Person:Margaret Morse (13)

BIOGRAPHY: Website of "Sandy" at http://sllee.tvheaven.com/ Austin Family History: Margaret Morse Austin, or "Aunt Peggy." as she was familiarly called, was born in New York state, December 29, 1775. She was married in 1798 to John Austin, and moved with him about 1811 to Ohio. They first stopped at Austinburg, but soon removed to the lakeshore in Geneva near the mouth of Cowles Creek. She was the mother of seven children; Mehetabel who died in infancy, Horace, Anna Maria, Joseph, Sally, John Lester and Harvey Sanford. She was a woman of dauntless courage, and though of small stature, possessed great physical endurance and strength. During the war of 1812, ships loaded with British troops, passing up Lake Erie, would send row boats of soldiers ashore with instructions to seize the settlers cattle. Aunt Peggy seeing their approach would hastily gather her young brood and driving the cattle before her, seek some secure place in the forest where they would remain till darkness rendered it safe for them to return.

It was while living on the lake shore that she had a strange encounter with a bear. Hearing the shrill squealing of some young pigs, upon which they were depending for their winter supply of meat. Mrs. Austin rushed from house to see a large bear just in the act of seizing one of them. She uttered a loud cry which startled the animal that he dropped the pig which lost no time in scudding back to the partially enclosed pin and retreated a few steps. Mrs. Austin ran hastily into the house, hurried the frightened children into the loft, pulled down the ladder to further insure their safety, and grasping the old musket standing by the fireplace she again went forth determined to save her precious pigs, and if possible, kill the bear also. Taking deliberate aim she pulled the trigger; once twice three times; but no report followed. For some unexplained reason the trusty old firearm had refused to perform its duty.

Seeing that she could do nothing with the gun, Mrs. Austin dropped it and began gathering sticks, which she hurled at the bear which, strange to say, had not offered to attack her but; but had stood all the time on his huge hind legs critically watching her proceeding. As she began hallooing and throwing the sticks at him, he slowly dropped on all fours, trotted off a little way toward the edge of the clearing, and again resumed his upright position. This maneuver he repeated several times, at last disappearing into the depths of the forest Aunt Peggy then gathered brush and sticks with which she repaired the broken pen, after which she mounted guard till the return of her husband at nightfall. In 1815 the family removed to the North Ridge road, about one mile east of Geneva Village, where Mrs. Austin resided until her death in 1843.