CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 675 ED. D. LYON. Ed. D. Lyon, the superintendent of the public schools of Mansfield, was born in Martinsburg, Knox county, Ohio, in 1862. The Lyon family has long been identified with this country, one of its representatives, a Captain Lyon, having served in the Revolutionary war. Daniel Lyon, the grandfather of our subject, was born in New Jersey and in the early part of the nineteenth century emigrated to Ohio, then called the Western Reserve, and made settlement in Knox county, where he spent an active and useful life. At the advanced age of eighty-five years he served as township assessor, and in performing the duties of that office walked all over the township. He had a sturdy character and was honorable and upright in all his dealings and active and prominent in the Methodist church. His wife, whose maiden name was Hannah Dalrymple, was a native of Knox county. Their son, A. J. Lyon, the father of Ed. D., was born in that county in 1828, graduated at the Ohio Wesleyan University in 1854 ,and immediately afterward entered the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church. He filled charges at Mount Vernon, Galion, Tiffin, Sandusky, Elyria, Mansfield, Delaware and Berea, and for .several years was a presiding elder, his last term in this office being over the Mansfield district. For twenty years he has been a trustee of the Ohio Wesleyan University and at the present he is the treasurer of the board of trustees. His residence is at Delaware, and he is somewhat occupied still in the work of the ministry, not, however, having a regular charge. His wife died in Mansfield, in 1877. She was before marriage Olive Weatherby, and she was a daughter of Edmund Weatherby, of Chesterville, Knox county, one of the prominent men of his day in the county. In 1879 he married Rachel Hay, of a well known family in Ashland county. E. D. Lyon received his early education in the public schools of Sandusky, Elyria and Mansfield, Where, as already stated, his father was stationed as a minister, and then entered the Ohio Wesleyan University, of which institution he is a graduate with the class of 1882. Choosing the profession of teaching, Mr. Lyon soon proved himself successful, and he has worked his way forward to a position among the foremost educators of Ohio. After teaching three years in the Berea high school he served the citizens of Brecksville two years as township superintendent; after which he was recalled to Berea, where he was in charge of the schools five years. In 1893 he came to Mansfield, with the schools of which city he has since 676 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. been connected, since 1895 occupying his present position of superintendent. To show something of the importance and responsibility of his position we take pleasure in making here a brief- statement regarding the Mansfield schools. The enrollment of the Mansfield public schools in 1900 was 3,385 pupils, of which 309 were in the kindergarten department ; the total number of teachers employed was eighty-six. There are nine school buildings, including that of the high school, in which. is the superintendent's office. The buildings are equipped with all the modern improvements. in the methods of heating, ventilation, etc., and the grounds are spacious, well kept and attractive. The school property of the city is valued at two hundred and forty thousand dollars. Forty. pupils graduated in 1900, the largest number graduating in a single year in the history of the school'. Mr. Lyon has a pleasant home and an interesting family. He married Miss Camilla Gallup, of Berea, a daughter of Milton Gallup and his wife, nee Spencer. They have two children,—Philip and Robert. Personally Mr. Lyon is quick, active and decisive in manner and speech, yet pleasant to all, and is well liked by both pupil and patron. HARLEN F. SMART. On the farm where he now resides Harlen F. Smart was born February is, 1852, and throughout his business career he has carried on agricultural pursuits. His parents, Perry and Louisa (Zody) Smart, had two children, but our subject is the only one now living. The other, Leander Taylor, died in 1892, at the age of forty-five years. The father was born on the old homestead October 30, 1820, his father being Jeremiah. Smart. His birth occurred in the old block house at Hagerstown, Maryland, in 1777, during the Revolutionary war. He was a son of William Smart, one of the heroes of the struggle for independence. In 1798 Jeremiah Smart became a resident of Ohio. and helped build the first log cabin in Franklin county, the building standing on the present site of the city of Columbus. For two years he roamed over different parts of the state and then returned to Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania. Later he was married and in 1814 he brought his wife to Ohio, locating in Mifflin township, Richland county. After two years had passed he entered from the government the quarter section of land upon which the subject of our sketch now resides. Upon this farm he spent his remaining days, his death occurring in his eighty-eighth year. He was a man of strong force of character and CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 677 marked individuality, and his influence proved a potent factor for good in the community. He held membership in the Presbyterian church., For three or four years before his death he was blind, but bore his affiction with Christian fortitude. Upon the old homestead Perry Smart, was reared, sharing with the family in all the hardships and trials of the life of a pioneer. After his marriage he, engaged in working the old home place for two years and then purchased one hundred acres of. land, a portion of the "Curt". McBride farm, in Monroe township. There he lived for four years, when he returned to the old homestead, in accordance with his father's wish. He later sold his own farm and purchased the one upon which his father had located many years before. There he spent his remaining days, and in 1891, in his seventy-first year, he was called to his final rest. He exercised his right of franchise in support of Democratic principles and was the treasurer of his township for several terms. Of the Lutheran church he was an active member and was widely recognized as .a man of high moral character, whose influence was a benediction to all who knew him. His wife, a native of Bedford county, Pennsylvania, was born January 19, 1824, and was the daughter of Henry Zody, whose parents came to America from Germany soon after their marriage. Henry Zody removed to Ohio in 183o, locating on the Beasore place. Later he removed to the farm upon which David Zody now resides. His daughter, Mrs. Smart, is still living and makes her home with her son, Harlen F. Smart. The subject of this review spent his boyhood clays under the parental roof, acquiring his education in the common schools of the neighborhood and in a select school at Lucas. On attaining his majority he took charge of the home farm and has since carried on agricultural pursuits. A glance at his place will indicate to the passerby the careful supervision of the owner, whose progressive methods have resulted in bringing to him success in his undertakings. His fields are well tilled and the place is improved with all the accessories and conveniences of a model farm. In 1892 Mr. Smart was united in marriage to Miss Hattie Lambright, a a native of Ashland county. Ohio, and their union has been blessed with one child, Perry H., who was born October 2, 1892. Socially Mr. Smart is connected with Mansfield Lodge, No. 35, F. & A. M. ; Mansfield Commanders. No. 21, K. T. ; and the Scottish rite bodies of the valley of Dayton and consistory of Cincinnati, thirty-second degree. He votes with the Democracy and for six years has served his township as trustee, discharging his duties in a very capable manner. His entire life has 678 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. been passed upon the farm which is now his home, and those who have known him from boyhood as well as acquaintance of his later years esteem him highly for his sterling worth. JOHN C. OHLER. The United States owes as much to its farmers as to any other class of its citizens, and it has often been remarked that farmers constitute the real backbone of our body politic. Ohio has, from the beginning of its civilization, been blessed with a class of farmers characterized by patriotism and sturdy independence beyond those of some other states. Not alone in the field of politics have the farmers of Ohio been active and useful, but at their country's call to arms they have been among the first to respond and have been brave soldiers, risking life gladly, faithfully performing every duty and patiently enduring the hardships to which the fortunes of war subjected them. Of such admirable Ohio stock came the subject of this sketch, John C. Ohler, who was born near Perrysville, Ashland county, February 17, 1845, a son of Jacob Ohler, and at the early age of five weeks became a settler of Monroe township, Richland county, being brought there by his parents in March, 1845. Jacob Ohler was born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania, in 1819, and was brought by his parents to Ohio in 1820. The family settled on the farm now owned and occupied by Mts. Lewis Leiter, in 1821, and shortly afterward moved -upon an "eighty" in another part of the township, where John Ohler's grandfather, the original settler, died, at the age of seventy-one years. Jacob Ohler, the father of the subject of this sketch, married Abigail Hersh, and they had seven children, as follows : Hannah, who is deceased ; Solomon, who lives on a part of the old family homestead; Martin, who has passed away ; Elizabeth, the wife of J. C. Sowash, of Lexington, Ohio ; Catherine, who is dead ; John, the subject of this sketch; and Jessie, who also has departed this life. For a time Jacob Ohler lived in Ashland county, and on his return to Richland county he located on the farm now owned by Newton Hersh. He died in Monroe township in 1889, having lived a life full of honor. He was a member of the Lutheran church, active and helpful in all its work, and was respected by his fellow citizens for his good judgment and the integrity of his entire career. John C. Ohler was reared to the every-day work of the farm and educated in the public school and at Bellville, Ohio. At the age of twenty-one years he began to work by the month for A. Tucker, on the same farm which CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 679 is now his homestead, and was thus employed for three years. At the expiration of that time he rented the farm of Mr. Tucker, whose daughter, Miss Jane M. Tucker, became his wife in 1870. He had married Miss Elizabeth Baughman in 1867, and she had died a year later, leaving one child, Marion M. By his present marriage he has eight children, as follows : Lena B. ; Horace A., who lives in Sandusky county; Ivan D., who is a resident of Monroe township; Le Roy C.; Emma E., who married John Culler ; Tracy T. ; Charles C.; Jessie Day; and Lena, Le Roy and Tracy are now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Ohler own two hundred and thirteen acres, one hundred and forty of which is under cultivation, and he is a successful stockman and general farmer. Politically he is identified with the Reform party. He was formerly a Democrat. He was eighteen years a deacon and has been six years ,an elder in the Pleasant Valley Lutheran church. JOSEPH McCURDY. Of the farming interests of Richland county Joseph McCurdy is a representative. He was born August 9, 1851, on a farm in Worthington township which he now owns, and is a representative of one of the pioneer families of the community. His grandfather, William McCurdy, was a native of Pennsylvania, in which state he was reared and married. He worked as a day laborer until he came to the west. About 1819 he emigrated to Ohio and from the government entered the land upon which Joseph McCurdy now resides. In 1824 he removed with his family to the new home, built a log cabin and in true pioneer style began life on the frontier. He added to his first purchase until he. became the owner of two hundred acres of rich land. He was of Scotch and Irish lineage. His father, William A. McCurdy, was a native of Scotland, and his mother was born on the Emerald isle. The grandfather of our subject was a member of the United Presbyterian church and died on the old homestead farm, when about seventy-two years of age. John McCurdy, the father of Joseph, was born in Pennsylvania, near Latrobe, and when two years of age accompanied his parents to the Buckeye state. He has since been a resident of Worthington township, and upon the farm which his father entered from the government he is still living, although for seven years he has been an invalid. He is an inflexible adherent of Democratic principles and is deeply interested in the success of the party, yet has never sought or desired office. He, too, holds membership in the United Presbyterian church and his life has been in harmony with his pro- 680 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. fessions. He married Miss Christina Goon, a native of Pennsylvania, and came to Worthington township with her parents about 1830. She died in 1893, at the age of sixty-eight years, in the faith of the Presbyterian church, of which she had long been a member. In the family of this worthy couple were five children, namely : Joseph ; Malinda, the wife of J. M. Hosfield, a blacksmith of Worthington township; Elizabeth, the wife of Alfred Scarbro, of Knox county, Ohio ; Martha J., who acts as her father's housekeeper; and William L., an enterprising farmer of Knox county. Joseph McCurdy spent the days of his boyhood and youth on his father's farm and was early trained to habits of industry and economy, thus forming the foundation of a substantial business career. The country schools afforded him his educational privileges and he worked in the fields with his father until twenty-nine years old, when he was married and took charge of the homestead farm, upon which he has since resided. For the past ten years he has relieved his father of all business cares. A wide-awake, practical and progressive agriculturist, his labors are earnestly prosecuted and have brought to him a good financial return. In addition to general farming he carries on stock-raising to some extent. Mr. McCurdy married Miss Lucy Fritz, of Ashland county, Ohio, and unto them have been born eight children, two of whom died in infancy. The others are Laura R., Hugh E., Mabel E., Zoda May, Esta F. and Mary M. Mr. McCurdy votes with the Democracy and is now serving for the third term as a trustee of the township,—a fact which indicates that he has discharged his duties in a prompt and capable manner. He holds membership in Hanover Lodge, No. II 5, F. & A. M., of Loudonville, and is identified with the Maccabees, of Perrysville, and with the Lutheran church. JOHN H. LAUTERMILCH. In a witty after-dinner speech Chauncey M. Depew once said: "Some men achieve greatness, some are born great and some are born in Ohio." To this last class Mr. Lautermilch belongs, for Ganges, in Blooming Grove township, is the place of his birth, his natal day being August 20, 1844. Hid parents, Conrad and Sarah (Bucher) Lautermilch, had three children, of whom two are living, John H. and Elizabeth, now the wife of Reuben St. John, of Franklin township. The father was born in Baden, Germany, in 1808, hut when sixteen years of age left the land of his nativity for America, settling in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, where he learned the trade of saddler and harness-maker. In the '30s he removed from the Keystone CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 681 state to Ohio, taking up his abode in Richland county. He worked for some time at his trade as a journeyman in Shelby and Ganges and then settled in Planktown, where he established a business of his own. While residing there he was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Bucher, who was born in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, about 181 I, and came to Richland county with her parents in her childhood. Her father, John Bucher, was a native of Pennsylvania and on his arrival in Ohio purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land in Blooming Grove township, near the village of Ganges. his remaining days being spent upon his farm. About 1843 Mr. Lautermilch removed from Planktown to Ganges, where he conducted a saddlery and harness shop for a number of years. In 1853, however, he located on a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, which was his wife's patrimony and which is now the home of their son John. There the father resided until 1872, when he purchased forty-five acres in Franklin township, a few miles south of Ganges. He then removed to the new home, leaving our subject upon the old homestead. At his more recently acquired home he continued to reside until his death, which occurred in 1893. He was an ardent supporter of Democratic principles, and while in Blooming Grove township was elected on that ticket to the office of trustee. In early life he held membership in the Christian church and later became a member of the Reformed church. John H. Lautermilch spent the days of his childhood under the parental roof and the common schools afforded him his educational privileges. In 1867 he was married to Miss Mary A. Bricker, a native of Franklin township and a daughter of Levi Bricker, now deceased, who was one of the well known farmers of Richland county. Our subject took his bride to the old home place, which he operated on the shares until his mother's death, in 1894, when he came into possession of the farm, and in 1895 he purchased the Wesley Fickes farm, a small tract of land upon which stands a handsome residence. It was his intention to take up his abode there and leave his sons to care for the old homestead, but ere he had opportunity to carry out his intention he was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, who died on the 8th of November, 1895. This changed his plans and his eldest son took possession of the new home, while Mr. Lautermilch resided quietly at the old homestead, the land being cultivated by tenants. Mr. and Mrs. Lautermilch had two children,—George W., a farmer of Cass township; and Austin F., who is living with his father. A Democrat in politics, he has always supported the men and measures of that party, but has never sought office. He has always been systematic in his business methods, prompt and notably reliable, and has followed progressive ideas. 682 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. His efforts have therefore been attended with a high degree of success and he is now one of the substantial agriculturists of the community. At present he is practically living retired, enjoying such a rest as should ever follow years of active and honorable connection with business interests. CAPTAIN D. W. WILSON. [We are endebted to A. J. Baughman, Esq., for the following sketch.] Captain Daniel Webster Wilson, of Bellville, is one of the most successful self-made men in Richland county. He was born in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, April 21, 1840, his parents being James and Jane (Gass) 'Wilson. His father was the son of a Virginia slaveholder, but was an abolitionist from his youth up, and emigrated to Pennsylvania on account of his dislike of slavery. Subsequently he removed to Steubenville, Ohio, where he died. Soon afterward the widow, with five small children, moved to Bellville, when Daniel W. was about nine years of age, and there he spent his boyhood and youth. While still a mere boy he was employed to carry the mail from the postoffice to the cars at Bellville, and was also employed by the late John W. Strong in his store, where by application to his duties and faithfulness in the performance of them he continued in his employ until the breaking out of the Civil war. When the president issued his call for troops to maintain the Union and uphold its flag, D. W. Wilson resigned his position in the store and was one of the first to volunteer. Impelled by the same patriotic impulse which led so many thousands of our young men to exchange their pleasant homes for the tented field, on his twenty-first birthday he enlisted as a private in Company I, Sixteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. When his term of enlistment expired he re-enlisted, in Company E, Thirty-second Ohio Volunteer Infantry, in which regiment he served until the close of the war, rising successively from the rank of a private to that of sergeant, orderly sergeant, second lieutenant, first lieutenant and captain. He took part in nearly all of the battles in which both of the regiments to which he belonged were engaged. At Harper's Ferry the regiment was captured, but was immediately paroled. After serving over four years he was honorably discharged, at Columbus, Ohio, in July, 1865. Returning then to his home he resumed the duties of civil life, in which he has had a notable career, being successful both in business and public life. In politics he is a faithful representative of his father, being a stanch Republican from the organization of the party, has been an important factor CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 683 in its ranks, has been successful in helping to elect many of his friends to office and has also been successful in helping to defeat many to whom he was opposed in politics at the polls. Soon after the close of the war he accepted a position as an officer of the United States senate, which position he held until the administration of President Hayes, when he was appointed an officer in the treasury department, where he remained four or five years. He was then again appointed an officer in the senate, which position he has held, including his two terms of service in the office, for over thirty years, resigning in March, 1901, in order to devote his time to his heretofore neglected business at home. He was a member of the Republican executive committee of his county, often served as a delegate to the county, district and state conventions, and in 1876 represented his district in the Cincinnati convention, that nominated General Hayes for the presidency. In all matters concerning the interests of Bellville Captain Wilson has taken a prominent part. He was one of the promoters of its electric-light plant and the president of its street-fair association for four years of its successful management. When the great fire of September 22, 1882, burned two squares of the business portion of Bellville, Captain Wilson bought four lots in the burned district and built four of the twelve new brick business houses which now adorn the village. By judicious management and investment of his means he is now considered one of the careful business men of Bellville, and the village where he toiled as a poor boy has been benefitted by his prosperity. He is charitable to the poor, and the needy always find in him a faithful friend. DAVID P. MILLER. David P. Miller, a practical and enterprising agriculturist of Troy township, Richland county, formerly owned and cultivated about three hundred acres of land, constituting one of the valuable and highly improved farms of the locality. His possessions were mainly acquired through his own efforts; and as the result of his persevering endeavor he has won a place among the substantial citizens of his native county. Mr. Miller was born upon his present farm, March 12, 1832, died August 12, 1900. He was the only survivor of the five children born to George M. and Elizabeth (Palmer) Miller. The birth of his father occurred November 24, 1789, in county Kent, England, where he grew to manhood, learning the trade of carpenter and wheelwright, which he followed for some time. In 183o he emigrated to America, and after a short residence in Mansfield, Ohio, 684 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. he purchased thirty-one acres of the farm upon which our subject now resides. Soon after his arrival here he erected a sawmill upon his place, and for many years manufactured practically all the lumber used in this section of the county. As a Methodist he was very active in church work, for many years serving as a class-leader. He was one of the best known men of his community and was highly esteemed and respected. His death occurred January 19, 1873, while his wife, who also was born in county Kent, England, August 20, 1787, lived to the advanced age of ninety-nine years and three months, dying from the effects of a fall which broke her hip. She, too, was an active and consistent member of the Methodist church. David P. Miller grew to manhood on the home farm, acquiring his literary education in the old pioneer log schoolhouse of the neighborhood. On reaching his eighteenth year he assumed the management of the farm and sawmill, which he conducted until 1864, when the dam was destroyed and the mill abandoned. Soon after this he opened a stone quarry, which he worked until 1871, He extended the boundaries of his farm from time to time until they contained two hundred and ninety-five acres, which he placed in a high state of cultivation, and now is one of the best improved farms of the locality. His handsome residence was erected in 1871, and is now occupied by his daughter, Ranie L. Abernethy. In 1855 Mr. Miller married Miss Harriet L. Beverstock, a native of Monroeville, Huron county, Ohio, and a daughter of Allen B. and Laura M. (Reed) Beverstock. Her father, who was born in Vermont, moved to Huron county when about fourteen years of age, and in 1832 came to Lexington, Richland county, where he established a mercantile business, being largely instrumental in making that place what it is to-day. He was born December 23, 1804, and died March 2, 1882. Mr. Miller has three children, namely : Laura A., the wife of Louis M. Campbell, of Troy township, this county ; Ranie L., the wife of J. L. Abernethy, also of Troy township; and Fannie B., the wife of S. J. Colwell, of the Colwell Hardware Company, of Mansfield. During the dark clays of the Rebellion Mr. Miller enlisted, on the 2d of May, 1864, in Company B, One Hundred and Sixty-third Ohio National Guards, and for a time was stationed in front of Petersburg. He was honorably discharged from the service April 12, 1867. Prior to this he was a member of the famous Squirrel Hunters, and received his discharge in September, 1862. In his political views he was a stanch Republican. He served as a school director for twenty years and as a township trustee one term. For many CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 685 years he was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church; but after the house of worship in Troy township was destroyed by fire he never renewed his membership in that denomination but afterward attended the Congregational church, where he was a Sunday-school teacher for several years. He was a worthy representative of that class of citizens who lead quiet, industrious, honest and useful lives and constitute the best portion of the community. Wherever known he was held in high regard, and is certainly deserving of honorable mention in the history of his native county. DAVID S. LEITER. David S. Leiter was born on the farm where he now resides, March 27, 186i. His father, Jacob Leiter, a native of Washington county, Maryland, was a son of David Leiter, who came to Ohio at an early clay, locating on the farm in Monroe township where G. W. Leiter now resides. After his marriage Jacob Leiter spent two years outside of Monroe township and then removed to the home farm, upon which he spents his remaining days. His life's labors were ended in death November 30, 1897, at the age of seventy years. For twenty years he was a member of the school board and greatly advanced the cause of education. In politics he was a stalwart Republican and in early life he was a member of the Lutheran church, but afterward united with the Congregational church. He served as an elder and deacon for many years and always did everything in his power to promote the cause of the church and secure the adoption of Christian principles among his fellow men. His widow is still living, in her seventy-fourth year, and makes her home with her son David. She is a member of the Congregational church and an earliest Christian woman whose upright life has commended her to the respect of all. David S. Leiter, whose name introduces this review, was reared on the old family homestead and received his education in the public schools. His entire life has been passed at the old home place with the exception of ten months, which he spent in Mansfield. His practical experience at farm work in his youth enabled him to assume the management of the land. Mr. Leiter was married in February, 1886, to Miss Margaret Fishack, and they have had four children, of whom three are living,--Grace, Rex and Jacob. Mr. Leiter has served for three terms as a member of the school board, and for two terms was the chief deputy of the county election bead.The Republican party is the one of his choice, and -he keeps himself well posted on the issues of the day. Socially he is connected with Monroe Lodge, 686 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. No. 224, I. O. O. F., and has filled all its chairs. He was the special deputy of installation for three years. He is a member of the Congregational church, and is a young man of earnest purpose and sterling worth whose attention is untiringly given to his business affairs and to his faithful discharge of the duties of citizenship. BARNET HOMER. Upon a frm on section 13, Monroe township, Barnet Homer resides, his time and attention being given to the cultivation of his land. He was born in Adams county, Pennsylvania, near Gettysburg, on the 12th of September, 1827, his parents being John and Eliza Homer, who were natives of the same locality. In 1837 they left the Keystone state and with their family came to Ohio, locating in Holmes county, where the father spent his remaining days. He first purchased forty acres of land and later added to this until, in connection with his sons, he owned one hundred and ninety-six acres. He had passed the eighty-second milestone on life's journey when called to his final rest. Barnet Homer remained in Holmes county until 1863, when he came to Monroe township. For ten years he rented land and then purchased his present farm, comprising one hunded and one acres. When he took possession of this place it was but little improved. There was a small log cabin, into which he moved, and then, with characteristic energy, began the further development of his land. He has eighty acres under a high state of cultivation and has good buildings which furnish shelter for grain and stock. His methods are at once practical and progressive and have resulted in bringing to him a gratifying success. Mr. Homer was united in marriage to Miss Eliza Wyneman, and they had two children, of whom one is living, Margaret, now the wife of John Oswald. Mr. Homer, as the result of his investigation of political questions, gives his support to the Republican party, but has never sought office, his attention being fully occupied by his business affairs. He is a member of the Presbyterian church, in which he has served as an elder. All his business affairs have been conducted in an honorable, straightforward manner that has commended him to the confidence and regard of those with whom he has come in contact. He has been the architect of his own fortunes and has builded wisely and well. His life stands in exemplification of the opportunities that are afforded in this country to men of determined purpose who are willing to improve their advantages and labor earnestly for the prosperity which all men desire. CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 687 HON. MARTIN B. BUSHNELL. Hon. Martin Baldwin Bushnell is a worthy representative of a pioneer family which settled in Ohio in 1805 and whose history has been identified with the growth and development of Richland county since 1820, at which] time Sterling G. Bushnell, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, settled in Vermillion township, then in Richland county. The Bushnell family is distinctively a pioneer one, having been identified with American history since the sixteenth century. Francis Bushnell came from England to Connecticut, where he died in 1646, being the founder of the family in America. Martin B. Bushnell is the only son of Dr. William Bushnell, who located in Mansfield in July, 1828, where he spent a long and eventful life, became eminent in his profession, prominent in public affairs and successful in finance. He was thrice honored by election to the general assembly,--the forty-ninth, fiftieth and fifty-eighth general sessions, in 1850-1 and 1869-70. While in the legislature he was associated with the Hon. Henry B. Payne, General E. R. Eckley, Hon, Harvey Rice, Hon. John F. Follett and others who later attained national fame. But Dr. Bushnell did not seek political honors; he accepted office only to serve his constituents, and, declining further preferment, returned to his practice, for his profession was his mission and a work of love. He attained a ripe old age, dying January 13, 1894, at the age of ninety-four years. Martin B. Bushnell is well known to the people of Richland county, who hold him in the highest respect and esteem. When he was the Democratic nominee for state senator in 1897 he ran ahead of his ticket. He has been engaged in the railroad business as well as in banking, and he has always been so equitable in his dealings that he has never been accused of oppressing labor in the interest of capital. In person Mr. Bushnell is tall and graceful, and the ease and courtesy of his manners and the dignity and simplicity of his style reflects the noble qualities of his mind and heart. M. B. Bushnell was born in Mansfield, Ohio, July 13, 1837, educated in the public school, with the exception of one year (1852), when he was a student in Norwalk Institute, at Norwalk, this state, and one year (1856) at Dennison University, at Granville, this state. During the interval of these school years he clerked in the dry-goods store of Scattergood & Penrose and the book-stores of Ticknor & Sturges and Ticknor & Bowland. Then he accepted a position in Crestline, Ohio, as a clerk in the ticket office of the 688 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad, being promoted to the freight department, and was soon advanced to the yard-master's office. The experience in these various lines of duty qualified him to accept the position of conductor and he ran trains on the east division,—between Crestline and Pittsburg,—starting with a freight train, but very soon was in charge of the finest and fastest express and passenger trains. This period of train service was during the war of the Rebellion. His first through stock train was one of government mules from the west destined to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. He also had charge of several trains of Union soldiers, ticketed both east and west by way of various junction stations; also many special car-loads of valuable and important munitions of war, for which great care was demanded by the general war department and the railroad company. He vas one of four conductors chosen by the superintendent to run special trains promptly to handle government business, in both small and large consignments. He was in charge of two extra trains from Pittsburg loaded with Rebel prisoners destined to Johnson's island, Sandusky City, Ohio, via Mansfield. These prisoners were loaded in box and stock cars, a single coach being for the accommodation of the officers and soldiers in charge. After serving four years on the road, Mr. Bushnell accepted the general agency at Mansfield, Ohio, for the Atlantic & Great Western Railroad, then known as the Broad Gauge line (six feet), now the Erie Railroad. The broad gauge was an experiment in railroading, made to prevent the straying of individual cars to other lines. This necessitated the transfer of all through freight and local carloads via junction stations, and this was a heavy expense and a delay of shipments. A date being fixed upon, the track was changed to the standard gauge in one day, with but slight delay to the train service. Mr. Bushnell accepted the position of general agent of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railway, operated by the Pennsylvania Company, at Mansfield, Ohio, and continued in this position for a long period of years. He was the cashier of the Richland National Bank of Mansfield, a director of the Mansfield Savings Bank, and a director of the Richland Savings Bank. He is a member of the First Congregational church. He vas appointed a delegate by Governor Bushnell to the National Society of Charities and Corrections at Austin, Texas, in 1899, and by Governor Nash a delegate to the same at Washington, D. C., in 1901. He is a trustee—an appointee of the governor and approved by the state senate—of the Columbus State Hospital at Columbus, Ohio. This hospital is claimed to be the largest not only in America but even in the world. Mr. Bushnell was a director of the public schools for twelve years ; is a trustee of CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 689 the Mansfield cemetery ; has been a commissioner since the organization (fourteen years) of the Sherman-Heineman Park, and has been interested in all the improvements for the advancement of his home city. He was the donor of an appropriate and beautiful monument, erected in 1900 in Middle Park, Mansfield, to the memory of John Chapman, better known as "Johnny Appleseed." This gift was properly presented and accepted, and is greatly appreciated not only by his fellow citizens but also by all Ohioans everywhere. The dedication of the monument was under the auspices of the Richland County Historical Society. Special resolutions were adopted and engrossed by the Ohio Society at New York, January 14, 1901, as follows : "JOHNNY APPLESEED." At a meeting of the Ohio Society of New York, held at its rooms at the Waldorf-Astoria, New York, January 14, 1901, a committee was appointed consisting of Hon. Mahlon Chance, General Wagner Swayne, General Anson McCook, Abner McKinley, Esq., and Colgate Hoyt, Esq., who submitted the following, which was unanimously adopted : The Ohio Society of New York learns with satisfaction and pride that a beautiful monument has been erected at Mansfield, Ohio, in the Sherman-Heineman Park, by Martin B. Bushnell, Esq., of that city, to old John Chapman, better known in the early history of Ohio as Johnny Appleseed. RESOLVED, That we tender to Martin B. Bushnell, Esq., our sincere and hearty thanks for his liberality, and express our highest appreciation of the noble and patriotic sentiment which inspired this tribute. RESOLVED, That a copy of the foregoing be sent to Mr. Bushnell by the officers of the society. Presented by the Society. (Signed.) M. I. SOUTHARD, President. A. F. HAGAR, Secretary. Mr. Bushnell replied to the foregoing, expressing his appreciation of the action of the Ohio Society. Mr. Bushnell's character is fuller, wider and nobler than this. As a man and citizen he has so endeavored to deport his life so to dispense its better offices and sweeter charities that when he comes "to draw the drapery of his couch about him" it shall be said, "Mankind is better that he lived ;" his neigh. bors were his friends. 690 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. D. F. TUCKER. Capacity for business will tell in the country as unmistakably as in the city. This thought is suggested by the successful career of the well known citizen of Monroe township, Richland county, whose name is above. He was born in Merrimac county, New Hampshire, November 2, 1841, one of the six children of David and Clarissa (Patten) Tucker, who are named as follows, in the order of their nativity : Norman, a resident of Chicago; Alfred G., who is deceased ; Mary P., the wife of James Reed; D. F., the subject of this sketch ; Livonia ; and one who died in infancy. In 1849, when he was eight years old, Mr. Tucker, the subject proper of this sketch, was brought to Ohio by his parents, who located on a farm which the father had purchased many years before; for he had made a journey from New Hampshire to this place on foot in 1819, when he bought eighty acres where the village of Lucas afterward came into existence and where he lived about seven years, during which time he bought the one-hundred and sixty-acre farm first mentioned. He returned to the old Granite state and married, and continued to reside there until, in 1849, he came again to Ohio, as has been stated. Soon after his arrival here he erected the house which is still standing upon the place and in which he lived until his death, in 1888, when' he was in the ninety-first year of his age. His wife died March 9, 1872, aged sixty-six years. It fell to the lot of Mr. Tucker twice to do the work of the pioneer in Richland county; for on his return, after having redeemed his first and smaller farm from the wilderness, he found the other and larger one entirely unimproved. But he was of the stuff of which good pioneers are made and had proved both his manhood and his patriotism by fighting for his country in the war of 1812. He was a good and helpful citizen, influential in township affairs and an active worker in the church. Before the removal of the family to Ohio Mrs. Tucker was a teacher in the schools of New Hampshire. D. F. Tucker had received some education under the instruction of his good mother before he had been brought to the Buckeye state; and this was supplemented by attendance at the public and select schools of Lucas. His father reared him carefully to systematic and successful farming, and from the time he attained his majority until his father's death the two were practically partners in a business way ; and it is worthy of note that the most confidential understanding always existed between them. At this time Mr. Tucker owns four hundred and fifty-nine acres in Monroe township and eighty acres in adjoining Worthington township. This fine property he CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 691 has gained by good farming and good business methods. He has, while carrying on general farming on an extensive scale, also given attention very profitably to shipping sheep and hogs. From time to time he has interested himself in business affairs distinct from farming, with a great deal of personal success, and at times greatly to the public benefit. In 1899 he established the Mifflin & Lucas telephone line, and he is also interested in the Star Telephone Company. In politics Mr. Tucker is a Democrat, an active worker for his party, and in religion he is a well accepted member of the Congregational church. He was married November 10, 1864, to Miss Mary Welty, a daughter of Christian Welty, and their eight children are John A., Norman W., Eva S., Clinton W., Clarissa E., Mary E., Lucy L. and Jessie F. ANDREW RAMSEY. Andrew Ramsey, who was formerly engaged in agricultural pursuits in Worthington township but now makes his home in Butler, was born July 13, 1848, in Knox county, Ohio, and was two years old when brought by his parents to this county. No event of special importance occurred to vary, the routine life of the farm during his youth. He pursued his education in the public schools and enjoyed the pleasures of the playground, and through the summer seasons assisted in the cultivation of the fields. He remained upon the home farm until twenty-four years of age, when he purchased one hundred and thirty acres of land in Worthington township, his father assisting him in paying for the property.. The place was his home from 1872 until 1892, when he purchased the D. J. Rummel farm of fifty-two acres, residing thereon until 1898, when he took up his abode in Butler, renting his land. He still owns his farm of one hundred and ninety acres and the other of fifty-two acres, and in his business was very successful. He carried on general farming and also engaged in stock breeding to a limited extent, but his land is now rented and he resides in Butler in the enjoyment of a well earned rest. Mr. Ramsey married Miss Lavinia, a daughter of Michael Secrist, and they had three children, but two died in early life, the only surviving child being Frank, who is still with his parents. Mr. Ramsey votes with the Democracy on questions of national importance, but at local elections where no national issue is involved is independent in his political affiliations. He and his wife are members of a church, in which he has held various offices. 692 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. ROBERT DARLING. Among the leading farmers and stock-dealers if Worthington township Robert Darling was numbered, and at his death the community lost one of its valued citizens. His entire life was spent on one farm with the exception of a period of four years which he passed among the mines of California. He was a very successful and progressive agriculturist and in connection with the cultivation of his fields he raised blooded Durham cattle, going to Kentucky to purchase the first of his herd. He was scrupulously honest in all his business affairs and enjoyed an unavailable reputation in trade circles. As his financial resources increased he made judicious investments in real estate and became the owner of three hundred and eighty acres of land, constituting one of the most desirable farms in the county. He placed his fields under a high state of cultivation and added to the place commodious and substantial buildings and all the modern accessories and improvements of a model farm. For several years he was the president of the County Fair Association, and he did all in his power to improve the condition of the representatives. of the agricultural and stock-raising interests. On the 24th of November, 1859, Mr. Darling was united in marriage to Miss Catherine Parr, a. daughter of Andrew and Losena ( Johnson) Parr. Her parents, natives of Pennsylvania, came to Ashland county at an early day. Her father engaged in farming and blacksmithing, and died November 8, 1876, at the age of sixty-nine years. Her mother passed away May 19, 1879, also at the age of sixty-nine. She was a member of the Lutheran church. Mrs. Darling was born in Green township, Ashland county, and was there reared. By heir marriage she became the mother of thirteen children, of whom seven are still living. Mr. Darling was a member of the Masonic Lodge at Loudonville, Ohio, and he held membership in the Lutheran church, to which his widow yet belongs. He was a man of earnest purpose, sterling worth, genial manner and kindly disposition, and these qualities made him popular and gained him the respect of all with whom he came in contac His widow still survives him and resides on the old home farm. She is a lady of many excellent qualities and enjoys the esteem of her friends and neighbors. ARTHUR J. HAYCOX. Among the leading and representative business men of Mansfield is Arthur J. Haycox, the superintendent of the Citizens' Electric Railway, Light & Power Company. He was born in Wales in 1858, and was there reared and CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 693 educated in the common schools. His father was a farmer by occupation. In 1874 the family, consisting of parents and seven sons, emigrated to the United States, where the sons are now doing well in business, all being energetic, progressive and capable business men. William E. was the superintendent of the East Cleveland Railway for eleven years, and in 1899 built a line from Galion out to a distance of twelve miles, and now successfully operates the same. Our subject was with the East Cleveland Railway Company for a time, and before coming to Mansfield was in the employ of the Denver Tramway Company. He also did the largest dairy business in Denver for some years, but sold out in 1894. He attended the World's Fair in Chicago and traveled about four years. For the past six years he has been the superintendent of the Citizens' Electric Railway, Light & Power Company, during which time the system has been extended to the park. The Casino has been built and is about the only place of amusement in the city during the summer months. A street-car line of twelve miles, running from Mansfield to Shelby, has also been built, and is under the supervision of Mr. Haycox. His practical knowledge of all the details of the business, as well as his acquaintance with men, renders him a most valuable superintendent, as is evinced by his continuance in so important a position. Mr. Haycox married Miss Emma Salter, of Cleveland, Ohio, whose parents came to this country from England. By this union were born two sons,—Arthur J. and Ralph. In politics he is a supporter of the Republican party and its principles. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity and the Methodist church, while his wife holds membership in the Christian church. JOHN CRALL. John Crall, who is engaged in farming and stock-raising on section 34, Franklin township, was born November 5, . 1853, on the farm which is still his home. His father, Joshus Crall was a native of Pennsylvania, born about 1820. He wedded Hetty Truman and they became the parents of five children : Samuel, who was the owner of one of the farms now the property of his brother John, and died April 10, 1898; Mary C., who became the wife of Charles Nail, by whom she has one living child, and for her second husband, Albert Toukel, who is connected with the Water Works at Shelby ; William B., who died in infancy ; John, of this review ; and Susan, the wife of Thomas B. Wefts, a resident of Madison township, Richland county, by whom she has two children. 694 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. In the public schools near his home John Crall pursued his education. Through the summer months he aided in the labors of the farm from the time he was old enough to handle a plow, and at the age of twenty-five he began farming and stock-raising on his own account. It was in 1878 that he took up his abode on the old Whistler farm, which he operated for five years, when, with the capital he had acquired through his industry and economy, he purchased a part of the farm upon which he now resides from his father's estate. He has brought it up to a very high state of productiveness. In his business he has been very successful and now owns the quarter section of .land which is his home place, and eight acres on section 33, in Franklin township. His property is under a system of high cultivation, the rich fields yielding to him a golden tribute in return for the care and labor he bestows upon them. Mr. Crall was married on the 17th of January, 1878, to Miss Cora Alice Finical, who became his wife. They now have four children : Maurice J., who was born November I, 1878; William, born July 23, 1882; Vertie May, born September 12, 1883 ; and Rhea, born October 28, 1898. The children are still under the parental roof and the family circle remains unbroken. MARTIN L. CULLER. Among the leading agriculturists of Monroe township is numbered Martin L. Culler, whose home is on section 11. No one is better known in this vicinity, for his entire life has been spent here, and all his interests from boyhood have been closely associated with those of this locality. In his special field' of industry he has met with excellent success, and by the energy and zeal which he has manifested he has won the confidence and esteem of the public. Mr. Culler was born upon his present farm, October 14, 1843, a son of Michael L. and Mary A. (Ernsberger) Culler, both natives of Maryland, the former born in 1803, the latter in 1811. His paternal grandparents were Jacob and Barbara Culler. His wife came to Richland county, Ohio, in 1825, and settled in Monroe township, where at this time and later the grandfather purchased five quarter sections of land, one of which our subject now owns. The family located on the quarter section where Mrs. Elizabeth Z. Culler now lives. Jacob Culler was a man of wealth in Maryland, and in his farming operations in this county he prospered, becoming one of the most substantial and influential citizens of his community. He was a Whig in politics and an active member of the Lutheran church. John Ernsberger. the maternal grandfather of our subject, emigrated to Ohio from Maryland about 1818, CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY - 695 and settled in Mifflin township, Richland county, buying one hundred and sixty acres of land. His first wife, who bore the maiden name of Mary Smith, died when Mrs. Culler was but twelve years old, and later married Polly Archer. Some time during the '30s they removed to Iowa, where his death occurred. Soon after coming to this county with his parents, Michael L. Culler was married and located on the quarter section of land where our subject now resides, it having been given him by his father. He taught school for two terms in one of the pioneer log schoolhouses of Monroe township, and then turned his attention to the improvement and cultivation of his farm, which occupied his time until called to his final rest in 1852. Politically he was a stanch supporter of the Whig party but cared nothing for official honors. An earnest, consistent Christian, he was from early life an officer in the Lutheran church, and was largely instrumental in building Mount Zion church, to which he was always one of the most liberal contributors. His estimable wife died in 1880. To this worthy couple were born nine children, eight of whom still survive, namely : Barbara, the wife of Henry Keefer, a farmer of Mifflin township, this county ; Joseph H., a farmer of Clay county, Indiana ; Ellen, the wife of Henry Will, a painter of Michigan ; Sarah, the wife of James Shambaugh, a farmer of Monroe township, this county ; Henry, a farmer of Barry county, Michigan ; Martin L., our subject ; Lewis, a farmer of Butler township, this county ; and Simon, a carpenter of Mansfield, Ohio. The early education of Martin L. Culler was obtained in the district schools near his boyhood home. He was but nine years of age at his father's death, and as he approached manhood he worked for his mother on the farm. cultivating it on the shares. After his mother's death, in February, 1880, he purchased the farm from the other heirs, and has since engaged in its cultivation and further improvement. Meeting with success in his labors, he has extended its boundaries, adding eighty-two acres in 1892 and one hundred acres in 1898, so that he now has a fine farm of three hundred and nineteen acres. Mr. Culler was married in 1870, to Miss Elizabeth Mowers, a native of Ashland county and a daughter of Isaac Mowers, who came to Ashland county in 1828 and settled on a quarter section of land near the present home of our subject. By this union were born twelve children : 'Willard, Clark, deceased, Lottie, James, Alma, Ira, Wade, Rey, Anna, Marion, Ruth and Emery. All are at home with the exception of James, who is a salesman in the hardware store of Samuel J. Colwell, of Mansfield. 696 - CENTENNIAL BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY. Mr. Culler's political support is given to the Democratic party, and for six years he most capably filled the office of township trustee. He affiliates with Mohawk Grange, Patrons of Husbandry, and is a prominent member of the Lutheran church, in which for several years he held the office of trustee, elder and deacon. As a citizen he has ever been found true to every trust reposed in him, and well merits the high regard in which he is held. J. ANDERSON BARTON. Among the young men of Mansfield who are already prominent in business circles is J. Anderson Barton, who now occupies the responsible position of cashier of the Richland County Savings Bank. He was born in Juniata county, Pennsylvania, September 28, 1867, a son of William J. and Rachel Barton. His father died in 1897, having long survived his wife, who passed away in 1868, at their old home in Allenville, Pennsylvania. Mr. Barton of this review was reared in the state of his nativity and his literary education was acquired in the common schools and was supplemented by a business training in Eastman's Commercial College, at Poughkeepsie, New York. Hoping to benefit his financial condition by removing westward Mr. Barton came to Mansfield in 1886, a young man of nineteen years, ambitious, resolute and determined. Here he accepted a clerkship in the Citizens' National Bank and applied himself earnestly to mastering the principles of the banking business. His fidelity and capability soon secured him the more responsible position of bookkeeper and cashier for the Humphryes Manufacturing Company, with which he was connected until the spring of 1898, when he organized the Richland County Savings Bank, and in July of the same year was elected its cashier, in which capacity he has since served. He follows safe and. conservative business methods and yet is progressive in his work. Under the guidance of Mr. Barton and the other officers of the bank the institution has gained high standing in commercial circles and receives the liberal support of the people. On the 10th of September, 1891, occurred the marriage of our subject and Miss Hattie V. Au, a granddaughter of Samuel Au, who was one of the honored pioneers and influential and successful farmers of Richland county. Mr. Barton was a member of Tent No. 130, of the Knights of the Maccabees, and is a popular citizen, having a wide acquaintance in Richland county and enjoying the high regard of all with whom he is associated.