Copyright USGenNet Inc., 2013, All Rights Reserved U.S. Data Repository Please read U.S. Data Repository Copyright Statement on this page: Transcribed and submitted by Linda Talbott for the US Data Repository http://www.us-data.org/ ========================================================================= U.S. Data Repository NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization. Non-commercial organizations desiring to use this material must obtain the consent of the transcriber prior to use. Individuals desiring to use this material in their own research may do so. ========================================================================= Formatted by U.S. Data Repository Chief Archivist, Linda Talbott All of the above information must remain when copied or downloaded. =========================================================================== Source: History of St. Clair County ASSESSMENT ROLL FOR 1821 ------------------------ 1. Hezekiah Adams 41. Robert Hamilton 2. Joseph Bezenett 42. Phillip Jarvis 3. Moses Birdsall 43. Jaques Leeson 4. Lambert Beaubien 44. George Little 5. William Brown 45. Charles Larned 6. John Brown 46. Mariann Minnie 7. Joseph Bourdenau 47. Ira Marks 8. Lovin Blanchard 48. Joseph Minnie 9. Z. W. Bunce 49. Angus McDonnall 10. Francois Chortier 50. Silas Miller 11. John Cartwright 51. Archibald McDonnell 12. James Cartwright 52. David Meldrum 13. Louis Chortier 53. Park & Meldrum 14. Joseph Chortier 54. Pascal Podvant 15. John Cottrell 55. Joseph Pennock 16. David Cottrell 56. Anselm Petit 17. George Cottrell 57. James Robertson 18. Henry Cottrell 58. Thomas Robertson 19. Francois Chortier, Jr. 59. Sarah Robertson 20. Louis Casehand 60. David Robertson 21. Laba Campau 61. John Robertson 22. Peter Dupre 62. Etien Russell 23. Francois Dechene 63. Peter Rice 24. William Duvall 64. Oliver Ricard 25. J. B. Dichard 65. John K. Smith 26. John Elliott 66. Richard Sansbury 27. John Elliott, Jr. 67. Henry Saunders 28. John S. Fish 68. Louis St. Bernard 29. John Flynn 69. Seth Taft 30. N. Frederick 70. William Thorn 31. F. Fleurer 71. John Thorn 32. James Fulton 72. Louis Thebault 33. Jacob Guy 73. Vanwagenan & Jersey 34. Joseph Gear 74. Romulus Van Wagenan 35. Est. of Alexander Barrow 75. James B. Wolverton 36. William Hill 76. Samuel Ward 37. David Hill 77. Andrew Wesbrook 38. Francis Harsen 78. Jean B. Yax 39. William Harsen 79. Harvey Stewart 40. Jacob Harsen There were seventy-nine persons assessed upon this roll, of whom seventy-five were probably residents, as they are assessed for either improved land or personal property. Four are assessed with wild lands alone, and one for improved land alone, forty-two for personal prop- erty, and one man is assessed for a house with personal property, but no land. It is evident, however, from a knowledge of the situation with an inspection of the roll that the assessors were rather careless in their assessments, and entirely omitted from the roll a considerable amount of wild land, and probably some improved land as well. No. 1 - Hezekiah Adams owned two cows, but no other property; he evidently was employed by some property holder, and left the county prior to 1830, as he does not appear in the census of that year. In 1822 he was drawn on a petit jury. No. 2 - Joseph Bazenett, or Bassinet, or Basney, as the family is now called, was the owner of Private Claim No. 301, containing 120 acres, and it must have had some improvements, as it was testified in 1808 that he had been in possession before 1796. This claim was sold to Henry Ainsworth in 1821 and has remained in his family to the present. No. 3 - Moses Birdsall occupied Claim No. 252, 190 acres, by virtue of his being the husband of Alice Wright, one of the heirs of John Wright, in whose name the land was patented. No. 4 - Lambert Beaubien in 1819 had acquired part of Claim 204 which contained 325 acres, and as he is assessed but 120 acres, the balance, if assessed at all, is to Joseph Mini. No. 5. - William Brown was the son of Mrs. John Wright (No. 3) by her first husband, Darius Brown, and purchased the Dannay Claim No. 308, which contained 120 acres, and was one of the largest taxpayers. He married Martha Thorn in 1806 and came to the county to live in 1816. No. 6 - John Brown was a resident of Clay township at the census of 1830 and in 1824 subscribed $5 in grain to assist in getting the county seat away from St. Clair. No. 7 - Joseph Bourdenau was a son-in-law of J. B. Yax, who located in 1818 that part of section 12 lying west of Belle river, now part of Marine City. In 1822 he sold his interest in the land and probably moved away, as he was not in the county at the census of 1830. No. 8 - Lovin Blanchard. His location cannot now be identified. He appears as a voter in 1821 and in the following year is a member of the first grand jury drawn in the county, but is not a resident in 1830. No. 9 - Z. W. Bunce owned land in sections 28 and 29, township 6 north, range 17 east, considerably more than 101 acres, and his total assessment of $304 is certainly modest enough. Judge Bunce was long a promiment man n county affairs. No. 10 - Francois Chortier was granted Claim No. 309 of 120 acres and apparently had bought the Ignace Champagne Claim No. 198 of 140 acres, as in July, 1822, he conveyed both claims to his children. His assessment shows two houses, and a total valuation which made him the fifth largest taxpayer. Nos. 11. 12 - John and James Cartwright owned Claim No. 318, containing 240 acres, but were assessed for 249 acres. Nos. 13. 14 - Louis and Joseph Chortier, assessed 129 acres each, were sons of Francois Chortier. In 1822 Louis was a member of the first grand jury, and in 1825 he was granted a license to operate a ferry over Belle river. Nos. 15, 16, 17, 18 - John, David, George and Henry Cottrell were the surviving sons of the original George Cottrell, who bought this land from the Indians in 1780 and moved upon it in 1784 and had died in 1817. He had received grant to Claim No. 186 of 320 acres and his five sons (one of whom had died before 1821) received grant of Claim No. 187 of 430 acres. It will be noticed that they are assessed for four houses. The sons had made a division among themselves, and not long after John Cottrell sold out and removed to Macomb county. The other three were officeholders and prominent men for many years. Nos. 19, 20 - Francois Chortier, Jr., and Louis Casehand had no land, but were fairly well provided with personal property. No. 21 - Laba Campau, who is assessed for 120 acres of wild land, is undoubtably Barnabas Campau, of Detroit, who was nicknamed L'Abbe from his appearance, and who was a man of large property and means. The land assessed to him was probably Claim No. 311 on the north shore of Lake St. Clair. No. 22 - Peter Dupre lived as a tenant upon land in Cottrell- ville, was a blacksmith and married a daughter of old Mother Rodd, the Indian woman well know to all the pioneers of the county. He quali- fied as a voter in 1823 and was a resident of Cottrellville in the census of 1830. Nos. 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 - No one of these had any land, but all had some kind of stock. Dechene or Duchene probably lived near the mouth of Belle river, on the west side, in the French settlement there. Nothing is known about Duvall of the Elliotts. J. B. Dichard is probably Deschamps, a Frenchman, who lived for some years near Black river, and at other times in Clay township. Nos. 28, 29, 30 - John S. Fish in 1827 was one of the first county supervisors and was quite active in 1824 in assisting Samuel Ward in his attempt to remove the county seat down the river from St. Clair. John Flynn was a resident of Cottrellville, according to the census of 1830. N. Frederick cannot now be identified. No. 31 - F. Fleurer is said to have been a son of the French soldier, Louis de Fleury, who came over from France and took an active and honorable part in the War of the Revolution, and returning to France was beheaded in 1794 during the French Revolution. Francis Fleury was a soldier in the American army during the War of 1812, and came to Cottrellville township in 1821, living there until his death in 1846. No. 32 - James Fulton. His assessment includes Claims 304 and 305, 1,280 acres, upon which there were fifty five acres of cleared land for the town plat of St. Clair, and the two houses built by him were upon the west side of Front street, north of Pine river. Nos. 33, 34 - Jacob Guy and Joseph Gear owned only personal prop- erty. The latter married Jeannette Mini, daughter of Antoine Mini, who received patent to Claim No. 204, and whose heirs had sold to Lambert Beaubien. Neither was a resident, according to the census of 1830, but Guy was a defendant in county court in January, 1827. No. 35 - Estate of Alex Harrow, 1,280 acres, which probably in- cludes Claims 188 and 200 for 640 acres each, which made this assess- ment the third largest on the roll. Harrow was long in the British naval department on the lakes and moved on this land about 1794. Nos. 36, 37 - William and David Hill together owned Claim No. 196, as sons and heirs of Jacob Hill. Nos. 38, 39, 40 - Francis, William, and Jacob Harsen. They all owned land on Harsen's island, but as they had not had their claims perfected at this time they were not assessed for real estate. Nos. 41, 42, 43, 44 - Nothing is known of Hamilton, unless the Robert is an error for Reuben, who came to the county in 1821 and lived for several years in St. Clair, and about 1829 moved to Port Huron, where he lived until his death, and was well known as a justice of the peace. It is likely Jarvis is properly Jervais, Leeson is sometimes spelled Lozen, and he was the father of Captain J. B. Lozen, of Marine City. Both Gervais and Lozen lived in the Belle river settlement. Little left the country before the census of 1830 and was living in Canada. No. 45 - Charles Larned was a well known lawyer who lived in Detroit and owned Claim 306, which was afterwards owned by Agens and Hammill for many years, and is now mainly within the limits of St. Clair City. No. 46 - Mariann Mini was the widow of Pierre Mini, and this assessment includes Claims 202, 203 and 206. No. 47 - Ira Marks lived in the township of Clay at this time and was also a resident in 1830. He came to the county in 1818, and sub- sequently acquired real estate, and it is said the township of Ira was named for him. It is also said that he brought the first wagon into the county. No. 48 - Joseph Minnie, one of the sons of Pierre Mini, and the father of Joseph P. Minnie, for many years a prominent resident of Port Huron. This assessment probably covers Claim 204. No. 49 - Angus McDonald was a resident of Stronmess Island. His daughter married John K. Smith. Nos. 50, 51 - Silas Miller lived just below Algonae, having come to the county about 1820. Nothing is known of Archibald McDonnell. No. 52 - David Meldrum lived in Macomb county, but owned Claim 307, which lies just west of St. Clair city on both sides of the State road. No. 53 - Park and Meldrum, merchants of Sandwich, Ontario, owned Claims 255 and 406, lying on St. Clair river, near Marysville. No. 54 - Pascal Podvant, or Potvin, married Catherine, the widow of Toussaint Chovin, who had received patent to Claim 245 of 120 acres and was assessed for her land. No. 55 - Joseph Pennock owned but a small amount of personal property and probably removed later to Macomb county, but returned to this county in 1832 and bought land in East China township. No. 56 - Anselm Petite had not at this date received a patent for his land, but he owned and occupied that part of fractional section 11 lying south of Black river at the junction with St. Clair river, and which was afterwards platted as the village of Peru, now a part of the city of Port Huron. No. 57 - James Robertson owned and occupied Claim 568. Nos. 58, 59, 60, 61 - Thomas, Sarah, David, and John Robertson were children of James. No. 62 - Etien Russell, or Rousselle, lived in the township of Cottrellville in 1830, near the site of Marine City. No. 63 - Peter Rice is assessed with six acres of improved land and a house. He was a member of the first grand jury in the county in January, 1822, voted at the election for delegate in 1823, and in 1826 furnished fuel for the court house in the amount of 75 cents. No. 64 - Oliver Ricard (Recor in its modern form) owned and occupied Claim 310. No. 65 - John K. Smith, who later became and was for many years the most prominent citizen of Algonae, had not at this time acquired the dignitiy of a land owner. No. 66 - Richard Sansbury lived on the south side of Black river about three miles above its mouth. He was a Virginian and a soldier in the Fort Gratiot garrison until his company was disbanded in 1818. No. 67 - Henry Saunders was a negro, who had been owned by Meldrum and Park, and who was given by them the life use of Claim No. 496 of 300 acres, which they owned. It is evident from the amount of stock he owned that he was in a prosperous condition. No. 68 - Louis St. Bernard lived a short distance north of St. Clair City upon land which he owned but had not at this time received patent for. He came from across the river in Canada. No. 69 - Seth Taft owned no real estate, but the following year became an office holder, being appointed constable by the governor. No. 70 - William Thorn owned Claim 253 and was the father of John Thorn and several other children: Nancy, wife of James Geel; Martha, wife of William Brown; Jane, wife of Abraham Cook, of Detroit; Harriet, wife of James Fulton. Alice, daughter John Connor of Macomb county; Elizabeth, who entered three times into the bonds of matrimony and another son, William. No. 71 - John Thorn, son of William, is assessed with one house, one horse and two oxen, but no real estate. He lived for some years in St. Clair, but moved to Port Huron about 1832. No. 72 - Louis Thebault married the widow of Joseph Ricard, who had received patent to Claim 302 for 140 acres. No. 73, 74 - Van Wagenan and Jersey. Romulus Van Wagenan. Nothing is known of either of these parties. No. 75 - James B. Wolverton lived for many years in the township of China. He was appointed a constable before St. Clair county was organized and was also sheriff for a few months in 1821 and 1822. No. 76 - Samuel Ward, who afterwards became prominent and wealthy at Marine City, was at this time living on land owned by him in section 1, but probably had not then received his patent and thus excaped taxation except on personal property. No. 77 - Andrew Westbrook, the wealthiest man in the county, owned Claims, 243 and 303, besides a very considerable amount of personal property. Andrew Westbrook was possessed of the largest amount of household furniture - $130 - and the only taxpayer approaching him in that line was William Brown, with $100 in amount. No. 78 - Jean B. Yax lived at the French settlement on Belle river. No. 79 - Harvey Stewart had married Mary Graveraet, a grand- daughter of Jacob Harsen, and lived on Harsen's Island. There were in the whole county only 106 horses, with 109 oxen and 185 cows. There were six carioles or covered carts, three wagons and nine two-wheeled carts. That the assessors did not use all the diligence possible in listing property for taxation is shown by the fact that six land claims aggregating over 2,000 acres seem to have escaped entirely. Both assessors lived in the lower end of the county, and probably did not come up to Black river, or they would have found the Bonhomme and Lassalle claims of 640 acres each, and the Sibley land, now Butler plat, but they perhaps should not be blamed for not making the physical effort to row themselves - there were then no roads along the river - twenty miles against the current for the small amount of property to be found at the end of the trip. At the time of the assessment of 1821 there was but one township in the county, but by 1830 this had been increased to four: Clay, Cottrellville, St. Clair and Desmond. The population had increased to 1,114, which included the officers and company of sixty-six men at Fort Gratiot, eighty in all. When the census was taken, the township of St. Clair included the present townships of St. Clair and China; in that territory there were eight persons assesses in 1821, of whom two were non-residents. In 1830 there were fifty-five resident taxpayers, and twenty-six non-resident. The total property valuation of the eight persons assessed in 1821 was 10,847, while the total assessment in 1830 was $41,648. ==========================================================================