1872. The Hudson family were ever first and foremost in the improvements and progress of the country, in the promotion of morals, education and Christianity. They were hospitable, kind-hearted and good neighbors, just such persons as were needed to open up a new country and lay the foundations of true principles which were to make the country prosperous and happy.

James Curry, a native of Pennsylvania, married Isabel Roland and. in 1806, emigrated to Ohio, settling in Stokes township, on what was later known as the James S.

Moon farm. He remained a citizen of the township and county throughout his long and useful life. He was the father of eight children. He died on April 21, 1871. John Kelso settled in the township in 1808. Noble Ladd settled on Skinner Hudson's land about 180S, also. Andrew Rea. a native of Virginia, became a settler of Stokes township about 1808 or 1810, and located on land later owned by the Gordons. He had a large family of children, of whom were William, Robert, Thomas, Jesse and James.

John Moon, a native of North Carolina, made the entire distance from his ancestral home to the then frontier state of Ohio in a wagon and settled on land in the north part of Fayette county, near the Madison county line, in 1808, remaining there until his death. He was the father of ten children. Many of his children settled in Stokes township and his son, Aaron, served as a trustee of the township for twenty-five years and as its treasurer for twenty-six years. Jonathan, his second son, was a township trustee for twenty-three years.

Samuel Herrod was born in 1776 and became an early settler of Greene county, Ohio. His wife, Mary, was born in 1700. They settled in Stokes township about 1814-15. sharing all the trials and hardships of the early settlers and pioneers. He died in 1857 and his wife in 1S66. He became quite a large landholder.

Samuel Hornbeek, a native of Bourbon county, Kentucky, became a settler in this township about 1S15 or 1816 and remained a citizen of the township until his death, July 26, 1868. He served during the War of 1812. He was the father of fifteen children. Jacob Selsor, a native of Virginia, came to Ohio in about 1815 and settled in Stokes township, and here he married Elizabeth McHenry, who was a native of Kentucky. He died in 1842 and his wife in 1864.

David Selsor was born in Virginia in 1S06, a son of John and Mary Selsor, who also were natives of Virginia, and emigrated to Ohio when David was a boy, probably about 1815 or 1816, settling in this township, where they remained until their deaths. David, when but a boy of sixteen, commenced his career as a farmer and stock-dealer, exhibiting in his boyhood days that aptness and shrewdness as a trading man and financier which, in after years, won for him wealth and laurels. He was known from the Atlantic to the Pacific as one of the greatest stock dealers of Ohio, and perhaps second to none for fine-blooded stock. At the time of his death, January 12, 1882, he owned nearly three thousand acres of land, on whose broad acres roamed large herds of stock, many of which were of the finest breeds of blooded animals. In the summer of 1882. after his death, this stock was sold at public auction and many prominent dealers from various states and Canada came to buy.

George Linson, who was born in Virginia, January 7. 1790, married Elizabeth Hutsinpillar. who was born on Dec-ember 24, 1792. They emigrated to Ohio and settled in Stokes township about 1815, where they resided until their death, Mrs. Linson dying in June, 1845, and Mr. Linson in April, 1855. Mr. Linson came to this portion of the state when it was new and almost a wilderness, and bore a good share of the pioneer privations, but he eventually became possessed of a fine farm and a large competency. He was a man of undoubted character and a highly respected neighbor and citizen. They reared a family of children, who grew up and became prosperous and honored citizens.

Isaac McHenry, who came to Stokes township when a boy. probably in 1816 or 1818, was born in Kentucky, June 4, 1801. Pie was married in Stokes township to Christina Selsor, a native of Virginia. She died in 1832, and he married; for his second wife. Nancy Flood, who survived him. He died in 1874.

Joseph Thomas, a native of North Carolina, settled in Paint township in the period from 1815 to 1818. He was generally known as the "White Pilgrim." He made the trip (11) from North Carolina on foot, and soon afterward returned to his native state, where he married a Miss Ridenhour, and brought her to his new home in, the eastern portion of Stokes township. He was a preacher in the Christian church, and, shortly after locating here, had preaching at his home and soon organized a church, of which he was for several years the pastor. He also traveled and preached at many other places over the surrounding country, being one pf . the ablest defenders of the doctrines of that faith who ever talked in this part of the state. He was also an active worker and a prominent man in the Masonic order, and was finally sent into, the Eastern states to travel in the interests of that order; while there he took the small-pox, from \yhich he died. Subsequently some minister of the Christian denomination visited his grave, and wrote and published a very expressive and beautiful hymn on his life and character.

Lot Bozarth was bora in Virginia in 1792, and early emigrated to Stokes township, Madison county, settling on the land that is still known as the Bozarth farm. Here he married Nancy Rea, who was bom in Maryland in 1802. They later removed to White county, Indiana, where they lived a few years, when they returned to Stokes county and here spent the, remainder of their years. He died on April 7, 1872, and his wife, March 12, 1878. Mr. Bozarth was a kind neighbor and a good citizen, and held several offices of trust in the township.

Early Settlers

The above mentioned may be truly called the pioneers of Stokes township, but there remain a few sturdy sons and daughters who deserved an honorable mention, as they, too, bore a part of the brunt of developing the township. Jessie Pancake was born in Virginia in 1801. He emigrated to Ohio and settled in Ross county in 1812; thence, about 1820, or soon after, he located in this township, where he married Martha Cooper, who was bora in this county in 1814, of a true pioneer family. Mr. Pancake spent his life in this community and became one of the honored and well-known citizens of this township, held many of its offices and was in every respect a most worthy citizen. . His wife died in 1839, just in the bloom of womanhood. He died in 1877. He made farming his business throughout life and became the owner of a beautiful farm of twelve hundred good .acres in the township. He was the father of John Pancake, who also became an honored and respected citizen of the township. Thomas Cooper, a native of North Carolina, came to this township, perhaps as early as 1810 or 1812, and died about 1840. He possessed a very limited education, but had a sprightly, active mind and good business faculties. He died early in life, yet owned about a thousand acres of land, and doubtless, had he lived, would have become wealthy.

Peter Slaughter, who was born in Virginia, moved to Highland county, Ohio, in an early day and. in about 1820-25, removed to Madison county, settling in Stokes township, on Paint creek, where he resided until his death, in the fall of 1804. He married Elizabeth Cooper, by whom he was the father of eleven children, of whom ten grew to maturity., Mr. Slaughter married, for his second wife, Anna E. Lynch, who was the mother of three children. He commenced life in very limited circumstances, but was possessed of great business tact, energy and resourcefulness. He entered largely into the stock business and became one of the biggest stock dealers of the county, being well known all over the state. He was possessed of an extensive acquaintance and an unlimited credit, which he maintained throughout life, and died wealthy, owning three thousand acres of land.

Moses Thomas, a native of North Carolina, married Catharine Williams, a native of Virginia, where they were married ; they emigrated to Fayette county, Ohio, in 1825. and soon afterward came to Madison county, settling in Stokes township, where they remained until their death. Two of their sons. Benjamin and William, remained resb dents of the township and became among its most trusted and respected citizens. Will- iam Cooper, a native of North Carolina, emigrated to Fayette county, Ohio, when a young man ; in 1828 he married Elizabeth Merriman and settled in Stokes township, Madison county, where he spent his life. His wife died in 1865. Jacob Smith was the eldest of six children of Mathias and Margaret Smith, who emigrated to Cincinnati in 1806, and in 1807 removed to Greene county, settling on Beaver creek, where they died. Jacob was born in Maryland in 1803; was reared in Greene county, Ohio; married Amanda Herrod ; settled in Stokes township, this county, in 1836. Here he opened out in the woods and made considerable material progress. The west and north parts of the village of South Solon are built on his land. Joel Ervin, born in Ohio in 1811, settled in Stokes township in 1830^35.

Surface, Soil And Streams

Like the remainder of the county, the surface of Stokes township is slightly undulating. The land has a gentle, gradual slope from the northern to the southern boundary, such that all the creeks flow from north to south. There are no large streams within the township. The soil is rich and very productive, and all the flat and more level portions of the township are composed of a rich, black loam, while the undulations and higher portions are a loam and clay, the whole being underlaid with a stratum of clay, and this, in turn, with a limestone gravel. The township is well watered and, with her clay subsoil, seldom suffers from drought. In her primitive condition, as the settlers found her, there were many acres of low, level portions in prairie, destitute of trees and covered with sedge, often six to eight feet high. Other portions were sparsely covered with trees, with a thick undergrowth of hazel brush. The timbered portions consisted principally of the various species of oak - white, black, red and burr - with some elm, walnut, hickory and maple, white and burr oak predominating.

Paint creek, the largest of the streams, enters the township from the north, flows through surveys 5.7S1 and 3,983, and flows in a zigzag southern course entirely through the township, leaving it in the middle of the old Bailey lands, at a point almost due south of the point at which it enters the township. This stream is fed by a number of fine springs along its way, which makes the stream an extraordinary good one for watering stock. Sugar creek, the second stream in size, enters the township from the north and flows directly south through the center of the township into Fayette county. There are two small streams that drain the western portion of the township. The first flows southward through the township, a little west of South Solon, and on through Fayette; county and empties into Rattlesnake creek, of which it is a branch. The other flows through the extreme western portion in a southwesterly direction, enters Greene county, and finally empties into the Little Miami river. - These streams, located and distributed as they are, give excellent opportunity for the ditching and draining of the land, and. with the general richness and productiveness of the soil, constitutes them among the best lands of Madison county.

Early Schools

Undoubtedly one of the first public schools in this township was a log house on the land later owned by James Crawford. Mr. Burley was the first teacher. This was about 1830. The next school house was built on land later owned by John Murray. There was also a log house for school purposes on Samuel Harrod's land about 1831. The first teacher here was Mr. Sears, who was a rigid disciplinarian and created some difficulties in the neighborhood because of his severity with some of the boys. This, however, was no exception in that day, as good physical powers and the ability to chastise the pupils was almost as great a qualification to teach in those days as were intellectual attainments.

Source changes here: from History of Madison County Ohio, by Chester E. Bryan, published 1915; 2,613 words in this source stream.

Stokes Township

Stokes township is located in the extreme southwest corner of Madison county, being bounded on the north by Clark county and Paint township; on the east by Range township; on the south by Fayette county and on the west by Greene county. It was one of the original townships of the county and the commissioners' records have the following to say about its erection:

''April 30, 1810, ordered that all that tract of country contained in the following boundaries be and the same is hereby laid out unto a separate township, to be known by the name of Stokes, and is bounded as follows, viz.: Beginning at the southeast corner of Champaign county, and running in a southeast direction, on the north side of Big Prairie, east of John Moxer's, to the head of the East fork of Paint creek, and with the said East fork, including the inhabitants on each side of said fork, to the Fayette county line; thence west to the corner of Greene county; thence with the Greene county line to Champaign county line; thence with said line to the place of beginning, by order of the board."

The township election in 1810 was held, by order of the associate judges of Madison county, at the house of P. Cutright. . There are no records available from which to find who were chosen to fill the various offices. All the township records before the year of 1833 have disappeared. .

In the erection of Clark county in 1817, some of the territory of the township went to form that county. Again, in 1853, Paint township was erected and a part of the above-described territory embraced in Stokes township was taken to form a part of that township.

It is believed that Isaac Hudson, who located in this township in 1802, was the first white settler within the precincts of Stokes township. It was at his house that the commissioners and surveyors met preparatory to establishing permanently the boundary line between Greene and Madison counties, in September; 1810. He did not remain a resident of the township for a very long period of time afterward, but moved to Indiana and settled at Vincennes, where he was killed in the war that followed soon after.

Isaac Hudson was a son of Skinner Hudson, who was a native of England, but who, while quite young, left his native land, emigrated to America, settled in Kentucky, and in 1804 removed to Madison county, Ohio, settling' near his son, Isaac. John K. and Austin, two sons of Skinner Hudson, were reared and grew to manhood in this township. John K. Hudson was born in Kentucky in 1799 and came to Ohio with his father. He married Hannah Mahaffey and they became the parents of twelve children. Mr. Hudson was a man of undoubted character and an active and useful citizen. He died in 1872. The Hudson family were ever first and foremost in the improvements and progress of. the country, in the promotion of morals, education and Christianity. They were hospitable. kind-hearted and good neighbors, just such persons as were needed to open up a new country and lay the foundations of 'true principles which were to make the country prosperous and happy. s

James Curry, a native of Pennsylvania, married Isabel Roland and, in 1806, emigrated to Ohio, settling in Stokes township, on what was later known as the James S.

Moon farm. He remained a citizen of the township and county throughout his long and useful life. He was the father of eight children. He died on April 21, 1871: John 'Kelso settled in the township in 1808. Noble Ladd. settled on Skinner Hudson's land 'about 1808, also. Andrew Rea, a native of Virginia, became a settler of Stokes township about 1808 or. 1810, and located on land later owned by the Gordons. He had a large family of children, of whom were William, Robert, Thomas, Jesse and James.

John Moon, a native of North Carolina, made the entire distance from his ancestral 'home to the then frontier state of Ohio in a wagon and settled on land in the north part of Fayette county, near the Madison county line, in 1808, remaining there until his death. He was the father of ten children. Many of his children settled in Stokes township and his son, Aaron, served as a trustee of the township for twenty-five years and as 'its treasurer for twenty-six years. Jonathan, his second son, was a township trustee for -twenty-three years.

Samuel Herrod was born in 1776 and became an early settler of Greene county, Ohio. His wife, Mary, was born in 1790. They settled in Stokés township about 1814-15. sharing all the trials and hardships of the early settlers and pioneers. He died in 1857 and his wife in 1866. He became quite a large landholder. =

Samuel Hornbeck, a native of Bourbon county, Kentucky, became a settler in this township about 1815 or 1816 and remained a citizen of the township until his death, July 26, 1868. He served during the War of 1812. He was the father of fifteen children. Jacob Selsor, a native of Virginia, came to Ohio in about 1815 and settled in Stokes township, and here he married Elizabeth McHenry, who was a native of Kentucky. He died in 1842 and his wife in 1864.

_ David Selsor was born in Virginia in 1806, a son of John and Mary Selsor, who also were natives of Virginia, and emigrated to Ohio when David was a boy, probably about 1815 or 1816, settling in this township, where they remained until their deaths. David, when but.a boy of sixteen, commenced his career as a farmer and. stock-dealer. exhibiting in his boyhood days that aptness and shrewdness as a trading man and financier which, in after years, won for him wealth and laurels. He was known from the Atlantic to the Pacific as one of the greatest stock dealers of Ohio, and perhaps second to none for fine-blooded stock. At the time of his death,. January 12, 1882, he owned nearly three thousand acres of land, on whose broad acres roamed large herds of stock, many of which were of the finest breeds of blooded animals. In the summer of 1882. after his death, this stock was sold at public auction and many prominent dealers from various states and Canada came to buy. :

George Linson, who was born in Virginia, TRUTATY 7, 1790, married Elizabeth Hutsinpillar, who was born on December 24, 1792. They emigrated to Ohio and settled in Stokes township about 1815, where they resided until their death, Mrs. Linson dying in June, 1845, and Mr. Linson in April, 1855.. Mr. Linson came to this portion of the state-when it was new and almost a wilderness, and bore a good share of the pioneer privations, but he eventually became possessed of a fine farm and a large competency. He was a: man .of undoubted character and a highly respected neighbor and citizen. They reared a family of children, who grew up and became Drpepetcue and honored citizens.

Isaac McHenry. who came to Stokes ahi when a boy, probably in 1816 or 1818. was born in Kentucky, June 4, 1801. He was married in Stokes township to Christina Selsor, a native of Virginia. She died in 1832, and he married, for his second wife. Nancy Flood; who.survived him. He died in 1874..

_Joseph Thomas, a native of North Carolina, settled in Paint Cowuehiy in the period from 1815 to 1818. He was generally known as the "White Pilgrim." He made the trip from North Carolina on foot, and soon afterward . returned to hig native,state, where, ;he married a. Miss Ridenhour, and, brought, cher to his pew home in the eastern , portion .of Stokes township. He wag 9 preacher in the Christian church,..and, shortly after locating heré, | had preaching , at, his home and soon organized a church, of which he. was. for several years the pastor., He also traveled and preached at many other places over the surrounding. country, being one of the ablest. defenders of the, doctrines of that. faith who ever talked din. this part of the state. He was_.also an active worker and .a prominent man in the Masonic order, and was finally. sent into the Pastern .states to travel in the interests of that order ;, while there he took the .small-pox,. from which ,he, died, Subsequently some minister of the Christian denomination visited his grave, and wrote and published a very expressiye and beautiful hymn on his life and, character,

Lot Bozarth was born in Virginia in 1792, and early emigrated to Stokes township, Madison county, settling on the land that is still known as the Bozarth farm. .Here he married Nancy Rea, who was born in Maryland in 1802. They later remov ed to White county, Indiana, where they lived a few years, when they returned to, Stokes county ,and here spent the remainder of their.years...He died on April .7, 1872, and, his. wife, March 12, 1878. Mr. Bozarth was a kind neighbor and a. good. citizen, and held. several offices of trust, in the township.

Early Settlers

The above mentioned may be truly called the pioneers of Stokes township, but there remain a few sturdy. sons and daughters who..deserved an honorable mention, as they, too, bore.a part of the brunt of developing the township: Jessie Pancake was born in Virginia in 1801. He emigrated to Ohio and settled in.-Ross county in..1812; thence. about ,1820, or soon after,. he located in this township, where he married Martha: Cooper. who, was born in this county in.1814, of a true pioneer family. Mr. Pancake spent.his life in this community and, became one of the honored and well-known citizens of. this township, held many of its offices.and was in every respect a-most worthy citizen. His wife died in 1839, just in the bloom of womanhood. . He.died in 1877. He made farming his business. throughout life and became the owner of a beautiful farm .of twelve hundred good _acres,,in the township. He was the father of John Pancake, who also became an honored and .respected citizen .of'.the. township..: Thomas Cooper,.a: native of .North Carolina, came to this township, perhaps as. early. as 1810. or. 1812,:.and. died about 1840. He. possessed, a very: limited education, but had a sprightly, active mind and good business faculties. He. died early, in, life, yet owned about a thousand acres of land,.and doubtless, had he lived, would have become wealthy.

Peter Slaughter, who was. born .in Virginia, moved to Highland county, Ohio,.in an early day and,.in about 1820-25, removed to Madison. county, settling in Stokes township, on. Paint creek, where he resided until his death, in the. fall of 1864. He married Elizabeth .Cooper, by whom he was the father. of. eleven children, of whom ten grew to maturity. Mr. Slaughter married, for his. second wife, Anna..E. Lynch, who was the mother of three children.. He commenced life in very limited circumstances, but. was possessed of great. business tact, energy. and resourcefulness... He, entered largely into the stock business and became one of the biggest stock dealers of the county, being well known all over the state. He was possessed of an extensive acquaintance and an unlimited credit, which he maintained throughout life, and died .wealthy,. owning three thousand acres of land.

Moses, Thomas, a native of North Carolina, married Catharine Williams, a native of Virginia, where they were married; they' emigrated, to Fayette. county, ..Ohio, in 1825, and soon afterward came to Madison county, settling.in Stokes township,. where they remained until their death. Two.of their sons, Benjamin and. William, remained restdents of the township and became among its most trusted and respected citizens. Will- iam Cooper, a native of North Carolina, emigrated to Fayette county, Ohio, when a young man; in 1828 he married Elizabeth Merriman and settled in Stokes township, Madison county, where he spent his life. His wife died in 1865. Jacob Smith was the eldest of six children of Mathias and Margaret Smith, who emigrated to Cineinnati in 1806, and in 1807 removed to Greene county, settling on Beaver creek, where they died. Jacob was born in Maryland in: 1803; was reared in Greene county, Ohio; married Amanda Herrod; settled in Stokes township, this county, in 1836. Here he opened out in the woods and made considerable material progress. The west and north parts of the village of South Solon are built.on his land. Joel Ervin, born in Ohio in oy settled in Stokes. township in 1830-35.

Surface, Soil And Streams

Like the remainder of. the county, the surface of Stokes township. is slightly rida? lating. The land has a gentle, gradual slope from the northern to the southern boundary, such that all the creeks flow from north to south, There are no large streams within the township. _ The soil is rich and very, productive, and all the flat and more level portions of the township are composed of a rich, black loam,. while the undulations and higher portions are a loam and clay, the whole being underlaid with a stratum of clay, and this, in turn, with a limestone gravel.. The township is well watered and, with her clay subsoil, seldom suffers from drought. In her primitive condition, as the settlers found her, there were many acres of low, level portions in prairie, destitute of trees and covered with sedge, often six to eight feet high. Other portions were sparsely. covered with trees, with a thick undergrowth of hazel brush. The timbered portions consisted principally of the various species of oak - white, black, red and burr - with some .elm, walnut, hickory and maple, white and burr oak predominating. ;

Paint creek, the largest of the streams, enters the township from ihe north, fone through surveys 5,781 and 3,983, and flows in a. zigzag southern course entirely through the township, leaving it in the middle of the old Bailey lands, at a point almost due south of the point at which it enters the township.. This stream is fed by .a number of fine springs along its way, which makes the stream an extraordinary. good one for watering stock. Sugar creek, the second stream in size, enters the township from. the north and flows directly south through.the center of the township into Fayette county. There are two small streams that drain the, western portion of the township. The first flows southward. through the township, a little west.of South Solon, and on through Fayette county and, empties into Rattlesnake creek, of which it is a branch. -The other flows through the extreme western portion in a squthwesterly direction, enters Greene county, and finally empties into the Little Miami river. .These streams, located and distributed as they are, give excellent opportunity for the ditching and draining of the land, and, with the general richness and productiveness of the soil, constitutes them among the best lands of Madison county.

Early Schools

Undoubtedly one of the first public schools in this township was a log house on the land later owned by James.Crawford. Mr. Burley was the first. teacher. This was about 1830. The next school house was built'on land later owned by John Murray. There was also a log house for school purposes on Samuel Harrod's land about 1831. The first teacher here was Mr. Sears, who was a rigid disciplinarian and created some difficulties in the neighborhood because of his severity with some of the boys.' This, however, was no exception in that day, as good physical powers and the ability to chastise the pupils was almost as great a qualification to teach in those days as were intellectual: attainments.