The Ancient Capital of Lawrence County, Ohio. A Talk With One of the Old Citizens
Ironton Register, 18 Aug 1887
It was always a great pleasure for me to visit old country places. Towns are not altogether like persons, some are busy, hustling in a continuing hurry and worry, and others are full of life and vigor, but the mind and subdued in appearance. Some again, pompous, ostentation, and overbearing, some in a state of rapid decay and fast approaching annihilation, and then again are the towns that are neither advancing nor retrograding to any viable extent but pursuing the even tenor of their way, undisturbed by the noise and clamor going on around them.
Of this last class is the little town of Burlington, a name familiar to every citizen of the county, old and young, as the first county seat. It is a very modest, quiet, and unassuming little place with an antique look that is very interesting. The mind naturally looks with pleasure upon that which is old and clings to it with ardent attachment.
The velvet moss clings to the aged rock, the mistletoe to the withered branch, and the ivy to the mounting ruin. The heart is touched with a sweet tenderness as you behold past records and gaze upon the broken, crumbling pillars of departed greatness. Here is the old Courthouse, where barristers, many of our county’s best lawyers, won their spurs.
The building is a square, old-fashioned two-story house now used for a schoolhouse. The walls that echoed the thrilling appeal to justice and jury now resound to the musical swish of the master’s birch. Legal lights elevated their pedal extremities on tables and chairs and slept the sleep of the innocent young, hopeful primes flies and shoot paper wads at his teacher’s nose.
Dr. Camillus Hall
We were referred to Dr. Hall as the one most likely to give us the best history of Burlington. We called upon him and were greatly entertained by his conversation. It pleased him to tell us anything in his power about that place.
Dr. Hall was born in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, and recovered his education at Dartmouth College, New Hampshire, and received his education at Dartmouth College. On coming west, he first located Portsmouth, where he practiced for about one year. Many of our lawyers had cases before the Scioto County bar, and from these, the doctor learned that Burlington had no physician, though badly in need of one, as there was a great deal of sickness.
When he came, he expected to stay only three months, when he and a friend intended to go west. Thus “man proposes and God disposes of.” His three months have lengthened into ten times as many years, but he never regrets coming.
He has ridden as high as seventy miles at a trip in his practice, which extended far beyond Marion [now Aid], and down below Junior Furnace and above Rome. Seeing the word “Drugs” in faded letters on the front of a small building, we called his attention to it. He said there never was any drug store in the town.
He kept a comparatively large supply for his own use as he does now but could get them no nearer than Cincinnati. Dr. Mears used the house in question as a patent medicine laboratory, where he concocted a universal panacea and started his partner out with a load of it. It seems he sold out but failed to account to the head of the firm.
The “Barracks,” as it was called, which Mr. Williams is tearing down, was occupied by William Nixon as a saddler shop. Another firm also had a shop in this building. The old hotel was one of the first houses built. Bryan had a store, and the building was also used as a tenement house with three or four families.
Wilson Payne did good business with his tanyard. A German named Omer bought him out but, getting furiously mad at some trifling circumstances, sold out and moved up Sandy, where he was shortly afterward plundered of all he had, Burlington’s pleasant places.
One newspaper, the first in the county, “The Lawrence Gazette.” Wyatt Wheeler was the editor and proprietor. It was a single sheet, about the size of the Register.
Burlington’s Old Stores
James Drury had a store where Alexander is now. Wilson and Frampton were also in business. There was only one physician in the town. Common Pleas Court held three sessions of about three weeks each. There was no Probate Court. The lawyers who practiced at Burlington were Leete, Solomon Beckley, George Sprigg, Browning, and Nigh. Frank Wheeler, brother of the editor, died just as the county seat was being removed.
There was quite a struggle over the removal. A large unintelligent vote controlled by furnace men, the doctor says, carried the day against them. Dr. Hall remained true to his first love and gave the town and people the best years of his industrious life.
At this time, there was a regular line of fine packets between Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, and no railroads were in the county besides the one extending back of Hanging Rock.
Burlington is, unfortunately, located. Back of it is a large hill that would prevent ground in that direction, while there is not much room on either side. General Tupper laid out the town on 20 Feb 1818. At this time, there were two what might be called little villages, one named Carrsville, just below Burlington, on land bought by Gabriel Carr.
There were only one or two log houses on the present site of Ironton. The only other physician in the region now, besides Dr. Hall, was McDowell of Rome Township.
An effort was made to concentrate the iron business at the Rock, but it finally centralized at Ironton, and it soon outgrew all the other towns. Besides the firms mentioned in this article, there were two potteries, one sawmill, one boatyard, one carding machine, and a fulling mill.
The first school was an ordinary district school. About 1843 or 1844, the Academy was established but only existed for about eight or ten years. There were two churches – Presbyterian and Methodist Episcopal. There has been no Presbyterian church for twenty years.
The town at present is a very quiet and orderly neighborhood. The people are intelligent and industrious, dwelling in peace and tranquillity, far from the busy marts of the outside world.
The town supports four general merchandise houses: Jas. Carter, J.S. Wilson, Mrs. Davidson, and Mr. Alexander; one barber and shoe shop under D. Mullens. One cigar factory in charge of Mr. Waters. One butcher shop and two excellent physicians, Drs. Hall and Williams.
They have a good system of schools—one building of three rooms in the town and one single room on Charley Creek. Two churches, a Methodist Protestant and Methodist Episcopal are in flourishing condition, having church every Sunday. The ministers are Rev. Jas. Argo and Watson alternating. Each church has a good Sunday school under its control.
First Newspaper, Ironton Register, 11 Sep 1856
The first show of a newspaper in this county was a paper printed at Portsmouth. The publication commenced in March 1820 by C. Hopkins under the style of “Scioto Telegraph.”
In October 1820, Mr. Hopkins enlarged the paper and added to its title, calling it “Scioto Telegraph” and “Lawrence County Gazette,” issued simultaneously at Portsmouth and Burlington. The first paper printed in this county was the “Lawrence County Gazette” in 1845 by W.C. Wheeler. It existed until December 1849 or January 1850.
Wyatt C. Wheeler was born in Portsmouth, Ohio, on 17 Sep 1821. He learned about the printing business in the office of the “Vandalia Illinois Free Press,” In company with Mr. Droulliard, he founded the “Portsmouth Clipper,” in the Spring of 1845. In the Fall of the same year, he established the “Lawrence County Gazette” at Burlington.
His father died the day he was born. His favorite motto was “There is no word as Fail.” Wyatt C. Wheeler died on 18 Oct 1850 of pulmonary consumption at the age of 29.
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