(RETURN TO THE TITLE PAGE) 518 - HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO PAINT. This township, lying at the eastermost point of Highland county, is bounded by the westerly line of Ross county, on the east; by Marshall and Brush Creek townships, on the south; by Liberty and Penn on the west; and by Fairfield and Madison, on the north. Its southern portion is rough and picturesque, its surface resembling the broken country of Pike county, which it reaches at its southwestern corner. The Rocky fork of Paint creek, which forms a large portion of the southern boundary of the township, and empties into Paint creek at the county line, is a stream of much natural beauty and of striking geological interest. Along its course, hollowed by the action of the water from the old limestone foundation of the hills, are the numerous caves which have attracted so much attention, and have given to the channel and neighborhood a more than local celebrity. From very early times in the history of the settlement, Rocky fork has been important for its milling facilities, and is amusingly noteworthy as being the scene of the only experiment in the navigation of the tributaries of the Scioto. All of these waters will be treated at large hereafter, and are only mentioned here to give an idea of the interest and historical importance possessed by the valley. From the mouth of this stream, to the north and west, the surface of the township is, like nearly all of northern and northeastern Highland, comparatively level, very fertile and easy of cultivation. About two miles northwest of the county limit, we have the channel of Paint creek, at the mouth of Rattlesnake fork, and the township line follows the latter stream until it reaches the Fairfield border. Rattlesnake is a large stream, having as its principal tributaries in Paint, Fall and Hardin's creeks, while small streams join it at short intervals, forming together a maze of water-courses, a natural system of irrigation of great value to the farming community. The name was not given to Rattlesnake fork as a mere euphemism. In the early days it behooved the traveler along its course to watch well his footsteps, if he would escape the fangs of the venomous reptiles which abounded among the ledges and under logs and rocks. As an example of the extent to which its course was thus infested, it is related that in the spring of 1802, William Pope, John Watters, and Hezekiah Betts, who had been at the Smith mills, at the falls of Paint, were returning on horseback along the trail on the northeast side of Rattlesnake creek. At a point nearly opposite New Petersburgh, where the trail crosses the branch, is a fine spring, now, as then, a favorite watering-place for travelers. Pope dismounted here, and walked a few rods to the spring, and was in the act of stooping to drink, when he saw a large rattlesnake near. With the wiping-stick of his gun he killed it, and was about to enjoy his interrupted drink, when he was surprised and somewhat alarmed to see that a large reinforcement had come to the assistance of his snakeship, Cutting a pole with his hatchet, he laid about him with a will, killing right and left, but he seemed to have raised the lid of a veritable Pandora's box, and for ever snake he destroyed a dozen more appeared. At last, thoroughly frightened, he began to cut his way through a squirming army of enemies, to the place where he had left his companions, and succeeded in reaching them safely, though so exhausted, and so nauseated by the disagreeable odor of the snakes, that he was for sometime unable to proceed. His companions, though at some distance from the scene, were also affected by the smell. Returning to the place afterward, upon counting, the bodies of eighty-four snakes were found upon the field. Fortunately these pestiferous squatters upon the soil have almost disappeared, retreating to the more secure cover of the hill country, where their warning notes and stealthy movements may still be occasionally heard. * THE ROCKY FORK CAVES. A history of either Ross or Highland county, of the thoroughness and scope of this volume, would be fatally incomplete without a chapter descriptive of the Rocky fork caves, located in the vicinity of the line dividing the two. The grand scenery, cool retreats and interesting geological and other natural features found in their vicinity, attract notice and have made the place a somewhat noted place of summer resort. In his State Geological Report of Highland county of 1870, Professor Ed. Orton, on page two hundred and fifty-five, thus speaks of its geological interest: "The geological series represented in Highland county is more extensive than is found in any other county in the State. Beginning with *By Henry W. Hope. HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO - 519 the upper beds of the Cincinnati group, the lowest and oldest of the rocks of Ohio, it includes the Clinton, Niagara and Helderberg limestone, the Huron shales—more familiarly known as the black slate and Waverly sandstone. * * * * * The southeastern corner of Highland county and the northern and eastern portions of Adams county are the only sections of the State in which so concise an exhibition of its great formation is afforded, and these regions are therefore sure to become classic grounds to students of the geology of Ohio." And again on page two hundred and sixty-two: This stream [the Rocky fork] is an important element in the geography of the county, and it also exhibits its geology most satisfactorily. It is bedded in rock from its source to its mouth, and in its banks and bordering cliffs-it discloses every foot of the great Niagara formation of the country. Due south of Hillsborough it has cut its valley down to the Clinton limestone, on which it runs for several miles, but as the strata fall more rapidly to the eastward than the stream descends, it has been made to intersect, higher and still higher, members of the Niagara series until, at its mouth, it has reached the very summit of the system, and the structure of these upper beds it reveals in a gorge whose vertical walls are ninety feet high and the width of which is scarcely more than two hundred feet. Certain portions of this limestone weather and dissolve more easily than the rest and have been carried away in considerable quantities, leaving overhanging cliffs and receding caves along the lines of its outcrop. The caves and gorge of Rocky fork are notable places of resort for the country around, and with very good reason, as the scenery is the most striking and beautiful of its kind in southwestern Ohio. Its claims upon our interest in its geological relations are also quite as great as in any other direction. From the bottom of the gorge, near the house of James Plummer, a very concise and satisfactory section can be obtained extending to the summit of Rapid Forge mountain. The section gives in ascending order— Niagara limestone - 120 feet. Huron shale - 230 Waverly shale and sandstone - l00 " Total - 450 The limestone abounds in very interesting fossils. The great bivalve shell Megalonzus Canadensis is especially abundant, as are also large univalve shells, all of which can be obtained to good advantage in the cliffs near Ogles' distillery." This branch is crossed at the distillery on a bridge, and the road ascends along the creek, mounting these grand old pentamerous beds of limestone. The action of the elements has chiseled out of those famous cliffs, caves, caverns, chasms, cascades, terraces, waterfalls, grottos, recesses, fissures, and natural bridges, making its cool and calm retreat a desirable place of resort. About a half mile from the distillery brings us to the wet cave branch, where an altitude above the bed of the creek of eighty feet is attained. The branch is crossed on a little bridge sixty feet above its bed. On this branch are several caves, but four of which we will notice as best worthy of entrance. The entrance to the first and the one nearest the mouth of the branch is between the bridge and the creek, and has a depth of perhaps three hundred feet. Though not so extensive as compared with some of the others, its chambers are so beautifully set with stalagmite and stalactite formation that it has many admirers, and, being quite dry, the air is at all times dry, pure and bracing, and it can safely he explored even by the most delicate persons. One of its chambers is directly under the road, and the rumble of passing vehicles is plainly heard. The cave has two entrances. The next cave to be noticed, as we ascend the branch, and on the same side of it, is named the "Wet cave," from the fact that a copious spring of clear water flows for some six hundred feet through one of its passages and escapes at its entrance. The entrance to this cave is large and spacious. Its size is large—perhaps fifty feet wide by one hundred and fifty deep, and from ten to twenty feet high. On the light, just as one enters, may be found a series of chambers—indeed, a cave of itself, although connected with the main passage—in which is to be found a curious soapy kind of clay, at times very white, and which, when exposed to the air, dries and crumbles, caused by the weatherings or residium of the limestone, from which the magnesia and other component parts have been leached. From the spring a passage may be found through the chambers to the right and to the left, some of which recede five hundred or six hundred feet farther into the mountain, every one of which has attractions for the visitor; and, being the wettest cave, the arches of its chambers are full of pendant drops of water, that have percolated through the strata above and, reflecting the light thrown upon them look like diamonds in the canopy above and upon the epauletted walls around. Stalactite and stalagmite are thus continually in process of formation. The next cave in order, as we ascend the ravine, is called the " Dancing" or the "Dining cave," for parties are wont to picnic, or to dance upon the floor of its front room—and, indeed, the only chamber of any consequence in it. The room is large and dry having stalagmite seats around its walls. It has two entrances, one of which, being high, admits abundance of light. The Gothic form of this cave is very pleasing, and by some it is called "Gothic cave." A deep ravine—the Wet Cave branch—itself beautifully festooned with fern and other remarkable flora, is quite attractive, and divides the caves on either bank. Those on the other side are not so much visited, yet there is at least one very attractive and worthy of note. Years ago it acquired the name of the "Fox cave." Beautiful stalactites are here in abundance, many of which are yet untouched, some of its chambers being inaccessible, except by crowding and squeezing through their narrow openings, yet they can be viewed and admired. Perhaps this is a wise provision of nature, for the vandals cannot enter and despoil them. Other but smaller caves may be found on the hank of the ravine. Not far from the little bridge that spans this ravine may be found two of those mysterious stone " cairns, " the object and origin of which are mere matter for conjecture. At a point, perhaps two hundred yards farther up the Rocky fork from the Wet Cave branch, the head of a small glen by the roadside is reached, down which is found a cave named, from the appearance its stalagmite and stalactite formation presents, the "Marble cave." The entrance to this is reached by climbing about fifteen feet up the rock, but, though thus difficult of access, those who visit it are seldom satisfied until the visit is repeated. The chambers are still very beautiful, although evidence abounds on every side that vandals have been there. Upon its walls is written a formidable array of visitors' names, of which there seems to be no lack in any of the caves. The chambers of this cave number, perhaps, half a dozen, and of good size. Across the glen, just opposite the entrance to this cave, may be seen two very beautiful grottos that recede into the opposite cliff. As they descend again into the ravine, imaginative persons can trace upon the cliff, to the right between the entrance to the,cave and the creek, a huge profile, hence called "Profile Rock," On the opposite or up-stream corner may be seen a remarkable detached pillar, standing out from the cliff, and some thirty feet from its base to its summit, which seems from its immense weight ready to topple over into the creek. From the mouth of this ravine, a path along the margin of the stream, under stupendous cliffs, passing a very picturesque little defile called "Gypsum," or " Gypsey Glen," having an upward angle of ascent from the creek of some ninety degrees, but nevertheless well worthy a visit. Next we pass under an immense overhanging cliff, named "Bracket Rock," which shows an altitude of over ninety feet. Immediately above this the creek forms an angle at what is called the Mussett hole—a most delightful retreat. A beautiful little body of water nestles here between the towering cliffs, and is deep. On its margin is a little grove of evergreens, interspersed with some of deciduous growth, one of which—a large old fellow, a beech, now dead, all carved and scarred, is called the "Boone Tree." Tradition asserts this to be an ancient camping- ground, when Indians, where on their way from Kentucky or Maysville, on the Ohio river, to Sandusky, on the lake, would rest awhile to supply themselves with fish;and game that abounded here. At the riffle above the Mussett hole is shown the crossing, a defile on either side affording ingress and egress. The Indian trail is shown up a narrow defile until the summit of the cliff is reached, where is found an ancient clearing or opening in the forest, now overgrown with bramble and scraggy old apple-trees. At the upper or farther limit of this interesting place is found a cavern, the bottom of which is some thirty feet below the surface of the sides, and perhaps two hundred feet long, and from a few feet to perhaps about thirty feet wide. „In the sides are found bold and beautiful grottos, small caves and recesses, and over it is a bridge from cliff to cliff. At the creek end of this romantic little dell, called "Lovers' Retreat," is a window-like opening, some fifty feet above the waters of the creek and thirty feet below the top of the cliff, out of which and into the yawning abyss below leaps at one's feet a spray of clear, sparkling water. From this picturesque eyrie in the cliff a fine and startling view is commanded, both up and down the creek, of the "Narrows," which must be seen to have its grandeur appreciated. Farther up the creek along the road, perhaps a half mile, is the "Dry Cave," the entrance to which is by the roadside, under an immense overhanging cliff. This cave is perhaps the largest, so far as a continuous passage is concerned, of them all. In its vestibule, or front charn- 520 - HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO ber, is shown the recess of the "Chief 's Throne." Most of the chambers of this cave are spacious, and generally dry. No great fatigue is incurred, even by delicate persons, in exploring its recesses. But little climbing has to be done, as the floor of its chambers is generally on a level, and continuous, attending several hundred yards into the cliff. Though many of its passages are narrow, yet its chambers at every turn exhibit curious and beautiful formations of mica and magnesia, and being so dry, are often very white. Though they extend a little farther up on the other side of the creek, here on this side those grand old pentamerous beds may be said to terminate with a sudden break. For three miles up the stream they have remained continuous. Their flint-like, unstratified solidity of over a hundred feet in depth, proclaims that they successfully resisted glacial action, changing the character of the post-glacial formation to the east and south. Upon their backs, as it were, they have borne safely through the roar and din of mighty denuding forces, the Devonian, and other more recent geological formation. And while those formations were being stripped from Highland county, and carried past them down the valley of Paint creek, they remain as the western outliers of those subsequent formations. They constitute, also, enduring monuments that witness within, to science and to mankind, the sure record of Silurian time, and on their surface the end of Silurian conditions, while upon their sides have been inscribed a like sure record of glacial action, and the action of the elements. Standing upon the cliff at the break on the other side, one can readily trace the outlines of what must have been at one time a beautiful little lake, extending up the creek perhaps a mile, to where the cliffs of a lower Niagara formation close in upon the stream. The shore line on either side could not have been many hundred yards wide. A few hundred yards above this we reach, on the left bank of the stream, as we ascend a; the mouth of a branch known in earlier periods as Saw Mill run, now better known as Distillery branch. This branch has its source to the eastward; contrary to the general system of natural drainage in the vicinity, its general course is from the east to the west along the foot of Rapid Forge mountain, and as the geological dip is eastward, and having its source away up in the Waverly sandstone that crowns the summit, cuts its way through every foot of the whole geological formation of the mountain. Every line of junction delivers copious springs of water, each differing in character from the rest, some freestone, some sulphur, one of which was the Miami Deer lick, celebrated in Indian annals; others from the Huron shales with their peculiar salts and sulphates of iron and other minerals peculiar to this formation. Near its mouth, and on the distillery lot, we have a spring at the line of junction of an imperfect stratum of Oriskany sandstone with the Helderberg and other limestone, overlaid with Champlain drift, all of which formations are found highly charged with mineral—a spring quite chalybeate in its character. Upon an estuary of this lake stood the entrance to the Dry cave. The present bed of the stream has lost its rocky character, the rock bottom being many feet below. A couple of lively little tributaries join the creek at the "Mussett hole," one of which has worn a narrow passage for itself through the solid rock. This remarkable fissure is some thirty feet deep for at least two hundred yards, and over which one could almost step across from brink to brink at the top. A noble spring of clear, cold limestone water bursts from the rock at the mouth of this rivulet, leaping about four feet into the creek. From this point down past the Wet cave branch, on the opposite bank, a pleasing walk under the overhanging cliffs may be enjoyed, our path all the way embowered midst waving foliage of evergreen and deciduous growth. At every step almost, some chasm, fissure, cavern, cave or natural bridge attracting attention, each, vying with the other to command admiration, the whole constituting a combination of natural beauty and scientific interest which entitles Rocky fork to a place in the hearts of the people at large such as it already holds in the estimation of those who have learned to know it. ORGANIZATION. The date of the erection of Paint township cannot be definitely ascertained, but it probably occurred in the year 1808. We find, in that year, the first authentic account of an election held in the township, and the unusual date (September 6th) indicates that it was the first election, and probably the direction to hold it was given when the order for the township erection was made. On that day Jesse Lucas and Nicholas Robinson were duly elected justices of the peace; Zeur Combs, Josiah Tomlinson, and Jesse Lucas, trustees; and Joshua Lucas, clerk. The present township officers are: William J. Redkey, treasurer; W. S. Easton, clerk; Robert R. West, J. V. Cowman, and Ewing Newby, trustees; J. C. Ferguson and William H. Wright, justices of the peace. On the eleventh day of October, 18o8, was held the State and county election ; probably the first after the erection of the newly organized township of Paint. This election is chiefly significant to us in that it occurred at a time when men were singularly attentive to political duties, and that the full list (which is in existence) probably gives an almost complete list of the electors of the township, thus conveying, better than any amount of desultory and detached items could do, an idea of what the community of the day consisted of. The following is a list of the voters on that day: Jesse Lucas, Josiah Tomlinson, Zeur Combs, Jonathan Boyd, Daniel McKeehin, William Lucas, sr., Reuben Spargur, John C. Burris, Obadiah Overman, John White, William Ubanks, Walter Cannady, Charles Lucas, John Burris, jr., William McKinney, Joel Havens, Andrew McCrary, sr., Thomas Ballard, Benjamin Bloomer, Parker Hillod, Henry Worley, Isaac Overman, Job Stevens, David Brown, Jacob Griffin, William Wittee, Joseph Hart, Joseph W. Spargur, James Hiatt, Eli McMeanus, William Ballard, Bourter Sumner, Richard Ballard, Jesse Baldwin, William Baldwin, Joshua Lucas, Joseph Bloomer, Bourter Burris, Nocholas Robinson, Thomas Bails, Basil Lucas, Moses Tomlinson, Henry Ault, William Mandclue, Heth Hart, Hezekiah Betts, Thomas Tucker, William Lucas, jr., Demsey Overman, Obadiah Overman, sr., and Daniel McCreary, making a total poll of fifty-four voters. Joseph and Reuben Spargur, the first of the extensive and prominent family of that name who came to Ohio, emigrated from North Carolina to Highland county, in the year 1804, and settled on Fall creek. Here they cleared land, and between 1810 and '12 built a grist-mill. In 1814 they sold the mill, and Reuben returned to North Carolina, while Joseph, packing his household goods on wagons, cut a track to the present well known Spargur place on Rocky fork, and, in 1815, built the Spargur mill on the site of the present building. The mill which he first built is the one now known as the Worley mill. He left, at his death, a family of eighteen children, sixteen of whom still (1880) live. Philip Spargur, brother of Joseph and Reuben, came from North Carolina to Highland county in 1809, and settled on a farm near the later established village of New Petersburgh. The land was unbroken forest, and, during his long and industrious life, he made it one of the finest farms in the county. Mr. Spargur left a family of ten children. Henry Spargur joined his brothers in 1833, bringing his father, John W. Spargur, with him, and settled near Rainsborough. He had a family of twelve children. It will be seen from this statement that the three brothers who remained in Ohio contributed forty chil- HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO - 521 dren to the population, most of whom grew to maturity and had children of their own, making one of the largest families in the county. During the year 1806, Adam Redkey came from Pennsylvania, and settled where Centerfield now is, bringing with him his son Jacob, aged, at that time, about eight years. With him also came his wife and Joshua, John, George, Adam, Nancy and Sarah Redkey, his other cbildren. After making one payment on the purchase price of his farm, Adam set out to go to Pennsylvania and obtain money for the second. On his way, he was attacked by fever and died, leaving his widow with this large family of almost helpless children to provide for. She gave up the farm upon which he had settled, but, later, purchased the farm upon which James W. Roads now lives. Jacob Redkey married Mary, daughter of Basil Lucas, and his children's children are now married, and, in turn, have children of their own. The family has fully recovered its hold upon the soil lost by the sudden death of Adam Redkey, and is connected with the principal families of the township,—the Spargurs, Lucas, and Roads, in a manner very confusing to a stranger. John L. Redkey, grandson of Adams, and son of Jacob, is living on a farm near Rainsborough, while William J. Redkey, his son, is a merchant in Rains- borough. Richard Hulitt came from New Jersey in the year 1806. He brought with him a wife and two children, and, after a long and tedious wagon journey, arrived at a point in Paint township, near the Indian ford over Paint creek, after the full rigor of winter had come on. He had made arrangements for the purchase of fifteen hundred acres of land in Ross and Highland counties; and, on a part of the tract where the house of John Roads now stands, he proceeded to erect a cabin. He raised the log sides of the building, and the first night after his family arrived was spent in this pen, with no roof between them and the driving snow storm, which had come on. The next y a pole roof, abounding in chinks and holes, was put o , and a large door was cut, wide enough to allow of driving in a team to haul logs for a fire, which was built in the middle of the house, innocent as it was of chimney. Having no sawed plank, this door was left open, and the family spent a long time with no better protection from cold and storm than was afforded by crouching at the ends of the cabin farthest removed from the door, and also from the fire, The nearest neighbors Mr. Hulitt had at that time were Jacob Ault, three miles distant on the Anderson road, in one direction; Joseph Rockhold, in Ross county, in another, and Richard Evans, on Clear creek in a third. In spite of all the hardships of this beginning, Mr. Hulitt's family prospered and his estate increased. He had by his wife, nee Sarah Curtiss, eleven children of whom two, David and Richard Hulitt, still remain in the township, and upon the ancestral acres. The history of Mr, Hulitt's military enterprises will be given elsewhere. During the years 1806-07 two brothers, William and Isaac Troth, came to Paint township, and settled in the immediate vicinity of Mr. Hulitt. Daniel Weyer came from Little York, Pennsylvania, about 1806, and, took up a farm of the Nathaniel Pope survey, on the Milford and Chillicothe turnpike, where his widow (whose maiden name was Elizabeth McCollister, still lives. Mr. Weyer was one of the unfortunate pioneers who bought under the defective Pope title, and were obliged to pay two prices for their Iand. The survey was an extensive one, and all of the purchasers, though buying in perfect good faith, were ousted under a superior title. Isaac and Abraham Taylor, brothers, came from Delaware to Paint, and settled on Rocky fork, near the present village of Boston the former about 1807, and the latter in 1811. Nancy Taylor, wife of Isaac, now lives near Rainsborough, at a very advanced age. Henry Ault, father of Adam Ault, came to this locality about 1800, emigrating from Maryland. He lived one year in Chillicothe, and then removed to Paint township, residing for one or two years at the falls of Paint, when he changed his location to the eastern 'part of Paint, south of Rattlesnake creek. During the first summer of his location in this township he lived in a tent, but got into his cabin before the approach of winter. He died at his home in Paint township. Prominent among the early names in Paint is that of Crawford. This settlement does not strictly belong to that township, but so fully identified has the family been with its growth that the subject of its settlement may be fairly stated here. Alexander Crawford emigrated from Greene county, Pennsylvania, in the year 1796, memorable in the annals of Ross county, and settled at Chillicothe, being one of the original colonists there. After a stay of two years at that place, he removed to Deer Creek, and from Deer Creek went, in 1799, to Centerfield, in Fairfield township, of Highland county. In 1805 he removed to a point in Paint township, of Ross county, near the county line his land extending into the Highland county Paint. In 1807 he built, on the Highland county bank of Paint creek, a grist-mill, which was an important factor in the domestic life of the neighborhood. In 1823 Mr. Crawford was drowned in the creek, a canoe, in which he was seated, upsetting in mid-stream. Alexander Crawford, jr., had, in 1815, removed across the line to the mill, and lived there until 1825. He then removed to Plum run, about a mile distant, and built a saw-mill. There he remained until his death, which occurred in 1875, The saw-mill which he erected was in use until 1865, when it was washed away. In i856 Alexander and Jesse, sons of Alexander Crawford, jr., removed to a fine farm near New Petersburgh, which they own and operate as partners. John Pulse settled in this township in 1807, emigrating from Botetourt county, Virginia. He located on Rocky fork, on the present farm of his son, John Pulse. He lived a quiet, peaceable life, never suing any one and never being sued, and, furthermore, was never a witness in court. James Fairley came to Ohio from Rockbridge county, Virginia, in 1815, and settled on the farm now owned by Charles and Samuel Patton, in Paint township. He was 522 - HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO a distiller, built a distillery on his farm on Falls creek in 1818, died in 1860, and was the father of eleven children, five of whom are dead, viz.: William, Jane, William, Nancy, and Addison. The living children are Samuel M., Mary A., James Y., Amanda, Christina and David A. James Y. son of James Fairley, was born in Highland county, Ohio, December 25, 1822, and married Rozanna Barrett in 1844. Ten children were born to them, all living at the present time: Sarah J., wife of Joseph Dwyre, lives in Highland county; Nancy E., wife of Valentine Graff, lives in Iowa; William C. married Hannah Swain, and resides in Highland county, Mary L., David M., Richard B,, Ella E., John W., Charles G. and William P. are unmarried. James Y. is one of the leading farmers of Highland county. W. O. Weyer, born in Highlarid county, January 12,s 1845, is a son of William H. Weyer. He was married to Lida Barrett, January 12, 1866. He is a farmer; was elected township trustee April 5, 188o; is the father of five children, viz: Clifton, Lizzie P., John W., Frederick and Edgar B. Silas Cowman, son of John Alexander Cowman, married Ida McWilliams in 1879. He has one child named Debert, and lives on the farm formerly owned by his father, J. A. Cowman. Richard C. Barrett was born July 23, 1839; married Miss Johnson, March 2, 1871 ; is one of the sturdy farmers of Paint township, and a member of the Friends church, and has two children: Richard W. and Walter C. Thomas McCoy came to Paint township from Rock-bridge county, Virginia, in the year 1812, and settled on Fall creek near New Petersburgh. Soon after, Arthur McCoy, a brother of Thomas, came out from Virginia, and settled in the same neighborhood, where he was joined about 1830, by his son, John A. McCoy. John married Mary Schermerhaus, and now lives on the David Hulitt farm near Paint post-office. Valentine Roads and Phelps S. Roads, his son, came to Paint township, from the State of Virginia, during the year 1813, and settled on the farm now owned by the latter, about a mile east of the village of Rainsborough. From Sinking Spring, where Jacob Hiestand had settled, in 1806, to the site selected for their settlement, was an unbroken wilderness, devoid of roads or trails, and through the broken and hilly country, now forming Brush Creek and the southeastern portion of Paint townships, the newcomers, doubly pioneers, were obliged to cut a way for their teams and cattle. Before the advance was made from Sinking Spring, Valentine rode forward to "spy out the land," and to select the best line of march. This, at best, difficult undertaking was rendered more trying by the fact that Mr. Roads was encumbered by a wife and eight children. Among Mr. Roads' neighbors (in which term are included all the settlers for five miles around) were Abner Jessup, Caleb Summers, Seman Acers, George Howsman, John Davis, Jesse George, Philip W. Spargur, Peter Weaver, (the founder of New Petersburgh), Dr. Boyd, at Barrett's mill, and D. D. Hewitt, on Paint, above the mouth of Rocky fork, Mr. P. S. Roads is still living, and, although a bachelor, has attained the good old age of eighty-three years. Another son, Henry W. Roads, died, June 19, 1875, leaving Elizabeth Parker, his widow, who lives on the farm formerly owned by her husband, near Mr. P. S. Roads. Her father, Jonathan Parker, came from Virginia, in 1819, and settled on a farm of two hundred acres, near New Petersburgh, where he lived the remainder of his life. During the year 1816 Micbail Mackerly came from Morris county, New Jersey, and settled on Paint creek, at a point five miles south of Greenfield. With him came his wife, his son, Benjamin, now a resident of the township, and eight other children. He purchased eighty-two acres of land, paying for it the sum of five dollars per acre, and on that farm he died. Benjamin Mackerly is a skilled mechanic, and has invented many valuable and ingenious labor-saving contrivances, upon several of which he secured and holds patents. Like most men of his class, the practical and pecuniary benefit of his work has been reaped by others. His patents are the first covering the application of atmospheric pressure to use upon car and machinery brakes, and cover all the points claimed by Westinghouse and other later inventors, except the idea of direct pressure. Mr. Mackerly also invented and patented the principle of the horse tread-mill, and it was in the endeavor to regulate the motion of this that he discovered the brake. He was early employed by manufacturer James; first in putting in machinery at his furnace in Brown county, and afterward to perform a similar duty at the Rapids Forge establishment, then building. Born in 1799, he has lived for sixty-five years near his present home, and few men are more conversant with its history. In the year 1805, Pleasant Johnson emigrated from Campbell county, Virginia, to what is now Paint township, and settled on the big branch of Rattlesnake creek. With him he brought his wife, Nancy (nee Moorman), and one son, Thomas Johnson. The names of the children of Pleasant and Mary Johnson are as follows: Thomas, deceased; William, deceased; Effracia, deceased; Edwin, residing in Greene county; Paulina, deceased; Jarvis L., residing in Greene county; E. P., now a retired merchant of Leesburgh; Nancy (Smith), in Illinois. Pleasant Johnson died in the year 1843, and his wife in 1856. William Johnson, father of Pleasant, removed to Paint, and settled near his son, during the year 1807. Both he and his wife died at a very early day. They were accompanied to Ohio by the following children, all of whom are now deceased: Mildred (afterwards wife of Ashley Johnson), Charles, Nancy, Christopher, Moorman, and William Johnson. Thomas Moorman and Effracia, his wife, emigrated, in the year 1809, to the same neighborhood where William and Pleasant Johnson had previously settled. In 1812 they removed to Greene county, Ohio, where they remained for many years. Zebulon Overman, a native of Green Briar, Virginia, came from Randolph county, North Carolina, to Paint township in June, 1805. With him came his children— HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO - 523 Dempsey, Enoch, Elias, John, Nathan, Mary and Anna. Dempsey was married and brought with him his wife. They first settled on Fall creek, on the farm now owned by Cyrus Barrett, and known. as the Richard L. Barrett farm, which Mr. Overman purchased. After remaining there two or three years Zebulon and Dempsey bought adjoining farms on the then newly laid out Anderson road, one mile from the present Milford and Chillicothe turnpike, and removed their families from Fall creek. Subsequently they exchanged farms, and now the original tract of three hundred acres, with two hundred more, constitutes the home farm of Elias, son of Dempsey, Overman. Mr. Overman owns, in addition, about one hundred and fifty acres of land in a detached farm, the whole forming one of the most fertile and best improved farming establishments in Highland county. The Overman family were prominent in the organization of the Friends church, and have been since constantly identified with the orthodox branch. Of Zebulon Overman's family, Enoch and John left the farm and engaged in business at New Petersburgh before that place lapsed into its present comatose state. John afterwards removed to Knox county, Illinois, while Enoch and Elias went to Muscatine county, Iowa. Nathan inherited, at Zebulon's death, his father's farm, and remained there until 1833, when he died of cholera. Dempsey Overman and his wife Marian, daughter of William Newby, of Randolph county, North Carolina, had six children, of whom only Elias survives. Elias was born November 18, 1823, and married Ruth N. Reese, by whom he has had ten children, viz.: Clarence M., David R., Leslie L., William 0., Eugene Vernon, Alva M., Norman M., Cora Helen, Sallie M., Lillian Inez. Of these all are living except Cora H. Overman. Jacob and Henry Worley, father and son, came from Stokes county, North Carolina, in September or October, 1805, to the neighborhood since so thoroughly identified with their name. In 1810 Jacob bought a small sawmill on Fall creek, known as the Black Rock mill, and in 18 I 5 bought the Spargur grist-mill, which has since been known as the Worley mill. Many years later Stephen Worley built a gristmill on the site of the Black Rock mill, and both are now owned by him. Jacob's first settlement was on the Vanpelt farm which, consisting of four hundred acres, he bought of George Robinson, for six hundred dollars. Almost immediately after the arrival of the family, Stephen Worley, the present owner of the property, was born, and is now the only survivor of ten children. At a very early day Jacob was elected a justice of the peace so early, in fact, that he could find no person nearer than Chillicothe competent to administer the oath of office. On the Worley farm was celebrated, March 25, 1814, the first marriage of colored persons which ever occurred in Paint. The high contracting parties were James Newby and Sarah Worley, and the license was issued by Allen Trimble. Although not set down on the map, no person in Paint township would hesitate in directing a stranger to the "Cowgill neighborhood," a name prominent in the annals of religion and society, and, no less, in the unwrit ten records of charity and hospitality in. Highland for nearly eighty years past. Henry Cowgill, Eleanor, his wife, and their children, Sarah, Benjamin and Henry, came from Culpeper Court House, Virginia, in the year 1806, to a point in Fairfield township, Hardin's creek. The family came from their Virginia home on the Ohio river in wagons, and from there to Manchester they by flatboat. Disembarking at Manchester, they there loaded their wagons and pushed on to Hardin's creek. During the year 1809 or 1810, Mr. Cowgill bought a large tract of land from Nathaniel Pope, acting as agent for Evans, the patentee, which embraced the farms now owned by Benjamin and John Cowgill. For this land he paid at the rate of two and one-half dollars per acre. The stay of the family on Hardin's creek was with Jonathan Barrett, a brother of Mrs. Cowgill, who had come out from Winchester, Virginia, in 1804, and settled on the farm now owned by Joel Wright. In 1810 Zebulon Overman lived on the farm now occupied by Elias Overman, Bourter Sumner and Josiah Tomlinson to the eastward of the Cowgill purchase, and Jacob Worley on Fall creek where the Worley mill now stands. These were the nearest neighbors of the family. Of the three children who came out with Henry Cowgill and his wife, but one, Benjamin, is living, He is a hale old man of seventy-eight years. Later, seven other children were born to the couple, of whom the following lived to maturity : Jonathan, now dead; John, living on a portion of the old home farm; and Lydia, wife of Joseph Wright, of New Vienna. Benjamin Cowgill married Margaret Garret, and by her had four children who grew to maturity : Martha, wife of Lewis Roads (now deceased); Henry, hving; and Ellen and William, both dead. After the death of his first wife, Mr. Cowgill married her sister, Rachel Garret, and, by her had the following children, now living: Sarah, wife of Harry Evans; Harriet, wife of William Parker; Jonathan B.; Mary, wife of John Roush; and Charles G. Cowgill. In addition to these, one daughter, Sarah, wife of Henry Evans, is dead. Mr. Benjamin Cowgill has lived to see forty grandchildren, twenty-nine of whom are living. Jesse and William Lucas built cabins and cleared land on Blanca creek in the spring of 18o6. They came from Pennsylvania, six brothers, all married, and with children, having come the previous year as far as Manchester, on the Ohio river. Eventually, all of the six came, and the "Lucas settlement" became famous throughout the country. William Lucas' house became a regular circuit-preaching place in 18o6, James Quinn being the first preacher in the neighborhood. Soon after, a log parsonage was erected. At the house of Jesse Lucas took place the first marriage in the neighborhood—that of a man named McKinney, to a now unknown fair one, the clergyman's fee being a bushel of walnuts. William Head, the first of a very well known name in Highland county, came from Kentucky to the neighborhood of the present village of Carmel, in Brush Creek township, previous to the year 18o6. A fuller account of his settlement is elsewhere given. About the year 1842 his son, Thomas Head, removed to a farm in Paint 524 - HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO. township, about one mile northwest of Cynthiana, upon the line of the present Greenfield turnpike. He married Margaret Foreacre, and reared five children, viz.: William H., Joseph and Adam R., Sarah E., and Merrick A. Head. Sarah E.   married John W. Kimball, and now lives in Kansas. Thomas Head, in 1869, removed to Illinois, were he now resides, while his son, Joseph B. Head, owns and occupies the Paint farm. The latter married Jane Pettijohn, and is childless. John C. Upp came to Highland county from North Carolina in 1807, and settled in the neighborhood of Spargur's mill (afterwards Worley's), on Fall creek, on land leased of Jacob Worley. In 1809 he bought the farm northeast of Rainsborough, now owned by his son, William, and removed to that place. He was by trade a sickle-maker and blacksmith. He had, when he came, two children, and eight were born afterward. Of these ten children, six are still living, viz.: George, living near Washington Court House; Sarah, wife of H. F. Foreacre, near Carmel; Eliza (McCoy), in Concord; Melinda (Hewitt), and Mary (Murdock), in Missouri; and William, on the old farm. Jacob Upp came to Highland from North Carolina, and settled first in Fairfield township, on Hardin's creek, just opposite the land rented by John C. Upp, in Paint. He was a saddler by trade, and his business, with the blacksmith-shop of his brother, formed quite a gathering place for the settlers. Allen Upp, his son, removed to a farm two miles southwest of Rainsborough in 1857, and still resides there. Previous to the year 1810, Benjamin Hiatt, a native of North Carolina, came out from Virginia to Rainsborough, and settled or the M. B, Park farm. With him he brought his son, Amaziah, and fourteen other children. On this farm Benjamin died, and many of his children went farther west. Amaziah remained in Paint, and his sons, Ellis and Isaac Hiatt, are the only ones of the family remaining there. Henry Hiatt, living in Iowa; Hannah Jackson, in Clinton county; and Mourning De Witt, in Brown county, are the sole surviving children of Benjamin. The settlement of the Brady family, though, perhaps, it would be more appropriatly discussed in the history of Fairfield township, will be given here. Thomas Brady came from Halifax Court House, Virginia, in the year 1812, and settled in Fairfield, on a road leading from New Petersburgh to Leesburgh, two and one-half miles north of the former place. The farm where the settlement was made is that now owned by John Millner, sr. With him came his sons, Benjamin, Harry, Willis, and Edward Brady, and one daughter. Thomas was a Revolutionary soldier, and was wounded during that war. After the death of Thomas Brady his son, Benjamin, went, in 1838, to Missouri, where he was joined, in 1842, by his son, Barzillai. In 1847 the latter returned to Highland, and bought the farm, on Rattlesnake creek, in Paint township, now owned by William Elliot, where he died in 1868. Two of his sons are now living—James W., on the farm, near Centerfield, first settled by Harry Brady; and Benjamin F., on the old Grove farm, near Rattlesnake. The latter has two children, Frederick and Mary E. Brady, representing the fifth generation of the name in Highland county, John and James McMullin, father and son, came from the north of Ireland in 1812, and from there to a point in Madison township, Highland county, in the year 1818. In 1828 James married Nancy Matthews, and removed to Buckskin township, in Ross county. 'There he purchased a farm near New Alexandria (more familiarly known by the suggestive name of "Frog Town"), where he lived the remainder of his life, and where were born his children, Louisa, now the wife of John Arnott, and living near Greenfield, and Robert B. McMullin, who owns and resides upon a fine farm near the eastern line of Paint township, in Highland county, This gentleman married Mary J. McLure, in the year 1856, and has by her six children, viz : James B., John M., Joseph Scott, Marie, Earnest, Louisa B. His farm, consisting of four hundred and ninety-six acres, was purchased by him from the estate of McLure, his father-in-law. Thomas Major and his wife, Sarah (Righter), came to Paint township, in 1848, from Scioto county, where they had been located for a short time. They were originally from Philadelphia. Both are still living, the husband at the age of sixty-nine years. The place of their residence is Greenfield, where their son, Samuel, is superintendent of the schools. Another son, Thomas E., is in Boston, Massachusetts, and is private secretary to Hon. Benjamin F. Butler. William Elliott moved on to Fall creek, one mile west of New Petersburgh, in the year 1812, having come out from Rockbridge county, Virginia. On Fall creek a survey of thirteen hundred acres of land had been made by one Hays, and Mr. Elliott purchased one-third of the tract, embracing the farm now owned and occupied by Milton Elliott, his son. Robert, father of William Elliott, was an officer in the Revolutionary war, and died from the effect of wounds received at Cowpens. William Elliott was the father of a large family, of whom Margaret B. (Walker) and William Elliott, live in Hillsborough; James, on the old Santee farm, near the bridge of the upper Greenfield turnpike over Rattlesnake creek; Martha (Baldwin), in Paint; Huldah (Larkins), in Missouri; and Mary Jane (Garrett), in Paint. Three sons, Joseph, Johnson, and Andrew Elliott, are dead. John F. Bechtel, a native of Wayne county, Ohio, married Ella, daughter of Johnson Elliott, and, returning from Iowa in 1878, now lives on the fine farm belonging to Johnson at the time of his death. This farm, just north of New Petersburgh, was settled among the very first by Zeur Combs, and was later owned by William Hulitt. The portion of Hays' survey on Fall creek, not purchased by William Elliott, was bought in equal parts by Robert Montgomery and John Walker. Montgomery came out from Rockbridge county, Virginia, in the year 1814, and settled on the land so purchased by him, which is now owned by his son, Thomas. John Walker, Sarah, his wife, and eight children came during the same year, and occupied their portion. A son, Alexander, HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO - 525 was born on the way out, and his widow and children now occupy the old farm home. This entire survey is now owned by descendants of its original settlers and pioneers. During the years 1815-16, Henry Karnes made a trip of observation from Greenbriar county, West Virginia, to Maysville, Kentucky, thence, with a party of emigrants to New Market, from there, on foot and alone, to a point on the Anderson road in the vicinity of the present Greenfield and Cynthiana turnpike, thence back to Virginia by way of Chillicothe. He selected a spot on the Anderson road as a desirable point of settlement. In 1818 he brought his family to Paint, and established them, temporarily, about one mile east of Rainsborough. He then bought a farm of one hundred and sixty-eight acres, at the place which he had selected, and moved his family to this new home a year later, establishing them in a log cabin already on the place. In 1843 he died, and the property passed to his son, John, who made large additions to the farm until, at his death, in 1877, it aggregated four hundred and fifty acres. John Karnes married Eliza Hartman, daughter of Isaac Hartman, who had come from Culpeper Court House to the falls of Paint at an early day, and, thence, to Highland before the coming of the Karnes family. The farm is now owned by Joseph, only child of John Karnes. Joseph married Gertrude Miller, and has a family of four boys—Harry, John, Joseph and Frank. George Rains came, early in life, from Randolph county, North Carolina, to the State of Tennessee, and from there, in 1816, to Paint township, where he purchased a large tract of land, including the site of the present town of Rainsborough, for one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre. An account of the laying out of that town is given on another page. He lived, in the enjoyment of a well earned prosperity, to the good old age of seventy-six years, and left at his death (which occurred July to, 1845), a large family. He was twice married, and had twelve children, nine by his first, and three by his second wife. Of these, the following are still living : Catharine, wife of James Grady, lives near Rainsborough; Sarah, wife of John Cooper; Aaron lives near Marshall; Hannah C., wife of Nelson Taylor; Ishmael, living in Indiana, and Mary, wife of John Marsh. John Rains died August 6, 1852, leaving the following children who are now living: Isaac, George, Nancy J. (wife of Isaac Karnes), John W., Mary L. (wife of James McNary), Amy R., and Sarah A. John and Henry Foreacre, brothers, came from Delaware, in the year 1816, and settled on the farms now both belonging to Jacob Foreacre and Mary F. Foreacre, widow of Henry. John Foreacre had five children, but one of whom, H. S. Foreacre, of Hillsborough, now survives. One of these sons, Enoch Foreacre, was the father of five sons, of whom W. H. Foreacre, living near Rainsborough, is the only survivor. He married Aurora P. Campbell, and is the father of a family. Thomas Beavers emigrated from Virginia to Sunfish, Pike County, previous to 1809, and in 1820 came to the township about one mile from Rainsborough, where Isaac Upp now lives, where he died. His was the first burial in the Beavers cemetery at that place. Andrew Beavers, brother of Thomas, came from Pennsylvania, reaching his destination December 24, 1826. He purchased and settled upon the property now owned by James Washburn, adjoining the farm then occupied by Thomas. His first purchase was but fifty acres, to which he added, later, a hundred acres adjoining. Andrew Beavers brought with him from Pennsylvania a wife and eight children. His son, Thomas, was married February 1, 1849, to Sarah, daughter of Berry Smith, and moved, December 19, 1861, to the farm on the Chillicothe turnpike, two miles west of Rainsborough, where he now resides. This farm he purchased from the heirs of Berry Smith. Mr. Smith removed from Henry county, Virginia, to the vicinity of Rattlesnake creek, during the year 1807. He came alone on horseback, and was only a boy in years. He first worked for Mr. Hughey, and then for Anthony Franklin. In 1820 he married Icy Beavers, and removed to the Spargur mill farm. Subsequently, he removed to the Samuel Crothers farm, on the Chillicothe road, and, in 1825, bought the farm adjoining, above described, where he died in 1862. The children of Thomas and Sarah Beavers are Berry S., Andrew J., Oswell W., Leonora, Ruth Ann, Austin and James E. Beavers. James Waddle, a Scotch emigrant, came to Pennsylvania, and there married a young country woman and removed to Lancaster, Fairfield county, Ohio, whence, in 1822, they removed to Highland county, James assuming the position of foreman in the woollen mill in Paint, then recently started by Jesse Baldwin, and now owned by Captain Barrett. After retaining that position until 1830, James removed to the farm occupied by his widow, Anna Waddle, two miles northwest of Cynthiana, on the Greenfield turnpike. Mrs. Waddle has been the mother of twelve children, of whom eleven are living. They are Mary (Roads), James, Agnes, Angus, Margaret (Loudon), Waverly, Annie (Van Deln), Robert, Victoria (Hughes), Effie, Byron and Adelaide (Spargur), the last named deceased. James George, and Jesse, his son, came from Virginia about 1830, and bought the farm now owned and occupied by Lewis, son of Jesse George. This farm was, at the time, all in timber. There both father and son lived and died, and the fine farm has descended to the third generation. Five children of James George now survive: Silas, living near Leesburgh, one daughter in Virginia, one in Illinois, and two in Indiana. Jesse George was' the father of four children, two of whom, Hannah (wife of M. B. Park), and Lewis, are now living, and in Paint. Lewis married Ellen, daughter of Thomas Barritt, and has two children—Lester and Bessie George. Eli G. Glasscock came from Culpeper county, Virginia, in 1830, and bought a farm adjoining the little village of New Boston. In 1831 his son, Noah Glasscock, followed him, and purcha'sed land in the neighborhood. Eli G. Glasscock died in the neighborhood, and Noah still lives at Boston. Noah was married before 526 - HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO coming to Ohio, and has been the father of eight children, four of whom, Woodford, Victoria (wife of William Patton), Martha (Dwyer), and Sarah (Purkiser), are living. Two sons, Levi and Edward, died after reaching maturity. Sarah married Micha. G. Purkiser, a native of Clermont county, and a prominent Methodist clergyman. After a long and active service in the ministry, during which he was three times pastor of the New Boston Methodist Episcopal church, he was superannuated, and retired to a farm on the Rainsborough and Greenfield road, where he died. His widow now resides in New Boston with her two children—Martha I. and Nancy S. Purkiser. Henry W. Hope has been a prominent man in Paint township for many years. Born in Ogleses, county of Antrim, Ireland, June 2, 1832, he came to America in 1848. After remaining for ten years in Portsmouth, Ohio, in the employ of Henry R. Kinney, he removed to his present home and embarked in business as a general merchant. During the same year (1858), he was appointed postmaster at Paint, and has, ever since, retained that position. He was also, for a time, deputy United States internal revenue collector, and has been prominent in other positior.s of trust and responsibility. Mr. Hope is a man of large attainment, and scientific investigation has been for years his favorite employment. One of the substantial results of such employment has been the collection by him of an extensive and valuable cabinet of geological and archaeological specimens. Mr. Hope, in 1860, married Mary L., daughter of Brittan C. Hulitt, by whom he has had six children, all living. By an upright life and a two-fold industry, Mr. Hope has established a firm position in the estimation of his neighbors as a useful citizen and successful business man, and has also won, by his wide information, the respect of visitors, who have been led by the scientific attractions and natural beauty of the Rocky fork to his door. Nicholas Blayer was born in Germany, in the year 1824, and, emigrating to America, settled in Paint township, about one mile south of New Petersburgh, in the year 1850, where, with the characteristic economy and industry of his countrymen, he has attained an assured position, both in financial and social matters. John Bruce removed to Paint township from Pike county, in 1854, and now lives on a fine farm near the Crawford mill. He married a daughter of Crawford Colwell, and has by her four children: Elizabeth, Eliza , Jane (Evans), George W., and Mary M. Robert McNary came to Highland previous to the year 1840, and established himself at New Market. In the year 1857 he removed to Rainsborough, and there his son, James McNary, married, January 24, 1862, Mary L., daughter of John Rains and granddaughter of George Rains, the original owner'of the town of Rains- borough. Four years since, Mr. and Mrs. McNary removed to the farm two miles northwest of Cynthiana, where they now live. The names of their children are: Charles W., Sannie L., Nellie D., and Maggie A. McNary, of whom two, Nellie D. and Maggie A., are dead. William H. H. Weyer emigrated from Little York, York county, Pennsylvania, to Rainsborough, where he lived for but a short time. By his first marriage he had no children, and his wife dying quite soon, he married Mrs. Huldah Tomlinson, a widow, daughter of John West. About 1865 Mr. Weyer purchased the fine farm now owned by his heirs, two miles west of Rainsborough, on the Cincinnati road. Mrs. Weyer died in 1876, and her husband in 1879, leaving the following children: James A., William 0., Mary C. (Epperson), Ruth A. (Pierce), Jacob A. K., Daniel H., Huldah E. (Highmiller),. Isabel L., arid Albert. Daniel H. Weyer is now conducting the farm, his sisters, Isabel and Ruth, and his brother Albert, residing with him. John M. Young, who has for many years past been the miller at the Barrett mill, is a native of Fayette county, Pennsylvania, and came from Bainbridge, Paxton township, Ross county, in the year 1856. He at once assumed his present position, and has held it, without intermission ever sitice. He married Sarah, daughter of John Pulse, whose family is an old one in Paint, the father of Mr. Pulse having come in 1807. Mr. Young has in his possession a portion of a small mill-stone used in the old Jesse Baldwin mill. This stone is scarcely more than a foot in diameter, and it is very probable that it was the first to turn in Paint township. NAVIGATION OF PAINT CREEK. Elsewhere an allusion has been made to an experiment in navigation, made at an early date. This is worthy of note as an indication of the great difficulty of transporting goods by wagon from the Rocky fork, and Rattlesnake region, to the Scioto. Had this been an easier task, no one would have seriously entertained the idea of shipping by water, shooting the rapids and falls of Paint, and passing the numerous mill-dams, and other obstructions, accomplishing in the end only a distance of twenty- five miles, and that positively impassable except at high water. In spite of all these difficulties of so chimerical a plan, Joseph Spargur, then owner of the Spargur mill, on Rocky fork, conceived and executed it during the years 1820 and 182I. During the winter he built a keel boat eighty feet long, and in the spring, with great difficulty, moved it over Boyd's dam, where Barrett's mill now is, and into Paint. There it lay all summer, and was, in the autumn, loaded with flour and farm produce, and, when high water came, started on its journey to Portsmouth. It was taken over the Rapids Forge dam on skids, and shot the rapids and the falls of Paint in succession. Then came Benner's dam to be passed by the use again of skids, and so on down to the Scioto. The boat was manned (?) by three boys, one of whom was Henry W. Spargur, son of the owner, who still lives to tell the tale. Mr. Spargur says that the passage was not only difficult, but actually dangerous, owing to the clumsiness of the craft and the swift currents at some narrow places in the creek. One of the crew worked the tiller and the other two stood to the oars, using them sufficiently to give proper steerage way. At one place, where the creek took an abrupt turn, with a very swift current, one of the crew was swept overboad by an-over- hanging branch, and, on account of..-their consequent HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO - 527 short-handed condition, the others were obliged to run the craft ashore, and wait until their comrade's fate was ascertained. The first sign of him which they saw was his hat floating by them on the water; but they were shortly surprised to hear his shouts in the woods, quickly followed by his appearance on the bank, very wet, but otherwise none the worse for his involuntary bath. When he rejoined them they were compelled to laboriously run the boat some distance up the stream to obtain a fresh start around the bend. After this they reached. the Scioto and, eventually, Portsmouth, without further incident. There, discharging her cargo, the boat was reloaded for a point in Virginia, where she was subsequently sold. So ended the only attempt ever made at freight navigation on Paint; an attempt certainly not crowned with distinguished success. FALL CREEK PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. This church was organized in the year 1806, which the Rev. Robert Dobbins served as pastor for a short time, and which was the basis upon which was organized the Hillsborough Presbyterian church. At the time of its organization, which was effected at a school-house on the land of Samuel Evans, the church consisted of but five members—William Keys, David Jolly, and three women. At this limited meeting both of the men named were made elders. The first church built was erected in 1809, and was a log building, near where Worley's mill now stands. As has been intimated, the church was soon removed to Hillsborough, and it is now scarcely known where it stood. FRIENDS. Prominent in the early days of Paint, this denomination has continued, in spite of internal rupture and the increase of other churches, to hold its own. Pass along the unfrequented highway known as the " Spargur Mill road," and, not far from its junction with the Anderson road, you will see an old cemetery and a weather-beaten, deserted church. This spot may well be memorable in Paint's history, for hefe, in the years 1807 and 1808, the first settlers of the Quaker neighborhood organized and built their first church. It was an old and ungainly structure of logs, built (as a man, who learned his first lessons there, says) in the form of two connected log pens, each pen being forty feet square. It will be seen that this was an unusual size for a pioneer church; and, indeed, the new church was no ordinary organization. The church, with the Overman, Cowgill, Tomlinson, Barnett, and Sumner families as a basis, met no check in its prosperity until the Hixite secession, in 1830. In this instance the Hixite branch can scarcely be said to have seceded, for they were in a majority, and retained the old place of worship. The Orthodox branch withdrew and built a small structure the same referred to as marking the place—in the -immediate vicinity of their more numerous neighbors. The Hixites retained the old log structure until about f 835, when they built a new house on the Anderson road, near the present residence of Elias Overman, and there continued for many years, then sank into decay, and finally ceased to exist as an organization. The cemetery identifies the spot; the building has been moved away and put to other use. The upretentious building erected by the Orthodox Friends served their purpose as a place of worship until 1876, when the society erected, upon a piece of ground donated by Benjamin Cowgill, and situated on the Anderson road, a new and handsome structure of brick, by far the finest church building in the township. In its new house the church is flourishing, seeming to gain vigor with each added year of its existence. CHRISTIAN CHURCH. This denomination, familiarly known as "New Lights," has had an organization in the neighborhood where is now the village of Boston, since the year 1813. Prominent in such organization were Barton W. Stone, Reuben Dooley, and the Kinkead family. In the year 1854, a reorganization of the society was effected by Elder N. Dawson, who became its settled pastor. Since then the church has been served, in turn by Elders William Pangburn, John W. Brown, Jacob Howk, William Orr, G. C. Hill, and the present pastor, S. T. Morris, who has had charge for six years past. Mr. Morris is a native of Brown county, and came to Highland in September, 1873, to accept the charge. The present church building was erected in the year 1867. BETHEL CHURCH. A Presbyterian church under this name, was organized, about the year 182o, as a result of meetings held in private houses and at a school building. Prominent in its foundation were James Wilson, John Karnes, Geo. Cowgill, John C. Upp, D. C. Hewitt, and the Redkey and Foreaker families. The first named gentleman donated land to the church for a building site, and a house was at once erected. This building has, long since deserted, now disappeared, and the land is owned by William Clyborn. The church shared the fate of many called into being by the conditions of early life in a new country when travel was difficult and even dangerous, small congregations were everywhere formed which did not survive the conditions calling them into existence. Bethel church, first supplied by regular local preachers, went through all the stages of irregularity in its services, until, finally, it was deserted. DUNKARD. Previous to the year 1830, services were held at various places, usually at the house of Jonathan Parker, by members of the Dunkard denomination. In that year a regular organization was effected, and, some years later, an old school-house on the Anderson road, about one mile north of the Milford and Chillicothe turnpike, was purchased and applied to church purposes. For some time past, however,. these have ceased, and the organization no longer exists. MILLS. In this history it is impossible to give full and exact information as to all the small and temporary structures which the pressing demand for lumber in the early days created, and which passed away with the necessity which 528 - HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO. called them into being. Scarcely a creek or branch in all the new country but had some primitive structure of this kind. Our attention will be devoted to the mills built by Baldwin,   Spargur, Crawford, Reese and Hulitt, which for years continued, and some of them still remain important factors in the history of Paint. The earliest of these mills built by Jessie Baldwin, on Factory branch of Rocky fork, in 1805 or 1806, near where the woollen mill now owned by David M. Barrett now stands. This was an extensive and a successful undertaking, comprising not only a saw-mill, and grist-mill, but a carding and fulling mill, to which Mr. Baldwin added, in 1820, a woollen mill. Later the same gentleman abandoned his old saw- and grist-mill, and built another below the mouth of the branch on Rocky fork, where the present mills are. Subsequently the property passed into the ownership of Dr. Boyd, who enlarged and improved the saw- and gristmills. Dr. Boyd sold them to D. M. Barrett, their present owner, who, in the year 186o tore down the old buildings and erected the present fine mills. His grist-mill has three runs of stones, and he continues to operate as well the saw-mill and the old woollen factory on Factory branch. Richard Hulitt, a millwright, whose settlement in the year 1866 is elsewhere recorded, built, in the year 1807, a small saw-mill on what is now known as the saw-mill branch of Rocky fork, for the purpose of sawing the lumber to build a larger saw- and grist-mill on Main Paint. As soon as he could get out the material, he built a dam at a point just above the county line, and erected mills, as he had planned. These mills he operated until about 1815, when he sold them to Mr. James, who desired to run them in connection with the Rapids forge. The lumber for James' buildings and dam at Rapids forge was sawed there, and both mills were run until after the new factories were completed, when it was found that the building of a dam at a point so near the old one, set back the water, and so far impaired the power at the Hulitt mill, as to compel its abandonment. In another place is given an account of the settlement of Joseph Spargur, and the building by him of his Fall creek and Rocky fork mills, to which little need here be added. The former was built in the year 1812, and was simply a grist-mill. This was sold in 1815 to Worley, and is still standing and in operation, and known as the Worley mill. Alter this sale Mr. Spargur removed to Rocky fork, above Baldwins, and in the same year built a grist-mill there. This mill subsequently washed away, and the present one was built in 1833. About 1812 the . mill on Rocky fork, known as Newell's mill, was built by David Reese. Alexander Crawford built, in the year 1807, a mill on Paint creek, about a mile above the mouth of Rocky fork. The lumber for the mill was either hewn, or laboriously sawed out with a whip saw. At this date there had been no mill built at New Amsterdam, and Mr. Crawford secured much of the patronage which had previously fallen to the share of the latter. In 1825, after the death of the father, Alexander Crawford, jr., sold the mill to Hewitt, and it continued to be prominent for many years. An account of the saw-mill built by Alexander, jr., is given elsewhere. THE CEDAR DISTILLERY. Notable among the industries of Highland county is the distillery, bearing the above name, where the celebrated brand of whiskey, known as " Rocky Fork," was manufactured. The land upon which the distillery stands consists of thirteen acres near the mouth of Rocky fork, and is bisected by the line between Ross and Highland counties. The projectors and first proprietors of the distillery were William L. Clyborn, Charles D. Clyborn and John Murdock. The capacity of the distillery, when first put in operation, in 1863, was forty gallons per diem. Joseph D. Ogle bought the property in 1866, and added largely to its capacity, and also erected storehouses in compliance with the then recently enacted United States internal revenue law. In 1872 the property was purchased by Dr. Enos Holmes, William L. Clyborn, Austin Pepple and John Woodbridge who, as equal partners, operated the establishment for two years, with a daily capacity, under official survey, of two hundred and ten gallons. In 1874 the building was closed, and has ever since been out of use. Its official number was fifteen, and the last United States officers in charge of it were Henry W. Hope, collector; John Conard, gauger, and James L. Murphy, store-keeper. The whiskey was made under what is known as the " Bourbon formula," and was of superior quality. VILLAGES. Within the borders of Paint township are three villages, named, in the order of their establishment, as well as of their relative importance, New Petersburgh, Rains- borough, and Boston. New Petersburgh was laid off by Peter Weaver, June 19, 1817, and for a long time, in fact until the construction of the Marietta & Cincinnati railroad gave to Greenfield an impetus, it was the most important business point in the eastern part of Highland county. It has now sunk into a quiescent state common to nearly all country towns which are left one side in the building of the great lines of communication. February 4, 1848, by an act of the legislature, New Petersburgh was incorporated, and, though its former activity has passed away, its government is still administered by a mayor and council, retaining the form, if not the substance, of importance. The first election under this organization was held March 10, 1848, when Nicholas Carper was elected mayor ; John Myers, Archibald Grey, Horatio N. Wood, Daniel Crane, Jacob James, councilmen; N. Rockhead, recorder. The mayors and recorders for the first ten years after the incorporation of the town, were: 1849, Samuel Maddox, mayor ; W. S. Thurman, recorder. 1850, J. B. Vanpelt, mayor; Thomas Ellis, recorder. 1850, Thomas Ellis, mayor, to fill vacancy caused by the removal of Vanpelt. 1851, Thomas Ellis, mayor; D. W. Rockhold, recorder. 1852, Robert B. Stevenson, mayor; Henry Hiatt, recorder. 1853, 'Thomas Ellis, mayor ; Jacob W. Pierce, recorder. 1854, Nicholas Carper, HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO - 529 mayor; Jacob W. Pierce, recorder. 1855, -Nicholas Pierce, mayor; John M. James, recorder. 1856, Nicholas Pierce, mayor; John M. James, recorder. 1857, Henry Hiatt, mayor; Charles W. Pierce, recorder. The present corporation officers are: Daniel Powell, mayor; Edward Kerns, recorder; William R. Emery, Anderson McKinney, D. R. Cunningham, Morris Pierce, John F. Wheaton, councilmen; W. H. Wright, marshal and justice of the peace. A half a century ago New Petersburgh was a center for the trade of a large section of country; the eighteen lots laid out in the original plat had been, from time to time increased by various additions ; a half dozen stores were open and doing a large business ; merchants made frequent trips to New York, and, buying goods at first hand, sold them rapidly and at a good profit ; churches were established, schools organized, and everything looked favorable for the future of the little town. Previous to 1830 John Hulitt and Enoch Overman formed a partnership and began business at New Peters- burgh, as general merchants—the first in the place, They were not, however, long permitted to enjoy their monopoly, Pike & Worley were soon in the field, at a date a little later than 1825, opening a store and entering into active competition. In fact, there is some difference of opinion as to the matter of priority between the firms, though the balance of evidence is in favor of the order named: We have space for only a bare mention of later firms and business establishments. John Overman and Jesse Johnson were probably next in the field, about 1830. Then Hulitt & Overman and Overman & Johnson dissolved partnerships, and Isaac Simpson bought the interest of Jacob Worley, of the firm of Pike & Worley. From that time, partnership changes ,were so frequent and so perplexing as to render it quite difficult and scarcely worth while to follow them. Thomas Montgomery, Jephthah Johnson, Elisha Mackerley, George W. McMillan, A. Miller, Charles D. Browning, Benjamin Pierce, Jacob Pierce, Mead & Glasscock, and Martin Traumstein, were all prominent men in business from 183o to 1840, and later James Smart and James Lisk in 1841. Later came M. Rockhold (about 1845), Daniel Kelley and B. Turner in 185o, and, bringing the list almost to the present day, Jacob, Nathan and Charles Pierce, in 1858, under the style of Pierce Brothers; and Robert Harry still later. Jacob Pierce, who is now in active business at New Petersburgh, is the sole survivor of the old days. His father, Benjamin, who had a tan- yard in the place, embarked in general mercantile business in 1844, and took Jacob into partnership. With some short intervals, the latter has continued in business since, and now conducts the principal grocery and only hotel in the place. The following is a list of the business men and mechanics of New Petersburgh : Jacob W. Pierce, grocer and hotel keeper ; H. H. Gray, general merchant; James W. Farley, grocer and postmaster ; Parker Gordon, grocer; D. R. Cunningham, blacksmith ; W. Wright, blacksmith; Abijah and George Cunningham, wagon-makers; David Powell, shoemaker; Nicholas Carper, butcher. David Thurman kept a hotel at New Petersburgh, as early as 1820, in the building afterwards occupied by Pike & Worley as a store. His was in those early days, famed for good cheer, for bountiful, provender and roaring logs. A journey of fifty miles and the return, was not to be made between breakfast and dinner, but was a thing formidable to contemplate, difficult to execute, the successful accomplishment of which was a fit subject of congratulation; and fortunate was the traveler who found at the end of a long day's riding through the woods, so comfortable a refuge as Thurman's tavern. About 1825 came Abner Jessup, and opened a tavern northeast of the town, near the Hulitt farm, in a building now no longer standing. Many a gray-headed man of to-day smacks his lips at the recollection of Mrs. Jessup's pumpkin pies, which youthful appetite enabled him so fully to appreciate, SCHOOL HISTORY. The first school board elected for the district of which New Petersburgh forms a part, was held at the house of Asa Cowgill, October 16, 1825, and Asa Cowgill was elected clerk, and Philip W. Spargur, Benjamin Anderson, and Jacob Cowgill, directors.. A committee was also appointed at this meeting to report a suitable site for a school building. The report of this committee in favor of a piece of land from the farm of Philip W. Spargur was received and agreed with. At the first meeting of the board, Abner Thornton was appointed teacher, at a salary of eleven dollars a month, "with the express understanding that he might be removed at any time if two-thirds of the householders did not agree to keep him. This result shortly after occurred, and Abner stepped down. The first school-house cost the extravagant sum of sixty- nine dollars, and was presided over, in succession, by Dennis Hopkins and James Hughey after Thornton's departure. May 25, 1853, New Petersburgh was erected into an independent school district, and a movement looking toward the building of a more substantial and commodious building was at once made. This resulted, during that year, in the erection of the present brick structure. The first teacher in the new building and under the new organization was E. Mosier, who was employed for sixty days, at a salary of one hundred dollars—a sum which compares favorably with the amounts now paid for similar services. The school is now under the charge of W. J. Gray, as principal, with the assistance, in the primary department, of Miss Maggie Wilson. RAINSBOROUGH. This village was laid off, October is, 1830, by George Rains, Garrett Copes, and David Davis, and has never been incorporated, and its history is not very significant. Probably the first business enterprise in the village was undertaken by Aaron Rains, who kept in his house a few groceries—sugar, coffee, tea, and spices, all of which he kept in the drawers of an old bureau, and sold or bartered to his neighbors. The first merchant (probably so called) was Henry W. Spargur, now living in the place. He opened a store, in the year 1831, at what is now 530 - HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO known as the Curry place, and continued in business until 1860. About 1832, a post-office was established at Rainsborough and Mr. Spargur was appointed postmaster. After holding the office for a time, Richardson Watter succeeded him, he, in turn, resigning, the office was discontinued. So great was the inconvenience of the lack of a post-office that the residents of the neighborhood united in a request to Mr. Spargur that he should again assume the position, and, he assenting, the post-office was reopened about 1837. Mr. Spargur continued to be postmaster until 1852. Richardson Watter, was the second store-keeper at Rainsborough, and Joseph Fromstein followed shortly afterward. One of the most noted, or rather notorious, men who was ever in business at Rainsborough, was Robert McKimmie, the Black Hills desperado, who invested money which he had stolen from a western stage coach, in a store at this place, and continued in business until his arrest. The business of Rainsborough, at this date, is in the hands of the following persons: John Hulitt, general merchant and the present proprietor of the pioneer store, established by Mr. Spargur. William J. Redkey, general merchant who established a store in 1872, and, in 1878, erected his present convenient and ornamental building. James H. Kinsley, grocer. T. M. Ferguson, harness maker. Abraham Miller, blacksmith. Thomas Roads, blacksmith. J. C. Ferguson, carriage maker. H. W. Roads, hotel. The Rainsborough physicians are D. N. McBride and James P. Garrett. The school at Rainsborough is one of the most efficiently conducted of any in the county. It is divided into two departments, the primary under charge of Miss Maggie McGinn, while Mr. Elgar Brown, its principal, has charge of the advanced grade. Mr. Brown is himself "to the manor born," his family having made an early settlement in Paint. His father, Elgar Brown, sr., is still living on his farm near Rainsborough, at an advanced age. NEW BOSTON. Little need be said of New Boston, where is established Dallas post-office. Robert Moore, Noah Glasscock and Abraham Pennington laid it out in November, 1840, and it never has had a very important position. Joseph Glasscock opened a store there, in 184o, followed by T. J. Bumgarner, Isaac Roads, William Glasscock, Charles Roads, Jacob Pennington, Solomon Easter, Charles Ferguson, Jacob Turnipseed, Mahlen Vanpelt, Joshua De Puy, Henry Lines, Lewis James, and, last, Arthur Orr, who began business there in 1872, and still enjoys a monopoly. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. THE HULITT FAMILY. This, one of the oldest and most favorably known families in the township, is of English stock on the paternal side. Its ancestors on both sides, in this country, settled in New Jersey, probably in Monmouth county. The party emigrating to Ohio in 1806 consisted of Richard Hulitt, his wife, Sarah, their surviving children, William and Henry Allen, the former a lad of sixteen; a young lady named Katy King, who afterwards became Mrs. Mason; and a man named Anthony Dennis, who came out for his health, but died a year or two after.. The head of this family was born October 16, 1762, and died April 12, 1843; his wife was born August 2, 1767, and died September 26, 1845. They had many children, most of whom died in childhood, before their emigration westward. The full list is as follows: Ann, born September 9, 1788, died May r3, 1793; William, horn December 2, 179o, a soldier of the war of 1812, died at the age of about eighty-five at his, home in Canton, Fulton county, Illinois; Lydia, born December 8, 1792,, died December 16, 1792; Macy, born April 6, 1794, died same day;: John, born March 27, 1793, died June 2, 1798; Sarah, born October 2o, 1797, died April 8, 18or ; Joseph, born June 2o, 1800, died July 7,, 1803; Curtis, born November 21, 1802, died October 14, 1803; Henry Allen, born March 14, 1804, died October 13, 18o6; David C., born October 14, 18o6, and is still residing in Paint township, near Rainsborough; and Britton C., the principal subject of this notice, born, in this township, October 21, 1809, and now, with one exception, the oldest surviving native in the township. The elder Hulitt, on his way westward, stopped for a few months in Chillicothe, where he bought a house and lot, and probably contem, plated a permanent residence there. It was here that he welcomed a child (David C.) into the world on one day, and on the next was called to mourn the loss of another (Henry Allen). He soon after determined to push further into the country, and late in the fall reached the region about the mouth of Rocky fork. Snow fell upon their rude camp the first night of their stay in the wilderness. Here he determined to set down his stakes, and purchasing a tract of fifteen hundred acres, which had been located by Robert Rowe, he built his first cabin upon a spot near the residence now occupied by John Roads, son-in-law of Britton C. Hulitt. He erected a saw-mill, and afterwards a grist-mill, with an overshot wheel, some remains of which are still to be seen, upon the small stream of the present site of the distillery, on the south side of Rocky fork. These he sold finally to Thomas James, and after running a horse-mill for a time upon his home premises, he abandoned milling, and devoted himself thenceforth to farming, until death relieved him of earthly cares. He was a Republican of the old school, and steadily prophesied the ultimate downfall of slavery, and was a sympathizer, though not directly connected with the Society of Friends, of which his wife was a member. She was much afflicted with palsy and heart disease for some years before her death, but survived her husband, and died in the fullness of a good old age. Both were buried upon their own place, in a cemetery which occupies a beautiful site overlooking the valleys of Paint creek and Rocky fork, and which is now somewhat densely populated with the dead. Britton C. Hulitt was still residing at home at the time of his marriage, July 13, 1828, to Miss Elizabeth Troth, a native of New Jersey, one of a large family who immigrated to Paint township from the same region as the Hulitts, about 1807 or 18o8-a family remarkable for its exemption from sickness and doctors' bills, and whose members generally lived to advanced ages. She is now the only survivor of it. Mr. Hulitt continued to reside with his parents until both were dead, after which he removed to his present place, closely adjoining the old home. Here, in 183o, he built the comfortable residence shown in our engraving, where he has since continuously resided, in the enjoyment of peace and plenty, and the steady acquirement of a handsome property. He was originally a Whig, but became a Republican upon the extinction of the former party, and has since been an honored and trusted member of the new organization. He has, however, accepted only township and school offices, serving long and acceptably as trustee and director. He is a superior business man, and enjoys in a marked degree the respect and confidence of his fellow-citizens. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Hulitt are: Lydia, born January 27, 1829, married May 14, 1845, to William Clybuns, a farmer, residing near her father; Cynthia Ann, born July 3, 183o, married November 28, 1849, to Enos Holmes, died July 29, 1834; William, born April 28, 1832, died November 26, 1833; Sarah Elizabeth, born May 28, 1834, died August 13, 1836; Nathan, born HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO - 531 April 9, 1836., now a storekeeper in Ipava, Fulton county, Illinois; John, born February 27, 1839, a merchant in Rainsborough; Mary Lucinda, born January 10, 1842, married Henry W. Hope, February 13, 1860; Emeline, born May 13, 1844, married March 5, 1863, to John Roads; and Isabella, born February 15, 1847, and still at the old home. Their grandchildren are quite numerous, ten having been born to the Roads family alone, all of whom, save one, are living. The only surviving child of David Hulitt, George W., is a carpenter and joiner, residing at Paint post-office. William Hulitt, son of Richard, left a number of children and grandchildren residing in Illinois, HENRY WILLIAM HOPE. Henry William Hope was born June 2, 1832, in the manorial mansion of Ogleses, parish of Ballinderry, county Antrim, North of Ireland. The estate of Ogleses was then owned in fee simple by his father, Henry Hope, whose mother was sister to Admiral Vernon, of the British navy. Mr. Hope died December 28, 1841, in the Moravian faith. His sister, in the care of her aunt, preceded him to this country, and afterwards his mother and brother Edward also came to America, in 1853, and now reside in Portsmouth, Ohio. His brother is treasurer of the Burgess Steel and Iron works, of that city. At the age of sixteen, the younger Henry came to this country by himself, and settled in Portsmouth, where resided an aunt of his, Miss Nixon, his mother's sister, and his only sister, Lilly, now widow of the late Preston E. Norton, of the banking firm of George W. Norton & Co., of Louisville, Kentucky, who were conducting a female seminary in Portsmouth at that time (1848). As opportunity offered, he went into the employ of Henry R. Kinney, esq., a hardware merchant of Portsmouth, with whom he resided as one of the family for seven or eight years. A relative of his, Mr. Henry Buchanan, at this time becoming associated with the late John Woodbridge, of Chillicothe, in the enterprise of improving a water power on the. Rocky fork, near the mouth of that stream, he was offered a situation by the company as book-keeper and accountant; but as the enterprise was never accomplished, he returned to his old situation in Portsmouth with Mr. Kinney. In September, 1858, he removed from Portsmouth and went into mercantile business at Paint post-office, where he has since resided. On the thirteenth of February, 1860, as before noted, he became united in marriage with Miss Mary Lucinda Hulitt. To them have been born six children, all living-three boys and three girls, viz: Lizzie Hope, born June 17, 1861; Lillie Belle Hope, born February 12, 1863; Mary Lucy Hope, born January 11, 1865; Edward Britton Hope, born July 14, 1867; William Nathan Hope, born June 17, 1869; Hulitt Nixon Hope, born September 17, 1878. THE CRAWFORD FAMILY-A. AND J. CRAWFORD. The first representative of this family who came into central Ohio, was Alexander Crawford, the grandfather of Jesse and Alexander Crawford, of Paint township. He was of Irish descent, and born during the progress of the Revolutionary war. He left Greene county, Pennsylvania, in the fall of 1796, with his wife, Anna (Pigman), and four children, and floating down the Ohio on a small flat-boat to the mouth of the Scioto, ascended the latter stream in a pirougue or canoe, and landed at the station Prairie below Chillicothe. He went, very soon after, to Chillicothe, for he is mentioned in Finley's autobiography as the man from whom several articles of wearing apparel were stolen. He was a millwright, and helped to build the "floating mill" famous in Chillicothe history, and commonly supposed to have been the first mill of any kind upon the Scioto. After remaining a short time at Chillicothe, Crawford moved to the mouth of Waugh's run on Deer creek, and lived there until 1799, and then moved to the site of Center- field, Fairfield township, where he lived for about six years. This locality was long known from his residence there, as " Crawford's Thicket." From this point Crawford moved in 1805, to Paint township, Ross county, where he built a mill on Main Paint, at Hewitt's crossing on land now owned by Richard Glasscock. Here he lived and carried on his mill until 1823, when he was drowned while attempting to cross the creek in a canoe. Two of Crawford's brothers were captured about the beginning of the present century by Indians, and both, after a considerable period of captivity, made their escape. One of them afterwards settled on Eagle creek, in Brown county, and the other settled in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Colonel Crawford who was burned at the stake by the Indians, was a connection of this family. The children of Alexander Crawford were; Jesse, who died in 1816; Alexander, Mary (Mrs. Nathan Thomas). Sarah (Mrs. James Greenfield), Elizabeth (Mrs. William Greenfield), Susan (Mrs. John McElwaine), in Illinois, and Elsie (Mrs. Joseph Estle) in Indiana. All are deceased, except the two last named. Alexander Crawford, jr., was born in Greene county, Pennsylvania, in 1790, and consequently was old enough, when his father began milling in Paint, in 1805, to render him much assistance. He grew up and was associated with his father until the death of the latter, when he carried on the mill alone. He moved, in 1835, to Plum run,. in Paint township, of Highland county, a mile and a quarter southwest of his former location, and there built a little mill which he operatentruil a few years before his death, which occurred May 15, 1874, His early life was spent in close companionship with the Indian boys, and he knew personally many of the older Indians, who are famous in history. He was acquainted with Waw-wil-a-way, the old chief who was basely murdered by Wolf, and had often been with his father to the warrior's camp on Rattlesnake. He was present at Old Town (now Frankfort), Ross county, when the ceremonies establishing peace between the murderer and his victim's sons were celebrated, and often, during his life, spoke of the impressive scene which then ensued. Mr. Crawford was a very estimable man, and one who was much thought of in his time. He was widely known, both from the nature of his calling as a miller and millwright, and from the fact that he was naturally of a very cheerful and sociable disposition. His wife was Elizabeth, daughter of Benoni Brown, one of the early settlers of Paint township, Ross county. They were parents of seven children, all of whom are still living, except one. Jemima, the eldest, widow of S. Mershon, is living in Clermont county, where her brother, Jackson, also resides, John went into the army as a member of the Second Ohio heavy artillery, and was accidentally shot and killed by a fellow-soldier, at Fort McAllister, Kentucky. Catharine, wife of S. G. Gough, lives at the old homestead. Alexander and Jesse, whose portraits appear elsewhere in connection with a sketch of their home, are residents of Paint township, Highland county, and are partners in business. 'The first named was born in 1827, and the latter in 1829. Jesse married Ruth V., daughter of John F. Wheaton. These two brothers came to their present location in 1856, and built the house in which they now live in 1873. They are both Democrats, and the younger, especially, is active in politics. They have a younger sister, Anna, widow of R. T. Downing, who lives with her sister at the old homestead. RUFUS A. DWYER, M. D. The subject of this brief memoir is the descendant of a family of old settlers; was born in Ross county, and has spent the greater part of his life in Highland. His grandfather, James Dwyer, came to this country from Ireland, and located in Rockingham county, Virginia. He was conscripted in the British army, and fought against the Americans in the Revolutionary war-being present at Braddock's defeat, and at the surrender of Cornwallis. Although he bore arms against the country, he only did so because obliged to, and after the close of the turmoil, which followed the birth of the Nation, became a loyal and thoroughly patriotic citizen of the country in which he chose to make his home. His son, James, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, and in r8ro, having arrived at manhood's estate, emigrated to Ohio, whither his father followed him, a year or so later. They located at what has been knoWn for many years as Huitt's mills, in Paint township. James Dwyer, sr., died there, and was buried at Gilboa. James, jr., lived there until his death, in 1849. He married, in 1819, Elizabeth, daughter of John Applegate, who came at an early date from near Trenton, New Jersey, and settled in the same township. They had four children-Mary Ann, who married John Lucas, and who is now living at Martinsburgh in Fayette county; John M., now a resident of Paint township, Ross county; Sarah E., deceased; and Rufus A. The latter was born June 23, 1827, and grew to his majority in this section of the country, obtaining his early education at the small schools in the neighborhood, and his later instruction at South Salem academy. He decided to follow the profession of medicine, and with that end in view, entered the Starling Medical college of Columbus, in 1849. He attended this school during the seasons of 1849-50 and 1851-52, graduating in the spring of the latter year, and removing to Petersburgh, began, amidst many difficulties, the practice of his profession. From that time to the present he has been in the active exercise of his calling, in the village which is still his home, with the exception of four years, during which he was in the service of the United States, in the war of the Rebellion. He went before the army board of medical examiners in September, 1861, and was commissioned 532 - HISTORY OF ROSS AND HIGHLAND COUNTIES, OHIO as surgeon in June, 1862. Becoming attached to the Sixtieth regiment Ohio volunteer infantry, he immediately went into the field, and soon afterwards was assigned to duty in the hospital at Cumberland, Maryland. Resigning his commission with the Sixtieth regiment Ohio volunteer infantry, he was appointed to the Second battery Ohio heavy artillery, October 23, 1863, and upon the twelfth of October, 184 was promoted to the p-osition of major and surgeon of the One Hundred and Seventy--,fifth regiment Ohio volunteer infantry, with which he was mustered out at the close of the war. Dr. Dwyer is a member of the Highland county and of the Ohio State Medicalsocieties, and as such fact would imply, is a man who is widely and well known in his profession, and one who lends lustre to it. He has enjoyed a large practice and occupies as enviable a position socially as professionally, being a gentleman of rare personal qualities, and of thorough general culture. He is an enthusiast upon archaeology, and has brought together one of the finest collections of Mound Builders and Indian curiosities to be found in this part of the country. Dr. Dwyer was married, June 13, 1854, to Sarah E., daughter of William and Catharine J. (Dirts) McNamer, who was born near Yellow Bud, in Pickaway county, where her parents and grandparents were early settlers. The offspring of this marriage were two children, one of whom is deceased. Lizzie M., the firstborn, died in childhood, and W. R. Levy Dwyer, born September 4, 1862, is still living. NOTES. The following matter reached us too late for insertion in the main body of the work, in the appropriate places whet e they severally belong, and we can do no better than to insert them here. * NOTE I.—THE DUNKARD CHURCH. Almost from the time the settlement of this part of the county was commenced, the Dunkards had a foothold in the township, and for many years services were held at private houses.. It was not, however, until 1849 that the church came into organic being. In that year the house of worship, still standing and in use, south of New Lexington, on the Samantha turnpike, was built, and the church was regularly organized with about seventy-five members. Thomas Major and wife were the first preachers, and continued in their offices until quite recently, when Annulus Hickson and Elwood Davis succeeded them. Thomas Major is still the controlling officer of the church. The membership is a little over one hundred. + NOTE 2,—AN ECCENTRIC CHARACTER. Leesburgh is the home of an inventive genius of high order, and one who should reap a large reward some day for years of patient toil. James T. Guthrie, an old resident of the place, and descendant of a family of early settlers, is the patentee of a dozen or more very useful articles, some of which must come into general use and bring him fortune and fame. Among the more important are a railroad switch of very simple and ingenious construction ; an improved lock, and a really remarkable apparatus designed to be attached to cook stoves, for the purpose of generating gas. ++ NOTE 3—James Murray and his wife, Mary (Mitchell), of Northumberland county, Pennsylvania, came to Buckskin township, in 1812, and located about a mile and a half east of the village of Greenfield, on what has since been known as the Alex. Watt farm. Mr. Murray went into the war of 1812, and remained away for a considerable time, leaving his wife and children in their new home id the *both. He lived until about 1840. His descendants were: Ellen (Mrs. Wm. Collier), now in this town- * This should have appeared in the Fairfield church history. + This paragraph should have been inserted in the history of Fairfield township. ++ Should have appeared in Buckskin township history. ship; Mitchell H., deceased; Thomas, in this township; Samuel C. and J. M., in Greenfield; Mary J. (Mrs. Wm. Lavery), in this township, and John, deceased. James Caldwell came from Ireland when quite young, and, in 1812, married Polly Wilson and settled in this township, two miles southeast of Greenfield. He was a man of fine education, and a school-teacher for most of his life. One of his sons is the well known W. W. Caldwell, of Greenfield. f NOTE 4.—Abram Dean and wife were settlers in Buckskin as early as t800, and were among the earliest whites in the Scioto country, as they located at the Pee Pee bottoms (now in Pike county), in 1797. Abram Dean died in 18o6, and his wife, Sarah, raised the large family of children left her, upon the farm now occupied by Allen Stinson, and located a half mile east of Lyndon station. Mrs. Dean removed to Highland county, in 183o, and lived there until her death in 186o, at the advanced age of ninety-seven years. None of the children of these early pioneers are now living, except Margery, the aged widow of Adam B. Wilson, who resides near Greenfield, Highland county, and a sister, in Kansas. t NOTE 5 .—Jesse Spencer was born in Pennsylvania, in 1768. He came to Chillicothe in 1798. In 1804 he was appointed register of the land office at Chillicothe, and held the office throughout the-administrations of Jefferson, Madison, Monroe and John Q. Adams a period of twenty-eight years. In 1832 he removed to Colerain township, near Adelphi. He was married in 1804, to Catharine Winship, of Chillicothe. The sons were Judge James Spencer, of Hocking county; John Randolph Spencer, late of Ross county; Thomas W. Spencer, of Pickaway county; Rufus P. Spencer (deceased), late of Ross county, and William H. Spencer (deceased), also late of Ross county. The daughters were Catharine, who married Benjamin Kinnear (deceased), of Pickaway county, and Ann, who married the late Dr. George Beaman, of Adelphi. Jesse Spencer died January 28, t84o, aged seventy-two years. His widow survived him nearly a quarter of a century, and died in her eighty-seventh year. f This belongs to-the history of .Buckskin township. t Colerain township, Ross county.