Ames Township was settled by early settlers, Ephraim Cutler, Captain Benjamin Brown, and Lt George Ewing (father of Thomas Ewing Sr from a previous article). The latter two were officers in the American Revolution. It was a wild country then and they found themselves using axes and machetes to make their way through the thick underbrush. They were not, however, your typical frontiersmen settlers. They were men who had been well educated and appreciated the value of learning. Ephraim Cutler was instrumental in the founding of American Western University. Today it is known as Ohio University.
Soon after settling the area, these three men along with others, met to discuss the possibility of a library. Since money was in short supply and most commerce consisted of bartering, the financing of the library was problematic. It was decided that the locals would hunt and trap furs to pay for the much wanted books. Samuel Brown was enlisted to make the trip to Boston, where the furs could be sold and books could be purchased.
Fortunately the university was not founded until 1804. Otherwise I am afraid the meeting could have been disrupted by several dozen students holding up signs that read “No Fur for Books”.
Armed with a load of pelts and a list that named the types of books wanted for the initial library, Samuel Brown made the long arduous trip to Boston. He received the goodly sum of seventy three dollars and fifty cents. That was not an insignificant sum in 1803. With that, he was able to purchase fifty one books. They consisted mostly of historical and religious texts along with encyclopedias. It also included the works of several great philosophers.
In 1804 the library was opened, just one year after Ohio gained it’s statehood. The men who contributed the furs were given lifetime privileges for use of the library. All others were asked to pay a yearly fee. Therefore it was not like the public libraries we are used to today, as many people could not afford the required yearly contribution.
Ephraim Cutler was the first librarian and the library was run out of his house. Over the years, the library changed locations and caretakers even as the total of books climbed slowly but steadily. In fact by 1830, the total was several hundred books, most of which are now possessed by the Ohio Historical Society. There is also a collection known as the Dover Collection which is owned and housed by Ohio University.
I grew up in Amesville. The only real knowledge any of us had was just anecdotal. The only physical proof that the library ever existed was a solitary marker that sat next to the bank building and later signs placed near the corporation limits announcing Amesville as the home of the famed Coonskin Library.
Today, there is tangible proof that the Coonskin Library (originally chartered as the Western Library Association) did indeed once occupy the area known as Ames Township. It is housed in the old cafeteria in Amesville and is run by Robert Avery, a man of great passion, where the library is concerned. With the help of the alumni and individuals too numerous to mention, for fear of leaving someone out, it has become a museum of sorts.
The building houses many pictures and reproductions provided by Steve McKinley. It also houses two documents which are the originals. One is what appears to be an accounting of expenses incurred by the library and the original land transfer for the library signed by the first Secretary of the Interior, Thomas Ewing Sr and also President Zachary Taylor.
Bob Avery has been able to borrow the original books from the Ohio Historical Society and Ohio University for display in Amesville. Unfortunately that will not be possible again unless the building can have it’s heating and cooling replaced and a special bookcase that is climate controlled installed. Mr Avery estimates with volunteer help this can be done for about thirty five hundred dollars. The alumni association that previously helped raise funds for the library has been decimated with deaths and the aging of it’s members.
The founders of the library were historical figures in their own right. Benjamin Butler fought in the Battle of Bunker Hill. George Ewing spent the winter at Valley Forge with Washington. And Ephraim Cutler, who represented Ames Township at the state constitutional convention, but had grown quite sick and was flat on his back at the time of the vote to determine if Ohio was to be a free or slave state, became memorable too. Rufus Putnam (founder of Marietta) and another man carried Ewing to the convention. Ewing convinced one young delegate to change his vote to free, then proceeded to cast the final and deciding vote, keeping slavery out of Ohio. You can read more about the history here.
If you would like to help, please send a donation to:
The Coonskin Library
16320 Ste Rte 329
Amesville , Ohio 45711
No amount is too small or too large. Any additional funds raised will be used for field trips for the students. Visits to the Museum by local schools are welcome by appointment. Please don’t let Athens County be forgotten. And tell them Steve sent you. Thank you very much.
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