Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1870-03-26
History Of Ashtabula Township.
Written in 1SjG-,tr0m tie Times.

Ashtabula Telegraph Office, Lake Erie
& Mississippi Co., (OReilly's lme,)
opened March 10, 1913, in Halls Block,
1856.
Erie & Michigan Telegraph Company,
Speeds line,) opened an Office in Ashta-
bula in 1851.
The House Printing Telegraph Com
pany have no Office in Ashiabula. Other
means of information consist in many
respectable professional and private
lbaries, periodical publications., &c. Ours
is quite a reading community. .
PROFESSIONAL MEM.
Catalogues of them have been given
in connection with the organization of
the township and county of Ashiabua,
not including the names Of clergymcn,
but leaving them to be connected with
the history Of their several parishes, or
cures.
In this place the writer will mention
ouly some of the earliest of them.
We had some early pettifoggers, but
the first lawyer was Ezra Kellogg, Esq,
settled i'll that quarter of the township
now the East Village, in 1910.
OF the first physician, DR.. Ellis, little
is known. The first permanent physician
in this township was DR.. Elijah Blake
man, located in that part which is
now Plymouth, in 1910. The first ply
sician located on the site of the West,
and then on that of the East Village,
was DR.. Elisha Martin, who came to this
place in the spring of 1911. The first
minister of religion, resident here, was
the Rev. Joseph Badger, a Congrega-
tionalst. These men. all were of respect
able literary, scientific, and professional
attainnents.
proceed now to statement of such
facts as are in my possession regarding
the early Ecclesiastical history OF Ashta.
bula.
The first sermon preached in the town
ship is said to have been delivered by u
travelling preacher, whose name is not
recollected, in log house at the end OF
the South Ridge road; on the west bank
of the Ashlabua. The text was from
ST. Luke, xvi. S. Then the steward
said within himself, What shall do
for my lord taketh away from me the
stewardship; cannot dig; to, beg, am
ashamed."* His congregation must have
been very small, il all the inhabitants
attended, for the sermon was delivered
in 1909, some time in the summer. 1t il
believed that some other occasional ser
mons were preached here by Rev. Josepl
Badger, Of Austinburg; Rev. Nathan b
Darrow, of Kingsyille, and Rev. iona
than Leslie, of Harpersfield, previous tC
1870 In the spring of 1910, the Rev
Joseph Badger removed from Lowe
Sandusky, where he had been officiatn;
us missionary 10 the Indiansy and CAM
5 with his family aud settled in this town
ship. Here he ofiiciated portion of hi
time, until the latter part Of 1920 or be
ginning of 1921, when he removed L
K,ngslvlp, which had all along been tn
center Of his society, the members ben:
designed as members Of the church il
Kingsville," and had all this time receiv
ed a share Of his services. During thes
ten years Mr.. Badger labored hard an'
Z, faithfully in Kingsville and Ashtabula
and as missionary, and Il chaplain II
the army but his compensation was 81
small that he was obliged to sacrifice
good estate in order TO enable himself L
support his family. His communicant
/. in Ashtabula were never more, perhaps
than ten at any one time, and they wer
mostly females. His support here wa
too limited with the aid OF Kingsyiile 1
allow of his remaining. He removed t
Kirkland in 1922, perhaps, thence t
Gustavus, thence to Wood county. |
ls4e he died, aged about ninety, a
Perrysburg.