Peter Manor (1778–1847) was best known as the founder of the town of

Providence, Ohio Providence is a ghost town on the north side of the Maumee River in southern Providence Township, Lucas County, Ohio, United States, about 24 miles (39 km) southwest of Toledo. After suffering a destructive fire and a cholera epidemic in ...

. Of French-Canadian descent, Manor was a

fur trader The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the mos ...

in northwest Ohio starting in the late 18th century. Native Americans in the area, primarily

Odawa The Odawa (also Ottawa or Odaawaa ), said to mean "traders", are an Indigenous American ethnic group who primarily inhabit land in the Eastern Woodlands region, commonly known as the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada. They ha ...

, considered him a friend, which helped his business. He continued to trade with Native Americans and opened up a trading post that operated until approximately the early 19th century.

Development of Providence

The defeat in 1794 of Indians in the

Northwest Indian War The Northwest Indian War (1786–1795), also known by other names, was an armed conflict for control of the Northwest Territory fought between the United States and a united group of Native American nations known today as the Northwestern ...

, followed by the waging and conclusion of the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

with a preservation of US borders, resulted in increased pressure on the federal government by settlers to open up these lands to European-American settlement. The government made treaties with area tribes by which they ceded large blocks of land. In the 1830s, many were encouraged to agree to removal in the 1830s to areas of Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River, in future Kansas and Oklahoma. For instance, the last of the Odawa bands from northwestern Ohio left this area by 1839 (Rozick, 10-11). In 1822, Manor had constructed a sawmill and gristmill on the Maumee River in what became

to encourage settlement and ensure he would have a business (Rozick, 12). He wanted to prepare for the influx of settlers he expected as the Northwest was being developed. In 1835, Manor began developing the town of Providence. In this same period, the state of Ohio began development of what was to be the

Wabash and Erie Canal The Wabash and Erie Canal was a shipping canal that linked the Great Lakes to the Ohio River via an artificial waterway. The canal provided traders with access from the Great Lakes all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. Over 460 miles long, it was th ...

through the town. Later, this section would be referred to as being a part of the

Miami and Erie Canal The Miami and Erie Canal was a canal that ran from Cincinnati to Toledo, Ohio, creating a water route between the Ohio River and Lake Erie. Construction on the canal began in 1825 and was completed in 1845 at a cost to the state government of $ ...

. Specifically, the state decided that the canal should run through the site of Manor's Mill on the river. In 1838, the state of Ohio took possession of Manor's mill through

eminent domain Eminent domain (United States, Philippines), land acquisition (India, Malaysia, Singapore), compulsory purchase/acquisition (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, United Kingdom), resumption (Hong Kong, Uganda), resumption/compulsory acquisition (Austr ...

and demolished it to construct the canal (Rozick, 12). Manor rebuilt the mill in another location. As a result of a deal made with Ohio, Manor obtained perpetual water rights at his new mill (Emmons). Eventually, Manor sold the mill.(Rozick, 13) He continued to be active in the community of Providence until his death in September 1847 (Rozick, 13). It managed to preserve a higher quality of life and was nearly free of the problems of drinking, gambling, and prostitution which typically plagued canal towns. The construction of railroads through Ohio bypassed Providence and drew off traffic from the canal. The town's economy suffered a steep decline in the late 19th century. Eventually residents abandoned this location for ones with railroad access.

Sources

*Emmons, Michael J. ''Grinding through Time: The Historic Isaac Ludwig Mill,'' Metroparks of Toledo. Available at https://web.archive.org/web/20070501053002/http://www.metroparkstoledo.com/metroparks/providence/display.asp?id=223&subj=providence *Rozick, Janet E. ''Side Cut, Farnsworth, Bend View, and Providence Metroparks,'' Metroparks of Toledo. Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20070928221624/http://www.metroparkstoledo.com/metroparks/content/files/side_cut_farnsworth_bv_and_providence.doc People from Lucas County, Ohio 1778 births 1847 deaths French-American culture in Ohio {{Ohio-bio-stub