Elijah Priest

As printed in 1874

Elijah Priest was born September 10, 1812, in Muskingum County, Ohio. His father's name was James Priest, and his mother's maiden name was Hannah Anderson. James Priest was a great hunter after deer and bear. On one of his hunting excursions the old gentleman cornered a bear by the root of a tree. It began hugging his hunting dog, and he killed it by striking it on the head with an axe. The fat on the ribs was nearly four inches thick, the fattest bear he ever killed.

Elijah Priest worked in the summer at the business of makingcharcoal, and in the winter he.worked in a furnace for meeting ore into pig-iron. This was, indeed, warm work, so warm, that the sweat ran down into his shoes and squirted out at every step! he took; indeed, it was so hot, that water was poured on his clothes to prevent them from catching fire. It was Mr. Priest's' duty to clear out the hole in order to draw the melted ore from the furnace into the sand-bed to cool into pig metal. The hole was stopped with clay, and when the furnace was heated and the iron melted, this clay became as hard as iron, and had to be drilled out. Mr. Priest drilled it out while from two to four tons of melted iron were in the furnace. If he allowed a particle to fall into the liquid metal, it would boil up and spit out melted iron, and a piece of clay as large as an egg would blow up the whole mass of metal. The hands, who worked at the furnace wore linen, and persons stood near and poured water over them. Mr. Priest worked first in the Mary Ann furnace in Licking County, Ohio, and next in the town of Zoar, in Tuscarawa County. The town of Zoar, as well as the furnace, was owned by a German, named Beimoner. This man provided for the entire town. He employed men to herd the cattle, and women to herd the sheep and geese. Mr. Priest never saw any children in the place.

On the eleventh of September, 1833, the da after he became of age, Mr. Priest married Rebecca Hinthorn, and in June, 1834, he started for the West. He arrived at Money Creek timber on the west side, where he now lives, on the eighth day of July. The journey was a warm and dry one, and he suffered greatly for want of water and food. He ran out of provisions near Big m'lean county. 645

Grove, then called Pin Hook, now called Urbana. He made many enquiries, and heard that a certain man had recently two sacks of meal ground at mill. Mr. Priest wished to buy some, and sent a little boy, named Henry Moats, to get it. Henry came back empty-handed, but reported that the man had a big corn pone on the fire. Mr. Priest then went with the boy, and the latter was instructed to open the door, whenever Priest stood by the fire, Mr. Priest offered to buy some meal, but was refused; then he stood by the fire, where the pone was cooking, and Henry immediately opened the door. Priest was then about to walk ofi" with the pone; but the man of the house saw that he must give way, and he allowed Priest a peck of meal. When Mr. Priest arrived at Money Creek timber, he would have given all he possessed to have been back in Ohio; but it was impossible to get away. He immediately began farming and worked very hard. He never bought a sack of flour after his arrival here, as he always raised his own. He was a man of great strength, and made sometimes three hundred rails in one day.

Mr. Priest has done some hunting, for deer were plenty and easy to kill. He once found a little fawn as he was out in the timber cutting a tree. "When the tree fell the fawn started from its hiding place and jumped into Mr. Priest's arms. It was a pretty, spotted little creature, about two weeks old, and he took it home, and it became very tame, and ran all over the neighborhood. It Avas distinguished from the wild deer by a tassel around its neck. It was a doe, and when it grew up, he raised seven deer; but when game grew scarce, they were all killed by hunters. The doe was killed by Samuel Ogden, who immediately informed Priest that it was done by accident. But the parties, who killed the other seven, were never discovered.

Mr. Priest came to the West a poor man in a borrowed wagon, but has been very industrious, and has succeeded well. Four years ago he was ofi-ered forty-five thousand dollars for his property, but did not consider it for a moment. His property has been earned by his strong muscle and his good judgment.

Mrs. Priest died some years ago, and on the eleventh of September, 1870, Mr. Priest married Mrs. Minerva McCurdy. Her maiden name was ]SIinerva Johnson.

Mr. Priest has had seven children, but four died in infancy, and three are now Uving. They are:

Sarah Priest, James Saulsbury Priest and George Washington Priest.

Mr. Priest is about five feet and nine inches in height, and weighs two hundred and thirty pounds. He is a man of extraordinary strength, and, in his younger days, scarcely knew what it was to be tired. He has worked during his life without the benefit of an education, for an education could not be obtained where he lived in Ohio. But in spite of these disadvantages he has been very successful, and owes nothing to anyone, except good will. He is a very clever man to anyone Avho is disposed to deal fairly and do right with him; but to anyone who is disposed to cut up shines, Mr. Priest is a very unpleasant customer. His memory seems remarkably good, and in conversation he tells of many curious and strange incidents. He is a man with a very strong constitution, and his temperate habits have preserved it unimpaired. With his great strength and good health, he ought to live to be a centenarian and celebrate one hundred Fourths of July.

Samuel Lewis.

As printed in The good old times in McLean County, Illinois / containing two hundred and sixty-one sketches of old settlers, a complete historical sketch of the Black Hawk War and ... all matters of interest relate (1874). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.