Stratton House Inn is located at the heart of rich historic resources. This area was first inhabited by the Moundbuilders, then later by Wyandots, Delaware and Shawnee. Belmont County was one of the earliest areas settled in Ohio, and the scene of several bloody conflicts between settlers and Indians. Prior to the Treaty of Greenville of 1795, the nearby Ohio River was the accepted boundary between Indians to the north and settlers to the south of the river.

Conflicts arose as land-hungry settlers began encroaching on Indian lands. The celebrated Indian fighter, Lewis Wetzel, was often through this region. Wetzel instigated many of the conflicts as Indians were the object of his mortal hate. A large boulder near the Barkcamp Park's Antique Barn bears an inscription carved by Wetzel.

The Society of Friends (Quakers) established the first church in the area. Benjamin Lundy, a Quaker who lived in St. Clairsville, became known as the "Father of Abolitionism." He formed an anti-slavery society here in 1815 called the Union Humane Society. At one point, there were 120 miles of the Underground Railroad in Belmont County. Lundy helped produce the abolitionist paper, The Philanthropist at nearby Mt. Pleasant.

As years passed, coal was discovered and became the foundation of the area's economy. Belmont County is now Ohio's leading producer of coal with an estimated 5,668 million tons of coal available below the earth's surface. One of the largest earth-moving machines in the world -- the Silver Spade -- is at work just a couple miles north of Flushing, Ohio. Frequently, the boom of the Silver Spade can be seen moving above the surrounding hills.

Here, on the Stratton House Inn website -- you will find rich accounts of these events. We hope you enjoy the accounts, and then visit the sites where the events actually happened.

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