edited by
ETHEL CONRAD
Touring Ohio in 1811: The Journal
of Charity Rotch
Charity Rodman Rotch, the author of
this journal, was born in
Newport, Rhode Island, on October 31,
1766.1 Her father was lost at
sea when she was less than a month old,
leaving his widow with seven
children to bring up. Charity is said
to have received her education
entirely from her older brother.
At the age of twenty-three Charity
Rodman married Thomas Rotch,
the youngest son of a Nantucket family
prominent in the whaling and
shipping industry. The young couple
lived in Nantucket for a year.
Then they moved to New Bedford,
Massachusetts, where Thomas
joined his brother William in running a
branch of the family business.
In 1800 the Rotches made yet another
move, this time to Hartford,
Connecticut. Both devout Quakers, they
felt a concern to help spread
the Quaker faith in that area. In
Hartford, Thomas Rotch invested in
several business enterprises, including
a store, a linseed oil mill, and a
rolling and slitting mill. In 1808 he
became interested in raising Merino
sheep, newly introduced to this country
from Spain and famous for
their fine wool. By 1811 Rotch had
built up a large flock of Merinos. He
also owned a thriving woolen mill,
which handled every phase of the
manufacture from carding wool to the
production of fine broadcloth
and cassimere.
Charity's health had been frail for
some years, but during the winter
of 1808-1809 she was seriously ill with
a malady diagnosed as "spotted
fever," probably a severe form of
typhus. Recurring attacks so
weakened her that her doctor finally
recommended a move to a milder
climate.
Choice of a location was difficult for
the Rotches. They could not go
south because Charity refused to live
in a slave state. Moreover, they
Ethel Conrad is the retired director of
the Massillon Public Library.
1. Biographical information in this
introduction is derived from the Rotch-Wales
Papers, Massillon Public Library,
Massillon, Ohio, hereafter cited as RPMPL.
136 OHIO HISTORY
required a location which would offer
water power for a woolen mill
and sufficient land to pasture Rotch's
four hundred sheep. Ohio
sounded promising to them, however. Its
climate, particularly in the
southern part of the state, was milder
than that of New England, it had
thousands of acres of land for sale
through the federal land offices, and
as a free state it was attracting many
Quakers from the South.
On January 18, 1811, the Rotches left
Hartford to make an explor-
atory trip to Ohio. Accompanying them
was Richard Imlay, a young
Quaker from the Hartford area, who was
also interested in moving to
Ohio. After a stop in Trenton to buy a
new carriage for the journey, and
another stop in Philadelphia to see
relatives, they began their trek west
on January 29. Charity kept a journal of
their travels from the time they
left Philadelphia until they reached
Lampeter, Pennsylvania, on their
return trip nearly four months later.
Although the Rotches did not find a
suitable site in the areas they
visited, they decided upon Ohio as their
future home. They wound up
their affairs in Hartford, and started
west again in the fall of 1811,
taking with them two wagons filled with
their household goods. One of
their employees, Arvine Wales, was
charged with the responsibility of
getting the flock of four hundred
Merinos safely to Ohio. He and five
other men brought them on foot, taking
two months but losing only ten
sheep on the way.
Upon arriving in Ohio, Rotch began to
look for suitable land.
Bezaleel Wells of Steubenville owned 480
acres in Stark County which
he was willing to sell reasonably; so
after inspecting the parcel, Rotch
bought it. He also bought 1,956 acres of
adjoining land from the
Steubenville Land Office.
In the spring of 1812, Rotch laid out
the village of Kendal, now a part
of Massillon. Many friends from
Nantucket and Hartford came to settle
there, and within a few years Kendal
became a flourishing little village
with fifty houses, a pottery, woolen
mill, sawmill, and grist mill.
On a hill overlooking the village, the
Rotches built a large frame
house, which they named Spring Hill.
After Thomas Rotch's death in
1823 and Charity's a year later, their
friend and former employee,
Arvine Wales, bought Spring Hill.
Members of the Wales family lived
there until 1973, when it was taken over
by the Massillon Museum
Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated
to preserving the
property. The house is now on the
National Register of Historic Places,
and is open to the public during the
summer months.
In the 1930s Mrs. Horatio Wales, the
last private owner of the
property, discovered a large collection
of Thomas Rotch's letters and
papers stored in an outbuilding known as
the "wool house." These she
later presented to the Massillon Public
Library, where they are now
Touring Ohio in 1811 137 |
|
preserved. But she overlooked the small notebook containing Charity Rotch's journal, and it lay undiscovered until 1983 when it was found by a group of volunteers who were inventorying the contents of the wool house. The journal is now preserved at Spring Hill Historic Home, whose trustees have graciously granted permission for its publication. Although mildew and mice have damaged the journal's pages, most of them are still legible. In her journal, Charity Rotch was writing for herself and not for publication; therefore her comments are briefer and less explanatory than those of other travel diarists of the period. Nevertheless, her journal is of interest because it is one of the few accounts of early Ohio travel written from a woman's point of view.
The Journal
Left Philadelphia the 29th of the 1st m° 1811 _ that day 32 miles to Downingstown on the Lancaster Turnpike;2 & lodg'd at Hunt Downings.3 From thence proceeded on our way to Lancaster 30 miles
2. The Lancaster Turnpike was part of the Pennsylvania State Road, which had been built 1785-1787 on the route of Forbes Road. The section between Philadelphia and Lancaster was the first paved road in the United States. Archer Butler Hulbert, Historic Highways of America (Cleveland, 1902 -1095), V, 190, 195. 3. Hunt Downing (1757-1834) was a Quaker and the grandson of Thomas Downing, the founder of Downington. He kept the Downing Hotel until 1816. J. Smith Futhey and |
138 OHIO HISTORY
further, reach'd on the evening the whole of the way exhibiting
an _________tho' the Country was cloak'd
in its winter habiliments,
considerable snow fell in the course of
the forenoon, but the pathway
was soon cleard of it by the passing of
waggons; upwards of two
hundred _______ we have seen in the course of these two
days; not
being able to lodge at the Inn
recommended, by our frds Warner
& Johnsons we put up at one Wilsons,4
very indifferent, from thence
10 miles to Columbia; & as the Ice renderd crossing the
Susquhannah impracticable, we staid at
widow Jeffrys,5 untill near 12
the next day, which a quiet comfortable resting place,
from 1st
2nd month pass'd the ferry, there was considerable ice
floating,
& it made the Labour hard for the
boatman, in abt an hour we were
Safe landed rode 10 miles over a very
rough stone road to York, &
lodg'd comfortably at Spanglers6 These two large
Inland towns,
depend chiefly upon manufactoring
various things; & Lancaster being
the seat of government:7 the
Courts are Sitting which at
least,
makes it appear but the low dutch Log houses in almost
all parts of both those does not add greatly to their beauty,
but
them a dull aspect 2nd of the
month, & 7th of the week, found the
road better than we expected &
proceeded to Hunterstown 24 miles,
lodg'd at Russells Inn;8 we
have pass'd thro several settlements or
neighbourhoods of frds but not on the
day of their meetings, & Shall
probably be prevented getting to any,
Some time longer, which is
different from our expectations,
calculating to be able to attend mtg at
least once a week; 3rd of the
month Rode 19 miles, & cross'd the South
Gilbert Cope, History of Chester
County, Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, 1881), I 419; II,
525.
4. This was probably the Indian King
Tavern, which was kept by Robert Wilson in
1799. Franklin Ellis and Samuel Evans, History
of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
(Philadelphia, 1883), 399.
5. Columbia grew up because of the ferry
started there in 1730 by John Wright.
Joseph Jeffries kept a hotel near the
ferry in the 1790s. He later built the Sorrel Horse
Hotel, which remained in the family
until 1835. From this point the Rotches took the
so-called Chambersburg Pike, a branch of
the main road which took a more southerly
route to Chambersburg. Ibid., 539;
Thaddeus Mason Harris, Journal of a Tour into the
Territory Northwest of the Alleghany
Mountains, in Reuben Gold Thwaites, Early
Western Travels (Cleveland, 1904), III, 369, ed. note.
6. Colonel Samuel Spangler opened a
tavern called the Sign of the Black Horse on
West Market Street in 1808. John Gibson,
History of York County, Pennsylvania
(Chicago, 1886), 549.
7. Lancaster served as the state capital
from 1799 to 1812. Fortescue Cuming said it
was the largest inland town in the
United States. Fortescue Cuming, Sketches of a Tour
to the Western Country, Thwaites, IV, 31-32.
8. Joshua Russell kept a tavern about
four miles north of Gettysburg near South
Mountain. W. C. Carter, History of
York and Lancaster Counties, Pennsylvania (York,
1834), 207.
Touring Ohio in 1811
139
mountain, found it as good as we had
reason to expect, & endeavour'd
to get safely & slowly along-lodg'd
comfortably 9 miles from Cham-
bersburg a handsome flourishing town
Snyders, a log house, & on the
4th got 20 miles on our way to Louden, to the foot of the
North
mountain the reflection of the Sun, this
morning upon Several
was beautiful indeed, I cou'd have wishd
many of my frds cou'd have
enjoy'd the Scenery ________ lodg'd at Whitesides Inn,9 I
omitted
mentioning the Civilities received from
Judge Riddle10 of Chambers
Town, who we met with at York, &
several times fell in with on our
way, he call'd at the Inn this day,
& handsomely invited us to his
house, & gave an invitation from his
wife to lodge with them on our
return-the weather being too fine to
omit travelling, we were under a
necessity of declining the first
proposal, & the Second must be left, for
a future decision. 5th rode 19 miles pass'd Macollins ___________
call'd at
Drydens Inn, which appeard like an
excellent one, there are several
good houses, & the situation the mountains appeared pleasant,
we had another elegant view of the mountains, I thot it worth
riding a great distance for; Lodg'd at
Reamers at the foot of Sideling
Hill, 6th we have now cross'd
South Mountain, North Mountain, Scrub
Ridge, Sideling Hill, Rays hill, &
Tursers Mountain,11 most of them,
tho
_________ good by the
inhabitants, Seem'd bad enough, but _____ was
a little part of them Smooth &
pleasant. Forded the beautiful Juniatta,
& rode on its banks in the
afternoon, reached Mount Dallas, & lodged
Hearthys Inn12-pass'd thro
Waynesville, called Bloody Run:13 in
consequence of some lives being lost, or
taken by Indians, pleasantly
situated between the mountains Log
houses, we were this day prevent-
ed from a view of the mountains by the
surrounding clouds, & mist,
9. Peter Whiteside kept an inn at
Mercersburg in 1792. He is listed as a resident of
Metal Township, Franklin County, in
1810. History of Franklin County, Pennsylvania
(Chicago, 1887), 863; Census Bureau of
the United States, return for Metal Township,
Franklin County, Pennsylvania, in 1810,
891.
10. James Riddle was born in Adams
County, Pennsylvania, graduated from Prince-
ton University, and was admitted to the
bar in 1784. He served as presiding judge of the
Chambersburg Judicial district from 1794
to 1804. Later he was in private practice. He
died about 1837. History of Franklin
County, Pennsylvania, 406.
11. South Mountain lies between
Gettysburg and Chambersburg. North Mountain is
east of McConnellsburg. Little Scrub
Ridge is just west of McConnellsburg. Sideling Hill
and Rays Hill are just east of
present-day Breezewood. Tursers Mountain probably
refers to Tusser's or Tussey's Mountain
just east of Bedford.
12. Hartley's Tavern, a limestone
building, was near present-day Everett. William
Hartley entertained George Washington
there in 1794. It was run by William Graham
when Thaddeus M. Harris visited it in
1803 and called it the best accommodation
between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
Harris, Thwaites, III, 324.
13. Waynesboro was the original name of
the present town of Everett. There are
several explanations for the name
"Bloody Run," but Cuming ascribes it to the massacre
of 250 militiamen by Indians shortly
after Braddock's defeat. Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 60.
140 OHIO
HISTORY
which produced some snow in the afternoon, 7th rode 6 miles &
breakfasted at Bedford Dillings14 from
thence proceeded to the foot of
the Allegany mountain, & lodg'd at
Burns, very indifferently, as was
our breakfast on the mountain, on the 8th at Stocklers;15
for want of
reaching the distances, on acct of our
horses: & the Roughness of the
road, we have lost the benefit of an
excellent Inn at Storse town,
Grahams;16 if from Dillings,
we cou'd have got to Grahams 28 miles,
we should have done much better-Lodg'd
at Dennison17 no better
than the former Inns, rode 9 miles
on to breakfast: at Johnsons,
a Log house but more comfortably
provided for than at the large brick
one we left-pass'd the Laurel hill 18
of Chesnut Ridge, bad
road
most of 20 miles, this days
Journey, Arrived in Youngstown;
&
next the 9th rode 23 miles the road being better. Lodg'd at Armours
a
log house as comfortable as cou'd be
expected: next night Stuarts,19 22
miles, & on the 11th
Reachd Pittsburgh. Within 12 miles of the town we
found the roads _ as any we pass'd, on acct of the miry places.
it a favour we got so well on our way
while the frost continued,
it is worthy of remark, that we shou'd
not in a Journey of 500 miles at
this Season, be one hour detain'd by the
weather. Some Snow has
fallen several times, but so gently as
not to impede travelling. 12th
Spent at our lodgings Macullin20 which
we find nearly to answer
Cummings' description, & are
satisfied with being here. wrote to New
14. Humphrey Dillon was an innkeeper in
Bedford in 1810, and continued in business
until after 1830. History of Bedford,
Somerset, and Fulton Counties, Pennsylvania
(Chicago, 1884), 250-51.
15. Casper Statler's log inn on the
summit of the Allegheny Ridge was a well-known
stopping place for travelers. F. A.
Michaux stopped there in 1802, as did Joseph Gibbons
in 1804, and Morris Birkbeck in 1817. F.
A. Michaux, Travels to the West of the
Alleghany Mountains, Thwaites, III, 147; Joseph E. Walker, ed., "The
Travel Notes of
Joseph Gibbons, 1804," Ohio
History, XCII (Annual, 1983), 141; Morris Birkbeck,
Notes on a Journey in America (London, 1818), 33.
16. Joseph Gibbons and his companions
put up at Graham's Tavern in Stoystown in
1804. Walker, Ohio History, XCII,
141.
17. John Dennison was a tavern keeper
and postmaster in Jenner Township, Somerset
County. He laid out the town of
Jennerstown in 1822. History of Bedford, Somerset, and
Fulton Counties, Pennsylvania, 504, 508.
18. Laurel Hill is just west of
Jennerstown.
19. Cuming locates Stewart's Inn eleven
miles west ofGreensburg near the Allegheny-
Westmoreland County line. Robert
Stewart, innkeeper, is on the tax list for Huntington
Township, Westmoreland County, in 1810.
Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 75; William H.
Dumont, Tax Lists: Westmoreland
County, Pennsylvania, 1786-1810. (Washington,
1968), 21.
20. The innkeeper is later referred to
as McCullough, so this was probably the Golden
Cross Keys Inn, opened by William
McCullough in 1807 on the corner of Fifth and Wood
Streets. Fortescue Cuming gave it high
praise in his book. Louis V. Mulkearn and Edwin
V. Pugh, Traveller's Guide to
Historic Western Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh, 1954), 41;
Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 77-78.
Touring Ohio in 1811
141
Bedford, & Sew'd & knit a
little. 13th began a letter to my dear E. & R.
Todd21 & attended to a
little Sewing & knitting at our lodgings, the
weather being to cold to visit the Glass
works, & Curiosities of the
place, my TR brought me a handsome
smelling bottle, which he saw
made this forenoon 14th went
with my TR & RI22 to visit the glass
works23 boats rivers &c =
the glass was particularly tifying, this
appears to be a busy town as many as 25
manfactorys, independant of
those trade common to our Country; 15th spent at our
lodgings, writing
&c occupied the day, 16, cross'd the Monongahaly; &
rode 16 miles to
Canonsburgh. Lodg'd at Donnalsons, the
severest headache I have had
since I left home prevented my partaking
of a comfortable Supper
provided by a very kind Landlady, 17th
not being near any meeting, we
Journeyd on abt 20 miles the road both
yesterday & this, has required
patience & care, Stop'd in
Washington a pleasant little town, contain-
ing more than three hundred houses, more
than twice as large as
Cannonsburg; at Morris's24 which
look'd like a good Inn, but as it was
not much pass'd noon, we Journey on 13
miles further to the south fork
of Buffalos Creek.25 Lodg'd
at a Log house; David __ ghts;
& went
to Alexandria to breakfast; as an Inn, kept by Gooding,26 as
any
we have met with; from thence proceeded
to Beales,27 four miles from
21. Dr. Eli Todd was born in New Haven,
Connecticut, in 1769 and graduated from
Yale College in 1787. He practiced
medicine in Farmington, Connecticut, until about
1820, then moved to Hartford. In 1824 he
established the Hartford Retreat for the Insane.
He died in 1833. He and his wife Rachel
were close friends of the Rotches, and he was
also Charity's doctor. J. Hammond
Trumbull, Memorial History of Hartford County,
Connecticut, 1633-1884 (Boston, 1886), I, 142; Eli Todd to Charity Rotch,
April 20, 1808,
RPMPL.
22. Richard Imlay was a young Quaker, a
member of the West Hartford Monthly
Meeting, who accompanied the Rotches on
their journey because he too was interested
in settling in Ohio. He moved to the
Rotches' settlement in Kendal, Ohio, in 1812, but
soon returned east and settled in
Trenton, New Jersey. Richard Imlay to Thomas Rotch,
September 4, 1812, March 1, 1815, RPMPL.
23. There were several glassworks in the
Pittsburgh area at that time, but from the
location mentioned, Charity is probably
referring to Bakewell, Page & Bakewell, which
stood at Water and Grant Streets. It was
established in 1808, and was known for its fine
flint glass. Mulkearn and Pugh, 30.
24. When Cuming visited Washington in
1807, he estimated it had about 175 houses.
The Globe Inn on Main Street, owned by
David Morris from 1804 to 1834, was known
as one of the best hotels between
Washington, D.C., and Wheeling. Cuming, Thwaites,
IV, 239; Boyd Crumrine, History of
Washington County, Pennsylvania (Philadelphia,
1882), 494.
25. Buffalo Creek was in Hopewell
Township, Washington County. Joseph
McFarland, Twentieth Century History
of Washington and Washington County, Penn-
sylvania (Chicago, 1910), 324.
26. West Alexander was laid out by
Robert Humphreys in 1796, and named for his
wife, Martha Alexander. John Gooding
kept a tavern there. Ibid., 505; Harris, Thwaites,
III, 48 ed. note.
27. Morris Birkbeck stopped at Ninian
Beall's tavern in 1817. He called it "a small
142 OHIO HISTORY
the village of Wheeling where my
feelings was deeply affected, at
finding there the detestable practice of
keeping as many as 22 human
beings in slavery, this tho but a small
number _ some in the
neighbourhood, sufficiently convinced me
of the rectitude of my
conclusion: to give up my natural life
sooner than subject myself: to
such scenes, _ ing my winters at the Southward; I left them;
deeply deploring the condition of both
Slaves, & possessors almost
breakfastless = the road was hard froze;
and very rough half a
mile from the town, we ascended as bad a
hill as any we have pass'd in
the Journey: & to increase our
truble, poor Cato, in one of the deep
tracks, hurt one of his fore feet with
the Cork on his hind one; & bled
so as to awaken our concern: my TR took his hankerchief &
bound it up: I alighted: & had to
encounter the ascent; which was as
great, or the greatest hardship I have
known; it being quite cold: & as
we approachd the top increasingly so:
had it not been for that; & the
little patience I felt, that any people
shou'd suffer such a peice of road
to exist; I shou'd have longer indulged
myself with the picturesque;
view it exhibited; with difficulty we
descended, while Richard had got
the horse, to the first house, & by
the kind assistance of the mistress
of it, had wash'd the wound & pourd
warm tallow on it; we from thence
went to the Inn; & wrote a billet to
M & P Graham28 informing them of
our being there & wishing to see
them, while our dinner was preparing
Michael soon came, & seemd overjoy'd
to see us; dr Patience has been
some time confin'd, & we call'd,
after dining to see her spent abt an
hour; & then the weather continuing _ we were apprehensive,
that we cou'd not cross the river if we
omitted it untill morning, &
concluded to that afternoon: M. cross'd
with us, & spent the night at
his Countrymans, Thompsons;29 a
well inform'd Irishman residing on
the banks of the beautiful Ohio; next
morning the 19th we parted with
Michael: in ten miles we reach'd St
Clairsville,30 a flourishing pretty
and simple establishment, which his
civility renders truly comfortable." Birkbeck, 48.
28. Michael Graham was a native of
Ireland who was converted to the Quaker faith
after coming to Massachusetts. He worked
for a time in the Rotch ropewalk in New
Bedford, then later opened a store
there. He and his family moved to Baltimore in 1801,
and to Wheeling in 1807. They were
members of Concord Monthly Meeting. Daniel
Ricketson, History of New Bedford (New
Bedford, Mass., 1858), 244-45; William Wade
Hinshaw, Encyclopedia of American
Quaker Genealogy (Ann Arbor, 1938), IV, 147;
Michael Graham to Thomas Rotch, October
19, 1801, RPMPL.
29. In all probability, this was Thomas
Thompson, who ran a tavern and ferry on the
north side of Fleming's Run in
Bridgeport, Ohio. In 1828 he vouched for two natives of
Ireland who wished to become citizens.
J. A. Caldwell, History ofBelmont and Jefferson
Counties, Ohio (Wheeling, 1880), 283; Irene M. Ochsenbein, Belmont
County Before
1830 (author, 1977), 33-34.
30. St. Clairsville was established in
1803 and had about eighty houses when Cuming
visited it in 1807. The Rotches were now
following Zane's Trace, which ran from
Touring Ohio in 1811 143
where several friends live, found the
road so good, it induced us
to go on 8 miles further to Milners Inn31
which I can say very little in
favour of, save the kindness of his wife
= he was a rough Virginian,
came into this country seven years ago
with 500 dollars; has since been
offerd 3000 for a part of his land 200
acres; & has settled several sons,
on adjacent farms = on the 20th
rode 3 miles to Morristown, a pleasant
little village, containing a few log
houses; & reachd Frankford 22 miles:
lodg'd at Moors Inn.32 The
Landlady, kindly furnish'd us, with a bed in
her parlour, with a good fire; which is
a great accomodation in a log
house; 21st we rode 5 miles
to breakfast, to Beamors:33 in Washington,
another pleasant village containing one
or two framed houses: the want
of a sufficiency of Streams in this part of the land, obliges
the
people to continue in their log houses;
we are pleased with this
part of the Country, find the roads good
& cou'd easily travel 40 miles,
if our horses were not & lame, that we are obliged to go on
very
Slowly; but I shou'd have mention, the
table spread for us, in the
wilderness this morning consisting of, venison Sausage Shad ham
Chicken eggs: biscuit waffles bread,
apple puff _ -a
larger
variety than usual, tho' we seldom have
less than three kinds of meat,
we regret, that the season of wild
Turkeys is past, they having been a
few weeks ago very plenty; rode 10 miles
after breakfast, mostly thro'
woods, Cambridge; Stewarts Inn;34 whose
accomodations are superior
to any we have seen; which with the
engaging manners of his wife, will
secure them much custom in this truly
pleasing country; the road
hitherto has been hilly; but not more,
than one or two, I think in this
distance, much worse, than some in our
neighbourhood at Hartford;
22nd yesterday we struck a Stump & Sprung the fore axele
tree of our
Carriage, had that repair with a rope: after which
ascending, a
short steep hill, very Icy: Prince
Slip'd & fell entirely on his side, lay
entirely still, untill Cato was taken
off loosen'd from the
Carriage, after which, he arose entirely
unhurt = I went into a little
cottage, while my TR, & RI
were preparing to go forward the
Wheeling to Maysville, Kentucky. Laid
out in 1796 and improved in 1805, it was
considered the best road in the state.
Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 232; Hulbert, XI, 156-59.
31. Edward Milner had a hotel three
miles east of Morristown. Caldwell, 369.
32. Andrew Moore kept a tavern in
Frankfort. William G. Wolfe, Stories of Guernsey
County (Cambridge, Ohio, 1943), 1064.
33. Washington (now Old Washington) was
laid out about 1805 by General Simon
Beymer. He opened the Black Bear Tavern
there in 1806. Cuming reported that in 1807
there were twelve houses in the town, of
which four were taverns, and two of them were
owned by the Beymer family. Wolfe, 1056;
Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 231.
34. The Bridge House, kept by Thomas
Stewart, stood at the north entrance to the
toll bridge across Wills Creek near
Cambridge. A large, L-shaped building, it was
well-known as a stopping place for
travelers. Wolfe, 546.
144 OHIO
HISTORY
woman, had come from the Jerseys, last
Spring bury'd her husband,
abt the time call'd Christmas & was
anxious to get to some frds that
came out with her; but I thot regretted
very little the Loss of her
companion = the above, are the most
serious events that have
happend to us, in this long Journey, in
which we have been greatly
favoured. found very poor accomodations
at Browns,35 from
Zanesville: where it is expected the
permanent seat of government will
be, the Legislator sat there 9 weeks
this last season, it contains abt
houses, & I think I was inform'd
that 5 yrs since the 4th chimney
was built in it: it is situated rather
low, it being first day & all of us
fatigued no mtg near we spent the day
& part of the next, in the
afternoon proceeded 7 miles & lodgd
at Scofields: & 26th we rode 27
miles to Lancaster. Stop'd on the way at
Dittoes,36 a tolerably
comfortable Inn. lodg'd at Sturgeons37
the land lord & several of the
inhabitants of this pleasant little
town, press'd our tarrying on
acct of their wish to find a Settlement
for a woolen Manfactory; & they
nobly offerd to make up 500 acres for the
Benevolent Institution38 if my
TR wou'd consent to come into the
neighbourhood; we thot best to
leave them & reach'd Shartlers Inn
on the 27th a very comfortable Log
house, & kind people perhaps 12
miles from Lancaster, in the morning
rode
two miles to
Tarlton, & stopt at
Lybrands Inn39 on
of getting a pr of horses, the mud now
being too deep for ours,
to convey us comfortably, they being too
much worn in a Journey of
700 miles; one Drury furnishd us with a
pair, & rode ours, we came on
to Macutchins40 9 miles;
fared poorly, at least a poor house but kind
35. Cuming visited Brown's Tavern, which
he described as "romantically situated in
a deep and narrow valley." The town
of Zanesville was still very small when he visited
it in 1807, but a footnote to his
account written by Zadok Cramer in 1810 said that
furnaces and forges were being built.
The pottery industry started about 1808. Zanesville
served as the state capital from 1810 to
1812. Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 225-26; Henry
Howe, Historical Collections of Ohio (Columbus,
1890), II, 603.
36. This was probably Jacob Dittoe, who
laid out the village of Hanover on Zane's
Trace in Reading Township, Fairfield
(now Perry) County in 1804. A. A. Graham,
History of Fairfield and Perry
Counties, Ohio (Chicago, 1883), 283.
37. Thomas Sturgeon came to Lancaster
about 1800 and kept a tavern in a brick house
near the center of town until 1824. C.
M. L. Wiseman, Pioneer Period and Pioneer
People of Fairfield County, Ohio (Columbus, 1901), 70-71.
38. "The Benevolent
Institution" probably refers to a long-cherished dream of
Charity Rotch's to found a school to
educate orphaned and poor children for a useful
trade. It finally came into being after
her death through a bequest in her will. The Charity
School of Kendal was founded in 1829 and
operated until 1910. William Henry Perrin,
History of Stark County, Ohio (Chicago, 1881), 385-86; Ruth Kane, Wheat,
Glass, Stone
and Steel (Massillon, Ohio, 1976), 19-21.
39. Tarlton, a village
about twenty miles southeast of Lancaster, had only one house
and the inn when Cuming visited it in
1807, but he called Lybrant's "one of the best and
most reasonable inns I had met with on
my tour." Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 221.
40. James McCutchen had a tavern in
Kingston. Cuming visited both it and Rickey's
Touring Ohio in 1811
145
landlady & found there was a better
Inn abt 3 miles farther on, one
Rickey. 1st of the 3rd m° rode
10 miles to the Sciota River: cross'd it in
a flat, it is generaly forded when Low;
& arrived at the much famed
town of Chilicothe;41 which
does not appear as interresting as some of
those we left behind: particularly St.
Clairsville & Lancaster; 2nd spent
at our Lodgings at __ llys Inn; no way extraordary; as to
accomo-
dations. 3rd being
disappointed in not getting horses that wou'd go in a
waggon I cou'd not go to a Small mtg 6
miles from this, at Dry Run, my
TR procured a Saddle horse & left me
for that purpose. Spent the day
at the Inn, writing &c 4th spent at our
lodgings attending to some little
matters, in the morning had an operation
perform'd on my right eye Lid
by Dr. Scott;42 a tumor that
had been gathering from the time I left
home; which tho tedious was not as
painful as might have been
expected from its appearance. 5th Benjamin Huffs wife calld to see us
in the morning, he is Nephew to TH
deceased of Philadelphia, & kindly
invited us to visit her which we
consented to. Went in the afternoon;
She Seems very frdly disposed &
regrets not being placed near a mtg
= 6th we were kindly invited
by a sister of our landlady to tea with her
by the name of Lamb; but a a Snow
falling & the Streets being wet, we
did not get there, consequently staid at
our Lodgings, in the forenoon
was invited by John Carlisle,43 to
take a ride in his carriage to see the
& 7th received an invitation to take tea at his house &
meet his
Mother in Law, Lamb there, She is
a m ly skilfull woman, & as
interresting as any I have seen in this
Country; rec'd a letter from A
Skinner44 yesterday giving
pretty comfortable accts from home we
were as Genteelly enttertaind, as we
woud be in the City of Newyork;
he has been one of the first settlers of
the town; came in to the country
tavern. History of Ross and Highland
Counties, Ohio (Cleveland, 1880), 243; Cuming,
Thwaites,IV, 220.
41. Chillicothe was laid out in 1796 and
was the state capital from 1803 to 1810. In
1807 Cuming found it to be a town with
two hundred houses and a number of mercantile
and public buildings. He thought it one
of the most beautiful towns he had seen in the
West. Howe, III, 164, 168; Cuming,
Thwaites, IV, 216-17.
42. Dr. Joseph Scott was born in
Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, about 1779, and
educated in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. He
practiced medicine in Chillicothe from about
1802 to 1811, then went to Kentucky,
returning to Chillicothe from 1822 to 1827. He died
in Lexington, Kentucky, about 1848. History
ofRoss and Highland Counties, Ohio, 215.
43. John Carlisle settled in Chillicothe
in 1798 and became a prominent merchant
there. He died in 1847. Ibid., 213.
44. Alexander Skinner worked in Rotch's
woolen mill in Hartford, and was in charge
of it during the Rotches' absence. He
moved to Ohio in 1812, and was a partner in
Rotch's woolen mill in Kendal for
several years before moving to Loudonville, where he
died in 1820. Perrin, 694; Alexander
Skinner to Thomas Rotch, December 19, 1811,
RPMPL.
146 OHIO HISTORY
with dollars; & is now worth many thousands indepen-
dant Situation, we were much __ ed with our visit, the table was
furnish'd _ ly with presents,
from Boston Mackrel & Smoked
Salmon; thus they seem'd desirous of
making us partakers of their good
things but a glass of better Current
wine made from their own garden,
1 third Juice I never drank = 8th tarried at home
quite unwell tho' we
had Several invitations from Generals
Findly, Macarter &c45 and 9th
proceeded on our way 16 miles, lodg'd at
Davis's,46 came from
Connecticut when he was young, & has
here a _ Settlement is
related to Beach of Hartford; came over
some very fine land, the Sise
of the trees, beauty of them &c attracting much admiration;
10th
proceeded 10 miles thro very good land,
& lodg'd at Smiths;47 his wife
is a member of our Society; fared very
indifferently, but they were
likely to move soon to the Miama country
& I hope the Inn will be
better supplied; 11th call'd
on our way at Harrison Ratcliffs;48 himself
& valuable wife went to Nathaniel
Popes with us; the latter had kindly
invited us to go there, when we were at
Chilicothe: we tarried with him
that night; the next day 12th
we rode 7 miles to Vanmeters49 there my
TR got a horse & boy to go on 7 miles with us to Armstrongs,50 the
road
laying thro' a Swamp & very muddy,
we had a good supper, & pleasant
Land lady; who is likely soon to leave,
that place for Cincinaty; where
her frds reside = in the morning my
husband purchased a small horse,
of the Land Lord, to ride on himself,
& relieve the waggon horses; &
45. General Samuel Finley was an officer
in the Revolutionary War. General Duncan
McArthur helped to lay out Chillicothe,
then acquired land and settled there. His home,
Fruit Hill, was a showplace. He was a
major general in the state militia, and became a
brigadier general in the War of 1812. History
of Ross and Highland Counties, Ohio, 174;
Howe, III,178-79.
46. This may have been Jacob Davis, who
came to Buckskin Township, Ross County,
about 1800 and accumulated seven hundred
acres of land. History of Ross and Highland
Counties, Ohio, 333-34.
47. Isaac Smith had a tavern in
Greenfield (Highland County) which was two stories
high and built of hewn logs. Ibid., 419.
48. Harrison Ratcliffe came to Highland
County about 1805. He built one of the first
houses in Leesburg and was an early
postmaster there. Nathaniel Pope came from
Virginia about 1802 and settled near
Leesburg. He erected one of the first brick houses
in the area. Both men were Quakers, and
members of Fairfield Monthly Meeting. Ibid.,
359, 396-97, 399, 409, 412; Hinshaw, V,
272-73.
49. Morgan Van Meter came to Clinton
County about 1800 and settled near Snow Hill
in Greene Township, where he built a
double log cabin and started a tavern. It was the
first in the county, and was listed in
early road guides. Albert J. Brown, History of
Clinton County, Ohio (Indianapolis, 1915), 82; History of Clinton County,
Ohio (Chicago,
1882), 706.
50. Armstrong started a tavern in 1805
or 1806 in Washington Township, Clinton
County, at the site of the present
village of Cuba. Brown, 88; History of Clinton County,
Ohio, 804.
Touring Ohio in 1811
147
we reachd Lebanon 22 miles, & lodg'd
at Furgasons,51 we have pass'd
over a large tract of excellent Land
since leaving Chilicothe; 14th
yesterday spent in & abt Lebanon our
kind Land lady accompanied us
in the afternoon 4 miles to the Shakers
Settlement,52 & a Lawyer who
boards with her, by the name of Freeman;53
we had heard on our way
that they (the Shakers) were likely to
sell their improvements, & go to
the Wabash country & we knew not but
it might be a good purchase
but, found quite to the Contrary, &
tho' pleased with the Country
round: yet I saw nothing to induce my
tarriance = they have cleard
considerable Land, & built some
large framed houses; we were invited
by Dr Canby54 to take tea at
his house & on our return, we went
thither, Just across the street from our
Lodgings; & spent an agreeable
evening with his pretty little wife, who
resembles the daughter of Ruth
Fisher extremely, they are __ , & she being confined with a young
child seldom gets to mtg. 6 miles
distant; She came in this morning &
spent abt an hour, my TR & RI left
me to ride with her husband abt 6
miles to view the country, we are very
agreeably situated in this family,
& I think I cou'd be content to stay
sometime, this is a very pleasant
little village, I think as much so as
any we have yet seen, & the land of
Superior quality around it 15th accepted an
invitation from my Land
Lady to visit a family; from the Jerseys
abt 3 yrs since by the name of
Van horn,55 whose history is too interresting to be pass'd by
silently
this family composed of seven daughters
& one Son, with their father
& mother left home, the father in a
low state of health yet so as to have
hope of performing the Journey probably
reaping advantage from it,
51. William Ferguson was listed as
postmaster of Lebanon in 1805, and as running a
grocery store in 1810. He married
Catharine Rue in 1806. History of Warren County,
Ohio (Chicago, n.d.), 452, 466; Warren County, Ohio,
Marriage Records, 1803-1854
(Indianapolis, 1977), 23.
52. The Shaker community of Union
Village four miles west of Lebanon was
established in 1806. The rumor that the
Shakers were moving to Indiana probably arose
because they had established a community
in Busro, Indiana, in 1810, and also because
they had recently been harrassed by a
mob from Lebanon. Actually, the community
remained in existence until 1912. Edward
Deming Andres, The People Called Shakers
(New York 1953), 91, 290-91.
53. Thomas Freeman was born in
Pennsylvania, and came to Lebanon from Cincin-
nati about 1809. He practiced law on the
Miami Circuit. He was thrown from a horse and
killed in 1818. History of Warren
County, Ohio, 297.
54. Dr. Joseph Canby, a Quaker, came to
Wayne Township, Warren County, in 1807.
He later practiced medicine in Lebanon
for twenty years. From 1811 to 1824 he was a
Censor to examine applicants for medical
licensing. Ibid., 301, 304, 568.
55. The Rev. William Van Home, a Baptist
clergyman, died in Pittsburgh in 1807 on
the way to Ohio. The rest of the family
settled on a farm one mile east of Lebanon. The
son, Thomas Van Home, fought in the War
of 1812, and later served in the Ohio
Legislature. He died in 1859. Ibid.,
392.
148 OHIO HISTORY
but the fatigue proved too much for him,
& he died in Pittsburg, they
then proceeded, on their Solitary way,
& appear to be persons of
respectability & well educated: I
was pleased with my visit, & treated
with attention; the youngest daughter
particularly claiming my regard:
from the softness, & apparent
Sweetness of her disposition, she
reminded me of my dear Candice they are
comfortably accomodated in
a log house built by their Son, who
occupies half of it; & is making
great improvement, in gardening &c
& soon intends building a brick
house, in the garden, fine bed of monthly Strawberries &
some
of the other kind, 5 different kinds of
Raspberries, asparagus fit to cut
this Season; Shrubbery & many
valuable roots = return'd, & found my
TR & RI, safe at our lodgings well
pleas'd with their excursion, having
had time to view one of the ancient
forts56 for which this land is so
remarkable, an acct of which deserves a
place in this book = 16th
having for more than a week, had a
sensation at times abt my right hand
& arm, that reminded me of a
paralytic affection: I mentioned it to the
wife of John Evans,57 who
came into town with her husband &
daughter, she confirmd my Suspicion,
& advised immediate attention,
& as it appeard to increase pretty
rapidly almost to the disuse of the
part I consulted Dr Canby: who tho'
young seems like a Judicious man:
& he immediately advised bleeding in
the afternoon it was done, & I
had to return to bed after recovering a
little from a faint turn; but
believe it was a right Step; tho
prevented from getting to meeting by it
on the 17th, which I much
regretted; the Sensation not wholly abating
& feeling considerably weakend in
the morning aining prevented
my husband also from attending mtg being
6 miles distant = the acct
my TR gave of his excursion is in part
as follows, 7 miles from this
place, ascended from the little Miama
river on the Virginia Military
Lands, abt half a mile, by the only
passage into an admirable fort, the
circumference of which, is three miles,
& contains near 600 acres; it
appears to be the only situation within
a great distance, that wou'd
admit, of so formidable a plan of
defence, the walls are abt 20 feet high
& the base 30 wide, & on the
side next the river, & that up river, in
some places, where the first fall of the
natural bank favourd, it is from
56. This was Fort Ancient, which lies
seven miles southeast of Lebanon. Rotch was
so interested in the Indian mounds that
he paid a man to dig into one of the mounds at
Fort Ancient and report his findings to
Dr. Canby. The report, if one was made, has not
survived. Gerard Fowke, Archaeological
History of Ohio (Columbus, 1902), 239-42;
Thomas Rotch, partial draft of letter,
March 14-17, [1811], RPMPL.
57. John Evans was the youngest son of
Joseph Evans (note 59). John was born in
Bush River, South Carolina, in 1787, and
came to Ohio with his parents. Eileen Davis
and Judith Ireton, Quaker Records of
the Miami Valley of Ohio (Owensboro, Ky., 1980),
61.
Touring Ohio in 1811 149
_
0 to 70 feet, inaccessible except by the gateway as is many other
parts of it down the river, & on the
South east side, but upon the east,
which is _ n the river, there is an extensive plain, & the gateways
nearer together, some of the avenues
appeard to be Sluce ways for
water, against which an elevated point,
either natural or artificial, from
which the Sluces, might be coverd for
greater security; it is said there
are one hundred gateways the walls were
once much higher, or have,
remarkably preserved their Shape, &
in many places wou'd be very
difficult to ascend; upon them are many
trees 4 feet thro' while there
are little ridges & hollows, that
appear to be made by the falling over
of trees of former growth; Such as we have frequently seen
passing thro the woods, resembling
graves without the least trace of
wood abt them, without the fort, perhaps
one hundred yards from the
Ramparts are two mounds, with large
trees growing upon them, abt
Seven miles down the River on the side
opposite this fortification, there
is another containing abt 100
acres, one part of which is within 40 yrds
from the river, where there is the
appearance of brick work, reduced by
great heat to Cinder, as tho' there
might have been a furnace.58 18th
accompanied by our Landlady & her
mother we went to Joseph
Evans's,59 dined &
returnd Just before dark; Johns family has lately
removed these parts; has three grown daughters, the youngest
Sarah I once had the offer of, she
seem'd like a promising young
woman; Joseph closely recommended, my
leaving tea & Coffee, &
trying a mild diet for several months,
which I feel inclined, to adopt, &
hope for resolution to do it = 19th
last night I was disturb'd in Sleep by
dreaming that my dr little TR & old
frd EA60 had just deceased, & I was
anxious for them to be buried in one
Coffin; it also seem'd as if there
was a third Corpse; & my dr Mother
also present; but have not a clear
recollection of the matter left Lebanon
abt 11 oclock, & pass'd over a
beautiful country considerably improved
for abt 5 miles; then the road
was poor, & the Country in places
not quite so good: untill we reach'd
58. There was an unfinished earthwork at
Foster's Crossing on the west side of the
Little Miami. It had loose stones
covered with masses of clay burnt to hardness. Fowke,
256-57; History of Warren County,
Ohio, 402.
59. Joseph Evans, the father of John
Evans, was a member of the Waynesville
Friends Meeting and Miami Monthly
Meeting. He was born in Bush River, South
Carolina, in 1749, and died in Warren
County, Ohio, in 1828. Davis and Ireton, 61;
History of Warren County, Ohio, 568.
60. "Little TR" was the
Rotches' only child, Thomas Jr., who had died in 1791 at the
age of four months. "EA" was
probably Elizabeth Allen, an old friend of Charity's
mother. Charity had cared for her after
Mrs. Rodman's death. Notation on Thomas and
Charity Rotch's marriage certificate,
RPMPL; Last will and testament of Mary Rodman,
February 10, 1798, RPMPL.
150 OHIO HISTORY
Prices Inn, 15 miles, found rather
indifferent entertainment, & miss'd
our kind frds the Fergusons particularly
in point of lodging, the fields
have began to be green & those with
grain are beautifully so: 20th after
a poor night we took our departure &
came on to Mills's,61 who we
find, is a widow her husband died last 6th
m°. She is from Elizabeth-
town in the Jerseys, has been here 14
years, they have made great
improvements a fine brick house &c
Staid long enough to get dinner &
then proceeded to Cincinnata, the road
mostly dry & settled; took
lodgings at Griffin Yeatmans62
near the river; which affords from our
chamber a pleasing view Newport being
situated on the opposite side
in Kentucky a small town, in which is
the united states Naval
establishment;63 21st in the
morning was call'd upon by Jessy Hunt64 &
his wife; the former we were introduced
to at Lebanon She invited me
to take tea the next day; which I gave
some encouragement to do; if we
tarried in town; dined upon excellent
fish; I believe perch taken out of
the River; I think equal to any I ever
tasted. rode round the town in the
afternoon-visited the remains of an ancient
fort; & mound within the
limits of the town; & stopt at an
english gardeners who had been here
but two years. Seem'd like an honest
industrious man, I thot him so
deserving encouragement, that I gave him
most of the Turnip beet seed
I had left: which I doubt not will gain
him a few pence; he had many
pretty little plants among which, were a
beautiful monthly rose, one in
full bloom, with 3 large buds, which he
had just sold for 9/; our land
lords sister Sally, accompanied us = 22nd
last night dream'd I was
awakend by a gentle touch from my dear E
Todd, who it seem'd had
been to visit my dear Mother; I arose
with alacrity to provide
something comfortable for him; &
soon found, it was only a dream, but
the apprehension, that something
serious, affects some of my beloved
frds, is the frequent companion of my
mind, yet I know not that I cou'd
regret taking this Journey, if I shou'd
not see some of them again; as I
feel incompetent to care; & cou'd
not help them if they were distress'd;
61. Mary Halstead Mills was the widow of
John R. Mills, who owned land in
Columbus Township, Hamilton County, as
early as 1801. His will was probated on July
1, 1810. Henry Ford, History of
Hamilton County, Ohio (Cleveland, 1881), 276; Marie
Dickore and Natalie Thornburgh, Hamilton
County, Ohio, Marriage Records 1808-1820
and Wills (Abstracts) 1790-1810 (Cincinnati, 1959), 59.
62. Yeatman's Inn was the first erected
in Cincinnati, and was located near
Yeatman's Cove at the foot of Sycamore
Street. History of Cincinnati and Hamilton
County, Ohio (Cincinnati, 1894), 56.
63. Cuming said that in 1808 Newport had
"a large brick arsenal and magazine, the
property of the general
government." Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 256.
64. Jesse Hunt was listed on the
Cincinnati tax records for 1810, and in the Cincinnati
census for 1817. Esther Weygand Powell, Early
Ohio Tax Records (Akron, 1971), 155;
Marie Dickore, Census for Cincinnati,
Ohio, 1817 (Cincinnati, 1960), 34.
Touring Ohio in 1811 151
this has been a rainy day &
prevented our going anywhere, excused
myself from complying with the
invitation: as I perceived there was a
party invited, & I did not feel able
to go so unaccustom'd am I to things
of this nature, that it wou'd be a task
& a burden; & I much regret that
this practice has found a way into those
remote settlements, but the
people in most places dress as well,
& are as fashionable, as in the
larger Cities, Lace &c worn
by the females = one unfortunate man by
the name of Smith, here is likely to
loose all his property, it is to be sold
for the benefit of his Creditors next 2nd
day 13 miles from here; he
seems like a worthy person & has
excited my sympathy: had been
industrious building vessels &c
but by the mismanagement of those in
whom he has confided, all must now go, I
think he appears to bear it
with a degree of fortitude, has an
amiable family, whom he wishes us
to see; this is a very beautiful town I
feel much attach'd to it: a fine
Market, & everything to be attained,
that is necessary; the river
furnishing this Market from remote
parts, with many good things Cyder
& apples cheap, the latter now sold
for half a dollar per bushel.-23rd
confined & much distress'd with the
head ach; in the evening was Just
able to go down stairs & see Jessy
Hunts wife who came again to our
lodgings, she appears like an amiable
woman: 24th first day spent
mostly in my chamber, our Landlord at
Lebanon Wm Ferguson call'd
in the afternoon to see us, & in the
evening waited upon his wife to our
lodgings I omitted mentioning the
tempest night before last very sharp
lightening, & a long continuance of
it, & thunder, it disturbd us very
much; & also the families much more
exposed to it-in the Arks65 lying
directly opposite to this house on the
river, which rose so fast, that
they were obliged to fasten their Stakes;
to which the boats are lash'd;
on higher ground; 25 awoke last night,
& looking out of the window,
found a Man employ'd in the same
way; & the Arks, have nearly
approach'd the Street; before the house
we are now in, abundance of
drift wood, has already pass'd by, I
view it with regret, as it wou'd
supply this whole town & it seems
there are poor people enough that
need it, but too negligent even to
secure it, when it comes to them =
in the afternoon visited John Stall66
& wife; at their daughter Sinclairs:
Wm & Catharine Ferguson
went with us, we had a pleasant visit, in the
evening call'd upon Jessy Hunts wife; 26th
took an affectionate leave of
our Land lords family, his sister Sarah
Winton keeps house for him, &
65. Thaddeus M. Harris described the
Arks as "square, and flat-bottomed; about
forty feet by fifteen, with sides six
feet deep; covered with a roof of thin boards, and
accommodated with a fire-place."
Harris, Thwaites, III, 335.
66. John Stall and his wife came from
Philadelphia in 1804. They were members of
Miami Monthly Meeting. Hinshaw, V. 124.
152 OHIO HISTORY
his eldest daughter __ ulia: an amiable girl, wept much at parting
I
shall not easily forget the sensibility
she discoverd: Catharine Ferguson
rode in the Carriage with me, we had a
late but excellent dinner at the
widow Mills's; she gave me in
charge a direction to call upon her
brother Dr Robert Halsted, who lives in
the upper part or entrance of
Elizabeth Town, & her husbands
brother, Thadeus Mills, abt the
middle of the place; her son Wm is
with one of them; She wish'd me to
give them a little acct &c of her,
with her love = She is finely settled
a good Brick house & large farm, 150
acres of Land Clear'd & in good
order; She keeps a house of entertainment;
a distinction in this
Country, common when they do not sell
liquor; we after dinner
proceeded to Prices Inn &
lodg'd again, an english family, who have
experiencd a great change, in coming to
this Country the woman
particularly, who told me, she was only
accustom'd to standing behind
the Counter, before she left England = 27th proceeded to
Lebanon; the
road very wet & muddy; in
consequence of the great rain Lodg'd one
more night comfortably at Wm Fergusons
& on the 28th took leave of
them, & rode 10 miles to Waynesville
put up at David Pughs;67 who
keeps a house of entertainment: are
members of our Society was
disappointed in not getting to their m°
mtg which was yesterday, a
goodly old friend from Virginia; came
into see us; Mordecai Warker,68
he recollected Sister Lydia,69 as
has divers other frds; he gave me an
interresting acct of a discovery
made in Kentucky, by persons digging
for a Salt Spring; they dug into a
Cavern or Arch: Where on a Stone
Shelf lay a body, supposed to have been
embalm'd, entire in form; but
wou'd not bear much handling, however,
enough to be Secured by a
Physician in Lexington; Benjamin Hopkins70
& wife also call'd to see
us, the latter told me she had a
daughter named Lydia Rotch, by S
Coupon: they are from Haddonfield; 29th came 18 miles to Daton, a
village considerably larger than
Lebanon, & preferable in situation on
67. Waynesville, a Quaker center, was
the site of the Miami Monthly Meeting. David
Pugh was a member of Waynesville Meeting
and Miami Monthly Meeting. He came from
Canesville, South Carolina, in 1804.
Hinshaw, V, 112; History of Warren County, Ohio,
568; James L. Burke and Donald E.
Bensch, Mount Pleasant and the Early Quakers of
Ohio (Columbus, 1973), 7.
68. Mordecai Walker was a member of
Waynesville Meeting and Miami Monthly
Meeting. He came from Hopewell,
Virginia, in 1804. Hinshaw, V, 136.
69. Lydia Rotch Dean (1770-1822) was
Thomas Rotch's sister. She was a Quaker
minister, and made at least one
preaching journey. Joseph L. McDevitt Jr., The House
of Rotch (Ann Arbor, 1978), 551; D. Hamilton Hurd, History of
Bristol County,
Massachusetts (Philadelphia, 1883), 92.
70. Benjamin Hopkins was a member of
Waynesville Meeting. He and his family were
certified to Miami Monthly Meeting from
Haddonfield, New Jersey, Monthly Meeting in
1805. Hinshaw, V, 76; History of
Warren County, Ohio, 568.
Touring Ohio in 1811
153
acct of its being situated near the
confluence of the Mad river with the
Miama: from which they are often
supplied with most excellent fish: of
divers kinds; it is also very superior
to Waynesville: but not quite so
healthy pass'd thro' much excellent
land: indeed this neighbourhood is
Luxurantly rich; & well rewards the Labourers toil; 30th
lodg'd
comfortably at Reeds Inn,71 a clean good
house, the Land lord took
some trouble to set his net to procure
fish for us, but the river was so
high he did not succeed; 30th in the
afternoon attempted to follow a
Country waggon which was going the road
to John Simpsons:72 & did
untill we got to the Miama River, which
was too high for our carriage
to cross, & we were obliged to
return. 31st attempted to get to a mtg 8
miles distant cross'd the ferry in a
boat, which pass'd with the aid of a
rope; & rode a few miles got into a
wrong road, found it very bad; a
severe tempest came up; & we were
out in all of it: we rode on, untill
we found it past the eleventh hour,
& then turn'd back, & with much
difficulty regain'd the ferry again;
& were glad to find ourselves, safely
shelterd from the torrents of rain:
& now must give up all hope of
seeing our worthy & dear old frd JS;
1st of 4th m°. I wrote to him in the
morning to inform him; how it was; &
offer to take letters if he cou'd
send them to Chilicothe, after which
took our departure from Daton:
Wm Burbager, from
Philadelphia: who has settled in that place, came a
mile with us: & shewd us other marks
of attention; we found the road
tolerable good considering the rain that
had fallen To the Yellow
Springs73 a situation much
thought of by the inhabitants of this state for
its effiacacious waters & romantic
Scenes: but the proprietors are too
negligent to erect comfortable
accomodations for people, of conse-
quence it is lost very much, as to the
Community, we past one night &
so much of the next day as to get only 4
miles, to a very inconvenient
place for lodging; only one room for the
family & us; 3rd went 5 miles
to Springfeild, the place we intended to
lodge the night previous, where
at Foos's,74 we shou'd have
been much better off, & had a very
71. Colonel David Reid had a two-story
frame house on Main Street in which he kept
"a house of private entertainment," which meant he did not have to have a tavern
license. History of Montgomery County, Ohio (Chicago, 1882), 562.
72. John Simpson and his wife were
received in West Branch Monthly Meeting
(Miami County) from Falls Monthly Meeting, Pennsylvania,
in 1810. Hinshaw, V. 764.
73. The waters of Yellow Springs were
already considered to be beneficial to invalids.
As early as 1804 Lewis Davis kept a
boarding house for their accommodation, but it was
simple and primitive. George F.
Robinson, History of Greene County, Ohio (Chicago,
1902), 175.
74. Springfield was laid out in 1801,
and Griffith Foos was one of the first settlers. He
built a double log cabin on Main Street
West of Spring Street, opening it as a tavern in
June. 1801, and continuing in business until 1814.
Howe, I, 396.
154 OHIO HISTORY
agreeable Landlady; it is a very
pleasant town, & struck my attention
on enterring it, as good for Sheep
&c = meeting with a person going on
directly to Urbanna, was induced to go
14 miles to see that place, it is
a County town, & very pleasantly
situated but not so advantageously
situated on acct of navigable waters, as
many other parts = lodg'd at
Niles Inn,75 young beginners,
& indifferent accomodations, as
to
lodging &c 4th went on our way;
20 miles, & lodg'd at Guins;76the road
tolerably good, thro considerable
Pirara, 5th pursued our course, &
found the road as we had been told it
was extremely bad, the latter part
of the way, the first 8 miles thro
meadow Land; the other part only a
common waggon road, & So often
turning from one to the other
much augmented the distance we however
was favourd to get to
Franklington77 abt 7m
& put up at Brodericks Inn, as comfortably
accomodated, as the house they live in,
& the Situation of the town will
admit of, it appearing to possess fewer
advantages, than some other
places in this favourd land: the
proprietor of the town, not affording the
encouragement to Settlers, that most people
do; but it being on the
Virginia Military land; & the title
somewhat doubtful may be another
cause, met 4 Indians, the only ones we
have seen in all our Journey,
two young looking women carrying their
children & the men trudging
leisurely by their side; 6th was detain'd
from going to Worthinton by the
heighth of the rivers, but spent my day
quite comfortably in this house
repairing cloathing; doing up Caps &c
but not unattend with deep
regret, at the prospect of being
obliged, to resign the object of my
present pursuit my only motive in coming
to this place, was to see the
beloved relatives of my endeard RT,78
& convey to her Sympathetic
bosom, as near as possible tidings of
their situation; all which with the
Satisfaction of seeing dear Bulah &
little Joan must be relinquish'd if I
75. This was probably Lawrence Niles,
who was listed as a resident of Urbana in
1811. He occupied a hewed log house and
was a hatter by trade. He lived in Urbana only
a few years before moving away. History
of Champaign County, Ohio (Chicago, 1881),
326; Joshua Antrim, History of
Champaign and Logan Counties, Ohio (Bellefontaine,
Ohio, 1872), 36.
76. Thomas Gwynne was granted a license
in 1810 to keep a tavern at his house in
Deer Creek Township. He was the first
licensed tavern-keeper in Madison County.
History of Madison County, Ohio (Chicago, 1883), 327.
77. Franklinton was laid out in 1797 on
the west bank of the Scioto River. It was the
seat of Franklin County until 1824, but
is now part of Columbus. Howe, I, 611.
78. Dr. James Harvey Hills was the
brother of Rachel Todd (note 20). He was
educated at Yale University, and studied
medicine with his brother-in-law, Dr. Eli Todd.
He moved to Worthington in 1808, his
wife Bula and their children remaining in
Connecticut with the Todds, and
following him later. He died in Delaware, Ohio, in 1830
at the age of forty-seven. History of
Delaware County, Ohio (Chicago, 1880), 233; Rachel
Todd to Charity Rotch, April 13, 1808,
RPMPL; Bula Hills to Charity Rotch, January 16,
1812, RPMPL.
Touring Ohio in 1811 155
cannot get to Worthington; 7th arose in the morning with a full
determination to surmount every obstacle
in my way to Worthington,
accordingly a good Saddle horse was
procured; we cross'd the ferry in
a boat, & rode abt 12 miles to that
place; making it 3 further than to ford
the river; left our horses at the Inn
& as I advanced towards the
habitation, I saw a young man, on whom I
gazed steadfastly to see, if
I cou'd trace aught of my dr RT in
his countenance; he had not
approach'd So near as to enable me to
trace the outlines of his visage:
but my eyes was regaled, by his near
resemblance of the friend I love:
& the mutual Salutation, was as if
we had long been acquainted; the
sweet tenderness, that was evident
throughout; his manly deportment;
such alternate struggles; between
fortitude & affection, as acknowl-
edging me to be the frd. of his
friends; presented such a scene, as will
not easily be forgotten he turn'd tho'
much engaged on acct of a sick
child in the neighbourhood; &
conducted me to his Bulah, who with
open arms rec'd me, & their hearts
was as commodious, as their house
which tho equal to many in this country
is not what we wish them to
have & we are gratified to find they
are going to another place more
eligibly situated, than we think the one
is, they now inhabit, which tho'
pleasantly situated, has not the
advantages of many other towns; little
Joan with her wonted diffidence soon
approach'd me, & Darwin also.
they both, save a little enlargement of
Sise, seem to retain every
appearance even in their countenances as
when they left Farmington =
our time was Limitted; we improved it,
in reciprocal enquiries; & after
being Solaced with a frdly repast; we
were obliged to bid them an
affectionate adeiu, & return'd
comfortably to Franklington; 8th left that
place, had to ford a deep River call'd
for want of a better name Big
Belly:79 pass'd on abt 18
miles, near to Walnut Creek which was thot,
too high for our Carriage to pass over,
& we tarried at Cratons80 the
poorest of all places, I believe we have
been at, we gladly departed,
after to me, a most miserable night;
& in abt 3 quarters of a mile found
a more comfortable assylum at Snyders81
& took breakfast, near the
place of fording when the river is high;
we pass'd safely & had a
swampy road for several miles: after
which it was better, & we reachd
Chilicothe Just at dark, cross'd the
Sciota river in a commodious flat,
79. Big Belly is now called Big Walnut
Creek, and Walnut Creek is now called Little
Walnut Creek.
80. Hugh Creighton had a tavern and
store in South Bloomfield, Pickaway County.
Aaron Van Cleaf, History of Pickaway
County, Ohio (Chicago, 1906), 132.
81. This was probably Isaac Snyder, who
started a sawmill on Walnut Creek in
Harrison Township, Pickaway County,
about 1804. He is on the 1810 tax list for
Pickaway County. History of Franklin
and Pickaway Counties, Ohio (Cleveland, 1880),
345; Powell, 299.
156 OHIO HISTORY
& met a welcome reception from our
frds of the place; I must not here
omit remarking that on the 8th
inst; while waiting to cross the ferry I
took a short ramble in the woods, &
amused myself with gathering
flowers; which upon examing I found
contain'd 12 different kinds &
some of them the most delicate, &
beautiful I have seen at this season,
the smell resembling the Hyacinth very
much; & its beauty nearly
equal in this state of nature, what
wou'd be done by cultivation is not
mine at present to know; these are not
all the varieties, that inhabit the
woods at this time, & as the season
advances, there is still greater
perfection; by the accts we have
from the inhabitants, that time,
precious time, may be more usefully
employ'd in this Land, than
Cultivating flowers, nature having been
rich in blessings, 10th went to
the Shops, procured bumbazet, for a gown
& had a woman to make it,
mine being too much worn now, except for
riding = had an invitation
from our frd Lamb to take tea
with her, last night upon our arrival, had
the Satisfaction of receiving divers
acceptable letters, which were a
real treasure; from every place, we were
particularly desirous of
hearing of, & from = most of them
contain the draught allotted mortals
& mingle the bitter with the Sweets;
tho' I was highly gratified in
finding, our own dear connections &
best loved frds. in tolerable
health-11 took our leave of Chilachothe
& Lodg'd at Shartles 19
miles, saw three beautiful deer skipping
across the road; 12th got to
Lancaster lodg'd at Sturgeons, 13th
got to Dittos met with a bad place
in the road, & Cato, in his exertions
to get thro, broke the Wifletree,
which we got repaird at Dittoes. 14th
reach'd Springfield a pleasant
little village opposite Zanesville;
lodg'd at Burnams,82 a new England
family, & commodious house 16th
pass'd thro Zanesville spoke to dear
Nathan Findley83 on our way
& call'd upon B. Huffs wife; who had
removed there from Chilicothe; lodg'd at
Stewards Cambridge 17th
rode 15 miles to Moors Inn Frankford; 18th
rode 19 miles to Morrison
Inn at Morris town;84 our
frds Joseph Stears85 & Charles Dinzy, going
82. Springfield was located on the west
bank of the Muskingum River opposite
Zanesville. Its name was changed to
Putnam in 1814. Captain William Burnham built a
three-story brick and stone hotel on the
corner of Muskingum and Putnam Avenues in
1808. It was the first brick hotel in
eastern Ohio, and was called the best west of the
Alleghenies. Thomas W. Lewis, Zanesville
and Muskingum County, Ohio (Chicago,
1927), I, 145-46; J. Hope Sutor, Past
and Present of the City of Zanesville (Chicago,
1905), 83-84.
83. Nathan Findley was listed as a
merchant in Zanesville in 1815, and later owned a
salt well. He served in the Ohio
Legislature. History of Muskingum County, Ohio (no
place, 1882), 62, 90-91.
84. Duncan Morrison, for whom Morristown
was named, was justice of the peace and
kept a tavern in a one-story log house.
Fortescue Cuming stopped there for breakfast in
1807. Caldwell, 370; Cuming, Thwaites,
IV, 232.
85. Joseph Steer and his family were received
in Short Creek Monthly Meeting from
Touring Ohio in 1811
157
on an appointment, to the Miama
quarterly mtg: call'd there, &
entering into conversation with my TR on
the subject of manufactorys,
concluded to stay that night, M Graham
met us a few miles from Morris
town & on the 19th accompanied us to John Witchels.86 found
dear
Mary, pleased to see us, her husband
& son being gone to Philadelphia.
after dinner she took us to Eli Nichols,87
to see his fine mill &c 4 miles
distant from her house; returnd &
lodged with her & in the morning
rode 9 miles to George Kinzeys88 found
their son James, & his Mother
at home; whose kindness &
hospitality, in her poor Cabin, will not be
forgotten then proceeded to Jonathan
Taylors:89 who is absent on a
religious visit to the North &
eastward, & has had several ill turns in his
absence, of 7 months, we continued with
his wife Ann, & daughter
Rebecca all night; went to mtg &
return'd, dined, & proceeded to
Joseph Stears; the frds we saw at
Morristown; the family very kindly
entertaind us dear Wm Hannen, dined with
us yesterday, & desired his
love to Sister H, express'd much
gratitude & affection for
her, I
omitted mentioning dear Patience Grahams
meeting us, at Eli Nichols,
being on a visit in the neighbourhood;
& has since been with us, much
to our satisfaction tho' considerably
indisposed: with the fever & ague;
this is a hilly but healthy part of the
State; furnish'd with Coal in plenty,
the small village, on Shortcreek is
call'd mount pleasant: abt a mile
from the mtg house;90 lodg'd
at our kind frds house, & call'd next morn
to see his Son David & daughter
Phebe,91 settled on one side, & dined
Hopewell, Virginia, Monthly Meeting in
1804. They lived in Jefferson County, but Steer
also owned land in Belmont County, and
died there sometime between 1819 and 1824.
Hinshaw, IV, 160; Ochsenbein, 13, 185.
86. John and Mary Witchell were received
in Concord Monthly Meeting from
Abingdon, Pennsylvania, Monthly Meeting
in 1808. In 1809 they were granted a
certificate to Plainfield Monthly
Meeting in Belmont County, and in 1815 to Richland
Monthly Meeting in Pennsylvania.
Hinshaw, V, 165, 359.
87. Eli Nichols bought a mill property
on Wheeling Creek in 1810. It included a grist
mill, sawmill, fulling mill, and
storehouse. He lived in Belmont County and was a
member of Concord Monthly Meeting.
Caldwell, 382; Hinshaw, V, 155.
88. George and Mary Kinsey were members
of Short Creek Monthly Meeting and
lived in Jefferson County. George died
in 1828 at the age of 76. His son James married
Ann Loyd in 1813, and in 1816 had an
orchard and nursery in Mount Pleasant. Caldwell,
444; Hinshaw, IV, 233.
89. Jonathan Taylor moved from Concord,
Belmont County, to Mount Pleasant
Township, Jefferson County, about 1804.
He died in 1831, at the age of 68. He was a
member of Short Creek Monthly Meeting.
Joseph Doyle. Twentieth Century History of
Steubenville and Jefferson County,
Ohio (Chicago, 1910), 494; Hinshaw,
IV, 287;
Ochsenbein, 10, 12.
90. The village of Mount Pleasant was
laid out in 1803. The meeting house mentioned
was not the present Yearly Meeting
House, which was built in 1814-1815, but a one-story
brick meeting house built in 1806-1807
to house the Short Creek Quarterly Meeting.
Burke and Bensch, 8, 12.
91. David Steer married Phoebe Millhouse
in 1808. They were members of Short
158 OHIO HISTORY
with their daughter & Son in Law,
Robert, & Sarah Richy92 who are
almost as near them on the other, the
young man Son of Robert
Annsleys present wife: of Philadelphia
both of whom, with the other
two, & dr Rachel, still at home, I
felt much love for; we parted with
them after a comfortable repast;
regretting we cou'd not be a little
longer there, & at their m° mtg
next day accompanied by M & P
Graham, we pass'd on to the pleasant little town of Warren,93
Situated on the banks of the Ohio: which
I lately understand Signifies
beautiful: & it is rightly indeed
named; So beautiful, that it is with real
regret, I must bid it an adeiu; was
introduced at R Richys to Aquilla
Bolton,94 a man of bright
endowments & truly useful in those parts in
educating the Children, a large number
of which, there are in the land
already; cross'd the river, & rode 9
miles on the Virginia Side; on its
delightful banks, borderd with flowers,
& I doubt not many precious
plants, but on this occasion, as in my
passing along, in most places, I
cou'd not have my curiosity indulged by
stopping to view them; Spent
the next day with dear Patience, who
kindly helped me, prepare a gown
to ride in, my old one, having become
too poor; on the 24th we left
them, & dr Aquilla Bolton, Michael
kindly, coming a few miles with us;
we proceeded on our way to David __ ghts, & lodg'd pretty
comfortably. 25th rose early
came on to Washington: the beauties of
which we did not discover: in the
passing thro it last winter: it being
pleasantly situated; abt 300 dwelling
houses, a handsome Courthouse,
plain neat Church &c that we
now have an opportunity to behold the
difference, the enlivening passage of
Spring makes in this country-
after dining at Morris's on a good ps of
roast Beef, we rode 7 miles to
Donnalsons, Canonstown, from thence on
the 26th pass'd on to Pitts
Burgh, abt half a mile from the town is
a tremendous hill which we
chose to walk down; the height of the
land; caused the town we were
approaching to look Low, but Shew'd it,
more completely to my view
than I had before form'd an Idea of
it-in the form of a theater; at the
Confluence of two beautiful rivers,
which indeed I shall leave with
Creek Monthly Meeting, and later
transferred to Concord Monthly Meeting. Hinshaw,
IV, 160, 281.
92. Sara Steer married Robert Richie in
1806. They were members of Short Creek
Monthly Meeting. Richie had a farm near
Smithfield, Ohio, and wintered some of
Thomas Rotch's sheep in 1814-1815.
Hinshaw, IV, 281; Robert Richie to Thomas Rotch,
June 13, 1815, RPMPL.
93. Fortescue Cuming places Warren just
north of the Short Creek, about three and
a half miles below the ferry from
Wellsburg. Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 111.
94. Aquilla M. Bolton was received in
Concord Monthly Meeting from Philadelphia
Monthly Meeting in 1806. He later
transferred to Short Creek Monthly Meeting. In 1811
he was disowned for marrying out of
meeting. Hinshaw, IV, 140, 178.
Touring Ohio in 1811
159
regret, the Monongahaly appearing as
wide as the Ohio: but very
different in depth met a welcome
reception from our kind host &
hostess Maccullough. Nancy their
daughter had been sick in our
absence, & one of their borders
rec'd a letter, from Arvine,95 & one
from Wm Wharton96 but none
from my dr Rachel or our N Bedford frds
which I fondly hoped for; we do not
observe such a variety, or quantity
of flowers, since leaving the lower part
of the Ohio, but still the
Country is beautiful: several trees
having their blossoms; quite expand-
ed: the Sassafax, box wood Red budds 27th spent at
Pittsburgh,
repacking Trunks &c; was so fatigued
thereby as to convince me that
I had not made any great acquisition of
strength 28th took our
departure
from Pittsburgh, cross'd the Allegany to
fulfill an engagement made by
my TR when we were at that place
in the winter, to visit a company of
Germans, who call themselves Harmonists;97
27 miles distance in a
Northern direction, found the road so
poor as almost to produce regret
at the undertaking; but on our arrival,
finding so much order, industry
& good management, in their way, we
felt some what compensated
for the fatigue. 29th spent in
Looking round the village, & visiting
the manufactories-15 Lumes in the Cellar
employ'd in Linnen, 4 in
Chamber 2 broad ones, for Woolen, three
Jennys Billy
&c the School room in the same building contain'd a large
number of
children, learning dutch, said to be abt
half their number the village
contains near 100 Cabins, ten Brick
buildings one of which is their
Church; 2 villages abt 2 miles distant,
said to contain abt 20 Cabins,
their vineyard, Barns, & almost evry
thing out of their houses shew
them to be a laborious people; &
that the plan they have adopted of
domestic economy, wou'd much enhance the
wealth of any people,
95. Arvine Wales was born in New
Stanford, Vermont, in 1785. He began working for
Thomas Rotch in 1809, and came with the
Rotches to Ohio in 1811. After the deaths of
Thomas and Charity Rotch, he bought
Spring Hill, their home in Kendal. He died there
in 1854. Obituary, Massillon
News,January 5, 1854.
96. William Wharton (1790-1856) was a
member of the distinguished Quaker family of
Philadelphia. He married Charity Rotch's
niece, Deborah Fisher, in 1817. Anne B.
Wharton, Genealogy of the Wharton
Family of Philadelphia, 1664 to 1880 (Philadelphia,
1880), 104-05; William Wharton to
Charity Rotch, February 16, 1817, RPMPL.
97. Harmony, a communal settlement in
Butler County, Pennsylvania, was estab-
lished in 1805 by a group of German
Separatists under the leadership of George Rapp. In
1815 they moved to Indiana, calling
their settlement New Harmony. In 1825 they sold the
buildings to Robert Owen, and returned
to Pennsylvania, establishing the village of
Economy near present-day Ambridge.
Charles Nordhoff gives a good account of their
early history. John Bradbury, who
visited the Harmonists about the same time the
Rotches did, described their property
and buildings in detail. Charles Nordhoff,
Communistic Societies of the United
States (New York, 1875), 69-81; John
Bradbury,
Travels in the Interior of America in
the Years 1809, 1810, and 1811, Thwaites,
V, 314-16.
160 OHIO HISTORY
particularly those who are active &
laborious, the women are not
wanting, in lending their aid, it is now
abt 6 years, since the first tree
was cut down on the place, their plan is
truly republican, all things in
common; the linnen is spun by each of
the families, carried to the
weavers & then placed in the Store
house, from whence that & all other
necessaries is drawn, as they are
wanted; their dress & manner of
living, being in the Simplest sort, it
is reasonable to believe they will
have very large resources in time, they
have several mills: & are abt
establishing more season, also one or two large brick
buildings,
& their plan is when the public
buildings are accomplish'd, such as
boarding house brewery &c to have
the Cabins give way to good
houses, so that it will be difficult to
conceive, what an alteration, in
almost every respect, save that of
Cleanliness, time will make here; the
females, even to the smallest girls wear
a quilted piece of Callico on the
crowning of the head, tied under the
chin with a small string; on which
when they have any burden to carry; they
place a round cushion, some
of them curiously pieced, with many colors
Stuff'd with Straw, & on
that is the basket of potatoes, tub of
water, or hay Sack Seated; many
of these have we seen this day,
transported to their various abodes with
almost Gigantic Strides. Such universal
good nature & quietude, I
believe is seldom, if ever found in
other neighbourhoods of equal sise,
& Justly deserves the name of
Harmony; the members are in number
near 800, the heads of the Society are
the Minister George Rapp, & his
two Sons Frederick & John, the
latter I think quite an interresting man
he introduced his little blooming
daughter; & seems an affectionate
father, his wife was not at home when he
invited me into his house; I
was so prepossess'd in his favour, I
cou'd not help regretting, she had
not more of neatness in her composition;
I gave him a few garden
Seeds, & prepared some tar &
sugar for him, he having a complaint at
his breast for which I thot it wou'd be
useful, he gave me a very
interresting acct of the cause of their
leaving Germany: which firstly
arose from the intemperance of their
minister; they being of the serious
sort; enterd in to an association, to
form a Settlement; wherever they
cou'd procure a sufficient quantity of
land; his father was commission'd,
to take a view in America, & send
them his opinion; which accordingly,
resulted in their establishment here, he
had previously became their
minister: & seems to be much
respected by them. 30 after visiting their
vineyard Maze cottage &c we took our
departure, they acknowledging
us as frds, & wou'd not be persuaded
to receive recompense returnd to
Pittsburgh, & 1st of the 5th m° took
our departure from thence, & rode
20 miles. Lodg'd at Stewards, 2nd
rode on 27 miles for want of a
suitable house on the road to stop at
over Chesnut Ridge; lodg'd at
Touring Ohio in 1811
161
Backhouses Inn on the Glade road;98
3rd pass'd over very stony road,
hard to endure, 21 miles; to Summerset a
small village 15 years old,
containing abt 60 houses; County town
&c: Lodg'd at Websters99 said
to be the best house on the road = but I
think there are as good =
drawing nearer the Allegany Mountains I
find my lungs much more
affected than more remote from them; 4th, rode 15 miles ascended
the
Allegany Mountain; & lodg'd at the
foot of it, at Im Hoofs inn;100 the
rain on the 5th preventd our leaving it: & we considerd it a
favour, that
it was tolerably comfortable; this being
the only day, we have been
detaind by the weather, in all our
Journey; we think it not cause of
complaint, or murmuring: the mountains
on this road are trifling,
compared to the other; & it requires
only a little exertion in the State
to have them soon in excellent order,
that there need not be scarce any
difficulty in passing along & it is
much to be desired on acct of the large
numbers of families, that are daily
removing; & the multiplicity of
waggoners, taking goods into the
Country. I regret, that we have not
kept an acct of the number of the
former, we have met, since our being
on our return, but it is not unfrequent
to meet three, & six, in a
company; 6th tarried at the
Inn untill after dinner it raining again in the
morning; & then rode 12 miles to
Flemings Inn101 & lodg'd; on the 7th
rode 5 & stopt at Whitticars Inn to
breakfast; much against my
inclination; Innhoofs Inn we
consider the best we have come to; for a
considerable distance, it is to be
lamented, that there is not greater
attention in the Country to Cleanliness,
& the right education of their
children, for whom my heart, is often
clad with mourning. 8th detain'd
by rain at our very comfortable resting
place; Dillons Inn at Bedford;
where soon after we came yesterday
afternoon, came a young man,
native of Boston, with his wife, whom he
married in England & two
98. The Glade Road was a southern branch
of the Pennsylvania Road, leaving it at the
Youghigheny River and passing through
Mount Pleasant and Somerset to Bedford.
Thaddeus M. Harris said it was
considered better than the main road in dry seasons, but
was almost impassable after heavy rains.
Hulbert, V, 33; Harris, Thwaites, III, 327.
99. Somerset had been the county seat
since 1795. When Cuming visited it in 1807, he
found it a town of about seventy houses
and a courthouse. At John Webster's "excellent,
comfortable, and well-furnished
inn," he found good fires and a good supper. Webster
continued in business until the 1830's.
Cuming, Thwaites, IV, 68-69; History of Bedford,
Somerset, and Fulton Counties,
Pennsylvania, 448-49.
100. Henry Imhoof was listed as a
resident of Alleghany Township, Somerset County,
in 1810, and as an innkeeper there in
1814. History of Bedford, Somerset, and Fulton
Counties, Pennsylvania, 584; Census Bureau of the United States, return for
Alleghany
Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania,
in 1810, 470.
101. John Fleming was listed as an
innkeeper and resident of Alleghany Township,
Somerset County, in 1814. History of
Bedford, Somerset, and Fulton Counties,
Pennsylvania, 448, 485.
162 OHIO HISTORY
Children; going to Cincinnata, to look
for a Settlement, they were both
interresting to us, by the name of
Church, & tarrying here, on acct of
the lameness of their horses, as well as
the rain we pass'd the day
pleasantly together, we highly approving
of the choice they have made,
in regard to a settlement in the united
states; & in particular, perfering
the state of Ohio-9th parted with them,
& pursued our Journey only 14
miles, the road being bad, on acct of
the rain that had fallen; & I feeling
unusually feeble, lodg'd at Dennisons:102 by the side of the Juniatta; an
indifferent place; 10th left it before breakfast, & pass'd over Rays hill:
& Sideling hill, to Reamers Inn, the
road being very bad on acct of
stones; was trying; but we got safely
over it; & had a tolerable
breakfast; which riding 9 miles prepared
us somewhat for; after which
proceeded to Macollins town: 10 miles
passd over Scrub ridge,
previous to which was a little good
road; Prince in the course of one
hour, fell prostrate twice; my TR
& RI had to disengage him from the
waggon, & he then arose without much
apparent injury; the pictur-
esque views, that have been presented on
the high ground; wou'd
require the most skilfull Artist: to set
forth; & it was with reluctance we
passed away from them; during our
enjoying the scene: repeatedly
came to my mind some lines I think of
Cowpers describing the
Comforts of a rural life: "His are
the mountains & the valleys his; &
the resplendant meadows, his to
enjoy;" & thus enjoying in the
proportion he ought to: "Calls the
delightful Scenery all his own;"103
a priveledge, while blest with sight
& placed in such a situation no man
can deprive him of; we lodg'd at
Drydens; a very good Inn & now I
indulge a hope, we shall not be under
the necessity of lodging in poor
places any more; left Connalstown on the
11th before breakfast pass'd
the North mountain 7 miles over the road
very rough: took some
refreshment at Whitesides; & then
came on a few miles, to Reads Inn,
which look'd tolerably comfortable; 9
miles from Chamberstown; from
thence proceeded in the rain to the
above place, on our approach it
look'd beautiful; & is indeed as
pretty a town as any inland place we
have seen Lodg'd at Hetus pretty
comfortably; & 12th left it for
Shippensburg104 rode thro' a
beautiful vale highly Cultivated 11 miles;
the houses mostly from the road, but the
Surrounding hills at a
102. This was probably the General
Washington Tavern at Juniata Crossing, which
was kept by Hugh Dennison. Mulkearn and
Pugh, 143.
103. These verses, slightly misquoted,
are from The Task by William Cowper
(1731-1800), Book V, lines 741-43.
104. On their return trip, the Rotches
were staying on the main Pennsylvania Road
instead of taking the more southerly
Chambersburg Pike, as they had done coming west.
Touring Ohio in 1811 163
distance, affording a pleasing Scene =
Lodgd at Rippeys Inn;105 &
there found an agreeable young woman,
from England, who inform'd
us, her brother in law who was a weaver
was desirous of getting a
Settlement next spring in the Ohio;
& she was thinking of accompa-
nying them 13th the rain
detaind us at our comfortable Inn: at which we
were treated Courteously, & to which
we cou'd have but one objection:
our land lord: having several black
people in possession as Slaves; yet
they were so differently treated, from
many that I believe, they were as
well off, as they wou'd be acting, for
themselves, yet that consideration
did not eradicate the feeling that ever
attends the reflection of the
wrongs of Africa, one AEnus Woodroof
& his wife of Elizabeth town
N Jersey, on their way to Kentucky was
also detaind there; on the 14th
the rain abating; we all took our
departure We was recommended by
our kind frds, to Fosters at
Shippingsburg: which was tolerable tho
very different, from what we wish'd to
find it & the one we left; I
omitted our calling at one Weaklys Inn;106
& dining, which seem'd a
pretty good one; abt 10 miles from
Carlysle: which is a very pretty
town, & larger than I expected, we
on the 15th proceeded on
our way
to Harrisburgh dined at a Dutch house:
too undesirable to be long at:
7 miles from the ferry the Land lady
however seem'd kind, & promised
to Save me some of the Seed of a plant
bearing beautiful flowers call'd
the fiery dragon, Several others she had
in her pots in the window
monthly rose Stock Gill flower &c,
got to the ferry early in the
afternoon, & was detain'd at it
sometime this part of the Susquehan-
nah, affording new beauties; which we
safely crossd: & found Harris-
burg finely situated on its banks, the
most pleasing Settlement; or
town, to me since leaving Cincinnata:
the advantages of the river being
great, things seem thriving; & very
different from many Inland towns,
that we cannot on passing thro' find,
whereon their dependance is
placed; Several handsome buildings,
public & private form the Settle-
ment; Wm Kirk spent the evening mostly
with us, & gave some
interresting accts of his engagement for
several years, on behalf of the
Indians, as agent for the united states
to instruct them in agriculture
&c; Lodg'd at Berry hills, that also an indifferent Inn; in
the morning
15th passd thro, the
villages of Elizabeth town, & Middletown; dined at
the latter at Harris's, & proceeded
to Guys Inn107 9 miles from
105. In 1802 Michaux stayed at the
General Washington Inn in Shippensburg, which
was kept by Colonel Ripey. Michaux
characterized the innkeeper as very obliging to all
travelers. Michaux, Thwaites, III, 140.
106. The Weakley family had a large
holdings near Mt. Holly Springs in Dickinson
Township, Cumberland County. Biographical
Annals of Cumberland County, Pennsyl-
vania (Chicago, 1905), 602.
107. Samuel Scott built the Chikis Hotel
in Rapho Township, Lancaster County. It
164 OHIO HISTORY
Lancaster, they have lately commenced
Inn keepers; & appear prom-
ising his wife at a distance reminded us
of our dr RT, & I look'd at her
with no small degree of satisfaction; in
the morning came two men,
from Newport on their way to the Western
Country to look for a
settlement: for themselves &
families: rode Leisurely to Lancaster: &
being fatigued & considerably
indisposed my TR wou'd not proceed:
during the 18th & I passed
the time in much debility; the cool mornings,
having had, a powerful effect upon my
poor Lungs; Lodg'd Slaymak-
ers,108 a very excellent
house; & here, we found a young man by the
name of Joseph Guest,109 who
kindly furnish'd us with information
respecting meeting of frds in this
neighbourhood, one of which is abt 6
miles: that we intend trying to get to,
in the morning-15th attended the
meeting of Lampeter110 dined
at Wm Brintons, 111 who with his wife was
absent his brothers widow & several
other frds kindly, invited us after
mtg among whom, were Deborah Gibbons,112
an elderly frd a widow,
& her amiable daughter, Rachel
Daniels; for whom I felt a tender
affection, but our time wou'd not admit
of it-Wm Gibbons113 dined
with us, & the father of the frd of
the house: Grandfather to dear
Hannah Britnall who kindly cared for us,
in her parents absence; we in
the afternoon proceeded a few miles
& lodg'd at one Smiths; 14 miles
from Lancaster; generally known by Slaymakers
Inn:114 one of that
name having lately kept it: a connection
of the one at Lancaster, both
of which may be considerd good Inns;
after mtg my aged frd D Gibbons
was later kept by John Guy. Washington
was a guest there several times. Ellis and
Evans, 1025.
108. Henry Slaymaker kept the State Arms
Tavern on East King Street in 1800.
Samuel Slaymaker was the landlord in
1815. Lafayette was entertained there in 1825.
Ibid., 399.
109. Joseph Guest was listed in the 1810
census of Pennsylvania as a resident of
Sadsbury Township, Lancaster County.
Census Bureau of the United States, return for
Sadsbury Township, Lancaster County,
Pennsylvania, in 1810, 445.
110. Lampeter Meeting was held in a
brick meeting house built in 1790 on the site of
a log one dating from 1749. Ellis and
Evans, 896.
111. William Brinton was listed in the
1810 census of Pennsylvania as a resident of
Lampeter Township, Lancaster County. The
Brintons had been prominent Quakers in
southeastern Pennsylvania for over a
hundred years. Census Bureau of the United
States, return for Lampeter Township,
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1810, 492.
112. Deborah Hoopes Gibbons came to
Lampeter Township, Lancaster County, from
Chester County in 1756 upon her marriage
to James Gibbons. Gibbons was an innkeeper
and surveyor. Ellis and Evans, 892.
113. William Gibbons was listed in the
1810 census of Pennsylvania as a resident of
Leacock Township, Lancaster County.
Census Bureau of the United States, return for
Leacock Township, Lancaster County,
Pennsylvania, in 1810, 536.
114. This may have been the inn erected
in Salisbury about 1808 by Amos Slaymaker.
Ellis and Evans, 1047.
Touring Ohio in 1811
165
informd me, of the decease of my much
beloved frd, & Mother in the
truth, Rebecca Wright.115_Joseph Guest
had told us of James Simpsons
decease, the latter a little before, the
former soon after their yearly
mtg, which she attended, both sudden;
but there is reason to believe;
all is well with them, & it may
indeed be written on their behalf
Blessed is the Dead who die in the Lord
-
115. There were several Rebecca Wrights.
One of that name was a "Public Friend"
or traveling Quaker preacher who visited
the New England meetings in June, 1776, and
again in 1795. Lydia S. Hinchman, Early
Settlers of Nantucket (Philadelphia, 1901), 323,
325; "Register of Public Men and
Women Friends That Have Visited New England Since
the Year 1656," MS, RPMPL.
edited by
ETHEL CONRAD
Touring Ohio in 1811: The Journal
of Charity Rotch
Charity Rodman Rotch, the author of
this journal, was born in
Newport, Rhode Island, on October 31,
1766.1 Her father was lost at
sea when she was less than a month old,
leaving his widow with seven
children to bring up. Charity is said
to have received her education
entirely from her older brother.
At the age of twenty-three Charity
Rodman married Thomas Rotch,
the youngest son of a Nantucket family
prominent in the whaling and
shipping industry. The young couple
lived in Nantucket for a year.
Then they moved to New Bedford,
Massachusetts, where Thomas
joined his brother William in running a
branch of the family business.
In 1800 the Rotches made yet another
move, this time to Hartford,
Connecticut. Both devout Quakers, they
felt a concern to help spread
the Quaker faith in that area. In
Hartford, Thomas Rotch invested in
several business enterprises, including
a store, a linseed oil mill, and a
rolling and slitting mill. In 1808 he
became interested in raising Merino
sheep, newly introduced to this country
from Spain and famous for
their fine wool. By 1811 Rotch had
built up a large flock of Merinos. He
also owned a thriving woolen mill,
which handled every phase of the
manufacture from carding wool to the
production of fine broadcloth
and cassimere.
Charity's health had been frail for
some years, but during the winter
of 1808-1809 she was seriously ill with
a malady diagnosed as "spotted
fever," probably a severe form of
typhus. Recurring attacks so
weakened her that her doctor finally
recommended a move to a milder
climate.
Choice of a location was difficult for
the Rotches. They could not go
south because Charity refused to live
in a slave state. Moreover, they
Ethel Conrad is the retired director of
the Massillon Public Library.
1. Biographical information in this
introduction is derived from the Rotch-Wales
Papers, Massillon Public Library,
Massillon, Ohio, hereafter cited as RPMPL.