Page:History of Richland County, Ohio.djvu/131

 HISTORY OF OHIO.

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��ren. Only a short time, however, was it allowed to retain this size, as the increase in emigration rendered it necessary to erect new counties, which was rapidly done, especially on the adoption of the State government.

The county is rich in early history, prior to its settlement by the Americans. It was the home of the celebrated Mingo chief, Logan, who resided awhile at an old Mingo town, a few miles below the site of Steubenville, the place where the troops under Col. Williamson rendezvoused on their in- famous raid against the Moravian Indians ; and also where Col. Crawford and his men met, when starting on their unfortunate expedition.

In the Reserve, settlements were often made remote from populous localities, in accordance with the wish of a proprietor, who might own a tract of country twenty or thirty miles in the interior. In the present county of Geauga, three families located at Burton in 1798. They lived at a considerable distance from any other settlement for some time, and were greatly inconvenienced for the want of mills or shops. As time progressed, however, these were brought nearer, or built in their midst, and, ere long, almost all parts of the Reserve could show some settlement, even if isolated.

The next year, 1799, settlements were made at Ravenna, Deerfield and Palmyra, in Portage County. Hon. Benjamin Tappan came to the site of Ravenna in June, at which time he found one white man, a Mr. Honey, living there. At this date, a solitary log cabin occupied the sites of Buffalo and Cleveland. On his journey from New England, Mr. Tappan fell in with David Hudson, the founder of the Hudson settlement in Summit County. After many days of travel, they landed at a prairie in Summit County. Mr. Tappan left his goods in a cabin, built for the purpose, under the care of a hired man, and went on his way, cutting a road to the site of Ravenna, where his land lay. On his return for a second load of goods, they found the cabin deserted, and evidences of its plunder by the In- dians. Not long after, it was learned that the man left in charge had gone to Mr. Hudson's settle- ment, he having set out immediately on his arrival, for his own land. ]Mr. Tappan gathered the re- mainder of his goods, and started back for Ravenna. On his way one of his oxen died, and he found himself in a vast forest, away from any habitation, and with one dollar in money. He did not falter a moment, but sent his hired man, a faithftil fellow, to Erie, Penn., a distance of one hundred miles through the wilderness, with the compass for his

��guide, requesting from Capt. Lyman, the com- mander at the fort there, a loan of money. At the same time, he followed the township lines to Youugstown, where he became acquainted with Col. James Hillman, who did not hesitate to sell him an ox on credit, at a fair price. He returned to his load in a few days, found his ox all right, hitched the two together and went on. He was soon joined by his hired man, with the money, and together they spent the winter in a log cabin. He gave his man one hundred acres of land as a reward, and paid Col. Hillman for the ox. In a year or two he had a prosperous settlement, and when the county was erected in 1807, Ravenna was made the seat of justice.

About the same time Mr. Tappan began his settlement, others were commenced in other locali- ties in this county. Early in May, 1799, Lewis Day and his son Horatio, of Granby, Conn., and Moses Tibbals and Green Frost, of Granville, Mass., left their homes in a one-horse wagon, and, the 29th of May, arrived in what is now Deerfield Township. Theirs was the first wagon that had ever penetrated farther westward in this region than Canfield. The country west of that place had been an unbroken wilderness until within a few days. Capt. Caleb Atwater, of Wallingford, Conn., had hired some men to open a road to Township No. 1, in the Seventh Range, of which he was the owner. This road passed through Deerfield, and was completed to that place when the party arrived at the point of their destination. These emigrants selected sites, and commenced clearing the land. In July, Lewis Ely arrived from Granville, and wintered here, while those who came first, and had made their improvements, returned East. The 4th of March, 1800, Alva Day (son of Lewis Day), John Campbell and Joel Thrall arrived. In April, George and Rob- ert Taylor and James Laughlin, from Pennsylvania, with their families, came. Mr. Laughlin built a grist-mill, which was of great convenience to the settlers. July 29, Lewis Day returned with his family and his brother-in-law, Maj. Rogers, who, the next year, also brought his family.

" Much suflPering was experienced at first on account of the scarcity of provisions. They were chiefly supplied from the settlements east of the Ohio River, the nearest of which was Georgetown, forty miles away. The provisions were brought on pack-horses through the wilderness. August 22, Mrs. Alva Day gave birth to a child — a fe- male — the first child born in the township.

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