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Ebenezer Fish

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Name Ebenezer Fish, Jr.
Born June 11, 1787
Groton, New London, Connecticut
Died March 26, 1880
Brooklyn Village, Cuyahoga, Ohio
Resting Place Dennison Cemetery
Occupation Nurseryman
Spouse(s) Joanna Stanton (1787-1849), Mary Harford (abt 1798-1884)
Children Eliza Ann (Corbin)
Lydia Emily (Booth)
Mary Matilda (Sawtell, Bibbins)
Hannah (Fowles)
John Stanton Fish
Parents Ebenezer Fish Sr. and Lydia Stanton



Contents

EARLY LIFE:

Ebenezer Fish, Jr. was the fourth of 10 children born to Ebenezer Fish Sr. and Lydia Fish. His birth took place June 11, 1787 in Groton, New London, Connecticut.

MIGRATION:

"In the fall of 1811, James Fish, his wife, two children, Mrs. STANTON, his wife's mother, and Moses FISH, his cousin, moved in an ox team to Ohio and stopped at Newburg. Brooklyn at this time was a wild forest full of the red man, the township had been surveyed and run into quarter sections by agents who lived in Connecticut. James and Moses FISH thought they would look at these lands. James selected a good piece and Moses selected a quarter section. James built a log cabin and his family moved into it, but becoming frightened by Indians, went back to Newburg. Other families coming, they moved again to Brooklyn. Moses wrote to his brother Ebenezer, in Connecticut, to come and take one-half his land, which he did. A road (now Denison avenue) was run from Newburg to Rockport, which divided the property of the FISHES. They built a log cabin, in which they lived till the war of 1812. Ebenezer enlisted for six months and came out with honors. Afterward Moses was drafted. His health being poor, Ebenezer took his place and served the remainder of the war. He went back to Connecticut, married Miss Johanna STANTON, a smart, worthy woman who, on hearing of his Ohio farm, proposed moving there. Accordingly in 1818, with their two children, Eliza and Emily (afterwards Mrs. CORBIN and Mrs. BOOTH), his two brothers, and their families came in a large wagon drawn by two yoke of oxen. They all built and lived in log cabins.

--"Memorial To The Pioneer Women Of The Western Reserve"


MILITARY:

Ebenezer fought in the War of 1812[1] [2] guarding the frontier from the British and was with Commodore Perry on Lake Erie. He took part in a skirmish on Mackinaw Island. He was also one of the guards of the Indian chief, Omic, who was the first criminal hung in Cleveland. He first entered the service 22 Aug 1812 and left 14 Dec 1812.[3]
The men that Ebenezer served with are mentioned in this excerpt:

"Captain Allen Gaylord's company was from Newburg, long since embraced in the limits of Cleveland, but then a separate and larger village than Cleveland.

"The Cleveland company fortunately left us its full roster, as follows : Captain, Harvey Murray ; lieutenant, Lewis Dille ; ensign, Alfred Kelley ; sergeants, Ebenezer Green, Simeon Moss, Thomas Hamilton, Seth Doan ; corporals, James Root, John Lanterman, Asa Dille, Martin G. Shelhouse ; drummer, David S. Tyler; fifer, Rodolphus Carlton ; privates, Arctus Burk, Allen Burk, Charles Brandon, John Bishop, Moses Bradley, Silas Burk, Sylvester Beacher, James S. Bills, John Carlton, Mason Clark, Anthony Doyle, Luther Dille, Samuel Dille, Samuel Dodge, Moses Eldred, Samuel Evarts, Ebenezer Fish, Zebulon R. S. Freeman, Robert Harberson, Daniel S. Judd, Jackson James, Stephen King, Guy Lee, Jacob Mingus, Thomas Mcllrath, William McConkey, Samuel Noyes, David Reed, John Sweeney, Parker Shadrick, Luther Sterns, Bazaleel Thorp, John Taylor, Thomas Thomas, Hartman Van Duzen, Joseph Williams, Matthew Williamson, John Wrightman, Wm. White, Joseph Burk, Robt. Prentice, Benj. Ogden."[4]


An alternative take on who Ebenezer served with is shown below. Note that it is a different Captain in charge of the company.:

Captain: Harvey Murray.
Lieutenant: Lewis Dille.
Ensign: Alfred Kelley.
Sargeants: Ebenezer Green, Simeon Moss, Thomas Hamilton, Seth Doa. Corporals: James Root, John Lauterman, Asa Dille, Martin G. Shelhouse.
Drummer: David S. Tyler.
Fifer: Rodolphus Carlton.
Privates: Aretus Burk, Allen Burk, Charles Brandon, John Bishop, Moses Bradley, Silas Burk, Sylvester Beacher, James S. Bills, John Carlton, Mason Clark, Anthony Doyle, Luther Dille, Samuel Dille, Samuel Dodge, Moses Eldred, Samuel Evarts, Ebenezer Fish, Zebulon R. S. Freeman, Robert Harberson, Daniel S. Judd, Jackson James, John James, Stephen King, Guy Lee, Jacob Mingus, Thomas McIlrath, William McConkey, Samuel Noyes, David Reed, John Sweeney, Parker Shadrick, Luther Sterns, Bazaleel Thorp, John Taylor, Thomas Thomas, Hartman VanDuzen, Joseph Williams, Matthew Williamson, Jon Wrightman, William White, Joseph Burk, Robert Prentice, Benjamin Ogden.[5]


Not only did Ebenezer serve his own time during the War of 1812, but he also served in the place of his brother Moses. Moses had been drafted, but his health was poor. Ebenezer volunteered to take his place and fulfill Moses' servitude. [6]
Length of service: Served from 1812 thru 1815.
After the war, he returned to Connecticut where he met and married his wife.

SETTLEMENT:

Ebenezer Fish Jr. and his brother, Moses settled on Original Lot 65, Township 7, Range 13. The area that now surrounds the intersection of West 25th St. (Pearl Road) and Denison Avenue. Ebenezer owned the land north of Denison Ave. and Moses owned the land south of Denison Ave.
He returned to Ohio in 1817 with his wife Joanna (Stanton) and two children. Ebenezer promptly built a cabin and they settled in to raise their family, which continued to grow. Their last child, and only son, John Stanton Fish, was born in 1830. Joanna died in 1849. Afterwards, he married Mary Harford.
"Ebenezer Fish was among the first 3 members of the Methodist Episcopal church class in 1817. Ebenezer was the first class Leader." [7]


BUSINESSMAN:

1874 newspaper ads for Forest City Nursery
1874 newspaper ads for Forest City Nursery
"Ebenezer Fish inaugurated the nursery business in Brooklyn, in 1840, but did not develop it to any extent until he placed it in charge of Wm. Curtiss, who, after expanding the trade and making it profitable, became Mr. Fish's partner. He afterward bought him out, extending the business still more and eventually establishing numerous nurseries in the township to which he gave the general name of the Forest City Nurseries." [8]

The nursery was a viable business until 1875.

DEATH:

Ebenezer died March 26th of 1880 and was buried in Denison Cemetery on Garden Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio.


SPECULATION:

Why did Ebenezer stay in Connecticut so long after the war? He spent nearly three years there, leaving his brother Moses to tend to the farm. Considering that Moses was a man of poor health and at the time had no wife or children to help him, it seems an odd choice by Ebenezer. How was Moses to clear the land, plant or bring in the crops, and tend the livestock on his own?
One possibility is that the destructive Category 3 hurricane, that roared through Rhode Island and Connecticut on September 23, 1815, had done some substantial damage to his parent's home. Something of that nature would cause a man to stick around to help rebuild. Another possibility is that his father may have been ill and unable to provide for the family, so Ebenezer Jr. may have felt it his duty to take care of his parents during a trying time.

Footnotes

  1. Roster of Ohio soldiers in the war of 1812...pg. 93 Capt Harvey Murray's Company
  2. War of 1812 (Wikipedia Article) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_1812
  3. (see "General History of Cuyahoga County", by Crisfield Johnson, 1879, pg 60)
  4. A History of Cleveland, by Samuel Orth, 1910, pg. 306
  5. A History of the City of Cleveland, By James Harrison Kennedy, pgs. 160-161
  6. Early Days of the Pioneers, Cuyahoga County and Brooklyn Township, Ebenezer Foster, pg 5
  7. History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio; Part Third: The Townships, compiled by Crisfield Johnson, Published by D. W. Ensign & Co., 1879; pages 420
  8. History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio; Part Third: The Townships, compiled by Crisfield Johnson, Published by D. W. Ensign & Co., 1879; pages 416-424



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