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JOSEPH W. BACK was born in Chaplin, Conn., December 7, 1824, and was the youngest of seven children of Erastus and Anna (Flint) Back, also natives of Connecticut. The father brought his family to this township in 1838, purchased 160 acres of land, and thereon ended his days in the fall of 1847. Joseph, who had received a good education, began teaching a week before his twenty-first birthday, and taught eleven terms consecutively. He is fully posted as to the condition of the early schools of the township, and tells of one in which there were seven different text-books in arithmetic; and he still takes great interest in educational affairs. He has been twice married. Both his wives were teachers, and four of his children have acted in the same capacity. In 1849, he married his first wife, Mary A. Shorthill, a
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native of Pennsylvania, and then teaching in this township. She died August 22, 1850, aged about nineteen, the mother of one child, which died young. Four years later, he married Rebecca J. Thomas, also a teacher from Pennsylvania, who has borne him six children—Edward E., Flora A., Mary E., Albert J., Sarah E. and Cornelia J. Mr. Back still owns and resides on the eighty-acre farm presented to him by his father, and has besides bought and deeded to his sons over one hundred acres additional. He is one of the earliest pioneers, having come to the township only one year later than the first settler. He held the office of Township Clerk for ten years, and for six years was Justice of the Peace, and also Postmaster for the same length of time. He has been Class Leader in the M. E. Church for thirty-two years, and Sunday School Superintendent over half the time since 1849; was President of the Township Sunday School Convention, and Vice President of the County Sunday School Convention, and in politics is a Republican and Protectionist.
J. C. BLACKFORD was born February 28, 1842, in Portage County, Ohio, and is one of eight children born to Jacob and Mary (Copp) Blackford, the former a native of Virginia, and the latter a native of Pennsylvania. Mr. Blackford was educated at the common schools in his youth, and was also taught the carpenter's trade. He remained with his parents till twenty-three years of age, and November 5, 1865, married Miss Nettie McCarty, a native of this township. He then moved to Pioneer, this county, where he worked at his trade about thirteen, years, and then moved to Bridgewater and located on his present farm, which comprises forty acres of good land, which, as a rule, he hires farmed. He is a first-class carpenter, as the frequent demands for his services clearly indicate. He has been a member of Pioneer Lodge, No. 461, I. 0. 0. F., and of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and was always a Republican in politics, at the present holding, through the suffrage of that party, the office of Justice of the Peace. He is the father of one child: Alta ; he is esteemed as a conscientious man and public-spirited citizen.
ABNER K. BROWN is the eldest of a family of eight children, and was born in Hancock County, Ohio, August 10, 1838. His father, Jacob Brown, was born in Pennsylvania, and his mother, Catharine (Brenner) Brown, was a native of Germany. When Abner was ten years of age, his father came to Williams County and bought 300 acres of land in Centre Township, on which he still lives. January 1, 1861, Abner married Amanda Bollinger, who was born in Seneca County, Ohio. Her parents, Jacob and Mary A. (Stoner) Bollinger, are natives of Pennsylvania and Ohio respectively, and came to Williams County, January 9, 1851, and settled on 160 acres in Centre Township. Abner Brown and
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his wife lived with his father for three years after marriage, and then came to this township and settled on a 120-acre farm, which he has increased to 140 acres, improved with excellent buildings, and made it finest in the township. Mr. and Mrs. Brown were educated Centre High School, then the best in the county, are member of the United Brethren Church, and the parents of eight living children - Ora L., Reuben G., Lydia B., Jacob A., Orton K., Melvin, Harry O. and Ira E., whom they are taking great pains to educate. Mr. Brown has been Township Trustee for a number of years, and he is looked upon as one of the most intelligent and enterprising citizens of the township.
CURTIS COGSWELL, one of our early settlers, was born in Litchfield, Conn., May 20, 1805, and was one of the eleven children of Joel and Tamar (Wright) Cogswell, natives of the same State. Curtis, when a small boy, was removed to Pennsylvania by his parents, and in that State they died. Here Curtis educated himself by the blaze of pine knots, and at the age of twenty had become one of the best teachers in the country, and for ten years following taught in grammar and town schools in New York State. There he married Rebecca Truesdell, a native of Steuben County, and removed to eighty acres of not very good land near Toledo, Ohio, where he remained five years. Thence he came to this township, where he entered 400 acres, built a log cabin and became a pioneer, with the only five families who had settled in the township before him. He now possesses but eighty acres, having presented a considerable part of the original entry to his boys and having sold the remainder. His children numbered ten, as follows : Joel, Charlotte, Albert, Daniel, John, Hiram, Erie, Mary, Eliza and Jane. Charlotte and John are now dead. He became a Master Mason while in New York, but during the famous Morgan excitement he withdrew, and has ever since been bitterly opposed to the order. He joined the M. E. Church, but, on account of the prevalence of the Masonic element in that denomination, left it and affiliated with the United Brethren Church. He was the first man in his township to volunteer at the call to arms during the late war, but was rejected on account of his age. He is strongly Republican in his political views, and has served as Justice of the Peace, School Examiner and in more other town offices than he desired. He formed a resolution when young never to go in debt, and he has kept the Pledge to the letter, although, strange to state, discouraged in it by his father.
WILLIAM FOLLETT was born September 20, 1835, in Lenawee County, Mich., and is one of the eight children of Robert and Julia (Turner) Follett, who are both natives of Massachusetts. He remained at home until about twenty-one years of age, attending the common
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schools and learning to be a carpenter. He then traveled in the West a few years, and on his return married, March 14, 1857, Loretta Osborn, a native of Stark County, Ohio. He now bought seventy acres of land in this township, on which and ninety-three added acres he has since made his home, and is equally successful in farming and in carpentering. Mr. F. has been a resident of the township longer than any man at present living in it, and has always had the full confidence and respect of his townsmen, whom he has served in several offices of trust and also as Second Lieutenant in the militia. He has always voted the Republican ticket and been foremost in all measures of public interest. He has two children living—Florence J. and Charlotte B.
JOHN C. HAGAMAN was born March 9, 1831, in Fayette County, Penn., and was one of nine children born to Michael and Sarah (Cope) Hagaman, both natives of Pennsylvania, the former having been born near the site of the battle of Gettysburg, and both members of the Society of Friends. The elder Hagaman was a shoemaker and farmer, and in 1845 he emigrated with his family to Stark County, Ohio, and thence, six years later, to Hillsdale County, Mich., where he and wife died in 1868. John C., in his young days, received a high school education at Marlboro, this State. April 13, 1851, he married Anna Britton, a native of Stark County, Ohio, and daughter of William and Elizabeth Britton. The same year, the young couple moved to Michigan, where John C. taught school and farmed. In 1854, they removed to Elkhart County, Ind., near Elkhart City, where he worked at carpentering. Here he lost his wife, and in 1861 enlisted in the Forty-eighth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was in the battles of Shiloh, Iuka, Corinth and Vicksburg to Mission Ridge. In the spring of 1864, he was assigned to duty in the general hospital at Evansville, Ind., where he remained till his enlistment expired, December 6, 1864, when he returned to Elkhart. June 1, 1865, he took for a second partner Mrs. Esther Hover, of Elkhart, widow of Garret Hover, of Geauga County, Ohio. In 1865, he moved on a farm in Hillsdale County, Mich., and thence, in the fall of 1869, to this township, where he farmed till January, 1882, when he rented his farm and engaged in the grocery business at Bridgewater Centre. Mr. Hagaman served as Justice of the Peace while in Indiana, Michigan and Bridgewater Township, and is now a Notary Public. He is a Greenbacker in politics, and he and wife have been Good Templars for twenty-five years. In religion, they are Disciples.. They have three children—Earl J., Eliza A. and George E.
MICHAEL HAINES was born in Maryland, February 10, 1810, and was one of the seven children of Abraham and Elizabeth (Flickinger) Haines, natives of said State. Michael lived with his parents in Mary-
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land and in Columbiana County, Ohio, until twenty-six years of age, when he married Rebecca Lowe, a native of Maryland. There are now nine living children born to this marriage, five sons and four daughters— Jonathan M., Eli, Abraham, Jr., Charles and Hiram T., Melissa J., Lucretia, Elmira and Anna. About eighteen years after his Marriage, Mr. Haines (having in the meantime tried other localities) came to this township, and bought 160 acres of land which now, like those of the other old settlers, is a model farm. For some time he has retired from active work, and the farm is now superintended by his youngest son, Hiram T. Four of the sons, Jonathan M., Eli, Abraham and Charles, were soldiers in the late war, and Mr. Haines himself is a patriotic and reliable citizen. Hiram T. Haines, now in charge of the homestead, was born June 17, 1850, in Stark County, Ohio, and when about four years old, was brought by his father to his present home, where he has passed his life and acquired a fair common-school education. He is a promising and enterprising young man, and in polities is Independent, while his father, who had been a Democrat, is now inclined to Greenbackism.
JONATHAN M. HAINES, the eldest of a family of twelve children, was, born in Columbiana County, Ohio, June 15, 1838. His parents, Michael and Rebecca (Lowe) Haines, were natives of Maryland, and removed from Columbiana to Williams County when our subject was about fifteen years old. At the age of twenty-one, he started in life on his own account ; went to Indiana; worked there till the war broke out, and then enlisted in the One Hundredth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He served over three years, and was engaged in the Shiloh, Vicksburg and Chattanooga campaigns, and was with Sherman in his march to the sea. On his return home, he assisted on his father's farm for awhile, and then bought eighty acres, to which he soon added forty more, and this farm is now one of the best improved in the township, with first-class outbuildings, wind pump, etc. His residence is a large, tasteful and expensive brick; and was finished in the summer of 1881. After his purchase of this land, he returned to Indiana, where he remained about two years. He then 'came back, and in a short time after married Mary Waterson, a native of Richland County, who was educated in Bryan, where she taught school several terms. To this marriage have been born four children—Alexander C., Walter L., Harriet and Emerson E. Mr. Haines is an influential and useful citizen, and in politics is a Republican.
ALONZO HART was born in Connecticut November 14, 1806, and was one of the eight sons of Abner and Alma (Thompson) Hart, natives of the same State. Alonzo received a high school education ; and, at the age of sixteen, began clerking in a wholesale and retail store in Hartford.
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He was also for a time engaged in teaching, and when twenty years of age left his father's home and went to clerking in Pennsylvania. He was also employed as a canal and railroad contractor, and in the latter capacity helped build some of the first railroads in the State of New York. November 14, 1837, Mr. Hart married Rachel Willyard, a native of Ravenna, Ohio, and, in 1843, brought his wife to this township, where he bought forty acres of land, which he has since increased to eighty acres, on which he has ever since resided. He has also owned other land in the county, as well as some town lots. He is the father of eleven living children: Thompson W., Homer C., Alonzo F., Leffert S., Aaron P., Alma A., John S., Oron 0., Dayton F., Bion L. and Oliver W. Five of these sons served in the late war. All the male members of his family are Republican in politics, and he has served as Township Clerk for sixteen or seventeen years ; as Justice of the Peace for three years, and as Postmaster for about fifteen years. Mr. and Mrs. Hart are both Grangers and members of the Good Templars' Order, and among the leading families of the township.
ROSWELL, HICKOK, SR., is a native of Monroe County, N. Y. ; was born October 20, 1819, and is the youngest of the three children of David C. and Lucy (Tillotson) Hickok, natives of New York and Connecticut respectively. About the year 1820, the elder Hickok moved to Lorain County, Ohio, where he bought a farm of fifty-three acres, on which he lived till his death February 17, 1849, Roswell being then with him. April 22, 1845, Roswell Hickok married Polly Shephard, who was born in Nunda Township, Allegany County (now Livingston), N. Y., April 14, 1824, and was the daughter of Clark and Polly (Johnson) Shephard, natives respectively of Massachusetts and Connecticut. The Hickoks were among the early settlers of Ohio, being the seventh family to locate in Huntington Township, Lorain County, when the Indians were far more numerous than the whites. Roswell Hickok, who had taken charge of his father's farm in 1841, remained upon it till 1853, when he came to this township and purchased 160 acres of land, his present homestead, with the exception of forty acres presented to his son Thomas M. Mr. and Mrs. Hickok are members of Grange 441, at Pioneer, and in politics he is a Republican. He has served as Justice of the Peace for three terms, and has filled nearly every office in the township. Until within the past three years, he was an extensive cattle-dealer and stock-raiser ; but being, like his wife, in the decline of life, has relinquished his more active pursuits for needed rest.
SIDNEY S. HILL was born in Royalton, Niagara Co., N. Y., February 7, 1826, and is one of the nine children of Henry and Mary (Avery) Hill, the former a native of Connecticut and the latter of Ver-
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mont, who were married in Royalton-, a few miles from the grand cataract. Sidney lived with his father until twenty-one years of age; when he married Mary L. Graves, a native of New York, and brought her to this township, where he settled on a farm of fifty acres, which he has since increased to 160, and on which he still resides. His first log cabin is still standing, and is at present used for sheltering stock, but in its day was considered to be an extra fine dwelling for the backwoods. Mrs. Hill, who was a highly educated lady, and is said to have been one of the most beautiful and intelligent of whom any pioneer could boast as a wife, died January 26, 1873, leaving behind three of the seven children she had borne her husband—Henry M., Charles S. and Rachel M.; the last a promising music teacher. Four years after Sidney had settled here, his father and eldest brother also came, but soon went to Noble County, Ind., where the father died in 1869, and where the brother still lives. The mother also survives, and, at the age of ninety-two, retains the use of her faculties to a remarkable degree. In October, 1873, Sidney S. Hill married his second wife, Mary 0. Mack a native of Ohio, who has borne her husband two children—Mary A. and Grace. Mr. Hill is a public-spirited and enterprising citizen, and since Lincoln's time has been a Republican. He his held the office of Township Treasurer for tha unusual period of seventeen years, and in 1880 was Real Estate Assessor of the township. He is a Royal Arch Mason, and was initiated in 1861.
GEORGE HODSON was born in Richland County, Ohio, May 7, 1842, and is the eldest of the seven children of Thomas and Elizabeth (Stephenson) Hodson, natives respectively of Lincolnshire, England, and Pennsylvania. (Further information relating to the parents will be found in the biographical history of Madison Township.) Besides the ordinary common-school -education, George Hodson had the advantage of instruction at the Normal School of Pioneer. He then began teaching in the district, and was thus engaged for seven terms. In 1863, he entered the Union army as a private and served under Hancock, Burnside and others ; rose to a Lieutenancy and was brevetted Captain for his gallantry. In 1866, he bought his present farm, which now consists of 200 acres, well improved with good buildings, wind pump, etc. At the age of twenty- seven, he married Emeline Back, a native of this township, who has borne him five children: Albert C., Dora Bell, Loretta, Alice and Libbie. In politics, he is independent, voting rather for the proper man and principle than for a party. He has been a Granger, and is altogether an intelligent and enterprising citizen.
JOBE HODSON was born July 17, 1845, in Richland County, near Mansfield, Ohio, and is one of the six living children of Thomas and Eliz-
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abeth (Stephenson) Hodson, natives respectively of Lincolnshire, England, and the Keystone State. He came to this township, with his parents, in 1854, and in 1855 they located on the present homestead. His father is now a prominent citizen of Pioneer, whither he went in 1870, and further information regarding him will be found in the biographical history of Madison Township, this volume. Jobe Hodson received his education partly in Bridgewater and partly in Bryan. He has taught school about ten terms, and his well-selected library and tasteful surroundings generally indicate him as a man of refinement and studious habits. He was married, December 11, 1873, to Sarah E. Hill, who was born in Pennsylvania February 28, 1855. Her parents, Edwin R. and Henrietta (Thorp) Hill, are natives of New York, and at present are residents of Bridgewater Township. The year of his marriage, Jobe and his wife were installed in the old homestead, where there has been born to them three children—Thomas E., John and Martha. Mr. and Mrs. Hodson, for a time, belonged to the Pioneer Grange, and he has acted as agent for several agricultural implement manufacturing companies. He has dealt considerably in live stock, and has always taken great interest in educational matters.
ROBERT V. HODSON was born in Richland County, Ohio, June 8, 1845, the elder of two sons born to John and Susan (Jump) Hodson, the former a native of England and the latter of Maryland. This couple died when Robert V. was quite young, and the latter was reared by his grandmother and step-grandfather, both of English birth. His early opportunities for an education were quite limited, and at the age of twenty-one he withdrew from his home at his grandmother's and went to work for a short time in Huron County and then came to Superior Township, this county, and settled on the land left him by his father. In 1870, he married Miss Mary Neal, of this county, but separation was had, and, in 1874, he married Susan R. Burns, a native of Maryland. In October, 1876, he came to this township and purchased eighty acres of excellent land, on which he has ever since resided. In politics, he is a Republican, and he and wife are members of the United Brethren Church. He is the father of three children: Theodore S., John G. and Thomas R., and has ever been regarded as an upright man and worthy citizen.
RICHARD F. LAMSON, M. D., was born in Utica, Licking Co., Ohio, February 20, 1838, and was the eldest of three children of Andrew and Clarinda (Hughes) Lamson. The father was born near Burlington, Vt., and came to Licking County when about six years of age. At the age of seventeen he began his trade of saddle and harness maker, and lived at Utica and Etna, until about 1855, when he went to Norristown, Butler County, and bought a farm. The mother was a native of Licking
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County, and her grandfather, Elias Hughes, was a noted scout during the Revolutionary war. Richard F. lived with his parents till his fifteenth year, when he entered the Ohio Wesleyan University. at Delaware, Ohio, but was compelled by ill-health to retire without grad months of commencement. About 1851, his health having been partially restored, he went to Butler, Ind., where he alternately taught school and studied medicine under Dr. Madden. In 1859, he attended one course of lectures at Cleveland Medical College, and, in 1861, went to Byran and commenced practice in partnership with Dr. Jump, and three later entered Cincinnati Medical College. In 1866, he began practice in Bridgewater, and, in 1867, returned to Cincinnati and there graduated ; he now ranks as one of the best physicians in the county. May 7, 1861, he married Elizabeth W. Wonzor, a native of Erie County, Ohio, and daughter of Ramsforde and Elizabeth Wonzor, the former a native of New York and the latter of South Carolina. Mrs. Lamson is a graduate of Ann Arbor (Mich.) University, and is a lady of unusual attainments., She has borne her husband one daughter—Maud.
JACOB LANTZ, a wealthy farmer, was born October 11, 1839, in Crawford County, Ohio, the son of John and Catharine Lantz, both natives of France. The elder Lantz was a farmer, and both parents belonged to the Lutheran Church. Somewhere about 1833, they came to the United States and settled in Crawford County, where the father died in September, 1842. The family began to separate as each of the children became of age, and, about 1864, Jacob came to this township with his mother ; here he bought 210 acres of land, about half of which was improved, and on this they lived for five years, when he was married to Emma E. Backus, who was born in Bridgewater Township. Her parents, Clark and Susannah (Heritage) Backus, were natives respectively of Connecticut and of England, and her father was among the first settlers of Bridgewater. She has borne her husband three children—Fred, Maud and Frank. Mr. Lantz has bought an additional farm of 118 acres, on which he now resides, and of his original 210 acres has disposed of 160 to F. W. Shammel. In 1881, Mr. L. commenced the erection of one of the most expensive and tasteful mansions in the township. It is to be heated, with furnaces, and will have all the other modern improvements, and will be, when completed, quite an ornament to the section.
WHALON LINDSAY was born in Jay, Essex Co., N. Y., August 15, 1822, and is the eldest of five children born to Francis W. and Polly (Adams) Lindsay, the former born in East Canada of Scotch descent, and the latter in Vermont. The elder Lindsay farmed in Essex County, N. Y., until October 1, 1836, when he moved to Sheridan, Chautauqua Co., N. Y., where he remained till June 7, 1837. He then took the steamer
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William Penn, at Dunkirk, for Chicago, but at Detroit the vessel was condemned, and thence he and family went to Eckford, Calhoun Co., Mich. December 12, 1839, Whalop came to this township, and, February 2, 1840, the rest of the family followed. They bought eighty acres of land on Section 23, at $5 per acre, built a log cabin without nails or boards, and paid for the farm in work. Mr. Lindsay was married, November 1, 1854, to Julia E. Sumner, born in Essex County, N. Y., October 21, 1828, but then a resident of Thompson, Geauga Co., Ohio. Her parents, Ira and Lydia (Walker) Sumner, were natives of Vermont and Rhode Island respectively, and her grandfather, Capt. Sumner, served in the war of 1812. Mr. and Mrs. Lindsay resided on the homestead until 1858, when they moved to their present farm of 184 acres, then improved with about the best house in the township. In 1859, the elder Mr. Lindsay died, and Whalon then cared for the whole family as his own. He is a member of the Church of God, and his wife has always inclined toward Presbyterianism. When about twenty-three years of age, he was elected Township Assessor, and has held several other township offices. His only child is now dead.
MISS JANE LINDSAY was born in Bridgeport Township June 24, 1844, the youngest daughter of four children born to Francis W. and Polly (Adams) Lindsay, the former a native of Canada and the latter of the State of New York. These worthy people, who had been among the earliest settlers of the township, died respectively in 1859 and 1871, sincerely mourned by our subject and other surviving relatives, and an extended circle of friends. Since their death Miss Lindsay, who had received a very fair education, has been leading a quiet and refined retired life in her present home, universally esteemed for her gentle, amiable and benevolent disposition.
ABRAHAM MARTIN was born January 16, 1820, in Lancaster County, Penn., and was one of the ten children of David and Barbara Martin, also natives of the Keystone State. Abraham Martin lived with his parents till twenty-six years of age, and then went out to work on his own account. August 2, 1846, he married Nancy J. Henaman, of Pennsylvania, where her parents, John and Catharine Henaman, were also born. In the spring of 1851, Mr. Martin came to Ohio, stopping awhile in Stark County, and then removing to Crawford County, where he remained for nine years. He then came to this township and settled on his present farm of 120 acres, and this is considered to be one of the best stock and general farms in the township, being improved with good buildings and a wind pump, and possessing a rich soil. Mr. M. also owns a good forty-acre lot some two miles west of his homestead. He has held several township offices, and is one of Bridgewater's best citizens. He
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and wife are members o have a faniily of five children living: John, Samuel, Barbara, Mary and Abraham, Jr.
BENJAMIN F. MORRIS, was born August 10, 1830, and was one of the eleven children of William and Hannah (Smith) Morris, natives of Virginia and Pennsylvania respectively. The parents moved to Stark County, this state, about 1835, and when about twenty-three years of age Benjamin F. left his home and came to Bryan, this county, where he remained a short time, and then bought his present home in Bridgewater of 120 acres, and subsequently purchased ninety acres more in the northern part of the township. June 1, 1855, Mr. Morris married Mary J. Crowl, a native of Columbiana County, Ohio. This lady died in 1863, leaving four children: Elizabeth H., William H., Sarah A. and George E. In 1865, Mr. Morris married Harriet Umbenhaur, a native of Williams County, and to this marriage have been born four children: Mary C., Thomas L., Theodosia H. and Ford B. The Morris family is a very ancient one, for this country, and can be traced back to the Jamestown settlers of Virginia, and its respect- . ability is well sustained by its present representative. In politics, Mr. Morris is strongly Republican, and he has been intrusted by that party with the administration of several township offices ; in religion, he leans toward Universalism.
ELI F. PARKER is one of the eight children born to Celius E. and Melinda (Fast) Parker, and had his birth in Ashland County, Ohio, May 19, 1850. The father still lives in Ashland, and with him Eli made his home till he was nineteen years of age, when he came to Bridgewater Township, and resided with his brother for a time, and then with his sister. in 1873, he married Miss Julia P. Brandebery, a native also of Ashland, but a resident of this township. He brought his bride to his present home, then owned by his father, from whom he purchased it in 1875. It includes seventy-four acres of as good as there is in the township, and the present owner is keeping it up to its full yielding capacity. Mr. and Mrs. Parker are members of the United Brethren Church, and in politics Mr. Parker has always been on the side of the Republicans. He takes rank among the most intelligent and enterprising young farmers in the township.
JOEL PRIEST, the eldest of six children of Levi and Ellen (Smith) Priest, natives respectively of Virginia and Ohio, was born in Holmes County, in the last named State, December 12, 1832. Having received a good common-school education, Joel left his parents when about eighteen years old, and came to Bryan, this county, where he was an expert. September 27, 1860m he married Catherine Swartz, a native of Ohio, and
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to their union have been born eight children: Mary A., Alice, Frank, John, Emma, Cora, Leo and James V. About 1870, he came to this township and located on his present farm, comprising eighty acres of excellent land, on which he has ever since resided, with the exception of one year passed at milling. He is a Democrat in national politics, and has filled the local position of Township Trustee. He is a member of Fountain City Lodge, No. 314, I. 0. 0. F., and also of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is an intelligent man and public-spirited citizen.
ALFRED RILEY, County Commissioner, was born in Stark County, Ohio, February 11, 1832, and was one of the five children born to John and Drusilla (Carr) Riley, also natives of Stark. Alfred's mother died when he was about six years of age, and he then went to reside with a sister, also a resident of Stark, who, with her husband, removed to Williams County in 1845, Alfred accompanying her. He received a good common-school education, and at the age of eighteen began to work out by the month on his own account, until, when about twenty-three, he married Eliza Kollar, a native of Wayne County. He then bought fifty acres of land in Superior Township, on which he lived for about seven years, when he sold it and bought his present farm of 100 acres, and forty acres east of it, in this township, all of which is rich in soil, nearly all under cultivation, and improved with excellent buildings, wind pump, etc. In politics, Mr. Riley has always been a Republican ; he has served as Trustee of his township, and in 1880 was elected County Commissioner, of which office he is now the incumbent. He and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and were the parents of six children, viz. : Leonora, Emma (deceased), Mary E., Lida, William and Cora Belle. The eldest daughter is married, and her husband is assisting in the cultivation of the home farm.
FREDERICK W. SHAMMEL was born in Tiffin, Ohio, May 21, 1852, and was the only child of Frederick and Margaret (Lantz) Shammel, natives of Germany. The elder Shammel, who was a livery stable keeper in Tiffin, went to California when Fred W. was about a year old, and, as nothing has been heard of him since, the supposition is that he is dead. The mother continued to live at Tiffin till 1869, when she was again married. Soon after the departure of the elder Shammel, Fred was taken charge of by Jacob Lantz, a wealthy farmer of this township. He received a good common-school education, and when about twenty years old settled on his present farm of 110 acres, over ninety of which are under cultivation. March 7, 1875, he married Miss Elizabeth Morris, a native of this township, and to their union have been born two children: Frank and Fred. With the exception of one vote cast for the Greenback ticket, Mr. Shammel has always given his suffrage to the Democrats.
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TIMOTHY W. STOCKING was born in Madison County, N. Y., January 1, 1818, and is one of eight children born to John A, and Polly (Train) Stocking, the former a native of New York and the latter born near Boston. The elder Mr. Stocking was a minister of the denomination known as Christians, and was one of the pioneers of that society. About 1821, he moved with his family to Tioga County, Penn.; remained there two or three years, then returned to Steuben County, N. Y., where he died in 1836. Two years later, Timothy, then twenty years old, married Sarah Adams, a native of Wayne County, N. Y., and daughter of Joseph and Fanny Adams. The newly wedded pair emigrated to Washtenaw County, Mich., where he worked as carpenter at Ann Arbor and other points till about 1853, when he came to this township and bought his present farm and several other lots, which he sold about fifteen years ago. About 1866, Mr. Stocking went to Bryan, and remained there about three years, serving as Assistant Assessor of Internal Revenue. He has also served three terms as County Commissioner, and has held the offices of Deputy Collector of Internal Revenue, Township Clerk and Township Trustee. He is a member of the I. 0. 0. F., was a .Granger and is a Republican. To his marriage with Miss Adams were born four children, viz., Joseph E., Frances L. (deceased), Julia A. (deceased) and Adelaide.
GEORGE W. STRONG was born February 24, 1820, in Allegany County, N. Y., and was the youngest of nineteen children born to Luther and Abigail (Woodruff) Strong, both natives of Connecticut. When George W. was eight years of age, his parents removed to Potter County, Penn., where his father died. In 1842, George married Jane Vaninwegen, a native of the Genesee Valley, N. Y., and a year later he bought a farm in Potter County, which he cultivated for two years; then engaged at milling, and then at cabinet-making until thirty-four years of age, when he moved to Ovid, Mich., and worked as millwright and carpenter for two years, when he lost his wife. In 1857, he married Mrs. Susannah Fuller, a native of Ohio. In 1861, he entered the army and took part in the famous battle of Shiloh, afterward performing hospital duties. In August, 1863, he came to Williams County, and resumed his old occupation of milling, for which he has quite a talent, and ranks among the best in the business. His present. mill (lath and shingle) was moved to this township in 1879, and with it he is doing a thriving business. He is a member of the Free Will Baptist Church, and in politics is a Republican. He has five children living: Iva and Walter H., who are at home ; Eli, a millwright; Orno, editor of the Nashville (Mich.) News, and George, a business man. Mr. Strong stands very high in the esteem of his neighbors, and is regarded as an enterprising business man and valuable citizen.
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MRS. ELIZABETH UMBINHAUR was born in May, 1818, in Canandaigua County, N. Y., and was one of the fifteen children of James and Abigail (Holce) Dean, the former a native of Ireland, and the latter of New York. Mrs. Unbinhaur was married in 1837 to James Young, near Toledo, Ohio, and soon after moved to this township, and settled on a farm of eighty acres, her present home, being one of the early corners. Mr. Young died in 1840, leaving two children: Kercilda (living) and James E. (now deceased). About three years later, the widow was married to John Sherwin, a resident of Michigan, but subsequently of this township, who died of consumption about 1849, the father of two children, both deceased. In 1854, she married Mr. Umbinhaur, a native of Virginia, but then residing near Montpelier, this county. This gentleman died in 1871, leaving Mrs. Umbinhaur again a widow and mother of his two children—George (deceased) and Brice H., who now manages the farm. The latter was born October 26, 1856, received a good common school education, and is an intelligent and enterprising agriculturist. Mr. Sherwin was Postmaster at the time of his death, when he was succeeded by J. W. Back, and the then Widow Sherwin was appointed assistant, and kept the office in her present residence.
ALEXANDER WATERSTON (deceased), was a baker and farmer, was born March 6, 1805, in Dalkeith, Scotland, and was the elder of the two children born to Simon, Sr., and Janet (Thorburn) Waterston, both natives of Scotland. He received a plain education, and was taught the baking business, and the greater part of his early manhood was passed at his grandfather's house. September 15, 1829, he married Janet Forrest, a native of Pennycuct, Scotland. For two years after, he worked at his trade, and then came to America, settled in Belmont County, Ohio, where he farmed ten years, then bought land in Richland County, farming there eleven years, and then came to this township and purchased 580 acres, which he cultivated till his death, March 11, 1875. His widow is still living on the homestead with her son William, and on her seventy-seventh birthday, August 20, 1882, was in the enjoyment of good health, and possessed her faculties well preserved. Alexander was an honorable man and a good citizen, and died a Republican in politics, and a Presbyterian in religious faith. Of this faith his widow is likewise a firm adherent. The surviving children of eleven born to this couple are six in number, viz., Simon, Thomas, James, William, Mary Haines and Elizabeth Culbertson.
WILLIAM T. WATERSTON, son of Alexander Waterston, was born in Belmont County, Ohio, May 25, 1841, and came to this township with his parents. He received a good common school education, and when twenty-four years old enlisted in the One Hundred and Ninety-fifth
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Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served in Virginia ten months, on guard duty, when the war closed, and received his discharge December, 1865. October 5, 1876, he married Lucretia. K. Haines, a native of Columbiana County, this State, born January 5, 1851, and daughter of Michael and Rebecca (Lowe) Haines, natives respectively of Ohio and Maryland. The young couple took up their residence on the home farm, of which William has had charge ever since his father's death in 1875; and which up to the present time he has prosperously conducted. Mr. Waterston is one of. Bridgewater's most reliable citizens, and in the "blackleg " days was a member of the " Regulators." In politics, he has ever been a stanch Republican. His well-stored library shows a cultivated taste, and the old homestead and its surroundings indicate that they are under the control of a discreet and intelligent master. He is the father of two children—Ursula L. and Augusta.
SIMON WATERSTON, the eldest of the eleven children of Alexander and Janet (Forrest) Waterston, was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, May 20, 1830. The father was a baker by trade, and emigrated to the United States in 1831. He was followed by his family, who arrived at the port of New York July 4, 1832. He then' went to what is now the State of West Virginia, remained one year, and moved thence to Belmont County, this State, where he remained eight years, engaged in farming. Thence he removed to Richland County, in 1842, bought eighty acres of land, and resided on it twelve years, and thence, in September, 1853, removed to this township and purchased one-half section of land, Simon, then twenty-three years old, taking the middle eighty acres, and; in 1869, adding the weft eighty to his possession, which he has rescued from the primitive forest and improved with excellent buildings, wind mills, stock, and everything necessary to make it one of the model farms of the county. April 13, 1854, he married Cyrena Lindsay, a native of Essex County, N. Y., and daughter of Francis W. and Polly (Adams) Lindsay. Her parents moved from New York to Michigan about 1832, remained there eight years, and, in 1840, came to this township, where the daughter was married. Mr. Waterston has been a Freemason since 1861, and an Odd Fellow since 1879. He has served as Township Trustee several terms, has been a Notary Public and Township Treasurer for several years. In 1861, he enlisted in the Thirty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was under Gen. Thomas in Kentucky, with Gen. Buell in his famous march to Shiloh and his retreat north ; then with Rosecrans and Thomas respectively until the fall of Atlanta, when, as Lieutenant, he was ordered to take the surplus baggage of the Fourteenth Corps back to Bridgeport, Ala., where he remained until Sherman's army reached Washington, when he joined the
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command, and was discharged in July, 1865. Mr. Waterston received a good common-school education in his youth, and his wife was a school-teacher at the age of sixteen. They became the parents of five children: George T., an infant, deceased, Anna C., Frank L. and Jennie A. Mr. W. is a stanch Republican, having been one of the twenty-six who organized, that party in Williams County.
THOMAS F. WATERSTON was born in Belmont County, Ohio, in March, 1834, and is the second of the six surviving children born to Alexander and Janet (Forrest) Waterston. Thomas received fair common-school education while residing in Belmont and Richland Counties with his parents. He came with them to this township in September, 1858, and this has been his home ever since. When about twenty-two, Thomas began working for himself, and, at the age of twenty-seven, married Lucinda Knapp, a native of Ohio. He then settled on his present farm, which comprises 200 acres of as fine land as there is in the township, and which is improved with good buildings, wind pump, etc. His residence is a fine, large, tasteful frame, and was built in 1877. He is a thoroughgoing farmer, energetic and enterprising, and a worthy and reliable citizen. In politics, he is a Republican, and his religious faith is that of the United Brethren. He is the father of two children—Ida M. and Edwin—and he is rearing two whom he has adopted—Frank Goodrich and Berton Dorn.
THOMAS E. WHITNEY was born in New York City December 25, 1844, and is the eldest son of Mervin N. and Esther (Underhill) Whitney, respectively natives of Connecticut and New York, and of English descent. The Pell and Underhill families are quite numerous on the line between New York and Connecticut, and our subject derives his descent from their founders, Lord Pell and Lord Underhill, the latter having been his great-grandfather. Mervin N. Whitney was engaged in ship and house building in New York, and, a few years before the late war, came to Akron, Ohio, and erected the only steam flouring mills in the place, and they are still standing. Here he died within a few years; the family became separated, and Thomas E. came to this township. Having received a very fair common-school education, and possessing a good share of energy, he pushed his way along through the world, and, April 13, 1863, married Lila M. Ames, a native of Erie County, Ohio, and daughter of Calvin and Chrisan (Garrison) Ames, who were both born in New York. During the war, Mr. Whitney enlisted in Hoffman's Battalion, doing garrison duty on Johnson's Island, and received his discharge July 18, 1865. Two or three years later, he bought thirty acres of land, lying partly in this township and partly on the other side of the Michigan line, and farmed until 1869, when he engaged in gen-
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eral merchandising. In 1882, he joined Mr. Steadman in the lumber business, at which he is still profitably engaged. His children are three in number, and bear the names of Waldo, Hattie L. and Eddie.
JOHN W. WISMAN, merchant and Postmaster at Ainger, was born August 8, 1833, in Columbiana County, Ohio, and is one of the eleven children of George and Susanna (Brannon) Wisman, natives respectively of Maryland and Ohio, who came to Williams County in the fall of 1836, and settled in Superior Township on 320 acres of entered land, where the father still resides. October 16, 1862, John W. married Mary E. Bechtol, a native of this county, and settled on 120 acres in Madison Township. In 1864, he moved to this township and bought and cleared up 160 acres, on which he made his home. In 1873, he went to Northwest Township and remained till April, 1875, when he went in partnership with George Covell at Ainger. Nine months later Mr. Covell withdrew, and Mr. Wisman has continued the business since on his own account, and now has a first-class country store, carrying a stock of goods valued at about $5,000. He was appointed Postmaster at the time of the establishment of the office at Ainger in 1880. He served in the late war, and was stationed most of the time at Bermuda Hundred, Va. He and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and are the parents of three children—George W., Libbie and Leroy. He is a Republican in politics, and has been elected to several township offices, but has invariably declined serving ; he is gentlemanly, enterprising, and a thorough going business man.
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CENTRE TOWNSHIP
CHRISTIAN ARNOLD is the son of G. P. and Elizabeth Arnold, who were born in France in the years 1800 and 1801 respectively, and married there in 1819. In 1839, they emigrated to this country, and settled in Stark County, Ohio ; remained there six years, then removed to Seneca County, and after a short stay came to Williams County, and located in Centre Township ; remained there two years, then moved to Bryan, where Mrs. Arnold died ; about two years later, Mr. Arnold again married, moved to Illinois, thence to Iowa, and then started West with a friend, since when no tidings have been had of him. He had a family of five boys, of whom one died in France. Christian Arnold, next to the eldest, was born June 17, 1821, and came with his parents to Ohio. He was married, August 17, 1847, to Margaret Frank, also a native of France, and born March 1, 1827, the daughter of George and Eva Frank. He worked at his trade of coopering till 1849, when he joined his father in the provision trade at Bryan. At the end of a year, he sold out to his father and bought 200 acres of timbered land near Bryan, sold it shortly after at a profit of $400, and bought the farm of 160 acres on Section 14, this township, which he has ever since occupied. He has had. a family of five children—Louisa (deceased), Malvina, John F., Emma J. and Christian H. Mr. A. and wife are members of the Lutheran Church, and the family is one in very high standing in the community.
WILLIAM AYRES is the son of Daniel and Parmelia Ayres. His father was born in Pennsylvania, January 18, 1771, and was a son of Samuel Ayres, a native of New Jersey, and his mother was born in New York State, August 23, 1776, and was the daughter of A. Buck ; they were married in Pennsylvania, August 7, 1791, and in 1807 moved to Knox County, Ohio ; six years later, they removed to Richland County, where the father died in 1839; in 1847, his mother came to this county, where she died in 1849 ; they were the parents of eight children. William Ayres was next to the youngest of this family, and was born in Luzerne County, Penn., January 5, 1807. He was brought by his parents to Knox County, and thence to Richland, where he married, February 28, 1830, Miss Nancy Rice, who was born 'in Pennsylvania December, 25, 1811. In 1840, he moved to Fulton County. Here Mrs. Ayres died, May 24, 1855, and November 13, 1856, he married Sarah C. Jon who was born in Ross County, Ohio, February 1, 1828. In 1864, he came to this township, and located on the farm of 136 acres he still live upon. He has had seven children born to him--Hector, Marion
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Oscar, all by his first wife and all now dead; and George W., William J, Samuel D. and Francis S. by his second wife. Mr. Ayres is recognized as one of the substantial men of the township, and is regarded with respect wherever known.
J. E. BAILEY is a son of Alexander and Ann Bailey, who NOM natives of Pennsylvania ; the former was born in 1810, &clatter 1807 ; they were married in Pennsylvania in 1833, where they resided. until 1835, when they moved to Ashland County, Ohio, and after one year's residence moved to Williams County, Ohio ; here they remained until 1865, when they removed to Missouri, where he died in 1872, she is still living there ; their family comprised eight children. J. E. Bailey was born in Williams County, Ohio, March 15, 1843, where he has ever since resided. On August 27, 1863, he was married to Adeline Merriman, of Portage County, Ohio, where she was born, March 19, 1846. It 1865, he moved to Missouri and purchased property, remaining until, 1875, when he returned to Williams County, Ohio, where he bought a farm, moved thereon, and remained until 1879; he then sold this property, removed to Melbern and engaged in mercantile business, continuing one year, when he purchased and occupied the farm he now has in Section 29. He has a family of three children—Effie R., Eva and Merritt H. Mr. and Mrs. Bailey are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Bailey was a soldier in the late war, in Company H, Thirty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served one year.
DANIEL BENDER. Previous to the Revolutionary war, George Bender, the grandfather of Daniel Bender, emigrated from Germany to America, settled in Lancaster County, Penn., afterward moving to Franklin County, Penn., where he purchased a large tract of land and spent his days. His eldest son, John, was born and married in Lancaster County, Penn., and shortly after his marriage settled in Franklin County, Penn., near Chambersburg, which was their life-long home. Mrs. John Bender was Miss Mary Harmand, and was the mother of eight children, seven growing to maturity. Daniel Bender, the youngest (son of John and Mary), was born in Franklin County, Penn., March 8, 1813. Here he remained until ,of age, having acquired the trade of carpenter and builder, where he was employed as foreman in the construction of the hotel of Mr. John Yantz, at Navarre, Stark County, Ohio. Here he purchased a home, to which he removed after his marriage with Miss Nancy Fisher in Wilmot May 30, 1837. She is the daughter of Adam. and Sarah Fisher, and a native of Stark County. Mr. Bender bought a farm in the vicinity of Navarre in 1842, where the family resided until 1847, when he sold out and transferred his interests to Williams County, which has since been his home. Here he has a fine farm of forty acres,
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which he cultivates, devoting some time to the practice of his former profession. Mr. Bender is an energetic, industrious man, highly esteemed by all. The family consists of ten children.
AMOS BETTS, the son of Luther and Hannah Betts, was born in Seneca County, N. Y., November 24, 1818. His father was a native of Connecticut, and settled in New York at an early day, and the mother was a native of Vermont. The father died in his native State, and the mother soon after moved with her family of fourteen children to Marion County, Ohio, and then came to Williams County, Ohio, where she ended her days. Amos accompanied his mother to Marion County, and there remained until 1838, when he went to Huron County, where, September 12, 1841, he married Mary M. Darling, a native of Cattaraugus County, N. Y., and born April 17, 1824." In 1847, he removed from Huron to Williams County, and purchased some land which, he afterward sold. Here his wife died, March 27, 1874. April 19, 1877, he married Louisa Lockhart, who was born in Ashland County, Ohio, January 14, 1839. He now bought back his old farm, and still resides upon it. He has a family of ten children—Margaret M., Charles R., Luther, Rosina A., Benjamin P., Henry A., Cornelia L., Theodore D., David D., and J. A.
THOMAS BLAIR was born in Lycoming County, Penn, April 22, 1815, the second eldest child of Aaron and Margaret Blair. The former was born in Pennsylvania in 1783, and the latter in New Jersey in 1787, and were married in Lycoming County in 1808. They had a family of seven children, viz., Ann, Thomas, Elizabeth, Ruth, Peter, John and Aaron K. August 11, 1842, Thomas Blair married Sarah J. Hahaffey, also a native of Lycoming County, Penn., and born October 15, 1824. Just after marriage he came to this township and settled on eighty acres of fine land, on which he has since made his home. At his house his father, who was on a visit to him from his home in Pennsylvania, was taken ill, and died in October, 1846. His mother expired at the old homestead in Lycoming, in October, 1653. Mr. Blair is an old and respected citizen of Centre Township, and has had born to him a family of ten children, viz., Susan E., Margaret A., Sarah J., Esther M., Zelma L. (deceased), Emma A., William A., Rhoda I., Della R. S. T. and a son who died in infancy.
ALVA BOISE, son of Nathan and Deborah Boise, was born in Portage County, Ohio, May 1, 1820. His father, Nathan, was born in Massachusetts about the year 1779, and was a son of John and Sarah Boise. This family is of French origin, and their ancestors belonged to the noted Du Bois family, who were very prominent in France during the reign of Louis XIV, and were driven from that country to the northern part of Ireland during the Huguenot persecutions. Here the name was changed
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to Boies, and in about 1825 to the present mode. the early part of the last century David, a descendent of the family, emigrated from Ireland to. America and located in the town of Hopkinton, Mass., but subsequently removed to Blandford, Mass., about 1785 or 1737. But a few people, at that early period, had turned their attention toward the settlement of the backwoods of the State, as the country was mountainous and heavily timbered, and permanent settling was attended with much more danger and labor there than in the valleys. David was a man of deep religious thought and principles. He had a large family, of children, of whom three were sons, viz., John, William and Samuel. John, arriving at manhood, turned his attention to agricultural pursuits.' He reared a family of children, and his two sons were named John and Samuel, the former being the grandfather of the subject of our sketch. He was born in Blandford Novembee 22, 1744, and was one of the first white male children to see the light in that town ; he was celebrated as a schoolmaster, and was a prominent member of the Baptist Church ; he was married to Sarah Freeland, by whom he had a family of six children, who all lived to a mature age ; three of them were sons—James, Enos and Nathan. He died September 9, 1830 ; his son Nathan was born in Blandford, Mass., in 1779, and there he lived until 1802, when he came to Portage County, this State, where he shortly after married Deborah, the daughter of Thompson and Mary Pegg. Nathan and wife died in Portage County in the years 1826 and 1863, leaving a family of eight children, viz., Enos, Sarah, Joel, Elijah, Alva, Mary, Lydia and Philo. Alva Boise was married, in Portage, October 18, 1847, to Catherine, daughter of Joshua and Elizabeth Calvin, and until October, 1850, he remained there following his trade of wagon-making ; he then came to this township and purchased and moved upon the farm he still occupies. This contains 120 acres of very fine land, and is well improved in all respects. Mr. Boise is the father of one son, Watson, who was born May 29, 1857, and was married, Septejnber 15, 1877, to Miss Rebecca Brannan; he resides on the old homestead, and superintends the cultivation of the farm. The family are all people of superior intelligence, and are among the most respectable in the township.
F. P. BRAKEMAN, saw-mill proprietor and lumber dealer, is a son of Peter and Clarissa Brakeman ; was born in Oakland County, Mich., February 22, 1844, and came with his parents to Williams County in 1854. At the beginning of the late war, he enlisted in Company C, Fourteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry and served three months, and at the expiration of his term re-enlisted in Company K, Sixty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served till the close of the war, in all Serving four years, four months and twenty-seven days, mostly under Gen. Sherman.
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on his return, he married, December 20., 1865, Anna E. Cummins, who was born in Seneca County, Ohio, December 6, 1844. He then made his residence on his father-in-law's farm in St. Joseph's Township, until the fall of 1870, when he came to this township and purchased a sawmill, which he has been running ever since, in connection with a trade in lumber. He has had born to him a family of five children—Ida, James G., Zadie B., an infant son who died unnamed and Herbert. He is an enterprising young business man and an upright, public spirited citizen.
HENRY BROWN is a son of Daniel and Elizabeth Brown, who were natives of Bedford County, Penn. The former was born January 1, 1785, the latter January 12, 1789. They were married in Bedford County, Penn., in the year 1806, remaining there until 1810, when they removed to Stark County, Ohio, where Mr. Brown died November 16, 1832. His widow came to Williams County about the year 1842, where she died in 1862. They had a family of twenty children, fourteen of whom they reared to maturity. The subject of our sketch was the third of this family, and was born in Stark County December 7, 1810. He was married in the same county, March 3, 1832, to Catherine Keller, and in the following, October moved to Hancock County, Ohio, and purchased land. There Mrs. Brown died January 27, 1853. To this marriage twelve children were born—Susan, John, Eli, Sarah, Lucinda, Rebecca, Aaron, Samuel, Henry, Jacob, Mary and Isaac. He was married a second time June 22, 1856, to Leah. Myers, by whom he had four children—Anna (deceased), Jennie, Amelia and Viola (deceased). In the spring of 1866, Mr. Brown removed to Williams County, Ohio, purchasing and occupying his present farm and residence. He is a member of the German Reformed Church.
JOHN BROWN is a son of Daniel and Elizabeth Brown, natives of Pennsylvania, and was born in Stark County, Ohio, February 12, 1812, and was there married, March 30, 1834, to Lucinda Briggs, who was born in Columbiana County, Ohio, August 22,1.815. About the year 1835, Mr. Brown moved to Hancock County, Ohio, where he remained till 1848, when he moved to Williams County, on the farm where he now resides, on Section 13. There has been born to him a family of nine children, as follows: Samuel, Joseph, Mahlon, John (all deceased), Lydia, Sanford, Leander and Harriet (deceased) and Manuel. His wife died February 7, 1881; and he again married December 29, 1881. He is a minister of the German Baptist Church, and is highly respected in his community as a man of piety and strict integrity. He has been a successful farmer, and has devoted his life more to the quiet of social pursuits than to the excitement of politics.
EMMANUEL BROWN, the son of . Abraham and Hannah Brown, natives of Pennsylvania, was born in Wayne County, Ohio, June 8, 1827,
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and was there married, November 9, 1848, to Juliann Stauffer, who was born in Lancaster County, Penn., September 19, 1829. in the, fall of 1861, he came from Wayne to Williams County and settled on Section No 9, this township, on the same farm where he now resides, which comprises eighty acres of excellent land. In 1871, he moved to Bryan and did business there till 1881, when he returned to his farm. He has had born to him two children—Abraham (deceased) and Clarissa. Mr. Brown is a member of the. I. 0. 0. F., and has taken the fifth degree. He is a useful and enterprising citizen and is highly respected as a man.
JACOB BROWN is a native of Stark County, Ohio, where he was born October 9, 1815. His parents, David and Barbara Brown, were natives of Lancaster County, Penn., where Mr. Brown was born in 1783, and the m8ther in 1786. They were married and remained in this State until 1814, when they moved to Stark County, Ohio, where Mr. Brown was called home in March, 1835. Mrs. Brown lived on the old homestead until 1854, when she decided to come to Williams County, Ohio, and spend the remainder of her days in the home of her son, Jacob Brown. Here her death occurred the January following. Mr. and Mrs. Brown were parents of nine children. Mr. Jacob Brown remained in his native place until 1838, when he bought a farm in Hancock County, Ohio, upon which himself and family lived until July, 1848, when he disposed of this property and purchased land in Williams County, which has since been his home. Here he has a fine farm of 305 acres, acquired and brought to its present state of cultivation by habits of industry and perseverance. Mr. Brown commands the respect and esteem of his neighbors for uprighttness and integrity ; besides tilling the soil, he administers in spiritual things, being a preacher of the German Baptist faith. Mr. Brown was married, September 10, 1837, to Miss Catherine Brenner, a native of Germany, who came to Stark County with her parents in 1830. Mr. and Mrs. Brown are parents of nine children, eight still living Abner K., Barbara, Lydia, Jacob, Catherine, Nancy, Isabella and Charles F. One son, Reuben, was offered as a sacrifice on the altar of his country.
W. M. BROWN, of the firm of Brown & Brenner, merchants at Melbern, in this township, was born in Crawford County, Ohio, October 14, 1846, and is the eldest of the' four children of Nicholas and Sarah Brown, who were respectively born in Fayette County, Penn., August 11, 1821, and Crawford County, Ohio, December 29, 1825, and married in Crawford January 23, 1844, and who moved to this county in 1846, where they still reside. October 21, 1866, W. M. Brown married, at Williams Centre, this county, Caroline Jaques, who was born in Holmes County, Ohio, April 30, 1848, and was the daughter of David L. and Mary Jaques, natives of France. After his marriage, Mr. Brown moved
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upon one of his father's farms in this township, remained there two years, then bought the estate of his wife's parents in the same township, moved upon it and there remained till 1877, sold it, moved to Melbern, and in October of the same year entered into the business at which he is now engaged, and at which he is finely prospering. He has a family of four children----Laura B., Sadie, Charlie N. and William G. Mr. and Mrs. Brown are members of the M. E. Church, and he is one of the enterprising business men of Melbern.
MYRON CALTRIDER is the only son of John W. and Emeline Caltrider, and was born in this township. The parents settled here at an early day, and here, in June, 1872, the father died, and the widow went to Bryan, where she remained two years, then returned to the farm, where she sojourned till May, 1882, when she again went to Bryan, and there expects to remain until the end of life. Myron Caltrider, in 1876, made a trip to Philadelphia, and October 22, of that year, there married Miss Alice Wyatt, whom he brought to the old homestead, the place of his birth, and there settled down for life. His farm comprises 114 acres of choice land, and is well improved and tilled, and its owner is recognized as a skillful and promising young farmer. He and Mrs. C. are members of the Baptist Church, and are quiet, orderly and conservative young people.
SMITH CALVIN was born in Portage County, Ohio, December 21, 1829, the son of Horatio and Hannah Calvin, natives of Virginia, born respectively November 1, 1803, and February 12, 1807, and married in Portage County, Ohio, in March, 1827. They became the parents of two children: David and Smith, and in 1850 changed their residence to this county, where the father died in April, 1854. Smith Calvin learned shoemaking in Portage, and in 1848, visited this county. He remained a short time working at his trade, then he returned to Portage, and two years later came back to Williams and worked at shoemaking for ten years. August 26, 1852, he married Mary M. Miller. In 1863, he bought and moved upon the eighty-acre farm where he still resides. His wife died October 12, 1868, the mother of two children. September 19; 1869, he married Elizabeth Bush, who died August 29, 1880, having borne three children; and June 2, 1882, he married Jane Bush. Mr. Calvin has always been a kind and affectionate husband and father, and has proved himself to be a thrifty farmer and excellent neighbor.
O. E. ENSIGN comes from good old Puritan stock. His father, Owen Ensign, was born in Massachusetts in 1784, and Nancy Ensign, his mother, was a native of Connecticut, born in 1794. They were married in Lake County, Ohio, in 1814, which was their home until 1836, when they moved to Farmer Township, Defiance County, where they purchased
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property and remained until the death of Mr. Ensign, which took place in 1857. Mrs. Ensign soon afterward went to Wisconsin, there her death occurred in 1869. Their family consisted of six children,- but four now living, one son and one daughter deceased. The son, W. O., filled at one time the office of Judge of Defiance County. Of them remaining, H. A. Ensign, M. D., resides in Kansas ; D. T. Ensign follows farming in Defiance County ; F. E., is attorney at law in Boise City, Idaho, and 0. E. is engaged in farming and stock-raising in Centre Township, Williams Co., Ohio, where he has a fine farm of 160 acres under cultivation. 0. E. Ensign was born at Painesville, Lake Co., Ohio, November 29, 1831, coming with his parents to Defiance County, and remaining with them until twenty years of age, attending school during the winter and assisting on the farm in the summer months ; he also was a student at Painesville Academy, and availed himself of collegiate instruction. He was afterward engaged in teaching during the winter months until his marriage, which occurred April 8, 1857. Mrs. Ensign was Miss Clarissa L. Dunkle, a native of New York State, where she was born June 13, 1839. She is the mother of four children, but two of whom are now living. Mr, and Mrs. Ensign are members of the United Brethren Church.
DANIEL FETTERS, son of Jacob and Eve Fetters, was born in Montgomery County, Ohio, October 18, 1818, and came to this county with his parents. He was married in April, 1841, to Elizabeth Miser, a native of Ohio, and born in 1817. Mr. Fetters, shortly after his marriage, purchased the farm of eighty acres on Section 28, in this township, on which he still resides. At the time of his first location here, the country was one dense forest, but by industry Mr. Fetters has succeeded in clearing off sixty-five acres, which are now under a fine state of cultivation. His children were seven in number, and named as follows— Eliza, Sarah A., Frederick, Mary A., Catherine M. (deceased) and two infant daughters deceased. Mr. F. is a Granger, is an excellent farmer and an upright citizen.
GEORGE FETTERS was born in Montgomery County, Ohio, May 10, 1829, and was the son of Jacob and Eve Fetters, who were born in Pennsylvania June 22, 1792, and August, 1791, and in that State married in about 1812. Jacob Fetters was a soldier in the war of 1812 for some time, and, shortly after his return, moved with his young wife to Montgomery County, Ohio, and thence, in 1836, to this county ; settled with his family on Section 37, this township, on the farm where George Fetters now resides, and there departed this life respectively Decembero 19, 1836, and March 18, 1874, the parents of twelve children, viz., Catherine, Mary, Lydia, Moses, Daniel, Esther, Jacob, Eve,
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John, George, Eliza and Solomon (the last deceased). George Fetters was married, August 12, 1852, to Hester Fetters, who was born in Wayne County, Ohio, June 8, 1834. Her parents, Daniel and Sarah Fetters, natives of Pennsylvania, were born respectively in 1806 and 1809. Soon after hii marriage, George bought the old homestead, and now owns 160 acres of good land. He is the father of eleven children, viz., Eve J., Polly A., William H., Charles L., Thomas A., Johnnie C., Frank F., Della D., Oliver V., Nolia B. and L. J. Mr. Fetters is one of the leading citizens of Centre, and has held the office of Assessor for nine years.
DAVID FLIGHTNER was born in Defiance County, Ohio, January 20, 1854. Son of Adam and Catharine Flightner, and came with his parents to Williams County, which has since been his home. He remained with his father until nearly twenty-one years of age, when he assumed the duties and cares of life for himself. His marriage with Miss Clara H. Lane took place at Bryan, Ohio, March 16, 1878. She is a daughter of Jacob and Kerten Lane, and was born in Williams County, Ohio, September 27, 1860. Mr. and Mrs. Flightner removed to Defiance County, Ohio, shortly after their marriage, where they remained one year, when he purchased the farm of eighty acres in Centre Township, Williams County, which has since been their home. Mr. Flightner is a worthy citizen of the township, and highly respected and esteemed by all who enjoy the pleasure of his acquaintance. A son and daughter cheer their home, viz., Arthur H. and Alma Flightner.
SAMUEL FLIGHTNER is an American-born citizen of German descent. His parents and grandparents emigrated from Germany to " the land of the free and the home of the brave " at an early day. The marriage of his parents took place in Crawford County, Ohio, in 1841, where Samuel, the eldest of a family of eight children, was born in March, 1842. The family removed to Williams County, Ohio, in 1860, having been located some time previously in Defiance County. Mrs. Flightner died at her home in Williams County in May, 1874. Mr. Flightner was remarried the year following, removed to Bryan in 1876, where the second Mrs. Flightner died shortly afterward. Mr. Flightner entered the married state again in 1880, and one child is the result of this union. Mr. Samuel Flightner was married, October 15, 1864, in Edgerton, to Miss Lucinda H. Stevens, a native of Crawford County, Ohio, where she was born December 18, 1844. Their family numbers eight children— Mary L., Charlie W., Edward J., Elnora A., Franklin E., Jennie B., Myrta M. and an unnamed infant daughter. Mr. Flightner's vocation has always been that of a farmer. Their home, until 1875, was in Defiance County, on a farm purchased of Mr. Flightner
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Sr., when they disposed of this and purchased the old family homestead in Williams County, which is their present home. This consists of 160 acres of land, and is u valuable piece of property.
ALEXANDER GAVIN is a son of Robert and Isabel Gavin, natives of Scotland. He was born in Scotland September 10, 1848, and came with his parents from the old country to Fort Wayne, Ind., and thence to Williams County, where he was married, December 29, 1870, to Christine. Burgist, who was born in Wayne County, Ohio, July 28, 1850. Shortly after his marriage, he came to this township, and settled on the farm where he now resides, purchasing it from his brother in 1874, and since greatly improving it. It comprises eighty acres of fine land, and is kept in a state of thorough cultivation. He has a family of four children—Byron D., William R., Jennie 0. and Orpha B. He is a steadyt going, prudent young man, is a thorough farmer; and is looked upon as a valuable accession to the community.
BENTLEY HANNON was born in Lancaster County, Penn., February 7, 1810, and was one of the eight children born to Robert C. and Sarah Hannon, natives of Pennsylvania, and born respectively July 22, 1773, and November 25, 1774, and married April 11, 1797. They moved to Columbiana County, Ohio, in the fall of 1817, and there the father died June 2, 1856, and the mother December 12, 1858. At the age of nineteen, Bentley Hannon began learning to be a stonetmason ; served two years, and then went to Pittsburgh, Penn., where he worked as a journeyman ; he then returned to Ohio, and was married in Columbiana County, December 13, 1832, to Nancy A. Neer, who was born in Trumbull, County, Ohio, February 11, 1816, and was the daughter of John and Sarah Neer, who were born in Virginia and who settled in Trumbull County in the fall of 1815. For three years after marriage, farmed in Columbiana County, and in 1837 moved to this township, settled on the eighty-acres farm he had entered the previous year, and has lived thereon ever since. He is the father of seven children, viz., Robert N. (deceased), Isavelia, Sarah A. (deceased), Elizabeth, Phebe J., John H. and Frances E.
FREDERICK HERRMANN is the son of George F. and Eve Herrmann, who were natives of Alsace, Germany, and born respectively in 1796 and 1800, and married in 1824. In the spring of 1839, they came to America, located in Stark County, Ohio, remained there till 1850, when they came to this township and settled on a farm, where they ended their days July 23, 1862, and June, 1867, respectively. They had a family of five children, of whom Frederick was the eldest. He was born in Alsace in August, 1825, and came with his parents to this township and now lives on the farm which they here located upon, and
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which he purchased from the other heirs at their death. He was married, March 17, 1853, to Dorothea Wagner, also a native of Alsace, and born June 14, 1834. Mr. Herrmann owns a fine farm of eighty acres, and has a family of seven children, viz., Emeline, Caroline, Frederick, Henry, Matilda, Eleanor and Laura. He and wife are members of the Lutheran Church, and are upright and industrious citizens.
H. L. JAQUES, son of A. C. and Anna Jaques, natives of Switzerland, was born in Defiance County, Ohio, May 9, 1842. The parents were respectively born in 1779 and 1782, were married in Switzerland, and in 1832 came to America, lived in various parts of Ohio, and are now passing their declining days with their children, of whom they have had a family of twelve. H. L. Jaques came to this township with his parents, and in the fall of 1861, enlisted in Company A, Thirty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, served two years in the field, was wounded in the right thigh, September 25, 1863, and lay in hospital until May, 1864, when he was discharged. July 4, 1867, he married Lucinda Shafer, a native of this county and born March 19, 1842. In 1868, he moved on his father's farm, remained a year, then took another and farmed till 1881, went to Melbern and engaged in merchandising a year, and then, in the spring of 1882, settled on his present farm. He and wife are members of the M. E. Church, are the parents of two children: Lyle E, and Lulu E. and are useful and respected citizens.
J. L. JORDIN is the son of L. D. and Lucinda Jordin, who were natives of Vermont. The father was born October 9, 1804, and was a son of James Jordin, who was born in Massachusetts and of Irish origin, and at an early day settled in Vermont, where he married Sarah Hunter, by whom he had one child-L. D. Jordin. This gentleman married, October 9, 1826, Lucinda Mirick, who was born- June 12, 1808 ; they left Vermont in 1838 and came to Licking County, Ohio, where they remained about twenty years, then moved to Mercer County, Ohio, and in 1857 came to Williams County, where Mrs. Jordin died February 23, 1879, and Mr. Jordin April 23, 1879. They had a family of five children, of whom J. L. Jordin was the eldest. He was born in Orleans County, Vt., January 14, 1828, and was married in Licking County, Ohio, October 1, 1848, to Lydia E. Varnum, who was born in Middlesex County, Mass., February 22, 1829, the daughter of Prescott and Lydia Varnum. In 1852; J. L. and wife moved from Licking to Mercer County, and thence, in the spring of 1858, to Williams County, where he settled in Pulaski Township ; in 1865, he purchased 120 apes on Section 16 in this township, where he has ever since resided. He has a family of four children, viz. : Ellis L., born August 3, 1849 ; Henry V., May 2, 1853; Julia L., April 4, 1862, and Oakley A., April 11,
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1872. The family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and stand very high in the estimation of the community.
SETH KEMBLE, son of Samuel and Jane Kemble, was born in Columbiana County, Ohio, December 31, 1880, and with his parents mowed to Hancock County in the fall of 1851. He re-zoning with them until he was over twenty-three years of age, when he returned to Columbiana County and was married, June 8, 1854, to Tamar G. Crawford, who was born in Columbiana County April 24, 1831. He then came back to Hancock County, where he purchased property and remained until the spring of 1865, when he came to Williams County and settled on his present farm, on Section 14, this township. He has 141 acres of very fine land, with a fine brick residence and other first-class improvements. His wife has borne him eight children, viz. : Duston, Er. H., Edward C., Victor S., John C., Seth W. (deceased), Nancy J. and Alice L. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and he and family are regarded as useful members of the community in which they live.
JACOB LANE was born in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, February 13, 1832. His parents, James and Nancy Lane, were natives of Westmoreland County, Penn., where they married, moving in 1829, to Tuscarawas County, where they remained until 1859, when they came to Centre Township, Williams County, where the death of James Lane occurred March 4, 1875. Mrs. Lane's death occurred the year following in February, while with her daughter in Defiance County. Their family consisted of nine children, six surviving. Jacob Lane came with his parents to Williams County, where he married, February 17, 1856, Miss Keren Horton. Here he purchased a saw-mill, conducting the business at Williams Centre until August 6, 1861, when he responded to his country's call and enlisted in Company A, Thirty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, serving through the entire war. He returned home July 12, 1865, and purchased the farm which is his present home. The second Mrs. Lane, to whom he was married September 22, 1868, was Miss Rebecca Ridenour, a native of Wayne County, where she was born December 7, 1842, and daughter of John and Susanna Ridenour. The family consists of six children, three by each marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Lane are members of the Lutheran Church. Mr. Lane has a fine farm of 205 acres in a high state of cultivation ; has met with success in his undertakings, and is universally esteemed. He is a member of the G. A. R.
SIMEON S. LOVEJOY is a native of the "Empire" State, and was born in Yates County January 27, 1841. His parents, David D. and Charity Lovejoy, were also natives of New York, emigrating, from there to Defiance County, Ohio, in 1845, coming to Williams County in
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1849, removing to Melbern in 1867, where he was employed by the L. S. & M. S. R. R. Co. in the construction of a station house, and afterward as freight agent at the same place. Mr. Lovejoy was also engaged in mercantile business in partnership with his son Simeon, the latter taking entire charge until the death of his father, which took place August 22, 1875. Previous to this, Simeon Lovejoy was in the service of his country, making an ,honorable war record for himself. He enlisted in the Ohio Volunteer Infantry October 7, 1862 ; at the battle of Stone River, was wounded in the hip by a musket ball, which was not extracted until November 11, 1869, from the effects of which he suffered amputation of the foot August 14, 1871, Drs. Long and Biggs performing the operation. Mr. Lovejoy has been a resident of Williams Centre for many years. He is Postmaster here, receiving his appointment October 27, 1873. He also held the office of Justice of the Peace for three years, and that of Town Clerk for one year. He is the owner of town and farm property. Mr. Lovejoy and Miss Angeline Sellers were married September 13, 1863, and are parents of six children, but five living—Charles A., Ada A., George M., Lola M. and Nora ; Cornelius D., deceased. Mrs. Lovejoy is a native of Stark County, Ohio.
JOHN MANON is one of the early pioneers of Williams County, coming to. Williams Centre in 1841, when its entire outfit consisted of three log cabins. His energy and public spirit have assisted very materially in making the place what it is. He was Postmaster here for thirteen years, Justice of the Peace for nine, and held the office of Township Treasurer nearly twenty years. He has been employed in various vocations for ten years at the tailor's trade, then clerking for G. H. Tomlinson nearly eight years, afterward farming two years, when a partnership business was established between himself and George Garver, which was discontinued after two "years, Mr. Manon continuing alone until the present time, when his intention is to close out his business and retire from active life to the repose and quiet he has so well earned. Mr. Manon was born in Franklin County, Penn., August 17, 1814, the eldest of the six children of his parents, Hugh and Rebecca Manon, both natives of Franklin County, Penn. He remained in his childhood's home until twenty years of age, when he went to Wayne County, Ohio, remaining two years; then to Stark County, where he was united in marriage April, 1841, to Miss Mary M. Frager, after which he came to Williams County, where his life has been subsequently traced. Mrs. Manon passed away February 12, 1858, leaving seven children, three of whom have " gone before "—Emma M., Lydia K. and Erastus M. Four survive to cheer the declining years of their father—William A., Jacob G., John E. and Charles W.
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HUGH MANON, son of Hugh and Rebecca Manon, was born. in Franklin County, Penn., December 27, 1828. In 1848, he married Miss Lydia A. Bender, also a native of Franklin County, and born in September, 1828. Some two years later, they came to Williams Centre, this county, where lie worked in an ashery about eight years, meanwhile saving his earnings and buying forty acres of land in the township, upon which he moved and resided for some time, and then sold it and bought his present farm on Section 33. During the first week of his residence hereon, he had the misfortune of losing his wife, who left him a family of seven children: Katie, John, George, Wesley, Sarah, Lillie and Jeremiah. When he moved upon his eighty-acre farm it was quite in the wilderness, but by hard labor he has put it all under fence, and the greater portion of it under cultivation.
S. B. McKELVEY was born in Portage County, Ohio, August 13, 1814, and was the youngest and now the only living child of a family of ten born to James and Sarah McKelvey. James McKelvey was born in Ireland in 1765, and came to America with his parents in 1770. They arrived at Philadelphia, remained there a short time, and then moved to Chester County, Penn., where the parents died. James, the youngest of the family, remained in Chester till twenty-five, learned the tailor's trade, went to Westmoreland County, and there married Sarah Stephens, a native of the county, and daughter of Amos Stephens, who was born on shipboard while his parents were on their passage from Wales to Philadelphia. James and wife, shortly after marriage, came to Portage County, this State, and there died in 1843 and 1850, respectively. S. B. McKelvey was married in his native county, May 28, 1835, to Janet Byers, one of the eleven children of James and Mary Byers. In 1851, he sold his property in Portage and came to Williams County and settled on Section 9, this township, where he owns 180 acres of fine land, of which 120 are well improved. He has had a family of ten children, viz., Lucetta (deceased), Artlissa (deceased), Antoinette, Lydia, Lois (deceased), Lewell, Franklin, Hiram, Wilson and Robert R. (deceased). Mr. McKelvey is a very poplar gentleman, and at present holds office as Justice of the Peace, and has so held for nineteen years. He was also County Commissioner one term, and has served as Township Treasurer and Township Trustee. He has taught several terms of school in the township, and is also a Granger.
C. G. NEIDHARDT was born in Germany, October 22, 1819, and was the son of Jacob M. and Catharine M. Neidhardt, who were born about the years 1790 and 1785, respectively. In 1837, the family came to this country, and located in this township, where the father died. in 1863. The mother died in 1874, at the home of her son, C. G. She
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had been twice married, and was the mother of fourteen children, born about equally to her husbands. C. G. Neidhardt was married in this township, April 6, 1847, to Sophia Yackee, born in Germany April 18, 1820, and the daughter of Christian and Christina Yackee. Two years after marriage, they moved upon their farm of 110 acres on Section 15, this township, on which they have ever since resided. They are highly respected by their neighbors, are members of the German Lutheran Church, and the parents of seven children:Jacob, L., Catherine M., Sophia S., Phebe, Christian G., Charlotte and Frederick M. They are also rearing an adopted son, Edward F. E.
DANIEL P. NEIHART is the son of Jacob and Anna M. Neihart. The father was born in Centre County, Penn., in 1795, and the mother in Maryland in 1807, and they were married in Holmes County, Ohio, in 1827. In 1837, they came to this township and settled on Section 21, where he died in March, 1871. The widow is still living on the old homestead. They had a family of eight children, viz., John, George, Christina, Daniel P., Noah, Lydia, Moses and Lucinda. D. P. Neihart was born in Williams County January 8, 1840. In the spring of 1863, he went to El Dorado County, Cal., and engaged in mining until September, 1868, when he returned to this township and bought the farm on which he now lives. He was married, August 28, 1870, to Alice Gabriel, who was born in Wayne County, Ohio, March 9, 1850. The following spring he moved on his farm, where he has remained ever since. He is the father of two children: Orrin H. and Charles A. He has a good farm, and is an industrious man and respected citizen.
ALEXANDER H. OGLE was born in Columbiana County, Ohio, April 13, 1812, the youngest of seven children born to William and Rachel Ogle, the former born in the State of Maryland, and the latter in Pennsylvania in 1771, and married in Washington County, Penn. Here William Ogle owned a flouring-mill, which he operated till 1803, when he, moved to Columbiana County, Ohio, entered land, engaged in farming till 1845 ; removed to Cincinnati and shortly after to Burlington, Iowa, where he had intended living in retirement, but was removed by death August 5, 1845, and was followed by his wife December 8 the same year. They had a family of seven children— Benjamin, Nancy, James, William, Hannah, Thomas and Alexander. Alexander learned the carpenter's trade, and pursued that business in his native county until 1834, when he went to Stark County and bought some land. In the spring of 1835, he went to Pittsburgh, Penn., bought a flat-boat, and engaged for three years in boating to New Orleans ; then returned to Stark County, and engaged in the real estate business. In 1843, he visited Beaver County, Penn., and March 10, of that year, there married Miss Jane Marton,
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returning to Stark County at once. In the spring, of 1844, he went to Des Moines County, Iowa, conducted a hotel and real estate business till the spring of 1852 ; then moved to Columbiana County, Ohio; thence changed to Wood County, and again bought some property. Here his wife died July 16, 1856. April 26, 1860, he married Mrs. Emily Gibbs, a daughter of Robert and Susan Hunter, of Pennsylvania. In the spring of 1866, he moved to Sherwood, Defiance Co., Ohio ; engaged in general mercantile business ; sold out in October, and came to Williams Centre, where he is now doing a fine general trade. He is a Master Mason, and is the father of ten children: Alexander J., Andrew J., James H., Nancy J., Sarah E. (deceased), Lorinda R., Lavinia, Loren L., Ida A. (deceased), and Charles W.
JONATHAN OXENRIDER is a son of William and Mary Oxenrider, who were natives of Pennsylvania, but came to Wayne County, Ohio, at an early day, and remained until 1840, when they moved to this county and township, where, in due course of time; both died. They had eleven children, viz., Anna, James, Joseph, William, Sarah, Jonathan, Catharine, Nancy, Elizabeth, David and Mary. Jonathan Oxenrider was born in Wayne County November 26, 1829, and came with his parents to Centre Township. He was married, September 25, 1851, to Elizabeth Archibald, and shortly after bought a small place near his father's farm, and attended to both farms until about two years after his father's death, when he sold his land and bought his present home. Shortly after moving hereon, Mrs. Oxenrider died, leaving him three children: Amos, William and Sarah. January 17, 1865, he married Harriet Priest, who has borne him a daughter and son: Rebecca and Myron. His farm comprises eighty-three acres of good land, which is well improved and cared for.
WILLIAM POOLE, farmer, brick-maker and tile manufacturer, is a son of Bannister and Mary Poole. His father was born in Virginia in 1784, and his mother in Pennsylvania in 1803. They were married in Adams County, Penn., where they remained some time, and then moved to Stark County, Ohio, and a few years later to Summit County, and then, in 1836, came to Williams County, where the father died, the parents of fourteen children. William Poole was born in Summit County, September 9, 1831, and came with his parents to this county, where he has since remained. June 10, 1852, he married Maria Gardner, who died June 23, 1857. His second marriage, February 26, 1858, was to Mary E. Cornell, and shortly after this he bought a part of the old homestead, built a house, moved in, and there still lives. He owns 118 acres of well improved land, and has had born to him twelve children, as follows : Ruby J. and Emery C., by his first wife ; and Ira A. and Irving A. (twins),
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Bertha, Franklin W., Roland L., Mary E., Mattie E., Altie M., an infant son deceased, Mintie B. (deceased), and Charles W., by his second wife. Mr. and Mrs. Poole are members of the Granger Lodge, and are among the highly respectable people of the township.
W. C. SCOTT, the eldest son of Robert and Charlotte Scott, was born in Wayne County, Ohio, January 23, 1825. Robert Scott was born in Columbiana County, Ohio, November 15, 1802, and was a son of Matthew Scott, who was a native of Ireland, and who came to Columbiana County in January, 1801, where he married Nancy Eaton on his arrival. He remained there till about 1809, when he moved to Wayne County, where his wife died shortly after. Matthew then married Lucinda Bevington. By these two marriages, he became the father of sixteen children—five by his first wife and eleven by the second. Robert Scott was the third born of the first wife. He was married, in Wayne County, April 6, 1824, to Charlotte Cunningham, who was born in New Jersey February 16, 1805, and who died in Wayne County January 8, 1871; in September, 1877, he married Mrs. Mary Austin, and shortly after moved to Stark County, Ohio, where he purchased some property, and where he is spending his remaining days in retirement. His children numbered eight, as follows: W. C., James, Noah, John, Cunningham R., Elizabeth, Mary and Oliver, the last named deceased. W. C. Scott remained with his father till he reached the age of twenty-three, when he went to Fulton County, Ohio, and passed a year ; thence to Allen County, Ind., where he married, November 13, 1851, Elizabeth Mill- house, who was born in Somerset County, Penn., September 14, 1822. She was the daughter of Abraham and Margaret Millhouse, who were also natives of Somerset, born in 1799 and 1802 respectively, and there married in 1821; in 1851, they moved to Jackson County, Ill., where she died November 5, 1873, and he August 10, 1874, having had a family of nine children. After his marriage, Mr. Scott returned to Fulton County, remaining there about four years; then came to Bryan, and engaged in saw-milling about two years ; then bought a farm in this township, Section 13 ; sold out after seven years' residence on it, and bought 100 acres of fine land on Section 12, where he now lives. His children are six in number, viz., Margaret S., R. A., C. R., H. W., J. E. and R. M. One of the sons is practicing law at Defiance and another at Bryan.
WILLIAM SHERIDAN, now a retired farmer of this township, was born in Westmoreland County, Penn., August 9, 1801. He there went to school, and also served an apprenticeship at blacksmithing. April 15, 1823, he married Miss Hannah McKim, who was born in Butler County, Penn., Aril 13, 1803. In 1826, he moved to Pittsburgh, Penn., where he followed his trade till 1833, when he moved to Stark County, Ohio
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here also, he engaged in black-smithing, and continued thereat until 1840, when he came to Williams County and settled on the farm of 151 acres he at present occupies. Here Mrs. Sheridan took her leave of this world October 18, 1876, leaving behind her husband and eleven children viz., John, William, Mary, Margaret, Emeline, James, Lavinia, Samuel W., Amanda, Eliza and Almira.
PHILIP H. SMELTZ, son of Jacob and Maria B. Smelts, was born in Seneca County, Ohio, June 20, 1852, and came wish his parents to Williams County in 1868. Here he was married December 25, 1876, to Mary C. Ginther, who was born in Defiance County, Ohio, March 10, 1857. Shortly after his marriage, he moved upon his present farm, which he had previously purchased, and which he has assiduously cultivated ever since. It comprises eighty sores, and he has made it all that could be expected from thrift and good management. He has had born to him two children: Elmer 0., December 4, 1878, and Sylvia M., March 9, 1882. He and wife are members of the Lutheran Church, and give promise of rising to prominence in the community in which they live.
WILLIAM SMITH is a son of William and Sarah Smith, and was born in Wayne County, Ohio, November 13, 1831. When young, he came with his parents to this county, where he has continued to live since that time. On the 18th of September in the year 1852, he was married, in this township, to Rosetta Calvin, who was born in Portage County, Ohio, May 1, 1835. Shortly afterward, he purchased a small farm in this township, and, in April, 1853, moved on the same, where he remained until the year 1860; he then sold this property, and, in the spring of 1861, he occupied the farm on which, he now lives, in Section 30, Centre Township, of which he had previously possessed himself; he now owns eighty-five acres of really excellent land. Mr. and Mrs. Smith have no children, but are people of integrity and character.
SAMUEL SMITH is a son of William and Sarah Smith, who were natives of Ireland (the former born in 1789, the latter in 1803). They were married in Canada about the year 1823, where they resided before coming to Wayne County, Ohio, from which place they removed to Centre Township, Williams County, in May, 1846, where they lived until their deaths his occurring in 1865, and hers in 1879; their family comprised ten children: Robert, Mary (deceased), James, George, William, Samuel, Matthew, Martha, John (deceased) and Sarah. The subject of our sketch was born in Wayne County, Ohio, August 30, 1833, and came with his parents to this county, where he has since resided. He was married in this county, March 15, 1863, to Salome, Stahl, who was born October 28, 1845. After his marriage he moved to the old homestead, where he remained until the spring of 1877, when he purchased and removed to the farm he now occu-
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pies in Section 20. Mr. and Mrs. Smith have six children: Frank 0., Chauncey E., Norah A., William H., Vernon C. and Albertine. Mr. Smith is a most excellent man, and fills the offices of Township Trustee, Township Clerk and Township Treasurer.
DAVID SPANGLER is the son of Jacob and Eliza Spangler. He is the third of a family of eight children, and was born in Centre Township, in this county, on the 6th of March, 1840, and has always lived here. He was married, March 12, 1862, to Sarah E. Smith, who was born in Wayne County, Ohio, January 26, 1842, a daughter of William and Sarah Smith. About one year after his marriage, he purchased the farm on which he now lives, on which he moved, and on which he has remained ever since. His farm comprises eighty acres of fine land, with improvements. Mr. and. Mrs. Spangler have a family of four children: Clara D., Ulysses G., Dora E. and Charlie. Both are hospitable and worthy, and Mrs. Spangler is a member of the church.
J. K. STORER is a native of Maine, and was born May 25, 1838. September 27, 1860, he married Miss Anna R. McLaughlin, also a native of Maine. He conducted a saw-mill at the place of his nativity from the time of his marriage until 1865, when he moved to Fayetteville, Lincoln Co., Tenn., where he remained about one year, then removed to Warrensville, Cuyahoga Co., Ohio ; , remained a short time, and then came to Williams Centre, this township, and engaged with Mr. C. W. Kittredge in saw-milling, which business, they conducted together till the fall of 1868, when Mr. Storer bought out his partner's interest, and alone ran the Mill until January, 1873, when Mr. W. S. Wilsey came in as partner and remained four years, when he withdrew. Mr. Storer has since continued the business himself, dealing in and manufacturing native lumber, lath, fork, hoe and broom handles. Mrs. Storer died April 4, 1875, and December 6, the same year, Mr. Storer married her sister, Laura D. McLaughlin, born in Maine May 22, 1845. His children are two in number: Frank R., born August 7, 1877, and Anna M., born January, 4, 1880. Mr. Storer is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and is regarded by his townsmen as an upright and enterprising citizen.
JOHN P. WERTZ, the son of Henry and Julia Wertz, was born in Germany November 22, 1822. His father was born about 1781, and his mother about 1786. They were married in Germany, and died there, she in May, 1831, and he about three weeks after. Henry Wertz was twice married, his first wife being Caroline Suber, who bore him three children ; his second was Julia Ogle, the mother of John P., who was the only child born of the second marriage. In 1840, John P. Wertz, in company with a half-sister, came to America, landed at Baltimore, and thence came to Morgan County, Ohio. One year later, John P. moved to Wood County,
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bought some property, remained a short time, and then went to Hancock County, where he resided about six years, and then came to this township and purchased the farm on. which he now lives on Section 14. returned to Hancock County, and there married, in October, 1849, Margaret, daughter of Jacob and Catharine Grindle, who was born March 12, 1827. He shortly after returned to his farm in this township, where he has ever since resided. He has been a very successful manager, and has accumulated a great deal of land, which, however, he has liberally divided among his children. He still retains for his own purposes 137 acres, which are in a thorough state of cultivation, and improved with substantial buildings. All the country was a dense forest when Mr. Wertz settled in it, and all the improvements here have been made through the industry and frugality and enterprise of Mr. Wertz, who is now passing his declining days in retirement. He has a family of eight children—Henry P., Jacob, William M., Oscar, John F., Elizabeth A., Charles I. and David H. Mr. Wertz is a man of deep religious feeling, and is universally respected.
HARMON WIEMAN, is the son of L. and Mary Wieman, and was born in Germany January 15, 1811. He came to America with his parents in the year 1834. On June 23, 1847, he was married, in Montgomery County, Ohio, to Legina M. Kluse, born in Germany December 18, 1820. Soon after his marriage, he commenced to work in a woolen factory at Miamisburg, in Montgomery County, where he remained until 1841, when he removed to Williams County and purchased a farm in St. Joseph Township ; here he remained until 1851, when he sold and moved on the place on which he now resides, in Centre Township, Section 30, having 125 acres, which he himself improved. Mr. and Mrs. Wieman have nine children—Sarah, Emily, Hannah, John, Mattie, Harmon, George, Edward and Samuel. Both himself and wife are members of the Lutheran Church. He is a cordial and very excellent man.
CONRAD WINEGARDNER was born in Bedford County, Penn., October 24, 1816, and was the eldest of seven children born to William and Elizabeth Winegardner, natives respectively of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and married in the former State. Some years after their marriage they moved to Wayne County, Ohio, and there ended their days. Conrad Winegardner was married, in Wayne County, May 23, 1839, to Jane Slater, who was a native of the county, and born August 28, 1816. For twelve years after his marriage, he remained in Wayne, engaged in black-smithing ; he then went to Wilmot, Stark County, where he lost his wife April 8, 1851, He returned to Wayne a short time after, and August, 19, 1852, married Margaret Porter, a native of the county, and born April 14, 1824. Two years later he relinquished black-smithing,
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and moved upon his father-in-law's farm in Wayne, and engaged in agriculture for seven years ; then moved to Putnam County, Ohio, bought a farm, worked it eight years, sold out, and moved to this township, where he now owns and operates a fine farm of 240 acres. Mr. Winegardner had born to him by his first wife the following-named children : Jane (deceased), Rachel A., Mary J. (deceased), William, Zachary T. and Edward (deceased) ; and, by his second wife, Porter, Angeline, Elmira, Emerson, and Charles (deceased).
ELI WISMAN is a son of George and Susan Wisman, of Superior Township, this county. He was born in Williams County August 25, 1845, and was next to the youngest of a family of eleven children. November 7, 1867, he married Miss Elizabeth J. Courtney, who was born in Mahoning County, Ohio, June 27, 1852, and the daughter of Isaac and Sarah Courtney, now of Superior Township, this county. In 1872, Mr. Wisman bought and moved upon the farm where he still resides, and which consists of 240 acres of well improved land. His only child is a daughter, named Cora M., who was born November 27, 1870. In May, 1864, he enlisted in Company K, Sixty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served until the close of the war. Both he and wife are members of the Presbyterian Church. Mr. Wisman is regarded by his neighbors as an enterprising citizen and progressive young man, and they have called upon him to serve them as County Commissioner.
SAMUEL YANNEY was born in Switzerland, April 13, 1826, and was the son of Benedict and Barbara A. Yanney, who were respectively born about the years 1792 and 1799. In 1832, the family came to the United States and settled in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, where they respectively died in 1874 and 1876, the parents of ten children. Samuel Yanney was married in Tuscarawas County, October, 6, 1850, to Huldah Bowlby, who was born in Butler County, Ohio, May 9, 1835, and was the daughter of Joseph and Mary Bowlby, of Virginia, who were residents of Butler County at the time of their death, and the parents of ten children, of whom Huldah was next to the eldest. Samuel Yanney sold out his property in Butler County in 1862, and came to Williams County, locating in Springfield Township and remaining about four years, when he came to this township and bought the eighty-acre farm on which he now lives, on Section 27. To Mr. and Mrs. Yanney have been born nine children, viz., John F. (deceased), Jacob, Mary, Jane, Ellen, Lovetta M., Elizabeth (deceased), a son who died in infancy, and Andrew J.
C. H. YOUNG is the son and only child of Asa and Mary A. Young, and was born in Portage County, Ohio, March 17, 1832. His parents were both natives of New Jersey, where the father was born May 28, 1801, and the mother July 8, 1802. They were married in Portage County, Ohio,
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January 3, 1831, and there resided until 1838, when they moved to Fulton County, where they made their home until 1865, when they came to Williams County and settled on the farm they still occupy. C. H. Young was married August 22, 1852, to Miss Ann Lozier, who was born in Holmes County, October 3, 1834, and by her has become the father of fifteen children, viz., Mary, Asa (deceased), John (deceased) Olive (deceased), Elizabeth, Eliza, William, Lucy, George, Franklin, James, Joseph, Delia, David and Samuel. Mr. Young has charge of the old homestead, which comprises 139 acres. He and wife are members of the Disciples' Church, and occupy a very high position in the esteem of their neighbors.
JAMES L. YOUNG was born November 11, 1846, in Crawford County, Ohio. His father, John Young, and mother, Hannah Young, were both natives of Columbiana County, Ohio, and were born in 1815 and 1814 respectively, and were married in the county of their birth. About 1842, they moved to Crawford County, and, in 1865, removed to Williams County, where the mother died in 1869, and the father in 1873. They had a family of eleven children, viz., Thomas, William, Jacob, Mary A., Elizabeth, Susan, James, John, Benjamin, Martha and Clara. James L. Young came to this township with his parents, and was here married, June 10, 1869, to Miss Elizabeth Calvin, who was born in this county April 4, 1852, the daughter of Joshua and Nancy Calvin. In the spring of 1873, he bought the farm on which he now lives: It comprises 100 acres of good land, and is well improved. There have been born to him five children, as follows : Osmond (deceased), Lena, John N., William and Loren. He is in quite comfortable circumstances, and is one of the rising young men of' the township.