eighteen hundred dollars, was tried by a jury and a verdict for plaintiff for six hundred given. One record of this term contains the following: "Came into court Marshall C. Hays, who took the oath to support the Constitution of the United States and the State of Ohio, and also the oath of office as an attorney counsellor of law." We thus have the record of the first lawyer for the county, i. e., created by the court of Highland.

The fall term of this court lasted two days, and the record closes with the notation that license was granted G. W. Barrere and Francis Nott to keep public houses for the term of one year.

The first term of the Ohio supreme court in Highland county, the supreme court being a traveling tribunal under the first constitution, was held at New Market in October, 1806. "Judges Ethan Allen [Brown] and W. W. Irwin," says Scott, "opened court and impanelled a jury to try again the rather famous case of Isaac Collins vs. Joseph Kerr, in which the attorneys were James Scott and William Creighton, of Chillicothe. The jury returned a verdict of $650.50 in favor of Collins, but, on motion for a new trial, the case was continued until the next term, set for October, 1808.

CHAPTER VII.

A

CHANGE OF COUNTY SEAT.

T FIRST the talk of removal of the county seat from New Market excited little attention, and slight uneasiness was felt over the remote possibility of such an event.

When

New Market became the county seat, if such it could be called, it had been whispered that the fact was not established, and that at some future day another site, more centrally located, would be made the capital of the county. Joseph Kerr, who owned most of the lands around the town, or had sold them under the assurance that the place would remain permanently the seat of justice, was a man of learning and ability, and prompted by personal interest he used all his influence in suppressing the talk of change. But as the agitation of the question became more intense, the people of New Market grew seriously alarmed. Many of them had bought lots and made improvements, with the understanding that the county seat was a fixed fact. The people north and east of the town far outnumbered, two to one, the dwellers in the town and south and west of the village, and it was this class that clamored for removal. New Market, writes one, during the eight years it had been a town, had not made for itself a very enviable reputation. The surrounding population were, with many worthy exceptions, rather on the rowdy order, and a considerable number of the citizens of the town were worse if possible than those in the vicinity. As in all new counties the location of the county seat is a matter generally of per sonal interest as well as widespread and intense excitement. It was so in this case, the removal of the county seat was the subject of all discussion. The Clear Creek settlement furnished the warmest and most resolute advocates for the change. The men of this settlement were leading and influential citizens, of high character, and much determination of purpose, and would not hold their peace while the county seat remained in New Market. From the known ability of Kerr, as a man of wealth and education, he was looked to by the friends of New Market to advocate their cause and protect their interest. While Kerr persisted that there was no danger of

New Market ever being deprived of its honor, yet it was good policy to use every endeavor to fasten the seat of justice to its present locality. As no county buildings had been erected, and the court house was the open air under some wide spreading oak, he suggested the raising of funds for the erection of public buildings, assuring the people if this was done they would hear no more about the removal of the county seat. This idea was thought a good one, and the leading men of New Market and vicinity began at once to act upon the suggestion. They did not seem aware that with the exception of their own neighborhood and town, the entire county was against them.

to eat.

After mature reflection and consultation, it was concluded to hold a grand barbecue and invite the entire county to attend, and as there had never been a fourth of July celebration in Highland, they fixed upon that national day for the feast, hoping that while their guests were feasting and excited with free whisky and the glorious mem ories revived by the day, that they would yield the point of moving the seat of justice three or four miles nearer the center of the county. Everything progressed finely. Word was sent to every neighborhood in the county, if not to every family. Glowing accounts were circulated of the good things to eat and drink to be found on the ground. Roast pigs, sheep, turkeys and a great ox, with all the additional delicacies that the land afforded would be provided. The result was that New Market was crowded to overflowing. The entire county seemed to be there. The tables were set in front of G. W. Barrere's tavern. Here the crowd collected, as the day was to be one of feasting, every lady was anxious to see what was there New Market had a company of militia which paraded the streets to the soul inspiring music of the fife and drum, waving an old battle torn flag that had belonged to the army of General Wayne, and was present at the battle of the Fallen Timbers. The crowd soon grew so large that the militia could not march, and their presence was disregarded as the people grew hungry and drunk. A platform of rails had been erected on the side of the street near the long table, and about eleven o'clock was occupied as a rostrum. The meeting was organized by electing Morgan Van Meter president by acclamation. The Declaration of Independence was then read, followed by an oration of great length, by one Jesse F. Roysden, an eccentric school master, recently settled in New Market. When these exercises were over it was announced that dinner was ready. By this time the people were very hungry and needed no second invitation to surround the table. The eating was simply a grab game, but there seemed to be enough for all. After the hunger was satisfied, the toast drinking began. The toasts were drunk in strong toddy and julips, brewed in large new cedar tubs. The sentiments expressed were all patriotic and called forth great applause from

the half-fuddled patriots, while the fife and drum at one end of the table, and the fiddlers three at the other end carried on a continuous rivalry in noise and scraping. Soon those upon the out side began to scatter, some shooting at a mark, others running foot races, while still others engaged in wrestling. An ugly knock down. drew many more from the table, while those who remained became. more and more confused and stupid. More fights on the ground convinced the sober and intelligent part of the crowd that it was time to adjourn and those of the crowd that were not too drunk or too badly whipped to go, took their departure and when the shades of night came down upon the scene, the town of New Market was about the same as ever. The next morning when consciousness had fully returned, they found they had forgotten the main purpose of the meeting, a subscription to build a court house and jail, so the purpose was abandoned, and no effort made to secure the seat of justice by erecting these very necessary buildings.

John Carlisle came up from Chillicothe and established a store on Clear creek. The location was near Billy Hill's as the most promising point to erect his building, which was made of hewed logs, and William Kelso and Samuel Swearinger kept the store for Carlisle. The commissioners met upon the 10th day of February, 1806, but did little business save in relation to the roads of the county. The session lasted but a single day. The laying out of roads was a necessity in the economy of the county, as the woods in every direction were rapidly filling up with people who were asking for some means of communication with the outside world, which could only be done by grubbing out the undergrowth and cutting down the trees, so that wagons could pass over the stumps when not too large or dodge between them when they could see them or the mud was not too deep. Some of the ground was low and swampy and when this was the case, the mud and water or rather mud mortar would get so deep that teams could not travel them. Then the supervisors would have poles and logs cut and placed crosswise over the worst places, and on these half floating timbers they would be compelled to travel. Orders on the county treasurer were drawn for various forms of work amounting in the aggregate to several hundred dollars, but the larger part of this money was expended for road cutting and clearing. The manner of clearing the road way was to roll the logs to each side of the way and pile the brush in the same way until a brush fence of considerable height enclosed this path of stumps through the woods. Wagons were things to excite the curiosity of the white headed children of the settlers, as much so as a rushing train of cars to some of the dwellers of our own country now.

The commissioners of the county "ordered that James Denny, Esq., be paid the sum of eighty-eight dollars and fifty cents for sur

veying and ascertaining the lines of Highland county and to locate its center, and for other expenses." A similar amount was paid to Nathaniel Beasly for like work. These men were doubtless the commissioners appointed by the legislature to do this work the year before, who having performed their duty as directed, received their compensation. There is quite a contrast in prices between then and now, as the report of the commissioners will clearly show, but the times indicate that civilization is expensive, and that in those early times it cost little for food and clothing, as variety in the one and fashion in the other was not the rage.

Trade had languished since Fritz Miller was compelled to quit business on account of the failure of Barngruber to furnish the needed supplies of whisky and tobacco. A Mr. Logan set up a store in the shop of Michael Stroup, but soon closed out his business. In 1807 John Smith came from Maysville, Ky., and opened a store on the east side of Fritz Miller's old stand, just across a large pond in the street which had been called Lake Robinson ever since citizen of that name when unsteadied by liquor had fallen into the water from the narrow causeway of logs that led across it to the store. The stock of goods carried by Smith was far better than those of his predecessors, and his business venture was very successful for a year or two. When the town of Hillsboro was established he removed his stock of goods and continued the business of store keeping there. In March, 1806, James Fitzpatrick, from Monroe county, Va., established his home about three and a half miles southeast of Hills

boro. His children were principally grown at the time of leaving his old home on Indian creek and being about sixty years old, it was a severe trial for him to break up the associations of a life time and abandon the old home. He and his children were devout Methodists, and the night before they started from Virginia was devoted to singing and prayer in communion with the neighbors. With nine pack horses laden with necessary goods, followed by some cattle, and all the family on foot save the mother who was given a horse, they came over the mountains. The three sons carried rifles, and the six girls, all young women, assisted in driving the stock. In six weeks they reached Chillicothe, where the scenery had charms, but the stories of the terrors of malaria persuaded them not to make a permanent settlement. They were talking of a return to Virginia when Henry Massie went to them with the information that he had good uplands in Highland, which he would warrant free from the plague of ague. These lands were looked up by Robert Fitzpatrick and a purchase made, and the family reached Highland county. in the following March. They built their cabin near a very fine. spring, and soon had enough land cleared in time for corn planting. The family remained healthy, things prospered with them, and they were pleased and happy in their new home. During the first sum