450 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. Mrs. Riesley attend the services of the Lutheran church. His political support he gives to the Democratic party. In the summer of 1895 Mr. Riesley paid a visit to the borne of his forefathers in the old country. He sailed from New York city in July, on board the steamship Westerland, landed at Antwerp, and spent three months in Germany. The chief place, of interest to him was the old house in which his father was born, in the town of Redrick, now occupied by his .uncle, Jacob Riesley. This house was erected in 1717, and is of stone. CASVILLE MOTE. A resident of Pittsburg, Mr. Mote is now living retired after many years of active connection with agricultural interests in Darke county. He is of English descent, his ancestors having come from the "merrie isle" in colonial days. His paternal grandfather, Joseph Mote, was born in Georgia, and having arrived at years of maturity married Miss Mary Polly North, whose father was one of the heroes of the Revolution. Joseph .Mote also joined the American army and aided in the overthrow of British rule in the colonies.. At an early period in the development of Ohio he emigrated to the Buckeye state, settling in Union township, Miami county, where he made his home for a number of years. While there he entered eighty acres of land in Monroe township, Darke county, to which he afterward removed, taking up his abode in a log cabin in the midst of the wilderness. He died a year later, and his widow subsequently became the wife of Isaiah Penny, with whom she removed to Indiana, where her last clays were passed. Unto Joseph and Mary Mote were born the following named : Enoch, who married Catherine Burkett, and died in Union township, Miami county; Ezekiel, who married Miss Vernon and afterward Rachel Jones, and died at Laura, Ohio; Silas, who wedded Sarah Hall, and departed this life in Indiana; Epsie, who became the wife of John Markham, and died in Monroe township; Noah; Alexander, who married Rhoda Miles, and after her death wedded Mrs. Annie Peppinger, and died in Iowa;. Rachel, who became the wife of John Walker, and died in Indiana ; and William, who died in Missouri. He, too, was twice mar-. ried, his first union being with Miss Hunt, while Margaret Emery became his second wife. Noah Mote, the father of our subject, was born in Uniontownship, Miami county, in 1812, and when ten years of age accompanied his parents on their removal to Darke county, where he was reared to manhood. He obtained such educational advantages as. were afforded in the old-time log schoolhouses, and was reared in the usual manner of farmer lads of the period. He married Catherine Sharp, whose father served his country in the war of 1812. She was. born in Twin township, Darke county, and after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Mote took up their abode upon his farm of eighty acres, west of the old homestead. There Mr. Mote passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring on the 29th of September, 1892. His wife passed away in 1888. They were members of the Society of Friends and were people of the highest respectability. In their family were eight children : Levi, who died in infancy; Nelson, of Monroe township, who married Sarah Hansbarger, and after her death wedded Mary Studebaker; Casville, of this review ; Mary, the wife of GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 451 Simon Limbert, of Monroe township; Barbara, the deceased wife of Henry Baer ; George, who married Catherine Weeks, and resides in Laura; Allen, who wedded Ella Bowers, and is living in Twin township; and Daniel, deceased. As a representative of One of the honored pioneer families of. the county and as a man of sterling worth, Casville Mote well deserves mention in this volume. He was born on his father's farm, in Monroe township, June 18, 1844, and was there reared to manhood. He pursued his studies in the log school-house of the neighborhood, his first teacher being Henry Richardson. In the labors of the home farm he bore his part, remaining with his parents until eighteen years of age, when, prompted by a spirit of patriotism, he responded to his country's call for aid, enlisting, at Arcanum, as a private of Company B, One Hundred and Tenth Ohio Infantry, under Captain Jason young. The date of his enlistment was August 7, 1862, and he took part in the battles of Winchester, Cedar Creek, Petersburg, Richmond and Sailor's Creek. At the last named he was wounded by a grape shot in the right elbow and was sent to the field hospital and thence to City Point Hospital, at Annapolis, Maryland. Later he was in the Baltimore Hospital, where he was honorably discharged, on the 21 st of June, 1865. After his return. home Mr. Mote resumed work upon his father's farm, and was thus engaged until his marriage, which occurred April 3, 1869, Miss Sarah Jane Limbert becoming his wife. The lady was born in Clay township, Montgomery County, Ohio, January 29, 1843, and when six months old was taken by her parents to Monroe township, Darke county, where her girlhood days were passed. Her first teacher was Weaver Richardson. She was a daughter of Henry Limbert, who was born in Perry county, Pennsylvania, September 6, 1816, and was a son of Henry Limbert, Sr., also a native of Perry county. The latter married Katie Wagner, and in the spring of 1822 removed to Ohio, locating in Clay township, Montgomery county, where he entered land and developed a farm. There he lived until his death, which occurred when he was eighty-three years of age. His wife also passed away at the same age. Their children were : John, who died in Montgomery county, Ohio; Lewis; who died in Greenville; Henry, the father of Mrs. Mote; Barbara, who became the wife of Joseph Spitler and died in. Clay township, Montgomery county ; Polly, who married Peter Raisor ; George, a resident of Indiana; Levi, of Clay township, Montgomery county; Adam, of Dayton, Ohio; Susan, who became the wife of Henry Whistler, and died in Clay township; Betsey, wife of Solomon Spitler; and Sarah, wife of John Baker. Henry Limbert, the father of Mrs. Mote, was a little lad of six summers when he came with his parents to Ohio. He was reared in Clay township, Montgomery county, married Betsey Spitler, and in 1844 removed to Monroe township, Darke county. He was called to his final rest September 15, 1873, and his wife departed this life September 7, 1878. In their family were the following named : Mrs. Mote; Barbara Ann, the wife of Henry Snyder ; John, who died at the age of twenty-one years; Amanda C., who died in infancy; Simon Peter, of Monroe' township; Mary Ann, Who became the wife of Andrew Linder and died in 1885 ; Susan, who died in infancy; Harvey, who died in Oklahoma, in 1899 ; Ira, of Portland, Indiana ; and twins who died in infancy. 452 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. Unto Mr. and Mrs, Mote have been born five children ; Elmer, who was born March 8, 1870, married Clara Chase, and has one child, Harold; Charles, born May 28, 1872, wedded Nellie Niswonger, and their children are : Susie, Gertrude, Paul and Lillian; Emma, born November 16, 1875, is the wife of Charles Sower and has one child, Marguerite; Forrest, born June 13, 1881, is at home; and Noah, born November 14, 1883, died on the 2d of March, 1884. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Mote took up their residence upon his farm, arid for many years he devoted his energies to agricultural pursuits, meeting with good success in his undertakings. Until his retirement he resided in Monroe township, with the exception of a period of two years passed in Franklin township. He still owns a good farm of thirty-three acres, and has a comfortable competence saved from his earnings in former years. This enables him to live retired, enjoying a well-earned rest. In 1893 he removed to Pittsburg, where he now resides. He is a member of the Union Veteran Legion, and in politics is a stanch Republican. As a citizen he is today as true and loyal as when he followed the starry banner upon the battlefields of the south and aided in the preservation of the Union. EPHRAIM C. RICHARDSON. Ephraim C. Richardson, a farmer and undertaker of New Weston, was born in Monroe township, Darke county, on the 15th 5th of March, 1851, and is a representative of one of the old families of Tennessee. His grandfather, William Richardson, was a native of Claiborne county, Tennessee, and became one of the pioneers of Monroe township, Darke county, Ohio. When he first located here the howling of the wolves at night was a familiar sound, for the region was wild and the work of improvement and progress scarcely begun. He married Sarah Markham, and they became the parents of a large number of children, of whom our subject remembers only six sons and one daughter. Only three are now living : Weaver, a resident of Patterson township; John M. and Thomas M., both of Wabash township; and Mrs. Lovina Warner, a widow now living in Miami county. The mother of these children survived her husband for several years and was an octogenarian at the time of her demise. She now sleeps in Holsapple cemetery. Josiah M. Richardson, the father of our subject, was born in Monroe township about 1830, and after arriving at years of maturity he wedded Mary Thompson. She was born in Monroe township, October 22, 1831, and is a daughter of Israel and Nancy Thompson. The marriage occurred about 80, and their union has been blessed with one son and two daughters, the first being Ephraim C., of this review. The daughters are Lovina and Drusilla. The former is the wife of Michael \Vick, of Patterson township, and they have nine children. Drusilla is the wife of Sylvinas Jones, of Miami county, and they have one son. The father was a carpenter by occupation. At the time of the civil war, however, he put aside all personal considerations and enlisted in Brown township on the 22d of October, 1861, as a private in Company D, Sixty-ninth Ohio Infantry. He died in Nashville on the 24th of August, 1864, his death resulting from a wound received at Atlanta, Georgia. He had faithfully served his country for three years, and had veteranized on the 21st of February, 1864, at Chat- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 453 tanooga. He now sleeps in a soldier's grave in the Nashville cemetery. His widow afterward became Mrs. Jones, and is now living in Laura, Miami county. Ephraim C. Richardson, whose name introduces this record, obtained his education in the district schools and resided with his mother until his marriage, which occurred October 8, 1874, Miss Almeda C. Jones, of Newton township, Miami county, becoming his wife. She is a daughter of Alvin and Mary Ann (Walker) Jones, whose family embraces six children, namely : Mrs. Richardson; Sylvinas, .a resident of Laura, Ohio; Elvira, the wife of William Yount; Sumner, who died at the age of sixteen years ; Loren, who died in infancy; and Warren, who makes his home in Newton township, Miami county. Mr. and Mrs. Richardson are also the parents of six children : Armina Viola, who died at the age of twenty-two months ; Melville Montro, Pearlie Iona, Osco Arlington, Forest Valeria, and the twin brother of Forest, who died in infancy. After his marriage Mr. Richardson engaged in the operation of a saw-mill for one year, but in 1876 located on his farm, comprising eighty-seven acres of rich land. There he carried on agricultural pursuits with excellent success until July, 1899, and during that time he also engaged in the manufacture of tile. At the present time, he is renting his farm, having since July, 1899, been a resident of New Weston, where he is engaged in the undertaking business, as a member of the firm of Richardson & Medford. They are the only undertakers in the town, and are doing a good business. Mr. Richardson is a man of marked energy and carries forward 'to successful completion whatever he undertakes, and it is this quality that has made him successful. In his political views Mr. Richardson is a Republican and on that ticket he has been elected to several local offices. He served for six years in Wabash township as a township trustee, and for seven years was. a member of the board of education. He and his wife are members of the New Light church, and in the community where they are known they are regarded as most highly respected people, well worthy of the esteem and confidence of all with whom they are associated. JAMES FROST. This well-known and popular citizen of Greenville, Ohio, is today the leading florist of Darke county. In his special line of business he has met with well-deserved success, as he started out in life for himself with no capital, and by the energy and zeal which he has manifested he has won the confidence and esteem. of the public. Mr. Frost was born in England, in 1853, a son of Joseph and Rose Hannah (Leach). Frost, life-long residents of that country, where the father was employed as a shepherd. Our subject received a good common school education in his native land, where he spent the first sixteen years of his life, and in 1868 emigrated to the United States, landing in New York city. From there he went to Auburn, New York, where he secured work of a Mr. Ellitson, a successful. Florist, with whom he remained ten years, during which time he thoroughly mastered the business in every detail. The following years were spent with W. W. Green & Son, and in 1890 he came to Greenville, Ohio, and purchased the greenhouses belonging to Nathan Rasor. These he has rebuilt, added to and improved, putting in a hot-water sys- 454 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. tem for heating purposes. All of his buildings are in good repair, and everything about the premises indicates thrift and a careful attention to business. He has many choice and rare plants ; has established a large local trade, and also ships large quantities of flowers and plants outside the state, sending them both east and west, doing a large wholesale business throughout the United States. His life has been one of industry and perseverance, and his success is due entirely to his own well-directed efforts. In February, 1886, Mr. Frost married Miss Mary E. Lent, of- Auburn, New York. They have no children. Fraternally he is a member of Greenville Lodge, No. 143, F. & A. M. ; Greenville Chapter, No. 77, R. A. M. ; Champion Lodge, No. 742, I. O. O. F. ; Greenville Encampment, No. 90; and both he and his wife have been members of the Daughters of Rebekah for several years. He is also a member of Little Turtle Tribe, No..119, Improved Order of Red Men. PETER ALBRIGHT. Peter Albright, one of the leading citizens of Van Buren township, Darke county, Ohio, owns and operates a fine farm of one hundred and eleven acres, which he has placed in a high state of cultivation and improved with good buildings. His possessions have all been acquired through his own efforts, and as the result of his.long sustained endeavor he has won a place among the well-to-do citizens of his community. The first of the Albright family to come to America was our subject's great-grandfather, George Albright, a native of Germany, who settled in Berks county, Pennsylvania. The grandfather, Jacob Albright, spent his entire life in that county, as a farmer, and died about 1842, when over eighty years of age. The father, Peter Albright, was born on the old homestead in Berks county, and on reaching manhood married Catherine Heffner, a native of the same county. Later they moved to Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, locating eighteen miles west of Harrisburg, where the father bought a farm of eighty acres, which he operated until his death in 1885. He was twice married, his first wife being Catherine Heffner, by whom he had several children. There were two children by the second marriage : Peter, our subject; and Lucy. The mother died in 1841. She, too; was twice married, her first husband being Mr. Cline, and she had children by that union. Our subject was born in Berks county, Pennsylvania, August I, 1836, and was quite small when the family moved to Cumberland county, where he made his home until sixteen years of age, his education being obtained in the country schools. At the age of fourteen he commenced learning the cabinet maker's trade, and was to receive thirty-five dollars for three years' work, three weeks of rest and three months of schooling in winter; but he was not given the educational advantages. At the age of sixteen he came to Ohio, having just enough money to bring him to Greenville, where he found work at his trade. After his marriage he rented a farm near that place, but did not remain thereon a year. The following year was spent upon a farm west of Greenville, in Van Buren township, and for seven years he rented Dr. Gard's farm. At the end of that time he purchased fifty acres of land in Van Buren township, erected a house and other buildings, and continued the improvement and cultivation of that farm for twenty years. GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 455 Since then his home has been on his present farm, and he has built thereon a good barn and made many other improvements, which add to the value and 'attractive appearance of the place. While a resident of Greenville, Mr. Albright married Miss Maria Pearson, who was born in Van Buren township, September 15, 1837, a daughter of Allen and Mary .(Arnold) Pearson. Of the five children born of this union,. Monta L. and Mary Estelle died young; Allan married Annie Weaver, and has two children, Opal and a son not 'named ; William, at home, married Mary Rainbarger, and has one child, Ruby ; and Pearl is also at home. The family are members of the Caylor Chapel, United Brethren church, and in his political views Mr. Albright is a stanch Democrat. He is strictly a self-made man, whose success in life is due to industry, enterprise and perseverance, and he has the respect and confidence of all who know him. HENRY STRAKER. The subject of this sketch, whose home is on section 13, Patterson township, is the possessor of a handsome property which now enables him to spend his clays in the pleasurable enjoyment of his accumulations. The record of his early life is that of an active, -*enterprising, methodical and sagacious business man, who bent his energies to the honorable acquirement of a comfortable competence for himself and family. Mr. Straker was born in Hanover, Germany, November 13, 1827, and is a son of John Straker. The father, who was a laboring man, died in 1831, at about the age of fifty years, leaving a widow and three sons : Harmon, who died in Hamilton, Ohio, at the age of twenty-one; Henry, our subject ; and John Henry, who died at the age of four years. The mother, who was in limited circumstances, brought her children to the new world in 1834, with the hope of improving their financial condition. Later she married Henry Copperman, who died in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1861, and she died on a farm a mile and a half west of our subject's place, in 1860, at about the age of sixty years. Mr. Straker relates a few reminiscences of early life in Darke county which ought to be preserved in print. When his father mid family first arrived here, and the subject of this sketch was about ten years of age, the neighbors were Isaac Finkbone, Henry Stotsenbergh, L. Hutcher and Fred Ludacre, the distances to whose residences were respectively six miles south, two miles east, two miles west and ten miles north. The nearest grist-mill was eight miles distant, but it was only a "wet-weather" mill and ran but a small portion of the year. At this mill the grain had to be elevated up to the second story on an incline similar to that which is used at some saw-mills, while the meal as it was ground was delivered by the machinery in a bin below on the first floor. On one occasion the meal ceased to flow down, and an investigation disclosed the fact that a woodpecker was at the hopper picking up the grains from the shoe as fast as they ran down. This was one of those faithful old mills, as a pioneer once said,. that as soon as they had completed the grinding of one grain of corn promptly "tackled" the next grain. The most reliable grist-mill in those clays was the one at the falls of Greenville creek, twenty miles distant ; and it required practically two clays to make the round trip to it, 456 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. on horseback at first and by wagon afterward. On horseback young Henry would take two bushels of grain to be ground, besides a sack of feed for the horse and some provisions ft.,: himself. By wagon, afterward, they had always to take along an ax, with which to cut new roads around mud-holes and other obstacles, and for other emergencie. Henry Straker never attended school more than six months during his life, making his way each morning through the woods a distance of two miles to a rude school-house built of round logs. Among was school-mates was his present wife. It was in 1837 that he came with his mother and stepfather to Darks county and located in what was then a part of Patterson township, but now Wabash township. For half a century he has resided upon his present farm on section 13, Patterson township, first purchasing eighty acres of woodland, for which he paid two hundred and twenty-seven dollars and a half, by working for fifty cents per day. At one time he owned five hundred and fifty-six acres, and though he has given away some six pieces of this property, he still has two hundred and eighty acres, which he has placed under a high state of cultivation and improved with good and substantial buildings. On the 1st of January, 1889, he married his present wife and soon afterward erected his fine brick residence, while his large barns were built. one in 189o, the other in 1899. On the 1st of July, 1852, Mr. Straker married Miss Nancy Swallow, and to them were born ten children, eight sons and two daughters, of whom one son died in infancy. Of them we make the following observations : Matilda is now a widow, a resident cf Patterson township; John operates a part of his father's farm ; Ellen is the wife of Harrison Brining; Aaron A. is a resident of Dayton, Ohio; Harrison makes his home in Versailles; Isaiah is engaged in the grain business in Osgood Grant, born in February, 1865, is at home; William died in 1891; and Iven and Irvin were twins, and the former is now a grocer of Yorkshire, while the latter died at the. age of fyur months. The mother of these children died in 1871, when the twins were only fourteen days old. For his .second wife Mr. Straker married Mrs. Kate Greer, nee Swallow, who died in 188o, leaving one son by her former marriage. On the 1st of January, 1889, Mr. Straker married Mrs. Elizabeth (Mendenhall) Woods, who was born November 23, 1836, and has been three times married. Her first husband was Jacob Brining, by whom she bad six children, and her second a man named Woods, by whom she had five. She has four sons and three daughters still. living. Mr. Brining died after serving seventeen months as a soldier of the civil war, add was buried at Ashland, Kentucky. Her second and third husbands were also among the defenders of the Union during that terrible struggle. Richard Mendenhall, the father of Mrs. Straker, was born in North Carolina, in 1793, and brought his family to Darke county, Ohio, in January; 1837, locating in Patterson township, where the year previously he had entered four hundred and ten acres of government land, and soon afterward bought two eighty-acre tracts for .four hundred dollars. Of his ten children, three sons and four daughters reached years of maturity, and all reared large families, Joseph having ten children, Robert and Aaron both twelve, Delia eleven, Rachel six and Mrs. Straker eleven. GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 457 On the 2d of May, 1864, Mr. Straker enlisted in an independent company and was in the service four months. He is now a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and a Republican in politics. He was the township treasurer seventeen years, and has also filled the offices of trustee and supervisor, in a most commendable and satisfactory manner. His estimable wife is a member of the Christian church. Both are still well preserved, and Mrs. Straker does all her own work, still finding time for a favorite recreation, that of fishing in the millpond on their farm. She can relate many interesting incidents of pioneer life in this region, and well remembers, when only four years old, of seeing her husband, then a flaxen-haired boy, who had been sent to her home for some onions. Her mother lifted her into a tree gum to pick up the onions, and as she looked up at the white-haired boy it made an impression upon her mind that has always been fresh. The question that comes to the mind of the writer is, Has Cupid's arrow been rankling these many years, while the romance of life and love is still preserved in them ? They are widely and favorably known, and it is safe to say that no couple in their community has a larger circle of friends. CHARLES L. KATZENBERGER. The sturdy German element in our national commonwealth has been one of the most important in furthering the substantial and moral advancement of the country, for this is an element signally appreciative of practical values and also of the higher intellectuality which transcends all provincial 'confines. Well may any person take pride in tracing his lineage to such a source. Of the Teutonic race Charles L. Katzenberger is descended and in his life displays many- of the sterling qualities characteristic of that people. While taking no part in public affairs as to office holding, he has vet exerted a wide influence on public opinion, having-ever been active in the support of all measures which he believes will contribute to the general good. He has long been a potent element in the mercantile circles of the city, and is a man whose sterling qualities of character have gained for him the admiration and respect of all with whom he has associated. Mr. Katzenberger was born at Rastadt, in the grand duchy of Baden, March 14, 1834. His native city is an old historic place which had its foundation in the middle ages. It is surrounded by high walls with outer moats, and as a fort is considered of great strategic value, being near the Rhine. Rastadt is memorable for an important treaty of peace completed there in 1714, when the war of the Spanish succession was ended. For many years it was the residence of the mark-grafs, or marquises, of Baden Baden, during which time Mr. Katzenberger's ancestors, as butchers, were purveyors to the court. Joseph C. Katzenberger, the father of our subject, was born at Rastadt, August 27, 1788, and died December 12, 1852; while his wife, Margaretha Becker, was born at Sulzoach, in the Black Forest mountains, in 1798; and reached the age of seventy-three years. Mr. Katzenberger of this review highly prizes a diploma received by his father from the guild of butchers, printed by pen in colors on parchment. announcing that the elder Katzenberger had finished his apprenticeship in 1806. The certificate of mastership granted in 1776. to his grandfather, Franz Jakob Katzenberger, who was 458 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. born in 1752 and died in 1830, is even more ornate. At the time of Charles L. Katzenberger's birth, his father had acquired a hotel property known a: "Zum Goldenen Schwan ;" and as he was the youngest son among eleven children he early had to begin work to provide for his 0wn maintenance. After spending a few years in the public schools, he was apprenticed to a tanner at Offenburg and later continued learning his trade at Gernsbach and Lorrach, being thus engaged until called home by the death of his father. His brother Frank had emigrated to America in 1847, and his brothers, Joseph and Anthony, had. crossed the Atlantic, after having joined the forces of Sigel, Schurz and Hecker in the unsuccessful attempt to establish a republic ii; Baden, in 1848. Wishing to obtain a foothold in the new land of hope, Mr. Katzenberger secured passes through French territory and sailed from Havre, in May, 1854, crossing the Atlantic in sixty-three days on the vessel Carolus Magnus. Arriving in Greenville he was employed as a salesman by his brother Anthony, who had, in connection with a Mr. Pretzinger, established a grocery in the Potter corner of the public square, July 27, 1853. After clerking until 1861, he entered into partnership with his brother Joseph in the brewing business, on Water street, where he toiled seven years, during which time he also traversed Darke and surrounding counties. After being engaged in the grocery business with Anthony Weitbrecht for three years, he entered into a partnership with his brother Anthony in 1871, and at the death of the latter, in 1894, he acquired the other half of the grocery by purchase, and has since conducted the business so long established. In March, 1863, he married Elizabeth Ashman, a daughter of the pioneer, Peter Ashman, born in 180 1, two children being the result of this union : Mary, who died in 1873, four years after her mother's death; and George A., whose biography is included in this work. After the death of his wife and daughter, Mr. Katzenberger lived in rooms adjoining the grocery with his brother and sop for about thirty years. Bound to his native land by the ties of mother tongue and the memories of childhood, he holds that a man who does not honor his native land will not be a worthy citizen of an 'adopted country. He returned to his native land for a visit in December, 1857, on the sailing clipper Dorothea, returning in the spring of 1859 on the steamer Vanderbilt. In June, 1868, accompanied by his sister, who had been here three years, he started for Paris and his native city, and returned, accompanied by his nephew, who Lad spent three years in Rastadt, during November, 1868. Accompanied by his son George, he started across the ocean for the sixth time April 19, 1877, 0n the steamer Suevia, bound for Hamburg via Cherbourg, and after a tour through Germany as far south as Lake Constance they started on the return trip on the Frisia, October 24, 1877. Again in July, 1890, they left for Bremen on the Werra, visited parts 0f Austria, Switzerland, Italy and Alsace, and returned on the Columbia in October and November, 1891. Mr. Katzenberger is particular fond of tours afoot, and has roamed in the beautiful Black Forest mountains and in the Vosges. He has traveled extensively in this country also, more particularly in the forests of the northwestern states while on hunting tours with friends. In politics he has been a consistent Republican, although whenever any policy was GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 459 proposed by his party which he did not deem to be the best for the present or future interests of this country, he never hesitated to express his opinion definitely. He j0ined the order of Odd Fellows in 1857, was a charter member of Champion Lodge, No. 742, Encampment No. 90, and was raised to the degree of Master Mason in 1868. While careful and conservative, he has always favored projects that would benefit the city without involving unreasonable expense and local indebtedness, and his contributions to prospective railroads, diggings for gas, and the like have been liberal. While not connected with any sectarian movements, he has respected the views of others and has given bountifully to hospitals, fraternal homes and aided needy poor in the matter of house rent and groceries. For the public benefit he has been a voluntary observer for the weather bureau of the United States department of agriculture, his records being accurately kept. With his brother Anthony he collected a room full. of archaeological specimens of all kinds, not only displaying them gratis but also endeavoring to interest the public in matters historical. Among the German-Americans Mr. Katzenberger has stood in the foremost ranks because of his intelligence, honesty, affability and kindness. He has willingly given aid and counsel to all. His life is an object lesson of the success attending hard work and plain living DANIEL CAUPP. Daniel Caupp, Who owns and operates a valuable farm on. section 23, Mississinawa township, was born in Ross county, Ohio, on the l0th of August, 1844., and is of German lineage. His father, Frederick, Caupp, was a native of Stuttgart, Germany, born in 1808, and about 1824, when sixteen years of age, he crossed the Atlantic to the new world. He wedded Barbara Zimmerman, also a native of Germany, and they took up their abode on a farm of forty acres in Ross county, Ohio, where most of their children were born. There were six children by the first marriage : John, who enlisted for the service in the Fortieth Ohio Infantry during the civil war and died of typhoid fever while in service, his remains being interred at Plain City, Ohio ; Susan, the wife of Andrew Horlocker ; Daniel, of this review ; David, who died at the age of twenty years, of typhoid fever ; Frederick, who died of the same disease and about the same time; and Gottleib, a farmer residing near the old homestead. The parents of this family started out in life in limited circumstances, but their united efforts enabled them to work their way steadily upward until they became the owners of a valuable farm of ninety acres. The father died about 1880, at the age of sixty-five years, and was laid to rest in Pleasant Ridge cemetery, but the mother still survives him. Mr. Caupp, of this review, pursued his education in the district schools and remained upon the home farm through the period of his boyhood and youth. No event of special importance 0ccurred during that time, yet his was a busy existence, his time being devoted to the labors of the fields through the summer months and the mastery of the common English branches of learning during the winter season. He was married October 12, 1873, to Louisa Beal, of this county. a daughter of Isaac and Mary (Miller) Beal. Their union has been blessed with thirteen children, of whom ten are living-, as follows : Lemuel S., who assists in the operation 0f the home 460 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. farm; David, who is married and lives on a farm in this locality ; William; Myrtle, the wife of George Thomas, of Mississinawa township, by whom she has one son ; Daniel N., Earl, Florence. Iva, Ira and Mabel. Mr. Caupp. votes with the Democracy and keeps well informed on the issues of the clay, but has never sought or desired office. He carries on general farming and recently has devoted eight 0r ten acres to the cultivation of tobacco. His sixty-acre farm was a part of his father's homestead and his rich and fertile tract is under a high state of cultivation. He believes it is best to keep his land in good condition and to f0llow progressive methods of farming. He has upon his place a large, fine, frame residence, which he erected in 1858, and near by stand a commodious .barn and other outbuildings, providing ample shelter for the grain and stock. He has planted many fruit and shade trees around his place, which acid much to the comfort and beauty of his rural home. His work has been carried on so systematically :and carefully that he is to-day the possessor of a comfortable competence and is regarded as one of the representative citizens of his community—which fact entitles him to mention in the history of Darke county. WILLIAM K. KERLIN. History and biography for the most part record the lives of those only who have attained military, political or literary distinction, or who in any other career have passed through extraordinary vicissitudes of fortune. The unostentatious routine of private life, although in the aggregate more important to the welfare of the community, cannot from its nature figure in the public annals. But the names of men who have distinguished themselves in their day and generation for the possession, in an eminent degree, of those qualities of character which mainly contribute to the success of private life and to the public stability of men who without dazzling talents have been exemplary in all their personal and social relations, and enjoyed the esteem, respect and confidence of those around them, ought not to be allowed to perish. Their example is more valuable to the majority of readers than that of illustrious heroes, statesmen or writers. Few can draw rules for their own guidance from the pages of Plutarch, but all are benefited by the delineation of those traits of character which find scope and exercise in the common walks of life. Among the individuals of this class in the state of Ohio none are better entitled to representation in this work than the subject of this sketch. Hs record is the account of a life, uneventful indeed as far. as stirring incident of startling adventure is concerned, yet distinguished by the most substantial qualities of character. His life history exhibits a long and virtuous career of private industry, performed with moderation and crowned with success. It is the record of a well balanced mental and moral constitution. strongly marked by those traits of character which are of especial value in such a state of society as exists in this country. A community depends upon business activity, its welfare is due to this, and the promoters of legitimate and extensive business enterprises may well be termed its benefactors. William K. Kerlin was long prominent in agricultural and financial circles of Darke county, but is now living retired in Greenville, having recently resigned the presidency of the Second National Bank. He was born in Wayne -county, Indiana, March 2, GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 461 1832, and is a son of Elijah and Malinda (Sands) Kerlin, both natives of Washington county, Tennessee. The paternal grandfather was William Kerlin, a native of Norfolk, Virginia, who loyally served his country as a soldier in the war of the Revolution. He married Miss Elizabeth Iles, who was born in Scotland and during her girlhood emigrated to America. Her father fought under General Jackson at the battle of New Orleans and located in the south, but afterward made his way northward to Winchester, Pennsylvania. John Kerlin, the great-grandfather of our subject, came from the north of Ireland to the new world, one hundred and fifty years ago; and on the maternal side our subject is descended from one of the old families of Tennessee, his grandfather being Jacob Sands, a native of that state. His wife, however, was born in North Carolina, and bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Brown. Elijah Kerlin, the father of our subject, was born in Washington county, Tennessee, in 1809, and his wife's birth occurred there in 1808. Leaving the state of their nativity they emigrated to Indiana, in 1831, locating in Wayne county, where Mrs. Kerlin died in September, 1879. William K. Kerlin, whose name introduces this record, was reared in the usual manner of farmer lads, early becoming an active participant in the work 0f field and meadow. The district schools afforded him his preliminary, education, which was later supplemented by study in a select school at Richmond, Indiana. On putting aside his text-books he returned to the farm and for a time assisted in its cultivation through the summer months, While in the winter season he engaged in teaching school. In 1853 he was married to Miss Hannah Jeffris, of 'Wayne county, Indiana, .and a daughter of Isaac and Eliza Jeffris, of that county. The parents, however, were natives 0f Chester county, Pennsylvania. After his marriage Mr. Kerlin located on a farm in Wayne county, Indiana, where he carried on general agricultural pursuits until he was thirty-eight years of age. In 1865 he moved from that county to Harrison township, Darke county, where he continued farming until 1870, when he took up his abode in Greenville. While residing in Harrison township he was elected justice of the peace and was also appointed deputy treasurer, filling the latter position for four years. In 1874 he was elected county treasurer for the regular term of two years and being reelected served in that position for f0ur consecutive years, proving a most capable and reliable official. On the expiration of his second term, he gave his attention to live stock dealing and also engaged in loaning money. This proved an introductory work to the banking business and in 1883 he became the leading organizer and principal stockholder of the Second National Bank of Greenville. Upon its organization he was chosen its president, which responsible position he filled until January, 1900, when he resigned on account of failing health. The success of the institution was clue in a large measure to his efforts. his known reliability, conservative methods and honorable dealing, which have secured a liberal patronage. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Kerlin have been born eleven children, ten 0f whom reached years of maturity, namely, four daughters and six sons., as follows : Anna E., the wife of Professor Seitz ; Emma ; Mary W., the wife of D. W. Bowman; Carrie, the wife of Melville Hunt, a clothing merchant in Greenville ; Oscar, who is engaged in the practice of dentistry ; John D., a physician of Green- 462 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. ville; William L., an undertaker at Fort Wayne, Indiana; Edward J., who is in a freight office in Indianapolis, Indiana ;.James R., a telegraph operator at Columbus, Ohio ; and Leo E., a law student in Cincinnati. Mr. Kerlin has a good farm of eighty-four acres arid also owns considerable city pr0perty, including his fine brick residence on West Fourth street. In his political views he is a gold Democrat. In seeking f0r the causes of his success we find them not so much in their rarity as in their harmonious union, and they may be briefly summed up by saying that he has the tastes of a scholar, the manners of a gentleman and the habits of a man of business,—a combination of qualities that are bound to produce the highest results. It is no very rare thing f0r a poor boy in our country to become a prosperous man and occupy a commanding position in the business world, but many who have fought their way from poverty to wealth, from obscurity to prominence, retain some marks and scars of the conflict. They are apt to be narrow and grasping, even if not unscrupulous. Mr. Kerlin, however, is an instance of a man who has achieved success without paying the price at which it is so often bought, for his prosperity has not removed him farther from his fellow men, but has. brought him into nearer and more intimate relations to them. The more means he has had, the more he has done for those around him: and numbered among Greenville's most honored citizens is William K. Kerlin. JOHN E. BREADEN, SR. Among the retired farmers residing in Greenville is John E. Breaden, who is enjoying a rest which he has truly earned and richly deserves. He has won prominence through honorable business methods, close application, unflagging energy and keen discrimination, steadily working his way upward until he now occupies a position of affluence. His career has indeed been straightforward and honorable, winning him the respect, confidence and good will of his fellowmen and his example is one well worthy of emulation. Mr. Breaden is one of Ohio's native sons, his birth having occurred on the 19th of June, 1828, on a farm near Glendale, a small village in Hamilton .county, Ohio. His father, Dr. Jeremiah Breaden, was born on the Emerald Isle, but in early life came to the new world and .was married in New Jersey. His wife bore the maiden name of Epenetus Sorter, and was a daughter of Thomas Sorter, a native of New Jersey. With her husband she came to Ohio and they took up their abode upon a farm near Glendale, where they spent the greater part of their lives, Mrs. Breaden dying in Springdale, this state. John E. Breaden, whose name introduces this review, enjoyed such educational privileges as were afforded in the common schools of Hamilton county, his tutor being Professor Ferman, a most earnest and able educator. On leaving school he entered a drug store belonging to his brother, William, in Hamilton, where, he learned the druggist's business, continuing his connection with that enterprise for three years. In 1830 he came to Greenville, purchased the drug store and stock of J. F. Howell and succeeding to the business he conducted his store .there for three years, after which he sold out and removed to Brown township, Darke county, locating on a farm which he made his home for two years. He then re- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 463 turned to Greenville and became associated in business with John Hufnagle, his father-in-law, conducting a general mercantile establishment until 1865. Once more Mr. Breaden disposed of his mercantile interests in this city and resumed agricultural pursuits, locating in Richland township, where he engaged in diversified farming. Through a period of nineteen years he devoted his time and energies to the cultivation of field and meadow and to the raising of stock. That period of his life was one of marked industry, guided by sound judgment and characterized by careful management, and thus he yearly augmented his capital until he found himself in the possession of a handsome competence. When almost two decades had passed he removed from his farm to Greenville, Ohio. His place comprised three 'hundred and fifty acres of rich and arable land, ,which was under a high state of cultivation. In addition he raised stock in considerable number, including cattle, hogs and sheep, all of a high grade. He raised sheep for both wool and mutton and his stock brought to him a good income. After his last removal to Greenville he retired fr0m active business, yet superintended his investments. On the 29th of May, 1851, Mr. Breaden was married to Miss Anjumila Hufnagle, who was born in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, on the 19th of 'May, 1832, and is a daughter of John Hufnagle, deceased, wh0 was the president of the Greenville Bank and for many years a leading merchant of the city. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Breaden have been born three children : Jan Edward, who was born July 28, 1852, was graduated at Chickering Institute, in Cincinnati, with the class of 1873, subsequently read law in the office of the firm of Calderwood & Cole, in Greenville, was admitted to the Darke county bar in 1876 and died June 9, 1897, respected by all who knew him; Marie Eva,. born February 8, 1854, and died in infancy; and Lillian Vincincia, born December 30, 1861, who was educated at St. Mary's of the Springs Convent near Columbus, Ohio, and afterward became the wife of Frank T. Conkling, who is one of the enterprising citizens of Greenville and the capable cashier of the Greenville Bank. They have one son,. Pierson Breaden, born June 19, 1887. Mr. Breaden still owns his fine farm in. Richland township and rents it to tenants. of whom he requires that it shall be kept in. a high state of cultivation. In 1899 he began the erection of one of the finest residences in Darke county, probably unsurpassed by any home in this locality. It is located. on North Broadway and is built of stone and brick in a late and beautiful architectural design; its 'exterior appearance and internal adornment, together with its splendid modern improvements, makes it an ornament to the city and reflects credit upon the owner. It stands as a monument to his thrift and enterprise in former years and is a fitting abode for one who has led such an active, useful and honorable life, that he may therein spend his last years in quiet re. tirement. Mr. Breaden is a citizen of sterling worth, commanding the esteem of all with whom he has been .brought in con-- tact and with0ut any special advantages of education in his youth he has advanced. steadily upward step by step to a prominent place among the substantial representatives of Darke county. JOHN D. KERLIN, M. D. Careful preparation for the practice of Medicine and surgery, together with close attention to the duties of his profession, has 464 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. gained for Dr. Kerlin an enviable place in the ranks of the medical fraternity of Darke county, and the record of his life cannot fail to prove of interest to many of our readers, for he is widely and favorably known not only in Greenville, where he makes his home, but also throughout much of the surrounding country. He was born at Whitewater, Wayne county, Indiana, February 27, 1865, and is the second son of W. K. and Hannah ( Jeffries) Kerlin. His boyhood days were passed in the county of his nativity, and with his parents he removed to Darke county, living for a time upon a farm, after which the family took up their abode in Greenville. Here he enjoyed the educational advantages afforded by the public schools, completing the high school course by graduation in the class of 1882. Determining to devote his life to professional labors, he soon afterward began reading medicine in the office and under the direction of Dr. L. S. Kelsey, of Richmond, Indiana, a noted surgeon of that place. Sub-sequently he entered the Medical College of Ohio, at Cincinnati, and, mastering the regularly prescribed course in that institution, was graduated in 1886, with high honors. He won the special prize offered by the college,. which was a hospital appointment to the Good Samaritan Hospital, and there he served for one year, supplementing his theoretical knowledge by practical and varied experience. On the expiration of that period Dr. Kerlin located in Stelvideo, Darke county, Ohio, where he remained for six years, and in the fall of 1893 he came to Greenville, where he has since conducted a general practice, giving special attention to surgery, gaining from his faithful performance of each day's duties strength and inspiration for the labors of the following day. He keeps in close touch with the progress made by the profession through his perusal of medical journals, and carries his investigations far and wide into the realms of medical science and research. In 1893 the Doctor was united in marriage with Miss Minnie Martin, a daughter of Eli and Harriet (Trump) Martin. They have a pleasant home in Greenville and a large circle of friends, and the hospitality of many of the best homes in the city is extended to them. The Doctor is now serving as the health officer of Greenville. Socially he is connected with Greenville Lodge, F. & A. M. ; Greenville Chapter, R. A. M.; the I. O. O. F.; Independent Order of Red Men, and Knights of Pythias, and he finds ample opportunity along professional lines to exemplify the beneficent and helpful principles which underlie these orders. PETER ARMSTRONG. It is with pleasure that the publishers of this volume are able to present the life history of the gentleman whose name appears above and to note the success which he has achieved and the honorable methods he has followed in winning prosperity. His life has been in exemplification of what may be accomplished by determined purpose and unfaltering energy, and in many respects his history is well worthy of emulation. Undeterred by the difficulties and obstacles in his path he has advanced steadily step by step until he is now found upon the plain of affluence, enjoying the comforts and advantages which have come to him as the reward of his well directed labors. The Armstrong family, of which he is a representative, is of sturdy Scotch origin. GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 465 James Armstrong, the grandfather, was a native of Scotland and emigrated to this country soon after the struggle in which our forefathers secured national independence. He settled in Washington county, Pennsylvania, which at that time was an almost unbroken wilderness, and in years of toil cleared a farm, upon which he reared his family and spent his remaining days, an honored and respected citizen of this community. It was upon that farm that John Armstrong first opened his eyes to the light of day, in the year 1793. There he remained until 1818, assisting his father in the work of cultivating and improving the land, and attended the district schools of the neighborhood. In the year mentioned he determined to try his fortune in the more recently developed section of the country, and after a long and tiresome journey through a wild region he arrived in Darke county, Ohio, finding a mere hamlet where now stands the beautiful and thriving city of Greenville. There he sought and found employment at his trade of carpentering, which he had learned in the east. Later he also engaged in the manufacture of brick, carrying on that pursuit in connection with. contracting and building fora period of three years. He then disposed of his village interests and engaged in farming in Greenville township, but in a short time he again returned to Greenville, where he lived for about Iwo years. In 1833 he purchased eighty acres of land in Jackson township. At that early day the country was covered with heavy forests and it was necessary for this hardy pioneer to cut his own road through the woods, a distance of three miles, in order to reach his land. Such obstacles as these; however, did not discourage him and serve now to illustrate the sterling character and resolute purpose of the pioneers. What would now seem to be insurmountable obstacles seemed but to serve as the impetus for renewed effort on the part of those. early settlers, who in the midst of the forest hewed out their homesteads. Upon his eighty acres of land Mr. Armstrong made a small clearing and erected a log cabin in which he lived until 1856, when a frame house was built. It is still standing, and in this more modern abode the father passed away July 15, 1864. He was one of the most prominent men in Darke county, who not only ably performed the work of his farm, but also found time to devote. to public duties. He was a man of strong mentality and excellent education. Soon after his arrival in Darke county he took up the study of law; which well. qualified him to discharge the duties of justice of the peace, to which office he was elected. He Was afterward chosen associate judge And for a period of six years served in that capacity, filling the position with marked ability and fidelity. On the expiration of his term he was again elected justice and held that office up to the time of his death. He also took a prominent part in township affairs and served his fellow townsmen in all its offices. In politics he was first a Whig and later a Republican. He was long a faithful and consistent member of the Christian church, contributing liberally to its support and doing all in his power to promote its work, and during its early existence its meetings were held at his home or in a beautiful grove on his land. Mr. Armstrong was twice married. He first wedded a Miss Vail, and by their union two children were born, one of whom, Mrs. Fanny Douglass, a resident of Jackson 466 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. township, is still living. For his second wife the father chose Miss Elston, a daughter of Levi and Elizabeth Elston. She was born in New Jersey and came to Washington township with her people about 1820. Nine children were born of their union, eight of whom reached years of maturity : Thomas, now deceased; Peter, whose name introduces this record; Sarah, deceased; Hugh, who resides in German township ; Elizabeth, who married Silas Hart and is living in Darke county; John, who met death upon the. battlefield March 26, 1865; Mary Jane, widow of Daniel Dowler and a resident of Washington township ; and Catherine, wife of Augustus Stoner, who resides on the old Armstrong homestead in Jackson township. The mother of these children survived her husband several years, passing away in April, 1884, and thus the lives of two of Darke county's honored pioneer people were ended, but. they left behind them the priceless heritage of a good name and the memory of noble deeds. Peter Armstrong was born in Greenville township; November 21, 1831, and his early life was spent in the usual manner of farmer lads of that period; He pursued his education in the district school when it was in session and worked upon the home farm during the summer months. He remained with his parents until he had reached the age of sixteen years, when he began to earn his own livelihood by work in a saw-mill in Jackson township... He was there employed for nearly six years, and on the expiration of that period was married. In August, 1854, he leased some land in' Washington township, living there for a year and a half, and in 1856 he purchased eighty acres—a portion of his present farm—which comprises one hundred and thirty-one acres. The place was but partially cleared and somewhat improved, a log house having been built. This was his home for some years, but as time passed he was enabled to add all the comforts of civilization, and to-day he is recognized as one of the leading, influential and prosperous agriculturists of Darke county. Where once stood the forest trees in their primeval strength are now seen beautiful 'fields under a high state of cultivation, and the primitive log. cabin, with its mud-and-stick chimney, has long since been replaced by a modern and commodious residence. Good barns and other outbuildings provide shelter for grain and stock, and the owner for some years. has been extensively engaged in stock dealing. His life has been one of marked industry and great labor has been required to accomplish the changes which have been made, but his marked enterprise was one of his leading characteristics and has brought to hilt well merited success. The lady who has been to Mr. Armstrong a faithful companion and helpmate on life's journey for nearly a half century was in her maidenhood Miss Catherine Henning, daughter of Jacob and Barbara Henning. Her people came to Darke county from Montgomery county, locating in the southeast corner of Washington township. They had five children, of whom Mrs. Armstrong is the second. The father died in 1841 and the mother in 1881. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong occurred July 25, 1854, and has been blessed with four children : David, a locomotive engineer on the Big Four Railroad, now residing in East St. Louis; Sarah J., the deceased wife of Andrew Bickel; Hugh S. ; and Mary, the wife of William Oukst, who is living on the homestead farm. GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 467 Mr. Armstrong gave his political support in early life to the .Whig party and on its dissolution joined the Republican ranks. His first 'ballot was cast for General Winfield Scott for the presidency. He has always taken an active interest in township affairs, having served as, assessor for five years, as treasurer. for five years, as trustee for two years and as constable. He has also been a member of the board of education for fifteen years and has ever discharged his duties with marked promptness and fidelity. Both he and his Wife are consistent members of the German• Baptist church. They have now reached the evening of life, and their many friends join in the wish that they may live to celebrate their fiftieth wedding anniversary. They have ever been people of reliability, honesty and worth and enjoy the respect of all with whom they have been associated. JOHN E. BREADEN, JR. BY JUDGE H. M. COLE. In the death of John Edward Breaden, Jr., Greenville and Darke county lost a citizen whom it had learned to respect and honor. At the . funeral services Judge Henry M. Cole pronounced the following eulogy upon his fellow member of the bar : "John Edward Breaden, Jr., was born in Greenville, Ohio, July 28, 1852, and was partly educated in the schools of our city and finished his educational course at Chickering Institute in Cincinnati, Ohio, at which institution he graduated in 1873. Soon after that he entered the law office of Calderwood & Cole, of which firm I was the junior member, and commenced the study of law, continuing there until he was admitted to The bar in 1876.. He soon afterward formed a partnership with Judge Clark and entered upon the active practice of his profession, which business relation continued for more than three years. He afterward formed a partnership with his former preceptor, Judge Calderwood, with whom he continued to practice his profession until Judge Calderwood's death, June 9, 1891. From that time up until his last sickness, he continued in the active practice of his profession alone. "The deceased was kind and respectful in his intercourse with all who came in contact with him. As a student he was industrious and possessed a broad and comprehensive mind, and when he was admitted to the bar he was well equipped to commence the following of his chosen profession. By prompt business habits and courteous treatment of his clients and friends he soon acquired a practice of which any young lawyer might well be proud, and in a few years became eminently successful and prominent in his profession. By his association with his former tutor, Judge Calderwood, who was then especially prominent as a criminal lawyer, he seemed to imbibe his taste for criminal practice, and long before his death he had become one of the most prominent criminal lawyers in this county, and his reputation as such extended even far beyond the limits of his own county. "In the pursuit of his calling and in his intercourse with his fellow Members of the bar, he was respectful, kind and courteous and possessed without exception their respect and esteem. He was industrious and his cases were well prepared. He was an able and eloquent advocate, ever zealous in presenting the cause of his client in both civil and criminal cases, and if they failed of success it was not the fault of their counsel, but the fault of their cause; in short, we 468 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. may truthfully say that at, and for a. long 'time before, his untimely end, he stood in the 'front rank of his profession. The earnestness and zeal he manifested for his clients, the energy. and ability with which he presented their claims and advocated their causes before a court or jury, won for him the confidence of those who had sought his services, and by a course of fair dealing and generous treatment he retained their friendship, their confidence and their business. "He was modest in his intercourse with others and careful not to wound the feelings of any. Many of us have been associated with him in the. preparation and trial of cases and we always found in him an agreeable associate, ever willing tt0make a valuable suggestion and ever able to render valuable assistance; and when a few years ago he was engaged with a number of us in important criminal cases, involving days of labor, in our consultations I always listened anxiously for his suggestions and advice; I believe that all of us did; for he scarcely made a suggestion but that it was concurred in and adopted by his co-counsel. I then became most favorably impressed with his abilities as a lawyer. Honorable in his dealings with all, straightforward in his course through life, he won a reputation worthy of imitation, not only by the young man who is just beginning his career in life, but by those of us who are older and yet to live after him. "We have all heard his eloquent and energetic appeals in our worldly courts in the behalf of the cause of his many clients. We have seen him defend and contend for their rights with a zeal and in a manner that could but excite the admiration of all, and that won for him the reputation of an able advocate and jurist. Yet to-day that voice so often listened to by us, so eloquently and ably advocating the causes of his clients, is hushed forever—forever hushed in death. Those eloquent appeals to earthly courts and earthly juries will be heard no more, that fan.iliar voice will never again reverberate throughout our halls of justice. His life is ended. His history has begun and ceased. He who was so intimately connected with us has passed from life into eternity. "Our associations, which have for many years been so intimate, are. forever ended. At the time of his death he was a member of the Ohio state board of pardons, to which position he was appointed by Governor Bushnell, who held him in high esteem, and who in his own language said of him, 'He was an honest man and a . good officer.' "This is the fifth time within the past year that we have been called upon to perform this sad duty; to pay our last respects to a deceased member of our profession. These recurring events remind us not only of our duties to ourselves, but to our fellow men, and that there is an end to all earthly things. It reminds me that almost all of those who were practicing at the bar of this county when I entered upon the stage of professional life, which seems but a short time ago, have passed from time into eternity, and that to-day I. am attending the last sad funeral rites of one who was my student, long after I had entered upon the stern duties of life. By his death a bright and shining light has gone out. By it we are reminded of the uncertainties of this life and the uncertainty of all. that is mortal. His manly form,. which has until so lately moved among us and with us, is forever laid low in death, and will soon return to mother earth. 468 -igh esteem in which he was held by the GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 469 members of tile Greenville bar, who knew him best, are fully expressed in the resolutions just read. These resolutions were adopted unanimously and sincerely as evidenced by the trembling voices of those who spoke* at the meeting of Our bar this afternoon. His memory will ever be held in high esteem among us all. We, as his friends and associates, now bid him a final and eternal farewell on earth." HUGH L. ARMSTRONG. The Armstrong family is so well known in Darke county that this representative of the name needs no special introduction to the readers of this volume. His entire life has been passed within the borders of the county and he is classified among tit reliable and progressive businessmen. He was born on the old home farm, June 15, 1860, and is a Son of Peter Armstrong, a worthy pioneer, who is represented elsewhere in this volume. It was his ambition to become a lawyer, but this desire met with the objection of his parents and his attention was therefore given to farming and kindred interests. His education -was pursued in the district schools, which he attended through the winter months. until he had attained the age of nine, teen years. Through the summer season he assisted in the farm work, front the time of the early spring planting until the crops were harvested in the autumn. When he was seventeen years of age he joined his brother, Davis, in the purchase and operation of the first traction engine ever used in that county.- They continued business in that line until April, 1885, when Hugh Armstrong became associated with the firm of Gaar, Scott & Company, of Richmond, Indiana, one of the most extensive manufactur ing houses turning out threshing and milling machinery in the world. Mr. Armstrong began with them as local agent and so continued until 1889, when he went upon the road as traveling agent, representing the firm in western Ohio. He was thus employed until 1892, when he was appointed to the position of general agent and now has control of twenty counties in the western part of this state and eight counties in eastern In-. diana. He has full charge of all their goods in this territory and the position is a lucrative one, owing to the extensive sales made in this region. Mr. Armstrong maintains his headquarters at Hillgrove, and in addition to the general agency he carries on farming. On his land in Washington township he has a large machine repair shop, where he is prepared to repair all machines of which he is the agent. On the 1st of September, 1881, Mr. Armstrong was married to Miss Elizabeth By-ram, a- daughter of James and Elizabeth Byram, now residents of Dayton, but formerly of Hillgrove. Their union has been blessed with three children—Jennie, Clara B. and John E.—and the family circle yet remains unbroken by the hand of death. Mr. Armstrong exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Republican party and keeps well informed on the issues of the day, but has never sought or desired office for himself. He is a member of the Masonic lodge in Greenville, in which he has attained the Master Mason degree. A man of good business ability, he is sagacious and farsighted in his undertakings and at all times reliable and trustworthy: He is well known in commercial circles in western Ohio and .enjoys the high regard of all with whom he has been brought in contact. In manner 470 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. he is genial and courteous and his many excellent qualities have made him a very popular citizen in his native county. GEORGE W. SIGAFOOS. On the roster of the county officers of Darke county appears the name of George W. Sigafoos, who is holding the position of auditor, and in the discharge of his duties is manifesting a loyalty and ability that has gained for him uniform commendation. He was born in Miami county, Ohio, June 8, 1856, a son of James and Margaret (Bitner) Sigafoos. His paternal grandfather, Frederick Sigafoos, was one of the pioneers of Holmes county, Ohio, and the great-grandfather of our subject was a native of Scotland. James Sigafoos was born in Holmes county, January 19, 1821, and spent his entire life in the Buckeye state. Having arrived at years of maturity he married Miss Bitner, who was born in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 2 1, 1823, and was a daughter of Tobias Bitner. George W. Sigafoos, whose name introduces this record, spent the first twelve years of his life in Miami county, Ohio, and pursued his education in it's public schools. Later he resided in Iowa, Missouri and other western states, enjoying such educational privileges as were afforded by the common-school systems of the localities with which he was identified. In 1874 he returned to Gordon, Darke county, Ohio, where he engaged in school teaching, following that profession through eight winters. On the expiration of that period he engaged in the manufacture of drain tile at Bradford, Darke county, for three years, conducting a successful enterprise. He was then appointed postmaster of Bradford and filled that position for two years. He has since continued in the public service and is a most reliable and competent official. In 1889 he was appointed deputy auditor under Louis C. Klipstine, acting in that capacity for six years. In the fall of 1894 he was nominated on the Democratic ticket as their candidate for county auditor, being elected by a handsome majority fora term of three years. He filled that position so acceptably that in the fall of 1898 he was re-elected, so that his service in that office will cover a period of six years. He thoroughly Understands the duties of the position, both in principle and detail, and is prompt, accurate and reliable in their discharge. In September, 1880, Mr. Sigafoos was married to Miss Catherine Routzong, of Bradford, Darke county, a daughter of Solomon and Susan (Kendall) Routzong. They now have one interesting son, Robert S., who was born February 24, 1891. In the fall of 1899 Mr. Sigafoos made the race for auditor of state on the Democratic ticket and won a large vote, but Ohio went Republican that year. He began teaching in his seventeenth year and since that time has depended solely upon his own effort. During the years of his active connection with the profession he was regarded as one of the most capable educators in that locality. Clearly defined purpose and consecutive effort in the affairs of life have secured his advancement and made him one of the highly esteemed residents of his adopted .county. JACOB B. YOUNG. Certain qualities are indispensable to the successful conduct of a hotel. Not only must the host be a man of excellent business and GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 471 executive ability, enterprising and progressive, but he must also possess a genial disposition and a cordial nature, which will lead to a sincere interest in his guests and prompt him to labor earnestly to promote their welfare and comfort. Upon such qualities depends his prosperity and in none of these regards is Mr. Young lacking. Since 1897 he has been engaged in the hotel business in Pittsburg, and has become widely and favorably known to the traveling public, his genuine worth winning him the warm regard of all with whom he has come in contact. He is of German lineage, his grandfather, Daniel Young, haying been a native of Germany, whence he came to America when six years of age, in company with his parents. They landed at Philadelphia and he was reared in Berks county, Pennsylvania. Later he was engaged in farming there and was a resident of that county till his death. His son, Daniel Young,. the father of our subject, was born in Berks county, was educated in the common schools and was reared upon the old homestead. He became a farmer and butcher and died at the age of fifty-six years. He was twice married and by the first union had one child, Lavina, who died unmarried. After the death of his first wife he wedded Mary Berchle, a native of Berks county, Pennsylvania, who survived her husband about twenty-six years and passed the eightieth milestone on life's journey. Albert' Young, their eldest child, came to Ohio in 1855 and spent his remaining days in Montgomery county. He served for four years in the Sixty -ninth Ohio Cavalry during the civil war and was a most loyal defender of the Union. Annie is now the wife of David Davidheiser, of Dayton. William, who served for four years in the Sixty-ninth Ohio Cavalry and was shot through the arm and leg, is now living in the Soldiers' Home in Dayton. Jacob B. is the next younger. George, who is living near Dayton, served for one hundred days as a defender of the Union. Sarah is the wife of John Moymer, -of Montgomery county, Ohio. Daniel was a noted trapper and hunter, but has not been heard from for twenty-two years. Jacob B. Young, whose name begins this review, was born in Exeter, Barks county, Pennsylvania, September 26, 1838. He began work on the farm almost as soon as old enough to hold a pitchfork and since the age of twelve years has been entirely dependent upon his own efforts. He was at that time left fatherless and through the passing years his labors have brought to him the money which has supplied him with life's necessities and its comforts. He at first received only six dollars per month in compensation for his services. He remained for one year with Mr. Stoner, and at the expiration of that period was two hundred and fifty dollars in debt. He was an expert farm hand, accomplishing more work than almost any other man of his neighborhood. He mowed with a scythe with thirty-two - other men in the field and had two swaths all day. He worked in the harvest field with eighteen hands and received but fifty cents per day for his labor. The highest wages he ever obtained while residing in Pennsylvania was eleven dollars per month. In 1859 Mr. Young came to Ohio in company with his brother, George, and on reaching Dayton had but twenty dollars in his pocket. He began work as a farm hand in that locality, receiving sixteen dollars a month for his services. On the expiration of six months his aunt desired him to op- 472 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. erate her farm on the shares and when his employer learned of his decision to leave, he offered him twenty dollars a month. He, however, .took charge of the farm of Mrs. John Stauffer., his aunt; remained thereon for two years, cultivating the land on the shares for eighteen months,' during which time he became the owner of two good horses and a wagon. He then rented a large farm and sent for his mother and two sisters to join him in Ohio. This they .did and together they remained upon the rented farm for a year. Mr. Young was married, in 1863, to Miss Martha Kantner, and then located at Stringtown, Montgomery county, where he engaged in farming for a year. He afterward spent five years on Mrs. Flory's farm, on the expiration of which period he removed to Dayton, where he engaged in teaming. He was also engaged in raising tobacco for five years, after which he again devoted his energies to farming for five years on two tracts of land. On the expiration of that period he came to Arcanum and rented a farm east of town, there carrying on agricultural pursuits for nine years. In the meantime he had purchased seventy-five acres of land in Monroe township and :at the end of nine years took up his abode upon his property; making it his home for six years. In the spring of 1891; however, he purchased property in Pittsburg and opened a general store, which he conducted for eight years. Since 1897 he has been the proprietor of the Young Hotel. He is an enterprising business man and in the conduct of the various interests with which he has been connected he has followed progressive methods and modern ideas, which have led to his advancement step by step until he has reached the plane of affluence. Mrs. Young was born May 11, 1844 in Jefferson township, Montgomery county, a daughter of William and Nancy (Carter) Kantner. Her -father was a native of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, was educated in the common schools, was reared on a farm and when a young man came to Ohio. He was married in Montgomery county and located on his farm in Jefferson township, where he spent his remaining days, his death occurring in 1864, when he 'had reached the age of fifty-eight years. His .wife survived him until 1896, and passed away at the advanced age of ninety-seven. They were members of the Reformed church and in politics Mr. Kantner was a stanch Democrat. Their children were Edward and Perry, now deceased ; Mary, the wife of Abraham Toot, of Dayton; Lizzie, the deceased wife of John Caylor ; Maria, the wife of George Anderson ; and Mrs. Young. The mother of these children was born in Hagerstown, Maryland, and when a young lady came with her parents to Ohio, the journey being made in wagons. After six weeks spent upon the road they arrived in Montgomery county, where a location was made. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Young have been born ten children : Charles, who married Belle Eisenbarger and resides in Monroe township ; William, who wedded Katie Tobias and is living in Pittsburg; Cora, who married Allen Spiller and resides in Pittsburg ; Mollie, the wife of Charles Wolf, of Pittsburg; John, who wedded Louis Woods and is located in Missouri ; Clinton, who married Blanche Fynn and resides in Idaho ; Levi, who died at the age of four years ; Joseph married Ethel Oakes, and Jessy and Ira, both at home. The family is widely and favorably known in Pittsburg and in Darke county, and Mr. Young is GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 473 recognized as a public-spirited citizen, who manifests a deep and active interest in everything pertaining to the general welfare. He gives his political support to the Democracy, and while in Montgomery county he served in several township offices,. discharging his duties with promptness and fidelity. He may truly be called a self-made man, for he started out in life empty handed and has steadily worked his way upward, overcoming all difficulties and obstacles in his path by determined purpose. Thus he has advanced and to-day he occupies a position among the substantial Citizens of the community. JOSEPH M. BICKEL. Joseph. M. Bickel is now a well known and able practitioner at the Darke county bar and formerly served as probate judge. He maintains his residence in Greenville and has a large and distinctively representative patronage there. He was born upon a farm in Washington township, on the 2d of December, 1852, and is of German lineage. The grandfather, Andrew Bickel, was a native of Germany, whence he crossed the Atlantic to the new world. Tobias Bickel, the father of our subject; was born in Center county, Pennsylvania, May 6, 1811, and in the same year was brought by his parents to the Buckeye state. In 1848 he became a resident. of Darke county, locating in Washington township, where he carried on general farming, becoming one of the thrifty agriculturists of his community. He was a Democrat in his political affiliations; but never sought nor desired the honors and .emoluments. of public office. He married Miss Elizabeth McAdams, who was born in Clermont county, November 15, 1815. She is still living and occupies the old homestead in Washington township, but her late husband died May 8, 1899, at the age of eighty-eight years. This worthy couple were the parents of eleven children, eight of whom—five sons and three daughters—reached mature years, while three sons and three daughters are yet living. Joseph M. Bickel, of this review, is the eight in order or birth in the family. He spent his early days upon the home farm, pursuing his education in the district schools of the neighborhood through the winter season. At the time of early spring plowing and planting he took his place in the fields and assisted in their cultivation until after the crops were garnered in the autumn.. Later he attended the normal school at Ada, Ohio, where he prepared for teaching. In his eighteenth year he had charge. of his first school and for twelve years he continued to follow that profession in Darke county. This was but a stepping stone to higher professional labors, however. He came to Greenville and read law in the office of Hon. David L. Meeker, being admitted to the bar in June, 1885. He began the practice of law in Greenville and soon after entered into partnership with Hon. M. T. Allen and Judge James I. Allread, which connection was continued until Mr. Allen's removal to California, when the firm name was changed to Allread & Bickel. That partnership was continued until the junior member was elected probate judge, in the fall of 1893, having been nominated on the Democratic ticket. He took charge of the office February 9, 1894. He was reelected in i896, his term of office expiring in February, 1900. He proved a very competent and reliable official and at the latter. date left the position to be succeeded by 474 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. George A. Jobes. He then resumed the private practice of law in Greenville and has a large patronage whereby he is connected with much of the important litigation there in the courts c5 the district. In February, 1900, he entered into partnership with Guy C. Baker, under the firm name of Bickel & Baker, and they enjoy a liberal share of the public patronage. Mr. Bickel owns a :good farm in Greenville township and also has valuable city property. On the 1st of October, 1883, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Bickel and Miss Mertie Clark, of Wood county, Ohio, a .daughter of Silas and Mariah Clark. By their marriage were born two children : Lucile, born October 11, 1885, and Paul C., who was born September 30, 1887. Judge Bickel is a member of Fort Black Lodge, No. 413, F. & A. M., at New Madison, Ohio. For four years he has served as a school examiner by appointment. and he is recognized as one of the most valuable citizens of Greenville. As a lawyer he possesses excellent ability, is a close and discriminating student and his •devotion to his clients' interests in proverbial. He throws himself easily and naturally into the argument with a self-possession and deliberation that indicates no straining after effect, but a precision and clearness is found in his statement, an accurateness and strength in his argument which speak a mind trained in the severest school of investigation and to which the closest reasoning is habitual and easy. JESSE WOODS. Jesse Woods, deceased, was for many years prominently identified with the agri.cultural interests of German township, Darke county, Ohio, where his widow still owns a fine farm of one hundred and sixty acres, which she rents. He was born in Tyler county, Virginia, March 25, 1819, and was a son of James Woods, a native of London, England. The father was a silk weaver by trade, but for about twenty-two years followed the sea. He was married at the age of forty and died at the extreme old age of one hundred and two years, two months and twenty-six days. His death occurred at the home of our subject in German township and at that time he was the oldest man in Darke county, where he located in 1821. Jesse Woods was about three years old when brought to this county by his parents and here he was reared to manhood. Throughout life he followed agricultural pursuits and continued to reside on. the old homestead in German township,. where he died September 3, 1896. He was widely and favorably known and at one time served as a county commissioner in a most creditable and satisfactory manner. In his political views he was a Democrat. January 19, 1844, Mr. Woods married Miss Anna Stephens, who was born in German township July 21, 1822, a daughter of David and Lydia (Wagner) Stephens, both natives of Pennsylvania, the former born in Washington county, the latter near Harrisburg. The father enlisted in the war of 1812 When about nineteen years of age, but had to run away to enter the army, as his parents were Dunkards and opposed to war. He was one of the boys employed in carrying provisions to the Kentuckians. As a young man he located in Preble county, Ohio, and after his marriage came to Darke county, making his home in German township throughout the remainder of his life. He died when past the age of eighty-eight years, GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 475. his wife at the age of seventy-five years. In his political views he was a Democrat. Mrs. Woods is the eldest in a family of ten children, seven sons and three daughters, but only four are now living. She has traveled extensively over the United States, visiting Washington, the centennial in 1876 and Other places of interest, but is now living quietly at her pleasant home in Palestine, Darke county. She is well preserved for one of her age and is highly respected and esteemed by all who know her. Religiously she is an earnest and consistent member of the Reformed church. To Mr. and Mrs. Woods were born thirteen children, sons and ten daughters, namely : Jennie, now the wife of Dr. Squire Dickey, of German township, this county ; Ella W., the wife of Thomas J. Perry; Sarah the wife of Charles Harp; Levi, a resident of German township; Rebecca, the wife of John A. Lease, of Greenville; Ada, the wife of James Wilcox, of Palestine; Laura, the wife of J. C. Turner, of Neave township ; Milton, who died at the age of five years; Malinda, who died at the age of four years; Cordelia, who died at the age of three years; Louisa, who died at the age of nineteen years; James, who died in infancy; and Alice, who died at the age of two years. JAMES M. LANSDOWNE. No compendium such as the province of this work defines in its essential limitations will serve to offer fit memorial to the life and accomplishment of the honored subject of this memoir, a man remarkable in the breadth of his wisdom, in his indomitable perseverance, his strong individuality, and yet one whose entire Hie had not one esoteric phase, being an open scroll, inviting the closest scrutiny. True, he accomplished much in life, and yet his entire accomplishments but represented the result of the fit utilization of the innate talent which was his, and the directing of his efforts along those lines where mature judgment and rare discrimination lead the way. He was indeed an important factor in the business and moral life of the community with which he was connected, and in his death Greenville and Darke county lost one of its most valued citizens. James Moreton Lansdowne was a native of Clermont county, Ohio, born on the 24th of December, 1846, his parents being Dr. Zachariah M. and Mary Gray (Hoover) Lansdowne. His father was a native of Kentucky, and in childhood removed to Clermont county, Ohio, where he was reared and married Miss Hoover, a native of that county. This worthy couple became the parents of eight children, James M. being the only son and second child. About the year 1850 his parents took their family to Cincinnati, and in 1855 came to Greenville, where Mr. Lansdowne, of this review, made his home until his life's labors were ended. In the public schools he acquired his preliminary education, which was supplemented by one's years study in Antioch College; but in 1864, when not yet eighteen years of age, he put aside all personal considerations; and responded to his country's call for troops. Prompted by a spirit of Patriotism, he enlisted as a member of the One Hundred and Fifty-second Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served until the close of hostilities, taking part the short but active engagements of his regiment, and remaining faithfully at his post until the starry banner of the nation was planted in the capital of the southern Confederacy. After his return to Greenville Mr. Lans- 476 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. downe was connected with the business interests of the city in various clerical capacities until 1869, when he accepted the position of cashier in the Greenville Exchange Bank, which position he acceptably filled until 1880, when the bank was closed. He accepted a position with the Philadelphia Provident Life & Trust Company, which position he held until the 27th of September, 1889, when he resigned in order to become the cashier of the Farmers' National Bank, in which capacity he served until his death. He contributed in no small measure to the success of both institutions. He possessed excellent business and executive ability, a discriminating mind, sound judgment and never-failing courtesy—qualities which secured to the banks many of their patrons. He was justly regarded as one of the ablest financiers and reliable men in western Ohio, and in business circles his reputation was unassailable. In private life he was equally respected and honored, for he held friendship inviolable, was quick to note and appreciate true worth in the individual, and in his home he could not do too much to enhance the welfare and promote the happiness of his wife and children. On the 26th of September, 1876, in Greenville, Mr. Lansdowne was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Knox, who was born in this city, December 21, 1851. She was educated in Cooper Seminary, in Dayton, Ohio, and is the only daughter of John Riley Knox, a prominent lawyer of Greenville now deceased. She now resides with her mother, and the two ladies enjoy the warm regard of a large circle of friends in Darke county. Mrs. Lansdowne has three children—John Knox, Harry and Zachariah. As a citizen Mr. Lansdowne was public-spirited and progressive, and gave a generous and earnest support to all measures which he believed would prove of public benefit. His judgment of such matters was practical and reliable, and his co-operation with any movement was an indication of its worth. For many years he was a leading and active member of the Episcopal church, and a member of its vestry. For some years prior to his death his health gradually failed, and for a few months he was confined to his home by tuberculosis until the end came on the 30th of October, 1899. At a meeting of the board of directors of the Farmers' National Bank, held on the 1st of November, 1899, the following resolutions were adopted : Whereas, Our honored associate, James M. Lansdowne, has passed away; be it Resolved, That by his death this board has lost a wise and attentive adviser and the community a trusted and public-spirited citizen. To us, as individuals, the loss is that of a companion and friend, and our sincere sympathy is extended to his widow and family in this affliction. Resolved, That these resolutions be spread upon the minutes of the bank as a mark of our esteem and respect for his memory, and as an expression of our appreciation of his many years of valuable service as director and cashier of this bank, and that a copy hereof, signed by each member of this board, be presented to his widow, and that the Greenville papers be requested to publish the same. G. W. STUDABAKER, WILLIAM KIPP. HENRY ST. CLAIR. J. F. HEN NE. At a special meeting of the vestry of St. Paul's Episcopal church, of Greenville, Ohio, called together on October 31, 1899 to take suitable action in regard to the death of GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 477 our honored and beloved brother vestryman, James M. Lansdowne, upon motion a com- mittee was appointed to prepare suitable resolutions expressive of our loss. The committee reported as follows : Whereas, In the providence of God our dear friend, James M. Lansdowne, has been called home from the sphere of his earthly labors; Resolved, That we desire to express in this public way our appreciation of his worth and our sense of the loss which his death has brought to us. As a Christian he was loyal and sincere, ever responsive to duty's call and ready to answer the Master whom he followed. As a member of this vestry, his interest was shown by a self-sacrificing expenditure of time and means and effort to promote the welfare of the church in our midst. As a citizen, in public and private, he made true manhood honored in his person. Resolved, That in the.death of Mr. Lansdowne this church and this community alike have suffered a great loss. We extend our sincere sympathy to his family whose sorrow is our sorrow, and we rejoice with them in the name and example he has left behind. Resolved, That these resolutions be signed by every member of this body and spread upon the minutes; that a copy be sent to Mrs. Lansdowne and copies to our daily papers for publication. CHARLES H. LEE, Rector. H. A. WEBB, JOHN C. TURPEN, Wardens. These resolutions indicate in unmistakable terms Mr. Lansdowne's high position in the community, in business circles, in his church and in the private walks of life. The veil was lifted to gain the new glory of a true and beautiful life when death set the seal upon his mortal lips. His was the faith that makes faithful. Any monument erected to his memory will have become dim and tarnished by time ere the remembrance of his noble example shall cease to exercise an influence upon the community in which he lived and labored to such goodly ends. WILLIAM CALVIN MOTE. Numbered among the enterprising and energetic business men of German township is the well-known assistant postmaster of Noggle, who is now successfully engaged in the grain business and in general merchandising. He was born n Laura, Miami county, Ohio, April 3, 1841, and on both sides is of good old English Quaker stock. The Mote family was founded in this country by two brothers; who first settled on Penn's reservation, but afterward moved to North Carolina. On account of the institution of slavery then existing in . the south the paternal grandparents of our subject, Joseph and Mary Mote, came from North Carolina to Ohio in 1805 and located on the banks of Stillwater river Union town-. ship, Miami county. Later they removed to Darke county and entered land in Van Buren township, the place being still known as the old Mote farm. Ezekiel Mote, our subject's father, was born in Union township, Miami county, in 1808, and there spent his entire life. He married Grace. Vernon, also a native. of that county. Her father, Nathaniel Vernon, was one of three brothers who came to this county from England when young men. He settled in Ohio and was the only one of the three to marry. To Ezekiel Mote and wife were born seven children, three sons and four daughters, of. whom one son died in infancy, and two daughters are now deceased. 478 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. Of this family William C. Mote is the youngest. He was only four years old when his mother died and he was then reared by his grandmother Mote in Burlington, Howard county, Indiana, until about ten years of age. Returning to Miami county, Ohio, he lived with a sister for a time, and was bound out for fbur years to work on a farm. At the age of eighteen he began life for himself by working as a farm hand by the month and was thus employed until his marriage. On the 25th of October, 1860, Mr. Mote wedded Miss Rebecca Elleman, also a native of Miami county, where she was reared. Her parents were Enos and Margaret Elleman, early settlers of 'Darke county, and the latter, a daughter of David Ward, of this county. Of the seven children born to our subject and his wife only two are now living, namely : David L., who is in partnership with his father in the grain business, married Susie Jones, of Laura, Miami county, and they have two children,—William Clark and Charles Harvey; and Olive C. is the wife of Harvey Clemm, of Troy, Ohio, and they have two children,—Merrill W. and Herbert. The other children of our subject all died young with the exception of Margaret, the wife of Lewis Hale, who died at the age of twenty-one years. After his marriage Mr. Mote located on a rented farm in his native county and worked for a man for two bushels of corn per clay, when corn was 0nly worth sixteen cents per bushel, though when he contracted to work for that amount it was worth thirty-two cents. He continued to operate rented land until 1880, when he purchased a farm in Union township, Miami county, and in connection with his farming operations he followed carpentering and contracting for a time. In 1894 he came to Clark's Station,. Darke county, and purchased a grain house and elevator, and the .following summer, when appointed assistant postmaster of that place, he established a general store there, which he has successfully carried on in connection with his grain business. He owns seventy-one acres of land north of the railroad and five acres south of it. His property has all been acquired through his own efforts, perseverance and good management, for he started out in life for himself empty-handed and has received no aid. Mr. Mote supported the Republican party until after the election of James A. Garfield and then voted the Prohibition ticket until 1896, when he cast in his lot with the Liberty party, and in June, 1898, helped organize the Union Reform party. He takes an active part in political affairs, was a delegate to the state convention held in Columbus and the national convention held in Cincinnati in 1899. Religiously he is a member of the New Light Christian church and at one time was an active member of the Grange. EDMUND CULBERTSON. Edmund Culbertson, one of the extensive farmers and stock raisers of Greenville township, was born on the old .farm August 24, 1861, a son of T. W. and Elizabeth (Harper) Culbertson. Samuel Culbertson, the grandfather of our subject, was a native of Pennsylvania, born in June, 1801, and emigrated with his family to Van :Buren township, Darke county, Ohio, at an early day. He married Miss Rebecca Westfall in 1823 and six children were born of their union, namely : Orin, Mary J., John, T. W., Elizabeth and James. The privations and GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 479 hardships of pioneer life soon told upon the father's health and he died in 1837. His wife remained upon the homestead and survived him about sixteen years, dying in 1853. His son, T. W., the father of our subject, was born in Darke county, Ohio, October 25, 1828. His educational advantages were necessarily very limited as a pioneer's life is one of constant exertion for subsistence, but such opportunities as did offer in this direction were well improved. He learned the brick mason's trade when very young and afterward engaged in farming and stock raising. When a mere lad his father died and from that time until her death he was the main support of his widowed mother. After her death he went to live with his sister, Mrs. Studebaker, with whom he remained until his marriage, which was celebrated November 26, 1857, his bride being Elizabeth Harper, a daughter of William S. Harper, a native of Pennsylvania, who then lived in Darke county. Immediately after their marriage they removed to a piece of land in section 7 which he had previously purchased. This was timber land and he was obliged to clear off a spot on which to erect a cabin. This constituted the first home of his own and here in the midst of the dense forest they began their domestic life. By their own exertions they soon Caused the golden grain to wave where once stood the mighty forest, the rich harvests bountifully rewarding them for their industry and frugality. They became the parents of seven children : Frank, Edmund, Charlie, William H., Harry,. Cora B. and Purley. Edmund Culbertson, the subject of this review, was reared upon his father's farm, assisting in the labors of field and meadow in the summer time and attending the coun try schools in the winter. He studied three years in the Greenville high school and later took a commercial course in the Greenville Business College. After completing his education he engaged in farming, which occupation he has since followed and is now, in connection with his brother, Charlie, operating their father's farm of two hundred and forty acres. He is also extensively engaged in stock raising. He was united in marriage July 24, 1884, to Elnora Baer, a daughter of Frederick and Mary Baer, at present residents of Springfield, Missouri. Their union has been blessed with five children, namely : Muriel E., Rolla W., Hazel E., .Lloyd A. and Mary E. In his political affiliations Mr. Culbertson is a Democrat and since reaching his majority has been prominent in politics, being often a delegate to county and congressional conventions; and in the spring of 1900 he received the nomination at the hands of his party for county auditor, having a majority of four hundred and four over four competitors. Fraternally he is a member of Greenville Lodge, No. 195, I. O. O. F. He is a rising and popular young man, who counts his friends by the hundreds. His business integrity is established on a sound foundation and he is prosperous, capable and influential. CHRISTIAN KNODERER. A native of Germany, Christian Knoderer was born in Baden on the 5th of August, 1820, and is a son of Samuel and Frederica (Gerber) Knoderer. The father was born at Ammenbengen, the county seat of that county, and became the proprietor of a hotel. Both he and his wife spent their entire lives in the land of their nativity, 480 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD: the former passing away at the age of seventy-four years, the latter in her fifty-eighth year. In the schools of his native land Christian Knoderer acquired his education and was well fitted for life's practical duties by . a thorough intellectual training. He studied German, French and Latin in addition to the elementary branches that are always taught in the schools, and at the age of eighteen years he was apprenticed to learn the butcher's trade, serving a two-years term. On the expiration of that period he was employed as a journeyman for four years in different countries, after which he embarked in business on his own account in Emendingers, Germany, conducting his market until 1848. He then joined the revolutionists and served in the war of .1848-9, being taken prisoner by the forces opposing the revolution. After two months' imprisonment he emigrated to America, landing at New York on the 4th of July, 1850. It was quite fitting that he should reach the home of the free on the anniversary of the day on which the nation's independence was proclaimed, for he was a great lover of liberty, and this element in his character prompted him to join the revolutionists in their opposition to certain features of monarchical rule in Germany. From New York city Mr. Knoderer made his way to Reading, Pennsylvania, where he had a brother living. He followed farming for two years in the Keystone state and thence emigrated westward to Illinois, where he remained for nine months. He was also employed in butcher shops in Indiana and in 1856 took up his abode in Darke county, Ohio. For six years he engaged in farming in Wayne township, meeting with a fair degree of success in his undertakings, and in 1862 he came to Greenville, where he opened a butcher shop, whith he has since conducted. Before removing to the farm he was engaged in the grocery business at Piqua. In the conduct of his market he met with prosperity. securing a large and liberal patronage, whereby he won a very desirable income. In 1854 Mr. Knoderer married Miss Catherine Kern, a native of Baden, Germany, born in 1826. For forty-five years she was to him a faithful companion and helpmeet on life's journey, but on the 9th of March, 1899, they were separated by death, Mrs. Knoderer being called to the home beyond. She was a devoted and consistent member of the Lutheran church and a lady whose many estimable characteristics won her the regard of all with whom she came in contact. Socially Mr. Knoderer is connected with Champion Lodge, I. O. O. F., of which he has been a. member since 1863, and in his life he exemplifies the benevolent principles of that fraternity. He was the township treasurer of Greenville township in the year 1876, but has never taken a very active part in political affairs, preferring to give his time and energies to his business interests. He has accumulated considerable property and is now the possessor of a handsome competence, which indicates his wisdom in seeking a home in America, where ambition and enterprise are not hampered by caste or class. JACOB F. WARE. Jacob F. Ware, a retired agriculturist of Palestine, Darke county, is an honored representative of the early pioneers of Ohio, and is a true type of the energetic, hardy men who have actively assisted in developing GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 481 and improving this beautiful and fertile agricultural country. A native of this state, he was born in Preble county, December 13, 1820. His father, John Ware, was born in Knox county, Tennessee,. in 1789, and was a son of John Paul Ware, a native of Germany, who, when a young man, was captured and brought to America as a soldier in the employ of the British during the Revolutionary war, but after serving six months he deserted and joined the Continental forces, with which he fought seven years. About 1814 he came to Preble county, Ohio, where he was killed by a horse at the age of sixty-six years. His wife had died previously in Tennessee. The father of our subject grew to manhood in his native state and in Guilford county, North Carolina, married Sarah Coble, a native of that county. Her father, Lewis Coble, was also born in Germany and came to this country when a young man. In North Carolina he married a native of Pennsylvania. By occupation he was a farmer. It was in 1810 that John Ware and wife removed to Preble county, Ohio, and located in Twin township, where he lived for sixty-two years. He died at the age of eighty-five, honored and respected by all who knew him. He was a soldier of the war of 1812, under General Harrison, and was at the treaty of Greenville in 1814. He was a prominent member of the Lutheran church at West Alexandria, where he .helped to build the house of worship. His wife died at the age of sixty-six years. In their family were fourteen children, ,six sons and eight daughters, all of whom grew to manhood or womanhood, and five sons and three daughters are still living. In this family our subject is the sixth child and third son. He Was. reared in Twin township, Preble county, and attended school in a building constructed of round logs, with puncheon floor, greased-paper windows and a slab laid on pins driven into the wall for a desk. During his youth he assisted in The work of the home farm and learned the carpenter's trade, and after attaining his majority engaged in contracting and building for five years, doing all the work, such as hewing the raw timber into braces, studding, rafters, etc., which was all done by hand. Two of the barns built by him in Darke county, in 1844, are still standing and in a good state of preservation. He employed from four to twelve men, but at the end of five years his health failed and he came to Darke county, locating in German township, in the woods, where with his own hands he cleared one hundred and twenty acres of land. He made the first jumping shovel plow ever made in the county. He raised fifty bushels of corn per acre for his first crop, and continued to successfully engage in farming until 1899, when he removed to Palestine and has since lived retired. At one time he owned two hundred and forty-four acres of land, but has since given his son, Joseph, eighty acres of this. In 1871 his barn, 40x80 feet, and one of the best in the county, was destroyed by fire, together with its contents, including two thousand bushels of threshed wheat, fifteen thousand bushels of corn, five hundred bushels of oats and fifteen tons of hay and all farming implements, amounting to five thousand dollars. He rebuilt the barn the following year. On the 2d of April, 1898, he had the misfortune to lose his house in the same way, but this was insured and was afterward rebuilt. On the 21st of October, 1844, Mr. Ware wedded Miss Mary C. Ritnoure, and to them 482 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. were born five. children : John R., who is married and lives in Wabash county,Indiana; Weltha Ann, the wife of William Stover, of Lightsville, Darke county, Ohio; Sarah Jane; the wife of Joshua Jeffries, of German township, Darke county; Martin A., who died at the age of two years; and Joseph W., a business man of Gordon, Mississippi. The mother of these children died February 16, 1878, and for his second wife Mr. Ware married Mrs. Lydia (Paulus) Fry, widow of George Fry. She was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, April 10, 1836, but was reared in Darke county from her first year. By her first marriage she had four children : Mary A.; Sarah J.; Franklin L., deceased ; and Rachael Alice. Her father, Daniel Paulus, was born in 1807, and is still living, in Randolph county, Indiana, at the age of ninety-three years, and enjoys good health. He had thirteen children, four sons and nine daughters, all of whom reached years of maturity and three sons and five daughters are still living. Mrs. Ware is the sixth child and fifth daughter in this family. In his political affiliations Mr. Ware is a Democrat, and .he has most efficiently filled the offices of school director and supervisor of his township. In 1851 he was a member of the first board of education ever organized in the county, and served as school director in one district eighteen years. He has been chairman of four different old settlers' organizations—the West Alexandria, Preble county ; Lightsville, Spring Hill and Germanand is an active and prominent member of the United Brethren church in Palestine, in which he served as assistant class-leader five years. He has been a hard working and industrious man, and the success that he has achieved in life is due entirely to his own well directed and energetic efforts. HENRY KARN. Henry Karn is a retired merchant and farmer living at the village of Glen-Karn, which was named in his honor, a fact which indicates his prominence as a man and citizen. He was born in Butler county, Ohio, April 20, 1835. His grandfather, Henry Karn, was a native of Pennsylvania, who followed farming as a means of livelihood and died in Butler county, Ohio. As the name indicates, the family is of German lineage. Henry Karn, the father of our subject, was born in the Keystone state, in June, 1801,.. and was a young man of seventeen years when he came with his parents to Butler county. In Montgomery county he was married, in 1824, but located in Butler county, where he operated his farm, conducted a mill and distillery and also engaged in merchandising. He was an enterprising, progressive business man, well known throughout the county, and became the possessor of a handsome competence, but lost property to the value of ten thousand dollars in a single night, caused by a flood. He built a mill on Seven Mile creek and carried on business there for many years, or until his removal to Darke county, in 1852. He then located in Butler township, where he was engaged in farming until his removal to Neave township, where he died March 21, 1878, at the age of seventy-six years and nine months. His political support was given to the Democracy, and he was a member of the Reformed church. His wife bore the maiden name of Susan Good. She was of German descent, removed from Virginia to Ohio and was reared in Montgomery county. By her marriage she became the mother of eight children, all of whom are still living. John, the eldest, is seventy-five years of age, and GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 483 Amanda Judy, the youngest, is fifty-nine years of age : John, of Darke county ; Reuben, who is living in the same place; Elizabeth, the wife of John Vogt, a minister of the Reformed church, of Delaware county, Ohio; Susan, the wife of Jacob Baker, of this county; Henry ; David, who is living in Hollansburg, Darke county; Nathan; and Amanda, the wife of Samuel Judy, who resides near Greenville. The mother passed away November 29, 1849, at the age of forty-six years and ten months. Henry Karn is the fifth of the family, and was about seventeen years of age when he came to Darke county. He remained with his father until his marriage, which important event in his life occurred on the 11th of March, 1856, Miss Mary Jacoby becoming his wife. She was born in Butler county, Ohio, December 25, 1835, a daughter of John Jacoby. Her grandfather was John Jacoby, Sr., and was of Dutch descent. He removed from Pennsylvania to Butler county, Ohio, where he followed farming. Her maternal grandfather was John Wickle, and he, too, was born in Pennsylvania, and became a resident of Butler county, Ohio, at a very early age. He was of German lineage. Mr. Jacoby was a native of Pennsylvania, and became one of the pioneer settlers of Butler county. His wife bore the maiden name of Mary `Vickie, and was also born in Pennsylvania. They had eight children who reached years of maturity, but only four are now living, as follows : Daniel, now deceased ; Sarah, the widow of Tilman Troxell and a resident of Arcanum, Ohio; Elizabeth, the deceased wife of Jonathan Fisher; Susan, the wife of Stephen Bark-halter, of Oregon ; Mrs. Karn ; Frank, of Nebraska ; Kate, deceased wife of John Marker; and Lucinda, wife of David Marker, of Lucas county, Iowa. Mrs. Karn was the fifth in order of birth, and was about nineteen years of age when she came to Darke county. After his marriage Mr. Karn located in Butler township, where he was engaged in farming until his removal to a tract of land in Twin township, which he had purchased and where he remained until 1865. He then sold his farm and returned to Butler township, and afterward lived in Jacksonburg, Butler county, where he was engaged in merchandising, following that pursuit for seven years. On the expiration of that period he sold his store and took up his abode in Shelby county, Illinois, where he conducted a mercantile establishment for six months. He then returned to Darke county, Ohio, and located in Baker. He next went to Hollansburg, where he conducted a store for six years.. He also engaged in farming for a time, and was engaged in the manufacture of tiling, but at the present time he is living retired. His business career has been one of activity, enterprise and honesty, and his well directed efforts have brought to him a handsome competence which now enables him to enjoy a rest which he has truly earned. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Karn were born three children : John Edwin, born April 17, 1859, now deceased; Celinda A., the wife of George W. Thomas, of German township, 177 whom she has six children, Eddie C., Myrtle, Ada, Harry H., Joyce and an infant girl ; and Lewemma F., the wife of James C. Chenoweth, by whom she has seven children,—Nellie, Raymond, Bertha, Charlie, Frankie, Ernest and a boy infant. Mr. Karn has accumulated about one hundred acres of land, and has a good property in Glen-Karn. There were no buildings at that place when he located there, no- 484 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. railroad and no pike, and the introduction of these improvements have been secured largely through his own efforts. He laid out the town in 1884, built the first house there, and has since sold many lots. It now contains sixteen dwellings, two stores, an ice depot, and is an enterprising little village in the midst of a rich farming district. In his political views Mr. Karn is a Democrat. He has never sought office, preferring to devote his time to his business interests. He is a member of the Reformed church, and withholds his support from no movement or measure which he believes will prove of public good. He may truly be called a self-made man, and is the architect of his own fortune,, having builded wisely and well. JOHN BIDDLE. The subject of this review is one of the representative citizens of German township, Ohio, who has been actively identified with its agricultural interests for many years, and has also done a more extensive ditching business than any other man within its borders. He is a native of the county, born in Neave township June. 26, 1835, and is a son. of Samuel and Elizabeth (Dixon) Biddle, natives of Maryland and Ohio, respectively. The Biddies are of German descent, but have been residents of this country for several generations. Our subject's paternal grandmother, however, was a na- tive .of Wales, and his maternal ancestors were of Scotch-Irish descent and- early settlers of Darke county, Ohio... His grandfather, Baldwin Biddle, was a slaveholder of Maryland, and in coming to this state brought thirteen negroes with him, who assisted in clearing his farm near Fort Jefferson in Neave township, but he afterward set them free. Our subject's father was thir teen years of age when brought by his parents to this county, and he grew to manhood in Neave township, where he continued to make his home throughout life, dying there in 1862, at the age of fifty years. In politics he was a Democrat. John Biddle is the oldest of a family of eight children, six sons and two daughters, of whom seven are still living. He was reared in Neave township and pursued his studies in the log schoolhouse, remaining: at home until after the civil war broke out. On the 2d of August, 1862,. he enlisted in Company I, Ninety-fourth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served until the close of the war, being mustered out as corporal June 6, 1865. He participated in the engagement at Tate's Ferry, near Richmond, the battles of Perryville, Stone River, Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, the Atlanta campaign and those of Bentonville and Greensboro, where Johnston surrendered, Mr. Biddle being on the skirmish line that night. Although he had his clothes pierced by bullets many times and the top of his hat shot off at the battle of Chickamauga, he was never wounded. After the war Mr. Biddle returned to his home in German township, Darke county, and was married in 1866 to Miss Anna Smelker, a native of this county, and to them have been born three children : Nora is now the wife 'of Clarkson Lowdenslayer, of German township, and they have two children, Otto and Arnold; Orlando married Blanch Cable and lives in German township ; and Cora is at home. Thoughout his active business life Mr. Biddle has followed farming and for thirty-five years has been a contractor- in ditch digging. He his made most of the ditches in GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 485 German township, where he makes his home and has also constructed many miles of ditch in Neave township and in Randolph county, Ohio. In this capacity he is widely known, and has made an enviable reputation as a business man. Mr. Biddle is a prominent member of Reed Post, No. 572, G. A. R. ; has been the officer of the day in that post since its organization; was the major of the Darke County Battalion three years, and the president of the same one year. In his political views he is a stanch Democrat. WILLIAM H. RIKE, M. D. The thriving little town of Versailles, Ohio, has its quota of professional men, and occupying a leading position among them we find Dr. William H. Rike, a brief review of whose life is as follows : William H. Rike was born in Newberry township, Miami county, Ohio, December 3, 1850. He is of German origin, but for several generations the Rike family have lived in this country. The Doctor's great-grandfather was born on board the vessel while his parents were en route from Germany to America. John Rike, the Doctor's grandfather, was a native of Maryland, who at the age of twenty-one came west to Ohio and located on a farm near Dayton, in Montgomery county. It was on that farm that Henry Rike, our subject's father, was born, and there he passed the first twenty years of his life. He then went to Miami county, this state, where he subsequently married and settled down to farming, and where he still resides. The Rikes have been known as a liberty loving, patriotic family, many of them engaged in agricultural pursuits, and all occupying useful positions in the respective localities in which they have lived. John Rike, the Doctor's grandfather, was a private soldier in the war of 1812. Dr. Rike's mother descended from Scotch-Irish ancestry. Her maiden name was Rebecca Dowler, and Newberry township, Miami county, Ohio, the place of her nativity, where she was reared and married. Her father, William Dowler, came to this country when a child, and from that time his home was in Miami county, Ohio, where he was for many years engaged in farming and school teaching. He taught from early manhood until he was sixty-five years of age. Henry Rike and wife became the parents of nine children, seven sons and two daughters. All the sons lived to adult years, and the daughters died when young. The second born and second son in this family is William H., whose name introduces this sketch. He was reared on his father's farm, receiving his. early training in the district school and later attending the Piqua high school, of which he is a graduate, having completed his course with the class of 1870. In 1872 he began the study of medicine at Covington, Ohio, in the office of Dr. John Harrison and Dr. James Shellenberg, the latter now a physician in the Philippines. Young Rike carried forward his studies in the Ohio Medical College at Cincinnati, and from this institution received his diploma March 2, 1876. On the 9th of that month he married Miss Emma V. Fetter, a native of Miami county, and on the 29th of the same month he located in Versailles, where for nearly a quarter of a century he has been successfully engaged in the practice of his profession. He is a member of the Versailles Medical Society and the Darke County Medical Society, and at this writing is employed as a physician 486 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. for the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayt0n Railroad Company. Dr. and Mrs. Rike have two children, Blanch and Mary. JOHN J. WINBIGLER. This well-known resident of Versailles, Ohio, is serving as a justice of the peace in Wayne township, a position which he has filled for four terms with credit to himself and satisfaction to his constituents. He is thoroughly impartial in meting out justice, his opinions being unbiased by either fear or favor, and his fidelity to the trust reposed in him is above question. A native of Ohio, Mr. Winbigler was born in Miami township, Montgomery county, May 25, 1839, and on the paternal side traces his ancestry back to three brothers—Henry, John and Elias Winbigler—who were born in a province of France that now forms a part of Germany, and came to this country prior to the Revolutionary war, in which they all took part. John and Elias located in Frederick county, Maryland, and Henry in Erie, Pennsylvania. John was the great-great-grandfather of our subject. His grandson, Jacob Winbigler, the grandfather of our subject, is Supposed to have been a native of Pennsylvania, but he died in Maryland. He was a soldier of the war of 1812. The father was born near Harper's Ferry, Frederick county, Maryland, in 1817, and when about fifteen years of age removed to Montgomery county, Ohio, where he was married, in 1838, to Anna Maria Weaver, who was born in Miami township, that county, in February, 1821, and died in Darke county, in 1887. Her father, John J. Weaver, was a native of Berks county, Pennsylvania, and an early settler of Montgomery county, Ohio, where he located about 1805. There he entered a large tract of land for his children and engaged in farming, dying there at about the age of seventy years. On the 2d of November, 1844, the father of our subject came to Darke county and located in York township, where in the midst of the forest he developed a farm, devoting his attention to agricultural pursuits throughout life. He died May 4, 1876. In religious belief he was a Lutheran, and in politics a Democrat. He was widely and favorably known, and was called upon to serve as a justice of the peace and township trustee. In his family., were nine children, all of whom married and are still living. John J. Winbigler, the eldest of this family, was five years old when brought by his parents to Darke county. His education was not begun until Ile was' ten years of age, when he became a student at a log school-house in York township, and. for three months he attended a select school in Jaysville. He assisted his father in clearing and improving the home farm until he attained his majority, and in 1860 commenced teaching school, an occupation which he successfully followed for about twenty years, in the meantime devoting some attention to other lines of business. He served three years as a member of Company D, Eighty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and did garrison duty most of the time. At the close of the war he was honorably . discharged, July 3, 1865. Returning home he resumed teaching and for three years, from 1867, engaged in the saw-mill business in York township. He was also employed as a traveling salesman for a time until 1880. In 1871 he removed to Versailles, where he has since made his home with the exception of four years spent on the old homestead. In October, 1865, Mr. Winbigler mar- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 487 ried Miss Susana A. Lyons, by whom he had three children that are still living, namely : John S., Armena J. and Harry F. He was again married in October, 1888, his second union being with Leah Plessinger. Religiously Mr. Winbigler is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran church, and fraternally is a member of G. W. Larimore Post, No, 445, G. A. R., of which he was the first commander. By his ballot he supports the men and measures of the Democratic party, and he takes quite a prominent and influential part in local politics. He has served as clerk and assessor of York township, assessor of Wayne township two terms, and as deputy assessor many times, having made out about twenty assessment books. He is now serving his fourth term as the justice of the peace of Wayne township, and is a notary public. He is also interested in the real estate and fire insurance business. Mr. Winbigler is regarded as one of the leading and highly respected citizens of Versailles, and it is therefore consistent that he be represented in a work whose province is the portrayal of the lives of the prominent men of Darke county. FRANCIS G. WILEY. Francis G. Wiley is filling the position of clerk f the courts at Greenville. He was born upon a farm in Harrison township, Darke county, on the 15th of January, 1857. His father. Caleb Wiley, was a native of Virginia, born October 13, 1799, a son of John Wiley, also a native of the Old Dominion. The latter removed to Madison county, Ohio, with his family, in 1812, and in 1817 the Wileys went to Preble county, this state, where the father of our subject resided until 1827. That year witnessed his arrival in Harrison township, Darke county, where he secured one hundred acres of land on sections 27 and 28, much of which was covered with a heavy growth of timber. He cleared away the trees and transformed the land into richly cultivated fields, also improving the farm with good buildings. He there devoted his attention to agricultural pursuits throughout the remainder of his life, and on the 13th of March, 1890, at the very advanced age of ninety-one years, was called to his final rest. His wife still survives him and is yet living on the old homestead. Her maiden name was Elizabeth Sproul, and she was born in Preble county, Ohio. She became the mother of seven children, namely : Marshall J.; Mary A., the wife of John C. McKem ; Josephine, who married Andrew P. Wilson, and is now a widow living in Los Angeles, California; William H., who resides upon the home farm ; George W., a dealer in hardware, boots and shoes at New Madison, Ohio ; Francis G., of this review ; and A. J., who is with his brother in New Madison. Francis G. Wiley was sent to the district school when he had attained the usual age, and, applying himself closely to his studies, he gained considerable proficiency, while during the summer months he gave his time and attention to the work of cultivating the farm, following agricultural pursuits until his election to the office of clerk of the courts in Darke county in 1897. He entered upon the discharge of the duties of the office on the 1st of August, 1898, for a term of three years, so that he will continue as the incumbent until August, 1901. He soon mastered the duties of the position, is thorough and accurate, and has the confidence and respect of the bench and bar and all with whom 488 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. he has been brought in contact through his official service. In 1883 Mr. Wiley was married to Miss Anna. Templeton, of Preble county, Ohio, a daughter of N. F. Templeton. They have three children,—Edith, Lizzie and Harmon E. They occupy a pleasant home in Greenville, and have here a large circle of friends. Mr. Wiley also owns a good farm of fifty acres under a high state of cultivation, which he. rents. He is a' member of the Knights of Pythias fraternity, and belongs to that class of enterprising American citizens who recognize their duties to their township, county and state, and never fail in its performance. SAMUEL S. THOMAS. After a useful and well-spent life this gentleman can well afford to lay aside business cares and spend his declining days in ease and quiet at his pleasant home on section 32, German township, Darke county. He is a native of that township, his birth occurring just across the road on section 31, July 29, 1828. His father, Charles W. Thomas, was a native of Maryland and a son of Daniel Thomas, who entered the land on which our subject was born and spent his last days in German township, dying February 14, 1847, at the age of eighty-one years. When a young man the father came to this state and first settled in Greene county, where he married Mercy Sackett, .a native. of North Carolina. It was in 1826 that they came to Darke county, and in the midst of the forest the father cleared and developed a farm, making it his home until some time during the '60s, when he removed to Hollansburg. He was taken ill while on a, visit to Greene county, and died there .September 1, 1872, at the age of seventy-four years. Religiously he was an active member of the Methodist Episcopal church, in which he served as a local preacher and class-leader. He was a soldier of the war of 1812, and one of the most prominent and highly respected men of his community. In his family were nine children, namely : Mary Ann, deceased; Nancy, the widow of Jared Mutchner and a resident of Arba, Indiana ; Samuel S., our subject; Cyrus, of Winchester, Indiana; Phoebe, deceased ; Sarah Jane, the wife of Samuel Slates, of Iowa; Abner, deceased; Absalom, of Iowa; and David, of Hollansburg, .Darke county, Ohio. Samuel S. Thomas grew to manhood on the farm where he was born, and being the oldest son he early began to assist in the arduous task of clearing and improving the wild land. His educational privileges. were necessarily limited, and he attended school only about two months during the year. The school-houses of that early day were built of logs with greased-paper windows, and slab seats with pins driven into them for legs, and the desks were made by laying a plank upon pins driven into the wall. When not writing- the pupils generally sat with their backs to these desks. On leaving the home: farm at the age of eighteen years Mr. Thomas went to Newport, now Fountain City, where he learned the cabinetmaker's. trade, serving a two-years apprenticeship. Subsequently he worked at his trade in Richmond and Winchester, and then engaged in the same line of business for himself at Palestine for about two years. At the end of that time he located upon the farm in German township where he now resides, though he continued to work. at his trade in connection with farming for some years. His farm comprises two hundred and four acres, GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 489 which he has placed under a high state of cultivation, but he has now retired from active labor and is enjoying a well, earned rest. On the 29th of April, 1855, Mr. Thomas married Miss Caroline Berry, who was born in Hamilton, Butler county, Ohio, January 15, 1837, and was about two years old when she first came to Darke county, but she subsequently spent some time in Indiana. She was educated in the district schools of German township, this county, and at Camden, Indiana, and the Randolph county (Indiana) Seminary. Her father, Thomas Berry, was born in Virginia, in 1804, and when a young man removed to Hamilton, Butler county, Ohio, later coming to Darke county, where he died September 8, 1839, at the age of thirty-five years. In 1836 he married Betsey Randolph, who was born in Butler county, in 1814, and of the four children born to them Mrs. Thomas is the only one who reached years of maturity. For her second husband the mother married Dr. William Freeman, by whom she had two sons : Dr. Benjamin R., of Spokane, Washington ; and David W. She also died at the age of thirty-five years. Of the ten children born to Mr. and Mrs. Thomas six are living, concerning whom we record the following items : Elizabeth M. is the wife of George Horn, of Franklin township, this county, and they have two children—Carl and Clara. Ellen is the wife of George W. Hill, whose sketch will be found on another page of this volume. Philip B., a practicing physician of Decatur, Indiana, married Estella Hart, and they have one daughter, Carrie. Edward R. devotes his attention to the cultivation of the home farm. Bertha is the wife of Rev. James A. Jenkinson, and they have three sons and one daughter—Lawrence W., Thomas Clayton, James A. and Dorothy Amelia. Mr. Jenkinson is the pastor of the Methodist Episcopal church of West chester, Ohio, and a member of the Cincinnati conference. Caroline is at home. of the children were born on the farm where our subject still resides. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas have one great-grandchild, EmeI Jones, a daughter of Harry T. and Caroline Jones. In 1864, during the civil war, Mr. Thomas enlisted as a private in the Eighth Ohio Independent Battery, and was in the service eighteen months, taking part in the battles of Black River and Yazoo, Missis- sippi, and receiving his discharge at Camp Dennison, Ohio, August 7, 1865. He is now a member of Reed Post, No. 572, G.. A. R., of Palestine, and is a prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal church in Hollansburg, of which he is a trustee. In his political views he is a stanch Republican and gives his support to every enterprise which he believes will advance the moral,. social or material welfare of his township. and county. DAVID J. VANNOY. David J. Vannoy, manufacturer of oak and hickory spokes and dealer in lumber at Webster, Darke county, Ohio, is one of the enterprising and successful business men of his locality. Mr. Vannoy was born in Knox county, Kentucky, August 22, 1856 His father, Jonas Vannoy, also a native of Kentucky, removed from that state to Ohio in 1860 and located first in Warren county, whence he removed to Darke county in 1870, where-he passed the closing years of his life and where he died in 1878, at the age of forty-- 490 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. five years. He was a son of Alexander Vannoy, a Scotchman, who had emigrated when a young man to this country and settled in Kentucky, where he subsequently married a Miss Cline. He died near Covington, Kentucky, and was buried in the cemetery at that place. The mother of David J. Vannoy was before her marriage Miss Mary Barnes. She was born and reared in .Mississippi. Her father, Joseph Barnes, was a contractor and was one of the surveyors and promoters of the Erie Canal. The Barnes family is of German origin, but many generations bearing that name have 'lived in America. Jonas and Mary (Barnes) Vannoy were the parents of three children-two sons and one daughter. The daughter, Alice, died at the age of twenty-eight years. The two sons, David J. and Samuel, are both residents of the same place, the former being the eldest of the family. David J. Vannoy was five years old at the time he was brought by his parents to Ohio, and in Warren, Ross and Darke counties he was reared. He remained a member of his father's household until he was twenty years of age, when he started out in life on his own account. He was variously employed, in different places, until June 21, 1891, when he engaged in his present business. July 28, 1896, his mill was destroyed by fire. He immediately rebuilt, opening his mill for business on the 15th of August, less than a month after the fire. From the start he has done a constantly increasing business, for some time past has employed an average of thirty-five men, and now does an annual business of seventy-five thousand dollars. From time to time he has invested in land, and at this writing has four farms, comprising three hundred and fifty acres, -which he rents. As showing the prosperity which has attended his efforts, we state that in 1890 his property was valued at six thouand dollars. To-day he has a rating in Dun's report of sixty to eighty thousand dollars. Mr. Vannoy married Miss M. E. Menser, a daughter of Robert Menser, who previous to her marriage was a teacher. They have no children. Politically Mr. Vannoy is a Democrat. When the town of Webster was incorporated he was. elected its first mayor, a position which he has since filled, having been reelected from time to time, now being on the eleventh year and sixth term of his service. He is a member of the K. G. E. ELMER E. CALDERWOOD. Elmer E. Calderwood is practicing law at the bar of -Darke county and has added new laurels to a name distinguished in this connection. He was born in the city of Greenville December 19. 1860, and is the only living son of the second marriage of Andrew Robeson Calderwood, who was a distinguished representative of the legal fraternity in Greenville for many years and an early settler in Darke county. The father was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, September 14, 1818, and was a son of George and Margaret (Robeson) Calderwood, both of whom were natives of Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania. They were married on the 14th of September, 1811, and in the fall of 1817 removed to Ohio, locating near Dayton, whence they came to Darke county in 1832. Here George Calderwood died. July 9. 1849, but his wife long survived him, passing away on the 12th of August, 1873. He was of Scotch parentage and though he did not enjoy very good ed- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 491 ucational privileges in youth he was a man of sound judgment, practical common sense, of great firmness of character and was very courageous. He was of large stature and possessed an iron constitution, and with this a kind nature generous almost to a fault. His wife was descended from Scotch, Welsh and Irish ancestry and was a w0man of remarkable good sense, fine natural talent and great kindliness. Andrew Robeson Calderwood, the father of our subject, spent a youth of activity upon his father's farm in digging ditches, mauling rails and performing other such labors as fell to the lot of a boy in limited circumstances in pioneer days: His education was rather meager. but he was endowed by nature with strong mentality and was ambitious and energetic. Being called upon to serve as a juror he was so inspired by the eloquence of some of the attorneys in the case that he resolved to become a lawyer, and with characteristic energy at once began to study the text books through which one becomes familiar with the principles of jurisprudence and with the opinions that make precedents in the court. He was admitted to the bar and began the practice of law in 1851, and from the beginning met with success in his calling. In 1854 he was elected probate judge, but after serving for three years he entered the Union army as second lieutenant and was afterward promoted to the rank of captain of Company I, Fortieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He resigned his commission on account of injuries received from being thrown from a horse, but on regaining his health he was recommended for a captaincy by Governor Tod and by Colonel Cranor. He was then assigned to the command of his old company, but after six months' service in that position he was compelled to leave the field on account of the loss of his voice, which he had previously sustained. He afterward acted in the capacity of recruiting officer until the close of the war, when he resumed the private practice of law. On the 3d of December, 1876, Judge Calderwood assumed the editorial control of the Sunday Courier, a leading organ of the Republican party in Darke county. He was for many years a recognized leader in the Republican ranks and was three times elected to the office of mayor of Greenville, in which position he served in a most commendable manner, his administration being businesslike practical, progressive and beneficial. In 1868 the Republicans of Darkecounty presented his name' to the fourth congressional district of Ohio as a candidate for the nomination of congressman, but he was defeated by a small majority by Mr. McClung. For many years he enjoyed a liberal share of the law practice in his county and had more than a local reputation as a. criminal lawyer, being an earnest pleader, his eloquence and logic always carrying weight and seldom failing to convince. He had the ability to recognize the points in a case almost by a single glance and readily recognized the important one upon which: the decision of every case finally turns. There was a deep self-conviction, an emphatic earnestness in his manner and a close logical connection in his thoughts. He did not adorn his speech with flowers of rhetoric which often obscure the thought, but his words rang with the eloquence which arose from the occasion and prompted by a belief in the righteousness of his position. His ability to correctly judge human nature made his labors with the jury very effective. 492 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. and he is regarded as one of the most distinguished members that have ever practiced at the Darke county bar. He died June 9, 1891, but is survived by his wife who was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, near New Carlisle, and is still living in Greenville. Elmer E. Calderwood was educated in the Greenville schools. He learned the printer's trade in the office of the Greenville Courier and continued in that line of business for ten years. He read law under the direction of the firm of Calderwood & Breaden and on the 8th of October, 1893. was admitted to the bar. He then opened an office and has since engaged in the practice of law in connection with the real estate ;and loan business, making loans for eastern parties. He exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Republican party and has served two terms in the city council, acting as its president for one year. Socially he is connected with the Knights of Pythias fraternity. He is regarded as one of the enterprising and representative citizens of Greenville, alive to the best interests of the community and of the county. He possesses the true western spirit of progress, and throughout an active business career he has won confidence and regard by his honorable methods. JOHN H. SMALL John Henry Small, who is engaged in blacksmithing and carriage-painting in Pittsburg, was born in Perry township, Montgomery county, Ohio, July 24, 1864. His :grandfather, Henry Small, was a native of New Jersey, and the father, Robert Carlisle Small, was also born in that state, where he remained until eight years of age, when he accompanied his parents on their removal to Ohio, the family locating in Perry township, Montgomery county. There the grand father soon died. The father was reared to manhood in that county and enjoyed such educational privileges as the common schools of that clay afforded. He made farming his principal occupation throughout his business career and led a busy and useful life. He married Susan Tissel and they resided in Perry township, Montgomery county, until 1883, when they removed to Painter's Creek, where the father died in 1894, and where the mother is still He was a member of the German Baptist church and was a Democrat in his political affiliations. In his family were the following children : Sarah E., wile of Perry Mills; Mary; John H.; Stephen D., who married Margaret Wagerman; David who wedded Annie Oswalt ; Harvey, who married Annie Swigert ; William, who married Lillie Foreman ; Benjamin; Rachel, who died at the age of fourteen years; and Martha, who completes the family. In taking up the personal history of our subject we present to our readers the life record of one who is widely and favorably known in this locality. He attended the district schools until sixteen years of age and spent the intervening months in work upon the home farm, early becoming familiar with the labors of field and meadow. At the age of twenty he came with his parents to Darke county and then began business on his own account, working by the month as a farm hand for fifteen dollars per month. The following summer he engaged in farming for G. W. Cramer, of Gettysburg, operating his land on the shares. At the close of the summer of his twentieth year he went to the west, spending some time in different parts of Missouri. He worked at carpenter- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 493 ing, in the winter was employed in a butcher shop in Leavenworth, Kansas, and in the spring secured employment on a farm in Brown county, Kansas. He then returned home and again entered the employ of Mr. Cramer. The following summer he purchased stock and diligently prosecuted his business interests, meeting with creditable .success. After. his marriage, in 1888, Mr. Small located in Landis and was there engaged in farming for two years. He then took up his abode on the Besecker farm in Van Buren township and in the fall engaged in threshing. He next went to Franklin township and through the fall engaged in threshing, while in the winter months he engaged in the manufacture of tobacco boxes and in carpenter work. He was employed in that way for four years, after which he conducted a blacksmith shop in Landis for three years. On the expiration of that period he sold out and on the 28th of February, 1899, opened his blacksmith shop and carriage painting establishment in Pittsburg, where he has since carried on business. He has secured a liberal patronage by reason of his excellent workmanship and his earnest desire to please, and his success is well merited. On the 23d of December, 1888, Mr. Small, was married, in Franklin township, to Miss Annie Lantz, a daughter of Henry R. Lantz. Unto them have been born five children : Orville.S., April 5, 1890; Carroll M., June 2, 1893 ; Hazel, April 2, 1894: Roy Albert, June 13, 1898 ; and Robert Henry, July 15, 1900. Mr. and Mrs. Small have many warm friends in the community and enjoy the high regard of all. In politics he is quite active, stanchly advocating Democratic principles. He has served as a constable, was the supervisor of Franklin township, and is now serving as the mayor of Pittsburg. He exercises his official prerogatives for the advancement of all measures which he believes will prove of public good and his administration is progressive, practical and commendable. Socially he is connected with the Knights of Pythias fraternity of Gettysburg- and is a member of the Christian church. Through the careful prosecution of his business interests he has won success and through honorable methods has gained the confidence and good will of all with whom he has been brought in contact. REV. E. ORTLEPP. For eleven years Rev. E. Ortlepp has been the beloved pastor of St. Paul's Lutheran church of Greenville, Ohio, and has ministered faithfully to the spiritual needs of his people and has given .power and effective aid to all influences which work for the advancement of the community. He was born April 23, 1867, in the city of Naumburg, Germany, in which country his parents spent their entire lives. He was reared and educated in his native land. After leaving the select school where his primary training was received he entered the university at Halle and later in Berlin. Subsequently he was a student at the theological seminary at Breklum, Schleswig-Holstein. In 1888 Mr., Ortlepp came to the United States, landing in New York city. He accepted his first charge as the pastor of a Lutheran church at Paterson, New Jersey, where he remained one year and on the 15th of September; 1889, came to Greenville as the pastor of St. Paul's Lutheran church. He also has charge of the church at Wakefield, Parke county, the two churches having 494 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. a membership of three hundred. The church edifice at 'Greenville was erected in 189.1 at a cost of fifteen thousand dollars. On the T0th of November, 1889,, Mr. Ortlepp was ordained in the old Methodist Episcopal church at Greenville by Dr. Severinghaus, of Chicago, by the authority of the New York and New Jersey Lutheran synods, and he is now the manager and treasurer of the literary board of the Lutheran Wartburg and Nebraska synods of the Lutheran book department, and is its manager of religious periodicals and author of Lutheran catechisms, almanacs and other literary works. He devotes his entire time and attention to the work of the church, and under his pastorate the congregations of which he now has charge have largely increased and have been greatly strengthened spiritually. On the 18th of October, 1892, Mr. Ortlepp married Miss Gertrude Henne, the only daughter of the late Daniel Henne, a prominent citizen and for many years a leading merchant of Greenville. Mrs. Ortlepp was born and reared in that place and was educated in its high school. She is an accomplished lady and has been of great help to her husband in his work. CALVIN M. YOUNG. During the early pioneer period in the development of Ohio the Young family were found within the borders of the Buckeye state. The year 1805 witnessed the arrival of representatives of the name and since that time the Youngs have been prominent in promoting the business interests which have contributed largely to the development and progress of this section of the country. Phillip Young, the great-grandfather of our subject, was a son of William Young and was born in Germany. He emigrated to this country in 1767, locating in Maryland, but remained in that state for only a short period, removing to Greenbrier county, Virginia. He was both a tailor and farmer and, when the colonies attempted to throw off the yoke of British oppression and establish an independent nation in the new world, he joined the American army and loyally served as a soldier in the Revolution,doing all in his power toward making them free from the old country. He married Elizabeth Fox, but little is known concerning her family history. It is known, however, that her people were noted for their physicial strength and that one of them could lift a barrel and drink from it. The marriage of Phillip Young and Elizabeth Fox occurred about 1790. They remained in Virginia until 1805, when they emigrated westward to Ohio, taking up their abode in Clay township, Montgomery county, where Mr. Young entered a tract of land three and a half miles west of Harrisburg and two miles north of Salem. He died about 1836 and his remains were interred on the old homestead farm, the grave being now surrounded by a paling fence. His wife survived him for a few years and died on the old homestead at a ripe age. The only relic of that early pioneer day yet remaining on the farm is a pear tree which stands a mute witness of the wonderful changes that have come and the events that have occurred in the passing years. The children of this worthy couple were Philip, who married Miss Elizabeth Royer; Adam, who married Peggy Fox ; Christian; Elizabeth. wife of Henry Harshbarger; Polly, wife of Jacob Wisner ; Daniel, who wedded Abbie Rinard ; David, who married Eliza- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 495 beth Knee ; and Joseph, who married Rebecca Stoner. Philip Young, the grandfather of Calvin Young. was born in Virginia in 1791, and when a young man came with his parents to Ohio.. He assisted his father in the development of the home farm until about 1810, when he married Elizabeth Royer, and began. farming on his own account. During the early part of the year 1812 he joined the American army, and served under General Brown in the second war with England. He participated in the battles of Chippewa, Lundy's Lane and the siege of Forts Meigs and Erie. He would often tell of the horrible scenes at the first two battles, where one could walk over acres of ground without touching the soil, so thick were the bodies of the British scattered there. Phillip Young was not wounded and at the close of hostilities he received an honorable discharge. He was a large man, five feet, eight inches in height, weighing over two hundred pounds. In disposition, however, he was mild, genial and courteous and won the warm regard of all who knew him. In his later years he became a member of the Dunkard church and died in that faith: In 1845 he was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife and later he removed to Fulton county, Indiana, to live with his son-in-law, with whom he remained until his death in 1866. He had then attained the ripe old age of seventy-five years and his remains were interred on the bank of the Tippecanoe river. Unto Phillip and Elizabeth (Royer) Young had been born nine children : Susan, the wife of John Sherow; Elizabeth, the wife of Jacob Baret; Polly; Catherine, the wife 0f John Jenkins; Sarah, wife of Wiley North; Phillip, who married Martha Mow; Christian, who married Mary Ann Arnott; Daniel, who was a twin brother of Christian and became the father of our subject; Iand Joseph, who married Mary Arnott. The mother of these children was a daughter of Henry Royer, who was of German birth and came to America in Colonial: days, taking up his abode in the Keystone. state. He married Susan Swenk and about 1807 joined a colony of Dunkards, who started for Ohio for the purpose of establishing a location near Cincinnati. About the time the journey was begun, however, Mr. Royer was taken ill and prevented from joining the party. Later he hoped to make the trip, but about the time of the start was again taken ill and died. He had three children : Henry ; George, who was born in 1776, married Miss Swenk and died in 1876; and Elizabeth, who married Phillip, Young in 1810. Daniel Young, the father of him whose name introduces this record, was born September 7, 1824, in Clay township, Montgomery county, Ohio. His school privileges were very limited, but he became a noted marksman and had ample opportunity for practice, for the forests of Ohio were filled with an abundance of wild game. When a young man he went to Indiana, where he spent four years in traveling and hunting: in company with three companions. He then returned to his native state and on the 31st of December, 1848, married Miss Martha Ann Mote, who was born March 29, 1834. She was of English lineage, tracing her ancestry back to Daniel Mote, her great-grandfather, who emigrated from England to Pennsylvania about 1751 and later-went to Georgia, where he married a Miss Cobb. They had three children : Rachel, who became the wife of Dr. Mote.. 406 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. a celebrated physician ; Joseph, who married Mary North ; and Rebecca, the wife of Thomas Mattock. The son, Joseph Mote, was married about 1800, and in 1805 emigrated to Ohio, coming with a Quaker colony, who had become disgusted with the practices of slavery in Georgia and consequently sought a home where they might be free from the influence of that institution. A settlement was made in Miami county, Ohio, but subsequently Joseph Mote removed to Monroe township, Darke county, where he remained until his death in 1824. He was the father of ten children : Enoch, who married Catherine Burcate; John ; Silas, who married Sallie Hall ; Ezekiel, who married Grace Vernon ; Epsy, the wife of John Markham ; Rachel, the wife of John Walker; Noah, who married Catherine Sharp ; Alex, who married Rhoda Miles ; 'William, who married Polly Hunt ; and Joseph, who died in childhood. The maternal grandfather of these children was John North. He was born in England and there married Rachel Nickel. Subsequently he emigrated with his family to Georgia, taking up his abode in the new world when the colonies along the Atlantic coast still belonged to Great Britain. He sympathized, however, with the American army during the Revolutionary war, and as many Tories lived in that section of the country he had many narrow escapes. At one time he was hidden under a puncheon floor until he could finally make his way from that region. Joining the colonial army he loyally bore his part in the struggle that brought independence to the nation. Both he and his wife lived to be more than one hundred years of age and died in Darke county, Ohio, the former on the 20th of March, 1846, and the latter on the 26th of October, 1842. Their children were : William ; John, who married Tamer Mendenhall James, who married Tamer Vernon ; Mary, wife of Joseph Mote ; Ezekiel ; Thomas, who married Elizabeth Eler ; Richard ; Joseph, who married Elizabeth Berry ; Sarah the wife of Martin Howe; Samuel, who married Elizabeth Brooks ; and Nancy, the wife of Jacob Loge. Ezekiel Mote, the grandfather of our subject and the son of Joseph and Mary (North) Mote, was born February 22, 1808 in Miami county, Ohio. He acquired a fair education and in 1828 married Grace Vernon, who was descended from a prominent English family. Thomas Vernon was probably a son of Admiral Vernon, who was an admiral of the English navy and was in charge of several voyages of exploration. Nathaniel Gideon and Thomas Vernon came to America in 1772, locating in Georgia, and when the war of the Revolution was inaugurated Gideon and Thomas started for England, but the former died on the way. Nathaniel Vernon, however, remained in Georgia and upheld the cause of the mother country during the struggle. About 1780 he married Grace Mendenhall and for thirty-five years he was a resident of Georgia, but in 1805 came to Ohio. The mother of Grace Mendenhall was massacred by the Creek Indians about 1781, not far from where Atlanta now stands. It is supposed that Mount Vernon was named in honor of the Admiral and the family name figures conspicuously in connection with English and American history. After the marriage of Ezekiel Mote and Grace Vernon the father commenced farming and also engaged in merchandising, and became a very prominent and influential citizen of the community in which he resided. He was one of the GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 497 first supporters of the Abolition party in Ohio and was almost ostracised from society on account of his position on the slavery question. He was, however, an effective speaker and was firm in the support of his honest convictions. His first wife died in April, 1845, and she was the m0ther of seven children : Sirena, who became the wife of Hiram Jones and lived near Laura, Miami county; Irving, a resident of Greenville; Martha, the wife of Daniel Young; Alpha, deceased; Olive, the wife of Charles O'Neil; Calvin, who married Rebecca Eleman ; and Penuel, who died in infancy. In April, 1847, Mr. Mote married Rachel Richardson and they had four children, of whom two are living,—Grace and Alvin, the former now the wife of an ex-soldier living in Indiana, having had four children by a former husband, whose name was George Swab. Alvin is married and lives in the west. The second wife of Mr. Mote died March 16, 1855, and subsequently he married Mary Burns, by whom he had three children : Anson a grocer of Pickaway, Ohio; Mary and Emma Ezekiel Mote died in 1885. For fifteen years after the marriage of Daniel Young and Martha Ann Mote they lived in Darke county, but in the fall of 1863 removed to Whitley county, Indiana, where they remained until 1870. They now reside near Pleasant Hill, Miami c0unty, Ohio, where they have a very comfortable home and are enjoying a hale and hearty old age, Daniel Young having passed the seventy-sixth milestone on life's journey. The marriage of this worthy couple has been blessed with five children : Calvin, Sylvester, Amandes, Nuel and Ida May, and with the exception of the third named all are yet living. Calvin M. Young, whose name introduces this record, was born May 6, 1851, in the county which is still his home, the family then being residents of Franklin township. He acquired his education in the district schools of the neighborhood and at the age of fourteen years began working as a farm hand, giving his father the benefit of his wages. He went to Indiana with his parents and there remained for seven years, but as he did not enjoy good health in the Hoosier state he returned to Ohio on the 24th of April, 1870. He was then employed on the brick yard in Montgomery county until the following winter, when he entered school. In the spring he came to Washington township, Darke county, securing employment in the service of Esquire Jeffries, of German township, with whom he remained for two years. On the expiration of that period a very important event in his life occurred—his marriage to Miss Sarah Ann Houpt, the wedding being celebrated on the 9th of January, 1873. The lady is a daughter of Frederick and Sarah Houpt. For five years following their marriage Mr. Young rented land in German township belonging to his father-in-law. On the l0th of November, 1885, he removed to his present home, which at that time was a tract 0f eighty-two acres, the greater part of which is under a high state of cultivation and improved with all modern accessories and conveniences. He is a very enterprising and energetic agriculturist, following the most progressive methods, and his home property is one of the most desirable farms in his section of the county. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Young were born six children : Wellington, who resides in Randolph county, Indiana, operates a hack line and is engaged in carrying the mail; 498 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. Rosa Lee, who became the wife of Jesse Dove Marshall and died, leaving a daughter, Opal Marie, who resides with her grandfather, Mr. Young ; Garfield, Ollie, Leona and Martha Anna. who are still at home. The mother of these children died November 5, 1890, and on the 16th of December, 1895, Mr. Young wedded Mrs. Laura Alice Baker, by whom he has two children, Nellie Edith and Bessie Edna. Her people now reside in Harrison township, Darke county. her parents being John F. and Mary ( Ankerman) Spencer. On attaining his majority Mr. Young became a supporter of the Republican party. continuing as one of its followers until 1884, when, believing. the cause of temperance the most important issue before the people, he joined the ranks of the Prohibition party. In May, 1888, he was a delegate to the Ohio Prohibition state convention and, was a visitor to the national convention of the party held in Indianapolis. Indiana, the same year. He was also a delegate to the state convention held at Cleveland in 1893 and alternate to the Columbus convention in 1894. Agin in 1896 he was a state delegate and in the work of the party he takes a deep and active interest. He is a stanch advocate of American principles, believing that the voice of the people should be the voice of the government. The cause of education has found in him a warm friend, who does all in his power to promote the interests of the schools. He belongs to the Farmers' Alliance of Elm Hill, and Palestine Lodge, No. 652, K. of P., of which he is a charter member. He visited the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago in 1893 and the Atlanta Exposition, and has seen many of the prominent battle fields of the south. He has always been an hon orable and patriotic citizen and in 1896 he delivered the Memorial Day address at Palestine. He is a man of broad scholarly attainments, his investigations being carried far and wide into the realms of science. He has a particular love for the studies of archeology. geology and paleontology and has some of the finest collections in the state. Although his time and means are limited, his researches and investigations have given him greater knowledge of these subjects and filled his cabinets with many fine specimens of these fields. Indeed his collections are so rare and valuable and his knowledge of the subject so extensive that he is recognized as an authority on such matters. Particular mention may he made of his archeological specimens showing the implements used by men in matters of warfare and also in times of peace. In 1882 some farm hands digging a township ditch discovered what they supposed to be pieces of petrified wood. Knowing Mr. Young's reputation, however, he was summoned and immediately recognized the supposed wood as bones of the extinct mastodon giganteus. After working several hours they unearthed the lower jaw bone. which was very much decayed and crumbled very easily, but with great care Mr. Young proceeded in his work and had the bones exhumed, and although broken in several places the skeleton was in a fair state of preservation. This lower jaw of the mastodon was the largest specimen ever found, weighing one hundred and six pounds and measuring thirty inches between the two sides at the rear. The length of the jaw bone is three feet, six and a half inches, and its thickness near the molar teeth is about eight inches. The two molar teeth weighed seven pounds each and the four incisors GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 499 about three pounds each. The bones Were later sold to Kendall & Collett, who placed them in the museum, at Terre Haute, Indiana where, with over twenty thousand dol- lars' worth of other valuable specimens, it was destroyed by fire. The total weight of the mastodon must have been over two hundred thousand pounds ! Mr. Young has also made a deep study of the "Mound-builders," and his relic's that came from the mounds of Ohio form an interesting and valuable collection. of which he has every reason to be proud. The collection comprises everything used by the "Mound-builders" for agricultural, domestic or warlike purposes. He has some very rare pipes of beautiful workmanship. He has done more to awaken interest in this particular line of research by his contributions to the daily and weekly newspapers, and his articles are noteworthy for the interesting manner in which he presents his subject, doing more to popularize and make attractive to the general public these important branches of science. His ambition now is to complete and classify a full collection of the archeological relics and make it the best private collection in the state. WILLIAM H. MATCHETT, M. D. Among the citizens who have contributed to the development of the county and left their impress upon its history was Dr. William Hendrickson Matchett, who for sixty-eight years was a resident and for more than forty years one of the practicing physicians and surgeons of Darke county. As the river whose deep and steady current, winding among fair landscapes, past blossoming fields and through busy towns, blessing millions of people and enhancing the wealth of nations, affords a little of that wild and romantic. scenery which startles the traveler or delights the artist, so those lives which contribute most to the improvement of a state and the well-being of a people are seldom the ones which furnish the most brilliant passages for the pen of the historian or biographer. There is, in the anxious and laborious struggle for an honorable competence and a solid career of the business or professional man fighting the every-day battle of life, but little to attract the idle reader of a sensational chapter ;. but for a mind thoroughly awake to the reality and meaning of human existence, there are noble and immortal lessons in the life of a man, who, without other means than a clear head, a strong arm and a true heart, conquers adversity, and, toiling on through the workaday years of a long career, finds that he has won not only wealth, but also something far greater and higher—the deserved respect and esteem of those with whom his years of active life have placed him in contact. Such a man, and for many years one of the leading citizens of Darke county, was Dr. Matchett. Born in Butler county, Ohio, he was of French Huguenot extraction, a descendant of one Jean Machet, of Normandy, and later of John Matchett (called "The Pine" on account of his re-. markable height) who distinguished himself in the battle of Trenton, and whose memory was honored by a memorial tablet, which still hangs in a church in Monmouth county, New Jersey. The sword which he carried, having wrested it from a British officer, is still in possession of the family of C. G. Matchett, and did service in both the war of 1812 and the civil war, having been carried by