A Fight at Holderby Landing
The following newspaper account describes a dispute involving the Shamblin brothers and a party from the Rockwood area. It preserves the reporter’s dramatic language and reported injuries.
Newspaper Account
Huntington Argus, 12 April 1883
An altercation occurred between a young man named Shamblin and some parties from the vicinity of Rockwood, Ohio, last Monday, at Holderby Landing, about the ownership of a lot of “slaves” [transcription uncertain; possibly “staves”—see Editor’s Notes]. Two of the party are named Pike, and two of them go by the same name Stephenson.
High words ensued, and the result was bloody. “Bub” Shamblin saw the odds were against him, and maneuvered to gain time until his big brother Jesse could arrive upon the field; but the Ohio party, confident of having things their own way, pressed the battle, and with knives and clubs were about to use the little fellow up. Fortunately for him, but unfortunately for the Ohio party, his brother, Jesse, and one or two other men by the name of Sayre came to “Bob’s” rescue. Then the battle raged in earnest, and the army from Rockwood sounded a retreat.
In drawing off their forces, one of them jumped in the river to avoid the shower of boulders that were whizzing about him; another was compelled to run into the river and swim to his skiff, which seemed to have partaken of the common panic. The Shamblin boys retained, as trophies of their victory, two hats and a skiff oar.
They stuck the latter in the ground and put the hats upon it till this morning, when a relative of the Ohio party arrived upon the battleground with a flag of truce, obtained the trophies, and carried them across the river.
RESULT—“Bob” Shamblin has a bad contusion on the head, a broken nose, and a broken hand; one of the Ohio party has an eye badly gouged, and a badly damaged head and face; another, we understand, has a broken arm, and another is reported badly ruptured. We also learn that one woman was severely injured.
MORAL — When you see property lying around loose, that does not belong to you, leave it severely alone; let it rest on that side of the river where you first discovered it.
REPORTER
Related Chesapeake History
- Rockwood, Ohio — the community’s history
- History of Chesapeake, Ohio — book contents
- Lawrence City — another early Chesapeake community
Editor’s Notes
Source: Huntington Argus, 12 April 1883, as cited in the supplied transcription. No original newspaper image or page number accompanied this file. Punctuation, capitalization, and an obvious grammatical error have been lightly corrected; the reporter’s tone and historical wording otherwise remain.
Uncertain word: The uploaded transcription says the fight concerned “a lot of slaves.” In this riverfront property-dispute context, “staves”—wooden pieces used to make barrels—is a plausible intended word. That is an editorial suggestion, not a verified reading. The original newspaper must be checked before adopting it as a correction; this transcription should not be treated as evidence of an 1883 dispute over enslaved people.
The account calls the younger Shamblin “Bub” once and “Bob” elsewhere. Both readings have been retained because the correct nickname has not been verified. The surnames Pike, Stephenson, and Sayre also remain as supplied. The report’s phrases “we understand” and “is reported” indicate that some injury details were secondhand. No later medical outcome or court disposition is established here.
The newspaper’s military expressions—“battle,” “retreat,” “trophies,” and “flag of truce”—are its colorful description of a fight, not an account of a military engagement. The relative date “last Monday” has been retained rather than turned into an independently verified event date.
Chesapeake book research and editorial notes researched and written by Martha J. Martin. The historical newspaper account is credited to the Huntington Argus and is not presented as her original reporting.
Copyright © 2026 Martha J. Martin. All rights reserved for her original editorial writing and presentation of her research. The 1883 newspaper text is public-domain historical material. Written permission from Martha J. Martin is required to reproduce her original writing, except as permitted by law.