700 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. whose faithfulness to every trust and whose straightforward dealing in business have won of him the public confidence and good will of all with whom he has come in contact. SAMUEL GIBSON. The Gibson family, of which Samuel Gibson, the subject of this sketch, is a representative, is of Irish origin. Isaac Gibson, his grandfather, was a. native of the Emerald Isle, emigrated to this country when a young man and here married and reared a large family. He was twice married and by his second wife had eleven children—four sons and seven daughters—all of whom have passed away except John, the father of Samuel. John Gibson was born August 12, 1814, and is now in his seventy-sixth year. In 1837 he married Margaret Rose, who bore him eleven children, eight sons and three daughters, all of whom reached adult age and are now living, except one, Mary, who died at the age of seventeen months. His father a farmer, Samuel was born on a farm and brought up to farm life, the date and place of his birth being December 3, 1837, in Wabash township, Darke county, Ohio. His educational advantages were limited to the schools taught in the log cabin school house of that day and place. He remained a member of the home circle until he attained his majority, when he started out in life on his own account, and the success he has achieved has been through his own efforts and with the assistance of his good wife. He owns 'a nice farm of sixty-five acres on section 2, Allen township, Darke county, his postoffice address being New Weston, and here he has lived since 1876, for a period of twenty-four years. March 20, 1860, Samuel Gibson was united in marriage to Miss Nancy Joseph, who was born in Illinois, in 1838, a daughter of William and Melena (Bucher) Joseph. Mrs. Gibson had the misfortune to lose her parents by death at an early age. She has one sister. The fruits of this union are four children, namely : Mary, the wife of John Silvas, who died at the age of thirty years, leaving a son and a daughter; Hopkins, who married and is settled in life; Malina, the wife of Colonel Thomas, of New Weston, has had six children, four of whom are living; and Emma, the wife of Reuben Sneary, a farmer of Allen township. Mr. Gibson affiliates with the Democratic party, while his father is a Republican. He has from time to time been honored with local office and in the.' same has served efficiently. Thirteen years he has served in the capacity of trustee. Mrs. Gibson is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, which the family regularly attend and to the support of which, Mr. Gibson contributes. JAMES M. BENSON. It is certainly incumbent that in this compilation due recognition be accorded Mr. Benson, for the family name is one that has been prominently identified with the annals of the county for more than half a century —in fact for nearly sixty-five years—while throughout all these years this identification has been maintained through that line of industry which figures as the basis of all others, that of agriculture. Mr. Benson's fine farm is located on section 30, Harrison township, Darke county, GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 701 and his postoffice address is Whitewater, Indiana. He is a native of the township, having been born on a place about two miles distant from his present home, on the 16th of December, 1841; His father, James Benson, was born in the state of Maryland, where he was united in marriage to Miss Susan Murray, about the year 1832. They continued to reside there until about 1836, when they set out on the long and tedious journey to the Ohio frontier, finally arriving at their destination in Darke county and taking up their abode in Harrison township, their occupation of the place now owned by their son, the subject of this review, having begun about six months after their arrival: James M. has often heard the tale of the eventful journey made by his parents in the pioneer days, for the trip was made with horses and wagon and by this medium. all their little stock of household goods was transported. They purchased one hundred acres of timbered land for six hundred dollars, and in this wilderness began to clear up a farm, the little- home being isolated and of the most primitive pioneer. order, with few conveniences and no luxuries. Stout hearts and willing hands will accomplish much, as all our pioneer history has shown, and Mr. and Mrs. Benson did their full share in reclaiming the wilds and laying the foundations for the magnificent prosperity which the present generations enjoy. When the young couple settled on their Woodland farm their nearest market was Cincinnati, and some seasons Mr. Benson transported as many as one hundred head of hogs to this -distant point. Both he and his devoted wife are birthright members of the Society of Friends, and in their lives they exemplify the kindly virtues and unwavering integrity so characteristic of this religious sect. As the clays passed the farm began to show the results of the arduous labor and care bestowed, and in due time the fields yielded their harvests in season. Around the family hearthstone the children, came to lend joy and brightness, our subject being one of the eleven born to his parents, and of this number eight were reared to maturity and six are living at the present time, namely : Conrad Robert,... a resident of California ; Harriet, wife of John E. Harrison, of Xenia, Ohio; John was accidentally shot while on a hunting expedition in the northwest, his death resulting from the injury inflicted ; Elijah is a farmer in Nebraska ; the next in order of birth was James M., subject of this sketch; Ephraim is a resident of Preble county, this state; and Catherine is the widow of a Mr. Teaford and resides in Hollansburg, this county. The father of this large family of children died about 1871, leaving to his heirs his farm of one hundred andi sixty acres and some town property, with some incumbranches. His wife died at the age of seventy-six years. James M. Benson, the subject of this sketch, remained upon the home place, and October 1, 1866, he was united in marriage to Delilah Barton, of Wayne county, Indiana, a daughter of Andrew and Celia (Boswell) Barton, and of the children of this union we make record briefly; as follows : James Andrew, who is married and has three children, resides on the home place and is associated with his father in the cultivation of the same ; Mabel is the wife of Colonel Williams and has one son. Mr. Benson has a fine farm of one hundred and sixty-three acres, devoted to general farming and stock raising. On the place are two excellent houses and two barns with other modern improvements of an at- 702 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. tractive order. On the place have been raised as much as eight hundred bushels of wheat and two thousand bushels of corn in a year. The corn is utilized for the feeding of the cattle on the place, special attention being given to stock raising .Mr. Benson places on the market an average of fifty hogs annually, and in the year 1899 disposed of one hundred head. He keeps a fine herd of hogs and an average of twelve head of cattle, in which latter line he is gradually displacing his Jersey stock with the shorthorn and polled Durham. Much of the farm consists of bottom lands that were once heavily timbered, and the soil is not only exceptionally fertile, but is very durable, as is shown in the fact that one field produced good crops of corn for twenty-seven consecutive years, without any alternation or special fertilizing. The modern residence on the homestead is a model country home, and by its side still stands the old homestead, so endeared by long associations. In his political proclivities Mr. Benson is a Republican, and religiously he and his estimable wife are identified with the United Brethren church. LEWIS C. ANDERSON, M. D. Darke county has been signally favored in the personnel and character of her professional men, and in that most exacting of all professions, medicine and surgery, a notable representative is he whose name appears above. Dr. Anderson, who holds distinctive prestige as a physician and surgeon of marked ability in his profession and as a man of sterling characteristics in all the relations of life, maintains his residence and office in Greenville, from which headquarters his practice ramifies throughout the county,. while he is frequently called into consultation by his professional confreres at points more or less distantly located. He is a native of the Buckeye state, having been born in Montgomery county on the 15th of January, 1850, the son of John and Mary (Hulse) Anderson. The father was a native of Pennsylvania and the mother of Ohio.. After their marriage they settled in Montgomery county, this state, where they remained until 1863, when the family removed to Darke county and settled upon a farm, which continued to be the home of the honored parents until death released them from their labors,—the father passing away in November, 1869, in the forty-eighth year of his age, while the mother survived but a short time after their removal to this county, her demise taking place in 1864. The paternal grandparents of the Doctor were James and Ruth (McCahan) Anderson, the former born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, in April, 1792, the latter in January, 1800. His paternal great-grandparents were Irish and lived about twenty miles from Dublin, where all of their children but James were born. They emigrated to the new world in 1791. The maternal great-grandfather of our subject was Patrick McCahan, also a native of the Emerald Isle, and his wife, who bore the maiden name of Sarah Green, was a near relative of General Nathaniel Greene, of Revolutionary fame. Dr. Anderson passed the first twelve years of his life in Montgomery county, accompanying his parents upon their removal to Darke county in 1863. Thus he spent part of his youth upon the farm, growing strong in mind and body under this sturdy discipline, supplemented by his attendance at the district schools in the vicinity of his GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 703 home. His father was appreciative of the advantages of broader education and the young man was encouraged in hit aspirations to seek a wider field of endeavor in preparing for the battle of life. He matriculated as a student in the Normal University at Lebanon, Ohio, where he prepared himself for pedagogic work, which has served as the stepping stone for so many of our leading professional men, and after being duly fortified in this line he devoted himself to teaching for one winter in the district schools and for two winters .in the village of Ansonia. In the meanwhile he had formulated specific plans for his future life work, and, having decided to prepare himself for the medical profession, began a course of reading under the preceptorage of Dr. Hooven, a well-known physician of Dayton, Ohio, later prosecuting his studies and clinical work in the Miami Medical College, at Cincinnati, where he graduated as a member of the class of 1874. He immediately entered upon the practice of his profession at Ansonia, Darke county, where he remained until 1888, when he removed to Greenville, the county seat, having been elected to the office of probate judge, as the nominee of the Democratic party. He assumed the duties of this important and exacting office February 9, 1888, and after serving with signal ability and impartiality for his term of three years was chosen as his own successor and continued his effective administration of the office for a further three years. At the expiration of his second term the Doctor prepared to again devote himself to his regular professional work, which he had but held in temporary abeyance. In order to thoroughly reinforce himself for his duties he went to New York city, where he completed a postgraduate course at the New York Post-Graduate Medical School. Returning to Greenville he entered into a professional alliance with Dr. D. Robeson, under the firm name of Robeson & Anderson, engaging in general practice. His success has been the diametrical result of his ability and personal popularity and he is known as one of the able physicians and surgeons of the state, being a close and indefatigable student and ever keeping abreast of the advances made in his profession. The Doctor is a member of the Darke County Medical Society and also of the State and National Medical Associations, in whose work he maintains an active interest. He served two years as a physician to the Darke County Children's Home and is a member of the soldiers' relief committee of the county and a member of the Greenville city school board. In politics the Doctor is a stanch Democrat and has been an active worker in the cause. Fraternally his allegiance is given to the time-honored order of Freemasons, in which he holds membership in Ansonia Lodge, No. 488, A. F. & A. M., and Greenville Chapter, R. A. M., while he is also identified with Ansonia Lodge, No. 605, I. O. O. F., and the Knights of Pythias, being distinctly popular in each of these organizations, to which he gives as much of his time as is possible in the midst of the exactions of his professional work. On the 29th of September, 1875, Dr. Anderson was united in marriage to Miss Ollie Tullis, daughter of Milton and Sarah Tullis, of Ansonia, and of this union one son has been born, John M., a young man of much intellectuality and strength of character, who is now a student in the celebrated Rush Medical College, in Chicago, where he is preparing to follow the profession to so marked success. 704 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. SOLOMON D. HART. As education reaches a higher plane and the intellectual side of our character develops, we more in our lives than a mere money-making existence and awaken to the full realization of our responsibilities. It is natural that our thoughts and hearts should go back to the past, and we are compelled to express our deep admiration and tender sympathy for 'those brave pioneers, who, by a life of noble self-sacrifice and undaunted courage, teach us the beauties of an unselfish life. Inspired by religious zeal and having faith in the Divine Father, animated by a deep love for their families and a desire for their improvement, they left their eastern homes. and with their worldly possessions journeyed to the great west, penetrating the heart of the wilderness, building their cabins where the foot of the white man had never trod, where only the Indian contested for supremacy with the wild beasts of the forest. Having thus selected their homes, these sturdy pioneers endured without complaining the privations, misery and hardships attendant upon such a life. They displayed a heroism equalled only by those devoted wives and mothers who accompanied them. When our country's history shall have been rewritten, when we hand down to coming generations the names of her truest heroes, it will not be the names of men who, surrounded by numerous comrades, inspired by the intoxicating strains of martial music, by the rolling of drums, the rattle of musketry, the roar of artillery and the din of clashing steel, fought until they died. It. is not the intention of the biographer to dispute their bravery or belittle their deeds ; but it required a greater courage a deeper religious sentiment and more lofty ideals on the part of the pioneers to abandon civilization and bury themselves in the forests, where -after a life of labor and unremitting toil they lie down to sleep at last without knowing luxury, but happy in the knowledge that their beloved wives and children were placed above the fear of want. These devoted men and women are our greatest heroes and their names will go down the ages when war and its horrors shall have ceased. To .such a family belongs S. D. Hart, the subject of this sketch, now a prominent farmer residing on section 36, Jackson township, Darke county, Ohio. His father, Joseph Hart, was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. in 1812, of English parentage, and like most boys of that day received only such an education as he could pick up at odd intervals. Being left fatherless during his boyhood it was very necessary that he should help support the family, and he and his two brothers were bound apprentices, but when he was old enough to care for himself he came to Ohio and settled near Dayton, where he worked for some time. About 1837 he married Magdalene, a daughter of John Shidler, and they reared eight children, namely : B. Franklin, Peter, Cyrus, Levi, Jonathan, Solomon D., Mrsi Catherine Sullenberger and Mrs. Esther Geiger. The father rented two farms near Bradford, where he remained until he entered land on section 36, Jackson township, Darke county, where our subject now resides. There were very few settlers in this locality at that time ; there was only a small store where Woodington now stands and money was exceedingly scarce. Upon this place Mr. Hart built a barn and double log house, which was the home of the family for some years, and was a very good GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 705 building. for those days. It was afterward replaced by a fine brick residence,—one of the first in the township. It was destroyed by fire in 1880, but was soon rebuilt. The original farm of eighty acres was enlarged to one hundred and sixty acres by the purchase of a .tract of land from Peter Shidler. Mr. Hart was a man of great public spirit and took an activeinterest in the development of the free school system. He was a Democrat in politics, but never sought office, and was a German Baptist in religious belief, an active worker in church affairs and untiring in his efforts to advance the general welfare of his community. He died in 1881 in his sixty-seventh year, and his wife survived him exactly four years. Solomon D. Hart was born in Miami county, Ohio, January 16, i847, and was a mere infant when the family came to Darke. county. His education, like that of most boys of those days, was necessarily limited, pursuing his studies roan old log school house until his tenth year, and often wading in water knee deep in going to and from school. Later a frame school house was built and here he was a student for about three months each year, while he assisted his father with the farm work the rest of the time until twenty. He then learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed for a short time. In 1873 Mr. Hart was united in marrage with Miss Mary E. Loy, a native of Preble county and a daughter of Michael Loy. She came with her family to this county when four years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Hart have three children, namely : Della, wife of a Mr. Huffard; a merchant of Elroy; Alva L., who is attending school and assisting his father on the farm; and Eliza, also in school. After his marriage Mr, Hart rented a farm near his father's place for eighteen months and then purchased forty acres adjoining, on which he lived for seven years. He then removed to the old homestead, where he still resides, having purchased the interests of the other heirs in the place. Here he has one hundred and twenty acres of land under a high state of cultivation, on which is a fine brick residence and several large barns, and he also owns forty-five acres of bottom land in Brown township, which he has drained and converted into a very productive tract. He is engaged in general farming, stock and tobacco raising, and, being an energetic man,. of good business ability, he is meeting with marked success in his labors. His genial temperament makes him a great favorite with his associates, and he has a host of warm friends throughout the county. He takes a very active part in promoting the interests of the Reformed church, of which he is a member, and gives his support to the men and measures of the Republican party. He has never aspired to political honors, but has efficiently served as school director for ten years, during which time he has succeeded in making many improvements in the school system. GEORGE H. McCLURE. Among the enterprising and progressive business men of Greenville who are meeting with well deserved success in their undertakings is the subject of this sketch—the junior member of the well-known firm of Whiteley & McClure, dealers in farming implements and machinery, at No. 131 East Third street. He is a native of Darke county, his birth occurring upon a farm in Washington township October 20, 1866. His father, John S. McClure, a successful and 706 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. prosperous farmer, was also born in this county April 12, 1841, and died here April 10, 1895. The paternal grandfather, George McClure, was a native of Montgomery county, Ohio, and an early settler of Darke county. He married Maria Myrkle, and they reared four children. Our subject's mother was in her maidenhood Miss Mary Cole, a native of Washington township, this county, and a daughter of Samuel Cole, one of its pioneers. She died in December, 1867. George H. McClure was reared in much the usual manner of farmer boys and obtained his early education in the country schools. Later he entered the National Normal University at Lebanon, Ohio, where he pursued his studies for some time. After his return home he assisted his father in the operation of the farm for five years. He is now the owner of a good farm of one hundred acres in Washington township, which is under a high state of cultivation and well improved. While engaged in agricultural pursuits he devoted considerable attention to stock raising, keeping a high grade of cattle and hogs. His specialty was the noted Duroc hogs, which he sold for breeding purposes throughout the state. In 1897 Mr. McClure removed to Greenville and accepted a position in the service of the Farmers' Mutual Insurance Company of Darke county. Later he entered the employ of Warder, Bushnell & Glessner, 0f Springfield, Ohio, manufacturers of farming implements and machinery, and remained with them as a traveling salesman for two years. At the end of that time he formed a partnership with Joseph Whiteley, and under the firm name of Whiteley & McClure they have since engaged in their present business at' Greenville. They carry a large and varied stock of farm machinery, and as they have an extensive acquaintance throughout Darke county and the surrounding country they have already built up a large and profitable trade. Mr. McClure was married, in 1892, to Miss Emma Jeffries, of Darke county, the fourth daughter of Milton and Louisa (Chenoweth) Jeffries, and to them have been born three children, namely : Lucile, Harold and Louise. URIAH MEDFORD. The commercial. activity of New Weston is largely promoted through the enterprising efforts of Mr. Medford, who is engaged in the undertaking and farm implement business. He is also identified with agricult ural interests, being the owner of one of the finest farms of Darke county. He was born in Wabash township, this county, on the 2 1st day of May, 1857, and is of Enghsh lineage, his great-grandfather, William Medford, having been a native of England. His grandfather, Charles Medford, was a farmer of Darke county and died in this locality when about seventy years of age. He was twice married and reared a large number of children, but all of his children are now deceased. George D. Medford, the father of our subject, was born in Franklin county, Ohio, December 6, 1827, and died in Kansas in 1893, at the age of sixty-six years. He wedded Mary Ann Gates, who was born in Chittenden county, Vermont, February 20, 1828, their wedding taking place October 26, 1847, in Ohio. There they began their domestic life upon a farm and their union was blessed with six children, namely : Myron C., of Dayton, Ohio, who has one son ; Matilda B., who became the wife of J. M. Rose and the mother of four GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 707 children, and died in middle life; Charles, a farmer of Wabash township, who has nine children, three sons and six daughters; J. C., who is living in Darke county and has four children; Uriah, of this review ; and Irene, the wife of J. H. Spencer, of Hollansburg, by whom she has two children. After the death of the mother of these children George D. Medford wedded Augenette Or-put, and they had two children, George Guy and Stanley, both of whom are residents of Kansas. Mr. Medford, whose name stands at the head of this sketch, was reared to farm life on the old family homestead and enjoyed the educational privileges afforded by the common schools of the neighborhood. At the age of sixteen he started out in life on his own account and went to Buchanan county, Iowa, where he engaged in farming in connection with his eldest brother for four years. They then sold their property there and Uriah Medford went to the far west, spending two years in Washington and California. On the expiration of that period he returned to Ohio, and, wishing to better prepare himself for life's responsible duties, he pursued a course of study in the business college in Greenville. He then visited his father in Virginia and in the spring of 1882 he purchased a farm in Wabash township, which he cultivated through a tenant, with whom he made his home for some yearsi On the 7th of October, 1886, Mr. Medford was united in marriage to Linnie Cottrell, of Wabash township, a daughter of A. S. Cottrell, who resides with Mri Medford, his own wife having died, as well as nearly all of their childreni Mr. and Mrs. Medford have lost their only child, an infant daughter. In his business affairs our subject has prospered and is to-day the owner of two hundred and twenty-one acres of rich and valuable land comprised within two farms in Wabash township and which are improved with good buildings and are under a high._ state of cultivation. He is also engaged in the farm implement business in New Weston, and in connection with E. C. Richardson is engaged in the undertaking business. His well directed efforts have been crowned with a high degree of success and all who are familiar with his straightforward business methods agree that his prosperity is well deserved. During the World's Fair ill- Chicago he was a member of the Columbian Guards. Both he and his wife hold membership in the Methodist church, taking an active part in its work and he is serving as a steward and trustee. Socially he is a Master Mason, belonging to the lodge at Ansonia, and politically he is a Democrat. He has twice served as township assessor and for three terms. was a justice of the peace. In both offices he discharged his duties with marked promptness and fidelity, and at all times he has been found true to every trust and obligation reposed ir. him. During the greater part of his life he has been a resident of Darke county, is familiar with its history, its progress and its upbuilding, and has given a hearty support to all measures calculated to promote the general welfare. In manner he is free from ostentation, is genial and courteous and the circle of his friends is extensive. FREDERICK MEIER. Frederick Meier, deceased, was one of the early German settlers of Greenville township, Darke county, Ohio, a man of 708 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. sterling worth and highly esteemed for his many excellent qualities of mind and heart. Frederick Meier was born in Haseling, Province of Hesse, Germany, December 25, 1802, one of a family of nine children. According to the German custom he attended the public schools from the time he was six until he was fourteen and then learned a trade. His trade, that of cabinetmaker, he learned in his father's shop, under his father's instructions, and he followed it throughout his life. His first wife, whose maiden name was Gustena Wissel, bore him three children, Charles and Caroline, and one that died in early life in Germany. His second wife, Gustena Klemme, he also married in Germany, April 15, 1850. With his wife and three children, he embarked from Bremen for Baltimore, which port they reached in safety after a voyage of four weeks and four days. From Baltimore they started west via the canal, their destination being Darke county, Ohio, and after about a month's travel by water and team they landed in Greenville township. Mr. Meier's capital at this time consisted of about six hundred dollars. With this he purchased forty acres of land, which had on it a little "clearing" and a small cabin, and here he established his home. His money all invested it was necessary for him to go to work at once to supply the immediate wants of his family. Work at his trade brought him sixty cents' a day and this, with what his son, Charles, could earn, was sufficient to keep the family in food. His land was nearly all under water and it required much labor and time to clear and drain it so that satisfactory crops could be raised. This however, was finally accomplished and the land yielded a support for the family. Meantime Mr. Meier continued work at his trade, traveling about from place to place until he was too old to worki He died January 20; 1885, and his wife March 29, 1888; both are buried in St. John's cemetery. For many years they were identified with the Lutheran church. Mr. Meier was prominent in the organization of Sti John's church, giving freely of both his labor and money to assist the enterprise and for many years he was one of its official members. The children of his second wife were six in number, but all are now deceased, and his son, Charles, above referred to, is the only living representative of the family. Charles Meier was born in Germany January 19, 1836; was educated in the common schools and confirmed in the Lutheran church, and at the time he came with his father and family to this country was fourteen years old. He assisted his father in the improvement of the farm above referred to and also worked out on other farms and thus at an early age aided in the support of the family. He married Miss Augusta Krickeberg, a daughter of Frederick and Charlotte (Sigsmend) Krickeberg, German people, who settled in Brown township, Darke county, Ohio, in 1852. The date of their marriage was February 9, 1863, and since then they have lived on the old homestead farm, which now comprises one hundred and forty acres, and in addition to this farm he owns other land. The home farm is well improved and nearly all under cultivation, the beautiful residence having been erected in 1889. Mri and Mrs. Meier have had six children, four of whom are living,—Charles, Mena, Caroline and John,—and all except the youngest are married and settled .in life. The deceased children were Sophia and Frederick. In his political views Mr. Meier is what GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 709 is termed 'an independent. In 1863 he was drafted into the Union army and served four weeks, at the end of which time he hired a substitute, for whom he paid nine hundred and eighty-five dollars, and received his discharge. MONROE PHILLIPS. Monroe Phillips, who is now successfully engaged in the liquor business in Greenville, was born on a farm near Castine, Darke county, October 7, 1852, and is a son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Reiswonger) Phillips, also natives of this county, the former born in 1820, the latter in February, 1826. His ancestors were from Pennsylvania and on the paternal side were among the very earliest settlers of Darke county, living in the neighborhood of Fort Jefferson, when Indians still inhabited this region and wild animals were numerous. Our subject grew to manhood upon the home farm. He was quite young when his father pied and during his boyhood and youth he assisted his mother in the management of the place. She is still living, at the age of seventy-four years, and now makes her home in Savona. On the 21st of March, 1877, Mr. Phillips was united in marriage with Miss Harriet McGriff, a native of Castine, and to them were born two children. namely : Minnie, who died in childhood ; and Burnet, who was born in Arcanum December 9, 1879, and is still living. After his marriage Mr. Phillips lived in Arcanum for a short time and then removed to Greenville, where he is now carrying on a profitable business as a liquor dealer, and also deals in fist horses. He and his family occupy a beautiful home on West Fifth street. JOHN A. WALLACE. The present well-known and popular mayor of Union City, Ohio, was born in that place June 24, 1871, and is a son of James and Ellen Wallace, natives of county Kerry, Ireland, the former born November 10, 1834, the latter August 20, 1836. Both emigrated to America in 1857, with the hope of finding a home in the new world adapted to their mutual tastes. The father located in Sidney, Ohio, the mother in Toledo, and in 1863 the former came to Union City, where they were married April 9; 1864. Here Mr. Wallace worked as a section hand for four years and then embarked in another business, which he successfully carried on until five years ago, having secured a comfortable competence, which enabled him to lay aside business cares. He is now the owner of considerable farm and city property. His estimable wife died November 26, 1881. Of the eight children born to them one son, Patrick, died in February, 1897, and the others are still living, namely : James ; Mary; John A., our subject ; Margaret, a music teacher ; Bridget, a seamstress ; Thomas, a machinist ; and Johanna. Mayor Wallace attended the public schools of Union City until eighteen years of age, and was then a student at Sti Mary's Institute, Dayton, Ohio, for nine months. At the close of his school life he was employed as a salesman for the Peter Kuntz Lumber Company three years, and then commenced the study of law in the office of Williams & Bolen, with whom he remained six months and was with Bell & Ross one year. Since reaching man's estate he has taken quite an active and prominent part in public affairs and at the age of twenty-one was elected a member of the city coun- 710 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORDi cil. A year later he resigned that position to become city solicitor and at the age of twenty-five was elected a justice of the peace, which office he filled for three years. In the spring of 'g00 he was elected mayor on the Democratic ticket by a majority of eighty-five votes, which was the largest majority ever given a city officer in Union City, and that position he is now most creditably and acceptably filling. He is wide-awake, energetic and progressive, and has made a remarkable record for a young man of his years, and undoubtedly a brilliant future awaits him. GEORGE E. NISWONGER. George E. Niswonger, county commissioner of Darke county, Ohio, is one of the representative men of the county and belongs to a family whose residence in the state of Ohio covers many years and whose settlement in America dates back to the colonial period. John Niswonger, the great-great-grandfather of George E. Niswonger, was born in Germany, and on his emigration to this country took up his abode in Virginia. He was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. His son, John, the great-grandfather of our subject, was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, where his early life was spent on a plantation. In that state he married Elizabeth Circle, and about 1804 they came out to what was then called the "Western Reserve" and settled in Clay township, Montgomery county, Ohio. Here he entered half a section of government land; developed a farm and on it passed his remaining years, his death occurring in 1848, when he was about sixty years of age. His wife died at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Samuel Baker, in Monroe township, Darke county, when over seventy years of age. They were members of the Dunkard church. Their children were as follows : George ; John, who married Susie Warner and is still living, having reached the age of eighty-five years; Nicholas, whose death was caused by a runaway horse at the place where Pittsburg now stands. He was twice married, his first union being with Leah Shaffer, after whose death he chose for his second wife Lucinda Boyd ; Eli, who died in Clay township, Montgomery county ; Nellie, who married Jacob Swank, and is now deceased ; Mollie, the wife of Samuel Baker, of Monroe township, Darke county; and Elizabeth, the deceased wife of Samuel Baker. George Niswonger, the grandfather of our subject, was born in Clay township, Montgomery county, Ohio, in 1809, and there spent his life. He married Elizabeth Warner, a native of Pennsylvania and a daughter of David and Esther (Brumbaugh) Warner. She was brought by her parents to Ohio when she was an infant and died at the age of fifty-eight years. After her death he married for his second wife Susan Hinsey. He died at the age of seventy-one yearsi He was prosperous in his business affairs and at one time was the owner of six hundred acres of land. There were no children by his second marriage. The children by his first wife were as follows : David, who was married in this township to Carrie Peffley and is now deceased; Eli, the father of George Niswonger ; Catherine, the wife of John Peffley, of Montgomery county, Ohio ; Mary, the wife of Joseph Wenger, of Montgomery county; and Moses, who married Marie Murray and resides in the state of Michigan. Eli Niswonger, the father of the subject GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 711 of this review, was born in Clay township, Montgomery county, August 31, 1836, and spent his youth on his father's farm, receiving his early education in one of the primitive log school housesi of that place. After he reached his majority lie attended school for a time in Dayton. He was married, in December, 1859, to Miss Mary Ann Cauffman, a, native of Little York, Montgomery county, her birth having occurred in June, 1838. Her parents, Jesse and Eliza (McChord) Cauffman, were natives of Pennsylvania. After their marriage they lived on the old Niswonger homestead in Clay township for two years, after which they came to Darke county, and settled on a tract of wild land, ninety acres in extent, in Monroe township, where he devoted his energies to the work of clearing and improving a farm. He built a hewed-log house, 20x24 feet, and two stories high, containing four rooms, and here they lived in pioneer style for a number of years. In 1889 he sold his farm and retired to Pittsburg. where he has since resided. He and his wife are true to the faith in which they were reared, being consistent -members of the Dunkard church. Politically he is a Democrat. The children of this worthy couple are as follows : Ella, the wife of Charles Delk, of Pittsburg, Ohio ; Belle, -the twin sister 0f Ella, married A. Ersenborger and is now deceased ; Ola, who married Maggie Smith and now lives in New York city; George; Jesse, who married Dora Hamel and now resides in Pittsburg, Ohio ; and William, who married Myrtle Stauffer and now makes his home in Pittsburg, Ohio; Ira, who was a twin brother of Jesse and died at the age of two years ; and Webster, who died in infancy. George E. Niswonger, whose name introduces this review, was born upon the old homestead farm in Monroe township, Darke county, March 18, 1866. There he was reared to manhood, his time being devoted to the work of the farm through the summer months, while in the winter seasons he pursued his education in the publ:c schools. He first attended district school No. 4, his teacher being Mr. Wanzer. Afterward a scho0l house was built on the corner of his father's farm and there he continued his studies until nineteen years of age. During the periods of vacation he followed the plow and assisted in harvesting the crops, remaining with his father until his marriage, which occurred on the 1st of March, 1886, Miss Nancy Behrer becoming his wife. She was born in Miami county and is a daughter of Ebizah [Abijah] Rohrer. For a year after his marriage Mr. Niswonger remained upon his father's farm and then engaged in the butchering business for more than a year. He. afterward removed to Pittsburg, where he carried on business as a stock dealer and was thus engaged until the spring of 1899, when he was elected county commissioner. He was chosen to that office in the Democratic ticket, receiving a majority of nine hundred and thirty-two votes, and in the discharge of his duties he manifested such fidelity and marked ability that he has won the commendation of the majority of the citizens of Darke county. In 1888 Mr. Niswonger was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, who died on the 3d of February of that year. They had one child, born August 23, 1887. On the 17th of December, 1890, Mr. Niswonger was again married, the second union being with Frances Strader, who was born in Twin township, Darke county, on the 17th of February, 1869, a daughter of Emanuel and Molly (Fisher) Strader. By that marriage 712 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. there were two children, but the elder died in, infancy unnamed. The younger is Walter S., who was born September 4, 1893. Mr. Niswonger is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, belonging to Arcanum Lodge, No. 341, and to the encampment. He is also connected with the Knights 0f Pythias fraternity, of Arcanum and is a popular and highly esteemed citizen, who keeps well informed in the issues of the day and does everything in his power to promote the welfare and prosperity of his township and county. ADAM S. COPPESS. Adam S. Coppess, a prominent representative of the agricultural interests of Jackson township, belongs to one of the oldest and most highly respected families of Darke county, his grandfather, Adam Coppess, having taken up his abode here in 1819. only two years after Jacob Hartle, the first white settler, located within its borders. He was of Dutch extraction and a blacksmith by trade, being the first to follow that occupation in this county. On first coming to Ohio from North Carolina he located in Greene county, and it is said that he had to hide to keep from being murdered by the Indians. In Darke county he entered land for himself and sons, made a clearing and built a log house, which stood for a number of years. He took an active part in laying out the roads in his locality, cleared many acres of land and in connection with work at his trade manufactured cowbells by hand. In politics he was a Democrat and in religious belief a Lutheran. He died at the age -of seventy-four years and his wife survived him several years. Before leaving North Carolina he married a Miss Mock, whom our subject well remembers, and to them were born the following children : John, David, Peter, Adam, Alfred and Daniel, all farmers; Mrs. Phoebe Horning, Mrs. Mary Frampton, Mrs. Elizabeth Brewer, Mrs.. Catherine Harney and Mrs. Sarah Robison. John Coppess, the father of our subject, was born in North Carolina and was only six years old when brought by his parents. to this state. The family had owned a negro slave, who was set free on their arrival here. John Coppess attended the subscription schools to a limited but was mainly self-educated, and being fond of readingi he became a well informed man. He was. very ingenious and able to engage in almost any occupation, including blacksmithing, carpentering and farming. He also followed the trade of a fuller for some time, and later operated a water-power saw-mill until steam came into general use, when he turned his attention to general farming, owning three hundred and fifty acres of land, including a part of the old homestead. Returning to Greene county, he married Mrs. Susanna (Stevenson) McFarland, a native either of Kentucky or Virginia. Her father was a scout in the war of 1812 and saw much active service under General Wayne. He afterward received a land. grant in recognition of his services. Our subject's paternal grandfather also took part in the same war. Mrs. Coppess was fairly well educated and was a great bible student. Her children were Andrew, a farmer and stock raiser of Iowa ; Adam S., our subject; Jacob P., a farmer of Ansonia, this county ; and B. F., now a resident of Greenville. For his sec ond wife the father married Rhoda Horny, wh0 died leaving three children : John, a justice of the peace; and Pyrus and Peter, both school teachers. Most of the family- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 713 held membership in the Presbyterian church and the father was a Democrat in political sentiment. In an old cabin on the homestead in Richland township Adam S. Coppess was born October 2, 1833. He began his education in a subscription school, but after attending fifteen days he broke his arm and was forced to remain at. home for some time. At the age of eleven he entered the public schools, where he pursued his studies three months during the year until he was fifteen, and though his advantages were limited he acquired a fair education. He aided his father in the labors of the farm until seventeen years of age and then began earning his own livelihood, though he remained at home until he attained his majority: During the following three years he managed his father's business, and in 1857 purchased eighty acres of his present farm on section 24, Jackson township, which at that time was practically new land and had to be drained before it was ready for cultivation. He now has a fine farm of one hundred and ninety acres, though he at one time owned four hundred and forty acres. He is successfully engaged in. general farming and stock raising and also devotes some attention to the dairy business. On the 4th of June, 1854, Mr. Coppess married Miss Sarah A. Davison, who was born in Richland township, this county, April 6, 1834, a daughter of Robert and Mary (Stratton) Davison. They have five children, all of whom were provided with good educational advantages. James Madison, the eldest, follows farming; Robert F. is a druggist and physician, of Alger, Ohio, and was educated' in Cincinnati ; Andrew J. is engaged in farming on the old homestead; -Stephen A. attended school in Toronto and Cincinnati, and is now a veterinary surgeon. and horse dealer of Ridgeville, Ohio; and Mary E. is the wife of George Russ, and they have one child, Adam Paul. In religious faith Mr. Coppess is a Universalist, and in political sentiment is a Democrat. He has efficiently served as road supervisor, was school director twenty-seven. years and clerk of the board when every brick school house was built. Socially he. is a member of Ansonia Lodge, No. 488, F. & A. M. He is a very entertaining man,. possesses a good fund of general information and is very hospitable. HENRY WILLIAMS. Henry Williams is a retired farmer of Rossville and an honored veteran of the civil war. He was born in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, July 11, 1825. Before his birth his father had died and he was reared by Michael Castle until he was twelve years. of age. He accompanied Mr. Castle to Williamsburg, Montgomery county, Ohio, and continued under his roof for a time. He has defended entirely upon his own efforts since the age of twelve years. He worked as a day laborer and as a farm hand, scorn-. ing no employment that would yield him an honest living. As the years passed he was enabled to save some capital, which he invested in land, and its cultivation brought: to him a good financial return. He was married, January 9, 1850, to Sarah Replogle, a daughter of Philip and Elizabeth (Gossand) Replogle. Since that time he has engaged in farming, following agricultural pursuits mostly in Wooster and Allen townshipsi In 1856 he settled on a tract of land. of thirty-two acres and after the war he. added to his property until it comprised sev- 714 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. enty-three acres of rich land. He afterward isold a portion of that, retaining possession. -of forty-four acres, which he continued to cultivate until the spring of 1883, when he practically laid aside business cares and retired to his present home, situated on a tract of five acres of land at Rossville. Industry and energy have enabled him to add yearly to his income. He worked in the fields, cultivated his land, and when the crops were harvested he obtained a good return for his labor. Putting aside some of his earnings he is now in possession of a comfortable competence, which enables him to live retired in the enjoyment of a well earned rest. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Williams has been blessed with nine children,—four tons and five daughters, —all of whom are yet living with the exception of William Henry, who was killed by the cars. He -was born February 27, 1858, and died June 27, 1896. The other children are still living, are married and have families of their own and there are twenty-eight grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren living. During the civil war Mr. Williams loyally responded to the country's call for aid, enlisting as a private on the 21 st of August, 1861. He was assigned to Company K, of the Fifty-third Ohio Infantry, and for four years faithfully defended the old flag and the cause it represented. He was first wounded at Resaca on the 13th of May, 1864, but remained with his company until the 22d of July of that year, when he received four shots in front of Atlanta, one in the forehead, two in the right leg and one in the left leg! He was then sent to Tripler hospital in Columbus, where he remained untili honorably discharged. From 1865 until 1875 he received a pension of twenty-four dollars per year; for the next eight years he received four dollars per month, the sum then being increased to six and later to eight dollars per month, and since July, 1891, he has received twelve dollars per month. He is a valued member of the Grand Army of the Republic. In politics he is a stanch Republican and has served as a township trustee and road supervisor. At all times he is as true to his duties of citizenship as when he defended the starry banner upon southern battlefields. WILLIAM TOWNSEND. At the time of his death this gentleman was one of the prominent farmers of Van Buren township. He had won by an honorable and upright life an untarnished name, and the record which he left behind him is one well worthy of emulation. He was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, December 24, 1830, a son of James and Lydia (Arnold) Townsend, who spent their last days in Van Buren township, Darke county. They were married in September, 1818. The father was born in South Carolina September 12, 1796, and died when our subject was quite small, and the mother was born in the Newbury district of the same state in January, 1791, and died when William was fifteen years of age. He was reared near Jaysville, this county, and after the death of his mother remained on the old homestead until his marriage. It was on the 8th of February, 1855 that Mr. Townsend wedded Miss Elizabeth Hartzell, who was born in Adams county, Pennsylvania, February 9, 1834, a daughter of Jonas Hartzell, who is mentioned more fully in the sketch of J. W. Hartzell on another page of this volume. Mrs. Townsend was but three years old when brought by her par- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 715 ents to Darke county, Ohio, and here she grew to womanhood, acquiring her education in the district schools. To our subject and his wife were born six children, namely : Marie Belle, born December 8, 1854, married John Markwith, and died August 31, 1885; Josephine, born September 20, 1856, is the wife of John Bittner, of Keokuk county, Iowa; Harrison, born November 21, 1859, is a resident of Dayton, Ohio ; James H., born April 13, 1865, lives in Van Buren township, this county ; and Elman S. and Elmer Sherman, twins, born June 1, 1868, are residents of Greenville township, this county. After his marriage Mr. Townsend continued to live on his father's old farm until 1865, when he purchased the mill in Adams township, which he operated for four years. He then bought one hundred and sixty acres of land near the Abbottsville cemetery and made his home there until his death, which occurred June 12, 1892. In his political affiliations he was a Republican. He was a consistent and faithful member of the United Brethren church and merited and received the confidence and high regard of all with whom he came in contact, either in business or social life. AARON VAIL. This honored and highly respected citizen of Greenville township, Darke county, where he has made his home since 1852, was born near Middletown, Butler county, Ohio, October 19, 1823, and is a son of Shobal and Mary (Bunnell) Vail, natives of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, respectively. In their family were eleven children, but all are now deceased with the exception of our subject. His grandfather, Stephen Vail, was one of the early settlers of Butler county, Ohio, and was a fuller by trade. In his native county Aaron Vail grew to manhood and married Miss Sarah Aedy, of that county, and to them were born eight children, five of whom are still living, namely : Daniel, B. Shobal, Stephen, Etta and Mollie. Those deceased were Joseph, Laura and Henrietta. nI 1852 Mr. Vail brought his family to Darke county and subsequently purchased one hundred and forty acres of land in Greenville township, where he now lives. In 1864 he enlisted for three months in Company H, One Hundred and Ninety-fourth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and proceeded at once to Camp Dennison, where the regiment was drilled and equipped. At that time they were state troops, but at the request of Governor Brough they enlisted ini a body in the United States service, with the exception of three or four men. In the state service our subject was under the command of Captain Hyde, of Company C, and after the reorganization of the regiment was under the command of Captain Gray, of Company H. He did guard duty most of the time. His command was first sent to Camp New Creek, Virginia, and subsequently ordered down the valley to Martinsburg. The regiment was then detailed as wagon guard to the army train and penetrated to a point near Lynchburg, but the rebels becoming too numerous for them a retreat was made. At Greenbrier creek they participated in quite a fight and here one of Mr. Vail's comrades standing close to him was killed. Our subject was mustered out at Camp Dennison and honorably discharged. He had walked out of the corn field to enlist and on his return home resumed farm work. Both Mr. and Mrs. Vail have long been 746 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORDi active members of the Christian church of Coalville, and politically he is identified with the Republican party. He cast his first presidential vote for Henry Clay, the great commoner, and he has filled the offices of township supervisor and school director, holding the latter position several terms. He is a gentleman of inflexible character, true in friendship and unyielding in all that comprises honor. He is charitably disposed toward the opinions of others, and although not rich in this world's goods he gives freely to all worthy objects. He has a comfortable and tasteful home, graciously presided over by his estimable wife, who has been to him a true helpmeet. DANIEL W. STOVER. The substantial and energetic agricultmist residing on section 27, Jackson township, Darke county, Ohio, whose name introduces this review, was born in Montgomery county, this state, December 30, 1859. His grandfather, Abraham Stover, moved with his father to that county from Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, in 1838, and located eight miles west of Dayton, where he made his home until his removal to Preble county in 1865. He, too, was .a very energetic man and became fairly well-to-do, owning land in Darke county besides his property in Preble county. As a young man he was unusually strong, but died of heart 'disease in February, 1875, at the age of seventy-one years. He was a very just man, upright and honorable in all things, and was a consistent member of the Albright church. He was very kind to his family and a good neighbor and his death was deeply mourned. He married Nancy . Landis and to them were born four children : John, who died when a young man; Henry, the father of our subject; Elizabeth, who died at the age of twenty-four years ; and Mrs. Annie Brubacker. Henry Stover was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, in 1836, and was only eighteen months old when the family removed to Montgomery county, Ohio, where he was reared, receiving a fair education in the district schools near his boyhood home. He assisted his father until twenty years of age and then engaged in clerking in a general store for four years, after which he bought out his employer and carried on the business. During the war he sold the store and ran the old homestead farm for one year, at the end of which time he sold it and bought another, where he lived two years. On disposing of it he moved to Brookville, Ohio, where he was engaged in the grain and railroad business and also kept books at a distillery until 1868, when he purchased one hundred and eighty acres of land on section 27, Jackson township, Darke county, only thirty acres of which had been cleared. Renting his farm he located in Union City, where he was engaged in the stock business, his trade being mostly local, though he shipped stock to some extent. Later he was interested in the grain business and built what is now known as the Lambert warehouse, which he conducted until 1876, when he sold out and lived on his farm eight years, during which time he was still engaged in buying and selling stock. In 1880 he moved to Union City, Indiana, where he was engaged in the monument and marble business for four years and later in the furniture business. He erected a store building at that place in partnership with William Wright, who had also been a partner of his in the sheep business, and the GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 717 firm of Stover & Wright continued in active business until 1896, when the father of our -.subject retired to his farm and built the pretty two-story brick house now occupied by our subject. Here he died May 22, 1899. For twenty-eight years he was an active and faithful member of the Union City Methodist Episcopal church, in which he served as a class leader, and when the church was built in Jackson township transferred his membership to that organization, serving as a class leader until his death. His religion was manifest in his business and private life and he had the confidence and respect of all with whom he came in contact. Politically he was a Republican, but never sought office. He married Catherine Frantz, a daughter of Daniel Frantz, and born and reared in Montgomery county. Our subject was the only child born to this worthy couple. He came with his parents to Darge county in 1868. His education was partly obtained in this and Montgomery counties and was completed in the schools of Union City. During his boyhood he became thoroughly familiar with every department of farm work, and throughout his entire life has devoted his time and attention to agriculture and has met with most gratifying success. In 1880 he assumed charge of the home farm, which he managed until his father's death. He had previously purchased one hundred acres and has since acquired one hundred and twenty acres more, on which he is now successfully engaged in general farming and stock raising. He is also somewhat interested in tobacco culture. In 1880 Mr. Stover was united in marriage with Miss Matilda Isenhour, who was born and reared on a farm, a daughter of William Isenhour. By this union were born six children, namely : Ira H., who was graduated at the district schools of North Manchester and the Union City high school, and is now taking a business course ; Ella M. and Emma C., who are students in the high school of Union City; John H., who died at the age of eight years ; Clara E., who is attending school; and William D., deceased. Since his father's death Mr. Stover has served as a class leader in the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he is a prominent member. As a public spirited and progressive citizen he takes an active interest in public affairs; was instrumental in getting free delivery established in his township and has efficiently served as a school director for fifteen years. Politically he is identified with the Republican party. BENJAMIN L. GRILLOT. Prominent among the successful teachers of Parke county is the gentleman whose name introduces this sketch and who is now residing on the C. Treiber farm on section 8, Patterson township. He is a native of this county, born in 'Wabash township August 4, 1874, and is a son of Henry Grillot, who was born in France in 1820, and was brought to America by his parents in 1834. By trade the grandfather of our subject was a stone mason. In his family were seven children—four sons and three daughters—all of whom are now deceased. On attaining man's estate, Henry Grillot was married, in Darke county, in 1852, to Miss Margaret Leona Larmanie, who was born in Lorraine, France, January 6, 1834, and they began their 'domestic life -upon a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in the midst of the forest, where the wolves were often heard 718 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. howling at night, and the deer would enter the garden and eat the vegetables found there. Mr. Grillot died in February, 1886, but his wife is still living and is still very strong and a live both in mind and body. To them were born nine children— six sons and three daughters—namely : Lewis J., born in 1857, lives in Versailles ; John B. is a farmer and trustee of Wabash township ; Mary L. married Frank Graff and died at the age of twenty-five years, leaving three children; Joseph S. was severely burned at the age of three years, and died from the effects of the same when twenty-one; he possessed great strength in his hands and arms ; Harriet is the wife of Nicholas Gouboux and they live on the old home farm; Henry J. is a teacher living at Frenchtown ; Emanuel is a blacksmith of Russia, Shelby county, Ohio ; Benjamin L. is next in order of birth; and Margaret M. is the wife of Ira Ashman, of Russia, Ohio. There are also twenty-nine grandchildren. Our subject received a liberal district-school education and also attended school in Versailles two terms. At the age of nineteen he commenced teaching and has devoted his time and energies to that occupation for eight winters, or forty months, having that love for his profession without which there can be no success. During the summer season he follows farming. On the l0th of May, 1898, Mr., Grillot was united in marriage with Miss Louise Monnin, a native of Shelby county, Ohio, and a daughter of Justin and Emily (Millet) Monnin. They now have a little daughter, Emma Leona, born October 14, 1899. Both Mr. and Mrs. Grillot are Catholics in religious faith and in politics he is a Democrat, as was also his father. He is a young man of strength and vigor of both body and mind, which have been developed and preserved by habits of industry and a moral domestic life. He is wide-awake and observing, possesses studious habits, a good memory, keen perception and sound judgment, and undoubtedly a brilliant future awaits him. CYRUS LITTEN. Among the well-to-do and prosperous. agriculturists of Patterson township is Cyrus Litten, a native of Darke county,. who was born in Monroe township, January 13, 1859. His father, Samuel Litten, was a native of Montgomery county, this state, and a son of James Litten, who came to Ohio from Pennsylvania, and spent his last days in Montgomery county. In his family were six children, two sons and four. daughters, only one of whom is now living—Betsey, the wife of Noah Baker, of Brookville, Ohio. She is now about seventy years of age. In 1855 the father of our subject married Lucinda Baker, also a native of Montgomery county and a daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Neisswanger) Baker. She is still living at the age of sixty-nine years, and is very active, but the father died in 1889, at the age 0f sixty-seven. In their family were the following children : James, who is unmarried and cultivates a small fruit farm near Hot Springs, Arkansas; Warren, a farmer of Montgomery county; Cyrus, the subject of this sketch; David, a farmer of Monroe township, Darke county; Emeline, also a resident of Monroe township ; Levi, a wealthy landowner of Laura, Miami county, Ohio ; Calvin, a resident of Monroe township, Darke county; Carl, who is unmarried and lives in this county ; Sarah, GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 719 the wife of Charles Johnson; and John, who died at the age of twelve years. During his boyhood and youth Cyrus Litten .obtained .a fair district-school education, and early acquired an excellent knowledge of every department of farm work. Be remained at home until he was married, October 1, 1881, to Miss Amanda Brown, of Monroe township, a daughter of Elias and Eliza (Oaks) Brown, who are now living with Mrs. Litten. She has two brothers and one sister, namely : Hige, a tobacco grower of Monroe township; Charles, unmarried, and Mattie, the oldest of the family and the wife of Eli Robinson, of Lee county, Illinois. Four others died young. Mr. and Mrs. Litten have one child, Charley, who was born January 30, 1882. After his marriage Mr. Litten had his father-in-law's farm for a time, and then rented land near Brookville for two years. In 1894 he located upon his present farm of eighty-three acres in Patterson township, forty-three acres of which he purchased for eighteen hundred dollars, the remaining forty acres belonging to his father-in-law. He is engaged in general farming and tobacco growing, and also raises considerable stock, each year fattening from thirty-five to fifty hogs for market. He also keeps cattle and sheep, and three horses for doing the farm work, besides a colt. Most of the corn which he raises—some eight hundred bushels—he feeds to his stock. The fine residence upon his place was erected by Mr. Litten, but the barn was built before he located thereon. He is a thorough and systematic farmer and 'a man of good business ability, who is upright and honorable in all his dealings. Reared as a Republican, Mr. Litten has always affiliated with that party, and he is a member of the Christian church. Although his residence in Patterson township is of short duration, he has become well and favorably known and has made a host of warm friends. PHILIP M. FORD. Philip M. Ford, an industrious and energetic farmer residing on section 7, Wabash township, Darke county, was born in Greene county, Ohio, December 29, 1851, and is a son of Jacob Ford, who was probably born in the- same house, November 30, 1830, as he was a 'native of the same township. The grandfather, David Ford, was one of the early settlers of Ohio, where he died in 1861. In his family were ten children. In February, 1851, Jacob Ford married Hannah Turner, who was also born in Greene county, May 16, 1831, and died June 25, 1899, while his death occurred August 19, 1887, and the remains of both being interred in Holsapple cemetery. Their children were Philip M., our subject; Allen, a resident of Coldwater, Mercer county, Ohio; Robert H., of New Weston, Darke county; Martha Jane, the wife of Henry Gibson, and David E., a mailcarrier of New Weston. All are married and have children. The boyhood and youth of our subject were spent on the home farm and his education was acquired in the common schools of the neighborhood. He was married, October 8, 1874; to Miss, Mary E. Birt, who was born May 2, 1854, a daughter of John Birt, and they have become the parents of six children, four sons and two daughters, namely : Stella M., who was born December, 1875, and died when nearly fifteen years of age; Cora A., who died at the age of six years; Harley D., aged eighteen, who is now through school and aids his father in 720 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. the operation of the farm ; Clem, aged thirteen; Harry G., aged ten; and Arthur Russell, aged eight years. Mr. and Mrs. Ford began life at the bottom of the ladder, but have met with success owing to their industry, enterprise and good management, and now have a good farm of thirty-seven acres. He also cultivates an additional tract of eighty-eight acres. His principal crops are corn, wheat and oats, and he also raises horses, cattle, sheep and hogs. Although he lives in a Democratic township and is a strong Republican, he has twice been elected township trustee, and is now acceptably filling that office. WILLIAM HARRISON KIESTER, M. D. Dr. Kiester, one of the leading physicians and a pr0minent resident of Arcanum, Ohio, was born on the Benjamin Bushore farm in Newton township, Miami county, July 5, 1857, and is a son of Peter K. and Mary (Bushore) Kiester, both natives of Pennsylvania, the former born in Buffalo Valley, Union county, the latter near Mifflintown, Juniata county. His paternal grandfather, John Kiester, died in Buffalo Valley, but the maternal grandparents, Benjamin and Susannah Bushore, spent their last days in this state. The parents 0f our subject came to Ohio with the Bushore family and first located in Greene county, but later removed to Newton township, Miami county, where the father engaged in farming until his death, which occurred August 24, 1875. His widow subsequently removed to Troy, where she still resides. She is a devout Christian, a member of the German Baptist church. In the family of this worthy couple were five children, of whom our subject is the youngest. John married Lavina Cauffman and is now living retired in Dayton, Ohio. Simon W., born in Newton township, Miami county, in 1,842, was reared as a farmer boy, and at the age of seventeen entered the National Normal School at Lebanon, where spent several summers as a student, while he followed teaching during the winter months. At the age of twenty-one he entered the Jefferson Medical College, of Philadelphia, at which was graduated four years later. He began practice at Laura, Miami county, but is now living retired upon his farm in Newton township. He married Sophia Williams, October 6, 1867. Louisa, the next member of the family, is the widow of Dr. John Senseman, of Tippecanoe City, Ohio. Benjamin F. was graduated at the Ohio Medical College, in 1875, and was a successful practitioner at Arcanum for several years, but has lived retired at Dayton View since 1895. He married Sally J. Hill who died in Arcanum. Susan is the wife of J. L. Norris, of San Diego, California. Dr. Kiester remained on the home farm until eighteen years of age. About that time his father built a residence in Troy with the intention of locating there, but was taken sick and died after a short illness. After this sad event the mother and our .subject, then the only child at home, moved to Troy. He obtained his early education in the common schools of Pleasant Hall and the Covington high school, and later spent two years at the Lebanon Normal School, at the same time reading medicine when he found opportunity. Subsequently he was engaged in the grain business at Troy with his brother-in-law, John Lee Norris, under the firm style of Norris and Kiester. This GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 721 was a wide-awake, energetic. firm, and soon their ambition led them to St. Louis, where they purchased' a sugar .refinery fitted up with all the latest improved machinery. It was in splendid running order when unfortunately it was destroyed by fire. They removed what machinery was left to Dayton, Ohio, there formed, a stock company, and built a large sugar refinery, which was conducted under the name of the Dayton Sugar Refining Company, with J. K. Jeeter as president; Mr. Norris, vice-president, and Dr. Kiester, superintendent. The capital stock was seventy-five, thousand dollars, but was afterward increased to one hundred and fifty thousand dollars. At the end of two years Dr. Kiester withdrew from the firm and took up the study of medicine with his brother, Dr. S. W. Kiester, who was then at Troy, and after spending one year with him entered the Ohio Medical College, being graduated with the class of 1889. He located at Arcanum, where both of his brothers were then engaged in practice, but have since retired. By merit alone our subject has built up a large and lucrative practice and is considered one of the most successful physicians in Darke county. He is a member of the American Medical Society, the Ohio Medical Society, and the Odd Fellows Lodge, No. 341, of Arcanum. The Doctor is a man of integrity and strong personality, is kind, open-hearted and generous, and as he has a pleasing manner and is an engaging conversationalist, he makes many friends, and has the happy faculty of being able to retain them. On the 1st of December, 1886, Dr. Kiester was united in marriage to Mary Elizabeth Williams, of Mystic, Connecticut, and to them have been born two children, Edith and Forrest Mabel, both in school.: Mrs. Kiester's parents were William .and Mary Elizabeth (Williams) Williams. From Connecticut her father went to Wernersville, Wisconsin, iwhere he invested in timber lands and rafted lumber down the river to St. Louis, Missouri. After making one of three trips he was taken ill at St. Louis, and died there February 25, 1860. He was born May 29, 1823. GEORGE RUH. Among the representative farmers living in Darke county is George Ruh. When. we examine into the secret of his success in life we find that prosperity has come to him as the legitimate outcome of earnest purpose and well directed and honorable effort. His ancestry may be traced back to the province of Alsace or Lorraine, which provinces have been contested territory between the nations of Germany and France throughout the greater part of the nineteenth century. The name was originally La Ruh, which indicates that it was of French origin, but the orthography has beet changed to the present form. The representative of whom we write is regarded as one of the practical and progressive agriculturists of Brown township, where he is a well known and respected citizen. He was born September 4, 1862, his parents being Anton and Barbara (Ring) Ruh. His father was born in the little village of Hoppelrochcleck, January 3, 1819. This little village is located on the eastern bank of the beautiful river Rhine, whose vineclad hills are far famed in story and in song, while its picturesque scenery, adorned by many a castle of baronial days, has formed the setting for numerous events of historical 722 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. importance. Mr. Ruh grew to manhood in the Fatherland and obtained his education in his native tongue. He was a man of strong mentality, an apt student and an excellent mathematicial. He was reared to agricultural pursuits, and after arriving at years of maturity he decided to come to America, hoping to better his financial condition in the new world. Accordingly he crossed the Atlantic, taking passage on a German sailing vessel, which after a voyage of six weeks reached the harbor of New Orleans. Before sailing, however, he had completed the required term of service in the German army. He arrived in the Crescent City in 1854 and the following year made his way to Cincinnati, Ohio. Two years later he arrived in Preble county and in 1867 came to Darke county, l0cating just north of Greenville, where he entered a tract of government land. To this he added as his financial resources increased and at the time of his death was the owner of a valuable estate comprising three hundred and ninety acres, all in Greenville and Brown townships. While in Cincinnati he worked for a time in a butter factory. His Success was well merited, for earnest labor formed the keynote of his prosperity. His business methods were reliable and in all transactions he was just and honest. In politics he was a Republican and he was frequently urged to become a candidate for office, but always refused, preferring to devote his energies to his private business interests. He was charitable and benevolent, contributing liberally to many good causes, and at the time of the erection of the beautiful St. John's German Lutheran church in Greenville township, he aided substantially in the work by liberal contributions. His wife, a native of Germany, was also a devout Lutheran in her religious belief. The father died November 28, 1897, leaving four children. In the family were three sons and two daughters, our subject being the second in order of birth. He is now the oldest living representative of the family, the others being : Mary, the wife of Max Hoffman, a resident of Greenville township; Daniel, a farmer; who superintends the old homestead in Greenville township; and Barbara, who is living with her brother, Daniel. George Ruh, whose name introduces this review, was reared in Darke county from his sixth year, at which time he accompanied his parents on their removal hither. He acquired a common-school education and has added to his knowledge by reading, observation and experience, so that he is now a well informed man. His parents enjoyed the benefit of his labor wages until he attained his majority, and in the practical training of the home farm he became familiar with all the duties that fall to the lot of the agriculturist. As a companion and helpmate on life's journey he chose Miss Follie Henning, the wedding being celebrated on the 19th of December, 1883. The lady is one of Darke county's native daughters, born July 19, 1864, and is the third in a family of five children, whose parents were Jacob and Lovina (Hines) Henning. The father was born in Darke bounty, December 11, 1832, and is now living in Greenville township. His entire life has been devoted to the work of the farm and he has ever been industrious and enterprising. He is a man of strong,. clear intellect and of sterling worth, and the family name has been tarnished by no act of his. A Democrat in his political affiliations, he is stanch in the support of the party, yet has never been an aspirant GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 723 for office. He and his wife are members the United Brethren church of Greenville township known as Zion church. Mrs. Henning was born in Darke county, July 18, 1835, and is still living. Her father, Samuel Hines, came to Ohio from the Keystone state, driving over the mountains to Ohio when the roads were little better than Indian trails and when the paths through the forest were marked by blazed trees. He arrived in the state when the red men were fax more numerous than the white settlers and took up his abode in Darke county when the now beautiful city of Greenville, with its population of seventy-five hundred, had only one house in it. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Henning who now survive are : Samuel, a resident of Greenville township ; Mrs. Ruh; Lulu, the wife of Charles Ebeling, an agriculturist of Darke county; and Henry, who is married and follows farming in Greenville township. Two sons and a daughter grace the marriage of our subject and his wife, the eldest being Harry J., who was educated in the common schools and is now a stock dealer. Maudie D. is an apt pupil in school and has made marked progress in music. The youngest child is Earlie also a student in school. Mrs. Ruh has been to her husband a faithful counselor and has been to her children a kind and affectionate mother. When Mr. and Mrs. Ruh began their domestic life they located upon a rented farm—a part of the old homestead—and there they remained until 1893, when Mr. Ruh embarked in merchandising in Ansonia. He carried on business there for about two years, after which he returned to the farm and again rented land. He is today, how- ever, the owner of eighty acres of the old homestead and has a valuable property which has been largely acquired through his own efforts. He has made excellent improvements upon the place, and there are now to be seen good buildings, well kept fences and excellent machinery. He is a man of marked thrift, idleness and indolence being utterly foreign to his nature. His property, too, has been so honorably acquired that the most envious could not grudge him his success. He has been assisted by his estimable wife, who is an excellent manager and has made her home most pleasant and attractive to her family. Mr. Ruh is a Democrat in his political affiliations, having supported the party since casting his first presidential vote for Grover Cleveland. He has served as school director for nine years, and during this long term has done effective service for the cause of education. He is a charter member of the Darke County Horse Thief and Protective Association. His wife belongs to the United Brethren church at Rossville, and he has aided in the erection of four different churches in the county, the Lutheran, United Brethren, Methodist and Christian. Both he and Mrs. Ruh enjoy the high regard of all who know them, for they are recognized as people of sterling worth and integrity. With pleasure we present the record of their lives to our readers, knowing that it will prove of interest to many, for they have a wide circle of acquaintances in Darke county, their circle of friends being almost co-extensive therewith. MRS. PHEBE FRY. This old and honored resident of Darke county, whose home is on section 14. Neave township. was born in Liberty, Montgomery 724 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. county, Ohio, September 26, 1819, and is a daughter of David Jeffries, who was born and reared in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and was a hatter by trade. He was a soldier in the war of 1812. After his marriage he settled in Montgomery county, in 1812, and there his wife died when Mrs. Fry was about nine years old, leaving three daughters, who were bound out, as their father went away and left them. Mrs. Fry passed her girlhood in Preble county, and there married Thompson Fry, also a native of Montgomery county. At length they came to Darke county and settled in Neave township, where Mr. Fry engaged in farming until called to his final rest August 16, 1882, at the age of sixty-two years. Eleven children were born to this worthy couple, namely : Rachel ; Catherine, deceased ; Cornelius and Sarah, twins ; Andrew ; John ; Allen ; Eliza Ann, who died at the age of three years ; Mary Jane ; Frances Ann; and Margaret. All were born in Neave township, where for sixty years Mrs. Fry has now made her home. Although now well advanced in life she is still well preserved and quite active for one of her age. She is a most estimable lady, whose circle of friends and acquaintances is extensive. JOHN McNUTT. Darke county has many well-to-do and successful farmers, who have accumulated what they have of this world's goods through individual effort. Among this class the name of the subject of this notice is entitled to a place. He now owns a well improved and highly cultivated farm of one hundred and eighty-one acres on section 25, Neave township, where he is industriously engaged in the prosecution of his noble calling and is*. meeting wth good success: Mr. McNutt was born June 9, 1837, in Harrison township, Preble county, Ohio, of which his father, Peter McNutt, was also a native. The grandfather, Alexander McNutt, was from Tennessee and located in Harrison township, Preble county, as early as 1806, taking up a tract of government land, upon which he spent the remainder of his life. He was eighty-four years of age at the time of his death, while three of his sons, including the father of our subject, lived to the age of eighty-six, and the last one of the brothers died in Indiana, in 1900, at the age of eighty-five years. The family was of Irish descent, the great-grandfather of our subject having been a native of Ireland and an early settler of Tennessee. Peter McNutt, who throughout life followed farming, married Margaret Vantage, also a native of Preble county, Ohio, and a representative of one of its pioneer families. Her ancestors were from Maryland and are supposed to have been of Dutch descent. To Mr. and Mrs. McNutt were born eleven children, and with one exception all grew to manhood or womanhood, while six are still living. Of this family our subject is the third in order of birth, and the only one living in Darke county. In the county of his nativity he grew to manhood and was there married, in October, 1858, to Miss Charlotte J. Aikman, who also was born in Harrison township, Preble county. In 1807 her father came to Greenville, Ohio, and settled on Martin Hill with his family, but at the time the Wilson children were killed by the Indians they moved south for protecton. This was during his boyhood. Mrs. McNutt is deceased and the oldest of their three children died in infancy. Those living are Aphala N., the wife of Jacob M. Trick ; and Benjamin F. In 1875 our subject was again mar- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 725 tied, his second union being with Eliza L. Brundage, a native of Pennsylvania, by whom he had four children, namely : Joseph U., deceased ; and Orville A., John E. and Susan H., all at home. Mr. McNutt continued his residence in Harrison township, Preble county, until 1861, when he came to Darke county, but after spending two years lire he removed t0 West Sonora, Preble county, where he was engaged in threshing for ten years. At the end of that period he purchased his present farm on section 25, Neave township, and has since devoted his energies to agricultural pursuits, which he had followed previous to his removal to West Sonora. As a boy he started out in life for himself with only fifty cents in his pocket, and his accumulations are the result of his own industry, enterprise, perseverance and economy. For three years he worked as a day laborer and also chopped wood by the cord. Saving his money, he was at length able to purchase land and engage in farming on his own account. Politically he is a stanch Democrat. JACOB HOLLINGER. Upon a good farm on section 5, Butler township, Jacob Hollinger resides. He was born in Darke county, November 17, 1859. His father, Moses Hollinger, is a retired farmer living in Neave township. He was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, November 28, 1828, a son of Daniel Hollinger, a native of Germany or of Pennsylvania. In 1835 he removed to Miami county, Ohio. He wedded Miss Landers, of Pennsylvania, and they became the parents of twelve children : Willie, who died at the age of three years; Anna, who died at the age of twenty-one ; Samuel, who died at the age of twenty-three ; Daniel, a farmer of Harrison township; Joseph, a resident farmer of Franklin township; Jacob, of this review ; Fanny, the wife of A. S. Archer ; Lizzie, who is acting as housekeeper for her father ; Moses W., a resident of North Manchester, Indiana; Emanuel, who makes his home in Manville, Texas ; Rebecca, the wife of William Senseman, of Pleasant Hill, Miami county; Eli, who is living in Logan county, Ohio; and Edward, whose residence is in Montgomery county. The mother of these children died in 1881, when about forty-six years of age. The father was afterward again married and is now living retired on his little farm of one hundred and sixty-nine acres. Jacob Hollinger, of this review, received a limited education in the district schools, for his services were needed on the home farm, and from an early clay he assisted in the labors of the fields, continuing with his parents until he had attained his majority, when he started out in life on his own account. He was for a time engaged in working as a farm hand and raised tobacco and potatoes. His labors, energetically prosecuted, have brought to him success. As a companion and helpmate on life's journey he chose Miss Frances Brown, a daughter of Reuben Brown. They were married February 23, 1887, and a year later he purchased ten acres of his present farm. Two years afterward he bought a forty-acre tract and later bought an additional tract of fifteen acres, but has since sold five acres, so that he now owns sixty acres. He carries on general farming and his wife superintends the gardening and housework. Their united efforts have brought to them 726 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. creditable success and they are now doing well in life. Their union has been blessed with two children : John Irvin, who was born November 24, 1888 ; and Edna Esther, born January 24, 1890. Mr. Hollinger is somewhat independent in his political views, his preference, however, being more strongly in favor of Republican principles. Both he and his wife hold membership in the German Baptist church. Mrs. Hollinger has been to her husband indeed a faithful companion and helpmate, always willingly assisting him in his work, even going into the fields if necessary. He is a true and honest farmer who has had many difficulties and obstacles to overcome, but has steadily persevered and has worked his way upward to a leading position among the representative farmers of his community. JACOB REPLOGLE. Among the old and honored residents of Mississinawa township, Darke county, Ohio, none stand higher in public esteem than Jacob Replogle, who for many years has successfully engaged in farming on section 14. He was born in Germantown, Montgomery county, Ohio, June 30, 1821, and is a son of Philip Replogle, a yeoman farmer of Pennsylvania, who was born in that state about 1777 and died in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1853. About 1798 the father married Elizabeth Gothard, who was born in the ill-fated city of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in 1780. About 1815 they came to Germantown, this state, floating down the Ohio river on a flatboat to Cincinnati. At that time the father was in humble circumstances. He never accumulated wealth, though he was a natural mechanic and skilled workman. very strong and industrious. In 1848 he purchased eighty acres of the farm in Mississinawa township, Darke county, where our subject now resides, paying for the same in state bonds at one dollar and a half per acre. When he located here his nearest neighbor was seven miles away and the country round about was almost an unbroken forest. He added to his farm until he had one hundred and fifteen acres. In his family were fourteen children, four sons and ten daughters, all of whom reached manhood or womanhood, with the exception of one daughter. Our subject is the eleventh in order of birth in this family and is now the only survivor. He had very poor educational advantages during his boyhood, but has made the most of his opportunities throughout life and is now a well informed man. He owns a good farm of one hundred and sixty acres, which includes the old homestead, and has successfully engaged in its operation, being a systematic and thorough farmer. One year he raised fifteen hundred bushels of wheat, and has raised sixty bushels of corn per acre upon a tract of seventy acres. On the 16th of March, 1843, Mr. Replogle was united in marriage with Miss Abbie Jones, who was born October I, 1826, in Butler county, Ohio, five miles from Oxford, and is a daughter of Abram and Rebecca ( Pierson) Jones, farming people, who moved from New Jersey to Ohio in a covered wagon and settled in Butler county. In the Jones family were eleven children, six sons and five daughters, of whom David died at the age of twelve years, Polly at the age of eighteen, after which there was not a death in the family for sixty years ; but only three of the children are now living, namely : Edward. aged eighty years, who is GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 727 living in Mercer county, Ohio; Abbie, the wife of our subject; and James, aged seventy-three years, who is living in Gibson, Mercer county. The mother was a widow for many years and died in 1883, at the advanced age of ninety-two. To Mr. and Mrs. Replogle were born fourteen children, of whom twelve are still living, namely : Elizabeth, the wife of Mr. Rohr, of Mississinawa township; Rebecca Ann, the wife of William Wintrade; Margaret, the wife of John L. Whitney ; Mary, the wife of Curtis A. Richardson ; Harriet A., the wife of Charles State ; F. Marion, .a physician of Lightsville Martha E., the wife of E. Richardson ; George Washington, who lives near Rossville; Abraham Lincoln, a farmer of Darke county ; William Grant, also a resident of Darke county ; Jacob S., who married Jennie McOwens, and lives on the home farm; and Sarah A., the wife of Ellsworth King. With one exception all have children of their own. In early life Mr. Replogle was a fine marksman and a great hunter, killing as many as seven deer in one day. His father was also fond of that sport. In his political affiliations our subject is a stanch Republican, and he takes an active and commendable interest in public affairs. LUTHER MARTIN. Luther Martin, an enterprising agriculturist of Harrison township, residing on section J0, was born in Baltimore county, :Maryland, February 2, 1840. His father, Luther Martin, Sr., was a farmer of that :state and was born there in 1805, Having .arrived at years of maturity, he married Betsey Armacost, and they became the parents of fifteen children. One son died at the age of four years, a daughter at the age of twelve and another child at the age of fifteen, but the remaining twelve all reached mature years, while with the exception of one son and one daughter all were married. The nine now living are as follows : Henry, who is a farmer of Maryland and lives upon the old home farm where the father settled over seventy-five years ago ; Jabez, who also follows agricultural pursuits; Joshua, who is living in Baltimore ; Caleb, who is a resident of Maryland ; Ephraim, who is living in the same state, as is also John Thomas ; Luther is the next of the family, and the younger brothers are Charles Wesley and Henry. No event of special importance occurred to vary the monotony of farm life upon the home farm where Luther Martin was reared. He has always devoted his time and attention to agricultural pursuits and the practical training of his youth well fitted him for a prosperous career in his later life. As a companion and helpmate on life's journey he chose Miss Louisa J. Purvine, but she survived their marriage only two years, leaving a son, Lew W. Martin, who died at the age of twenty-four years, survived by a wife, one son and one daughteri In Greene county, Ohio, on the 26th of October, 1871, Mr. Martin was again married, his second union being with Catherine Keefer, whose birth occurred in that county, January 7, 1843, her parents being John and Mary Ann (Flatter) Keefer, farming people of Greene county. In their family were four children : James, now deceased ; John W., who is living in Prophetstown, Illinois ; Mrs. Martin; and Martha E., the wife of Stephen Campbell. After the death of the mother of this family, the father was again married and had two children by that union. 728 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. He died in 1894, at the age of seventy-eight years. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Martin has been blessed with six children, who are yet living : Oscar E., a farmer of Harrison township, who is married and has two children, a son and daughter ; Luella May, the wife of George Wolfel, by whom she has two children; Pearl, the wife of James E. Irelan, a farmer living near Hollansburg ; Virgil, who assists in the operation of the home farm; Colonel L., who also works on the home farm; and Carrie Edith, who completes the family. In March, 1863, Mr. Martin removed to Harrison township and worked by the month as a farm hand. After his wife's death he sold this property and broke up housekeeping, his little son being cared for by his grandmother Purvine. The first farm which he owned was a tract of seventy-seven acres in German township, and in 1883 he purchased his present farm of one hundred and seventy acres in Harrison township. To this he has added fifteen acres. He carries on mixed farming and is very practical and progressive in his business methods. He raises corn and wheat—between thirty-five and forty hundred bushels of corn and about two thousand bushels of wheat annually. He has also raised live stock, selling as high as seventy-five hogs in one year. His home farm is well improved and developed, and in addition to this he owns a tract of eighty-three acres and a second tract of forty-three acres, which farms are cultivated by his son and son-in-law. His life has been one of industry, carefully guided by sound judgment, and his success has been the legitimate result of his own labors. In Politics he is a Democrat. In religious belief his wife is a Methodist, holding her membership in a church of that denomination. ARTHUR L. CLARK. Arthur L. Clark, now serving as prosecuting attorney of Darke county, is numbered among the native sons of the city of Greenville, his birth having occurred here on the 16th of October, 1873. He is descended from good old Revolutionary stock, his great-grandfather being a native of England, who in his youth crossed the Atlantic to America. When the yoke of British oppression became intolerable and the colonies determined to make a struggle for independence through the art of war he joined the troops and aided in the struggle. His son, Samuel Clark, the grandfather of our subject, was a native of Pennsylvania; and Benjamin H. Clark, the father of our subject, was born in Pennsylvania, in September, 1821. With his parents he removed from the Keystone state to Darke county, in 1831, locating upon a farm in Washington township. He married Miss Mary Martin, who was born in Ohio, in March, 1830, and with her parents removed to Washington township. Arthur L. Clark has spent his entire life in Greenville. He attended the schools of his native city and later continued his education in Springfield, Ohio, no event of special importance occurring to vary the usual boy life of the period. Determining to make the practice of law his life work, he pursued his studies under the direction of the firm of Elliott & Chenowith, and was admitted t) the bar in 1895. He then began the practice of law in Greenville, and his earnest purpose, his careful preparation and his understanding of judicial principles soon, gained him a place among the leading attorneys of the city. In 1897 he was nominated on the Democratic ticket as a midi-- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 729 date for prosecuting attorney of Darke county, won the election and entered upon the discharge of his duties in January, 1898, and his service has been acceptable, owing to the fidelity and ability with which he discharges his duties. He is quick to recognize the strong points in the case and presents them logically to court and jury. Socially he is connected with the order of Knights of Pythias. CONRAD KIPP. The name of Kipp has been connected with the drug business of Greenville for forty-five years and the subject of this review is now at the head of the wholesale and retail drug house in which business is carried on under the firm name of William Kipp's Sons. An enterprising merchant, sagacious, far-sighted and reliable, he sustains an enviable reputation in trade circles in Darke county, where he is widely known. Born in the city which is still his home, September 23, 1860, he is a son of William Kipp, a retired merchant of Greenville, who was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, on the 13th of April, 1832. In the Fatherland he acquired a liberal education, attending school continuously between the ages of six and fourteen years. When twenty years of age he emigrated to America, arriving in New York city ii September, 1851, after a voyage of twenty-three days upon a sailing vessel which weighed anchor at Antwerp. Mr. Kipp made his way westward to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he was employed on the railroad for four months, and in the spring of 1853 he Went to Dayton, Ohio, whence he came to Greenville, in September of that year. Here he has since. made his home, and from a humble position he arose to a prominent place in mercantile circles and is now living retired, the capital he has acquired being sufficient to supply him with all the necessities and many of the luxuries of life. When he arrived here he had only sixty cents,. After following the business of tonsorial artist for two years, he became. associated with Conrad Shively in the drug trade, under the firm name of Shively & Kipp, continuing the same until 1872, when the partnership was dissolved by the death of Mr. Shively. Mr. Kipp then became the-sole proprietor and carried a large line of such goods as are usually found in a first-class drug store. His patronage steadily increased, bringing to him a good income, and he continued in the business until 1887, when he was succeeded by his sons, under-the firm name of William Kipp's Sons. The father was united in marriage, in the-spring of 1857, to Miss Barbara C. Rich,. who was born in Wurtemberg, Germany,. in 1834. They became the parents of eight children, of whom two are now deceased. The living are Emma, Bertha, Conrad, August, William and Edward. Conrad Kipp, the eldest son and the im mediate subject of this review, was reared in Greenville and educated in the public schools, receiving his business training in his father's store which he entered in the capacity of clerk at an early age, spending the months of vacation there. He is now a registered pharmacist and has a thorough understanding of the practical management of a large and complete store. The firm occupies a fine business block on the public square, at the corner of Broadway, 22x99 feet and three stories in height. They sell both to .the wholesale and retail trade and carry a large stock of drugs and medicines, paints,. 780 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. oils, varnishes, glass, wall paper, etc., and their patronage is now quite extensive. Conrad Kipp was united in marriage to Miss Laura Mearick, a daughter of William and Eliza Mcarick, and a representative of a prominent old family of Darke county. They have many warm friends in this locality and enjoy the hospitality of many of the best homes of the neighborhood. S. WILLIAM ALLREAD. This well-known citizen of Greenville, Ohio, now holds the responsible position of manager for the firm of J. P. Wolf & Son, extensive dealers in leaf tobacco at Dayton. He was born in the village of Arcanum, Darke county, in 1863, and is a son of Isaac .and Christina (Honk) Allread, both natives of this state, the former born near Hamilton, in Butler county, and the latter in Warren county. The father was an early settler of Darke county, as were also our subject's maternal grandparents, Jacob and Abigail (Shepperd) Honk. The boyhood of S. William Allread was passed in his native village, where he attended the public schools, but after losing his father, when thirteen years of age, he went to live with his uncle, Stephen Allread, in De Lisle, Darke county, and remained with him until attaining his twentieth year. For the following three years he was variously employed, but at the end of that time became interested in the tobacco Gusiness as an employe of George W. Whation, a dealer in leaf tobacco, with whom he remained for two years. Subsequently he was similarly employed by A. L. Jones, now the postmaster of Greenville, and was with him five years. He has since continued his con-. nection with the leaf tobacco trade, working for William Breno, now a member of congress, for five years, and at the end of that time accepted his present position in the employ of J. P. Wolf & Son, of Dayton, having charge of their business in Greenville, where they own a warehouse. His extensive acquaintance throughout the country, and his large practical experience in handling leaf tobacco, make him well qualified for the responsible position he is now filling to the entire satisfaction of the company. He is a most competent manager and a good business man. In 1887 Mr. Allread was united in marriage with Miss Mary Graham, of Greenville, a daughter of John W. Graham, and to them have been born three children, namely : Merley C., Roy and William. Socially Mr. Allread is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America, and politically is a stanch Republican, now serving as a committeeman for the third 'ward. FRANCIS MARION REPLOGLE, M. D. Dr. Replogle, who is now successfully engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery in Lightsville, Darke county, Ohio, was born near that place, September 9, 1854, a son of Jacob and Rebecca ( Jones) Replogle, also natives of this state, the former born in Germantown, Montgomery county, June 30, 1821, the latter in Butler county, in 1825. The- Doctor's paternal grandfather was Philip Replogle, who came to Ohio from Pennsylvania when a young man and settled in Germantown. The father became a successful farmer of Mississinawa township, Darke county. In his family were fourteen children, of whom twelve—five sons and seven daughters—are still living, are mar- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 781 ried and with one exception have children of their own. The Doctor grew to manhood upon the home farm and received a good practical education in the common schools, which well fitted him for teaching, a profession which he successfully followed at intervals from 1878 to 1891. In the meantime he attended the Miami Medical College at Cincinnati, where he was graduated in 1895, with the degree of M. D., and was first engaged in practice at Salem, Indiana, but in 1896 he located in Lightsville, Ohio, where he is the only physician engaged in regular practice. His skill and ability soon won him a liberal patronage, and he is now meeting with most excellent success. Dr. Replogle was married, November I, 1883, to Miss Anna Belle Weaver, a native of Darke county and a daughter of Elijah and Sarah (Elmore) Weaver, both deceased. She is one of a family of six children, four sons and two daughters. CHARLES BAKER, M. D. Among the enterprising and well informed representatives of the medical profession, whose services have been of great benefit to mankind, is Dr. Charles Baker. He is a young man, but his ability and success are by no means limited by his years, for he has already gained a reputation which many an older practitioner might well envy. He was born December 3, 1872, and is the third in a family of seven childrenthree sons and four daughters—whose parents were Harry and Lucinda (Weyright) Baker. The father was born in either Darke or Montgomery county, on the 3d of July, 1837, and attained the age of forty-seven years, passing away on the 24th of August, 1884. The common school afforded him his educational privileges and he was trained to the duties and labors of the farm, becoming an enterprising and successful agriculturist. He gave his political support to the men and measures of the Democracy, and he and his wife were members of the German Baptist church. The latter is a native of Miami county, Ohio, born about 1845, and is still living, her home being now in Flora, Indiana. One of their daughters, Kate, is the wife of Rev. L. H. Eby, a resident of Mound City, Missouri,. and two sisters, Maggie and Ada, have successfully engaged in teaching in Darke county. Dr. Baker, whose name introduces this review, spent the greater part of his minority in his parents' home, which was one of culture, and he was carefully reared to habits of industry and honesty. Not wishing to make farming his life work, he determined to enter professional life and his choice fell upon the practice of medicine. For many years he had that end in view and bent every energy toward preparing himself for his chosen calling. His preliminary literary training was received in the district schools, where he manifested special aptitude in his studies, securing a teacher's certificate at a very early age. He was also for a time a student of the high school at West Milton, Ohio, where he took a short scientific course. He afterward engaged in teaching in his home district at Baker's store, in Neave township, Darke county. He taught for about four years, during which time he carefully saved his money. He read medicine under the direction of Dr. Martz, a physician of high rank in Darke county, and a year later entered upon a college course, matriculating in the class of 1894 as, a student in the Medical College of the state 732 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. of Ohio, at Cincinnati. This institution has borne high rank since its establishment in 1819, and within its walls Dr. Baker pursued a thorough course of study, being graduated in the class of 1899, which numbered thirty-eight students. His course included both materia medica and surgery. After his graduation he located in Stelvidio, Ohio, in May, and has since become well established in his chosen profession, winning a liberal patronage as the result of his uniform courtesy, combined with a high degree of medical skill. He keeps abreast with the times in his profession by a careful study of the best medical journals bearing upon diseases and their treatment. He has a well equipped surgical case, but prefers the practice of medicine to that of surgery. His practice extends widely over the townships of Greenville, Richland and Adams, and we have every reason to predict for him a very successful future in his profession. On the 25th of May, 1899, the Doctor was united in marriage to Miss Flora M. Jefferis, a native of German township. She was educated in the common schools, was also a student in the Greenville high school and received a teacher's certificate. Her parents were prominent citizens of Darke county. Both the Doctor and his wife oc- cupy an enviable position in social circles and enjoy the hospitality of the best homes in his locality. In politics he is a Democrat, who keeps well informed upon the issues of the day 'and is frequently chosen as a delegate to the county and congressional conventions. He cast his first presidential vote for William J. Bryan, the brilliant orator and free silver champion. The cause of education receives his loyal and unfaltering support, for he realizes its importance in the affairs of life and does all in his power to secure good schools. He is a charter member of the Darke County Medical Association, which was organized in January, 1900, and embraces the best talent of the profession in the county. His public and private careers are alike commendable, and his marked ability insures his continued advancement along professional lines. JOHN SWINGER. John Swinger is one of Painter Creek's highly respected citizens whose useful and well-spent life has not only gained for him the confidence of his fellow men but has also secured for him a comfortable competence which enables him to lay aside all business cares and spend his declining days in ease arid retirement. Our subject's paternal grandfather was George Schwinger, as he spelled the name, who was born in Wurtemberg, Germany. There he owned a little land and engaged in farming to some extent, but principally worked as a day laborer. He married Elizabeth Stout, and to them were born four children, namely : Jacob, the father of our subject; Rosanna, who first married a Mr. Hughey and located in Indiana, and secondly, Franz Metz; Conrad, who married Mary Ann Emerch and died near Kokomo, Indiana; and an infant, who died at sea. About 1812 the grandfather, with his family sailed for the United States and met with terrible suffering and distress on the voyage. Terrific storms drove the vessel out .of its course along the. coast of Greenland. The masts and sails were swept overboard, and while the passengers were all below and the hatches closed the masts were GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 733 broken off and became entangled with the main ropes. This turned the vessel on her side and she gradually sank under the water and was held there. The air in the vessel became so foul that life could not be maintained an hour longer, the poor unfortunates being nearly suffocated, when the captain, who knew where to come in contact with the ropes, bored holes with an auger and made an opening large enough to insert his arm. He then severed the ropes with a halcart and freed the vessel from its fastenings. As it then righted itself those on board were saved from suffocation. After being tossed and buffeted about by the wind and waves they were finally driven ashore along the Greenland coast, where they remaied through the winter and until the following spring, when the United States government sent a vessel to their relief and brought them to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. George Swinger had several hundred dollars when he left the old country, but this he spent for the relief of his fellow passengers during the winter and arrived in Philadelphia penniless, with a wife and three children, one having died on the voyage. He sold the father of our subject to a Mr. Grumm in Philadelphia to pay his debts. He settled near Lebanon, in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania, where he spent the remainder of his life. After hisi death his widow came west and died at the home of her daughter, eighteen miles west of Peru, Indiana. Jacob Swinger, our subject's father, was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, March 1, 1805, and when a boy came to America with his parents. He received a good education in the schools of Pennsylvania, and, as was previously stated, was bound out until twenty-one years of age to a Mr. Grumm, a farmer of Lebanon county. Being a good, industrious boy, Mr. Grumm took a great liking to him, sent him to school and released him at the age of twenty, at the same time giving him a little money with which to begin life for himself. Mr. Swinger worked as a farm hand, and although he learned no trade he was handy with tools and was employed in laying plank on the canal one year. He married Anna Maria Stager, a native of Lebanon county, Pennsylvania, and a daughter of Frederick and Elizabeth (Yingst) Stager. The latter was born in Germany, December 17, 1768. Her mother's maiden name was Remgontz. In the family of Frederick and Elizabeth Stager were the following children : Henry, born December 27, 1785, died in infancy; Henry, born October 2, 1787, married Elizabeth Six and died in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania; Adam, born August 6, 1789, married Anna Maria Six and died in the same county; Elizabeth, born December 10, 1791, married John Daub; Catherine, born January 7, 1794, married John Fourman and moved to Van Buren county, Ohio, in 1833 Frederick, born January 29, 1796, married Rebecca Fousceler ; Regina, born March 28, 1798, married George Fourman and died in Pennsylvania, after which her husband came to Ohio; John, born February 4, 1800, married Sarah Fousceler; Samuel, born May 20, 1802, married Catherine Jacobi ; Hannah, born October 11, 1804, married Jacob Eierly; Margaret, born December 15, 1806, married John Mock; Anna Maria, born November 11, 1808, married Jacob Swinger; Christina, born January 8, 1812, married John Jacobi; and William, born May 28, 1814, married first Catherine Hansel, of Kensel, and secondly Caroline Walten. Our subject is the eldest of the nine children born to Jacob and Anna Maria (Stager) Swinger ; 134 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. Sarah, the second, married David Staffer and died in Franklin township, Darke county, Ohio ; Susannah died unmarried ; Jacob married Martha Hyer and is now a retired farmer of Crawford county, Illinois ; Catherine and Rebecca both died young; Elizabeth, wife of Abraham Minnich, of Franklin township, this county ; David is represented on an other page of this volume ; and Samuel, twin brother of David, married Mary Miller and lives in Crawford county, Illinois. In 1836 the father, with his family, emigrated to Ohio, making the journey, which lasted six weeks, with a two-horse wagon. He stopped first at the home of his cousin, John Fourman, in Van Buren township, and remained there a short time. Having brought with him a little money he purchased forty acres of land on Painter creek, in Franklin township, only an acre and a half of which had been cleared and a log cabin of one room erected thereon. The following year he added to his original purchase another forty-acre tract, and made that place his home for five years. His next purchase consisted of eighty acres, on which was a log cabin that was taken apart and rebuilt on his home farm. Subsequently he bought of Samuel Hall one hundred and sixty acres, which is now owned by his son David. He also owned the eighty-acre tract which is now in possession of Hiram Rhodes, one hundred and sixty acres owned by John Flory, Sr., and eighty acres now owned by Moses Roymer. Besides the property already mentioned Mr. Swinger owned what is known as the Burkett mills on Stillwater, below Ludlow Falls. He continued to engage actively in farming until a few years before his death, which occurred in 1866. He was a deacon and a prominent member of the German Baptist church, and a stanch Democrat in politics. His estima- ble wife survived him many years, dying December 31, 1893. John Swinger, whose name introduces this review, was born September 29, 1828, in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania, where he attended German schools until eight years of age, when the family removed to Ohio. At that time much of Darke county was an unbroken wilderness and deer and other wild game was found in abundance. Mr. Swinger says that he was practically reared with a gun and ax in his hands. Here he attended an English school, but every night after supper his mother made him study, German. This did not prove satisfactory, however, as he often confused the two languages, and finally he dropped the German. As his services were needed at home his educational privileges were somewhat limited, during one winter only being able to attend school for eight and a half days, another for twelve days ; but he was fond of study and applied himself at home. Mr. Swinger assisted his father in clearing one hundred acres of land, and remained at home until twenty-two years of age, receiving five dollars per month and his board and clothes during the last year. He then began life for himself on a farm of one hundred and sixty acres belonging to his father. In the fall of 1853 he rented a farm near Troy, on which he lived for eight years, and then moved to White county, Indiana, where he rented three hundred and twenty acres of land. Returning to Darke county, Ohio, in February, 1864, he bought the Squire Hess farm of seventy acres in Franklin township, and in the fall of 1875 moved to a thirty-seven-acre tract entered by Beverly Richardson, and now owned by John Swinger. In 1862 he established a tile factory, which he moved to his present farm in GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 735 1878. Being blessed with a strong constitution he was able to withstand any amount of work. For many years he conducted a saw-mill on Painter creek, leaving home on Monday morning and running the mill every day until twelve o'clock at night. He would then sleep on a bench with a jack-plane for a pillow. He also ran a threshing machine for some years, and during the busy season he would run his tile factory day and night without any sleep whatever, doing all his own burning for ten years. In 1877 he rented his plant to his son Amos and his son-in-law, John Deeter, and when the latter went west in 1886 he and his son formed a partnership and engaged in the manufacture of tile until 1886, since which time the son has carried on the business, while our subject lives retired, enjoying a well-earned rest. He and Jacob and David Swinger and Elizabeth Minnich owned the old homestead of his father for many years, but sold it in December, 1899. Enterprising, energetic and industrious, he met with success in his undertakings, and can now well afford to lay aside all business cares. Since 1855 Mr. Swinger has been an active worker and consistent member of the Painter Creek German Baptist church, in which he has served as a deacon for many years, and gives his support to every enterprise calculated to advance the moral welfare of his community. He has ever been found upright and honorable in all his dealings, is charitable, benevolent and hospitable and is a well-informed man, and an interesting conversationalist. In politics he is a Democrat, and he has most capably filled several township offices. On the 1st of August, 1850, Mr. Swinger married Miss Margaret Ann Stauffer, who was born near Salem, Montgomery county, Ohio, May 15, 1831, a daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Kinsey) Stauffer. She has been to her husband a faithful helpmeet, counselor and adviser, and to her children a kind and loving mother. Five children were born to them, namely : Amos H., born May 10, 1851, attended the local schools until twenty .years of age and began work in his father's tile factory in boyhood. In 1886 he purchased the plant and is still engaged in the manufacture of tile. He was formerly a Republican in politics, but now supports the Democratic party, and is a member of the Ludlow and Painter Creek Baptist church. He was married, December 21, 1873, to Susan Frock, and they had five children : Oliver, who was born September 27, 1874, and married Hattie Reiber ; Edward R., who was born August 28, 1878, and married Lola Brown; Cora and Myrtle, who died in infancy; and Katy Elizabeth, the second child of our subject, was born October 13, 1852, and is now the wife o. David Dell, of Landis, Darke county, by whom she has two children—Susan and Maggie. Rachel, born October 15, 1853, was married February 8, 1874, to John M. Deeter, and to them were born six children : Charles, who died in infancy; Simon; Amos; Libbie, the wife of Clyde Stratton; John; and Lola, who died in infancy. They moved west in 1886, and in 1899 located in Eddy county, North Dakota. Margaret, born July 11, 1867, was married May 8, 1887, to John Haber, and they have four children : Verna, Roy, Oma and Charles. John L., born June 22, 1869, attended the public schools until twenty-one years of age and was married January 31, 1891, to Martha L. Hyer, by whom he has four children : Lova Ethel, born October 27, 1891; Sarah Margaret, born May 25, 786 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 1894 ; John Jesse, born February 11, 1898 ; and Elizabeth N., born August 30, 1900. John L. Swinger is an active Democrat, and has held several township offices. RALPH D. BEEM. The subject of this sketch is the leading photographer of Greenville and is an artist of far more than ordinary ability He was born in Licking county, Ohio, June 29, 1860, and is a son of Isaiah K. and Eliza ( Pitzer) Deem, who were born, reared and married in that county, continuing to make their home there until 1877, when they removed to Morrow county, this state, where they located permanently and spent the remainder of their days. Our subject's maternal grandfather was John Pitzer, a native of Maryland. On the paternal side his ancestry can be traced back to Jacob Beem, a noted German philosopher who flourished in the seventeenth century. The name was originally spelled Boehme. The American progenitor of the family was Richard Beem, a native of Saxony, Germany, who settled in Allegany county, Maryland, in 1768. His son, Michael Beem, Sr., came to America with his parents. He moved to Licking county, Ohio, in 1812. In 1775 he married Elizabeth Green, and their son, Michael Beem, Jr., the grandfather of our subject, came to Ohio with his parents. He married Rachel Rhodes. In the county of his nativity Ralph D. Beem passed his boyhood and youth. He had the advantages of the common schools and later attended the Mount Gilead high school, at which he was graduated in 1882. When his education was completed he went to Cleveland, where he learned the art of photography of J. H. Copeland & Ryder, with whom he remained two years. He then returned to Mount Gilead, where the following eighteen months were passed, and at the end of that time removed to Wilmington, the county seat of Clinton county. In 1887 he came to Greenville and opened a photograph gallery on East Third street, which he has fitted up in a most approved style. It is supplied with all the latest apparatus necessary for doing first-class work. That Mr. Beem is a skilled artist is shown by his work, his pictures, both large and small, having a superior finish which only a true artist can produce. The portraits which embellish the second (or local) part of this work are from photographs made by his masterly hands. He is progressive in his methods, gives close attention to his business and has secured a very liberal patronage. He takes great interest in everything pertaining to his art, and is quite prominent professionally, having been elected vice-president of the Ohio State Photographers' Association in 1899, while for four consecutive years he was tendered medals by the National and State Photographers' Associations, ranking second place in America. Socially he is also very popular and is a past chancellor of the Knights of Pythias lodge. In 1890 Mr. Beem was united in marriage with Miss Lohru Kintner, of Wooster, Ohio, a daughter of David Kintner, and to them have been born two sons, to whom they have given the names of Kintner and Robert, born respectively June 17, 1892, and October 15, 1900. EZEKIEL S. CONOVER. For a quarter of a century this gentleman has resided upon his present farm in Greenville township, and to its improvement GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 737 and cultivation he has devoted his energies with most gratifying success. He is a native of Ohio, born in Miamisburg, Montgomery county, in 1845, and is a son of Crinonce Schenck and Eleanor (Denise) Conover, also natives of this state and representatives of an old colonial family of New Jersey. The first twelve years of his life our subject spent in his native town, where his father was engaged in blacksmithing and then removed with the family to a farm near by, which the father had purchased. He received a good practical English education, and throughout his active business life has engaged in agricultural pursuits. In 1875 he came to Darke county and purchased a tract of eighty acres of land in Greenville township, five acres of which he has since disposed of. On the 30th of November, 1871, Mr. Conover was united in marriage with Miss Hannah Green, a native of Warren county, Ohio, and a daughter of Edward and Lydia (Feerer) Green. Her paternal grandfather was one of the heroes of the Revolutionary war. Her father was born in Fishkill, New York, and was only six years of age when brought by his parents to this state. With Revolutionary blood flowing in his veins, he Could not remain quietly at home when his country was in danger, and during the civil war he enlisted in the Seventy-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and participated in the first battle of Bull Run. The latter part of his service was devoted to hospital work. His son, Peter Green, was also one of the "boys in blue," enlisting at the age of eighteen years in the Seventy-ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was in thirteen engagements and on the twenty-first anniversary of his birth he participated in the battle of Peach Tree Creek. Mrs. Conover's mother was a native of Pennsylvania and a daughter of Peter and Catherine (Wagner) Feerer, who were of German descent and well-to-do people of Lebanon, Lebanon county, Pennsylvania. Mr. Feerer brought his family to Ohio when Mrs. Green was only four years old, and he became one of the wealthiest farmers of Montgomery county. To Mr. and Mrs. Conover were born four children, namely : Schenck, the eldest, is deceased. Victor A. was graduated at the Greenville high school in the class of 1895, and has since attended the Lebanon Normal School one year, and the teacher's school at Ada, Ohio, one term. For seven years he has been a successful teacher in the public schools, and is now teaching in Montgomery county. Edward S. is at home; and Eleanor, the only daughter, is a young lady of exceptional musical talent and is fitting herself for teaching that art. Mr. Conover, his wife and two children are prominent members of the Christian church of Coaltown, of which he is now a trustee. He is also one of the active members of the Knights of Pythias, of Greenville, and in politics is a Republican, taking a warm interest in the welfare of his party and in all local affairs. During the Civil war he aided in the state's defense against General Morgan and his forces, and as a public-spirited and progressive citizen he gives his support to every enterprise which he believes calculated to advance the moral, intellectual or material welfare of his county or state. Mrs. Conover is a lady of culture and refinement, and is highly educated. After attending the public schools for many years she entered the Delaware Normal School, where she pursued her studies for two years. In 1864 she commenced teaching in the pub- 738 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. lic schools of Warren and Montgomery counties and followed that profession uninterruptedly until after her marriage, meeting with most excellent success. Since residing in Darke county she has in no sense relaxed her interest in educational affairs, and has conducted classes at her home, receiving no remuneration, but doing it solely to gratify her mind by dispensing knowledge to others. She is a member of the Greenville Woman's Relief Corps, and is a most estimable lady, sharing with her husband the high regard of a large circle of friends and acouaintances. GEORGE W. SIGERFOOS. At the time of his death the subject of this sketch was one of the leading dry-goods merchants of Arcanum, Darke county, Ohio, and was a man highly respected and esteemed by all who knew him. He was born in the state of Maryland, December 13, 1825, and emigrated to Montgomery county, Ohio, when nine years of age, his early life being devoted to farming and school-teaching. After his marriage he followed brickmaking and school-teaching some five years in Phillipsburg, and in 1855 turned his attention to the dry-goods trade. In 1872 he opened a store in Arcanum where he was successfully engaged in business when called from this life October 16, 1875. In his business dealings he was ever prompt, reliable and entirely trustworthy, and he justly merited the high regard in which he was uniformly held. On the 28th of July, 1850, Mr. Sigerfoos married Miss Nancy Shanck, who was born in Montgomery county, October 2, 1830, and they became the parents of the following children : Lorin, born August 25, 1851, died November 28, 1870 ; Orrin, born March 22, 1853, died August 12, 1870 ; Arabella, born October 22, 1856, attended the public schools until nineteen years of age and then taught for five years at Laura, Ohio. In 1888 she entered the Michigan State Normal School, where she was graduated in. 1892, and the following two years she taught in the Arcanum high school. In the summer of 1895 she went to Los Angeles, California, where she taught for three years, and since that time has resided with her mother in Arcanum. Ella B., born January 26, 1863, was married November 10, 1881, to Solomon Minnich, of Arcanum, and they have four children, namely : Daisy, Mamie, Nancy and Catherine. Charles P., born May 4, 1865, attended the public schools until seventeen years of age, and then entered the Ohio State College, where he was graduated in 1889. He spent one year at the University of Virginia, four years at John Hopkins University, and is now professor of biology at Minneapolis, Minnesota. Edward, born December 14, 1868, attended the public schools until sixteen years of age, and the following year entered Columbus University, at Columbus, Ohio, where he was graduated in 1891. Passing the examination at Washington, D. C., he was appointed second lieutenant in the regular army, and spent two years in a military school at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. In 1898 he was commissioned first lieutenant and served one year at Santiago, Cuba, under General Wood, but is now stationed at Fort Sheridan, Illinois. He was married, in December 1895, to Miss Opal, a daughter of Dr. Donavan Robeson, of Greenville, Ohio, and they have one child, Grace. Peter Shanck, father of Mrs. Sigerfoos, GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 739 was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, May. 28, 1803, and was a son of Christopher and Catherine Shanck, who spent their entire lives in that county, where the former -died in 1825, aged forty-five years; the latter died aged ninety-one. Their remains were interred in the place of their nativity. Of their children Peter was the eldest; Elizabeth married John Ryder and died near Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania; Catherine married Adam Ryder and died in the same state; Margaret married Henry Hoffman and died in Whitley county, Indiana; Fanny is the wife of John Miller, of that county; John married a Miss Bishop and lives in Pennsylvania; and Henry married Susan Baker and resides in Whitley county, Indiana. During his minority Peter Shanck assisted his father in the tailoring business, and at the age of twenty-one began life for himself by following that trade. After his father's death he resided with his mother for four years, and was then married, January 12, 1830, to Miss Barbara, a daughter of John and Mary (Huffer) Keener, who lived and died in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania. She was the tenth in order of birth in their family of thirteen children, the others being as follows : John wedded Mary Heeter and died in Montgomery county, Ohio; David married Catherine, and died near Palestine, Darke county; Jacob, twin of David, married Elizabeth Arnett and died in Michigan; George died near Palestine, Darke county; Christina married .a Mr. Bryan, who died in Pennsylvania, af'ter which she came to Ohio and died near Lewisburg; Molly married John Loxley and died near West Alexandria, Ohio; Elizabeth married George Gable and died in Whitley county, Indiana; Nancy married Christo pher Weekley and died near Germantown, Ohio; Mary, twin of Nancy, married John Bowman and died near Celina, Ohio; Catherine is Mrs. David Ryder, living near Lewisburg, Ohio; Lydia is Mrs. Michael Koch, of Elkhart county, Indiana; and Susan is Mrs. Jacob Heeter, living near Lewisburg, Ohio. Peter Shanck and his young wife moved to Montgomery county, Ohio, the same year of their marriage, and settled seven miles north of Dayton, where he worked at his trade for four years. In 1834 they came to Darke county and on a farm in Twin township, where he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land, consisting of woods and almost impenetrable swamps. After erecting a small log cabin he began the arduous task of making a farm in the heart of a mighty wilderness with no improved implements of industry, such as we now possess, to assist and lighten the heavy work of clearing the land. At that time an ax and muscle were the essentials, and he who had not plenty of the latter was certainly to be pitied, for strength and the power to endure privations were the keys that opened the great wilderness and sustained the pioneer in those trying days. Mr. Shanck and his good wife passed through the different phases of pioneer life, and for more than half a century labored together, sharing each other's joys and partaking of each other's scrrows, each being a helpmeet to the other. Although they grew bent with the weight of years and incessant toil, they enjoyed good health and strength with faculties unimpaired to the last. Mr. Shanck was the first justice of the peace in Monroe township, this county, and filled most of the township offices. He was a man of good executive ability and sound judgment, and commanded 740 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. the respect and confidence of all with whom he came in contact. He was a member of the Brethren in Christ church, while his wife held membership in the German Baptist church, mid both were earnest Christians and universally beloved and respected. He died in October, 1888, and she also is deceased. In their family were nine children, namely : Nancy, born October 2, 1830, is now Mrs. Sigerfoos; Catherine, born October 10, 1831, died in infancy ; Lydia, born September 26, 1833 ; Elizabeth, August 14, 1835 ; Catherine, December 24, 1837; Henry, May 10, 1840 ; Susanna, November 13, 1844 ; Margaret, April 5, 1847; and John, September 3, 1850. ENOCH BEERY SEITZ. Enoch Beery Seitz, professor of mathematics, was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, August 24, 1846. His father, Daniel Seitz, was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, December 17, 1791, and was twice married. His first wife was Elizabeth Hite, of Fairfield county, Ohio, by whom he had eleven children. His second wife was Catherine Beery, born in the same county, April 1, 1808, whom he married April 15, 1832, and from which marriage four sons and as many daughters were the issue. Mr. Seitz followed the occupation of a farmer and was an industrious and substantial citizen. He died near Lancaster, Ohio, October 14, 1864, in his seventy-third year. In the fall of 1866 Mrs. Seitz, with her family, moved to Greenville, Ohio, where she resided for a number of years. Professor Seitz, the third son by his father's second marriage, passed his boyhood on the farm and had the advantages of only the common-school course. Possessing, however, a great thirst for learning, he applied himself very diligently to his books in private, and became a fine scholar in the English branches, especially excelling in that of arithmetic. For quite a number of years he employed himself in teaching, and with gratifying results. He took a mathematical course in the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, Ohio, at -which institution he graduated in 1870. In the fall of 1872 he was elected to the chair of mathematics in the Greenville high school, which position he occupied until the fall of 1879. On the 24th of June, 1875, he was married to Miss Anna Kerlin, a daughter of W. K. Kerlin, Esq., who was for four years the treasurer of Darke county, Ohio, and for many years president of the Second National Bank of Greenville, Ohio, which institution he assisted in organizing. Professor Seitz possessed very superior mathematical talent and a special fondness for this branch of study, and in a short time took rank as one of the finest mathematicians in the state. He was, moreover, a contributor to the leading mathematical journals of the country, among them the Analyst, the Mathematical Visitor and the Educational Times, of London, England. Professor Seitz died at Kirksville, Missouri, October 8, 1883. While teaching in Greenville, Ohio, he was officially connected with the Darke County Teachers' Association, and at the November meeting of the same following his death, in eulogy of several of its deceased members the following words were spoken and action taken : "Among this number we also wish to mention one, Enoch B. Seitz, who, though not among us, was still one of us, and is claimed as Ohio's gifted son. We can claim him as our own. Here the intellectual germ GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 741 grew and strengthened by its growth, and we witnessed the gradual unfolding of a mind, the development of an intellect equal in power, and as original in thought as any the world ever knew. "He obtained his education by attending a normal school at Greenville, Ohio, and afterward enrolled his name as a student at the Ohio Wesleyan University, and after two years of close application he left that institution with a mind well trained for future usefulness. In the summer of 1872 he was employed as an assistant teacher in the Greenville Normal School, then held in connection with the public school. It was in this school that his mind seemed to drift to the mathematical channel, and while he was perfectly at home in the sciences mathematics seemed to be his delight. The more difficult the question, the more determined was he to master it, and from the time mentioned until my association with him ceased, I never knew him to fail in the solution of any problem he undertook. He was a regular contributor to several mathematical journals, using the calculus to assist in his solutions, and was an honored member of the London Mathematical Society. Many of his solutions have been examined by the best mathematicians of Europe and America, and we believe he had no superior in either country. For a number of years he filled the position of principal in the Greenville high school with ability and entire satisfaction. As a member of the board of county school' examiners, the teachers will remember him as being consistent, kind and obliging; ever willing to encourage the despondent, assist the needy, and by influence and example lead them to a higher sphere of usefulness. As chairman of the executive com mittee of our Institute, he was honest, conscientious, and, whether in the discharge of financial duty, or in a demonstration before the Institute, he seemed to possess the same earnest determination to do his whole duty faithfully. "When he left Greenville for his field of labor in Missouri, nearly a hundred teachers accompanied him to the train, and he was cheered and encouraged by their kind wishes and congratulations. Little thought we then that death would so soon find him in his western home, and that all we could claim of him in the near future was the casket containing the manly form now moldering to dust. "If the teachers of Missouri have lost a bright and shining light, a teacher and friend who in the intellectual field made their pathway plain, one who unfolded to them the way to future usefulness, the teachers of Darke county will feel the loss as severely as they. "But Enoch B. Seitz, although dead to us, still lives, we trust, in the happy home of a blest immortality ; he still lives in the affections of his many friends here; and, though we will sadly miss him in the intellectual field, and in the social circle, yet the eye of faith can see him in that eternal home where intellectual development will continue until perfection is reached; and we can but hope that when our time shall come, and when, like him, we shall have passed the river of death, we may enter into that eternal rest now enjoyed by him. "Our friend's work Is done ; his mission is accomplished; his directions in wisdom and morality are with us ; though stricken dawn in the full vigor of manhood, he had fulfilled his destiny ; he had accomplished 742 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. the work which was given him to do, and the world was better because of his having lived in it. "His death admonishes us of the uncertainty of Mc., and teaches us a lesson we should all remember. We can imitate the virtue of our departed friend, profit by his example, persevere in the trials and difficulties of life, secure a victory over all, and finally receive the reward of the virtuous and the good." The following preamble and resolutions were adopted at this meeting : "Whereas, since it has pleased the Great Disposer of. events to transfer the labors of our friend and brother, Prof. E. B. Seitz, whose work and worth have been recognized by the educational and mathematical world and whose social qualities made every one whom he met a fast friend ; "Resolved, That we, the teachers of Darke county, in association assembled, do in his death feel that humanity has lost one of its best friends; society, one of its brightest ornaments; and education one of its most enthusiastic workers and strongest advocates. "Resolved, That we hereby express our deep sympathy for his wife and family in this their sad bereavement. "Resolved, That a copy of this action of our association be signed by our president and secretary and presented to Mrs. E. B. Seitz." In 1879, Professor Seitz was elected to the chair of mathematics in the North Missouri Normal School, at Kirksville, which position he held at the time of his death. J. P. Blanton, the president of that institution of learning, brought the remains and the bereaved family to Greenville, where the burial took place. By request of friends, President Blanton hastily sketched the following tribute, which he offered as a part of the funeral services and which is here given to show the high esteem in which Professor Seitz was held at Kirksville, where his instructions were eagerly sought by the students and where he accomplished a great work as instructor. "Four years ago, on an August day, there was great commotion in your usually quiet village. The man whose dust lies before .us to-day, with his young wife, was bidding farewell, to the home of their childhood, he to resume the responsibilitites of an honorable position in a distant western state; she, with Naomi like spirit, to be his helpmeet to kindle the fires upon a new hearthstone. Then, as to-day, crowds assembled, teachers, pupils and friends of all callings came around him to bid him good-speed, to shake his hands, to predict for him a brilliant career in his new sphere of labor, and to congratulate him that his great abilities had been recognized in a fitting manner. If tears were shed then, they were tears mingled with glad smiles, they were the tears of those who wept with a hope that that manly form would again be a familiar figure on the streets, and that possibly after years of successful labor at his profession he would spend the evening of life here among his earliest friends. Alas ! alas ! all that Missouri can send back of Ohio's gifted son is his poor dust to rest in her bosom until the resurrection morn. "Did I say all ? Nay, it is not all. She sends back to you the record of his life, as pure and unsullied as an angel's wing. She bids me say to you that his work and life have left a lasting impression upon thousands of her noblest youth, that his memory GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 743 is enshrined in the hearts of her people, and that the tears of devoted students, fellow-teachers and citizens of all classes have stained his coffin lid. From the beginning of his sickness, which was of unusual severity from the very first, every possible attention has been shown him, physicians gave up their practice and spent their days and nights by his bedside; medical skill exhausted every resource. "The students, all of whom loved him like a brother, vied with each other in their ministrations. They were the first to be with him and some of them were bending over him when the last feeble breath left his body. Even the little children on the streets would stop me and say, "How is Professor Seitz to-day ?" And when I would sometimes cheer them with hopes that I hardly dared to entertain, their brightening faces were eloquent of love and esteem in which he was held by his fellow-townsmen. "Enoch Beery Seitz was an extraordinary man. He commanded, without effort, the respect of everybody. He was a man of the most singularly blameless life I .ever knew. His disposition was amiable, his manner quiet and unobtrusive, and his decision, when circumstances demanded it, was prompt and firm and immovable as rocks.- He did nothing from impulse; he carefully considered his course, and with almost infallible judgment came to conclusions that his conscience approved, and then nothing could move him. While he never made an open profession of religion, he was a profoundly religious man. He rested his hopes of salvation in the sacrifice of The tender and loving Savior, and I am thoroughly convinced he has entered into that rest which remains for the people of God. What a comfort this must be to the tender, brave, faithful young wife he has left behind him, to his bereaved old mother, and to all his mourning friends assembled around his ashes to-day. No need, dear partner of my dear friend, no need, bereaved mother, no need, dear mourning friends, for you to ask human sympathy or skill to pluck from your memories a rooted sorrow, to raise out the withering troubles of the brain with some sweet oblivious antidote cleanse the stifled bosom of that perilous grief that now weighs so heavily on your hearts. No need, I say, to sorrow. Why do we weep ? That " There is no flock, however watched and tended, But one dead lamb is there; There is no fireside, howsoe'er defended, But has one vacant chair; The air is full of farewells to the dying And mournings to the dead; The heart of Rachel, for her children crying, Will not be comforted. " Let us be patient! These severe afflictions Not from the ground arise; But ofttimes celestial benedictions Assume this dark disguise. We see but dimly through the mist and vapors; Amid these earthly damps, What seem to us but sad, funereal tapers May be heaven's distant lamps. " ‘There is no death! What seems so is transition; This life of mortal breath Is but a suburb of the life elysian, Whose portal we call Death. And though, at times, impetuous with emotion And anguish long suppressed, The swelling heart heaves moaning like the ocean That cannot be at rest. " Will we be patient and assuage the feeling We may not wholly stay, By silence sanctifying, not concealing The grief that must have way?' "I have now performed my duty. I have brought the remains of our clear friend, with his family, to their early home. They were ours, but now they are yours. All I can say is, Farewell." 744 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. Professor Seitz external life was that of a modest, deep-hearted, perfect gentleman. His great ambition was to be good and true, true to himself, true to his family, true to his friends, and true to his country's welfare. He had a thoroughly healthy, well balanced, harmonious nature, accepting life as it came, with its joys and sorrows, and living it beautifully and hopefully, without a murmur. Though the grim monster, Death, removed him from his sphere of action before he fully reached the meridian of his greatness, yet the work he performed during his short but faithful life, will be a lasting monument to his memory, amply sufficient to immortalize his name. He left a wife and four sons. Mrs. Seitz, the mother of Professor Seitz, is still living and is now in her ninety-second year. She was born in 1808, is a woman of decision of character, kind and intelligent, a pleasant neighbor and every way worthy of her gifted son. MRS. ANNA E. SEITZ, D. O. Mrs. Anna E. Seitz, formerly of Greenville, Ohio, and the widow of the late Professor E. B. Seitz, early in life studiously prepared for the profession of teaching and taught in the Greenville school from 1872 until her marriage in June, 1875. After the death of her husband in 1883 she again entered the profession and taught in the Greenville school nine years longer, resigning her position there to accept the principalship of the training department of the State Normal School at Kirksville, Missouri. By her industry, energy and ability she raised that department to a high state of usefulness and importance. After four years' work in this position she resigned and entered the Colum bian School of Osteopathy, Medicine and Surgery, in which she was graduated in June, 1899, and is now actively engaged in practicing her profession, having until recently been located in Greenville, Ohio. Her present location, however, is at Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Mrs. Dr. Seitz has three sons : Ray E., a student in the law department of the University of Cincinnati, in Cincinnati, Ohio; Willie Kerlin, a teacher in the science department of the high school of Lancaster, Missouri, and who is especially proficient in science and mathematics ; and Enoch Beery,. who is a student in the Missouri State Normal School, in Kirksville, Missouri, and leads in all his classes in science and mathematics. Clarence D., the third son, died June 29,. 1886, in his fifth year. MRS. SARAH EURY. In a history of any town, county or state. there is usually slight mention made of the ladies residing in those localities, yet their influence is most marked in the work of public progress and improvement. Though they do not take an active part in official life or in a more pronounced department of manual labor, their influence is no less powerful, and their work in molding the characters of the people and shaping the destiny of the community is indeed important. Mrs. Sarah Eury certainly deserves representation in this volume, for she is. one of the oldest living residents in York township, having attained the advanced age of eighty-four years. With a mind still bright and active she can relate many interesting incidents of life in this locality when. Darke county was a pioneer settlement. She was born near Hancock, Pennsylva- GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 745 nia, November 28, 1815, and is the sixth in a family of twelve children, nine sons and three daughters, whose parents were Jacob and Magdalen (Natchel) Kershner. Only two of this family are now living, Mrs. Eury and her brother, George Kershner, who is a farmer of Brown township. Her father was born in Washington county, Maryland, about 1729, and died in 1851. He was reared to the blacksmith's trade and obtained a common-school education. He had a brother who served as a soldier in the war of 1812. Jacob Kershner emigrated to Darke county in 1840, when Greenville was a mere hamlet and the townships of Richland and York were dense forest tracts. He purchased eight acres of timber land in Richland township and built a log cabin. Plenty of wild game was to be had and everything was in a primitive condition, few roads having been laid out and few farms cleared. He was among the early settlers of the locality and took an active interest in the development and improvement of his section of the county. In politics he was an old-line Whig until the organization of the Republican party, when he joined its ranks and became one of its stalwart advocates. In his religious belief he was an earnest Presbyterian and his life exemplified his Christian faith. His wife also belonged to the same church. She was born in Maryland about 1784, and died in 1852. Mrs. Eury spent her girlhood days in Pennsylvania, and was a young lady of twenty-five when she came with her parents to Darke county. Her education was obtained in the old-time subscription schools, and she early became familiar with the work of the household in its various branches. She wedded David Eury on the 20th of May, 1841, and the young couple began their domestic life in York township, on a tract: of fifteen hundred acres of land which he-had entered from the government, the deed being signed by the president. Mrs. Eury still has the old parchment in her possession, bearing the signature of Andrew Jackson, who was then the chief executive of the nation. Their home was a little log cabin, which is still standing today, a mute reminder of pioneer life. It is in good repair and forms a part of the homestead. The dense forest was all around them and. their neighbors were long distances away. Wild deer were frequently killed near their home and turkeys and other lesser game were to be had in abundance. The old-time sickle and cradle were used in harvesting the grain, and the grass and hay were cut with a scythe. In her home Mrs. airy was busy with her part of the work, preparing dinner for many harvest hands and performing other labors of the household. The nearest markets were at Greenville and Versailles, and there was no church or schoolhouse in their immediate vicinity. Mri and Mrs. Eury endured many of the hardships of pioneer life, but eventually these passed away and they became the possessor of a pleasant home supplied with many comforts. Mr. Eury was a native of Frederick county, Maryland, born March 15, 1803, and his death occurred in 1884, when he had arrived at the age of eighty-one years, one month and eleven days. He was well respected in the community for his kind and. accommodating disposition and his upright life. He was careful and methodical in business and Was actively connected with the management of his property until his death. His sound judgment made his advice often sought by his friends and neighbors. A benevolent spirit prompted him to 746 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. aid the poor and needy and to contribute to the support of various churches in his locality. He and his loving wife were members of the Christian church and gave freely of their means to advance its work. In his early life he voted with the Whig party, but subsequently became a stanch Republican. He never held office, however, preferring to devote his attention to his business interests. At his death Richland township lost a valued citizen and his friends one whom they had long known and trusted. Mrs. Eury still survives her husband and yet resides on the old home farm. In the evening of life she can look back over the past without regret and forward to the future without fear, for she has ever endeavored to follow Christian principles and teachings and her character is indeed worthy of emulation. She was to her husband a faithful companion and helpmate and to her was due in no small measure his success in business affairsi She is now enjoying the comfortable competence which he acquired and which is well merited by her on account of the assistance which she rendered him in many material ways. WILLIAM E. GEORGE. William Ellsworth George is a dealer in all kinds of grain and field seeds, and is also freight and ticket agent for the Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway Company and agent for the Adams Express Company at Gettysburg. He is well known in Darke county, where he has spent the greater part of his life. A review of his career shows him to be a self-made man. He is a man who has conquered many difficulties and has worked his way up to a leading position among the representative citizens of his locality, being justly entitled to the high re spect and esteem in which he is uniformly held by all who know him. William E. George was born in Gettysburg, Adams county, Pennsylvania, June 6, 1835, and is of German descent. His father, George George, was a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, horn in 1812, and in early manhood left that country and came to America, locating in Gettysburg, Penn: sylvania, where he worked at the blacksmithing trade which he had learned prior to his emigration to the new world. Not long after locating in the Keystone state he married Miss Mary Bishop, a native of Adams county, Pennsylvania, of Dutch descent. She was born in 1815, and their marriage occurred in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where they spent their remaining days. Mrsi George departed this life on the 24th of December, 1843, while the father of our subject passed away in 1879. They became the parents of three sons and two daughters. The daughters died in infancy. The sons reached manhood, but at this writing the subject of our sketch is the only one living. The two deceased brothers were Samuel S. and Henry F., and both were Union soldiers in the civil war. Samuel S. responded to the first call for troops from Pennsylvania, went out in the three-months' service and at the end of that time re-enlisted, for a term of three years. At the close of the three years he again re-enlisted, this time for three years or during the war, and continued in the army until the war ended. He died at McKeesport, Pennsylvania. Henry F. enlisted from Darke county, Ohio, and was in the army three years. He died at Newport, Ohio, from the effect of exposure and hardship incurred while he was confined in Libby prison. By a subsequent marriage the father of our subject had GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 747 other children, three of whom are living, namely : John P., a resident of Baltimore, Maryland ; Jacob, also of Baltimore; and Anne E., the wife of James McGonigal, now of Youngstown, Ohio. William E. George spent his boyhood days in the state of his nativity, where he received his preliminary education in the district schools. He afterward entered the preparatory department of Pennsylvania College at Gettysburg, where he pursued the academic course. At the age of twenty years he began teaching in the vicinity of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and followed that profession for three years in the Keystone state. In September, 1857, he removed to Darke county, Ohio, locating in Washington township, where he was employed as a teacher in the district schools, following that pursuit for a period of about seven years. During that time he spent nine and a half months in each year in the schoolroom. His labors were very satisfactory and he became known as one of the most capable instructors in this part of the state. On the 13th of January, 1861, Mr. George was united in marriage to Miss Deborah Harriet Fouts, who was a native of Indiana, born .in South Bend, St. Joseph county, on the 16th of October, 1840, and a daughter of David Fouts. Her parents were both natives of Maryland, and at an early date in the history of the Hoosier state they took up their abode in Indiana. On the 4th of June, 1863, the death messenger entered the household of Mr. George and called from earth to heaven his beloved wife. After her death he sold all of his real and personal property and followed his profession of teaching in different localities. He also pursued a course of study in Bryant & Stratton's Commercial College in Indianapolis, where he was graduated in the fall of 1865. He then came to Gettysburg, Darke county,. Ohio, and resumed his profession of teaching at various places in Adams and Franklin townships, again being connected with educational interests for eight years. On. the 28th of December, 1865, he celebrated. his second marriage, Miss Sarah Margaret McDowell becoming his wife. She was born in Adams township, Darke county, January 4, 1844. Her parents came to this county from Franklin county, Pennsylvania,. and were of Scotch lineage. They located. here at an early date and took an active interest in the development and upbuilding of this portion of the state. Mrs. George was also a competent. teacher and both continued. teaching until 1872, when in July of that year the subject of this review was appointed to the position of freight and ticket agent of the Pittsburg, -Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway Company and of the Adams Express Company at Gettysburg. At the same time he began dealing in grain and livestock and is still actively connected with that branch of trade. He is one of the oldest employes of the railroad and his long term of service is ample evidence of his worth and of his fidelity to the interests of the company. From time to time he has bought and sold land, making some valuable investments, and at the time of this writing, in the fall of 1900, he is the owner of two good farms, one comprising fifty-four acres, the other eighty acres of land. By his first marriage he had but one child, Charles Ambrose, who was born December 3, 1862, in Hill Grove, Ohio, who is now engaged in the coal, flour and feed business in Indianapolis, Indiana, where he also conducts a boarding stable. His mother *died when he was only six months old. By 748 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. his second marriage Mr. George had one daughter, Myrtle Agglea, who was born October 10, 1871, and died February 15, 1893. In matters of public moment Mr. George has taken a deep interest and he has labored earnestly for the welfare of the community in which he resides. His fellow-townsmen, appreciating his worth and ability, have frequently called him to public office. He was appointed deputy United States marshal in 1870, having in charge a district comprising Adams, Franklin, Van Buren and Monroe townships. In politics be has always been a stanch Republican, unswerving in his support of the party. For twelve years he was township clerk and for a similar period he was a member of the school board. The cause of education has ever found in him a warm friend and in his official capacity he has largely promoted the interests of the schools, which are now creditable institutions. He was reared in the faith of the Lutheran denomination and joined that church in Pennsylvania, but after coming to Ohio he became identified with the Presbyterian church, in which he has filled many offices, serving as deacon, trustee, clerk and treasurer. His business affairs have been attended with creditable success and he has accumulated considerable property that has come to him as a reward of his earnest and honorable labor, coupled with the assistance of his noble wife. He started upon an independent business career without any of this. world's goods, and when he came to Ohio he borrowed fifty dollars of his brother to bring him to his new home, So low were the wages paid to teachers at that time that he was not enabled to discharge his entire indebtedness for two years.. Many obstacles and difficulties ihave barred his prog ress toward prosperity. He had the misfortune of losing his right arm on the 19th of February, 1844, while feeding a threshing machine two miles south of Gettysburg. This would have discouraged most people meeting with such an accident, but he possesses an indomitable will and perseverance, and in this way he has been enabled to wrest fortune from the hands of an adverse fate. In all his dealings he is strictly honorable and has the unequaled confidence of those with whom he has been associated. He is a man of strictly temperate habits,• using neither tobacco nor intoxicants of any kind and has done earnest and efficient work the cause of temperance. His has ever been an honorable and useful career, commanding the high respect of his fellow townsmen. In manner he is courteous and genial and he has the happy faculty of not only winning friends but also of drawing them closer to him as the years pass by. Few men in Gettysburg of this vicinity are better known or more highly esteemed than William E. George. D. Q. ROBERTS. D. Q. Roberts, deceased, was for more than forty years one of the respected farmers of German township, Darke county, Ohio. He was born in Harrison township, Darke county, Ohio, February 2, 1834, the son of German parents. His father and uncle, Samuel and George Roberts, with their wives, emigrated from Germany to this country and made settlement in Darke county, Ohio, where they passed the rest of their lives, engaged in agricultural pursuits. D. Q. remained on his father's farm in Harrison township until his marriage, November. 8, 1856, when he located on the farm GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 749 of one hundred and seventy acres in German township where his widow still resides. Here for four decades he successfully carried on general farming and stock-raising, .and was well known and highly respected throughout the county. While not a politician or a. public man in any sense, he took an intelligent interest in public affairs, and gave his support, so far as his vote was concerned, to the Democratic party. He died March 28, 1897. Mrs. Elizabeth Roberts, nee Baker, his widow, was born in Jefferson township, Treble county, Ohio, December 25, 1834. Her father, Thomas Baker, was a native of Brooklyn; New York, from which place, about 1812, he came to Ohio and settled in Butler county, where he subsequently married. He then moved to Preble county and took up his abode on a tract of land in Jefferson township, where he cut the logs, built a cabin in the clearing and began life in true pioneer style. As the years passed by he developed a good farm, which is now owned and occupied by his son Thomas. Thomas Baker, the grandfather of Mr. Roberts, was an Englishman, who, on coming to this country, located on Long Island. Grandmother Baker was a native of Scotland. Mrs. Roberts' mother was before marriage Miss Elizabeth Wesley, was a native of Pennsylvania, and was related to the Wesleys who founded the society of Methodists. She was the mother of ten children that grew to adult age, Mrs. Roberts being the eighth born. Mrs. Roberts passed her girlhood days on her father's pioneer farm in Preble county, and received her education in a log school-house near her home. She is the mother of six children, four daughters and two sons, namely : Adella F., the wife of Daniel Shaw, of In diana, by whom she has one daughter, Hazel; by a former marriage she has two children, Earl and Ethel Mitchell; Dorson, who married Margaret Hamilton and lives in Hollansburg, Darke county ; Emma, the wife of Moses Adamson, of Nebraska has two children, Hugh and Hazel; Martha. Ann, the wife of William Smock, of Indiana, has three children; and Ella and Linneus, at home . JOHN H. FRITZ, M. D. This well-known physician of New Madison, Darke county, Ohio, was born in Preble county, this state, on the 17th of December, 1851. His father, John Fritz, was born on the same farm and there passed his entire life, which was one of useful activity and which was protracted over the period of eighty-one years, his birth having occurred June 10, 1810, and his death occurring in 1890, on Christmas night, which was the anniversary of his wedding, and at about the same hour in the evening. His father, Michael Fritz, was a native of Bremen, Germany, whence he emigrated to the United States, settling in the woodsi of Preble county, Ohio, where he reared a large family comprising five sons and five daughters, of whom three are now living, namely : Louise, widow of Mr. Cara, is about eighty-four years of age and resides in West Alexandria ; Catherine, widow of John Gentner, is a resident of Preble county; and David, of Miami county, who is seventy years of age. All of the children lived to attain full maturity and age except Nancy, who died when a young lady. The grandfather of our subject cleared up his farm of one hundred and sixty acres, and this was left to his heirs, 750 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. and has been retained in the possession of the family. The mother of Dr. Fritz bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Seiler. She was born in 1824, and pier death occurred in 1862, her children having been as follows : Benjamin, a resident of Eaton, Ohio ; Sarah, wife of Simon Wysong; Michael, who was born in July, 1849, died in 1876; the fourth in order of birth was the Doctor, the subject of this sketch ; William is engaged in farming, as is also George, who owns the old homestead, residing in Lexington ; and Let-tie Maria is the wife of O. T. Smith; of Ohio. The father remained a widower for twenty-eight years, and reared his children to maturity. The Doctor, who weighs about one hundred and eighty pounds, weighs the least of all his brothers and sisters, one of his brothers tipping the beam at two hundred and ten pounds. The Doctor was reared upon the farm, and its duties and free outdoor life proved effective in the developing of a sturdy constitution for the young man, who secured his preliminary educational training in the district schools, applying himself to his studies with such success that he was enabled to teach his first term of school when he was seventeen years of age. He engaged in teaching and attended scho0l for a period of ten years, meeting all his expenses through his own efforts. In the beginning he taught school for two winters and thereby saved six hundred dollars, which his father appropriated, after which the young man started out upon his own responsibility, and by teaching, selling books, etc., saved fifteen 'hundred dollars, all of which, with an additional five hundred, he utilized in defraying the expenses of his medical education. When the Doctor came to New Madison, in the spring of 1882, to open the practice of his professon, he was indebted to his youngest brother for five hundred dollars, which he had been compelled to borrow in order to complete his course at the Eclectic Medical College, Cincinnati, where he graduated in the spring of 1880. For two years he was associated in practice with his old preceptor, Dr. Tillson, of West Alexandria, and in 1882, as noted, he began the individual practice of his profession in New Madison,. where he has built up an excellent business, being recognized as an able practitioner and as a man worthy.of all confidence. On the 1st of June, 1884, in Richmond,. Indiana, Dr. Fritz was united in marriage. to Miss Thomas, of New Madison, daughter of Walter and Elizabeth (Kittle) Thomas. Of this union three children 'have been born : Ralph, the first born, died at the age of eight months ; Hattie was born October 3, 1886; and Orpha December 13, 1893. The Doctor is a Master Mason, holding membership in Fort Black Lodge, No. 413, at New Madison ; is a member of the Knights of Pythias and also of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in West Alexandria. Politically he is a Republican. The Doctor is a member of the Ohio State Eclectic Medical Society and also of the Darke County Association. Since his mar riage he has lived in his own convenient and attractive home in New Madison, the same having been the homestead of his wife's parents. Walter Thomas, the father of Mrs. Fritz, was a veteran of the civil war, in which he served for three years, and he died of consumption, from the result of exposure, his demise taking place about 1869. His widow survived until 1897, passing away at the age of about sixty years. They were the parents of five children, of whom GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 751 Mrs. Fritz and her brother David are the only survivors. The practice of the Doctor extends through a radius of from six to eight miles in each direction, and he keeps two horses in requisition, conducting a general practice in medicine and surgery. His efforts have been very successful, and his clientage is one of representative order. WILLIAM Y. STUBBS. The inevitable law of destiny accords to tireless energy and industry a successful career, and in no field of endeavor is there greater opportunity for advancement than in that of the law—a profession whose votaries must, if successful, be endowed with native talent, sterling rectitude of character and singleness of purpose, while equally important concomitants are close study, careful application and broad general knowledge, in addition to that of a more purely technical order. Well qualified in all these particulars, Mr. Stubbs takes leading rank at the Greenville bar and is one of the eminent men of the profession and it is with pleasure that we present his record to our readers. He was born upon a farm in Greenville township, Darke county, March 2, 1865, and is the eldest son of S. W, Stubbs, who was born in Eaton, Ohio. His mother bore the maiden name of Minerva Dixon. Mr. Stubbs, whose name introduces this review, spent the first eight years of his life upon the home farm and then attended the public schools of Greenville, acquiring a good English education to fit him for the practical duties of life. Subsequently he engaged in clerking in a general store in Greenville, and in his eighteenth year he began teaching, but all this served but as a stepping stone to something higher. He determined to become a member of the legal fraternity, and to this end he read law with Hon. H. M. Cole, now judge of the common pleas court. He began his reading in June, 188I, and was admitted to the bar by the supreme court at Columbus, Ohio, at the January term of 1886. He then began practice in this city and is now well established in the profession. He was associated for sometime with his former preceptor, Judge H. M. Cole. Mr. Stubbs is engaged in general practice and is well versed in the various departments of law. His diligence, energy, careful, preparation of cases, as well as the earnestness, tenacity and courage with which he defends the right, as he understands it, challenges the highest admiration of his associates. Mr. Stubbs was married October 19, 1887, to Miss Isabella Bookwalter. They have a fine home in West Fourth street, noted for its hospitality, and their circle of friends is almost coextensive with their circle of acquaintances. Mr. Stubbs is recognized as a leader in political circles and exerts a potent influence on public thought and opinion. THOMAS B. MILLER. Thomas B. Miller, superintendent of the Parke County Infirmary, is a man well known in this county, where he was born and where he has passed his life. The Millers were among the pioneers of Darke county. George Miller, the grandfather of .Thomas B., was a native of Pennsylvania, in which state he wedded Margaret Kaskey, a native of the Emerald Isle. In 1816 they removed with their family from Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, to Ohio, and took up their abode in Harrison township, Darke county, where they passed the rest of their 752 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. lives. He died at the age of seventy-four years. Their son John, the father of Thomas B., was born in Lancaster county, in 1815, the year before their removal to this state. Here he was reared and married, his wife, whose maiden name was Mary A. McGee, being a native of Ohio. She died in 1854. Of their children, eight in number, one died at the age of twelve years, and those who reached adult age are as follows : George W., Thomas B., Martha E., Henry B., Mary I. and Margaret P. All are living excepting Francis R. Mary I. is the wife of C. W. Moore, and Margaret P. is now Mrs. Luther Black. Thomas B. Miller was born on his father's farm May 22, 1847, was reared to farm life, and received his education in the district school. He was yet a school boy when the civil war broke out, but before it closed he offered his services to the Union and proved himself a true soldier. It was in 1864 that he enlisted, and as a member of the One Hundred and Eighty-seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Colonel Dawson, he entered the service. His term of enlistment was spent chiefly in garrison duty. Receiving an honorable discharge from the army in 1866, Mr. Miller returned to Darke county and engaged in farming and stock-raising, which he continued for some time. Then for a number of years he carried on a Mercantile business in Greenville. In 1890 he was appointed superintendent of the Darke County Infirmary, which position he has since filled, having been reappointed from time to time. The infirmary buildings were burned in 1897, but were immediately rebuilt on a much larger.scale, and are now ranked with the best county infirmary buildings in the state of Ohio. Under Mr. Miller's management the institution is one in which the county has reason to take pride ; everything is neat and orderly and the inmates are well cared for. Mr. Miller was married in 1877 to Miss Elizabeth McGrew, a native of Preble county, and a daughter of Patrick McGrew. They are the parents of three children : Arthur V., Edna B. and Harry C. Politically Mr. Miller is a stanch Democrat, has a voice in the councils of his party, and has frequently served as delegate to county and state conventions. He is a member of Jobes Post; No. 147, Grand Army of the Republic. ISAAC MARKER. Among the citizens of Darke county whose lives have been devoted to agricultural pursuits is Isaac Marker, a well-known farmer of Van Buren township. He was born in Mercer county, Ohio, September 5, 1855, and when thirteen years of age came to Darke county with his parents, George and Lydia (Epperell) Marker, locating in Van Buren township, where he grew to manhood, early becoming familiar with every department of farm work. On the 1st of November, 1877, Mr. Marker was united in marriage with Miss Mary Jane Shields, who was born on her father's farm in Van Buren township, January 4, 1855, and was educated in the country schools of the neighborhood. They began their domestic life upon a farm of eighty acres which she owned, and there they have since made their home, Mr. Marker being engaged in its operation. In his political views he is a stanch Democrat, and he has been called upon to fill several local offices. Mr. and Mrs. Marker have eight children GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 753 whose names and dates of birth are as follows : Lucy, born September 19, 1878; George A., October 17, 1880; Lydia Maud, October I, 1884; Dolly Frances, December 28, 1886; Therman Russell, December 10, 1889; Mary, May 12, 1893; Harley Earle, July 7, 1895; and Homer Jennings, December 26, 1898. Mary died in infancy, but the others are living and are still at home with the exception of Lucy, who was married August 12, 1899, to Roy S. French, and they have one child, Rhoda Helen. EMANUEL HERSHEY. Prominent among the old settlers and highly respected citizens of Darke county, Ohio, is Emanuel Hershey, who resides on his farm on section 28, Adams township. The salient facts in regard to his life and family history are as follows : Emanuel Hershey was born on his father's farm,one-half mile west of Petersburg, in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, February 4, 1821. His father, Jacob Hershey, a native of the same county, was a farmer, distiller and miner and was a prominent man in his day. He was born in November, 1796, and died in August, 1872, at the age of seventy-six years. Benjamin Hershey; the grandfather of Emanuel, was also a native of the Keystone state, and in it passel his life and died, the dates of his birth and death being October, 1766, and October, 1815, respectively. The mother of our subject was, before her marriage, Miss Eliza Miller. She was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, May 19, 1804, and died March 17, 1880. Her father, Jacob Miller, was also a native of that county. Jacob and Eliza Hershey were the parents of seventeen -children, their family record being as fol lows : Emanuel, whose name introduces this sketch; Jacob, born March 13, 1822, died April 17, 1874; Benjamin, born June 22, 1823, died March 22, 1856 ; Sarah, born September 25, 1824 ; Jeremiah, born March 17, 1826, died December 21, 1833 ; Elizabeth, born May 4, 1827, died October 4, 1829; John S., born March 29, 1824; Anna, born August 3, 1830; Amos, born February 4, 1832, died February 20, 1898; Elizabeth (2d), born October 25, 1833 ; Mary, born June 30, 1835; Susan, born May 7, 1836; Amelia, born December 2, 1837; Henry, born April 28, 1839; Harriet, born in 1841; Fanny, born March 27, 1843, and Reuben, born June 19, 1845. Emanuel Hershey assisted in the work on his father's farm until he was seventeen years of age. In the winter of 1837-8 he attended boarding school at Lititz, Pennsylvania, ..and the following summer went to work in his father's mill, where he was steadily employed for about two years, in that time thoroughly learning the business. In August, 1840, he went to visit an uncle who lived near Buffalo, New York, with the intention of securing, if possible, a job in a mill in that locality. In this he was successful. He obtained employment in a large flouring mill at Black Rock, N. Y., where he remained for some time and had a valuable experience in the business. He was married on the 14th clay of November, 1844, at John Michael's hotel in the city of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, by Rev. Bates, of the Lutheran church. In the spring of the following year they commenced housekeeping at Metz's Mill, near Sporting Hill, Rapho township, Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, and remained in that county until. the spring of 1849. In April of that year they left their native state for Ohio, 754 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. coming by way of Pittsburg and Cincinnati to Darke county. Mr. Hershey has a vivid memory of the incidents connected with his early experience, both before and after he came to Ohio, and relates them in a most pleasing manner. The story of his trip to his uncle's in New York and his life in that state would of itself make an article of some length and much interest. Of his settlement in Darke county, he says : "We landed in this county at Bear's, on the 9th of May, 1849. The new mill house was erected in the summer of 1848, by Moses and Manning Hart, and in the winter of 1848-9 they sold it with an unfinished house to Gabriel Bear. Uncle John Bear came to Ohio in 1847, two years before our arrival, and made his home with Isaac Rudy, a brother-in-law of Gabriel Bear. The mill, however, had not been finished—only roofed and weatherboarded. In the summer of 1849 we floored it and put in the machinery; the race was dug at the same time, by Thomas Westfall, contractor. The new mill was started on the first day of January, 1850, and for seven years was operated under the firm name of Bear & Hershey. In 1856 we moved to the place where we have since lived. Gabriel Bear ran the mill for some years, after which he sold it to Jesse Tillman, for eight thousand dollars. It is now owned by a Mr. Cromer, but still goes by the name of 'Bear's mill.' " Mr. and Mrs. Hershey are the parents of ten children and five grandchildren. Their children in order of birth are as follows : Adam B., born June 9, 1846 ; Samuel, born September 28, 1847; Jacob, born September 12, 1849; Barbara, born May Is, 1842 ; Sarah E., born January 28, 1854; Isaac N., born November 19, 1855, died April 12, 1856; Emma, born February 19, 1857; John, born February 12, 1859; Eliza, born March 19, 1861, and Mary, born January 20, 1868. For nearly half a century Mr. and Mrs. Hershey have been worthy and consistent . members of the German Baptist or Brethren church. They were baptized June 22, 1856. February 20, 1867, Mr. Hershey was made a deacon and since August 17, 1892, he has been an assistant elder. More might be said of the active life and usefulness of this well-known citizen and only want of space prevents more extended mention. ELAM WHITE. Elam White, a venerable citizen and retired farmer residing at Glen Karn in German township, Darke county, Ohio, was born in Franklin township, Wayne county, Indiana, January 1, 1818. His forefathers were Kentuckians, both his father and grandfather having been born in that state. Both bore the name of James White, and both were by occupation farmers. When a young man James came to Ohio, settling in Butler county and subsequently went to Indiana, and there he married, and there he passed the remainder of his life, engaged in agricultural pursuits. His was a long and useful life and at the time of his death his age was ninety-six years and eight months. Politically he was known as a Jackson Democrat. He took a prominent and active interest in local affairs, served fifteen years as a justice of the peace, and was respected and honored by all who knew him. His wife, whose maiden name was Jane Boswell, was a native of North Carolina and was reared partly in that state and partly in Wayne county, Indiana. Her father, Barney Boswell, also was a native of North Carolina, James and Jane White were the parents of twelve children, six of whom are GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 755 living, Elam, the subject of this sketch, being the eldest son and third member of the family. Elam White was reared on his father's farm in Indiana, spending his boyhood days in assisting in the work of clearing and improvng the farm, and remaining at home til he reached his majority. At the age of twenty-one he came to Harrison township, Darke county, Ohio, and here he was married, May 21, 1840. to Susan Carlinger. She was a native of Baltimore county, Maryland, where her early girlhood days were spent, but after her mother's death, which occurred when she was eleven years old, she came to Darke county, Ohio, to live with an uncle, Samuel Carlington, with whom she remained until her marriage. They resided on their farm in Harrison township until 1898, when they removed to Glen Karn, German township, where Mr. White still lives. Mrs. White passed away April 29, 1900. Of the children of this worthy couple, we give the following record : Theodora is deceased ; Lorando Jane is the wife of Robert Downing, of Harrison township, and has five children, Clifton, Lellin, Bland, Samuel and Orda ; Maretta is the wife of Henry Bicknell, of Harrison township, and has seven children. Mrs. Eliza Florence Rodforcl, of Franklin township, Wayne county, Indiana, has seven children, Ida, Oda, Charlie, Ona, Thurman, Early and Winnie. The grandchildren now number nineteen, and the great-grandchildren, two. Mr. White began life a por boy, by honest industry accumulated a competency, and now in his old age is surrounded with the comforts of life—a fitting reward for his years of toil. Politically he has supported the Democratic party ever since its organization. CHARLES C. ROGERS. Charles C. Rogers, one of the representative farmers of Wabash township, Darke county, Ohio, was born in Missouri, February 13, 1842, but was reared in Clermont county, Ohio. His father, Jacob Rogers, whose birth occurred in New Jersey, December 19, 1808, and who represented one of the old American families, in early life followed the shoe-making trade and afterward engaged in farming, with good success. He removed from Missouri to Ohio, and for some time resided in Montgomery and Clermont counties, but his last days were spent in Indiana, where he died in October, 1893. He was an upright and honorable man, who never had a lawsuit of any kind. He married Miss Mary Ann Turton, of Maryland, and to them were born nine children, five of whom are still living and have families numbering from three to six c-ildren. Mrs. Rogers was a life-long member of the Methodist church and when past the age of forty years her husband also became a devout member of that denomination. She very carefully reared her children, instilling into their minds lessons of industry and morality, which aided in shaping their careers, making them noble men and women. She died about eleven years prior to the death of her husband, being called to her final rest in October, 1882, when seventy-two years of age. The remains of both were interred in the Salem cemetery in Montgomery county, Ohio. Not being fond of study in his childhood Charles C. Rogers obtained a rather meager common school education, but his training at farm labor, however, was not limited, for he assisted in the cultivation of the fields of the old homestead until his marriage, which occurred November 21, 1863, 756 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. when Miss Mary Catherine Fauber became his wife. She was an adopted daughter of John Armstrong, with whom she lived till her marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Rogers became the parents Of three children : Elmer Clinton, a Merchant of New Weston, whose sketch appears below ; Georgianna, wife of Lewis A. Davis, a furniture dealer at New Weston, Ohio ; and Roscce Roy, who is in his brother's store in New Weston. He is married and has a daughter. Mr. Rogers has given his children good educational advantages, and the older son, who has made splendid use of his opportunities, has been of great assistance to his parents, manifesting most filial devotion and doing all in his power to promote the happiness and enhance the welfare of his parents. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Rogers began their domestici life in rather limited circumstances on a farm in Clermont county, Ohio, but subsequently spent one year near Mattoon, Illinois, after which they returned to Ohio, settling in Montgomery county. In 1883 they rem0ved to Mercer county, where seven years were passed; the following two years were spent in North Star, Darke county, Ohio ; five years in Jefferson county, Indiana, and two years in New Weston, Darke county, Ohio, where the father engaged in merchandising, having followed the same pursuit in North Star. In 1899 he located on his present farm of eighty acres in Allen township, Darke county, and is now devoting his energies to agricultural pursuits. There is a pleasant brick residence upon the place, a good barn and tobacco sheds; in fact it is a well improved and most desirable farm. Mr. Rogers rents most of his land, tilling only a small portion, for his own pleasure and health. In politics he is independent, supp0rting the 'men whom he believes best qualified to fill the offices, regardless of party lines. He commands the confidence and respect of all with whom he conies in contact and is held in high regard wherever known. ELMER CLINTON ROGERS. Among the enterprising and progressive business men of Darke county is the subject of this review, who is now successfully engaged in general merchandising at New Weston. He was born in Clermont county, Ohio, August 14, 1864, and is a son of Charles C. Rogers, a well-known farmer of Allen township, Darke county. During his boyhood our subject attended the country schools of Montgomery county, and in the winter of 1883-4 he commenced teaching, which profession he successfully followed for seven years. On the 5th of September, 1886, he led to the marriage altar Miss bra P. Gower, a daughter of J. S. and Louisa (Hartsell) Gower, all natives of Darke county. Her parents were well-known farmers of Wabash township. Of their six children only two are now living: Mrs. Rogers, and Hattie, the wife of G. W. Arnold. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Rogers were : Orlando, who died in infancy ; Ethel Cleora, who died at the age of two years and a half ; Nolah Fern, born July 4, 1892; Ernest R., born November 12, 1894, and Homer Lee, born August 29, 1898. Mr. Rogers began merchandising with his father at North Star, in February, 1891, under the firm name of Rogers & Son, but two years later he bought his father's farm in Mercer county, and for three years turned his attention to agricultural pursuits. Our 'subject then embarked in general merchandising, at Eldorado, Preble county, Ohio, GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD - 757 where he carried on business for two years, and in May, 1897, came to New Weston, where he has built up a large and constantly increasing trade. In 1899 he erected the substantial brick building he now occupies, and he carries a large and well selected stock of general merchandise to meet the demands of his customers. He sold out the hardware branch of his business in September, 1899. Mr. Rogers possesses the necessary qualifications of successful business men, being industrious, enterprising and energetic, as well as a most pleasing and genial gentleman, upright and honorable in all his dealings. Politically he is a Democrat and has served as township treasurer in Wabash and Allen townships: Religiously both he and his wife are members of the New Light church and socially he is a member 'of the Knights of Pythias. JOHN MOHLER. John Mohler is a popular young farmer of Franklin township, Darke county, and is a representative of one of the pioneer families of Ohio. His grandfather, Rudolph Mohler, was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, February 6, 180 r, and married Susanna Souman, who was born in that county on the 12th of December, 1801. At an early period in the development of the Buckeye. state they came to Miami county, locating on a farm near the Sugar Grove church in Newberry township. There the wife died, after which Mr. Mohler made his home with his children, dying at the residence of his son, Samuel Mohler, in Miami county. He had three children by his first marriage, namely : William, who was born October 3, 1823, and died September 29,. 1851; Mary, who was born May 3, 1825, and is the wife of George Croft, of Darke county ; and Ephraim, who was born November J0, 1856,'' and married Mary Annie Neal. After the death of his first wife the grandfather married Elizabeth Miller, who was born July 31, 1801, and their children were : Henry, who was born May 14, 1829, married Harriet Deeter; Jacob, the father of our subject ; Sarah, who was born January 2, 1833, became the wife of Henry Deeter and died August 20, 1863 ; Susanna, who was born July 21, 1834, is the wife of William Shellabarger, of Covington; John, who was born December 8, 1835, is now living in Missouri with his wife, who bore the maiden name of Mary Ann Miller ; Samuel, of Miami county, was born March 27, 1837, and married Sally Miller; Rudolph, who was born March 18, 1839, and married Fannie Etter ; Daniel, of Missouri, was born October 2, 1842, and wedded Maria Mowry and both died in Miami county ; and Hannah, who was born January 29, 1845, became the wife of Justice Deeter. Jacob Mohler, the father of our subject, was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, March 15, 1830, and when fifteen years of age accompanied his parents on their removal to Miami county. The journey was made by wagon, Jacob walking the greater part of the distance. His fathet had previously made a trip to Ohio on horseback and purchased the farm in Newberry township upon which Jacob was reared to manhood. Having attained his majority, he was married, on the I 5th of January, 1852, to Miss Eidelia, a daughter of John S. and Sarah (Reed) Deeter and granddaughter of David and Elizabeth (Stutzmail) Deeter. The Deeter family removed from Pennsylvania to Preble county, Ohio, and later settled in Miami county. After 758 - GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. their marriage Mr. Jacob Mohler operated the Sugar Grove mill for seven years and then purchased the farm now known as the Teague place in Newberry township. That property he old to Joseph Teague for the latter's farm in Franklin township, Darke county, and on that place he died May 28, 1898, after a long and useful life. He was much respected and was a faithful member of the German Baptist church, with which he united in 1852. 'In politics he was a Republican. His wife still survives him, and by her marriage she became the mother of the following children : Allen, who was born January 27, 1856, and died in infancy ; Sarah E., who was born July 18, 1857, and also died in infancy; Elizabeth, who was born December 10, 1858, and became the wife of Aaron Shellabarger, of Franklin township; Mary A., who was born April 6, 1861, and died in infancy; Martha, who was born January 15, 1863, and is the wife of Jonathan Cool, of Franklin township; Rudolph, born November 22, 1865; Mina, born January 10, 1868, and now the wife of William Penny, of Franklin township; and John. John Mohler was born January 30, 1870, on his father's farm in Newberry township, and in the public schools of the neighborhood he acquired a good education, fitting him for life's practical duties. He engaged in the cultivation of the home farm, both before and after his marriage, which important event occurred in 1890, Miss Lizzie Knutt, a daughter of George Franklin Knutt, becoming his wife. After his marriage Mr. Mohler purchased and located upon his present farm, which comprises twelve and a quarter acres. He is very enterprising and progressive in his farming methods and carefully cultivates his land so that it yields to him a good tribute in return for the labor he bestows upon it. In politics he is an independent Republican and keeps well informed on the issues of the day. Socially he is connected with several organizations, including the Knights of Pythias fraternity and the Improved Order of Red Men at Bradford. His genial manner and social disposition and sterling worth have made him popular, and he is known as one of the leading young agriculturists of the county.