The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1875-09-10

! Nathan FTakes. Ebeuezer Wilson. til-
-iCTrlands, Job ChainDerlin, sr., Wilson
Vance. Geo. Si.ax. and many Others,
most Of whom have died or long since
removed from tlIe county. 4 few still
r-main. a. LINKS connecting tie past
with the prr--i.t. and ar- most welcome
10 ,his our itElJ.al reunion. and may
they live 70 help %. celebrate many
NOR
Ia wealth aud population, We So what
improvements have been made ia our
county ia less than q half century.
From Il voting population of = we have
incr' a>rd 70 NOR than J. Gir AID from
It population of a few hundred 20 Inorr
than % coo. and all this within the
recollection Ci macy i.-rt assembled. and
III which. ~ In'H ard women, many OF
you have taken uiI uc'iv" part. No
wonder you are proud of your county
Of her prosperity, intelligence, and grand
improvements.
Hancock County wa- named in honor
OF John Hancock OF Res o!uiionary fame
II originally contained ;5GS, GO acres Of
land, bat upon the formation Of Wyan
dptte County ia 1872. 2S, 500 AGES We're
struck off of Hancock 70 assist in form
| ing that county.
About the middle Of June, 1872, the
army under Gen. Hull left Urbana,
| Champaign County, aud passed through
the present counties of Logan, Hancock,
Hardin and Wood, into Michigan. The
army cut "A road through the then un-
broken wilderness. inhabited by wild
animals and hostile Indians, which road
was long known a. ''IIulfS Trail" On
their route the troops erected Ft
Macarthur on the SciDto river in Hardin
County and Ft. Findley on the Blanch-
ard river ia Hancock. County. The army
under Hull arrived at the Maunee on
the Both day OF June, and ON the 10th
of the following August, Hull surrender
ed at Detroit.
Ia the same summer GS12.) Gen. Ed
mund Tupper of Gallii county raised
about l. 600 men for six months service,
mainly from Gallia, Jackson, and
Lawrence Counties who under order of
Gen. Winchester marched from Urbana
north by iIuli's trail to the foot of the
Maumee Rapids, where the enemy
attacked Tupper's force, but were driven
of with considerable loss They then
returned to Detroi; and Tupper's troops
marched back to Ft. Macarthur.
Fort Findley was erected by Col
James FindIey, by order of Gen. Hull,
and was named ia honor of the Colonel.
Ii was "a stOckade of about fifty yards
square with a blockhoUse at each corner,
and ditch in front. Ii stood Oh the
south bank of the Blanchard lust west
of the present bridge, and was used as "A
depot for military stores. Tie Fort was
garrisoned by a company under the
command of Captain Arthur Thomas,
vino lived at Kings Creek, three miles
from Urbana. On the return of Captain
Thomas company to Urbana, the Cap
tain and his son lost their horses and |
separated from tile rest of the company.
They encamped at the Big Spring, neal
Solomonstown, about five miles from
Bellefontaine, and the next morning |
were found dead and scalped. Their |
bodies were taken to Urbana hy a depu. |
tation of citizens.
There were no battles fought at Et. |
Findley, and garrison duty was monot-
ouous. Col Oliver of Cincinnati and |
six companies were sent from FIT. MeigS, |
to Fort Findlay with dispatches, and the
route being infested with Indians, he de
termined to make the trip by night. He
accordingly took the trail on a very dark |
night, but had proceeded but a short dis
tsnce until in the darkness they ran into
a camp of Indians but By Secreting |
themselves in the bush for a short time,
they made their escape and were hotly
pursued, and only effected an entrance
in the Fort, ;ts the Indians made their ap-
pearance on the opposite side OF the
river.
The date of the first settlement in the
county can hardly be said to be previous
to the year 1918, although one Tharp,
who seems to have been an adventureT,
come to the Fort during the, war and
remained after tlIe troops had left. lie
was an unmarried man, and until the nd-
vent of white fanIily by the name of
Cox. about the year 1878 doubtless liv-
ell with the s;lvages. There is, however,
no very authentic history of the man ur
his life.
Those who came to the county nj an
early day, were somewhat surprised at
finding fruit trees of different varieties
already growing iii the wilderness, some
OF which were already hearing fruit 1t /
was sn0n discovered, however, that
this was the work of an eccentric indi- /
vidual who was Enogn 10y the name
of Johnny Apri,ss.'d who was re-
ligious enthusiast uI the Swcdcnborgian
persuasion. who acted as IA kind OF mis- |
sionary among the Indians, and who, in |
p-raniulatioiis through the wilderness, |
pIauto Il seeds uf the different kinds of |
fruit Many Of you will remember old |
johnny. no doubt, as lac visited the coun- |
ty, at diiIercn; times, mp TO 1910. re- |
member of seeing him in 1889 or 1870
perhaps the last visit he made the |
county Attliat time hc was quite an old |
man, and did not appear to have very |
great quantity # this worlds goods The |
old man, fwhoSe real name was Jona- !
than Chapman died few years after
wards, near TT Wayne, indiana.
In the ealy history OF tle county, the |
general muster, or general trimming days, |
were times of peculiar interest, especial |
ly to MS boys, who scarcely ever visited !
the town on any other day. On such /
DAYS all the '.CognsialK Militia, as they |
were called. assembled at the county |
seat, armed with rifles, muskets. shot |
guns mullen stalks, buckeye clubs, and |
such other deadly weapons as We're con
venicnt, and paradcd in grand reviews |
before cOlOneiS aud al !iItants and aids,
gorgeous IN new clothes, covered with
gold lace, and epauletS as large as cab
bage head, with three corner,.d hats, top
boots, and monstrOuS spurs There they
sat on their glily- y-caparisoned steeds,
looking severely WaTlika, the terror of
infantry in arms tine admiration Of the
boys, and The envy of the private sol
der OH, Wasn't il gayl But ifany one
supposcs that any of these occasions We're
allowed To- pass without ii fight, yes, sew
c:.,I oi them. il is {, great mistake. All
the poHnp and circumstances of glorious
war. aided by the use of long necked
bottles. had tendency 10 bring out the
fighting prDuansiiies of some ON, nnd
tIIri. look out fOT nothing short oi whip
pin.. somebody, or peiiiS Suundly thrash
ed bv somebody would rilectually diSpel
his military ar,ior. But these eAoH'ng
and long TO he Trmenpered days are
paSt. and we have no militia, no train
ngs, aud the few military organizations
we have meet, drill, parade, and play
soldier in ~ geutiemaiiiy and decent a
manner as they 20 to church. Yet, with
all our progress and advantages, our peo-
ple were compelled to learn the arts of
war, a. well "a those of peace, and many
a gallant son Of Hancock vpat forth to
do battle fo- lis ooGniTY, ,ant never more
returned.
In all Cur prosperity the good people
of this county have ever Kept iH yiew
the fact that ihl peace, safety, and ma
terial welfare OF a people is only com