Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1937-04-08
TEXAS MAN Is INTERESTED
IN SILVERHEELS STORY
The Morgan County Democrat,
McConnelsYilIe Ohio.

The Morgan County Democrat,
McConnelsville, Ohio.
To the Editor: The writer has
read with much interest the series
of articles which recently appeared
in your paper detailing some of the
| tragedies of pioneer days in the vi
cinity of Beverly and Stockport, as
written by Silas Thorla.
! l was born in the southeastern
part of Morgan county, near Moscow
Mills, grew to manhood in the Bev-
! erly community, attended school at
the Hilldale school in the Mutton
/ school district approximately two
miles northeast of Beverly and with
in half mile of the location of Ft
Frye, and one-fourtn mile from the
place where Abel Sherman was kill
ed by the Indians.
! | would like to mention that my
early education was acquired prin-
cipally under the direction of your
former mayor, George H. Black, q
versatile genius who could explain
the rule of three SO that the MEM
bers of the primary class could
grasp it's meaning and drill the old
er class in the mysteries of geom-
etry, trigonometry, algebra, etc,
and what is mystifying to me now,
make us understand and like it.
Another evidence of his versatil-
ity was in the skillful manipula-
tion of hickory rod about the size
of my thumb at the butt end, and
having a standard length of four
feet. These grew in profusion in
Of
and one always hung on nail back
of the teachers desk, as a warning
to those who thought they could lick
! the teacher. 1 might add that chalk
! and hickory rods were the only
! school room equipment furnished
gratis, the politicians and statesmen
of that day not having mastered the
/ fine art of separating the taxpayer
from his money in the painless man.
ner of today. Therefore no free
text books, no public libraries for
| the unlimited use of those seeking
knowledge, no athletics for those
seeking exercise, and no dietitians
to tell us what to eat.
The first half dollar I ever earn
ed was for planting corn in the field
where Ft. Frye had stood; this mon
ey was received for two days work,
dropping corn in the furrowed
ground, followed by man with
hoe who covered the grains with
loose dirt. This was before the ad
vent of the mechanical corn planter
and other fancy labor saving ap-
pliances in general use on the farm
today.
III nj ffy1cr yIroc
the ground had been plowed deeper
than usual and several decayed logs
were uncovered which had been set
or driven into the ground. Being of
an inquisitive nature I asked the
owner Of the farm, Mr.. John Mutton,
about it and he advised me that the
timbers were the remains of the old
fort built about 1890 for the pro-
lection of the early settlers, against
Indian raids. The location, as I re-
member it, was approximately half
way between the Mutton home and
the river, in a southeasterly direc-
ton from the house. The cemetery
where the early settlers Of this COM
munity were inferred was also on
the Mutton farm about 400 feet
northwest of the house. This Gem
etery was abandoned about 1875,
and the remains removed to the
Waterford cemetery. This was the
original burying place of Abel Sher-
man.
Several apple trees as much as
two and a half feet in diameter
grew in the field where the fort has
stood, and in the adjacent field on
the Vincent farm, which were said