Person:Isaac Posey (1)

PIONEER POSEY IN THE "GREAT BLACK SWAMP" BY F.H. BENHAM

The following history was submitted by Gregory A. Posey from Huntington, West Virginia . From notes as taken during conversations and on numerous rides about the countryside surrounding the little village of Helena, OH, with the venerable John Posey, son of the pioneer Isaac Posey who settled one mile east of Helena, Sandusky Co., OH, on an 80 acre tract in the then "Great Black Swamp" in 1833. Most of the settlers came about the same time. Many from Pennsylvania and from Perry CO, OH. Some from New York and some from New Jersey. Isaac had a sale of his property in Union CO, Pa. He took part of the money, leaving the balance to be sent by express as a precaution against being robbed on the way. With his wife, Sabre, her young sister Susannah, 10, a daughter Sarah, 3, and an infant daughter Elizabeth; they drove through and took up 160 acres, paying for eighty acres to the Governme nt and having the balance of his money sent by express to pay for the other 80 acres, which is the next 80 south of the present farm. Unfortunately, the express containing the balance of Isaac's money was robbed and Isaac lost the money causing him to ab andon the south 80.

He built a log house and dug a well about 35 rods southeast of the present home. Later, he built a house, a small house, on the site of the present home which was moved away when the present home was built, about 1897, by his son John Posey.

The country around Fremont was know as Lower Sandusky and the town or village of Fremont was Lower Sandusky Post Office, and the whole country was known as the "Great Black Swamp".

There were no roads and settlers followed blazed trails. Soon the thick forest rang out with axe and saw as log houses were quickly made, consisting mostly of one room with a stone fireplace, a ladder to the loft, puncheon floors and outside a stone oven where all the baking was done. Next, came the clearing of the land, digging logs to build the corduroy road over the black much to the Sandusky River and Lower Sandusky Post Office ten long miles away to the east.

Logs, not used, of most magnificent timber, were burned, great quantities of them, as only timber of the very choicest kind could be sold and that at a very small price. Not until years later was lumbering profitable. It was imperative that the land was cleared so as to raise crops. Food for the settlers and feed for the stock.

Pea vines brew about a foot high in the forest on which cattle and horses grazed in the summer, and leaves of the underbrush and twigs of fallen trees during the winter. Corn was the first principal crop, some wheat and the balance potatoes and buckwheat . The land was extremely productive and a small acreage planted, even among the stumps, yielded abundantly.

Frequently, or about once a week, these hardy people "took a day off" to go hunting or fishing. This not only provided a pleasant recreation, but fresh meat as well. Game was plentiful. Deer, grouse, wild ducks and geese, great flocks of wild pigeons a nd hosts of squirrels. The latter being a great annoyance to the settlers.

Fish were abundant in the streams. Trout and even muscallonge. A creek bearing that name, that the Helena-Fremont road crosses, caused the early settlers much trouble as frequent "freshets" and high water would take away the log bridges necessitating a considerable amount of "fill"; and even much later the water of this stream would be high enough "to nearly come into the buggy" while crossing over the bridge.

One of the difficulties of the early settlers was to obtain pure drinking water. It was not until deep wells were put down that this menace to health was overcome. Many of the early settlers, even to the third generation, died of typhoid fever due to im pure water, and malaria fever was fatal to many.

The forests were full of myriads of misquitoes and other insects. Nearly everyone suffered with the hot and then chill until teeth would chatter. It is here worthy of mention that although Isaac's wife, Sabre, died of typhoid fever of the age of 79, thi rteen of their fifteen children lived to marry and several lived to an advanced age. Susannah, their eighth child, died at age 2; and Martin, their third child, died of pneumonia at age 20 years and 5 months.

Of the third generation in the black swamp country, the first son of John Posey and Nora Brubaker; Oliver, died of typhoid fever at the age of 11 due to the inability to get a doctor in time - who had to be called by going to Rollersville on horseback. A lso, their two sons, Orville and Elvin, were barely saved from the same malady after a long and heroic struggle by their parents, assisted by their Aunt Esther, a practical nurse who was summoned to assist.

At the time of settlement, the forest was infested with packs of wolves and other predatory animals, necessitating the housing of young stock and poultry during the night time. Even then, when wolves would sneak up at night, the housed livestock would ca use a disturbance and the owners would go out with pineknot torches and drive the pack away.

Work of the pioneer was arduous; removal of the trees and stumps, digging of drainage ditches, building with logs and farming the land with primitive tools and the overcoming of many obstacles required men and women of courage and endurance. The settlers of the black swamp had these qualities, as the majority of not all of them were sons and daughters of pioneers of other lands.

They consisted of Yankee, English, German, Dutch and Irish families. They were of various Protestant faiths and some Catholics. Sabre Preston Posey, Isaac's wife, was a Dunkard. All faiths fraternized generally. Nearly all were of the same social stra ta. All were engaged in the same purpose of building a home within the wilderness.

All were thoroughly independence loving people. All were Americans and all succeeded; leaving to posterity one of the most productive and prosperous farming districts in the State of OH.

There were few schools, and church buildings were fewer and far apart. There was seldom a newspaper and it required a 20 mile ride on horseback to get the mail. The nearest place where any major "trading" could be done was far away Newark, OH. Later, Lower Sandusky became a major shipping center of lumber and wheat, as cargo ships came up to that point on the Sandusky River, from Lake Erie.

At the time of the early settlers, may Seneca and Wyandotte Indians roamed the forests, but on the whole were friendly. Isaac Posey's children went to school in a log schoolhouse located a short distance beyond the old John Garn farm, about one and one-half miles from the Isaac Posey home. John Posey pointed out the spot when he was nearly 90 years old. There were no roa ds to the schoolhouse and paths fanned out in all directions leading to the homes of settlers.

The nearest trail was the Harrison Trail, one mile south of the Posey home, now known as the Greenburg Pike, General Harrison Trail of the War of 1812. The path leading from the Posey home to the schoolhouse crossed a creek not far from the Old Garn home and John Posey related that while coming home from school one late afternoon, through the forest, about dusk, he started to cross the log that served as a bridge across the creek and at the same time a wild animal of some kind had the same idea approaching from the opposite direction. This caused young John to loose his footing and he plunged into the stream, losing no time in scrambling out and scamper ing home to don dry clothes. He could not describe the animal other than it was quite large and black.

Another incident related by John Posey, pertained to his father, Isaac, and his mother's young sister, Susannah Preston, who had come "west" with the family from Union Co., Pa. Susannah, then about 12 or 13 years old, was given a horse fiddle constructed by Isaac. The "fiddle", a board cut out in the shape of a fiddle or violin on which is place a bridge and tail piece, then strung with violin or similar strings. Little Susannah was furnished a "violin bow" and was required to walk around a patch of co rn all day "playing" on her "fiddle" to keep the may squirrels away and from eating the corn.

This experience, no doubt, hastened here homesickness for Union Co., Pa., which developed to such an extent that she returned to Pennsylvania in the company of an older relative. The trip was made on horseback with one horse; Susannah riding part of the time and "changing off" with the older relative who may have been her mother, Elizabeth Poor Preston.

Isaac Posey was an ambitious and very determined man, with a rather quick temper. The rigors of pioneer life caused his health to fail during his later years. His untimely death in 1858, at the age of 54, left his twelfth child, John Posey, the oldest m ale of the family at age 9. Martin, the oldest son, having died four years previous.

That left John with his mother, five sisters and two younger brothers. With the aid of his mother and older sisters, Sabre, Isabell, Mary and Martha, he got what schooling he could and carried on the work of the farm. Sabre married that year, 1858, and Isabell, Mary and Martha ten years later, in 1868.

John Posey became the father of nine children. He was a man if impeccable integrity, sober, quiet of speech; possessed of rare good judgment, industrious and prosperous; attending to his own affairs, and a benevolent Christian man. A thrifty farmer and interested in banking. Politically a Republican, an advocate of free enterprise and balanced economy.

During his many years of retirement, his council was sought by men far and wide. He belonged to the Order of Odd Fellows for many years and on his fiftieth year of membership in that Order he was presented with a diamond emblem.

In his later years, he took a great interest in baseball and spent many seasons listening to the radio announcers of the games. He died at the advanced age of 95 years 6 months and 9 days. His funeral was one of the largest to be held in Helena, OH.

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