William Graham (1800 – 1881)
William was born March 20th 1800 in the Sherman’s Valley region of early northern Cumberland
County Pennsylvania. 1 In 1800, this region bordered Mifflin County at the Juniata River, and
in currently known as Perry County Pennsylvania. i
William’s parents aren’t precisely known, but it is believed that William is the grandson of William
Graham (1719-1805) of Chester County Pennsylvania, who is thought to be of Scotch and Irish
extraction, 2 and the first known Graham pioneer settler of the Sherman’s Valley region. ii
William Graham moved from Perry County Pennsylvania to Cayuga County New York, iii where
he purchased a portion of Military Lot #7 of the old town of Hannibal, now town of Oswego,
from Benjamin and Maria Burt by indenture at Oswego County, New York, dated the
twenty-fifth day of October in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty eight.
The transaction was witnessed November 1, 1828 and recorded January 27, 1829. The cost of the
land was sixty dollars. (Oswego County, NY Deeds Book H page 118 confirmed on
FamilySearch.com)
William was a stone mason, but followed merchandising and farming. 3 While living in the area
of Oswego in Oswego County New York, William married Elizabeth "Betsey" Angeline Beach
of Conquest Cayuga County New York on January 23rd 1831. 4 Betsey was born May 5th 1808.
About 1832 William Graham & Company rented a store at Sterling Center New York from Samuel
Crawford. iv William's partner, Bonesteed of Oswego, furnished the goods. 5 The principal buyers
were Blickensderfer & Slingluff, Graham, Hildt, Hayden & Welty, Smith Towner and Louis Lee. 6
On March 18th 1835, William and Betsey Angeline Graham, of the town of Sterling, County of
Cayuga, New York sold their parcel of land on Military Lot #7 in Oswego v to Henry and
i
There were 7 original Townships affiliated to Cumberland County prior to Perry being established in 1821. PrePerry County formation included Juniata Township Cumberland County, which is present day Tuscarora Township
Perry County Pennsylvania. Shermans Valley stretched through a number of present day townships. Tyrone and
Rye where formed from a portion of Tyrone Township (Rye is later used to form Juniata; Wheatfield; portions of
Centre and Carroll; Oliver; Penn; Miller; Tuscarora. ; The Handy Book for Genealogists, United States of America,
8th Edition, published by The Everton Publishers, Inc., Logan, Utah.] [County Courthouse Book, compiled by
Elizabeth Petty Bentley, Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, MD, 1990.
ii
William Graham – some years ago, before 1789, came from Chester County to live in Raccoon Valley, near Bulls
Mill; William Graham 1766 Sherman’s Valley: The Scotch-Irish, Vol 2, by Charles Hanna, 1985, PA State
Library, page 73, R929, 3411, V2.
iii
It isn’t clear why William moved from Perry County to New York, but it has been speculated that William may
have left Perry County Pennsylvania to New York to seek employment, building canal locks; Mr. Harry Lenig of the
Perry County Historians, Perry Historians, P. O. Box 73, Newport, PA 17074. In the 1820's the Oswego Canal
between the Erie Canal and Lake Ontario was opened. Locks had been built to enable boats to negotiate the falls of
the Oswego, which drop 14 feet at Fulton, and a series of rapids to the north, which drop another 30 feet. (Not
certain where I found this. It’s speculation that using the canal system from Cayuga Co., NY to Canal Dover, Ohio
was the only sensible way to go.
iv
It was also about 1834 when Samuel Crawford again assumed management of his store in Sterling Center until the
fall of 1835, when he sold his stock to his clerk, John Gilchrist. The stock changed hands several times until Mr.
Crawford died in 1837 and his father-in-law, Liva Peck assumed ownership of the store; Page 254, History of
Cayuga County New York, 1879, edited by Elliot G. Storke, Syracuse, N.Y. , D. Mason, New York Genealogy and
History Resources, US Genealogy Web Project, coordinated by Robert G. Sullivan and Martha S. Magill.
v
The deed for Military Lot #7 in Oswego was not recorded until October 30 th 1835.
Elizabeth Hunt for the sum of ninety dollars. 7 (Oswego County, NY Deeds Book T page 306
confirmed on FamilySearch.com)
On September 5th 1839, William Graham & Co. advertised a new supply of goods.
8
William and Betsey had 8 children; taken from the family bible. When William died Father
Graham had 12 children; eight by his first and four by his last marriage9
i.
Mary Helen Graham was born June 2nd 1832 and died August 4th 1897. 10
ii.
James Louden vi Graham was born August 1st 1833in Sterling New York, and died
March 30th 1834 in Sterling New York. 11
iii.
William Wheaton Graham was born September 6th 1835 and died November 6th 1853.
iv.
Emmet Garrow Graham was born April 27th 1838 and died January 25th 1840 in
Canal Dover, Tuscarawas County Ohio. vii
Are the dates of birth and death correct? Yes, the dates are from the bible. Thoughts
on their death? This is too early for Ohio death records and for area newspapers.
Graves have not been located, so no hints. Being that they were young children and in
the winter, perhaps influenza or pneumonia?
v.
Henry Ream Graham was born December 29th 1839 and died December 15th 1840 in
Canal Dover, Tuscarawas County Ohio. viii
vi.
James Emmet Graham was born September 30th 1842 and died March 19th 1891
vii.
Charles Howard Graham was born May 16th 1844and died June 4th 1908 at Salem
Oregon.
viii.
Frederick (Fred) Augustus Graham was born March 26th 1846 and died ca 1900-1910
Sometime William, Betsey and Mary Helen packed up the belongings they needed or treasured
most, and disposed of what remained, and began their trip to Canal Dover on the Tuscarawas
River in Tuscarawas County Ohio. The Ohio and Erie Canal had just recently been completed.
Their long journey ended, the young Graham family settled first at Canal Dover. ix While
living in Ohio, William was a stonemason by trade, but followed farming. x It was about this
time that Canal Dover was becoming a great wheat market of the area.
James’s Middle name is spelled “Louden”, and is most likely a misspelling for “Loudoun or Loudon”. Fort
Loudoun, or (Fort Loudon, after the modern spelling of the town) was a fort in colonial Pennsylvania, one of several
forts in colonial America named after John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun.
vii
The City was always called Dover but the post office was called Canal Dover for many years because of other
Dover, Ohio, post offices that were later abolished, after which the Canal Dover Post Office became Dover. This
change was made December 18, 1915; Historic Canal Dover Association, 109 W. 3rd Street, Suite 201, Dover,
Ohio.
viii
IBID.
ix
IBID.
x
One biographical sketch found in The History of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, 1884, Warner, Beers & Co., p 815, a
Tuscarawas County, OH history book.
vi
12
William possessed indomitable energy, and he would reduce everything to a system, and
tolerated nothing but promptness. He purchased a farm between Dover and New Philadelphia,
on which he resided for a number of years. Subsequently William moved to New Philadelphia,
where the mercantile firm of Dye & Graham would be located in the Schoch grocery building.
Not long after moving to New Philadelphia, William moved to the Jacob Casbeer farm, off the
Uhrichsville road, and after a few years sold the farm, and about 1866 moved back to New
Philadelphia.
In his lifetime, William was a successful grain buyer and merchant, and also a Collector of tolls
on the Ohio and Erie canal. 13 At the time many businessmen of all qualifications were
attempting to establish here. Business began to flourish and competition was great. It was said
that many businesses had runners who would go up the road to meet the farmers as they
approached town with their wagons loaded. They would try to make a bargain with this farmer
and then go on to the next, before their competitors were able to do so. 14
Betsey Graham died June 3rd 1849,15 most likely from complications associated with child birth, in
Goshen Township, Tuscarawas County, Ohio. 16 Four years later William married Melissa Miller
on June 30th 1853. Melisa was born September 19th 1818 and died November 8th 1906.
William and Melissa had 4 children.
ix.
Edward Miller Graham was born July 2nd 1854 and died September 13th 1871
x.
Marshall Culbertson Graham was born March 15th 1856 and died February 17th
193517
xi.
Catherine M. Graham was born May 1st 1858 and died October 19th 1934
xii.
Frank Graham was born June 24th 1860 and died May 21st 1926
William and his family were devoted Baptist, and was baptized by Rev. Miles. Along with the
families of George Crites, Benjamin Miller and William Karnes, William and his family were
among the earliest and staunchest Baptists of New Philadelphia. 18
After a prolonged illness with Flux, xipast his 81st birth date, William was surrounded by his
children when he passed away in his home in New Philadelphia in Tuscarawas County, Ohio on
Tuesday, September 6th 1881. His funeral services xiiwere conducted on the spacious lawn
surrounding his residence, on Thursday, September 8th, by Rev. P. M. Weddell, of Piqua, Ohio. 19
xi
Flux, or bloody flux, is known today as Dysentery, which is an inflammation of the intestine, especially the colon.
Symptoms include severe diarrhea with blood and mucus, fever, abdominal pain, and infection.
xii
At the funeral services, Rev. P. M. Weddell talked from Rev. 22:14, "Blessed are they that do his commandments
that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in, through the gates, into the city." He was assisted by
Rev. Charles McNulty, (Presbyterian,) in scriptural readings of the 23rd psalm, and from Revelations 21:1-7, and
Revelations 22:1-14, and by Rev. Dr. Steck, (Lutheran,) in devotions. His favorite hymns, "Sweet Bye and Bye,"
and "Home Over There," were sung, and his feeble voice seemed to be echoing the strains from Glory Land; Ohio
Democrat, Thursday, September 15, 1881, Obituary, microfilm, Dover Public Library, Dover, Ohio.
When William died, seven of his children were still living: Mrs. Judge Patrick, (Mary Helen,) in
New Philadelphia; C.H. Graham, at Quasqueton, Iowa; F.A., at McConnellsville, Ohio; M.C., at
Bayard, Ohio; J.E., at Uhrichsville, Ohio, and Miss Kate and Frank, with their mother in New
Philadelphia. He has also 12 grandchildren living..--C. in Tus. Chronicle. What is this? The
Tuscarawas Chronicle was a newspaper published in Uhrichsville, Ohio. Eventually, James
Emmett Graham became the editor of the paper, later trading it for a newspaper in Union
County, Ohio. I found that often, one area paper would quote another.
Bibliography
1. William and Betsy Graham’s Extended Family Bible is in the possession of Gayle Graham
Low, 2408 Hamrick Drive, Raleigh, NC 27615
2. 1840 William Graham Census: Dover, Tuscarawas, Ohio; Roll: 430; Page: 280; Image: 590;
Family History Library Film: 0020178; Ancestry.com. 1840 United States Federal Census
[database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images
reproduced by FamilySearch. Sixth Census of the United States, 1840. (NARA microfilm
publication M704, 580 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29.
National Archives, Washington, D.C.
End Notes
William Graham Birth: The date and place of birth came from the William and Betsy Graham’s extended family
bible, in the possession of Gayle Graham Low, 2408 Hamrick Drive, Raleigh, NC 27615
1
William Graham trade and family origins: The information was extracted from William and Betsy Graham’s son,
James E. Graham, History of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, 1884.
3
William Graham trade and family origins: The information was extracted from William and Betsy Graham’s son,
James E. Graham, History of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, 1884.
4
William Graham and Betsy Beach Marriage: On the twenty-third day of January 1831, William was united in
marriage to Betsey Angeline Beach at Cayuga County, New York. Their marriage was announced in the Geneva
Gazette, February 9, 1831: Graham, William of Oswego married January 23, 1831, Angeline Beach of Conquest in
C. (From 10,000 Vital Records of Central NY 1813-1850; Bowman)
2
5
William Graham & Co. Reference: Page 254, History of Cayuga County New York, 1879, edited by Elliot G.
Storke, Syracuse, N.Y. , D. Mason, New York Genealogy and History Resources, US Genealogy Web Project,
coordinated by Robert G. Sullivan and Martha S. Magill
6
according to REMINISCENCES OF DOVER
William and Betsy Graham Property: In an indenture dated the eighteenth day of March 1833. Oswego “Co.,
NY…Vol. T, page 306
7
8
William Graham and Co: the Ohio Democrat, microfilm, Dover Public Library, Dover, Ohio.
9
William Graham Children: William Graham Obituary, Ohio Democrat, Thursday, September 15, 1881, Obituary,
microfilm, Dover Public Library, Dover, Ohio.
10
Mary Helen Birth: On the second day of June 1832, William and Betsey greeted their firstborn at Oswego. They
called her Mary Helen; William and Betsy Graham’s extended family bible is in the possession of Gayle Graham
Low, 2408 Hamrick Drive, Raleigh, NC 27615
James London Graham Birth and Death Date: William and Betsy Graham’s extended family bible is in the
possession of Gayle Graham Low, 2408 Hamrick Drive, Raleigh, NC 27615
11
12
William Wheaton Graham Birth: By the fall of 1835, the family again continued to grow. William Wheaton
Graham was born at Canal Dover on September 6; William and Betsy Graham’s extended family bible is in the
possession of Gayle Graham Low, 2408 Hamrick Drive, Raleigh, NC 27615
William’s Occupation: Ohio Democrat, Thursday, September 15, 1881, Obituary. microfilm, Dover Public
Library, Dover, Ohio.
13
14
Reminiscences of Dover , prepared by Hon. S. Harmount, Mrs. Eliza Slingluff, William W. Scott, Canal Dover
Ohio, 1879; Dover Public Library, Dover, Ohio.
Betsy Graham’s Death Date: William Graham Obituary, Ohio Democrat, Thursday, September 15, 1881,
Obituary, microfilm, Dover Public Library, Dover, Ohio.
15
16
Betsey Angeline Graham Death: 1850 Ohio Mortality Census, Tuscarawas Co., Goshen Twp., William Graham
Obituary, Ohio Democrat, Thursday, September 15, 1881, Obituary, microfilm, Dover Public Library, Dover, Ohio.
17
Marshal Graham: The information was extracted from page 921, The History of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, A
History of the County; It’s Townships, Towns, Churches, Schools, Etc..J.B. Mansfield, W.H. Beers and Co.,
Warner, Beers and Co., (Chicago Il.), Warner, Beers and Co., Chicago Publication1884.
18
William Graham Death: Iron Valley Reporter, Saturday, September 10, 1881: Ohio Democrat, Thursday,
September 15, 1881, Obituary, microfilm, Dover Public Library, Dover, Ohio.
19
William Graham Death: Iron Valley Reporter, Saturday, September 10, 1881: Ohio Democrat, Thursday,
September 15, 1881, Obituary, microfilm, Dover Public Library, Dover, Ohio.