Mecca Township Historical Society of Ohio

06/03/2026

Early Settlers of Mecca Twp., Part 6: Gales, Cooks, Abells, and Palmers

William Sheldon and Franklin Rising came to Mecca sometime before 1826. They bought Lot 1 of the Kirtland Tract, the northwest corner plat in West Mecca. Like many early settlers, they stayed a short time and sold the property to Lyman Gale.

“Sophia Fitz and husband, Lyman Gale, came from Moriah, N. Y., with an ox team. They purchased 300 acres of land in the very northwest corner of Mecca. They had no house, but constructed a very novel and original shelter by building up against a chestnut stump with poles, brush, and bark, which served them for a home for six months. They kept their clothing in a hollow log. By vigilance, they suffered no harm from the wild animals. One day Mrs. Gale was attacked by a deer while after water some distance away. She climbed a tree and sat there nearly all day before her enemy deserted her and left her to go in peace.” – Memorial to the Pioneer Women of the Western Reserve.

The couple had at least two children, sons Bradford (1840) and Lyman III (1842). In 1844, Lyman built a home on the property along Mahan-Denman, which is still standing to this day. We mentioned this home in a previous post about its later owner, James Jacob Winans. It has been in the Herbert/Wright family since 1932. The Wrights told us that when Julius Herbert first purchased the home, it was in poor condition with the windows broken out, pigs living in the kitchen, and squatters in the front parlor. He turned the place around and today, it is a beautiful, well-maintained home.

Joseph Wing settled at West Mecca corners. He was the husband of Amy Pettis. We told his story in Part 1. He owned as much as 400 acres of land in West Mecca and later sold to Jacob Powers of Youngstown. For a time, the intersection of Rt 88 and Bazetta Rd. was known as Powers’ Corners.

In 1831 or ‘32, Revolutionary War veteran James Cook and his wife, Diana (Brown), came from Cayuga County, New York, where James had been an innkeeper. They were of the Baptist faith. They lived out their lives here and were buried in East Mecca Cemetery.

With them came James’ two grown sons by his first wife, Eunice Loomis. Son John Joseph, a deacon, and his wife, Ruth (Curtis) settled south of Mecca Circle. Their daughter Wealthy married Joseph Gillard Chaffee, son of Jose and Theodocia Chaffee from Part 2.

Son Nathan and his wife, Permelia (Hadlock), brought their children, including a newborn son, to the wilderness of Mecca.

“Nathan Cook and wife built a log house at the center forest of Mosquito Creek. What tales of hardship the silent lips of these worthy women could tell! Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Cook died at the old home. Two daughters, Mrs. Asa McCauley and Mrs. Eupremia Ogram, are residents of today.” – Memorial to the Pioneer Women of the Western Reserve

Justice of the Peace Nathan W. Palmer and his wife, Lucretia Maria (Abell), were revered members of our township.

“This gentleman [Nathan Palmer] was born March 18, 1811, in Stonington, New London County, Conn. He removed to York State and remained there four years. December, 1833, he came to Ohio and settled in Trumbull Co., Mecca Township. He was united in marriage, September 22, 1837, to Miss Lucretia M. Abell. The result of this happy union has been four children: two girls and two boys. The two daughters are living in Illinois; the eldest son lives in Warren. Squire Palmer has been Justice of the Peace eight years, and holds that office at present. He has also held various township offices and is generally respected and held in high esteem by his fellow citizens.” - 1874 Trumbull County Atlas

Around 1835, Lucretia’s parents, John and Lucretia (Meech) Abell, also came from CT and settled with their large family on Lot 18 of the Kirtland tract. This is the present property of Pikie Bay. Mrs. Abell held school in her cellar before the establishment of a proper school on the west side of Mosquito Creek. The Abells lived out their lives here and were buried in East Mecca Cemetery.

Nathan Palmer’s property abutted that of William Johnson on the NE side of Bazetta Rd. It was here that Noble Mason built a sawmill on the beaver dam of the creek that ran along the south end of the property. Nathan died in Mecca in 1882, and Lucretia in Warren in 1897. They were buried in Warren’s Oakwood Cemetery.

Their children, all born in Mecca, were:

– Sarah, who married Abel Downer and moved to Illinois.

– Nancy, who married Orville Bunnell and also moved to Illinois.

– Edwin Abell, who married Helen Bromley and lived his last decades in New Hampshire, though was buried with his family at Oakwood.

– Lathrop, married Jennie Boone, and lived out his life in Mecca.

06/02/2026

A great opportunity for kids aged 8-14!

Dig into Trumbull County’s past this summer 🏺

At this immersive, hands‑on summer camp, young explorers ages 8-14 will step into the world of archaeology and uncover the stories buried beneath their feet. Campers will work side‑by‑side with real archaeologists, learning how to identify artifacts, use excavation tools, and interpret the clues left behind by the people who lived here long ago.

The camp takes place at a verified Underground Railroad site in Trumbull County, giving participants a rare opportunity to dig into one of the region’s most powerful stories of courage and freedom. Each day blends discovery, teamwork, and outdoor adventure as kids investigate the past in the very place where history happened.

Lunch and snacks are provided daily.

Summer camp runs from 9am-3pm daily. $80/child

Purchase tickets here: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/archaeology-summer-camp

05/29/2026

05/27/2026

Do you recognize any of these kids? This photo is part of our Warren City Schools collection and was taken in February of 1968. We do not know which school it was taken. Help us identify these faces!

05/25/2026

Today as we remember America’s soldiers, we would like to share the story of one of Mecca’s veterans. Corporal James Jacob Winans left his pregnant wife and one year-old son to fight for the Union Army. His father had fought in the War of 1812 and his grandfather in the Revolutionary War. His father-in-law, Calvin Huntley, and four brothers-in-law, all of Bristol, fought for the Union side, and all but one returned home.

James was born in Milton Township, OH to Jacob James and Elizabeth "Betsey" McAdams Winans. His father died when he was less than a year old, and he and his mother came to Mecca when he was 20 years-old. He married Lovira Huntley on March 20, 1861 in Bristolville, Ohio. He enlisted in the Civil War in June of 1863, starting out as a private in Captain Benjamin C. Stanhope's company.

Their children were James D., Sidney M., Vestina VenLou (Armstrong), William Wendell, Oscar Nellis, Vernis Birdsell “Birdsey”, Verna Lovira, Julia Elizabeth, Maude Mabelle (Downs), Todd Archie, Mabel, and little James Jacob. Today, he has hundreds of descendants living in Trumbull County. Notably, the late Donald Winans, co-owner of the Shafer–Winans Funeral home in Cortland, was his great-great grandson.

He and Lovira lost many of their children before their time. The below biography mentions the violent death of his firstborn, James, while working on the railroad. After James D.’s death, J.J. and Lovira had fraternal twins, Mabel and James Jr., but they were premature and did not survive, along with James’ second attempt to pass on his namesake. Julia, a teacher, died of consumption at the age of 19. Verna died in her early 20s. Birdsey died of typhoid fever at age 29. Maude died at 39 of tuberculosis.

One of the farmhouses that James owned in the Northwestern part of Mecca is still standing on Mahan-Denman and is well-maintained. The home is said to have been built in 1844, which if true, would make it one of the older houses in Mecca.

This is a selection from the ”Biographical History of Northeastern Ohio, embracing the counties of Ashtabula, Trumbull and Mahoning, etc.” by Lewis Publishing, 1893, pgs 361-362:

“JAMES J. WINANS, a prominent farmer and sawmill man of Mecca township, Trumbull county, has been identified with the interests of northeastern Ohio all his life.

J.J. Winans was born in Mahoning county, Ohio, February 12, 1838, son of Jacob J. Winans, a native of New Jersey [sic. Pennsylvania], and a veteran of the War of 1812, and a grandson of James Winans, a Revolutionary soldier. James Winans and his wife had four sons and three daughters, the names of the former being Isaac, Henry, Jacob J. and James.

Three of these sons were ministers, and it is a fact worthy of note that Rev. Isaac Winans made the first Abolition speech that was ever delivered in Ohio. He was one of the most prominent pioneer preachers in this State, and died here, at the age of eighty-eight years. Jacob J. Winans married Elizabeth McAdams. He died in Milton, Ohio, in 1838, aged forty-six years. He left a widow and seven children. Those of this number who are now living are Sarah Thatcher, Oscar, Jane Bemen, and James J. The mother of these children died in 1881.

J.J. Winans was reared to farm life, and was educated at Poland, Ohio. When the Civil War came on he enlisted, October 18, 1861, in Company E, Second Ohio Cavalry, and served under General Custer until the close of that sanguinary struggle. Mr. Winans had a horse shot from under him at the battle of Wi******er, September 19, 1864, where he received severe injury, from the effects of which he has never fully recovered. He entered the service as a private, was in many prominent engagements, was at the surrender at Appomattox and at the grand review at Washington, and when he was honorably discharged at the close of the war it was with the rank of Corporal.

The war over, Mr. Winans returned to Trumbull county, and has since been engaged in farming and sawmilling here. He owns two farms, the total acreage of which is 343 acres. Both farms are well improved with good houses, barns, etc. He is an excellent judge of timber, does his own buying, and for years has carried on an extensive business at the mill. Last year his milling business amounted to $8,000.

In March, 1861, Mr. Winans married Miss Lovira Huntley, who was born and raised in Bristol, Trumbull county, daughter of Calvin and Julia (Fairchild) Huntley. Her father, now at the age of eighty years, is a resident of Warren, Ohio. Her mother died in February, 1892, aged seventy-six. They had thirteen children, eleven of whom are now living. Calvin Huntley and four of his sons were in the Civil War, he being a member of the Sixth Ohio Cavalry. Abel Huntley, who served on a gunboat, died during the war at Vicksburg. George and Leigh were in the same regiment with their father, and Scott was a member of the Twenty- third Ohio Infantry. Mr. and Mrs. Winans have had eleven children, of whom five sons and four daughters are still living, their names being Sidney, Lou Armstrong, William, Nelson, Bird V., Vernie, Julia, Maud and Tod. James, a railroad employee, was killed in an accident at the age of twenty-two years. Mabel died in infancy.

Mr. Winans affiliates with the Republican party, and is a member of Brook Post, No.2, G.A.R. He is a member of the Masonic lodge at Cortland, Ohio. His wife belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Winans is a man in the prime of life, and his many genial qualities make him a general favorite with all that know him.”

OBITUARY

Warren Daily Tribune
Issue: Sat., 8 Mar 1919, 5:1

"James J. Winans, aged 81 years, a venerable resident of West Market street, passed away Friday morning at the home of his son, Oscar N. Winans, following a short illness with the infirmities of age. Mr. Winans was born in Milton township, Mahoning county, Feb. 12, 1838, and went to Mecca when he was twenty years of age. Twelve years ago he came to Warren to reside with his son at the death of his wife and has remained here since then with the exception of a short time that he returned to Mecca. He was a veteran of the Civil War, having served for four years and four months as a member of Co. E, Second Ohio Cavalry and was one of the first members of Bell-Harmon Post of the G.A.R.

He is survived by four sons, William Winans of Greene; Sidney Winans and Oscar Winans, and a daughter, Mrs. Lou Armstrong of Mecca, seventeen grandchildren and nine great grandchildren.

Services will be held Monday at 11 o'clock at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Winans, when Rev. Frank M. Brown will officiate. The body will be placed in the receiving vault at Oakwood cemetery for the present and later will be taken to West Mecca for interment."

Warren Daily Tribune
Issue: Mon., 10 Mar 1919, 4:3

"Services in memory of the late James J. Winans were held today at 11 o'clock at home of his son, Oscar Winans, 112 West Market street, with Rev. Frank M. Brown in charge. Members of Bell-Harmon post of the G.A.R. attended the services in a body, and conducted their ritualistic services at the house. The body was placed in the receiving vault in Oakwood cemetery, until a later date when it will be interred in the cemetery at West Mecca. Musical selections were rendered at the services by Mrs. J.E. Boetticher and Miss Ruby Herbert."

James and his family were laid to rest in West Mecca Cemetery. His mother, Betsey, has a small stone that is toppled over and sits next to the stone of her grandson, James D., whose monument is the tallest in the cemetery and near the front right entrance. James J., Lovira, and their children did not have a headstone for decades until the family had a stone erected in their memory. Not all the names are listed on the stone, but we know they are all buried there, including James' 5-year-old granddaughter, Dora Armstrong, who died of spinal meningitis.

05/22/2026

Our vice president, Wanda Tolley, and Secretary/Treasurer Savannah Moss will be at this fun family event with information about our society!

05/14/2026

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