HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. CHAPTER I. GEOGRAPHY, TOPOGRAPHY AND GEOLOGY. PERRY COUNTY is situated in the southeastern part of the State of Ohio, is bounded on the north by Licking and Muskingum, on the east by Muskingum and Morgan, on the south by Athens and Hocking, and on the west by Hocking and Fairfield. Its area is four hundred square miles. It is of irregular shape, and is longest from north-west to south-east. The divide, separating the waters which flow into the Hocking, from those that flow into the Muskingum, reaches the long way through the county, coming in at the .north, in Thorn township, west of Thornville, and going out at the south, in Bearfield township, near Porterville. The highest parts of this divide, are about 500 feet above the level of Lake Erie ; and about woo higher than the Atlantic ocean. About one-third of the county is drained into the Muskingum, and the remaining .two-thirds into the Hocking. The Moxahala, (more commonly called Jonathan's Creek,) and its tributaries drain that portion of the county whose waters flow into the Muskingum ; and Rush Creek, Monday Creek, Sunday Creek and their tributaries, that portion, of the waters which flows into the Hocking. The Moxahala, or Jonathans' Creek, has a principal north and south branch, the sources of which are comparatively far apart. The head-waters of the north branch are in the neighborhood of Thornville ; those of the south branch are several miles southeast of New Lexington. The north and south branches of the Moxahala do not, in fact, unite within the limits of the county, but several miles over the line in Muskingum. Rush Creek also has two main branches, (known as north and south,) which, like those of the Moxahala, have their source in different parts of the county. The head waters of \the the north branch are in the western part of Thorn township ; those of the south branch are near Rehoboth, nearly twenty miles distant. The north and south branches of Rush Creek do not come together in the limits of Perry, but near Bremen, in Fairfield county. Monday Creek has its chief sources in the neighborhood of Bristol, Maxville and Middletown, and Sunday creek consisting of three principal branches, in the vicinity of Whipstown, Oakfield and Thompsonville. All these creeks have numerous tributaries, and the natural drainage system of the county is one of the. best in the State. The description of the divide, and what has been said about the water courses and drainage, hag already indicated, in a great measure, 2 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. the general topography of the county. The divide, as has been stated, extends through the county from northwest to southeast, its line being crooked and irregular. Between the streams that flow from this backbone ridge, and its numerous spurs, are other ridges, many of them nearly as high as the great divide itself. In other places, the elevations between the streams are only small plateaus, sufficiently elevated to be picturesque and healthy; But Perry has, in fact, all kinds of land, from narrow valleys, gentle slopes, and moderately rolling country, to winding and tortuous ridges, and steep and almost inaccessible hills. As to soil. that of Perry County is neither the best nor the worst. A considerable portion of it has ever been. and is now, quite productive. Nearly all of it would originally produce very good crops. Much of it, in course of years, became worn-out and would yield no more, but is fast being reclaimed, and bids fair to produce more than ever, under a good system of farming. The virgin soil was thin, and would not hold out a great while, without a care and attention that was seldom given. But a new day is dawning on the farming community. When the first white settlers arrived, the country in general was well timbered. The timber consisted of oak, hickory, poplar, walnut, ash, elm, sugar, maple, beech, gum, chestnut, sycamore, wild cherry, dogwood and some other varieties. Many of the oaks were very large and of a fine quality. Wild beasts were not scarce when the early settlers came. Bears, deer, panthers, wild-cats, wolves and catamounts roamed at will through the dense forests with none to molest them or make them afraid. Bears, indeed, lingered around long enough to capture fattening hogs from pens and to eat peaches under trees planted by the pioneers. Foxes, coons, opossums, ground-hogs,- rabbits, squirrels and other small animals abounded. Wild turkeys were plentiful, and the hoot of the owl, the cry of the whippoorwill and the call of the pheasant, were familiar sounds in the ears of the men and women who left civilization behind and went forth to battle for esistence and homes in the wild forest. Nearly all of Perry county lies within the coal measures, the only exception being about six-sevenths of Thorn township and about one-fifth each of Reading and Jackson. It is not to be inferred that all the remaining portion of the county lies in the workable coal area, for such is not the fact. But the surface and all projecting rocks are such as belong to the geological structure known as the coal measures, though the coal seams in some parts of it may be found wanting. The coal measures, so-called, consists of seams of coal with interstratified deposits of limestone shale, sandstone, iron ore and fire-clay. The coal seams are not scattered haphazard through the series, but have their proper places in the formation. Though this is true generally, it sometimes happens that a coal seam becomes thin and worthless, and in some places fails altogether ; but each seam has its own place in the series, and hence the classification. as given by the professional geologists. The series of deposits known as the Coal Measures, is said to rest on the Maxville limestone, and when that is lacking, upon the Logan sandstone or upper Waverly stone. The principal coal seam of the series is known as number six, or the HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 3 Nelsonville seam, the Straitsville seam, the "great vein," the great seam, and perhaps by other names. It was first mined at Nelsonville, but is the same seam as the Shawnee, Straitsville, Corning, Rendville and Buckingham seam. This seam is six feet thick at Nelsonville, from ten to eleven at Straitsville and Shawnee, and from ten to thirteen at Buckingham, Corning, Rendville and othor points on Sunday Creek. A seam from three to four feet in thickness, generally believed by geologists to be the same as the "great seam" further south, extends over nearly all of Pike, Clayton, Harrison and much of Reading, Bearfield and Madison townships. This is the seam generally mined. Another coal seam from four to five feet thick, about sixteen feet lower in the coal measure formation, is found in the neighborhood of New Lexington, and it is thought will be found generally wherever the other seam exists. Some geologists express the opinion that those two seams taken together, are the equivalent of the great seam of Straitsville and Sunday Creek, as there they appear to be two distinct seams, though found close together. From forty to fifty feet above the "great vein," where the hills are high enough, is what is to be found the Norris coal, the seam from five to six feet in thickness. This seam, however, is not persistent, and sometimes is wanting altogether. But it is a good coal and is found in several places. Another seam of coal known as the Stallsmith, from eighty to ninety feet above the great seam, and from four to five feet thick, is tolerably persistent, though it sometimes is not found when due. This coal has been mined, is pronounced a good coal, and is said to be highly valuable for some purposes. What is called the lower New Lexington seam, because it has been mined at this place, if it be persistent, as it probably is, may prove to be a very valuable coal of commerce. It is from five to six feet thick in places, and is a dry-burning coal, and valuable for many purposes. If this seam extends over a wide area to the north and east, it will in the aggregate be of very great value. There are some other veins of coal that are soft, in the geological structure of the Coal Measures, but they are unimportant, and may be omitted specific mention. The iron ores may begrouped into two divisions—those situated be- low the great coal seam No. 6, and those found above it. A seam of ore is often found resting on the Maxville and Newtonville limestone. Prof. Andrews states that he has found a good ore above the horizon near Maxville, and also in Reading and Madison townships. He has found other ores near Crossenville, entirely belonging to the lower coal measures, but he could not ascertain their places definitely. The Baird ore, so called because it is the one chiefly used at Baird's iron works in Monday Creek township, is a well defined and valuable seam, and is situated about thirty-five feet below the great seam, No. 6, of coal. This places it below the lower New Lexington coal. This has proved to be a very valuable ore, but as it dips to the east, and is too thin to admit of drifting, it is only available near the western margin of the coal measures. The " sour apple" ore, situated above the Norris coal, has been discovered in many places, and traced all the way from Sunday Creek to New Lexington. It has not been much used yet, but it is believed to be a good ore. The " Iron Point ore is an important 4 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. deposit and is situated about one hundred feet above the great coal seam, No. 6. The equivalent of the Iron Point ore has been discovered at several places, varying in thickness from one to thirteen feet. The " Hone ore," two miles east of New Lexington, discovered by the Moxahala Furnace Company, was, on a purchased area of something over an acre, from seven to eight feet thick, and of good quality. Another deposit of ore, believed to be on the horizon of the Iron Point ore, was found on the Whitlock farm, in Pleasant township. In the neighborhood of Bristol in Pike township, a large area of the Iron Point ore has been found. ranging from two to thirteen feet in thickness. There are other outcrops and deposits of ore in various places and at different horizons, but geologists have not fully studied or classified them, and a sufficient number of borings has not been made to fairly test their extent or value. Experience, the best of all teachers, has proven that good and valuable ores exist in Reading, Jackson, Pike, Pleasant, Monroe, Saltlick, Coal and Monday Creek townships. and there is little doubt that Harrison, Bearfield, Clayton, Hopewell and Madison townships will ultimately be found rich in the same commodity. General theories and opinions go for something, particularly those of learned and trained geologists ; but there are so many variations and limitations to the general recognized structure of the Coal Measures with their limestone, ore, coal, sandstone, shale, etc., that only actual and minute inspection and investigation can fully disclose the wonders that directly underlie the surface of the Coal Measures of Perry county. Even the great coal seam is sometimes wholly or partially missiug where geologically due ; the iron ores often lie in pockets, and are sometimes discovered where no geologist with all the information available would expect to find them. Hence, it will take time, more or less, and certainly it will require some expenditure of money and not a little labor, and careful, untiring investigation, to fully determine the area, extent and value of iron ore deposits in Perry county. As has been stated, the coal measures rest upon the Maxville limestone, and that rests upon the Logan sandstone, or Upper Waverly. The Maxville limestone, or its equivalent, is sometimes missing, and in that case the coal measures rest directly upon the sandstone of the Upper Waverly. Geologists state that the Maxville and Newtonville limestones are one, and that their equivalent is found along the lowest valleys in both the eastern and western parts of Perry county. The northern branches of Rush Creek and Jonathan's Creek, both, in places, uncover the limestone and expose it to full view. In many other places it is believed t hat it might be easily uncovered and found. What is asserted to be an equivalent of the Maxville and Newtonville limestone was largely quarried in Reading, Clayton, and Madison townships, for use in constructing the Zanesville and Maysville turnpike. There are several limestone quarries in Perry county. developed since the erection of blast furnaces, of a higher horizon than the Maxville limestone, but geologists do not appear to have traced them care. and whether they belong to the Putnam Hill, Zoar. or Cambridge series. or to independent and unclassified formation, is a subject of conjecture, and 'to be decided .by future investigations. Many of them are known to be of good quality. whatever may be their relation to the HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 5 genera] geological structure of the coal measure system. In the recognized limestone horizons, there is sometimes found bastard limestone deposits, which arc of little or no value. In other localities flint or chert appears to take the place of limestone. The chert is used for pikeing roads or streets, and is very useful and durable for that purpose. Fire clays are often found interstratified among the coal measure rocks, though there has been. as vet, no special investigation of this subject, or considerable test of the qualities of the clay. There is little room to doubt, however, that a very considerable portion of Perry county will prove to be rich in this important material. Potter's clay is found to exist, in a greater or less degree, in all parts of the county, though the best and richest beds appear to be in the eastern part, in which section. many potteries are in operation and large quantities of ware manufactured. When the white settlers came there was a salt spring, or " deer lick," on the present site of McCuneville, hence the name of Saltlick township. There is a sulphur spring on a branch of Sunday Creek, and there is also a similar spring of medical virtue in the south-western part of Reading township. There are a few alum springs, and a number of alum wells of no special value or economic importance, and only interesting as indicating the various composition of the coal measure system. The county is extremely well watered, considered in the aggregate. In addition to the creeks and smaller streams, that are hereinbefore outlined, the surface of the county is dotted with numerous springs, affording a bountitul supply of pure water the year round. Digging wells was one hardship that few of the pioneers were called upon to undergo. Wells are even yet infrequent, except in towns and villages, and good, pure water is almost everywhere secured at no very great depth and at no inordinate expense. The spring water is usually " soft ' and the well water " hard," though both have exceptions. Sandstone of a durable nature, suitable for building purposes, is found in almost all parts of the county. The most of this stone quarries easily and works well. Though the county abounds in stone quarries and outcrops of stone, very little of it, comparatively, lies so near the surface as to disturb the plowman, or in any way to interfere with the proper cultivation of the soil. If the Maxville or Newtonville limestone is good for building purposes—and it is now almost universally so considered—the county surely has an abundant supply of different kinds of stone for building, both for home and foreign consumption. A few stone houses were built, quite early in the history of the county, which have withstood the storms, freezes, and thaws of many a year, and are yet but little the worse for the wear. If these may be taken as testimony, the stone may be considered as of a fairly durable character. It is not within the scope or general purpose of this work to enter into a discussion of speculative or minutely descriptive geology. Nearly all of Perry county is included within the coal measures, and the soil is all, or nearly all, supposed to be native, and composed from the decaying and pulverization of the underlying rocks. Nearly all of Thorn township, and small portions of Reading and Jackson townships, are in the " Drift " section, which comprises about two-thirds of the State, 6 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. and all the north-western part. The soil and directly underlying deposits of the Drift are of foreign origin, and came, at some unknown and remote period, probably from the far north, the round gravel-stones found in it, rounded and rolled, probably, by the strong glacial currents that bore down from the north. The little smooth, roundish stones, of various colors, that are seen along the railroads in most of Perry county, are not native inhabitants, but have been brought in from the Drift region west and north, where they have been long enough to gain a residence ; and vet, in the long ago, they were unconscious immigrants from a far-off country. The stones and pebbles of the coal measures are of quite a different character. Whoever reads what is herein written concerning geology, will obtain a hint of the uncertainty and incompleteness of the science ; whoever studies carefully the various printed works upon the subject, will be yet more deeply impressed with the same fact. Yet it is undeniable that much valuable and economic knowledge has been gathered and assorted by learned and patient geologists and investigators ; and further information that will bear good fruit to commere and mankind, is sure to be secured by their study and industry ; yet it is but simple candor to admit that there is much about the changes and making of the earth which they cannot fathom or disclose, and that, in view of the many useful pursuits which may occupy every energy of the mind and body, it seems something like folly to waste time upon mere speculation or guesses as to the inert, unconscious, unknown and unknowable. HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 7 CHAPTER II. COAL, IRON ORE, SALT, AND OTHER MINERALS. Many of the early settlers of Reading, Clayton, Pike, and Harrison townships, who came from coal counties in Pennsylvania, knew the article when they saw it, and it was not long before their eyes detected the outcrops on the hill-sides, or the uncovered seams in the beds of small streams, where the action of the water had washed away the 'covering of earth. Yet such discoveries were of no present significance or value. There was no demand for coal ; no grates or stoves, even, in which to use it for home consumption. Besides, the settler's cabin consisted, in most cases, of but one room, and good wood of all kinds was plentiful everywhere. The first demand was for blacksmith coal, and for many years it was thought a good article for this purpose could be obtained in only a few favored places. Coal `for this purpose, was at first stripped where the covering of earth over it was not very deep, or taken from the beds of streams where the surface had been entirely washed away. About 1816, or soon thereafter, the blacksmiths began to use coal at Somerset, Rehoboth, New Lexington, and a few other places. Also, about this time grates and coal were introduced into Somerset, and a little later, as the villages grew, into Rehoboth and New Lexington. Coal first found its way into taverns, public offices, stores and shops, and gradually into the sitting rooms of well-to-do persons in town and country, in the coal region and near its neighborhood. It is impossible to tell at this time, who mined the first coal, in this or that neighborhood, or in the county at large. Tradition tells that a colored man named Shedron, was the pioneer miner in the St. Joseph region. It is said that he carried the coal from the bottom of his shaft or pit, up a ladder on his back, where he dumped it in reach of his customers. Of course the enterprising colored man did not then know of any place where the coal could be drifted from the hillside, or he would have dispensed with his sack and ladder. What is now known as the Isaac Denny bank, one mile north of New Lexington, was opened on the undermining plan, about 183o, and operated somewhat extensively, by Dr. Poujade, a Frenchman. He imported a Frenchman from somewhere, the old country, probably, and he was the first professional miner that the old citizens remember to have seen in the neighborhood of Rehoboth or New Lexington. He was a polite, polished fellow, and it was rarely that the American girls got a glimpse of him until he had seen his bath tub and made his toilet. Poujade sold coal to the people of New Lexington, and Rehoboth, and to the farmers for miles around. Soon after 183o, the great vein was discovered and opened at different places on Sunday and Monday Creeks. In some instances the coal-house was the coal 8 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. bank, situated only a rod or two from the cabin door. New mines gradually began to be opened all over the coal region, and many landowners commenced mining coal for their own use, and perhaps, to accommodate a few neighbors ; and so, in general terms, coal came into common use in Perry county. Coal was not much used for cooking purposes, prior to 1860 ; and nine-tenths of the good house-wives of Perry vowed, honestly enough. nd doubt, that they would never, never, have a coal cooking stove. But, for all that, now, in most parts of the county, a load of wood is a curiosity, and the race of women who always intended to have a wood cook stove is well nigh extinct. The coal question did not become much of a factor in public affairs. until the first, railroad—the Cincinnati Wilmington and Zanesville—came to be located. As stated elsewhere, there were three rival routes, claiming the location of the road. These were commonly known as the Somerset, the St. Joseph, and the New Lexington or Rush Creek Valley route. The valley of Rush Creek formed a natural route, a goodly portion of the way through the county, and this had its influence in determining the course of the road, though it brought it miles away from a direct line. The New Lexington route tapped a coal section, and rah twelve or fifteen miles through it, and this fact was pleaded early and late, in season and out of season, and the most possible made of the situation. It is highly probable, if not an undisputed fact, that the advantages offered by the proximity of coal along the New Lexington line, determined the result and secured the location of the road. Soon after the completion of the Cincinnati Wilmington and Zanesville Railroad, some eight or ten mines were opened along the line, between New Lexington and Roseville, the most westerly mine being situated only one mile east of the former place. The demand for coal was good from the start, but cars were not in sufficient supply, and the business, for a time, was very much hindered on that account. A few years later, all the principal mines consolidated, under the name of the Perry County Coal Company, employed an agent to travel and look. after the selling of coal, and had regular officers and managers, for the management and government of the mines. This company prospered, for a number of years, and built up a good trade for their coal at Circleville, Washington, C. H., Wilmington, Dayton, Xenia, Troy, Springfield, Urbana, Piqua, Hamilton and other towns in Ohio and Indiana, and occasionally, during a low stage of water, had a good demand, at high prices, from the city of Cincinnati. Soon after the close of the Civil War, however, about 1865-6 the Coal Company became so embarrassed by the rates and rules of transportation, adopted by the railroad management, that their trade was hindered, crippled, and eventually destroyed. The Perry County Coal Company disbanded, the miners were discharged, and all the coal works along the line, for the time being, went to ruin. But, after a few years, when the railroad came under the management of the Panhandle system. and several of the coal mines had passed into new hands, the works were repaired, new mines opened, new houses built, miners again set to work, the coal trade along the line revived, and the business has been in successful operation down to the present time. HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 9 The next road which the coal region of Perry influenced in locating, was the Old Scioto and Hocking Valley, with terminal points at Newark and Portsmouth. It was at first confidently expected that this road would be located by the way of Lancaster, and down the valley to Logan ; but, in the meanwhile, certain of the public spirited citizens of Somerset, who had failed to secure the Cincinnati Wilmington and Zanesville road, concluded to make an effort to have the Scioto and Hocking Valley located by Somerset instead of Lancaster. Years before this, the great vein had been opened near Straitsville, (Old) and instead of a thickness of twelve or thirteen feet, which the seam actually has, by some sort of slide, or covering of slate, the coal seemed to show a frontage of and thickness of over one hundred feet. The men who were engineering the Somerset interest made the most of this wonderful phenomenon, and had it thoroughly written up, and advertised it both in this country and Europe. It is sufficient that the great Straitsville coal bank turned the scale in favor of the Somerset and Perry county. route. The main line was to go only within four miles of Straitsville, and the great coal vein was to be reached by a four mile switch from Maxville. Though the old Scioto and Hocking Valley road failed in the panic of 1854, and the road-bed, and all the franchises passed by judicial sale into other hands in 1864 ; still it had its influences, remote and direct, in developing the Perry county coal fields. The old road bed was used by the Newark, Somerset and Straitsville Railroad, to the neighborhood of Junction City ; and north of Logan the old road-bed of the Scioto and Hocking Valley, was used a goodly portion of the way to Straitsville, (New) by the Hocking Valley branch. There was this important change : The N. S. and S., was diverted far enough from the old line to reach the great vein directly at Shawnee ; and the Hocking Valley branch diverted far enough from the old line to reach the great vein at New Straitsville. Thus the great coal seam originally deflected the location of the old Scioto and Hocking Valley, from Fairfield eastward into Perry ; and again, when the N. S. and S., and the Hocking Valley roads were constructed upon the ruins of the former road, they were both deflected so as to reach the "great vein" direct, instead of by a four mile switch, as the old Scioto and Hocking Valley proposed. In 1871-2, Shawnee and New Straitsville, both being laid out and reached by rail, coal mines began to be opened, and suitable coal works erected. New Straitsville had a little the start, but in all material aspects the growth of the coal trade in one town, has been that of the other, with the exception that New Straitsville shipped its coal by way of the Hocking Valley, and Shawnee by way of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. The trade has grown until some eight or ten companies in each town, with large capital and vast resources, are pushing the work with great energy and success, with a large number of skillful and experienced miners employed, and paying out, in the aggregate, sums of money that seem almost fabulous. Strikes and other drawbacks have occasionally occurred, but as a general thing, the business has steadily progressed, satisfactorily and profitably to all parties concerned. Coal is also extensively mined at Bristol, Dicksonton, and other places north 10 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. of Shawnee, on the same railroad. The coal at Bristol is only a three foot seam, but it is in large demand for some purposes, and is said to be a superior engine coal. Mining began at Bristol before Shawnee was reached, and has never ceased. The Shawnee and New Straitsville coal is shipped to various points, mostly long distances, and the demand is all the while increasing. About the time it was sought to reach the great vein, at the neighborhood of Straitsville, (Old) an enterprise was set on foot at New Lexington, the design of which was to reach the same great seam in the Sunday Creek Valley. This movement eventuated in the organization of the old Atlantic and Lake Erie Railroad Company, with proposed terminal points at Toledo and Pomeroy. The mineral deposits of the Sunday Creek Valley, were the basis and impetus of this railroad movement, and all its successors. The Great Vein Mining Company ; The Sunday Creek Valley Company ; The Hurd Company ; The Brier Ridge Company, and several other companies, corporate and private, were in connection with, or supplementary to this railroad movement. Work was commenced on the road in 1870, and it was completed from New Lexington to Moxahala in 1874. Soon after, there was some mining done at various points between New Lexington and Moxahala, but transportation was inadequate, the outlet unsatisfactory, and the mines were subsequently abandoned. It was not until the fall of 1879, and after the road, under new owners and new management, had been driven through the tunnel at Oakfield, and down into the valley of Sunday Creek, that the mining of coal was commenced in a large way. Soon after this date, however, various companies, and notably the Ohio Central Coal Company, sunk their shafts in the valley, and erected coal works preparatory to a large business. With the completion of the railroad to Columbus, and also to Toledo, and the accumulation of cars and other equipments pertaining to railroads, new mines were opened, the number of miners largely increased at Rendville and Corning, and the out-put proportionately augmented. In the latter part of 1880, and the early part of 1881, a branch road was constructed from the main line below Corning, up the west branch of Sunday Creek, to Buckingham and Hemlock, where new mines have been opened, and nearly eight hundred skilled miners imported from Germany to work in them, and these new men are daily putting out coal in enormous quantities. It is estimated that from five to six hundred cars per day, will soon be shipped from the Sunday Creek Valley, on the Ohio Central Railroad. There is a steady demand for the coal, and it is shipped to numerous points north and west. The great vein in the Sunday Creek Valley is reached by means of shafts, and lies from twenty-five to eighty feet beneath the surface. Coal was mined in the Sunday Creek Valley and hauled in wagons to various parts of Morgan county, a long time before there was any railroad in the valley ; but this was taken from a seam higher in the hills than the great vein, and was reached by drifting. Bairds' was the pioneer furnace in Perry County. Mr. Baird who had been connected with the Logan Furnace, which used a very considerable portion of ore from the neighborhood of Maxville, knew all about its qualities, and consequently, it was not an uncertain enterprise, HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 31 when he concluded to establish a furnace in the hills, where the ore, coal and limestone were all ready at hand.. It has been stated on the best of authority, that iron has been made at Bairds' Furnace, cheaper than anywhere else on the face of the globe. The Fannie, XX. , and New York Furnace at Shawnee, the Bessie, at New Straitsville, and the Moxahala Furnace, followed the original one in quick succession. Also Winona and Gore Furnace. They are situated a little over the line in Hocking county, but they draw a large part of their ores and limestones from Perry county. The manufacture of iron in the county is believed to- be yet in its infancy. The old Salt Works, at the present site of McCuneville, were erected about 1826, and for a few years, were run with success and profit ; but the decline in the price of salt, the erection of large works in other parts of the country, combined with other causes, broke up the proprietors, and the works were abandoned. All was razed or burned, except the large stone chimney, which stood firm. tall and erect, forty-five years, a faithful sentinel, ever on duty, pointing to the dead past, silent and mute, and prophesying of the future. When the N. S. and S. R. R. had been determined upon, John McCune, of Newark, Licking county, who now owned the premises, decided to erect new works, on the site of the old, which he proceeded to do, with persistent energy and perseverance, spending more than forty thousand dollars before he realized a dollar. He sunk the old well deeper, bored new ones, and put up modern and expensive machinery, of all kinds. Mr. McCune made salt for several years, apparently with profit. The establishment was finally sold t0 the Consolidated Salt Company, that owns nearly all the works in the country. This company run the McCuneville works for a while, but finally stopped them, and they now remains as silent as when the old stone chimney stood a lone sentinel of the narrow valley. However, it is within the range of probability, that the works will again be put in operation, and that similar ones will be erected in other parts of the county. There is little doubt that salt can be obtained in many places, in profitable paying quantities, but borings have never been made. The manufacture of Potter's ware was, on a small scale, a very early industry in Perry county. Ware has been made at Somerset, Rehoboth, McLuney, New Lexington, Crooksville, Roseville, Saltillo, and at a number of other places in the county. The manufacture of Potters ware is now mostly confined to the eastern portion of the county, where it has grown to be a large and profitable industry, so much so that the ware has reached a high state of perfection, and large quantities are exported to distant Western and Southern States. There are indications that the industry will, in the near future, be introduced into parts of the south end of the county, where it has n0t hitherto obtained a foothold. The clay is practicably inexhaustible, and only awaits the exterprising, plastic hand of the potter, to shape it into vcssels of use and beauty. Limestone, abundant, in more than three fourths of the county, has never been much used or developed. A c0nsiderable quantity was used in the construction of the Zanesville and Maysville Tnrnpike, and 12 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. the Maxville limestone is well known far and near, at which place a superior article of lime has been manufactured, and in large quantities. for a great number of years. It has also been much used in the furnaces of that neighborhood. Lime from the vicinity of Shawnee, New Straitsville and Moxahala, has been used in furnaces, and is known to be good. There are several limestone stratas in the county, and there is no doubt that they are in the aggregate of immense value ; but their development and use have only begun. Building stone, of various kinds and grades, including limestone, is so inexhaustible and widely diffused, that no aggregate conception can be had of its extent or value, until further developed, and brought into more extensive use, at home and abroad. A commencement has scarcely been made, HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 13 CHAPTER III. INDIANS AND FIRST WHITES. INDIANS.---- There is no history or tradition of any permanent Indian town in what is now Perry county, though Indians often encamped temporarily. especially on Sunday and Monday creek, and near the "Great Swamp," as named by the explorer,, Christopher Gist, or Big and Little Lake, now the old part of the Licking Summit Reservoir. The Indians came to these lakes to fish, and to hunt bears, which were quite .numerous in that vicinity. There was an Indian trail which crossed the Muskingum near where Zanesville now is, and crossed what is now Perry and Fairfield counties, to —Standing Rock," (Mount Pleasant.) which was followed the most of the way by "Zanes Trace" and is not far from the line of the present Zanesville and Maysville Turnpike. There was another Indian trail from. near where Dresden now is passing. through Muskingum, Licking and Perry to: the Great Swamp, (Reservoir.) For fifty years or more previous to the time Perry county was settled, the Shawnees, Delawares and Wyandots, were the principal occupants of the country, along the Muskingum and Scioto rivers, and they all roamed over the- great, stretch of country that, lay between them. It is probable that these tribes tacitly agreed to occupy the intermediate ground between the Muskingum and the Scioto as a common hunting ground. The Shawnees originally 'came from Florida. The Wyandots came from the north, and, at one time inhabited the Peninsula of Michigan, at another time the north side of the St. Lawrence river. The Indians, chiefly_ the Wyandots, it is to be presumed, came into what is now Perry county, after its first settlement by the early pioneers ; but they were peaceable, though some of them. were unprincipled, and would steal horses, and children, too, if they had an opportunity. But there is no account of any successful _attempt at child stealing by them, in this part of the country, though the mother, brothers and sisters of child, stolen by the Indians, lived a long time, three or four miles east of Somerset. About 1790, a boy child of the name of Armstrong was stolen by the Indians east of the Ohio, and carried him from home and friends into captivity.. The child grew to manhood among the Indians, in the Maumee country, became an Indian in appearance and habits, married an Indian girl, and went to battle with the Indian braves. After Wayne's victory and the treaty of Greenville, and after the war of 1812, and the arts and ways of peace were once more cultivated, young Armstrong longed to know something of his parents, brothers and sisters,, of whom he had some recollection, and for whom he cherished an affection, after all the years of his savage life. His father was dead, but the rest of the family had removed to the neighborhood of Somerset, Ohio.. From Missionaries 14 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. in the Maumee country, or some other source, Armstrong learned where his relatives lived, and resolved to pay them a visit, and accordingly did so. He was now married, had an Indian wife and children, but the meeting was affectionate and touching. Armstrong lingered among his kin-folks as if loth to leave, and was at length prostrated with fever of a dangerous character. Armstrong in his weakness and sometimes delirium, longed for his Indian wife, who was a sort of a Medicine woman, and pleaded that she be sent for. Robert Col-born, an old friend of the family, who lived one mile east of Somerset, hearing those appeals, resolved to go for the Indian woman, the sick man's wife. He had a wearisome ride of over one hundred miles ; he safely reached his destination, rode into the Indian village, sought out the sick man's wife. She immediately mounted a pony and accompanied the messenger on his return trip. They did not let the grass grow under their horses feet, and in an incredible short time they ar. rived at the house where the sick man lay. The squaw wife "powwowed" over her husband awhile, then went a short distance from the house, up and down a ravine, gathering roots and herbs. She returned to the house, went into the kitchen, and prepared a decoction of some nature, and administered it occasionally to her sick companion. In a few days he was better, and in a short time became so much improved that he returned with his wife to their Indian home, and never again visited the homes of his pale faced kinsmen. THE FIRST WHITES.—It is not in the power of historian's pen to tell who was the first civilized or white person, to set foot upon, or traverse the soil of what is now Perry county ; but .as the great Indian trails from the East to the West, passed directly through the territory of which it is now composed, it is in the highest degree probable that scores if not hundreds of captives, young and old, from Western Virginia and Pennsylvania, passed through here the latter part of the last century. It is also known that Christopher Gist, an acquaintance and companion of Washington, who was one of the members of the land company represented by him, passed by and camped all night near the Big Lake, (Reservoir ) in 1751. This company had heard wonderful stories of the richness of the country west of the Ohio, but it was then as little known to civilization as the heart of Africa is to-day. Capt. Gist was a surveyor, as well as explorer. A man of considerable note and great daring. In the service of the land company, before mentioned, and accompanied by a few attendants, he set out from the forks of the Ohio, (Pittsburgh) and followed an Indian trail to the forks of the Muskingum, (Coshocton) and thence by way of Wakatomika (Dresden) to the old Indian town on the Scioto and Miami. This trail led through Muskingum and Licking, to the Great Swamp," (Reservoir). The original lake was in Perry county, near where Thornport now is. Captain Gist's Journal, which was subsequently published, shows that his party encamped upon its shore, and "the next day" he continues, "we set: out from the Great Swamp." Gist was joined at the Muskingum, by a white man and a half breed, who accompanied him through the remainder of his journey. There is also authority for the statement that chaplain Jones and an HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 15 Indian trader by the name of David Duncan, passed along this same trail by way of the Big Lake in 1773, on a journey from the Indian towns on the Scioto to the Indian towns on the Muskingum. Rev. David Jones had been a missionary among the Indians on the Scioto, sent out there by the Philadelphia Baptist Association. His diary shows that he followed a trail from the Indian towns on the Scioto to Standing Stone, Lancaster, " where was an Indian town consisting chiefly of Delawares, and which was situated on a creek called Hock Hockin. It appears muddy, is not wide, but soon admits of large canoes." This Rev. Jones was chaplain in Wayne's army of 1795, and preached the first sermon January 13th, 1790, ever preached in the neighborhood of Cincinnati. The surveyors came along in the closing decade of the last century. They simply run the section lines, but their camp fires blazed in many places. They run the lines and sunk the corner stones ; the marks on some of the witness trees blazed by their axes: could be seen not very long ago. Soon after the surveyors, and in some cases contemporaneous with them, came the explorers and also the first hunters. Many of them built their camp fires and erected temporary places of abode. Several of these men subsequently became permanent settlers. This part of the country received quite a number of emigrants who had first settled in the level country, a short distance farther west. Two cases of these are well known. Robert Colborn, who had emigrated from Somerset county, Pennsylvania, to the neighborhood of Lancaster in 1800, became dissatisfied, loaded a few effects on horseback, and started east along Zane's Trace. One mile east of where Somerset now is, he came upon a good spring, liked the appearance of the country, unloaded his goods and resolved to stay. Ile subsequently entered a half section and lived there about twenty years, when he removed to Indiana. One of his daughters, Mrs. Mary Cole, born near Somerset in 1803, now lives at Noblesville, Hamilton county, Indiana, and is in the eightieth year of her age. A brother, Jonathan Colborn, but horn in Pennsylvania in I799, lives in the same. place. Robert McClellan, who also lived near Lancaster, started out with a companion or two to hunt and spy out the land. They came over by where Rushville now is and down where Bremen is, then up Rush Creek to where New Lexington now is. At this place they left Rush Creek and started up the Oxawoosie. About a mile south of the present site of New Lexington, they diverged from the stream and soon came upon a big spring. Robert McClellan sat his gun against a tree, stooped and took a drink of water, then rose and said : '' Here will I live and here will I die." He did subsequently enter the land, became the second settler of Pike township, lived and died there, and one of his descendents resides up on the land until this day. James Comly also fled from the malaria of the Pickaway plains, and became the original proprietor of New Lexington. In ways similar to these the county received many of its earliest pioneers. THE PRIMITIVE WILDERNESS.--For the benefit of those who would like a glimpse of the country as it appeared to the Indians and first whites, the following description is reproduced from the Centennial Ad- 16 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. dress: of James Taylor at New Lexington, Ohio, July 4th, 1876. The pen picture may be a trifle fanciful and colored, but it is near enough reality to be read and studied with interest : " One hundred years ago to-day; the sun in his course looked down upon no spot of earth More picturesque and lovely than the territory now known as Perry county. The entire area. from east to west, and from north to south, was covered with the primeval forest, " planted by the Lord at creation's dawn ; "—a wild paradise, an untrained and unpruned Eden, to which our first parents, condemned in just retribution for. their disobedience, to spend their day and centuries of life amid the arid deserts and on the barren hills of Asia, would have been glad to have gained an entrance. Here the Arcadians could have tended their flocks on greener pastures, in a happier climate, and in more impenetrable shades than in their native land ; here could have been found the realization of the poet's conception of a " boundless contiguity of shade ;" 'and here, if man had remained in his fabled simplicity and purity, Utopia might have found " a local habitation and a name." The valleys, slopes and hilltops bore unmistakable evidence that the tenth, and perhaps the fortieth, 'generation of trees was then standing, each of which had withstood the lightnings and storms of a thousand years. Upon the summit of the water-shed between the Muskingum and the Hocking, where now stand Somerset, Bristol, Oakfield and Porterville, there then stood white oaks, and perhaps other trees, which may have been in the.green before the enunciation of the Sermon on the Mount, and before Paul preached on Mars Hill ; which were goodly trees prior to the battle of Hastings ; and which were giants among their fellows before Columbus dreamed of or discovered the western world, and before John Cabot set foot on the shores of North America. From April till November the ground was covered with wild pea vines, which afforded pastures as green, as luxuriant and as nutritious as our best fields of clover. At the approach of winter it dried up, retaining its foliage and nutritious properties, so that in summer it afforded pasture; and in winter hay and grain for the herds of buffalo, elk and deer, as well as fo0d for swarms of wild turkeys, pheasants, quails and pigeons, which fed and fattened on the wild pea, and the fruit of the Juneberry tree, the black and the red haw, the wild cherry, the dog-berry and the .gum, the beechnut, the chestnut and the acorn ; the birds sharing their fruit with the bear and the beaver; the raccoon, the opossum, the hedgehog and the woodchuck, and gray squirrels, equal in number to the promise of the seed of Abraham. Nature prepared the food, and the herbeating and graniverous beasts and birds fattened themselves to fatten the panther, the catamount, the fox and the wolf, the eagle, the hawk and the owl ; while the feathers and skins of the latter were made to do service in adding to the comfort and adornment of the cabins and persons of the wild men of the woods. In summer and winter, at morning, noon and night, the forest was vocal with the chirpings, twitterings, calls, cries and songs of birds, of which there was almost an infinite variety, and in numbers beyond calculation or estimate—eagles, hawks, owls, ravens, crows, r0bins, blue-jays, anteaters, tomtits, woodpeckers, thrushes, sparrows, snipes and swallows. From May to August the night air seemed to vibrate with HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 17 the plaintive cry of the whippoorwill ; throughout the year, and all the night long, the laughing and talking owls (species now extinct in this region) met in companies to chatter, laugh and scream, imitating the human v0ice in conversation, in laughter and the Indian war-whoop ; orioles of many varieties, with plumage of orange, blue and gold, abounded everywhere ; and myriads of flying squirrels. inhabiting the cavities of trees, excited the wonder and admiration of Europeans and inhabitants of the trans-Alleghany States: In spring the blossoms of the wild plum, the crabapple and the grape, perfumed the air, and in autumn brought forth their green, golden and amber fruit for the use of the red man and for beasts and fowls." - 3 - 18 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY CHAPTER IV. PIONEER HABITS AND CUSTOMS- THE GOOD OLD DAYS." The pioneers of Perry county were mostly young men andwomen ; the former from twenty-five to thirty-five years of age, and the latter from twenty to thirty. They usually had a number of little children, the oldest not often over ten years. The intention to emigrate was generally formed soon after marriage—sometimes before that important event. Economy and frugality, of course, were practiced in order that a little property might be acquired and a little money laid up. Sometimes the head of the family came out alone and entered the land, and returning removed the family and effects afterward. When the surplus household goods and other property were disposed of away back in Pennsylvania, Virginia. Maryland, New York or New Jersey—for the early settlers of this county were principally from those States-- preparations were soon completed for the move to Ohio. The pioneers (›me in all sorts of ways ; governed more or less by their pecuniary circumstances and general surroundings at the old home. The majority moved in covered wagons, drawn by two, three or four horses. Oxen were sometimes used in place of horses. Others brought all they possessed on horseback, not being well enough off to own or hire a wagon. Yet others moved with one horse and cart. Emigrants were usually from three to six weeks on the way. The western Pennsylvanians made the journey in about three weeks. A cow or two was driven along. A trusty rifle was always a part of the movables, and a faithful dog was chained or tied to the hind part of the wagon. The women and children slept in the wagon, and the family meals were cooked and prepared at the roadside. In some cases where the wagon or wagons were very full of goods, the family pitched a tent and camped upon the gronnd. The journey was a long, tedious one ; but it was generally looked back to and remembered with pleasure. The crossing of the Ohio and Muskingum rivers frightened many of the women and children, and was in fact attended with difficulties and even perils. The breaking up of old homes, and the sundering of the ties of kindred and friendship, was a thing of sadness and a great trial to many ; to those who laughed, as well as to those who cried. For the merriest heart was only the mask of sadness. Ohio seemed a long way off, and the distance appeared much greater than now. Yet all hoped, after a few years, to be able to visit the old home and friends left behind. Most of the men who lived long, did get to rhorn ; some of them several times. And a few of the women—a very few, however, after passing middle life, rode back in carriages or stage coaches, and revisited the scenes, of their girlhood. But the great majority of the young pioneer women, when the emigrant wagon started out, looked back with tearful eyes, for the last time, upon the old familiar scenes, and were, in fact, bidding them good-bye forever. HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 19 When the emigrant wagon reached its destination, sometimes, though not often, a cabin had been made ready for occupancy, and a few acres cleared ; the head of the family having come out previously and done the work or employed some one, to do it. In most cases, however, the pioneers went into this unbroken forest, and the family lived in the wagon, or camped upon the ground, while a small cabin was prepared. If neighbors were handy, or within five or six miles, it did not take very long to accomplish this ; for timber was plentiful and convenient, axes were heavy and sharp, and the men knew how and were willing to wield them. In some cases, indeed, when hands were plenty, a cabin was built from the stump in one day, and a family living in it next day. But it ordinarily took a longer time than this. The first cabins were small—fourteen to sixteen, or sixteen to eighteen feet, and built out of round poles or logs. The floor was made of puncheons, split out of larger logs, and one side hewed tolerably smooth with a broad-ax. The roof was made of clapboards rived out with a mallet and frow and held to their places on the roof with weight poles, straightened on one side to closely fit the roof, and separated the proper distance by heavy short sticks, of the required length. A door was also made out of smooth, light puncheon boards, hewed on both sides, fastened by cross-pieces and nailed or pegged on. A piece of a log or two was cut out for a window, and greased white paper was pasted on to admit the light. It was sometimes a difficult thing to get flour to make the paste, and corn-meal or hominy would not answer. A large hole was left or cut in the lower part of the center of one end of the cabin for the fire-place. The chimney was .built of sticks and mud on the outside, and carried to the highest part of the roof. The hearth, usually a very large one, was laid with large flat stones, when such could be had. In their absence, the best available stone was used. The upper floor was also laid with puncheon, and the room above was called a loft or garret. This was reached by a ladder, sometimes from within, and sometimes from the outside of the house. In other cases, where the ground at one end of the cabin was a little high, the loft was reached from the outside by a long puncheon, one end of which was laid upon the ground, and the other against the bottom of the door or opening of the loft. Again, the ladder on the inside was sometimes dispensed with, and in lieu thereof, there was a row of long stout pegs driven into holes bored in the wall, reaching from the ground-floor to the ceiling. It is astonishing how quickly and gracefully the girl of the period—the pioneer period, of course—would glide or fly up this row of pins to her sleeping chamber. The nimblest girl of to-day, might be equal to the performance, but she would be likely to hesitate before undertaking it. The furniture of the pioneer cabin Was of the scantiest and rudest kind. Bedsteads were sometimes made out of rough dog-wood poles, and bottomed with strips of stout elm bark for cords. Benches and three-legged stools took the place of chairs. A cupboard, usually called a "dresser," was constructed by boring holes in the logs, driving strong wooden pins into them and placing boards on the pins. A row of wide shelves was made in much the same way ; furnishing a place to store bed-clothes, Other families had a chest or 20 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. box: for this purpose. Large round boxes, made from the bark of a smooth elm tree, were often made and used for the clean and safe keeping of clothing and other cherished articles. Trammels and hooks soon came into use, but the "lug pole" reaching across the chimney. at about the height of the chamber floor and the wooden hook attached to it, often served to suspend the pots over the fire. Iron was not plentiful, or easily obtained, in those days, and pots were scarce enough. With all the iron underlying the hills, many a pioneer woman has cooked a meal for company in one pot,—boiling water for home-made coffee or tea, baking bread, boiling potatoes and frying meat all in the same vessel. This required skill and fine management ; but the feat was frequently accomplished. A family who owned an iron pot, a skillet and a dutch oven, were considered very fortunate, and well off for cooking utensils. One pot and one skillet was the more common outfit. There was, of necessity, not much in the way of adornment in the homes of the pioneers. The battle for bread and life was too sharp and earnest for this. Yet, in many houses, small and inexpensive articles of mingled use and adornment were not uncommon. Pewter was the composition of the plates, and most of the other dishes in use of which there were not many. The drinking cups were mostly made of gourds. Splitwood brooms were the instruments with which the pioneer mothers swept, scrubbed and scoured the rough puncheon floors. The cradle, an indispensable article in almost every household, was rough and homely enough, but in it has been rocked some of the proudest, brightest and most honored men and women of the land. Distance, or lapse of time, lends much enchantment to the view, no doubt ; for the, lot of the pioneers was a hard one, and it is much to their credit, that they encountered and Overcame hardships and privations that were enough to appall the strongest arm and the bravest heart. Before a crop could be raised, a heavy growth of timber had to be cut off, logs and brush burned, rails split and fences' made. In addition to this a luxuriant growth of underbrush and saplings, rendered it necessary to grub and literally dig up almost every rod of ground. Barns, stables, cribs and other out-buildings, were to build, and wood chopped to keep the cabins warm and comfortable for more than half the year. Buildings could not all be erected, and the land all cleared, at once. But little by little, day after day, year after year, the forest went down, buildings went up, fields were cleared and cultivated, orchards were planted, gardens laid out, and thus was the solitary wilderness changed from its primitive condition into a suitable abode for civilized man. There were hardships enough at best ; but the pioneers were neighborly and ever ready to assist each other, when necessary. If a house, barn or stable was to be raised, neighbors would gladly turn out and help, even from a long distance, and the hard work was often enlivened by jokes, stories, and songs. Neighbor women would also turn out and help with the baking and cooking, and the choppers, house-raisers and log-rollers were treated to the best that could be, procured. The pioneer women have seldom received the credit and praise that is justly due them. Many of them came from comparatively luxurious HISTORY. OF PERRY COUNTY - 21 homes in the farther east, and without a murmur took up their abode in a small, rough, cabin in the woods, upon the outskirts of civilization, and patiently endured all the hardships and privations of pioneer life. In addition to the cares of the children and household, many of them occasionally assisted their husbands in the fields. And, where they did not do this, with taking care of . the children, cooking, washing, knitting, weaving, spinning and sewing, they had enough to do. The women of to-day cannot comprehend how the nursing pioneer mothers, could do all this for a large family. They could only do it by hard and constant work. They visited, to be sure, but when they went visiting, they took solid, substantial work along, and always accomplished their self-appointed task. Flax and wool were to be spun and woven, and the goods to be cut into garments and made up, and that withont any sewing machine, except the deft fingers of the natural hands. Linen for Sunday and spare clothes was made of copperas and :white, arid checked or striped for pretty. When nicely handled it was, soft and comfortable. Linsey-woolsey, or Linsey, was made of wool and cotton, and was a very durable goods, though not very handsome. Plain white linen on home-fulled cloth or jeans, comprised the clothi'ng for the males ; and copperas-checked linen, linsey-woolsey and flannel, that of the females. The flannel goods for dresses was often colored and striped quite handsomely, and a suit made of it looked comfortable and becoming. The hunting shirt and wamus were the most common garbs of the pioneer. The hunting shirts were often neatly cut and ornamented with fringe, and were pic- turesque and pretty. Father Dominic Young, spoken of in another chapter, who rode over a wide stretch of country here at an early day, once said to the writer that "almost every man he met carried a rifle and wore a hunting shirt." Johnny-cake, hog and hominy, were necessarily the principal diet of the pioneers. Without corn and hogs the western country must have settled up very slowly. Mills were few and far away and early settlers had to go a good long distance, often on horseback, But there were mills at both Zanesville and Lancaster, and the pioneers of Perry were not so bad off for grinding facilities as those of many other counties in the State. A number of " corn-crackers " were early set up in the. county, but they did not amount to much, and could not always be depended upon. Corn could be produced but sparingly, at first, and as a natural result, pork was for a time a scarce article with many. In its absence the pioneer's trusty rifle had to be depended upon for meat, and it seldom failed to bring in a supply of some sort. Bears were not uncommon, while deer and wild turkeys were plentiful. There were many squirrels, and fish could be canght in the creeks. Nearly every family had cows, and there was milk to drink, and some butter made. After the first few years, the pioneers in general had full and plenty, so far as substantial eatables were concerned. To be sure, tea, coffee, and other luxuries came in slowly. Many of the pioneers were members of religious denominations. They were principally, Lutherans, Baptists, Catholics, Methodists, Presbyterians, German Reformed and United. Brethren. They had not been here long until there was public religious worship and regular, sta- 22 - HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY. ted service. The first public worship and preaching were at private houses, before the erection of buildings dedicated to the service of the sanctuary. Settlements were sparsely populated, and persons were accustomed to go a long distance to attend. divine service, sometimes a foot, but generally on horseback. The pioneer women found time to attend these ministrations, in the midst of all their other pressing duties. These occasions were often very happy ones to the neighbors and friends assembled,. and the best of 'feeling appeared to prevail among those who were present. The school buildings of the early days were not what they have been Since, and are now. School houses were few, and school books were scarce, and good, competent teachers very rare, if not almost unknown. There were no regular text books. Every book was a school book. The " Master " boarded around among the parents of the pupils, but usually contrived to stay most at the places where there appeared to be the best living, and other accommodations. Reading, writing,. arithmetic and geography, were taught, after a fashion. The girls studied spelling, reading, writing and geography. It was considered unladylike for a girl to handle a slate .and pencil and to study arithmetic. It was barely tolerated in girls who aspired to be teachers ; but in no others. The greater part of these schools were curiosities, in their way ; but it must be admitted that many persons managed to make them the foundation for a good and useful education, and for a worthy and successful career in life. It was customary to. " bar out'.' the Master for a " treat " at Christmas ; and.it was not an uncommon thing for him to throw off the weight-poles, come down through the roof and call "books." In some cases where the roof was nailed on, he would lay a board over the top 0f the chimney,' and smoke out his tormentors. At other times he would goodnaturedly treat to the apples and ginger-cakes, and then he would be considered "the best fellow in the world." Spelling-matches were quite frequent, and there were many good spellers among the early pupils. The pioneer men could nearly all read and write, and knew a little of arithmetic and geography. The women could mostly read write, and, also knew something of geography. They were all anxious that their children should receive a better education than their parents possessed, and the great majority of them did become better educated than their parents, though the early schools were crude and unsatisfactory enough. The school. houses were very similar to the dwellings of the early settlers, except that in nearly all, one end was devoted to a fireplace, and a long, narrow window was made on three sides, with the invariable white paper pasted over to admit the light. Before the time that the sons and daughters of the pioneers began to marry, the parents had mostly become well-to-do and in good circumstances. The farms were tolerably well cleared out, orchards were grown, and most of the settlers had moved out of the first cabins into better houses. An old-time wedding was a festive and joyous occasion; though there was seldom anything like indecorum or undue hilarity. A wedding, in those days, rarely occurred without a large assemblage of invited guests. Sometime previous to the day fixed for the nuptials, a suitable and authorized person would ride around the neighborhood, HISTORY OF PERRY COUNTY - 23 often for miles, giving the invitations to the desired guests, on behalf of the bride or the bride's parents. The groom also had the privilege of inviting all his friends. It was commonly understood between the prospective bride and groom whom each was to invite, so that invitations might not be duplicated. But this precaution was not always taken. If the prospective bride and groom lived any considerable distance apart, which was usually the case, the invited friends of the groom came to his residence on horseback, at an appointed hour, and at another hour agreed upon, would proceed in procession to the house of the bride, where soon after the arrival of the groom, the marriage ceremony would take place. The wedding dinner would be in waiting, and soon after congratulations, the dining table would be filled, the bride and groom, and attendants, if any, having the place of honor at the table. The spread was always bountiful, and everything neat, clean and inviting, if not altogether stylish. Roast turkies, chickens, pies, cakes and custards were conspicuous at these great wedding dinners. Nice, solid, yellow butter, rolled and worked by the plastic hands of some one skilled in that art, were otten fashioned and moulded in the form of chickens, ducks, or other fowls, and sometimes lambs, deer,, rabbits or other animals, and placed at some little elevation on the table. Of course these were intended to be looked at and not chopped into or eaten. But now and then some bold and daring innovator, near the close of the wedding feast, would cut out a good-sized slice and try its virtue as a lubricator on bread or potatoes ; always, no doubt, to his entire satisfaction. The wedding over, there was an informal, "go as you please" sort of enjoyment for the remainder of the day. Toward evening, most of the married guests would return to their homes, but the young people were enlisted during the campaign, and remained over night at the home of the bride's parents, or wherever the wedding took place. At night, often, there would be dancing, playing, singing or social converse, attended with mirth and jollity. The infair, which took place on the clay after the wedding, was celebrated at the home of the groom, and differed from the wedding day only by the absence of the marriage ceremony. About nine or ten, o'clock, of the day succeeding the wedding, the bride and groom, at-attendants, and all the guests at the house, and probably a few others who had gone to their homes to remain over night, would prepare for a horseback ride to the residence of the groom, often miles away. Horses would be bridled and saddled and temporarily hitched to fences or trees about the yard, until the ladies had donned their riding suits, and gracefully made, one by one, the last important pose before the looking-glass. The horseblock, at this juncture, plays an important part in the programme. It is simply a short '' cut, about three feet in length, from an oak log three or four feet in diameter, sawed off square at both ends, and set up on one end in the yard near the house. The horses of the bride and her " attendance are brought up, then ladies step from a chair or stool on to the block, and in a twinkling are tirmly seated in their saddles, and their horses probably prancing, for horses appear to have a sort of instinct for red letter days. Other horses are in turn brought up, and soon the ladies are all in their saddles. Very few ot the young fellows bring their steeds to the block, but, putting the left 24 - HISTORY OP PERRY COUNTY. foot in the stirrup, bound into the saddle. Just before starting, except the spangled uniforms, the scene is not unlike a grand entree at a circus. The horses are mostly excited, and prance, and jump, and wheel or turn around in the yard„ There are usually a few old stagers that stand quietly enough, and seem to wonder at the unnecessary excitement of their fellows. At last all is ready, the couples fall in, and the showy cavalcade moves off at a brisk pace. Grass does not grow much under the feet of the horses as the gay procession speeds on, over hill and dale, now through the woods and now through the open country, until it reaches its destination. As has been stated, the inwasr Iws simply a repetition of the wedding festivities, with the exception of the marriage ceremony. There was no wedding tour in the old-time days. Soon after marriage, the newly wedded couple set up housekeeping on their own account. It must not be inferred that weddings and infairs were the only social occasions of the early times. The country was not settled long until singings and singing schools became a very prominent feature. The old style " buckwheat notes " were used, but in the opinion of the old-musicians and singers, at least, the music was generally better and more desirable than most of the music of to-day. The early sons and daughters mostly had good lungs and strong voices, and there was, no doubt, force and volume in their singing. On the night of the Fourteenth day of February, there were singings in almost every neighborhood ; and, after singing, there would be a " Valentine drawing. " The names of the girls would be written on slips of paper and placed in a hat, from which the boys would draw. Then the young men's. names would be likewise placed, and the girls would have their turn at drawing. These drawings were frequently the source of amusement. There were necessarily raisings and logrollings intirstfirst years of settlement, but there was, ordinarily, more prose than poetry about them. But later came the choppings, quiltings, wool-pickings, sewings, knittings, spinnings, and other industrial frolics, all of which helped to lighten and variegate the too monotonous otys of the toiling, patient men and women. who opened the wilderness to civilization, and made it what ought to be, a garden and paradise for the generations to follow. If the country is not the paradise anticipated, it surely is not the fault of the pioneer men and women, who emigrated far into the wild woods, encountered Indians, fought with wild beasts, lived in cabins on hard fare, felled the heavy trees, grubbed out the undergrowth, burned the debris, planted orchards and laid out gardens, and truly caused the wilderness to " bud and blossom as the rose. " But they are nearly all gone. There are those yet living, who were children and came out with pioneer fathers and mothers. But the men and women themselves—persons who were grown when they came here—have all passed to their final rest and eternal reward. Whatever is to be the future history of this county, and however interesting it may be, the time will never come again—certainly not for long ages—when men and women will leave old settled communities, and come here into a virgin .wilderness to found new homes. This interesting period of history has closed. Tradition will soon begin to grow dim, and, without the aid of printing, the names, deeds, and