"Don't Give Up the Ship"
- battle flag of Oliver Hazard Perry aboard USS Niagara, 1813
Tucked away in the rolling hills of Southeastern Ohio, Perry County is flushed with history. In addition to a wide variety of monuments, parks/nature preserves and historic locations Perry County is also home to many annual events including Art Walks, the Perry County Fair, Pottery Festival, Moonshine Festival and much more.
past of perry
1785-1819
oliver hazard perry
1831-1888
General Philip H. Sheridan
1844-1878
Januarius MacGahan
oliver hazard perry
MARIAH STORTS ALLEN
1842-1933
Most noted for his role in the War of 1812 during the 1813 Battle of Lake Erie, Oliver Hazard Perry earned the title, "Hero of Lake Erie". His leadership aided the successful outcomes of all nine Lake Erie military campaign victories. He is remembered for the words on his battle flag, "Don't Give Up the Ship", which was a tribute to the dying command of his colleague Captain James Lawrence of USS Chesapeake and for his message to General William Henry Harrison which reads in part, "We have met the enemy and they are ours."
Raised in Somerset, OH, General Philip H. Sheridan graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1853. He rendered valuable service to the Federal Army in the Civil War at Stone's River, Missionary Ridge, Yellow Tavern, Winchester, Cedar Creek, Five Forks and Appomattox. He later commanded in the west and became General of the Army in 1883, received his 4th star and died in 1888.
Januarius Aloysius MacGahan was born near New Lexington, Ohio on June 12, 1844. At the suggestion of General Sheridan, MacGahan journeyed to Europe where he learned Latin, French, and German. He then returned home to study law. He became one of the most famous reporters of the 19th Century and is still remembered in Bulgaria for his role in winning Bulgarian independence.
Mariah Storts Allen was Ohio’s last surviving first generation daughter of a Revolutionary War soldier. She was born August 4, 1842 in Bearfield Township and died May 2, 1933 in New Lexington. Her father, John Jacob Storts, volunteered to fight for American independence at age 13 and camped at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Allen was a descendant of Ohio’s First Families and an Honorary Member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). The DAR refers to first generation daughters as “Real Daughters.”
1862-1900
"I say white brother, because I believe that to be the proper phrase, inasmuch as I believe in the principle of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of all mankind no matter what the color of his skin may be." Richard L. Davis championed the cause of racial equality throughout the eastern coalfields, calling for an end to the color line and for all miners to unite against wage slavery. He arrived in racially integrated Rendville in 1882, where he became an organizer for the Knights of Labor. From 1890 to 1899, he wrote a total of 168 letters to the editors of the National Labor Tribune and the United Mine Workers Journal about the need to organize for fair wages and working conditions, and for racial equality in the mines. Despite the racism that Davis faced, he actively recruited African Americans to join the UMWA. The UMWA contends that at least twenty thousand African-Americans joined the organization because of Davis's efforts. He also dedicated his life to improving working conditions for all miners.
JAMES M. COMLY
1779 - 1827
Founder of New Lexington in 1817, James Comly was born on a farm near the city. He was descended from a family of Quakers who had moved to Perry County from Philadelphia and established a series of sawmills. When his father died when Comly was only ten years old, he moved to Columbus and worked in a printing shop as a messenger, before becoming an apprentice and journeyman printer. James Comly worked his way up to Brigadier General in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Comly served as editor and publisher for the Ohio State Journal after the war, and started a baseball team in Columbus.
1869-1947
Somerset's first female postmaster and one of the youngest ones in U.S. history, Nellie at 19 sought the office and was first appointed by President Harrison in 1889 to serve until her retirement in 1930. Since postal regulations forbade married women from holding office, Nellie remained single despite having a long-time suitor, Thomas C. Wilson. In 1913 Nellie finally married her ailing fiancé who died within hours of the wedding. Though heartbroken, she resumed her postmaster duties the following morning since there was no postal ruling against widows holding the position. She and her sister were chiefly responsible for the creation and placement of her uncle Phil Sheridan's equestrian bronze in Somerset Square. She ran her own mercantile business and benefitted the citizens of Perry County, women in particular as a role model, working in every “civic political enterprise” imaginable. Because she was chairman of the local American Red Cross during WWI, president of Daughters of Union Veterans, secretary of Sheridan Monument Association and more, she earned a seat on the county Republican Executive Committee as well as the Ohio Committee for Improvement of Rural Government - truly a woman ahead of her time.