William Poland from Ohio and Indiana

My fourth great grandfather William Poland is believed to have been born in Virginia around 1788, but by 1810 he has already made his way to Highland County, Ohio to start his life as a young adult. On January 17th, 1810 William Poland married Mary Swadley (daughter of Nicholas Swadley and Elizabeth Hevener).

William and Mary started their family in Ohio with the birth of their first child Matilda in 1811. The following year, twins Phebe and John were born on February 2, 1812. Then, on July 29th 1813, William entered the war with Great Britain when he enlisted as a private in Captain Daniel McCreery's Company of the Ohio Militia in Col. William Keys' Regiment.

Not much has been found about the missions or orders that William would have been apart of during the war, but Col. Keys was quoted in Scott's "History of Highland" about his early settlement of Highland County. His narrative gives a good picture of what William's surroundings in Ohio would have been like when he and Mary were starting out.  Keys' says "we crossed at the Indian ford, two or three miles above the mouth of the Rocky Fork of Paint and then took the newly cut Anderson State road, which had been recently opened, so far as the chopping down and logging off the trees and saplings were concerned; but the logs were laying strewed helter-skelter over the line of the road, so we had; in order to get along, to commence a log-rolling of some ten miles long, the first day we entered the county."

Keys' journey was much like William's must have been since Keys journeyed from Virginia to Ohio in 1805. In speaking of their long journey of eight weeks from Virginia, he says "Our mode of travelling over the whole length of the road, was like that of the children of Israel to the land of promise; we all took it a-foot, except the aged mother and women with young children; - they rode on horseback, where riding was possible." Quotes from Col. Keys' noted above are from the Highland Weekly News Aug 22, 1867. There is a full article that gives more detail than those I have extracted here. It's worth a look. 

After his service in the War, William returned to Mary and their 3 little ones. They continued to expand the family as William Jr(1815), Nicholas(1817), and Peter(1818) were born. By 1820,
William and Mary can be found in the 1820 US Federal Census in Paint Township, Fayette County, Ohio with 3 young boys (John, William Jr, and Nicholas - Peter had already passed) and 2 young girls (Matilda and Phebe). On July 8, 1820, William purchases 34 acres from Bazel Mussett and his wife Elizabeth as evidenced by a deed recorded. The family continued to grow in Ohio with the addition of Catherine(1821), Nathaniel(1823), Mary(1824) and Elizabeth(1826).

In 1828, William obtains 80 acres of land in Indianapolis, Indiana via Land Patent number 8317.

Interestingly, this tract of land that William bought in Indianapolis maps to the current day location of the Indianapolis International Airport.

So, sometime between 1828 and 1830, William and Mary pack up their children and make the journey to Indiana. By the 1830 US Federal Census, William is in Wayne Township, Marion County, Indiana with Mary, 5 sons, 4 daughters and a female 60-70.

• The 5 sons are: John, Wm Jr, Nicholas, Nathaniel, and Samuel
• The 4 daughters are: Phebe, Catherine, Mary, and Elizabeth
• I speculate that the 60-70 year old female is William's mother as Mary's mother is still in Ohio.

On June 14, 1830, William sells his land in Ohio and proceeds to buy and sell several tracts of land between 1830 and his death in 1856. William seems to have provided for his family by farming, like so many did in those times, along with buying and selling real estate.

William was active in politics in Indiana as is evidenced by a few mentions in the State Indiana Sentinel newspapers. He was listed as one of the gentlemen on the committee from Wayne Township that was appointed to make all proper arrangements for the reception of Gen. Cass when he visited Indianapolis, on August 21, 1844. At a meeting of the Democrats of Wayne Township, William was appointed as one of the forty delegates to the county convention in 1846. William was also listed as one of the "old soldiers" that attended a meeting on February 9, 1850. The object of the meeting was to implore Congress to compensate those who served in the last Great War with Britain either by a grant of lands or otherwise. William was eventually awarded land via the "act granting Bounty Land to certain officers and soldiers who have been engaged in the Military Service of the United States" passed on September 28th, 1850. The award of his bounty land came after William's passing and went to his son Martin. Martin was the only minor child of William at the time of his passing and his quest to obtain his father's bounty are well documented in the pensioners file for William including a handwritten letter from Daniel McCreery as proof of William's service.

William and Mary along with several of their children and descendants are buried in Bethel Cemetery (a nested area within Concordia Cemetery) in Indianapolis. See my other blog post for more information on Bethel Cemetery.