COLUMBIA COUNTY OHIO - MORRIS/MILLER History Chapter 3 (published 1873)
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"HISTORY OF THE MORRIS AND MILLER FAMILIES" By Morris Miller  1873
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         		Chapter 3
	First Acquaintance of William Stokes

	As I mentioned on a preceding page, the delight that 
Isaac Morris manifested in entertaining emigrants and 
hearing orally from his eastern relations, I have so far 
omitted one particular cast that should have appeared 
before.

	About the year 1797 a man in London by the name of 
William Stokes, a particular acquaintance of Benjamin West, 
wished to emigrate to America and requested West to give 
him a letter of introduction to some of his relations in 
Pennsylvania. Stokes’ plan was to come over himself and 
leave his wife and two children until he made a purchase 
and some improvement and then send for them. West, having 
full confidence in the energy and honesty of his friend 
Stokes, gave him a letter of introduction to his brother 
Samuel West, who then resided near the old partition of 
their father’s. Stokes arrived with the letter and was 
kindly received by Samuel, who was always pleased to hear 
so directly from his brother Benjamin.

	After considering Stokes’ object in all its bearing, 
they concluded he had better go west and relocate, as the 
territory of Ohio was then opening to settlers. Samuel 
advised him to take a letter of recommendation to his 
nephew Isaac Morris in western Pennsylvania, he being a 
farmer and having been a resident there for ten or twelve 
years, he thought he would be the most suitable person to 
assist him in selecting a location. Stokes took the letter 
and wended his way over the mountains on foot until he came 
to the residence of Isaac Morris. It being autumn and the 
roads good, he got along very comfortably in his long walk.

	As he was an entire stranger, he presented the letter 
to Isaac Morris, who, not being educated to read, requested 
to read, requested Stokes to read it for him. On hearing 
its contents a very hearty greeting ensued, so glad was 
Isaac to hear from his old uncle that he lost no time in 
testing the stranger’s sincerity. He could not read 
letters, but possessed a vivacity of discrimination in 
reading a stranger through, as quickly and correctly as 
those skilled in the rudiments of higher education.

	As the shades of evening were drawing on and the kind 
courtesy of welcome given to the stranger, Isaac wished to 
be excused for a little time. He had some fires in a field 
below the house that he wished to right before it got dark 
and he would be in presently.

	"May I go along?" said Stokes. "Oh, no," was the 
reply, "thee must be weary from thy long journey, and 
perhaps hungry. I will be in soon and we will have some 
supper."

	"Nay," said he, "I am not much tired and would like 
to go along." So Isaac consented and off they went. Their 
job was a very particular one. The surface of the field was 
of an oval form and in full view of the house with the 
public road between them. In taking the deadened timber off 
Isaac had planned it so that each trunk should butt off the 
stump, we he wished to have the ground entirely free from 
stumps; hence, it took more frequent attention than common 
log heaps. They got through with what was in process of 
burning and returned to the house and enjoyed the evening 
with much satisfaction as their little work had rendered 
them social. Isaac was an early riser, and being awake next 
morning watching for the first ray of day, observed an 
unusual light beaming through his chamber window. Rising to 
learn the cause, he beheld his fires in the field all aglow 
in the most brilliant manner. Stokes had risen quietly and 
had the fires in the elegant trim. He was asked why he had 
thus troubled himself. He replied, "I expect to settle in 
the woods and I want to learn all I can." That 
circumstance established a friendship between those two men 
that no deed or event was allowed to interrupt. Isaac was 
so well pleased with his guest that he proposed to him that 
if he would sojourn a few days until he could put his farm 
work in shape to leave, that he would go over to the 
territory of Ohio, where they could probably make the most 
judicious selection, as a Land Office had recently been 
opened in the (then) small village of Steubenville. They 
crossed the river near that place, made a selection and 
purchase of a tract of land about 11 miles north of 
Steubenville, in Knox Township, a little south of 
Knoxville.

	Whether Stokes remained there at that time to build his 
camp and commence his improvements, I have no knowledge, 
but the current impression is that he remained there about 
a year and then went east to meet his wife and children and 
conduct them to his intended habitation.

	I have thus introduced William Stokes to my readers. As 
he was widely known to the Miller and Morris families, we 
shall speak of him hereafter.