Category: Exploration and Early Settlement

ROGERS EXPEDITION

The ROGERS EXPEDITION, led by Maj. Robt. Rogers, crossed the south shore of Lake Erie in Nov. 1760 by boat and on foot, with the objective of taking command of Ft. Detroit following the French & Indian War. Existing journals indicate that the Cleveland area furnished at least 1 landing site.

SCOVILL, PHILO

SCOVILL, PHILO (30 Nov. 1791-5 June 1875), pioneer, contractor, and merchant, was born in Salisbury, Conn., to Timothy and Chloe (Kelsey) Scovill. The family moved several times during his youth, and in 1816 came to Cleveland. Scovill established himself as a merchant in the drug and grocery business. Disenchanted with this line of work, he moved into a lumber venture with Thos. O. Young.

SCRANTON, JOEL

SCRANTON, JOEL (5 Apr. 1793-9 Apr. 1858), an early Cleveland resident, merchant, and landowner, was born in Belchertown, Mass. to Stephen and Asenath Scranton. He spent his childhood in Otsego County, N.Y., and settled in Cleveland in 1819, with most accounts reporting he arrived with "a schooner load of leather" to sell.

SIEUR DE SAGUIN

SIEUR DE SAGUIN (variations Seguin, Seguein, Shaguin; no given name is known), a French trader, was the first recorded resident of Cuyahoga County to construct a permanent residence. During his stay, the locality was under the control of France, to whom the Indians gave their allegiance.

SMEAD, TIMOTHY

SMEAD, TIMOTHY (1811-3 Jan. 1890), one of Cleveland's pioneer printers, brought the first newspaper to what later became the city's west side. The son of a printer, he was born in Bennington, Vt., and raised in Bath, N.Y.

SPAFFORD, AMOS

SPAFFORD, AMOS (11 Apr. 1753-5 Aug. 1816), surveyor for the CONNECTICUT LAND CO. who performed one of the earliest surveys of Cleveland and made the first map detailing its original plan ("Original plan of the town and village of Cleaveland, Ohio, October 1, 1796,"), was born in the city of Sharon in Litchfield Co., Connecticut.

STIGWANISH

STIGWANISH, also known as Stigwandish, Stigonish, or Seneca, a prominent Indian chief in the early years of Cleveland's settlement whose name translates as Standing Stone, was chief of the Seneca Indians remaining in Ohio after "Mad" Anthony Wayne's 1794 victory at Fallen Timbers.

STILES, JOB PHELPS

STILES, JOB PHELPS (ca. 1769-ca. 1849), and his wife, Talitha, were the first settlers of Cleveland. They accompanied MOSES CLEAVELAND's party to the WESTERN RESERVE in 1796. Stiles was born in Granville, Mass., son of Job and Lydia Phelps Stiles. He and his wife, purportedly schoolteachers, lived in Vermont.

STOW, JOSHUA

STOW, JOSHUA (1762-1842), an original shareholder in the CONNECTICUT LAND CO., who accompanied MOSES CLEAVELAND and later helped develop land in Summit County, was born in Middlefield, Conn.

VEGETATION, CA. 1800

VEGETATION, CIRCA 1800.   When MOSES CLEAVELAND arrived in northeast Ohio in 1796, the land that would become Cuyahoga County was almost completely forested.  We know this, and much more information about the area’s vegetatio

WALWORTH, ASHBEL W.

WALWORTH, ASHBEL W. (1790-24 Aug. 1844), responsible for improving Cleveland's harbor, was born in Croton, Conn. to Julianna Morgan and JOHN W. WALWORTH. He moved with his family to New York State, then to Painesville in 1800, coming to Cleveland in 1806.

WALWORTH, JOHN W.

WALWORTH, JOHN W. (1765-10 Sept. 1812), early settler and government official, was born in Groton, Conn., son of Samuel and Hannah (Woodbridge) Walworth. He left Connecticut in 1792 to settle near Lake Cayuga, N.Y. Spending the winter of 1799 near Painesville, Ohio, he purchased 2,000 acres of land, and settled his family there in 1800. In 1802, Gov. St.

WAR OF 1812

WAR OF 1812. When Congress declared war against Great Britain on 18 June 1812, the village of Cleveland consisted of 100 or fewer souls huddled near the mouth of the CUYAHOGA RIVER. Except for their geographic location, they had no reason to be either especially interested or principal actors in the war.

WARREN, DANIEL

WARREN, DANIEL (1786-13 Oct. 1862), the first settler in WARRENSVILLE TWP., was born in New Hampshire, the son of Moses and Priscilla (Nourse) Warren. In 1808, he left Acworth, N.H., for Painesville, and eventually settled in Jefferson.

WESTERN RESERVE

The WESTERN RESERVE (aka New Connecticut, or the Connecticut Western Reserve) encompassed approximately 3.3 million acres of land in what is now northeastern Ohio. Bounded on the north by Lake Erie and on the east by Pennsylvania, it extended 120 miles westward to Sandusky Bay.

WHITTLESEY, CHARLES W.

WHITTLESEY, CHARLES W. (4 Oct. 1808-17 Oct. 1886), geologist and historian, was born in Southington, Conn. to Asaph and Vesta Hart Whittlesey, moved to Tallmadge, Ohio in 1813, graduated from West Point in 1831, and was stationed in Wisconsin as a 2d lieutenant before serving in the Black Hawk War (1833).

WHITTLESEY, ELISHA

WHITTLESEY, ELISHA (19 Oct. 1783-7 Jan. 1863), lawyer and politician, was born in Litchfield County, Conn., son of John and Mary Beale Whittlesey.

WILKINS EXPEDITION

The WILKINS EXPEDITION, led by British major John Wilkins in Nov. 1763, has frequently been erroneously identified as having foundered off ROCKY RIVER and Lakewood Park. Actually, this expedition, which was intended to relieve Ft.

WILLEY, JOHN WHEELOCK

WILLEY, JOHN WHEELOCK (1797-9 July 1841), Cleveland's first mayor, was born in New Hampshire, son of Allen and Chloe (Frink) Willey. He was educated at Dartmouth, studied law in New York, was admitted to the bar, and came to Cleveland in 1822. He became known as a witty, sharp debater, winning 3 years in the state house of representatives (1827-30) and 3 in the state senate (1830-32) as a Jacksonian Democrat.