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BIOGRAPHIES.
 Source:
History of Trumbull & Mahoning Counties,
Ohio
Published: Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bros.
VOLUME I
1882 CHAPTER IV.
KINSMAN TOWNSHIP
Trumbull County, Ohio
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DR. PETER ALLEN.
Kinsman has had no citizen more honored and useful in his
calling than Dr. Peter Allen. He was born at
Norwich, Connecticut, July 1, 1787, the son of John and
Tirzah Allen. His father was a respectable and
well-to-do farmer of Norwich, and gave his son the best
advantages of education which the city at that time afforded.
He pursued and completed his professional studies with the
eminent Dr. Tracy, of Norwich, emigrating to Kinsman in
1808, and immediately entering on the practice of his
profession. He was the first, and for nearly a quarter of
a century the only physician in the township and a somewhat
extensive surrounding country. Possessed of an uncommonly
robust constitution and great energy of character, he endured
hardships and performed an amount of labor in his profession
which in these days of bridges, good rounds, and short rides
might seem almost incredible. It was nothing uncommon for
him in the early settlement of the country to ride over bad
roads and along mere bridle-paths ten, fifteen, twenty or more
miles to visit a patient, often fording streams or crossing them
on logs or by canoes, exposed to west and cold, fatigues and
discomforts that we are now little able to appreciate. In
his day the advantages of medical schools, hospitals, clinics,
dissections were enjoyed only by a very few physicians.
Notwithstanding the disadvantages with which he had to contend,
Dr. Allen attained a high standing in his profession.
He performed many difficult surgical operations, such as the
operation for strangulated hernia, ligating the femoral artery
for aneurism, laryngotomy, lithotomy, removal of cancers,
amputation of limbs, and at the shoulder-joint, etc. He
stood high in the esteem of medical men, and his counsel was
much sought by them in difficult cases of both medicine and
surgery. He was an active member of the Ohio State Medical
association from its first formation, and was at one time its
presiding officer. In the War of 1812 he had the first
appointment of surgeon in the army on the northern frontier of
the State. He was also a member of the Ohio State
Legislature in 1840.
He married Charity Dudley, of Bethlehem,
Connecticut, May 15, 1813. Mrs. Allen, a superior
and most estimable woman, was for many years a great sufferer.
Her death was sudden, she having been thrown from the carriage
in which she was riding, by the fright of her horse, June 1,
1840, and lived only a few hours after. In 1841 Dr.
Allen married Miss Fanny Brewster Starr, a niece of
Mrs. R. Kinsman and General Simon Perkins.
She died in consumption in August, 1846. Dr. Allen
had but one child, Dr. Dudley Allen, born in June, 1814.
The first office of Dr. Allen was in his
father's yard, on the farm now occupied by Isaac Allen,
by the maple grove on the banks of Stratton creek. This he
occupied until the fall of 1813, when he moved into a double
log-house which stood in the yard in which he built his frame
house in 1821. This latter was in the time of its erection
and is still a beautiful house of elaborate and superior
workmanship. It was much admired and cost $3,000, which
was then considered an extravagant sum.
His brother, Dr. Francis Allen, was in company
with him from 1825 to 1829, and his son from 1837 to 1852, at
which time he mostly relinquished practice. The farm on
which he lived was purchased in 1812 for $2 per acre.
Dr. Allen is remembered by those who knew him,
not merely as a skillful physician, but also as an active and
steadfast member of the church of Christ. When his
business permitted he was always present in the house of God on
the Sabbath. A regular attendant at the weekly
prayer-meeting, and in the latter part of his life was an active
member of the Sabbath school.
After having relinquished the business of his
profession he was almost the standing representative of the
church in meetings of synod, and at the meeting next succeeding
his death was spoken of by that body in terms of high regard.
Only a few months before his last sickness he represented
Trumbull presbytery as their lay delegate in the general
assembly, at Dayton. He retained full possession of his
faculties though advanced in life, and his Christian example
shone bright until the end.
Source: History of Trumbull &
Mahoning Counties - Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bro. - 1882
- Page 301-302 |
Riverius Bidwell
Mrs. Riverius Bidwell |
RIVERIUS AND EUNICIA BIDWELL.
Riverius Bidwell and his wife Eunicia Bidwell were
among the earliest settlers of Gustavus township, the date of
their emigration being the year 1812. Mr. Bidwell
was born in Connecticut, Sept. 5, 1790. He received a fair
English education, and at the age of about nineteen engaged to
teach school in a small village near New Haven, where he had
planned to pursue his course at Yale college, the village now
known as Westville, a suburb of New Haven, was then commonly
called Hotchkisstown, it being the seat of the numerous and
prominent family bearing the name of Hotchkiss. A
friendship between the young schoolmaster and Eunicia
Hotchkiss soon ripened into matrimony. They were
married in New Haven, Connecticut, June 27, 1910, by Rev.
Abram Allen, and two years later sought a home in the wild,
cheerless West.
Riverius Bidwell, Sr., father of our subject,
lived in Canton, Hartford county, Connecticut. His family
consisted of three sons and five daughters, with whom he
emigrated to Ohio in the year 1813, and also settled in
Gustavus. He died July 22, 1822, aged fifty-nine years.
His wife, Phebe Bidwell, died Aug. 17, 1837, aged
seventy-six years. Their children were Wayne, died
June 10, 1832; Esther (Cone), died in Kinsman Jan. 27,
1816; Achsah (Dyer) died in Canton, Connecticut;
Sophia (Burnham), died at Kinsman, Jan. 5, 1851, aged
fifty-four; Zehiel, died September, 1864; Phebe
Humphrey, died in New York. Marrietta, wife of
Buell Barnes is the only surviving member of the family.
Riverius Bidwell, Jr. was somewhat eccentric in
habit, but was one of the most pushing, persevering and active
men on the Reserve. Under an old law in Ohio taxes were
collected by an officer who was appointed for that purpose, at
the homes and places of business of the citizens. The
office was very laborious on account of the great size of the
county and bad condition of roads which connected the sparse
settlements. Mr. Bidwell served as collector two
years. He walked from house to house till every house in
the county had been visited, part of the time being barefooted,
always at a brisk gait. After collections had all been
made, he walked to Columbus and made settlement with the
Treasurer of State. This is but one incident of many which
might be written to show his perseverance. He was always
ready witted, and rarely found himself in a puzzling situation.
He kept the first post-office in Gustavus, but being absent most
of the time Mrs. Bidwell transacted most of the business.
Mr. Bidwell was justice of the peace and held
other local trusts. He sold his farm in Gustavus in 1834
and removed to Kinsman. He took an active interest and was
influential in securing to Kinsman a line of railway. This
was about the last work of his busy life. He died Feb. 6,
1870, aged eighty-one years. Mrs. Bidwell, who is
yet living, was born Mar. 24, 1794. She is a woman of
great strength of character, is yet strong, and is able to
recall with clearness events of eighty years ago.
The family of Mr. and Mrs. Bidwell consisted of
three sons and one daughter - Hannah Mariah, born Sept.
20, 1811, at Canton, Connecticut, and died in childhood;
Jasper Riverius, born July 25, 1813, and died at the age of
twenty years; Caleb Hotchkiss, born Sept. 26, 1815,
graduated at Western Reserve college at nineteen years of age,
studied law with Whittlesey & Newton, was admitted to the
bar, and died at the age of twenty-five; Wayne, the only
child living, was born May 6, 1821. He married Mary
Hyde, who was born Jan. 11, 1824, in Vernon township.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Bidwell were members of the
Presbyterian church and exemplary Christians.
Source: History of Trumbull &
Mahoning Counties - Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bro. - 1882
- Page 304 |
James C. Bishop |
Kinsman, Trumbull Co. -
JAMES C. BISHOP,
well known in the northern part of Trumbull county as a dealer
in fine stock, is the subject of an illustration on an adjoining
page. He was born in New Haven, Connecticut, July 9, 1810.
His parents were Ebenezer and Lucinda Bishop, who
removed with their family to Herkimer county, New York, in the
year 1813. Mr. Bishop built a factory, and engaged
extensively in the manufacture of cheese.
In the year 1833 James C. Bishop came to the
Reserve, and the following year purchased one hundred and
thirty-seven acres near the present site of Kinsman station.
After having made a clearing and planted the fall crop, he sold
his land and went South, finding employment at the carpenter
trade is Mississippi. When spring opened Mr. Bishop
returned to his old home in New York on a visit. The trip
resulted in his parents selling their farm, and the removal of
the whole family to Gustavus township. This was in the
spring of 1834. They purchased a dairy farm, and erected a
cheese factory similar to those in use in Herkimer county.
It was the first of the kind in Trumbull county, though other
manufacturers were not slow to imitate its advantageous
features.
Mr. Bishop brought with him from New York what
was at that time a great curiosity in the north part of the
county - a spring buggy. Reuben Roberts, a
blacksmith in Gustavus, used the springs for patterns and
engaged with profit in their manufacture. James C.
operated his father's factory about four years, and then
purchased it. He conducted the business with profit to
himself and with entire satisfaction to dairymen in the
neighborhood for a period of about twenty years. He
purchased a second farm in Gustavus and engaged in breeding and
trading in a fine stock. He brought to the county the
first thoroughbred cow, from which was descended many of the
best cattle in this part of the State. Two oxen raised by
Mr. Bishop were sold in the Pittsburgh market for $300.
Mr. Bishop, George Hezlep, and George
Cowden, were the leading stock dealers in Gustavus township.
He was a patron of the Trumbull County Agricultural society, and
received premiums on the productions of his farm.
Mr. Bishop married, in 1839, Philena Gates,
a daughter of Philo Gates, of Gustavus township.
She died in 1845, leaving one son - Chaplin J. Bishop, of
Chicago. In 1859 Mr. Bishop sold both his farms in
Gustavus and purchased the old Swift farm in Kinsman,
which he continues to own. In 1860 he married for his
second wife Mrs. Dr. Joseph P. Morford, of Johnston
township. Her maiden name was Hannah Dunbar.
Mr. Bishop is a well preserved man; has a clear
recollection of past events, and retains the business sagacity
of former years.
Source: History of Trumbull &
Mahoning Counties - Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bro. - 1882
- Page 303 |
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Kinsman, Trumbull Co. -
JEDEDIAH BURNHAM.
The life of Jedediah Burnham, through a period of nearly
eighty-seen years, has been intimately and variously connected
with the growth and progress of the township of Kinsman.
His counsels and acts, whether in the military, civil, or
religious organizations of the town, as well as in the
administration of all township and county affairs entrusted to
him, have been marked with eminent justice, propriety, and
wisdom. He came to Kinsman not far from the time that he
became of age, and was very soon appointed to office. From
that time to the period when the infirmities of age began to
press upon him, he was actively employed in the responsible
duties to which he was called by his fellow-citizens of the town
and county. He was an active member and honored officer of
the Congregational and Presbyterian church in Kinsman, from its
beginning to the day of his death. Pre-eminently a
peace-maker, he was commonly the first one in the town resorted
to for the settlement of any misunderstanding or difficulty
between neighbor and neighbor, or trouble of any sort that had
sprung up in the community.
He was born in Lisbon, Connecticut, in 1785, the son of
Dr. Jedediah Burnham, a respectable physician of that
place, who in old age, with his wife and daughter, removed to
Kinsman, and lived and died in the family of his son. In
1804 Mr. Burnham left the home of his parents and went to
Virginia, with the hope of finding in that State a location that
would please him. He returned however, without locating,
but through an arrangement with Mr. Kinsman he returned
to Ohio the next year, and entered the employ of Kinsman.
The new house of Mr. Kinsman was being rapidly brought to
completion. The first work of Mr. Burnham was to
assist in putting in the stone chimney. After that he was
busy in various work of the farm until winter, when he was
engaged to teach the first regular school of the township.
The next spring and summer he was again employed on the farm,
and assisted in putting in a crop of oats on the bottom lands
south of Wayne Bidwell's. The product was an
abundent crop of straw as well as oats, which was moved
and stacked for winter fodder, near Mr. Kinsman's house.
In the winter of 1806 he again commenced the school,
with the understanding that Benjamin Allen would take his
place as soon as he had finished a job of work in Hubbard.
In accordance with this arrangement Mr. Burnham was
relieved about midwinter, and went into Mr. Kinsman's
store in the capacity of a clerk, where he remained until the
breaking out of the War of 1812, when he was called to serve in
the army.
In the organization of the township militia Mr.
Burnham was first appointed lieutenant in Captain Randalls
company, and afterward promoted to captain. Returning form
the army, Captain Burnham at once devoted himself to the
cultivation and improvement of his farm.
He was married to Miss Sophia Bidwell, of
Gustavus, 1814. In 1816 he was elected justice of the
peace, in which capacity he served uninterruptedly twenty-one
years. His official acts were ever marked with justice and
propriety; and all of his decisions appealed from during his
long administration, it is said that not any (if any, certainly
but very few) were reversed by the higher courts.
In 1806 he was chosen collector of the civil township
of Green, embracing under that name what is now Kinsman,
Gustavus and Green. Afterward he was appointed county
collector, when the law required the collector to call at the
residence of every person taxed to make the collection.
This arduous duty was performed by himself alone, going on
horseback from house to house throughout the county.
Afterward he has the office of county assessor, the duties of
which were performed in a similar manner, and labor. The
duties of his office were attended to with a high degree of
exactitude, promptness and fidelity.
He held the office of deacon in the Vernon, Hartford,
and Kinsman church, and, after the formation of the
Congregational and Presbyterian church in Kinsman, the same
office in that until his death. His long, prosperous,
eventful, and useful life closed early in the year of 1874.
Source: History of Trumbull &
Mahoning Counties - Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bro. - 1882
- Page 302 |
Miss Lottie Fobes
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Kinsman, Trumbull Co. -
THE FOBES FAMILY.
Horatio Fobes, youngest son of Joshua and Dorothy
Fobes, was born in Ashtabula county, Ohio, Feb. 16, 1812.
Joshua Fobes settled in Wayne township, Ashtabula county,
in 1802. He raised a family of ten children, of whom six
are living. Horatio Fobes, until nineteen, was
engaged in farming on the home place, coming to Kinsman in 1831.
He commenced with Benjamin Allen the carding and cloth
dressing business. He afterwards rented and purchased the
business and conducted it until about 1852. He was married
in 1835 to Miss Louisa Dodge, of Ashtabula county, but a
native of Connecticut. They became the parents of one
daughter, Charlotte L., born in 1840, died in 1863.
About 1859 Mr. Fobes purchased a half interest in the
Bidwell & Fobes flouring mill, which, in connection with
Bidwell and other parties he has since operated; was
township treasurer for many years.
Lotta Louisa, only child of Horatio and
Louisa (Dodge) Fobes, was born in Kinsman in the yea r1840,
and died Nov. 7, 1863. She was the pride of fond parents,
and the beloved of a large circle of friends. In her the
charm of a graceful figure was united with the attraction of a a
cultured mind and beautiful character. Faithful, gentle,
loving, she was death's shining mark. No words can more
nearly express a parent's feelings than the lines Byron
once wrote beneath a friend's picture:
Dear object of defeated care,
Through now of love and
thee bereft.
To reconcile me with despair
Thine image and my tears
are left.
'Tis said with sorrow
time can cope;
But this, I fear, can
ne'er be true;
For by the death-blow of my hope
My memory immortal grew.
Source: History of Trumbull &
Mahoning Counties - Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bro. - 1882
- Page 303
[PHOTO OF MISS LOTTIE FOBES] |
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Kinsman, Trumbull Co. -
JOHN KINSMAN AND FAMILY*.
The ancestors of Mr. Kinsman, on his father's
side, are traced from the time of their leaving England,
embarking in the ship Mary and John, at Southampton, landing at
Boston, settling in Ipswich, Massachusetts, as one of the
Puritan fathers, in 1634. From that time the genealogical
record is traced by regularly executed recorded wills of tile
ancestors of Mr. Kinsman down to and including the
last will and testament of his father; and whatever of history
is shown links them with the patriots of their day and
generation. The ancestry of his mother is traced from
John Thomas, who came over from England in the ship
Hopewell, 1635, a boy fourteen years of age, under the special
charge of Governor Edward Winslow, of Plymouth, from whom
sprang an honorable and patriotic line of descendants. The
name of Mr. Kinsman's mother was Sarah Thomas,
sister of General John Thomas, of the American
Revolution, one of the generals first appointed by the
Continental Congress.
Mr. John Kinsman was the son of Jeremiah
Kinsman, a thrifty farmer of Lisbon, Connecticut. Here
he lived, working on his father's farm, and receiving such
education as the schools of that day afforded, until he was of
age. At the breaking out of the Revolution, 1776, being
then twenty three years old, he enlisted in a company of
Connecticut militia, destined to take an active part in the
bloody and disastrous battle of Long Island. In that
battle he was taken prisoner and was confined for some time in
one of the prison-ships in New York harbor. He suffered
greatly from this imprisonment, being inhumanly treated, and
never fully recovered from its effects upon his health with two
of his companions he was finally released from the prison ship
on parole and allowed to mess in a room in the city of New York.
While in New York he acquired a knowledge of the
hatting business that induced him, immediately on his release
and return home, to embark in that business. He at once
established a shop, placed in it an experienced workman, Mr.
Capron, as foreman, purchased a stock of goods, and devoted
his time to the care of the store, furnishing the shop, and
making sales of the products. He supplied the army largely
with hats, and the trade generally proved to be successful, and
was continued in Connecticut, with his farm operations, until
after the war.
In 1792 he was married to Miss Rebecca Perkins,
daughter of Captain Simon Perkins, of Lisbon,
Connecticut.
In 1797, having been elected to represent his native
town in the State Legislature, the office was continued to him
by successive re-elections for three years. It was here
that he became acquainted with many of the officers and stock
holders of the Connecticut Land company, and familiar with their
operations, and concluded to become one of the proprietors of
the company. It was also about this time that he first
entertained the idea of a removal to Ohio.
His first trip to the Connecticut Western Reserve was
in 1799. He came out to explore the country, and to see
and survey some of the lands that had fallen to him in the
drafts of the year previous. That year he aided in the
survey of the township of Kinsman, and from this time his life
and business were very intimately connected with the early
history and settlement of the township. His was the ruling
spirit of the settlement. His age, experience, enterprise,
wealth, and more that, all, perhaps, his practical sound
judgment, gave him an influence in the affairs of the town which
no other individual could pretend to exert.
While naturally firm and decided in his purpose, he was
conciliatory in his treatment of others, eminently kind in his
feelings and lenient as a creditor.
His first office in Ohio was that of justice of the
peace under the Territorial government. Local justices
were associated to form the courts called quarter sessions.
He was one of those who assisted in constituting the government
of the first and subsequent county organizations, providing for
county jail, and fixing its limits, etc. Under the State
government, in 1806, he was appointed one of the associate
judges of the county. Also held the office of postmaster
from the time of the first establishment of an office in the
town to the time of his decease.
His own increasing business, as well as that of many
others, now called for increased facilities of trade and
commerce, and was the occasion of the establishment of the
Western Reserve bank, the first corporation of the kind in
Northern Ohio. Mr. Kinsman was one of its
principal projectors, and much the largest subscriber to the
stock of the company, taking one-fifth of the $100,000 capital.
He did not live, however, to see the organization completed.
His business life was one of great activity and toil,
riding often on horseback to Connecticut, New York, and
Philadelphia, to purchase goods, also over many parts of the
Reserve, looking after settlements and sales of land,
occasionally camping out nights. Besides, the building of
mills, attention to his store, and the clearing and improving of
a large farm, brought upon him exposures and cares greater than
his somewhat impaired constitution was able to bear. He
died Aug. 17, 1813, aged sixty years. He died in testate,
leaving a large estate, for that time, which was administered
upon by his brother-in-law, General Simon Perkins.
Mr. Kinsman lived and died in the house
which he built on the south side of the square, near where the
store and warehouse of Kay & Burrill now stands.
A few years after his decease the house took fire in the middle
of the night and burned to the ground. The family
afterwards occupied the old Sutliff house, a
little east of the one burned, until John Kinsman,
the eldest son of the deceased, built the house now known as the
“Kinsman homestead,” which was occupied by the
family until by death, marriage, or otherwise, their homes were
changed.
The widow, Mrs. Rebecca Kinsman, remained there
until her decease, May 27, 1854, aged eighty years. Mrs.
Kinsman was a woman of decided and devoted Christian
character, of strong mind, and of large heart. She was
active in promoting the religious culture of the place, both in
word and deed. She gave freely and largely to benevolent
objects; was a liberal benefactor of Western Reserve college in
its earlier years, assisted largely towards the building of the
Presbyterian and Congregational house of worship, gave the
parsonage and grounds to be occupied by the minister of the
society, and contributed generously toward an endowment for his
support. Her liberal hand, kind advice, and ready relief
to those who were in need have often been gratefully remembered
and acknowledged.
The family of Mr. and Mrs. Kinsman, when they
left Lisbon, Connecticut, consisted of the following children:
John, aged ten years; Joseph, aged nine years,
Sarah, aged five years, died Jan. 13, 1807; Olive
Douglas, aged three years.
John, the eldest of the children, soon took the
place of “pater familias” in the household, living in the
old homestead, which he built. He was married Apr. 28,
1846, to Jane W. Cass, widow of John Jay Cass, and
died Feb. 4,
1864.
He was identified with the early settlement of the
Western Reserve from his youth; and having uncommon energy and
business capacity, he soon became connected with many of the
public and business interests of the day, and devoted much of
his time and means to the development of the resources of the
country, and administered largely of his advice and means to the
wants of those around him.
In his extended business large credits, for provisions
and supplies, were freely given to relieve the wants of the
early settlers, at a time when such credits were deemed
absolutely necessary to their success.
Joseph, after remaining with his father in Ohio
assisting in the store a few years, returned to Connecticut,
fitted himself for college at the academy at Colchester, and
entered the fresh man class at Yale college in 1816. After
three years of close application to study his health gave way,
and he was advised by his physician to go South. He spent
the winter in the West Indies at St. Thomas and St. Croix,
returning with the return of spring. He died of
consumption, June 17, 1819, and was buried in the old cemetery
at Norwich, Connecticut. His age was twenty-four years.
Olive Douglas, in 1812, was sent to Norwich,
Connecticut, to attend the school of Miss Lydia Huntley,
afterward Mrs. Sigourney. From there she went to
Hartford, afterwards to Litchfield, where she finished her
school education under the instruction of Mrs. Pierce.
While in attendance upon Miss Huntley's school for young
ladies the intelligence of her father's death was received.
An only daughter, she was a favorite of her father's, and his
death was to her a great affliction.
Returning from school in 1819, she rode on horseback
from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, to her home. Unaccustomed
to this mode of travel the journey was so severe that it
produced a spinal affection, from which she never recovered.
She married George Swift, Esq., son of Hon.
Zephaniah Swift, chief justice of Connecticut. He was
a graduate of Yale college, commenced the practice of law in
Warren; occupied, for his first residence, a house on the corner
of Main and Franklin streets, where the Anderson block
now stands. In 1823 he removed to Kinsman, purchased a
farm and built a house upon it, which is now occupied by
David Bracken. He continued the practice of law
for some time, but in the latter part of his life devoted
himself mainly to the farm. He was a great reader and an
accomplished scholar, very agree able and instructive in
conversation; was elected a Representative to the State
Legislature; was a devoted Christian, and aided much in the
religious exercises, and the building up of the church to which
he belonged. He died Mar. 14, 1845, of cancer.
Mrs. Swift died June 24, 1835, of spinal affection.
Thomas was the first of the family born in Ohio,
Aug. 20, 1804. He was one of the most extensive farmers in
northern Ohio. His lands, comprising about two thousand
acres, were located in the townships of Kinsman and Gustavus.
The fine quality of its soil, well watered by springs and spring
brooks, its good timber, and well arranged farm buildings, made
his farm one of the most attractive in the State. It was
mostly under fine cultivation; a part being devoted to dairy
purposes, the number of cows ranging from sixty to eighty each
year; the balance to promiscuous farming. His large and
well-bred Durham herd constituted at all times a prominent and
attractive feature of his business.
His life as a citizen of the town numbers more years
than any one that has preceded him, and at his death he was the
oldest native inhabitant. His life, from childhood to old
age, has been peculiarly marked by kindly relations with all
with whom he had to do. Buoyant in spirits, with a strong
mind abounding in wit and humor, he drew around him a circle of
friends; while his marked integrity, consistent Christian
character, and a modesty that withheld him from any aspirations
for fame or official position, rendered him prominent as a
counselor and adviser with his neighbors and friends.
Frederick Kinsman, the only surviving
member of the family, now resides at Warren, Ohio.
Source:
History of Trumbull &
Mahoning Counties - Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bro. - 1882
- Page 296
* From the Mahoning Valley Historial Collections. |
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Kinsman, Trumbull Co. -
SETH PERKINS..
Source:
History of Trumbull &
Mahoning Counties - Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bro. - 1882
- Page 301 |
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THE REEVE FAMILY OF
KINSMAN.
Jeremiah Reeve, Sr., was born at Norwich, Connecticut, in
April, 1779. His father, Ebenezer Reeve, was born
at Southold, Long Island, Aug. 23, 1751, and his wife, Bethia
Hudson, at the same place, about five years after.
They were married at Southold, Long Island, in the year 1776,
and moved to Morris, New Jersey. This place was occupied
at about this time by British troops, and the inhabitants were
considerably annoyed by then. For this reason my
grandfather thought best to sell the farm which his father had
helped him purchase, and remove to Norwich, Connecticut.
He after this served as a soldier in the war which had then
commenced. My grandmother was removed by death, at their
home in Norwich, on Jan. 19, 1786, at the age of twenty-nine,
leaving three small children, my father, the eldest, being not
quite seven years of age.
Of my father's early years I can speak but very little,
being at the time of his death only nine years of age.
Being the only son considerable pains was taken with his
education. He pursued the study of medicine, although
never practicing. That he had gifts as a public speaker
was shown by his being chosen to deliver an oration at Norwich,
his native place, on the 4th of July which followed the death of
Washington. His allusion to the then recent death of the
country's renowned chief and lamented ex-President, was
considered by his friends quite a happy effort.
That he was possessed of a sense of the humorous and
ludicrous, and perhaps a little of the waggery which prompts to
practical joking, seems apparent from an incident related by
deacon Charles Wood, late of Kinsman. He was
a frequent passenger on boats plying between Norwich and New
London. On one of these occasions, when about meeting
another boat, the captain of his boat knowing something of his
mirthful propensities, said to him, “Now, Jerry, keep
quiet and be civil.” My father demurely replied, “I will,"
immediately picking up a section of stove-pipe near him, turned
towards the approaching boat through his improvised telescope a
long and steady gaze, which had the desired effect of producing
the uproarious applause and merriment of both boat-loads.
In 1802, my grandfather having traded his farm in Norwich with
Judge Kinsman, for land on the Western Reserve,
moved with his two younger children, Deborah, afterwards
Mrs. Plumb Sutliff, and Hannah,
afterwards Mrs. John Andrews, to their new home in
Kinsman, Trumbull county, Ohio, my father remaining East a year
longer at school. After coming West he engaged in teaching
at Hubbard, in this county, where he continued his school for
one year. He afterwards engaged in teaching at Wooster,
near Marietta, where he became acquainted with and was
afterwards married to Miss Mary Quigley, on Nov. 27,
1808. Their eldest and only child, Ebenezer
Reeve the second, was born at Kinsman, Ohio, Aug. 9, 1812.
His mother died Aug. 9, 1825. His last visit in Kinsman
was about the year 1842. He had previous to this been
engaged for three years in farming on a farm which he had rented
in Kentucky. He promised an other visit the next year, but
did not come. Several years after this news came to us of
his death by drowning in the Mississippi river.
The Reeve family for seven generations
occupied the same estate at Southold, Long Island, which
descended through the eldest son, who usually, if not in every
instance, bore the Christian name of James.
My grandfather was a younger member of a large family
of brothers, whose posterity scattered and divided over the
Union, and possibly with earlier branches of the family in all
parts of the world, without doubt share distinguishing marks
which denote a common ancestry.
Chief Justice Tappan Reeve, of Connecticut, was
a relative of my grandfather, and a sense of equity manifest in
his writings display characteristics of mind and heart which my
father and grandfather exemplified in daily life.
The psalmist's description of the man “who sweareth to
his own hurt and changeth not,” from the knowledge which I have
been able to gain of father and son would eminently apply to
each.
My father died of typhus fever at Kinsman, Ohio, Sept.
21, 1836.
Sarah McMichael was born at Frederick, Maryland,
Nov. 27, 1800. Her children regarded the date as
felicitous, the year commencing the century, and the day of the
month and the week sometimes being the same as that set apart
for our National Thanksgiving day.
My grandfather, Joseph McMichael, was born in
Ireland, not far from the year 1750, and was of what is called
Scotch-Irish descent. His mother's family had a good
estate about three miles from Londonderry, and after his
father's death, which occurred when he was quite small, himself
and mother returned to their former home.
Annie Masters was born near Dublin,
Ireland, some years later. Her father was of English
birth, and her mother, Catherine Carroll, of Irish
birth, and cousin of Charles Carroll, one of the
signers of the American Declaration of Independence. While
visiting my grandfather's relatives in London my grandmother
became acquainted with a wealthy Scotch family, and engaged with
them as a governess for their children, and soon after sailed
with them to America, Charleston, South Carolina, being their
destination. She remained with them several years, and
then engaged as governess in the family of Judge Bey, of
Baltimore, Maryland, where she remained until about the year
1795, near or at the close of the Revolutionary war, when she
was married to my grandfather. My mother was not quite
five years old, and her only brother, Joseph McMichael, Jr.,
an infant, when her parents removed to Kinsman, Ohio, in 1805.
July which followed the death of Washington. His allusion
to the then recent death of the country's renowned chief and
lamented ex-President, was considered by his friends quite a
happy effort.
That he was possessed of a sense of the humorous and
ludicrous, and perhaps a little of the waggery which prompts to
practical joking, seems apparent from an incident related by
deacon Charles Wood, late of Kinsman. He was
a frequent passenger on boats plying between Norwich and New
London. On one of these occasions, when about meeting
another boat, the captain of his boat knowing something of his
mirthful propensities, said to him, “Now, Jerry, keep
quiet and be civil.” My father demurely replied, “I will,"
immediately picking up a section of stove-pipe near him, turned
towards the approaching boat through his improvised telescope a
long and steady gaze, which had the desired effect of producing
the uproarious applause and merriment of both boat-loads.
In 1802, my grandfather having traded his farm in Norwich with
Judge Kinsman, for land on the Western Reserve,
moved with his two younger children, Deborah, afterwards
Mrs. Plumb Sutliff, and Hannah,
afterwards Mrs. John Andrews, to their new
home in Kinsman, Trumbull county, Ohio, my father remaining East
a year longer at school. After coming West he engaged in
teaching at Hubbard, in this county, where he continued his
school for one year. He afterwards engaged in teaching at
Wooster, near Marietta, where he became acquainted with and was
afterwards married to Miss Mary Quigley, on
Nov. 27, 1808. Their eldest and only child, Ebenezer
Reeve the second, was born at Kinsman, Ohio, Aug. 9, 1812.
His mother died Aug. 9, 1825. His last visit in Kinsman
was about the year 1842. He had previous to this been
engaged for three years in farming on a farm which he had rented
in Kentucky. He promised an other visit the next year, but
did not come. Several years after this news came to us of
his death by drowning in the Mississippi river.
The Reeve family for seven generations
occupied the same estate at Southold, Long Island, which
descended through the eldest son, who usually, if not in every
instance, bore the Christian name of James.
My grandfather was a younger member of a large family
of brothers, whose posterity scattered and divided over the
Union, and possibly with earlier branches of the family in all
parts of the world, without doubt share distinguishing marks
which denote a common ancestry.
Chief Justice Tappan Reeve, of Connecticut, was
a relative of my grandfather, and a sense of equity manifest in
his writings display characteristics of mind and heart which my
father and grandfather exemplified in daily life.
The psalmist's description of the man “who sweareth to
his own hurt and changeth not,” from the knowledge which I have
been able to gain of father and son would eminently apply to
each.
My father died of typhus fever at Kinsman, Ohio, Sept.
21, 1836.
Sarah McMichael was born at Frederick,
Maryland, Nov. 27, 1800. Her children regarded the date as
felicitous, the year commencing the century, and the day of the
month and the week sometimes being the same as that set apart
for our National Thanksgiving day.
My grandfather, Joseph McMichael, was
born in Ireland, not far from the year 1750, and was of what is
called Scotch-Irish descent. His mother's family had a
good estate about three miles from Londonderry, and after his
father's death, which occurred when he was quite small, himself
and mother returned to their former home.
Annie Masters was born near Dublin,
Ireland, some years later. Her father was of English
birth, and her mother, Catherine Carroll, of Irish
birth, and cousin of Charles Carroll, one of the signers
of the American Declaration of Independence. While
visiting my grandfather's relatives in London my grandmother
became acquainted with a wealthy Scotch family, and engaged with
them as a governess for their children, and soon after sailed
with them to America, Charleston, South Carolina, being their
destination. She remained with them several years, and
then engaged as governess in the family of Judge Bey,
of Baltimore, Maryland, where she remained until about the year
1795, near or at the close of the Revolutionary war, when she
was married to my grandfather. My mother was not quite
five years old, and her only brother, Joseph McMichael,
Jr., an infant, when her parents removed to Kinsman,
Ohio, in 1895.
My grandfather, Joseph McMichael, was a
trader, and crossed the Atlantic six times in the course of his
business, which was shipping linen to this country and flax-seed
back to Ireland. On his third homeward voyage his ship was
wrecked, and with the survivors he was carried to London by a
rescuing vessel, where his mother's family sent him needed
assistance, and after visiting home he crossed the sea the
seventh and last time. His death occurred in Kinsman,
Ohio, July 28, 1831. That of his wife at the same place,
Feb. 27, 1845.
My mother lived to a good old age, and filled out the
life of usefulness which had been allotted to her with a
cheerful patience, meeting the ills of life and infirmities of
age with brave composure and unyielding fortitude. Her
death took place Apr. 25th, 1880. My parents were members
of the Congregational and Presbyterian church of Kinsman.
Their home was at some distance from the church, and it
was no uncommon sight to see them on horseback on their way to
church on Sabbath morning, my mother with the youngest in her
arms and the eldest seated behind her, and my father with two
others disposed in a similar manner. In personal
appearance my father was rather tall, well formed, with brown
hair, a brown beard, blue eyes, and a very fair complexion.
He was a fine singer with an excellent voice for bass. My
mother was a trifle below the ordinary height; in childhood her
hair was red, but when she grew up it turned black. Her
head was handsomely shaped, eyes blue. Her complexion was
not as fair as my father's, but very clear and fresh. She
was very lady-like and agreeable in her manners, with refined
tastes and thoughtful mind. In singing she could not
distinguish one note from another, and never attempted singing,
although when her children were small, and while she was busy
about her work, I have heard her humming in monotones.
My parents were desirous of giving their children the
best advantages for acquiring knowledge which the place would
afford. Their two eldest, when but “tiny tots,” could be seen
trudging morning and evening, when the season and weather would
permit, on their way to and from school. An infant school,
such as is described in Miss Gilbert's Career,
written by the late Dr. J. G. Holland, was established in
the Kinsman village, a mile and a half from home. My
parents' two eldest infants managed to be there to take their
part in lessons in astronomy, geometry, and other deep sciences,
besides doing their share of the marching, singing, clapping of
hands, etc., through the greater share of two summer terms.
Were all parents as earnest in procuring educational facilities
for their children, laws for compulsory education would be
useless.
My parents' family consisted of six children:
Mary Deborah, born Sept. 5, 1827; Bethiah Hudson,
Jan. 29, 1829; Annie Maria, Apr. 3, 1831; Jane
Eliza, Oct. 11, 1833; Jeremiah Reeve, Jr.,
Mar. 15, 1835; James Albert, May 7, 1837.
Bethiah H. Reeve was married to Robert
Clark at Paris, Edgar county, Illinois, Aug. 10, 1853, and
died at the same place Apr. 9, 1854. Their infant daughter
died at Kinsman, Ohio, Oct. 6, 1854. Jane E. Reeve and
George C. Harding were married Nov. 10, 1854. Their
daughter, Flora Krum Harding, was born at
Charleston, Coles county, Illinois, in the summer of 1855, and
died at Indianapolis, Indiana, Aug. 20, 1874. Their son,
Ben Shillaber Harding, was born at the same
place, and was the victim of a railroad accident on the
Burlington & Quincy railroad, near Ottumwa, Iowa, Dec. 29, 1879,
which caused his instant death. Annie Maria
Reeve was married to John T. Edwards, of Chicago,
Illinois, at Cleveland, Ohio, June 6, 1859. His widow and
a son and four daughters survive the father, who died at Benton
Harbor, Michigan, Feb. 7, 1873, where his family still reside.
James A. Reeve and Eliza Woolmer were married at
Chicago, Illinois, where they now reside, in December, 1863.
Their family consists of two sons and a daughter. Two sons
who died in infancy were buried at Benton Harbor, Michigan.
Jane E. R. Harding and John Morris
were married at Charleston, Coles county, Illinois, where they
still reside, Apr. 16, 1865. Their son, Charles
Thomas Morris, was born at Charleston, Illinois,
Sept. 13, 1866, and died May 7, 1869. Helen Emily
Morris was born Sept. 16, 1870, at Charleston, Illinois.
The eldest son and eldest daughter of my parents still reside at
Kinsman, their native place.
Source:
History of Trumbull &
Mahoning Counties - Cleveland: H. Z. Williams & Bro. - 1882
- Page 298
* By Mary D. Reeve. |
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