Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1852-02-02
For the Portage Sentinel
Historical "reminiscences Of Portage Co
BY j. n.

fages County, rs also Warren, In Irum euii
County, and Thompson, in Geauga Coun'
y. were, in The frst partitioning Of the
Connecticut w estern Reserve, drawn by,
and sst off, Is the Suffeld Land Company,
a. also were several annexations, or equal
isisg tracts, in other Townships. Amos
SpaHord, known afterwards as Major spat-
ford, and also as Judge spaford' OF Cieve-
land. and afterwards one Of the hrss set
,lers of psrrysburgh, was the contractor TO
ss.vev aurora into lots, and the surveying
VIA. done in 17ss, by Joseph Landon, after
v.ad. L we'll known Hotelkeeper in Buff
f.lo New York, ButsLandon'a compass
vasnot good, and many Of the lines were
ran ssfpsntine, and their measures, as re.
turned by tho Surveyor, were very uDcer'
tain. The township was surveyed into
forty-two lots-six lots east and west, by
ssy.n north and south. The name, Auro.
n, was understood to have been given BY
Jsdgs Spafford. from bis son, aurora Spaf-
ford, who knew, youth, in Cleveland,
in 1909. and who was afterwards an assoc
ciate fudge Of Wood Couaty, and but re.
csntiy deceased.
Mantua, was also surveyed into forty
two lots, and think it was done in l79o
also. David Abbott, Esq was the Sur
vevor OF Mantua the same who after.
wards, or about that time, settled at Cha
grin, on the place where is now Wiliough-
by. He afterwards. in 1910, made the first
settlement in Huron. He was member
of the Convention that formed the FIRST Con-
siitution Of Ohio. in 1903, and afterwards,
repeatedly, represented several Of these
counties in the State Senate
The lot lines Of Mantua were well run
and marked: but the measures Of the lots
generally held out large, considerably ex-
cesding the Surveyors returna.
The settlement of Aurora township, was
commenced in the summer of 1899, by
Ebenezer Sheldon, Esq, on the farm OF
now occupied by his grandson, Albert Shell
don. The first season, he employed sever
al hands to erect a log house, and clear
land and seed it; and in the fall returned
to his family, in Suf6eld, Connecticut. In
the Spring of the year 1900, Esq. S., re-
moved to Aurora with his family, consist
ing of his wife, FIVE sons, and one daugh.
ter; all OF whom the children} except one
son were afterwards heads of families, aud
Of whom, two sous only, are still living
TIE next family that settled in Aurora,
was Samuel Forward, best known as Judge
Forward, father Of Hon. Walter Forward,
Of Pittsburgh-who removed from CRANKY,
Connecticut, and located at Aurora, in
1903. He was followed soon after, by his
son, Oliver Forward, who in 1909, re
moved to Buffalo, N u Soon after the
Forwards, came the Kennedys', McCon-
noughey, and others. SO that in 1906, when
T first became acquainted there. | found
fourteen or fifteen families there, besides
s.,aae single men. The names of the men
there then, according 10 my recollection,
were Samuel Forward, Oliver Forward.
Samuel II. Ferguson, Ebenezer Sheldon,
Ebenezer Sheldon, 5r., Ebenezer Harmon,
John Cochran, Solomon Cochran, Stephen
Canon, John Canon, James Henry. David
Kennedy, Eber Kennedy, David Kennedy
sr., Samuel NJ 'Connough George w. Hol-
comb, Isaac Blair, Phineas Perkins, Grant
Perkins, Horace Granger, and Robert Bis
seL besides several young men, then under
age. Soon after that came the Eggleston's,
Roots and Tayior's, the Blackman's. Capt
reass n. RisIey. the Rents, B Blair, more
Of the BisseIs, the Spencers, the Squires.
Seward's. Jaekson's, Laceys Baldwin's,
Parker's, RisIey's, Norton's, Smith $, ,Plum's
which constituted, | believe all, or near
" the whole population in the commence.
ment Of 1914 OF the history OF the
church there, / am not well informed, but
ithas been carefully written by Rev. Mr.
Seward, and was published many years
since in the County papers.
write this cnly. from memory, and the
information I obtained near the times Of
which I speak.
The settlers of Aurora were nearly all
from Blandford and Middleield, Mass, and
the towns adjacent. A few were from
Snf6eld and from CRANKY. Connecticut.
Few,;f any settlements in Ohio, have
been made by population as moral, indus
trious, energetic, hardy and intelligent, as
that Of Aurora and few if any. have pros
pered az vel Indeed. it seems to be the
misfortune Of that place, that the farmers
grow rich too fast, SO that the thriftiest are
enabled to buy out the small farms, to con-
soiidate, and make large farms, by which
the population has been reduced by emigra-
tisf ia the last twenty years.
so profitable has been the dairy business.
and raising stock. for which the rich and
level lands oi that region are SO peculiarly
capacitated, and which the people, too, are
well fitted 10 render most productive and
profitable, aaz
Grand Lodge Of Ohio, I. o. o. F.
The officers Of the Grand Lodge, l. o.:
o. r elected at tho present session in this
city. are as follows:
VIM. civilians, Of Cincinnati, M. w.