Memoirs of Daniel S. Drake http://www.heritagepursuit.com/MarionChapIV.htm BY DANIEL S. DRAKE. "My father, Capt. William S. Drake, came to Marlboro, now Waldo Township, Marion County, in the year 1807, and entered 160 acres of land at $2.50 per acre, paying one-third down and the balance in one and two year payments. He and his son, Uriah, cleared a small patch the first year, and put in a crop of corn, pumpkins and potatoes. He then returned to New York for his family, leaving Uriah to cultivate the crop. He returned in 1808, with a family consisting of his wife and seven children. They traveled the entire distance in an old rickety twohorse wagon. drawn by two poor plugs of horses. The amount of cash left on their arrival was 25 cents! "The Indians were very numerous at that time, and inclined to be hostile to the white settlers. This hostility was fostered by British spies and traders, until war was finally declared in 1812. Apprehending hostilities, Gov. Meigs appointed William S. Drake Indian Agent for the following tribes: Delawares, Wyandots, Pottawatomies and Senecas, then residing in the northwest part of Ohio. He made his headquarters at what was HISTORY OF MARION COUNTY. - 289 then known as `Negrotown,' now in Wyandot County. As soon as war was declared, the Indians became very uneasy. They were uncertain about what to do. The Canadians were using all their arts to induce them to join the British, while Gov. Meigs desired to have them remain neutral or join the forces of the United States. The Governor ordered Capt. Drake to remove the Indians to a place called Zanesfield, in what is now Logan County. This occurred in 1811. The Indians met him in council, concerning the matter, and sat in deep consultation about forty hours without leaving their seats. They finally agreed to go, and in two hours were on their way. They numbered about six hundred. They remained at Zanesfield a few months, but becoming dissatisfied, returned to Upper Sandusky. A chief by the name of Zarbe, or Crane, seemed to have great influence among the Wyandots. He was regarded as being friendly to the United States. After their return, the Governor appointed two Commissioners Solomon Smith and Moses Bixby, of Delaware-to meet the headchiefs at Upper Sandusky, to obtain a grant for a new road from Lower Sandusky to the old Greenville boundary line, in the southern part of Marion County. The chiefs granted the request, and the road was to be sixty feet wide. The Governor then appointed :three Commissioners, Bell, Bair and Van Clief, to run and open the road. The chain-carriers and blazers were Capt. William S. Drake, Maj. John Bush and Jacob Foos, This road passed through what is now Marion Village, and was known as the ` war road.' " [Described elsewhere.]