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CHAPTER XXXIII.
ERECTION OF THE COURT HOUSE -
COMMISSIONERS' PROCEEDINGS - PATTERSON'S
MILL - A HORSE-THIEF AND HIS PUNISHMENT -
THE COLLEGE TOWNSHIP ROAD - ORGANIZATION OF
UNION TOWNSHIP - ELECTION RETURNS FOR 1809.
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snake, thence with the meanderings of said
creek as far as formerly.” The rates
of tavern licenses were adjusted again at
this term, by which the price in the county
generally was fixed at seven dollars per
annum, with the exceptions of Hillsboro, and
on the College township road, where the rate
was fixed at ten dollars. Many will
doubtless inquire not only where the College
township road was in Highland, but why the
price of tavern license was fixed at so high
a rate on it. The College township
road, it will be remembered, was one of the
first roads opened through the county.
It was opened by order of the Commissioners
of Ross county, in 1799, while that included
not only all of the present county of
Highland, but much of those adjoining on the
north and west. The immediate object
of the road at that day was to secure a
direct communication between Chillicothe and
the rich country on the Miamis, then the
nearest settlement of any note to that
place. After the State was" admitted
into the Union, the route was made the line
of a State road by order of the State Road
Commissioners, and opened up to the township
of land secured by the United States, by the
act of admission, to Ohio for educational
purposes. This township is now named
Oxford. It was for many years,
however, known as the College township,
hence the name of the road when established
as a State road. This road passed from
Chillicothe through Greenfield and on west
through the present towns of Monroe,
Leesburg, New Lexington, in the present
boundaries of Highland, thence past
Morgantown, Snow Hill, Lebanon, and on to
College township. For many years this
road was the great thoroughfare west from
Chillicothe — the east, indeed almost the
entire travel and emigration passing on
Zane’s trace from Wheeling west, traveled
this route as the best and nearest to the
rich bottoms of the two Miamis, and as early
as the date of which we speak (1809) all the
taverns on the road, and they were quite
abundant, were crowded every night in the
spring, summer and fall seasons.
Persons traveling on horseback. to look at
the country, or hunt up their land —
families moving from the old States in
wagons, and others packing on horses, were
almost hourly passing. The College
township road continued long after to be the
principal road between Cincinnati and
Chillicothe, and numbers of the Cincinnati
merchants going over the mountains to
purchase goods, with their pack horses
ladened with Spanish dollars, were yearly
travelers over this road and frequently
sojourners for the night at the small
taverns then kept in Greenfield. These
taverns were nightly crowded and, of course,
did a thriving business and could afford to
pay a liberal price for their license.
The county tax for this year was fixed its follows by
the Board at this session, to-wit: Horses,
&c., three years old, twenty-two cents each,
cattle over three years old seven and one
half cents.
On the 17th of July, 1809, the Board of Commissioners
held a special session in Hillsborough, at
which time they ordered “that there be a
township laid off by the name of Union and
bounded as follows, to-wit: Beginning where
the old Mad River road crosses the Anderson
State road, thence running a northerly
course so as to include Joshua
Hussey’s, thence on the same direction
to the Highland county line, thence westerly
along said county line to the Warren county
line, thence with the said line to where it
joins the Clermont county line, at the
crossing of said State road, thence with
said State road to the beginning. This
new township took off all the southern part
of Richland and included within its
boundaries the present towns of Lynchburg
and Willettsville. Writs of election
were issued on which the necessary officers
for the new township were elected and before
the first of October the organization was
perfected. Joseph Vanmeter,
William Noble and Abraham
Vanmeter were the first Trustees of
this township, and Absalom Vanmeter
Clerk.
Absalom Vanmeter was appointed collector
for Richland township, Samuel Harvey
collector for Fairfield, Liberty and New
Market townships, and Frederick
Kirp, of Paint and Brushcreek, at the
July session, 1809.
The land tax of the several townships of the county was
fixed at this term as follows: New Market,
State levy one hundred and seven dollars and
eighteen cents, county levy eight-seven
dollars and fifty-five cents; State levy in
Brushcreek fifty-two dollars and fifty-one
cents, county levy fifty-four dollars and
sixteen cents; Liberty township State levy,
two hundred and twenty-six dollars, county
levy one hundred and seventy-four dollars;
in Paint township, State levy seventy-one
dollars and seventeen cents, county levy
sixty-five dollars and fifty cents; for
Fairfield
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township, State levy, two hundred and six
dollars and sixty-eight cents, county levy
one hundred and sixty-live dollars and
fifty-one cents, and for Richland, State
levy, seventy-two dollars and ninety-nine
cents, county levy, eighty-six dollars and
seventy cents.
The first death in
the town of Hillsboro was in the spring of
1809. Pearson Starr,
brother-in-law to Joshua Woodrow the
second, came out from Virginia with his wife
and two children, intending to take up his
residence in Highland. He was stopping
at Joshua’s and had only been a day
or two in the county, when he was taken sick
and died in a few hours. This death
was quite distressing to the people of the
place, chiefly proceeding from the fact that
it was the first in the town, and very
sudden, and the person a stranger. The
remains of Mr. Starr were
followed to the grave by the entire
population of the place and many persons
from Clear Creek and Rocky Pork. The
burial took place at what is now known as
the old Methodist grave yard on East street,
and was the first at that place and also the
first in the town.
The October election
in 1809 was not particularly interesting,
there being but few offices to fill, and
they only for the county. Joseph
Swearingen was elected
Representative, his competitors being
William Lupton, Thomas Terry, James Wilson,
Samuel Reece, Thomas Flinn and John Gossett.
Gus. Richards was re-elected Sheriff
almost without opposition, Joshua Lucas
and William Jackson having received a
few votes. Morgan Vanmeter and
Enoch E. Smith were elected
Commissioners, the candidates for the office
being Salmon Templin, Enoch B. Smith,
Morgan Vanmeter, Moses Gregg, John Coffee,
John Roads, John Shield, Thomas M.
Sanders, Jonathan Boyd, Bourter Sumner,
Robert Beaty and Francis Shinn. Levi
Warner was elected Coroner over
William C. Scott, Aaron Hunt, William
Barnett, John Matthews, Henry Wilson,
William Hill, Charley Hughey, Frederick
Miller, Henry Baldwin, George Matthews
and Joel Havens.
At the day of which we speak, the independent system of
voting was well established in Highland.
Each citizen could, without fear of censure,
make his own ticket to suit himself and vote
it free from the interference of partizan
leaders, for the simple reason that the
country was then fortunately blessed with
the total absence of political parties, and
of course, demagogues. The best men
were generally voted for, and most
frequently without announcing themselves
candidates, and when they were elected,
endeavored rather to benefit the public by a
faithful and honest discharge of their
duties, than to put money into their own
pockets from the public purse.
In the newly erected township of Union there were
thirty-four votes cast at this election,
which was, held at the house of Thomas
Ratcliff. The names of these
voters are, Abraham Clevenger, John
Seamen, William Clevenger, William Stewart,
John Achor, Samuel Clevenger, James Marks,
Absalom Vanmeter, Alexander Gillespy, Elisha
Noble, Mathew Small, Joseph McKibben, James
McFarland, William Noble, sr., John McKibben,
sr., Joseph Vanmeter, Abraham Vanmeter,
Morgan Vanmeter, Samuel McCulloch, Isaac
Vanmeter, John McKibben, jr., Israel Nordyke,
James Rush, Jacob Bowers, Micajah Nordyke,
Charles Harris, Jesse F. Roysdon, John
Ellis, Daniel Nordyke, John Miller, John
Shockley, Benjamin Shockley, and
Hiram Nordyke. The judges
of this election in Union were Joseph
Vanmeter, William Noble
and Abraham Vanmeter. The
clerks were Jesse F. Roysdon
and Abraham Vanmeter.
In Richland township the number of votes at this
election was only sixteen. The judges
were Jesse Hughs, Daniel Dillon and
James Mills, and the clerks were
William Venard and William Powell.
Liberty township gave one hundred and thirty-nine
votes. Evan Chaney,
Ezekiel Kelley and William
Keys were the judges, and John
Jones and Jacob Hare, clerks.
Brushcreek gave thirty-eight votes, and the judges were
Thomas Dick, Isaac Stock well and
Martin Countryman. The clerks were
Bigger Head and Samuel Reede.
Paint gave sixty-one votes this fall and the judges
were William Lucas, Zur
Combs and Jesse Baldwin,
and Richard Barrett and
Moses Tomlinson clerks.
New Market gave eighty-seven votes and James
Morrow, Philip Wilkins and
William Boatman were the
judges and John Davidson and
Eli Berryman clerks.
Fairfield township gave ninety-three votes and
Jonathan Barrett, Phineas
Hunt and Moses Wilson
were Judges and Aaron J. Hunt and
Isaac McPherson clerks.
On the 23d day of October of this year the Board of
Commissioners met at Barnett's tavern
in Hillsboro: Present,
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