Interesting. Ruth Crawley Champion's Champion book mentions her on page 92:
"GENERATION VII: ELIZABETH CHAMPION & JAMES BLACKMAN, of N.J., moved
to Bethel, Ohio, in 1816 to help his brother-in-law, Rev. John Collins, build
the Old Bethel Church. His sister, Sarah Blackman Collins, established 'The
Jersey Settlement' in 1803.
"ELIZABETH CHAMPION - Daughter of Daniel Champion & Ruhame
Ingersoll.
" b. Great Eggharbour Twp., Gloucester Co., N.J.
" d.
"m. James Blackman, 1813, he was serving in War of 1812.
[footnotes].
"JAMES BLACKMAN - Son of ____________________... [Ruth has no
dates for him.]
"Children of Elizabeth (Champion) Blackman & James Blackman:
"1. Ruhama Blackman, -1866 at Bantam m. Savil Justice.
"2. Mary Blackman m. Wesley McClain Nichols.
"3. Caroline Blackman m. Dr. Samuel Latta, a physician.
"4. Lewis V. Blackman, Cincinnati, later moved to Illinois.
"The twins, Ruhama and Mary, were 8 years old when they left N.J.
with the
colony.
"James Blackman moved to the Tate Twp., Bantam, Elk Lick area after
maritime service, N.J., in the War of 1812."
On pages 82-83, as part of a chapter entitled "To the Ohio Wilderness," there
is a sketch of "The Little White Church on the Hilll" at Bantam, Ohio, namely
the Old Bethel Church. Ruth says:
"CLERMONT COUNTY. After Ohio was admitted to the Union in 1803, a
group of New Jersey settlers established homes in Clermont County. At that
time Clermont County was formed from Hamilton County. Sarah Blackman
Collins helped establish the 'Jersey Settlement" in 1803. Her husband, the
Rev. John Collins, was a circuit rider for the Methodist Churches. Many
family names which originated in New Jersey can be found in the cemeteries:
Collins, Blackman, Banks, Albertson, Shaw, Scull, Steelman, Highbee,
McCollum, and Champion.
'OLD BETHEL M.E. CHURCH. The Old Bethel M.E. Church, located four
miles from the town of Bethel, Ohio, stands on the plot of land given by the
Rev. John Collins. The original church, amde of logs, was also used as a
schoolhouse, with Benjamin Morris, brother of Senator Thomas Morris,as
teacher.
"James Blackman, brother of Sarah Blackman Collins, came from New Jersey
to erect a larger building for the growing embership, in 1818. Many New
Jersey friends and relatives, Richard Shaw, Elijah Applegate, Richard Banks,
and others followed to help with the building of the new church.
"The church was remodeled in 1867, but delining attendance resulted in
discontinued services about 1960 and the land was designated to become a
state park...." The Old Bethel M. E. Church Historical Society saved the
cemetery site and its 1000 graves from being relocated as part of the govt
project which made Rev. John Collins' home into a beach. At the time of
Ruth's book, services were held in this church each year for Memorial Day and
for Homecoming in the fall.
Sounds like it might be worth a trip.
Jan T