Finding aid for the Licking County, Ohio Papers

History of Organizations and Individuals Represented in the Licking County, Ohio Papers

The Licking County Pioneer, Historical and Antiquarian Society was an organization established in Licking County, Ohio, in 1867 in order to, in the words of its secretary, "collect and preserve the facts in relation to the earliest settlements of all sections of Licking County." Typical of many local historical societies formed during the nineteenth century, this organization was club-like in nature and advertised itself as being interested in "mental and moral improvement." The first meeting of the society was held on Wednesday, May 1, 1867 at a local courthouse. Residents who had been living in the county before 1805 were given an honorary membership. The Secretary-Treasurer's report for 1870 indicated a total membership of 138 including 11 surviving honorary members. The same report listed receipts from all sources at $26.78 and that the society held a total of 35 meetings during the previous year. Twenty-two of those meetings were private night meetings for "literary purposes" twelve were for business matters, and one was a public meeting held on July 5. The private literary meetings consisted primarily of individual members reading papers concerning various aspects of local history such as the nearby Indian mounds or the life of the earliest settlers of Licking County. Occasionally, these papers would be published in pamphlets or in the local newspaper.

Isaac Smucker was the corresponding secretary of the Licking County Pioneer, Historical and Antiquarian Society. Born in Shenandoah County, Virginia, on December 14, 1807, he was of German-American parentage. He received his education from his father, Peter Smucker, and taught at a classical academy in Somerset, Pennsylvania. Smucker evidently was one of the moving forces in the Licking County Pioneer, Historical and Antiquarian Society. He also seemed to be its most active member, and the majority of the papers delivered before the club were written by him. His magnum opus, The Centennial History of Licking County, Ohio, was published in 1876.

The founder of the Wilson Family in America was William Wilson, who was born in Ireland on November 10, 1722. He was the son of David Wilson of Ireland, who was the son of David Wilson of Scotland. William settled near Winchester, Virginia after crossing the Atlantic with a relative named White during 1737. He later moved to the Shenandoah Valley during the 1740s where he married Elizabeth Blackburn and established himself as a blacksmith. This collection contains primarily the papers of two members of this family, Dr. John N. Wilson and David Wilson.

Dr. John N. Wilson was born in Shenandoah County, Virginia, on December 21, 1802. He was the son of Archibald Wilson, and William Wilson was his grandfather. He studied at one of the medical colleges in Cincinnati, Ohio, and subsequently opened a drugstore in the city of Newark, Ohio. He married twice. His first wife was Belinda Holmes, who died shortly after their marriage. His second wife was Sarah Newton of Greenfield, Massachusetts, who died on June 1, 1871. Dr. Wilson was respected in Licking County for his intellectual accomplishments. He was one of the moving forces in the establishment of the Medical and Philosophical Society of Licking County and one of the founders of the Licking County Pioneer, Historical and Antiquarian Society in 1867. In addition to these local activities, John N. Wilson was honored with an unsolicited membership in the American Antiquarian Society at Worcester, Massachusetts. He died in Newark, Ohio, on October 8, 1872 after having spent 66 years in Newark and its vicinity.

David Wilson was the son of Jacob Wilson, who is referred to as the founder of the Wilson Family in Licking County. John N. Wilson was one of David's grandfather's nephews. David's dates of death and birth are not certain, but it is probably that he was born near the beginning of the nineteenth century and died during the late 1870s. He was active in civic affairs and was treasurer of Madison Township in Licking County, Deputy Marshall census taker in 1850, and was a justice of the peace. His son, Jacob Wilson, was a private during the Civil War in Company D, 76th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was killed in action during November 1863. David Wilson died in Newark. The Madison Township Farmer's Club has its roots in the Locking County Agricultural Society which was formed in 1832. General Thomas W. Wilson was elected president and Israel Dille, secretary. Among the society's activities was an annual agricultural fair held near the city of Newark. This organization died out about 1840 but was given new life by the Madison Township Farmer's Club in 1848. The club apparently disbanded sometime between 1848 and 1852, but was revived again in 1853. According to the constitution, the "object of (the) society shall be to promote the interests of the farmers generally." Evidently it was not conceived of as a political agency since the good of the farmers was to be promoted by "trying a series of experiments annually so as to test the relative value of different types of farming methods."

Bradley Buckingham was a captain in the War of 1812, a county commissioner in 1814, and a merchant in Newark, Ohio. His son, Jerome Buckingham, was president of the First National Bank of Newark in 1865 and was a judge for the court of common pleas during 1869-1870.

N. N. Hill's History of Licking County was published in 1881. It is a typical local history and consists of histories of various townships in Licking County and sketches of their most prominent organizations and citizens.

Adam Seymour moved from Hardy County, Virginia, to Ohio with his father, Thomas Seymour, in 1803. Adam Seymour married Mary O'Bannon who was born on November 6, 1811. Late in his life, Seymour moved to Newark where he died on December 23, 1866. Amanda Seymour, a relative of undetermined relationship to Adam, married David Wilson. This relationship accounts for Wilson being executor of Seymour's estate.

Amos Caffee was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in 1790. He settled in Newark, Ohio, during November 1811 where he lived for more than fifty years. He was very active in the political life of the county. Caffee was elected county treasurer (1813-1817), sheriff (1818-1822), county tax collector (1818-1820), auditor (1825-1835), and mayor of Newark (1847-1849). He died at the age of seventy-two.

William Cunningham, who married Elizabeth Moore, was the son of Patrick Cunningham and the father of John Cunningham. William Cunningham moved from Carlisle, Pennsylvania, to Newark, Ohio, in 1812, and enlisted in Captain Spencer's Rifle Company to serve in the War of 1812. He reenlisted after his term of duty and died in camp at Franklinton, Franklin County, Ohio, in March 1814. His wife died that same year.

John Cunningham was born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on September 16, 1800 and moved to Ohio with his parents. On April 2, 1824, he married Ann Lewis and subsequently set up trade as a tanner and currier. He was deputy sheriff and deputy auditor of Licking County.

James Colville was one of the earliest settlers in Kentucky. His connection with Licking County is not certain, although Nancy Colville, of undetermined relationship to James Colville, married Jacob Wilson, father of David Wilson, in Licking County.

Mortimer Seymour was Adam Seymour's father and lived for a time in Licking County. He died in 1849.

John Roe was the father of William Roe. John Roe died during 1853 and Rebecca Roe, his wife, was born on February 12, 1816, and died on September 28, 1866.

John W. Anderson flourished during the second decade of the nineteenth century in Licking County. No other information is known about him.

Scope and Content

The Licking County, Ohio Papers, 1799-1884 and undated, consist of original manuscripts, reports, financial records, correspondence, pamphlets, business records, constitutions, meeting minutes, receipts for poll books, real estate papers, promissory notes, articles of agreement, and printed material.

The Licking County Pioneer, Historical, and Antiquarian Society Records contain a great number of the original manuscripts of papers written by members on topics related to local history. Called the Pioneer Papers, they are numbered from 1 to 104. In addition, there are some reports which were not numbered in the Pioneer paper series. Also included are some financial records of the organization and correspondence of its corresponding secretary, Isaac Smucker. Smucker's correspondence consists primarily of requests by various individuals or historical agencies for the pamphlets by members of the Licking County Pioneer, Historical and Antiquarian Society. There is also some correspondence with various figures in Ohio concerning the possibility of setting up a state-wide historical society.

The Wilson Family Papers contain the correspondence of Dr. John N. Wilson, and will be useful to researchers studying the medical history of Licking County and Newark, Ohio. The papers also contain the business and personal correspondence of David Wilson. The Madison Township Farmer's Club Records consists of the constitution of 1853; meeting minutes, correspondence, and financial records. Researchers studying the history of farming and agriculture in Licking County will find this collection useful. The Bradley Bucking ham Papers contains personal correspondence and business records.

N. N. Hill's History of Licking County consists of the manuscript for Hill's book that was published in 1881 and will be useful to researchers seeking information on Licking County's various townships and citizens.

The Adam Seymour Papers relate mostly to personal business matters and include a small amount of correspondence.

The Amos Caffee Papers date from the period when he was clerk of the Licking County court of common pleas (1816-1837) and consist of receipts for poll books used during the election of 1826.

The John and William Cunningham Papers consists of a few letters and documents of William Cunningham, but the bulk of the papers concern John Cunningham's efforts to get a military pension from the government due to his father's death.

The James Colville Papers consist of papers relating to land deals in Kentucky and a few miscellaneous receipts.

The Mortimer Seymour Papers are composed of a few land tax receipts and an account of his estate.

The John and William Roe Papers are composed primarily of tax receipts for their land in Licking County, but also include letters and personal receipts.

The John W. Anderson Papers consist of personal promissory notes and two letters.

The Miscellany in this collection contains material which cannot be placed in the other categories in the collection. There seems to be no connection between this material and the other seven classifications except that, for the most part, these papers originated in Licking County. They are organized into four main groups: printed matter, personal receipts, articles of agreement, and receipts for goods. There is also a folder containing a few letters from Greenville, Tennessee, during 1809.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

None.

The researcher should also consult MS 476 Licking Land Company Records.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 3359 Licking County, Ohio Papers, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

Gifts of Isaac Smucker, 1871-1875.

Processing Information

Processed by James W. Gilreath in 1971.

Other Finding Aid

Lists of correspondents, with biographical sketches, of Isaac Smucker in his position as corresponding secretary of the Licking County Pioneer, Historical, and Antiquarian Society; a list of papers read by members of the Licking County Pioneer, Historical, and Antiquarian Society; a genealogy chart of the Wilson Family; a list of correspondents of David Wilson; a list of correspondents of John N. Wilson; a list of correspondents of Bradley Buckingham; and biographies of various men from N. N. Hill's History of Licking County are available at the Reference Desk of the WRHS Research Library.

Detailed Description of The Collection