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The William D. Douglass family and their
descendants have been leading agriculturists in Madison Township ever
since their arrival. William, born in Pennsylvania in 1764, was the son
of George Douglass. Both father and son fought in the Revolution.
William Douglass married Mary, daughter of Samuel and Mary Fisher
Scott. The Scotts were among the early families of Kentucky who were
menaced by the Indians, who killed the mother of Mary Scott, wife of
William Douglass.
They located on the Pickaway Plains before
moving to Madison Twp. They located their 1,200 acre land grant south of
the town.
Douglass was a teamster in Washington's Army by the
time he was sixteen, and never outlived his love of fine horses. He
continued to raise and breed the best animals available on their farm.
The children of William and Mary Scott Douglass were:
1.
Sarah (Sally) Douglass 7/18/1791-7/18/1880 (Mrs. Robert Smith)
2.
Margaret Douglass 12/31/1794-3/9/1883 (Mrs. Rev. Ludwell Graham Gaines)
3. Robert Scott Douglass 1796-1878
4. David Douglass 1801-1861
5. William D. Douglass 1805-1866
6. James Douglass
4/28/1807-10/5/1886
7. Polly Douglass B Abt. 1810
8. Samuel C.
Douglass 1812-1898
9. Alexander L. Douglass 1815-2/23/1900
James Douglas married Mary Mackerly, who became the mother of Mary S.
(Mrs. J. W. Quinn, Martha L. 1843-1949 Mrs. Cyrus P. Wilson, William
Henry 1845-1929; Ariadiane (Mrs. Robert Dill), and James Norman Douglass
born Nov. 29, 1849.
After James was married, he took over the
farm. In 1848, he contracted with Paul Minor to erect a new brick home.
Mack and George Prine assisted with the construction. Brick were burned
on the farm to use in the walls. When completed, the Douglass home was
one of the most outstanding. The home was the birthplace of the youngest
son in the family.
William Henry, eldest son of James Douglass,
was only a lad in his teens when he enlisted as a member of the 168th
Reg. during the Civil War. After the war, he attended Miami University,
then taught school for eight years, he also read law in the office of R.
S. Leake, attorney of Greenfield. He was admitted to the bar, but
preferred to farm. He married, Susan, daughter of Samuel Wyant of Ross
Co. They had two daughters, Bertha and Elizabeth. Bertha, born in 1886,
was killed in a tragic accident when a mere child. The horse became
frightened and she was thrown from the buggy in which she was riding.
James Norman Douglass, completed his education, married Rose,
daughter of Peter and Rachel Porter, also of Ross Co. He built up one of
the finest registered herds in Ohio. Later he became associated with the
Peoples Bank of Greenfield. They were the parents of two daughters, Mary
Chriswell and Laura Lucille Douglass.
Members of the Douglas
(Douglass) family arrived in American in 1643. Edward Douglas paid for
his passage and for others in the family by transporting immigrants to
American shores.
He was granted land for transporting passengers,
and it was on the land granted him that he established the Douglas
plantation, so noted in the early annals of the Revolution. James
Douglas married Catharine Collier, sister of James, who immigrated to
Madison Twp. He was a brother of the first Wm. Douglass. Another early
descendent married Sarah George, whose descendants also came to Highland
Co.
William Douglas (info. furnished by DAR)
William Douglass
was a native of Pennsylvania and was the son of George Douglass, soldier
of the Revolutionary War. William Douglass, himself though only a youth
in his teens when the war ended, had the honor of being enrolled in the
Continental Army, and served as a teamster in the same regiment with his
father. After the war, he married Mary, daughter of Samuel Scott, also a
soldier of the Revolution. Thus he left to his descendants a family
history particularly rich in patriotic endeavor.
Soon after 1810,
William Douglass settled near Greenfield where he purchased nearly 1000
acres of land. Here he spent the remainder of his life was spent. His
death occurred Dec. 23, 1852, his wife having passed away some years
previously. Though never prominent in public life, he was loyal in
support of the church and schools and his name appears among the
subscribers to the Greenfield Academy, founded in 1845.
His
oldest son, Scott Douglass, was a man of note in the community whose
name is still commerated by "Douglass Park" donated for the use of the
public by his daughter, Lucy Douglass Welsheimer. Other children of Wm.
and Mary Douglass were David, William, Samuel, James and Alexander;
Sally, wife of Robert Smith, and Polly, wife of Theophilus Gaines. The
family name is still preserved in the community by their grandsons, J.
N. Douglas, David Douglass, and Wm. L. Douglass and by the children of
John S. and William A. Douglass. Descendents of the Revolutionary
Soldier residing in Greenfield but not bearing the family name are
William A. Anderson, Mrs. Mary Kerr-Beatty and Mrs. Laura McGarraugh-Robinson.
Abstract of Graves of Revolutionary Patriots
Name: William
Douglass
Cemetery: Greenfield Cem
Location: Highland Co OH 55
Reference: Abstract of Graves of Revolutionary Patriots, Vol.1, p.
Serial: 11912; Volume: 4
Father: George Douglass born 10/10/1738
in Washington, Pa.
Died 7/19/1798 Sherman's Valley, Pa.
Mother:
Martha Watson born 1738 Hanover Twp., Lancaster Co., Pa.
Died 1803
Greenpark, East Hanover Twp., Cumberland Co., Pa.
George Douglass and
Martha Watson were married 1763 in Pa.
George Douglass 1738-1798 was
also in the Rev. War.
"Wills, Administrations, Guardianships and
Adoptions of Highland County, Oho (1805-1880) Compiled by David N.
McBride, Page 7
Douglass, George of "Township of Tyson in the County
of Cumberland & State of Pennsylvania, yeoman."
Date July 28, 1798
Wife: Martha
Sons: "...until my son Watson arrives at the age of
twenty one years," George, William
Daughters: Sarah McClure,
Margarett Scott, Martha, Elizabeth. "If either of my two sons, George or
Watson should happen to die before they are marryed or twenty one
years...of the are marryed."
Executors: "my said wife and my well
beloved son William Douglass of the township of Tyrone aforesaid and my
true trusty and loving friend - Wilson McClure Esqr of the same place."
Witnesses: Thomas McClure, John McClure, John Darlington
Note: As
previously stated, William D. Douglass and Mary Scott were not the
parents of Watson Douglass. Per the will of George Douglass, above,
Watson was the son of George and Martha Watson Douglas and a brother to
William D. Douglass.
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