Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1873-11-27

and Mowers,-Sickles, Scythes and
Cradles were the implements used in
harvesting; corn was dropped by
hand and covered with hoes. After
harvest the Fall months were occupied
IN plowing, clearing, and shaking with
ague. The principal articles of diet
were corn bread, hog, hominy and wild
game. Deer, Coons. Opossums, Tur-
keys, etc, were abundant. The mill
ing facilities were as scarce as was
grain to grind-Springield, Chilli
cothe and Clifton were the points from
which the settlers obtained -four and
corn meal. Three or four neighbors
would make up four horse load, and
going to and returning from mill Oc
cupied from seven to ten days, during
which time the families lived on pota-
toes, hominy and bacon, when they
were fortunate enough to possess
those staple articles Horse mills and
hand mills were soon esta Jlished at
different points, which greatly facili
tated obtaining bread, and the settlers
soon got into the way of living luxu-
riously, 50 far as dodgers and
occasionally wheat bread were con
NOAtAOA GN Cl IliCll III bOOh IllCil I'LL &C
and four days and several miles travel,
to get sack of corn ground. The
best -four made by the horse mills was
like what is now called brown -four,
unbolted; it was necessary to make as
''much of little" as possible. There
was great deal of what was known
as ''milk sickness" which was very ia
tai. This strange disease commenced
by feeling of general prostration or
weakness and vomiting about every
half hour, the stomach being so irritable
that it retained neither food nor med
icine, resulting fatally in from three to
ten days; cattle frequently took it and
died very quickly; but COWS that gave
milk never took it, while calves which
sucked would tremble and drop after
sucking, and die in three or four days,
In the winter of 1815-I6, snow fell
throughout the county to the depth of
about sixteen inches, succeeded by
rain which froze and formed crust
upon which a good sized boy or dog
| could travel anywhere, but a deer
would break through, the result was
that everybody turned deer hunters,
and through our streets venison was
peddled by the settlers and offered at
six cents saddle, or two saddles in
exchange for pound OF lead or quar-
ter of pound of powder, which then
was worth twelve and a half cents,
''sharp-shin" currency.
About 1817-1S, sharp shin coin be-
| ing scarce, resort was had by mer
chants to individual shin plasters, rep
resenting values from six TO seventy
five cents, printed on the coarsest kind
of white paper by country printers,
which notes were given purchasers as
change and redeemed by those who is
sued them in the kind of goods they
sold, whether it was linsey wolsey,
corduroy, coffee, sugar, OR fire wa
ter" q name given by the Indians to
whisky. What a contrast between
everything in 1925 and 1873 We
might moralize upon it GdinfnitWm,
but this brief sketch will present it so
vididly to the mind of every reader
that comparison will come up as nat
urally as ''water runs down hill"
In 1913, Sam'l Waddle purchased of
Joseph Rank, the following property
in this place: In lots Nos. Ii, 10, 90,
81, and out lots Nos. 1, 20 and 6, for
ten thousand dollars. After his death
in 1924, said property was sold at
Administrator sale for less than one
thousand dollars, so great was the de-
probation of property after the war Of
1872
Joseph Rank was one of the first
merchants in Washington he settled
here in 1911 and failed in 1913. Pc
ter Heffley was also among the first
merchants he converted his stock of
dry goods, &c, into a Tannery-being
Tanner by trade-which saved him
from bankruptcy. All merchants fail
ed in consequence of the imitation oI
prices during the war of 1912 and the
great decline when peace prevailed
Henry Snider and Jesse Millikan were
among the first merchants; being in
business a short time Millikan sold out
to Snider, who continued the business
losing money, until becoming disgust
ed he sold out and returned to farm
ing, with heavy debt hanging ovel
him, which he ultimately paid.
The second series of merchants were
Mr.. - Hinkson & Sons, Samuel Ev.
ans q Sons, Pierce, Evens & Boyd, and
Thomas Mcdonald, all of whom with
others in business lost money. The
firm of Evans & Boyd was tbs only
one which survived the crash-Evans
sold out to Boyd, who had capital
he paid the debts, and continued the
business with considerable success -
At this time, Boyd's was the only store
in Washington, managed by james
Shivers. In the Spring of 1928 OF
1924, Jones & Wood came in with 9
stock ofgoods and made some money
since which many of their successors
, have shared the fate of the Pioneers
some making money and others losing
more than they owned.
Felty Coil made the first brick evel
bnrned in>the County-he made the
brick for the first Court House, whicl
burned down about 1928.
DR.. Baldrick was the first physician
in town. He was also PRESBYTERIAN
preacher and the first minister. He re
, mained some three or four years, hui
the church membership being small hc
left the little flock to wander on the
mountains, while he looked out fol
! greener pastures. The next Presbyte
rian preacher waa Rev. VIM. Dickey
l who came from the southern part oi
Kentucky. He preached several years,
dividing his time between tins place
J., and BloomiGgburg. The good seed
, sown in Bloomingburg bro ought fourth
> more abundantly, and that congrega
4, tion being the most numerous, he was
persuaded to remove to that place
= His house-a log one-was also torn