Alonzo Strong
Alonzo was born in Durham, Connecticut, on November 5, 1805. His parents were William Augustus Strong and Abigail Crane. In 1806, when he was one year old, the family moved to Atwater, Ohio where they were early settlers. He built the first frame house in Atwater. Two children made the trip, Maria and Alonzo. Maria died soon after they migrated and was the first grave in the town cemetery. A second child, Luzerne was born in Atwater.
His mother returned to Durham, CT about 1809 leaving Alonzo and his brother Luzerne in Atwater. According to a letter written by his grandson, Luzerne was still nursing and was cared for by “strangers” when she left. According to William’s grandson, William made a trip back to Connecticut to persuade Abigail to return to Atwater, but she refused. He remarried Maria Gully in 1811 without the benefit of divorce as another trip to Connecticut to obtain one would expensive. An ad in the Middletown, CT. paper declared that he had no further responsibility for any purchases made by Abigail.
William enlisted in the militia and marched to Sandusky after the British invaded northern Ohio. His unit was diverted to Cleveland and returned to Atwater after a few days. Later, in May of 1914, he enlisted in the regular army for the duration of the war, leaving Luzerne and Alonzo with his new bride, Maria. Maria had given birth to Ira a month or so before William left for the war.
William was sent to Black Rock, NY., which is now a suburb of Buffalo. He was sick for most of his enlistment and probably did not see any military action. He died in BlackRock in November 1814. His gravesite, along with many others, has been lost and is most likely paved over for a parking lot.
Alonzo and Luzerne were sent back to Connecticut for schooling. We have no information about who cared for these young boys, as Abigail had died the previous September. William’s brother Russell lived in Buffalo, but he died in September 1914. The boys returned to Atwater as orphans. Their stepmother could not or would not care for them. She remarried John Queer, who also marched to Sandusky in the militia at the same time as William.
Alonzo was bound out to Joseph Hartzell, a prominent farmer in the southeast corner of Deerfield which also is considered North Benton. For his trade, he was sent to Cleveland, where he learned the trade of wool dressing. Later, he learned the skill of building barns, possibly in Salem. As a young man, he used this barn-building trade in New York State and Cleveland. (Several Strong Families of Durham, CT. migrated to Freehold, later known as Durham, NY, on the Hudson River in the Catskills. It is likely that he worked in this area of New York).
Alonzo married Christine Lazarus in 1828 and bought the farm adjacent to the Lazarus mill property. He was the original owner of that land. The Lazarus family operated a grist mill on Mill Creek on the property now occupied by Berlin Lake and the marina at the end of Hartzell road.
Alonzo’s Children with Christina were: (1) an infant that died young, (2) Fredrick, (3) Julia, (4) Lavina, (5) William A., and (6) Levi.
Christina died and he then remarried Elizabeth Whinnery on 18 August 1846. Children with Elizabeth were: (1) Serena M., (2) Edward and (3) Edwin (twins), (4) Louvisa Jane, (5) Ashley Ely, (6) Ophelia Adelaide, (7) Leora Elizabeth, (8) Alonzo Carroll, and (9) Wendell Phillips. Edwin drowned in the farm pond when he was 4 years old.
When Alonzo’s daughter Lavina married his wife’s brother Elijah Whinnery, the family tree became interesting and confusing.
Alonzo applied for and received bounty land for William Augustus’s death during service in the Army during the War of 1812. In time, a grant for land near Marshall, Illinois, was awarded to the family. His daughter, Louvisa Jane, married Alvin Smith and took on the task of developing 80 acres of that bounty land.
Alonzo acquired additional acreage from the Lazarus family, increasing the family farm to 250 acres. The land encompassed Mill Creek to the North and contained a great wooded land with many maple trees. He raised dairy cattle and sheep. Alonzo was a respected member of the community, serving terms as Justice of the Peace. He built a modern barn during the Civil war era.
He died at the farm in March 1881 and is buried in the Hartzell Cemetery.
Location of the old farm
This map shows the corner of Mahoning County, OH. Note the location of Alonzon Strong’s property and the routing of Leffingwell Rd. through the property in 1860.
- The old road cut back to Mill Creek to the old Lazarus Mill and then connected to what is now Hartzell Road.
The red line demarks the 43rd parallel which is the southern boundary of the Western reserve. - Map was taken clipped from the 1860 map of Mahoning County, available at the Library of Congress.
- Alonzo was the first owner of the farm identified as A. Strong above
- Leffingwell road did not run through to the next farm which belonged to Joseph Hartsell. This is where Albert Strong lived after he married in 1921.
Elizabeth C Strong – Alonzo’s second wife
Link to Alonzo’s Letter
The Bounty Property in Ilinois
Louvisa and Alvin Smith bought 80 of the 160 acres granted to the Strong family for William Augusta’s death in War of 1812. He cleared portions of it and planted crops. He and Louvisa also raised chickens and sold eggs. The property was near Marshal, Il, but well south of town such that getting eggs to market was dfficult. Louvisa and Alvin struggled to develop the farm, and to make a living, Alvin taught school, rooming and boarding away from the farm. Live was difficult. Eventually, they wanted to move closer to Marshall. Alvin found a buyer and worked a deal with Alonzo to sell the property.
Alvin questioned Alonzo as to whether the title was clear. There were of course some potential complications.
a. Alonzo’s brother Luzerne was out of touch, but could have had a claim on the property, but Alonzo had bought out his claim.
b. William’s half brother, Ira could have a claim on the property, but Alonzo had agreed to give him a half of a third share and bought out his claim also. Alonzo’s comment about Ira’s birth 5 years after their marriage is a mystery, as Ira’s birth was April 22, 1814. William A. volunteered for the war’s duration about 1 May 1814, and he was shipped to Black Rock, NY soon after that.
c. There were 13 of Alonzo’s living children, some with families. Alonzo circulated a document and had each sign off on the sale.
Someone in Ilinois, probably Agnes Strong transcribed the letter and preserved it in typed form. The letter preserved information about the family.
Press the button above for a PDF image of the letter.