A Sketch of the Ohio Company; of the Ordinance of 1787, and of the Ohio Company's Land Office,

Built hy General Rufus Putnam, at Marietta, Ohio, in t 788, and Purchased by the National Society of Colonial Dames of AJneric:a, resident in Ohio, in February, t 900.

Published by the National Society of Colonial Dames of America, resident in Ohio.

" Thz Ohio Company's Land Office, built in t788. A Sketch of the Ohio Company; of the Ordinance of 1787, and of the Ohio Companyts Land Office,

Built by General Rufus Putnam, at Marietta, Ohio, in 1788, and Purchased by the National Society of Colonial Dames of America, resident in Ohio, in February, 1900.

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Published by the National Society of Colonial Dames of America, resicJent in Ohio. ... '"' .. ~ ~ •• . . ~ ... .. • : .... 'u••••• ::'\j'l: • • •• . - ." .. ' .. ., ,. .. • : e." ~- .... . -. .. '. •ON"'It. "'.... •__ • . , . • . .. _ •• ; ...... : : .... : .~ : .'. ., _ .. ~• .a. '"' ' "' - " .., ~ ..""" ... • ...... ;0".... . • ••••... ,. ." • . W ." j ... It· ~)! •••• .... "SHALL we waste or save our heritage? Shall the motive influence of our life be the mere expansion of national power and the accretion of national wealth? And shall we pervert all we have inherited or acquired, to an effeminate luxury, to a sordid ambition for riches or power, or to the destruction of our free institutions? " Our duty is plain, as our danger is great. Our danger is, in one word, irreverence-irreverence to the simple virtues and exalted honor of our fathers, irreverence to God, irreverence to the Constitution ordained by them under the Divine guidance, and in the conservation of which we have become a mighty power on the earth. Our duty is venera­ tion for all that is noble and great and pure; for God and his religion; for our fathers, who, in sincere and simple faith, feared nothing but to do wrong by disobedience to the Divine commands. " Let a review of the past purify and stimulate us to follow the noble example of our ancestors; and with veneration for the constitutional work of their hands, may we transmit the inheritance we have received, to our posterity!"

HON. JOHN RANDOLPH TUCKER.

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The Ohio Company and its Land Office.

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HE year 1783 is memorable in the history of T our country. The War of Revolution had ended, but the questions which agitated statesmen and patriots were scarcely less vital than had been the result of the war. Our people were not wholly united in their senti­ ments, and the hopes of a Union might yet be shat­ tered before the terms of our independence should .be settled by treaty with the mother country. There were still Tories among the Colonists whose sym­ pathies were with Great Britain; and the large body of unpaid soldiery, about to return (( penniless to their desolate homes" and to their former pursuits, con­ tained a menace of danger. When, in 1776, Congress pledged a grant of lands to the army in payment of their services, the United States Government did not own an acre of land; the treasury was empty; Congress had no authority to raise money by taxation, and could only" recom­ mend" to the several States more liberal grants of money and supplies for the army not yet disbanded, and for Government expenses. 5 Much of what is called the Northwest Territory was covered by claims of the several States by virtue of their charters. The grant of James I in 1606 gave to the London Company-which made the first set­ tlement in Virginia-four hundred miles of seaboard, which extended west and northwest" from sea to sea." Virginia held to these claims, which, how­ ever, by the counter-claims of Great Britain, France, and Spain, and the treaties between those nations, and other circumstances, were finally modified, and the Mississippi River became the western boundary of our territory. We had, in fact, acquired this by conquest, Colonel George Rogers Clarke having, in 1778-79, captured the British posts on the Mississippi and its branches. By the insistence of our Commis­ sioners, Franklin, Jay, and Adams, Great Britain was forced to acknowledge it. The claims of Virginia to the Northwest Territory were not conceded by the several States without objections to the preponder­ ating influence which such a possession would give her in the future Government. They claimed . to' share in it. The organic Union of the States had not yet been formed; the bond between them and Congress held them but loosely together. The separate States stood off from a closer confederation till claims to outlying lands should be more evenly distributed for the general benefit. In 1780, Congress recommended to the States to make liberal concessions to the United States of a 6 portion of their claims for the common benefit of the Union. In the same year Virginia resolved to cede her claims to lands northwest of the Ohio to the Gov­ ernment, reserving Kentucky for herself, and bounty­ lands north of the Ohio River for her soldiers. In consequence of this generous action of Virginia, and cessions from New York and Connecticut, an obstacle to progress was removed. On June I6, I783, the army being yet in camp at Newburgh, waiting to be discharged when news should be received that the treaty of peace and independ­ ence had been concluded at Paris, a petition, signed by two hundred and eighty-eight officers, was pre­ sented to Congress, praying that, in fulfillment of the pledge of the Government made in I776 to the army, certain tracts of land, lying between the Ohio River and Lake Erie and to the west of Pennsylvania, should be assigned to them. They asked that their bounty-lands be given them in this district; and that a further grant of land be made to such of the army as may wish to become adventurers in the new Gov­ ernment, in such quantities and on such conditions as Congress shall judge best. General Washington, to whom this petition was sent by General Rufus Putnam, presented it to Con­ gress. Washington was deeply interested in the scheme, and gave to it, from first to last, the benefit of his influence. On July 4, I783, Congress directed the paymas­ ter-general to adjust accounts between the United 7 States and the officers and soldiers of the army, and to give certificates of the sums which may appear on such settlements as the superintendent of finances of the United States may direct. These certificates were known as "final settlements." A few months later, on September 3, 1783, the treaty of peace and independence was concluded in Paris. A systematic plan of surveys was adopted by which the newly-acquired lands were divided after the New England idea, according to parallels and meridians, and much thought was given to the de­ tails of the government of the new territory, and for its settlement in such manner as would best pro­ mote the interest of individuals and of the future Republic. Although an extension of settlements beyond the mountains by the Colonies, and the establishment of new States there eventually, had engaged the thoughts of Washington and of Congress, even before the War of Revolution, yet the impulse that led to the formation of the Ohio Company came from the army. Its foundation was laid by the petition of the officers at Newburgh. Although Virginia had ceded to Congress her claims to the Northwest Territory, the Indian titles still stood in the way to prevent a disposition of the lands by Congress. These obstructions were re­ moved by treaty early in 1786, by which, with cer­ tain reservations, the several tribes relinquished their titles to the whole Northwest Territory to the United States. 8 The time had now come for vigorous action in pressing the petition sent by the army from Newburgh in 1783, and on March I, 1786, a convention, called by General Rufus Putnam and Benjamin Tupper; was held in Boston, and by this body the Ohio Company was formed. This Com pany was largely com posed of army officers. It was a personal and private venture of high-minded men, whose purpose was to establish homes, and ultimately to found a new State. They stipulated for law and order; provision for education, and for the maintenance of religion; tke total exclu­ szon of slavery to form an essenlz'al and irrevocable part of tke Cons#tutzon of tke State. The influence of its most active promoter, General Rufus Putnam, is seen throughout, as is also the address and ability of their agent before Congress, Rev. Manasseh Cutler. Referring to the diary of Dr. Cutler, Senator Hoar says: "I think it must be clear that the plan which Rufus Putnam and Manasseh Cutler settled in Boston was the substance of the Ordinance of 1787." And he further says, "Dr. Cutler was probably the fittest man on the continent, except Pranklin, for a mission of delicate diplomacy." An ordinance to· provide for the government of the new territory had for several years been before Congress, and in these deliberations the anti-slavery question had been an important one; its provisions had been changed from time to time, and it was not until July 13, 1787, that it was passed in its final form. 9 The Ohio Company's application for a purchase of lands was the immediate cause of the passage of the Ordinance of 1787. Important as was the accom­ plishment of their plans to the Company, the in­ terests of Congress were still more momentous. There was, indeed, a common interest between Congress and the Ohio Company. The purchase of the Company, to be paid for with their" final certifi­ cates," would redeem the pledges of Congress to the army to that extent, and reduce the public debt. The planting, west of the Ohio River, of a colony, many of whom were educated men, representing the best qualities of the population of New England and of the army, was the guarantee of the successful establishment of a new State in the future. In addition, such a settlement promised protection to the border-lands of Virginia and Kentucky against the savages beyond the mountains and the Ohio River. The great Ordinance and the purchase by the Company were parts of one measure; neither could, nor would, have passed without the other. The Ordinance, whose scope and application extended far beyond the questions of that day, testifies to· us now of the foresight and wisdom with which its framers were inspired. Daniel Webster said of it: "We are accustomed to praise the lawgivers of antiquity; we help to per­ petuate the fame of Solon and Lycurgus; but I doubt whether one single lawgiver, ancient or modern, has produced effects of more distinct, marked, and last- 10 ing character than the Ordinance of 1787. We see its consequences at this moment, and we shall never cease to see thenl, perhaps, while the Ohio shall flow. " It is interesting to know that the great Ordinance in its final form-forever prohibiting slavery in the North west Terri tory-came from a Congressional Committee of five, three of whom were Southern men, and that it was passed by the vote of five Southern and two Northern States. When Rufus Putnam called the meeting at the" Bunch of Grapes Tavern" in Boston, the object was to raise a fund in " Continental Certificates" for the purpose of buying lands, and making a settlement in the Western Terri­ tory. Virgina had first made this purchase possible by the cession to Congress of her claims to the North­ west Territory; and on September 13, 1787, she added to the luster of her gracious and generous deed the weight of her influence in the passage of the Ordinance which forever excluded slavery from that Territory. Mr. Bancroft, in his "History of the Constitu­ tion," says: "An interlude in Congress was shaping the character and destiny of the United States of Anlerica. Sublime and humane and eventful in the history of nlankind as was the result, it will not take many words to tell how it was brought about. For a time wisdom and peace and justice dwelt among men, and the great Ordinance, which alone could give continuance to the Union, came in serenity and II stillness. Every man that had a share in it seemed to be moved by an Invisible Hand to do just what was wanted of him; all that was wrongfully undertaken fell by the wayside; whatever was needed for the happy completion of the mighty work arrived oppor­ tunely, and just at the right moment moved into its place." By the passage of these two measures the way was cleared for the inauguration of a great scheme of growth and enlargement, and our own beloved State was the first formed under this policy. The events so briefly stated, and the completion two months later by the Convention at Philadelphia of the new Federal Constitution, gave to the Govern­ ment attributes and powers of nationality which it had not before possessed. The sale to the Ohio Company was the first complete assertion of Con­ gress over the vacant territory as property. The pat­ ents were issued by Congress to Rufus Putnam, Ma­ nasseh Cutler, Robert Oliver, and Griffin Greene, Esqs., as representing the Company, and were signed by George Washington. The associates paid down in "final certificates" $500,000, for which they were to receive 750,000 acres. They were to pay as much more within a month after the completion of the sur­ veys, and then to have a clear title to the whole. In the contemplation of this historic drama, our hearts are stirred with emotion which common words may not express. But what need be added to the lofty utterances quoted In these pages ? We are 12 silent in their presence, and through them are lifted to a higher spiritual vision and comprehension. They have become a part of history, and a part of our inheritance along with the great Ordinance and the heroic lives of our ancestors, and, like them, are immortal! General Rufus Putnam-inspirer, founder, and guide-was fifty years old when he led the associates of the Ohio Company-the forty-eight immortals-on their wintry journey through the snows of the Alle­ ghanies and down the Ohio River to Marietta, where he resided till his death, on May 24, 1824; at the age of eighty-six. General Wager Swayne pertinently says: "As the true freight of the original Mayflower was the com­ pact adopted in her cabin, so, of this' Union Galley,' the true burden which she bore was the Ordinance of 1787, with its articles of compact, and chief among them that there should be neither slavery nor invol­ untary servitude except for crime. As to each of these incidents, the things that were not seen have proved to be the things that are eternal." With the arrival of the pioneers at their desti­ nation, many questions pressed for immediate atten­ tion-shelter and food, protection against the Indians, the assignment of lands, clearing the forest and plan ting crops. The surveyors of the new purchase were appointed by the Company, and Rufus Putnam was made super­ intendent of the business connected with the set­ tlement. The stockade, or Campus Martz'us, was begun during the first year of the settlement, and General Putnam built, probably during the same year, the small house known from then till now as the Ohio Company's Land-office. The homestead of Rufus Putnam stood within the stockade, the land-office at some distance outside; but at the time of the Indian War, I79I, it was removed to its present site within shelter of the guns of the southwest blockhouse. The pres ent Washington Street of Marietta marks the south line of the old stockade, the Putnam home­ stead and the land-office standing not far from each other on opposite sides of the street. Close to the southwest blockhouse was built the residence of Governor St. Clair. The property has had but three titles of own­ ership-first that of Rufus Putnam, after whose death both the Putnam homestead and the land-office were bought by Hon. Arius Nye, son of Ichabod Nye, who came with his family to Marietta in September, I788. From the descendants of Mr. N ye the National So­ ciety of Colonial Dames of America in the State of Ohio acquired their title by purchase of the land­ office and lot in February, I900. After the purchase by Mr. Nye, the use of the house was retained until I832 by Deacon William Rufus Putnam, son of General Putnam, as a repos­ itory of such Ohio Company property as remained in his hands after the death of his father, chiefly sur­ veying instruments, maps, and other papers. From 14 1832 to 1865 it was used by Mr. Nye as a library and study. Since 1866 the house has been rented as a dwelling until its purchase by this Society. The lot is 55.%' x 123 feet; the house is one-story, with an attic; is built of logs notched at the corners, and cov­ ered on the outside with clapboards. It contains, besides a small square entry and passage leading to the rear, one room only, which is eighteen feet square. On one side of the room is a massive stone chimney, with ample fireplace, paneled above to the ceiling, the width of the deep chimney-stack being built out into the passage-way, leaving the outline of the room unbroken. On three sides are cottage­ windows, with small panes of glass, the sashes slid­ ing sideways. The proportions of the room are agreeable, and a few simple repairs will restore it to its original appearance. In this office the early maps of the Northwest Territory were made, surveys were platted, and the sale and alloting of lands carried on. I t was, in fact, 40- the business office and headquarters of General Put­ nam as superintendent of the Ohio Company. From 1796 to 1803 Rufus Putnam held the office of sur­ veyor-general, and during that period the work of the Government was done here. Insignificant as this little cabin appears, its claim to reverent guardianship can not be challenged. No other building had so important a connection with the business purposes of the early settlers after their arrival at Marietta. IS We intend to restore, as far as it can be done, the ravages which a hundred and twelve years, and want of care for many years, have wrought in. its structure, and to preserve it in memory of the Ohio Company and of General Rufus Putnam. We shall use the land-office as a relic-room, and it will be cared for and opened on appropriate occa­ sions by our resident Marietta Dames; and we hope, through the cordial assistance and interest of the Women's Centennial Association of Marietta, to replace in it some of the articles that originally furnished it. To those who shall succeed us-the National Society of Colonial Dames of America in the State of Ohio-we bequeath this relic, about which cluster so many memories and so much of historic interest. We bespeak for it their reverent and loving care, that the ravages of time may as far as possible be averted and repaired. Frail and unimposing as it appears, several generations of human life have arisen since its construction in the wilderness, and it still stands and speaks to us of the events and the interests that were the reason for its being; events and interests second only in importance to the achievement of our independence. Let us, by our appreciation of the heroic lives of the men and women who, in 1788, made the first settlement in Ohio, prove ourselves not unworthy successors of those whose memory we seek to perpetuate. ELIZABETH W. PERRY.

CINCINNATI, May 21, 1900. 16 t I

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