'Squire Parrish

'Squire Parrish, son of Samuel Parrish, and his wife, Sophia Althouse, came from Canada with their family to Goshen township in 1837, making their wagon a sleeping-room, and eighty acres their living-room for two weeks, until their basswood log house was completed —the pioneers aiding in its building. The logs were first gathered, then split in halves, the bark peeled off and used for roofing; but, to keep this "species" of roof in place, poles had to be laid over it. it is related that while 'Squire Parrish was "To mill at Utica," his wife, two children and a visitor kept house during that winter of 1837-8. One night a storm came on, the efforts of the wife and visitor to keep the roof on failed. The snow began to pour in, so that some other plan had to be adopted. This was simply to take down the children's trundle-bed, and, with the ropes belonging to it, tie down the rebellious bark. The plan was adopted, the end of the rope tied to the stove and the family slept out the storm without further interruption. On the return of the father the roof was thoroughly repaired. Some time later Mr. Parrish added another eighty acres to his first purchase, and resided in Goshen until 1850, when he moved to Toulon, where he died in 1877. Mrs. Sophia Parrish is still a resident of the county sea;. Their children were: Bethuel, of Goshen; Sarah, wife of James McStimpson; Hiram, of Union county, Ia.; Happy, wife of George Dugan, of Taylor county, Ia.; Cynthia, wife of George Maxfield, of Nebraska; Lucy Cooley, deceased; Sophia, wife of D. Maxfield, of Nebraska; Puloff, residing with his mother, and one son named Peter, deceased, who was a blacksmith at Toulon. 'Squire Parrish was not a member of any church, though raised a Quaker. His wife has been a Methodist for years.