Morey Family

When the Morey family settled in Henry County, the land was still a wilderness inhabited by Indians and only a few white families. The town of Napoleon had not been established. In the year 1833 Caleb Morey left his home in Sidney, Delaware County, New York and traveled by covered wagon to what is now Henry County. Coming to the Ohio wilderness with Caleb Morey was his wife Sarah, their two daughters Sarah Manilla Morey and Lydia Honeywell and her husband Calvin Honeywell, and two sons, Jay D. Morey and another son whose name has been now forgotten. The Morey's at first settled near Girty's Point but the following year they removed two and one-half miles east of Napoleon, which at that time con sisted of but one log cabin. This settlement along the Maumee was known as Damascus. Shortly after they came to Damascus, Caleb Morey died leaving his aged wife to raise the two youngest children, the second son having taken one of the horses to return to New York State.

Caleb Morey had been born in New York State in about 1780 and there he married Sarah Hicks. They were the parents of twelve children. Sarah Hicks Morey was born in about 1782 at New York and it is not known when she died. In 1860 she was living at the home of her daughter Lydia Honeywell at Gilead (now Grand Rapids) in Wood county, Ohio. It is believed that they are both buried along the Maumee River near the Damascus bridge.

According to family tradition the Morey family were cut off from their grandfather's estate when they left New York to come to Ohio. They must have sacrificed much to leave a comfortable existence for the unsettled lands of the Black Swamp.

Caleb Morey's children were faced with many hardships but they were quite successful despite them. Lydia Morey had been born in New York about 1812 and she married Calvin Honeywell on June 24, 1833 before coming to Ohio. They resided on a farm near Gilead, Weston Township, Wood County, Ohio where her husband died on August -17, 1848. This left Lydia with two small children to care for. The oldest son, William Honeywell, worked as a laborer until the Civil War. William enlisted as a private in Co. B, 21st Regt., Ohio Infantry but before he saw any action he died of disease at camp at Galipolis, Ohio on July 4, 1861. This left Lydia with only her son Warren D. Honeywell, who was born on August 9, 1845 at Henry County. Lydia later went to Logansport, Indiana to live with her younger sister Sarah M. Langton. Warren Honeywell was raised by his Uncle Jay D. Morey in Liberty Township and Warren married Margaret A. Varner on Oct. 31, 1867. They resided on a farm of forty acres in Liberty Township. Warren Honeywell had five children: William David; Susan Luella (married Elmer Bauer); Lorenzo M., and twin daughters Dora B. and Nora B. Honeywell. On Feb. 28, 1899 Warren Morey died at his farm.

Sarah Manilla Morey, born on June 2, 1833 in New York, was raised in Henry County. She was believed to had been married two times and the name of the first husband is not known except that he was a Carr. On March 10, 1853 she married David Langton at Cass County, Indiana. Her husband served in the Civil War and died shortly after his discharge from the Army. Later she bought up real estate at Logansport and became quite well to do. Sarah Langton was the mother of three children: Charles Carr, Emma B. Langton (wife of Jesse Loser), and McMullen "Max" J. Langton, all of Logansport, Indiana. Mrs. Langton was the last of Caleb children when she died on Feb. 1, 1916 at Logansport.

Submitted by: Robert Barnes