Benjamin Stites
Benjamin Stites was an American pioneer and one of the earliest Anglo-American settlers in the Miami River region of the Northwest Territory. He is best known for leading the first group of settlers to the Symmes Purchase and for founding Columbia, one of the earliest settlements in present-day Cincinnati, Ohio.
Early life
Stites was born in New Jersey in 1749. Before migrating west, he worked as a trader along the Ohio River and became familiar with the region’s geography and settlement potential.Ohio settlement
In 1787–1788, Stites provided information to Judge John Cleves Symmes that influenced the federal land grant later known as the Symmes Purchase. He organized and led the first boatload of settlers to the purchase, establishing Columbia in late 1788.Stites served in local militia defense during the Northwest Indian War and participated in additional settlement efforts in what became Warren County.