250 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. served for three years in the Army of the Cumberland, under General Grant. In the meantime his wife and the family moved to West Liberty and upon the completion of his military service he rejoined them there and engaged in the carpenter trade at that place, there spending the rest of his life, his death occurring in 1906, he then being eighty-six years and ten months of age. He was an active member of the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic at West Liberty and he and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church. They were the parents of nine children of whom the subject of sketch was the fourth in order of birth, the others being as follow : Jerry; who enlisted for service in the Union army during the Civil War, a member of Company I, First Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and died in camp in Kentucky in 1862 ; Christian, who died in January 1866; Mary Jane, unmarried, who is living at West Liberty ; William, a lawyer, living at West Liberty; James A., a stonecutter, of West Liberty ; Rosalie, wife of Edward Mathews, of West Liberty; Osmer L., a cigarmaker, now deceased, and Elmer, who died at the age of three months. After the death of the mother of these children, Henry B. Raff married, secondly; Esther Elder, of West Liberty. Levi S. Raff received his schooling at West Liberty and when fifteen years of age enlisted at that place for service in the Union army during the continuance of the Civil War, going out with Company C, Twelfth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer cavalry. At Camp Cleveland the Twelfth Ohio was divided, part of the regiment going to Columbus, another part to Camp Denison and a third, to Johnson's Island. It was at this latter station that Mr. Raff found himself stationed at the beginning of his service and he remained there until March, 1864, when the detachment to which he was attached was sent to Camp Denison and was there mounted, equipped and drilled for the cavalry, a few weeks later being ordered to Louisville,. Kentucky, as a part of the First Brigade, First Cavalry, and was sent through the South on scouting service, being known as Burbridge's "Night Owls." One June 9, 1864, this detachment was in action against Morgan's raiders at Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, and on June 11 at Cynthiana, thence back to Lexington, where it remained in camp a few weeks, at the end of which time it was sent on a raid through Kentucky and Virginia, doing general scout duty. On October 2, 1864, these "Night Owls" met with a reverse at Saltville, Virginia, and returned to their base at Lexington, later joining Stoneman's forces at Nashville, 'Tennessee, a part of the noted force known as Stoneman's Raiders, and from Nashville made a dash through to Chattanooga, Knoxville, Strawberry Plains, Bean Station, thence on another extensive CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 251 raid through Virginia, Georgia, the Carolinas, Alabama and Tennessee, being seventy-three days in the saddle with very little rest, operating on Sherman's extreme left wing, and were later ordered back to Tennesse to join General Thomas and thereafter performed scout duty until the close of the war. During this taxing period of service Mr. Raff was laid up for nearly two months with an attack of typhoid fever and his health was badly impaired. He was mustered out at Nashville on November 14, 1865, and returned to Ohio,,where he received his final diScharge. Upon, the completion of his inilitaty service Maj Raff returned, to West Liberty and there became employed at cabinet-making. After his marriage in 1873 he located at Si. Paris, in this county, and five years later moved to Urbana, where he has since made his home. Upon taking up his residence in Urbana Mr. Raff took up his trade as a carpenter and cabinet-maker and continued thus engaged until his retirement from active business. As noted above, it was .in 1873 that Levi S. Raff was united in marriage to Mary C. Long, of St. Paris, this county, daughter of Jesse and Nancy Long, the farther of whom was a tailor, and. to that.union was born one child; a son, Frank. B; Raff; a telegraph operator for the Big FOui. Railroad Company, at Urbana. Frank B. Raff married Victoria Brown and has three children, Gladys, Lucille and Richard. He is a Mason and a member of the local lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Urbana. Mrs. Mary C. Raff is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. CHARLES EDMUND GAUMER. It is not too much to say that the career of a newspaper man is richer in possibilities. than practically any other vocation in life. His business os to find out what other people are doing, and having found this out, to present such of it to the public as in his judgment the public should know. Too often the editorial management finds itself in conflict with the business management of the paper. Just what shall be said of the citizens of the community the paper serves, and just how much, are two considerations that the editor must face day by day. Shall he tell all he knows of official shortcomings or shall he keep such facts out of his paper – if a promoter comes to his city with a dubious proposition shall he tell his readers, about. anything goes awry in the community shall he set forth the facts? In 252 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. other words, it is a wise man who can run a paper these days and do full justice to both the editorial and business sides of his paper. Charles E. Gaumer is a newspaper man who has tried to the best of his ability to manage a paper from both viewpoints, and the results of his efforts show that he has been attended with an unusual degree of success. He has been in the business since his boyhood days; in fact, it might be said that he grew up in a newspaper office, his father before him having been a newspaper man. While still in the Urbana high school he was helping his father edit the Democrat, and immediately on his graduation from the high school in 1894, at the age of eighteen, he took over the complete management of the paper. He continued as head of the paper until August 28, 1898, when he bought the Monticello, Illinois, Bulletin. He remained there three years and then, June 10, 1901, bought the Middletown, Ohio, Signal, which he managed successfully for the following seven years. His next change took him to Champaign, Illinois, where he served .on the editorial staff of the Daily News from September 15, 1908, to August 1, 1910. On the latter date he returned to his old home at Urbana; and became associated with his brother, Frank C., as managing editor of the Democrat. Mr. Gamer remained with the Democrat in the capacity of managing editor for seven years, leaving the paper in August, 1917, to become assistant managing editor of the Marion, Ohio, Daily Star, of which Senator Warren G. Harding is owner and publisher. During his long connection with the local paper in Urbana he had the satisfaction of seeing its circulation increase from year to year, and no small credit for this steady growth was due to his ability as editor. Possessed of a, ready pen and a gift for pungent expression his style was of the kind which makes a paper readable. His long acquaintance with the people of Urbana was another factor which enabled him to write clearly of local happenings from day to day, while he naturally added to his store of knowledge of local conditions with each succeeding year. However, he decided that a change of location would be an advantage to him and when the opportunity presented itself to become associated with the Marion Daily Star he decided to accept it. He still retains his interest in the Gaumer Publishing Company. His many friends in Urbana regret to see him leave the, city, and wish him continued success in his new field. Mr. Gaumer was born in Marseilles, Ohio, November 28, 1876, a son of Dr. Thomas M. and Eliza M. Gaumer. His father died in 1893 and his mother is still residing in Urbana. A sketch of Doctor Gaumer appears elsewhere in this volume and the reader is referred to it for the genealogy of CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 253 the Gaumer family. It might be added, however, in this connection, that Doctor Gaumer was a practicing physician for several years before he engaged in newspaper work. He spent the last several years of his life in the editorial chair. His three sons have followed in his footsteps, each of them now being in active newspaper work. Charles E. Gaumer was married on September 7, 1898, to Effie Aletta Landis, a daughter of Samuel M. and Jennie M. Landis. Mrs. Gaumer was born in Urbana on August 17, 1879, and is the youngest of four children, the others being James, George and Earl L. Mr. and Mrs. Gautner have three children : Lois Mahala, born November 30, 1899; Edmund Landis, born fanuary 29, 1901 ; Robbin Irene, born May 14, 1906. The family are members of the Urbana Lutheran church. Mr. Gaumer is a deacon in the church and was superintendent of the Sunday school for. the four years preceding 1914. Fraternally, he is a member of Harmony lodge, Free and Accepted Masons. ELIJAH A. PETTIGREW. Elijah A. Pettigrew, a well-known and substantial retired farmer of Champaign county, now living at Urbana, where he has made his home since 1907, is a Virginian by birth, but has been a resident of this county since he was twenty-one years of age. He was born in Nicholas county, in West Virginia, March 9, 1859, son of Andrew Jackson and Sarah J. (Stephenson) Pettigrew, she born in West Virginia and he in Virginia, and whose last days were spent in Nicholas county. Andrew Jackson. Pettigrew, whose father was a native of Dublin, Ireland, who had come to this country in his youth and had established his home in Virginia, grew up in Rockbridge county, that state, near the "natural bridge," and became a carpenter, later moving to Nicholas county, in the western part of the state, where he began working at his trade and where he married, established his home and spent the rest of his life. He died many years before his wife, who survived him until 1914, she being eighty-two years of age at the time of her death. She was a cousin of George Wesley Atkinson, former governor of West Virginia and for years judge of the United States court of claims. She was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and her husband was a member of the Baptist church. They were the parents of eleven sons, of whom the subject of this sketch was the fifth in order of birth, the others being as follow : David, who is a farmer 254 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. living in Ashtabula county, this state; John, a carpenter, who died in Clay county, West Virginia, in 1908; George, who died in his youth; Samuel F., a toolmaker, living at Springfield, this state; James,. a merchant, of Stunmersville, West Virginia ; Albert, a merchant, of Jefferson, this state ; Harvey B., a rural mail carrier living at Urbana; Charles, a farmer living in Greenbriar county, West Virginia; Walter, a fariner living in Nicholas county, in that. same state, and Henry, a farmer, living at Akron, this state. Elijah A. Pettigrew was reared on a farm in Nicholas county, receiving his schooling in the schools in the neighborhood of his . home, and remained there,: farming, until he was twenty-one years of age, when, in the spring of 1880, he came to Champaign county and became engaged in farming, in Concord township and was, there for three years; or until after his marriage in 1883; when he located in Mad River township. Two years later he moved on a farm on Prairie, in Urbana township, and there established his home and made that his place of residence until his retirement from the active labors of the farm and removal, in 1907, to Urbana, where he has since resided and where lie is very comfortably situated. Mr. Pettigrew is the owner of a fine farm of one hundred and twenty-nine acres on Pretty Prairie and continues to give his close personal attention to the general management of the same. In addition to his general farming he has given considerable attention to the raising of live stock,. including several race horses that have attained more than local fame. Mr. Pettigrew is a Republican and. gives a good citizen's attention to political affairs, but has not been a seeker after public office. Mr. Pettigrew has been thrice married. As noted above, he was united in marriage in 1883 to Elizabeth Hough, of Concord township, this county, a daughter. of William and Margaret Hough, and to that union one child was born, a son, Floyd H., born on April 15, 1885. Floyd H. Pettigrew, who is now engaged in the plumbing business at Hamilton, Ohio, married Johnson and has two children, Ruth and Helen. After the. death of his first wife Mr. Pettigrew married Martha J. France, of this county, daughter of John France, a cabinet-maker, and after her death he married Verna E. Mearns, of Summersville, West Virginia, daughter of A. J. and Lola Mearns, the former of whom was a merchant at that place. Mr. and Mrs. Pettigrew have pleasant home at Urbana and take a, proper part in the general social activities .of their home town. Mrs. Pettigrew is a member of the Presbyterian church there and both she and her husband do their part in helping to promote the general good works of the community. CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 255 JOHN L. MOORE. The late John L. Moore, an honored veteran of the Civil War and for years a well-known building contractor at Urbana, who died at his home in that city on February 2, 1917, was.a native ofthe state of Pennsylvania, born. on January 2, 1842, son of the Rev. William and Margaret (Tatman) Moore, who were the parents of five children, of whom the subject Of this Memorial sketch was the eldest; the others being as follow : Kate, who married David Chaney and lives at Wausau, WiscOnsin ; Sarah, who married John Shull and lives at Riley, Kansas ; Samuel, who lives at South Bloomingville, Ohio, and Margaret, who married William Hammond, and lives at Portis, Kansas. The Rev. William Moore was minister of the Methodist Episcopal church and during the many years of his ministry preached in Pennsylvania, in Ohio and in Kansas. John L. Moore early learned the trade of carpenter and became a skilled workman in that line, afterward engaging in building contracting on his own account and was quite successfully engaged until his death. He was but nineteen years of age when the Civil War broke out and there being. parental objection to his participation in that :struggle, he ran away from home and enlisted in Indiana as a private in Company H, One Hundred and Fifth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served with that command until the close of the war. Upon the completion of his military service Mr. Moore. located at Chillicothe, this state, where he. engaged in carpentering. and where he married, later moving to Dayton, where he remained until 1896, in which year he, moved to Urbana, where he spent the remainder of his life, successfully engaged as a building contractor. His wife died in Urbana in 1899, three years after moving there. Mr. Moore was an active member of W. A. Brand Post, Grand Army of the Republic, at Urbana, and took a warm interest in the affairs of that patriotic organization. On his deathbed he confessed faith in the Catholic church and received the last rites of that church. His wife and children were members of the Methodist Episcopal. church. At Chillicothe, this state, John L. Moore was united in marriage to Lydia A. Atkinson, who was born at Albany, West Virginia, July 8, 1854, daughter of. James, and Margaret Atkinson, band to that; union three children were born, Minnie A., William C., who died at the age of nineteen years, and Frank C., who also died at the age of nineteen years. Minnie A. Moore was born at Chillicothe, Ohio, and was united in 256 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. marriage to William K. Burton, who was born at Dayton, Ohio, and who at the age of three years moved to Urbana, where he spent the rest of his life, his death occurring on December 24, 1915. He was a painter and decorator and for years was connected with the work of the Illinois Car Company at Urbana. To William K. and Minnie A. (Moore) Burton two children were born, William and Helen, both of whom are making their home with their mother at Urbana. William Burton is a barber, at which trade he formerly worked at Cleveland and was at one time the owner of two barber shops at Urbana. On June II, 1909, he married Martha Smith, of Kentucky, and has one child, a daughter, Helen Marie, born on July 27, T916. WILLIAM H. VERMILLION. William H. Vermillion, a veteran of the Civil War and a substantial farmer and dairyman of Union township, born on a farm in the southwest part of Union township on March 19, 1844, son of Daniel and Eliza (Zumbro) Vermillion, the former of whom was born in Muskingum county, this state, and the latter in the state of Virginia, whose last days were .spent in the village of Mutual, this county. Daniel Vermillion was but a child when his parents, George Vermillion and wife, natives of Virginia, moved from Muskingum county to Champaign county and he grew to manhood here and was here married. During the days of his young manhood he had been engaged working as a cabinetmaker in Urbana, but after his marriage he located on a farm on Buck creek, in Union township, and was for nine years there engaged in farming. He then moved with his family to the village of Mutual and became engaged as a carpenter, following that vocation until he was past middle age, when he took up wagon making and was thus engaged at that place the rest of his life, his death occurring there in 1872. Daniel Vermillion and wife were the parents of nine children, of whom five are still living, those besides the subject of this sketch being John, Samuel, Sarah and Jane. William H. Vermillion received his schooling in the village of Mutual, the first school he attended being held in a little log school house, and at the age of twelve years he began working on a farm. He continued engaged at farm labor until May 2, 1864, when he enlisted for service in Company E, One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and with that command served for one hundred days. He then returned CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 257 home and re-enlisted as a member of Company E, One Hundred and Eighty-fifth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and with thiS latter command. served for eight months, at the end of which time he returned to this county. After his marriage, in the spring of i866, he established his home on a farm he rented, continuing as a renter until he bought his first land, a tract of thirty-six acres, a part of his present well-improved farm of one hundred and seventy acres in Union township, where he ever since has made his home and where he and hi's family are very comfortably situated. All of Mr. Vermillion's farm is under cultivation save a small tract of woodland. For years he has devoted a' good deal of his attention to dairying and at present is maintaining a herd of thirty-five dairy cows and has an extensive business in that line. His place is on rural mail route No. I out of Cable. Mr. Vermillion has been twice married. On March 31, 1866; he was united in marriage to Elizabeth Booth, daughter of John and Marian Booth, and to that union three children were born, Edwin, who married Matilda Gurnis.; Effie,.. wife of Charles Smith, and Gertrude, wife of Earl Heller. The mother of .these children died in 18g5 and Mr. Vermillion later . married Mary Speakman, to which union two children have been born, Gladys'. and Robert. Mr. and Mrs. Vermillion are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, in which for years Mr. Vermillion- has served as a clasS leader. He also is a steward of the church and a member of the board of trustees and has long given his earnest attention to church affairs. Mr. Vermillion is an active member of the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic at Urbana and takes a warm interest in the affairs of the same. WILLIAM A. JOHNSON. William A. Johnson, a substantial landowner and stockman of this county, former trustee of Union township and former trustee of Wayne township, now living at Cable; where he is extensively engaged in the live stock business, is a native son of Champaign county and has lived here all his life. He was born on, a farm in Union township on April 22, 1857, son of James and Mary (Woodard) Johnson, both of whom also were born in thiS County, the former in Wayne township and the latter in Rush township, and whose last days were spent in Union township. James Johnson was a son of James and Matilda Johnson, Virginians, (17a) 258 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. who came to this state after their marriage and located in Champaign county, settling first in Wayne township and later moving down into Union township, where they established their home and where they spent the remainder of their lives, useful and influential pioneers of that part of the county. The junior James Johnson was but a lad when: hisljarents moved to Union township and there he grew to manhood on the home farm. After his marriage to Mary Woodard, who was born in the neighboring township of Rush, daughter of pioneer parents, he established his home on a farm in Union township and there he spent the remainder of his life, one of the best-known, and most influential farmers of the neighborhood in which he lived. His death occurred in March; 1901. His wife had preceded him to the grave about a year, her death having occurred in 19oo. They were the parents of seven children, of whom but three are now living, the subject of this sketch having two brothers, Olney, and Charles Johnson. William A. Johnson grew to manhood on the home place in Union township, receiving his schooling in the district school in that neighborhood, and from the days of his boyhood was a valued assistant to his father in the labors of developing and improving the home farm. He later became a partner of his 'father in the operation of the farm and after awhile bought the home place of one hundred and two and one-half acres and there continued farming and stock raising until in March, 1909, when he retired from the farm and moved to Cable, where he has since made his home. Upon leaving the farm Mr. Johnson turned his attention to the buying and selling of live stock and has since :been engaged in that business, shipping to the Pittsburgh markets. Not long after locating at Cable: he bought a fine farm of one hundred and. ten acres in Wayne township, to the operation of which he gives considerable personal attention. Some time ago he sold his farm in Union township. Mr. Johnson is a Republican and for years has given close attention to local political affairs. For seven years he served as trustee of Union township and for four years as trustee of Wayne township and. is now serving as a member of the local school board at Cable, in that capacity doing much to promote the interests of the schools in that pleasant and flourishing village.. On April 22, 1886, William A. Johnson was united in marriage to Enola Durnell, who was born in Wayne township, this county, daughter of Booker R. and Catherine. (Hall) Darnell, both of whom also were born in that township, members of pioneer families, and were there married. Booker R. Durriell was a son of Hiram and Sarah (Middleton) Durnell, Virginians, who came to this county at an early day in the settlement of the saine and CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 259 became substantial pioneers of Wayne township, where they established their home. During the progress of the Civil War Booker R. Durnell enlisted for service, in behalf of the Union rand went to the front as .a private in Company K, One Hundred and Thirteenth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer infantry, with which command he served valiantly until he met a soldier's fate about a year later, at the battle of Kenesaw Mountain, June 27, 1864. His wife had died a little more than a year previously, her death having occurred on June 16, 1863, and their children were thus orphaned early. There were three of these children, Mrs. Johnson having two brothers, Hiram and Richard Durnell. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have no children of their own. but they haVe reared four children with as much care and consideration as though they had been their own indeed. They are members of the Methodist Episcopals.church and take a proper interest in church work and in other local good works. Mr. Johnson is one of Cable's most substantial citizens and is in the forefront in all movements having to do with the advancement of the general interests of that thriving village. JOHN P. KNIGHT. The late John P. Knight, for years one of the best-known and most substantial farmers of Champaign county, who died at his home in Urbana township in 1905, was a native son of Ohio and lived in this state all his life. He was born in the neighboring county of Miami on February 18, 1839, a son of William D. and Elizabeth (Palmer) Knight, also natives of that same county, members of two of the oldest. families in this part of the state. William D. Knight's father was a native of, Redstone, Pennsylvania, who came to this state in the days of his young manhood, locating near Cincinnati, where he married and reared his family and died: On a pioneer farm William D. Knight grew to manhood and, with his mother, moved to Miami county and there later married Elizabeth Palmer, daughter of pioneer parents, and established his home on a farm in the neighborhood of her old home near Casstown. He moved to Champaign county in 1853 and settled on a farm two and one-half miles south of Urbana, on the State road. He later retired, moved to Urbana, where he . died in. December, 189o. He and his wife were the parents of seven children, of whom but two now survive, Sidney Knight, of Urbana, and Stephen Knight, a prominent lawyer at Chicago, who is now serving as county attorney of Cook 260 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. county ; the others, besides the subject of this memorial sketch; having been Thomas, Wilford, Catherine and Margaret. Reared on the home farm in Miami county, John P. Knight received his early schooling in the district school in the neighborhood of his home and supplemented the same by a course in the Urbana school, after which for seven or eight years he spent his winters in teaching' school, continuing meanwhile to farm during the summers.. After his marriage in 1865 he established his home on a farm iri Urbana township, this county, and there spent the rest of his life, becoming a successful farmer and a man of wide influence throughout that part of the county. Mr. Knight was an earnest Republican and for years was looked upon as one of the leaders of that party in his part of the county. For years he served as director of schools in his local district and did much to advance the cause of education thereabout. He was an ardent advocate of any proper movement that would tend to increase the efficacy of the schools and took much interest in educational affairs, giving his children every opportunity for acquiring liberal educations. Mr. Knight was an active member of the Baptist church, and ever took .an earnest.. interest in churclr.affairs.;,and: other good works. He had mativ*arrit friends thrOtighbut.th'€ county and his death on March 12, i9o5, was widely mourned. He enlisted at the beginning of the Civil War for three months service in Company H, Eighty-sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. It was in the year 1865 that John P. Knight was united in marriage to Jennie Rawlings, who was born in Urbana township, this county, a daughter of James and Susanna (McRoberts) Rawlings, prominent residents of that community, the former of whom was born in Kentucky and the latter in Urbana township, this county, daughter of pioneer parents. James Rawlings was twenty years of age when he came from Kentucky to Champaign, county, Ohio and there he worked for farmers until he married. He then bought a farm on Pretty Prairie, where he spent the remainder of his life. After the death of his wife Susanna he married, secondly, Mrs. Jane Osborn, widow of James Osborn and a daughter of David Todd. By his first marriage James Rawlings was the father of six children, of whom Mrs. Knight, the third in order of birth, is now the only survivor, the others having been as follow : William J. W., a memorial sketch of whom is presented elsewhere in this volume; Mary, who was.the wife of Mitchell Todd, a farmer of Urbana township; Thomas, who married Emma Humes and was also a farmer in Urbana township.; James, who married Laura Townley CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 261 and was also a farmer in Urbana township, and Douglas, who married Alice Townley and was also a farmer, in Urbana township. To John P. and Jennie (Rawlings) Knight four children were born, namely : William J. Knight, a graduate of Oberlin College, now engaged in the seed business at Urbana, who married Florence L. Dempsey and has three children, Paul D., Robert P. and John R ; Edwin Knight, who served in the Second Illinois Volunteer, Infantry in the Spanish-American war, and was on the firing line at the battle of Santiago, who died in his youth; Harley E. Knight, who married Fannie Clark and is now farming the old home place in Urbana township, who has five children, Mrs. Stella K. Growden, Harold U., Ruth H., Kenneth Ray and Edwin Sanford, and Earl Rawlings Knight, who received his technical education at Purdue University and is now engaged as superintendent of an extensive electrical concern, a branch of the Allis-Chalmers plant, at Norwood, a suburb of Cincinnati. Mrs. Knight is now making her home with her son, William J. Knight, at Urbana. She retains an active interest in church affairs, having for years been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and in other local good works and has ever exerted her gentle influence in behalf of movements having to do with community betterment.. SAMUEL M. OVERFIELD. Samuel M. Overfield, .postmaster at. Woodstock, former mayor of that village and former member of the village council, has for years been regarded as one of Woodstock's most energetic and influential citizens. He was born in this county on July 1, 1862, and has lived here all his fife. The Oyerfields were among the earliest settlers of Champaign county, having conic out here from Virginia in 1826 and the family has been widely represented throughout this part of the state in the succeeding generations since then. Samuel Overfield, great-grandfather of Postmaster Overfield, was the founder of the family in Ohio. He was born in Virginia, son of a Welshman who had come to this country during the progress of the Revolutionary War and had been required before his departure from his native land to take an oath of allegiance to the crown. He landed on these shores shortly before the battle of Yorktown and was a witness to that engagement. Though strongly sympathetic toward the cause of the colonists, his 262 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. oath of fealty to his king prevented his participation on the side toward which his heart; went out. He settled in Virginia and there established his home, becoming a well-to-do citizen. His son, Samuel, Overifield, became a freighter and for sonic time was engaged in hauling between Staunton and Rumney, driving a six-horse team. He saved the money thus earned and presently bought a tract of five hundred. acres of Virginia land, nine miles from Clarksburg, established his home there and proceeded to clear and develop his land. He had made considerable progress toward the development and stocking of his farm when one day a man drove up and informed him that he would have to vacate the land that he had no title to. the same, the title under which he held possession having been fraudulently bestowed. Investigation revealed the truth of this statement and Samuel Overfield took his horses and his movable belongings and came over into Ohio, driving on out to Champaign county and settling in Rush township, where he established his home and where he spent his last days, an honored pioneer of that community. He and his family suffered numerous hardships, along with their pioneer neighbors, and some of their horses were stolen by the Indians; but they persevered and finally found themselves well established. Samuel Overfield's wife, Mary Butcher, was of English descent. She was born at Germantown, Pennsylvania, and was a child living there at the time of the battle of Germantown during the Revolutionary War and ever retained a distinct recollection of the incident of the soldiers of the Continental army piling cannon halls in the dooryard of her father's home when they left for Virginia. Among the children born to Samuel and Mary (Butcher) Overfield was Toab Overfield, who was born in Harrison county, Virginia, in 1803, and who was about twenty-three years of age when he came to Champaign county with his parents. He became a substantial farmer in Rush Township and there spent his last days. He married Beershelba Tucker, also a member of one of the pioneer families in this county, and to that union six children were born, namely : Samuel, Mary, Rebecca, Diana, John and Susan. Reared on a farm in Rush township, Samuel M. Overfieid, great-grandson of the Virginian, Samuel Overfield, who became a pioneer of Champaign county, received his schooling in the district schools in the neighborhood of his home and as a young man was engaged for some time in farming. He then clerked in a store at Woodstock for awhile and then started a livery stable there which he conducted for five years, at the end of which time he established a general store in the village and was thus engaged in mercantile business for nine years. In 1893 he was. appointed CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 263 postmaster of Woodstock and served in that important public capacity from August 3, 1893, to August 14, 1897, and on December 9, 1909; received his second commission as postmaster of the village and has since been serving in that capacity. Mr. Overfield is an active Democrat and has for years been regarded as one of the leaders of that party in the eastern part of the county. For four years he served as justice of the peace in and for Rush township, was mayor of Woodstock for two years and also served for some time as a member of the village council, to all of which official duties he brought his most thoughtful attention, ever concerned for the welfare of the public. Mr. Overfield also for twelve years held a commission as a notary public and is widely known throughout. that part of the county in which his life has been spent. On June 19, 1901, Samuel M. Overfield was united in marriage to Alta Ruth Ott, of Mechanicsburg, and to this union two children have been born, Marion W: and Donald M. Mr. and Mrs. Overfield are members of. the Christian church and give their interested attention to church work and the general social activities of their home town, helpful in promoting all worthy causes. Mr. Overfield is a Mason, a member of the lodge of that ancient order at North Lewisburg, and takes a warm interest in Masonic affairs. ROBERT J. EASON. Robert J. Eason, vice-president of the Bank of North Lewisburg and a well-known and substantial retired merchant and grain dealer is a native of the Keystone state. but has been a resident of Ohio and of North Lewisburg since 1873. He was born at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, December 27, 1854, son of John and Anna (Sly) Eason, both natives of England, born at Castle Cary, in Somersetshire, who were married there and after their marriage came to this country and were for a short time thereafter located at Brooklyn, New York, where John Eason became engaged in the milling business, to which vocation he had been trained in his native land. Some time later he moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he further followed the milling business for several years, at the end of which time he located at Franklin, in that same state, where he followed his trade until presently he bought a mill at Columbus, Pennsylvania, and moved there. Not long afterward he sold that mill and bought another at Titusville, Pennsylvania, which he continued to operate until his death. John 'Eason came of a family 264 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. of millers, his father and his grandfather having been engaged in that vocation, and he became quite successful. Besides his milling operations at Titusville he was the owner of several grain elevators, including one at North Lewisburg, in this county. Upon completing the course in the high school at Titusville Robert J. Eason .entered the Clinton Liberal Arts Institution at Clinton, New York, and after a course of instruction there entered Hamilton College. Upon completing his studies in the latter institution he returned home and for a time thereafter occupied himself in acquiring a further acquaintance with his father's milling business and in 1873, he then being about eighteen years of age, was sent to North Lewisburg, this county, to take charge of his father's grain elevator at that place, and there he ever since has made his home, for many years one of, the most progressive and influential business men in the northeastern part of the county. For twenty-five years Mr. Eason remained engaged in the grain business at North Lewisburg and then he sold his grain elevator and for some time thereafter was engaged in the real-estate and general merchandising, being thus engaged until his final retirement from business. During all these years he gave his earnest attention to the general business affairs of his home town and years ago was elected vice-president of the Bank of Lewisburg, a position which he still occupies, one of the well-known bankers in Champaign county. Robert J. Eason married Jennie Hollingsworth, daughter of Doctor Hollingsworth and wife, and to this union two children have been born, Carrie, who married Doctor Boulger and has two children, Robert' and Janet, and Robert H. Eason, of North Lewisburg. In his political belief Mr. Eason is independent. He is a Knight Templar Mason and has for-years taken a warm interest in Masonic affairs. SETH S. WINDER. Seth S. Winder, a retired farmer of North Lewisburg, Champaign county, was born on December 14, 1841, in Zane township, Logan county, Ohio. He is a son of Thomas and Hannah (Wileman) Winder, both natives of Clark county, Ohio, where they grew up and were married. In 1841 they moved to Logan county, Ohio, where they spent the rest of their active lives on a farm. He died at the age of seventy-seven years and she when seventy-three years old. They were life members of the Friends church. CHAMPAIGN COUNTY. OHIO. - 265 Their family consisted of ten children, named as follows: John, Edward, Aaron, Elizabeth and Abner are all deceased; William lives in North Lewisburg, Ohio; Maria W. is the wife of Caleb Lewis and they live in North Lewisburg; Seth S., of this sketch; Deborah is deceased; and Seneca, who lives in Marion, Indiana. Seth S. Winder grew up on the home farm in Logan county and there he attended the common schools. There he engaged in farming. until 1898, in which year he moved to North Lewisburg, Champaign county; where he has since resided. He sold his farm in Logan county and bought his present home and several lots where he now lives. He has a fine cherry orchard and raises small fruits and garden truck. Mr. Winder was married in the fall of 1869 to Margaret A. Linvill, who was born in Wayne township, this county, where she was reared and educated. She is a daughter of Hanes and Ann Linvill. To Mr. and Mrs. Winder four children have been born, two of whom died in infancy; Lena M. married Frank Christopher and they reside in Washington Court House, Ohio, and have two children, Marion and Margaret; Seneca married Alberta Hadley; they live in Marion, Indiana, and have one child, Lowell. Mr. Winder is an ardent supporter of the temperance cause. He has been a member of the Friends church all his life. WINFIELD TAYLOR SHRIGLEY. Winfield Taylor Shrigley, a well-known and substantial retired farmer of Wayne township, this county, and former trustee of that township, now living at Cable, was born in Coshocton county, Ohio, August 31, 1847, son of James and Eliza (Shaffer) Shrigley, the former of whom was a native. of this state, born in Noble county, and the latter, of Virginia, born in Loudoun county. They were married in Noble county and later moved to county where for years James Shrigley was engaged in the mines and where he spent his last days, his death occurring there in 1892, he then being seventy-two years of age. His wife had preceded him to the grave a year, her death having occurred in 1891, she then being seventy-three years of age. They were the parents of five children, of which the subject of this sketch was the first-born, the others being as follow : John F., a farmer and carpenter, of Roscoe, this state; Albert, a farmer, also of Roscoe; Emily j.. deceased, and Mary, widow of John Pickerel, of Cable 266 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. James Shrigley was a Veteran of the Civil War; having served as a member of the One Hundred and Forty-third Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, during the hundred-day service, and was stationed at Point of Rocks on the James river. Reared in Coshocton county. Winfield T. Shrigley received his schooling there and early began working in the mines. In the spring. of 1864, he then being but sixteen years of age, he enlisted for service during the continuance of the Civil War, as a member of Company F, Eightieth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, but on account of his youth and undersize he was rejected and his ambition to become a soldier thus was thwarted. He married in 1871 and continued to make his home in Coshocton county, where he became engaged in farming, until the early eighties when he came to this county and bought a farm of fifty-Six acres in Wayne township, one and a half miles west of Cable, and there he made his home until the fall of 19t6, when he retired from the active. labors the farm and Cable, where he is now living and where he and his family are very pleasantly situated. Mr. Shrigley is a Republican and ever since coming to this county has given local politics his earnest attention. For six years he served the public in the capacity of trustee of Wayne township and in other ways he has given ungrudgingly of his services in behalf of the public. Mr: Shrigley has been twice married. It was in 1871 that he was united in marriage to Martha Pickerel, of Virginia, a daughter of William and Sarah Pickerel, and to that union two children were born, Mary Belle, who died when seventeen years of age, and one who died in infancy. Mrs. Martha Shrigley died in 1876 and on October 19, 188o, Mr. Shrigley married, secondly, Mrs. Rebecca J. (Loder) Williams, widow of William Williams, of Coshocton county. William Williams was a farmer and sawmill man. He died in 1877, at the age of twenty-nine years, leaving three children, namely : Minnie Fay, who married Forrest Gatton, of Toledo, Ohio, and has two children, Mildred and Pearl; Alpha E.,. who Married William Morgan, living near King's Creek, this county, and has one child, a son, Wendell; .and Bertha, who married Wilbur Young,. of Cable, and has one son, Linville. To Winfield T. and Rebecca J. (Loder) Shrigley two children have been born. Winfield, now engaged in the insurance business at Springfield, this state, who married Floy Taylor and has two children, daughters both, Phyllis and Virginia, and Letha May, who married S. B. Skidmore, a farmer, living near Cable, and has one child, a son, Robert Maxwell. Mrs. Shrigley is a member of the King's Creek Baptist church and both she and her hus- CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 267 band give their earnest attention to the general good works of the community in which they live. Mr. Shrigley is a member of the local lodge of the junior Order of United American Mechanics and has for years taken a warm interest in the affairs of that order. WILLIAM A. NUTT. The late William A. Nutt, for years one of the best-known grain dealers in this part of the state, an honored veteran of the Civil War, who died at his home in Urbana in 1911, was a native son of the old Buckeye state and lived in this state all his life. He was born' on a farm in the vicinity of Sidney, in the neighboring county of Shelby, March 28, 1843, a son of Irwin and Barbara (Persinger) Nutt, the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Virginia, who spent their last days on their wellestablished farin near Sidney. Irwin Nutt was born on January 31, 1811, at Centerville, in Montgomery county, this state, and there grew to manhood. On February 25, 1834, he married Barbara Persinger, who was born on September 27, 1812, in Botetourt county, Virginia, and who was but three years of age when, her parents came to this state and settled on a farm. in the neighborhood of Xenia, where she grew to womanhood and where she was married. After his marriage Irwin Nutt established his home on a farm in Shelby county, not far from Sidney, and there he and his wife spent the remainder of their lives, useful and influential residents of that community.. Irwin Nutt was a good farmer and developed a fine piece of property there. He also for years was actively engaged in the grain business and he and his sons established a grain elevator at Pemberton and later at Quincy, Ohio, doing a fine business in that line. He and his wife were active members of the Methodist Episcopal church and took an earnest part in church work, as well as in the work of developing the schools in their home neighborhood, and were in other ways. influential factors in promoting proper social conditions thereabouts. They were the parents of seven children, of whom but one, John Nutt, of Los Angeles, California, is now living. William A. Nutt grew up on the home farm in the vicinity of Sidney and received his schooling in the Sidney schools. Upon President Lincoln's second call for volunteers to help suppress the rebellion of the Southern states in 1861 he went to the front as a member of Company F, Twentieth 268 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. Regiment, Ohio Volunteer infantry, attached to the Second Brigade, Third Division, which company was commanded by his brother, Captain Nutt, and with that command served until the close of the war, being mustered out with the rank of sergeant-major. For eleven months of this period of service Mr. Nutt was attached to the hospital staff. He had the honor of marching with Sherman to the sea and during his long service participated in some of the most stirring engagements of the war, Upon the completion of his military service Mr. Nutt returned home and for some time thereafter was engaged in the road contracting business. While thus engaged he was married and later engaged in business at Quincy, in partnership with one of his brothers, the firm operating elevators, as noted above, and he was thus engaged at that place until November 1, 1898, when he moved to Urbana, and was there engaged in the grain business until his death on November 3o, 1911; having then been continuously engaged in that line for a period of forty-three years, during which time he became known as one of the leading grain men in this part of the state. Mr. Nutt was an ardent Republican and ever took an active part in local political affairs, but was not a seeker after public office. It was on December 10, 1872, that William A. Nutt was united in marriage to Eleanor (Campbell) Lilley, who was born at Columbus, this state, April 22, 1852, daughter of Capt. Mitchell and Amanda (Brooks) Lilley, the former of whom was born in Augusta county, Virginia, July 18, 1819, and the latter, near Paris, Illinois, October 4, 1830. Capt. Mitchell Lilley, who, as noted above, was a Virginian, was reared at Columbus, this state, to which city he had gone to make his-home with an uncle when ten years of age, his parents having died in Virginia. When the Mexican War broke out he enlisted for service and was promoted to the rank of captain in service. Upon the outbreak of the Civil War he went to the front as captain of a company and served in that capacity until his health failed and he was honorably discharged with the brevet rank of colonel. Captain Lilley was a bookbinder by trade and for years had charge of the Ohio state bindery at Columbus, one of the best-known and most influential residents of that city. He and his wife were the parents of thirteen children, five of whom are still living, three sons, Alexander, William and Thomas M. Lilley, and two daughters, Kate, wife of J. H. Haller, and Anne, wife of W. C. Willard. Mrs. Nutt survived her husband for about three years, her death occurring at her home in Urbana on March 14, 1914. She was an earnest member of the First Methodist Episcopal church, as was her husband, and both were active in local good works. Mr. Nutt was an active member of CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 269 W. A. Brand Post, Grand Army of the Republic, at Urbana. and ever took a warm interest in the affairs of that patriotic organization. He also was a member of the local lodge of the Knights of Pythias and of the Junior Order of United American Mechanics. To William A. and Eleanor (Campbell) Nutt six children were born, two sons and four daughters. The sons, Wilbur and Thomas, both died in chidhood and the daughters, the Msses Lilley, Besse, Harriet and Hazel Nutt, are still living at the old family home in Urbana, where they are very pleasantly and very comfortably situated. The Misses Nutt are members of the First Methodist Episcopal church and have ever given their earnest attention to church work and other local good works, as well as to the general social activities of their home town, and are helpful in many ways in helping to promote such movements as are designed to advance the common welfare of the people of the city and of the county at large. JAMES MAGRUDER POYSELL. James Magruder Poysell, one of the best-known of the older citizens of Urbana, a retired marble cutter and an honored veteran of the Civil War, who has been a resident of Urbana for the past half century or more, is a native son of Ohio and has lived in this state all his life. He was born at West Liberty in the neighboring county of Logan, September 28, 1841, son of John and Sarah (Stafford) Poysell, the former of whom was born in Pennsylvania. of German stock, and the latter in England, whose last days were spent in this state. John Poysell was trained in Pennsylvania as a mill man and followed that vocation all his life. He was married in Pennsylvania and later came over into Ohio, driving through to Springfield and later moving up to West Liberty, where he worked about a feed mill and a saw-mill, and there spent the remainder of his life, on of the best known residents of that place. For fifty years he was a class leader in the Methodist church and was ever active in local good works. After his death his widow made her home in Urbana. where she spent her last days. They were the parents of six children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the fourth in order of birth, the others being as follow : Samuel, who served three years as a soldier of. the Union during the Civil War, a member of Company E, Ninety-fifth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and met his death by drowning in the Mississippi river ; 270 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. Frank, now deceased,. who was a printer at West Liberty and at Springfield; John M., now deceased, who was a miller at West Liberty; William W., who went to the front during the Civil War as a member of Company E. Ninety-fifth ,Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, in which, he served for three years, during a portion of which time he was held a prisoner at Andersonville prison, and was later drowned in the Mississippi river, meeting death at the same time as did his brother, Samuel, mentioned above, both brave soldiers of the Union, and Sarah. who married William Taylor and is now deceased. James M. Poysell was reared at West Liberty, receiving his schooling in the schools of that town, and there learned the trade of a marble cutter and was working at the same when the Civil War broke out. On August 7, 1862, then being under twenty-one years of age, he enlisted, for service in the Union army as a private in Company I, Ninety-sixth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer infantry, the same regiment in which his elder brothers were serving. He enlisted for the three-year service and joined the regiment at Cincinnati, under Capt. William Beatty and Col. J. W. Varner, the command being assigned to the Second Brigade, First Division, Thirteenth Army Corps, Army of the Gulf. Thus engaged Mr. Poysell participated in the battles of Arkansas Post, Bayou Mississippi, Ft. Hinneman, Port Gibson. Champion Hill, Big Black River ; was present for fifty-two days during the siege of Vicksburg., then took part in the battles of Carrion Crow Bayou and Grand Coteau and on November 3. 1863. was taken prisoner by the enemy and was held a prisoner on the Red river for about five months before being exchanged. A fter rejoining his regiment he participated in the Red river expedition. the regiment later moving to Mobile Bay, he thus participating in the battles of Ft. Morgan and Ft. Gaines, in the siege of Mobile. and in the battles at Ft. Blakely, Spanisl'i Fort and at Whistler, Alabama. the latter battle being fought on April 13, 1865, four days after the surrender of General Lee at Appomatox Court House. Upon the conclusion of the war the Ninety-sixth Ohio was returned North and on July 29, 1865. at Camp Chase. this state, Mr. Poysell was mustered out with the command with which he had served for one week less than three years. Upon the completion of his military service Mr. Poysell returned to his home at West Liberty and there resumed the pursuits of peace, taking up his old trade as a marble cutter, and there remained for about eighteen months, at the end of which time, in 1867, he moved to Urbana, recognizing the better opportunities for the exercise of his skill in that city. A few months later 'he married and established his permanent home in that city, CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 271. continuing his operations as a marble cutter until his retirement from active labor may years later, since which time he. has been living quietly retired. It was on January 7, 1868, a few months after he located .at Urbana, that James M. Poysell was united, in marriage to Mary Eliza was born in that city on September 1, 1848; daughter of Leonard and Anna E. (Richardson) Marsh, the former of whom was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and the latter in the city of Urbana, a member of one of the old families of Champaign county. Leonard Marsh was but a boy when. his parents moved from Baltimore to Urbana and in the latter city he grew to man hood, there learning the trade of a tailor, which vocation he followed the rest of his life, both he and his wife spending their last days in Urbana. To James M. and Mary Eliza (Marsh) Poysell three children were born, namely: Leonard Ross Poysell, an electrician, who was accidentally killed at Stanton, Illinois,. August 16, 1909; died on April 16, 1880, at the age of nine years, six months and five days, and Laura, who, since the death of her mother on June 11, 1916, has been housekeeper for her father. Mr. Poysell and his daughter are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and have ever given their earnest attention to the affairs of the church and the general good works of .the community. Mr. Poysell. is an active member of W. A. Brand Post No. 98, Grand Army of the Republic, at Urbana, in the affairs of which patriotic organization he has for years taken a warm interest, and has filled nearly all the offices in that post at one: time and another.. THOMAS J. POLING. Thomas J. Poling, farmer and carpenter, living in Rush township, Champaign county, was born in Union county, Ohio, March 29, 1868. He is a son of George W. and Sarah Jane (Hudson) Poling. The father was. born in 1838, in Virginia,. and the mother was born. in Rush township, Champaign county, of an old family of that township. He was a son of Samuel Poling, a native of Virginia, who moved here in an early day, married here and established the family home' in Rush township. Later in life he made his home with his son, George W., and died there. His family consisted of six children, namely : Emanuel, who established his home in West Virginia; Daniel first lived in Rush township, this county, later moving to the state of Nebraska; George W., father of the subject of this sketch; Minnie married Charles Oliphant and they live in Iowa; John, who lived. 272 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. many years in Rush township, this county, died in the village of North Lewisburg; the youngest child, a daughter, died in infancy. George W. Poling grew up on the home farm and was educated in the rural schools. He was fourteen years old when his parents moved to Rush township. After living in Union county, Ohio, three years he moved back to Rush township, then moved back to Union county and died there in 1889. He devoted his active life to general farming. His widow surived twenty years, dying in 1909. To these parents three sons were born, namely : Charles died when two years old ; O. H., born in 1866, died in 1910, was a carpenter by trade and lived at home; Thomas J. of this sketch. Thomas J. Poling grew up on the home farm and was educated in the home schools. He continued to live on the home farm until the death of his mother. He learned the carpenter's trade when a young man and has continued working at it, becoming a highly skilled workman and his services -have been in good demand. He has also followed farming since his boyhood. He owns a good farm of one hundred and sixteen acres in Rush township. Mr. Poling was married on November 20, 1910, to Mrs. Bessie M. Boltz, who was born in Union county, Ohio. She was the widow of IIoward Reitz, and a daughter of Bert Moore and wife of Logan county, Ohio. Mrs. Poling had no children by her first marriage but adopted a daughter Ximena, who lives at home and is attending school at Woodstock. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Poling, namely: Clifford, who is at home; and Richard, deceased. Politically, Mr. Poling is a Republican. He belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Woodstock, Ohio. He is a member of the Methodist Protestant church at North Lewisburg. GEORGE A. SCEVA. The late George A. Sceva, a soldier of the Union army during the Civil War and for years a substantial farmer of Union township, who died at his home in that township on January 19, 1914, and whose widow is still living there, Was born on that farm and lived there all his life. He was born on August 28, 1839, son of Aaron and Mary Sceva, both of- whom were born in New Hampshire. Aaron Sceva came to Ohio in the days of his young manhood and worked as a blacksmith in this county. He married in New CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 273 Hampshire and later became engaged in farming in Union township, remaining there until 1848, when he went to Utah on a prospecting trip and there died, leaving his widow with four children, Mary Jane, George A., Angeline and Charles. His wife died in Union township. George A. Sceva was nine years of `age when his father left for the West and from the days of his boyhood," as the elder son, he .was a valued aid in the labors of improving and developing the home farm. He received his schooling in what then was known as the Sceva school house, in the neighborhood of his home, and continued at home helping in the work of the farm until his mother's death, when he and his brother Charles assumed the management of the place and continued farming together until the latter's death, after which George A. Sceva bought from his sisters their interest in the place and continued farming the same as sole proprietor. He did well in his operations and as he prospered added to his holdings until he became the owner of a fine farm of one hundred and seventy-one acres and was accounted one of the substantial farmers of that section, remaining there until his death, on January 19, 1914. During the Civil War Mr. Sceva served as a member of Company E, One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was an active member of the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic at Urbana, in the affairs of which patriotic organization he took a warm interest. He was a Republican and for some time served the public very acceptably as trustee of Union township, and was for nineteen years a member of the local school board, during that time doing much to advance the cause of education in his district. For more than thirty years he was a member of the Methodist church at Mutual and for some years served as a member of the board of trustees of the same. On March 30, 1871; George A. Sceva was united in marriage to Isadore Middleton, who was born in this county, in Wayne township, daughter of Thomas and Susanna (Hess) Middleton and a member of one of the old families of Champaign county, further and fitting mention of which family. is made elsewhere in this volume. Her father was also a native of Wayne township and her mother. was a native of Virginia. They were married in Wayne township, but later moved to Union township, where they spent the remainder of their lives. They were the parents of six children, of whom Mrs. Sceva was the third in order of birth, the others being Amanda (deceased), William, Jacob (deceased), George and Rachel. To George A. Sceva and wife six children were born, of whom but three are now living, Henry, of Mutual, who married Nora Leavitt and has three children, (18a) 274 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OH10. Paul, Mabel and Martha; William, who married Emma McCoy and has two children, Francis and Elizabeth, at home, and Essie, who is at home with her widowed mother and is employed in a millinery store in Urbana. The Scevas have a Pleasant home in Union township and have ever taken an interested part in the general social affairs of the community in which they live. Mrs. Sceva is a member of the Methodist church at Mutual and her daughter, of the Baptist church at Urbana, and both take a proper interest in the various beneficences of these societies. GEORGE W. LINCOLN In the memorial annals of the WoodStock. neighborhood there are few names' held in better memory than that of George W. Lincoln, for years one of the most substantial farmers of Ruth township, president of the Woodstock Bank, an extensive breeder of live stock and in other ways actively identified with the interests of that community, and whose widow, Mrs. Marcia M. Lincoln, a member of one of the old families of Champaign county, is still living at her pleasant home in Woodstock. George W. Lincoln was born on the old Lincoln homestead in Rush township, this ,county, February 29, 1841, son of Charles and Altura (Johnson) Lincoln, both of whom were born at Windom, Connecticut, the former born. on September 7, 1809; and, the latter; December 19, 1816, who later became pioneer residents of Champaign county and here spent their last days, influential and useful residents the Woodstock neighborhood. Charles Lincoln and his wife came to Ohio and located in this county shortly after their marriage, establishing their home on a farm in Rush township, which farm still continues in the possession of the family, widely known as the Old Lincoln farm. Charles Lincoln was a good farmer and was also largely interested in the raising of cattle, having been one of the leaders in that latter line in the eastern part of the county in his day. He died at his fine farm home in Rush township on January 31, 1868, and his widow survived him for twelve years, her death occurring on February 9, 1880. They were the parents of two children, of whom the subject of this memorial sketch was the second in order of birth; the others being as follows; - Lydia born on November 9, 1838, now living at Glen Ullem, North Dakota, widow of John Hudson; Harriet C., July 21, 1842, who died on May 24, 1863; Charles P., April 27, 1844, a substantial farmer of Rush township, this CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 275 county ; Oliver E., July 4, 1846, who became a farmer in the neighboring county of Union and there spent his last days; Ira, June 4, 1848, who married Martha Marsh, of Woodstock, and. died on September 12,, 1880; Willlam Henry, August 3, 1859, who married Mary S. Martin and is now deceased; Ada A„ May 3, 1852, wife of P. N. Pratt, of Woodstock; Alice, fuly 2, 1856, who died on November 13 of that same year, and Dwight, May 12, 1859, who died, on September 8, 1860. George W. Lincoln was reared on the home farm, receiving his schooling in the neighborhood school, and remained at home, a valued aid to his father in the work of developing and improving the home place, and there remained until after, his marriage in the winter .of 1869, when he bepta farming on his own account in Rush township and gradually developed there a very fine piece of farm property, remaining .there, actively engaged in farming and stock raising, until his death on. October 5, 1885. In addition to his farming operations Mr. Lincoln took an active and energetic part in the general business affairs of his home community and was the president of the Woodstock Bank, which financial institution he was largely instrumental in organizing and developing. He was an ardent Republican and ever took an active interest in politics, but was not a seeker :after public office. He was widely known throughout the eastern part of this county and in the adjoining counties of Union and Logan and at his death there was sincere mourning, for he had done well those things which his hand had found to do. It was on January 20, 1869, that George W. Lincoln was united in marriage to Marcia M. Kimball, who also was born in Rush township, daughter of Truman M. and Mary (Fullington) Kimball, prominent residents of the Woodstock neighborhood and further and fitting reference to whom is made elsewhere in this work, and to this union two children were born, a daughter and a son, Edna A. and Charles K., both of whom are still. living. After the death of her husband Mrs. Lincoln maintained her residence on the old home farm for some time and then moved to Woodstock, where she now resides, she and her widowed daughter living together, very comfortably situated. Edna A. Lincoln married James H. McMullen, who was born on a farm in the neighboring county of Union on June 18, 1867, son of Charles A. and Martha (Hathaway) McMullen, both also natives of Ohio, the former born in Madison county on January 28, 184o, and the latter born in Union county, who later came to Champaign county and settled on a farm in Rush township; where they spent the remainder of their lives, Charles A. 276 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. McMullen dying there on September I, 1901, his widow surviving him for less than one year, her death occurring on August 7, 1902. Charles A. McMullen was a substantial farmer and he and his wife were the parents of six children, those besides James H., mentioned above, the third in order of birth, being as follow : Walter C., born on January I, 1865, who died on August 17, 1876; Lydia F., April 31, 1866, who died on August 27, following; Mary L., December 31, 1869, who married Arthur Marsh and died on September 13., I9 I .leaving one child, a daughter, Martha ; Anna EL, March 7, 1875, now liNing at. Pueblo, Colorado, and Jane H., May 20, 1876, who died on March 3, 1877. James H. McMullen was reared on the home farm in Rush township and completed his schooling in. Antioch College and in the Ohio State University. He married Edna A. Lincoln and established his home on a farm in Rush township, remaining there engaged in general farming and sheep raising, until his retirement. in 1909 and removal to Woodstock, where he spent his last days, his death occurring on December 26, 1915, and where his widow still lives. James H. McMullen was a RepubliCan in his political affiliation and, fraternally, was affiliated with the Knights. of Pythias, in the affairs of which order he took a waem interest. Charles K. Lincoln, only son of George W. and Marcia M. (Kimball) Lincoln, is now living in Woodstock, a substantial retired farmer. He married Maud Chamberlain and has two children, William C. and George J. CHARLES H. CURL. Charles H. Curl, an honored veteran of the Civil War and a resident of North Lewisburg since 1872, now living retired in that pleasant village, is a native son of Ohio and has lived in this state all his life. He was born in Greene county on July 7, 1844, son of William aiad Hannah (Borden) Curl, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of New Jersey, who became residents of Greene county in the days of their youth and were there married. William Curl was a son of James Curl and wife, the latter of whom was a Brown, who early came to Ohio and settled in Greene county, where their last days were spent. They were the parents of eight children, five sons and three daughters. James Girl was a cooper and his son, William, learned that trade and followed it until he was thirty-one years of age, when in 1854, he became a brakeman on the Panhandle railroad between Xenia CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 277 and Dayton and while thus employed was killed by a train the next year, 1855. He left a widow, who was Hannah Borden, and four children. Of these children the subject of this sketch was the first born, the others being as follow : Franklin, a painter, now living in Florida; Emma L., wife of Edward Inskeep, of North Lewisburg, and Phoebe Ann, wife of John Holycross, of North Lewisburg. The Widow Curl married, secondly, Adam lieltz, of Union county, and to that union two children were born, Janet, wife of William Hoffman, of Urbana, and Joseph, who joined the regular army and whose present whereabouts are unknown to his family. Charles H. Curl was about eleven years of age when his father was killed on the railroad and at the age of twelve he was taken to rear by a family in Greene county and was a member of that household until he was eighteen years of age, when he began farming on his own account and was thuss engaged when, in the fall of 1863 he enlisted at Cleveland for service in the Union army during the continuance of the Civil War, as a member of Company I, One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which command he served until the close of the war and was discharged at Camp Chase on July .13, 1865; most of his service having been performed with his regiment at Baltimore. Upon the completion of his military service Mr. Curl returned to Ohio and located at Zanesville, where he learned the trade of plasterer and where, in 1867, he married, remaining there until 1872, in which year he moved to North Lewisburg, this county, where he since has made his home and where he is now living retired. He built the home in which he is living and he and his family are very comfortably situated there. Mr. Curl is a Republican and has ever given his close attention to local political affairs, but has not been a seeker after public office. It was in 1867, at Zanesville, that Charles H. Curl was united in marriage to Elizabeth McKinney, of that place, who was born in West Virginia, daughter of John and Lucinda (Curl) McKinney, the former of whom was killed by a boat explosion on the Ohio river, near Parkersburg,. and the latter of whom spent her last days at Zanesville. John McKinney and wife were the parents of five children, of whom Mrs. Curl was the next to last born, the others being as follow : Alexander, who died in 1916; Sarah, who is living at Zanesville; John, who died in 1868, and James, of Zanesville. To Mr. and Mrs. Curl seven children have been born, namely : Belle, deceased; Louisa, wife of Jefferson Goof, of Indianapolis; Dora, widow of James R. Thompson, who is now making her home with her parents; Walter, who died at the age of eighteen months; Edward, of Cleveland, 278 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. Ohio; Ralph, who died at the age of seven years, and William, who is engaged in the barber business at North Lewisburg. Mr. Curl is an active member of John Briney Post No. 193, Grand Army of the Republic, at North Lewisburg, and takes a warm interest in the affairs of that patriotic order. He is the oldest Odd Fellow in North Lewisburg, having become a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows on July 2, 1873, at North Lewisburg, and Mrs. Curl is a member of the local lodge No. 320 of the Daughters of Rebekah, both taking a warm interest in local Odd fellowship. JOAB OVERFIELD. Joab Overfield, automobile dealer and proprietor of an up-to-date garage at North Lewisburg, assessor of that village, former village clerk and former member of the common council,. is a native son of Champaign county and has lived here practically all his life. He was born on a farm two miles southwest of North Lewisburg, in Rush township, June 30, 1876, son of Samuel and Clarissa Overfield; well-to-do farming, people of that neighborhood and members of pioneer families in this County. Samuel Overfield was a farmer all his life. He was a son of Joab Overfield, a Virginian, who came to this county in pioneer days and settled in Rush township, where he became a substantial farmer and where he spent the remainder of his life, one of the influential members of the community in which he lived. Some years before his death Samuel Overfield retired from the farm and moved to Woodstock, among his children after the death of his wife, where his last days were spent, his death occurring there in 1914. His wife had preceded him to the grave twenty years, her death having occurred in 1894. They were the parents, of seven children, those besides the subject of this sketch b6rig Louisa, Delmar, Cyrus, John, Gould and Bursha. Reared on the home farm, Joab Overfield received his early schooling in the district school in the neighborhood of his home and completed the same in the high school at North Lewisburg. Upon leaving school he worked for five .years as a handle turner in the factory of his. brother at North Lewisburg and at Xenia and then returned to the home farm, which he farmed. for couple of years, at the end of which time he bought a store at Pottersburg and was there engaged in the general mercantile business for two years or more. He then moved to North Lewisburg, where for six years thereafter he was engaged in the lumber business and CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 279 where, in 1915, he engaged in the automobile business and has since been very successfully engaged in that line. Mr. Overfield is the local agent for the sale of the Ford automobile and has built up an extensive market hereabout for that car. He has a well equipped garage, thirty by one hundred and sixty-five feet in dimensions and in addition to handling a general line of automobile accessories has made his place a popular service station. Mr. Overfield is a Democrat and is now serving as assessor of his home' town. For two, years he served as a member of the village council and for four years as clerk of the village, giving to his public service his most thoughtful attention. In 1899 Joab Overfield was united in marriage to Martha Coffey, daughter of Joseph Coffey and wife. Mr. and Mrs. Overfield have a pleasant home at North Lewisburg and take an active interest in the general social affairs of the community, helpful in advancing all worthy causes thereabout. T. C. MADDEN. T. C. Madden, lumber dealer, at North Lewisburg, this county, and one of the most active and energetic business men of that thriving. village, is a native son of Ohio and has lived in this state all his life. He was born on a farm in Clinton county, August 13, 1869, son of Cyrus W. and Jane (McCray) Madden, the former of Quaker stock and the latter of Scottish descent, both members of old families in this part of the state, whose lives were spent in Clinton and Warren counties. Cyrus W. Madden was born in Clinton county, son of Solomon Madden.and wife, the former of whom was a son of George Madden, the stern old Quaker who headed the Madden colony into Clinton county in 1811, coming over from North Carolina, which state they left out of their hatred for the institution of slavery, arriving in Clinton county on the day on which the battle of Tippecanoe was fought. George Madden became one of the most influential pioneers of Clinton county and his son and grandson did well their respective parts in developing the community in which they lived. Cyrus W. Madden, who was a farmer and blacksmith, was an ardent Abolitionist in the days preceding the Civil War and he and his family took a prominent part in the operations of the Underground Railroad, through the agency of which many fugitive slaves were enabled to make. their way to liberty across the Canadian border. He and his wife were the 280 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO parents of eight children, :five of whom are still living, those besides the subject of this sketch being as follow : W. H: Madden, who is engaged in the lumber business at Waynesville. this state Clinton Madden, cashier of the Farmers' National Bank at Clarksville, this state; Addie, who is teaching school at Morrow, Ohio, and Ella, wife of. Charles Crawford, of Marion, Indiana. Reared on a farm, T. C. Madden received his elementary schooling in the public schools of Clinton and Warren counties and supplemented the same by a course at the old normal school at Lebanon, after which he taught school for several years and then entered Wilmington College, working his way through that institution by teaching mathematics in the college, and was graduated therefrom in 1902. He then resumed teaching and was thus engaged, in Franklin and Clinton counties, for six years, four years of which time was spent as a teacher in the high school at Sabina. During his teaching career Mr. Madden taught for seventeen .years, or until 1908, when he located at North Lewisburg and there started a lumber yard and has ever since been engaged in the lumber business at that place, having built up an extensive business in that line. His lumber yard is well stocked and well equipped, several large buildings giving him ample facilities for the proper handling of .his trade, and he has done very well, now devoting his whole time to his growing business. Mr. Madden is. a Republican and gives a good citizen's attention to local political affairs and to all proper movements having to do with the advancement of the general interests of his home town and of the county at large. WILLIS H. HODGE. Willis H. Hodge, one of Champaign county's substantial landowners, the proprietor of the grain elevator at Catawba Station, a fine farm of six hundred and sixty acres in Union township and the fine place on which he lives at the west edge of the city of Mechanicsburg, is a native son of Champaign county and has lived here all his life. He was born on the farm he now owns in Union township on. October 23. 1.875, son of J. H. and Miranda (Hunter) Hodge, both of whom were born in the neighboring county of Clark, members of pioneer families there, and whose last days were spent at Mechanicsburg, to which place they had moved upon their retirement from the farm. CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 281 J. H. Hodge was born on January 2, 1834, a son of James and Elizabeth. Hodge, who had come up into Ohio from Kentucky in pioneer days and had. settled in Clark county, where they established their home and spent their last days. On that pioneer farm J. H. Hodge grew to manhood, remaining there until after his marriage in 1861 to Miranda. Hunter, who also was born. in Clark county, when he carve up into Champaign county and bought a farm in Union township and there settled. He was an excellent farmer and a. good business man and as. he developed his farm added to the same until he became the owner of about six hundred acres. He was a Democrat and he and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church, he for years. serving as a trustee of the same and alSo as an office bearer in other capacities. in the church. In 1891 he retired froM the farm and moved to Mechanicsburg, where he and his wife spent their last days. Her death occurred on March 11, 1901, and he survived a little. more. than six yearS, his death occurring on October 17, 1907. They were the parents of three children, of whom the subject of this sketch is the only survivor, the others having died. in infancy. Reared on the home farm in Union township, Willis H. Hodge received. his early schooling in the district schools of that neighborhood, supplementing the same by a course in the Mechanicsburg high school and in the business. department of the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware. He early became.: engaged in the grain business at Mechanicsburg, in partnership with C. W. Guy and others, and in 1901 became the sole owner of the elevator at: Mechanicsburg, continuing to operate the same until he sold it in 1907. In. 1898, the year of his marriage, Mr. Hodge bought the grain elevator at: Catawba Station and has ever since continued to own and operate the same,. being one of the best known grainmen in the southeastern part of the county. At the same time he gives close personal attention to the operation of his well-kept farm. of. six hundred and sixty acres in Union township, though continuing to make his home in Mechanicsburg, where he and his family are very comfortably situated: Mr. Hodge is a Democrat and has ever given a good citizen's attention to local political affairs, but has not been a seeker after office. On December 1898, Willis H. Hodge was united in marriage to Irma Van Ness, who was born near the village of Irwin, in the neighboring county of Madison. She is the daughter of Jacob C. and Mary Melinda. (Brown) Van Ness and came with her parents over into Champaign county, the family settling in the Five Points neighborhood in Goshen township, where she grew to womanhood and where she was living at the time of her 282 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. marriage to Mr. Hodge. To that union a daughter, Mary Frances. was born on March 1, 1901. Mr. and Mrs. Hodge are members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Mechanicsburg and take an interested part in church work, as well as in the general, good works and social activities of the place, Mr. Hodge being a member of the official board of the church. He also is a member of Homer Lodge No. 474, Knights Of Pythias, at Mechanicsburg, and takes a warm interest in lodge affairs. GEORGE HOWLAND GIFFORD. George Howland Gifford, one of the real old settlers of Champaign county, an honored veteran of the Civil War and a farmer of Rush county, who for more than a half century has resided in the house he now lives in, in the pleasant village of Woodstock, is a native of the Old Bay State, but has been a resident of Ohio and of Champaign county since he was four years of age and is therefore as thoroughly familiar with the development of this county during the past three-quarters of a century and more as one "native and to the manner born." He was born near New Bedford, Massachusetts, September 24, 1832, son of Daniel and Catherine (Wing) Gifford, both members of old Colonial families, who later came to this county and here spent their last days, both living to ripe old age, useful and influential pioneers of the Woodstock settlement. Daniel Gifford was the eighth in order of birth of the ten children born to his parents, William and Susanna (Brown) Gifford, the former of whom was a son of Recompense Gifford and wife, who had two other children, John and Ruth. The other children born to William Gifford and wife, besides Daniel, Were jedediah, John, George, William, Sarah, Ruth, Artsa, Hicks arid Jason. On September 24, 1818, Daniel Gifford married Catherine Wing, who also was born in the neighborhood of New Bedford, Massachusetts, and in 1834 he and his family came to Ohio and settled in Champaign county. Daniel Gifford rented a farm in Rush township, one mile north of Woodstock, and there established his home and proceeded to clear the farm and make it fit for cultivation. He later moved to Madison county and located on farm seven miles south of Londan, the county; seat, but later came back to this county and located at Woodstock, where he and his wife spent their last days. Daniel Gifford died at the age of seventy-five years and his widow survived him many years, she living to the great age CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 283 of ninety-eight years. They were members of the Christian church, in the work of which they ever took an earnest interest, and their children were reared in that faith. There were five of these children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the last born, the others being Susan, Stephen Wing, Almira and Daniel Hicks. Susan Gifford, born on July 9, 1819, died at her home in Woodstock, Mrs. Susan Swan, November 18, 1891. She was twice married and by her first husband, Franklin.Cushman; was the mother of four children, Julius J., Charles A., Lucy Lucinda and Warren Sibley. Julius J. Cushman; who was born on September 11, 1838, enlisted for service during the Civil War as a member of Company D, Second Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was killed at the battle of Hoover's Gap, June 18, 1863. Charles A. Cushman, born on September 12, 1840, married, February 18, 1863, Julia Standish and had thirteen children, Prank, Martha, Julius J., Margaret J., Susan B., Charles W., Harriet, Arthur, Jared, Robert K., Sarah, Warren H. and Lucy. Lucy Lucinda Cushman born on. September 17, 1842, married, May 15, 1861, Nicholas P. Hewitt and had seven children,. Susie, Anna May, Warren Cushman, Lucy, Nellie E., Lena Almira and Gorgiana. She died on January 6, 1893, and her .husband, who was born on May 5, 1832, survived until December 14, 19or. Warren Sibley Cushman, born on June 17, 1844, married. March 21, 1867, Celia Calender, who was born on May 18, 1848, and who died on March 6, 1881, and to that union four children were born, namely : Ernest Scott, born on August 11, 1868, who married Pattie Owen on October 19, 1893; Mabel C., December 17, 1871, who married Thomas L. Wright on April 16, 19oo; Byron G., August 2, 1873, who married Edna Milner on June 27, 1916, and Charlotte, July 23, 1880, who married Lawrence Longfellow on June 30, 1907. Stephen Wing Gifford died unmarried on June 29, 1843. Almira Gifford married Franklin Jackson, who was born on June 18, 1828,. and who died on June 3, 1858, and to that union was born one child, a son, Josiah Cross, born on April 8, 1854, who died on July 24, 1856. Mrs. Jackson survived her husband and son many years, her death occurring on February 16, 1900. Daniel Hicks Gifford, born on October 6, 1830, married Mary Case and had five children, namely: Katie, who married William A. Scoville on December 1, 1880, and has five children; Susan, who married Frank Fenner on February 24, 1881, and has two children; Almira, who married Oliver Compton on April 15, 1885, and has three children, Frank and Riley Gifford. Daniel H. Gifford died in Dm. 284 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. George Howland Gifford was but four years of age when his parents came to this county from Massachusetts and he grew to manhood on the home farm in Rush township, receiving his schooling in the primitive subscription schools of that neighborhood. He later lived for awhile in Madison county, but returned to this county, and for fifty-four years has been a resident of Woodstock, living all that time in the house which he now occupies. Until his retirement with the advance of years Mr. Gifford remained an active farmer and did very well in his operations. During the progress of the Civil War he enlisted, May 8, 1864, as a private in Company D, One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served with that command until the following September, most of this time on picket and guard duty at Columbus Heights. For years he has been a member of the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic and has ever taken a warm interest in the affairs of that patriotic organization. Despite the fact that he. now is eighty-five years of age Mr. Gifford retains the liveliest interest in . current affairs and is a keen observer of events. He retains vivid recollections of the early days in this county and is a. veritable mine of information with respect to happenings of the days long ago. Politically, he has held allegiance to the Republican. party ever since the organization of that party and has ever taken a good citizen's interest in local civic affairs, but has not been included in the office-seeking class. His wife is a member of the Universalist church and both have ever done their part in promoting agencies designed to advance the common welfare of the community in which they have had their home for so many years. It was on February 25, 1862, that George H. Gifford was united in marriage to Josephine Myers, who Was born in Troy, this state, August 9, 1846, and to this union nine children have been born, namely : Effie M., Daniel Hicks, Catherine Theresa, George Augustus, Walter Cushman, Laura Marsh, Nicholas P. H., Edward Cranston and Rosanna. Effie M. Gifford, born on December 26, 1862, married Daniel A. Fox on August 9, 1883, and to that union eight children have been born, namely : Emery G., born in June, 1884; Chester H., November 11, 1886; Walter S., February 15, 1889; Ivan E., July 17, 1891; Francis M., January 15, 1894; Kenneth K., September 2, 1896, who died in September, 1897; Daniel D., February 14, 1900, and Harold, July 17, 1902, who died in 1916. Daniel Hicks Gifford, born on January 10, 1866, is married and lives at Bellefontaine, this state, where he is engaged as a carpenter. Catherine Theresa Gifford, born on April 20, 1867, died on April 1886. CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 285 George Augustus Gifford, born on June 30, 1869. married Eva Spicer, June 9, 1897, and has five children, Catherine, Josephine and Charles. Walter Cushman Gifford, born on July 9, 18.71, married Catherine Martin on July 23, 1.896, and has two children, Phyllis and Philip. He and his family now make their home in Urbana. Laura Gifford, born on April 10, 1874, died on September 20, 1875. Nicholas P. H. Gifford, now living at Columbus, Ohio, was born on August 4, 1876. On September 22, 1900, he married Nora Spellman and has three children, Marion, Paul and . Donna. Edward Cranston Gifford, who is a carpenter and builder at Woodstock, was born on September 15, 1880. On April 22, 1907,. he was united in marriage to Gatha Huffman, who died on May 3, 1911, leaving two children, Opal F., born on April 12, 1908, and Dorothy R., September 6, 1910. Rosanna. Gifford;who was born on December 2, 1884, was united in marriage on May 16, 1905, to George F. Thompson and has six children, namely : Francilla, born on February 20, 1906; Robert O., September 30, 1907; DeWitt, October 16, 1910, who died on November 27, 1910; Gifford, born on February 27, 1914, and Grace Annabelle, August, 1916. LEVI YODER. Levi Yoder, a well-known and substantial retired farmer of the neighboring county of Logan, now living at North Lewisburg, this county, is a native Ohioan .and'has. lived in this estate all his life. He was born on a farm in Logan county on November 3, 1852, son of Levi and Nancy (Detwiler) Yoder, natives of Mifflin county, Pennsylvania, who were married in that county and lived there until after four of their children were born. In 1848 Levi Yoder and his family moved to Ohio and located in Logan county where he bought a farm in the white oak woods and proceeded to clear the same and there establish, his home. He died there in April, 1852, leaving a widow and five children. Of these children the subject of this sketch was the last-born, the others being as follow : Martha, who died in 1913; Jonathan, who died on January 13, 107; Jacob, who lives in Iowa, and Eli; who lives in Indiana. Levi Yoder and wife were members of the Mennonite church and their children were reared in the simple 286 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. faith of that church. The Widow Yoder married, secondly, Jacob K. Yoder, also of Mifflin county, Pennsylvania, and to that union one child was born. a daughter, Lizzie, of West Liberty, this state. Mrs. Yoder died in Logan county in February, 189o, and her husband survived her until 1912. As will be noted by a comparison of the above dates, the junior Levi Yoder was a posthumous child of his father and his widowed mother named him in honor of her deceased husband. John C. Yoder was his guardian and he was reared as a farmer. He was married at the age of twenty-four, and, in 1877, he began farming on his own account in Salem township, this county, and was thus engaged for five years, at the end of which time he returned to his home county and bought a farm in McCarthy township (Logan county) where he made his home for sixteen years and six months. He then disposed of his interest there and moved to Zane township, same county, where he bought a farm and where he remained for fourteen years, or until in December, 1913, when he retired from the active labors of the farm and moved to North Lewisburg, where he since has made his home and where he and his wife are very comfortably situated. Mr. Yoder still owns his well-improved farm of one hundred and thirty acres in Logan county, and continues to give considerable personal attention to the operation of the same. It was on January 16, 1877, that Levi Yoder, was united in marriage to Rebecca J. Hartzler, who was born in Logan county, Ohio, a daughter of Joel and Lydia (Plank) Hartzler, natives of Mifflin county, Pennsylvania, who in 1885 came to Ohio and located in Logan county, later moving to Salem township, this county, where Joel Hartzler bought a farm and where he and his wife spent their last days, his death occurring in 19o2 and hers in 1910. They were members of the Mennonite church and their children were reared in that faith. There were seven of these children, of whom Mrs. Yoder' was the third in order of birth, the others being as follow : Isaac, deceased; David, of West Liberty; this state; Samuel, deceased; Benjamin, deceased; John, of West Liberty, and. Jonathan, who is farming in this county. To Mr. and Mrs. Yoder ten children have been born, namely: Laura, deceased; Nannie, who married R. J. Eberling, of Sandusky county, this state, and has two children, Wilbur and Bertha; Harvey S., who married Mary Warner and died on July 30, 1916, leaving one child; a son, Carlton; Eli, who married Corena Folsenlogan and is now living at Indianapolis, where he is engaged as a bookkeeper; Rudolph, a farmer, of Logan county, who married Norma Harding and has one child, a son, Floyd; Lydia Ann,. deceased; Bessie, who married Henry Coates, of Anderson, Indiana, and CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 287 has two children, Ivan and Russell; Roy, deceased; Emma, of Anderson, Indiana, and Dora May, deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Yoder are members of the Mennonite church and have long given their earnest attention to church work and other local good works. GWYNN H. CLARK. Gwynn H. Clark, a. well-known building contractor at Woodstock and formerly and for twenty-five years a member of the common council of that pleasant village, is a native son of Champaign county and has lived here all his life. He was born on a farth in Rush township, in the vicinity of Woodstock, October 15, 1860, son of George W. and Polly (Kimball) Clark, the foriner of whom. was born in the state of Massachusetts and the latter in. this state. George W. Clark was but a lad when he came to Ohio with his parents from Massachusetts, the family locating near Brighton, where he remained until some time during the fifties, when he married and came to this county, settling op a farm in the Woodstock neighborhood in Rush township, where he was living when the Civil War broke out. He enlisted for service in the Union army as :a private in Company G, Ninety-fifth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served with that command for nearly five years, during that time participating in some of the most notable engagements of the war, including the siege of Vicksburg and the battle of Gettysburg. During his military service Mr. Clark incurred physical. disabilities that rendered him unfit for the continued hard work of the farm and some time after his return home he gave up farming and moved. to Woodstock, where he engaged in the hardware business and was thus engaged for about seven years, at the end of which time he became a building contractor and was thus successfully engaged until his retirement in the middle eighties. He continued to make his home in Woodstock, where he had become very comfortably established, and there he spent his last days, his death occurring in 1914. He and his wife were the parents of four children, those besides the subject of this sketch being Carrie (deceased), Celia and Guy. Gwynn H. Clark was but a child when his parents moved from the farm to Woodstock and he received his schooling in the schools of that. village. As a boy he learned the practical details of the carpenter's trade under the careful instruction of his father and has ever since followed that trade, for 288 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. the past twenty-five or thirty years having been engaged as a building con tractor at Woodstock. During that long period as an active builder Mr Clark has erected most of the business houses at Woodstock, as well a the larger part of the dwelling houses, and has long been regarded as on of the leading contractors in Champaign county. He is a Republican an has ever given his earnest attention to local civic affairs, for twenty-six years having seared as a member. of the common council of his home vii lage, during which time he did much to promote the general interests o the town. On February 5, 1888, Gwynn H. Clark was united in marriage t Mollie Riley, daughter of Samuel. Riley, and to this union four sons hay been born, Corwin (deceased), Charles, Herbert and George Herber Clark married Ruby Smith and has two children, Winifred and Clairett The Clarks are members of the Universalist church and take a proper interes in church affairs. Mr. Clark is past noble grand of the local lodge of th Independent Order of Odd Fellows. and has for years taken a warm interest in Odd fellowship. ROBERT SANDERS. Robert Sanders, a retired manufacturer of glue and soap at Urbana and one of the best-known citizens of that city, is a native of Scotland, but has been a resident of this country since 1849 and of Urbana since 1853 and is therefore fully entitled to be enrolled aomng the real "old settlers" of Champaign county. He was born in the town of Linlithgow, capital of the county of that name anti. one of the most interesting county seats in Scotland, situated seventeen miles west of Edinburgh and twenty-eight miles north and east of Glasgow. Linlithgow is the seat of an ancient royal palace, supposed to have been erected by Edward I of England and the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots. The old palace is preserved as one of the show places of Scotland and Mr. Sanders has been in the room in which the unfortunate Mary was born in 1542. The date of the birth of Mr. Sanders was January 24, 1826. His parents, Robert and Elizabeth (Forgie) Sanders, also were born in Linlithgow, where they spent all their lives. Robert Sanders was a manufacturer of glue and was a citizen of some substance. He and his wife were the parents of six children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the third in order of birth the others being as follow : John, who spent all his life in his native CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 289 Scotland, living to the advanced age of eighty-four years ; Margaret, who died in infancy; Mary, who died in Scotland; David, a carpenter, who came to the United States in 185o, coming on out into Ohio and locating at Urbana, where he made his home for years, but is now living in Kansas, and lances, also a carpenter, who is now living at Minneapolis, Minnesota. At the age of twelve years Robert Sanders left his native Linlithgow and went over to the neighboring city of Edinburgh, where he served an apprenticeship .of six years in a saddlery establishment, becoming thoroughly proficient in that line and also learned to become a skilled craftsman in the finer lines of wood-working with particular reference to the making of violins. In this latter line of craftsmanship Mr. Sanders retains to this day a hearty interest; the making of violins continuing to be one of the most engaging "hobbies" of the pleasant evening time of his life, a happy means of relieving what otherwise might be a tedious retirement from the more active labors of life to one who has been as busy during a long and useful life as he has been. Upon finishing his apprenticeship at Edinburgh he returned to Linlithgow and there assisted his father the manufacture of glue until 1849, when--he then being twenty-three years of age he decided to come to this country, believing that he could pursue his trade to more advantage and better profits over here. Upon landing in this country Mr. Sanders came on out to Ohio and located at Chillicothe, where for two years he was engaged in the glue business. He then went to Columbus, where he spent eighteen months in the same line of business, and then, in 1853, located at Urbana, where lie ever since has made his home. Upon locating at Urbana Mr. Sanders formed a partnership with Mosgrove & Moore for the Manufacture of glue and soap and three years later took over the business on his own account and until his retirement in 1907 continued engaged in the manufacture of those products, building up quite an extensive establishment and creating a wide market for his products. Robert Sanders has been twice married. In the fall of 1853, the year in which he settled at Urbana, he was married at Columbus to Maria Andover, Nvho was born in this state and who died at Urbana. He later married Christina McDonald, who was born in the north of Scotland, and to this union one child was born, a daughter, Jessie, who died in infancy. Mr. Sanders built a fine brick house on College Way and there he and his wife are still living, very comfortably situated in their declining years. They are earnest members of the Presbyterian church and Mr. Sanders for years has been a member of the board of trustees of the same. in 1847 he joined the (19a) 290 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. Independent Order of Odd Fellows in Scotland and in 1850 joined again at Chillicothe, later, transferring his membership to the lodge at Urbana, and still retains a hearty interest in Odd Fellowship, one of the oldest continuous members of that order in Ohio, his connection with the order covering a. period of sixty-seven years. FLOYD FREEMAN. Floyd Freeman, well-known undertaker and 'funeral director at North Lewisburg and a former member of the common council of that village, is a native son of Champaign county and has lived here all his life. He was born on a farm near Mechanicsburg, in Goshen township, March 28, 1875, son of G. L. and Sarah E. (Moody) Freanan, 51th, of whom were also born in this county and whose last days were spent at North Lewisburg. G. L. Freeman also was born in Goshen township, son of George and. Pleasey (McCarty) Freeman, natives of Pennsylvania, who came to this county during the twenties of the past century and located on a farm in. Goshen township, where they spent the remainder of their lives, substantial and useful pioneers of that community. On that pioneer farm G. L. Freeman grew to manhood and after his marriage to Sarah E. Moody, who was born on a farm near Mutual, in Union township, established his home on the home farm, which he later came to own, a very well-improved place of one hundred and fifty acres, and there he made his home until 189o, when he moved to Mechanicsburg, where for a short time he was engaged, in the furniture and undertaking busiriess. He then disposed of his business there and moved to North Lewisburg, where he engaged in the undertaking busi ness and was thus engaged in that business there until the latter nineties, when his son, the subject of this sketch, took over the business and he retired. To G. L. Freeman and wife eight children were born, of whom seven are still living, those besides the subject of this sketch being as follow : Maria, wife of Paul Hollingsworth ; Metta, wife of Oliver J. Morgan ; Lee, of North Lewisburg; Harry, of Columbus, this state ; Carrie, also of Columbus, and Alice, at home. Floyd Freeman completed his schooling in the high school at North Lewisburg and then began working in the grain elevator at' that place and was thus engaged until 1898, when he entered Professor Renouard's College at Columbus and took a thorough course in embalming and the arts, CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 291 pertaining to the undertaking business, after which he returned home and took over his father's undertaking business, which he ever since has been very successfully conducting. Mr. Freeman's undertaking establishment is admirably equipped, everything being up-to-date and in conformance with the latest advances in that, line, his equipment including a fine automobile hearse. Mr. Freeman is a Republican and has served the public in the capacity of councilman from his ward in the village council. In 1900 Floyd Freeman was united in marriage to Pauline R. Moore, daughter of J. F. Moore and wife, and to this union one child has been born, a son, Leonard. Mr. and Mrs. Freeman are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and Mr. Freeman is a member of the official board of the same. Fraternally, he is affiliated with both the Masons and the Knights of Pythias and is past master of the local Masonic lodge and past chancellor commander of the local Pythian lodge, in the affairs of both of which popular order he takes a warm and active interest . THOMAS L. TAYLOR, D. V. S. Dr. Thomas L. Taylor, veterinary surgeon and one of the best-known residents of North Lewisburg, this .county, was born at Norton, in Delaware county, this state, April 18, 1878, son of Dr. Elam and Margaret Taylor, the former a native of this state and the latter of New York state, whose last days were spent in Delaware county. Dr. Elam Taylor, also a veterinary surgeon, was a veteran of the Civil War, having served for two years as a member of the One Hundred and Twenty-first Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and four of his sons, half brothers of the subject of this sketch, served as soldiers of the Union during the struggle between the States, one of these sons, Albert Taylor, dying in Andersonville prison. The other soldier sons were Joel B., Adam H. and Henry Tavlor. Dr. :Elam Taylor was twice married, by his first wife having had five children, one daughter, Mary, besides the sons above named. Upon the death of the mother of these children he married again and by his wife, Margaret, had seven children, those besides the subject of this sketch, the last-born, being James B., Carrie F., Hattie B., Effie, Josephine. and Louis. Upon completing the course in the public schools at Norton, T. L. Taylor worked for a few years as a farm hand in the neighborhood of his 292 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. home and then began the study of medicine in the office of his half-brother. Dr. Joel B. Taylor, at Broadway, in Union county, at the same time becoming engaged as a clerk in a drug store at that place, and was thus engaged for nine, years, at the end of which time he decided to take up veterinary surgery, the profession to which his father had .devoted his life, and with that end in view entered the Ontario Veterinary College at Toronto, and after a .course of two years' study there entered the Grand Rapids Veterinary College, at Grand Rapids, Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1904, with the degree of Doctor of Veterinary Surgery. Thus admirably qualified for the practice of his. profession, Doctor Taylor opened an office at North Lewisburg in that same year and has ever since been engaged in practice there, his professional duties taking him through three counties, his field of operations extending into the neighboring counties of Logan and Union, as well as widely throughout Champaign county, where he has an extensive practice. In 1901, Dr. T. L. Taylor was united in marriage to Arie Harrington. a daughter of Lorenzo Harrington and wife, and to this union two children have been born, Bernard, and—Ruth Doctor and Mrs. Taylor have a pleasant home at North. Lewisburg and take a proper part in the general social activities of their hometown, helpful in promoting all good causes thereabout. The Doctor is a Republican in his political affiliations and fraternally, is affiliated with the local lodge of the Free and Accepted Masons, in the affairs of which order he takes a warm interest. BENJAMIN GRUBBS. Benjamin Grubbs,. a substantial retired farmer. and honored veteran of the Civil War, now living at North. Lewisburg, where he has resided since 1.899, is a native of Ohio and has resided, in this state all his life, with the exception of a period during the eighties and nineties when he was engaged in farming in Kansas. He was born on a pioneer farm near East Liberty, in the neighboring county of Logan, June 30, 1838, son of Christopher and Elizabeth (Skidmore) Grubbs, both of whom were born at Culpeper Court House, . Virginia, and who had come to Ohio with their respective parents in the days of their youth, the families settling in this part of state, the Grubbses in Logan county and the Skidmores in Union county. CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 293 Christopher Grubbs was born at Culpeper on February 19, 1804, and was but a child when his parents, William Grubbs and wife, also Virginians, the former born on August 20, 1778, and the latter, November 21, 1778, came to this state in i8o6 and settled at Middleburg, in Logan county, where William Grubbs opened a tavern and where he and his wife spent the remainder of their lives, influential pioneers of that community. William Grubbs and wife were the parents of nine children, the others being as follow : Mary, born in February, 1807; Abraham, December 22, 1809; Atlanta, November 2, 1810 ; Evelyn, July 10, 1812; Levi; Benjamin, May 1, 1817; William, February 19, 1820, and Rebecca J., May 29, 1822. Christopher Grubbs grew up on a farm and after his, marriage to Elizabeth Skidmore established his home on a farm in the immediate vicinity of East Liberty, in Logan county, but later moved to the adjoining county of Union and there he and his wife spent the remainder of their lives, influential and useful residents of the community in which they lived, the latter dying at the age of forty-eight and the former at the age of fifty-eight. Christopher Grubbs for years served as justice of the peace in and for his home township and was familiarly known far and near as "Old Squire Kiffey Grubbs." He was an ardent Abolitionist and was a strong influence throughout this part of the state in behalf of the abolition movement during the days when that movement began to have serious agitation throughout the North. By religious persuasion he was a Universalist. His wife was a member of the Free Will Baptist church. They were the parents of ten children, of whoM the subject of this sketch was the sixth in order of birth, the others, being. as: follow : William S., a farmer, whose last days were spent in Logan county, this state; Atwell, a farmer, who lived in Union and Logan counties; Lydia Ann, deceased; Atlanta, who died in Kansas; James Madison, who is living at East Liberty, at the age of eighty-one years; Thomas S., a farmer and a veteran of the Civil War, he having served as a member of Company. C, Seventeenth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, who died at North Lewisburg; Evelyn, who died in Logan County; Oliver H., a farmer, living at Holton, Kansas, and Christopher, a farmer, of Pottersburg, this state. Benjamin Grubbs was reared on the home, farm, receiving his schooling in the primitive subscription schools of his home neighborhood in Union county and early became engaged in farming on his own account, being thus engaged when the Civil War broke out. On August 25, 1861, at Middleburg, he enlisted for service as a private in Company C, Seventeenth 294 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the first three-year regiment, under Col. J. M. Connell, and after thirty days at Camp Dennison went to the front, the regiment spending the following winter, at Wild Cat Gap and at Somerset, Kentucky, in the spring of 1862 proceeding to Nashville and then to. Pittsburg Landing to help General Grant, and was in every battle of the Middle department, under Generals Rosecrans and Thomas. At first the Seventeenth Ohio was equipped with the old Harper's Ferry muskets and it was some time after it entered the service before it was properly armed. Among the notable engagements participated in by Mr. Grubbs were the battles of Stone's River, Shiloh, Missionary Ridge,, Jonesboro, the Atlanta campaign, and he was with Sherman on the march to the sea and thence to Washington, D. C., where he took part in the. Grand Review at the, close of the war and received his discharge in July, 1865, being mustered out with the rank of sergeant-major. During, all that period of service he was .absent from the regiment on sick leave but thirty days. Upon the completion of his military service Mr. Grubbs returned home and resumed the pursuits of peace on the farm. He married in 1866 and continued farming in Union county until 1882, when he disposed of his interests there and moved to Kansas, buying a farm in Jackson county, that state, and remaining there for seventeen years, or until 1899, when he sold his Kansas farm and returned to Ohio, locating at North Lewisburg, where he ever. since has made his home, now living comfortably retired. Mr. Grubbs has been twice married. As noted above, it was in 1866 that he was united in marriage to Mary Norvall, of Union county, who died in 1880. To that union one child was born, a daughter, Frances A., who died at the age of seven years. On August 27, 1882, Mr. Grubbs married, secondly;. Hester Good, who was born at North Lewisburg, this county, May 25, 1843, daughter of Dr. Thomas and Elizabeth (Moore) Good, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Pennsylvania. Dr. Thomas Good was for years one of the best-known physicians in the northeastern part of this county and had a Wide practice throughout the North Lewisburg neighborhood. He and his wife were the parents of four children, those besides Mrs. Grubbs being Sarah, Clark and Emma. After the death of Doctor Good his widow married Jesse Reems and to that union two children were born, Harris and Lydia. To Benjamin and Hester (Good) Grubbs one child has been born, a son, Clark C. Grubbs, of Dayton, Ohio, a traveling salesman for Bolding & Company, who married Imo. Waymire and has three children, Paul, William S. and Mary Hester. Benjamin Grubbs CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 295 and wife are earnest members of the Methodist church and have ever given proper attention to local good works, helpful in all movements having to do with the advancement of the best interests of their home town and of the county at large. JOSEPH C. BUCKWALTER. Joseph C. Buckwalter, head of the Buckwalter Hardware Company at North Lewisburg and one of the most enterprising and progressive young merchants of that thriving village, is a native of the state of West Virginia, but has been a resident of Ohio since the days of his infancy, and of Champaign county for the past ten years or more. He was born on a farm in Hampshire county, West Virginia, July 23, 1881, son of D. W. and Ellen L. Buckwalter, both natives of that same state, who came to Ohio in 1882 and located in Greene county. D. W. Buckwalter was a farmer and upon moving to Greene county established his home on a farm there and there spent the remainder of his life. Reared on the home farm in Greene county, Joseph C. Buckwalter received his schooling in the public schools of that county and after completing his studies became engaged in farming- and was thus engaged for several years, at the end of which time he left the farm and became a bookkeeper for a mercantile firm at Ottawa, in Putnam county. Shortly afterward he was transferred to a store owned by that same firm in Xenia and after a sometime further service as a bookkeeper there he went to Dayton, where he was similarly engaged for four years, at the end of which time his services were engaged by the Standard Oil Company and he was sent back to Ottawa, where he was employed in the interests of that company for six months. He then came to Champaign county and from 1906 to 1910 was employed with a hardware firm at Mechanicsburg. It was in 1910 that Mr. Buckwalter located at North Lewisburg, where he formed a partnership with G. E. Jordan and engaged in the hardware business there, under the firm style of Buckwalter & Jordan. In 1914 Mr. Jordan retired from the firm and Mr. Buckwalter formed a company and incorporated the same as the BuCkwalter Hardware Company and under that corporate title has since continued to carry on the hardware business at North Lewisburg and has done very well, the business annually assuming greater proportions. Air. Buckwalter's store occupies two floors of a building twenty by seventy-live feet in dimensions, with an ample warehouse for storage purposes for 296 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. farm machinery maintained in connection with the same. The store is well stocked and the business is conducted in accordance with modern and up-to-date methods, Mr. Buckwalter's long experience in the mercantile business giving him exceptional advantages in that direction. In 1905 Joseph C. Buckwalter was united in marriage to Clara Unkenholz, daughter of Frederick Unkenholz and wife, and to this union two children have been born, Joseph H. and Frederick C. Mr. and Mrs. Buck-waiter are Members of the Methodist Episcopal church and take an active interest in the various beneficences of the same, Mr. Buckwalter being a member of the board of trustees of the church. Politically, he is a Republican, giving his earnest attention to local political affairs, and, fraternally, he is connected with the local camp of the Modern Woodinen of America, in the affairs of which he takes a warm interest. ' ASA G. HOPKINS. Asa G. Hopkins, a veteran of the Civil War and the proprietor of a dairy farm on rural route No. 4 out of Mechanicsburg, on the Urbana pike, one and a half miles northwest of Mechanicsburg, in Goshen township, this county, is a native son of Ohio and has lived in this state nearly all his life. He was born on a farm in the neighboring county of Union on January 22, 1847, son of George and Sarah (Bates) Hopkins, the former a native of that same county and the latter a native of the neighboring county of Logan. George Hopkins was a son of Benjamin Hopkins, a native of England, whose early manhood was spent as a sailor and who, upon his retirement from the sea, came to this country and settled in Union county, this state, where he established his home and where he spent the remainder of his life. George Hopkins grew to manhood and there married and established his home, remaining a life-long farmer. He and his wife were the parents of six children, four sons and two daughters, of whom the subject of this sketch was the second in order of birth. Reared on the home farm in Union county, Asa G. Hopkins received his schooling in the schools of that neighborhood and was living there when the Civil War broke out. Though but sixteen years of age at that time. his heart was stirred by the appeal to arms and he wanted to go to the . front, but had to wait. Later, however, he was able to enlist as a member of Company H, One Hundred and Thirty-sixth Regiment, Ohio Volun- CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 297 teer Infantry, and served with that command until the expiration of the war. Upon the completion of his military service he returned to his home in Union county and shortly afterward went to St. Petersburg, Pennsylvania, where for twelve years he was engaged in the oil business. In the meantime, December 31, 1874, he married and not long afterward bought the farm on which he is now living, in Goshen township, this county, and there has made his home ever since, he and his family being very comfortably situated. Mr. Hopkins has for years given particular attention to the dairy feature of his farming and has one of the best equipped dairy farms in the county and a fine herd of Jersey cows, the general management of which of late years has been under the direction of his younger son, Harold M. Hopkins, one of the best-known dairymen in this county. Mr. Hopkins is the owner of two hundred and seventeen acres in the home farm and he and his son have an excellent farm plant. In addition to his farming and dairying interests, Mr: Hopkins also gives considerable attention to the general interests of the community and is a member of the board of directors of the Farmers Bank of Mechanicsburg. On December 31, 1874, in the neighborhood of Irwin, close to the tricounty line, Asa G. Hopkins was united in marriage to Nettie C. Miller, who was born at what then was known as Liverpool, in Madison county, daughter of James and Emaline (Burnham) Miller, who in 1861 moved from there to the vicinity of Irwin, where they established their home. James Miller and wife were the parents of five children, three of whom are still living, Mrs. Hopkins having two brothers, John B. and Frank C. Miller, who are living on the old home place in the neighborhood of Irwin. Two sisters died in childhood, Emma Z. at the age of two years and Clara E. at the age of seven years. Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins have two sons, James Rov, born on May 17, 1877, and Harold M., the latter of whom is unmarried and is making his home on the old home place, managing the dairy and also giving his attention to the affairs of the Home Dairy and Standard Ice Cream Company, of which he is a stockholder and manager of the creamery and ice plant and also of the ice cream department. James Roy Hopkins, an instructor in the Art Academy at Cincinnati, has had a distinguished career as an artist and his name is widely known in art circles both in this country and in Europe. Following his graduation from the Mechanicsburg high school, he entered Ohio State University at the age of nineteen and, after two years of attendance there, began to specialize in his art studies at the university. Presently he entered the Cincinnati Art school and it was not long until his work began to attract special attention. 298 - CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO. He later went abroad and his work was exhibited in both London and Paris, the young artist thus attaining international fame. Three years ago he was made a member of the faculty of the Cincinnati Art Academy and now occupies that position, one of the best-known artists in that city. His wife; who was Mrs. Edna (Beachboard) Boies, and whom he met at Cincinnati, also is an artist of international reputation, her pictures :hanging m 'some of the most noted art galleries in the world. She was born in Michigan and her education in art was completed in Paris, in which city she made, her home for some years. Her specialty is wood block .printing. They make their home. in Cincinnati. Asa G. Hopkins and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Mechanicsburg and have for years taken an earnest interest in the various beneficences of the same, Mr. Hopkins being a member of the board of trustees of that church. Mr. Hopkins is a member of the local lodge of the Masons at Mechanicsburg; as is his son, Harold, and both he and his wife are members of Caroline Chapter No. 39, Order of the Eastern Star, Mrs. Hopkins being past worthy matron of the same, and all take a warm interest in local Masonic affairs, as well as in the general social activities of the community in which they live, helpful in promoting all agencies'having to do with the advancement of the common welfare thereabout. Mr. Hopkins is a Republican and was township trustee about twelve years, being always active in politics. SETH M. WEST. Seth M. West, an honored veteran of the Civil War and a well-known and substantial retired farmer of Logan county, now living at North Lewisburg,, which has been his place of residence since 1896, is a native son of Ohio and has lived in this state all his life. He was born in the neighboring county of Union on February 16, 1844, a son of -Frederick R. and Eliza (Norvall) West, the former a native of the state of Massachusetts and the latter, of Ohio, whose last days were spent in Union county, this state. Frederick R. West was born at Lee, Massachusetts, and there grew to manhood, later coming to Ohio and settling in Medina county, presently moving up into Union county, where he married Eliza Norvall, a member of one of the pioneer families of that county, and there he remained for some years, at the end of which time he moved on up into Logan, county, CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, OHIO - 299 where he spent his last days, becoming a substantial farmer. He was a Republican and he and his wife were members of the Methodist Protestant church and their children were reared in that faith. There were eight of these children, namely Henry D., who is a farmer in Kansas ; Seth M., the subject of this biographical sketch ; Alonzo P., deceased; William, Allen, of Kings Creek, this county ; David L., a Kansas farmer ; two who died in youth, and Olive L. Seth M. West grew up on the home farm, receiving his schooling in the local schools, and in September, 1861, he then being but seventeen years of age, he enlisted for service in the Union army during the continuance of the Civil War, a member of Company. C, Seventeenth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He enlisted at Middleburg and from Camp Dennison went with his regiment to Kentucky, thence to Tennessee and then on into Georgia, where the command was attached to General Thomas's command, Fourteenth Army Corps. The first engagement in which Mr. West participated was the battle of Wild Cat, Kentucky, and in quick succession followed the battles of Perryville, Jonesboro, Hoover's Gap, Tennessee, and then on into the thick of the Atlanta campaign, and was thus serving when, on March 26, 1863, he received his discharge on a physician's certificate of disability, a severe attack of rheumatism having incapacitated him from further service. He then spent the following summer at home recuperating and in September of that same year, 1863, re-enlisted in his old company and rejoined his regiment, which later took part in the Atlanta campaign, under General Sherman, and was with Sherman on his march to the sea and later on up through the Carolinas and on to Richmond. Mr. West participated with his regiment in the Grand Review at Washington at the close of the war and upon being mustered out returned to his home in Ohio, resuming there his place on the farm. He was married in the spring of 1872 and continued farming in Logan county until in November, 1896, when he retired from the farm and moved to North Lewisburg, where he since has made his home and where he is very comfortably situated. Though long retired from the active labors of the farm, Mr. West continues to retain a close personal interest in farming and gives considerable personal attention to his well-kept farm up in Logan county. Seth M. West has been twice married. It was on April 12, 1872, in Logan county, that he was united in marriage to Lucetta Inskeep, who was born in that county, a daughter of Joel Inskeep and wife, and who died on March 12, 1885, leaving one child, a son, Marshall C. West, now an automobile dealer in Detroit, Michigan, who married Maude Mason and