Ephraim Cutler and the One Vote Story

     “One Vote! The Musical” is a play written about Marietta's founding and its place in Ohio and American history. It was performed during July, 2026 as part of the America 250 celebration. The title comes from the story of Ephraim's Cutler's iconic effort which kept slavery out of Ohio, by his deciding vote.

     That story began in 1787. The Ohio Company of Associates, mostly Revolutionary War veterans, pitched a creative idea to Congress. Paraphrasing here, "Have we got a deal for you: Allow us to buy land using our veterans’ land warrants and some hard cash. We get the land you owe us, and your Federal debt is reduced." Congress paid attention.

     The Ohio Company also wanted civil rights protections for citizens – and no slavery. Manasseh Cutler, Ephraim Cutler's father, - a puritan minister and scientist, was a tough negotiator. He was emphatic about slavery: "Exclude slavery forever from the territory northwest of the Ohio River, and we will buy your land...Allow it to enter, and not a penny will we invest." On July 13, 1787, Congress passed the Ordinance of 1787, creating a new territory – WITH civil rights and WITHOUT slavery. Fast forward to 1802 when a Constitutional Convention convened for Ohio statehood. Delegates from Washington County included Rufus Putnam, Ephraim Cutler, Benjamin Ives Gilman, and John McIntire. Slavery was a contentious issue.

Portrait of Ephraim Cutler, from Marietta College Special Collections

     Ephraim Cutler seemed an unlikely delegate to wield influence at the convention. He and Washington County delegates were staunch Federalists, a party that was out of favor. He incurred contempt from some for casting the sole no vote against statehood before the Convention even started. 

     The "One Vote" story from Ephraim Cutler’s memoir is that he kept Ohio from becoming a slave state, rising from a sickbed to cast the deciding vote. At the Convention, he was appointed to the Bill of Rights Committee. The committee chair proposed allowing slavery, for men up to age 35 and women until 25. This was considered a "compromise" (slavery-lite) because of the age limits. But it was still slavery. Cutler was angered. He knew this wording came from then President Thomas Jefferson, a Virginia slave owner. Jefferson wanted to introduce slavery where it had been prohibited before (the Northwest Territory expressly prohibited slavery). It would set a dangerous precedent for other states formed from the Territory. Cutler: no way!

     He strongly objected, stating that his constituents opposed slavery and that the slavery prohibition in the Northwest Ordinance was binding on states formed from the territory. Emotions were running high on both sides. Cutler calmy urged each committee member to prepare wording expressing their views and continue the discussion the next day. When the committee reconvened, he proposed a section including the words "There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in this state..." Despite some opposition, the Committee accepted Cutler's wording - by a single vote, 5-4. He was surprised that the motion carried, saying in his memoir, “The Jeffersonian version met with fewer friends than I expected.”

     But Ephraim Cutler's memoir says his One Vote was cast in a session of the entire Convention. That didn't happen, historians say. Convention records say no one proposed any change to Cutler's no-slavery committee language, perhaps testimony to Cutler's influence. There was an attempt to strike wording about servitude to prevent slavery being practiced under the guise of a being a servant; it was defeated 12-21. Cutler's memoir was written decades after the actual event. Some have suggested he confused his version of the Convention slavery vote with the Committee vote or with a Convention vote on another Black rights issue.

     One Vote story – true or false? Doesn’t matter! All agree that Ephraim Cutler was passionate about keeping Ohio a free state. His courage and influence made it happen. 

     There were two other One Votes of note. One was Ephraim Cutler’s aforementioned sole negative vote against statehood at the Convention’s opening. He, like most Federalists, thought the timing was not right. But, why vote no and incur ill will on what was just a perfunctory motion? He had the courage to vote his conscience, “I was expressing the will of my constituents (and)… my own…convictions.”

     The other One Vote was that of a free Black man, Kit Putnam, in the election of delegates to the Convention. He was the first Black to vote in Ohio, as permitted under Territorial law. Ironically, the first Ohio Constitution denied Blacks the right to vote.  

Tulip Poplar, A Flowering Tree and Valuable Resource

     Each year in early May, I notice beautiful flowers lying on the ground in our woods: light green, yellow, and orange color, the size of a golf ball, with a tulip-like circle of petals. Are these from a wildflower or maybe an escapee from someone's garden? No. These small exquisite flowers are from huge 100 foot trees – tulip poplar, using the flower namesake, or yellow poplar.

     Early Ohio was heavily forested by huge trees hundreds of years old, such tulip poplar, sycamore, and oak. They were a valuable resource to the early settlers for construction and other functions. Poplar has long been a staple wood for siding, flooring, and doors. Oak, cherry, walnut, and curly maple get all the glory in fine furniture. But many of those furniture pieces also contain poplar behind the scenes - in the drawers, backing, and shelving.

Tulip Poplar flower

Tulip tree facts and observations:

USE AS LUMBER IN EARLY OHIO: Poplar boards for temporary huts were loaded on a flatboat carrying the first settlers on April 5, 1788, 2 days before they arrived at Marietta. Master craftsman Jonathan Devol used poplar extensively for boards and building walls. Rufus Putnam noted the value of tulip poplar for construction. Because the wood was straight-grained, lightweight, and resistant to warping, it was used extensively for the siding, flooring and finish work of early structures, including in parts of the Rufus Putnam house at Campus Martius Museum. Marietta’s "Old Courthouse" built in 1799 had 3 ft. thick walls made of "double tiers yellow poplar logs, 18 inches square and neatly hewed and dove-tailed at the corners of the building." Poplar logs were sometimes called "canoe wood" because Indians used them to make dugout canoes. You can see a dugout canoe at the Ohio River Museum when it reopens next year.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL STUDY. Manasseh Cutler, prominent leader and science whiz, used a huge poplar tree on the Quadranaou Mound to estimate the mound's age. He computed the tree ring age at 464 years, suggesting the tree began growing in 1324 A.D. Further study suggested that this tree was probably the second or third generation of similar trees on that mound. This meant the Marietta earthworks were over 1,000 years old at the time. Cutler’s archaeological study of the poplar trees influenced the Ohio Company leaders to preserve the earthworks and revealed that earlier civilizations had occupied this area long ago.

"WITNESS TREES." Poplars were used, along with other large trees, as "witness trees" in survey descriptions marking corners of lots. One source says there were more than 5,600 witness trees used in surveys of the Ohio Company lands in southeast Ohio. Trees were more permanent and visible than available man-made markers.

HIGH LOOKOUT FOR SCOUTS. This one surprised me. Scouts often climbed the towering tulip poplar trees for a better view to locate Indians' war parties or camp sites. These trees were often 100-150 feet tall, taller than most other trees, allowing a view of many miles. A wisp of smoke, rising dust, or a glint of reflected sunlight on a metal surface could reveal the enemy's location. Indians did the same thing. In the unsuccessful Harmar and St. Clair 1790-91 campaigns to defeat Indians in western Ohio, Army units were being observed long before they realized they were in danger.

Tallest tree in Ohio at Hueston Woods State Park, 176 feet tall 

The base of each tulip tree flower matures into a cone-shaped woody structure which distributes dozens of winged seeds over the winter. To paraphrase the oak tree proverb, “Mighty poplars from little flowers grow.” Sometimes the tulip tree releases a dripping fluid when it flowers. Not to worry, it’s sweet-tasting nectar, not “honey dew” (aphid excrement).

Manasseh Cutler, Mac and Cheese Bad Boy

Manasseh Cutler was served macaroni and cheese at a state dinner hosted by President Thomas Jefferson in 1802. He did not like it and said so publicly. Cutler was a scientist, pastor, and architect of the new territory that enabled the settlement of Marietta and statehood for Ohio. He is considered a co-founder of Ohio University, chartered in 1804. The iconic oldest University building on campus is named Cutler Hall. 

Campus Martius historian Bill Reynolds alerted me to a curious protest about the mac and cheese thing. A presumably humorous petition (excerpt below) was launched by a student at OU, citing Cutler’s dislike of mac and cheese as an underreported blot on his record and issuing a call to action:

 

….Macaroni and cheese has grown to become integral to the 21st century college diet,…. and it (is therefore) wholly unacceptable for one of macaroni and cheese’s first and strongest detractors to represent one of our country’s finest institutions of higher learning. We call upon Ohio University to remove mentions of (Manasseh) Cutler in their advertisements, and to consider renaming Cutler Hall on College Green to a more appropriate name, such as “Mac-and-Cheese Hall...”

                  

Let’s examine the charge against Manasseh Cutler. First, macaroni was then used as a general term for pasta. So it’s a stretch to declare beyond a reasonable doubt that Cutler would have disliked today’s mac and cheese. He did record his dislike of a macaroni dish served by President Thomas Jefferson. His journal on February 6, 1802 states, “Dined at the President's – ... Dinner not as elegant as when we dined before. (It included)….. a pie called macaroni, which appeared to be a rich crust filled with….onions (which) tasted very strong, and not agreeable.” Another diner explained to Cutler that it was an Italian dish, and that the “onions” were really pasta noodles.

 

Despite its ancient origins, pasta was not well known in early America. Jefferson became a fan while he was ambassador to France in the 1780’s. He even procured a pasta making machine from Italy and made a detailed drawing of it. His serving of pasta to guests while President helped popularize it.

Thomas Jefferson’s pasta machine drawing and detailed instructions on it's operation

CLICK TO ENLARGE

 

Second, the student petition accused Manasseh Cutler of being “utterly uncultured” for snubbing macaroni. Hyperbole? Probably. In reality, Cutler was utterly cultured, one could say, and one of the most educated, articulate, and well-connected men of his time. Cutler graduated from Yale, taught school, practiced law, was ordained a minister, studied medicine, and conducted scientific research. Uncultured? Absolutely not.

 

Manasseh Cutler represented the Ohio Company of Associates who petitioned Congress in July, 1787, for the land purchase that led to Marietta’s settlement. One historian wrote, “Never was there a more ingenious, systematic and successful piece of lobbying than that of the Reverend Manasseh Cutler.” His influence can be seen in Ordinance of 1787 provisions which prohibited slavery, encouraged education, and granted freedom of religion. "Make the land worth having," Cutler told Congress. "Unless you do, we do not want it." 

 

Through his and others’ efforts, a new territory with truly American governance was created. The result was land for veterans, new settlers, five future states, and commitment to education – Ohio U. was the first university. 

The Ohio University petition is amusing, and allows us to recall Manasseh Cutler’s many accomplishments. The name “Cutler Hall” is truly well deserved.

 

Smallpox, pioneer scourge

Smallpox. Among the many hardships that the early Washington County pioneers endured was illness, often severe and sometimes fatal. There was bilious fever, scarlet fever, malaria, yellow fever, cholera, and .....smallpox. I read about smallpox often in stories of early settlers. It was only when I saw this photo that the devastation of the disease sank in. 

Young girl in Bangladesh with smallpox, from Wikipedia.

Smallpox has been around for centuries. The first evidence of the disease was from Egyptian mummies dating from the third century BCE. Smallpox occurred in outbreaks all over the world. An estimated 200 million died in the twentieth century alone; many survivors suffered blindness and severe scarring.

Your author was surprised to learn that immunization techniques for smallpox were developed several centuries ago, likely in Asia. Tissue from smallpox sufferers was rubbed or inserted into a scratch in the skin of the person to be immunized. That person would contract smallpox, usually in a less severe form, and thereafter would be immune. This treatment, referred to as variolization, was imported into Europe around 1720. It was a crude and not always successful form of immunization which preceded more modern vaccination techniques. It was widely used in the 1700’s, including at Marietta. 

Yet smallpox remained a scourge which impacted pioneer settlers. Many contracted the disease. Dozens died. Survivors could be blind or disfigured by scars. Courageous doctors and caregivers risked their lives to treat those infected.

Reverend Manasseh Cutler treated smallpox patients in his native Massachusetts. There was an outbreak of the disease in 1772 at Marblehead, MA. Patients were to be admitted to a hospital at Cat Island where Cutler visited. Local residents panicked fearing that the influx of infected patients would spread the disease. They burned down the hospital. The specter of smallpox appeared again in early 1779. Cutler by then had become a physician after training during the previous year. He inoculated and treated 40 or more patients during that period.

The original work party headed to Marietta in 1788 was slowed by smallpox. A group under Major White struggled west from Massachusetts over rough Pennsylvania terrain. In February 1788 they arrived at Simrill’s Ferry on the Youghiogheny River to build boats for the trip down the Ohio River to Marietta. The boat building was delayed by, among other things, smallpox which afflicted five of the party.

The initial outbreak of smallpox at Marietta began in January, 1790. A boat bound for Kentucky stopped at Marietta with a sick passenger, a Mr. Welch, and his family. He was taken to the home of James and Mary Gardner Owen. His disease was the dreaded smallpox. Residents met and decided to build a “pest house” (a building for quarantine and treatment of contagious disease patients, including smallpox) near where Marietta College is now. Mr. Welch was moved there but died a few days later. Mrs. Owen became ill with the disease but later recovered. 

London Pest House image, from Wikipedia. Pest houses originated for epidemics in Europe, such as bubonic plague. Some buildings were quite large. Burial grounds (the “plague pit” in this image caption) were often near the pest house, away from public areas.

Residents were concerned about contagion because of living in close quarters at Campus Martius. There was a town meeting at the northwest blockhouse at Campus Martius. They decided to build more pest houses and to have everyone “inoculated” (using the variolization technique described above). Several of these houses were built “on the plain,” probably in area where Fifth Street and Marietta College are now. One house held 23 patients; another occupied by Colonel Stacy and his family had 20 people. Of the hundred plus people inoculated, only two died. Six people died who became sick by contagion. Doctors Jabez True and Thomas Farley cared for the sick.

Apparently some pest houses were quite small and the quarters cramped. Master builder Joseph Barker stayed in one for a while. He and his wife Elizabeth Dana Barker moved to Marietta in 1789. When the January 1790 smallpox outbreak occurred, Mrs. Barker moved to Belpre to live with her parents until the danger passed. Joseph Barker remained in Marietta and was inoculated with smallpox and moved into a pest house. He rather cheerily described it in a letter to his wife: “I am living in a little clean log cabin that is six feet wide, seven feet long and four and a half high.” He could sit up but not stand up. “We lodge very well.” He survived the sickness and was reunited with his wife and infant son Joseph Jr. a few weeks later.

Mary Bird Lake provided invaluable assistance in this smallpox outbreak. She was a native of England who married Archibald Lake and emigrated to the colonies. She served as a matron of two hospitals caring for wounded and sick Revolutionary War soldiers, including those with smallpox. She received personal thanks from George Washington for her work. Washington commented in 1777 that smallpox was a potentially greater threat than “the sword....of the enemy.”

The Lakes moved to Marietta in 1789 with their eight children. Williams’ History of Washington County Ohio (hereafter, “William’ History”): "The spring after their arrival the small pox broke out, and during the terrible pestilence Mrs. Lake served a crucial role as nurse." She was familiar with the inoculation technique and guided the physicians who had no experience with smallpox treatment. 

1793 brought an extensive smallpox outbreak in Washington County. In August, scarlet fever and then smallpox appeared in Marietta at Picketed Point, spread from militia soldiers in Colonel Haskell’s command. The Court of Quarter Sessions met on August 7 and ordered removal of the infected persons to Mixer’s spring. The Court met again August 9 and ordered the sick relocated to Devol’s Island, presumably a more isolated location, on the Muskingum River.

Smallpox broke out in September 1793 at the beleaguered Belpre community, which had endured famine, Indian threats, and scarlet fever in recent times. A scout named Benjamin Patterson brought the disease; he had been inoculated in Marietta. The Belpre community initiated “heroic measures,” knowing of the contagion risk of living in close quarters. They sent for Dr. Jabez True from Marietta to inoculate the entire community at Farmer’s Castle (the fortified enclosure at Belpre), which became “one great hospital.” Dr. Samuel Barnes also cared for smallpox patients at Belpre. 

The immunization effort protected the community from devastation. About a hundred were inoculated. Most survived the resulting mild form of smallpox. Five people died, though, testimony to the imperfect inoculation method. 

The family of Simon Deming moved to Rainbow on a donation tract in 1796. They erected a cabin there and cleared an area for farming. Williams’ History has a curious commentary: “During the following season an epidemic of smallpox spread across the county, and the young men of the neighborhood made the Deming cabin a pest house.” Several families of the Deming clan were “confined within this one cabin, where they were waited on by a physician from Virginia.” Who were the “young men”? Were they providing a needed community service or enforcing a quarantine vigilante style? And were the Demings forced to stay in this cabin?

Early physicians were often called on to minister to smallpox patients, in addition to other illnesses. Dr. Jabez True “was many times exposed to the attacks of the Indians, as he passed up and down the Ohio (River) in his visits to Belpre and still lower on the river, to minister to the sick...., numerous trips were made in a canoe, accompanied, generally, by two men.” 

Settlers in Washington County endured much the first few years. Williams’ History captured the essence of what they suffered: ...the terrible scourge had been prevented from doing its worst. Though sorely tried, (they) were destined to neither succumb to the Indian, to famine, to fever, nor to pestilence.”

In 1796 English surgeon Edward Jenner developed an improved vaccine using cowpox virus. Persons vaccinated could be immunized from smallpox without being sickened by it. Jenner had noticed during his surgeon apprenticeship that milk maids and dairy farmers who had suffered from the less virulent cowpox were immune from smallpox. Dr. Jenner devised a vaccine and inoculated an eight year old boy who proved immune from smallpox. Jenner presented his findings; years of suspicion and controversy followed. Finally, in 1800, his method was widely adopted.

Dr Edward Jenner performing his first vaccination on James Phipps, a boy of age 8. 14 May 1796. Painting by Ernest Board (early 20th century). He noticed that milk maids who had been sick with cowpox were immune from smallpox and developed a vaccination

 process using cowpox.

Millions of people were saved from smallpox, yet millions of the unvaccinated died into the twentieth century. With improved vaccine and wider distribution, smallpox was finally eliminated as a health hazard. The last reported case was in 1977.


SOURCES:

Andrews, Martin R., History of Marietta and Washington County and Representative Citizens, Chicago, Biographical Publishing Company, 1902

Cutler, William Parker and Julia Perkins, Life, Journals, and Correspondence of Rev. Manasseh Cutler, L.L.D. Cincinnati, Robert Clarke & Co, 1888

Hildreth, Samuel P., Pioneer History: Being an Account of the First Examinations of the Ohio Valley and the Early Settlement of the Northwest Territory, Cincinnati, H. W. Derby & Co., 1848,

Hildreth, Samuel, Biographical and Historical Memoirs of the Early Pioneer Settlers of Ohio, Cincinnati, H. W. Derby & Co., 1852

Ridiel, Stefan, M.D., Ph D., “Edward Jenner and the History of Smallpox Vaccination,” Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, National Center for Biothechnology Information, viewed at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1200696/

Waller, A. E., “Dr. Samuel P. Hildreth 1783-1863,” Ohio History Journal, Vol 53

Wikipedia.com, Smallpox, Smallpox Vaccination, Smallpox Variolization

Williams, H. Z., History of Washington County Ohio, Cleveland, H. Z. Williams and Bro, 1881