The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1889-06-21

uy PeOplt W no 1SelltNe IN w Ork ana
Education.
staff Cor to STATE CHRONICLE.
NEWTON n. G., June IA, 1889 The ter
ritory Of Lincoln county, from which Ca
-awba was created in 1912, is said to have
been first settled by man named ADAM
SHERRILL who, with his family, was the
first white man to cross the Catawba
riyer In 1740 he crossed at point that
has ever since been known as Sherrill's
Fr,d He came here from Maryland and
j. required upwards of three months to
make the journey. 1t took grit and en-
durauce for this pioneer to make a road
. through the forests and bring his family
into this fertile country. He was the kind
Of man of whom the school boys speak
when they tell their hearers ''to FIND
way or MAZE one" Mr.. SHERRILL found
no ready made way, and aided by the cour-
age of his wife and children who gladly
went with him into the forests to build
happy home, he made way. After cross
my the Catawba river he found that the
country was inhabited by the Catawba In
dians. a friendly race. Here he built
rude house, cleared ground and planted
crop, hunted, trapped and fshed, and
raised large family, the descendants of
whom are to-day among the substantial
citizens of Catawba county. More than
once they have served the county in which
their ancestor was the first settler, and in
1880 one of them, Mr.. NJ. o. SnERRILL,
represented the counties of Lincoln and
t,raWba in the State Senate
ADAM SHERRILL Gas the first settler he
was appropriately named) had been living
hat three months in his new habitation
when HENRY WHIDNER (now called
WHIrENER) arrived at his house. He
remained there some time and then
went to build him home. He travelled
due West twenty-five miles and dis
covered the South Fork of the Catawba
river. This is where the two streams,
known as Henrys and Jacobs Forks, meet.
Near this point was the dividing line be-
tween the Catawba and the Cherokee In
dlans. The latter We're very hostile TO the
whites, but for a long while they did not
molest Mr.. WHIDNER. He trapped for
several wears and made considerable mon
ey by the sale of furS. He found sale for
them in Philadelphia where be carried
them on his pack saddles. On one of his
visits TO Philadelphia to dispose of his
merchandise he married lady OF that city
by the name of Miss NULL. They and
man named CONRAD GODER and his family
came back then TO Catawba, and settled
on the South Fork of the Catawba river on
that celebrated farm now owned by Mr..
JOHN W ROBINSON They had not been
here long before a band of Cherokee lndi-
ans made a raid upon them. They went
to YoDER'S house aud set fire to it They
killed Mr.. YoDER and some OF his children.
HIS wife was happily in the field at the
time driving up the cattle The cattle be-
came alarmed and ran off. MRS. 10DER
sg~p-ctipg tDat the Indians were bent on
Killing them ran over to her neighbo
Mr. NHIDNER'S, and gave the alarm. Ihey
ali left the house and hid al night IN a
cane brake. They then left the county
and lived for about two years IL South
Carolina. After ascel tanning that It was
safe 10 return they came back to Catawba.
Tie first object that met their gaze was a
White oak sapling in WHIDSER' 5 yard paint
cd red This Indicated that there was
war between the Cherokee and Catawba
tribes The tree thus painted Is still stand
ing and measures twenty three feet IN cir
conference 1t seems strange to US that
these events happened less than century
and a half ago 1t sounds like a far away
tale of the far distant past, while IN real
itv in the history of a nation 1t Is but as
yesterday To-day where these Indians
hunted and trapped, and fought and burn
ed their white ueghbors is a garden spot
Of North Carolina. Waving fields OF grain
aud lowing herds and industrious farmers
have taken the place of the cane brakes,
OF the deer and buffalo, and the savage
Indian, and children IN CataWba can
hardly realize that their grandfathers
were active participants in the danger OF
those days. Honored descendants OF the
WurTENERS, MULLS, YODERs and others
who early came to Catawba live in large
numbers in the county.
shortly after the stirring events thus
touched upon there came a steady stream
of immigrants into this country. Most OF
them were Germans, from the ''Father
laud" to Pennsylvania, and from Pennsyl-
vania to Catawba, Lincoln and the sur
rounding country. These Germans and
those Of German descent settled chiefly ID
the Western portion of the county. Inc
Southeastern portion was settled by the
English and Scotch Irish. They made up
and make up a population that IS surpass-
Cd nowhere for the sturdy qualities that
make true men. The Germans are char
acterized by their constancy and devo-
ton TO the opinions of the fathers. They
are not venturesome, as rule. But they
are Industrious, strong minded ana moral
They believe in education and from the
lirat there have been good schools IN Ca
t4wba. In the early days here the uFrnana
did not give great attention to higher ed,
ucation, but for many years they have had
4 tirst-class college at Newton of which we
sneak elsewhere. The Scotch Irish every
where were promoters of education, and
here as elsewhere, together with their Ger
man neighbors, insisted upon educating
the people 1t is significant in this day OF
revival of interest in public education
that a Catawba gentleman of German de
scent, NAL SIDNEY M. FINGER, should De
AT the head of Public Education ID North
Carolina 1t is just compliment to the
leIief of these people in the value OF edu-
cation. From my observation through the
state | do not recall any county which,
taxing it as whole is making greater
progress in education. This OF course
means that they are also making progress
il everything else, for it never fails TO Of
true that where the people are educated
they are progressive in agricultural metn
obs, and industrial pursuits. AS resul,
Of knowledge, coupled with frugallty anc
industry, it is gratifying to know that the
system of buying farm supplies and giving
mortgages is discountenanced here anc
very little of it is done. Another grat'ty
l,n%t tI,<