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650 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. The post office was established here some years after the laying-out of the village, and among the Postmasters have been the following: William Weeks, Dr. M. Stroup, Samuel N. Weeks, F. M. Smith and A. C. Earhart, the present incumbent. In 1877, an addition of thirty-one lots was made to the place by H. M. Smith. The name of Mt. Oreb was given to the village by the original proprietor, and, as there has been some controversy about its origin and the correct way of spelling the name, we have gone to some trouble to get at the facts in the matter. Mr. Keethler took the name from the Bible. The word "oreb" primarily means raven or crow, and is the name of the Midianite chieftain that invaded Israel, and was defeated and driven back by Gideon. It is but slightly touched upon in the narrative of Judges, but the terms in which Isaiah refers to it (x, 26) are such as to imply that it was a truly awful slaughter. It is placed in the same rank with the two most tremendous disasters recorded in the whole history of Israel—the destruction of the Egyptians in the Red Sea, and the army of Sennacherib. Some claim the name was Mt. Horeb, and that the H has been dropped. The word is frequently spelled Mt. Orab. which we think is without authority. It should be spelled with an e —Mt. Oreb. It is the name of a Midianite chieftain, and it is the name of a rock where Oreb was slain. "And they slew Oreb upon the rock Oreb, * * * and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon." (See Judges, vii, 25.) Mt. Horeb and Mt. Oreb mean the same thing when speaking of a place. The village now contains six dry goods stores and groceries, two drug stores, one tinshop and a large hardware and farming implement store, four blacksmith shops, one fine mill, one wagon shop, one barber shop, two churches, a nice schoolhouse, two shoe shops, a stave and hame factory, one livery stable, three millinery stores, four mantua maker shops, and is advancing in wealth and population rapidly in all respects; to illustrate, lands that were $30 per acre four years ago, cannot now be purchased for $125 per acre in ten-acre lots. The physicians of Oreb are Drs. M. Stroup, A. E. Earhart and J. R. Lancaster. Greenbush, the second village in size, is situated in the western part of the township, at the intersection of the old Chillicothe and State roads. It was laid out May 28, 1838, by Joseph Kratzer. The surveying was done by John D. White. It contains two dry goods stores, one hotel, a schoolhouse, blacksmith shop and one tile factory. The village is improving. The most active man in the line of improvements in the village is E. A. Tissander, a native of France. He is the proprietor of the hotel and of one of the stores. This section is the most fertile of the lands of the township. The little hamlet of Benton, situated on the State road, about a mile north of Mt. Oreb, is the oldest place in the township, it having been laid out January 26, 1838, by B. H. Gardner. Some ten years later, a post office was established here, with G. W. Day as Postmaster. In 1853, Mr. Day was succeeded by James McAfee. The office was discontinued in the course of a few years. The original number of lots was eighteen. The hamlet never improved much, and now to the passer-by there is scarcely any evidence of a place to be seen. INDUSTRIES. The manufacturing interests of Green have been very meager. About the year 1838, Benjamin Gardner erected and operated a saw and grist mill at Benton, with steam power. A grist and saw mill was built in the northern part of the township about the year 1842, by Louis Weber and a Mr. Mahover. This mill was operated GREEN TOWNSHIP - 651 until the close of the war, when it was destroyed by fire. It was soon afterward rebuilt by Mr. Weber. This was also a steam power mill, which was in operation until a year or two ago, when the machinery was taken out and put in the grist-mill now at Mt. Oreb. Not long after the village of Mt. Oreb was laid out, a saw-mill was built on Sterling Fork, of White Oak, by Daniel Keethler. Soon afterward, a gristmill was added by Calvin Rilea; the power of the mill was furnished by steam. About the beginning of the war of the rebellion, this mill was destroyed by fire, but was at once rebuilt and the grist-mill operated until about six or eight years ago, and the saw-mill until two or three years ago. In the northern part of the township, there is in operation a steam grist and saw mill, carried on by Messrs Spice & Washburn. The mill was built about the close of the late war by Martin Miller. In 1875, Granville Fiscus built a tile factory in the northern part of the township, which was carried on for five or six years. The stave, hames and heading factory of John Richard's Sons, of Cincinnati, located at Mt. Oreb, was built by them in 1877, and has since been under the same management. The grist-mill at Mt. Oreb under the proprietorship of John and Henry Waits (brothers), was erected in the summer of 1880. It is a modernly constructed mill, with steam power, and has a capacity of about eighteen or twenty barrels of flour per day. JUSTICES OF THE PEACE. The early records of the township have been destroyed, and only a partial list of the Justices of the Peace can be given. Some of the names of persons who served as such in the earlier years of its history as recalled by residents of the township, are James Garron, Nicholas Smith and Thomas Ross. The names contained in the following list are of record, and the dates given show when commissioned: John H. Beckwith, April 12, 1855, resigned April 2, 1857. Alva Moon, July 21, 1855, resigned September 26, 1857. James McAfee, April 21, 1857, resigned February 20, 1858. George W. Stansberry, October 29, 1857. Samuel Day, April 21, 1858. Gilead Bahan, October 27, 1860. G. W. Day, April 23, 1862. Joseph Stephens, April 15, 1864. J. L. Irwin, April 7, 1865. John F Black, December 8, 1865. A. H. Cook, November 13, 1866. Joseph Stephens, April 15, 1867. H. C. Malott, November 24, 1869. Joseph Stephens, April 11, 1870. James E. Huggins, February 26, 1872. A. Moon, April 21, 1873. James E. Huggins, March 15, 1875. J. M. Healion, April 13, 1878. J. C. Glover, April 19, 1879. H. H. Jones, April 18, 1881. Absalom Brooks, April 17, 1882. GREEN IN THE WAR OF THE REBELLION. The people of Green Township are proud of their soldiery. So soon as the dread alarm of war had been echoed to her quiet homes and peaceful fields 652 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. from the distant hills and woodland, her youth and middle-aged responded to the call " To arms! your country is in peril," and from her workshops, from the forge, the bench, the accountant's desk and the plow, went forth her sons and defended the Nation's honor. We regret exeeedingly that in the small space here allotted us that more could not be said of the soldiers of the township whose names appear in the following list, which has been prepared with great care to omit no names and an effort to avoid mistakes: Thomas Chambers, Forty-erghth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Simpson Chambers, Eighty-ninth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, died in prison John Robbins, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Wesley Robbins, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, wounded. Martyn Robbins, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, died in prison. S. Conover, died in Andersonville Prison. Daniel Tucker, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. R. W, Beard, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. George Mann, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Thomas Kratzer, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, wounded at the second battle of Bull Run. B. F. Malott, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Robert Moore, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. William Smith, died in prison. Benjamin Hodgson, missing on the skirmish line. William Dean, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. George Conover, One Hundred and Seventy-fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. John Morgan. Richard Smith, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, wounded and missing. Jacob Thomas, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, killed. S. Malott, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, killed. Lewis Kratzer. Amos Kratzer, Eighty-ninth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Wilson Kratzer. Reason Kratzer, Thirty-fourth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. F. M. Kratzer, Eighty-ninth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Saul Hughes, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, killed, Joseph Hughes, Company R, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Edward L. Hughes, Company R, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, killed at South Mountain, Md., September 14, 1862: William Jones, died in the service. D. C. Malott. J. C. Glover. Henry Driver, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. L. Malott, Forty-first Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. George Fryman. Henry Fryman, died in the service. Samuel Beard, Thirty-fourth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, killed. William Workman, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. William Wilson Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Henry Moore, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Jerry Priest. GREEN TOWNSHIP - 653 Walter Chaffin, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Vounteer Infantry, killed. S. Conover, One Hundred and Seventy-fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, died in prison. Thomas Wallace, One Hundred and Seventy-fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. John W. Wallace, Eighty-third Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, died in service. James H. Wallace, One Hundred and Seventy-fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, killed. Lot Reynolds, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. James Donley, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Jesse Callahan, Fifty-ninth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, wounded. Andrew Sroufe, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, died in service. John Sroufe, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Joseph Sroufe, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, died in service. R. H. Sroufe, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Levi Waits, Daniel Wallace, John Dedrick. G. W. Bayham, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. J. P. Shannon, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Jefferson Waits, Twenty-seventh Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. William Webber, Eleventh Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. F Webber, Eleventh Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. W. W. White, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. J. D. Shannon, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. A. Scott, William Hill, G. Bayham, James Hare, Samuel Hare, John Wait, Henry Tucker, Joseph Nevitt, Jacob Leavertin. John F. Reynolds, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. D. C. Hays, Thomas Sroufe, William Ellis, Porter Hays, A. G. Sroufe, R. Hays, C. W. Fiscus, P. W. Keethler, Wayne Keethler, Arthur Glaze. R. S. Grisham, John Grisham, James Grisham, G. W. Stratton, Frank Stratton, Enos B. Stratton, A. J. Kinnett, A. E. Day, Isaac Atkins, Wiley Watson, William Kinnett, Harvey Kinnett, Thomas Kinnett, Jr., J. G. Stansberry, C. M. Stansberry, Michael Hawkman, James Waters, Randolph Waters, William Fields, J. Fiscus, M. W. Channel, Samuel Channel, J. C. Vance, Marion Donley, D. E. White, John White, Columbus White, William White, S. H. Raper, Joseph Day, James Day, H. W. Day, S. A. Day, D. L. Day, George Weeks. Samuel N. Weeks, Company I, Twelfth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry; Company K, Twenty-seventh Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, promoted to First Lieutenant Company C, Twenty-seventh Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Lewis J. Weeks, Company K, Twenty-seventh Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, killed in the battle at Corinth, Miss. James Reynolds, Forty-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Levit Conver, Wilson Watson, Job Conver, William Conover. Israel Jennings, Lee Gray, James Richards. Wright Wilson, Fifty-ninth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. C. W. Lague, Henry Newkirk. Samuel C. Wright, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. James Newkirk. John H. Morgan, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. 654 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. Charles Haven, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, died with disease in Virginia. John C. Weaver, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Elish Jordan, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. William Moore, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. A. Newton Hirons, Company F, Sixtieth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. John Hirons, Albert Fry. JACKSON TOWNSHIP - 655 CHAPTER XIII. JACKSON TOWNSHIP. THIS township was originally a part of Eagle Township, from which it was separated June 20, 1823. by the County Commissioners, who ordained that the line dividing Franklin from Washington Township be extended to the Adams County line, and that all that part of Eagle Township lying south of the line so extended shall constitute a new township, to be known as the township of Jackson. The land thus included contained 16,989i acres, which now have an assessed value of $238,474, that being but about one-half of their real value. The population at the last enumeration (1880) was 966. The township in shape is nearly square, being about six miles long on either side. It is bounded on the north by Eagle Township, on the east by Adams County, on the south by Byrd and Jefferson Townships, on the west by Franklin Township. It is drained in the east, south and center by the West Fork of Eagle Creek and its tributaries, and in the northwest by a branch of Straight Creek and its tributaries. The land is so indented by the deep ravines, which mark the courses of these numerous streams, as to give it the appearance of being very hilly. The township lies in the Virginia Military District, and all the land was entered by holders of military warrants, who located tracts of fr 'm twenty to four thousand acres, the largest tract being 4,000 acres, surveyed for Thomas Fox by Arthur Fox, District Surveyor, February 22, 1792, and designated as Survey No. 700. The next survey in size was No. 1785, containing 2,6661 acres, entered by Lewis Lansford, heir at law of William Lansford, deceased, and surveyed by Arthur Fox February 23, 1792. OFFICERS. The first election held in the township was at the house of Stephen Reynolds on the third Saturday (19th) of July, 1823. At this election the following first officers of the township were elected: Edward Francis, William Greathouse and John Wright, Trustees; Matthew Campbell, Clerk; Thomas Brady, Treasurer; James Crate, Constable; Adam Sellman and William Donaldson, Overseers of the Poor ; Henry Thomas and William Glendening, Fence Viewers. On April 5, 1824, the .officers elected were: William Greathouse, Ervin Cutter and Samuel Evans, Trustees; John Sellman, Clerk; Thomas Brady, Treasurer; James Wright and Samuel Pickerill, Overseers of the Poor; James Crute, Lister, and by appointment Constable; James Wright was appointed Trustee to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Ervin Cutter, in the latter part of May. April 4, 1825-James Wright, Matthew Campbell and John Wright, Trustees; William Tomb, Clerk; Thomas Brady, Treasurer; John Newton and Thomas Sergent, Constables; William Davidson and David McBride, Overseers of the Poor; Robert D. Tomb, Lister. April 3, 1826—Stephen Reynolds, Matthew Campbell and Thomas Brady, Trustees; William Tomb, Clerk; Thomas Brady, Treasurer; James Crute, Constable; Stephen Reynolds and Sylvanus Parker, Overseers of the Poor. Amos Evans was appointed Constable on April 15. 656 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. April 2, 1827—Thomas Brady, Thomas Rickey and Matthew Campbell, Trustees; John W. Reynolds, Clerk; Thomas Brady, Treasurer; John Gregg and James Crate, Constables; Samuel Bennington, Overseer of the Poor. James Crate did not serve as Constable. April '7, 1828—William Greathouse, Kenneth Prine and Jacob Neal, Trust: ees; John W. Reynolds, Clerk; Thomas Brady, Treasurer; John Gregg, Constable; Samuel Evans and John Clark, Overseers of the Poor. April 6, 1829—Edward West, Robert Pollen and William Davidson, Trustees; William Tomb, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; Thomas Sergent, Constable; Matthew Campbell and Jesse Morrow, Overseers of the Poor. April 5, 1830—Edward Francis, John Wright and William Davidson, Trustees; William Henderson, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; Thomas Sergent, Constable; John McKnight and John Wright, Overseers of the Poor. James Mehary was appointed Constable on December 25, to fill vacancy occasioned by the resignation of Thomas Sergent. April 4, 1831—Henry Sidwell, Kenneth Prine and Thomas Ricky, Trustees; David A. Henderson, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; James Crate, Constable; Henry Sidwell and Matthew Campbell, Overseers of the Poor. April 2, 1832--Samuel Pickerill, Joseph Shaw and James Wright, Trustees; Samuel Bartholomew, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasureri James Crate, Constable; William Davidson and Robert Patton, Overseers of the Poor. April 1, 1833—William Greathouse, Henry Young and James Wright, Trustees; Samuel Bartholomew, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; James Crate, Constable. April 7, 1834—Samuel Pickerill, John Cox and William McColgen, Trustees; Samuel Bartholomew, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; J. C. Higinbotham, Constable. April 6, 1835—William McColgen, Henry Young and Aaron Eyler, Trust-tees; Harris Sidwell, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; Thomas Sergent, Constable. April 4, 1836—William McColgen, Henry Young and William Greathouse, Trustees; John Francis, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; John Gregg, Constable. April 16, John Donaldson was appointed Constable, vice John Gregg, who failed to give bond. April 3, 1837—William McColgen, Samuel Pickerill and Josiah Rhoten, Trustees; John Sellman, Clerk; Thomas Brady, Treasurer; William Lain, Constable. April 2, 1838—William McColgen, Samuel Pickerill and Alexander Wilson, Trustees; John Anderson, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; William Lane, Constable; Robert Moore appointed Constable vice Lane, resigned. April 1, 1839—William McColgen, William Greathouse and John Parker, Trustees; John Anderson, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; William Lane, Constable. William Lane resigned, and William Burns was appointed; he resigned, and John Sedwill was appointed; he resigned, and William Ball was appointed. April 6, 1840—John Cox, James Wright and and John Francis, Trustees; William Cox, Clerk; Edward Francis, Treasurer; John McGregor, Constable. April 5, 1841—David Kendall, Henry Smith and John Parker, Trustees; John Sellman, Clerk; Edward West, Treasurer; John McGregor, Constable. April 4, 1842—David Kendall, John Parker and William McColgen, Trustees; Robert McKnight, Clerk; Edward West, Treasurer; John McGregor and Stephen Parker, Constables; Edward Francis, Assessor. Robert McKnight resigned, and Edward Francis, Jr., was appointed Clerk. JACKSON TOWNSHIP - 657 April 3, 1843—David Kendall, John Parker and William McColgen, Trustees ; John L. Beveridge, Clerk; Edwards West, Treasurer; Edward Francis, Assessor; John McGregor, Constable. April 1, 1844—John Brady, Aaron Eyler and Samuel Pickerill, Trustees; John L. Beveridge, Clerk; Edwards West, Treasurer; S. P. Evans, Assessor; John Long, Constable. April 7, 1845—John Brady, Aaron Eyler and William Cox, Trustees; Fountain Inskeep, Clerk; Edwards West, Treasurer; R. W. McKee, Assessor; William Wallis, Constable. April 6, 1846—John Brady, Aaron Purdom and Jesse Kendall, Trustee; F. Inskeep, Clerk; Robert Moore, Treasurer; R. W. McKee, Assessor; McCord Brady, Constable. McCord Brady refused to serve, and Ellis Sidwell was appointed Constable. He in turn resigned, and Thomas Sergent was appointed. April 5, 1847—John Brady, Aaron Purdom and David Thorp, Trustees; Fountain Inskeep, Clerk; Robert Moore, Treasurer; R. W. McKee. Assessor. Thomas Sergent. Constable, resigned, and Henry Streight was appointed. April 3, 1848—Aaron Eyler, David Thorp and John Brady, Trustees; F. Inskeep, Clerk; Robert Moore, Treasurer; R. W. McKee, Assessor; Henry Streight,Constable. R. Moore died, and Edwards West was appointed Treasurer December 22. April 2, 1849-Moses Moore, Jesse Kendall and George W. Mefford, Trustees; F Inskeep, Clerk; E. West, Treasurer; Samuel Dixon, Assessor; Henry Streight, Constable; resigned, and J. McCallister was appointed. April 1, 1850—Moses Moore, Aaron Eyler and James Wright, Trustees; F. Inskeep, Clerk; E. West, Treasurer; S. Dixon, Assessor; J. McCallister, Constable. April 7, 1851--Benjamin Brady, Aaron Eyler and James Wright, Trustees; F. Inskeep, Clerk; E. West, Treasurer; Samuel Dixon, Assessor; Stephen Myers, Constable. April 5, 1852—Josiah Rhoten, Isaac Waters and Samuel McNown, Trustees; Calvin Wright, Clerk; Aaron Eyler, Treasurer; S. Dixon, Assessor; S. Myers, Constable. April 4, 1853—Isaac Waters, Jesse Kendall and E. West, Trustees; Robert Parker, Clerk; Aaron Eyler, Treasurer; S. Dixon, Assessor; J. N. Middleswart, Constable. - April 3, 1854—E. West, Jesse Kendall and John Brady, Trustees; R. Parker, Clerk; A. Potts, Treasurer; S. Dixon, Assessor; J. W. Sergent, Constable. April 2, 1855—E. West, S. McNown and William McColgen, Trustees; R. Parker, Clerk; A. Potts, Treasurer; John Brady, Assessor; Andrew Henderson, Constable. April 7, 1856—E. West, Aaron Eyler and Benjamin Brady, Trustees; R. Parker, Clerk; A. Potts, Treasurer; John Brady, Assessor; A. Henderson, Constable. R. Parker loft the township, and F. Inskeep was appointed Clerk. April 6, 1857—S. McNown, Oliver Reynolds and Anthony Shaw, Trustees; William Campbell, Clerk; A. Potts, Treasurer; Cornelius McColgen, Assessor; George M. Davis, Constable. April 5, 1858—A. Shaw, B. Brady and O. Reynolds, Trustees; A. Henderson, Clerk; A. Potts, Treasurer; C. McColgen, Assessor; G. M. Davis, Constable. O. Reynolds refused to serve, and S. McNown was appointed Trustee. April 4, 1859—A. Shaw, S. McNown and H. Parker, Trustees; A. Henderson, Clerk; A. Potts, Treasurer; Kenneth Rhoten, Assessor; G. M. Davis, Constable. 658 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. April 2, 1860-A. Shaw, S. McNown and H. Parker, Trustees; A. Henderson, Clerk; William Campbell, Treasurer; H. Rhoten, Assessor; G. M. Davis, Constable. April 1, 1861---S. McNown, Eli Long and Valentine Wagner, Trustees; A. Henderson, Clerk; W. Campbell, Treasurer; C. P. Eyler, Assessor; G. W. West, Constable. April 7, 1862—E. Long, V. Wagner and W. P. Custer, Trustees; E. A. Pindell, Clerk; W. Campbell, Treasurer; C. Reynolds, Assessor; G. M. Davis, Constable. April 6, 1863—Officers same as in 1862. June, 1863, S. McNown, Trustee vice W. P. Custer, deceased. April 4, 1864—S. McNown, M. Schwallie and S. Dixon, Trustees; A. Henderson, Clerk; W. Campbell, Treasurer; W. Parker, Assessor; G. M. Davis, Constable. January 12, 1865, Isaac Waters, Trustee,, vice M. Schwallie, moved away. April 3, 1865--S. Dixon, Jacob Reynolds and John Schwallie, Trustees; William Parker, Clerk; Aaron Eyler, Treasurer; S. Dixon Assessor; G. M. Davis, Constable. April 2, 1866—J. Reynolds, J. Schwallie and Henry Parker, Trustees; John C. Marshall, Clerk; John L. Beveridge, Treasurer; S. Dixon, Assessor; C. C. Beveridge, Constable. April 1, 1867---J. Reynolds, S. J. Campbell' and B. Brady, Trustees; Cornelius McColgen, Clerk; J. L. Beveridge, Treasurer; M. H. Prine, Assessor; C. C. Beveridge, Constable. • April 6, 1868—N. Marshall, J. Laney and F. Inskeep, Trustees, C. McColgen, Clerk; J. L. Beveridge, Treasurer; H. Prine, Assessor; J. E. Edwards, Constable. April 5, 1869—N. Marshall, J. Laney and F. Inskeep, Trustees; C. McColgen, Clerk; W. Parker, Treasurer; J. M. Campbell, Assessor; John E. Edwards, Constable. April 4, 1870—N. Marshall, J. Schwallie and John Fiscus, Trustees; D. Trautwein, Clerk; W. Parker, Treasurer; J. S. Campbell, Assessor; E. W. Reed, Constable. April 3, 1871--Trustees, Clerk and Treasurer as in 1870; C. Neu, Asesssor; G. W. West, Constable. April 1, 1872-B Marshall, J. Reynolds and B. Brady, Trustees; D. Trautwein, Clerk; W. Parker, Treasurer; C. Neu, Assessor; G. W. West, Constable. April 7, 1873—B. Marshall, J. Reynolds and P. Schreckler, Trustees; John T. McColgen, Clerk; J. M. Alexander, Treasurer; J. B. Prine, Assessor; W. J. Davis, Constable. April 6, 1874—P. Schreckler, S. McNown and Henry Prine, Trustees; G. M. Campbell, Clerk; J. M. Alexander, Treasurer; Jacob B. Prine, Assessor; W. J. Davis, Constable. April 5, 1875—S. McNown, H. Prine and J. Schwallie, Trustees; G. M. Campbell, Clerk; Michael Gunner, Treasurer; V. Bachmann, Assessor; E Reed, Constable. April 3, 1876—Robert King, S. Dixon and J. Schwallie, Trustees; G. M. Campbell, Clerk; W. Campbell, Treasurer; V. Bachmann., Assessor; S. S Potts, Constable. April 2, 1877—W. Marshall, J. M. Alexander and Peter Snider, Trustees; W. R. Evans, Clerk; W. Campbell, Treasurer; A. Wagner, Assessor; E. B. Brown, Constable. April 1, 1878—Trustees as in 1877; R. B. Dunn, Clerk; J. H. Fritts, Treasurer; A Wagner, Assessor; M. Henderson, Constable. JACKSON TOWNSHIP - 659 April 7, 1879-G. M. Campbell, V. Bachmann and J. M, Reynolds, Trustees; R. B. Dunn, Clerk; J. H. Fritts, Treasurer; Kenneth Prine, Assessor; M. Henderson, Constable. April 5, 1880-Trustees as in 1879; C. A.. Kleinknecht, Clerk; J. A. Schwallie, Treasurer; R. B. Dunn, Assessor; Abner Reed, Constable. April 4, 1881-F. Inskeep, Henry Wohlleber and John W. Eyler, Trustees; C. A. Kleinknecht, Clerk; J. A. Schwallie, Treasurer; R. B. Dunn, Assessor; A. Reed, Constable. April 3, 1882-Trustees as in 1881; G. M.Campbell, Clerk; J. T. Potts, Treasurer; J. A. Schwallie, Assessor; W. Henderson, Constable. JUSTICES OF THE PEACE. The following is a complete list of the Justices, with the date of their commissions: Edward Francis, April 29, 1824; Stephen Reynolds, January 29, 1825; M. Greathouse, November 16, 1825, October 13, 1828, October 3, 1831, November 7, 1834; Thomas Brady, January 19, 1828; Thomas Sergent, January 1, 1831; James Wright, November 30, 1833, December 8, 1836, December 6, 1839, December 3, 1842; Robert McKnight; December 8, 1837; William Sellman, November 23, 1840; Alexander Wilson, November 11, 1843, November 7, 1846, December 1, 1849; Samuel E. Evans, elected May 3, 1845, -election was contested and set aside, and he was re-elected June 7, 1845, commission dated June 26, 1845; William Wallis, June 3, 1848, April 30, 1851, May 3, 1854; Fountain Inskeep, November 25, 1852, November 26, 1855, October 19, 1858, October 21, 1861; John Neill, April 21, 1857, April 10, 1860, April '13, 1863, resigned March 7, 1864; Ethan A. Pindell, April 15, 1864; A. Henderson, November 17, 1864; John H. Rees, November 29, 1867, November, 1870, resigned October 1, 1872; Andrew Henderson, November 30, 1872; William Campbell, April 15, 1867, April 11, 1870; Conrad Neu, April 21, 1873; William H. Middleswart, November 2, 1875, October 21, 1878; Andrew Henderson, April 15, 1876, April 19, 1879, April 20, 1882; W. W. Pennell, October 26, 1881, removed from the county, and was succeeded by R. B. Dunn, April 17, 1882. STATISTICS. In 1824, the real estate of Joseph Reynolds, deceased, was valued at $8 per acre, a cow at $7 and a mare at $50. At the Presidential election of 1832, 122 votes were cast-103 for Jackson and nineteen for Clay. At the Presidential election of 1836, seventy-seven votes were cast for Van Buren and sixty- nine for Harrison. At the October election, 1837, 119 votes were cast. In 1840, there were 483 youth of school age in the township. In 1845, there were 219 males in the township between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years, and 105 of them were liable for militia duty. The township now has a voting population of 174. PIONEERS The following mention is made of a few of the early settlers who located in the township between the years 1801 and 1820. There may have been many others who merit mention in this place, but if such there were the most diligent inquiry has failed to discover even their names. Stephen Reynolds, a native of New York State, emigrated to Ohio in 1801, and located about half mile south of where the village of Carlisle now stands, in Jackson Township, where he remained until his death in August, 1842. His son Oliver, who was born in 1794, married Zylpha Middleswart in May, 1810, and by her had ten children, eight of whom are now living. After his marriage, he removed to Ash Ridge, north of Carlisle, where he remained till 1854, when he moved to the extreme northern part of the township. He par- 660 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. ticipated in the war of 1812, and for some time was a Trustee of his township. He died in 1866, leaving his widow, who still survives at the age of eighty-three years. John Glendening came to Jackson Township about the year 1803 or 1804, and settled on over 100 acres of land in what is now the western part of the township, part of his farm being in Jackson, and part in Franklin Township. He was a native of Scotland, and emigrated to America at an early day. He located and for a number of years lived in Virginia, where he married Jenett Wilson, a native of Ireland. At the time of their emigration to Ohio, they had nine children—six girls and three sons—one son having died in Virginia. Their children are now all dead, and their sole representatives in the county are four grandsons and one grand-daughter. A grand-daughter also lives in Highland County and a grandson in Missouri. James Inskeep was born in New Jersey in 1766 of English parents. He moved to Virginia, and there married Delila Delaney, who died leaving two children, and two preceded her to the grave. In 1805, Mr. Inskeep emigrated to Ohio, and settled in what is now Jackson Township, where he remained until his death. Shortly after settling here, he married Elenor, daughter of John Glendening. By this marriage he had eleven children. of whom seven are now living, viz., John, born in 1811, married Sarah Haynes and settled on part of the home farm, where he raised four children—girls; Joshua, born in 1812, married Nancy Reed and settled on the home farm, where he raised three boys and six girls; Joseph, born 1813, settled on the home place, and married Martha Hill, by whom he had four boys and several girls; he now lives in Missouri; Job, born 1819, settled near the home farm, and married Susan Myers, who died without issue; Fountain, whose biography appears elsewhere in this work. The sons, with the exception of Joseph, all reside in Brown County. The father died in 1824 under the following circumstances: On the 24th of May, while returning from West Union, where he had been attending court, he attempted on horseback to ford Eagle Creek, which at that time was swollen by recent rains; but by some accident was thrown from his horse and drowned. His widow died in 1861. Anthony Shaw was born in New York State near the borders of Massachusetts. Be married Sarah Niles, by whom he had twelve children, the majority of whom are still living. In 1810, with his wife and two children, he emigrated to Brown County, Ohio, and settled about one mile southwest of Carlisle Village, where he remained perhaps eight years. After living in different portions of what are now known as Jackson and Franklin Townships, he finally settled in the southern portion of Franklin Township on Straight Creek, where he remained until his decease. He had served as Trustee of Franklin Township, and was by the community surrounding him highly respected. lie died in June, 1840. His son, Andrew J., who was born in this township in 1816, is now living in the northern lpart of the township, where he moved with his family in 1859. Sylvanus Parker, a native of Maryland, emigrated to Ohio with his parents, Peter and Rachel (Harper) Parker, and located in Jackson Township in 1812. They lived in Pennsylvania, Virginia and Kentucky before their emigration. Sylvanus married Nancy Feeley, by whom he had two children— John, who married Sarah Patton and had six children, and Elizabeth, the wife of Josiah Ross, the mother of two children, both surviving. Terry Wormacks emigrated from Virginia to Ohio, and in 1813 located in Jackson Township, on part of the land owned by James Inskeep. He married Roxy Reynolds, and by her had a large family of children. Thomas Brady came from Virginia with Wormacks, or about the same time, JACKSON TOWNSHIP - 661 and located in Jackson Township. He married Anna Glendeniug, and had a family of nine or ten children, all of whom are now dead or have left this county. Joseph McManis was born in Pennsylvania in 1796, and in 1815 emigrated to Ohio with his parents, Charles and Ellen McMania, who located in what is now Jackson Township. After living in Brown County several years, they removed to Adams County, where they resided until their deaths. Joseph was three times married —in March, 1819, to Jane Donaldson, by whom he had nine children; in May, 1840, to Mary Bishop, by whom he had three children, and in November, 1847, to Ruth Mathias, by whom he had seven children. He died in Livingston County, Ill., in November, 1872. A more extended sketch of him will be found among the biographies of this township. Capt. John Rice emigrated to Ohio and located in Jackson Township in 1816. His father, James Rice, with his family emigrated from Ireland prior to the American Revolution. Capt. Rice was born in Philadelphia, where he married Jane McNight, who emigrated from Ireland with her parents at an early day. He had charge of a company of cavalry in the war of 1812, and also served on the frontiers of Ohio and Indiana and in the engagement at Tippecanoe. He had a family of thirteen children, some of whom are now living in Washington Township, to which he moved in 1820, and where he died in September, 1843. Brice Rukey was born in New Jersey about the year 1809. About the year 1817, his parents, Thomas and Hester Rukey, emigrated to Brown County, Ohio, and settled near Eagle Creek, in the southern portion of what is now known as Jackson Township, near where Thomas B. Rukey at present resides. Brice was here reared amid the stirring scenes of pioneer life, and received but a rudimentary education. He married Elizabeth Greathouse, by whom he had nine children, five of whom are living, viz., Lucinda, Mary J., Ellen, William and Thomas B. Mr. Rukey was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and died in October, 1877. His wife died some time before him. Edward Francis was born in Ireland, and when three years of age came to America with his parents and located in Jackson Township, Brown County, near Ash Ridge. He married Elizabeth Plummer, of Adams County, by whom he had four children. After his marriage, he settled on the farm now occupied by his son James W., where he resided until his death in November, 1870. Josiah Rhoten with his wife Mary (Prine) and three children emigrated from Kentucky to Ohio, and in 1814 located in Jackson Township. He purchased fifty acres of land where the village of Carlisle now stands. He died in 1865 and his wife in 1855. They had six children born to them after their settlement there. Of their nine children, Christopher, William, Huston, Hannah and Catharine live in Brown County, Thomas, Prine and Jane are dead, and Kenneth lives in the State of Illinois. William McNown was born in Ireland, and at thirty years of age emigrated to America and settled in Pennsylvania. In 1818, he came to Jackso n Township, and located on Eagle Creek. He brought with him his wife, Mary (McKnight), and five children and had one child born after his settlement. Of his children, one married S. L. Fenton, of this township; Robert is in Dexter, Iowa: William in this township, and the rest are dead. William McColgen was another early settler, but we are unable to give the date of his settlement. He came from Virginia with his wife, Isabella, and several children. He died in this township, and his children have all left the county. He occupied several township offices during his life, and was a man of prominence in the community. 662 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. CHURCHES About the years 1815 or 1816, a Methodist class was organized with thirteen members in the western part of the township, in what was then called the Mahappy neighborhood, and class meetings and occasional church services were held at the houses of the members, but mostly in the house of Mr. Mahappy, whose house stood on Eagle Creek, in the edge of Adams County. Previous to the organization of this class, a class was formed at the house of Samuel Evans on Ash Ridge. Among the first members of this class were Samuel Evans and wife, Robert Patton and wife, Josiah Rhoten and Mary, his wife, John Crute and Elsie, his wife, and John Nelson and wife. Services were held in the houses of Robert Patton and Samuel Evans. In 1819, these two classes united and formed White Oak Station, more recently known as Ash Ridge Church. About 1824, ground having been obtained of Samuel Evans for that purpose, a log church was built by the people of the neighborhood. In this church the society worshiped until the fall of the year 1856, when they built a one-story frame church in Carlisle at a cost of $1,100, in which they still worship. About the time of the breaking-out of the rebellion. a division of the church took place, and about fifty members withdrew, and formed the Christian Union Church. They took possession of the old log church, which had been deserted when the congregation moved to Carlisle, and worshiped in it until they built the present one-story frame building that stands on the ground near the old log which is still standing. The church building belongs to the society, and their preachers are employed by the congregation, as the church is independent of any conference or other higher court. Mount Olivet Methodist Church is the outgrowth of meetings held on the border of the township at the houses of James Pendill, William Davis and others about the year 1832. The meeting place was afterward changed to a schoolhouse that stood near the site of the present church. In 1835, a half acre of ground was donated to the church by John Francis, and on it the society built a small log church, in which their services were held until it was replaced by the present frame structure. Pleasant Hill Christian Church was organized by Alexander McClain, in the house of Daniel Robbins, in Adams County, in 1836, with nine members, among whom were Daniel Robbins and Sarah, his wife, Isaac Edgington and Sarah, his wife, and Emily Edgington. In 1843, they built a frame church on the hill above the present church on an acre of land procured of Nathaniel Glaze. In 1839, they purchased a half-acre of land of Dodridge Smith, on which they built the present church. Among the pastors who have served this congregation are John McMillan, Newman Dawson, Jackson Daugherty, Samuel Gray, Rufus McDaniel, Walker Mefford, Benton Seliman, Margaret Wallace, and since 1861, George W. Mefford. Emanuel Chapel (Christian) was built about 1857 on land donated by J. Brady. The society was organized and services were held as early as 1850. . The meetings until the church was built were held in a schoolhouse that stood near the site of the present church. The church was built by subscription. Soon after the war the zeal of the society flagged, and the services were for a time discontinued, but were commenced again about 1875, under the ministrations of Rev. Harrison Toll, and now they are having occasional preaching. SCHOOLS. In 1817, a small three-cornered schoolhouse was built on the branch of the creek above James McNown's residence, in which Samuel McKee and James Thompson taught school in early days. This is supposed to have been JACKSON TOWNSHIP - 663 the first schoolhouse built in the township, schools that were held prior to that date being in private houses. There was also a log schoolhouse built on Ash Ridge at a very eary day, in which Stephen Morris, Samuel Swan and a teacher named May taught a number of schools. In 1820, a schoolhouse was built in the eastern part of the township on Eagle Creek, in which Isaac Gantz was the first teacher. Prior to this, he taught in the house of Mr. Mahappy, and in a little log church in Adams County, in the same neighborhood. In 1824, a school was taught in a log but on Eagle Creek by William Brown. Another pioneer schoolhouse stood just north of the present site of Carlisle. There are now in the township six districts, with a good schoolhouse in each and an enrollment of 107 boys and 122 girls. The total value of the school property in the township is assessed at $2,100 or $350 in each district. The amount expended annually for the support of these schools is about $2,000, of which $1,500 is for the salaries of teachers, and the balance for fuel, repairs and other contingencies. CARLISLE. The town of Carlisle was laid out by John Anderson and John Anderson, Jr., May 30, 1834. The plat, recorded June 16, 1834, contains thirty-one lots, eight poles long by four poles wide, two streets, Main street and Cross street, and fifteen cross alleys one pole wide. Main street is sixty-six feet wide and seventy-six poles long, and bears north 40 degrees east. Cross street is sixty-six feet wide and twenty poles long, and bears north fifty degrees west. The alleys run parallel to Cross street, and divide the lots into squares of two lots each. The town lies on the Ripley & Hillsboro pike, which runs through Main street. The post office, which is called Ash Ridge, was established soon after the platting of the town. Among the Postmasters have been Ethan A. Pindell, who occupied the office in 1857, and for a number of years afterward, Andrew Potts, William Parker, Jacob S. Campbell. The present incumbent of the office is Mrs. Jane L. Campbell, who was appointed at the death of her husband in February, 1882. The industries of the town are not extensive. Samuel Mitchell opened a tavern on Main street in 1853, and continued it several years, but finally sold out and left the town. Some time prior to 1850, a carding and fulling mill was built in the northeastern part of the town by David Ross. He sold it to Thomas Prine, and he to George Davis, in whose possession it was burned down, but was afterward rebuilt by him, and operated a number of years. The machinery was finally taken from it and sold, and the building left to decay. A saw-mill was built south of town by Addison Williamson in 1854, and operated by him several years. It is now owned by Job Inskeep. The enterprises of the town now are two saloons, two shoe shops, two blacksmith shops, three general stores, one hotel, /Etna House, and two secret societies. Ash Ridge Lodge, No. 492, I. O O. F., was chartered May 10, 1871, and instituted August 19, 1871, with ten charter members. William Parker was the first N. G., and George P. Tyler the first Secretary. In 1875, the lodge built a second story on a large frame building at a cost of $700, and now occupy it as a lodge room. There are now twenty-four members. Union Lodge, No. 127, K. of P., was instituted March 24, 1880, by Charles D. Iddings, Grand Chancellor, with fourteen charter members. The lodge now occupies a hall on Main street, over one of the stores. The first officers were: George M. Campbell, P. C.; Dr. A. Gilfillen, C. C, ; L. B. Campbell, V. C. ; J. 311 Parker, P.; R. B. Dunn, K. of R. and S. 664 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. CHAPTER XIV. WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP. WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP was organized December 2, 1822, and the boundary lines then described were as follows: Beginning in the southern boundary line of Highland County, dividing in part Highland and Brown, at a point five and one-half miles from the corner or connection of the said line with Adams County, and running from thence due south to the township line dividing the townships of Eagle and Byrd, thence westwardly with the line dividing Eagle, Pleasant and Clark Townships; thence north five and one- half miles to a point (from which point a line shall be run at right angles to the first line run. forming one entire township, to be called Franklin Township), and from the said last-mentioned line to continue north to the line dividing the townships of Clark and Perry; from thence with the said line and its bearings to the Highland County line; thence with the said lines dividing the counties of Highland and Brown, with the bearings therof, to the point of beginning, forming one entire township, to be called Washington Township. A portion of the above-described territory was used on the formation of Scott Township, December 1, 1828. On the north of this subdivision is Highland County, on the east Eagle Township, on the south Franklin Township, and on the west Scott and Pike Townships. Generally speaking, its surface is level, there being some hills along the water-courses. The surface is well watered by the East Fork of White Oak Creek, Slab Camp, and smaller tributaries of the first-mentioned. The East Fork of White Oak flows through the northern part of the township from east to west, and joins the main stream of the same name, which forms the line separating this township and Pike, at the western boundary of the township. Slab Camp Creek, so named, as tradition gives it, after an Indian camp that was once pitched along its waters, and the remains of which were traceable to the pioneer settlers. The soil is fertile, and the products correspond with those of other sections of Brown County. Pikes are as yet unknown to this section, but in railroads it excels all other townships in the county, having direct communication with the outside world in three directions, and in the near future will be added the fourth. The Cincinnati & Eastern Railroad passes through the northern part of Washington, running in an easterly and westerly direction; the Hillsboro & Sardinia road terminates at Sardinia; and the Georgetown & Sardinia Railroad is in process of construction. EARLY SETTLEMENT. The first permanent settlement made in what is now Washington Township is credited to the Wardlaw family. Just prior to the dawn of the present century—in the early spring of 1800 —Robert Wardlaw, with wife, Martha Downey, and a number of sons and daughters, some of whom were married and were parents themselves, emigrated from Kentucky and halted on the banks of White Oak and effected the Wardlaw settlement. The family had for some years resided in Kentucky, where the father owned considerable land, which, it is said, he traded for that on White Oak. Here he possessed 300 acres, in Survey No. 1,053, which lies on either side of White Oak Creek, in what is WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - 665 now the subdivisions of Washington, Scott and Pike, at a point where the three are close together. Robert's home was in Scott, but those of William and Samuel, who were men of families, were in Washington, along the North and East Forks of the creek. The family had, prior to going to Kentucky, resided in the State of Virginia. Further reference to the father will be found in the sketch of Scott Township. Other sons and daughters of Robert and wife were John, James, Josiah, Hugh, Mattie and Jane. William's wife was Isabel Nesbitt, and their children were James, Samuel, Philander, Robert, Jane, Mary and Matilda, the most of whom became permanent residents of Brown County, and the men folks assisted in the clearing and improvement of land. The father, William, was a soldier of the war of 1812, a member of Capt. Jacob Boerstler's company, and was engaged in battle with the company at Brownstown, where he was killed August 4, 1812. Samuel Wardlaw married Elizabeth Nesbitt, a sister to William's wife, and their sons were Allen, Preston, Levi, Rainey and Henry; and the daughters were Mary, Ann and Elizabeth. All remained permanent settlers in the county, and Levi and Rainey of the township, where both are now residing, on the original tract of their parents Samuel died May 6, 1848, in the seventy-fifth year of his age. John Wardlaw married Elizabeth Lance, and settled in Washington Township. James married Nellie Irwin, and became a permanent settler of this township. Josiah's wife was Sarah Kimball, and they resided in Scott Township. Hugh married Rebecca Irons, and remained permanently in the township. He, too, went into the war of 1812, with his brother, enlisting in the same company and regiment. His death occurred January 24, 1864, aged seventy-two years; and that of his wife, March 19, 1871, in her seventy-ninth year. Jane became the wife of Joseph Calvin, a pioneer of this township. Joseph Calvin, of whom we could learn but little, came to the White Oak region some time prior to 1805, as it appears of records in Clermont County, that he was married to Jane Wardlaw June 1, 1805, by William Hunter, a Justice of the Peace of that county. He settled on White Oak, just above the Wardlaw settlement. His children were Sophronia, Polly, James, Sally, Luther, Robert and another son, whose name is not recalled. Mr. Calvin hailed from Kentucky. Vinson Calvin, a brother of the one above named, with his family, came from Kenton's Station, Ky., removing on Christmas Day, 1807, and effected a settlement on White Oak, near Joseph. He was a native of Kentucky, and was twice married. His second wife was Christina ---, and their children were Lewis, Ann, John and Elizabeth, all of whom were born in Kentucky. It is said that Simon Kenton, Jr., was a half-brother to these sons and daughters. Lewis married Zena Graham, and, in connection with Joseph McFadden, purchased 500 acres of land in Washington Township, which they improved. He removed from this vicinity some years ago to Clermont County, where he died in 1878. Ann married John Hineman, and lived in this neighborhood many years, then removed to the West. The others married and went West. Among the first settlers in the vicinity of Sardinia, and the most prominent man in the community, was John Moore, a native of Madison County. N. J., born near Elizabethtown December 4, 1779. His parents were natives of England, and, in religious belief, were Friends, or Quakers. At the age of sixteen years, our subject left the parental roof and located in Monongalia County, W. Va., where he engaged in teaching. In 1799, he was united in marriage with Frances Graham, and, six years later, removed to Ohio and settled on Red Oak Creek, in the vicinity of Ripley. In 1807-08, he taught school on Straight Creek, and afterward at Red Oak. Mr. Moore settled near 666 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY: Sardinia soon after his arrival in the Buckeye State, remaining on Red Oak not longer than a year or two. He spent the summers on his land in Washington Township, and was engaged in teaching during the winters, at the points named. This plan he continued until the winter of 1815-16, when he began teaching in what was afterward long known as the Moore Schoolhouse, near the present site of Sardinia, and continued teaching thereat until 1834. His wife died in 1832, and he afterward married Mrs. Fannie Pettijohn. Father Moore was an Elder in the Presbyterian Church from 1812 until the organization of the Congregational Church in Sardinia, in 1851. From an obituary notice written at his death, November 9, 1857, we quote as follows: "Exact in his intercourse with his fellow-men, honest in all the transactions of life, desirous of promoting the good of mankind, and possessing a Christian character worthy of imitation, he won the affection and esteem of the community in which he lived. Few live so exemplary. He had a taste for reading, which be did not fail to cultivate in the decline of life. The Bible was his daily companion. He was a constant attendant upon the services of the sanctuary. * * * * * * " In politics, Mr. Moore was an Abolitionist, and afterward a Republican. He was a man of strong character, fixed principles and undaunted courage in advocating his principles. It is said by a venerable and highly respected citizen of Sardinia that John Moore molded the character of the community in which he lived. By his first marriage, Mr. Moore had ten children, only five of whom lived to the age of maturity. Jane married Amzi Huggins. Sarah married Rev. R. I. Huggins, and they now reside near Bethel, Clermont County. She is the only child that survived her father. The eldest son; Josiah, married Patsy Gilliland. settled in the vicinity of his father, and there became an enterprising and useful citizen, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this work. The next son, Ira, died in 1849, aged twenty-nine years; John B., the youngest son, died in 1845, at the age of twenty-four years. The Pettijohn families, five in number—namely, those of James, Edward, Richard, Amos and Thomas—emigrating from Monongalia County, W. Va., were among the earliest settlers of this locality. Just at what ime they came is not definitely fixed; however, it is certain that they were here early in the present century, and are to be classed with Washington's earliest pioneers. On the question of the time of their emigration, we give the date as fixed by the son of James, a resident of St. Louis, as two years before Ohio became a State. Now, as there is a question on this point, too, we leave the reader to his own opinion. It is thought, by one who has given the subject of pioneer history in the vicinity of Sardinia some attention, and is well versed in the history of the township, that the date of the Pettijohn settlement as given above is too early by several years. It appears of record that a deed for land lying in Survey 3,389 was made to Amos Pettijohn under date of November 28, 1809. Of these families our knowledge is limited, as none of the immediate descendants are in this locality, and therefore not a great deal of their family history can be given. Amos Pettijohn, whose wife's given name was Susan, and their children, so far as known, were Hannah. Nancy, William and Rachel, settled a little northeast of the present village of Sardinia. He was one of the first Elders of the Presbyterian Church, and a useful and influential citizen. Thomas Pettijohn settled north of Sardinia. His wife's given name was Ruth, and their children, so far as known, were Samuel, Boaz, Huldah, Ruth and Elias. Richard Pettijohn settred in the same vicinity. He raised a large family of children, and the survivors are all now in the West. He was one of the first Justices of the Peace in Washington Township. Of James and Edward we know nothing, save that the former's wife was Elizabeth Johnson, a native of Virginia, and that William, their son, was a soldier in the war of WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - 667 1812. Abraham Pettijohn, of one of these families, married soon after their arrival, and remained in this vicinity for about thirty years, and became a man of some prominence in the township. It is said that all of these families were noted Abolitionists, and instilled these principles into their children, who became noted for their devotion to this then unpopular and odious doctrine. From these families sprang twelve physicians. ten of whom are still living, and are engaged in active practice. In 1829, there were as many as a dozen Pettijohn families, who sprang from the pioneer settlement in and about Sardinia, residing in the township at one time. In the fall of 1809, an addition was made to the White Oak settlements by the removal of David Graham from West Virginia to this section. Mr. Graham was a native of West Virginia, and, before his emigration to Ohio, had married Jane Dunn, of that State, and on his arrival his family consisted of wife and five children—one son and four daughters—and afterward were added to the family two sons and five daughters. By name, the children were Zena, Rebecca, Dortha, Susan, Cassandra, Elizabeth, Jane, Alice, Nancy, John, David and Henry. The father settled on a tract of land now situated on the road leading from Sardinia to Brownstown, about one mile southwest of Sardinia This pioneer was one of the original members of White Oak Presbyterian Church, and a valuable man in the community in which his life was spent. He died August 7, 1845, in the seventy-second year of his age, his wife having preceded him nearly six years. aged sixty-seven yeare. Their remains rest in the graveyard at Sardinia. Zena, the eldest daughter of these parents, married Lewis Calvin. Rebecca married Joseph McFadden, now deceased; she is a resident of Sardinia. Dortha married S. D. Runyan, both of whom are dead. Susan married Jacob Davis, and both are dead. Cassandra is the wife of Dr. Isaac M. Beck, of Sardinia. Elizabeth married Oliver Shroufe, and is in Iowa. Jane married Shepherd Johnson, and is in Kansas. Alice married George Parks (deceased), and is a resident of the State of Illinois. Nancy became the wife of Andrew Raney, and died in Illinois. The sons are all in the West. In 1808, John Vance and wife, Lydia Reiss, emigrated from Lexington, Ky., to Clermont County, stopping in the vicinity of Bethel, on Clover Creek, where the father rented land of Jasper and John Shotwell, upon which he resided until the year 1810, and then removed to a tract situated on the east side of White Oak, in the extreme northwestern part of the township, which he had purchased of the same men. Here Mr. Vance reared the little and rude log cabin, the home of the pioneer, and began the task incumbent upon all corners to a new country. He was a man of some family before coming to Ohio. While hailing, as he did, from the Blue Grass Region, he was not a native of that State, having formerly come from Virginia. He was the father of the following-named children: Margaret, William, Sarah, Reiss, Elizabeth, John, Patrick, James, Lewis A. and Morris. William is now residing on the homestead, and is the father of, twenty children, all of whom were born on that farm. He has been twice married. His first wife was Sophronia. daughter of the pioneer, Joseph Calvin; and his present wife was Margaret Jane Moore. Margaret married John McCain. John married Mrs. Elizabeth (Bratton) Sands. Patrick married Rebecca Brannon. James married Jane Cumberland. Lewis married, first. Matilda Dey, and second, Jane Stanford. Morris married Nancy Calvin. Sarah married Thomas Schroufe. Elizabeth married Daniel Runnels, and Reiss died unmarried. About the time that David Graham made his appearance in the township, there settled oil the present site of the village of Sardinia Joseph Bratton, a 668 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. man of family, who improved land, upon which he resided until the neighborhood of 1828, when he removed into Highland County. A line of settlement along Slab Camp was made during the war of 1812— 15, or about that time. The families emigrating thither were the Days, Hamiltons, Higinbothams and Nevinses. The Hamiltons, of whom Robert was the head, came from Virginia, and their laud was on the stream named, situated about two miles southeast of Sardinia. Mr. Hamilton was a native of the State from whence he emigrated, born July 26, 1788, and his wife, Nancy Parish, was one year his senior. They were married in 1811, and. before settling in this locality, stopped a year or two in the vicinity of Georgetown. Their children were Sarah, Ellen, Ann, Joseph, Elizabeth, Amanda, Delilah, Joshua and Susannah. Mr. Hamilton was commissioned a Justice of the Peace of the township in 1826. The Higinbothams, of whom some of the sons and daughters were Sam uel, Elizabeth, Mary, Rebecca, Catherine, Sarah and John, setttled across the creek from Hamilton's. They only remained in the township a few years. Andrew Nevins was a Kentuckian, and emigrated to this State early in the present century, and stopped some time in the southern part of the county before making a permanent settlement on Slab Camp Creek. He was twice married, and had a number of children, among whom were Hugh, John and Andrew P. He was a pious man, and one of the early Methodists of this vicinity. It was greatly through his efforts that a society of that denomination was so soon organized in the Slab Camp settlement. It is said that it was on his invitation that Rev. John Strange, one of the old itinerant Methodist preachers, first came to hold services in this section of the country. Of the family of Days we can give no information, the descendants having all removed from the neighborhood. A. family by the name of Lyon settled along Slab Camp at about the same time the above-mentioned families came there. Later arrivals in Washington were the Kincaids. Matthew, the father, was a native of Pennsylvania, and emigrated with his father to the Northwest Territory in 1797, and effected a settlement in what afterward became Adams County. His father, Samuel Kincaid, was in the war of 1812, and lost his life at Fort Meigs, where he was killed by the Indians May 5, 1813. Matthew, too, was in that war. In 1817, he located in this township, settling in the vicinity of Sardinia. He was a tanner by trade, and carried on that business for twenty years. His death occurred January 9, 1871. Two years later came to this locality the families of Thomas Purcell and Clarkson Dunn, both of Irish descent. Mr. Purcell hailed from Kentucky, and became a resident of the country around Sardinia. Mr. Dunn was a native of Maryland; also his wife, Elizabeth Hamilton. The former was a soldier in the war of 1812. In 1816, with his wife and three children, he descended the Ohio River in a flat-boat and landed at Ripley. He soon removed to Straight Creek, and, in 1817, located near Georgetown, and in 1819 made a permanent settlement above Sardinia. He was a prominent citizen of the township. His death occurred in September, 1852, and that of his wife some years later. Among the pioneers of Washington of -whom but little is now known other than that they resided in the township were Levi Estel, James Bell and John Kibler, all of whom carried on mills on White Oak. The settlements along the water-courses grew rapidly, and it was but a few years from the beginning of the march of emigrants to this region until the lands were all taken up and the vicinity peopled. In 1825, among the names of householders other than those mentioned above were the following: Joseph Line, William Grant, Jeremiah Purdum James Little, Richard Rilea, Thomas Rilea, Joseph Wright, David McKee, Peter Shinkle, Benjamin Cornell, Simon WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - 669 Kenton, Adam Ewing, Daniel Reynolds, Vinson Robins, Everett Smith, John Bingman, John Hess, William Reave, John Dey, James Bonner, George Washburn, John Stansberry, John Poe, Benjamin McDaniel, Hampton Pangburn, John Hindman, John Vansandt, John Gregory, John Oldum and James Bonner. The land lying in the southwestern part of the township was not settled, comparatively speaking, until a late day-not until after 1830. A family of Germans by the name of Ernst settled on and improved land in that locality. Many other Germans settled throughout the southern part of the township, the first of whom were the Feiks and Biehms. The reader, as he proceeds, will notice, in connection with other subjects, the names of later arrivals. It is beyond our province to here further trace the line of settlement and speak of the hardy forefathers of many of the people of Washington. who, by their toil and privations, made possible the beautiful fields and highly cultivated farms of to-day. JUSTICES OF THE PEACE. The following are the names of persons commissioned to the office of Justice of the Peace in Washington Township. with the dates of their commissions: Richard Pettijohn, January -, 1823, December 20, 1831; John J. Gregory, May, 1826, May 1, 1829, April 13, 1832, April 29, 1835; Robert Hamilton, April 10, 1826; William K. Eskridge. January 12, 1829; Joseph Wright, November 29, 1834, January 19, 1838; Matthew Kincaid, April 12, 1838, April 4, 1856; Seth G. Wright, January 19, 1841; Henry Strait, May 24, 1841; Huston Bare, November 5, 1843, October 24, 1846, October 19, 1849, November 4, 1852, October 22, 1855, November 1, 1858, October 21, 1861, April 7, 1865; Eli Dunn, December 27, 1843, April 14, 1853; Levi Dunn (elected), April 7, 1845, May 20, 1848; Abiel Hayes, April 30, 1851; A. N. Nevin, May 3, 1854; R. Dunn, April 12, 1859; Thomas Davis, April 23, 1862; David Kinzer, November 17, 1864; William Vance, October 12, 1867; William F. Gregory, October 28, 1870, October 31, 1873; A. D. Marsh, April 15, 1871; P. R. Kincaid, April 18, 1874, April 17, 1877, April 17, 1880; Stephen Feike, October 21, 1876, October 27, 1879. TOWNSHIP OFFICIALS. 1823-Trustees, Joseph Calvin, Jeremiah Purdum; Treasurer, John Hindman; Clerk, -- ---; Lister, William Grant; Overseers of the Poor, John Vinsandt, Matthew Day; Fence Viewer, Clarkson Dunn 1824-Trustees, Jeremiah Purdum, Matthew Day, John Stansberry; Treasurer, Peter Shinkle; Clerk, Joseph Worstell; Lister, William Grant; Overseers of the Poor, James Dey, Levi Estel; Fence Viewers, Christopher, Poe, James Robins. 1825-Trustees, Abraham Pettijoh a, Peter Shinkle, Edward Pettijohn; Treasurer, Joseph Wright; Clerk, Matthew Kincaid; Overseers of the Poor, William Grant, Amos Pettijohn. 1826--Trustees, Abraham Pettijohn, Mark Day, Joseph Calvin; Treasurer, Thomas Rilea; Clerk, Matthew Kincaid; Overseers of the Poor, John Pettijohn, John Bratton; Fence Viewers, Andrew Nevin, Edward Dey. 1827-Trustees, David McKee, A. Starke, George Kauts; Treasurer, Clarkson Dunn; Clerk, John Moore; Overseers of the Poor, John Bingman, James Bell; Fence Viewers, Michael Hough, Lewis Calvin. 1828-Trustees, Hugh Gunnison, John Vansandt, Thomas Rilea; Treasurer, John Purdum; Clerk, John Moore; Overseers of the Poor, Thomas McGee, Matthew Kincaid; Fence Viewers, Richard Pettijohn, James Wardlow. 1829--Trustees, John Anderson, Hugh Nevin, Amos Pettijohn; Treasurer, 670 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. Abraham Pettijohn; Clerk, Matthew Kincaid; Overseers of the Poor, Philip Waters, James Bell; Fence Viewers, Robert Ewing, Edward Day. 1830—Trustees, John J. Gregory, Hugh Nevin, George Wright; Treasurer, Clarkson Dunn; Clerk, Matthew Kincaid; Overseers of the Poor, John Anderson, -----; Fence Viewers, ---. 1831-Trustees, Robert D. Lilley, Aaron Purdum, George Knight; Treasurer, Thomas Rilea; Clerk Josiah Moore; Overseers of the Poor, Abiel Starke, Stephen Alexander; Fence Viewers, Richard Rilea, George Marsher. 1832—Trustees, Robert Graham, Aaron Purdum, John J. Gregory; Treasurer, John Moore; Clerk, Josiah Moore; Overseers of the Poor, P. R. Kincaid, James Wardlow; Fence Viewers, John Nevin, James Wardlow. 1833—Trustees, Joseph Wright, John J. Gregory, Robert Graham; Treasurer, Clarkson Dunn; Clerk, John Moore; Overseers of the Poor, James Bell, Ellis Dey; Fence Viewers, Robert Graham, Abraham Pettijohn, James Rilea. 1834—Trustees, Zachariah Pettijohn, John J. Gregory, Clarkson Dunn; Treasurer, Aaron Purdum; Clark, John Graham; Overseers of the Poor, John Nevin, ; Fence Viewers, William B. Wills, Richard Pettijohn. 1835—Trustees, Thomas Rilea, Clarkson Dunn, John J. Gregory; Treasurer, -----: Clerk. John Graham; Overseers of the Poor, Thomas Rilea, Isaac M. Beck; Fence Viewers, Joseph Wright, William B. Lilley, Hugh Kennedy. 1836--Trustees, Clarkson Dunn, William Vance, Thomas Rilea; Treasurer, Aaron Dunn; Clerk, Robert Graham; Overseers of the Poor, John Gregory, George Wright and James Wardlow; Fence Viewers, John B. Mahan, Joseph Pettijohn. 1837—Trustees, Joseph Wright, Hugh Nevin, Levi Dunn; Treasurer, Aaron Purdum; Clerk, Robert Graham; Overseers of the Poor, Josiah Moore, William B. Lilley; Fence Viewers, John B. Mahan, Robert I. Huggins, Stephen W. Gilleland. 1838—Trustees, Clarkson Dunn, George Wright, Henry Strait; Treasurer, Aaron Purdum; Clerk, S. W. Gilleland; Overseers of the Poor, John Dey, Ellis Dey; Fence Viewers, James Cumberland, John B. Mahan, W. B. Lilley. 1839—Trustees, Clarkson Dunn, George Wright, Henry Strait; Treasurer, Aaron Purdum; Clerk, Robert Graham; Overseers of the Poor, John B. Mahan, William Wills; Fence Viewers, V. M. Diboll, Shepherd Johnson, Eli Wells. 1840—Trustees, Hugh Nevin, Ira Tracy, Clarkson Dunn; Treasurer, Aaron Purdum; Clerk, John Gaddis; Overseers of the Poor, John B. Mahan, Josiah Moore; Pence Viewers, Clarkson Dunn, A. P. Nevin, William Lilley. 1841--Trustees, Clarkson Dunn, Ira Tracy, John Wright; Treasurer, Aaron Purdum; Clerk, John Gaddis; Overseers of the Poor, John B. Mahan, J. W. Myers; Fence Viewers, Moses B. Briggs, A. P. Nevin, Clarkson Dunn. 1842—Trustees, Ira Tracy. John Wright, Clarkson Dunn; Treasurer, Aaron Purdum; Clerk, Joseph Hamilton; Overseers of the Poor, John B. Mahan, E. P. Evans; Fence Viewers, ---. 1843—Trustees, Hugh Nevin, Levi Dunn, Joseph Wright; Treasurer, Aaron Purdom; Clerk, John H. Hallam; Overseers of the Poor, A. P. Nevin Squire Purcell; Fence Viewers, Matthew Kincaid, Squire Purcell, William Wilson; Assessor, Jphn Moore. 1844--Trustees, Joseph Wright, Hugh Nevin, Levi Dunn; Treasurer, M. B. Riggs; Clerk, John Moore; Assessor, George Wright; Overseers of the Poor, I. M. Beck, V. M. Diboll. 1845-Trustees, Henry Dunn, Joseph Wright, Samuel Wright; Treasurer, WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - 671 M. B. Riggs; Clerk, Joseph Hamilton; Assessor, John W. Evans; Overseers of the Poor, James McIntire, Imri h irk. 1846—Trustees, Huston Bare, Samuel Wright, Henry Dunn; Treasurer, M. B. Riggs; Clerk, C. P. Evans; Assessor, A. Hays; Overseers of the Poor, 1847—Trustees, Huston Bare, Samuel Wright, Wilson Dunn; Treasurer, M. B. Riggs; Clerk, Robert Carter; Assessor, Abiel Hays. 1848-Trustees, Samuel P. Wright, Wilson Dunn, A N. Nevin; Treasurer, O. P. Griffith; Clerk, John S. Kerr; Assessor, I. W. Evans, 1849—Trustees, J. P. Biehn, Eli Dunn, A. Hays; Treasurer, O. P. Griffith; Clerk, M. B. Riggs t Assessor, William B. Wills. 1850—Trustees, Joseph Hamilton, Joseph Wright, Ira Tracy; Treasurer, Huston Bare; Clerk, M. B. Riggs; Assessor, William Marshall, Jr. 1851—Trustees, Ira Tracy, Joseph Wright, Joseph Hamilton; Treasurer, Huston Bare; Clerk, M. B. Riggs; Assessor, William Marshall, Jr. 1852-Trustees, James Cumberland, Levr Dunn, A. N. Nevin; Treasurer, H. Bare; Clerk, M. B. Riggs; Assessor, William Marshall, Jr. 1853—Trustees, A. N. Nevin, Levi Dunn, Ira Calvin; Treasurer, Huston Bare; Clerk, M. B. Riggs; Assessor, J. R. Rilea. 1854—Trustees, Ira Tracy, H. W. Kennedy, Noah Hite; Treasurer, Huston Bare; Clerk, M. B. Riggs.; Assessor, J. R. Rilea. 1855—Trustees, Henry Dunn, A. P. Nevin, Noah Hite; Treasurer, H. W. Kennedy; Clerk, J. C. Chapman; Assessor, P. N. Kincaid. 1856—Trustees, Henry Dunn, Jr., J. C. Dunn, Noah Hite; Treasurer, H. W. Kennedy; Clerk, R. G. Barber; Assessor, P. R. Kincaid. 1857—Trustees, Huston Bare, Noah Hite Henry Dunn, Jr.; Treasurer, H. W. Kennedy; Clerk, S. S. Pangburn; Assessor, P. R. Kincaid. 1858—Trustees, Noah- Hite, Huston Bar', Conrad New; Treasurer, H. W. Kennedy; Clerk, T. J. Curry; Assessor, P. R. Kincaid. 1859—Trustees, Henry Dunn, Huston Bare, Ira Tracy; Treasurer, H. W. Kennedy; Clerk, S. S. Pangburn; Assessor, P. R. Kincaid. 1860—Trustees, Henry Hays, Huston Bare, Ira Tracy;. Treasurer, H. W. Kennedy; Clerk, S. S. Pangburn; Assessor, A. M. Page. 1861—Trustees, Ira Tracy, William Henderson, Allen Henderson; Treasurer, Huston Bare; Clerk, Wesley Love; Assessor, A. M. Page. 1862—Trustees, Allen Henderson, Noah Hite, John Wright; Treasurer, Huston Bare; Clerk, S. S. Pangburn Assessor, P. R. Kincaid. 1863—Trustees, John Wright, Allen Henderson, Henry Dunn; Treasurer, Huston Bare; Clerk, S. S. Pangburn; Assessor, P. R. Kincaid. 1864—Trustees, Noah Hite, John Wright, Allen Henderson; Treasurer, Huston Bare; Clerk, W. M. Davis; Assessor, John Wright. 1865—Trustees, Noah Hite, P. R. Kincaid, Valentine Sneeder; Treasurer, H. W. Kennedy; Clerk, S. S. Pangburn; Assessor, William Marshall, Jr. 1866—Trustees, F. W. Smith, William Henderson, Stephen Bath Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, C. C. Blair; Assessor, David Kinzer. 1867-Trustees, Stephen Ball, F. W. Smith, William Henderson; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, T. C. H. Vance; Assessor, D. Kinzer. 1868—Trustees, Ira Tracy, Stephen Ball, F. W. Smith; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, A. D. Marsh; Assessor, D. Kinzer. 1869—Trustees Ira Tracy, Martin List, Jr., William F. Gregory; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, Eli Tracy; Assessor, David Kinzer. 1870—Trustees, W. F. Gregory, Martin List, John Smith; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, Eli Tracy; Assessor, David Kinzer. 1871—Trustees, W. F. Gregory, Martin List. J. L, Smith; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, Eli Tracy; Assessor, P. R. Kincaid. 672 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. 1872—Trustees,. W. F. Gregory, L. Ball, Henry Stephens; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, Eli Tracy; Assessor, P. R. Kincaid. 1873—Trustees, Stephen Ball, Henry Stephens, W. F. Gregory; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, R. L. Waters; Assessor, P. R Kincaid. 1874—Trustees, W. F. Gregory, John Tracy, Jacob Bohl; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, Eli Tracy; Assessor, N. S. Dunn. 1875--Trustees, Josiah McFadden, Henry Stephens, George Kress; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, Eli Tracy; Assessor, N. S. Dunn. 1876— Trustees, Henry Stephens, George Kress, Ellison Purdy; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, C. C. Hite; Assessor, N. S. Dunn. 1877—Trustees, Ira Tracy, James Knight, Stephen Rohrer; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, C. C. Hite; Assessor, George Wright. 1878-Trustees, Ira Tracy, James Knight, Stephen Rohrer; Treasurer, W. E. Deihl; Clerk, Eli Tracy; Assessor, N. S. Dunn. 1879—Trustees, Adam Bawer, Peter Ballein, John Corboy; Treasurer, Henry Stevens; Clerk, Eli Tracy; Assessor, George Wright. 1880-Trustees, Adam Bawer, Peter Ballein, John Corboy; Treasurer, Martin List; Clerk, J. B. McClain; Assessor, McCray Vance. 1881—Trustees, Adam Bawer, Peter Ballein, John Corbcy; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, J. B. McLain; Assessor, McCray Vance. 1882—Trustees, Henry Stevens, C. C. Hite, James Ervin; Treasurer, John Wright; Clerk, A. M. Waters. CHURCHES Sardinia Presbyterian Church. —Under date of November 1, 1811, in the records of White Oak Congregation, Presbyterian Church, there appears the following: " The Rev. John Boyd, having been previously invited, came to this congregation and took charge thereof. Although the people of this congregation had been favored with frequent supplies of a preached Gospel prior to this time, yet they were not organized until the following year, and, when Mr. Boyd came among them, it was on the invitation of the people,. without any order of presbytery. Previous to Mr. Boyd's taking charge of the congregation, the Rev. James Gilliland had, by particular request, preached a number of times, and had baptized six children for Francis Pettijohn, namely, Deborah, Sally, Zachariah, Lewis, Barlow and Joseph; and one or two of Joseph Bratton's children. At this time, there were only nine professors or communicants in the congregation, namely, Isabel Bratton, Thomas Pettijohn and Ruth, his wife, David Graham, John Moore and Fanny, his wife, Joseph Bratton and Ann, his wife, Francis Pettijohn." At the spring session of Washington Presbytery, held in April, 1812, a supplication was presented by White Oak Congregation, praying for one-fourth part of the ministerial labor of Rev. John Boyd, as a stated supply, which was granted. Some time in the summer of 1812, Thomas Pettijohn and John Moore were chosen to the office of Ruling Elders, and were ordained September 18 of that year. On the following day, the session met at the tent near the house of Mr. Bell. There were present Rev. John Boyd, Moderator; Thomas Pettijohn and John Moore, Elders; and John Davies, of New Market session, and John Evans, of Straight Creek. At this session, Mrs. Deborah Pettijohn and Amos Pettijohn made application for admission to the church on examination. On the evening of the same day, four of Amos Pettijohn's children were baptized, namely, Hannah, Nancy, William and Rachel. Some time during the year before a session was formed, the following-named children of Thomas and Ruth Pettijohn were baptized: Samuel, Boaz, Huldah, Ruth and Elias; also Francis Pettijohn's daughter Naomi. The annual report WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - 673 for the year 1812 exhibited ten baptismals, all of whom were children; members admitted on examination, two. On the second Sabbath of 1813 were baptized Lena, Dorothy, Rebecca, Susannah and Cassandra, daughters of David Graham. The annual report for that year shows nine children baptized; number in communion, eleven (the same number communed in 1812), and none admitted on examination. August 13, 1814, Mrs. Jane Wardlow was admitted on certificate from Mt. Pleasant congregation, Kentucky. John Pettijohn and Susannah, wife of Amos Pettijohn, were admitted on examination. Two children were baptized during the year, and seventeen communed. The report for the year 1815 was as follows: One baptized, three admitted on examination and four on certificate; communicants, twenty-one The pastorate of the Rev. John Boyd continued with the church until about April 1, 1816, and the church was without a pastor until November, 1817, when the pulpit was supplied by Revs. James Kland and and Robert B. Dobbins. During the year closing November 1, 1816, tour wore admitted on certificate and one on examination, and the number of communicants was twenty-six. Six children were baptized. The report of the following year showed a membership of twenty-seven. Until the latter part of the year 1815 or the first of the year following, services were held at private houses, and perhaps in the groves when the weather permitted. This year, a rude log house was erected, which stood in Highland County, probably two miles northeast of the present village of Sardinia, just over the line separating the two counties. January 1, 1818, the church extended a regular call for one-quarter of the labor of Rev. Mr. White as a stated pastor. The call was accepted, and Mr. White was installed pastor of the united congregations of New Market and White Oak about June 3, 1818. The membership for the years 1818, 1819, 1820, 1821 and 1822 was thirty-two, thirty, thirty-two, thirty-six and thirty-nine, respectively. Mr. White remained the pastor of the congregation until December, 1823, and preached occasionally for them until March 7, 1824, when he delivered his farewell sermon. Rev. Robert Dobbins, as stated supply, succeeded Mr. White to the pastorate, and served from April 24, 1824, until 1833, when the Rev. Robert Rutherford's ministerial labor began with the congregation. Father Dobbins is said to have been an eccentric man, strong in his affections and positive in his hatreds. In 1829, the second church building was erected, on ground given to the congregation by Amos Pettijohn, located at the cemetery at Sardinia. It was constructed of brick, and served as a place of worship until about the year 1846, when the present frame building was erected at Sardinia. John Moore was very active in the interests of the church, and gave liberally toward the building of the new edifice. The membership of the church in 1830 was forty-five; in 1831, seventy-four; and in 1832, eighty-four. Mr. Rutherford was succeeded to the pastorate by Rev. Dyer Burgess in 1837, who served the church during that and the following year, when his successor was the Rev. James Shaw, who remained in charge until May, 1841. During the decade from 18$0 to 1840, the records, as pertains to the pastors, is obscure, and it is possible that some of the names given were only supplies. During this period appears the names of Rev. George Pogue and James H. Dickey, and, in 1840, that of Rev. John Rankin. The latter year, the church membership was ninety-six. In 1841, the name of Rev. Dyer Burgess again appears. October 1, 1841, Rev. Daniel Gilmore became pastor of the church, and continued in that relation until November 3, 1844. His successor was Rev. John Rankin, who was a supply only. In 1845, the membership was 126. April 26, 1846, Rev. Samuel Rankin was ordained as pastor of White Oak 674 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. Congregation, and served until December 3, 1850. In 1848, the congregation petitioned the Presbytery to change the name of the church from White Oak Congregation to that of Sardinia Church, which was done. Rev. Rankin was succeeded by Rev. John H. Byrd, whose pastorate commenced May 1, 1851, and ended in 1854. Under his ministry, the church, September 29, 1851, adopted new articles of faith, and was organized as a Congregational Church, which lasted only through his pastorate, then again became a Presbyterian Church. In 1852, the Beauford and Sardinia Churches were consolidated. Other pastors of the church have been as follows: Rev. S. A. Vandyke, December, 1854, to 1857; Rev. V. M. King, October 1, 1859, to 1868; Rev. H. W. Guthrie, June 1, 1868, to January, 1870. The church was then without a pastor for some years. Rev. S. A. Vandyke became the stated supply, and served the congregation in 1879, 1880 and 1881. Methodist Episcopal Church at Sardinia.-Among the early settlers of what is.now Washington Township, there were a number of Methodist families who had settled mainly along the stream known as Slab Camp, prominent among whom were the Nevins, Days and Hamiltons. For a number of years, the principal preaching-place of this denomination was at the house of Andrew Nevin. Private residences were freely thrown open for worship in the early days of the settlement along Slab Camp, and, later, schoolhouses were much used. At what time the first class or society was here organized we cannot state, as we can find no record on the subject. However, from tradition, there seems to have been a Methodist society along the stream named at a very early day. This section of the country was then in White Oak Circuit, the ministers of which, from 1808 to 1820, were the following named: 1808, David Young: 1809, John Johnson; 1810, Isaac Pavey; 1811, Benjamin Lakin, Eli Trent; 1812, W. Griffith, Reuben Rowe; 1813, Robert Finley, D. Sharp; 1815, John Strange, S. Chenoweth; 1816, John Strange, Isaac Pavey; 1817, W. Griffith James Simmons; 1818, B. Westlake, S. T. Wells; 1819, F. Landrum; 1820, William Page, L. Swormstedt. In about the year 1829, this congregation joined the township in the erection of a schoolhouse, paying so much money with the understanding that it was to be used in part by them as a place of worship. They here held meetings until 1840, when Andrew Nevin donated to the church about one acre of ground, located about one and a half miles southeast of Sardinia. That year, there was here erected a frame church, which was occupied by the congregation until 1860. This year, they purchased a lot in the village of Sardinia, of Huston Bare, and erected a neat one-story frame church building, in which they continue to worship. The church has long been known as the Mt. Carmel Methodist Episcopal Church. The charge is now on the Mt. Oreb and Sardinia Circuit, and Rev. G. W. Fee is the pastor. Membership, 115. In 1840, a Baptist Church was organized at Sardinia, with a membership of twelve or fifteen. There had then, for some years, been living in the neighborhood the Rev. Hampton Pangburn, a minister of that denomination, and principally through his efforts the organization at this place was effected. The minister organizing the church was Rev. John Stearns. A meeting-house was built in 1841 or 1842. The society did not flourish, and only existed a few years. Wesleyan Methodist Church.—There was organized in the village of Sardinia, about the year 1844 or 1845, a society known as the Wesleyan Methodist Church, by the Rev. Silas H. Chase. The organization was effected in the Baptist Meeting-House, with a membership of about twenty persons. In the absence of records, we cannot give the names of ministers who have served the charge. The congregation now meet for worship once a month, at what is WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - 675 known as the Oakleaf Schoolhouse, situated about one and one-quarter miles west of Sardinia. The minister in charge is Rev. Mr. Clayton. GRAVEYARDS. It was the custom of the early settlers to inter the dead on their own land, in what became family burying-grounds. Of these there are a number which dot the farms of Washington, some of which became public graveyards, as was the case of the one at Sardinia. This graveyard had its origin in the family burying-ground of Amos Pettijohn, who, prior to 1829, deeded two acres of land, including or adjoining the family yard, to the Presbyterian Church, with the view of a church being erected thereon and a public place of burial formed. It is beautifully located on the summit of a hill, and many neat marble slabs and columns mark the tombs of loved ones. Many of the pioneers were here interred. John B. Mahan, of whom reference is made elsewhere in this work, is buried in this yard, upon whose tombstone is the following inscription: "In memory of John B. Mahan, died December 15, 1844, aged forty-three years eight months and nine days. A victim to the slave power." Interments are still made here. In the eastern part of the township is located what is known as the Biehn Graveyard. One-half acre of ground was donated by Henry Biehu, February 24, 1852, to the Trustees of the Evangelical Protestant Church, to be used for a public graveyard. Interments were made in it as early as 1840. It has been used exclusively by the Germans. The Mt. Carmel Graveyard, located at the old site of that church, has a history similar to the church, so long as it stood there. The ground was given for a graveyard and for church purposes by Andrew Nevin, a zealous Methodist. It was quite extensively used until the church was removed, but of late years there have been but few interments made here, and the grounds have been allowed to grow up briars and weeds. SCHOOLS. Of the first schools of Washington Township but little can be given to the reader, from the fact that there was no record made of them, and from the few survivors who were of school age during the first and second decade of the present century, not much can be obtained. We learn from Mrs. McFadden, widow of the late Joseph McFadden, and daughter of the late David Graham, one of Washington's pioneers, that probably the first school was taught on the Amos Pettijohn land, adjoining Sardinia, by Jack Pettijohn, a son; the latter was a cripple, and could do no farm work; he was badly crippled—could not walk, and had little use of his hands and arms, hence was placed in charge of the children of the pioneers, to whose literary training he was to give his attention. This temple of learning consisted of a shed, open at one end, between two cribs, such as was designed for the threshing apartment. The teacher was known by the scholars as " Lame Jack," and his lameness, too, at times afforded for them some merriment, inasmuch as it was very difficult for him to use the rod, he being compelled to have the pupil under punishment directly at his side, and even then it required great exertion to accomplish the end. The location of this school was not far from the site of the cemetery at Sardinia. School was not long continued at this place, for soon the neighborhood built a schoolhouse just west of where Sardinia now is, on the present land of Squire Bare. The Pettijohn School was probably as early as 1812, and the house referred to built about the year 1815. John Moore was the first teacher at this house, and for nineteen consecutive years was the only master the youth of that vicinity knew. 676 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. It was generally understood that Mr. Moore, as soon as corn-husking was over with, was to enter the schoolroom, and there remain until sugar-making began, when school was discontinued until the following fall. The children for miles around attended the Moore School, and almost the entire neighborhood was educated under his instruction. Mr. Moore had previously taught several schools on Red Oak and Straight Creeks. In the Wardlow neighborhood there was built a schoolhouse which stool a little south of the East Branch of White Oak, about the year 1812. The first master in this house was Thomas Clark. About the year 1820, in the Vance neighborhood, school was taught by Patrick Montgomery. Maj. Vance now living in the same vicinity, was one of his pupils. In 1825, the township was divided into four school districts, but, a: a description of them all is not of record, we will refrain from giving an On the 1st of December, 1828, the boundary lines of the township were changed, which made a redistricting of the township into school districts necessary. This occurred in the spring of 1829, when the following described districts were made: No. 1, including a part of the Fourth School District of Eagle Township, beginning so far east of the northeast corner of Washington Township that a south and parallel with the east line of the township will include John Hurst, Orange Hamilton, Widow McFadden and John Rice, out of Eagle Township; then on to the southeast corner of Washington Township; thence with the south line of the township so far that a line running north will include the house lately occupied by Samuel Williams; thence in such a direction to James Bell's mill- as to include Michael Huff and Ezra Wheeler; thence north to the Highland County line; thence with said line east to the beginning. List of householders: John Hurst, Widow McFadden, Orange Hamilton, John Rice, David Armstrong, Robert Butler, Daniel Williams, William K Eskridge, Abraham Cline, Joseph Line, Widow Higinbotham, George Mick, Robert Hamilton, Edward Pettijohn, Abraham Hogles, Andrew Nevin, John Nevin, John Pettijohn, Hugh Nevin, Michael Huff, Ezra Wheeler, Abel Starke, Stout D. Runyan, James McFadden,. Michael Conley, Samuel Ewing, Widow Gibler, Jonathan Sams, James L. Rilea and William Marshall. District No. 2—Beginning at the northeast corner of No. 1, thence west with the Highland County line so far that a south line will strike the head of Vansandt's Run; thence down said run to the East Fork; thence down the East Fork to the mouth of Middle Run; thence up Middle Run to Kenton's improvement; ,thence to Slab Camp Run, at the place where the road leading from John Moore's to Straight Creek crosses said run; thence easterly to the west line of District No. 1 so as to include William Grant and Mark Day; thence with the line of District No. 1 to the beginning. List of householders: John Hindman, Thomas Purcell, William Hindman, Samuel Pangburn, John Pangburn, P. R. Kincaid, Matthew Kincaid, Amos Pettijohn„ Peter Williams, Joseph Line. Mark Day, William Grant, Robert D. Lilly, Abraham Pettijohn, John Moore, David Graham, James Wardlow, James Bell, James Kennedy and Levi Estel. District No. 3—Beginning at the southeast corner of District No. 2, thence with the line of said district westerly to Middle Run at Kenton's improvement; thence up Middle Run to Richard Pettijohn's so as to include Benjamin Cornell; thence south to the township line; thence east with the township line to the southwest corner of District No. 1; thence with the east line of said district to the beginning. List of householders: Peter Shinkle, James Rilea, Richard Pettijohn, John Purdum, Thomas McGee, David Magee, Richard Rilea. Jeremiah Purdum, Aaron Purdum, Philip Waters, Joseph Wright, Matthew Day, Thomas Rilea, Clarkson Dunn and Benjamin Cornell. WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - 677 District No. 4 -Beginning at the Highland County line at the northwest corner of District No. 2; thence west to the North Fork of White Oak; thence down the same to its junction with the East Fork; thence up the East Fork to the mouth of Vansandt's Run; thence up said run and with the line of District No. 2 to the beginning. List of householders: George Wright, Joseph Calvin, Isabel Wardlow, Philander Wardlow, James Wardlow, William Vance, John Vance, John Anderson, John J. Gregory and George Oldum. District No. 5-Beginning at the mouth of Middle Run, thence up said run to Richard Pettijohn's; thence south to the township line; thence west with the township line to the southwest corner of the township; thence with the township line to White Oak Creek, at the mouth of Blackwood's Run; thence up White Oak and the East Fork to the beginning. List of householders: Nancy Dey, Patrick Vance, Samuel Wardlow, Edward Day, Jackson Ewing, Alvin Newton, Hugh Gunnison, Lewis Calvin, Adam Ewing, Peter Lauderback, Richard Grissom, William Reeves, James Straight, Samuel Fleming, James D. Wilson, William Wilson and Nicholas Van Ness. The School Directors for the above district, when formed, so far as is of record, are the following: District No. 1, Andrew Nevin, Sr., Edward Pettijohn and George Mick; District No. 2, D. Lilley, John Pangburn and John Moore. January 15, 1831, at a meeting of the Trustees of Washington Township and the township of White Oak, in Highland County, District No. 4 was changed, a portion of it being:, added to White Oak Township, in the county named, for the convenience of the scholars thereof. March 25, 1834, District No. 2 was divided, and District No. 6 formed therefrom. It was designated as follows: Beginning at the mouth of Middle Run, thence up said run to Kenton's improvement; thence to Slap Camp Run, at the place where the road leading from John Moore's to Straight Creek crosses said run; thence easterly to the west line of District No. 1 so as to include James Kennedy; thence with the line of District No. 1 to James Bell's (now Bingamon's) mill; thence down the center of the East Fork of White Oak to the beginning. The number of white youth enrolled in the six districts in 1860 was as follows: District No. 1, 68; District No. 2, 69; District No. 3, 137; District No. 4, 51; District No. 5, 52; District No. 6, 108; total, 485. During that year, there were three colored children enrolled in District No. 1, and two in District No. 3. Grand total, 490. Between the years 1860 and 1870, another district was formed, and the enrollment for the seven districts in 1870 was as follows: District No. 1, 40; District No. 2. 85 white and 6 colored; District No. 3, 126 white and 4 colored; District No. 4, 51; District No. 5, 53; District No. 6, 82; District No. 7, 84; total, 492. During the next decade, two more districts were formed, and the enrollment in 1880 was as follows: District No. 1, 41 white and 3 colored; District No. 2, 65 white and 1 colored; District No. 3, 77; District No. 4, 70; District No. 5, 45; District No. 6, 53; District No. 7, 45; District No. 8, 67; District No. 9, 41 white and 4 colored; total, 509. The annual report of the County Auditor on schools makes the following exhibit of the schools of Washington Township for the year ending August 31, 1881: Of the nine houses now in the nine school districts of the township, one was erected during the year at a cost of $1,500. Ten teachers were employed; average wages per month, $35.35; average term of school, twenty-four weeks; total enrollment within the year, 459, of which number 101 were studying the alphabet, 201 reading, 322 spelling, 226 writing, 247 arithmetic, 126 geography, 49 English grammar, 29 oral lessons and 1 composition. To- 678 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. tal expenditures for school purposes, $3,212.41, of which sum $2,073 was paid teachers. The school property is valued at $4,500. In this article on schools, we have not noted all of the changes in the boundary lines of the districts since the formation of the first four, but only those of earlier years. The following were the members of the Board of Education in 1880 and 1881: Lewis Allmann, Gideon Kirk, O. B. Moore, Peter Ballein, Josiah McFadden, Ellsberry Hays, John Butts, Jacob Snider. MILLS. The first mill built in Washington Township was the Wardlow Grist-Mill, later known as the Levi Estel Mill. It stood on White Oak Creek, about two miles west of Sardinia, on land now owned by John Wright, and was erected by John Wardlow, and, after a few years, was sold to Levi Estel. As nearly as can be ascertained, the mill was erected about the year 1812 or 1813. It is said that it was never of much force, and did not stand many years. Some years later, John Kibler, an enterprising man, erected a mill on the East Branch of White Oak, in the extreme northeastern part of the township, and there laid out a town. Mr. Kibler was a very popular and active man, and, had he lived, the town at the mill would very likely have been the Sardinia of to-day, but his death, occurring in 1829, put a stop to the growth of the place. This mill is now 'owned by John Sands, and, until the winter of 1881-82, was in operation, but at that time the dam was washed away, and the grinding has since been discontinued. One mile east of Sardinia, on the same stream. some time after the Kibler Mill was built, a saw and grist mill was erected by James Bell, which was in operation until about the year 1847. In 1831 or 1832, John B. Mahan and John Dunham built a saw-mill at the mouth of Slab Camp. This they ran some years as a saw-mill, when a grist-mill was added. The dam, however, washed out in a few years, and the mills were suffered to go down. Later, a steam saw-mill was built on this site by Calvin Rilea, who afterward added a grist-mill, when the machinery was removed to Brownstown, and is now in the mill at that place. Another saw-mill stood on the old Vinson Calvin land, built by Joseph McFadden, but there not being sufficient water in the stream to run it successfully, it was soon abandoned. VILLAGES. The villages of the township are Sardinia and Brownstown. The former, the larger of the two, is a thriving little place of about three hundred inhabitants, pleasantly situated on the East Branch of White Oak Creek, and is one of the few railroad towns of Brown County, the Cincinnati & Eastern passing through it, and it being the terminus of the Hillsboro & Sardinia Railroad. The village was laid out by William B. Lilley and Josiah Moore, March 30, 1833, at which date the surveying was done by Jeptha Beasley, then County Surveyor. The original number of lots was sixteen. Additions were made by the same men August 12, 1836, and May 23, 1837. The first houses erected in the place were by Dr. I. M. Beck and Josiah Moore. Both were built on Main street, opposite to each other, and are yet standing. The frame of Mr. Moore's house was the first up, but the house of Dr. Beck was the first completed. The first merchant in the vicinity was Dr. Robert D. Lilley, who sold goods in 1828, and, in 1832 or 1833, sold his stock of goods to William B. Lilley and Josiah Moore, proprietors of the village, who carried on a store for some years, and then quit the business. In the latter part of 1833, a store was opened by George Salt, who was the merchant for about a year. Messrs. Cowan & Masters then opened a store in a little log building where all their WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - 679 predecessors had held forth. But finally this firm erected a two-story frame house, adjoining the house of Dr. Beck. The first tavern was kept by John B. Mahan, opened about the year 1835. The village smith was Willis Gilliland. His was the first hammer to rebound from the heavy anvil and break the quiet of the peaceful village. His shop was built in 1837, and stood on Winchester street, where now is the livery stable of Nathan Dunn. Among the early industries of the village may be mentioned the turning establishment and cabinet shop of Josiah Moore, who began the business as early as 1835. He patented a bed, and made a great deal of furniture, and supplied Hillsboro and other places of that region with articles of his manufacture. About the' same time, Bobert J. Huggins carried on quite an extensive wagon-making shop. Not far from the year 1847, a factory for the manufacture of wind-mills was started at Sardinia. It was an extensive affair, and the proprietors employed five or six workmen, and had as many traveling salesmen. Soon after Sardinia was laid out, a carding-machine and oil-mill was put in operation by John L. Pangburn, who was the proprietor until his death, which occurred in 1837. The mill then passed through several hands, and, in three or four years, was abandoned. Another of the early industries of the village was the tannery carried on by Franz Feike, who began business in 1836 or 1837, and continued operations until about 1856, when he removed to Missouri and the yard went down. There was a post office at this point prior to the laying out of the village, called " Lilley" Post Office, so styled after the first Postmaster, Dr. Robert D. Lilley. It was established in 1828 or 1829. Since Mr. Lilley ceased acting in that capacity, the Postmasters have been as follows: William Lilley, who served from 1832 until about the year 1837; Josiah Moore, Moses B. Riggs, Huston Bare, Thomas Davis, William Campbell and Stephen Feike. The latter is the present incumbent. After the town was laid out, the name of the office was changed to Sardinia. The Campbell Bros.' Carriage Manufactory.— On the west side of Main street, near Broadway, is located the establishment above named. In 1855, A. F. Campbell, Sr., came to Sardinia and engaged in general blacksmithing. At his death, in 1863, a son, W. G. Campbell, carried on the work, and about the close of the war, he began the manufacture of wagons, and had a general repairing shop, situated on Graham street, employing from three to five hands. In 1870, his brothers, John and A. F. Campbell, became partners, and the three have since carried on the business. They commenced the manufacture of carriages and buggies, in addition to the other work, in 1874, and the following year built the two-story frame shop, in which the present business is done. Cross Bros.' Establishment.--In 1861, the firm of Anderson, Huggins, Cross & Co. commenced the manufacture of plows and farm wagons. They erected a large two-story house on Graham and Winchester streets, and worked a force of about six men. In about a year, the firm changed to Anderson & Cross, and in 1868 it became Anderson, Cross & Cross. Since 1870, it has been under the present management, with Cross Bros. as proprietors. They commenced manufacturing buggies in 1872, and quit in 1880, and are now selling ready-made work, dealing in agricultural implements and hardware. In the spring of 1881, a mill, for the sawing and working of wood, was built by Messrs. H. Beck and Edward Huggins. and has since been leased and is now carried on by G. A. Canoly and James Ervin. Sardinia Lodge. No. 683, I. O. O. F.-Was instituted in Moore's Hall, where it still meets, July 23, 1879, by Grand Master E. K. Wilcox, of Cleveland. The charter members were Peter Bauline, John T. Wilson, Martin Wilson, O, P. Kennedy, M. R. Ketterman, E. P. Keller, John Duncan and O. B. Moore. The lodge has now a membership of twenty-five. Present offi- 680 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. cers: E. H. Raney, N. G.; John Campbell, V. G.; O. B. Moore, P. S.; Z. C. Lewis, R. S. ; A. N. Irvin, Treasurer. Sardinia has for years been noted for the musical talent of its people, in which branch they have excelled the people of neighboring towns. This fact is said to be due to the efforts in that direction of the late John Moore, who for many years taught music in the village, and who, with his descendants, were concerned in every concert, band and choir of their time. There is at this writing a good brass band in the village. The physicians of Sardinia have been Peter Williams, who settled in this vicinity about the year 1824; Robert D. Lilley, who came in February, 1828, and remained until November, 1832; Dr. I. M. Beck, now engaged in active practice, where for more than half a century he has administered to ailing humanity, having located where the town now is in July, 1829, and since remained, excepting a period of five years; Dr. John Mcllhaney, who located at this place in 1836, and remained one year; Dr. Newkirk, who practiced from 1843 until 1845, and Dr. J. B. McClain, now a practitioner of the place, who came in 1866. The village has ever been a temperance place. When it was laid out, it was with this understanding, and, while it has not ever been without saloons, they have been few in its history as compared with other places much less in population. The temperance movement was introduced in this vicinity by Rev. Robert Dobbins, and inaugurated in the year 1830. Dr. Isaac M. Beck was one of its warmest supporters in that early day, and has to this day cooled none in his ardor in the support of the cause. He, it is thought, was the first lay temperance lecturer in Southwestern Ohio. He delivered a lecture on this subject in this vicinity August 1, 1830. and repeated the same in the same vi - cinity in August, 1880, just fifty years afterward. Brownstown, situated in the southern part of the township, on Brown's Run, is a small village of about fifty inhabitants. It was laid out by Rolly Dunn, August 26, 1848; number of lots, twenty-one. The post office was established here June 5, 1876, with J. G. Tracy, Postmaster, and there has been no change since. In September, 1881, E. A. & B. A. Thompson erected a steam saw-mill at this point, and in several months added a grist-mill, which is also operate() by steam power. TORNADO OF 1856. On the 17th day of May, 1856, a severe storm passed through a portion of Washington Township, doing serious injury along its path. The first place any material injury was done was on the farm of Mr. J. H. Dunn There were immense trees twisted off and torn up by the roots, fence rails and branches of timber were carried in every direction, and some dozen sheep, which were so unlucky as to be in its course, were killed; passing from here through the woodland of Mr. Ira Tracey, it laid waste everything before it, until reaching his barn, which was a very large frame building, the roof of which was nearly entirely carried away, shivering the rafters and sheeting into fragments, part of the roof being carried to the distance of from twenty to thirty rods from the barn. The roof of a brick building adjoining his dwelling was entirely blown offi also, the roof of his dwelling was very materially damaged. But Mr. Tracey sustained the greatest injury in the loss of his orchard, which was almost entirely destroyed, the trees being torn up by the roots, or broken off near the ground, a part of which was carried to the distance of from eighty to ninety poles. Mr. Tracey's loss was in the neighborhood of $500 or $600. Benjamin Wardlow was very considerably damaged, his dwelling house was carried off to the first story; also his orchard, together with the orchard of James Wardlow, was much damaged. Where the storm passed through the timber, it was nearly all either torn up by the roots or twisted off near the ground, the width being from fifteen to twenty rods. STERLING TOWNSHIP - 681 CHAPTER XV. STERLING TOWNSHIP. STERLING is one of the border townships, Clermont County forming its western boundary; on the south is Pike Township; on the east, Green, and on the north is Perry. It is situated in what is known as the boot-leg of Brown County, and contains 17,272 acres of land. The general surface is level, but slightly broken along the streams, except in the western and southwestern parts on the larger water-courses, where there are some hills. Originally, the surface was heavily timbered with white oak, sugar, hickory, swamp elm and black and sweet gum. Although considerable of the forest growth has been removed, there still remains a great deal of timber. The predominating soil is clay, yet alluvial flats appear about the sources of the streams, which are of great richness. Five Mile Creek, Four Mile Creek, Crane Run and other tributaries of the East Fork of the Little Miami River have their sources in the township. The East Fork of the Little Miami River flows through the extreme northwestern corner of the township, and the southern part is crossed by the. Cincinnati & Eastern Railroad. LAND SURVEYS. The original survey, entries, with dates, etc., of land comprising the townships of Sterling, as taken from the book of original surveys, in the office of the County Recorder, is exhibited in the following list: No. 954, 1,000 acres (east part), surveyed by William Lytle May 14, 1795, for Timothy Peyton. No. 968, 1,200 acres (south part), surveyed by William Lytle for Benjamin Temple. No. 2,945, 100 acres (east part), surveyed by William Lytle March 27, 1797, for James Thompson (assignee). No. 2,944, 444 1/2 acres (east part), surveyed by William Lytle March 27, 1797, for Samuel Coleman. No. 3,047, 260 acres, surveyed by William Lytle July 10, 1797, for John Breckenridge. No. 3,048, 200 acres, surveyed by William Lytle July 10, 1797, for John Breckenridge. No. 3,343, 2,000 acres, surveyed by William Lytle August 20, 1798, for John Harvie. No. 3,344, 1,000 acres, surveyed by William Lytle August 29, 1798, for John Harvie. No. 3,335, 300 acres (north part), surveyed by William Lytle October 1, 1798, for Charles Lee (assignee). No. 3,336, 300 acres (north part) surveyed by William Lytle October 1, 1798, for Robert Campbell (assignee). No. 3,622, 400 acres, surveyed by William Lytle April 8, 1799, for Archibald Mcllvain (assignee). No. 4,456, 466 2/3 acres (north part), surveyed by William Lytle March 20, 1804, for Charles Bradford. No. 4,247, 666 2/3 acres (east part), surveyed by William Lytle September 1, 1804, for William Lytle (assignee). 682 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY No. 4,246, 600 acres, surveyed by William Lytle September 3, 1804, for Peter Thomas, John Southard and Nathaniel Dobbs. No. 4,251, 600 acres, surveyed by William Lytle October 10, 1804, for James Morrison (assignee). No. 4,451, 500 acres (west part), surveyed by William Lytle October 11, 1804, for James O'Hara and Nicholas Bowsman. No. 4,252, 1,000 acres, surveyed by William Lytle September 5, 1805, for John Tibbs. No. 4,792, 666 2/3 acres (west part), surveyed by William Lytle November 9, 1805, for the representatives of Thomas Bowyer (deceased). No. 4,793, 666 2/3 acres (west part), surveyed by William Lytle November 11, 1805, for Robert Sayers and James Taylor (assignees). No. 4,789, 1,000 acres, surveyed by William Lytle November 11, 1805, for William Buford No. 4,785, 1,555 2/3 acres, surveyed by William Lytle November 14, 1805, for Thomas Martin. No. 4,787, 444 2/3 acres (south part), surveyed by William Lytle November 14, 1805, for Henry Bowyer. No. 4,798, 200 acres (south part), surveyed by William Lytle November 9, 1805, for James Bell. No. 12,010, 318 1/3 acres, surveyed by George C. Light October 11, 1823, for Justus F. Randolph (assignee). No. 12,381, 133 1/3 acres, surveyed by George C Light October 11, 1823, for William M. P. Quinn. No. 12,926, 1,266 2/3 acres (west part), surveyed by P. N. White January 22, 1830, for Leroy Jordan and Anderson Thompson (assignees). Nos. 12,934 and 10,363, 300 acres, surveyed by A. Lotham August 5, 1830, for Timothy Kirby (assignee). No. 12,935, 50 acres, surveyed by Timothy Kirby June 23, 1832, for Timothy Kirby (assignee). No. 13,641, 233 acres, surveyed by C. Wallace January 19, 1835, for Cadwallader Wallace. No. 13,614, 250 acres, surveyed by John Hill May 14, 1835, for Thomas L. Shields (assignee). No. 13,950, 258 acres (north part), surveyed by C. Wallace November 7, 1837, for James Stallings. Nos. 250 and 309, not described. PIONEER SETTLERS. From all accounts, it is thought that Hugh McLain and family were the first permanent settlers of the township. Hugh McLain was a native of Ireland and emigrated to America just previous to the Revolutionary war, and was for some years engaged in merchandising, buying trinkets in his native country and selling them in this, and in turn buying in this country and selling in Europe, which kept him crossing the ocean frequently. He continued in this line of business until the war between England and America made it dangerous to be on the sea, when he settled in the State of Pennsylvania and there married Mary Allison and became engaged in agricultural pursuits. He performed some service along the border against the Indians during the Revolutionary war, and in the latter part of 1796 emigrated to Ohio and stopped at Columbia, and remained in that vicinity for two years, then removed into the southern part of Survey No. 3,343, located in what is now Brown County, in which he had purchased a tract of 200 acres of land. His family consisted of wife and two sons--John, an imbecile, and Archibald. The father died in STERLING TOWNSHIP - 683 1816, and the mother about the year 1825. Archibald was born in Lancaster County, Penn., August 17, 1779, and was married while residing in Hamilton County, this State, to Mary, daughter of William Shaw, who bore him the following sons and daughters—Nancy, born in 1800, and died at the age of eleven years; Jane, born October 18, 1802; Hugh, died in 1806; William S., born March 25, 1807; Archibald, born March 27, 1809; Thomas K, born March 15, 1811; Margaret, born December 5, 1813, and Robert, born January 10, 1818. Archibald, some years after settling in Brown County, purchased fifty acres of land adjoining the 200-acre tract before mentioned, the half of which his father had given him. From the history of Clermont County, it appears that James Rain and his family were the first permanent settlers in Williamsburg Township; that in the year 1795 and the early part of 1796, the elder Rain had worked at this place, building a cabin in the village and clearing a considerable tract of land for Gen. Lytle on Kain Run, which was long afterward known as the " big field." The writer of the sketch of Williamsburg thus alludes to the pioneer, Archibald McLain, in the account given of the first settlement of that village: "In the summer of 1796, James Kain came here from Newtown, where he had settled several years previously, to build the first cabin, which was erected on Lot 43, where is now the residence of Adam C. Walker. He was accompanied by his daughter Mary, a young girl of a dozen years, and her companion, Mary Bunion, who did the cooking for the workmen employed on the cabin; and these, it is claimed, were the first white women who came to reside in the eastern part of the present county.. of Clerm mt. James Kain occupied his house in the fall of 1796, and his family was moved from Newtown in an old-fashioned Conestoga -wagon, by Archibald McLain, who followed mere bridle- paths, which often made it necessary to form wider roads, so that the trip occupied several days. The king-bolt of this wagon, probably the first that was ever used in the county, is yet in the possession of the McLain family." Mr. McLain was an Elder in the Old-School Presbyterian Church in the village of Williamsburg. In 1806, be united with the Presbyterian Church in Felicity (then named Smyrna), and in 1808, when a Presbyterian Church was first organized at Williamsburg, he was ordained one of its first Elders. His death occurred October 19, 1855. He was a member of the church forty-nine years and an Elder forty-seven. During this long period, his walk and conversation were becoming the Gospel. He was a useful citizen, a kind, accommodating neighbor and an affectionate husband and father. Of the sons of Archibald McLain, William S. married Sarah Everhart, of Clermont County, a daughter of Daniel Everhart, from Virginia, who settled at Williamsburg in 1809, and was in his day one of the most prominent business men of the village. William S. is a resident of that village and is well known throughout this region of the country, where he has done extensive surveying. Archibald married Phebe Ross, and resides on the home farm. A sketch of him appears elsewhere in this work. Thomas E. married Mary Hiles, and removed to Pike Township, this county, where he died in 1863. Robert married Ann Collins. Of the daughters, Jane married Thomas, son of John Kain, one of the first settlers of Williamsburg, and Margaret married B. Wharton. On the McLain farm are standing two thrifty apple trees that were set out by the pioneer Hugh McLain about the year 1800. Absalom Day, a native of the State of New Jersey, was born April 7, 1773, and when a boy not out of his teens, came with his parents, Jeremiah and Sarah (Dod) Day, to Ohio, stopping for a time at Columbia, at the mouth of the Little Miami River, then removed to Williamsburg, arriving in 1796, and received one of the ten lots given by Gen. Lytle to the first ten settlers of the vil 684 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. lage. The father, Jeremiah Day, was a native of England. Absalom, while at Columbia, married Elizabeth, daughter of George Earhart, who was born in Chester County, Penn., May 30, 1776, and to them were born the following named children: Mary, born January 28, 1797; Sarah, born December 1, 1798; Elizabeth, born September 25, 1800; Samuel, born November 16, 1802; Susannah, born June 20, 1806; Katie Ann, born September 2, 1808; Joseph, born January 19, 1811; Aaron, born September 13, 1812; Sophia, born July 20, 1814; David born December 28, 1815; Absalom, born December 26, 1817, and Anna J., born June 20, 1822. Father Day, after residing at Williamsburg for two or three years, removed to a tract of land in the western part of what is now Sterling Township, Brown County (on the present site of the post office of De La Palma). He died February 17, 1839, aged sixty-five years ten months and ten days. His wife died September 4, 1843, in her sixty-eighth year. They were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church and worshiped at Clover, in what is now Clermont County, in the earliest existence of the society at that place; and later, the Day residence was the preaching point for years in that locality. Of the seven daughters of this couple, Mary married William pay; Sarah married Daniel Ready; Elizabeth married Jacob Waits; -Susannah married John Coulter; Katie Ann married Benjamin Reed; Sophia married William Weeks, and Mary J. died unmarried. The sons were married as follows: Samuel to Miriam Hayward, a native of Virginia, both are now residing in Green Township, this county: Joseph to --- ---; Aaron to Julia Mowry; David died unmarried, and Absalom to Caroline Willey. Mary and Sarah Day were born at Williamsburg, the others in Brown County. The families of John Anderson and Moses Leonard settled in what is now Sterling Township in 1799 or 1800, both purchasing land in the J. Harvie Survey, No.3,344. They were brothers-in-law, and emigrated to Ohio together a year or two before settling as described. They came from New Jersey to Pittsburgh by land, and thence down the Ohio River by boat, and landed at the mouth of the Little Miami, where they remained until their removal to this vicinity. Mr. Anderson was a native of Maryland, born February 10, 1773. His wife was Martha Wood, a native of Greene County, Penn., and their children were Margaret, born May 16, 1797, and married Moses Warden; Eliza, born March 11, 1799, and married William Boyd; William, born February 8, 1801, and married Eliza Shannon, of Clermont County; Amelia, born September 20, 1804, and married Paul Stricklin, of Clermont County; Nancy, born September 17, 1806, and married Robert Justus; Thomas W., born March 12, 1809, and married Lovisa Pittser; Macajah, born July 24, 1811; John T„ born September 30, 1813, and Hiram C., born May 16, 1815, and married Rebecca Black. The latter now resides on the homestead, where all the children were born and reared. The parents died, the father June 25, 1839, and the mother February 16, 1854, and were buried at Williamsburg. Mr. Leonard was a Pennsylvanian by birth, and was married to Elizabeth Anderson. Their children were John, who was twice married-first, to Margaret Smith, and second, to Mrs. Sarah Smallwood, a widow; Elizabeth, who married Andrew Smith; Hannah, Casey, Aaron, Levi, George and Ellen. Hannah married Jacob Mason, of Williamsburg; Casey married Frances Hole- man; Aaron married Elizabeth Perrine; Levi married Mary A. Hickey, of Clermont County, and died on the homestead December 14, 1872, in the sixty- sixth year of his age; George married Mary Amos, of Cincinnati, and Ellen married John Shotwell. The last two are the only survivors of the immediate family. Moses Leonard was at the battle of Brandywine in the capacity of a wag- STERLING TOWNSHIP - 685 oner. His death occurred January 9, 1844, aged eighty-four years, nine months and twenty-four days, and that of his wife July 11, 1834, in her sixty- first year. John Leonard served in the war of 1812. In 1799 or 1800, George Earhart, a German, settled on land in the southern part of the township, south of the tract purchased by John Anderson. He, with his family, came from Pennsylvania, and landed with the Days at Columbia, and thence removed, as stated above, to the vicinity of the Andersons. His wife was Elizabeth Fanchon. The oldest son, John Earhart, stopped at Williamsburg, where he remained as a permanent settler, and proved himself a great addition to the settlement, as he became the plow-maker of the neighborhood. His skill in making wooden mold-boards was very great, and his work was in good demand. He was also a cooper and a handy and useful man generally. 1116 sons--John, George and Samuel—became well- known citizens. Other children of Georg Earhart were Huldah, Tryphena, Mary, Sanford, Sarah, Samuel and Peggie. In the latter part of the eighteenth century, the Boyd family emigrated from Ireland and settled in Bucks County, Penn., but not content there, soon removed to land adjoining the city of Lexington, Ky. The parents were John and Mary. Samuel, a son, was married while in Pennsylvania to Abigail Stewart, and with a family of nine children, emigrated from his Kentucky home, in March, 1804, and settled in Survey No. 3,622. He had two years previously been here and made a purchase of 400 acres of land in the southern part of the survey named, of Archibald Mcllvain. The sons and daughters were John, William, Robert, Samuel, James, Jane, Martha, Mary, Elizabeth and Nancy, of whom Jane was born on the Ohio River while en route to Kentucky, and James, the youngest, was born here; all the others were born in Kentucky. The father was a resident of the township until his death, which occurred suddenly by apoplexy, while in Clermont County, in May, 1825. He was identified with the Presbyterian Church at the neighboring village of Williamsburg. The daughter Jane was married to James McGavi, John to Shelamith Reece, William to Eliza Anderson (Robert died young), Martha to Ephraim McAdams, of Clermont County, whose family were very early settlers at Williamsburg. Mary was married three times, first, to John Hays; second, to Jacob Willis, and third, to William Cobb; Samuel to Margaret Everhart, Elizabeth to James McAdams (Nancy died single), and James was twice married; first, to Serena South, and second to Sarah McDonald; and is the only survivor of the Boyd family. He resides on the homestead, where nearly three-quarters of a century have been passed, and about which cluster the recollections of nearly as many years. William and John Boyd were both in the war of 1812; the latter served as a Lieutenant. The Waits brothers, James and Charles, emigrating from the Redstone country in Pennsylvania, settled in Kentucky, on the North Fork of the Licking River, in the spring of 1794, and in 1802, removed to Ohio and made permanent settlements on Four Mile Creek, in the western part of Sterling, near what is now the Clermont County line. James farmed his land until about the year 1838, when he sold it to Ira. Willey and passed the remainder of his life with his son Jacob, who resided near the center of the township. Other sons and daughters of James Waits were John, Charles, Peter. William, David, Richard, James and Nancy (twins), Sarah, Christina and Elizabeth. The father died March 2, 1855, aged ninety-five years, and the mother July 14, 1856, aged ninety-four years. Charles was a soldier of the Revolutionary war, and for services rendered drew a pension from the Government. Three of the sons, Charles, Peter and John were in the war of 1812; two of them, Charles 686 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. and Peter, were members of Capt. Jacob Boerstler's company of riflemen, which was organized at Williamsburg, and it was in the service from April 24, 1812, to October 24, 1812. It was engaged at the battle of Brownstown, where four of its men, including the Captain, were killed, August 4,1812, and another died afterward of wounds received in the same engagement. Of the two brothers who settled on Four Mile Creek, Charles raised quite a family in that vicinity, and there lived and died. He, too, was a soldier of the Revolutionary war. Hillery. B. Walker and Adam Snell, of Pennsylvania, emigrated to this State together in 1806, and effected settlements in the northwestern part of the township. Mr. Walker was a native of the State from whence he emigrated, born March 25,1782, and his wife Elizabeth was born May 1, 1789. They died February 21, 1845, and May 25, 1844, respectively. Their family consisted of the following-named sons and daughters: John, Adam S., George, Michael, Thomas, Lurinda J., William, Susan, Ruth, Hillery B., Hillery J., Eliza E., Washington, Matilda, Hannah and Cyrus G. Mr. Snell's children were Michael, Daniel, Hannah, Rachel, Susan, Matilda, Polly and Elizabeth. Thomas Ross, with family, settled on the William Buford Survey, No. 4789, located near the center of the township, in 1814. He was a native of Washington County, Penn., born in 1789. His parents were Ignatius and Mary (Jennings). Ross, who were among the earliest emigrants at Columbia, arriving in 1791. Ignatius died there in 1827. Mr. Ross was unfortunate in purchasing his land in this township, from the fact that he had to pay for it the second time. While at Columbia, he married Mary Dobbins, of Virginia, and there were born to them Mary, Albert, Eveline, Thomas, Malinda, Rhoda and two others who died young. He lived here until his death, which occurred February 14, 1861. He was one of the first settlers of the township, and for a term of years served as a Justice of the Peace, and in 1842-43 he was a Representative in the State Legislature. His wife died February 12, 1854. George Levengood, Andrew Shearer, John and Morris Trout were among the pioneers. These were the bulk of the pioneers of Sterling. The elevated and broken tracts of land lying adjacent to the East Fork of the Little Miami River and its larger tributaries were early taken up and occupied by the numerous home-seekers, who were continually landing at Columbia during the last decade of the past century. The old town of Williamsburg, laid out in 1795-96, with its mill a year later, was the center of attraction, and ere many years the choice land was gone, and arriving emigrants turned their course in other directions. The dreary and altogether uninviting aspect of much of the low, swampy land of what is now this township greatly impeded rapid settlement. The pioneers just named, with their families, the sons and daughters marrying and settling around them, improved and lived upon the land of the township best located then to suit their wants, and slow immigration followed. The major portion of the township was not settled and the lands improved until a late period in the history of Brown County. It will be noticed in the original entries that some of the land was not surveyed until 1837. An idea of the condition of the township in 1838 can be formed from the list of property-holders at that time, given further on. TOWNSHIP ORGANIZATION-JUSTICES OF THE PEACE. Sterling was organized as a civil township from Perry and Pike Townships December 7, 1824. Its boundary lines were then described as follows: Beginning at the southwest corner of Highland County, running from thence west to STERLING TOWNSHIP - 687 the Brown County line; thence north with the same to where it crosses the East Fork; thence east to the Highland County line, and thence with the same to the beginning. It included what are now the townships of Sterling and Green. This territory was equally divided by the County Commissioners December 2, 1834, on the formation of Green Township, from the east half. We are only able to give in the following a partial list of the names of those persons who served as Justices of the Peace of the township prior to 1854, and this from tradition: John Boyd and Charles Waits were the first Justices of the Peace after the organization of Sterling. Each served for a period of nine years at least. John Leonard, Titus Hair and William Weeks were later Justices. Archibald McLain was first commissioned Justice of the Peace in 1836. From 1854, the names and dates of commissions are given from record: Theophilus Simonton, November 10, 1854; Archibald McLain, October 26, 1854; Joseph R. Long, October 29, 1857; Theophilus Simonton, October 29, 1857; Archibald McLain, April 21, 1858; John S. Price, October 22, 1860; Archibald McLain, April 22, 1861; John S. Price, October 22, 1863; B. Britton, April 15, 1864; Archibald McLain, August 10, 1865; B. Britton, April 15, 1867; John C. Curry, October 5, 1868; Thomas Sheldon, April 12, 1869; Archibald McLain, December 9, 1869; Thomas Sheldon, April 15, 1872; Archibald McLain, December 19, 1872; V. B. Creager, April 19, 1875; John Wilson, January 5, 1876; V. B. Creager, April 13, 1878; John Wilson, Janu ary 7, 1879; Marion Wilson, March 24, 1881; V. B. Creager, April 18, 1881 PROPERTY-HOLDERS IN 1838. The following list contains the names of those who held property in Sterling Township in 1838, together with the amount of land and the number of survey in which located: William Arthurs, 97 acres, No. 3,343; John Anderson, 121 acres, No. 3,344; George Arnold, 50 acres, No. 3,345; James Arthur, 50 acres, No. 3,344; --- Addenbrook, 100 acres, No. 3,622; Joseph Arthur, 100 acres, No. 5,257; Samuel Boyd (heirs), 200 acres, No 3,622; George H. Bohrer, 74 acres, No. 4,578; Benjamin Cole, 144 acres, No. 3,344; Robert Chalfant, 200 acres, No. 3,343; James Crawford, 156 acres, No. 3,343; Ira Connor, 50 acres, No. 4,250; John Creamer, 86 acres, No. 954; Absalom Day, 50 acres, No. 3,344; John Davis, 136 1/4 acres, No. 4,787; Daniel 200 acres, No. 3,335; Adam Everhart, 103 acres, No. 4,789; John and Samuel Everhart, 119 acres, No. 3,344; Erie Frazee, 50 acres, No. 3,344; John Fulk, 75 acres, No. 954; Francis Holeman, 47 1/2 acres, No. 3,343; Holmes & Wilson, 301 acres, No. 4,251; William Hewitt, 221 1/3 acres, No. 4,578; Robert Irvin, 50 acres, No. 4,246; Robert E. Irvin, 57 acres, No. 3,344; Timothy Kirby, 45 acres, No. 4,246; Timothy Kirby, 200 acres, No. 12,934; Timothy Kirby, 50 acres, No. 13,195; Timothy Kirby, 94 acres, No. 13,197; James Kelly, 343 acres, No. 3,344; John Leonard, 66 1/2 acres, No. 3,343; Moses Leonard, 50 acres, No. 3,344; Robert Laughlin, 200 acres, No. 3,343; William Lytle, 56 2/3 acres, No. 2,792; William Lytle, 50 acres, No. 4,252; George Livingood, 40 acres, No. 4,252; Levi Leonard, 50 acres, No. 3,344; George Lowe, 100 acres, No. 3,622; Nathan Livingood, 10 acres, No. 4,252; Archibald McLain, Jr., 138 acres, No. 3,344; Robert Means, 333 1/3 acres, No. 4,788; B. J. Miller, 50 acres, No, 3,343; B. J. Miller, guardian for John Bruen, 50 acres, No. 4,246; Martin Thomas, 713 1/3 acres, No.4,785; David Malott, 100 acres, No. 3,343; William McLain, 50 acres, No. 3,343; Theodore Malott, 50 acres, No. 4,252; Samuel R. Malott, 170 1/4 acres, No. 4,252; John Morgan, 100 acres, No. 4,798; John Morgan, 100 acres, No. 4,799; John Morgan, 50 acres, No. 8,287; Ar- 688 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. chibald McLain, 100 acres, No. 5,257; Ocasler & Helm, 400 acres, No. 10,- 421; William Porter, 100 acres, No. 3,343; John Porter, 100 acres, No 3,343; Benjamin Reed, 106 acres, No. 3,343; Benjamin Ross, 50 acres, No. 3,343; Thomas Ross, 500 acres, No. 4,789; Thomas Ross (one brick house, $915); George Smith, 52 acres, No. 3,343; John Savory, 70 acres, No. 4,257; Abraham Smith, 65 1/2 acres, No. 3,343; Nathan Sidwell, 333 acres, No. 4,792; John Simpkins, 124 acres, No. 3,336; Smith Simpkins, 100 acres, No. 3,336; William Shotwell, 220 acres, No. 4,789; John Shotweli, Jr., 212 acres, No. 4,789; Morris Trout, 25 acres, No. 3,343; Morris Trout, Sr., 24 acres, No. 3,344; John Trout, 751 acres, No. 3,343; John Trout, 25 acres, No. 3,345; James Taylor, 2461 acres, No. 4,792; James Taylor, 50 acres, No. 4,792; James Taylor, 430 acres, No. 4,752; James Taylor and H. Bowyer, 1971 acres, No. 4,787; James Taylor, Jr., 831 acres, No. 4,788; James Taylor, Jr., 803 acres, No. 909; James Taylor, Jr., 5553 acres, No. 4,785; James Taylor, Jr., 309 acres, No. 4,785; James Taylor, Jr.. 666 2/3 acres, No. 4,793; James Taylor, Jr., 197 acres, No. 909; Southard and Dobbs Thomas, 444 acres, No. 4,246; James Taylor, 200 acres, No. 4,252; United States Bank, 12 acres, No. 4,790: United States Bank, 621- acres, No. 4,786; United States Bank, 40 acres, No. 4,792; United States Bank, 500 acres, No. 4,451; United States Bank, 199 acres, No. 4,251; unknown, 130 acres, No. 4,257; James Waits, 118 acres, No. 4,250; Charles Waits, Sr., 100 acres, No. 4,250: Charles Waits, Jr., 50 acres, No. 4,250; Curtis Wilson, 106 acres, No. 3,344; Ebenezer Wood, 160 acres, No. 12,010; H. B. Walker, 61 acres, No. 4,246; William Worrell, 89 acres, No. 968; Jacob Waits, 49 acres, No. 4,252; total number of acres, 14,854. CHURCHES AND GRAVEYARDS The pioneer families of Sterling were Methodists and Presbyterians, and attended the societies of these denominations at Clover and Williamsburg, situated only a few miles from the main settlement, but in Clermont County. It may not be thought out of place to refer briefly to the early history of these societies, inasmuch as they were the pioneer church organizations for miles around, and families from this township constituted a part of the membership. From the history of Williamsburg Township, Clermont County, under the head of Clover Chapel of the Methodist Episcopal Church, is taken the following: "On the 29th of August, 1804, William Winters and Peter Light executed a deed for a lot for church purposes at Clover, to Amos Smith, Joshua Lambert, William Smith, Moses Rumsey, Ephraim Duke, Samuel Nelson, Samuel Nutt, Augustus Clark and Thomas Lemon as Trustees. These began a hewed-log house in the course of a few years, which was never wholly finished, yet preaching was held there several years, and ever since 1804, Methodist preaching has been maintained with more or less regularity in the Clover neighborhood." Among the early members of this society were the Days, Andersons, Trouts and Earharts. The first class leader was Amos Smith. The church then was on the White Oak and Moscow Circuit. About the year 1813, prayer-meetings were inaugurated at the house of Absalom Day, and occasionally held there, and several years later a church organization was effected, it being the result of the outgrowth of a camp-meeting which had been in progress in the vicinity of Batavia, conducted by the Rev. John Collins. Some of the members of this society were the Days, Smiths, Charles Waits, Jr., and the Earharts. Andrew Smith was one of the class leaders. The McLains and Boyds were members of the Presbyterian Church at Williamsburg, which was organized by the Rev. Dr. Hoge in the year 1808, and held meetings in the court house for more than twenty years, under the STERLING TOWNSHIP - 689 pastorate of Rev. R. B. Dobbins, who continued in charge until 1833. Their first church building was erected in 1830. Archibald McLain was one of the original members of this church and one of its first Elders, in which office he continued forty-seven years. Salem Methodist Episcopal Church.—A church organization of Methodists existed for some years, beginning in about 1834, in the southern part of the township, where services were held in a schoolhouse on the farm of Archibald McLain, composed of the families of that persuasion in that vicinity. After a few years, the organization weakened, and finally " went out." It was, however, revived and meetings were held along from time to time until in 1854, when the society had recruited its membership and gained sufficient strength to erect a house of worship. Among the members at this period were John Newberry and wife, Mother Anderson, Thomas Anderson and wife, Archibald McLain and wife, James Long and wife, Ezra Willey and wife, Edward Collins and wife, John H. Daughterty and wife and Mrs. Overton. A half- acre of ground was donated by T. W. Anderson for the purpose of erecting a church thereon. The pastor of the church was Rev. Andrew Murphy, who appointed the following-named men as Trustees: A. McLain, J. R. Long, John Newberry, John H. Daugherty and Ezra Willey. In August, the Trustees contracted with C. L. Rilley to build a meeting-house, for which they were to pay him $550. The one-story frame building now standing there is the one then built. This appointment was in 1854, a part of the Williamsburg Circuit, and the Rev. Levi Thomas was the colleague of Mr. Murphy on the circuit. It is now attached to Williamsburg, and the pastor is Rev. Mr. Moler. Burdsall Chapel is the name of a Methodist Episcopal Church located in the northern part of the township. The society was organized in what was known as the Morgan Schoolhouse in that vicinity, in November, 1843, with a membership of eleven, among whom were Charles Brown and sister Rebecca, A. E. Adams, L. D. Simonton and wife Maria, Samuel Simonton and wife Elizabeth. Other members of about that period were Rarrack Butt and wife Harriet, Harriet Stroub, John Shannon and wife Margaret and Thomas Shannon. It was made a part of Batavia Circuit, of which the ministers in charge were Revs. John W. Clark and William I. Fee, the latter of whom preached the first sermon to the class in the schoolhouse. Services were held in the Morgan Schoolhouse, at the residence of Charles Brown and at another schoolhouse in the neighborhood until the building of the present neat one-story brick edifice in 1854. The lot, one acre, upon which the building stands, was given to the society by Timothy Kirby, of Cincinnati. Not long after the church was organized, Edward Burdsall and family united with the little band, and the former became a zealous and hard-working member, active to the interests and prosperity of the church; he gave liberally in work and money, and was a leading factor in the construction of the edifice, from which fact the church was called Burdsall Chapel. The dedicatory sermon was preached in the summer of 1855 by Rev. W. E. Hines. The ministers in charge of Batavia Circuit from 1844 to 1852, are as follows: 1844, Revs. John W. Clark, O. P. Williams; 1845, Revs. Barton Lowe, Thomas K. Coleman; 1846, Revs. Barton Lowe, Andrew J. McLaughlin; 1847, Revs. H. Wharton, Enoch West; 1848– 49, Rev. L. D. Harlan: 1850, Revs. David Whitman, John W. Ross; 1851, Revs. Levi P. Miller, G. C. Townsley. In September, 1851, or the year following, Williamsburg Circuit was formed, and Burdsall's Chapel became a part thereof, and the ministers in charge, from 1851 for some years, were as follows: Rev. L. P. Miller, Rev. B. P. Wheat; Revs. A. Murphy, John Smith; Revs. A Murphy, Levi Thomas; Revs. W. E. Hines, James H. Middleton; Revs. W. E. Hines, E. P. James; Revs. E. C. Merrick, James Kendall; Revs. 690 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. M. P. Zink, S. G. Griffith; Revs. W. E. Hines, S. G. Griffith; Revs. W. E. Hines, N. Green. In the absence of records, we cannot give the date that this appointment was made a part of the Marathon Circuit, to which it now belongs. Rev. William Jackson is now in charge. Present membership, between eighty and one hundred. Five-Mile Christian Church.--This church, situated in the northeastern part of the township, on Five-Mile Creek, was organized in that vicinity by the Rev. Alexander McLain in 1842. The original membership consisted of Jacob Hair and wife Elizabeth, and two daughters, Savilla and Letta A. Hair. The Hair residence was the preaching place of this society for some years, when a hewed-log house was erected for a place of worship, which stood on the site of the present church. One-half acre of ground was given for church and burial purposes by A. Hair, and later one acre was purchased of Thomas Sheldon and added to the graveyard. The following in the order given have served the charge: Revs. Aexander McLain, John McMillen, Alexander Thompson, George Mefford, Wrlliam Pangburn, John Sheldon, --- Rapp, Rufus McDaniel, George C. Hill, and Lewis Shinkle, the present incumbent. The present edifice, a one-story brick, with belfry and bell, was erected in 1870 and 1871, and dedicated on the fourth Sunday of June, in the latter year, by the Rev. Namon Dawson. The membership is now about one hundred and forty. Interments were made in the graveyard about the date of the building of the log church. Bloom Rose United Brethren Church.—Situated northwest of the center of the township, on Five-Mile Creek, was organized about the year 1845: Among the original members were Zelinda Brown, Reuben Harbaugh, Joseph Brown, Theophilus Simonton, Rolin Ireton, Nancy Simonton, Thomas Stewart, Nancy Stewart and Archibald and Maria Bracelin. The first pastor of the church was Rev. Mr. Heindricks. A neighboring schoolhouse answered as a place of worship until 1849, when, under the pastorate of Rev. John Walters, a small frame building was erected, which is yet used by this denomination. The lot was deeded by Joseph Brown to Thomas Prall, Archibald Bracelin and Theophilus Simonton, Trustees of the church, for burial and church purposes, dated February 2, 1849. Revs. McNeil, Cooper and Henry Tobey were among the first pastors of the church. February 20, 1856, Joseph Brown, in consideration of $72.93, deeded to Edmund Burdsall, John Junkins, Joseph Brown and Robert Forker, Trustees of the graveyard, about two acres of ground, which was added to that of the church. Burials were here made as early as 1845, the first interment being that of Joseph, son of Joseph and Zelinda Brown, who died July 9, 1845. The congregation are now erecting a neat one- story brick building, which will be completed yet this fall, at a cost of about $2,500. The membership is about sixty, and the pastor of the church Rev. W. R. Houlston. Taylor Chapel.--A Methodist Episcopal Church, located in the center of the township, dates from the spring of 1874, when organized in the Ross Schoolhouse. The following summer, the congregation built a frame structure of medium size, in which they continue to worship. The constituent members, in 1874, were as follows: J. R. Long, John Hill and wife, E. C. Hill, George Hatton and wife, Susan Hill, Henry Runyan, U. P. Bishop and wife Elizabeth, Mary J. Conklin, Margaret Wedmeyer, Lucinda Wedmeyer, Barbara Ogden, Jane Bishop, Dora Ross, Enoch Simpkins, Ichabod Bishop, Alfred Bishop, Mary J. Bishop, W. Parcust, E. Wedmeyer, Kate Bishop, Barbara Hesler, Margaret E. Meyers, Olie Runyan, Bell Meyers, Nancy Stephens and Mary E. Waits. The ground upon which the church is built was donated by James Taylor. The edifice was dedicated in December, 1874; sermon by Rev. STERLING TOWNSHIP - 691 Granville Moody. This appointment belongs to Marathon Circuit, and has a membership of twenty-seven. The ministers in charge have been Revs. William McMullen, Peter Wells, E. P. James, W. J. Baker, and William Jackson, present incumbent. The graveyard across from the church had its origin in a small strip of ground appropriated by Thomas Ross for burial purposes. Some years later, to this was added about two acres given by James Taylor. Interments were made in this burial-ground as early as 1840. Todd's Run Baptist Church (Colored). —Was organized by Elder Riley April 29, 1870, with twenty members, among whom were R. Willis and wife, H. Williams and wife, J. Cope and wife. They have erected a neat frame church building in the southern part of the township, which was dedicated August 20, 1882. Present membership, thirty-nine. Present pastor, Elder George Davis. SCHOOLS. In the absence of records, but a few fragments of school history can be given. The names of most of the early teachers have passed out of recollection, and only a few can be recalled. As early as 1814, there stood on the Samuel Boyd farm, in the southwestern part of what has since become Sterling Township, of Brown County, located about where now stands the blacksmith shop of George Bishop, a schoolhouse, in which school was taught by Leonard Raper, who was one of the earliest settlers in the Concord neighborhood, Clermont County, and one of the first teachers. Mr. Raper served as a soldier in the British Army during the Revolutionary war, and was among the men surrendered by Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown. He was the father of the distinguished Methodist divine, Rev. William H. Raper. He was a man of good qualities, and is remembered as a worthy and beloved instructor of the pioneer youth. He died March 18, 1833. Of the pupils of Mr. Leonard, Archibald McLain and James Boyd are still living, and in the immediate vicinity of the old schoolhouse. Moses Warden was Leonard's successor. He was a saddler by trade, and a Methodist local preacher; was one of the earliest citizens of Bethel, near which place he died in 1859. A Mr. Free and Amos Danberry were later teachers in the same house. About the year 1824 or 1825, Archibald McLain assisted in building a schoolhouse that stood a little northwest of the one just mentioned, where Polick's residence now is. Among the masters of this house were R. McLaughlin, Matthew Smith and A.. McLain. In six or eight years, another schoolhouse of this neighborhood was built a little south of the present residence of Archibald McLain. One McCollough and A. McLain taught in this house. About the same time, another schoolhouse was erected, on the Hillsboro road, a little northeast of De La Palma. In 1835, Archibald McLain was the teacher here, and prior to this date James Lucas. In 1837-38, Mr. McLain taught in a schoolhouse on Five-Mile Creek, near the graveyard at the United Brethren Church. In the Day neighborhood, as early as 1808 or 1809, a schoolhouse stood, in Clermont County, just across what is now the Brown County line. H. B. Walker was at this time the teacher. In the northern part of the township there was standing a schoolhouse in which school was kept in 1825 by John Skinner. Subsequent instructors were Charles McManaman and David Waits. Under the old school law, a number of districts were formed and in each one a comfortable but rather rude house provided, but no statistics of value appear. There are now (1882) seven school districts in the township, with eight substantial schoolhouses, in which school is taught on an average of eight months in the year. The amount paid teachers within the year closing August 31, 1881, was $2,068.42. Total expenditure for school purposes, $2,555.07. 692 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. Balance on hand, $1,378.27. The value of the school property is $5,000. Ten gentlemen teachers were employed in 1881, and paid on an average of $32 per month; the total number of pupils enrolled for the same year was 422; average daily attendance, 343. 94 of whom were studying the alphabet; 376 reading; 397 spelling; 350 writing; 274 arithmetic; 99 geography; 65 English grammar; 20 oral lessons; 10 composition and 2 drawing. There are 26 colored pupils enrolled in the township, taught by a colored teacher. POST OFFICES Sterling has no villages, yet there are in several places clusters of houses that might be termed hamlets, at some of which post offices have been established, namely: De La Palma, established in 1852, with William Weeks, Postmaster. The office ,has since been filled with the following named: Swift Conner, Wesley Leonard, W. E. Conover, John W. Curry and Mrs. Margaret Malott. It is located in the western part of the township. Eastwood is the name of the post office at Salem Station, on the Cincinnati & Eastern Railroad, located in the southern part of the township. It was established March 8, 1878, with George W. Smith as Postmaster, who is still in office. The third post office is at Crosstown, in the western part of the township, near the line separating Brown and Clermont Counties. The office was established Jane 23, 1881, with W. N. Stewart as Postmaster. INDUSTRIES. The manufacturing interests of Sterling have been very meager indeed, which fact is due to the closeness to the old town of Williamsburg and the East Fork of the Little Miami River, which at an early day afforded excellent water-power. Williamsburg was an early manufacturing town, and had in operation a grist-mill as early as 1798, if not prior to that date, as Gen. William Lytle, the proprietor of the town, in connection with Gen. Taylor, in July, 1797, employed Peter Wilson, of Kentucky, to come to the newly laid out town to build a small grist-mill. Not long after 1800, Gen. Lytle constructed the present mill there, which afforded all the conveniences of a good mill for the people living far and near. In 1802, a tannery was operated by Nicholas Sinks, and these, with later industries at that point, answered the wants of the early settlers of Sterling, and prevented a great demand for such at home. About the year 1851, Archibald McLain and Curtis Wilson erected a sawmill, with water-power, on Todd's Run. At the same time, another such mill was built on the same branch, but farther up, by Hiram Anderson and John Smallwood. Neither of them, however, were operated very long, owing to the difficulty in keeping up the dam; it would wash out at each freshet. In 1870, Stephen Waits built a saw-mill on Crane Run, which was destroyed by fire on the night of the 16th of August, 1871. Mr. Waits rebuilt the mill that fall, and connected with it grist machinery, which was used for grinding corn, but not for making flour. At different times, a number of portable saw-mills have been in operation and other stationary mills. In 1866, John Irwin built a chair factory on Five Mile Creek, near the United Brethren Church, where he was engaged in making all kinds of sitting chairs until his death, which occurred May 1, 1882 BYRD TOWNSHIP - 693 CHAPTER XVI. BYRD TOWNSHIP. BY JOHN M. THOMPSON. THE Commissioners' journal of Adams County, Ohio, contains the following relative to the organization of Byrd Township: DECEMBER 2, 1806. The Commissioners proceeded to divide the County of Adams into townships in the following manner, to wit: NO. 3, BY THE NAME OF BYRD. Beginning at the northwest corner of Huntington Township; thence with the north line thereof to the northeast corner of the said township; thence north with the line of Sprigg, and passing its corner to the north line of Adams County; thence with the said line west to the northwest corner of the county; thence south to the beginning. JUNE 2, 1807. The Commissioners proceed to divide Byrd Township by running line due west from the southwest corner of Wayne Township to the county line, and ordered that the new township or north part of the division be called by the name of Eagle, etc. JUNE 3, 1807. Upon examination, it is found that in dividing Byrd Township the north line was so far south that Byrd Township would not have the quantity of square miles allowed by law. Therefore, it is ordered that the line between Byrd and Eagle Townships be altered and established as follows, to wit: Beginning at the southwest corner of Wayne Township; thence north, with the line of Wayne Township, 320 poles; thence west to the west line of the county. Thus, it is seen, it was one of the original townships of Brown County at the time of its organization. It was named in honor of Charles W. Byrd, Secretary of the Northwest Territory. It is bounded as follows: North by Jackson Township, west by Jefferson, south by Union and Huntington, and east by Adams County. It is six miles long north and south, and five miles wide east and west. It contains 20,000 acres of land. The surface of the township is neither flat nor hilly, but sufficiently rolling to insure good drainage. The higher points fall by easy descent to the lower lands, making nearly all suitable for an easy cultivation. The soil of the township is fertile. The principal productions are corn, wheat, oats, tobacco, potatoes and pork. Tobacco and wheat are the staple productions. This township is third in the county in the amount of tobacco produced. It is well watered by the East and West Forks of Eagle Creek and Rattlesnake Creek, which furnish considerable water-power. In a few places in the township it is hilly, and that is along the creeks, but as a whole the surface is level, covered at an early day with timber. Numerous springs of excellent water abound in the township, and in parts where springs are lacking water is obtained by digging to the depth of from twelve to forty feet. Byrd Township contains no very valuable minerals. The most valuable is the blue limestone. It is used for building stone, or for burning into lime. In the upper portion of it are found marine shells, and on the hillsides it is found in detached pieces. Underneath the lowest strata or base of the hills is a compact soapstone, or blue clay, impervious to water. At the time the first white settlers appeared, the land was nearly all covered with timber, which they had to clear away to make their cultivated fields. Abundance of timber is still left, but not such a surplus that owners are anxious to clear off their 694 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. farms. Walnut, which used to be abundant, has nearly all been cut out. At first it was of little value, and was used for various purposes, as rails, building timber, etc. Oak, hickory, ash, elm, beech and poplar compose the principal timber now, though there are small amounts of other kinds. EARLY SETTLERS The earliest settlers of the township of whom we have any account were John Knox, Thomas Hatfield, John McLaughlin, Andrew Dragoo, Lawrence Ramey, George Fisher, John Wright, Nathaniel Beasley and Benjamin Sutton. Lawrence Ramey had a family of ten children—nine girls and one boy. He settled southwest from Decatur about one mile and a quarter. His only son, George, died while serving in the war of 1812. Lawrence Ramey died April 3, 1835. aged eighty-one years. These settlers came mostly from Virginia, prior to the year 1800, and effected a settlement when the whole country was in wilderness and abounded in all kinds of game. The first settlement within the present limits of the township of which any definite account can be obtained was made by John Knox, who settled on the East Fork of Eagle Creek, about two miles from Decatur, on the lands where Hiram Foster now lives, in 1796. Knox was a native of Virginia. He had a family consisting of five sons and three daughters. Knox was a hard worker, and endured many hardships. Himself and family joined the Shaker community, but most of them afterward returned. Henry Earhart came from Virginia to this township in 1801. Himself and wife traveled part of the long journey in a two-horse wagon. In descending the precipitous hills, it was necessary to check the vehicle. This was done by fastening small saplings to the wagon. They proceeded in this manner until they reached Wheeling, where they chartered a flat-boat and floated to Maysville. Here they stopped, and made their way to their new settlement. He assisted Nathaniel Beasley in the erection of the first house in Decatur, which was -torn down in April, 1882. He devoted his time mostly to splitting rails, clearing timber, hunting, and the raising of houses. A few years later, he left, and went back to his native land. He went into the war of 1812, and was never heard of afterward.   Nathaniel Beasley was one of the earliest and most prominent settlers. Before settling here, he had been a member of several surveying parties in Southwestern Ohio, and been inured to the severest extremes of weather when far from the habitation of any white man. The surveying expeditions were attended with great risk of attack from Indians, and on several occasions the parties to which he was attached lost some of their men from savage assaults. The surveys were made right in the midst of deadly foes, and required great dispatch and secresy. After moving to Byrd Township, Mr. Beasley gave some attention to surveying, and laid off a number of roads, farms and villages. He was elected Surveyor of Adams County, and served many years, and was Captain, and afterward General, in the State militia. He ultimately became one of the wealthiest land-owners in the community, and one of the most intelligent and esteemed citizens of the county. He was born in Spottsylvania County, Va., May 19, 1774, and died March 27, 1835. His wife was Sarah Sutton, the daughter of one of the earliest settlers of Byrd Township. William West was born in Fairfax County, Va., February 16, 1781, and, when eight years of age his father brought him to Mason County, Ky., settling at Kenton's Station, near where Washington now is. When sixteen years old, he came with his father across the river, and remained with him near Aberdeen until 1806, When, with his wife, whom he had married the year previous, and a child, he pushed forward to the farm near Decatur, which he oc- BYRD TOWNSHIP - 695 cupied throughout the rest of his long, eventful life. When he arrived, the country about him was one vast wilderness, broken only here and there, at distant intervals, by small clearings. He died at the old homestead January 24, 1870, in his eighty-ninth year. At that time, he had six children living and four dead; forty-two grandchildren living and seventeen dead; thirty-five great-grandchildren living and eight dead—an aggregate posterity of 112. In politics, he has been an unflinching Democrat. Thomas Hatfield, with his family, moved from Mason County, Ky., to the farm his son David now occupies, on West Fork, in 1804. It was then an unbroken wilderness. He was formerly from Pennsylvania. Mr. Hatfield remained on this place the rest of his life. He had a family of ten children— Thomas, Mary, John, Sarah, Martha, Jonas, Deborah, Elizabeth, Isom and David. One of the daughters, Martha, joined the Shakers, but, after a few years, returned to her father's house. John Wright, his wife, Margaret (McKetrick), and their children, William, Margaret, Robert, John, Thomas, Samuel and Jane, settled one mile north of Decatur in 1801 or 1802. Mr. Wright had two children born unto him after his settlement here—Alexander and James. He came from near Lexington, Ky., and had previously lived in Virginia. He purchased 400 acres of land from Gen. Nathaniel Beasley, and lived and died on the place. His eldest son, William, settled on 200 acres of the farm, married Elizabeth Thomas December 25, 1805, and died on the home place. John Wright, Sr., represented Adams County in the State Legislature soon after his emigration hither, and while it met at Chillicothe. A Mr. Evans and family were living on the creek before 1802. James Moore was one of the early settlers. He was from Pennsylvania, and was an early Justice of the Peace of Byrd Township. His son James is said to have been the first child born in the township, in 1800. Mr. Moore had two other sons—Robert and John—besides several daughters. Benjamin Sutton was another early pioneer. He came from Maysville, Ky., and, for more than a score of years, was Justice of the Peace. His daughter Sally married Nathaniel Beasley. Mr. Sutton had but two sons. Of these, Othe never married, and boated on the Ohio and Mississippi extensively. Tingley married and reared a large family. David Montgomery operated a little farm a short distance north of Decatur, and afterward carried on a little blacksmith shop in the village. He was well advanced in life when he came to this township, but it was at quite an early day. Other early settlers were the Howlands, on Eagle Creek—John Howland and his family. His sons, Ichabod and John, served in Capt. Shepherd's company of riflemen during the war of 1812. Two other sons were Levi and Izatus. William Sparrs, who had settled in the northern part of the township, was one of the prisoners in Hull's surrender. Samuel Shaw and Mr. Kilpat rick, two other soldiers in the war of 1812 from this township, were killed by the Indians while on their way home from Fort Meigs. William Shields was an early settler some distance southwest from Decatur. He lived to a good old age. George Edwards, originally from Fairfax County, Va., but directly from the vicinity of Aberdeen, settled in the northwestern part of the township about 1806. His father, James, was an early settler at Aberdeen. David McBride settled early on Eagle Creek. He was of Irish extraction. Another Irish settler, somewhat later, was John Stitt. Samuel Pickerill, with his family, came to the township in 1810, and remained until his death, in 1850, at the advanced age of ninety-six years. He had been a drummer boy in the Amercian Revolution. About 1807, Joshua Grimes settled in this township. and spent the balance of his life here. 696 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. John West, Sr., is the oldest settler in the township now living, and resides about two miles from Decatur. He was the son of William West, and was born January 1, 1797. He was married to Louisa Steward, who reared a family of seven children. His wife died a few years since. Mr. West was a powerful man in his day, and a hard worker. During his son John's life, the farm was placed under his control, but since his death, the old man has again the supervision. Mr. West is a member of the Christian Church at Liberty Chapel. In politics, he holds strongly to the Democratic faith. Joseph Stevenson, deceased (familiarly called " Uncle Joe"), was one of the late pioneers of this community. He was born in Washington County, Penn., in the year 1804, and came to this neighborhood in 1814, when he first engaged in the occupation of farming. He followed this for several years, when he removed to Decatur and took charge of the hotel business. He also engaged in mercantile business quite awhile. He has held many minor offices in the township, among which was Justice of the Peace. He was Postmaster from 1852 to 1877, when he gave up business and settled down to quiet life. He died August 24, 1882, in the seventy-ninth year of his age. He married Nancy Geeslin December 30, 1830, who reared him eleven children— nine sons and two daughters. His wife and six sons are living. Mr. Stevenson was a member of the Presbyterian Church of Decatur, and was much respected by all who knew him. James Snedaker, deceased, may be classed with the pioneers. He was born in Brown County October 22, 1814; died in Decatur July 25, 1882, in the sixty-eighth year of his age. He first engaged in the occupation of a farmer, and spent his life in and near Decatur. He devoted his time principally to the mercantile business, and did a big business in Decatur at an early day. In 1877, he was appointed Postmaster, vice Joseph Stevenson, resigned, which he continued to keep until the day of his death. He was married to Susan Robb, who reared a family of eight children, seven of whom are living. Mr. Snedaker belonged to the Presbyterian Church, and held various offices of trust in the church. He was an honest man, and was much respected by all who knew him. EARLY TIMES AND CUSTOMS. In the earlier settlements of this section, ponds, marshes and swamps abounded, where to -day are found fertile and cultivated fields. The low and flat lands were avoided for the higher lands, not only on account of the wetness, but for sanitary reasons. The proximity of a spring also had much to do with the location of the cabin, but in the selection of places for the erection of other buildings, convenience was the ordinary test. The corn-crib, made of rails or poles, and covered with clapboards or hay, as convenience suggested, was as apt to be in close proximity to the front as at the rear of the building, or near the stable. The habitations of those days were the double log cabin, with an entry between the two rooms, clapboard roof, puncheon floors, with chimneys of split sticks and clay mortar, clapboard doors with wooden hinges and latches. A loom and a spinning-wheel were indispensable, as well as a hominy-block and pestle, and a hand-mill to manufacture meal and flour. The cabins were furnished in the same style of simplicity. The bedstead was homemade, and often consisted of forked sticks driven in the ground, with cross- poles to support the clapboards or the cord. One pot, kettle, frying-pan were the only articles considered indispensable, though some included the tea-kettle. The distilleries afforded the best and almost the only market for the surplus grain, and usually paid several cents per bushel for corn more than could be obtained elsewhere. The clothing of the early pioneers of this township was as plain and sim- BYRD TOWNSHIP - 697 ple as their humble homes. The clothing taken to this new country was made to render a vast deal of service until a crop of flax or hemp could be grown out of which to manufacture the household apparel. The prairie wolves made it difficult to take sheep into the settlements, but, after the sheep had been introduced, and flax and hemp raised in sufficient quantities, it still remained an arduous task to spin, -weave and make the wearing apparel for the entire family. In summer, nearly all persons, both male and female, went barefoot. Buckskin moccasins were commonly worn. Boys of twelve and fifteen years of age never thought of wearing anything on their feet, except during three or four months during the coldest weather. Boots were unknown until a later generation. After flax was raised in sufficient quantities, and sheep could be protected from the wolves, a better and more comfortable style of clothing prewilled. Flannel and linsey were woven and made into garments for the women and children, and jeans for the men. The wool for the jeans was colored from the bark of the walnut, and from this came the term butternut, still common throughout the West. The black and white wool mixed varied the color, and gave the pepper and salt color. As a matter of course, every family did its own spinning, weaving and sewing, and for years all the wool had to be carded by hand, on cards from four inches broad to eight to ten inches long. The picking of the wool and carding was work in which the little folks could help, and at the proper season, all the little hands were enlisted in the business. Every household had its big and little spinning-wheels, winding-blades and warping-bars and loom. In many of the households of Byrd Township there will still be found some of these relics. It involved a life of toil, hardship, and the lack of many comforts, but it was the life that made men of character. This township contains no incorporated village. The first peach trees planted in the township were on the farm of S. W. Pickerill. The public square at Decatur was left for a court house when Adams and Brown were yet united, and it was confidently expected that Decatur would be made the county seat of Adams County. The first Freemason lodge was established in the county at Decatur in 1817. Benjamin Sutton is said to have been the first Justice of the Peace in the township, which office he held for the period of twenty-five or thirty years. The first voting-place in the township was in a frame building on the farm that John F. Pickerill now owns. It is now torn down. This was when Jefferson and Byrd Townships were united. It was removed to Decatur, and has remained there ever since. When they were combined, it made one of the largest townships in the county. The first store in the township of which we have any account was kept near Baird's Mill, about the year 1800, in a log building. It was kept by Stephen Hoboken. He emigrated from near Hagerstown, Md. He carried on a good business, trading with the Indians and whites, and made himself quite a snug fortune. He disappeared rather suddenly one night, and nobody knew whither he went. His property was in ashes in the morning, and the suppo sition is that the Indians plundered the property, stole the goods, and then killed him for his money. ROADS With the beginning of the century, there were no roads in Byrd Township, and for years what were called roads were little better than wagon-tracks through the forest. These were supposed to follow the Indian trails. The highway was wide enough for all necessary purposes, but, down to 1835 or later, the roads were execrable. The undrained country partly explains the cause. When the around was frozen and worn smooth, or dry and solid, no roads were better. But the proceeds of the road taxes in money or labor were 698 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. totally inadequate to keep them even in a tolerable condition at the time most wanted. and only within recent years has it been realized that drainage is essential to a good road-bed. Nearly all the roads in the township are now pike roads, except a few by paths. The Ripley & Locust Grove Turnpike, which runs through the township, was once a toll road, but was made a county road in. March, 1879. The Decatur & Russellville Turnpike is a free road, built by a special act of the Legislature in 1880. FIRST MILL. The first mill in the township was built by John Austin, but it is hard to get the date of its erection. It was situated on Eagle Creek, just below the junction of the East and West Branches. Several mills were built in the township in after years, with all the modern improvements. The Decatur Mill, the Baird Mill and the Fitch Mill are the only mills in the township at the present time. CEMETERIES There are five public graveyards in this township—the Decatur Cemetery; the old Eckman Burial-Ground, on the farm of George West, the Evans Burial-Ground, two and a half miles west of Decatur, on the Decatur & Russellville Turnpike; the Woods Graveyard, situated near Eagle Chapel, on Main Eagle Creek; and the Liberty Cemetery, at Liberty Chapel. Distances from Decatur to various neighboring points in Brown and Adams Counties: Ripley, eleven miles; Aberdeen, thirteen miles; Red Oak, five miles; Russellville, six miles; Georgetown, thirteen miles; Arnheim, eleven miles; Brownstown, fourteen miles; Carlisle, eight miles; Fayetteville, thirty-three miles; Feesburg, eighteen and a half miles; Fincastle, fifteen miles; Levanna, thirteen miles; Greenbush, twenty-five miles; Hamersville, eighteen miles; Higginsport, eighteen miles; Locust Ridge, twenty-four and a half miles; Mt. Oreb, twenty-two miles; New Harmony, twenty-six miles; New Hope, seventeen miles; Sardinia, seventeen miles; St. Martin's, thirty- seven and a half miles; White Oak Valley, seventeen miles; in Adams County, Eckmansville, five miles; North Liberty, seven miles; Winchester, ten miles; Youngsville, twelve miles; Tranquility, seventeen miles; West Union, nine miles; Fairview, three miles; Bentonville, seven miles; Manchester, twelve miles; Bradyville, twelve miles; Jacktown, nineteen miles. SCHOOLS In 1820 or 1821, the first log schoolhouse, with its rough puncheon floor and greased-paper windows, was erected one-half mile west of Decatur. Thomas Moore, who combined the duties of a pedagogue and farmer, was the first teacher. Judge Livingston wielded the birch a few terms afterward. Several log schoolhouses were soon after built in different parts of the township. In succeeding years, as people became able to incur the expense, they built better schoolhouses. The schoolhouses constructed during the last decade are in keeping with the progress of events in educational matters, and compare favorably with school buildings throughout the county. The early schoolhouses were structures of logs, without windows, the light being admitted through cracks between the logs, which were in the winter closed with oiled paper. Geographies, dictionaries and grammars were unknown, and teachers were usually able to teach only " reading, writing and arithmetic." There are seven school districts in the township. All of them possess good substantial frame buildings. The schools are well attended, and are in charge of reliable, capable instructors. The Ohio Valley Academy was an educational institution of an advanced BYRD TOWNSHIP - 699 grade, which its founder sought to establish and perpetuate at Decatur. Rev. J. A. R. Rodgers and others, about 1862, started it. Catalogues and views of the prospective buildings, including a dormitory for young men, a ladies' boarding hall and a fine academy building, a spacious assembly room, recitation rooms, library, etc.. with all the appointments of a first-class institution, were widely circulated. The estimated cost of the building was $30,000. Students appeared from various parts of the Stale and from Kentucky, but, instead of the fine architectural structures anticipated, they found only a dilapidated building in which to recite. The instructors for 1863 were: R. A. McCollough, Principal; Miss Sallie J. Embree, Assistant; Miss Lizzie Dugan, Assistant; Rev. J. A. R. Rodgers, Teacher of Languages; Rev. J. M. Waddle, Teacher of Elocution; Miss Mary Evans, Teacher of Instrumental Music. They continued as instructors until 1865, when the corps of teachers was changed. One hundred and twenty-four students attended from 1863 to 1865. The classical department contained nine; scientific department, thirty-five; and the English department, eighty. The instructors for 1865 were: C. A. Kenaston, A. M.. Principal; Miss Elizabeth Kinney, Assistant, and Teacher of French; Rev. J. M. Waddle, Teacher of Elocution; William A. Dixon, Lecturer on Physiology; Miss N. Y. Montgomery, Teacher of Instrumental Music. The Examining Committee were Rev. James Porter, Rev. D. Vandyke, T. P. Sniffin, William A. Dixon. M. D., W. N. Pickerill and E. F. Moulton. The academy continued for a few years only. Want of support caused its decline. CHURCHES. Traveling missionaries visited this country in very early times, and brought the glad tidings of peace and good will to the inhabitants. But little is remembered of them. Camp-meetings at an early day supplied a recognized want and were generally attended in large numbers. Churches soon sprang up, the first of log, and then of better material as the people became able. The first religion established in the township was probably that of the Shakers. It was preached here as early as 1804, their first services being held in groves or private houses. Afterward, a structure was erected in which they worshiped. It is described as being a log pen of but five or six feet in height and divided into two departments, in one of which the men, and in the other the women worshiped. This building was afterward converted into a more suitable and convenient church. The continuance of the Shakers as a religious body in this township, covered a period of five or six years, when most of them removed elsewhere. The Presbyterian Church is situated in Decatur, and was erected in 1838. It was a brick building, cost about $1,000, and stood a little west of the site of the present one. It was organized November 12, 1841, with twenty-two members—John Farris and James Blair were the first Ruling Elders, and were ordained by the Rev. John Rankin, November 13, 1841. The organization of this church and erection of the house were due to the exertions and self-sacrifice of John Farris, formerly of Cabin Creek, Ky., and Dr. Simeon Bearce, a young physician from the New England States. For a time previous to the organization of the church, the community about Decatur had been deeply agitated by the discussion of slavery, and the doors of the only church edifice for holding public meetings were closed against anti-slavery lectures. This fact, doubtless was one of the immediate causes which led to the organization of this church. In the year 1859, the brick building was torn down and the present house erected under the superintendence of Daniel Copple, Alexander Kirkpatrick and John West, Jr., at an expense of $1,200. When the Ripley Presbytery left the New School General Assembly, this church continued with 700 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. the Presbytery and separated from the Assembly. The names of the ministers who have served this church since its organization are Rev. Jesse Lockhart, Rev. James R. Gibson, Rev. Victor M. King, Rev. William Lumsden, Rev. J. A. R. Rodgers, Rev. H. V. Warren, Rev. Henry Osborn, Rev. John Stewart, Rev. John N. McClung, Rev. S. C. Kerr. The first Methodist Episcopal Church in the township was supposed to have been built about the year 1825. It was a log structure and was located on the Pittenger homestead. It still stands at the present date. The brick church in Decatur was supposed to have been built about that date. The brick structure was torn down in 1860 to make way for a frame building. The contractors were the Montgomery Bros., and it cost about $1,200. The names of the ministers since 1845 are: 1845-46, Revs. William H. Sutherland and M. G. Perkizer; 1846-47, Revs. Jacob Holmes and Philip Nation; 1847-48, Rev. Barton Lowe; 1848-49, Rev. De Witt Clinton Howard and Charles Fergason; 1849-50, Revs. M. P. Zink and E. H. Field; 1850-51, Revs. William B. Jackson and E. H. Field; 1851-52, Rev. Jesse M. D. Robertson; 1852-53, Revs. James Armstrong and George H. Reid; 1853-54, Revs. James Armstrong and George H. Reid; 1854-55, Revs. William Q. Shannon and A. P. Dunlap; 1855-56, Revs. B. P. Wheat and Thomas Head; 1856-57, Rev. Joseph Blackburn; 1858-59, Revs. M. T. Zink and Nathaniel Green; 1859-60, Revs. Edward Merrick and Edward Moscore; 1860-61, Revs. Thomas Head and T. A. Fiddler; 1861-62, Revs. J. M. Sullivan and H. E. Perkizer; 1862-63, Revs. William Ramsey and John Bloomhuff; 1863-64, Revs. William Ramsey and H. C. Middleton; 1864-65, Revs. William McMullen and H. C. Middleton; 1865-66, Revs. William McMullen and H. M. Keck; 1866-67, Revs. E. P. James and Isaac Ross; 1867-68, Revs. Isaac Ross and S. W. Edmiston; 1868- 69, Rev. S. W. Edmiston; 1869-70, Revs. S. W. Edmiston and Lytle; 1870- 71, Revs. De Witt Peak and Graham Kennedy; 1871-72, Revs. W. J. Quarry and Charles J. Wells; 1872-73, Revs. W. J. Quarry and D. Lee Aultman; 1873-74, Revs. W. J. Quarry and D. V. Ross; 1874-75, Revs. J. L. Gregg and William Gaddis; 1875-76, Revs. J. L. Gregg and W. P. Jackson; 1876- 77, Revs. A. E. Higgins; 1877-78, Rev. A. E. Higgins; 1878-79, Rev. W. J. Baker; 1879-80, Rev. E. D. Keys; 1880-81, Rev. S.W. Edmiston; 1881- 82, Rev. S. W. Edmiston; 1882-83, Rev. L. O. Deptuty. The United Presbyterian Church is located in Decatur, and was built in the year 1849 by Daniel Bayless and William Kane. It is a frame building, 40x50, and cost about $1,000. At the time of its organization, the membership was small, and members from the Cherry Fork Church moved their membership here. Rev. Alexander McClennhan was the first minister. He departed this life in 1860, and was succeeded by Rev. J. M. Waddle. The con gregation was without a pastor until 1873, when the Rev. Thomas Mercer received a call, which he accepted; he continued as their pastor until 1881, when he turned his attention to farming. The church has no pastor at the present day, and the organization is about broken up. The Christian, or Disciple, congregation that worships at Liberty Chapel dates its origin back to 1810. In that year, Elder Archibald Alexander organ ized the church. The members at this time, or shortly afterward, included individuals from the Gardner, Devore, Pickerill, Ramey, Ristine, Hughs, Fisher, Reeves, Hatfield and Longley families. In 1812, John Longley began to preach for the church, and continued six years. In 1816, a great revival was held in the peach orchard, near the upper end of the present burying- grounds, and many conversions made. The following year, old Liberty Stone Meeting-House was built. Many of the neighbors, church members and others, turned out with teams and hauled the stone; others contributed money. The BYRD TOWNSHIP - 701 building committee consisted of David Devore, Jeptha Beasley and Samuel Pickerill. The masons who built the walls were Daniel Copple and Joseph Hughes. Matthew Gardner did at least part of the carpenter work. The walls are 44x34 feet, two feet in thickness and perhaps twelve feet to the square. About 1832, this organization united with a Disciple congregation which had formerly been a Baptist organization at Red Oak, but was won over in the reformatory movement by the followers of Alexander Campbell. The union of the two churches was harmonious and complete. John Ramey, Lovel . Pickerill and Florence Shoafstall were among the first Elders of the church. After them came William N. Ramey, Ackles Geeslin, T. J. Pickerill, G. E. Hatfield, D. B. Hatfield, R. P. Fisher and Joseph Stitt. The ministers have been Jesse Holton, David Hathaway, John Ross, John Rogers, J. B. Lucas, John Young, David Thompson, B. F. Sallee, W. D. Moore and J. S. West. For about seventy years, the average membership has been about seventy-five. Two churches have sprung up under her influence, one at Russellville about 1843, and one at Bethlehem soon after. The change in the pike road, which formerly ran in front of the old church, made the location undesirable, and the house needing repairs a new frame church was built at a cost of $1,200, and dedicated December 13, 1874, by Elder J. S. West. Eagle Chapel Church is situated on main Eagle Creek, about two and a half miles south of Decatur. It is of the New Light denomination, and was erected in 1876 at a cost of $1,200. Rev. R. H. McDaniel was the first preacher; he continued in charge until 1881. Rev. J. F. Burnett succeeded him, and is their pastor at the present day. The church is growing in membership and great interest is being manifested. SOCIETIES The Sons of Temperance, Grand Army of the Republic, Patrons of Husbandry and Freemasons each had an organization here, but they are now no more. The first Freemason Lodge in the county was instituted at St. Clairsville, now Decatur, about the year 1817. Capt. James Carr, now a member of Union Lodge, No. 71, of Ripley, was one of the charter members. POLITICS. This township has been Whig and Republican, since its organization, and it is of little use for a Democrat to be a candidate for a township office. The Democrats have carried an office or two, but it has been by hard and persistent work. Byrd Township is one of the three Republican Townships in the county, and it generally polls a strong vote. The campaigns of 1840, 1863, 1876 and 1880 gave evidence of the very intense heat to which political feeling can be aroused, and many incidents might be recounted showing the extent of party enthusiasm in 1876 and 1880. The vote of the township from 1875 to 1880: 1875, Governor, R. B. Hayes, Republican, 162; William Allen, Democrat, 103 votes; 1876, Secretary of State: Milton Barnes, Republican, 158; William Bell, Jr., Democrat, 102; 1876, President: R. B. Hayes, Republican, 174; Samuel J. Tilden, Democrat, 113; 1877, Governor: William H. West, Republican, 150; Richard Bishop, Democrat, 100; 1878, Secretary of State: Milton Barnes, Republican, 163; David R. Paige, Democrat, 101; 1879, Governor: Charles Foster, Republican, 179; Thomas Ewing, Democrat, 125; 1880, Secretary of State: Charles Townsend, Republican, 179; William Long, Democrat, 126; 1880, President: James A. Garfield, Republican, 184; W. S. Hancock, Democrat, 132; 1881, Governor: Charles Foster, Republican, 168; John W. Bookwalter, Democrat, 119; John Seitz, Prohibitionist, 3. The present township officers are: Joseph Bayley, J. P. Moore and E. M. 702 - HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY. Davidson, Trustees; A. F. Liggett, Clerk; George E. Howland, Treasurer; A. H. Mahaffey, Assessor; Morgan Hatfield, Constable. The present Township Board of Education is composed as follows: District No. 1, J. P. Moore; District No. 2, William Rickey; District No. 3, John Stevenson; District No. 4, James Woods; District No. 5, Col. J. W. Henry; District No. 6, John McPherson; District No. 7, colored, in charge of the Board of Education. Average length of the school year is eight months. Average wages paid to teachers, $30. Population of Byrd Township, in 1860, 1,240; in 1870, 1,251: in 1880, 1,300. James A. Stevenson, of this township, in 1865, was elected to the office of County Auditor by the Republican party; he served two years. William B. West, Democrat, was County Commissioner from 1874 to 1880. and in 1882, Samuel W. Pickerillwas also elected County Commissioner from this township. THE WAR RECORD. The citizens of Byrd Township have reason to be proud of her soldiery during the great contest of 1861-65. In common, the men of this township gave a prompt response to the call at the outbreak of the war. The following is a list of the men who bore arms from Byrd Township, so far as the names could be obtained. It is not strange, however, if some have been overlooked. It was designed to be a complete list, but the means of information at command prevent it: Amos Richmond, William Warren, Joseph Warren, John Warren, R. J. Smith, G. W. West, J. Q. Smith, William Kirkpatrick, Byron Swisher, Boone Funk, James Goff, James Stevenson, John Stevenson, William Stevenson, William Draper, Orvil Draper, W. B. Norton, John Norton, Bruce Moore, Edward Burbage, W. H. H. Edwards, John Thompson, A. P. Thompson, George Henderson, Richard Shofstall, Joseph Elefritz, Thomas McBride, John McBride, John White. George Pittinger, William Pittinger, Robert Kerr, Thomas Kerr, Green Pickerill. Samuel Pickerill, Norval Johnson, William Emerick, R. T. Fisher. L. McLaughlin, F. D. Sanders, James Thompson, John Thompson, Samuel Thompson, John Hughey, William Shofstall, George Thompson, Simon Reeves, W. W. Baird, Col. John W. Henry, George Henry, E. S. Kirkpatrick, William Milligan, Joseph Guyley, William Kirkpatrick, Lewis Brown, William Hughes, James Norton, James Hughey, James Purdin, J. H Mann, John Edwards, H. N. Wallace, William Adamson, John P. Liggett, Thomas Dillinger, Thomas Robinson, Wesley Adamson, Jonah Hatfield, David Hatfield, Ferd Hatfield, Travis Reed, Green Norton, Nimon Ramey, Graham Kennedy, Peter Galbreath, Samuel Williams, George Caldwell, John Cox. George 'dourer, Robert Menneaugh, Wilson Menneaugh. Samuel Porter, Thomas Montgomery, George Montgomery, William Burbage, John Howard. NEAL. This is a small village, situated three miles from Decatur, in the southeastern part of the township. It is on main Eagle Creek; also on the Decatur & Aberdeen Free Turnpike. It contains a store and post office, a blacksmith shop and a few dwellings. The population is about twenty-five. The post office was established in June, 1882. The present Postmaster is A. E. Neal. It is on the mail route from Decatur to Aberdeen. The mail is carried twice a week, Thursday and Saturday. This is a good trading point, and many goods are sold here; butter and eggs are the staple productions, and find ready sale in this market. DECATUR. This is a small village of 260 inhabitants, and is situated in the eastern part of Byrd Township. This village was laid out about the year 1802. It BYRD TOWNSHIP - 703 was named in the first place St. Clairsville, in honor of Gov. Arthur St. Clair, but there being another St. Clairsville in the State, it was changed For awhile it was known as Hard Scrabble. The name Decatur as then agreed upon, and it so remains up to the present date. The first house in the village was built by Nathaniel Beasley, about the year 1802, or when the town was laid oat. It was a double log cabin, with one entry, and covered with clapboards, but afterward weather-boarded and covered with shingles. It was said to have been the finest house in the country in its day. It remained as a dwelling until April, 1882, and was the property of Amelia Thompson, who sold it to George E. Howland to make way for a handsome storeroom. The first hotel in the township was kept in Decatur in a log cabin, where George E. How- land's dwelling stands. This building was built about the year 1804, and the hotel-keeper was Thomas Moore. About the year 1830, Silas Thomas started a hotel in the village, and did quite a successful business. It was the usual stopping point with farmers in going to Maysville with their produce. Ripley was no market in those days. The public square would be crowded with teams several times during the year, going to market. This was the great thoroughfare to Washington City, and several of our Presidents and Congressmen have stopped here on their way there. The first schoolhouse known in the village was a log one, but in what year it was built and who taught is not known. Decatur contains two stores, two blacksmith shops, one woolen factory, one carpenter and wagon-maker shop, one hotel, one saddlery and harness-making shop, three churches, one schoolhouse, one paint shop, one butcher shop. The Postmasters of Decatur since 1830 have been Silas Thomas, Wesley Pierce, Benjamin Eckman, Joseph Stevenson, W. W. Salsbury, Joseph Stevenson, James Snedaker and Eliza Snedaker. In 1841, a large carding and fulling mill was operated in Decatur by John Fearis. It burned down during the winter of 1846-47, and soon after a large woolen manufactory was erected by the citizens in this community and carried on until within several years. Jacob Zerker formerly owned and operated a carding-mill near Decatur. The village was once a station on the Underground Railway, and many negroes were here assisted onward on their way to freedom. The Decatur business directory for 1882 is: John Sheeler, butcher; J. S. Smith. saddler; Dr. J. W. Frisler, physician; D. B. Hatfield, teacher; W. Scott Stevenson, salesman; H. N. Wallace, St. Cloud Hotel; H. G. West, farmer; G. W. Smith, painter; John M. Thompson, insurance agent; William Pittinger, carpenter; John D. Gordon, boot and shoe maker; John Sowers, cooper; Rebecca Campbelle milliner; J. P. & J. W. Thompson, blacksmiths; John Stevenson, Justice of the Peace; George Pittinger, carpenter; W. E. Moore, teacher; John Vanners, broker; Samuel Montgomery, carpenter; Joseph Kerr, Justice of the Peace; John Kirkpatrick, carpenter and wagon maker; Gen. Williams. blacksmith; R. J. Smith, harness-maker; Joseph Gay- ley, carpenter; John Wilson, barber; Miss Sallie Henderson, dress-maker; L. O. Depty, minister; Joseph Walters, brick and stone mason; William Emrick, grocer and confectioner; Miss Eliza Snedaker, Postmistress; William R. Snedaker, Assistant Postmaster; S. W. Evans, dealer in general merchandise; George E. Howland, dry goods, boots and shoes, hats, caps and hardware.