Seth Paine and Hannah Nash from Massachusetts to Ohio

PAINE, SETH , of Williamsburg, Massachusetts, was a land surveyor who surveyed what is now Brecksville, and the first permanent white settler in the Township. [Seth and wife Hannah were our 4th gt grandparents, their daughter Oriana having married Johnson Lyman Frost, mentioned previously.]
From "The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History" - "Paine came to the Western Reserve in 1810 as an assistant to Alfred Wolcott, a surveyor from Boston, employed by John Breck, the person for whom Brecksville was named. Paine and Wolcott surveyed Brecksville Township and returned to Northampton, Massachusetts, with their report. Paine liked the area so well that he returned in June, 1811, from Williamsburg, Massachusetts with his wife, and children, Oliver, Spencer, Almira and Lorina [Oriana], and a young unmarried man named Melzer Clark. Seth and Hannah Paine settled in the southwest corner of Brecksville Township on lot 64, at what became known as Carter's Corners. Soon afterwards Melzer Clark and Almira Paine were married, this being the first marriage in Brecksville.

As land agent for John Breck, Paine had power of attorney to grant title to land sold. Paine's compensation for services rendered was to choose 200 acres anywhere in the township, with the exception that it should not be bottom land and should not include a mill site. Paine chose the southwest part. He left his family at a settlement in Newburgh, near the corner of Walker and Broadway in Cleveland, during the winter of 1810-1811, while he proceeded to Brecksville to build a log house."

As the first settler, something of his family is of historical interest. He was of the sixth generation from Stephen Paine, who came from Great Ellington, Norfolk County, England, to America in 1638 on the ship “Diligent” and first settled in Hingham, Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts. In 1661 Stephen and his two sons, with others, purchased a large tract of land near Rehoboth, Massachusetts from Wamsitta, son of Massasoit. …. [much more about Stephen Paine and his descendants can be found in online searches.]
"At the breaking out of the war of 1812 the few inhabitants of Brecksville, OH, for a time, kept up a little garrison at the house of Seth Paine, but as rumors of Indian hostilities became more alarming most of the people fled to Hudson, where they remained until the danger was over. After the war only a few straggling Indians were seen, and these soon abandoned the country, leaving the settlers in undisturbed possession of their homes. Seth Paine and son in law Melzer Clark both died in 1815, four years after their arrival. And their unfinished work was turned over to other agents of the land company. Their families, left without their care, remained in the almost unbroken forest. The oldest son of Paine, Spencer, had to take his father’s place in supporting the family when he was only fourteen years of age. ” [From “A History of Cuyahoga County and the City of Cleveland” by William Coates]

Was Your Ancestor in the War of 1812 ?

If you have done searches on Ancestry.com for your relative who might have fought in the War of 1812, you may have found his record in Military Records. But there may be MORE ... hidden away in an un-indexed database. The "War of 1812 Pension Application Files Index, 1812 - 1815" is a treasure chest of information. It's not easy to browse, but not impossible, as the records are alphabetized by surname, with sections such as Gra - Gree, and Greg - Gy. Within those sections there may be 800 individuals, so some guesswork is involved. But a little luck and perseverance led me to the following file on Levi Griffin, brother of our 3gt Grandfather, Jonathan Griffin.


Information includes:
Soldier's Name and Name of Widow
Bounty Land File Numbers
Service (Rank, Regiment, State)
Dates of Enlistment and Discharge
Residence of Soldier
Residence of Widow
Maiden Name of Widow (sometimes more than one wife)
Marriage of Soldier and Widow - Date and Place
Death of Soldier
Death of Widow
Remarks (might include info that the soldier sent a substitute, etc.)

Not every person in my files who was enlisted in the War of 1812 is found in these files, but the information I found in only a few searches is priceless.

Thanks to Randy Seaver's blog Genea-Musings for the heads up on this un-searched database.

Anatomy of an Online Search - Levi Griffin

We recently shared the Soap Opera of the life of Benoni Griffin, Jr., mentioning a son named Levi Griffin. How did we discover this son and establish the relationship? Read on.

A description of the Griffin family in West Virginia never mentioned youngest son, Levi Griffin. But when we were at the Bath County courthouse a few years ago, we found our Jonathan and other Griffins selling or purchasing portions of the land in Benoni Griffin, Jr.'s estate, with Levi Griffin as the person paying taxes on the land, even though he lived in Kentucky.

Who was this Levi? Googling the name of Levi Griffin and Kentucky, brings us to a message board with a complete posting of "Family Bible of Levi Griffin, Gallatin Kentucky" contributed by Carl Bogardus, Sr. M.D. What a find!!!! Many birth and death, marriage dates of Levi and his descendants. Even the statement that Levi was son of Benoni and Sarah Griffin. (This may have been his step mother.) It shows his birthdate as January 10, 1788.

With that information, Levi would have been about 3 years old when the family came to the Green Bank area, Bath County, VA, in the early 1790s. His name would never show up until he came of age at 21, and would have been old enough to be taxed or to vote and sign legal documents. Going to Ancestry.com records, Levi is first found as an adult in the 1810 Census but is listed as Love Griffin male, age between 16 - 26.

We also found a biography of Samuel P. Griffin, which mentions his paternal grandfather, Levi Griffin in a mini bio. "Levi Griffin, the paternal grandfather of Samuel P., was a native of Culpeper County, Va., and a farmer; he moved to Kentucky at an early day, and first settled in Bourbon County, but subsequently went to Fayette County, where he lived for a short time, and then moved to Gallatin County, where he died. He took part in the war of 1812."

Now I have several paths to follow.... looking for Griffins in Culpeper County, VA, and several counties in Kentucky, plus a search for participants in the War of 1812. A book, "The Battle of Tippecanoe" by Pirtle, says that Levi Griffin participated as a Private in that battle. And Ancestry.com shows census records for Levi Griffin and family in 1820 - 50, in the counties mentioned above. It does not include his death date, but since we don't find Levi in 1860 Census and the last date in the Bible is 1859, perhaps he died around that time.

When I look back at the Bath County land records that started this search, I have come up with this "supposed chain of events." Levi Griffin was the youngest son of Benoni Griffin, Jr., and was the last son living on the 220 acres near Green Bank Virgina, after Benoni died. I don't find a record that he was the executor, but he was continuing to pay taxes on the land, even after he went to Kentucky and settled after the War of 1812. By the 1830s, our 3Gt Grandfather, Jonathan Griffin, probably a half brother to Levi, bought up portions of the estate from siblings out of state, Abraham, Mary, Samuel S., and Levi. Jonathan gave part of the land to son William at the time of his marriage.

I won't say that searching a particular person is easy, but so rewarding. And now I have "met" online descendants of Levi. I hope to find out more about his pioneer life in Gallatin, KY, during the mid 1800s, putting this family into their place in history.