Ohio History Journal

Lake County and its Founder.          361

LAKE COUNTY AND ITS FOUNDER.

BY WILLIAM STOWELI MILLS, LL. B., OF BROOKLYN, N. Y.

HISTORICAL ADDRESS DELIVERED IN PAINESVILLE, LAKE COUNTY, 0.,

JULY 21, 1901, AT THE CEREMONIES OF THE UNVEILING OF

THE STATUE OF EDWARD PAINE.

Mr. President, Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution:

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:-- It is related that when the resi-

dents of a New England town proposed to pay homage to a

former townsman in a ceremony similar to this, a good old lady

of the village remarked that she couldn't understand why a monu-

ment should be erected to the memory of Deacon Tuttle; when,

of all the men of her acquaintance, Deacon Tuttle had the poorest

memory.

Although our object in assembling here is of broader sig-

nificance than that implied by the observation of the good woman,

the attractive Centennial prepared especially for this occasion has

anticipated well-nigh all there is to be said. What with the con-

tents of that Journal and the able addresses to which we have

listened with delighted interest, there is little left for me to say

beyond giving expression to the pleasure I take in the opportunity

of meeting friends in my native state.

However this may be, we may venture at this time to supply

a few new phrases for familiar facts.

The children of the twentieth century are to be congratulated

before they are born. Theirs is a rich and splendid heritage.

During the past twenty years, the Sons and Daughters of the

American Revolution have instituted historical inquiry which

has created enthusiasm for a knowledge of bygone generations.

There has never been so much painstaking and earnest work in

bringing to light the treasures left us by the patriotism of our

forefathers. The other hereditary societies, of which there are

a score or more, are lending a hand. History is in the air, and

coming generations will enter into possession of an abundant

harvest as a result. The enterprise of to-day, as manifested in

Lake County and its Founder.            363

the spirit of the times (wrongly named "imperialism" by its

opponents), is making clearer the patriotic duty of to-morrow.

To the zeal of the New Connecticut Chapter of the Daughters

of the American Revolution, seconded by the Sons of the Amer-

ican Revolution, we are indebted for the inspiration of this day,

and are met to pay tribute to a king among men.

To comprehend his kingship, it will be necessary to take a

view of Lake county in the first days of settlement on the Western

Reserve; for it was with our county in its infancy that our hero

had most to do.

Perhaps the earliest event that history records with certainty

as transpiring within the limits of what is now Lake county

was the interview between the Indian chief, Pontiac, and Major

Robert Rogers and his "rangers" in November, 1760, at the

mouth of the Grand River, within three miles of where we now

stand. In those days the lands of Lake county, and, in fact,

of the entire country of the Great Lakes and the Ohio Valley,

were claimed, and their ownership sharply contested, by the

dusky sons of the forest, the imprint of whose moccasins had

been planted over and over again on every square rod of our

farms.

A hundred and forty years ago, Pontiac, who, for power of

command over his followers, was unquestionably the greatest of

his race, beheld here a scene of inspiring grandeur. In the

stately trees of a primeval forest, he recognized a dignity that

completely harmonized with his unyielding nature. The beauty

of their graceful forms mirrored in the limpid waters; the majesty

of the unbridled storm, sweeping over lake and forest; the experi-

ences in this untamed wilderness, that strike terror to the heart

of the civilized man; these inspired in him that sense of uncon-

trolled freedom with which he led his warriors through the

trackless wood.

When first mentioned in history, therefore; three genera-

tions before it was christened, Lake county possessed charms of

landscape indescribable. Words are feeble as a means of pic-

turing the sublimity of that long, deep sleep of nature waiting

364      Ohio Arch. and His. Society Publications.

the advent of a superior race which is fast fulfilling its destiny

to cover the face of the earth.

Inseparably connected with Lake county in its earliest days

was the name of Edward Paine. It goes without saying that

two important considerations enter into every true estimate of

a career: the time when, and the place where the life was lived.

No just estimate of a man is possible that does not take account

of the political, social and religious conditions prevailing at the

time he lived. In a broad, but peculiarly true sense, the study

of the life of an individual is an exercise in analysis and com-

parison. It is one of the plainest of truths that greatness of

character lies in the power to improve conditions; to use one's

surroundings as a lever with which to lift the world; and an

individual is great just in the proportion of his capability to do

these things.

Although the hour is short, I call you to note the three

leading traits in the character of the man who was the founder

of what became Lake county. These qualities were conspicuous

in him, and were, indeed, indispensable to one having before him

the work which confronted Edward Paine. Note his patriotism,

his courageous spirit, and his wise eye to the future. These

primary traits of character, in whomever found, are the funda-

mental principles of the three functions of government. Through

love of country and the consequent desire for its welfare all laws

designed for public good are made. Wisdom and prudence

determine the justice and expediency of legislation, and the execu-

tion of the law depends upon courage of conviction.

Edward Paine's conduct proved his qualities. One hundred

years ago the Fourth of July (the day set for this celebration in

his honor) our hero was at Warren, participating in the first

formal celebration of Independence Day on the Western Reserve

of Connecticut. That was six days before the signing of the

bill by which the Reserve was made Trumbull county; and just

at the close of a period of nearly four years, during which the

settlers in "New Connecticut" had been without laws of any kind

to govern them; when they had been left to the dictates of that

innate sense of right and duty as a guide; but, for men of their

stamp this had been sufficient, and the harmony that prevailed

Lake County and its Founder.            365

during this period was a magnificent testimonial of the character

of the settlers on the Reserve, prior to 1800.

What was the attraction that could induce Edward Paine

to take the journey, on this sultry Fourth of July, of more than

fifty miles by the slow and tedious mode of travel of a century

ago? The attraction was not at Warren; it was in Edward Paine,

who had, as a lieutenant in the War of the Revolution, twenty-

five years before, fought to enforce the Declaration of Independ-

ence. What part he had in the celebration at Warren is not

definitely recorded; but we may well believe it was a prominent

one. The sentiments of that declaration were echoed in the

hearts of those other heroes who had suffered privations in this

new land, and to whom Paine may have read the document itself.

Our country had but recently entered upon an era of real

independence. It could look to no foreign power for aid. The

death of Washington only six months before this time had

deprived the leaders in government of the counsel of the greatest

general and statesman of his time, in America, if not in the world.

General Paine's faith in his country's progress and destiny

made him one of the first to choose the Western Reserve as his

future home. He was one of the first half dozen to venture upon

this new soil in 1796, with a view to selecting a spot for settle-

ment. His ambition had led him beyond the borders of Con-

necticut, his native state; and later had towered above the oppor-

tunities afforded by New York state, his adopted home; and

when New Connecticut opened a door for men of his expansive

vision, he was one of the first to enter it.

The course pursued by this man at this time presents a

profitable study. Who are we, who cling to the old home, pre-

ferring its soft ease and enervating tendencies to the larger

opportunities in the great West, to which so many open doors

invite us? Who are we who shrink from the comparatively

few privations of frontier life, on the plea of age, even before

we have compassed a third of the years allotted to man; and

in this stage of the world's progress, when inventions contribute

everywhere to the comforts of life; when companionship itself

is transported on the wings of the telegraph and the railway, and

civilization insures safety wherever our flag greets the eye?

366      Ohio Arch. and His. Society Publications.

Behold this hero of a century ago, coming to this wild region

when past middle life! The snows of fifty-five winters had left

their traces upon his brow when he came here to lay the founda-

tions of Lake county.

It is entirely fitting that this perpetual reminder of Edward

Paine should be placed here at the county seat; for it was not a

village merely, that he founded, nor even a township of the size

with which we are familiar; but, in truth, a county, and the

interest in this statue of the most active man here, the moving

spirit of a hundred years ago, is shared by every resident of Lake

county. Here, again, deeds indicate character. One hundred

years ago the tenth of July, Governor St. Clair signed the bill

to organize the county of Trumbull, comprising the entire

Reserve. In the new county, eight townships were formed, one

of which was Painesville, consisting of ten townships as they

now exist. They included three now in Geauga county and all

of Lake county excepting Madison. Edward Paine had been

here scarcely three months when his name was thus perpetuated.

As new counties were formed from the original Trumbull, begin-

ning with Geauga county in 1805, the regularly surveyed town-

ships took names, and the name, Painesville, was restricted to

the present township, and later given to the county seat.

The ability and worth of Edward Paine was early recog-

nized. At the first session of the territorial legislature of Ohio,

after the organization of Trumbull county, Edward Paine was

the representative from the Reserve. No man of inferior quality

could occupy a position so honorable.

Lake county, when young, became a power in the land, and

this partly because of the power inherent in its lands. There

is a fine logic of events, the study of which reveals a natural

course, and the circumstances leading to the settlement of Lake

county are plainly to be seen.

No sooner had the survey been made of the Reserve lands

east of the Cuyahoga River, than the townships of our county

began to develop a history, and with that history Edward Paine

was perfectly familiar. We are under deep obligations to his

exercise of forethought at this time. The quality of the lands

of Lake county was brought to notice by the process of equalizing

Lake County and its Founder.             367

the land values of the Reserve. In 1796 the surveyors appraised

the townships, and then it was that Lake county, to be, assumed

its place in the scale of values. Seven of its townships (all but

Leroy), 90 per cent of its area, were found to possess soil value

above the average. This cannot be said of any other county of

the Reserve. The significance of this comparison did not escape

the attention of Edward Paine, who, in the spring of 1800,

declined battle with fever, ague and starvation at the feeble settle-

ment of seven souls at Cleveland and preferred to begin a settle-

ment on the rich lands of the Grand River, that is, in the center

of the richest section of the Reserve as its lands were then

valued; and to-day, the beauty, enterprise and prosperity of

Lake, the smallest county of Ohio, are abundant proof that

Edward Paine's choice was a wise one.

Here he lived to see the greater part of the township orig-

inally called Painesville organized into Lake county in 1840.

He walked these highways for more than forty years. It

is now two generations since he passed from mortal view. To

the cynic and the pessimist this is delay of tribute, but to the

student of mankind, it is manifest how strong was the life of

the man who, sixty years after his death, more than a hundred

years after he had passed the middle age, could so hold the hearts

of his townsmen, but few of whom are now left to remember

him personally.

Ought we not to say townswomen? for to them is due the

credit of suggesting this homage to a modest, noble soldier and

citizen. This is not delay; it is evidence of the influence of a life.

It is not tardy recognition; it is proof that human souls make

impressions which time cannot efface.

The courage that won from the oppressor the soil of America

for citizens of America; that wrested the land of our homes from

the vagrant savage, who, with selfish content, robbed unculti-

vated nature and contributed nothing to the help of his race;

that faced wild beast and slow starvation in the primitive forests,

was the kind of fortitude which characterized the pioneers of a

hundred years ago.

We can ill afford to forget their trials and their triumphs,

for upon their patriotism, their courage, and their forethought

368       Ohio Arch. and His. Society Publications.

depend all our possibilities. The historian will not forget that

the youth of to-day can learn no lessons more potent than those

which remind them of their obligation to the men and women

who opened our pathway. No history, either local or general,

is worthy the name that forgets this.    No history, either of

Painesville, or of Lake county, can be complete that does not

recount the achievements of Edward Paine and his contem-

poraries.

But history is the record of yesterday. A century is but a

day. Sweeping beyond the vistas of historic time, the imagina-

tion may picture our lovely land, covered by that "mother of

continents," the surging sea; may behold a bank of snow of slow

dissolving crystal, depositing the soil upon which we depend for

life itself; may follow the receding shore of our Erie "millpond"

as it washed the sands into fertile beds for the forests that grew

to old age and died away to be replaced by others in countless

repetitions. We love this venerable land, and we bow in awe

before the Being whose hand hath shaped its beauteous form.

Endless gratitude would we, therefore, pay to the pioneers who

were instrumental in leading us hither, conspicuous among whom

was Edward Paine.

Old Erie, thy billows have crumbled the shore,

And scattered its frail shifting sands;

For ages thy life-freighted gales have blown o'er

This dearest, this loveliest of lands.

Though fierce be the wrath of thy turbulent breast,

When storms ride thy foam-crested wave.

We love thy rude tempests; we love thy calm rest.

Thy sweet benediction we crave.

Our hero, behold thou, this blest Eden land,

The fruit of thy tenderest love,

The years since thy shallop first touched our wild strand

Are crowned with rich gifts from above.

Gaze thou on Old Erie, by time's restless tide

Borne on until lost in the sea,

Not thus were thy memory; that shall abide

In this land of the brave and the free.

Lake County and its Founder.           369

GENERAL EDWARD PAINE.

General Edward Paine, from whom Painesville takes her

name, was born in Bolton, Tolland county, Connecticut, in the

year 1746.

General Paine took an active part in the exciting times which

preceded the war of the Revolution and was a Whig of the most

pronounced type.

When the war broke out he entered the service of the United

States as an ensign in a regiment of Connecticut militia. He

served in this capacity seven months, at the end of which time

the whole company was discharged.

He again entered the service in June, 1776, as first lieutenant

in Captain Brig's company, was ordered to New York, and was

in the army at the time of the retreat to White Plains.

At the expiration of his term of service, he was discharged

in December, 1776. In 1777, he was commissioned lieutenant of

the Fifth company of the Alarm List in the 19th regiment of

Connecticut militia, and later, in 1777, was made captain of the

same company and served as such until the close of the war.

Such was his revolutionary record.

In early manhood he moved from Bolton to New York state,

locating on a point on the Susquehanna river, whence he moved to

Aurora.

While living in Aurora, he served for several sessions as

representative in the State Legislature, and was made brigadier-

general of the militia. In the fall of 1796, he conceived the pro-

ject of making an excursion into Ohio for the purpose of trading

with the Indians. With this in view, he and his oldest son,

Edward Paine, Jr., started on a perilous journey. They reached

the mouth of the Cuyahoga, now the site of Cleveland, and

selected a place at which to establish themselves.

At that time there were but two white people living there,

Job Stiles and wife. General Paine remained there only long

enough to arrange matters so that his son might carry out the

plan of the journey, when he started on foot and alone to return

to his home in New York. His son remained at the mouth of the

Cuyahoga during the winter of that year and the following spring

Vol. X - 24

370       Ohio Arch. and His. Society Publications.

returned to the home in Aurora, and in 1798, went to Connecticut

and purchased, in Tract No. 3, one thousand acres of land, in

what afterwards, in honor of its first settler, was called Paines-

ville. In the summer, after the purchase had been made, Gen-

eral Paine prepared for the removal of his family to the site

which he had selected. He used his influence to induce a number

of friends to go with him as settlers. Among this party were

Eleazer Paine, Jedediah Beard, and Joel Paine, who were the

heads of families - the whole company numbering 66.

The start was made from Aurora, with sleighs, on the fifth

day of March, 1800, but it was the first of May before the fam-

ilies were able to reach here. After they arrived on Grand River,

General Paine and his little colony lost no time in getting to work.

He erected his first log cabin about one mile south of Lake

Erie and two miles north of Painesville, and later, on the same

site, built a more pretentious home, nothing of which now remains

but a few foundation stones opposite the present Shorelands.

The colonists found on their arrival that the Indians had made

some improvements, so the party, at the earliest seed time, planted

these cleared grounds and in due time reaped an abundant harvest.

As has been stated, Painesville took its name from General

Paine; but his activity and his usefulness did not close with the

founding of this village. Twice he was elected to the Territorial

Legislature of Ohio, and as long as he lived was one of the

enterprising and influential men of the northeastern part of the

state. He lived in this, his new home, for a period of forty years.

At the advanced age of ninety-five years and eleven months,

on the 28th of August, 1841, he closed his life on the banks of

Grand River, revered, respected, and esteemed, not only by his

immediate friends and acquaintances, but by that large circle

of active and influential men of his day, who laid the foundation

of what is now the great and leading state of Ohio.

General Paine possessed in an eminent degree the traits and

characteristics which distinguished that large body of pioneers

who led the tide of immigration into the wilderness. These men

were of a class by themselves, and stand preeminent among the

pioneers of all preceding and succeeding times for the special

qualities of hardihood and adventure, united with intellectual

Lake County and its Founder.            371

powers and capacities of the highest order. They not only intro-

duced the plow-share into the virgin soil of the wilderness, but

they brought with them the Bible and the spelling book, the

artisan, the circuit preacher, and the school master, as co-ordinate

parts of their enterprise. A common man with the ordinary

muscular ability, courage, and inherent traits of his race, without

possessing intellectual attainments, cannot be the pioneer of intel-

lectual and refined social life. Edward Paine was not merely a

pioneer of a pioneer band; but he was a leader of civilizing and

refining influences among his own associates, and hence these

first settlers that came into the town of Painesville brought with

them the seed of that intellectual development which has made its

public schools, its colleges, and its seminaries famous throughout

the land.