Page:History of Richland County, Ohio.djvu/272

 :±

��'-I.

��260

��HISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY.

��CHAPTER XXVI. i

THE PIONEER SOCIETY. The Mketing at Hemlock Falls — The Oroanization at Bellville — The Organization in 1869 — Constitltion

��— The Cevtennial Meeting — The MEETI^G in Pioneers.

FROM time to time, for many years, efforts had been made to organize a pioneer as- sociation for the purpose of preserving from oblivion important facts connected with the history of Richland County. Meetings for this purpose were occasionally held in different parts of the county. An impetus was given to this movement many years ago b3' Rev. James R. McGaw, who published an historical romance in the Mansfield papers, and b}' Gen. Brinker- hoff. who. from time to time, urged the neces- sity of it in the public prints. About the year 1856, one of the first, if not the first, pioneer meeting in the county, was held at Hemlock Falls, in Worthington Township. This meet- ing was probabl}' an informal one, but the mat- ter of rescuing the early histor}- of the county from oblivion was earnestly discussed. The meeting was attended by Dr. Bushnell, Gen. Brinkerhoff", Rev. James R. McGaw, Dr. J. P. Henderson and other influential and interested parties. In 1858, Messrs. Cook and Robinson, manufacturers of axes, offered a certain num- ber of axes to the oldest pioneers then living, and a meeting of these pioneers was held in Mansfield for the purpose of awarding the axes thus offered.

It was not, however, until September 26, 1860, that a pioneer society was dul}' organ- ized at Bellville, at a fair held in that place. This organization, of which the temporary offi- cers were John Redding, of Morrow County, President, and Miller Moody, of Richland County, Secretary, included the veterans of

��1879 — Gen. Brinkerhoff's Address — A List of ihe

the war of 1812 and the pioneers of Richland, , Knox, Erie, Huron, Morrow. Holmes, Wayne and Crawford Counties.

A committee, consisting of H. B. Curtis, T. W. Bartley and William Larwell, was appointed to report a constitution and names of officers for a permanent organization.

The meeting was addressed by Hon William Stanberry, Thomas H. Ford, H. B. Curtis, James Purdy and others.

The permanent organization was effected by the election of ex-Gov. Mordecai Bartley, of Richland, as permanent President ; Eli Miller, of Knox ; Amos A. Coffer, of Licking ; John Shauck, of Morrow ; Nathan Haskill, of Ash- land ; Jabez Cook, of Richland ; Daniel Riblet, of Crawford ; William Larwell, of Wayne ; Abi- jah Ives, of Huron ; Elutherus Cook, of Erie, and D. P. Leadbetter, of Holmes, as Vice Presi- dents ; Miller Moody, of Richland, Secretaiy, and Fred M. Fitting, of Richland, as Treasurer.

The Executive Committee were : Charles T. Sherman, of Richland ; Henry B. Curtis, of Knox ; William Stanberry, of Licking ; Gen. E. W. Benson, of Morrow ; Charles Tannehill, of Ashland ; William Musgrave, of Crawford ; Martin Welker, of Wayne ; Piatt Benedict, of Huron ; George Reber, of Erie, and Josejih Ankeny, of Holmes.

A committee was also appointed to draft a constitution to be presented to the Societ}'^ (it a future meeting ; and those present were i*e- quested to obtain the names of the pioneers in their respective neighborhoods, and to obtain

��"~a)

��V

�� �