Moors Farwell, First Mayor of Sandusky

Moors Farwell was the first Mayor of Sandusky. He was first married to Sarah Cooke. (Sarah Cooke was the sister of Eleutheros Cooke, the first lawyer in Sandusky.) Sarah Cooke Farwell died on February 28, 1827, and she is buried in Huron County.

Moors and Sarah Farwell had a daughter Sarah Farwell, who married Jeremiah Cochran. According to the publication NEWSPAPER ABSTRACTS, HURON COUNTY, OHIO, 1822-1835, by H. R. Timman,Moors Farwell of Sandusky, married Miss Semantha Dean of Cortlandville, on June 17, 1831 at Cortlandville, New York. (This item appeared in the Sandusky Clarion on July 6,1831.) Three young children of Moors and Samantha Farwell died young, and are buried at Oakland Cemetery.













The R. B. Hayes Center's Obituary Index indicates that Moors Farwell died on December 14, 1850, and he was buried at Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery. Following the death of Moors Farwell, Mrs. Samantha Farwell married Rev. Samuel Enoch Hitchcock in 1858. They moved to Alpena, Michigan, where Samuel was instrumental in organizing the first church of Alpena County.

Below is a picture of the Farwell family lot at Oakland Cemetery in Erie County, Ohio.

Mrs. Sarah Farwell

The Pedigree Resource File of Family Search tells us that Sarah Cooke (sometimes spelled Cook) was the daughter of Asaph and Thankful Parker Cooke. Sarah was born in 1790/1791. She was the sister of Eleutheros Cooke, and the aunt of Civil War financier Jay Cooke.

Sarah Cooke married Moors Farwell in 1819, and died on February 28, 1827. Sarah is buried in the North Monroeville Cemetery, which is maintained by the Ridgefield Township Board of Trustees in Huron County. Moors Farwell, who was the first Mayor of Sandusky, married again, and have several children. Moors Farwell died in 1850, and he is buried in Oakland Cemetery.

Buried near Sarah Cooke Farwell are several members of the Cooke family. In the early days, North Monroeville was known as Cooks' Corners or Four Corners.

Children of Moors and Samantha Farwell

Though barely legible, this tombstone honors the memory of three children of Moors and Samantha Farwell.

Records from the ERIE COUNTY CEMETERY CENSUS BEFORE 1909, provide these names and dates for the Farwell children:

M.E. Farwell
Died June 25, 1837
Age 4 hours

T.M. Farwell
Died July 8, 1842
Age 2 years, 2 months

T. J. Farwell
Died September 29, 1842
Aged 39 days

Moors Farwell was the first Mayor of Sandusky. He was first married to Sarah Cooke. (Sarah Cooke was the sister of Eleutheros Cooke, the first lawyer in Sandusky.) Sarah Cooke Farwell died on February 28, 1827, and she is buried in Huron County. Moors and Sarah Farwell had a daughter Sarah Farwell, who married Jeremiah Cochran.

According to the publication NEWSPAPER ABSTRACTS, HURON COUNTY, OHIO, 1822-1835, by H. R. Timman,Moors Farwell of Sandusky, married Miss Semantha Dean of Cortlandville, on June 17, 1831 at Cortlandville, New York. (This item appeared in the Sandusky Clarion on July 6,1831.) In the 1850 Erie County Census, Moors and Semantha/Samantha Farwell had these children living with them:

Julia Farwell, age 17
Maryetta Farwell, age 16
and
Augusta Farwell, age 12

The R. B. Hayes Center's Obituary Index indicates that Moors Farwell died on December 14, 1850. Mrs. Samantha Farwell married Samuel Enoch Hitchcock in 1858. They moved to Alpena, Michigan, where Samuel was instrumental in organizing the first church of Alpena County. Julia Farwell appears in their household in Michigan in the 1880 U.S. Census. Augusta and Maryette Farwell both passed away in 1852, while still in their teens, according to Oakland Cemetery records.

It is sad that these Farwell children died so young. Their father was very active in the early affairs of Huron and Erie County, and their mother was a pioneer citizen of Alpena, Michigan. Had they lived longer, they too may have made significant contributions to their community.