Nathaniel Massie | An Ohio Surveyor, Farmer, Soldier
When the young Nathaniel Massie first came down the Ohio River he was already a war veteran and schooled in the science and business of surveying. Over the next 2 decades, Nathaniel would dedicate his life to developing the land that would soon become the 17th state of the union. He would found the city of Manchester along the Ohio River in Adams County. He would later found Chillicothe and help make it the first capital of the new state. At the age of 50 he would once again lend his talents in the defense of his country and state at Fort Meigs during the War of 1812.
A Revolutionary War Veteran
As the Revolutionary War dragged on, the British army was seeking a way of bringing the rebellion to a quick end. Lord Cornwallis was tracking a contingent of American forces through the Carolinas and headed for Virginia and it was suspected that he might be headed for the state capital of Richmond. A call went out through Virginia that required all able-bodied men to come to the defense of the state. Young Massie joined the defense of Virginia and along with hundreds of other like-minded young men, met with George Washington in Wilmington on their way to Yorktown where Cornwallis had established a temporary encampment waiting for the British navy to arrive and remove his forces.
A Young Surveyor headed for Kentucky
After the Revolutionary War, Nathaniel Massie at the age of 20, set out for Kentucky headed for land that Daniel Boone had set aside for Nathaniel's father, who gave title to Nathaniel. When other Virginians learned that young Nathaniel was going west, they commissioned him to locate land they had already purchased but had never visited. They gave letters of introduction to Nathaniel that greatly help establish his credibility. His bravery and skill at handling hardships on the frontier became the best form of credibility any person could hope to obtain.
Nathaniel began working with surveying teams and quickly picked up the technical side of surveying. He learned the art of staying alive while surveying from his comrades that had survived more than a few years on the frontier. This experience was invaluable for his future health and well-being. Surveying would earn him much wealth.
Founder of Manchester and Chillicothe
Over the years, Nathaniel became one of the largest land speculators in a specific section of what would become Ohio and this was the Virginia Military District. It was land set aside for Revolutionary War officers who could not be paid for a shortage of cash on hand in the new government. Instead, land in the new frontier could be promised as payment. Most of these veterans had no interest in moving their families to the wild frontier. Instead, they would sell these promisory land deeds to speculators who would then sell them to even larger speculators and so on. Eventually, those deeds would be purchased by someone actually on the frontier that could validate their exact location through surveys. This is what Nathaniel Massie was doing.
The way a surveying team works is that their is the leader of the team, usually referred to as the Colonel. He would be responsible for organizing the surveying crew, making certain all of the deeds were in order, and would be responsible for the team's safety once they were in the field. In return for his efforts he would be paid in tracts of land. Those tracts of land could be sold or disposed of as he saw fit. He would often keep the most attractive lands for himself.
Ohio Farmer
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War of 1812 Veteran
Alia nihil utroque ex sit, in ius hinc mandamus. Quaestio ocurreret vel at, odio amet eam ex. Has verear oporteat recusabo an, eu pro novum putant, eum eu tibique urbanitas. Per no esse atqui. An tota libris deterruisset eum, graeco interesset per an, et vis graece ignota. Sit mollis voluptaria ut, nostro option similique vix cu, eros nostrud aliquando cu ius. Graecis praesent at eos, principes torquatos ex has. Ea malis pertina