A Little piece of Paradise… College Hill, Ohio - SELFCRAFT

Chapter 9Danforth WitherbyDanforth Witherby was a Methodist minister who rode a circuit from Oxford, Ohio south intoHamilton County. On his travels down old Colerain Pike he saw the beauty and fertile soil of the CollegeHill area. In 1799 he bought fifty acres north and an additional fifty acres south of Colerain Pike(Belmont Avenue). By 1801 he had constructed a one and a half story log cabin with trees he clearedfrom his own land, which extended to Kirby Road. His family, sons Oliver, Luther, and Thomas Branch,joined him in 1802. The cabin “had a low ceilinged room, a bare seven feet high, is approximately sixteenfeet square. It had three doors, east, west, and north, and four windows. In the middle of the south wall isthe brick chimney...Great beams, eight inches square, were used...Here you see the neat dovetailing an thewhittled pegs that served instead of spikes or bolts. The black walnut floor is still well preserved.” 2 Sincehe had to carry water uphill from his well, he decided to move closer to his water. This well was soreliable that it always remained clean and never failed during droughts. The College Hill area is atop alarge aquifer which accounts for its original multitude of lakes.He moved his cabin 1,000 feet, rotating it to face west. In 1839 he built a two-story brick northaddition, with an inside stairway leading to the upper floor. The cabin was then covered by cement. Asmall kitchen and thirty foot dining room were added to accommodate the men that needed to be fedduring threshing season. At this time the cabin belonged to his son Thomas Branch.“There were broad fireplaces in the east parlor and the room above...The fire in the cabin room ...was never allowed to go out from the first frost until the end of the winter season, the great green backlogdragged by horses from the woods in the rear of the property…” 3Not relying on preaching along, Danforth was a cooper during the winter months; making staves,lard kegs and pork barrels, and in 1839 a kiln to fire brick was added on his property. In the other seasonshe was a farmer.He and Aaron Burdsall preached on alternating Sundays in the school house. In Mt. Pleasant (Mt.Healthy) a plain brick church was built that was shared by all denominations until the various faithsbecame large enough, and wealthy enough, to build their own individual churches.A contract dated February 1, 1835, shows his output. “One thousand kegs to be 1-inch cut head and16-inch worked staves, and to be made out of Good Seasoned white oak staves and heads, and in the bestworkmanship manner at forty cents a keg.”Danforth left College Hill for Oxford and Miami University. He, several of his children, and hissecond wife Lydia Yillet, are buried at Oxford.Luther and two of his sons are buried in Gard Cemetery. Luther married Juliana Brown, daughter ofEphraim Brown and Eunice Gard, and they had nine children.Oliver became a lawyer, going west for the 1849 gold rush. In San Diego, California he started a lawpractice and became a respected judge and was the president of the Consolidated Bank of San Diego.By 1830 Thomas Branch (‘Branch’) Witherby “... was married, having brought home to the smallcabin Mercy Van Zandt, first cousin of Alice and Phoebe Cary. With a growing family, more room wasneeded.” Branch inherited the property after his father died. Branch was a successful farmer and operateda brick plant, donating the bricks used to build Farmers’ College. A relative, John Price, contributed allthe paint and labor needed to complete the College.Ella Ferry wrote: “When Branch Witherby and his wife retired from the farm, it was leased to adairyman and barns stabling sixty-five head of cattle were built about one hundred and fifty feetsouthwest of the house. These barns were destroyed by lightening and the splendid dining room built foruse at threshing season was torn down by the lessee, who found it cheaper to do that than to put on aneeded new roof.” Ella referred to the incident in more detail in one of her letters: “Momma used to so2 The Daily, Old College Hill Well Still Serving Thirsty, S. Winslow Bell, Sept. 5, 1927.3 The Witherby Place, Ella Ferry from the collection of Ruth J. Wells.64