DESCRIPTION

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delivered by Governor Noyes and the Honorable Samuel F. Hunt.

JUSTICE OF THE PEACE.

EARLY SETTLEMENT

     In 1796, the advance guard of German colony arrived from Norristown, Pennsylvania, all members of a Pietist church, which was offensive to the authorities in their native land, and from their connection with it they were compelled to leave the country.  Then, and within three years, the following named came:  Christian Waldschmidt (commonly Waldsmith), Ludwig Freiberger, George Harner, Johannes Kugler, Andreas Freis, Wilhelm Lauden, Joseph Bohne, Jacob Lefeber, Hans Leckie, Christian Ogg, Friederick Beckenbach, Kasper Spaeth, Samuel Ruethi, Hans Rodecker, Valentine Weigans, Hans Maddern, Daniel Prisch, Samuel Bachenheim (Buckingham), Andreas Orth, Johannes Montag.  They stopped for a time at Columbia, exploring the back country, and presently decided upon locating at the tract since known as "Big Bottom."  Waldschmidt and Harner were the moneyed men of the party, and they made purchases from Judge Symmes of a sufficient quantity for the entire colony, getting most of it for about one dollar per acre.  The following account of the journey and settlement is given by Mr. Thomas Fitzwater, a descendant of William Fitzwater, who settled in Clermont county.  Mr. Fitzwater was a little boy at the time.  The narrative is given in the History of Clermont county, recently published:

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     Another note of operations in this region in the early day is found in the Cincinnati Almanac of 1811, which says that October 10th of the previous year a company had been formed at Round Bottom, thirteen miles from Cincinnati, with one thousand shares of stock of fifty dollars each.  The directors of the company were Andrew Megrue, Thomas Sloo, Jacob Broadwell, Michael Debolt, James C. Morris, William Lytle, John Smith, William Bradley, Enoch Buckingham, Thomas R. Ross, Thomas Heckewelder.  Mr. Broadwell was president, and Mr. Sloo, cashier of the company.
     About the same time the Bockenheims, or Buckinghams, had a small saw-mill on the bank of the Little Miami, opposite Miamiville.
     Elsewhere, further north on the Little Miami, the Cincinnati Paper Fabric company has its buildings.

     JABEZ REYNOLDS, oldest child of William and Elizabeth Reynolds, was born in Washington county, Rhode Island, Jan. 31, 18103, emigrated to Pennsylvania in the year 1829, and remained there until the year 1832, when he came to Cincinnati, Hamilton county, Ohio, and has been a resident of the county since that time.  He was married to Miss Mercy Oatley, daughter of John and Susan Oatley, of South Kingston, Washington county, Rhode Island, Mar. 22, 1825.  The fruit of this union was ten children:  William B., born May 17, 1826; Elizabeth, born Feb. 16, 1828; Lydia, born June 26, 1830; William, born Dec. 20, 1832; Charles O., born Apr. 25, 1835; Jabez, born Dec. 4, 1836; Caroline E. born Jan. 26, 1838; Mercy, born Nov. 3, 1840; Jabez, born Apr. 25, 1843; Thomas H., born Sept. 13, 1845.  Of these, but five are still living - Lydia, William, Mercy, Jabez, and Thomas H. - all married.  Lydia married William Phipps, and is a resident of Norwood, Hamilton county, Ohio.  William married Bell Ashcraft, and is a resident of Bond Hill, Hamilton county, Ohio.  Mercy married Hiram D. Rodgers, and is a resident of Linwood, Hamilton county, Ohio.  Jabez married Miss Estella Sanders, and is a resident of New York.  Thomas H. married twice - first to E. P. Pullen; the second time he married Adelia B. Conklin, and is a resident of Bond Hill, Hamilton county, Ohio.  Mr. Reynolds is a member of the Quaker church.

     JONATHAN T. MARTIN

     JOHN E. RUDE

     OLIVER P. BUCKINGHAM

     WILLIAM B. CUNNINGHAM

     RACHEL PRICE, seventh child of Frederick Buckingpaugh, was born in Symmes township, Hamilton county, Feb. 18, 1808, and has been a resident of the county all her life.  She was married to Nimrod Price, January 19, 1823.   To them have been born ten children - Martha J., Marcus S., Marious B., Amanda M., Malen F., John N., Milton D., Ennis J., Albert P. and William P.  Of them nine are living, Albert being dead.  Mrs. Price is a member in the Universalist church.  She has reached the ripe old age of seventy-four years.

     LEVI BUCKINGHAM

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     WILLIAM S. BUCKINGHAM

     MARIA BUCKINGHAM, daughter of Levi Buckingham, was born in Symmes township, Hamilton county, Aug. 6, 1818, and has always been a resident of this county.  She now lives on part of the section of land on which her father settled in 1794.  She superintends her own farm.

     HORACE BUCKINGHAM

     HENRY NENFARTH, JR.

     HENRY NENFARTH, SR.

     CHARLES J. LINK

     JACOB KLICK

     PHILIP WELLER

     GEORGE MILLER

     PHILIP SAUERBACK

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     JONATHAN T. MARTIN

     ROBERT WALKER

     ANA ENYART

     NICOLAS REMBIS

     GEORGE W. BROWN

     JOSEPH JONES emigrated from Pennsylvania to Hamilton county in the year 1791, and was still a resident of this county at the time of his death, Jan. 22, 1815.  He was married to Miss Mary Covalt, daughter of Captain Abijah Covalt, in September of 1792.  They had twelve children: Evan W., Isaiah, Jonathan, Sarah, Joseph, Nancy, Joel, Mary, Reason, Elizabeth H., Ephraim C., and Sidney.  Of these only three are now living - Mary, Reason, and Elizabeth H.  Mary married David Vhoris, and is a resident of Iowa.  Elizabeth married William C. Wycoff and lives on the old home, and has her brother living with her.  Their children are Ada, Laurinsky, Verner E. and Clarence C.  Only Ada is living.  Mrs. Mary Jones died Dec. 8, 1851, at the advanced age of seventy-nine years.  Mr. and Mrs. Wycoff and Mr. Jones are all members of the Baptist church.

     JOSIAH HARPER, son of John and Mary Harper, was born in this township, Mar. 11, 1821, and has since remained a resident of the county.  He was married to Miss Elizabeth Roosy, daughter of Jacob Roosy, in June 1843.  She died in 1879, aged fifty-five years.  He has served ten years as township trustee, the last being the year 1876.  He is a member of t he United Brethren church and is considered one of its best supporters.  During the last few years he has been employed in farming, but previous to that time worked at the blacksmith's trade.

CAMP DENNISON

ALLANDALE.

GLENWOOD

is another station on the Marietta & Cincinnati, about at the centre of section thirty-two, a mile and a quarter northeast of Allandale.  It likewise has no regular survey and plat.

REMINGTON

is a small village at the terminus of the roads from Montgomery to the railroad and river, a mile east of north from Glenwood, and with

MONTGOMERY STATION

in its immediate vicinity.

SYMMES STATION.

     This was formerly called Polktown, and is much the oldest village in the township.  It was laid off May 6, 1817, by James Pollock, who was the first settler in this region, having bought his land here, several hundred acres, of Judge Symmes in 1795.  The first regular grist-mill established on the Little Miami - Elliott's or "the company's" moo - was situated here, not far from the site of the present mill.  The village, in the early days, as a point of rendezvous for travellers, adventurers, and

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WEST LOVELAND

is virtually an addition to the village of Loveland, the latter on the Clermont, the former on the Hamilton county side.  Most of the population, and all of the public institutions, are on the Clermont side.  The Hamilton side covers but fifty-eight acres, and had a population in 1880 of one hundred and ninety-seven.

SYCAMORE CHURCH

POPULATION.

     Symmes township has grown in population rather slowly.  It has one thousand, one hundred and fifty-eight inhabitants in 1830; but two hundred and nineteen more, or one thousand three hundred and seventy-seven in 1870; and four hundred and fifty-eight more, or one thousand six hundred and twenty-six, the tenth census, or that of 1880.

END OF SYMMES TOWNSHIP -