SENECA COUNTY OHIO - HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS OF OHIO *********************************************************************** OHGENWEB NOTICE: All distribution rights to this electronic data are reserved by the submitter. Reproduction or re-presentation of copyrighted material will require the permission of the copyright owner. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/oh/ *********************************************************************** File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Gina Reasoner greasoner@prodigy.net November 14, 1999 *********************************************************************** HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS OF OHIO By Henry Howe, LL.D. SENECA COUNTY - Part 1 SENECA COUNTY was formed from old Indian Territory, April 1, 1820, organized April 1, 1824, and named from the tribe who had a reservation within its limits. The surface is level, and the streams run in deep channels. The county is well watered, has considerable water-power, and the soil is mostly a rich loam. It was settled principally from Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New York, and by some few Germans. The principal farm products are wheat, corn, grass, oats, potatoes and pork. Area, about 540 square miles. In 1887 the acres cultivated were 219,543; in pasture, 26,352; woodland, 58,716; lying waste, 1,447; produced in wheat, 969,701 bushels; rye, 9,777; buckwheat, 400; oats, 834,806; barley, 10,407; corn 1,240,246; meadow hay, 24,699 tons; clover hay, 8,369; flax, 12,900 lbs. fibre; potatoes, 87,584 bushels; butter, 686,237 lbs.; cheese, 5,800; sorghum, 2603 gallons; maple syrup, 10,489; honey, 3,848 lbs.; eggs, 553,716 dozen; grapes, 6,746 lbs.; wine, 226 gallons; sweet potatoes, 99 bushels; apples, 21,815 bushels; peaches, 2,735; pears, 1,746; wool, 287,003 lbs.; milch cows owned, 8,737. Ohio Mining Statistics, 1888. - Limestone, 21,155 tons burned for lime; 27,500 cubic feet of dimension stone; 13,226 cubic yards of building stone; 35,076 cubic yards of ballast or macadam. School census, 1888, 11,718; teachers, 361. Miles of railroad track, 172. TOWNSHIPS AND CENSUS 1840 1880 Adams 1,250 1,624 Big Spring 926 2,048 Bloom 1,168 2,162 Clinton 2,197 9,581 Eden 1,472 1,598 Hopewell 913 1,631 Jackson 596 1,399 Liberty 1,084 2,157 London 763 4,315 Pleasant 974 1,317 Reed 1,214 1,527 Scipio 1,556 1,836 Seneca 1,393 1,519 Thompson 1,411 1,901 Venice 1,22 2,231 Population of Seneca in 1830, 5,157; 1840, 18,139; 1860, 30,868; 1880, 36,947; of whom 26,945 were born in Ohio; 3,154, Pennsylvania; 905, New York; 350, Virginia; 214, Indiana; 27, Kentucky; 2,402 German Empire; 339, Ireland; 159, France; 141, England and Wales; 131, British America; 11, Scotland, and 6, Sweden and Norway. Census, 1890, 40,869. Fort Seneca, a military post built in the war of 1812, was nine miles north of the site of Tiffin. It was a stockade with a ditch, and occupied several acres on a plain, on the bank of the Sandusky. Some vestiges of the work yet (1846) remain. It was only a few miles above Fort Stephenson, and was occupied by Harrison's troops at the time of the attack on the latter. While here, and just prior to Perry's victory, Gen. Harrison narrowly escaped being murdered by an Indian, the particulars of which we derive from his memoirs. PERIL OF GENERAL HARRISON. The friendly Indians of the Delaware, Shawanese and Seneca tribes had been invited to join him. A number had accepted the invitation, and had reached Seneca before the arrival of the Kentucky troops. All the chiefs, and no doubt the greater part of the warriors were favorable to the American cause; but before their departure from their towns, a wretch had insinuated himself among them, with the intention of assassinating the commanding general. He belonged to the Shawanese tribe, and bore the name of Blue Jacket; but was not the celebrated Blue Jacket who signed the treaty of Greenville, with Gen. Wayne. He had formerly resided at the town of Wapakoneta; he had, however, been absent for a considerable time and had returned but a few days before the American army. He informed the chiefs that he had been hunting on the Wabash, and at this request, he was suffered to join the party which were about to march to Seneca. Upon their arrival at M'Arhtur's block-house, they halted and encamped for the purpose of receiving provisions from the deputy Indian agent, Col. M'Pherson, who resided there. Before their arrival at that place, Blue Jacket had communicated to a friend (a Shawanese warrior), his intention to kill the American general, and requested his assistance; this his friend declined and endeavored to dissuade him from attempting it, assuring him that it could not be done without the certain sacrifice of his own life, as he had been at the American camp and knew that there was always a guard round the general's quarters who were on duty day and night. Blue Jacket replied that he was determined to execute his intention at any risk, that he would kill the general if he was sure that his guards would cut him in pieces not bigger than this thumb nail. No people on earth are more faithful in keeping secrets than the Indians, but each warrior has a friend from whom he will conceal nothing; luckily for Gen. Harrison, the friend of the confidant of Blue Jacket was a young Delaware chief named Beaver, who was also bound to the general by the ties of friendship. He was the son of a Delaware war chief of the same name, who had with others been put to death by his own tribe, on the charge of practicing sorcery. Gen Harrison had been upon terms of friendship with the father, and had patronized his orphan boy, at that time ten or twelve years of age. He had now arrived at manhood and was considered among the most promising warriors of his tribe; to this young chief the friend of Blue Jacket revealed the fatal secret. The Beaver was placed by this communication in an embarrassing situation, for should be disclose what he had heard, he betrayed his friend, than which nothing could be more repugnant to the feelings and principles of an Indian warrior. Should he not disclose it, consequences equally or even more to be deprecated were likely to ensue - the assassination of a friend, the friend of his father, whose life he was bound to defend, or whose death to revenge by the same principle of fidelity and honor which forbade the disclosure. While he was yet hesitating, Blue Jacket came up to the Delaware camp somewhat intoxicated, vociferating vengeance upon Col. M'Pherson, who had just turned him out of his house, and whom he declared he would put to death for the insult he had received. The sight of the traitor aroused the indignation and resentment of the Beaver to the highest pitch. He seized his tomahawk, and advancing toward the culprit. "You must be a great warrior," said he; "you will not only kill this white man for serving you as you deserve, but you will also murder our father, the American chief, and bring disgrace and mischief upon us all; but you shall do neither, I will serve you as I would a mad dog." A furious blow from the tomahawk of the Beaver stretched the unfortunate Blue Jacket at his feet, and a second terminated his existence; "There," said he to some Shawanese who were present, "Take him to the camp of his tribe, and tell them who has done the deed." The Shawanese were far from resenting it; they applauded the conduct of the Beaver, and rejoiced at their happy escape from the ignominy which the accomplishment of Blue Jacket's design would have brought upon them. At the great treaty which was held at Greenville in 1815 Gen. Cass, one of the commissioners related the whole of the transaction to the assembled chiefs, and after thanking the Beaver, in the name of the United States, for having saved the life of their general, he caused a handsome present to be made him out of the goods which he had sent for the purpose of the treaty. It is impossible to say what was the motive of Blue Jacket to attempt the life of Gen. Harrison: he was not one of the Tippecanoe Shawanese, and therefore could have no personal resentment against the general. There is little doubt that he came from Malden when he arrived at Wapakoneta, and that he came for the express purpose of attempting the life of the general; but whether he was instigated to it by any other person or persons, or had conceived the idea himself, has never been ascertained. Upon the arrival of the chiefs at Seneca, the principal war chief of the Shawanese requested permission to sleep at the door of the general's marquee, and this he did every night until the embarkation of the troops. This man, who had fought with great bravery on our side in the several sorties from Fort Meigs, was called Capt. Tommy; he was a great favorite of the officers, particularly the general and Commodore Perry, the latter of whom was accustomed to call him the general's Mameluke. The Senecas of Sandusky - so called - owned and occupied forty thousand acres of choice land on the east side of Sandusky river, being mostly in this and partly in Sandusky county. Thirty thousand acres of this land was granted to them on the 29th of September, 1817, at the treaty held at the foot of Maumee Rapids, Hon. Lewis Cass and Hon. Duncan M'Arthur being the commissioners of the United Stated. The remaining 10,000 acres, lying south of the other, was granted by the treaty at St. Mary's concluded by the same commissioners on the 17th of September, in the following year. By the treaty concluded at Washington city, February 28, 1831, James B. Gardiner being the commissioner of the general government, these Indians ceded their lands to the United States, and agreed to remove southwest of Missouri, on the Neosho river. -continued in part 2