Anthony M Baltimore

Apr 17 1940 INTERVIEW.

Interview with Anthony M. Baltimore N. E. Corner 3d and Hill Street, Albany, Oregon.

Mr. Anthony M. Baltimore, on being questioned, gave the following statements-

My grandfather was the first of the Baltimore family to reach Oregon. His name was Philip Baltimore and he came in the year 1853. I can tell but little concerning his life except that his home in the East was somewhere near South Bend, Indiana where he went to do his trading and where his blacksmithing work was done at the Studebaker Blacksmith shop. This shop later became the famous Studebaker wagon factory and at a later date developed into the great Studebaker Automobile Factory.

My grandmother Baltimore's maiden name was Polly Hardman. She was the mother of seven children, most of them born in the East before crossing the plains. Their names were-

Betsey Baltimore. Born July 17, 1837. She married in Iowa and never came to Oregon.

David Baltimore. Born April 13, 1840. Died in infancy.

Alfred Baltimore. Born Oct. 13, 1844. Came to Oregon with his parents in 1853 at the age of about 12 years.

Clarissa Baltimore. Born Feb. 22, 1844.

John B. Baltimore. Born April 10, 1847.

William V. Baltimore. Born Sept. 13, 1849.

P. J. Baltimore. Born Sept. 5, 1858.

Aaron H. Baltimore, (Father of the informant). He was born near South Bend, Indiana May 7, 1835. He was about eighteen years old when he came to Oregon. He died at the age of 75 years, 5 months. (October, 1910).

The Baltimores started for Oregon in the spring of 1853. Grandfather took up a claim situated about half way between Lebanon and Albany in Linn County. There he lived until the time of his death. The home of the Baltimores was in Indiana but the autumn before coming to Oregon they had moved on as far as Iowa so as to get an early start in the spring.

My father, Aaron Baltimore, married my mother, Martha Clifton near Lebanon. Mother came to Oregon with her parents in 1847 when about 12 years of age. That would make her birth date 1835. The train in which she came was led by Captain Reuben Claypool. Claypool was a preacher of the Methodist denomination and he settled on a foothill claim situated about one mile south of Rock Hill, Linn County. Mother's people settled near Rock Hill also. Other early settlers there were the Bob Miller family. Bob Miller was my mother's uncle and his wife was also a Claypool. Milton A. Miller, a prominent political figure in Linn County was a member of that family. Another early settler in that region was Gamalial Parrish whose old house, built in the 1850's is still standing.

I was born in a log cabin north of Lebanon on September 22, 1858. I was just three weeks younger than my youngest uncle. (P.J. Baltimore.) I sent to school at what was then known as the Burkhart Schoolhouse but which is now called "Spicer" school. The name Spicer comes from a little railroad station which was formerly situated on the Linn County "Narrow Gauge" Railroad which was built through that neighborhood in 1880. Later, when the bridge across the South Santiam was washed out and its site proved to be too treacherous for rebuilding the "Narrow Gauge" was rerouted by way of Lebanon and the line abandoned through Spicer. The "Narrow Gauge" has of course long since been altered to standard gauge.

My first teacher at Burkhart School was named Hillery. I had two sisters and one brother who also went to school there. They were-

Lincoln Baltimore. He died at Lebanon about 1909.

Anna Baltimore. Her married name was Powell. She married John Powell, a son of Franklin Powell and a grandson of John Powell Sr. The elder John Powell was a Christian Church Preacher at the old Central Church east of Albany.

Viva Baltimore. Her married name was Viva Grace.

Anthony M. Baltimore (Informant).

These comprise all the Aaron Baltimore family.

One of the early churches in Linn County was organized near my grandfathers claim. It was a Brethren, or "Dunkard" church. Daniel Leedy organized it. He came to Oregon about 1854 and the church was organized in 1856 and was claimed to be the first "Brethren" church ever organized west of the Rocky Mountains. There were a number of active Dunkard members scattered about Linn County in the early days. Among them were the Hardmans who lived in our neighborhood and the Wigles who lived south of Brownsville and about Harrisburg. Daniel Leedy, a Brethren preacher had written that he was coming to Oregon to engage in Christian work. When autumn came and he had not arrived the Wigles became greatly concerned and started out to see if they might meet him. They met him in the mountains coming over the McKenzie Pass and helped him on his way. I believe that it was Jacob Wigle who met Leedy.

The Church was organized in the Baltimore-Hardman neighborhood and first held its meetings in residences, halls and local schoolhouses. About the year 1878 a church building was erected. It was first called the Willamette Valley Church, later the Lebanon Church. The congregation finally dwindled and the society grew weak and the building was taken over by the Mennonites. Finally the society was reorganized and moved to Albany where a new building was erected on Santiam Road and Pine Street.

The original church building first stood on the corner of the road intersection on the Philip Baltimore claim. This was just north of the Santiam Canal and about two miles west of the old Spicer Station. The church building was later sold. It was purchased by my niece, Ava Reed, who moved it about one-fourth mile east and converted it into a residence. Thus remodeled it is still standing and occupied.

In the early days all lumber was sawed in this region by the use of the old fashioned "Up and down" saws. The carriage holding the logs was frequently pushed by hand and the sash saws went "Rip,rip."Those old saws worked very slowly compared to modern saws and after the lumber had been sawed out it had all to be dressed and planed by hand. It was from such a mill, situated on "Mill Creek" north of grandfather's claim that he obtained the lumber for his house. I cannot tell who owned that mill but I know that there was one mill operated by Anderson Cox and another mill owned by John Powell, the Christian Church Preacher. By the way, when John and Noah Powell retired in their old age they lived here in Albany, one on 3d Street and the other on 4th Street just east of my present home."

When questioned about the early pottery which was situated near the Baltimore claim, the informant said-

No, I do not remember that pottery nor ever heard that there was one there. I do remember a potter who worked at his trade near here but his name was Clymer, not Ramsay. I have seen him working at his trade when I was just a little tad. His wheel and kiln were situated on the Albany-Lebanon road about two and one-half miles east of Spicer. There were some Ramsays lived on the farm which you mention but they must have been of a younger generation and none of them were potters. The Clymer who ran the pottery also owned a place near Talllman."(Note-C. Clymer took up a Donation land claim in Section 31. Township 11 South, Range 2 West, near Tallman. A William Clymer owned this land or a portion of it in 1878. The pottery site as described must have been in Section 27, Township 11 South Range 2 West. It seems most probable that William Clymer was the potter mentioned. L. H.) (-Atlas Map of Marion and Linn county, Edgar Williams & Co., San Francisco, 1878.)

In conclusion I will say that I am an old Bachelor, never having married. I am now over 80 years of age. I belong to the Brethren Church here at Albany."

Copyright © 2000 Patricia Dunn. All rights reserved. This transcription may not be reproduced in any media without the express written permission by the author. Permission has been given by the Transcriber to publish on the LGS web site.