OLD TIMES
Gilruth on Early Settlers in Lawrence County
From the Ironton Register
February 1, 1872, to July 18, 1872
Transcribed by Mary Ann St. Louis
October 11, 1998
The following interesting letter, written by Reverend James GILRUTH, over 80 years and who has been in the Methodist ministry for over 50 years, was furnished by General W. H. KELLY, to whom it was written. It treats the early settlers in the lower part of the country and the upper end of Scioto. We are promised more of this valuable correspondence and will be pleased to give it to our readers.
In undertaking to give a statistical history of the lower end of Lawrence, the upper end of Scioto, and the central part of Greenup Counties, I am not stimulated thereto by any hope of gain, either of fame or that of pecuniary nature. Nor is it my aim to enter into those pioneer settlers’ political or moral character, nor extensively into their social practices.
I desire to make you and those that may feel interested acquainted with some facts regarding persons, times, and places, which I am satisfied no other living mortal can. These facts I give entirely from memory, having kept no written records of any of them; that there may be errors in dates and names is altogether probable.
Beginning at the mouth of Storms Creek, from what it obtained, this name I never knew. Amaziah DAVIDSON made the first settlement on the lower point of the creek, on a fraction of some eighteen acres. He sold it to Jacob SUITOR and moved to the first farm above the French Grant. Jacob SUITOR lived here for several years, then sold it to Reverend John LEE, bought a tract of land in the Narrows above Ice Creek, moved to it, and opened a farm.
LEE added to the trace he bought of SUITOR some 400 to 500 acres of Congress land (which had been entered by Amaziah DAVIDSON but forfeited and fell back to the Government) and opened a fine farm, proving himself to be an intelligent farmer. His wife’s maiden name I never knew. His children were all daughters: Mrs. James HENRY, Mrs. Samuel HENRY, Mrs. Christian YINGLING, Mrs. Joshua KELLY, and Peninah. Mr. LEE, for an illiterate man, was an able and successful minister in the regular Baptist Church, extensively and favorably known. He was instrumental in forming a respectable church and building the first meeting house at this bottom. It stood on the brow of the creek bank, a few rods from his house.
Josiah LAMBERT (I think was the old man’s name) formed the next settlement below. His wife’s name I never knew. His children’s names were: Job, Jonathan, Richard, Susannah, Abigail, and Pricilla. Job settled above Ice Creek at the foot of the hill. Richard occupied the homestead farm. Jonathan LAMBERT farmed the farm below Richard. His wife’s name I have forgotten. Their children, the oldest a girl, whose name I have also forgotten. The next, a son, whose name I think was Thomas. The LAMBERTS owned good farms and were all respectable farmers and citizens.
Below the LAMBERTS lived an old Englishman named SHOOT [Shute]. His name I have forgotten, and that of his wife I never knew. He had a son named Richard, who, after his father’s death, lived with Thomas GILRUTH in the French Grant until he came of age. Mr. SHOOT was a regularly bred wagonmaker, the first and only one of trade in this, or either of the bottoms next above or below. But as wagons were very little used among these early settlers, he found little or no employment as a wagonmaker; but being a strong, industrious, and energetic man, and having also learned how to handle the spade, he did a great deal of ditching of ponds and swales a thing as much needed for a health as for profit.
In this vicinity below lived old Mr. CARPENTER, a Baptist and the first preacher of any kind in this bottom. He preached occasionally but made no attempts to form a church or administer the ordinances. I think it is probable that he was not ordained. He had one son named William. He became an ensign in Captain John KELLY company of militia, learned to survey, and kept the first store between Storms Creek and the French Grant. He made one of the most intellectual men raised in those times in this vicinity: married Hannah CLARKE, sold out, and moved to Missouri.
Below CARPENTER’S settled Tilman SHORT (*) [see end for more on Tilman Short family], a tall, raw-boned, active man. After the SHORT family in the same place as the landowner lived Samuel CLARK. I never knew his wife’s name or that of her parents; (she died before CLARK moved into this place). Their children were Samuel, Cornelius, Joel, Hannah, James, Rebecca, and Amos. Mr. CLARK was a house carpenter and wrought at that business, there being no other in those days in that bottom. He also wrought at building horse mills in connection with Peter LIONBARGER, Sr. Samuel, Jr., left, went to Letart Falls, married Miss DARBY, and settled there. Hannah married Mr. CARPENTER; I lost track of the rest.
James SPERRY, on a fraction of 60 acres above Osborne’s Run. This farm all overflows except a mere building spot. His wife’s maiden name was Sarah FERGUSON. SPERRY farmed a little and wrought a little occasionally as a stonemason at building chimneys; he also made some grinding stones, etc. SPERRY had no competition, yet his charges were reasonable. In those days, almost every settler raised a little batch of cotton, about equal to what the family could manufacture. One great difficulty consisted in picking out the seed. Then came a man named BARLOW (*), who built a small cotton gin, set it up in this place, and picked the people’s cotton on the shares or for so much cash per pound.
John KELLY bought this gin, I think, for $60. About this time, the seasons became so unfavorable for cotton growing, and this business failed in these parts, so Kelly’s gin investment proved a failure. SPERRY lived here but a few years and then sold out to a German by the name of Frederick BOTTLES, whose wife’s maiden name was ABRIGHT. After a few years BOTTLES sold out and moved west.
Between Osborne’s Run and Norman’s Run, the first settler was an old German named NORMAN (*), from whom Norman’s Run took its name. I never knew his given name or that of his wife. They had one daughter, the wife of Gabriel NEFF, who came to these two parts at the same time. Between these two has since grown up a small village with a post office, by the name of Hanging Rock, which has done considerable business in manufacturing bar iron and in shipping pot metal.
The above named settlements were all made between 1800 and 1805, according to the rest of my recollection. But some of the persons named came on at a later date, viz.: LEE, CLARK, MORRISON, BARLOW, and BOTTLES. Those marked thus did not own the land.
Gilruth On Early Settlers – “Below Carpenters settled Tilman Short (land owner) wife’s name forgotten children, Elizabeth, Payton, and Sally. Elizabeth married Phillip Kouns; Sally married Wm. Davidson (near Burlington).
Tilman Short —. Wife Unknown
Children:
Elizabeth Short was born 22 Jun 1789, Maryland; died 28 Jul 1861, Gallia Co., OH. married Phillip Kouns Payton Short Sarah Sally Short married William Davidson need to verify same as Wm. that married Sarah Short – Davidson, Wm. IR 11 Oct 1883 Rev.Wm. Davidson, one of the veterans of this county, d. South Point last week; his son, Commodore W.F. Davidson, of St. Paul (MN), was at the funeral.
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