Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1942-09-24
INTERESTING LETTER FROM
FROM DON CARLOS JAMES 50

tlO)M DON SzAftf/Oo JhNEko
One hundred and, ten years ago,
only ~ years after the first per-
manent settlement was made in
Ohio, my grandfather, Henry James,
with his sister, Harriet, and 9TH
ers came to Morgan county. The
county had been organized in 1918
and the settlements at sMalta and
McConhelsvilIe were yet young and
feeble. The first settlement in the
county, at Big Bottom, was made in
1890, and was soon thereafter de-
stroyed by the Indians. Fifty years
later, McConnelsville had 957 in
habitahts; Malta 247; Pennsville,
1913, and Rosseau had 33. After
grandfather's arrival there were
still bears and deer in the county.
His sister went to Tennessee where
she had family, but later-when
her husband had drowned and her
brother here had typhoid fever, she
mounted horse and rode through
to see him and never returned to
the children she had left in the
south, but later married and brought
up a family in Hooking county. Her
granddaughter, Miss Exean Wood
ard, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, has
desired to see Morgan county for
IS years.
On Thursday, Sept. 10, the writ
,er and Miss Woodard left Logan,
O., and after a MONDAY meal with
one Of her cousins, we came into the
old home county, stopping first to
see Henry James only surviving
child, Aunt Mary (Molly) Hambel,
between Sharpsburg and Elliotts.
From that time until Sunday night,
we were anything else but idle for
we visited Old Baptist, Rosseau,
court house, postoffice, both county
papers, made seven social and busi-
ness calls; saw eight church friend
families with four cases of ill
ness and ten families of kin; were
in the James reunion at Pennsville,
and l preached at Antioch, made
some remarks at the Embree park,
and said few words at Hopewell
in passing.
We saw the Bert Hambel place,
DR.. MAYORS residence, went by the
Lee O'Daniel birthplace, to the
commons, the Mcconnell mill where
/ rode by first elevator possibly 60
years ago; and to the Big Bottom
massacre site. Our calls We're from
Mrs. Hambels through by Rosseau
Pennsville, the twin villages, ROx-
bury, GAINESVILLE and Etna. Miss
WOodard spent Sunday night in
Columbus and then returned to Ft
Wayne l drove to Toledo before
putting up for the night. Clarence
James drove out to Westland bit
Sunday morning before starting to
Delaware and Dayton, with Cincin-
natl as his lodging place that night.
Sickness and death in the Jack
James family deprived them of be-
ing with us at Embree park, but
still there was a good number there
and a pleasant time-but what a
hurried trip it all was and what q
y 4
such a space. Is civilization to
speed up still more so that we shall
have still less time in which to
live? If we all go whirling around
in our little orbits so fast that we
can't recognize each other nor be
able to say friendly "howhy,"
what is life anyway? Our ancestors
without autos and telephones had
something on us. They could be So
ciable.
In Detroit, three fine unity con.
ferences were held in West Side
Central Church of Christ, where
Claud F. Witty is the minister. The
effort was one in a series over sew.
eral years looking to better rela.
tions between the more conserva-
tive and reasonable elements of
those who use instrumental music
and missionary societies and those
who do not. Brother James De
Forest Murch, of the Standard Pub
fishing company, Cincinnati, and
Frederick Sommer, Of West Gore,
Nova Scotia, (son of Daniel Som
mer, we'll known in Morgan county,
and a good number of other preach
ers participated in the meetings
which were rich in spiritual con-
tent and great in possibilities for
better things in the future. I got
home, G,O00 or LOO miles) about
II O'Clock Wednesday night, the
16th.-Don Carlos James.