The Rev. James Gilruth died before July 12, 1873, a year after publishing these stories, in Davenport, Iowa. He was an abolitionist and preacher. This article was published in the Ironton Register on May 9, 1872.
In my last letter, I gave you a history of the original settling of Gennet’s Creek; I now think it proper to cross the river and begin below Little Sandy and come up on the Kentucky side.
John NICHOLSON settled between the narrows and the mouth of the Little Sandy in about 1803 or 1804. His wife’s maiden name was Casandra WILCOX. Their children’s names were John, Patty, Nicholas, James, Nancy, Casandra, and Alfred (this last born here.) I never knew who John and Nicholas married. Patty married Benj. CHINN. I think that James married Miss STEWART. Nancy died when she was about 14 years old. Casandra married James BARKLEY. What became of Alfrehe was d I never knew? NICHOLSON had several slaves, which rapidly increased.
He had a blacksmith shop and, in a small way, worked at that business. But principally lived by farming. After having cleared up a pretty large farm for the time, he died. The widow and family left this place and moved up and settled in the bottom out back of Ferguson’s sandbar. When the NICHOLSON’S moved to this country, they left their son John among their friends in Maryland. Some years after his father’s death, he moved out and settled on the riverbank, a little above Hanging Rock.
He was considered a swifter runner than any man in Greenup, Lawrence, or Scioto Counties, except Jesse MARTIAL, of Scioto, between whom, as far as was publicly known, it remained an unsettled question. It was rumored, however, that they had a secret meeting and a trial of speed. That MARTIAL afterward said, “I have a horse. If NICHOLSON can pay his ferriage, he is welcome to him.” This, if said, was not in reference to NICHOLSON’S lack of means, for in reference to NICHOLSON’S ability to win him in a race.
About this time that NICHOLSON settled below on the upper point of Little Sandy, settled Lewis WILCOX, an uncle of Mrs. NICHOLSON. His wife’s name I never knew. They had no children. He had four able-bodied Negro men. He built a hewed log house with a clapboard roof, chinked it with wood, and daubed it with common clay with an outside chimney, which, in fact, was about the universal position of chimneys in those days.
I have been thus particular in describing this first house ever built in what is now known as Greenupsburg. When WILCOX settled here, the land was covered with a heavy growth of beech, poplar, oak, etc. But his slaves soon cleared up a field of several acres where Greenup now stands. What became of this old gentleman has entirely passed from me.
On about one-half mile above Sandy settled Andrew HOOD, commonly called Major HOOD. His wife’s name I have forgotten. Their children were Sarchet, Thomas, Elizabeth, Patty, Andrew, Rachael, Henry, and Catharine, all born before they came here. Thomas married Sarah PICKET. What became of Elizabeth and Patty, I have forgotten. Sarchet married Jesse GRIFFITHS before they came here; Andrew married a Miss CRAIN; Rachael married Joseph HOWE: Henry and Catharine died in youth.
Major HOOD was the first settler in this part of Greenup County, Kentucky, if not the county. Old Mrs. HOOD was the first that practice midwifery in this region of the country, which she continued to do with credit to herself until she discovered that she was beginning to be disqualified by the infirmities of age when she refused to continue the practice any longer, also alleging that now there were others to attend to it. Hood’s Run forked some two or three yards from the mouth. The left-hand fork lay parallel with the river up the bottom for a mile then it came at nearly right angles from the hill.
At some distant period back, at this angle, the water had obtained a passage through direct to the river and cut the channel down below the old bed so that it no more passed down the former channel, and now known as Howe’s Run. This, in time of high water in the river, put the whole bank down to Hood’s Run in the condition of an island. When the owners of the Little Sandy Salt Works began to export salt by wagons down to the Ohio River, HOOD, to facilitate his yard being their depot, also for the convenience of his own farm, built a high frame bridge over the branch of the run.
This bridge was the first frame bridge built on either side of the river between Big Sandy and Big Scioto that had any connection with the public utility. After HOOD’S death, the depot was moved up to Boone’s, and this bridge fell into decay. After Greenup County became organized, Court was held for some years in a rough plank shed attached to the north end of his house.
The Judge’s seats were on a rough plank scaffold, raised sufficiently high for them to overlook the bar, jury, and audience. In those days, such a thing as a bolt for flour was never connected with any mill in these parts. HOOD bought a fine brass wire sieve 18 inches in diameter, for which he paid $2, and fixed up a little room adjoining the courtroom, with all the conveniences necessary for sifting, and gave all the neighbors free privilege to fetch their grist they’re to sift their flour.
The opportunity was readily embraced by all who had any wheat ground, though it cost them hours of weary labor to get a little coarse flour. In a shed attached to the south end of his house was kept for some time, the first dry goods store kept on either side of the river between Big Sandy and Big Scioto. It was kept by Benjamin CHINN. HOOD owned no slaves but owned the largest breed of hogs in the county, called English hogs, kept a very large flock of geese, the first kept in these parts; was an industrious farmer; cleared up a considerable farm and set out the first apple orchard in Greenup County. He was a respected and good citizen.
Next, above his father settled Thomas HOOD. His wife’s name was Sarah PICKET. Their first child was named Libni. T. HOOD was the first man in all these parts to raise a nursery of apple trees, all seedlings. On T. HOOD’S land, near the hill on the east bank of Hood’s Run, in a rough log cabin built for the purpose, was kept the first school between Big Sandy and Tiger Creek, and I am pretty certain that it was the first in Greenup County.
The school was made up of scholars from both sides of the river and was kept by Silas WOOTEN. His wife’s name was Theba. They had two children, Rhoda and William. In this school were concentrated children of the most prominent citizens of this county, but WOOTEN was a teacher of the true backwoods type, as to literate qualifications. T. HOOD was considered a good hunter but lived principally by farming.
After living here for some years, he moved back on the waters of the east fork of Little Sandy, became a Methodist, and sustained a good character as a citizen. After he left, the house was occupied for some time by a man whose name was ROBINSON. He was a tailor and the first in this occupation who lived in all this region of the country. His price for making a neat body coat for a man was $2.50. I would not have named this man, but you might know who our first tailor was and what it then cost to get a coat made.
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