John Rhode and Mary Lewis

THE BIG BLACK TRUNK In 1806 the John Rhode family moved to Ohio. They took two slaves with them whom they later freed. John Rhode was a man with a great deal of push and energy. He was one of those individuals having the trait of wanting to put something ahead for a rainy day. It is said that when leaving South Carolina, his wealth was in silver coins, which according to family tradition filled a good sized black trunk. It is said that the old black trunk was in the family for generations.(Taken from the Robert T. Rhode website) The route followed by John Rhode from South Carolina was probably the main route followed by settlers of that time which passed from the Shenandoah Valley through the mountains into Kentucky and on to Ohio and Indiana. Before the Rhodes were pioneers in Indiana, they were pioneers in Warren County, Ohio near Waynesville. In 1826 John bought farmland in Indiana.

THE FINEST STAND OF TIMBER John sent his sons ahead to Indiana to clear the land. They proceeded to chop and grab farms out of the primitive white oak forest. It has been said that this was the finest stand of hardwood timber that the world has ever produced. A small part of the timber was used for buildings and fence rows but the greater part was chopped and burned. At night, huge fires could be seen on the horizon as the great logs were burned to ashes.

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