Who settled here
David Mead and his brothers John, Joseph, and Darius arrived in 1788 from Wyoming County in northeastern Pennsylvania. The settlement was first called Lewisburgh and was renamed Meadville in 1805.
The Holland Land Company's first agent, Roger Alden, laid out the town plots in 1793, and the company bought David Mead's holdings in 1795. Agent Harm Jan Huidekoper later sold large tracts in Crawford, Erie, Warren, Venango, Forest, and Beaver Counties. Many early arrivals along French Creek came from Ireland or New Jersey.
Why families moved on
- Indian hostilities. A county history says that before 1795 there was little permanent settlement beyond the fort at Meadville, and that settlers were often driven out by Indian hostilities, with some returning east.
- Company land, not free land. Much of the county was sold through the Holland Land Company, so settlers bought land on company terms. Families who couldn't keep up payments may have given up and moved on.
Records that say exactly why a family left are rare. Treat these as leads, and look for evidence about your own ancestors in deeds, tax lists, court cases, and church records.
Clues to look for
- Look for Holland Land Company contracts and payment records, which often show who bought land, who defaulted, and who moved away.
- Crawford County borders Ohio, so check Ashtabula and Trumbull County records for relatives.
