Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1870-04-15
Written for the Delaware Gazette.
PIONEER SKETCHES OF DELLA
WARE COUNTY.
Number sig.
DELAWARE CoNTINUED.

r Number SIX.
DELAWARE CONTINUED.
Only a halfway history of Ohio has YET
been written: Do we want q whole history.
one that shall be a credit to all time to cIlme.
Ehen must we BE- pains-preserving of what
| HOW 14os AoOse afOunu u.s. save every scrap 2
| OF paper, manuscript or imprint that shall
or may enllghteB him who is to write this
| history--O 8 Journal, April Z, 1870
So centuries passed by, and stin the woods
Blossomed IN spring, and Redeemed when
Grew chill, and glistened in the frozen
OF winter. tin the white man swung the
within fhem-signaI of a mighty change.
-BTgalst.
Big Joe, mentioned in a previous arti-
Gle, was a Seneca, instead of a Shaw
nee. as presumed He was also termed
Injun Joe and Seneca Joe-a title which
clearly indicates his tribe Of the nu-
merous incidents related of the Indians,
not clearly traceable to any particular
tribe, date or locality, I shall omit
notice for the present.
Polly Noller and Sarah Brandy, both
i Colored, lived with the early settlers of
Delaware. They are remembered with
the greatest respect for their many good
| works. Nor are they described as lack
ing in the fund of jolly good humor
characteristic of their people. They So
ljourned in single blessedness. Halbert
and Ed. Noker lived in another part of
the county at a very early day The
former lived alone in a rude cabin of
his own construction. These have all
passed away leaving no legal repsesen-
tatives to relate their history. Many
others of the African race may have
been resident with early white settlers
the.
MOSES BYxBE, SR.,
| the founder of Delaware, of whom we
| have briefly written, was born at the
middle of the last century. Consequent
! ly when he came to Delaware he was in
the full vigor of mature manhood. He
is described as well designed in charac-
ter and previous culture to act his part
in pushing westward the progress of civ
ilization. He was extremely liberal to
his white neighbors. He lived in Berk-
shire four years. Much of the land there,
now being appraised at probably twice
that amount in dollars, he sold as low as
IS and 50 cents per acre. He built the
first frame house in Delaware in I8o8
This house stood exactly on the lot line
between the present Byxbee mansion
n. i n,
Esq. Mr.. Byxbe laid out the town of
Delaware the same year. Dolly Witter
was the maiden name of his wife. She
was a woman endowed in every respect
to be a help-meet in a wilderness home.
Allusion has already been made to her
great influence with the Indians.
The first religious meetings were held
in the house mentioned, and Mrs. Byx-
bee became a convert to christianity.
"In the darkliDg wood,
Amidst the cool and silence she knelt down
And offered to the mig htiest solemn thanks?
And suppltcation,"
and to this fact, undoubtedly, may be
attributed her ability to cope with the
obstacles pioneer mother must daily
have been called to meet. She often |
said she would not exchange the enjoy
ments of religion in the wilderness for |
the rehnements of her former surround |
ings.
Her house was the home of the pio-
neer preacher, and ample time was spent
to put it in readiness to receive his pc
riodical visits, at which time it served as
pew and pulpit, and as a repose from
weary travels.
"Ah, why
Should we, in the world ripery years neglect
Gods ancient sanrBuarles, and adore
Only among the crowd2'
Moses Byxbe, Jr., preceded his par
entS in his western adventures. He came
to Worthington in 1904 with Mr.. Bristol.
Col. Killbourne, one of the founders of
that town, had just gone for his family
to bring them to his western home
Moses was then in his nineteenth year. |
He is the only man now living in Della |
ware who, at the incipiency of our coun-
ty, had reached the years of manhood, |
and has passed through every stage of
the history of the city of Delaware. He
is now in extreme old age, being nearly
ninety. We are happy to observe that
he has, in a degree, recovered from the !
severe stroke of last winter, and meas
urably retains his faculties.
He served as quartermaster in the I
war of 1872, and was stationed at Gin
cinnati under Gen. Finlay. By profess
sion he is a lawyer. In 1875 hereturned
to his native town of Lenox, Mass, and
married Miss Elizabeth Eggleston, and
after a bridal tour to Washington and
Philadelphia returned to his western
home. At that time he stood foremost
among the wealthy citizens of Delaware.
He brought from the east, whatwas then
rarely seen here, a carriage.
Mr.. B. relates frequent adventures
to Sandusky to recover stolen property
from them. To him we are indebted for
many valuable items. Among other
things a map of the first plat Of Dela-
ware.
Mrs. Byxbe, deceased, is remembered
for her virtues. and noted with a kind of
reverence for her devotion to the sick or
suffering of whatever class.
Moses Byxbe, Sr., died Sept. 9, 1926, |
in the 10Th year of his age. His house
was the headquarters of Gen. Harrison
while his army encamped in=Delaware |
in 1872 or 'I3. The troops lay near the
Spring, and for years their sinks or cess
pools were discoverable in the adjacent
woods. Moses Byxbe, Sr., was the first
Judge of Delaware county, and Moses |
Byxbe, IT., the first Clerk of the Court.
In thus presenting brief outline of
one pioneer family, we hope the reader
will not infer an intentional neglect of
others yet to be noticed, or that we shall
be able to give more than succinct his
tory of any, but simply add our mite to
Ohio's history yet to be written.
1t is related that a wild hog, reared and
owned by one of the settlers, and which
roamed at will in the colony, gave end
less trouble to the neighbors, and aPpar-
emily defed all restraint. On one Occa-
sion her hogship entered the house OF
! Mr.. Byxbe, already described, at the
front door, assembled a flight of stairs to
the second floor, where she leisurely
commenced to crafty her porcine ten
denotes upon heap of corn. Now,
said Mr.. B., 81 have caught the mischief
maker at last So armed with club
he commenced an ascent in pursuit.
/ e1,ry-ica 7xhao fTtIR fO her
instincts, the quadruped confronted him
at the head of the stairs, bounded over
his head, taking off his hat, alighting at
the bottom and departing the way she
entered without injury.
At another time the owner of this
swinish chattel discovered her in his
garden. She entered from the street,
through the hall of his dwelling, the
doors of which at either end CHANGED to
be open. Fully determined to punish
the scourge of the neighborhood for all