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Carol Philipps
Much has been written about the Welsh Hills of Ohio over the years. However, the first generations living in the Welsh Hills put little in writing. It wasn’t until Isaac Smucker wrote about the early days in 1869 that the history was publicly documented. Mr. Smucker obtained information from grandchildren of the first settlers. He states that the last of the original settlers died in 1855. Subsequent writers and historians copied or embellished the writings of Mr. Smucker. Opportunities to write down the stories and history have been missed repeatedly as those who knew the Welsh Hills first-hand died. Very few of the current residents of the Welsh Hills have deep family roots there, and finding stories of the early days is rare. Our family has undertaken the adventure of retracing the steps of our ancestors who settled the Welsh Hills and have found the path difficult.
The Welsh Hills is in the northeast quadrant of Granville Township in Licking County and crosses partially into Newark and McKean Townships. Welsh immigrants purchased the land in 1801 and began settling the land in 1802. Thomas Philipps purchased 798 acres and divided it between his children upon his death. Theophilus Rees purchased 1000 acres south of Philipps’ land. Early Welsh families also included Griffith, Thomas, Lewis, Johnson, James, Price, Jones, Powell, Cramer, and White.
Schools and churches were built, the earliest of these located in homes or in log cabins that later burnt down. Land was donated for two cemeteries, both of which still exist. The land upon which the Welsh Hills Cemetery sits was donated by Theophilus Rees and the Philipps Cemetery is located on the Philipps Tract. The Welsh Hills Baptist Church is still active after more than 200 years of continuous service. This church was founded by Deacon Theophilus Rees.
This year my sister, Janet (Philipps) Procida, committed to documenting as much history of the Welsh Hills as can be discovered. Her research includes interviews with family members and descendants of early settlers who have recollections of earlier times, compiling early photos, and studying family history trees. It is an arduous task that cannot be done without the assistance of those people with the personal history. Families cherish family photos, letters and documents tucked away in boxes, but never seen by anyone outside their family. We are seeking people with information, pictures or stories about early days in the Welsh Hills that are interested in sharing this information.
Janet can be reached by email at janetprocida(at)procidadesign(dot)com.
July 4, 1776 – 56 men signed the American Declaration of Independence, drafted by the Welsh-American Thomas Jefferson. As many as 18 of the signatories were of Welsh descent.
Ronda Griffith, WSCO member and resident of The Village of Hamden, Vinton Co.
As part of the Spring Literary Arts Festival sponsored by the Herbert Wescoat Memorial Library and their Friends group, a Gymanfa Ganu was held on Sunday, April 19, at the Trinity Episcopal Church in McArthur, Ohio. It was a wonderful and well-attended event and proved that both culture and our Welsh heritage are alive and well in Vinton County.
The Festival is an annual event but this year was the first for a Celtic theme. “A Gathering of the Clans” started on Friday evening with Melanie Pratt, Celtic storyteller, who is one of WSCO’s own Welsh folk dancers and, as many of you may remember, presented a St. D. D. seminar on grave markers in 2008.
Included in the events of the weekend were presentations by several authors of books with Irish and Scottish subject matter, a Celtic Faire, a Celtic musicale, Irish dancers, and a ceilidh with music by The Music Makars and Melinda Crawford (band and fiddler well-known in Scottish music and dance circles) and The Boys of the Hock’, a traditional Irish band from Athens, OH, often seen at festivals throughout the Hocking Valley – an area of Ohio where many of our Welsh ancestors settled and worked in the mines.
Sunday afternoon’s events started with a “traditional ploughman’s lunch” and the song leader and organist for the Gymanfa was Clint Walker, Director of the Herbert Wescoat Memorial Library, who also compiled the songbook for the event.
The program included many Welsh songs (although sung in English) as well as a few Irish and Scottish hymns, in keeping with the three-day Celtic festival theme. Despite the non-Welsh-language hymns and Clint being Scottish, it was a wonderful afternoon and closed with the Welsh National Anthem sung in both English and Welsh.
A great ending for a great weekend.
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