HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 175 in the Fayette Normal, and the following four years was busily engaged as teacher in the country school district of German Township. In 1891 he was elected assessor of the township on the democratic ticket, serving one year. About that time he had a breakdown in health which compelled him to remain practically inactive for four years. Since 1895 Mr. Ruihley has done a large business at Archbold in fire insurance, and represents some of the standard companies. He has also been continuously active in public affairs. He was elected township clerk in 1894, and held that office consecutively for fifteen years. In 1895 he was chosen justice of the peace, and the duties of that office he still performs. In the fall of 1915 he was elected mayor of Archbold, and was re-elected in 1917 and again in 1919, on a nonpartisan ticket. He is also a member of the Archbold Library Board. Mr. Ruihley in state and national politics has always been a loyal democrat. During the war he was a member of the local War Board, and gave his influence and leadership during the various campaigns for Liberty loans and other patriotic causes. In the spring of 1891 he married Anna Frey, daughter of Conrad and Verona (Schlatter) Frey, of German Township. They have three children : Pearl A. is a teacher in the high school at Harvey, Illinois, having charge of the Latin course; Alonzo C. is an attorney located at Toledo, Ohio; Elliott F. is a graduate architectural engineer of Michigan University. THOMAS C. MURRAY. A prosperous stockman and farmer illustrates by his experience the ups and downs of his line of business, its fascinating promises of fortune, as well as its equally abundant opportunities for failure. He has his full measure of both, but if he possesses the qualities which make for success he comes out at last on to and achieves a lasting place among the leading men of his neighborhood. One of the men of Fulton county who has met with much more than his share of ill fortune, but who because of his sheer pluck and determination to overcome obstacles is now enjoying a well-earned prosperity, is Thomas C. Murray of York Township.   Thomas C. Murray was born in York Township on August 7, 18457, a son of John and Mary (O'Brien) Murray, he born in County. Down, Ireland, November 1, 1804, and she in County Wicklow, Ireland, on August 1, 1&13. John Murray came to the United States and for a time was employed as a servant at Albany, New York. There he was married and some time later came to Ohio and settled on a farm on the present site of Berea, Cuyahoga county, but sold his tract of land about six years later and came to Fulton county, buying 160 acres of land in what is now York Township, which was then all covered with timber. His first action after coming to this tract was to clear a space for the little log cabin he erected in the midst of the forest, and in it the family lived for some years while he went on with the work of changing the timberland into a well cultivated farm. His death occurred on this farm on January 16, 1872, when he was sixty-seven years old, his widow surviving him until March 20, 1888, when she passed away. Their children were as follows: John, Ellen and Mary, who are deceased; Elizabeth, who died in childhood; James W., who is deceased; Samuel, who is a resident of Delta, Ohio ; Sarah, who is deceased ; Robert W., who is a farmer of Swan Creek Township ; Hugh, who is a farmer of York Township ; Mathew, who is deceased ; and Thomas C. and Catherine E., twins. The latter is now the wife of N. C. Wright of Wauseon, Ohio.   176 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   Thomas C. Murray has always lived on the farm where he was born, his father having deeded the homestead to him. On September 2, 1907, Mr. Murray met with a heavy loss. He had a barn and granary in process of construction when they were struck by lightning and destroyed, as well as their. contents, and one horse. This loss, while heavy, was not as great as that sustained by his parents during their pioneer days in York Township. His father was working in the timber and his wife went out to him to carry him some water, leaving her infant asleep in the cabin. She thought she had extinguished all the fire, but evidently did not, for while she was gone the house was burned to the ground and the infant lost its life.   Since assuming charge of the farm Mr. Murray has erected a fine, modern, thirteen-room residence, with good cellar, in which is a furnace. Natural gas is supplied from a well on the farm. Mr. Murray carries on diversified farming and has been successful in attaining to a position where he gets substantial return from his property. Since he was fourteen years old Mr. Murray has not slept away from his own home more than fifty nights, and is very much attached to it and his community.   On May 15, 1888, Mr. Murray was united in marriage with Nora Free of Fulton county, Ohio, a daughter of George W. and Hannah Jane (Repp) Free. Mr. and Mrs. Murray became the parents of the following children : Mary Jane, who is Mrs. F. C. Brinkman of York Township; Lora Ella, who is Mrs. Arthur J. Orndorff, of York Township; Ruby Ethel, who married Ralph J. Segrist and lives with her father. Both Mr. and Mrs. Murray are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and Mrs. Murray is active in the work of the Ladies' Aid Society, in politics Mr. Murray is a democrat, but he has no political record, his time being taken up with his farming interests. Both he and Mrs. Murray attended the rural schools and are friends of the public schools, desiring to see them further improved so as to give the children of the neighborhood the best possible educational advantages. They also believe in good roads and are willing to forward any movement having that end in view.   GEORGE IVAN TABER, a successful and representative farmer of York Township, Fulton county, Ohio, is a native of that township, and comes of one of the pioneer families of Fulton county. He has lived his whole life in the township, and has lived a commendable, useful life, has prospered by his enterprise and industry, and has taken praiseworthy part in the public responsibilities of the district.   George Ivan Taber was born in York Township on October 4, 1871, the son of George W. and Mary E. (Wise) Taber. George W. Taber was born in Cayuga county, New York, but came in his early manhood into 'Ohio, settling on wild land in York Township, thus being among the early settlers- of that section of Fulton county. He purchased a tract of land in the southern central part of the township, and there lived for the rest of his life, which ended on December 8, 1892. His wife, Mary E. Wise, lived for twenty-two years after his decease, death not coming to her until December 27, 1914. Both Mr. and Mrs. Taber had many friends in the township, and were generally esteemed as kind-hearted, public-spirited people, of responsibility and good life. They were the parents of five children : Harry I., of York Township; Althea Jenette, who married Thomas L. Aumond, of York Township ; George Ivan, of whose life more in detail follows; Bertha, who died when only seven   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 177   years old; and Arthur, who has also remained in his native township.   George Ivan, third child of George W. and Mary E. (Wise) Taber, was educated in the public school, the Taylor school of his native township, receiving the education customary in country schools of his time. But long before he had closed his years of schooling he had become conversant with some of the major, and most of the minor, operations of farming life. As a boy he was accustomed to undertake the execution of many minor duties on the home farm, and during the long summer vacations he gave most of his time to farm work at home. Eventually, after leaving school, he settled down steadily to agriculture, and has passed his whole life thus' usefully and manfully employed. And with good return it must be added, for he is now in the possession of a good acreage which yields his family good return. That property of sixty acres to which he removed after marriage was at the time he purchased it only partly cleared, but resolute application to its improvement brought the land eventually into its present state. The farm is situated in section seven of York Township, and the whole acreage is under cultivation. It is a well-balanced -holding, with adequate buildings, most of which Mr. Taber himself remodelled and rebuilt. And the property is well adapted to the purpose to which it has been put, general farming, and in the raising of stock and in dairying Mr. Taber has shown commendable enterprise and industry. During his years of industrious farming he has not shirked public duties. He has always been ready to give support to public movements that had bearing on some phase of the affairs of his own community, and he has been especially interested in church work. And for Many years he has been an. active member of the local Grange. Politically Mr. Taber is an independent democrat, although he has never shown an inclination to participate actively in national politics. During the recent war he was intensely concerned in national affairs, and by his own actions during the period showed himself to be a whole-heartedly loyal citizen. Fraternally he is identified with the Knights of Pythias order, being a member of Lodge No. 156 of Wauseon, Ohio. He is a member of the Christian Union Bethel Church, and he a.nd his wife are active workers as well as good supporters thereof. Mr. Taber has been treasurer of the Sunday school of that church since 1.916.   On October 21, 1.898, George Ivan Taber married Maude B., daughter of Andrew S. and Charity (Pontius) Hoffman, the former a prosperous farmer for many years in Liberty Township, Henry county, Ohio. Andrew S. Hoffman was born in Clear Creek Township, Fairfield county, Ohio, March 1.5, 1831, and died on May 30, 1910, aged seventy-nine years. His wife, Charity (Pontius) Hoffman, was born in Henry county, Ohio, June 15, 1848, and died on March 7, 1899, aged fifty years. The children of Andrew S. and Charity (Pontius) Hoffman were: Stant, now of Napoleon, Ohio; Reuben, now of York Township, Fulton county; Addie, who married George Graner, of Liberty Centre, Ohio; Alfred and Harley, sons, who both died in infancy: Maude B., now Mrs. Taber; Pearl, who married Roy Hardy, of Napoleon, Ohio: and Florence, who married Paul Bernicke, of Napoleon, Ohio. Mrs. Taber was born in Liberty Township, Henry county, Ohio, on January 27, 1878. Since she married George I. Taber she has entered much into community life in York Township. She is a member of the Christian Union Bethel Church. and has had good part in church work. She   178 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   is a member of the Ladies' Aid Society of the local Grange, and also of the Grange Thimble Club. She was president of the former organization for one year, and has served as treasurer of the Thimble Club. During the war she took an earnest part in women's war work in her district. Mr. and Mrs. Taber have one child, a son, Lawrence Winford, who was born on January 21, 1910, and now attends the local school.   EDWARD G. DAILEY. One of the men of Fulton county who has done much to raise the standard of living among farmers and earn for himself a fair profit is Edward G. Dailey of York township. He was born in this township on August 31, 1867, a son of William and Rachel E. (McQuillan) Dailey, also natives of York Township. The paternal grandparents were Peter and Rebecca (Shaffer) Dailey, natives of Virginia and Pennsylvania, respectively, and they were among the very early settlers of Fulton county. Jacob McQuillan, uncle of Mrs. Rachel E. Dailey, conducted the first store at Delta, Ohio. The maternal grandparents were David and Lydia Ann (Switzer) McQuillan, natives of Pennsylvania, who also came to Fulton county at a very early day.   Following their marriage William Dailey and his wife settled on a farm in York Township one mile north of Delta, and there he died on April 20, 1914, and there his widow continues to live. Their children were as follows: Edward G., who was the first born, and his brother, William A., who resides at Farmington, Michigan.   Growing up on the homestead of his father, Edward G. Dailey learned how to be a farmer and also attended the rural schools of his neighborhood. On December 12, 1889, he was united in marriage with Viola M. Fashbaugh, born in York Township, a daughter of Jacob and Maria (Batdorf) Fashbaugh, natives of Tuscarawas county, Ohio, and granddaughter of John and Elizabeth Fashbaugh, and William and Sarah (Cole) Batdorf. After his marriage Mr. Dailey lived on the homestead of his father-in-law for a year, when he moved to Royalton Township and rented a farm for three years. He then bought sixty acres of the Fashbaugh homestead, on which he has since erected a modern residence supplied with furnace heat, toilet, bathroom and other modern conveniences. Mr. Dailey has added to his original purchase until he now has 117 acres in all, and he is now carrying on general farming, that having been his choice of agricultural activity ever since he began working on his own account.   Mr. and Mrs. Dailey became the parents of the following children : Dessie L., who married Harry Whitmore of Pike Township, has one daughter, Reva May Harold, lives at Bryan, Ohio, married Ethel Porter and has a son, Gerald; Helen Glenn, who married Ruth Guilford, has one son, Floyd and Darel, and Mearle, Mildred, Vera, Fern and Donald, all of whom are at home. Mr. Dailey and his wife.belong to the United Bretheren Church and he has held all of the offices in the church, now being a trustee of the church and parsonage property. A republican, he served for five terms as township assessor, and for three years he worked with the Fulton county surveyor as his deputy. A man of more than usual ability, he has directed the best of his efforts to his farming and has been very successful in it and has introduced some improvements which his experiments have proven to be of considerable value.   WARREN T. MILLER. The late Warren T. Miller was one of the substantial men and prosperous agriculturists of York Township,   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 179   and he was also a veteran of the Union Army. He was born in York Township, in a little log cabin, on August 15, 1841, a son of John S. and Rebecca (Wright) Miller, natives of Fairfield county, Ohio, who were married in Seneca county, Ohio, about 1835. Soon thereafter they moved with oxen to what is now York Township, Fulton county, and became the owners of several hundred of acres of land in the timber. He died at Liberty Center, Ohio, in November, 1897, she surviving him until 1904. Their children were as follows: Charles, who died at the age of twenty years ; George, who is deceased ; Emeline, who married first Julius Leist and later married Ezra Sayers, both now deceased ; Eli, who died while serving in the Union Army ; and Warren T., whose name heads this review.   In October, 1861, Warren T. Miller enlisted in the Union Army as a member of Company D, Sixty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was honorably discharged in December, 1864, at the expiration of his period of enlistment. Although he participated in many of the major battles of the war, including General Sherman's March to. the Sea, he was not wounded.   Returning home, he resumed the peaceful occupation of farming, and on March 30, 1865, was united in marriage with Henrietta Fedora Dumaresq, born in North Royalton Ohio, on August 30, 1841, a daughter of John and Margaret (McKay) Dumaresq, he born on the Isle of Guernsey in the English Channel and she at Big Tree, Alleghany county, Pennsylvania. They married and settled in Cuyahoga. county, Ohio, from whence they moved to Ogden Center, Michigan, and he became the owner of a farm now included in the southeastern part of that city. In 1852 Mr. Dumaresq sold his farm and came to Fulton county, Ohio.   After his marriage Mr. Miller rented land from his father for three years and then his father gave him eighty acres of timberland in section 10, in the southern part of York Township. He at once began clearing off this place and improving it, and in 1875 hauled brick from Napoleon, Ohio, with which he erected a fine residence: Mr. Miller continued to conduct this farm until his death, which occurred on February 28, 1915, since which time his widow rents it to a tenant, and she now resides in Wauseon.   Mr. and Mrs. Miller became the parents of the following: John D., who died at the age of eighteen months; Martha D., who died at the age of twenty-eight years, was Mrs. Theodore Fonty, and left two children, Viola, who is Mrs. Tully Cameron of York Township, and Millis, who is Mrs. Wilmer Miller of York Township, has one son, Lawrence Herbert; the third child of Warren L. Miller and his wife is Rolla, of York Township, who first married Lucy Seymour and had two sons, Cecil and Kenneth, and after her death married Minnie Timbers, and they have one son, Ralph; and Octavia May, who is Mrs. Ira Free, of York Township, has one daughter, Iris.   Prior to her marriage Mrs. Miller taught school for nine terms in Fulton county and for three terms in Henry county and is a very well educated lady. She attends the Taylor Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Miller was a republican and served for one term as township trustee. He belonged to the Grand Army of the Republic. A quiet, hard-working man, Mr. Miller was held in high esteem in his neighborhood, and his death was recognized as a loss to the community.   GEORGE W. MYERS, now deceased, was highly respected in York Township, had long been a resident of Fulton county and earlier   180 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   in life was prominent in agricultural circles. He was born at Massillon, Stark county, Ohio, on April 30, 1831, a son of Henry and Elizabeth (Rogers) Myers. On December 31, 1860, George W. Myers was married at Napoleon, Ohio, to Rhena Farwell, born at Keen. Ohio, a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Thompson) Farwell, he was born near Keen, New Hampshire, and she in Maryland. At a very early day Mr. Farwell came to Fulton county, Ohio, making the trip overland and buying a farm not far from the farm owned by Henry and Elizabeth (Rogers) Myers, who had also come to Fulton county and located in York Township.   After his marriage George W. Myers located on a farm of 115 acres in York Township and proceeded to improve it. He hauled brick from Napoleon and erected a comfortable brick residence of ten rooms with closets, and a cellar under the whole house, which is still standing. When he took charge of the farm the land was nearly all in a wild state, but he put it under cultivation and made ,it a valuable property. Here he lived until his death on February 17, 1911. His widow survived him until December 18, 1917.   Mr. and Mrs. Myers became the parents of the following children : Estella B., who died at the age of four years; Nettie, who is on the home place; May, who is Mrs. F. E. Skeels, of York Township.   George W. Myers was a veteran of the Union Army, having enlisted in the spring of 1861, in Company A, Sixty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served until the close of the war. After his honorable discharge he returned home and resumed his farming. A democrat, he was elected a justice of the peace and served as such for a number of years. When Losier Post, Grand Army of the Republic, was organized at Wauseon, Mr. Myers became a member of it and continued as such until his death.   The home farm is now conducted by Mr. Myers' daughter, Mrs. Nettie Fields, a widow with one son, Kirk F. M. Fields, who is with his mother on the farm. She understands her work, and this farm is earning a good profit for the heirs. Mr. Myers was one of the sound, reliable and dependable men of his township, and was recognized as one whose word was as good as another man's bond. While he never cared much for public life, he possessed ability and had he so chosen doubtless could have had many offices within the gift of his neighbors, for they knew that he could fill them. Mrs. Fields is recognized as inheriting many of her father's excellent qualities, and is highly respected in the township where she was born and where she has practically spent her life.   SANFORD J. LUTTON, one of the successful general farmers and dairymen of York Township, is a man who has earned his present prosperity through hard work and intelligent investment of time and money. He was born in York Township on March 22, 1855, a son of Mathew and Eliza (Moore) Lutton, natives of Beaver county, Pennsylvania, where the paternal grandparents died. About 1853 Mathew Lutton left Pennsylvania for Fulton county, Ohio, and about a year thereafter he was married and settled on a forty-acre timber tract in York Township. Later, selling the original farm, he bought another one of eighty acres two miles west of Delta, Ohio, which was covered with heavy timber. On it he built a log cabin, in which the family lived during the period of clearing land and placing it under cultivation, although it was later replaced by a more commodious dwelling. In 1902 Mathew Lutton left the farm and moved to Delta, where he died. His widow survived him until August 10, 1918, when she passed away. Their children were as   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 181   follows : Sanford J., who was the eldest; Atha, who is Mrs. Webb Bundy, of Delta Ohio ; Elmetta, who died at the age of fourteen years ; Reasin, who died in childhood ; Samuel, who is employed by the Wabash Railroad Company ; Chauncey and Lincoln, who are farmers of York Township ; Bertha, who lives at Delta, Ohio ; Rosa, who is Mrs. Lewis Woodring, of Swan Creek Township ; Alfred, who lives in Wauseon ; Arthur, who lives in Chesterfield Township; and Victor E., who lives in York Township.   Sanford J. Lutton remained at home until he was eighteen years of age, during which time he attended the district schools. Leaving the parental roof, he worked for a time on Ohio farms, and then went to La Salle county, Illinois, and still later to Lee county, Illinois, continuing his farm work, and after two seasons returned to Fulton county. In 1884 he was married and then moved to a sixty-acre farm he had bought in Henry county, Ohio, and conducted it for twenty-one years, but then sold it and once more came back to York Township. Here he bought sixty-five acres, which was well improved, and he has since added twenty acres, having all but sixteen acres of his farm under cultivation, that being in timber and pasture. Mr. Lutton keeps a small herd for dairy purposes and carries on general farming, his efforts having always been directed along this line of agricultural work.   On February 7, 1884, Mr. Lutton was united in marriage with Mary Seymour, born in York Township, a daughter of .Gideon and Effie (Markle) Seymour, natives of Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Lutton have three children, namely : Nettie who is Mrs. Sherman Frederick, of Pike Township; May, who is Mrs. Carl Wade, of Wauseon, Ohio; and Rollie J., who is a veteran of the great war. In politics Air. Lutton is a republican. A sound, dependable and upright man, Mr. Lutton has devoted himself to the one calling he chose at the beginning of his career, and his success proves the wisdom of that action, for his abilities have been afforded in it a fair chance for development, and he has acquired a competence and standing among his associates.   MICHAEL RUPP. The late Michael Rupp was one of the substantial and highly respected farmers of Fulton county, owning and operating a valuable farm in York Township. He was born in Baden Baden,. Germany, in September, 18181 and in 1836 came to the United States and was engaged in working on different farms and in the clearing of timber in various counties of Ohio. Then he entered Government land in Hancock county, Ohio, and lived on this until 1880, when he sold that farm and came to Fulton county, locating on a farm in York Township that he had previously bought. To this he kept on adding until he had 240 acres of land, and cleared it of timber and put it under cultivation, making of it one of the good farms of the township. Here he died on July 10, 1888.   Michael Rupp was first married to a lady who only lived a year or two after marriage, and their infant daughter also passed away. On April 23, 1850, Mr. Rupp was married to Mary Gassman, born in Seneca county, Ohio, on February 3, 1834, a daughter of Philip and Catherine (Ninemeyer) Gassman, of Hagerstown, Maryland. Mrs. Rupp survives her husband and still resides on the farm in York Township.   The children born to Michael Rupp and his second wife were as follows: Bina, who is Mrs. Charles Hess, of Blunt, South Dakota ; Anna, who is Mrs. Jonas Culp, of Montrose, Colorado ; Catherine, who is Mrs. Charles Reed, of Wauseon, Ohio ; Charles, who died in   182 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   1886, while a resident of South Dakota; Joseph, who lives at Delta, Ohio; Ella, who was Mrs. Henry Hoffman, is now deceased; Emma, who lives with her mother; Alice, who is Mrs. Ellis McQuillan, of Pike Township ; Frank, who is on the home farm ; and Louise, who is Mrs. Kensie Trobridge, of York Township.   Mr. Rupp's educational training was limited to the instruction given in the public schools of Germany, but he was a man who learned much from close observation. In his political faith he was a democrat, but aside from voting took no part in public affairs. A very religious man he lived up to the faith of the Dunkard Church and carried his belief into his everyday life. Industrious and thrifty, he never spared himself, but worked hard and saved his money and when he died left behind him a valuable property for his family. Although many years have passed since his death he is remembered by the older generation as a most worthy man and excellent citizen.   EDWARD FAUBLE. Born and reared on a farm in Fulton county, Mr. Fauble during his active years has been actively identified with commercial lines, and has had an active part in the affairs of the Town of Swanton, where he is one of the officials of the Swanton Milling and Elevator Company and has also exercised the rights and prerogatives of a live and public spirited citizen of that community.   Mr. Fauble was born in Fulton Township February 2, 1880, son of Robert and Clara (Manley) Fauble. His parents were born in Ohio, married in Fulton county, and for many years have been respected and substantial farming people of the county. Their family of children consists of the following: Ella, wife of A. B. Putnam, of Fulton Township; Nellie, twin sister of Ella, wife of W. J. Flemming, of Fulton Township ; Roy, of Toledo ; Edward ; Clarence, of Toledo; Ralph, at home; and Florence, Mrs. John Clifton, of Lena-Wee county, Michigan.   Edward Fauble lived at home for eighteen years, acquired his education in the common schools, and on leaving home worked out as a farm hand fopr years and also rented and put in several crops on his own responsibility. For three years he was employed by a business concern in Toledo, and in 1912 began his connection with Swanton. He located there, handling feed and other supplies, and in 1915 his enterprise was incorporated as the Swanton Milling and Elevator Company. J. E. Robasser is president; C. A. Vaughan, vice president; Mr. Fauble, secretary, treasurer and manager, while the directors are J. E. Robasser, A. D. Baker, C. A. Vaughan, J. F. Sunday, A. F. Keener, Charles Neis and Mr. Fauble. The company was formed as a milling and grain elevator concern, and during the past five years has transacted a large volume of business, not only furnishing a market to the farmers for their grain, but also distributing the feed, seeds, coal, hay and other products.   Mr. Fauble has been a member of the City Council of Swanton continuously since he moved to the town in 1912. He is a republican voter and a member of the Methodist Church. In June, 1899, he married Myrtle Nobbs, a native of Fulton Township, and a daughter of J. H. and Anna (Fetterman) Nobbs. Her parents are still living in Fulton Township. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Fauble are: Helen, Rachel, Howard, Hubert and Leslie.   AQUILA PRICE. For a long period of years Aquila Price was one of the leading business men, bankers and citizens of Swanton, and still manifests a keen interest in the welfare of the town and   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 183   county, though now practically retired from business and public life.   Mr. Price was born at Fremont, Ohio, April 24, 1854, son of Josiah F. and Belinda (Merrill) Price. His father for many years occupied a commanding position among Ohio's lawyers. Josiah Price was born in Stark county, Ohio, and his wife at Marion, where they were married. As a young man he taught school in Marion, and after his admission to the bar practiced law a few years at Marion and then moved to Fremont, where he was associated for two years with Judge Frenefrock. From there he moved to Perrysburg, and served as prosecuting attorney and probate judge of Wood county. At the beginning of the Civil war he was commissioned a major and paymaster, and loyally aided the Union cause with every resource at his command. After the war Judge Price removed to Toledo, where for several years he was in practice with Judge George R. Haynes, a former member of the Ohio Supreme Court. He was also an associate for several years of Clayton W. Everett. Ill health compelled him eventually to give up his law practice and he then moved to a farm near Holland, Ohio, where his death occurred in 1887. His wife passed away December 10, 1894.   Aquila Price acquired his early education in the public schools. taking a commercial course at Toledo, and while in that city learned the drug business. In 1871 he left Toledo and went to Chicago, and was there at the time of the great fire and followed different occupations in the city for two years. He satisfied his wander spirit by travel over several of the western states and territories, but in. 1875 located at Milford, Illinois, where he engaged in the drug business and where on December 10, 1877, he married Georgianna Blanchfill. She was born at Oxford, Indiana, daughter of George and Susan '(McClure) Blanchfill.   Soon after his marriage Mr. Price came direct to Swanton, Ohio, bought a drug business, and remained personally in charge of the store until 1904. Not long afterward he sold out, and then organized the Bank of Swanton, becoming its president, and filling that office for several years. Mr. Price was elected a member of the County Board of Commissioners in 1912, serving two terms of two years each. He has also served as clerk and assessor and city treasurer of Swanton, and was the first incumbent of the office of city treasurer. Mr. Price is a loyal republican in politics and has attained the thirty-second degree in Scottish Rite Masonry and in also a member of the Mystic Shrine.   He is the father of two daughters: Laura, Mrs. Robert Reed, of Swanton, and Jessie, Mrs. W. R. Ford of Toledo.   JOHN EDWARD ROBASSER. While for a quarter of a century his efforts were capably directed within the scope of his own land as a farmer, Mr. Robasser in recent years, since becoming a resident of Swanton, has taken a very active interest in local public affairs and business and has supplied much of the enterprise to that locality. Mr. Robasser is a director of the Farmers and Merchants Bank of Swanton, is president of the Swanton Milling and Elevator Company and is a director of the A. D. Baker Company.   He was born in Fulton Township August 11, 1864, a son of Melchoir and Louisa (Zohl) Robasser. His father was a native of Switzerland and his mother of Germany. They were married in New York State after coming to this country, and Melchoir for several years worked as a farmer. In 1862 the family arrived in   184 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   Fulton county, Melchoir at that time being poor in purse but determined to establish a home of his own. With his modest means he acquired forty acres in Fulton Township. Most of this land was covered with dense timber. His labor year after year subdued the wilderness, and as his means increased he bought sixty acres more, giving him a farm of eighty acres and eventually a well won competence. About a year before his death he retired from the farm and moved to Swanton, where he died in 1911. His widow passed away in 1909. Their children were : Charles, of Fulton Township Elizabeth, deceased and John Edward.   John Edward Robasser as a boy attended the neighboring district school and was well trained to the tasks and responsibilities of farming. On December 6, 1888, at the age of twenty-four, he married Elsie Berkebile. She was born in Spencer Township of Lucas county, Ohio, daughter of Levan and Mary (Farmer) Berkebile, natives of Pennsylvania.   After his marriage Mr. Robasser farmed his father's place for a quarter of a century. He inherited forty acres of the homestead and subsequently bought forty acres across the road. Of the purchase land about twenty acres have been cleared and his individual efforts put thirteen acres into cultivation. He busied himself with the tasks of general farming, made many improvements, and lived in the country until the fall of 1914, when he removed to Swanton. His son Vern now has the responsibilities of managing the farm.   Besides his business activities Mr. Robasser served four years as a county commissioner, two years on the City Council of Swanton, and is the present mayor of that village, having entered office January 1, 1918. He is a republican in politics and a member of the Methodist Church. For six years he was a school director, and both in the country and since coming to Swanton has taken a deep interest in the maintenance of good schools.   Mrs. Robasser died July 2, 1917, and the Swanton home of Mr. Robasser is now being looked after by his daughter Flossie. He and his wife had two children. The son, Vern, married Edna Flemming, their three children being Ilene, Gerald and Marion. Flossie is Mrs. William Wier, and the mother of one daughter, Mary Elizabeth.   FREDERICK A. PILLIOD. The distinction Swanton now enjoys as a growing industrial center and one of the most prosperous towns of Fulton county is chiefly due to the enterprise and leadership of such men as Frederick A. Pilliod, whose name has been closely associated with the commercial and industrial life of that town for many years.   Mr. Pilliod is a native of this section of Ohio, born at Waterville in Lucas county March 20, 1866, son of Augustine and Emeline (Harris) Pilliod. His father was born near Belfort in eastern France, while his mother was a native of New York State. Frederick A. Pilliod acquired a fair education, sufficient for his needs, in the public and parochial schools of Toledo and in Assumption College at Sandwich,. Canada. His success in life is due partly to his early start and partly to the tremendous energy with which he has prosecuted every endeavor. At the age of eighteen he was working as a messenger for the American District Telegraph Company in Toledo. Eight months later he joined the Toledo Gas and Coke Company, and subsequently was in the flour milling business for two years at Holgate, Ohio. That brings his record down to the point where he joined the community of Swanton, then a small village without any   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 185   pretensions for world trade. Here he became associated with his brother, L. N. Pilliod, in the flour milling business.   On January 1, 1901, Mr. Pilliod promoted and organized the A. D. Baker Company, manufacturers of traction engines. He became secretary, treasurer and general manager of that corporation, which for many years presented Swanton's chief claims to recognition as a manufacturing center. On October 1, 1907, Mr. Pilliod organized the Baker-Pilliod Valve Gear Company, for the purpose of manufacturing a special type of locomotive valve gear. May 1, 1909, the business was re-organized in the form of a stock company known as the Pilliod Company, of which Mr. Pilliod is secretary, treasurer and general manager. The president and sales manager is R. H. Weatherly and the vice president is A. D. Baker, while the other directors are Walter F. Brown of Toledo and Frank H. Clark of New York. While the main offices and manufacturing plant are at Swanton, the company maintains sales offices in New York and Chicago, and does an extensive business with all the railroads. The business is rapidly growing, and already more than seven thousand locomotives are equipped with the valve gears manufactured at Swanton. The plant employs on an average 100 skilled men.   Mr. Pilliod has several other things to his credit as a live and public spirited citizen of Swanton. He is a director in the Pilliod Lumber Company of that town, is a director in the Farmers and Merchants Deposit Company of Swanton, and he served for twenty-five years as chief of the local fire department, and was appointed by Governor Harmon and served four years as a trustee of the State Hospital for the Insane at Toledo. He is a Catholic, a member of the Church Council of St. Richard's Church at Swanton. He is affiliated with the Knights of Columbus at Toledo and with Toledo Council of the National Union.   November 7, 1889, Mr. Pilliod married Mary E. Long, a native of Providence Township, Lucas county, and a daughter of George and Ellen Long. Her father for about thirty years was superintendent of the Miami and Erie Canal. Mr. and Mrs. Pilliod have four children : Harry G., of Swanton ; Raymond D., assistant secretary and president of the valve company; Norbert L., a farmer in Swanton Township ; and Margaret L., a stenographer with the valve comcompany.   JOHN F. ESTEL is owner of one the well improved farms of Fulton Township, on rural route No. 19 out of Swanton. Most of his life has been spent in this section of Ohio, and his record well deserves the confidence of his community.   Mr. Estel was born at Whitehouse in Lucas county, Ohio, October 24, 1857. His parents were Frederick John and Augusta (Grentz) Estel, the former a native of Dresden, Saxony, and the latter of Prussia, Germany. Five of their children were born in Germany. On October 18, 1854, the family reached Whitehouse, Ohio, and in 1866 moved to Fulton Township, buying a farm near Swanton. Frederick John Estel proved himself a capable farmer and substantial member of the community, and died honored and respected in 1898, while his wife passed away in 1899. A record of their children is as follows: Augusta, widow of Yarner Rakeskaw, living at Liberty Center, Ohio ; Anna, widow of Martin Kibler, of Swanton ; Emil, who died at the age of twenty-eight; Augustus, of .Pasadena, California; Pauline, Mrs. Cornelius Aicher, whose address is Stockyards Station,   186 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   Denver, Colorado ; Mary, widow of William Grumme, and living at Marshalltown, Iowa; John F. ; Malinda, Mrs. Edward keinz, of Marshalltown, Iowa; and Amelia, Mrs. Byron McClure, also of Marshalltown.   John F. Estel during his boyhood in Fulton county attended the common schools and also acquired much knowledge of farming. About the time he reached his majority he went west, worked on farms in. Barton county, Kansas, during 1879, and during the following year was employed as a cooper at Marshalltown, Iowa. After returning to Fulton county he lived with his parents until the death of his. father, and then for two years rented a farm in Spencer Township of Lucas county. He then bought the fifty acres known as the Levi Merrill farm in section 10 of Fulton Township. Mr. Ester has prospered as a farmer in spite of some losses and calamities out of the ordinary. August 5,-1910, while threshing, the buildings caught fire and all were destroyed. He replaced them with a complete set of new building, all of substantial character, and this building equipment does much to give his farm its present high value.   On May 2, 1889, Mr. Estel married Pauline Mayer' who was born at Whitehouse, Ohio, a daughter of J. M. and Elizabeth (Brenner) Mayer. Her parents were natives of Wurtemberg, Germany. Mr. and Mrs. Estel liave two children, John M. and Frank L., both living in Fulton Township. The family are members of the Lutheran. Church. Mr. Estel served as constable while liiTing in Spencer Township of Lucas county, and has also been a member of the local school board. He is a republican voter and is affiliated with Swanton Lodge No. 588, Knights of Pythias.   JOSEPH LUMBREZER. The Lumbrezer family history reverts to Lucas county, and Joseph Lumbrezer of Fulton Township was born April 20, 1880, in Spencer Township. He is a son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Ruple) Lumbrezer, the father. born in Switzerland but the mother was a native of Lucas county. In 1854 Peter Lumbrezer and his family came from Switzerland and located in Spencer Township, and Thomas Lumbrezer and his family are still residents of Lucas county. The children are: Katie, wife of Edward Langender, of Richfield Township ; Peter, of Spencer Township; Joseph, who crossed the line into Fulton county ; Lawrence, of Fulton Township ; Anthony of Richfield Township ; Louis, of Spencer Township ; Clarence, at home; and May, who died in young womanhood.   When Joseph Lumbrezer was sixteen years old he began working by the month and continued it for seven seasons. On May 13, 1913, he married Margaret Matilda Bauer. She was born in Amboy Township. She is a daughter of Nicholas 'and Catharine (Gerton) Bauer, who came from Germany. After his marriage Mr. Lumbrezer settled on a farm of forty acres he owned in Richfield Township, Lucas county. In the spring of 1910 he sold the Lucas county farm and bought ninety-seven acres where he lives in Fulton Township. He lives on the Fulton-Lucas county line, and in 1917 he bought fifty-four acres in Lucas county, in front of his house.   The Lumbrezer children are: Frederick, Milan and Raymond. Mr. Lumbrezer is a democrat. The family are members of the Catholic Church at Caraghar and he is a Catholic Knight.   ALBERT FLORENTINE KEENER. The Keener family story reverts to Lucas county, where Albert Florentine Keener, of Fulton Town-   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 187   ship, was born April 5, 1881. He is a son of Daniel and Sarah (Fausz) Keener, the father from Crawford and the mother a native of Lucas county. When Daniel Keener married he settled near Whitehouse and always resided in Lucas county. His wife died in 1910, and he still lives at Whitehouse. Their children are : Jeanette, of Toledo Albert F. Grace, a World war nurse in the United States Army, and Lucile, who lives with the father at Whitehouse.   A. F. Keener was educated in common school and in high school at Whitehouse. He went to the Metropolitan Business College in Toledo, and after he was twenty-one he worked one year for his father and they were partners for two years, when Mr. Keener bought the farm of 106 acres where he now lives in Fulton Township. He has eighty-five acres under cultivation and the remainder is in timber in the pasture. Since then he has bought two farms in Lucas county. He rents them and manages his farm in Fulton. He does a general line of farming and raises Holstein cattle.   Mr. Keener has modern appointments in his home—electric lights, furnace heat, etc. and everything is modern at his farmstead. In October, 1904, Mr. Keener married Lena Dora Stuessy, of Green county, Wisconsin. She is a daughter of Jacob Stuessy. Their children are: Mildred, Burton Daniel, Edith, Marjorie, Dorothy, Norman and Grace.   The Keener family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Swanton, and for several years Mr. Keener has been a member of the Swanton Board of Education. Since 1917 he has been a stockholder and a member of the board of directors of the Swanton Milling Company. Mr. Keener is independent in politics—the man rather than the party—and he is a Mason in Swanton. He has filled all of the chairs in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Lodge No. 528, of Swanton.   Of the younger generation of farmers one of the best representatives is Albert F: Keener. His ambition was to be a successful farmer and he has succeeded in attaining it. He takes a keen interest in the welfare and improvement of his local community, as the above record shows, and the agricultural and civic welfare of Fulton county are well assured so long as such men as Mr. Keener have the keeping of the destinies of farm and country life.   JAMES JOSEPH BORN. The Born family history centering about James Joseph Born of Fulton had its beginning in Fulton county soon after its organization with the coming of his parents, David and Margaret (Kline) Born, to the new county in Western Ohio. Their son was born March 9, 1855, in Fulton county. The father was a native of Berks county, Pennsylvania, while the mother was born in Tuscarawas county. David Born came to Tuscarawas county, where they were married, but they immediately removed to Fulton county.   When the Born family was planted in Fulton county, David Born paid $400 for forty acres of land,. but in time he acquired the rest of an eighty and an extra acre of land on which he erected a shop, where he worked as a carpenter, millwright and wagonmaker for many years in the early history of the community. As a carpenter he did much building all about the country. He served the community as township official in different capacities. Mrs. Born died May 13, 1894, while Mr. Born died June 4 of the following year —two Fulton county pioneers.   188 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   Their children are : Franklin, deceased ; Johanna, wife of Abraham S. Van Nortwick, of Wauseon ; Jacob, deceased ; James Joseph ; and Ellen, who died at the age of seven. Mr. Born acquired the home farm after the death of his father, and he has never lived anywhere else. David Born and his son invented a washing machine, and for years James Joseph Born was employed placing it on the market. He traveled about the country with it.   There are about six acres of pasture and not a foot of waste land on the farm owned by Mr. Born. His main crops are corn, oats, wheat and clover seed, and for seven years he has grown sugar beets. Diversified farming and crop rotation solves the problem in agriculture.   On December 29, 1881, Mr. Born married Lovina Saeger, a daughter of Samuel and Sarah (Nobbs) Saeger, and a native of Fulton county. The mother was an English woman and the father was from Pennsylvania. The children are : Grace, who died July 29, 1913 ; Charles, of Fulton, married Virgie Gill, and their children are: Thelma Maude, Wilbur Charles, Clarence Jacob, William James and Earl Teddy, who died in infancy.   Mr. Born attended Basswood district school, and for many years he served the community as a member of the school board. He casts his ballot with the republicans. He is a charter member of the Knights of Pythias Lodge in Delta, and has occupied all of the chairs. The family belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church in the community. Mr. Born is an active member of the Grange, and has attended the State Grange as the local representative.   While his life has been spent in one locality, Mr. Born has had interesting diversity of experiences, and his farming, business, social and civic interests indicate that he is more than a representative type of Fulton county citizenship. He has always been sensible of his obligations to others, and his individual record lends many additional qualities to the long and useful residence of the Born family in this county.   JOHN A. RUPP, secretary, treasurer and stockholder of the Elmira Elevated Company of Elmira, Ohio, is one of the aggressive young business men of Fulton county who has attained to the position his talents entitle him to hold. He was born in Franklin Township, Fulton county, Ohio,. on October 23, 1886, a son of John J. and Anna (Buchor) Rupp, and grandson of Joseph Rupp, who founded the family in America, coming here from Switzerland in young manhood. After his arrival in this country he was married, and finally located in Wayne county, Ohio, where for some time he was engaged in farming. Later he moved to German Township, Fulton county, near Burlington, and bought a 160 acre farm. He reared a family of five sons and two daughters, and died in 1885.   John J. Rupp located in Franklin Township, Fulton county, after his marriage, and became the owner of 1421/2 acres of land, and there he died in 1915 and his wife passed away in the same year, they dying just three months apart. Like his father, John J. Rupp spent his life in agricultural activities.   John A. Rupp was reared amid strictly rural surroundings and was taught the dignity of labor properly performed. He attended the district schools until he was seventeen years old, when he left to take a commercial course in the Metropolitan Business College at Toledo, Ohio, and during the winter months in order to earn sufficient money   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 189   to pay for his tuition. Returning home he was engaged in working the homestead with his father until he reached his majority, at that time securing a position as bookkeeper for the Elmira Elevator Company, assuming the duties of that position in November, 1908.. Faithful performance of them gained him recognition, and he was promoted, being first made secretary, then treasurer, and in September, 1917, he was made manager of the elevator. This company handles grain, feed, coal, salt, hay and flour, receiving produce from a territory of ten miles and shipping to the eastern markets. With Walter E. 'Spangler, Mr. Rupp owns the Cement, Tile & Block Company of Elmira, Ohio, is secretary of the Winner Manufacturing Company, in which he also owns stock, and in all of these concerns is a forceful factor.   Mr. Rupp is a member of the Elmira Special School District Board. He served on the board for five years, was re-elected and was made its secretary and clerk, which offices he still holds. In his political views, Mr. Rupp is an independent thinker. Proud of his family, he has succeeded in awakening the interest of members of it and now is secretary of the Rupp Reunion, which takes place in September of every year at Rufenacht Grove, and the popularity of these gatherings is largely due to his efforts. Mr. Rupp was also a member of the German Township Liberty Loan Committee and raised $104,250. In every respect Mr. Rupp is an excellent citizen, and one of his most effective services is that rendered as secretary of the committee having in charge .the securing of the high tension electric service line to furnish power and light from the Toledo Interurban Railway from Pettisville to Elmira at a cost of $9,000.   In September, 1910, Mr. Rupp was united in marriage with Almeda Weber, a daughter of Daniel and Catherine Weber, who lived at Archbold, Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Rupp have three children, namely: Lyle John, who was born in 1911; Stanley, who was born in 1914 and Paul Weber, who was born in 1916. Mr. Rupp is the embodiment of the qualities of utter fearlessness and honesty, joined with a fortunate capacity for hard work and intelligent direction of his efforts, and it is very seldom that he undertakes anything that it is not. carried through to a successful completion.   CORWIN F. MILLS, of Fulton Township, was born August 22, 1860, in Swanton Township, Lucas county. He is a son of Arthur and Jane Ann (Hogle) Mills. While the father was born in Lucas county, the mother came from Rochester, New York. The paternal grandparents, David and Sarah (Barnes) Mills, who were early settlers in Lucas county, came from Connecticut. The maternal ancestry, Isaac and Jane (Torrey) Hogle, always lived in New York. An uncle, Samuel J. Torrey, was a representative in 1867 in the New York Legislature.   Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Mills were married in Fulton county, but lived in Lucas county until 1869, when they moved back to Fulton and in 1870 they removed to DeKalb county, Illinois. In 1872 they returned to Fulton county and located in Swan Creek. They bought timber land which he cleared, and he did carpenter work in the community. He died February 20, 1884, and she died January 20, 1894, just ten years later, and as each died at the age of fifty-eight years, he was ten years older than his wife.   By a previous marriage Mr. Mills had a son, Jefferson C. who met his death in 1882, and a daughter, Louisa, now the wife of C. C.   190 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   Quiggle, of Delta. Corwin F. Mills is the only child born to his mother. In 1879 he went to Chicago and worked six years for the Deering Harvester Company, when he returned to Swanton and lived again with his mother.   In November, 1892, Mr. Mills married Addie May Purdy. She is a daughter of Dwight and Fannie (links) Purdy, and lived in Huron county. For a time they lived at the Mills homestead in Swan Creek, then bought an eighty in Fulton, where he has sixty-five acres under cultivation, the remainder in timber and pasture. He remodeled the house, rebuilt the barn and built corn crib, granary and hog house, and generally improved the place in order to make it his home for the future. For about twenty years Mr. Mills did bridge and road building contract work, but now he gives his attention to the farm and its requirements.   The Mills children are : Robert D., of Toledo ; Fannie, a student in Ohio State University at Columbus; Harold, Arthur and Marion at home with their parents. Mr. Mills has served as township trustee and for seven years he was a member of the Swanton Board of Education. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias and has been through all the chairs in the Swanton Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Mills votes the republican ticket.   He began life with the equipment of a common school education, a good mind and a willingness to work, and altogether his career has been one of advancement and rise from a lower to higher positions. His home people in Swanton have repeatedly shown the degree of confidence they place in his judgment and ability.   ROBERT H. VAUGHAN. There is a good deal of common history in the Vaughan and Nobbs families, of which Robert H. Vaughan of Fulton is a representative. He was born November 9, 1862, and is in the third generation of the Vaughans in this part of the world. He is a son of Edward and Jane (Nobbs) Vaughan, and a grandson of Alexander Vaughan, who came from Ireland. The grandparents on the other side, John and Jane (Mason) Nobbs, were from England. The family ancestry on both sides was among the early settlers of Fulton county. Mrs. Jane Vaughan died in 1870, while Edward Vaughan lived more than forty years afterward.   There were four children in the family of Edward and Jane Vaughan : Robert H. ; Clara, wife of Howard Wilson, of Delta; Ellis, of Fulton ; and Edna, widow of Ralph Herrick, of Delta. On March 12, 1883, R. II. Vaughan married Jennie Canfield, of Delta. She is a daughter of Charles and Catharine (Scouten) Canfield, the mother a New York woman. For eight years Mr. Vaughan lived on different rented farms, then bought one in Fulton, which he improved and where he lived ten years. When he sold it he bought the farm that is his home today. There were seventy-six acres, and since then he has added ten acres to it. He has cleared, tiled and fenced the lend, and has an excellent farmstead in Fulton. Upon the death of his father, Mr. Vaughan bought part of the old homestead and lived there three years, finally returning to the old home, and with a son both farms are worked together.   The children are Charles Edward, of Fulton ; Lawrence Orvel, of Fulton; Dorothy May, wife of Jesse Penny, of Metamora; Bryce, of Pike; Arby Alton, Georgiana, Ray Israel, Hazel Thelma and Elvin Cecil.   This brief record of the career of one of the best known citizens   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 191   of Fulton Township shows that when opportunities have been presented Mr. Vaughan has accepted them and labored with a right good will to justify his place in the world, and though for several years he was a farm renter he has latterly been an independent farmer and farm owner, and has rendered a good account of his stewardship, whether as a farmer, homemaker or good citizen.   IRVIN LOUIS RICHARDS. There is New England blood in the family relationship of Irvin Louis Richards of Fulton Township. While he was born at Ai, January 6, 1870, and his father before him was born there, the grandparents were from New England. He is a son of Henry Oliver and Sarah Jane (Doren) Richards, the mother a native of Starke county. The grandfather, Ammi Richards, was born in Massachusetts, and the grandmother, Percia (Pease) Richards, was a native of Connecticut.   It was in 1835 that the original Richards family located in the domains of what later became Fulton county, and from that early date "Rock Lawn Farm" has been owned by the Richards family, and is now the home of I. L. Richards. There were 200 acres in the original entry, and it was heavily timbered country. He cleared part and sold part, and the family endured all the hardships of the pioneers. Ammi 0. Richards was the first treasurer of Fulton Township, and he served the community in this capacity many years.   Thomas and Mary (Gill) Doran, the maternal ancestry of I. L. Richards, lived at Whitehouse, Lucas county. While he was a native of Ireland and she was a Pennsylvania woman. They were married in Pennsylvania and located in Ohio. When H. 0. Richards married he settled at Ai, on a small farm he bought, and a brother, Benjamin F. Richards, who was a bachelor, lived with the mother. The father died June 29, 1907, the brother in April, 1917, and the mother June 14, 1918, and since I. L. Richards was the last of the family he inherited the property.   On October 24, 1900, Irvin Louis Richards married Alice Maude Pickles, of Fairfield, Michigan. She is a daughter of Edward and Ida (Tunison) Pickles. He was a New York man while she was born at Richfield, Lucas county, Ohio. While a young man Mr. Richards worked with his father and uncle as a farmer, but after the death of the parents he became owner of "Rock Lawn Farm," and lives there. There is one child, Lucille. Vivian died at three years of age.   Mr. Richards had a common school education at Ai, and from 1895 to 1913 he filled the office of clerk in Fulton township. He votes the republican ticket. He is a member of the Grange at Ai.   The substantial elements in Fulton county are nowhere better represented than by the members of the Richards family thus briefly mentioned. Eighty-five years is a long time for any family to have been identified with Fulton county, since this covers the history of the region from the days of the first openings in the wilderness. It is an encouraging record that Mr. Richards still regards it his duty and pleasure to be with the old farm where both his father and grandfather put in so many productive years.   ELLIS HERBERT VAUGHAN, of Ai, along with his parents and grandparents have been residents of Pillion county. He was born at Ai, January 2, 1868, and his father and mother were born there. He is a son of Edward and Jane (Nobbs) Vaughan. The grand-   192 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   father, Alexander Vaughan, was a native of New York. His wife was Rebecca Jones. The maternal grandparents, John and Jane (Mason) Nobbs, came from England. The family ancestry were all early residents of Fulton Township, Fulton county.   Edward and Jane Vaughan both died at. Ai, she in 1872, while he died in 1911, they having lived more than three score and ten years .in one community. The children are : Harvey, of Fulton ; Clara, wife of Howard Wilson, of Delta; Ellis Herbert, who commemorates the family ; and Edna, widow of Ralph Herrick, of Delta.   Ellis H. Vaughan married Basheba Shufelt in December, 1889, a daughter of Warren and Vira (Hamo) Shufelt, and she is a native of the community. Their children are : Grace, wife of Earl Hable, of Toledo; Vivian, of Toledo; Herman died at the age of seventeen; Frances, at home; Kenneth, who 'enlisted in the U. S. Cavalry ; Gladys, Wilma and Anna.   Mr. Vaughan remained with his father on the home farm until 1903, when he bought an eighty and improved it. He has tiled and fenced the land and it is now all under cultivation. Mr. Vaughan is a republican in politics, and has served as a member of the local school board for six years. The family belongs to the Grange and to the Ancient Order of Gleaners.   A resident of Fulton county over fifty years, Mr. Vaughan has proved his character as a hard working and industrious farmer, and capable and public spirited citizen. He learned farming under the old school, and his most productive experiences have been in the present century, in an era of rising prices and of rising costs, and he believes that hard labor and good management are as essential to success today as at any time.   GRANT SHERMAN LAVER. When he was a young man of twenty Grant Sherman Laver of Pike began working out by the month, and he continued such activities for thirteen years, when he invested his savings in a farm of fifty acres with ordinary improvements on it. In that time he went to Leadville, Colorado, where he worked for several months in a smelter. Mr. Laver is a son of John S. and Pauline (Alwood) Laver, and he has always called Pike Township his home.   After investing his savings in land Mr. Laver has added some buildings and remodeled others. He has done a great deal of tiling, and at present he and his wife together own ninety acres, with all but ten acres under cultivation. He does general farming, and has a fine Holstein dairy. Everywhere dairy farming means increased land fertility.   On November 22, 1896, Mr. Laver married Charlotte Herrick. She is a daughter of Elijah and Abigail (Alen) Herrick, and is a native of Fulton Township. They raised a boy, William Quigley. He has been with them since he was nine years old, and he was a soldier in the war of the nations. Mr. Laver votes the republican ticket. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons Lodge No. 228 of Delta.   Mr. Laver was born in Pike Township January 12, 1865, and the brief record of his life as given above indicates that while he has had some experience away from his native community he has made best use of his opportunities in the old home county, and the esteem in which he is held is largely due to his success as a farmer, his undeviating devotion to good citizenship, and the wholesome influence he has always exercised in his neighborhood.   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 193   WILLIAM MOHR. When the Mohr family of which William Mohr of Fulton Township is a representative first came from Germany to America they located near Milan, Michigan. However, they were later residents of Amboy, and William Mohr was born there June 5, 1874, a son of Daniel and Ollie (Ottgen) Mohr. They were from Germany. The grandparents, Jacob and Elizabeth Mohr, and Simon and Louise Ottgen, all came from Germany. They all came to the same community in the United States. When Daniel Mohr married he located in Amboy, where he died in 1915, and the widow still lives at the family homestead there.   The children born to Daniel and Ollie Mohr are : John; who died in childhood; William ; Catherine, wife of Eli Kreiger, of Amboy ; Andrew, of Amboy ; Louise, who died at the age of ten ; Fannie, wife of Robert Cook, of Amboy; Matilda, wife of Earl Dings, of Sylvania, Ohio; Hattie, wife of Eugene Lehmon, of Fulton ; and there is a half sister, Mary, wife of Clarence Keller, of Stark county. She is a daughter of Mr. Mohr by a previous marriage. ,Mrs. Mohr later married William Cook.   On December 21, 1904, William Mohr married Ida May Myers. She is a daughter of William and Mary Jane (Everett) Myers, of Amboy. When Mr. Mohr married her she was the widow of William Kreiger. They live, on a farm that was hers when they. were married. The house has been remodeled, a barn has been built and he has tiled and inclosed the farm with wire fence. The house is surrounded by ornamental shrubbery and shade trees and stands on a beautiful building site—a most attractive homestead. It is their pride to have it in good condition.   Just one child was born to ,Mr. and Mrs. Mohr—a son named Howard Emerson, who died in infancy. For three years before his marriage Mr. Mohr clerked in a general store owned by Samuel Everett. He votes the democratic ticket. He is a member of Zion _Reformed Church, while Mrs. Mohr belongs to the Evangelical Church in the community.   CLARENCE EMANUEL WENTZ. There is Swiss ancestry in the history of Clarence Emanuel Wentz of Fulton Township. He was born September 8, 1868, in Seneca county, Ohio. His mother was born in Switzerland and his father in Pennsylvania. He is a son of Emanuel and Louisa (Graff) Wentz. The mother's mother died when she was but nine years old, and she was adopted into the family of Adam Andre, of German Township.   Emanuel Wentz settled in Seneca county, but in 1875 he removed with his family to Henry county. In 1885 they moved again, this time to Fulton county. He died in 1910, and Mrs. Wentz now lives in Delta. Their children are: Emma, wife of Al Curtice, of Toledo; Flora Ella, deceased ; Clarence Emanuel ; Frank Alvin, of Swanton, who married Nora Myers; and Wenonah, who married Edward Dow, and they live with her mother in Delta.   On December 10, 1893, C. E. Wentz married Gertrude Smith. She is a daughter of Henry and Priscilla (Morrison) Smith of Michigan. For one year they lived in Ai, and Mr. Wentz worked by the day for others. He then rented a farm, and two years later he bought a five-acre tract without improvements, going into debt for the property. Mr. Wentz borrowed $100 when he was ready to build the house. He went into the woods, bought trees and cut them into logs, hauled them to the mill alone, and after they were   194 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   sawed into lumber he hired a carpenter for fourteen days to help build the house. With that exception he did all the work himself. He hewed Out the frame and sills alone.   Mr. Wentz has added to the land until he now has fifty-six acres of well improved tilled land under cultivation. He still has four acres in timber for shade and pasture. He is in the farm and livestock business, and he specializes in White Leghorn poultry.   The Wentz children are : Lawrence, of Shepherd, Michigan, married Jessie Cornell, and they have two children : Robert and Lavier; Sylvia is the wife of Albert Curry, of Marlinton, West Virginia, and they have one son, Albert, Jr. those at home are : Cora, Flossie, Archie, Pollena, Maggie, Arabelle, Philip and Dale Franklin. The Wentz family belongs to the Ancient Order of Gleaners at Ai.   EUGENE D. WATKINS is a native of Fulton Township, where he was born September 30, 1861, a son of Christopher M. and Catharine (Drumm) Watkins. The father came from Wayne county, Ohio, while the mother was born near Hamburg, Germany. She was seven years old when she came with her father, Adam Drumm, to America. They first lived in Pennsylvania before coming to Fulton county. John Watkins, the other grandfather, was also a resident of Fulton county.   Christopher M. Watkins and Catharine Drumm were married in Swan Creek, but later they located in Fulton. He died in 1906 and she died three years later. Their children are: Eugene D., Addie, deceased, who was the wife of. Isaiah T. Fashbaugh; and Lela, who died at two years of age.   Christopher M. Watkins conducted a hotel business in Delta, from 1868 until 1892, when he traded one-half interest in the property for a farm of sixty acres in Fulton Township. When the parents died there Eugene Watkins came into possession of the farm and has since lived there. In 1884 he married Ella M. Shufelt, daughter of A. Shufelt. There is one son, Charles C. Watkins. Mr. Watkins is married a second time, to Lizzie M. Freed.   AMOS BOWER. The Bower family of which Amos Bower of Fulton is a representative, has had a migratory history. He is a son of John C. and Dora. Barbara (Heminger) Bower, and was born February 24, 1864, at Burgoon, Sandusky county. The parents were born in Germany. When they were young they came to Tiffin, Ohio, where they were married, and they settled at Fostoria. For five years John C. Bower worked for the Foster family—the father of Governor Foster.   When J. C. Bower left the employ of the Foster family he moved to a farm in Sandusky county, where he remained four years, and then he moved to Seneca county. After seven years on the Seneca county farm he returned to Sandusky county. He bought a farm in Sandusky, but eight years later he sold it and moved to Wood county. In Wood county he bought another place of seventy-eight acres, and he lived on it eighteen years. When he sold it he bought a smaller place. where he died in 1911, his wife having died June 20, 1876. The children are: John C., Jr., of Rising Sun, Ohio: Sophia, deceased, was the wife of George Roush; Frederick G., of Eden, Oklahoma; Lucy, wife of 0. D. Wirt. of Wood county ; William, of Ottawa, Kansas; Amos; and Mary Ellen, of Rising Sun, Ohio.   For three years Amos Bower worked on farms by the month, and   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 195   he worked one year at the cooper,s trade. On December 7, 1893, he married Flora Girton, of Perry Township, Wood county. She is a daughter of David K. and Rebekah (Fast) Girton, the father from Pennsylvania and the mother from Ashland county: For a while he resided on and farmed land owned by his father in Wood county, but he soon rented an adjoining farm and moved onto it. For a while he lived in Perry Township, Wood county, then eighteen months later he returned to his father,s place. Three years later he removed to Paulding county, where he bought a small farm of sixty acres. He lived there seven years, and in 1907 he bought the seventy-eight acre farm where he now lives in Fulton Township. There are sixty acres cleared and Mr. Bower has added many improvements to it. He is engaged in general farming and the livestock business. He operates a farm dairy.   There are three children : Carl, Alta and Twila Loretta. While living in Paulding county Mr. Bower served four years as member of the school board. He is a republican in politics. The family are members of the Ancient Order of Gleaners of Ai. They belong to the Methodist Episcopal Church, and at one time and another he has served as treasurer, trustee and steward. Not many families live in as many different localities as have Amos Bower and his father, John C. Bower.   ADAM HABEL, of the Maples in Fulton Township, was born in Amboy January 1, 1857, and all of his life has been spent in Fulton county. His parents, Jacob and Mary Elizabeth (Mohr) Habel, were born in Germany. They came to Fulton county in an early day and settled in Amboy, where the father died in February, 1867. The mother became the wife of Jacob Leiber, who died in 1907. and she died in November, 1916.   The Habel children are: William, who died at six, and Mary, who died at thirteen, and were older than Adam. Another sister, Amelia, died at the age of eight years. The Leiber children are : Peter, of Fulton Township ; Carrie deceased ; Amedia, wife of George Rechner, and John, who died at the age of six.   In February, 1886, Adam Habel married Minnie Fisher, a daughter of Jacob Fisher, of Massillon, Starke county. From the time he was twenty-one years old Mr. Habel worked by the month on a farm and at the carpenter trade, but after his marriage he bought a place in Amboy, and lived there until 1913, when he :bought an eighty acre tract in Fulton, with about one-fourth of it yet in wood land. Aside from farming he owns and operates a threshing machine in the community.   The children are Clarence, of Amboy ; Philip, of Seattle, Washington ; Isabelle, wife of Frank Kreeger, of A.mboy ; Pearl, wife of William Smith, of Fulton ; Lillie, wife of Walter Gifford, of Akron, Ohio; Rosetta, of Akron, and Otto, Ruth, Anna and Carl.   Mr. Habel is a member of the German Reformed Church, and has been one of its trustees many years. He has been a member of the school board for thirty years, and for two years he was its president.   A farm hand, master of a mechanical trade, giving good service to others and keenly pursuing his own advantages, Adam Habel has a record that places him among the valued citizens of Fulton Township. He regards his life as still in the prime, and there are none to begrudge him the prosperity represented in the ownership of the   196 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   Maples Farm, and the satisfaction derived from his part as a working citizen in behalf of church and schools and other community projects.   ROBERT D. MILLER. There is a great satisfaction in knowing that one’s life efforts have resulted in something, and that the future is assured because of wise foresight and thrifty investments. Experience is teaching this country that no other form of investment of time and money makes any more satisfactory returns than that made in farming. Every penny invested in land and its improvements and each hour of toil are productive not only of a, living but of property interests that grow more valuable each year. One of the substantial men of Fulton county who has proven all this to his own satisfaction and to that of his neighbors is Robert D. Miller, of Pike Township.   Robert D. Miller was born in Richland county, Ohio, December 25, 1867, a son of Anthony Wayne and Electa J. (Wilson) Miller, natives of Ashland and Richland counties, Ohio, respectively. The parental grandparents were Jacob and Fannie (White) Miller, he being a native of Pennsylvania, and the maternal grandparents were Robert and Humility (Lockhart) Wilson, both being of Scotch-Irish descent. These grandparents all moved from Pennsylvania to Ohio at a very early day.   After their marriage Anthony W. Miller and his wife located in Richland county, .Ohio, where they spent two years. They then moved to Ashland county, Ohio, leaving that section in 1881 for Pike Township, Fulton county, where Anthony W. Miller bought eighty acres of land, then in an unimproved state, and he went to work to develop it, remaining on it until 1904, when he bought a fine property. in Dover township, where he is now living, being eighty years old. His wife also survives and is seventy-five years old. Their children are two who are living, the second child, Minnie, being deceased. Robert D., is the eldest of the family, and William is also a farmer of Pike Township.   Robert D. Miller was reared in Pike Township and attended its district schools. On May 31, 1903, he was united in marriage with Ella Guilford, born in Dover Township, a daughter of Lucian and Hattie (Graves) Guilford, natives of the State of New York and. Licking county, Ohio. After his marriage Mr. Miller worked as a carpenter and lived in Wauseon, Ohio, for a year, and then moved on his father's old farm in Pike Township, of which he had owned forty acres for several years. He also owns forty acres of land in another part of Pike Township, which touch each other on the corners, and all but six acres of the eighty acres are under cultivation. Mr. Miller has made a number of improvements on his land, and is proud of the fact that he still retains the six acres of woodland, which is heavily timbered,. realizing its worth not only to him, but to the community at large in these days when so much of the natural growth has been removed. Here he is profitably engaged in general farming, stock raising and dairying.   Mr. and Mrs. Miller became the parents of two children, namely.: Wayne G., who was born in September, 1905, and Dorr R., who was born in February, 1918. In 1916 Mr. Miller was appointed a trustee of Pike Township, and has held that office ever since. He is a strong republican, and since 1914 has been a member of the Fulton County Fair Board, his present term expiring in 1922. In his fraternal affiliations he belongs to the Gleaners, and has passed almost all of the chairs in that order. A man of dependable character, Mr.   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 197   Miller stands well in his community, and his constituents are glad to have him represent them in the several capacities to which they elected him, knowing that their interests will be safeguarded as long as he has them in charge. Mr. Miller now resides in Wauseon.   JOHN J. LEITNER. It is a somewhat remarkable fact that the majority of the men, especially those of the older generation, who are engaged in farming have spent their lives in this line of work. In other walks of life men are prone to change their occupations several times before they find out the calling best fitted for them, but once he becomes interested in farming a man is not liable to go into anything else, for if he is sensible he realizes that there is no other business in which he can be so independent and from which he can not only gain a living but at the same time increase the value of his holdings. One of the men who became occupied along this important line in Fulton county is John J. Leitner, of York Township.   John J. Leitner was born at Liberty Center, henry county, Ohio, on September 21, 1862, a son of Jacob and Marie (McCracken) Leitner, natives of Pennsylvania. The parental grandparents, John and Sarah (Edwards) Leitner, were born in Pennsylvania, but came to Seneca county, Ohio, about 1841 or 1842, and there he died. Da- vid McCracken, the maternal grandfather, was a native of the north of Ireland, and he became one of the very early settlers of Seneca county, Ohio.   After their marriage Jacob Leitner and his wife located at Liberty Center, Henry county, Ohio, where he worked at his trade of coopering, but later he bought a tract of land and lived on it for ten years, when he returned to Liberty Center. In the fall of 1882 he came to Fulton county, Ohio, and bought land in Swan Creek Township. His wife died in December, 1867, and he was married then to her half sister, Mary McCracken, who lived at Liberty Center. His second wife died in May, 1887, and he married for his third wife Mrs. Matilda Clark. Jacob Leitner died on February 3, 1909. By his first marriage he had the following children : David, who lives at Liberty Center; Julius, who lives at Beavertown, Michigan ; Abitha, who is Mrs. Evans, of Toledo, Ohio ; and John, who was the youngest. The children of his second marriage were: Jane, who is Mrs. John Gordon, of Minnesota; Charles, who is a resident of Detroit, Michigan ; May, who was Mrs. Emory Nutt, of Detroit, Michigan, died in 1916; Harriet, who became Mrs. Edward Schlagel, of Washington, District of Columbia. is deceased ; Grace, who was Mrs. Sherman Whitmore, of Delta, Ohio, and Howard, who died in October, 1916. There were no children by the third marriage. The third Mrs. Leitner survived her husband until September 21, 1911.   Until he was twelve years old John Leitner remained at home, but at that early age began working for neighboring farmers by the month, and continued to do so until his marriage, which occurred on July 25, 1886, when he was united with. Mina Pontious, born in York Township, a daughter of Isaac M. and Hannah (Slack) Pontious, natives of Pickaway and Fulton counties. Jacob and Matilda (Grist) Pontious, the paternal grandparents, were born in Ohio, while the maternal grandparents, Philip and Hannah (Wright) Slack, were pioneers of Fulton county. For two years subsequent to his marriage Mr. Leitner rented a farm and then moved to Swan Creek Township and spent a season there. Then, in 1892, he bought 100 acres of land in York Township, where he has since resided. In it he has erected all of the present buildings and made other val-   198 - HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY   uable improvements, and here he carried on general farming and dairying, his herd numbering from eight to ten cows of the Holstein strain. Mr. Leitner moved to Wauseon in November, 1919, having purchased the property at 429 East Chestnut street.   Mr. and Mrs. Leitner became the parents of the following children ; Estella, who is Mrs. Fred Vollmer, of York Township; Ora, who lives in Clinton Township, married Bessie Williams, and they have a daughter, Fern ; Laura, who is Mrs. Cecil Miller, of Wauseon, Ohio ; Howard D., who is a farmer of York Township, married Ruby Swigart, and Floyd K. and John Archie, both of whom are at home. In politics Mr. Leitner is a republican, but he has not aspired to public office as his time has been too fully occupied with his farm duties. Both he and Mrs. Leitner stand very well in their neighborhood and are worthy of the confidence which they inspire.   LOUIS N. PILLIOD. The Pilliod Lumber Company, organized July 8, 1902, succeeded the firm of L. N. Pilliod & Brother, who established the business in Swanton, taking over the Swanton Manufacturing Company. Since 1909 the company has discontinued the sale of lumber and has engaged in the manufacture of tool chests. The boiler blew up and destroyed the sawmill end of the business, and when the firm rebuilt they engaged exclusively in the manufacture of cabinets. In 1913 the factory burned, but it has since been rebuilt and cabinets are manufactured again.   Louis N. Pilliod, now identified with the business interests of Swanton, was born at Napoleon, Ohio, May 24, 1859, a son of Augustin and Amelia (Harris) Pilliod. His father came from France while his mother was born at Genesee Flats, New York. When his parents married they located at Napoleon, later moving to Swanton. They lie buried at Swanton. Their children are : Louis N.; Augustin, of Grand Rapids; 'Charles J., of Toledo; F. E., of Swanton ; Henry J., of Portland, Oregon ; Mary Eugenia, deceased ; and Cornelia, wife of Edward Hill, of Swanton.   When Louis N. Pilliod was eighteen years old he started the milling business in Toledo. From there he went to Holgate in the milling and hotel business, and from there he came to Swanton. In partnership with two brothers he bought a grist mill and operated it until 1898, when they divided their business and he started the lumber business in Swanton. L. N. Pilliod was president; Lillian. Pilliod, vice president; Thomas J. Pilliod, treasurer, and Lawrence L. Pilliod, secretary.   L. N. Pilliod was married first in August, 1886, to Emma Hill, and they had one child, Thomas J. In July, 1891, Mr. Pilliod was married to Lillian Mabry, and they have four children : Lawrence L., Esther Lucille, Agnes L. and Edmund D.   Until he was ten years old L. N. Pilliod attended public school, and then he had two years in Catholic parochial school before going to Notre Dame University for three years. He is a member of the Swanton Board of Education and of the Swanton Town Council. He is chairman of the Board of Public Works of Swanton. Mr. Pilliod holds membership in the Order of the Knights of Columbus in Toledo. The Pilliod name will always be identified with the business interest of Swanton.   ABNER D. BAKER. The native heath of Abner D. Baker, of Swanton is in Knox county. He was born there in March, 1861, and some of his ancestors were early settlers there. He is a son of   HISTORY OF FULTON COUNTY - 199   Samuel and Lydia (DeHaven) Baker, the father from Morrison,s Cove, Pennsylvania, and the mother from Richland county, Ohio. The grandfather, Andrew Baker, came in an early day to Knox county. The DeHaven ancestry, Joseph and Catharine (Free) DeHaven, were early settlers in Richland county. It was in Richland county that Samuel Baker married Lydia DeHaven, and they located in Knox county.   Samuel Baker was born in 1833 and his wife in 1842. He was a miller by trade, and they later lived in Lucas county. Their children are : Abner D. Baker, of Swanton, who relates the family history, and Mary, wife of Charles Kelsey, of Lucas county.   Abner D. Baker had a common school education, and when he was twenty-three years old he went to Akron, Ohio, and worked as a machinist in a machine shop. From there he went to Erie, Pennsylvania, and worked one year in the Erie City Iron Works, later going to Detroit, where he worked in the Frontier Iron Works three months. At this time he returned to Lucas county and started a repair shop on his father,s farm in the country. He conducted a prosperous business there for many years, and in 1895 he opened a similar shop in Swanton.   He conducted the Swanton business as a repair shop until 1901, when it was incorporated under the name of the A. D. Baker Company, and he engaged in the manufacture of traction engines. He had already built five engines as a personal business enterprise before he organized the stock company. The A. D. Baker Company now conducts an extensive business at Swanton, with all the departments of a modern machine shop and factory. The average number of men on the pay roll is one hundred, with eight men employed in the office.   The A. D. Baker Company has had satisfactory business expansion under the management of John Chrisman, president; A. D. Baker, vice president; Charles Chrisman, treasurer, and F. E. Pilliod, secretary. There are nine stockholders in the board of directors. The A. D. Baker Company is a valuable adjunct to the business interests of Swanton and community.   In April, 1886, A. D. Baker married Ella Berkebile. She was a Lucas county woman, a daughter of Levan and Mary (Farmer) Berkebile, the father a Pennsylvanian, who came to Lucas county. They have one son. Louis R. Baker, who is the mechanical engineer of the company. He married Ethel West, of Ontario, Canada. They have one daughter, Lillis. The Bakers vote the republican ticket.   The Baker locomotive valve gear was patented by A. D. Baker, August 20, 1912, and together with F. E. Pilliod he began the manufacture of it. A stock company was later formed in Swanton, called the Pilliod Company, and Mr. Baker is a stockholder in it. He is also a stockholder in the Swanton Milling and Elevator Company. Mr. Baker is an active man in the Swanton business community.   JACOB SCHUG. The name Schug dates back to Germany, the parents of Jacob Schug, of Amboy, having come from Germany to America when they were young. Peter and Catharine (Mohr) Schug both came to the United States in 1842. and they were married June 9. 1861, and they bought a tract of land in the timber in Amboy. Here Jacob Schug was born, April 3, 1862, and he has always lived in Amboy except for temporary absence, when he was working as a painter.   Peter Schug, who brought the name to America, started with the