About George Kirtland
George Kirtland was a son of Turhand Kirtland (founder of Poland, OH) and brother of my 2nd great grandfather Billius Kirtland. He was born on November 05, 1809 and died at the age of 81 on September 15, 1890. He's buried in Poland's Riverside Cemetery. He likely spent his entire life living in Poland, OH. He married Helen Cook and had two children, Mary Potter Kirtland (who died in infancy) and William Potter Kirtland (who passed away at age 30 and for who I show no marriage or children). George and Helen were apparently divorced at some point. An 1840 Poland Township map shows that George owned 143.5 acres of land in the township, likely given to him by has father. George Kirtland is notable for two reasons. First, in 1845 he built a large home at 441 South Main St. in Poland,
possibly using proceeds from his share of his father's estate
(Turhand having passed away in 1844). He sold this home
to Samuel Hine in 1864 and this is where Samuel and
George's niece Emma Kirtland-Hine would raise their 5 children.
This home, today beautifully restored and on the National Register
of Historic Places, was in the
Kirtland and Hine families for 110 years till the death of Samuel
and Emma's daughter Nell in 1955.
Second, George, apparently among other ventures, invented Kirtland Ink which was popular and widely distributed in the mid 1800's in the days before today's ubiquitous ball-point pens were invented and when a pen needed to be dipped in ink after every few strokes. George's ink was apparently quite popular until competitive pressures forced it off the market, coincidentally around the time he sold his large home to Samuel Hine and moved next door to a smaller one. Today antique Kirtland Ink bottles can occasionally be found for sale on internet auction sites as collectors items. It can be assumed that George did well financially, at least for a time, since he could afford to have built and live in the large Kirtland/Hine home for almost 20 years.
The above indicates that George's ink formula was manufactured and distributed by Julius Woodruff. I note that Samuel Hine's son from his first marriage to Ellen Montgomery-Hine, Cecil Dwight Hine, married Elizabeth Woodruff who was from Poland. I suspect that she was likely related to Julius but haven't figured out how. (Elizabeth's father was George Woodruff but Julius could have been her brother or uncle.)
The following is some information regarding George that I've run into while researching my Ohio ancestors. From "A Look At Poland, Ohio - 200 Years and Counting" page 7 by Robert Wilkeson
(1996):
From "Guidebook to Historical Sites and Points of Interest In Poland, Ohio"
regarding the home at 441 South Main Street: Nell Hine's Recollections of Her Uncle George George's niece, Ellen Louis Hine ("Nell") talks about her uncle George in a manuscript she wrote in the mid 1940's. On page 2 of "The Billius Kirtland Family" she writes after discussing other paintings: "I have Uncle George Kirtland's portrait by a better artist. It hangs above our 66 year old piano in the green sitting room. Our house was built by , or for, Uncle George Kirtland. My impression is that great grandfather, Turhand Kirtland, had a home built for each child. Uncle George was handsome but when I showed him his portrait, when he was an old man, he looked at it and remarked, "Did I ever look like that! I remember when the portrait was shown to me, I was so disgusted, I threw I across the room." Nell continues: "Uncle George's appreciation of the Hine children's singing on Sunday afternoons, when Mother played, was more thrilling to him than any other mortal as he said, 'We should travel.'" "His life was an example of how the green
monster jealousy can wreck lives. When Uncle George was a
young man, he visited in Wallingford, Conn., the home of his
ancestors. He had become acquainted with a number of girls and
was about to leave for home when the Episcopal Rector of the Church
spoke to him about marrying his daughter, Helen. Uncle was not
aware he had been more attentive to her than the others, but they
were married and came to Poland to live, and visited "They had two children, the younger, Mary, is buried by her father in the new Cemetery. Aunt Helen went east with her son to visit but her son was drowned, and I imagine, due to jealousy, Uncle George never sent for her, and later she married. She kept in touch with Cousin Lucy Boardman." "Uncle George discovered making fadeless ink. He also had a knitting machine and a swamp where he raised huckleberries."
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