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Historical Collections of the Mahoning Valley

                                                        [PIONEER REUNION continued]

    At the conclusion of the speaking in the morning, about one o'clock, Mr. William Powers, on behalf of

 the committee, announced that ample preparation had been made at the Tod House for the 

accommodation of all the invited guests, and so many of the citizens as might desire to dine there. He 

also stated that arrangements had been made at the central table for all the soldiers present of the war 

of 1812, and the widows of soldiers of that war, to sit down together. The provision made by the 

proprietors of the house was indeed sumptuous and ample, and the dinner seemed to be heartily 

enjoyed by the guests. There was indeed nothing on the tables to remind them of the hard fare of the 

earlier time, and little in the surrounding magnificent buildings to suggest the forest of oak that had so 

recently flourished over the very spots where the Tod House and the Opera House now stand.

    "After dinner we wandered through the crowded office and parlors and listened to the eager chat going on. We like to linger over the strange scenes, over this blending of the activities of the present with reminiscences of the past. There were old ladies quietly sipping their tea, and there was another who had refused the pure "Havana" offered, complacently smoking her pipe. There was there an uncovering of the long buried treasures of the memory, an odd jumble of yesterday and today, a living of the past in the present, a meeting for one brief hour of the first, second, and third quarters of the nineteenth century of the Mahoning Valley."  [Mahoning Register]

     The pioneers reassembled in the Opera House at half past three, when the toasts were read and

 responded to. The Hon Thomas Struthers spoke of the amusements of those early days...of the 

huskings and logging bees, the athletic sports and dances, "Sister Phoebe", and kicking the blanket. 

He was followed in the same strain by Ray Noble. The Hon Asahel Medbury followed, speaking on the 

hardships of pioneer life. Speaking, as he said, more from what he had learned by tradition than from 

what he knew by experience. The Hon Sheldon Newton spoke from knowledge with regard to the 

hardships endured. He had seen the time when men went forty miles from Boardman to Georgetown for 

their flour or meal; when, during the war of 1812, shinplasters from Warren, Ravenna, and all the few 

neighboring towns had driven out silver and gold, and when, still later, the shinplasters themselves 

unredeemed, except by Warren, vanished and there was no money. He said that men raised what they 

ate and made what they wore, that all business transactions were conducted by simple barter, that 

money was only used in the payment of taxes, and that one hundred and sixty cents for a long time 

paid the taxes on one hundred and sixty acres of land. He said that the first child born on the Western 

Reserve was Horace Daniels, in *1800, and that he drove the first mail coach west from Poland in 1823 

(differing from Father M'Kinnie, who made this date 1822). He had seen calico in Boardman selling at 

seventy-five cents a yard... but when it took only six yards to make a dress. He closed by giving the bill 

of fare for a dinner he had at a logging in 1817, which was bread, raw pork, raw onions, and whisky. Mr. 

Fletcher Hogue followed him with some amusing anecdotes.

    R. M'Millan responded to the toast, "Our Education", alluding to the high character that Youngstown had borne, even in the early times, regarding educational advantages, and giving in order the teachers that had for forty years past given tone to her schools.

    Mr. W. S. Crawford and the Hon Robert M. Montgomery responded to the toast, "Our Mothers, Sisters, and Wives"; Mr. Montgomery paying an eloquent tribute to the noble women who had molded the characters of the men of the generation just passing away.

    Thomas H. Wells responded to the toast, "Our Fellow Comrades", and spoke feelingly of the men that he had known when he first came to this city, of their steadfastness of purpose, and of their persistency of endeavor, of Col Hillman, Col Rayen, and Mr. Henry Wick. He was followed by Mr. Osirus Case.

    The President then invited all to a pioneer dance at the Tod House in the evening.

    *[Robert and Hannah Stevens had a daughter born before that, also Mrs. Phineas Hill had a child born at Mahoning Falls....Editors.]

    It seems not to have been generally understood that the committee desired old relics to be brought

 for exhibition, and for that reason but few articles of "ye olden time" were in the hands of the 

committee.  We noticed a fine old China teapot, with a card attached, bearing the following inscription:

     "Five generations from the present this teapot was the property of Mrs. Elizabeth Pitney, of Morristown, New Jersey, her mother housekeeping with and calling it "The Old Teapot". 

                                                                                                                          "Elizabeth Wick."

    Mr. John Van Fleet sent in a very large family Bible one hundred and fifty-four years old. It was

printed in Oxford, England. The paper and typography were most excellent, and the engravings fine.

An old vest was exhibited, made in 1807 by Mr. Robert Pollock, whom many of the pioneers remembered as a tailor in Youngstown in those early days.  We also noticed a cup and saucer, brought over from England in 1808 by Mrs. Jane Drake, the mother of Mrs. Harriet Burnett; also a copy of the Western Reserve Chronicle, bearing date Warren, Ohio, Friday, June 10, 1825, published by Messrs. Hapgood & Quinby.  A tin tobacco-box, presented by Anthony Wayne to Ira M'Collum.  An old sword, formerly owned by Col Wick, was also among the relics.

    A turtle, found near Mill Creek by Mr. James Rudge, was exhibited to the audience. This turtle had an inscription as follows on its belly: "A. Sparks, July 4, 1802". We were informed that about twenty years ago this same turtle was found by Col Wick, and kept by him for some time, and then let go.

    The following statement of the number and situation of the houses in Youngstown, in 1823, is handed us by John R. Squire, and is said to be correct:

Commencing on the north side of Federal Street, and going west.

 1. John Loughridge, log house.

 2. Widow Murdock, log house.

 3. James Hillman, frame; late H. Manning.

 4. Samuel Bryson, log; now J. R. Squire.

 5. Corner Diamond, log, owned by Samuel Bryson; now Mrs. Bissell.

 6. Presbyterian Church on the hill.

 7. William Wick; now King's feed-store.

 8. Henry Wick, frame; now Harber's shop.

 9. Henry Wick, log; now Wick's bank.

10. Henry Manning, log; now Woodbridge.

11. C. B. Wick, frame; now J. F. Hollingsworth.

12. Philip Kimmel, frame; now Smith and Medbury.

13. Robert Pollock, frame; now J. F. Hollingsworth.

14. Daniel Morris, log; town hall on part of it.

15. George Hardman, part frame; now L. Wick.

16. William Rayen, shingled house, sides and all; now Calvin Shook.

17. William Rayen, log; Decker and Miller occupying.

18. William Rayen, brick; now Parmelee.

19. Jeremiah Tibbitt, log; now A. J. Pollock.

20. Widow Dabney, log; now Westlake.

South side, going east.

21. John E. Woodbridge, frame; now Smith.

22. Mr. Hollingsworth, log; now Smith.

23. Mansion House lot, log house, owned by Judge Tod; now Anderson.

Front Street.

24. Jonathan Smith, log; now E. G. Hollingsworth.

25. Moses Crawford, log; now S. J. Atkins.

26. John Day, frame; now Thomas Davis.

Back to Federal Street.

27. Charles Dutton, frame; now Bissell.

28. Methodist Church, F. Barclay's heirs.

29. William Thorn, log house on the Diamond; now the Tod House.

30. Henry Wick, brick; now M. T. Jewell.

31. Log school house on the Diamond, where the soldiers' monument stands, where the late Hon. Gov. Tod got his education in boyhood days.

32. Josiah Polly, frame; now the heirs of the late Edward Moore.

33. Henry Wick, frame; now Parish & Nash.

34. James M'Cartney, log; now heirs of J. Pritchard.

35. Robert Leslie, log; now John Manning.

    One of the most interesting incidents was the meeting of an old lady and gentleman, each being about

 seventy years of age, who had not seen each other for more than half a century. The lady had been, in her girlhood, quite a belle, as the poetic tradition of the times is full of the celebration of her charms, nor have seventy years diminished a whit her grace and attractiveness. As she was passing down the aisle in the Opera house she met the old gentleman above alluded to, and they recognized each other. Said he, "Mary (?)".  Said she, "John (?)". They clasped hands, and John, thinking of the time when they sat upon the log piles and gathered sap in the sugar-camp together sixty years ago, began to wind his arm around Mary, and suggested the weakness he used to feel for her. She rewarded his confession with a kiss, while her hopeful son stood solemnly over the two with hands upraised, as though blessing them.

The Dance

    The dance in the evening, at the Tod House, was a happy conclusion of a joyous day. Uncle Hugh Wick was the life of the evening...laughing, joking, and dancing as if he were the youngest among the young. Indeed, throughout the day he was always ready with a question or suggestion that was sure to break the monotony, if it threatened to become oppressive or dreary. Many came to the dance in costumes more or less antique. There were wedding dresses that had done service half a century ago; capes of great grandmothers; aprons of great aunts, and headdresses all the way from Mrs.Methuselah. Several of the gentlemen wore Continental costumes or ancestral uniforms which had been seen at musters or on battlefields. Among the interesting events of the evening was the pioneer dance. One set, consisting of Dr Wick, of Cleveland; Mr. H. B. Wick, of this city; Mr. Peebles, of New Castle, and Mr. Horace Steele, of Painesville, as the gentlemen, and Mrs. Peebles, Mrs. C.D. Arms, Mrs. M'Kinnie, and Miss Laura Wick, as the ladies, was danced.  It was curious, indeed, to see grandfathers dancing in the same sets with their granddaughters.

     The Mechanics' Band, of Youngstown, enlivened the day between the addresses and at other

 appropriate intervals with its music.

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