Abraham TAPPAN Judge

Family 1: Elizabeth HARPER
  1. Electra T. TAPPAN
  2. Alexander H. TAPPAN
  3. Cornelia TAPPAN
  4. John Harper TAPPAN
  5. Sallie Munson TAPPAN
  6. James Harper TAPPAN
  7. Elizabeth TAPPAN
  8. Abraham Walworth TAPPAN 
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|--Abraham TAPPAN Judge
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INDEX

Notes

Painesville Telegraph 26 Sep 1855 Pg 4 Col 2 Painesville, Lake Co., Ohio Copied from microfilm Received from Lisa McGrattan PO Box 183 Grand River Ohio, Ohio 44060 Received at Simi Valley, CA Transcribed at Simi Valley Dec 27, 2003 Letter to the editor: Mr. Editor: When I saw the Obituary notice of Judge Tappan and wife, which appeared in the T elegraph of Aug 22d, I expected some of the friends in Ohio would furnish you a brief sketc h at least of the pioneer lives of these two individuals, but as nothing of the kind appeare d in your next paper, I have gathered a few facts from memory which I send you for publicatio n. Believing they will be interesting to your readers generally and particularly to the fe w remaining pioneers of Northern Ohio. Mrs. Tappan emigrated with her Father, Col. Alexande r Harper, from Delaware County in the State of New York, to Harpersfield in Ashtabula County , where they arrived late in the season of 1798, which was four years before Ohio was organiz ed into a State government. Col. Harper died soon after they arrived in Harpersfield. Leavi ng a wife with a large family of children in an unbroken wilderness, almost destitute of prov isions for the coming winter. The supplies which they expected on for the use of the family , were detained on the Lake and did not arrive until next season. The two oldest sons, Jame s and John, both under 20 years of age, were obliged to bring corn on their backs from Erie , Pennsylvania, a distance of 50 miles, through a trackless forest, to support the family thr ough the winter, with the help of what wild meat they could get by hunting. Their supplies b ecame so short at one time, that the grains of corn were counted out to each one of the famil y, according to their age and size. Elizabeth HARPER was the first school teacher in Harpersfield; she occupied as teacher fo r a number of years the first school-house that was built in that township. Judge Tappan came into the country in 1801. He was a skillful surveyor and spent most of i s time for a number of years in that occupation. He was the first school-teacher in the town ship of Painesville, and the writer of this article was one of his scholars at that time. H e was appointed County Surveyor at the first Court held in Geauga County, which was in March , 1806. Geauga County at that time was bounded East by the Pennsylvania line; West by the ÙSF ire LandsÙT, North by Lake Erie, and South by the south line of what is now Ashtabula, Geaug a and Cuyahoga Counties. The first Marriage License issued in Geauga County, authorized any person duly qualified to j oin Abraham Tappan and Elizabeth Harper in the Holy Bans of matrimony, and had they both live d until next March, they would have lived together as husband and wife 50 years. In 1809, Judge Tappan was elected County Commissioner, and a few years after he was appointe d Associate Judge, and served in that capacity for the term of seven years. He was afterwar d appointed Post-master at Unionville, and held the office until by reason of is age, he foun d himself incapable of transacting the business of the office any longer. As to their private character, it is above reproach, and, they, like the early settlers of al l new countries, were hospitable and generous almost to a fault. As the above is written from memory there may be some slight errors as to dates &c., but noth ing materially different from the facts as they transpired. H. E. P.



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