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Harrison Ohio Genealogy Trails
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Harrison County Pioneers.

The first white settlers in Harrison county came here before any roads were built, and it is reasonable to suppose, before it was possible to bring with them any wheeled vehicles. Their household furnishings; salt, ind flour or meal, were brought by pack-horses; and the first avenues of travel in the county were probably old Indian trails or paths, following the courses of the streams, or piercing the seemingly endless forest along the tops of the high ridges, or "divides." The first to come were the Indian fighters, scouts, and hunters, of whom a number lived along the Ohio river frontier, contemporaries and neighbors of the Wetzel brothers, of Adam and Andrew Pop, of Captain Samuel Brady, and of Major McCulloch. Among these, Jacob Holmes, Robert Maxwell, and Joseph and William Huff settled along Indian Short creek, as it was then called, the Huffs locating near the site of Georgetown. In a letter from Curtis Wilkin, a relative of Joseph Huff, published by Mr. Hunter in his history of the Pathfinders of Jefferson County, the writer states that Joseph Huff did not settle on Short creek before 1796; and that his house was the frontier house in that vicinity for upwards of three years.
William Huff shot an Indian near where Georgetown now stands, about the year 1800, because he had boasted in Huff's presence of the number of white men's scalps he had taken. Of Jacob Holmes, Mr. Curtis Wilkin, of Kenton, Ohio, in a letter to the Steubenville Gazette, written March 6, 1809, says:

Jacob Holmes was my grandfather, and my information is derived from Jacob Holmes himself, from his wife, and from my mother. John Huff, my grandmother's brother, married Sallie Johnson, a sister of John and Henry Johnson, who were captured by the Indians [in Warren township, Jefferson county, in 1793], killed their captors, and returned home. John Huff settled at Columbia , on the Ohio river, a few miles above Cincinnati , at about the close of the last century, and lived to be an aged man, dying there something over fifty years ago. Besides his sister (my grandmother); he had a brother, Eleazer Huff, and a son in the vicinity of my father's farm in Highland county.

Jacob Holmes was born December 8, 1768, in Rockingham county, Va. While Jacob was a small boy, his father moved to Bedford county. Pa., and a few yean later to Washington county, Pa., near Catfish, now Washington; then a few years later to what is now Brooke county, W. Va., and settled on Buffalo creek, not far from the Ohio river. Here our subject grew to manhood, and in 1791 was married to Elizabeth , daughter of Michael and Hannah Doddridge Huff. Shortly after his marriage he was employed by the United States Government as an Indian scout, and, in company with his brother-in-law, Kinsey Dickerson, and a man named Washburn, was thus employed for three years. For his services he received a tract of land on Short creek, a few miles north of where Mt. Pleasant now stands. To this place he moved his family in the spring of 1796, my mother being but six months old. He resided on this farm some twenty-five years, when he sold to a man named Comley, and removed to the northern part of Harrison county. The farm on which he then located is now in Carroll county- He resided here until 1832, when he again sold out and removed to Fairfield township, Highland county. In the summer of 1838, he again sold it, and. bought a farm one mile north of Kenton, Hardin county, to which he moved in the spring of 1839, and there he died October 14, 1841.

In another letter Mr. Wilkin writes: * *

Joseph Huff was the brother of my grandmother, the wife of Jacob Holmes. My grandfather, Michael Huff, had the following sons: Michael, who was killed by the Indians on the Mississippi river, in the early settlement of Illinois; Joseph, who I think died in Harrison county many years ago, not far from where his father settled in Jefferson (now
Harrison) county, and near Georgetown; William, who died near the same place; John, who died at Columbia, a short distance above Cincinnati, about 1842; Samuel, who died in Highland county about 1846; Eleazer, who died in Highland county about 1833. The old Huff Bible, that contains the record of all the Huff family, is now in possession of David C. Holmes, of Kenton, a grandson of Jacob Holmes.

Henry Howe, in his history of Ohio , written in 1847, states that in April, 1799, Alexander Henderson and family, from Washington county, Pennsylvania , "squatted" on the southwest corner of the section of land on which Cadiz stands; and at this time Daniel Peterson resided at the fork of Short creek, with his family, the only one within the
present limits of Harrison county. If this statement be true, then Joseph Huff could not have settled in Harrison county much before 1800.

Major Erkuries Beatty, father of the late Dr. Charles C. Beatty of Steubenville who was paymaster of the western army, came to the Ohio country in 1786 and 1787, in the discharge of his official duties, and kept a diary of his tours and transactions. On the 31st of July, 1786, Major Beatty set out from Pittsburgh to descend the Ohio river . On the second day afterwards, he made the following entry in his diary:

August 2. Started early, stopped opposite the mouth of Little Beaver and breakfasted with the surveyor, who is waiting for troops. Arrived at Mingo Bottom 3 o'clock, where Capt. Hamtramck's, Mc-Curdy's, and Mercer's companies encamped, and had just been mustered and inspected by Major North. Showers of rain today. The troops en-camped on the bank of the river opposite the lower end of a small island.

August 3. Waiting for Major North, who is going with me to Muskingum. About 2 o'clock two detachments from Capt. Mercer's company, one commanded by Lt. Keray, the other by Ensign Higart, marched to destroy some improvements on the river ten or fifteen miles up Short creek. "Ten or fifteen miles up Short creek" would locate this settlement which the soldiers were about to destroy, at somewhere between Adena and Georgetown, and if Major Beatty's information was exact, it would indicate that some of the hardy pioneers of that day had penetrated the wilderness and made improvements in Short Creek township as early as 1786.

The first survey of the public lands northwest of the Ohio river was that of the Seven Ranges , made in pursuance of an act of Congress of May 20, 1785. In July, 1786, the surveyors, under the direction of Thomas Hutchins, who had been appointed geographer of the United States , assembled at Pittsburgh . John Mathews, a nephew of General
Rufus Putnam, one of the surveyors, came on from Massachusetts to assist in the survey, arriving at Pittsburgh July 26, 1786.  His diary, kept during the progress of tlie survey, has been published. He spent the early part of September, 17S7, at the house of Squire MeMnhan, in Ohio (now Brooke) county, West Virginia. On the 20th, a small party proposed to cross the Ohio and go out into the woods for a few days to dig ginseng. In those early times, when the plant was plentiful, it was a source of profit to the frontier inhabitants, who had few articles to give in exchange for money, or the more valuable articles of merchandise brought out by the traders. This proved to be rather a hazardous trip, as the Indians were hostile, and killed all the white men they found encroaching on their hunting grounds.   Mathews' journal proceeds:

September 20th, 1787. A little before sunset the Squire and myself crossed the Ohio, and went about two miles, and tarried all night at House which was left by the inhabitants [who had probably fled, from fear of the hostile Indians then in the vicinity].

The ninth township of the fourth range comprises the north half of the present township of Short Creek and the south half of Green, in Harison county; and the " Big Lick " may have been the spring near which some twelve or thirteen years later Daniel Welch established his horsemill—in his day known as Beech Spring, from which the first church erected in Harrison county took its name.

The ginseng diggers proceeded westward along the ridge dividing the waters of Short creek and the Stillwater , and dug ginseng four days. Mathews says:   "It grew here in great abundance.  Men accustomed to the work could dig from forty to sixty pounds a day."

September 28. Collected our horses and prepared to start for the river. At 1 o'clock completed their loading. At sunset, encamped within about sixteen miles of the Ohio .

29th. Arrived at the river about three o'clock P. M. We were much surprised to hear that three men had been killed and one taken prisoner by the Indians, about ten miles up Cross creek, who were out after ginseng on Sunday last. Two of the party made their escape. They had also killed a family the week following, up Wheeling creek, and
done considerable other damage. While we were out we were very cureless and came on their trail, but very fortunate they did not fall in with ns. I feel very happy that I have reached my old quarters, and will give them liberty to take my scalp if they find me out after ginseng again this year. 

October 12th. This evening McMahan returned from over the river, where he had been with a party of men in pursuit of some Indians, who yesterday morning killed an old man near Fort Steuben. He did not discover them, but by the signs thought them to be seven or eight in number.

Nov. 30lh. A part of this month I have been on the west side of the Ohio , with Mr. Simpson and Colonel Martin, assisting them in the survey of the lands they bought at public sales in New York .

Dr. Thomas R. Crawford, for forty years pastor of Nottingham Church , in his book of " Reminiscences," published at Wheeling in 1887, gives the following account of an Indian fight which took place within the present boundaries of Harrison county more than a hundred years ago: 

The earliest visit of white men of which we have any account, into the territory of which this county was ultimately formed, was in the fall of 1793, when Capt. William Boggs, Robert Maxwell, Joseph Daniels, Johnson, and Miller were sent out from the old blockhouse [ Fort Henry ], located on the ground afterwards occupied by the city of
Wheeling , West Va. These men were Indian scouts and spies. They made their excursion from the mouth of Wheeling creek up to the dividing ridge, and crossed over on the evening of the second day after they left the river, to the headwaters of Stillwater , venturing rather far into the interior with so small a force. This little band of daring men struck up a fire and camped at a spring on the banks of a stream, near to the place where the old Crawford brick house now stands. The party prepared and ate their supper, and being much fatigued with the journey of two days through an unbroken wilderness, they lay down to rest around the burning embers of a camp fire, not expecting an enemy near, for they had seen no recent traces of the red man from the time they left the Fort. Soon they were wrapped in sleep, only to be awakened and
startled by the hideous yell of Indians, followed by the report of firearms. A ball took effect in the knee of Captain Boggs, which so crippled him that he was unable to flee. He called to his companions, " Make your escape, if possible, and leave me to my fate," which they did, leaving their brave leader to perish at the hands of a terrible and cruel foe.
Three out of the four that fled arrived safely at the block-house, and reported the disaster that befell their expedition. Measures were immediately taken, and a company of men was sent out in a short time to seek for the remains of Mr. Boggs. After much precaution in travel, the party found the place where the spies had encamped on that fatal night, and soon discovered the mutilated body of their captain; took up the remains and buried them a few rods northeast from the above-named spring, on one of the tributary streams of Big Stillwater, which ever after has been called "Boggs' Fork," from the name of this adventuring hut unfortunate man. It is to be regretted that all traces of the grave of this brave and trustworthy soldier have disappeared.

Some knowledge of the hardships and privations of the early settlers of Harrison county may be gathered from a biographical account, published in 1891, of Robert Cochran, who was born in what is now Dauphin county, Pennsylvania , in 1771. He came to Allegheny county with his father's family, when eighteen years of age. Shortly after the year 1803, he emigrated to Ohio , and bought eighty acres of land in what is now Harrison county, paying $200 for the same. Here he built himself a cabin of poles, daubed inside and out with mud, having a stick chimney, puncheon floor, clap-board roof, and clap-board door. Here, in winter seasons, he was joined by John Maholm, an old friend from Pennsylvania , and together they lived in Mr. Maholm's cabin, eating supper and breakfast in company, and each working on his own " clearing " during the day.

During the fall and winter of 1804-5, Mr. Cochran secured the services of a man to do his cooking, hired a mill-wright and several axemen, and erected a two-story grist-mill, worked by horse-power. No iron was used in its construction, except some strengthening bands around the trundle head and spindle; wheels and parts were all made of wood, and all hand-made, as saw-mills were unknown in the county at that day. The mill-stones were brought down the Ohio to Steubeuville and hauled across the country, the trip occupying four days. Unwieldy as it was, the mill was kept constantly going, day and night, Sundays excepted, the farmers coming for miles around to have their grinding done. It was a common sight to see men occupying the time, while waiting their turn for grinding, in throwing the tomahawk at marks attached to trees. As
time passed on, this mill was superseded by water-mills, but in dry seasons, when water failed, the neighbors were obliged to return again to Cochran's horse-mill. It was the first mill erected west of that of Daniel Welch, at Beech Spring, and in early days was of great benefit to the pioneers. The land on which Mr. Cochran settled lies about half a mile north of Cadiz , and is now occupied by his descendants.

The early pioneers came to Harrison county from Pennsylvania , Virginia , aud Maryland , but chiefly from Washington county, Pennsylvania. The journeys from localities east of the mountains were sometimes long and full of danger. The paths across the mountains were rough and difficult. Pack-horses were at first the only means of transportation; on some, the pioneers packed the stores and rude agricultural implements, and on others, the furniture, bedding, and cooking utensils, and again, on others, their wives and children. Horses which carried small children were each provided with a pack-saddle and two large creels made of hickory withes, in the fashion of a crate, one over each side, in which were stowed clothes and bedding.   In the center of each would sometimes be tucked a child or two, the top being well secured by laciug, so as to keep the youngsters in their places. The roads, frequently, were barely passable; sometimes lying along the brink of precipices; frequently overflown in places by swollen streams, all of which had to be forded; horses slipping, falling, and carried away, both women and children were often in great danger.

The creels would sometimes break and send the children rolling over the ground in great confusion. It was no uncommon thing for mother and child to be separated from each other for hours whilst on the journey to their new homes, in a wild forest, amidst beasts, and exposed to attacks by the Indians. When the pioneer reached his destination, he usually put up a brush shelter, until he could build his cabin. The latter was made of rough logs, without nail, board, or window-pane. He then turned his attention to clearing a small plot of ground on which to raise such food as was needed for the support of his family.

The food question was the all-important one with the settlers. Their hard labor resulted in giving them keen appetites, and much account was taken of the feasts, merry-making parties, and public gatherings. The quality of the food was not so much regarded as the quantity. Times were when the providential appearance of a deer averted starvation, and the fortunate catching of a fish, or the trapping of game, eked out a scanty subsistence. Journeys of many miles were made for a few pounds
of flour or meal. Their cabins contained little or no furniture; beds with no mattresses, springs, or even bed-cords—the couches, being spread upon the floor, and sleeping apartments separated by hanging blankets. About the fireplace were found hooks and trammel, the bake-pan and the kettle. Sometimes chairs were represented by sections of a tree of the required height. Upon the shelves were spoons of pewter, blue-edged plates, cups and saucers, and the black earthen tea-pot; and later, perhaps, one corner of the room was occupied by a tall clock, while in another corner stood an old-fashioned, high-post, corded bedstead, covered with an " Irish chain " quilt—a marvel of patchwork ingenuity and laborious sewing.

The following extracts from a letter written by Robert Van Horn in 1895, furnish an interesting account of the incidents of an early trip over the Allegheny mountains , made by one of the pioneer families in  Harrison county. Mr. Van Horn was born at New Athens in 1812, the son of Edward and Margaret Hamilton Van Horn.   He writes:

My grandmother's maiden name was Martha McMillan, and she had a sister, Jane, married to John Perry. My first certain knowledge of them finds Grandmother living in Nottingham township, Chester county, Pennsyvania, and Uncle John Perry near by, on the Susquehanna river, running a herring fishery. The country, though near Philadelphia , was new, and covered largely with pine forests, and the ground was strewed with the resinous knots of decayed trees, like the bones of dead animals. These knots were gathered by the poor, and laid by, to burn in the winter, instead of candles, and many an armful my mother carried home to her humble dwelling.

Part of my mother's time, when a girl, was spent in the family of her uncle, John Perry, and part of her occupation was to hunt the cows in the woods, morning and evening. Rising early, she would stick a herring in the hot ashes to roast, and when done she would take it for a morning lunch, and his away to the woods, as blithe and merry as a lark, her ears alert for the tinkling of the cow-bell. How long the families remained there, I do not know; but Uncle Perry resolved to seek a better country, if not a heavenly one; and,, like Abraham of old, he gathered up his substance, and, with his family, which was quite numerous, and my grandmother and her family, making together quite a respectable caravan, he started for the far West, a distance of some three hundred miles. Their goods seem to have been drawn by a single train, of four or six horses. There may have been more, but tradition does not say so. Perhaps the children, if not the mothers, " walked afoot." The only incident of the journey which I can recall was as follows:

On reaching the top of one of the mountains, they found the western slope, which was quite long and steep, covered with a solid sheet of ice from top to bottom, making the descent extremely perilous. A consultation was held, and, as on all similar occasions, advice was plenty, and my grandmother contributed her share in true womanly style. She wanted him to cut down a great big sapling, and tie it to the hind end of the wagon, TO HOLD IT BACK ! And old Uncle Perry, in true masculine style, after listening to this and other suggestions equally wise, went and did just as he had a mind to. He did not cut down the sapling, nor anything of the kind; but by rough-locking and careful
driving, reached the foot of the perilous descen. in safety. On reaching the bottom of the hill, he stopped the team, took off his hat, and, wiping his brow, said that he had had that hill on his mind ever since he left home.

On reaching their destination, they located in the extreme western part of Washington county, near West Middletown . Just how long they remained there, I do not know, but it must have been a number of years, for there several of the Hamilton children married and three of them died. My father and mother removed to Harrison county in 1807, with their three oldest children. And some years before, the Perrys, Gastons, Alexander Morrison, and Grandmother Hamilton, had all settled near Morris town, in Belmont county.

On Saturday, May 5th, 1900, the writer paid a visit to a native of Harrison county,who was born near Cadiz , November 5, 1800, nearly one hundred years ago. This was Thomas West, who lives on a farm near Lafayette , in Coshocton county, Ohio . He was born a few miles north of Cadiz , the son of William and Sarah Boyd West, and grandson of Morris West. His parents came to Harrison county before 1800, and settled on the farm where he was born. There they died in 1830. He was married to Eliza Tipton, of Cadiz , niece of Rev. William Tipton, in 1831; and they removed to Coshocton county about 1844.

Thomas West stated that his father went from Steubenville into what was then the backwoods of Jefferson (now Harrison ) county, and built himself a log-cabin, afterwards returning for his father (Morris West), who accompanied the family to their frontier home. At that time, and for some years afterwards, there were no roads in the county,
and the settlers found their way from place to place by means of blazed trees, or trees from which a small portion of the bark had been chopped off, so as to leave a mark. Thomas West had as a schoolmate one Philip Kail, and some of his neighbors were Samuel Maholm, Nathan and Lemuel Green, and James Forbes. He went three miles to school, making his way through the forest by means of the blazings, and could not remain for the afternoon sessions, as he had to return home before evenings in order to avoid the wolves. The United States spelling book was the principal book used in his school days. The school-houses which he attended were all log buildings, and the light was let in by means of a square hole cut out between two logs, the opening being covered with greased paper. The boys were warned by the teacher against punching
holes through the windows with their quill pens, and suffered severe punishment if caught in such an act.

The first religious meetings were held in private houses, traveling circuit riders occasionally visiting the settlement and preaching for them. When a log church was afterwards erected (now Bethel church), the services were attended by many in the neighborhood, but the attendants usually wore their every-day suits and dresses, as few of the pioneers possessed clothing that could be called "Sunday best." Man and wife usually rode to meeting together, on the back of the same horse. Clothing was generally made of coarse linen.   For winter wear, it was customary to weave the cloth with two "shots" of wool alternating with every two "shots" of tow thread. The pioneers had plenty to eat and live on, though it was a rough diet. After the first few years, they had plenty of meat and potatoes, turnips, milk, and butter—"hog and hominy, milk and butter," as Mr. West expressed it. When a small boy, his principal occupation was to pick up brush, following the men, whose labor for many years after settlement was chiefly devoted to making clearings here and there in the forest, upon which they might plant crops. One of Mr. West's earliest recollections was that of an adventure the family had with a bear. When still a small boy, his father had cleared sufficient of his land to give him a space for two fields, and had constructed a fence between, which ran from the cabin to the timber line.
While this fence was building, one day when the men had come in for their supper, an occasion arose for using the family ax, and it was found that it had been left out in the clearing, at the end of the fence. Thomas was sent out to fetch it, and ran down the field alongside the fence to where it lay. As he ran, he noticed that the family pig was running down the field on the other side of the fence, as if expecting to receive some food from the hands of the boy, as was its wont. As Thomas reached the ax, and stooped down to pick it up, he heard the pig set up a terrific squealing, and saw it held tightly between the forelegs of a large black animal, which stood up on its hind legs, and seemed to have conceived a wonderful affection for Tommie's pet piggie. At the same time, his father began to shout and to clap his hands vigorously, and by so doing succeeded in starting the bear back to the woods, where it dropped the hog between the forked limbs of a low tree, and then departed. The men got down a gun, and started into the woods, but failed to find the bear. They brought back the hog, however, but its life had been crushed out, and its back broken in three places by the bear's tight squeeze.

Pork was the chief animal food of the Harrison county pioneer. In the early days, the salted meat was packed in a trough, which was set deep in the ground near the front of the cabin door, and a clap-board top staked down over the trough, to keep wolves and other beasts from getting at its contents.   Mr. West said that when he had grown to be a man, he bought salted pork from Edward Healey, a neighbor, who told him that he hadn't seen the bottom of his meat hogshead for seven years and it was ns good meat as ever went into a man's mouth," said Mr. West. Salt was salt in those days.   It is not so good now, and it is difficult to get it of sufficient strength to keep the meat from souring."

"The ploughs were all made of wood," he proceeded, "excepting a coulter to split the ground, and a small share-point. Threshing was done with a flail. I have whipped out hundreds of bushels of wheat on the puncheon floor of a log-barn. Johnny-cake was a staple article of diet. It was baked by putting it on a smooth board and setting it before a fire, with a stone before it, to keep it from falling down. When one side was done, we turned it over, and baked the other side. Wheat bread was baked by making a hole in the earthen fire-hearth, into which the loaves were placed, the hole covered with a flat stone, and live coals heaped on the 6tone. Sometimes the wheat was 60 rank, that it made you sick to eat bread made from it, and even made the hogs sick. This may have come from poisonous herbs being ground up with the flour, but it was usually thought to be due to the wheat having too much shade while growing. In the early days, the crops were planted in small patches, wherever clearings had been made, and the patches were surrounded on all sides by the tall trees of the forest. I remember one day a distant female relative came to visit at our house at a time when the
wheat was too rank to make wholesome bread. My mother had to serve corn-bread, or Johnny-cake, and explained the reason for doing so by saying that the wheat that year was unfit for bread. Our visitor was inclined to turn up her nose at Johnny-cake, and thought my mother had invented the excuse about the wheat bread, merely to hide her poverty; so she stated that she was very fond of bread made from wheat grown on new soil, and liked no other kind so well. This nettled my mother some, as she could see from the manner of her visitor that her own hospitality was questioned; and she resolved to give her all that she desired. So my mother made up some of the new wheat flour into bread, and at the next meal let her visitor eat her fill. The result was, a very sick woman, and no doubt a wiser one. We used to go two miles to the house
of a neighbor to get our grinding done. He had a hand-mill, and sometimes it was necessary to wait for hours before our turn would come to take the mill. Later, when Bower's mill was set up [at the site of Bowerstown], I often rode horseback through the woods to that mill, with a bag of corn or wheat behind, had it ground, and carried the meal or flour home. One afternoon, while returning from the mill, I noticed a number of wild animals, like large dogs, which followed the horse, and one of them, once or twice snapped at my feet. But I was a small boy then, and my feet did not reach down very far; so I did not become uneasy. When I reached home, my parents told me that the animals which followed me were wolves, and they marvelled at my escape without injury. I had never seen wolves before, and when I found out what had chased me,
became very much frightened at my experience.

"In the early days in Harrison county, fist fights were of very frequent occurrence, and public gatherings of all kinds usually ended with a fight between one or more pairs of fighters. While I was still a little boy, my uncle, Augustus West, was forced into a fight with a bully, during the time of a camp-meeting which was held in the woods near our
house. This occurred one day after the services had been held. My uncle was standing on the grounds, talking with some of his friends, when a big, swaggering fellow came along, elbowing people out of his way, and looking and walking very much like a big Brahma rooster that is spoiling for a fight. 1 am the best man that walks the road, he said, when he reached the place where my uncle was standing with his friends. Now, my uncle was not naturally a fighting man, and I think if he had been choosing a place for a fight he would not have picked on the grounds  of a camp-meeting. But he hated a bully, and when the fellow repeated his brag, my uncle said to him in a quiet tone, 'Stranger, untried" This was enough to egg on the bully, and he struck my uncle. Then the fight began. Uncle Augustus was a short and heavy-set man, built like a Dutchman's horse, and he could parry the blows of his antagonist until he finally succeeded in 'cutting his wind.' Then he sailed into him, and very soon had him with his back on the ground.

"General musters were often held at Cadiz , and in the country near there, and I attended many of these when a young man, although not myself a member of the militia, on account of my defective hearing. One day, at muster, I saw two men fight for three-quarters of an hour. Their names were Salesman and Watson. Salesman stripped for the fight, and prepared himself for it better. Watson was dressed up, and as he was something of a dandy, would not take off his coat, nor even his stock and necktie. The kind of neckties they wore in those days were very large and cumbersome, and I do not see how Watson could have fought as he did with that cloth wound around his neck. After the fight was over, Salesman had to keep his bed for three weeks. Watson was able to get around again in a few days; and probably would not have had a scratch if he had prepared himself for the fight as the other man did.

"About the time I was married, wheat sold in Harrison county for forty cents a bushel.  A day's wages for a reaper was fifty cents, or sometimes a bushel of wheat was given for a day's work. I hired out to work one summer for a bushel of wheat a day. In the fall, when pay-day came, the price of wheat had risen to $1.00. My employer then wanted to pay me in money on the basis of the value of wheat when I began working; but of course, I could not agree to that.

"When I started for myself, the first sheep I bought cost me seventy-five cents each. At that time a good big four year old steer fetched ten dollars. Before that time, a farm laborer's wages was generally not much over twenty-five cents per day. My son-in-law has some men hired on this place where we are to-day, and pays them as much for a day's wage as men used to get for working a week and a day.

*******

The town of Cadiz was laid out by Zaccheus A. Beatty and Zaccheus Biggs, the plat being aeknowledged by Z. A. Beatty, one of the proprietors, before Benjamin Hough, Justice of the Peace, October 29, 1804, and recorded the same day at Steubenvfllo, Jefferson county. The lots were numbered, 1 to 141. The streets were South, Warren , Market, Spring, North, Muskingum, Steubenville (now Main), Ohio , and Wheeling (now Buffalo ).

The first deed for a lot was made by Zaccheus Biggs and wife, Eliza Biggs, to John Finney, the consideration being $20. The date of the deed was February 28, 1806; recorded March 4, 1806; Lot No. 4. From that date to the time of the organization of Harrison county (February 1, 1813), the following lots were sold, some of the deeds for the same appearing on the records of Jefferson county only:

John Finney, February 28, 1806, Lot 4; consideration, $20.
Phincas Ash, March, 1806, Lot 88; consideration, $44.
John Perry, March 22, 1806, Lot 22; consideration, $13.
James McMillen, April 9, 1806, Lots 74 and 75; consideration, $36.
John Pritchard, of Fayette county. Pa. , April 9, 1806, Lot 87; consideration, $27.

Martin Snyder, Aug. 11, 1806, Lot 86.
Andrew McNeely, Aug. 18, 1806 Lots 112 and 129; consideration,$70.
William Foster, before Dec. 31, 1806, Lot 13.
Sarah Young, Dec. 31, 1806, Lot 13.

John Maholm, October, 1806 (?), Lot 70; consideration, $30.
Jacob Browne, of Brooke county, Va. , Oct. 9, 1806, Lots 110 and
111; consideration, $137. 
Robert H. Johnson, Oct, 20, 1806, Lots 105 and 106.
Samuel Boyd, Nov. 7, 1806, Lot 91. 
John Pugh, of Frederick county, Va. , Dec. 8, 1806, Lot 14; con-
sideration, $30.

Joseph Harris, Dec. 31, 1806, Lot 108. 
Jacob Arnold, June 17, 1806, Lot 109; consideration $65.75.
Peter Wilson, June 25, 1807, Lot 31.
John L. Baker, Aug. 17, 1807, Lot 130; consideration, $12.
Zaccheus A. Beatty, Oct. 7, 1808, Lot 79.

Bebecca Paul, of Philadelphia , Oct. 17, 1808, Lot 69; consideration, $30.
Rudolph Hines, July 24, 1809, Lot 82.
John Ourant, of New Lisbon, July 24, 1809, Lot 102; consideration,$30.
John McGaughy, before Sept. 22, 1809, Lot 77.
William Orr, before Nov. 14, 1809, Lot 89.
John McCray, June 12, 1810, Lot 55; consideration, $40.
William Grimes, March 26, 1810, Lot 99; consideration, $30.

John Sherrard, Aug. 4, 1811, Lot 130. 
James Simpson, Dec. 5, 1810, Lot 100; consideration, $30.
William Sherrard, Aug. 4,1811, Lot 130; consideration, $14.56.
Isaac Meek, Sept. 14,1811, Lot 103.
Adam Snyder, Dec. 18,1811, Lot 144.
Samuel Jackson, Jan. 13, 1812, Lot 145.
Thomas Dickerson, Feb. 28, 1812, Lot 113; consideration, $50.

"Robert Stephens, of Fayette county, Pa. , Feb. 14, 1318, two a^res
idjoining the northwest comer of Cadiz ; consideration, $46.

William Vaughn, March 7, 1818, Lot 149. 
John McClintock, April 16, 1812, Lot 117; consideration, $30.
Easter Tingley, April 15, 1812, Lot 101.
John Pngh, Jr., April 15,1812, Lot 14.
George McFadden, April 15, 1812, Lot 83.
Charles Chapman, April 15,1812, Lot 92.

John McFadden, Samuel Carnahan, John Craig, William Hamilton,
and John Jamison, "trustees, appointed by the Associate Reformed Con-
gregation of Cadiz," April 15, 1812, Lots 58, 59, and 60 (the site of the
old Union church, now occupied as a residence by Mr. A. H. Carnahan);
consideration, $20.

Robert Cochran, April 16,1812, Lot 30. 
Nathan Adams, April 17,1812, certain lands "on the waters of Short
creek, in the town of Cadiz , being Lots 122 and 138"; consideration,
$75.50. 
Robert Kelly, April 18, 1812, Lot 4; consideration, $13.
Job Gatchel, Oct. 7,1812, Lot 54.
John Baxter, before Oct. 7, 1812, Lot 64.
Henry Pepper, Nov. 25, 1812, Lot 114.

Henry Howe's description of Cadiz in 1807, published in his Historical Collections in 1847-48, is no doubt familiar to most of the readers of this volume; and as it was taken by Mr. Howe from the lips of some of the original settlers, it gives ub the most direct account we have of the establishment of the village. While a comparison of this description with the foregoing list of lot-owners, shows that Mr. Howe's informants did not include all the first settlers in their account, the latter is especially valuable as giving us an idea of the business and occupation of many of the early fathers.   Howe's description is as follows:

Cadiz , the county seat, is a remarkably well-built and city-like town [this was in 1847], four miles southeasterly from the center of the county, 115 easterly from Columbus , twenty-four westerly from Steubenville, and twenty-four northerly from Wheeling . It contains the Presbyterian, one Methodist Episcopal, one Associate (Seceder), and one Associate Reformed church. It also contains two printing presses, twelve dry-goods, seven grocery, and two drug-stores, and had, in 1840, 1,028 inhabitants.

Cadiz was laid out in 1803, or 1804, by Messrs Biggs and Beatty. Its site was then, like most of the surrounding country, a forest, and its location was induced by the junction there of the road from Pittsburg, by Steubenville, with the road from Washington, Pa., by Wellsburg, Va., from where the two united, passed by Cambridge to Zanesville; and previous to the construction of the national road through Ohio [built in 1825-27], was traveled, more, perhaps, than any other road northwest of the Ohio river . In April, 1807, it contained the following named persons, with their families: Jacob Arnold, inn-keeper; Andrew McNeeley, hutter and justice of the peace; Joseph Harris, merchant; John Jamison, tanner; John McCrea, whccl-wright; Robert Wilkin, brick-maker; Connell Abdill, shoemaker; Jacob Myers, carpenter; John Pritchard, black-smith; Nathan Adams, tailor; James Simpson, reed-maker; William Tingley, school-teacher; and old Granny [Sarah] Young, midwife and baker, who was subsequently elected (by the citizens of the township in a fit of hilarity) to the office of justice of the peace; but females not being eligible to office in Ohio, the old lady was obliged to forego the pleasnre of serving her constituents.

The first celebration of Independence in Cadiz was on the 4th of July, 1806, when the people generally, of the town and country for miles around, attended, and partook of a fine repast of venison, wild turkey, bear meat, and such vegetables as the country afforded; while for a drink, rye whiskey was used.   There was much hilarity and good feeling.

Mr. Howe's list contains the names of but thirteen families; but the list of first lot-owners shows the names of at least twenty persons who had purchased lots or were residents of Cadiz before 1808.

It will be not without interest to locate these earliest lot-owners, so that we may be able to form some idea of the appearance of the village in 1807. It is not probable that all of the lots sold up to that time were built upon; and those on which houses stood were doubtless surrounded by forest trees, or the stumps of trees. The houses, of course, were of the rudest description, small log cabins, containing one, two, or three rooms, similar to those of which a few are still to be seen in parts of Harrison county, although by no means so well-made. Some of those log cabins are still standing in Cadiz, without a doubt, covered up and disguised by the more modern weather-boarding, and with additions and extensions built on since the days of the pioneers, but with the same eighteen inch thick walls, of oak or walnut timber, as when their sites were first
built upon.

A complete list of the original owners of each lot in Cadiz , and
additions thereto, is given herewith:

Connel Abdii, before May 18, 1832, Lot 39, (see Thomas Lee).
Nathan Adams, Nov. 14, 1809, Lot 89, (deeded by William Orr); July 24, 1811, Lot 107; before March 20, 1815, Lot 93, (see Jacob Snediker);
April 7, 1812, Lots 122 and 138, "on the waters of Short creek, in the town of Cadiz;" March 25, 1813, Lots 148 and 150, (deeded by Jacob Arnold; before Feb. 4, 1815, Lot 171, (see Benjamin Bennett); before Aug. 20, 1816, Lot 174, (see Jacob Holmes); before Dec. 18, 1818, Lots 172 and 173, (see Hines Mechan and David McGyre); before Sep. 12, 1831, Lots 175 and 176, (see James Knox); before Dec. 20, 1837, Lots  169 and 170, (see Daniel Morris). Isaac Allen, before Aug. 7, 1829, Lots 187, 188, 190, (see Reuben Allen. 
James Allen, Aug. 3, 1836, Lot 195, (deeded by Philip Trine). 

Reuben Allen, Aug. 7, 1829, Lots 187, 188, 190, (deeded bv Isaac
Allen).

Jacob Arnold, July 17, 1800, Lot 109; before Dec. 18, 1811, Lot 14 J,
(see Adam Snider); before Jan. 13, 1812, Lot 145, (see Samuel Jackson);
before March 7, 1812, Lot 149, (see William Vaughn); before May 13.
1812, Lots 142 and 143, (see John Braden); March 6,1813, Lot 21, (deed-
ed by Francis Mitchell); before March 25, 1813, LotB 148 and 150, (see
Nathan Adams).

James Arnold, before March 24,1819, Lots 191 and 192, (see Thomas
Bradford and John Mclntire); before March 29,1819, Lot 193, (see James
McElroy); before Juue 12,1819, Lots 18G and 189, (see Robert Clark and
Zebedee Cox).

Rezin Arnold, March 13, 1818, Lot 178, (deeded by Andrew McNeely). 
Phineas Ash, March —, 1806, Lot 88.
John L. Baker, Aug. 17, 1807, Lot 130. 
John Baxter, before Oct. 7,1812, Lot 54, (see John Oatchel).
Zaccheus A. Beatty, Oct. 7, 1808, Lot 79; Oct. 22, 1814, Lots 90 and
116; Oct. 24, 1814, Lot 63. 
Walter B. Beebe, May 24,1813, Lots 145, 155, and 156; Dec. 6,1819,
Lots 159,162, and 163. 
Benjamin Bennett, Feb. 4, 1815, Lot 171, (deeded by Nathan
Adams). 
George Bohrer, before March 25, 1814, Lot 40, (see John Stoakes).
Samuel Boyd, Not. 7, 1806, Lot 91.
John Braden, May 13, 1812, Lots 142 and 143, (deeded by Jacob
Arnold). 
David Bradford, June 27,1814, Lot 158.
Thomas Bradford, March 24, 1819, Lot 191, (deeded by James
Arnold). 
Jacob Brown, of Brooke county, Va. , April 9, 1806, Lot 111; July 19,
1806, Lot 110. 
Joseph Burnell, March 29, 1825, Lot 81, (deeded by William Hender-
son). 
John Burns, May 27,1815, Lot 160. 
Kins Cahill, before May 24, 1814, Lot 147, (see John Sullers).
Samnel Carnahan, April 16,1812, (see John McFadden).
Charles Chapman, April 15,1812, Lot 92; March 24,1815, Lot 104,
(deeded by John Forney). 
Kobert Clark, June 12, 1819, Lot 189, (deeded by James Arnold).
Robert Cochran, April 1G, 1812, Lot 30. 
Zebedee Cox, June 12,1819, Lot 18G, (deeded by James Arnold).
John Craig, April 16, 1812, (see John McFadden).
James Crossan, April 2, 1850, Lot 197, (deeded by William Knox).
Robert Croskey, June IS, 1814, Lot 84, (deeded by Thomas Stoakes).
Thomas Dickerson, Feb. 28,1812, Lot 113. ,
John Finney, Feb 12,180G, Lot 4, (the first lot sold in Cadiz ; deeded 
again by Zaccheus Biggs to Robert Kelly, April 18, 1812).
John Forney, before March 24, 1815, Lot 104, (see Charles Chap-
man).
William Foster, before Dec. 31, 1806, Lot 13, (see Sarah Young).
Job Gatchel, Oct. 7,1812, Lot 54, (deeded by John Baxter).
William Gilmore, before Feb. 29, 1848, Lot 153, (see James Mat-
thews).
William Grimes, March 26, 1810, Lot 99; Sept. 14, 1811, Lot 131;
April 1, 1815, Lot 120, (deeded by Thomas Henderson).
William Hamilton, April 16, 1812, (see John McFadden).
A. F. Hanna, before July 1, 1837, Lot 199, (see School Directors).
John Hanna, April 21, 1814, Lots 161 and 164.
Joseph Harris, Dec. 31, 1806, Lot 108.
Thomas Henderson, before April 1, 1815, Lot 120, (see William
Grimes).
William Henderson, before March 29, 1825, Lot 81, (see Joseph Bur-
nell).
Rudolph Hines, July 24, 1809, Lot 82.
Eleazer Huff, Feb. 15,1814, Lots 45 and 115.
William Huff, Oct. 8,1814, Lot 46.
Jacob Holmes, Aug. 20, 1816, Lot 174, (deeded by Nathan Adams).
John Hover, Sr., before June 22, 1816, Lot 165, (see John Hover,Jr.).
John Hover, Jr., June 22, 1816, Lot 165, (deeded by John Hover,Sr.).
Samuel Jackson, Jan. 13, 1812, Lot 145, (deeded by Jacob Arnold).
John Jamison, April 16, 1812, (see John McFadden).
Robert H. Johnson, Oct. 20, 1806, Lots 105 and 106.
Robert Johnson, May 5,1814, Lot 112, (deeded by Andrew McNeely).
Robert Kelly, April 16, 1812, Lot 4, (see John Finney); May 14,
1814, Lot 70, (deeded by Samuel Williams). 
James Knox, Sept. 12, 1831, Lots 175 and 176, (deeded by Nathan
Adams). 
William Knox, before Aug. 6, 1833, Lot 194, (see George White);
before June 23, 1837, Lot 196, (see Samuel McCormick); before Jan. 13,
1838, Lot 198, (see Robert McCullough); before April 2, 1850, Lot 197,
(see James Crossan). 
Thomas Lee, May 18,1832, Lot 39, (deeded by Connel Abdil).
John McClintock, April 16,1812, Lot 117.
Samuel McCormick, June 23, 1837, Lot 196, (deeded by William
Knox). 
John McCray, March 12,1810, Lot 55.
Robert McCullough, Jan. 13, 1838, Lot 198, (deeded by William
Knox). 
James McElroy, March 29,1819, Lot 193, (deeded by James Arnold).
George McFadden, April 15, 1812, Lot 83. 
John McFadden, Samuel Carnahan, John Craig, William Hamilton,
and John Jamison, "trustees appointed by the Associate Reformed Con-
gregation of Cadiz ," April 16,1812, Lots 58, 59, 60. 
James McC. Galbraith, May 2, 1815, Lot 181, (deeded by Andrew
McNeely. 
John McGaughy, Sept. 22, 1809, Lot 77; before Feb. 21, 1814, Lot
76, (see John Marshall). 
David McGyre, Dec. 28, 1818, Lot 173, (deeded by Nathan Adams).
John Mclntire, March 24,1819, Lot 192, (deeded by James Arnold).
Andrew McKee, June 30, 1819, Lot 185, (deeded by Andrew Mc-
Neely).
James McMillan, April 9, 1806, Lots 74 and 75.
Alexander McNary, May 24, 1814, Lot 157.
Andrew McNeely, Aug. 12, 180G, Lot 129; before May 5, 1814, Lot
112, (see Robert Johnson); before May 2, 1815, Lots 181 and 182, (see
James McC. Galbraith and Stephen Perry); before Sept. 11, 1816, Lot
184, (see James Moore); before March 13, 1818, Lot 178, (see Rezin Ar-
nold); before Sept. 5,1818, Lot 177, (see William R. Slemmons). 
John Maholm, Aug.-Oct., 1806, Lot 70, (see Robert Kelly and
Samuel Williams; also, Pritchard, Maholm, and Harris). 
John Marshall, Feb. 21, 1814, Lot 7G, (deeded by John McGaughy).
James Matthews, Feb. 29, 1848, Lot 153, (deeded by William Gilmore).
Bines Mechan, Dec. 28, 1818, Lot 172, (deeded by Nathan Adams). 
Isaac Meek, Sept. 14, 1811, Lot 103.
Isaac Miller, June 1, 1813, Lots 166 and 167.
Francis Mitchell, before March 6, 1813, Lot 21, (see Jacob Arnold).
James Moore, Sept. 11,1816, Lot 184, (deeded by Andrew McNeely).
Daniel Morris, Dec. 20, 1837, Lots 169 and 170, (deeded by Nathan
Adams).
William Orr, before Nov 14, 1809, Lot 89, (see Nathan Adams).
Isaac OBburn, Sept. 17,1814, Lot 53, (deeded by Eward Wood).
Samuel Osburn, Juue 5, 1813, Lot 146, (deeded by Jesse Sparks).
John Ourant, July 24, 1809, Lot 102.
Leonard Parrish, before Jan. 23, 1826, Lot 168, (see Mordecai Parrish).
Mordecai Parrish, Jan. 23, 1826, Lot 168, (deeded by Leonard Parrish).
Rebecca Paul, of Philadelphia , Oct. 17, 1808, Lot 69. 
Henry Pepper, Nov. 25, 1812, Lot 114; July 4,1815, Lots 32, 38, 47. 
John Perry (or Parry), March 22, 1806, Lot 22.
Stephen Perry May 2, 1815, Lot 182, (deeded by Andrew McNeely).
John Pritchard, of Fayette county, Pa., April 9, 1806, Lot 87; Oct.
17, 1808, Lot 85; Dec. 5,1810, 5.74 acres adjoining the plat of Cadiz, and
the land of Abraham Forney; July 13, 1815, Lots 65 and 68.
John Pritchard, John Maholm, and Joseph Harris, April 16, 1812,
Lots 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25,
26, 27, 28, 29, 34, 35, 36, 41, 42, 43, 44, 49, 50, 51, 56, 57, 60, 61, 62, 66,
67, 71, 72, 73, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 118, 119, 121, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127,
128, 132, 133, 134, 135, 136, 139, 140, 141.
John Pugh, of Frederick county, Va. , Dec. 8, 1806, Lot 14; April
14, 1808, Lots 64 and 74; Nov. 24,1809, Lot 75 and 78.
John Rankin and Samuel Rankin, June 5, 1813, Lots 33, 37, 48, 52,
(deeded by Daniel Workman).
School Directors, June 1, 1837, Lot 199, (deeded by A. F. Hanna).
John Sherrard, Aug. 4,1811, Lot 130, (originally deeded to John L.Baker).
William Sherrard, April 4, 1811, Lot 137.
Short Creek School House, April 15,1812, Lot 15.
James Simpson, Dec. 5,1810, Lot 100.
Sarah Simpson, April 22,1816, Lots 151 and 152.
William R. Slemmons, Sept. 5, 1818, Lot 177, (deeded by Andrew McNeely).
Jacob Snediker, March 20, 1815, Lot 93.
Adam Snider, Dec. 18,1811, Lot 144, (deeded by Jacob Arnold).
Martin Snyder, Aug. 11, 1806, Lot 86.
Jesse Sparks, before June 5, 1836, Lot 146, (see Samuel Osburn).
Robert Stephens, of Fayette county. Pa. , Feb, 4, 1812, two acres
adjoining the northwest corner of Cadiz .
John Stoakes, March 25, 1814, Lot 34, (deeded by George Bohrer).
Thomas Stoakes, before June 18,1814, Lot 84, (see Robert Croskey).
Henry Stubbins, Oct. 20, 1827, Lot 179, (deeded by Andrew McNeely).
John Sullers, May 24,1814, Lot 147, (deeded by Kins Cahill).
Abraham Timmons, May 18, 1822, Lot 5.
Benjamin Timmons, May 10,1819, Lot 180, (deeded by William Tim-
mons).
William Timmons, before May 10, 1849, Lot 180, (see Benjamin
Timmons).
Easter Tingley, April 15, 1812, Lot 101.
Philip Trine, before Aug. 3, 1836, Lot 195, (see James Allen).
William Vaughn, March 7,1812, Lot 149, (deeded by Jacob Arnold).
John Ward, Aug. 15,1815, Lot 80, (deeded by Daniel Workman).
George White, Aug. 6, 1833, Lot 194, (deeded by William Knox).
Samuel Williams, before May 14,1814, Lot 70, (see Robert Kelly and
John Maholm).
Peter Wilson, June 25, 1807, Lot 31.
Edward Wood, before Sept. 17,1814, Lot 53, (see Isaac Osburn).
Daniel Workman, before June 5,1813, Lots 33, 37, 48, 52, (see John
and Samuel Rankin); before Aug. 15, Lot 80, (sec John Ward).
Sarah Young, Dec. 31, 1806, Lot 13, (deeded by William Foster).

In the foregoing list it will be observed that on April 16, 1812, all the lots remaining unsold in the original plat were conveyed to Pritchard, Maholm, and Harris. Joseph Harris transferred his interest in these lots to John Pritchard and John Maholm, who later conveyed them as follows:
John Burn.-, Lot 97, May 27, 1815.
James McC. Galbraith, Lots 66 and 67, Sept. 3, 1817.
William Grimes, Lot 136, May 24, 1814.
John Hanna, Lots 125, 126, and 141, June 29, 1814.
Conrad Ililligas, Lots 28, 42, and 43, June 18,1814.
Pbineas Inskeep, Lots 1, 2, 1G, 17,18, 19, June 10,1814.

William Jamison, Lots 118,133, and 134, July 25,1814.
Robert Kelley, Lots 8, 10, 25, 26, 27, May 14, 1814.
Jacob Kidwiler, Lot 50, April 4, 1817.
Samuel McFadden, Lot 73, June 18,1819.
Andrew McXeely, Lots 119, 132, and 135, May 27, 1814.
James Means, Lot 121, Aug. 17, 1816; Lots 94, 95, and 96, Aug. 29,
1818. 
Trustees Methodist Episcopal Church, Lot 3, April 20, 181ft.
John Pugh, Lots 57 and 61, Jan. 20,1815.

Zachariah Pumphrey, Lot 12, June 10,1814; Lots 56 and 62, before Aug. 31,1816, (see Michael Swagler); Lot 71, Jan. 6,1817; Lot 6, March
7,1817; 1M 23, before March 27, 1817, (see Joseph White).
John and Sumuel Rankin, Lots 34, 35, 36, June 14, 1814.
John Rea, Lots 29, 41, and 44, May 3, 1817.
Philip Riley, Lot 98, April 22, 1816.
Thomas Shaw, Lot 72, July 25, 1814.
Sarah Simpson, Lots 128 and 139, April 22,1816.