History of Galloway, Ohio - Part 1

(The following was recorded from memory by Myrtle Brooks Burnside with the help of George Lavely, and is reprinted from “Reflections II”, a collection of local stories available at the Grove City Welcome Center and Museum. Any opinions made in the article are from the authors.)The military grant in this area was in 1887, $1 per acre. Some purchased large sections. People lived in this vicinity as early as 1852 in log cabins. As I was the first child who lived in what is now Galloway, I remember quite a number of event of events that probably would be of much interest, if I had the time to relate them.Several years after Roseline Smith with her family, had moved into what was known as the woods, which was something less than a mile north of what is now known as Galloway, my father, Nells J. Brooks with my mother and myself moved near the home of Roseline Smith; Mrs. Smith being my father's sister. This move was made in February 1872, just 50 years ago.The ambition of Roseline Smith and Samuel Galloway was to have a town here for the accommodation of the farmers of the surrounding county where they could sell their grain and avoid the distance to Columbus and where they could also get produce for themselves.The roads being impassable many times, slabs and sawdust from the sawmill were used to repair them. This was done by alternating layers of sawdust with layers of slabs, thereby making very good roads. As much hauling was done over them, they needed replenishing often, which was not difficult, is there was much material at hand. After reaching the National Road, there was a good pike. It may seem strange to the younger generation to try to realize that it took two-and-a-half to three hours to travel from the National Road to Galloway.In the winter time Mr. and Mrs. Smith would start very early for Columbus, if the weather was cold, in order to get through before the fall. They traveled in a large spring wagon and would bring back great quantities of groceries, dry goods, drugs such as quinine and other ague cures. The ague was very bad because of the swampy conditions of the land. The woodcutters gave them large orders for drugs.After a day of hurried shopping they would start for home, find a team of oxen awaiting them where they left the National Road. The two oxen together with the two horses hitched to their spring wagon, would finally get them home after pulling them through mud which sometimes reached the hubs.(The continuation of this story in the next blog entry).