Lakewood In The Civil War: Anti-Slavery Activities

The Lakewood Historical Society continues to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War with a series of articles focused on Rockport Township (now Lakewood) during that time.

At the time of the Civil War, Rockport Township (which covered what is now Lakewood, Rocky River and parts of Fairview Park and Cleveland), had a population of just 1,794. Rockport’s population included African-American families and a growing number of people who were tacitly or actively involved in anti-slavery activities.

When George Peake (age 87) and his family arrived in Rockport in 1809, they became the first African-American family to settle permanently in the county. While the frontier claimed the lives of men half his age, Peake not only survived to the age of 105, he also made significant contributions to his new community.

Together with his wife and four sons, Peake constructed a log cabin and two years later purchased 103 acres near the Rocky River. (The property was probably just south of the site of Scenic Park on the other side of the river). The Peakes introduced a new form of gristmill to the community. Earlier settlers ground their grain with a stone pestle in a mortar made from a hollow oak stump. Neighbors found the Peake mill, which used mill stones about eighteen inches in diameter, far more effective at grinding meal. In 1816, Peake divided his farm and deeded some of it to his sons.  As late as 1830, four Peake families still resided in Rockport.

The Farmer family was one of East Rockport’s best known African-American families. Andrew Farmer, who was freeborn, had managed the Eliza Jennings estate prior to coming to Rockport to manage Dr. Jared Kirtland’s farm in 1867. Andrew and his wife Phoebe had five children: Martha, John, Sarah, Colen, and Susan. The Farmer family lived on Winchester Avenue for many years. Kirtland also hired Elijah, who lived and worked on his estate.

Rockporters often joined one of the hundreds of anti-slavery societies that were founded across the state, including the Cleveland Anti-Slavery Society and the Cuyahoga Anti-Slavery Society. In 1848, a group of Rockport citizens met at the schoolhouse near James Nicholson’s property. They created and published a set of eight resolutions that included their opposition to the expansion of slavery into additional states and their commitment not to support a slaveholder for President or Vice President. Taking a similar position, the Republicans of Rockport (which included Thomas Hird, Jared Potter Kirtland and Collins French) launched a campaign against the extension of slavery.

While there are no documented Underground Railroad activities in Rockport, two early settlers participated in this system of helping African Americans escape slavery in other Ohio towns. Philander Winchester, who moved to Rockport in 1848, was best known for his role in the dramatic rescue of Milton Clark six years before. Winchester, then the manager of the Painesville Telegraph, a newspaper known for its strong support of anti-slavery activities, invited Milton’s brother Louis Clark to Madison, Ohio, to lecture on the evils of slavery. The Clark brothers had both escaped slavery as young men. The day after Louis’s lecture, Milton was kidnapped by slave catchers. Winchester was actively involved in the rescue plan that saved Milton’s live.

Rockport’s most famous resident, Dr. Jared Potter Kirtland, was also involved in helping escaped slaves prior to moving to the community. While at his home in Poland, Ohio, Kirtland entertained two slave owners while he was simultaneously hiding their runaway slaves in the kitchen. He is also said to have purchased the freedom of a runaway slave named Kitty. Both of these men no doubt continued their anti-slavery activities once they arrived in Rockport.

When President Lincoln issued a call to arms in 1861, the work of abolitionists was coming to an end. Ohio raised 320,000 soldiers, the highest percentage of the population of any state. Rockport, having had its share of abolitionists, also sent its share of soldiers to fight and die for the Union cause. Our next article will focus on some of the Rockport men who served during the Civil War.

2011 is the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War- an appropriate time for the Lakewood Historical Society to consider Rockport Township’s participation in the war. For more information on Lakewood’s fascinating history, go to www.lakewoodhistory.org.