CHAPTER XV
SCIOTO TOWNSHIP
When Pickaway County was erected out of portions of Franklin, Fairfield and Ross counties, Scioto township was included in that part taken from Franklin. It then extended west and south to Darby Creek and was bounded on the east by the Scioto River. When Jackson township was formed at a later date, Scioto contributed a portion of its territory. It was further decreased in size in 1830, when a portion of its territory was detached and added to the new township of Muhlenberg. When Darby township was first formed, it included a considerable portion of land east of Darby Creek now lying in Scioto township. On October 14, 1878, that portion of Darby township east of Darby Creek was set off to Scioto, so that the present boundaries of this township are as follows: Franklin County on the north, Scioto River on the east, Muhlenberg and Jackson townships on the south and Muhlenberg township and Darby Creek on the west. This accession to the territory of Scioto township makes it one of the largest townships in the county. In point of population also it is one of the largest, being second only to Circleville township, having according to the census of 1900 a population of 2,030.
On the bluffs of the Scioto River in this township were found at an early day traces of earthworks built in such a form and position as would indicate that they were used as places of defense. These and a number of mounds, some of which are still to be seen, are supposed to have been built by the Mound Builders.
In 1856 a building was purchased by the township for use as a town house, for the purpose of holding elections or for any other uses needed. In 1871 the township of Scioto and the corporation of Commercial Point bought a lot and erected a substantial brick building at Commercial Point, for township and corporation purposes. The first story was built by them and the second by the Masonic fraternity who used it as a lodge hall.. The township officers for 1906 are as follows: Trustees-- Joseph Smith, William M. Beavers and Henry L. Gochenouer ; clerk, W. J. Beers: treasurer, J. L. Martin ; assessor, Littleton P. Johnson ; justices of the peace--Thomas J. Beckett and H. C. Heise.
EARLY SETTLERS.
In the early days the settlement of the territory now included in Scioto township was tardy, as the township was covered with forest growth, with no prairie lands. The greater part of the territory, also, was taken up in large tracts, which hindered the early development of the land. The early settlers were chiefly from the States of Virginia and Pennsylvania.
Among the earliest settlers who located here in the first years of the 19th century were : Thomas and John Thompson, who came about 1800; William Ballard, who came in 1801 ; Edward Fitzgerald and George West and family, who came about 1804; Edward and Isaac Williams, who came about 1806; Jacob Widener, who came in 1807; and Capt. Eleazar Williamson, who settled here in 1808. Thomas
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Thompson. named above, settled at. Chillicothe some time before 1800, in which year he came to Scioto township and located on the McMahon survey. John Thompson came about the same time as his brother Thomas; both were soldiers of the Revolutionary War. William Ballard settled on Darby Creek in 1800 and the following year located in Scioto township. George West, who was a Virginian, bought about 900 acres of the Butler survey on the Scioto River in the southeastern part of the township. Capt. Eleazar Williamson was a member of General Braddock's army in the French and Indian War, and took part in the battle where Braddock was defeated and killed. In the War of the Revolution he took an active part; afterwards he was captain of a company under Colonel Crawford in the latter's campaign against the Indians, in 1782. He settled near Chillicothe in 1800, and eight years later moved to Scioto township, where he bought a farm which was part of the Taggart & McLaughlin survey.
James Johnson, Francis Rush and Moses Rawlins came about 1808; John, Hugh and Andrew Shaw and James Miller, about 1809; Joseph Reed and John Nevins, about 1810; while Andrew Jordan and Charles Williams settled here in 1811. Charles Williams always bore the reputation of a Tory and it is said that for many years he would buy no land, claiming that the King of England would yet own the country. John ("Jack") Stinson and Joshua Williams came here in 1812; Michael Robinson and son Isaac, in 1822. The Robinsons settled in the south part of the township at what is now known as Robtown. Isaac. Smith, Joseph Gochenouer and his son George came here about 1827. Joseph Gochenouer exchanged property in Virginia for 1,000 acres of wild land in the General Porterfield survey, west of Commercial Point. William Harlor, John Fretwell, Robert Gibson and Wiley H. Beckett, who was the founder of the village now known as Commercial Point, came here about 1829. In the early '30's, John W. Lane, Robert Wilson, Mason Cleveland, James H. Burnley and John Mundell came here. James H. Burnley laid out the town of Rome, which with the town of Genoa became the village of Commercial Point. Other early settlers of the township were : William Mires, Andrew Galbreath, John Martin, .William and Robert Seeds, Samuel Sayres, James Sample, Daniel Harper, John R. Davis, James Redman, Enoch Henry, Martin Boots, Alexander Lafferty, Peter Dechert, Anthony Coontz, James Ward, Griffith Justice, Rufus Dennis, Thomas Strain, John and James Walker, Daniel Pursell, George Hott, J. W. Durrett, Luke Wilkins, William Boyd, Absolom Van Vickle, Jacob W. Stiverson, Joshua Hil, Jacob Grabill, James M. Johnson, Jonathan E. Trimmer, James Meeker and the Choates.
CHURCHES.
Commercial Point M. E. Church.--The first Methodist Episcopal Church in Scioto township was organized between 1829 and 1834. at which time a log church was built and called Point Pleasant Church. Religious services were held in the township by Revs. Austin and Philips as early as 1829 and by Rev. John McKinley, a local preacher. In 1854 a small brick church was erected in the village of Commercial Point. A portion of the walls and roof were blown down in 1873 and a new church building was erected in its place, which is valued at about $2,400. The church is now a station of the Commercial Point Circuit, which was detached from the Darbyville Circuit in 1884. In this year a frame parsonage was built in the village at a cost of $1,500. The pastors since 1886 have been the following: Revs. Byron Palmer, E. N. Nichols, B. E. Thomas, F. M. Evans, F. S. Armstrong, C. B. Longman, J. E. Gordon, F. H. Smiley, A. R. Henderson, S. A. Crosby, M. E. Cunningham and M. E. Goodrich, the present incumbent, who was assigned to this circuit in September, 1906. The church at Commercial Point has an average attendance 0f 50. The Sunday-school, of which A. J. Hott is superintendent, also has an attendance of about 50. It was organized April 18, 1847, with these officers: James W. Durrett, superintendent; Vincent I. Williams, assistant superintendent; John Martin, secretary; William Harlor, treasurer;
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and John Pierce, librarian. The average attendance for the first year was about 20.
The Methodist Episcopal Church at Orient is about 15 years old. The church edifice is a frame structure valued at $2,000. This is a charge of the Harrisburg Circuit and the present pastor is Rev. R. C. Orndorff, who succeeded Rev. John Walters in September, 1906. The church has an average attendance of about t00. J. S. McKinley is superintendent of the Sunday-school, which has an attendance of about 45.
The King's M. E. Church, about three miles east of Orient, is a charge of the Darbyville Circuit, of which Rev. F. B. Davis is pastor. The church building is a frame structure. Fred Dountz is superintendent of the Sunday-school.
A regular Baptist society, commonly known as Primitive Baptists, was organized about 1829 at Darbyville. The organization was removed, in 1874, to Scioto township to the locality now known as Matville, two miles west of Commercial Point, where a church building was erected at a cost of $600. Regular services, held once a month by Elder Hanover, have an average attendance of about 40. Annually, on the third Saturday and Sunday in June, the Baptist Association holds services in Beaver Grove near Matville, which are attended by from 3,000 to 4,006 people.
Scioto Chapel.--A class of the United Brethren in Christ was organized at Robtown about 1843, meetings preliminary to organization having been held in private houses and in an old log schoolhouse east of Robtown, built about 1822, which was afterward moved to Robtown and used as a church until 1875, when a frame structure was erected, which was named Scioto Chapel. The church is a class of the Ashville Circuit, and the names of the pastors who have had charge will be found in connection with the history of the Ashville U. B. Church. The present pastor is Rev. W. E. Rowe. The membership of the class is 52. There is a flourishing Sunday-school, of which Henry Prindle is superintendent.
The Presbyterian Church at Commercial Point has no regular minister at the present time. Services are held occasionally on appointment. It was organized about 1829 at the house of James Miller, a mile north of Commercial Point. Previous to that time services had been held in private houses occasionally. The first settled minister was Rev. Calvin Ransom. A log church, built on a lot now used as the township cemetery, was erected about 1835 and used until a frame church was built in 1857, which is valued at about $2,000. The frame parsonage is valued at about $1,000. Sunday-school sessions are held regularly with a fair attendance. T. H. Durrett is superintendent.
CEMETERIES.
The first burial ground in Scioto township was on Thompson's Hill and the first person buried, it is thought, was Mrs. Welsh, mother of James Welsh, the date of whose death is not known. The first marked grave is that of William Mires, who died September 22, 1819. Subsequently there were several small cemeteries started throughout the county, primarily for the use of the families on whose land they were located, but in most cases interments were not. confined to the immediate family. The old Foster burying-ground located on State land near Orient is no longer used. In 1845 John and Janet Mundell deeded a lot, two acres in size, to the Presbyterian Church, of which they were members. The first burial here is thought to have been that of Thomas Fullerton, in 1835. The oldest person buried is Mrs. Margaret Shannon, who was aged 103 years at death. She was a native of Scotland and was proud of the fact that the last person she danced with, before leaving Scotland, was Robert Burns. The Presbyterian Cemetery is now a township cemetery under control of the township trustees.
SCHOOLS.
Messrs. Perkins, McGinnis and "Jack" Stinson were among the early school teachers. William Herbert taught school about 1814 in a log schoolhouse on the Edward Williams tract. The township has 13 districts and the town-
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ship Board of Education, elected November, 1904, is as follows : James M. Borror, F. A. Beavers and John W. Lane--four years; Edward Dechert and L. S. Kibler--two years. The school at Orient is a brick building containing two rooms ; the teachers are L. B. Plum and Bertha Collopy. The Scioto township High School is a brick building at Commercial Point, built in 1895 at a cost of $7,000. The building is considered one of the finest in the county outside of Circleville. Edward L. Daley is superintendent; C. S. Bain, assistant superintendent ; and Gertrude Gray and Oma Smith, teachers. The school is a second-grade high school but it has recently started on a four-years' course, with the object of making the school first-grade. The .Board of Education of the Commercial Point Village District, elected in 1904, is as follows : J. O. Beckett, Dr. S. C. Helmick and Eli Harsh--four years; A. D. Albright and S. R. Seeds--two years.
SOME EARLY EVENTS.
Nathan Rawlins was one of the first justices of the peace in Scioto township. He lived on the Franklinton pike in the north-eastern part of the township and kept his docket on a hewed log in his house, below the joist where the upper floor was laid. About 1808 a ferry was established near the South Bloom field bridge, for the convenience of persons who were obliged to cross to Crampton's mill on the east bank of the Scioto. The first blacksmith in the township was Jacob Fishel, who established his shop on the Franklinton pike some time before 1811. Robert Seeds burned the first brick about 1815 or 1816. The first saw-mill was built on Edward Williams' farm about 1808 Several still-houses flourished in the township in the early days. The settlers had their grist ground at the mill of Van Gundy on the Scioto and at those of Thompson and Kepler on Darby Creek.
PHYSICIANS.
Dr. Revnaugh, who was the first settled physician in Scioto township, located at Genoa in 1842. Dr. Jaynes came about the same time, taught school for a while and then commenced the practice of medicine. Other physicians who practiced in the township were Drs. Martin, French, Sholl, Kingery and S. M. Seeds, all of whom were located at what is now the village of Commercial Point. Dr. T. W. Jones practiced in this township many years; he lived on a farm now occupied by James M. Borror, which he operated. The town has two physicians at the present time : Dr. S. C. Helmick, who has been engaged in practice here for many years and who is senior member of the drug firm of Helmick & Son; and Dr. Robert A. Brown who has been located here since February, 1905. Dr. J. A. Knight is located at Orient, where he also conducts a drug-store.
THE CUSTODIAL FARM,
A branch of the State Institution for Feeble Minded Youth, is located in the northwestern corner of Scioto township, where a tract of about 2,000 acres has already been secured. One of the first as well as one of the largest tracts purchased was the Morgan farm. Extensive buildings operations are going on and it is expected that by Christmas there will be 200 inmates. At the present time there are 75.
SOCIETIES.
A dispensation for a Masonic lodge at Commercial Point was granted May 25, 1874. On October 21St of the same year, a charter was granted under the name of Battin Lodge, No. 487, F. & A. M. The officers appointed were : G. McLean, W. M.; James K. P. Mitchell, W.; and Daniel B. Dechert, J. W. The upper story of the town house at Commercial Point was built by members of the Masonic fraternity before Battin Lodge was organized. When the lodge came into existence, it had a good hall for its use. Battin Lodge ceased its labors some years ago.
Commercial Point Odd Fellows' Lodge, St. Halm, No. 703, is not now active. Commercial Camp, No. 10,963, M. W. of A., was instituted at Commercial Point recently and is re-
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ported to be in good shape. The Improved Order of Red Men also has an organization here, meeting once a month. At a period when the organization known as the Independent Order of Good Templars was in vogue, a lodge was established at Commercial Point. It finished its work many years ago.
COMMERCIAL POINT.
Wiley H. Beckett, who came from Eastern Virginia in 1829 and settled on a 238-acre tract of land, to the west of the present village of Commercial Point, laid out in 1841 a parcel of land in the northeastern part of his tract for the purpose of forming a town which he named "Genoa."' Two years later James H. Burnley, who came here from Virginia in 1832, laid off a similar parcel of land, in the southwestern corner of his farm and called it "Rome." Rome became the eastern half of the village of Commercial Point, while Genoa became the western. A narrow grove was left on the south, which extended into the village and was not included in the plat. The town came to be known as Genoa while the postoffice was Beckett's Store. The first store here was started by Wiley H. Beckett in 1844. He was succeeded by his son, James A. Beckett, and he by John O. Beckett, his son, who is the present proprietor of a store that has been conducted by three generations of one family for a period of 62 years. Genoa was incorporated by special act of the Legislature March 21, 1851, and the first election was held on March 8, 1852, at which time the electors in the village chose the following officers : Mayor, H. P. Bunch; recorder, A. F. Beckett; Council-. J. M. Anderson, E. Smith, J. L. Martin, L. Dennis and James Risk. At the first meeting of the Council, held at the schoolhouse, Hiram Anderson was appointed marshal and George Van Houten, treasurer. In 1872 the name of the village was changed by special act of the Legislature from Genoa to Commercial Point, which also became the name of the postoffice. Eli Harsh is given .the credit of having selected' the name "Commercial Point." In 1871 the corporation, in conjunction withthe township, built the town house at Commercial Point, mentioned earlier in this article. Commercial Point has not had the advantage of being located on a line of railroad and hence the town has not attained the size it might otherwise have done. Various surveys have been made through the village, both for steam and traction lines, and it is believed that the prospects are very good for a trolley line here within a few years. The present village officials are as follows : Mayor, W. A. Gray; marshal, John Chenault; treasurer, J. L. Martin ; clerk, Charles Wehe ; Council--M. V. Beavers, Tim Sprouse, Eli Harsh, Harry Trego, J. C. Beers and A. D. Albright. The population of the village as given in the census of 1900 is 245. The streets. are illuminated by 14 patent gasoline lamps. Commercial Point has both the Bell and Citizens' telephones. Dr. S. C. Helmick is postmaster.
J. O. Beckett, C. E. Stewart and J. L. Martin have general stores here, keeping well-selected lines of dry goods, groceries, hardware, small implements and machinery, boots and shoes, and gents' furnishings. In addition to these lines, J. O. Beckett sells stoves. Other business houses are the following : Helmick & Son, drug-store; M. V. Beavers; grocery, livery and sawmill; Tim Sprouse, meat market; Mrs. Jennie Prindle, millinery; H. A. Hott, undertaker; A. D. Albright and Husler & Hill, blacksmiths; and Mrs. J. C. Watkins, boarding-house and feed stable:
ORIENT
Is a station on the Baltimore & Ohio R. R., in the northwest corner of Scioto township. Its history is of a comparatively recent date. The same locality is also called Morgan's. This place is the present western terminus of the traction line running between Columbus and Morgan's, known as the Columbus, Grove City & Southwestern. Orient claims a population of about 200. It is not incorporated. The postmaster and the chief merchant is J. S. McKinley. Three rural routes run from Orient. The town has both the Bell and the Citizens' telephones. The following are the business
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interests of the place : J. S. McKinley, general store and grocery; W. D. Sprouse, general store, grocery and meat market; George McCann, restaurant; Edward Hill, blacksmith; D. W. Stansel, coal ; Elza B. Beavers, livery; and Dr. J. A. Knight, drug-store. O. B. Yerian conducts a hotel and is also agent for a number of insurance companies. A grain elevator of Jones & Company is located here, where coal is also handled. The State of Ohio has a brick and tile factory at Orient.
MATVILLE
Is a small settlement of about 50 inhabitants in the western section of Scioto township. It was formerly known as Jacktown. Here are found the general stores and groceries of R. A. & W. M. McGhee and D. J. White and grocery of Dan McFarland. Arch McMillen is the village blacksmith. The Citizens' Telephone Company has established a line to Matville.
ROBTOWN,
A small settlement situated in the southern part of Scioto township, has two groceries, Thomas Rodgers and J. W. Clellan being proprietors.