Thomas Collins, son of John Collins, before mentioned, kept a tavern as early as 1794 in an old house on the lot, corner of Morgantown and Main streets, now occupied by the Tremont buildings. Thomas Collins was sheriff of Fayette county from 1796 to 1799, and commanded a company of soldiers from Uniontown and vicinity in the war of 1812, locally called the "Madison Rowdies." A number of his descendants are still living in the neighborhood of Uniontown.
Previous to the opening of the present century the veteran of Laurel Hill, John Slack, before mentioned, kept a tavern in the old Shelcut house, on the south side of Main street, opposite the old Gregg house, and afterward kept the "Spread Eagle," the exact location of which is involved in doubt, but the best information available a.s.signs it to the Weniger corner, opposite the old Walker house, hereinafter mentioned.
William Downard, subsequently proprietor of the big water-trough house on Laurel Hill, kept tavern in the Shelcut house from 1801 until probably 1808, when he retired to the pine covered slope of Laurel Hill, where he spent the remainder of his life. He served as County Commissioner from 1802 to 1805.
The Gregg house, situate on the north side of Main street, on the lot now covered by the residence of Dr. J. B. Ewing, was in existence as a tavern as early as 1798, and continued as late as 1865. It was a small house of brick and frame united, but had a large patronage. In early times travelers and other guests at taverns did not desire or expect separate rooms, and hence a small tavern like the Gregg house could accommodate as many persons as the more pretentious hotel of the present day; and at wagon stands the bar room, as before stated, was the only bed chamber for wagoners. James Gregg was the first proprietor of the Gregg house, and was succeeded by his widow, Nancy Gregg, in 1810. After her time it was kept in turn by William Medkirk, Matthew Allen, Simeon Houser, Amos Howell, Philip D. Stentz, and Thomas Moxley. James Gregg, the old proprietor of this house, was the father-in-law of the late Hon.
Daniel Sturgeon, who was a United States Senator in the days of Clay, Webster and Calhoun.
In 1779, and for a number of years thereafter, Pierson Sayers kept a tavern in the house now occupied by Mrs. Ruby, on the north side of Main street, a short distance west of the court house. While keeping this house Sayers was elected Sheriff, and turned over his tavern to Jacob Harbaugh, who conducted it for three years, when, singularly enough, he was elected to succeed Sayers as Sheriff. Ellis Baily, the grandfather of Mrs. Ruby, bought this property from Pierson Sayers, and subsequently, and for many years, it was the private residence of the late Hon. John Dawson.
James Piper kept the "Jolly Irishman" as early as 1801. This bustling old tavern was located on Main street, opposite the residence of the late Hon. Daniel Kaine. James Piper, a son of the old proprietor, was a prominent and influential citizen of the town and county for many years.
He was a member of the bar, a Justice of the Peace, Register of Wills, and Recorder of Deeds. He left Uniontown about 1850, went west, and died soon after.
William Merriman kept a tavern near Margaret Allen"s old stand as early as 1802. But little is known at this date of Merriman or his old tavern.
Its existence was brief and its patronage limited.
At and before the beginning of the present century Samuel Salter kept a tavern in an old log and frame house that stood on the lot now occupied by the handsome residence of the Hon. John K. Ewing. Chief Justice Thomas McKean "put up" at this old tavern on his visits to Uniontown to hold the courts of Fayette county, and was frequently regaled with roast pig. The pig was well prepared, cooked and dressed, and in all respects savory, but its frequent appearance on the table moved the old Chief Justice to believe that he was getting "too much of a good thing," and accordingly one day, in peremptory terms, he commanded the dining room girl to remove the offensive dish, which she did with trembling hands.
This of course raised a storm in the old hostelry. Mrs. Salter became indignant, and, bringing back the pig, replaced it on the table, at the same time addressing the Judge thus: "You are Chief Justice and run the court; I am chief cook and run this dining room. That pig must stay,"
and it did. Upon the withdrawal of Salter, in the year 1811, this old tavern came under the management and control of Jacob Harbaugh, the old Sheriff before mentioned. After Harbaugh"s time it was kept by George Ewing down to a period as late probably as 1830. Hugh Espey, a well remembered old County Treasurer, and straightgoing Presbyterian elder, married a daughter of George Ewing.
Opposite the old Gregg house, and adjoining the Shelcut house, George Manypenny kept a tavern as early as the year 1814, and probably before that date. This was a leading tavern of the town, subsequently conducted by Benjamin Miller, and after him by Harry Gilbert. One of the old stage lines stopped at this house. George Manypenny, the old proprietor, was the father of the late Hon. George W. Manypenny, who was for many years a prominent and popular political leader and officeholder of the State of Ohio. He was born in Uniontown, and most likely in his father"s old tavern. George Manypenny, sr., is described by those who remember him as a vigorous, pushing and witty Irishman. He called once to see President Jefferson, and was invited by His Excellency to take a gla.s.s of wine with him, which he did without hesitancy, and to obtain a second gla.s.s, this story is told of him: As he was about to withdraw from the executive mansion he remarked to Mr. Jefferson that he was going home, and would tell his friends that he had the honor of taking two gla.s.ses with the President of the United States, and hoped His Excellency would not let him go home with a lie in his mouth. As the story goes, the old President saw the point of the ingenious suggestion, and again brought forward the wine.
The Walker house, corner of Broadway and Main streets, was kept as a tavern as early as 1816 by Zadoc Walker, who owned the property. General LaFayette was entertained at this house in 1825, and Santa Anna, the renowned Mexican warrior, stopped over night in it on his way to Washington City, about sixty years ago. This house has been kept at different times since by Andrew Byers, William Byers, Redding Bunting, and others. When Bunting kept it, it was called the "United States." It has recently been enlarged and improved, and its name changed to the "Central." Its first host under the new name was James I. Feather, who subsequently became a.s.sociated with William A. McHugh. Its present lessees and managers are Messrs. Frock and Mitch.e.l.l. The Spottsylvania house, for many years conducted prosperously by John Manaway, and afterward, until it closed, by Lloyd Mahaney, adjoined the Walker house on the west, and used a number of rooms belonging to that old hostelry.
[Ill.u.s.tration: AARON WYATT.]
The McCleary house ranked high as an old-time inn or tavern. It is situate on the corner of Main and Arch streets, a substantial brick building, recently enlarged, embellished and improved, and at present catering to the public under the historic name of "Brunswick," and conducted by Russell W. Beall, a gentleman admirably equipped for the business. Ewing McCleary owned and kept this old tavern as early as the year 1819, and many years thereafter. Upon his death, which occurred in this house, it was continued as a tavern under the management of his widow, until she became the wife of William Hart, when he took charge of it and kept it down to the year 1840, or thereabout, when he fell into disgrace and retired under a storm of popular reprobation. This house was a favorite stopping place of General Jackson. On an occasion a committee of citizens met Jackson on the road near town and tendered him the freedom of the munic.i.p.ality. Among other things made known to him by the committee, he was informed that quarters had been provided for his accommodation at the Walker House. He replied that he "always stopped at Hart"s." "But," rejoined the chairman of the committee, "Hart is a Whig, and his tavern a Whig house." The old warrior answered back by saying that "Hart always treated him well, and he would go to his house," and to Hart"s he went, reluctantly escorted by the Democratic committee.
After Hart"s precipitate withdrawal from this old house, it was leased by S. B. Hays, subsequently of the Mansion and other old taverns in Washington, Pennsylvania. Hays conducted it for a brief period when it went into the possession of Joshua Marsh, who remained in charge not longer than a year or two, and left it to take charge of the National House. Its next occupant was the veteran Redding Bunting. After Bunting came Aaron Stone, then William Beatty, and after him William Gans. After Gans, Peter Uriah Hook was installed as landlord, who named the house "The Eagle," and remained in charge a number of years. Hook was an eccentric man, given to redundancy of speech, a merchant, auctioneer, and for two years a member of the lower branch of the State legislature.
He died in Uniontown, a number of years ago, but will not soon be forgotten. Aaron Wyatt succeeded Hook, and kept the house until his death. His widow and son James succeeded to the management, and James dying in the house, it pa.s.sed to the hands of his widow, Mrs. Kate Wyatt, and from her to Russell W. Beall, the present occupant.
The before-mentioned old taverns were of the town, rather than of the road. Most of them were in existence and doing business before the road was made. The remaining old taverns of Uniontown, hereafter mentioned, were essentially taverns of the National Road, and derived their princ.i.p.al patronage from it.
The Swan, Nathaniel Brownfield proprietor, is an old, long frame building, at the west end of town, supplemented some years after it commenced business, by a brick addition to the eastern end. Thomas Brownfield, father of Nathaniel, the present proprietor, and grandfather on the maternal side, of the author of this volume, kept this old tavern as early as 1805, and down to the year 1829. When the National Road was opened for business, this house became a wagon stand, and continued such until the last crack of a Battelly White whip was heard on the road. It was provided with two commodious wagon yards, one at the front, on the roadside opposite the house, and the other between the house and the large stable in the rear. With the exception of one year that this old tavern was kept by William c.o.x, Nathaniel Brownfield, who was born under its roof, has kept it, uninterruptedly, from the date of his father"s death, and "holds the fort" to this day, "with none to molest or make him afraid." Upwards of eighty, and in vigorous health, he has witnessed and partic.i.p.ated in the exciting scenes of the road from the beginning to the end thereof. At an early period he became the owner of a farm consisting of one hundred acres adjacent to town, which he managed advantageously in connection with his tavern, and within the past year sold for the sum of one thousand and five dollars per acre, retaining his old tavern stand, to which he is attached by so many memories. His wife and good helpmate survives with him, and together they occupy the old tavern and recount with varied emotions the stirring scenes of the eventful past.
The McClelland House, as has been elsewhere stated, is one of the best known old taverns on the National Road. It is located on the north side of the Main street, and in the western end of town. As early as 1795, Richard Weaver kept a tavern in a wooden building on the lot now covered by the McClelland House, and was succeeded by William McClelland.
William McClelland was keeping this old tavern in 1802, and owned the lot on which it stood at that date in fee simple. After the death of William McClelland his son, Alfred, came into possession, tore down the old building, and erected in its stead the present brick building, known always thereafter as the McClelland House. This house was the headquarters of the Good Intent line of stages, from the time it was put on the road until it was withdrawn at the end of the road"s career as a national highway. Alfred McClelland presided over this house and controlled it from the date of its erection until he died, with the exception of brief intervals mentioned below. He was a large, raw-boned man, of agreeable, though somewhat awkward manners, and had complete knowledge of the mysterious art of keeping a tavern. He had for his main clerk and bar-keeper, Macon W. Rine, a confidential and loyal friend, well remembered by the older citizens of Uniontown, as a thoroughly competent man for his employment. Alfred McClelland died on the 8th of September, 1862. In the intervals before mentioned, the McClelland House was kept for a short time previous to 1840 by S. B. Hays, before he took control of the old McCleary House. Thereafter, at different times, the house was kept by Jerry Colflesh, Lewis D. Beall, William and Thomas Swan, J. W. Kissinger, Calvin Springer, William Wyatt, Kim Frey, Russell Frey, Frey and Swan, Joseph C. Stacy and Charles H. Rush, in the order named. It is at present conducted, as elsewhere stated, by Mrs. Sarah E.
McClelland, widow of the old proprietor, and retains all its ancient prestige, under her admirable management.
[Ill.u.s.tration: THE BROWNFIELD HOUSE.]
The Seaton House was a familiar hostelry in the olden time. It was founded by James C. Seaton in the year 1820, or thereabout. It is located on the northeast corner of Main and Arch streets, diagonally opposite the old McCleary House, and is now known as the West End Hotel.
Mr. Seaton, the old proprietor, came to Uniontown from Virginia, and died in this old house many years ago. The house was built in sections at different times until it reached its present large proportions.
During its occupancy by Mr. Seaton it was a wagon stand of the National Road, and extensively patronized. It was provided with ample grounds for wagons and teams to stand on, which are now covered by the Lingo block and other buildings in the vicinity. Mr. Seaton had three sons: Hiram, James, and John. Hiram was the old toll collector before mentioned, and James was a pike boy in a general way. He drove stage occasionally, and also the express; led horses from station to station on the road, and made himself useful in many other ways. He died at his father"s old tavern in the meridian of the bright era of the road, and before he had reached middle age. John Seaton, the other son, went west, and died recently in Nebraska. Daniel Collier, before mentioned as keeper of the old tavern at Mount Augusta, was a son-in-law of James C. Seaton; and Charles H. Seaton, the well known insurance agent of Uniontown, is a great-grandson of the old proprietor, and others of his descendants are still living in Uniontown and vicinity. After Mr. Seaton"s death this old tavern was continued a number of years by his widow, and growing old she leased it to James Swan, who conducted it for a brief period, Mrs.
Seaton boarding with him in the house. Mr. Swan was succeeded by Philip D. Stentz, and he in turn by J. W. Kissinger, Kim Frey, David G. Sperry, John Messmore and Henry Jennings. The late James T. Redburn bought the property from the Seaton heirs and sold it to John Messmore, who in turn sold it to Henry Jennings. It is now owned and kept by George t.i.tlow, under the name of the West End Hotel, as before stated, well conducted and well patronized.
The old National House is located on the northwest corner of Morgantown and Fayette streets. It was built for a private residence by the late Hon. Thomas Irwin, and occupied by him as such until he was appointed Judge of the United States District Court for the Western district of Pennsylvania, when he moved to Pittsburg. Judge Irwin sold the property to the celebrated Dr. John F. Braddee, of mail robbing notoriety, and he occupied it during the period covered by his depredations upon the mail bags. Its situation for such operations was convenient, as it adjoined the old Stockton stage yard hereinbefore described. After Braddee"s conviction L. W. Stockton acquired t.i.tle to the property, and subsequently sold and conveyed it to Joshua Marsh, who opened it as a tavern. It was the headquarters of the Stockton line of stages from the time it was opened until all stage lines were withdrawn from the road.
James K. Polk, with his family and traveling companions, stopped over night at The National when on his way to the capital to be inaugurated President, in the spring of 1845. A large number of citizens a.s.sembled on the occasion to meet the coming President, and were addressed by him from the high steps in front of the house. The National was a well kept house. Situate a distance from the main street, it was comparatively exempt from the ordinary street noises, and conducted in a quiet manner, disturbed only by the arrival and departure of the stage coaches. Mr.
Marsh, its old proprietor, was a man of retiring disposition, gentle manners, and feeble health. He visited Washington when Mr. Buchanan was inaugurated President, and was one of the unfortunates who were poisoned on that occasion at the National Hotel of that place. He returned home, but never fully recovered from the effects of the poison, and died in Uniontown. Among others who kept the National were George Evans and Col.
Samuel Elder. The latter is still living, a hale octogenarian, at Ligonier Westmoreland county, Pa.
The Clinton House, which stood on a lot adjoining the old Court House, was a popular house throughout its whole career. It was demolished in 1890 by condemnation proceedings, and the lot on which it stood taken by the county for the use of the new Court House. It was erected in 1835 by the late Hon. Andrew Stewart, who occupied it as a private residence and kept his law office in it for a number of years. It was first kept as a tavern by Andrew Byers, and after him, from time to time, until its demolition, by Stephen W. Snyder, whose wife was a Risler, Zadoc Cracraft, Isaac Kerr, Jesse B. Gardner, John Bierer, Calvin Springer, Springer & Renshaw, Bernard Winslow, William Springer, Joseph Wright, J.
R. Thornton, and James I. Feather. General Taylor stopped over night at the Clinton House in 1849, _en route_ to Washington to a.s.sume the office of President of the United States. It was kept at that time by Andrew Byers.
[Ill.u.s.tration: COL. SAMUEL ELDER.]
The Moran House is the old Fulton House, opposite the Court House, on Elbow or Main street. Like the old Seaton House, the Fulton was built in sections, some of them by Seth Howell and others by his predecessors.
Seth Howell kept this house a long time. He was called "Flinger,"
because he had a habit of flinging disorderly persons out of the house, as he termed the process of ejecting. Howell was succeeded by Calvin Springer, and he by William Thorndell, who became the owner of the property. David Mahaney came in after Thorndell, Michael Carter after Mahaney, and it next pa.s.sed to the hands of James Moran, its present occupant and owner, who gave it the name of the Moran House. This old tavern was always well patronized, and continues to be under its present proprietor, who has added many improvements, and the house is in better shape now than at any time heretofore.
The name Mahaney has long been identified with the National Road. The Mahaney House was built and is conducted by Lloyd Mahaney, a son of David, elsewhere mentioned. It is the newest hotel in Uniontown, and the finest in architectural display. It is a hotel, having come into existence after the old inns and taverns had been relegated to the dead past. It is located on a lot formerly owned and occupied by George Ebbert, adjoining the present National Bank of Fayette County on the east, and is on the south side of Main street. It is well managed and does a large business, and is likewise one of the best of the many recent improvements in Uniontown, and reflects credit on its proprietor.
CHAPTER x.x.xIV.
_Old Taverns and Tavern Keepers continued--Uniontown to Searights--Anecdote of John Slack--Slack at Night and Tight in the Morning--Old Roads--Parting Tribute to the Old Taverns of the Mountains--Henry Clay Extols the Virtue of Buckwheat Cakes--Boss Rush and his Poker--Moxleys--The Old Hunter House--Searights--The Grays and the Gray Meeting--Jackson Men and Adams Men Meet and Count Noses--Old Political Leaders--Barnacles of the Road._
The tavern keepers on the "old road," as it is called, were as earnestly opposed to the building of the National Road, as those on the latter were to the building of the railroad, and for like reasons. The following anecdote serves as an ill.u.s.tration: John Slack kept a tavern for many years at the summit of Laurel Hill on the old road, in a house near the Washington Springs. Before the National Road was opened said Slack, in a complaining manner, "Wagons coming up Laurel Hill would stick in the mud a mile or so below my house, when the drivers would unhitch, leave their wagons in the mud, and bring their teams to my house and stay with me all night. In the morning they would return to their stranded wagons, dig and haul them out, and get back to my house and stay with me another night. Thus counting the wagons going east and west, I got four night"s bills from the same set of wagoners." "Now,"
concluded Slack (since the completion of the National Road), with indignation, "the wagoners whiff by without stopping." Old wagoners were accustomed to say of Slack that he was "Slack at night and tight in the morning," meaning that he was clever and cheerful when they "put up"
with him in the evening, and close and exacting in the morning when bills were payable.
The old road referred to was the Braddock road, which from the summit of Laurel Hill, turned northwardly, as before stated, to Gists (Mt.
Braddock), Stewart"s Crossing (Connellsville), Braddock"s Field and Fort Pitt (Pittsburg).
[Ill.u.s.tration: THE SEARIGHT HOUSE.]
An old road between Uniontown and Brownsville was laid out in 1774 by viewers appointed by the court of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, before Fayette county was established, upon a pet.i.tion signed mainly by inhabitants of Brownsville and vicinity, who complained that "they had to carry their corn twenty miles to the mill of Henry Beeson at Uniontown." The distance of twenty miles complained of was by way of the old road known as "Burd"s," from the mouth of Redstone creek to Gists, where it intersected Braddock"s road. The road between Uniontown and Brownsville, above mentioned, was carried east of Uniontown, to intersect the Braddock road, which it did, near Slack"s tavern. The line of the National Road closely follows that of the old road between Uniontown and Brownsville. Marks of the old road are plainly visible to this day, and some of the old buildings, which were erected along its line, are still standing, notably the dwelling of Thomas B. Graham, esq., three miles west of Uniontown, which was an old tavern. This old house was the first residence of the Hon. Andrew Stewart after his marriage, and his oldest son, David Shriver, was born in it.
John Slack, the old tavern keeper before mentioned, was the father of Mrs. McClean, wife of Ephraim McClean, who for many years kept the Cottage tavern on the summit of Laurel Hill, and no doubt the fame of this house under the management of the McCleans is attributable in great measure to the early training of Mrs. McClean in her father"s old tavern, where she was reared.
Heretofore in these pages the reader has been introduced to old taverns and old tavern keepers on the mountain division of the road, a long division covering two hundred miles, including the intervening glades and valleys. Surprise is often expressed that there were so many good taverns in the mountains, remote from fertile fields and needed markets.
That they were equal to the best on the road is conceded; and that the old taverns of the National Road have never been surpa.s.sed for bounteous entertainment and good cheer, is likewise conceded; in fact, has never been disputed. It may seem a trifling thing to be written down in serious history, that the old taverns of the mountains excelled all others in the matter of serving buckwheat cakes; but it is germane and true. To relieve this statement from the imputation of being a trifling one, it may be added that there are men and women still living on the line of the National Road who often heard the great statesman, orator and patriot, Henry Clay, praising the good qualities of the buckwheat cakes furnished by the old mountain taverns with as much fervor and more enthusiasm than he ever exhibited in commending his favorite measure, the Protective Tariff. And, as a matter of fact, it might be stated in this connection, that the making of buckwheat cakes is essentially a home industry, not, however, of the infantile order, and while it may not need protection, is certainly deserving of encouragement. Another memorable feature of the mountain taverns was the immense fires kept constantly burning in the old bar rooms during the old-time winters. In many instances the grates were seven feet in length, with corresponding width and depth, and would contain an ordinary wagon load of coal; and when the fires were stirred up in these immense grates, and set to roaring, the jolly old wagoners occupying the bar rooms paid little heed to the eagerness of the howling mountain weather. The old landlord of the mountains took special pride in keeping up his bar room fire. He kept a poker from six to eight feet long, and would not allow it to be used by any one but himself. Boss Rush, not inaptly termed "the prince of landlords," was so careful and punctilious about the management of his bar room fire that he kept his big poker under lock and key, so that no one could use it but himself, always using it at the right time, and keeping up a uniform and proper temperature for the comfort of his guests. With this parting tribute to the memory of the old taverns and tavern keepers of the mountains, the attention of the reader is now invited to those on the line of the road through the rich valleys of the tributaries of the Ohio. Monroe and Uniontown, and the intervening s.p.a.ce of two miles between these points, are covered in a previous chapter.
Three miles west of Uniontown is an old tavern stand known in late years as the Moxley House. It is a long log and frame building, situate on the south side of the road, with a porch extending along its entire frontage. This house was first kept as a tavern by Bazil Wiggins, an uncle of Harrison Wiggins, the old fox hunter before mentioned, next by John Gray, grandfather of the old and popular conductor from Uniontown to Pittsburg on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, now and for many years deceased. Its next occupant, and from 1836 to 1838, was William c.o.x, a brother-in-law of E. W. Clement, the famous swearer. In 1838 the property was purchased by Thomas Moxley, who went into possession and continued it as a tavern stand down to the year 1863, when Henry Clay Rush bought it and occupied it until the year 1865, when he sold it to Edmund Leonard, its present occupant. When Moxley took charge of this old tavern he gave it the name of "The Half-way House," for the reason that its location is about midway between c.u.mberland and Wheeling. It was always a well conducted tavern, and did a large business, mainly in the line of wagon custom.
Less than a mile west of the old Moxley House, on the south side, and back a few yards from the road, is a fine brick building, which, during a portion of the prosperous era of the road, was a well known and popular tavern stand. The house was built by Robert Hunter, who occupied it for several years, but did not seem inclined to court patronage, and, as a consequence, did not do much business. He leased the house to William Darlington, and moved to Ohio. Darlington, as before stated, had been an old wagoner, was a man of amiable temper, and did a large business at this house. He remained in it until the year 1848, when he moved to the mountain and took charge of the Stone House, then known as the Fayette Springs House, now Dean"s. There he remained until he became the occupant of the Mansion House on the estate of the late Col. Samuel Evans, near Uniontown, where he died. When Darlington vacated the old Hunter House it was turned over to Peter Colley, whose father, Abel Colley, had previously bought it from Hunter. Peter Colley kept the house a number of years, and died in possession. He was a man of quiet deportment, attentive to strangers and travelers, and enjoyed an extensive line of custom, until the termination of the road"s high career. The old tavern is now the private residence of A. A. Taggart, son-in-law of Peter Colley, proprietor of one of the planing mills of Uniontown, and a successful contractor and builder.
[Ill.u.s.tration: JOSEPH GRAY.]
Next, two miles further west, is Searights. Here is the old half-way house between Uniontown and Brownsville, a large stone building on the north side of the road, at the crossing of the great drovers" road of other days leading from the Flats of Grave Creek, Virginia, to Bedford, Pennsylvania. The large stables connected with this house, on the opposite side of the road, are still standing, and in a good state of preservation. In the olden time, in addition to the ordinary travel on the road, sleighing and other parties from Uniontown and Brownsville were accustomed to go to this old tavern for a night"s dancing, and the attending festivities. This is also the battleground of the memorable "Gray Meeting" in 1828, where the opposing hosts between Jackson and Adams went into an open field and measured strength by "counting off,"
the Jacksonians outnumbering their adversaries by a decided preponderance, greatly to the mortification of the weaker column. This meeting was called the "Gray meeting," because the tavern there was then kept by John Gray, formerly of the Moxley House, before mentioned. The leaders on the occasion of this trial of strength were as follows: On the Jackson side, Gen. Henry W. Beeson, Col. Ben Brownfield, John Fuller, David Gilmore, Larkin S. Dearth. Alexander Johnson, Provance McCormick, William F. Coplan, Henry J. Rigdon, William Hatfield and William Searight. On the Adams side: Andrew Stewart, John Dawson, John M. Austin, Israel Miller, E. P. Oliphant, Chads Chalfant, Stokely Conwell, Levi Springer, Dennis Springer, and William Colvin. Prior to 1840 many of the Democratic county meetings and conventions were held at Searights. Before the era of railroads it was a central point for Uniontown, Connellsville and Brownsville. A large water-trough was always maintained at this old tavern, where teams attached to all kinds of wagons, coaches and other vehicles, as well as horses and mules led in droves, were halted for refreshment. At times relays of stage horses for extra occasions were stationed here, and it was always a relay for the line teams moving merchandise. An old sign-board was displayed at the front of the house for many years, bearing in large gilt letters the legend SEARIGHTS. The old tavern at Searights was built by Josiah Frost, about the time the National Road was constructed, and in the year 1821 William Searight acquired it by purchase from Frost. Joseph T. n.o.ble as lessee of William Searight kept the tavern first after it was vacated by Frost. It was kept for a brief period at intervals by William Searight, but owing to his absence from home, being a contractor on public works, he did not give the management his personal attention, but placed it in the hands of James Allison, a well remembered and highly esteemed citizen, subsequently and for many years postmaster at Searights. John Gray, as has been stated, kept this house in 1828. He was succeeded by John Risler, the noted old tavern keeper, before mentioned. Mrs.
Risler"s mother died at this house. Her name was Marsh. After Mr. Risler left, and about 1840, Matthias Fry went into possession, and conducted the house for a number of years. He had been a popular old wagoner, and drew a large wagon trade. He was succeeded by Joseph Gray, son of John, before mentioned, and father of John Gray, the old railroad conductor.
Joseph Gray died in this house in January, 1851. He was a worthy citizen, well deserving of honorable mention. After the death of Joseph Gray the house was kept first by William Shaw, known as "Tavern Keeper Billy," and after him by William Shaw, known as "Wagoner Billy." These two Shaws were not of kin. In 1856 Henry Clay Rush took charge of the house and remained in it until 1863, when he purchased the Moxley property and removed to that point, as before stated. Rush was a popular man, and was liberally patronized by the traveling public. In the fall of 1862, or winter of 1863, the mansion house of Ewing Searight was destroyed by fire, and he moved to the old tavern when Rush vacated it, remained for a while, and subsequently from time to time leased it to James Frost, Alfred McCormick, Thomas Allen, C. W. Downer, Robert Moxley, Lewis Fry and James W. Claybaugh. During the terms of the last mentioned persons the patronage of the house was mostly local. The house is now the private residence of William Searight, a son of Ewing Searight, owner of the property, and late superintendent of the road.
William Searight, the old proprietor, was superintendent of the road for many years, during its flourishing era.
The National Road had its contingent of quaint characters, eccentric men, philosophers in one sense, and loafers in another. They were indigenous to the road, could not live away from it, and enjoyed the precarious subsistence they obtained on it. The load-stone that attracted them and attached them to the road, probably above all other influences, was the pure whisky, before mentioned. It was plentiful and cheap, and could be obtained almost for the mere asking. It did not contain the elements of modern whisky, which excites men to revolution, insurrection, violence and insanity. Of the characters alluded to, whose haunts were at the old taverns along the road between Searights and Brownsville, the reader familiar with that portion of the line will readily recall Marion Smith, (Logan) George Ducket, Jonathan Crawford, John W. Dougherty, Gideon Lehman and Billy Bluebaker. Logan"s forte was imitating the crowing of a rooster. Ducket had no p.r.o.nounced trait, but under a patriotic impulse volunteered as a soldier in the Mexican war, and marched with Major Gardner, Daniel Hazard and the other heroes to the halls of the Montezumas. Crawford was a tailor, and worked at his trade as little as possible, but quietly enjoyed his potations. He had nothing to say. Dougherty was a walking a.r.s.enal, savage in appearance and gesticulation. He carried knives, pistols and a general a.s.sortment of deadly weapons, but was never known to use them on an adversary.
Lehman was also a tailor and ba.s.s drummer. He had a bronzed complexion, and a stolid temperament. Billy Bluebaker was elastic in motion, but lacking in brain. He wore the smallest hat of any individual on the road, and was happy in doing little jobs for old wagoners at his uncle"s tavern. These odd characters have all gone with the majority of the men of the road. They witnessed and in their way partic.i.p.ated in the enlivening scenes of the great highway, and are ent.i.tled to a place in its history.