The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1875-05-04
EARLY SETTLERS IN WHEELING
Interesting "Reminiscences,

VINO WAS ucIOIhc VI Nhc lCNOluN''ii
Having resided principally with her
grand parents until their death, she Is
entitled TO be considered the last survivor
of that First family" of Wheeling, anl
the favorite of her grandmother, who>'
blessing she received kneelng on hel
death-bed. She was said to have been
remarkably handsome, and great belle
in the fashionable world in her time.
Some historical "reminiscences is bott
appropriate and interesting in thus shor
biographical sketch Of one born so year
since in this vicinity, who, in early youth
associated with the pioneers who Located
this city when covered by the dense ahl
silent forest, the plumage OF nature, and
noted a. u great crossing place OF the
wild Indian and the buffalo IN theI
periodical migrationS.
As early as l745, Whelan, Che jesuit
missionary, had station at the mouth Of
Wheeling creek, hence the name; a'sc
one Mt Pipe creek, Ohio. His proceed
ings can be found in the transactions o.
his order. The next to come WAS kbene
ger Zane, who made permanent settle
m,nt in 1863, 100 years since
the same year Daniel Boone
entered Kentucky, and the
Franciscan missionaries settled CaliIor'
MIN. He was then -, having been born
in l747, his wife, one year younger, aho
one ch.ld, Catharine, born in lIG9. Inc
centennial of Wheeling, 1869, passed IN
noticed.
In 1863 a party of pioneer emiSrantS,
whose objective point Of settlement wa,
the Ohio river, arrived from the S'n'h
Branch OF the Potomac, lamp
shire county Virginia, ut "ked
Stone. Old Fort, Brownsville, Ia.
Considering the land poor, in the follow
ing spring the men OF the party struck
out tor the OHIO river. Camping ut the
fork of The Wheeling they then sep
arated and went in different directions,
for the purpose Of making their several
locations, Ebenczer Zane taking
the Great Buffalo Trail down the creek,
thinking, AS he stated, where it would
strike the river, would be good place to
start town" His companions We're
his dog ana and rife. Following the
trail to the sumit of " hce!lng hill, when
is crossed by the National road at the
same place, and just at McCul!ocE
Leap a glorious prospect burst upon hi'
sight, the grandest, he thought, he ever
behcd. The dense forest Of unbroker
yerdure and the great river lay before
HIM like scene from the garden 81
Eden. These are his own statements
preserved in family tradition. We may
here observe that the scene from that
point is still very much admired though
marked by the desecratlng hand oil I'M
proyement. He immediately proceeded
with hi, tomahawk to blaze his "toma'
hawk claim, and following the creek tt
Cold run which was corner, thence
to the mouth, thus including the entire
peninsula of Wheeling. His next pro
cecdlng was to construct log cabin
make a 'deadening' and plant u patci
of corn. The locality was the old Zan(
premises on Union, between Main AND
Market streets. This was the opening
scene of Wheeling, 100 years since
Having made Il raft OF DRIFT wood he III
covered the opposite side TO be an island
/ Returning east he bought the time OF al
, lri>hman and his wife, "redcmtohers,
returning with these they were put II
charge OF thecabin. The proto family o
Wheeling, whose name, we regFe'
We cannot give, they are
highly spoken of in family tradition
The Island was purchased from a trend
" Indian, the consideration beng hh'
rifle gun which the Indian fancicd, when
rs Zane stated, Zunesburg Wheeling
contained twelve log houses. lie aIs'
owned from the north of Indian W LecI
ing to Indian Buffalo, nine miles aioht
and up the river, and from up first nance
creek TO the big hill'' four miles. Ai>'
the town sites of GAINESVILLE, Lancaster
and Chlllcothc-the last was sold Il
Massey, and large tracts OF land III Varl
uu, places. In one of his letters he style
himself a Land Jobber. We pass m
teresting events TO 1876, when, Rcbecca
the mother OF Dorcas {. Clarke WAS born
The year following the attack OF tn'
combined forces of Tories and lndlan'
under Simon Girty which occurred Sep
trmhrr |, III, Mrs. Zane had barrel
time To- hand her infant daughter Rcbec
81 to the renowned Mol Y Scott anl
returning To secure trunk containing
papers and money, she escaped at thu
from. door rs the Indians entered ut thu
rear. The house was Immediately II
flames rs all the rest of Zanesburg. thirt'
log houses The inhabitants had cape.
to the block house, Fort Henry Elm
castlc) This was an oblong, hewed lo.
/ building 81 three compartments, enclose,
by pickets eight feet high and eight tr,
from the building with gateway plan
ed hy Genera, George Rogers Clark,
and built by Zane and John Caldwell
/ II was situated on the river bank oppu
I site Union street. No fighting ever &c
Cured Mt the United States Fort at tn
mouth of the creek, erected l'N'. Yer
erroneous statements are made IN reSar
10 this.
TIL. tradition runs that Zane appa'it
by the UNEQUAL contest, having bat h
men and the boys and women t. co'no'
wl.h 800, had thoughts OF Surrenderiis
but his heroic wife insisted on reSiStanc
10 the last, saying, that in that case mas, I
ere was certain, and she energeticali
running bullets and encouraging tn
o'>leged, victory was the result. Rcbccc
could remember seeing painted Indian
running over Wheeling hill in the las
serge OF ISL. She died at Bloomingdal
plac" two miles from Bridgeport, Ohio
in lNt6, aged 30 years. THIS was tn
serge in which her aunt, Miss EhzabetI
Zanc, distinguished herself by carrvin!
the powder which she received in he
apron from the hands of the nativ
African hero and warrior Daddy Sam.
whom Zane had left 10 defend bloc
house he had erected to defend his resi-