| Notes |
- PAGE ONE: 1812 Aug 6
. 1812 Dec 30 - An address presented to the Presbytery of Onondaga at Homer, by Joshua Leonard, Subject Baptism & Presbyterian Church membership. Printed in the Cortland Repository, Homer Village NY, by John W Osborn, 1812. p12.
Note1: This indicates JW Osborn was upon leaving York he was immediate involved in publishing. - PJA
. 1814 Nov 16, Buffalo NY, LOST, on the 6th inst. in the village of Buffalo, an old black leather Pocket Book containing a promissory note, made by Celeb Rogers, payable to the subscriber or order, for $850, in four see-annual installments, on the first days of May & Oct. with an endorsement thereon of $218.375 cents - also between $8 & $9 in bank notes together with sundry other papers of no consequence except to the owner.
Whoever will return said pocket book & the papers to the subscriber, near Williamsville, may retain the money it contained & will be entitled to the thanks of the subscriber & no questions asked. Dated Wmsville, Nov 23, 1814, Signed, John Osborn.
Ref: Buffalo Gazette, NY.
* 1815 Jul 26 - Information Requested. The Subscriber having been informed that his Step-father, Mr. John Vanzantte, has moved from York, Upper Canada, into the United States, feels anxious to ascertain the place of his residence. Any person having information of the same, will do an act of kindness by communicating it by letter to:
John W. Osborn, Printer, Homer Village, Cortland County, N.Y.
*** Printers in this state are respectfully solicited to give above an intention in their respective papers.
Ref: Geneva Gazette, New York Jul 26 & * Patrol, Utica, NY, pub. Wed. Jul 31, 1815.
. 1815 Oct 1 - Letters Remaining in the Post Office at Buffalo, John W Osborn. - Letters called for by the first day of January next, will be sent to the General Post Office.
Ref: Niagara Journal, Buffalo, New York, published 1815 Oct 17.
. 1840 Census Warren, Putnam co., Indiana, John Osborn
persons Employed in Manufacture & Trade: 2
Free White Persons - Under 20: 5
Free White Persons - 20 thru 49:3
Total Free White Persons: 9
. 1862 Oct 29, Tax Annual Lists, district 7, Indiana, Hamilton Co., Retail dealer, Tax due $10.00.
. 1840 Oct 30, Fri. - West half of NW quarter of Section 18, 17 Twp., N of range 5 east, containing 80 A in Marion Co. Also Lot 6 in out block 39. Also lots 3, 4 & 5 in out block number 2 in John Wood's adjoining to the town of Indianapolis, mortgaged by John W. Osborn. Debt damages & costs $516.05
Ref: Indiana Democrat, Indianapolis & also published 12.19.1840 & 1.9.1841.
. 1840 Dec 12 - Mr. Switger of Marion offered for adoption the following & resolution: Whereas by virtue of a joint resolution of the General Assembly, approved 4 Feb, 1837 John W Osborn & Elijah Chamberlain were on 6 Jan 1838 duly elected public printers of this house for the tern of 3 years. Whereas Osborn & Chambers executed their bond for the due performance of the public printing, they were ejected 14 Dec 1839 form being public printers to this House, in violation of the rights & contract of said of said Osborn & Chamberlain, John Livingston was elected in their stead. Therefore resolved that a John W Osborn & Elijah Chamberlain are the rightful public printers to this house until 1 August next.
Ref: Indiana Democrat, Indianapolis.
. 1866 May 2 - The Greencastle Banner says:
John W Osborn, the old pioneer printer & publisher of Indiana, is now a resident of Greencastle. His 'sands of life,' however, have nearly run out. Quite feeble in body & mind, perhaps before another issue of this sheet, he will be transferred hence. As a public journalist, he occupied no inferior position among the leading editors of 25 or 30 years age. He was at one time State printer in connection with Mr. Willetts, a Quaker, still residing at Indianapolis. He was also editor & publisher of one or two papers at this point - one called the Plow Boy, & the other, if we mistake not, dominated the Tenpence Advocate. He is known to some of our older citizens of the county as a zealous advocate of whatever cause he espoused. We feel kindly towards our older brother in the craft, & trust that when is called hence it will be to enjoy the reward of a life well spend. He is residing now with his son-in-law, Judge Claypool, who has recently become a citizen of this place, & is we believe, in the 73 year of his age.
Ref: Worthington Gazette, Indiana.
. Obituary - 1866 Nov 15, Thurs. -
Death of an Old Printer. John Willson Osborn, Esq., since 1820 connected with the press of this State at Vincennes, Terre Haute, Indianapolis & in this town, died at the residence of his son-in-law, Judge Sol. Claypool, at Greencastle, on Monday morning last. Mr. Osborn was born in Nova Scotia, of Irish parents, about the year 1793 & was about 73 years of age at the time of his death. He moved with his parents to the vicinity of Toronto, Canada, where he continued to reside until he attained to the age of manhood. He learned the printing business in the town of Niagara, Canada, & soon after moved to the state of New York. From the State, he came with Lucien R Scott, formerly of Terre Haute, to Indiana & was connected with the press at Vincennes until 1823 when he moved to Terre Haute, where, opposite Grover's Foundry on Fifth street, he established the first paper ever published in that now important city. He continued to publish his paper for 9 years, under the difficulties incident to such business in a small village, a new country, & a sparse population. In 1832 he sold his establishment to Thos. Dowling, Esq.
Mr. Osborn was a man of intelligence & respectable talents & distinguished for the warmth of his feelings & the impulsive of his character. Judge Gookins, his son-in-law, learned the art of printing in his office as did his brother Chas. W Cutter, Esq., now of Iowa.
Ref: Sullivan Democrat Newspaper, Indiana.
Biogragphy1: John W Osborne.
Indiana was stiffening up on the slavery question. Even Vincennes was invaded by the anti-slavery element. In 1817 a number of Canadians who had served in the American army came to the state to claim the bounty lands which Congress had appropriated for them in Indiana. Among them was Major Markle, who located near Terre Haute, & built a celebrated old mill, & John Willson Osborn, who went to Vincennes. Osborn was a grandson of Col. John Willson, a British officer, stationed in New York, who went to Canada at the outbreak of the Revolution.
His father was Capt. Samuel Osborne of the British Navy. Although his people were wealthy, young Osborn learned the printing trade in the office of the Upper Canadian Guardian a Freeman's Journal, [1807-14, considered an opposing newspaper,] which was conducted by Joseph Willcocks, Member of Parliament from the Niagara district, who was decidedly pro-American in his views, & who was killed in the American service, near Fort Erie. In this employment Osborn took on American ideas, & at the beginning of the War of 1812, went across Lake Erie & joined Capt. Mahar's company of Irish Greens, * for which he was disinherited by his grandfather. [under Lt. Col. Francis/ Geo.? McClure, NY Militia]
This did not worry Osborn, who, when he got through soldiering, went into the newspaper business at Homer, N. Y., for a time, & then started the Cortland Republican newspaper at Cortlandville. While here he married Ruby Bishop. He arrived in Vincennes in June 1817, & at once found employment in the office of the Western Sun, & a few weeks later became a partner, & editor of the paper. This lasted him a few months as Osborne had very pronounced anti-slavery views, which did not hinge with those of Elisha Stout, the proprietor of the paper; & so they "dissolved" & Osborn went to farming.
In 1819 Osborn was joined at Vincennes by his brother-in-law, Amory Kinney, a native of Vermont, who had read law at Cortlandville, in the office of Samuel Nelson, later a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Both Osborn & Kinney were satisfied that the slavery existing in Indiana was illegal, & they united to make a test case with two lawyers. Col. George McDonald, of New Jersey, the preceptor & father-in-law of Judge Isaac Blackford, who entered the practice at Vincennes in 1819; & Moses Tabbs, a son-in-law of Charles Carroll of Carrolton, signer of the Declaration of Independence, who was admitted to the bar at Vincennes in 1818. The test was made by an action of habeas corpus on behalf of a mulatto woman named Polly, held as a slave by Col. Hyacinthe Lasselle, the principal tavern keeper of Vincennes. Lasselle was one of the old families of the French in Indiana. ... The case presented the question of the old French slavery, Polly being the daughter of a negro woman who had been captured by the Indians in the Revolutionary period. The Circuit Court held her to be a slave, but the Supreme Court held that the people of Indiana had the power to abolish slavery, without regard to the Virginia Deed of Cession, & that "the framers of our constitution intended a total & entire prohibition of slavery in this state." This decision was made in July, 1820, & it created some resentment among the slave-holders, who threatened vengeance on Osborn & Kinney, but those gentlemen manifested a readiness to meet any one hunting for trouble, & no casualties resulted.
Ref: Indiana and Indianans, A History of Aboriginal & Territorial Indiana & the Century of Statehood, by Jacob Piatt Dunn. Chicago 1919.
Note2: * Among Catholic residents of Albany who had reached a degree of prosperity & prominence was a wholesale grocer, James Maher. Maher organized the Republican Rifle Company, or Irish Greens [Republican Green Rifles]. He was captain & fellow parishioner John Cassidy was lieutenant. In 1813, Maher's company took part in the Battle of Sackets Harbor & led his troops in the capture of Little York, (now Toronto) Canada, Ontario. Feb. 5 1813 the Maher Company had a Camp in Buffalo, otherwise regular station was in Albany. The flag taken at Fort George Upper Canada, May 27, 1813 was taken by a summer, Daniel Campbell, in Captain Maher's Albany volunteers.
Ref: Albany Argus Newspaper, published 1813 Jul 2, Friday.
. 1813 Jan 5, Albany - Captain Maher's company of Albany, now at Buffalo as - part of Col. McClure’s Regiment, are volunteers for one year. They received from me 2 months pay & $16 each on account of clothing in September when they entered service. Capt. Maher, who is now here, requests that they may receive the balance of the allowance for clothing immediately. …They must be equipped with uniform & a blanket at all events. A Musket and knapsack can be supplied with those also. 1812 Sep 29, Albany Greens, which are to are to follow the NY Greens to Onondaga, in a few days., Gen’l Dearborn.
Ref: Public Papers of Daniel D Tompkins, Governor of NY, 1807-1817. - . - [1]
- PAGE TWO: Biography2
. JOHN W. OSBORN,
Editor, printer and proprietor of the "Western Register and Terre Haute General Advertiser," was a man who, in my estimation, carried in his head all the knowledge of the world. He was quiet in manner & kind in speech, never passing any one in the street without a pleasant word. He was particularly opposed to horse-racing (then a custom universally indulged in) from a moral point of view, & was very sensitive in regard to razor strops, but I never understood why. To me there were two points of interest in the "Western Register"; one was that the news was always "two weeks later from Europe."
. JOHN W. OSBORN (Picture of a middle age gentleman, dark, short hair). A biographical sketch written by the late S.B. GOOKINS of the pioneer editor of the Wabash Valley. The editor & proprietor of the first newspaper published in the town of Terre Haute, Indiana, was born at St. Johns, New Brunswick, February 7, 1794.
He was the second son of Capt. Samuel OSBORN, a gallant & accomplished officer in the British navy. His grandfather & eldest brother, Capt. William OSBORN, were also both officers in the service of his majesty the King of England.
* Also his maternal grandfather, for whom he was named, held a captain's commission & was an intimate friend of Gen. BROCK, acted as commissary general, etc., & filled many places of trust. *See Note 1.
William OSBORN, the eldest son of Capt. Samuel OSBORN Jr., was promoted to a captaincy very young for bravery during several sharp engagements at sea. Thus by the divine right of inheritance & early associations Mr. John W. OSBORN was fitted for the struggles & difficulties of pioneer life which need a brave heart, untiring devotion, progressive & aggressive, to the principles of right.
* Mr. OSBORN's mother was Alice WILSON, the daughter of John WILSON & Rebecca THIXTON, his wife. She was born on Staten Island. She was educated in New York, where the family lived always a part of each year, her father being an officer in the British army, loyal to his king. They left the United States & made a new home in Canada, living sometimes at Halifax, Quebec, Montreal, Canancoqua [ now Kingston], & finally settling down at Toronto, buying land & laying, as they supposed, a permanent foundation for a home. * See Note2.
. 1807 Oct 10, Sat. - York Gazette, Wanted: An apprentice to the printing business. His connection must be respectable & his morals uncorrupted. Application to be made to the printers of the York Gazette.
Note5: The reference here is to the qualifications needed to be involved in the newspaper business. - PJ Ahlberg 2013.
Col. WILSON sent to Scotland & brought out a hundred families & settled them upon his lands in Canada, & believing in the magic power of the press to enlighten & civilize, he sent to England & had a printing press, type & men to do the work sent out to the almost wilderness. Col. Joseph WILLCOX, who was a member of the provincial parliament, an ardent politician, an educated Irish gentleman and a republican, was associated with Mr. OSBORN in publishing the "Upper Canada Guardian & Freeman's Journal." Mr. OSBORN late in life spoke of Col. Willcox as one whose name he loved, & referring to his association with him, said: "I then & there drank in the principles of free government which have remained with me until this hour & which changed the whole course of my life."
Mr. OSBORN's devotion to republican institutions & his belief in the justness of the American cause led him, on the breaking out of the war of 1812, to espouse, with all the fire & energy of his nature, the side of free government. On August 14, 1812 he left the country, home, kindred & friends, & crossed Lake Ontario from Toronto to the United States, when he joined the American army, at which action of his he alienated & grieved his relatives, especially his grandfather, who disowned & disinherited him.
* * Notes4: 1818 Aug 21st, at Ft. George, Niagara-on-the-Lake, where John W Osborn was on duty at this time, it was announced the Maj Gen. Sheaffer has a very great satisfaction in announcing to the troops, the surrender of Fort Detroit Gen. Isaac Brock at the head of 700 soldier, volunteer Militia with 600 Indians captured the Fort. Ref: Issac Brock papers, p132.
. 1812 Sept 29, Tues. On Sunday last, arrived from NY, on board the sloop Euphemia, part of a Volunteer detachment from the Republican Greens of that City, under the command of Lieut. Col. McClaurte. Yesterday they disembarked & marched up to the barracks in Lion Street, escorted by The REPUBLICAN GREENS, of this place, commanded by Captain Maher.
Ref: Albany Register Newspaper, NY.
Mr. OSBORN did not anticipate giving up his love & interest in Canada, but was sanguine in his belief that Canada would become a part of the United States, would be annexed, when he intended to return there. He was induced, through the representation of Mr. Denny, a book publisher, of Albany, to go to Homer, Cortland county, New York, where he took charge of & edited the Cortland "Republican," a paper still published there. He, however, soon removed his office to Cortlandville, the county seat, for a time. His paper was ardently devoted to the United States government. He continued the publication until 1816.
In that year Indiana was admitted to the Union as a sovereign state, & the spirit of adventure, at that time rife in the land, led him, with many others, to the inviting fields of the then Far West. In 1817 he came to Vincennes, & soon afterward secured the office of the "Western Sun," the first newspaper published in Indiana. At that time the slavery question was much discussed. The ordinance of 1787, excluding slavery from the territory northwest of the Ohio river, was almost universally disregarded. Slaves were held in Vincennes & other places, & were bought & sold. Indiana had just been admitted to the Union, & having by a clause in her constitution prohibited slavery, the holders of slaves became uneasy, & as a consequence as scheme was adopted for making what profit they could out of the stock on hand, which was to be carried out by running the negroes off to the slave states & selling them. Adventurers were found who were willing to go into the business of kidnapping for a profit. This was winked at by many of the most popular & influential men, & for anyone to espouse the cause of the slave was to subject himself to the odium, not to say contemptuous persecution, of a majority of the people in that region. But the proscribed race were not without friends, & one of the most active of these was Mr. OSBORN. Having suffered immeasurably from separation from home, kindred & friends on account of his devotion to the principles of freedom, he did not propose to accept a mere sham & pretense for the precious boon he sought at so great a sacrifice. He not only protested, but defended, the negro, & pursued the kidnapper & rescued his victims. He, cooperating with others like minded, carried the question to the supreme court & obtained a decision which set at rest forever the question of slavery in Indiana.
In 1828 Mr. OSBORN came to Terre Haute & established the "Western Register." The first number was printed July 21, & created quite a sensation. A newspaper really & truly printed in the wilderness! Men, women & children came from all the country around to see the great wonder, especially on publication days. The "Western Register's" motto was "No dupe to party tool of power, nor slave to minions of an hour." The paper was conducted upon all questions of home & foreign government & the development of our rich & lovely valley of the Wabash. Mr. OSBORN was contemporary with Robert Owen, Rapp, Flower & many others of less note, would-be reformers, but all his teachings had the true ring of patriotism & Christianity. During the summer of 1828 Mr. OSBORN made one of his characteristic exploring trips on horseback up the Wabash river, intending to visit Fort Dearborn, now Chicago. Early one lovely morning he arrived at the Tippecanoe battle-ground, where he discovered that after the soldiers had left the field the Indians had returned & dug up the remains of the brave heroes & stripped, scalped & tomahawked them & left them to be devoured by wild beasts, & the bones had lain bleaching in the sun & storms for 12 years. When Mr. OSBORN returned to Terre Haute he had an interview with Capt. Nathaniel Huntington, & induced him to proceed with his company of cavalry, the Wabash Greens, to Tippecanoe. The remains of the brave men were carefully collected by them & reinterred with military honors. Mr. OSBORN was ever ready to render honor to the generous, noble & brave, & quick scorn & flashing indignation for the mercenary & selfish.
One summer day in the year 1828 he was passing by the court-house square, & laying partly concealed by some hazel bushes, he saw a man senseless, apparently dead. The man was only drunk! Mr. OSBORN had known him in Toronto a prominent merchant, an honored man. He covered the poor wretch's face to protect it from sun, insects & the derision of passers-by. From that hour he was an uncompromising temperance man. His heart swelled with indignation toward the man who for a few cents would see a fellow man degraded & wallowing in the dust, & from this incident probably the first temperance movement in the country originated. Education, free education, was another subject of intense interest to him. During the year 1829 his health gave way, caused by his untiring exertions, & he retired from the editorial chair & went upon his farm, five miles south of the city, from which he received great benefit.
In 1834 his old feeling in regard to the power & importance of the "press" returned & feeling that there was great value in the knowledge & talents that he possessed, he looked about him for a field of action & decided up Greencastle, Putnam county, considering it a healthy, desirable region of country. He purchased a printing office & sent out his paper, the "Ploughboy," broadcast, & inclosed (sic) in it a small temperance paper which he published in pamphlet form, of eight pages, & sent to his subscribers gratuitously, called the "Temperance Advocate," the first temperance paper ever published in the west. Temperance in those days was as unpopular as warning against slavery, & required unbounded moral courage & a trace of "fighting blood," both of which he inherited in good measure from a brave & chivalrous ancestry. This paper was devoted to the interests of agriculture, education & temperance, in the promotion of all which he was a zealous & efficient laborer. In Greencastle he was surrounded by congenial associates, Dr. Alex Stephenson, Dr. Taravin & Judge Cowhill, Rees, Hardesty & others. To Mr. Osborn's exertions were due in a great measure the establishment at Greencastle of the Indiana Asbury University, the leading educational institution of the state of the Methodist denomination, of which he was a conscientious, active member. He was one of the first trustees of Asbury University. In 1838 he removed his establishment to Indianapolis, changed the name to "Indiana Farmer and Stock Register," was elected state printer, also continued the publication of his temperance paper. At the close of his term of office he retired from the press on account of ill health, but was a contributor to various local journals during most of his life. When the war of the rebellion broke out, too old to take the field & too zealous a supporter of the government to permit of his remaining idle, he went to Sullivan county, & published a war campaign paper under the title of the "Stars and Stripes," where he rendered invaluable service to the Union cause. This was his last venture in journalism. (Which he conducted at Sullivan during the war, was pronounced in its Union sentiment & strong in its support).
His health continued to decline until his death, which occurred in Greencastle on November 12, 1866. His latest hours were marked by painful disease, patient resignation & Christian faith.
Ref: HISTORY OF VIGO AND PARKE COUNTIES Together With Historic Notes on the Wabash Valley, by H.W. Beckwith - 1880, Terre Haute - pp. 169-175.
Note3: Maternal grandfather is John Willson, Sr., born NJ. The war referred is slightly confused. During the Revolutionary War, Capt. John Willson was in the Quartermaster Commissary General's Office for the NJ Volunteers & he was a friend of Lieut. Gov., John Graves Simcoe, of Upper Canada, that is, Toronto, Ontario. John Willson brought a 100 people with him from New Brunswick in the journey known as 'MAY FLEETs' arrival at York' - In a twist of fate, this time during the War of 1812, Capt. J Willson of the York Militia, was captured & later released when American forces captured Ft. York (Toronto.)
Note4: Canacoqua is the original native name for Kingston, Ontario. Canacoqua or Kateracoui. Cataraqui is the French pronunciation. It was also named Fort Frontenac. It is very interesting that this story taken in 1880 from verbal family history, is bares out in proven facts. Reference to John Willson, U.E. and 'May Fleet to York, Upper Canada. 1793' - P J Ahlberg, 2011.
. In 1823 he went to Terre Haute & began publication of the Western Register and Terre Haute Advertiser. This he sold in 1832 to become a candidate for sheriff but was defeated. In 1833-34 he was publisher of The Plowboy in Greencastle, Indiana.
. In 1823, Mr. Osborn loaded his press into a wagon, & set out for Terre Haute. The dangers of the journey from high water were not insurmountable, but when an ignorant driver lost his way, the case was different. And so in attempting to cross a stream in a wrong place, the wagon was overturned, & its precious burden landed in the water.
About 1830-2 Osborn after spending some time on his farm, again undertook the role of a publisher, by establishing the Ploughboy at Greencastle. In 1838 he removed with his paper to Indianapolis, changing the name to the Indiana Farmer and Stock Register. While there he was elected to the position of State printer. When the war of the rebellion broke out he moved to the town of Sullivan,
& established a paper which he named The Stars and Stripes.
Ref: The history of early Terre Haute from 1816 to 1840. - . -
- . Biography3 - Newspapers & John Willson Osborn:
Upper Canadian Guardian and Freeman's Journal,
1817 Jun - Western Sun, Vincennes
1822 Dec 14 - Farmers & Mechanics Journal, published by J W Osborn
1825 May 7 - The Advertiser
1826 Mar 7 - Indianapolis Gazette, Vol. III
1834 - Temperance Advocate, Greencastle
1834 - Western Plough Boy, Greencastle Visitor.
. 1819 June 25, Vincennes - Dissolution. The Copartnership heretofore existing between William A Crowell & John W Osborn was dissolved by mutual consent on the 20th instant. Wm. A Crowell, J W Osborn.
- N.B. All those who are indebted to the said firm are requested to make immediate payment, & those who have demands against it will please present them for settlement. WAC, JWO., VINCENNES, JUNE 25, 1918.
Ref: Indiana Sentinel Newspaper, published 1818 Jul 3 .
. Greencastle acquired a reputation for temperance.
. Early Settlement & History:
The "Western Register and Terre Haute Advertiser" was the first paper printed in Terre Haute. The paper was "printed & published every Saturday, in Terre Haute, Vigo county, Indiana, by JOHN W. OSBORN, at $2. per annum." The terms of advertising are given, & then follows this statement: "Letters on business addressed to the editor must be post-paid." It must be borne in mind that letter postage in that day was no trifle - ranging as high as 25¢ a single letter, one-eighth of the annual subscription of the paper.
The first number was issued July 21, 1823, & was a four-column paper, about 12 by 14 inches in size. After the first ten numbers had been issued a larger size paper was obtained, making the sheet about four inches longer. The first edition consisted of about two hundred copies; many were sent to parties who never paid. Mr. Osborn felt that the education of the masses was of vital moment & fully believed in the civilizing & enlightening influence of the newspaper, & the fact that a subscriber could not pay did not prevent his receiving the paper. For this reason the paper did not prove, in any eminent degree, a pecuniary success. Great difficulty was experienced in obtaining suitable printing paper. The supply must usually be obtained from Louisville, & the quantity ordered sometimes did not make its appearance for weeks together; bad roads & low water were the obstacles to be overcome in transportation. At such times various expedients were resorted to in order to continue the regular issue; sometimes a half sheet was sent out. Then again the stores & shops were ransacked for ordinary wrapping paper, & sometimes no paper could be issued at all. The difficulties attending the obtaining, transporting & setting up the press were such as would have discouraged a less determined man than Mr. Osborn & have effectually defeated the enterprise. The wagon in which the "office" & paper for first issue were transported from Vincennes to Terre Haute was overturned in attempting to ford one of the many streams to be crossed, & the entire establishment buried under the waters. These streams were very much swollen at the time by the abundant rain-fall, & in attempting to cross the driver had mistaken his way. The material was finally recovered after great effort. These were the "circumstances beyond the control of the editor" that delayed the first issue, as explained in the editorial of that number.
The first number contained an account of the celebration held on the Fourth of July of that year. The oration was delivered by Thos. H. Blake. Among the communications, we notice that "Mr. Reed, a Presbyterian minister, will preach at the court-house on the 24th inst." Its foreign news summary contains the declaration of war between France & Spain; also certain military movements of French & Spanish troops, and captures of Spanish vessels. Sheriff Clark advertises sales of land, & James LOVE advertises "a regular line of keel-boats, to ply between Terre Haute & Shawneetown; freight taken on the most accommodating terms." John M. COLMAN advertises a list of letters, -perhaps a half dozen- remaining in the post-office at Terre Haute, Ezekiel BENJAMIN in charge. Dr. Modesitt's ferry is "ready to accommodate all who may favor him with their patronage."
We find that Nathaniel Huntington "is a candidate to represent the counties of Vigo & Parke in the next general assembly."
The political questions of the day are discussed, & party feeling runs very bitter. The question whether slaves should be held in Indiana was agitating the minds of men. Mr. OSBORN was of course on the negative side, & many of the early difficulties he encountered in getting out his paper were believed to grow out of this fact; the upsetting of his material before mentioned was thought to be done designedly as an expedient to defeat his plans. At the celebration on the Fourth spoken of, the following toast was offered by a volunteer: "The unlawful wheels of the machinery of our last legislature for a new convention, to bring slavery into our state; may every band & spoke be broken at our next election."
In the second number appears a new advertisement of John F. Cruft. The number of the "ads." was seventeen, including four legal ones by Sheriff Clark. In the eleventh number appears this motto, which becomes henceforth the motto of the paper:
No "dupe to party, tool of power," Nor "slave to minions of an hour."
Under the date of October 22, 1823, we find this notice; "The Wabash Greens will meet at the house of Capt. N. HUNTINGTON, November 1, thence to proceed in martial order to the battle-ground of Tippecanoe, & collect the bones of the American heroes who fell in that engagement, in as decent a manner as possible inter them, & erect some temporary preservation around their grave.
Signed, Elisha M. Huntington- Company Judge Advocate."
. On August 14 he left Upper Canada & crossed Lake Ontario & dined there American army, at which action of his he alienated & grieved his relatives, especially his grandfather, who disowned & disinherited him. Mr. Osborn did not anticipate giving up his love & interest in Canada, but was sanguine in his belief that Canada would become a part of the US, would be annexed, when he intended to return there. He was induced, through the representations of Mr. Denny, an Albany book publisher, to go to Homer, Courtland Co., where he took charge of & edited the Cortland Republican. He soon removed his office to Cortlandville, the county seat for a time. until 1816. In 1817 he came to Vincenne.
The paper was ably conducted by Mr. Osborn, & its issues were filled with interesting matter, much attention being given to foreign news. The "Niles Register" was largely quoted from. In politics Mr. Osborn was a whig, & while he was not an abolitionist, was anti-slavery in his sentiments. He was also a strong advocate of temperance. On these subjects he was an able & original thinker. His kindness of heart was proverbial; he could not bear to wound another's feelings, nor would he allow his paper to become a vehicle for gossip. He was also a man of great personal courage, & while he always sought "the things that made for peace," he never permitted his desire to avoid strife to stand in the way of a bold a free avowal of his sentiments, or to prevent his always standing by his actions. Judge Kinney, a strong personal friend of Mr. Osborn's, at one time, while living in Vincennes, instituted several suits against certain parties for kidnapping blacks. In consequence of this, he (Kinney,) was assaulted & badly wounded. The threat was also freely made that Osborn would be served in the same way. This was reported to Osborn, who at that time lived on a farm a short distance from Vincennes. He at once rode into town, arriving at near the dinner hour, & stopping at the g, threw his bridle rein to a hostler & ascended the steps of the portico where several persons were sitting, among them some of those who had threatened him. He remained until about 4 o'clock, when he mounted his horse & rode home. Mr. Osborn was well armed. His cool, firm bearing caused those who hated him for his principles, & had proposed to attack him, to desist from their purpose. His great kindness to others was made manifest in many ways. On one occasion, some persons who had come on horseback to get their papers were too drunk to return safely home. Mr. OSBORN cared for them during the night, & after having given them a good breakfast, sent them home sober. His influence over others has often been testified to by those who have experienced it.
Mr. Osborn, was very much interested in everything pertaining to the advancement of educational interests, & spent both time & money in labors of that kind. He was undoubtedly the prime mover in the efforts made that finally resulted in the establishment of Asbury University, at Greencastle.
Among other advertisements is one for the sale of an ox mill, i.e. a pair of stones for grinding, run by ox power.
The last number, issued in 1823, contains the message of President Monroe to the eighteenth congress. Let those who are disposed to grumble at a delay of one or two hours at the present day read this, under date of January 24, 1824. After speaking of the non-arrival of the mail (once in 2 weeks), the editor says: "Another disappointment, still more unpleasant, has occurred, which is also to be attributed to the present freshet; it precludes the possibility of our receiving the expected supply of paper from Louisville, & it renders it out of our power to issue more than a half sheet weekly until the roads become passable for wagons & our supply arrives."
From March 25 to May 19, 1824, the paper was printed on a quarter sheet, about 10 by 14 inches in size.
Ref: History of Terre Haute, Vigo Co., IN. 1880. - - -
|
1794 - 1866 (72 years)