WILLIAM CORTENUS SCHENCK, PIONEER AND
STATESMAN OF OHIO
By FRED B. JOYNER
It is the purpose of this sketch to
resurrect from oblivion a
pioneer and statesman of early Ohio,
William Cortenus Schenck.
For some time I have been studying the
life of Robert Cumming
Schenck, the illustrious son of this
early pioneer. Through a
study of the Schenck papers, now in my
possession through the
courtesy of Mrs. J. Sprigg McMahon of
New York City, I have
become convinced that the father
deserves more consideration
than he has received for his
contributions to the state of
Ohio. A careful search reveals that he
is not mentioned in the
encyclopedias, nor in the more recent Dictionary
of American
Biography.
William C. Schenck was born near
Freehold, Monmouth
County, New Jersey, January 11, 1773. Although of Dutch
ancestry, his forbears had resided in
America for more than 200
years.1 His father, a Presbyterian
minister, gave him such educa-
tion as the times afforded. For a time
he resided in Newark,
New Jersey, with his maternal uncle,
General John N. Cumming;
under whose guidance he completed his
education. There is a
tradition in the Schenck family that he
graduated from Prince-
ton College either in 1793 or 1794, but
it is impossible to verify
this.2 Young Schenck proved
himself to be versatile and am-
bitious. Unable to decide for a time
what career to follow, he
studied both law and medicine; actually
acquiring some of the
fundamentals of each, which knowledge
later served him well on
the frontier. Ultimately, of course, he
chose neither profession.
1 Rev. William Schenck, His Ancestry and His Descendants (Washington,
1883), 56. I have made use of such
information as this little book contains through-
out this article.
2 Biographical Encyclopedia of Ohio (Cincinnati, 1876), 59.
363
364
OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
He could not resist the lure of the
West. It was more practical
to become a surveyor.3
In the early 1790's all
ambitious young men turned their
thoughts and footsteps to the Ohio
Valley. As early as 1793,
William C. Schenck, along with some
other enterprising youths,
found himself in the new West.4 These
energetic young men
were sent by a group of New Jersey land
promoters headed
by John Cleves Symmes and Jacob Burnet,
friends of Gen-
eral John N. Cumming, Schenck's uncle.
Little is known about
Schenck's activities for the first few
months after his arrival at
Cincinnati, then a newly organized
village on the Ohio. Prob-
ably he spent most of his time acquiring
a thorough knowledge
of surveying, for he later became one of
the most proficient sur-
veyors of the Northwest Territory.5
During his early years in the West,
young Schenck was
greatly influenced by his uncle, General
Cumming. Several let-
ters which passed between them reveal
the fact that Cumming
was a far-sighted man, recognizing that
the West would go to
the strong. He urged his nephew to
acquire the "surveyor's busi-
ness" as soon as possible. He
advised him to "make all possible
observation respecting the lands
included in Symmes' purchase,
and the lands upon the other side of the
Great Miami, and as
soon as opportunity offers upon the
country westward." He con-
cluded, "Give me an account as
often as possible of your opera-
tions and what advantageous purchases
may be made. Confine
yourself to your own line of business,
surveying, drafting, and
making deeds, conveyances, etc. Lastly,
make choice of the best
lands the country affords."6
Young Schenck must have carried out the
old general's in-
structions to his satisfaction, because
in a letter dated April 26,
1796, the general wrote: "I have
received two letters from you.
. . . Mr. Ludlow will bring with him a
compass and chain and
mathematical instruments." Again on
June 13, 1796, he wrote:
3 Henry Howe, Historical Collections
of Ohio (Columbus, 1891), II, 447-48.
4 Ibid.
5 Ibid., III, 80.
6 General N. Cumming to William C.
Schenck, September 24, 1795, Schenck
MSS. Quoted in Schenck, Ancestry.
WILLIAM CORTENUS SCHENCK 365
I have waited a long time for the
departure of Mr. Ludlow and
Jacob Burnet. . . . I have furnished you with a
complete compass and
surveying implements necessary which you
will please to accept as a small
testimony of my esteem. . . . I expect
as soon as you conveniently can
that you will send me a map of the
country.7
As William C. Schenck became more
proficient in the art of
surveying, he was constantly in demand
to open up new territory.
His skill in this art, no less than his
well-known integrity, caused
men in all walks of life to seek him
out. He did much work
on the Symmes Purchase, between the Big
and Little Miami
Rivers. In 1797, he surveyed and opened
for settlement the Vir-
ginia Military District, a large tract
of land given by the State
of Virginia to her revolutionary
soldiers. In 1801-1802 he was
engaged by Cumming and G. W. Burnet to
survey a tract of land
of some 4220 acres at the junction of the
north and south forks
of the Licking River. When he began his
surveying, he found
that no one in what is now Licking
County was living upon his
own land except one John Van Buskirk;
all the others were
squatters.8 That Schenck was a man of tact and
diplomacy is
shown by the fact that he was soon able
to persuade the settlers
that they were not the real owners of
the land. The town of
Newark was located in the center of this
plot. The people living
there today have Schenck to thank for
the spacious public square
and the broad streets in the older part
of the city.9
Perhaps Schenck's best-known work as a
surveyor was the
opening up of the country along the Big
Miami River near Frank-
lin, Ohio, now in Warren County. As
early as 1796 he became
interested in the fertile lands in this
region. This same year, in
conjunction with D. C. Cooper and Robert
Ross, he laid out the
town of Franklin, where he later made
his permanent home. For
many years his home stood on Water
Street just below where
the bridge now stands, a beautiful spot
overlooking the Miami
River. His home farm was a little more
than a half-mile east
of the town on the road to Springsboro.10
7 Id. to id., April 26, 1796.
8 Biographical Encyclopedia of Ohio,
59.
9 Ibid.
10 Warren County, Court Records,
transcribed from Hamilton County, Court
Records, Book E, No. 2, pp. 178, 179,
180; information compiled by General Robert
C. Schenck in 1882, Schenck MSS.
366
OHIO ARCHEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL
QUARTERLY
During one of his visits to his father's
home at Huntington,
Long Island, Schenck married Miss
Elizabeth Rogers, September
14, 1798. The newly wedded couple departed at once for the
West, making their home in Cincinnati
for some years. The fol-
lowing spring, April 28, 1799,
Cumming wrote to his nephew,
"I received one letter from you
immediately after your arrival
and none since. Mr. Low informed me that
you and your dear
little girl were well. How does she like
the woods?" 11
In 1802 or 1803 the William C. Schencks
moved from Cin-
cinnati, where two of their children had
been born, to the newly
established town of Franklin. In all
there were ten children, nine
sons and one daughter. Two of the sons,
General Robert C.
Schenck and Admiral James F. Schenck,
were to become more
famous than their father.12
The first territorial legislature of the
Northwest Territory
was organized at Cincinnati, September
26, 1799.13 The legis-
lative council consisted of Jacob Burnet
of Cincinnati; Henry
Vanderburg of Vincennes; David Vance of
Vanceville in Jeffer-
son County, Ohio; and Robert Oliver of
Marietta. Henry Van-
derburgh was elected president of the
council and William C.
Schenck, secretary.14 After
one year the seat of the territorial
government was removed to Chillicothe,
where it remained for
some years. The new legislature
concerned itself with the forma-
tion of new counties, printing the laws
of the territory, regulating
the sale of alcoholic liquor to the
Indians, punishment of timber
thieves, the relief of poor persons
imprisoned for debt, and with
regulating public roads and highways.
Memorials were drawn
up and presented to Congress requesting
that "the salt springs
with a sufficient quantity of land
adjoining the same may be vested
in the legislature of this territory for
the purpose of encouraging
schools." 15
As secretary of the legislative council,
both at Cincinnati and
11 Cumming to Schenck, April 27, 1799,
Schenck MSS.
12 Schenck, Ancestry, 70-1.
13 Charles B. Galbreath, History of Ohio (Chicago and New York,
1925), I, 198.
14 Northwest Territory, U. S., House of
Representatives, Journal, from Novem-
ber, 1799 to January, 1802, MS. copy (in
Miami University Library).
15 Ibid., 2 Sess., November 3 to December 9, 1800.
WILLIAM CORTENUS SCHENCK 367
Chillicothe, Schenck revealed himself a
man of unusual mental
ability. His facility of expressing
himself clearly and vigorously
was an asset to him in this position,
for it was his duty to con-
vey messages from the council to the
lower house. Often the
house and council did not agree, as is
shown by the following
excerpts from the minutes:
A message from the Council by Mr.
Schenck their secretary. Mr.
Speaker, the Council have passed the
bill entitled "An Act for opening
and regulating public roads and
highways" with several Amendments to
which they desire the concurrence of
this House. The Council adhere 16
to their amendments disagreed to by this
House to the bill entitled "An Act
supplemental to the act entitled an act
to prevent trespassing by cutting
timber." The Council adhere to
their amendment disagreed to by this
House to the bill entitled "An act
for the relief of poor persons imprisoned
for debt." 17
In such tilts the more conservative
economic views of the
aristocratic council came into conflict
with those of the more
democratic house.
In addition to his public duties and his
surveying, Schenck
was engaged in selling lands. He
acquired large land interests
of his own and was regarded as the
principal citizen of his com-
munity in all public matters. The amount
of work he accom-
plished in those days of poor
communication shows that he was
a man possessed of remarkable vigor and
powers of endurance.
Having some knowledge of law, and known
as a wise and safe
counselor, he was often called upon to
advise his neighbors in
the settlement of their difficulties,
draw up deeds and wills, and
in many cases serve as executor.18
Schenck was a promoter of educational
interests early in his
career. Soon after moving to Franklin,
he inserted the follow-
ing notice in the Western Spy and
Hamilton Gazette published in
Cincinnati, August 31, 1803:
A Schoolmaster is much needed in this place.
A person qualified to
teach an English School will find
employment.19
W. C. SCHENCK
FRANKLIN, August 17, 1803.
16 Italics mine.
17 N.
W. Terr., House, Journal, Saturday, December 7, 1800.
18 Schenck MSS.
19 History of Warren County, Ohio (Chicago, 1882), 528.
368
OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL
QUARTERLY
Another evidence of his interest in
education is the fact that
he became one of the first trustees of
Miami University. In 1809
the legislature passed an act providing
for the appointment of the
trustees of Miami. Schenck was a member
of the original board
and took an active part in the affairs
of the university up to the
time of his death.20
Schenck played an important part in
military affairs of the
Northwest Territory and the early
republic. Soon after his ar-
rival in the West he was commissioned in
the milita as "Lieu-
tenant of the Hamilton County Militia of
the United States North-
west of the Ohio," dated February
6, 1793. After Ohio became
a state, he was given a commission as
captain in the Third Regi-
ment of Hamilton County, his commission
bearing the date of
November 17, 1807.21 Ultimately
he rose to the rank of brigadier
general, commanding the first brigade of
the militia of Ohio.
So far it has been impossible to
determine just which battles
General William C. Schenck took part in
during the War of 1812.
Several interesting glimpses of the man,
however, are given in
letters written by kinsfolk and members
of his command. It is
known that he camped for some days at
Urbana, Ohio, with
Colonel Lewis Cass.22 A
private of the command has left a very
interesting account of the general's
activities on July 4, 1813. In
a letter Private W. Clinton Enos related
that his company had
covered about one-third of the distance
from Zanesville to De-
troit on the third of July. Schenck
suggested to the men that,
since the next day would be Independence
Day, it would be fitting
to remain in camp and celebrate the day;
particularly so since
they were engaged in a war with their
old adversaries, the British
and Indians, as in the Revolution. It
would awaken in them
reminiscences of that period and inspire
them with a love of coun-
try and courage on the battlefield.
According to the private,
Schenck's plan was readily assented to.
Here I quote directly from his letter:
20 James H. Rodabaugh, History of Miami
University from Its Origin to 1845,
Masters Thesis, MS. (in Miami University
Library), 26.
21 Schenck, Ancestry, 62.
22 Peter (brother of William) Schenck to
his father, undated, Schenck MSS.
WILLIAM CORTENUS SCHENCK 369
The glorious morn was saluted by firing
of guns, a sumptuous dinner
was partaken of (such as could be cooked
in the woods). The Declaration
of Independence was repeated by General
Schenck as far as recollected.
Patriotic speeches were made without
number. John Bull was dreadfully
lashed. Songs were sung with great
gusto. General Schenck had been
requested to write one for the occasion.
The first verse of which runs
as follows:
Saratoga to them all
Bunker Hill confound them.
Soon the Canadas will fall
When freedoms sons surround them.
which was sung over and over by the
entire company with great uncour
and enthusiasm.23
Schenck was not only able to arouse
enthusiasm among his
men but was resourceful in providing
patriotic entertainment in
the wilderness.
The last and probably the greatest
service that Schenck ren-
dered the commonwealth of Ohio was to
arouse interest in inter-
nal improvements during the canal era.
In politics he came from
a Federalist family. The influential men
of New Jersey who
came to Ohio with him were followers of
Hamilton's political
philosophy.24 He was probably in sympathy with the
War Hawks
in the War of 1812. Henry Clay's
schemes for internal improve-
ments were universally popular in the
West at this time. Had
Schenck lived longer, he in all
probability would have been as
confirmed a Whig as his more famous son.
Interest in canals in Ohio had been high
before the War of
1812. The difficult and slow transportation during the war
period
had convinced thoughtful men that
something must be done to
improve and speed up communication.25 On November 11, 1816,
DeWitt Clinton of New York wrote to the
governor of Ohio
urging the advantages of the Erie Canal,
which had been planned
the year before and suggested that
financial aid to this project
might be a good investment for the state
of Ohio.
A thorough study of this proposition
convinced the gover-
23 Account written by W. Clinton Enos, a
private in the company, undated,
Schenck MSS.
24 Beverley W Bond, Jr., ed, Letters
of John Cleves Symmes (New York,
1926), 12.
25
E. H. Roseboom and F. P. Weisenburger, History of Ohio (New York,
1934), 137-41.
370 OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND
HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
nor and legislature that it would be far
better to build a canal
within the state. Accordingly, Governor
Ethan Brown, in his
inaugural address, given December 14,
1818, pointed out the neces-
sity of providing a cheaper way to
market for the Ohio farmers.
In accordance with his suggestion, a
committee was appointed to
report on the expediency of constructing
a canal from Lake Erie
to the Ohio River.26 On
February 28, 1820, an act was passed
indicating that three commissioners be
appointed for the purpose
of surveying the route of a canal
"provided Congress would aid
in its construction." As a result
of this act Simeon Perkins,
Alexander Holmes, and William C. Schenck
were appointed com-
missioners to survey and locate the
route for a canal between Lake
Erie and the Ohio River.
In his reply to Schenck's letter of
acceptance, Governor
Brown discussed fully the whole matter
of a canal. He pointed
out the jealousy between sections;
everyone wanting a canal to
go through his section or county. He
admonished the general to
collect all the information
possible. "I leave you further to
imagine what would be their increase if
those articles, so ponder-
ous for land carriage, in this season of
low prices could receive
a cheap, easy, and safe and expeditious
transportation." The
governor concluded:
But I know I am writing to a person
whose policy extends beyond
tomorrow, whose calculations for the
restoration of credit and for our
ultimate relief from the debt that
weighs us down embraces objects not
considered by many a pretended merchant
and banker; whose eyes is not
of that miscroscopic construction that
can see no further than your
township.27
Congress did not see fit to appropriate
the money for build-
ing the canal. Nevertheless, the
commissioners were able to as-
semble much valuable information
pertaining to building the canal
before the next legislature convened.
Schenck was elected to this legislature
as a member of the
lower house from Warren County. He at
once championed the
construction of the canal, never for a
moment doubting its ulti-
26 Ibid.
27 Quoted in Schenck, Ancestry,
67.
WILLIAM CORTENUS SCHENCK 371
mate completion and success. The final
act for the construction
of canals was passed February, 1825,
several years after Schenck's
death. When completed, the canal passed
through the town of
Franklin, within a few hundred yards of
his house.28
His death was caused by a recurrence of
a disease known
as swamp fever, contracted while engaged
in surveying expedi-
tions. His exertions in the legislature
in behalf of the canal
brought on another attack. On the
morning of January 12, 1821,
he spoke in the legislature in behalf of
the canal project, prob-
ably making the speech of his life. In
the afternoon he went to
his lodging, became acutely ill, and
died in a few hours. The
general was only forty-eight years old.
As a tribute to his memory the members
of the legislature
wore crepe on the left arm for thirty
days, and all legislative
business was postponed until Monday
morning following the day
of his death. The entire membership of
both houses attended
the remains of the deceased beyond the
limits of the town of
Franklinton,29 and a body of
citizens from Franklin met the re-
mains at Springfield, escorting them to
the family residence. The
funeral was conducted according to
Masonic rites. General Wil-
liam Cortenus Schenck was held in such
esteem that people came
from every section of that part of the
country to do him honor.
28 Roseboom and Weisenburger, History of Ohio, 140.
29 Columbus Ohio State
Journal, January 12, 1821.