Mr. and Mrs. Lyman E. Strong

A biographical sketch of Henry Clay Strong in HISTORY OF THE WESTERN RESERVE provides information about Henry's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Lyman E. Strong. Lyman Elderkin Strong was born to Major Joseph and Lucy Elderkin Strong on June 13, 1802. Major Strong was one of the earliest settlers in Lyme Township of Huron County. Lyman E. Strong was a merchant and also had a farm, first in Lyme Township and later in Plymouth, Ohio in Richland County. Lyman D. Strong married Calista Lucinda Nims in 1831.

Lyman Elderkin Strong died on October 8, 1889, and Calista Nims Strong died on April 14, 1891. A tribute to Mr. and Mrs. Lyman Strong is found in the book HISTORY OF THE WESTERN RESERVE:

"They lived lives of usefulness and honor and their names merit an enduring place on the roll of those who contributed their quota to the social and material development and progress of the historic old Western Reserve."

The business papers of Lyman Elderkin Strong are held by the Library of the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center. Lyman E. and Calista Strong are buried in the Strong's Ridge Cemetery in Huron County, Ohio along with their son Ozias Strong, who died in 1864. A cousin of Lyman Elderkin Strong, also named Lyman Strong, was a marble dealer in Cleveland, Ohio.

Tombstone Tuesday: Abner Strong

Abner Strong was born in Lee, Massachusetts on April 7, 1780. He married Sally Bassett in Homer, New York in 1801. In 1815, Mr. and Mrs. Abner Strong moved to Lyme Township in Huron County, Ohio. Abner had a farm in the area of Lyme Township known as "Strong's Ridge," named after the Strong family, pioneer residents of the region.(Major Joseph Strong, older brother of Abner, was the earliest family member to settle in Strong's Ridge.)

Rush Sloane, the grandson of Abner Strong, wrote of Abner in Volume V of the New Series, Firelands Pioneer, that he was a man of earnest principle, and was firm in his principles of temperance. "He was a strong abolitionist, a friend of the slave and never failed to aid them." Hewson Peeke wrote in his 1916 edition of A STANDARD HISTORY OF ERIE COUNTY, OHIO: "Abner Strong of Strong's Ridge Lyme, Huron County, Ohio, was always ready to receive, care for and send to Sandusky, in good conveyance, the fugitives who reached that 'Strong' and safe station."

Abner Strong died at Bellevue on February 3, 1859. He was buried at the Strong's Ridge Cemetery, located just east of the intersection of State Route 113 and Route 4.His wife, Sally Bassett Strong, died in 1865. She is also buried at Strong's Ridge Cemetery.



The children of Abner and Sally Bassett Strong were: Cynthia, Eunice, Pelatiah, Alonzo, and Benjamin. Obituaries for Mr. and Mrs. Abner Strong are found in Volume V of the new series of the Firelands Pioneer, available fulltext at Google Books.

Francis Strong Tombstone

A biographical sketch of Deacon Francis Strong is found on page 454 in THE HISTORY OF THE DESCENDANTS OF ELDER JOHN STRONG, OF NORTHAMPTON, MASS., by Benjamin Woodbridge Dwight, available found full text on the database Heritage Quest. (Many public libraries have a subscription to this outstanding genealogical resource.)

Francis Strong was the son of Ozias Strong and Susannah West. He was born in Lee, Massachusetts on October 24, 1770. In 1794, Francis Strong married Susannah Cogswell, the daughter of Nation Cogswell and Sarah Cole. Francis Strong was a farmer in Homer, New York, and moved to Lyme Township, Huron County, Ohio about 1815. Mrs. Susannah Cogwell Strong died on November 13, 1811. Francis Strong married Mary Curtiss, of Homer, New York, in April 1912.

The children of Francis and Susannah Cogswell Strong were:

Hannah Strong, born 1795
Solomon Strong, born 1797
Chloe Strong, born 1799
Asahel Strong, born 1800
Lyman Strong, born 1802
Selina Strong, born 1806
Zadoc Strong, born 1808

The children of Francis and Mary Curtiss Strong were:

Susannah Cogswell Strong, born 1813
Francis Curtiss Strong, born 1814
Mary Ann Strong, born 1817

Francis Strong died at Lyme Township on January 8, 1845. He is buried in Strong's Ridge Cemetery with his first wife Susannah, his second wife Mary, and a child Francis Curtiss/Curtis Strong.

Susannah Cogswell Strong is one the pioneer women discussed in A Memorial to the Pioneer Women of the Western Reserve, edited by Gertrude Van Rensselear Wickham. The portion of this book which discusses the women of Lyme Township has been reprinted online.

Mrs. Lydia Lyon Goodwin

In the book THE HISTORY OF THE DESCENDANTS OF ELDER JOHN STRONG, OF NORTHAMPTON, MASS., by Benjamin W. Dwight, we read that Lydia Lyon was the daughter of Eliakim Lyon and Mary Strong Lyon. Lydia was born on December 15, 1812 at Stafford. She married Theron Goodwin in 1840 in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Theron Goodwin was the son of Abel Goodwin and Olive Torrey Goodwin.

Lydia Lyon Goodwin's ancestry goes back to the Elder John Strong of Northampton, Massachusetts. Many other residents of Huron and Erie Counties were from this Strong line, including former Sandusky Mayor, Rush Sloane, and his grandfather Abner Strong, who was a key figure in the Undergroud Railroad of the Firelands area. Mrs. Lydia Lyon Goodwin died on March 31, 1843 in Ohio. She is buried in Oakland Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio. The Oakland Cemetery interment card indicates that she was originally buried in Bloomingville, Ohio, but later was re-buried at Oakland.

The marker near Lydia's tombstone appears to be a Woman's Relief Corps marker. However, the Woman's Relief Corps was not organized until 1883, and Lydia Goodwin died in 1843, so it is unlikely that she was a member of this group.