Symmes Township

Symmes Township Pioneers Settled in 1840

Thomas Cooper Migrated to the Heavily Timbered Section from Greenbrier County, (West) Virginia; Other Families Soon Followed

By R. C. Hall

Having received so many favorable comments upon our recent articles about some of the pioneers of various townships in Lawrence County, Ohio, we conclude that there is quite a lot of interest among people of today regarding what their own forefathers were doing a few generations ago.

Even persons not ordinarily interested in history frequently show much interest in that more or less personal type that involves their immediate ancestors. And these pioneer settlers usually had such large families and have left so many descendants scattered over this country that when we consider several such families in one neighborhood, it is rather surprising how many such a sketch attracts such people.

And so, having considered some of the pioneers of Rome Township, the only one of Range XV in Lawrence County, Ohio, and some of Union, Windsor, and Mason Townships, the three running from south to north in Range XVI in Lawrence County, Ohio, let us today take some of those in Symmes Township, the northern-most of Range XVII. Symmes Township lacks little of being the farthest northern portion of Lawrence County, Ohio. Washington Township alone extends further north.

It is almost a regulation government land township, or perhaps it is more accurate to say that the local governmental unit known as Symmes Township almost coincides with the government survey known by township and range numbers.

However, when Lawrence County, Ohio, was formed from Scioto and Gallia counties, sections 1 and 12 of these townships were left in Gallia county. At the same time, the remaining 34 sections were included in Lawrence County, Ohio. These latter sections compose what is now known as Symmes Township. This makes Symmes Township practically a square with one small rectangular corner missing on its northeastern border.

Symmes Township was named in the home of John Clever Symmes, father-in-law of General and President William Henry Harrison. Or, to be more exact, it should be said that it was named after Mr. Symmes in a sort of roundabout way. Symmes Creek has first been named after him because it is claimed that he carved his name on a tree near the mouth once en route between his new home in the west and his old one in the east.

In considering a group of pioneers of Symmes Township, we are confronted by the usual dilemma – which ones shall we choose? This problem might be partially solved by confining one choice to those who served in defense of their country in war. But this does not help a great deal since so many of the early settlers of this township, as well as of others of Southern Ohio, have long and honorable records in the army of the Union during the Civil War.

So perhaps the best we can do is to choose those names [that] have been brought to our attention in one way or another and who appear to have been among the earliest settlers who served their country in war and peace. Of course, circumstances alter cases, and sometimes we may consider an individual who was preeminent in his community for someone reason than for several [reasons].

Cooper Family

The Cooper family appears to be one of the first to settle in Symmes Township, although they did not come until about 1840. This region was somewhat remote from civilization during the early days of the 19th century as it was about 20 miles from the Ohio River and some distance from any navigable stream or main highway.

However, about the date mentioned, Thomas Cooper appears to have migrated to this region from Greenbrier County, Virginia (now West Virginia). Others must have come to the same neighborhood about the same time, for it was just about when the township was organized that Thomas Cooper purchased land there.

This land is in the tract known as Congress Lands. Purchasers had to go all the way to Chillicothe to enter their purchases at the government land office, which had been established there to handle these lands sold direct [directly] by the government by the rules laid down by Congress.

Mr. Cooper entered two lots in Symmes Township for which he paid $1.25 per acre. Mr. Cooper’s wife was Isabelle Boggess Cooper. Their son, Joseph R. Cooper, became one of the leading citizens of Symmes Township, where he served in several local but important positions.

Born in 1847

Joseph R. Cooper was born on 6 September 1847, according to the best available record in Greenbrier County, [Virginia] now West Virginia, and was brought to Ohio by his father in 1849.

At that time, the region for miles, about the spot the elder Cooper chose for a home, was virtually a wilderness. None of the virgin timber had been cut, no roads built, and none of the conveniences of modern times was to be had. In such an environment, Joseph R. Cooper grew to manhood.

On 3 October 1875, he married Annie E. Marcum in Arabia, Ohio. She was born in Lawrence County, Ohio, on 7 January 1850. Mrs. Cooper was the daughter of James and Elizabeth Rucker Marcum. Mr. and Mrs. Cooper became the parents of Cora F. Cooper and Frederick C. Cooper.

Joseph Cooper may almost be said to have grown up with Symmes Township. By the time he had come of age, a considerable number of settlers were living within the limits of that township, and he took an active part in local, social, and political life, as is shown by the offices he held. For four terms, he served as Clerk of the township. He then served on the Board of Education, or as School Director, as a school Board Member was then generally called from 1879 to 1882, while in 1880, he was elected a Justice of the Peace. Moreover, from 1873 to 1875, he served as Postmaster.

A Leading Farmer

Meanwhile, Mr. Cooper had become one of the leading farmers of his community and of Lawrence County, Ohio. His farm was well situated near the village of Waterloo, Ohio, which became his post office address.

Another pioneer family of Symmes Township deserving of special mention was the Handley family. Logan Handley came to Lawrence County, Ohio, a little earlier than Thomas Cooper, but it is doubtful he became a settler in Symmes Township at an earlier date.

According to an early Lawrence County, Ohio record, Thomas Handley was born on 1 March 1800 and married Leatha Roach Handley, born on 19 December 1798. And according to the same authority, the couple migrated to Lawrence County, Ohio, in 1835.

They must have settled in Symmes Township about the same time, for again, the same record indicated that their son, John W. Handley, was born there on 5 February 1837. Like most pioneers of the place and period, John W. Handley could have had a few advantages of what present-day youths consider, such as securing an education or having a so-called “good time.” However, according to most reports of youthful activities in those days, it is quite probable that youth enjoyed itself then quite as much as it does today.

Served in Infantry

Mr. Handley grew to manhood under the usual conditions of the frontier and had just entered young manhood when the Civil War broke out. Like so many of his fellow Lawrence Countians, he stood ready to go to the defense of his country, and when in 1862, it was generally recognized that the contest was likely to be long and bloody, he volunteered for service and became a member of Company D, 91st Ohio Volunteer Infantry and served throughout the remainder of the war.

The rest of the summer and most of the autumn was put in training and preparations for what appeared to be the long hard campaign ahead. Nor were the signs misleading in that respect. The regiment went through what may be considered two separate campaigns, and while one was comparatively easy, the other more than made up for it in danger, hardships, and much suffering.

Saw Much Service

A mere recital of some of the engagements in which the 91st participated should be sufficient evidence of the service it saw. Buffalo, Fayetteville, Blake Farm, Cloyd Mountain, New River Bridge, Cow Pasture River, Lynchburg, Stephenson’s Depot, Winchester, Martinsburg, Opequan, Fisher’s Hill, and Cedar Creek, some in Virginia, some in West Virginia, were some of the engagements in which this regiment played a prominent part.

Upon its arrival at Winchester, Virginia, on 7 April 1865, it was made a part of the regular army of the Shenandoah, at that time under the direct command of General Hancock. It was assigned to a post as part of the first brigade of what appears to have been known as the “Fourth Provisional Division.”

Soon after the surrender of General Lee, when it was generally recognized that the war was almost over, the army of the Shenandoah was partly broken up, the 91st Regiment remaining at Winchester until June 2, when it was ordered to report to General Emory. It was finally discharged on 30 June 1865 after being in service for two years, ten months, and eight days.

While intended in no sense as a complete story of the activities of the 91st Regiment, this brief service record should, we believe, indicate something of the nature of the military career of John W. Handley.

Wed Miss Powers

Returning to Symmes Township following the close of the Civil War, John W. Handley married Martha L. Powers, born in that vicinity on 19 December 1846. Their marriage took place on 5 October 1865. Mrs. Handley’s parents were John and Mary A. Wiseman Powers, the former having been born on 5 February 1818 and the latter on 23 May 1817.

Thus while Mrs. Handley, like her husband, can hardly be considered what might be called a first-generation pioneer, the parents of both certainly were of that generation, so far as this section was concerned, while their own careers, especially through the Civil War covered a period in which conditions in Symmes Township were not far from what would today be called quite primitive.

John W. Handley and his wife had the following children: Jennie E., Mary E., John F., Henry L., and George A. Handley.

According to an old history of this region compiled at a time when the historian could gather many of his facts from people whose memory covered the early period of which he was writing, four or five families comprised the very first group of actual settlers of what is now Symmes Township, that they made the first settlement in 1820 and one of them was John C. Stewart.

Prominent Family

Whether or not this is correct makes no difference for our purpose, for there is other evidence to substantiate the claim that Mr. Stewart was at least one of the very early settlers of the region and that he raised a family of which several members became not only leading citizens of Symmes Township but also settlers of long and honorable records of achievement and bravery in the Federal cause during the Civil War.

Moreover, Mr. Stewart was born in 1800 and came to Lawrence County, Ohio, it is claimed, when he was 20 years old, which certainly places him in the class of early settlers in this immediate region. Of course, settlements had been made along and near the Ohio River some years earlier. Mr. Stewart married Sarah McCartney, sometimes apparently called Sallie McCartney, or after her marriage, of course, Sallie Stewart.

Mr. Stewart moved about some after coming to Lawrence County, Ohio, and before settling in Symmes Township, or perhaps he moved AFTER his first settlement here.

True Pioneers

According to the best available records, it appears that Calvin M. Stewart, son of John C. and Sarah McCartney Stewart, was born on 9 February 1824 in Upper Township. He was married to Rebecca Vermillion in Aid Township on 26 January 1831. Her parents were John and Elizabeth Cumpston Vermillion, who were true pioneers. Her father was born in 1798.

Mr. and Mrs. Calvin M. Stewart settled on a farm near the little settlement where the post office known as Sherritt’s was established in the southern part of Symmes Township. They had the following children: Corinthia C. (Griffiths), who migrated to Wisconsin; Sabina R. (Wiseman). Howard W., America (Wiseman). James K., Sadie, and C. Effie Stewart, Calvin M. Stewart devoted himself chiefly to farming. Symmes Township.

Another member of the family who appears to have been chiefly interested in agriculture was John H. Stewart, the son of John C. and Sarah McCartney Stewart, and was born in Symmes Township on 1 June 1839. He married Ruth Griffith, who was born on 15 April 1835. The date of their marriage is given as 31 March 1859. They became parents of children named: Madie, Luella, Amos P., Emma C., Viola F., Sallie, W. Harlen, Ermina, and Linnie R. Stewart. John H. Stewart also settled on a farm near Sheridan.

Had Several Children

We now come to one of the family’s soldiers, Absalom N. Stewart, another son of John C. and Sarah McCartney Stewart, who was born on 21 November 1825. He married Elizabeth M. Handley on 24 January 1850. She was born in Monroe County in West Virginia on 3 December 1831. Her parents were Samuel and Elizabeth Barger Handley.

Mr. and Mrs. Stewart had several children during the Civil War outbreak. As the government is seldom anxious to enlist men with families, Mr. Stewart did not immediately enter the conflict. However, as the war dragged on, many such men became impatient apparently to join the army and hasten the return of peace by winning a quick victory.

The government naturally became less particular, and so in September 1864, Mr. Stewart joined the army and became a member of the 173rd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, as a private. He served throughout the remainder of the war and was discharged after about one year in the service. Returning home, he resumed his work as a farmer in Symmes Township.

Township Trustee

In addition to his military service, Absalom N. Stewart served his countrymen in many local civil offices, such as township trustee and clerk. Mr. and Mrs. Stewart had the following children: Mary E., Emanuel T., Myra J., Lavina H., and Julia M. Stewart, all born before the Civil War.

Middleton H. Stewart was another of his family who became a soldier and served a large part of the Civil War, seeing much hard service. He is also a son of John C. and Sarah McCartney Stewart and was born in Lawrence County, Ohio, on 25 April 1837. His education and early training appear to have been as limited as those of other frontier or pioneer youths, but that did not appear to limit his ability as a citizen and public servant.

On 7 September 1856, he married Mary N. Nida, born in Aid Township, Lawrence County, Ohio, on 29 December 1835. As his brother already mentioned, Middleton H. Stewart was the father of several children when the Civil War broke out. Still, he managed to enlist in the Federal Army as early as 30 October 1861. He became a member of Company H, 6th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry.

Unlike so many of the “Union Boys” of Southern Ohio, who served under Sherman in the west or under Sheridan, Mr. Stewart became a member of the Army of the Potomac, as that portion of the Federal Army was called, which operated in the east and so long in the vicinity of the Potomac River.

In Major Battles

Arriving at the front in time to participate in the disastrous Battle of Bun Run – disastrous to the Federals at least – Mr. Stewart participated in most of the heaviest fighting in the east, according to accounts of his army service now before us. While it is certainly not particularly profitable to indulge in any arguments as to which battles of the Civil War were most important, most terrible, or had the most important results, it does appear reasonable to conclude that the Battles of Antietam, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg were certainly three near the head of the list.

In contrast, most supposed authorities on such matters classify Gettysburg as the turning point, if not the decisive battle of the conflict. Mr. Stewart participated in all three major battles, in addition to Bull Run and many of General Grant’s immediate army. We can not avoid the conclusion that his army record was not mediocre. At the close of the war, he also returned to his Symmes Township home.

Mrs. Stewart was the daughter of Jacob and Unice Caldwell Nida. Mr. and Mrs. Middleton H. Stewart were the parents of the following children: Albert, Isadore, Allison, Malissa, Minnie, Hannah, and Sarah. Their farm was near Waterloo village, which became their post office address.

Was Treasurer

ACCORDING TO AVAILABLE DATA, Oliver P. Stewart, another son of John C. and Sarah McCartney Stewart, was born in Symmes Township on 22 January 1834. His career was quite similar to his brothers except that, as far as we have learned to date, he did not participate as a soldier in the Civil War. He married Elizabeth A. Barnhouse on 4 February 1864. Her parents were Joseph and Susan Bennett Barnhouse. They became parents of the following children: William T., Florence L., and Lorena F. Stewart.

Although Oliver P. Stewart was essentially a farmer, he also held the responsible office of treasurer of the township for several years. His farm was located near his post office and the village of Waterloo.

One more of this rather remarkable family is on our list for consideration at this time. We say rather a remarkable family because, while none of its members became president or held other high national or state office so far as we have discovered, there have been probably few other families established first in a virtual wilderness that have produced so many members not only successful in their own particular ovation but also soldiers of bravery and ability as well as officials in local offices of responsibility and trust. This time we turn to a feminine member of the family. And this also brings to consideration her husband, who is amply worthy of consideration on his own behalf.

Served as Sheriff

Leuanna Stewart was the daughter of John C. and Sarah McCartney Stewart and was born in Symmes Township on 1 July 1827. Pioneer girls usually had even less opportunity for study and social pleasures than the boys but many of them no doubt found fully compensating pleasures in becoming capable wives and mothers. Leuanna Stewart appears to have been in that class. On 2 March 1848, she married Providence M. Robinson, a young man who had recently entered Symmes Township as a schoolteacher.

Providence M. Robinson was the son of William G. Robinson, one of the first Lawrence County, Ohio officers. It may be that Providence Robinson was attracted to Symmes Township by reports of its condition by his father, who, according to an early record, is listed as one of the first settlers of Symmes Township in about 1820.

If this is correct, he must have remained there but a short time, for we find him listed as the first Recorder of Lawrence County, Ohio, when the county was organized in 1817 and also serving as Sheriff in or about 1824 when his son Providence M. Robinson was born. Thus, he must have made a short stay as one of the first settlers of Symmes Township sometime between those dates – 1817 and 1824 – and this would agree satisfactorily with the date given as that of the first settlement in Symmes Township in 1820.

Early Officer

The biography of William G. Robinson, therefore, belongs more properly perhaps to the history of Fayette Township than any other in the county since, as an early county officer, he naturally had to spend much of his time at Burlington, then the County Seat.

Some time ago, his granddaughter, Mrs. W. D. Hambleton, of near Ironton, informed us that she had evidence that he first resided near Haskellville, now Athalia, in Rome Township. And thus, we have another example of how some of these pioneers moved about and how their history may be considered a part of several communities, towns, townships, and, frequently, counties and states.

But to return to Providence M. Robinson, father of Mrs. Hambleton. According to Hardesty’s record, he was born on 5 December 1824 in Fayette Township. And this agrees with the information furnished by Mrs. Hambleton to the effect that her father was born in 1824 in the stone building in Burlington, which served as the county jail and the home of the sheriff while his father was serving as County Sheriff.

Providence M. Robinson, thus apparently by both heredity and environment, was perhaps somewhat more fortunate than the average pioneer boy. Even at that early date, Burlington offered some educational advantages, and young Robinson must have taken advantage of them. We find that, in 1845, he entered Symmes Township as a schoolteacher.

Enlisted in War

According to our best available information, Symmes Township and Lawrence County, Ohio, owe a great deal to the Robinsons. And Symmes Township, in particular, owes much to Providence M. Robinson. Not only did he teach one of the first schools in that part of the country, but he is accredited with organizing the first Sunday School in the township in 1855.

Like a great deal of other pioneer work, that of Mr. Robinson was interrupted by the Civil War. He enlisted on 11 May 1864 in Company D, 126 Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served in the Army of the Potomac during the final campaigns of the war under General Grant. Although not in the service so long as some, it is probable that few others saw any harder service.

Those familiar with the history of the Civil War know that few military campaigns in history have been more arduous for both sides around Richmond, Virginia. During the final year of the conflict, Mr. Robinson sustained injuries. However, of a rather peculiar kind, it appears. A shot or shell did not hurt him, but due to the almost incessant marching to which his company was subjected, he became lame in his left leg. He was finally discharged, although not until the conflict was practically over and the victory won for his country.

As we have noted, Mr. Robinson had already married Luanna Stewart on 2 March 1848. They had several children before he left his home to fight for “liberty and union.” After spending some time in Symmes Township as a teacher, he also became a farmer and settled down for a time near the hamlet of Sherritt’s, which became his post office address.

Had Large Family

Mr. and Mrs. Providence M. Robinson were the parents of the following named children: John S., Gerald C., Rachel M., Perry S., Sarah L., Mary A. F., Elizabeth V., and Rufus Robinson.

And so, we see that this son-in-law of the pioneers John C. and Sarah McCartney Stewart had a career in public service, and their private life appears to have been similar to those of several of their own sons.

They all had, what today would be considered large families, and considering each of half a dozen such families to have had half a dozen children each, who married and raised similarly sized families, one can easily imagine how numerous and widespread much be the descendants of but one pioneer couple.

Another interesting thing about many of these pioneers was their versatility. They appear to have been equally capable with a hoe and a gun, in the cornfield and on the battlefield, in politics and in the church, while those who had education enough to read, write and solve a few mathematical problems frequently put in a few months of the year as teachers.

Thus we read in an old account of Providence M. Robinson that he was a teacher, solder, farmer, and preacher, and no doubt during his career, in a time and region which might be considered rather primitive at its best, he found time and opportunity to turn his hand to many jobs now considered quite unrelated to any of the professions just mentioned.

Of all the townships of Lawrence County, Ohio, demanding the best of its early settlers, Symmes Township was perhaps the most exacting due to its remoteness from the Ohio River and being off the beaten trail of civilization, so to speak.

Its fine forests, which also indicate the soil’s fertility, had to be cleared for farmers to have ground on which they might raise crops. And the hilly surface also proved a handicap to farming. But despite all this, these early settlers and their immediate descendants transformed it into one of the best known, perhaps, of the agricultural regions of the county. However, it also lies partly, at least, within the old iron and coal section of Southern Ohio.

Source: The Herald-Advertiser 8 January 1939

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Portsmouth Daily Times, Portsmouth, Ohio 5 Jan 1924
Fire Destroys Store, Post office

Mrs. J. L. Richards, Ninth and Waller streets, received a message this morning telling of the total destruction by fire of the General Store and post office at Sherritt’s, Ohio.

The store was owned by Mrs. Richard’s mother, Mrs. T. J. White and was managed by Miss Bertha White and was managed by Miss Bertha White. The Red Men’s Hall was above the store room, and the fire started sometime during the night. The building was burned to the ground. Mrs. Richards’ left today to be with her mother and sister.