George W. Darlinton
George W. Darlinton was born November 18, 1793, in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, and died November 8, 1881, in Winchester, Adams County, Ohio, while on a temporary visit there and had therefore, reached the grand old age of eightyeight years. He belonged to a family of remarkable longevity. His father, General Joseph Darlinton, died at eighty-seven, one brother at ninety, another at ninety-one, and his sister, Mrs. Sarah Van Deman, of Delaware, at eighty-six years. He was the second son of Gen. Joseph Darlinton. Not long after his birth, his father removed to the Northwest Territory, settling in 1797 near the present town of West Union. Here George remained with his father until he grew to manhood, gathering such an education as could be found in that pioneer life, and being thoroughly drilled in the strictest tenets of the Presbyterian faith, which never departed from him, for he lived and died in it. The General was never so busy in his struggles for livelihood, or in the discharge of his important official duties, but he could give his personal attention to the instruction of his children in all moral and religious doctrine. He was a firm believer in the shorter catechism, the Westminster confession and the Decalogue, particularly the fourth commandment. Many are the stories told,—doubtless problematical,—of the manner he required the observance of the Sabbath, such as fastening the bees in their hives, or tying the dog's mouth on that day, but George thoroughly remembered his drilling on that subject, and all through his life he "remembered the Sabbath day to keep it holy." Through the superior abilities of his father, supplemented by the instructions of a mother of more than ordinary wisdom and literary tastes, he enjoyed many more than the usual educational opportunities for that day. He was inclined to mercantile pursuits, and about 1825 located at Newark, Ohio, and formed a partnership with his brother Carey in the dry-goods business. They were both gentlemen of fine personal appearance, of stately deportment, and of exemplary habits. During the life of this partnership, George secured a contract and constructed a portion of the Ohio Canal through Licking County. In a few years they dissolved partnership, Carey ultimately locating in Montana Territory, and George settling in Greenup County, Kentucky, where he continued to reside until his death. He enjoyed the utmost confidence of the people of Eastern Kentucky, serving for many years as Sheriff and Collector of Revenues of Greenup County. He was also engaged in the manufacture of iron, and at one time constructed an extensive manufactory for extracting oil from coal, but the great discovery of petroleum in the oil fields of Pennsylvania and elsewhere closed his new enterprise at a heavy loss.
At an early day, he was the owner of a few slaves, but an enlightened conscience told him it was not right to hold human flesh in bondage, so he took them across the Ohio River and purchased them a comfortable home, leaving them with the warning "that if they did not behave them selves, he would take them back to Kentucky."
He was a most uncompromising supporter of the administration of President Lincoln in the war for the preservation of the Union. He endorsed the proclamation freeing the slaves, not only as a war measure but because he thought it was right, and as an old Henry Clay Whig, he believed in the highest protection to American industries.
During his life of eighty-eight years, he saw the pioneers sweeping down the western slope of the Alleghanies, spread themselves over the whole of the Northwestern Territory, converting it all into new states in the Confederacy, and extending westward across the Mississippi to the extremest verge of the continent. The marvelous growth of the country in agriculture, in manufactories and in the sciences, as also in the improvement in the condition of all classes from the inventions and discoveries in his day, was the subject of frequent comment by him. He was universally beloved by old and young, and no one ever received intentional unkindness from '"Uncle George.' Many a young man was indebted to him for his unostentatious aid in some critical time in his life. He was a genial gentleman of the "old school," a good conversationalist, a pleasant companion, a warm friend and an honest man. There was a quiet humor about him that was at times refreshing. He was a man of most abstemious habits, so that he enjoyed exceptional health to the last. He believed in temperance in eating as well as in drinking. The strength of a constitution built up by a life of such temperance was well illustrated towards the close of his life. About six years before his death, he had the misfortune to fall and break his leg, but such was the healthfulness of his constitution that he was out walking with a cane in less than six weeks after the accident. He accumulated a handsome property, which he divided with most rigid impartiality among his relatives. He was never married. He died in the communion of the Presbyterian Church and was buried in the cemetery at West Union, where his father, mother and other relatives sleep.
From History of Adams County, Ohio from its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time - by Nelson W. Evans and Emmons B. Stivers - West Union, Ohio - Published by E. B. Stivers - 1900