Book: Wintersville Citizen

              . ... .H


THURSDAY, JANUARY 10, 1963


VOL. 1, NO. 6.


$5.00 per year  0lc per copy


January Journey Into The Past

      lWINTERSVILLE AREA - 1850
                   By EVE SEITER


   Some of our readers may have
 missed the January 4th issue of the
 Wintersville Citizen. If so it may
 be of interest to know that this
 Feature  story  is a  continuation
 based on historical notes kept by
 the late Mr. Sherman Floyd, a life-
 long resident of this Area.

 Stories often beget stories. My re-
 cent story of the Morgan-Shackle-
 ford encounter in Wintersville dur-
 ing which   "some  fighting'" took
 place prompted a call by Mrs. Frank
 Purviance. Mrs. Purviance told me of
 the marker erected in the parking
 lot area of the Wintersville Meth-
 odist Church  commemorating   that
fighting. Actually the tablet stands
near the curbstone outside the park-
ing area. I stood in a cold winter
drizzle copying the legend for you.
"General, John H. Morgan in com-
mand of Confederate troops passed
herm  July  25th, 1863   proceeding
northward via Richmond. Pursued by
General James M. Shackleford com-
manding 14th Ill. Cavalry, First Ky.
Cavalry, 9th Michigan Cavalry, 11th
Michigan Battery, 86th Ohio Mount-
ed Infantry, 2nd Tenn. Mounted In-
fantry, and Steubenville Militia. In
engagement here Militiaman, Henry
L. Parks, was wounded, died July
27th, 1863. Miss Margaret Daugherty
in  Thomas   Maxwell's house   was
severely wounded."   Tablet No. 8
erected July, 1913.
  Mrs. Purvia'nce had another foot-
note to give me.. On the corner op-
posite ithe Methodist Church stands a
"big, white house' which was once
the Purviance home. In the late
1920s there stood behind this house
a small building which, according to
many   reports, was   Wintersville's
first Post Office. Mrs. Purviance re-
ports there was still a slot in the ex-
terior wall for dropping the' mail.
More interesting  were, the   bullet
holes dating back to that Civil War
skirmish between M o r g a n and
Shackleford! The big house changed
hands and the little out-building long
used as a wash and utility house was
torn down. Neither you nor I may
investigate this evidence of the Civil
War in Jefferson County.
  Word of mouth has it that there
were organized schools in the area
as early as 1800. The first authentic
record of such was in 1804. It stood
near what was known as Number
Four or Stark's School. The first
teacher  was an    Irishman  named
Green. Richard McCullough taught
in District Number Five or Bantam
Ridge in    1806. By   1830 District
Eight, Cross Creek Township, and
District Number Three, Island Creek


Mothers Help Wanted

   For March of Dimes

   Mother's March on   Polio
has been scheduled for the
week  of January   21st. to
January 26th.
   Anyone Wishing to aid in
 the drive is urged to call
 Mrs. Jack  Wise, Chairman,
 at A.M. 44521.


Township, were consolidated in the
Wintersville School located 'near the
junction of Powell'l Lane and U. S.
Routh 43. Number Six was on Fern-
wood Rd. at the junction of Steuben-
ville Road. No orne seems to know
how 4hese schools were financed.
Most of them   were built of logs.
They were heated by wood burning
fireplaces in one end and the stu-
deints sat on puncheon seats along
the sides of the room. Compared to
our present educational plants these
schools were crude indeed but to
quote Mr. Floyd . . . "from   them
came men and women who, in turn,
built better buildings, founded bet-
ter homes and     established better
communities."
  The schools served a social as well
as  educational need. On     Friday
nights fanTrHies gathered here for fun
and entertainment. There were ex-
cellent programs featuring readings
and debates.
  It was natural for everyone to
take part in the politics of the day.
The country you and I have inherit-
ed was built by interested men and
women. Political apathy didn't exist.
Prior to the Civil War the Whigs
and the Democrats were the prin-
cipal parties in state and national
elections. As slavery emerged an in-
escapabLe issue members of both
parties locally aligned  themselves
with  the   new  Republican   party
which became a stronghold for many
years. The community has elected
many County officials from its midst.
Perhaps more than any other com-
munity of the area but Steubenville
itself.
  Political battles were hard fought.
During  the Blainme-Cleveland cam-
paign there was organized a Blaine
and Logan Cavalry Club with two
hundred members. They were equip-
ped with caps, capes, torches and a
drum   corps of twelve to fourteen
,eiitbers. This giroup created quite a
stir at big political meetings.
  Early inaustry was closely related
to the land. Sheep raising was an im-
portant early industry. Many cattle
an(l hogs were raised, too. Flour and
grain mills abounded. Almost every
stream of any size had a mill. Daims
wveie built to t(isure a water supply
supply sufficient to turn the big
Waier wheel which in turn set the
ii. chinery in mouion to grind x he.t
and corn for family use. Reed's M li
and Will's Creek wer'e, among the
first to have mills. Hartfords was on
WVilis Creek and Holmes on Cross
Creek at Fernwood. There were alsp
cotton and woolen mills but witn t,.e
advent of    stUam   and  dwineling
streams the old time mill gradually
became a thing of the past


i   fot felieofachild





OIt           EES


  The forests of our community sup-
ported the growth of another indus-
try. Ship timber was hewn, hauled
to the river and shipped to New
Orleans and other ports where ships
were built! Huge white oaks from
four to six feet in diameter were cut.
Our prodigality with our resources is
a cause for concern today as we
strive to conserve but in those days
great loads of ship timber cut sixty
feet long and from eighteen inches
to two feet wide were hauled to the
docks. Until a relatively few years
ago an oak still stood between Sec-
tions Nos. 23 and 24 in Cross Creek
Township which was over six feet in
diameter!
  Our   Churches  were   established
early. Two Ridges Presbyterian was
the  first, a   congregation  being
formed about 1802-led by the Rev-
erend Mr. James Snodgrass. They
met in   various places until 1810
wheti a place of worship was built.
The present building was erected in
1853. It has been remodeled several
times. It is situated on one of the
most beautiful sites in the County
and has been an important factor in
the religious development of the
community
  Cross Creek Presbyterian Church
was organized in 1816 by the Rev-
e'rend Mr. Wray. The Reverend Mr.
Obediah Jennings preached in the
home of Judge Anderson, now the
site of the   Steubenville Country
Club, in 1820. Meetings continued to
be held in homes and in Stark's log
school house until 1837 when a new
brick church was built. George Day
gave an acre of ground for the
church and grave yard. This struc-
ture, located about a mile and a half
south of Wintersville, burned and
was rebuilt in 1873. It was razed in
recent years when    the Starkdale
Presbyterian Church was organize(l.
  The first meeting of the Winters-
ville Methodist Society met as early
as 1828 in the' home of Isaiah Win-
ters on the Canton Road west of
Wintersville (opposite Sunset Gar-
dens'). Mr. Floyd reminds us that
"these were the days of the Circuit
Rideis, brave men of God riding
through the country in all kinds of
weather establishing societies for the
spreading of God's word for the re-
demption of mankind'. Men were in-
spired as you will see. In 1841 Wil-
liam Robert built at his own expense
a house of worship near his home
(Cemetery Lane). In 1868 a new
church was erected at thei west end
of Wintersville replaced by the pris-
ent edifice in 1925.
  We've come full circle. Our Janu-
ary Journey into the past is coni-
lpte!


ziuVVy. so ourkie


  Miss Nancy Jo Burkle, daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. William     Burkle of
Brentwood Estates has been chosen
as Feature Twirler for the Famous
100 Marching Band of Indiana Uni-
versity.
  She was selected from a group of
25 top twirlers of the country. Some
of the twirlers competing for this
position were from Wisconsin, Indi-
ana, Ohio and Nebraska. The featurel
twirler was selected   on: military
strutting, fancy strutting, solo twirl-
ing, two baton twirling, poise, per-
sonality and beauty. While Nancy Jo
was in competition the past four
years she has won various awards in
Ohio, W, Virginia and Pennsylavina.
  Nancy Jo is a graduate of Winters-
ville High School, Class of 1960. She
was Head Drum    Majorette for the
Wintersville Marching Band. She is
now the Head Majorette for the Ohio
University Band. Nancy Jo is major-
ing in Elementary Education.
  Miss Burkle has studied baton and
strutting with Darlene Sanders Bak-
er of Steubenville for the past four
years.





C. of G. to Hold

           Annual Dinner
   The    annual    dinner     and
installation       of   Officers
of the Wintersville         Cham-
ber of Commerce         will -be
held    Wednesday, January 16
at the Wintersville           High
School.
   The main speaker of the
evening,      Samual Pol lack
wi'l 1 be   followed by other
entertainment.

   Guests     are   welcome     to
attend the dinner.         Anyone
wishing     reservations       may
call A.M. 41471.


   WintersviUe Council Reminder
   The Wintersville Council wishes to
remind all citizens of their respons-
ibility to keep their sidewalks clean.


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