THIS township was organized on the
7th day of December, 1824, as already stated. The
first election was held on Christmas day, the same year, at
the house of Joseph Pool. Joseph Rosenberger, John
Stover and Nathan Cadwallader were elected as
trustees; James Gordon, clerk; John Stoner,
treasurer. Robert and John Shippy and
John Chaney were also early settlers.
In 1830 the population was 549; in 1840 it had
increased to 918, in 1870 it was 1,477, and in 1880 it is
1,635.
Hopewell is also a wealthy township. The soil is
very fertile and the drainage is yearly improving it.
On the first of February, 1837, Mr. John Miller
laid out the town of Bascom. Geroge W. Gist was
the surveyor. It is located on section seventeen.
Bascom is a station on the Baltimore & Ohio railroad.
Agreen Ingraham, Jacob S. Jennings, John Sleeper,
David Cover, James Mathews, John Baughman, Peter Lonsway,
Peter Young, Aaron Ruse, C. Weikert, Thomas Elder, Philip
King, Joseph Ogle, Thomas Rickets and others were also
among the early settlers here.
The Coldwater railroad had also been constructed
through this township, and the iron laid. The project
was abandoned and teh iron taken up, never to be laid down
again (?).
On the 6th day of August, 1836, Samuel Waggoner
laid out a town by James Durbin, surveyor, on section
sixteen, which he called Hopewell, but no trace of it can be
found. It never flourished.
Among the distinguished men who died in Hopewell was
Joseph McClelland, one of teh old Seneca county
pioneers. He was born in Mifflin county, Pennsylvania,
Aug. 25, 1787, and was married in Ross county, Ohio, in or
near Chillicothe, in the early part of 18115. He moved
to Shelby county, Kentucky, in the same year. His wife
was Jane Boyd sister of Thomas Boyd, one of the old
county commissioners.Page 541 -
Mr. McClelland moved to
Bloom township in 1822 and settled on section three.
In 1838 he moved to Silver creek, settling on section
nineteen. In 1854 he moved to Hopewell, where he
settled on section thirty-five, and there died at the age of
seventy-two years, four months and thirteen days.
Mr. McClelland was a stout, active and
industrious man, faithful to his promises and prompt in the
payent of his debts. He took a deep interest in all
public affairs and held the office of county commissioner
six years, having been elected in 1842 and in 1845. He
lived and died in the enjoyment of the love and respect of
all his neighbors and a host of friends.
SAMUEL SMITH.
JOHN MAULE.
Page 542 -
GEORGE SLOSSER
PETER SLOSSER
Page 543 -
JOSEPH OGLE.
The road that runs from Tiffin to Fostoria was surveyed
along a ridge, and on the highest ground that runs east and
west through this township. Along on this ridge and on
the banks of the Wolf creeks the first settlements were
made. The east branch of Wolf creek runs longitudinal
with the river in its general course. Near the
southwest corner of section one another branch puts into it
from the west. Near the north line of section
twenty-three another branch of Wolf creek puts into this
east branch.
Williard Sprague and Charles and
John Chaney had a
lease on section sixteen, known as Hopewell Center. These men, with
their families, were probably the first settlers in the township.
Mr. Peter Schultz now owns the southeast quarter of the section.
Joseph Ogle came to Tiffin on the 15th of June, 1824, and very soon
thereafter bought from James Aiken the southwest quarter of section
twenty-three, which has ever since been known as the Ogle farm. When
he landed in Tiffin he rented a cabin from Mr. A. Ingraham, and
underbrushed a road to his land on Wolf creek. Mr. Ogle's family was
the third family that landed in Tiffin after the organization of this
county. George Park, Horton Howard and
David Bishop were here. Thomas Loyd also, who was then a single man.
Mr. Hedges brought on
his family about that time. Eben Mills had about thirty acres
cleared on land near Mr. Ogle, which he leased to Ogle on shares.
During this
Page 544 -
year Ogle built a cabin on his land and moved into it in 1826,
in April and cleared a few acres that year. Thomas Ogle, the oldest
son of Joseph, says he cut the first tree on the land. It was not
much of a tree and Thomas was not much of a boy then. Mr. Ogle
helped to build the first school house in this township. It was put
up on the southeast quarter of the school section, some two and one-half
miles form the Ogle place. Sprague and Charles Chaney split the pungeon for the floor.
Mr. Chenowith and John Chaney built the stick
chimney. Abraham Miller and Joseph Ogle put up the desks and
benches. These were none of your patent benches, by any means, but
were constructed in this manner: Two-inch auger holes were bored
into the logs along the sides and sticks driven into them about two feet
long. Loose clapboards were laid onto these sticks, and the desk was
done. The seats were pungeon benches. Mr. Chenowith was the
first schoolmaster in the township, and taught in this school house.
Reading, writing and spelling constituted a full course. Mr.
Ogle
had a son born to him while he lived on the Mills place, and when the
family moved into the new cabin, Mrs. Ogle was removed to the house of
Squire Plane, in Tiffin, with her babe, to remain there until the cabin
was dry enough for her to come home in safety. The youngest child,
Benj. F. Ogle, was born in the new cabin.
When Mr. Ogle came here, two years before the Hart
family, Bartholomew Shaull and John A. Rosenberg lived further down the
creek. Nathan Cadwalader lived up the creek, in section thirty-four.
The Daughtertys were also here then. One of the Daugherty girls was
married to George Park, in Tiffin, and another to Samuel
Hoaglin.
In the spring of 1825, after Hedges' mill first
commenced running, they had a sort of celebration there. Mr.
Ogle
and William Stripe hitched up their ox-teams, and Mr.
Hedges' ox-team was
also hitched up. The women got into the wagons, the men drove the
teams and walked to the mill. Here they had a lunch and a general
good time. Some washed themselves in corn-meal, and threw meal into
each other's faces. It was fun of that peculiar kind, but
nevertheless a celebration.
When Mr. Ogle settled on Wolf creek they lived on corn,
which they could get no nearer than Upper Sandusky. He and his son,
Thomas, rode horseback to the plains, and bought two bags full of corn,
each rider having a bag before him. The trip took two days.
Upon their return the corn was taken to Moore's mill, near Lower Sandusky,
to be ground into meal, which took two days more. Upon their return
from the mill they had three bushels of meal, less the toll. A large
family
Page 545 -
would soon get away with that quantity of meal, especially when it
was bread and dinner for them all.
In the fall of 1826 Thomas Brandt and another Indian
came into Ogle's cabin and wanted bread. Brandt was drunk and drew a
tomahawk to strike Mrs. Ogle, but the other Indian stopped him.
The wolves were very plenty, and one evening while Mrs.
Ogle was milking the cows near the cabin, a lot of them came close to her,
howling, which scared her very much. One evening as the boys were
returning from spelling school, the wolves got after them and followed
them to the house.
Mr. Ogle described to the writer the situation of the
brush dam and and saw mill of Spencer, and did old fort and stockade then
still in good condition.
Joseph Ogle was born in Frederick city, Maryland,
February 7, 1781. His father was one of the proprietors of the town.
He was married October 15, 1809, in Mechanicstown, Frederick county,
Maryland. They lived on the old Ogle farm, in Frederick county, a
while, when they moved to Hagerstown, where he kept tavern; then returned
and bought the Ogle farm, sold it afterwards and came to Seneca county.
When he died in January, 1864, he was eighty-three
years and eleven months old.
He cleared 130 acres of land on his farm here, and
raised eight children, two having died in childhood.
Mrs. Ogle died in 1876, eighty-seven years old.
Six of their children are still living.
- END OF CHAPTER XXXIV - HOPEWELL
TOWNSHIP - |
